Saturday, February 28, 2009

Women Smoking While on Oxygen Tank Leaves a Mess for Fire Department


Well you certainly can't question her "commitment" to that sweet, sweet tobacco. A woman in Ohio set herself on fire while smoking because she was hooked up to an oxygen tank for emphysema. The funny part is that this is third fire of this sort in the area this year alone. From Cincinnati.com:
A woman smoking a cigarette while hooked up to an oxygen supply set herself on fire early Friday and badly burned her lower body, Middletown fire officials said.

It was the third such fire in Middletown this year, and a frightening illustration of the power of nicotine, experts say.

"To me, it's a sign of how incredibly addictive tobacco smoke is," said Robert Anthenelli, director of the Tristate Tobacco and Alcohol Research Center at the University of Cincinnati. "Despite the fact that there's obvious warnings and high risks, this person, like many other people, continues to be driven to smoke, despite these adverse consequences."
I can vouch that cigarettes are that addictive, but you think that once your lungs turned to fleshy, charcoal residue, you would re-think your priorities. Maybe it's just a sign of Obama being elected so people feel they can "Do whatever the hell they want". Much like the 15-year old on Maury who wants to be a stripper.

YOUR NOT SO DAILY QUOTE



in the face of TRUE LOVE
you DON'T GIVE UP even if
the object of your affection is BEGGING you to
_Chuck Bass




I MISS YOU

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Looking back at photos of Gemma, I just miss her more and more :( 

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MATT IRWIN

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Matt Irwin Photography

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I GOT BRUISES ON MY KNEES FOR YOU, GOT HOLES IN MY NEW JEANS FOR YOU

Currently Listening To: Bruises - Chairlift

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Model: Daria Werbowy
Isabel Marant Ad S/S 09

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Friday, February 27, 2009

EXHAUSTED

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Have a nice weekend! xo
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BEHATI <3

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MK MK MK

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Remember this little post? Well here's the complete editorial of Mary-Kate in Fashion Magazine March 2009.

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Getting Bagged


I think we've already been "tea-bagged" by the colossal sack of the Stimulus "package", but a witty sign nonetheless. Excellent political journalist David Weigel has more shots of the D.C. protest at his website, and Jonn Lilyea is liveblogging thing. Good shit.

Regular legs aren't good enough for this cocky asshole


What ever happened to the time when being well proportioned was enough for everyone? You know, Secretary Bird, it's pretty easy to prance around on regular rooster legs, I've seen it done quite a bit. But were they good enough for you? No, you had to get GIANT FUCKING LEGS LIKE A GODDAMNED FLAMINGO. Well, you aren't a flamingo, Secretary Bird, you are just a regular bird that traded in its basic decency for a fucking gimmick. Apparently, it wasn't even good enough, because you had to get a shitty job (btw, it should be Assistant Bird, asshole, way to demean yourself). Since you are apparently so good at dictation, you should get ready to take a message: Dear Secretary Bird, comma. Fuck you, period. Sincerely, etc.

The Beauty Smiling Indonesian Girl









Thursday, February 26, 2009

Get These People Some Nails and a Cross

Bobos Feeling the Pinch of the Recession (Not so Much)


I suppose some Americans are suffering from the economy somewhere out there, but it sure as hell wasn't any place the Washington Post investigated:
Within one week, Mary changed the bulb in the headlight of her Mercedes, cutting out a $120 trip to the mechanic. The couple made a cake for their 11-year-old daughter's birthday party instead of spending $50 at the local bakery. And Chris, who works in a management job, picked up some cans of paint from the Sears in Fair Oaks to help a friend redecorate -- seven hours of work but a savings of roughly $1,000.

"We really had to look at the equation to build in additional efficiencies," Chris Poleto said.

