CANNON FODDER WITH A MINE DETECTOR
The Man Who Found 100 Bombs
During the conflict in Afghanistan, Improvised Explosive Devices became the greatest threat to troops, but what was it like to be given the task of seeking out these devices?
TRAFFIC NOT NOTICEABLY WORSE
Massive Fire In Downtown LA Burns Three Towers, Shuts Down Freeways
A massive fire in downtown Los Angeles early Monday engulfed an apartment tower under construction, damaged two other buildings and left freeways and roads closed.
DIGG PICKS
What You Missed This Weekend
The Syed family spoke out, Uber had a typical Uber weekend, Lionel Messi may be a wizard and Mark Wahlberg wants a pardon.
STARTUPS WE DIGG ǀ SPONSORED
Forget Other People, Give Yourself A Gift
It's that time of year when everyone talks about giving gifts and caring for others. That's good and all, but you know who also deserves a gift? You. And more specifically, your face. Get Dollar Shave Club and your face will love you forever.
WHEN EVERYONE IS A 'THUG'
Being A Cop Showed Me Just How Racist And Violent The Police Are
In 1994, I joined the St. Louis Police Department. I quickly realized how naive I’d been. I was floored by the dysfunctional culture I encountered. I won’t say all, but many of my peers were deeply racist.
BUT WHO CAN YOU TRUST THESE DAYS?
We Can’t Trust Uber
We need to know how our data is being used.
DOMESTIC GODS FOR HIRE
How A Manservant Could Change Your Life
In San Francisco, a city flush with disposable income and venture-capital-backed services to help people spend it, women who are grossed out by strippers and creeped out by escorts can now hire handsome, wholesome entertainment for their hen parties and girls’ nights out. I can’t decide if this is a triumph of feminism or the most retrograde thing I’ve ever heard. Matthieu is here so I can figure it out.
NO UBER NEWS IS GOOD UBER NEWS
Uber Banned From Indian Capital After Alleged Rape
U.S. online ride-hailing service Uber has been banned from operating in the Indian capital after a female passenger accused one of its drivers of rape, a case that has reignited a debate about the safety of women in the South Asian nation.
INSIDE BUREAU 121
In North Korea, Hackers Are A Handpicked, Pampered Elite
Despite its poverty and isolation, North Korea has poured resources into a sophisticated cyber-warfare cell called Bureau 121, defectors from the secretive state said as Pyongyang came under the microscope for a crippling hack into computers at Sony Pictures Entertainment.
ALL OR NONE
Mark Wahlberg Shouldn't Get A Pardon For His Violent Past, But There's One Thing He's Right About
Mark Wahlberg is seeking a pardon because his criminal past is preventing him from easily franchising his burger joint. He shouldn't get one. Not because we have something against pardons. He shouldn't get one because instead of pardoning him, state and federal governments should ease laws that prevent convicted felons like him from fully participating in society.
THEY CAN SKIP THE LAST KEGGER OF THE YEAR
Greek Leaders Go On The Offensive At UVA
National fraternity and sorority leaders are calling on the University of Virginia to reinstate its Greek system, which the university suspended after an article in Rolling Stone that is now in dispute chronicled an alleged gang rape at a campus fraternity.
'IS THAT HIM?'
Does An Innocent Man Have The Right To Be Exonerated?
In the 1980s, Larry Youngblood was wrongfully imprisoned for raping a 10-year-old boy. The way the Supreme Court handled his case had lasting consequences.
WE'D RATHER USE KEN JENNINGS
Anyone Can Now Use IBM's Watson To Crunch Their Numbers
IBM has launched the public beta of Watson Analytics, its set of cloud-based predictive and analytics tools.
SKATING IS SAFE
Safe On The Southbank
Southbank, at an eastern bend in the Thames, is the center of British skateboarding. Sheltered from London’s incessant rain by an undercroft, the space has stairs, ledges and a large, smoothly paved expanse that sweeps into a three-sided bank.
YELP REVIEWERS RAVE ABOUT THE CANNOLI
The Bar From 'The Godfather' Is Still Open
In 1972, Bar Vitelli was a quiet establishment in the Sicilian town of Savoca. Today, it remains exactly the same.
NO SUCH THING AS A 'GOOD VICTIM'
Here Is How I Am A Bad Sexual Assault Victim
I have to be, because the standards for being a “good” victim of sexual assault are impossibly high.
HEAVY TOLL, LIGHT PENALTIES
Law Enforcement's Drinking Problem
The first time Brian Simpkins was arrested on a charge of drunken driving — after ramming his Chevy pickup into a tree — he was just 19. The second time he was arrested — after he was found passed out in his car with the engine running in September 2012, a half-empty can of Coors Light lying on the floor — he was a state trooper, charged with keeping the roads safe from drunk drivers.
