Boing Boing, August 9, 2024
All our articles from the last 24 hours in one long post
One-in-30-million mutant orange lobster has more than a dozen very cute orange babies (video)
Allan Rose Hill / 11:55 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
image: University of New England
Last year, a fisherman in Casco Bay on the Southern coast of Maine caught an exceedingly rare lobster with orange coloration. The odds of such a catch are about one-in-30-million, so the fisherman kindly donated the animal—named Peaches—to the University of New England. Now, the university has announced that Peaches is a new mom. More than a dozen of the baby lobsters share the orange coloration. (video below)
Professor Markus Frederich and student Ruby Motulsky of the Invertebrate Physiology Lab are attempting to "decode the molecular basis for rare shell discoloration."
"At this point, no one really knows in detail why some lobsters develop these multicolor variations, though we do have some theories," Frederich has said about the orange lobsters along with even rarer blue lobsters living at the lab. "We hope to use this gene expression research to study the molecular biology of these creatures in a way that is not harmful to the lobsters."
Previously:
• Man keeps grocery store lobster as a pet
• Fisherman finds a rare 1-in-100-million 'cotton candy'-colored lobster
Dramatic footage shows a passenger plane falling from the sky, crashing in Brazil (video)
Carla Sinclair / 11:26 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Stock footage of Voepass plane; Joao Fachetti / shutterstock.com
Horrifying footage has captured a Brazilian VoePass flight that crashed in São Paulo, Brazil today. (See videos below, posted by Breaking Aviation News and P.M. News.)
The domestic flight, carrying 58 passengers and four crew members, according to The Independent, can be seen spinning before plunging straight down. A cluster of trees blocks the camera's view from the plane as it crashes into the ground, but moments later black smoke fills the air.
The ATR-72 plane was en route from Cascavel, in the state of Parana, to Guarulhos, in Sao Paulo, news website G1 said, citing the airline Voepass.
Sao Paulo's state fire brigade confirmed that a plane crashed in the city Vinhedo, and that it had sent seven crews to the area.
— The Independent
As of this writing there hasn't been any information on how many people might have been injured or killed.
Previously: Pilot's nightmare: canopy bursts mid-flight, leaving her fighting for control (video)
What if Jurassic Park was shot on an iPhone and posted to TikTok instead? (video)
Allan Rose Hill / 11:23 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
image: publicity still (cropped)
The Vertical Movie uses AI to transform movies into video clips that look like they were shot on an iPhone for TikTok.
They've given the treatment to the likes of Lord of the Rings, Inglourious Bastards, and Casino Royale but I think Jurassic Park works beautifully. Watch below:
Previously:
• Once you see the Spielberg Face, you can never unsee it
• Steel Magnolias as a horror film
Crochet your way through our National Parks
Jennifer Sandlin / 11:12 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Image: social media/NPS
Once again, the National Park Service is showing us how cool it is! This time, it's all about adorably educational crafts, including crochet. The NPS website has been showcasing what Outdoors calls "ridiculously wholesome" nature crochet patterns created by different rangers, including Hailey Burley, who created this halibut pattern and this walleye pattern. Colossal explains:
Referencing the aquatic inhabitants of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve and Voyageurs National Park, the DIY projects to offer a playful way to engage with the environment and the creatures living in these regions.
I checked out the NPS website and found some more awesome patterns. Here are two of my favorites:
This triops:
Triops are a type of freshwater crustacean that live in temporary pools of rainwater throughout the world. Their eggs can survive being dry in the dirt for up to 30 years. In the summer of 2021 a hatching of Triops eggs occurred in the ballcourt of the Wupatki Pueblo after almost 5 inches in 10 days. They grew and lived in the water for about three weeks until the water dried up and they became food for other animals like ravens. Hopefully enough of them laid eggs for the next big rain.
And this lighthouse:
The Ocracoke Light Station celebrates its 200th Anniversary in 2023. Located on Ocracoke Island, the 75-foot tall Ocracoke Lighthouse guides mariners through the challenging Ocracoke Inlet, providing access not only to Ocracoke Village, but important ports such as New Bern, Edenton, and Elizabeth City. Developed and donated by Megan Lapp, this crochet pattern is for the Ocracoke Lighthouse part of Cape Hatteras National Seashore. It is recommended for Advanced Beginner level or above. A lighthouse from this pattern is approximately 3 inches from side to side, and approximately 11 inches from top to bottom. This pattern is written in U.S. terminology. Have fun!
I also found a beaver, a saguaro cactus, a mountain goat, and a lava flow pillow!
The NPS website also features other crafty activities, from sewing to building lighthouses out of plastic cups. Again, Outdoors:
Crochet not your thing? No worries. Maybe you're into sewing, and would like to try your hand at making a stuffed American shad in honor of the fish that swim in the waters of the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail? Or maybe you'd like to sew a mouse-shaped eyeglasses case inspired by a gift from former First Lady Pat Nixon to former First Lady Mamie Eisenhower. (The free pattern for this "friendship mouse" is courtesy of the First Ladies National Historic Site in Ohio.)
