Fresh Loaf

• There goes the good news: Job losses rise in June as unemployment hits 9.5 percent.
• We pull out in one place, we push in the other: U.S. marines press Taliban fighters in Afghanistan in a new offensive.
• Sad way to go: A French probe concludes Air France flight 447 crashed “almost vertically” into the water.
• Instigatin’: North Korea reportedly test fires four missiles.
• Apparently, Saddam’s WMD bluff was aimed at Iran.
• European scientists have developed a swine flu vaccine.
• Forget bagel Friday, how ’bout nekid Friday: Staff members at a design firm in Newcastle, England worked one full day in the buff in order to “boost” morale.
• Don’t forward the kiddie pr0n: The GBI issued a warning about a suspicious email circulating that may contain child porn, and in turn, incriminate people that open it.

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A boat belonging to Cynthia McKinney (seen in this CL file photo) was detained by the Israeli Navy off the coast of the Gaza Strip.

• Not quite: Al Franken’s victory in the almost-never-ending Minnesota Senate Race doesn’t really give Democrats a filibuster-proof majority.
• Kerfuffle: Cynthia McKinney’s boat was seized by the Israel Navy as it approached the Gaza Strip with humanitarian aid.
• Mission Accomplished? As U.S. troops pull out from Iraqi cities (and Iraqi oil fields are opened for business), a huge car bomb kills 35 in Kirkuk.
• Old-fashioned coup: The Organization of American States (like the U.N. only smaller) threatened Honduras with suspension if it did not restore deposed president Manuel Zelaya.
• No porn and… no chicken? China expected to ban U.S. poultry imports.
• When California sneezes… The Golden State faces tough budget choices as revenues evaporate due to the recession.
• Oh the humanity: Paleontologists brought to tears, laughter as they visit creationist museum.
• If you’re not using FireFox, we need to talk: Version 3.5 is a vast improvement over an-already awesome web browser.

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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• Done: U.S. troops pull out of major cities in Iraq… meanwhile, some of Iraq’s massive oil and gas fields are now opened for bids from foreign firms for exploration.
• Damn: An Airbus airliner carrying 153 passengers crashed off the Comoros islands, so far a 5-year-old child is the lone survivor.
• Don’t look now: But drug violence is increasing at the border… the U.S.-Canada border.
• In our own backyard: In light of the coup in Honduras, and while President Obama strongly condemned the ouster of the Honduran president Manuel Zelaya, the U.S. has a long history of instigation in the region.
• Serious WTF!: Some people (read: demented) are holding “swine flu parties” to “immunize” their children.
• Interesting: China decides against plan to require manufacturers to install a web filter after protests from the Obama Administration and Chinese internet users.
• White collar crime justice? Bernard Madoff sentenced to 150 years in prison.

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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• Kind of a big deal? Military ousts Honduran president… FWIW, the U.S. has publicly sided with president Manuel Zelaya…
• Mixed messages? As partial recount begins in Tehran, authorities detain Iranian staffers working at the British embassy… meanwhile: forget recount, reformers want annulment.
• Steve Jobs’ recently disclosed liver transplant sheds light on flaws in the system that favor those with means to travel to where organ wait times are shorter.
• Gas sippers: Thanks to the recession, the International Energy Agency expects demand for oil to grow only 0.6 percent from now until 2014.
• Yes the U.S. lost a 2-0 lead to Brazil in the Confederations Cup final. Yes, it’s still a good thing. (When was the last time the U.S. soccer squad made an international tournament final?)

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If you haven’t heard the news that the King of Pop has passed by now, you’re a zombie and should’ve been cast for the “Thriller” video. With fans all over expressing their grief, don’t bet against it, DJs will be spinning Michael Jackson records all weekend long.

Also, people are organizing tributes and vigils. Below are some of the updates we’ve seen, we’ll add more as they come across our screen. Know of any others? Send them our way, or post a comment below.

» Updates on the tributes going on this week are on Crib Notes, our music blog.

