Maybe not the best movie-promotion idea: In Jefferson City, Missouri, a movie theater known for having actors portray characters from popular films did the same thing with “Iron Man 3.” But not everyone was aware of this promotion, as people called into police after spotting a man wearing full tactical gear and a fake gun in the parking lot—and police treated the situation as an active shooter situation. Less than a year ago, James Holmes was suspected of opening fire in a Colorado movie theater during a midnight screening of “The Dark Knight Rises.” (photo via Amber & Amanda Photography’s Facebook page)
The Daily Beast and Howard Kurtz have parted company. Under the direction of our newly named political director John Avlon we have added new momentum and authority to our Washington bureau with columnists such as Jon Favreau, Joshua Dubois and Stuart Stevens joining our outstanding DC team of Eleanor Clift, Daniel Klaidman, Michael Tomasky, Eli Lake, David Frum and Michelle Cottle—giving us one of the best politics teams in the business which was instrumental in this week’s Webby win for Best News site.A statement from The Daily Beast, revealing they had dropped Howard Kurtz, days after Kurtz wrote a column for the site suggesting that openly-gay NBA star Jason Collins had lied about a prior engagement—despite the fact that Collins had been up front about the situation in interviews and had specifically mentioned the fact in his Sports Illustrated cover story. The publication retracted the column, though Politico notes that the firing may have had just as much to do with Kurtz’s extremely busy schedule. On top of the Beast, Kurtz also hosts CNN’s “Reliable Sources” and writes for “The Daily Download,” a media criticism site.
digg:
‘Like’ This Post and We’ll Buy This Guy’s Dreadlocks Banana For $2,600
Update: We’re almost half way there!
If you haven’t heard of Henry Gribbohm, he’s the New Hampshire man who lost his $2,600 life savings trying to win an X-Box at a (potentially rigged) carnival game. Henry did take home a consolation prize: A giant stuffed banana with dreadlocks.
We here at CollegeHumor were so touched by this story – and also, we really want that giant banana with dreadlocks – that we’ve decided to launch a campaign to buy back Henry’s banana for the exact cost of the life savings he lost. Here’s Streeter to explain.
What’s going to happen with the banana once it’s in CollegeHumor’s possession? Asking for a friend.
Follow-up on an important story.
Here’s a guy who managed to spend his entire life savings—$2,600—on a failed attempt to win a $300 Xbox Kinect during a carnival game. ”For once in my life, I happened to become that sucker,” said the man, in the understatement of the year. At least he won a banana with dreadlocks. (ht Gawker)
A Port Canaveral police sergeant was fired Friday after an internal investigation showed he offered other officers a target resembling Trayvon Martin to use for shooting practice.
Sgt. Ron King, a two-year veteran of the force of about 35 sworn officers, offered the target of a hoodie-wearing Trayvon at the range near Cocoa on April 4, Rosalind Harvey, a port spokeswoman, said Saturday.
The other officers, who were on duty, refused.
Much credit to the cops who turned down the officer’s offer. Also, WTF?
Your essay must be five paragraphs long, with an introduction, three body paragraphs containing your strongest arguments, and a conclusion. You do not have a choice in your position: you must argue that Jews are evil, and use solid rationale from government propaganda to convince me of your loyalty to the Third Reich!The text of a 10th grade english assignment pushing students to offer their suggestions on why the Nazis were right, or as I like to call it, “instant dismissal from your teaching job.” What an awful idea. The Albany, NY school district, where the assignment originated from, is working hard to make amends to the local Jewish community as well as to students and parents; the teacher faces a reprimand and possible firing.
Paisley revealed that he had no idea there was a controversy brewing until LL Cool J called him Monday morning and asked, “have you looked at the internet?”
“Racism has been on my mind,” Paisely said, citing the recent films Django Unchained and Lincolnas inspiration to tackle the subject with his music. He said his intention was to create a dialogue “between country music and rap music” and “to deal with this subject between two individuals in a loving and understanding way.”
When Leno asked him if he would record the song again knowing the divisive impact it would have, Paisley said, “I don’t know” and mentioned the 30 minutes of coverage about it on NPR he heard on the way to the taping. But, he added, at least “they’re talking about” the issue and “my prayer is that it will make something good come out of it.”
Paisley’s song drew a lot of controversy on the Tumblrs earlier this week.
My problem with the “it’s part of our history” argument is two-fold: (1) The history of Southern states extends much further back than the Confederacy, so I’m left wondering why that pivotal (and controversial) moment has become identified as the historical juncture that should define what “the South” is about. (2) The history of the Confederacy was extremely brief: it lasted less than five years. (By contrast, the Third Reich lasted more than twice as long, giving the Nazi flag a stronger claim to historical tradition.)Miguel Centellas, a professor at the University of Mississippi’s Croft Institute for International Studies, explains the whole “why-that-Brad-Paisley-song-is-a-bad-idea” thing perfectly. Oh yeah, he has a great Tumblr worth a follow.
alexanderpf asks: What exactly do you find so problematic about Brad Paisley's song Accidental Racist? I'm originally from Germany but moved to Alabama at a young age. Have you ever had a chance to travel through some of the more rural parts of the Southeast? While there are definitely still some very vocal racists -- most people find themselves in a middle school dance type situation of socially expected segregation... and I think the song really speaks to that.
» SFB says: Race is a difficult subject to discuss, and when it’s handled poorly, it shows. The song, simply put, handles a delicate subject poorly—no matter what part of the country you live in. I used to live in a part of South Carolina that was decidedly not urban. I lived there long enough that I understand what you’re talking about, but I think at the same time that doesn’t give Brad Paisley a pass. It’s a clumsy treatment of a clumsy topic. Plus, I mean, how does something like this get on an album? There were people at his label that signed off on this and didn’t see the problem. That’s a huge problem. — Ernie @ SFB
EDIT: This commentary on the subject says everything you need to know.
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Today In Bad Ideas: Some guy named Brad Paisley recorded a song, with LL Cool J, talking about how hard it is to be a white man who just wants to wear the Confederate flag in peace. It’s called “Accidental Racist”, and you can find the (completely problematic) lyrics here. source
EDIT: Video was removed, here’s an updated clip.
Just 20 years-old. So sad.
She may have revolutionized world politics, but she did not make it so that pre-packaged obits automatically update themselves.
How a banner ad for H&R Block appeared on apple.com—without Apple’s OK
Hint: Blame the ISP. (Probably.)
Note to self: When faced with a similar situation, let the iPhone 5 go.
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