95% The Artist

To call The Artist stylish is an understatement. The film beautifully appropriates the vocabulary of the silent era. When a crowd applauds wildly in one scene, we hear nothing. In another when George raises his hands to his head and looks up to the sky to scream, the sound is deafening in its silence. In its place, we have a lush (mostly) instrumental soundtrack married with the gorgeous contrast of black and white film. The visual cues of light and dark shadows are that much more crucial because there is no sound to inform the narrative. The Artist is sincerely a loving re-creation of the silent period. Not as the works exist today, but as we imagine them to be. The appropriation is truthfully a lot better than what remains from the actual movies of that time. There are no missing frames or deteriorated quality. The actors' movements are fluid, not jumpy or rushed. Intertitles are used, but only sparingly allowing the viewer to connect with the actors through reading their lips and gestures. The acting feels more natural and informed by the current age. Yes the performers must rely on facial expressions and body language to indicate emotion, but the execution is restrained. We're spared the artificial, melodramatic faces that mar productions of that time period. This is the silent era as re-imagined with technological panache. The mood is luxurious and nostalgic. Breathtaking is an overused word, but it fits.The Artist is marked by a poetic beauty. How can you not love a film that is (virtually) silent yet speaks volumes? Although The Jazz Singer was released in 1927 and is recognized as the first commercially successful talking picture, the majority of movies released were still silent for the next two years. It wasn't until 1929 that the format eventually took off. Ernst Lubitsch's The Patriot was the last silent to be nominated for Best Picture in 1929. That will change this year. It takes chutzpah to make a silent movie in 2011. The fact that it's so darn good, is just an additional benefit. As a period piece, it brilliantly captures the early age of sound, but the plot also presents a searing emotional drama about ego and the transitory nature of fame. In a word, it's stunning and reminiscent of classics like Singing in the Rain and Sunset Boulevard in terms of themes addressed. I dare say this ranks favorably when compared alongside side those jewels of the silver screen. The Artist is a film for the ages.

September 8, 2011

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_artist/

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Cornell gets $350M for proposed NYC science campus (Providence Journal)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/175679086?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Report: Wide abuse in Dutch Catholic institutions (AP)

THE HAGUE, Netherlands ? Thousands of children suffered sexual abuse in Dutch Catholic institutions, and church officials failed to adequately address the abuse or help the victims, according to a long-awaited investigation released Friday.

The report by the an independent commission said Catholic officials failed to tackle the widespread abuse "to prevent scandals." The suspected number of abuse victims who spent some of their youth in church institutions likely lies somewhere between 10,000 and 20,000, according to a summary of the report.

Based on a survey among more than 34,000 people, the commission estimated that one in 10 Dutch children suffered some form of abuse. The number doubled to 20 percent of children who spent part of their youth in an institution ? whether Catholic or not.

The commission said it received some 1,800 complaints of abuse at Catholic schools, seminaries and orphanages and that the institutions suffered from "a failure of oversight." It then conducted the broader survey of the general population for a more comprehensive analysis of the scale and nature of sexual abuse of minors.

The commission was set up last year under the leadership of former government minister Wim Deetman to investigate allegations of abuse dating from 1945.

Deetman said that the problem of abuse continued in part because the Catholic church organization in the Netherlands was splintered, so bishops and religious orders sometimes worked autonomously to deal with abuse and "did not hang out their dirty laundry."

However, he said that the commission concluded that "it is wrong to talk of a culture of silence" by the church as a whole.

The Dutch Bishops Conference scheduled a press conference for Friday afternoon to respond to the report.

The investigation followed allegations of repeated incidents of abuse at one cloister that quickly spread to claims from Catholic institutions across the country, echoing similar scandals around the world.

The commission identified about 800 priests, brothers, pastors or lay people working for the church who had been named in the complaints. About 105 of them were still alive, although it was not known if they remained in church positions, the report said. It identified them as "perpetrators" rather than "offenders," meaning they had not been proven to have committed a crime.

The Dutch branch of the Catholic church agreed last month to launch a compensation system that clears the way for victims of abuse by priests and other church workers to receive payments.

The new compensation system has a scale starting at euro5,000 ($6,500) and rising to a maximum of euro100,000 ($130,000) depending on the nature of the abuse.

According to the Dutch Central Bureau for Statistics, 29 percent of the Dutch population of 16 million identified themselves as Catholics in 2008, making it the largest religion in the country.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111216/ap_on_re_eu/eu_netherlands_church_abuse

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Pinned Posts, The Twitter Brand Page Feature Facebook and Google+ Should Steal

Overall, the new Twitter brand Pages are pretty underwhelming. But one great feature they offer is pinned posts -- the ability to semi-permanently feature an expanded rich media tweet at the top of the Page. This help brands customize their Page to drive traffic to a specific link, photo, or video, promote a contest or important news, and make sure first time visitors always see a high quality piece of content. Oh hey, you know who else could ?benefits from pinned post? ?Facebook, because its custom Page app platform is too complicated for some businesses, and Google+, because it doesn't even have an app platform.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/QsErUcf9EiQ/

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High court to hear suit over Cheney event arrest

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Supreme Court said Monday it will hear an appeal from Secret Service agents who say they should be shielded from a lawsuit over their arrest of a Colorado man who confronted Vice President Dick Cheney.

The justices will review a federal appeals court decision to allow Steven Howards of Golden, Colo., to pursue his claim that the arrest violated his free speech rights. Howards was detained by Cheney's security detail in 2006 after he told Cheney of his opposition to the war in Iraq.

Howards also touched Cheney on the shoulder, then denied doing so under questioning. Appellate judges in Denver said the inconsistency gave the agents reason to arrest Howards.

