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Demolish Taj Mahal? Indian Pol Muhammad Azam Khan Says it Should Have Never Been Built {AOL Real Estate}
Feb 2nd 2013 4:34PM This guy, Azam Khan, is stupid. I don't know much either about the history of India or what kind of ruler Shah Jahan was. So my comments are strictly geared to economics. Today, the Taj Mahal attracts over 2 million visitors a year. If each of those visitors spend an average of $100 on their pilgrimage to the Taj Mahal, that's over 200 million tourist dollars that would not be spent each year if the Taj Mahal did not exist. I think the Taj Mahal has paid India back its original $200 million (today's dollars) construction cost many times over in its 360 year existence.
Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick Angers Hamptons Neighbors With Hedge Blocking Views {AOL Real Estate}
Oct 15th 2012 4:02AM This article is misleading. My family has a property that has been designated as an agricultural preserve. An "agricultural preserve" typically does not receive taxpayer funding for it's upkeep as the article states. It is a designation for property an owner seeks to get a property tax break. The property owner is responsible for the upkeep. An owner of a large property applies for this status and agrees to certain conditions; one of which is they agree to not develop the property for anything but agriculture. They don't have to farm the property, just not develop it; planting a lawn and flower gardens (and yes hedges) would be considered agriculture. This status was created to prevent overdevelopment of open spaces. When granted this status, the property owner usually has to agree to maintain the agricultural preserve for a specified period of time (i.e. 8 years, etc). I'm not familiar with the specific bylaws of the town, but I suspect that a court will rule in his favor that he may plant whatever he wants, including a hedge. I also doubt his nosey neighbors have a legal right to see onto his property and what goes on behind those hedges. Another article I read says his farm is 40 acres, a 300 foot barn would not block the view of 40 acres, they should have left him build his barn.
SmackDown: Would You Publicly Punish Your Child? {ParentDish}
Feb 22nd 2011 3:41PM I wasn't sure what I thought, until I read both pro and con. I have to go with the pro on this one. Being embarrassed about a pimple is not the same as being embarrassed about not caring about your grades. If the mother is doing HER homework and talking to the teachers, encouraging and helping her child with his homework, and getting counseling for her and her son for any other problems her son may be having then maybe a little embarrassment will help. She should also look at his friends and see if they are part of the problem. Embarrassment alone will not make a difference and may even be harmful. However, in this situation, it might be the last tool to get her child to care.
The Jimmy Stewart Museum Faces An Uncertain Future {Luxist}
Dec 25th 2010 1:56PM Back in those days, actors were under contract with a movie studio. You got paid whatever your contract was for and that was it. The studio owned the movie and any residuals went to the studio not the actor. Usually the contracts stated how long you were under contract and how many movies you had to make before the end of the contract. While under contract, you could not make a movie for any other studio unless you had the permission of your contract holder. Sometimes studios would loans stars to other studios if they needed money (one studio would pay the other studio for the actor; the actor would still not receive anything above his original contract.) Or, a studio traded stars if they both had one the other wanted. This system, for the most part, ended in the 60s and 70s. Elizabeth Taylor and Marilyn Monroe were some of the more famous actors who fought the studio heads to either get better or get out of their contracts.
The Jimmy Stewart Museum Faces An Uncertain Future {Luxist}
Dec 25th 2010 10:36AM Read the original article in the Wall Street Journal, it's much more informative. Just click on the link within the above article
The Jimmy Stewart Museum Faces An Uncertain Future {Luxist}
Dec 25th 2010 10:21AM You would have thought the author of this article would have mentioned why there is a museum for Jimmy Stewart in Indiana, PA in the first place. Jimmy Stewart grew up in Indiana, PA. His family had a hardware store. His family home still stands. Indiana looks similar to Bedford Falls of It's a Wonderful Life; a nice small town. There is a statue of Jimmy Stewart in front of the courthouse which is next to the Jimmy Stewart Museum. The airport is called The Jimmy Steward Airport. There is a road named Jimmy Stewart Boulevard. Downtown, you can even hear Jimmy Stewarts voice letting you know it's safe to cross the street (courtesy of Rich Little). Check out the Jimmy Stewart Museum website at www.jimmy.org. Indiana, PA is also home to Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Birth Of A Montblanc: Making The World's Finest Pen & Why You Should Write With One {Luxist}
Nov 20th 2010 11:38AM I own a few of these pens and thought this article would be interesting. However, I found it hard to get through the author's self indulgent vocabulary and many tangents. My suggestion would be a good editor.
Fed up passengers demand child-free flights {Gadling}
Nov 16th 2010 7:48PM It was very nice of you to take the responsibility of entertaining and feeding someone else's child. It would have been even nicer if the mother had the parenting skills and brought snacks for her own child. I hope you will be close to me on my next flight just in case there is another child with an inadequate parent. And, I might be hungry for a cheese-it myself!
Fed up passengers demand child-free flights {Gadling}
Nov 16th 2010 1:21PM On a recent US Airways flight, I was sitting in a "preferred" seat. A passenger from first class brought his screaming child back and sat in the empty row next to me while his child screamed because his sister wouldn't let him watch his movie on their dvd player. After about a 1/2 hour of screaming and crying, the father went back and brought his daughter back and they watched dvds with the volume way up. When the child stopped crying they went back to first class only to return every time the child had another fit. This went on during the entire 4 hour flight. What gives them the right to make mine and everyone else's in the area miserable? They should have been told to return to their seats. I know that I would have been chastised for just using a first class bathroom, let alone bringing my screaming child there so I wouldn't disturb the people sitting near me. The flight attendants did nothing.
Top ten overrated international travel destinations {Gadling}
Nov 4th 2010 12:20PM I've been to many of these tourist spots and agree that I would not make any of them a destination vacation. However, some of them are well worth seeing and experiencing if you happen to be either in the area or passing by. For example, while traveling on the rails in Italy, we stopped for a few hours in Pisa and found the town to be very charming had a delicious lunch, great shopping and was surprised that the tower is surrounded by a complex of beautiful period buildings.
