The Obama campaign has objected to a cartoon on the cover of the New Yorker that depicts him as a Muslim and his wife as a radical black activist. Objecting to cartoons inside the New Yorker: golfers, doctors and squiggly people with marital problems.

In a speech this week, Barack Obama said that the war in Iraq distracts Americans from the threat of the Taliban in Afghanistan. Obama added that the war distracts Americans from an even bigger threat: cartoonists.

On Friday, former Sen. Phil Gramm gave up his position as economic advisor to the McCain campaign, a week after saying the United States was a “nation of whiners.” In resigning, Gramm pointed out that he’d realized we are actually a nation of quitters.

Pope Benedict says that the world's natural resources are being squandered in the pursuit of "insatiable consumption." In addition, other natural resources are being squandered in order to make the pope's hat.

After a meeting, President Bush stated that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is a “smart guy.” In supporting his opinion, Bush pointed out that Medvedev had mastered the difficult language of Russian.

According to a new survey, only 21% of Americans are in favor of federal aid for those facing foreclosures. The other 79% did not respond to the survey because it was not sent to the box where they currently live.

A new poll of American Jews reveals that 90% think the country is on the wrong track. But for you, 85%.

A new poll of American Jews reveals that 90% think the country is on the wrong track. Although maybe they wouldn't if you called once in a while.

World leaders at the G-8 conference have agreed to cut in half the amount of greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2050. President Bush said the U.S. will do its part on cutting gas emissions by shutting down all Taco Bells.

The United States military has a shortage of linguists fluent in the languages spoken in Afghanistan: Dari, Pashto, Uzbek, and Turkmen. The United States government likewise has a shortage of presidents fluent in English.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that under state law, sex acts with the dead were illegal. As a result, groupies will not have sex with the band after the next Rolling Stones concert in Milwaukee.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that under state law, sex acts with the dead were illegal. Anyone convicted will receive a stiff sentence.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that under state law, sex acts with the dead were illegal. In light of the news, Larry King and his wife have cancelled their second honeymoon in Milwaukee.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that under state law, sex acts with the dead were illegal. However, it remains legal in Wisconsin for quarterbacks with dead careers to screw their former team.

A 33-year-old Michigan man is accused of wearing a “World's Greatest Dad” shirt to a meeting for sex with what he thought was a 14-year-old girl. In his defense, the man pointed out that under “World's Greatest Dad,” the shirt said in smaller letters “at having sex with 14-year-old girls.”

French President Nicolas Sarkozy announced plans for a Mediterranean Union funded by the European Union and aimed at ending poverty, strife and other social and diplomatic problems in former French colonies in Northern Africa. The plans are all part of France's new "You Break It, You Buy It" policy.

A Japanese labor bureau has ruled that a Toyota engineer died from working too many hours on the development of a Camry hybrid. Ironically, the new vehicle is designed to run on a combination of gasoline, electricity, and the ashes of dead Japanese engineers.

US Airways says it will start removing in-flight entertainment systems on domestic flights in November to save about $10 million annually in fuel and other costs. This decision will also save millions of lives once passengers are no longer forced to watch "Drillbit Taylor."

US Airways says it will start removing in-flight entertainment systems on domestic flights in November to save about $10 million annually in fuel and other costs. US Airways is currently the only airline that uses gasoline-powered movies.

US Airways will start removing in-flight entertainment systems on domestic flights in November to save about $10 million annually in fuel and other costs. The airline loses money due to flights being delayed when passengers yell “There’s a bomb on board!” every time a Dane Cook movie is shown.

Angelina Jolie gave birth to twins Knox Leon and Vivienne Marcheline on July 12. Jolie is healthy but disappointed, since with twins she figured odds were at least one of them would not be white.

The National Enquirer is reporting that sixty-two-year-old Cher plans to marry an ex-Hell's Angel nearly half her age. Her fiancé is still five times older than anything on Cher's face.

Metallica will make the songs on their next CD available for download to play on Guitar Hero III. The download will include also allow players to engage in interactive group therapy sessions.

Sarah Jessica Parker's trademark mole has been removed from the actress's face. "I no longer wanted to walk around being seen with that hideous thing," said the mole.

Miss USA Crystle Stewart fell down during Monday's Miss Universe contest. Stewart fell as part of the talent competition while doing her impression of the U.S. dollar.

Miss USA Crystle Stewart fell down during Monday's Miss Universe contest. She also misspelled her first name.

