DailyNewsGems

Eye-Catchers of the Day: March 31, 2014

• WSJ:.  Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart made no major advances Sunday in a four-hour meeting aimed at breaking the standoff over Ukraine, ``raising the specter of a prolonged crisis that threatens to bring broader instability to Europe.’’  Kerry said he received no assurances from the Kremlin that it would pull back thousands of Russian troops from Ukraine's eastern border. http://goo.gl/6i2lgA

•  Oliver Bullough, Caucasus editor at the Institute of War and Peace Reporting and author of ``The Last Man in Russia,'' writes in the BBC Magazine how Vladimir Putin recreated the country of his childhood.

``Putin restored some Soviet symbols. He brought back the Soviet national anthem and Soviet emblems, and praised the Soviet triumph in World War Two. But he embraced pre-Soviet themes too. He befriended the Russian Orthodox Church, and name-checked anti-Soviet philosophers like Ivan Ilyin, whose remains he had repatriated to Russia and buried with honour.''

 ``Putin has succeeded in building a version of the country of his childhood, one that can act independently in the world, and one where dissent is controlled and the Kremlin's power unchallenged. But that is a double-edged sword, because the Soviet Union collapsed for a reason, and a Russia recreated in its image risks sharing its fate.'' http://goo.gl/bWLVha

 

Origin of Ukraine?

``Ukraina is literally translated as ``on the edge'' or ``borderland'' and that is exactly what it is. Flat, fertile, and fatally tempting to invaders. Ukraine was split between Russia and Poland from the mid-seventeenth century to the end of the eighteenth, between Russia and Austria through the nineteenth, and between Russia, Poland, Czechoslovakia and Romania between the two world wars. Until the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, it had never been an independent state.''

-Anna Reid, author of ``Borderland: A Journey Through History of Ukraine.''

 

• NEW ENGLAND CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING: Mya Barry was born in April 2011 with opiates already streaming through her tiny veins. But it was not the heroin from her drug-addicted mother that killed the infant. Rather, it was the heroin-tainted milk bottle her parents allegedly handed her five months later in their overcrowded and squalid apartment in this South Shore town. The infant’s parents, Ryan Barry and Ashley Cyr, are charged with manslaughter for the 2011 death. They pleaded not guilty last year, and the criminal case is pending in Plymouth Superior court.

``Some 1,300 babies in Massachusetts — about three to four each day — were born in 2012 with what is called “neonatal abstinence syndrome,” suffering withdrawal pains as a result of exposure to illegal opiates such as heroin or prescription drugs such as Oxycontin or methadone, according to a first of its kind survey of local hospitals.'' http://goo.gl/hxBQt1

•  ESPN: Play Ball! Opening Day: Statistical Overview for the 2014 MLB Season. The Mets’ 34-18 Opening-Day record is the best of any team. The Mariners have won seven straight Opening Day games.  http://goo.gl/EMmCHj

•  AP: Wrigley Field Turns 100 This Year. 10 things to know about the park, affectionately known as the `` Friendly Confines'' http://goo.gl/EUifn8

• 60 Minutes' Video: Is the U.S. Stock Market Rigged? Michael Lewis reveals how the stock market really works.  http://goo.gl/mzUsjP
  
  

 

This and STAT

• World Bank: Nearly 68% of households in India's countryside do not have access to toilets.
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) March Report: In 2013, 75.9 million workers age 16 and older in the United States were paid at hourly rates, representing 58.8 percent of all wage and salary workers. Among those paid by the hour, 1.5 million earned exactly the prevailing federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour; about 1.8 million had wages below the federal minimum. 3.3 million U.S. workers last year earned the federal minimum wage of $7.25/hour, or less. http://goo.gl/6fsfOq
•  2012 Economic Census Advance Report released by the U.S. Census Bureau: The health care and social assistance sector continued to have the most employees with more than 18 million in 2012, an increase of more than 10 percent or 1.8 million people from 2007. This is the highest numerical increase of employees in any sector published in the advance report. http://goo.gl/Gxt8tl
•  U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: By age 27, 32 percent of women had received a bachelor's degree, compared with 24 percent of men. Nine percent of men were high school dropouts compared to 8 percent of women. 34 percent of young adults were married at age 27, 20 percent were living together and 47 percent were single.  http://goo.gl/BkVPeb
•  CareerBuilder and Economic Modeling Specialists Intl: More than 2.9 million workers had temporary jobs in 2013, up 28% from 2010. About 10% of all new jobs created since the recession ended have been temp or contract jobs. http://goo.gl/r7Q5KV
•  Most Popular US Attractions: State by State. http://goo.gl/vrqd9o
•  Of the 11 million ESPN Tournament Challenge brackets, only 612 got the Final Four perfect.
•  Kentucky is the first team to start 5 freshmen in an Elite 8 win since Michigan's "Fab 5" in 1992.
•  Kentucky is the fifth 8 seed to make it to the Final Four since 1985. Villanova in ‘85 was the only one to win it all.

