Thu, Feb 4, 2010 at 7:53:41 pm
We have a new entry in the “Is American politics weird enough yet?” sweepstakes: Sarah Palin bashes Rush Limbaugh. “Governor Palin believes crude and demeaning name calling at the expense of others is disrespectful.”

Wed, Feb 3, 2010 at 6:42:30 pm
A barn-burner performance of “Philosophy” from the first eponymous Ben Folds Five album. This song helped me through some hard times, and it packs a powerful message. [Video] Won’t you look up at the skyline At the mortar, block, and glass And check out the reflections in my eyes See they always used to ...

Mon, Feb 1, 2010 at 3:19:51 pm
Ten American Baptists are in jail in Haiti for attempting to smuggle 33 “orphans” out of the country — and many of the children aren’t even orphans at all: Road From Haiti Was Paved With Good Intentions, American Baptists Say. And one of the pastors involved has denounced “the accusations of ...

Mon, Jan 25, 2010 at 5:30:21 pm
Here’s another excellent track from the jazz-rock group Reign of Kindo, titled “October’s Storm.” [Video]

Fri, Jan 22, 2010 at 8:48:10 pm
Here’s another great tune from the latest album by Bruce Hornsby and the Noisemakers, Levitate. (Here it is at the iTunes Store.) [Video] Most of our years have flown away with nothing much decided Except the board we′re playing on, how it′s to be divided Win more years yet die alone? ...

Thu, Jan 21, 2010 at 8:13:28 am
The Justice Department has released a statement about this article by Scott Horton at Harper’s Magazine, saying that an investigation has uncovered no evidence of wrongdoing — but Horton’s piece contains some very disturbing details that strongly suggest the full story has yet to come out: The Guantánamo “Suicides”: A ...

Tue, Jan 12, 2010 at 7:10:24 pm
A stunning image of the sand dunes near the North Pole of Mars, from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter’s HiRISE camera: Phil Plait explains what you’re seeing: But what are those weird tendril thingies? In the Martian winter, carbon dioxide freezes out of the air (and you thought it was cold where you ...

Tue, Jan 12, 2010 at 9:29:36 am
You have to wonder what they’re afraid of. Word from Nashville on Monday was that the First National Tea Party Convention next month will be closed to the press, other than for a limited number of “selected” journalists. No word on who or how many. This from the people who brought ...

Mon, Jan 11, 2010 at 10:36:29 pm
Miep Gies, who found and safeguarded the diary of Anne Frank after her arrest by the Nazis in 1944, has died at the age of 100. “I didn’t read Anne’s diary papers. … It’s a good thing I didn’t because if I had read them I would have had to ...

Thu, Jan 7, 2010 at 6:51:40 pm
Hi everyone! Sarah here… Ya know, isn’t it just great how awesome Americans are taking charge of schools this way? This is a great movement in America, and it just makes me so proud to be a Conservative American! You know, lots of left-wing stuff gets taught to our kids at school ...

Sat, Jan 2, 2010 at 1:31:18 pm
As of January 1st, Ireland has enacted an atavistic law that makes “blasphemy” punishable by a fine of up to $35,000. It’s amazing that a civilized country in 2010 is deliberately putting in place laws from the Dark Ages. An Irish atheist group immediately challenged this stupid and dangerous legislation by ...

Sat, Dec 26, 2009 at 12:29:39 pm
Now that Christmas is past, Amazon has a great selection of Year-End Deals, with discounts of up to 70% on lots of items. Here’s one special that caught my eye, a Panasonic VIERA X1 Series TC-L26X1 26-Inch 720p LCD HDTV for only $260 — more than half off. And here’s one that ...

Mon, Dec 21, 2009 at 4:58:54 pm
Here’s a great live performance of “Prairie Dog Town,” by Bruce Hornsby and the Noisemakers, from their latest album Levitate. Like all of Bruce’s recent work, this one goes in unexpected and musically intriguing directions — and the lyrics are a hoot. (Here it is at the iTunes Store.) [Video] Poppin′ ...

Mon, Dec 21, 2009 at 11:23:46 am
If you still need a few stocking stuffers for friends or family, a good way to let them get what they want or need is to send an Amazon Gift Card. I bought a couple today myself; you can have them delivered by email, or if you order today you can ...

Sun, Dec 20, 2009 at 2:53:42 pm
Mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile’s band Punch Brothers is creating a new form of acoustic music, related to bluegrass but much deeper and more diverse, drawing on influences from classical, folk, jazz, and rock. Here’s a live performance of an excerpt from the four-part suite, “The Blind Leaving the Blind,” from ...

Fri, Dec 18, 2009 at 9:32:42 am
There’s still time to get that perfect Christmas gift at Amazon, with free two-day shipping: Amazon’s Top Holiday Deals. Be sure to check out their Lightning Deals, for limited time special discounts on all kinds of great gifts. New stuff is always popping up, so it’s a good idea to ...

Tue, Dec 15, 2009 at 6:26:19 pm
Another fantastic track from John Mayer’s Continuum, in a live version from the DVD Where The Light Is. (I would be remiss if I didn’t also give props to John’s terrific band.) The iTunes Store has both of these excellent recordings, if you’d like to download them right away: Continuum Where The Light Is [Video] ...

Tue, Dec 15, 2009 at 3:23:22 pm
All the right wing blogs and climate change denial sites are linking to this story: Inconvenient truth for Al Gore as his North Pole sums don’t add up. Mr Gore, speaking at the Copenhagen climate change summit, stated the latest research showed that the Arctic could be completely ice-free in ...

Mon, Dec 14, 2009 at 7:40:54 pm
Here’s a fascinating interview with religious right apostate Frank Schaeffer, son of the late Calvinist preacher Francis Schaeffer, talking about the epiphany that led him to renounce his upbringing, from Point of Inquiry. [Audio] And here’s Schaeffer’s latest book, a memoir of growing up in the heart of the religious right: Crazy ...

Fri, Dec 11, 2009 at 8:38:32 pm
John Mayer and his great band perform “Vultures,” from the album Continuum. (Here it is at the iTunes Store.) [Video]

Mon, Dec 7, 2009 at 3:48:49 pm
A great live performance of “Gravity” by John Mayer and his excellent band, from the album Continuum. (Here it is at the iTunes Store.) [Video]

Mon, Nov 30, 2009 at 3:07:14 pm
Here’s an excellent website that thoroughly debunks a lot of the most common talking points endlessly repeated by climate change skeptics and deniers: Skeptical Science: Examining Global Warming Skepticism. Their mission statement: Skeptical Science was created by John Cook, an ex-physicist (majoring in solar physics at the University of Queensland). My ...

Mon, Nov 30, 2009 at 11:45:32 am
It’s your last chance to take advantage of Amazon’s awesome discounts on popular items from video games to gadgets to jewelry, some of them reduced up to 80%, at their Cyber Monday Deals page. This banner says “Black Friday,” but it will take you straight to the Cyber Monday page. (Note: ...

Sun, Nov 29, 2009 at 2:56:03 pm
If the urge to shop hasn’t been beaten out of you by the Black Friday stampedes, Amazon is still offering incredible discounts on popular items for their Cyber Monday Deals. Check out the Cyber Monday Electronics page in particular for discounts of up to 70% (or more) on the latest gadgetry. (Note: ...

Sat, Nov 28, 2009 at 8:35:48 pm
I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for some music after another insanely contentious week. This is part of Keith Jarrett’s sublime Sun Bear Concerts, a flawless recording of Jarrett at the peak of his improvisational genius on a tour of Japan in 1976. [Video]