Holland is going Mad Max!
Well, not exactly. It’s anarchy, but instead of bands of bloodthirsty road pirates living the post-apocalyptic high life, there are clusters of over-sexed Saturnists, polluting the Netherland’s public spaces with their orgiastic excesses.
The police are powerless to stop it. Politicians are like deer caught in the headlights. Park rangers are baffled, confused, and though many will not admit it, somewhat titillated.
What’s next? State-sanction hash cafes?
Nevermind.
The anniversary is tomorrow, so I wonder, is anyone else still thinking about that grainy television show on July 20, 1969?
The landing was nearly cocked up, though we didn’t know it at the time. Something about the guidance computer. But they fixed it on the fly, and finally, they got the module on the surface of the moon.
Armstrong deployed the ladder, the cameras, and then slowly descended to the surface of another planet. It was everything we imagined it might be.
He let go of the ladder, and then uttered the words that so traumatized my generation:
â€Oh, my God, what is that thing?”
Inspired by Michael Collins.
The Skwib makes an appearance in the epilogue of today’s Carnival of Liberty, hosted at Eric’s Grumbles Before The Grave and also at the Life, Liberty and Property group blog. I’ve read through many of the posts, and it’s worth a visit, though for the progressives out there, some of the stuff might get your dander up.
The post by Sunni Maravillosa about health care made me kind of sad for people south of the border who have to make tough decisions about health care, and what they can afford. And at the same time, relieved to be living in Canada; I’m pretty libertarian on many things (such as free speech) but when it comes to health care, give me socialism. I guess that makes me either a chicken or an independent thinker.
You may also want to look into this week’s Items of Interest, which include fun quiz thingies from mirdonamy. Warning: many of the graphics contain those creepy/erotic big-eyed anime characters! (Quizzes are good though.)
You’ll also find The Skwib at the Storyblogging Carnival, hosted by Doc Rampage.
Never mind Al-Qaeda, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, or the insurgency in Iraq, a new terror threatens the sensitive oil-rich region of Arabia.
Camel racing.
A favourite pastime amongst the Arab upper classes, camel racing is now the hot-button issue of the region. Many countries have abolished the use of children as jockeys, and have moved to develop light-weight robot jockeys to replace them.
Qatar was first out of the gate with the CyberCamel 3000, a lightweight robot capable of guiding a camel at nearly the same speed as boy jockey of the same mass.
The CyberCamel 3000 is armed with six light-weight tac missiles with explosive warheads; it also has a taser-like appendage capable of delivering 50,000 volt stun charge. (In the prototype this was to disable the camel in case the robot lost control of the beast, but it has been effective at close-in combat with enemy soldiers.) The other appendage holds a riding crop.
Since then, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have tested the Ungulator Mark X, a doll-like robot that is surprisingly huggable. (Not recommended if the Ungulator is in assault mode, in which case the plush fur-like covering is electrostatically charged and capable of delivering a lethal high-amp charge.) In addition to this defensive measure, the Ungulator’s googley-eyes contain the world’s first effective weaponized lasers.
Since the successful tests of these two robots, Kuwait has launched its own crash program, with a biological focus. Instead of expensive robots, Kuwait is experimenting with a variety of primates, psychotropic compounds and high doses of mutagenic radiation. They plan to release ChimpZilla Camel Guided “Fun Bombs” later this year.
Inspired by:
Taipei Times article | BBC article
In 1945 the US Army had a little party, and the cake had one hell of a candle. It was called Trinity — the first atomic bomb — and boy, did it make the world a different place.
In the 50s and 60s, my cousin’s generation learned how to duck and cover; this was a method of “protecting” yourself from a nuclear weapon. By the 70s it was no longer possible to pretend that hiding under your desk could save you from the heat of the sun.
Strangely, not having a way to “protect” oneself was probably less traumatic. And I didn’t really worry about nuclear war in a serious way until the 80s.
Then Ronald Regan became president, and those of us old enough to understand international politics did get a taste of that trauma. But we didn’t get vaporized, despite a few close calls. So, no harm done.
But now the cold war is over, and everything’s okay. Right? I mean, we don’t have to worry about the bomb anymore do we?
Hello? Is this thing on…
Atomic age begins! | Close Calls | The Amadeus Net
(for a future history of the problem with nuclear proliferation — oh, and lesbians)
Every once in a while, Slorg and the boys will get together electronically, and share their best digital humor.
Sometimes it’s funny, sometimes it’s rude, and sometimes, loud obnoxious noises comes out of their speakers within hearing distance of the boss.
According to Benjamin Gross at the University of Illinois, Slorg and his friends, Thag, Unka, Grok and Fengor, are just practicing time-tested ritual gift exchange.
Fengor needs to learn to stop sending pornographic cartoons as massive 12-meg attachments, or he is going to lose some serious ranking, social-status-wise!
Inspired by:
Who pays for these studies, anyway?