Sunday, November 30, 2008

Canadian Meteorite Found



In an earlier post, you saw the meteor fall. Now CNN reports that the fragments of the meteor have been found. Watch it in the video.

Saturday, November 29, 2008

He's a Fish!


Watch CBS Videos Online

Mumbai Locals Involved

According to The Times of India, Locals may have helped the terrorists. Azam Kasab, known to have been involved in the attack and captured by police, gave a list of names and addresses of people who helped him to the police investigation force. An official of the police said the following: "We suspect there could be local assistants but it is subject to verification. It will be very premature to comment on this at this stage as our investigations is going on."

The captured man, Kasab, also revealed that the attack was carried out in part "to avenge atrocities on Palestinians." No surprise why it took place in a Jewish area.

Both Venus and Jupiter will appear on Monday night



See Jupiter and Venus along with the Moon as a "close conjunction between three bright solar system objects" around sunset. The view will be spectacular. According to MSNBC, even those not expecting to see such a thing will look up in amazement. Plus, you could something similar to that of the flags of some countries.

'In addition, there are juxtaposed crescent moon and star symbols that have appeared on the flags of many nations, including Turkey, Pakistan, Malaysia, Algeria, Mauritania, and Tunisia.

Also on Monday evening, you may be able to see the full globe of the moon, its darkened portion glowing with a bluish-gray hue interposed between the sunlit crescent and not much darker sky. This vision is sometimes called "the old moon in the young moon's arms." Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) was the first to recognize it as what we now call "earthshine."'


Read the full story here.

Cartoon of the Week



From the Economist

Friday, November 28, 2008

Shopper Stampede Kills

At a sale event at Wal-Mart at 5 am, a stampede of shoppers 'trampled' a worker to death. The stampede broke the doors like 'savages' and injured people just for those cheaply priced electronics. Read the full story here.

This is consumerism in action. It shows just how materialistic society has become. We will do anything for goods.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Listen to the Gunfire

NPR: Best 2008 Political Books

Simon Apter of NPR has released a list of his favorite political and current affairs books this year.

Make sure to check these books out:

The Forever War by Filkins
An Imperfect Offering by Orbinski
Nixonland by Perlstein
The Dark Side by Mayer
The Bin Ladens by Coll

Vikram Pandit on Charlie Rose




Vikram Pandit is the CEO of Citigroup, a company that was included in the federal bailout on November 24th. Watch the interview below.

Tragedy in India




In one of the biggest terrorist attacks on Indian soil, ~190 people have been brutally killed and 900 have been hurt. 9 locations were attacked according to the Times of India.

A train station, a tourist hot spot and 2 popular five star hotels for tourists were included in these 9 locations. 3 high-profile executive security officials were killed in the incident too.

Obviously, this will hurt the economy as India plays a huge role in the major world financial markets. Not only will India's tourist industry will be crippled, but tourism around the world will begin to dwindle as people will realize the global implications of this attack. This will serve as yet another reminder to Americans that National Security is interconnected with the Economy and that we can't overlook either one of these for the other.

The English and Australian Cricket teams have also postponed their scheduled trips to India for a cricket championship game next week. Colleges and schools all over the city of Mumbai have been closed. Trains have been suspended.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Monday, November 24, 2008

Just Heartbreaking

This is just painful to see. Remember all that aid that goes to Africa through various organizations like Red Cross, UNICEF and etc.? Once I overheard a group of students at college talk about how we don't need to spend much on Africa because there is "already a ton of money going there." Well they are both right and wrong. See why in this BBC video clip and the article below.

Also, here is the article that goes along with this video by Sorious Samura of the BBC. The article is excellent with great detail. I would recommend anyone to read this.

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Cabinet Update




In an earlier post, I mentioned that Hillary should have been selected as Secretary of Health & Human Services, but the post was too un-prestigious for her I guess. However, Gen. James Jones, Susan Rice, John Kerry or Bill Richardson would've made great Secretary of States, but Hillary does have experience traveling to over 80 countries as First Lady so I think I am over it now.

