Sam Purtill
Hi! Nice to meet you. Well. It's probably obvious from the URL of this site what this thing is all about so let's jump right in...
I like to post random cell phone pics and even more random things I find around the internets on here. If you're interested in finding out a little bit about me, click the links directly below. Thanks for stopping by!
A bit about me
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First juggalo sighting of tour. Wyoming.
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I do not know if you know this, but many people like to visit me on their honey-moons. (They probably think I am a very romantic place.) Here is a...
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This is really cool: Rangers left fielder Josh Hamilton has been battling drug and alcohol addiction and planned...
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via s3.amazonaws.com
In this week’s issue: George Packer on the McChrystal debacle; Ken Auletta on Afghanistan’s first media mogul; Tad Friend on Steve Carell; Charlayne Hunter-Gault on Jacob Zuma; Rebecca Mead on playgrounds; James Surowiecki on financial illiteracy; Sasha Frere-Jones on Robyn; James Wood on David Mitchell; Peter Schjeldahl on Charles Burchfield; David Denby on “Knight and Day” and “Winter’s Bone”; fiction by Sarah Shun-lien Bynum; and more: http://www.newyorker.com/
LOVELOVELOVE
“When it comes to Afghanistan, history is not on McChrystal’s side. The only foreign invader to have any success here was Genghis Khan – and he wasn’t hampered by things like human rights, economic development and press scrutiny.”
The Runaway General | Rolling Stone
One of the dozens of great quotes in the article responsible for today’s firing of General McChrystal. While I understand Obama’s decision, after reading the article I kind of wish that they kept McChrystal. His nickname is The Boss. He refers to ISAF as “I Suck At Fighting.” His favorite movie is Talladega Nights. He once took his wife to Jack in the Box because he hates going to fancy restaurants. He still goes on missions with troops. He’s clearly a fighter, a maverick, and a winner. I like the man.
At the end of the day, he just couldn’t keep his mouth shut around reporters… which is a terrible problem to have when you’re a General in the US Army.
Re: Utah inmate executed via firing squad this morning
There was a Times article today about a death row inmate in Utah who was executed by a five person firing squad. A five-member firing squad lined up, they placed a target on the chest of the inmate (who committed absolutely heinous crimes, no doubt about that), and fired at him.
I remember the description of the firing squad in Camus’ The Stranger I read about a year ago. While I’m sure the methods they use are much more ‘humane’ (if that term could be used in this context), the picture that was painted went something like this… the firing squad lined up a few feet away from the convict and on command unloaded on the convict - blood would splatter on the men who fired, the convict would sometimes live and would have to be shot again, etc. Absolutely disgusting. This was France in the 19th century (though my memory may be failing me…).
Is a firing squad really necessary in the United States in 2010? I was disgusted when I read the article this morning; Utah and Oklahoma are the two remaining states who can legally execute people, although it is much more difficult for it to happen in Oklahoma.
Tumblr friends: thoughts on this? Should we allow firing squads in the United States?
North Korea football trivia
It’s been suggested that North Korea leader Kim Jong-Il gave the coach advice on how to reach the World Cup. Kim Jong-Su, the general secretary of the North Korean FA, has said the ‘Dear Leader’ gave “in-depth guidance” on how to develop the game in the country and the coach himself has claimed he received regular tactical advice during matches, apparently using mobile phones that are not visible to the naked eye. Jong-Il is said to have developed the technology himself.
