Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Marc Dion: A Smooth Transmission (Creators Syndicate)
President Barack Obama, whose name makes him sound like he should be president of Egypt, decided that he would speechify at Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, whose name makes him sound like he should be the next American president.
Paul Krugman: Another Kind of Financial Fragility (New York Times)
... recent events have also highlighted another kind of financial fragility: the sensitive egos of powerful bankers. I've been calling this the Ma! He's looking at me funny! syndrome; it's quite something to behold.
Jim Hightower: What's the Deal on Davos?
You'd think that having wealth and privilege would be enough for the power elites, but noooo. They also want prestige - and that comes at a pretty price.
Bob Herbert: Bewitched by the Numbers (New York Times)
Confusing jobless data do not capture the painful economic realities plaguing millions of American families.
Annie Lowrey: Less Unemployment, Fewer Jobs (Slate)
How can the unemployment rate drop so much when the economy adds so few jobs?
Jonah Lehrer: Sunset of the Solo Scientist (Wall Street Journal)
In recent weeks, President Barack Obama has focused on the importance of innovation for "winning the future." It's our new ideas, he says, that will solve our energy problems, increase exports and create high-paying jobs. "This is our generation's Sputnik moment," he said in the State of the Union speech. "We need to out-innovate the world."
Matt Ridley: A Key Lesson of Adulthood: The Need to Unlearn (Wall Street Journal)
For adults, one of the most important lessons to learn in life is the necessity of unlearning. We all think that we know certain things to be true beyond doubt, but these things often turn out to be false and, until we unlearn them, they get in the way of new understanding. Among the scientific certainties I have had to unlearn: that upbringing strongly shapes your personality; that nurture is the opposite of nature; that dietary fat causes obesity more than dietary carbohydrate; that carbon dioxide has been the main driver of climate change in the past.
Lucy Mangan: It's time to kick up a stink (Guardian)
Let's look on the bright side of council cutbacks. After all, optimism is free, and we need to start deploying it.
Charlyn Fargo: Guidelines to Eat By (Creators Syndicate)
So, the new Dietary Guidelines are finally out. This time around, they don't mince any words: Stay away from the TV at mealtime and skip the burgers in favor of seafood and vegetables, says the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Issued every five years and released earlier this week, the latest edition of the federal government's guidelines takes a bold approach to helping Americans eat healthier.
Peter Gill: Douglas Adams and the cult of 42 (Guardian)
If you know 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy,' then you also know the answer to Life, the Universe and Everything. But how did Douglas Adams come up with that.
Jeff Weiss: Five great White Stripes covers: Dylan, Beefheart, Son House and more (Los Angeles Times)
One of the best measures of a band's versatility is its ability to perform cover songs. With the exception of My Morning Jacket, none of the White Stripes' peers could match their necromantic art of reanimation. In the process, the band exposed a generation to the old masters. In the interest of celebrating the band's stellar run, here are five of the White Stripes' finest renditions.
The Union Forever: R.I.P White Stripes (1997-2011) (passionweiss.com)
Fast and dirty. Like no other band of their generation, The White Stripes understood that's the point of rock and roll. No need to belabor a eulogy on Jack and Meg's medicine show. Raw they gave it to you.
David Bruce has 40 Kindle books on Amazon.com with 250 anecdotes in each book. Each book is $1, so for $40 you can buy 10,000 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
Reader Suggestion
Canceled Trip
Former resident George W. Bush has canceled a visit to Switzerland, where he was to address a Jewish charity gala, due to the risk of legal action against him for alleged torture, rights groups said on Saturday.
Bush's Swiss visit off after complaints on torture | Reuters>
MAM
Thanks, Marianne!
Reader Invitation
Tapestry
Hi Marty,
We have an interesting Cyber Community devoted to forums and discussion.
A link to BC Entertainment is in the Members' Favorite Links at the top of
the page. We are dual cultures, United States and United Kingdom, varied
world views and diverse opinions.
For the next few days, we are temporarily opening the door to welcome new
members. If anyone might be interested in spending time with a great
mixture of people and discussion topics, you're cordially welcome to come
in and spend a little time meeting the people of Tapestry.
Registration is free, safe and easy.
We'd love to see some of you there.
Jen's Tapestry
best regards,
Jencin
Thanks, Jen!
See you there!
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny and warm.
