Hot off the Press: The news just gets worse and worse edition

The house that inspired F. Scott Fitzgerald to write The Great Gatsby appears doomed to be razed and the land sold for new developments: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jacketcopy/2011/03/fitzgerald-gatsby-house-doomed.html.

Peter King, the man at the helm of Congressional hearings on the radicalization of American Muslims, was a firm supporter of the IRA, even saying, "If civilians are killed in an attack on a military installation, it is certainly regrettable, but I will not morally blame the I.R.A. for it.": http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/us/politics/09king.html.

Extensive exercise for older, high-endurance athletes (we're talking ulta-marathon runners) contributes to heart damage: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/when-exercise-is-too-much-of-a-good-thing/.

That said, studies done on mice show that physical activity reduces or eliminates the detrimental effects of aging: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/02/can-exercise-keep-you-young/.

An English soccer player who tackled a "streaker" in a mankini was given a red card for violent conduct: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-12682897. The FA, English soccer's governing association, will likely dismiss his dismissal.

As independent grocers close in small Iowa towns close, grocery options dwindle for those living in the area: http://thegazette.com/2011/03/10/grocery-options-dwindling-in-many-rural-iowa-towns/.

Downtown Iowa City business owners are mulling the creation of a special tax to pay for a professional marketing agent for the area: http://thegazette.com/2011/03/09/special-tax-district-considered-for-downtown-iowa-city/.

Iowa Governor Terry Branstad "has appointed a lawyer to the Iowa Judicial Nominating Commission who is suing the commission on behalf of several Iowans": http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20110310/NEWS10/103100344/Des-Moines-lawyer-is-named-to-panel-he-s-suing-by-Branstad. Can you say "conflict of interest" kids?

Ozone alerts are now becoming common in a place you would least expect it: Pinedale, Wyoming: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/10/us/10smog.html.

"When pop stars Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, Nelly Furtado and 50 Cent recently said they'd renounced millions of dollars they'd received for performing for members of Libyan strongman Moammar Kadafi's family, they drew attention to a growing and controversial cultural phenomenon: celebrity artists being hired by rich, powerful and sometimes disreputable clients to play at private or semi-private functions": http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-music-dictators-20110311,0,3275782.story. Hey! Must be da money!

The Iowa legislature is mulling two bills that would ban undercover recordings at livestock processing facilities: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20110315/NEWS10/103150363/Bills-ban-undercover-recordings-at-animal-facilities. No doubt the pork and beef lobbies are behind this. Yet another reason I don't eat meat.