Most Outrageous Statements of 2005
By Staff, Media Matters for America
The news in 2005 often resembled the Theater of the Absurd, and Media Matters was there to monitor the misinformation. To recap the year, the accuracy watchdog harvested the finest blustering from the likes of Pat Robertson and Ann Coulter. Among the pronouncements is this gem from Rush Limbaugh: ‘Feminism was established so as to allow unattractive women easier access to the mainstream of society.’ — Bennett Gordon
http://mediamatters.org/items/200512230006
A Push for Animal-Friendly Roads
By Tim Vanderpool, The Christian Science Monitor
Roadkill has been eulogized and romanticized in countless backwater diner recipes, but that may soon change if the budding field of road ecology has its way. Aimed at lessening the ecological footprint road infrastructure leaves on the environment, road ecology brings together transportation planners, scientists, and environmental activists in an effort to protect wildlife habitat. — Nick Rose
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1220/p02s02-sten.html
1% of Gun Dealers in California Sell 40% Of Crime Guns
By Staff, GunGuys.com
A study conducted by the University of California Davis School of Medicine found that 1.3 percent of gun stores in California are responsible for 39.4 percent of ‘crime guns’ in that state. Debunking the logical assumption that this is a case of a few large-scale warehouses accounting for the skewed percentages, the study suggests that the cause can be found in poor enforcement of background checks and regulation measures on the part of a few gun sellers. Dare we call them loose cannons? — Nick Rose
http://www.gunguys.com/?p=480
St. Louis to Host NFL’s First Climate-Neutral Regular Season Game
By Staff, GreenBiz.com
When the Philadelphia Eagles played the St. Louis Rams on December 18, the game’s light and heating systems created about 58 tons of carbon dioxide pollution. Knowing this, the two teams joined forces with stopglobalwarming.org and NativeEnergy to create a ‘climate-neutral’ game. They had power from wind projects and dairy farm methane added to the power grid to offset the game’s carbon footprint. — Bennett Gordon
http://www.greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=29910
Senegal: Bringing Condoms Out of the Closet
By Staff, IRIN News
Condoms get a bad wrap. Just the sight of one is enough to make many people blush. Adriana Bertini is out to change that. The Brazilian artist is casting new light on contraceptives by making them into something that people use every day: clothing. ‘[C]ondoms must become as basic as a pair of jeans and as necessary as a great love,’ she says. Her effort to ‘sensitize’ people to the AIDS crisis by desensitizing them to condoms has gained international attention. Her fashion exhibit recently traveled to Senegal to promote condom use and spark discussion. — Bennett Gordon
http://tinyurl.com/bh4fk
Finishing School Projects
By Staff, Finishing School
From the folks that brought you Delocator.net — the Starbucks-busting web tool that finds independently owned cafes in your neighborhood — comes a gallery of online projects that challenge the ethos of consumption and isolation. Check out the collective’s Open House project, which aims to incite ‘meaningful experiences’ and ‘temporary coalitions’ in domestic settings, and stay tuned for the Tactical Media Cookbook, a soon-to-be-launched online guide to ‘culture jamming, detournement, guerilla art, and related fields.’ — Hannah Lobel
http://www.finishing-school.net/projects.html
Comments? Story tips? Write a letter to the editor
Like this? Want more?Subscribe to Utne magazine