A new report suggests that babies conceived from frozen embryos are just as healthy as those conceived naturally. Except for the freezer burn.

A new report suggests that babies conceived from frozen embryos are just as healthy as those conceived naturally. They also come in an assortment of fruity flavors.

Last month, the 38th annual Gay Pride Parade was held in San Francisco. And, girl, she does not look a day over 25.

Last month, the 38th annual Gay Pride Parade was held in San Francisco. Residents celebrated by dancing in the streets, dressing outrageously, and otherwise behaving as they do every other day.

According to a new study, men who eat too many fatty foods can have hurt their sperm production. The decrease often goes unnoticed, as none of the overweight men has seen their penises in years.

According to a new study, men who eat too many fatty foods can hurt their sperm production. Nutritionists recommend that overweight men switch to fresh fruit while surfing internet porn.

The nation's DNA tracking system faces a huge backlog that could take years to clear, leaving crimes unsolved and offenders free in society. The cause of the backlog: the massive workload of paternity tests from The Maury Povich Show.

The World Heritage List has added eight new natural wonders. The list includes the Joggins Fossil Cliffs, the Lagoons of New Caledonia, and Jessica Alba's career.

An epidemic of cancer is forcing Tasmanian devils to breed earlier. The efforts are proving unsuccessful since the Tasmanian devils want only to breed with rabbits dressed in drag.

Bangkok, Thailand was voted the world's best city in a poll conducted by Travel + Leisure magazine, trumping last year's winner, Florence, Italy. Bangkok's victory was attributed to the fact that most readers of Travel + Leisure magazine are pedophiles.

Bangkok, Thailand was voted the world's best city in a poll conducted by Travel + Leisure magazine, trumping last year's winner, Florence, Italy. In an effort to win back the title, Florence has launched an intensive campaign to teach all women in the city how to shoot ping-pong balls out of their vaginas.

Bangkok, Thailand was voted the world's best city in a poll conducted by Travel + Leisure magazine, trumping last year's winner, Florence, Italy. Bangkok's victory was attributed to the fact the only reader of Travel + Leisure magazine is Murray Head.

Bangkok, Thailand was voted the world's best city in a poll conducted by the magazine Travel & Leisure. In addition, Bangkok was also voted the best city by the publication Pedophile Weekly.

Bangkok, Thailand was voted the world's best city in a poll conducted by the magazine Travel & Leisure. Bangkok residents praised the magazine, saying for once it's nice that someone gave them a "happy ending."

And finally, Evelyn Keyes, the actress who played Scarlett O'Hara's younger sister Suellen in the classic 1939 film "Gone With the Wind," died of uterine cancer July 4 in Montecito at age 91. While fans had hoped Keyes would live to 92, frankly, she didn't give a damn.

Ela estava internada no Hospital São Lucas, em Copacabana. A atriz era famosa por suas entrevistas irreverentes

(c) Antero Valério, que desta vez explica a génese da obra rara.

** special post request by Saddam Cafe!

Claimer:- Too much fundae_putting for a very small issue. Excusus Maadimus.

Location: A semi-posh hotel in the heart of Bengaluru. Woodlands a.k.a Woody’s it is called.

So here I was, happily staying at this hotel [ albeit at company’s expense, but don’t ruin the moment ], which is supposedly famous in B’ lore for its breakfast. Not many star hotels can boast about that.

Aha, if that’s not enough, there is one more USP to this place. At all the dining venues, this mallu-run hotel plays Carnatic Music to give that xtra aambience effects.                  Yes. Good-ol’ Classy stuff that sits well with most of the senior Tam folk who seem to form a majority of the customers here [ and with me as well - if you still didn’t get the point ].

I think this must be an corollary/extension of that experimental research that, cows gave more milk when exposed to western classical music.

In the mornings, they play Mandolin Shrinivas. The same CD every day. I still liked it.

At dinner, for some weird reason, they play death-note Shehnai/saxophone. Morose funeral-ish stuff. I didn’t quite get the funda, but since the food was quite good, I didn’t bother much.

Well, enough of bitti publicity. Back to core issues. Or the lack of it.

So, one day at the breakfast, the hotel features the Southie menu filled with awesomeness, the Idlis, the Vadas, dosas…. and also some mandatory nuisances like the Upma [ a.k.a Uppittu. as if an alias changes the hideousness ]. And being a devout member of the caffeine cultus, I order a coffee as well. Wait, let me rephrase.

