The post and live blog below are a collaboration between Patch and HuffPost reporters. Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton (D) and top Republican state lawmakers failed to reach a budget deal to avert a government shutdown ahead of a midnight (CST) deadline. “I really believe I’ve done everything I possibly could and offered everything I could possibly think of,” said Dayton addressing the state of the negotiations from his office on Thursday night. “This is a night of deep sorrow for me because I don’t want to see this shutdown occur.” The Democratic governor and state GOP lawmakers had been engaged in contentious talks to close the state’s $5 billion budget gap — much of it left behind by GOP presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty, who declined to seek a third term in the 2010 election. The AP relays background on the discussions: Negotiations between Dayton and legislative leaders were fitful, starting and stopping with no outward signs of progress, and details were scant, since the two sides agreed to what they jokingly called “the cone of silence.” By Thursday night, Dayton and Republicans had not met for hours, leading Senate Democratic Leader Tom Bakk to remark that any hope for a last-minute deal to avert the shutdown had appeared to “disintegrate.” … The showdown was something of a small-stage version of the drama taking shape in Washington between President Barack Obama and the Republicans over taxes and the nation’s debt ceiling. At a news conference at the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport on Thursday, Pawlenty urged Republican lawmakers in his home state to hold their ground in negotiations to strike a budget deal. “This country needs to get its government finances under control,” he said. “That needs to happen in Washington, D.C., and that needs to happen in St. Paul, Minnesota.” A shutdown of the Minnesota government comes as the state’s second in six years. Below, a live blog of the latest developments to unfold amid the shutdown threat.
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What’s this? Looks like the Internet Archive, everyone’s favorite repository for online antiquities, has gotten its hands on a fancy new apple “petabyte” server. The new prototype device is open-source and is scalable like the PetaBox hardware that heats it. Its sliced and dried fruit output is also quite delicious, according to David Glenn Rinehart, the artist who installed the server. Though, as anyone who has followed the industry for any amount of time can tell you, there are always a few bad apples in the bunch. Apple ‘petabyte’ server is open-source, keeps doctors away originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Jul 2011 13:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …A badly doctored propaganda photo has made hapless officials in China’s Huili county the laughing stock of a nation of 1.3 billion people. The photo on the rural county’s website appeared to show county officials levitating above the road project they were inspecting, the Guardian reports. The county apologized…
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Well, what have we here? Another HTC EVO 3D , aka the PG86300, has landed on the FCC’s doorstep — only this time it’s packing radios similar to those seen in the phone’s European edition . This one works on the 1700MHz AWS band, so it appears destined for duty in the pockets of T-Mobile’s magenta-clad masses, though we can’t say for sure. However, now that the government’s decreed this EVO’s electronics won’t fry our brains, it shouldn’t be be long before we find out. EVO 3D at the FCC redux: coming to T-Mobile? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Jul 2011 11:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s allies are hoping that new doubts about the New York chambermaid who accused of him of sexual assault can help revive his 2012 French presidential bid. (July 1)
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Former International Monetary Fund leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn walked out of court free on bail Friday. His passport remained surrendered, and he will not yet be allowed to leave the country. (July 1)
Continue reading …Minnesota’s Government Shuts Down After GOP Refuses To Agree to Revenue Increases
July 1, 2011 No CommentAs of midnight today, Minnesota’s government is shut down and 20,000 government workers are on hiatus. Why? Because the Republican legislature would not agree to any revenue increases to balance the budget. If Minnesota is any indication, there is absolutely no reason to think the United States Congress will step up and be reasonable. Via Duluth News-Tribune : With little more than three hours left before a shutdown, most House and Senate Republicans walked into their chambers and took the seats they use during a session. Leaders said they did it to show they were ready to pass a temporary budget to keep government operating. Rep. Dan Fabian, R-Roseau, said that going to the legislative chambers and inviting the media in was not a stunt. Instead, he said, “we’re hoping the governor will call us to work.” “We are here, we want to reach an agreement,” Rep. Tim Kelly, R-Red Wing, said. Rep. Rod Hamilton, R-Mountain Lake, said Dayton should call a special session. “We found agreement on a majority of the bills,” he said. But Dayton said Republicans refused to agree to more revenue, proposing instead to delay school payments and borrow money from a tobacco lawsuit settlement. What will it take to overcome this crazy hostage-taking? Dayton said that on Thursday he lowered his proposed tax increase and limited to only a fraction of the richest Minnesotans. But Republicans constantly rejected any tax increase and even gave up a much-desired tax cut during budget talks.
Continue reading …Chris Matthews Compares Kansas Abortion Regulations to Jim Crow Efforts to Disenfranchise Blacks
July 1, 2011 No CommentIn the warped mind of MSNBC's Chris Matthews, efforts to regulate the practice of abortion are morally equivalent to literacy tests in the South that were aimed at preventing African-Americans from voting. The “Hardball” host made that puzzling and arguably insulting comparison on the June 30 program in a segment titled “What's the Matter with Kansas?” [video will be added shortly] “Kansas may be on track to become the first state in the country to put an end to abortion,” Matthews told his audience yesterday, explaining that: A new law requires the state's abortion providers to comply with strict new regulations that set equipment, temperature and space requirements, and the Associated Press reports that as of today, only one of the state's three clinics met those requirements. Two others were denied permission to operate, effectively shutting them down [when the law takes effect] tomorrow. Before the commercial break, Matthews had promised “both sides” of the debate, but in truth supplied only one side, interviewing a left-leaning reporter and then an abortion rights activist. Matthews began his interview of D.C.-based Huffington Post reporter Laura Bassett by asking (emphasis mine): Laura, give us a sense, is that true, is this basically setting a whole bunch of conditions like they used to do with literacy tests in the South to keep blacks from voting. Is this a bunch of regulations that basically kill any chance of having an abortion legally in Kansas? An objective reporter might have been taken aback by Matthews incredibly asinine comparison with the Jim Crow south, but Bassett had no problem with Matthews' comparison: That's what they seem to be and that's what they've done. Actually, I just heard word that the third clinic has been denied a license as well, which means that a woman can no longer get an abortion in Kansas because of these impossible regulations that they were given two weeks to comply with. For a set of impossible regulations, however, one Planned Parenthood clinic WAS able yesterday, during the 5 p.m. Eastern “Hardball” broadcast to secure a license to continue abortions. Reports the Kansas City Star this morning: Shortly after 4 p.m. Thursday, state health officials notified Planned Parenthood that it would be the only abortion clinic to get a license under controversial new rules that take effect today.
Continue reading …Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s old job has been filled but supporters waking to the news that the sexual assault case against him is collapsing have a new one in mind for him: President of France. Before his arrest, the former IMF chief was considered a leading contender to unseat Nicolas Sarkozy in…
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Lady Gaga’s surprisingly emotional Google Chrome commercial is hard to top — some (we) even think the ad, which featured her single “The Edge Of Glory”, was better than the song’s official video. But Justin Bieber’s own TV ad for Google is pretty moving as well, particularly if you have a soft spot for … More » Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : Idolator Discovery Date : 30/06/2011 19:40 Number of articles : 4
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