Here are a couple of items I’ve been meaning to post for several days and just haven’t gotten around to:

The first is a funny video that explores something I’ve often been annoyed by, our society’s snotty attitude that says sports fans are somehow completely normal while Star Wars (or Star Trek or Farscape or Firefly or any other kind of science fiction) fans are nerds, when the behaviors are, for all intents and purposes, exactly the same:

Really, what’s the difference between dressing up like a Klingon for a weekend convention of like-minded enthusiasts and painting your bare chest and belly in team colors and wearing a block of fake cheese on your head for a game? The fact is, everybody’s a geek for something, and if you’re sufficiently immersed in your particular geekiness, the things you do to indulge your hobby are going to look really weird to those on the outside of your circle.

Next up, a political video, but don’t let that prevent you from playing it. It’s actor Tom Hanks voicing his endorsement for Barack Obama. Now, for the record, I honestly don’t care who Tom Hanks chooses to vote for because his opinion is no more meaningful than anyone else’s, celebrity or not (Hanks himself acknowledges this right up front). But I just thought this video — and what Tom says in it — was really nicely done, with a balance of eloquence, passion, and good-natured self-deprecation. It doesn’t hurt that I happen to agree with much of what he says:

Oh, and I like the antique typewriter collection in the background, too.

Finally, here is a New York Times article I found curiously fascinating, about the custom-tailored suits worn by police detectives. I’ve read in many a spy thriller about suit jackets that have been cut to conceal a pistol, but I never really thought about such things in the real world. Interesting that the NYPD has a particular tailor who specializes in these suits, and that colors matter, and why certain features like side vents are advantageous for the profession… well, I thought it was interesting, at least…