A little Hillary humor from Shannan…

Kerry Skarbakka makes images that allow him to “let himself go.” In his series The Struggle to Right Oneself, he harnesses himself to ropes and pulleys that prevent him from actually hitting the ground, then photographs himself as he hurls his body off of buildings and cliffs. To make the images appear to be accidents in progress, he then digitally erases the safety devices.

About his work, he notes “Heidegger described human existence as a process of perpetual falling, and it is the responsibility of each individual to “catch ourselves” from our own uncertainty… The images stand as reminders that we are all vulnerable to losing our footing and grasp.”

He is currently showing his inventive work at the North Carolina Museum of Art in an exhibition called The Big Picture.  You’ll find more information about Kerry and can view his images on his Website.

I told myself I wasn’t going to contribute anything else about moonbat Rosie O’Donnell after my last post, but Jonah Goldberg penned an entertaining article about her that I can’t resist sharing. In it, he writes:

RENOWNED metallurgist Rosie O’Donnell proclaimed on TV Thursday of last week that Sept. 11, 2001, was a more significant date than most of us realized. It was, in her words, “the first time in history that fire has ever melted steel.”

This, of course, came as news to steelworkers, welders, blacksmiths, firefighters, manufacturers of samurai swords and other fools who hadn’t realized that steel is forged in magic furnaces using dragon breath and pixie dust.

O’Donnell made this and other profoundly stupid comments on the daytime talk show “The View,” ABC’s update of the ancient practice of women chattering around the village well.

The former “queen of nice” seems to think that the show is the perfect venue to audition for grand marshal of the next tinfoil hat parade. …

He piles it on O’Donnell, then moves on to Barbara Walters and ABC. It’s humorously writen but points to the growing lack of distinction between journalism and entertainment. It’s a fun read worthy of your time.

…at least according to Bob who says, “Because I want to see more of his surgically enhanced wife, Jeri Kehn. And unlike Newt and Rudy, Thompson’s second marriage did not overlap with his first wife. She’s hot, but I still prefer Bill Clinton for First Lady.”

Sound far fetched? Not really. A surprising percentage of American voters, studies have shown, vote for whom they perceive as the best looking candidate or, in the case of Bill Clinton, whom some perceived would make the best looking First Lady (They hadn’t yet seen her college photo.) Scary? Uh huh.

Hi, my name is Tim, or Joe, or Sam. Though we haven’t had a formal introduction I’m sure you know me, or at least what I represent here. I’m fat guys. I’m nerdy guys. I’m short guys, bald guys, dorky guys, spazzes, weirdos. Hobos, and guys without great jobs, cars, or clothes. I just wanted to take a second to talk to you about something very important to me, something it doesn’t seem that you realize:

If you are physically attractive and dress in such a way to grab the attention of attractive males, you will also grab the attention of us unattractive males… more

(From James via Best of Craigslist)

Mr. President features works from 1972 to the present by over thirty artists who have created non-traditional portraits of United States presidents. Using various media including video, sculpture, drawing and painting, these artists seek ways to penetrate the mythic perceptions of America’s most powerful men by providing alternatives to the official portrait.

The work in Mr. President runs the gamut from irreverent humor to deeply felt homage. Representing a wide range of cultural backgrounds and artistic orientations, the artists selected for this exhibition share an interest in reflecting on the idea of the American presidency in relation to their own artistic practice. Their work provides a provocative sampling of how the American presidency remains an elastic idea that extends far beyond the men who have held its office.

Got this from Dave Hughes. Do you think he saw the croc before he splashed down? Now that’s an adrenaline rush!

Cloud Gate, on Chicago’s AT&T Plaza, is British artist Anish Kapoor’s first public outdoor work installed in the United States. The 110-ton elliptical sculpture is forged of a seamless series of highly polished stainless steel plates, which reflect the city’s famous skyline and the clouds above. A 12-foot-high arch provides a “gate” to the concave chamber beneath the sculpture, inviting visitors to touch its mirror-like surface and see their image reflected back from a variety of perspectives.

                          Taken hand-held during the bewitching hour, September 2006.

Cloud Gate taken from the concave chamber beneath the sculpture looking across AT&T Plaza toward the Jay Pritzker Pavilion.

From the sides, Cloud Gate resembles a giant bean. In fact, many people refer to it as the “Millennium Park Bean.” It is one of Chicago’s most photographed sculptures due to the interesting effects visitors achieve when photographing themselves in its reflection.

An unusual perspective, straight up into the concave chamber beneath the sculpture. If you look very closely, you can just make me out taking the image.

Recently, Rosie O’Donnell, a co-host on ABC’s talk show The View, made comments on the show that renewed controversy over the collapse of  World Trade Center 7.

While saying she didn’t know what to believe about the U.S. government’s involvement in the attacks of Sept. 11, she said, “I do believe that it’s the first time in history that fire has ever melted steel. I do believe that it defies physics that World Trade Center tower 7 — building 7, which collapsed in on itself — it is impossible for a building to fall the way it fell without explosives being involved. World Trade Center 7. World Trade [Center] 1 and 2 got hit by planes — 7, miraculously, the first time in history, steel was melted by fire. It is physically impossible.”

She continued: “To say that we don’t know that it imploded, that it was an implosion and a demolition, is beyond ignorant. Look at the films, get a physics expert here [on the show] from Yale, from Harvard, pick the school — [the collapse] defies reason.”

Here’s the clip:

For those interested in what real physics and demolition experts have said regarding WTC 7’s collapse, as detailed in their book Debunking 9/11 Myths, Popular Mechanics offers this series of notes. Give it a read. Then tell  me,  pul-eeese,  why anyone pays attention to anything Rosie O’Donnell has to say.

Well, if not the largest, it’s certainly one of the largest. Mini Wonderland Hamburg’s warehouse district is home to this colossal railroad that would make any young - or old- model hobbyist jump with glee. Day turns to night every half hour in this miniature world. The mega-miniature railroad includes more than 450 railway carriages with more than 7.000 trailers, 50,000 trees, 30,000 figures, 10,000 cars, more than 3 miles of track, 3,000 houses and lots of bridges. Truly a stunning showcase of miniaturization - Cars, bridges, human figures - the level of detail is amazing! Reason enough to visit Hamburg. The linked series of 20 images will give you a sense of the magnitude of this layout.

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Here’s an interesting question: What if ancient Rome had the Internet? Well, here’s how EMR sees it…  

• The destruction of Pompeii in 79AD is the most viewed video at YouTube. The first comment is…”OMG so cool! Volcanos ROCK!”
  
  
• Attila the Hun has his own MySpace page. Nobody ever rejects his “invite a friend” emails.
  
  
• The soothsayer’s “Ides of March” email fails to get Caesar’s proper attention as it’s inadvertently filtered into his junk folder.
  
  
• But at least Caesar’s “Et tu Brute?” comment is available as a free ringtone download.
  
  
• The domain gladiator.rome sells for the record sum of 1,000,000 denarii.
  
  
• The owner of hadriansucks.rome is compelled to hand over both the domain name and selected body parts by an independent domain tribunal chaired by…Emperor Hadrian.
  
  
• “Naked Cleopatra” is the top search term on Google.
  

(More)