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Minnesotans: too nice to brag? (No.)

Also, groping Marios.

April 10, 2013 at 5:21PM

(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

You may hate the snow; I hate the snow. Everyone hates the snow by now. Except, perhaps, Biscuit.

Via the Buzzfeed list of 38 things Minnesotans are too nice to brag about. One of which (#26, second pic) is in Fargo, but whatever. And the kid with a Mullet (#2) is wearing a Sioux jersey, but whatever. Did you know that we rever the Bloody Mary? (#36) News to me, but whatever. Read the comments for more suggestions, which remind you that the list was not only long, but lazy. They missed these guys:

(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

No Spam? Peter Graves? Replacements?

LATEST NEW YORK BAN "Now, why didn't I think of that?" said J. Jonah Jameson. CBS reports:

When costumes are outlawed, only supervillains will have costumes. It sounds like a 1960s Spiderman plot: en route to deliver the serum that will save Aunt May, he's stopped by the police for wearing a costume without a permit.

The law was proposed because something bad happened.

But that's because the fuzz took the kid's word, man. Ask Cookie's associate: a man "identified in court as the Cookie Monster character's partner, did not want to answer questions on camera, but earlier told reporters: 'They're lying. He didn't do it. He's not like that.'" Well then. Case dismissed.

Here's the deal. Guys dress up as beloved characters, hang around tourist destinations, wheedle their way into getting photographed with the kid, then demand money. It's not always kids; CBS notes:

You know, it's been decades since I played anything that contained a Mario; that was Donkey Kong. I didn't like Donkey Kong, because it was just memorization. Not a lot of strategy in Donkey Kong. We knew the guy who was trying to save the Princess was named Mario. I've imagined him whenever I see something about a Mario-related game, a genre that includes about 3,206 games on every Nintendo platform from the Wii U to the old Nintendo Abacus back in the 2nd century. I know they introduced a brother at some point, though. That would be Luigi He's dressed in a green costume. My point is this: while you can be groped by a Super Mario Brother, it would be more accurate to say she was groped by Mario, or groped by Luigi. It's like saying someone was groped by a Baldwin Actor Brother. Narrow it down, please.

A few years ago, this law would have had a chilling effect on the Toy Fair; characters from comics, TV shows, cartoons and the like would mill around the Toy Manufacturers of America's HQ in lower Manhattan, delighting passersby and groping no one. I went to a few back in the 90s, and remember a guy who wore a Mr. T outfit. The photographer took a picture of me threatening to hit him.

(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Of course, he probably wouldn't have needed to get a permit for wearing a Mr. T outfit, since he was, in fact, Mr. T.

Anyway, is there anything else New York hasn't gotten around to banning? Possibly. It's going to be illegal to buy a fake designer purse on the street. Fine: $1,000 and a YEAR IN PRISON.

FUN Via Alexis Madrigal at Atlantic, a collection of hypnotic GIFs that teach you how to play pinball. (Via Alexis Madrigal at Atlantic.) I can do all of those, except for the Death Save. It actually hurts to watch, because I can't imagine moving the machine that much without tilting. The last time I played pinball? Oh, it's been . . . days. Pirates of the Caribbean at the arcade in the Humphrey Terminal. It's gone a bit wobbly in the legs, but it's still a good table. What makes a good table, you ask? One I can beat on the first quarter, that's what.