China has decided to cut back on their country’s Internet access to porn and obscene content by blacklisting 19 portals and sites. Included in that list are Netease, Baidu and Google. The deputy director of the State Council Information Office, Cai Mingzhao, said “Immediate action is needed to purify the Internet environment.” Supposedly the Chinese Google has links to porn sites and although China’s Internet Illegal Information Reporting Center asked them to take them off, ...

tags: obscene content, internet usage, china

I haven't been writing much here because I've been busy with the holidays and, yeah, I admit it, playing on Facebook. I actually have had to install Leechblock to get myself away from Facebook and back into the real world (thanks to Colleen Doran for the tip).As you know, hubby-Eric and I moved recently to Eastern Washington, and have had our first desert winter weather, which the neighbors assured us was strange weather. ...

tags: colleen doran, eve trip, desert winter, strange weather, washington snow, sleep study, facebook, winter weather, christmas eve, world thanks, melatonin, hubby, broom, natives, rhythms, rainfall, stresses, current situation, frankenhaus, neighbors

We had a nice turnout today for the interview with Guy Kawasaki -close to 300 people listened live, which is good numbers for live internet radio -and around a 100 joined us in the chat room asking some great questions.  This turnout is a clear example of the power of Twitter to garner attention in the moment (’nowsourcing’) as Guy tweeted about it right before the show.   Our interview was a bit longer than normal, but, ...

tags: guy kawasaki, live internet radio, twitter, reality check, chat room

Despite two new ABC premieres, the first Monday of 2009 wasn’t an accurate picture of the weeks to come. In addition to a slate of repeats on CBS, the Fiesta Bowl was on. In fact, it’s that football game that helped give FOX a win in both the viewers and demos yesterday. 8pm Approximately 16.1 million (5.5/13 in 18-49) saw Texas beat Ohio State in FOX‘s Fiesta Bowl. Superstars of Dance (9.5 million, 2.7/7) was ...

tags: abc premieres, new abc, first monday, fiesta, fox

Originally ran on January 3, 2007, January 2, 2008--updated for January 2009. Since 2002 Seattleites have spent the first week of January asking themselves if this is the year a decision will finally be made on the Viaduct. When the governor announced in March of 2006 that she would be making a decision that December, it looked like 2006 might finally be the year. Well, it took ten months for her to announce that we ...

tags: surface option, viaduct, state leaders, gregoire, final decision, fate, nin

Rebirth Brass Band TOP BRASS: The Rebirth Brass Band hails from New Orleans, and we're told by someone in the know that "they put on the most fun live show you will ever see in your life. EVAR." The 9-member ensemble features a trio of trumpets, two trombones, a saxophone, a tuba, a snare drum, and a bass drum. They're the only band on the bill and they're "playing all night"--which ...

tags: rebirth brass band, seattle opera, snare drum, french opera, joseph vance, member ensemble, pearl fishers, nnon, food drinks, jules et jim, tractor tavern, rager, bass drum, top brass, hyperbole, priestess, nadir, third avenue, ballard, leila

As was typical back in the day, Hackett makes Carson let loose with laughter and brings down the house.

tags: buddy hackett, johnny carson, laughter

Betty is the cleaner a the local courthouse. On the bus ride to work one day, she grows tired of all the liberties her fellow citizens take. She falls asleep and dreams about what she'd do if she were the judge.

tags: betty boop, bus ride, liberties, citizens, dreams

With Sealab's destruction imminent, the most difficult question is asked of the crew: would you put your brain in a robot body?

tags: robot body, sealab 2021, django, brain

Here's Homey! Damon Wayans plays an ex-con who works as a clown for his parole agreement, but violently lashes out at anyone who attempts to make him perform the standard antics of the role - "I don't think so... Homey don't play that!". From In Living Color.

tags: living color, wayans, lashes, clown, antics

The King County Democrats had a great turnout for their Elections Director Candidate Forum last night, at least amongst the members of the King County Democrats.  But the candidates however, well, not so much. Of the six official candidates only Sherril Huff, Bill Anderson and Chris Clifford bothered to show up, and Clifford only stayed for the first fifteen minutes or so.  Pam Roach, David Irons and Julie Kempf were all no-shows, which if you ask ...

tags: king county democrats, pam roach, chris clifford, david irons, director candidate, thoughtful questions, candidate forum, bill anderson, kempf, club forum, huff, rotary club, fifteen minutes, plenty of time, jurisdictions, attendance, mistake, passion, audience, elections

