Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Henry Rollins: Who's Afraid of Peter King's Islamophobia Hearings? (Vanity Fair)
Congressman Peter King's hearings on the "Extent of Radicalization in the American Muslim Community and that Community's Response" is in full swing. Here's your chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security working hard for you!
Mark Shields: A Week is a Lifetime in Politics (Creators Syndicate)
As of today, President Obama looks formidable: a 50 percent favorable rating according to Gallup, no apparent primary challenge and, quite possibly, the nation's first billion dollar campaign treasury. But Republicans should remember 1984 and 1992 before concluding that the race against Obama is impossible. If gasoline goes to six bucks a gallon - not impossible - no incumbent will be safe in 2012. Because a week truly can be a lifetime in politics.
Jack Shafer: Productivity Madness (Slate)
The press swallows $3.8 billion worth of junk economics.
Ray Fisman: Raises Don't Make Employees Work Harder (Slate)
But pay cuts make them slack off.
Jim Hightower: HOW TO HATE "ILLEGALS" AND HAVE THEM TOO
Every state legislature has its share of incompetent, insensitive, and often incomprehensible goobers sitting in seats of power. Sometimes you have to wonder who helps them work the doorknobs to get out of their houses each morning.
The Wu master (Guardian)
The internet as a model of free speech and access is coming to an end, web expert Tim Wu tells Patrick Kingsley.
Steve Alford: Look Back in Horror: The Rumpus Interview with David Sirota
This backlash, of course, still frames our thinking today, whether it's Wall Streeters justifying their avarice, Tea Partiers demanding a return to the pre-1960s, or politicians branding tax cuts as the ultimate public policy virtue.
Alina Dizik: Counting Calories Online (Wall Street Journal)
Calorie-counting websites recently have ramped up their food databases and added better tools to make it less tedious to monitor what you eat. The Cranky Consumer tries out four websites.
Suze Orman: How to Boost Your Retirement Confidence (Huffington Post)
I hear it in your voices and see it in your faces when you talk to me. Your fears about being able to retire comfortably and with dignity are weighing you down. It's hard to enjoy the present when you're worried about the future.
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Photograph Panoramas
David Bruce has 41 Kindle books on Amazon.com with 250 anecdotes in each book. Each book is $1, so for $41 you can buy 10,250 anecdotes. Search for "Funniest People," "Coolest People, "Most Interesting People," "Kindest People," "Religious Anecdotes," and "Maximum Cool."
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From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Reader Suggestions
Michelle in AZ
BadtotheboneBob
'Butterflies in Bloom'
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Gray and overcast - no rain, yet.
Arrested Near White House
Anti-War Protesters
More than 100 anti-war protesters, including the man who leaked the Pentagon Papers, were arrested outside the White House on Saturday in demonstrations marking the eighth anniversary of the U.S.-led war in Iraq.
The protesters, some shouting anti-war slogans and singing "We Shall Not Be Moved," were arrested after ignoring orders to move away from the gates of the White House. The demonstrators cheered loudly as Daniel Ellsberg, the former military analyst who in 1971 leaked the Pentagon's secret history of the Vietnam War that was later published in major newspapers, was arrested and led away by police.
In New York City, about 80 protesters gathered near the U.S. military recruiting center in Times Square, chanting "No to war" and carrying banners that read, "I am not paying for war" and "Butter not guns."
Similar protests marking the start of the Iraq war were also planned Saturday in Chicago, San Francisco and other cities.
The demonstration in Washington on Saturday merged varied causes, including protesters demanding a U.S. military withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan as well as those supporting Bradley Manning, the jailed Army private suspected of giving classified documents to the website Wikileaks.
Anti-War Protesters
Media Awards
GLAAD
Russell Simmons, Ricky Martin and the HBO drama series "True Blood" are among this year's recipients of media awards from the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.
Other winners of the 22nd Annual GLAAD Media Awards, presented Saturday in New York, include the NBC comedy "30 Rock" and CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360" for its series on gay teen suicides.
Scissor Sisters were named outstanding music artists for the album "Night Work." The website Essence.com was saluted for outstanding digital journalism.
Nonelectronic media winners include The New York Times columnist Frank Rich and Peter David for his Marvel comic book "X-Factor."
Winners were announced in 25 of this year's total of 32 media categories. The remaining awards will be presented at ceremonies to be held in Los Angeles and San Francisco in April and May, respectively.
GLAAD
Mich. Supreme Court Sides With Rapper
Dr. Dre
Detroit officials who were backstage at a concert featuring hip-hop stars Dr. Dre and Eminem had no right to privacy when they confronted organizers in a videotaped exchange that turned up in a DVD, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled in a decision released Saturday.
The ruling dismisses a lawsuit against Dr. Dre, whose real name is Andre Young, that was filed by City Councilman Gary Brown and other Detroit officials after the 2000 show.
