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21 Feb 2010 01:08

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Politics: Point and laugh, guys: Ron Paul won the CPAC straw poll

  • 31% of CPACers think libertarian Ron Paul is the freaking MAN!
  • 22% support rapper-punching airplane passenger Mitt Romney
  • 7% think Sarah Palin is still actually kinda cool somehow source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Feb 2010 10:52

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U.S.: A stuck gas pedal blamed for a crazy car at an auto auction

  • 27 people were injured (in a crowd of 100!) by the 1995 Volvo source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Feb 2010 10:35

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Tech, World: China’s internet blocking is pathetically over-the-top in Xinjiang

The people in this car, from the Chinese Xinjiang province, have to travel 1,000 kilometers – a whole day – just to check their e-mail. Blame last summer’s protests. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink

14 Feb 2010 10:27

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Politics: Like filibusters? Don’t? They’re not going away anytime soon.

  • Republicans are gambling they can convince the American people Democrats can’t get much done, and at the moment, their gamble is paying off.
  • Former Democratic Sen. Bob Kerrey • Regarding the Republican’s strategy to filibuster the Democrats’ agenda so that it helps them in the next election. The filibuster has significantly changed in usage since the days of civil rights, and is now routinely used as a political stalling tactic. We just want to make a point here: While the GOP’s filibuster usage is inexcusable, the Democrats did the exact same thing to get a majority in the Senate in 2006. In fact, they did it at a faster clip. While the rule really needs to be changed on a fundamental level, it’s not going to happen easily: It requires 67 votes to make a change like that. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2010 20:36

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Politics: Lawrence O’Donnell is recovering from a burst forehead vein

  • After Bush speechwriter Marc Thiessen made a point about terror that MSNBC analyst Lawrence O’Donnell didn’t like on Friday’s “Morning Joe,” O’Donnell went into this fit of rage that surprisingly didn’t turn him green and muscular. OK, O’Donnell made a good point. So did Thiessen. No reason to get angry, dude. Unless you’re trying to make good TV. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Feb 2010 12:50

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U.S.: A crazy blast at a Connecticut power plant has Twitter talking



Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Feb 2010 20:43

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Politics: Is Demon Sheep Carly Fiorina’s political suicide? Maybe not

  • Insane concept. Insane execution. But somehow, we’re convinced at the end of the day it worked. Former HP CEO Carly Fiorina, running for the California Senate, has an unintentionally awesome hit on her hands in the form of “Demon Sheep,” which is a much more interesting tagline than “Fiscal Conservative In Name Only” (or FCINO), the one they came up with. Here’s why we think, somehow, it works:
  • A new approach The dadaist attempt at smear campaigning, probably inspired by Adult Swim, has never been tried before. It’s been hinted at (see Kinky Friedman’s ads for Texas governor), but it hasn’t been taken quite to this degree. And we think they knew how absurd this ad was when they put it out. Don’t think they didn’t. That’s why it’s viral.
  • A clear message The techniques used in this ad are extremely blunt. The repeated imagery of the sheep, the printed money, the pigs, the sheep, the pigs, the Ken Burns effect, the signs, it rams the images into your head. Even the haters can admit that Fiorina got her point across in this insane ad in a way where you must watch.
  • A memorable mascot Ultimately, though, the reason why this ad works is because of Demon Sheep. Why? See Leahy’s Law (related to Murphy’s Law): “If a thing is done wrong often enough, it becomes right.” There’s no reason why Demon Sheep should work. But it’s brow-beaten to the point where you can’t turn away. She can make this work. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink
 

14 Jan 2010 12:30

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Offbeat: Arrest us: We currently have our “Pants on the Ground”

  • This is the greatest viral video by a crazy guy ever created. We would argue it’s the greatest viral video ever created, but we don’t want to build it up too quickly. It has everything. Even a very good dose of late-era “American Idol.”
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Jan 2010 10:55

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Politics: Fox News cuts off satellite feeds of politicians they don’t like

  • That was the most unrealistic loss of satellite feed we’ve ever seen. It comes up in the last 20 seconds of the clip, but it’s worth watching, because it comes out of nowhere and the Fox News host appears not to be surprised by the cutoff at all, like she knew it was coming. Rep. Joe Sestak lost his final word as a result of the kerfluffle.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 3 Comments • Permalink

03 Jan 2010 11:00

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U.S.: Crazy: Some poor people subside on zero cash income

  • 6 million people get by on food stamps … and nothing else source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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