Catching up is hard to do

I've been trying to get to these links but I keep getting caught up in private IM chats. Not that I'm not happy to catch up with friends but it means I've fallen way behind. So a quick linky post of some older stuff that's still worth reading.

I was a bit too old to really get into John Hughes teen angst films so I don't have a lot to say about his unexpected death except the usual sadness at a creative soul lost too soon. I might not have mentioned it at all, but this post about one person's pen pal relationship him was so moving, I can't think of better eulogy. It would seem he was a very nice man. Rest in peace.

I missed remarking on Obama's birthday a couple of days ago. It was also Helen Thomas' birthday and Obama's surprise visit to the briefing room to serenade her and bring her cupcakes gave me that warm feeling.

This made me laugh. Rupert Murdoch announced he is going to start charging for access to all of his media properties. He said, "Quality journalism is not cheap." Ha! How would he know? Everything he touches, turns to tabloid.

On a related note, what liberal press? This review of content for the last year showed only 5% of the op-ed pieces in the major rags were penned by liberals.

This is scary. Pictures of the arctic the Bush administration kept secret.

Breaking my pledge to link to WaPo because Steven Pearlstein is a good writer and it may be the first time anyone in the tradmed has used the term "political terrorists" to describe the GOP.

And a new find, although I've been reading Bill Scher's Liberal Oasis for years, he has a new gig. If you're not reading his Progressive Breakfast in the mornings, you're missing out.

Doonesbury spent the whole week on "C Street" strips. Very funny stuff. Start here and keep clicking forward.

And to end with the customary photos, I follow one of our astronauts on Twitter. This pix of sunrise over earth is stunning. And this is nice shot of NYC at dusk. Love the lighting.

[More posts daily at The Detroit News]