 

Eye-Catchers of the Day: March 30, 2014

Piers Morgan signed off for good on Friday, but not before firing off his final salvo for stricter gun laws.

 

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• `` ``Over the past year,'' writes Maria Lipman, chair of the Carnegie Moscow Center’s Society and Regions Program, ``Putin’s approval rating has grown from 63 to 80 percent; 51 percent said they trusted him, up from 35 in March 2013. Such is the instant benefit of the takeover of Crimea.''

``The adjoining of Crimea is broadly seen as a triumph of “historical justice” that, in the minds of most Russians, appears to be superior to the justice of legal norms and procedures. What is also important is that this triumph came at no cost whatsoever to the Russian people...''

``The seizure of Crimea is Putin’s personal conquest, while the Russian people’s contribution has been reduced to their renewed pledge of allegiance to the national leader...For now Putin has succeeded in halting Russia’s social and economic modernization and has pushed Russia to an anti-modernization course.’’ http://goo.gl/s603MV

• The Washington Post and Kaiser Family Foundation conducted a nationally representative survey among Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. Highlights: 54 % disapprove of the way President is handling his job as president; 65 % think George W. Bush was a good commander-in-chief of the military; 44 % think the war in Iraq was worth fighting for, while 53 % think Afghanistan was worth fighting for. http://goo.gl/lozzbD

•  NYT’s: Key swing states controlled by Republicans are making it harder to vote through the embrace of restrictive voting laws, which has triggered  the fury of Democrats who are attempting to push back against these electoral restrictions. In all,  the Times reports,  since 2013, nine states have passed measures making it harder to vote, including restrictions on registering, and proof of citizenship. http://goo.gl/SSpZIZ

• USA Today Interactive: 14 political races to watch in 2014. http://goo.gl/F4rfVY

•  Brookings Institution INFOGRAPH: What happens to the long-term unemployed? Only 11 percent of those who were long-term unemployed in a given month returned to steady, full-time employment a year later. http://goo.gl/Hs58jL

 

This and STAT

• ESPN: What did former Alabama QB AJ McCarron give former Miss Alabama Katherine Webb when they got engaged Friday night? http://goo.gl/hjzUss
• BankRate: More than a third of people in the U.S. haven’t been to the bank in at least a half of a year. http://goo.gl/fhRFsn
• Washington Post INFOGRAPH: Post-Cold War Spending-Spending on the military, 1988-2012 http://goo.gl/bOK7C2
• 12.9% of the 11 million ESPN Tournament Challenge brackets correctly picked Florida and Wisconsin to reach the Final Four.
• Florida is in Final Four for 1st time since 2007.

Eye-Catchers of the Day: March 29, 2014

With the announcement of the Pulitzer recipients not far away (April 14th)-it occurred to me that when the winners and finalists are announced-a great many readers might not have been aware, let alone have read, many of these prize-winning works of journalism.

So, as a run-up to the official announcement, DailyNewsGems.com, will be highlighting some outstanding works of journalism, worthy of Pulitzer consideration.

-Bill Lucey

 

Back in July through September, 2013, The Dallas Morning News investigation team reported on pervasive problems associated with rural Texas hospitals owned or operated by Dr. Tariq Mahmood, involving charges that his hospitals operated with expired licenses —were weighed down with inadequate staffing; engaged in fraudulent billing; were negligent in the supervision of the facilities; administered the hiring  of inferior doctors;  failed  to pay taxes; and, through its gross negligence, tragically resulted  in patient deaths. Mahmood was indicted after federal authorities said he bilked Medicare and Medicaid out of $1.1 million, by falsifying patient records to inflate Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements.

``Over the next four years, Mahmood operated his chain of rural hospitals that were repeatedly cited for endangering patients. Reports of neglectful care, questionable management practices and rundown conditions persisted under a sluggish and patchwork oversight system.

Warnings reached multiple levels of government, including criminal investigative units and taxing entities. But agencies were slow to take action and often didn’t share information. It wasn’t until this year that they began to crack down on Mahmood.''

