Save The Clock Tower.

The stunning Sombrero galaxy

js

Don't mind us. We're just chillaxing.

NEKO くらぶ

マイブームにゃ

ペンギン真似遊びにゃ

He's a rebel ;)

Cat logic

Weird Al’s polka medleys are always the bomb, man.

"Wrecking Ball" by Miley Cyrus

"Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People

"Best Song Ever" by One Direction

"Gangnam Style" by Psy

"Call Me Maybe" by Carly Rae Jepsen

"Scream & Shout" by will.i.am feat. Britney Spears

"Somebody That I Used To Know" by Gotye feat. Kimbra

"Timber" by Pitbull feat. Kesha

"Sexy and I Know It" by LMFAO

"Thrift Shop" by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis feat. Wanz

"Get Lucky" by Daft Punk feat. Pharrell

Ryan Lang

How to Cut Down a Tree in the Korean DMZ —- Operation Paul Bunyan, 1976.

Perhaps the most heavily armed border in the world, the Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as a buffer between South Korea (backed by the Unites States) and the militaristic regime of North Korea.  Created in 1953 at the end of the Korean War, the demilitarized zone is a 4 km neutral area where neither side can deploy significant military forces.  When the DMZ was created in 1953, a small sapling grew in the UN Command side of a region near the town of Panmunjom.  By the mid 1970’s that sapling had grown into a large 100 ft tall poplar tree which blocked the view between UN lines and a small checkpoint guarding a bridge which led to the North Korean side of the DMZ.  Because of this blindspot it was not uncommon for North Korean soldiers to enter the DMZ and attempt to abduct American and South Korean guards.

On August 18th, 1976 UN Command decided that the blindspot had to be removed after an incident led to US soldiers being held captive at gunpoint.  Five South Korean soldiers and a dozen US troops entered the zone to trim the the poplar tree.  The team was armed only with axes and machetes as firearms are forbidden in the DMZ.  As the team began trimming the tree, a delegation from the North Korean side arrived with 35 soldiers armed with axes, clubs, and crowbars.  The commander of the North Korean force was Lt. Pak Chul, an officer notorious for stirring up trouble on the DMZ.  Lt. Pak ordered the team to cease their trimming, claiming the tree had been planted by the Great Leader Kim il Sung and was under his care.  When the tree trimming team refused to stop, the North Koreans attacked leading to a 30 second scuffle.  By the time UN forces had chased off the North Koreans, Capt. Arthur Bonifas had been bludgeoned to death and Lt. Mark Barrett was mortally wounded.

In response to the attack which killed two American officers, UN Command decided that the tree would be completely removed with the aid of overwhelming force.  Called “Operation Paul Bunyan”, the operation was about more than just cutting down a tree in the DMZ, it was specifically designed to intimidate North Korea. Two eight man teams of US combat engineers entered the DMZ armed with industrial chainsaws to cut down the tree.  They were escorted by a 64 man team of South Korean special forces, all hand to hand combat experts and all armed with clubs, swords, and spears.  

Elsewhere larger forces where martialing. Aircraft squadrons were deployed all over South Korea, running tactical patrols near the DMZ. The USS Midway aircraft carrier task force dropped anchor in the sea of Japan, prepared to launch bomber strikes on North Korea within a minutes notice. Tens of thousands of American and South Korean troops were placed on high alert, ready to fend off a full scale attack across the DMZ. Another 12,000 American soldiers and 1,800 Marines were also shipped from Japan to South Korea to aid in the effort. American and South Korean forces were preparing for war, and it seemed they were about to go to war over a 100 foot poplar tree in the middle of nowhere.

On August 21st, 1976 Operation Paul Bunyan commenced and the American/South Korean team entered the DMZ to cut down the poplar tree.  On the North Korean side stood the infamous Lt. Pak and 200 men, who entered the DMZ with assault rifles and machine guns in blatant violation of DMZ rules.  As the team began cutting down the poplar tree the North Koreans began to advance, but immediately halted when 7 Cobra attack helicopters appeared on the UN side, ready to swoop in to the aid of the tree cutting team.  Supporting them was a flight of B-52 bombers and squadrons of F-4 Phantoms, prepared to strike if the North Koreans dared try anything.  The North Koreans watched in silence as the team felled the tree in 42 minutes.  A 20 ft tall stump was deliberately left standing.  

In the end the incident did not lead to full scale war.  Today tensions along the DMZ continue as relations between the US and North Korea continue to degrade.

Scammer Targeting Tumblr Artists

The title says it all really. So if nothing else, please share and reblog this post to raise awareness for those that might be caught out - both artists and followers. For a TL:DR, please look at the bottom of the post

What is happening?