Here is the rundown of who has been selected and who is being considered for what post (including my GRADES assigned for the pick):

STATE: Hillary Rodham Clinton - She is highly experienced, but I just hope that her influence doesn't get in the way. Grade for pick: C+

TREASURY: Tim Geithner - An excellent choice. Served as economic advisor and deputy treasury under more than one President. Is currently the chairman of the New York Federal Reserve. Everyone goes to him for consultations on the current economic crisis. He is bright and experienced. Can speak Japanese, Chinese and a few other languages. Perfect choice. A+

ATTORNEY GENERAL: Eric Holder - Was deputy under Bill Clinton and very experienced as an attorney general. A+

COMMERCE: Bill Richardson - I wanted him to be either Secretary of State or Labor or UN ambassador, but I guess this pick isn't too bad. Bill is highly experienced as governor, Sec. of Energy, UN ambassador and Chair of Hispanic relations. B+

HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES: Tom Daschle - A close friend of Obama and a strong advocate for health care reform. Has written a book on Health care. A-

HOMELAND SECURITY: Janet Napolitano - One of the best governors of the United States and highly experienced. Though I would've preferred her as the Attorney General or Commerce post, I think she is a great pick. A.

CHIEF OF STAFF: Rahm Emanuel
- A-.

SENIOR ADVISORS:David Axelrod, Pete Rouse - Both of these people helped Obama win the election and our very brilliant. Without them Obama would've had a tough time shaping his message of hope and change and other strategic stuff. A+

NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL DIRECTOR: Larry Summers - A dream pick. This guy was Bill Clinton's Treasury Secretary and was the President of Harvard. Even Tim Geithner could use his help to deal with the economic crisis. Almost all economists have heard of this man. I just hope that Warren Buffet is somehow included in Obama's cabinet too. A+

So far these are the key picks. Still to be made: National Security Advisor (hope it is Susan Rice), CIA, Director of National Intelligence, and last, but not least Sec. of Defense.

5 Million Expected on Inauguration Day

5 million people will be present at Obama's inauguration. Expect crowded transits in Washington and fully occupied hotels for that day.





Click on the pictures for a magnified view.

Shocking: Video of the Incumbent Attorney General Collapsing



The Attorney General of the United States is a Cabinet Member of the Bush's Presidential team.

Here is a version showing his speech becoming slurred illustrating the symptoms of a stroke:

Hilarious

I put a larger video than usual so that you may enjoy the critical subtitles.



I know it is fake.

Meteor hits Canada

Hundreds of reports are made. However, the meteor is yet to be found.



Thursday, November 20, 2008

Can you believe this?



Rahm ISRAEL Emanuel. That is his actual middle name. I just found that out. I already knew that he was a jew, but this is way too direct. I guess Obama really wanted to send out a blunt, powerful message with his pick.

All I want is Palestine to become an official state and peace in the region. If Obama panders to only one side whether Israel or Palestine just like past US presidents, then peace is impossible.

Who is the best at 'Breaking News?'

Who is the best at reporting shocking news earliest?

Well, it is definitely not CNN. As you know ~25 minutes before this post, the incumbent Attorney General of the United States collapsed while giving a speech. I first saw this on Yahoo! Then I raced to CNN.com to see what they had to say about it and they didn't have that story there yet. I went to couple of other popular news websites that I usually visit and I discovered the conservative Drudge Report post the news second fastest (at least according to my surfing habits). Then I saw MSNBC post the news. I went back to CNN and still nothing on front page or political page . As time passed I saw the Politico website post it too, but they could have been first I just went there late, and usually they post stuff up really fast. Eventually CNN posted it and once CNN posted it, a whole host of other news websites followed suit.

So CNN for a big news agency, is pretty slow at posting. I noticed this during the elections too. It could be due to confirmation perhaps, or something else. But my point is that because CNN has become so established and has a well known name with loyal fans, the monster news agency has either started slacking off or just been taking advantage of us readers. I guess they can afford to do that.

For instance, once I saw a news article on Ahmedinejad, the President of Iran on Yahoo! when he spoke at the UN (FYI: Yahoo is not where I get most of my news from). I compared that article to CNN. I noticed that the Yahoo! article got right to the core of the story and the main points of Ahmedinejad's speech. It discussed implications of Ahmedinejad's call for dialogue and analyzed Iran's continued pursuit of nuclear fuel. However, CNN didn't. Instead CNN put up a big, scary picture of him and touched the least important aspects of the speech. And they didn't even mention the dialogue portion as the Yahoo! article did. The amazing writer of that CNN report was smart enough to make it sound like Iranian President was calling for immediate war on the West. If the author of the Yahoo article and the CNN article were put in the same room, I assure you that they would not agree with each other that is how different their reports on the Iranian leader were.

So why the discrepancy? I'm not saying that the Yahoo article was pro-nuclear armed Iran. I'm just saying that it got right to the matter without swinging from here to there.

Beware! Don't let CNN brainwash you (Lazy, but shrewd).

(Of course when it comes to brainwashing, there is no comparison of CNN to FOX. Sly Fox is the ultimate brainwashing machine)

Gun Regulation - The Simpsons

Obama is reportedly quizzing potential new staff members on guns. This has angered many firearms advocates such as the NRA.

