Bruce Howard
6,234 Added | 14 Magazines | 7 Likes | 60 Following | 23 Followers | @pinotage | Tokyo • Kailua • Annapolis • generalist at large
Chindogu | Official Home of the International Chindogu Society
<b>The planets formed. The Earth cooled. Creatures emerged and one of them started playing with rocks and sticks.</b><p><b>That creature made spears, he crafted</b> …
InventionsPostmodern dining with the Japanese art of useless gadgets
The Japanese word "chindogu" covers a delightful range of terrible gadgets. It's about vaguely genius concepts, ruined either in their execution or ambition. If you've seen the baby-floor-mop onesie or the upside-down umbrella for capturing rainwater, you've seen a chindogu. Yo Sushi, arguably the …
Gear & GadgetsBritain’s best-known money-saving expert sues Facebook over fake ads
A high-profile personal-finance guru in the U.K. is taking on Facebook in the courts.<p>Martin Lewis is well-known among Brits for his encyclopedic …
InternetScott Pruitt May Have Violated Oklahoma Ethics Rules as a State Senator
Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt used a shell company in 2003 to buy a home in Oklahoma from a retiring lobbyist, according to an …
Scott PruittScientists confirm Uranus smells like farts
It's official: Uranus smells like farts.<p>This is a real conclusion that real scientists came to. The planet, often the butt of jokes, has an …
AstronomyPeople Voted for Trump Because They Were Anxious, Not Poor
A new study finds that Trump voters weren’t losing income or jobs. Instead, they were concerned about their place in the world.<p>For the past 18 months, many political scientists have been seized by one question: Less-educated whites were President Trump’s most enthusiastic supporters. But why, …
Political ScienceFlight logs put more pressure on Trump to come clean about what happened at the Moscow Ritz
What's he trying to hide?<p>Then, during a meeting between the two men on February 8, according to Comey, Trump again brought up the “Golden Showers …
Donald TrumpProsecutors defend searches of Manafort's storage locker, condo
Special counsel Mueller's team says FBI's first look at the unit had consent of Manafort's assistant<p>Prosecutors from special counsel Robert Mueller's office are defending the legality of searches the FBI conducted last year of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort's Alexandria, Virginia, …
CorruptionSenate Delays Confirmation Hearings For White House Doctor Ronny Jackson
Senators have postponed their confirmation hearings for Rear Adm. Ronny L. Jackson, President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Veterans Affairs, after concerns arose over the White House doctor’s qualifications, The Washington Post reported Monday.<p>Trump nominated Jackson to become …
Donald TrumpFajita heist: Texas man sentenced to 50 years for stealing $1.2 million worth of food
Gilberto Escamilla had stolen more than $1.2 million worth of fajitas over the course of approximately nine years.<p>A Texas man who plead guilty to stealing more than $1.2 million in fajitas while acting as a public servant has been sentenced to 50 years in prison.<p>Gilberto Escamilla, 53, was employed …
CrimePlease enjoy these photos of Melania Trump laughing with Barack Obama
Former first lady Barbara Bush's funeral was held on Saturday. President Trump chose not to attend "to avoid disruptions," so his wife Melania had …
Donald TrumpBob Corker’s painful interview about his successor is a gift to Democrats
If Republicans lose the Senate in November, Tennessee may be the state that does them in. It's arguably their third most vulnerable seat, and they can lose only a net of two seats.<p>And if it <i>is</i> the difference-maker, Sunday may be a day they look back upon with frustration.<p>Appearing on CNN, outgoing …
RepublicansWhy I criticize candidates during job interviews (and you should, too)
Successful teams in an “agile” workplace share a common trait: They don’t just fail fast, they fail forward.<p>This means no one points fingers when an objective isn’t reached, or a new feature doesn’t function as planned. Teams that react to failure by lifting themselves up and moving forward with …
EmploymentComey, the memos and the question of what’s classified
The first clue that the question of classification is complicated regarding memos written by then-FBI Director James B. Comey comes in the first paragraph of the first document. Comey wrote the memos to memorialize his conversations with president-elect and then President Trump, beginning with a …
Donald TrumpOne of the most worrisome predictions about climate change may be coming true
Two years ago, former NASA climate scientist James Hansen and a number of colleagues laid out a dire scenario in which gigantic pulses of fresh water from melting glaciers could upend the circulation of the oceans, leading to a world of fast-rising seas and even superstorms.<p>Hansen’s scenario was …
Global WarmingKellyanne Conway’s confusing complaint about a CNN question on her husband’s tweets