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• Or is it? Michael Jackson’s albums take seven of the top 10 spots in the iTunes albums sales charts.
• Speaking of which: U.S. consumer spending rose and incomes gained in May.
• Well I guess that settles it: Iran’s electoral watchdog insisted the country’s recent presidential election results were the “cleanest ever.” Like totally.
• Follow the logic: President Obama turns to immigration reform, hinting at a path to legalization for the millions of undocumented immigrants.
• Curious what Leviticus says about adulterers: S.C. Lt. Governor says Sanford should stay in office.
• The lone dissenter is a man: Supreme Court rules strip-searching of female student to be illegal.

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• Fizzling out: Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenini vowed not to yield to pressure from opponents demanding new elections as the opposition leader formally withdrew complaints of vote rigging.
• Too little, too late? Obama condemned the Iranian regime’s response to street protests… meanwhile, protesters may be employing inventive tactics to express their defiance.
• Next door: U.S. air strike kills dozens in Pakistani tribal area controlled by Taliban forces.
• No porn for you: U.S. trade officials say China’s intent on shipping web-filtering software with every computer sold is a violation of WTO’s rules.
• Where’s Mark? The ongoing saga of South Carolina governor Mark Sanford culminated yesterday as he was spotted at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport returning from a solo trip to the “exotic” city of Buenos Aires, Argentina (I’m guessing densely populated metro areas are exotic to South Carolinians).
• Don’t look now: But Rep. Ron Paul’s bill to audit the Federal Reserve is piling up co-sponsors in the House.

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• Iran manages to stifle street protests, as opposition members find other ways to voice their discontent.
• Meanwhile: The White House has no plans to change stance towards Iran in light of the recent protests.
• Our sister paper, the Washington City Paper, has been posting regular updates on the D.C. metro crash story: see photos, updates, and some background info.
• Watching you: U.S. destroyer ship continues to shadow a North Korean tanker suspected of carrying weapons, en route to Myanmar.
• Cozying up to Big Pharma? Or looking out for consumers? The run-down on Obama’s $80 billion deal with the pharmaceutical industry.
• Culture shock anyone? After French president Nicolas Sarkozy speaks against the use of the burqa, French lawmakers set up commission to “study the extent of its use in the country.“

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Hundred of people demonstrated in front of the CNN Center calling for the Iranian government to stop the violence against protesters.

• Iran’s Revolutionary Guards issue a warning that new protests will be met with, well, a “revolutionary confrontation,” even as election monitors acknowledge vote discrepancies across 50 cities… and sure enough, Iranian police attack hundreds of protesters today. Meanwhile, journalists find themselves amidst those detained by Iranian authorities.
• Meanwhile, pressure mounts on President Obama to harden his stance towards Iran.
• Uh oh: Violence escalates in Baghdad as U.S. prepares to withdraw from the city.
• Go at it alone: Democrats may have to pursue health care reform without Republican support.
• Meanwhile: Lack of new jobs may pose a political hurdle for Democrats.
• Wake up sheeple! Apple sells more than a million iPhone 3GS models.

More photos from Saturday’s demonstration

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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• And then that happened: Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khameneni strongly defended the Iranian presidential election results, criticizing protesters.
• Can you say cash cow? Some AT&T stores are reportedly running out of the new iPhone 3GS minutes after opening their doors.
• This is wrong: Minnesota woman is ordered to pay $1.92 million in file-sharing case.
• I thought we were leaving? Senate approves war-funding bill.
• Remember that story about China wanting to block porn? Well, now they want Google to help.
• Nuttin’ ta fucwit: And remember how North Korea hinted at test-launching a missile in the general direction of Hawaii? Well, the U.S. has deployed missile interceptors and radar equipment to the island state.
• Urban wildlife? A full-sized aligator is found lurking in the waters of the ‘Hooch near a Fulton County park.
• Oh my bad, I didn’t realize Glenn Beck is an American hero.

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• We’re uhm, looking into it: Iran’s Elite Guardian council offers to meet with all four presidential candidates to further investigate allegations of fraud… meanwhile, opposition protests again drew thousands today.
• It’s a start: Claims on unemployment benefits dropped for the first time since January.
• So that’s where their money comes from: Washington Post exposes massive, global insurance fraud perpetrated by North Korea.
• Bureaucracy to the rescue! Obama administration begins push to create a consumer protection plan as part of a new office within the Federal government… meanwhile, Pyonyang is reportedly going to test-fire a missile toward Hawaii this summer.
• Mexican authorities dismantle the country’s largest meth lab, capable of pumping out 40 tons of the shit.
• Deep space hibernation? Scientists revive microbe after 120,000 years in hibernation.

