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A quick look at today's news — and Al Martinez's final regular column for the Times — tucked away after the jump.
News
Getty acquires manuscript
The Getty Museum announced today the acquisition of the Northumberland Bestiary, a 13th century work the museum calls "one of the world's finest examples of English Gothic manuscript illumination."
Villaraigosa's struggling image
The Times' Duke Helfand goes front page with an analysis positing that "as Villaraigosa approaches the midpoint of his four-year term, political observers agree that he is scrambling to maintain his initial momentum and deliver tangible results on numerous promises, even as recent events have opened the door to rare public criticism from at least one prominent elected leader: county Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky." LAT
Bratton interview with Time magazine
The chief told Time.com's Sonja Steptoe that he has no doubt about being reappointed: "MacArthur Park no doubt will be a significant setback to the department's image, but we'll come out of it as we always do, learning from it, not hiding from it, willing to talk about it, and not circling the wagons." Time.com
Gang murder down 32% this year
Student leader says suicide bombers justified
The president of the Muslim Student Association at Cal State Long Beach says Islam justifies bombing in Palestine. Jewish Journal
Fireplace limits may be coming
The AQMD dropped a plan to require expensive pollution controls before homes are sold, but has proposed a ban on wood-burning fireplaces in new homes in Los Angeles, Orange and portions of Riverside and San Bernardino counties as well as a ban on use of wood-burning fires on high pollution days. LAT, Breeze
Noted
Al Martinez's last column
Or is it? The column in today's Times leaves open the possibility of some future writing for the paper. He met this week with editor Jim O'Shea. Martinez also gives his future email: almtz13@aol.com. Excerpt:
The editor of the section of which my column is a small and barely visible part telephoned on an otherwise uneventful afternoon to say that my column, in its present form, is ending and that I am being given a buyout.
No one asked if I wanted it. I would have said no. I would have said I'm not ready yet. My prose is strong and my mind is clear. I'm still climbing upward. There is still a summit I haven't reached, a sunrise I haven't seen.
But they didn't ask.
KCRW debut
"LA Observed" the four minute commentary on KCRW premieres this afternoon at 4:44 pm at 89.9 FM or kcrw.com.
