Recommended Reading
from Bruce
What if I had bought Apple stock instead? (kyleconroy.com)
Currently, Apple's stock is at an all time high. A share today is worth over 40 times its value seven years ago. So, how much would you have today if you purchased stock instead of an Apple product? See for yourself in the table ....
Tom Danehy: How did the Tea Party folks do on Tom's U.S. Constitution quiz? (tucsonweekly.com)
As I was telling you last week before I was so rudely interrupted by that word-count thing, I went to the Tea Party rally at El Presidio Park on Tax Day. They had gathered-about seven years too late, by my estimation-to protest what they consider to be excessive government spending, a skewed tax system and/or a flawed foreign policy.
Garrison Keillor: Fact and Fiction (Tribune Media Services)
It's the best spring ever, green and lush, and baby robins are chittering in their nest in the maple tree and the smell of blossoms is in the air -- and yet we dour Scots cannot forget that April 27 was the anniversary of our ignominious defeat at the Battle of Dunbar, our good King John stripped of his regalia, and the Stone of Scone hauled off to London.
Susan Estrich: Playing With Financial Fire (creators.com)
Republican senators are playing with fire. And Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is perfectly content to pile on the logs.
Connie Schultz: Parents, Just Ignore the Eye Rolling and Teach Your Kids About Sex (creators.com)
When it comes to memories you can't pound out of your head with a mallet, few rival the staying power of that moment when we discover how babies are made.
For me, it was really a series of excruciating epiphanies in the span of a fifth-grade afternoon in 1967.
Ellen Handler Spitz: Review of "Struwwelpeter" by Heinrich Hoffmann (tnr.com)
First, a heartfelt thanks to the small number of devoted publishing houses like Dover, Universe at Rizzoli, and the New York Review Classics, who have undertaken the laudable project of reissuing classic out-of-print children's books.
"Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary: With Additional Material from a Thesaurus of Old English" by Christian Kay: A review by Sarah L. Courteau
Confess that you regularly consult a thesaurus, and you call your writing skills and even your intelligence into question, such is the ill repute into which this worthy reference has fallen.
Simon Tolkien: In My Grandfather's Footsteps (huffingtonpost.com)
I grew up knowing that my grandfather was a creative genius, the founder of modern fantasy, who spoke innumerable languages and knew the answers to all important questions. Who was I to try to step out of his shadow?
August Brown: Courtney Love and Hole at the Music Box in Los Angeles (Los Angeles Times)
When Courtney Love first announced that she was resuscitating her volatile, beloved band Hole, the news arrived with two very different possibilities as to how it might play out.
Randy Lewis: On the bus with Merle Haggard at Stagecoach 2010 (Los Angeles Times)
Parking was a journey to the dark side for all concerned this weekend. Several acres were set aside for free parking for those coming to the Stagecoach festival just for the day, and the three-lane-wide jam of cars and, mostly, pickup trucks jockeying to get in earlier Saturday was breathtaking.
Alfred Hickling: "Jonathan Harvey: 'I've given up seeking approval'" (guardian.co.uk)
He is one of our most uncompromising scriptwriters. Now Jonathan Harvey is returning to the stage - with a musical comedy about gay Britain's big battles.
Todd Solondz: a return to suffering (timesonline.co.uk)
Todd Solondz tells why he decided to go back to the shock and awe of 'Happiness' - and relive them with a new cast.
The Erotic Adventures of Candide (Print: $15.00; Download: $5.00)
Satire and sex scenes. For adults only.
The Weekly Poll
Current Question
The 'To Serve Man' Edition (Thanks, Rod)...
...aliens are out there and Earth had better watch out, at least according to Stephen Hawking. He has suggested that extraterrestrials are almost certain to exist - but that instead of seeking them out, humanity should be doing all it that can to avoid any contact... He suggests that aliens might simply raid Earth for its resources and then move on...
Don't talk to aliens, warns Stephen Hawking - Times Online
Despite that, should we seek out new life and new civilizations? (Thanks, Gene)
A.) Sure! ... Yoo Hoo! Here we are! Stop by for dinner! (haha).
B.) No way! ... Move along now, ALF, nothing to see here (especially cats).
C.) Que Sera Sera ... (sang Doris, sweetly)
Send your response to
wrote:
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Windy and dry.
Helping Build 3-D Camera For Mars Rover
James Cameron
"Avatar" director James Cameron is helping to build a high-resolution 3-D camera on the next-generation Mars rover.
The camera will be mounted atop Curiosity, the next rover mission to Mars set for launch next year.
