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27 Jan 2011 10:21

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U.S.: NYC sets January snowfall record (grumble grumble)

  • 36˝ number of inches of snow that has fallen in Central Park this month – a January record, by the way
  • 27.4˝ the previous record, set all the way back in 1925 (!); good work, Mother Nature, you hag you source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Jan 2011 00:09

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U.S.: “Separate but equal” returns: On the Kelley Williams-Bolar situation

  • Is this case The new “separate but equal”? The case of Kelley Williams-Bolar, a single mother who went out of her way to put her children in a better public school district that wasn’t crime-ridden, sparks a lot of emotions. The biggest, of course, is caused by the incredibly harsh punishment that Williams-Bolar received. The Akron, Ohio resident, a teacher’s assistant only a few credits shy of a teaching degree, can no longer teach in the state of Ohio because she’s a convicted felon. (They knew this when making the decision.) While she was released from jail yesterday, the court seemed to make her an example for something which doesn’t seem like it should be a crime. Some thoughts:
  • Kelley’s crime The crime that Williams-Bolar committed is one which may not be clear from the surface. She filed paperwork claiming that her children lived with her father, but she in fact shipped them over to her dad’s house daily. Williams-Bolar lives in subsidized housing, and the method prevented her from paying tuition and property taxes – a key issue for many.
  • “But we pay taxes!” For many not so kind to Kelley’s case, this is the crux of the issue. The people who live in the Copley-Fairlawn City School District pay out the wazoo for those nice schools, and in their view, Williams-Bolar is carpetbagging. There are a lot of issues at play, but by no means do they reach the level of felony. It’s way too harsh and has long-term ramifications.
  • The system doesn’t work The school district found out about what Williams-Bolar did by doing a stakeout after they got suspicious. You know, that really says it all, doesn’t it? The public education system, whether it’s intentional or not, favors haves over have nots. This is a brave act on the part of Williams-Bolar. She chose to defy the system, and by doing so, she exposed a major flaw. Kudos.
  • » One other thought: Race plays a huuuuuuuge factor in this story, obviously, and that is one point we don’t want to underplay. Blogger Kalimah Priforce has a great open letter up about the whole situation from a racial/civil disobedience angle. The whole thing is worth a read, but this is the point that really struck home for us: “At some point they determined that your girls didn’t belong in their schools and rather than meeting with you to determine a way for your children to stay with the same teachers and classmates they become accustomed to, they hunted you down and threw you into prison.” Honestly, we could see this case going to the Supreme Court. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 Jan 2011 20:49

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Offbeat: Broke New Jersey county: We’re using “pickle juice” to stop snow

  • We’re assuming that this girl isn’t a sanitation worker. Bergen County, New Jersey, has been using a briny mixture of salt and water that they’ve called “pickle juice.” With just a $4 million snow budget (and $3 million already spent), they’ve had to get creative, and let’s face it, you don’t get more creative than you do with pickle juice. Anyway, this is a major cost-saver for the county. A ton of salt costs $63. A gallon of this mixture costs 7 cents. Roughy 250 gallons of water equals a ton. The result? Less than a third of the cost. We bet it doesn’t work very well, no matter how much it saves. (photo by spanginator) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 Jan 2011 20:24

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Politics: Rep. Peter King: TSA threat warning changes necessary

  • Though the system served a valuable purpose in the terrible days and months following the terrorist attacks of September 11, it was clearly time for the current color-coded system to be replaced with a more targeted system.
  • House Homeland Security Commission Chair Rep. Peter King • On the proposed changes to the TSA’s infamous (and widely-mocked) color-code system, launched not long after 9/11.  While not delving into the specifics, King sounds relatively positive on what might be in store. “It sounds to me like the changes they are proposing make sense,” he said. “We will have to wait and see how they implement this new, more targeted system.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 Jan 2011 19:51

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U.S.: Mosque drama: California town allows one … after much NIMBY rage

These folks here? Muslim. They want a mosque in Temecula, Calif. But the crazies came out and filed an appeal. The City Council eventually denied the appeal after a LOOONG meeting. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 Jan 2011 19:10

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Tech: Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook hacked: Well, that’s reassuring

  • Let the hacking begin: If facebook needs money, instead of going to the banks, why doesn’t Facebook let its users invest in Facebook in a social way?
  • “Mark Zuckerberg” • Or, that is, some dude who hacked the Facebook founder’s Facebook profile. You know what’s really bad press, Mark? Not an award-winning movie about your life. Something like this. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 Jan 2011 15:39

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Culture: Anaheim Ducks sued over allegedly anti-semitic comments

  • Hockey player Jason Bailey claims his minor league coaches made anti-semitic remarks. Bailey alleges that head coach Mark Raymond and assistant coach Mark Pedersen, of the Bakersfield Condors (the Ducks minor league affiliate to which he was assigned), made anti-semitic remarks around him. The suit claims that Raymond said Jews “only care about money and who’s who,” and that he didn’t want his son to be Jewish or ever wear a yarmulke. Pedersen is alleged to have said, “I just got a friend request from a dirty Jew.” Bailey, who is Jewish, is seeking unspecified damages for the team creating a “hostile work environment.” No kidding. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

26 Jan 2011 14:59

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U.S.: Good news on Giffords, as medical condition is upgraded

  • GOOD Giffords’ current condition source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 Jan 2011 14:30

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Politics: FCIC report to blame human action, inaction for financial crisis

  • We conclude this financial crisis was avoidable.
  • Report by the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission • The panel’s report, charged with investigation and review of America’s cataclysmic economic crisis, was obtained by Reuters on Tuesday. It cites human error, action, and inaction as being to blame for the collapse. The report will be widely released on Thursday. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 1 Comment • Permalink

26 Jan 2011 13:56

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World: This week in Italian quiz show host exhumations

  • buried Prominent Italian quiz show host Mike Bongiorno, who died in 2009 and was laid to rest in Arona.
  • unburied Italian officials reported Tuesday that Bongiorno’s body was stolen from its grave. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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