SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:55 A.M. ET:

A PROBLEM OF OUR TIME – FROM CBC:   Funeral directors in Quebec are discussing how to educate people that taking selfies over a corpse and posting it to social media may be considered disrespectful in some families.  The president of the corporation of funeral directors of Quebec, Denis Desrochers, said the act of taking photos at a funeral isn't new, but sharing those photos on social media is.  "There won't be a 'selfie police,'" he told Radio-Canada's Gravel le Matin, but said that among Quebec funeral directors there is a debate over how to educate people about what is respectful behaviour at a funeral parlour.  "In many funeral parlours we have very clear rules around limiting selfies. Or we tell the public that the families don't want selfies," he said.   And, if the practice grows, CNN will blame Trump.

TELL IT, LINDSEY – FROM THE HILL:   Senate Republicans's action to bar Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) from continuing to speak against Sen. Jeff Sessions Tuesday night was “long overdue,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said.  “Because you’re reading a letter from somebody that defames the senator is not a reason to ignore it,” Graham told conservative radio host Mike Gallagher on Wednesday.  “The bottom line is, it was long overdue with her. I mean, she is clearly running for the nomination in 2020.”  The South Carolina senator said Warren’s fiery comments about Sessions, President Trump's nominee to be attorney general, are a sign of the uncertainty within the Democratic Party and the efforts being made by its most "extreme" members to seize control.  “The Democratic Party is being pushed really hard by the most extreme voices in their community, and they just don’t know how to handle it,” Graham said.  What also needs to be said is that the terminally obnoxious Warren is in political trouble in her own state of Massachusetts, where Democrats usually are usually assured a lifetime job in office.  She may not be re-elected in 2018, if the Republicans take the trouble to find a solid candidate. 

INSUFFERABLE – FROM HOLLYWOOD REPORTER:  United Talent Agency is scrapping its annual Oscar party in favor of making a donation to a group that has been on the front lines of fighting President Donald Trump's executive order targeting travel from Muslim-majority countries.  "This is a moment that demands our generosity, awareness and restlessness," wrote UTA CEO Jeremy Zimmer to staff. “Our world is a better place for the free exchange of artists, ideas and creative expression. If our nation ceases to be the place where artists the world over can come to express themselves freely, then we cease, in my opinion, to be America.”  The agency said it would be donating $250,000 to the American Civil Liberties Union, the group that has seen a temporary victory in legally challenging Trump's travel ban, as well as the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian organization.  It also will be hosting a pro-immigration rally at its Los Angeles office on Feb. 24, two days before the Oscars ceremony is broadcast on ABC. Already this awards season, nominees and winners have stepped up their political rhetoric over Trump's actions and have used their acceptance speeches to make pointed notes about inclusiveness.  I wonder if these worthies have the slightest interest in the condition of artists in the countries designated in President Trump's executive order.  Don't hold your breath.  Also, these rallies and alleged meetings are command performances.  People come because powerful agents want them to.  What they're thinking privately may well be another matter.

February 8,  2017