Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Dear Yellow Pages, No One Likes You
"It's so true and just so sad that they still haven't gotten the point."--Neatorama
Mark Morford: How to be Outraged in America (SF Gate)
So, what's it going to be? What flavor of revolt and indignation do you prefer as we dance like drunken angels into the wilds of 2012? Choose wisely, and you can become electrified and alive, a full and informed participant in the culture. Choose poorly, and the world is bleak and joyless as bible study in Rick Santorum's shame dungeon.
Jurriaan Kamp: "Interview with Jacob Needleman: 'Money can buy anything, except meaning'"
"Learn to be quiet: learn to be still. Live your life just as you've been living it, for a while. Don't change anything, except little things: study, question. This is the kind of answer Gandhi would give: What do you wish to serve? How can your money serve something that is not just good for your ego or comfort but for others? Reflect, find some friends and start talking about the question: What should we do? What is right? And then, act."
Paul Krugman: Blaming the Victims of Inequality (New York Times)
Of course, the sudden fuss about values makes perfect sense from a political point of view, as a distraction from the issue of soaring incomes at the top.
Froma Harrop: What Komen Affair Means for November (Creators Syndicate)
The Komen affair showed how fast and furiously the sisterhood will respond to a perceived attack on reproductive rights. Imagine if something similar happened a week before the November election.
John Dickerson: Clint Eastwood Gives America a Pep Talk (Slate)
He says America is about to stand up. Is that a big win for Obama?
Alan Grayson: Worst in the World in . . . Math?
Something caught my eye a few months ago. International standardized tests in mathematics now put U.S. students at or near the bottom, in the entire developed world. Which is really odd, when you think about it. After all, 2+2=4 in New York, Tokyo, and everywhere else I know.
Kenneth Thomas: California, Birthplace of TIF, Axes It (Middle Class Political Economist)
While other states have been spurred by the budget crisis to cut some of their subsidies to business, California has gone the farthest by eliminating tax increment financing. I have argued before that subsidy cuts could offset a large part of state and local budget deficits, and it's heartening to see it happen in the birthplace of TIF. Let's hope we see more of this before the year is out.
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."
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Michelle in AZ
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny and warmer than seasonal.
Ending After 8 Years
"House"
Hospital drama "House" will end in April after eight seasons, producers said on Wednesday, bringing to a close one of the most popular shows on TV.
"House", starring British actor Hugh Laurie as the cantankerous but brilliant doctor Gregory House, started in 2004 and will have been on air on Fox in the United States for 175 episodes when it comes to an end in April.
"After much deliberation, the producers of 'House M.D.' have decided that this season of the show, the 8th, should be the last," executive producers David Shore, Katie Jacobs and Laurie said in a statement.
They said the decision to end the show was painful but added they "have always imagined House as an enigmatic creature; he should never be the last one to leave the party. How much better to disappear before the music stops, while there is still some promise and mystique in the air."
"House"
Axed Musicians To Protest
Grammy Awards
Angry musicians will protest outside Sunday's Grammy Awards ceremony over a decision to cut 31 ethnic and minority musical categories from the music industry's top awards.
Organizers said on Wednesday they hoped dozens of music artists and fans of Latin jazz, gospel and blues music would join in the demonstration, and attend an alternative concert.
Some 23,000 people have signed a petition demanding that the Recording Academy reinstate Grammy awards for Native American and Hawaiian music, and reverse cuts in categories for Latin Jazz, Gospel, R&B and Blues that were axed in a major overhaul last year.
Paul Simon, Carlos Santana, Bonnie Raitt and Bobby Sanabria are among the dozens of artists who have spoken out against the decision. Musicians say the Grammy cuts will harm their careers financially and diminish the profile of music enjoyed by minority communities.
The demonstrators will later celebrate the Not Those Awards All-Star Latin Jazz Jam at a Los Angeles nightclub, with performers including two time Grammy winner Oscar Hernandez, John Santos and Bobby Matos.
Grammy Awards
Okada Vs. Wynn
Casino Moguls
Las Vegas tycoon Steve Wynn and his biggest investor and former best friend Kazuo Okada go head to head in court on Thursday in a case that has implications for the control of the $15 billion Wynn Resorts Ltd gaming empire.
The clash between the self-made billionaires - a Japanese businessman who made his fortune off pachinko machines and the American often credited with Las Vegas' modern-day makeover - is the culmination of a dispute that began a few months ago and that has transfixed the close-knit casino town.
Okada, who holds close to 20 percent of Wynn Resorts and is suing to gain access to financial information, objects to an "inappropriate" $135 million donation to the University of Macau.
A resident of Hong Kong who made his fortune on pachinko machines, the 69-year-old is also proposing four potential candidates for the company's board, a move that could potentially give him command of five out of 12 board seats.
The falling out of the longtime friends - Wynn named a restaurant after Okada in his Macau casino - took many in the industry by surprise. The Japanese businessman helped pull Steve Wynn back from the brink after he unloaded his Mirage casino to MGM Grand a decade ago, after helping to transform sin-city Vegas into a family-friendly destination.
