I have to give it to my Jamaican people; we know how to take things to another level. The only problem is that half the things we take to a higher level needed to have remained stagnant.

Since last week when I wrote that we had all gone mad, so many things have taken place it's not funny. Where do I begin? Well, the whacking that Dr. Jephthah Ford received has to be pretty near the top. After hearing of the man's injuries, my mind went back to video clips I have seen of South African police beating youths in Soweto and Johannesburg during the days of apartheid. Regardless of what caused the beating, the goodly doctor was whipped like he killed Bob Woolmer!

Then, of course, there was the church incident in Manchester where the residents didn't take kindly to having an allegedly gay fellow being buried there.

Wi-Fi iPod, Real Soon Now

Having given the obligatory warning regarding a site that routinely reports on future developments that fail to develop, DigiTimes is now reporting that a WiFi iPod, presumably the 6G iPod, has been contracted for production.

The only other information relates to a shipping date sometime in the second half of 2007. Sure, this is weak, but it doesn't take a news or rumor site to get this one right. The "true" video iPod is inevitable, so the question then becomes one of timing, and the most likely introduction would be before Christmas. All good and well, but since this article is sourced from DigiTimes, and it's Friday, further speculation is in order regarding a product that has been rumored for years.

WEGENER Shows Expanded Broadcast and Private Network Solutions at ...

Wegener Corporation, a leading provider of equipment for television, audio and data distribution networks worldwide, today announced it will showcase a full line of solutions powered by WEGENER's COMPEL(R) Network Control system at the NAB 2007 conference and exhibition. WEGENER demonstrations target broadcast TV & radio, content providers, international gaming networks, faith-based broadcasters and retail environments.

NAB 2007 takes place April 16 - 19, 2007 in Las Vegas. It is the world's largest electronic media show covering the development, delivery and management of professional video and audio content across all mediums. WEGENER's exhibit is located in the South Hall Upper of the Las Vegas Convention Center in booth SU7915.

The following solutions will be introduced by WEGENER at NAB2007:
-- The Unity 550-2 Enterprise Media Receiver for bandwidth efficient live
broadcast events; both HD and SD.

YOUTUBE FAVES

So many videos, so little time. Whether you go to YouTube seeking information, ideas or just plain entertainment, it seems that the choices are endless. So The Chronicle asked its critics and writers to pick some videos they think are worth taking a peek at and tell our readers why. Here are some of their selections.
Mick LaSalle: mini history lessons in minutes

Robert F. Kennedy (April 4, 1968), 5:45: On April 4, 1968, on the way to a campaign stop in Indianapolis, Robert Kennedy heard the news that Martin Luther King Jr. had been assassinated in Memphis, Tenn. The police advised Kennedy to cancel the appearance, as the stop was in what was considered to be a dangerous African American ghetto. Kennedy (above) instead went on and broke the news to the crowd.

The YouTube clip contains about 3 1/2 minutes of the six-minute speech.

Call for video sites to refuse cyber-bullying videos

Alan Arthur Johnson, a British Labour Party politician and the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, has called upon Internet websites to help tackle the growing problem of cyber-bullying against students and teachers. He said that video websites such as YouTube should ban malicious video clips of teachers and school students and filter them like already done with pornographic content. Johnson spoke about the problem at the National Union of Schoolmasters and Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT) in Belfast. "Cyber-bullying is cruel and relentless, able to follow a child beyond the school gates and into their homes," he said. "The online harassment of teachers is causing some to consider leaving the profession because of the defamation and humiliation they are forced to suffer." Teachers now have the right to confiscate mobile phones in the classroom to prevent bullies from recording footage of teachers or students for malicious intent.