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06 May 2010 00:09

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U.S.: There’s a U-Haul truck hanging out on the RFK Bridge right now

  • It has Arizona plates; no #(&@, Sherlock, it’s a U-Haul. Just when we needed another terrorism scare in New York City, here we go. Somebody ditched a U-Haul about 1,000 feet from a toll booth. The bridge is currently shut down and everyone’s on their Ps and Qs. Please not be a bomb, please not be a bomb … (Update: Reuters says it’s not a bomb. Just a scare, nothing more.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 May 2010 20:25

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U.S.: U.Va.’s men’s lacrosse program troubled beyond that shocking murder

  • eight number of players (out of 41)
    that have been arrested or charged
    for alcohol-related offenses; some
    have gone to jail
  • 60 days the length of suspected murderer
    George Huguely’s suspended
    sentence after a drunken scuffle
    with a police officer source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 May 2010 20:13

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Tech, U.S.: The FCC twists, turns its way through the net neutrality wormhole

  • before The FCC planned to use
    its weight to move
    carriers to follow net
    neutrality rules it created.
  • then A federal court said this
    wasn’t legal and that
    Congress should make
    a net neutrality law.
  • now The FCC now plans to …
    regulate the Internet like the phone system. How
    wacky! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 May 2010 20:01

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U.S.: Pssh, tourist. Times Square suspect has been to Times Square before

Faisal Shahzad went with his family and a bunch of other blurry people. In other news, his tie to the Taliban is becoming a little more plausible. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 May 2010 13:10

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U.S.: Oops: The U.S. closes a loophole in its no-fly list

  • 24
    hours     the size of the
    intervals     airlines used
    to re-check no-fly lists
    before today
  • yes
    sir     Times Square suspect Faisal Shahzad managed to board a plane before the list was updated
  • two
    hours     the size of the new intervals to check for individuals with “special circumstances” source
  • » Our take: Why aren’t they using a high-security equivalent to Twitter to do something like this? Why isn’t it updated to the minute? It seems silly that it’s not.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 May 2010 12:02

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U.S.: Make way for “Real World” congressman: Rep. David Obey retiring



Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 May 2010 09:42

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U.S.: Black Republicans at once empowered and disillusioned by Obama

  • 32 black Republicans
    are running for seats in
    Congress this year
  • five the number of black
    Republicans the RNC thinks have a shot
  • eight number of years since a black Republican served in Congress source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

04 May 2010 22:21

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U.S.: Data dump: Vital statistics on Times Square suspect Faisal Shahzad

  • Is Faisal Shahzad a weird amalgamation of terrorism and the financial crisis? The Times Square suspect, who admitted to being a lone wolf today (whether or not you believe that is another question), was a financial analyst who lost his job during the financial crisis. He was also Pakistani-born and had a family who was forced to move back to the country after they lost their home. In the midst of that drama, he somehow became radicalized. Here’s some info on the dude you probably didn’t know.
  • 04/17/09 he became a U.S. citizen
  • two number of kids he has; his family (including his wife) now live in Pakistan
  • 11 number of years he had been floating between the U.S. and Pakistan
  • $273k original value of the
    home     his family lost to
    foreclosure last year
  • » His education: Shahzad, like many immigrants, first came to the U.S. on a student visa in 1998, and followed it through with a computer science degree from the University of Bridgeport in 2000 and, later, an MBA in 2005.
  • » His career: From 2006 until June of last year, he was working as a financial analyst for the Affinion Group, which has a shady business history, according to Wikipedia. It’s not clear whether he quit or was fired. Neighbors claimed that he worked on Wall Street.
  • » His financial state: He owed too much money on his Shelton, Conn. house, so he told the broker to let the bank take it, and told him he was moving back to Pakistan. He had been living in his new apartment in Bridgeport for just a couple of months. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 May 2010 10:59

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Biz, U.S.: Craigslist profits from sex ads, attorney generals notice

  • first States complain because
    Craigslist allows anyone
    to post sexually-oriented
    ads which can be used
    for illegal prostitution.
  • second In an effort to appease
    the states, Craigslist
    charges for the section
    for purposes of creating
    a paper trail.
  • third A group of 39 states,
    noticing the profits made
    from the for-pay section,
    subpoena Craigslist over
    the ads. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 May 2010 10:47

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U.S.: Times Square suspect Faisal Shahzad judged for crappy planning

  • Experts say it wasn’t a well-put-together bomb. Among other things, they say the device used alarm clocks from the ’60s rather than modern remote detonation devices, and relied on the clocks to set off fireworks that would cause a much larger blast. Essentially, they’re noting that the device seemed like it was ACME-quality. Ouch. Poor Faisal. He was just suspected of blowing up Times Square. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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