• President Obama signs Don't Ask, Don't Tell repeal
• Stay classy, Senator Coburn: Republican senator blocking 9/11 First Responders Bill refuses to talk to 9/11 First Responders
• Senate poised to pass nuclear treaty, giving Obama a major victory

On Saturday night, Austin's entertainment district got slammed by an influx of rowdy Santa Clauses, Elves, walking Christmas trees, reindeer, Santa's helpers and other mythical creatures. Believed by the authorities to be a benign, seasonal migration, the Santas created general mayhem along Sixth Street as long as the bars were open. Steve Hopson, Austinist's investigative photographer, was present to document the damage and partake in the spoils. Photos by Steve Hopson, www.stevehopson.com more ›

The other day, I lied to a stranger. I didn’t mean to lie. It began as an accidental misstatement. But then, I didn’t bother to correct myself, and so, like that, my words became a lie. I didn’t feel bad about my mistruth as it helped me meet my goal of quickly extracting myself from an annoying conversation. Given a chance at a do-over, I might even lie again, with purpose and precision, to avoid a confrontation, to get on with my life. The day after I lied, I was in yoga. I go to a class that often resembles more of a cocktail party than some reverent, woo-woo hour of dedication to mind/body/spirit. It’s not unusual for us to crack jokes or chatter whilst our backs are twisting or our butts are aimed at the ceiling. This particular session, the teacher read us an article from the Wall Street Journal about how and when kids lie and what it means. more ›

• SFist saw Christmas Day turn tragic after a Siberian tiger escaped from her pen at the San Francisco Zoo, killing a visitor and mauling two others.
• Phillyist counted down the top ten items on Philadelphia's New Year's wish list.
• Gothamist looked at the wooden bikes being offered for NYC's first bike share program on Governors Island.

This just in: Naughtier-than-Nice News from the North Pole Police Blotter. Criminals filled with the spirit of Christmas have outdone themselves this week. We have only one question: what in the Ebenezer Scrooge is wrong with people? more ›

Photo by Wylie Maercklein, courtesy YTCC The Ultimate Christmas Musical: The Musical!Through 12/22, Th/Fr/Sa at 8pmSalvage Vanguard Theater (map)[info] | [tickets]The North Pole is a pretty raunchy place. That’s what the Yellow Tape Construction Company would lead you to believe, anyway. And while we don’t remember Frosty the Snowman dealing smack in any of the Christmas fables we used to read in kindergarten, it’s not implausible. He may be a sentient amalgamation of button, coal,... more ›

*The views expressed in Truesday are those of the author and do not represent Austinist as a whole. Thank heavens.* -The Editors I don’t want to say that there’s a right way and a wrong way to celebrate The Holidays. That would be foolhardy and dickish. Especially in a city as diversified as this one (we celebrate Christmas AND Thanksgiving!). But something this chick was crying about on NPR this morning got me thinking... more ›

Still from Lions for LambsWe were under the impression that "No Country for Old Men" was opening this weekend, and we just found out it's only coming to "big" cities today—Austinites have to wait till next weekend. Miffed, we're only slightly placated by the other offerings at hand, though Philip Seymour Hoffman is hard to turn down... Lions for Lambs: Meryl Streep is a reporter, Tom Cruise is typecast as a neocon congressman, Robert Redford... more ›

Absolutely nothing, but they're all part of a Halloween-style flash mob being planned for this Saturday, May 5th, in Georgetown. Equal parts bizarre spectacle and fodder for a film to be submitted to AFF next year, the Cinco de Mayo flash mob will take place at a youth championship soccer game. Thus far, they've already convinced a pair of unicyclists, "some" local media, and a mariachi band to come. They're hoping to get at least... more ›

Happy Holidays! Chances are, you're reading this the day after Christmas, back at your day job after all-too-short a holiday, and the last thing you want from us is stuff about the holidays. But that's just too bad. Because, see, here in the Ist-A-Verse, we do things ahead of time. It might be December 26 for you, but that's what you get for not checking your Favorite Local Blog on Christmas Eve. Austinist is... more ›

SmileyWorld, a corporation based in London, is accusing Wal-Mart of stealing their- you guessed it, smiley-faced logo. Wal-Mart may unfortunately have the upper hand in this one. Willie Nelson: Musician, tax evader, potsmoker and...church owner? A true Rennaisance Man. Mosquitos are adapting to pollution. In the over-populated Greece, the annoying insects are mutating to even resist insect repellents. We don't need that raise to be happy. Despite the "jolly" associations with Santa Claus, being... more ›

*The views expressed in Truesday are those of the author and do not represent Austinist as a whole.* -The Editors I’m a big fan of acting on behalf of the devil. Especially-so in cases involving subjective, philosophical issues. Like ethics. Like the ethics concerning fibbery in print. That's right. It's MY turn to kick this lifeless horse around for a bit. I don’t want to come off like some douche-balloon who is simply defending... more ›

We realize Paris Hilton is an easy target, in every sense of the word. Under normal circumstances we would respect her penchant for privacy. Nevertheless… more ›

Our Thanksgiving usually consists of a huge Thanksgiving lunch (with the Detroit game in the background) and then vegging out in front of the TV that evening. There are a bevy of holiday (and non-holiday) goodies on tomorrow. Here are a few things to watch out for: -"Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade" - 9am, KXAN (NBC). -Miracle on 34th Street - The 1947 original with "the real Santa Claus" (or so Dad tells us every... more ›

As is our tradition around here, the first order of business before we get into the dirty details of this week's episode is to list off the errors and errata that have been submitted since last week. In our previous recap, we accidentally said that Danny and Melinda were in front of the "Driscoll" hotel, when we meant to say "Driskill." Also, we were totally wrong, it wasn't either of these hotels. In other... more ›