Guy's super-duper site

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Bagel Bakers Local 338 was a trade union local that was established in the early 1900s in New York City and whose craftsmen were the primary makers of New York’s bagels, prepared by hand, until the advent of machine-made bagels in the 1960s led to its end as an independent organization in the 1970s.

A December 1951 labor dispute between Local 338 and the Bagel Bakers Association closed 32 of the city’s bagel bakeries, leading to what The New York Times called a “bagel famine”, with the two remaining bakeries unable to keep up with the 1.2 million weekly demand for the product. As a result of the work stoppage, area delicatessens reported that sales of lox had dropped by as much as 30 to 50%.^[5]

…

Local 338 went out on strike in February 1962, leading to an estimated 85% drop in the bagel supply.

Bagel unions? Crazy times.

Duke Criticized Over Sex Toy Study

The Rev. Joe Vetter, the Roman Catholic chaplain at Duke University, is criticizing a study for which female undergraduates were recruited to small parties at which they could see and discuss sex toys, The Raleigh News and Observer reported. The university noted that the study was subject to standard peer review procedures. The research comes at a time when some researchers have advocated education about sex toys as a way to encourage healthier attitudes about sex. Father Vetter isn’t convinced, telling the newspaper: “I’m concerned about promiscuity also…. And to be honest, I don’t have the solution…. My concern is these students are in this developmental phase, and I don’t think it’s a good developmental practice to just tell somebody to just sit around and masturbate. I don’t think that promotes relationships.”

Is it even technically possible to “sit around and masturbate”? It sounds tantric or accidental, depending on your interpretation. Is there something Father Vetter isn’t telling us?…

Also: how many undergraduates are still in the “developmental stage”? Puberty must come late in the Father’s parish. Or he has no idea what he’s talking about. I couldn’t possibly say.

Picture yourself at home. In a corner of the room, on a coffee table, a shelf or a desk, a pretty little white Rabbit, knee-high to a grasshopper, has made his abode. He says nothing, just sits there unobtrusively, silently flashing funny little luminous animations on his tummy. You glance at Nabaztag and, through the color of his lights, effortlessly discover that the FTSE is down but that tomorrow’s weather is sunny.

Suddenly, your Nabaztag comes alive and begins talking and moving his ears. He tells you that the important e-mail you were expecting has just arrived, he reads out breaking news from the Times website like you asked him to, or he breaks into “I just Called to Say I Love You”, a musical declaration of love sent by a special someone. Or perhaps Nabaztag is just enjoying a few relaxing Tai Chi exercises.

That’s Nabaztag: a companion who is often discreet (but loud when he has to be), adaptable and versatile; in turn useful, funny and poetic, or all of these at once. A magical presence in your real world.

Nabaztag isn’t only a Rabbit. He’s also a new kind of technological object.

Nabaztag has just one wire, for electrical power. But his true umbilical cord is cordless: he connects to the Internet through a broadband connection and Wi-Fi Access Point. He can function even when your computer is off.

Adopt a Rabbit, set him up in your home.

Nabaztag lives his quiet life, while continually monitoring the internet to provide the services you have requested, accomplish the missions you have assigned, give you real-time info and transmit messages from your friends. He’s usually tame, but occasionally voices his own opinions and moods.

Best of all, because Nabaztag feeds on the Internet and because the Internet is boundless, there are no limits to what he can do or could do tomorrow.

Soon, every Thing will be connected to the Internet. It might be a good idea to start with a Rabbit.

Nabaztag, the world’s first smart rabbit

That rabbit is very cute, right? But the description is just bizarre! I’m not sure I want to buy anything from the people who wrote that description and then thought it’s OK to put it on Amazon. [And indeed, the customer reviews for the rabbit are less poetic than the description, but to compensate are much. much angrier].

Looking for a job? How about one where you set your own hours, you don’t have a boss, you have nothing to do but write at your own pace, you end up receiving fat royalty checks, and you don’t have to know anything at all about the topic that you write about? The job is to write non-fiction (textbooks and handbooks), only it’s OK if you don’t have a clue about the subject matter.

It was wrong of the government to sack David Nutt. But it’s also wrong for experts to pose as paragons of wisdom who are above democracy.

http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php/site/article/7661/