I also thought I should share this Simpsons' video with you (Albeit I'm not a fan of the Simpsons, but I thought this video was great):

Letterman Clearly Enjoying Palin Humiliation

World Leaders Don't Shake Bush's Hand

Nobody wants to shake hands with Bush.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Finnish the Race

Who knew the Finnish were this good at driving?

The Box



The BBC has unleashed an amazing project that you must check out. They have a container that they will follow around the world as it is shipped from one place to the other to study globalization in more details. So far the box has traveled from England to Shanghai via the Suez Canal. The box is now en route to Los Angelos.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Colbert Bribes Obama

Colbert is on the cover of a Spider-man comics book cover. And Barack Obama is a Spider-Man fan as he collects Marvel Spider-Man comics. Watch it here

Hillary as Secretary of State is a Bad Idea

Reports say that Barack is fairly close to making HRC Sec. of State as part of his cabinet. Even HRC has reportedly accepted, but the vetting of Bill Clinton's global interests are what is taking the time. Bill's interests and works abroad may hamper Hillary from joining Obama's cabinet.

However, I think that either way Hillary is better off with her Senate career.

First of all she has a very powerful Senate position so she should not give that away for Secretary of state. The Secretary of state job may be a very influential position in terms of foreign relations, but the Senate position she has is already more prestigious than the Sec. of State position she may go into. The Sec. of State prestige was stolen by the National Security Advisor decades ago. The Sec. State position used to be a very powerful and privileged position until the NSA job appeared. The NSA job deals more closely with some of the top intelligence issues. If HRC was being offered the NSA job, then it would be a completely different story. Condi Rice used to be an NSA, but now is sec. of state leaving her a very influential politician in the President's cabinet.

Secondly, Obama already has more than 20 staff members who worked for the Clinton Administration. Why did we choose Obama over Hillary if he is going to just reuse the Clintons and their staff? And it goes against his 'Change' message. Hillary's policies are status-quo if I remember correctly from Obama's campaign message. I understand that Obama doesn't want 'Yes-men,' but this will let him get nowhere. And Obama should respect all of those people who volunteered, spent, and voted for him during the primaries because they believed in him and not in Hillary's pander-to-the-public policies.

Thirdly, I think that Obama and Hillary share more ground in domestic issues than foreign. If you remember, Hillary is not open to meeting with enemy leaders for compromising or negotiations. But both Hillary and Obama completely agree on the issues of healthcare, a field in which Hillary has contributed the most to. So I believe that Obama should offer the role of Sec. of Health and Human Services to Hillary instead of State. But I'm sure if Obama does that, then Hillary would probably not accept it since her Senate career is much better than the Sec. of Health and Human Services.

Palin to write a book

Sarah Palin may write a book. And that will most likely make her at least 7 million dollars reportedly. She may use this opportunity to discuss her campaign issues, her wardrobe controversy, and maybe even her interview disasters.

Some people think that though this book may be a commercial success and probably the most successful book of the '08 election cycle, the book may hurt her chances to run again in 2012 or 2016. It is possible that when she talks her way out of the mess she is in right now, she could end up revealing a lot more about herself or a lot more about the way she thinks.

I personally think the book should be titled with some of these suggestions:

Maverick
You Betcha!
Darn Right!
Hockey Mom
The Moose Exterminator
Doggone it!

But what continues to puzzle me is that she is still in the spotlight. More in the spotlight than John McCain. People have forgotten McCain after this election and they've pretty much forgotten the gaffe-nator Biden too. Why is there still so much interest in Palin? Well "Doggone it!"

Monday, November 17, 2008

Obama, McCain discuss football to keep reporters guessing- Watch

As you know Obama met with McCain in a spirit of bipartisanship today and as usual the press went wild. The press was only allotted 90 seconds during the entire meeting. During those 90 seconds, a cool Obama diverted from the good stuff to football and other casual remarks in order to not let the press get much info. Turn up the volume to hear better.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Cartoon of the Week

Very Interesting - In Retrospect

I went back to see this video again and I wonder how this preacher would be feeling right now. By the way, Palin used the same sort of prayer in another rally.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

She's Still Talking

The campaign is over and she is still talking about Joe the Plumber and Tito the Builder and her Alaskan accent is there too. Doesn't she realize that America doesn't care about a plumber that makes well above $250k? 365 to 164 electoral votes should be clear enough.

Friday, November 14, 2008

O'Reilly meets Stewart

Two complete opposites. Personally I think part 2 is better. Watch.



