MetaFilter

"From what I understand, right now, this state has a purple, purple heart." Between her sets, Gaga called Texas a "special place" where a lot of "conversations, a lot of dialogue, a lot of opinions, even some division" happens. "I want to celebrate you all tonight in the name of love," she added. "I want to celebrate the importance of these hard conversations. From what I understand, right now, this state has a purple, purple heart. I think I'm hoping that that purple is gonna go blue." [more inside]
posted by dancestoblue at 9:28 PM PST - 7 comments

The Best Mobile Game You Can't Play looks at Infinity Blade, which was originally released for iPhone 3GS (on Unreal 3!) in 2010. The video covers all three videogames and the two interstitial novels. It's quite a journey for the hero and their bloodline, forward and backward through time across generations. And a fascinating look at a very well developed game and story that is now basically lost.
posted by hippybear at 7:07 PM PST - 23 comments

What working at a used bookstore taught me about literary rejection. I find a book by my undergrad professor. It’s inscribed with a lovely personal note to someone named Katherine. I guess she didn’t want it anymore. I tell myself maybe she died, but that doesn’t make me feel any better. [more inside]
posted by craniac at 6:18 PM PST - 46 comments

With the release of Nona the Ninth less than a month away, it's time to revisit Tamsyn Muir's Gideon the Ninth and Harrow the Ninth. Given Muir's heady blend of mystery, lore, humor, teenage queerness, memes, horror, romance, oblique references to Homestuck, and baroque science fiction, you might need some help (note: many spoilers). [more inside]
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:45 PM PST - 114 comments

What We Do In the Shadows' Harvey Guillén (Guillermo de la Cruz) reflects on his own time living in the shadows—and the moment everything changed.
posted by ShooBoo at 3:01 PM PST - 4 comments

5 Ridiculous Representations of Jonah and the Whale in Art History “In the Book of Jonah, God has an apocalyptic vibe going on and tells Jonah to go preach to the city of Nineveh and get all the citizens to repent before He destroys them all. Jonah tries to run from his responsibilities by booking a cruise, apparently not remembering the whole ‘God is omnipresent’ thing.
...
Here are five artist representations of the story of Jonah and his whale. Please note that these images have been selected for composition, technical execution, and comedic value.” [more inside]
posted by kirkaracha at 2:54 PM PST - 35 comments

An English translation of the transcript of a trial of a 17th Century werewolf held in Swedish Livonia, modern Latvia. The defendant, a peasant known as Old Thiess, claimed to be a hound of god, fighting the devil to safeguard the Earth’s fertility. The judges, Bengt Johan Ackerstaff and Gabriel Berger, were perplexed. This case has fascinated historians, and two of them, Carlo Ginzburg and Bruce Lincoln, discuss the trial of a Latvian werewolf on Susannah Lipscomb’s podcast, Not Just the Tudors, where a couple of years ago Jan Michelsen discussed the trial of a teen werewolf in 17th Century Basque Country.
posted by Kattullus at 12:43 PM PST - 11 comments

Can You Ever Trust a Former White Nationalist?
posted by Ten Cold Hot Dogs at 10:55 AM PST - 65 comments

The Biden Administration has officially released their student debt forgiveness program in an announcement today. [more inside]
posted by NoxAeternum at 10:07 AM PST - 217 comments

For almost two months Crikey has faced the threat of legal action by Lachlan Murdoch over an article about Fox News, Donald Trump and the Jan 6 Washington insurrection. Last night, Lachlan Murdoch finally issued his writ. We welcome it. Today, we continue our coverage of Mr Murdoch’s legal letters and related issues. The letters show how media power works in this country. Crikey will not be silenced. [CW: contains Trump & Murdochs]
posted by chavenet at 3:50 AM PST - 16 comments