Where do Americans work the hardest? As a New Yorker surrounded by people toiling away, including my diligent colleagues who post stories at all hours, including weekends and during hurricanes, I would have automatically said The Big Apple. But Movoto, a Redwood City, Calif.-based real estate site that puts out periodic city lists, rates New York in 11th place, after Houston and just above Virginia Beach, Va. For the complete list of 50 cities, click here. …read more
By Tim Worstall, Contributor We’ve another piece discussing Robert Gordon’s views on the future of the economy. Which are, essentially, that it all gets worse from here on in until we’ve riots in the streets and the return of starvation. This time it’s at the New Yorker and to put the theory into a nutshell it’s that everything has already been invented and so life isn’t going to get any better. …read more
Qing Chen may insist that anyone would have done what he did to save a baby girl on Friday — but it’s clear a father’s instinct played some role in the New Yorker’s heroic act.
The dad says he was alarmed to notice an 18-month old crawling around on an awning across the street from Pure Health Pharmacy in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, where he works, according to local station PIX11. The baby appeared to have escaped a second-story apartment through a vent meant for an air conditioning unit.
By Regina Schrambling Thanks to Eater, I was amused to see kolaches are being heralded as the next big thing in pastries. I’m still in shock from going on the Food Network back in the Nineties to promote my little Squash book and learning I was not the only New Yorker who even knew what the things are. I developed a taste for them while living in Nebraska after dropping out of college; my interviewer on that show, Rudy Giuliani‘s then-wife Donna Hanover, turned out to be the daughter of a Czech immigrant. I’m guessing she’d be as surprised as I am to see Texas claiming kolaches’ fame. To me they’re rooted firmly in the Midwest. I just pulled out my battered New York Times Heritage Cook Book and found the only recipes are from Iowa (that is one great collection of regional flavors, BTW). But I will always associate them with Lincoln, where a co-worker named Libby Vlach would always bake and share them. (I like the sound of the recipe with this Nebraska feature because it calls for lard, although the NYT one suggests duck fat, which would also be great.) Put too simply, they’re the Czech translation of a Danish, with a yeast dough and a fruit or cheese filling. And I could see them taking off. But never overtaking the cupcake. Let alone the macaron. My photo is of a spread with a photo by the amazing Deborah Jones.
They’re driven, idealistic and determined to barrel through with their plans regardless of anyone or anything in their path – meet the Hummingbirds. It’s a term coined by New Yorker tv critic Emily Nussbaum to describe the current crop of ambitious yet irritating women taking center stage in tv comedies and dramas. Nussbaum cites Parks and Recreation’s Leslie Knope, Enlightened’s Amy Jellicoe and Homeland’s Carrie Mathison as emblematic of this new breed of female protagonists who are dogged about pursuing their passions, no matter who they may annoy in the process. …read more
In its March 28 issue, The New Yorker published an article titled “Bitter Scalia Leaves U.S.,” by Andy Borowitz in his Borowitz Report.
The article presents Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s supposed decision to resign from the Court and leave the United States. It also quotes Scalia as saying that this past week of hearings concerning same-sex marriage had been “by far the worst week of my life.” The article went on to include contrived quotes about his considered choices of new national citizenship and described his supposed angry outburst at his fellow Justices upon his dramatic exit. The article closed with an inclusion of a stoic and immovable Clarence Thomas, presented as Scalia’s last and only friend that he was doomed to leave behind.
Though this article was posted under “humor” on New Yorker.com, it reads as a straightforward news story and offers few clues that it is intended as satire when posted elsewhere on the web.
Once an unsubscribed and unsuspecting reader is directed to the web page, the first “Subscribe” tab is seen highlighted at the top left corner of screen instead of the “Humor” tab that is found further to the right. As usual, it seems that the “humor” of this far-left rag has left those of us on the right without even a slight case of the chuckles. The only direct clue left connected to the shared or printed version of the article is the keyword “humor,” found under the keyword “Supreme Court,” underneath the body of the article’s text.
In a modern media that almost universally now attempts to appeal to a younger, “hipper” audience, it’s no wonder that The New Yorker would stoop to this level of supposed humor. This sort of article is no doubt directed to those who would also typically rely on such faux news sources as “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and “The Colbert Report” in order to stay connected with current events. They all, at best, provide examples of unethical humor and offer dishonest journalism when measured by any objective standard.
For those of us who understand how the media elite operate, it’s obvious that the New Yorker, which has traditionally catered to a liberal audience, as well as Mr. Borowitz would be quick to cite their First Amendment rights to free speech and expression if they were to be challenged for such things as slander. They would likely offer the excuse that this is “a satirical piece,” not intended to be taken seriously. Our question, then, is why is the joke so well guarded and so devoid of humor for the objective consumer?
The objective consumer already knows the answer to this question. The New Yorker and others are attempting to once again redefine journalism under the guise and protection of satire and the same First Amendment that they so vigorously attack when “freely” expressed by those with an informed or opposing view.
