NEW THINGS: @12:45, 2/26/15

|

1

U.S.

Missouri Safety Official, Hired in Ferguson Aftermath, Quits

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | Feb 25th 2015

Daniel Isom II was appointed the state’s public safety director six months ago amid the fallout over the police shooting of Michael Brown.

Police Brutality, Misconduct and Shootings; Murders, Attempted Murders and Homicides; Appointments and Executive Changes

Missouri is suffering the ills of a border state.

Opinion

How to Make College Cheaper

By STEVE COHEN | Feb 25th 2015

Tuition deferment should replace loans to students and parents.

Colleges and Universities; Tuition; Student Loans; Financial Aid (Education)

College is expensive because it is attempting to limit demand with price.

Entrance exams have been tried and found wanting.

An increase in supply is an obvious fix.

The problem is so much of the value is reputation, known as branding.

U.S.

Massachusetts: Opening Is Set in Boston Marathon Bombings Trial

By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE | Feb 25th 2015

Opening arguments in the Boston Marathon bombings trial are set to begin Wednesday.

Boston Marathon Bombings (2013)

The machinery grinds on.

Nothing has been decided but a jury pool has been selected.

N.Y. / Region

Commodes, if Not Commutes, Have Improved at Port Authority Bus Terminal

By JAMES BARRON | Feb 24th 2015

The terminal in Midtown Manhattan, called “a hall of unfathomable nightmares” on the website Failed Architecture, has modernized the second-floor bathrooms.

Bathrooms and Toilets; Restoration and Renovation; Stations and Terminals (Passenger); Commuting

The architecture is decent as a solution to an impossible problem.

I have never encountered a good bus terminal.

U.S.

Insanity Defense Fails in Killing of the Former Navy Sniper Chris Kyle

By MANNY FERNANDEZ and RICHARD PÉREZ-PEÑA | Feb 25th 2015

The defendant, Eddie Ray Routh, said he was suffering from psychosis and paranoid delusions when he fatally shot Mr. Kyle and Chad Littlefield in 2013.

Murders, Attempted Murders and Homicides; Veterans; United States Defense and Military Forces; Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

It is Texas.

Texas does not believe in insanity.

No individual is more insane than the majority.

Opinion

The Horrors Keep Coming at Rikers

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD | Feb 23rd 2015

The abuse from corrections officers that continues to unfold at Rikers Island must end.

Editorials; Guards; Prisons and Prisoners; Suits and Litigation (Civil)

Yes.

Try moving abusive guards out of prisoner contact for three months.

a repeat offense is grounds for termination.

Automobiles

Carmakers Find That Turbos Are a Powerful Solution for Fuel Efficiency

By LAWRENCE ULRICH | Feb 26th 2015

Once mostly found in expensive sports and luxury cars, turbochargers are proliferating as automakers scramble to improve fuel economy without sacrificing performance.

Automobiles; Engines; Fuel Efficiency

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbocharger

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbocharger#History

Laurence Ulrich should do his homework.

A supercharged engine will do better with direct injection.

A carburetor engine will knock at high boost.

Science

According to the Words, the News Is Actually Good

By JOHN TIERNEY | Feb 23rd 2015

Opinion

Can There Be Good Mental Asylums?

Feb 26th 2015

Readers discuss an Op-Ed essay that said institutionalization would be best for some psychiatric patients.

Mental Health and Disorders; Group Homes; Intellectual Disabilities; Psychiatry and Psychiatrists; Americans With Disabilities Act

The socially incompetent need shelter and care.

This can be done in an institution.

The problem is the attempt to "cure"

Treatment should be voluntary.

The doors should not be locked from the outside.

The new asylum is a shelter rather than a prison.

The answer is yes.

Food

Mimi Sheraton and 1,000 Pieces of Advice

By FLORENCE FABRICANT | Feb 23rd 2015

Food guides, city by city and across the globe; a campaign to produce a handblown beer glass; a chocolatier opens a spot in Jersey City; marine-farmed king salmon; and a lecture on brunch.

