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15 Aug 2010 20:37

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U.S.: Philip Markoff’s suicide took closure away from victim’s family

  • Their grief for Jullissa is as fresh today as the day over a year ago when Markoff took Julissa away from them. The long-awaited criminal prosecution was their only opportunity to confront him, and now he has taken that away as well.
  • Lawyer Djuna Perkins • Discussing suspected Craigslist Killer Philip Markoff’s prison suicide today. Perkins, the lawyer for Julissa Brisman’s family, emphasized that her clients were “shocked and dismayed by the news.” It was a long way down for Markoff, a medical school student who was about to get married before he reportedly started attacking massage therapists that he met on Craigslist and got arrested, presumably with a life sentence in the cards. Crazy situation for sure. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Aug 2010 11:18

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U.S.: Obama and his daughter swim off the Gulf Coast, survive

See guys, the water’s fine! We haven’t yet turned into Creatures from the Black Lagoon! Come to the Gulf Coast! Swim! Shop! Then shop some more! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Aug 2010 15:02

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U.S.: Google Earth stakeout: Because illegal swimming pools are bad

  • See any pools down here, guys? They’re kinda like handing out parking tickets for Riverhead, N.Y., which forces pools to have inspections. But since not everyone does it, they’ve resorted to using Google Maps to find out who’s breaking the rules. It’s netted them $75,000 so far. Not a bad way to nickel-and-dime your residents. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Aug 2010 13:41

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U.S.: Want to roll in the dough? Get a job with the federal government

  • $123,049 the amount federal civil servants earned on average in 2009
  • $61,051 the amount similar private workers earned on average source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Aug 2010 13:19

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U.S.: The system works: Judge-threatening shock jock Hal Turner convicted

  • thenUltra-bat@(&(@-insane radio shock jock Hal Turner threw this nugget out there after a ruling against a (now-overturned) handgun ban in Chicago: “Let me be the first to say this plainly: These judges deserve to be killed.” (!!!)
  • nowTurner was then arrested, and now he’s been convicted for the incendiary speech. “There is no place in society for threatening federal judges with violence. Period,” said U.S. attorney Patrick J.Fitzgerald. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Aug 2010 12:47

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U.S.: Why Obama vacationing in the Gulf Coast is actually good PR

  • $34
    billion     the amount the Gulf Coast made from tourism in 2008, which created 400,000 jobs
  • $22.7 billion the amount the Gulf could lose due to the spill taking a bite out of tourism (hence Obama’s vacation) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink

14 Aug 2010 12:32

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U.S.: Oil spill: So, BP apparently did the top and bottom kill all wrong

  • Bottom kill first! Bottom kill first! BP is ready to drill a relief well after learning from tests that there’s still a risk of oil leaking from the plugged-up hole (and the U.S. called them out for it). In fact, they totally got ripped for it by some experts. “It would have been easier and safer to kill the well with the relief well,” said former petroleum engineer Les Ply. “When it is cemented from the bottom, you can be assured the well is dead.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

14 Aug 2010 05:43

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U.S.: We may get an early Supreme Court preview of the Prop 8 case

  • firstJudge Vaughn Walker decided that Wednesday would be the day he’d take the hold off of gay marriage in California.
  • thenThe supporters of Prop 8 decided to appeal the stay to the famously liberal U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
  • now The appeals court will decide by Monday, at which point it could go to Supreme Court Justice Antony Kennedy. source
  • » Why it’s a preview: Two reasons. First, Kennedy is the swing vote on the court, meaning what he decides could be an early harbinger of the full case. Second, Kennedy may ask for guidance from the court on where to go next. So, Prop 8 followers, we may find out soon whether or not gay marriage is likely to get legalized in the U.S.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Aug 2010 22:40

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U.S.: Obama totally in the camp of the “Ground Zero Mosque” builders

  • This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakable. The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country, and will not be treated differently by their government, is essential to who we are.
  • Barack Obama • Making a spirited defense of the whole Ground Zero Mosque thing. Which we should note a couple of things about. One, it’s two blocks away. And two, it’s in FREAKING MANHATTAN, pretty much the busiest place in the world. Seriously, there’s so much crap there that there’s a strip club and a horse-betting kiosk within a block of the mosque’s planned site. We actually have an AOL News article coming out about this over the weekend. We’ll keep you posted. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Aug 2010 19:04

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U.S.: It’s official: Mr. Candidate Alvin Greene could be Mr. Felony

  • bad Greene’s initial(ly hilarious) candidacy and surprising Democratic primary win was marred by (among other things) an arrest on pornography charges.
  • worseKnee-deep in campaign mode, Greene has been charged for the incident – one felony and one misdemeanor. Porn + Public office = Not a good mix. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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