Looking for easy crafts to do with kids? Just search for the phrase "build your own" on the National Park Service website. If you can't make it out to a national park for a bit of outdoor adventure, do the next-best thing: make a plastic-cup lighthouse, craft a paper cannon, or, you know, crochet some fish.
Thank you, National Park Service and all of the talented rangers who are gifting us with your knowledge and creativity. Keep up the great work!
Previously:
• Behold the amazing shit blanket of 2022
• These Exorcist-themed crochet dolls are adorably creepy
• Crochet artist Nicole Nikolich creates stunning Windows home screen blanket for Microsoft
Watch Devo play NPR's Tiny Desk
Allan Rose Hill / 10:55 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
image: Zayrha Rodriguez/NPR
Fifty one years since their formation in Akron, Ohio, everyone's favorite spuds Devo took over NPR's Tiny Desk for a rousing four-song set. Watch below.
Billboard's Gil Kaufman provides context:
With founding singer/keyboardist Mark Mothersbaugh leading the charge alongside brother and longtime guitarist Bob Mothersbaugh and original bassist Gerald Casale, the group bounded out of the gate with the bluesy, bouncing rarity "It Takes a Worried Man." The song — inspired by the folk/roots classic "Worried Man Blues" — was originally recorded for the little-seen 1982 nuclear panic comedy Human Highway, which was directed by Neil Young, who also co-starred alongside Dean Stockwell, co-writer Dennis Hopper and Devo, who played radioactive waste garbage men in orange outfits and hard hats accented by plastic tubes that snaked down into the band member's noses.
From there, the band continued with the deep cuts: "Blockhead" (1979), "Praying Hands" (1978), and "Come Back Jonee" (1978).
"Wasn't that uplifting?" bassist Gerald Casale asked. "See? De-evolution isn't depressing."
Previously:
• Neil Young and Devo's deeply weird early version of 'Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)'
• Listen to DEVO cover Nine Inch Nails' 'Head Like a Hole'
• Devo 'Whip It' action figure ships with a tiny whip and a bowl of plastic whipped cream
• DEVO's Mark Mothersbaugh talks to Boing Boing about his other career: visual artist.
World's worst proposal: staged kidnapping and violence leaves girlfriend hysterically sobbing (video)
Mark Frauenfelder / 10:40 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Daniel Jedzura/shutterstock.com
A man wanted to propose to his girlfriend in a memorable way, and after watching the video, I'll say he succeeded. Unfortunately, his method was abusive, traumatizing, and a major red flag.
The video, which has Russian music playing, was shot on a road in a remote location. The man and his girlfriend are in a car, with a van in front of them. Neither vehicle is moving. A group of men wearing masks and armed with crowbars burst out of the van's back door and rush to the car. They smash the car windows, grab the boyfriend, drag him into the van, and slam the door shut. A few seconds later, the door reopens, and the boyfriend emerges from the van holding a bouquet of flowers. He walks over to the car, opens the passenger door, gets down on one knee, and proposes to his hysterically sobbing girlfriend, who can't process the horror she just experienced. The fake thugs, who appear to be friends with the man, watch awkwardly from a distance, clapping halfheartedly as they realize their complicity in terrifying the woman.
Still sobbing, appears to accept his proposal, but who knows if she felt pressured to say yes out of fear or shock?
Redditors are in agreement that this was a bad way to propose. A sampling:
"This guy should not be allowed to procreate"
"Girl, no. He just showed you a trailer for the trauma show ahead."
"When the proposal is this traumatic, just imagine how things will get when he decides the honeymoon is over."
"If this isn't staged, then this f**ker should get dropkicked into a volcano. What a dick move. Threats of violence are never a laughing matter."
"What the hell did I just see? I would have understood if she'd sued him for distress. Damn."
Previously:
• Surprise marriage proposal via Magic: The Gathering
• Cockatoo helps with marriage proposal
• Marriage proposal in the form of a physics paper
• Marriage proposal by way of a modded vintage console game
• Disneyland Paris worker ruins marriage proposal
• Watch this absolutely wonderful skateboarder marriage proposal
• Street-magic wedding proposal
• Revisiting Slashdot's faméd V-day marriage proposal from CmdrTaco
Watch Florida Man casually jump off a bridge when stopped by police
Allan Rose Hill / 10:39 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
image: Daytona Beach Police Department/screenshot
Daytona Beach, Florida police were seeking a robbery suspect when they spotted a gentleman walking across a bridge over the Halifax River. The cops stopped the man and asked if they could "holler at him for a few minutes." Smartly, the man asked if he was being detained. Not-so-smartly, when the cops answered in the affirmative, the man very casually turned around and jumped off the bridge.
Watch the bodycam clip below.
According to First Coast News, "The police department enlisted their marine unit to locate and apprehend [32-year-old Richard] Martinovics in the water."
Previously:
• Police drunk driving simulation results in real crash injuring five people
KellyAnne Conway offers more alternative facts
Jason Weisberger / 10:12 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Image: Dall-e/Boing Boing
"Bowling Green Massacre" Conway is lost, making claims about Harris with a line of attack the MAGAs have already lost.
