MATT TAIBBI: See, according to Lara Logan [pictured, below left], not only are reporters not supposed to disclose their agendas to sources at all times, but in the case of covering the military, one isn’t even supposed to have an agenda that might upset the brass! Why? Because there is an “element of trust” that you’re supposed to have when you hang around the likes of a McChrystal. You cover a war commander, he’s got to be able to trust that you’re not going to embarrass him. Otherwise, how can he possibly feel confident that the right message will get […]
SCRAPPLE TV NEWS: Life Lessons
Your life coach AP Ticker on why he loves, loves, loves sum, sum, summertime!
SIDEWALKING: Top Of The World
Top of the Mellon Bank Building, 18th and Market, 11:30 AM yesterday, by JEFF FUSCO
KILL YOUR TELEVISION: How To Cut The Cord
PBS: Anyone who gets cable TV or satellite in the U.S. has noticed a pronounced trend over the years: their monthly bill keeps going up. Sure, you can get lots of channels, plus HD channels and DVR functions, but those usually cost extra. According to research from Centris (PDF), the average digital cable bill was nearly $75 last year, and the average monthly satellite TV bill was $69. What’s causing those bills to skyrocket? A lack of competition among cable and satellite providers, and the rising costs of programming. Like other traditional media, TV networks (both cable and broadcast) are […]
HIGH TIMES: Go West, Young Man
NEW YORK TIMES: One of the odder experiments in the recent history of American capitalism is unfolding here in the Rockies: the country’s first attempt at fully regulating, licensing and taxing a for-profit marijuana trade. In California, medical marijuana dispensary owners work in nonprofit collectives, but the cannabis pioneers of Colorado are free to pocket as much as they can — as long as they stay within the rules. The catch is that there are a ton of rules, and more are coming in the next few months. The authorities here were initially caught off guard when dispensary mania began […]
ABOUT LAST NIGHT: Passion Pit At The Mann
BY JAMIE MANN I went to a Passion Pit show last night at The Mann. Now, let me tell you, Passion Pit fucking blow. Lets be honest. They’re basically a bunch of Berklee School of Music grads, who found out how to sound like the eighties and sing like an android who regularly shoots up helium. Now, perhaps I’m going too far, say you, people of the world. “Sleepyhead is a top tune,” you might say. “That wobbly synth riff after the chorus is sweet,” you might say. You could say all these things, and you would be half right. […]
Disgraced Health Care Exec Spends $16 Million To Hide History Of Fraud & Now Leads Florida Gov. Race
MIAMI HERALD: As he meets Republicans around Florida, Rick Scott, the new front-runner in the Florida governor’s race, has been greeted with applause — and with blunt questions about his past. At a recent GOP breakfast in Tampa, Scott was confronted — not for the first time — about his role in the scandals at Columbia/HCA, the massive healthcare company that Scott ran for 10 years. Scott resigned in 1997 amid an FBI probe that ultimately led to the company paying a record $1.7 billion in criminal and civil fines for Medicare fraud. It’s the paradox of Scott’s upstart campaign: […]
BLONDEGATE: Ed Has No One To Blame But Ed
DAILY NEWS: He said he brings Snow to fundraisers to add “pizzazz” – in EdWorld, a compliment; in the real world, an insult to professional women and akin to calling Snow eye candy. He said that rumors about him are unfair to attractive women, inexplicably adding, “I should go out and find an unattractive woman to have an affair with.” What’s that supposed to mean? New hope for unattractive women? His comment that he gets “hit on by women all the time” I’ll let stand, except to note that the last time I heard talk like that was in a […]
SPORTO: Father And Son Go To Union Game In Chester And Despite All Odds Have An Awesome Time
BY MIKE WOLVERTON SPORTS GUY I’m pretty sure I’d never been to Chester before. But all good things must come to an end, so I went to see the Union open their new home park on Sunday. I took my son Torin, who’s almost five but not particularly into sports. He usually likes to root for the white team, which would prove impossible in this green-vs-blue matchup. We were running late due to the three-headed monster of: Stayed too long at the pool Dealing with young children Wife never fills the gas tank So we pulled into Chester about twenty […]
KITCHEN BITCH: Eggplant Without The ‘Yuck Face’
BY MAVIS LINNEMANN One of my new favorite magazines is Cooking Light, because it offers foodies like me ways to cut calories and fat in all my favorite dishes. There’s even a way to make donuts more healthful! (Keep that oil at 375?F to keep your donuts from getting greasy.) I spied a Parmesan and Eggplant Souffle recipe in CL’s June 2010 issue, but it seemed a little off. I’ve spent a lot of time with Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking and, if you know anything about French cooking, you know that the French really know how […]
STUDY: ‘Bacterial Monsters’ Spawning Inside Sharks
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC: Our leftover medicines are spawning drug-resistant “bacterial monsters” that thrive inside sharks, scientists say.The finding suggests antibiotics such as penicillin may be leaching into the environment and spurring drug-resistant bacteria to evolve and multiply in the oceans. “Bacteria have sex, basically. They can transfer genetic material,” said study leader Mark Mitchell, professor of veterinary clinical medicine at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Mitchell and colleagues found antibiotic-resistant bacteria in seven species of shark—such as bull sharks, lemon sharks, and nurse sharks—as well as the redfish Sciaenops ocellata. The fish live in coastal waters off Belize, Florida, Louisiana, […]
FACT CHECK: Who’s Afraid Of Elena Kagan?
[illustration by KERRY WAGHORN] Myth: Kagan banned military recruiters from Harvard Myth: Kagan is “anti-military” Myth: Kagan is “radical” Myth: Kagan’s praise for an Israeli Supreme Court justice shows she’s a radical (NEW) Myth: Kagan’s thesis shows she’s a socialist Myth: Conservatives can credibly argue that Kagan’s personal and political views are relevant to confirmation process Myth: “Kagan Standard” means Kagan must answer questions about issues that will come before the Supreme Court Myth: Kagan’s Goldman Sachs role taints her nomination Myth: Conservative opposition is based on the substance of Kagan’s nomination Myth: Obama used “empathy” standard rather than fealty […]