No wonder I’ve been feeling stir crazy lately. Or is it cabin fever? I just grabbed my travel bag to pack for my weekend in Perth, and saw that the previous airline tag was dated August 2006. It’s been more than a year since I’ve been out of Sydney! Eek.
Shirtless? Can’t buy a shirt, sorry
You’d think that Abercrombie and Fitch, who use imagery of the shirtless male throughout their marketing, would appreciate a few more shirtless men, right? Apparently not.
New York-based Improv Everywhere, who cause “scenes of chaos and joy in public places”, placed 115 shirtless men in A&F’s store on 5th Avenue.
After about 15 minutes… security employees started approaching all of our men and asking them to either put a shirt on or leave. They informed us that the model was a paid employee and his state of undress didn’t justify ours. So despite the fact that the store constantly bombards you with the image of the shirtless male, Abercrombie still maintains a “No Shirts; No Service†policy. Some agents protested that they were trying to buy a shirt, but the staff countered with the not-so-logical, “If you put on a shirt then you can buy a shirt 
Two agents were actually stopped while in the process of checking out! They were waiting in line for 10 minutes to buy some $45 shirts, only to be grabbed at the register. One of them was in the process of handing over his credit card as he was nabbed and informed he wasn’t allowed to make a purchase!
There’s plenty of photos and videos, some of which are quite, erm, scenic if you’re so inclined.
Australia bans another video game
Australia, apparently, is the only western nation which doesn’t have an R18+ classification for video games. Which means Soldier of Fortune: Pay Back is banned ‘cos it’s too violent for MA15+. Personally I don’t care one way or another about these shoot-em-ups, but some consistency would be nice. Thanks to Peter Black for the pointer.
NetAlert filter is crap, as expected
The government’s claim they can “protect the kiddies from teh Internet” with a magic filter is bound to be crap, because every review of said filters has revealed flaws. Many, many flaws. But perhaps this time things are different because, y’know, technology advances?
No.
Peter Bowditch downloaded Integard, one of the filters us taxpayers are paying for through the government’s NetAlert program, and was unimpressed.
Hello Kitty, you’re dead, and other surprise products
Ah yes, what every post-modern terrorist needs: a Hello Kitty brand AK-47. A steal at just US$1072.95! Thanks for the pointer, Boing Boing.
I think it even beats the bacon chocolate bar! “Crisp, buttery, compulsively irresistible bacon and milk chocolate combination has long been a favourite of mine,” says the creator. Gluten-free, apparently, so it’s healthy, OK? Thanks again, Boing Boing.
[Update 16 January 2008: This page is still getting several hundred visitors a month. I’m curious. How did you get to this page? What brought you here? And while you’re here, do feel free to look around and maybe even post a few comments.]
Exploding the “economic manager” myth
If “economic management” is a key factor in the election campaign, then I’m hoping someone manages to finally explode this myth that the Howard government is a good economic manager.
Yes, unemployment is low. Yes, interest rates have been low. Yes, there’s been a mining boom. But after (supposedly) 11 boom years under the Truthful Rodent, what have we got to show for it apart from huge credit card balances and a series of “emergencies”? What have we actually built for the future, as opposed to aspired to do?