Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Scott Burns: The Epic of America, Still (assetbuilder.com)
Steve Penner, a friend in La Jolla, sums it up nicely: "I'll go anywhere Southwest goes. I won't go anywhere else." I share that preference. I only fly other airlines when absolutely necessary.
Robert D. Atkinson, Ph.D.: The Failure of American Higher Education (huffingtonpost.com)
In the global economy, higher education is an important driver of economic competitiveness. So why can't our colleges turn out graduates who can write basic sentences and do basic math?
Decca Aitkenhead: "Clay Shirky: 'Paywall will underperform - the numbers don't add up': (guardian.co.uk)
The internet guru on the death of newspapers, why paywall will fail and how the internet has brought out our creativity - and generosity.
"Cold: Adventures in the World's Frozen Places" by Bill Streever: A review by Benjamin Moser
Tahiti's gone condo, but mysteries are still waiting for those who know where to look: not necessarily in different places but even, as Bill Streever shows in 'Cold: Adventures in the World's Frozen Places,' at different temperatures.
Julie Bindel: The truth about the porn industry (guardian.co.uk)
Gail Dines, the author of an explosive new book about the sex industry, on why pornography has never been a greater threat to our relationships.
"The Third Reich at War: 1939-1945" by Richard J. Evans: A review by Doug Brown
With 'The Third Reich at War,' Richard J. Evans has finally concluded his trilogy on the Third Reich.
"Bodyworld" by Dash Shaw: A review by Martyn Pedler
Before you read Dash Shaw's 'BodyWorld,' you should note his strict instructions inside the cover: "THIS BOOK IS FOR IDEAL READERS ONLY!!!" Is that you? Consider the fact that even before you wade into the story, you'll have to grapple with it as a physical object. Will your first thought be "This is one beautiful book" or "Dear lord, this is annoying to read"?
Peter James: My Media (guardian.co.uk)
The crime writer on his love of obituaries, disgust for Bugsy Malone and need to keep up with local criminals.
Richard Thompson Ford: How to Understand "Acting White" (slate.com)
Could desegregation have caused the culture of academic underperformance?
Damon Wise: Robert Rodriguez unleashes his Predators at last (guardian.co.uk)
Reboot of the $chwarzenegger action franchise marks start of a remarkable return for the 'Desperado' director, who may yet team up again with Quentin Tarantino.
The Weekly Poll
Summer Sabbatical
Poll returns 13 July!
BadToTheBoneBob
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From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sun popped through for nearly a whole hour!
Thanks, Boston Jane, but I don't think these are Monarch butterly catterpillars - no milkweed plants in this 'hood.
The color was kind of sucky yesterday, so here's a better one from today.
Visiting Leno
Joe Biden
Vice President Joe Biden is headed to Jay Leno's stage.
The Friday appearance will be Biden's first stop on NBC's "The Tonight Show" since he took office in January 2009. He was a guest in 2007, and stopped in after he accepted the Democratic vice presidential nomination in 2008.
Biden's visit could signal that he doesn't hold grudges.
During the 2008 presidential campaign, Leno joked that Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin was going off script and making embarrassing statements so often that "her Secret Service code name is now Joe Biden."
Joe Biden
Women Defend Program's Diversity
`Daily Show'
The women of "The Daily Show" are refuting blogosphere complaints about the show's lack of gender diversity.
In an open letter posted Tuesday on the "Daily Show" website, 32 women who work on the Comedy Central program - from producers to writers to production assistants - denied any suggestion that "The Daily Show" is a "boy's club."
The letter was addressed to "People Who Don't Work Here" and referred only to "certain media outlets." The blog Jezebel.com recently claimed there is sexism at "The Daily Show" after speaking with several former female staffers.
But in a thoughtful and comical letter, the "Daily Show" women denounced "the bitter rantings of ex-employees." They said women make up 40 percent of the staff and "generate a significant portion of the show's creative content."
`Daily Show'
Sets Facebook Record
Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga has become the first living person to have 10 million followers on Facebook.
The Bad Romance singer beat competition from US President Barack Obama to clock up the record number of supporters, and according to the independent online auditor Famecount.com she is on track to overtake Michael Jackson.
The 24-year-old star - real name Stefani Germanotta - is currently trailing behind the late King of Pop, who has more than 14 million "friends" on the social networking site, but her total is rising every day.
Gaga gains an average 140,000 followers daily and is now close to 11 million friends.
Lady Gaga
Gulf Concert
Jimmy Buffett
Singer Jimmy Buffett is just another mad Gulf Coast native when it comes to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, but with an exception: He's got millions of fans and a way to help lift spirits over the seemingly endless crisis.
Buffett and his Coral Reefer Band will play Sunday on the beach in Gulf Shores, Ala., which has been sporadically hit by oil for weeks. The show already has been postponed once because of Hurricane Alex, and Buffet is hoping bad weather lurking in the Gulf doesn't create problems this weekend.