A true-to-Bengaluru-tradition Cothasian fresh, piping hot, delicious cuppa coffee, with a frothy layer as a visual bonus.

Ya, it was something like that. I’m a bit restrained with appraisals.

It was of course sugar-free, to suit the oldies. So, I take the  semi-crystalline, semi-powdery sugar sachet, and pour it down. It made a small hole into that layer, sinking in slowly. Maybe I was already high in anticipation of the coffee, or maybe bengaluru’s   early-morning cold had excited my mind, in either case, this sight brought a smile to my face. I assume the classy people around me thought I was some downmarket crazy oaf. That is, if they hadn’t already thought of that, while I came to have the breakfast in my pair of jazzy bermudae.

To me, however, it reminded of old cartoon characters. When they used to fall out of planes, or space, or anywhere else… Dropping through columns of white clouds, making appropriate look-alike cut-out holes in the process.

Maybe I’m imagining a bit too much. “Much ado about nothing”- ing about a petty issue.

Signing off with a recent chat with Akella. [ Expletives included ]

Me : Hey, I found a house in Wilson Garden. Pretty neat. And near as well..

Akella : So, when are you shifting to a proper house?

Me : Wtf, this house is closeby, has a maid, and a TV as well.      You can’t get properer than that.

Akella : No, I meant why are you staying in a Garden?

Me : You Whore.

Some people never change…

And that is good…

And that is all…

À laia de retroactivo 2

Julho 18, 2008 <!--antero-->

Jul 19, 2008 - The World needs a change of leadership, and I believe that Bugs Bunny is just the person for the job. I realize we already have a gang of crazy animals watching over us and ready to pounce: politicians, corporate executives, corporate-owned media and greeting card companies. Bugs Bunny, on the other hand, is a domesticated and tame animal. His agenda would include tranquilizing this organized animal syndicate in order to prevent them from stampeding over the people whom they refer to as ordinary and average.

Bugs Bunny's most endearing and politically viable trait is his incorruptibility. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely, however, Bugs has a track record dating back to the 1940's of only fighting back in retaliation to another's provoked attack. Basically, he would have a foreign policy of non-intervention. With Mr. Bunny ruling the world, borders wouldn't exist. There will, however, always be dissidents, insurgents, and wacky rebels who believe they could run Earth more effectively than Bugs. The planet Mars would be the only foreign power. The sole threat we would have to defend ourselves against would come from the Martian who will always be an enemy to the people of Earth, Marvin.

To appease the hawks, I'll emphatically remind people that Bugs Bunny has never initiated violence, but he's also never backed down or been held to silly timetables or civilian casualties. This incontrovertible fact has been proved time after time in the hundreds of five-minute documentaries which captured his life and times so well, and in absolutely brilliant color and depth. And I'll state to the doves that you'll be able to sleep securely at night knowing Bugs Bunny will never launch a first-strike against Mars, nor try to seize any potential water source Marvin the Martian may possess.

Gun control is the only issue that makes Bugs Bunny a controversial figure. Gun control would be his top priority. Evading Elmer Fudd and Yosemite Sam was fine when Bugs was just a mere civilian, but he'll have much more important tasks with which to to concern himself after he's acquired absolute dominion over the planet Earth.

Taking over the world through a Democratic process will be difficult and time-consuming (fortunately, Bugs Bunny doesn't age, which is another trait that gives him excellent political viability). The first step will be to get him on the ballot in all 50 states. Ralph Nader will be assisting Bugs in this endeavor. In the event that Bugs Bunny can't achieve power through a Democratic process, he'll enlist the aid of George Bush, Dick Cheney, Karl Rove and Speedy Gonzales.

Please remember Bugs Bunny in November of 2008, and pass all this information along to your foreign friends using two cups and a string. Please do not leak the details of this plan to Marvin - he'd definitely launch a covert operation to discredit and demoralize Bugs Bunny, thereby leaving the citizens of the Earth with our current level of corruption and animal attacks.

Big Smith at Cartoon’s

BringYourGreenHat at The Springfield Brewing Company

We'll probably add a few more...

Much as we prefer to laugh some of these off, some are...well... true. Enjoy!

---

Thanks to happee! (you've made us really happy!) :D

Cartoons de Jeff Stahler, Brian Fairrington, Steve Breen, Matt Davies e Mike Keefe.

