Links for Friday (FRIDAY!), 2/3/2012 February 3, 2012

BoingBoing - ID required to buy teaspoons, which are "drug paraphernalia":

When Elinor Zuke went to the checkout stand of a store in the UK to buy a pack of teaspoons, a shop worker told her she wouldn't be allowed to buy then until she presented photo identification. The reason: "Tt was because of the risk they could be used for drugs -- heroin users 'cook up' the drug in teaspoons."

GamePolitics - Why Ubisoft's 'Always On' DRM is a Bad Idea:

Ubisoft's plan to take down servers next week shows why "always on" DRM is a bad idea. During the maintenance the publisher has planned next week, any game that has "always online" DRM will not be playable. That means that legitimate copies of games won't work. Which games will be broken next week? Owners of PC games such as HAWX 2, Might & Magic: Heroes 6, and The Settlers 7; owners of Mac titles including The Settlers, Assassin's Creed and Splinter Cell: Conviction; and any other games that require a login to a DRM server.

Comment: So stupid. This style of DRM only punishes paying customers who agree to be shackled thusly. It’s exactly why I’m a pirate.

The Hope Blog – News Editor says Tattoos are Classless and Worthless:

But something girls seem to forget nowadays, or maybe have not been taught, is that women hold the world’s class and elegance in their hands, as well. So what’s more attractive than a girl with a nice body? I’ll tell you what: a girl with class. Looks may not last, but class does. And so do tattoos.

An elegant woman does not vandalize the temple she has been blessed with as her body. She appreciates it. She flaunts it. She’s not happy with it? She goes to the gym. She dresses it up in lavish, fun, trendy clothes, enjoying trips to the mall with her girlfriends. She accentuates her legs with high heels. She gets her nails done. She enjoys the finer things in life, all with the body she was blessed with.

But marking it up with ink? That’s just not necessary.

Comment: For those of you who weren’t aware of this… special and spectacularly uninformed take on why you supposedly shouldn’t defile your body with ink (which translates out to “EW! TATTOOS ARE IIIICKYYY!”), welcome to the club, and be aware that the internet hate machine is already all over her… for better or for worse.

Wisconsin Gazette - Komen Foundation offers pink handgun to promote Breast Cancer Awareness Month:

Discount Gun Sales has teamed up with the Susan G. Komen Foundation to offer a pink version of its popular Walther P-22 handgun in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The Komen Foundation, which sponsors pink-ribbon walks and other events to raise money for breast cancer research, is embroiled in controversy following its decision to defund Planned Parenthood.

An undisclosed portion from the sale of each Walther P-22 “Hope Edition” will be donated to the Seattle Branch of the Susan G. Komen Foundation. The gun retails for $429.99.

Jezebel - In NYPD Custody, Trans People Get Chained to Fences and Poles:

Adkins was chained up for eight hours, sometimes with his arm twisted painfully behind him, before he was finally released. When I reached Adkins by email, he told me, "I have been in touch with the Internal Affairs Department of the NYPD and they are investigating the officers I encountered on October 1st." However, "No one has apologized to me for the treatment I encountered." Adkins also mentioned that he was working on "encouraging the NYPD to adopt a protocol and start a full education program for its officers and staff on how to treat transgender detainees." The department currently has no official procedure for arresting or holding trans people. And Adkins isn't the first to ask for one.