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27 Oct 2009 23:16

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Offbeat: Sketching by helicopter: Well, that’s one way to remember New York

London-based artist Stephen Wiltshire went up over New York by helicopter, memorized it, and then started sketching it. That’s a lot of pencil scratching. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Oct 2009 22:42

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U.S.: The FAA does the smart thing and shames The Laptop Jockeys

  • Guess who lost their licenses?! The Federal Aviation Administration gave the cynics of the world a reason to cheer today as they took away the licenses from the two losers who were too busy on their laptops to land the plane in Minneapolis like they were supposed to. The Northwest Airlines pilots, who were out of radio contact for 91 schedule-software-training minutes, have ten days to appeal the decision. But considering the hype the case has gotten, it might be tough to fight. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Oct 2009 22:32

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Politics: Harry Reid wants to dance with somebody who loves him

  • We think Harry Reid grew up a lonely, sad, single high-schooler. The Senate Majority Leader says the real problem with Republicans on health care is that they’re doing everything in their power to do anything but dance. By this standard, Joe Lieberman is a gender-bending tranny who came to the dance dressed as a guy and left wearing mascara. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Oct 2009 20:41

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Tech: Reddit’s founders cashing out, leaving the company

  • When Alexis and I started reddit, we had no idea what we were in for. Reddit took on a life of its own early and continues to surprise me on a daily basis. I am genuinely proud to have been a part of it, and humbled by what it has become.
  • Steve “spez” Huffman • Describing his reasons for leaving Reddit, the site he started with Alexis “kn0thing” Ohanian in 2005. The founders had a contract with Condé Nast to stay on for a specified period. Now that the period is over, they’re out. Later core team member Christopher Slowe’s contract is up too, but he’s staying on to help. Huffman notes that the site is in good hands even without its founders. It’s sad – Reddit’s a pretty awesome site – but the community is strong, so it’s not going anywhere anytime soon. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Oct 2009 20:33

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Offbeat: Anyone want some of Ernest Shackleton’s old whiskey? It’s on ice!

The failed Antarctic explorer’s whiskey supply has been stuck near the south pole for 100 years. Which means that it’s REALLY good scotch. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Oct 2009 20:19

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U.S.: Sasha and Malia are H1N1-vaccinated. Barack and Michelle will wait.

  • did The First Daughters got the vaccine last week, when it first became available in D.C. It’s a hard vaccine to get in these parts, by the way. The whole First Family got flu shots, BTW.
  • didn’t Obama and the First Lady are waiting based on the order of priority – they’re after the “young people under the age of 24, pregnant women, and people with underlying conditions.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Oct 2009 19:03

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Politics: The fine, very important, art of staying on point on your blog

  • The idea here is to give individuals a better way to monitor their electricity usage, with the eventual goal set at 40 million installed meters over the next few years. Great idea, guys – or you know, you could just advise people to turn stuff off when they aren’t using it, or not use energy they can’t afford. Just sayin’.
  • Engadget blogger Darren Murph • Describing the new “smart grid” technology that Obama’s pushing to implement over the next few years. We have a lot of problems with this statement – we understand the politics behind it, and while it’s a valid point (the program is quite expensive), it CAME OUT OF FREAKING NOWHERE on a technology blog which almost never talks politics. To us, it seemed completely out of place and off-message, to the point where it derailed any useful commentary about the post in the site’s comments section. It became less about the devices and more about what Murph said. This is a dangerous thing in blogging. While there needs to be a degree of feeding into people’s expectations, and a degree of breaking them, if you change the game in the middle like this, it can completely turn readers off. If you have commentary on your site, make it an integral part. Are we barking up the wrong tree here on this? • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

27 Oct 2009 11:04

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Offbeat: Five-year-old Giuliano Stroe is the strongest kid ever or something

  • We’re imagining five-year-old Giuliano Stroe has a great future in Hollywood starring in B-level action movies with a cougar-aged Kate Gosselin as his mom. Guinness thinks he’s strong. And look at him do these flips and stuff in this YouTube video.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Oct 2009 10:58

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Biz, U.S.: Daily poll: Are you feeling confident, fellow consumers?

  • The Conference Board research group says its consumer confidence index is currently sitting at a 26-year low. We guess we can see it, but want to know how you’re feeling, personally. And since we can’t come to every one of your homes to ask you, a poll is the best way. So vote. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Oct 2009 10:42

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Culture: We will do everything in our power to stop Kate Gosselin

  • I’ve done enough years on TV that I feel like it’s a normal, comfortable, natural place to be. I’d love to be in a movie at some point, I’d love to be the voice of a cartoon character in a movie for my kids. I think that would be fun.
  • Kate Gosselin • Describing her desire to become a movie star as “Jon & Kate Plus 8” ends by force of Jon’s douchebaggery. Kate, you’re not the reason we hate everything about you. Really, it’s Jon. But because of that, we’re going to stand in front of any studio, any movie set, and opening, any theater that would have the words “Kate Gosselin,” “movie” and “starring” in the same paragraph. Host a talk show or something. But do not sully a second field in your quest to become a multimedia icon. • source
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