Research Soogee-moogee

Seems appropriate Moogee the caustic soda dog:-)

Entre os autores brasileiros mais admirados pelos leitores apareciam Vinícius de Moraes (5º. lugar), Cecília Meireles (6º. lugar), Carlos Drummond de Andrade (7º. lugar), Mário Quintana (11º. lugar) e Manuel Bandeira (14º. lugar) e Castro Alves (21º. Lugar). Todos poetas do cânone. Em outros gêneros o primeiro lugar é uma surpresa: o autor mais admirado é Monteiro Lobato. Seria ótimo se não fosse o fato de Lobato não ter livros nas livrarias quando da pesquisa – a lembrança veio do programa de televisão e das histórias em quadrinho. Depois de Lobato seguem Paulo Coelho, Jorge Amado e Machado de Assis; depois dos três poetas já citados aparecem Érico Veríssimo, José de Alencar e o quadrinista, Maurício de Souza. O resto da lista pode ser visto no site do Instituto Prolivro, que organizou e financiou a pesquisa.

         É verdade que não aparecem poetas contemporâneos e vivos, mas sem dúvida os citados estão entre os melhores da poesia brasileira moderna e o condoreiro fica sempre bem.

A surpresa se manifestava também pelo fato da “subida” da poesia na preferência dos leitores ter sido significativa, não tanto na posição, mas sim na quantidade de leitores que declaravam essa preferência em relação à pesquisa do ano 2000. Naquela pesquisa, respondendo à pergunta se tinham “consultado, folheado ou lido nos últimos 12 meses”, a poesia aparecia em 6º. Lugar, com 19% dos entrevistados masculinos e 26% dos femininos respondendo afirmativamente.

         Quando perguntados (em 2000) sobre suas preferências por gênero de livro (resposta única, naquela ocasião), a poesia aparecia em 5º. lugar no geral, com um total de 4% dos leitores fazendo essa afirmação (1% dos leitores homens e 5% dos leitores mulheres).

Em 2008, a quantidade de entrevistados que declarou ter lido pelo menos um livro nos últimos três meses anteriores à pesquisa foi de 95,6 milhões de pessoas (55%) da população estudada. Mas, importante ressaltar, 47,4 milhões desses leitores são estudantes que  lêem livros indicados pelas escolas, incluindo aí os didáticos. Portanto, os leitores que declararam sua preferência por poesia como gênero (não exclusivo) seriam 26,323 milhões, dos quais a metade estudantes.

         Destaque-se também, para referência, que o universo da pesquisa de 2008 incluía toda a população acima de cinco anos de idade, independentemente do nível de escolaridade.

No ano 2000 a situação era diferente.

Em primeiro lugar o universo estudado era diferente: foi pesquisada a população acima de 14 anos de idade e com pelo menos três anos de escolarização.

Nesse universo a preferência por gêneros de leitura era assim:

Para matizar um pouco mais o quadro vejamos como os leitores do ano 2008 se dividiam por sexo.

A pesquisa do ano 2000 não tem uma tabela idêntica (e nunca esqueçamos que trabalha com universos diferentes). Entretanto apresenta outra tabela também interessante para ser vista. É a tabela formada pelas respostas dadas pelos entrevistados a partir da pergunta sobre se nos últimos doze meses tinham tido contato, folheado ou lido algum livro dos gêneros, com a possibilidade de respostas múltiplas. Ou seja, uma pergunta um pouco mais parecida com a feita em 2008 na primeira tabela.

Note-se que alguns gêneros, ainda que declarados como preferidos, não foram mencionados entre aqueles lidos ou consultados nos doze meses anteriores (técnicos, fisiologia, jurídico, saúde e sexo/eróticos)[1][iii].

         Antes de examinarmos o conjunto dos dados para tentar entender que leitores brasileiros gostam de poesia é importante acrescentar mais duas tabelas, referentes à pesquisa de 2008. Mas desta vez só transcrevemos as informações sobre os leitores de poesia.

Esses resultados estão tabulados por escolaridade, idade, nível de renda familiar e classe social[1][iv]

O que nos dizem esses números?

         A pesquisa de 2008 mostra que os leitores que declararam sua preferência pelo gênero poesia são em sua maioria menores de 14 anos e estudantes (48,3% do total). Pelo perfil de renda e socioeconômico é provável que a maioria deles esteja na escola pública. Esses leitores estavam fora da pesquisa de 2000.

         A tabela disponível que permite especular um pouco sobre as duas pesquisas é a que distribui os leitores de poesia por gênero (masculino e feminino). Em 2000 a proporção era de 19% dos leitores masculinos e 26% dos leitores femininos. Já em 2008 essa proporção era de 22% para os homens e 32% para as mulheres.

