Saturday, 8 September 2012
U.S. designates Haqqani network a terrorist group
U.S. designates Haqqani network a terrorist group: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on Friday it is designating the Pakistan-based Haqqani network a terrorist organization, triggering sanctions against a group American officials blame for high-profile attacks in Afghanistan, and which they say has ties to the Pakistani state.
Alps shooting inquiry 'complex'
Alps shooting inquiry 'complex': The investigation into the shooting of a British man and his family in France is likely to be "long and complex", a senior police officer has said.
Reported by BBC News 40 minutes ago.
Reported by BBC News 40 minutes ago.
Epidemia da Ébola espalhou-se a uma segunda região
Epidemia da Ébola espalhou-se a uma segunda região: A epidemia de febre hemorrágica Ébola espalhou-se para uma segunda região na República Democrática do Congo, depois de uma mulher ter sido contaminada durante o funeral de uma doente e voltado à sua...
Tornado causa danos em Nova York
Tornado causa danos em Nova York:
NOVA YORK - O serviço nacional de meteorologia dos Estados Unidos informou que um tornado pode ter atingido os arredores do Queens, neste sábado, na cidade de Nova York, causando a queda da rede elétrica e danos em carros e propriedades. O departamento de polícia da cidade informou que ainda não recebeu informações sobre mortos ou feridos.
"Parecia um tornado. Levou tudo pelos ares", disse Caitlin Walsh, de 24 anos, que trabalha no Breezy Point Surf Club e viu toda a tempestade. "As janelas de todo o prédio quebraram, as luzes se apagaram e a chuva não parava. Tudo balançava. Foi uma loucura".
Tornados são extremamente raros em cidades americanas tão densamente povoadas. A condições climáticas forçaram o adiamento da final feminina do U.S. Open, que aconteceria no sábado, para domingo.
Mais tempestades e possíveis tornados podem acontecer durante esta noite em outras partes do nordeste do país, alerta o serviço de meteorologia. Localidades como New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, New Hampshire, Massachussets e Pennsylvania podem ser atingidas.
O departamento de bombeiros também foi notificado de danos no Brooklyn, outra parte da cidade de Nova York. Por causa da força dos ventos, árvores teriam sido arrancadas, postes caíram e um pedaço de telhado de uma casa teria sido levado.
NOVA YORK - O serviço nacional de meteorologia dos Estados Unidos informou que um tornado pode ter atingido os arredores do Queens, neste sábado, na cidade de Nova York, causando a queda da rede elétrica e danos em carros e propriedades. O departamento de polícia da cidade informou que ainda não recebeu informações sobre mortos ou feridos.
"Parecia um tornado. Levou tudo pelos ares", disse Caitlin Walsh, de 24 anos, que trabalha no Breezy Point Surf Club e viu toda a tempestade. "As janelas de todo o prédio quebraram, as luzes se apagaram e a chuva não parava. Tudo balançava. Foi uma loucura".
Tornados são extremamente raros em cidades americanas tão densamente povoadas. A condições climáticas forçaram o adiamento da final feminina do U.S. Open, que aconteceria no sábado, para domingo.
Mais tempestades e possíveis tornados podem acontecer durante esta noite em outras partes do nordeste do país, alerta o serviço de meteorologia. Localidades como New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, New Hampshire, Massachussets e Pennsylvania podem ser atingidas.
O departamento de bombeiros também foi notificado de danos no Brooklyn, outra parte da cidade de Nova York. Por causa da força dos ventos, árvores teriam sido arrancadas, postes caíram e um pedaço de telhado de uma casa teria sido levado.
French Tycoon Denies Attempt To Avoid 75% Tax
French Tycoon Denies Attempt To Avoid 75% Tax: The country's wealthiest man applies for Belgian nationality but says the move is not related to a planned tax hike for the rich.
Sierra Leone removes nine Iranian vessels from shipping register
Sierra Leone removes nine Iranian vessels from shipping register: DAKAR (Reuters) - Sierra Leone has removed nine vessels from its shipping register after an investigation found they belonged to IRISL, Iran's embattled shipping line, the head of the West African state's maritime authority said on Saturday.
U.S. designates Haqqani network a terrorist group
U.S. designates Haqqani network a terrorist group: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on Friday it is designating the Pakistan-based Haqqani network a terrorist organization, triggering sanctions against a group American officials blame for high-profile attacks in Afghanistan, and which they say has ties to the Pakistani state.
Afghan: Boy suicide bomber kills children in attack on Kabul Nato headquarters
Afghan: Boy suicide bomber kills children in attack on Kabul Nato headquarters: A boy suicide bomber killed at least six people when he blew himself up close to Nato's headquarters in Kabul, police said.
Friday, 7 September 2012
Brain Parasites, California's Hidden Health Problem
Brain Parasites, California's Hidden Health Problem:
Sara Alvarez was afraid.
The doctors told her she needed surgery brain surgery. Operations on such a complex organ are never simple, but this procedure was exceptionally difficult. There was a high risk of complications, of debilitation, of post-op problems. Alvarez might wake up paralyzed. She might wake up legally blind. Worse still, there was a chance she might not wake up at all.
[More]
Sara Alvarez was afraid.
The doctors told her she needed surgery brain surgery. Operations on such a complex organ are never simple, but this procedure was exceptionally difficult. There was a high risk of complications, of debilitation, of post-op problems. Alvarez might wake up paralyzed. She might wake up legally blind. Worse still, there was a chance she might not wake up at all.
[More]
Patagonian Glaciers Melting in a Hurry
Patagonian Glaciers Melting in a Hurry:
Ice fields in southern South America are rapidly losing volume and in most cases thinning at even the highest elevations, contributing to sea-level rise at "substantially higher" rates than observed from the 1970s through the 1990s, according to a study published Wednesday.
