Morning Media Summary
Tech:
Comcast: Internet service restored after regional outage:
“Officials at Comcast Sunday night said they did not know what caused disruptions in its Internet service to homes and businesses across the region and as far away as Boston but that service had been restored.”
WikiLeaked Diplomatic Cables Confirm China’s Politburo Was Behind Google Hacking Incident:
“Details about the U.S. State Department cables obtained by WikiLeaks are starting to come out. Although WikiLeaks itself may be under a denial of service attack, it provided several newspapers around the world access to the raw documents it is preparing to release later today. The New York Times just posted it’s first article summarizing the contents of the cables and highlighting the most newsworthy ones.”
Amid economic doldrums, Apple has a spectacular year:
“As 2010 draws to a close, much of the tech world is struggling to regain its footing after a difficult recession. Then there’s Apple.”
WikiLeaks Under Denial of Service Attack (DDos):
“WikiLeaks has reported that its Web site is currently under a mass distributed denial of service attack. The whistleblower Web site posted an update via Twitter early Sunday afternoon.”
Global Warming / Environment / Energy:
The Times Then and Now:
“The New York Times is participating in the dissemination of the stolen State Department cables that have been made available to it in one way or another via WikiLeaks. My friend Steve Hayward recalls that only last year the New York Times ostentatiously declined to publish or post any of the Climategate e-mails because they had been illegally obtained..”
Insurance / Gambling:
Global Gaming Expo Covers Online Gambling Regulation:
“The Global Gaming Expo (G2E) is a conference that covers a series of topics related to internet gaming. While there is a diverse range of topics covered at the event every year, this year, a huge focus has been placed on online gambling laws and regulation.”
Health / Safety:
Job-Based Health Care Threatened:
“Job-based health care benefits could wind up on the chopping block if President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans get serious about cutting the deficit.”
FoodPolitik: Your new tax code: Bottles, cans, or from the fountain?:
“In a report released shortly before Thanksgiving, a deficit reduction panel co-chaired by former Republican Senator Pete Domenici and former Clinton budget director Alice Rivlin called for a national penny-per-ounce excise tax on sugary drinks. (That’s 68 cents on a two-liter bottle.)”
Economics:
Ireland Wins $113 Billion Aid; Germany Drops Threat on Bonds:
“European governments sought to quell the market turmoil menacing the euro, handing Ireland an 85 billion-euro ($113 billion) aid package and diluting proposals to force bondholders to bear some cost of future bailouts.”
Al Simpson speaks out against debt committee critics, political climate:
“During Al Simpson’s nearly 50 years in government, he hasn’t been afraid to take on critics and naysayers of his work in the U.S. Senate or on a variety of high-profile commissions and committees.”
WSJ: Tax Revenues = 19% of GDP, Regardless of Tax Rates:
“Tax revenues as a share of GDP have averaged just under 19%, whether tax rates are cut or raised. Better to cut rates and get 19% of a larger pie.”
The Irish Bailout a “World Record”:
“A bigger-than-expected bailout for Ireland — does anybody expect Portugal or Spain (or Italy) to do any better? And what if it’s not just the PIIGS?”
Legal:
Mask-wearing protesters in D.C. can now be arrested:
“Wearing a mask while protesting outside a residence without telling D.C. police first could now get you arrested. ”
Why the TSA pat-down and body scans are unconstitutional:
“Courts evaluating airport-screening technology tend to give great deference to the government’s national security interest in preventing terrorist attacks. But in this case, there’s a strong argument that the TSA’s measures violate the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures.”
Labor:
California union advisor Novey lost big in backing Whitman:
“Don Novey placed a multimillion-dollar bet on Meg Whitman to become California’s next governor and lost. Problem was, he played the game with other people’s money. A lot of it.”
Transportation/ Land Use:
Is California’s High-Speed Rail Getting More or Less Money Under the New Congress?:
“The incoming Congress is turning a lot of things around that were on a steady, even path forward, or looking to do so, at least. One big thing many incoming Republicans are taking aim at is high-speed rail. No surprise here, since high-speed rail has been a big focus of the Obama administration (due to its many benefits), and the focus of such Republicans seems to just be taking down anything Obama is working on.”