Links

1.  Stories to watch:  Faith based charities, funding and Obama.  I'd be a bit surprised if anything changes here and even more so if anything changed any time soon, given the current plight of the economy.  Anecdotal:  almost 70% of the organizations in our metro area providing short and long term hunger relief are faith-based.

2.  Waxy points to this flaying of Swoopo by Jeff Atwood. (and from what I can remember after looking around the site several weeks back it's pretty accurate).

3.   My food sensibilities run moderately counter-cultural so for reasons that are becoming more relevant by the day I appreciated this account of what to do when your child wants to try Dunkin' Donuts. 

4.  Who gets U.S. foreign aid, in Parade of all places.

5.  Kanye on SNL last night (worth clicking the link for full screen).  I've heard most of the new album now and I like it a lot more than I thought I would.  No vocal (or mixing) awards are going to be handed out for this performance but the whole package is pretty mesmerizing.  No one, in any field, is taking advantage of the multiplicity of ways in which technology and popular culture are intersecting like Kanye and you get the sense that his self-perception is that of an artist who creates (thus the vanities?), not simply a performer.  (via)

Kanye West - Love Lockdown - SNL - 12/13/2008

6.  Iraqi journalist throws shoes at Bush during press conference.  I'm not a Bush apologist but I can't help feeling sorry for the guy occasionally and thinking that on some level (like Palin) he is a victim of circumstance.  

7.  List of common misconceptions:

Hair and fingernails do not continue to grow after a person dies. Rather, the skin dries and shrinks away from the bases of hairs and nails, giving the appearance of growth.