The Social Security Act of 1935 is one of the most important pieces of legislation in American history. Now the Bush administration is going to try to reform social security by letting individuals invest their Social Security money. It's a Republican-ideology thing, mainly, though Wall Street is likely to profit handsomely from reform. But lots of folks are critical of the reform effort. Even some conservatives acknowledge that there are problems with the reformers' ideas.

IdiomFilter. Ever wonder where "No Dice" came from? How about "Buckaroo"? - Dig in, it's fun, informative *and* a waste of time!

Christmas in Cuba - Apparently the Cuban government is so annoyed with the US embassy over their Christmas lights depicting the number "75" (which is the number of dissidents the Cuban government has detained this year), they have erected a billboard with swastikas and photos of prisoner torture at Abu Ghraib with the words "MADE IN USA" on it. Somewhere, Santa is crying...

Diagnosing Gollum more inside

Ho, Ho............HO. I don't normally like to rip from the blue, but dear God, this had me crying. Ladies and gentlemen, Merry ChristopherWalkenmas.

God's been busy in Kentucky, allegedly. They say The LORD works in mysterious ways. In Louisville that must be true. In my first link YHWH gained an advocate when a "disgruntled" fellow student opened fire on her public high school's prayer circle. Another instance involves a house fire two kids had to be rescued from. more inside

Soldier shoots himself to avoid going back to Iraq. whoa. dude, WTF!? Stuff must be really bad out there.

Shoot the head, kill the ghoul! Guy in the next cubicle looking a little more pale and slack-jawed than usual? Maybe you should check out some Some Zombie Survival Guides. Important things you need to know, like: Zombies have limited offensive capability: Mainly they bite, like a lil' sissy boy. That's a close range weapon with a range of about three inches square. Don't let them get that close. Refuse slow dances. Don't be taken in by the old 'gee your hair smells terrific' routine. You'll be fine. Of course, maybe you'll want to run some simulations to know what you're up against.

Curious George: Perspectiveless Snapshots If you tilt a camera upwards or downwards, the resulting photograph can take on "lines of perspective". There are plug-ins for Photoshop that warp a digital photograph to make everything again "isometric", I think is the term. Is there a technique or trick with old SLR cameras to remove this warped perspective before the picture is taken, or are special lenses used?

The Historic Tale Construction Kit - Make your own Bayeux Tapestry-type story with this flash applet thingy. Or read the ones already submitted to the gallery. Few of which are any good, so Monkeys can liven it up a little. I stole from some crappy site.

Fourteen Places to Eat more inside

Bowling for Calvin "From Calvin and Hobbes to Eric and Dylan: some visual cues" explores similarities between the Columbine school shootings and Bill Watterson's "Calvin and Hobbes." more inside

Curious George: Skin rubbed raw Help me heal! more inside

Matchstick Heads. "There doesn't seem to be any limit to the subject matter and of course they all have that lethal incendiary device capability."

Victor Yushchenko was NOT poisoned - he's an alcoholic. In an earlier MoFi post we discussed the claim by the Vienna clinic that Yuschenko was 'definitely poisoned'. Facts: There has never been a case of death from dioxin poisoning, ever. Dioxin is not water soluble, & would be readily observable by sight & smell. Yuschenko wants to delay the investigation in case it 'affects the election' - it already has affected the election! The Austrian clinic's 'definitive' conclusion of poisoning was released by the administrative head of the clinic, not the actual chief medical officer - who was forced to resign due to his criticism of the 'poisoning' idea. Fat soluble dioxin would be absorbed by many of the organs, including liver - yet Yuschenko's dioxin levels have apparently "returned to normal" & there are no traces of it in his liver or pancreas. This is totally impossible. More reasons in the linked articles within. more inside

Vectorpark A small collection of curious Flash puzzles and animations.

The Wesley Willis song generator (scroll to the bottom of the page) more inside

curious george: does anyone know of a device that will allow me to run my g4powerbook off my car cigarette lighter. im in australia

Tyson, the skateboarding bulldog.
Quicktime more inside

A writer looks at Hong Kong Hong Kong's blogging community is fractious. On the one hand you have locals who rarely have a blog presence, but when they do, their writing is explosive, enchanting, and wonderful to read. And then you have the expatriates. Often, they are very one dimensional people. But this blog seems to avoid that one-dimensional problem. The author showcases writing from locals, and also shines a light on the increasingly important life of Hong Kong's 6.8 million.