The Ball is now in Amada Knox’s Court

It’s arguably the biggest murder case since OJ Simpson, similarly dividing opinions and beliefs from different people throughout the world. The baby faced Amanda Knox who first appeared on our television screens over four years ago is now an entirely different woman. The confident and playful student who once toyed with the media is now a matured adult.

Whether or not you believe Amanda Know is innocent or guilty, there simply was not sufficient evidence to convict her of the gruesome murder of Meredith Kutcher. The behaviour by Knox at the beginning of her first trial over four years ago did not do her any favours. She resembled a student high on life that had been thrown into the spotlight and given plenty of attention in a situation she thought she would overcome. Over four years later and she has just overcome it.

When the dust settled and her prison cell door was closed, Amanda Knox knew the full extent of the seriousness of her situation. She spent four long years behind bars for a crime that is now evident she did not commit. The evidence and the behaviour of the Italian police and prosecution are smeared with conspiracy and cover ups. The simple matter of the fact is that there is a man in jail serving time for the murder of Meredith Kutcher.

Rudy Guede was found guilty of the terrible murder of Meredith and has been sent to jail. His DNA was found in Meredith’s apartment, he admitted to having sex with her and he fled Italy to Germany the day after she was murdered. The involvement of Amanda Knox in this case has taken the attention away from the fact that this man is the one who is responsible for the murder of the innocent Meredith Kutcher.

Giuliano Mignini, Amanda Knox’s prosecutor, has vowed to appeal the overturn of Knox’s conviction. This is a man who may soon find himself behind bars as he is currently under investigation for prosecutorial misconduct in a previous case. In any other country in the world, this man would not have been allowed to step foot inside a court room bar attending his own hearing.

Mignini has a personal vendetta against Knox and his actions and dealings with authorities within this case should now also come under investigation. There was sufficient evidence to convict Rudy Guede and that was done, however, Mignini's fascination with Knox's apparent involvement in the murder was enough to deprive her of four of the best years of a person's life. 

So what now for Amanda? First of all she has been transformed from the most hated woman in Italy to a celebrity / hero in the United States. She has ran up an astronomical amount of legal bills for her family, not to mention travel and accommodation costs, time off work, security etc.. 

The race is on as to who will be the first to obtain the golden interview with Amanda Knox. Then there are potential book deals, documentaries and a movie, that directors across America will be licking their lips at the prospect of producing. 

Then there is the other side to it; a young adult who has spent the last four years of her life behind bars in a foreign country for a crime she did not commit. There is a family who lost their daughter and sister for four years and spent every night pining for her return. 

The emotional testimony by Amanda in court, along with overwhelming return to the United States, highlights a broken woman who has suffered immensely for a crime she simply did not commit. Amanda's family claim her first wish is to lay down in a green field, it may however take her some time to find a field free from any members of the media. 

Amanda Knox's lawyer stressed that Amanda and her family wanted people to remember Meredith Kutcher and pray for her family. The harsh reality is that Amanda is the person people are thinking about and who they want to hear from. 

Amanda has the story everyone wants to hear and the media will do anything to get it. 

Wouldn't you? 

The Old Argument: Is MTV Damaging for Kids?

It has long been argued that the television content on MTV is not suitable for children. This argument stems back to when MTV first played music videos from artists such as Prince, Guns N’ Roses and Michael Jackson as well as shows like Beavis and Butt-Head.  

However, it is today’s range of television shows that are potentially poisoning the minds of today’s youth. In this case youth does not only refer to young adults who are learning the ways of the world and enjoying university, more worryingly it refers to girls and boys between the ages of 11-17 watching shows such as Jersey Shore and Teen Mom.

The graphic details of these shows are a parent’s nightmare and unfortunately are all too easy for kids to watch. Take for example MTV’s hit show ‘Sixteen and Pregnant’; this type of show should not see the light of day, let alone be advertised to young girls of today. While MTV might argue that is an educational show to young kids, it is the exact opposite.

Who in their right mind wants to film a documentary about a sixteen year old girl having a baby and broadcast it to the world? Worryingly MTV is the most recognised network among young adults and they thrive on shows like this.

Ok so it’s easy to argue that parents can just block the channels that kids should not watch, but is that really cutting them off? 

In a digital world where everything is online, it is easy to just about view something on the internet the minute it comes on our televisions. The harsh reality is MTV is loitered with sexual scenes, depictions of sex and forms of nudity. This is what children are watching. Take Jersey Shore for example; it is quite possibly the greatest catastrophe in television history that these people have made millions of this show.

