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21 Dec 2010 22:06

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Politics: Haley Barbour backtracks on controversial segregation statements

  • Nobody should construe that to mean I think the town leadership were saints, either. Their vehicle, called the ‘Citizens’ Council,’ is totally indefensible, as is segregation.
  • Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour • Making the inevitable backtrack after his controversial statements that suggested he didn’t think racism in the South wasn’t that big a deal. And not a moment too soon. This guy wants to possibly run for president in 2012. After that interview, have fun with that, buddy. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Dec 2010 21:44

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Politics: Dear Internet: We need a Salad Bar Security Administration, stat

  • So, CBS is reporting that a recent terror threat involved the poisoning of food. Here’s how it would’ve worked. First, the terror suspects would go to salad bars or buffets out in the open at hotels and restaurants and put poison (ricin and cyanide) in the food. Then, a bunch of people would get sick. Then they’d die. Next thing you know? Full-body scanners every time you go to Golden Corral, meaning that every time you just have to grab another rib from that delicious buffet of theirs, all the while avoiding the trailer trash you’re slumming with, you’ll have to put your fork and knife in little baggies. And then your plate will have to be sanitized with a crazy machine. The federal government will need to hire millions of people to ensure our ranch dressing is safe. And the unemployment rate will drop. And we’ll all be safe. Until that is, the terrorists start fucking with our air. Then, friends, we’re all dead. (Photo by jacobms, complete with bacon cameo.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Dec 2010 21:23

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World: Ivory Coast election situation raises danger of fresh civil war

  • bad The situation in the Ivory Coast, roughed up over a disputed election, has been getting worse by the day. And the guy who lost, Laurent Gbagbo, went on television denying he lost – again. On the plus side, he says that he’s willing to negotiate about this.
  • worse Just to worry the crap out of you guys a little, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says that forces loyal to Gbagbo have been blocking supplies from getting to UN security forces. He suggested there may be a “real risk” of civil war breaking out in the country. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Dec 2010 21:04

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Politics: Yo Obama: Congress just gave you another triangulation opportunity

  • Remember how in 1995 when the government shut down? Well, guess what we just set ourselves up for in March? See, as a stopgap to avoid a massive omnibus spending bill from getting through the pipe with a crapload of earmarks, Congress agreed to set up a temporary spending bill that gets us into late Winter. (Obama should sign it before he heads off to Hawaii to be with the fam.) Which means that if Obama and the GOP are at one another’s throats come the Ides of March, the government could shut down 1995-style. Or Obama could switch parties and weird everybody out. Et tu, Brute? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Dec 2010 20:40

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Politics: No, we’ll be fine! Seriously: Democrats fight against Census claims

  • Democratic communities and constituencies have grown in size in states like Arizona, Florida, Nevada, and Washington. In states that will lose a seat, the number of Republicans who will be competing with each other creates opportunities for House Democrats.
  • Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel • Fighting against claims that today’s census numbers are very bad for Democrats. But let’s face it – they’re going to be very challenging for Obama, and Democrats overall, to fight. The only real Democratic stronghold that gained any seats was Washington, and Obama banked his victory on many of the states that lost electoral college votes. The amount we’re talking about wouldn’t have been enough to hurt Obama’s in 2008, but if the 2012 race is closer, it could hurt. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Dec 2010 11:21

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World: He said, The NYT said: Will Afghan War ground raids reach Pakistan?

  • yeah … The New York Times reported that the U.S. military was looking into expand their Afghan ground raids into tribal areas of Pakistan for purposes of expanding intelligence. The article notes that the U.S. has until now used drones in Pakistan out of fears of a backlash from the Pakistani government.
  • … but NATO denies this, with one commander saying this: “There is absolutely no truth to reporting in The New York Times that US forces are planning to conduct ground operations into Pakistan.” Who’s lying here? Did Jayson Blair write that Times article? Or does NATO not want that info public? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Dec 2010 11:05

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Tech: Guess that streaming-only Apple TV reboot really paid off

  • 1 million units sold in just three months; that’s not a bad start, guys source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

21 Dec 2010 10:59

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Politics: Haley Barbour’s not feeling the love over civil rights comments

  • There’s nothing in his past that shows that. If you pick out a sentence or a paragraph out of a fairly long article and harp on it, you can manipulate it.
  • Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour’s press secretary, Dan Turner • Criticizing the coverage of comments Barbour made to The Weekly Standard about living during the Civil Rights era. Liberal organization Media Matters, which obviously would want to make political hay out of something like this, promoted the comments, in which Barbour praised the White Citizens’ Councils (a late-’60s group that opposed integration of different races) as “an organization of town leaders” that were a positive force in the community. As for the civil rights struggle in his hometown, Yazoo City, Mississippi, he simply said: “I just don’t remember it as being that bad.” Barbour, who’s been suggested as a presidential candidate more than once, has been one of the party’s most successful figures in recent years, so if something like this stuck, it could hurt his chances. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Dec 2010 10:58

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Culture: Spider-Man play’s bad press continues: A Spidey guy got injured

  • nine performers play Spider-Man during the performance, mostly during stunts
  • one of those performers was injured last night after one of the dangling stunts went awry
  • 20+ number of feet Christopher Tierney fell last night; he’s in serious condition source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Dec 2010 10:31

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Politics: NPR’s Nina Totenberg: Sorry for saying “Christmas party,” guys

  • If you were looking for an exact point where political correctness has gone too far, this one probably works. See, NPR’s Nina Totenberg actually apologized for saying the phrase “Christmas party,” as if that’s going to offend people. The only people it will actually offend are the far-righties that will see this as another reason that NPR shouldn’t exist. Bad idea. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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