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09 Jun 2010 20:52

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Tech: The root of Google’s new Caffeine engine: 9/11. No, really

  • The onslaught of news readers that day made them emphasize immediacy. Remember September 11, 2001? We still had the Internet, yeah, but our search engines were super-primitive back then. So when people looked up news on Google, stories weren’t updated. Eventually, Google started caching sites like CNN to offset this, but it taught them a long-term lesson. “That was a real wake-up call, where we said we have to pay a lot of attention to freshness,” said Matt Cutts of Google’s spam team. “We knew that before, but we thought 30 days was pretty good.” Which led the the development of Google News, and later, Caffeine. Now, what was once updated monthly is now thrown up immediately. Neat, huh? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Mar 2010 10:55

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U.S.: Could the White House push for Khalid Shaikh Mohammed military trial?

  • We are evaluating based on New York City logistical and security concerns on trial in federal courts.
  • White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs • Regarding what’s turning out to be a bit of a boondoggle for the administration, where to try 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed. At first, they wanted to try him in a New York civilian court, where they ran into heavy NIMBYism. (Honestly, they’d probably run into it anywhere with this case.) But now it looks like they’re changing their mind. Probably for the best. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Nov 2009 21:11

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U.S.: The chance of a 9/11 terror trial has many in NYC on edge

  • 40% of New Yorkers fear another attack if the trial’s held there source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Nov 2009 11:47

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Politics: Rudy Giuliani knocks White House “over-concern” for 9/11 terrorists

  • Both in substance and reality, the war on terror in their point of view is over. There seems to be an over-concern with the rights of terrorists and a lack of concern with the rights of the public.
  • Former NYC mayor Rudy Giuliani • on the White House’s decision to try 9/11 terror suspects in New York City instead of elsewhere. Giuliani, of course, was the mayor during 9/11 and the initial recovery, and his words have a lot more heft in this conversation as a result. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Nov 2009 11:35

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U.S.: Daily poll: Trying the 9/11 “mastermind” in a federal court

Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 Sep 2009 10:45

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U.S.: Protip: Don’t steer a boat near the Pentagon today, idiots

I’m on a boat! I’m on a boat! Everybody shoot at me, on the #&)*@)!*)*#) boat! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Apr 2009 07:12

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U.S.: Jury: 9/11-critical professor may get his job back

  • “Little Eichmans” or not, nothing can stop tenure. Ward Churchill, a University of Colorado professor who lost his job after writing some pretty controversial things comparing 9/11 victims to Nazis, won support for his controversial speech in a jury trial that awarded him as little as they could while still ruling in his favor: $1. He should probably just frame that check. (The job’s still up in the air but it’s definitely possible he’ll get it back.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

28 Mar 2009 13:32

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U.S.: The WTC-replacing “Freedom Tower” gets a little less free

  • The fact is, more than $3 billion of public money is invested in that building, and, as a public agency, we have the responsibility to make sure it is completed and that we utilize the best strategy to make certain it is fully occupied.
  • Stephen Sigmund • Spokesman for the Port Authority, on changing the name of “Freedom Tower” to the not-as-free-sounding “One World Trade Center.” We’re sure some nutjobs are going to claim the name changed because Bush isn’t in office, but we personally blame the proliferation of rapping flight attendants. Because that makes just as much sense. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Feb 2009 15:06

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U.S.: On the doomed Buffalo plane: A prominent 9/11 widow

  • We know she was on that plane, and now she’s with him.
  • Sue Bourque • sister of Beverly Eckert, who was on the plane that crashed in Buffalo. Eckert’s husband, Sean Rooney, died in the September 11, 2001 attacks, and she became a noted advocate for victims’ families as part of the group Voices of September 11. Eckert, along with other family members of victims, met with President Barack Obama just a week ago. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Jan 2009 14:27

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U.S., World: A top Bush official says yes, torture was used at Gitmo

  • The techniques they used were all authorized, but the manner in which they applied them was overly aggressive and too persistent.
  • Susan J. Crawford • on the treatment of puported 9/11 conspirator Mohammed al-Qahtani at Guantanamo Bay. Crawford, a top Bush administration official, says that the treatment is equivalent to torture. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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