Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Mark Morford: Please lick my hot Fiat 500 (sfgate.com)
Some say it all began 10 years ago with the return of the hyperdelicious Mini Cooper, what with its lethal combo of insanely cute yet stylishly cool yet "Oh my God this thing handles like a go cart on rails."
David Bruce: Wise Up! Prejudice (athensnews.com)
George Takei, who played Mr. Hikaru Sulu on the original "Star Trek" TV series, grew up in American internment camps for Japanese-Americans during World War II. He had a teacher who referred to him as "that little Jap boy," and each morning, he was able to look out the school window and see barbed-wire fences and guard fences as he ended the Pledge of Allegiance by reciting "with liberty and justice for all."
TED RALL: THE HAITIAN EARTHQUAKE: MADE IN U.S.A.
You'd think Haiti would be loaded. After all, it made a lot of people rich.
How did Haiti get so poor? Despite a century of American colonialism, occupation, and propping up corrupt dictators? Even though the CIA staged coups d'état against every democratically elected president they ever had?
Mark H. Shapiro: Higher Education in California - Time for a New Master Plan II? (irascibleprofessor.com)
In this commentary we examine some of the other comments that Tierney made about the Master Plan along with his suggestions for changes in areas besides funding.
Francis Gilbert: What makes a great teacher? (guardian.co.uk)
David Cameron thinks a good teacher is all about having a good degree but, says one member of the profession, that couldn't be further from the truth,
Nicole Jackson: The teacher who inspired me (guardian.co.uk)
Sharon Horgan, Paddy Ashdown, Bonnie Greer and others on the teachers who meant most to them.
"Logicomix: An Epic Search for Truth" by Apostolos Doxiadis and Christos Papadimitriou: A review by Brent Cunningham
It isn't surprising that 'Logicomix' has already received a couple of high-profile reviews: it's the kind of book that makes reviewers feel necessary and important. On the one hand, it's a good and deserving read in the history of mathematics, logic, and philosophy, yet because it comes in the form of a graphic novel, it could have some trouble finding its widest and most appreciative audience. Reviewers to the rescue!
Gideon Lewis-Kraus: The Opening of the Academic Mind (slate.com)
How to rescue the professoriate from professionalization.
"Strangest Man: The Hidden Life of Paul Dirac, Quantum Genius" (UK Edition) by Graham Farmelo: A review by Michael D. Gordin
Paul Adrien Maurice Dirac (1902 - 1984) might be one of the best subjects imaginable for a scientific biography. He is also surely one of the worst. In most scientific biographies, presenting the life is easy, but integrating the scientific work proves a struggle. For Dirac, the polarities are reversed.
Emma Simmonds: Review of "Film Noir Classics: Volume One" (popmatters.com)
Fans of noir will not be disappointed by the quality of the films in this set. Though for those expecting the best the film noir movement has to offer, be advised that this collection does not deliver a plethora of perfection just one classic, three minor gems and one entertainingly daft caper movie.
Julie Walters: 'To hell with itŠ Fetch the razor' (guardian.co.uk)
From singing in 'Mamma Mia!' to shaving her head to play Mo Mowlam in a new TV drama, Julie Walters is anything but vain. Emma Brockes meets her.
Will Harris: A Chat with Bill Paxton (bullz-eye.com)
"My fear was not that ('Big Love') couldn't hold its own; it was, 'Would the audience out there embrace a show like this?'"
The Weekly Poll
New Question
The 'LOL in the Boardroom' Edition
President Barack Obama told banks Thursday they should pay a new tax to recoup the cost of bailing out foundering firms at the height of the financial crisis. He said...
"My commitment is to recover every single dime the American people are owed. And my determination to achieve this goal is only heightened when I see reports of massive profits and obscene bonuses at some of the very firms who owe their continued existence to the American people...We want our money back, and we're going to get it."
Citing 'obscene' bonuses, Obama to tax banks - U.S. business- msnbc.com
How confident are you that Obama will be able to recover those funds?
1.) Very - 'The Man' will be on 'em like a pit bull...
2.) Somewhat - We'll get back just enough so 'The Man' can claim success, but not nearly the total of what they scammed from us...
3.) Yer kiddin' me, right? I'm laughing with 'The Board'...
Send your response to
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Reader Comment
Food for Thought
Haiti: Guns or food? from theREALnewsnetwork
Presence of US troops provides both hope of relief, and fear of continuing legacy of US domination. As aid starts to trickle in, and the extent of the horror becomes known, decisions are already being made that will affect the Haiti that emerges from this. Ansel Herz reports live from Port-Au-Prince on the role that the deployed US troops are playing, while author Peter Hallward weighs in on the role that the US has played in Haiti's recent history and shares his concerns that post-earthquake Haiti will further cement the domination of the Haitian people by foreigners.
Ansel Herz reports from Port-Au-Prince
MAM
Thanks, Marianne!
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
Signs Point To Friday Farewell
Conan O'Brien
Conan O'Brien all but posted a farewell banner on this week's "Tonight" shows as his exit negotiations with NBC neared their conclusion Wednesday.