[More]
Ice fields in southern South America are rapidly losing volume and in most cases thinning at even the highest elevations, contributing to sea-level rise at "substantially higher" rates than observed from the 1970s through the 1990s, according to a study published Wednesday.
[More]
Desert diversity cut by humans
Desert diversity cut by humans: Humans may be destabilising desert ecosystems across the world, say scientists.
Coming Soon: Oil Drilling on the Arctic Ocean's Outer Continental Shelf
Coming Soon: Oil Drilling on the Arctic Ocean's Outer Continental Shelf:
Dear EarthTalk : The oil industry is planning what some call a dangerous strategy of drilling for oil on the outer continental shelf in the Arctic Ocean. What’s going on? --Vera Bailey, New Hope, Pa.
[More]
Dear EarthTalk : The oil industry is planning what some call a dangerous strategy of drilling for oil on the outer continental shelf in the Arctic Ocean. What’s going on? --Vera Bailey, New Hope, Pa.
[More]
What Caused the Yosemite Hantavirus Outbreak?
What Caused the Yosemite Hantavirus Outbreak?:
Earlier this week the World Health Organization issued a global warning to travelers who might have come into contact with the deadly hantavirus while staying in Yosemite National Park in California. So far, three* people have died and at least half a dozen more have been sickened by the virus, which causes pulmonary distress. The outbreak is unusual in that cases of the virus are usually solitary and most have come from the high desert areas in or near New Mexico.
[More]
Earlier this week the World Health Organization issued a global warning to travelers who might have come into contact with the deadly hantavirus while staying in Yosemite National Park in California. So far, three* people have died and at least half a dozen more have been sickened by the virus, which causes pulmonary distress. The outbreak is unusual in that cases of the virus are usually solitary and most have come from the high desert areas in or near New Mexico.
[More]
First Purebred Bison Calf Born after Disease-Washing Embryo Transfer
First Purebred Bison Calf Born after Disease-Washing Embryo Transfer:
What does a two-month-old bison calf in the Bronx have to do with the future of its species? Quite a lot, it turns out.
After being slaughtered to near extinction in the 19th century, the American plains bison ( Bison bison bison ) has become a bit of a conservation success story, albeit with a few important caveats. Today as many as half a million bison live in the U.S., but most of them are genetically impure due to a misguided attempt to crossbreed bison with domestic cattle in the early 20th century. The crossbred bison, which live exclusively in commercial herds, contain what are referred to as “ancestral cattle genes” representing up to 2 percent of their DNA a not-so-insignificant amount that makes them essentially useless for conservation purposes. Meanwhile, about 40 percent of the 20,000 or so remaining pure bison living in Yellowstone National Park and a few other government-owned herds have, over the years, been exposed to diseases such as brucellosis, which can cause cattle to abort their pregnancies. Many ranchers and other people fear these diseases could leap into domestic cattle or other species. This concern has to date prevented efforts to expand purebred bison populations into new herds.
[More]
What does a two-month-old bison calf in the Bronx have to do with the future of its species? Quite a lot, it turns out.
After being slaughtered to near extinction in the 19th century, the American plains bison ( Bison bison bison ) has become a bit of a conservation success story, albeit with a few important caveats. Today as many as half a million bison live in the U.S., but most of them are genetically impure due to a misguided attempt to crossbreed bison with domestic cattle in the early 20th century. The crossbred bison, which live exclusively in commercial herds, contain what are referred to as “ancestral cattle genes” representing up to 2 percent of their DNA a not-so-insignificant amount that makes them essentially useless for conservation purposes. Meanwhile, about 40 percent of the 20,000 or so remaining pure bison living in Yellowstone National Park and a few other government-owned herds have, over the years, been exposed to diseases such as brucellosis, which can cause cattle to abort their pregnancies. Many ranchers and other people fear these diseases could leap into domestic cattle or other species. This concern has to date prevented efforts to expand purebred bison populations into new herds.
[More]
Where Volcanoes Snow
Where Volcanoes Snow:
A probe sweeps through space. Roughly 4.5 million kilometers (2.6 million miles) away, you sit and watch images of another world appear. You notice a mottled surface, and on its horizon, jetting an incredible 260km (162mi) above its surface, a plume.
This photo was taken by Voyager 1 looking back 2.6 million miles (4.5 million km) at Io, three days after its historic encounter. This is the same image in which Linda A. Morabito, a Jet Propulsion Laboratory engineer, discovered the first extraterrestrial volcanic eruption (the bright curved volcanic cloud on the limb). Image courtesy NASA/JPL.
[More]
A probe sweeps through space. Roughly 4.5 million kilometers (2.6 million miles) away, you sit and watch images of another world appear. You notice a mottled surface, and on its horizon, jetting an incredible 260km (162mi) above its surface, a plume.
This photo was taken by Voyager 1 looking back 2.6 million miles (4.5 million km) at Io, three days after its historic encounter. This is the same image in which Linda A. Morabito, a Jet Propulsion Laboratory engineer, discovered the first extraterrestrial volcanic eruption (the bright curved volcanic cloud on the limb). Image courtesy NASA/JPL.
[More]
'Super soup' test in asthma trial
'Super soup' test in asthma trial: Scientists will start a small clinical trial to determine if increased intake of foods rich in vitamin E during pregnancy could help prevent childhood asthma.
Thousands of dead nutria pile up on Mississippi beaches after Isaac
Thousands of dead nutria pile up on Mississippi beaches after Isaac: If there's a silver lining for the Gulf Coast from Hurricane Isaac, it might just be this: the surge of water flushed out, and drowned, thousands of nutria — giant rodents originally from South America that are eating away at coastal marshlands, which act as barriers from storms.
