Hot off the Press: Fight Night at the Iowa State Fair edition

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation donated $1 million to the Republican Governors Association, saying "News Corp. has always believed in the power of free markets, and organizations like the R.G.A., which have a pro-business agenda, support our priorities at this most critical time for our economy": http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/18/us/politics/18donate.html?.

A second set of radar cameras is going up on Interstate 380 through Cedar Rapids: http://gazetteonline.com/local-news/public-safety/2010/08/18/second-set-of-cameras-on-northbound-i-380-going-up-this-week. Fuck you, Cedar Rapids.

After the Russian ban on exporting wheat, you'd think American farmers would be salivating over the potential spike in wheat prices. Not really: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/us/20farm.html?_r=1&hp.

Of course: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/us/20spill.html?_r=1&hp.

Separated from its iconic monument by a 10-lane freeway, St. Louis is trying to find ways to physically reconnect its downtown to the Gateway Arch and surrounding park: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/21/us/21arch.html?ref=us.

The Meskwaki Settlement School hosted its first home varsity football game Friday night: http://iowaprepsports.com/featured/2010/08/20/video-photos-meskwaki-hosts-first-prep-football-game.

In South Africa, the ANC appears to be trying to "muzzle" the press with a law punishing the disclosure of any information the government deems in national interest with 3-25 years in prison: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/23/world/africa/23safrica.html?_r=1&ref=world. This graph is especially chilling:

The clash between the press and the party of South Africa’s liberation has helped fuel anxieties that the country — a regional powerhouse that plays a critical stabilizing role in Africa — could be going the way of Zimbabwe, where those who fought for majority rule morphed into a kleptocratic elite that has used repression to hang onto power.

For whatever reason, a ton of fights were breaking out just outside the entrances of the Iowa State Fairgrounds this year. The Des Moines Pigs needed to beef up security. Here's an account of some of the shit that went down on the last night of the fair: http://blogs.desmoinesregister.com/dmr/index.php/2010/08/23/unruly-crowd-attacks-police-on-last-night-of-state-fair/.

The owners of the Empire State Building are not pleased about plans that would build a skyscraper nearly as tall two blocks away: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/24/nyregion/24empire.html?_r=1&hp.

Germany is planning to restructure and reduce its military: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/24/world/europe/24iht-germany.html?ref=world.

"What Is It About 20-Somethings?": http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/magazine/22Adulthood-t.html?.

Many in the French town of Point-Saint-Esprit now think the CIA may have been behind a wave of mass hallucinations and nausea; the town may have been an involuntary guinea pig in LSD testing: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-10996838.