Headlines from January 24, 2013
- GOP hatches plan to award electoral votes by Congressional district outcomes—which would have resulted in a Romney victory.
- One of Obama’s reelection engineers launches effort to turn Texas blue—which would effectively end the Republican Party.
- We’re completely pro gay marriage, we’re pro keeping money in my checkbook. A dispatch from the Disinaugural Ball.
- Audio engineer says Beyoncé‘s inauguration performance doesn’t appear to be lip-synched.
- Mia Farrow on her ‘60s pixie cut: Sassoon didn’t create it, and Sinatra didn’t divorce her over it.
- New study finds women smokers are more likely to die from the habit than they were 50 years ago.
- Also in the study: Smoking cuts about a decade off life expectancy; quitting before 35 gains it back.
- As an American who’s not used to eating lungs, it’s an improvement. Alternatives to authentic haggis.
- The Vatican used Mussolini’s money to build secret commercial properties.
- Apply by Friday, Feb. 1 to be our Spring 2013 intern. #tmn
- Broadband finally arrives in Cuba, where only 2.9% of the population is officially online.
- Ida Wood: the mysterious recluse who turned out to have been a wealthy, beautiful, powerful socialite.
- The latest in Kevin Fanning’s new column at TMN: Justin, Selena, and the three shades of celebrity desire.
- Since Sandy Hook, there have been at least 1,173 gun deaths in America.
- Pentagon to remove ban on female service members in combat roles, based on women’s valor in Iraq and Afghanistan.
- Navies still having trouble on that front underwater—42 countries use submarines, but only six allow women aboard.
- Japan’s finance minister says elderly people (should) prefer to “hurry up and die” rather than tax health services.
- Creepstreams: An interactive map of insecure, publicly available home-security webcam feeds.
- Professor explains what it’s like to be stalked online by a former student determined to ruin his reputation.
- “Charlie Brown” voice actor arrested for stalking and threats.
- Study finds that strong doubts before marriage predict higher divorce rate and more dissatisfaction.
- Overdue praise to the internet-era’s Gogol: Ellen Ullman.
- Ullman in 2002, on programming the post-human: “Sentience is the crest of the body, not its crown.” #longreads
- This week celebrates the 10th anniversary of R. Kelly’s “Ignition (Remix),” perhaps the greatest song in contemporary pop.
- R. Kelly has won and the terrorists have lost. John Darnielle’s 100 reasons why “Ignition (Remix)” is so superb.
- New website attempts to collect all 212,000 oil paintings owned by state and local authorities and charitable trusts in the UK.
- As more people take up gardening in the UK, more gardeners use brutal tactics to sabotage their neighbors.
- Pitchaya Sudbanthad begins his Thai-food column for TMN with kluay buat chee, bananas “in nunhood.” #tmn
- Instructions and discussion about creating beautiful long-exposure photographs with beer cans.