Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Paul Krugman: Kinds of Wrong (New York Times)
We know what Ferguson is going to do: he's going to brazen it out, actually boasting about the deftness with which he misled his readers. But what is Newsweek going to do?
Froma Harrop: The Delusions in Ryan's Medicare Vision (Creators Syndicate)
Delusion 1: Offering vouchers to buy a private plan opens a wonderful world of choice to future beneficiaries. Exactly what would that choice be? It would be a choice of private insurers. In many cases, that means less choice of doctors and hospitals, as the for-profits force enrollees into their networks of approved providers.
Eve Ensler: Dear Mr. Akin, I Want You to Imagine... (Huffington Post)
I am asking you and the GOP to get out of my body, out of my vagina, my womb, to get out of all of our bodies. These are not your decisions to make. These are not your words to define.
Aditya Chakrabortty: Why Osborne should pay heed to our Olympics triumph (Guardian)
If we ran Olympic sport in the same way we ran the economy, our athletes would be running races in their socks.
Mary McNamara: Phyllis Diller was completely and inarguably herself (LA Times)
Behind Phyllis Diller's wacky look was self-assured woman who clearly owned the joint. And with that attitude, she embodied women's liberation.
Honest Trailers: The Hunger Games (YouTube)
Relive the gritty brutality of the hit book as a watered down, PG-13 tween movie and may the odds be ever in its favor!
12 Questions to Ask Yourself About the System of Magic in Your Fantasy Novel (io9)
Mette Ivie Harrison, author of Tris and Izzie and the forthcoming The Rose Throne, has some great, succinct advice for anyone creating a new fantasy world. Before you start having people sling magic around all over the place, make sure your system of magic passes the sniff test.
David Bruce: Wise Up! Golf (Athens News)
Golfer Ben Hogan was famous for his powers of concentration on his own game. At the 1948 Masters, he played Claude Harmon. Playing the 12th hole, Mr. Hogan made a two, but Mr. Harmon made a hole in one. Afterward, Mr. Hogan said to Mr. Harmon, "That's the first time I've ever made a two there. What did you have, Charlie?"
David Bruce's Amazon Author Page
David Bruce's Lulu Storefront
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog
David Bruce has 42 Kindle books on Amazon.com with 250 anecdotes in each book. Each book is $1, so for $42 you can buy 10,500 anecdotes. Search for "Funniest People," "Coolest People, "Most Interesting People," "Kindest People," "Religious Anecdotes," "Maximum Cool," and "Resist Psychic Death."
wrote:
answered:
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
Infographic
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Reader Question
Deleted Links
Hi Marty!
What happened to the "what really happened link"?
Just wonder'n that's all.
I've been clicking on that link for years.
Take care & keep up the good work!
KevKev
in
Apache Junction, Arizona
p.s.
It's Hatch chile season
roast em
clean em
eat em
freeze em
Hi KevKev -
Mmmmmmm-hatch chiles!
The reason the link disappeared is I got a note from a reader
complaining about dead links, so yesterday I clicked through 'em, and the "what
really happened link" was one that came up "404 - Page not found", so I dumped it.
They probably just updated and the page is probably still there, but with
a different url. Didn't have the time to go looking for it, so I removed the link.
If any one has a working 'what really happened' link, I'll add it.
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Not quite as hot, but still a ways to go.
Broadcasting Licenses Under Attack
Fox
Could Fox Broadcasting Company be damaged by the phone-hacking scandal that has plagued its parent company News Corp.?
Watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed a petition with the FCC on Wednesday, asking that the agency deny renewal of the broadcast licenses of three Fox stations, in light of the scandal that erupted in England last year.
CREW claims that the licenses for two Fox stations in Washington, D.C. and one in Baltimore, Md., should not be renewed because U.S. law says that broadcast frequencies should only be used by those of good "character" who serve "the public interest" and speak with "candor" - qualities that don't exactly jibe with the hacking scandal.
