When Pigs Fly...

On Feb. 1, the Landmark Legal Foundation, a leading conservative public interest law firm in the United States, nominated nationally syndicated radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize. Seriously. Quit laughing, I'm not joking.

According to foundation president Mark R. Levin, the group nominated Limbaugh fir his "nearly two decades of tireless efforts to promote liberty, equality and opportunity for all humankind, regardless of race, creed, economic stratum or national origin. These are the only real cornerstones of just and lasting peace throughout the world."

"Rush Limbaugh is the foremost advocate for freedom and democracy in the world today," explained Levin. "Everyday he gives voice to the values of democratic governance, individual opportunity and the just, equal application of the rule of law -- and it is fitting that the Nobel Committee recognize the power of these ideals to build a truly peaceful world for future generations."

Somehow this news story escaped me the first time around. Unbelievable.

Read the rest of the story here. Feel free to laugh now.

Thanks to MH for the story

Jack Kerouac reads "On the Road"

This is by far one of the coolest videos I've found on YouTube, so I thought I'd share it with you. I had never seen Kerouac read his own work before; that combined with the subtle jazz piano in the background made it a surreal experience. Enjoy

Nabaztag-a-ma-jigger

Some reactions of people who first saw the Nabaztag:

"Oh...cool."

"Awww...look at the cute bunny."

"Is that Apple's new iRabbit?"

"What the heck is it?"


Meet one of the newest WiFi toys. With this little bunny your friends and family will have a totally new way of keeping in touch: through the web, text messages, their phone or email. It includes plenty of different ways to send you messages, music, MP3 files that it reads out to you… or sing out, or even dance (if that's the kind of stuff you're into). Your friends will no longer be confined to the depths of your computer or phone: they'll come alive in your home, in the noble guise of a rabbit.
This bunny can teach you tai chi, it can read you your e-mail, report the weather or tell you the latest stock quotes. He has the ability to play messages or any audio feed for an unlimited period of time and the ability to play podcasts and MP3 web radio. Anything you can pull an RSS feed from, he can read that too.

Oh yeah, and it tells the time.

You can check out the website and buy it online here

Blair Decides It's Time To Go

According to BBC International, British Prime Minister Tony Blair is going to announce tomorrow that he is implementing a new time table for the withdrawal of British troops from Iraq, including an estimated 1,500 who are expected return home in several weeks.

"Blair will also tell the House of Commons during his regular weekly appearance before it that a total of about 3,000 British soldiers will have left southern Iraq by the end of 2007, if the security there is sufficient," the British Broadcasting Corp. said, quoting government officials who weren't further identified.

This is certainly an interesting turn of events, and even though Britain only currently has 7,500 troops deployed to Iraq, President Bush will undoubtedly be making a statement soon.

For the full story, go here

Culture Jamming 101

The past few days I've been slowly compiling a list of the different terms, resources, etc. related to the concept of urban activism. Keep in mind, this list is obviously not complete and certainly editable. If you have anything you'd like to add, feel free to e-mail them in.

Culture Jamming
The act of transforming existing mass media to produce negative commentary about itself, using the original medium's communication method.

Adbusters Culturejammer Headquarters
Adbusters is probably one of the best known groups dedicated to culture jamming (you may know them from their magazine, published under the same name). Their site was "designed to help you turn the drab number cruncher you're staring at right now into the most versatile activist tool ever reckoned with. From cyberpetitions to Critical Mass tips, from disseminating corporate propaganda, to downshifting your lifestyle and treading lightly on the planet, this site will inspire you to move -- upon your return to the real world -- from spectator to participant."

Anti-Advertising Agency
An artist run media-literacy campaign that "co-opts the tools and structures used by the advertising and public relations industries, calling into question the purpose and effects of advertising in public space. Through constructive parody and gentle humor the Agency’s campaigns ask passers by to critically consider the role and strategies of today’s marketing media as well as alternatives for the public arena.

Artivist
Term for one who combines art with activism. Artivism developed in recent years while the anti-globalization and antiwar protests emerged and proliferated. In most of the cases artivists attempt to push political agendas by the means of art. Yet this is not political art as it was known before, in the sense of artworks being political. The artivist is often involved in Streetart or Urban Art, Adbusting or Subvertising.

Banksy
Probably one of the most well-known individual culture-jammers/anti-consumerist performance artists in the United States, mostly because of the extended news coverage of his work. In September, he replaced over 500 of Paris Hilton's CD's with a new version bearing different song titles such as "Why am I Famous?," "What Have I Done?" and "What Am I For?" He's also a well accomplished graffiti artist, even once decorating Israel's controversial West Bank barrier with satirical images of life on the other side.

Shopdropping
A tactic used by artists and activists to clandestinely place altered or recreated objects into retail stores. Handmade labels were printed out for students to color, cut, and paste. The intent is to reconnect the labor with the product.

Subvertising
The practice of making spoofs or parodies of global and political advertisements in order to make a statement. This can take the form of a new image, or an alteration to an existing image. A subvertisement can also be referred to as meme hack and can be a part of social hacking or culture jamming.