chumble spuzz

That’s quite an opening sentence.

‘Poo-machine’ attracts crowds at Australia’s ‘subversive adult Disneyland’

Smelling excrement may not be everyone’s idea of fun, but for those who like to push the boundaries, Australia’s most controversial new museum may be just what they are looking for.

…the most talked-about piece is the Cloaca Professional, labeled the “poo-machine.” It was built by Belgian artist Wim Delvoye to mimic the actions of the human digestive system.

A series of glass receptacles hang in a row with the machine being “fed” twice a day on one end. The food is ground up “naturally,” the way it is in the human body, and the device produces feces on the clock at 2 p.m. at the other end.

(via World News - msnbc.com)

This is an interesting state-by-state look at gay rights laws in the United States from the Guardian. The regional breakdown is nice, and I like the way you can read a state’s general stance on gay rights at a glance once you understand the legend.

I was surprised by two things:

1) At least in terms of the rights analyzed in this graphic, Iowa’s as gay-friendly as any state in the country. I would not have guessed that.

2) Michigan stands alongside Mississippi and Utah as the only states to a) not have laws on the books for any of the listed permissions or protections and to b) specifically prohibit both marriage and adoption by same-sex couples.

Gay rights in the US, state by state

Gay rights laws in America have evolved to allow — but in some cases ban — rights for gay, lesbian and transgender people on a range of issues, including marriage, hospital visitation, adoption, housing, employment and school bullying. The handling of gay rights issues vary by state and follow trends by region.

(via guardian.co.uk)

What is wrong with people?

Drunken grandparents use SUV to tow girl in toy car, deputies say

Belinda and Paul Berloni were arrested on Sunday after a deputy in a marked patrol car saw the SUV pulling a “small plastic hot wheels car” along an access road, authorities said. The vehicle was going about five to 10 miles per hour, the probable cause affidavit said.

(via U.S. News - msnbc.com)

The other image of Mr. Cook hugging Coco was the one that made the rounds, but this was the picture that stuck with me the most from last week’s tornadoes. When a dog looks frightened, things must be pretty scary.

A friend in need

Greg Cook passes his dog Coco to Donnie Watts through a window of his tornado-destroyed home in Limestone County, Ala., on March 2. Cook rushed home after the winds had stopped to find his house and dozens of others destroyed, but his chocolate Labrador survived.

Then and now: The 2011 Japan tsunami

Last year’s tsunami in Japan caused what is estimated to have been the most expensive natural disaster ever, with more than 15,000 lives lost. See before-and-after photos.

Battered bridge: This combination (above) of pictures shows residents of Ishinomaki crossing a bridge covered with tsunami debris four days after the disaster. The second picture shows the same scene on Jan. 13, 2012.

(photos by Kim Jae-hwan / AFP - Getty Images via msnbc.com)

This is one of the weirder stories I’ve read in a while, and “Piggyback Bandit” is probably the most comical criminal nickname I’ve ever heard.

‘Piggyback Bandit’ befuddles his teenage victims

What they were dealing with the night of Feb. 4 was the Piggyback Bandit — Sherwin Shayegan of Bothell, Wash., a 28-year-old man who ingratiates himself with high school sports teams, then hoists his 5-foot-8, 240-pound frame onto the backs of the student athletes.

Shayegan’s antics stretch back to 2008 and had been mainly confined to Washington and Oregon. But since last fall, he has worked his way east to Montana, North Dakota and Minnesota, leaving a trail of befuddled athletes in his wake.

Shayegan has asked for piggybacks, attempted to pay for piggybacks and just sprung one upon an unsuspecting kid. He favors basketball games, but he also has leapt onto hockey, soccer and football players.

(via msnbc.com)