I’ve been a fan of Ira Glass and This American Life for many years, so it was a kick when Ira was kind enough to blurb Prisoner of Trebekistan.

A few weeks ago, Ira invited me to be a guest on a program themed around quiz shows, so we chatted for about an hour. Our interview will probably be edited down to about a minute or two of the final result, but still, for the curious, the show airs this weekend. You can find your local date, time, and station info here.

Incidentally, there’s also a Showtime TV version of TAL debuting on March 22nd. From what I’ve heard, they’ve done a pretty cool job of re-thinking the program as imaginative TV, not just sticking a camera in the studio a la Howard Stern. So that should be worth seeing.

My buddies Jon and Mike, who have written unflinchingly funny stuff for SNL, the Village Voice, NPR, the New Yorker, and a bunch of other cool places have a new humor collection out, and you can get a sense of their not-flinching approach from its title:

Our Kampf.

Enjoy!

The latest fun from my buddy Scott Bateman.

I have never sat through more than one minute of American Idol at a time.  But this made me laugh out loud.

The latest fun from my buddy Scott Bateman.

I have never sat through more than one minute of American Idol at a time.  But this made me laugh out loud.

A Colin Newell Post
VANCOUVER, Canada – Police and workers from the 2010 Olympic committee dragged a protester off the stage and other officers tackled a woman with a bandana over her face as Olympics officials staged a ceremony to mark three years until the Games begin in Vancouver. –link–

There was heavy security at the downtown event with dozens of officers in yellow jackets, including some on horseback and in riot gear, but one protester managed to leap onto the stage and push the master of ceremonies out of the way.

The protester shouted obscenities into the microphone before being dragged off by 2010 workers and police officers.

Police said protesters hurled eggs, paint-filled balloons and papier mache balls filled with rocks.

"I’m dismayed by the fact that these people want to cross the line and start throwing things at police officers. That’s the part that’s upsetting to everybody here," said Const. Howard Chow, a spokesman for the department.

The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Games held the ceremony Monday to unveil a huge digital clock on the grounds of the downtown art gallery to count down the months, days, hours, minutes and seconds left before the opening ceremonies at 6 p.m. on Feb. 12, 2010.

Hundreds of people and 2010 volunteers and workers crowded into the square to watch the ceremonies, but in a corner of the site, activists unveiled their own so-called doomsday clock.

The cardboard creation marks significant events in the decline of government support for social housing and concludes that by 2010, 6,000 people will be homeless in the city.

One protestor stated: "we have no right to have the Olympic Games here. It’s just utterly dishonourable."

Protesters milled through the crowd carrying signs saying "Stop the Clock" and "Housing Before Games."
Personal note: For me this hearkens back to 1986 when Vancouver hosted one of the best World Expo’s ever. The only downside was – thousands of downtown Eastside residents were driven from their low-rent digs as precious hosting real-estate was quickly converted to lodging and B&B for the 1986 events.

The other thing that struck me(courtesy CBC radio), in the 12 minute commute to campus today, were the odd-sounding references to 2010 workers and how they saved the day at the protest.

2010 workers… from the future no doubt… in a time machine we invented.
Only in Canada you say?
Pity.

From a land where the glaciers are in faster retreat than my hairline – I am Colin Newell