MetaFilter

The truth that MeFites don't want you to know. As a follow-up to this post on "the Coffins GWB doesn't want you to see," it is revealed that many of the photographs that ran rampant over the Internet and wire services weren't of fallen American soldiers, but were of the crew of the Columbia.
comment posted at 7:44 AM on Apr-24-04

Israeli Border Police use Palestinian kid as human shield. According to Rabbi Arik Ascherman: “The boy, crying, shaking from fear and eventually cold, was sat on the hood of a jeep and tied to the bars protecting the glass. The other three arrestees were bound and placed in front of a second jeep as human shields, to deter protestors from throwing stones at the jeep”.
comment posted at 5:01 PM on Apr-23-04
comment posted at 6:43 AM on Apr-24-04
comment posted at 7:55 PM on Apr-25-04

There are goofy news items every day, but once in a while you have some story that transcends them all. Teacher accused of ordering student thrown from window is quite possibly the silliest story I've seen this year. It's beyond the Onion. Teacher enters class and takes photo of students, one student objects, teacher makes a disparaging remark about the way the student looks and student hits an emergency button, then the teacher orders two boys to throw her out the window (where she suffered injuries). Best line about the boys "they threw the girl out the window because they did not want to be written up for disobeying a teacher."
comment posted at 12:27 AM on Apr-24-04

You just knew that as soon as gay marriages were legal they'd be screwing in the trees, and damned if it didn't happen.
comment posted at 5:19 AM on Apr-23-04
comment posted at 4:54 PM on Apr-23-04

Designs on the White House -- an online design contest, judged by designers, celebrities, and activists. Winning designs will be available for resale on T-shirts and other products, and all proceeds after expenses will benefit the John Kerry Presidential campaign. Impressive list of judges, including (so far) Milton Glaser, Chip Kidd, Ed Schlossberg, Atrios, and Tom Tomorrow. Designs will be online throughout May, with your votes determining the finalists. (Kerry's official shirts are lacking, imho) Maybe campaign memorabilia always has been?
comment posted at 5:20 AM on Apr-23-04
comment posted at 6:13 AM on Apr-23-04

Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey are soldiers who went AWOL and fled to Canada. They share their stories on their websites. [Via Plastic.]
comment posted at 6:57 PM on Apr-20-04

What do you mean Matt Haughey isn't on this list?
Time Magazine does a sequel to the 100 Most Influential People of the 20th Century with a list of the current Hot 100... Have fun raging at the inevitable bad choices and obvious omissions. For a more entertaining list, here's Parade Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters.
Preemptive strike: Yeah, all "Top 100" Lists are lame, but critiquing them can be an entertaining way to finish off a boring weekend
comment posted at 6:10 AM on Apr-19-04

Cicadas best served sauteed in butter and parsley apparently, or if you want to go more upscale: "The soft-shelled cicada, it's done just like a soft-shelled crab," says executive chef Frank Belosic, describing how freshly molted cicadas should be rolled in flour, pan-fried in olive oil, and finished with a sauce of white wine, butter and shallots.
comment posted at 5:31 AM on Apr-19-04

Analogia - You upload your face and complex recognition software returns three celebrities you most resemble. Which are you? The software is surprisingly accurate! (Marginally NSFW: thumb nailed obscenity)
comment posted at 1:52 PM on Apr-18-04

The McGurk Effect
comment posted at 12:22 PM on Apr-16-04
comment posted at 12:30 PM on Apr-16-04

This is a message to our neighbours north of the Mediterranean, containing a reconciliation initiative as a response to their positive reactions. Osama bin Laden's latest message to the world. (more inside)
comment posted at 10:33 AM on Apr-15-04
comment posted at 1:59 PM on Apr-15-04
comment posted at 2:56 PM on Apr-15-04
comment posted at 3:27 PM on Apr-15-04
comment posted at 4:05 PM on Apr-15-04

Amazon's A9 Launches - Amazon.com's Entry into the Search Engine World launches today (in Beta). [via BoingBoing]
comment posted at 12:20 PM on Apr-14-04

Naive is a beautifully-presented site featuring some cool games and cartoons. Note: Flash. Via akihi.
comment posted at 12:56 PM on Apr-14-04
comment posted at 3:03 PM on Apr-14-04

