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| This page houses our latest funny, clean, cool animations as well as informative videos about a variety of topics. We also have funny cool videos from a variety of top sources. Also thrown in to round out the mix are song, artist, and album pointers; movie and book reviews; and the occasional surprise! |
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THE MONEY MASTERS
This documentary shows how the modern political power structure has its roots in the hidden manipulation and accumulation of gold and other forms of money. The methodology has evolved over the last three centuries, and nation after nation, including the United States, has fallen prey to a cabal of international central bankers intent on being masters of the world. Watch The Money Masters free online.
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TIRED OF TRAFFIC
Well, we thought the solution to chronic traffic problems was more use of mass transit, for people to live closer to work, and tax shifting off of income and onto fuel. Silly us. Nothing so ambitious is necessary. This satirical video short from The Onion shows how a simple solution to the problem is right at hand. Watch funny traffic video.
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DR. STEEL - ALIEN ILLUMINATI
A funny, clever spoof on the possibility that we humans are neither descended from monkeys nor from Adam and Eve; rather, we were cooked up in an alien genetics lab long ago (a theory that has been seriously proposed by a number of people!)... Watch funny aliens video.
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THE NEW AMERICAN CENTURY
This marvelous documentary starts out as just another 9-11 conspiracy movie but quickly transitions to broader territory, showing that false-flag operations have been used by the US for over a century to ....
Read full review and/or watch The New American Century online for free.
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SOLAR DIRTY, COAL CLEAN!
In this funny video/animation, Mark Fiore (satirically) explains the dangers of solar and wind energy and the advantages of "clean coal." Dirty is the new clean! Watch funny clean coal video.
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BATMAN VS. JOKER ...
VS. ALIEN VS. PREDATOR
This 6-minute video starts as a typical head-to-head between Batman and The Joker, but the action soon veers into alien territory as some uninvited guests show up. This is surprisingly good! Watch cool batman video.
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FREE NEWS SERVICE
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POST-CRASH INVESTMENT FOR A BETTER WORLD
Juff Mulgan gives an 18-minute talk on the need for our modern civilization to invest in social progress as well as technical progress. In his own wonky way, what he's really talking about is the coming transformation of our society from one based on predatory capitalism to a more cooperative, mutually beneficial, more sustainable economic system. Watch sustainable investing video.
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ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE FINANCIAL CRISIS
In (dis)honor of the one-year anniversary of the start of the still-fetid financial fiasco, Jon Stewart offers a sizzling analysis of the president's tepid speech on the subject. Stephen Colbert marvels at the latest Wall Street "innovations"... and jousts with Michael Moore regarding democracy vs. capitalism. Watch funny videos - financial crisis.
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MEN’S BRAINS VS. WOMEN’S BRAINS
Mark Gungor gives a funny talk on the differences between men's brains and women's brains—and how that affects the way we deal with each other. Watch funny brain video.
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THE WILD, WEIRD, “WOW!” WORLD OF WEB-BOT PREDICTIONS
"Web Bots" is the common name of a software system developed by Clif High to analyze language patterns on the internet to attempt to make predictions about future trends. Grinning Planet makes no claims about the likelihood of the predictions coming true, but the work and the man are very, very interesting. Read/hear the latest Web Bots predictions and Clif High audio interviews
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“PARTS OF THE BRAIN” VIDEO
Pinky asks the Brain to explain the brain, which he does in a fun, mildly educational manner. Watch brain funny video.
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ELVIS COSTELLO – ARMED FORCES
Elvis Costello's first two albums were a notable success, spawning hit singles and establishing Costello as one of the top emerging stars in the punk-turned-new-wave world that was blossoming in the late 1970s. As good as those first two albums were, however, the pinnacle was to be the third studio album, Armed Forces.
Read Grinning Planet's full review of Elvis Costello's 'Armed Forces' album
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GREEN MAGIC CARPET
Ray Anderson, who turned his carpet-manufacturing business green (and profitable!) thinks the old paradigm of capitalism as "a way to efficiently convert natural resources into pollution" is both silly and dangerous. Watch green business video.
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THE MEATRIX - I, II, AND II-1/2
The Meatrix animation series riffs off the popular movie trilogy "The Matrix" to tell us about the ills of industrialized animal agriculture in a humorous and entertaining way. Watch The Meatrix.
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THE COOPERS: CHURCH—GOODNESS GRACIOUS ME
A funny short clip of non-natives trying to cozy up to the Church of England. Watch funny church video.
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E. O. WILSON – HEALING MOTHER EARTH
E.O. Wilson gives an excellent overview of the vast biodiversity on planet earth, the threats to species and ecosystems, and the relatively paltry amount it would take to protect the earth's biodiversity hot spots. Watch save the earth video.
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RECYCLING ONIONS?
