Taylor Berman · 09/20/13 01:17PM

Lest anyone think he’s too cool after yesterday’s historic interview, Cool Pope Francis denounced abortion today as a symptom of “throw-away culture” and encouraged Catholic doctors not to perform them.

Bubble Watch: Professional Doomsayer Edition

Hamilton Nolan · 09/20/13 01:08PM

As sure as we know the economy is going up, we know that the economy shall also, sooner or later, come back down. Whence shall the next poisonous economic tumor begin? Today we turn our alert gaze to the predictions of a dude who should know.

Summer Ends in the Middle of Everything

Rich Juzwiak · 09/20/13 12:30PM

A few weeks ago, I found myself in the same room as the only person that I've ever physically fought. It was a fight that I’d gone into begrudgingly and for the sake of appearances—because I wasn’t going to let another guy hit me in front of a group of people without hitting him back. It was prove-yourself theater, and though two of us were in the cast, it was my one-man show.

Hamilton Nolan · 09/20/13 12:01PM

Due to high upkeep costs, a full 60% of the arisocrat-owned historic estates in Great Britain are now open to the public, for revenue-generating purposes. Might as well go ahead bring that on up to 100%, by imprisoning all the owners.

Cord Jefferson · 09/20/13 11:56AM

North Carolina's Randolph County Board of Education is reconsidering its decision to ban the Ralph Ellison novel Invisible Man for having questionable literary value. The Courier-Tribune reports that at the hearing to ban the book "there was no indication during the discussion if [the board] had all read it."

Taylor Berman · 09/20/13 11:10AM

House Republicans just advanced a bill that would continue to fund the government for the next three months, but would also remove all funding for President Obama's healthcare plan. If the Senate doesn't approve the bill — and it won't - much of the federal government could shut down on October 1.

Popular Underground Drug Market Shuts Down for 'Security Reasons'

Adrian Chen · 09/20/13 10:10AM

It just became a little harder to buy drugs online. After launching this past April, the drug market Atlantis became one of the most popular places to buy and sell illegal drugs on the Dark Net. Today Atlantis announced it's shutting down because of "security reasons," which should freak out a lot of inhabitants of the shadier places of the internet.

How'd This Horse Get on the Roof?

Neetzan Zimmerman · 09/20/13 09:50AM

A horse is a horse, of course, of course, and no horse can climb on the roof, of course, that is, of course, unless that horse is bored.