One of Motorola’s offerings at the CES is its MOTOSURF A310. The smartphone features a touchscreen with the company’s new widget-based home screen which includes an auto-updating RSS reader. Running on Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, it also has trackball navigation, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP support, a microSD card slot and a 3 mp auto-focus camera. The A3100 will start out in Asia and China, while the rest of us will have to wait until it ...

tags: a310, smartphone, motorola

MSI is sharing its Wind NetOns at the CES. It is available in a 19-inch model AE1901 that will run on an Atom Dual Core CPU with 720p video support. The earth-friendly device consumes only about 20% of average PCs. The AE2203 is powered by a Core 2 Duo CPU. With advanced entertainment and AV features, the higher end NetOn has full HD video. Two other models, the AP1900 and the AP1902, will also ...

tags: dual core cpu, neton, nmsi, inch model, video two, video support, hdtv, atom, hd, ces, msi, earth, models

Good news for those who insist that their spare tire is due to genetics. That is not quite the case, but a New Zealand scientist claims that carbohydrates may be as addictive as cigarettes, giving us a new excuse. He claims that heavily processed carbs found in as cereal and desserts raise the amount of sugar in blood. The result is that the sugar rush stimulates the same part of the brain that involves nicotine ...

tags: pleasure receptors, body mass index, nicotine addiction, zealand scientist, zealand doctor, sugar rush, thornley, spare tire, nicotine, cereal, cocaine, desserts, cigarettes, genetics, excuse, alcohol, part of the brain, new zealand

Nouveau Riche teaches about Real Estate Investments. Nouveau Riche merge Community Benefit Companies and education that helps people to build wealth through flourishing Real Estate Investing, and it... Brad Online Journal about losing extra pounds with various diet reviews and latest news and tips about obesity, diets and weight loss

tags: benefit companies, real estate investments, community benefit, diet reviews, real estate investing, obesity, diets, weight loss, education

tags: dorian gray, oscar wilde

"Head In The Clouds" by Seattlest Flickr Pool contributor Soleil1016. The winds, they are coming! West Seattle Blog has our area's official wind advisory re-published on their site, and the advisory includes a mention of possible local power outages.Time to charge up your computer batteries and boil a few eggs to last you for the duration.Pedestrians and cyclists, remember to wear bright-colored clothing or reflective gear when you're trekking through the ...

tags: local power outages, computer batteries, head in the clouds, dangerous speeds, reflective gear, rainy city, neighborhood news, west seattle, colored clothing, pedestrians, cyclists, contributor, eggs, duration, pool

Photo of Neighbours by Seattlest Flickr Pool contributor Ascheele100. Yesterday, eleven gay bars on Capitol Hill (and one alt weekly, The Stranger) were sent anonymous letters containing threat of poisonous gas attacks. The bars listed as targets in the letters are the Elite, Neighbours, Wild Rose, the Cuff, Purr, the Eagle, R Place, Re-bar, CC's, Madison Pub, and the Crescent. The Times reports that Dan Savage thinks it might be "an ...

tags: dan savage, anonymous letters, religious language, poisonous gas, gay person, gay bars, pub crawl, bartenders, capitol hill, neighbours, patrons, crescent, contributor, friday night, stranger, drinks, elite, targets, pool, photo

Two Needles by B.K. Dewey EMP/SFM is looking for artists to submit visual art, performance art, technology, film, etc that connect music with science fiction. Examples listed include Jimi Hendrix and Star Trek, War of the Worlds and Nevermind, Stephen Spielberg and Johnny Cash. Residencies take place from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm during Family Day. * Spring Residency: Saturday, March 21, 2009(deadline for proposals: Jan. 21) * ...

tags: spring residency, winter residency, stephen spielberg, nemp, jimi hendrix, technology film, artist residency, art performance, sfm, n 400, performance art, star trek, art technology, visual art, johnny cash, nevermind, jan 21, dewey, saturday june, march 21

Here’s the recipe for the muesli I put together last night. I omitted the honey (part of the original plan) because the yogurt-juice mixture tasted sweet enough without it. I also chopped up a bit of banana for a topping this morning. 5 ounces homemade yogurt 1/2 cup cranberry pomegranate juice 7 Tbsp rolled grain mix from PCC 1 Tbsp wheat germ 2 Tbsp currents 1 Tbsp slivered almonds 1/4 tsp vanilla extract 1/8 tsp salt Nutrition info per serving: 206 Calories; 5g Fat ...

tags: tbsp wheat germ, tsp salt, vanilla extract, grain mix, nthe, currants, dietary fiber, pcc, n1, almonds, n5, n2, carbohydrate, currents, crunch, grains, calories, sodium, banana, cholesterol