Consumers are weighing similar decisions across sectors. Paola Domenge, 34, of Potomac canceled her lawn service last year and now mulches the yard and trims the wisteria herself, saving as much as $500 a month -- even before she was laid off from her marketing job about a month ago and started a bakery. Alina Zhukovskaya, 28, of Arlington dismissed her personal trainer to save $60 a week.
I have no clue what "wisteria" is supposed to be, but I'm sure these upper middle class cracker types will be happy that it's probably somewhere in that monstrous stimulus package. Good thing Obama will solve all of our problems.

CHLOË CONTINUES

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Here she is at the opening of her second collection for "Opening Ceremony".
To see her collection click here.
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LARA AND ZARA

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I'm sorry if you've already seen these ads ( you probably have ), but they are just so amazing I couldn't resist posting them, and I'm pretty sure you wouldn't mind looking at them one more time either. Lara was the best pick for this, and I love Zara even more now! It's a difficult choice to choose whether I prefer these to Sasha Pivovarova's ads, but I think the styling of these ones are much better! 

Image source: ru_glamour

Attorney General To Re-impose Assault Weapons Ban

Nothing freaks out non-country club going conservatives like the prospect of jack-booted thugs from the government coming to seize your firearms. At best, gun control is a way to tamper down on an American sub-culture that might prove "problematic" for the administration. And at worst, it's the first step to rounding up "unenlightened" Americans for the 21st century gulags. That's why Obama's "bitter" comment proved so embarrassing for him during the campaign season, because many Americans value the importance of the reasons behind the 2nd Amendment with zero equivication. This might seem completely paranoid and maniacal to you (although I'm drifting further into that camp by the day), but it's difficult to understand any sort of rationale behind Attorney General Holder's announcement to re-institute the Assault Weapons Ban. From ABC:
"As President Obama indicated during the campaign, there are just a few gun-related changes that we would like to make, and among them would be to reinstitute the ban on the sale of assault weapons," Holder told reporters.

Holder said that putting the ban back in place would not only be a positive move by the United States, it would help cut down on the flow of guns going across the border into Mexico, which is struggling with heavy violence among drug cartels along the border.

"I think that will have a positive impact in Mexico, at a minimum." Holder said at a news conference on the arrest of more than 700 people in a drug enforcement crackdown on Mexican drug cartels operating in the U.S.

While Mexico is certainly having a crisis of security, the Mexican drug cartels are not using AR-15s, but grenades, RPGs, and automatic weapons which are not available in American gun shops. Don't expect Holder to re-think the decades long failed drug policies in America, because the man is a confirmed crusader. The left did their best in the 90s to disarm the American population by swarming like buzzards around human tragedy to portray every school shooting as the fault of the NRA. Michael Moore interviewing an Alzheimer's-ridden Charlton Heston during Bowling For Columbine showed their "by any means necessary" approach to this end. Sure, liberal weenies are funny as hell when they're crying about trees or screaming while being arrested, but these people are in charge now and their threat to freedom shouldn't be laughed off. Don't think bad shit can't happen here because it's America. [/end paranoid rant for the day]

The Shit Heap of Debt

A Ramirez Cartoon That Rings True

For a guy who stated that he was going to halve the deficit by 2013, the President certainly isn't off to a very good start. His proposed FY10 budget is reaching upwards of $3.6T. WSJ has the details:
President Barack Obama delivered a $3.6 trillion budget blueprint to Congress Thursday that aims to "break from a troubled past," with expanded government activism, tax increases on affluent families and businesses, and spending cuts targeted at those he says profited from "an era of profound irresponsibility."...
...The president blamed the nation's economic travails on the administration that preceded him and on a nation that lost its bearings. His budget plan projects a federal deficit of $1.75 trillion for 2009, or 12.3% of the gross domestic product, a level not seen since 1942 as the U.S. plunged into World War II.
The below graph shows the years of surplus vs. deficit leading up to 2010 and proves that no politician of any party can be trusted to govern in a fiscally responsible fashion.
Where's Ross Perot when you need him.

