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30 Mar 2010 01:12

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Politics: RNC vs. DNC: Who spends more on private jets, anyway?

  • $17,514 amount RNC chair Michael Steele and his staff spent on chartering private jets in February alone
  • $0 amount DNC chair Tim Kaine and his staff spent on chartering planes during the whole year so far source
  • » Also, a shout-out: Kudos to The Daily Caller for your handling of this story, which includes far more tawdry, damaging facts than this one, although this is pretty damaging for the RNC. We like the way your journalism rolls.

29 Mar 2010 22:30

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Music: Cool bands like The Knife, brought to you by socialism

  • From the outside, there seem to be some people in America afraid of the state. But we’re not. Because Norway is divided: There’s the state, and there’s private ownership of stuff. I think there’s a perfect mix. It’s not communism, but it’s not the U.S. We’re somewhere in between.
  • Smalltown Supersound label runner Joakim Haugland • Regarding his native country, Norway’s, generous financial setup for the arts. In the U.S., rock bands don’t even get health insurance unless they pay for it themselves, while Scandinavian countries (along with Canada and the U.K.) can give their artists money to tour. Some fairly popular indie acts, including Sweden’s The Knife, Norway’s Annie and Canada’s Wolf Parade , have been able to record and tour thanks to the extra help. In the U.S., it’s a different story. Punk rocker Ted Leo nearly had to give up full-time music-making after a loved one got sick. Which is really depressing, especially considering he’s fairly famous. source

29 Mar 2010 21:53

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29 Mar 2010 21:20

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Culture: Bad idea for school play: Scarface. Al Pacino fudgin’ proud

  • Next semester: Showgirls. Perhaps this wasn’t the kind of material that was begging for 8-year-olds to perform it, but hey, if there’s anything the Internet knows, it’s tasteless. Mashable overreacted to the impact of this video, calling it the greatest viral video ever, only to get a number of criticisms in their comments (poor Brenna Ehrlich gets that a lot). We’re calling shenanigans on this one. It’s too bad of an idea to be real. source

29 Mar 2010 20:47

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World: In Mexico, hitmen in the Drug War’s midst are targeting minors

  • 10 Mexican youths (in one car)
    killed by gang members source

29 Mar 2010 20:42

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U.S.: Here’s what bullying can lead to, guys (it’s very sad, trust us)

  • three good, solid months of bullying some girl from another country you don’t like
  • one teenager’s suicide; Phoebe Prince killed herself due to the constant bullying
  • nine Massachusetts teens charged in the wake of her death – two with statutory rape source

29 Mar 2010 20:31

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U.S.: Ex-wife of militia leader: My hubby took the crazy a little too far

  • It started out as a Christian thing. You go to church. You pray. You take care of your family. I think David started to take it a little too far. He dragged a lot of people with him.
  • David Brian Stone’s ex-wife, Donna Stone • Regarding Hutaree, which is reportedly a Christian militia group. David Brian Stone (a.k.a. Captain Hutaree, which is like Captain Crunch with more forest) and eight others have been accused of plotting to kill police officers. Because that’s Christian. The group, which says on its Web site that it’s “preparing for the end time battles to keep the testimony of Jesus Christ alive.” They’ve been training regularly since 2008 in the forests of Michigan, as if time stood still since the heady days of Ruby Ridge, Timothy McVeigh, and the Branch Davidian. source
 

29 Mar 2010 20:22

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U.S.: Did some YouTube user threaten to kill Eric Cantor?

  • YES and this time it wasn’t
    a stray bullet source

29 Mar 2010 20:13

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Tech: Apple may be taking the iPhone to Verizon, or maybe not

  • Seems the one thing iPhone users hate the most about their phones is the carrier. Apple’s had an exclusive contract with AT&T for nearly three years now, and with the dropped calls and lack of network expansion, users want another option. Now the Wall Street Journal is reporting that Verizon will get a version of the iPhone this year. It’d be awesome, but let’s remember that analysts have been burned before by the promise of Verizon. source.

29 Mar 2010 11:20

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World: Cause of South Korean ship sinking: An old mine?

The mine reportedly would’ve been set by the North during the 60-year-old Korean War. So, technically, it still may have been attacked by North Korea. source