Two funny clips from The Onion on the subject of recycling: "Man Never Met Cardboard Box He Couldn't Flatten" ... and ... "Environment-Friendly Hollywood Achieves 91% Recycled Content." Go to recycling funny audio.
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YOSHIMI BATTLES THE PINK ROBOTS
The Flaming Lips epic Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots is a must-have for fans of concept albums, fans of songs about romantic sci-fi and the futuristic themes, and/or fans of melodic, light psychedelia with a pop flair. Read full review of Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots.
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CLAWING OUR WAY TO THE TRUTH ABOUT CAT FOOD
Is dry cat food really OK for cats? Are all wet cat foods the same from a nutritional standpoint? Find out in this good video. Watch cat food video.
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AMERICA’S WATER POLICY IS A BELLY FLOP
A couple of informative and funny videos about water issues in the United States; from The Daily Show and Colbert Nation. Watch funny water supply video.
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FUNNY JOB PROMOTION VIDEO/AUDIO
First, a funny commercial showing just how serious the competition has gotten for career advancement and job promotions. Then, a funny audio bit about how one temp worker is hoping to get ahead using a well honed skill. Watch job promotion video/audio.
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POISONED WATERS
Using the Chesapeake Bay and Puget Sound as case studies, Frontline explores the question of why, almost 40 years after the passage of the Clean Water Act, our waters are still troubled. Watch water pollution video.
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MONEY FOR NOTHING AND THE GENIUS OF GOLDMAN SACHS
A funny animation from Mark Fiore that takes high-parody pot-shots at the outrageousness of Goldman Sachs' recent record quarter, a sudden turn of good fortune that has happened in spite of the ongoing economic meltdown that is trashing mainstreet and in spite of the fact that Goldman took billions in taxpayer dollars to keep from going out of business just months ago. Watch funny goldman sachs video.
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THE QUANTUM APOCALYPSE OF THE HOLOGRAPHIC UNIVERSE
This neat video explains how the universe—and the everyday world that envelopes us—are much different than our senses perceive. Even the act of us perceiving things is part of how it's all created! Watch this cool cosmic video.
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A FARM FOR THE FUTURE
REVIEW: The premise of this 48-minute movie is that oil will soon peak, and that this will have enormous implications for agriculture. A Farm For the Future moves quickly past the framing of the problem to spend most of its time exploring how the food and farming issue can be solved.
OPTIONS:
- Watch video
- Read full GP review
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THE TOWN OF ALLOPATH
This clever animation uses the metaphor of finding the wrong solution for traffic accidents to explain the core issue of what's wrong with standard Western (allopathic) medicine. Watch funny health care animation.
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GENE SIMMONS’ KISS-METIC SURGERY CENTER
Kiss star Gene Simmons is opening a plastic surgery center? Egad! Fairly funny ... and surprisingly clean! Watch funny plastic surgery video.
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ARE AMERICA’S RICH FALLING BEHIND THE SUPER-RICH?
This video short cleverly spoofs the typical debate about the gap between rich and poor by discussing "the growing gap between the rich and super-rich." (And let us not forget George W. Bush's infamous joke at an elite fundraiser dinner, where he gazed out at his diamond-studded supporters and commented, "This is an impressive crowd—the haves and the have-mores.") Watch funny video rich people.
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STIMULATE THIS, BRO!
A funny video about summer jobs for stupid, corrupt politicians; i.e. the best summer jobs for them, given their dumb, insensitive, venal behavior. Watch funny summer jobs animation.
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THE RIGHT WAY TO GET SUN
Getting "safe sun" is critical to overall health because it stimulates the skin to produce natural Vitamin D, an essential nutrient. This video goes over some new information about the best way to get sunshine as well as how to avoid "washing it off." (Really!) Watch safe sun video.
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COAL – THE FUTURE IS LATER
A video satire on the coal industry's use of meaningless platitudes (and sometimes outright deceptions) in their ads. We're also reminded of the general public's blissful ignorance on the subject of energy. Watch funny coal video.
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DISNEY VAULT
A funny animated slap at Disney for its rampant recycling of successful movies—"Stop me before I sequel again"—as well as the rather disturbing skeletons Uncle Walt had in his closet. Watch disney parody.
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ESCAPE FROM SUBURBIA
REVIEW: This sequel extends the reach of the first film, The End of Suburbia, by emphasizing the questions that each of us should be asking ourselves: "When the Peak Oil poop hits the propeller, will I be able to weather the storm in my current locale, in my current house, doing what I'm doing now? If not, what do I do about it?"...
Read full review of Escape From Suburbia
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DISNEY’S GENETICALLY ENGINEERED CHILD STARS
A subtle but humorous video satire about how Disney is so successful at developing new talent. Watch disney satire.
