hu is the new leader of china?

2002.11.22
Political Punnery of the Moment
Ok, since the new leader of China is named "Hu", it leads to some pretty obvious Abbot & Costello references. Hu's On First by James Sherman is one of the better ones, and throws in some other names from the international scene. Or you can go back to the original comedy routine.


Game of the Moment
It's Dinky Bomb! A bit like the classic game Worms (except the environment doesn't get blown up) or Artillery Duel, featuring online play. You challenge another player or accept a challenge in the lobby, pick your army of three guys, and then have at it, taking turns having a soldier adjust his position, choose his angle, and firing at the opposition.


Online Comic of the Moment
After seeing yesterday's link about Bobby Fischer, Kiru Banzai suggested in the guestbook that I check out Scott McCloud's online comic My Obsession with Chess. A good read, and interesting seeing some of the Boston places he draws in there.

I had a young geek's typical interest in chess, but it was passing. I didn't have enough patience to carefully lookahead even a move or two, and since I'm blind to nuance, I tended to dismiss it as the same thing over and over.

The best chess player I knew growing up was my church buddy Beau Hill. Beau really taught me something: although I was always the guy with the 'book smarts', he was a much better chess player and musician (he played trumpet, a much more competitive instrument than the tuba I played.) I think he learned to develop a super solid work ethic that I never have.


Bad News of the Moment
Ugh. Salon wonders if the next wave of terrorist attacks could be shoulder launched missiles against commercial aircraft. No one mention this to Mo before our trip to Cleveland, OK? (My solace is, look, yeah it's bad and all that, but I think the numbers would be pretty low overall, and the chance of it being me or my loved ones even smaller.) Gee, maybe the CIA handing these things out like party favors in the 80s wasn't such a bright idea.


Bon Mot of the Moment
The early worm gets the bird.
...subtly clever as well as making a good point about an old cliché.