`Dragon' Dominates
Annie Awards
"How to Train Your Dragon" has swept the animation prizes at the Annie Awards, with the DreamWorks production winning 10 trophies including best picture at a ceremony boycotted by rival Disney.
Presented by the International Animated Film Society, the Annies often are a forecast for the animated-feature category at the Academy Awards. But "Toy Story 3," from Disney's Pixar Animation, remains the favorite for the Feb. 27 Oscars.
"Toy Story 3" was nominated for best-animated feature at the Annies, along with Disney's "Tangled." But the studio decided not to make any awards push for the Annies in a dispute over voting procedures, which Disney claims is stacked in favor of DreamWorks Animation movies.
Prizes for DreamWorks' "Dragon" at Saturday night's ceremony also included the voice-acting Annie for Jay Baruchel.
Annie Awards
Awards Announced
WGA
The films "Inception" and "The Social Network" won top awards Saturday from the Writers Guild of America, a major Hollywood labor union.
The winners of the 2011 Writers Guild Awards for outstanding achievement in writing for screen, television, radio, news, promotional, videogame, and new media were announced at simultaneous ceremonies in Los Angeles and in New York City.
"Inception," a science fiction thriller, stars Leonardo DiCaprio, who plays Dom Cobb, a corporate espionage thief. The movie, whose script was written by Christopher Nolan, won the best original screenplay award.
"The Social Network" is a drama about the founding of the social networking website Facebook and the resulting lawsuits. Its screenplay by Aaron Sorkin won the the best adapted screenplay award.
WGA
Mideast Theater Booster
Kevin Spacey
Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey is hoping to foster dramatic talent in the Middle East with a new theater arts academy.
The joint venture by the Kevin Spacey Foundation and another group led by an Emirati business tycoon plans to offer workshops and classes in every aspect of theater from acting to stage design. The mission also seeks to bring Mideast content to international venues such as Broadway.
Spacey, who is artistic director of London's Old Vic Theater, unveiled The Middle East Theater Academy on Sunday in Dubai. The academy will not have a specific base, but will take up projects across the region.
Spacey is in the United Arab Emirates to host the Laureus sports awards on Monday in Abu Dhabi.
Kevin Spacey
Hospital News
Zsa Zsa Gabor
Zsa Zsa Gabor celebrated her 94th birthday at home on Sunday and ate a piece of cake, after her release from a hospital where she was treated for pneumonia, the actress's spokesman said.
The Hungarian-born star of 1950s movies "Moulin Rouge" and "Touch of Evil" spent five days in the hospital, in this latest round of treatment.
Before Gabor left Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles on Sunday to return to her palatial house, doctors and nurses sang happy birthday, said publicist John Blanchette.
Her friend, the singer Engelbert Humperdink, was expected to attend the party at Gabor's house and serenade the birthday girl, Blanchette said.
Zsa Zsa Gabor
Man Pleads Guilty
Marriage Fraud
A musician accused of marrying a Mexican-born actress so she could remain in the United States has pleaded guilty to lying on an immigration form.
U.S. attorney's spokesman Thom Mrozek says Kent Ross appeared in court Friday and will be sentenced April 25.
He has admitted to lying about living with actress Fernanda Romero, who had a bit part in the film "Drag Me to Hell" and is best known for her role on the Mexican soap opera "Eternamente Tuya."
Prosecutors are not seeking prison time for either Ross or Romero, who pleaded guilty to making a false statement in a Jan. 28 immigration proceeding.
Marriage Fraud
Public Farting Ban
Malawi
Malawian lawmakers will next week debate a law change to criminalise public farting, which a cabinet minister said had been encouraged by democracy.
"The government has a right to ensure public decency. We are entitled to introduce order in the country," justice and constitutional affairs minister George Chaponda told independent radio station Capital Radio.
Since the country embraced multi-party politics 16 years ago people had felt free to fart anywhere, said Chaponda.
"It was not there during the time of dictatorship because people were afraid of the consequences. Now because of multipartism or freedom, people would like to fart anywhere, he said.
Chaponda, a key figure in President Bingu wa Mutharika's government, said that if Malawians cannot control their farting "they should go to the toilet instead of farting in public."
Malawi
Packers Fan iMisses 1st Super Bowl
Visa Ad
The streak is over: One of the four men featured in a national commercial for never missing a Super Bowl game will not be at Sunday's showdown between Pittsburgh and Green Bay.