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• Where is their vote: Mousavi issues direct challenge with rally call over ’shameful fraud’ in Iran… While the regime warns Iranian websites and bloggers to remove material that creates tension.
• Plus, the power of Twitter: The State Department suggested Twitter reschedule it’s downtime to ensure Iranians continued to tweet from the front lines.
• And: The Iranian regime continues to crackdown on the opposition as more arrests are made, and further restrictions to journalists and social networks are put in place.
• Over on this side, this is quite disappointing: Obama blocks access to White House visitor logs à la Dick Cheney.
• But, dude’s at least working it: Obama to propose changes to the financial regulation system and the administration is opening up benefits to gay partners of federal employees.
• And not to mention, we got that other little problem: North Korea threatens merciless attack if it’s provoked… sort of when my cat decides to pounce on my ankle, but x 1,000,000.
• To boot: Inflation is under control, even though gas prices continue to go up.
• Hey, not all bad news! Apple set to release iPhone software update 3.0 today!

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• Tens of thousands of Iranian protesters defy ban to march in the streets of Tehran after Friday’s disputed election… meanwhile, opposition leader Mir Hossein Moussavi makes an appearance at a rally after days of de-facto house arrest, and calm was urged by the country’s supreme leader Grand Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as he orders an investigation into Moussavi’s claims of vote rigging.
• But: There are reports of leaked election results data show Ahmadinejad came in third.
• You can do it! President Obama takes his health care reform message to the American Medical Association.
• Yes but: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu now embraces the “idea of a Palestinian state.”
  

  "End the Occupation" protest photo from a demonstration earlier this year in front of the Israeli consulate in Atlanta.

• Up and down: U.S. stocks are sharply lower this week amid drop in commodities.
• EU agrees to take in some former Guantanamo Bay detainees.
• WTF: Miami “cat-killer” arrested – he allegedly mutilated over 15 cats.
• Whadayaknow: Glacier in southern Argentina continues to expand despite global warming.            (Photo by Joeff Davis)

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Lee Ho of Decatur's Lee Ho TV Sales and Services

• You mean they didn’t before? Senate just now allows Federal Officials to regulate cigarettes.
• Change they can believe in? High turnout in Iranian elections boost Ahmadinejad’s challenger.
• What? We’re switching from analog TV broadcasts to digital? You serious?
• Ron Paul Bomb effect: Lobbying and activism by Congressman Ron Paul’s supporters have helped move the Federal Reserve Transparency act out of committee to the floor of the House.
• Surprised the H1N1 virus is a global pandemic? Don’t be, the WHO expects developing countries to be at higher risk of wider spread.
• Not in our backyard: Facing bipartisan opposition, the Obama Administration has all but abandoned plans to bring detainees cleared for release to live in the U.S.
• How will they get online and download a browser? Microsoft is ordered to ship Windows 7 without Internet Explorer in Europe.

  (Photo by Joeff Davis)

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• WHO? Would you look at that, the World Health Organization has declared, wait for it, a global swine flu pandemic!
• Curious: Reformists in Iran hope elections prevent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad winning a second term.
• More evidence suggests the Air France jet broke up mid-flight.
• We’ll spend our way out of this: U.S. retail sales gain for first time in three months… but, higher gas prices may have something to do about that.
• A model for health care in… Wisconsin?
• That shooting star may be classified: Data on “incoming space rocks” detected by hush-hush satellites is now off-limit.
• Our pal Andisheh Nouraee is guest blogging at the Mother Nature Network today, head over for more daily briefing and leave rude comments!

