by Morgan

I’ve spent long stretches of time the last couple of months without a computer, which means that when I had a working one in my apartment again I devoured new games with more enthusiasm then usual. And I usually have a lot of enthusiasm for games! I also spent a lot of time playing games on my brand new iPad. So for this casual game review column, I’m going to offer a grab-bag of different games for both PC and iPad. Also, to make up for the absence of a column last month, I’ll include a few quick recommendations at the end of this one!

1. THOR: Son of Asgard

First, there’s THOR: Son of Asgard. I know, I know, games based on movies are most often somewhere from mediocre to gorram terrible, but I really enjoyed this one. The tutorial level will get you comfortable with the easy to use, intuitive controls that allow you to use basic attacks and awesome foe-smashing special powers. The graphics are excellent and the game play engrossing. One of my favorite aspects is the storytelling cinematics, which play out in comic-book art form and are very nicely rendered. There are some downsides here though. I got the game for $.99 on sale, but it usually costs $4.99. The game does feel short and I generally do not like dropping five bucks on a shorter game, but for this one I probably would have as I could see myself replaying it several times. Also, from my understanding the game currently does not work well with iPods, so buyer beware if you don’t have an iPad!

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by Nicole Powers

There’s nothing pretty about coal mining at the best of times, but mountaintop removal mining is downright obscene. The process is ugly in every sense of the word, but is less labor intensive, and therefore cheaper and more desirable for the big energy corporations who do it. However the hidden expense in terms of the environment, public health, employment, and subsidies mean that it’s something that the American public is paying dearly for. The cost of mountaintop removal mining is something that is literally and metaphorically killing us.

The sordid details involve deforestation to prepare the site. The ‘overburden’ – in this case a euphemism for the top 250 to 500 feet of a mountain – is then removed using dynamite to reveal the underlying coal seam. The rubble created as the mountaintop is blown away is generally pushed down the mountainside, covering flora and fauna, rivers and streams, and anything else in its wake. Once the coal has been removed the mining companies are supposed to restore the site, but this requirement is at best broadly interpreted, and at worse blatantly flouted with few repercussions.

Fifty percent of the electricity produced in the US comes from coal-powered plants, and thirty percent of the coal used comes from Appalachia. As a result, 500 majestic Appalachian mountains have been destroyed. The biggest perpetrator of this destruction is Massey Energy, who proudly proclaim on their website that their ‘vision’ is ‘to be the premier supplier of quality coal from Central Appalachia to worldwide markets.’

The physical removal of coal however, is only the first stage in a highly toxic chain of events. The coal then has to be prepared, a procedure that uses vast amounts of water to wash off the soil and rock. The byproduct of this is a filthy sludge, which contains all manner of heavy metals and other such carcinogens, that is stored in vast impoundments. These sludge ponds are generally lazily constructed using dirt that is blasted off the mountaintop to damn a valley below. For the most part, there’s no concrete or steel reinforcement as would befit dams built on such a scale. Because of this, many of these impoundments are leaking, and, furthermore, because these structures are not lined, the pollutants even in the sound dams leak into the surrounding water table.

The environmental impact of such mining practices is supposed to be mitigated by the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, which in turn are supposed to be enforced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), and, to some extent, the Army Corps of Engineers. But a Bush-era single word change to the Clean Water Act arrested its ability to control pollution, much to the delight of the polluters. Known as the Fill Rule, the definition of allowable fill material that could be dumped into lakes, rivers, and streams was essentially broadened to include all manner of waste. Thus, the Clean Water Act now serves as a license for big business to pollute.

Because of the intrinsically dirty nature of coal mining and the cozy relationship the industrialists have with those in power (George Bush famously called his election to office ‘a coal-fired victory’ because of the extent of the industry’s contributions to his cause), pollution is an inevitable part of the process and polluters are rarely brought to task. For example, according to Environmental Protection Agency records, Massey Energy committed over 60,000 violations between 2000 and 2006, but has paid a pittance in fines, which when compared to the company’s profits barely even register as a tickle on the wrist, never mind the slap they’re supposed to be.

In the lieu of the government acting in the interests of the people it’s supposed to represent, the battle for clean air and water, and sustainable energy and jobs is being fought on the ground by those Big Coal directly adversely effects. The struggle of one such community in West Virginia’s Coal River Valley, whose homes, land, health, and employment prospects have been blighted by Massey’s mountaintop removal mining operations, is documented in a new film, The Last Mountain.

