1 SMUGGLE YOUR HEROIN THE OLD WAY: I’m not sure what the old way would be, per se. False gas tanks? Inside of teddy bears? Burritos? Whatever the case, the Canadian Forces, as reported by the Globe and Mail, says that their soldiers aren’t involved. (Or they at least say that they aren’t looking into it.)
2 OPRAH AND FRANZEN, TAKE TWO: After renowned American author Jonathan Franzen dicked out while on book tour, he got himself booted from the Oprah Book Club. Now, according to sources over at MobyLives, Franzen’s latest book, Freedom, might be the next choice for Oprah. At least this novel will hold up better than A Million Little Pieces, which was garbage before James Frey was even outed as a fake.
3 CAN WE BUILD IT? YES WE CAN!: Not quite the Bob the Builder theme, but close. The Leader-Post reports that construction is underway for two major downtown building projects. You’ll have to wait a bit longer for the Guns n’ Roses Condominium Project, though.
4 WHO WOULD WANT TO KILL A PANDA?: I’m at a loss for why anyone would believe Japan purposefully killed a panda that was on loan to them from China, as mentioned at the end of this entry on the National Post‘s blog. I once had an animal that died while I was house sitting, and it was a hugely devastating experience. It took me so long to even go back to that house after that. I feel for you, Japan.
5 INNOCENT CONFESSIONS: The New York Times has published a great piece on how suspects who are innocent of their crimes can occasionally give detailed confessions:
An article by Professor Garrett draws on trial transcripts, recorded confessions and other background materials to show how incriminating facts got into those confessions — by police introducing important facts about the case, whether intentionally or unintentionally, during the interrogation.
To defense lawyers, the new research is eye opening. “In the past, if somebody confessed, that was the end,” said Peter J. Neufeld, a founder of the Innocence Project, an organization based in Manhattan. “You couldn’t imagine going forward.”
6 TAX THE UPPER CLASS, GIVE BREAKS TO MIDDLE AND LOWER CLASS: Seems like a bit of a no-brainer to me, but NPR reports on how the question of whether or not to extend Bush-era tax cuts in their entirety or in part is causing a kerfuffle.