CONFINED
Who Killed Eddie Snowshoe?
Three years in a federal prison had turned Eddie Snowshoe into a student of death.
'IT'S ALL GONE'
The Syed Family Speaks
"Serial," a podcast exploring the case of Adnan Syed, who was convicted of the 1999 murder of his ex-girlfriend Hae Min Lee, has become a global phenomenon. In an exclusive interview, Adnan’s family talks about listening to "Serial," toxic Reddit threads and how his imprisonment has destroyed their lives.
KEEP YOUR HANDS ON THE BARS AT ALL TIMES
The Scariest Way To Ride A Roller Coaster
Ever look at a rickety wooden roller coaster in Mexico and think, "Gee, that's just not scary enough?" Well trials rider Julien Dupont did exactly that.
STEALING 2016
The Demented GOP Schemes To Rewire The Electoral College And Elect A Tea Party President
Republicans know they can't win the popular vote. You won't believe sick schemes they've launched to get around it.
STILL LOOKING FOR SOLIDARITY
Poland’s Jews: Under A New Roof
Few cities would seem more suitable for a Jewish museum than Warsaw. But Poland’s complicated postwar history has rendered the recovery of its long Jewish legacy a thorny task.
SIP, SLIP AND SLIDE
LA Galaxy Made A Slip 'N Slide Out Of Booze To Celebrate Their MLS Cup Win
We admire their creativity, but can someone please tell the Galaxy that it's better to drink booze than to slide across the floor on it?
R.I.P.
Ralph Baer, 'Father Of Video Games,' Passes Away
Ralph Baer, a true pioneer of video games, has passed away at the age of 92. Baer developed the very first console video game system, originally known as the Brown Box, but later licensed and sold as 1972's Magnavox Odyssey, which laid the foundation for video games as we know them today.
OR WAS IT A NEAR HIT?
Report: Plane In Near Miss With At Heathrow Airport
An Airbus A320 pilot reported seeing a helicopter-style drone as the jet was 700 feet off the ground on its approach to the runway at Heathrow over the summer.
LOW COST AT AN ENORMOUS PRICE
The Trouble With Cheap Oil
It seems churlish, at best, to lament easy access to one of the world’s most vital commodities. But cheap gas has become like an industrial form of crack. It doesn’t really matter how much damage it causes, because we simply don’t have the power to walk away.
CHAINMAIL, PIG BLOOD AND BRAVERY
What It Takes To Build A Snake-Proof Suit
Later tonight, you'll be able to watch a man attempt to become a 25-foot, giant green anaconda's dinner — willingly. And to make sure our human snake snack makes it out alive, scientists spent months designing, testing, and building one incontrovertibly snake-proof suit.
TACKLING SMARTIES
Practicing Helmetless Football
“TACKLE!” the head coach yells, and thus begins a five-minute period the likes of which most of us haven’t seen in American football. Yes, the University of New Hampshire football team, the best in the FCS, is about to practice tackling. But before doing so, 25 players drop their helmets on the turf.
HANGING 10 OR JUST HANGING OUT?
Is Surfing A Sport? An Investigation
So, is surfing a sport? Brah, I'm not sure. It's a question that has floated around in my head since high school. Back then, on weekends, I'd often strap my board to the top of a friend's car and drive, at absurd pre-dawn hours, from suburban Los Angeles to the beach. I can tell you, knowing how silly it must sound if you've never tried it, just how amazing surfing is, how connected to the Earth it makes you feel. It's magic. But is it a sport?
HOW... HOW DOES HE DO THAT?
Messi Curves Shot Past Three Defenders And A Goalie
The most dangerous weapon on the planet is Lionel Messi's left foot.
WELL THIS IS DISRUPTING
Chris Hughes Writes Op-Ed To Address New Republic Resignations
"By their account, this was a clash of cultures : Silicon Valley versus tradition, and everyone must choose a side. I believe this dangerously oversimplifies a debate many journalistic institutions are having today. They were colleagues whom I personally liked and respected, so I was sad to see them go and regret much of how it happened. But the New Republic is too important an institution to accept their departures as its end."
WHEN #BRANDS WERE BRANDS
Digging Up Ads From WWII —When They Pushed Products No One Could Buy
During World War II, companies stayed in the public eye by advertising products — often with the government's help — that weren't available to civilians.