Crossbreed kittens are genetically engineered to fuck shit up


Kitten, they created you so you could be a Persian cat without long hair, but what they didn't predict was you sticking your fucking head out of that bed and making a face which is pretty much the worst thing I've ever seen. You are like the Natasha Henstridge in Species of cute. I would blame the misguided souls that made you, but I'm not entirely convinced you couldn't just keep it together and lead a normal cat life. For example, why are you looking at the camera? And Jesus Christ, stop fucking frowning. You have your whole life ahead of you!

And then I find out you have your own blog? And it's in Japanese! Uh-uh, learning how to use Flash, I believe, BUT THERE'S NO FUCKING WAY YOU KNOW JAPANESE, KITTEN, IT'S A REALLY HARD LANGUAGE TO LEARN. Something is going on here, Kitten. I'm going to find out what it is. So get ready, Kitten, I'll give you something to frown about.

Mi-Hee Yu, Another Look

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Here's another look at former aerobics instructor Korean female bodybuilder Mi-Hee Yu.
She says that her weight had gotten up to 176 after the birth of her daughter and she wanted to lose weight so she took up bodybuilding.
All of this muscle is packed onto a 5' 2½", 112-pound frame by the way.
And she's an all natural bodybuilder.

Aliens on Other Worlds To Save us From Our Wretched Existence

It'll Be Like Plan 9 From Outer Space...Everyday!

Great news. For all of you folks who got wedgied in high school for reading a copy of the Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy and praying that a UFO would take you away from this cruel world, cheer up! It seems that it's virtually statistically impossible to not have planets capable of sustaining life. From Live Science:

There are about ten thousand billion billion habitable planets in the observable universe, and some of these Earth-like worlds could be found by a mission set to launch early next month, a leading planet-formation theorist now speculates.

Alan Boss, astrophysicist at the Carnegie Institution in Washington, D.C., and author of "The Crowded Universe" (Basic Books), published this month, came up with that rough number by estimating there is about one habitable planet around every sun-like star in the galaxy, of which there are about 10 billion, and multiplying that by the number of galaxies in the universe (about 100 billion).

This result is inexact of course, so give or take a power of ten or so, Boss said, which is standard for these types of estimates in astronomy.

"Based on what we already know, the universe is going to turn out to be chock full of habitable planets (i.e. Earth-like worlds), and therefore life is likely to be widespread," said Boss, who discussed these estimates with a group of reporters last weekend in Chicago at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Now if only NASA could get something into space without it getting blowed up, maybe we could accelerate civilization's destiny before we all end up killing each other.

Patrick Ruffini Carpet Bombs Joe Teh Plumber

That's Gonna Leave A Mark

The bizarre fetishization of JTP has gone on for too damn long amongst conservative outfits like Pajamas Media. Joe recently met with The Heritage Foundation and the Cato Institue and referred to them as "bi-partisan" showing a complete lack of knowledge on political matters, and a recent interview about Obama's speech last night further lauded his embarrassing imbecile credentials. Yet, he's currently being trumpeted around CPAC like he's the hot-chick version of Sully and is going to lead the GOP out of the wilderness. Influential conservative Patrick Ruffini says what we're all thinking and states the man needs to quietly go away. From The Next Right:
This culture of identity politics means we get especially defensive about the Liberal Majority's main lines of attack, because we think of our position as inherently fragile. The one that spawned the Cult of Joe the Plumber was the meme that Republicans want tax cuts only for the rich and that we don't stand for working Americans. When find a highly visible figure who contradicts this notion, we swing into action. And we go on to press the argument to the point to absurdity, replete with plungers and custom "Joe" yard signs to prove our working class chops. These are the not the marks of a movement that assumes it operates (or should operate) from a position of political and cultural supremacy.
Maybe the GOP has some self-hatred they are trying to eradicate, because progressives frequently portray them as some sort of Mr. Burns admiring their own monocle collection. Any trip through middle America (or the military for that matter) would easily dispel this stereotype. But, the GOP tries too damn hard to be the "anti-elite" party by parading around guys who work for a living as a sign that they aren't a bunch of country club yahoos. This was evident in Jindal's lousy speech last night, where he laid on the extra-thick Southern accent as if he just got back from wrestling a gator at a Lynryd Skynyrd show. His attempt at folksyism was bizarre, considering the dude is a Rhodes scholar.

