The Nazi Connection with Shambhala and Tibet. Cause, I dunno? via growabrain more inside

The Newbie's Guide to Detecting the NSA It's not surprising that an expert hired by EFF should produce an analysis that supports the group's case against AT&T. But last week's public court filing of a redacted statement by J. Scott Marcus is still worth reading for the obvious expertise of its author, and the cunning insights he draws from the AT&T spy documents. . . . With that in mind, here's the 27B Stroke 6 guide to detecting if your traffic is being funneled into the (AT&T) secret room on San Francisco's Folsom street. via more inside

Curious George: Que est-ce que ringtone? Now that phones can play pretty much any sound as a ringtone, what do you use? more inside

McDonalds - Global Sanctum? "Indeed, despite its vaunted reputation as a juggernaut of American culture, McDonald's has come to function as an ecumenical refuge for travelers of all stripes. This is not because McDonald's creates an American sense of place and culture, but because it creates a smoothly standardized absence of place and culture — a neutral environment that allows travelers to take a psychic time-out from the din of their real surroundings." Still, I had fun visiting India, Russia, Japan, South Africa and some quirky Island. more inside

Curious George - The Great Dictator? Pugnacious Pundit Bill O'Reilly would fix things in Iraq by reinstating acting like Saddam. Quote: "That's me. President O'Reilly, curfew in Ramadi, 7 o'clock at night. You're on the street, you're dead. I shoot you right between the eyes. OK? That's how I'd run that country -- just like Saddam ran it. Saddam didn't have explosions. He didn't have bombers, did he? Because if you got out of line, you're dead." What would you do if given free reign? (In Iraq or Monkistan?)

Big, Bad Bessie with the M-I-L-K Which spells, as you know, WRONG. Quicktime direct link here. more inside

Donald Hall Is the NewUS Poet Laureate via stupid smelly GarbageFilter, but, like, I totally thought of it too eh more inside

27,000 Year Old Portrait "Archaeologists have discovered what they believe to be a 27,000-year-old drawing of a face, which would make it the oldest in history. Like many other ancient portraits, it is reminiscent of the work of some of the great modern artists . . ." more inside

Facing the Past [In] The language of the Aymara, who live in the Andes highlands of Bolivia, Peru and Chile, . . "Until now, all the studied cultures and languages of the world – from European and Polynesian to Chinese, Japanese, Bantu and so on – have not only characterized time with properties of space, but also have all mapped the future as if it were in front of ego and the past in back. The Aymara case is the first documented to depart from the standard model," via, darnit more inside

Bukowski Yeah, yeah. more inside

Gentlemen, start your thetans Scientology is not the first religion to make its way into racing. Morgan Shepherd has competed the past few years in the No. 89 Victory in Jesus Racing Ministries car. NASCAR had to sign off on his paint scheme, and refused to let his first offering onto the track before finally agreeing to allow the message "Racing With Jesus" onto the hood of the car. And in 2004, Bobby Labonte drove the season-opening Daytona 500 in a car that advertised Mel Gibson's movie "The Passion of The Christ."

Curious George: Cellphone City My "Mo-Bile" is on the fritz. Help me pick a new one! more inside

Homer Simpson: Philosopher of Our Age? . . . That's why it is no coincidence that the most insightful and philosophical cultural product of our time is a comic cartoon, and why its creator, Matt Groening, is the true heir of Plato, Aristotle and Kant. BBC article (print version) on why a cartoon character, and no other kind, is a perfect vehicle for philosophy today. more inside

Hello Sooty! You pig! Bow-chicka-bow-chicka-bow!

Starlight A few paragraphs that define a simple joy. Yeah, yeah, I got it from MeFi

Beatle Moments pt. I and and II. A nifty blogbit on various bites of the Beatles. Trivia for some, scholarship for others. via some bluish thread

Gorilla Gardening . . . err Guerilla Gardening even. HowTo (Daisy Duke is involved, lads), build a community, fix a bench (flash), or even learn a damned thing if you dare! Ooh! ooh! ooh! *dig* *plant* *slap chest*

Italians Unleash Smog-Eating Cement An Italian company is releasing a revolutionary 'smog-eating' cement product capable of reducing urban pollution by over 40%. . . . The cement works fast. Nitrogen dioxide clouds left by cars travelling along the Segrate street vanished, on average, five seconds after the vehicle passed by. GoodNewsFilter.

Scientists Have Discovered Why Some People Can't Resist Food Hint: TV Turnoff Week is involved. Fortunately, Austrailians will finally be taking responsibility for the global affluence pandemic. more inside

The Daily Kitten You are powerless to resist. via MeFi