A Perfectly Cromulent Blog

Carnival of the Vanities #72

Posted by pete at February 4, 2004 8:02 AM

Smiles, everyone smiles...My dear guests, I am Mr. Pete, your host. Welcome to Carnival of the Vanities #72.

Putting together this edition of the Carnival has been an interesting experience. I've been exposed to a number of blogs I don't normally get around to reading, and I think we'd all agree that exposing ourself to others is a good thing.

(Your host for the next Carnival will be On the Third Hand)

And now, back to our show...

Sol at Solomonia reminds us of an important date with Burnt Offerings.

The Audhumlan Conspiracy wonders what would happen if the votes of states in the electoral college were weighted not by populations but by the number of people in each state who actually voted in the election.

Jeff Doolittle examines the issue of More Tax Dollars at Work:

Jeff also shares the results from his tracking logs.

What's in it for the man? Freedom! In this controversial piece on Taken In Hand, Random describes the freeing, liberated feeling he has as a result of being the head of his household. Apparently his girlfriend, J likes this arrangement.

The Gleeful Extremist really wishes he had heckled Al Franken at a book signing now that he's heard about Franken tackling a LaRouche supporter (Jan. 27 entry).

Ross regales us with tales of freakish water consumption.

Tom hallucinates sinister motives behind Microsoft's show of support for Apple.

Richard wants PBS to reorganize, and he wants your help.

Carey Gage posts about the speech police. They live inside of your head.

Mac Swift declares the Apostle Peter to be the Original Rocky.

Harvey at Bad Money addresses the sad paradox of witless people trying to engage in witty banter.

Craving a Don McLean fix? No? Go check out Teedz's snappy "American Pie" remake anyway, which was inspired by a friend's tragically corrupted browser bookmark file.

More humorous misadventure in RANDOM BITS 12 as Pete tells of his gambling addict friend, barbershop shock, and debates White Castle hamburgers with the 'unwashed'.

Jack takes issue with some boy-bashing t-shirt manufacturers.

Da Goddess has a double whammy. First are bar tales of Ken and Barbie, then some child-altered sayings that conjure up some interesting imagery.

The BoiFromTroy channels his inner Elvis (Costello, that is) by asking, "What’s so special about interests?"

Australian blogger John Ray attacks the common claim by non-Americans to the effect that Americans are "stupid".

PC Watch notes that Muslim minorities now seem to be feared by officialdom and suggests an alternative to fearing them.

Wicked Thoughts has another collection of funnies up.

Simon explains the case against public broadcasters after the BBC's recent debacle.

Patterico argues for a higher standard of proof in death penalty cases. Don't miss the ensuing debate between Patterico and Xrlq (links at the end of the post).

Josh pleads for some sanity in all the uproar over Janet Jackson’s breast imbroglio.

Fringe contemplates what a convenience store condom dispenser label means for our current political climate.

Norbizness compares the Iraq War rationale to a "Law and Order" defendant.

Xavier has his list of 2003’s Best in Film, for your kvetching pleasure.

Porphyrogenitus thinks that if war critics can make connections, pro-war folks should too, but he also wants an investigation into intelligence agencies.

Dick Cheney, apparently desperate for good press, speaks to Mad Kane.

Alan K. Henderson doesn't like the trend in NFL logos.

Susie at Practical Penumbra points out the dichotomoy between children's and adult's perception of snow.

Thief's Den looks deep into the heart of the machine to predict the 2004 election. Place your bets now.

Professor Bainbridge opines on whether fiscal conservatives will cost Bush the election.

For the inside scoop on the Jackson family's reaction to the Super Bowl halftime incident, check out Darmon C. Thornton's entry.

A pre-coffee state leads to oddity in the shower when the silence of the house becomes deafening. Verily, Jim speaks the truth.

And from ZeroIntelligence.net, more on the Georgia Superintendent of School's decision to remove the word "evolution" from the school curriculum.

Drake advises Andrew Sullivan to read the small print of the latest poll he
has been touting (Scroll down to "Read the small-print" if Blogger is doing its links thing).

Hear ye, hear ye, there's a new decree from the King of Fools on Winning the Spam War (Part II).

Bill at Walloworld explains why slavery reparations aren't an appropriate remedy.

Another Bill presents his thoughts on Auschwitz redefined.

The Interested Participant ruminates on California's proposed feng shui building code (Feb. 1 entry).

Here comes Aunty Goob with a suggestion for reforming Social Security.

Red Ted was watching the Flash animation for Cows With Guns with his son and noticed the lead cow is a male...with an udder...

Brian voted for LaRouche in the Missouri Democratic Primary because, as he puts it, he is a wastrel.

Doug Payton of Considerettes mixes a bake sale, the stifling of dissent, and just pinch of John Ashcroft to create a commentary on racial preferences.

Kevin Baker discusses El Cajon California's recent implementation of a law that allows the city to confiscate and take title to automobiles driven by men who are arrested for solicitation of prostitution - sort of a $20,000 fine for a misdemeanor - in "More Asset Forfeiture."

From Quibbles-n-bits comes this analysis on Santa versus Islam.

Bryan McAnally partied with the governor!

David Hasselhoff brought down the Berlin Wall, and Bill Adams helped.

Seroa At Cyber::Ecology waxes damn near poetic in this season of sound-bitten polemics with Drawing Parallels

Phil, the Speculist, shrugs off nasty comments made about nanotechnology enthusiasts by pointing out that they're all pretty much true. And so what?

Blogo Slovo looks at the ethical upbringing of kids these days.

John discusses racial preferences as a form of regulation.

Last, but certainly not least, Goldie discovers what men have known for some time: seeing two members of the same (opposite) sex going at it is pretty hot.