Like most of you, I yearn for shorter winters, more shirt-sleeve weather, less lashing from frigid winds. As a confirmed New Yorker, I’m not willing to do what millions have done: move to the sunbelt. I want warmer weather here in the Big City. …read more Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
You might think Henry Blodget would be thrilled that an exhaustive profile in this week’s New Yorker touts his Business Insider for building an audience of 24 million unique visitors a month with its tabloid spin on the day’s businessnews.
Charles Norfleet/Getty Images Actor Stephen Baldwin pleaded guilty to a charge of repeated failure to file income taxes at Rockland County Courthouse on March 29 in New City, New York. At left, his attorney, Russell Yankwitt.
“Take, say, taxes. Everybody’s against taxes. In a functioning democracy you’d be in favor of them. April 15th would be a day of celebration. You’re getting together to fund the programs that you decided on.” —Noam Chomsky
“Stars — they’re just like US!” — US Weekly
We’re far from the ideal democracy described by Noam Chomsky, in which ordinary citizens feel involved in policy decisions and happily fund the society they’ve built together. We live, instead, in an US Weekly world, where the lives of celebrities command as much attention as the workings of government, if not more. But stars are indeed just like us, if their reluctance to pay taxes is any indication.
Stephen Baldwin is the latest famous person to end up in the news for neglecting his civic duty. The star of The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (2000) and Celebrity Big Brother 2010 was arrested in December 2012 and charged with failing to pay more than $350,000 in New York state income taxes; Baldwin apparently failed to file in 2008, 2009 and 2010.
Rockland County District Attorney Thomas P. Zugibe took a harsh view of the youngest Baldwin brother’s actions: “Individuals who attempt to steal from the public are stealing from the pockets of every New Yorker. Regardless of social status or income level, my office is committed to pursuing criminals who purposefully cheat the government and law-abiding taxpayers.”
A USA Today report, “Celebrities are often in debt to the tax man,” was somewhat more sympathetic to the plight of famous tax delinquents, explaining that “celebrities and entertainers — unlike most taxpayers — often have huge incomes that vary wildly from year to year — an easy recipe for tax trouble.
A review of famous names recently in the papers for owing the IRS turns up a few patterns. Tax scofflaw celebrities aren’t usually the sort of figures known as “A-Listers” — or, if they are, like Lil Wayne, they tend to be somewhere past …read more Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
Last week wasn’t a great one when it comes to the seemingly toxic topic of “gender, tech and the Internetz.” Adria Richards made a questionable decision to publicly shame two developers at a tech conference after she overheard them engaging in sexual humor that she found offensive. Never before has a ‘dongle joke’ had so much impact. One of the developers was fired. After being subjected to horrendous sexist and racist attacks, including rape and death threats, by people who disapproved of her shaming, Richards was also fired. Despite the rightness or wrongness of the public shaming in the first place, the attacks on Richards were horrendous and highlighted what Matt Buchanan at the New Yorker calls technology’s biggest problem: “the technology industry, and the culture around it, has a serious, persistent problem with women.” …read more Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
A refugee lawyer, a transgender specialist, and six other people sit in a circle in an empty classroom on the second floor of Tel Aviv’s Gay Center. They are here for the inauguration of Israel’s first-ever LGBT legal clinic. The evening’s keynote speaker is Frederick Hertz, an American legal expert who specializes in gay marriage. He describes a recent case he handled, in which a gay couple, one of them transgender, got married in Las Vegas as a man and a woman. Then they moved to California and wanted their respective healthcare benefits. “So the question,” Hertz says, “was how to register that same-sex couple when they had been married as an opposite-sex couple.”
The crowd stares blankly, some playing with their telephones. One attendee, wearing skinny jeans and Converse sneakers, breaks the collective yawn by quoting a New Yorker cartoon, republished in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, to convey how Israelis feel about the American debate over gay marriage: “Gays and lesbians getting married — haven’t they suffered enough?”
The brother of a jailed one-time billionaire hedge fund boss has been charged with conspiring with his brother to cheat on Wall Street.
Authorities announced the indictment against Rengan Rajaratnam (rah-juh-RUHT‘-nuhm) on Thursday. They said the 42-year-old New Yorker had not yet been arrested on the charges.
His brother, Raj Rajaratnam, was convicted two years ago on insider trading charges for earning up to $75 million illegally. He is serving an 11-year prison sentence. The prosecution of the founder of the Galleon Group of hedge funds had resulted in more than two dozen convictions.
Rengan Rajaratnam has been charged with conspiracy to commit securities fraud and six counts of securities fraud.
Phone and email messages left for his attorney were not immediately returned.
Mario Tama, Getty ImagesGalleon Group founder Raj Rajaratnam (middle) was sentenced to eleven years in prison in a hedge fund insider trading scandal. Raj Rajaratnam‘s brother Rengan, 42, is accused of conspiring with his brother Raj to trade on material nonpublic information about Clearwire Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. in 2008.
