Media-Whore D'Oevres



"Government contracting documents show that the U.S. Air Force preferred the size and capability of aerial refueling tankers offered by Northrop Grumman Corp. and the parent of Airbus, giving the two an edge in winning a high-profile $40 billion contract over Boeing Co. The Air Force also had concerns about Boeing's costs for early development work and about its past program management, according to Air Force documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal ... Last month, the Air Force selected Northrop and European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. to supply 179 tankers, an upset over the favored Boeing bid. Since then, Boeing and its congressional supporters in Washington state and Kansas have tried to challenge the decision.Boeing last week formally protested the contract loss to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, citing a range of issues that include a biased process, problems with Air Force cost analysis that raised its estimates by $5.2 billion and trade subsidies for Airbus. A decision is expected by mid-June. An Air Force spokeswoman said the service ran a fair and open competition and that Boeing was within its rights to protest. A Northrop Grumman spokesman said it 'won the tanker competition fair and square.'" (WSJ)

"Think About Life were, unlike me at that point, full of energy and they put on a pretty good show, though I thought the sound was a little too muddled. So many New Yorkers are in Austin for SXSW, you basically run into more people you know or recognize while you're at SXSW than you would on any other week back home. This show was no exception, and one easily recognizable member of the crowd was Bronques from Last Night's Party who also seemed to know some people who were with the band...... probably related to his former life as a Canadian musician, and probably what got him to this somewhat random rock show ... I was going to eventually end up at the late-night VICE party that started at midnight, but that prospect wasn't totally exciting me either because the lineup was Jay Reatard, Fucked Up, and Dark Meat - all of whom I had already seen either that day or the day before. That's when my friend said he was off to the Perez Hilton party." (BrooklynVegan)

"When the cast and crew of CBS’ How I Met Your Mother were informed that Britney Spears was slated to do a guest stint on the show, no one knew what to expect.. 'I kept saying, You’re serious? She’s going to do it? She’s not going to back out?' Mother costar Neil Patrick Harris (Barney) says in this week’s cover story of TV Guide magazine (March 24 issue; on newsstands March 19). Spears not only showed up on time for her first day of work, but she was early—and by accounts a consummate professional; there were no outbursts or diva antics or outrageous demands ... 'She was so funny and she already had her character down pat,' adds Alyson Hannigan (Lily). 'I had no idea she had such great comic timing.'" (TVGuide)