Afflictor: Thinking that the controversy over Phil Robertson’s homophobic remarks forced A&E to find a new patriarch for Duck Dynasty.
I’m back, you toxic queens.
- I disagree with Malcolm Gladwell’s contention that today’s celebrities behave better because of tabloid culture.
- I agree with Gladwell’s contention that PED hysteria if rife with hypocrisy.
- Old Print Articles: Jameson whiskey heir accused of arranging cannibalism (1890) + People believe that a dog is able to talk (1910).
- Featured Videos: Richard Burton, fresh from rehab, interviewed by Michael Parkinson (1984) + Muhammad Ali and Rocky Marciano fought a computerized “bout” (1970) + JFK conspiracist Jim Garrison interviewed by Johnny Carson (1966) + Allan Havey interviews Robert Downey Sr. (1991).
- Recently Posted on NYC’s Craigslist: Now you’re dead pet can complain about you + “I have a huge data set” is an interesting way to put it + Our teenage son doesn’t have an Internet connection.
- The New Yorker‘s 1972 coverage of the terrorism at the Munich Olympics.
- Walter Isaacson is crowdsourcing his new book about Silicon Valley.
- Al Goldstein was ahead of the curve when it came to pornography.
- Peter Singer points out the moral failings of the Batkid celebration.
- Non-human animals routinely display superpowers.
- North Korea’s ranking among countries that use the death penalty.
- How much Apollo astronauts earned for risking their lives.
- “Samantha West” is a telemarketing robot or perhaps something else.
- Is Google the contemporary Bell Labs? Arguments for and against.
- Beyoncé’s recent record is an outlier in every way.
- Ronnie Biggs of the Great Train Robbery was a masterful celebrity.
- We have summer blockbusters because Jaws was set on a beach.
- Discovering signs of life on other planets may be our death knell.
- Computer simulation changes scientific research in good and bad ways.
- A critical piece of the Internet of Things puzzle needs to be solved.
- Autonomous-vehicle development will affect all transportation planning.
- A brief note from 1910 about a frolic.
- A brief note from 1904 about dynamite.
- This week’s Afflictor keyphrase searches.