The treatment of women in this show is a violation of rights not to mind a violation of a young child’s brain. It is frightening that kids of today are looking up to a man called Mike ‘the situation’. But the Jersey Shore argument is another story, as anyone with a slight of intelligence knows that this show is a no brainer.

The simple matter of the fact is that shows such as; Teen mom and Sixteen and Pregnant, are making young pregnancy look cool and encouraging teens to get pregnant just to be like the girls on these shows.  In some extreme cases young girls are getting pregnant just to try and get on these shows.

When you compare these shows to Jersey Shore, where we see young male kids acting like the so called stars of this show, it is worrying the continuously growing influence that MTV has over young kids.

The even more worrying fact is that parents are paying for their kids to be infiltrated by its content.

Irish Love for America Shines Brighter than Ever

Following the extensive television coverage of 9/11, in particular the memorial and the many documentaries across our channels, the Irish love for the big apple on a personal level is stronger than ever.

Sunday on the now most famous day of the year, was spent with my family in our living room in Ireland watching all things 9/11. The rebuilding of Ground Zero, the recent George W Bush interview, the heartfelt memorial at Ground Zero, and of course the heroic and devastating stories of those who died and were affected by the terrible attacks.

For am I just like hundreds of people affected by the attacks on the Twin Towers; an Irish citizen leaving his home country in search of work and a new life in New York. Just like so many of the fire fighters in New York who responded to the attacks and their family members who’s loved one never came home, the impact of 9/11 is still felt in every household up and down the country of Ireland.

It’s a relationship that stretches back decades to when the Irish were not welcome in London during the troubles times, it was New York who opened out her arms and welcomed us into the greatest city in the world. The impact that was felt by so many Irish and Irish American families on that dreadful morning ten years ago; shows a connection that is as strong as ever.

My little brother and sister could not understand how the men building the new Twin Towers sounded and looked so Irish. The day the world stood still Ireland shut down, for the country to which we owe so much to and helped to build was hurting and hurting bad. The 3,000 miles between the Statue of Liberty and the green grass of Ireland, is a cord that links both of these countries together, and an unfortunate tragedy like this has shown that the distance is not that far at all.

Just 30 minutes up the road from my home, a Cork man by the name of Mark Clifford lost his sister and her daughter in the attacks. Yesterday Mr Clifford will have remembered his loved ones at a private ceremony in Cork, over 3,000 miles from Ground Zero.

I refer to a quote from the www.irishtribute.com website; a site created to remember and honour all those of Irish descent who were affected by the attacks.

“September 11, 2001 may well go down as the bloodiest day in the history of the Irish people. An estimated 1000 people who were of Irish descent or of Irish birth were lost in the violent events on that day,” the website claims.

The same site has a list of every name of those with Irish descent who were killed as well as stories of those who lost their lives on that awful day. Only recently Ireland welcomed Barack Obama with open to our shores, and that very man spoke about his pride of his Irish ancestry.

During his visit Mr Obama gave a heartfelt speech to a loving audience in the capital Dublin. The US President, whose long lost cousin welcomed him to the small Irish village of Moneygall, finished his speech with three famous Irish words; ‘Is Feidir Linn’.

These are the words that translate to ‘Yes We Can’, and for a nation deep in economic difficulty Ireland embraced them with open arms. It’s clearly evident since 9/11, that every American in particular those affected by the attacks have taken those three words on board.

The 1200 people who continue to work around the clock at Ground Zero are evident of this. The fire fighters who went back to work without their colleagues are evident of this. The American troops who have been deployed to the Middle East are evident of this. The soldiers who captured Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden are evident of this. The list is endless. Obama’s message was simple; just as America are continuing a rebuilding process, Ireland can and will do the same.

The path might not always be clear and yes there is a lot of work to do to rebuild both economies, in particular the biggest economy in the world. However, Just as American’s visit Ireland in search of their ancestors every year, the men and women of the little green Island will continue to pack up their belongings and head for America with those three words etched in their memories; ‘Is Feider Linn’.

R.I.P to all those who lost their lives at 9/11 and god bless all those whose loved ones never came home. Gone but never forgotten.

Irish Entrepreneur Set to Make Over $900m Following Software Sale to Hewlett-Packard

Mike Lynch, the co-founder and CEO of Autonomy Corporation, is set to pocket over $900 million following the sale of his software company to US giants Hewlett-Packard.

Autonomy Corporation, a company that Lynch built from the ground up, is now regarded as the most successful and largest software company in the UK. The Autonomy software allows for data to be tracked across different sources such as; video, phone calls and emails.

Lynch’s entrepreneurship is associated with Silicon Fen, a region affiliated with Cambridge University in England, which is home to a number of high-tech businesses directly related to biotechnology, electronics and software.

