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16 Jan 2011 15:53

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Politics: Arnold Schwarzenegger: I lost $200 million being governor

  • In all it is probably more than $200 million. But I’m not sorry. It was more than worth it.
  • Arnold Schwarzenegger • Explaining the overall cost for him to be the California governor. We’re not exactly sure how that cost breaks down, but we’re guessing it has something to do with the number of movies he had to turn down while playing politician. That said, though, he notes that the bigger cost was what it did to his family. “There is a lot there that needs to be repaired,” he said. He noted that he was better about it in his second term than his first, but during that first term, he would leave home for weeks at a time. At least you weren’t recalled. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jan 2011 15:02

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Politics: Despite large-scale attack, Gawker stays on the 4chan beat

  • Here’s what we like about Gawker: Despite getting their asses handed to them by a group that reportedly had indirect ties to 4chan (and made note in their attack of the site’s criticism of 4chan), they don’t back down. A feature headline on Gawker’s front page? “4chan Is Not Very Scary In Real Life.” Mend those fences, Gawker Media, mend those fences. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jan 2011 14:31

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Culture: Seth Rogen’s “Green Hornet” reboot does kinda OK at box office

  • $34 million the opening for “The Green Hornet,” his biggest live-action opening ever – barely topping “Superbad” and “Knocked Up”
  • $120 million the reported budget for the film, which is six times the size of the “Superbad” budget; Rogen also produced “Hornet” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jan 2011 14:16

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Culture, World: Chilean miners – all 33 of them – plotting huge book, movie deal

  • All the life story rights are vested in this company and we have not yet granted anyone the official rights to the story.
  • Chilean attorney Guillermo Carey • Discussing what the Chilean miners plan to do with their made-for-a-movie story. Rather than just letting any one of the guys individually release a book and fight for the movie rights (and thereby splitting the Chilean miner film market), they plan to do everything together, possibly as a massive package deal. The deal would mean that the miners would stand behind a single book and film deal, possibly with a multilevel promotional push that would make Brangelina jealous. We can’t wait to play the Chilean miner video game on our Nintendo Wii. We bet it’d be called “Run Inside of This Room for 69 Days.” Or possibly even a branded reboot of the “Lemmings” franchise. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jan 2011 14:03

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Politics: Tom Coburn has date for the State of the Union: Chuck Schumer

They’ll be paired, “Odd Couple”-style, in an attempt to be more civil. “We don’t sweep differences under the rug,” Chuck said. “Tom and I have real differences, but we can do it civilly.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jan 2011 12:14

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World: Wikileaks, Stuxnet collide to create awesome article about Iran

  • Iran doesn’t have the bomb yet. But they’ve been trying really hard to get it, according to the latest round of data released from Wikileaks. The Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten, which reportedly has all 250,000 diplomatic cables, has been releasing them slowly but surely, and the latest one is kinda sorta a big deal. The cables portray it as kind of last-gasp attempt for Iran to jump-start its diplomatic prowess. “A race exists between the bomb and financial collapse,” one French nuclear expert explained in the cable. Some quick numbers:
  • 350 Iranian companies and groups were reportedly involved in the pursuit of nuclear technology
  • 30+ countries that have contacts Iran is trying to use to make this bomb thingy happen
  • no Iran doesn’t have much in the way of its own uranium, making their job tougher source
  • » Oh, and remember Stuxnet? That computer worm seemingly designed to damage Iran’s nuclear program was reportedly a American-Israeli joint, according to this here article by The New York Times. It was reportedly so effective at causing a malware ruckus that it set Iran’s nuclear program back by several years. Favorite line: “The computer program also secretly recorded what normal operations at the nuclear plant looked like, then played those readings back to plant operators, like a pre-recorded security tape in a bank heist, so that it would appear that everything was operating normally while the centrifuges were actually tearing themselves apart.” Class.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jan 2011 11:37

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Culture: Jimmy Wales on Wikipedia’s future: We’ll make it easier to edit

  • We have to support our old power users because they build the site. But we also need to have a ramp for new users.
  • Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales • Explaining the the encyclopedia’s next move, as it celebrated its tenth anniversary, involved simplifying its complex editing process. “If you click edit and you see some Wiki syntax and some bizarre table structure — a lot of people are literally afraid,” he explained. “They’re good people and they don’t want to break something.” This would be the probable next step for the site to expand its audience from 400 million to what Wales hopes is 1 billion by 2015. Despite this, the organization has no plans to change its model, which involves fundraising, usually involving Jimmy Wales‘ Joe-Millerish mug. Happy birthday, kids, and we’re sorry you’re no longer the most-famous Wiki-leader, Jimmy (friggin’ Julian)! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

15 Jan 2011 22:02

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World: New Tunisia leader’s first act: Opening up the Interwebs

As a follow-up to our last Tunisia post, it’s good to note that new leader Fouad Mebazaa has unblocked the Interwebs in the country. Good news for everyone who likes freedom. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Jan 2011 21:06

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World: Tunisians: Ousted leader Ben Ali just as bad as “Big Brother”

  • I saw the RCD and the government and saw that it’s exactly like this book, with the big pictures of Ben Ali everywhere and people listening in to phone calls and informing on each other. Joining them is like selling your soul to the devil.
  • Former Tunisian citizen Ahmad Chebil • Explaining his experience with Zine el Abidine Ben Ali’s government, which wanted him to become a “citizen watcher” – essentially, someone who would spy on others and inform the government. But he never went for it – wanna know why? Well, he read a french translation of “1984” and could see the evil behind the basic idea. Also worth noting: This Ars Technica article explaining how the country ratcheted up its Internet censorship efforts in recent weeks – and how the Internet fought back. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Jan 2011 21:02

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Tech: Worst startup angle: Naming your wannabe hip startup “Hipster”

  • 10,000 wannabe hipster signups so far source
  • » A really clichéd calling card: While not giving much away, the use of UseHipster.com appears to be ironic. Some might even say … detached. All that exists is a startup page of an aerial urban image that changes based on your proximity to NYC or San Francisco (or Atlanta or Chicago … The Washington Post lied! – thanks lemonpeelclock) – the two cities where whatever idea they have is going to launch. “I think we might have perfected the viral ‘Coming Soon’ page,” said founder Doug Ludlow, who is wrong.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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