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14 Feb 2011 14:57

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World: Higher Military Council in Egypt issues timeline for reforms

  • 2 months maximum expected before Egypt’s constitutional referendum source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2011 14:23

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Politics: FoxNation.com thinks they may have video proof of apocalypse

  • journalism? “The Fox Nation is committed to the core principles of tolerance, open debate, civil discourse, and fair and balanced coverage of the news,” says the mission statement at FoxNation.com, an online arm of the Fox News Channel.
  • nope! “Is this the Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse?” So asks Clayton Morris, a Fox News weekend anchor, whose ludicrous claim of end-times evidence was then reblogged by FoxNation.com. (big hat tip to Mediaite on this). source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2011 13:54

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World: As Iranians take to streets, an expectedly oppressive response

  • Teargas in the streets of Tehran: So says the Facebook page of Iranian opposition figure Mir Hossein Mousavi, where this video was posted. It shows Iranians protesting, reportedly against the Iranian government’s detainment of political prisoners, before fleeing back towards the camera. Mousavi’s Facebook claims this was caused by a sudden teargas attack. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2011 13:38

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Politics, World: Silvio Berlusconi is always there for you, ladies!

  • I have always made it so that every woman feels, how should I say, special.
  • Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi • Embattled by multiple charges of sex with underage prostitutes (the girls were of legal consenting age, but prostitutes must be over eighteen by Italian law), the leader defended his way with women, insisting he’s always treated them with respect and “the greatest attention,” which might somewhat be the problem. Berlusconi faces charges carrying a maximum sentence of fifteen years in prison.  source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2011 13:18

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Politics: Shirley Sherrod makes good on her promise to Andrew Breitbart

  • YES Shirley Sherrod has filed suit against Andrew Breitbart source
  • » Bad day for scurillous-ness: The former USDA official was famously the target of a heavily cut video clip that seemed to present her as a racist who withheld help to a white farmer. The aftermath saw a gross and shocking leap to conclusion by the USDA under Tom Vilsack, which forced her resignation, before some helpful skeptics examined the full video which showed she was making a point AGAINST racism. I’ll admit, this case does have relevant, personal importance for bloggers, as the man charged is in that sense “one of our own,” even ones that wouldn’t be caught dead at a Breitbart event. But notwithstanding, whether the charge of defamation is well-earned or not, some of Mr. Breitbart’s antics have been grossly deceptive and unscrupulous.
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2011 11:27

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U.S.: By the numbers: Obama’s budget cut plans deep, but not too deep

  • $3.73
    trillion     the size of Obama’s latest budget plan, just released today
  • $1.1
    trillion     the amount Obama plans to cut from the deficit over the next decade
  • 2/3 the share of deficit cuts that would come from cutbacks in various federal programs
  • $7.2T the amount that would be added to the public debt – not the deficit – over the next decade
  • $4T the amount Obama’s own deficit commission wanted to cut over the next decade source
  • » Only one silo gets the cuts: Obama wants to effectively limit all non-security discretionary spending for the next five years, an area which only accounts for 12 percent of federal spending, at the cost of doing something about defense spending or programs like Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security – which, as popular as they are, account for huge chunks of the pie. The cuts are also much lower than what Republicans want, although they’re also hoping to avoid defense spending cuts, even though that’s a huge chunk.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2011 11:07

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World: Palestinian situation looking pretty freaking messed-up right now

  • I can’t advocate accountability and transparency all my life and then comes the biggest breach in Palestinian national security – the stealing of the documents from my office – and let it be business as usual. What I want to do is plant the seeds for the future of Palestinian officials. When officials make mistakes, they are out.
  • Palestinian peace negotiator Saeb Erekat • Explaining why he left his office in the wake of the recent “Palestine Papers” scandal, which was rooted from a leak in his office. Erekat’s exit over the weekend is only one sign of an overwhelming instability that showed up in the wake of the Egyptian unrest. Prime Minister Salam Fayyad straight-up dissolved the cabinet and plans to replace them all within six weeks. The cabinet was long seen by many in the Fatah movement as dysfunctional, indluding Fayyad – and not even all the seats in the cabinet were actually filled with people. Is a fresh start what Palestine needs, at least politically? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

14 Feb 2011 10:53

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Tech: Why is everyone skeptical of Nokia’s Microsoft deal, anyway?

  • reason The company’s newest CEO, Stephen Elop, was an executive at Microsoft before becoming Nokia’s figurehead – and he just spearheaded the Microsoft deal.
  • evidence The new president of U.S.-focused Nokia, Inc. is Chris Weber, who spent 16 years at Microsoft. Gaining competitive advantage by trojan horse much? source
  • » Here comes the denial: While many are suspicious of Elop’s motives, he personally denies that’s what took place. “The obvious answer is no,” Elop said. “We made sure that the entire management team was involved in the process, and of course the board of directors of Nokia are the only ones that can make this significant of a decision about Nokia. They made that final decision on Thursday night.” For some reason, we’re guessing he had that response ready.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2011 10:36

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World: Danger, suppression cloud today’s Iranian protests

  • plan Today, Iranians planned to protest in solidarity with Egyptians who successfully won their independence last week.
  • wrinkle Unfortunately, police are reportedly ready for them – armed with shotguns, tear gas, batons and fire extinguishers.
  • wrinkle Also, opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi has been prevented from attending – his phone lines were cut, too. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2011 10:23

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U.S.: Chandra Levy’s mom not 100% sure Ingmar Guandique killed her

  • To be honest, I always have that 5 percent of not being sure.
  • Susan Levy • Expressing doubts about the conviction of Ingmar Guandique – whether he was the dude who killed her daughter, Chandra Levy, a decade ago. This didn’t stop the elder Levy from calling Guandique “lower than a cockroach” and a “hideous creature” the other day, mind you. We understand Levy’s pain, and while we hope, for both their sakes, the right man was convicted, we can understand her doubts. This case has been a freaking mess ever since the name “Gary Condit” was tied to it all those years ago. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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