The Sunday times once described Lynch as a favourable comparison to Bill Gates, while the Financial Times described Autonomy as ‘the doyen of European software’.

Born in County Tipperary in the Republic of Ireland, Lynch studied at Cambridge University, and is now a leader in the area of meaning-based computing, i.e. computer understanding of unstructured information.

The terms of his sale to HP, will see Lynch remain in his position of running the business, who has come under criticism for his sale of the company to a big name like Hewlett-Packard. However, Lynch has defended the sale of his company, stating that the deal allows the Autonomy technology to reach more people worldwide.

‘I want to get our technology everywhere, and this deal gives us the resources to do that. It moves our sales force from 300 to 28,000 people. This is a good UK story of a small company that now operates globally’, states Lynch.

Lynch believes that Autonomy and Hewlett-Packard can help each other in the creation of new technology. The Irishman stated; ‘Autonomy will be at the cornerstone of Hewlett-Packard’s drive for new technology, and that was key for me. We wanted to be an autonomous unit.’

Autonomy currently employs 400 engineers in its Silicon Fen base in the UK, with a spokesperson for the company stating that all current employees will keep their jobs.

The growth of the company over the last number of years has been impressive to say the least, with Autonomy enjoying double-digit growth, which saw its revenue rise from £58m in the year 2005 to over £500m this past year.

Lynch’s new aim is to improve computers and make them more intelligent, to aid the 16,000 clients who purchase the Autonomy software. His clients include; the US Department of Homeland Security, NASA, and Procter & Gamble.

Lynch feels that computers are unaware of how people think when he spoke of his new plans. According to Lynch, “The next big step change is to get computers to operate more intuitively”.

Article first published as <a href='http://technorati.com/technology/it/article/irish-entrepreneur-set-to-make-over/'>Irish Entrepreneur Set to Make Over $900m Following Software Sale to Hewlett-Packard</a> on Technorati.

Libyan Rebel Victory Showcases Traditional and New Media in its Finest Hour

In the aftermath of the amazing uprising in Libya over the last few days, the world witnessed an extraordinary combination of traditional and new media at its finest, as brave journalists told the world the story of the Libyan rebel uprising.

For a practice that has been ridiculed and in some ways replaced by technologies and citizens themselves, the journalists of CNN and Sky News to name but a few, highlighted vintage journalism and new media in all its glory.

The sights of the Libyan rebels roaming their streets with firearms and war tanks, would put fear into the eyes of a journalists family. This did not however put fear into the eyes of journalists such as Sky News Correspondent Alex Crawford, and CNN's Senior International Correspondence Mathew Chance.

Alex Crawford traveled with the rebels on each step of their journey, and at one stage Alex and her crew were fired upon. On Monday night they broadcasted from the back of a rebel pick up truck, who were firing rounds of ammunition into the air in celebration, after they took back the iconic Green Square in Tripoli.

The amazing description and footage provided to the world by Alex and her team, showed a country celebrating as if it were New Years Eve or the 4th of July. The sounds of gunshots, singing, and even the odd freedom, highlighted just how much the people of Libya have suffered under the Gadhafi regime.

Armed with head gear and a bullet proof vest, Alex also used her Twitter account to provide a constant update on the uprising and fighting in Libya. Elsewhere a group of CNN journalists were not so fortunate, as CNN's Mathew Chance and his team were held captive in the Rixos hotel in Tripoli.

The Twitter world anxiously followed Chance's page as he gave remarkable updates on the terrifying ordeal him and his crew went through. Chance and his team were not allowed to leave the hotel by Gadafi's men, and were left to wonder whether or not they would see the light of day again.

At one terrifying stage Chance tweeted, "Sniper too pot-shot at hotel and we all took cover. Journalists in #Rixos are fine, keeping together but have limited perspective on news".

A day later and Chance used his Twitter account to portray personal messages to the family members of his crew. They read; "To Josie - Paul is fine. He's taking some great pictures. "To Tom - Missy is missing you. She's doing well and will see you soon".

These messages provide only a vague idea of what these journalists, and their families went through during this ordeal. Thankfully, following a negotiation with Gadhafi's troops, all journalists were allowed to leave the hotel in small numbers.

Chance excellently described the surrender of the troops when he wrote; "Crisis ended when #rixos gunmen realised that #Libya outside of hotel doors was no longer Libya of old. Handed us their guns and said sorry".

In a remarkable statement that resembled the spirit of the uprising, as well as the overall joy of the rebel victory, Chance stated; "In the end - felt sorry for the guards. All they knew was Gadhafi's regime. Took them  a while to realise it had crumbled".

