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20 Nov 2011 08:40

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U.S.: Pepper-sprayed UC Davis protester: It still burns, two days later

  • Don’t worry about it, I’m going to spray these kids down.
  • Lt. John Pike (according to a pepper-sprayed protester at UC Davis) • Speaking to fellow officers before the infamous pepper-spray incident on Friday. According to the protester, who spoke at length anonymously to Boing Boing, the pepper spray he used was military grade, and it still hurts, two days later. “It’s supposed to be used at a minimum of 15 feet,” the protester told Xeni Jardin. “But he sprayed us at point blank range.” Highly recommend you read Boing Boing’s photo-heavy account of the incident, which is very informative. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 Nov 2011 18:55

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U.S.: Study: Drug usage, high childhood IQs may go hand-in-hand

  • Don’t be lulled by your kid’s good academic performance to think that they are not experimenting with drugs. It is commonplace with peers and it is naive to think that because you have a good, smart kid that they will not be curious.
  • Glen Oaks, N.Y., substance abuse official Bruce Goldman • Discussing a study that shows a connection between high childhood IQ and drug abuse. The study of 8,000 people showed that those who had high IQ scores when they were younger were more likely to use some illegal drugs at age 16 and at age 30. Despite this study, we still think kids should try their hardest in school; this isn’t some kind of crazy, blank check endorsement to dumb kids down even more. source
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 Nov 2011 18:36

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U.S.: Reno firefighters make major progress on wildfire, save many homes

  • good The Reno wildfire, which has left some crazy pictures, a pretty insane resident-filmed video, and stunning damage in its wake, is roughly 80 percent contained, authorities say.
  • better While the fire damaged five homes and made 32 others uninhabitable, firefighters have saved roughly 4,500 others on Friday. Next time you’re in Reno, give a firefighter a high-five for a job well done. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Nov 2011 13:51

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U.S.: VIDEO: The Reno wildfire, up close and extremely personal

  • Here’s what the guy that shot this video wrote: “I woke up to a power outage and and an orange glow outside my window at 2:30am. Accross the canyon from me the mountain was on fire and a few homes were in flames. Less than an hour later it had reached my balcony.” The guy, Andrew Lee George (who got out safe), was one of 9,500 people who had to leave their homes as a result of the quickly-growing fire, which has already injured a handful of people and destroyed 20 homes. Yikes. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Nov 2011 13:04

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U.S.: FDA decides against blockbuster breast-cancer drug Avastin

  • what A blockbuster drug for breast cancer, Avastin, lost its FDA approval to be used for that particular purpose. (It will remain on the market as a cancer drug for other uses — including colon cancer — and Medicare will still cover it for breast cancer usage.)
  • why Multiple studies have shown that the drug only helps shrink tumors a little bit, and the side effects don’t make up for that benefit, the FDA decided. The decision means that many insurance providers will likely no longer cover the drug, which is very expensive. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Nov 2011 21:09

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U.S.: Breakdown: Arrests today during Occupy “Day of Action” protests

  • 400 estimated arrests in “Day of Action” protests nationwide
  • 300 estimated arrests in New York City alone, where emotions run high
  • 99 estimated arrests at the Brooklyn Bridge, a symbolic place source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Nov 2011 18:51

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U.S.: Day of Action: Protesters arrested for sitting at base of Brooklyn Bridge

  • 80+ arrested at Brooklyn Bridge during today’s protests source
  • » The second notable set of Brooklyn Bridge arrests: In something of a return to its roots for the Occupy movement, a number of protesters got arrested while attempting to head towards the Brooklyn Bridge, which mimics a protest from during the early part of the Occupy movement, in which over 700 people got arrested by the NYPD for walking on the iconic bridge. But the tone during today’s “Day of Action” protests was different — those who got arrested did so for sitting at the base of the bridge, while many others stuck to the pedestrian path, staying off the road.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

17 Nov 2011 15:16

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U.S.: Suspected White House shooter charged with “attempted assassination”

  • Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez, the man apprehended as the suspected source of the gunfire directed at the White House last week, will face a charge of “attempted assassination.” This is a curious case for reasons of proximity — President Obama wasn’t in the White House, or even on the East Coast, when the shots were fired. That said, whether or not this qualifies as an assassination attempt in a legal sense (we’re not lawyers, so any clarification would be helpful) may have to do with whether Ortega-Hernandez actually knew that, or believed the President to be sitting in the White House when he opened fire. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Nov 2011 14:20

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U.S.: CA’s Prop. 8 proponents win State Supreme Court challenge

  • And The fight over gay marriage rolls on: The California Supreme Court has ruled that opponents of gay marriage may defend the state’s ban, better known as Proposition 8, in court proceedings. Typically the task of defending such a state initiative falls on officials like the governor or attorney general, but both Jerry Brown and Kamala Harris have refused to do so, voicing opposition to the marriage restriction. This is broadly viewed as a table-setting sort of ruling — there’s a growing air of inevitability that the gay marriage issue is bound for the U.S. Supreme Court, where a ruling could impact the institution all across the country. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Nov 2011 10:32

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U.S.: Occupy Wall Street descends on Wall Street on two-month anniversary

  • 50+ people arrested near Wall Street this morning source
  • » An attempt to prevent trading: A number of protesters, many from Zuccotti Park, tried to prevent traders from reaching the floor of Wall Street, but trading started at the usual 9:30 a.m. despite this. Protesters held up signs that said such things as “Tear down this Wall Street” and shouted phrases like “We aren’t afraid of your nightsticks,” in reference to the NYPD. “We’re not going to go away,” one protester, Davie Field, told the New York Times. “You can slash our tents and kick us out of the park, but we’ll keep coming back every day.”
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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