Kesha Ni Cole Nichols

Kesha Ni'Cole Nichols walks down the aisle, her groom, NBA star Richard Jefferson makes a decision that his fiancee and wedding guests will not soon forget. He passed. The other news is that sources say that he waiting until two hours before the wedding to tell some of the guests, who were already at the Mandarin Oriental!

"The cold-footed forward's decision to ditch onetime Net dancer Kesha Ni'Cole Nichols was so last-minute that some of his oblivious friends had already shown up last Saturday at the swank Mandarin Oriental in Columbus Circle for the $2 million wedding that never happened" (The New York Post).

No one knows for sure if Jefferson got cold feet, or was hiding some big juicy secret, but the world should soon find out. Not too sure he can go on with his life without some sort of explanation. The couple met on the court, as Nichols was an NBA dancer for the Nets, Jefferson's former team (he was recently traded to the Spurs). The couple were newly engaged just last month.

Clutter murders

In the news today, an arrest in a horrifying murder case in Florida, one that's being compared to the murder of the Clutter family in Kansas, the case which inspired Truman Capote to write his groundbreaking "nonfiction novel," In Cold Blood.

In Cold Blood inspired much of the "new journalism" of the 1960s and 1970s, although it can't be said to have begun the interest in writing about terrifying real life murders. That trend goes back, in America, to lurid tabloids like The Police Gazette, and 19th century folk songs inspired by real life murder cases, like "Banks of the Ohio" (linked here to the Johnny Cash version).

Writing about murder is not for everyone, nor should it be. But taking stories from real life can be a starting point for many writers and aspiring writers. If you're interested in a decidedly non-bloodthirsty approach to putting real life stories together into a fascinating narrative, look at Tracy Kidder's books on building a house or teaching in a grade school.

Senator Kohl

what I would suggest would just -- Senator Kohl ask questions. We'll go to -- next is Senator Hatch, a former chairman of this committee. Following Senator Hatch, we'll go to Senator Feinstein. They'll bring us to roughly 12:30.

Because of the caucuses, we'll break at 12:30, but then resume right at 2 o'clock, which will mean -- I've -- I've talked to Republicans and Democrats. It means everybody will have to leave their -- want to come back and leave their caucus a few minutes early, but I think -- I think everybody will understand that.

So Senator Hatch is a former chairman of this committee and a friend of many years. And I recognize Senator Hatch. HATCH: Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. Welcome again and to your lovely family. We're -- we're grateful to have you all here. Now, let me ask you a question about settled law. If a holding in the Supreme Court means it is settled, do you believe that -- that Gonzales v. Carhart, upholding the partial-birth abortion ban, is settled law? All precedents of the Supreme Court I consider settled law, subject to the deference to doctrine of stare decisis would counsel.