Ed Westwick In A Jumpsuit On The Set Of "Gossip Girl"
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Maze Made Out Of 250,000 Books
It's not a tragic case of hoarding, but an art installation in London.
Visitors walk in a labyrinth installation made up of 250,000 books titled "aMAZEme" by Marcos Saboya and Gualter Pupo at the Royal Festival Hall in central London July 31, 2012.
Image by Olivia Harris / Reuters
Image by Olivia Harris / Reuters
Image by Olivia Harris / Reuters
Image by Olivia Harris / Reuters
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8 Olympic Couples Competing For A Gold Medal...In Cuteness!
These Olympians can't keep their eyes (or lips) off each other. Imagine the athletic-offspring potential!
Golfer Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) and tennis player Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark)
There's been speculation about whether their respective performances have worsened since they started dating.
Image by Alexander Hassenstein / Getty Images
German swimmers Britta Steffen and Paul Biedermann
Fun fact: They both hold world records — Steffen for women's 50m and 100m freestyle and Biedermann for both the short and long courses of men's 200m and 400m freestyle.
Image by Clive Rose / Getty Images
Shooters Katerina Emmons (Czech Republic) and Matthew Emmons (USA)
The couple married in 2007 after meeting at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Matthew had just finished eighth after firing at the wrong target.
Image by Rebecca Blackwell / AP
French swimmers Alain Bernard and Coralie Balmy
The two met in 2008 at the Beijing games. He's known in French tabloids as a "sportsman with a soft heart."
Image by MARTIN BUREAU / Getty Images
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Inside The Tea Party Factory
Conservative groups train their cadres in Dallas, where it's one part Hayek, one part Alinsky, and one part Henry Ford. “We’re the salesmen and the production line,” says FreedomWorks' Steinhauser.
Tea Party activists aren’t born — they’re made. Finished and partially-finished products gathered at the 18,500-seat American Airlines Center in Dallas the last week of July, filling the stadium more than halfway, clutching signs for Senate candidate Ted Cruz and cheering as conservative leaders — Jim DeMint, Rand Paul, the media figures Dana Loesch and Glenn Beck — took the stage to Rush or AC/DC. They crowded the food areas of the stadium, buying beers and hot dogs. The four huge screens showed the trailer for Atlas Shrugged, Part 2: Either-Or.
But school came first. For the first hour and a half of FreePAC, FreedomWorks’ convention to coincide with the end of Cruz’s runoff race against David Dewhurst and Glenn Beck’s Restoring Love gathering, the audience listened to a series of presentations on basic campaign tactics like putting up yard signs and doing phone banking.
Brendan Steinhauser, the group’s director of federal and state campaigns, got on stage to explain “sign blitzing” — clustering signs in public places as opposed to just setting one or two up on a private yard.
“FreedomWorks can supply door hangers, palm cards, bumper stickers and walking maps for your district,” the four screens high above Steinhauser’s head read.
“We try to be a good service center and provide good customer service,” Steinhauser told the crowd with a hint of Texas drawl. They listened attentively to him and to other professionals, as well as a couple of star activists the FreedomWorks team has groomed in key races. The attendees, some of whom had come from as far as Canada, would go on a few days later to help push Cruz, formerly a long shot and who never matched his opponent’s fundraising, into an easy win a few days later over establishment favorite Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst.
FreedomWorks has been around in its current form since 2004; before then it was called Citizens for a Sound Economy and funded by the Koch brothers, the billionaire duo who have backed conservative and libertarian causes for decades, and have emerged in the Obama Administration as a hub of conservative money. The group, which split with the Kochs in 2004 after the donors had a falling out with its founder, former House Majority Leader Dick Armey, had long tried to drum up the kind of grassroots anti-spending fervor that emerged with a fury in the summer of 2010. Since then group has grown rapidly, deploying staffers to some races and using a Super PAC to get involved in others.
And while the Tea Party was dogged at its start by an allegation that it was an astroturf product of FreedomWorks, that’s never really been true: FreedomWorks served as a midwife at the Tea Party’s birth, and has now devoted itself to replicating the early Tea Party activists. The group and its allies aren’t funding those activists, though; they’re teaching them.
