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Politicians have given into the demand that sparked Brazilian protests, lowering bus fares from 3.20 reais back down to R$3.00 (about $1.60 back down to $1.50), massive protests continue throughout the country. The New York Times has a good summary of what’s going on, while The New Inquiry has some excellent analysis. Though transportation fares were the catalyst for […]
...moreColson Whitehead went on a London Olympics adventure, which you can read all about in his multi-part dispatch for Grantland. “I started scoring events in terms of what they’d offer in a human-annihilation-type scenario. Offensewise, archery skills seemed like an obvious asset at first. But the archers’ high-tech bows wouldn’t survive a day of jumping […]
...moreFull of history and intrigue, here’s some suggested peripheral reading to accompany the beloved games: Over at The New Inquiry, native Londoner Laurie Penny agrees to ride the Underground for a full day, then writes about the forgotten history, ghost architecture, police brutality, and socioeconomic warfare that haunt the city’s Tube lines amidst newfound Olympic prestige. […]
...more“It’s easy to say poets are attracted to sport for reasons that have something to do with form. I’m sure that’s true, but I also think that it has something to do with the possibility of failure and, in the case of many Olympic sports, the fact that nobody really watches what you do most […]
...morePopular gay dating app Grindr crashed “within minutes” of the arrival of Olympic teams in London today — due to the spike in demand. “It happened almost as soon as the teams got here. Either loads of athletes were logging on to meet fellow Olympians or were looking to bag a local.” UPDATE: Well, that […]
...moreLondon authorities are bent on making sure that the Olympics Games will proceed without a hitch. Their strategies include arresting people who they think may pose a threat to that smoothness, in advance, before any crimes are committed. Four men, aged between 18 and 38, have been arrested “on suspicion of conspiracy to commit criminal […]
...moreEurozine’s Mihir Bose lays out the development of modern athletics in connection with human rights, citing the political and ethical pressures involved in not-so-nice countries hosting major sports events. He writes that the International Olympic Committee, among other major governing bodies of sport, has paid little attention to its founding rhetoric in the last 100 […]
...moreA little architecture porn to start your day, coming to you from Turkey, Japan, and Wayne Coyne’s heroin soaked brain. Evidently there is some sort of sporting event going on right now. Here are some commemorative stamps. Dead fly art (via MeFi.) The prehistoric, possibly dinosaur eating, armored devil toad.
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