Will the Times Live?

It’s possible, of course, that my skepticism about forecasts of the impending death of the Times is simply the product of wishful thinking, since I am one of those dinosaurs who finds the idea of a morning without the print edition of the Times pretty much unimaginable. Just yesterday morning, in fact, I was quite powerfully struck by the tremendous variety and detail of information that a single day’s edition of the Times offers, and by the—clichéd, but nonetheless true—fact that reading, or at least skimming, the print edition cover to cover guarantees you’ll come across stories that you may not have thought you were interested in but in fact are fascinated by, like the reclassification of Tule elk as a target species for bowhunters (just imagine how that news was received in the Tule elk community) or the constitutionality of animal-cruelty videos. And yes, the Internet offers these things as well, but, I have to say, nothing quite offers the unusual combination of comprehensiveness and serendipity of the Times’ daily edition. It’ll be bad news when it’s gone.

James Surowiecki — The New Yorker

Cooking With Dexter

He’s sleeping now. Before he went to bed, by some miracle, we pried two little sweet potatoes from his 4-year-old fist.

Most nights, before the nuclear generator runs down and he shuts his eyes, Dexter and I argue about food. Lately he’s been on a cookie jag, and the arguments are not about whether he can have cookies before bedtime. They are about whether he can have cookies before bedtime if he preheats the oven and begins mixing the dough at 8:15. The answer to that one, and I try to stick to it, is no. Oh, but what about making the dough now and baking in the morning? And if I say no to that too: What about starting the dough now, finishing it in the morning and then baking the cookies tomorrow night?

The answer to that one is also no, because I know that in the morning he will have coffee to brew. …

Pete Wells in The New York Times Magazine

He goes on to describe making sherbet: “When it was frozen, it reminded me of long-ago Creamsicles and Orange Juliuses at the mall, but it had a bright juiciness I don’t remember from my childhood.”

That was enough to get me interested. Recipes – Tangerine Sherbet

First time

Oklahoma and Florida have never played each other in football before.

On the other hand:

It means nothing because the BCS has no credibility. Florida? Oklahoma? Who cares? Utah is the national champion.

The End. Roll credits.

Argue with this, please. I beg you. Find me anybody else that went undefeated. Thirteen-and-zero. Beat four ranked teams. Went to the Deep South and seal-clubbed Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. The same Alabama that was ranked No. 1 for five weeks. The same Alabama that went undefeated in the regular season. The same Alabama that Florida beat in order to get INTO the BCS Championship game in the first place.

Yeah, that’s how it is now in the shameful, money-grubbing world of college football. If you’re Florida and you beat Alabama, you get a seat in the title game. If you’re Utah, you get a seat on your sofa.

Rick Reilly – ESPN The Magazine

Reilly’s rant continues.

Three items from the NewMexiKen Archives

These three posts were published here four years ago today. I re-post them because my headlines are so good. 🙂

Judge Hardy wouldn’t approve either

From USATODAY.com —

A year after Janet Jackson’s breast brought a crackdown on indecency, Fox has rejected an ad for the Super Bowl offering a rare view of another celeb: Mickey Rooney’s backside.

In the spot for Airborne, a natural cold remedy, the 84-year-old star of such 1940s staples as National Velvet and the Andy Hardy films is in a sauna when someone behind him coughs. He overreacts, jumps up, screams and heads for the door. In his rush, his towel drops, baring his buns for about two seconds.

Paper or Plastic?

From the Des Moines Register —

A 65-year-old Wal-Mart greeter has been fired for greeting customers with a computer-generated photograph of himself wearing nothing but a Wal-Mart sack.

Dean Wooten was fired in September from his job as a greeter at the Muscatine Wal-Mart store where he had worked for seven years, state records show. He was accused of greeting customers with a picture of himself in which he appeared to be naked except for the carefully placed sack.

Wooten allegedly told customers that Wal-Mart was cutting back on expenses and that the sack represented the new employee uniform.

Well, they might want to rename the school

From The Indianapolis Star —

IPS police and Marion County child protection workers are investigating an incident involving two first-graders who officials said were caught trying to have sex Wednesday at an Eastside school.

District officials worried that the incident may have signaled that at least one of the 6-year-olds had been abused before. A child psychologist acknowledged that possibility but said the behavior simply could have been an attempt to copy something seen on a video or cable TV.

“One of them may be a victim,” said Indianapolis Public Schools Superintendent Duncan Pat Pritchett. “We’re waiting for the conclusion of the two investigations. At that age, that’s learned behavior.”

The names of the two children have not been made public. But the girl and boy, who were released to their parents, received five-day suspensions and could be booted from classes at School 69 for the rest of the year.

“It’s extremely troubling because of their young ages. I have never in my life experienced anything like this,” said School 69 Principal Gary W. Davis, a 22-year educator.

If we can’t get a holiday for Elvis Presley and Soupy Sales, what kind of country is this?

