Blood and Milk is the blog of international development worker and writer Alanna Shaikh, who consults on global health development and writes for publications such as the UN Dispatch. Her views, based both on her work in the field and her study & understanding of sociology, international relations, and other such subjects, tend to be contrary to most other opinions on international development: voluntourism isn't helpful, development work is mired in a culture of nice, don't bother starting an NGO (or, if you will anyway, here's how to succeed), global health doesn't need innovation, and microfinance is a disappointment. Also, here's how to tell if your health project is doomed, and Haiti doesn't need your shoes (some people vehemently disagree). Educated well-researched iconoclast, or pessimistic Mary Contrary?
posted to MetaFilter by divabat at 9:47 PM on February 4, 2010 (20 comments)

Simo Häyhä is often revered as the deadliest sniper in history. Using nothing more than a Mosin-Nagant sniper rifle with stock iron sights, Häyhä is credited with felling 542 Soviet soldiers during the Finnish Winter War (with as many as 150 more kills by SMG). Nicknamed "The White Death", Häyhä spent weeks in snow-covered forests, enduring sub-zero temperatures while sniping Russian officers, weapons crews and snipers. The Soviets placed a bounty on Häyhä's head, utilizing counter-snipers and artillery fire in an attempt to kill him. Over the course of only three months, the 5'3" Häyhä (a farmer by trade) killed upwards of 800 of the Red Army soldiers deployed to Finland. Despite eventually being shot in the face by a Russian sharpshooter, Häyhä recovered and passed away in 2002 at the age of 96.
posted to MetaFilter by Tenacious.Me.Tokyo at 8:50 AM on January 28, 2010 (242 comments)

Hymn 41 Harmony Grove New Britain Claremont Arlington Amazing Grace. The timeline links to a nice variety of recordings, traditional (1939: Mary Shipp; 1941: Shiloh Baptist Church) and otherwise (1975: The Amazing Rhythm Aces; 1992: The Lemonheads).
posted to MetaFilter by nebulawindphone at 6:32 AM on July 24, 2009 (27 comments)

"Exactly one hundred years ago a Russian photographer, began a remarkable project. With the blessing - and funding - of the Tsar, Nicholas II, he embarked on an extraordinary journey to capture the essence of Russia in full color photographs."
posted to MetaFilter by mudpuppie at 2:53 PM on June 18, 2009 (47 comments)

Cassetteboy "record famous people and make it sound like they're talking about sex or drugs. It's a winning formula" but they also bring anarchic political awareness to an already piratical realm. Harry Potter (not for sensitive Potterphiles), Big Brother, Bill Gates, Jeremy Clarkson, Jamie Oliver and The Streets face the wrath of some adolescent humourists with far too much time on their hands while David Attenborough surveys British wildlife and Frank Sinatra sings about 9/11. And for dessert Martin Luther King Jr plays Deal or No Deal. Most links YT, NSFW, YMMV.
posted to MetaFilter by criticalbill at 10:50 AM on July 23, 2007 (19 comments)

Can you help me get my PC back in working order?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by RufusW at 9:49 AM on October 1, 2008 (5 comments)

My PC has been crashing - I can move the mouse - but everything else is dead as a doornail. Apps don't respond, clock doesn't change etc. As though the display is frozen in time. Any ideas?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by zeoslap at 8:25 AM on June 30, 2008 (14 comments)

Bill Moyers interviewed Jon Stewart on April 27. The video is on the Moyers' soon-to-be great new site.
posted to MetaFilter by McGuillicuddy at 5:04 PM on April 29, 2007 (66 comments)

"I'm bleeding. You can check my underwear. I want to go to the hospital." "How is that my problem?" [MoralOutrageFilter] Despite Sofia Silva's telling the officers that she was having a miscarriage [links to video], she was refused medical attention and arrested on traffic violations and outstanding warrants (mistreatment of children and trespassing). The next day, the baby died after being born prematurely. Sofia is now suing the Kansas City Police Department.
posted to MetaFilter by eunoia at 4:16 PM on February 1, 2007 (74 comments)

What are the safest African countries for a white, English-speaking visitor? What are the most dangerous? Why?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by stammer at 8:38 AM on December 10, 2006 (27 comments)

Who is 10641?
via via
posted to MetaFilter by airguitar at 12:16 PM on November 15, 2005 (76 comments)

How do I get files off a DVD and then convert to a format I can edit?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by katyjack at 12:04 PM on September 14, 2006 (10 comments)

Converting a DVD to high-quality WMV?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by robbie01 at 12:28 PM on February 12, 2006 (10 comments)

I used to have a little software application that would assess my hard drive and display a colorful pie graph of folders and subfolders, so that it was very easy to visually determine the location of the file bulk. Does anyone remember what I'm talking about? Bonus points for freeware.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by abbyladybug at 2:49 PM on August 25, 2006 (14 comments)

