Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Clancy Martin: Playing With Plato (The Atlantic)
Philosophers eager to write for popular audiences are finding readers who want answers science can't offer.
Joseph Stromberg: I Sold My Undergraduate Thesis to a Print Content Farm (Slate)
A trip through the shadowy, surreal world of an academic book mill.
Evan V. Symon, Katarina Urbanek: 6 Unexpected Things I Learned Resisting the Nazis in WWII (Cracked)
Being well within the influence of the Reich, Slovakia had a hand in rounding up Jews within its borders. Many who managed to resist capture hid in the Carpathian Mountains. Luckily, most of the villagers in the area enjoyed the Nazis about as much as a good bout of plague, and were more than willing to harbor some fugitives at the risk of their own lives. Sometimes that required some ingenuity: …
Andrew Tobias: Freedom and Jobs
What the Koch brothers, et al, don't like are the higher taxes on dividends and capital gains (on taxable income above $250,000), which - though still lower than the rates Ronald Reagan signed into law - are what allow Obamacare to offer so much more health care security while modestly lowering the deficit.
David Weigel: "When Two Wonks Go to War (Go to War, Go to War)" (Slate)
Paul Krugman has greeted the launch of FiveThirtyEight with disappointment …
Tom Reimann: 4 Reasons This One Kickstarter Proves Humanity Is Doomed (Cracked)
Last week, a softcore Nazi anime porn card game called Barbarossa debuted on Kickstarter, because some maniac courageously dared to ask "What if the Germans had invaded the Soviet Union with breasts instead of tanks?"
Annalee Newitz: How We Won the War on Dungeons & Dragons (io9)
Thirty years ago, a war raged between the dorks who played Dungeons & Dragons, and the conservative parent groups who believed that gaming was debauched at best and Satanic at worst. Lives were ruined. People died. And now that war is over. I still can't believe we won.
Charlie Jane Anders: Great Unsung Science Fiction Authors That Everybody Should Read (io9)
We're not saying that any of these authors is obscure, or that nobody's ever sung their praises - we know that they've all had their praises sung, many of them on io9 in the past. But these are terrific science fiction scribes, whose work deserves more love and appreciation.
David Bruce's Amazon Author Page
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog
David Bruce's Lulu Storefront
David Bruce's Apple iBookstore
David Bruce has approximately 50 Kindle books on Amazon.com.
"Doug's Most Shared Facebook Post" Today
, said:
wrote:
answered:
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
David E Suggests
David
Thanks, Dave!
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
from Marc Perkel
BartCop
Hello Bartcop fans,
As you all know the untimely passing of Terry was unexpected, even by
him. We all knew he had cancer but we all thought he had some years
left. So some of us who have worked closely with him over the years are
scrambling around trying to figure out what to do. My job, among other
things, is to establish communications with the Bartcop community and
provide email lists and groups for those who might put something
together. Those who want to play an active roll in something coming from
this, or if you are one of Bart's pillars, should send an email to
active@bartcop.com.
So - to let you know what's going on, the guestbook on bartcop.com is
still open for those who want to write something in memory of Bart.
I did an interview on Netroots Radio about Bart's passing
( www.stitcher.com/s?eid=32893545 )
The most active open discussion is on Bart's Facebook page.
( www.facebook.com/bartcop )
You can listen to Bart's theme song here
or here.
( www.bartcop.com/blizing-saddles.mp3 )
( youtu.be/MySGAaB0A9k )
We have opened up the radio show archives which are now free. Listen to
all you want.
( bartcop.com/members )
Bart's final wish was to pay off the house mortgage for Mrs. Bart who is
overwhelmed and so very grateful for the support she has received.
Anyone wanting to make a donation can click on this the yellow donate
button on bartcop.com
But - I need you all to help keep this going. This note
isn't going to directly reach all of Bart's fans. So if you can repost
it on blogs and discussion boards so people can sign up then when we
figure out what's next we can let more people know. This list is just
over 600 but like to get it up to at least 10,000 pretty quick. So
here's the signup link for this email list.