There have been plenty of interviews with Kamala Harris, and the Vice President is touring the nation with Tim Walz. Certainly unafraid to be seen in public or to speak with the press or voters, KellyAnne Conway's plea that the media stop covering the Harris campaign went over like a lead balloon. The Trump campaign appears to be so off its game that even its number one spin doctor can't find an edge.
"What Vance did yesterday was brilliant, just spontaneously crossing the tarmac, crisscrossing over and forcing the press to cover him," she argued. "He was there with the press and did two things, was clever and funny by saying this will be my plane I went to check it out, and then quickly pivoting to what's on everybody's mind: The fact that Harris won't take a single question, and why it's important for her to answer questions is she's lying from the podium."
"And I would say this to the mainstream media: Kamala Harris is ignoring you because she thinks she already has you. For the same reason she doesn't go and spend a dime chasing people who vote 100% of the time, and 100% of the time for Democrats, she thinks the mainstream media is already in her thrall, in her corner," submitted Conway. "They should challenge that by not covering her rallies. Don't set up your camera next time. If she's not going to answer your questions, don't give her the service of covering her rallies."
Conway's remarks on Vance are also pretty funny.
Previously:
• Leonardo Leo and KellyAnne Conway made under-the-table payments to Ginni Thomas
• Kellyanne Conway's talked about the 'Bowling Green massacre' before
• Kellyanne Conway: lies are 'alternative facts' and if the press says otherwise, there's gonna be trouble
Lynx poses majestically for a trail camera
Gail Sherman / 10:07 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
The Canada Lynx is the grey ghost of the woods, except when one sees a camera and has to give us its best Blue Steel.
The Canada Lynx's gorgeous neck floof makes it look like it is wearing a bow tie. They are also rare in Minnesota, with only an estimated 100 to 300 lynx living within the state. Catching one on a trail cam would be exciting, but this beauty decided to stop in front of the camera in broad daylight and pose like a model. I'm just sorry the recording cut off before we saw the turn.
I refuse to believe this beautiful kitty doesn't know that the camera is there. I also think it is very unfair for something so obviously friend-shaped to not be friend. Nature is cruel.
Bonus photo:
Image: Keith Williams CC BY 2.0
Previously:
• This lynx became buddies with cameraman after spending months together in the Canadian north
• Two displeased lynx have a screaming match with each other
• Lynx uses wildlife overpass to cross highway
• Watch: A pair of lynxes arguing in Ontario
Friday Freak-Out: The Moody Blues' "Ride My See Saw" (1968)
Mark Frauenfelder / 9:42 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Single sleeve for The Moody Blues' 1968 song,
Sorry for skipping the last 624 weeks or so of our Friday Freak-Out here on Boing Boing. We promise to strive to be more consistent moving forward.
This week, we're going back to 1968 to experience the sophisticated psychedelic sounds of The Moody Blues performing "Ride My See Saw." Though it was not a major hit when it was released, Cash Box called it a "dance track with powerful teen attraction."
From Wikiwand:
Classic Rock History critic Brian Kachejian rated it as the Moody Blues' 6th greatest song, saying that it "combined heavy and mystic rhythms with the great signature Moody Blues spoken introduction." Ultimate Classic Rock critic Nick DeRiso rated it as the Moody Blues' 7th greatest song, saying that it provides evidence that the Moody Blues could rock. Classic Rock critic Malcolm Dome rated it as the Moody Blues' 8th greatest song, describing it as "an uptempo, vibrant rock'n'roll song" that "delivers a scathing attack on people's desperation to be part of the rat race."
Sadly, there are no remaining original members of the band. Mike Pinder, the last band member, passed away in March.
Previously; Friday Freak-Out archives
Donald Trump's only strategy is to rage over Kamala Harris — but she's amusingly "too busy" to care (video)
Carla Sinclair / 9:26 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Kamala Harris, August 8, 2024 / C-SPAN
It's no wonder Donald Trump is sliding in the polls. His entire campaign strategy is based solely on his crotchety rage over surging opponent Kamala Harris — and nobody is even listening.
Especially not Harris, who was asked by a reporter while campaigning in both Michigan and Arizona yesterday if she could respond to Trump's "whole litany of" criticisms aimed at her during his same-day meandering press conference.
And without missing a beat, Harris brushed off the thought of Trump as if he were a forgettable gnat. "I was too busy talking to voters," she said. "I didn't hear them." Next question. (See video below, posted by Acyn.)
The contrast between 2016 Trump and 2024 Trump is remarkable. When running against Hillary Clinton, the MAGA brute held seven "major rallies" just in the days between August 9 to August 13, according to NBC News. But during the same days this year, Trump will be making zero stops. In fact, the limping candidate has completely abandoned the campaign trail, and admits he won't hold any more in-person rallies until at least the end of August, after the Democratic National Convention.
Previously: Ouch! Harris keeps surging ahead of Trump — up 8 points in latest poll
Frugal festival goers burying booze in Golden Gate Park
Jason Weisberger / 9:23 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Logo Outside Lands 2012
Folks looking to save some bucks at Outside Lands are burying bottles in the park.
