The Story of Welsh

Mrs Mortimer hated everywhere she went. But if only she had waited to visit China, she could have eaten here. more inside

Meet Spud and his vegetably-challenged pals more inside

The History behind Billy Joel's "We didn't start the Fire" - finally, we can all know what "British Politician Sex" means, whether we want to or not. more inside

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau turns 80, so the Grauniad publishes an article about him, as one of the greatest singers of the twentieth century. (via a&ldaily.com) more inside

Where All Grades Are Above Average The author of this Washington Post article tracks trends in grade inflation at American universities. more inside

All classed up and nowhere to go. An acerbic analysis of the New York Times's recent series on class. more inside

Eight degrees of charity. A hierarchy of giving.

As the minority turns... Canadians enjoy the new hit soap opera of minority government watching. But in the meantime, here's a little old fashioned politicking to entertain us, Tommy Douglas telling the story of Mouseland, while we wait to see what colour of cat we have next week. (fourth link goes to embedded windows media) more inside

Doctor Who Top Trumps (via viewropa)

Ifilm's best short films of 2004. I know I've posted at least one earlier (Fast Times at Hero High - I still chuckle), but here is a whole collection of short films to enjoy.

Tinky Winky - virtual paper doll

"To those who value the Charter yet oppose the protection of rights for same-sex couples, I ask you: If a prime minister and a national government are willing to take away the rights of one group, what is to say they will stop at that? If the Charter is not there today to protect the rights of one minority, then how can we as a nation of minorities ever hope, ever believe, ever trust that it will be there to protect us tomorrow?" - PM Paul Martin, addressing the Canadian Parliament on same sex marriage and the Charter of Rights. via metafilter.

100 Movies that deserve more love. more inside

Firefly Pinyinary - for all your Chinese space swearing needs. more inside

People need to know more historical demography. This Time Magasine article [via mefi] is currently annoying a great many 20-something people because it seems to imply that they are choosing not to marry or settle down because they are immature. However, it annoys me more, because Time Magasine has apparently not even picked up a simple history textbook. If they had, they might have noticed that the current average age of marriage in Western European (and now North American) society has been moving back and forth between the early and late twenties for over 500 years. more inside

2004 Weblog Awards. The voting has begun, and Monkeyfilter has been nominated for "Best Online Community". I don't think we will win against Fark or Slashdot (which are much bigger), but I had fun showing my support.

The Voices of Cabrini - a documentary film about a housing project which was nevertheless also a neighbourhood and a community. more inside

Dolls and role models Yue-Sai Kan started Yue Sai WaWa, a Chinese fashion doll, to provide a doll for girls in China and elsewhere that isn't blond and blue-eyed; in Iran, Dara and Sara provide role models felt to be more compatible with devout Islam as practiced there, as does Razanne. In Japan, Barbie herself is much younger than in North America, while this Australian company is trying to introduce Feral Cheryl (the anti-fashion fashion doll). How many other alternatives or adaptations have there been to this fashion doll, in an effort to better reflect ethnic or cultural differences or simply to provide an alternative? more inside

Jim Crow stories: personal narratives, in audio and text. [via mefi]