 As a result of The Dallas Morning News series, Texas Gov. Rick Perry  ordered a broad investigation of Mahmood's health-care facilities; and in February, 2014, the News reported on a congressional panel-demanding answers from federal health agencies about what they are doing to prevent fraud after a Texas hospital chain allegedly fleeced a stimulus program on its way to amassing $18 million. http://goo.gl/ru8uzF

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• WSJ: 5 takeaways from the Christie George Washington Bridge closure review: 1.) Wrath of Drewniak; 2.) Targets; 3.) Sticking to the Script; 4.) No Payback?; 5.) Naming David Wildstein. The Journal elaborates on each of those bullet points. http://goo.gl/qCNnaq

• Bloomberg News: More and more frequently, law enforcement officials have been able to track down suspects through the use of a massive database of license-plate images. But privacy advocates are voicing concerns. Bills in more than a dozen  states would limit license-plate tracking.; and just last  year, Bloomberg reports ``Utah passed a law  that bars police from keeping license-plate data for more than nine months and private companies from holding onto images for more than 30 days without a court order’’. http://goo.gl/1jsfyv

•  WSJ: The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking ways to make it easier for law enforcement agencies to get warrants to hack into the computers of criminal suspects nationwide. Privacy advocates warn, however, ``that government spyware could end up on innocent people’s computers if remote attacks are authorized against equipment whose ownership isn’t clear.'' http://goo.gl/VGOJCW

 This and STAT

• Which States are doing the best or worse in meeting its Obamacare enrollment rolls? http://goo.gl/Dgg2hc
• Fun Tool: Graph Ratings of Your Favorite TV Shows, http://goo.gl/yEGe43
• Mother Jones INFOMAP: The Countries That Block Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube http://goo.gl/S3bZNr
• Rick Pitino loses his first Sweet 16 game. He is now 11-1 in the round.
• This is the first time that Michigan and Michigan State both advanced to the Elite 8 in the same year.
• A mere 8 out of the 11 million ESPN Tournament Challenge brackets got all Elite Eight teams correct.

Eye-Catchers of the Day: March 28, 2014

PHOTO CREDIT: : Dmitry Neymyrok—Reuters

 

• Foreign Policy Magazine : Russian Invasion of Eastern Ukraine Seen as Likely. American intelligence agencies have briefed the Obama administration and key congressional staffers that there is mounting evidence that Russia is on the brink of an invasion of eastern Ukraine. ``Independent reporting'', moreover, `` from the region bolsters the intelligence community's assessment that Russia was assembling the necessary troops and military resources to invade if Putin gives the order.’’ http://goo.gl/KL1VTq

 

• The Washington Post lists, in chronological order, downright lies or significant misstatements uttered by U.S. Presidents over the last 55 years, accompanied by a Truth Teller video. The Post wasn't able to find deceptions of two U.S. presidents:  Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter. http://goo.gl/3fWQHV

 

• WSJ: According to an analysis of Census data by William Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution, nearly 60% of rural counties shrank in population last year, up from 50% in 2009 and around 40% in the late 1990s ``Almost eight in 10 of the counties’’ the Journal reports, `` that lost population over the past three years were outside of metropolitan areas. http://goo.gl/anirWa

 

•  NYT's Q & A: Ten Key Questions on Health Care Enrollment. http://goo.gl/WWfEl4

 

• Chicago Tribune: McDonald's Corp. said it will offer free coffee at its U.S. restaurants for two weeks, beginning on March 31^st in hopes of gaining the attention of patrons amid a sales slump and to keep pace with other breakfast promotion by its rivals. . http://goo.gl/c1vfWW

 

• YahooNews:  26 million airline passengers are eligible for compensation each year if you’re involuntarily bumped from a flight that’s oversold. Surprisingly, only 2 percent actually file a claim for what they’re owed, which means the airlines are sitting on about $16 billion of unclaimed money each year. Passengers have three years to submit claims. YahooNews lists a website which is helping passengers recoup their losses.  http://goo.gl/O04U4E

 

This and STAT

• The IRS has received close to 83 million federal income tax returns as of March 21, while slightly more than 67 million refunds have gone out, with the average refund at $2,872. That's up about 2% from last year at this time. Of the forms received, nearly 76 million were e-filed, with close to 44 million coming from tax professionals and about 32 million self-prepared.
• Pew Research Center: 48% of Hispanics approve of Obama’s job performance today, down from 63% in September, 2013 http://goo.gl/Eo0XWz
• World Bank Research: More than 20% of people in developing countries live on less than $1.25 a day & 75% on less than $4.
• National Safety Council New Report: Cell phone use is now estimated to be involved in 26 percent of all motor vehicle crashes – up from the previous year; Motor vehicle deaths in 2012 were at their lowest level in February and at their highest in July. http://goo.gl/vAzZuh
• Pew Research Center: INFOGRAPH: Big Name Journalists who have abandoned mainstream news organizations for digital-only operations. http://goo.gl/oryjnL
• Nate Silver" FiveThirtyEight: Florida now 25% to win NCAAs, followed by Az. (19%), L'ville (15%), Wisconsin (10%) http://goo.gl/XxbE6D
• The Texas Rangers’ Tanner Scheppers will be the 1st pitcher to make his 1st career start on Opening Day since Fernando Valenzuela in 1981.