Weak El Niño will last through February 2013: CPC
Weak El Niño will last through February 2013: CPC: NEW YORK (Reuters) - The government forecaster has issued its most definitive report since first raising the El Niño alert three months ago, forecasting a weak phenomenon that will last until the Northern Hemisphere spring.
Spinach power gets a big boost
Spinach power gets a big boost: Nashville TN (SPX) Sep 06, 2012
An interdisciplinary team of researchers at Vanderbilt University have developed a way to combine the photosynthetic protein that converts light into electrochemical energy in spinach with silicon, the material used in solar cells, in a fashion that produces substantially more electrical current than has been reported by previous "biohybrid" solar cells.
An interdisciplinary team of researchers at Vanderbilt University have developed a way to combine the photosynthetic protein that converts light into electrochemical energy in spinach with silicon, the material used in solar cells, in a fashion that produces substantially more electrical current than has been reported by previous "biohybrid" solar cells.
Red spider mites threaten Colombia coffee output
Red spider mites threaten Colombia coffee output: MANIZALES, Colombia (Reuters) - Colombian farmer Jairo Morales is worried. His coffee trees are speckled with crimson as tiny red spider mites attack his plantation, posing a threat not only to his livelihood but to output in the world's No. 3 coffee growing country.
BP executives sought to blame "blue collar rig workers": U.S.
BP executives sought to blame "blue collar rig workers": U.S.: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - BP executives wanted to concentrate blame for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster on "blue collar rig workers" in order to save themselves, U.S. government lawyers wrote in a court document that until Thursday was partially redacted.
Changes in water chemistry leave lake critters defenseless
Changes in water chemistry leave lake critters defenseless: Toronto, Canada (SPX) Sep 07, 2012
Imagine that the players on your favourite football team were smaller than their opponents, and had to play without helmets or pads. Left defenseless, they would become easy prey for other teams. Similarly, changes in Canadian lake water chemistry have left small water organisms vulnerable to their predators, which may pose a serious environmental threat, according to a new study.
Imagine that the players on your favourite football team were smaller than their opponents, and had to play without helmets or pads. Left defenseless, they would become easy prey for other teams. Similarly, changes in Canadian lake water chemistry have left small water organisms vulnerable to their predators, which may pose a serious environmental threat, according to a new study.
Harnessing anticancer drugs for the future fight against influenza
Harnessing anticancer drugs for the future fight against influenza: Helsinki, Finland (SPX) Sep 07, 2012
Medical Systems Virology group at the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) at the University of Helsinki, together with its national and international collaborators, developed a new cell screening method that can be used to identify potential anti-influenza drugs.
The researchers were able to identify two novel compounds with anti-influenza activity, obatoclax and gemcitabine an
Medical Systems Virology group at the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) at the University of Helsinki, together with its national and international collaborators, developed a new cell screening method that can be used to identify potential anti-influenza drugs.
The researchers were able to identify two novel compounds with anti-influenza activity, obatoclax and gemcitabine an
Trout will become extinct in the Iberian Peninsula in less than 100 years
Trout will become extinct in the Iberian Peninsula in less than 100 years: Madrid, Spain (SPX) Sep 07, 2012
Climate change, pollution, the extraction of water for irrigation and overfishing all threaten the survival of the common trout. This fish is very sensitive to changes in its environment and, according to the Spanish study, its habitat will have reduced by half by the year 2040 and will have completely disappeared from Iberian rivers by 2100, so its population will become extinct.
Climate change, pollution, the extraction of water for irrigation and overfishing all threaten the survival of the common trout. This fish is very sensitive to changes in its environment and, according to the Spanish study, its habitat will have reduced by half by the year 2040 and will have completely disappeared from Iberian rivers by 2100, so its population will become extinct.
Glacial thinning has sharply accelerated at major South American icefields
Glacial thinning has sharply accelerated at major South American icefields: Washington DC (SPX) Sep 07, 2012
For the past four decades scientists have monitored the ebbs and flows of the icefields in the southernmost stretch of South America's vast Andes Mountains, detecting an overall loss of ice as the climate warms. A new study, however, finds that the rate of glacier thinning has increased by about half over the last dozen years in the Southern Patagonian Icefield, compared to the 30 years prior to
For the past four decades scientists have monitored the ebbs and flows of the icefields in the southernmost stretch of South America's vast Andes Mountains, detecting an overall loss of ice as the climate warms. A new study, however, finds that the rate of glacier thinning has increased by about half over the last dozen years in the Southern Patagonian Icefield, compared to the 30 years prior to
Balkans drought fuel fear of repeat winter energy crisis
Balkans drought fuel fear of repeat winter energy crisis: SARAJEVO (Reuters) - A second straight winter of blackouts and escalating energy prices is hanging over the Balkans as the driest weather in 40 years has depleted water levels and shows no signs of easing.
Salinity and Climate
Salinity and Climate: The degree of salinity in oceans is a driver of the world's ocean circulation, where density changes due to both salinity changes and temperature changes at the surface of the ocean produce changes in buoyancy, which cause the sinking and rising of water masses. Changes in the salinity of the oceans are thought to contribute to global changes in carbon dioxide as more saline waters are less soluble to carbon dioxide. A NASA-sponsored expedition is set to sail to the North Atlantic's saltiest spot to get a detailed, 3-D picture of how salt content fluctuates in the ocean's upper layers and how these variations are related to shifts in rainfall patterns around the planet. The research voyage is part of a multi-year mission, dubbed the Salinity Processes in the Upper Ocean Regional Study (SPURS), which will deploy multiple instruments in different regions of the ocean. The new data also will help calibrate the salinity measurements NASA's Aquarius instrument has been collecting from space since August 2011. Aquarius was built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., and NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
Deforestation affects rainfall, another reason to protect the rainforests
Deforestation affects rainfall, another reason to protect the rainforests: From regulating climate systems to offering food and medicines, to being home to many plants, animals, and indigenous people, rainforests are not only a local ecosystem but their benefits extend globally.