The robot should go in first. Between 50 and 100 Packbot [13MB wmv] unmanned ground vehicles (UGV) are currently being used for battlefield reconnaissance. One proved its worth last week when it uncovered a bomb and was destroyed in the process. Colin Angle, CEO of Packbot maker iRobot, doesn't rule out the eventual weaponizing of UGVs and quips "we're not using these robots to hand out flowers".
comment posted at 3:30 PM on Apr-13-04

That frog-eating bastard should have that S.O.B. Rumsfeld shot! Respectful, informative campaigning continues on both sides. Wouldn't it be great if both propaganda machines sufficiently alienated the majority of the population so that it could make up its own mind?
comment posted at 2:59 PM on Apr-13-04
comment posted at 8:00 PM on Apr-13-04

Men aged 18-25, have you got your lighters ready? It's going to be draft time soon, according to the Nader campaign. The Selective Service denies it.
comment posted at 2:20 PM on Apr-13-04
comment posted at 2:51 PM on Apr-13-04
comment posted at 3:23 PM on Apr-13-04
comment posted at 5:38 PM on Apr-13-04
comment posted at 2:29 PM on Apr-14-04
comment posted at 8:57 PM on Apr-14-04

Labels seek end to 99c music per song download
"...the major five labels think that 99 cents per song is too cheap, and are discussing a price hike that would increase the tariff to $1.25 up to $2.99 per song." How about free legal downloads for $6 a month. DRM free. The artists get paid.? Will the RIAA ever see the light?
comment posted at 9:56 AM on Apr-12-04

Loftcube. I saw this in Playboy and had to look it up. [Flash and music].
comment posted at 7:47 PM on Apr-10-04

Drum Solo. With no drums
comment posted at 8:26 PM on Apr-9-04

Jeff Skilling pulls an Uncle Junior? Sure sounds like guilty behavior to me.
comment posted at 2:09 PM on Apr-9-04

Coelacanth quiz. Test your knowlege about this unpalatable but interesting ol' fish.
comment posted at 2:17 PM on Apr-7-04

Tyson the bulldog enjoys riding skateboards, not so much wearing flower hats.
comment posted at 1:39 PM on Apr-7-04

The Fast and the Frustrated. The city of Pleasanton, CA is about to install specially calibrated traffic lights which sense whether or not you are speeding. When speeding is detected, these traffic lights will change from green to yellow to red immediately, and will stay red for 10 to 30 seconds, all in an effort to stymie speeders.
comment posted at 11:07 AM on Apr-7-04
comment posted at 12:05 PM on Apr-7-04
comment posted at 1:06 PM on Apr-7-04

Firebreathing has become trendy -- even Xena did it. Of course, its also very dangerous - don't try this at home.
comment posted at 11:49 AM on Apr-6-04

Teenage lesbian or bisexual girls… are the worst hit by tobacco among all groups of young people, according to a new US study. "Antigay stigma and harassment, rejection from family and friends, and sometimes even physical violence can create a hostile environment for many young people coming to terms with their sexual orientation. This, combined with the tobacco industry's targeted marketing to lesbian and gay communities, is putting lesbian and bisexual girls in harm's way."
comment posted at 3:36 PM on Apr-5-04

Portable Zip Codes "Every year millions of Americans are on the go: People who must relocate for work or other reasons. Those people may have been quite attached to their original homes or an adopted town or city of residence. For them this innovative measure will serve as an umbilical cord to the place they love best."
comment posted at 9:32 AM on Apr-2-04

Virtuoso guitar performance of the Super Mario theme song. With sound effects too!
(3.5 mb Windows Media video)
comment posted at 9:42 AM on Apr-2-04

March For Women - because America is not a great place to be a woman. The time is right for a public demonstration of historic size in support of reproductive freedom and justice for all women. Threats to these rights have never been so systematic and coordinated, and the lives and health of women have never faced such peril. See ya there! I will be the woman in the embroidered denim jacket - the one my mom wore when she marched for the exact same rights, 40-odd years ago. sigh.
comment posted at 6:04 PM on Mar-30-04
comment posted at 6:09 PM on Mar-30-04

The Science of Happiness
comment posted at 4:22 PM on Mar-28-04
comment posted at 5:12 PM on Mar-28-04
comment posted at 7:29 AM on Mar-29-04