- Blogging Pro: Secure Your WordPress Admin – “I don’t know how much credence I give to the idea that WordPress is inherently insecure by default, but I do understand that people want to take steps to further protect their blogs. Smashing Magazine has put up an article relating to securing your WordPress admin, and while this won’t make your blog secure if you are making other security mistakes, it can be a great last step in a comprehensive security audit.”
- Digby: Shameless (Hullabaloo) – “Can someone explain to me why I’m seeing Republican after Republican on television advising Americans on the right way to run the economy? Is there any reason why we should listen to them sanctimoniously lecturing us on “what’s worked in the past” and telling us that the only way to cure the problems they themselves created are to do more of the same? They’ve always been known for chutzpah, but this takes the cake.”If a few Democrats could bother themselves to challenge their standing to make these assertions, that might be helpful. Or maybe one gasbag or spokesmodel could ask them why no matter whether the country is economically doing well or doing badly, their advice is always tax cuts.”
- Dday: Not One Republican Vote (Hullabaloo) – “I don’t know how you can come away from this sideshow thinking anything but that Republicans are determined to have their Great Depression and that they openly wish failure upon the United States, or at least no economic recovery for anyone who needs it.”
- Katherine Noyes: Obama and the Open Sourcing of the US Government (Linux Insider) -
- Linux Today: Systems administrator’s role changing via the cloud – ZDNet: “The uptake of cloud computing was rendering many traditional systems-administrator functions obsolete, tech author and Google sysadmin Tom Limoncelli told attendees at <a href=”http://Linux.conf.au”>Linux.conf.au</a> (LCA) in Hobart this week.”
- Linux Today: Small Universe: Lincity-NG 2.0 – Linux Magazine: “Lincity-NG (the NG means Next Generation) is a graphical and game-oriented city planning simulation, now updated in version 2.0, that not only includes graphic enhancements but provides entire ecosystem simulation.”
- Meg: Guinea pigs doing the Lady and the Tramp Spaghetti Thing (CuteOverload) -
- qwantz.com – dinosaur comics – January 28 2009 – T-Rex on racism and religion.
- Meredith Woerner: Can You Explain Lost? Theoretical Physicist Michio Kaku Attempts To [Lost] – io9 – Which, as per usual, lead to more questions. For example, Kaku speculates that the equations are probabilities from quantum mechanics “The only reason you’d be interested in probability is because you want to calculate radiation effect,” says Kaku. “And radiation has to do with the stability of the wormhole. Say a flashlight was to go through a wormhole. It would go into the past, but [its] photons don’t disappear; they go back in a second time, and go back in and in and in like a circle, until it builds up and the whole thing blows up.” Brain, destroyed.
- Charlie Jane Anders: Pulp SF Book Covers That Channel Pure Id [Scifi Art] – io9 -
- Charlie Jane Anders: Create Your Own Original Star Trek Story [Chart Porn] – io9 -
- Meg: Sure, he could prolly scratch your eyes out (CuteOverload) – “But before he does, admire the eye capsules on this Slow Loris eating fruits.”
- Charlie Jane Anders: Doctor Who And The Return Of The Underused Companions [Doctor Who] – io9 -
- Crisis, What Crisis? « Directionless Bones – “As hopefully everyone has now noticed, there is an economic crisis going on. Everyone is very worried about this. Plenty of people have already written about how capitalism caused the crisis. I’d just like to point out how little sense the way we’re responding to it makes.”
- Pam Spaulding: Saddlebacking defined (Pam’s House Blend) – Word of the day.
- Ann: Lawsuit seeks to end health insurance discrimination (Feministing) – “A few months ago, Courtney blogged about news that health-insurance providers are charging women more for the same coverage. (No, this isn’t about pregnancy care — that costs women extra.) Now, the city of San Francisco is bringing a lawsuit against the board that regulates California insurers, to get them to stop the discriminatory practice.”This is especially relevant now, when so many employers are making lay-offs and cutting benefits, because the price difference mainly affects individuals purchasing health insurance.”
- Chronicle Journal – Manitoba lesbian couple says doctor refused them because of sexual orientation – “‘In some ways you feel a bit like a prisoner.’”