Right now, there is at least one person actively impersonating multiple artists across tumblr in an effort to scam their followers into paying for fake ‘cheap commissions’. The scammer will clone a tumblr, usually using a slight change to the url/account name to look like the real deal. They will then message people directly through Tumblr with messages along the lines of “Hey, i’m doing cheap commissions right now. DM me to get one”. Naturally, this is ends up just being a way to take their money without giving anything back in return.

Who does this affect?

Everyone. Simple as that. As long as the scammer in question works unopposed, they are free to spread their influence and continue to scam more people. Even if you haven’t been targeted yet, it does not mean you are safe or immune. Several artists have already fallen victim to this scammer, and I encourage any artists that have to reblog this post with the details of their affected account(s) and the ones the scammer has set up.

How can we stop this?

Tumblr, like many other social media platforms, seems to care very little about ‘minor’ occurences like this one, and despite reaching out directly to them over a week ago through multiple avenues of contact - they have refused to comment on the situation, provide a recommended response for users, or take action on behalf of those already affected. Despite this, there are still tools at our disposal that we can use to make this scam more difficult, and to increase its visibility to those within Tumblr staff that are required by policy to take action. Tumblr has the following to say on the topic of impersonation: Confusion or Impersonation. Don’t do things that would cause confusion between you or your blog and a person or company, like registering a deliberately confusing URL. Don’t impersonate anyone. While you’re free to ridicule, parody, or marvel at the alien beauty of Benedict Cumberbatch, you can’t pretend to actually be Benedict Cumberbatch. They then provide a link to this online form that you can fill out if you suspect someone’s identity is being confused. Unfortunately, this can only be filled out if you are the victim of impersonation. In other words, only the artists can fill this out legitimately. So, what about the followers and users of tumblr whom aren’t being impersonated? Our most valuable tool in this online platform is the platform itself. It enables us to spread our word near-virally across all the many sub-communities on Tumblr with remarkable efficiency for a user-driven system. We can take advantage of that effect to increase awareness of the situation. Even if you - the one reading this right now - aren’t an artist or don’t know an artist, the act of reblogging this post or sharing it directly with friends improves it’s ‘ranking’ in popularity increasing its chances to be seen by more people. We don’t need everyone on Tumblr to see the post for it to be effective, just like we don’t need the entirety of the human population of the world to be immune to a disease for that disease to be rendered ineffective or eradicated. If enough people are aware, the likelihood of pulling off a successful scam increases dramatically reducing efficiency to a point that it no longer becomes profitable to continue.

Why should I care?

It disheartens me to say this, but of the many artists I contacted directly over the past week to warn about this issue many of them refused to listen or dodged the responsibility with lines like;

“I’m not being impersonated, so it doesn’t affect me”

“I’m just one person. I can’t make an impact”

“I need to take care of my community. Other people can look after theirs”

This is honestly disappointing that so many artists or art-rebloggers care so little as to intentionally wave the responsibility of keeping their followers and fellow artists safe from this, that they cannot spare 10 seconds of their time to share an informative post. I’m not here to bash artists, but it is time that everyone takes responsibility for their own communities, and of those around them. Artists: You have a responsibility to ensure that your followers and fans aren’t being abused by someone who may impersonate you. If they succeed, your reputation will be damaged, and your followers will resent you. Your followers are also almost guaranteed to be following other artists meaning your efforts can spread beyond your own circle of influence, so don’t be naive when you think you have little effect. Followers: You have just as much responsibility to be aware of those that might try to scam you or your fellow followers. Don’t just sit in silence when you see something wrong: Ignoring the issue only makes it more resilient to our efforts to stop it. You are the vocal majority if you just use your voices to be heard!

TL:DR

A scammer is impersonating artists and scamming money from their followers under the guise of 'cheap commissions’. If we ignore the issue, it will get worse. Every single person that reads this can afford to spend just 10 seconds to reblog and share this post. Those 10 seconds can save others from being scammed for hundreds of dollars. Reblog & Share

Mara Wilson’s Important Message For Teens Living With Mental Illness

Looking back on her experience with mental health issues, Mara Wilson wishes someone had told her that being depressed and having anxiety was OK. Since no one did that for her growing up, she’s taking the opportunity to tell young people now. The former child actress and current writer teamed up with Project UROK, a nonprofit organization devoted to helping teens with mental illness. WATCH the full video video, where Wilson opens up about the mental issues she’s had over the years including anxiety,depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Using electricity to make a Nikola Tesla portrait

(submitted by multilateralmask)