The Last Blockbuster

The last Blockbuster video rental store in America is in Bend, Oregon. In a recent viral video, it vows to survive the apocalypse, like the mighty cockaroach:

After the video appeared on social media, business at the shop increased 200%.

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Top image by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

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Videocassette Recorders: The Last Rewind

Hold on to your remote control, Grandpa. The last VCR has rolled off the assembly line. The only remaining Japanese manufacturer of VCRs, Funai Electric, maker of VHS machines sold under several brand names, has stopped making the gadgets. Those things wear out, so get over to Sears now and get one from the remaining stock if you want to be able to show the grand kids Mickey’s Christmas Carol again this December.

More:

“Last known VCR maker stops production, 40 years after VHS format launch,” Mark Walton, Ars Technica

“So Long, VCR. We Hardly Knew You (Were Still Around),” Gabriel Rosenberg, NPR 

“The VCR Is Officially Dead, But We’ll Never Forget It,” Brian Barrett, Wired

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Short Link: http://wp.me/p6sb6-oek

Image by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

Blockbuster Waives Late Fees, Waves Goodbye

The last 300 Blockbuster Video stores will close by the end of the year. The brand will live on in the video-streaming service of parent company Dish Network and on the facades of 50 stores owned by franchisees. The Blockbuster video rental chain was once the country’s largest, with 60,000 employees and 9,000 stores.

More:

“OBITUARY: Blockbuster Video: 1985-2013,” Alex Pappademas, Grantland 

“I Loved You, Blockbuster,” Alexis C. Madrigal, The Atlantic

“The miseries and pleasures of Blockbuster Video,” By Dana Stevens, Slate

“As Blockbuster Prepares To Close, Fans Line Up To Stock Video Libraries,” CBS Los Angeles

“Why Blockbuster’s Death Doesn’t Matter,” Daniel Carlson, Pajiba

“Blockbuster closure could cost Dish $30M,” L. Wayne Hicks, Denver Business Journal

Who’s to Blame for Destroying CIA Tapes?

A few years ago, U.S. agents tortured people and videotaped these “enhanced interrogations.” They also made people disappear at “black sites” around the world. When investigators started poking around, the recordings disappeared, too.

 Why destroy the tapes? Despite assurances from the Department of Justice and the White House, waterboarding and similar practices are torture, against federal, military, and international law. The cover-up shows the interrogators knew this.