- Unemployment Rises in Every State – WSJ.com -
- TreeHugger: Al Gore Tells Senate Committee That We Have Arrived at a Moment of Decision Regarding Climate Change – “Gore opened by saying that, ‘We have arrived at a moment of decision…What is at risk of being destroyed is not the planet itself, of course, but the conditions that have made it hospitable for human beings.’ He then went on to recommend how we should act to prevent this…”
- Worldchanging: Graphic Series: Earthly Ideas, Greywater Systems – “This week’s cartoon describes greywater systems. These resourceful plumbing setups collect lightly contaminated water – like the water from showers, sinks and clothes washers – and reuse it for non-potable tasks like flushing the toilet. If you’d like to learn more about greywater and related solutions, in the Worldchanging archive is a good place to start. Learn how a group of practical activists is taking matters into their own hands in Plumbing the Future: Greywater Guerrillas, or read about how greywater and other water-saving solutions are evolving into mainstream options in No Such Thing As Waste Water.”
- TreeHugger: Incredibly Beautiful PS3 Game Connects Players to Plants (video) – “A new game for the Playstation 3 has players fly through meadows as a gust of wind in a flower’s dream. The goal is to carry petals to other flowers in order to progress to the next level. But the higher goal is to appreciate the gorgeousness of the plant world.”
- Kelly Leahy: Vilsack Vows States Priorities at First Press Conference (Green Daily) – “His first order of business was to brush up on ethics and sign an Ethics Agreement valuing transparency put forth by President Obama.”Vilsack then outlined his priorities as Secretary of Agriculture and that included promoting ‘a sustainable, safe, sufficient, and nutritious food supply for all Americans and for people around the world.’ He also plans on combating childhood obesity and providing block grants to promote nutrition. Vilsack has also expressed concerns about food safety.
“One of Vilsack’s top priorities will be to modernize the Department of Agriculture, get a handle on the number of people that work for the department (their bookkeeping is that bad) and update the technology.”
- Russell Roberts: Truth and Economics (Cafe Hayek) -
- Russell Roberts: The wonder of the world around us (Cafe Hayek) – “Check out this extraordinary video of what ants can achieve without top-down management. (HT: Harry Blanek). Don’t miss it. It is beautiful and spectacular.”
- Jess McCabe: Anti-semite in shock sexism! (F-Word) – “You’ve probably heard by now that the Pope has un-excommunicated four bishops, despite them being Holocaust deniers.”Needless to say, people rarely ascribe to just one particular type of bigotry, so it’s no surprise to see that ringleader of the Holocaust deniers, Richard Williams, holds a whole range of other vile views as well!
“Check out Rhetorically Speaking for some other choice quotes from Bishop Williams, in which he rails against women wearing trousers, working outside the home and going to university. Further on in this letter, Williams also attacks sexual harassment laws.”
- Digby: Republican Wedgie (Hullabaloo) – “You have to give them credit. When it comes to wedge politics nobody does it better and they are attempting to drive a big fat wedge between Obama and his party using Obama’s own rhetoric to do it. I assume the administration understands this, but I’m not sure the public or the villagers get it. The Democrats in congress have to publicly eat shit, liberal activists get angry at Obama for kissing Republicans asses and Democratic voters in general get mad at the partisan Democrats in congress. (All they hear is that the Democrats are failing to fulfill Obama’s vision, which, coming from Republicans is absurd, but sounds plausible in this allegedly post-partisan utopia.) In this case, the Democrats really haven’t been stabbing Obama in the back, but the Republicans are making it look like they are.”
- Autumn Sandeen: MarriageEqualityUSA: Collective Wisdom of Our Grassroots Community (Pam’s House Blend) – “It goes without saying that I believe [this] slideshow is worth watching, and the reports are worth reading. Lots of good info in the collected thoughts.”
- Amanda Marcotte: I can’t stop thinking about this (Pandagon) – On removing so-called contraceptive funding from the stimulus package:”In fact, the people who are anti-contraception are the same group of nitwits who decided that Terri Schiavo’s feeding tube was a matter of national importance. When the Republicans and their media allies cater to these morons, it’s like catering to the people who think the TV show ‘Alf’ was a documentary. We’re not talking huge numbers, and you’d think the Schiavo thing would have made them realize that aligning themselves with anti-choice zealots turns the public at large against them.
“This issue is going to keep coming up, because Republicans are just warming up for the fight on universal health care. And they’ve shown their hand—they’re going to make contraception access a major issue. The fear that other people are out there fucking and not paying for it with STDs and unintended pregnancy will be a major talking point, as I feared. Feared and hoped. I fear it, because repetition may normalize the idea that there’s something shady about women who use or have used contraception, even though that number amounts to 98% of women who have ever had intercourse.”