Family members said Saturday that 79-year-old Robert Cook of Brown Deer, Wis., is hospitalized and had sent his two daughters to Arlington, Texas, instead.
"We were packed and ready to go," Cook's wife, Sarah said.
Cook, New England Patriots fan Donald Crisman, San Francisco 49ers fan Larry Jacobson and Pittsburgh Steelers' fan Thomas Henschel have been to every Super Bowl since 1967 and created the "Never Missed a Super Bowl Club."
Visa Ad
Jackson Confirms March Start
'The Hobbit'
Filming on the troubled big-budget production of "The Hobbit" will finally start in March, director Peter Jackson confirmed on Monday, after months of wrangling and delays.
The cameras will start rolling on the 500-million-dollar production on March 21, in the New Zealand autumn, after taking into account filming schedule requirements, actor availability and the seasonal weather.
The two-part prequel to "The Lord of the Rings" has been dogged by problems, including a union threat to boycott the movie.
The studio agreed to keep filming in New Zealand after the government changed employment laws and granted the studio millions of dollars in tax breaks.
'The Hobbit'
Hopper Polaroid Stolen
Jason Lee
Jason Lee has offered a $25,000 reward for the return of a stolen photograph he snapped of the late Dennis Hopper.
Lee's black and white Polaroid of the iconic "Easy Rider" actor and director was on display as part of an exhibit in Los Angeles when it was swiped Saturday night.
Lee's publicist, Nancy Iannios, said Sunday that an unidentified person grabbed the 8x10 photo from the wall and ran out the front door of the gallery in the Highland Park neighborhood.
Iannios says the "My Name is Earl" star has a sentimental attachment to the Polaroid and will pay $25,000 for its safe return, no questions asked.
Jason Lee
Launches Digital Archive
NY Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic has started placing its vast archives on the Internet. It's a multi-year undertaking that will total 8 million pages.
The orchestra launched the digital archive on Thursday with 300,000 pages from the Leonard Bernstein years, from 1943 to 1970.
They include more than 1,000 conducting scores marked by Bernstein, Andre Kostelanetz, Dimitri Mitropoulos and Gustav Mahler. There's also more than 3,200 printed programs, 4,500 lantern slides and selected business records, including Bernstein's programming proposals and correspondence.
By 2012, 1.3 million pages from the Bernstein years will be online. They will be followed by documents from 1842, the year the Philharmonic was founded, to 1908, and from 1909 to 1943.
NY Philharmonic
Weekend Box Office
`The Roommate'
The college thriller "The Roommate" has moved into the top spot at the box office with a $15.6 million debut during a typically slow Super Bowl weekend in which the NFL championship game preoccupies movie fans.
The 3-D underwater cave adventure "Sanctum," whose producers include "Avatar" creator James Cameron, drew modest crowds and came in second with $9.2 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, Anthony Hopkins' exorcism thriller "The Rite," fell steeply to sixth-place with $5.6 million. The Warner Bros. release raised its 10-day total to $23.7 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. "The Roommate," $15.6 million.
2. "Sanctum," $9.2 million.
3. "No Strings Attached," $8.4 million.
4. "The King's Speech," $8.3 million.
5. "The Green Hornet," $6.1 million.
6. "The Rite," $5.6 million.
7. "The Mechanic," $5.4 million.
8. "True Grit," $4.8 million.
9. "The Dilemma," $3.5 million.
10. "Black Swan," $3.4 million.
`The Roommate'
In Memory
Gary Moore
Bandmates say rock guitarist Gary Moore, a former member of influential Irish band Thin Lizzy, has died. He was 58.
Manager Adam Parsons told the BBC that Moore was found dead Sunday at a hotel on Spain's Costa del Sol, where he was on holiday. The cause of death was not immediately known.
Thin Lizzy drummer Brian Downey said Moore's death was a "total shock," and guitarist Scott Gorham said he was "a great player and a great guy."
Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1952, Moore was a member of Dublin band Skid Row before joining Thin Lizzy in 1973, playing on tracks for the "Nightlife" album. He left after four months, but rejoined four years later and played on the band's "Black Rose" album before going solo once again.
He had a successful solo career, and his accomplished, bluesy playing won plaudits from other musicians.
Thin Lizzy had global hits in the 1970s with songs like "The Boys are Back in Town" and "Whiskey in the Jar." Frontman Phil Lynott died in 1986, but with a different lineup the band continues to tour today.
Gary Moore
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