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Sunday Open Thread

By Jeralyn, Section Blog Related
Posted on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 09:06:00 AM EST
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It's Daylight Savings Day. Make sure you change all your clocks.

Here's an open thread for the news of the day, or whatever else is on your mind.

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    Sunday Open Thread | 27 comments (27 topical)

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    Sunday morning has lost what little (5.00 / 1) (#3)
    by ruffian on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 10:57:09 AM EST
    intelligence it had since G Steph took over This Week again from Christiane Amanpour. Really sorry to see that. Total waste of time again. I don't even stop vacuuming to listen anymore.

    And if the talking heads are not (none / 0) (#4)
    by ruffian on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 10:59:14 AM EST
    dumb enough...now they show a crawl of a twitter feed so you can see what people are saying about the show....

    So what does that say about me...I'll stop now and get back to my housework.

    Parent

    Florida State over North Carolina (5.00 / 1) (#8)
    by Dadler on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 02:15:26 PM EST
    In the ACC tourney finals.  I've seen FSU a few times this year, and they are the real thing.  Obviously.  If BTD weren't such a Gator honk, I know he'd have a few bills on the Seminoles to take the big tourney.

    He may (none / 0) (#27)
    by Amiss on Tue Mar 13, 2012 at 01:20:40 AM EST
    anyway. :)

    Parent
    Decision Time (5.00 / 1) (#9)
    by ruffian on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 03:59:14 PM EST
    My Orlando Sentinel daily delivery subscription is coming up for renewal. I have never been without a hard copy paper in the morning in my life. But these days it takes me about 10 minutes to read, even on Sunday, and they are asking $198 for the year.

    Can't see renewing.

    Offer them a hundred bucks to keep you (5.00 / 1) (#10)
    by Dadler on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 04:10:16 PM EST
    See if they take the offer.

    Parent
    My dilemma also, ruffian. (5.00 / 1) (#13)
    by caseyOR on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 05:01:50 PM EST
    The Oregonian is now just a shadow of its former self. If you based your ideas about what's happening in the world on the size of this newspaper you would conclude that nothing is happening. Also, their online site just sucks.

    To add insult to injury, the monthly subscription cost was just raised, again, and will now set me back $312/year. Strikes me as way overpriced.

    Still, I have gotten the local daily paper, wherever I was living,  delivered to my door every single day of my life. It is a tough decision, one swimming in sentimentality, but $312 is a lot of money to pay for a crappy product.

    I cannot believe that I am so close to giving up the daily paper.

    Parent

    The Seattle P.I. is now only online (none / 0) (#18)
    by shoephone on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 06:49:56 PM EST
    It used to be the better paper to the Sea. Times. Now it's nothing but a crummy gossip rag, and there's no editing. Really amateurish.

    Parent
    Is the Seattle Times any good? (none / 0) (#22)
    by ZtoA on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 07:42:07 PM EST
    Last time I was in Seattle, my daughter and I were wondering out loud what do to that evening and a native said to me "why don't you pick up a stranger?". I was rather flattered to be thought so adventurous, but it turns out it is a paper listing things to do.

    Parent
    One of my current co-workers (none / 0) (#26)
    by observed on Mon Mar 12, 2012 at 01:09:57 AM EST
    used to work at the PI, 30 years ago.


    Parent
    I really don't like the Oregonian either (none / 0) (#19)
    by ZtoA on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 06:56:35 PM EST
    But, you are right, their online site is awful. Both The Oregonian and Willamette Week have spent lots of time and money trying to take down friends of mine - for no good reason other than to create a controversy out of nothing. Of course, critics are always trying to take down arrtists and all the Portland newspaper critics are mean spirited and biased - and of course none has even taken art history 101. Another case, tho,  was a friend's high school son who was seriously vilified by the paper, very erroneously. He then was convicted of a crime, thanks in part to the 'coverage' and escorted directly to jail at his high school graduation. I had lots of kid friends in and near that grad class and the whole thing was a tragedy and a very sad death of a kid with a -heart condition- (never ever mentioned in the paper) who died of cocaine. Then the paper convicted the kid who would not sell the kid who died drugs, but MAYBE knew someone who could. Jail.

