Photo by highervision via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr This evening a public viewing will be held for slain LA High football star Jamiel Shaw, with funeral services to follow tomorrow. Shaw's tragic murder has prompted many LA residents to refocus on the senselessness of gang-related violence. Go, stop, go, stop: Commuters northbound on the 57 and the 605 transitioning to the 210 westbound this morning were greeted by the new traffic......

Don't be angsty like this lady...go out tonight! / Photo by Plankton 4:20 via LAist's flickr pool. FILM “Animation Nite: From Halifax with Love” is a program at the Echo Park Film Center that features short animated and semi-animated films by women who’ve all lived in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, eh. The screening includes work by host Siloën Daley and six others. Music by local band Foot Foot follows. 7:30 // Echo Park Film......

Some say photo agencies are hiring gang members to follow Britney with cameras | Photo by pointnshoot via Flickr Yesterday's Britney Spears conservatorship hearing was like a ghost town. You see, only lawyers representing both sides of the family were there and in the end, father James Spears' temporary control over her life and estate was extended until at least March 10, allowing him to handle financial matters at the moment such as her......

As was reported today on LAist, the writer's strike, which cost the city about $1 billion, is nearly over. We all know how involved Mayor V has been nudging the two sides back together. Oh, wait. But at least he weighed in today: "This agreement is a blockbuster for the Los Angeles economy. It will put thousands of writers, set designers, caterers, and behind-the-scenes workers back on the job this week." Blockbuster! HA! Election......

Los Angeles is $75 million in the red and the state is using the same colored crayon at $14 billion. And where's the Mayor? He's spending a lot of time with Hillary Clinton. Naysayers may suspect Mayor Villaraigosa is bored with LA already and is ready to climb the political ladder ASAP, but columnist Rick Orlov at the Daily News says it more has to do with a future run at Governor and better federal......

Pass the Bud Light and hold your babies tight to your laps: A grassroots movement has shot up on Venice Beach (surprise, surprise) to elect two of the most high-profile names in America to the White House. (And, no, Lindsay, that doesn't mean your dealer's pad.) Although the slogan seems to be "Rehabilitate in '08" we're not sure what the platform is. Family values, Ms. Spears? Oh, wait... there's that little situation with Jamie......

For baseball fans under the age of 35, reading the Mitchell report should be like taking repeated shots to the groin without the Nutty Buddy. With 75 names and guys who get shipped all over the country, you know your idols didn't escape. Me? I grew up in NorCal. Matt Williams? He was our hero on the hot-corner. Glenallen Hill? The only pro player from the small town I was growing up in. That's a......

President Bush may have passed a $460 billion defense bill, but he has vetoed a $150 billion bill that would have funded the Labor and Health and Human Services departments according to a report by the Daily News. It is also rumored that he will veto an upcoming $105.6 billion transportation bill. Congress is gearing up for a battle, with House Republicans upholding presidential vetoes and Democrats accusing their GOP counterparts of ignoring the......

1. The Obvious- My parents and sister are the most important people in the world to me. They support me in every boneheaded endeavor I partake in, and believe me, there are tons. It's astonishing how many, actually. 2. My friends. Once again, totally obvious. Once again, they're totally awesome. Much love to Porter House, SLC, Shalhevet, AU, and everyone who fits into all, some, or none of those categories. World rockers, each and every......

In a stunning accusation of a crime that in most circles is tantamount to treason, former White House mouthpiece Scott McClellan claims that President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Karl Rove and others were all in on outting 20-year CIA agent Valerie Plame. Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan blames President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney for efforts to mislead the public about the role of White House aides in leaking the identity......

The other shoe has dropped in the Barry Bonds steroid scandal as today federal prosecutors formerly accused the former Giant of obstructing justice and lying under oath. "I'm surprised," John Burris, one of Bonds' attorneys, told the AP, "but there's been an effort to get Barry for a long time. "I'm curious what evidence they have now they didn't have before." Even the president of the United States chimed in - thru a proxy.......

Two explosions ripped through a convoy carrying former Pakistani premier and maybe the country's best hope for Democracy, Benazir Bhutto, following her triumphant return after an eight-year exile. She was not hurt, but hundreds were killed and injured. How did the White House respond? By tying it back to the war on terrah, of course, saying, "Those responsible seek only to foster fear and limit freedom." A dump truck is in a "precarious spot"......

As it gets closer to Halloween for LAist, a contributer recollects her tale of staring down the serial killer, Richard Ramirez, otherwise known as the Night Stalker. Must think happy thoughts -- okay, free organic chocolate chip cookies for Los Angeles -- now that's a happy thought. Other happy Los Angeles thoughts include an interview with Jack Kehler of The Big Lebowski (he was the Dude's landlord), a beautiful and magical photographic moment in Venice......

Happy first weekend of September - and happy Labor Day weekend, too, for our American cities! Let's take a look at what's been happening around the Ist-a-verse. The deaths of two firefighters shook Bostonist this week. Boston's firefighters bent over backwards all week long - first, they fought flames pouring from the Boston Tea Party museum, and then a restaurant fire killed two and injured many more. Their efforts make everything else - like Tom......

Today the worst president ever got to share his thoughts on the worst AG ever, and the lies seethed out like snakes from Medusa's slithery scalp. This morning Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announced that he will leave the Department of Justice after two and a half years of service to the department. Al Gonzales is a man of integrity, decency and principle, and I have reluctantly accepted his resignation with great appreciation for the......