If you are preparing to launch a new website, then one factor that is extremely important which you may not be devoting enough time to, is the domain name. Domain names are important on a variety of different levels for increased success of your website. While any domain name can reach success choosing the best domain name for your new website can give it a big boost. Learn about the factors you need to know ...

tags: cheap car radiators, best domain, google, name domain, search engines, domain names, niche, domain name, free shipping

A handful of worthwhile media/econ items from this week: Hirschorn's doomsday NYT scneario (dead by May?), Dumenco's valuation of HuffPo ($2 million, not $200 million?), Battelle's media/tech predictions (Yahoo & AOL merge?), Shafer's history lesson of newspapers (did they have it coming?), and Shirky's media forecast (on-demand publishing?).

tags: s media, doomsday, battelle, nyt, handful, yahoo

In today’s world many doctors in health centers often encounter Edema health problem. According to the doctors edema is an increment of fluid in the gap between the body’s cells. It may cause... Brad Online Journal about losing extra pounds with various diet reviews and latest news and tips about obesity, diets and weight loss

tags: edema disease, diet reviews, health centers, health problem, increment, gap, obesity, diets, cells, doctors, weight loss

Lance Armstrong has put his 447-acre ranch in Dripping Springs on the market, complete with the 4-bedroom, 4 bath home and shared access to Deadman's Hole natural swimming pond. This isn't the Armstrong estate in Austin that made news over the summer for being the top residential water consumer in the city by a factor of four (since greatly reduced). This is the ranch about 25 miles from Austin where Armstrong got into trouble with his neighbors ...

tags: armstrong texas, lance armstrong, swimming pond, water consumer, residential water, acre ranch, dripping springs, swimming hole, dams, sediment, neighbors

maus haus delivers an engagingly weird and groovy blend of experimental electronica and grungy indie rock, on their 2008 release, Lark Marvels. They've been opening for the likes of Black Moth Super Rainbow and Four Tet, and it's not hard to understand why. maus haus - Rigid Breakfast maus haus - We Used Technology But Technology Let Us Down maus haus - Reaction Recently on Comfort Radio: Deep Dish - Awake Enough Orb - ABTU - Pattern And Textures ...

tags: point of disgust, black moth, maus haus, four tet, experimental electronica, marvels, lark, moth, indie rock, textures, dish, rainbow, radio

Lord who is the creator of all children, hear our prayer this accursed day. God whom we call Blessed, turn your face to these, the children of Gaza, that they may know your blessings, and your shelter, that they may know light and warmth, where there is now only blackness and smoke, and a cold which cuts and clenches the skin.WarsawAlmighty who makes exceptions, which we call miracles, make an exception of the children of ...

tags: taste of heaven, israel news, stolen childhoods, day god, time light, ishmael, haaretz, accursed, o lord, prayer for the children, fragility, birthright, blackness, trepidation, gaza, scars, jew, mourning, allah, kindness

Breaking News and Opinion on The Huffington Post: "WorldSarkozy: Israel, Palestinians Accept Plan To End The Fighting"Want to bet on Hamas' response?

tags: israel palestinians, huffington post, hamas, breaking news, israel

"the architect is in (ballard) ~ 5 cents!" by MPG Wha? Architecture, 5¢? Happily, MPG points to an explanation for this Lucyesque advice booth. Thanks for the capture, thanks for the info, thanks for sharing. Architecture may set you back a nickel, but photos of Seattle are free for the browsing in our Flickr pool.

tags: sharing architecture, nwha, info thanks, ballard, nickel, architect, seattle, pool, photos

This is Part Four of a series of articles on foreclosures. This article does not constitute legal advice. Foreclosure laws vary from state to state. Homeowners in financial distress should always hire legal counsel. Call your local state bar association for a referral.  Reduced or free legal aid may be available in some states. Ask for a referral from your state Bar Association or through a LOCAL HUD-Approved Housing Counseling Agency. In this article we will address current government intervention ...

tags: free legal aid, mortgage foreclosure, mortgage backed securities, state mandates, vincent murphy, subprime loans, homeowners loan, housing counseling agency, preventative measures, fannie freddie, wamu, real estate bubble, financial distress, government intervention, florida new york, state bar association, intervention programs, moratorium, rebuilding your life, economic analysis

With a new Congress and soon a new President, the government stands to move pretty far to the left. Still, I imagine for many of Jim McDermott’s constituents it won’t be far enough. Personally, I’d like to see him push an agenda that most likely won’t come to pass, but that is worth pursuing for the long run. Here are some of my suggestions: - A 50/50 scheme for spending the gas tax. Right now the ...

