Pages

Monday, August 22, 2011

News Nuggets 724


A baby pygmy hippopotamus at the Ueno Zoo in Tokyo.  From the Atlantic.

Libyan Rebels Take Tripoli from the Daily Beast
"Libyan rebels broke into central Tripoli Sunday, siezing key landmarks and arresting two sons of Col. Muammar Gaddafi. Thousands celebrated into the streets into Monday morning."

Rebels Claim 3 of Gadhafi's Sons Captured from CNN
"Rebel leaders said early Monday that they had captured three of embattled Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's sons -- Saif al-Islam, Saadi and Mohammed -- during their siege of Tripoli."

Libyan Rebels Pass Defense Ring and Enter Tripoli from the New York Times
"Libyan rebels marched into parts of Tripoli on Sunday evening, pushing past the city’s outer defense lines and setting off celebrations in some western neighborhoods of the capital, the final stronghold of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi."

China’s Summer of Discontent (Minxin Pei) from The Diplomat
The Chinese public’s tolerance for the government’s high-speed, low-quality growth strategy is wearing thin. Can China’s leaders avert a political crash?

Moody's Managers Pressured Analysts: Ex-staffer from the Huffington Post
"An ex-Moody's Corp derivatives analyst said the credit-rating agency intimidated and pressured analysts to issue glowing ratings of toxic complex, structured mortgage securities."

Barack Obama is on Course for a Second Term – Against All the Odds (Michael White) from the Guardian [of the UK]
"Ineffective and unpopular, the president should be a sitting duck, but the Republicans are turning their fire on themselves."

The Unelectable Appeal of Rick Perry (Clive Crook) from the Financial Times [of the UK]
"The US economy is getting worse and confidence in Barack Obama is collapsing. Meanwhile Rick Perry, governor of Texas, who scares swing voters as much as he thrills his party’s conservative base, has vaulted to the front of the Republican nomination race. ... you can say one thing with confidence: a 14-month campaign that divides the country even more deeply, adds to uncertainty about long-term economic policy..."

Rick Perry in the Front-Runner Hot Seat from New York Magazine
"...welcome to the head of the pack Governor Perry. Summer may be nearing an end, but you're about to experience a major fry-the-front-runner heat wave."

Jon Huntsman Blasts 2012 GOP Candidates On ABC's 'This Week' from the Huffington Post
"Huntsman, who's lagging in national polls, saved his harshest criticism in a television interview for two of the candidates who are at the top of the 2012 pack – Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann."

Jon Huntsman vs. Rick Perry: Shoot-out at the GOP Corral from the Christian Science Monitor
"Jon Huntsman and Rick Perry represent very different views of how a Republican can beat Barack Obama in 2012. To jazz up his campaign, Huntsman laid into tea party favorite Perry Sunday."

Huntsman 2.0 (Thomas Lane) from Talking Points Memo
"All of a sudden what they need is a moderate savior who's not tarnished by either extreme flip-flopping or by outrageous statements against, say, the Federal Reserve and the scientific process. ... This must be infuriating for Huntsman; as far as he must be concerned, the party already has its moderate savior and he's already in the race. Indeed, it's him."

Huntsman Shows His Hand (Hendrik Hertzberg) from the New Yorker
"This looks to me as if Huntsman is not just letting go of any remaining pretense of having even an outside chance of getting nominated this time; he’s also not worrying all that much about 2016. Right now, he’s not campaigning for President at all, he’s campaigning to regain his self-respect."
It's a nice thought.  It seems plausible.

The Gotcha Game (Howard Kurtz) from the Daily Beast
"First Newt lashed out at a Fox moderator, then Christine walked off Piers Morgan-both over questions they deemed unfair. Howard Kurtz on why the whining is way off base."

JOB SEARCH NUGGET!!
What You Don't Get About the Job Search: The View From Employers (Derek Thompson) from the Atlantic
"The Atlantic asked our readers to share with us the one thing most people don't understand or appreciate about looking for work. We got a surprising number of responses from employers with advice for the unemployed. Here are some of the most enlightening and entertaining of the bunch. "

BULLET-PROOF NUGGET!!
Bulletproof Skin Made From Spider Silk from Discovery News
"Just last week we learned about spiders coming to the aid of burn victims. Now it looks like our friendly neighborhood arachnids are being used to create the ultimate superhero power: bulletproof human skin. Well, almost."

No comments: