US Army to Fox's "24": Just Stop with the Torture Scenes Each season of “24,” which has been airing on Fox since 2001, depicts a single, panic-laced day in which Jack Bauer—a heroic C.T.U. agent, played by Kiefer Sutherland—must unravel and undermine a conspiracy that imperils the nation. With unnerving efficiency, suspects are beaten, suffocated, electrocuted, drugged, assaulted with knives, or more exotically abused; almost without fail, these suspects divulge critical secrets. . . . Earlier this month, Brigadier General Patrick Finnegan visited the set of 24 to urge its makers to cut down on torture scenes. He told the show's producers, "I'd like them to stop. They should do a show where torture backfires. The kids see it and say, 'If torture is wrong, what about 24?' more inside

The Danish Poet. The winner of this year's Oscar for animated short. It's cute, funny and colorful. Co-produced by the National Film Board of Canada. Narrated charmingly by Liv Ullmann.

Stromboli is at it again. The island of Stromboli (made famous by the eponymous film) is suffering another eruption. You may be able to watch live via this dodgy webcam, but if not, here is a link to a number of other volcano cams, and here are some pictures of previous eruptions. more inside

Dead baby comes back to life ... Almost enough to make you believe in God ... 2 week old baby has heart attack ... doctors do all they can but can't save him ... given back to parents so they can say goodbye ... whereupon he starts breathing again ... now perfectly healthy. In other baby news: an unexpected side-effect of viagra That's enough baby news: Ed

Mexicans cross 'the border' – at a theme park. And another look.

Cyborg Flying Rats Invade China Nuff Said.

Charles Whitman! Tesla Coil! Subjugator! Them Texans is crazy. They like to blow things up real good. more inside

The Honus Wagner Baseball Card, "The Holy Grail of Baseball Cards" has sold for $US 2.3 Million Dollars. One of the first baseball cards, and extremely rare, this specimen was previously owned by Hockey great Wayne Gretzky. more inside

Shortwave operators have been tracking numbers stations for years. Stories have been done on radio and TV about these things, but this meaty site contains much clickable fun, audio and otherwise. more inside

Why I refused to blog for Edwards Blogger Lindsay Beyerstein explains why she didn't blog for the John Edwards campaign. more inside

C for Cookie [YouTube]

The Etiology and Treatment of Childhood. [Via]

What's Opera, Doc? (Youtube) Surely the greatest cartoon ever made.

Librarys(ians) are hot. Plato's thoughts are online.They are also available at my library. I prefer the library, because Wikipedia, and other on-line sources aren't reliable. (It also helps that my librarian wears the sexy librarian glasses.).

Al Sharpton's ancestors were slaves owned by Strom Thurmond's relatives The reverend Al Sharpton is a descendant of slaves who were once the property of the Thurmonds, ancestors of the late senator Strom Thurmond is perhaps one of the strongest supporters of south segregation. [...] Dig this pic of the family grave/plot, over at NY Daily News.

Paper Gods Nice little collection of old Chinese religious images.

Poland beat Croatia on penalties recently to take the world soccer title. The Catholic priests' world soccer title, that is. more inside

Giant Microbes. Yes, all the plushie viruses and bacteria you have ever wanted, and more. I think the Mad Cow would make a fine doorstop.

Why God Favors America "We're gonna die now."

It's Official: Britney Spears' freak out no longer funny. more inside