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02 Feb 2011 14:16

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Politics: Why Barack Obama may not be so happy just now

  • By disclosing information about corruption, human rights abuses and war crimes, WikiLeaks is a natural contender for the Nobel Peace Prize.
  • Norwegian MP Snorre Valen • As all members of national parliaments can make nominations for the Peace Prize winner, Valen bestowed this honor upon the WikiLeaks organization. The Nobel committee has declined to offer further comment. The news is likely to the intense chagrin of former winner Barack Obama. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

25 Jan 2011 10:20

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Culture: A quick, ten-second overview of this year’s Oscar nominations

  • 12 totally expected nominations for “The King’s Speech”
  • 10 nominations for the Coen Bros’ “True Grit” remake
  • eight nominations (far too few) for “The Social Network”
  • eight nominations (also far too few) for “Inception”
  • surprises Who decided to nominate Javier Bardem for Best Actor for a movie that absolutely nobody saw (“Biutiful”)? How many people even knew what this movie was before this morning? Raise your hand.
  • disses Among others: Mila Kunis in “Black Swan.” Andrew Garfield in “The Social Network.” Ryan Gosling in “Blue Valentine.” No best documentary nod for “Waiting for Superman.” Criminal! source
  • » And the ultimate diss: “Inception” got eight nominations, don’t get us wrong. The movie totally deserved all of them. But the one it was most deserving of which it did not get? Christopher Nolan didn’t get a best director nod for “Inception.” The category was stacked, admittedly, but the Coen Brothers may have been the weak men this year. On a side note, there could be one even bigger diss this year – if “Toy Story 3” doesn’t win an award outside of its animation comfort zone.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 May 2010 09:58

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Politics: Old Elena Kagan: Supreme Court confirmations need to be tougher

  • 1995 Kagan wrote a paper while at the University of Chicago suggesting that Supreme Court nominees rarely got asked tough questions.
  • 2009 Kagan, a year before her own nomination, backed off her own tough stances. Who wants to bet they’ll come up? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Apr 2010 11:30

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Politics: Bill Clinton: Me or Hillary on Supreme Court a bad idea

  • Because I’m already 63-years-old, I hope I live to be 90. I hope I’m just as healthy as Justice Stevens is. But it’s not predictable. I’d like to see him put someone in there, late 40s, early 50s, on the court and someone with a lot of energy for the job.
  • Former President Bill Clinton • Regarding the possibility of his becoming Supreme Court justice. He says that, while he’d enjoy the job, it’d be better to choose someone younger. He also discounts the possibility of Hillary’s nomination. “She’s like me, you know, we’re kind of doers. We like being out there and doing things, rowing our own boat and making changes we could see happen.” So that’s that. Clinton recommends putting someone on the court who hasn’t been a judge before, who knows the impact of their decisions. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink

08 Feb 2010 21:39

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U.S.: Richard Shelby released those Obama nominee holds. Why?

  • shelby The Alabama senator says that his demands were met, so he released most of the 70+ holds, barring a few unnamed ones.
  • obama The president’s staff says that none of Shelby’s demands were met, so somebody is lying here. We wonder who that might be. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

09 Oct 2009 05:15

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U.S., World: Obama had a lot of competition for the Nobel Peace Prize

  • 205 people were nominated this year – that’s a record source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jul 2009 10:58

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Culture: Three comedy-leaning surprises in the Emmy nominations

  • one “Family Guy” got nominated for “Outstanding Comedy Series,” despite the fact animated series never get nominated in that category.
  • two “Flight of the Conchords” got nominated in that category, too, and Jemaine Clement was nominated for “Lead Actor in a Comedy.”
  • three Finally, the brash Sarah Silverman unexpectedly got a nomination for “Lead Actress in a Comedy” for “The Sarah Silverman Program.” Go comedy! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 3 Comments • Permalink
 

21 Jan 2009 15:45

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Culture: Here’s why “The Love Guru” leads in Razzie nominations

  • Many people suggested his own search for inner truth led him to make this movie but somewhere along the line he forgot it was supposed to be a comedy.
  • John Wilson • creator of the Golden Raspberries award, on Mike Myers’ awful attempt at a comedy, “The Love Guru,” which was universally panned by critics. It got seven Razzie nominations, by far the leader. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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