No doubt by now you’re aware of the return of ‘Baby Doc’ Duvalier, but you may have missed the news that the only democratically elected President of Haiti ever, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, is also returning to Haiti.

This takes place against the backdrop of the devastating earthquake one year ago and the announcement tomorrow of the results of the first round of another Presidential election where the clear winner was Mirlande Manigat, a former first lady.

The second place on the ballot was disputed between Michel Martelly, a popular singer, and the hand picked choice of current President Rene Preval- Jude Celestin.

Celestin had a slim lead in the vote count, but widespread allegations of fraud are leading to reports of his withdrawal from the race.

It’s been a long time so in case you’ve forgotten, Abdelbaset al-Megrahi is the Libyan Intellegence officer convicted of organizing the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 that killed 270 including 11 people in the town of Lockerbie, Scotland where the plane fell to earth.

Al-Megrahi was imprisoned from 2001 to 2009 when he was released for compassionate reasons with a supposedly terminal cancer diagnosis.  He’s still alive and was greeted on his return to Libya as a hero.

At the time of his release there was understandable outrage and the Blair/Brown British Labor government steadfastly maintained that the decision was made by Scottish authorities alone.

Well, it turns out that was a lie.

WikiLeaks cables show Government was ‘playing false’ over Lockerbie bomber

By Christopher Hope, and Robert Winnett, The Daily Telegraph

9:21 AM GMT 01 Feb 2011

A Foreign Office minister sent Libyan officials detailed legal advice on how to use Abdelbaset al-Megrahi’s cancer diagnosis to ensure he was released from a Scottish prison on compassionate grounds, documents obtained by the Daily Telegraph show.

The Duke of York is also said to have played a behind-the-scenes role in encouraging the terrorist’s release.

The Scottish First Minister said the revelations confirm that while his administration acted according to its public pronouncements on the affair, Tony Blair’s Government was behaving duplicitously.

“The cables … show that the former UK Government were playing false on the issue, with a different public position from their private one,” said a statement released by Mr Salmond’s office.

Entirely unexciting.  Even Cable sucks.  Some premiers.

Mister… you can say anything you want about me. I’m gonna have to ask you not to talk about my horse that way.

• ABC Family– Pretty Little Liars (premier and Instapeat), Greek (premier)
• AMC– Hidalgo x 2 (rather recent)
• Comedy– American Pie, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia marathon
• Disney– Avalon High
• Discovery– Sr. v. Jr. (last week’s and new)
• ESPN– College Hoopies, Louisville @ Georgetown, Texas @ Texas A&M
• ESPN2– Women’s College Basketball, Duke at Connecticut
• Food– Triple D (premier)
• FX– What Happens in Vegas x 2
• History– Pickers and Pawn Stars (premiers)
• Lifetime– Homecoming, Taken From Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story
• Oxygen– Juno
• Sci Fi– Being Human (last week’s and new plus Instapeat)
• Spike– Blade: Trinity
• TBS– Family Guy marathon
• Turner Classic– Breathless, Baby Doll
• TLC– Cake Boss marathon (with premier)
• Toon– Adventure Time with Finn & Jake, Regular Show (premiers)
• Travel– Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations marathon
• Vs.– NHL All-Star Game (repeat)

Later-

• Oxygen– Stick It
• Turner Classic– The Rain People

Dave hosts Justin Bieber, Pauley Perrette, and Best Coast.  Jon has Bill Gates (ugh), Stephen Samer Shehata and Paul Offit.  Alton does Tacos and Tortillas.  Conan hosts Amy Poehler.

Well, what do you make of it so far?  Nope, too late to turn back now.

Zap2it TV Listings, Yahoo TV Listings

Evening Edition is an Open Thread

Now with 54 Top Stories.

1 Egypt army backs people’s demands, holds fire

by Charles Onians, AFP

1 hr 1 min ago

So for Mubarak- Game over dude, game over.

Just News so far.

1 Chinese property ‘bubble’ fuels hard landing fears

by Hui Min Neo, AFP

Sun Jan 30, 6:49 pm ET

The reason I don’t generally live blog All-Star games (the NHL had theirs today, did you notice?  I thought as much) is that I’m not so into most sports that I pay attention to the individual players.

The closest would be Baseball and even there, if you don’t play for the Mets who are you and why should I care?