Lest anyone question my non-elite bona fides, I'm sitting on an air mattress right now drinking a 16oz MGD can, but I understand that people in positions of leadership and policymaking should be up to speed and know what the fuck is going on. The American Revolution was won by a bunch of pissed-off farmers who wanted the King of England out of their face, but the leadership was all well-educated Masons. Seems to have worked out pretty well, so why can't conservatives understand that?

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

SPEECHLESS

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I'm so honored, surprised and extremely happy that I got this award from the fabulous Ida! Thank you so much!

Fabulous Blog Award Rules:
1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate 10 blogs which you think are fabulous.
3. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.
4. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to the person from whom you received your award.

I tag these amazing people (even though they probably already have one!):

EMMANUELLE, WILL YOU BE MY STYLIST?

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Model: Anna Selezneva
Photographer: Terry Richardson
Stylist: Emmanuelle Alt
Vogue Paris August 2008
"1. Reality Show"

Emmanuelle is just amazing, and I love this shot. Also, I'd like to greatly thank the people who follow my blog. I'm so honored! Big kisses xx

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CARINE BACKSTAGE

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Carine Roitfeld backstage at William Rast F/W 09
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BAREFOOT ON THE BEACH

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Oversized Sweater - Stella McCartney
Navy Tote - Fendi
Shorts - Topshop
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                          net-a-porter
                          topshop

The dik-dik is one evil fucker


While there are some animals that just straight don't exist, the dik-dik is very real, only you can't see it except in photos. (Proof: Show me a dik-dik on the internet that isn't in a photograph.) This photo was taken of an out of focus tree, but when it was developed, there was a dik-dik right there, smiling in its little creepy adorable way. Trust me: you do not want a dik-dik to show up in your photos. Minutes after this photo was taken, both the man and the dog were killed in a freak accident involving a water ski, two pairs of wool mittens, and a lion (it was mostly because of the lion). Dik-dik's are doomed to this kind of work because they are really just a giant rip-off of an antelope with a little bit of anime thrown in to make them look really creepy in a Disney kind of way.

The best way to get rid of a dik-dik in any photo is to tell it to get lost. Personally, I like focusing on its lack of originality, e.g. HEY DIK-DIK IF I WANTED TO GET TERRIFIED BY WEIRD LOOKING PHOTOS, I WOULD JUST WATCH THE RING OR READ THE GOOSEBUMPS BOOK SAY CHEESE AND DIE. Don't try to get rid of them by looking at various pictures of them in cute poses for hours on end, or by thinking it's ridiculously cute that they are named after the sound they make when they are alarmed, because I've tried that already, and it doesn't work.

Obama's Big Speech: I'm Not Afraid Anymore!



Even though Politico is busting out the knee pads to go to town on the prez, that clip from Donnie Darko pretty much summarizes the naivete of it all. Our national debt is approaching the stratosphere due to wasteful government spending combined with an over eagerness for tax cuts. The President adequately addressed this problem at the beginning of his speech, but thinks he can get us out of the mess by providing more loans, debt, and tax cuts! I know I'm not some Nobel economist, but I don't get it. If the people loaning us money (China, Saudi Sheikhs, etc.) acted like a regular repo service, the White House furniture would've been confiscated years ago and every president since Kennedy would've had their knee caps busted. Our country is living way beyond our means in material consumption and the sooner we realize that, the sooner we can achieve a more frugal and responsible society. Trying to counteract market forces of slowing down excessive credit and weeding out shitty banks with the help of federal government just means people with lobbyists get to play by their own rules and continue the Ponzi economy. Sucks for the rest of us.

