Are the Clintons behind the satirical New Yorker cover? A five-year-old blind Korean girl who can play piano perfectly. How a couple enjoyed a “cellphone wedding.” These are the top stories making headlines around the world.
Technology, Web & Entertainment
Here’s an inventive way to get hitched: exchange vows over a cellphone. An Indian Muslim groom residing in Kuwait went that route, Chris V. reported, because his wife-to-be lived too far away. Nothing says romantic like putting a mobile on speaker mode, exchanging vows and kissing the, um, keypad?
Several other tech, Net and entertainment stories lured our attention: Michael Billy wowed DigitalJournal.com readers with a very early review of the movie Pineapple Express (not out until Aug. 8); Gmail is working with eBay and PayPal to block any fraudulent emails flooding inboxes, Kesavan Unnikrishnan wrote; Apple sold 1 million iPhones in just three days, Chris V. found; a disgruntled IT staffer has sealed off an enormous amount of San Francisco government data, according to Kesavan Unnikrishnan (who gets angry at only making $126,000 a year?); the world’s oldest blogger, at 108, passed away recently, KJ wrote; and Sony released a stylish 16.4-inch-wide notebook PC, featuring proportions perfectly matched for 16:9 aspect ratio. Starting at $1,100, the price isn’t too shabby, especially for a notebook sporting battery life of more than 5 hours and a Blu-ray drive upgrade.
Politics & World
Bob Andelman scored an interview with Dennis John Kucinich, a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives and former candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States in 2004 and 2008. Andelman’s embedded podcast is definitely worth a listen. In the interview, Kucinich discusses a number of topics:
…his book, why he introduced an Article of Impeachment against President George W. Bush this week, why he thinks the U.S. Government will pursue criminal charges against Bush and Dick Cheney when their term expires in January 2009, and what Barack Obama is really like.
To listen to Andelman’s interview with Kucinich, simply click play on the player below:
In other news: Yes, spies do exist…and they aren’t getting away with their crimes. Case in point is the indictment of former Department of Defense Worker Gregg Bergersen, caught handing U.S. government data to Chinese officials, as pbrite posted. In exchange for spying, Bergersen was given vacation tickets and Las Vegas gambling money. Those luxuries won’t do him any good in the slammer, unless he can trade them for cigarettes and “protection.”
What other political stories are worth bookmarking? California uses more gas every year than China, Russia, India, Germany or any other country in the world, reports Chris V.; Obama’s children could be in the spotlight, whether they like it or not, Kathryn Reynolds reported; the U.S. terrorist watchlist reached 1 million people recently, and G. Robert Miller had some harsh words for what he called “a headache for many”; Sue D. wondered if Jesse Jackson is a hypocrite for dropping the N-bomb recently when he criticized Obama (Mr. Garibaldi‘s short answer: yes); American TV pundits ignored the controversy over John McLaughlin calling Obama an “Oreo” (black on the outside, white on the inside), Sadiq Green charged; and a White House legend, former press secretary Tony Snow, passed away recently, Sue. D. wrote, causing an outpouring of emotion from Citizen Journalists. Samantha A. Torrence commented: Just found out and couldn’t help but shed a couple of tears. He was a really nice guy, I don’t think I ever saw him on TV without a genuine smile.
And finally, if you want to see what the $500-million Four Seasons Private Residences will look like in Toronto, Digital Journal TV has your backstage pass:
Science & Environment
When Hindu temples go enviro-friendly, the world (and DigitalJournal.com readers) take notice. Bob Ewing penned a thorough article on a Hindu temple in California running on solar power. “It has been estimated that the solar panels would reduce 1,556 tonnes of CO2 emissions,” Bob wrote, “which is the equivalent to planting 62,244 trees, over a period of 25 years.” I wonder when my synagogue will start thinking green.
Several other science and environment stories made the cut this week: Stephen Hawking may move to Canada, Kesavan Unnikrishnan said; Mt. Everest is sadly being known as the world’s tallest garbage dump, accumulating as much as 120 tons of garbage, Chris V. found; Paul Wallis profiled ant scientist Edward Wilson to leapfrog into a discussion about genes and group selection; a two-headed pheasant was discovered in England, Michelle D. wrote (is a David Suzuki special not far off?); and can a balanced discussion exist within the environmental activist movement? Sykos Masters tackled this thorny issue in an opinion piece caboosed with a useful conclusion: activists can better help their cause through “education and the input of sound and intelligent dialogue.”
TopFinds Awards
One of the most explosive stories of the week concerned the cover of the New Yorker magazine, depicting Barack and Michelle Obama in Muslim/army garb. While many pundits may have dissected the cover in ho-hum ways, Citizen Journalist Hargrove wins the TopOpinion Award for hinting how the mag cover may be the doings of the Clinton campaign. She pointed out the chummy relationship between Bill Clinton and New Yorker editor David Remnick. She said there might be some resentment from the Hillary camp over Obama’s nomination. Even if you don’t agree with Hargrove, her investigative work deserves applause, and we also like seeing Citizen Journalists going beyond the headlines.
Net neutrality is under the gun in the spat between the FCC and Comcast, as Saikat Basu reported in his TopInternet Award-winning article. He expertly explained why FCC is upset at Comcast for limiting Web access to users who supposedly file-share over their network, and the case’s final result could have implications for anyone who uses the Net in the U.S. Kudos to Saikat for tackling a difficult issue bound to make more press above the fold in the near future.
Amidst the Iraq War hoopla, what happened to Afghanistan? Paul Wallis answered the query with a powerful opinion piece on the war in that region, which also won the TopWorld Award, saying U.S. troops are engaged in a losing game by playing “hide and seek” with Taliban soldiers. He also pointed out, “It would, however, be nice to have something resembling a coherent picture of a war which involves over 50 countries.” The article expressed a frustration for information about a war that has faded from public awareness, press interest and world affairs.
Could you picture yourself driving a car emblazoned with logos from the Cheetos snack? It’s a reality in New Orleans, as Nikki W. reported in her TopArts Award-winning post, where pimped-out drivers adorn their vehicles with logos and advertisements. One woman spent $900 on custom decals, and Nikki said, “Her truck resembled a big bag of chips and looked, well, cool ‘ranch’.” It’s always inspiring to see these hidden stories emerge on the site, nicely peppered with applicable quotes, humour and an illustrative video.
When you watch a blind five-year-old girl play piano like a seasoned pro, it can bring tears to your eyes. Winning the TopEntertainment Award is Chris V. for his great story on Yoo Ye-eun, a Korean superstar climbing the fame ladder for playing songs perfectly after only listening to the tunes once. It’s a heart-warming article, and the little girl is definitely a talent to watch as she grows up to become the pianist’s Andrea Bocelli.
Haven’t you always wanted to see a steroid-loving baseball player get pummeled in the boxing ring? OK, maybe we’re alone here with our bloodthirst, but for anyone who enjoys a good slugger beatdown, check out pbrite‘s article on Jose Canseco losing a celeb boxing match to an ex-NFL player. This gets the TopVideo Award for giving us a good look at how Canseco took it on the chin. G. Robert Miller summed up many sentiments when he exclaimed: “Totally deserved!”
We reviewed the cellphone-wedding earlier in TopFinds, and now we welcome you to the world of the skydiving groom. Winning the TopOffBeat Award is Vinay Chand, who wrote about an adventerous man who parachuted to his bride on their wedding day in India. Every woman likes a daredevil, right? The bride admitted: “I was a little sceptical about the whole event.” But she was as happy as a prom queen when her skydiving partner landed safely. And you thought your wedding was intense!
