- Reality has finally sunk in for Syrian President Bashar Assad, who finally seemed to recognize the seriousness of the uprising against him as he addressed his nation Saturday in response to massive anti-government protests. Speaking at the first meeting of the new Syrian government in Damascus, Assad focused on the importance of cooperation between government institutions and the people. While conceding that there were faults in his government, he cautioned that necessary changes and reforms could not happen immediately and would be only be impeded by any continued resistance from the public. "I must say that the current situation has caused a lot of pain in the soul of each and every citizen for those who have been martyred," he lied in trying to pawn blame off on anyone but the ones deserving of it, i.e. his regime and their goons. "Investigations are continuing to find out those who are responsible." Mmm hmm, sure. Props on lifting the state of emergency across Syria, but that won't mean much if your government continues to oppress and be as irresponsive to public concerns as it was in spurring the first round of riots. Assad announced that he had requested for his cabinet to lift the state of emergency as early as next week, at which point resolutions could be drafted. The speech was relatively brief, clocking in at just under half an hour, and showed a marked shift in tone from Assad’s previous comments on the popular uprising. Even though mere words are relatively meaningless to anti-government groups in light of what the government has done thus far in its reign, Assad did express a desire to meet protesters’ demands and to implement sweeping reforms that would improve citizens' quality of life. "The world is rapidly changing around us and we have to keep up with new developments," he said. He also recognize the major economic problems that were largely responsible for inspiring the protests. "There is no doubt that unemployment remains the biggest problem in the country," he said. "Of course the improvement of the economy will create more jobs, but this will take a long time to develop." When it came to the combustible issue of Syria's Kurdish sector, Assad offered few specifics but claimed he was in favor of granting Syrian citizenship to that portion of the population while emphasizing the need for better communication between the government and its citizens. "We have to open up new channels between us and the people," he said. "This trust of the people cannot come without complete transparency. In my talks with the people I have realized there is a huge gap between the institution of the state and the people. I realize we need to narrow that gap and fill that space with trust." Nice words, Mr. President, but until your overbearing regime begins backing those sentiments up with tangible actions and results, you can expect your people to approach all dealings with the government with a high degree of skepticism……….
- The search for online privacy has become a central storyline for all makers of Web browsers, as users are becoming increasingly paranoid about advertisers tracking them and compiling information about their browsing habits. Apple has joined the trend of tracking-free browsing with a test version of its latest Safari browser, including a do-not-track privacy tool to for keeping customers' online activities from being monitored by marketers. The tool is included with Lion, the newest version of Apple's Mac OS X operating system that is currently available only to developers. The final version of the OS is scheduled to be released to the public this summer, but rumors of the do-not-track feature in the Safari browser began to appear several weeks ago on message boards and Twitter. Apple’s browser upgrade leaves Google as the only major browser provider that hasn't added a do-no-track capability. Both Microsoft (maker of the world’s worst operating system and its worst browser - Internet Explorer) and Mozilla (Firefox) offer do-not-track features in their latest browsers. Asked about the disparity, a Google spokesman said the company "will continue to be involved closely" in discussions about do-not-track. For now, users of the company’s mediocre Chrome browser can download an add-on program called "Keep My Opt-Outs" that allows users to request that their data not be used for targeted advertising. Even with a do-not-track tool included in a browser, users are still at the mercy of websites and online-advertising networks, which must honor the messages automatically sent out by the tools requesting that users' movements around the Web not be tracked. So far, major online-advertising networks, which use tracking to sell ads tailored to consumers' tastes, have made no official decision on honoring the system. Apple and Microsoft both offer other tracking protection features that don't require the support of online advertisers, but nothing that is completely effective. Congress is also talking about involving itself in the matter, with Rep. Cliff Stearns (R, Fla.) introducing legislation Friday that would encourage companies to offer more information to consumers about how they are being tracked. The bill, being co-sponsored by Jim Matheson (D, Utah), would require firms to create privacy policies that inform consumers about the collection, sale and use of their data. Amazingly, no federal law currently exists to address the issue. Under the proposed legislation, a policing program would be approved by the Federal Trade Commission. For now, though, your online privacy is on your shoulders………