In the late-night tradition of a star-studded goodbye, O'Brien's guests Thursday include such big names as Robin Williams and Barry Manilow. Tom Hanks was scheduled for Friday, as was Will Ferrell - the first guest O'Brien welcomed when he started last June as "Tonight" host.
And then there was this joke from his monologue Tuesday: "Hi, I'm Conan O'Brien, and I'm just three days away from the biggest drinking binge in history."
It was yet another indication that he's bracing for the bitter end of his brief tenure at "Tonight," less than eight months after taking over as host from Jay Leno. The show previously had been scheduled for reruns next week.
Conan O'Brien
Trial Continues
Proposition H8
Gay men and lesbians are a politically unpopular and relatively powerless force in the United States, even though the public tends to think otherwise, a political scientist testified Wednesday during a historic trial on the constitutionality of California's same-sex marriage ban.
Stanford University professor Gary M. Segura cited hate crime statistics, anti-gay remarks by elected officials, the relatively low number of gay office holders nationwide, and the success rate of ballot initiatives such as California's Proposition 8 to argue that gays do not possess a meaningful degree of political power.
"By any measure, gays and lesbians would have to be understood as a minority faction," Segura said. "People who accept the normativity of heterosexuality have held power essentially forever."
Lawyers for two same-sex couples suing to overturn Proposition 8 - California's gay marriage ban - called Segura to the witness stand to buttress their argument that gays are a disadvantaged group that deserves the same protections from discrimination afforded other vulnerable minorities under the U.S. Constitution.
Proposition H8
3-D Tribute To Michael Jackson
Grammys
Last year, as the Grammys were approaching, the show's executive producer was in frequent talks with Michael Jackson to appear on the telecast to celebrate the 25th anniversary of "Thriller."
Ken Ehrlich, the Grammy telecast's co-executive producer, had presented several ideas for performers, including Justin Timberlake and Usher, all of which excited Jackson. But in the end, he declined the show's invitation.
"He just wasn't ready for it," Ehrlich said.
This year, Jackson will be a focal point of the show, with an unprecedented posthumous tribute. The Grammys will broadcast a 3-D clip the singer made for his hit "Earth Song," a video that was to be integral to his comeback concerts in London in July 2009 - shows that never happened because of his June 25 death in Los Angeles.
Grammys
Charging For Web Access In 2011
New York Times
The New York Times says it will charge readers for full access to its Web site starting in 2011, a risky move aimed at increasing online revenue without driving away advertisers that want the biggest possible audience.
The potential pitfalls have made most other major newspapers hesitant to take a similar step. But after months of deliberation, the Times said Wednesday that it will use a metered system, allowing free access to a certain number of articles each month and then charging users for additional content.
The Times did not disclose how many articles would be available for free each month or what it would charge to read more. Subscribers to the printed version of the Times would still have free access to the Web site.
It charged for its Web site in 1996 but attracted only about 4,000 subscribers. Another experiment called Times Select, which required a $50 annual subscription to read Times columnists, drew 221,000 customers but was scrapped in 2007 because it dented ad sales. Advertisers generally pay more for higher Web traffic.
New York Times
Hospital News
Charlie Daniels
Fiddler-guitarist Charlie Daniels said he suffered a mild stroke while snowmobiling in Colorado and has some stiffness and numbness in his left hand and arm.
Daniels, 73, suffered the stroke Friday just outside Durango, about 230 miles southwest of Denver. He was treated at a local hospital then airlifted to a Denver hospital, where he was released on Sunday.
In a posting on his Web site Wednesday, Daniels said he was starting physical therapy. He didn't say whether his playing had been affected but wrote, "I'm doing fine."
Daniels lives in Mount Juliet, Tenn., but has a home in the Durango area where he takes an extended vacation every year around Christmas, his spokeswoman Paula Szeigis said.
Charlie Daniels
Closes Cable Loophole
FCC
Cable TV operators will no longer be able to withhold sporting events and other popular programming that they own from satellite providers and other rivals.
The Federal Communications Commission voted 4-to-1 on Wednesday to eliminate the so-called "terrestrial loophole" in a 1992 federal cable law, which requires cable operators to give competitors access to cable-owned programming that is transmitted using satellite connections. Until now, the provision didn't apply when the cable operators send those programs over land-based networks instead.
Cable companies have been using the loophole, for instance, to keep San Diego Padres games off AT&T Inc.'s U-Verse video service as well as three Philadelphia sports teams off DirecTV Inc. and Echostar Corp.'s Dish Network satellite systems.
"Consumers who want to switch video providers should not have to give up their favorite team in the process," FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said.
FCC
Victim Joins Director's Sentencing Bid
Roman Polanski
The attorney for the victim in Roman Polanski's 32-year-old sex case is joining his lawyers' bid to have the director sentenced in absentia to time served.
Attorney Lawrence Silver on Wednesday faxed to other lawyers in the case a motion he planned to file Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court, asking that the director be sentence in absentia. On behalf of the victim, Samantha Geimer, Silver also is supporting a motion by Polanski's lawyers urging that Polanski be sentenced to time served.