FreedomWorks isn’t just focused on endorsing candidates and injecting money into their races. They’re obsessed with the training of activists. Director Matt Kibbe will only approve spending on a race, Steinhauser said, if the goals include for recruiting a specific number of activists. FreedomWorks, and groups like American Majority that also focus on churning out trained volunteers, have completed the transformation of the Tea Party from groups of disenchanted people gathering in each other’s living rooms — perhaps the movement’s shortest phase — to a machine that produces skilled activists and most importantly, wins races. A Tea Party upset is no longer a surprise, and amateurs are rapidly going pro.
“The way that the RNC or the Republican Party approaches activists is so different from what we do,” said Brendan Steinhauser in an interview with BuzzFeed after the FreePAC rally. Steinhauser looked weary but talked fast, energized by the rally.
“They’re our customers,” he said. “It’s bottom up. I come out and tell you whatever I want to tell you, but you’ve got to buy into this, you’ve got to find value in the training.”
Steinhauser travels the country frequently, stopping in at states where there’s an important campaign going on, but also traveling to swing states and holding training sessions for people interested in getting involved in campaigns. Matt Kibbe, FreedomWorks’ president, describes the sessions as “constant” and estimates that the group holds two or three every week. According to press secretary Jackie Bodnar, the group estimates 105 sessions in the past year. The sessions are held free of charge; FreedomWorks makes plenty of money from donations, from companies like Friess Associates and Crow Holdings.
“There was a time when the new activists didn’t know how to do get-out-the-vote so we did a lot of training on that,” Kibbe said. “As they get more sophisticated, they get better at things than we are.”
The activists, even when not yet schooled in the ways of FreedomWorks, are apt students. An audience member from New Jersey asked how best to go door-to-door in his heavily Democratic district; another wondered how to take advantage of FreedomWorks’ resources even in local races, for school board or county commission.
Matthew Graham, 30, a programmer from Winnipeg, Canada holding a Slurpee, said he’d come down to FreePAC to learn how to get a Tea Party going in his own country.
“I’m trying to figure out how to bring this understanding of conservatism to Canada,” Graham said. “It’s a different culture there.” Graham tried to connect with a Tea Party group in Toronto, but it didn’t work out.
The best ones become more visible, like Indiana activist Greg Fettig or Texas’ Maggie Wright, who both spoke at FreePAC. Both were involved with successful FreedomWorks races.
But their relative sophistication is coming directly via FreedomWorks and other groups that have seized the opportunity to make themselves the producers, and the activists their customers. Part of the presentation in Dallas involved “walking technology” — the group has a smartphone app that has put the old-fashioned process of examining voter rolls and picking out which doors to knock into the hands of whoever has an iPhone. There’s also a social network, Freedom Connector.
“Our relationship with the activists and donors is that we’re a service center,” Steinhauser said. “You’re an investor or you’re a customer, and we’re the salesmen and the production line.”
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Backseat Driver Cat And Other Links
Keep your eyes on the road, you're gonna get us all killed! Plus an invasion of teddy bears and let's mash-up Julia Childs with Guns'N'Roses.
Plane drops teddy bears of hope over Europe's last authoritarian state. - [Time]
24 vintage photos of Abe Lincoln being a BAMF even without being a vampire hunter. - [MentalFloss]
These 9 old timey weapons are as irresponsible as they are hilarious. - [Cracked]
In China's rush to industrialize, an entire generation of children are being left behind by migrant parents chasing a dream. - [TheDailyBeast]
12 ridiculous, desperate and/or humorous real estate signs. - [Oddee]
It took a few days, but Britain final brought home their first gold medal of the 2012 games. - [SportsIllustrated]
15 dumb things not to say if you want to die with your dignity intact. - [CollegeHumor]
Who would've guessed Julia Childs would mash-up so well with Guns N Roses? - [Flavorwire]
Headline Story: Animal photobombs will always be hilarious. Click thru for EIGHTY-FOUR more. - [HuffingtonPost]
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Working Skeeball Machine Made Out Of Knex
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Tan Mom Has Stopped Tanning
She's still pretty tan, but it's nothing like before. Here's the proof.
Source: intouchweekly.com / via: jezebel.com
Never forget.
Image by Julio Cortez / AP
Via: mjs538
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Where Are They Now: The 1996 US Gymnastics Team
Everything you need to know about the legendary first American team to win the Olympic gymnastics team gold.
