How we all imagine the Biathlon.

more...

Posted by: Open Blogger at 04:52 PM | Comments (255)
Post contains 10 words, total size 1 kb.

How we all imagine the Biathlon.

more...

Posted by: Open Blogger at 04:52 PM | Add Comment
Post contains 10 words, total size 1 kb.

How we all imagine the Biathlon.

more...

Posted by: Open Blogger at 04:52 PM | Add Comment
Post contains 10 words, total size 1 kb.

A Valentine's Day Card For Jimmy Carter^*

*This is not hyperbole. Or, at least, not very much. After all, Jimmy Carter is the guy who was quoted as saying, "When I go to a dictatorship, I only have to talk to one person and that's the dictator, because he speaks for all the people" Yes, he actually said this.

Oh, and good morning morons and moronettes and welcome to AoSHQ's prestigious Sunday Morning Book Thread. And since Valentine's Day is coming up fast, it's time for a little romance. But first, the Bard.

Some Words You Probably Didn't Know Were Invented By Shakespeare

I've heard that Shakespeare, in the course of his writing, invented over 1700 new words, never seen before in the English language. He could do this because, well, because Shakespeare. Not only was he a really smart guy, but perhaps just as important, the English language was in a state of flux, and had been for quite some time. So a bunch of limitations and constraints we take for granted simply didn't apply. The 15th century English printer William Caxton, who lived a generation or two before Shakespeare, is said to have remarked late in his life that he was unable to read the books from his youth, that's how much the language had changed in only a few decades. I know that sounds strange to us, but that's because our English has been more or less stable for centuries and changes have come only slowly and gradually. What's the last big change to hit the English language, other than vocabulary? Contractions?

This piece in the Puffington Host lists 13 words that were actually coined by Shakespeare. I found it interesting because they're actually common words we use every day, rather than some arcane turn of phrase. Like 'gloomy'. And 'radiance'. And 'critical'. Also, 'zany'. That one surprised me. I always figured the origin of 'zany' would turn out to have been relatively modern. Nope, Shakespeare.

How Well Read Are You?

Here's a (long) quiz to gauge your proficiency in world literature. I'm not going to tell you how I did. Let's just say I thoroughly embarrassed myself.

And of those few I got right, a bunch of them were absolute, blind guesses.

I'd have done better if they had included moar sci-fi and zombie titles.
more...

Posted by: Open Blogger at 06:35 AM | Comments (212)
Post contains 1606 words, total size 11 kb.

OK, so this article here I pulled from the sidebar a few days ago is Margaret Carlson's defense of Wendy Davis' lying lies about the narrative of her life story which is a bunch of lies. As you might imagine, Carlson's piece is a boiled-down, gooey tar pit of concentrated stupid (think of that oil slick that ate Tasha Yar), that'll lower your IQ by several points if you so much as glance at it.

But, buried deep in the dumb, there is something kind of interesting. In the midst of her defense of Wendy Davis' serial lying, she suddenly switches gears and says:

I donÂ’t agree with Davis on the filibuster that made her famous. Abortions should be illegal after viability, which is coming earlier and earlier as neonatal care improves.

Really, Margaret? You really believe there should be actual *limits* on abortion? You're saying that after the pregnancy progresses past a certain point, abortion should be illegal? That women should be *forbidden* from having them? You mean you would deny a woman her constitutionally protected "right to choose"?

Holy crap. How dare she?

So what's viability these days? 22-25 weeks? That's getting down to almost the second trimester, isn't it? That's pretty early.

So how has Margaret Carlson been able to get away with such heresy? Why hasn't she been asked to turn in her Sisterhood card? Where is the Legion of Outrage and why haven't they burned Ms. Carlson in effigy?

She is obviously not of the Body.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 11:01 AM | Comments (131)
Post contains 259 words, total size 2 kb.

Par for the course. Cronies over capability. We are in the very best of hands.

Obama’s appointee to Ambassador of Luxembourg ran that embassy into the ground; the ambassador to the Bahamas took 270 personal days in a year and a half. The ambassador to Belgium was reportedly investigated by your own IG’s office for procuring prostitutes in the park in front of his house. So I’m wondering if you — do you — do you draw a distinction between people like Walter Mondale, who are, like, life-long public servants, and political donors and bundlers who have no professional or international experience whatsoever?

Posted by: CDR M at 06:20 PM | Comments (703)
Post contains 417 words, total size 5 kb.

The word incredible is suitable to describe last night's opening ceremony in Sochi: Incredible special effects that sometimes worked and sometimes didn't. Incredible glossing-over of the facts in the telling of Russia's history. Incredibly bad coverage by NBC wherein they referred to the Soviet Union as , I'm not kidding here, "one of modern historyÂ’s pivotal experiments". Russia's own Garry Kasparov has been on a tear for days.

And Bob Costas....

Bob, did you drink the yellow water? I can't stand to look at him on a normal day but, for NBC to expect me to look at him with that gross, runny, squinty eye... no thank you.

The games are now underway. The United States hasn't quite started raking in the medals, yet. Congratulations to Sage Kotsenburg and Hannah Kearney of Team USA. Kotsenburg took the gold medal in the Men's Slopestyle competition and Kearney took the bronze in Ladies Freestyle Skiing Moguls. You can keep tabs on the official medal count at the Sochi Olympics site, where you can filter the results in any number of ways.

And, though it seems so long ago, Gabe reminds us, via Twitter, that this never gets old:

Posted by: Open Blogger at 01:00 PM | Comments (588)
Post contains 204 words, total size 2 kb.

Another glorious Saturday, eh? The Winter chill has settled over most of the country and those areas, such as mine, which aren't freezing, are still miserable and rainy.

This week's car thread delivers just what you need to thaw the chill: Some of the most beautiful cars ever produced. Countrysquire has scoured the net seeking out the best of the best and has compiled a list of cars so hot that you will become 10% more cool just by knowing they exist.

Lead the way, Countrysquire...

This should have been easy. The ugly car list was simple - choose a few French cars and you move on. Not so simple when discussing the art of the automotive world. When the list that I generated reached 50 cars, I knew that I had a problem and had to stop adding as different cars popped into my mind. Still, how does one cull cars like the 300SL Gullwing, Â’63 Stingray, or Jaguar XK13? Oh well, here we go:

Ferrari GTO

There are probably a dozen right answers as to whatÂ’s the most beautiful Ferrari ever. The silhouette of the 250 GTO is still being used today by designers of sports cars around the world. Scaglietti got it that right. HereÂ’s Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason racing his $40,000,000 art specimen.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 09:00 AM | Comments (236)
Post contains 1109 words, total size 9 kb.

This thread brought to you by the Sochi Olympics:

Here's a thread for those of you who don't like hot tomatoes or pointy rosie elbows. You may deposit your man cards in the dumpster at the end of the alley.

Posted by: Open Blogger at 06:10 AM | Comments (192)
Post contains 66 words, total size 1 kb.

In Soviet Russia, the Olympics watch you.

Posted by: andy at 02:56 AM | Comments (308)
Post contains 15 words, total size 1 kb.