The Friday night music vids are back.

I’ve recently seen several ditties from the 1990s animated series “Animaniacs” make the rounds on my blogroll. Saturday, someone stuck “Yakko’s World” in my head; a couple of days later, I got hit with “Schnitzelbank.”

Now, it’s my turn. I present Wakko Warner naming the 50 American states and their respective capitals.

Point of order: Maryland is not known for its clam chowder, but crabs are big there.

I took this shot two years ago from my bedroom window. These fireworks were not part of the official display at the Capitol, although my place is only about a mile away. This was part of a neighborhood display.

D.C. police are cracking down on illegal fireworks this year. When I first moved into D.C. proper in 2000, I was absolutely stunned to find makeshift stands selling all manner of celebratory explosives — bottle rockets, Roman candles, and so on — in shopping center parking lots. More often than not, kids were the ones buying.

And so my fellow Americans, if you simply must celebrate the independence of your country by blowing up a small part of it, do it safely. Better yet, enjoy a cocktail and let the pros handle the dirty work.

For those who aren’t in love with the redesigned $5 USD note (or the $10, $20 or $50 [where it's less obnoxious], for that matter): Get Helvetica Off Our Money. (link via Daring Fireball)

A new study indicates that HIV was first brought to the United States in 1969, 12 years before AIDS was recognized as a disease.

The study indicates that the virus was likely carried by a Haitian immigrant who contracted it from an African in the mid-1960s. (link via Joe. My. God.)