San Francisco festivalgoers are taking sneaking candy into the theater to a whole new level. Rather than pay the aggravated prices for drinks at the music festival, SF Gate reports that some people are digging holes in the park, and burying their booze. Upon arrival at the festival, they then go dig it up and get down.
But rumor has it that some risk-takers have for years found an illegal, and inadvisable, way of eschewing that expensive festival line item — by burying booze in the park.
The ruse is simple. Take a shovel and a bottle of your favorite liquor to Golden Gate Park a few days, or even weeks, before the event. Find a suitably hidden bush or tree, and bury your treasure. Mark the spot on a map or pin it on Google, and then on Friday afternoon, after the gates have opened and security has scanned your $530 QR code ticket, take a detour from the masses heading to the early performances, retrieve your loot, and presto, you've got some cocktail magic of your own.
Stories of buried booze at Outside Lands have done the rounds since Radiohead's inaugural performance in 2008. A recent Reddit thread asking about the prevalence of such behavior unearthed numerous claims of bottle burying over the festival's history.
Previously:
• Hyperpop duo 100 gecs serves up Doritos and Fritos Pie at San Francisco's Outside Lands
Canine master of cuisine starts house fire (video)
Ruben Bolling / 9:10 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Screengrab: CNN / YouTube.com
Samsung has determined that the knobs on some of its electric stoves are susceptible to being turned on accidentally by people or even pets. It is recalling one million stoves to make them safer by providing knob locks or covers.
After a Colorado house fire in June, investigators reviewed security footage and were surprised to see that a dog had pawed at the knobs of a stove while trying to sniff boxes that were on top of it, turned it on, and set fire to those boxes.
Several videos have shown pets accidentally igniting fires from jumping onto stoves and pawing at the knobs. A Colorado dog set off a house fire in June by doing just that, when the boxes on top of the stove caught on fire. It was all caught on the home's security footage.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission said about 1.1 million units are affected. Samsung will provide free knob locks or covers for certain slide-in electric ranges with front-mounted knobs that were sold between 2013 and 2024.
"This announcement follows reports that front-mounted range knobs can be activated through accidental contact by people or pets, posing a fire hazard if flammable objects are left on top of the range," Samsung said in a press release.
According to USA Today, the homeowners of the Colorado fire were asleep at the time of the incident but were awakened by their Apple Homepod, which sent them a "High Heat" alert. A resident had extinguished the fire before firefighters got to the scene. Still, one person was hospitalized for smoke inhalation, the property suffered significant damage, and the family was displaced.
Previously:
• Man blames fire on dog
• A dog accidentally starts a fire in the house after checking out the stove (video)
• Video: Dog switched on stove that caused house fire
• An extinct dog breed once labored in our kitchens, running on spit-turning wheels
• An exuberant dog sets off a fire alarm and expresses no remorse
Poland's bizarre Crooked Forest: what makes these trees bend?
Popkin / 9:06 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Some say the name for Crooked Forest of Poland comes from its trees, which are crooked. (boreas.tr/shutterstock.com)
In a secluded corner of Poland, near the town of Gryfino, lies the Crooked Forest — a place around 400 pine trees, planted in the 1930s, stand with their trunks curiously bent at 90-degree angles before straightening skyward. The trees surrounding the crooked ones stand completely straight. What has caused the bent trees to grow this way is an unsolved mystery. Here's a video about it, also posted below.
The cause of this eerie formation remains a topic of debate, with theories ranging from human manipulation to natural phenomena. Some say that a terrible storm caused the trees to grow this way. Others say the trees are bent due to a mystical, gravitational pull. The most agreed-upon explanation is that local farmers manipulated the trees as they grew, so that the wood could be used to make boats and other curved objects.
Due to its mysterious origins and striking look, the forest has become a magnetic attraction for curious travelers. I'm intrigued by the spooky look of these trees, and wish I didn't live so far away from them so I could see them in person. Interested in visiting the crooked forest? According to Atlas Obscura, The easiest way to get to the Crooked Forest is by taking a taxi or bus line 1 from Gryfino.
Previously: Wonderfully weird footage of golden apple snail laying eggs
"How to Get Gonorrhea": A trip through 1974's most surreal sex ed filmstrip
Popkin / 8:47 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
When it comes to sex education, the 1970s were a wild ride. Instead of glossy brochures or straightforward PSAs, this filmstrip decided to take a more artistic route. Enter the 1974 filmstrip titled "How to Get Gonorrhea"—a psychedelic odyssey through the land of STD awareness.
This filmstrip doesn't just educate—it mystifies. Gonorrhea is depicted as a serpent-like creature who terrorizes little cartoon couples, hugging each other as they fear for their lives. I have a hunch that the person who made this film may have taken a few mind-bending substances beforehand.
Despite its offbeat approach, the filmstrip does manage to convey some serious information about gonorrhea — how to avoid it, what to do if you get it, and why it's a good idea to consult a doctor rather than just hoping it goes away. This bizarre, animated public service announcement feels like it came straight out of a fever dream.