These were remarkable words coming from a man who was held captive by Gadafhi's men. This amazing story shows the power the ordinary people still have, and the role journalists still possess in in reporting it. Lets now hope that journalists around the world will soon be writing, and tweeting about the overdue capture of Gadhafi.

UK Rioting Inflicts Further Damage on British Image

The devastating scenes coming out of London and now other cities in the United Kingdom, will not improve the image of a country still recovering from the phone hacking scandal.

The images of children as young as nine, along with adults in their 20’s and 30’s; rioting, looting and most recently murdering, has brought shame and embarrassment to Great Britain.  After the sickening details of the phone hacking scandals of recent weeks, the British Government were in absolutely no way prepared for this latest disaster.At a time where markets across the world are in grave danger of collapsing, and the United States economy hangs on by the skin of its teeth, the horrible images coming out of the UK will add further misery and worry to the potential consequences of a world recession.

The British press have been working in overdrive since the rioting began, and just as worrying as the images of violence across the country, is the reasons many youths have given for their actions. A young man told the British press, that while he did not agree with the actions of the rioters, he could see why they were doing it. Another youth referred to the rise in VAT, student loans and University tuition fees, stating that people have no future as they now have no money.

While the recession has affected most countries around the world, surely the destruction of peoples businesses and livelihoods is not the answer to fighting these difficult times. The Republic of Ireland, Greece, and most recently Spain and Italy, have fallen on extremely hard times, yet this kind of behaviour is nowhere to be seen in these countries. On the other hand, there were protests in Greece, but these were at government officials in the aftermath of a budget, not at innocent people.

David Cameron said today that a lack of responsibility is to blame for the rioting across Britain. He spoke about the lack of parenting and control over the people responsible for the crimes. The British Prime Minister has a lot more to do than pint the finger of blame at anyone. The British Government now has an even bigger task on their hands. Not only do they have to capture and condemn the people responsible for these crimes, but they also need to clean up their streets to ensure this does not happen again, and while doing so try to repair the tarnished image of the United Kingdom.

The world will be watching the London Olympics in 2012; however, will people be safe attending the event?

Article first published as <a href='http://technorati.com/politics/article/uk-rioting-inflicts-further-damage-on/'>UK Rioting Inflicts Further Damage on British Image</a> on Technorati.

News of The World – Murdoch’s Unused Toy?

Rupert Murdoch might not be guilty of picking up a phone and hacking into someone’s private messages, but he is guilty of not knowing what is going on in the apparent one percent of his business empire. In the phone hacking hearing which took place in the UK, Murdoch claimed that the News of the World represented less than 1% of his business as a whole. This was nearly as ignorant and disrespectful as his opening line; “Today is the most humble day of my life”, as he interrupted the heir to his throne at the beginning of proceedings.

The aim of the hearing was to get answers, as to who was responsible for the phone hacking and who should be brought to justice. However, at the end of the proceedings, an idiot and shaving foam remained the centre of attention. So what did we learn from the hearing? Not a lot surprisingly.  Murdoch is blaming the people he trusted, which would have been Brooks, who not surprisingly also went on to blame someone else. The hearing provided the world with an image of Murdoch never before seen, a speechless, defeated,  confused old man. Rupert Murdoch is certainly showing his age, as question marks must be raised over how much control his son James now has over his business empire.

Rupert answered questions like any man in his eighties would, pithy and to the point with a brazen attitude. The younger Murdoch was much more advised and acted as a PR practitioner more than a son. This was clearly evident when Murdoch senior was attacked by an idiot comedian during the hearing and hit in the face with a shaving foam pie. While James appeared to move back from the incident, Wendi Deng - the wife of Rupert Murdoch, leapt to the defence of her frail husband and retaliated with a right hook of her own for the attacker. This almost heart warming defence of Murdoch by Wendi took the attacker by surprise. When asked about the attack Marbles ironically replied, "As Mr Murdoch himself said, I'm afraid I cannot comment on an ongoing police investigation."

When quizzed about his dealings with former News of The World chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck, Murdoch senior stated that he, “Never heard of him”. Murdoch also stated that he spent more of his time talking to the editor of the wall street journal than with representatives of his papers in the United Kingdom. If this, “hands off” approach by Murdoch is true, who has been in charge of the News of the World and for how long? It is absolutely fascinating what Murdoch claims not to know and also what he may not have been told. James Murdoch served as his father’s chief protector during the hearing and it looked like damage limitation on his behalf. He attempted to fine tune his father’s answers and “old school approach”, with much more advised answers and feedback. James also stated that the Murdoch’s welcomed David Cameron’s inquiry.

I’m sure it is as welcome as a shaving foam pie.