( mailman.bartcop.com/listinfo/bartnews )
Marc Perkel
Thanks, Marc!
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny and seasonal.
43 In 5 Minutes
Cartoon Theme Songs
You can recall all the state capitals at the drop of a hat. Well, la-dee-da. You still know the quadratic formula, even though you have no idea why it's important. Well, whoop-de-doo.
The real mark of having become a responsible adult who hasn't forgotten important stuff from the formative years: Being able to name all 43 cartoon theme songs in this short classical concert from Carnegie Hall's Ensemble ACJW.
If you can, we take our hats off to you. Heck, get half of 'em and that's still pretty good. Sure, some of the tunes are obvious, especially with the animated hints. Is there any American who doesn't recognize the theme to "The Simpsons"? Other themes are a smidge more obscure. "Rocko's Modern Life"? "Johnny Bravo"? Those are shows? Get off our lawn!
But even if your knowledge of cartoons begins and ends with "Steamboat Willie," the clip is well worth watching and serves as a gentle reminder that you should really be watching a lot more television. How else are you supposed to understand classical music?
Cartoon Theme Songs
Reunion Tour
Fleetwood Mac
A little over a year ago, Stevie Nicks told Rolling Stone there was "more of a chance of an asteroid hitting the Earth" than Christine McVie returning to Fleetwood Mac. Well, it might be time to prepare for armageddon because the Mac's keyboardist and singer - who quit the band in 1998 after a three-decade stint in the group - is returning for a world tour beginning this September and a possible new album.
The tour will kick off on Tuesday, Sept. 30 in Minneapolis, Minn. at the Target Center, with the band performing 34 shows in 33 cities across North America. American Express® Card Members can purchase tickets before the general public beginning Monday, March 31 at 10 a.m. through Sunday, April 6 at 10 p.m. Tickets go on sale beginning Monday, April 7 through the Live Nation mobile app and Live Nation's website.
McVie says that her decision to leave the band was very simple. "I had some deluded idea that I wanted to live the 'country lady' life," she tells Rolling Stone. "But I went through a divorce and I felt isolated in the country. I grew quite ill and depressed." McVie realized the best way to fix her life was to rejoin Fleewood Mac, though Lindsey Buckingham admits he had some reservations when he first heard she wanted back in. "I wanted to make sure she grasped the weight of would it would entail," he says. "She also had to understand that if she was coming back that, basically, she has to stay. She wants to do it."
With McVie back in the band, the group will be able to perform songs like "Little Lies," "You Make Loving Fun," "Everywhere" and many other songs they haven't been able to play in nearly 20 years. "Being back is really a time warp," she says. "The tour is going to be great fun. I feel like a pig in poo right now."
Fleetwood Mac
Summer Tour
The Monkees
The three surviving members of the Monkees have announced a 14-date U.S. tour kicking off May 22nd in Hampton, New Hampshire. Michael Nesmith, Micky Dolenz and Peter Tork will be playing venues across the East Coast and Midwest, following the success of their recent reunion tour in 2013.
In a press release, multi-instrumentalist Tork says he's "happily looking forward to reuniting with (his) partners," while drummer-vocalist Dolenz says he's excited about seeing his old friends, "Papa Nez and the Torkmiester" and "looking forward to great music, great fun and truck-stop chili dogs at 4 a.m." Tickets and VIP packages for the dates are currently on sale at the band's website.
The band, of course, began life on their wacky Monkees TV series in 1965, finding massive success as Beatlemania continued to ravish the country. The group released several hit albums in the '60s - evolving from a simple pop-rock style to a more psychedelic approach - before splitting up, and a different trio configuration (Dolenz, Tork and original frontman Davy Jones) eventually reunited for a 20th anniversary tour in 1986. After Jones' death, the remaining three members came together for a brief run of shows in 2012 before their larger reunion tour the following year.