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• Fightin’ words? North Korea convicts two U.S. journalists for a “grave crime”… meanwhile, the Obama administration indicated that it may intercept North Korean sea and air shipments suspected of carrying weapons or nuclear technology.
• Obamajobs: President Obama announces plan to tap into the $787-billion economic stimulus fund to generate hundreds of thousands of jobs in the next three months.
• Sad reminder: More bodies found in the Atlantic as Brazilian forces continue to search area where the Air France plane went down.
• Swinging pendulum? Center-right parties win across European-wide elections… meanwhile, the Pirate Party (as in file-sharing) wins one of the 18 Swedish seats in the European parliament.
• Don’t bother: Supreme Court rejects challenge to Army’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.
• Fanboys don’t cry: Don’t hold your breath for new Mac hardware at the World Wide Developer’s Conference today.

(Edit: The Pirates just won one of the Swedish seats not two).

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• Unemployment rate inches above nine percent, but at a slower pace… which in turn, has caused a mixed morning in the stock market.
• So what happened? Investigators are still considering various theories as to what caused the AF447 crash in the Atlantic, but no definitive conclusions as to what actually caused the plane to go down.
• Is it me or is it deja vu? Calls for Middle East peace… difficult compromises… European support… American president calling for unity…
• Auto erotic asphyxiation? Authorities in Thailand believe David Carradine’s death may have been accidental.
• Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is hogging all the tabloid headlines for pictures like these (nsfw!).
• Don’t know if this is true/real, but if it is it gives a totally new meaning to the “code monkey” moniker, and I quote: “Higher Primates Can Program After VB.NET Training.”

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• No matter the low probability, it’s haunting to hear about a plane “disappearing” off the radar.
• Ox-y-mo-ron (noun): a figure of speech by which a locution produces an incongruous, seemingly self-contradictory effect, as in killing a doctor that performs abortions.
• Not going away anytime soon: North Korea reportedly preparing another missile test… meanwhile, China suspends diplomatic relations with Pyongyang.
• It’s just a car… company: The slow demise of G.M. might make its imminent bankruptcy irrelevant.
• There are no words… Minnesota Supreme Court hears arguments on the never-ending Franken-Coleman Senate race.
• I told you mofo’s: LEAVE SUSAN BOYLE ALONE!!
• Dawn of the E-Book industry? Google joins the party.
• Microsoft’s new search engine, Bing, launches early.

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• I kinda don’t wanna see how much bite this barking dog has: North Korea test-fires another short-range missile.
• Long overdue: Pentagon plans to create a new division solely for combating threats in cyberspace.
• Half-full? First quarter G.D.P. is slightly better than anticipated.
• Bloody civil war: More than 20,000 Tamil civilians were killed by the Sri Lankan military in the last days of that country’s recent armed conflict.
• Dear Time Magazine: Perfect choice of picture. That is all.
• Further evidence of GOP implosion: Talking heads go apeshit all over the internet.
• Quick 15 minutes: Now that the media’s infatuation with Susan Boyle is done, they’re practically driving her to the mad house.
• Heard this before: New Microsoft-developed search engine hopes to be a “player” in the Google-dominated web search industry.

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• Not cool: North Korea’s second underground nuclear test signals it’s close to building an atomic weapon… and because I know you’ve looked, a George Mason University PhD student has stitched together the most “authoritative map of North Korea on Google Earth,” complete with labels for all those strange structures and all.
• For the last bloody time: It’s Judge Sonia SotoMAYOR not Sotomayer… ugh… and the GOP should not abstain from opposing her nomination for fears of alienating Hispanics – it’s a little too late for that.
• The headline on this story is way too clever for your shirt: “Strange Bedfellows: Opposing lawyers in Bush v. Gore team up to overturn California’s same-sex marriage ban…“
• They’re running with it: World stocks rally on news that U.S. consumer confidence jumped in May.
• You know it’s bad when: Mexico arrests 10 mayors with alleged connections to the drug trade.
• This would be nationalizing: U.S. moves to take over 70% of General Motors.
• It’s making money somewhere: Global newspaper sales grew in 2008.
• More competition on the way: Microsoft set to release Zune HD to challenge Apple’s iPod touch.

