Publish2.0

Email is down, so I'm going to post this so I don't lose it.

http://publishing2.com/

I've been reading a lot from this site recently, and I think they bring up a lot of good points. Points very much in line with our ideas about interoperability and the power of aggregations. For instance:

http://publishing2.com/2008/09/17/explaining-the-financial-crisis-continuously-updated-news-aggregation-in-action/

"...when stories unfold as jarringly fast as the Wall Street meltdown, continuously updated aggregation could be a huge help for readers who are grasping for understanding. And if you do this for a couple of major stories, the next time a big one breaks they’ll know where to turn for answers first."

This brings to mind the recent announcement of Lance's return. We should have been all over the story. How much effort would it have been to run a main story - if not on the home page, then on the cycling page - with a short article with links to annoucements and commentary, links to our past coverage of Lance, blog posts from Bruce, create and link to a message board thread to invite discussion... maybe even something as silly as a new poll question. Certainly we have some pieces, and in all fairness I may have missed others. But this was/is right in our wheelhouse and we could have made a big stink with it. If nothing else, think of the SEO keywords. ;-)

I've also done a "proof of concept" aggregation which should be linked here: cycling.html

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They also have alot of posts about the power of aggregation and in being the site that links out to others... moving up the value chain; being the authority on a subject; etc. Worth reading.

Thanks!
J

Brennan's Restaurant, revered Midtown landmark, destroyed by fire

Three people were severely injured and a Houston culinary landmark was left in ashes early Saturday by a fire that erupted as Hurricane Ike began to barrel into town.

Brennan's Restaurant, a Midtown institution famous for its turtle soup and bananas foster and a time-honored eatery among local society, was ruined by the blaze. A 45-year-old man and his 4-year-old daughter, along with a third man who was not related to them, were taking refuge from the storm inside the brick structure.

The father and daughter were taken to Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center with burn injuries, Assistant Fire Chief Omero Longoria said. Both were listed in critical condition early today, a hospital spokesperson said. The other man was taken to Ben Taub General Hospital, where he is listed in fair condition.

The cause of the fire and whether it is connected to the storm was not yet known.

Good for the Jews

Rashida Jones

Jones was born in Los Angeles, California, the youngest daughter of media mogul Quincy Jones and his former wife, actress Peggy Lipton. Her father is an African-American and her mother is Jewish, descended from immigrants from Ireland and Russia. Jones attended Hebrew school and made the National Honor Society...

Though raised Jewish, Jones began practicing Hinduism in her early teens after her mother took her to an Ashram in India.[4] Today, however, she practices Judaism and told a reporter, "In this day and age, you can choose how you practice and what is your relationship with God. I feel pretty strongly about my connection, definitely through the Jewish traditions and the things that I learned dating the guy that I dated. My boyfriends tend to be Jewish and also be practicing."

Goal to Go

To strain this metaphor even further (and apologies to all non-sports fans), say the Green Bay Packers were playing the Chicago Bears and scored the first two touchdowns. If our political reporters were sportscasters, David Broder would insist that the Packers should let the Bears score, Sean Hannity would loudly proclaim that the Bears did score, and Cokie Roberts would misreport the score and then proceed to ignore the game.

I used to love Cokie Roberts. I would listen to NPR in the mornings via my alarm clock radio and Monday mornings I always stayed in bed a few minutes longer to listen to her commentary. But now... I just find her, like so much of the national media, out of touch with the real issues and real struggles our country faces. This isn't a game anymore. This isn't about some mythical bi-partisan past where great statesmen worked together for the common good. This is about removing the stain on our nation's good name and the ugliness and illegality of the last eight years.

The clock is ticking. The game is on the line. Let's win it.

photo courtesy Dan O'Brien

Ignorance Is Strength

"Not every wrong, or even every violation of the law, is a crime. In this instance, the two joint reports found only violations of the civil service laws."

U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey

Very zen

A dragonfly rests on a branch Tuesday, July 22, 2008 in Boca Raton, Fla.

(AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Open letter to McCain from the World

EARTH, July 25, 2008 -- The entire world drafted an open letter to Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.) today, asking him to drop out of the U.S. presidential race and concede the presidency to Senator Barack Obama (D-Illinois).

"Ordinarily we do not interfere in America's internal affairs," said a spokesman for the rest of the planet, "even when it has become clear, as in recent years, that American voters are about to elect ignorant, incoherent buffoons who will add immeasurably to our immiseration. But this time is different. We didn't think it was worth our while to step up for your Carter or Mondale or Dukakis or Gore or Kerry -- besides, we'd only be bombed or invaded for our trouble. But this time, I mean, come on -- you've got to be kidding me, right? Please tell me you're kidding."