"It is well established that News Corp. has been involved in one of the biggest media scandals of all time. Its reporters hacked voicemails and bribed public officials while top executives - including Rupert Murdoch - either approved the conduct or turned a blind eye," Melanie Sloan, CREW's executive editor, said of the petition. "To say those responsible are not of good character is a colossal understatement - 'despicable' and 'loathsome' are more apt."
The stations' current licenses are due to expire in October. Under federal law, broadcast licenses must be renewed every eight years, and the stations filed for renewal in June.
Fox
Russia's Rights Ombudsman Decries Verdict
Pussy Riot
Russia's human rights ombudsman on Thursday called the prison sentences handed down to three women from punk band Pussy Riot "excessive" and warned that the case was igniting dangerous tensions within society.
The trio were convicted of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred by a Moscow court on August 17 after belting out a profanity-laced anti-Putin song on the altar of Moscow's main cathedral in February.
Vladimir Lukin, who was originally nominated for his advisory role by President Vladimir Putin, said he might challenge the sentencing of Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich if their jail terms were upheld on appeal.
"It is a misdemeanor that in a normal, civilized European state, which Russia is, is handled in administrative rather than criminal proceedings. That's why I think the ruling on those women is excessive," he told a news conference when asked about the case.
Pussy Riot
'Hairspray' Producers To Run
Oscars
The producing team that helped to create such musicals as "Chicago" and "Hairspray" is overseeing the next Academy Awards ceremony.
Academy management announced Thursday that Craig Zadan and Neil Meron will produce the 85th annual Oscars that will air live Feb. 24 on ABC.
Zadan and Meron were executive producers on 2002's "Chicago," which won six Oscars including best picture. They also were producers on the 2007 hits "Hairspray" and "The Bucket List" and last year's remake of "Footloose." Zadan also produced the 1984 original "Footloose."
On Broadway, Zadan and Meron's work includes Tony Award-winning revivals of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" and "Promises, Promises."
Oscars
'Dr. Oz Show'
Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama is making a house call on "The Dr. Oz Show."
The show's producers say the first lady will tape an appearance Wednesday to discuss new provisions of her "Let's Move!" campaign and the Presidential Youth Fitness Program.
Producers said Thursday that Mrs. Obama's appearance will be taped at the show's New York studio for national broadcast Sept. 14.
"The Dr. Oz Show," which airs weekdays in syndication, will be starting its fourth season next month.
Michelle Obama
Benefit Concert
"Love for Levon"
John Mayer, Gregg Allman, Dierks Bentley and several other musicians are getting together to pay tribute to the late Levon Helm.
The "Love for Levon" benefit concert will be held Oct. 3 at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, N.J. It will include performances from such artists as My Morning Jacket, Ray LaMontagne, Eric Church, Patty Griffin, Bruce Hornsby, Mavis Staples and Joe Walsh
Tickets go on sale to the public Aug. 29. Proceeds from the concert will support Levon's estate and his Midnight Ramble concerts.
Don Was and Larry Campbell will serve as co-musical directors.
Other performers will include Warren Haynes, John Hiatt, Lucinda Williams and Marc Cohn.
"Love for Levon"
Makes Digital Liner Notes Push
Recording Academy
As liner notes get scarce in the digital age, the Recording Academy wants fans to still be able to find out who the people are behind their favorite hit.
So the Academy announced Thursday that it will launch the "Give Fans the Credit" campaign, which plans to give music listeners more information on the people behind the creation of a song, aside from the song's main performer.
Academy President and CEO Neil Portnow said in a statement that music fans are getting less information on songs today because of digital platforms, which tend to only offer a song's title and performer. But the Academy wants be sure fans are getting liner notes for albums, and that songwriters, non-featured performers, producers and engineers are highlighted for their work.
The initiative will feature "honorary ambassadors" who will help facilitate the discussion, including T Bone Burnett, music producer RedOne, Jimmy Jam, Sheila E, songwriter Lamont Dozier and producer Don Was. The Academy's news release said the ambassadors plan to meet with digital music outlets "to brainstorm ways to deliver more robust crediting information on digital music platforms."