Eric Richardson of Blogdowntown snaps the above shot from a downtown commercial shoot yesterday: "Pictured is one scene from the commercial being shot, where a gaggle of females drop their workout to come press up against the window and see some brown guy. I would hope this'll make more sense by the time we see it on TV." Out best guess is that he is made out of chocolate. Los Angeles could soon be......

All eastbound lanes between Sepulveda and La Cienega boulevards on the 105 Freeway will be closed from 3 AM to midnight this weekend and next for filming. L.A. 11st District City Councilman Bill Rosendahl introduced a resolution today to impeach President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney. An ideal way to find all the farmers' markets in the L.A. region: LA Farmers' Market Mapplet. Jamie Foxx is shooting for another Oscar with......

There are very few bands that I hate more than Taking Back Sunday. Linkin Park is one of em. Remember that dog that used to say that he'd like to poop on things. I'd like to poop on the Projekt Revolution tour. Then I'd like to smear that poop on other things that I hate, like the current White House, assholes who try to politicize things like global warming and pretend it isn't happening,......

Sometimes people act a fool so they can get attention. Everyone knows this. But what most people forget is our elected officials work for us, not the other way around. In any relationship, honest communication is key. So when our elected officials act up, it's on us to let them know that we disprove. And just like in the blogosphere, it helps when you have the guts to put your name next to it.......

- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi calls the Scooter Libby commutation "a betrayal of trust of the American people" - The Gavel - "Bush is to Libby as Baca is to Paris Hilton", says AnnieH - LA Times - Three Dodgers (Saito, Martin, Penny) make the NL All-Star Team - Daily News - Even the most generous forgiving man must admit that 3.21 inches is seriously lacking - LA Times - Unrelated, even scheduled Rain......

In a move only baffling if you thought that President Bush and his administration had hit rock bottom, today the President gave Scooter Libby a get out of jail free card on his convictions of obstruction of justice and perjury. But it's deeper than all of that. Scooter Libby was convicted on a National Security charge prosecuted by a Republican prosecutor and sentenced by a Republican judge. Libby was helping to cover up the......

Carl Bernstein - the ultimate investigative journalist (think Watergate coverage for The Washington Post, think All the Presiden'ts Men) - will be at Book Soup today @ 4pm to sign his latest book A Woman in Charge: The Life of Hillary Rodham Clinton. Bernstein's book provides an inside peek at all things Clinton and answers some of the bigger questions about the Lewinsky affair, her early political ambition, her path to the Senate and her......

Max Hardcore aka Paul Little was indicted by the Feds yesterday on 10 counts of obscenity in a Florida court. The ultra-hardcore (and downright violent) producer / actor / director was swept up in the actions of a post-9/11 administration who has launched an aggressive attack against adult entertainment. Little's Altadena studios were raided two years ago by the Feds which lead to these charges. A Justice Department spokesman said the prosecution was an......

You know that beautiful corridor between Westwood and Brentwood on Wilshire - all that grass, and lack of skyscrapers, and what's the word: open space? It belongs to the Veterans. It's called the West Los Angeles Veterans Affairs campus. George Bush and the feds want it, they want to be able to build on it, and lease or sell it to Big Business. And when it looked like the $120 billion Iraq War spending bill......

Trying to keep it light today people... HBOs 'Entourage' makes Los Angeles a character While "Entourage" is a show about four close buddies, the HBO series gets much of its charm from what is arguably the group's fifth member: the city of Los Angeles. El Lay's status at the center of the U.S. entertainment industry means lots of shows nominally take place here. But few — if any — shows approach the city with......

A Word Or 45 (or so): Fox has got it down, the top 5 most viewed programs on TV were on Fox, 3 were episodes of American Idol and the other 2 were Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader? Someone at Fox is smart enough to know that most American adult's aren't. Tonight - Wednesday - March 7th, 2007 Lakers @ Bucks (KCAL, 5:00 p.m.) Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (TCM, 5:00......

It's been fascinating to watch people react to the guilty verdicts of the Scooter Libby trail. It's clearly very hard on the GOP fanboys who have a hard time believing that The White House would out a covert CIA operative because they didn't like an opinion column that her husband wrote. Trust us, it's hard for us to believe too. But Scooter had a fair trial and he was found guilty on three counts......

Not a TOTAL lie, as Irve Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Jr. actually was found not guilty of one of the 5 charges leveled against him. FoxNews.com has regressed from the "fair and balanced" schtick to an even more ridiculous "We report. You Decide." Now that's pretty commanding when spoken by apes. Anyway, for those of you keeping score at home, the Libby trial has gone the Martha Stewart route, as in, he lost, although he......

A Word Or 29: Slim pickins tonight my friends. I'm half inclined to just park it in front of TCM for a night of private eye flicks (Sam Spade, Philip Marlowe, Mike Hammer). Tonight - Tuesday - March 6th, 2007 Lakers @ Timberwolves (KCAL, 5:00 p.m) Kings @ Blackhawks (Fox Sports, 5:30 p.m.) The Big Sleep (TCM, 7:00 p.m.) Bogie as Philip Marlowe in this classic Raymond Chandler private eye flick, directed by Howard......

In support of our international blogging brothers... On February 22, Kareem Amer, a twenty-two-year old Egyptian student and blogger, was sentenced without a trial to four years in jail for "contempt of religion" and "defaming the President of Egypt" because of writings on his blog. Growing up in a fundamentalist Muslim family, Amer began to rebel against what he perceived as religious extremism at his college, Al-Azhar University, through his blog writings, and was......