Two irresistable small follies from today's New York Times:

• Tom Friedman agonizes that critical blog posts might sully his reputation. (Subscribers only, but there's not much more to it than that).

  Tom, if it hasn't happened yet, you needn't worry.

• A chef suing another over theft of "intellectual property". A Ms. Rebecca Charles is claiming the other guy in effect copied her entire restaurant. But, sez the Times,

  ... the detail that seems to gnaw at her most is a $7 appetizer on Mr. McFarland’s menu: “Ed’s Caesar.”

  She has never eaten it, but she and her lawyers claim it is made from her own Caesar salad recipe, which calls for a coddled egg and English muffin croutons.

  So, where did this private, secret recipe come from?

  She learned it from her mother, who extracted it decades ago from the chef at a long-gone Los Angeles restaurant.

  Clearly, this "Ed" is in the wrong for not understanding that the right to copy another restaurant stops, absolutely and finally, with Ms. Charles.