Eye-Catchers of the Day: March 27, 2014

Tom Brady walks away as firefighters battled a 9-alarm fire at 298 Beacon Street in Boston, Massachusetts. Photo Credit: The Boston Globe.

 

BREAKING...From the Wall Street Journal: Amazon to Offer Free Streaming Video Service. http://goo.gl/ey2vgS

 

 

• WP: Two years removed from a gaudy drinking-and-prostitution scandal during a presidential trip to Cartagena, Colombia, Secret Service agents charged with protecting the president have once again brought shame to the agency. In Amsterdam — a city of 1 million with an international reputation for partying, open drug use and legalized prostitution — three Secret Service stayed out drinking until about 2:30 a.m., despite knowing they were scheduled to report to work the next morning at 10 a.m., a clear violation of a ban on drinking in the 10 hours before an assignment. The embarrassing incident-sparked harsh criticism from lawmakers in Washington, including Sen. Ronald H. Johnson (R-Wis.) who said the agency has a “systemic” problem of rowdy and inappropriate behavior by its agents, who are sworn to protect the president and other senior officials from harm. http://goo.gl/3CvE1h

 

• Boston Globe: Two Boston firefighters died Wednesday while battling a wind-whipped blistering nine-alarm fire that raced through a brownstone in the city’s fashionable Back Bay neighborhood, city . http://goo.gl/om9L9Z    NOTE: According to the U.S. Fire Administration-31 firefighter fatalities were reported in 2014. Database of Firefighter Deaths in 2013: http://goo.gl/jiDtYz

• Christian Science Monitor (includes video): Heroin has been growing steadily across many levels of society for at least the past five years with an accelerated use among suburban and rural whites, rather  than among African-American and Latino communities.  ``Nationwide,'' according the CFM, ``heroin use among persons age 12 and older nearly doubled between 2007 and 2012.’’ http://goo.gl/xdTqR0

 

• At least 778 people were executed worldwide in 2013, a rise of almost 15 % compared with last year, according to Amnesty International. At least 169 people were executed in Iraq – an increase of more than 30% since 2012, while In Iran, executions rose by 18%, with at least 369 people killed. Four countries resumed executions: Indonesia, Kuwait, Nigeria and Viet Nam, usually under a cloak of secrecy. People were executed in a total of 22 countries in 2013. http://goo.gl/23AqGs  

 

• WP: The AP-GfK poll shows 59 percent of Americans now disapprove of President Obama’s job performance-- a point higher than the previous high set in December. Obama's approval rating stands at 41 percent, the second-lowest figure the poll has ever found. http://goo.gl/Pl99Dk

 

This and STAT

• The Indian Pacers are 8-0 at home against the teams currently in the Top 5 in the Eastern Conference.
• Dion Waiters buzzer-beater Wednesday was the first by a Cleveland Cavalier player since Mo Williams on Nov. 24, 2010, against the Bucks.
• ProPublica: INFOGRAPH; Timeline of Obamacare Registration Extensions. http://goo.gl/iSwM5K
• Oxford University Study (2013): The percentage of jobs in the U.S. at risk due to computerization stands at about 47 percent. http://goo.gl/tFbu5C
• Rolling Stone Magazine: 20 Best Albums of All-Time http://goo.gl/lV8i3z
• USA Today INFOGRAPH: Fewer Couples Getting Married. http://goo.gl/GHyP3o
• Forbes: Team Values for all 30 MLB teams; The New York Yankees lead the pack at $2.5 billion  http://goo.gl/sP1Ctm
• Middling America Blogspot: Map of States Recognizing Same-Sex Marriages: http://goo.gl/Qyg0Ba

Eye-Catchers of the Day: March 26, 2014

 

