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14 Jun 2011 15:14

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U.S.: Only in America story of the day

  • I could best describe him as a bully. He’s one of those people you’re constantly dealing with — confrontations with law enforcement, confrontations with neighbors
  • Chuck Curry, the county sheriff in Flathead County, Montanna • He’s talking about a guy named David Burgert, someone formerly in charge of a militia that wants to go to war with the National Guard and overthrow the government. Apparently, Burgert got in a shootout with police and then ran into the woods. They’ve been looking for him since the shootout happened Sunday, and they’ve only found stashes of guns and food. Let’s hope this guy doesn’t end up overthrowing our government any time soon. We’re shaking in our boots. source

14 Jun 2011 14:50

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Tech, U.S.: Hackers break into senate.gov, nothing of value is lost

  • A certain hacker group that’s been making headlines lately hacked the Senate’s website. However, they stole nothing of value — they only obtained information about to go on the site itself. The firewall protecting the Senate’s important documents kept them away from the data that could have been potentially harmful if released. Investigators traced the weakness in the system back to one senator’s office, but the senator hasn’t been named. In a press release about the incident, the hackers made it sound like this wouldn’t be the last time they targeted a government site, either. One thing is for sure — the White House should really look into cyber security if some amateur hackers are breaking into government websites this regularly. source

07 Jun 2011 14:01

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U.S.: Women’s rights debate moves to a billboard controversy

  • This Would Have Been A Picture Of My 2-Month Old Baby If The Mother Had Decided To Not KILL Our Child!
  • A billboard purchased by Greg Fultz • Expressing his frustration with what he says was his ex-girlfriend’s choice to abort her pregnancy, denying him a chance to become a father. What’s problematic is that the woman’s friends say it wasn’t an abortion at all, but a miscarriage. A court has recommended these billboards be taken down, but Fultz’s lawyer says that violates his client’s free speech rights, citing the Supreme Court case dealing with Westboro Baptist Church earlier this year. Seems like one big mess to us. source

02 Jun 2011 14:59

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U.S.: FBI investigating China for hacking job

  • cause Hackers went after Gmail, but didn’t compromise many accounts. However, some of the hacked accounts belong to some pretty high-ranking officials here in the U.S. Google claims that the hack originated in China, and the accounts have since been secured.
  • effect The FBI is investigating the hacking, which the Chinese government is saying that they had nothing to do with. However, Google believes the attack originated from the same city as one that targeted U.S. companies last year, including Google. source

25 May 2011 15:19

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World: In Soviet Russia, CNN competes with … uh, itself. Kinda.

  • A Russian fan went above and beyond, it seems. It seems like someone has taken the liberty to set up a CNN site for Russia — but the site is not officially associated with CNN in any way. In fact, the stories are just run through an online translator, so they often translate horribly. One story referenced the head of the IMF Dominique Strauss-Kahn as the head of a penis, not an organization. No one knows who’s running this thing, but a note on the website says that it only republishes parts of stories from CNN.com and links back to them. To do this, the site uses Joomla, a CMS system like similar to WordPress. A spokeswoman from CNN said that they’re “evaluating the next steps.” Hopefully they can get to the, er…head of the problem. (thanks to Mediaite for pointing us in the right direction with this one) source

19 May 2011 14:51

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U.S.: Did the Unabomber tamper with Tylenol bottles 29 years ago?

  • cold case Seven people died after taking Tylenol laced with cyanide back in 1982. The case was never solved, but it was a big deal — it’s the reason medicines are tamper-proof now. Thanks to advances in forensic technology and new tips, the FBI is investigating the case again. There are a few suspects, but one is worth a double take.
  • suspect The FBI seems to think that the Unabomber might be a suspect. They asked for a DNA sample from him, and he said he would give it to them — provided his personal items weren’t auctioned off. The government has gone on with the auction, but something seems fishy here. Why would he bargain with his DNA? source

17 May 2011 12:55

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Politics: Maria Shriver asks for “respect and privacy” after revelations

  • Maria Shriver breaks her silence: With news of her split from Arnold in part due to his having a child out of wedlock, Maria Shriver has finally broken her silence (at least a little) on the couple’s recent separation. “This is a painful and heartbreaking time,” she said. “As a mother, my concern is for the children. I ask for compassion, respect and privacy as my children and I try to rebuild our lives and heal. I will have no further comment.” source
 

16 May 2011 13:05

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World: War crimes prosecutor wants to arrest Gaddafi

  • The evidence showed that Gaddafi relied on his inner circle to implement a systematic policy of suppressing any challenge to his authority.
  • Luis Moreno-Ocampo, an international war crimes court’s chief prosecutor • He wants to have Gaddafi arrested for crimes against humanity – namely firing on unarmed civillians. He went on, talking about how Gaddafi killed people in the streets and in their homes, using people in his family to help him enforce his rule. Moreno-Ocampo has been investigating this since the Libyan revolution was only three weeks old. Now a panel of judges will have to approve this request, though it doesn’t mean that Gaddafi’s arrest will come immediately. source

15 May 2011 15:18

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U.S.: Mississippi floodways opened to keep big cities safe

  • Saving urban areas by flooding farmland: Officials opened up the Morganza Floodway Saturday in an attempt to divert water from the Mississippi River, which will eventually drain into the Gulf of Mexico. Even though this move will destroy valuable crops, it’s better than running the risk of flooding large cities like New Orleans at levels worse than Hurricane Katrina. (Photo from US Army Corps of Engineers’ Flickr page.) source

15 May 2011 13:53

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World: The Third Intifada: Social media rocks the Middle East again

  • The violent protests happening in Israel today got at least a small spark from Facebook. Large numbers of Palestinians are protesting today (with harsh reaction from Israeli soldiers) after a movement called the Third Intifada sprung up on the social media site. The previous two Intifada movements, which Palestinians used to protest against Israel, were also quite violent. The Facebook page for the current movement had about 300,000 supporters before it the social networking site took it offline due to messages inciting violence against Israel. The movement has since moved to its own website. source