Today's Christmas beefcake brought to you by the Vatican

Clueless Conservative is Clueless

So some head honcho at Fox News told his minions to "refrain from asserting that the planet has warmed (or cooled) in any given period without IMMEDIATELY pointing out that such theories are based upon data that critics have called into question."

I don't want to talk about that, really.

I'm more incensed by this defense of the honcho. The whole thing is pretty bad, but I save my greatest rage for this:

In other words, we journalists are paid to BE SKEPTICAL.
...
Now I am from out of town and all, but Sammon’s injuction sounds to me exactly like what editors are supposed to tell their charges – report what A claims and what B says about what A claims, but keep your personal views about both A and B out of it.

Now I agree that journalists should probably strive to keep personal views out of the matter, but somehow I think journalism involves more than sandwiching quotes from A and B, and calling it a day. Though I see all too much of that style of journalism, I don't think too much of it, and it hardly qualifies as a paragon of skeptical journalism.

Buzz Aldrin says he walked on the moon; Bart Sibrel says that Aldrin is a "thief, liar and coward". You decide!

Designing Couples

I guess I should have realized that the Eames who created Powers of Ten were two and the same with the creators of the Eames House and the Eames Chair. But it's an extra surprise to see that they designed the Mathematica exhibit formerly at the California (& Chicago) Museums of Science and Industry.

Christians Lead the Fight to make America Secular

When Florida Turnpike tollbooths sported Halloween decorations earlier this year, Christian groups complained.
In response, "Turnpike leaders have now decided to ban holiday decorations of any kind".

When Fort Worth T buses displayed banners reading "Millions of Americans are good without God," Christians complained.
In response, "the T’s board of directors decided Wednesday to include both religious and political ads in the list of banned ads."

New Google Toy

Books Ngram Viewer allows you to compare word frequencies from Google Books over time, like say...

creationism vs. astrology vs. phrenology
or
conservative vs. liberal
or
hit points vs. armor class

traveler v traveller
imposter v impostor
I could do this all day