How not to throw a grenade.  Good thing this was with a non-lethal version.  That poor guy was left standing there looking into his hide thinking "What the..." poof!

James Galea at The 2009 Melbourne International Comedy Festival Gala performing a card trick that really shouldn't be possible.  You also might have to rewind a few times to see how he does the IQ test bit at the beginning.  Good stuff

Department of Defense Missile Defense Agency

This is a couple of years old but still made me laugh.  Rob Riggle, Daily Show reporter and ex-Marine, goes undercover to report on Berkeley, CA's reaction to a new Marine recruiting station. I think he handles himself well...

I have watched bits and pieces of the biathlon events over the last week. I really liked the eye shield on one of the competitors that had a picture of an eye drawn on it. The .22's they use are pretty sweet too.  But could it be more exciting?  More... action packed?  You bet!

I really like Chuck Baldwin.  In his article below, posted to his website shortly after Joe Stack had flown his small plane into an office building in Austin, Texas, Mr. Baldwin makes some good observations about the "manifesto" left behind.  Personally, I'm still trying to wrap my head around it and form an opionion.

On the one hand is the obvious, offensive strike against an building full of people that may or may not have had anything to do with his situation.  I am not aware of anyone who died besides him, but it was obvious that he was willing to take lives and property in his attempt.

On the other hand is someone who saw something elementally wrong in our country and took action against it.  Willing to die to effect change in a system he cleary thought was corrupt from the uppermost levels of government down to the organizations that take advantage of bad law for their own advantage.

His opionions on some of the things he shared are probably similar to many other people.  To a small degree, myself included.  But it is indeed sad that he decided to end it the way he did.  Because of his contempt for "religion" and likely a view of an uncaring God, there was nothing left for him.  There had to be another way.  Right?

via Chuck Baldwin Live:

All of us are now aware of the Texas man who yesterday flew his private plane into a 7-story Austin office building. Apparently, he intentionally crashed his plane into the building to target the IRS offices that were housed inside the facility.

As I am writing this column just hours after the event took place, there has not yet been a lot of time for the major news media talking heads to spin the story. By the time this column is released on Friday, however, I'm sure we will all have been inundated with copious references to this man, Joe Stack, as being "off his rocker," or similar assertions. Perhaps our friends at DHS will label Stack a "right-wing domestic terrorist." However, Mr. Stack apparently left behind a "suicide manifesto" explaining his actions. After carefully reading Stack's manifesto, I am quite convinced that he was not crazy, and he was not a "terrorist." However, he was angry.

via boingboing:

According to the filings in Blake J Robbins v Lower Merion School District (PA) et al, the laptops issued to high-school students in the well-heeled Philly suburb have webcams that can be covertly activated by the schools' administrators, who have used this facility to spy on students and even their families. The issue came to light when the Robbins's child was disciplined for "improper behavior in his home" and the Vice Principal used a photo taken by the webcam as evidence. The suit is a class action, brought on behalf of all students issued with these machines.

If true, these allegations are about as creepy as they come. I don't know about you, but I often have the laptop in the room while I'm getting dressed, having private discussions with my family, and so on. The idea that a school district would not only spy on its students' clickstreams and emails (bad enough), but also use these machines as AV bugs is purely horrifying.

Schools are in an absolute panic about kids divulging too much online, worried about pedos and marketers and embarrassing photos that will haunt you when you run for office or apply for a job in 10 years. They tell kids to treat their personal details as though they were precious.

But when schools take that personal information, indiscriminately invading privacy (and, of course, punishing students who use proxies and other privacy tools to avoid official surveillance), they send a much more powerful message: your privacy is worthless and you shouldn't try to protect it.

Huh.  My privacy is worthless and I shouldn't try to protect it.  That last sentence kinda remindes me of the recent comment by the Obama administration...