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HOW WE RE-GREW A RAINFOREST
By piecing together a complex ecological and societal puzzle, biologist Willie Smits has found a way to re-grow clearcut rainforest in Borneo, restoring the lush vegetation, saving orangutans, and providing a sustainable local economy. This is brilliant work. From TED Talks. Go there
Related GP articles:
Rainforest Destruction
Smart Wood and Paper
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JOHN OLIVER ON ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
A funny 2-minute bit of standup from John Oliver on energy. (PG warning: This bit has a razor edge, and there are a couple of expletives un-deleted, but it's funny enough for us to let it by....)
Watch funny energy video.
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HERE COME DA JUDGE
Two funny audio clips from The Onion:
(1) Judge Orders God To Break Up Into Smaller Deities
(2) US Trades Alito To British Supreme Court In Six-Judge Deal
Objection overruled!
Hear here: funny audio about judges.
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SPRAWLING FROM GRACE, DRIVEN TO MADNESS
Sprawling from Grace argues that it no longer matters whether our first choice is a transition back to walkable communities, expanded mass transit in cities, and rail-based transportation networks. Without cheap, abundant oil, it's our only choice. The film's focus on workable solutions saves Sprawling from Grace from being "just another peak oil movie."
Read full review of Sprawling from Grace, Driven To Madness
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SCHOOL HOUSE ROCK - “ENERGY”
A fun (if quaint) music video from School House Rock on sources of energy—and the need to conserve the limited energy that's available to us. Watch energy music video.
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MONTY PYTHON – POOFY JUDGES
A short, funny Monty Python bit with two over-the-top-effeminate judges.
Watch funny judges video.
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ROGER AND THE ROTTENTROLLS ... GET HOOKED ON GAMBLING
A cute stop-motion animation in which the daffy characters from the Rottentroll world get hooked on casino gambling. Mainly for kids but a few good lines for adults too. Watch funny gambling animation.
Related GP cartoon:
Signs You Have Gambling Fever
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THE ORGANIC GARDENS OF HAVANA
This 8-minute clip from the BBC's "Around the World in 80 Gardens" shows how substantial amounts of local, organic food can be grown in urban settings. Cubans have achieved this in spite of—or, perhaps, thanks to—the technology limitations caused by US trade embargo that continued even after Cuba's former sponsor, the USSR, collapsed in the late 1980s. Via YouTube. Watch urban gardening video.
Related stuff:
-- GP movie review: The Power
of Community - How Cuba
Survived Peak Oil
-- Book: Food Not Lawns
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BAILOUTS, BOOSTERS & BUNKERS
Stephen Colbert proves that he is the modern master of satire....
BAILOUTS: After this funny
intro
to the "AIG bonus" fiasco, Colbert moves on to a VERY
funny segment
in which the proposed solution for miscreant CEOs is to have them enter into mortal combat in a Thunderdome — with gleeful, screaming taxpayers as spectators.
BOOSTERS: These days, apparently, the best that free-marketeers can come up with is tired references to Ayn Rand's polemic Atlas Shrugged, which
this
Colbert piece shrugs off quite nicely.
BUNKERS: Hey, we actually think SOME the scenarios explored in Glenn Beck's
"War Room" segments
—catastrophic economic collapse, for instance—are not at all that far-fetched. But you just have to love Colbert's satirical treatment of Beck's schtick—first with this
War Room satire,
then the Colbert Report's own
"Doom Bunker".
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“CLEAN COAL” AIR FRESHENER
This short, funny bit of video satire takes on the loosey-goosey term "clean coal," which the coal industry and its political allies love to pretend is "what we're doing with coal today" rather than "a theoretically possible approach to coal that is completely unproven." In fact, not only are there are no "clean coal" plants operating in the US today, there are none even planned. Repeat after me: "There is no such thing as clean coal." Watch funny clean coal video.
Related GP articles:
-- Six Major Air Pollutants
-- Water Pollution Causes
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THE ABSENT-MINDED WAITER
An amusing, classic video short about a waiter who is absent-minded—or is his mind absent altogether?—featuring Steve Martin, Buck Henry, and Teri Garr. It gets off to a slow start, but there's a pretty good payoff at the end. Watch funny waiter video.
Related GP cartoons:
- Mob Restaurant Cartoon
- Bad Caterer Cartoon
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THE GOOD LIFE
With today's financial tornadoes affecting average folks more and more, we're increasingly questioning "the system" and our role in it. This short animation uses a classic parable-style tale to look at the question, What does "enough" really mean? From Free Range Graphics and social-values business leader Mark Albion, who is author of More Than Money (subtitle: Questions Every MBA Needs to Answer: Redefining Risk and Reward for a Life of Purpose). Watch: The Good Life.
