Daylight Saving Time-Who Thought of it Anyway?

Daylight saving time (DST)- spring forward by setting your clocks ahead an hour on Saturday night,  March 11, 2012.

My questions is "how did it all get started" and "why do it at all".

James Patterson Send Books for the Troops

James Patterson (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

James Patterson is the world's leading author and his books top the best seller lists continuously. Here's one American who wanted to recognize fully the tremendous sacrifices that thousands of U.S. troops make while they are stationed in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other places throughout the world.

Newsmax reports, in an exclusive interview, that the man who has made millions from titles such as “Kiss The Girls,” “Tick Tock,” “Private,” and “Along Came a Spider” has just donated a massive cache of 200,000 books to service men and women stationed overseas.

Patterson, along with the nonprofits Operation Gratitude and Books for Heroes, had to get 20,000 boxes of books from his printers in Indiana to Fort Benning, Ga., and the Van Nuys National Guard Armory in California, from where they are shipped.

“It’s a lot of books,” he said. “It’s a miracle. If we had saved 20,000 puppies, it would be on the front page of every newspaper. This is actually cooler, getting 200,000 books out to troops.”

"Harry Potter" Actor Jailed

Judge Simon Carr sentenced Jamie Waylett, who played Hogwarts bully Vincent Crabbe in six of the Harry Potter films, to two years in jail.

Prosecutors said Waylett was part of a small gang that took part in the riots in north London on Aug. 8. A jury found Waylett guilty of violent disorder, but acquitted him of another charge of intending to destroy or damage property with a fire bomb he was holding. The 22-year-old had already admitted swigging from a bottle of Champagne stolen from a supermarket during the riots.

The judge told Waylett that he would be eligible for release from jail after one year.

Waylett has a previous conviction for growing marijuana.

The star, who had a goatee and shaved head, nodded to the public in the gallery as he was led down to the jail cells.

ENDER's GAME Casting News

Oscar Scott Card's novel Ender's Game is considered one of the greatest works of the science fiction genre, winning both the Nebula and Hugo Awards in 1985 and 1986 respectively.  The book has been translated into 28 languages and is recommended on the U. S. Marine Corps Professional reading list. A film adaptation is currently in the works and filming in New Orleans. The release date is targeted for March 15, 2013, which gives you ample time to read the book, if you desire to do so.

AZ State Senate: Doctors Lie To Your Patients About Birth Defects

AZ State's Senate passed a bill that would essentially allow doctors to lie to women about birth defects in the name of preventing abortion. In theory, this law would make it legal for doctors interested in pushing their own agenda on parents to withhold information on anticipated birth defects they believe might lead the parents to choose to terminate their pregnancy. Opponents point out that "wrongful birth" lawsuits are rare and don't need to be combatted with their own legislation.

KKK Numbers Decline As Hate Group Membership Explodes

It's a mistake not to stay informed about the state of the KKK, the "nation's oldest domestic terrorist organization", as it struggles to keep pace with its competition, the "hate group" phenomenon.

Some are aware of the history of the Ku Klux Klan and the resurgence of the group after the 1915 release of D. W. Griffith's Birth of a Nation. You might have seen footage of the thousands of white robed Klansmen marching near the Capitol during its heyday in the 1920s, declining from millions to between 3000-5000 members today.  In 2012, Slate contributor Brian Palmer reports the Klan lost one-third of its chapters in one year, shrinking from 221 to 152.

The Klan struggles to keep pace with the rising number of racist hate groups. Mergers change the number of its chapters, but doesn't change the number of members. Defections from the Klan to newer outside groups shift individuals to a more selective universe that caters to specialized "taste".  While the target audience tends to be "rural, uneducated, and technologically unsophisticated", white supremacist competitors offer new choices. No longer limited to hating general populations i.e., African Americans or Jews, hate groups offer new selectivity. Anti-Muslim, homophobic, xenophobic or "suit-and-tie"-name your poison and you can find a hate group that focuses on your specific interest.

The availability of the web and social media allow racist individuals to feed their need to link with those of similar interest, to either join a group, or to participate as an unconnected individual. These choices affect the numbers. You can find groups that advocate the level of violence they support or those who pursue a discourse of intellectualism which offers pseudo-scientific "proof" for claims of white supremacy.

Terrorist are still out there, so don't be fooled by the shell games. Racism is alive and well and growing by leaps and bounds. Keep your eye on the ball.

(Photo by Getty)

Related articles

• You: Number of U.S. Hate Groups on the Rise, Report Says (nytimes.com)
• Ku Klux Kontraction (slate.com)
• Hate groups on the rise, but Klan on the wane (thegrio.com)

President Obama on Rush Limbaugh's Apology

Here's the full text of President Obama's answer to a question by USA TODAY's Aamer Madhani about Rush Limbaugh's apology for calling a law student "a slut," the talk show host's subsequent loss of sponsors, and the nature of political discourse.

"You know, I'm not going to comment on what sponsors decide to do. I'm not going to comment on either the economics or the politics of it. I don't know what's in Rush Limbaugh's heart, so I'm not going to comment on the sincerity of his apology.
"What I can comment on is the fact that all decent folks can agree that the remarks that were made don't have any place in the public discourse.

Nick Cannon's Lupus Related Ailment

During an appearance on ABC-TV’s Good Morning America, actor, comedian, and musician Nick Cannon announced that he has lupus-related kidney disease, called lupus nephritis.
Lupus is a disease that can affect any organ system and kidney involvement is one of the most serious manifestations of the disease. By publicly discussing a very personal health issue, Nick Cannon is helping to increase awareness of lupus and its health effects on the kidneys.

Double Down and Renew Those Resolutions

As the New Year began, many of us had renewed energy to make some necessary changes in our lives.  We vowed to achieve a happier, healthier, and more active lifestyle. We hoped that these changes would be accompanied by weight loss. By now we’ve found that changing our behavior in the midst of winter is easier said than done.  After just two months, our promises seem to have fallen by the wayside. Here are some tips to avoid common pitfalls:

Bank of America Strikes Again: Explores New Fees

Bank Of America's retreat from a proposed $5-a-month debit card fee after angry customer feedback doesn't mean the bank isn't thinking up new ways to charge account holders more money, according to a report in Wednesday's Wall Street Journal.

The bank is searching for new sources of income after a revenue drop of 22 percent since 2009 and is weighing a new fee structure that would charge some account holders as much as $25 a month. The new plan is already being tested in pilot programs in Georgia, Massachusetts and Arizona, according to the paper.