Adding to its global effects is new research that shows rainforests have a huge impact on rainfall. A team from the University of Leeds and the NERC Centre for Ecology & Hydrology found that air passing over tropical forests produces at least twice as much rain as air passing over little vegetation and can impact rainfall thousands of miles away.
Adding to its global effects is new research that shows rainforests have a huge impact on rainfall. A team from the University of Leeds and the NERC Centre for Ecology & Hydrology found that air passing over tropical forests produces at least twice as much rain as air passing over little vegetation and can impact rainfall thousands of miles away.
Shale gas will not cut EU import dependence: study
Shale gas will not cut EU import dependence: study: BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European development of shale gas could offset the decline in its conventional gas output but will do nothing to reduce the continent's dependence on imports, a European Commission study has found.
Arctic melting at 'amazing' speed
Arctic melting at 'amazing' speed: The 'amazing' loss of Arctic ice and its climate implications
Japan to boost isle defense capability despite cuts
Japan to boost isle defense capability despite cuts: TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's defense budget will post the biggest drop in more than half a century next year but Tokyo will make new investments in equipment to help defend remote islands, the defense ministry said on Friday.
U.S. cargo ship captain arrested, vessel detained in Venezuela
U.S. cargo ship captain arrested, vessel detained in Venezuela: CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan authorities have arrested the American captain of a U.S.-flagged cargo ship after finding three rifles on board, according to a crew member of the vessel and a U.S. embassy official.
Thursday, 6 September 2012
Clinton snub marks new Sino-US rivalry
Clinton snub marks new Sino-US rivalry: Chinese leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping's snub of visiting US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Beijing's harsh rebuff to soft US criticism on the Syrian crisis underlines China's increasingly assertive stance towards its sole competitor for global influence. China now has the clout to back up strong words, helped by a decade establishing economic ties around the world rather than building costly military bases. - Brendan O'Reilly (Sep 6, '12)
Apple urged to defy China's one child policy
Apple urged to defy China's one child policy:
There's no app for that
Chinese activist and exiled dissident Chen Guangchen has waded into the controversy surrounding working conditions at the Chinese suppliers of big name tech brands by calling on Apple and others to stand up against his country’s infamous one child policy.…
There's no app for that
Chinese activist and exiled dissident Chen Guangchen has waded into the controversy surrounding working conditions at the Chinese suppliers of big name tech brands by calling on Apple and others to stand up against his country’s infamous one child policy.…
Bees, fruits and money
Bees, fruits and money: London, UK (SPX) Sep 06, 2012
Two thirds of the crops humans use for food production and the majority of wild plant species depend on pollination by insects such as bees and hover-flies. This ecosystem service, however, provided by nature to humans for free, is increasingly failing. As an example, after 3000 years of sustainable agriculture, farmers in the Chinese province Sichuan have to pollinate apple flowers themselves b
Two thirds of the crops humans use for food production and the majority of wild plant species depend on pollination by insects such as bees and hover-flies. This ecosystem service, however, provided by nature to humans for free, is increasingly failing. As an example, after 3000 years of sustainable agriculture, farmers in the Chinese province Sichuan have to pollinate apple flowers themselves b
Little evidence of health benefits from organic foods
Little evidence of health benefits from organic foods: Stanford CA (SPX) Sep 06, 2012
You're in the supermarket eyeing a basket of sweet, juicy plums. You reach for the conventionally grown stone fruit, then decide to spring the extra $1/pound for its organic cousin. You figure you've just made the healthier decision by choosing the organic product - but new findings from Stanford University cast some doubt on your thinking.
"There isn't much difference between organic and
You're in the supermarket eyeing a basket of sweet, juicy plums. You reach for the conventionally grown stone fruit, then decide to spring the extra $1/pound for its organic cousin. You figure you've just made the healthier decision by choosing the organic product - but new findings from Stanford University cast some doubt on your thinking.
"There isn't much difference between organic and
Babies learn humour from parents: study
Babies learn humour from parents: study: Children get their sense of humour from their parents as a study has found babies as young as six months learn to laugh at the same thing as their mothers and fathers.
Japan stresses cost of ending nuclear power as decision looms
Japan stresses cost of ending nuclear power as decision looms: TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's government, buffeted by conflicting pressure from anti-nuclear voters and pro-nuclear business interests, is stressing the negative impact of a speedy exit from atomic energy as it nears a decision on a new energy mix.
China and Japan face off over Pacific Ocean rare earth rights
China and Japan face off over Pacific Ocean rare earth rights:
Asian foes both submit applications to trawl seabed
Japan and China’s maritime stand-off is set to extend to the Pacific Ocean after both submitted applications to sweep vast swathes of the seabed for copper, cobalt and the rare earths so beloved of hi-tech manufacturers.…
Asian foes both submit applications to trawl seabed
Japan and China’s maritime stand-off is set to extend to the Pacific Ocean after both submitted applications to sweep vast swathes of the seabed for copper, cobalt and the rare earths so beloved of hi-tech manufacturers.…
IHT Rendezvous: The Slaughter of Elephants in Vietnam Is Nearly Complete
IHT Rendezvous: The Slaughter of Elephants in Vietnam Is Nearly Complete: An "epic slaughter" of wild elephants is under way in Africa, with tens of thousands being killed every year for their ivory. Poachers have already done their worst in Vietnam, where only a few dozen elephants remain in the wild.
Chemical reaction sparks alert at French nuclear plant
Chemical reaction sparks alert at French nuclear plant: STRASBOURG, France (Reuters) - A chemical reaction at the Fessenheim nuclear power plant in eastern France injured several people and triggered a brief fire alert on Wednesday, local government and fire service officials said.
Palestinians slipping deeper into poverty: U.N.
