Paul Krugman: Stimulating Happiness, Revisited (New York Times)
… spending cuts now raise unemployment, whereas spending cuts in an economy not at the zero bound would not. So the huge happiness effects of unemployment offer another reason to spend now - and quantitatively this is arguably the biggest argument for stimulus and against austerity.
Mark Morford: "2013: The Year Women Abolish God" (SF Gate)
Could this be the grand finale? The glorious death knell for the ugliest portions of organized religion and its relentless, impressive beat-down of the stubborn female species for lo these past 2,013 years? Can we at least hope?
Froma Harrop: "'Baby Bust' Baloney" (Creators Syndicate)
America's alleged "baby bust" is pushing the country over "a demographic cliff." So argues Jonathan V. Last in The Wall Street Journal. Stacking one highly debatable claim on the next, Last builds a palace of hooey, in the basement of which sits a conservative agenda that's not very conservative.
Susan Estrich: Life Sentences (Creators Syndicate)
Keeping older prisoners locked up beyond the point where they are dangerous to anyone is, in a word, expensive. Very. They not only get room and board, but also medical care, which they do have a right to. There are no co-pays and deductibles in prison. If they become infirm, facilities have to be adjusted to be handicap accessible.
Alex Santosa: This is Your Brain on Art and Other Hilarious Art School PSAs (Neatorama)
We're not sure whether ad agency Team Detroit, which created these ads for College for Creative Studies, is trying to get people interested in the art school or trying to lessen the competition by reducing the number of people that enroll in art school. The edgy ads, styled in the 1980's anti-drugs PSAs, warn parents to talk to their kids about art school ... or else!
Fertilization (YouTube)
Fertilization is the epic story of a single sperm facing incredible odds to unite with an egg and form a new human life. The sperm's journey is visualized with rich detail and narrative to convey a fresh understanding of a classic physiological tale.
Mattel, Inc. is the world's largest toy company, based on revenue.
Source
Marian was first, and correct, with:
Mattel
Alan J answered:
Mattel
Adam wrote:
Lego? Oh, Mattel, sure.
Charlie responded:
Easy enough to guess, but I checked.
It's Mattel.
Sally said:
Mattel, Inc is the world's largest toy company, based on revenue.
Mattel factory in China - taking the jobs we, "won't" do in America, for 5 cents an hour that is...
Did I mention the huge tax break Mattel gets for sending the jobs over there??
Yet, they prosper...
PS:
We are expecting a Nor Easterner tonight. The media is having a blast, interrupting TV shows ever 15 minutes giving dire warnings. I went to the market this morning, and people were storming the place, pushing baskets overflowing with hundreds of dollars of perishable foods. This is not a smart move when the first thing to go is the power...
Jim from CA, retired to ID, is on vacation.
Dale of Diamond Springs replied:
Mattel. I hate Barbie! But I love Barbi Benton!!
MAM wrote:
Mattel
BttbBob responded:
'Wild-Azz Guess' Moment - Mattel... What do I base that on? Think: Barbie dolls and Hot Wheels... Bazillions of 'em all over the world. Note: Mattel, an American company, hasn't made any of its products in the good ol' US of A in quite some time, I've heard.
~~~~~
Memo to JoeS: Here's a chart fer ya from those worthy folks at NOAA:
Note that the lowest level occurred in '64...
~~~~~
Winter Storm Warning Moment - 9 to 12" of much needed precipitation by Friday noon here in the Mitten... heading straight towards our E! pal, SallyP, and thence New England. Look out, Boston, they say! (You, too, Pally!)
~~~~~
TCM Moment - Viewing Anne of the Thousand Days (1969) as I write this. An observation: Anthony Quayle does a superb job with the Cardinal Wolsey role. Conniving and unctuous - perfect characteristics for such a high figure in the church, I'm thinking...
And, Joe S answered:
You can tell it's Mattel, it's swell.
CBS begins the night with a FRESH'The Job', followed by a FRESH'CSI: The 3rd One', then a FRESH'Blue Bloods'.
Scheduled on a FRESHDave are Pauley Perrette, Jake Johannsen, and Elvis tribute artist Ben Portsmouth.