The Magnificent Seven then:
Source: cache.daylife.com
Via: ninetiesgymnasticsnostalgia
Via: ninetiesgymnasticsnostalgia
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Celebrities As Disney Characters
Annie Liebovitz photographed Russell Brand, Will Ferrell, Jack Black and Jason Segel for a new ad campaign for Disney Parks.
The Haunted Mansion
Peter Pan
Source: disneyparks.disney.go.com
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Wendy's Sign Angers Liberals; Wendy's Tweet Angers Conservatives
Moderates remain uninsulted, but give it a few hours.
This message was displayed on numerous North Carolina Wendy's signs this morning.
Source: i.imgur.com
The sign, and its implied support of Chick-fil-A's stance on gay marriage, was the work of Jim Furmen, who owns 86 Wendy's franchises in North Carolina. When pictures of the signs were posted on Reddit and began circulating online, Wendy's quickly took to Twitter to say the franchise owner did not represent the views of the entire company, saying “We proudly serve ALL customers" and adding that the signs had been taken down.
Conservative bloggers and writers then took issue with the insinuation that Chick-fil-A did not serve all customers (even its critics haven't made that charge), whereupon Wendy's backtracked. "Not our intention at all," Wendy's said repeatedly to users that criticized them. "We're simply saying that an independent franchisee posted the sign."
They went on. "We're honored to serve every customer," Wendy's said in another Tweet. "We'd assume they are as well!"
As of press time, Wendy's has apologized so much on Twitter that it's had to ask critics (like Breitbart.com's Dana Loesch) to retweet its responses because it's running up against the service's posting limit.
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What Was The First Concert You Went To?
Not the first show you were dragged to by your parents, but the first of your own hilarious adolescent accord. Add yours in the comments!
Was it this guy?
Source: youtube.com
Or these guys?
Was it a big outdoor festival?
Source: youtube.com
Or was it overseas?
Source: youtube.com
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"Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day" Brings Out Thousands
Mike Huckabee urged Americans to dine at Chick-Fil-A today to support the chain's anti-gay marriage stance. Judging by these photos, it was a success.
Columbus, Georgia
Image by Mike Haskey / AP
Wichita, Kansas
Image by Travis Heying / AP
Image by Travis Heying / AP
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Image by Charles Slate / AP
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What Makes A Great Photograph Great?
Why are the most powerful photographs in the world so damn powerful?
Source: youtube.com
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Heartbreaking Images From The Worst Injury Of The 2012 Olympics
South Korean weightlifter Sa Jae-Hyouk was in the middle of the medal hunt when disaster struck. (WARNING: Somewhat graphic images and video.)
In Olympic weightlifting there are two types of lifts: the snatch and the clean and jerk. The snatch is where the lifter takes the bar from the ground to above his or her head. The clean and jerk is where the lifter lifts the bar to his or her chest and then pushes it up above his or her head. Each lifter gets three attempts at each and the highest weight totals from both lifts are added together to create a final score.
On his first attempt at the snatch, defending Olympic gold medalist Sa Jae-Hyouk (South Korea) had lifted 158 kg (348.33 lbs), but on his second attempt he tried to push it to 162 kg (357.15 lbs). Disaster struck.
Had Jae-Hyouk stayed healthy and just replicated the lifts he had done in Beijing he would have been on pace for AT LEAST a bronze medal.
Image by GRIGORY DUKOR / Reuters
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GIFs Of Cats In Space
Cats. But in outer space. Duh: omgcatsinspace.tumblr.com
I am in a crabby nebula.
I will catch all these stars just like I killed the laser dot.
My space helmet keeps me safe for travel.
I just woke up, and hey! I'm in space!
Source: omgcatsinspace / via: boingboing.net
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Kim And Kanye Went Zip-Lining In Mexico
Along with Girls Gone Wild creator Joe Francis.
Source: meetjoefrancis.com
Source: meetjoefrancis.com
Source: p.twimg.com
Poll: Who Zip-lined better?
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Rid Your Facebook Of Baby Photos With This Handy Chrome Extension
Unbaby.me swaps out babies for awesome stuff (of your choosing). Apologies to all of BuzzFeed's overeager, photo-happy parents in advance.
