Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Connie Schultz: What Now for the Orphans of Russia? (Creators Syndicate)
I never will forget the first time I met a Russian orphan who had just been adopted by American parents.
Tom Danehy: Wayne LaPierre's response to Newtown brings his humanity into question (Tucson Weekly)
As I listened to the nonsense that issued forth from the Head Gun Nut-equal parts bluster and paranoia-my mouth was so wide open, an eagle could have flown into it. Apparently, LaPierre is French for tone deaf.
Jay Ruttenberg: "Six Funny American Novels (and 'Harpo Speaks!')" (BOOKFORUM)
At the end of the day, I suppose Terry Southern's masterpieces are 'Flash and Filigree' and the 'Dr. Strangelove' screenplay. But there is no book that makes me laugh like 'The Magic Christian,' Southern's episodic novel from 1959. It is plotted more like a novelty book that you might find buried in a bookstore's humor section than it is a conventional novel.
Slit-Scan Movie Maker Turns Every Scene Surreal (Neatorama)
Trevor Alyn has recently updated his Slit-Scan Movie Maker app for Mac OS. As in the video above, the slit-scan photography process creates distortions and lends a bizarre quality to every movement recorded. The resulting videos are disorienting and reminiscent of Salvador Dali's iconic melting clock painting "The Persistence of Memory," albeit an animated version in which objects melt horizontally as well as vertically.
William Saletan: Is Fat Good? (Slate)
Epidemiologists struggle to explain a study that challenges a core belief: Fat will kill you.
Susan Estrich: New Years and the New You (Creators Syndicate)
From the time I was a teenager until I turned 40, I made the same New Year's resolution every year. Not to get healthy or exercise regularly (I still make those) but to lose weight, plain and simple.
10 Most Common New Year's Resolutions as Illustrated by Cats (YouTube)
These cats are here to count down the 10 most popular resolutions made each year.
Fun in Journalism
David Bruce's Amazon Author Page
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David Bruce has approximately 50 Kindle books on Amazon.com.
said:
wrote:
answered:
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
BadtotheboneBob
Stupid Laws
From the 'Stupid Laws Made by Men' File...
A city in the Indonesian province of Aceh which follows Sharia has ordered female passengers not to straddle motorbikes behind male drivers. Suaidi Yahya, mayor of Lhokseumawe, says it aims to save people's "morals and behaviors"...
BBC News - Indonesia city to ban women 'straddling motorbikes'
Oh, good grief... This is inspired by the 'R-word', of course. Gad, how I detest trivial moralistic dogma declared valid by self-anointed, pathetic little men in the name of their deity...
BadtotheboneBob
Thanks, B2tbBob!
Reader Suggestion
The Story of Earth
Reader Comment
Minnie Pearl
Marty -
I gather Minnie is not a favorite with many of the regular Trivia players.
I lived in Nashville for a while. I "adopted" a lady in one of the nursing homes--would drop by, visit. talk, etc. On one visit, Minnie Pearl came by. She did about a 20-minute show for free for the old folks--made them laugh, got them to sing along with her, brightened their lonely day. I heard later from the staff that she did that at nursing homes all over Nashville and did it often--out of the goodness of her big heart. She won one more life-long fan that day.
I grew up in the South. Hillbilly humor is not my favorite, but it's nothing I turn my nose up at--it beats "jokes" about bodily functions or the sexual fantasies of 12-year old boys. And there's a HUGE difference between the Grand Ole Opry and Hee Haw for those who care to learn.
Linda >^..^<
We're all only temporarily able bodied
Thanks, Linda!
FWIW, I belonged to the Square Dance Club in high school.
Yeah, it was corny, but we had a lot of fun.
Fundamental truth of a small town is your fun is where you make it.
I'm also old enough to remember when one set of grandparents got 'indoor' plumbing - the polite way of saying they finally upgraded from the 2-holer out back to a flushable porcelain indoor model.
In keeping with that state of mind, the beauty of Hee Haw, and country comedy, to me, is that nobody has to explain the humor.
And I also know that if I wanna make dear old dad crack up, just sneak the phrase '2-holer' into a conversation...
Reader Suggestion
Ice Shows
Happy New Year, Marty!
You and your readers may enjoy this fun trip down memory lane, "Frozen in
Time: Eight Decades of Bay Area Ice Shows" by Peter Hartlaub, pop culture
critic at the San Francisco Chronicle. Even though I am not originally from
the San Francisco area, I do remember ice shows from my younger days in
Southern California.
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny and a return to near seasonal temperatures.
Removed From Wikipedia
"Bicholim Conflict"
A 17th Century international conflict has finally been laid to rest, nearly 400 years after it never happened. Wait a second. Are you feeling confused?
A fascinating new story in the Daily Dot chronicles how for more than five years, rogue editors on Wikipedia perpetuated a hoax about the "Bicholim Conflict," a purely fictional historical event.
