2012 Person of the Year

Betty made a strong and impassioned case for the Person of the Year at her site on Friday.

Curiosity should have been Time's person of the year

That should have been Time magazine's person of the year: Curiosity, NASA's Mars land rover.

Caption for that photo:

Curiosity Self-Portrait, Wide View

On the 84th and 85th Martian days of the NASA Mars rover Curiosity's mission on Mars (Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, 2012), NASA's Curiosity rover used the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) to capture dozens of high-resolution images to be combined into self-portrait images of the rover. This version of the full-color self-portrait includes more of the surrounding terrain than a version produced earlier (PIA16239).

The mosaic shows the rover at "Rocknest," the spot in Gale Crater where the mission's first scoop sampling took place. Four scoop scars can be seen in the regolith in front of the rover. A fifth scoop was collected later.

The base of Gale Crater's 3-mile-high (5-kilometer) sedimentary mountain, Mount Sharp, rises on the horizon in the right half of the mosaic. Mountains in the background to the left are the northern wall of Gale Crater. The Martian landscape and the turret on the rover's arm appear inverted within the round, reflective ChemCam instrument at the top of the rover's mast.

The rover's robotic arm is not visible in the mosaic. MAHLI, which took the component images for this mosaic, is mounted on a turret at the end of the arm. Wrist motions and turret rotations on the arm allowed MAHLI to acquire the mosaic's component images. The arm was positioned out of the shot in the images or portions of images used in the mosaic. An animation of the complex choreography the arm used for positioning the camera to take each of the images is at http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/videogallery/index.html?media_id=156880341 .

Self-portraits like this one document the state of the rover and allow mission engineers to track changes over time, such as dust accumulation and wheel wear. Due to its location on the end of the robotic arm, only MAHLI (among the rover's 17 cameras) is able to image some parts of the craft, including the port-side wheels.

Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego, developed, built and operates MAHLI. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manages the Mars Science Laboratory Project and the mission's Curiosity rover for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The rover was designed and assembled at JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

 Again, that should have been the person of the year.

If we lived in a country that cared about science.  If we followed NASA with even 1/10th of the zeal we reserve for 'reality' TV stars.  If we gave a damn not only about the world around us but the galaxy and beyond.

Time could have made a statement, they could have encouraged a national discussion on science.

Instead, they went with an easy and embarrassing choice (Barack).  Just so they could ass kiss?

Probably so.  It's a real shame because we keep hearing how America needs to get better at the sciences.  We keep hearing how the sciences will determine our future -- and they mean our economic future.

But time and again, when the media has a chance to talk about science, they find something else to embrace.

And then they wonder why Americans are not stronger in the sciences?

Why bother if it's so meaningless?

If no one cares, why bother?

The media's going to have to get to work on their own little message and they're going to have to start accepting their part of the blame.

Curiosity should have been Time's person of the year.

Kennedy Trait of 2012: Racism

The Kennedy Center Honors is supposed to be prestigious.  It's a sign of just how tacky Caroline Kennedy is that she's allowed the awards to be seen as racist in their selection.

Last years these awards to honor the arts went out of their way to include the British but managed to -- yet again -- ignore Latinos and Latinas.  Did you know that there have been 186 honors and only two of them were Latino?  (Placido Domingo and Chita Rivera.)

It's becoming an annual outcry: Why is The Kennedy Center refusing to honor Hispanics?

And the outcry has turned into the accusation that they're racist.

When next year rolls around, Caroline and company better have found a more diverse group.

Since they appear to have trouble identifying Latinos, we'll help them out: Rita Moreno.



Moreno endeared herself to children with The Electric Company in the 70s.  She came to fame with the film West Side Story for which she won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe.   Prior to that musical, she also had roles in Singin' in the Rain and The King and I.

She won the Tony for her performance in 1975's Broadway play The Ritz.  She's also won a Grammy and two Emmys.  Her TV work includes Sister Peter Marie Reimondo on 44 episodes of HBO's Oz and, at 81, she's currently playing Fran's mother on TV Land's Happily Divorced.

