The two dudes knocked out helped make the Xbox a hit.Robbie Bach and J Allard were two of the smartest guys working for Microsoft, and both left the company today in that much-hated method of change called corporate restructuring. Bach is retiring and Allard is quitting. While both claim that they’re simply moving on, it’s not a good sign for Microsoft, which, while still greatly profitable, is now playing catch-up in most of the categories it competes. Especially mobile. source
one Sen. Bob Corker, who feels Obama sabotaged the bipartisan efforts on financial reform: “I told him I thought there was a degree of audacity in him showing up today.”
two Sen. Pat Roberts went further about the meeting, suggesting Obama was so “thin-skinned” that he should “take a valium” next time he wants to come visit them. source
Back in February, we gave Bieber a deeper analysis than he’s probably ever gotten at any other point in his career. Now, we’ve done it again – all-updated-like – for AOL News. Here’s a fun fact: Our boy the Bieb is responsible for approximately 23 million tweets over the last six months, which sounds like a lot until you consider it’s out of nearly 8 billion. Still though. It’s a freaking lot. OK, we need to take a shower. We know way too much about the teen heartthrob. We might be mistaken as a fan. source
41.9%of personal income comes from private wages and salaries
17.9%of personal income comes from government programs source
» What this means: Simply put, it’s an unsustainable trend. The government raises money through taxes on wages and salaries, and with many people out of work and benefits making up a larger share of personal income, the government is on the hook for more of people’s collective personal incomes. Part of this, yes, is due to the stimulus. Once the economy gets back in tip-top shape, will the numbers go up? Maybe. But the numbers were going down even before the recession due to the increase in benefits.
cause In March 2009, 16-year-old (not really) Andry Rajoelina took over the island’s shaky, weakened government in a coup.
reaction Since then, the country’s huge, diverse rainforests have been cut down en masse for sake of huge profits. source
» Cha-ching!: The government has been reportedly turning a blind eye to the massive damage to the country’s rainforest because they’re reportedly taking in some of the ill-gotten profits. How much money are we talking? $167 million or more. For a nation like Madagascar, that’s huge.