Speaking of what to do with functionally dead bodies (yes, vanilla frosting will be fine, thank you)…Rand Simberg has a lengthy and interesting post on the thinking behind cryonics. Here’s a bit: Cryonics is often, and mistakenly, lumped in with UFOlogy, ESP and other pseudoscience, but it actually has a very sound scientific and philosophical conceptual basis. Most people think of death as an objective, unambiguous, and verifiable condition. But

Disturbing revelations, courtesy of Salon: “Ted Williams’ heirs may be feuding over what to do with his body now that the legendary slugger has passed on to that field of dreams in the sky, but Larry Hagman, of dimly remembered ‘Dallas’ and ‘I Dream of Jeannie’ fame, is spelling out his last requests in no uncertain terms.” ‘When I die, I want my friends to eat me,’ Hagman told celebrity

Found this link via my pals the Skunkfuckers: “Godless Americans™ March on Washington.” Slated for November 2 of this year. The Godless American™ message? Glad you asked! According to their website, The Time For Us To Be Heard Is Now! [though evidently November’ll do — ed.] There are millions of Godless Americans. The latest American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS) reflects that nearly 13% of the population has no religion. This

For those of you who haven’t yet read it, George Will’s “‘Up From’ Accountability” articulates quite well the objections many of us have to calls for U.S. participation in the ICC. Particularly forceful, I think, are Will’s concluding paragraphs: Because the ICC is a facet of the European elites’ agenda of disparaging and diluting the sovereignty of nations, it is especially ill-suited to this moment, when the primacy of the

Stupid flaviviruses commonly found in Africa, West Asia and the Middle East. [via WorldWideRant]

A snippet of conversation overheard in the waiting area of a Colorado Jiffy Lube™: First Guy: “I don’t know. I’m not even paying attention to politics. I’ve got bigger problems.” Second Guy: “New brake pads, huh? How much is that gonna run ya?” First Guy: “I mean, who cares what Bush does or doesn’t do? I’m sure it’ll end up costing me more money either way. Because it always does:

“George Michael says he’s nervous to return to his home in the United States because of the criticism he’s received for his new song and video, Shoot the Dog. “[…] Michael said in an interview with ITV1’s ‘Tonight’ show Thursday night, he’s been unfairly criticized in the United States as anti-American, which he blames on homophobia.” […] ‘For some reason I don’t have a right to talk about anything because

Writing in The Boston Globe, H.D.S. Greenway examines the “Rising threat of Hindu extremism.” Here’s a bit: Many Indians believed that the BJP’s secular allies in the ruling coalition would not accept such a hardliner as Advani as Vajpayee’s heir, but they have been proved wrong. And while it seemed that Vajpayee was willing to downplay ”Hindutva,” a concept of exclusive Hindu identity dear to the party’s heart, Advani can

“Charlene Rosen, owner of Mr. Charles Shop, in State College, Pa., says anti-fur activists smashed her glass doors. She says another attack left red paint on her shop windows and sidewalk.” E-mail to a college newspaper claims the Animal Liberation Front is responsible. But Rosen says the vandals can’t tell real fur from fake. She has a denim jacket in her shop window with a phony fur collar. She says

“Sesame Street will soon introduce its first HIV-positive Muppet character to children of South Africa, where one in nine people have the virus that can lead to AIDS,” Reuters reports. The upbeat female Muppet will join ‘Takalani Sesame’ on Sept. 30 for its third season on the South African Broadcasting Corp. Upbeat? Why upbeat? The character — which has yet to have a name or final color or form —