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• What a DICK: Former Vice President ruffles his feathers, delivering a contentious speech on National Security, just as President Obama finishes delivering his own.
• Wait a f-ing minute: What, exactly, qualifies Dick Cheney as an expert on national security?
• As far as a real threat: North Korea warns ships to stay away from coastline missile base, possibly suggesting a short-range missile test.
• Real men wear pink? Soldier who faced a Taliban attack in Afghanistan wearing pink boxers and flip-flops is lauded by Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
• I can see the alarmists making the connection already: One of the men arrested in plot to bomb a Synagogue in New York admitted smoking pot a day before.
• Didn’t dude try to run one of them over? Alabama cops beat the shit out of an unconscious driver and promptly get dismissed.
• Catholics should protest this instead: Nine-year investigation discovers rampant sexual abuse, humiliation and beatings in Catholic-run Irish reform schools.
• And speaking of dicks: Don’t forget May is National Masturbation Month.

(Photo by Joeff Davis - who also provided some of the links above)

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• Where’s Jack Bauer? Four men arrested for plotting to bomb a Bronx synagogue… and the Feds used, *gasp* good old fashioned police work to catch them.
• Which reminds me of this:

• Do the math: Weekly jobless claims drop, but continuing claims hit record 6.7 million.
• Real cost of war: Sri Lanka vows to resettle the more than 250,000 Tamil rebels after its civil war came to an end early this week.
• Good luck with that: President Obama insists that Israel stop settlement expansion in the West Bank.
• Just for laughs: The Minnesota Senate race is still not over as Norm Coleman keeps on keeping on.
• No sugar daddy for us: Google CEO says they’re not buying newspapers anytime soon.
• And FYI, Obama gives major speech on National Security… as we speak.

(Illustration by Tom Tomorrow)

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• H1N1 Killer: Swine Flu virus continues to spread world wide. With the death of a school assistant principal in New York City over the weekend, there’ve been a total of six deaths in the U.S. related to the disease.
• “Silence our guns”: Tamil rebels in Sri Lanka surrender, bringing an end to a 25-year civil war.
• Watch out now: U.S. officials say Pakistan has been stockpiling on nuclear weapons.
• War on drugs, literally: D.E.A. officials believe it’s only a matter of time before drug-related violence spills over the border from Mexico.
• Sad to see them go: Astronauts begin final spacewalk to make repairs to the Hubble space telescope; it’ll be the last time human hands interact with the instrument.
• Funny how this works: House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) implies House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) lied to Congress, and thus broke the law, in the wake of comments she made regarding the CIA and torture.

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Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi at last summer's Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.

• The complicity of compromise: How much did Nancy Pelosi know about torture in 2002? Better yet, how much did she want to know?
• Regardless, don’t take your eyes off the ball: What if the Bush administration’s intent was to torture detainees into “confessing” the missing link between Sadaam and 9/11?
• In 1998, Congress opened an investigation into a presidential blow job, but waterboarding isn’t worth the trouble.
• Meanwhile: Obama administration will restart military tribunals at Guantanamo for a select number of detainees.
• On this side of the border: Data from Mexico suggests migration to U.S. has plummeted.
• Social media revolution: A YouTube video of a slain attorney — claiming a conspiracy involving the Guatemalan president of murdering him days prior to the actual killing took place — and the subsequent arrest of a Twitter user, has thrown the Guatemalan government into chaos.
• Monopolize much? When the world’s biggest search engine collapses for two hours, effectively bringing the entire Internet to a screeching halt, that’s a bad sign.
• Play her off, keyboard cat: Girl opts out of wearing underwear for high school yearbook photo shoot for concern over panty lines… aaaand yup, you guessed it.

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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• Yea, about that: Obama reverses position on torture photos, opting not to release them… but if there’s anything the Internet was invented for, it’s to leak torture photos of detainees.
• Flash those numbers: Jobless claims go up as do producer prices… and those two don’t go well together.
• Don’t look now, but the World Health Organization confirms swine flu continues to spread worldwide.
• Democrats getting a funny feeling about the whole National Security Policy thing… enough to remove $80 million from an emergency spending bill intended to close Guantanamo Bay.
• Keep him there: Cheney seizes the spotlight as GOP winces.
• Also keep him there: Astronauts begin work to repair the Hubble Telescope.

  (Photo by Joeff Davis)

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