From YouTube:
I need your help to save endangered filmstrips! Visit https://uncommonephemera.org/donate to support me on Patreon, GoFundMe, and more. I am the only person on earth actively preserving sound filmstrips, a still-image presentation format distributed on 35mm film that was used in the 20th century in education, business, and industry. Filmstrips are not the same as 16mm short films, and cannot be preserved in the same manner. Because filmstrips have been so forgotten, specialized tools do not exist and all restoration is being done by hand. This is time- and labor-intensive, and your help is needed for this work to continue.
The original, lossless scans and audio for this filmstrip, along with the original rendered video uploaded to YouTube, are available at The Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/uncommon-…
Produced by Sunburst Communications in the suburbs of New York City, this 1974 filmstrip teaches the viewer about gonorrhea using completely reasonable facts and advice but insane illustrations.
This restored sound filmstrip is part of the Uncommon Ephemera collection at the Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/uncommone…
Stuck in Space: Starliner mission is "Gilligan's Island" in orbit
Gail Sherman / 8:15 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Starliner capsule. Image: NASA
Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams left Earth nine weeks ago for a mission to the International Space Station. As their three-hour tour, eight-day mission has stretched to sixty-three days, NASA still isn't sure when and how they will return home.
The initial Starliner launch was aborted due to an issue with a valve on the launch system. The valves were repaired, but during testing, Starliner was found to have helium leaks. Despite the leaks, Starliner was launched on June 5th. The beleaguered Boeing spacecraft docked with the ISS on June 6th, but the docking itself was delayed due to thruster issues. As the thruster and helium leak issues were studied and tested, Starliner's return date was delayed, delayed again, and finally delayed indefinitely.
On August 7th, NASA held a teleconference to discuss the options for getting the astronauts home. Discussions are still underway to decide if it is safe for Wilmore and Williams to return in Starliner despite the thruster failures and additional helium leaks. The alternative is for the upcoming SpaceX Crew 9 mission to be delayed and launch with two empty seats. This would allow them to take the Starliner crew home in February 2025. This option would also leave Crew 9 short two astronauts and have a domino effect on future SpaceX missions. If the crew returns with SpaceX, Starliner will return to Earth autonomously. The capsule could be allowed to burn up in the atmosphere upon reentry if it is not deemed safe to attempt to land it. Starliner's issues have compounded a pretty lousy year for Boeing.
Boeing, for its part, seems to be in complete denial. Their latest update was on July 31st:
Practiced, prepared, checked out, refilled, and inspected – the Starliner team is proceeding through checklists to be ready for return when a date is chosen. They spent Tuesday practicing for undocking during an integrated simulation with the International Space Station. Teams occupied their consoles in the Mission Control Center in Houston and in Boeing's Mission Control Center (BMCC) at Kennedy Space Center. Commander Butch Wilmore and Pilot Suni Williams monitored the "sim" from space. Starliner-1 crew members Commander Scott Tingle and Pilot Mike Fincke took part in the practice from the Boeing Mission Simulator, while Canadian Space Agency astronaut Josh Kutryk was on-console in Houston.
On Sunday, the Starliner and NASA teams worked together in Boeing's Avionics and Software Integration Lab (ASIL) to develop, test, and deliver updated data parameters for potential returns throughout August. That included a Propulsion Quantity Mission Data Load to update the fuel quantity on board Calypso. The crew also entered their spacecraft Monday to refill its water systems and to pressure check their spacesuits. A standard operation before crew departure includes an exterior inspection of Starliner, as well. The crew completed that task by using the Canadarm outside the space station.
There appears to be a lot of internal division within NASA/JPL about which route to take to return Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams home. A decision is expected later this month. I just hope they choose the right option for the safety of the astronauts.
Previously: Starliner launches two Americans into orbit
Attorney took contraband into jail then gave the world this mugshot
Rob Beschizza / 7:46 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Daniel Sidney Dale in his mugshot. Photo: Hinds County Sherrif
A Mississippi attorney stands accused of trying to smuggle ciggies and cellphones into jail, reports WJTV News, and was charged with two counts of conspiracy and three counts of introduction of contraband to a correctional facility. Daniel Sidney Dale was trusted to be "responsible for the constitutional rights of arrested suspects" but abused that trust, wrote Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones, announcing the arrest.
Photos released by the Sheriff's department show a table full of cigarettes, cellphones and other contraband—and Dale, disheveled and glaring wild-eyed in what is surely among the most outstanding prison mugshots of the 21st century.
Musk's lawsuit kills responsible advertising group
Jason Weisberger / 7:44 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Boing Boing/Midjourney
Musk's latest frivolous lawsuit from his foundering social media company has done what he wanted: killed the group seeking to keep their ads away from his offensive content.
Musk's lawsuit probably won't make it far, but the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) has announced the pressure worked, and they are closing up shop.
"GARM is a small, not-for-profit initiative, and recent allegations that unfortunately misconstrue its purpose and activities have caused a distraction and significantly drained its resources and finances," the group said in a statement Friday. "GARM therefore is making the difficult decision to discontinue its activities."
The group, Global Alliance for Responsible Media, also known as GARM, is a voluntary ad-industry initiative run by the World Federation of Advertisers that aims to help brands avoid having their advertisements appear alongside illegal or harmful content. GARM confirmed it is still planning to defend itself in court.
