Wednesday, December 31, 2008

This Is What Happens To Chinese Executives Who Commit Crimes...


The Really: What happens to Wall Street moneymen who commited the greatest crime against the US in its history...namely the destruction of free market capitalism?

The Chinese will send executives to death for corporate malfeasance. What happens to American executives?

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Oh, Blago! You've Done It Again!


The Really: Yeah, well, I will appoint someone you like...so there.
The Governor appoints long time Illinois pol and pathfinder Roland Burris to fill Obama's Senate seat even though everyone TOLD HIM NOT TO!

Thursday, December 25, 2008

Pau Gives Lakers A Merry Christmas


The Really: Lakers break Celtics win streak and do it in a flurry: 92-83.
Merry Christmas LA.
Kobe was great but in the last few minutes Pau Gasol was amazing as the Lakers end the Celtics win streak at 19. Kobe takes full credit for telling Pau at half-time that Pau was one of the greatest players in the world. Armed with that knowledge Pau took over the game with two minutes to go and beat the Celtics (who were none to happy about it).
See ya in the Finals.

Barney's Christmas Windows 2008


The Really: Most years Barney's New York has wonderful Christmas windows.

For the many years when Barney's was at 16th and 7th Avenue New York City the Christmas windows were some of the best in the city. Times have changed but they still do windows worth a trip.

The great Brian Dube site New York Daily Photo blog has a great selection of other New York City Christmas windows. Browse really!

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Christmas Eve 1968


The Really: This is the most famous picture ever taken.
Arguably the most famous photograph ever taken was made on Christmas Eve 1968 by the crew of Apollo 8 as they circled the moon in another arguably difficult year 1968.
Have a safe and thankful Christmas Eve and holidays. Really.

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Late With Your Christmas Cards?


The Really: The best things are the old things when it comes to family, friends and sometimes even lovers.

Google yourself "antique Christmas cards" (click on images) and download the beauty of Christmas as it was meant to be. Attach in or to an email and send to your beloveds.

Best wishes and Merry Christmas!

(or any other holiday you choose to honor or ignore).

Suicide: L'Affaire Madoff




The Really:
Rich people are as lousy with money as we all are?

The 50 billion dollar Madoff ponzi scheme and its disastrous fallout is reaching Jackie Collins proportions. Add a Madison Avenue banker's suicide and the richest people in the world to this amazing story.

The pot boils.

The rich are different Fitzgerald is said to have said but it looks like they can't handle money any better than we do.

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Enough About Philip Seymour Hoffman; What About The Mother Of His Children?

Click Mag Cover For New NYT

The Really: She is Mimi O'Donnell a distinquished costume designer and someone who is adept at doing her work, raising children and staying out of the spotlight.

Mimi costume design credits and articles:

Franken Camp Declares Victory: For Now


The Really: It is still a toss-up but Franken camp is feeling the love.

New York Times Caucus Blog reports on the declaration of the "victory" by the Franken camp; but Nate Silver (statistics guru) still calls it a toss-up though he reported he expected a 27 vote Franken victory a couple of weeks ago.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Legal Service Through Facebook?


The Really: Service of legal documents or notice through Facebook is now legal?

Did Burger King Really Just Issue A C&D Through Twitter? Now that it's legal to serve papers to someone through Facebook, Burger King has apparently sent a cease and desist via Twitter to the user "whoppervirgins" for an unauthorized use of trademark. "Whopper Virgins"--from Tech Dirt

Well, yikes all, for many reasons, Facebook service is a bad idea: it is not your address; it is not able to be determined if the person who holds a named account is the same person displayed on the account; and many Facebook users never even check their accounts once they create them.

But whatever you think is best judge as long as you understand that I live on My Space.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

I Am Blago's Hairbrush


The Really: Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich calls his hairbrush "the football" according to the New York Times.

And yet, Mr. Blagojevich, 52, rarely turns up for work at his official state office in Chicago, former employees say, is unapologetically late to almost everything, and can treat employees with disdain, cursing and erupting in fury for failings as mundane as neglecting to have at hand at all times his preferred black Paul Mitchell hairbrush. He calls the brush “the football,” an allusion to the “nuclear football,” or the bomb codes never to be out of reach of a president.