'DARKSEOUL'
Sony Leak Traced Back To A Bangkok Hotel
The computer hackers drilled into the network at the elegant St. Regis Bangkok that night and, with a keystroke, laid bare the secrets of Sony Pictures Entertainment. What had begun with a secret incursion into the Hollywood studio’s computer system was reaching its climax in, of all places, a five-star hotel in the capital of Thailand.
PETER, PANNED
The Only 'Peter Pan' Recap You Need
Well, guys, another year, another major NBC live musical production to transition us from the awkward weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, the senioritis of months, when no one wants to work, errbody wants to shop, and all Allison Williams wants to do is prove that she’s not just a pretty face... she’s also a pretty boy, people.
KREMLOAN
Russia Needs Cash
Putin's stash of oil money is shrinking.
90 MINUTES AND ONE MOMENT OF CLARITY
The Bitter End Of Landon Donovan's Career
Four hours before his final match as a member of the U.S. men's national team, Landon Donovan strolls down a soulless hotel hallway in search of closure. A maid asks if she can clean his room. "Sure," he says. "I won't be back."
FUMES AT FURFEST
Chlorine Gas Sickens 19 At Furry Convention
The source of the gas was apparently chlorine powder left in a ninth-floor stairwell at the hotel, according to the Rosemont Public Safety Department. Investigators believe the gas was created intentionally and are treating it as a criminal matter.
EXPECT A RELEASE DECEMBER 26
John Kerry Delays Release Of CIA Torture Report
Secretary of State John Kerry personally phoned Dianne Feinstein, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Friday morning to ask her to delay the imminent release of her committee’s report on CIA torture and rendition during the George W. Bush administration, according to administration and Congressional officials.
WALK IT OFF
Taylor Swift And The Avatar Of Celebrity
Posts featuring paparazzi photos of Swift leaving her house became so common on the celebrity gossip site Oh No They Didn’t! that they got a name: Taylor Swift Walking Posts.
NOT AGAIN
Indian Uber Driver Arrested For Allegedly Raping A Customer
Police on Sunday arrested an Uber driver accused of raping a woman in the Indian capital, authorities said.
PICK YOUR BRACKETS
College Football Playoff Teams Announced
Ohio State will join Alabama, Oregon and Florida State in the inaugural College Football Playoff.
UN-LIKELY TO BE BELIEVED
North Korea Denies 'Righteous' Sony Hack
North Korea on Sunday denied responsibility for hacking the computers of Sony Pictures but appeared to relish the cyberattack that crippled the computer systems of the Hollywood company, which is set to release a comedy involving an assassination attempt of its leader, Kim Jong-un.
'THIS IS NOT A WHODUNNIT, THIS IS A HE DID IT'
'SNL' Addresses Ferguson And Garner Decisions With Cold Opener
For the first time in his life, everyone agrees with Al Sharpton.
THIS SHOULD BE A CRIME
Vile Journo Releases Unconfirmed Name Of UVA Victim 'Jackie'
Charles C. Johnson, a former Daily Caller writer and founder of GotNews (a conservative site rife with racist and Islamophobic content parading as "Independent, Unbiased & Unafraid") has claimed that multiple sources have confirmed to him the identity of "Jackie," the woman whose alleged gang rape at the University of Virginia was recounted in the Rolling Stone piece "A Rape on Campus." So, in an absolutely disgusting move, Johnson has published her name, or what he thinks her name is.
NOT HALF-BAKED
An Internet-Connected Scale Taught Me How To Make Pumpkin Pie
Seems like every appliance in the kitchen is getting an internet connection, and the humble kitchen scale might seem the unlikeliest of items to benefit from that. But Drop is a scale that does a lot more than just measure weight: it's trying to teach you how to bake.
THIS COP NEVER BLINKS
All Cameras Are Police Cameras
One morning, James Bridle set out to walk the perimeter of London. He didn't make it all the way, but he did see 427 surveillance cameras.
NOW WHO'S CHANGING THEIR STORY?
Rolling Stone Quietly Changes Its Rape Story Apology
A note that initially said the magazine “misplaced” its trust in an alleged gang rape victim was edited Saturday to say the “mistakes are on Rolling Stone.”
A BOND WOMAN, NOT GIRL
James Bond Finally Falls For A Woman His Own Age
There is another James Bond movie in the works, the 24th in the series of gun-slingin', sex-havin', Russia-or-whoever-it-is-nowadays-hatin' flicks to appear on-screen since Sean Connery kicked the whole thing off. But next year's film, Spectre, features something rarely seen in the Bond world: an age-appropriate co-star.
CORTANA, FIX THIS GAME
The New Halo Is Broken Because You Can Pre-Order It
When gamers give game developers tens of millions of dollars before a game even hits shelves, is that permission to release a buggy game?