The end of GARM marks a temporary victory for Musk and X CEO Linda Yaccarino, even though a judge hasn't made a ruling yet.
…
However, the lawsuit could drive away even more advertisers from X, Nandini Jammi and Claire Atkin, founders of watchdog group Check My Ads Institute wrote in an op-ed Thursday. "Everyone can see that advertising on X is a treacherous business relationship for advertisers," they said.
The lawsuit claims GARM organized "to collectively withhold billions of dollars in advertising from Twitter" because the group was concerned that the platform had deviated from brand safety standards after Musk's acquisition in late 2022.
GARM has over 100 members. Four of those members — CVS, Unilever, Mars and the Danish energy company Ørsted — were named defendants in the suit filed in federal court in Texas Tuesday.
Previously:
• Takedown archive Chilling Effects removes self from search engines
• Boebert laments the chilling effect media attention has had on her hands-on theater-going
• Judge slams Twitter's attempt to silence hate speech watchdog
Crocodile expert who raped and tortured 56 dogs jailed for 10 years
Rob Beschizza / 7:24 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Adam Britton in an ABC News screenshot
Adam Britton, a crocodile expert who had worked with the BBC and National Geographic, pleaded guilty to 56 charges of bestiality and animal cruelty in Australia and is off to jail for 10 years and 5 months. Britton filmed his activities and organized them online—and was done for as soon as his anonymity was undermined by forensic experts.
He also admitted to four counts of accessing child abuse material. The Northern Territory (NT) Supreme Court heard the 53-year-old filmed himself torturing the animals until almost all died, and then shared the videos online under pseudonyms. His abuse went unnoticed for years, until a clue was found in one of his videos. Britton was arrested in April 2022 after a search of his rural Darwin property, which also uncovered child abuse material on his laptop. Much of the detail of Britton's crimes are too graphic to publish, and so "grotesque" Chief Justice Michael Grant warned the courtroom they could cause "nervous shock". As the facts of the case were read aloud, some members of the public rushed outside. Others watching from the gallery cried and mouthed insults at Britton.
The warning, the alarm, the signifier that no-one can ignore:
"I was sadistic as a child to animals, but I had repressed it. In the last few years I let it out again, and now I can't stop. I don't want to. :)," he wrote in one message tendered to the court. … "I have no emotional bond to them, they are toys pure and simple. And [there are] plenty more where they came from."
Plenty more where they came from.
Previously:
• Cat dumper Mary Bale charged with animal cruelty, faces prison
• Indianapolis Animal Care Services fires workers who checked whether adopters had cruelty convictions
Behold the Arizona Cardinals' cotton candy burrito!
Jennifer Sandlin / 7:03 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Image: Social Media
Incredibly awful food and baseball stadiums seem to go together; the Arizona Cardinals have announced a cotton candy burrito.
The Arizona Cardinals recently announced a new menu item that will be available at NFL games held at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The "Cotton Candy Burrito" was created by Craft Culinary Concepts, which runs food service at the Stadium. It's made out of cotton candy ice cream, topped with candy galore—including Fruity Pebbles, Froot Loops, marshmallows, Mini M&M's Minis, gummy gears, and sprinkles—and all wrapped up in a cotton candy shell.
Cotton candy burritos are nothing new, even though this one is getting lots of buzz. A quick internet search reveals plenty of recipes to make at home, like this one from 2018. Back in 2019, the aptly named Glutto Digest described the cotton candy burrito as:
. . . a hybrid dessert made up of ice cream, cotton candy and toppings. Multiple ice cream scoops are placed side-by-side on a flattened cloud of pink, yellow, and/or baby blue cotton candy. Then, the ice cream is covered in various ice cream toppings like cereal, candy, sprinkles, sparkly "unicorn dust" and other sweet, visually appealing edible accents. Lastly, everything is wrapped like a burrito in the cotton candy "tortilla" and cut in half to expose the colorful filling.
Glutto Digest also states that the "creative inventors" of the cotton candy burrito are the folks running an ice cream shop named Sugar Sugar in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. The shop began selling them in April 2017 and is now available in ice cream shops across the country.
The Arizona Cardinals' version rightfully went to one of my favorite subreddits, "Stupid Food," which describes its purpose: "Food. Point. Laugh. A place to lambast idiotic methods of serving food, or any other epicurean inanity worth of ridicule." The Cotton Candy Burrito deserves to be mocked, and Stupid Food Redditors didn't disappoint. Here are some gems:
You have to be a toddler to think this looks appealing.
My teeth hurt just looking at this thing
What do we want? DIABETES!! When do we want it? NOW!!!
This cardinals season we've come up with a new way to get your kid to throw a temper tantrum before they throw up in every colour of the rainbow!
Compressing cotton candy like that completely defeats the point of it. Basically biting down on solid sugar.
And perhaps my favorites:
It's the best thing they have to offer, since it won't be wins
The depths of my shame is endless as a Phoenix sports fan.
Oof. Good luck to the Cardinals and to any sports fan who ends up ingesting this sugar bomb.