Palestinians slipping deeper into poverty: U.N.: GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations UNCTAD agency issued a gloomy outlook for the Palestinian economy on Wednesday, arguing that tougher Israeli policies and settlement expansion were pushing the occupied territories and Gaza deeper into poverty.
Portugal opposition says country won't meet bailout goal
Portugal opposition says country won't meet bailout goal: LISBON (Reuters) - Portugal will miss its budget deficit goal under its 78-billion-euro bailout and needs more time to meet the target, the head of the country's opposition center-left Socialist Party said on Wednesday.
Berlin clears ritual circumcisions ahead of new law
Berlin clears ritual circumcisions ahead of new law: BERLIN (Reuters) - Berlin's senate said doctors could legally circumcise infant boys for religious reasons in its region, given certain conditions, ending months of legal uncertainty after a court banned the practice this year.
Czech PM under threat after failed vote to hike taxes
Czech PM under threat after failed vote to hike taxes: PRAGUE (Reuters) - The lower house of the Czech parliament rejected on Wednesday the centre-right government's plan to raise sales and income taxes, threatening the fate of Prime Minister Petr Necas who insists the hikes are necessary to cut the budget deficit.
Swiss to block arms issue to "dangerous" recruits
Swiss to block arms issue to "dangerous" recruits: ZURICH (Reuters) - The Swiss government said on Wednesday it wants civil and military authorities to share information to try to cut gun crimes by violent recruits with access to army-issued weapons.
Shell to proceed with oil sands carbon capture project
Shell to proceed with oil sands carbon capture project: (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell Plc said on Wednesday it has given final approval for its planned C$1.35 billion ($1.36 billion) Quest carbon capture and storage project in order to cut carbon-dioxide emissions at its 255,000 barrel per day Scotford oil sands upgrader near Edmonton, Alberta, by more than a third.
IAEA shows diplomats images of suspected Iran nuclear clean-up
IAEA shows diplomats images of suspected Iran nuclear clean-up: VIENNA (Reuters) - The U.N. nuclear watchdog showed a series of satellite images on Wednesday that added to suspicions of clean-up activity at an Iranian military site it wants to inspect, Western diplomats said, but Tehran's envoy dismissed the presentation.
Pentagon maps Japan radiation, says U.S. personnel safe
Pentagon maps Japan radiation, says U.S. personnel safe: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon on Wednesday posted a website mapping the amount of radiation to which the tens of thousands of Americans in Japan at the time of last year's earthquake and nuclear disaster were exposed and said none of the doses posed health risks.
Judge upholds Arizona "show-your-papers" measure in mixed ruling
Judge upholds Arizona "show-your-papers" measure in mixed ruling: PHOENIX (Reuters) - A U.S. judge ruled on Wednesday that a controversial Arizona "show-your-papers" immigration provision that has been upheld by the Supreme Court may go into effect, but in a split ruling blocked another measure making it a crime to harbor illegal immigrants.
Pentagon lists 66 countries as eligible to buy US drones
Pentagon lists 66 countries as eligible to buy US drones: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As many as 66 countries would be eligible to buy U.S. drones under new Defense Department guidelines but Congress and the State Department, which have a final say, have not yet opened the spigots for exports, a senior Pentagon official said on Wednesday.
Clinton seeks to boost democracy in Asia's newest country
Clinton seeks to boost democracy in Asia's newest country: DILI (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a short visit to East Timor on Thursday, throwing her considerable diplomatic weight behind a fledgling government trying to bring Asia's newest country closer to its booming Southeast Asian neighbors.
Tropical storm Michael becomes seventh hurricane of the season: NHC
Tropical storm Michael becomes seventh hurricane of the season: NHC: (Reuters) - Michael, located about 1,060 miles west-southwest of the Azores, has become the seventh hurricane of the season, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in its latest bulletin.
Is it a bird, a plane? No, it's Putin, human crane
Is it a bird, a plane? No, it's Putin, human crane: MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has tracked a Siberian tiger and posed with a polar bear, on Wednesday took his love of wildlife to new heights by flying with cranes - to lead them on a migration route.
China says EU solar panel inquiry threatens global sector
China says EU solar panel inquiry threatens global sector: BEIJING (Reuters) - China voiced "deep regret" on Thursday over a European Commission decision to investigate alleged dumping of solar panels made by Chinese producers, warning that restrictions on its solar products could imperil the global clean energy sector.
Russia: no sign Iran developing nuclear arms -Ifax
Russia: no sign Iran developing nuclear arms -Ifax: MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia sees no evidence that Iran's nuclear program is aimed at developing weapons, the Interfax news agency quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying on Thursday.
Arctic melt 'like doubling CO2'
Arctic melt 'like doubling CO2': Ice loss in the Arctic is effectively doubling mankind's contribution to global warming and the ice cap's days are numbered, a scientist says.
US jump in West Nile virus deaths
US jump in West Nile virus deaths: The death toll from US cases of West Nile virus, which has killed scores of people, rises by nearly a third in a week, according to health officials.
Wednesday, 5 September 2012
BitTorrent spies can jump on P2P pirates in just three hours
BitTorrent spies can jump on P2P pirates in just three hours: Sharers of copyrighted content could be found by monitoring programs within three hours of circulating popular pirated movies and music, researchers have found, and methods to avoid the monitors may be ineffective.
Donors pledge $6.4bn aid to Yemen
Donors pledge $6.4bn aid to Yemen: International donors pledge $6.4bn (£4bn) to help Yemen's fragile transition to democracy as it battles a humanitarian crisis and political unrest.
Man behind fake coins insulting king comes forward
Man behind fake coins insulting king comes forward: The man behind the fake coins with the phrase "Our whoring king" has come forward. He says that they were not counterfeits but an art project, intended to provoke a reaction from the general public.