Salmon; Fish Farming; Food; Cooking and Cookbooks; Books and Literature; Restaurants; Crowdfunding (Internet); Chocolate; Jams and Jellies; Glassware

" “1,000 Foods to Eat Before You Die” by Mimi Sheraton (Workman, $25); “1,001 Restaurants You Must Experience Before You Die” (Barron’s, $35); “Where Chefs Eat: A Guide to Chefs’ Favorite Restaurants” (Phaidon, $24.95)."

I would put them on my shelf.

Business Day

European Leaders Seek Tighter Cooperation on Energy

By JAMES KANTER and STANLEY REED | Feb 25th 2015

The European Commission vowed to accelerate efforts to knit together diverse national energy systems amid deepening tensions with Russia.

Energy and Power; Greenhouse Gas Emissions; Natural Gas; Antitrust Laws and Competition Issues

Such cooperation will be a difficult negotiation.

U.S.

Vermont Tackles Heroin, With Progress in Baby Steps

By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE | Feb 25th 2015

About 40 percent more people in the state are seeking treatment for addiction today than a year ago. But the number of deaths from heroin is going up.

Heroin; Drug Abuse and Traffic; Buprenorphine (Drug)

Deaths and people seeking treatment may be directly connected.

Addicts form social networks.

N.Y. / Region

Daniel Donovan, Garner Case Prosecutor, Defends Record as He Runs for Congress

By ALEXANDER BURNS | Feb 24th 2015

Mr. Donovan is the favorite to replace Representative Michael G. Grimm, despite criticism of the way he handled Eric Garner’s chokehold inquiry on Staten Island.

Elections, House of Representatives

Staten Island votes Republican.

World

American Is Kidnapped in Nigeria

By ADAM NOSSITER | Feb 24th 2015

A ransom has been demanded, according to officials, who said the kidnapping was probably not the work of the Islamist militant group Boko Haram.

Kidnapping and Hostages; Missionaries

Nigeria has developed bad habits.

U.S.

Nevada: Woman Gets Prison Term for Arson at Her Pet Shop

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | Feb 25th 2015

A former Las Vegas pet shop owner was sentenced Wednesday to 5 to 14 years in state prison for setting fire to the business where 27 puppies and dogs were rescued last year.

Animal Abuse, Rights and Welfare; Arson; Frauds and Swindling; Sentences (Criminal)

The presentation in the Times was damning.

World

The Vatican: Pope’s Remark Irks Mexico

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | Feb 25th 2015

The Vatican on Wednesday sought to defuse a diplomatic quarrel with Mexico after Pope Francis referred to the possible “Mexicanization” of his native Argentina from drug trafficking.

Drug Abuse and Traffic

Mexico does not want to own its reputation for narcotics traffic.

Opinion

Guarding Denmark’s Jewish Heritage

By BO LIDEGAARD | Feb 26th 2015

How can we protect not only the security of Jews, but also their position as a well-integrated part of our society?

Jews and Judaism; Religion and Belief; Freedom of Religion

Murder is not a privilege of any religion.

My wish is that the U.S. take the same position.

Business Day

House Republicans Intensify Attacks on Federal Reserve

By BINYAMIN APPELBAUM | Feb 25th 2015

At a hearing, the Federal Reserve chairwoman defended the Fed’s actions and warned against proposals to constrain its independence.

United States Politics and Government; United States Economy; Inflation (Economics); Unemployment

Janet Yellen is correct.

Opinion

The Gentrification Effect

By THOMAS B. EDSALL | Feb 25th 2015

Changing urban demographics are shifting the balance of power throughout the U.S., but the differences are being felt first in the Democratic Party.

Urban Areas; Gentrification; Race and Ethnicity; Blacks; Hispanic-Americans

The blacks who leave downtowns are the ones who can afford to move.

I expect the result will be a wash most places.

World

Russia Heightens Dispute With Ukraine Over Natural Gas

By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN | Feb 24th 2015

The head of Gazprom said that Ukraine would use up its prepaid allotment in days and would not be able to pay in time to keep the supply going.

"The warning by Aleksei B. Miller, the chief executive of Gazprom, the state-controlled Russian energy behemoth, illustrated how the hostilities between Russia and Ukraine are hardly limited to the battlefields in eastern Ukraine, where a cease-fire agreed to nearly two weeks ago has still not fully taken hold."

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

@ 15:00,

1