Obama Says Sony Made Mistake Pulling Movie

The Kimche Hack: President Obama said Sony Pictures made a mistake cancelling its movie The Interview because of anonymous terror threats by computer hackers. “I wish they’d spoken to me first,” the president said yesterday before departing for his Christmas vacation. He said Americans can’t be beholden to some foreign dictator. The president’s remarks were coordinated with the FBI’s formal accusation holding North Korea responsible for the attack on Sony pictures, saying North Korea’s fingerprints are all over the algorithms and encryption codes of the programs that broke into the movie company’s computers. The agency says some of the evidence it has is classified, but the attack is similar to other attacks that came from North Korea. North Korea describes the accusations as “groundless” and called for a joint investigation.

Econ 101: The federal government has ended its bailout of Wall Street and auto companies with a $15.35 billion profit. The decision to pump $426.35 billion into failing companies produced howls from conservatives and gave rise to the Tea Party movement, but it turned out to be smart capitalism that saved the country from a depression. The government closed out its major holdings selling its shares of Ally Financial, the financing wing of General Motors, with a $1.3 billion gain.

World: The mother of seven of eight children found stabbed to death in a home in Cairns, Australia has been arrested on suspicion of the murders. The 37-year-old woman also had stab wounds and was found alongside the bodies of the children. >Israeli warplanes struck what was described as a “Hamas terror infrastructure site” inside the Gaza strip early today. It’s the first strike against Hamas since the war last summer.

The Sports Page: American skier Lindsey Vonn, on the comeback from a career-threatening knee injury, won the women’s World Cup downhill race in Val D’isere, France today. Vonn won her first race in two years two weeks ago in Canada. Her injuries had kept her out of the Sochi Olympics where she would have been a gold medal favorite.

The Obit Page: Ernie Terrell, the boxer who refused to address Muhammed Ali by his new name after he changed it from Cassius Clay, died of advanced dementia at age 76. Ali said Cassius Clay was his “slave name” and changed it but Terrell wouldn’t call him Muhammed. The 1967 fight became a grudge match. As Ali pummeled Terrell for 15 rounds, he repeatedly shouted, “What’s my name?” The name and the champion was Muhammed Ali.

>Virna Lisi, the blonde Italian beauty who played opposite Jack Lemmon in “How to Murder Your Wife,” has died at age 78. Although she took that part speaking little English, Lisi was a multi-lingual actress who worked in both Hollywood and Europe. Along with the likes of Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly, she was known at the time as one of the most beautiful women in the movies.

Aloha: It’s 32 degrees in Washington this morning and President Obama and family are in Hawaii for their Christmas vacation. He usually stays off the public schedule in Hawaii unless there’s a crisis. He wished everyone “mele kalikimaka” — Hawaiian for “Merry Christmas.”

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Friday, March 29, 2024

Page Two

The Most Corrupt Justice

Monday, October 2, 2023

Democracy and Video in the Dark

Sunday, February 26, 2023

Page Two: Do the Right Thing

Tuesday, February 1, 2022

Page Two: Sound Recall

Monday, September 13, 2021

Page Two: Cuomo Must Go

Friday, August 13, 2021

Trump and the Truth

Tuesday, November 3, 2020

The “Great” President

Monday, March 30, 2020

The Wright Stuff

Saturday, February 29, 2020

It's Been Said

"In my mind, I’ve never crossed the line with anyone, but I didn’t realize the extent to which the line has been redrawn. There are generational and cultural shifts that I just didn’t fully appreciate, and I should have, no excuses."

-Andrew Cuomo, resigning as governor of New York after accusations of sexual harassment

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