Jesse Garon and Elvis Aron Presley were born in a house without electricity or plumbing in East Tupelo, Mississippi, on this date in 1935. Jesse, the older twin, was stillborn. The parents were Vernon Elvis Presley and Gladys Smith Presley.

Elvis Presley is the undisputed King of Rock and Roll. He rose from humble circumstances to launch the rock and roll revolution with his commanding voice and charismatic stage presence. In the words of the historical marker that stands outside the house where he was born: “Presley’s career as a singer and entertainer redefined popular music.” (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)

January 8th is the birthday of Milton Supman. The television comedian, known as Soupy Sales, who was a big part of NewMexiKen’s life when I was 8 or 10 years old, is 83.

On New Year’s Day 1965 Soupy, miffed at having to work on the holiday, ended his live broadcast by encouraging his young viewers to tiptoe into their still-sleeping parents’ bedrooms and remove those “funny green pieces of paper” from their pants and pocketbooks. “Put them in an envelope and mail them to me,” Soupy allegedly instructed the children. “And you know what I’m going to send you? A post card from Puerto Rico!” In his 2001 autobiography Soupy Sez! My Life and Zany Times, Soupy admits it is true. He was suspended by the station for two weeks for encouraging children to steal. Soupy received $80,000 from viewers, mostly in play money. Any real money was donated to charity. (Wikipedia)

Today is also the birthday

… of Larry Storch of F Troop. He’s 86.

… of newscasters Sander Vanocur (81) and Charles Osgood (76).

… of Shirley Bassey. The singer of “Goldfinger” is 72.

… of Bob Eubanks. “The Newlywed Game” emcee is 71.

… of Stephen Hawking. The physicist and author is 67.

… of Yvette Mimieux. The actress is 67.

Born to a French father and Mexican mother, actress Yvette Mimieux grew up within shouting distance of Hollywood Boulevard. The blonde, well-proportioned Mimieux was a beauty contest winner and model when signed to an MGM contract in 1959. With her second film appearance as ethereal 800th century girl Weena in The Time Machine (1960), Mimieux achieved stardom; with her next film, Where the Boys Are (1960), she proved capable of heavy dramatics via a discreetly handled “gang rape” sequence. An appearance as a terminally ill girl on the 1964 Dr. Kildare episode “Tyger Tyger” drew a great deal of press attention for Mimieux, principally because she spent most of her early scenes in a bikini. (All Movie Guide via New York Times)

… of David Bowie. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee is 62.

David Bowie is rock’s foremost futurist and a genre-bending pioneer, chameleon, and transformer. Throughout his solo career and in his alliances with other artists – including Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Brian Eno and Nine Inch Nails – Bowie has positioned himself on the cutting edge of rock and roll. His innovations have created or furthered several major trends in rock and roll, including glam-rock, art-rock and the very notion of the self-mythologized, larger-than-life rock star. (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)

Sean Paul’s Temperature is 36 today.

The Battle of New Orleans

… was fought on this date in 1815.

News of the peace treaty between Britain and the United States that had been signed at Ghent on December 24, 1814, did not reach the United States in time to avert the battle. Major General Andrew Jackson’s army of six-to-seven thousand troops consisted chiefly of militiamen and volunteers from southern states who fought against 7,500 British regulars.

The British stormed the American position, fortified effectively with earthworks and cotton bales. The fighting lasted only half an hour, ending in a decisive U.S. victory and a British withdrawal. British casualties numbered more than 2,000 (289 killed); American, only 71 (31 killed). News of the victory reached Washington at the same time as that of the Treaty of Ghent and did much to raise the low morale in the capital.

The anniversary of the Battle was widely celebrated with parties and dances during the nineteenth century, especially in the South. More recently it was commemorated in the “Battle of New Orleans,” as sung by Johnny Horton and others.

Battle of New Orleans by Jimmy Driftwood

In 1814 we took a little trip
Along with Colonel Jackson down the mighty Mississip.
We took a little bacon and we took a little beans
And we caught the bloody British in the town of New Orleans.

[Chorus:]
We fired our guns and the British kept a’comin.
There wasn’t nigh as many as there was a while ago.
We fired once more and they began to runnin’ on
Down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.

We looked down the river and we see’d the British come.
And there must have been a hundred of’em beatin’ on the drum.
They stepped so high and they made the bugles ring.
We stood by our cotton bales and didn’t say a thing.

[Chorus]

Old Hickory said we could take ’em by surprise
If we didn’t fire our muskets ’til we looked ’em in the eye
We held our fire ’til we see’d their faces well.
Then we opened up with squirrel guns and really gave ’em … well

[Chorus]

Yeah, they ran through the briars and they ran through the brambles
And they ran through the bushes where a rabbit couldn’t go.
They ran so fast that the hounds couldn’t catch ’em
Down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.

We fired our cannon ’til the barrel melted down.
So we grabbed an alligator and we fought another round.
We filled his head with cannon balls, and powdered his behind
And when we touched the powder off, the gator lost his mind.