• Bloomberg News: Americans will get an extension to enroll in Obamacare insurance plans, as long as they started the process, but were unable to complete it before the March 31 deadline. With a last-minute surge, more than 6 million are expected to sign up, according to the Congressional Budget Office’s latest estimates, a great sign for the White House who have been under siege from lawmakers, charging the law to be riddled with deficiencies.  http://goo.gl/qko7eH
• NYT's: New pro-gun legislation passed in Georgia will allow guns in bars, schools, restaurants, churches and airports, pending the signature of Gov. Nathan Deal. Americans for Responsible Solutions, founded by Gabrielle Giffords, the former Arizona congresswoman who was critically wounded in a mass shooting in 2011, described the new law as “the most extreme gun bill in America”. `` In the past year alone’’, the Times reports, ``21 states have passed laws expanding the rights of gun owners, according to the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. Three allow guns in churches, two allow them on college campuses, four in bars and eight in schools.’’ http://goo.gl/jqRH9s
• WSJ: Lost at Sea: short profiles of the people who perished on #MH370  http://goo.gl/U893Zg
• N.Y. Post: Two CNN producers were arrested Tuesday for trying to sneak into the World Trade Center site to test its security in response to a Post story which reported that a teenager made it the top of the WTC. http://goo.gl/3XJgGH
• Pew Research Journalism Project: In 2013, 82% of Americans said they got news on a desktop or laptop and 54% said they got news on a mobile device. Overall, newspaper revenue declined 52% from 2003 to 2012 to $22 billion, while during the same time, digital advertising grew almost three times to $3.4 billion – although that increase still did not make up for the huge losses on the print side. http://goo.gl/VSs3dn
• Quartz:  Why Do People Quit Twitter? http://goo.gl/5ciB5f
• Market Watch: The 10 Best Part-Time Jobs: 27 million people work part-time, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).  Despite the fewer hours worked, MarketWatch lists a selection of part-time jobs that pay reasonable well; and are additionally in key sectors of the economy in which the job base is expected to grow. http://goo.gl/ir3em9

 

This and STAT

• WSJ INFOGRAPH: 86% of Internet users say they've taken steps to mask their digital footprints. http://goo.gl/Ljsf7U
• World Bank Data Interactive Chart: ``Survival curves” for females from 2005-2010. In Japan, about 78% of female newborns survive up to age 80, in Sierra Leone; by comparison, 7% of female newborns survive up to that age. http://goo.gl/nyRmzr
• USA Today: Gallup ranks best and worst cities for well-being, http://goo.gl/XIlVbu
• World Bank Report: By 2030, up to 70% of the Chinese population - some one billion - will be living in cities. http://goo.gl/oNJP7e
• Mashable: Percentage of Respondents Who Use Moble Apps to Follow March Madness During the Workday: http://goo.gl/lpSCA6

Eye-Catchers of the Day: March 25, 2014

 Photo Credit:  European Pressphoto Agency

 

• Seattle Times:  As far back as 1999, a  report filed with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, warned  of slide danger and “the potential for a large catastrophic failure’’ in Snohomish County in  rural Washington state, which left 14 dead, with 176 reports of missing persons. http://goo.gl/fCnzhT   
• WSJ: Live Streaming of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, despite hard evidence that Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 plunged into the southern Indian Ocean, strong gales and rough seas forced a delay in the search. http://goo.gl/SPqcH9
• American Action Forum Release New Report: The Affordable Care Act (ACA) imposed more than $27.2 billion in total private sector costs, $8 billion in unfunded state burdens, and more than 159 million paperwork hours on local governments and affected entities. In addition, the law has created only $2.6 billion in annualized benefits, compared to $6.8 billion in annualized costs. Conclusion? The ACA has imposed 2.5 times more costs than it has produced in benefits. http://goo.gl/MgxyDA
• Kaiser Health News: FAQ: What Are The Penalties For Not Getting Insurance? http://goo.gl/5sXPPm
• State Capital Journal: With Congress unable to pass any immigration reform, the Obama administration is deporting unauthorized immigrants at record rates and in the process putting pressure on the states. Congress, in fact, hasn’t passed comprehensive immigration legislation since the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, which President Ronald Reagan signed into law. ``That measure granted permanent residence to 2.7 million unauthorized immigrants living in the United States; the actual number may be higher since some of these immigrants later brought in family members. http://goo.gl/69DDxA ‘’

 