Recording Academy
No Vetting, No Problem
Navy SEAL
A former U.S. Navy commando who authored a soon-to-be-published book about the raid in which he and fellow SEALs killed Osama bin Laden could face investigation because he failed to clear the book with the Defense Department before publication.
Fox News made public on Thursday what it said was the real name of the former SEAL who, with a journalist co-author, wrote "No Easy Day" under the pseudonym Mark Owen. The book is due to be released next month.
The book's publisher, Dutton, said Owen was "one of the first men through the door on the third floor of the terrorist leader's hideout and was present at his death."
Colonel Tim Nye, spokesman for the U.S. Special Operations Command, or SOCOM, which directs operations by Navy SEALs and other special operations forces, said on Thursday that SOCOM did not review the book before publication, nor had the SEALs.
Nye said that because the book had not been subjected to appropriate pre-publication review, it could become a target of "potential investigation" by government authorities. He added that any such inquiry was unlikely to be launched until after the book's publication, scheduled for the anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the United States.
Navy SEAL
Judgment Against Infomercial Scammers
FTC
A U.S. judge has issued a $478 million judgment against the marketers of a series of get-rich-quick real estate infomercials that the Federal Trade Commission said duped almost a million consumers with their claims.
The decision, announced by the FTC on Thursday, marked the largest litigated judgment ever obtained by the agency. It was part of one of several cases the agency has filed as part of its mission to deter scams targeting financial distressed consumers.
The FTC filed the lawsuit in June 2009 against the marketers of the three "systems" for making money quick, including "John Beck's Free & Clear Real Estate System." The John Beck system promised to teach consumers how to buy homes for "pennies on the dollar" during government sales, according to the complaint.
But the FTC said the people behind that system and two others made false and unsubstantiated claims about how much money consumers could make using that system and others. Despite the marketing, nearly all buyers of the $39.95 products lost money, the FTC said.
U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Nguyen in Los Angeles, who entered the judgment Tuesday, also imposed a lifetime ban from infomercial production and telemarketing against three defendants including Douglas Gravink and Gary Hewitt, who founded Family Products LLC, the company behind the advertising.
FTC
Killer Denied Parole
John Lennon
John Lennon's killer was denied release from prison in his seventh appearance before a parole board, New York corrections officials said Thursday.
Mark David Chapman, 57, was denied parole by a three-member board after a hearing Wednesday, the state Department of Corrections said. The transcript of his latest hearing wasn't immediately released.
The panel praised Chapman's conduct and accomplishments but said "parole shall not be granted for good conduct and program completions alone." The board noted there was significant opposition to his release.
At his previous hearing in 2010, Chapman recalled that he had considered shooting Johnny Carson or Elizabeth Taylor instead, and said again that he chose Lennon because the ex-Beatle was more accessible, that his century-old Upper West Side apartment building by Central Park "wasn't quite as cloistered." Chapman fired five shots outside the Dakota apartment house on Dec. 8, 1980, hitting Lennon four times in front of his wife, Yoko Ono, and others.
John Lennon
Must Pay "Men in Black 3" Fees
Barry Sonnenfeld
Barry Sonnenfeld is on the hook for the $325,000 that he owes his former agency for their cut of his director's fees for "Men in Black 3," a judge said Wednesday.
U.S. district judge S. James Otero quashed Sonnenfeld's efforts to have an earlier arbitration award vacated or altered, deeming that the director owed the full amount.
The order springs from arbitration between UTA and Sonnenfeld earlier this year, during which arbitrator Howard Weitzman determined that Sonnenfeld owed his former agency $325,000 as its cut of his "Men in Black 3" compensation, despite the fact that he was no longer with the agency.
Back in 1995, when Sonnenfeld was still with UTA, the agency brokered a deal for Sonnenfeld to direct "Men in Black," at a fee of $3.25 million, with UTA receiving a 10 percent commission. Shortly thereafter, Sonnenfeld and UTA parted ways, with the director moving on to Creative Artists Agency. When Sonnenfeld agreed to direct "Men in Black 2," CAA paid out another $3.25 million to UTA, since the "Men in Black II" deal was a by-product of the original deal struck by UTA.