tags: jim mcdermott, new president, congress

Okay I swear this is the last snow image.. Unless there is another big dump again of course- well, big by Seattle standards anyway! Wrapping up my big long chain of “Seattle Snow 2008″ posts is this shot taken on the corner of Broadway and Harrison in Capitol Hill. Broadway & Harrison click image to view vr panorama

tags: snow image, capitol hill, broadway

tags: nytimes, revival, roots

Cubans pin hopes on Obama Many islanders expect better relationship with U.S. under new president Dario Lopez-mills / APA woman uses a public phone, right, as men walk down a street in Havana, Cuba, on Tuesday. RAÚL AT CELEBRATION OF THE ...

tags: havana cuba, 50th anniversary, cubans, msnbc, new president, fidel, islanders, dario, washington post, apa, celebration, relationship

One consequence of an electronic medical record: PLEASE NO HEPARIN IN TUBINGS. NO HEPARIN. NO HEPARIN. NO HEPARIN! NO HEPARIN! NO HEPARIN! NO HEAPRIN! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO HEPARIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (This order was written under the “Nursing” section. I have not edited it in any way.)

tags: electronic medical record, heparin, electronic orders, consequence

IGGY POP 'SHOCKED' AT BEST FRIEND RON ASHETON'S DEATHAn official statement regarding the death of Stooges lead guitarist Ron Asheton, reported early yesterday (January 6) has been made by Iggy Pop and the band, management and crew.Asheton was found dead at home, aged 60, possibly from a heart attack, although autopsy results are still due.The official statement reads: "We are shocked and shaken by the news of Ron’s death. He was a great friend, brother, ...

tags: guitarist ron asheton, autopsy results, friend ron, band management, stooges, heart attack, january 6, iggy pop, musician, best friend, brother

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE - MERRIWEATHER POST PAVILION (Album Review)Animal Collective's new album is named after the Frank Gehry-designed ampitheatre in Maryland where as highschool kids they saw the bands – notably the Grateful Dead - that first blew their minds. Choosing such a title (which they now share with a Jerry Garcia Band live album), might suggest that the AC are simply acknowledging that, for all their outsider art beginnings and freaky enthusiasms, their burgeoning cult ...

tags: merriweather post pavilion, jerry garcia band, millennium falcon, outsider art, highschool kids, grand tradition, freak out, girl dancing, animists, phillip glass, jam bands, jerry garcia, mpp, hyperspace, dark star, reverie, transcendence, grateful dead, tongs, tare

digg_url = 'http://majornelson.com/archive/2009/01/07/arcade-interpol.aspx';digg_bgcolor = '#ffffff';digg_skin = 'compact';digg_window = 'new';Content:  InterpolPrice: 800 Microsoft PointsAvailability: All Xbox LIVE regionsDash Text: As an elite Interpol agent, it is your mission hunt down the evil Dr. Chaos. Gather hidden clues in this exciting seek and find game as it takes you around the world investigating elaborate crime scenes and clever mini-games. Complete missions in 4 player co-op to quickly gather the evidence needed. Unlock the full game now to bring ...

tags: bgcolor, majornelson, arcade

Haaretz reports in its Hebrew edition that after a thorough internal investigation UNWRA–which operated the Gaza school hit by Israeli shell fire earlier today resulting in the deaths of at least 42 civilian refugees–finds no evidence there were militants firing mortars from the school’s grounds.  In fact, UNWRA notes that video the IDF disseminated yesterday seeking to verify the army’s claim were actually shot in 2007.  Either the IDF intelligence apparatus is so incompetent it ...

tags: hebrew edition, internal investigation, gaza, idf

Good lord, I thought I got fucked-up letters. Eleven Gay Bars In Seattle Receive Threats To Poison Their Patrons With Ricin. The Stranger also received a letter warning of the poisoning threats, and the link is to the original post on the Slog. Click on the Slog main page for the follow-up posts, of which there are already several. There will undoubtedly be more updates on TheStranger.com as information becomes available.There is a pub-crawl being ...

tags: pub crawl, gay bars, patrons, friday night, stranger, seattle

Off for 19th Anniversary dinner. Wow… # @KevinGoldsmith Damn! Are you safe if you never turn on Roming? We’re going to be in England for 2 weeks - do we take the iPhones? # First day for kids back to school on normal schedule. I was hoping it would be light out when I put Cory on the bus. # Enjoyed this post: “Top 50 movie special effects shots” http://bit.ly/4ggD # Powered by Twitter ...

tags: anniversary dinner, noff, 19th anniversary

Atheists disbelieve in God so much, they can't stop talking about him. They're probably obsessed with the Easter Bunny too!

