Breaking Boxes

Story HighlightsACLU sues on behalf of universities, genetic specialists and medical associationsIt says patenting genes is unconstitutional, inhibits ability to find cancer curePatents give company exclusive right to perform diagnostic tests on the genes

One person died Monday morning when a falling tree crushed a vehicle in Atlanta, and more than 220,000 homes and businesses were left without power as a line of strong Spring storms raked metro Atlanta.

It actually took two hours of bone-crunching, off-road driving to get to the village. By the time we arrived, the whole district had gathered on either side of a long cordon to greet the Americans who had funded their new school. Unfortunately, I and the BBC's cameraman, Sanjay, were the only foreigners to turn up.

To most publishers, it would've been a touch of golden luck: a manuscript about the worst economic crisis in decades, written by a financial insider and finished months before rivals had even a rough draft ready. Instead, Wall Street investor Barry Ritholtz's "Bailout Nation: How Easy Money Corrupted Wall Street and Shook the World Economy" appears to have become a parable for the same corporate shenanigans that it catalogs. In early 2008, McGraw-Hill paid a five-figure advance to Ritholtz, a frequent CNBC guest and author of "The Big Picture," a popular finance blog. When Congress passed its $700 billion bailout bill, McGraw-Hill's contract with Ritholtz looked prescient. The imprint started taking pre-orders and set a March release date. Then, in early February, it dropped the book.

"They didn't even try to fuck with Miss Piggy, because that hardcore bitch bites and doesn't let go!"

GM, which is in danger of running out of money this month and has asked for as much as $30 billion in federal aid, is curtailing corporate sponsorships and slashing marketing expenses. The automaker, which has lost about $82 billion in recent years, recently ended an endorsement deal with PGA golfer Tiger Woods and opted not to advertise during Super Bowl XLIII, the prime time Emmy Awards and the 2009 Academy Awards, among other moves.

My son and my daughter are happy, active, healthy children who enjoy school and are lucky to have a solid family life. But they are very different. My autistic son tests in the "severe" range in many subjects. At 8, he reads well but cannot answer basic questions about what he has read. He speaks at a 3-year-old level, adores "Blue's Clues" and is almost potty-trained.