As Rod's hairbrush might say: "Follicle You!"

Friday, December 12, 2008

Rezko Singing A Different Tune


The Really: Does Rezko's delay in sentencing and a footnote in the Blago charges mean Rezko is singing?

Last summer, convicted operator Antoin Rezko (fundraiser, real estate developer, Chicagoan) wrote to his judge noting that the FEDS were trying to get him implicate the Governor of Illinois and the President-elect in some sort of wrongdoing. HE SAID HE COULDN'T AND WOULDN'T.



But several journalistic sources are putting together the pieces which include the "neglected" land deal between Obama and Rezko which ended with a bank employee's firing and some "missing" paperwork.

Of course given the chance to spend less time in jail one might say anything. Read the sleuthing at WSJ and at Slate: Bam Sandwich? Yikes. 1) Rezko's talking; 2) The FBI's been asking about the house deal (an Election Day story I'd missed). ... 1:44 A.M.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Illinois Governor Arrested For Selling Obama's Senate Seat?




The Really: The Governor of Illinois Busted for selling Obama's seat? For extorting the Chicago Tribune? For dealings with Obama's friend Rezco? Blog*Goy*A*Vich Pronounciation Key

Arrested this morning along with his chief of staff, the long tradition of Illinois governors going to the slammer will be upheld once again. Obama's seat in the Senate may have been up for sale? The Chicago Tribune is involved?! Rezco? (perhaps the most damaging "association" of President-elect Obama?)

Is this Chicago politics at its worst? Or best? What other Illinois Governor's have gone to jail (recently)? Ryan supporters were trying to get Bush to commute the sentence of the last Illinois Governor still in the hoosecow, George Ryan: Ryan becomes the third Illinois governor in recent history to be convicted of white-collar crimes, following Dan Walker and Otto Kerner. Ryan becomes the second Illinois Secretary of State with evidence of an affinity for cash, following Paul Powell who upon his death was found to have $800,000 in shoe boxes in his hotel room.

Monday, December 8, 2008

How You Can Tell Things Have Really Gotten Bad


The Really: The normally recession proof oldest profession is actually taken a hit from the recent international economic downturn. The New York Times wants you to know it is particularly bad in Prague.

What Will Happen To Three Of The Greatest Newspapers In America?


The Really: The New York Times is junk? The LA Times and Chicago Tribune parent company is on the verge of bankruptcy?

The reports of the effect of the failing economy on the already fragile newspaper business is not good. The New York Times is trying to redo their big building project and stave off looks from unwanted down underers. The great Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times are caught in the crossfire mega loans of the Zell group.

We think the cities in question would be changed and not for the better if these journalistic pennants were removed from the scene. But who cares about an identity crisis when the goal is just to survive?

Friday, December 5, 2008

Is This The Next Senator From The State Of New York?


The Really: The next junior Senator from the Great State of New York?

Hint: Her uncle was a Senator from New York.

Hint For The Truly Dense: The horse's name is Macaroni.

Inmates In Vegas Jail Heckle Goldman Family During Press Conference

OJ Simpson Verdict: If This Was The Verdict, The Book Was Thrown At Him


The Really: OJ will not speak at his sentencing hearing?

OJ Sentenced To Jail. 15 years (parole eligible in 9 years)
The LA Times reported OJ will not speak at his sentencing hearing because he is appealing the decision but RIGHT NOW the crocodile tears are flowing as OJ wanders through his reasons as to why this happened and how it is he and his family that are real the victims.

It was not convincing but OJ did say "he was confused" as to why the Las Vegas that he loves so much would do this to him.

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Hecklers Interrupt Congressional Hearing With Auto Execs




The Really: Very polite hecklers chant as slowly led from the chamber in well orchestrated protest.




Why does orderly protest have suck effect when disorderly protest is so compelling? Simple. There is no danger in orderly protest. It is like a kid you refuses to turn off the television and go to bed. As long as they are not screaming, it doesn't require much more than a gentle reminder to get them to act.




