Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Paul Krugman: Obama's Other Success (NY Times)
The Dodd-Frank financial reforms have probably gotten worse press than Obamacarere, but they, too, are working.
Amelia Gentleman: "'No one should die penniless and alone': the victims of Britain's harsh welfare sanctions" (Guardian)
David Clapson was found dead last year after his benefits were stopped on the grounds that he wasn't taking the search for work seriously. He had an empty stomach, and just £3.44 to his name. Now thousands of other vulnerable claimants are being left in similar by the government's tough new welfare sanctions.
Stephanie Convery: "Unemployed and applying for 40 jobs a month: if you didn't laugh, you'd cry" (Guardian)
Barely-liveable salaries, job ad buzzwords, no acknowledgement of receipt - everyone has their Centrelink stories. One thing is clear: the Australian job searching system is broken.
Two Dramas in Slow Motion
Demographic transformations are dramas in slow motion. America is in the midst of two right now. Our population is becoming majority non-white at the same time a record share is going gray. Each of these shifts would by itself be the defining demographic story of its era.
Richard Corliss: How Weird Al's 'Word Crimes' Is Saving Grammar for the Future (Time)
The plaque commemorating pitcher Greg Maddux's induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame this week testifies that he is the "only hurler with 300 wins, 3,000 strikeouts and less than 1,000 walks." If you winced, or for that matter hurled, at the use of less instead of fewer, you may be a careful reader, a grammar snob - or Weird Al Yankovic.
Alison Flood: Julia Donaldson's cigar-smoking new character ignites controversy (Guardian)
The Scarecrow's Wedding attracts fierce criticism from parents, but author insists 'it is made clear smoking is bad for you.'
Business Adventures - why Bill Gates's favourite book is back at the top of the bestseller lists (Guardian)
It is 43 years old and was out of print for ages, but the Microsoft mogul's approval has caused a brand new surge in sales.
Molly Roberts: "Cheap Eats: Cookbook Shows How To Eat Well On A Food Stamp Budget" (The Salt; NPR)
Brown guessed that she could help people in SNAP, the federal government's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, find ways to cook filling, nourishing and flavorful meals. So she set out to write a cookbook full of recipes anyone could make on a budget of just $4 a day.
Leann Brown: Good and Eat Cookbook (Free PDF Download)
"Over 46 million Americans buy their groceries through SNAP, the program that used to be called food stamps. A lot of those groceries are processed foods, which bothered NYU food studies grad student Leanne Brown. Those on such a tight budget have a hard time stocking ingredients for meals found in cookbooks, so Brown developed a cookbook based on ingredients that are inexpensive, widely available, and easy to store. Good and Cheap aims to reach those whose food budget is as low as $4 a day per person, and it's available free online. " - Neatorama
Brenda Kennedy: A New Beginning (Temporarily Free Kindle Download)
Free romance. Book one of a trilogy.
Brenda Kennedy: A New Beginning (Temporarily Free Download in Several Formats)
Free romance. Book one of a trilogy.
David Bruce's Amazon Author Page
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog
David Bruce's Lulu Storefront
David Bruce's Apple iBookstore
David Bruce has approximately 50 Kindle books on Amazon.com.
wrote:
responded:
has retired.
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
David E Suggests
David
Thanks, Dave!
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
from Marc Perkel
BartCop
Hello Bartcop fans,
As you all know the untimely passing of Terry was unexpected, even by
him. We all knew he had cancer but we all thought he had some years
left. So some of us who have worked closely with him over the years are
scrambling around trying to figure out what to do. My job, among other
things, is to establish communications with the Bartcop community and
provide email lists and groups for those who might put something
together. Those who want to play an active roll in something coming from
this, or if you are one of Bart's pillars, should send an email to
active@bartcop.com.
Bart's final wish was to pay off the house mortgage for Mrs. Bart who is
overwhelmed and so very grateful for the support she has received.
Anyone wanting to make a donation can click on this the yellow donate
button on bartcop.com
But - I need you all to help keep this going. This note
isn't going to directly reach all of Bart's fans. So if you can repost
it on blogs and discussion boards so people can sign up then when we
figure out what's next we can let more people know. This list is just
over 600 but like to get it up to at least 10,000 pretty quick. So
here's the signup link for this email list.
( mailman.bartcop.com/listinfo/bartnews )
Marc Perkel
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Still hot, but not as humid.
Broadway's 1st Black Cinderella
Keke Palmer
Like many girls, actress and singer Keke Palmer grew up dreaming of meeting a prince who would whisk her away to a life of love and happiness. In her case, it's going to happen - eight shows a week on Broadway.
Palmer said she'll be stepping into the title role in "Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella" starting Sept. 9 at the Broadway Theatre. She will become the first African-American to play the part on the Great White Way.
