ComPost: February 13, 2011 - February 19, 2011

Facebook adds 'civil union' and 'domestic partnership' -- evolution of relationships

Hooray, Facebook has added civil unions and domestic partnerships to its options for relationships! Here's a screenshot of the new options. It's certainly an improvement on what was available during the Stone Age. And compared to the 19th century, I...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 18, 2011; 3:09 PM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (2)
Categories:  Only on the Internet, Petri  | Tags:  Facebook, kids these days, sex  
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Live chat at 11:30 a.m. ET!

It's been quite the week! And from the serious to the not-so-serious, from crouching Watson to hidden legislators to bankrupt Borders, I'll be chatting online about it at 11:30 a.m. ET right here! Join me! And to spur some discussion,...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 18, 2011; 9:41 AM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (1)
Tags:  quizzes  
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Monopoly Live? Are we really this lazy?

Everything about this is wrong. Watch this video, and you will see why. "Monopoly Live" is a new Monopoly edition that Hasbro says is coming out this fall. Compared to what is going on in the streets, I understand that...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 17, 2011; 4:53 PM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (2)
Categories:  Epic Failures, Petri, Worst Things Ever  | Tags:  America, Michelle Obama, Monopoly, argh, technology  
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IBM's Watson wins! First Jeopardy! -- next, bad puns?

Okay, Watson. You won. Are you happy now? No, I am pretty sure that you are not, given that you are a machine without emotions, but it felt like the right rhetorical question to ask. I've been reading "Final...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 17, 2011; 1:52 PM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (3)
Categories:  Petri, That's awkward  | Tags:  Jeopardy!, puns, twitter  
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How Obama's meeting with Facebook's Zuckerberg should go

(This scene of President Obama meeting with Mark Zuckerberg, scheduled for tomorrow, was originally part of the script of The Social Network, but it got cut before it came to theaters. I have no idea why.) INT. SAN FRANCISCO OFFICE...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 16, 2011; 6:05 PM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (3)
Categories:  Petri, That's awkward  | Tags:  Barack Obama, Facebook  
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Natalie Munroe and Nir Rosen: What happens online...

If you don't have anything nice to say, post it online! The instructions have changed over the years. Caveman mothers would admonish: "Don't play with That Which Is Red And Cooks Food! Don't paint overly informative pictures about our...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 16, 2011; 2:59 PM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (5)
Categories:  Epic Failures, Only on the Internet, Petri  | Tags:  Facebook, millennials, online comments, oops, technology, twitter  
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What happened to Lara Logan was unacceptable

Usually, this is a humor blog. But this is not funny. CBS News reported today that on Friday in Cairo, as news of Mubarak's resignation flooded the crowd, reporter Lara Logan was assaulted: "In the crush of the mob, she...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 15, 2011; 5:56 PM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (128)
Categories:  Petri  | Tags:  Egypt, Lara Logan  
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South Dakota: Abortion isn't illegal, but if you do it, we can kill you

A bill just passed out of committee in the South Dakota House of Representatives states: Homicide is justifiable if committed by any person in the lawful defense of such person, or of his or her husband, wife, parent, child, master,...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 15, 2011; 4:36 PM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (2)
Categories:  Petri, Seems Suspect  | Tags:  South Dakota, abortion, what?  
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The worst part about the Borders bankruptcy

This comic strip from October sums up perfectly how I feel about the Borders bankruptcy. Barnes & Noble is reportedly considering buying the unused inventory and picking up a few of the choicest store locations. But with the loss...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 15, 2011; 1:03 PM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (13)
Categories:  Big Deals, Only on the Internet, Petri, Worst Things Ever  | Tags:  Borders, books, bookstores, reading  
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Happy Valentine's Day! Can someone explain this 'love' thing?

Today is, apparently, Valentine's Day. I'm surrounded by candy hearts admonishing me to do phonetically spelled things like "B MYN" or "LUV U" and bombarded by Groupons inviting me to Couples Wine Outings. But before anything gets more serious,...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 14, 2011; 1:35 PM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (4)
Categories:  Big Deals, Petri, That's awkward  | Tags:  Valentine's Day, law of the jungle, sex  
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Most impressive? The real message of the 2011 Grammys

(AP Photo/Mario Testino for Vogue) "You are confusing what is important with what is impressive," says a character in E. M. Forster's Maurice. That's the Grammys in a nutshell. Oh, Mubarak just stepped down. But is Charlie Sheen all right?...

By Alexandra Petri  | February 14, 2011; 8:12 AM ET  |  Permalink  |  Comments (2)
Categories:  Epic Failures, Petri, Reality? Television  | Tags:  America, Lady Gaga, hubris, oops  
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