tags: easter bunny, atheists, god

If there is any art or medium more inane than American television, it must be Japanese television. The video above appears to be an excerpt from a program during which contestants pull the tablecloth out from underneath tableware, capped off by a little WTF dance by the loser.

tags: japanese television, american television, table cloth, tablecloth, loser, excerpt from

What happened on November 21, 1980 when the Diamond Crystal Salt Company and Texaco oil explorers met each other below Lake Peigneur?

tags: texaco oil, lake peigneur, diamond crystal, salt company, crystal salt, explorers, disaster, jefferson island

Billy Joel meets Davy from the Navy. Zac Efron voices Billy. From Robot Chicken.

tags: robot chicken, nzac, billy joel, voices, navy, joel billy

Lucky Louie creator and star Louis C.K. returns to HBO for an hour of no-holds-barred, adults-only stand-up comedy! Taped before a live audience at the Henry Fonda Theater in Los Angeles on Nov 4, 2006, the performance finds Louis taking aim at fat and skinny people, spending money, bumper stickers, Californians, strangers and friends, sex and marriage, lying to your spouse losing your privacy, and the new favorite pastime for fathers. NSFW, language.

tags: new favorite pastime, henry fonda theater, taking aim, bumper stickers, louis c, friends sex, lucky louie, henry fonda, spending money, californians, hbo, comedy, marriage, audience, adults

Hair on arms infomercial and 2 line vocabulary game

tags: vocabulary game, whose line is it anyway

[@375]Twits du JourAnother firmware upgrade for my Samsung Blu-ray player. That was quick. #@comcastcares Whatever you guys did; It worked. After rebooting the comcast router for the 10x times today, everything is back to normal. #@RussB Russ, use ping.fm to update all of your statuses at once. That's what I do. #@comcastcares Still getting harendous packet loss in Everett, WA. Been going on pretty much all day. #My whole morning was spent dealing w/ a ...

tags: twits, iphone, blu ray player, statuses, packet loss, waterbed, everett wa, samsung blu ray player, russ, comcast, router, samsung

There’s more than one huge celebrity today who was once called loser (we’ll say non-winner, it sounds less harsh) by a little show called American Idol. Is one of these almost-winners ready to take the world by storm with his latest project? Some would swear that Sanjaya Malakar was the winner of Season 6. The young crooner melted hearts with his big smile, captivating locks and signature style. Though he was voted ...

tags: malakar, signature style, music in my head, dancing to the music, la times, amazon, american idol, crooner, memoir, loser, memoirs, january 20, locks, finale, little bit, sanjaya, hearts, smile, celebrity, credit card

TVW has a new political blog written by Niki Sullivan, who used to write for the News-Tribune. I always found her writing to be witty and informative, so I’m looking forward to this new effort. (Props to Bellingham Herald reporter/blogger Sam Taylor.)

tags: niki sullivan, tvw, news tribune, blog

Hey, is this thing on?Its twelfth night here. I am about to take down the tree. TH is somewhere on the border of LA and MS tonight. She went to the Waffle House known for its hash browns. Color me jealous -- locally produced pasta with sun dried tomato pesto sometimes just doesn't hit the spot the way hash browns and eggs do.I would have probably taken the tree down earlier than twelfth ...

tags: hash browns, dull existence, waffle house, sun dried tomato, cabin fever, cool photo, photo project, twelfth night, monotony, romp, plethora, short period, resolutions, elevation, period of time, pasta, weather, eggs, neighbors, anxiety

Python’s ducktyping is very useful. It’s good to be able to generally treat something as a file, or a string even if it’s not exactly a file or a string. But when there are methods with the same signature(*) whose parameters change meaning, then you’ve got a problem. When you have a string, you can use the string.translate(mapping) call to translate characters — to do things like force all whitespace to be a real space, ...

tags: python

90210 returned to TV last night after a long mid-season break. For days, the promos titillated us, promising more drama, more twists and more shock. Did last night’s episode deliver? After finding out that Shannen Doherty’s Brenda Walsh can’t have kids (and might adopt - yowzah!), former druggie Adrianna Duncan (played by Jessica Lowndes) is preggers, half-brother Sean (Josh Henderson) was really a con man and that the cute cheerleader Christina Worthy ...

tags: annalynne mccord, brenda walsh, cute cheerleader, american teenager, josh henderson, long lost brother, abc family, jessica lowndes, teen pregnancy, classroom scene, half brother, druggie, bombshells, shenae grimes, lauren london, false alarm, con man, shannen doherty, mid season, parallels

Oh dear. That title sounds very wrong. Ah. ItR