I do not remember ever seeing The Good Night theaters. Nor, do I remember even reading about this film in any “Coming Soon” articles. The first time I even heard of it was in the video store. There it was staring at me from the shelves. It is surprising to me that this movie went straight to DVD because the cast consists of Gwenyth Paltrow, Penelope Cruz, Danny Devito and Simon Pegg, who is growing ever more recognizable. Oh, did I mention, The Good Night is written and directed by Jake Paltrow, brother to Oscar-winning Hollywood starlet, Gwenyth? The Good Night has the potential to be good (excuse the pun), but it just misses the mark of eccentricity and becomes essentially just plain odd. Read the rest of this entry »

by Alejandro de los Rios

The Freezers. That might be a good name for the Jazz considering how they chilled the Hornets into scoring just 66 points on 36.5% shooting tonight.

Molasses. That’s a good name for the Hornets — at least on a night that they looked like they were wearing lead-based sneakers. Read the rest of this entry »

by Alejandro de los Rios

Going down this stretch run towards the playoffs, Tyson Chandler and Byron Scott have both talked about how these last couple of games work as conditioning for the playoffs. Well, the Hornets are getting one hell of a workout right now courtesy of the Utah Jazz. and were down at the half.

But let’s get onto more important matters. Specifically, what do Jazz players think about their team’s name?

“We actually had a discussion about this less than a week ago,” C.J. Miles said. “If it started in Utah they wouldn’t be the Jazz.”

So what would they be if they did? Read the rest of this entry »

As Allison Fensterstock so effectively described in this week’s cover story “V to the Tenth,” the tenth anniversary celebration of V-Day is a global effort focused on ending violence against women. Although much of the violence against women does involve rape and other despicable acts, it doesn’t always occur in such an overt manner. Sometimes it can be a subtle as a lie about sexual history, or a man refusing to wear a condom. Outside of the rubber prophylactic, when it comes to heterosexual sex, a woman has little say or power over contracting HIV.

Thanks to research currently being conducted at Tulane University that could change. Read the rest of this entry »

by Alejandro de los Rios

In honor of the ongoing debate we’ve been having here over the Hornets name, and the fact that the team that took the original name is in town tonight, I bring you the opening scene to BASEketball (Hornets fans would be best served to skip to the 3:37 mark). Read the rest of this entry »

By: Allen Johnson

Much of the NOPD’s Brown Plan involves technical recommendations such as upgrading police vehicles, which the study calls “the rolling storefronts” of the force. On another front, NOPD and area ministers are expected to kick off a more visible effort — a youth mentoring program in crime-riddled Central City. “We’re going to use our crime prevention officers as mentors in those areas [and] try to pull those kids off the street, get them involved in some positive activities, from educational activities to sports activities,” Police Chief Warren Riley says. The chief later added: “We’re focusing on Central City because … we’re certainly having some problems with the youth in that community.” Community activists have long complained about police harassment of neighborhood youths, especially those sporting dreadlocks and baggy pants. The Brown Plan encourages cops to work with community members to resolve problems and to set priorities. NOPD Lt. Gervais Allison Sr., an 18-year veteran of the force, is the department’s point man for the effort. Pastors include Rev. John Raphael, a former NOPD officer.

By: Allen Johnson

New Orleans Police Chief Warren Riley says NOPD has completed 60 percent of 371 “tasks” required by the Brown Plan, a highly touted community policing strategy the department unveiled last July to restore public confidence. The remaining 40 percent will take longer because more money, personnel and facilities are needed, Riley says, adding, “Once we get up to our full strength in personnel and technology, those things will be implemented.” The chief says he will provide more details on the Brown Plan in the coming weeks. Expansion of neighborhood foot patrols — easily the most popular component of community policing — will have to wait until NOPD can hire more officers. NOPD is down some 300 cops from a pre-Katrina “high” of 1,741 officers. Thanks to pay raises and bonuses for specialized training and educational advancement, NOPD is no longer hemorrhaging cops. Named for private consultant Lee Brown, the plan cost roughly $225,000, which the private New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation paid. “The plan is comprehensive in that it provides recommendations for improvement in all areas of operations,” says Heidi Unter, the foundation’s chief operating officer. Riley announced the study shortly after thousands of crime-weary citizens marched on City Hall on Jan. 11, 2007.

By: Jeremy Alford

Because Gov. Bobby Jindal’s focus during the current legislative session is workforce development, one could easily miss his $18 million commitment to help physicians and rural hospitals switch to electronic medical records. The challenges associated with paper documents became particularly acute during the 2005 storm season when wind and floodwaters destroyed medical records that can mean the difference between life and death for seriously ill patients. Between disasters, antiquated recordkeeping can still prove disastrous. Studies show that as many as 100,000 Americans die every year from avoidable medical errors. Meanwhile, nurses spend hours filling out or chasing down paperwork when they could be providing care. “The development of the Louisiana Health Information Exchange will provide a seamless flow of patient data from hospitals, insurance companies and physicians across the state to ensure the highest level of patient care,” Jindal says. Despite being a priority at the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals for several years, fewer than 10 percent of hospitals nationwide have even begun to implement similar health-information technology, according to the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy.