ShortFormBlogMay 21, 2011

We are deeply saddened by the tragedy at Foxconn’s plant in Chengdu, and our hearts go out to the victims and their families. We are working closely with Foxconn to understand what caused this terrible event.
A statement from Apple • Expressing remorse for yesterday’s explosion at a Foxconn factory in China. The explosion, which took place in Chengdu, China, killed at least two and injured 16. The factory, which produces iPads, suspended production after the accident, according to Foxconn. “The safety of our employees is our highest priority and we will do whatever is required to determine and address the cause of this tragic accident,” they wrote in a statement to The Wall Street Journal’s All Things D. source

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problem After word came out that Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh agreed to a deal to transition out of power, he backed away from his plan to sign the deal.
resolution? After working with Saleh on the deal, Yemen’s opposition leaders say they now have a deal with to make it happen. They’ve signed, and he should tomorrow. source

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After the shooting in Tucson when Representative Giffords was injured, we talked seriously as a nation about civility. Many Republicans and Democrats even sat together at the State of the Union. Remember that? Now, if we can just sit together and solve our problems. Civility acts as a lubricant to make the system work.
Former U.S. Ambassador to China (and potential presidential candidate) Jon Huntsman • Making his latest commencement speech at a university — he made one just recently at the University of South Carolina while ignoring a nearby GOP convention. Today’s speech, at Southern New Hampshire University, continued in the same kind of vein, though it focused more on politics this time. (Last time, Huntsman name-dropped Ben Folds Five, which fits in with his history as an indie rocker.) His style of campaigning is interesting — and it’s one that’s lacking from the overall playing field right now. To put it simply, why are all the good GOP candidates this time around the minor ones who may not even make a decent showing next year? source

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“I once Ate a pizza, and it was this big. That’s why they called me the Godfather.” (OK, he didn’t say that; we just love the photo.) Herman Cain, who we’ve covered before on numerous occasions, is the latest guy to drop his hat into the presidential ring. “Let me tell you some of the reasons why I’m running for president of the United States.We have become a nation of crises,” he said when making his announcement today. He’s a bit of a wildcard — he doesn’t have strong name recognition, but he does have the kind of business acumen which makes him pretty desirable. His polling shows a pretty interesting trend — not many people know him, but those who do freaking love him. More:

29% of self-described GOP voters know who Herman Cain even is, according to a May 17 Gallup poll
<0.5% of voters in that poll picked the former Godfather’s Pizza CEO as their first choice for president in 2012
71% of people who did know anything about the Herminator, however, had positive feelings about him source

» Can he make a run? As we noted in a Webdoc we made a couple weeks back, he kinda killed it at the Fox News presidential debate — which didn’t feature any major candidates, to Cain’s benefit. With big-name establishment Republicans failing to wow the field and loaded with reasons to nick their reputation (looking at you Newt), folks like Cain and Ron Paul have a good chance of doing well this time around. We expect his name recognition to go way up. (photo from Gage Skidmore‘s Flickr page)

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However, there is no escaping his failed 2011 ‘Doomsday’ prediction. He painted himself into a corner by using words like ‘guaranteed’ and ‘without any shadow of doubt.’ His massive publicity campaign just made it worse.
An International Business Times editorial • Offering harsh words for Harold Camping, the dude who claimed that the rapture was afoot today. Their words for the Family Radio leader are pretty harsh. “In all likelihood, his ministry will be destroyed,” they write, noting that he made it seem like such a sure thing that there was no room for error in his prediction. Other, more mainstream, religious leaders and groups (Pat Robertson, the Jehovah’s Witnesses) have been down this road before, but not with the level of certainty that Camping pushed. That’s why he probably won’t be able to recover from this craziness. source

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21 May 2011 18:29