• 129 number of days he’s been on a prolonged hunger strike

• Why did he protest?Since Feburary 24, Farinas has been hunger striking to protest the imprisonment of numerous political activists, as well as the death of Orlando Zapata Tamayo, a prisoner who died during his own hunger strike.
• His current statusFarinas is currently at Arnaldo Milian Castro University Hospital in Santa Clara. His doctor says he’s being fed a little via intravenous feeding and has gained weight, but has a blood clot that could prevent blood from getting to his heart.
• A surprising facetPerhaps the most interesting thing about the Farinas situation is that the source which reported on the opposition activist was Granma, a communist newspaper – and they played it very big, devoting two of their eight pages to him. source

• » Programming note: This is based on an AP article, which as you might know, we try to avoid here at the ShortFormHQ. But this article seemed important enough that it was worth bypassing the picket line, at least today.

• what The Senate’s attempt to increase unemployment benefits failed to pass yet again last night.
• why They didn’t have 60 votes to stop the filibuster; they had 59. The 60th would’ve been Byrd. source

• The Senate just lost a key vote for the measure. When Sen. Tom Coburn made a remark that seemingly suggested he hoped Robert Byrd wouldn’t live to see the health care vote, it drew the Democrats in a tizzy. When Robert Byrd died just before the financial reform vote, it left Democratic leadership in a complete bind – now they have to find someone to replace Byrd’s vote, and hope that other Democrats don’t fall out of rank. Will it happen? source

• Say what you will about Robert Byrd – career politician bar none, former KKK member – but he made it through health care. It probably took a lot out of him to make sure health care had his 60th vote, but he made it. Despite certain GOP members suggesting they hoped he missed the vote, he still made it. In a lot of ways, the endeavor speaks more of his career than anything else – a fighter, a guy who got beyond his racist past to have a heck of a second act. Some highlights:

• 9number of times he was re-elected to the Senate (totally unprecedented)

• a racist past, moderatedMaybe in another era, Byrd’s early association with the KKK may have been a career-killer, but many (many) apologies and the passage of time ultimately moderated his views on civil rights. It wasn’t instant – he famously filibustered the Civil Rights Act of 1964 – but the effect was lasting.
• Propping up West VirginiaByrd used his power in the Senate to help build jobs and infrastructure in a state that had little of both when he first started. To some, he earned the nickname “the prince of pork,” but to West Virginians, he was seen as a savior who was voted to both chambers of both the state and federal legislatures.
• A senate leaderByrd ultimately became much more than simply a West Virgina senator – first chairing the Appropriations committee, then later becoming Majority Whip, and spending two separate spans as Majority leader. “A leadership role is different,” he said, “and one does represent a broader constituency.”

Robert Byrd, in his own words

• It has been my constant desire to improve the lives of the people who have sent me to Washington time and time again.
• Sen. Robert Byrd • From his 2005 autobiography, “Robert C. Byrd: Child of the Appalachian Coalfields.” Say what one will about Byrd, but he’s always held up this part of the bargain for West Virginia. West Virginia has responded in kind, naming 30 federal projects after the senator. The state also voted him back into office by wide margins. If anything, he’s proof that a man with a controversial past can be moderated. He’ll be missed. source

• Is this the future? Or at least a good approximation of it? For our friends at Gourmet Magazine, the demise of the publication was sudden and painful. But a phoenix appears to be rising out of the ashes in the form of this iPad app, coming this fall. “We closed the magazine last fall but we did not close the brand,” said Conde Nast’s president of consumer marketing, Robert Sauerberg. Curious to see how this experiment works out. source

• Remember this lady? Remember this kiss? Of course you don’t. You weren’t in Times Square that day; you probably weren’t born. And based on a check of our demographics, you probably didn’t serve in World War II. But the nurse in this famous Alfred Eisenstaedt photo, Edith Shain, died Tuesday at 91. This lucky moment was never to be re-kindled. Some random guy, so happy about V-J Day, just came up and kissed her. His identity has never been discovered. If he’s alive, he’s probably thinking about the kiss right now. source

• 10 number of seasons Bol played in the NBA – he was the tallest player for most of it
• 2,086 number of blocks Bol had in his career (3.3 per game – one of the best tallies ever)
• 1,599 number of points Bol scored (2.6/game, though he had a decent  3-point shot) source

• You know, a lot of people feel sorry for him, because he’s so tall and awkward. But I’ll tell you this – if everyone in the world was a Manute Bol, it’s a world I’d want to live in.
• Charles Barkley • Noting how great a person Manute Bol, who died today at 47, was. Bol, a Sudanese-born NBA player whose 7’7″ rail-thin frame made him one of the most unique basketball stars in history, was suffering from long-standing kidney and skin problems. He was something of an ambassador to Sudan and spent much of his personal fortune trying to help the war-torn country. He went broke doing it. This is a man who cared so much about helping the people of his country that he would rather use his fame and freak-show status to help them than live comfortably. A huge loss. source