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14 Feb 2011 10:11

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Music: On Justin Beieber fans defacing Esperanza Spalding’s Wikipedia page

  • Look, these attacks appear personal. It appears that Ms. Esperanza Spalding’s Wikipedia page has been attacked by the Bieber faithful for her win for Best New Artist at the Grammys last night – a ringer who beat out four well-known acts. But, a piece of advice to Bieber fans: If you want to deface a page, how about the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences one? It’s their fault that the Grammys are completely out of lockstep with pop music, that favors music completely out of the popular zeitgeist. Otherwise, stop watching The Grammys. There are other, more useful, ways to show your love for musicians. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 3 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2011 09:21

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Offbeat: Kissing Thai couples set record for kissing each other (kiss)

  • 33 straight hours swapping spit with each other (and counting) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2011 12:24

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U.S.: Detective who helped catch serial-stabbing suspect: “Just doing my job”

  • I was just doing my job. … It was a crazy day, but I’m thankful that I made it home safe.
  • NYC Detective Marcelo Razzo • Humbly taking credit for his role in stopping serial stabbing suspect Maksim Gelman yesterday morning. Razzo was one of three cops who helped subdue the man suspected in a series of murders, carjackings and assorted other violent acts. Razzo was off-duty – and just happened to be on the train – when he helped stop the suspect, who was dramatically caught on a subway train underneath Times Square. Razzo ran from the third car to the first to help subdue him. Good work. Better response. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2011 12:05

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World: 200 cities + a tawdry sex scandal = A huge anti-Berlusconi protest

Hundreds of thousands of women took part in today’s protests. This is why, if you’re the leader of Italy, you don’t get associated with scandals involving underage prostitutes. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2011 11:50

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Tech: Three reasons why Microsoft’s Nokia deal really sucks for Nokia

  • one Their long-popular Symbian OS was created mostly as a reaction to Microsoft’s plans to enter the mobile market over a decade ago. This move tastes like crow.
  • two The profit margins on Nokia phones right now are roughly 30 percent. With a Windows-licensed phone, it’s much closer to 5-10 percent – a huge drop in revenues.
  • three This is the worst one by far – 20,000 Finnish Nokia employees will likely lose their jobs due to redundancy – a HUGE chunk of people by any stretch. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2011 11:33

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Politics: U2’s Bono steps into South African “Shoot the Boer” controversy

  • When I was a kid and I’d sing songs I remember my uncles singing… rebel songs about the early days of the Irish Republican Army. … We sang this and it’s fair to say it’s folk music.
  • U2’s Bono • Defending his support of a South African protest song called “Shoot the Boer,” seen as an attack on white people in South African (“boer” is considered a slur), by noting that the Irish Republican Army had violent protest songs, too! (He sang a couple bars of a violence-promoting Irish “folk song” while talking.) The song is the center of major controversy, with the leader of South Africa’s Youth League, Julius Malema, in a legal fight over whether the song is hate speech or not. Based on the criticism the human-rights figurehead has gotten, it may just be. if it weren’t for the Spider-Man musical, this would be the dumbest thing he’s done lately. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2011 11:12

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World: In Algeria, police put on full-court press, triple-team protesters

  • 3:1 the ratio of police to protesters in Algers, says the AP source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

13 Feb 2011 11:03

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World: Video: In Yemen, pro-government, anti-government protesters clash

  • Here’s the difference between the pro-government protesters in this clip, recorded earlier this weekend, and the anti-government protesters. The groups supporting Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh have clubs and knives. The people protesting against Saleh don’t. Today, anti-government protesters were prevented from marching to the presidential palace by police, who also used violent tactics against protesters. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2011 10:41

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World: Update: What the Egyptian military leadership plans to do next

  • before The Egyptian military took control of the country’s government after Hosni Mubarak resigned late last week.
  • now The military has now dissolved the country’s parliament and has called for fresh elections within six months or so.
  • later Emergency rule still rules, but it’s something the army says will go away once the security situation improves. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink

12 Feb 2011 19:07

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World: Palestine fighting over itself over Egypt-inspired election plans

  • We call upon all parties to set aside their reservations and disagreements. Let us work together to hold elections and uphold the will of the Palestinian people. As for differences and disagreements, whether in political or security matters, we believe that these issues could be resolved by the coming elected Legislative Council.
  • A message from the Palestinian Authority • Announcing the country’s first elections since 2006, when Hamas gained a foothold, will take place in September. As with just about everything with the Islamist Hamas group, things are tense, and they’re fighting the decision to hold elections, saying that they need to come after a reconciliation period between Hamas and the Fatah, which dominates the Palestinian Authority. Hamas is currently not a part of the Palestine Liberation Organization,  and want the group to be restructured to include them. The two groups – Hamas and Fatah – fought a brief civil war in 2007 and since then have controlled different parts of the already-tension-filled country. Also today, Saeb Erekat, one of Palestine’s chief negotiators with Israel, resigned in the wake of the recent “Palestine Papers” scandal. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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