NEW YORK (AP) – The brother of a jailed one-time billionaire hedge fund boss has been charged with conspiring with his brother to cheat on Wall Street.
Authorities announced the indictment against Rengan Rajaratnam (rah-juh-RUHT‘-nuhm) on Thursday. They said the 42-year-old New Yorker had not yet been arrested on the charges.
His brother, Raj Rajaratnam, was convicted two years ago on insider trading charges for earning up to $75 million illegally. He is serving an 11-year prison sentence. The prosecution of the founder of the Galleon Group of hedge funds had resulted in more than two dozen convictions.
Rengan Rajaratnam has been charged with conspiracy to commit securities fraud and six counts of securities fraud.
Phone and email messages left for his attorney were not immediately returned.
Every time we at Forbes publish a new World’s Billionaires list, as we did last week for the 27th year, Michael Bloomberg’s net worth attracts scrutiny. It’s understandable: he may not be the richest New Yorker in our ranking (that honor goes to industrialist David Koch), but he’s the highest-profile. And the city’s three-term Mayor is certainly the wealthiest politician in the world. …read more Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
A New Yorker who believes his birth mother “sold” him as a baby in 1945 is suing the city to get a birth certificate with the name he’s always known.
The New York City Law Department tells the New York Post it’s reviewing the case of Albert Higgins of Livingston Manor.
He discovered while trying to renew a driver’s license that there was no birth certificate under his name.
The 67-year-old says that in 1995, his dying mother revealed she bought him from a Bronx neighbor. He says an old handwritten note contained his birth parents’ names.
Higgins says a birth certificate exists under the name Garry Swingle. His goal is to be legally recognized under that name, then get a birth certificate with the name he’s always used.
By Peter Lipson, Contributor Reiki Master Julie Motz, responding to The Operator, Michael Spector‘s excellent New Yorker piece on Dr. Oz: I never went near the heart-lung machine, but stood with my hands on the patient’s head for most of the surgery. In heart-transplant surgeries, I would go to the ice chest to try to get a reading on the history of the heart that was coming into the new body, and pick up information about how the donor had died. via The Mail: Re: “The Operator” : The New Yorker. …read more Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
By John JohnsonThe recent drone headlines , along with the testimony of CIA nominee John Brennan, prompt Dexter Filkins of the New Yorker to reiterate a key point about drone strikes he learned first-hand from reporting overseas: The CIA can never be positive about the targets it strikes. “Our ignorance is not total,… …read more Source: FULL ARTICLE at Newser – Home
They called it the “rainforest Chernobyl.” When Texaco left Ecuador, in 1992, it allegedly left behind open pits overflowing with black sludge and rivers laced with chemicals. The damage was so bad that a number of indigenous tribes almost died out completely. Those that remained, according to a group of Ecuadoreans who waged a nearly hopeless battle against Texaco for reparations, were plagued by miscarriages, birth defects, and poisoned fish and livestock.
The lawsuit lasted 18 long years, and one judge in New York died before he could make a ruling. It even outlasted Texaco, which Chevron purchased in 2001. It wound its way through a dozen American federal courts to a lonely concrete courtroom in the Ecuadorean jungle, where Judge Nicolás Zambrano at last rewarded the Ecuadorean plaintiffs for their epic struggle—to the tune of $18 billion. It was the largest sum ever awarded in an environmental lawsuit.
But all is not what it seems.
The integrity of the plaintiff team, led by Steven Donziger, a tenacious American environmental crusader, has come under scrutiny. So has the notoriously corrupt Ecuadorean court system. A 2009 documentary, Crude, contained scenes where Donziger appeared to suggest bribing various people associated with the case in order to get a whopper settlement. He also implied that the scientific evidence used to condemn Texaco was “just a bunch of smoke and mirrors and bull[….].” Indeed, just a few days ago, an affidavit posted on Chevron’s website describes in great detail how one of the Ecuadorean judges essentially gave Donziger and his team the power to ghostwrite the court’s judgment in return for $500,000.
Meanwhile, Donziger recruited a group of hedge funds to provide the capital his team needed to pursue the case, in exchange for a cut of the final award if it succeeded. They call this “litigation finance.” “These arrangements are unregulated and controversial,” Patrick Radden Keefe wrote in the New Yorker. “But for Donziger they presented a crucial opportunity to keep the litigation alive. He offered investors a high-risk, high-reward proposition. The judgment could run to billions of dollars, he said, with attorneys’ fees making up roughly a third of that figure. In confidence, he noted that his personal fee alone could amount to two hundred million dollars.”
Ed Koch is being remembered as the quintessential New Yorker — an admired but tough, colorful former mayor who will be honored at his funeral by former President Bill Clinton.
A “liberal version” of history might also make for good reading, but the 
The recent drone headlines , along with the testimony of 