'Best of TBH Politoons'
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Ted Rall: Nothing Honorable About the Vietnam War (rall.com)
Every presidential candidacy relies on a myth. Reagan was a great communicator; Clinton felt your pain. Both storylines were ridiculous. But rarely are the constructs used to market a party nominee as transparent or as fictional as those we're being asked to swallow in 2008.
Poor Elijah (Peter Berger): Educator's Digest (irascibleprofessor.com)
Classrooms may shut down in June, but the education world never rests. Across the nation administrators, experts, and freelance consultants are culling through their bright ideas, devising agendas and mission statements for the coming year, and writing applications for the grants that will hopefully fund those next new things. Here's a summer sampler of what they have on their minds so you know what to expect in September.
Jonah Lalas: You Aren't Just Losing Teachers (huffingtonpost.com)
I came to college obsessed with creating the perfect resume to get into law school and get that six figure salary job. It was the leftist professors who challenged me to question my view of the world.
Seth Stevenson: Everyone Will Be Lonely Eight Months From Now (slate.com)
THE WEIRD SCIENCE OF STOCK PHOTOGRAPHY.
Max Blumenthal: Phil Gramm May Be Gone, But His Porn Lives On (huffingtonpost.com)
Gramm's journey into porn began in 1973, when his brother-in-law, George Caton, rushed to tell him about an exciting low-budget soft-core production called Truck Stop Women.
Robert Fulford: Pauline Kael & trash cinema (nationalpost.com)
At the end of her life, Pauline Kael said to a friend, "When we championed trash culture we had no idea it would become the only culture." But then who did?
The charming enigma Stanley Kubrick (entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/)
A new documentary on the director prompts John Russell Taylor to recall his meetings with the reclusive director.
L.B. JEFFRIES: Redefining the Game: A Look at Machinima (popmatters.com)
"Whatever we're doing, it's all story telling -- and if the story's bad then the appeal can't last to the gamer crowd let alone anyone else."
'I'm mistaken for a man every day' (lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk)
kd lang's androgynous looks and sensuous voice propelled her to fame in the 90s. Back after eight years, Emine Saner finds her older and wiser.
20 QUESTIONS: The Buck Brothers
Known for funky, punky pop, the Buck Brothers have a big time love for Earth, Wind & Fire as you'll see in this installment of PopMatters' 20 Questions.
Will Harris: A Chat with Goo Goo Bassist Robby Takac (bullz-eye.com)
"It's pretty wild to hear these different versions of the band that we played with over the years and how they're all kind of, like, a little different from each other, but still there was that thread and that core that sort of held it all together that was definitely The Goo Goo Dolls. It's a pretty cool thing to be able to do after all these years."
Chris Vognar: Dennis Lehane, a favorite author with filmmakers, expands his literary horizon (The Dallas Morning News)
Until now you've been able to find Dennis Lehane's work in two places: the mystery paperback shelves, where his superbly crafted novels have been confined to a sort of genre fiction ghetto, and the multiplex, where filmmakers have converted his cinematic prose into movies such as "Mystic River" and "Gone Baby Gone."
Chuck responded:
Vic in AK replied:
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Arfing humid. Ack.
Here's a complete list of Emmy Nominations - 2008
Spider Envy Resolved
Stephen Colbert
The Daily Reflector of Greenville reported Thursday that East Carolina University associate professor Jason Bond has agreed to name a species after Colbert, host of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report."
Bond is a biologist who specializes in spiders and millipedes. He and students study both new and known species and provide names for the new ones.
Colbert developed spider envy after learning Bond had given the name of Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi - for rocker Neil Young - to a trapdoor spider. The 44-year-old comedian demanded that a spider be named after him.
Bond told Colbert he could choose one of 27 trapdoor spiders, which lurk under the ground, waiting until they sense something walking by to grab it.
Now that Colbert is back from a two-week vacation, he must choose a species to carry the name "Aptostichus stephencolberti." Because Colbert doesn't pronounce the "t" in his last name, it will be silent in the spider's name as well.
Stephen Colbert
Joins 9/11 Memorial Foundation Board
Billy Crystal
Billy Crystal is going to help build the September 11th memorial in New York City.
The 60-year-old actor is set to join the board of directors of the National September 11th Memorial and Museum, the foundation raising money to build the memorial to the 2001 terrorist attacks.
Crystal took part in a benefit concert for the city a month after the attacks. He also has co-hosted eight Comic Relief telethons on HBO to raise money for the homeless.
