Mark Shields: In Defense of George Wallace (Creators Syndicate)
George Wallace sought out John Lewis, who described their meeting: "I could tell that he was a changed man. He was engaged in a campaign to seek forgiveness from the same African-Americans he had oppressed. He acknowledged his bigotry and assumed responsibility for the harm he had caused. He wanted to be forgiven." And forgiven he was. When the repentant and changed man won his fourth and last term as governor in 1982, he did so because 90 percent of Alabama's African-American voters cast their votes for George Wallace.
Marc Dion: A Confederate Solution (Creators Syndicate)
I say leave the statues of the Confederate generals right where they've always been, as a way to remember the honored dead and those who quit in the end. And next to each Confederate statue, erect a statue of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a way to remember the honored dead and those who never quit.
Charlyn Fargo: Grab Another Cup (Creators Syndicate)
That extra cup of coffee may not be so bad after all. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines say for healthy adults, it's alright to have up to 400 milligrams of caffeine a day, or the amount found in three to five cups of coffee. Research has found that drinking coffee is associated with minimal health risks and may have several benefits.
Katy Waldman: What Is Harper Lee's Legacy After Go Set a Watchman? (Slate)
In 1960, with the publication of her first novel, the Alabama-born Harper Lee taught a country of rapt readers that to kill a mockingbird was a sin. Mockingbirds don't do one thing except make music for us to enjoy. The birds were radically pure, and their deaths numbered as small tragedies.
Adam Tod Brown: 5 Famous Bands That Are Clearly Ashamed of Key Members (Cracked)
It's a sad fact of life in a band that, sometimes, certain members are going to get a little less attention than others. We can't all be Mick Jaggers, after all. But much like the Beatles before them, who made it an unofficial band rule that the insanely talented and prolific George Harrison was only allowed to record two songs per album, some bands take hiding their peripheral members to dizzying new heights. For example …
This American actor, singer, dancer and musician was also a prolific voiceover artist who provided the voice of Meadowlark Lemon in the animated TV series 'The Harlem Globetrotters' as well as the title character in Hong Kong Phooey. What is his name?
China is the world's largest producer: in 2012 (7,350,000 tonnes), at a large distance followed by Peru (376,645 tonnes), and Mexico (119,789 tonnes). U.S. production was concentrated in California, Michigan, and Washington.
Source
Alan J was first and correct with:
Peru.
Randall wrote:
Accordion to Wiki, it's Peru
...man I love Asparagus.
But it sure makes my pee stinky.
Deborah said:
I love asparagus and wish the season lasted longer than a few weeks. West of Lompoc, CA, where we lived for 12 years, there are acres and acres of asparagus, artichokes, and flowers. After the harvest the farmers let the asparagus leaf out - and it looks like what we know as asparagus fern, on a grand scale.
So I'm guessing the 2nd largest producer of asparagus is the U.S.
Back to near-seasonal temps and no rain. Dammit.
Jim from CA, retired to ID, responded:
Peru
Marian replied:
Peru
DJ Useo said:
Hmmm, Asparastan?
No, if China is number one, it must be another country that similarly loathes mankind,
& wants to punish it with horrible food. I guess North Korea.
MAM wrote:
Peru ~ Preserved and fresh, both white and green.
Joe S answered:
Lois Of The Lunchroom replied:
Peru grows a lot of asparagus because it goes so well with grilled guinea pig! That's right! Go for the stylish hats, stay for the roasted rats! And asparagus!!
Dale of Diamond Springs, Norcali is off celebrating another spin around the sun.
mj took the day off.
Sally has retired, but still pays attention.
BttbBob has returned to semi-retired status.
~~~~~
Patriot Act NSA Spying Unconstitutional Section 215 National Security Letters Must End
My name is Marc Perkel and I have decided to announce that I will not comply with the so called "Patriot Act" laws requiring me to disclose information about my customers. If I receive a national security letter I will immediately photograph it, post it online everywhere I can, and then make a video of me burning it. I will then await my arrest. If you want to put me in jail then come get me mother fucker.
CBS starts the night with '60 Minutes', followed by a FRESH'Madam Secretary', then a FRESH'The Good Wife', followed by a FRESHCSI: One Too Many'.
NBC opens the night with 'Dateline', followed by the FRESH'Must See TV: An All-Star Tribute To James Burrows'.
ABC begins the night with a FRESH'America's So-Called Funniest Home Videos', followed by the FRESH'The Wonderful World Of Disney: Disneyland 60', then a FRESH'Journey To The Oscars'.