- Dday: Lack of Labor (Hullabaloo) – Why the delay in the confirmation of Hilda Solis as Labor Secretary? “Corporate titans are going to fight for their interests. We can’t wait for others to fight for ours. Yesterday thereisnospoon launched a citizen lobbying campaign to find out who is holding up Solis’ nomination. He has numbers for a bunch of Republicans, but the calls should really go to Harry Reid, who had no problem ignoring Senate holds last year when Chris Dodd was threatening them. Another good phone call would be to the White House switchboard, so Mr. 78% can expend a smidge of political capital to get his own nominee confirmed. Hilda Solis is completely qualified to be Labor Secretary, and in this economic climate the Labor Department needs to be running at full speed.”
- Obama Disappointed Cabinet Failed To Understand His Reference To ‘Savage Sword Of Conan’ #24 | The Onion – America’s Finest News Source – “Obama, whose upcoming challenges include organizing a massive effort to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure, was reportedly unprepared for the confused silence he received upon suggesting that his cabinet ‘team up with Taurus of Nemedia’ to secure the necessary funding from Congress. [...]“After receiving no reaction from the assembled reporters, Obama added, ‘Because a giant spider is protecting this chamber full of precious jewels, just like Congress is protecting its…. God, how are you people not seeing this?’”
Via Pandagon.
- Moonbat: BBC Panorama: Health Care in America (Mahablog) – “This explosive BBC documentary, unlike anything you’ll see on American MSM, shows how bad the healthcare situation is in America. You’ll see a charity originally set up to deliver healthcare to third world countries, drawing hundreds of clients in Kentucky. The clip effectively shows the enormous chasm between rich and poor in America. You’ll see rich Republicans who think our system is the greatest in the world, and who are fighting to keep the status quo. The political situation is spelled out as well. The last segment interviews a woman who is getting chemotherapy while living in a tent – she had to choose between rent or medicine. [...]“We used to have a functioning media in this country that would take risks and report on this kind of thing. Now it distracts, silences, and shapes public opinion, instead of being challenging or revealing. While never perfect, who the media is supposed to serve has changed over time. [...]
“There is a spiritual dimension to this that all contemporary writers and documentaries show or talk around, but which can never seem to directly discuss. It’s as though we don’t have the language for it, or we’re not permitted to directly speak about it – which by itself silently screams obscenities against our culture. We simply feel the moral outrage that some deep spiritual laws are being violated. But without a common language to articulate and address this outrage, this energy is stymied from changing anything. It’s the result of conservative efforts to trivialize and confine spirituality to personal matters, such as who you’re having sex with, blastocytes, and so on, and to keep spirituality away from anything that would seriously challenge the conservative worldview.”
Video.
- Jess McCabe: Iceland to get world’s first lesbian prime minister (The F-Word Blog) – “Johanna Sigurðardottir looks set to become the first ever LGBT head of government, after Iceland’s coalition government collapsed. She’s currently minister for social affairs.”The Huffington Post has an interesting piece about how utterly unbothered the people of Iceland are about this fact, by Icelandic journalist Iris Erlingsdottir.”
- Pam Spaulding: CA court: ‘gay-appearing’ students can be expelled by religious schools (Pam’s House Blend) – Read the part about how the girls were questioned. This is just gross.
- Melissa McEwan: Matthews’ Mendacity on Family Planning Continues (Shakesville) – “This whole segment, all thirty seconds of it, is an Orwellian masterpiece, really. It asserts that providing women with contraception takes away their choice—and casts the Democrats as the villains who want to control the wombs of American women.”And that damnable lie would be sufficiently objectionable on its own, but is made exponentially more infuriating by the reality that it is Republicans who have endeavored for 36 years (and then some) to leave American women with no choice at all.”
- Elle: It Does Matter (Shakesville) – On racism, rape, and the fetishization of virginity.
- Dday: Rethinking The Stimulus (Hullabaloo) – “If Horn is right and the bill is relatively pure, that’s fine. But the politics have been anything but pure. Conservatives through their wailing have set up themselves to be proven right in the event of failure, because the argument was never made about progressive economic philosophy versus conservative failure. Instead we got a mix and let conservatives define the terms of the debate. Now Obama is beholden to whether or not the stimulus works. He always was, of course, but by pre-compromising the bill and offering what is still too imbalanced a package, he has made it more difficult to succeed than he needed to.”
- Jessica: A laptop for poor widdle women arms (Feministing) -
The Links for January 28th from 09:50 to 17:45 by Lee Salazar, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.
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