I have barely paid attention to the news for half a year. Can you help fill me in?

[mirror wall]

I know a bit about wikileaks, some about the situation in North Africa and the Middle East, a tiny bit about WI, some random things about taxes not going up on the rich like they were supposed to, that inflation might be more of a worry than deflation now, and that there's a Private Equity bubble slated to pop in 2012 (I forget the nature of it, however).

Any input would be appreciated in case there are huge glaring gaps in my knowledge (which I assume that there are at this point). Please don't chide me for this, I know it's bad! I have been having a lot of major distractions crop up lately but I would love to be caught up.

[MineralMan]

1. Quite a request you're making there.

You're asking DUers to tell you what you've missed. I don't think that's going to happen in any real way. Your request is so open-ended that it's a bottomless pit.

Perhaps you should head for one of the news magazine sites and scan through the issues for the time period when you haven't been paying attention. Start at the beginning of that time period and move toward today. That's the only thing I can think of. Or, go to a library and scan through the past year's issues of some news magazine.

You could also use the search tools here to find threads about topics that interest you.

I doubt you'll find anyone here who has the time to brief you on all the things you've missed. That's asking too much, in my opinion. Uff da!

[leftstreet]

2. The Ruling Class R still fucking over the Serfz

Same shit, different epoch

[TBF]

4. Good summary and absolutely correct. nt

[reformist2]

20. +1 That about says it all.

[Journeyman]

3. Why ever would you want to be "brought up to date" on the news? . . .

If you've not followed it for six months, content yourself with your dated knowledge and sleep easy, comforted by the soothing belief that bad as it was back then, "things must be better today."

Take your cue from Dr Pangloss: "This is the best of all possible worlds." For only through ignorance can bliss be attained.

[Vinnie From Indy]

5. LOL!

Who's behind the mirror?

Cheers!

[Angry Dragon]

6. The people and corporations that have the most money

want it all and are willing to see people starve, lose their homes, lose their jobs
to do it.

[Name removed]

7. Deleted message

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Buzz Clik]

8. Let's see... the GOP won the House.

Obama did some stuff, but the progressives still are complaining.

That's about it.

[BeFree]

11. Obama stopped us from going over the Cliff!! Yay!

But someone forgot to set the brakes, or get the engine running again and we're damn near about to take the plunge. Anything else the OP needs to know?

[MineralMan]

9. Well, I guess the OP is not all that interested in our assistance.

She hasn't returned to the thread. Oh well, never mind...

[Rex]

10. I could, but if you just read DU for a bit you will have all the answer

you need.

[shanti]

12. reading is fundamental

n/t

[upi402]

13. Movie stars fuck up, sports stars fuck up, workers whine and cause all the trouble there is

and rich people need a damn break!
:puke:

[robdogbucky]

14. Wow, are you in luck! I was just doing timeline research for a work project

and have the last 6 or so months right at my fingertips, but first, 256 posts since 2005? That speaks volumes to me, and I salute you. Here's to your self-control, er, or lack of time/access to a computer, er, or lack of interest in posting at DU because of some unavoidable phenomena that would blow our collective mind if you disclosed it. I took the time to compile a small list of the last 6 months Anyway, check back with us in 6 months for yet another update.:

Important and Not So Important events of last 6 months:

Important

2010 Aug 23 Tiger Woods Divorce Finalized
Tiger and Elin were both present at Bay County Circuit Court in Panama City, Florida earlier today for the execution of their divorce agreement ... this according to court officials. ...
2010 Sep 4 Wisconsin Badgers defeat UNLV Rebels, 41-21
Las Vegas – Admit it, Wisconsin football fans. You had to be nervous after seeing the 12th-ranked Badgers stumble to a three-point halftime lead against Nevada-Las Vegas Saturday night...
2010 Sep 11 Wisconsin Badgers defeat San Jose State Spartans, 27-14
John Clay ran for 137 yards and two touchdowns, and No. 11 Wisconsin beat San Jose State 27-14 on Saturday in a game overshadowed by the sight of teammate David Gilreath being taken off t...
2010 Sep 14 New Twitter Launches, Timelines Featured in Video
New design You will now find @mentions, retweets, searches, and lists just above your timeline – creating a single, streamlined view on the left of the screen. On the right, you can ...
2010 Sep 18 Wisconsin Badgers defeat Arizona State Sun Devils, 20-19
Madison — As rattlesnake-bitten as the opponent from the desert was Saturday, it was apparent to all who bore witness Saturday that Bucky was lucky, very lucky. The question three game...
2010 Sep 22 Eddie Fisher Dies
Eddie Fisher, one of Hollywood's original bad boys, died on Wednesday at the age of 82. Fisher, as well known for his string of top 40 hits as he was for a scandalous personal life that i...
2010 Sep 23 Broadcast of "Best Game Ever" Found in Bing Crosby's Wine Cellar
How a near pristine black-and-white reel of the entire television broadcast of the deciding game of the 1960 World Series — long believed to be lost forever — came to rest in the dry and ...
2010 Sep 25 Wisconsin Badgers defeat Austin Peay Governors, 70-3
Madison — Please forgive this willful breach of coach-speak - hang on a sec, James White just outran a gaggle of Governors from Austin Peay for a 66-yard score, but more on that later - b...
2010 Sep 29 Tony Curtis dies
The rare Hollywood star whose off-screen character was often more colorful than his on-screen ones, Tony Curtis has died at the age of 85. He passed away at midnight Wednesday night at h...
2010 Oct 9 Wisconsin Badgers defeat Minnesota Golden Gophers, 41-23
Madison — Early in the fourth quarter, only a 180-pound freshman defensive back stood in the way of John Clay and the end zone. The Minnesota player not only lost that battle against t...
2010 Oct 16 Barbara Billingsley Dies
Barbara Billingsley, who as June Cleaver on the television series “Leave It to Beaver” personified a Hollywood postwar family ideal of the ever-sweet, ever-helpful suburban stay-at-home m...
2010 Oct 16 Wisconsin Badgers defeat Ohio State Buckeyes, 31-18
Madison — The beauty of the blueprint to upset No. 1 Ohio State was its simplicity. Offensive linemen: Get a hat on a hat. Running backs John Clay and James White: Keep your shoulde...
2010 Oct 19 Tom Bosley Dies
Actor Tom Bosley, best known as the beloved Mr. Cunningham on "Happy Days," has died. The family says Bosley died of heart failure at 4 a.m. Tuesday at a hospital near his Palm Springs...
2010 Oct 23 Wisconsin Badgers defeat Iowa Hawkeyes, 31-30
Can you give offensive coordinator Paul Chryst and his unit an A-plus and give Chryst a few more bucks? UW was without wide receiver Nick Toon (thigh), lost tight end Lance Kendri...
2010 Oct 27 Néstor Kirchner Dies
Néstor Kirchner, the former president of Argentina who led his country out of a crippling economic crisis before being succeeded by his wife, died unexpectedly early Wednesday, apparently...
2010 Nov 6 Wisconsin Badgers defeat Purdue Boilermakers, 34-13
West Lafayette, Ind. — Through four Big Ten games, the Wisconsin Badgers had forced four turnovers. On Saturday against Purdue, they matched their league total. On an afternoon when...
2010 Nov 15 Mark Twain's Complete Autobiography Published 100 Years After His Death
Mark Twain completed his autobiography – which he called "a complete and purposed jumble" – more than a century ago. But he told his publishers that they would not be able to publish it t...
2010 Nov 28 Leslie Nielsen Dies
Leslie Nielsen, who traded in his dramatic persona for inspired bumbling as a hapless doctor in “Airplane!” and the accident-prone detective Frank Drebin in “The Naked Gun” comedies, died...
2010 Dec 5 Don Meredith Dies
Don Meredith, an all-pro quarterback who made his greatest impact on the game after he finished playing, died Sunday at a Santa Fe, New Mexico, hospital, according to a spokesman. Meredit...
2010 Dec 17 Don Van Vliet, aka 'Captain Beefheart', Dies
Don Van Vliet, who became a rock legend as Captain Beefheart, died today from complications from multiple sclerosis in California. His passing was announced by the New York-based Michael ...
2010 Dec 21 Lunar Eclipse - First One on Winter Solistice Since 1638
In 2010, for the first time since 1638, a total lunar eclipse falls on the winter solstice—a stargazing event almost anyone in North America will be able to see tonight, weather permittin...
2011 Feb 23 Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker Duped by Prank Caller
Scott Walker won’t take a call from the Democratic minority leader, but he’ll gladly make time for uber-fundraiser David Koch—or at least, someone he thinks is David Koch. Ian Murphy, edi...


