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08 Feb 2011 22:36

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Biz: How to (reportedly) destroy evidence, according to an insider trader

  • Oh it’s easy. You take two pairs of pliers, and then you rip it open. Put ’em into four separate little baggies, and then at 2 a.m…. 2 a.m. on a Friday night, I put this stuff inside my black North Face jacket, … and leave the apartment and I go on like a 20-block walk around the city … and try to find a, a garbage truck. And threw the @*^! in the back of like random garbage trucks, different garbage trucks … four different garbage trucks.
  • Hedge fund manager Donald Longueuil (reportedly) • In a series of messages explaining how he got rid of key evidence in an insider trading case. The details, from a government complaint, were unsealed today. He reportedly trolled the streets of Manhattan looking for a way to throw away a bunch of documents, including a flash drive and two external hard drives. So he chose to destroy them and throw them away in separate garbage trucks in the middle of the night. Sounds like our kind of party. Too bad the guy who he reportedly explained this to was cooperating with authorities. Oops. source

08 Feb 2011 22:11

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Politics: Yikes: Cute babies + anti-violence commercials = Death threats

  • OK, this ad up here, which uses a cute baby (and we mean cuuuuuuute) to promote parenting that prevents violent offenders such as rapists, is anything but subtle, but the reaction to the ad is perhaps a little strong from some. The guy who created it, Josh Jasper of the Riverview Center in Dubuque, Iowa, is getting death threats because the ad was perceived as anti-male. “I appreciate and respect when people have differing viewpoints,” Jasper said. “But for individuals to take it to a personal level and threaten my life, that’s taking it too far.” The melding of visuals and messages in this ad make us a little uncomfortable, but honestly? It’s not really that bad considering what’s out there. And the message is good, even if the execution is a little overwrought. Disagree with someone. Don’t call their house. (thanks think4yourself & azspot) source

08 Feb 2011 21:47

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Tech: Yo, Facebook, hope you enjoy your massive new office space

08 Feb 2011 21:32

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World: Egypt gets strong scolding from U.S. over emergency law

  • Hey Egypt, your strongest ally is yelling at you. Here’s why. See, Egypt has this emergency law in place that allows them to detain protesters and other folks they don’t like without charge. And the United States doesn’t like this. Especially in the wake of comments that vice president Omar Suleiman made about the country not being ready for democracy. It also doesn’t help that he suggested that the government might step in to quell the protests. What does the U.S. think? Well, a few things, which they released in a statement today. First – Stop screwing with protesters. Second – Rescind an emergency law that allows the government to detain anyone for any reason. Third – Broaden the dialogue to allow opposition voices. And finally – Invite the opposition to the bargaining table. This hard line was needed before Suleiman was around, guys. Why did this guy get the golden ring, anyway? He’s terrible. source

08 Feb 2011 21:07

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Politics: PATRIOT Act renewal not sure thing … thanks to the Tea Party

  • renewal The House is going to vote on whether or not to permanently extend the PATRIOT Act, that uber-controversial privacy-exploiting leftover from the Bush era.
  • denial Unfortunately for the GOPers pushing the bill’s renewal, this isn’t the same Congress that passed the bill, and the party’s Tea Party backers may not support it. source

08 Feb 2011 20:47

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Offbeat: Who is Gibby Goo Bop and why did he send us this video?

  • So, we usually don’t do this, but we just got an e-mail from this guy named Gibby Goo Bop. Here’s what he wrote: “because the world can get too serious when you love what you do, just realize that everybody will snooze blue… And hey… I made this music video just for you!” It’s the weirdest thing we’ve seen in a while. This wizard dude really likes David Bowie, apparently. Probably Tim and Eric, too. source

08 Feb 2011 14:56

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World: Koreas finally get together after North-fueled spike in military tension

  • YES they’re talking about a fresh disarmament treaty source
 

08 Feb 2011 14:43

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World: Iranian opposition figure Mousavi calls for solidarity march

  • Undoubtedly, the starting point of what we are witnessing in the streets of Tunis, Sana’a, Cairo, Alexandria and Suez should be seen in the Iranian protests.
  • Iranian “Green” leader Mir Hossein Mousavi • The opposition leader, whose unsuccessful run against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sparked anti-government protests within Iran, has called for demonstrations to be held in solidarity with revolutionary movements in other states. That this sort of call has gone out isn’t especially surprising in a geopolitical climate of profound uncertainty in the wake of Egypt’s civil uprising. With an increasingly modern, culturally westernized population block that is nearly 50% under the age of 30, the extent to which Iran is ripe for such an upheaval has been a weighty topic since the protests over 2009’s fraudulent election. Seeing other oppressors fall by the wayside can, one suspects, only help this possibility. source

08 Feb 2011 14:40

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Biz: Toyota’s cars don’t have computers with minds of their own

  • yes Mechanical defects in the Toyota vehicles, which have already been addressed by the company, were behind the sudden acceleration problem their cars had.
  • no After a long check, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that the electronics were OK and the computer wasn’t at fault. source

08 Feb 2011 14:30

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Politics: Barack Obama makes his tax pitch to the business community

  • Another barrier government can remove is a burdensome corporate tax code with one of the highest rates in the world.
  • President Barack Obama • Speaking to the Chamber of Commerce, the President reiterated his State Of The Union pledge to cut the corporate tax rate. This plan writ large may not cause too much angst to his liberal supporters, provided that the reciprocal promise he made, eliminating loopholes in said corporate tax code, also sees some motion. Chamber of Commerce head Thomas Donahue called it  “a good change in tone.” source