Related GP articles:
-- Overfishing
-- Coffee - Organic, Shade-
Grown, Fair Trade
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THE ORACLE WITH MAX KEISER
"The Oracle" is a series of weird, witty, wonky—and often outright funny—video shows that Max Keiser did for the BBC in early 2009. Each show has a smart, smirky, spot-on approach to analyzing what's going on in the world of banks, bucks, bailouts, bandits, and bozos. See
GoogleVideo
for free episodes of The Oracle with Max Keiser. For other, more current Max Keiser video stuff, see his site's
video page.
Related GP cartoon:
Which "Phrases from the Future" Cause You the Most Distress?
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SEA CHANGE
The planet's warming temperatures mean more for the oceans than just a rise in sea levels. This NOW segment reviews the evidence that suggests climate change is also affecting ocean currents and the chemistry of the seas, with potentially catastrophic results. There is also a neat little experiment they do that shows why global warming and the melting of the Arctic ice cap is such a big deal (and not just for polar bears!). Watch global warming/ocean effects video.
Related GP cartoon:
-- Global Warming Skeptics
Related GP articles:
-- Global Warming, Melting Ice
-- GP Comments on
The Day After Tomorrow
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BIG THREE OWNER’S MANUAL
The situation with the Big Three US auto makers is a bit perplexing. On the one hand, it's obvious that their management is inept and that they failed to correctly perceive ANY of the trends that now rule—whether they be peak oil and convulsing fuel prices; the public demand for hybrids and electric cars; or even the stupidity of carrying large amounts of debt. On the other hand, lots of hard-working guys and gals stand to lose their livelihoods should Detroit stop being Motor City. And it's impossible not to recognize the smallness of what the Big Three asked for when compared to what the Big Boys of Banking got from Uncle Sam—with no strings attached. Ah, well, it's all above our pay grade. We'll just leave it to Mark Fiore to have some animated fun with it. Go there
Related GP cartoons:
Bumper Stickers on Hummers
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THE COLLAPSE OF 2009 AND “THE GREATER DEPRESSION”
The New York Post dubbed Gerald Celente a modern-day Nostradamus, at least when it comes to economic trends. Celente has correctly predicted a lot of the things that are happening now in the economy and financial system, so it's worth considering what he has to say about 2009 and the years beyond. Gulp! – well, the title of this item says it all. But we still highly recommend that everyone listen to this Financial Sense audio interview with Celente from January 2009. Go there
Related GP articles:
-- GP's 2009 Trends/Predictions
-- Causes of the Financial Crisis
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SCORING A PACK OF GANG SONGS
Why do a page of "gang" songs? Who knows. We go with the theme, that's all. No gangsta gunk here, though—just a neat little tour through the mean streets and back alleys of rock, pop, blues, and folk rock. Here are the first half dozen songs on our list of 20...
-- Pretenders:
"Back on the Chain Gang"
-- Tullycraft:
"Rumble With The Gang Debs"
-- Stray Cats:
"Rumble In Brighton"
-- Blondie:
"A Shark In Jets Clothing"
-- Spin Doctors:
"Laraby's Gang"
-- Brownsville Station:
"I'm The Leader Of The Gang"
See the full list and hear clips at GP's
gang songs page
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THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON CONSCIOUSNESS
One thing is clear to us here at Grinning Planet—if modern civilization is going to eventually work through the unfolding multifaceted super-crisis and arrive on the other side with something like a workable society, we're going to need to shift our consciousness and paradigms from what they are now. One good way to start that process is for all of us to listen to more of the
C-Realm Podcast,
a weekly 1-hour audio show that weaves together topics like peak oil, permaculture, societal transformation, and future realities, all with a certain sensible mysticism found nowhere else in cyber-radio. A good starting place is
Episode 131,
in which host KMO interviews Albert Bates on peak oil and what it means for human progress.
Related GP cartoon:
Visions of a High-Tech Future
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FIRST THERE IS A MOUNTAIN,
THEN THERE IS NO MOUNTAIN,
THEN THERE IS ....
This is a really fine 5-minute animation that humorously takes on the serious topic of mountain-top removal mining and the disconnect between distant coal mining and how we just flip on a power switch in our homes. It's more targeted at kids, but I can tell you that this adult enjoyed it just fine! From Green Gorilla/ SustainLane and FreeRange Graphics. Go there
Related GP article:
Coal - Mining, Power Generation, and Problems
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ARE WE GIVING THE ROBOTS THAT RUN OUR SOCIETY TOO MUCH POWER?
