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13 Sep 2009 12:20

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Biz: Let’s not pretend that newspapers aren’t dying. Let’s talk about it.

  • It’s a bold approach to take. Newspapers across the U.S. have felt the devastating effects of the economy on their business, and the San Jose Mercury News is a microcosm for the whole mess. Caught in the center of more than one major storm – the merging of Knight Ridder with McClatchy (which destabilized the entire industry), its purchase by MediaNews, and the ensuing cuts – the paper went from crown jewel to shell of its former self in a few short years. Mercury News columnist Mike Cassidy asks for help from readers in today’s paper – it’s frank, it’s honest and it hides nothing. Good for them. source

13 Sep 2009 12:08

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13 Sep 2009 12:03

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U.S.: Here’s a quote in the Jaycee Dugard case bound to stick with you

  • That’s the one I want. She’s cute, but she’s with the other kids. Let’s come back later and get her.
  • Phillip Garrido (according to his wife, Nancy) • When the couple went “child-shopping” before Jaycee Dugard’s capture. He was looking for a cute blonde, and Dugard fit the bill. You remember that whole thing you were told as a kid about not talking to strangers and that sort of thing? This is why. People like Phillip Garrido are actually out there. • source

13 Sep 2009 11:55

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U.S.: Captured: A guy who recently robbed a bunch of banks

  • The basics ten banks
    four states
    one angry guy
    one goatee
  • The angry robber Chad Schaffner, Most Wanted bank robber
  • The detailsChad Schaffner, a guy with a long history of criminal activity, was arrested yesterday in Kingdom City, Missouri as a suspect in numerous bank robberies. His face was plastered on billboards across the South, which led to his capture. Nobody was hurt in any of the robberies. source

13 Sep 2009 11:40

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Tech: Cut the crap: Is Facebook Lite a smart direction for all software?

Giving people software in a lite version that simplifies the feature set – while keeping the full version around – is smart, says Technologizer’s Harry McCracken. source

13 Sep 2009 11:28

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Politics: Joe Wilson: You got one apology from me. You’re not getting two.

  • I’ve apologized one time. The apology was accepted by the president, the vice president. … I am not apologizing again. I believe that is sufficient.
  • South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson • Talking to “Fox News Sunday” about the “You Lie!” incident. Democrats are pushing for Wilson to apologize on the House floor, but Wilson is pushing back. He also stands behind his remark, if not the way it was presented: “I believe in the truth. What I heard was not true. I believe (Obama) was misstating the facts.”  • source

13 Sep 2009 10:58

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U.S.: South Carolina has a well-funded House campaign on its hands

  • $1+ million each for Joe “You Lie!” Wilson and his opponent source
 

13 Sep 2009 10:52

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World: So now we know a little about how swine flu came to be

  • two strains of the flu in a single pig mutated together and turned into the supervirus that is swine flu
  • 3,205 people have died since that flu strain transferred to humans and became the H1N1 virus; yikes, guys source

13 Sep 2009 10:46

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Sports: Serena Williams, wow. Just wow. Way to lose a match all crazy-like.

  • Dear Serena Williams, thank you for making tennis vaguely exciting for once. Sincerely, the ShortFormBlog staff. xoxo source