Argentina Begins Tracking All Credit Cards
Argentina Begins Tracking All Credit Cards:
In an eerie glimpse of what a cashless society enables, the government of Argentina has taken the drastic step of mandating banks to report every credit card purchase to the tax authorities, AFIP. Also introduced on Friday, another measure adds a 15 percent tax surcharge every time a purchase is
Why HTML5 is in trouble on the mobile front
Why HTML5 is in trouble on the mobile front: HTML5 promises great things for smartphone developers, but is yet to deliver in full. That leaves developers with a tricky choice: to build for openness or go with what works now.
China to try ex-police chief at heart of murder scandal
China to try ex-police chief at heart of murder scandal: BEIJING (Reuters) - China will put the ex-police chief at the heart of its biggest political scandal in decades on trial for crimes including defection and taking bribes, state media said on Wednesday, opening a new phase in a case that rattled the Communist Party succession.
VIDEO: Church scouts priests on Facebook
VIDEO: Church scouts priests on Facebook: The Diocese of Charleston in South Carolina implements an advanced social media strategy to find future members of the clergy.
Smartphone wallet given nod by EU
Smartphone wallet given nod by EU: Everything Everywhere, O2 and Vodafone are given the green light to jointly develop a digital wallet product for mobile devices.
Premier turco diz que Síria se tornou um Estado terrorista
Premier turco diz que Síria se tornou um Estado terrorista:
ANCARA - O primeiro-ministro da Turquia, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, disse na quarta-feira que o presidente Bashar al-Assad criou um "Estado terrorista" na Síria e expressou novamente sua frustração com a falta de consenso internacional sobre o caos no país vizinho.
- Os massacres na Síria, que ganharam força com a indiferença da comunidade internacional, continuam aumentando - afirmou Erdogan, durante uma reunião de seu partido, o AKP. - O regime na Síria tornou-se um Estado terrorista.
O governo turco inicialmente cultivava boas relações com a administração de Assad, porém Erdogan se tornou um dos críticos mais ferrenhos do presidente sírio após a pressão internacional pelo fim do conflito, que já dura 18 meses. O país está tentando lidar com a entrada de cerca de 80.000 refugiados sírios em seu território e tem pressionado repetidamente por uma zona de segurança dentro da Síria protegida por forças estrangeiras.
A Turquia acusa Assad de fornecer armas para os insurgentes do grupo curdo PKK, que luta contra as tropas do governo no sudeste turco há quase três décadas, e levantou a possibilidade de uma intervenção militar na Síria caso a PKK vire uma ameaça. Assad negou que a Síria tenha permitido que militantes do PKK operem dentro de seu território, perto da fronteira com a Turquia.
Mursi diz que reunião de novo grupo de ajuda está marcada
Ainda nesta quarta-feira, o presidente egípcio Mohamed Mursi disse em um encontro com membros da Liga Árabe, no Cairo, que uma reunião com quatro Estados escolhidos para tentar mediar uma solução para a crise na Síria já está marcada. Ele reforçou que “já é tempo para uma mudança na Síria”.
- Eu digo para o regime sírio que ainda há uma chance para parar o derramamento de sangue. Já é tempo para uma mudança na Síria - defendeu o líder egípcio.
ANCARA - O primeiro-ministro da Turquia, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, disse na quarta-feira que o presidente Bashar al-Assad criou um "Estado terrorista" na Síria e expressou novamente sua frustração com a falta de consenso internacional sobre o caos no país vizinho.
- Os massacres na Síria, que ganharam força com a indiferença da comunidade internacional, continuam aumentando - afirmou Erdogan, durante uma reunião de seu partido, o AKP. - O regime na Síria tornou-se um Estado terrorista.
O governo turco inicialmente cultivava boas relações com a administração de Assad, porém Erdogan se tornou um dos críticos mais ferrenhos do presidente sírio após a pressão internacional pelo fim do conflito, que já dura 18 meses. O país está tentando lidar com a entrada de cerca de 80.000 refugiados sírios em seu território e tem pressionado repetidamente por uma zona de segurança dentro da Síria protegida por forças estrangeiras.
A Turquia acusa Assad de fornecer armas para os insurgentes do grupo curdo PKK, que luta contra as tropas do governo no sudeste turco há quase três décadas, e levantou a possibilidade de uma intervenção militar na Síria caso a PKK vire uma ameaça. Assad negou que a Síria tenha permitido que militantes do PKK operem dentro de seu território, perto da fronteira com a Turquia.
Mursi diz que reunião de novo grupo de ajuda está marcada
Ainda nesta quarta-feira, o presidente egípcio Mohamed Mursi disse em um encontro com membros da Liga Árabe, no Cairo, que uma reunião com quatro Estados escolhidos para tentar mediar uma solução para a crise na Síria já está marcada. Ele reforçou que “já é tempo para uma mudança na Síria”.
- Eu digo para o regime sírio que ainda há uma chance para parar o derramamento de sangue. Já é tempo para uma mudança na Síria - defendeu o líder egípcio.
FBI disputes claims of hackers' Apple data breach
FBI disputes claims of hackers' Apple data breach:
The FBI on Tuesday disputed a computer hacker group's claim that it stole personal identification data on millions of Apple device owners from an FBI agent's laptop. FBI officials said the bureau never asked for and never possessed the database that the group, which calls itself AntiSec, is posting on a website.
The FBI on Tuesday disputed a computer hacker group's claim that it stole personal identification data on millions of Apple device owners from an FBI agent's laptop. FBI officials said the bureau never asked for and never possessed the database that the group, which calls itself AntiSec, is posting on a website.
In conflict with West, Iran stirs war memories at home
In conflict with West, Iran stirs war memories at home: DUBAI (Reuters) - Iranian leaders hoping to lift morale at a time of rising prices, food shortages and threats of attack from Israel are drawing on memories of another era when people united against a common foe: Saddam Hussein's Iraq.
