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07 Jan 2011 22:09

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Politics: TSA: Don’t try to be cute with your underwear choices, terrorists

  • Passengers should be aware that the use of these types of products will likely result in a pat-down. Some might think this is TSA’s way of getting back at clever passengers. That’s not the case at all. It’s just security.
  • The TSA’s ultra-friendly PR blogger, “Blogger Bob” • Telling people that they can’t wear underwear cleverly designed to block nether-regions from full-body scanners without risking a pat-down. Which is a clever idea, but apparently too clever for the TSA. One commenter put it like so: “Bob, how does it feel telling citizens what kind of panties they should wear?” We’d like to buy that commenter a beer. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jan 2011 21:22

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Offbeat: Not what you think: Actress swipes infant from young mother

  • yeah … When you think of a story about an actress snatching a baby from its mother, you think of Madonna going to some random third-world country ready to cherry-pick her next family member.
  • … but This time, the case involved an aspiring actress who placed an ad on Craigslist casting for a Bollywood movie in Toronto, and then took some poor mother’s infant. What the hell, lady? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jan 2011 21:08

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Tech: Smart: Apple washing its hands of Verizon iPhone announcement

  • This is the sort of thing where Apple needs to play it cool, and act like this is just another carrier. Good news, but not big news. The bottom line from Apple is going to be something like, ‘We’re delighted to add Verizon as an iPhone carrier’. That’s it.
  • Daring Fireball’s John Gruber • Offering some perspective on Verizon’s forthcoming announcement, likely about the iPhone coming to the wireless provider (freaking finally). Truth is, this is a smart move. Back in 2006, Apple had a special event for stuff unworthy of a special event (remember the overpriced iPod Hi-Fi?) and they drew a ton of criticism, creating one of their biggest stumbles in recent memory. By having an Apple special event for the Verizon iPhone, they’d run the same risk. So, handing it over to Verizon gets around the problem entirely. Plus, now Verizon can fight with AT&T without Apple getting its hands dirty. Smart. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jan 2011 20:31

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U.S.: Some jerk sending mail bombs in D.C., Maryland

The latest one, which never got to the intended recipient, Homeland Security secretary Janet Napolitano, exploded inside of a D.C. mail facility. Two others were sent yesterday in Maryland. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jan 2011 14:28

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Politics: Some thoughts on Ted Williams’ golden-voiced situation

  • Williams is an interesting figure who represents something far more than his own situation. And as more details come out about Williams, that becomes clear. He’s a product of that specific brand of fading industrialization that cities like Columbus have perfected over the last thirty years. A few years back, when Morgan Spurlock hosted the memorable reality show “30 Days,” he lived in Columbus, Ohio on minimum wage for a month. Spurlock gets beef for his Michael Moore-lite methods, but the truth is, the minimum wage episode was pretty on-point. We imagine Williams being in the background of that episode, thrown away by the society that let him down. And there’s the problem. There are lots of guys like Williams who were also in that scene, who don’t have his miraculous luck. Or the voice. We call them deadbeats. We criticize them for being dregs on society (looking at you, Fox News). Well, what are we doing to fix this? Enforcing drug laws? Citing them for trespassing? Ignoring them? For every Williams with a broken home life and no way to improve his situation, there are thousands of others. And we, as a society, should be asking why. (Now’s a good time to suggest donating to Street Sense. Help the homeless help themselves.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jan 2011 13:58

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Culture: Ted Williams’ ex-wife: He wasn’t around after drugs took over

Williams’ ex-wife, Patricia Kirtley, had four kids with Williams that she raised by herself for over two decades. She even raised a kid he had WITH ANOTHER WOMAN. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jan 2011 10:27

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U.S.: NYCers should expect more snow next week, just an FYI

  • We have to keep an eye on that, but the potential is there for another significant snowfall through Tuesday and Wednesday. The potential is there for 6 or more inches.
  • Meteorologist Brian Ciemnecki • Giving an estimate of the chances for more snow (starting today and going into next week) in the NYC area, which hasn’t finished digging out from the last storm yet. Because, let’s face it, New Yorkers haven’t suffered enough. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

07 Jan 2011 10:13

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Politics: Did John Edwards get engaged recently? If so, save the date!

  • claim The National Enquirer reports that John Edwards is engaged to Rielle Hunter, which would be awful timing considering his estranged wife just died like a month ago.
  • denial Edwards’ family denies the allegations, which have more heft because, well, the National Enquirer surprisingly broke the original Rielle Hunter story. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jan 2011 09:57

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World: Is German farm feed manufacturer behind tainted egg outbreak?

  • 4,700 dioxin-sporting German farms quarantined source
  • » Blame it on the eggs, yeah yeah: The farms have been quarantined in the wake of a tained egg scandal reportedly caused by some possibly contaminated animal feed. Harles and Jentzsch, the makers of a fatty acid used by animal feed producers, noticed high levels of dioxins but reportedly did nothing to stop the spread of the fatty acid. So now, we’re here. Oops.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jan 2011 09:35

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Biz: Unemployment dips in December, but job growth only moderate

  • 103,000 the increase in jobs last month – decent but lower than expected (and mostly private job growth)
  • 9.4% the decrease in unemployment, which is down nearly half a percentage point source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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