[tomkat] irrational dislike for this man worries me

I do not like thee, Mr. Cruise. The reason why I can but muse but this I know I’ll never lose – I do not like thee, Mr. Cruise. MGM CEO Harry E. Sloan announced yesterday: "Cruise and Wagner will have substantial ownership of United Artists. Budget permitting they will have almost complete control over green-lighting and developing new productions." How long till the first blockbuster starring Tom Cruise?

[richard branson] what to do with wealth

This is another of those pre-blogging days articles with end credits but no links. And yet it is interesting and throws up some novel ideas on how best to disburse wealth in poorer nations. Richard Branson is famous for enjoying his wealth. But he also feels that great wealth brings with it great responsibility and he talked to the BBC about the business of philanthropy in the third world. Here.

[backsliding] apologies left, right and centre

What’s with all this apologizing? Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont apologized Thursday to Muslims in the southern part of Thailand for past government policies. The American Legion accepted John Kerry's apology. The Pope said he was ‘deeply sorry’ for comments on Islam following the papal tradition of apologizing for things like the annihilation of Constantinople by Crusaders during 4 days of mayhem in 1204 A.D. Australia has an ongoing National Sorry Day for the aborigines. Enough already! PG Wodehouse said the best sort of people don’t need apologies and the worst sort take advantage of them. Sorry if that offended you just now! Sorry!

[food & wine] seafood to disappear in 50 years

Are you a seafood lover? Researchers warn in the journal Science that 90 per cent of present-day marine fish, crustaceans, shellfish and other currently eaten species of seafood could vanish in 50 years. But the study's lead author, Canadian fisheries researcher Boris Worm, [is that his real name?], thinks countries will correct the present overfishing, economic mismanagement and environmental degradation before that happens. Really? I’m not so sure.

[scum rises] enough to make you haggard

The key comment on this Haggard issue comes from JC Himself: Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals, who resigned Thursday after denying an accusation by a male prostitute that the pastor paid him for sex over three years, is either an innocent man framed by those who would destroy the church … or else he’s of the devil’s party and a shining example of the adage ‘the scum always rises’. Time will tell. To say the Christian church is riddled with scum is a truism. To say that this negates the Christian message is either naïve or something worse.

[insulin] don’t mess with the keys to good health

Insulin crystals

In 1996, the Zone diet was popularized through, amongst others, Joyce and Gene Daoust [Warton, Del Mar, CA]. The theory was that excessive carbos produce excess insulin, which in turn causes heart disease, hypertension, stroke, high blood cholesterol and triglycerides, and diabetes. The solution was to consume 40% carbos, 30% protein and 30% fat in each of five or six balanced meals over the course of one’s day. Dr. Phil Maffetone [3ba060$8ce@newsbf01.news.aol.com] added that perhaps half the population [including athletes ] was insulin resistant to some degree. There were some unresolved questions about this theory.