by Arius Elvikis
The Farm
by Alexis Rockman
(2000)
Incredible advances are being made in genetics and biotechnology. Crops are altered to be easier for farmers to grow; bacteria are altered to produce specific substances or break down others; and animals are beginning to be custom-tailored to yield more meat or aid in disease research. These are fascinating fields and they certainly spark the imagination when the potential is considered. But they might not be without their dangers. Read the rest of this entry »
by Barrett Hathcock
She had called.
It was the night before the first day of junior year, a Sunday, a day normally reserved for lunch with the grandparents, minimal yard work for his mother, and an evening spent grilling hot dogs with his father in the driveway of his Belhaven rental, where he had lived since the divorce. But tonight was different. Read the rest of this entry »
by Carl Miller Daniels
Tommies Bathing
by John Singer Sargeant
(1918)
ozone
ballsy guys will say darn near anything
to darn near anyone.
ballsy guys get a lot of
action in the bedroom. Read the rest of this entry »
The Harrowing Tale of My Wikipedia Edit
by Clifton Smith
When surfing the Web recently for info on writer/infidel Ayaan Hirsi Ali, I notice that her Wikipedia entry contains many “citation needed” notices.
Good Samaritan that I try to be, I decide to try to improve the quality and reliability of this Wikipedia entry.
Better Samaritan that I try to be, I decide to share with [sic] readers how this process unfolds.
Awesome. Read the rest of this entry »
by Kyle Shelton
“Do you have a problem with nudity?” Laura asked.
“Nudity? Um…I guess as a general concept, no, I don’t have a problem with it,” I replied.
“We’re not doing porn, if that’s what you’re thinking!” Laura said. “I mean, it’s not porn, so don’t worry about that. I mean, if one of the contestants starts having relations with a girl and you’re in the room you can stay and watch or you can leave. That’ll be your choice. That’s all I mean.” Read the rest of this entry »
by Candace Ramsey
He wouldn’t be a man
if he didn’t look right through me,
because that’s what men do to me.
Their boyish eyes look where my face usually is.
What do they see?
Certainly not enough of what they’re used to.
Read the rest of this entry »
…with female Homo sapiens, Phoenix, Arizona (ca. 2000 CE)
by Clifton Smith
Girl at Piano
by Roy Lichtenstein
(1963)
Adolescent female twenty-somethings who wear loads of pink and leave deep scratches down your back
Grown-up girls who’ve seen every Disney cartoon and can sing each song in chronological order Read the rest of this entry »
by Jonathan Hust
With the release of Boys and Girls in America, Craig Finn, talk-singing front man of The Hold Steady, unveils the latest chapter in his ongoing story of drugs and redemption. This release, the band’s first for Vagrant records, finds the New York rockers picking up right where they left off with 2005’s Separation Sunday, both musically and lyrically.
Read the rest of this entry »
…for Aberrational Honesty: Arguments for Ignoring MPAA Ratings
by Clifton Smith
Nine-tenths of the appeal of pornography is due to the indecent feelings concerning sex which moralists inculcate in the young; the other tenth is physiological, and will occur in one way or another whatever the state of the law may be.
—Bertrand Russell,
Marriage and Morals
(1929)
Ahead, I will discuss documentarian Kirby Dick’s This Film is Not Yet Rated and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). Those involved with the MPAA claim its purpose is to warn consumers about potentially objectionable material (sex, violence, language, and drug use, for example) in films. It does this, but in a way that outsiders, myself included, often find puzzling. Read the rest of this entry »
by Arius Elvikis
Chris Jordan
Intolerable Beauty
“Cell phones #2”
Plasticatastrophe
Half a year ago I read an article on the North Pacific Gyre, an immense, high-pressure area of the ocean between the west coast and Hawaii. The waters within were doldrums; few ships sailed through because the winds didn’t blow. The ocean just swirled there slowly. Read the rest of this entry »
