This thing has got baggy pantlegs

"Researchers have developed a cybernetic system to allow physical interaction over the internet. The system allows touching and feeling of animals or other humans in real time, but it's first being tried out on -- chickens," reports Wired News.

"Imagine, a set of official Pajamas Media Wireless Pajamas that would vibrate when the Pajamas Media G70 ("Group Of 70") blogroll has an update," writes professional contrarian Laurence Simon of TBIFOC, referring to a report that "Singapore scientists looking for ways to transmit the sense of touch over the internet have devised a vibration jacket for chickens and are thinking about electronic children's pyjamas for cyberspace hugs." Annoyed by everything that was wrong with PJM's recent launch, Laurence -- Ur catblogger and a PJM blogroller himself -- got mad, and then he got going [87775 -- comment added by Tiny walking across the keyboard -- ed].  His post begat a mini-masterpiece from Mind of Mog, the most beautiful blog in the world:

Puppyblender [Instapundit], hard at work at the computer, “Ah ooo ah oh yeah ahhhhhhhh.”

Hearing the sound, the Instawife [that would be Dr. Helen, herself a blogger of note] asks, “What are you doing dear?”

“Just blogging dear,” he replies.

It's the "herding of cats" thing, blogged here the other day:

Maybe this is the secret heart of where our own Pajamas Media is headed. The herding of cats was a central metaphor of today's blog jam at PM. You can't herd them.  But you can pique their interest and get the job done.  Historically it was the mice feasting on stores of agricultural grain that brought the cats to the table. If the human drama is the grain, the MSM could be the mice, feeding off the fruits of human labor. Let's bring on the bloggers/cats to keep the mouse population under control.

Then there's Laurence's self-generated Pajamas Media Discussion Board, set up independently the other day in the absence of any such feedback function at the official PJM site, that has drawn constructive criticism from InstaPundit himself. Ann Althouse agrees [we think]:

I was just scanning the Pajamas Media discussion boards and ran across this comment:

I *very* much agree that the site needs to be bloggier. The ad revenue is supposed to mostly come from the associated blogs, not the portal, with the portal's role being to boost traffic to the blogs, give people an easy starting point, and provide some original reporting, etc., that will encourage people to go there and encourage bloggers to do more original reporting.

That means that the portal needs to be interesting, and to change a lot. Right now it's neither.

I thought: Wow, that's about the smartest, clearest thing I've read here yet. Who said that? Then I see, it was Glenn Reynolds. Okay. Well, see? That was a blind reading test.

We're not sure, but Laurence Simon may have also been the one who started a Pajamas Media Wikipedia page. This thing has got baggy pantlegs.

Comments

[mog]

Expounded upon beautifully as always. Thanks for the kind words. Not sure who had the most fun with that, Lair or me. He's been going at it with both barrels today.

[Teresa]

Okay I can think of a number of wickedly funny things to say about vibrating pyjamas... but I will refrain. *grin*

I was going to comment on the other stuff - but it has become post length - so I think I have to go blog about it.