They are words that dare not speak their name in America, especially among the thrusting young bucks of dot.com land. But failure and pessimism are enjoying a renaissance not seen since the Dark Ages. New webzine failuremag.com takes an in-depth (and tongue-in-cheek) look at this nasty notion, listing events and business deals that infamously went awry. Last week's edition looked at Kellogg's doomed venture to sell cereal and milk in the same packet. Tasty. The site also sports a nifty catalogue of failure, dubbed the Flophouse, and even has its own souvenir shop - failure T-shirts, mugs etc. Better still, failuremag's philosophy seeks to turn the notion of success on its head, by reinterpreting triumphs, such as the Frankish victory over the Arabs at the Battle of Poitiers in AD732, which, it claims, may have set the Renaissance back about 750 years.

Follow failuremag by poring over www.BubbleEconomy.com, a cynical but intelligent site warning optimists (day traders and small investors) about just how big and scary the bubble has blown. Sticking rigidly to its philosophy and motto, "Prepare for the Pop", it provides a rundown of the latest mergers, buyouts and inflated stocks to give some "perspective on how manic the mania" has become. With sections such as "worthless press release of the day", "investment potholes" and "advice to avoid", the site is worth a look, if only to make you think twice about investing. One bright spark aiming to tweak the twin nasal hair of doom and gloom is exploiting the new entertainment medium to boost the old one. Yes, you guessed it, the village fete has gone online at www.welfordfete.org. Quaint little Welford, five miles from Stratford-upon-Avon, is there in all its web glory informing visitors of its impending fete on August bank holiday, complete with maypole, traditional tombolas, traction engines, military vehicles and face painting. A word of warning: there is no bouncy castle.

Seen any good websites lately? If so write to the.editor@theguardian.com"