A collaboration between filmmaker Bill Haney (whose previous credits include the Academy Award-shortlisted Price of Sugar) and renowned environmental lawyer and activist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., The Last Mountain should be mandatory viewing for anyone who’s ever switched on a light. The film not only tells the inspiring story of the grassroots fight against the Goliath that is Massey, but also underlines our implicit culpability, which can be summed up by one simple yet staggering statistic: sixteen pounds of coal is burned each day for every man woman and child in the US.

SuicideGirls participated in roundtables with Haney and Kennedy. The following is excerpted from the interview with Haney (our conversation with Kennedy is posted here).

Read our interview with Bill Haney on SuicideGirls.com.

The Last Mountain opens in Los Angeles* on Wednesday, June 15, and in Irvine, Pasadena, Philadelphia, San Francisco*, and Berkeley on Friday, June 17.

*Bill Haney and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. will appear in person at the Landmark opening night screenings in Los Angeles and San Francisco – visit the Landmark website for more details.

by Laurelin

Dating. I think we all know by now that I suck at it. I’m a tough girl to win over, and the odds of me scaring someone off by date three are pretty damn good despite the initial attraction. I’m going to be honest, I have been sampling what Boston has to offer lately and am having a damn good time with it — it’s summertime, what do you want from me? I’ve realized that keeping an open mind when it comes to guys has meant I have met a lot of cool people who I normally wouldn’t have gone for… I have also met a lot of idiots.

Guys, good lord, I know sometimes girls turn out to be a bit bonkers; especially girls like me who habitually come home a little drunk around 4 AM with a rip in their jeans and a half eaten cheeseburger in their purse. But I figure I may as well tell it like it is; it doesn’t matter how hot you are, it is totally possible to lose even the most captivated girl in ten minutes. Listen up guys. Help me help you, take heed of these simple rules, and then maybe we can all go get a margarita.

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by SG’s Team Agony feat. Yulia and Kraven

Let us answer life’s questions – because great advice is even better when it comes from SuicideGirls.

Q: I have something I’m in hoping an SG could help with — mainly cause it’s about an SG. Over the past year I have had my attention drawn toward a very beautiful Suicide Girl. The problem is that I’m falling for her big time and I’m really not sure how to go about getting her attention with all the other messages she has to wade through sending “love.” I’m sure you girls get all kinds of messages, and disregard most — right? 
Thanks for any and all help with getting connected with my longed for love.


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by Nicole Powers

Producer, DJ, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Mark Ronson has been responsible for some of the freshest sounds of the last few years. Despite his impressive résumé, which includes Amy Winehouse’s seminal album Back to Black, and tracks for Lily Allen (“Littlest Things”) and Adele (“Cold Shoulder”), he’s also a rather humble and an eminently likeable chap, which, along with the aforementioned, explains why so many marquee artists are keen to work with him today.

Ronson came to prominence with work that showcased his own highly stylized aesthetic, which combines a ’60s Motown sound with cool danceable grooves and hipster chic, as evidenced on Back To Black, which was released in 2006, and his second solo full length, Version, which came out the following year. However, he’s not a man to be pigeonholed.

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by Blogbot

A column which highlights Suicide Girls and their fave groups.

This week, Ceres Suicide explains why she likes Girls Only.

Members: 1633 / Comments: 272,096

• WHY DO YOU LOVE IT?: It’s a place I feel I can really open up and share with all the beautiful ladies of SG.
• DISCUSSION TIP: Be supportive, help your sisters, and what happens in the Girls Only group, STAYS in the Girls Only group.
• BEST RANDOM QUOTE: “USING THE SEARCH FUNCTION SAVES LIVES.”
• MOST HEATED DISCUSSION THREAD: “The Bigger, Better CREEPY MEMBER Thread.”
• WHO’S WELCOME TO JOIN?: Girls, women, ladies, gals!

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by SG’s Team Agony feat. Lyxzen and Dalila

Let us answer life’s questions – because great advice is even better when it comes from SuicideGirls.

Q: I’m at a loss to know the best way to introduce some of my interests to the woman I’m dating. For a few years I’ve written fetish erotic fiction, and explored those fetishes in real life as well. I don’t want to have to keep these interests secret, but I’m also unsure about the best way to introduce them. Many are fantasy level fetish stories, but some are closer to reality.

Ideas?

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