Monthly Archives: January 2012

Google has angered Twitter and faces accusations of “warping” its search results and breaking antitrust rules by boosting posts from its Google+ social network in its standard search results.

The changes, which are presently only being implemented in the US via google.com, mean that when people search for information, particularly about individuals, while logged in to Google+, results from the social network will be prominently displayed on the first page of results along with other results from the wider web.

Google Search Changes Are Bad For The Internet, Says Twitter (Guardian)

Da do Ron-Ron, da do, etc.

Representative Ron Paul of Texas finished a strong second in the state’s Republican primary on Tuesday, which in many ways was the more telling outcome in a race where Mitt Romney’s dominance was never in doubt.

Mr. Paul polled well ahead of the late-surging Jon M. Huntsman Jr., who ran third, and Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, who battled for fourth. Mr. Paul benefited from the large turnout of independent voters, getting the nod from about a third, a little more than Mr. Romney. He also did well with young voters and those who said they were liberal on social issues.

But even if political analysts continue to regard the libertarian-leaning Mr. Paul as a protest candidate, with no shot at the nomination, his success here — on top of a third-place finish last week in the Iowa caucuses — means he will probably continue his campaign for months and perhaps to the summer convention.

 

Ron Paul Secures Second Place In new Hampshire (New York Times)

Ron Paul On Second Place: ‘We Are Dangerous.” (LA Times)


 

 

Can you tell which of these is fake?

You’re never going to believe this but, Mario Balotelli doesn’t know how to dress himself so he pays someone to do it for him! – What a legend.

You’re never going to believe this but, Mario Balotelli walked into the local tesco and paid for some hummous whilst leaving 10 £50 notes under the cans of carnation condensed milk! – What a legend.

 

What Did Balotelli Do Today?


With weed in the news again, following the current hoo-hah about homegrown Irish skunk and the publication of a 20 year research project suggesting that occasional marijuana use may well improve lung function, Steve Elliot of Toke Of The Town reports on the strident anti-pothead musings of Dr Ruari Hanley (above) last week in the Irish Medical Times:

Regular readers of this column will be unsurprised to learn that I have never had any time for marijuana. Like anyone who attended an Irish university in the last 40 years, I was aware during my college years of the existence of a few long-term cannabis users. I freely admit I regarded these people as a bunch of brain-dead, attention-seeking idiots suffering from a chronic aversion to personal hygiene.

In fact, I cannot recall ever meeting a clean-shaven pothead. This is an approach to grooming they appear to share with trade union officials and borderline communist politicians.

To be fair, and with a few pathetic exceptions, I would say that medical students were among the least likely to regularly partake of illegal drugs while in third-level education.

For this reason, they were largely mocked by other, more ‘hip’ undergraduates as a bunch of boring nerds who were unwelcome in the various fashionable ‘societies’ where Celtic Tiger cubs went to play. No doubt the cool gang are still laughing from the higher moral ground of the dole queue today.

Irish Doctor Claims Smoking Marijuana Leads To Beards (The Weed Blog)

(Hat tip: Cathal O’Rourke)

THE OIREACHTAS spent more than €9,600 of taxpayers’ money on more than 200,000 customised Christmas cards that were distributed by TDs and Senators ahead of the recent festive season.

One of the perks Oireachtas members enjoy is the ability to avail of an “in-house” printing service allowing them to produce individualised cards they can send to constituents and others.

With well over half of TDs and Senators using the service, it appears that, in the age of Twitter and text messaging, old-fashioned Christmas cards remain attractive to politicians – despite the controversies they have given rise to in the past. An Oireachtas spokeswoman confirmed that 132 of the full 226 members of both houses had cards printed in-house, with a total of 217,020 cards produced at the end of last year.

Oireachtas Christmas cards cost taxpayers almost €10,000 (Irish Times)

pic

…the love of God.

One source told The Mail: “When a pensioner friend of mine remarked that he was playing golf at Howth Golf Club, I asked him how he could afford it in these recessionary times. He said he had his subscription paid every year for the last 15 years because he used to work at BoI.

“Other former BoI staff are members of the Royal Irish Yacht Club or are part of posh fitness centres.”

BoI, whose chief executive Richie Boucher was paid €690,000 in 2011 recorded a pre-tax loss of €950 million in the same year.

A spokesman for the bank said: “Bank of ireland supports staff and retired staff with regard to club subscriptions, the amount of which is capped at fixed amounts depending on staff grades. As with all costs within the group, they are currently under review.”