Friday evening roundup

What the spy story tells us about the nature of the Russian intelligence apparatus.

More anecdotes that show how accents and such don't always mean what we think they do.

Sigh; more on animal sex. And animal tv.

Hat tip to Wendy for this fascinating New York Magazine piece on parenting. I've blogged before about the dissonance between the long-term nature of the rewards of parenting and the immediate experience, which is more often characterized by frustration. I have many friends who are parents, and most of them remain interesting, but I have experienced the excruciating boorishness--often at gatherings hosted by these friends and attended by their friends who are also parents--of people who you know must have been interesting once, but they've not made an effort in years to deal in anything other than their own kids, and that's all they can talk about.

We're on the verge of
Mad Men Madness.

Whatever else you may think of Angelina Jolie, I love that, when offered the role of Bond girl, she said she'd rather be Bond.