The Pro Bowl Throwball show on Faux @ 7 is a prime example (they don’t even make much pretense about playing for anything except to avoid injury) and while I’m pushing my publication deadline up so those who do can use this as an Open Thread (and when isn’t it?) to discuss developments I’ll probably be watching something else, or better yet using the time to prepare next week’s Puppy Bowl VII (3 pm ET) post as well as a special Prime Time for people who can’t stand the hype and hate puppies (and kitties too).

Or I might just nap.

ABC is contesting the NFL Juggernaut with “reality” TV and if you’re a fan of PBS’s Downton Abbey I know what you’ll be watching.  CBS has a World Premier, The Lost Valentine which features Betty White and NBC recycles National Treasure: Book of Secrets.

There is also the Screen Actors Guild Awards on TBS and TNT for you Red Carpet freaks.

• ABC Family– Sure wouldn’t want to miss my chance to become a 700 Club Founder
• AMC– Seraphim Falls x 2
• Bravo– Real Housewives (with premier)
• Disney– Good Luck Charlie (premier)
• Discovery– How Beer Saved The World (premier), When Pigs Attack! (last week’s and new)
• ESPN– Winter X Games; Hoopies, Jazz @ Warriors
• ESPN2– Australian Open repeat
• Food– Worst, Iron Chef America (premiers)
• FX– Hancock, The Incredible Hulk
• History– Ax Men (last week’s and new)
• Lifetime– Picture Perfect, The Nanny Diaries
• Nick– Pretty in Pink
• Sci Fi– Dawn of the Dead (not the good 1978 version), Jurassic Park III
• Spike– A Bronx Tale x 2, The Fugitive
• TBS– Get Smart (have I mentioned Steve Carell is just horrible?)
• Turner Classic– With Six You Get Eggroll (George Carlin!), Who’s Minding the Mint?
• Toon– Young Justice League, Clone Wars (this week’s), Baby Blues, The Oblongs
• USA– NCIS marathon
• Vs.– NHL All-Star SuperSkills (last night’s)

Later-

• AMC– Open Range
• FX– Lights Out (this week’s), Elektra
• Sci Fi– Triassic Attack, Pterodactyl
• Turner Classic– Pandora’s Box (shhhhh)
• TNT– Patriot Games
• Toon– Robot Chicken, Mongo Wrestling (premiers)
• USA– Royal Pains, White Collar (this week’s), FeardotCom
• Vs.– Bullriding (last night’s)

Well, he sure as hell wasn’t one to complain. Woke with a smile, seemed like he could keep it there all day. Kind of a man that’d say ‘good morning’ and mean it, whether it was or not. Tell you the truth, Lord, if there was two gentler souls in this world, I never seen ’em. Seems like old Tig wouldn’t even kill birds in the end. Well, you got yourself a good man and a good dog, and I’m inclined to agree with Boss here about holding a grudge against you for it. I guess that means Amen.

Zap2it TV Listings, Yahoo TV Listings

Evening Edition is an Open Thread

Now with 40 Top Stories.

1 Saving whales a cold comfort job

by Madeleine Coorey, AFP

Sun Jan 30, 7:25 am ET

Figure Skating.  Austin City Limits– Lyle Lovett and Bob Schneider.  Dreamgirls.

You and I are such similar creatures Vivian. We both screw people for money.

• ABC Family– The Game Plan, Remember the Titans
• AMC– Jeremiah Johnson
• Animal Planet– Pit Boss (Season 3 Premier)
• Bravo– House marathon
• Comedy– Standup marathon (all premiers)
• Disney– Phineas and Ferb Rollercoaster: The Musical, Fish Hooks (premiers)
• E!– Knocked Up x 2
• ESPN– College Hoopies, Kansas State @ Kansas; Winter X Games
• ESPN2– College Hoopies, Pittsburgh @ Rutgers; Autralian Open (Women’s Finals repeat)
• Food– Tailgate Warriors With Guy Fieri marathon (Season Finale premier)
• FX– Iron Man
• History– We’re Doomed!  DOOOOOMED I tells ya.
• Lifetime– Management, Picture Perfect
• Oxygen– Pretty Woman x 2
• Sci Fi– Mega Piranha, Mega Python vs. Gatoroid (World Premier)
• Speed– 24 Hours at Daytona
• Spike– Rambo: First Blood Part II, Rambo
• Turner Classic– Bad Day at Black Rock, The Dirty Dozen (Ernest Borgnine night)
• TLC– Cake Boss (Season Finale repeat)
• TNT– Training Day, The Bourne Supremacy
• Toon– Underdog, God, the Devil and Bob
• USA– Crank x 2, The Bourne Ultimatum
• Vs.– NHL All-Star SuperSkills, Bullriding

You know, when you wear this badge, you’re the law. And when somebody does something against the law, then you’re supposed to do something about it. I did nothing. And that’s what’s eating me. What kind of prescription do you got for that?