Last year, Nesmith spoke to Rolling Stone about reuniting his old bandmates and his enthusiasm for hitting the stage: "It was so much fun," he said. "The people that come, they bring their expectations, and we give them exactly what they want, so that's perfect. I don't know what they're bringing in the door, but I'm happy to see them."
The Monkees
Sotheby's To Sell Viola
Stradivarius
A rare 1719 Stradivarius viola is expected to sell for more than $45 million in a private sale.
Sotheby's says that price would be a record for a musical instrument sold privately or at auction.
The instrument is one of two violas by Antonio Stradivari still in private hands.
Only 10 Stradivari violas are known to have survived. This one is called "the Macdonald" after the 3rd Baron Macdonald, Godfrey Bosville, who purchased it in the 1820s.
Stradivarius
Ousted Executive Stages Sit-In
Pacifica Radio
The fired executive director of the Pacifica Radio network says she is not leaving the left-leaning organization's California headquarters, and equipped with an inflatable air mattress at her office, she is settling in for a fight.
Summer Reese, 40, was fired by the non-profit foundation's board in an 11-7 vote on March 13 and locked out of the headquarters in Berkeley, California, both sides said.
After cutting the padlock to get into the building, Reese has hunkered down for nine days with a team of supporters in the headquarters of Pacifica Foundation Radio, which oversees a five-station radio network serving New York, Los Angeles, Berkeley, Houston and Washington, D.C.
"This has shaken everybody up," Reese said, from behind her desk. "I'm being asked to follow the illegal actions of a rogue board."
After chairing the Pacifica national board for two years and working as both the chair and interim executive director for a year, Reese signed a contract in January to permanently take on the organization's top role. The agreement guaranteed her $315,000 over three years, according to a copy of the contract.
Pacifica Radio
Arrested on Felony Charge
Columbus Short
Scandal star Columbus Short was arrested Wednesday on a felony charge stemming from an altercation he allegedly participated in at a restaurant March 15.
Claremont police arrested Short for allegedly committing a battery that caused serious bodily harm, The Associated Press reports. According to law enforcement officials, Short got into an argument with a man at a West Los Angeles restaurant and struck the man, knocking him out.
He was released Wednesday on $50,000 bail. He faces four years in state prison if convicted. No date for a court appearance has been set.
This is not Short's first run-in with the law this year. On Feb. 14, he was charged with misdemeanor spousal battery and on March 5, a judge ordered him to keep away from his wife, Tuere Short. He has pleaded not guilty in that case.
Short plays "Gladiator"/lawyer Harrison Wright on ABC's red-hot political thriller Scandal. He has been a series regular on the Shonda Rhimes-Betsy Beers series since its start. The character, a fan favorite, has had little to do during the show's three-season run while others have had meatier roles. The series is poised to explore Harrison's backstory in the back half of its current third season.
Columbus Short
Reverses Decision
World Vision
Two days ago, World Vision U.S., one of the largest Christian charities in the country, changed its guidelines to allow for employees in same-sex marriages. Now, it is reversing that decision.
The decision to allow gay marriage among employees was widely criticized, and many donors wrote as much on the charity's Facebook page. One major Pentecostal denomination urged members to switch their World Vision contributions to other charities. Wednesday's news caused them to relent as well.
The result of threats of potential lost funding caused World Vision's board to vote unanimously on Wednesday to reverse its decision and stick to heterosexual marriage only.
Stearns did not say how much donor funding the organization might have lost in the days since the initial change.
World Vision
Only Allows Voting While Most People Are Working
Wisconsin
With Gov. Scott Walker's signature, Wisconsin has a new law on the books
prohibiting early voting in the state on the weekends and weekdays after 7 p.m., otherwise known as when most people aren't at work. The measure was opposed by Democratic legislators in the state, especially because turnout for early voting is high in cities like Milwaukee and Madison. Those cities tend to vote for Democrats.