Amazingly, the article was even nominated for the site's Featured Article of the Day, a Wikipedia stable that highlights some of the site's best-researched and written articles.
The actual writer of the Wikipedia article is still unknown, but members of the Wikipedia community have narrowed down at least one suspect.
To its credit, Wikipedia has its own page devoted to Wikipedia hoaxes. Some of the more noteworthy attempts include a page on a fictional conspirator in the assassination of Julius Caesar, a false claim of inspiration in the "Lord of the Rings" novels and a former Harvard student who for eight years successfully operated a Wikipedia page claiming he was the mayor of a small Chinese town.
"Bicholim Conflict"
Book Auction
Stephen King
A signed copy of a rare Stephen King book is up for auction at a Maine bookstore, with proceeds going to a nearby homeless shelter's emergency home heating fund.
The copy of "The Regulators," written by horror writer and Maine native King under the pen name Richard Bachman, was donated by a customer of Scottie's Bookhouse in Hancock.
Owner Michael Riggs says there are only 550 copies of the book in a special collector's box.
Auction proceeds will go to the Emmaus Homeless Shelter's emergency fuel fund in Ellsworth.
The book is on display at Scottie's and bids are being accepted by email, phone and in person until Jan. 31.
Stephen King
Paid $500M For Current TV
Al-Jazeera
With its $500 million purchase of left-leaning Current TV, the Pan-Arab news channel Al-Jazeera will soon be seen in tens of millions of U.S. homes. It's a steep price, but the acquisition helps the network in its aims to quickly spread its message to more Americans.
The purchase will create a news channel called Al-Jazeera America, coming to American homes with a distinctly non-American view of the world. The network claims many people in the U.S. have already sought its programming online.
The nation's second-largest TV operator, Time Warner Cable Inc., dropped Current after the deal was confirmed Wednesday, saying the network didn't have enough viewers.
Gore confirmed the sale Wednesday, saying in a statement that Al-Jazeera shares Current TV's mission "to give voice to those who are not typically heard; to speak truth to power; to provide independent and diverse points of view; and to tell the stories that no one else is telling."
Al-Jazeera
Recovered In Sahara
Martian Meteorite
Scientists say a 2-billion-year-old rock from Mars that landed on Earth is quite different from other Martian meteorites.
They say it is older than most and contains more water. It's also similar to volcanic rocks examined by the NASA rovers Spirit and Opportunity on the Martian surface.
About 65 Martian meteorites have been recovered on Earth, mostly in Antarctica or the Sahara desert. The oldest dates back 4.5 billion years. The rest are 1.3 billion years old or younger.
The recently tested 2-billion-year-old rock is about the size of a baseball. It was donated to the University of New Mexico by an American who bought it from a meteorite dealer last year.
Martian Meteorite
U.S. Ends Probe
Google
In a major victory for Google Inc, U.S. regulators on Thursday ended their investigation into the giant Internet company and concluded that it had not manipulated its Web search results to hurt rivals.
The Federal Trade Commission did, however, win promises from Google that it would end the practice of "scraping" reviews and other data from rivals' websites for its own products, and to allow advertisers to export data to independently evaluate advertising campaigns.
Google also agreed to no longer request sales bans when suing companies which infringe on patents that are essential to ensuring interoperability, also known as standard essential patents, the FTC said on Thursday.
Microsoft Corp and other Google competitors have pressed the FTC to bring a broad antitrust case against Google similar to the sweeping Justice Department litigation against Microsoft in the 1990s.
Meanwhile smaller Internet companies such as Nextag have complained about Google tweaking its Web search results to give prominence to its own products, pushing down competitors' rankings and making them more difficult for customers to find.
Google
Gets Russian Citizenship
Gerard Depardieu
The Kremlin has cast Gerard Depardieu in one of the most surprising roles of his life - as a new Russian citizen.
The announcement Thursday that President Vladimir Putin has approved Depardieu's application for citizenship is almost a real-life analogue to the French actor's 1990 comedy "Green Card," in which his character enters into a sham marriage in order to work in the United States.
A representative for the former Oscar nominee declined to say whether he had accepted the Russian offer.
Thursday was a holiday in Russia and officials from the Federal Tax Service and Federal Migration Service could not be reached for comment on whether the decision would require Depardieu to have a residence in Russia.
Gerard Depardieu
Court Dismisses Case
Uganda
A Ugandan court has dismissed a case against a British national arrested for staging a pro-gay play.
Frank Mugisha, a gay rights activists, said Thursday that the dismissal of the case was a sign that the rights of sexual minorities will be respected by Uganda's courts even though homosexuality is banned in Uganda. Draft legislation that once contained the death penalty for some gay acts created an outcry from rights groups around the world.
