Brilliant posts from John Cole and The Editors on the Newsweek/Koran-flushing, followed by general riffing about dishonesty and idiocy (in both cases). From the latter:

"If people say they are going to do something, and then they do it, and then they say they’re going to do something else, and they do that, too, and on and on, you should assume they’re going to do what they say they’re going to do. Even if they aren’t looking at you when they say it.

"Conversely, if they consistantly tell you they are going to do things they never do, it is worth considering the possibility that you’re a big, huge, gigantic, bitch. Even if they look you right in the eyes and say "freedom" every two seconds."

I’ve replaced the list of linked weblogs on my right: it now matches up with the feeds and categories in my RSS reader.

So if you’re not on it, this is either because I don’t read your site, or because I’ve forgotten to subscribe to it. If you think I should be subscribed to, reading, and therefore linking to, your site, then explain why in the comments.

If you’re interested in Japanese attitudes to WWII, Western and Chinese attitudes towards the Japanese, and the difference between national generalisations and racist invective, go and read this. Long, but worthwhile.

The greatest song of the 1990s, rendered in graphic novel format by Tank Girl and Gorillaz creator Jamie Hewlett. Could you ask for more? No. So don’t.

From here (top geeky fandom), via here, via here. Damn, that’s circuitous.

Anti-Muslim writer Oriana Fallaci is a liar, a charlatan and a crazed conspiracy theorist, as I’ve said before. However, taking her to court for this is even more stupid and wrong than she is in the first place. Bad Italy.

Via here, which may well not be a sensible place.

"There are two opposed principles in Bush’s moral universe: Life and Freedom. Whenever he talks about Life, he’s looking to expand the powers of the state, deny civil liberties, and so forth. Whenever he talks about Freedom, he’s planning to kill somebody" – Jonathan Korman at The Poor Man

A site named Textfiles.org archives pretty much every text file posted to BBSes in the pre-Web, pre-broadband days when H3XX0Rz were real H3XX0Rz, and women were rumoured to exist.

It includes such delights as How To Fuck The Dead, How To Make A Letterbomb, Why The US Is A One-Party Jewish Democracy, and How To Survive The Coming Apocalypse.

Overall, I’d tentatively conclude that the level of sanity in online discussion has actually improved since the early 1990s. Which, given its current state, is shocking.

"Do you think Oliver Kamm or I make this stuff up?" – Gene at Little Green Soccerballs.

Answer of the day: "yes, probably. By the way, how have you managed to induce quite so many demented right-wing paranoiacs to infest your comments section?"

Following the surefire Tory winning strategy taken from an insane blog commenter last week, we have a followup: the Liberals should become a horrible bunch of fascists like the other two parties if we want to keep gaining seats.

Sadly and disgracefully, I think this one might actually be accurate. The logical conclusion, presumably, is that most of my countrymen should go and fuck themselves…

Our Word Is Our Weapon utterly skewers some ignorant bollocks from Stephen Pollard on ‘free trade’, aid and third-world debt.

While it’s always agreeable to stick it to a buffoon, the post is more notable for being one of the most succinct, well-sourced and well-argued explanations of why the hardline dogmatic free traders are unequivocally, factually and morally wrong. Read it, whatever your views. Although should you be a hardline free trader, I’d be especially interested to see a rebuttal…