Known for laid-back tunes like "Margaritaville" and "Cheeseburger in Paradise," Buffett told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday that it's perfectly normal for people to be mad when they see oil washing up on beaches and marshes.
"If you're born and raised on the Gulf Coast and it's kind of in you, and you don't feel anger and rage initially over what's going on down there, I think you're a hypocrite," he said in a telephone interview from New York. "That's the way I felt. Now, what you do with that is a big question."
Jimmy Buffett
Turns 75
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama marks his 75th birthday on Tuesday, with thousands set to celebrate the occasion in his hometown-in-exile and events planned across the globe from Europe to Australia.
The Nobel laureate will address a crowd of 5,000 fans and followers at his temple in McLeod Ganj, a hill station in the Indian Himalayas where he has lived since fleeing Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule.
In apparently fine health and showing no signs of slowing down despite his advanced years, the Buddhist spiritual leader will break with recent birthday tradition and greet well-wishers in person.
Elsewhere, Tibetan communities in North America, Europe and Australia are gearing up for music and cultural events to celebrate the day, while numerous Internet campaigns are collecting birthday messages.
Dalai Lama
Tours Toronto Film Studio
QE II
Queen Elizabeth slapped on 3D goggles Monday as she toured a Toronto film studio that hosted such productions as the ABC series "Happy Town," the upcoming Daniel Craig feature "Dream House" and the comic book franchise picture "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World."
The British monarch and the Duke of Edinburgh donned the bulky glasses for a live action 3D shoot using stereoscopic camera rigs, followed by a viewing of the scene in 3D.
The royal tour of the Screen Industries Research and Training Center at Pinewood Toronto Studios gave the Ontario provincial government an opportunity to showcase local 3D expertise to the international media.
Pinewood Toronto Studios chairman Paul Bronfman said the royal visit aimed to lift the Toronto studio's profile as it looks to land a big-budget movie on its lot. "When we have a hit, the floodgates will open," Bronfman predicted.
QE II
Family Sells Rubens
Princess Diana
A painting by Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens, put up for auction by the aristocratic family of the late Princess Diana as part of a clearout sale, sold on Tuesday for 9 million pounds ($13.68 million).
The picture "A Commander being armed for Battle," was painted in 1613 or 1614, and Christie's, which sold the work as part of its Old Masters auction in London, described it as one of the most important Rubens still in private British hands.
The painting has been at the late princess's ancestral home Althorp for more than 200 years, and was originally described as the "school of Rubens" in an 1802 inventory.
Overall the auction raised 42.3 million pounds versus forecasts of 36.9-55.8 million, and was described by Christie's as "solid."
Princess Diana
Hospital News
Dean McDermott
Dean McDermott is out of the hospital.
McDermott, who was being treated last week for a punctured and collapsed lung following a motorcycle accident, was released from the hospital Tuesday afternoon, according to McDermott's publicist, Meghan Prophet. No other details were provided.
McDermott and his wife, actress Tori Spelling, star in the Oxygen docu-reality TV show "Tori & Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood."
Dean McDermott
US Soldier Charged
Bradley Manning
An American soldier suspected of leaking a military video of an attack on unarmed men in Iraq was charged with multiple counts of mishandling and leaking classified data and putting national security at risk, the U.S. Army said in a statement Tuesday.
Army Spc. Bradley Manning is suspected of leaking a classified video that shows a group of men walking down the street before being repeatedly shot by the Apache helicopters. The American gunners can be heard laughing and referring to the men as "dead bastards."
The classified video was taken from the cockpit during a 2007 fire fight and posted last April on the website Wikileaks.org. It was an unflattering portrait of the war that raised questions about the military's rules of engagement and whether more should be done to prevent civilian casualties.
Among those believed to have been killed in the attack were a Reuters photographer Namir Noor-Eldeen, 22, and his driver Saeed Chmagh, 40. Two children were wounded.
Hours after the military announcement, Wikileaks sent out a tweet complaining that while Manning was charged, the "trigger-happy Apache crew remain uncharged."
Bradley Manning
Band Penalized
Men at Work
A judge ordered Australian band Men at Work on Tuesday to hand over a portion of the royalties from their 1980s hit "Down Under," after previously ruling its distinctive flute riff was copied from a children's campfire song.
But the penalty - 5 percent of the song's royalties - was far less than the 60 percent sought by publishing company Larrikin Music, which holds the copyright for the song "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree."
"Kookaburra" was written more than 70 years ago by Australian teacher Marion Sinclair for a Girl Guides competition, and the song about the native Australian bird has been a favorite around campfires from New Zealand to Canada.