     What do you think of Blue Oregon?

    Parent

    Both and LAT and NYT have now gone (none / 0) (#11)
    by oculus on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 04:16:35 PM EST
    to limited clicks per month unless one is a subscriber of some sort.  So I am reduced to reading the local rag on line.  will probably buckle for NYT soon.  

    Parent
    NYT I can still get 20 clicks per month (none / 0) (#17)
    by shoephone on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 06:48:07 PM EST
    which isn't too bad, since a lot of the articles end up syndicated to somewhere else in short order. The LAT, on the other hand, won't allow me to click on anything without subscribing. To heck with 'em. The only articles I care about there are in "Jacket Copy" anyway.

    Parent
    I enjoy LAT Arts/Travel/Books sections. (none / 0) (#21)
    by oculus on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 07:09:43 PM EST


    Parent
    Help save jobs by renewing (none / 0) (#16)
    by jbindc on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 06:43:05 PM EST


    Parent
    I was just thinking that (none / 0) (#20)
    by ruffian on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 07:09:29 PM EST
    there are a couple of good local columnists I would hate to see discontinued, and a couple of decent local reporters. I'm going to take the advice above and see if threatening to fail to renew will pull the price down a little.

    Parent
    Printers' ink is in my veins (none / 0) (#24)
    by Towanda on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 10:04:39 PM EST
    . . . but I hear you.  I'm a news junkie, but because of that, I have read so much of the paper online -- and so many others -- by the time that I get my local paper on paper, well, I can see that the time is coming to cut back for the cause of the environment.  

    Parent
    My Dad was a reporter when I was (5.00 / 1) (#25)
    by caseyOR on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 10:17:24 PM EST
    growing up. I was a reporter early in my work life. My Dad taught me to read with the Sunday funnies. If you cut me, I bleed printers ink.

    If The Oregonian had not become such a terrible paper, with so little content, I would just suck it up as far as the big rate increase was concerned. Just this month my monthly rate increased $5. Now I pay $26/month for a product that is, sadly, not worth the paper on which it is printed.

    Killing all those trees for a product that is no longer any good. Sounds like I've made my decision. I guess I am dropping the paper.

    Now I feel kind of sad. :-(


    Parent

    David Flores finally released pending new trial (4.00 / 1) (#12)
    by desmoinesdem on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 04:59:03 PM EST
    More than two years after a district court judge ordered a new murder trial, nearly a year after the Iowa Court of Appeals agreed, David Flores is finally out of prison awaiting a new trial for a 1996 murder. TChris used to watch this case at TalkLeft (see also here).

    I don't know how prosecutors can think they'll prove his guilt beyond reasonable doubt when three independent witnesses pointed to a different suspect, and no physical evidence linked Flores to the crime in the first place.

    well, so much for that (none / 0) (#1)
    by ruffian on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 09:47:56 AM EST
    Alan Grayson was on his way to a campaign event here in Orlando yesterday. He ran a red light and hit a city bus. Two people suffered minor injuries.

    I'm afraid his campaign probably got a fatal injury.

    Having a hummin' good time with personal chemistry (none / 0) (#2)
    by Edger on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 10:03:00 AM EST
    It turns out that honey bees are a lot like people, or the other way around maybe?

    Some bees love a good adventure while others prefer to hang out at the hive, and a new analysis of bee brains suggests some of the same chemicals that affect human personality could explain why.
    [snip]
    Researchers differentiated between bees by setting up new feeding posts with unique colors and smells, one by one over several days, and tracking which bees liked to test new chomping grounds and which ones stuck with the familiar.

    When they examined the brains of the adventurous bees, they found differences in gene expression related to the same molecular pathways that regulate novelty-seeking in mammals and humans -- including catecholamine, glutamate and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) signaling.

    These chemicals in the brain are known to influence the level of reward a person feels when seeking new experiences.