Palmer, 21, is stepping into the sparkly shoes first worn by Tony-nominated Laura Osnes, then put on by "Call Me Maybe" Canadian pop star Carly Rae Jepsen and currently worn by Paige Faure, who launches a national tour in the title role this fall.
Palmer, who will be making her professional stage debut, will rely on a host of skills she's developed from film - including "Barbershop 2: Back in Business" and "Akeelah and the Bee" - her BET talk show, "Just Keke," and on TV in Showtime's "Masters of Sex." Her albums include the 2007 CD "So Uncool" and a self-titled 2012 EP.
Keke Palmer
Big Payday
'Big Bang Theory'
The three main stars of popular US television sitcom "The Big Bang Theory" have reportedly reached lucrative new pay deals, ending a delay to the start of production on the show's eighth season.
Emmy winner Jim Parsons, along with co-stars Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco, have roughly tripled their salaries and will now be earning about $1 million an episode, according to the Hollywood Reporter and Variety.
The trio signed three-year deals, meaning they will stay with "Big Bang" through its 10th season, the industry journals said.
The other two stars of the CBS show, Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar, are still in negotiations but expected to reach deals this week with production company Warner Bros., the reports said.
'Big Bang Theory'
Says Recovered
Seiji Ozawa
Japan's Seiji Ozawa, one of the best-known conductors of his generation, said on Monday he had recovered from health problems including cancer and has many plans for the future, including conducting an opera next year.
Ozawa, 78, was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in January 2010, underwent lower back surgery a year later and suffered multiple bouts of pneumonia, which kept him mostly sidelined until mid-2013.
He then made a triumphant return by directing an opera at the Saito Kinen Festival, a music extravaganza in the Japanese city of Matsumoto that he founded 23 years ago. On Monday, he welcomed the announcement that the festival will be renamed the Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival in his honour.
"I'm really grateful," he told a news conference, contrasting the gesture to having a rehearsal hall named for him in the United States in 1994, when the idea struck him as being "a little bit like a tombstone".
"That somebody like me, who has suffered a major illness and underwent surgery, can speak casually about death is proof that I've really recovered," he said. "Either that, or I'm really dumb - but please think of me as being recovered and active."
Seiji Ozawa
AIDS Conference Delegates Seek Asylum
Australia
Some 25 delegates to an international AIDS conference held in Melbourne last month fear returning home and will seek asylum in Australia, refugee and welfare agencies said Monday.
HomeGround Services, which helps find crisis accommodation for homeless people in Melbourne, said 14 delegates from African nations -- including Uganda and Tanzania -- had sought their help.
The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, also in Melbourne, said they believed up to 25 people had sought advice on how to remain in Australia once their visas had expired.
Australia denies asylum-seekers who come by boat resettlement, sending them to Papua New Guinea and Nauru, but those who come by plane are not subject to the same conditions.
Australia
Expected To Push For Time Warner Deal
Rupert
Rupert Murdoch's Twenty-First Century Fox Inc is expected to make an aggressive case for merging with Time Warner Inc during its quarterly earnings call on Wednesday, though people familiar with the company's plans have said it would not use that forum to raise its bid.
Time Warner is due to report its financial results on Wednesday as well, marking the first time executives from both companies will publicly speak since the offer was first revealed on July 16.
It will be an opportunity for Time Warner Chief Executive Jeff Bewkes to defend his record for shareholder value. Fox's Chief Operating Officers Chase Carey and James Murdoch will have the chance to discuss the more than $1 billion (£593.18) in cost savings and powerful combination of cable networks and sports programming. It is unclear whether Rupert Murdoch, chairman and CEO of Fox, will make an appearance given the stakes.
Fox has offered to buy Time Warner for about $80 billion, or about $85 per share, in a mix of cash and stock. Time Warner turned it down, saying its plan to go it alone "is superior to any proposal" from Fox.
Though Fox is expected to raise its offer it will not rise beyond the range of $90 to $95 per share, a person familiar with Fox told Reuters on July 25. The timing of another offer is unclear. Some analysts have said that an even higher bid would be needed to win over Time Warner management and shareholders.
Rupert
Trick Memory
Rand Paul
Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul on Monday denied that he once supported ending federal aid to Israel - an idea he proposed as recently as 2011.
"I haven't really proposed that in the past," Paul told Yahoo News when asked if he still thought the U.S. should phase out aid to Israel, which has been battling Hamas in Gaza for weeks. "We've never had a legislative proposal to do that. You can mistake my position, but then I'll answer the question. That has not been a position - a legislative position - we have introduced to phase out or get rid of Israel's aid. That's the answer to that question. Israel has always been a strong ally of ours and I appreciate that. I voted just this week to give money - more money - to the Iron Dome, so don't mischaracterize my position on Israel."