Pasadena's Jet Propulsion Laboratory scaled back its plans in 2007 to mount a 3-D camera atop Curiosity because the upcoming flagship mission to Mars was consistently over budget and behind schedule.
But Cameron lobbied NASA administrator Charles Bolden for inclusion of the 3-D camera during a January meeting, saying a rover with a better set of eyes will help the public connect with the mission.
James Cameron
W.Va. Show To Aid Miners' Families
Alan Jackson
Country music icon Alan Jackson will donate the profits from a performance in West Virginia to the families of the miners killed in an explosion this month at the Upper Big Branch mine.
Jackson's publicist says he will perform May 22 at the Charleston Civic Center to support the families of the 29 men who died in the April 5 blast at Massey Energy's mine in Montcoal. It's the worst coal mining disaster in 40 years.
Ticket prices for parts of the arena have been cut to $20 to encourage attendance. Many vendors and suppliers have also cut their fees.
Proceeds will go to the Montcoal Mining Disaster Fund, run by the West Virginia Council of Churches.
Alan Jackson
Lyrics Up For Auction
John Lennon
John Lennon's handwritten lyrics to "A Day in the Life," considered one of the Beatles' greatest songs and the final track on "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," will go on sale in New York in June.
Sotheby's auctioneer, which described it as "the revolutionary song that marked the Beatles' transformation from pop icons to artists," expects the manuscript to fetch $500-700,000 when it goes under the hammer on June 18.
On the reverse side is a neater version written in capital letters and with fewer corrections.
Apparently added later is the line: "I love to turn you on," for which the song was banned by the BBC when it first came out in 1967 because the words were deemed to be a reference to taking drugs.
John Lennon
Former Miss AK Running In GA
Maryline Blackburn
A woman who was once a beauty pageant rival of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is running for a seat in the Georgia state House.
Maryline Blackburn, a Democrat, qualified Thursday for the House District 34 election in the Atlanta suburb of Smyrna. She hopes to challenge incumbent Rep. Rich Golick, a Republican.
Blackburn won Miss Alaska in 1984, beating Palin, who was second runner-up. Blackburn is a recording artist who has been nominated twice for a Grammy.
Maryline Blackburn
Hits Back At Pickles' 'Poison' Theory
Grand Hotel Heiligendamm
A German hotel where then US resident George W. Bush stayed in 2007 angrily rejected Thursday claims by his wife Laura Bush of possible poisoning, accusing her of a publicity stunt for her memoirs.
"We see absolutely no evidence to support (these allegations) at all," said Christian Ploeger, a spokesman for the Fundus Group that owns the Grand Hotel Heiligendamm in northern Germany where the Bushes stayed for a G8 summit.
"The food was checked by security staff," Ploeger told AFP.
"I suspect that this may be just to try and sell more copies of the book."
In her upcoming autobiography "Spoken from the Heart," a copy of which was obtained by the New York Times, Laura Bush writes that she, her husband and staff members may have been poisoned when they fell ill during their stay.
Grand Hotel Heiligendamm
Matter Of Loyalty
Americans
Americans are more loyal to their favorite soft drink, television show or car brand than they are to their employer, according to a joint Reuters/Ipsos poll.
But they are most committed to their country, followed by their family and their doctor.
"The most surprising thing was that country, which is more abstract, was No. 1, ahead of your family or spouse," said Timothy Keininghan, the author of the poll and a co-author of the book, "Why Loyalty Matters."
Seventy percent of Americans questioned in the survey said they are more loyal to their country now than they were two years ago.
Americans
Thelma Lou Robbed In 'Mayberry'
Betty Lou Lynn
The actress who played Thelma Lou on "The Andy Griffith Show" was robbed in the town that inspired the show's idyllic Mayberry setting, after moving to the area to avoid big city crime.
Betty Lou Lynn had her wallet stolen at a shopping center in Mount Airy, the birthplace of Andy Griffith.
The Mount Airy News reports that police arrested Shirley Walter Guynn of Cana, Va. He's being held in Surry County Jail on a $10,000 bond. It was not immediately clear Thursday if he has a lawyer.
In an earlier interview with the newspaper, the 83-year-old Lynn said she moved to Mount Airy after being robbed three times in Los Angeles. In the TV series, Thelma Lou was the girlfriend of Deputy Barney Fife, played by Don Knotts.
Betty Lou Lynn
Film Investors Whine
Paris Hilton
Paris Hilton should return up to $1 million she was paid for the 2006 box-office bomb "Pledge This!" because she didn't plug the film enough, an attorney for the movie's investors told a federal judge Thursday.
