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18 Sep 2011 10:29

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Politics: Paul Ryan: Obama’s “Buffett Rule” equivalent to “class warfare”

  • Class warfare … may make for really good politics, but it makes for rotten economics.
  • Rep. Paul Ryan • Coming out, guns blazing, against Obama’s plan to raise the tax rate for the super-rich. Ryan, speaking on “Fox News Sunday,”also claimed that the tax would be in effect a “double tax” on investments, and would discourage investors from putting their money into the economy. “If you tax something more, you get less of it,” Ryan said. “If you tax job creators more, you get less job creation. If you tax their investment more, you get less investment.” Mitch McConnell, speaking on “Meet the Press,” had similar concerns about the “Buffett Rule,” which we found out about last night. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Sep 2011 21:43

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U.S.: Reno Air Races press conference: Here’s the latest on the deadly crash

  • nine number of people killed during yesterday’s crash; it’s unknown if this total will rise
  • 69 number of people treated for injuries at local hospitals; 54 were brought there by medics
  • 31 number of people admitted for their injuries; eight patients in critical condition source
  • » Crater left by plane crash: A three-foot deep, eight-foot wide crater was left by the plane crash, according to Chief investigator Howard Plagens. Meanwhile, NTSB member Mark Rosekind says that the focus right now is gathering factual information, not analyzing it. He says that although the crash took seconds to happen, retracing its steps will take months. (information gathered via live press conference)
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17 Sep 2011 20:44

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U.S.: Reno Air Races update: Death toll rises, NTSB press conference soon

  • reno The latest report is that nine people died in the accident yesterday, including the pilot, Jimmy Leeward. Many of those in the hospital — roughly three dozen — suffered head injuries. NTSB officials will have a press conference at 9:15 EDT to relay the latest updates.
  • martinsburg Another crash — a day after that at the Reno Air Races — spooked people at a race in Martinsburg, West Virginia today. The crash killed the pilot but did not affect anyone in the crowds. The pilot, much like Leeward, was flying a vintage World War plane. source
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17 Sep 2011 20:03

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Politics: Obama to make tax-the-wealthy push … and credit Warren Buffett

  • Remember how Warren Buffett wrote that the government should raise the taxes of the super-wealthy … you know, folks like him? Well, it looks like someone with a lot of power to put that plan into action read that New York Times editorial. Obama’s going to make a push to tax the super-wealthy (those who make more than $1 million per year) at the same rate as the middle-class, and he’s calling it the “Buffett Rule.” Great selling point for Obama, but will it be enough for all the other rich people in Congress? Good question. (photo via Medill DC) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Sep 2011 14:18

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Culture: Strange timing: Two daughters of high-profile politicians die in same week

  • Kennedy Friday, Kara Kennedy, daughter of Ted, died while at a DC-area health club. It was announced Saturday. She was just 51. A former lung cancer sufferer, her brother Patrick, a former congressman himself, thinks that the cancer (which she beat a number of years ago) took a long-term toll on her. “Her heart gave out,” he said.
  • Mondale Meanwhile, Eleanor Mondale, the daughter of Walter, died Saturday after a long battle with brain cancer. She was also just 51. A former TV broadcaster, she was noted for her high-profile personal life: She once dated Warren Zevon and Arnold Schwarzenegger and was married to Minneapolis rocker Chan Poling at the time of her death. source
  • » Correction: Kara Kennedy died on Friday night, not Saturday as previously reported. It was announced Saturday, however. Apologies. The article reflects the change.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Sep 2011 12:18

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Culture: Fox considering creating an all-Simpsons cable network

