Welcome to NewsFeed’s weekly highlight of our vocabulary — including useful, new, hilarious and surprising words (as well as some that are just fun to roll off the old tongue). Earthquake expression: foreshock After an earthquake hit the East Coast yesterday, there was some speculation that the 5.9-magnitude shake was a “foreshock,” a lesser shock
Continue reading …As Congress debates the weighty economic issues of our times, you can rest easy knowing that almost 80% of them didn’t major in business, economics, accounting, or any related field, according to a new study from the Employment Policies Institute. Just 8.4% of legislators studied economics, with another 13….
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Lawyer representing families of deceased visited Justice Department to discuss claims reported in Daily Mirror US attorney general Eric Holder has promised relatives of victims of the 9/11 terror attacks he will begin a preliminary criminal investigation into reports that News Corporation journalists tried to gain access to the phone records of the dead. Family members who lost loved ones on 11 September 2001 met Holder at the Justice Department on Wednesday to discuss allegations first reported by the Daily Mirror that News of the World reporters attempted to gain unauthorised access to 9/11 victims’ voicemails. Norman Siegel, a lawyer representing some of the families, told reporters that the attorney general had said it was “very disturbing” that phones of 9/11 victims and their family members might have been hacked. The relatives met Holder for over an hour to discuss the allegations. The hacking allegation was made in an article in the Mirror last month. The paper said NoW journalists had approached a former New York police officer working as a private detective and asked him to do the hacking, which he declined to do. So far, no evidence has emerged to corroborate the story, which has been strenuously denied by News Corp. If the Justice Department finds any truth in the claims, News Corp would face a damaging battle with the US authorities as well as a rash of civil law suits from family members. The US authorities have considered investigating News Corp, a company listed on the US stock markets, under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act over payments allegedly made to police . But the 9/11 allegations are the most serious issue the firm has faced in the US over the scandal. The Mirror story was based on unnamed sources, including one described as a former New York police officer who became a private investigator. Heclaimed to have rejected requests by journalists from the now closed NoW to retrieve private phone records of victims. News Corp has dismissed the report as “anonymous speculation” with “no substantiation” and said earlier this month that the company was fully co-operating with all investigations into the firm. Ahead of the meeting Siegel told Associated Press the families were working with the FBI to determine if hacking “was attempted, and/or occurred”. “We are going to the meeting with the attorney general to listen to what he can tell us about the investigation and to ascertain the scope, the goals and timetable of the inquiry,” Siegel said. Rupert Murdoch was asked about the 9/11 hacking claims when he was questioned by parliament last month. He said: “we have seen no evidence at all and as far as we know the FBI haven’t either”. He said he did not know if NoW employees or the private investigator Glenn Mulcaire took it upon themselves to do it. United States September 11 2001 Phone hacking News of the World News Corporation Rupert Murdoch Dominic Rushe guardian.co.uk
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Marco Rubio Saves Nancy Reagan from Fall 8-24-11 The Avengers PSA [dragoncontv.com] Nancy Reagan falls out at Obama Election Lautergeist says: Asshat DNC will flip this & say he grabbed her & she fell trying to get away. Marco Rubio Saves a Falling Nancy Reagan http://t.co/azUo1GU
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A 7-month-old baby boy who was tossed from the fourth floor of a hospital parking structure has died. His mother is charged in the case. The AP’s John Mone has the story. (Aug. 24)
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When LMFAO’s “I’m In Miami Trick” became a hit in 2008, many thought the wacky-dressed guys were a one-hit wonder. But Redfoo and Sky Blu are having the last laugh as their latest single, “Party Rock Anthem,” is a major summer hit. (Aug. 24)
