Interesting tid-bits

Well, seeing as it's such a beautiful day, I thought I'd look at some pretty disturbing sites. Thanks to james for the links!

First of all, there's this actually quite beautiful (as well as fascinating) slideshow on shivs - which are weapons created inside penitentiaries and made out of what materials inmates can find. Amazing. I think prisoners can be so unbelievably smart and quick-thinking and...resourceful! It's too bad we can't put their talents to better use!

Just remember: "In looking at these as formal objects of design, we should not forget their use and the context of their making. These objects were made to kill people ... or to protect someone from being killed. They may be evocative on many levels, but they should not be romanticized in their isolation; they also speak to a larger context of fear and danger."

Also fascinating is a site showing off prisoners' inventions. If you go to the bottom of the page you can even watch videos of how to make such diverse things as a candle or paper-mache dice, using the most elementary materials!

And I also found this guy who was arrested for drug dealing on school property and who succeeded in escaping from jail! I picked him because he's my age. It's just a little...strange...to view the info of a guy who probably doesn't have much of a chance to make it in life. But he made it out of jail!

If you view the comments on the first shiv page, you'll find links to zip guns and how they can be made. Don't understand a word - I couldn't make one! - but it's interesting stuff. Gotta love the internet.