The CW offers an old 'Person Of Interest', followed by an old 'Elementary', then 2½ hours of what passes for local news and other fluffery.
Faux has an old 'The Simpsons', followed by a FRESH'Bob's Burgers', then a FRESH'The Simpsons', followed by a FRESH'Cooper Barrett's Guide To Surviving Life', then a FRESH'Family Guy', followed by a FRESH'Bordertown'.
MY has an old 'Anger Management', followed by another old 'Anger Management', then an old 'Big Bang Theory', followed by another old 'Big Bang Theory', then still another old 'Big Bang Theory', followed by yet another old 'Big Bang Theory'.
A&E has 'Hoarders', another 'Hoarders', followed by a FRESH'Hoarders', and 'Intervention'.
AMC offers the movie 'The Bourne Supremacy', 'The Walking Dead', followed by a FRESH'The Walking Dead', then a FRESH'Talking Dead'.
BBC -
[6:00AM] PLANET EARTH: LIFE - SEASON 1 - EPISODE 1-Galapagos
[6:30AM] PLANET EARTH: LIFE - SEASON 1 - EPISODE 5-Birds
[7:30AM] PLANET EARTH: LIFE - SEASON 1 - EPISODE 6-Insects
[8:30AM] PLANET EARTH: LIFE - SEASON 1 - EPISODE 7-Hunters and Hunted
[9:30AM] PLANET EARTH: LIFE - SEASON 1 - EPISODE 8-Creatures of the Deep
[10:30AM] PLANET EARTH: LIFE - SEASON 1 - EPISODE 9-Plants
[11:30AM] PLANET EARTH: LIFE - SEASON 1 - EPISODE 10-Primates
[12:30PM] UNDERWORLD
[3:00PM] UNDERWORLD: EVOLUTION
[5:00PM] UNDERWORLD: RISE OF THE LYCANS
[7:00PM] UNDERWORLD
[9:30PM] UNDERWORLD: EVOLUTION
[11:30PM] UNDERWORLD: RISE OF THE LYCANS
[1:30AM] UNDERWORLD
[4:00AM] MAN VS. WILD - SEASON 2 - EPISODE 8-Siberia (Part 1)
[5:00AM] MAN VS. WILD - SEASON 2 - EPISODE 9-Land of Ice (Part 2) (ALL TIMES EST)
Bravo has a FRESH'Atlanta Social', followed by a FRESH'Real Housewives Of Atlanta', then a FRESH'Real Housewives Of Potomac', and 'Real Housewives Of Atlanta'.
Comedy Central has 'Gabriel Iglesias: I'm Not Fat ... I'm Fluffly', 'Gabriel Iglesias: Hot & Fluffy', 'Gabriel Iglesias: Aloha Fluffy', and 'Gabrile Iglesias: I'm Not Fat ... I'm Fluffy'.
FX has the movie '21 Jump Street', followed by the movie 'The Heat', then the movie 'The Heat', again.
History has 'American Pickers', followed by a FRESH'Ax Men: Logged & Loaded', then a FRESH'Ax Men', and 'Forged In Fire'.
IFC -
[6:00AM] COMEDY BANG! BANG!-Thomas Middleditch
[6:15AM] THE AMITYVILLE HORROR
[8:15AM] MACHETE
[10:45AM] BANGKOK DANGEROUS
[1:00PM] FROM DUSK TILL DAWN
[3:30PM] COMMANDO
[5:30PM] END OF WATCH
[8:00PM] THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
[10:45PM] THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
[1:00AM] END OF WATCH
[3:30AM] THE AMITYVILLE HORROR
[5:30AM] PORTLANDIA-Going Gray (ALL TIMES EST)
Sundance -
[6:00AM] Troy
[9:30AM] Erin Brockovich
[12:30PM] A Few Good Men
[3:30PM] Top Gun
[6:00PM] The Karate Kid
[9:00PM] The Karate Kid Part II
[11:30PM] The Karate Kid Part III
[2:00AM] The Karate Kid
[5:00AM] Love Lust-Love, Lust & Power Couples (ALL TIMES EST)
SyFy has the movie 'You're Next', followed by the movie "The Conjuring'.
Jury members Clive Owen, Lars Eidinger, jury president Meryl Streep, Malgorzata Szumowska, Alba Rohrwacher, Brigitte Lacombe and Nick James arrive for the Closing and Awards Ceremony of the 66th annual Berlin International Film Festival, in Berlin, Germany, 20 February 2016. The 'Berlinale' runs from 11 to 21 February.
