Thursday’s beer bash on the White House lawn resulted in racial peace in out time sheepishness on the part of reporters and commentators, who had inflated a symbolic photo opportunity into a “Racial Summit Meeting.” President Obama, Vice President Biden, Harvard Professor Henry Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and Cambridge Police Sergeant James Crowley merely chatted over a beer in DC’s summer heat, as planned.
(Washington, DC) Thursday evening at 6:00 PM, three gents will share a beer down at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW. The host invited two New England residents for a brewski and a “teachable moment.” Let’s hope they have the right lesson plan.
NFL Reinstates Vick, Limits Pets to Turtles, Goldfish, read the headline. Little did they know about the dark underworld of Siamese Fighting Fish combat.
There’s just no stopping hard-core aquarium action addicts.
Image by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com
Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.
Two years after he was forced to resign as Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales is scheduled to teach undergraduates at Texas Tech, something he has never done before, and the university’s real professors are not happy about it. Over 40 Texas Tech faculty members (47 at last report) have signed a petition objecting to the teaching appointment of Mr. Gonzales.
In a moving ceremony in St. Paul’s Cathedral Atlantic City Fairbanks, Sarah Heath Palin surrendered her title as Governor of Alaska. Tears and smudged mascara marked the occasion as Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell was sworn in as governor by Alaska Supreme Court Justice Daniel E. Winfree and donned the ceremonial sash and tiara.
Alaska Lieutenant General Craig Campbell was named Mr. Congeniality. Mr. Campbell will take over the governorship should the new governor follow Mrs. Palin into show business.
Told you so. Six months ago Stephanie at UrbZen pointed out the downside of the web-based Kindle digital book reader, the ability of the content provider to alter the text without warning or reader agreement. Her concerns were echoed by Nicholas Carr.
Amazon decided to demonstrate this principle by making digital copies of George Orwell’s 1984 disappear from devices after readers had paid for and downloaded them. Could any book be more appropriate? Here’s some initial coverage:
“Orwellian Amazon kindles Big Brother fears,” Sydney Morning Herald
“Amazon’s Orwellian Instincts,” Faster Times
“Amazon Apologizes For Its ‘Big Brother’ Move on Kindle,” Switched.com
“Why did Big Brother remove paid-for content from Amazon’s Kindles?” The Guardian
Blogs with Bite is an occasional omnivorous sampling of food blogs and sites we find particularly tasty. Follow the trail of bread crumbs back to earlier editions, starting here.
The latest serving of Blogs with Bite:
The Local Beet– “Local” means Chicago, but there are well-written blogs and features to interest readers (and eaters) everywhere.
Popcorn! — Website of the nonprofit Popcorn Board. Recipes, Encyclopedia Popcornica, features foe kids and teachers. Season it with the savory history of popcorn feature at USDA’s National Agricultural Library website.
Wild Fermentation– Micro-organisms make your meals tasty and your food longer-lasting. Unique, well-written website by Sandor Ellix Katz (Sandorkraut). Recipes and tips for making sauerkraut, pickles, sourdough, alcohol, and more.
Howcast Food & Cooking Videos – Kitchen skills, techniques, and recipes in a good selection of cuisines. Excellent production values.
Table Matters– Online magazine with outstanding features, particularly in the Culinaria and DIY departments.
Other Kitchens – First-rate food photos; links to recipes.
Binnur’s Turkish Cookbook – Tasty Turkish cooking blog by Canadian author Binnur Tomay.
Seafood Selector – “Choose fish that are good for you and the ocean” through this webpage by the Environmental Defense Fund.
World’s Largest Ketchup Bottle – That may be “ketchup” to you, but this monument is in Collinsville, Illinois, former home of Brooks Catsup (now fresher!).
Former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, now a free agent after release from federal prison, may be eligible for an NFL contract. Reports, citing unnamed sources, say NFL Commisioner Roger Goodell may force any club hiring Mr. Vick to make him sit out the first four games of the 2009 season.
Some football fans see this as unnecessary roughness, even “double jeapardy,” additional punishment for a man who has served his time and literally paid the price for his role in a dog-fighting ring. On the other hand, many of America’s 60 million dog owners will never forgive Mr. Vick for his role in a cruel and illegal blood sport.
But Commissioner Goodell’s decision may be more a matter of timing than punishment. Mr. Vick is scheduled to start a public service campaign for the Humane Society of the United States next week, and the NFL season starts September 10th. A final decision about putting Mr. Vick on the field could be postponed until October, enough time for his HSUS campaign to show if it has real bite. The NFL — and team owners — would be wise to see how the public reacts to the sports star’s anti-dogfighting activities before putting him back on the field.
Image by Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com
Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.
The House of Representatives will recess at the close of business on Friday, July 31st and the Senate on Friday, August 7th. Don’t waste time until September. Sign up now for C Street Vacation Bible School!
Share spiritual summer fun with your friends at the Fellowship. This year classes will be taught by experienced alumni –
John Ensign: “Love Thy Neighbor, Especially If She Works For You.”
Chip Pickering: “God’s Cell Phone Has a Family Plan.”
Mark Sanford: “The Ardent Argentina Tango of the Soul.”
This year’s craft project: beaded Bible covers designed by Doug Coe.
Image by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com
Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.
“Cambridge is the spirited, slightly mischievous side of Boston, located just across the bridge,” says the New England town’s tourism office, but don’t commit any “tumultuous behavior” there. Even in your own house.
Just ask Henry Louis Gates, Jr., PhD, Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Studies at Harvard University. Returning from Logan Airport to his Cambridge home after a week in China filming a PBS documentary, Dr. Gates found his front door damaged. He entered by the rear door, turned off his alarm, and opened the damaged front door with help from the car service driver, who then carried in the luggage (Dr. Gates walks with a cane).
Professor Gates called the Harvard Real Estate Office to report the damage and request repairs when a uniformed Cambridge Police officer appeared. Professor Gates produced his University identification and driver’s license, both with his home address, and asked for the officer’s name and badge number. The officer did not respond, whereupon Dr. Gates asked other officers on his porch for that information. He was handcuffed and brought to the police station, where he was detained for four hours.
According to public documents, Dr. Gates “was arrested for Disorderly conduct after exhibiting loud and tumultuous behavior.”