Sinclair died in 1988, but Larrikin filed a copyright lawsuit last year. In February, Federal Court Justice Peter Jacobson ruled Men at Work had copied their song's signature flute melody from "Kookaburra."
On Tuesday, Jacobson ordered Men at Work's recording company, EMI Songs Australia, and "Down Under" songwriters Colin Hay and Ron Strykert, to pay 5 percent of royalties earned from the song since 2002 and from its future earnings. A statute of limitations restricted Larrikin from seeking royalties earned before 2002.
Men at Work
TKOs Don King
ESPN
A Florida appeals court has upheld a lower court's ruling that ESPN didn't defame Don King in a special on the boxing promoter.
The episode of "Sports Century" included allegations that King cheated a hospital out of money from a benefit fight, owed money to boxer Meldrick Taylor and threatened to have him killed, and convinced doctors to invest in a movie on King's life that was never made.
King sued ESPN, ABC and Disney in Florida court for defamation, but the case was dismissed on summary judgment with a finding that he couldn't show "actual malice" from the defendants.
In its latest decision, the Florida appeals court says there is a difference between "ill will" and "actual malice." The latter is required by law from public figures who assert libel claims and is generally meant to mean that plaintiffs need to show knowledge of false information published with reckless disregard for the truth.
ESPN
Arrested After Car Crash
George Michael
British media reports say George Michael has been arrested after a car crash in London.
The BBC says the 47-year-old singer was arrested Sunday after police responded to reports that a car had crashed into a building in Hampstead, an upscale residential area in north London.
Metropolitan Police say only that they arrested a man in his 40s early Sunday in Hampstead on suspicion of being unfit to drive. They say the man was taken to a police station and released on bail pending further inquiries.
Last year, Michael was questioned by police after his car hit a tractor-trailer, but was released. He was banned from driving for two years in 2007 after pleading guilty to driving on drugs.
George Michael
Thai Sex Probe
Mikhail Pletnev
Famed Russian conductor Mikhail Pletnev has been released on bail after Thai police searched his home in Thailand as part of a probe into paedophilia, the Russian consulate said Tuesday.
Pletnev, artistic director of the acclaimed Russian National Orchestra, was released on bail after the search in the Thai resort of Pattaya, Russian consular official in Thailand Andrei Dvornikov told RIA Novosti.
"The police informed Pletnev that some Thai citizens who had been arrested for paedophilia and producing child porn had given evidence against him," Dvornikov said.
The consul added that Pletnev, 53, and his Thai lawyer would on Wednesday go to court to ask permission for the conductor to leave the country so he can take part in his orchestra's forthcoming tours.
Mikhail Pletnev
90 Days
Lindsay Lohan
A judge sentenced Lindsay Lohan Tuesday to three months in jail and a rehab program after finding the actress had violated the terms of her probation in a 2007 drug case.
Superior Court Judge Marsha Revel issued the sentence after listening to testimony from employees of a court-mandated alcohol treatment program.
Lohan missed numerous classes - seven since last December - which led to the judge's harsh rebuke of Lohan moments after the "Mean Girls" star offered a tearful apology.
Revel said she found Lohan's apology insincere, comparing it to "somebody who cheats and thinks it isn't cheating if she doesn't get caught."
Lindsay Lohan
Judge Disallows Taped Confession
"The First 48"
A judge says he won't allow a videotaped confession that aired on the crime reality show "The First 48" to be used at the trial of a Memphis man accused of killing six people.
Judge James Beasley said Tuesday he disallowed the confession widely seen on the A&E program because other information may have been recorded but not aired that's relevant to the case of Jessie Dotson.
Dotson, 35, is awaiting trial in September on six counts of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder. Three children survived the March 2008 Memphis house slayings. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
Dotson's case garnered national attention in part over his appearance on "The First 48," which recorded the police investigation and aired a confession from Dotson.
"The First 48"
Japan Public TV Drops Tournament
Sumo Scandal
For the first time since it began televising sumo tournaments 57 years ago, Japan's public broadcasting network decided Tuesday not to air the upcoming competition live because of a gambling scandal that has sullied the sport's reputation.
The decision underscored anger among the ancient sport's fans over the behavior of coaches and wrestlers who are accused of gambling heavily on baseball, sometimes with gangsters as middlemen.
NHK, which has broadcast each of the six annual tournaments since 1953, said the scandal generated a flood of complaints from viewers, with most saying that they did not want the 15-day competition that begins on Sunday to be aired.
Instead of its usual live broadcasts of the top divisions, NHK will show a delayed, abbreviated version, the network said on its website.
Sumo Scandal
Party Cancelled
Sean "Diddy" Combs
Rowdy crowds waiting in line for a July Fourth pool party featuring Sean "Diddy" Combs forced the event to be shut down before the rap and fashion mogul had a chance to enter.