The new law goes against the recent recommendations of the Commission on Election Administration, a bipartisan panel that released a lengthy report on voter access in January. The panel recommended that states expand, not restrict "alternative ways of voting, such as mail balloting and in-person early voting" in order to avoid hours-long lines at the polls on election day. A majority of states allow for some form of early voting - either by mail or in person - and the commission noted that voters want more, not fewer, early voting options available to them.
Walker's administration cited the need to create "uniform" hours across the state for early voting as his reason for signing the bill. Previously, Wisconsin allowed clerks to set their own hours, including on the weekends. That's a familiar argument. Ohio used it recently when it eliminated Sunday early voting hours there, prompting criticism from Democrats who said that the hours made it more difficult for minorities and blue collar workers to vote. The lack of Sunday hours also eliminates the possibility of a repeat of 2012's "Souls to the Polls" in the state. "Souls to the Polls" was a get-out-the-vote initiative organized by a coalition of black churches to drive the faithful from the pews to the voting booths during early voting hours on Sundays.
Walker did veto a few portions of the bill, including a provision that would have allowed for no more than 45 hours total of early voting in a jurisdiction. He also vetoed a part of the bill that would have let the state reimburse jurisdictions for early voting costs.
Wisconsin
Jumps To NBC
Cynthia McFadden
Cynthia McFadden is jumping to NBC News, while Juju Chang will replace her as co-anchor of ABC News' "Nightline."
The networks announced the changes on Thursday.
McFadden becomes NBC's senior legal and investigative correspondent as a member of the network's investigative unit.
She started at ABC News in 1994 as a legal correspondent before being named a "Nightline" correspondent. She has served as the program's co-anchor for the past nine years.
Cynthia McFadden
Taco Bell's New Ad
'Ronald McDonald'
Taco Bell is name-dropping an unlikely clown to promote its new breakfast menu - Ronald McDonald.
The fast-food chain will begin airing ads Thursday that feature everyday men who happen to have the same name as the McDonald's mascot known for his bright red hair and yellow jumpsuit. The marketing campaign is intended to promote Taco Bell's new breakfast menu, which features novelties like a waffle taco.
The chain, owned by Yum Brands Inc. of Louisville, Ky., is looking to boost sales by opening most of its roughly 6,000 U.S. stores a few hours earlier at 7 a.m. starting this week.
But Taco Bell has a long way to go to catch up with McDonald's, the No. 1 player in breakfast with about 31 percent of the category, according to market researcher Technomic. Egg McMuffins and other items have been consistent sellers for McDonald's over the years, with breakfast accounting for about 20 percent of the company's U.S. sales.
'Ronald McDonald'
Some of us, raised in the great backwoods of PA, were familiar with Ronald McDonald long before any Golden Arches popped up -
Ronald McDonald II Funeral Home, Inc. : Kane, Pennsylvania (PA)
Heh - In my world you mention Ronald McDonald and I think of caskets and hearses. Yum.
"On the Shore of the Seine"
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
A tiny Renoir painting has returned home to a gallery in the Baltimore Museum of Art nearly 63 years after it was stolen and then kept mysteriously hidden for decades until it resurfaced in 2012.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir's painting "On the Shore of the Seine," from about 1879, was unveiled Thursday as the centerpiece of a new exhibition, "The Renoir Returns." It opens to the public Sunday.
The painting, just 5½ by 9 inches, reappeared in 2012 when a Virginia woman claimed she unknowingly bought it at a flea market for $7 and then prepared to send it to auction. But others, including her brother, later disputed the story. A Washington Post reporter discovered the painting's connection to the Baltimore museum, and police uncovered a theft report from 1951.
The Renoir became the subject of a dramatic legal dispute involving the FBI, the woman who said she found the painting, an insurance company's rights to the artwork and the intentions of Saidie May, an art collector who bought the painting in Paris in 1925 and lent it to the Baltimore museum. May later gave more than 800 artworks to the museum, including many when she died.
In January, a federal judge also awarded ownership of the little Renoir to the museum.
Pierre-Auguste Renoir
| CURRENT MOON lunar phases |