Barry Sonnenfeld
Casino Suing Gamblers
New Jersey
A New Jersey casino has sued a group of gamblers who won $1.5 million after they allegedly realized the eight decks of cards used in a game of mini baccarat were not preshuffled.
The Golden Nugget in Atlantic City, N.J., filed suit against the gamblers and playing card company Gemaco after 14 players collectively won $1,536,700 in 41 winning hands.
As the same sequence of cards kept appearing April 30, the players increased their bets from $10 to $5,000, the casino alleged.
After paying out a portion of the winnings, the casino managers became suspicious. Convinced they were watching a "sophisticated swindling and cheating scheme," they refused to cash in the remaining $1 million in chips.
No evidence of a scheme was found. On May 1, the Golden Nugget said it learned by "direct admission" from Gemaco's CEO that the decks used in the baccarat game were unshuffled, despite being touted as preshuffled, certified decks.
New Jersey
Loses Rembrandt In The Mail
Soli Brug Gallery
A Norwegian art gallery lost a Rembrandt etching worth up to $8,600 in the mail after trying to save money on courier and insurance costs, the gallery's chief said on Thursday.
The Soli Brug Gallery in Greaaker, about 80 kilometers south of Oslo, purchased a copy of Rembrandt's 'Lieven Willemsz, van Coppenol, Writing-Master' made in around 1658 from a British dealer, only to have it lost in the Norwegian postal system.
"Using a courier or special insurance is quite expensive so we have used regular mail until now," Ole Derje, the gallery's chairman said.
"It is worth around 40,000 to 50,000 crowns ($6,900-$8,600)and the postal service is offering us compensation of 500-1,000 crowns."
Soli Brug Gallery
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) Kenny Chesney / Tim McGraw; $4,120,608; $88.83.
2. (2) Roger Waters; $2,311,102; $110.86.
3. (3) Cirque du Soleil - "Michael Jackson: The Immortal"; $1,433,976; $109.46.
4. (4) Dave Matthews Band; $1,354,667; $54.40.
5. (New) Phish; $1,290,420; $53.91.
6. (5) Brad Paisley; $785,536; $44.06.
7. (6) Drake; $783,513; $56.96.
8. (7) Nickelback; $726,891; $67.67.
9. (8) Jason Aldean; $720,548; $40.29.
10. (9) Rascal Flatts; $635,328; $36.10.
11. (10) Iron Maiden; $634,286; $55.04.
12. (11) The Beach Boys; $536,128; $68.52.
13. (12) One Direction; $499,246; $43.06.
14. (14) Lady Antebellum; $473,296; $38.57.
15. (13) Blue Man Group; $467,529; $56.29.
16. (15) Wiz Khalifa / Mac Miller; $454,817; $26.14.
17. (16) The Black Keys; $452,171; $48.90.
18. (17) "Vans Warped Tour"; $448,774; $31.88.
19. (18) Miranda Lambert; $429,674; $34.44.
20. (19) Il Divo; $364,670; $89.94.
Concert Tours
In Memory
Andre Beaurepaire
French painter Andre Beaurepaire, a former collaborator of Jean Cocteau, has died at the age of 88, his partner, the photographer Raphael Remiatte, told AFP on Thursday.
Beaurepaire, who was born in Paris in 1924, started drawing at the age of 12. His breakthrough came in 1945 when Christian Berardand Cocteau invited him to contribute to a exhibition on haute couture.
He subsequently worked with artists including Roland Petit, Jean Genet, Frederick Ashton, Leonid Massine, Gian-Carlo Menotti, Jean Marais and the Japanese fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto.
Beaurepaire also worked on costume and stage design for the Opera de Paris, la Scala in Milan, the Royal Opera house in Covent Garden, London and the Royal Opera in Amsterdam. He died on Tuesday, his partner said.
Andre Beaurepaire
| CURRENT MOON lunar phases |
