So this social software thing is getting white hot and going nowhere. Friendster, LinkedIn, Ryze, Orkut, Flickr (Flickr actually seems the coolest yet) -- they all talk about allowing people to transcend limits and build relationships, but the services can't get past the severe limits in the technology on which they are built. People are herded as users into fenced environments and encouraged to play nicely and meet new people. But the trick with social software is that it is supposed to transcend relationships with "users" and treat people like people. It would also be great if the tools would recede and allow real relationships to emerge.

At this point the wrong sort of attention is being paid to the tools and they are starting to get crammed with features. It'd be great if somebody spent the energy to make them work intuitively, or better yet automatically, so that the services would actually empower people rather than simply allowing users to manually create maps of their friends. I get a kick out of seeing the links slowly build out on Orkut, but it would be even better if we were all slowly getting surprised by new friends that had been nearby but unknown.

• Rebecca Blood wrote a list of 13 things Orkut ought to fix. It's a damn good list. [ via George the Mighty ]
• Irresistable: the guide to interpreting pictures in online profiles. Eat it up.
• If you want to check out Orkut but don't have an invitation, just shoot me an e-mail.

Our boy Klosterman wrote a nice little piece talking through the siege that pirates have brought upon pop culture. You can get a feel for the his swashbuckling prose without investing yourself in the entire book, if you like. You gotta give the man credit for recognizing the yin yang relationship between ninjas and pirates. He's savvy.

Public airwaves are being locked down in the aftermath of Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfuction. The FCC slapped Clear Channel Communications with a $755,000 fine for indecency violations over a morning show by "Bubba the Love Sponge".

According to the Associated Press, "One segment featured the cartoon characters Alvin the chipmunk, George Jetson and Scooby Doo discussing sexual activities."

Howard Stern seems to be the latest victim with his syndicated show being yanked off of six Clear Channel markets for violating Clear Channel's new programming standards.

Chuck Klosterman is a crazy ass. He doesn't always make sense and he doesn't always have a point, but damn, he comes up with some interesting stuff. Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs is a collection of essays about all sorts of things that you never thought anyone could get paid to write essays about: Saved by the Bell, cover bands, John Cusack's impact on a generations' romantic endeavors, the ideological importance of the rivalry between the Lakers and Celtics, and of course, the relationship between sex and breakfast cereal.

If you have the means, I highly recommend it. If you don't have the means, or don't feel like spending your scratch on stupid books, lemme know, I'll send it to you.

* Seemingly random, pointless and crazy but equally interesting, smart and varied. That's what I tell myself anyway.