TODAY

CHARLIE RANGEL TO STEP DOWN ("TEMPORARILY")
Ethically-challenged Democrat Charlie Rangel (D-NY) is taking a leave of absence as Chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. He's stepping down until the House Ethics Committee completes their investigation of, as MSNBC says are "serious allegations of wrongdoing." (Which up to now, the mainstream media have studiously ignored.)

Video from Freedom's Lighthouse

ROGER EBERT APPEARS ON OPRAH
Ebert had surgery to remove his cancerous thyroid in 2002. He had surgery on his salivary glands in 2003 and on his jaw in 2006. Complications in 2006 led to more surgery and months of recuperation. He lost his ability to speak, eat or drink. Video from CBS News "Roger Ebert's Public Battle" (The black woman with him is his wife, Chaz.They were married in 1992.)

Less well-known about Ebert - beside his leftwing credentials that endears him to the mainstream media - is his career in movies.

"Ebert co-wrote the screenplay for the 1970 Russ Meyer film Beyond the Valley of the Dolls and likes to joke about being responsible for the film, which was poorly received on its release but is now regarded as a cult classic. Ebert and Meyer also made Beneath the Valley of the Ultra-Vixens, Up!, and others, and were involved in the ill-fated Sex Pistols movie Who Killed Bambi?" Source: Wikipedia
Ebert won a Pulitzer Prize in 1975.
(Three years later, 20th Century Fox pulled funding from Bambi because they thought it too raunchy.)

NEW YORK TIMES got a boost yesterday
when their stocks went up 11 percent on speculation that Mexican telecom billionare Carlos Slim was going to raise his stake to assume control of the business. He already owns 7 percent of the company. (Since denied by Slim.)

It says a lot when people think a Mexican billionaire would run the New York Times better than any member of the Ochs-Sulzberger family.

Media stocks are not doing well. (scroll down past NYT chart) But none worse than Gatehouse Media that sells for 19 cents. It was 17 cents in 2008. Gatehouse publications. Tribune Company is privately owned and there are no financials to show how badly the Los Angeles Times is doing. I'm willing to bet it's a disaster. Tribune is in bankruptcy reorganization.

EXTRA-SMALL CONDOMS for 12-year-olds on sale in Switzerland. Encouraged by the Swiss government.

MILLIONS OF AID $ FOR ETHIOPIA was used by rebels to buy guns. Thank you Bob Geldof and Live Aid and Band Aid. Of the $100 million,it is estimated by t he former military commander of the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) that 95% was diverted to buy weapons or recruit Ethiopians to the rebel cause. On the up side, the then-Marxist rebels overthrew Ethiopia's Moscow-supported Marxist government.

FOUR ARRESTED IN U.K. IN TERROR FUNDING PLOT
including two British Airway employees.