Here’s a Twitter-flavored report about Palin’s resignation on PoliticsDaily.com.

And here’s another a straight-up news thingie about the story from KTUU-TV in Alaska.

Bookmark It

Yesterday, Sen. Kay Hagan announced her support of the health care reform package proposed by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, of which she is a member. Hagan’s announcement means that, after contradictory statements by the senator triggered a huge grassroots campaign to push her toward support of a public option as part of the health care plan, she has given her supporters what they wanted.

Probably.

There’s still some confusion about Hagan’s position, as her descriptions of the public option plan appear to contradict the actual words of the proposed law. Sigh. Whatever. Sometimes the best you can do with a politician is to get her to vote for your position whether she’s on top of the issue or not. Come what may, Hagan will vote for committee’s health care reform plan, which includes a public option, which is the reason NC progressives contacted her office in droves over the past couple of weeks. Although Hagan is generally more conservative than many of her supporters, she’s also a bright rookie senator who realizes that she’s in Washington due to a huge wave of progressive support. In other words, sometimes this democracy thing — as in, calling your representatives — actually works.

Bookmark It

In case you haven’t heard the latest craze among right-wing talkers, it’s about Al Carlin, an Environmental Protection Agency analyst who stated his skepticism about global warming. Conservatives are saying that Carlin’s views on climate change were suppressed by EPA honchos because they didn’t agree with Obama administration opinions.

Now, it’s true that conservatives are well-versed in the issue of presidents stifling scientists who oppose their views — Bush did it for a solid eight years, after all. But here’s the big difference: Carlin is not a climate scientist — he’s an economist who wrote some reports on his own, without prompting by the EPA, after taking on the issue of global warming as a “hobby” on his own time. Nothing was “suppressed,” since Carlin’s reports weren’t EPA reports at all. Meanwhile, of course, Sen. James “The global warming debate is predicated on fear, rather than science” Inhofe of Oklahoma is calling for a criminal investigation into the Carlin matter – in order, we imagine, to scare the daylights out of the scientists at the EPA.

Bookmark It

Check out this list of events celebrating the 4th of July in Charlotte and the surrounding area — as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.

WBT KNIGHT’S SKYSHOW Hosted by Al Gardner and Tara Servatius. Jon Wilson broadcasts live. Skyshow radio heard live on 1110 A.M. and 99.3 F.M. Skyshow tailgate party at 5 p.m., Charlotte Knights vs. Durham Bulls at 7:15 p.m. Skyshow fireworks will follow the game. Sat., July 4. $7 and up. Knights Stadium, Fort Mill. 803-548-8050. For more information, call 704-364-6637 or visit www.wbtskyshow.com.

9TH ANNUAL PIG PICKIN’ Featuring live performances by Belmont Playboys, The Needles, The Dead Kings, M4 Messenger and Black Lashes. Sat., July 4. The Penguin, 1921 Commonwealth Ave.

4TH OF JULY CELEBRATION AT HOLIDAY INN CENTER CITY This 4th of July celebration will feature live DJ music, a rooftop view of uptown fireworks display, cash bar, food and more. Sat., July 4, 7-11 p.m. $10-$15 for all-you-can-eat. Holiday Inn Center City, 230 N. College St.

BREAKFAST CLUB JULY 4TH PARTY Three levels of totally 80’s. $2 PBR bottles, party favors, and view of uptown fireworks. visit www.that80sclub.com for more informtaion. Sat., July 4. Breakfast Club, 225 N. Caldwell St. 704-374-1982. www.that80sclub.com.

CAROWINDS’ INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION This all day event includes country music performances, the Miss Carowinds’ 2009 Swimsuit Competition, live DJ, and the yearly Night of Fire. Sat., July 4, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Carowinds, 14523 Carowinds Blvd. 704-588-2600. www.carowinds.com.

CONCERT ON THE GREEN Come celebrate the Fourth of July at the Village Green, where R & B band, Rough Draft, will play. Pack your “most patriotic” picnic for the contest. Sat., July 4. Free. Davidson Village Green, Concord and Main St., Davidson.

TOWN OF DAVIDSON PARKS AND RECREATION FOURTH OF JULY CELEBRATION Dress your bicycles, wagons, pets, and strollers in your favorite patriotic attire and come to Davidson’s annual Fourth of July small town parade and evening of music and games. Sat., July 4, 4:30-8 p.m. Davidson Village Green, Concord and Main St., Davidson.

FOURTH OF JULY AT BLUE RESTAURANT In honor of Independence Day, Blue Restaurant and Bar is offereing a three course dinner special for $34.95 and 1/2 price bottles of red and white wines. The Pressley Brothers will be playing live music. Sat., July 4, 5 p.m. Blue Restaurant, 5th & College.

RED ROCKS, WHITEWATER & BLUEGRASS 4TH OF JULY FESTIVAL Spend your Fourth of July at the USNWC. With festivities starting at noon, enjoy music, food, beer, wine, and activities for the whole family. Then, later, sit back and watch the fireworks display. Sat., July 4, 12 p.m. US National Whitewater Center, 820 Hawfield Rd.

