In the same way that British public servants will stop using the phrase “War on Terror” because it makes terrorists feel part of something bigger, the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales says groups of youths involved anti-social behaviour and petty crime shouldn’t be called gangs.
Is Big Brother a Big Deal?
“Big Brother isn’t what he used to be,” says security expert Bruce Schneier — and he’s not taking about the TV show. “Today’s information society looks nothing like Orwell’s world.”
A fascinating essay with follow-up comments — and something I’m bound to write more about soon. Thanks for the pointer, Zhasper.
Who won the Iraq War?
“A funny thing happened on the floor of the [US] Senate last week,” says Gary Brecher (pictured left). “Somebody asked a serious question: ‘If the war in Iraq is lost, then who won?’.” The brief answer is “Iran in the short run, China and India in the long run.” Read the full post for Brecher’s observations and reasoning. [Thanks to Blog Them Out of the Stone Age for the tip.]
“Deliberately Barren” t-shirts
“Deliberately Barren” t-shirts are now available. Thanks for the inspiration, Senator Heffernan!
10 Steps to a Fascist America
Naomi Wolf reckons the US has taken the initial steps towards becoming a Fascist state. What’s interesting about the comments at Why We Worry is that most posters seem to think Wolf said the US was already a Nazi dictatorship — which she didn’t.
John Howard gay remix
It’s childish. It’s addictive. It’s a silly thing that allows you to remix John Howard’s speeches into gay-related rants. Thanks to QueerPenguin for the pointer.