In the hopes of increasing registered and polite participation in our comments section, Austinist has decided to publish a "Top 5" list of our favorite reader responses from the past week. There are no prizes this week, but one never knows what might develop in the future. Now, on to the main attraction! 1 "I'm gazing into the abyss, but all I'm seeing is a 6-BR split-level mansion, with swimming pool & cabana in back."......

The Spicewood bar where an Austin Police commander and her husband, also an officer, were drinking before dying in a motorcycle crash was shut down by the TABC Today was the 41st anniversary of the UT Tower shootings Six cases of human West Nile Virus have been reported in Texas this year After the scandal earlier this year where UT's financial aid chief Lawrence Burt had improper dealings with a student loan company, the......

Banner week for SFist as the site's new editor introduced himself -- hooray for Brock! While the NY Times weighed in on SF's mayoral race, only SFist had the (insert tongue firmly into cheek) hard-hitting latest on candidate/activist Josh Wolf. Coverage of a protest vs. gentrification spawned a fantastic debate amongst SFist's readers. Finally, from the sublime to the ridiculous: video of a man that confused a Board of Supes meeting with "open mic......

God, we're so sick of Snakes on a Plane that we want to kill anyone and everyone that makes a "something on a something" joke. But then we realized that there was no way we could ever win this fight, and, hell, if you can't beat them, we might as well join them. And with that, you have the theme of this weeks' Gothamist network post. Austinist makes it easy for us, with Candidate on......

Our favorite local posts for the week: Jeff Beckham posts on the phenomena that are iPod guides to Austin. Los Brushes ponders the space-time continuum. Paul Burka from Texas Monthly now has a blog, after writing last year that they were just a fad. Eileen at ITPT takes him on. McChris riffs on the smartest cities listing. Karmalized is being overrun by figs. Favorite Random Blog of the Week: ultra8201, because he asked so......

Local linky goodness this week: Miss Adventure is called a handsome woman. The Texas Monthly site has a version for media and a version for regular readers. Jeff Beckham wonders why that is. Curly fries are a necessity for some. Weblogsky remembers Clifford Antone. ITPT has a very short, yet poignant, reflection on Lloyd Bentsen. Random Favorite Blog of the Week: Rubber Legs and Ritas. Mike blogs about running and drinking (not at the......

*This post comes from Austinist Special World Cup Correspondent Ben Gardner, Co-Host of KOOP’s SoccerMad, who will be traveling to Germany for this year’s Cup.* Elvis and Liz Taylor are dancing the tango. The Merry Pranksters stop at the Fillmore to catch Jefferson Airplane. Dr. Zhivago hits the screens, and “The Newlywed Game” premieres on ABC. The year is 1966 and the Beatles are more famous than Jesus. It has been forty years since England,......