The foundation has raised more than $300 million privately to build the memorial.
Billy Crystal
'Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea'
Hayao Miyazaki
Oscar-winning Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki releases his first full-length film in four years this weekend, dropping computer graphics for his pencil to tell the story of a fish-girl and the sea.
"Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea," which the reclusive 67-year-old both wrote and directed, will hit screens at cinemas across Japan on Saturday after weeks of intense media interest.
Inspired by the 19th-century fairy tale "The Little Mermaid" by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, the story centres around a tiny fish-girl, Ponyo, who rides a jellyfish to escape her home in the sea.
Miyazaki, who had used computer graphics since "Princess Mononoke" in 1997, decided to shun hi-tech effects in his latest film.
Hayao Miyazaki
'Not the Messiah'
Eric Idle
The Monty Python star and "Spamalot" writer Eric Idle is bringing his silliness back to the stage with "Not the Messiah," a musical comedy hodgepodge that features a full orchestra and the occasional leaf blower.
After putting on the production in Toronto and Sydney, Australia, (and a one-off performance in upstate New York), Idle and composer-conductor John Du Prez are bringing the show stateside for a limited run.
"Not the Messiah" gives a musical stage treatment to "Life of Brian" the way "Spamalot" did for "Monty Python and the Holy Grail."
Backed by a 104-piece orchestra, Idle and his comedic crew will perform "Not the Messiah" at Wolf Trap National Park in Vienna, Va.; the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles; and the Mann Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia.
Eric Idle
Serbian Statue
Bob Marley
A statue of late Jamaican reggae legend Bob Marley is to be erected in the tiny Serbian hamlet of Banatski Sokolac, organisers of a rock music festival there said Thursday.
"We are honoured to announce that the first monument in Europe of the reggae legend Bob Marley will be erected in Banatski Sokolac," said the Internet site of the "Rock Village" festival.
"Our village thus enters into history and supporters and all those who respect this 'liberty fighter armed with a guitar' can take part in the unveiling ceremony" on August 23, it added.
Last year, two other Serbian villages put up statues of Johnny Weissmuller, the late actor famed for his role as "Tarzan", and Sylvester Stallone's famous film character "Rocky Balboa".
Bob Marley
Drawing Sets Record
Beatrix Potter
An original watercolour illustration by Beatrix Potter for the final scene from the Rabbit Christmas Party set a new auction record on Thursday at 289,250 pounds.
The sum was nearly five times the top end of the pre-sale estimate of 40-60,000 pounds, making the painting of rabbits leaving the party by candlelight the most expensive book illustration ever sold at auction, Sotheby's said.
It was one of 20 original illustrations, books, unpublished Christmas cards and letters by children's author and illustrator Potter from the collection of her brother Bertram Potter on offer at the London sale.
Beatrix Potter
Gets Probation
Dennis Farina
Actor Dennis Farina was sentenced to two years probation on Thursday after reaching a plea agreement with prosecutors for carrying a loaded handgun into Los Angeles International Airport in May.
Farina, 64, a former cop who played a New York detective on the television crime series "Law & Order," was also ordered to pay $1,991 in fines and penalties, said Frank Mateljan, a spokesman for the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office.
The actor pleaded no contest, which is roughly equivalent to a guilty plea, to carrying a weapon into a secure area of an airport. Other charges of possessing a concealed weapon and carrying a loaded weapon in a public place were dismissed.
Dennis Farina
Targets Foreign Entertainers
China
China will ban all entertainers from overseas, Hong Kong and Taiwan who have ever attended activities that "threaten national sovereignty," the government said on Thursday, after an outburst by Icelandic singer Bjork.
During performances, entertainers who "threaten national unity," "whip up ethnic hatred," "violate religious policy or cultural norms" or "advocate obscenity or feudalism and superstition," will also be banned, the rules state.
The new rules come on top of Beijing banning pop festivals and tightening approvals for outdoor events in the months leading up to the Olympics, where it fears security threats from unruly crowds and potential protesters.
China
Joins Family's PR Firm
John Seigenthaler
Former "NBC Nightly News" weekend anchor John Seigenthaler has joined a public relations firm founded and operated by his family as partner and CEO of its New York operations.
Seigenthaler had been with NBC News for 11 years, joining after local news stints in Nashville and Seattle. He was named anchor of the weekend editions of "NBC Nightly News" in 1999, but signed off last year after the network decided not to renew his contract due to budget cuts.
