There is a builtin function called `reversed`. You'd better remember that than the "useful" [::-1] idiom.

The recommendation on `iteritems` had better be generalized to include `iterkeys`, `itervalues`, and other opportunities for using iterators rather than building lists. A note that the 'iter...' versions are removed in Python 3 (because iterator behaviour becomes the default) would be appropriate here.

In relation to collections, itertools is a great module to get familiarized with. I import * from this module. I consider functions there as if they were builtins.

"Conditional assignment" is a weak and misleading name. "Conditional expressions" is more descriptive. There is no assignment in

  print "yes" if some_condition else "no"

as the article acknowledges later.

Using Ellipsis for getting all items is a violation of the Only One Way To Do It principle. The standard notation is [:].

I commend the good intentions of the writer, but I'm surprised that this article got 144 upvotes in HN.