The Militant (logo)  
   Vol. 68/No. 10           March 15, 2004  
 
 
Great Society
 
Over easy—According to the English-language Saudi [Arabia] Gazette, Sotheby in London will auction nine Faberge Imperial Easter Eggs. The Gazette provides a fascinating description and history of the famed golden eggs crafted for the Russian imperialist dynasty.

Gazette columnist Susannah Tarbush writes: “The extraordinary Coronation Egg commissioned by Nicholas II in 1897 is expected to sell for between $18 million and $24 million. The egg opens to reveal a velvet-lined compartment containing a replica of a coach in which Alexandra made her grand entry into Moscow.”

Wait, there’s more—The nine eggs were acquired by Malcolm Forbes, publisher of Forbes magazine, which includes in its venerable logo, “Capitalist tool.” Meanwhile, the Saudi Gazette reports, the Forbes family is now marketing the eggs. One problem was Steve Forbes. He dropped a bundle contending twice for the Republican presidential nomination.

Cops will be cops—In Denver, the American Civil Liberties Union filed its fifth suit against the cops for refusing to disclose complaints filed by victims of abuse. Joining with the ACLU is Terrill Johnson, who is Black. He was “subdued,” arrested at gunpoint two years ago.

An airline mechanic, Johnson was followed from the airport to home by a squad car. With reinforcements summoned to Johnson’s home, they hurled racist epithets at him and demanded he drop his gun. He had no gun to drop. A year later, authorities dropped the charges against Johnson, asserting some of them were true, others not. They refused to say which was which.

Keep hollering—A few weeks ago, a group of students did a study of the pirate price of college textbooks. The report pointed to a top-dollar book of $100 plus. The publishing house responded coming books would be turned out in cheaper quality and a 25 percent price discount to dealers.

You can bet on it—“Markets usually gain, no matter who wins”—USA Today’s headline on elections article.

Gnawing at reality—Georgia education officials are working to scrap the word “evolution” in science courses for middle and high school classes. Also, they are pushing the “creation” mumbo-jumbo contention that the earth and all matter on it were created a few thousand years ago.

Hey grandpa—Kathy Cox, Georgia superintendent of schools, told the media that the word “evolution” is a buzzword and causes a lot of negative reaction. She added that folks associate it with “that monkey-to-man sort of thing.”

Slam dunk!—Genetics professor Francisco J. Ayala responded: “Creation is not science. So it should not be taught in a science class. We don’t teach astrology instead of astronomy, or witchcraft practices instead of medicine.”  
 
 
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