The court dismissed the charge of disobedience against David Cecil Edward Hugh on Wednesday. Hugh's play showed the dilemma an openly gay man is confronted with in a country with anti-gay laws.
Hugh said he won't show the play in Uganda again but may show it in Washington D.C., Kenya, South Africa and the U.K.
Uganda
Utah Prudes
Elvis
A parent who was "All Shook Up" about Elvis Presley songs in a high-school drama prompted educators to cancel the musical, deeming it too sexual. But the decision was reversed Thursday by administrators at the high school south of Salt Lake City.
The administrators at Herriman High School received permission from the copyright owners of "All Shook Up" to edit some of Presley's songs and make scene changes in the American jukebox musical that borrows from William Shakespeare.
"The show will go on," said Sandy Riesgraf, a spokeswoman for the Jordan School District. "Our biggest concern early on, we wanted to make some changes to keep the play within community values. It's a win-win for all of us."
Presley warbles about a sweetheart whose "lips are like a volcano that's hot" in his song from 1957. "I'm proud to say she's my buttercup. I'm in love. I'm all shook up."
His song lyrics together with a scene suggesting cross-dressing were deemed offensive by a person the school is refusing to identify.
Elvis
Cited In Mono County
Frank Ocean
Grammy-nominated R&B singer Frank Ocean is facing a marijuana possession charge after police say he was pulled over on New Year's Eve in California's Eastern Sierra Nevada for driving more than 90 mph in a 65 mph zone.
The Mono County Sheriff's Department says officers stopped Ocean's black BMW at about 4:30 p.m. Dec. 31 as he was heading southbound on U.S. 395.
Sheriff's spokeswoman Jennifer Hansen says a strong odor of marijuana wafted out as a deputy approached the vehicle.
Hansen says the deputy found a small bag of marijuana on the 25-year-old Ocean, whose legal name is Christopher Breaux (broh).
She says the Beverly Hills resident was cited for marijuana possession and released.
Frank Ocean
Top 20
Concert Tours
The Top 20 Concert Tours ranks artists by average box office gross per city and includes the average ticket price for shows in North America. The previous week's ranking is in parentheses. The list is based on data provided to the trade publication Pollstar by concert promoters and venue managers.
1. (1) Barbra Streisand; $4,065,743; $263.52.
2. (2) Madonna; $3,950,309; $172.03.
3. (3) Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band; $1,362,627; $93.95.
4. (4) Justin Bieber; $1,217,217; $75.72.
5. (New) Neil Young & Crazy Horse; $855,928; $91.59.
6. (6) The Who; $845,015; $85.86.
7. (5) Rush; $822,004; $82.09.
8. (8) Leonard Cohen; $804,309; $100.16.
9. (7) Peter Gabriel; $729,147; $96.03.
10. (9) Red Hot Chili Peppers; $715,544; $57.10.
11. (11) Zac Brown Band; $662,842; $48.23.
12. (13) Trans-Siberian Orchestra; $547,517; $51.54.
13. (14) Journey; $530,582; $71.90.
14. (15) Carrie Underwood; $529,297; $58.84.
15. (17) Bob Dylan; $457,533; $78.73.
16. (19) Eric Church; $319,402; $40.43.
17. (New) Jeff Dunham; $250,250; $58.49.
18. (New) Wiz Khalifa; $152,511; $41.00.
19. (New) Tobymac; $146,499; $29.91.
20. (New) Metric; $144,604; $40.78.
Concert Tours
Prime-Time Nielsens
Ratings
Prime-time viewership numbers compiled by the Nielsen Co. for Dec. 24-30. Listings include the week's ranking and viewership.
1. "NBC Sunday Night Football," NBC, 30.3 million.
2. "Sunday Night NFL Pre-Kick," NBC, 21.9 million.
3. "The OT," Fox, 17.8 million.
4. "Football Night America (Part 3)," NBC, 15.9 million.
5. "The Big Bang Theory," CBS, 12 million.
6. "Person of Interest," CBS, 10.3 million.
7. "60 Minutes," CBS, 10.27 million.
8. "NCIS," CBS, 9.8 million.
9. "NBA Christmas Special," ABC, 9.6 million.
10. "NCIS: Los Angeles," CBS, 8.622 million.
11. "Two And a Half Men," CBS, 8.621 million.
12. "Criminal Minds," CBS, 8.56 million.
13. "Kennedy Center Honors," CBS, 8.2 million.
14. "Elementary," CBS, 8.0 million.
15. "NCIS," CBS, 7.5 million.
16. "Dateline Friday," NBC, 6.8 million.
17. "Simpsons," Fox, 6.7 million.
18. "Vegas," CBS, 6 million.
19. "NBC Movie of the Week," NBC, 5.6 million.
20. "The Good Wife," CBS, 5.56 million.
Ratings
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