• PolicyMic: Following Russia's absorption of Crimea, many wonder which region is vulnerable to another Putin land grab? General Philip Breedlove, NATO's supreme allied commander, argues Russia’s next target may be the tiny, unrecognized state of Trans-Dniester, which borders Ukraine. ``If Russia decides to go through with annexation, and uses peacekeeping as an excuse (as it did in Crimea), it could send troops to Trans-Dniester and effectively cut off Ukraine on both sides.’’  Russia already has 2,000 troops in the region; if Putin grabs Trans-Dniester, while it may not be the most celebrated annexation, it may very well represent a springboard to increase Russia's dominance in the region. http://goo.gl/OXWI6d
• The Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst : Russia's annexation of Crimea could have a domino effect elsewhere in the former Soviet countries, especially regarding the Georgian breakaway territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. ``Their limited and illusory political independence could be scrapped and they may officially become part of Russia, therefore further deepening the crisis in the South Caucasus and in relations between Russia and the West. The creation of another semi-recognized territory and a change of official borders signifies a crisis in the post-Soviet world that threatens to develop further, undermining the existing status-quo in variety of ways.’’ http://goo.gl/ANBP2Y
• WP: National Geographic announced recently that in its mapping, Crimea will be "shaded gray", designating it a ``disputed area’’ to show that it was now an "Area of Special Status." According to National Geographic's Atlas of the World (ninth edition), there are a number of other countries in gray areas.. http://goo.gl/QDyb52

 

• USA Today: 20 Ways Americans are Blowing their Money. http://goo.gl/jjxSds
• ESPN: If the NBA had a Sweet 16 bracket, what would it look like? -http://goo.gl/2exa61

This and STAT

• Entering the NCAA tournament, Dayton had a 2.8% chance to advance to the Elite 8.  Today, the Flyers have a 45% chance to beat Stanford and reach the Elite 8.
• G-7 leaders will meet in June in Brussels without Russia, the first time Russia has been excluded since it won full membership in 1998.
• Market Watch: The fastest and slowest housing markets in the U.S http://goo.gl/TxLY95
• Twitter Glossary: List of common terms and acronyms found on Twitter. For example TIL-Acronym for "Today I learned." #FF stands for "Follow Friday." http://goo.gl/78PHR1
• Air pollution kills about 7 million people worldwide every year, with more than half of the fatalities due to fumes from indoor stoves, according to a new report from the World Health Organization
• According to the research firm comScore, fully 65% of all mobile users in the U.S. already own smartphones. At 156 million consumers, that's roughly half the U.S. population.

  

 

Eye-Catchers of the Day: March 24, 2014

 

• WSJ Twitter Feeds: Australia confirms Chinese have sighted objects in southern Indian Ocean in search for #MH370 http://goo.gl/1MnXEi  
• WSJ: INFOGRAPH: Inside the Black Box: Best chance of solving #MH370 mystery, is finding it. http://goo.gl/p6b86X
• BBC: Russian troops have seized control of a Crimean naval base at Feodosia, the third such attack in 48 hours. http://goo.gl/Q450pJ
• NYT's INFOGRAPH: How Much Europe Depends on Russian Energy, along with actions Russia and Russian state companies have undertaken in order to increase economic pressure on the new pro-Western government in Kiev, including plans to charge Ukraine $500 for 1,000 cubic metres of natural gas. http://goo.gl/3iLsO4
• Was Russia’s recent land grab all that unique and menacing? Why then didn’t the west voice sharp objections to the land grabs carried out by Turkey and Morocco, asks Eugene Kontorovich,  a professor at the Northwestern University School of Law, writing in the op-ed section of the L.A. Times. http://goo.gl/B0VhTn
• Nate Silver and his FiveThirtyEight team revise U.S. Senate forecast and predict the Republicans are now slight favorites to win at least six seats and capture the chamber. http://goo.gl/oaZmCL
• World Bank Data: March 24th is World Tuberculosis Day. Although there has been significant progress made in reducing TB, severe challenges still remain. In 2012, there were an estimated 8.6 million new cases of TB with 1.3 million deaths. Over 95% of TB deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. TB is among the top 3 causes of death for women aged 15 to 44. http://goo.gl/7sXQqG
• Dallas Morning News Photo Gallery: 5 Great Films Set in Texas. http://goo.gl/xps9P2

 

March Madness Update

• 17 brackets (out of 11 million in the Tournament Challenge) have correctly chosen all of the first 12 Sweet 16 teams
• For the first time since 1995, Virginia reaches the Sweet 16. .
• For only the 3rd time, no Big East teams made advanced to the Sweet 16.  The other years were 1986 and 1993.
• UCLA is back in the Sweet 16 for 1st time since 2008.

Do U Remember Your 1st Tweet?

 

Twitter, the online social networking and microblogging service, which allow users to send and read short 140-character texts, recently celebrated its 8-year anniversary.

After Jack Dorsey, co-founder and co-creator of Twitter fired off his first tweet on March 21, 2006 http://goo.gl/43EFRj  they knew they were off to the races. The official launch date of Twitter was March 15, 2006.

