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04 Jul 2011 17:58

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Culture: Daniel Radcliffe steps away from the bottle, sets an example

  • Harry Potter liked to party. At least until he deduced that alcohol wasn’t such a boon to his personality: “I became so reliant on alcohol to enjoy stuff… I’m actually enjoying the fact I can have a relationship with my girlfriend where I’m really pleasant and I’m not f–king up totally all the time.” In addition to doing away with his drinking habit, Radcliffe has his sights set on doing away with the “curse” of being a successful child star: “If I can make a career for myself after Potter… in the biggest film franchise of all time, no other child actor who comes after will ever have to answer those same bloody questions.” We applaud Radcliffe’s determination, but we’re skeptical if one Daniel Radcliffe could ever cancel out, say, one Kirk Cameron. (Image courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures) source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Jul 2011 16:53

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U.S.: California’s new district lines no longer in political hands

  • 14 California residents control the state’s political redistricting source
  • » Power to some people! It’s congressional redistricting time in California, which can play as big a role in the outcomes of elections as the candidates themselves. By way of a 2008 ballot initiative against gerrymandering, that power has put in the hands of fourteen citizens. Criticism has come quickly — Latino advocacy groups are saying that the influence of their voters will be diminished by the first drafts of the new map, and retiring congresswoman Lynn Woolsey complains that her once compact Marin County district would stretch more than 350 miles up the west coast. Principally, we object to gerrymandering; it’s an unpleasant underbelly of American politics. That said, subjective judgments that will tilt the balance of power are a necessity of the system, as there isn’t really such a thing as an objectively honest state district map. So, can you really avoid this problem just by bringing in ostensibly less political people? We’re not so sure.
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Jul 2011 16:31

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U.S.: Follow the leader: Joe Biden has an official VP twitter account

  • A few days after President Obama started tweeting, our VP is too. Well, it’s not really him, but it still shows how hard the White House is trying to reach people through social media. Sure, it’s kinda lame, but it’s also pretty cool – after all, they wouldn’t be trying things like this if they didn’t care, right? It’s also pretty interesting to note that Joe Biden had a Twitter account back when he was a senator, but it hasn’t been updated since August of 2008. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Jul 2011 16:03

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World: French writer Tristane Banon accuses DSK of attempted rape

  • Another rape accusation against Strauss-Kahn: At the same time as news has been swirling about weaknesses in the New York rape case against former IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn, a French woman has come forward with a similar accusation. Tristane Banon, a French author, claims Strauss-Kahn attempted to rape her during an interview for a book she published in 2003. Banon’s lawyers have said they intend to file a criminal complaint of attempted rape on Tuesday (the French statute of limitations for a rape charge is ten years), while Strauss-Kahn’s lawyers indicated they may file against Banon for slander. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Jul 2011 15:52

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World: Rebels invite Gaddafi to stay in Libya … after he resigns

  • If he desires to stay in Libya, we will be the ones to determine the place and there will be international supervision on all his movements and communications.
  • Mustafa Abdel Jalil, a rebel leader in Libya • He’s saying that Gaddafi can stay in Libya after he resigns, so long as he has supervision. It just shows that rebels are more eager to get to a peace deal. Rather than having him exiled, they’re willing to let him hang around after he’s out of power. This is all coming in response to a proposal from the African Union that rebels have interpreted as saying that Gaddafi shouldn’t have any sort of power anymore. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Jul 2011 15:36

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World: Hugo Chavez returns to Venezuela

  • An unexpected homecoming: On the heels of revealing his medical plight to the Venezuelan public (he recently revealed he had cancer surgery), Hugo Chavez has returned to his homeland. “Here I am then, in my house and very happy!! Good day to my lovely Venezuela! Good day to the lovely people! Thanks to my God! This is the beginning of the return,” the leader wrote on Twitter. This comes as a surprise — he was expected to stay in Cuba for further treatment for some time, but it makes sense that he’d see a return as the only way to quell speculation he’s physically unable to remain President. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Jul 2011 10:35

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U.S.: Motorcycle helmet protester dies; friends won’t put theirs on

  • He’s a rebel. That’s what he felt like doing. He protested everything.
  • Richard Contos • Describing his brother, Philip, who died Saturday in a motorcycle accident that he probably would’ve survived had he worn a helmet. However — here’s the kicker — he wasn’t wearing a helmet at the time because he was protesting helmet laws. So is Philip’s death going to change things among his biking buddies? Nope. “It’s not going to stop us protesting our right to wear a helmet or not wear a helmet,” said Christinea Rathbun, the president of the Syracuse chapter of American Bikers Aimed Towards Education, a group that Philip Contos took part in. “It’s your own risk.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

04 Jul 2011 09:37

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Culture: “Transformers 3”: Did Michael Bay rip off his OWN movie?

  • Did Michael Bay steal footage from himself? The proof is in this clip, which shows that two action scenes in the movies — “Transformers 3” and the 2005 semi-unsuccessful flick “The Island” — look exactly the same. This is a big deal because Bay has been pushing the film as a great example of 3D filmmaking that doesn’t use any 3D conversion. The reality? The dude’s so terrible at filming action scenes that he has to take the good ones and reuse them. (Oh, and something about a girl getting injured on the set … using her as an excuse? What?) Lame. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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