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News of the World Tabloid Journalist Found Dead

News of the World

Sean Hoare, a former News of the World tabloid journalist was found dead in his home.  Hoare was involved as a whistleblower in a phone-hacking scandal with News Corporation.

Mike Hoyt, executive editor of the Columbia Journalism Review, speaks about the News Corporation’s phone-hacking incident and the how newspapers influence society. He speaks to Deirdre Bolton of Bloomberg Television’s “InsideTrack.”

A former reporter at News Corporation (NWSA)’s now-dead News of the World tabloid, he was the first to allege its editor encouraged phone hacking by the staff.  He was found dead, as reported by the Guardian newspaper, without saying where they got the information.

Sean Hoare’s body was found this morning at his home in Watford, England, when police were called to his house, the Guardian mentions. The death is not considered to be suspicious, the newspaper added, citing a police report which did not name Hoare.

Hoare worked as an entertainment reporter at the News of the World with Coulson, who resigned as David Cameron who was the U.K. Prime Minister’s press secretary earlier this year due to the scandal.

Hoare first suspected that Coulson encouraged reporters to hack into mobile phones during an interview last year with the New York Times. He had also worked with Coulson at News Corporation’s Sun tabloid before he was dismissed because of drug and alcohol problems, the Guardian reported.

Officials for police in Hertfordshire could not be reached for their comments and the Metropolitan Police Service in London said it was not aware of the case.

David Sonn, an attorney for Hoare, said he didn’t know about it, and if the report is true, it is “a terrible tragedy.”

Nelson Mandela Is To Celerbrate His 93rd Birthday Keeping The Legacy Alive

Nelson Mandela's Legacy

Nelson Mandela is a symbol of the human struggle for equality and justice. In celebration of his 93rd birthday coming on Monday, you may want to ask yourself how best to honor him.

His own foundation is committed to the subject of social justice. Mandela once said, “To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity.”

The main charge of Mandela’s 46664.com organization is global awareness as well as the prevention of HIV/AIDS. The plight of those who have HIV/AIDS in Africa and throughout the world has always a great concern to Mandela. UNAIDS estimated the number of people living with HIV/AIDS in 2009 was more than 33 million. More than 22 million of those people live in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund is dedicated to helping improve the conditions and lives of children and youths. Mandela always loves children, and he wants the world’s young people to have chances.

In a 2000 interview with CNN’s Jim Clancy, Mandela told us, “We want every child to have a first-class primary education. We want the elimination of all preventable diseases in society so that we can say in theory and in practice that we regard our children as the jewels in our society.”

The Mandela Rhodes Foundation is aimed to help African youths who show academic ability and leadership potential through offering scholarships to them to further their education and build upon their leadership skills. Mandela knows that young people are the key to the future. He wants these young people to have the chance to develop to their fullest potential.

Mandela often calls on all people to do something — even if it’s something small — to make the world a better place. It seems that each of us whose lives have been touched by the causes he is so stoically fighting for for can honor him by carrying on his work in our own way.

Secret Palin Tape Will Be Released In Iowa As Sign of Possible Presidential Candidacy

Secret Palin Tape

Reports have leaked of a surprising new development for the 2012 Republican presidential election. According to an item by Scott Conroy of RealClearPolitics, Sarah Palin and her political machine have hired the conservative filmmaker, Stephen Bannon, to produce a two-hour epic film documentary presenting a heroic image of the former Alaska governor and 2008 vice presidential nominee. According to reports, the film will first be viewed in Iowa, a pivotal state with a presidential caucus that is the first step in the presidential nominating process. It is said that the film will present Sarah Palin as a political maverick, a low-tax and balanced budget conservative that is not afraid to take on the politics in both major parties.

The news of the Sarah Palin movie epic comes in the wake of continuous ignoring of Palin as a potential 2012 presidential candidate, or otherwise demeaning her credibility as a candidate, within mainstream liberal and conservative media. The undiminished contingent of Palin partisans are convinced, however, that the news of the Palin film is a sure sign that Sarah Palin will enter the 2012 presidential campaign. According to reports on the Palin movie, it is said to be ideally suited for Tea Party supporters, as well as non-partisan voters seeking a low-tax, anti-Obama conservative in the White House.