I also enjoyed the President's swat at "no-bid" contracts in Iraq. That would've been swell to say in like 2003, but the era of big reconstruction projects in Messopotamia is over, which the Ambassador made very clear back in 2008. Seems like Bush-era campaign rhetoric, which is pretty lame considering he's the Commander-in-Chief and could've used this speech to show some real leadership on foreign policy. The specifics of where he is going to cut the DoD budget will be of interest, and it seems rather risky in a time of war. I was generally supportive of most of the O's foreign policy so far, but I'm not so sure anymore.

As for Jindal, the consesus is he pretty much sucked (and that's from the big conservative blogs!). What was that shit about the Bullet Train to Vegas? Why does the GOP hate mass transit so much? The road between Southern California and Vegas (made famous by the late, great Hunter S. Thompson) is a well known death trap, constantly snarled with traffic, and in dire need of an alternative. That shit would pay for itself in a heartbeat. Oh well.

Next time, they should let Joe Biden just talk. Reason compiled a funny vid of his gaffes. I love that guy.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Three Former El Presidentes Blast US Drug Policy

The former presidents of Colombia, Brazil, and Mexico write a chilling Op-Ed in the WSJ about how the worldwide crusade to eradicate drug cultivation is wreaking havoc, despite billions of dollars and large amounts of military resources devoted to the "drug war". From WSJ:
Over the last 30 years, Colombia implemented all conceivable measures to fight the drug trade in a massive effort where the benefits were not proportional to the resources invested. Despite the country's achievements in lowering levels of violence and crime, the areas of illegal cultivation are again expanding. In Mexico -- another epicenter of drug trafficking -- narcotics-related violence has claimed more than 5,000 lives in the past year alone.

The revision of U.S.-inspired drug policies is urgent in light of the rising levels of violence and corruption associated with narcotics. The alarming power of the drug cartels is leading to a criminalization of politics and a politicization of crime. And the corruption of the judicial and political system is undermining the foundations of democracy in several Latin American countries.
The state of affairs is truly catastrophic. About the same number of people were killed in Mexico due to drug cartel violence (5,300) last year than all of Iraq's casualties in 2008 (~6,000). If there is a huge refugee crisis and Mexicans are forced to flee the violence along the border, we will have to offer them sanctuary. Who else will? Tiny Belize to the south of Mexico? With a struggling economy, this could be incredibly problematic, much like Thailand with Cambodian refugees in the late 70s or Jordan today with Iraqi refugees. That's not to say we shouldn't be promoting foreign policy in the first place that prevents such brutal bloodshed.

Sam Quinones [Foreign Policy] outlines the rampant violence that has gripped Mexico in the last few years, and notes that the cartels aren't just using your run-of-the-mill assault rifles and 45s anymore. It's RPGs, Night Vision goggles, anti-aircraft weaponry, and other hardware normally reserved for a combat zone. Scary shit, especially since it's right next door.

The WSJ editorial advocates a public health campaign to prevent drug abuse rather than the incarceration method, which has led to a massive prison population in our own country:
If we want to effectively curb drug use, we should look to the campaign against tobacco consumption. The success of this campaign illustrates the effectiveness of prevention campaigns based on clear language and arguments consistent with individual experience. Likewise, statements by former addicts about the dangers of drugs will be far more compelling to current users than threats of repression or virtuous exhortations against drug use.

Such educational campaigns must be targeted at youth, by far the largest contingent of users and of those killed in the drug wars.
Tobacco is less used because it is much more stigmatized these days. You don't see Rod Sterling chain-smoking on prime-time and Dentists doing commercials for Chesterfields anymore. But narcotics have always been stigmatized, so the effect of an awareness campaign will probably be a dud. Also, America's youth was bombarded with anti-drug PSAs during the 80s (remember Pee-Wee's PSA against crack) and that didn't really slow down drug use among that generation. So, with all due respect to the former heads of state, I don't understand what they're getting at. As long as people are disillusioned with society and looking for an escape from reality, there will be folks getting high. Unless we can create a utopian society where this angst doesn't exist, the best we can hope for is making narcotics available in a way that doesn't allow the rise of black markets, cartels, failed states, urban decay, and all those other unintended consequences.