RED, WHITE & BLUE FEST Charlotte’s only deck party and premiere fireworks view. Queens City Car Wars & Bike Show. For more information, visit www.kossmotorsports.com. Sat., July 4. $5, Free for children 12 and under. The Blake Hotel, 555 South McDowell St.

RED, WHITE, AND BOOM! PRESENTED BY LANCE Come celebrate the 4th at this family-friendly festival full of activities, musical entertainment, food vendors, and more. Fireworks show begin at 9:30 p.m. Sat., July 4, 6-10 p.m. Free, $5 parking fee. Memorial Stadium, 310 North Kings Dr.

RED, WHITE AND BOOM! ROCK HILL Event features live music from the Oneppo Brothers and ZoSo. There will be food vendors, kids activities and the fireworks start at 10 p.m. Sat., July 4, 6-10 p.m. Free. Old Town Amphitheater at City Hall Black Street, Rock Hill, SC.

INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION AT THE CHARLOTTE MUSEUM OF HISTORY Bring your family and learn about the birth of your country through colonial games, various family-friendly activities and bring a picnic lunch. Sat., July 4, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Charlotte Museum of History, 3500 Shamrock Dr. 704-568-1774. www.charlottemuseum.org.

CELEBRATING AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE Featuring firearms demonstrations, historic readings, cooking demonstrations and more. For more information, visit www.chmuseums.org. Sat., July 4,  10 a.m.-4 p.m. $3-$6; Free for children 3 and younger. 1444 Brattonsville Rd, McConnells, S.C.

Bookmark It

By Matt Brunson

PUBLIC ENEMIES
**1/2
DIRECTED BY Michael Mann
STARS Johnny Depp, Christian Bale

Moviegoers hoping that Public Enemies would have been the film to save the summer season from its own worst impulses will be disappointed to learn that the Michael Mann production, while hardly part of the problem, is certainly no solution. A classy motion picture whose individual moments are greater than the whole, this period gangster saga may be filled with exciting gun battles yet can’t deliver the firepower in ways that matter the most: empathy, originality, and a willingness to burrow beneath the legend.

Forget about fidelity to the facts: Since this is a Hollywood production, historical accuracy matters less than streamlining a good story. So while real life might have dictated that the vicious bank robber Baby Face Nelson (Stephen Graham) did in fact die four months after the imminently more likable John Dillinger (Johnny Depp), the filmmakers understand that our own sense of fair play (or narrative pacification; take your pick) demands that we see Nelson go down in a hail of bullets well before Dillinger has his own date with destiny. At any rate, Mann and fellow scribes Ronan Bennett and Ann Biderman (adapting Bryan Burrough’s book Public Enemies: America’s Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-1934) capture what’s most important about Dillinger: his folk-hero appeal, and the way many Depression-era citizens would have found it possible to cheer an outlaw who spent his time sticking it to the banks.

Naturally, an actor of considerable charm would be required to play such a dashing rogue, so it’s obvious that the short list of candidates would basically consist of Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio (who was briefly involved with the project several years ago). Depp possesses the right demeanor for the role, and if he doesn’t register as powerfully as we would expect, that’s the fault of the writers, who make Dillinger more of an enigma than necessary. Still, the actor fares better than his two co-stars.

As Melvin Purvis, the FBI agent who pursues Dillinger with single-minded determination, Christian Bale is playing a character even more one-dimensional than his John Connor in Terminator Salvation. Purvis is supposed to be the dynamic point-counterpart to Dillinger (a favorite tactical ploy of Mann’s, as evidenced by past pictures like Heat and Collateral), but the role is so thinly written — and Bale tackles it with so little interest — that it’s hardly a fair fight.

Then there’s the case of La Vie en Rose Oscar winner Marion Cotillard, cast as Dillinger girlfriend Billie Frechette. Unless we’re discussing Bonnie and Clyde or Roger Corman cheapies, no film genre is less friendly to women than the gangster flick (not even the Western, which among other achievements allowed the likes of Barbara Stanwyck and Joan Crawford to carve out memorable legacies). So until one brutal sequence toward the end, Cotillard has little to do but fret and fuss over her man’s line of work.

Yet what Public Enemies lacks in complexity, it makes up for in artfulness. Because the movie is lucky enough to have someone as skilled as Mann at the helm, it’s often able to camouflage its narrative limitations with stunning stylistics that, crucially, aren’t of the distant, hermetically sealed variety but rather infuse the piece with a different sense of purpose. Elliot Goldenthal’s soaring score, Dante Spinotti’s camera angles, and the sound team’s snap-crackle-and-pop approach (gun shots are frequently delivered with stunning clarity, a far cry from the sonic overkill of that infernal Transformers sequel) support the costume and set departments to fully immerse us in an era in which a man’s best friend is his weapon, and the manner in which he tips his fedora is as important as what’s in his heart or on his mind. That’s a remarkably shallow outlook, but with Public Enemies, that’s usually about as deep as it gets.

