The New Republic

Talk show host Oprah Winfrey taped her farewell show yesterday at the United Center in Chicago. In front of 13,000 spectators (13,000!), a host of celebrities made surprise guest appearances, including Michael Jordan, Tom Cruise, Maya Angelou, Will Smith, and Madonna. READ MORE >>

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[Guest post by James Downie] Gather round, everyone! George Will has a history lesson for us! READ MORE >>

Today is Friday the 13th, a day feared by the campers at Crystal Lake, as well as nonfictional humans around the world. (A quick diagnostic quiz: Do you fear Friday the 13th? Then you have paraskevidekatriaphobia. Fear the number 13? Then you have triskaidekaphobia. Fear everything? READ MORE >>

Flooding along the Mississippi River continues to dominate headlines, as Mississippi and Louisiana brace for record water levels. READ MORE >>

Judgment Day will occur on May 21, 2011, at least according to Harold Camping. No, he's not a movie exec promoting another blu-ray release of Terminator 2 (the Double Secret Skynet Edition). READ MORE >>

This morning, Microsoft announced it is purchasing Internet phone company Skype for $8.5 billion. Market analysts interpreted the technology giant's latest acquisition as an attempt to compete in the communications market with Google, Apple, and other rivals who have made big strides into the internet telephony market. READ MORE >>

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While some parts of the South are dealing with (or bracing for) record floods, others are anticipating another kind of flood: a flood of cicadas. READ MORE >>

As mentioned in the last post, flooding along the Mississippi River continues to be the major domestic news story of the day. Residents of low-lying areas of Memphis have been asked to evacuate, as the river rises to 48 feet, just shy of the record set in the terrible flood of 1927, the most destructive in American history. READ MORE >>