Zombie Jesus

Found this pic at the usually unfunny Pundit Kitchen and felt it was worth the share, despite the fact that I have no clue what the context is. I once saw a Zombie Jesus comic book at some nerd convention in Seattle. Perhaps the concept has gone viral.

Rare animals can be a real drag


Thanks a lot Zoological Society of London. Yesterday, I had no idea the long-eared jerboa existed. Today, he's hopping around all over like he owns the fucking joint. Well here's a little bit of info now that you are on the big stage, Long-eared Jerboa: I don't need you, the people don't need you, and you sure as hell aren't going to get special treatment from me just because you are a combination of a mouse and a kangaroo with a little bit of giant ears thrown in just to be fucking difficult. And why are all the pictures of you at night? WHAT ARE YOU HIDING, JERBOA? Whatever. I was living my life long before I knew what you were, Long-eared Jerboa, and I will go on living my life long after I have set you as my desktop picture.

Kelly Brook - Photo and Profile







PROFILE :

Name: Kelly Brook
Birth Name: Kelly Ann Parsons
Height: 5' 8"
Sex: F
Nationality: British
Birth Date: November 23, 1979
Birth Place: Rochester, Kent, England, UK
Profession: actress, model, TV presenter
Education: Attended the Italia Conti stage school in London, U.K..
Thomas Aveling, Rochester
Relationship: Billy Zane (actor; born on February 24, 1966), Jason Statham (British; actor; born on September 12, 1972; 2002-September 2004)
Father: Ken (scaffolder)
Mother: Sandra (cook)
Brother: Damian (younger)
Half Sister: Sasha

Monday, February 23, 2009

90s Rewind in America

Anyone else feel like they're living in a time warp? The stock market tanked today to 1997 levels, the GOP is planning on using some Gingrich-style resistance in the House, and Obama's advisers remains staffed with Clinton-era leftovers. It's like I'm back in high school again popping zits and throwing eggs at the cool kids' cars. This kitsch series, which lasted about as long as The Chevy Chase Talk Show, should take you back to that bygone era too:

That's the stuff! But it's not all shits and giggles, because the House Minority Leader says government needs to fess up that it's flat fucking broke, and there's some shady meetings between the White House and the incoming Chairman for Citigroup. I didn't know the government was allowed to make back-room deals with corporations that will probably involve billions of taxpayer dollars...I suppose it's an "Executive Privelege" thing.

If you're looking for real accountability on how your money is being spent, Subrookie sent me a link of how the Porkulus monstrosity might get spent from the "Conference of Mayors" wishlist. Some examples in nearby Seattle are $412K for meter maids to have updated parking ticket dispensing tools and $100K for upgrading the heating system at the Greenwood Senior Center. I guess we can't have "geezers in freezers" anymore during those long Washington winters. Of course, with the current state of affairs, a better investment would have been for "shovel-ready" suicide booths.

Public Supports Obama Sending More Troops to Afghanistan

As you can see above from the Gallup poll, 65% of Americans approve of Obama's strategy in Afghanistan of plussing up the boots on ground by about 17K. This along with military cooperation with Pakistan and improved intelligence sharing is certainly a good start. With Pakistan's government cutting deals with the Tehrik-i-Taliban, an aggressive policy is needed sooner rather than later for a spring that could be ugly. Ironically, more Republicans support the President's foreign policy strategy than Democrats, which goes to show that most conservatives aren't morans who want Obama to fail. Failure in Afghanistan means more of our troops and allies getting killed and reverting back to a radical Islamic state to breed terrorists. Who the fuck wants that? So, in that case, yeah, I support the Commander-in-Chief. I suspect most conservatives who rail against Obama think the stimulus bill is a big pile of dog shit rather than his foreign policy, and polling supports that hypothesis.