Scheduled on a FRESHCraig are Alfred Molina and Ophira Eisenberg.
NBC starts the night with 'Dateline', followed by 'Rock Center'.
Scheduled on a FRESHLeno are Seth MacFarlane, Jenna Elfman, and Norah Jones.
Scheduled on a FRESHJimmy Fallon are Jason Schwartzman, Keri Russell, and Night Bed.
On a RERUNCarson 'The Scab' Daly (from 1/29/13) are Kevin Smith, "American Promise", and Metric.
ABC opens the night with a FRESH'Last Man Standing', followed by a FRESH'Malibu Country', then a FRESH'Shark Tank', followed by '20/20'.
Scheduled on a FRESHJimmy Kimmel it's "Jimmy Kimmel Live: This Week".
The CW offers a FRESH'Nikita', followed by a RERUN'The Carrie Diaries'.
Faux fills the night with a FRESH'Touch'.
MY has an old 'Monk', followed by another old 'Monk'.
A&E has 3 hours of old 'Duck Dynasty', 'Southie Rules', and another 'Southie Rules'.
AMC offers the movie 'Demolition Man', followed by the movie 'Anaconda'.
BBC -
[6:00AM] BBC WORLD NEWS
[7:00AM] BBC WORLD NEWS
[8:00AM] WILD THINGS WITH DOMINIC MONAGHAN - Season 1 - Ep 3 - Black Hairy Thick Tail Scorpion
[9:00AM] THE GRAHAM NORTON SHOW - Season 10 - Christmas Special - Matt Smith, Gillian Anderson, Harry Judd, Russell Kane, Military Wives Choir
[10:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - Season 4 - Ep 4 - The Sontaran Strategem
[11:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - Season 4 - Ep 5 - The Poison Sky
[12:00PM] RAMSAY'S KITCHEN NIGHTMARES US - Season 1 - Ep 6 - Seascape
[1:00PM] RAMSAY'S ULTIMATE COOKERY COURSE-Ep 11 - Baking
[1:30PM] RAMSAY'S ULTIMATE COOKERY COURSE-Ep 12 - Better Baking
[2:00PM] RAMSAY'S KITCHEN NIGHTMARES UK - Season 4 - Ep 6 - The Granary
[3:00PM] RAMSAY'S KITCHEN NIGHTMARES US - Season 2 - Ep 5 - J Willy's
[4:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - Season 3 - Ep 1 - Evolution
[5:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - Season 3 - Ep 2 - The Ensigns of Command
[6:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - Season 3 - Ep 3 - The Survivors
[7:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - Season 3 - Ep 4 - Who Watches the Watchers
[8:00PM] THE PATRIOT
[11:00PM] THE PATRIOT
[2:00AM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - Season 3 - Ep 1 - Evolution
[3:00AM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - Season 3 - Ep 2 - The Ensigns of Command
[4:00AM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - Season 3 - Ep 3 - The Survivors
[5:00AM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - Season 3 - Ep 4 - Who Watches the Watchers (ALL TIMES EST)
Comedy Central has last night's 'Colbert Report', last night's 'Jon Stewart', 'Tosh.0', another 'Tosh.0', 'Kroll Show', 'The Burn With Jeff Ross', 'Workaholics', and 'Tosh.0'.
FX has 'How I Met Your Mother', followed by the movie 'TRON: Legacy', and 'The Following'.
HBO offers a FRESHBill Maher
The Interview: Julian Assange | Mid-Show Interview: Tina Brown | The Panel: Josh Barro, Martin Bashir, and Lawrence Krauss.
