Lyndon Johnson is still not popular in Vietnam!

From the redoubtable Jason Brennan comes this amazing research paper on the structural grammatical differences between "close the door" and "f**k you".

While the whole piece is a tour-de-force, I recommend page 4 (which, de facto is page 2) in particular to your attention.

This article is definitely NSFW!

Olympic fever

If you like NBC's tape-delayed coverage, you'll love this.

Here's me and LeBron's Olympics "preview" piece for Grantland.com.

A Slice of Heaven

Some people come to Santa Fe for the Opera, some for the museums, some for the art galleries, or the gourmet dining, or the history, or the mountains.

But others have more noble pursuits.

People, I took this fotie in the Albertsons on Cerillos Road early in the evening on Saturday June 23rd. It has not been edited in any way:

Clic the pic for an even more porcine image.

If you are wondering, I asked, and the Festival is going on all this coming week!

one picture is worth a thousand notes?

The Media Preservation Initiative at Indiana University is taking old pictures of since lost analog records and creating digital sound files from them.

Very smart and very cool.

Hat tip to BinaryBits.

Atlas Pooped: A love story

"You should never feel guilty about your abilities. Including your ability to repeatedly peg a fellow toddler with your Elmo ball as he sobs for mercy"

Full story here, and it's terrific.

Sign of the times

Venezuelan politics is so awesome

The president of the Venezuelan congress and likely replacement for Hugo Chavez if Hugo's health does not permit him to run is Diosdado Cabello!

Yes, you read that right and no, it's not a nickname. The man's first name is "God-given" and the man's last name is "hair".

"Mitt" Romney has to be kicking himself at this point, thinking "that should be MY name".

If Mitt is the real Diosdado Cabello (and he is, just look at Diosdado's actual cabello, it's pathetic), what are some good Spanish names for the rest of our politicians?

Tell me in the comments!

Life imitates Art?

American wrestling fans will undoubtably remember Kamala the "Ugandan Giant"

(aka James Harris from Mississippi)

However, there is an amazing wrestling scene "next door" to Uganda in the Congo.

Check out this amazing photo essay of Congolese wrestlers. Just tremendous. Here is one example:

Hat tip to Roving Bandit!

Good Advice

World Peace had some sage advice for Jeremy Lin in advance of the Knicks beat-down of the Lakers on Friday night:


Q: Did the Lakers talk about him in the locker room? 


 A: Do we talk about him? Yeah, we talk about him. We think he needs a better haircut. I don’t like that style. You’re in New York, the fashion capital. Change your haircut, OK? You’re a star now. Wear some shades. Shades, OK? Put down the nerdy Harvard book glasses. Put on some black shades, OK? With some leather pants. Change your style. Fashion. 


 Q: Do you wear leather pants? 


 A: No, I won’t wear them, but he should wear leather pants. He’s the type of guy who should wear leather pants, some nice shoes and change his fashion. You’re Jeremy Lin, for godsakes. You know what I’m saying? You know? Put down that law book, stop reading the New York Times and start reading the Daily News. Newsday, that’s the one. I like that one because there’s always color in that one. What else? Wall Street Journal. Get some swag. You’re in New York City. Put your hat to the back, too. Put your hat on backwards. Come to practice with your pants sagging and just tell them, 'I don’t feel like practicing.' Practice? You know? Practice? And wear an Iverson jersey. You know? Come to practice with a cigar. Lit. 'I’m Jeremy Lin.' You know? He should change. We're all excited to play tonight. It’s like the first time for everybody. Everybody’s excited. Kobe’s excited. He wants to get 50. He wants to welcome Jeremy Lin to his new level."

 Full interview is here.

Romeo was restless

"Romeo was restless, he was ready to kill. He jumped out the window cause he couldn't sit still. Juliet was waiting with a safety net. He said "Don't bury me cause I'm not dead yet"."

Replace "Romeo" with "Cassanova", "the window" with "of Clemson University", "sit still" with "eat Chiklfil-a", "Juliet", with "Auburn University" and suddenly Elvis Costello becomes relevant again!

You know, now that I think about it, "Mystery Dance" is a pretty apt title for the recruiting process in college athletics.

Hat tip to Mrs. Angus.
  

A NOTY problem

Name of the Year. You can vote, America.

WARNING: NSFW. NSF anything, really. Utterly pointless. But if you read this blog, that must be attractive to you.

As our correspondent M-Ka notes, "I know from following your blogs every day, and listening to you on EconTalk, that you and Dr. Grier disdain both frivolity and low culture. But I do think you might like to promote this on KPC:

I voted for La'Peaches (check out the link to her), and Monsterville Horton IV (because of his obvious aristocratic status). And Vernon Lee Bad Marriage Jr. won his round!"

Thanks, M-Ka!

would you believe?

Would you believe me if i told you that, before roasting and eating that marshmallow, Kanzi the bonobo had (a) collected the wood, (b) built the fire (c) grilled up some burgers, and (d) ate them?

How about if I told you after he was done that he put the fire out with a bottle of water?

Well, it's all true!

Kanzi apparently lives in Iowa and to my mind is much more qualified for the GOP presidential nomination than any of the other "primitive creatures" who just left the State.

Pour some (corn) sugar on me!

People, the nefarious corn growers want to change the name of high fructose corn syrup to "corn sugar".

Those bastards!

Luckily, we have a noble group mobilizing to stop the cornies' nefarious plan:

The sugar growers!

Yes, the Sugar Association is suing the Corn Refiners Association to stop the name change. If we could somehow get the Cotton Association in on this farce we'd have the trifecta of US agricultural policy stupidity.