Sarah Palin in the past has hinted that if she ran for president, her campaign would be eccentric and rely largely on social media, avoiding what Palin views as the biased, pro-liberal “lamestream media” (which is how she refers to mainstream electronic and print media). A customized film epic that shows Sarah Palin in the best possible light while simultaneously marginalizing criticism of her on issues such as resigning before her Alaska gubernatorial term had been completed, may very well be the sort of unconventional campaign technique she was referring to.

One aspect already being speculated on: why premiere the Sarah Palin film in Iowa?  If Palin has no intentions of entering the contest for the Republican presidential nomination? I suppose there will remain those in rejection to Palin’s strong supportive following in America who will maintain that this is just to keep her speaking fees high and improve her status as a GOP “kingmaker.” Others, however, believe that this is a sure sign that their political God, Sarah Palin, will soon be descending from the heavens to the earthly plane as a full-fledged presidential candidate. Given the lack of charisma of the current top-echelon of Republican presidential candidates, the Joan of Arc style portrayal of Palin that is being hinted at in the Stephen Bannon film may be the type of game-changer that Barack Obama’s book, The Audacity of Hope, proved to be in the 2008 presidential campaign.

The Duchess Of Cambridge’s Old Car For Sale On Ebay

Car For Sale On Ebay

A 2001 Volkswagen Golf might prove to be very profitable to one eBay auctioneer.

The 10-year-old car reportedly once belonged to Kate Middleton and who is now referred to formally as Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, before being sold to a car dealership in 2009.

Sonny Brazil, whose father owned the dealership, put the car up for sale on eBay on Friday with a starting bid of $32,242, according to the UK newspaper The Daily Mail.  Official spokespeople for the Royal couple have not commented on the car or the report.

According to the report, Kate purchased the car in November of 2001 for £10,818. She then gave the car to her younger brother James in February 2007. James Middleton then later sold the car to Brazil’s father in 2009.

“I went to an auction house in Dorset a few weeks ago and they said it would be worth £30,000 pounds [$48,363] plus, solely because of the name in the log book,” Brazil told the UK newspaper. He put it up for sale on eBay shortly afterward.  You can find the listing for the car there.

According to Brazil, there was also a pair of cufflinks left in the car when it was sold. “I’m not quite sure who the cufflinks belong to, they might have been William’s or they could have belonged to James,” Brazil said.

Brazil added, “It is hard to say but I’ll be selling them with the car as well as all the receipts for work done on the car and the log book.”

The report says that during the time Kate drove the car it racked up 60,000 miles and was photographed several times for getting ticketed for parking violations.

The Royal couple recently finished a brief tour in North America last week where they began in Canada on June 30 and ended in Los Angeles on July 10.

Is The Federal Health Care Law Unconstitutional?

Federal Health Care Law

A federal appeals court just heard the first appeals from lower court decisions who are dealing with the constitutionality of the federal health care law (alternately called “Obama care” and the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”). A Florida judge and a Virginia judge (both appointed by Republican Presidents) decided that Congress lacks power under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution to pass the federal health care law. Three other federal trial judges (appointed by Democratic Presidents) upheld the law. The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals that heard the case has three appellate judges appointed by Democratic Presidents. The judges asked several questions in general supporting the government’s position to uphold the law. The Supreme Court will have to settle the issue.

One immediate question rose about these cases: why can Massachusetts require all of its citizens to enroll in a health care plan, yet there is doubt whether the federal government can do the same thing? The simple answer is that the states have unlimited power to pass legislation (subject to the restrictions of the Bill of Rights and their own constitutions). In holding the Obama health care law was unconstitutional, the two judges from Virginia and Florida who struck down the law held that the Constitution grants Congress, not all power to legislate (like the States have), but only limited powers specifically mentioned in the Constitution.

Why should this distinction exist: states can pass any law they want, yet Congress must
rely on specific language in the Constitution which, according to those judges, must be as narrowly defined as possible? Why should there be unrealistic limits on Congress’ power to “regulate Commerce… among the several States,” the broad language of the Constitutional provision? Isn’t it important for Congress to be able to solve national problems that the States are unable to adequately deal with?

