Literal killer whale Tilikum—the six-ton orca that thrashed a 40-year-old trainer to death in front of a live audience last year—has returned to Sea World's increasingly harrowing killer whale show, "Believe." Apparently the show is an "important component" in Tilikum's "physical, social, and mental enrichment," and trainers will only interact with him from a distance. [NYDN, image via AP]
Oh, those House Republican freshmen. They're furious at Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and his Democratic caucus for not passing the full $61 billion in budget cuts that they want. Why can't Senate Dems just listen to the American people, they ask, and eliminate funding for every program Democrats like? Because until this happens, 30 House Republican freshmen promise to stand on the Senate steps everyday, just straight-up making a ruckus.
John Thompson (pictured) was convicted of a 1984 armed robbery, and later of murder. He spent 18 years in prison, including 14 years on death row. Problem: the prosecutors who sent him to jail withheld some evidence—including eyewitness reports describing a perpetrator who looked nothing like Thompson, and a blood test that proved Thompson's innocence.
A reporters' conference call began earlier than scheduled this morning thanks to the several Democratic senators hosting it, who were overheard talking tactics before realizing that some reporters were already on the line. They weren't discussing anything very secretive, but they were coordinating adjective selections. It's all rigged!
Today in pareidolia: A Welsh house looks like Hitler, enchanting all who see it. Swansea resident Charli Dickenson tweeted a picture of the rowhouse, and every media outlet in the British empire followed suit. It seems Hitler's ubiquity is second only to Jesus when it comes to unexpected appearances in places he does not belong, like grilled cheese sandwiches, the facades of houses, and political discourse with Tea Partiers.
Newt Gingrich, one of the serious Republican candidates for president, is back on the subject of Muslims this week. He's not just concerned that Muslims proper will co-opt his grandchildren when they come of age. He's worried about a new ultra-breed of Muslims, Atheist Muslims, performing the dirty work. Have you heard of these people? They probably live in cities.
Last month, Belgians took off their clothes and some members of parliament stopped boning to celebrate tying Iraq's world record for days without a government, at 249 days. Today marks 289 days of bickering with no results, and Belgium still doesn't have a government! At this point they might as well go for it and just dominate the record.
In your suspicious Monday media column: Katie Couric's future mulled, a racist theater review mocked, the WaPo's redesign criticized, the NYT paywall arrives, and Maer Roshan has a new hobby.
President Obama will finally deliver an address tonight on the current bomb-everything campaign being waged in Libya. It may just be vague rhetoric about the moral need to prevent a massacre without addressing the more granular elements of day-to-day strategy and on which one of those specific days it will end. But if you start bombing a country, you should give a single address of any sort to the folks who pay for those bombs.
Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, busy running a violent crackdown on his own people, got a phone call from an old friend, Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz, who said he supports Assad "in the face of conspiracy." Assad also got calls from other dickheads in the region: the King of Bahrain and the Emirs of Kuwait and Qatar, among others. Aww. [SANA, image via AP]
The masters of legislative oversight who currently make up America's House Republican majority has another little beef to settle, this time with that most sinister of Washington special interests: The American Association of Retired Persons, a.k.a. the lobby for old people things. If only these geriatrics hadn't endorsed last year's health care reform law, maybe Republicans could've turned a blind eye to such corrupt practices as bribes that ensure Matlock reruns never disappear from daytime television programming. But they did endorse it, so House Republicans are planning hearings.
In your finally Friday media column: The Daily's culture desk evaporates, the grim outlook for journalism jobs, WaPo staffers mildly object to workplace wage inequality, Kathie Lee and Hoda's drinking roots revealed, and the NYT's story-stealing guidelines.
The threat of sharia, or Islamic law, to America's cities, towns, and way of life in general is going to be a major debate topic among Republican presidential candidates this cycle. More than a dozen states have been working to pass anti-Sharia laws, and we should expect to see more state ballot measures in 2012. It's a big thing in Republican politics these days. So wait until GOP primary voters hear about Tim Pawlenty's old plan to boost sharia-compliant mortgages, so Muslims could own houses! Oh, yikes.