Beautiful Subways --worldwide--from palatial to postmodern, folksy to brutalist (pee smells not included--and don't miss Tehran's)
posted to MetaFilter by amberglow at 2:19 PM on August 25, 2006 (45 comments)

The downside of being a nerd with your desktop set to a super-hi resolution is that you can rarely find cool wallpapers to use. This massive collection (in a wide variety of resolutions) should help.
posted to MetaFilter by jonson at 11:26 AM on August 25, 2006 (26 comments)

On Sept. 11, CNN will replay its coverage from 2001 in real time, online. They will make their little-noticed Pipeline service free for the day.
posted to MetaFilter by CunningLinguist at 3:32 PM on August 25, 2006 (124 comments)

People don't write manifestos like they used to... Whatever happened to the Surrealist Manifesto? How about the the Italian Futurist Manifesto (and its many spinoffs)? There's also First and Second OuLiPo Manifestos, Humanist (I, II, & III) as well as Post-Humanist Manifestos, not to mention Donna Haraway's Cyborg Manifesto: "...an ironic political myth faithful to feminism, socialism, and materialism...."
posted to MetaFilter by anotherpanacea at 1:10 PM on August 21, 2006 (43 comments)

Stock Footage Filter: Need trippy, psychedelic imagery (I've already exhausted Prelinger).
posted to Ask MetaFilter by nathancaswell at 10:34 AM on August 20, 2006 (11 comments)

Free Computer Version of Board and Card Games with Artificial Intelligence Computer Opponents and with Screen Shots is exactly what is says. Now those of you who've had their interest piqued by such games as Settlers of Catan or others mentioned in the Top 100 Boardgames thread can try games such as these without ponying up the thirty bucks for a big box of boards and pieces.
posted to MetaFilter by jtron at 1:34 PM on July 26, 2006 (10 comments)

The Supreme Court is increasingly anti-abortion, and they have already agreed that next year they will be deciding on so-called partial birth abortion bans. Given this context, you might need to learn how to do it yourself. (Here's more on some useful equipment.) Also see more inside.
posted to MetaFilter by serazin at 11:18 AM on July 14, 2006 (90 comments)

The state of higher education. Consumerist students, declining state budgets. What impact will all of this have on the future functioning of democracy?
posted to MetaFilter by hank_14 at 6:31 AM on July 17, 2006 (49 comments)

From Democracy Now!, Noam Chomsky offers an interesting look at the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. There's really no good that can come from the current escalation of conflict. Although the Bush Administration has remained complacent in the situation, the conflict will have direct repercussions toward the United States. There's also the argument posed by the EU that the attacks are "disproportionate." Inevitably this could be caused by the growing "Shiite Revolution."
posted to MetaFilter by j-urb at 10:02 AM on July 15, 2006 (95 comments)

Today Jefferson County Sheriff's office released over 900 pages of documents [32MB pdf] relating to what happened at Columbine High School in 1999.
posted to MetaFilter by BeerFilter at 8:15 PM on July 6, 2006 (117 comments)

How hard is it to do a manual registry cleaning and is it worth paying HP $45 to help me?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by amethysts at 3:37 PM on June 27, 2006 (5 comments)

How can I become a better writer?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by JPigford at 10:31 PM on June 25, 2006 (23 comments)

GlobalPovertyFilter: Is poverty in the third world and emerging countries like India and China due more to exploitation by multinational corporations, or due to disconnection from globalization?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by ibmcginty at 8:22 AM on June 26, 2006 (16 comments)

Words invented by the Simpsons , as found on Wikipedia. Some soul with too much time on their hands has taken up the task of listing all the nonsense words invented on the Simpsons. The number of words from this list that I use on a daily basis is ASTOUNDING.
posted to MetaFilter by antifuse at 2:00 AM on October 18, 2005 (86 comments)

How do i go about improving my arguing/debating skills?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by thegeezer3 at 2:25 AM on May 18, 2006 (14 comments)

Name some big things in the continental US. Examples of the sort of thing I'm looking for are inside, but if I had to sum it up it would be: man-made or natural objects that are awesome in size, scale, ambition, or displacement from their surroundings -- and which I can drive to without needing special permission or lots of advance preparation.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by ook at 7:50 AM on June 23, 2006 (90 comments)

Now this is something I just don't get. Getting worked up because some people are posting longer entries? Can someone explain this to me? So Ben Brown mentioned that he prefers longer posts, and a few people responded to the idea favorably. But then there's backlash to this idea? Can someone please explain to me how someone writing long posts is somehow wrong? Is anyone holding a gun to your head making you read anything on the web? If Ben Brown's posts are too long, don't read them. If Jack's or Brig's are too long, don't read them. If I'm wrong here, please set me straight. I must not have read the weblog rulebook that states posts should be short and snarky, if anyone has a hyperlink to said rule book, please post that too.
posted to MetaFilter by mathowie at 8:45 PM on March 28, 2000 (1609 comments)

metafilter parody. no comment from me, i'll leave that to everyone else.
posted to MetaFilter by will at 10:32 AM on August 24, 2001 (1727 comments)

