For George Lucas in particular, as well as for the film and theater industries more broadly, the release of "Sith" is shaping up as a "going out with a bang" event.

That's nice, because in more ways than one, tonight represents the beginning of the end of the beginning.

On the ride to the bottom, we hope you enjoy the bad dialogue, clumsy attempts at political commentary, and lush digital fakery. And please remember to disable your John Williams ringtones. (Unfortunately, there is just no stopping the silly cheering, clapping, and other equally pointless antics of the overzealous True Believers.)

At Movietickets.com, a spokesman said the new "Star Wars" film accounted for 98 percent of all tickets sold on Monday.

The film industry has limped along through a blockbuster-free spring. Over all, box office receipts are down 8 percent for the year to date, and weekend grosses have been lower than last year's for 12 straight weeks. Nationwide attendance at movies this year is 7 percent lower than in 2003.

But, lo! -- sales of Katamari Damacy are up sharply! The stars are coming back! I feel the cosmos!

I'm sure you know the old saw about how "Dog Bites Man" isn't news, but "Man Bites Dog" is.

Perhaps there should be a new variation on the theme, in which "Head Bites Own Tail" isn't news, but "Long Tail Strangles Head" is.

Have you ever seen a snake commit suicide? You will, and the dying giant that will bring it to you: Hollywood.

In the future, will people look at "Star Wars" as today we look at the Cathedral of Notre Dame?

'Star Wars' on Track for Record Opening

NASA chief Dr. Michael Griffin said he would reconsider the Hubble mission after the first two shuttle test flights determined if it would be safe to attempt it.

Hubble: Not Dead Yet

The Muslim world's silence about the real desecration of Iraqis, coupled with its outrage over the alleged desecration of a Koran, highlights what we are up against in trying to stabilize Iraq -- as well as the only workable strategy going forward.

There is no monopoly on hypocrisy.

However, on further inspection, it is often revealed to be an incomplete or inaccurate (or both) understanding by the observer of the alleged hypocrite's motives and priorities.

Just because someone's behavior seems irrational doesn't make it so. Often it just means you don't know what they know.

Outrage and Silence

Starting in September, some of the nation's most influential op-ed voices will disappear from the blogosphere, including Tom Friedman, Maureen Dowd, Nicholas Kristof, Paul Krugman, Frank Rich, David Brooks, Bob Herbert, Gretchen Morgenson, and more.

The New York Times is not downsizing. All of these authors will still have jobs in September. But online access to their columns will require a $50 annual subscription fee.

To entice readers to pay for this content, several extras are being tossed into the offer. Foremost among the extras is access to the archives.

"We're happy to see The New York Times acknowledging the importance of subscription-based revenue that we have long seen as a key element," said Todd Larsen of the Wall Street Journal.

Will you subscribe? Or will you say goodbye to Tom Friedman?

Think of the children!

NYTimes.com to Offer Subscription Service

Mike the Usurper wrote:
] ] The department did not say what it planned to do with
] ] Posada, who is wanted by Venezuela and Cuba. But it said
] ] that generally, the U.S. government does not return
] ] people to Cuba or to countries acting on Cuba's behalf.

This is an interesting comment for the US government to be making.

Right now, I'm reading a new book by Timothy Naftali, "Blind Spot", that tells the "secret history" of American counterterrorism. (I recently memed a review of it from the New York Review of Books.)

In the book, it is explained that during the 1970s, the US experienced a rash of hijackings in which (for the most part) American citizens commandeered commercial airliners in attempts to reach Cuba and also frequently used the incidents to make various public statements of an anti-American nature.

I'll include a brief excerpt related to the above ... (pages 65-66 in the book):

In the days that followed [the November 1972 hijacking of Southern Airlines Flight 49], even the political taboo of dealing with Fidel Castro was temporarily suspended. After the Castro regime arrested the hijackers and sent word that they were interested in negotiating an antihijacking pact with Washington, the Nixon administration initiated indirect negotiations through the Swiss. Three months later, the United States and Cuba initialed the first agreement ever between the two countries since Castro had come to power. Both countries agreed either to try hijackers or to return them and to provide safe passage for the aircraft or ship and its passengers. In a concession to the Cuban government, which had concerns about the activities of Cuban-exile groups in the United States, the two countries agreed to prosecute terrorists who used the territory of one signatory to attack the other. Havana and Washington also agreed to retain the right to grant political asylum to each other's dissidents.

I highly recommend the book to those with a historical and/or contemporary interest in the subject of counterterrorism in particular and international relations in general.

US Detains Cuban Linked to 1976 Bombing

Because of the complexity of the new games and the longer development time needed, Mr. Tretton expects development costs to rise to more than $20 million for PlayStation 3 games, from the typical $10 million to $15 million today.

For those keeping score, Sony's estimate of per-game costs for next-generation systems is substantially higher than Microsoft's.

Sony Unveils Details About PlayStation 3

The policy, considered the first of its type in the nation, does not authorize the teaching of intelligent design. But in its direct challenge to evolution - it says that Darwin's theory has "gaps" for which "there is no evidence" - it has sparked a federal lawsuit and Dover's liveliest school board election in memory.

Sleepy Election Is Jolted by Evolution

The latest struggle over the teaching of evolution in the public schools of Kansas provides striking evidence that evolution is occurring right before our eyes. Every time the critics of Darwinism lose a battle over reshaping the teaching of biology, they evolve into a new form, armed with arguments that sound progressively more benign, while remaining as dangerous as ever.

The Evolution of Creationism

But the discovery is more than just a shoo-in for that journal's annual Ig Nobel Prize - it raises provocative questions about the science and ethics of human sexuality.

Steven Pinker: Sniffing Out the Gay Gene

Oh, no! Say it ain't so, Ray! Say it ain't so!

The show's departure, on the heels of "Friends," "Frasier" and "Sex and the City," increases the sitcom shortfall. This year, "Everybody Loves Raymond" is the only top 10 comedy.

"So many shows are just joke bags," says creator Phil Rosenthal.

Raymond: "You're talking to the president of the Fat, Ugly Old Ladies Club. Welcome! Have a doughnut!"

"It's the one thing that appeals to the audience: They see themselves," says Raymond.

'Everybody' says goodbye, Raymond