Turning to Violence

Politics

Ignore the fact that there is still a horrible utility in political violence, the way there was during Reconstruction, or during the labor wars of the early twentieth century. If there were not, it wouldn’t be so hard to get an abortion in Kansas, and assault weapons would not have been accessories of choice at recent rallies purportedly held to discuss changes in the way the country organizes its health-care system.

Charles P. Pierce has an excellent article in Esquire examining recent political violence in the United States. “The Bomb that Didn’t Go Off” centers on a failed bombing on a Martin Luther King Jr. march in Spokane. He uses that incident to showcase right-wing political violence since Obama’s election, highlighting our insistence on not seeing a pattern.

Follow-up: In the New York Times, Scott Shane has an article outlining the influence of American anti-Muslim bloggers on the terrorist behind the attacks in Norway.

Angela Lovell Book of Essays

FLYMF Alums, Humor

FLYMF alum Angela Lovell has released an ebook of essays detailing the absurdity of a summer job at Disney World. As she says, “Mouseschawitz – My Summer Job of Concentrated Fun is Part 1 of a short collection of true stories from an ex theme park employee and the unbelievable feats she witnessed one summer. From deadly wildlife to celebrity encounters, to guests attempting makeshift abortions on rides, these tales cover all kinds of thrills in the happiest place on earth.”

Angela’s very funny story, “I’ll Have My Rapist with a Side of Cranberry Sauce” was published in FLYMF’s Greatest Hits. Her other contributions to FLYMF include The Lawnballers,  September Whorescopes (2005) , October Whorescopes (2005) , December Whorescopes (2005), January Whorescopes (2006), February Whorescopes (2006) , March Whorescopes (2006) , April Whorescopes (2006), Never Judge An Artist By Her Vagina Dress (Or Lack Thereof), May Whorescopes (2006), The Troll Made Me Do It, June Whorescopes (2006) , July Whorescopes (2006) , August Whorescopes (2006), September Whorescopes (2006) , October Whorescopes (2006) , November Whorescopes (2006) , December Whorescopes (2006), January Whorescopes (2007), February Whorescopes (2007), March Whorescopes (2007), April Whorescopes (2007), May Whorescopes (2007) and June Whorescopes (2007).

Game Review: Silly Sausage

Games


Silly Sausage’s name may not recommend it, but the game itself is a great way to waste an hour. It has you contort a stretchy dog through a series of levels, each of which requires you to collect coins and dodge obstacles to access the final exit.

The gameplay is reminiscent of the old Snakes game that used to come bundled with Windows. The difference—beyond a sizable amount of polish—is that your dog can attach to anchor points to launch new investigations. (He also doesn’t die if he bumps into his own tail.)

Silly Sausage is tough enough to challenge but responsive enough to keep you from chucking your keyboard into the monitor. The difficulty slope doesn’t overwhelm you, but it does make beating it feel like a reasonable accomplishment. It’s also free, so there’s no reason not to check it out.