Headlines from October 25, 2012

The GOP is now so splintered that a Romney win could spell the end of the Reagan coalition. #opinions
For the first time since the Great Depression, median family income has fallen substantially over an entire decade.
Writer Vanessa Veselka remembers the time in 1985 that she hitched a ride with the notorious Truck Stop Killer. #longreads
For businesses in Saudi Arabia, the Hajj equals big profits.
All of western Europe followed New York City. Bloomberg looks back on his controversial decisions.
As you’d expect, scientists by and large agree genetically modified foods are harmless.
Science proposes how to undo global warming, but carbon sucking and sun shielding pose their own dangers.
Related: Anthony Doerr on the new generation of geoengineers. #tmn
How a speech script foiled an attempt to assassinate Teddy Roosevelt.
China spends millions to make Mo Yan’s hometown into a “cultural experience.”
Google Street View has fundamentally changed the way that artists work. #photos
A handy guide to remixing without getting sued. #infographic
The erotic element of nonerotic massage is somehow comical. John Jeremiah Sullivan’s multiday massage tour.
U.S. oil production on track to surpass Saudi Arabia’s, and imports are falling.
Behold the coveted female swing voter of 2012: “Waitress mom.”
Survey finds academics are drifting further to the left, with only 11% identifying as conservative.
Gluten-free food market expected to exceed $6.6 billion by 2017.
Even equipped with solar panels, cows can’t photosynthesize enough power to meet their daily needs.
Reasons why most women and some men can’t do a pull-up: too weak, too fat, too long.
Study finds men and women can’t be friends because men are convinced that everyone’s attracted to them. via
From Sinatra it is hard to descend. Reporter brings her father along to cover a Frank Sinatra, Jr. concert.
It’s illegal to dance in Japan under laws that go back to when dancing was linked to prostitution.
Brazilian woman sells her virginity to a Japanese man for $780,000.
Danish man gets out of debt by becoming a gay prostitute and keeping precise spreadsheets and tax records.
New iPad Mini and other tablets lack feature found only in the Atari Orgablet 2600: constant orgasm. #tmn
Thursday short fiction: Charles Yu story about feeling other people’s pain for money.
If I had to be him for five hours, I’d hang myself in a shower stall. Brief history of things said by Anthony Bourdain about other food television stars.
During WWI, “trench magazines” were written and published wherever their editors could set up printing presses. via
Compliments for when you’re in crisis and need a quick boost.