2012 Book of the Year

We let our readers decide this.  Following Rebecca's "book 'em friday: liz taylor" and Marcia's "Elizabeth Taylor: There Is Nothing Like A Dame," we offered "The Elizabeth Taylor and Marilyn Monroe rivalry."

And did the e-mails come in.  A slow trickle the first week, building to an avalanche in the weeks since as readers made clear that they were enjoying or had just enjoyed  Elizabeth Taylor: There Is Nothing Like A Dame by Darwin Porter and Danforth Prince.












It's the book that's got it all, rivarlies, sex, jewels, sex, legends, sex and more sex.

2012 Trend: Bad attempts at make overs

Poor Matt Damon, he never really achieved.  The guy who got all the acting breaks in the 90s (Courage Under Fire, Good Will Hunting, The Rainmaker, Saving Private Ryan and The Talented Mr. Ripley) only managed to nail down one Best Actor Academy Award nomination and no win.  There have been no nominations for Best Actor since, certainly no wins.  And now there's the upcoming HBO movie with the love scenes with Matt Damon.

So it's understandable that he might feel the need to whine.

PLAYBOY: Liberace lived his life in the closet, and times have changed a bit. What was it like when you and Ben Affleck were constantly asked if you were gay, back when you were starting your careers?


DAMON: I never denied those rumors because I was offended and didn’t want to offend my friends who were gay—as if being gay were some kind of fucking disease. It put me in a weird position in that sense. The whole thing was just gross. But look, there have been great signs of progress—the fact that Anderson Cooper and Ellen DeGeneres can come out so beautifully and powerfully, and it’s a big fucking deal that it turns out nobody gives a shit. If Liberace were alive today, everybody would love his music and nobody would care what he did in his private life. Like with Elton John.


That's Damon sobbing to Playboy this month.  And thinking he can rewrite history.

He didn't deny the rumors because he "was offended" and because "the whole thing was gross."  So much for not offending "my friends who were gay." 

But setting aside that, does it even make sense?


If he was so angry and so traumatized would he, in October 2010 joked of Clint Eastwood, "We met in a bar, a gay bar.  I saw something in him through the eye slits of the Hannibal Lecter mask that he was wearing."?

How about July 2007?  "George [Clooney] is gay.  Everybody knows that.  But honestly, I never realized he was gay -- even when he was b***ing me."

And it's not like anyone twisted his arm to do 2002's "A Chorus Lie" on Will and Grace (written by Tracy Poust and Jon Kinnally) which included the following scene between Damon's Owen and Sean Hayes' Jack:


Jack:  What gym do you go to? Why haven't I seen you in the clubs? And who have we slept with in common? 

Owen: I work out at home. I'm allergic to smoke. And I'm in a long-term relationship with my high school boyfriend. 

Jack: Name? 

Owen: Ben. 




In addition, there are all the jokes that he made in the 90s (and that Ben Affleck -- who is not whining -- made).  Now he wants to pretend to be offended by what 'other' people said?  When it was him saying it all along.


Next time Matt Damon wants to try a make over, we suggest he stick to his hair style.

Success in Iraq!

Friday, the US Embassy in Baghdad issued a press release that had the effect of letting you know how bad things actually were in Iraq:

December 28, 2012

Threat information indicates that terrorist elements may target U.S. interests in Baghdad, including the United States Embassy, as well as churches in Baghdad and Kirkuk, on or around December 31, 2012.  The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad urges U.S. citizens in Iraq to exercise caution and to refer to the current travel warning on our website.

We strongly recommend that U.S. citizens traveling to or residing in Iraq enroll in the Department of State's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) at www.Travel.State.Gov.  STEP enrollment gives you the latest security updates, and makes it easier for the U.S. embassy or nearest U.S. consulate to contact you in an emergency.  If you don't have Internet access, enroll directly with the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate. 