A very sharp clip that fast forwards a few years into the future, when robots may have accumulated a bit too much control over us. There's also a metaphor here for people's blithe acceptance of increasingly totalitarian states run by humans, but just on its roboty merits, this is very funny. From The Onion. Go there
Related GP cartoon:
Robot Cartoon / Bad Personal Care Products
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THE CRASH COURSE
The Crash Course is a 20-part series of free video clips that explains what's going on with debt and the money system, but also relates the financial crisis to peaking energy supplies and resource scarcity. Chris Martenson does a masterful job of making dry but important concepts easily understandable. The animated graphs and other features, combined with the clear explanations in the voiceovers, make this one of the best presentations we've ever seen. We highly recommend it to anyone who wants to understand the financial meltdown in the larger context of debt and constrained energy supplies—and who wants to better understand the approaching storm. Go there
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CLAP ON, CLAP OFF!
What gift do all corporate executives want most this year? The Clapper! Only this is the "Free-Market Clapper," and clapping results in huge piles of risk-free cash, whether they face boom or bust. For these big wigs, it's The Best Of Times and ...um... More Best of Times. "Please, sir, may I have some more?" Funny stuff from Mark Fiore. Go there
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NATION’S WEALTHY CRUELLY DEPRIVED OF TRUE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS
Anytime someone compares low wages for working stiffs to ridiculous pay packages for CEOs, free-market flacks are quick to deride it as "class warfare." Of course, in reality, there is no class war. It's already over—and the rich won. But fret not: the poor still have an advantage in the fullness of their Christmas spirit, and all the high-tech toys and Tiffany baubles in the world can't touch that, right? Pity those wretched, cheer-challenged rich folk, forced to drown their holiday sorrows in glasses of $100 wine.... Satire from The Onion. Go there
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THE WHO —
“WON'T GET FOOLED AGAIN”
Meet the new boss—
Same as the old boss...
I'll tip my hat
To the new constitution,
Take a bow
For the new revolution,
Smile and grin
At the change all around me—
Pick up my guitar and play,
Just like yesterday;
Then I'll get on
my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again...
Will Obama be a true agent of change, or just the latest agent of fortune? Citizens, take heed... Read article
More Amazon options:
-- Song -- Hear/download MP3
-- Album -- MP3s
-- Album -- CD
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THE GEORGE W. BUSH FREEDOM LIBERRY AND FAMILY FUN CENTER
Now that the 2008 election is over, what will become of that wascally White House wabbit? Well, in the manor of all former US presidents, striving to do good in the world after their tour of doodie in the White House is done, George W. Bush is planning something ...er... along those lines. Funny animation from Mark Fiore. Go there
Related GP cartoons:
-- Things That Worry President
-- Failed Amusement Parks
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HEINBERG ON HOW TO KEEP CIVILIZATION FROM GOING HINDENBERG
An excellent talk from top Peak Oil educator Richard Heinberg speaking at a Google Tech Talk. He outlines five axioms of sustainability that we must be aware of to avoid an eventual systemic collapse. Axiom 1: A society that continues to use resources unsustainably will collapse. Many more good points in the talk, with good graphs, etc. At Global Public Media. Go there
More Heinberg:
- Peak Everything (book)
- Peak Oil article
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RUPPERT-O-RAMA
Former LA police investigator Mike Ruppert has spent much of the last decade trying to alert us all to the dangers of peak oil and the dangerous criminal behavior exhibited by The Powers That Be. Those of us who have taken heed of his reports and predictions and have changed our lives to be more prepared for troubled times ahead are in his debt. If you are not yet familiar with Ruppert, below are some links to his current work and "greatest hits."
-- Current stuff:
[1] From the Wilderness' Peak Oil Blog
[2] The Shell Game (a novel by Steve Alten based partly on Ruppert's work)
-- Some excellent material from the 2004-2005 timeframe — all very interesting to re-experience, given what we now know about the housing bubble, how money works, peak oil, geopolitics, and 9/11. Ruppert's timelines are a little off, but he nails the trends and underlying machinations:
[1] From The Wilderness (archive of old articles)
[2] Crossing The Rubicon (book)
[3] The Truth and Lies of 9/11 (GoogleVideo)
[4] interview with Els Cooperrider (GPM audio)
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FUNNY BAILOUT BUFFET
Humor does not stop just because our elected leaders are selling us down the river. Here at GP, we're gonna laugh all the way to the poorhouse. Join in the grunting and guffawing with a few funny 'net clips.
$1,000,000,000,000 Bailout
-- A faux, deadpan-humor White House press conference on the bailout....from Funny Ordie.
The Dark Bailout
-- A strangely clever mix of clips from The Dark Knight Batman film and President Bush describing his bailout plan... from Spike.
The Daily Show
-- An edgy but funny rant that blasts just about everybody associated with passing the bailout.
The Colbert Report
-- More edgy, more funny: "Vladimir Putin's just jealous because America is winning the economic meltdown race."
