WebBrain.com. I do like this search interface.

Success of Christian Thriller Reflects Rising Interest in Religious Fiction. “Pre-millennial dispensationalism,” a literal interpretation of the Book of Revelation, drives potboiler fiction. “The books read like artifacts of a time

machine sent to retrieve pulp science fiction — and our

morality — from the 50s,” said one critic.

No, I’m Not Talking to You. The New York Times takes the proliferation of those little earbud-and-mic-bud hands-free cellular phone accessories as an opportunity to take another well-deserved potshot at all the people seemingly talking to themselves on city streets and in other public places. [Curmudgeon that I am, I love the approach to this constant barrage of people’s personal business in my aural space that someone once suggested — feel free to join into their personal conversations, offering observations and suggestions, since they’ve already been so kind as to include you. At best, it’ll chasten them and may change some behavior; at worst, at least you’ll have some fun.]

November 17 group: Small but deadly. ‘A Greek politician who survived a November 17

attack remarked that “Greece is the only

country where it has been impossible to not

only smoke out terrorism, but even to make a

single substantial strike against it.”

But some commentators believe that because

the group emerged from the same resistance

movement that gave rise to today’s political

establishment, there may be influential figures

in Greece who do not want its members

brought to book.’ [BBC]

A Data Sanctuary is Born. This Wired article has alot more color and background on the goings-on at Sealand than the Times coverage I logged below.

The Decline and Fall (cont’d.): “Mixing obscenity with retail is nothing new. That’s what porn is, right? But the way Betty Ray does it, the

product is almost literary…In episodes to come, the group will stumble on Fuckertown and its

shady lady leader, Natasha Strap. The products the characters use and see are all for sale

to Fuckertown viewers.”

Small Bookstores Get Booksense, finally a unified web presence to compete with amazon and barnesandnoble. “A publisher pays Barnes and Noble $10,000 to feature a certain title…But the

titles on our front tables are there simply because we’ve read them and loved them. This

marketing effort will make the public to understand that our opinions haven’t been bought.” [Wired]

Bedside terror. “18,391 people like me — fresh from medical school —

will be unleashed on the patients of this country on July 1.

We will infiltrate local hospitals, clinics and medical centers

near you. Despite the four years we spent memorizing

textbooks and not sleeping, many will feel, like I did on that

day, completely ill-prepared to be a doctor.” [Salon] And even after several years of residency training, this doctor didn’t know what he was doing… or on the other hand, maybe he knew exactly.

Mugged by a serpent? [Salon]

Famed pianist Glenn Gould seen as autistic.

“I’ve lost all respect for beavers. I never would have imagined this from a beaver.”