Secretly Ironic

Scary or creepy bears in the literal sense, as toys, and in the the slang sense of the word.

Booksellers are not happy about a trend in people not buying their books at bookstores. Megadiscounters, it seems, are beating the bookstores just like they did with toy stores, drug stores, grocery stores, auto parts stores, clothing stores… some book stores are actually going to Costco and buying carloads of Harry Potter– the Costco price is as good as what a bookstore gets from a wholesaler, and the actual bookstores can’t get enough while Costco has a surplus. Not good.

Another guy cut off his own arm. Meanwhile, Economists editorialized about interest rates and monetary policy.

Question: if I get a big fat check from the government, how should I best use it to stimulate the economy? I could invest it all on Wall Street, or stick it in a savings account, or give it to charity. I could buy a bunch of little things– gum and newspapers, say, or a big-ticket item like a TV or a a used motorcycle. I could send it into the underground economy, buying off-the-books labor or contraband. I could start a business– a small one, obviously, with little start-up capital. Like maybe a street-side carwash or a lemonade stand or a cigarette smuggling ring.

Probably some combination of these would be best, like buying shares in a company that hires illegal immigrants to sell drug-related t-shirts and uses the profits to launder money earned smuggling cigarettes from Virginia into Canada.

Friedman’s Active Wear has come to my rescue as a good source of American Apparel clothing at good prices. Secretly Ironic custom t-shirts will soon be available; place your orders now.

Sierra Mist: Neither mountainous, nor misty

I passed my motorcycle test. Barely.

I’m seriously reconsidering the whole enterprise based on the poor score and the fact that I would not in other circumstances consider blowing three grand on an impractical and dangerous toy which will decrease dramatically in value once I drive it straight into the dumpster behind the Star on Kilmarnock St.

Neat online mags:
Working for the Man
Bookmouth
Identity Theory
Cabinet Magazine

Articles:
Washpost says DeCSS mania is stupid and I agree of course.
TNR says Rowling is like Lewis in that Potter is all about Christ. Spiked says it’s children’s literature, and adults shouldn’t keep going on and on about it.

Pics:
Jingoism Truck
Scientology book from the 70s
Accidentally accurate news caption