IFC -
[6:00AM] Portlandia-Grover
[6:30AM] Layer Cake
[8:45AM] American Gun
[10:45AM] Miracle at St. Anna
[2:15PM] Layer Cake
[4:30PM] Spy Game
[7:15PM] Batman & Robin
[10:00PM] Portlandia-Soft Opening
[10:30PM] Portlandia-Mayor Is Missing
[11:00PM] Charlie Wilson's War
[1:00AM] Portlandia-Soft Opening
[1:30AM] Portlandia-Mayor Is Missing
[2:00AM] Spy Game
[4:45AM] Whitest Kids U'Know
[5:00AM] Undeclared-Addicts
[5:30AM] Undeclared-God Visits (ALL TIMES EST)
Sundance -
[6:00A] FREAKS AND GEEKS - The Little Things (Episode 17, Season 1)
[7:00A] Sorry, Thanks
[8:45A] The New Protocol
[10:30A] No One Knows About Persian Cats
[12:30P] Sorry, Thanks
[2:15P] The New Protocol
[4:00P] No One Knows About Persian Cats
[6:00P] 24 Hour Party People
[8:00P] The Big Kahuna
[10:00P] Frantic
[12:15A] An American Haunting
[1:45A] The Possession of David O'Reilly
[3:15A] 24 Hour Party People
[5:15A] ICONOCLASTS - Jamie Oliver + Paul Smith (Episode 5, Season 6) (ALL TIMES EST)
SyFy has the movie 'The Hills Have Eyes', followed by a FRESH'WWE Steroid SmackDown!', then a FRESH'Merlin'.
Italian actress Isabella Rossellini arrives on red carpet for the screening of the movie Yi Dai Zong Shi, "The Grandmaster" at the 63rd Berlinale International Film Festival in Berlin February 7, 2013. The 2013 Berlin film festival kicks off on Thursday with "The Grandmaster", a martial arts epic from Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai who is also presiding over this year's jury.
Photo by Fabrizio Bensch
CBS is asking stars not to bare too much skin at the Grammy Awards on Sunday.
The network requests that "buttocks and female breasts are adequately covered" for the televised award show. The memo sent out Wednesday also warned against "see-through clothing," exposure of "the genital region" and said that "thong type costumes are problematic."
Representatives for CBS and the Recording Academy declined to comment on Thursday. Deadline Hollywood first reported the memo.
The 55th annual Grammy Awards will be held Sunday at 8 p.m. EST at Los Angles' Staples Center.
German film director Wim Wenders and his wife Donata arrive on red carpet for the screening of the movie Yi Dai Zong Shi, "The Grandmaster" at the 63rd Berlinale International Film Festival in Berlin February 7, 2013. The 2013 Berlin film festival kicks off on Thursday with "The Grandmaster", a martial arts epic from Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai who is also presiding over this year's jury.
Photo by Fabrizio Bensch
Three members of Russian punk band Pussy Riot have appealed to the European Court of Human Rights over their jail sentences for a protest against President Vladimir Putin's links to the Russian Orthodox Church.
Convicted for "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred", Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina are almost halfway through two-year terms. Yekaterina Samutsevich was released on appeal with a suspended sentence.
Lawyer Pavel Chikov said Russia had violated their right to freedom of speech, a fair trial and liberty. They were also treated in an inhumane way in custody by being deprived of sleep and enough food on days when they attended court, he added.
Pussy Riot's "punk prayer", which came at the height of the largest wave of protests yet against Putin's 13-year rule over Russia, was a political one and it was wrongly qualified as being aimed at inciting religious strife, Chikov said.
Any ruling by the tribunal in favor of Pussy Riot could mean the three women would be eligible for compensation or even that their verdicts would have to be reconsidered.
Galapagos tortoises at London's zoo lumbered around impassively as famous French pianist Richard Clayderman serenaded them with music from his latest album, "Romantique," on Thursday.
The music - billed by his record company as an attempt to put the reptiles in the mood to mate - appeared lost on the slow-moving giants. The tortoises didn't appear particularly impressed by Clayderman's hit, "Ballade pour Adeline," and even a rousing rendition of "Chariots of Fire" did little to lift their spirits.
They only seemed to perk up when zookeepers brought them some carrots.
Clayderman himself seemed a bit bemused by his record company's launch stunt.
"After playing all around the world - I used to do concerts in Asia, in South America, in Europe - it's funny to be here, in this very nice zoo," he said.
Actor Bill Murray, left, laughs with Andy Garcia, right, on the third tee of the Pebble Beach Golf Links during a practice round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013, in Pebble Beach, Calif.
Photo by Eric Risberg
A portrait of Jeanne Hebuterne painted by Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani a year before his death in 1920 sold on Wednesday for 26.9 million pounds ($42.3 million), above the high estimate set by Christie's auctioneers.
