Monthly Archives: December 2003
Quote of the Day
"Don’t you think Jerry Falwell reminds you a lot more of the Pharisees than he does of the teachings of Jesus? And don’t you think this campaign ought to be about evicting the money changers from the temple?” Howard Dean … Continue reading
Have You Been Paying Attention?
The Dowbrigade thought he was tracking the current Democratic campaign pretty closely, but a quiz in today’s NY Times reveals how inadequate our best efforts were. Obviously, we need to spend at least a couple of extra hours a day … Continue reading
Secret Spy Museum Shows Off CIA Gadgetry
McLEAN, Va., Dec. 27 (AP) When the Central Intelligence Agency’s gadget makers invented a listening device for the Asian jungles, they disguised it so the enemy would not be tempted to pick it up and examine it: The device looked … Continue reading
Not Hard Core – Just Stupid
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A naked man got stuck in the chimney of a bookstore early Christmas morning. Don’t worry, it wasn’t Santa Claus. The 34-year-old man was treated Thursday for bruises and abrasions at Hennepin County Medical Center after being … Continue reading
Wall Street’s Most Wanted
The deck of playing cards has become the 21st century version of wanted posters, trading cards or commemorative dinner plates. The Dowbrigade still remembers the first deck of non-standard playing cards he ever saw, at Beaver Camp for Boys, when … Continue reading
Slam Bam – Silk Road City Leveled
BAM, Iran (Reuters) – A pre-dawn earthquake razed much of the ancient Silk Road city of Bam in Iran on Friday, killing more than 20,000 people and injuring tens of thousands more, government officials said. About 70 per cent of … Continue reading
Harper’s Index Great Teaching Tool
For years the Dowbrigade has been using the Harper’s Index with his advanced ESL students. The Harpers Index is a monthly list of surprising or unexpected or counterintuitive statistical facts, written in a strange hybrid form expressing equivalency, but gramatically … Continue reading
What Kind of Postmodernist Are You, Anyway?
Cool little quiz over at quizilla.com, called "What kind of post-modernist are you?" I’m not really sure what a post-modernist is, except that I think it has something to do with deconstructionism. Thanks to Ryan Overbey for the tip. Here … Continue reading
McCarthyism Meets Libertariansim
Gadzooks! Jay McCarthy has discovered Ayn Rand! Also notable as a sweet application of outline-based, category-rich blogging. From Make Out City
Princess’s Pooch Eats Queen’s Corgi
The holiday spirit was dampened and Christmas dinner ruined at Buckingham Palace by a combination dog fignt / cat fight involving The Queen of England, her daughter Princess Anne, a bull terrier named Dottie and the Queen’s favorite Corgi, name … Continue reading
Dean Finds God on Christmas Morn
As the top prize gets closer and closer, The Remaking of Howard Dean is reaching a fevered pitch. What with Michael Jackson embracing the Nation of Islam, hearing that Dean is embracing his Christian roots is all part of a … Continue reading
Lieberman Vows to Save ESL Jobs
In this exclusive photo by Dave Winer, Sen. Lieberman warily eyes the Dowbrigade, as your intrepid reporter, pen in one hand and beer in the other, grills him on the issues of the day. In an exclusive interview at a … Continue reading