News & Media Round-Up, July 16 - August 1, 2013

CANADA 

The Beaverton (satirical news site)
- Parrot removed from Montreal Biodome after learning too much English

The HillTimes
- Ironically, economy may turn out to be one of the Harper government's biggest failures

Huffington Post (Canada)
- How Harper Uses Psychology to Peddle Myths
- Ontario's McLobster Dreams Have Come True

Toronto Star
- Suspension of EI whistleblower sets dangerous precedent, critics say

Winnipeg Free Press
- Slurpees & Winnipeg: A love story 
- Winnipeg sucks! Slurpee king again


JAPAN

ak47: tumblr
Poor Pikachu! (my caption)

enRoute (Air Canada)
- Inside the Nebuta House Wa Rasse Museum

Japan Pulse
- The last of the McDonald's Jewelry
- Limited-edition burgers, ep. deux
(- A Tale of Two Limited-Edition Burgers: Lotteria's Twin and McD's Gold Ring - July 9)


Japan Times
 - Mount Fuji fee charged, but signs in Japanese
- Plant by numbers

Kotaku.com
- Unique Japanese Mail Boxes Are Wonderful in Rain or Shine
- How a Japanese Radish Became an Internet Hero
- Ferrari Lovers, This Anime Stunt Might Horrify You

WORLD

The Beaverton (satirical news site)
- Kate Middleton gives birth to beautiful, healthy news story 

Kotaku.com
- How Chinese Ingenuity Destroyed Salad Bars at Pizza Hut

 Geekologie.com
- Man Caught Driving With Pliers For A Steering Wheel
  The White House
- President Obama: Trayvon Martin Could Have Been Me

ART/STUFF/DIY

Geekologie.com
- Just What I Always Wanted!: Raw Meat Gift Wrap Paper

imgur
-15 Over-Used Movie Poster Clichés

Kotaku.com
- How To Turn Your Cat into Totoro
- Act fast and you can snag this hilarious Mario warp-pipe cat complex from CatistrophicCreations on Etsy

TAXI
- Crisp Illustrations Of Creatures From Japanese Folklore

VIDEOS

BuzzFeed
- Japanese Animator Films Mesmerizing Lightscapes in Downtown Tokyo

Jezebel.com
- Rad Kids React to Racists Freaking Out About the Cheerios Commerical
- The Daily Show's Zimmerman Coverage Is as Rage-Filled as It Should Be

Entertainment Weekly
- PopWatch: Here's what happens when 280 movies are edited together to sing Vanilla Ice's 'Ice Ice Baby'

YouTube 
- Shut Up & Sit Down, Season 2, Episode 12 - Introduction to Board Games

- YANIS MARSHALL "SPICE GIRLS" Directed By FERNANDO DE AZEVEDO Feat ARNAUD BOURSAIN & MEHDI MAMINE

News & Media Round-Up - June 20-28, 2013

Here is some stuff I've read/watched online recently:

Geekologie.com
- Move Over, Wonderbread: Superman Logo Sandwich Bread
- Animated GIF of All 151 Original Pokemon As Cats

HuffingtonPost.ca 
- 25 Of the Most "Canadian" Words
- 10 Reasons Why Calgarians Love Nenshi (or, How to Be a Leader)
- Mitch Joel: Don't Turn Off Technology -- Turn Off Your Bad Habits
- Elizabeth May: 10 Reasons Why Harper Isn't Really Canadian
- Jeff Rose-Martland: Why the Governor General Should Remove Harper (actual petition to the GG to remove Harper at http://www.change.org/petitions/the-right-honourable-david-johnston-governor-general-of-canada-stop-harper-now#)

Kotaku.com
- This Is "Tank Sushi"
- Japan's Amazing Rice Paddy Art Continues to Dazzle (note: most of the pictures of rice fields using classical Western (Napoleon) or Japanese (samurai, etc.) imagery are from Inakadate, Aomori Prefecture!)
- Toronto Mayor's Crack Scandal Lands Him His Own Video Game

Uniqlo
- (Baskin Robbins) "31" Print Underwear for Women (Japanese)

YouTube.com
- Convos with my 2-year old (About this series: "Actual conversations with my 2 year old daughter, as re-enacted by me and another full-grown man." Particularly love episodes 2 & 3!)
- Extra Credits, Season 6, Episode 16 - Not a Babysitter (About this series: "Join us every week as we take a deeper look at games; how they are made, what they mean and how we can make them better.")
- Shut Up & Sit Down, Season 2, Episode 07 - 1812, The Invasion of Canada (About this series: "Paul and Quinns are two slightly unusual Englishmen who get very passionate about board games and card games. Their mission is simple: To show us just how exciting these cardboard creations can be.")