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BUSHISMS VIDEO REVIEW
Well, love him or hate him, he'll be gone soon—barring a total usurpation of constitutional authority—and we will all be deprived of the grand gaffes and gargantuan goofs that gush from his grinning gob. The next president is almost certain to bring a decline in entertainment (and embarrassment) value, so enjoy him while you can ... with this 1-minute review of some of Bush Jr.'s worst public speaking flubs. At Google Video. Go there
Related GP cartoon:
Public Speaking Cartoon
Related GP article:
Environmental Doublespeak
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CLIMATE TIME MACHINE
This very cool interactive tool lets you visualize Arctic ice melt, global CO2 emissions, and global temperatures over various timeframes. You can also see estimates of coastal inundation for various sea level rise amounts—all just by moving the slide control back and forth. Excellent! And scary! From NASA. Go there
Related GP article:
Global Warming vs. Climate Change
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DRILL, BABY, DRILL!
A wild-eyed poke at the oil-drilling frenzy currently in vogue among our Washington officials. (Somehow they failed to get the memo that we can't drill our way out of our oil-addiction problem.) Funny stuff from animator Mark Fiore. Go there
Related GP pages:
-- Oil Spill Cartoon
-- Peak Oil/Energy Solutions
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SUPER RICH: THE GREED GAME
The global financial crisis is due to a pyramid scam executed on the grandest scale. But many of the perpetrators of the scam are walking away from the mess with millions and billions. This 1-hour
BBC documentary
reveals how the super-rich schemed to make the con game work—and how they are now relaxing in ostentatious mansions, private jets, and posh vacation spots, with the rest of us picking up the bill. Also see: Catherine Austin Fitts' super-compact summary of how the Gurus of Greed engineered the grand looting over the last two decades:
Mortgage Market Musing.
In the meantime, amidst ongoing multi-billion-dollar government bailouts, we ask: How can the current financial system be valid if it allows such things as companies that are "too big to be allowed to fail"?
Related GP article:
Plutocracy Effects
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SCIENCE IDOL 2008
Each year for the last several years, the Union of Concerned Scientists has held a cartoon contest to highlight the problem of Scientific Integrity---politicians ignoring, burying, and lying about scientific results that run counter to their policy preferences, as well as the problem of government muzzling scientists and colluding with the industries they're supposed to be regulating. This year's cartoony results are in! Laugh and think ... by checking out the top dozen toons from the contest.
Go there.
Related pages:
-- A to Z Guide to Political Interference in Science
-- UCS Scientific Integrity section
-- GP Scientific Integrity cartoon
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GOT (TOXIC) MILK?
rBGH is a bovine growth hormone that was very likely used on cows whose milk you've been consuming (unless you buy organic). For background, check out this two-part, 18-minute
video report
that documents the serious bovine and human health problems associated with rBGH-produced milk. The report also lays out the corrupt ties between Monsanto and the US Food and Drug Administration, and shows the extreme measures Monsanto has used to keep wary dairies in line and the public unaware of their toxic product.
In related news,
ENN reported
that Wal-Mart has bowed to consumer pressure and announced that they will start sourcing their milk only from cows not given rBGH. Ouch! Now Monsanto is selling their rBGH operation to drug maker Eli Lily, which, as
Grist explains,
does not mean that food-safety advocates' struggle against rBGH is over.
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CHINA CELEBRATES ITS STATUS AS WORLD’S NUMBER ONE AIR POLLUTER
Now that the Beijing Olympics are over, China can get back to polluting properly! Enjoy this great dead-pan video satire on the subject, which uses the angle that politicians will try to put a happy face on just about any bad news. Funny stuff from The Onion. Go there
Related GP article:
Major Air Pollutants
Related GP cartoon:
Air Pollutants Cartoon
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SUPERTRAMP —
“SCHOOL” ... AND THE CRIME OF THE CENTURY
After school is over,
You're playing in the park ...
"Don't be out too late,
Don't let it get too dark!"
They tell you not to hang around
And learn what life's about;
And grow up just like them,
Won't let you work it out,
And you're full of doubt ...
"School" is one of Supertramp's best songs, from one of their best albums. Other top songs include the title track, "Dreamer", "Hide In Your Shell", and "Bloody Well Right". See full GP review of Crime of the Century.
