Momus offers a style and lifestyle guide to the next decade. Just about everything on here seems spot on.

A new decade is a time in which to declare “everything you know is wrong”. A fresh decade is a time to jettison secure old knowledge and grope around for new. Since a new decade is just around the corner, let’s start groping now.

Forget the places you’ve been going on holiday, and go on holiday instead to Beirut.

Do not expect to learn about the world through journalists.

Any Obama backlash will simply help usher in someone worse. Skip it.

Your mother holds a key piece of information, essential to your happiness. All you have to do is ask her the right question.

(Momus: Everything You Know Isn’t a Panda)

 
Fun animated short by Royal College of Art graduate John Kelly. John tackles the meaning of procrastination with an awesome retro design. Kinda reminds me of The Electric Company from when I was kid.

 
Chase Whitestead and Erick Stroll of New Left Media spoke to Sarah Palin fans at her book signing in Clumbus, Ohio. The object of their line of questioning is simple “Why do you like Sarah Palin?” and “Why do you think she would make a good president?” These are hardly trick questions, but not one of the people assembled there had an answer to either (or at least an answer that makes any sense). This is funny and sad at the same time. These people are so uninformed and gullible, it fucking hurts.

 

 
Here’s a replica Big Daddy costume shot at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta. The designer of the 60lbs costume says,

This costume is a replica of the Bouncer-type Big Daddy from the videogame Bioshock by 2K. This piece was completed in 7 weeks for its debut at DragonCon 2009, where it won 2 awards for “Best Journeyman” and “Best Professional Design.” After initial press after DragonCon, I was contacted by Ken Levine of 2K games who said, “You are the Big Daddy.”

This Bioshock Big Daddy costume is currently up for bid on Ebay.
 
See more of the photoshoot here.
 
(via Nerdcore)

                                                        
Comic writer and lord of nerd hell Warren Ellis posted this t-shirt design today, which will be available to purchase for one week only. I dig the sentiment and the “Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space”-style design. Leave it to somebody with government health care to tell us backward Americans what we’re missing out on. Warren says:

TOTW is basically a joke that Ariana and I pull each week in our joint guise as the International Electrophonic Unit. Basically, we take some of the stupider things I?

 
When a noted graffiti artist known as “REVOK” accepted an invitation to appear at an art gallery/graffiti supply store this weekend, being taken away in handcuffs was probably not what he was anticipating:

Jason Williams, 32, who was on probation and goes by the name REVOK, was appearing Sunday as the guest of honor at the 33rd Graffiti Art Store, said Sgt. Augie Pando of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The store was exhibiting Montana spray paint, a brand used by taggers, Pando said.

During a later search of Williams’ home, deputies found several hundred paint cans, a police badge and a fire extinguisher, Pando said. They also found a stolen detour sign and digital photos of his graffiti work on his phone.

“He’s being treated as a celebrity artist when in fact he’s breaking the law,” said Steve Whitmore, a sheriff’s spokesman.

Looks like the LAPD got their man without resorting to any CSI type moves here—perhaps Google works just as well as DNA testing in certain select cases.

Cross posting from Brand X

 
As city officials grapple with the issue (notice I didn’t write “problem”) of what to do about the proliferation of medical marijuana dispensaries in Los Angeles, it seems likely that City Council members will ignore the calls from City Atty. Carmen Trutanich and L.A. County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley for a citywide shut down of the cannabis clubs in favor of a more nuanced approach. But that won’t be easy either, as L.A .Times reporter John Hoeffel writes this morning.

Additionally, proposals to limit the number of dispensaries are likely to face several legal hurdles and courtroom challenges before they can be implemented and proposals to restrict the amount of cannabis each dispensary can have on hand per month have, so far, suggested totals that most Los Angeles-based collectives would currently sell every few days. The City Council will be challenged to balance concerns of patients, business owners and law enforcement with the potential for substantial revenues created from taxing cannabis sales—taxes that could result in more teachers and better road repairs for the city, advocates say.

