The fine people of Santa Catarina, Brazil inadvertently brought a bit of paganism back to the season this year by not properly wiring their traditional fifty-foot Santa. Nice one.
(via Buzzfeed. thx Suzy Beal !)
No matter what you think of the Royal Family—I mostly see them as parasites, myself—this is an admirable gesture for a future king. Prince WIlliam joined Seyi Obakin, CEO of the Centrepoint charity, bedding down between garbage tips near Blackfriars bridge so he could better understand the plight of the homeless. Clearly William seems to be taking after his mother, unlike his brother, the ginger twat. From the Telegraph:
Writing on the Centrepoint website [Obatkin] added: ‘‘For me, it was a scary experience. Out of my comfortable bed. Out there in the elements. Out there on an extremely cold night, with temperatures down to minus 4.
‘‘And it was the same for Prince William. But he was determined to do it as [Centrepoint] patron in order to raise awareness of the problem and to be able to understand a little better what rough sleepers go through night after night.’‘
Earlier in the year, Centrepoint’s chief executive challenged the Prince to experience being homeless for one night and Mr Obakin said he did not think the royal would pick up the gauntlet.
The offer came after the Prince, 27, in a speech to mark Centrepoint’s 40th anniversary this year, challenged the organisation to redouble its efforts to end youth homelessness.
The pair were joined on the sleep-out by William’s private secretary, Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, and bedded down on cardboard boxes in an alleyway just after midnight last Wednesday.
In a grainy photograph released by the homeless charity, the Prince, dressed in jeans, trainers, a hooded top and a hat, can be seen standing next to Mr Obakin with their bedding around them.
The chief executive wrote on his charity’s website: “We took as much precaution as possible - finding a relatively secluded spot in an alleyway, shielded partly by a collection of wheelie bins.
“But there was no shielding from the bitter cold, or the hard concrete floor, or the fear of being accosted by drug dealers, pimps or those out to give homeless people a ‘good kicking’.
“One of the hairiest moments occurred when we were almost run over by a road sweeper which simply didn’t see our small group huddled together, which just goes to show how vulnerable rough sleepers are.
Remember back in April when conservative Fox News talk show host Sean Hannity told guest Charles Grodin, on camera and in front of millions of witnesses, that he’d submit to be waterboarded to raise money for U.S. troops and their families?
GRODIN: Would you consent to be waterboarded? We can waterboard you?
HANNITY: Sure.
GRODIN: Are you busy on Sunday?
HANNITY: I’ll do it for charity. I’ll let you do it. I’ll do it for the troops’ families.
Remember how Keith Olbermann then upped the ante on Hannity by offering him $1,000 per second that he was able to withstand the torture (which Hannity called “enhanced interrogation” sans even a trace of irony)?
Well, this morning we checked in at the Waterboard Hannity for Charity website to see that generous members of the public are willing to donate up to $10 million if Hannity is able to withstand 300 seconds of waterboarding enhanced interrogation. If he can last even a single minute, he’ll be able to give over $2 million to the families of U.S. troops.
Unlike many of you reading this, I’m not cynical about this—okay I’m lying through my teeth—I just want to see Hannity man up, do what he said he would do and raise more money in 60 seconds for a good cause than has probably ever been raised before in a single minute in history!
It’s almost Christmas. Sean, you can make a huge difference in the lives of these families. You said you would do it, so do it.
If not, why not?
A new YouTube video purporting that the recent attack on Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has Italian conspiracists all a twitter by advancing the theory that the attack was a set-up to gain sympathy for the politician. Oh really? From the Daily Mail:
TV footage of the politician showing him bleeding profusely from cuts to his lips and gums went around the world in a matter of seconds and were seen by millions.
However, today a video posted on You Tube suggesting the attack in Milan was faked had received almost 500,000 hits in just a matter of hours.
Called ‘Was the attack on Berlusconi a montage?’ the video lasts eight minutes and is on a par with other past conspiracy theories such as the attack on the Twin Towers being a CIA created plot.
The video’s author is unidentified but using footage and still photographs it raises questions regarding several key moments in the aftermath of last Sunday’s attack in Milan.
It asks why the blood on Berlusconi’s face appears to be ‘thick and already’ set and also asks why if as the hospital later said he had lost ‘half a litre of blood’ is his suit and shirt not drenched.
This makes no sense to me. The simplest explanation is usually the best one and it’s not at all difficult to imagine why someone would want to attack and harm Silvio Berlusconi, is it? What would he stand to gain by having someone violently attack him, on purpose? Popularity points is a terrible theory. He’s a millionaire in his 70s known to cavort with hookers! He does not care what the public thinks of him. Certainly not enough to have his teeth bashed out. What a terrible conspiracy theory! Yawn.
Via Coilhouse, here’s video of Filipina poet and activist Sass Rogando Sasot speaking out for transgendered rights at the United Nations. Clear and moving speech on a crucial 21st century issue.
On Dec 10th (International Human Rights Day), Filipina activist Sass Rogando Sasot spoke passionately about transgender rights before an assembly of the United Nations. Her speech, titled ?
This looks like it was directed by the great South Korean film director, Park Chan-Wook (Thirst, Old Boy, Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance)!
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, a Costco in Salt Lake City took tomatoes off its shelves last week in preparation for Sarah Palin’s “Going Rogue” book-signing appearance at the store. A man was arrested on Dec. 7 at a Palin event at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., for allegedly throwing a tomato at the former Alaska governor, and Costco management was “determined” to avoid a repeat. Helen Rappaport, a Democrat, was happy to browse the nearly empty aisles of the big-box giant while other shoppers clustered around the Palin event area, but she was puzzled as to why she couldn’t seem to find any tomatoes:
No tomatoes? At Costco?
As she was leaving, she noticed a man with a store manager’s name tag and asked him why they had no tomatoes. He informed her the store did have tomatoes, but they were taken off the shelves for a few hours.
It turns out that Palin had been pelted with a tomato at an earlier stop on her book tour and the management at the Costco was determined it wouldn’t happen here.
No word on whether eggs, watermelons, apples or other potentially useful foodstuff projectiles were available during the Palin event.
Cross posting this from Brand X
Good AP report on the stresses faced by women enlisted in the military on their return home (not to mention while they’re on active duty). We don’t need another post-Vietnam in this country. Treat veterans right and provide the services they need.
WASHINGTON ?