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Click here to view this media It looks like Jack Cafferty decided to carry a little water for the AstroTurf “tea party” with a bit of fearmongering over our debt and deficit with this dishonest bit of editorializing on CNN’s The Situation Room. First of all, repeat after me Jack — there is no tea party. The so-called “tea party” is nothing more than the far right-wing of the Republican Party that’s been with us for ages now, with big monied corporate interests along with your sorry excuse for a “news” channel along with Fox promoting them. And all of your attempted re-branding here is not going to change that. And if Cafferty wants to blame the problems with our debt and deficit on the current administration, I’ve got a couple of charts and an article at the New York Times he needs to read — How the Deficit Got This Big . Here are the charts from the article. enlarge Credit: The New York Times enlarge Credit: The New York Times And here’s more from Jon Perr from last year on the drivers of our deficit — Boehner Lies About Bush Tax Cuts and Deficits . And from Jon’s post, here’s another chart for Jack Cafferty. enlarge Credit: CBPP If Jack Cafferty is really concerned about getting our fiscal house in order, he’d be going after these “tea partiers” for being obstructionists on job creation and for protecting their rich campaign donors from having to pay any more in taxes. Transcript of Cafferty’s remarks via his blog — Tea Party effect on 2012 elections? : The national debt is increasing by an astounding $3 million a minute; $3 million. Meanwhile, President Obama and Congress are on vacation. When the president took office in January 2009, the national debt was $10.6 trillion. Less than three years later, it’s $14.6 trillion. Obama has presided over the fastest, largest increase in the national debt in our country’s history, something to be truly proud of. Under President George W. Bush, the national debt increased by $4.9 trillion, but it took eight years to increase that much. Obama has the distinction of putting us an additional $4 trillion in the hole in less than three years. And he’s still talking about wanting to spend more. It’s insane. These rates of borrowing are unsustainable. It is far and away the biggest problem we may have ever been faced with. Eventually, our country’s survival will be at stake. And whether anyone likes it or not, the tea party seems to be the only group that gets it. The group became a force during the midterm elections because of the growing national debt and the refusal of Washington to do anything about it. In fact, the recent debt ceiling standoff was driven by a group of only 60 tea party members in the House of Representatives. You can bet that the tea party will continue to ring the alarm bells as we head into the 2012 elections – and it should. Because just remember this: In the time it would take you to listen to this Cafferty File segment – a minute and a half or so – our national debt increased by more than $5 million. Here’s my question to you: What effect will the tea party have on the 2012 elections?
Continue reading …Ever since September 11, the NYPD has been running a massive domestic intelligence operation with the help of the CIA, an AP investigation has discovered. The department has sent undercover officers to monitor Muslim neighborhoods, and assigned so-called “mosque crawlers” to listen in on sermons without any evidence of wrongdoing….
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We know… this can be something of a sad time. Seasons changing, vacations ending, schools opening, and days shortening. But don’t be down, dear reader, because we have a heck of a party planned, only a day away. The NYC Engadget Reader Meetup is tomorrow , it’s totally free, and you’re invited. We’ve lined up an array of exhibitors to show their latest and greatest toys, including AT&T, Samsung, HTC, RIM, and Motorola. We’ll also have an electric Mini Cooper to check out, a glasses-free 3D display from Magnetic 3D, a recharging lounge to refill your electronics, and snacks and desserts to refill your stomachs. AT&T will be bringing artist Matt Siren to do a live piece of art inspired by your stories , and we will of course have a massive pile of goodies to hand out from companies like iRobot, Western Digital, and Pioneer, plus a special giveaway you’ll need a QR reader to win — so don’t forget those smartphones. (Not that you would.) The party is at Guastavino’s , which is located at 59th Street in New York City . Things will kick off at 6:30pm that night and run until 10:30pm. It’s an all-ages event, but we can only manage 1,000 people in there at a time, and it’s first-come first-served, so don’t be late. Want to come? Just show up by 6:30! You don’t need to pre-register. We’ll have a boatload of Engadget editors on hand fielding questions, good friends from Joystiq and TUAW will be in attendance, and we’ll be doing a Q&A-focused live podcast (which we won’t be able to broadcast, but look for the recording later). If you’re a member of the media who would like to attend, please e-mail us at meetup at engadget dot com . Everybody else, get ready to party, and if you want to share with your friends the Facebook event is here . Continue reading Engadget’s NYC Reader Meetup happens tomorrow! Engadget’s NYC Reader Meetup happens tomorrow! originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Aug 2011 16:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …It doesn’t look good for the movie based on the Ouija board as Universal Pictures reportedly has dropped it. The movie studio has been planning on using Hasbro’s Ouija board as the basis for a Michael Bay and McG movie for a few years now, but New York Magazine’s Vulture is reporting that plans have
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