Once you install the app it will give you a few options of keywords that the extension will block. Be careful, though! I removed "cute" and "too cute" because — and I don't know about your facebook feed — my feed is bombarded with cute animals and I would like to keep them there.
Next you can choose what kind of photos you want the babies to be replaced with. The default is Instagram's #cats tag but you can choose any tag OR any RSS feed you prefer.
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Zac Efron Is Wearing Tighty Whities In "The Paperboy" Trailer
Two thumbs up!
Here is the full trailer:
Source: youtube.com
And here are the important parts:
Source: mynewplaidpants.blogspot.com
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Meet The Republican Blogosphere's Favorite Candidate
Mia Love would be the first black woman in the House Republican caucus. BuzzFeed declined the fundraising ticker.
Source: love4utah.com
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — More than virtually any other 2012 candidate, Mia Love, the Republican nominee for Utah's fourth Congressional district, has become the darling of the conservative blogosphere — so much so, that when she sat down with BuzzFeed for an interview last week, her instinct was to hit the site up for fundraising help.
"Here's what I need you to do for me," she said toward the end of a brief conversation at the Utah Republican Party headquarters. "This is very important. I am running a race against Democrat Jim Matheson, and it's all hands on deck... I need you to put a ticker on your website to say 'Donate to Mia Love.'"
When the request was met with mild befuddlement, Love kept pushing: "Seriously! The time has come for us to no longer just stand on the sidelines and watch and see what happens. If you understand and can see the sincerity of what I'm saying, I need people to take a stand... I need you to put a ticker, and we need to raise a million dollars."
"Will you do that for me?" she concluded.
Informed that BuzzFeed Politics was a nonpartisan news site, she shrugged and offered a half-hearted "Okay."
If Love is unaccustomed to seeing her pitches rejected, it's easy to see why. A small-city mayor and dynamic campaign presence, she would be the first African-American female Republican ever to join the House of Representatives — a profile that has led conservative bloggers to knight her a "rising star" in the party. HotAir.com's Tina Korbe, who talked to Love outside the CPAC bloggers lounge in February, gushed that she "instantly felt more cheerful just for having talked to her." And Reason posted a video of her March under the headline, "You just might fall in love with Mia Love."
Love told BuzzFeed she understands the excitement about her profile, but that she tries to keep her message focused on small-government economics.
"When people bring those things up... I just go back and say, 'This is my area of focus,'" she said, outlining a platform that focuses on deficit reduction and entitlement reform.
Still, she's not unwilling to use her life story to make her point (or take digs at President Obama). A daughter of Haitian immigrants who was born in Brooklyn, Love recalled stories told by her father — a model legal immigrant by the GOP's standards — about straining to learn English, and studying American history. "When I was able to go in and pledge my allegiance for the first time, I knew exactly what I was saying, and I mean every word of it," he told her.
"All of my principles come from attaining that American dream, because you have to understand, I'm a product of it," she said. "It wasn't because of government, unlike what the president said."
Asked whether she thought Obama's own life story qualified him to similarly assert that he's "a product of the American dream," Love demurred.
"So far as I"m concerned, [Obama's] policies are way off," she said. "If he's actually had a lifestyle where he's achieved the American dream, he's not following the pathway to prosperity, which is the free market, free enterprise."
If Love's reflexive pitch to BuzzFeed for fundraising help was evidence of her cozy relationship with the online conservative grassroots, it may also reflect the uphill climb she faces in defeating six-term Democratic incumbent, Rep. Jim Matheson. Though their newly-formed district, like the rest of the state, is mostly red, she continues to trail him by about 15 points according to a recent poll. And while she hustles to raise cash to compete with Matheson — a conservative Democrat who voted against Obamacare, and whose father once served as Utah governor — her campaign has reportedly faced significant organizational problems.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Love is currently on her third campaign manager, and "the party has stepped in to help steer the wheel and otherwise keep a close eye on the operation."
In the mean time, Love is putting on a confident face: "I'm willing to stand up, and I need everyone else to do the same thing. If I have the right resources, we will win."
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Mom Gives Son Lamp Filled With Items She Found Doing His Laundry
Redditor justgrant2009 received this gift from his mom on his wedding day. She filled a lamp with all the items she found in his pockets while doing his laundry as he was growing up.
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