Brown was a high-ranking police official at the time, and warned concert organizers that power would be turned off if they showed a sexually explicit video at the Joe Louis Arena. The conversation was taped and later used in behind-the-scenes tracks on a popular DVD highlighting the "Up in Smoke" national concert tour that also featured rappers Snoop Dogg and Ice Cube.
Brown had argued that his privacy was violated by the video, but Dr. Dre's lawyer Herschel Fink said there was no privacy when police were doing their job.
Dr. Dre
To Pen Suspense Books
Valerie Plame Wilson
Former CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson is turning to fiction writing more than three years after publishing a memoir about her career.
The New York Times reports that Wilson has a book deal with Penguin Group USA for a series of international suspense novels. The newspaper says she will team up with mystery writer Sarah Lovett on the books, which will feature a fictional operative.
Wilson tells the Times she's frustrated by portrayals of female CIA agents in popular culture that emphasize their looks rather than their brains.
Wilson's 2007 memoir, "Fair Game," told the story of her CIA career and her 2003 outing that led to the indictment of Vice President Dick Cheney's top aide, I. Lewis Libby. Her first fiction book is due out next year.
Valerie Plame Wilson
Anti-Hacking Division Hacked
EMC
The world's biggest maker of data storage computers on Thursday said that its security division has been hacked, and that the intruders compromised a widely used technology for preventing computer break-ins.
The breach is an embarrassment for EMC Corp., also a premier security vendor, and potentially threatens highly sensitive computer systems.
The incident is a rare public acknowledgement by a security company that its internal anti-hacking technologies have been hacked. It is especially troubling because the technology sold by EMC's security division, RSA, plays an important role in making sure unauthorized people aren't allowed to log into heavily guarded networks.
The scope of the attack wasn't immediately known, but the potential fallout could be widespread. RSA's customers include the military, governments, various banks and medical facilities and health insurance outfits. EMC, which is based Hopkinton, Mass., itself is an RSA customer.
EMC
Baseball League To Play On
Japan
Japan's baseball players' union has hit out at the decision of the Central League to start its season on schedule on March 25 while the country continues to battle the aftermath of last week's earthquake.
Thousands died when a 9.0-magnitude earthquake hit Japan last Friday causing a tsunami and damaging a nuclear plant 240-km (150 miles) north of Tokyo where engineers were still battling to avert a disaster on Friday.
While the Pacific League said it would be postponing the start of the season until April 12, the six-team Central League announced on Thursday that games would go ahead as planned.
"What a shame," Takahiro Arai, the head of the union, told the Kyodo news agency.
"The players' consensus is that it is inappropriate to start the season when we think of those who were killed, those who are still missing and those who are staying in shelters. It's just too early."
Japan
Tour Detail Trickle Out
Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen plans to "riff like an artist" from memory rather than use a script on his 21-date "Torpedo of Truth" tour next month, delivering a mostly spoken word performance of about 80 minutes, according to one of the show's producers.
Joey Scoleri told E! News in an interview on Friday that audiences would also get to ask questions of the fired "Two and a Half Men" actor, and he promised a "wild ride of highs and lows and dark and light and laughter and being surprised."
Few details have so far been released of the tour, which sold out quickly in several U.S. cities after the massive publicity enjoyed by Sheen's bizarre rants and his exit from the most-watched comedy on television.
The description on the Ticketmaster website for "Charlie Sheen's Violent Torpedo of Truth Defeat Is Not an Option" show reads merely; ""Will there be surprises? Will there be guests? Will there be mayhem? Will you laugh? Will you scream? Will you know the truth? WILL THERE BE MORE?!?! This IS where you will hear the REAL story from the Warlock. Bring it. I dare you to keep up with me."
Charlie Sheen
Dress Sells For £78,000
Kate Middleton
The see-through dress that helped Kate Middleton catch the eye of husband-to-be Prince William has sold for £78,000, smashing the expected price for the risque garment.
The transparent black number, which Kate wore during a charity fashion show at Saint Andrews University in Scotland in 2002, went under the hammer at a packed sales room in central London on Thursday.
The price of $125,000 or 89,000 euros, which included a buyer's premium of £13,000, far exceeded the initial estimate of £10,000 by Kerry Taylor Auctions.
A man at the back of the sales room who refused to give his name said he bought it on behalf of an individual he would identify only as "Nick from Jersey".
Kate Middleton
Jet Destined For NC Museum
'Miracle on the Hudson'
To stand inside the cabin of the US Airways jet that crash landed on the Hudson River is to imagine, even briefly, some of the terror that must have overtaken the 155 people aboard as the plane descended onto the icy water.
The plane's interior is largely undisturbed from the Jan. 15, 2009, landing but is littered with reminders - and a coating of dried mud. A stethoscope from a first-aid kit lies on the floor in one row, while unused life jackets still wrapped in plastic sit on seats. Many seat cushions are gone, grabbed by passengers as they exited onto a wing. In the rear galley, food and beverages are waiting to be served.
