I'm Officially Withholding Judgment...

on Mr. Shunn's podcasted memoir, "The Accidental Terrorist," because it hasn't really gotten rolling quite yet, but it's promising. It sports a handy-dandy evaluation of exactly how much embellishment may have taken place, and it is unofficially endorsed by God. And I do love me a smack-talking Mormon (life's little gems--just like atheists produced in the crucible of Catholic school).

Doomed to Failure

I love London theater, and I love the V&A. But in a city as full of fascinating museums as London, the V&A's Theatre Museum, with its too-tiny space squirreled away in a corner of Covent Garden, was probably always doomed. I've been there two or three times, and I didn't even know about half the stuff they say they have in this article (just as well--at some point I'm sure I would have been WAY too excited by the prospect of seeing Noel Coward's make-up box). God love Judi Dench, but I think she might be fighting a losing battle. The place is literally around the corner from the London Transport Museum (awesome artwork for adults, very exciting toys for children), and if you're willing to leave Covent Garden there are dozens of exciting museums crying for your attention. If you really love the theater, you'll probably just spend your time and money hitting a show (history in the making) rather than picking your way through here and trying to find the stuff you want to see.

No accounting for taste...

Apparently "The Pink Panther" has beaten "V for Vendetta" in the UK box office. The clarity, the sheer economy of the message is beautiful. "Steve Martin is making fun of the French. Come quickly--a cyclist is being flattened by a giant globe!" I love the English. Where would we be without their level-headed devotion to physical comedy?

Huh...

And in a related story, New Zealand is recruiting cops from all over, possibly to deal with their unruly Santa problem.

Another technology of dubious value...

I'm guessing you don't want to put them in the dishwasher.

No, no. Seriously. I admit that I appreciate the ongoing quest to design technology that enables interaction rather than mediating it. And this is an elegant expression of that mission, in a concept-car kind of way.

It sure as hell beats watching granny's casket on the web.

When Long-Distance Relationships Go Too Far

I work on a daily basis with people all over the world, many of whom I've never seen. I have forged happy working partnerships and friendships with people that have lasted years before a face-to-face meeting (and years afterwards, thank you very much). So far be it from me to denigrate the power of technology to help people perform the most intimate social dances with each other across a great, great distance. But I say there are some things that should be done in person.

Optimism is Good for Your Heart

Still no word on what happens to optimists who disguise themselves carefully as pessimists to avoid the retribution of a God they no longer believe in. Science is so slow to tackle the issues that really matter.