Does interest on reserves change anything fundamental?
via NYT > Most Recent Headlines http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/17/all-your-base-are-belong-to-us-what-is-the-question/
U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz Releases Statement Regarding Aaron Swartz’s Death
The conduct of the U.S. Attorney’s office was “appropriate” in the bringing and handling of the case, says Ortiz.
Carmen Ortiz has released a statement regarding the death of Internet activist Aaron Swartz. In it, the U.S. Attorney defends her department’s conduct, calling it a “difficult task” to enforce the laws that govern the use of computers and the Internet. “The prosecutors recognized that there was no evidence against Mr. Swartz indicating that he committed his acts for personal financial gain, and they recognized that his conduct… did not warrant the severe punishments authorized by Congress.”
As well as expressing sympathy to Swartz’s family and friends, calling his suicide a “tragic result,” Ms. Ortiz reveals that prosecutors were seeking a six-month jail term in a low-security setting. “At no time did this office ever seek–or ever tell Mr. Swartz’s attorneys that it intended to seek–maximum penalties under the law. Do you think that a six-month, low-security sentence was acceptable, or do you feel that, after Swartz’s tragic death, the law needs changing?
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Facebook Rolling Out Free Phone Calls In U.S. For iPhone Users
The VoIP service is just another way for the social network to become the Internet’s one-stop shop.
Facebook users in the U.S. will now be able to make free phone calls on their iPhones. The new service is an expansion of the firm’s move two weeks ago into VoIP calls, which has initially been testing in Canada. It’s the second big announcement this week for the social media network, which unveiled Graph Search, its occasionally NSFW new search feature, two days ago.
The service works on the Messenger app–no update is needed. Just tap on the “i” button in the top corner and select Free Call. It’s just the latest move by Facebook to position itself as the Internet’s one-stop shop, displacing Google in the process.
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They’re Happily Married. They Created The Smash-Hit Game “Temple Run.” How Perfect Is This Union?
For Imangi Studios’ Keith Shepherd and his wife/business partner Natalia Luckyanova, love is talking mobile-gaming apps. Their sequel to “Temple Run” is out today. They say none of it would have happened without marriage.
“It’s very polarizing when we say that we’re married and work together,†says Keith Shepherd of his partnership with his wife Natalia Luckyanova. The couple founded Imangi Studios, a mobile gaming company, back in 2008; their app Temple Run is iconic, having garnered over 170 million downloads, with a sequel out today. “It’s always either, ‘Awesome, that sounds great,’” says Shepherd of reactions to their working arrangement, “or ‘Oh my God, that sounds like the worst thing ever.’â€
For Shepherd, 33, and Luckyanova, 31, it’s mostly been awesome. Indeed, without having their life partner also be their business partner, Shepherd and Luckyanova wonder whether this journey would have even been possible. The two met as software engineers in Washington, DC; when they married a little over five years ago, they found themselves continually scheming about how they could work for themselves. When news came out about Apple opening up its app store to independent developers, they decided to take the plunge.
“We knew that if one of us could support the other while we got something going, it was less risky than going it by yourself.”
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Rolling Stone remembers “30 Rockâ€
Eccentric “30 Rock†star Tracy Morgan’s New Jersey home is filled with snakes, sharks, a sparkly Michael Jackson glove under glass and a custom-made…
via NY Post: Page Six http://www.nypost.com/p/pagesix/jungle_at_home_ttdjDJa9seKI7BWU21A3EK?utm_medium=rss&utm_content=%20%20%20%20%20%20Page%20Six
Lena Dunham confronts Howard Stern after he calls her a “little fat chickâ€
Lena Dunham confronted Howard Stern following his comments about her weight on his show. Stern had said the “Girls†star was “a little fat girl…
via NY Post: Page Six http://www.nypost.com/p/pagesix/stern_loves_lena_NJTdEVBKN7C25Yl7JymDlJ?utm_medium=rss&utm_content=%20%20%20%20%20%20Page%20Six
New Twist in Armstrong Saga
The investment bank founded by Thomas Weisel, the powerful Silicon Valley financier who owned Lance Armstrong’s former cycling team, also managed assets for the then-head of cycling’s governing body.
via WSJ.com: Weekend Journal http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323783704578246001221628488.html?mod=rss_Weekend_Journal
Newhouse ax falls in Newark
The Newhouse-owned Newark Star-Ledger newspaper is giving pink slips to 34 employees — including nearly 10 percent of its editorial staff — as it continues to wrestle with a soft advertising market.The daily, the largest in New Jersey, is losing more than $10 million a year, sources said.Publisher Richard Vezza…
via NY Post: Business http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/newhouse_ax_falls_in_newark_ngANEi61dbHZlVqiN2vqIL?utm_medium=rss&utm_content=Business
WaPo admits plagiarism in story
The paper apologized for an article four days ago that took sentences from a scientific journal.
via POLITICO – TOP Stories http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2013/01/wapo-admits-plagiarism-in-story-154420.html
Exclusive: Warners Looking To Breed Gremlins Again
Bright light! Bright light! Our sources tell us that, in keeping with Hollywood’s mandated pop culture recycling program, Warner Bros. Pictures is negotiating with Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment to reboot their 1984 horror comedy, Gremlins.
We’re also told negotiations of this sort have happened several times over the years, but making Spielberg’s deal always proved too daunting a financial prospect and his involvement might simply be a requirement for making the film at all, so don’t hold your breath. Having said all of that, our sources tell us that it might just actually come off this time. This wouldn’t be something Spielberg would direct, of course – he only executive produced the original, with Joe Dante behind the camera – but it never hurts to have the Great Man’s name on your project. A Spielberg spokesman said that the appropriate executives were not available for comment. We’ll keep you updated…
Read more posts by Claude Brodesser-Akner
via Vulture http://www.vulture.com/2013/01/warner-bros-looking-to-breed-gremlins-again-reboot.html