Not so Important

2010 Aug 25 Transocean Worker Says Oil Rig Equipment Wasn't Recertified
On April 20 at 10:43 a.m., a young BP PLC engineer sent a 173-word email to colleagues aboard the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig. The email spelled out a recent change to a key safety tes...
2010 Sep 8 BP Issues Internal Report Detailing Causes of Oil Spill
BP took some of the blame for the Gulf oil disaster in an internal report issued Wednesday, acknowledging among other things that it misinterpreted a key pressure test of the well. But in...
2010 Sep 10 Barack Obama Holds Open News Conference with Focus on Economic Recovery
In his first press conference since May, President Obama assailed Republicans for opposing his economic agenda and spoke out passionately about Pastor Terry Jones' threat to burn Korans a...
2010 Oct 1 Rahm Emanuel Resigns As White House Chief Of Staff To Run For Mayor of Chicago
Although no final decision has been made because of family considerations, ABC News has learned that White House officials are preparing for Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel to announce on Fri...
2010 Nov 28 United States Diplomatic Cables Leak
An innocuous-looking memory stick, no longer than a couple of fingernails, came into the hands of a Guardian reporter earlier this year. The device is so small it will hang easily on a ke...
2010 Dec 2 NASA Discovers New Life Form
A new species of bacteria found in California's Mono Lake is the first known life-form that uses arsenic to make its DNA and proteins, scientists announced today. (Get a genetics overview...
2010 Dec 17 Mohamed Bouazizi sets himself on fire, triggering mass anti-government protests across Tunisia
It started with a young man who set himself on fire, acting out of desperation after police confiscated the fruits and vegetables he sold without a permit. Mohamed Bouazizi was a 26-ye...
2010 Dec 18 United States Senate Votes To Repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'
The Senate on Saturday struck down the ban on gay men and lesbians serving openly in the military, bringing to a close a 17-year struggle over a policy that forced thousands of Americans...
2011 Jan 11 Sales of Glock Pistols Surge After Use in Tucson Shooting
In the any-publicity-is good-publicity-department: Sales of semiautomatic Glock pistols like that used in the Gabrielle Giffords shooting have spiked in Arizona and across the nation in t...
2011 Jan 14 Tunisian government ousted
After 23 years of iron-fisted rule, the president of Tunisia was driven from power Friday by violent protests over soaring unemployment and corruption. Virtually unprecedented in modern A...
2011 Jan 25 "Day of Rage" large-scale protest erupts in Egypt
Egyptian police fired tear gas and rubber bullets and beat protesters to clear thousands of people from a central Cairo square Wednesday after the biggest demonstrations in years against ...
2011 Feb 11 Mubarak resigns, military assumes control of country
Egypt exploded with joy, tears, and relief after President Hosni Mubarak resigned as president, forced out by 18 days of mass protests that culminated in huge marches Friday on his presid...
2011 Feb 16 Thousands of Protesters Descend on Madison, WI to Oppose Anti-Union Bill
Thousands of teachers, prison guards, and students descended on the Wisconsin Capitol for a second day today to fight a move to take union rights away from government workers. The Stateho...


Questions?

[Rex]

15. Nice!

If only this OP wasn't a 'drive by' post, that info would be helpful.

[live love laugh]

16. Charlie Sheen Charlie Sheen Charlie Sheen...

did I say Charlie Sheen?

[RagAss]

17. I was elected King of DU...and I won the DU NFL season football pool.

[Rabrrrrrr]

18. The middle-east has been quiet, WI democrats happily rolled over for their republican overlords,

Obama invented perpetual energy and gave the patent to Haliburton, and the only major philosophical issue left unsolved is, Does the refrigerator light really go off when you close the door?

[SheilaT]

19. No, no, no. The last remaining important philosophical

question is: How is it that Paul Newman, whose movie roles were almost always of cads, became a major sex symbol? I mean, okay, he had those fabulous blue eyes, but did you ever actually see any of his movies? I can't think of a single one in which he was actually a nice guy.

[mirror wall]

21. OP: I don't remember this place being this snarky. It's interesting that no one really tried to help

What's the deal with that?

[Raven]

22. somehow I feel like it is your responsibility to be aware and

participate. Why should I fill you in? Fill yourself in.

[mirror wall]

23. I'm getting a horrible divorce. I've been sick. A lot of people close to me have died.

I have not had the energy for it. I have never had such a gap in my adult life before, but can you really blame me considering the circumstances?

[demmiblue]

24. Mother Jones has been a great resource:

What's Happening in Egypt Explained (Updated)
http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/01/whats-happening-egypt-explained

What's Happening in Wisconsin Explained
http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/02/whats-happening-wisconsin-explained

:hi:

[mirror wall]

25. Thanks. You're the only one who tried. I'm really surprised by the arrogance here.

I honestly don't recall that from years ago. It's very interesting.

[robdogbucky]

26. I gave you a very thorough response, see above herein

And I was the only one to try and coax an explanation out of you.

I gave you choices, my list and a "news," list.

To be short about it, there was not much over the holidays, except Pres. Obama taking Reagan book for Hawaii reading, his pinning medals on HGW Bush and then supporting wingnut educational deform with another Bushie in Fla. Oh, yeah, there was an assassination attempt on a US Congresswoman in Arizona, and there seems to be popular uprisings occurring in previously cozy Middle East countries. Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yeman, Bahrain, Iraq, Oman, Saudi Arabia, but that's nothing, right?

I'm sorry if you think my honest reply was snarky and I would urge to rethink your definition of snarky.

What else could we do when you post such a vague request then disappear, only to re-appear and just whine about everything?

We don't have a crystal ball ya know? Well, maybe The Magistrate and blm, but they're the only ones.

Sorry you have had a bad patch, but you didn't mention that til now. In my psychological handbook that appears under passive/aggressive.

Take it or leave it, just don't ask for my help again, mkay?



Bye