Bookmark It

By Matt Brunson

WHATEVER WORKS
**
DIRECTED BY Woody Allen
STARS Larry David, Rachel Evan Wood

It’s a fact that several of Woody Allen’s movies have found him paired on-screen with women decades his junior (Mira Sorvino, Tiffani Thiessen, Mariel Hemingway, etc.). But with Whatever Works, it appears the 73-year-old filmmaker finally drew the line and elected to pair 21-year-old Evan Rachel Wood with someone closer to her own age.

So he sent in 62-year-old Larry David to pinch-hit.

David, the star of TV’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, essays the role of Boris Yellnikoff, who has nothing but contempt for everyone and everything. Into his life stumbles a Southern runaway named Melodie St. Ann Celestine (a charming Wood), and although he treats her with the same level of disdain as he treats the rest of humanity, she ends up falling for him. And in the face of her inherent goodness (to say nothing of her fresh-scrubbed features), he finds his defenses weakening just a tad — enough, anyway, to marry the ill-educated child. But their happiness could be short-lived once Melodie’s Bible-thumping mother Marietta (Patricia Clarkson) arrives from the Deep South and immediately tries to break them apart.

As written, the role of Manhattan misanthrope Boris Yellnikoff could not have been played by Allen himself: Despite his advanced age, ordinary features and off-screen antics, the actor has always displayed a soft, even romantic edge in his characterizations, and he wouldn’t have been up to the challenge of portraying a loathsome, self-absorbed individual whose venomous diatribes are aimed even at his friends and loved ones. Yet there’s the fundamental problem with Whatever Works: David’s character is so rancorous — and his performance so one-note (this isn’t acting as much as it’s a standup comic turn captured on celluloid) — that the couple’s relationship is only believable when filtered through Allen’s own lecherous sensibilities.

I’ve always embraced the idea that more human contact between dissimilar types would crumble many long-standing prejudices, so I responded favorably to Allen’s notion that all it takes is a trip to liberal New York for the repressed Marietta to discover nude art and the joys of a ménage a trois, and for Melodie’s conservative, NRA-loving dad (Ed Begley Jr.) to discover his latent homosexual tendencies. But for the most part, this is a rehash of themes, discussions, jokes and characters we’ve seen countless times in past Woody Allen efforts. One ultimately gets the impression that when scripting Whatever Works, Allen was hardly working.

Bookmark It

1. Ok Magazine Runs Cover Photo of Michael Jackson on Stretcher
Please make the Michael Jackson circus stop!  Personally, I wish the media would leave Michael alone and let him rest in peace, but OK! Magazine has no intentions of doing that.  According to the latest gossip blogs, the magazine paid $500,000 for the last picture of Jackson alive on a stretcher.

2. Kevin Jonas is Engaged
Apparently the eldest Jonas Brother Kevin is getting hitched to his longtime girlfriend.  So will the Jonas Brothers sing at their wedding?  LOL

3. With All the MJ Madness, Did You Forget About Fantasia’s Birthday!
Oh, the tragedy that is Fantasia.  Apparently she turned 25 recently.  But before we sing Happy Birthday, let’s have a moment of silence for her new red hair.  *crickets*

Bookmark It

That’s likely because so many have spent so long living beyond their means, celebrities included. Look no further than Michael Jackson. But, he’s not the only one. Sports stars, media darlings, musicians — they’re all feeling the pinch.

One big difference between them and us, though: They’re debts are often measured in the millions.

It seems like just yesterday — excess was in and celebrities lived it up, buying lavish cars, expensive toys and over-the-top homes. Now, they’re losing it like everyone else.

Victoria Gotti, daughter of deceased Gambino family crime boss John Gotti, let audiences into her lavish $4.2 million Long Island estate for her reality TV show, Growing Up Gotti. But now, the mafia princess turned New York Post columnist is behind by $650,000 on her mortgage and will likely lose her home.

Part of the problem for some celebrities is that they were allowed to borrow huge amounts of money because of their sizable paychecks during boom times. But Hollywood is fickle, and now some VIPs are struggling with smaller income streams and mortgages worth more than what their homes are currently worth.

More from MSNBC.com.

Celebrity broker now $12 million in debt:

Bookmark It

Five people, places and things we really ain’t digging today.

• North Korea’s missile tests

• Pedophiles

• The lack of funding for this Senior Center

• CMS layoffs

• The continuing violence in Pakistan

Bookmark It

It’s no secret, fireworks — as pretty as they are — are trashy. Something you may not have considered is this: They’re also toxic. Fortunately, eco geeks are on the case.

Fireworks spew out not only dust and smoke, but also heavy metals, carbon monoxide and sulfur oxides. The shades of green are produced by barium compounds that can cause heart and lung problems, according to Thomas Klaptke, a professor at University of Munich in Germany.

While fireworks are explosive and not environmentally safe to begin with, there is hope. Researchers are working to find a way to produce environmentally safe fireworks at an affordable price.

Darren Naud and Michael Hiskey decided to find a way to create eco-friendly fireworks nine years ago, when they founded DMD Systems. Since then, the company, based in Los Alamos, N.M., has created two branches of fireworks: low smoke and perchlorate-free.

More from The Frederick News-Post.

Further reading: South Carolina readies for fireworks rush

Bookmark It