The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier has just gotten quite a bit of company: As many as 6,600 graves at the country’s hallowed Arlington National Cemetery for fallen U.S. service members may be mislabeled, one lawmaker said on Thursday.Political movements are becoming ever more like a match tossed into a room full of dynamite: No matter which stick you are aiming for, chances are a lot of others will fire off, too.A drama about a woman diagnosed with terminal cancer doesn’t exactly sound like the most entertaining new series on the fall prime-time slate. But there is more buzz surrounding Showtime’s “The Big C” than perhaps any other series premiering this season, and the incomparable Laura Linney is a major reason why the series is high on critics’ must-see lists.Although facts on the famed Clinton-Mezvinsky wedding, which is rumored to happen this weekend, are tighter than Hillary Clinton’s smile, some details have leaked out. Sources report that groom Marc Mezvinsky has “hurt” his father’s family by not inviting them to the wedding (Ed Mezvinsky pleaded guilty in 2002 to swindling investors out of $10 million.For Paul Rudd, the decision to star in Jay Roach’s new comedy, “Dinner for Schmucks,” was an easy one. “I thought the script was really funny,” he says. “That was it. It was kind of a no-brainer.” Of course Rudd, who’s built an impressive resume of smart comedies, was just as enamored of the man behind the camera. Subletting in NYC typically involves some kind of covert transaction. Try to find a budget traveler who hasn’t enjoyed the risk of Craigslist’s lease-free rentals. But thanks to a bill Gov. David Paterson signed into law last Friday, renting an apartment for less than 30 days isn’t kosher. Fortunately, there’s a saving grace for those in search of short-term living: Jersey City.New claims for unemployment benefits slipped last week, but stayed at a stubbornly high level that underscored the labor market recovery was having trouble gaining traction.Could nail mats like the Acushakti be the next Snuggies?Unless the locals covered you in meatballs and sang “Nessun Dorma” upon arrival, this vacation could hardly be more Italian. For this is a “Vespa vacation” — a two-wheeled tour of the nooks and crannies, the winding back roads and the off-the-beaten-track hidden gems of breathtaking Umbria, a beautiful region located in Central Italy.For many job-hopping careerists, smuggling a resignation letter in their bag like a guilty secret, there are few workplace rituals so hard as saying so long.
Students can access training materials written by veteran terrorists and handbooks from real-life training camps. “On al-Firdaws (“Paradise”) students can access materials and log on to ask questions, which will be answered by experienced terrorists,” says Anne Stenerson, terrorism expert, Norwegian Defense Research Establishment (FFI).
Mumbai’s attackers were reportedly well-versed in modern technology. They have plenty of company: Today most rebels and terrorists are masters of the online universe.
Ten years ago, when Dr. Gabriel Weimann, a communications professor at the University of Haifa, started monitoring terrorist Web sites, there were 12. Today there are at least 6,850.
“In the past such Web sites were very simple; now they’re often extremely sophisticated,” says Weimann, currently at American University in Washington, D.C. “Terrorists are using Western technology to fight Western modernity.” In addition to posting messages on Facebook and YouTube, terrorists now run virtual training camps on the internet and use Google Earth to coordinate actions.
Rebel groups in developing countries are Internet experts, too. The Muslim Brotherhood has a Web site; so do the Tamil Tigers and the Mouvement des Nigériens pour la Justice in Niger. The Sudan Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) is battling the Sudanese government over the Darfur region; its Web site is available in several languages.
“We’re not in a position to do what President Obama did with the Internet because we don’t have the resources,” says JEM spokesman Gibriel Ibrahim, “and because a very small portion of our population has access to the Internet. Nonetheless, our Web site is the place where we can freely express our views and communicate with the world.”
According to JEM, people from 85 countries have visited its Web site, www.sudanjem.com, which also has a chat room.
But there’s a war over Web sites, too. Says Gibriel Ibrahim (a nom de guerre): “JEM is a party at war with a notorious ruthless regime which is relentlessly trying to top the operation of our Web site and get rid of the people who run it.”
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In the July MMMpod, Young Veins talk about breaking away from Panic! at the Disco, Keith Lockhart talks about Buckwheat Zydeco throwing the Boston Pops for a loop, Zooey Deschanel talks about how Roy Orbison inspired a She & Him song, Derek Miller of Sleigh Bells talks about how awesome Funkadelic is, and we talk about how awesome Jimmy Cliff is, who in turn talks about Sam Cooke and divine intervention. An explosive show for July! Oh yeah, and we also test your knowledge of America songs in the MMMPod medley.