The 29-year-old hotel heiress, actress and self-promoting businesswoman refused nine requests for print and broadcast interviews she should have given under her contract, said investor attorney Bryan West.
"We paid her $1 million, and we're entitled to get at least a portion of that back," West told U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno. "Part of what actors do is promote their films."
But Hilton's attorney, Michael Weinsten, said she took part in several high-profile publicity events - including an appearance at the Cannes Film Festival - and that the contract didn't require her to do interviews when she was busy on other projects.
Paris Hilton
Lawyers Seek Sealed Prosecutor Testimony
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski's lawyers want a Los Angeles judge to unseal secret testimony by the original prosecutor in the director's 33-year-old sex case.
In a motion to be filed Thursday, the attorneys say transcripts of testimony by retired Deputy District Attorney Roger Gunson are needed urgently to submit to Swiss authorities pondering whether to extradite Polanski to the United States after decades as a fugitive.
Gunson testified this year in what is known as a conditional examination. Such proceedings preserve testimony of a witness who might not be available for future hearings.
The motion says the transcripts will prove the extradition request is based on false and incomplete statements by the Los Angeles district attorney's office.
Roman Polanski
Huge Science Balloon Crashes in Australian Outback
NASA
A huge NASA balloon loaded with a telescope painstakingly built to scan the sky at wavelengths invisible to the human eye crashed in the Australian outback Thursday, destroying the $2 million astronomy experiment and just missing nearby onlookers, according to Australian media reports.
In dramatic video released by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), the giant 400-foot (121-meter) balloon is seen just beginning to lift its payload, then the telescope gondola appears to unexpectedly come loose from its carriage.
"No one was injured. A mishap investigation board is being convened," NASA officials said in a statement released late Thursday.
The attempted balloon telescope launch took place at the Alice Springs Balloon Launching Centre, near the town of Alice Springs, in the northern territory of Australia.
NASA
Could Eclipse Exxon Valdez
Gulf Coast Oil Spill
An oil spill that threatened to eclipse even the Exxon Valdez disaster spread out of control and drifted inexorably toward the Gulf Coast on Thursday as fishermen rushed to scoop up shrimp and crews spread floating barriers around marshes.
The spill was both bigger and closer than imagined - five times larger than first estimated, with the leading edge just three miles from the Louisiana shore. Authorities said it could reach the Mississippi River delta by Thursday night.
"It is of grave concern," David Kennedy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, told The Associated Press. "I am frightened. This is a very, very big thing. And the efforts that are going to be required to do anything about it, especially if it continues on, are just mind-boggling."
The oil slick could become the nation's worst environmental disaster in decades, threatening hundreds of species of fish, birds and other wildlife along the Gulf Coast, one of the world's richest seafood grounds, teeming with shrimp, oysters and other marine life.
Gulf Coast Oil Spill
Bans Burqa-Type Dress In Public
Belgium
Belgium's lower house of parliament on Thursday banned burqa-type Islamic dress in public, but the measure faces a challenge in the Senate which will delay early enactment of the law.
Christian Democrats and Liberals in the Senate questioned the phrasing of the law, which holds no one can appear in public "with the face fully or partly covered so as to render them no longer recognizable."
Following the fall of Premier Yves Leterme's government April 22, Belgium faces early elections that may delay passage of the Belgian anti-burqa ban - Europe's first - by several months. Both houses of parliament must approve the bill.
Like elsewhere in Europe, Belgium struggles with anxieties that visible signs of Islam erode national identity and that women in traditional conservative Islamic dress, such as the burqa, the chador and the niqab, signal a refusal to assimilate in western society.
Belgium
Navy To Allow Women
Submarines
The first U.S. women allowed to serve aboard submarines will be reporting for duty by 2012, the Navy said Thursday as the military ordered an end to one of its few remaining gender barriers.
The cramped quarters and scant privacy aboard submarines, combined with long tours of up to 90 days at sea, kept them off-limits to female sailors for 16 years after the Navy began allowing women to serve on all its surface ships in 1994.
There were some protests, particularly from wives of sub sailors, after the military began formulating a plan last fall. But it received no objections from Congress after Defense Secretary Robert Gates notified lawmakers in mid-February that the Navy intended to lift the ban. The deadline for Congress to intervene passed at midnight Wednesday.
The first group of women will consist entirely of officers assigned to guided-missile attack submarines and ballistic-missile submarines, which have the most living space in the Navy's fleet. They'll be assigned to two subs based at Kings Bay on the East Coast, and two others at the West Coast naval hub of Bangor, Wash.
Submarines
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