[Chorus]

Yeah, they ran through the briars and they ran through the brambles
And they ran through the bushes where a rabbit couldn’t go.
They ran so fast that the hounds couldn’t catch ’em
Down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.

1959 Grammys for Song of the Year (Jimmy Driftwood) and Best Country Western Performance (Johnny Horton). The song was number one for six weeks during the summer of 1959. Driftwood (James Corbitt Morris) was an Arkansas principal and history buff when he wrote the song to teach his students about the battle.

Why Aren’t Stocks Falling?

Felix Salmon is feeling like a grouchy bear this morning:

The lesson of the past two years is that the stock market is a lagging, not a leading, indicator. I have no faith in this rally whatsoever; I hope that I’m wrong, but I just don’t see the current stock market reflecting an economy which is hugely reliant on retail spending and where holiday-season sales were the weakest in four decades. It’s always calmest before the storm, and I fear another gale might be brewing.

That’s his conclusion; go read his analysis.

Best line of the day, so far

“Pandas are animals blessed with a great color scheme. Endangered in the wild, they’ve been the subject of a massive, worldwide marketing campaign that emphasizes their cuteness without so much as mentioning their nasty side. In this way, they’re like former First lady Barbara Bush.”

FunctionalAmbivalent

Go read Tom’s whole take on pandas and “Another Case Where Marketing Endangers Lives.”

Defaulting on the National Debt

President-elect Obama apparently believes that the crisis brought on by the collapse of the housing bubble will require defaulting on the national debt. The New York Times reported today that Obama believes that “changes in Social Security and Medicare will be central to efforts to bring federal spending in line.”

While Medicare is projected to face shortfalls because of the incredible inefficiency of the U.S. health care system, the Congressional Budget Office projects that Social Security will be fully funded until 2049 from its own stream of tax revenues and the U.S. bonds it holds.

If Mr. Obama plans to cut Social Security in the near future, then this effectively amounts to a default on the bonds held by the trust fund which were purchased with workers’ Social Security taxes. If the budget situation is so dire that it is necessary to default on the government debt, then surely we should be considering defaulting on the bonds held by Robert Rubin, Peter Peterson, and other wealthy bankers, not just the bonds that were bought to pay Social Security benefits for the country’s workers.

Dean Baker

This isn’t a national championship—it’s a big-money waltz

Bill James urges his colleagues to boycott the BCS. An excerpt from a piece that really requires you to read it all:

It is inherent in the nature of sports to seek a clear resolution of the competition. You have two football conferences, two basketball conferences, two baseball leagues—you want to know who the best team really is. That doesn’t come from anywhere; it’s integral to the sport. It’s like a movie; either the boy gets the girl, or he doesn’t. Either the cop catches the killer, or he doesn’t. Either the hero wins the battle, or he dies on the battlefield. That’s just the way it is, whether it’s Shakespeare or schlock. Leaving the situation unresolved is unpopular because it’s unnatural.

Janaury 7th

Today is the birthday

… of William Peter Blatty, author of The Exorcist. He’s 81.

… of Paul Revere Dick, 71. He and Mark Lindsay formed Paul Revere & The Raiders in 1960. They recorded “Louie Louie” in the same studio as The Kingsmen in Portland, Oregon in 1963. (The song was written in 1955.) The Kingsmen won that battle, but The Raiders went on to record five top 10 hits, including the number one, “Indian Reservation,” which sold six million copies.

… of Kenneth Clark Loggins. He’s 61.

… of David Stephen Caruso, 53.

… of Katherine Anne Couric. University of Virigina grad Katie Couric is 52.

… of Nicholas Kim Coppola. The Oscar-winner, known better as Nicolas Cage, is 45.

You hear voices in the night and its Joe Buck and Troy Aikman

Among the top-10 signs you’re watching too much football, from CBS’s David Letterman:

• “Only fresh air you’ve had this month is opening door for pizza guy.

• “You refer to orange juice as ‘FedEx orange juice.’

• “You schedule an appointment to talk to your doctor about Andy Reid’s cholesterol.

• “Three words: Norv Turner tattoo.”

Sideline Chatter | Seattle Times Newspaper

As Title Game Approaches, What About Utah?

But in an open letter to the 72 members of the media who choose the Associated Press No. 1, the Washington Post’s John Feinstein makes a strong case for them to place undefeated Utah at the top of their ballot.

“The reason to vote for Utah is simple: This is the one and only way you can stand up to the BCS bullies — the university presidents, commissioners, athletic directors and the TV networks who enable them — and, to renew a catch phrase, just say no,” Feinstein argues. “Say no to this horrible, hypocritical, feed-the-big-boys system. Say no to the idea that fair competition doesn’t matter. Say no to all the hype surrounding the power conferences and power teams. To co-opt yet another catch phrase, say yes to change.”

The Daily Fix