If you were curious about the hashtag (#), the symbol placed before users’ accounts-it was first proposed by Twitter user Chris Messina on August 23, 2007. http://goo.gl/VikedV

As users undoubtedly found the service innovative and unique during its early years, its real power, arguably, didn’t become universally known until 2009, when a US Airways jetliner (with 155 people aboard) struck a flock of Canada Geese, lost its engine power and ditched in the icy Hudson River of midtown Manhattan.  The first photo from that frantic scene was posted on Twitter, well before the mainstream media got wind of it. http://goo.gl/yfzejq

Soon after that seminal event, Twitter and tweets became embedded into our everyday language; they now boast 241 million monthly active users with 500 million Tweets sent each day. In addition, 76% of Twitter users are on mobile, 77% of those accounts are outside the U.S., while supporting 35 different languages spanning the globe.

In appreciation to the millions of users who have signed up with their service over the last eight years, Twitter released a slick tool, allowing you to search for your very first tweet. http://goo.gl/u4tDpu

So, I thought it might be fun to take a look at the first tweets sent out by some journalists, politicos, entertainers, and sports personalities.

Here, then, are some of my favorites.

-Bill Lucey

[email protected]

March 23, 2014

***

Charlie Sheen        ✔ @charliesheen

Follow

Winning..! Choose your Vice... #winning #chooseyourvice 

http://twitpic.com/455ly9   

6:43 PM - 1 Mar 2011

 

 Ellen DeGeneres        ✔ @TheEllenShow

Follow

Tis my first twitt-er. Or tweet? Twit? Or tweet? "Twit or tweet everybody." Is this anything?

3:03 PM - 10 Mar 2009

 

Jerry Seinfeld        ✔ @JerrySeinfeld

Follow

Greetings Tweetarians! I have just landed on your Planet. This could be my last Tweet.

4:52 PM - 15 Jul 2011

  

Stephen Colbert        ✔ @StephenAtHome

 Follow

A well-made suit gives you the illusion of a physique.

3:43 PM - 17 Sep 2008

 

Bill Clinton        ✔ 

 ✔ @billclinton

Follow

Just spent amazing time with Colbert! Is he sane? He is cool! #cgiu

5:09 PM - 6 Apr 2013

       

Hillary Clinton        ✔ @HillaryClinton

Follow

Thanks for the inspiration @ASmith83 & @Sllambe - I'll take it from here... #tweetsfromhillary

12:44 PM - 10 Jun 2013

 

Vladimir Putin @PutinRF_Eng

Follow

Congratulations to US President-elect Barack Obama  http://eng.kremlin.ru/news/4595  

12:41 AM - 8 Nov 2012

 

        ✔ @

Follow

Jon Huntsman        ✔ @JonHuntsman

About to announce my candidacy for president of the United States. Watch live at www.Jon2012.com and please RT #Jon2012

9:31 AM - 21 Jun 2011

 

The Daily Beast        ✔ 

    ✔ @thedailybeast

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Tina Brown: Sarah Palin's Second Act http://tinyurl.com/5587nt

1:08 PM - 22 Oct 2008

 

david carr        ✔ @carr2n

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sitting in a seminar about sex lives of the microfamous at sxsw. it's a lot cooler than it sounds

5:27 PM - 16 Mar 2009

 

HowardKurtz        ✔ @HowardKurtz

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So apparently I have 140 words to be brilliant and interesting and chronicle my life? Hmm...

10:48 PM - 5 Aug 2008

 

David Sanger @SangerNYT

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I've never had a thought that was under 140 characters before.

12:07 PM - 20 Jul 2010

 

Stuart Rothenberg @StuPolitics

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Ron Paul? Rand Paul? More interested in Gabe Paul, former Yankees President & GM.

3:56 PM - 11 Feb 2011

 

Ezra Klein        ✔ @ezraklein

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Made a vegetarian dinner. But added bacon. So didn't make a vegetarian dinner.

11:04 PM - 4 Jan 2009

 

Joe Scarborough        ✔ @JoeNBC

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Joe Scarborough is watching Alan Keyes call the President a communist and wonders when conservatives will ever learn.

9:51 PM - 22 Feb 2009

 

LeBron James        ✔ @KingJames

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Hello World, the Real King James is in the Building "Finally". My Brother @oneandonlycp3 gas'd me up to jump on board so I'm here. Haaaa

4:15 PM - 6 Jul 2010

 

Kobe Bryant        ✔ @kobebryant

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The antisocial has become social #mambatweets

12:13 PM - 4 Jan 2013

 

Tom Hanks        ✔ @tomhanks

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Testing... testing... Is this thing on??

6:24 PM - 11 Jan 2010

 

Keith Olbermann        ✔ @KeithOlbermann

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I give up. I was wrong. Young and foolish. Now my twitter-cot belongs to the ages. Behold: I tweet.