SHE'S BACK!



Today Hillary Clinton's motorcade was seen in Chicago. She met President-elect Obama to discuss possible role in the administration. At this point it is pretty likely that she could be the next Secretary of State. I would've preferred to have her as the Secretary of Health & Human Services instead of Sec. of State given the amount of work she has done for health care. I preferred someone else for Secretary of State quite frankly. However, what I am most worried about is that if she does decide to run in 2012, she could use her time as Cabinet member to discuss how unorganized or potentially incompetent Obama may be behind-the-scenes to prevent Obama from running again.

But here is the best thing about her being Sec. of State. First of all Sec. of States have to travel abroad consistently to meet foreign leaders. Imagine the powerful message Obama will be sending by showing foreign leaders that he picked his worst, toughest opponent. If you're a foreign leader you would think to yourself as you're smiling and shaking HRC's hand in front of cameras: "Didn't she lose humiliatingly to the new US President? Wow...Obama really is willing to unite."

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Olbermann in a minute

Get the latest news satire and funny videos at 236.com.

Palin has 'no regrets' on all of those interviews

This is getting ridiculous.

Sarah Palin just said that she doesn't regret any of those famous interviews which thrashed her reputation. Instead, she says that she wished she'd done more while expressing intent to run again but for President! (CNN) Meanwhile she also said that she is fine with Obama being the new President and would be 'honored' to join him in his cabinet. So basically her political ambitions are higher than her political ideologies or her party. She says 'honored' when she used to call him a communist, socialist, terrorist-friend, anti-American, dishonest and unprepared. Talk about real 'change.'

Is this woman ok? Does she follow the polls? More than 1/2 of Americans think she does not know a thing. And she still thinks those Katie Couric interviews went well?

How can you not regret those interviews? Remember the 'Bush Doctrine' and how she couldn't answer that and instead just called the poor reporter 'Charlie' when his name is 'Charles.' And remember when she didn't know what she read, or what that bailout plan meant to the middle class or what Africa is, or even NAFTA?? I can go on and on with this, but if this doesn't convince the right-wing that she is not ready to lead, then I guess they would prefer a folksy, hunting, and know-nothing to be the President rather than an intellectual, articulate, smart and sincere president.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Online Comments on Legislative Bills

Wired: Obama may allow the public to comment on bills before signing them into action.

This is interesting because imagine it became just like Youtube: Video responses to bills, spam, "Please don't read this..." and other junk. Will the candidate and his staff get time to read all of that?

I really want him to involve the public through the internet because that is a brilliant, innovative idea, but I think if this rumor turns out to be true, Obama will probably modify it from the original Youtube-like setting.

Bloggers are 'Kids in Pajamas'

Seriously, Sarah Palin is getting more coverage than John McCain and Joe Biden combined post-election. Why is this? 

Today there was news that she called bloggers 'kids in pajamas' (Fox) and that she used some of the RNC's $150K for buying her kids' underwears (Yahoo). Underwears? Did they really need money from the RNC for underwears? I can understand that she needed to look good which is why she got the money from the RNC, but new underwears for kids (who aren't in the spotlight) don't make you look good. She has also said she is open to running in 2012 on Fox.

Lately, she has also been doing more interviews (including MSNBC which is to the left) than she did pre-election day. 

My question is this: is she getting ready to campaign for running in 2012 or is she just trying to improve her reputation on the national stage?

Monday, November 10, 2008

Internet Addiction

This is a problem many of us are going through and may consider 'normal.' However according to the Tech Radar, the Beijing Health Ministry has declared 'Internet addiction' a 'disorder' and will now join the ranks of other disorders including alcoholism. Lifehacker reports that this new disorder's diagnosis can be made by determining the time you spend online. If you spend more than 6 hours and get withdrawal symptoms for taking a break, you have the disorder. Wow. I wonder what the withdrawal symptoms could be. 

Google's Friendship with Obama


The Politico reported that Google's CEO Eric Schmidt donated $1 million to Sen. Obama's campaign during the presidential run albeit Google released a statement saying that it is a neutral company and that Eric's decision was a personal one.

This has sent shivers down the spine of Microsoft and other Google competitors. "[Google] terrifies Microsoft." According to one Dem lobbyist who knows Google well from the inside. The Dem also said "there's a reason why people are scared to death by Google."

I think this illustrates the new heights Google will reach in 2009. With the popular Gmail, Google Android, Youtube, and other highly popular services, Google's internet empire will not stop growing anytime soon. Now that Google has reached a new level, the next President, it may become impossible for Microsoft to take the lead once again. For rivals, Google's base may just have become too great and its ambitions too high to compete with. Isn't it amazing how before we know it, Google will take over our lives? Oh, wait it already has!