Previously:
• If you enjoy photos of weird and failed food, here are two sources for you
• Forgotten Foods: reviving weird old food and figuring out what should be brought back
• Man hilariously reacts to gelatin-forward vintage recipes like 'spinach and sardine mold'
Republican lawmaker pleads guilty to Europe child sex tour charge
Rob Beschizza / 6:55 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Holmberg in an official Senate portrait
GOP lawmaker Ray Holmberg, 80, served for more than 45 years in the North Dakota Senate before stepping down in 2022. The career-ender: his jaunts to Prague, where for years he sought out and indulged his taste for sex with minors. Indicted in October 2023, he was charged with traveling with intent to engage in illicit sexual activity and with receiving child sexual abuse material. Holmberg's plea deal saw the CSAM charge dropped—and won a promise from prosecutors to "recommend a sentence at the low end of the guideline range."
In the plea agreement, Holmberg acknowledged that from around June 2011 to November 2016, he "repeatedly traveled from Grand Forks, North Dakota to Prague, Czech Republic with a motivating purpose of engaging in commercial sex with adolescent-age individuals under the age of 18 years."
Holmberg has been under numerous conditions of release, including travel restrictions, location monitoring and the surrender of his passport.
On Friday, the pretrial services officer filed a report saying Holmberg hadn't met those conditions.
She wrote that he was verbally reprimanded and reminded of his pretrial release conditions after he left his residence once and also visited an adult novelty store, each without approval. He also "continuously" accessed the internet for unapproved reasons and did not allow updates and maintenance to the monitoring software on his cellular device, she said.
I don't understand why someone who is refusing to comply with their pretrial release conditions is being given a sweetheart plea deal. I don't understand why a CSAM possessor and admitted child rapist is illegally accessing the internet for unapproved reasons and it isn't a problem for him in court. I don't understand why this feels like a frustrating bureacratic problem that everyone involved is sympathetically helping Holmberg navigate.
Previously:
• Kevin McCarthy's longtime friend and political protege investigated for sex crime against daughter
• Child sex offenders must now identify as sex offender on US passports
• Catholic priest child sex abuse files released, at last, by LA archdiocese
Indianapolis Animal Care Services fires workers who checked whether adopters had cruelty convictions
Rob Beschizza / 6:15 am PT Fri Aug 9, 2024
Screenshot: WISH TV
Two workers at Indianapolis Animal Care Services were fired for conducting background checks on pet adopters to see if they had prior convictions for animal cruelty. The shelter used to conduct such checks, but the two workers continued to do so after it quietly changed its policy and were eventually fired.
In addition to checking MyCase, they were to check the internal Animal Care Services system, called Chameleon, for any red flags. MyCase's searching abilities cover all cases in all counties of Indiana, while Chameleon only covers names in Marion County. That policy was first instated in 2022, after the gruesome hanging and stabbing death of a dog that had been adopted from Animal Care Services to an owner with a violent criminal history.
A state-funded shelter firing workers who looking at the public criminal records of people adopting the pets? That would sound like a policy to be found in writing, wouldn't it?
The rule was changed about two weeks into Fox's tenure at Animal Care Services. … "They argued that going to any home, no matter who it's with, where it is, what not, is better than being in the shelter." Fox said the policy change was never communicated to her directly, nor was the change written down on paper.
That quote from the manger is funny. If "any home, no matter who it's with, where it is, what not, is better than being in the shelter" was true, there wouldn't be a shelter. That's the sound of an incentive trying to stay hidden; the obvious implication is that IACS is where you go to get bait dogs.
Embedded below is a video of WISH-TV's news report on the firings.
In a statement, IACS claimed that the background checks "could lead to biased, inequitable vetting of potential adoptees."
A brilliant comment on social media: "The worst part is that they'll just get hired by another department in the next county over."
Previously:
• Should Cesar Millan be fed to pigs?
• Teacher who fed puppy to snapping turtle in front of children found not guilty of animal cruelty
• State Trooper charged with animal cruelty after repeatedly hitting horse with vehicle—but only after the dashcam footage became legally inaccessible
Andy Warhol's Amiga art floppies found
Rob Beschizza / 5:28 pm PT Thu Aug 8, 2024
One of Andy Warhol's Amiga self-portraits, c. 1985
Andy Warhol was fascinated by the Commodore Amiga and was hired to show the 16-bit machine's graphics capabilities off in person. The work he created—with some difficulty, being unaccustomed to using a mouse—is fascinating and famous, but the original files were long nowhere to be found. Last month, key Commodore engineer Jeff Bruette reported he had the floppies. Andy Warhol's lost Amiga art is, officially, found. David L. Farquhar:
In 2014, a series of images was recovered from disks found in Andy Warhol's estate. His personal effects included two pre-production Amiga computers and a collection of disks containing not just the files he created, but also the software he used to create those images, including a previously undiscovered early version of the operating system. In a blog post I wrote at the time, I speculated that the images were the result of him trying to learn how to use the computer.
Looking at the images again, I think they were more than that. He was experimenting with techniques. One of the images appears to be a photograph of himself where he clicked around with the fill function. But when you look at the image more closely, you can see where he had three different images of himself of differing sizes, and he superimposed the three, then he started messing around with fills.