The world will be able to relive the triumph of what has been dubbed "The Miracle on the Hudson" when the Airbus A320 is shipped this spring from a northern New Jersey warehouse to Charlotte, N.C., for an exhibit at the Carolinas Aviation Museum.
The plane's wings are expected to be moved within the next few weeks. The 120-foot fuselage will be trucked down around mid-June, said Stephen Ryan, whose Australia-based company FRD is consulting on the museum project.
'Miracle on the Hudson'
In Memory
Warren Christopher
Former U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher, who helped bring peace to Bosnia and negotiated the release of American hostages in Iran, died in California at age 85.
Christopher "passed away peacefully, surrounded by family at his home in Los Angeles" late on Friday of complications from kidney and bladder cancer, his family said in a statement.
As the top U.S. statesman under President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1997, Christopher was a behind-the-scenes negotiator. Often called the "stealth" secretary of state, he was known for his understated, self-effacing manner.
Christopher said that as a diplomat, careful listening was his secret weapon. "I observed some time ago that I was better at listening than at talking," The New York Times quoted him as saying in a 1981 speech when he was deputy secretary of state.
That secret weapon helped Christopher weather diplomatic crises and bring enemies together.
In 1995, he intervened during the crucial final days of the U.S.-brokered Bosnian peace talks at Dayton, Ohio. He had an important role in closing the deal, according to his deputy, Richard Holbrooke, the force behind the agreement.
Christopher not only spoke the language of diplomacy, he dressed the part. Favoring elegant, tailored suits, he was once named one of the best dressed men in America by People magazine for his "diplomatically dapper" style.
As secretary of state, Christopher devoted much of his time to the Middle East. He made at least 18 trips to the region in pursuit of peace and a ceasefire in southern Lebanon between Israel and the pro-Iranian Islamic group Hezbollah.
In 1994 he witnessed the signing of a peace treaty between Jordan and Israel.
As President Jimmy Carter's deputy secretary of state, he negotiated the release of 52 Americans taken hostage at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1979.
The hostages were freed on January 20, 1981, minutes after Ronald Reagan was sworn in to succeed Carter.
Carter awarded Christopher the Medal of Freedom, the highest U.S. civilian honor, for his efforts. On Saturday the former president said the country had "lost a great and revered leader."
Christopher also helped negotiate the Panama Canal treaty, worked on establishing normal relations with China and played a major role in developing Carter's human rights policies.
Christopher was born on October 27, 1925, in Scranton, North Dakota, and grew up in Los Angeles.
Warren Christopher
In Memory
Knut
Berlin's beloved polar bear Knut, an international star who as a cuddly, fluffy cub graced magazine covers, movies and merchandise, died Saturday. His death at the young age of four took zookeepers and animal experts by surprise.
The celebrity bear died suddenly in his compound at the Berlin Zoo on Saturday afternoon, bear keeper Heiner Kloes told The Associated Press. He waded into the water in his enclosure before having a short spasm and then dying in front of hundreds of zoo visitors.
While the life expectancy of polar bear in the wild is between 15 and 20 years, animals in captivity can live even longer because they are not exposed to hunger, thirst or infections. A postmortem will be conducted on Monday to try to pinpoint the cause of death, Kloes said.
His death was met by an immediate outpouring of sorrow. As the news of Knut's death spread through the city, more Knut fans showed up at the zoo, assembling in front of the bear compound to mourn his loss.
Abandoned at birth on December 5, 2006, along with his twin brother, who only survived a couple of days, Knut first attracted attention when his main caregiver, Thomas Doerflein, camped out at the zoo to give the button-eyed cub his bottle every two hours. Doerflein cuddled and played with him at daily public appearances to the delight of thousands of people who came to watch.
Fan clubs sprung up across the globe, including in Japan, the United States and Germany. Fans followed his every move, including his weight battle - he had a weakness for croissants - or plans to move to a different zoo.
He was so adored, and profitable, Berlin's zoo paid some euro430,000 ($600,000) to the Neumuenster zoo to settle a financial dispute over his ownership. Neumuenster owns Knut's father and had insisted it was the legal owner of Knut, the elder bear's first offspring.
No longer a cub, Knut grew rapidly, weighing a hulking 440-pounds (200-kilograms) by age two, and trading in white fluff for yellowish fur. Doerflein, the zookeeper who raised him, died in 2008 of a heart attack, earning front page headlines in German newspapaper as "Knut's daddy."
Between 600 and 700 people were at his compound when Knut died, zoo officials said. One visitor said she watched Knut lying on the surface of the water motionless with only his back showing for ten minutes until zookeepers came and fenced off the compound.
"All the zoo keepers who put up the fences were so very sad. One of them said, 'He was our baby,'" said Camilla Verde, a 30-year-old Italian who lives in Berlin.
Knut
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