  • They certainly have enough episodes to pull it off. One of News Corp.’s greatest pieces of entertainment could eventually become a franchise all its own. With the series likely to pass the 500-episode mark with its upcoming 23rd season, Fox is reportedly talking about a long-term plan for the franchise, involving a cable network of its own. Obviously, they wouldn’t be able to do this right away — most of the series is embedded in long-term syndication deals — but once those expire, a single network approach might prove to be more financially sound as the series reaches its point of quarter-life crisis. So how would this work, anyway? Let’s do a quick number breakdown:
  • 245 length, in hours, of the series’ current 486 episodes, plus “The Simpsons Movie,” with commercials
  • 10.2 number of days that would manage to fill up, including commercials, before you’d run into a show repeat
  • 35.7 number of times the network would cycle through every single episode, plus a movie, in a single year source
  • » So, what do you guys think? Is a network built around a single show, even one as diverse and far-reaching as “The Simpsons,” something you’d watch? Or would it be like the original MTV — where everyone loved the idea of it, but didn’t necessarily stick with it? We’re not sure, but there are probably some pretty killer OWN Network jokes they could make if Fox did this.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Sep 2011 11:31

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World: Iranian lawyer: Jailed hikers need judge’s signature to post bail

  • Everything is in place to post bail (for Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer) and to have them released, except for the signature of a judge.
  • Masoud Shafii, the lawyer for the American hikers jailed in Iran • Revealing that the fate of the two men rested in the hands of a judge — the $500,000 bail for each is in place, it’s just a matter of getting the judge to make a critical last step. Then Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal would be able to go home. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi hoped the judiciary would so so. “We hope the judiciary will announce its decision in the near future … According to our information, the judiciary has the intention of reducing their sentences,” Salehi said. The judiciary, which is very conservative, recently contradicted the words of Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, claiming that the hikers would not get released right away. source
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17 Sep 2011 10:06

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U.S.: What we know about last night’s Reno Air Races crash

  • one At least three people have died and more than 50 were injured after a plane crashed into the stands. Many of the injured — some critically — have lost limbs. There was no explosion.
  • two The air races have been cancelled for only the second time in their history — the first being in the wake of September 11, 2001. A memorial will be held today for pilot Jimmy Leeward.
  • three Leeward himself was a qualified pilot, and witnesses say it looked like he tried to salvage the landing. But officials have avoided offering a definitive description of events. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Sep 2011 18:06

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U.S.: FBI claims anti-Muslim training materials were work of one person

  • There may not be a ‘radical’ threat as much as it is simply a normal assertion of the orthodox ideology. The strategic themes animating these Islamic values are not fringe; they are main stream.
  • A FBI training presentation • Suggesting that mainstream — not just radicalized — Muslims are dangerous. The training materials, leaked to Wired by FBI whistleblowers, seem to suggest that normal religious behavior protected by the Constitution is a tell sign of terror ties. The training documents, some of which were produced solely by William Gawthrop, seem to support fairly controversial views he’s previously pushed forward on such sites as WorldNetDaily. The FBI responded to Wired’s article today, saying that the presentation was only given one time, was the work of one person (presumably Gawthorp), and doesn’t reflect FBI policy as a whole. “As of August 2011, the individual who delivered the presentation no longer provides training on behalf of the FBI,” their response states. “These corrective measures were made before recent media attention was given to this topic.” The real question: How did this guy get in a position where he could make such a presentation in the first place? This is a huge black eye for the FBI. (thanks kateoplis) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Sep 2011 16:53

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Tech: NASA: Dead satellite could break apart, fall to Earth in giant chunks

  • six the weight of the dead satellite, in tons — which is pretty heavy
  • 26 the number of pieces the satellite could break into, according to NASA
  • 350 the possible weight of one of the chunks, in pounds source
  • » Better odds than the lottery: What are the odds a person might get hit by a piece of space junk, according to NASA? One in 3,200. To put this in perspective, the odds that a person playing the lottery might win are 1 in 175,000,000. The big difference of course? You want to win the lottery. You don’t want a giant piece of broken satellite turning you into a postmodern Chicken Little. NASA says it’ll have more info next week. (src ProducerMatthew)
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