Srdjan Zivulovic/Reuters

Justice and common sense

In a rare show of compassion, a Pakistani court ended the prosecution of a Christian teen charged with blasphemy for allegedly burning a textbook used to teach the Quran. Rimsha Masih, an impoverished sweeper with Down syndrome, may have been the victim of dubious accusations instigated by a local cleric, the court found. High Court Justice Iqbal Hameed Ur Rahman urged caution in prosecutions under the country’s controversial blasphemy law and condemned those who make false accusations, sometimes used as a vendetta against non-Muslims. An association of Muslim clerics welcomed the ruling as “a milestone in the history of Pakistan.”

It’ll make one heck of a movie

The Hollywood Reporter laid bare its role in the Communist blacklist that ruined lives and careers in the 1950s. The Reporter’s late founder, Billy Wilkerson, branded actors, writers and directors as Commies in a “maniacal quest to annihilate the studio owners” who thwarted his own dreams of movie production, writes his son, W.R. Wilkerson III, who offered “sincerest apologies and deepest regrets to those who were victimized by this unfortunate incident.” Better late than never.

Bring on the price war

The sky-high price of domestic short-haul flights may nosedive next year as WestJet’s new Encore regional carrier squares off against rival Air Canada Express. WestJet CEO Gregg Saretsky predicts price drops of up to 50 per cent on some routes under 500 km. The service, he said, will “liberate Canadians from the high cost of air travel in smaller communities.” He’s also considering removing back-of-seat video screens as a saving, and beaming entertainment to passengers’ tablet devices. You might want to spend those savings on an iPad. Continue…