Ironically, as L.A. prepares to crack down on medical marijuana, opinion seems to be trending nationally in favor of full decriminalization of marijuana and a tax on its sale. In 2009, there has been a noticeable sea change in how the issue is reported on in the mainstream media. While there are critics who believe, like Trutanich and Cooley, that marijuana dispensaries increase crime and provide outlets for Mexican drug cartels, the view from outside of Los Angeles doesn’t appear to be one of fear, but of curiosity, or dare I say it, even envy.

Like this article, “Support for legalizing marijuana grows rapidly around U.S.” which appeared in today’s Washington Post:

The boom town atmosphere brought complaints from some neighbors, but little of the crime associated with underground drug-dealing. Advocates cite the latter as evidence that, as with alcohol, violence associated with the marijuana trade flows from its prohibition.

“Seriously,” said Bruce Merkin, communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project, an advocacy group based in the District, “there is a reason you don’t have Mexican beer cartels planting fields of hops in the California forests.”

Meanwhile award-winning L.A. Times business columnist David Lazarus channels his inner Cheech and Chong with this droll video commentary on the matter: 

Cross posting this from Brand X

The State Department has released numbers on human beings trafficked into the United States, specifically the Midwest, to be used for slave labor and forced prostitution. While I can’t say I’m surprised, and suspect this has been going on for some time, the numbers are sobering. While America pretends to somehow be better than the rest of the world, the truth is that not only do we face the same problems that the so-called “developing” world does, but that in many cases we are far behind the standard of living of the rest of the world.

The grim truth is that while human trafficking is considered a problem that belongs to the Middle East and Africa, slavery never died anywhere, not even in our own country. Human trafficking networks still operate in broad daylight in Europe and, apparently, here. While the so called civilized world prides itself on having eliminated slavery, we have only eliminated the institutionalized form (and not even that, if you take a critical look at, say, prison labor in federal and private jails alike). Slavery?

File under “be careful what you wish for”: 41-year-old DJ Matthew Roberts set out on a quest to find his biological father, only to discover that it was, in fact, 60s darksider Charles Manson. FUUUUFFFUUUU…. Roberts now struggles with what he has discovered, corresponding with Chuckie via mail and avoiding ever talking to him on the phone. The Sun reports:

LIKE many adopted children, Matthew Roberts set about finding his biological parents with a mix of nerves and excitement. In particular, he hoped that discovering his father’s identity would help him to work out what made him the man he had become. But nothing could have prepared him for being told his dad was… serial killer CHARLES MANSON.

Over a five-week period in the summer of 1969, Manson and his Family of commune followers committed a series of nine gruesome murders. Victims included pregnant actress Sharon Tate, wife of film director Roman Polanski. Matthew, 41 - who bears a haunting resemblance to his father - sank into depression after discovering his identity. He has since been in contact with his dad in a series of letters to his California prison and Manson has replied - each time chillingly signing off with a swastika.

(The Sun: I traced my Dad… and discovered he is Charles Manson)

(Previously on Dangerous Minds: California Screaming)

 
Jesus will let you eat anything you want as long as you believe.

From Mail Online:

But there’s a new diet trend which claims dizzyingly high success rates, promises painless life-long commitment and allows dieters to eat anything they want.

Faith-based diets take the principles of Christianity and apply them to our overwhelming craving for chocolate, chips and cheese.
Advocates say dieters learn to fill the spiritual hole inside themselves with something more powerful than saturated fats.

The basic principle common to the U.S. programmes Christian Weigh Down and Thin Within (‘Helps you grow in faith while shrinking your waistline’), and the British equivalent Fit For Life Forever, is that dieters need to identify the deeper reasons why they over-eat, before they can hope to lose weight and keep it off permanently.

The trend began in America in the Eighties, but it’s finally taking hold here, with Christian weight-loss groups springing up, and dramatically increased sales of ‘spiritual dieting’ books such as What Would Jesus Eat?, Hallelujah Diet and The God Diet.

Read more of Good Lord! It’s the Jesus diet: How more people are turning to religion to help them lose weight