Random Monday Links

* Today Jim Henson has been dead for 21 years. In other news, the world has been completely terrible for 21 years.

* American popular culture hits rock bottom: Seth MacFarlane will reboot The Flintstones.

* Pollutocrat Koch fueling far right academic centers at universities nationwide.

* Is there any governmental body more useless than the FEC? I mean really.

* I grow old: AIM is dead.

* From the too-bad-it-will-never-happen file: I, Amy Myers, do hereby challenge Representative Michele Bachmann to a Public Forum Debate and/or Fact Test on The Constitution of the United States, United States History and United States Civics.

* And alas, Trump!

Thursday Night Links

* Lucylou is illustrating Harry Potter.

* Parts 3 and 4 of Foundation Week at io9.

* Also at io9: An infographic explaining the Phantom Time Hypothesis. Is the idea really that complicated?

* TEPCO has confirmed what we already knew: Fukushima suffered a full meltdown.

* Even more Portal 2 speedruns.

* When Facebook smeared Google.

* Republican follies! Jon Huntsman pulls a Pawlenty, pretends he doesn’t believe in climate change anymore. The John Ensign case has been referred to the Department of Justice for prosecution. John McCain hates torture again. The Wall Street Journal hates Mitt Romney. And so does Mitt Romney.