Even so, the appeals court said Howards could sue the agents for violating his rights ? an unusual twist that the agents and the Obama administration said conflicts with other appeals court decisions and previous high court rulings in similar cases.

Justice Elena Kagan is not taking part in the case, probably because she worked on it while serving in the Justice Department.

Howards' lawsuit grew out of a chance encounter with Cheney at a shopping center in the mountain resort of Beaver Creek.

The environmental consultant, now 59, was taking his older son to a piano recital when he saw Cheney emerge from a grocery store and begin talking to people and shaking hands. Howards came to the attention of Cheney's security detail when an agent heard him say into his cell phone that he was going to ask Cheney "how many kids he killed today."

While the son continued to the recital, Howards waited to meet the vice president. When it was his turn, Howards told Cheney his "policies in Iraq are disgusting," according to court papers. Then, as he departed, Howards touched Cheney's right shoulder with his open hand. Agents who witnessed the contact did not think it was serious enough to justify an arrest.

Still, Agent Virgil D. "Gus" Reichle Jr. was asked to interview Howards because of the confrontation and the overheard cell phone conversation. Reichle testified that Howards at first refused to talk to him, then denied that he assaulted Cheney or even touched him.

According to Howards, the agent also became "visibly angry" when Howards again expressed his views about the war. Reichle said that the overheard cell phone conversation, the confrontation with Cheney, Howards' initial refusal to talk and other factors led him to arrest Howards for assault. He later was charged with harassment, but that charge was dismissed. The other agent, Dan Doyle, overheard Howards' cell phone comment.

Howards filed his civil rights suit soon after.

The situation was made worse, he said, by the presence of his younger son, then 8. He witnessed his father get handcuffed and taken away. Howards asked what would happen to his son.

"He told me, 'We'll contact social services,'" Howards said. "I wasn't in a position to go ballistic, but I can still hear him saying that in my head."

The legal issue in the case is whether agents, and other law enforcement officers, should be shielded from rights lawsuits when they have a good reason, or probable cause, to make an arrest.

The administration says that officers responsible for protecting the president and vice president have to make quick decisions about potential threats and often work in politically charged environments.

In deciding whether to make an arrest, "these agents should not err always on the side of caution because they fear being sued," Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr. said in court papers.

Sean Gallagher, the agent's Denver-based lawyer, said "the court should be very careful that it doesn't' develop a rule that inhibits the ability of the Secret Service to protect the president."

The Supreme Court has previously ruled out damages claims for retaliatory prosecutions when there was probable cause to bring criminal charges in the first place. Some appeals courts already have extended that rule to retaliatory arrests.

In a telephone interview, Howards said the government is trying to make it easier for law enforcement to arrest people. "I'd prefer if the Justice Department would simply acknowledge that it's not OK to arrest people simply for disagreeing with government policies," Howards said.

Separately, David Lane, Howards' lawyer, has made clear that he wants to question Cheney under oath as the person best able to recount what happened. Courts have so far not allowed it.

Lane called on the high court "to vindicate free speech in America and to stop abusive law enforcement from retaliating against people when they speak out."

The case will be argued in the spring.

The case is Reichle and Doyle v. Howards, 11-262.

Associated Press writer Dan Elliott in Denver contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-12-05-Supreme%20Court-Secret%20Service-Cheney%20Lawsuit/id-630e00e393ae47aab89c6466fa1029cb

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Google's Nerdiest Move Ever: Now It's a Graphing Calculator! [Google]

If you're neck-deep in math work, or just nostalgic for the high school days of your TI-83+, fire up the big G: it'll now serve you as a graphing calculator. Time to make sine waves! More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/oxYJdpR3RaQ/googles-nerdiest-move-ever-now-its-a-graphing-calculator

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Is Donald Trump an Agent for President Obama? (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | Donald Trump will moderate an upcoming Republican debate and may potentially run as a third-party candidate, according to Fox News. When these two points are coupled with certain actions of his earlier this year, I have come to believe "The Donald" might actually support President Barack Obama. The reality star might actually be the greatest agent for the president.

A moderator of a debate is able to steer the direction of the evening. The moderator decides who gets the most time to speak and what each candidate is able to speak about. Someone who is working for the president could do a ton of damage to any of the candidate's campaign. This argument is not enough to point out how Trump might be an agent for President Obama, but it is just the tip of the iceberg.

Trump has also stated how he might run under a third-party ticket if he does not like the candidate chosen by the party. Logic would state that a third-party Republican would hurt the GOP's chances as the extra candidate would take votes from the official party candidate. How convenient for President Obama.

Earlier this year, the billionaire theatrically hinted at tossing his hat into the presidential race. He quickly jumped to the top of the polls until he began pressing the birther argument against the president. He drove the argument into the ground and became the target of jokes from the Democrats and Republicans. One of major potential arguments about the president's legitimacy died with Trump's campaign.

Many of the presidential candidates have met with the real estate mogul in the last five months. Michele Bachmann's campaign went off the tracks soon after their meeting. Rick Perry lost his position at the top of the polls soon after meeting with the "campaign adviser." The first harassment accusers against Herman Cain came out just days after he traveled to Trump Tower. Newt Gingrich will meet with Trump on Monday. What will happen to his campaign?

Granted, Mitt Romney met with Trump as well, but it was the only candidate meeting out of the eyes of the press. No cameras were allowed to run during the private meeting. While this could be a coincidence, it might not be. Nobody has done more work for President Obama than Donald Trump. How will he hurt the Republicans next?

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20111203/pl_ac/10589911_is_donald_trump_an_agent_for_president_obama

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