Paul, who was in Omaha campaigning for Nebraska Senate candidate Ben Sasse before a three-day tour of neighboring Iowa, may not like it when reporters bring up his proposal from three years ago to end all U.S. foreign aid - including to Israel. But that was in fact his position.
In 2011, the newly elected Paul proposed a budget that would have cut $500 billion from the federal budget in part by cutting off foreign aid to all countries, including financial grants to Israel. The United States provides about $3 billion to Israel annually, and last week the Senate approved $225 million to help support Israel's Iron Dome technology, which blocks rocket fire from Gaza. (Paul supported the measure.)
Rand Paul
Google Pulls Game From App Store
'Bomb Gaza'
A mobile game that simulates Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip and invites users to "drop bombs and avoid killing civilians" has been pulled from Google Inc's app store, a company spokesman said on Monday after a public backlash.
"Bomb Gaza," developed by PlayFTW and still available as an app on Facebook, simulates the on-going conflict between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas, which dominates the Palestinian territory. Players drop bombs from a fighter jet while dodging missiles from Hamas fighters in black and green masks.
"We remove apps from Google Play that violate our policies," a spokesman for Google said, confirming that the game had been removed from the Google Play app store. Google did not specify which policy the game had violated.
The game triggered outraged comments on the Google app store review page as well as on Facebook. It had been downloaded about 1,000 times since its July 29 launch, according to Britain's Guardian newspaper.
'Bomb Gaza'
In Memory
Jess Marlow
Jess Marlow, a former Los Angeles news anchor whose no-nonsense delivery reflected a passion for facts over fluff, died Sunday in a Denver-area nursing home. He was 84.
Working at KCBS-TV and KNBC-TV for 31 years and then coming out of retirement to co-host a public affairs show on KCET-TV, Marlow was among Southern California's most respected newscasters.
In 1997, Variety described him as "one of the last of a vanishing breed of classy, insightful anchormen."
Marlow, who got his start in communications as a railroad telegrapher, spoke in the flat, Midwestern tones of his native Illinois. An advocate of meat-and-potatoes hard news, he criticized the waves of car chases, titillating celebrity items and demographically inspired lifestyle features that surged through TV newsrooms.
Marlow's awards included eight local Emmys, a lifetime achievement award from the Los Angeles Press Club and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Born in Salem, Ill., on Nov. 29, 1929, Myron Jess Marlow worked his way through the University of Illinois by working nights for the Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad.
On a 90-day post-college leave from the railroad, he tried out for a TV job with WHBF-TV, a station in Rock Island, Ill.
He stayed for several years and was virtually a one-man band, anchoring, reporting, writing, shooting and editing the news. After a stint as news director at KNTV-TV in San Jose, he signed on in 1966 as a reporter at KNBC, and two years later became an anchor.
He joined KCBS in 1980 but left when the station cut his salary - reported to be about $700,000 - by about half.
"They made me an offer I couldn't accept," he told The Times.
He also was frustrated by a changing format that emphasized lighter fare - an ongoing complaint from Marlow and other TV veterans.
In 1986, he returned to KNBC, a familiar face and voice who continued to chronicle the biggest stories of the day. Covering the infamous McMartin child molestation case, he was one of the few journalists who asked skeptical questions, David Shaw, The Times' media critic, wrote in 1990.
Marlow retired from KNBC in 1998 but even then kept his Sunday morning news interview show. It aired at 5:30 a.m.
In 2003, Marlow retired in earnest, moving with his wife, Phyllis, to Santa Fe, N.M. They later relocated to Loveland, Colo.
In addition to his wife, Marlow's survivors include a daughter, Susan; two grandchildren, and seven brothers and sisters.
Jess Marlow
In Memory
James Brady
James Brady, a former U.S. presidential press secretary who became a leading gun control crusader after he was critically wounded in an assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan, has died, a family spokeswoman said on Monday. He was 73.
The attack on Reagan in 1981 left Brady partially paralyzed due to brain damage. His family said in a statement he died Monday morning after a series of health issues at a retirement community in Alexandria, Virginia, where he had been living for the past year and a half.
Brady spent the rest of his life in a wheelchair after being shot, but he and his wife, Sarah, campaigned for a gun law that would be known as the "Brady bill." The law, which was passed in 1993, required a mandatory five-day waiting period for purchase of handguns and also background checks for would-be gun buyers.
The White House press room was named in Brady's honor and he returned there in 2006 at a ceremony temporarily closing the room for renovations.
Brady was born in Centralia, Illinois, on Aug. 29, 1940, and graduated from the University of Illinois. He taught at Southern Illinois University and worked in public relations before going to Washington in 1973 to work in the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Management and Budget and Defense Department.
He also worked as press secretary to then-Republican presidential candidate John Connally, a former Texas governor.
After Connally lost his bid for the presidential nomination in 1980, Brady joined Reagan's staff.
James Brady
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