Anti-terror police in Horwich declare flats safe
Anti-terror police in Horwich declare flats safe:
Residents allowed to return to their flats in Horwich, near Bolton, after police found substances and a device during anti-terror raid
Police have declared safe a number of homes evacuated after substances and a device were found during an anti-terror raid.
Residents in six flats were asked to leave the area around Cheriton Gardens and Ormston Avenue in Horwich, near Bolton, Greater Manchester, following the raid on two houses in the area at 10am on Wednesday.
But after the substances and the device found were examined, the properties were deemed to be safe, Greater Manchester police said.
A spokeswoman for the force said: "It is hoped that residents will be allowed to return to their properties within the hour."
Police had been executing search warrants as part of an investigation into the possession and distribution of indecent images in Bolton.
A 38-year-old man from Horwich was arrested on suspicion of possession of indecent images and also on suspicion of offences under the Terrorism Act, specifically possessing information likely to be useful for a person committing or preparing for acts of terrorism and offences under the Explosives Act.
The raids were supported by officers from the North West Counter Terrorism Unit.
A cordon was put in place and residents and motorists were advised to avoid the area while emergency services dealt with the scene.
Police have declared safe a number of homes evacuated after substances and a device were found during an anti-terror raid.
Residents in six flats were asked to leave the area around Cheriton Gardens and Ormston Avenue in Horwich, near Bolton, Greater Manchester, following the raid on two houses in the area at 10am on Wednesday.
But after the substances and the device found were examined, the properties were deemed to be safe, Greater Manchester police said.
A spokeswoman for the force said: "It is hoped that residents will be allowed to return to their properties within the hour."
Police had been executing search warrants as part of an investigation into the possession and distribution of indecent images in Bolton.
A 38-year-old man from Horwich was arrested on suspicion of possession of indecent images and also on suspicion of offences under the Terrorism Act, specifically possessing information likely to be useful for a person committing or preparing for acts of terrorism and offences under the Explosives Act.
The raids were supported by officers from the North West Counter Terrorism Unit.
A cordon was put in place and residents and motorists were advised to avoid the area while emergency services dealt with the scene.
Open-air showing of Grease mistaken as rave
Open-air showing of Grease mistaken as rave: Police officers called to reports of an illegal rave attended the scene only to find a council-organised screening of Grease in progress.
Tuesday, 4 September 2012
'Google's crap for business' - CIOs give ad giant dose of reality
'Google's crap for business' - CIOs give ad giant dose of reality:
UK tech chiefs snub Choc Factory's paltry package
UK CIOs don't consider Google a valuable enterprise supplier, according to a new survey.…
UK tech chiefs snub Choc Factory's paltry package
UK CIOs don't consider Google a valuable enterprise supplier, according to a new survey.…
Mozilla exits iOS as it retires Firefox Home
Mozilla exits iOS as it retires Firefox Home: Two years after it managed to place a browser-related app on the iOS App Store, Mozilla last week announced it was retiring Firefox Home and yanked it from Apple's market. The move was only the latest in a string of messages that the open-source company has sent over several years that it is not interested in developing a version of Firefox for the iPhone or iPad.
New CAFE Rules Anger Just About Everyone
New CAFE Rules Anger Just About Everyone: The Obama administration announced new fuel economy rules last week requiring that vehicles reach 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. Typical of the corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) rules, there are many credits offered for different types of vehicles based on their drivetrains, encouraging automakers to make and sell alternative drive and alternative fuel vehicles. The effort to tighten CAFE standards has been the epitome of government sausage making. The process required not only getting Republicans and Democrats to agree on something, but also getting environmentalists and, more importantly, auto manufacturers to agree on something that no party really likes. All of this makes for a very messy show, and it?s the biggest reason why from 1990 to 2009 fuel economy for cars remained unchanged.
How 'Millenials' Are Changing Food as We Know It
How 'Millenials' Are Changing Food as We Know It: Move over Boomers, the Millennials are taking over. And that shift will potentially change the food system as we know it.
Peru eyes tougher penalties for polluting industries
Peru eyes tougher penalties for polluting industries: LIMA (Reuters) - Peru wants to double maximum penalties for companies that pollute, part of a new plan to beef up its environmental enforcement as the government investigates two mining accidents and struggles to quell opposition to extractive projects.
El Nino to be short and weak: NZ weather scientists
El Nino to be short and weak: NZ weather scientists: WELLINGTON (Reuters) - El Nino weather conditions, which can bring droughts to parts of Asia and affect crops, have emerged but will likely be weak and shortlived, New Zealand scientists said on Tuesday.
Action needed to prevent food price catastrophe: UN
Action needed to prevent food price catastrophe: UN: ROME (Reuters) - World leaders must take swift, coordinated action to ensure that food price shocks do not turn into a catastrophe that could hurt tens of millions of people in coming months, the United Nations' food agencies said in a statement on Tuesday.