Amazon options:
-- SONG: "School" ( MP3 )
-- ALBUM: Crime of the Century
( CD |
MP3 Album )
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CHRIS NELDER ON PEAK OIL
Chris Nelder is co-author of the book Profit from the Peak (Amazon.com),
and in this Financial Sense interview, he does touch on the investing angle of energy and oil depletion. But more importantly, he spends lots of time giving us an overview of where things stand on oil, discussing the merits of various propositions from politicians and pundits, and explaining that we're likely facing a very serious, almost unavoidable crisis. This is one of the best Peak Oil interviews we've heard lately. Go there. Go to audio page
Related GP articles:
-- Peak Oil FAQ
-- Peak Oil & Environment
-- Peak Oil Solutions
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SMOKEY THE REGRETFUL
This Mark Fiore animation heads into the dense US forest policy, slashing through the tangled underbrush of issues, burning the deadwood that passes for forest managers, and smoking out the verminous politicos who let it all happen. Go there
Related GP cartoon:
Wood Joke/Cartoon
Related GP article:
Smarter Wood/Paper
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YOU CAN'T WIN 'EM ALL
In this full-length episode from the first season of The Bob Newhart Show, a star pitcher for the Chicago Cubs baseball team publicly credits psychologist Bob Hartley with saving his career. The endorsement brings Bob a new player-patient ... with funny results. Free via Hulu.com. Go there
More Bob Newhart options on Amazon.com:
Comedy MP3s
Comedy CDs
TV shows on DVD
Related GP cartoon:
Psychologist Joke/Cartoon
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HOMEGROWN REVOLUTION
Whether you want to be sure your food doesn't have E. Coli, pesticide residue, or franken-genes... or whether you'd like to lower your grocery store bill and make your family more resilient in the face of the coming food crisis ... or whether you're just tired of mowing ... Converting lawn areas to gardens is a great idea. For inspiration, more reasons to take the plunge, and tips on getting started, check out this 9-minute
video on urban farming.
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GORILLA IN THE GREENHOUSE
A fun 8-minute animation that entertains as it teaches kids about problems with plastic bags and other plastic trash. The kids do their own investigation of the "plastic problem," and with guidance from a guru gorilla, present solutions kids (and adults!) can be a part of. From SustainLane and FreeRange Graphics. Go there
Related GP article:
Water Pollution Causes
Related GP cartoon:
Rush Limbaugh, eco mad man
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SATIRE-DAY NIGHT FEVER
This is the classic "more cowbell" bit from Saturday Night Live, with Christopher Walken a music producer trying to get the moooost out of a hard-rock band. It's a wonder that Walken and the SNL players managed to pull off this funny parody without so much as cracking a smile. From SNL via FunnyHub. Go there
Related GP cartoon:
Why Aging Rock Stars Retire
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CRUDE IMPACT
It's worse than you think—but it's not too late.
Crude Impact is straightforward and thorough introduction to Peak Oil and our incredibly deep dependence on petroleum products. For veteran peakists, the film will add some new background regarding the history of oil production, particularly the dirty dealings of major oil companies. There are also a few fresh faces that haven't appeared in many Peak Oil films before—Thom Hartmann, William Rees, Christopher Flavin, Michael Economides—and they help round out our thinking on the topic.
Read full review of Crude Impact
Related GP article:
Energy Peak & Relocalization
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LORD PETRO
From Mark Fiore's animatorium, first came
President Petro — an animated riff on the fact that whoever we elect in politics, OIL is our true leader. But we all know that ... um ... "energy corrupts, and absolute energy corrupts absolutely" ... and thus perhaps we might say that oil is actually our emperor. Fiore presents the concept in his new animation,
Lord Petro.
Related GP article:
Peak Oil and Environment
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DON'T FEAR THE REAPER...
OR OTHER BOC MUSICAL MONSTERS
Over the decades, Blue Oyster Cult produced a number of musical spawn that clawed their way up the charts, including
"Don't Fear The Reaper", which was the unlikely target of the "more cowbell" parody on SNL. Other great musical monsters in the BOC collection include the vampires in
"I Love The Night" and
"Nosferatu" ... the flying black horsemen in the eerily cool
"Wings Wetted Down" ... and, of course, that inimitable city-destroyer,
"Godzilla". Click the song titles to hear MP3 clips on Amazon.com, or try the
Don't Fear the Reaper collection on CD, which is a decent quick overview of the band's career.
Related GP stuff:
BOC album reviews
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GLENN BECK INTERVIEWS JAMES HOWARD KUNSTLER
Glenn Beck has a reputation as a bad-boy talking head with a flair for hyperbole and occasional outright stupidty, but he does fine in this interview with Peak Oil wag James Howard Kunstler, where they talk about our modern world's blind reliance on petroleum products and the gathering storm clouds related to shrinking oil supplies. From CNN. Go there
Related items:
World Made By Hand
(GP review of Kunstler's novel)
CNBC interviews Matt Simmons
(May 2008, on oil supplies)
GP's Peak Oil Solutions
(what we should be doing)
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MONTY PYTHON – BOOK SHOP
This is one of Python's better bits, with John Cleese as the owner of a book shop full of classical literature---just not any of the specific titles this particular customer wants...
Amazon options:
-- MP3 clip
-- On CD collection
Free options:
-- Transcript
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THE VANISHING OF THE BEES
This 5-minute video weaves together info and images on the mysterious, devastating collapse in honeybee populations. See the clip at vanishingbees.com (click "Trailer" once you're there).
