Israeli fence construction cuts off migration from Egypt | World news | The Guardian: "Number of migrants crossing border drops to zero as vast steel fence from Eilat to Gaza border nears completion"
The jailers jail themselves!
Ban on demanding Facebook passwords among new 2013 state laws | Reuters
Ban on demanding Facebook passwords among new 2013 state laws | Reuters: (Reuters) - "Employers in California and Illinois will be prohibited from demanding access to workers' password-protected social networking accounts and teachers in Oregon will be required to report suspected student bullies thanks to new laws taking effect in 2013."
Israel eases ban on building material for Gaza | Reuters
Israel eases ban on building material for Gaza | Reuters: (Reuters) -"Israel eased its blockade of Gaza on Sunday, allowing a shipment of gravel for private construction into the Palestinian territory for the first time since Hamas seized control in 2007."
GOP and Feinstein join to fulfill Obama's demand for renewed warrantless eavesdropping | Glenn Greenwald | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk
GOP and Feinstein join to fulfill Obama's demand for renewed warrantless eavesdropping | Glenn Greenwald | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk: "The California Democrat's disgusting rhetoric recalls the worst of Dick Cheney while advancing Obama's agenda"
Guantanamo Bay's other anniversary: 110 years of a legal black hole | Liz Ševčenko | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk
Guantanamo Bay's other anniversary: 110 years of a legal black hole | Liz Ševčenko | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk: Even if President Obama finally fulfills his promise to close the detention camp, America's ambiguous Cuban dominion goes on
Syrian rebels sidetracked by scramble for spoils of war | World news | The Guardian
Syrian rebels sidetracked by scramble for spoils of war | World news | The Guardian: "Looting, feuds and divided loyalties threaten to destroy unity of fighters as war enters new phase"
Blackstone seen sticking with SAC despite insider trading probe | Reuters
Blackstone seen sticking with SAC despite insider trading probe | Reuters: (Reuters) - "One of hedge fund billionaire Steven A. Cohen's largest outside investors, private equity firm Blackstone Group LP, appears inclined to keep its money with his SAC Capital Advisors, even as the U.S. government scrutinizes the fund in its ongoing insider trading probe."
U.S. Navy SEAL dead in Afghanistan in reported suicide | Reuters
U.S. Navy SEAL dead in Afghanistan in reported suicide | Reuters: (Reuters) - "A senior member of the U.S. Navy's elite SEAL unit has died in Afghanistan, the Defense Department said on Sunday, and media reports said the death was a possible suicide."
Bring the troops home.
Bring the troops home.
US west coast may be within North Korean missile range, says Seoul | World news | guardian.co.uk
US west coast may be within North Korean missile range, says Seoul | World news | guardian.co.uk: "South Korea says analysis of first-stage rocket from North's launch this month suggests a range of more than 6,200 miles"
The coming drone attack on America | Naomi Wolf | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk
The coming drone attack on America | Naomi Wolf | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk: "Drones on domestic surveillance duties are already deployed by police and corporations. In time, they will likely be weaponised"
NOAA: 2012 to rank as second costliest US year since 1980 | Environment | guardian.co.uk
NOAA: 2012 to rank as second costliest US year since 1980 | Environment | guardian.co.uk: "The 11 billion-dollar extreme weather events across the US include hurricane Sandy, which alone will cost about $100bn"
Analysis: Central bankers rethink their devotion to slaying inflation | Reuters
Analysis: Central bankers rethink their devotion to slaying inflation | Reuters: (Reuters) - "A subtle shift in monetary policymaking is afoot with a new generation of central bankers, striving to secure global economic recovery, prepared to challenge the old doctrine of inflation-fighting at all costs."
First, they lowered the interests which depleted savings, the lack of accrued interests forced many homeowners to dip into their savings to pay their bills. This was followed closely by a real estate collapse, the mortgages held were for over inflated home prices. Then they stole the 401k(s) with a mega crash on Wall Street and now to top it off, to get the last drop, they plan to let inflation rise. (My comment)
First, they lowered the interests which depleted savings, the lack of accrued interests forced many homeowners to dip into their savings to pay their bills. This was followed closely by a real estate collapse, the mortgages held were for over inflated home prices. Then they stole the 401k(s) with a mega crash on Wall Street and now to top it off, to get the last drop, they plan to let inflation rise. (My comment)
Syria's Palestinians sleep rough in wintry Damascus | Reuters
Syria's Palestinians sleep rough in wintry Damascus | Reuters: (Reuters) - "The amber light of the street lamp illuminates the boy, wrapped in a thin blanket, his legs exposed to the December cold as he sleeps by a kerbside in a wealthy district of Damascus."
