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30 Jun 2011 17:27

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World: Nicolas Sarkozy grabbed during public appearance

  • The dangers of the rope-line: French President Nicolas Sarkozy was grabbed and pulled by a man while walking past a rope-line at a public event today. What we find most interesting about this: “Sarkozy says he will take no action against the man.” Now, we’d be shocked if this guy isn’t in a world of legal trouble right now, but for Sarkozy to openly state he’ll take no action against him sort of surprised us. If this happened to President Obama, we bet there would be a lot more emphasis and on this, both from the administration and the media. source

01 Oct 2009 08:58

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World: Happy 60th anniversary, China! Good luck celebrating, public!

  • If you live in Beijing, you’re under lockdown. The celebrations of China’s communist rule are apparently so awesome that they can’t have average citizens take part. “Police suggest that Beijing residents try not to go out on 1 October to avoid complications,” reported the official English-language China Daily newspaper. “The public is recommended to watch the celebrations live on TV.” Happy anniversary! source

23 Aug 2009 14:00

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U.S.: Live in the U.S.? Expect a swine flu vaccination in your arm soon

  • 50% of people will be vaccinated in the next few months source

08 Aug 2009 17:59

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U.S.: Mark Sanford and Jenny Sanford: No longer under the same roof

  • Jenny (and her sons) moved out Friday. South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford continues to be on the outs with his wife Jenny, with the state’s First Lady moving her stuff out yesterday. She plans to take the kids back to Charleston, where they’ll attend school. Both husband and wife said this was for the best for now but said they planned to continue to work out family problems. Personally, we would have loved to see Mark move out into the doghouse. source

30 Jul 2009 14:52

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U.S.: The HuffPo’s survey tactics might not be legit, but their findings are

  • I just hope the American people won’t be dumb enough to continue falling for the line that socialized health care means a loss of personal freedom. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.
  • Canadian Lori Covington • On her country’s public healthcare system. The Huffington Post did a very unscientific email survey and found that it rocks. A lot. And that some Canadians think Americans are being pretty stupid about it.  • source

23 Jul 2009 10:03

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Biz, Music: Billboard gets a brain, finally starts handling their charts right

  • The dark ages Back in the day, Billboard kept its chart data close to its chest, preferring to share it just with music industry folks. It was really A&R folks only: If you wanted to know what was happening on the lower reaches of the chart, it would cost ya an arm and a leg.
  • Seeing the light Billboard, apparently realizing what the rest of the music industry already has, has opened up its entire chart history to the public for free. Realizing it’s a huge draw for music sales if used right, they’ve also partnered up with Lala to sell the tunes, too.
  • Brilliant move?It’s entirely possible Billboard could still screw this up, in our humble opinion. They’ve made some big mistakes in the past regarding when and where to charge for their content, and if they make these same mistakes again, music fans won’t be happy. source

21 Apr 2009 23:02

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Politics, Tech: Are Google Profiles a good idea? We argue yes.

  • about Google Profiles creates an easily-searchable public page for you and your life. It’s not a new concept – Yahoo has done this for years – but Google has integrated it with other Web services really well, and it makes you easier to find online.
  • thoughts Privacy advocates will probably complain. Some jerks will probably say that Facebook already does this quite well. We say this is a good idea because it separates the social networking from the personal aspect. Plus, it’s simple. Simple is good. source
 

04 Apr 2009 11:27

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Culture: Jade Goody’s funeral, just as she lived: Real, loud and in public

Thousands came out for the funeral, which seemed to be designed to look majestic. Might as well. source

22 Mar 2009 11:02

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Culture: Brit reality celeb Jade Goody loses her battle with cancer

  • A public life Goody first became a fixture in the British press – specifically the British tabloid press – after starring on the British version of “Big Brother” in 2002. Goody took advantage of her notoriety by marketing the heck out of her public image. She took a PR hit in 2007 after making racist remarks on the celebrity edition of “Big Brother” but managed to recover to some degree.
  • A public death After joining the Indian edition of “Big Brother” in 2008 she was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2008. She found it was terminal weeks ago, and lived out the last few weeks of her life very publicly, including getting married in a big spectacle. She claimed she was doing it to raise money for her daughter. Goody died today in her sleep. She was 27. source

14 Mar 2009 13:01

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U.S.: California jerks around its teachers with preliminary pink slips

  • 26,500 teachers received pink slips before the Sunday deadline to receive them. California’s public education system needs to swallow $8 billion in budget cuts, but many of these pink slips will likely be rescinded. They must be having fun right now.
  • 15,000 school support staffers – bus drivers, janitors, secretaries and administrators – also received preliminary pink slips. A number of teachers and other staffers wore pink to school on Friday to protest the slips. source