Matthew Newton

The media whores from the anti-gay Westboro Baptist Church, an SPLC-monitored hate group, have agreed not to picket the funeral of Christina Taylor Green — the 9-year-old girl killed during the assassination attempt on Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords this past weekend in Tucson. There is a catch, of course.

A woman, both of her legs amputated, wears a tiara and pageant sash and is carried by a young man and placed on a grouping of rocks in the surf. She screams as the cold water splashes against her body, soaking the bottom of her dress. Lighting rigs are placed and a photographer leans in, snapping photos.

Yesterday, a colorized version of the photograph was posted on Reddit.com. To see this image in color imbues a new level of terror and awe. In the original black and white image, this lone Buddhist monk appeared otherworldly, a ghost from the past familiar to us only from repetitious use in coffee table books, historical slide shows, and even album covers…

At holiday parties and family gatherings I feigned sanity. But under my breath, and between gulps of alcohol, I chanted a subliminal mantra: Without the Internet, I’m nothing. Living without that incandescent glow on my face was not living at all.

As a teenager, I never even considered purchasing a pair of Chuck Taylors. To me, they were the footwear equivalent of a Green Day album — overrated and embarrassing, part of a hastily fashioned anti-establishment uniform I had no interest in wearing.

Teaching children to play in harmony is not simple. Parents know the challenge, and as evidenced in Ashleigh Nankivell’s “Helping Johnny Remember,” mothers and fathers raising children in the 1960s knew this as well. But what transpires in Nankivell’s remix of this once harmless public service announcement, originally…

After three days of training, we were deemed ready for uniforms. No one asked for sizing information; shorts and tanks in size XXS were distributed to all. We retreated to the bathrooms to wrestle ourselves into suntan-colored pantyhose and elastic tanks—assuring one another the look was cute, or kawaii—and lined up in front of the trainers. They inspected us for uncovered tattoos, forbidden nail jewelry, and proper shorts length.

Of course it would make no sense for any borough or township to allow the placement of a vending machine stocked with tools designed for the defacement of public/private property. But in the world of local commerce, stranger things have happened. Real or not, the latest video for The Graffomat, which is in the format of a nine-minute long infomercial, makes an entertaining case for the machine.

It wouldn’t be Christmas without a war between true believers and nonbelievers. This year, the American Atheists fired the first shot, dropping $20,000 to rent a 14-by-48-foot billboard on I-495 in New Jersey, en route to the Lincoln Tunnel, with the following message: “You KNOW it’s a myth. This season, celebrate reason!”

If you have a fondness for the phrase “Jesus is the reason for the season,” then you’ll no doubt be interested to hear about the latest exploits of two guys named John Boehner and Eric Cantor. These men are politicians, fairly high-ranking from what I’m told. And, if you’re keeping score, these gentlemen hail from the Republican party (the one that’s less docile, more reactionary).

In German photographer Christian Burkert‘s series of photos titled “Last Exit Detroit,” the theme is familiar: Detroit is an abysmal no man’s land on the brink of extinction. Most everyone claiming to be a photographer or journalist these days seems intent on that opinion, and it’s become woefully redundant.

It seems there are many parallels to be drawn here between the notion of playthings and adult situations. Not to mention the idea that Lego bricks create an instant pixelization effect, adding to the X-rated allure of these images.