'Habitable' planet discovered circling Tau Ceti star | Science | guardian.co.uk
'Habitable' planet discovered circling Tau Ceti star | Science | guardian.co.uk: "World is one of five thought to be circling star just 12 light years away, say scientists"
Corium-concrete interactions
"The fast erosion phase of the concrete basemat lasts for about an hour and progresses into about one meter depth, then slows to several centimeters per hour, and stops completely when the melt cools below the decomposition temperature of concrete (about 1100 °C). Complete melt-through can occur in several days even through several meters of concrete; the corium then penetrates several meters into the underlying soil, spreads around, cools and solidifies." Wikipedia
"Fukushima Dai-ichi
At an estimated eighty minutes after the March 11, 2011 tsunami strike (which caused various nuclear accidents, the worst of which being the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster), the temperatures inside Unit 1 of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant reached 2 300 ˚C to 2 500 ˚C, causing the fuel assembly structures, control rods and nuclear fuel to melt and form corium. The reactor core isolation cooling system (RCIC) was successfully activated for Unit 3, however the Unit 3 RCIC subsequently failed and at about 08:00 on March 13 the nuclear fuel had melted into corium. Unit 2 retained RCIC functions slightly longer and corium is not believed to have started to pool on the reactor floor until around 18:00 on March 14[49]" Wikipedia
Newtown kids v. Yemenis and Pakistanis: what explains the disparate reactions? | Glenn Greenwald | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk
Newtown kids v. Yemenis and Pakistanis: what explains the disparate reactions? | Glenn Greenwald | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk: "Numerous commentators have rightly lamented the difference in how these childrens' deaths are perceived. What explains it?"
Information is Beautiful asks: is Dec 21st 2012 the end of the world? | News | guardian.co.uk
Information is Beautiful asks: is Dec 21st 2012 the end of the world? | News | guardian.co.uk: "The world ends this Friday 21st December 2012 according to the Mayan calendar. Or does it? Explore the views of skeptics and believers"
Fracking lobbyists prepare case against Matt Damon's Promised Land | Environment | guardian.co.uk
Fracking lobbyists prepare case against Matt Damon's Promised Land | Environment | guardian.co.uk: "Energy in Depth prepares 'cheat sheet' of pro-fracking talking points before release of Gus Van Sant drilling-rights drama"
Israel presses on with plans for 6,000 new settler homes | Reuters
Israel presses on with plans for 6,000 new settler homes | Reuters: (Reuters) - "Israeli officials said they would press on with plans this week to build 6,000 homes for settlers on land claimed by Palestinians, defying criticism from Western powers who fear the move will hit already faint hopes for a peace accord."
Russia sends warships to Syria for possible evacuation | Reuters
Russia sends warships to Syria for possible evacuation | Reuters: (Reuters) - "Russia sent warships to the Mediterranean to prepare a potential evacuation of its citizens from Syria, a Russian news agency said on Tuesday, a sign President Bashar al-Assad's key ally is worried about rebel advances that now threaten even the capital.'
The Unequal State of America: The economics paper that rattled Washington | Reuters
The Unequal State of America: The economics paper that rattled Washington | Reuters: "An employee of the Congressional Research Service, Hungerford in 2011 published a paper that found that after-tax income inequality rose 11.2 percent between 1996 and 2006. Rising capital gains and dividends among the wealthy were the main driver of the widening gap, he concluded, accounting for 72 percent of the increase. Tax cuts, he found, accounted for the rest. The cuts had an especially big impact because income from capital gains surpassed salaries for the top 1 percent of earners over that period." (My selection)
UBS faces $1.6 billion fine over Libor rigging: paper | Reuters
UBS faces $1.6 billion fine over Libor rigging: paper | Reuters: (Reuters) - "UBS (UBSN.VX) faces a fine of 1.5 billion Swiss francs ($1.63 billion) to settle interest rate rigging charges, a Swiss newspaper reported on Saturday"
BBC News - Robot 'race' to fix damaged Fukushima nuclear plant
BBC News - Robot 'race' to fix damaged Fukushima nuclear plant: "Japanese company Mitsubishi has unveiled a radiation-resistant robot aimed at cleaning up the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant."