8:58 PM - 8 Apr 2010

 

CNN        ✔ @CNN

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Reality TV star Anna Nicole Smith dies at 39 http://tinyurl.com/3dm4p5  

7:43 PM - 8 Feb 2007

 

BBC News (UK)        ✔ @BBCNew

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Trial resumes without Saddam: The genocide trial of six ex-Iraqi officials resumes without hanged co-defendant Saddam Hussein.

4:45 AM - 8 Jan 2007

 

TMZ        ✔ @TMZ

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A judge has awarded sole custody of Sharon Stone's adopted child Roan to her ex-husband, Phil Bronstein.

2:46 PM - 23 Sep 2008

 

Gawker        ✔ @Gawker

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Did Fox censor Sally Field? http://tinyurl.com/27k75l

2:48 PM - 17 Sep 2007

 

MLB Trade Rumors @mlbtraderumors

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trying to determine if Twitter has a point

2:42 PM - 6 Jan 2009

 

Warren Buffett        ✔ @WarrenBuffett

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Warren is in the house.

12:20 PM - 2 May 2013

 

Pope Francis        ✔ @Pontifex

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Dear friends, I thank you from my heart and I ask you to continue to pray for me. Pope Francis.

7:17 AM - 17 Mar 2013

 

Piers Morgan        ✔ @piersmorgan

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BREAKING NEWS: I'm now a Twit. Official.

1:46 PM - 30 Nov 2010

 

Peggy Noonan @Peggynoonannyc

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Hello everyone. First tweet. Computer man here, teaching me. Entering 21st century.

10:30 AM - 21 Jul 2009

 

HealthCare.gov        ✔ @HealthCareGov

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Ready to take health care into your own hands? Get started at the new HealthCare.gov!

6:26 AM - 1 Jul 2010

  

Eye-Catchers of the Day: March 23, 2014

 

 

• Patrick J. Buchanan: ``While sanctions may cripple the Russian economy, will they break Putin? Did they break Castro? Did they break Kim Il Sung or Kim Jong Il? Did they break the Ayatollah? ``Does Putin look like someone who will respond to an economic squeeze by crying uncle?'' http://goo.gl/W8raco    
• New York Times: More than two dozen countries are on the hunt from land, air, space and sea for any visible sign of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.``So far,'' The Times reports, ``there is no proof that the plane’s disappearance was caused by human intervention, nor is there any conclusive evidence showing that it was caused by a mechanical malfunction or an onboard accident, such as an electrical fire.'' http://goo.gl/PFgKIZ
• Summary of the major issues in the ``World Next Week'' via podcast by the Council of Foreign Relations (CFR). http://goo.gl/pi7DYN
• WaterAid America: 768 million people in the world do not have access to safe water, roughly one in ten of the world's population; Around 700,000 children die every year from diarrhea caused by unsafe water and poor sanitation - that's almost 2,000 children a day. http://goo.gl/HDNgGI
• WSJ INFOGRAPHIC: Differences Between Rural and Urban America Splits the Nation in Two. http://goo.gl/NTPHht
• Ian Bremmer, Political Scientist and president and founder of Eurasia Group, tweets that  Japan's population today is 127 million; ``If birthrate & immigration rate remain unchanged’’, Japan's population in 2110 will be about 43 million.
• WSJ: Jimmy Kimmel's selfie with the Clintons. http://goo.gl/iT5Wgn
• L.A. Times: Only 11% of the long-term unemployed find work again a year later, according to new Princeton study. http://goo.gl/Xyy6As
• Dallas Morning News: How much is wagered during March Madness? $119 million in Nevada, and more than $2.5 billion illegally each year. http://goo.gl/A9vVoH
• Time Magazine: Photo Gallery: Michelle Obama Arrives in China in Style. http://goo.gl/05wPfM

 

The Madness Continues..

• For the 6th time in 7 years, Michigan State is headed to the Sweet16!
• Only 3.9 percent of brackets in ESPN’s Fantasy's Tournament Challenge had Dayton advancing to the Sweet 16.
• 11 seed Dayton reaches the Sweet 16 for the first time in 30 years after stunning No. 3 seed Syracuse.
• Syracuse coach, Jim Boeheim is the first coach in NCAA Tournament history with 6 losses to double digit seeds
• 3.6% of brackets had Syracuse winning it all, while 3.9% of brackets had Dayton in the Sweetness.
• Michigan reaches the Sweet 16 in back-to-back seasons for first time since the Fab Five era (1992-94)
• With Villanova eliminated, No. 2 seeds fail to reach the Sweet 16 for the 5^th straight year.