Funny film, tragic JonBenet case put creepy pageants in spotlight

'So you're saying [the JonBenet case] actually helped theindustry?"

"Exactly. It gave it more of a national exposure and it gave thepeople the idea that this was a business model they could be a partof. . . . The industry experienced a growth in participation." --From a Newsweek/MSNBC.com interview with Carl Dunn, the CEO ofPageantry Magazine.

The final sequence in the darkly hilarious "Little Miss Sunshine"takes place at a child beauty pageant set in a depressingly generichotel banquet hall in Redondo Beach, Calif.

It's the funniest and also perhaps the most disturbing set pieceof the year -- a savage sendup of little girl beauty contests thathad me …

The Aftermath

Since the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, Americans have heard that if they want to be patriotic, if they want to show terrorists that they can't destroy the nation's will, they should go out and buy something.

It's been only a few weeks, but there are a great many signs that Americans are hearing that message but not heeding it, at least in a way that might calm the fears of retailers and economic analysts. The reasons are obvious. People don't feel secure - about their own safety or the prospects for the economy. After watching the terrorist attacks over and over again on television and reading about the layoffs announced in the days that followed, no one can blame …

Oil tumbles below $44 a barrel

Oil tumbled below $44 a barrel Thursday to levels last seen nearly four years ago as unemployment benefit claims hit a 26-year high and major companies announced more job cuts.

Though the unprecedented decline in energy prices provides some relief to consumers and businesses, it has occurred as the U.S. dips into recession.

Also hitting new lows were average retail gasoline prices, which fell below $1.80 a gallon (below 47 cents a liter) nationally for the first time since January 2005.

Part of the reason gas prices have fallen so low is that many people no longer have jobs to drive to and fewer people have money to spend shopping. Gasoline …

Society has no right to take life - whether by abortion or execution

The recent Supreme Court decisions expanding the scope of thedeath penalty reflects one of the more caustic ironies of thisrapidly evolving age of moral anarchy. In the majority of the courtdefending execution were those justices who are consistentlystringent in their opposition to abortion. In dissent were thosejustices who are most adamant in defense of a woman's supposed rightto kill a living being.

The court, shrouded in arcane legal reasoning, finds itselfdistracted by whether the death penalty is discriminatory or whetherthe public should fund abortions. Unfortunately, the court nowignores as resolved the basic issue of whether society has the rightto abort or …

WCHS anchor leaving station for job in home state: 'Good Morning West Virginia' co-host has been with organization; for seven years

DAILY MAIL STAFF

WCHS-TV anchor Laura Baker is leaving Charleston after sevenyears.

Baker, 30, is resigning Dec. 14 to take a position in her homestate of Florida. Baker will be director of Public Relations andCommunity Affairs for the Sembler Company in St. Petersburg. Thecompany manages retail centers throughout the Southeast.

Although Baker said she would miss the Charleston area, she saidit would be nice to be closer to her family.

"I haven't really spent a lot of time home since I was 17 yearsold and I missed everyone," Baker said. "I've been home from time totime for holidays, but now I'll get to be with them for everyholiday."

Baker grew …

Despite notable year, mainstream success eludes short films

The short has enjoyed a year of mainstream attention.

As a prelude to "The Darjeeling Limited," Wes Anderson created the 13-minute "Hotel Chevalier." Earlier this year "Paris, Je T'Aime" assembled 18 well-known directors to each make a short film set in a Paris arrondissement. And Pixar again released a highly anticipated animated feature ("Ratatouille") with a memorable short played beforehand ("Lifted").

Yet widespread popularity has proved elusive for the short film. While the short story remains a great tradition in literature, the cinematic equivalent is largely marginalized.

Shorts predate …

Obama picks fight on taxes, big or just symbolic

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is renewing an old fight with the business community by insisting that $400 billion in tax increases be part of a deficit-reduction package. His proposals have languished on Capitol Hill, repeatedly blocked by Republicans, often with help from Democrats.

Some would raise big money. Limiting tax deductions for high-income families and small business owners could raise more than $200 billion over the next decade. Others are more symbolic, such as scaling back a tax break for companies that buy corporate jets.

The corporate jet proposal would raise $3 billion over the next decade, according to GOP congressional aides. That's a relatively …