- Just as a thought for Liam Gallagher to consider: If you’re going to spend half of your waking moments either thinking of or unleashing scathing criticisms of your former band and especially your brother with whom you played in said band, then revealing that your hype music before taking the stage to perform with your new band is a cheesy, ridiculously awful elevator pop song from the 1970s is probably not a wise choice. Perhaps he did so with a certain amount of irony, but Gallagher’s revelation that listens to Rod Stewart's 1978 hit single 'Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?' to get pumped up before he goes onstage with hi current band, Beady Eye, is not exactly the stuff of rock legends. He made the disclosure during an interview on BBC Radio 1 before the band's gig at Liverpool Guild Of Students on April 13. Granted, hearing him do anything other than bash brother Noel and their former band Oasis in an interview was refreshing, but the Rod Stewart fetish is something that we all could have done without. When the interviewer suggested that an unnamed member of Beady Eye's crew had asked that he choose something else to listen to before taking the stage, Gallagher replied: "Someone in our camp needs to get a sense of humor." No Liam, someone in your crew needs to get better taste in music and that someone is you. Following his successful attempt to embarrass himself, Gallagher said the band’s tour was going well and he was grateful that "no-one's been screaming for Oasis songs.” Ah, there it is. A thinly veiled dig at Oasis. No Liam Gallagher interview from here on out will be complete without it…………
- Need to park on a city street but don’t have change for the parking meter? There’s an app for that. Well, if you live in Lake Worth, Fla., then there’s an app for that. The city is removing some of its older parking meters and replacing them with a dozen new meters that are designed to be more user-friendly and can be paid using coins, credit cards or an app you can download to your smartphone. For a 25 cent fee, the app allows you to pay for parking from wherever you are, including the beach. Anyone who has ever returned to their car to find a ticket on the window because the meter expired two minutes prior to their arrival would welcome that idea, especially since the app can also send you a text message when your parking time is about to expire. Most visitors to Lake Worth are there to hit the beach, so anything that makes it less stressful is a good idea. The city will have to invest $73,000 to install the new meters, so the initial hit will be approximately $6,000 per meter. But if the meters are as conducive to a better visit to Lake Worth and tourists are able to avoid parking tickets because their meter shoots them a text when it’s about to expire, the investment could be worth it. Of course, dinging people for a $75 parking ticket is a very useful way to raise funds for the town as well, so one could easily argue that Lake Worth wins no matter what it does. Another way the city will save is by eliminating the electrical costs of operating meters, as the new models are fully solar-powered and eco-friendly. The new meters will be installed later this month at Lake Worth beach, the Bryant Park boat ramp and at a city-leased lot in downtown Lake Worth………
- Reading between the lines of a transcript from the arrest of two University of Florida basketball players and a team manager Sunday morning, it would seem to the cynic that the players receive special treatment from Gainesville police if and when they land in trouble with the law. Unfortunately for players Erik Murphy and Cody Larson and manager Joshua Adel, they weren’t arrested for breaking into cars and underage drinking in Gainesville. Police picked them up early Sunday morning outside Scarlett O'Hara's bar in St. Augustine, Fla. The three were placed in the back of a squad car and apparently don't know they're being recorded while there. Had the known, they probably would not have admitted to the crimes of which they are accused. Police placed the recorder in the back of the car and in the 34-minute recording, Murphy makes up several possible stories to tell the police. Adel shoots every last cover story down and snaps that he told the players to stop breaking into cars. However, the most interesting part of the tape is the three men talking about implied preferential treatment by Gainesville police agencies and different levels of punishment on the UF basketball team. "Bro, do you know how f*cked I am because of y'all dumb motherf*ckers," Adel tells Murphy in the police car. "I'm fired. Like, you'll have another shot. I'm done. I have no second shot, bro." Murphy didn’t agree, responding, "I don't have a second shot either.” Murphy and Larson are charged with felony burglary while Adel faces a charge of principal to burglary for acting as a lookout. While Adel and Murphy spoke, police were still looking for Larson, who called Adel six times while they were in the back of the police car. These future Mensa members put Larson on speaker phone, so his voice is recorded by police too. "They don't have anything on us. We're gonna get off," Murphy told Larson. Larson asked how the two were passing the phone back and forth and what guarantees they could give him that they would “get off.” After that, Murphy began expounding on his ideas for how to get out of trouble and what they could tell officers. "You know what we could say. Listen, listen, listen. When we went back in, the dude was being a d**che bag to us and was like, 'You gotta leave.' I was looking for my wallet," he told Adel. "Dude, come on man. ... That is a dumb G** d*** idea," Adel shot back. The duo later discusses the possibility of preferential treatment had the arrests occurred closer to Gainesville. "Have you ever gotten arrested before?" Murphy asked Adel, who said no. "Then we could get off." Adel wasn’t buying it, replying, "There's no getting off. We're not in f*cking Gainesville. They [St. Augustine police] don't give a f*ck," Adel countered. Head coach Billy Donovan has suspended all three from all basketball-related activities until the police investigation is complete, which shouldn’t take too long considering that all three accused men have already copped to their crimes…………
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