Happy Hanukkah, everyone!

When its Hanukkah time, its Hebrew Hammer time. Oh, the hundreds of times I've had to explain that Hanukkah is not Jewish Christmas!

This clip is from the Hebrew Hammer, check out the trailer.

Video Link

Mark posted about Kleargear, the company that ruined a dissatisfied customer's credit rating and fined her $3500 for posting a negative review when she didn't receive her goods. The company went into "social media hiding" after the story hit the net, but that didn't help the customers whose lives they'd ruined.

Now, Public Citizen has threatened legal action against Kleargear on behalf of Jen and John Palmer, demanding that the company clear the couples' credit, pay $75,000 in restitution; and agree to refrain from similar future shenanigans. Go Public Citizen!

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Check out some of the great videos we've blogged lately, which you can watch in our video archives:

• Bimbo's Initiation: Max Fleischer's darkest cartoon
• Menorah in Kerbal Space Program
• Michelle Steilen shows off her Bones Bearings
• When mushrooms go to war
• Mad Men with party horns in lieu of cigarettes
• Tropes vs Women in Video Games: Ms. Male Character
• Eminem as Max Headroom

Boing Boing: Video archives

Last Saturday, I was lucky to see a screening of Mark Watts' biographical film of his father, Alan Watts, "Why not Now?"--and it is fantastic. Alan Watts, who died in 1973, helped explain Eastern philosophy and approaches to life and being in a way that Westerners like me can understand. His work endures today and is some of the most helpful stuff I've ever read ('The Book' is a great place to start.)

Speaking to the audience before the screening, Mark Watts explained that as he was working on the film he realized that every word he added to the film's narrative meant he had to drop something he father had said more clearly. Mark discovered there was enough of his father's own voice, from his father's radio shows and other sources, to allow Alan to speak for himself. The film is available for purchase at the AlanWatts.org website.

Here are some short animations that the South Park guys did to accompany some of those recordings:

Video Link

It's a cosmic internet truth: if you like us on this blog, you'll love us on whatever social media service you dig most. So join the intergalactic Boing Boing community on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, Flickr (we have a pool where readers share photos), and YouTube. We even do IRC! And of course, check out our beloved BBS.

Distributed today to all users of the 23andMe home genetic testing service, after the FDA ordered the firm to halt sales of new kits:

Dear 23andMe Customers,

I wanted to reach out to you about the FDA letter that was sent to 23andMe last Friday.

It is absolutely critical that our consumers get high quality genetic data that they can trust. We have worked extensively with our lab partner to make sure that the results we return are accurate. We stand behind the data that we return to customers - but we recognize that the FDA needs to be convinced of the quality of our data as well.

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Here's Harow's polygonal skull armchair, which does a pretty good job of hiding the skull from the front, making it just the thing for supervillains with a need for furnishings that work when on the job or taking a break. Price on demand, which probably means, if you have to ask, you can't afford it.

HAROW - Fauteuil Crâne (via Laughing Squid)

San Francisco Opera: the Barber of Seville —

I saw the SF Opera's current production of 'the Barber of Seville' last night. It was wonderful. My favorite aspect was the set and its design. Their use of forced perspective was very clever. — Jason • 4

This insightful Donna Barstow comic strip perfectly illustrates the depth and breadth of her humor.

In 2012, cartoonist Donna Barstow tried to get criticism of her numbingly unfunny strips taken off the net. Her weapon of choice? An ill-informed belief that copyright not only trumps well-established fair use defenses, but acts as a kind of magic "shut up" button to silence critics. In spite of the embarrassing public results, it seems she has not learned her lesson.

Now, nearly 18 months on, Barstow apparently used Google's takedown tool to request that it remove links to former federal prosecutor Ken "Popehat" White's stern critique of her legal ignorance—a page that now ranks #2 on search results for Barstow's name.

The request claims that Popehat published her "private information", but the only private information concerned is her own signature, as found on her cartoon strips, as published very widely—and not just by her critics.

"I've written back to Google," writes Ken White. "I presume they won't fall for what I can only characterize as a dishonest — and even fraudulent — attempt to de-list criticism."

Barstow may be egged-on by Charles Carreon, a lawyer whose own censorious efforts--and a resulting run-in with more competent legal minds--cost him dearly.

Benjamin writes, "I've always been fascinated by pictures of the Internet. However, I usually find that they aim to visualize the connections between the screens rather than the people behind them. This drawing experiment is about trying to create a more human representation of the web made up of requests from people around the globe. You can ask me to draw anything you like. Pledge a minimum of one dollar through Kickstarter, message me your request and I'll add it to the final drawing."

Internetopia - the supersized Internet drawing.