Hamilton Bar Room “Punch” Man Leaves Bermuda

Bar Room “Punch”

The 36 year old man who continually punched another man until he was unconscious in a Hamilton bar recently has been given permission to go back home to the United Kingdom.

Mr. Richard Brown has finished his work in Bermuda as of yesterday and the permit he holds is expiring at the end of July according to his lawyer Allan Doughty who told the Magistrates’ Court.

Mr. Brown punched Matthew Claridge in the face continually while drinking in Hamilton with a group of friends at a bar named Docksiders in December 2010.  The entire incident was caught on Closed Caption Television.

Mr. Brown has plead not guilty to causing grievous bodily hard to Mr. Claridge when he appeared in court in January.

The court heard that he later confessed to his crime because he had lost control when a disparaging remark was made about his wife.

The victim, Mr. Claridge lost two teeth due to one of the punches and his mouth required several stitches inside.  Mr. Claridge also had a gash in his head.

Mr. Brown has paid Mr. Claridge $17,000 to go toward his medical expenses and then gave him another $10,000 as a “gesture of goodwill.”

Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo handed Mr. Brown a six-month conditional discharge for his offense in June 2011.

Part of the sentencing for Mr. Brown was that he had to ask permission from the courts before he could leave the Island.

Mr. Tokunbo commented that when he sentenced Mr. Brown that he was aware that the punch was “a one-off occurrence.”

The sentence Mr. Brown received caused some public controversy.

Michael Dunkley, Shadow National Security Minister, said the sentence Mr. Brown received was because he is “a white guy who paid out a lot of money and got off”.

Dunkley said the sentencing sent “the wrong message” to the public, and people are questioning if “a 23-year-old black guy” would receive the same sentencing.

Google Says You Must Go Public On Profiles Or We’ll Delete You

Google Says Go Public

In an effort to get more Web 2.0 social online Google has an interesting but not surprising side effect: Profiles can no longer be hidden as of the end of this month.

Google is busy crafting its social network named Google+, but has but announced this policy on how it is going to handle user profiles.

From July 31 people that have created private profiles in something like their free Gmail account will be removed by Google unless they switch to public view.

“The purpose of Google Profiles is to enable you to manage your online identity. Today, nearly all Google Profiles are public. We believe that using Google Profiles to help people find and connect with you online is how the product is best used. Private profiles don’t allow this, so we have decided to require all profiles to be public,” added Google.

Google says that it will only require a user’s full name and gender to display on the public profile. Any other information someone doesn’t want the world to know can be edited or deleted.

“If you currently have a private profile but you do not wish to make your profile public, you can delete your profile. Or, you can simply do nothing. All private profiles will be deleted after July 31, 2011,” said Google.

This move comes as part of Mountain View’s ambition to have social products in its search and email products.

Anyone wanting to use Google+ must have a public profile which has at least their full name and gender displaying.

Google’s argument is that providing such details through its service will build trust among members of its social network.

The idea of online identity is currently undergoing a major shift away from the old model of people having a separate account for different parts of a web leader’s online estate.

Google has been at the forefront of this shift event though it has arrived late at the social party – they have set aside the failed Buzz.

Facebook for years has been insisting that user sign up for its private network with their real names.  It has routinely asked users when their accounts are temporarily disabled to give proof that they are who they say they are.

“President Obama Assassinated in Iowa” Hackers Tweet On Fox News Account.

Hackers Tweet On Fox

Some Fox News editors scrambled early Monday to try to figure out how hackers broke into one of Fox News’ Twitter accounts, posting messages that President Obama was assassinated.

Hackers broke into the Fox News Politics account around 2 AM and posted messages that President Obama had been shot and killed during his campaigning in Iowa.

“@BarackObama has just passed. The President is dead. A sad 4th of July, indeed. President Barack Obama is dead,” was what the first post said

Minutes later, the hackers added that Obama had been “shot twice in the lower pelvic area and in the neck; shooter unknown. Bled out.”