U.S. defense chief orders Patriot missiles to Turkey | Reuters
U.S. defense chief orders Patriot missiles to Turkey | Reuters: (Reuters) - "U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta signed an order on Friday to send two Patriot missile batteries to Turkey with 400 American personnel to operate them, in a move by NATO members to bolster Turkey's defenses against the threat of Syrian missiles."
CIA 'tortured and sodomised' terror suspect, human rights court rules | Law | The Guardian
CIA 'tortured and sodomised' terror suspect, human rights court rules | Law | The Guardian: "Landmark European court of human rights judgment says CIA tortured wrongly detained German citizen"
Life expectancy around world shows dramatic rise, study finds | Society | guardian.co.uk
Life expectancy around world shows dramatic rise, study finds | Society | guardian.co.uk: "Men are living 11 years longer and women 12 years compared with 40 years ago, although health problems are also rising"
Legendary Indian sitarist, composer Ravi Shankar dead at 92 | Reuters
Legendary Indian sitarist, composer Ravi Shankar dead at 92 | Reuters: (Reuters) - 'Sitarist and composer Ravi Shankar, who helped introduce the sitar to the Western world through his collaborations with The Beatles, died in Southern California on Tuesday, his family said. He was 92."
US to formally recognise Syrian opposition | World news | guardian.co.uk
US to formally recognise Syrian opposition | World news | guardian.co.uk: "Barack Obama says US will recognise opposition coalition as the de facto administration of Syrian regions under rebel control"
This is a familiar first step for US/NATO/Israel to strike, as it did in Libya. We expect the aftermath to be the same in Syria as it is now in Libya: chaos and un-stability. But an unstable world promotes the large economies which have enormous military budgets, for example the US with its $800 billion defense budget. If we keep creating new enemies the people seem to approve these large budgets and the killing machine grows.
It is petrifying to imagine what Hitler would have done with an $800 billion defense budget and an arsenal of the same size as the US', or other of the top world economies. With so much weapon power the world is in danger. (My comment)
This is a familiar first step for US/NATO/Israel to strike, as it did in Libya. We expect the aftermath to be the same in Syria as it is now in Libya: chaos and un-stability. But an unstable world promotes the large economies which have enormous military budgets, for example the US with its $800 billion defense budget. If we keep creating new enemies the people seem to approve these large budgets and the killing machine grows.
It is petrifying to imagine what Hitler would have done with an $800 billion defense budget and an arsenal of the same size as the US', or other of the top world economies. With so much weapon power the world is in danger. (My comment)
North Korea rocket launch provokes widespread condemnation | World news | guardian.co.uk
North Korea rocket launch provokes widespread condemnation | World news | guardian.co.uk: "US, UK, Japan, South Korea and UN condemn launch while China urges 'prudent and moderate' response to situation"
In the mid time the US launched a mini un-maned shuttle into space and the public does not know what the shuttle's function is but the world knows that the US has weapons of mass destruction which could be used against other nations as it has already done on Japan. Certainly the US as is North Korea, Israel, France, Britain, Germany, China, Russia and Co. are all very dangerous. (My comment)
In the mid time the US launched a mini un-maned shuttle into space and the public does not know what the shuttle's function is but the world knows that the US has weapons of mass destruction which could be used against other nations as it has already done on Japan. Certainly the US as is North Korea, Israel, France, Britain, Germany, China, Russia and Co. are all very dangerous. (My comment)
Best art exhibitions of 2012, No 9 – SFMoMA presents Cindy Sherman | Art and design | guardian.co.uk
Best art exhibitions of 2012, No 9 – SFMoMA presents Cindy Sherman | Art and design | guardian.co.uk: "Seeing the New York Museum of Modern Art retrospective in the home of drag and radical feminism added urgency to Sherman's obsessive explorations of identity, sex and power"
US prosecutors launch civil rights investigation into fatal Little Rock shooting | World news | guardian.co.uk
US prosecutors launch civil rights investigation into fatal Little Rock shooting | World news | guardian.co.uk: "Department of Justice to look into claims that Arkansas police used excessive force in death of unarmed Eugene Ellison, 67"
HSBC's record $1.9bn fine preferable to prosecution, US authorities insist | Business | guardian.co.uk
HSBC's record $1.9bn fine preferable to prosecution, US authorities insist | Business | guardian.co.uk: "Officials defend decision not to prosecute in money-laundering case despite HSBC's 'blatant failure' to implement controls"
HSBC to pay $1.9 billion U.S. fine in money-laundering case | Reuters
HSBC to pay $1.9 billion U.S. fine in money-laundering case | Reuters: (Reuters) - "HSBC Holdings Plc agreed to pay a record $1.92 billion in fines to U.S. authorities for allowing itself to be used to launder a river of drug money flowing out of Mexico and other banking lapses."