The interviewees in the above clip seem to be in agreement with our own assessment of why the problem is happening, which we presented recently as part of our Crisis Affecting Agriculture article.
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PETROTHEISM
This is an oldie but a goodie from animation ace Mark Fiore. Rising gas prices, public resistance to reality-based change, and our government's inane policies are all still factors today in our continuing worship of oil. Go there
Related GP article:
Peak Oil - Energy Solutions
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LITERARY HEROES
MEET PROG ROCK
Robin Hood and William Tell
And Ivanhoe and Lancelot,
They don't envy me...
Whether it's these lyrics from Electric Light Orchestra's "Can't Get It Out of My Head" or other songs, references to classic literature and classical music blended nicely in much of ELO's early work. This song is one of their best (and biggest) early hits and originally appeared on Eldorado, one of those great concepty rock albums that were in vogue in the 1970s.
Amazon options:
-- Hear clip or download MP3
-- Check out CD
Related stuff:
-- Monty Python - Book Shop MP3
(at Amazon.com)
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PLAYING WITH DANGEROUS PESTICIDES
Sorry... this NRDC page is no longer available.
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JOLLY GREEN TITAN
TitanGreens
is an online video channel that features loads of short, informative, funny video clips, including environmental news, skits, and specials. The videos are quite well done—appropriate for adults or youngsters—and the site is easy to navigate.
Start with
Daily Greens
or
Planet Police
or
this clip
on which is the most eco-friendly container for beer, can or bottle. Cheers!
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COOL MOTHER SONG
Moms—and everyone—will laugh along with this breathtakingly funny musical performance of "what mothers say in a day." Very impressive! By Anita Renfroe, via YouTube.
Go there
Related GP cartoon:
Challenges for Working Moms
Recommended GP article:
Home Safety & Children
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WORLD MADE BY HAND
James Howard Kunstler's novel World Made By Hand places us a couple of decades into the future, when today's globalized high-energy techno-industrialism is gone, replaced by a hyper-local, low-energy, low-tech existence—an uninvited, unwanted change borne of natural limits, pandemic losses of life, and the general ineptitude of today's leaders. Weather or not you're a Peak Oiler, World Made By Hand is a good book to try—it shows just how much things would change in a world without global supply chains keeping stores stocked using just-it-time delivery systems. Read full GP review of World Made By Hand
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AMERICA DECIDES NETWORK
A very sharp animation from Mark Fiore satirizing the ridiculosity of the networks' campaign coverage, where "tough questions" are usually about as meaningful as the latest happenings on American Idol—Bread & Circuses Edition. Go there
Related GP tirades:
Corporate Media
News Talk Shows
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FOR A THOUSAND MOTHERS
"For A Thousand Mothers" is just one of ten top-notch songs from Jethro Tull's 1969 breakout album Stand Up, where Ian Anderson and the boys mastered the earthy progressive-rock sound they had experimented with on their first album. The 2001 reissue includes 4 bonus tracks. Hear
MP3 clips
or check out
CD
on amazon.com.
Related GP stuff:
Jethro Tull reviews
Or see other...
Album Reviews
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KIDS SAVE THE PLANET IN 60 SECONDS
"Seven Big Ideas" is an animated short that in a mere minute presents a fun, quirky overview of planetary problems and solutions. It's available for previewing at climatecartoons.org and will appear in pre-show presentations in theatres across the US between March 28 and April 24.
Related:
- 10 Threats to Planet
- Meet the Greens web site
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MONTY PYTHON -
AIRPLANE SKETCHES
In funny video sketch #1, Graham Chapman and John Cleese play airline pilots in the airplane cockpit, bored with the flight and intent on irritating their passengers with prank announcements. In the second sketch, Chapman and Cleese are confronted by Michael Palin as a hijacker—polite and logical to a fault. Via Google Video.
- Sketch 1
- Sketch 2
Related GP cartoon:
Airplane Cartoon
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DARKNESS FALLS
GP Review: Imagine if the world lost 1/3 of its oil supply over the course of a single year. Life in our modern petroleum-powered society would undergo drastic and difficult changes. That is exactly what the world faces in Darkness Falls, an excellent, fast-paced novel by Kyle Mills...
Read Grinning Planet's full review of Darkness Falls
Related article:
Peak Oil Solutions
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AIRPLANE! (THE MOVIE!)
Amazon.com Review: The quintessential movie spoof that spawned an entire genre of parody films, the original Airplane! still holds up as one of the brightest comedic gems of the '80s, not to mention of cinema itself (it ranked in the top 5 of Entertainment Weekly's list of the 100 funniest movies ever made). The humor may be low and obvious at times, but the jokes keep coming at a rapid-fire clip... Read full review or check out movie at Amazon.com
Related GP page:
Airplane Movie Quotes
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