American commandos rescued hostages from Somali pirates

The White House:

In a phone call from the U.S. Capitol immediately after the State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama informs John Buchanan that his daughter Jessica was rescued by U.S. Special Operations Forces in Somalia, Jan. 24, 2012. First Lady Michelle Obama stands behind the President. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Here's the story.

Link roundup

1. Penny Arcade's business manager participated in an interview at Reddit.

2. Deadspin's picks for the top 10 sports articles of the year.

3. Teddy Roosevelt once gave possibly the best start to a speech ever:

Friends, I shall ask you to be as quiet as possible. I don't know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot; but it takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose. But fortunately I had my manuscript, so you see I was going to make a long speech, and there is a bullet - there is where the bullet went through - and it probably saved me from it going into my heart. The bullet is in me now, so that I cannot make a very long speech, but I will try my best.

He wasn't joking.

4. The Smithsonian's top 10 science blog posts.

Link roundup

1. I want to thank my current sponsor the Media Design School. If you've been intrigued by the is it real or is it render game, you can read about it here. And if you happen to be in New Zealand next month, you're invited to the Sci-Fi Under the Stars movie night.

2. Abraham Lincoln vs. a giant octopus. And a maze made out of George Washington's hair. Both illustrations were part of a President's Day newspaper insert by McSweeney's.

3. Concept art from Blur's excellent test footage for The Goon.

Daniel Day-Lewis as Abraham Lincoln

Tone Branson imagines how Daniel Day-Lewis will look in Steven Spielberg's upcoming movie about Abraham Lincoln.

*Previously: Jon Hamm as Superman.

Link roundup

1. Paul Robertson posted some new animated gifs.

2. And speaking of games, try the new Adult Swim game, Hipster Kickball.

3. Silly comic about George Washington.

Happy President's Day

Giant presidential mascot heads via.

*Buy US President bobbleheads at eBay.

The true story of George Washington and the cherry tree

The Secret of the Cherry Tree by Ben Chen for Threadless. (Scoring on this one has ended. Hopefully it'll be printed.)

*Buy George Washington toys at eBay.

Link roundup

1. Nick Denton's latest advice to Gawker staff on pulling in a big audience.

2. Terrible story about an Air Force general forced to retire and stripped of his rank for supposedly ordering unauthorized airstrikes against North Vietnamese military targets. He actually acted by order of President Nixon. Via.

3. How conservatives bury liberal stories on Digg. Via.

Batman with a gun (link roundup)

Batman with a gun by Fernando Lucas. Via.

And a few more links:

1. Jon Stewart points out Obama's broken civil liberties promises, and that the last eight presidents have promised to move America towards an energy-independent future.

2. Gawker's guide to Kombucha, "a miracle hippie drink that cures all ailments."

3. "The key to wealth is that it doesn't matter. Once you've had it, you don't think anything of it; you can wear cheap watches." Via.

*Previously: Umbrella Academy pocket watch.

*Buy Swatches at eBay.

Wedding photos (link roundup)

Great photos from a wedding.

And a few more links:

1. Now this is an interview:

Your mother committed suicide, in a pact with a lover, in 1973. Did she suffer from lifelong depression?
No. I think she was having a bad menopause, and she was losing her looks, which were pretty impressive.

Via.

2. "Between 1860 and 1900, seven men were elected President. And three of them were then shot to death."

3. Comment and win a t-shirt.

*Previously: Wedding invitation with a balloon.

*Buy US President bobbleheads at eBay.

A still from the next James Bond movie (link roundup)

Obama staring at Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

And a few more links:

1. Pistachio Asparagus Pesto on Linguine recipe.

2. Here are the apps Gina Trapani has on her Googlephone.

3. Convincing explanation for why California and Florida should absolutely not be spending money on highspeed rail.

4. Why colleges really look at extracurricular activities instead of just grades and test scores.

*Previously: Rick Astley is James Bond.

*Buy James Bond posters at eBay.

A still from the next James Bond movie (link roundup)

Obama staring at Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

And a few more links:

1. Pistachio Asparagus Pesto on Linguine recipe.

2. Here are the apps Gina Trapani has on her Googlephone.

3. Convincing explanation for why California and Florida should absolutely not be spending money on highspeed rail.

4. Why colleges really look at extracurricular activities instead of just grades and test scores.

*Previously: Rick Astley is James Bond.

*Buy James Bond posters at eBay.

Newspaper Club logo (link roundup)

Logo for Newspaper Club, a service that lets you create your own newspaper. Via.

And a few more links:

1. Anti-Barack Obama propaganda collection.

2. You can save a lot of money on sunscreen simply by buying lotion with sunscreen included (unless you need it to be waterproof). Via.

3. Horrifying: "An off-duty Westminster police detective and a California corrections officer were arrested late Saturday in connection with the alleged kidnapping and rape of a 25-year-old woman in Ontario."

*Previously: The first rule of Felt Club is...

*Buy Obama toys at eBay.

Newspaper Club logo (link roundup)

Logo for Newspaper Club, a service that lets you create your own newspaper. Via.

And a few more links:

1. Anti-Barack Obama propaganda collection.

2. You can save a lot of money on sunscreen simply by buying lotion with sunscreen included (unless you need it to be waterproof). Via.

3. Horrifying: "An off-duty Westminster police detective and a California corrections officer were arrested late Saturday in connection with the alleged kidnapping and rape of a 25-year-old woman in Ontario."

*Previously: The first rule of Felt Club is...

*Buy Obama toys at eBay.

The Big Lebowski/The Maltese Falcon mashup (and more)

The Big Lebowski/The Maltese Falcon mashup, Marie Antoinette, and Martin Van Buren - - three images by Alex Lyon, who has various prints on sale here.

*Previously: Poster for The Maltese Falcon.

*Buy The Maltese Falcon posters at eBay.

The Big Lebowski/The Maltese Falcon mashup (and more)

The Big Lebowski/The Maltese Falcon mashup, Marie Antoinette, and Martin Van Buren - - three images by Alex Lyon, who has various prints on sale here.

*Previously: Poster for The Maltese Falcon.

*Buy The Maltese Falcon posters at eBay.

Obama looking at awesome things

Forget that gallery of photos of Obama feigning interest in boring things. Check out photos of Obama looking at awesome things, like the Mach 5, and the Sword of Omens.

*Buy Obama toys at eBay.

Obama looking at awesome things

Forget that gallery of photos of Obama feigning interest in boring things. Check out photos of Obama looking at awesome things, like the Mach 5, and the Sword of Omens.

*Buy Obama toys at eBay.

Glow in the dark Ben Franklin t-shirt

Glow in the dark Ben Franklin t-shirt design by Alex Solis for Threadless. You can vote for it by clicking on the voting widget:



*Previously: Ben Franklin video game boss.

*Buy US President bobbleheads at eBay.

Historical Super-Heroes

Historical Super-Heroes by Joshua Kemble. You can vote for it by clicking on the voting widget:



And here's one more Threadless design:


Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man enjoying a hot soak by Marco Pichardo (Voting just ended).

*Previously: Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man piggy bank.

*Buy Ghostbusters toys at eBay.