Friday News Chum: All Sorts of Random Stuff

Well, it’s Friday and you know what that means… no, it doesn’t mean I’m celebrating having an empty nest because Erin is back at Berkeley (we’re not–we’ll miss the chaos, and know she’ll have a great Spring semester)… no, it doesn’t mean I’m shilling for yesterday’s post, even if it did have a bunch of really neat stuff, including an update on Big Daddy and a kickstarter for a new Ren Faire in Ventura County… yes, you figured it out… it’s Friday and that means I need to clear out the links:

• Howz That Again? Did you ever wonder what would happen if you ran the theme song from Fresh Prince of Bel Air through every language in Google Translate? Wonder no longer.
• Find the Eagle. AAmericaan Aairlines haas unveiled aa new logo thaat might even get rid of aall the double As. Actually, I think it looks pretty clean, but it’s hard to see the eagle. What forced them to do it? Supposedly, it was composite planes that made the brushed aluminum background no longer viable. Perhaps. Then again, perhaps the answer is in the article: «A decision is expected within weeks about whether AMR will move forward with a merger with US Airways or remain on its own; a merged company would be called American Airlines. Horton told the Associated Press that the redesign doesn’t tilt the company toward either outcome. US Airways spokesman Ed Stewart praised the “compelling result” of the redesign.»
• A New Phrase for the Lexicon: “Breastaurant”. Hooters is supposedly refreshing its look and (umm) feel, aiming for the family dining market (especially those toddlers). Related to this, I’ll remind you of a link I posted a while back with a tell-all of what its really like to work at Hooters.
• Change is What We Need. A man in Shasta County recently paid his overdue property tax bill of $13,000… in coins and dollar bills. Reminds me of the time in college when some friends and I went to the Velvet Turtle in West LA… and paid the bill entirely in Suzys and Quarters.
• What’s Behind the Spam. We all get them: the spam from the online pharmacies for erectile drugs. Planet Money investigated this spam, and did a really interesting piece on the economics of it all (and how the pharmacies behind it are legit and make money). In related news, Kapersky Labs has made a major malware discovery.
• How Will They Get Their Jollies Now? The TSA has ended its contract with OSI Rapidscan, and is removing all the Rapidscan backscatter (X-ray) scanners from airports. These are the ones that got everyone’s arms up due to the naked images. The scanners based on millimeter waves will remain. Now if I could only remember which are the ones that were dangerous.
• Old Los Angeles. An interesting article on the successful use of an old downtown theatre: The Orpheum, which is regularly used for concerts. Related to this: the old train stations of downtown LA that are no more.
• …and an anti-Puritan rant. I’ve been following with interest the case of a Ventura county teacher fired because she did some porn work a few years before she became a teacher. She did it because she was in financial distress, and is not involved with the industry. I think the decision in the case was wrong — it has no reflection of her qualities as a teacher, and what are her students doing searching for porn anyway? I hope she appeals. I see this as yet another example of how the Puritan’s screwed over this country through their sexual repression and morals.

 

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