AltWeeklies Wire
How 'Douchebag' Became Everyone's Favorite Insultnew
James Matisoff, an emeritus professor in UC Berkeley's linguistics department, concurs that douchebag's pejoration -- its change from neutral to negative meaning -- has snowballed in recent years. The culprits: Jon Stewart and his comedic brethren.
SF Weekly |
Joe Eskenazi |
01-07-2009 |
Commentary
People Who Died: Our Annual Alt-Obitsnew
Death took its usual toll this year, and seemingly then some. Genocide, war, terrorist attacks, disease -- yikes. But for the purposes of City Paper's annual tribute to influential cultural notables whose deaths deserve a little extra note, it was a terrible harvest.
Baltimore City Paper |
Staff |
01-06-2009 |
Commentary
Forget That 'Happy Chanukah' Schlock ... Christmas is Where It's Atnew
Most folks seem to think Chanukah is the Jewish Christmas. It is not. Christmas is the Jewish Christmas.
Philadelphia Weekly |
Caralyn Green |
12-29-2008 |
Commentary
2008: The Year of the Nerdnew
Barack Obama collects Spider-Man comics and knows how to communicate with Vulcans. But in a year when many a dashing high-school quarterback and perfect prom queen got wedgies from the freaks and geeks, its really no surprise he was elected.
Boston Phoenix |
Ryan Stewart |
12-29-2008 |
Commentary
Embracing Skepticism in a World of Networked Identitynew
The real purpose of networking sites, we think, is to make it easier to stay close to the people you want to be close to, rather than perform for the world, and for that reason I actually Facebooked up last week. And will not, after consideration, blog next year. Facebook will work if I do nothing to it -- a blog entry is obsolete immediately.
Boulder Weekly |
Dave Kirby |
12-29-2008 |
Commentary
Eco Hustle: You'll Tide Edition
Revisiting Dickens' A Christmas Carol brings up some uncomfortable comparisons to go with our holiday cheer.
Flagpole Magazine |
Alan Flurry |
12-22-2008 |
Commentary
Fundamentalists Have Turned 'Merry Christmas' into a Battle Crynew
At some point, someone decided that Christians are in the minority in this country and that Christmas is in danger of being lost beneath the crush of cross-culturalism and political correctness. Thus began the push to challenge the inclusive phrase "Happy Holidays" and insist that people say "Merry Christmas" instead.
Boulder Weekly |
Pamela White |
12-15-2008 |
Commentary
Geek Glasses Transform Sexy Superstars into Really Sexy Superstarsnew
Through a thoroughly scientific study of entirely anecdotal evidence, I am here to prove that oversized, plastic–frame glasses have the power to transform the lamest of losers into the coolest, smartest, funniest, prettiest, best–smelling people who ever did exist.
Philadelphia Weekly |
Caralyn Green |
12-08-2008 |
Commentary
The Angry Grammarian: Forgetting Sarah Palinnew
Perhaps the most prized spoil of the election is the richest word to enter the lexicon in a long time. Like all the best neologisms, it's descriptive, it's self-explanatory and it just makes you feel so good: "Palinfreude."
Philadelphia Weekly |
Jeffrey Barg |
11-17-2008 |
Commentary
Does Being an Artist Make You a Liberal?new
It's easy to see how the cost of education and a housing crisis affect the health of the citizenry.
But reading a novel or watching a play? That's not so easy to see. Hence, we don't hear about it much.
Even so, there is a long intellectual tradition of making the case for the arts in politics.
Charleston City Paper |
John Stoehr |
10-30-2008 |
Commentary
What's in a Name: Leave the Children Out of Itnew
The way that we treat children in our society is reflected in "big" things like school systems and "little" things like names. Like children themselves, names really should be off-limits, and if we cannot wrap our small minds around that, then we have a big problem.
Creative Loafing (Charlotte) |
Nsenga Burton |
09-25-2008 |
Commentary
Palin Drone
John McCain's odd choice proves the scary power of the Republican religious right.
Syracuse New Times |
Ed Griffin-Nolan |
09-17-2008 |
Commentary
Hogan Doesn't Know Bestnew
Hulk Hogan and his family are the celebrities who think they're better than us, who think they are above the law and consequences facing normal people. We fans saw your true arrogance through conversations that you knew would be taped. You're only now getting what you deserve.
Jackson Free Press |
Kamikaze |
07-03-2008 |
Commentary
George Carlin Showed Us the Importance of Being Offensivenew
Shit. Piss. Fuck. Cunt. Cocksucker. Motherfucker. Tits. I can think of hundreds of words more offensive than these in the English language: Lie. Murder. War. Politics. Fundamentalism. Apathy. O'Reilly.
Boulder Weekly |
Dale Bridges |
06-30-2008 |
Commentary
Forgotten Cartoon Characters Deserve Sleazy Opportunities, Toonew
Companies are reviving the most parent-safe of the nation's dormant characters to reanimate as sexed-up zombies for today's savvier character-consuming pre-adults. But why not dig up the cartoon has-beens, revive them, and present them as they've become -- they're a cheap get, bound to make the corporations a few bucks.
San Diego CityBeat |
D.A. Kolodenko |
06-18-2008 |
Commentary