    Are you're the kind who spends a lot of time flyin' around town looking for excitement, or do you prefer playing it safe staying close to the nest?

    Personally, I get nervous when I own more than will fit in the trunk of a car... and I start throwing stuff out or giving it away to lighten the load.

    Sunday morning flyin' down the highway music...

    Bon Jovi (none / 0) (#23)
    by fishcamp on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 08:27:23 PM EST
    raises bees on his land in New Jersey...

    Parent
    The UK Daily Mail (none / 0) (#5)
    by Edger on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 11:53:36 AM EST
    is reporting this morning that...

    Nine children and three women were among 16 innocent Afghan civilians shot and killed by a U.S. soldier who opened fire after suffering a 'mental breakdown' early this morning.

    The soldier reportedly entered his victims' homes in the middle of the night and opened fire on his victims. A relative of the deceased added that he then 'poured chemicals over their dead bodies and burned them.'

    The U.S service member is said to have surrendered to U.S. military authorities and is currently in their custody. Afghan president Hamid Karzai condemned the attacks as 'an assassination' and demanded an explanation from the U.S.

    Very graphic photos at that link.

    Lone gunman or a group of drunken (5.00 / 1) (#14)
    by caseyOR on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 05:45:41 PM EST
    soldiers? While the U.S. government is insisting this drunken murder spree was the work of one soldier, Afghani witnesses insist the killing was the work of a group of soldiers, all drunk and laughing.

    Given how often the U.S. has issued its official version of events over the last ten years and then had to change that version when confronted with facts, I think the truth tellers here are most likely the Afghani witnesses, not U.S. officials.

    Anyone want to bet that no one higher up, not a single colonel or general, faces any career consequences for this? As usual, we will make a big deal out of this "crazed lone gunman" story and try to bury the rest.

    Parent

    Well, of course! (none / 0) (#15)
    by Edger on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 06:09:43 PM EST
    Apparently no one higher up, not a single colonel or general, would in any conceivable way be responsible for the actions of a soldier in the hierarchical chain of command US military, would they?

    If they were the Pentagon would say so, wouldn't they?

    Just like the whole chain of command all the way up to the Commander in Chief would take credit if one of their soldiers had killed the most evil superhuman CIA trained terrist in world, wouldn't they?

    Hmmmmm.... you never know though. Maybe Obama has a drone with an unfortunately misdirected or even GPS hacked hellfire missile on the way right now to take out this terrorist, sorry, I mean lone nutcase, before he talks too much?

    Parent

    The difference, of course, (none / 0) (#6)
    by Edger on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 12:15:42 PM EST
    between a terrorist and a lone nutcase is nationality?

    Parent
    True Grits. (none / 0) (#7)
    by KeysDan on Sun Mar 11, 2012 at 01:44:34 PM EST
    Romney has, no doubt, had expert pandering lessons for campaigning for Republican primary votes in Mississippi, but I offer additional free tips:

    While you may want to talk about the economy and your olympian business acumen, your Republican primary crowd really wants to hear about your positions on the gay. So, while a tired teddy, you can still trot out 'God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve'--always a knee-slapper.  

    And, they want to hear about abortion and birth control so don't be too, too extreme since the state gave thumbs down to that 'personhood' idea. Save the really good stuff for Alabama.  It will be OK to refer often to God, but take it easy on Jeebus, since it will only rake up that real Christian problem for you.  Keep clear of government and regulations, other than subsidies for research into lighter weight gun racks so as to improve fuel efficiencies for pick-ups.

    Try to stay away from the 'trees are the right height' and just compliment the kudzu that climbs over them.  Remember too, that you don't hunt grits, you eat them.  This is where your varmits reference comes in.  It will be acceptable to note that your wife drives a couple of Cadillacs, but bring it down a notch by adding that she has both up on cinder blocks--in the front yard of a couple of your homes.   And, use your etiquette skills selectively: if you bump into former Governor Haley Barbour, do not say "pardon me."

    Sunday Open Thread | 27 comments (27 topical)

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