Here's the famed clip from the 1985 "world premiere" of the Amiga.
Woman dies at Chicago O'Hare airport "pinned in machinery" of baggage carrousel
Carla Sinclair / 4:44 pm PT Thu Aug 8, 2024
Image: O’Hare International Airport; RaksyBH / shutterstock.com
Police are investigating after a 57-year-old woman was found dead caught in a baggage carousel at Chicago O'Hare International Airport this morning.
The unidentified woman, who did not work at the airport, was seen in surveillance footage "entering an unoccupied restricted area at 2:27 a.m.," according to ABC News.
But it wasn't until 7:45 a.m. that emergency responders arrived at the airport to find her "entangled in the conveyer belt system used to move baggage."
From ABC News:
Emergency responders were called to Terminal 5 at about 7:45 a.m. Thursday following reports of a woman "pinned in machinery," the Chicago Fire Department said.
Medics pronounced the woman dead at the scene.
The area has been declared a crime scene, and the Chicago Police Department is investigating.
Previously: Man lived in Chicago airport security area for three months
Police drunk driving simulation results in real crash injuring five people
Allan Rose Hill / 2:46 pm PT Thu Aug 8, 2024
image: tawanroong/Shutterstock
It seemed like a good idea at the time. As part of the Wildwood, New Jersey police's National Night Out event—meant to cultivate closer connection between cops and citizens—officers conducted a drunk driving simulation using a golf cart. To educate people about the risks of DWI, the vehicle is programmed to mimic how a car drives when someone intoxicated is behind the world. In this case, a juvenile was operating the vehicle with an officer riding shotgun. Unfortunately, the golf cart apparently "left the enclosed area and struck several people."
Four adults and one child ended up in the hospital, two of whom were kept overnight.
"National Night Out, is at its core, a night of building police and community partnership," the Wildwood Police Department posted on Facebook. "We look forward to the event each year and many of our officers along with their families are in attendance. This tragic incident is disconcerting to the entire City of Wildwood Police Department, and we would like to offer our sincere thoughts and prayers to the injured individuals."
According to the statement, the Wildwood police have "operated a "operated a simulated impaired operator low speed golf cart course" for twenty years without incident.
Previously:
• King Tut may have died in a drunk driving accident
• Area emu stops drunk driver from fleeing the scene of a crash
• Drunk driving suspect switched seats with dog when pulled over
Trump bizarrely blames Harris for turned-Black remark: "She said it. I didn't say it" (video)
Carla Sinclair / 2:29 pm PT Thu Aug 8, 2024
Image: a katz / shutterstock.com
A confused Donald Trump is barely hanging on in the cognitive department. Not only did the 78-year-old ex-president forget that just last week he said Kamala Harris decided to "turn black," but today he claimed that Harris herself made the bizarre comment.
Trump's sad mental deterioration was made apparent when at a Mar-a-Lago press conference this afternoon, a reporter said, "Kamala Harris' father is Jamaican-American. … And she went to a historically Black college. How has she only recently decided to be Black?"
And rather than either defend or clarify his cockamamie remarks from last Wednesday's Black journalist conference, Trump said, "Well, you'll have to ask her that question, because she's the one that said it. I didn't say it." Uh oh. (See post below, posted by Acyn.)
Previously: Trump's brain on a 40-year downward spiral, according to analysis of his speeches over time
Once you see the Spielberg Face, you can never unsee it
Allan Rose Hill / 1:19 pm PT Thu Aug 8, 2024
image: publicity still
This video below is an oldie but very goodie. In 2011, Kevin B. Lee described for the world what we've all seen countless times—but perhaps never consciously noticed—in the likes of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jurassic Park, E.T., and so many more great movies by a single filmmaker. It is… The Spielberg Face.
It is a character with "eyes open, staring in wordless wonder in a moment where time stands still…" explains Lee. The Spielberg Face expresses "sudden shock or creeping dread, the trauma of remembering the past or of confronting the future, discovering humanity in another person, or discovering humanity in oneself."
(via Kottke)
Texas school bans black clothing, believing it causes mental health problems
Rob Beschizza / 12:51 pm PT Thu Aug 8, 2024
These children are risking their mental health by wearing black. Photo: Roman Samborskyi/ Shutterstock
A middle school in El Paso announced that it was banning students from wearing black clothing, claiming that it is harmful to their mental health.
A letter sent to parents by Charles Middle School principal Nick DeSantis stated that the clothing is "associated with depression and mental health issues." "What they are not allowing for students to wear clothing that is black from top to bottom," explained Norma De La Rosa, the president of El Paso Teachers Association. "They can wear black shorts to go to PE. And they can wear it on free dress day, but they just cannot wear it from top to bottom."
This is a taster of the new generation of earnest stupidity coming to schools, courtesy of years of internet-mediated brain rot, entryism by right-wingers, cultivated disinterest in expertise, and the desperate need to be seen to be doing something. All the features of Satanic Panic but this time coded in the smooth language of health, safety and compliance.
Perhaps this is an incredibly elaborate joke about the police.
Previously: A brief history of Goths