By Bob Dumpling

As a social networking site, Facebook is often dismissed as a distraction, evil CIA plot or handy tool for keeping up appearances. The Economist recently reported from Canada where Facebook was a critical part of a successful activist campaign, and the activists were retirees (I know, crazy!).

The issue was failed investments in ‘safe’ asset-backed commercial paper (ABCP) sold through brokers, in particular Canaccord Capital. The investments were exposed by the credit crunch last year and under Canadian law, companies were protected from bankruptcy but small investors received no such support. Those small investors number around 1,800. ONe of those small investors Brian Hunter, set-up a Facebook group to share ideas, strategy, information and of course, network.

Although not resolved, the action has enabled the group representation and voting rights when a restructuring proposal is voted on by investors – primarily institutional investors.

The recent 2020 Summit appears to have a renewed swell of support for community engagement. There are many sites such as MySociety, GetInvolved, or TheyWorkForYou but Facebook already has such a strong take-up, it would be exciting to see what this sort of action could lead to.

Facebook is a very powerful tool and it’s good to see it used to fight banks, not just zombies and ninjas.

Singer Amy Winehouse has been nominated for three prizes at this year’s Ivor Novello songwriting awards.

The star’s tracks, Love is A Losing Game and You Know I’m No Good, are both up for best song this year.

Winehouse’s Rehab, which picked up the award for best contemporary song last year, is up for the best selling British song prize.

The awards, which honour British music publishers, songwriters and composers, will be held in London on 22 May.

Contemporary song

Band Ben’s Brother will compete with Winehouse in the best song musically and lyrically award with their track Let me Out.

The song reached number 38 in the UK top 40 singles charts in August last year.

Beyonce Knowles, who dueted with Shakira on Beautiful Liar, will compete with Winehouse in the best-selling British song category, along with Mika’s Grace Kelly.

Nominees for the best contemporary song prize include Kate Nash with Foundations, Golden Skans by the Klaxons and Cherry Ghost’s People Help The People.

Following the success of Britney Spears first appearance on TV sitcom ‘How I Met Your Mother’, the popstar is returning to the show.

The singer’s appearance on the hit US show last month resulted in the shows highest ratings to date.

Talking about Spears original guest appearance the show’s executive producer Carter Bays said: “I thought she was great. I was very proud of that episode.”

A source told People Magazine: “The show is ecstatic and so is Britney. She had so much fun the first time around she really wanted to come back.”

Speaking to Hollywood Grind about the one-episode deal, Spears manager Larry Rudolph said: “It was a really positive experience for her. She talked about it quite a bit the last time I saw her. She wants to do it again.”

Nineties heartthrob Sandra Bullock has narrowly escaped death after her car was hit by a drug-crazed female driver.

The drug in question is the one which is responsible for more deaths each year than cocaine, heroin and crack combined.

It is the one which is smelt on the breath of 40% of reported violent criminals, 78% of assaulters and 88% of criminal damagers.

Worst of all, it is the drug most responsible for the current record-breaking human-population on earth.

It’s alcohol - obviously.

Sandra Bullock and her husband, Jesse James (a celebrity in his own right but, as you’ll no doubt understand, not quite worthy of a mention in the headline), being driven by 55-year-old Mark Hussey (not a chance) were hit by a drunk driver in Gloucester, Mass., on Friday evening.

According to People, the driver of the offending vehicle has been identified by local cops as Lucille P. Gatchell, a 64 year old from Gloucester.

Police said Lucille’s gray Subaru station wagon jumped lanes on East Main Street and crashed into the front end of their private car but, staying true to the celebrity-car-crash form-guide, not a sausage was injured.

Luckily Hussey had been driving at just 20 mph at the time. And we all know what would have happened if they’d been traveling at double that speed!

(Now, at this point, we have the choice of two comedy avenues to skip down; the first being a reference to that girl in the ‘if you hit me at 40 mph I’ll get mangled by a tree, but if you hit me at 30mph I’ll just piss myself a little’ adverts. And second, of course, is the ‘it would trigger a bomb that Dennis Hopper will explode if you go under a certain speed’ avenue)

(Both have their merits, but have been done and redone over the last 24 hours by publications less reputable than this, and we can’t be seen – at least – to be delving to their level, so rather than wasting your time we’ll just leave you with the following dilemma, before hurriedly moving on: If you were driving the Speed bus and that girl from the advert walked in the road, would you leave her wetting herself, or holding up that tree? It may happen one day)

The real star of this whole shebang, however, is, without a shadow of a doubt, Gloucester Police Lt. Gerry Cook, who commented:

It’s unfortunate, but it shows you that no one is immune from drunk drivers, no matter how famous you are.

Now that man does deserve a mention in the headline! Finally someone is brave enough to stand up to the brainwashed masses who believe celebrities harbour special powers making it impossible for drunk drivers to collide with them.

You idiots! Wake up and smell the reality!

Lt. Cook continued:

They were shaken up, needless to say, But they were fine – he was hugging her. Jess and Sandra were hugging. They said they were fine, they didn’t need medical attention. There were quite a few people snapping pictures of them…”

Lucille P. Gatchell was given a field sobriety test by officers. She blew a .20 on the breathalyzer (two and a half times the legal limit). She was arrested and booked for driving under the influence of alcohol and failure to stay in marked lanes.

She was later released on her own recognizance (recognizance: n. an obligation of record that is entered into before a court or magistrate, containing a condition to perform a particular act, such as making a court appearance) and shall be arraigned (arraigned: tr.v. to call (an accused person) before a court to answer the charge made against him or her by indictment, information, or complaint) on the charges this (this: pron. used to refer to the person or thing present, nearby, or just mentioned) coming Tuesday.

665 W 34th St (at Eleventh Ave)
Midtown West  | Map

212-216-2000

Subway: A, C, E, 1, 2, 3 to 34th St–Penn Station  | Directions

http://www.nycomiccon.com

Prices
Tickets: $30–$45

Description
In addition to hundreds of dealers and distributors, you’ll find video-game demos, toys and figures, and previews of summer’s hottest releases, like Hellboy II: The Golden Army and The Incredible Hulk

Today 10am–5pm.