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07 Mar 2011 15:38

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World: Exactly what aim does Hugo Chavez have for Libyan negotiations?

  • Not to belabor the point: In a story that we’ve mentioned in days past, Hugo Chavez has been making noise about wanting to function as a peace negotiator in Libya. Setting aside for a moment arguments about the merits or lack thereof of the way Chavez runs Venezuela, you know what doesn’t bode well for this endeavor? Having your big time negotiator, who was a recipient of the self-evidently ridiculous “al-Gaddafi International Prize for Human Rights,” call reports of Gaddafi’s forces firing on citizens “a great lie.” Also, saying that “Gaddafi is not going anywhere, I’m sure. Gaddafi is among those men who die fighting.” So, that said, what exactly does Hugo hope to achieve for the people of Libya? source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 15:02

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Tech: New research may foreshadow leap in heart disease prevention

  • 13 gene regions linked to heart disease by scientific research source
  • » Cracking the heart disease code: As anybody with a family history, or personal history of heart disease knows, it’s a frightening and pervasive concern. It should come as thrilling news, then, that a group of scientists believe they’ve located thirteen different gene regions that may indicate a vulnerability to heart attack. Though the knowledge is admittedly limited, and is likely years from practical application in a doctor’s office, advancements like these are what give us hope for a brighter, healthier future, with fewer people unexpectedly dropping dead.
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 14:41

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Politics: Senator John Ensign to call it a career

  • John Ensign, signing off: The Nevada Senator is expected to announce he won’t seek reelection in 2012, opting instead to retire from public life. Ensign, 52, would face a winnable but nonetheless taxing battle to retain his seat in light of the ethics investigation against him, stemming from his extramarital affair with the wife of one of his top political aides. Ensign is one of Congress’ members of “The Family,” the secretive, moralistic Evangelical organization that operates out of the “C Street” house in Washington, which made his marital infidelity seem especially hypocritical and irritating to his detractors. (thanks pantslessprogressive) source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 14:14

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Tech: WordPress founder confirms DDoS assault came from China

  • last week WordPress, the exemplary blogging platform, was hit with a massive distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack that stalled its servers. At the time, they believed it may have been politically motivated against a Chinese language blog.
  • this week While WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg updated the record in an email to IDG News Service, saying he no longer believed the motive to be political, he did confirm that the DDoS attack originated from China. A little international intrigue? source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 14:03

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Biz: Damn Skippy: Beware the high price of tainted foodstuffs

  • 2 Skippy peanut butter styles recalled for potential Salmonella poisoning source
  • » Step away from the jar: The hazardous brands being recalled are “Skippy Reduced Fat Creamy Peanut Butter,” and “Skippy Reduced Fat Super Chunk Peanut Butter,” as distributed in 16.3 ounce jars across the following sixteen states: Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Wisconsin. Though no illnesses have yet been tied to this recall, you can never be too careful when Salmonella is involved. This is the latest in a recent string of high profile food recalls, which helped generate momentum for last year’s Food Safety Modernization Act. The FSMA introduced a host of regulatory updates to a system that had, to that point, been largely unchanged for generations.
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 11:22

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U.S.: Supreme Court narrowly favors death row inmate’s DNA fight

  • 6-3 the SCOTUS decision to favor a Texas death-row inmate source
  • » More rights for death row inmates? Inmate Hank Skinner, based on this decision, will be able to file a civil rights lawsuit to get DNA material. It’s a narrowly-scoped decision, however, and one that only allows Skinner to claim that the state didn’t follow its own policies on acquiring DNA evidence. What does that mean, in layman’s terms? It means that inmates don’t have a broad constitutional right to acquire DNA material in court – a decision which would have much larger ramifications and give inmates a quite-large bargaining point in criminal cases (including the ability for their defense to independently test such DNA material). Still, though, it buys Skinner time.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 11:00

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U.S.: Wisconsin Senate Dems pushing for border-line meeting

  • yesterday A report came out suggesting that Wisconsin Democrats were willing to come back to the state without any major victories in tow. The report was later denied, with one state senator suggesting they were taken out of context.
  • today State Sen. Mark Miller is in fact pushing for a meeting between Walker, the Senate Majority Leader and the Dems near the Wisconsin-Illinois border. We bet Walker will trap one of them in a car and bring them back to Madison. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

07 Mar 2011 10:42

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World: Libya: The United Nations pushes for large humanitarian offering

  • 400k the number of people leaving Libya that the United Nations expects to need aid
  • 600k the number of people inside Libya that the UN thinks will need varying degrees of help
  • $160M the amount that the UN wants to set aside to help with the crisis in Libya source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 10:29

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Biz: Twitter valuation: A stock auction suggests they’re growing in value

  • $7.7 billion valuation based on a private stock auction source
  • » Worth noting: Just three months ago, that valuation was $3.75 billion, so this is a pretty big jump for the company. Still not Facebook numbers, but getting there. We credit the Dickbar.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2011 10:14

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World: Did Iraq’s al-Maliki take offices away from protest leaders?

  • cause In recent weeks, protests against Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki’s government have increased, along with protests across the entire Middle East. It’s a trend or something.
  • reaction? Suddenly, two of the political parties protesting were forced to close their offices by security forces controlled by al-Maliki. They didn’t explain why they took the offices from the parties. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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