"Jeanne Hebuterne (au chapeau)" was the leading lot at the impressionist, modern and surrealist sale in London which brought in a total of 136.5 million pounds, a record at Christie's for the equivalent auction in London in February.
Modigliani met Hebuterne towards the end of his life and they had a child together. The day after the artist died aged 35, his inconsolable partner jumped out of a window killing herself and their unborn second child.
Another notable success on the night was 19th Century French painter Berthe Morisot's "Apres le dejeuner" which fetched seven million pounds, well in excess of expectations of between 1.5 million-2.5 million pounds.
A 12-year-old boy accused of making a prank call that sent police racing to Ashton Kutcher's home was charged Thursday with making that call and another that falsely reported an emergency at a bank.
Prosecutors said the boy called 911 in October reporting that armed men were inside Kutcher's Los Angeles home. That call brought out many heavily-armed officers and prompted the actor to leave the set of "Two and a Half Men" to make sure his home and workers were safe.
A week later, a call reporting an emergency at a bank on Wilshire Boulevard also proved to be a hoax.
The district attorney's office said Thursday that the boy has been charged with two felony counts of computer intrusion and making fake bomb threats. He was scheduled to be arraigned Friday in juvenile court.
The practice of making such hoax calls, which often target the homes of celebrities, has become known as "swatting." The term comes from the pranksters' desire to have heavily armed SWAT teams dispatched to their calls. Other stars whose homes have been targeted in recent months include actor Tom Cruise, and singers Justin Bieber and Chris Brown.
Italian actress Gina Lollobrigida poses during a photocall before attending the traditional Opera Ball in Vienna February 7, 2013.
Photo by Heinz-Peter Bader
Actor James Cromwell has been arrested for allegedly disrupting a University of Wisconsin Board of Regents meeting where he was protesting animal testing.
University police Sgt. Brent Gruber says the 73-year-old Cromwell was arrested and ticketed on a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct. Cromwell and an activist from an animal-rights group also arrested were released from jail by Thursday afternoon.
They held two large signs showing a cat with metal implanted in its head at a UW-Madison lab, while shouting about the treatment of cats Thursday morning. The director of the school's Research Animal Resources Center says federal agriculture officials have found their claims to be false.
Cromwell was nominated for an Academy Award for the 1995 film "Babe." Other credits include "L.A. Confidential," ''The Green Mile" and "The Artist."
Actor Alan Cumming attends the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) New York Gala to kick off Fall 2013 Fashion Week in New York February 6, 2013.
Photo by Andrew Kelly
Crime writer Patricia Cornwell has taken the witness stand to testify in her lawsuit against her former financial management company.
The author best known for her series of novels featuring medical examiner Kay Scarpetta alleges that Anchin, Block and Anchin was negligent in handling her finances.
Cornwell claims that the firm and a former executive cost her millions of dollars in losses or unaccounted revenue during their four-year relationship.
Lawyers for the firm say there is no money missing from Cornwell's accounts. They say losses were due to the economic downturn and her extravagant spending habits.
This Feb. 5, 2013 photo released by Starpix shows models, from left, Karolina Kurkova, Coco Rocha and Naomi Campbell, right, pose with photographer Nigel Barker at the premiere of the Oxygen network series, "The Face," in New York. Campbell, Rocha and Kurkova are coaches to aspiring models in a competition to find the next face of beauty retailer ULTA Beauty. The show, hosted by Barker, premieres on Feb. 12 at 9 p.m. EST on Oxygen.
Photo by Kristina Bumphrey
The widow of jazz pianist Oscar Peterson has filed a $1 million lawsuit against singer Hilary Kole for copyright infringement.
Kelly Peterson filed the suit in federal court this week in New York.
She claims Kole gave copies of four tracks she recorded with the pianist to an Internet radio program and that the radio program played at least one of the tunes.
The Daily News reports the recordings were made in 2006 at the behest of Peterson's record producer and have never been released.