For our society to evolve to the next level, what kind of surpluses do we need to have?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by studentguru at 2:19 PM on June 21, 2006 (32 comments)

I'm looking for short (under 5 minutes), fast paced, promotional trailers to get my juices flowing. I have an idea of what I want to do but I'm not completely in love with it...
posted to Ask MetaFilter by hummercash at 4:25 PM on April 27, 2006 (8 comments)

Say you wanted to travel up into southern Sudan from northern Uganda - neither place very happy at the moment - sometime in the next year for a journalistic research project. Say you might even want to try going all the way down the Nile to Cairo. How might you go about this? Finding out specific safety issues, red tape/paperwork, etc.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by gottabefunky at 9:58 AM on June 14, 2006 (7 comments)

Looking for permission to use a clip from The Daily Show
posted to Ask MetaFilter by kensanway at 11:58 AM on June 12, 2006 (13 comments)

Three of the clever, committed terrorists in Guantanamo Bay committed an act of war against the United States on Saturday morning.
posted to MetaFilter by Malor at 4:13 AM on June 11, 2006 (238 comments)

Debate Site Grapple in the Apple! Christopher Hitchens and George Galloway argue live, now, about the Iraq War. Sorry about the minimal FPP, but it's all about the boxing match debate.
posted to MetaFilter by reality at 4:28 PM on September 14, 2005 (55 comments)

A War to Be Proud Of. Christopher Hitchens in the Weekly Standard.
posted to MetaFilter by semmi at 12:33 AM on August 30, 2005 (182 comments)

This year's Malinowski Memorial Lecture at the London School of Economics was presented by David Graeber, until recently an Associate Professor at Yale, entitled Beyond Power/Knowledge: an exploration of the relation of power, ignorance and stupidity. (PDF link) Although Yale declined to provide a reason for Mr. Graeber's recent dismissal, it's likely that his outspoken anarchism and activism, as well as his support for a union of graduate students, were influences in the decision. He explained some of his views on anarchism, "globalization", and, yes, hope for the future, on the Charlie Rose Show. (Youtube) Weekend reading assignment: Fragments of an Anarchist Anthropology. (PDF link)
posted to MetaFilter by dinsdale at 4:56 PM on June 10, 2006 (22 comments)

Who killed the electric car? [flash] A documentary film (and flash website) about the mysterious demise of the electric car. The website contains a lot of information about the electric car and other alternative fuel cars in development. The film is coming to a theater near you, if you live in NY or LA. (Ok, actually a few other places.) Watch the trailer. [embedded qt]
posted to MetaFilter by jlub at 8:30 AM on June 10, 2006 (80 comments)

Is there a good source for free, high quality recordings of rain (or other nature sounds) on the internet?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by subclub at 4:39 PM on June 6, 2006 (25 comments)

"Brands are an important influence on our lives. They are central to free markets and democratic societies. They represent free choice. They also have a profound impact on our quality of life and the way we see our world. They color our lives. They reflect the values of our societies. Global brands can even embody the spirit of many nations, if not the spirit of an age. Most importantly, strong brands bestow value far beyond the performance of the products themselves. Brands that do this possess an idea worthy of consumer loyalty. The more inspiring the idea, the more intense and profound the commitment. And the more the consumer believes in the brand, the more value the brand returns to its owner."
posted to MetaFilter by j-urb at 10:53 PM on June 5, 2006 (53 comments)

Camp America: Should I, or shouldn't I?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by xvs22 at 10:17 AM on June 4, 2006 (16 comments)

Do people really get stranded on deserted islands and survive?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by ebeeb at 5:05 PM on June 4, 2006 (15 comments)

How can I best clean my LPs?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Eideteker at 6:32 PM on June 3, 2006 (8 comments)

Happiness [pdf] A financial analysis.
posted to MetaFilter by onalark at 9:05 AM on May 7, 2006 (75 comments)

Julians Beever draws on sidewalks with chalk. His drawings range from insects to commercial objects to self portraits. I don't know if he designs them on a his laptop, but as with LCD screens, viewing angle is critically important.
posted to MetaFilter by alms at 10:16 AM on June 4, 2005 (28 comments)

I really, really, like Boards of Canada. What other similar music might I like?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Otis at 3:15 PM on April 22, 2006 (38 comments)

Please suggest instrumental music we can listen to while we study. This music must mask the noise coming from the apartment above us and remain relatively unobtrusive (without being lame).
posted to Ask MetaFilter by safetyfork at 6:55 PM on March 25, 2006 (70 comments)