A Historic Moment


Photo by Eric Draper

No words needed to explain how historic this moment is.


The Next Presidential Car


The Next 'Cadillac One' rumored to replace the current one will come out next year. According to the Boston Globe it will look like a tank.

Obama Insults Rahm throughout the Roast

Due to the increased interest in this on Youtube, I must share this:

Hilarious jokes thrown by Obama throughout an old 2005 roast. If this guy wasn't a politician, he would make an excellent late night talk show host due to his charm and charisma.

Some of the Funny moments are: 1:30 ('only so many ways to say I'm going to rip your head off'), 2:33 (classic), and 5:01 is the BEST part.

Rahm Emanuel is Obama's new White House Chief of Staff. He is of Jewish religion. He has a reputation of swearing loudly in congress and being harsh with enemies. Once he sent a dead fish to the mailbox of a pollster that angered him. Rahm also used to be a ballet dancer (unusual for a politician) which Obama mentions briefly in this speech.

Joe Scarborough Accidentally Swears Live on MSNBC

MSNBC forgets to beep out Joe's F-word.

Sarah Palin and Harry Potter

In an interview conducted by the Anchorage Daily News, Sarah Palin attempted to refute the claim that she wanted to ban the first Harry Potter book in Alaska.

Palin: "It was reported that I tried to ban Harry Potter when it hadn't even been written when I was the mayor."

Taegan Goddard of the Political Wire reports in his blog that the first Harry Potter book was published in 1998 which was during Sarah Palin's term as mayor of Wasilla, Alaska. So she was basically wrong on when Harry Potter was released, but that doesn't mean that she still tried to ban that particular book. It just means that there were other books that she possibly wanted to ban as she has been reportedly known to have discussed banning books with a librarian in Wasilla.

Sunday, November 9, 2008

'Take Your Time' Mr. President


The Associated Press reports that President Bush  is "interested in writing about his White House Years." However, with approval ratings down the drain, the publishers don't seem to be too eager to proceed and ask him to "take [his] time."


Saturday, November 8, 2008

Not your average Amtrak




Photo by Khalid Tanveer/AP    Multan, Pakistan

World's Youngest Monarch

Barack is not the new youngest leader in the world today. The new king of Bhutan, a small country located in the Himalayas, had a coronation of its fifth king a short while ago.

Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck is only 28 years old.


Photo by Reuters.

69% of Republicans want Palin to Run for Presidency in 2012


Despite some polls showing that Palin hurt John McCain's chances of winning the White House, a new poll by Rasmussen Reports shows that only 20% of GOPs thought she hurt Senator McCain. While 69% GOPs want her to run again, but this time for President. Good luck with Governor. Just make sure you avoid reporters.



Weekly Cartoon

From the Cleveland Plain Dealer, by Jeff Darcy:

His First Blunder as President-elect

He is not even the President and the unfortunate President-elect makes an "offhanded remark" on Nancy Reagan.

When asked by a reporter during Obama's first press conference as President-elect, whether he spoke to any former presidents, Obama replied that he had only spoken with those "alive" and "[he] didn't want to get into a Nancy Reagan thing... doing any seances." A seance is a meeting of spiritualists or astrologists. Nancy Reagan was ridiculed for meeting an astrologist to discuss about her husband.

Obama later apologized to Nancy Reagan.

The Onion : Obama fans' lives become empty

The Onion states that diehard Obama fans woke up to a shocking realization. Their lives are completely empty now that Obama will be the next President. Watch it here.

Colbert : Obama still has one more obstacle to defeat

I have never seen Sarah Palin this upset before. All the TV networks & news agencies doing the autopsy of McCain/Palin campaign seem to suggest that Palin's own presidential ambitions hampered McCain's.


Friday, November 7, 2008

Val Kilmer Rumored to Run for Governor

Val Kilmer, the Top Gun Star may run for the Governor of New Mexico if President-elect Barack Obama chooses to place the incumbent Governor Bill Richardson in his cabinet. Gov. Richardson ran for President, but dropped out during the primaries.

However, at this point, this is nothing but a rumor.

Val Kilmer has starred in popular movies as Batman Forever and Willow. Well, Bruce Wayne did have an executive position only not in the state.

First Post

Welcome to AC Power!

Get ready to see a fresh, unique perspective of the world through an energetic, electric eye!

We hope you will enjoy this commentary on the major happenings of the world.

Thanks,

ACPowered.