Robert Pattinson (remember him?) was recently featured on the cover of Italian Vanity Fair magazine and because it’s not a photo that I remember seeing before, I thought it would be nice to share it with all y’all:

In all honesty, I much prefer this coverphoto to the one that was published here in the US last month. I would imagine that this photo and the photos contained inside are from the same batch of photos that were shot for the US edition of VF mag … which weren’t too shabby, if I say so myself. Of all of R. Pattz‘s magazine covers, I think this might be one of his best. What do y’all think?

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In early October we learned that US President Barack Obama was awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize and today in Oslo, Norway President Obama was on hand to formally accept his award. In a speech that lasted twice as long as his inauguration speech, Obama spoke of the irony of accepting a peace prize during a time of war but expressed his belief that the collective forces of good will overcome and emerge victorious over the forces of evil in the world. Here are a few photos of President Obama at his Nobel Prize ceremony today:

President Obama, accepting the Nobel Peace Prize [in Oslo] on Thursday, acknowledged the age-old tensions between war and peace but argued that his recent decision to escalate the conflict in Afghanistan was justified to protect the world from terrorism and extremism. “We must begin by acknowledging the hard truth,” Mr. Obama said. “We will not eradicate violent conflict in our lifetimes. There will be times when nations — acting individually or in concert — will find the use of force not only necessary but morally justified.” In a ceremony at Oslo City Hall, Mr. Obama was formally welcomed into the ranks of Nobel laureates who have won the prize, which was established 108 years ago. He said he accepted the award with “deep gratitude and great humility,” conceding it could be seen as premature. “I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the considerable controversy that your generous decision has generated. In part, this is because I am at the beginning, and not the end, of my labors on the world stage,” Mr. Obama said. “Compared to some of the giants of history who have received this prize — Schweitzer and King, Marshall and Mandela — my accomplishments are slight.” He added, “But perhaps the most profound issue surrounding my receipt of this prize is the fact that I am the commander in chief of a nation in the midst of two wars. One of these wars is winding down.” Trumpets sounded when Mr. Obama walked down the long aisle of the soaring ceremonial room, where an audience of 1,000 people waited. The president walked alongside his wife, Michelle Obama, who took her seat in the front row, while he assumed his position on the stage not far from the king and queen of Norway. It was a sober 36-minute speech by Mr. Obama. His remarks were only occasionally interrupted by applause, including when he said the United States “must remain a standard bearer in the conduct of war.” He renewed his pledge to close the prison at the American base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. “We lose ourselves when we compromise the very ideals that we fight to defend,” Mr. Obama said. “And we honor those ideals by upholding them not when it is easy, but when it is hard.” The president conceded that there was “a deep ambivalence about military action today,” which he said was rooted in “a reflexive suspicion of America, the world’s sole military superpower.” But he offered a forceful defense of the United States, saying that the lessons of history should ease those suspicions. “Whatever mistakes we have made, the plain fact is this,” Mr. Obama said. “The United States of America has helped underwrite global security for more than six decades with the blood of our citizens and the strength of our arms.” The Nobel chairman, Thorbjorn Jagland, opened the ceremony by explaining how the committee came to its decision two months ago. He said Mr. Obama’s leadership had been a “call to action for all of us.” As he invoked the story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the winner of the prize in 1964, he turned to Mr. Obama, saying, “Dr. King’s dream has come true.” Mr. Obama pursed his lips and nodded gently as the audience applauded loudly. When he was presented his gold medal, he stood for well over a minute as he was honored by a standing ovation. His speech, which he was still writing and editing during his seven-hour flight here, called for the world to embrace a bolder vision of itself. “Let us reach for the world that ought to be,” Mr. Obama said, “that spark of the divine that still stirs within each of our souls” … He added: “I do not bring with me today a definitive solution to the problems of war. What I do know is that meeting these challenges will require the same vision, hard work and persistence of those men and women who acted so boldly decades ago. And it will require us to think in new ways about the notions of just war and the imperatives of a just peace” … “I have no doubt that there are others who may be more deserving,” Mr. Obama said. “My task here is to continue on the path that I believe is not only important for America, but important for lasting peace and security in the world.” … Kjell Terje Ringdal, a commentator and communications adviser to Norwegian political leaders, said Mr. Obama’s speech broadened the discourse that normally attends the ceremony and undercut criticism that he was not a worthy winner. “I think he did the Nobel prize a favor,” said Mr. Ringdal. “I think the debate will continue about whether this year’s award was premature and so on, but I also think he stopped the negative feeling that there has been a devaluation of the award.”

Whatever one may think of the merits of bestowing this honor on President Obama at this early stage of his presidency, there is no doubt that his commitment to ensuring the peace of the world is true. It is very clear that he is very aware of the hard road ahead that leads to peace but I am very heartened by his resolve to work towards making the world a better, safer place and it is my hope that this Nobel Prize medal will be a constant reminder of the hard work it represents. The naysayers will never be silenced and the sharp criticism thrown his way will never end … but Barack Obama did not become President of the United States of America by succumbing to his detractors. I believe he is very capable of achieving great things. He’s won his award and now I hope he will truly earn it.

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Taylor Swift, who is currently chillin’ in NYC, was spotted out on the town last night rockin’ a new hair’do … lookin’ like the poor girl got into a serious altercation with a flat iron and lost:

Now I can appreciate that Miss Swift might want to change up her look from time to time but this straight hair look does nothing for her. She looks like she’s wearing a wig … a bad wig. But I digress … as cold as it is in NYC these days, Taylor ain’t lettin’ nothing stop her from enjoying her fave treat. Tay Tay stopped in at a Baskin-Robbins (31 Flavors, yo) to enjoy some ice cream. Sure, it prolly wasn’t the same as getting frozen yogurt with BFF/boyfriend Taylor Lautner here in SoCal but it’s close enough. And speaking of Lautner, he will be hosting Saturday Night Live this weekend … you wanna bet that Swift, who hosted SNL a few weeks ago, is staying in town to offer her advice and lend her support? Let’s hope she gets this hair situation sorted out by the weekend … there is no need for Taylor Lautner to be stressed out any more than need be due to his BFF/girlfriend’s horrid hair.

[Photo credit: INFdaily]

Here are a few photos of what looks to be a freshly shorn Britney Spears doing a bit of Xmas shopping on Robertson Blvd. in West Hollywood, CA yesterday like a good Hollywood “It” Girl should. It’s been YEARS since Robertson Blvd. attracted the likes of Hollywood’s hottest young starlets to shop at its boutiques so it would seem that Britney was actually interested in shopping rather than “being seen”. Even tho Brit Brit was picking up a few things for Xmas, she was all dolled up in an outfit that looked better suited for Hallowe’en:

What are the chances that she dug this spider web shawl out of a pile of clothes on the floor of her closet and thought, Meh, why not? I understand that Britters did a bit of shopping at Kitson Men … perhaps picking out a nice gift for her agent/beau Jason Trawick? I think so. As you may recall, Dexter star Julie Benz made her own shopping visit to Robertson Blvd. a few days ago … might the formerly famous street once again become a haven for the Hollywood “It” Girl? My guess is no … but it’s still kinda early in the Xmas shopping season.

[Photo credit: Splash News]