Police shut down the party early Monday, forcing some 1,800 guests out of the Harrah's Resort Atlantic City nightclub known as The Pool.
On his Twitter feed, Diddy wrote, "I just shut down Atlantic City! The party was so crazy I couldn't even get in! 10 thousand people showed up. ... I was ready to party!"
Casino staff said that the actual crowd was not nearly that large but that they decided to cancel the event in the name of safety.
Sean "Diddy" Combs
Ordered To Delete Stories
Newspapers
A Pennsylvania judge who ordered two newspapers to delete archived stories about three defendants whose cases were resolved has rescinded the order. But another judge's order covering two other defendants is still pending.
Centre County Judge Bradley Lunsford cited free-speech concerns in signing new orders Monday directing only public agencies to clear records for the three. That's typical when charges are dismissed, withdrawn or otherwise not applicable for first-time offenders who complete remediation.
Initial orders had asked the Centre Daily Times and the student newspaper at Penn State to take the unusual step of expunging their records of information.
The attorney tells the Times that First Amendment rights were trumping his clients' rights for cleared records.
Newspapers
Judge Denies Dismissal Motion
Anna Nicole Smith
A Los Angeles judge on Tuesday denied a defense motion to dismiss two charges against a doctor accused of illegally funneling prescription drugs to Anna Nicole Smith.
Superior Court Judge David Wesley rejected the motion by Dr. Sandeep Kapoor, who sought to have a drug conspiracy charge dropped along with one count of unlawfully obtaining a prescription by a false name.
Kapoor, Dr. Khristine Eroshevich and Smith's former lawyer-boyfriend Howard K. Stern have pleaded not guilty to conspiring to illegally providing sedatives and opiates to the former Playboy model. They are not charged with causing her death.
In other developments, the case was reassigned back to Superior Court Judge Robert Perry, who oversaw the preliminary hearing and ordered all three defendants to stand trial.
Anna Nicole Smith
Dog Groups Prepping
"Marmaduke"
Groups that care for Great Danes are preparing for a surge of rejected dogs, expecting the Hollywood movie "Marmaduke" will spur adoptions -- then abandonments -- of cute puppies which can grow to 170 lbs and eat 10 cups of food a day.
The film, about an adorable yet clumsy pooch, debuted in theaters last month but stumbled at box offices. Still, it is prompting some demand for the breed, and dog groups are cautioning people that few families realize the resources needed to care for the big animals and can become overwhelmed.
Movies and TV shows about animals often spur consumers to buy them for pets, and Kathie Shea, rescue chair for the Great Dane Club of America, said "Marmaduke" has increased demand for Great Dane puppies tenfold.
"The problem is, a nine-month puppy will be over 100 pounds and they still have a puppy brain," said Shea. "Your Labrador puppy will be chewing your slipper. Your Great Dane puppy will be chewing your dining room table."
"Marmaduke"
German Museum Finds Painting
Ludwig Kirchner
A German museum has discovered what it believes to be a previously unknown work by German Expressionist artist Ludwig Kirchner that languished in its cellar for decades.
The Staedel Museum announced the find on Tuesday, saying that it had discovered it as part of renovation. The canvas is painted on both sides, with a rare nude, believed to have been painted in 1910, on the back.
The Frankfurt museum plans to restore the work and put it on display for the first time when it reopens in the fall of 2011. It did not give an estimate of the painting's value.
Kirchner is one of the best-known German Expressionist painters along with Ernst Ludwig, Emil Nolde and Wassily Kandinsky. He was also part of a movement known as Die Bruecke, or "The Bridge."
Ludwig Kirchner
Mullet Day
Pittsburgh Zoo
Mullet conservation efforts are under way in Pittsburgh - the hairstyle, not the fish.
The Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium gave reduced admission Monday to those sporting the business-in-front, party-in-back look.
The tongue-in-cheek promotion kicked off a week of discount gimmicks at the zoo.
Stuck in the '60s? A tie-dye shirt will get you in the gates for $5 on Thursday. On Friday, the zoo's Facebook friends can get the lower price.
Pittsburgh Zoo
Online Pranksters Vote
Justin Bieber
An online contest to decide where Canadian pop star Justin Bieber should go on tour next has been hijacked by a Web prank group that has been encouraging voters to send him to North Korea.
With just a few hours left to vote, North Korea was the top vote-getter on Tuesday in the "My World Tour" contest with more than 625,000 votes, followed by Israel with 608,000 votes and Poland with 513,073 votes.
According to the BBC, the campaign to garner votes for an unlikely tour to notoriously isolated North Korea by the 16-year-old singing sensation was launched by users of the Internet bulletin board 4chan.
Users of 4chan have carried out a number of stunts in the past involving Bieber and previous 4chan pranks include getting the founder of the site, Christopher Poole, on to Time magazine's list of 100 most influential people.
Justin Bieber
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