Top Online Blogger Fired For Writing About Literature; Resorts To Cheesecake To Elevate Pageviews


The Really: Books and Publishing blogger finds the proper use of the internet in the final days online with Gawker.

Sheila McClear who has written for the New York Observer and other fine publications is an editor at the Gawker Media site (one of the most visited blogs on the internet). The powers that be there have decided no one wants to read about books and publishing (her beat) especially now that publishers are gagging on themselves.

Maybe the economic downturn will create a new model for publishers, these lumbering dinosaurs have been hit by the asteroid of falling bookstore sales, after the current depression is over (during the Great Depression the program of returnable books was born) or maybe it will become clear that like movies, there are really very few books of real lasting merit and a little down-sizing is in order.

Anyway Sheila got fired and the commentors on the site are doing what they can to increase her pageviews (she gets paid by the pageview against a draw.) But this morning Sheila (a serious writer of considerable talent) pulled out the internet big gun: CHEESECAKE!

Because unltimately what the internet really is, is videos of cats doing funny things and porn.

Sheila, look forward to reading you elsewhere.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Sonny Mehta Is Officially The Best Publisher In The World


The Really: Alfred A. Knopf Publisher titles voted 7 of the top 10 books for 2008 by the New York Times.

Sonny Mehta (accused of still smoking in his office at headquarters) is arguably the finest publisher operating today. Here are the Top Ten.

And if you want to include corporate ties, the Random House conglomorate includes Doubleday and Pantheon (each has one title) so that makes it 9 out of 10. Who spoiled a clean sweep? Farrar, Straus & Giroux with the novel 2666.

But would founders Alfred and Blanche Knopf be turning over in their graves to hear that today the corporate masters (Bertlesmann) of Random House have decided to fold Doubleday and Bantam and Dell into various other divisions at Random? Lay-offs to follow.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

How Could He Lose In The South With A Name Like Saxby?


The Really: How could the Democrats believe they could stop the Power of the Palin!?!

We are certain the Palin people (and their sled dogs) will woof about how she helped Saxby Chambliss get re-elected to the Senate from Georgia but the fact is Saxby is southern to its core and Jim (as in Jim Martin) could be from anywhere.

Without the Presidential election voting pattern, Martin was doomed from the start. Turnout was reported to be low as the prize has already been eyed.

Drudge Story On Obama Ring Likely Made Up


The Really: So Barack Obama is buying a 30K ring for the missus?

Drudge Report is leading with it as if it a major scandal. But it is likely a made up story by a British tab. Oh the haters must hate!

Car Companies Finally Get It


The Really: Do all the PR moves from the car companies really make a difference?

Well, the car executives apparently finally let the PR guys and gals into the room because they drove back to Congress in their own cars and most have agreed to work for peanuts this year. But you know it is all theatre. Congress was going to give them their bridge loan and since cars are tangible things that Americans make it seems more fair than giving money to the robber barons of the "financial markets".

Drives own car? Works for nothing? These are things the American consumer can relate to.

Franken May Appeal To Senate For Election


The Really: If Al Franken chooses to, he can take his case for election to the Senate of US. And they can overule Minnesota's vote count if they want.

Martin in Georgia may have little chance against Saxby Chambliss (who does have a cooler name) but A lFranken in Minnesota --who does have a gripe regarding rejected ballots can actually appeal to --get ready for this-- the Senate itself. Yup, the Senate can overrule the state election results and elect Franken.


Chalk up 59 for the Dems.

Monday, December 1, 2008

Wal-Mart Death Iconic Of Everything Wrong With America According To New York Times


The Really: David Carr of the New York Times explains consumer herd mentality led to death of Wal-Mart worker is proof of something.

In an interesting piece in today's Times, David Carr shows consumerism run amok in the death of a Long Island temp worker at a Wal-Mart trampled by bargain hunting mob. But why did he not take the hypothesis futher to include Italian soccer games, rock concerts and bull teasing?