The Nashville-based firm, which has offices in New York and Chicago, specializes in communications for companies in health care, biotech, real estate, energy, environmental, manufacturing, legal and technology industries.
John Seigenthaler
US Version
Steven Page
The lead singer of the popular Canadian band the Barenaked Ladies will fight a recent cocaine charge in the United States, the band said in a statement posted on its website on Thursday.
Steven Page was arrested last Friday in an apartment in Fayetteville, New York, and charged with possession of a controlled substance. Court documents show Page allegedly told police "Yeah, it's cocaine," when asked about a white powdery substance in his possession.
"Many of you have probably read or heard press accounts about Steven Page's recent arrest in New York state. Steven has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and the validity of the charges against Steven will be strongly contested," the band statement said.
The five-man group is best known for hit songs such as "One Week," "Pinch Me," and "If I Had a Million Dollars." It has just released an album of songs for youngsters and next month is due to play at a Long Island, New York, children's charity concert organized by Walt Disney Co.
Steven Page
Canadian Version
Steven Page
Barenaked Ladies frontman Steven Page, known for his quirky lyrics, environmental activism and clean-cut image, admitted to New York police that he was snorting cocaine prior to his arrest last week, court documents allege.
The documents, filed with the Fayetteville Village Court in New York, contain details from police as well as a statement from a woman arrested at the same time as the 38-year-old Toronto resident.
Police allege Page had about a third of an ounce of the drug on him at the time of his arrest. He was taken into police custody, but was later released after posting $10,000 bail. He is scheduled to appear in a New York court on August 26. If convicted, he faces a maximum of 15 years in prison.
Steven Page
Still Flunks Test
U.S. Healthcare
The United States fails on most measures of health care quality, with Americans waiting longer to see doctors and more likely to die of preventable or treatable illnesses than people in other industrialized countries, a report released on Thursday said.
Americans squander money on wasteful administrative costs, illnesses caused by medical error and inefficient use of time, the report from the nonprofit Commonwealth Fund concluded.
The Commonwealth Fund, a private foundation, created a 100-point scorecard using 37 indicators such as health outcomes, quality, access and efficiency.
They compare the U.S. average on these to the best performing states, counties or hospitals, and to other countries. The United States scored 65 -- two points lower than in 2006.
U.S. Healthcare
Cable Nielsens
Ratings
Rankings for the top 15 programs on cable networks as compiled by Nielsen Media Research for the week of July 7-13. Day and start time (EDT) are in parentheses:
1. "Burn Notice" (Thursday, 10 p.m.), USA, 3.86 million homes, 5.38 million viewers.
2. "In Plain Sight" (Sunday, 10 p.m.), USA, 3.75 million homes, 5.08 million viewers.
3. "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (Sunday, 9 p.m.), USA, 3.64 million homes, 4.89 million viewers.
4. Auto Racing: Sprint Cup, Chicago (Saturday, 7:58 p.m.), TNT, 3.56 million homes, 5.12 million viewers.
5. "WWE Raw" (Monday, 10 p.m.), USA, 3.49 million homes, 5.83 million viewers.
6. "WWE Raw" (Monday, 9 p.m.), USA, 3.2 million homes, 5.05 million viewers.
7. Movie: "Picture This" (Sunday, 8 p.m.), ABC Family, 2.96 million homes, 4.27 million viewers.
8. "Law & Order: SVU" (Sunday, 8 p.m.), USA, 2.93 million homes, 3.81 million viewers.
9. "Army Wives" (Sunday, 10 p.m.), Lifetime, 2.885 million homes, 3.54 million viewers.
10. Movie: "Camp Rock" (Sunday, 8 p.m.), Disney, 2.884 million homes, 4.05 million viewers.
11. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Wednesday, 12:30 p.m.), Nickelodeon, 2.77 million homes, 3.97 million viewers.
12. "Spongebob SquarePants" (Saturday, 12 p.m.), Nickelodeon, 2.75 million homes, 3.69 million viewers.
13. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Wednesday, 12 p.m.), Nickelodeon, 2.72 million homes, 3.83 million viewers.
14. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Saturday, 12:30 p.m.), Nickelodeon, 2.69 million homes, 3.59 million viewers.
15. "Law & Order: SVU" (Sunday, 7 p.m.), USA, 2.68 million homes, 3.36 million viewers.
Ratings
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