Only in Kentucky

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- The executive director of the state Alcoholic Beverage Control has resigned after a weekend arrest on a charge of driving under the influence. more

Did you hear?

Marcel Marceau died.

3:10 to Yuma

It's the name of the film and the train that is supposed to take outlaw Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) to prison. That 3:10 deadline dangling over the film drives an ultra violent journey across Arizona.

Along the way, the writers squeeze every morality tale possible from the characters in a crucible of tension and violence. This is one film where the cliches did not bother me (e.g. Wade seducing the barmaid, people remain standing idle as props in town when guns are blazing all around). Even the violence did not disturb as it serves the cinematic purpose of driving the plot and forcing the characters to test their loyalty and morality amid Wild West anarchy.

Well-acted and even thrilling at times, this is a must-see. The roles are complicated (e.g. Charlie Prince's devotion to Wade borders on affection) and the production is top-notch. Bale and Crowe are simply outstanding as the leads.

Wade views people as animals (he says so!) to serve his selfish purposes and yet he has some compassion left in his rotten heart. He even has an artist's eye for pencil sketching. The ending cleverly plays on his view of humanity, too, but I won't spoil it.

Alex, RIP

Caption: Alex, a 31-year-old African gray parrot, knew more than 100 words and could count and recognize colors and shapes.

NYT coverage of the death of Alex:

PARROT POWER; Alex Wanted a Cracker, but Did He Want One?
(THIS LINK HAS A VIDEO OF ALEX)
...He is survived by his trainer, Irene Pepperberg, a prominent comparative psychologist...Skeptics have long dismissed Dr. Pepperberg s successes with Alex as a subtle form...have seen)? What color smaller? Dr. Pepperberg asked the parrot as she held up two...
September 16, 2007 - By GEORGE JOHNSON - Week in Review

EDITORIAL NOTEBOOK; Alex the Parrot
...of our own reflection we see. What you make of Dr. Irene Pepperberg s work with Alex depends on whether you think Alex s cognitive...standard knowing how to use the word properly Alex loved Dr. Pepperberg. Beyond that, only our intuitions, our sense of who that...
September 12, 2007 - By VERLYN KLINKENBORG - Opinion



Brainy Parrot Dies, Emotive to the End
...of natural causes, said Dr. Irene Pepperberg, a comparative psychologist at Brandeis...1960s and 1970s. In 1977, when Dr. Pepperberg, then a doctoral student in chemistry...using novel methods of teaching, Dr. Pepperberg prompted Alex to learn scores of words...
September 11, 2007 - By BENEDICT CAREY - Technology

Yellow flower morning

Cabral house renovation

A worker takes a break at the Cabral house on Commercial St. in the west end of Provincetown. Dormant for years and hidden by a large sidewalk hedge, this large house is finally undergoing renovation after settlement of a family squabble. If that isn't enough drama, the 37 year-old owner was arrested earlier this year for disorderly conduct at a party she threw to open the house. A full view of the house is below.

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