Then there were three more rapid-fire tweets, one that said Obama had been killed at “Ross’ Restaurant in Iowa,” the hackers even signed off by wishing Vice President Joe Biden good luck as the country’s new president.

“In such a time of madness, there’s light at the end of tunnel,” the hackers wrote.

The seven phony tweets were visible on the account, which has Twitter’s baby blue “verified account” badge, for most of the morning on Monday. They were deleted at around noon on Monday.

Fox’s politics Twitter account has nearly 35,000 followers.

A group of hackers called The Script Kiddies appeared to claim responsibility for the July 4th hoax, BBC News reported.

At one point, the account’s picture was replaced with the group’s logo, and a description said, “”H4CK3D BY TH3 5CR1PT K1DD3S.”

During an interview with Stony Brook Magazine’s Think magazine, a person claiming to be a part of the hacking organization said the group had close ties to the infamous hacking clan named Anonymous.

The hacking group supposedly broke into the account around midnight on Sunday and posted a few tweets that pointed back to their own account before beginning the Obama scam, Think reported.

Indiana Jones – Hidden Treasure Worth $11 Billion Found Underneath Temple In India

Treasure Worth $11 Billion

Vaults beneath a temple in India were searched according to a court-order and the treasure has turned up more than $11 billion in treasure, reports the Indian state of Kerala.

The contents of what lies underneath the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple located in Thiruvananthapuram reads like a list of props from the hit “Indiana Jones” movie.  Including:

• Replicas of pure gold coconut shells
• Sapphires, rubies, pearls and emeralds
• Gold chains in lengths as long as 18 feet
• Hundreds of thousands of silver and gold coins, some dating back to the 16th century
• Pendants and crown
• Solid-gold idols and human figurines
• Silver and gold bars

The wealth was found among six vaults maybe more, some of which have not been opened in over 149 years, according to reports from them media. India’s Supreme Court ordered an inventory to be done of the vaults after hearing a private criticism seeking “more transparency and trustworthiness in the temple administration.”

The Kerala government announced Monday the found treasure will remain property of the shrine, according to reports by the media.

“The wealth belonged to the temple and it will be preserved where it was found. There is religious and historical significance to the findings. The state will ensure its security,” Oommen Chandy, Kerala Chief Minister spoke about to the Times of India.

As word of the find spreads, Kerala police have asked for assistance to safeguard the treasure.

“It is too big a challenge for the police. We have no trained personnel to manage such a huge treasure. We have sought the help of several agencies who can really help us,” Director general of the Kerala police, Jacob Punnose, director general of the Kerala police told India Today.

What might the treasure, which the Economic Times of India is saying is likely the largest in the country mean to Kerala, which is a south Indian state of 33 million people? The Economic Times reports that they have some ideas on the subject.

E15 Gas Pumps Benefit Only Light Trucks And New Cars?

E15 Gas Pumps Benefit

The Environmental Protection Agency recently released a warning sticker about gasoline which contains 15% ethanol.  This is considered the final step to clear the way for the U.S. gas pumps to sell the higher blend.

The only vehicles that can use E15 are light trucks and newer cars from the model year of 2001 and forward.  “Flex-fuel” vehicles will also be allowed to use E15.

Prohibited by the ERP from using E15 are gasoline powered engines likes those on boats, lawnmowers and snowmobiles.

Also not allowed to be filled with E15 according to the EPA regulations: motorcycles and vehicles that have heavy-duty engines like delivery trucks and buses, off-road vehicles and equipment and neither can light vehicles which are from 2000 or before.

The process to use E15 began over two years ago and the release of this new warning sticker means that it is in the home stretch of the approval process for the group of ethanol proponents.

According to the EPA in early 2009 a combination of ethanol groups petitioned the EPA to waive the allowance of gasoline with a higher 15% ethanol content to be sold in opposition to the current 10% limit.

The EPA ended up conducting tests to decide if engines would safely handle the higher blend.  The EPA partially granted the groups’ request last October after initial test results. This testing opened the door for E15 to become approved for cars 2007 and newer as well as light trucks.