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16 Jun 2011 20:41

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Biz, U.S.: Amendment killing ethanol subsidies passes — but bill may not

  • The best way for ethanol to survive is to stand on its own two feet, without spending something we don’t have to get something we’re going to have anyway.
  • Sen. Tom Coburn • Making an argument against handing out ethanol subsidies — which cut gas prices but also cost the federal government $6 billion per year. An amendment to kill the subsidies passed both the House and Senate. In the case of the Senate, it was a straight-up bipartisan vote: 73-27. And a number of groups — including environmental groups — note that the subsidies are no longer needed because the federal government already requires refineries to mix ethanol and gasoline. However, don’t get too excited, budget hounds: The amendment is tied to an economic development bill that likely will not pass. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jun 2011 20:11

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Biz, Tech: Pandora’s crappy day: When day two of an IPO totally bombs

  • $16 the amount per share Pandora set its initial public offering for
  • $26 the price the internet radio company reached at its peak yesterday
  • $13 the price the stock closed at today; not looking so hot source
  • » This isn’t a good sign: Generally when a stock has a steep decline immediately after its IPO, it means that the pricing is totally off. In the case of Pandora, the company initially planned to enter the stock market at $7 to $9 per share, but with the current investor fervor over internet companies, the IPO price doubled. Meanwhile, other recently-added tech stocks — LinkedIn and Yandex — have fallen from their peaks, but remain above their IPO prices. In the case of LinkedIn, they’re a solid 52 percent above their IPO price.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jun 2011 17:51

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World: Counter-terrorism experts fear intro attack by Zawahiri

  • relief? Ayman al-Zawahiri’s rise to the top spot in the al-Qaeda organization bears some positive realities for the United States. Namely, he is nowhere near as charismatic or effective a leader as Osama bin Laden was.
  • danger One big risk with having a new leader uncertain of how loyal his people are, is that he might feel the need to assert himself with a splash. As such, counter-terrorism experts fear a possible “big” attack in the near term. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jun 2011 17:15

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Politics: Mitt Romney, unemployed American everyman

  • I should tell my story. I’m also unemployed.
  • Presidential candidate Mitt Romney • Cracking the sort of joke that only really goes over well with a crowd that likes you. A memo to all multi-millionaires out there: I hope this doesn’t sound like “class warfare,” but don’t make jokes about having hardships that you demonstrably don’t have. Does having tons of cash mean you can’t have problems in your life? Not at all. Would unemployment be one of them? Not really. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jun 2011 17:12

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Politics: New York senate may vote on marriage equality soon

  • New York close to marriage equality: As it stands now, New York could become the 6th state to legalize gay marriage, if they can convince just one more Republican state senator to support it. The problem is that in situations when one legislator’s vote tips the balance, that person might get labeled as having cast “the deciding vote.” The question is what a Republican on the fence fears more: conservative backlash against gay marriage support, or the ire of pro-equality advocate groups (58% of New Yorkers support gay marriage). It’s possible this could get a vote tomorrow — we’ll be following it. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jun 2011 16:30

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Politics: Media outlets cut away from Pelosi’s job talk

  • ‘Less jobs, more Weiner,’ media pleads: This is the sort of thing that, after what’s already been a very overblown frenzy over the scandal (and today’s resignation) of Anthony Weiner, serves as an instant representation of what’s frustrating us right now. What makes this even worse is that Nancy Pelosi has repeatedly and stridently called for Weiner’s resignation. As the Democratic Leader, that condemnation is part of what Weiner seemed to feel forced his hand. Is there really even anything left to ask her about this? source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jun 2011 13:53

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Tech: Robin Williams is definitely a bigger Zelda fan than you

  • Robin Williams has been into Legend of Zelda since the ’80s. And in this new ad for the 3DS version of the Nintendo 64 classic Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (one of the best video games ever), Robin Williams is their poster boy. He’s a pretty big fan, apparently, and he has the proof. Check it out. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

16 Jun 2011 13:29

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World: Fukushima: Worse than was initially reported?

  • Is Fukushima worse than we think? That’s what this story from Al Jazeera suggests. One example they offer up: When seawater gets poured on the still-hot reactors, it produces radioactive steam that’s blown everywhere — even as far as the west coast of the U.S. One former nuclear industry executive, Arnold Gundersen, even put it as such: “Fukushima is the biggest industrial catastrophe in the history of mankind.” Is he right? Worth a read. (Photo via Flickr user Jun Teramoto) source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jun 2011 11:28

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Politics: Did the Bush-era CIA go after prominent bloggers like Juan Cole?

  • ‘What do you think we might know about him, or could find out that could discredit him?’ … Does he drink? What are his views? Is he married?
  • Bush-era CIA official David Low (reportedly) • Discussing with Glenn L. Carle, another top official in the CIA at that time, what they should do about Bush-needling professor Juan Cole, whose Informed Comment blog repeatedly criticized the Bush administration’s foreign policy. Cole posted about the matter on his blog today, kind of shocked about what came out. But he admits that he could be only the tip of the iceberg. “What alarms me most of all in the nakedly illegal deployment of the CIA against an academic for the explicit purpose of destroying his reputation for political purposes,” he says, “is that I know I am a relatively small fish and it seems to me rather likely that I was not the only target of the baleful team at the White House.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jun 2011 10:51

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Biz, Tech: One day after its IPO, Pandora’s stock falls below its IPO price

  • yesterday As the latest entrant in the “there’s a new tech bubble” contest, Pandora had an IPO that leaped fairly high above its $16 starting value. Not bad for a company that isn’t profitable, eh?
  • today It appears reality has caught up with Pandora at least a little, as the stock’s price fell below its IPO price in day two of trading, proving that the company is in fact susceptible to the effects of gravity. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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