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27 Mar 2010 21:19

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Offbeat: Police car finds a formidable foe in the form of a bulldog

  • Holy God. The bulldog wins. The Chattanooga Police Department learned on Sunday that they really need to stop buying front bumpers made out of rawhide for their police vehicles. Winston, the bulldog behind the attack, was set free on “good behavior.” Is this is good behavior, we’re scared to see when it acts up. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Mar 2010 20:55

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Culture: Christine Daniels (and Mike Penner) still a sore spot for the L.A. Times

  • She said she didn’t want to be the spokesperson for anything, but unfortunately that’s what she had become.
  • Los Angeles Times blogs editor Tony Pierce • Regarding the pain sportswriter Christine Daniels, a transsexual formerly known as Mike Penner, eventually felt towards her very public identity change. Initially, Daniels wanted to use her status as a L.A. Times reporter to make the change a megaphone, but later felt so pressured by the change that she changed back to Penner and eventually broke many of her ties to the transgender community. Penner killed himself last year. Many Times reporters still won’t talk about the incident, including the brother and ex-wife he worked with. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Mar 2010 19:53

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U.S.: Obama conspiracy theorists: Here’s some proof he may be Jewish

That’s right, Obama has a yearly presidential Seder, a tradition he started with his staff in 2008. No other president has had one. Get your tinfoil hats, boys. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Mar 2010 19:11

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Music: Saturday Mixtape: We’re suckers for a hazy, summery vibe

  • Summer can’t come soon enough for indie rockers, it seems, because the sound du jour at the moment is a hazy brand of indie rock, much less abrasive than 2008’s noisy lo-fi model (we’re looking at you, No Age and Wavves). Guitars, synths, doesn’t matter: The vibe is key here. And it started with some guy named Ariel Pink.

  • 1. The sad, whining tone of the guitar intro on The Morning Benders’ “Excuses” gives way to a fairly clean sound, but it’s one clearly informed by the calming fuzz of a warm summer day. The Beach Boys wrote the outline, but not the plot, here.
  • 2. They like Neon Indian, they really like him. Last year, the Nintendo-baked project actually drew a degree of success that put it in the forefront of the “chillwave” movement. It’s a lot more accessible than some of the other stuff here. In a good way.
  • 3. A buddy of Animal Collective, Ariel Pink never got the critical praise of his mentors, until it became clear that indie’s path was colliding into his often-bizarre, noise-worn sounds. This song, one of the hundreds he’s recorded over the years, had a proper release way back in 2004, yet it fits in perfectly here. Hm. With the extra attention (he recently signed to big indie 4AD), expect him to have a solid 2010.
  • 4. Bradford Cox, too, has been around a while between Deerhunter and Atlas Sound, but his last Atlas Sound album “Logos,” has a definite worn-out-summer vibe that fits perfectly here. It’s one not reflected in any of his previous albums, but seems to nail the moment perfectly. When we hear “My Halo,” want to laze out. Seriously.
  • 5. Somewhere, below the layers of noise covering up Best Coast’s “Sun Was High (So Was I),” is a killer hook in a killer female vocal. Like the best hooks, it cuts through, saying “listen to me again.” And usually, we’re forced to comply.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Mar 2010 17:38

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U.S.: Obama leaps over Senate’s head, issues 15 recess appointments

  • I simply cannot allow partisan politics to stand in the way of the basic functioning of government.
  • President Barack Obama • Regarding the recess appointments that he pushed through today. The appointments are only temporary – they can only serve through the end of 2011. But he was at the point where he needed to do something, due to the immense amount of gridlock in the Senate right now. 217 of his nominees are currently waiting for confirmation, 34 of them over six months. The Republicans fought against this, but it’s not exactly an uncommon thing he’s doing – George W. Bush also had 15 recess appointments at this point of his presidency. At the end of their eight-year terms, both Bush and his wipe buddy Bill Clinton had over 130 each – Bush more than Clinton. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Mar 2010 17:10

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Music: YouTube idiocy: Beyonce accused of violating her own copyright

Dear Sony, and heck, YouTube: Do you actually read the DMCA complaints before submitting them? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Mar 2010 16:49

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Biz: In case you were wondering, illicit money is really, really heavy

  • 100 lbs. the weight of a million dollars
    in mixed bills – something that a dog would notice immediately
  • twenty number of prepaid debit cards you’d need to carry a similar amount; drug runners win source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

27 Mar 2010 16:48

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U.S.: Security fail: A year later, Obama still doesn’t have a TSA head

  • 2 TSA leader nominees have withdrawn their names so far source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Mar 2010 16:41

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Biz: Who wants to kill Ronald McDonald (well, besides obesity)?

  • The group that got Joe Camel killed now wants to kill a certain clown. Corporate Accountability International, a business watchdog group, is trying to get McDonald’s to “retire” (a.k.a. kill) their key corporate icon, due to the fact that he has so much influence on kids. They plan to release a poll suggesting this, too. McDonald’s, for their part, isn’t budging, saying he’s a huge part of the company and its charities. We think he won’t be as easy to kill as Joe Camel, kids; he’s too well-known. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Mar 2010 14:25

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Biz: GM recalls a bunch of vans, but you probably don’t own one

  • 5,000 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vans have been recalled
  • 1,300 are being used by rental fleets and are no longer being rented source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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