Obama Denies He's ... Gasp! ... a Zune User

Is mp3 gizmo doomed?

(NEWSER) - Is the Zune on its last legs? Buried in Microsoft’s terrible earnings report yesterday was news that revenue from the MP3 player plummeted $100 million compared to last year, or 54%, “reflecting a decrease in device sales.” Microsoft can’t just blame the economy, either; sales of rival iPod are still rising. The release states that Microsoft will continue making “significant investments” in the Zune, notes Podcasting News. But for how long? More»

Video game retailer will no longer sell Microsoft's feeble mp3 player

(NEWSER) - GameStop, a national chain of video game stores, has announced it will no longer carry Microsoft’s floundering Zune digital media player, TheStreet.com reports. "We have decided to exit the Zune category because it just did not have the appeal we had anticipated," a spokesman said of the iPod competitor, on shelves since late 2006. Microsoft seemed unfazed. More»

United Astrology Conference panel is unanimous in prediction

(NEWSER) - A panel of renowned astrologers unanimously predicts that President Obama will be re-elected this fall—and before you scoff, the same panel also predicted his win in 2008. The presidential election prediction is the final event—and the highlight—of the United Astrology Conference, the world's largest astrology gathering that meets every four years. The conference also makes predictions related to earthquakes, lunar cycles, and the stock market, USA Today reports. More»

'New York Times' dives into president's counterterrorism approach

(NEWSER) - The New York Times is running what is undoubtedly today's biggest talker—in terms of both length and heft. The paper interviewed three dozen current and past Obama advisers in an attempt to define the president's counterterrorism approach—a topic it describes using words such as baffling, confounding, paradoxical, and inscrutable. Among the most notable talking points:

• Some 100 national security officials meet via video teleconference near weekly as part of a Pentagon-led "secret nominations process" (described as "an invention of the Obama administration") in which they review potential additions to the "kill list" of suspected terrorists.
• Nominations are communicated to Obama, who himself approves every single name added to the "kill list," after reviewing potential targets' bios. He OKs "lethal action without hand-wringing."

Lays wreath at Tomb of the Unknowns

(AP) - President Barack Obama paid tribute today to the men and women who have died defending America, saying the country must strive "to be a nation worthy of your sacrifice." He said the war in Iraq has ended after nine years and is "winding down" in Afghanistan. But he conceded that the pain of war lingers for the families of those lost in battle, noting mourners can be seen at Arlington National Cemetery daily, not just on Memorial Day. More»