I was Ben, the unofficial face of Shippam's paste

More on the tale of Shippam’s paste, and the man behind the now defunct account.

David Mitchell on Victoria Beckham's UFO tweet

Great piece from Mitchell, which deconstructs the utterly fatuous comments people make to celebrities on Twitter showing their own idiocy through their erroneous belief they’re much more intelligent than they actually are.

Vintage British Argos 1985 Catalogue

Wonderfully nostalgic looking through an Argos catalogue from my youth.

How to Lose Friends and Alienate Paste

Brilliant post on the spoof Shippams paste Twitter account and how not to deal with such things when you come across them.

Simon Jenkins doesn’t get it: protest and nuisance at Occupy London

Not sure I quite agree with every word, but Dorian Lynskey makes a number of very persuasive points on the Occupy movement in this article, tying the movement into the long and noble (if broadly ineffective) history of British dissent through protest.

"You should have your tongue ripped out": the reality of sexist abuse online

What’s most depressing about this article from Helen Lewis Hasteley at the New Statesman is Eleanor O’Hagan’s comment that in order to avoid abuse, she changes the subjects she writes about. I don’t blame her for this, I mean, who wants to have a torrent of abuse every day? But it’s terribly sad.

Julian Assange: from hero to zero

Great article from Karin Olsson on Assange from a Swedish perspective.

The fate of the 9/11 planners and the failure of justice

Strong, interesting piece on the 9/11 conspirators by Nick Fielding and Yosri Fouda, with a depressing conclusion.

Recreating reality in Lego

Got on Boing Boing again. Indeed, with the same picture I got onto Boing Boing with a good 5-6 years ago!

A Sister’s Eulogy for Steve Jobs

Lovely tribute to Steve Jobs by his sister, the writer Mona Simpson.

Marco Arment on Magazine Advertising

I agree entirely with Marco that when I buy a magazine on my iPad and it’s full of ads, that I feel ripped off. That feeling is not something that an ailing industry should ignore.

Richard Stallman's speaking instructions

It’s easy to look to this as being rather egotistical and overblown, but I have utmost respect for a man who lets his principles spread throughout every aspect of his life (even if they are principles that aren’t particularly dear to me).

I miss the Britain of compassion and public ownership. Can we have it back please?

Ian Martin on being a reactionary socialist. Brilliant.

Instapaper 4: Deciding to Read

Lovely article from Merlin Mann about how Instapaper can help you read great things. I read it on Instapaper of course.

The Great Tech War Of 2012

Excellent article looks at the strengths and weaknesses of Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google, where they’re competing and who’s likely to win. There’s a lot in here you’ll probably be familiar with, but it’s a well-written overview, with some interesting new details.