Photo by Kay Nietfeld
Actress Lucy Liu is being honored at Harvard for her humanitarian work.
The "Kill Bill" and "Charlie's Angels" actress, currently starring in the CBS series "Elementary," was named 2016 artist of the year by the Harvard Foundation for Intercultural and Race Relations.
She's scheduled to receive the award Saturday evening in a presentation at the Cultural Rhythms Festival at Sanders Theater in Cambridge.
Born to immigrant parents in the New York City borough of Queens, Liu is a UNICEF Ambassador and has been a spokeswoman for the Human Rights Campaign. Harvard says she's "worked tirelessly to raise awareness of the plight of women and children in some of the world's most impoverished countries."
A lock of John Lennon's hair that was snipped as he prepared for a film role has sold for $35,000.
Dallas-based Heritage Auctions said Saturday that the 4-inch lock of hair was purchased by Paul Fraser, a United Kingdom-based memorabilia collector.
A German hairdresser kept a tuft of Lennon's hair after giving him a trim before the Beatle started filming "How I Won the War," a dark comedy released in 1967. The movie follows the World War II misadventures of British troops led by an inept commander.
The hair was one of several Beatles-related items on auction. A photograph of the iconic band signed by all four members went for $42,500. And a sealed copy of the band's "butcher" cover for the "Yesterday and Today" album went for $125,000.
Women can perform neurosurgery, sit on the Supreme Court and run for president. But when it comes to selling something on eBay, they might want to ask a guy for help.
This week, researchers revealed that women make 20 percent less than men on average when selling the exact same new product on eBay.
To put that in perspective, a seller listed as John Smith might get $300 for selling a brand new iPhone 6, and JaneSmith would get just $240, even if the two listings were identical in every other way.
"We were not surprised by the existence of the gender price gap, but we were a little surprised by its magnitude," authors Tamar Kricheli-Katz of Tel Aviv University and Tali Regev of the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya, Israel, wrote in an email.
The study, published Friday in the journal Science Advances, is based on an analysis of more than 1 million eBay transactions conducted from 2009 to 2012.
Icelandic electro band Vaginaboys performs at the Sonar Reykjavik music festival in Reykjavik, Iceland, 19 February 2016. Just under 100 artists are scheduled to perform at the festival in Harpa concert hall in downtown Reykjavik.
Photo by Birgir Thor Hardarson
A record 4,279 Americans dropped their US citizenship in 2015, setting a record for the third year in a row, even though it costs at least $20,000 in legal fees alone.
Immigrants from around the world wait years for visas or smuggle themselves into the United States, and 729,995 new US citizens were naturalized in 2015 alone, but the number of US citizens who want to shed their American identity legally is at an all-time high, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
To capitalize on the increase, and also to recoup the rising administrative costs to embassies and consulates around the world, the government increased the fees for renunciation from $450 to $2,350 in fall of 2014, Sophia Yan reported for CNN. The government has received $12.6 million in fees since then.
What is driving people to give up the rights so many covet, and pay thousands of dollars to do so? Some are protesting US policy or expressing an idealistic loyalty to another nation, but most simply want to avoid red tape.
Many US citizens who leave have always lived abroad and were only nominal citizens because of an American parent, or because they were born in the United States. At one time, US citizenship would have offered no disadvantage, and perhaps many advantages, to these individuals, but in the mid-2000s new laws targeting tax evasion began to worry even honest expatriates. The balance of benefits and costs began to change, Doreen Carvajal reported for The New York Times.
Google saved $2.4 billion in worldwide taxes in 2014 by shifting 10.7 billion euros ($12 billion) in international revenues to a Bermuda shell company, Alphabet Inc., the parent of the Web-search provider, regulatory filings show.
The amount Google moved through its Dutch subsidiary, Google Netherlands Holdings BV, and then on to Bermuda represents the bulk of its profits overseas. The amount transferred to Bermuda was 16 percent greater than the prior year, according to documents the subsidiary filed with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce on Feb. 4 and made available this week. The filing was first reported by the Dutch magazine Quote.
The revelation comes as Google faces outrage in Europe over the small amount of tax it pays in the region. Last month, after Google reached a controversial 130 million pound ($187 million) settlement with the U.K. government over an audit covering 10 years of accounts, critics called the amount "derisory." The deal spawned parliamentary hearings, a government audit and scrutiny from the European Union. France and Italy are also reportedly in discussions with Google to settle ongoing tax disputes. Outside of Europe, legislators in Australia have in recent weeks questioned whether the company is paying a fair share of tax there.
