The preliminary ratings are in, and this year's Academy Awards had some of the worst ratings ever. Not surprising. In a very real sense, the Academy Awards shouldn't have tried to go on as usual: they should have tried something different, i don't know what, but not the same attempted ceremonial crap. Listen: if Miss America can't find an audience, why should the Academy Awards?

The New York Times has reported that the reason that Brown and the other universities have decided on this new grant program is that the endowments that these schools sit on are huge, and if the money isn't dispersed as indicated in the charters, if these endowments do not result in "charitable" work, then the federal government will have the right to revoke the educational and nonprofit status of those schools. If they say they're taking in money on behalf of needy students, damn if those students shouldn't get that money.