One of four wax figures of deceased singer Whitney Houston sits on display after being unveiled at Madame Tussauds Wax Museum in New York, February 7, 2013. One of each of the four figures will be put on display at the museums in New York, Washington, D.C., Hollywood, and Las Vegas. It is the first time the museum has simultaneously produced multiple likenesses of a single subject.
Photo by Keith Bedford
A mob stripped, tortured and bound a woman accused of witchcraft, then burned her alive in front of hundreds of witnesses in a Papua New Guinea town, police said Friday after one of the highest profile sorcery-related murders in this South Pacific island nation.
Hundreds of bystanders, including many children, watched and some took photographs of Wednesday's brutal slaying. Grisly pictures were published on the front pages of the country's biggest circulating newspapers, The National and Post-Courier, while the prime minister, police and diplomats condemned the killing.
In rural Papua New Guinea, witchcraft is often blamed for unexplained misfortunes. Sorcery has traditionally been countered by sorcery, but responses to sorcery allegations have become increasingly violent in recent years.
Kepari Leniata, a 20-year-old mother, had been accused of sorcery by relatives of a 6-year-old boy who died in the hospital the day before.
She was tortured with a hot iron rod, bound, doused in gasoline, then set alight on a pile of car tires and trash in the Western Highlands provincial capital of Mount Hagen, Kakas said.
Newly initiated Naga Sadhus or Hindu holy men of the Juna Akhara attend the Dikasha ritual on the banks of the river Ganges during the ongoing "Kumbh Mela", or Pitcher Festival, in the northern Indian city of Allahabad February 6, 2013. During the festival, Hindus take part in a religious gathering on the banks of the river Ganges. The festival will return to Allahabad in 12 years.
Photo by Jitendra Prakash
A rare 1865 photograph of the Brooklyn Atlantics baseball team, discovered at a Maine yard sale and considered one of the first baseball cards ever, sold for $92,000 at an auction on Wednesday.
A Massachusetts man offered the winning sum in cash after a brief round of bidding at Saco River Auction Co., said Troy Thibodeau, manager and auctioneer at the company in Biddeford, Maine. Thibodeau declined to name the buyer.
The photograph mounted on a card, known as a carte de viste, is the only one of its kind known to exist, though the Library of Congress has a similar image made from a different negative, Thibodeau said before the auction.
A boy dressed in sheep skin stands between his mother and father as they observe festivities during the annual carnival, held to mark the end of winter, in Litija January 7, 2013. During the carnival, people dress up as the "Kurent", a fluffy but demon-like creature that banishes the winter and heralds the arrival of spring with loud noise and dancing.
Photo by Srdjan Zivulovic
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) Madonna; $3,813,072; $158.27.
2. (2) Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band; $1,317,097; $91.69.
3. (3) Justin Bieber; $1,205,614; $73.67.
4. (5) Neil Young & Crazy Horse; $971,057; $96.38.
5. (4) Dave Matthews Band; $967,758; $73.76.
6. (6) The Who; $845,015; $85.86.
7. (7) Leonard Cohen; $804,309; $100.16.
8. (9) Red Hot Chili Peppers; $778,537; $63.17.
9. (8) Rush; $702,400; $78.06.
10. (11) Trans-Siberian Orchestra; $568,771; $51.47.
11. (12) Carrie Underwood; $545,034; $58.39.
12. (15) Eric Church; $311,263; $40.20.
13. (14) Jeff Dunham; $308,952; $58.16.
14. (16) Bassnectar; $195,103; $39.52.
15. (17) The Moody Blues; $160,360; $68.27.
16. (18) Wiz Khalifa; $157,812; $40.84.
17. (20) The Monkees; $134,414; $62.93.
18. (19) "So You Think You Can Dance"; $132,625; $57.25.
19. (New) Mannheim Steamroller; $131,621; $57.78.
20. (New) Martina McBride; $126,051; $53.00.
Horticulturist Elisa Biondi works on a display of vanda orchids at Kew Royal Botanic Gardens in London, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2013. Over 4,500 orchids are being displayed for an Orchid festival as well as 550 bromeliads and 350 assorted foliage plants.
Photo by Kirsty Wigglesworth
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How about a favorite TV show, movie, book, play, cartoon, or legal amusement?
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A box set the whole world should own?
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