Regularly monitor the State Department's website, where you can find current Travel Warnings, Travel Alerts, and the Worldwide Caution.  Read the Country Specific Information for Iraq.  For additional information, refer to "A Safe Trip Abroad" on the State Department's website.

Contact the U.S. embassy or consulate for up-to-date information on travel restrictions.  You can also call 1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the United States and Canada or 1-202-501-4444 from other countries.  These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).  Follow us on Twitter and Facebook, and download our free Smart Traveler iPhone App to have travel information at your fingertips.

Highlights

This piece is written by Rebecca of Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude, Cedric of Cedric's Big Mix, Kat of Kat's Korner, Betty of Thomas Friedman is a Great Man, Mike of Mikey Likes It!, Elaine of Like Maria Said Paz, Ruth of Ruth's Report, Marcia of SICKOFITRADLZ, Stan of Oh Boy It Never Ends, Ann of Ann's Mega Dub, Isaiah of The World Today Just Nuts and Wally of The Daily Jot. Unless otherwise noted, we picked all highlights.




"Danny Schechter and Media Channel want you back" -- most requested highlight of the week.





Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Barry O's Favorite Topic" -- Isaiah on Mr. Vain.


"2012 Best in Film (Ann and Stan)" and "2012 Best in Film (Ann and Stan)" -- Ann and Stan go to the movies.




"At what point do human rights matter?" -- Elaine asks the basic question.



"Fringe" and "Revolution" -- Mike and Marcia cover TV.


"Suckiest Christmas ever!" -- Stan serves up the Scrooge.





"Fontella Bass," "Charles Durning has passed" and "Oh, no, they killed Quincy!" -- Kat does the obit beat.









 "Trashy Glenn,"  "F**k Glenn Greenwald and Chucky Cheese Hagel,"  and "The Cabal behind Chuckie Cheese Hagel" and "THIS JUST IN! CHUCKY CHEESE WANTS DOD!"-- the disgusting right-wing Glenn always provides much to talk about.

 "Holiday Dip in the Kitchen" -- Trina offers an easy recipe for a party dip.


"Benghazi" and "At least one lesson learned from Benghazi" -- Ruth continues to cover Benghazi.



"The trash life of Rihanna" -- Marcia on beat-me-please Rihanna.


"Telemarketer in Chief" -- Isaiah dips into the archives.


"Seriously, Ed Markey?" -- Mike expresses his disappointment with state politics.







 "My cure for New Year's hangover"  -- Ann offers a tip or two.



 "Can't miss TV"  and "the bigoted kennedy center ignores rita moreno" -- Betty and Rebecca remind there is plenty of new funny still on TV.






"The distraction" -- Elaine on how they trick us.



"Curiosity should have been Time's person of the year"  -- Betty wisely makes the case.




"Dunham and Goldberg can't see Blacks" -- Marcia on the 'critics' and the 'arts.'




"THIS JUST IN! BARRY O'S IN LOVE!" and "Got his mind on his man" -- He really may be our first gay president!

Truest statement of the week

Well Iraq lurches from crisis to crisis.


-- master of understatement Jane Arraf  speaking Wednesday to Marco Werman (PRI's The World).

Truest statement of the week II

Someone needs to tell Barack Obama -- it must get particularly confusing this time of year -- that his own birth is not Year One, the date around which all other events are understood. His much-noted, self-referential tic was on cringe-worthy display Friday when the president gave his eulogy for the late Sen. Daniel Inouye, who served in Congress for half a century representing Obama’s birth state of Hawaii.

Inouye was a Japanese-American war hero (he lost an arm in World War II, destroying his dream of becoming a surgeon), and as a senator he served on the Watergate committee, helped rewrite our intelligence charter after scandals, and was chairman of the Senate committee that investigated the Iran-Contra affair. It’s the kind of material any eulogist could use to give a moving sense of the man and his accomplishment. But President Barack Obama’s remarks at Inouye’s funeral service were a bizarre twirl around his own personal Kodak carousel.

-- Emily Yoffe, "Today We Are Gathered … To Hear More About Me" (Slate).