I carry way too many gadgets around, so I’ve always liked clothes with tons of pockets to keep them in. In particular, I’ve spent more money than I want to think about on threads from ScotteVest, since they somehow manage to stuff dozens of pockets into everything from hats to hoodies, without making you look like John Goodman in Lebowski. But Scott may have met his match. I recently picked up a Tactical 5.11 VIP Blazer on eBay, and it’s amazing. This is the kind of thing Secret Service guys wear to carry their walkie talkies, weapons, protein bars and whatever else they stash when they’re on duty. All without adding bulk. It seems to have been discontinued, which may explain why I was able to get it for $40 on eBay, rather than its $169.99 list price. Of course, I won’t be wearing it until the fall, so until then, I may just continue shopping with Scott. After all, where else can I find a plain white tee with three zippered security pockets?

Yes, it’s an awful bit of crass commercialism sullying John Lennon’s memory. But I laughed anyhow.

Blogging about my day job again. Sort of. Just wanted to mention this article in Folio: about the redesign of Consumer Reports magazine that went live with the October issue. Even though, for the most part, I’m not directly involved with the dead-tree version of CR, I still think this is a great redesign, and really does a great job of presenting our outstanding information in a new and stunning visual language. Since the Web and the mag are two different platforms, the redesign isn’t directly reflected on ConsumerReports.org, though we have incorporated the new, streamlined CR logo. Oh, and for the record, it’s a complete coincidence that Luke Hayman of Pentagram was involved with the redesigns of both CR and Radar, two magazines that just happen to have Pertons in their mastheads (though I do think he did a great job with both!).

Gotta represent for my day job again. Earlier this week, a group from Consumers Union launched the Cover America Tour, a nationwide RV tour to raise awareness about health care issues in the U.S. The 114-day trip will hit dozens of towns and cities across the country, and the crew will interview people along the way to capture their stories. In addition to supporting an important cause, Cover America has a great site, with a blog, Google Maps mashup and videos of real Americans talking about their health care concerns. Check it out, and if you’re in one of the towns where they’ll be making a visit, stop by the RV and meet Meg, Blake and Pauline.

I don’t talk about my day job too much here, but this is one case where I’m willing to make an exception: ConsumerReports.org has won the People’s Voice Award in the Guides/Ratings/Reviews Webby Award category. I’ll let someone else craft the five-word acceptance speech and get back to working on the (award-winning!) site. Congrats to Yelp, which won the “regular” Webby in this category, and to all of the other winners.

I would have expected better from Bed, Bath & Beyond, but the company seems to have sent out an opt-in email pitch this week with the subject line “Keep your family safe,” and the image above. You can view the full ad here. I’m not entirely sure when BBB started circulating the ad; a friend of mine received it today, with a 9/13 dateline. However, the image files are in a directory called 070911, which makes the intent pretty clear as far as I’m concerned. And waiting two days to ship it out doesn’t really change that.

At CR, we’ve been covering the ongoing issue of tainted products from China for some time. And many other media outlets have been doing so as well, from CNN’s Lou Dobbs, who warns of the dangers posed by products from “Communist China,” to the crew at Consumerist, who have dubbed the whole mess the “Chinese Poison Train.” But the Adam Smith award for economics reporting has to go to CNBC’s Erin Burnett, who last week said the following, with no hint of irony or satire:

I think people should be careful what they wish for on China—you know, if China were to revalue its currency, or China is to start making, say, toys that don’t have lead in them, or food that isn’t poisonous, their costs of production are going to go up. And that means prices at Walmart, here in the United States, are going to go up too. So, I would say China is our greatest friend right now.

Can’t wait to see what Erin has to say about global warming.

[Via Kos]