Silver accused prosecutors of violating the California Constitution when they failed to tell Geimer of their plans to seek Polanski's extradition to the U.S.
Roman Polanski
Ex-Tourism Official Charged In LA
Bangkok International Film Festival
A former Thai tourism official and her daughter have been indicted on charges that they accepted bribes from a Los Angeles filmmaking couple in exchange for running the Bangkok International Film Festival.
An indictment unsealed Tuesday in Los Angeles charges Juthamas Siriwan, the ex-governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, and her daughter, Jittisopa Siriwan, with conspiracy and eight other counts. If convicted, they each face up to 20 years in prison.
Federal prosecutors said Siriwan accepted about $1.8 million in bribes from film producers Gerald and Patricia Green between 2002 and 2007 so the couple could run the Bangkok film festival and land other tourism-related deals.
The scheme netted the couple, who inflated their budgets so Juthamas could be paid off, about $13.5 million, authorities said.
Bangkok International Film Festival
Photographer Stripped Of Wildlife Prize
Jose Luis Rodriguez
A Spanish photographer was stripped of a major wildlife prize Wednesday after organisers in London said it was likely that the apparently wild wolf featured in his entry picture was tame.
Jose Luis Rodriguez won the highly prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition in October with a stunning picture of a wolf leaping over a gate entitled "The Storybook Wolf".
However, doubts were raised about the wolf's provenance and following an investigation, the Natural History Museum in London and BBC Worldwide, who jointly run the prize, said the entry had been disqualified.
The 10,000-pound prize was never awarded to the photographer although he did receive 500 pounds for winning his category, which organisers said they had agreed he could keep in lieu of royalty payments.
Jose Luis Rodriguez
Bones Found?
Princess Eadgyth
She was a beautiful English princess who married one of Europe's most powerful monarchs and dazzled subjects with her charity and charm. Now an international team of scientists say they think they've found the body of Princess Eadgyth (pronounced Edith) - a 10th-century noblewoman who has been compared to Princess Diana.
"She was a very, very popular person," said Mark Horton, an archaeology professor at Bristol University in western England. "She was sort of the Diana of her day if you like - pretty and full of good works."
Horton is one of a team of experts working to verify the identity of some bones found bundled in silk at Magdeburg Cathedral in Germany.
Should the skeleton be positively identified as belonging to Eadgyth, it would be oldest remains of any English royal discovered so far. Experts say her closest competitors - the bones of various Saxon royals in Winchester Cathedral in southern England - are so hopelessly jumbled together that no single person can be identified.
Princess Eadgyth
Courage Casualties
Chili Sauce
Officials in Germany say eight teenagers were hospitalized after a test of courage in which they drank chili sauce more than 200 times hotter than normal. The Red Cross in the southern city of Augsburg says that 10 boys, aged 13 and 14, year drank the sauce Wednesday morning, apparently in school.
The German news agency DAPD quoted the Red Cross as saying the boys complained of feeling sick, and eight were taken to a hospital. They were to be kept in overnight for observation.
The Red Cross said that on the Scoville scale, which measures the hotness of sauce, the sauce measured 535,000 - compared to 2,500 for normal Tabasco sauce.
Chili Sauce
Prime-Time Nielsens
Ratings
Prime-time viewership numbers compiled by the Nielsen Co. for Jan. 11-17. Listings include the week's ranking and viewership.
1. AFC Divisional Playoff: Baltimore vs. Indianapolis, CBS, 30.57 million.
2. "American Idol" (Tuesday), Fox, 29.94 million.
3. "American Idol" (Wednesday), Fox, 26.39 million.
4. AFC Football Post-Game Show, CBS, 25.81 million.
5. "NCIS," CBS, 20.85 million.
6. "Two and a Half Men," CBS, 17.27 million.
7. "Golden Globe Awards," NBC, 16.98 million.
8. "The Big Bang Theory," CBS, 15.82 million.
9. "60 Minutes," CBS, 15.78 million.
10. "NCIS: Los Angeles," CBS, 15.60 million.
11. "The Mentalist," CBS, 15.38 million.
12. "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," CBS, 15.33 million.
13. "CSI: NY," CBS, 14.03 million.
14. "Criminal Minds," CBS, 13.90 million.
15. "The Good Wife," CBS, 13.87 million.
16. "CSI: Miami," CBS, 13.70 million.
17. "Grey's Anatomy," ABC, 12.78 million.
18. "House," Fox, 12.25 million.
19. "24," Fox, 11.44 million.
20. "Desperate Housewives," ABC, 11.32 million.
Ratings
In Memory
Jennifer Lyon
Former "Survivor" contestant Jennifer Lyon has died at age 37.
Lyon was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005, the same year she finished fourth on the CBS reality show.
Lyon was raised in the Columbia River city of The Dalles. Her biography on CBS.com says she attended Portland State and Western Oregon universities before graduating from Oregon State.
She joined the "Survivor Palau" competition as a nanny and graduate student from California. Following her diagnosis, she became an advocate for breast cancer awareness.
Jennifer Lyon
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