Later-

Vision? What do you know about my vision? My vision would turn your world upside-down, tear asunder your illusions and the sanctuary of your own ignorance crashing down around you. Ask yourself… are you really ready to see that vision?

• AMC– Wyatt Earp
• Disney– Phineas and Ferb Rollercoaster: The Musical (Instapeat)
• E!– The Soup (this week’s)
• Lifetime– No Reservations (no Anthony Bourdain either)
• Oxygen– Beaches
• Sci Fi– Lake Placid 2, Mega Python vs. Gatoroid (Instapeat)
• Spike– First Blood, Cobra
• TBS– Men in Black
• Turner Classic– Marty
• TNT– Mission: Impossible III

SNL– Jesse Eisenberg and Nicki Minaj

Boondocks– A Huey Freeman Christmas, Return of the King

GitS: SAC 2nd Gig– Nuclear Power, This Side of Justice (Episodes 24 and 25 of 26)

Dr. King looked out at his people and saw they were in great need. So he did what all great leaders do: he told them the truth.

…

And now I’d like to talk about “Soul Plane“.

Zap2it TV Listings, Yahoo TV Listings

Evening Edition is an Open Thread

Now with 35 Top Stories.

1 Afghan suicide bomber kills Kandahar deputy governor

AFP

Sat Jan 29, 2:01 pm ET

Something Very Serious People never talk about is how most of the complexity of the Tax Code is there specifically to provide monetary entitlements to the Extremely Wealthy and our Corporate Citizens.

This post by masaccio about Turn Left Racing caught my eye and is well worth reading in full even if it is a little technical and wonky at points.

Let’s Go Racing for Loopholes – Motorsports Tax Scam Wins a Grafty

By: masaccio, Firedog Lake

Friday January 28, 2011 2:28 pm

There is a special rule for Motorsports Entertainment Complexes, allowing their buildings, grandstands, parking lots and other improvements to be written off over 7 years. IRC § 168(e)(3)(c)(ii). To write the limitation so that it mainly affected auto race tracks, as opposed to dog tracks, took 213 words in IRC § 168(i)(15). The provision was set to expire December 31, 2009, but it was extended to 2011 by § 738 of the Obama Tax Capitulation Act of 2010, more politely known as Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010.

One of the fun parts of tax issues is to see who benefits from a loophole. The obvious answer is International Speedway Corporation, the publicly held company that owns a bunch of NASCAR tracks, including Daytona, Talladega, Michigan International, Darlington and Watkins Glen.

Now the Very Serious People will tell you these Tax Breaks are stimulative, that they create economic demand and jobs and by the Miracle of the discredited Trickle Down Voodoo Supply Side Economics of the last 30 years they somehow benefit you.

This is a bald faced LIE!

I refuse to believe that the availability of this deduction made the slightest difference in the budgeting decisions of International Speedway Corporation. This budget was set with full knowledge that the loophole would expire at the end of 2009, and projects were going forward without the exemption. The loophole did not create a single job. The extension is a pure gift to the company.

I call it a Miracle because it’s supernatural.  There’s not one shred of evidence that supports it, it’s just one of those things you take on faith like any true believing Jihadi Fundamentalist.  No more scientific than burnt offerings to Mammon.

I also liked the editor’s note-

(A)nother post in Firedoglake’s semi-regular series exposing and exploring ways in which the federal government spends vast sums or forsakes vital revenue in a perpetual, profligate and pathetic quest to assure corporate America that the elected representatives of we the people are really, truly, madly, deeply “business friendly.” With each story, we hope to highlight another government giveaway, tax break, or loophole handcrafted by lawmakers and lobbyists to keep the powerful powerful and make the rich richer. If the reverse Robin Hoodism rises to special heights, we will present it with the FDL Wealthy Welfare Award-or, as we have taken to calling it back here, The Grafty.