Pushing rectangles...

Keeping America Safe from puppeteers

Wed, 17 Aug 2005 15:10:44 GMT

Okay, this one I understand. Bunch of puppet freaks.

I feel safer: Homeland Security vs. San Francisco Bay Area Puppeteers Guild. Mark Frauenfelder: Brian Stokes says: "I kid you not. My beloved San Francisco Bay Area Puppeteers Guild is under investigation by Homeland Security. According to their latest newsletter, its assets have been frozen ever since my friend and Treasurer Pam Brown resigned after 20 years and passed the miniscule nestegg to a new bank account a few months ago. The bank apologizes but legally can't do anything until Homeland Security determines this group of puppet fans and professionals is not planning to attack our country.
"This is the Guild where Jim Henson met a young Frank Oz and Jerry Juhl back in the 1960s. Not long ago, I was President, and before that, Secretary.

"But now our government thinks it's harboring terrorists." Link [Boing Boing]

Keeping America Safe from 1-year-old children

Wed, 17 Aug 2005 15:09:23 GMT

Baby: the other white terrorist!

Babies on the no-fly list. Cory Doctorow: The government's no-fly list of suspected terrorists contains many common names held by non-terrorists from all walks of life, including many babies. Babies who have names similar to known terrorist aliases are being held up boarding airplanes until their parents can prove that the infants aren't terrorists.
Sarah Zapolsky and her husband had a similar experience last month while departing from Dulles International Airport outside Washington. An airline ticket agent told them their 11-month-old son was on the government list....
Well-known people like Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., and David Nelson, who starred in the sitcom "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet," also have been stopped at airports because their names match those on the lists...
The TSA has a "passenger ombudsman" who will investigate individual claims from passengers who say they are mistakenly on the lists. TSA spokeswoman Yolanda Clark said 89 children have submitted their names to the ombudsman. Of those, 14 are under the age of 2.
Link (Thanks, Owlswan!) [Boing Boing]

Note that children under 2 do not need a ticket to fly if they sit on an adult's lap. An unticketted child would never be flagged by the "don't fly list". In addition, once the question was raised the TSA claimed that their instructions are that no child under 12 should ever be checked. Somehow their own employees don't know this.

Kids these days!

Sun, 19 Jun 2005 01:32:48 GMT

Zork parody on a wiki. Cory Doctorow: A Uncyclopedia (parody of Wikipedia) user has created a Zork parody on the wiki, and many users are adding their own often hilarious turns and twists to the adventure.
Examine Grue
Man, you've really never played this game before, have you? The Grue devours you before you have a chance to scream.
Start over
Link (Thanks, Stuart!) [Boing Boing]

I bet none of them even remember Addventure.