Poisoning

I've been following the shooting of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya and the subsequent poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko. It's a bad time to be a Russian critical of one's own country:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6167728.stm

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2462885,00.html

Robert Altman dies at 81

There's very little significant coverage as of yet, but Robert Altman died today. I was surprised to find it hurt. I'm not a raving Altman fan, but I can't imagine a world in which there will never be another new Altman film. For better or for worse, his style was unique, and I believe that he was just really discovering what it meant to be a filmmaker.