Casino Moguls
County Buys Late Folk Artist's Paradise Garden
Howard Finster
A northwest Georgia county has bought the garden where the late folk artist Howard Finster held court for tourists and art lovers from around the world.
Chattooga County, where Paradise Garden has been based since Finster began building it in 1961, used donations and grant money to buy the small plot for $125,000, said Jordan Poole, executive director with the Paradise Garden Foundation. The foundation will continue to work on restoring the quirky garden, which was featured in a 1983 R.E.M. video.
Finster, a bicycle repairman and preacher who turned to art to spread God's word, has long been considered the grandfather of the American folk art movement. He filled the garden, located about 100 miles northwest of Atlanta, with primitive mosaics, sculptures and buildings. It was the setting for numerous weddings that Finster presided over.
The garden fell into disrepair after his death in 2001. The county's ownership will protect it from ever being closed down, Poole said Wednesday.
The county bought the four-acre plot in late December after receiving news it had won an Appalachian Regional Commission grant, said the county's sole commissioner, Jason Winters. The county is in a much better position to apply for grants to help restore the crumbling structures in the garden than the nonprofit that bought the property from Finster's family, he said.
Howard Finster
Sent To Mexico
Bruce Beresford-Redman
A reality television producer charged with killing his wife while on vacation in Mexico has been extradited from the U.S. to await trial, the next step in a legal saga that has played out on both sides of the border.
The U.S. Marshals Service said in a statement they turned former "Survivor" producer Bruce Beresford-Redman over to Mexican authorities, who are transporting him to Cancun. The transfer took place roughly two weeks after State Department officials signed a warrant clearing his extradition.
The producer has been charged in Mexico in the death of his wife, Monica Beresford-Redman, whose body was found in a sewer cistern at a swank resort following an April 2010 family vacation. The couple had gone to the resort with their young children in an attempt to save their marriage after Monica Beresford-Redman learned her husband was cheating on her.
Bruce Beresford-Redman opted in December not to appeal a U.S. court ruling upholding his extradition. Mexican authorities later said they had reached an agreement for his return.
Bruce Beresford-Redman
CNN Suspends
Roland Martin
CNN suspended political analyst Roland Martin on Wednesday for "offensive" tweets during the Super Bowl that some critics said were anti-gay.
Martin commented on Twitter about a commercial during the Super Bowl that showed soccer star David Beckham in underwear: "If a dude at your Super Bowl party is hyped about David Beckham's H&M underwear ad, smack the ish out of him."
Martin also tweeted: "Who the hell was that New England Patriot they just showed in a head to toe pink suit? Oh, he needs a visit from (hash)teamwhipdatass."
Martin later issued an apology on his website saying he was "truly sorry" to those who felt his tweet was anti-gay, homophobic or advocating violence. "I'm disheartened that my words would embolden prejudice," he said.
CNN said Wednesday that Martin's remarks were "regrettable and offensive" and he will not be on air "for the time being."
Roland Martin
Reaches More Phone Hacking Settlements
Rupert
A further 15 politicians, sportsmen and celebrities reached settlements with the British newspaper arm of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp on Wednesday over a phone hacking scandal that has rocked his global media empire.
The development increases the chances that the publisher may yet avoid further embarrassing details of its conduct from being publicly aired in court - although at least one of the claimants, Charlotte Church, has not yet reached a deal.
A civil trial to establish general principles of how hacking victims should be compensated is due to start next week, provided that the remaining claimants do not settle.
News International had claimed for years that the hacking of voicemails to generate stories for the News of the World tabloid, which was shut down last summer, was the work of a single "rogue" reporter who went to jail for the crime in 2007.
However, it finally admitted the problem was widespread amid a wave of evidence, sparking a scandal that has rocked the company, the British press, police and the political establishment.
Rupert
NY Man Who Threatened To Plead Guilty
'South Park'
A Muslim convert from Brooklyn who ran a website that posted threats against the creators of the television show "South Park" is expected to plead guilty.
Jesse Curtis Morton, also known as Younus Abdullah Mohammad, was charged last year with communicating threats and has been in custody since he was arrested in Morocco in October.
A plea agreement hearing in federal court in Alexandria has been scheduled for Thursday. Morton's lawyer, James Hundley, confirmed Morton will plead to three counts, including conspiracy and communicating threats.
Last year, another operator of the Revolution Muslim website, Zachary Chesser, was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Chesser admitted he posted threats for an episode that supposedly defamed the prophet Muhammad.
'South Park'
Files For Bankruptcy
Gary Busey
Court records show Gary Busey has filed for bankruptcy and is listing more than $500,000 in estimated personal debts.
Busey's filing on Tuesday in Los Angeles provides few details but includes more than a dozen potential creditors.
The actor and reality show star does not state a reason for the filing. His manager Ron Sampson wrote in a statement the filing provides Busey "a new and clear path" to personal and career success.
The filing states the 67-year-old has less than $50,000 in assets.
Gary Busey
Rescued Dog Bites TV Anchor
Kyle Dyer
A dog rescued by a firefighter from a freezing pond was impounded Wednesday after biting a veteran Denver television anchor in the face during a live morning broadcast.