Google's Dutch subsidiary is the heart of tax structures known as a "Double Irish" and a "Dutch Sandwich" because it involves moving money from one Google subsidiary in Ireland to a Google subsidiary in the Netherlands before moving it out again to a different Irish subsidiary, physically based in Bermuda, where there is no corporate income tax.
A participant plays a Styrian harmonica during a workshop in Vienna, Austria, 20 February 2016. The Styrian Harmonica, a diatonic button accordion, is a main part of the alpine folk music in Austria, Czech Republic, German Bavaria and Italian South Tyrol. The 'Die Steirische Harmonika - Atmen mit der Hand' (lit: The Styrian harmonica - Breathing with the hand) workshop, organized by the Austrian Folk Song Society, is part of the 17th International Accordion Festival.
Photo by Christian Bruna
The International Space Station just got a whole lot tidier.
A pair of NASA astronauts released a capsule loaded with 1.5 tons of trash Friday as the space station soared over Bolivia. The capsule should re-enter the atmosphere and burn up harmlessly over the Pacific on Saturday.
NASA supplier Orbital ATK launched the capsule to the space station in December, full of food, clothes and other goods. The astronauts removed the precious contents, then filled it with garbage and old equipment for incineration.
Commander Scott Kelly and Timothy Kopra, the Americans on board, sent computer commands to set the Cygnus free. The stunning 250-mile-high view showed the capsule slowly backing away, its two circular solar wings looking like open umbrellas.
NASA has handed off space station shipments to private business so it can focus on getting astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit, namely to Mars. It hopes to do the same with space station crews next year. For now, U.S. astronauts are hitching rides with the Russians.
Folk artists perform a show as they climb up a ladder built with sticks and knives at a local folk art festival in Chengcheng, Shaanxi Province, China, February 19, 2016. Picture taken February 19, 2016.
A Calgary Zoo investigation has pinpointed what caused the death of an otter named Logan last week: a pair of pants that were not meant to be in his enclosure.
The 12-year-old North American river otter was found struggling in a pool last week at the zoo's Canadian Wilds exhibit. A keeper jumped in to save him, but the animal did not survive.
A necropsy revealed Logan drowned after becoming tangled in the clothing.
Keepers give animals "enrichment" items that are meant to elicit behaviours that they would display in the wild, zoo general curator Colleen Baird said Wednesday.
She said the zoo has rules about which items are appropriate for specific animals. In the otter's case, the pants were not authorized.
Couples from around the world participate in a mass wedding ceremony at the Cheong Shim Peace World Center in Gapyeong, South Korea, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2016. Three thousand of couples from more than 60 countries attended and other 12,000 couples participated in the Unification Church's mass wedding via live-streamed broadcast, according to the church, arranged by Hak Ja Han Moon, wife of the late Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the founder of the church.
Photo by Lee Jin-man
A Salt Lake City bar owner has apologized after one of his employees refused to serve two Polynesian men because of their ethnicity.
Patron Frank Maea said he and a friend had just entered Willie's Lounge and ordered a drink when the bartender checked his ID and asked if he was Polynesian. When he confirmed that he was, she said she couldn't serve him.
Owner Geremy Cloyd didn't dispute the account in interviews with reporters on Wednesday but acknowledged it was a mistake.
He said he has an informal rule allowing female bartenders working alone at night to turn away people who look like they could make trouble, and acknowledged that he has included Polynesian people in that category.
The Salt Lake City area has a relatively large community of people of Polynesian descent. Originally drawn to Utah by Mormon missionaries in the 19th century, the state today has nearly 27,000 people who identify as being Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, census figures show. That's more than every state other than California, Hawaii and Washington.
A model presents a creation at the Gareth Pugh catwalk show at London Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2016 in London, Britain February 20, 2016.
Photo by Neil Hal
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee was the most popular US national park of 2015, receiving 10.7 million visitors last year.
New figures out of the US National Park Service show that more than 307 million people visited a national park in 2015, marking a five percent increase over 2014.
Of the 371 reporting parks, 57 also set new visitation records, including Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.
Here were the top most visited national parks in 2015 according to NPS figures - US National Parks
Humboldt penguins during feeding time at the Prague Zoo, Prague, Czech Republic, 20 February 2016. Prague Zoo is one of the few European zoos to achieve regular success in breeding Humboldt penguins.
Photo by Filip Singer
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answered:
has returned to semi-retired status.
