And in another first some last minute gift ideas, the Dublin International Film Festival(starts feb 12th) has gift vouchers available on it’s site or from UGC cinemas, IFI bookshop and the Central Ticket Bureau in Liberty Hall.
There’s also a call for volunteers to help out during the festival on the site.

You like end of year lists this is the list of lists more top 10s and 50s then you’ll ever need.

Tariq Ali gives a timely quote from USMC General Smedley D Butler’s war is a racket speech
I spent most of my time being a high-class muscle-man for Big Business, for Wall Street and for the Bankers. In short I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism…
in his analysis of US intervention in Iraq.
If you’re wondering why Saddam won’t end up in the International Criminal Court the mounting evidence against Kissinger may have something to do with it.

There’s a DATA meeting (free + open to all) at the City Arts Centre today 7pm in the City Arts Centre on Moss St with Mark Tribe (ex Rhizome), John Gerrard (3D Portraiture), Tom Holley & Derek Hales (Ultrasound Festival/Media Centre UK) + a special performance of SimpleTEXT: a mobile phone enabled performance by Jonah Brucker-Cohen, Tim Redfern, and Duncan Murphy.
There will be wireless internet access available! so if you have Wi-Fi enabled gear bring it to contribute to the SimpleTEXT performance and stuff.
I’ll be participating in a round table discussion at 2pm on ‘community and connectivity’ with Mark Tribe, Jonah Brucker Cohen, Nicky Gogan, John Gerrard, Tom Holley, Anya Stafford, Alexa Coyne and Declan McGonagle, if you have a chance come along.

Some interesting links I’ve been meaning to post but haven’t got around to:
British archive papers solve the mystery of what happened to Roger Casement’s body after his execution in 1916, a truth so shameful it’s no wonder they tried to hush it up for so long.
The new Cold War will not be between America and another superpower, or between America and international terrorism, but between America and informed global public opinion. Chomsky
Screencaps of arcade game endings
Zadie Smith on Kafka
Surprise, surprise Bush backs down on steel tariffs
1904 Houdini interview via dublog
A bullet fired in the air during a Ku Klux Klan initiation ceremony came down and struck a participant in the head, critically injuring him

I must look suspicious or something but for the third time I’m not the effing fugitive so stop asking!

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer does Vectorial Elevation again in Place Bellecour in Lyon for the F

Paul Murnaghan’s Snow continues at the Digital Hub till Dec 12th – highly recommended, also at Pallas heights Brendan Earley’s ARRIVAL till 12 December and Garrett Phelan’s ‘RACER RECAPTURED’ at SS Michael & John, Essex Street West, Temple Bar
till the 19th.

Donald Rumsfeld wins the campaign for plain english foot in mouth award for the following gem:
‘Reports that say that something hasn’t happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns — the ones we don’t know we don’t know.’
Still he learns at the feet of the master