The anchor, Kyle Dyer, was doing a follow-up interview on the dramatic rescue of 85-pound Argentine mastiff Gladiator Maximus, also known as Max, after he fell into a Lakewood lake Tuesday while chasing a coyote. Firefighter Tyler Sugaski, who put on a wetsuit and rescued the dog, was also being interviewed when the attack occurred.
According to KUSA-TV, firefighters, paramedics and animal control were called to the station after the attack.
The station later showed video of Dyer petting the dog, but stopped before the attack occurred and said they would not rebroadcast it. Other video showed the dog lunging at Dyer and viciously biting her face.
Meghan Hughes, spokeswoman for the Denver Environmental Health department, said 39-year-old Michael Robinson of Lakewood was cited with failure to have his dog on a leash, allowing a dog to bite and failure to have a vaccinated dog.
Kyle Dyer
Returns To TV Friday
Greg Kelly
The police commissioner's son, cleared of the prospect of criminal charges of raping a woman he met for a drink, will return to his job as host of a popular local morning TV talk show this week, his station said.
Greg Kelly took a leave of absence from his job at "Good Day New York" after the allegations surfaced late last month. The station, local Fox affiliate WNYW-TV, confirmed Wednesday he would return Friday.
Prosecutors said Tuesday that they hadn't found cause to charge Kelly with a crime. Kelly said then that he was looking forward to getting back to work but didn't say when.
Prosecutors do not plan to charge Kelly's accuser with any crime, DA's office spokeswoman Joan Vollero said.
Kelly, a former Marine turned TV journalist, appeared on local stations in New York and Binghamton before joining Fox News in 2002. He covered the Iraq war, including four assignments in Baghdad, and was the White House correspondent from 2005-07, according to his biography on WNYW's website.
Greg Kelly
Court Keeps Candidate Off Ballot
Arizona
Arizona's Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that a city council candidate with limited English skills could be kept off the ballot in a predominately Spanish-speaking town on the Mexico border, and her lawyers said they lacked resources to appeal.
A Yuma County Superior Court judge touched off a furor last week when he disqualified Alejandrina Cabrera, 35, from running for city council in the town of San Luis over what he called a "large gap" between her English proficiency and that required to serve as a public official.
In a brief two-page ruling, the Arizona Supreme Court did not give a reason why it sided with the lower court judge, but said a written decision would follow "in due course."
Cabrera, a U.S. citizen born in Yuma, Arizona, declined to comment immediately after the ruling, but an attorney for the candidate said she would speak to reporters on Wednesday.
Though Cabrera was born in Yuma, she moved to Mexico when she was young and spent much of her childhood there. She returned to Arizona for the last three years of high school, eventually graduating from Yuma's public Kofa High School.
Arizona
Charity Under Microscope
Komen
The Susan G. Komen for the Cure charity defines its mission as finding a cure for breast cancer. In recent years, however, it has cut by nearly half the proportion of fund-raising dollars it spends on grants to scientists working to understand the causes and develop effective new treatments for the disease.
While the absolute dollar amount of those grants has steadily grown, it has not kept pace with the surge in donations Komen has received, a Reuters analysis of the group's financial statements shows.
Critics within the philanthropic and research communities in particular have raised questions over its scientific approach to some issues and how it spends the money it raises.
In 2011, the foundation spent 15 percent, or $63 million, of its donations on research awards that fund studies on everything from hard-core molecular biology to the quality of breast-cancer care for Medicaid patients.
The organization's 2011 financial statement reports that 43 percent of donations were spent on education, 18 percent on fund-raising and administration, 15 percent on research awards and grants, 12 percent on screening and 5 percent on treatment. (Various other items accounted for the rest.)
Komen
In Memory
Nello Ferrara
Candy company executive Nello Ferrara lived a sweet life.
The man who brought the world Lemonheads and Atomic Fire Balls routinely serenaded the restaurants where he dined and held mandatory family dinners every Sunday, said his son, Salvatore Ferrara.
Nello Ferrara died Friday at his home in the Chicago suburb of River Forest surrounded by his family. He was 93.
The Forest Park-based Ferrara Pan company was started in 1908, and Nello Ferrara took it over from his father decades ago. The company, which also makes Red Hots and Boston Baked Beans, produces 1 million pound of candy a day, Salvatore Ferrara said.
Ferrara, the company's current president and CEO, said his birth inspired his father to invent the Lemonhead candy.
"He always claimed that when I was born, that I came out of my mother sideways ... and my head was shaped like a lemon," he said.
The Atomic Fire Ball was invented after Nello Ferrara's time in Japan during World War II.
Nello Ferrara also loved to sing, and did so every day - especially when the family dined out, his son said.
His repertoire included Italian love songs and his favorite, "Wind Beneath My Wings". Once, Ferrara met Frank Sinatra at a charity event, and when the two ran into each other a year later, Ferrara tried to out-sing him.
"My dad insisted that he had a better voice, he just wasn't as good looking," Salvatore Ferrara said.
Nello Ferrara is survived by his wife of 63 years, Marilyn, his son and two daughters, as well as grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Nello Ferrara
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