         No perfil demográfico da amostra de 2008 a população com menos de 14 anos de idade representa 20% do total. Entretanto, é nessa população que se concentram 48,3% dos leitores de poesia.

         O que os números nos mostram, portanto, é que a escola é a grande fonte dos leitores do gênero. Mais importante ainda é que esses jovens declaram que a poesia é seu gênero preferido de leitura.

         A partir desses números, entretanto, não se sustenta a idéia de que “os brasileiros” em geral estão lendo mais poesia. É impossível comparar com precisão os dados das pesquisas de 2000 e 2008 a respeito, mas as poucas porcentagens que vimos mostram que as diferenças para a população acima de 14 anos não são tão significativas quanto poderiam parecer.

         A persistência da preferência pela poesia na idade adulta desses jovens que estão com menos de 14 anos hoje é algo que só poderemos ver quando fizermos, no futuro, novas pesquisas do gênero Retratos da Leitura no Brasil.

         Até lá os poetas têm que trabalhar – muito além de escrever as poesias – para que essa preferência não esmoreça. Ao contrário, que se consolide. Para isso é importante que os poetas sigam o velho chamado de Castro Alves e se dirijam ao encontro de seus jovens leitores nas escolas, nas feiras de livros, em festivais de poesia.

         O animador é que existe essa receptividade para poesia. E lembrem-se que há trinta ou quarenta anos atrás os poetas lidos pelos adolescentes se mediam pelo padrão J. G. de Araújo Jorge. Acho que já melhorou, e pode melhorar ainda mais.

         É preciso ter esperança de que não apenas os índices de leitura de poesia cresçam, mas que aumentem os índices de leitura em geral, para todos os gêneros, em todas as idades e situações sócio-econômicas.

         Se os livros estiverem mais disponíveis para todos e se o nível educacional da população continuar melhorando é certo que isso acontecerá, e isso define nossa equação para que o Brasil seja um país de leitores:

         Mais livros disponíveis = mais bibliotecas + mais educação de qualidade = mais leitores.

[1][i] RETRATOS DA LEITURA NO BRASIL ver em www.prolivro.org.br

[1][ii] Resposta estimulada ao questionário da pesquisa em que o leitor podia escolher mais de uma opção.

[1][iii] Essas incongruências mostram uma das características de pesquisas de opinião. Os entrevistados respondem a todas as perguntas, mas quando as respostas puxam pela memória – no caso, lembranças de um ano – nem sempre elas correspondem entre si.

[1][iv] O critério de “classe social” é o da Associação Brasileira das Empresas de Pesquisa - ABEP

Felipe Lindoso é editor, antropólogo, e estudioso do mercado editorial e das políticas públicas para o livro no Brasil. Tem vários artigos publicados sobre o tema e o livro “O Brasil pode ser um pais de leitores?”. Trabalhou em instituições da área cultural e do livro, e hoje dá assessoria sobre a questão. Criou e desenvolve um projeto que, apoiado pela Lei Rouanet, instala Bancas-Bibliotecas por todo o país.

~thanks Gary!

Novo cinto reduz 45% dos acidentes...

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Time: Limited!

Mission: Potentially idiotic!

So, I go on my holidays on Thursday night. As much as I'm looking forward to the break and seeing both the friends I'm travelling with and the friends I'm staying with.... I have no money at all! Literally, less than £50 to last the whole time I'm away, which will cover the journey from the airport, probably.

Therefore, I'm doing something that one side of my brain is excited about, and the other side is screaming "NOOOOO!" at me for.

Commission sale time, folks! Until Wednesday morning, I'm taking requests for bean men characters, with a quick background, for $10 each. Yeah, that works out at £5, which means I'll have to work my ass off just to double my spends, but needs must when desperation hits you in the crotch with a mallet.

To reiterate:

ANY CHARACTER - $10 - UNTIL WEDNESDAY MORNING.

If I get too many requests that I can't possibly make them in time, I'll update here saying so. Until then, hit me!

Junko Mizuno also has some of the coolest merchandise around from graphic novels, crazy action figures and even gruesome yet adorable versions of fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel and the Little Mermaid. If you are into low brow art her work will suddenly appear everywhere you look from magazine articles to tv shows Junko will overtake the world with her wicked coolness.

This cartoon is by Dave Walker.