SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:33 P.M. ET:

HIT – From Deadline.com:  "Warner Bros. is reporting Friday at $30.5M for American Sniper - not only a January opening day record, but more than any Clint Eastwood film has ever made in a weekend. With a new batch of projections released this AM, studio B.O. analysts are seeing Warner Bros.’ American Sniper clearing $80M by Monday."  It's a patriotic movie, and it's good to see that there's still a market for patriotic films.

COMMON SENSE – From Fox:  "Duke University has abandoned its plan to transform the bell tower on the Methodist school’s neo-gothic cathedral into a minaret where the Muslim call to prayer was to be publicly broadcast.   'Duke remains committed to fostering an inclusive, tolerant and welcoming campus for all of its students,' university spokesman Michael Schoenfeld said in a statement. 'However, it was clear that what was conceived as an effort to unify was not having the intended effect.'  The first adhan, or call to prayer, had been scheduled to be broadcast on Jan. 16. University officials said, the Islamic chant, which includes the words 'Allahu Akbar' would have been 'moderately amplified' -- in both English and Arabic."  There was a major backlash.  The call to prayer is very public, and would not be matched by anything that public for any other religion.  And modifying a church did not seem right to many people.  (What if Duke had tried to modify a mosque.)  There are ways of respecting a religion without being so intrusive.

AVIATION NEWS – From Times of India:  "CHENNAI: A Chennai-Delhi Air India flight was delayed by more than two hours after pilot and aircraft engineer had a difference of opinion which ended up in a fight inside the cockpit on Saturday. The aircraft engineer was injured and was admitted to a private hospital while the pilot Captain Manik Lal has been grounded till investigations are completed."  Do you get the feeling that there may be some problems in Asian aviation?  Most safety experts frown on fistfights in the cockpit.  They are disruptive and rude.

January 17, 2015