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19 Aug 2011 15:59

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Music, World: Another stage collapse: Belgian music fans grieve after Pukkelpop tragedy

  • Pukkelpop was cancelled Friday, a day after a collapsed stage, violent storm and uprooted trees killed five and injured 140 at the Belgian music fest, which included major acts (the Foo Fighters, Eminem) and up-and-comers (Odd Future, Crystal Castles). Many of the acts that played or were scheduled to play have offered condolences for the tragedy on Twitter. It’s the latest in a long line of devastating stage collapses this summer, and the worst so far by injuries. Sadly, a sixth person died in the Indiana State Fair incident from last week. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Aug 2011 10:49

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U.S., World: Delayed reaction of the day: U.S. wants Bashar al-Assad to step down

  • For the sake of the Syrian people, the time has come for President Assad to step aside.
  • A statement from president Barack Obama • Revealing that the U.S. wants Bashar al-Assad out as Syrian leader. It’s clear that Assad has been a leader unworthy of U.S. support for a while. Why did it take so long for the Obama administration to flat-out say it? That’s the real question, and one that could’ve crystalized diplomatic opposition against the Syrian leader much sooner. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Aug 2011 21:42

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Offbeat, World: Researchers found a “living fossil” eel off the coast of Palau. Cue terror.

  • Why is this fossil living?! Apparently this species of eel has DNA that dates back 200 million years. It’s more similar to an eel species from 100 million years ago than it is to the eels of today. Thanks a lot, Palau. We’re scared now. source
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Aug 2011 20:46

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World: Hugo Chavez wants to nationalize Venezuela’s gold mining

Someone else must’ve read in the New York Times that gold is gaining against the dollar these days. Also, seeing the still-recovering Hugo Chavez bald is incredibly weird. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Aug 2011 10:11

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World: This is unexpected: The Vatican releases internal files in priest abuse case

  • what In a surprise move for an organization famously known for it secrecy, the Vatican released a series of internal files on the late Rev. Andrew Ronan, who has been accused of child abuse in both Ireland and the U.S.
  • why According to Vatican attorney Jeffrey Lena, the move is meant to “calm down those people who are too quick to make sensational and unfair comments without taking the time to get an adequate understanding of the facts.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Aug 2011 20:10

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Tech, World: A growing market: Kenyans buying $80 Android phones left and right

  • This isn’t the fastest Android phone you can buy. Nor does it have the largest screen — in fact, at 2.8 inches, it’s downright tiny. And battery life is reportedly so short that it can cause problems for those without nearby electrical sources. But the Huawei IDEOS has a major advantage for Kenyan consumers — it costs just $80 without a contract. The result? In a country where 4 in 10 people live on less than $2 per day, they’ve sold in the hundreds of thousands. The moral of the story? There is a huge market in the developing world for phones like these — region-specific apps, too. Other companies, including Apple, are rumored to be trying for this market. But can they hit an $80 price point with their phones? That’s the real question. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Aug 2011 16:14

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World: France and Germany are doing their best to help the economy

  • Germany and France feel absolutely determined to strengthen the Euro as our common currency and further develop it.
  • Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor • Talking about Germany and France’s new plan of joint taxation. They’re drawing up plans to have a common corporate tax rate beginning in 2013. Both countries are having difficult economic issues, in fact Germany’s GDP only grew 0.1% from March to June, which means it’s basically at a standstill. Germany and France are hoping that joint taxation would strengthen confidence in the Euro, which would be great for both their economies.  source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

16 Aug 2011 15:55

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World: New evidence might really hurt the Murdochs’ testimony

  • thenJames Murdoch pleaded ignorance when he went in front of Parliament last month as part of the phone hacking scandal that felled News of the World. Though it kinda seemed unlikely that Murdoch would know nothing of the phone hackings, there was no evidence against him.
  • nowThe law firm that previously represented News International has begun testifying against them — labeling their testimony as having “serious innaccuracies.” Murdoch might be questioned again, and he’ll have new evidence and testimony to answer for. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Aug 2011 15:23

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World: Violence, further displacement strikes Palestinian refugees in Syria

  • 10,000 refugees flee Syrian camp under fire source
  • » So says the U.N. Relief and Works Agency: There was for a time a big camp full of Palestinian refugees established in Latakia, a Syrian port city. Now, there isn’t. Over the course of the last three days, the U.N. agency has asserted, Syrian security forces began firing on the refugee camp and threatening those within that they’d better move out. U.N. spokesman Christopher Gunness says that while they’ve been denied access to the camp, reliable sources suggest that after three days of this treatment, the camp has been left relatively deserted — about 10,000 refugees unaccounted for. “A forgotten population has now become a disappeared population,” he said.
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Aug 2011 10:46

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World: Australian study: Watching tons of TV shortens your lifespan

  • 22 minutes shorter for each hour of television you watch, lazy slob source
  • » No, TV isn’t a carcinogen: The reason for this is that when you’re watching TV, you’re usually not doing anything, least of which working out. You’re just staring at Kate Gosselin and her army of kids, learning absolutely nothing from The Learning Channel other than that you probably don’t want to be a single mom with eight kids. By the way, that 22 minutes you just wasted watching an hourlong block of Jon Gosselin’s biggest problem? That’s the same level of longevity taken away when you smoke two cigarettes. Think about that.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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