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Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - Apr 8, 2015
April 8, 2015
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The White House:
CNN reports that Russian hackers who recently hit the White House computer network infiltrated an unclassified system and apparently accessed details about PRESIDENT OBAMA's schedule. Sources tell CNN that
the incident was connected to a Russian cyberattack that also breached the State Department's network.
Although that information was not classified, the breach of the president's schedule is notable because the White House maintains tight control over information about the president's activities. (Pacelli)Lights out in DC:
A major blackout occurred in Washington, DC, yesterday.
Government sources say about two-thousand customers --including the White House and several government buildings-- were without power due to the outage, which was caused by faulty power line and an explosion at a power substation in southern Maryland, south of DC. Things were back to normal by 2 pm, when power was restored.
Officials at Homeland Security say the outage or explosion was not caused by a terrorist group.Outside the Beltway:
Chicago Mayor RAHM EMANUEL won re-election last night against challenger JESUS "CHUY" GARCIA in a hard-fought race that centered much of the time on Chicago's shaky financial picture and the continuing problem of violent crime. At press time, Emanuel held a 56-to-44-percent lead, with about 86-percent of precincts reporting. (Pacelli)
The Airlines:
Ever left some cash in one of the buckets at airport security, then remembered it much later while sitting on the airliner? You're not the only one.
The Transportation Security Administration put out a report yesterday which says all that loose change you --and everybody else-- left at the airport last year totaled up to $674,841.06.
That's almost $36,700 more than 2013 and $143,400 more than in 2012.
What happens to all that loose change? Yes, the TSA keeps it --it goes into a special fund account at the TSA Financial Office.
In other words, write it off --you'll never see it again.The Internet:
Over a quarter of the earth's population (two billion people, or 29 percent) was plugged into online social networks in 2014, and these numbers are growing fast, according to a new report from Strategy Analytics: total users will increase to 2.2 billion, or 31 percent of the earth's population, in 2015, and 2.72 billion or 36 percent of the total by 2019. (Kaye)
Taking everything much too seriously:
A restaurant in Buffalo, New York, is offering a 10 percent discount to people who don't use smartphones during their meals.
The NY Daily News reports Lebro's has a sign which reads "Disconnect to RECONNECT. Make Sunday Family Day." Customers who are up for the challenge are tasked with putting their phones in a bread basket and covering them with a cloth. If they can resist reaching to check tweets, texts and everything else until the bill comes, 10 percent of the tab gets knocked off. -
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