Tiger Meets Santa

Warning: Graphic Images

Jamie I must say that I totally agree with your article. It seems that people just thirst for such things today and the media is more than happy to give them what they want. I personally take no pleasure in watching such things and do my best to push such aside. I mean come on how many times can we watch those planes slam into the twin towers on 9/11 or a person being beaten to death by a mob of fellow students on the way home from school or even a young girl getting bullied and slapped in the face by another girl as she walks home minding her own business and trying to stay out of an altercation? Even what passes for news reporting these days is mere tabloid journalism. Who cares who slept with who, who's dating who or how many homes a person owns? It seems that as a global society we have lost respect for life and for the private lives of others. Do I think we'll ever see a change in this regard? Probably not because so many today have forgotten the text which you mention and do not treat others as they would want to be treated. Thanks for such a wonderfully written article Ms. Curtis!
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

'Lost' awesomeness: Tease poster site revealed! The GQ round table! And a season six burning question!

Straight from EW.com for you LOST fans;

by Jeff Jensen

In my Doc Jensen column that posted today, I told you all about “The Lost Underground Art Project” and how the final poster in the fan appreciation campaign will include two teases about season six. I also said that I would Tweet the web address for the poster when it became available tonight at an exhibition of all the posters at Gallery 1988 in Los Angeles. Well, guess what? You don’t have to wait that long: the address is nothingsforever.com. Now, if you click there right now, you’ll find… nothing. But you won’t have to wait… forever. I have no idea when the new poster will be unveiled in that space, but I do know that it will be there by tomorrow–and I’m sure it will sell out fast. Still, I’m confident the image will be online for all to see. So after you examine it and spot the teases, please come back here and share what you think you see, as well as email me at docjensenew@gmail.com. I’m still going to be going to the opening tonight–look for some Tweets at twitter.com/ewdocjensen.

By the way: GQ.com just posted the second in a sprawling three part interview with the Bad Robot team: JJ Abrams, Bryan Burk, Damon Lindelof, Carlton Cuse, Alex Kurtzman and Bob Orci. I was particularly intrigued what Damon and Cartlon had to say about season six — particularly Cuse addressing how the show scared away people who yearned for a rational solution to mysteries and Lindelof’s concern about how fans will react as they see “the answers” finally unspool and watch their theories go up in smoke. Interesting. I’m not sure I ever thought about it that way. As much as I love puzzling through the show and speculating and dreaming over-thought, over-cooked possibilities, I don’t watch Lost to see if my theories are accurate, and my satisfaction does not hinge on being proven right. For me, there’s the enjoyment of theory-making — and there is the enjoyment of the story that Lost is telling. And those are two separate things for me–and when it comes to season six, it’s more about the latter. I can’t wait to see all of THEIR story, finally, at long last.

But maybe I’m unusual. Maybe most of you have been hanging on for all these years to see if your theory is true. Have you? I’d love to hear your reactions in the comments below.

Britain bounces checks after 300 years

After more than three centuries, the humble check is set to become a historic relic after British banks voted to phase it out in favor of more modern payment methods.

The board of the UK Payments Council, the body for setting payment strategy in Britain, agreed on Wednesday to set a target date ofOctober 31, 2018 for winding up the check clearing system. The board is largely made up of Britain's leading banks.

"There are many more efficient ways of making payments than by paper in the 21st century, and the time is ripe for the economy as a whole to reap the benefits of its replacement," Paul Smee, the council chief executive, said in a statement.

The use of checks has fallen drastically in the past 10 years as more consumers transfer money electronically, by direct debit or with debit and credit cards. Last year, around 3.8 million checks were written every day in Britain, compared to a peak of 10.9 million in 1990, the council said.

It costs about one pound to process every check.

"The next generation probably won't even have a checkbook," said Addy Frederick, a spokeswoman at the payments council.

But while many UK supermarkets, high street retailers and petrol stations have stopped accepting checks, they are still a popular form of payment among elderly people, many of whom find the idea of using automated cash machines intimidating.

"Chip and pin is problematic for many older and housebound people and we know 6.4 million over 65s have never used the internet," said Vicky Smith, a spokeswoman for the charity Age Concern.

"Without checks, we are very concerned people will be forced to keep large amounts of cash in their home, leaving them vulnerable to theft and financial abuse."

Harriet Harman, deputy leader of the ruling Labour Party, said on Wednesday the authorities must take care not to discriminate against the elderly in making their decision.

"We need to look to the future but make sure that older people don't suffer as a result," she told parliament.

The council said checks would be phased out gradually, making sure consumers had access to user-friendly alternatives and that the needs of elderly and vulnerable groups were met. A review will take place in 2016 before checks are finally abolished.

The Federation of Small Businesses said it was disappointed by the decision. "It's something that's going to impact heavily on small businesses and their customers," said spokeswoman Sophie Kummer.

Checks have all but disappeared in high-tech countries like Sweden and Norway and their use is under review in Ireland, South Africa and Australia, Frederick at the council said.

The oldest surviving check in Britain was written in 1659, according to the council and made out for 400 pounds (equivalent to around 42,000 pounds today). It was signed by Nicholas Vanacker, made payable to a Mr Delboe and drawn on Messrs Morris and Clayton, scriveners and bankers of the City of London.

In those days, checks would have been exchanged informally in coffee houses. It was not until 1833 that the first clearing house was built in London to exchange checks.

Madonna Brings Lourdes To "Nine" Premiere (PICTURES)

Madonna brought oldest daughter Lourdes, who wore Doc Martens, to the New York premiere of "Nine" Tuesday night. If you ask me it looks like mother and daughter are sharing the same closet full of clothes - and dare I say this looks SO Desperately Seeking Susan? Got to love it!

No word where Madonna's boytoy Jesus Luz was.

Madonna and child also posed with friend Jessica Seinfeld.