When CNN's Dana Bash asked Kellyanne Conway on Sunday about her husband's habit of tweeting and retweeting criticism of President Trump, the counselor to the president insisted that she would not be expected to answer such a question if she were a man.<p>Yet after the interview, Conway tweeted that …
Donald TrumpKellyanne Conway's sexism charge is laughable
<b>(CNN) —</b> It is difficult to take Kellyanne Conway -- the woman whose job it is to defend and advocate for a man who has boasted about sexually assaulting women -- seriously when she tries to use the sexism card to get herself out of an awkward on-air situation.<p>But that is exactly what the counselor …
Donald TrumpThe new royal baby won’t get to be king—but being the third child has its perks
Dear new Royal Baby (Arthur, or Albert, or Fredrick, or James, or Philip, as the bookmakers are predicting you will be called):<p>Welcome! You are probably not yet overly concerned with your future. But soon enough, you may start thinking you got the short end of the royal stick. You are fifth in line …
PsychologyReport: Sean Hannity received HUD help on multimillion dollar property deals
Fox News host Sean Hannity allegedly received help from the US Department for Housing and Urban Development to carry out multimillion dollar real estate deals, according to a report by The Guardian.<p>The Guardian reported Sunday that Hannity is linked to a web of shell companies that spent at least …
Real EstateA Low-Key Guide to Video Games for Curious Skeptics
When my husband, Mike, bought a PlayStation 4 last fall, I was skeptical. I didn’t think any mainstream games would appeal to me whatsoever. Aside …
BAFTA AwardsWhat We Know About Sean Hannity's Shell Companies and Why It Matters
Fox News anchor Sean Hannity had a bad week.<p>Last Monday, a lawyer representing Donald Trump’s personal attorney, Michael Cohen, said that Hannity was …
Donald Trump‘She’s a lucky duck’: GOP implodes again for McCaskill
Gov. Eric Greitens’ scandals have thrown the Missouri GOP into turmoil, again, as Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill runs for reelection.<p>Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill is up for reelection. And like clockwork, the Republican Party of Missouri is in complete turmoil again.<p>McCaskill won a second term …
Eric GreitensConservative writer maps out how Republicans will inevitably split with Trump
According to writer and commentator Matt Lewis, the GOP might not turn out without President Donald Trump on the ticket. To make matters worse, Lewis …
RepublicansIgnored, humiliated: How Japan is accused of failing survivors of sexual abuse
<b>Tokyo (CNN) —</b> At first, it had seemed to Shiori Ito like a dream opportunity.<p>As an aspiring young reporter, she says a prominent journalist had taken an interest in her career, and invited her out to dinner.<p>The invitation was made while they were both in the US, but it wasn't until they had both …
JapanWhat Trump has already given up to North Korea
As he’s prone to do, Donald Trump yesterday (April 22) tweeted angrily in response to something he saw on TV.<p>What enraged him this time appears to have been a line of negative questioning by NBC’s Chuck Todd on <i>Meet the Press</i> to Marc Short, Trump’s chief congressional negotiator. Todd asked Short …
North KoreaIn travel ban case, Supreme Court considers ‘the president’ vs. ‘this president’
The Supreme Court’s final oral argument of the term will be one of its most important and potentially far-reaching, an examination of the president’s authority to protect the country by banning some foreigners who seek entry.<p>But, similar to a debate that has consumed Washington for the past 15 …
ImmigrationThe Sex-Tape Lawyer Who Worked With Michael Cohen to Silence Trump’s Women
Keith Davidson, the ex-lawyer for Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, enjoyed a seemingly cozy relationship with Michael Cohen dating back years. Now …
Donald TrumpWhy Russia is openly violating sanctions against North Korea
On April 13, eight Republican senators sent a letter to President Trump, urging him to take action against Russia’s violations of international sanctions against North Korea. The letter mentioned allegations that Russia helped North Korea export supplies related to chemical weapons to Syria. Nor is …
North KoreaAnthony Bourdain’s Journey Deep Into the Heart of Trump Country: ‘I Was Utterly Disarmed’
The ‘Parts Unknown’ host discusses his upcoming West Virginia episode, why he won’t be filming in Russia and Turkey anymore, and how Trump is going …
Donald TrumpTrump's score-settling creates jarring contrast
<b>(CNN) —</b> Donald Trump's wild weekend showed just how abnormal his presidency has become, even if his breaching of conventional decorum has lost the power to shock.<p>The President, ensconced at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, spent Saturday and Sunday on Twitter venting at the FBI director he fired, …
Donald Trump