Michigan weakens union rights in home of auto industry | Reuters
Michigan weakens union rights in home of auto industry | Reuters: (Reuters) - "Michigan enacted a ban on mandatory union membership on Tuesday, dealing a stunning blow to organized labor in the state that is home to U.S. automakers and the symbol of industrial labor in the United States."
Strong quake hits off Japan near Fukushima | Reuters
Strong quake hits off Japan near Fukushima | Reuters: (Reuters) - "A strong quake centered off northeastern Japan shook buildings as far away as Tokyo on Friday and triggered a one-meter tsunami in an area devastated by last year's Fukushima disaster, but there were no reports of deaths or serious damage."
Apple to return some Mac production to U.S. in 2013: report | Reuters
Apple to return some Mac production to U.S. in 2013: report | Reuters: (Reuters) - "Apple Inc is planning to bring back some of its production of Mac computers to the United States from China next year, Chief Executive Tim Cook said, according to a report published Thursday."
It would be great if many other companies returned home to hire the American worker.
It would be great if many other companies returned home to hire the American worker.
Special Report: Amazon's billion-dollar tax shield | Reuters
Special Report: Amazon's billion-dollar tax shield | Reuters: (Reuters) - "In 2005, Amazon rented a historic five-storey building in Luxembourg's Grund quarter, right at the bottom of a steep rock-walled valley below the old town."
Tax evasion by big companies is an unpatriotic act.
Tax evasion by big companies is an unpatriotic act.
Israel pushes settlement plan ahead; EU summons envoy | Reuters
Israel pushes settlement plan ahead; EU summons envoy | Reuters: (Reuters) - "Israel moved ahead with plans to build 3,000 settler homes in one of the most sensitive areas of the West Bank, as the European Union summoned Israel's envoy to add its voice to a storm of international protest."
Citigroup cutting 11,000 jobs, taking $1 billion in charges | Reuters
Citigroup cutting 11,000 jobs, taking $1 billion in charges | Reuters: (Reuters) - "Citigroup Inc, which has lagged behind its peers in recovering from the financial crisis, said it is cutting 11,000 jobs worldwide, about 4 percent of its staff, to save as much as $1.1 billion a year in expenses."
UBS could pay $450m to settle Libor claims | Business | guardian.co.uk
UBS could pay $450m to settle Libor claims | Business | guardian.co.uk: "UBS spokeswoman tells Reuters that bank is in discussions with authorities in the US and Britain"
Vietnamese children killed by mortar shell | World news | guardian.co.uk
Vietnamese children killed by mortar shell | World news | guardian.co.uk: "Bomb left over from Vietnam war explodes killing four young children and injuring five other people"
How many children die and will die in the middle east as a result of unexploded cluster bombs left behind by the US and Co.?
How many children die and will die in the middle east as a result of unexploded cluster bombs left behind by the US and Co.?
Israel withholds Palestinian funds after U.N. vote | Reuters
Israel withholds Palestinian funds after U.N. vote | Reuters: (Reuters) - "Israel said on Sunday it was withholding this month's transfer of tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority, after the United Nations' de facto recognition of a Palestinian state."
Bradley Manning: a tale of liberty lost in America | Glenn Greenwald | Comment is free | The Guardian
Bradley Manning: a tale of liberty lost in America | Glenn Greenwald | Comment is free | The Guardian: "The US does nothing to punish those guilty of war crimes or Wall Street fraud, yet demonises the whistleblower"
Britain and US condemn Israel's Jewish settlement plan | World news | guardian.co.uk
Britain and US condemn Israel's Jewish settlement plan | World news | guardian.co.uk: "Foreign secretary William Hague expresses 'extreme concern', while US state department says actions are counterproductive"
France may hive off part of EADS stake: sources | Reuters
France may hive off part of EADS stake: sources | Reuters: (Reuters) - "France and Germany are close to agreeing to a shake-up of EADS, Europe's largest aerospace group, by hiving off part of the French government's stake to make way for Berlin as a shareholder, sources familiar with the matter said."