Major world interests at stake in Canada's vast Mackenzie River Basin
Major world interests at stake in Canada's vast Mackenzie River Basin: Vancouver, Canada (SPX) Sep 04, 2012
The governance of Canada's massive Mackenzie River Basin holds enormous national but also global importance due to the watershed's impact on the Arctic Ocean, international migratory birds and climate stability, say experts convening a special forum on the topic. "Relevant parties in western Canada have recognized the need for a multi-party transboundary agreement that will govern land and water
The governance of Canada's massive Mackenzie River Basin holds enormous national but also global importance due to the watershed's impact on the Arctic Ocean, international migratory birds and climate stability, say experts convening a special forum on the topic. "Relevant parties in western Canada have recognized the need for a multi-party transboundary agreement that will govern land and water
Earthquake Hazards Map Study Finds Deadly Flaws, MU Researcher Suggests Improvements
Earthquake Hazards Map Study Finds Deadly Flaws, MU Researcher Suggests Improvements: Columbia MO (SPX) Sep 04, 2012
Three of the largest and deadliest earthquakes in recent history occurred where earthquake hazard maps didn't predict massive quakes. A University of Missouri scientist and his colleagues recently studied the reasons for the maps' failure to forecast these quakes. They also explored ways to improve the maps. Developing better hazard maps and alerting people to their limitations could potentially
Three of the largest and deadliest earthquakes in recent history occurred where earthquake hazard maps didn't predict massive quakes. A University of Missouri scientist and his colleagues recently studied the reasons for the maps' failure to forecast these quakes. They also explored ways to improve the maps. Developing better hazard maps and alerting people to their limitations could potentially
Research reveals contrasting consequences of a warmer Earth
Research reveals contrasting consequences of a warmer Earth: York UK (SPX) Sep 04, 2012
A new study, by scientists from the Universities of York, Glasgow and Leeds, involving analysis of fossil and geological records going back 540 million years, suggests that biodiversity on Earth generally increases as the planet warms. But the research says that the increase in biodiversity depends on the evolution of new species over millions of years, and is normally accompanied by extinctions
A new study, by scientists from the Universities of York, Glasgow and Leeds, involving analysis of fossil and geological records going back 540 million years, suggests that biodiversity on Earth generally increases as the planet warms. But the research says that the increase in biodiversity depends on the evolution of new species over millions of years, and is normally accompanied by extinctions
American Meteorological Society confirms Climate Change and Man's Role
American Meteorological Society confirms Climate Change and Man's Role: Weathercasters in the U.S. not only tend to not ever mention climate change, but the majority of them do not even believe it is human-caused, as an article I recently wrote shows. However, that may change. The American Meteorological Society (AMS) released an official position statement on climate change this week which not only said that it is occurring, but it is human-caused. What is so great about the statement by the AMS is that it includes so much information about climate change, including that there is scientific consensus. The AMS makes it clear that the statement is "based on the peer-reviewed scientific literature and is consistent with the vast weight of current scientific understanding."
The statement details how the climate is changing, both in the U.S. and around the world. The changes listed include increases in globally averaged air and ocean temperatures, the widespread melting of snow and ice, and the rising of globally averaged sea level. As the statement puts it, "Warming of the climate system now is unequivocal, according to many different kinds of evidence." That is not good news for the world's population, but it is good news that the AMS is acknowledging that climate change is real and is occurring.
The statement details how the climate is changing, both in the U.S. and around the world. The changes listed include increases in globally averaged air and ocean temperatures, the widespread melting of snow and ice, and the rising of globally averaged sea level. As the statement puts it, "Warming of the climate system now is unequivocal, according to many different kinds of evidence." That is not good news for the world's population, but it is good news that the AMS is acknowledging that climate change is real and is occurring.
Study vs. Sleep: Which is more beneficial to your academic success?
Study vs. Sleep: Which is more beneficial to your academic success?: Studying is a key contributor to academic achievement, but after sports practice, then your music lesson, dinner with your family, and homework that is due tomorrow, it's already 1 am and you are just starting to study for that US History midterm. But you're exhausted. Should you go to sleep and hope that Roosevelt's New Deal isn’t on the test, or stay up until you finish reading the last chapter on the Great Depression? This is a dilemma for many high school students as busy schedules and procrastination are pushing students into the late hours of the night to finish studying.
However, according to researchers at UCLA, sacrificing sleep to cram for an exam is actually counterproductive.
However, according to researchers at UCLA, sacrificing sleep to cram for an exam is actually counterproductive.
Chinese traders call ‘price majeure’
Chinese traders call ‘price majeure’: The rise in contract defaults is exaggerating the slide in commodities prices in a downward spiral that feeds itself and produces dramatic corrections
South Africa police fire teargas as mine unrest spreads
South Africa police fire teargas as mine unrest spreads: JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African police fired teargas and rubber bullets to disperse striking miners at a gold mine near Johannesburg on Monday, the latest outbreak in a wave of labor militancy spreading from platinum mining into other parts of the sector.
Best survival hope for Tasmanian Devil?
Best survival hope for Tasmanian Devil?: Taking the devilish element out of one of Australia's most iconic but endangered animals could save it from extinction.
85 anos depois o dengue reaparece na Grécia
85 anos depois o dengue reaparece na Grécia: Um octogenário grego morreu de febre hemorrágica causada pelo dengue. A doença viral transmitida através da picada de mosquitos ressurgiu na Grécia após 85 anos, anunciou hoje a Central de Controlo e...
China warns U.S. not to take sides in sea disputes as Clinton arrives
China warns U.S. not to take sides in sea disputes as Clinton arrives: JAKARTA/BEIJING (Reuters) - China warned the United States not to get involved in South China Sea territorial disputes on Tuesday as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Beijing pledging to pass on a strong message on the need to calm regional tension.
Lufthansa cancels hundreds more flights as strikes hit
Lufthansa cancels hundreds more flights as strikes hit: FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Lufthansa cancelled hundreds more flights on Tuesday as cabin crew launched a second round of strikes in a row over pay and conditions that threatens to drag on for weeks and cost Germany's biggest airline tens of millions of euros.
Hackers Ready 'Fake' Windows 8 Antivirus Tool
Hackers Ready 'Fake' Windows 8 Antivirus Tool: Windows 8 isn't out yet, but hackers are already taking advantage of the buzz surrounding the name.
McDonald’s to open first vegetarian outlets
McDonald’s to open first vegetarian outlets: US chain’s decision to open meat-free outlets in the two holy places reflects the concessions that foreign fast-food groups are making to local tastes
Priest, teacher face rape charges
Priest, teacher face rape charges: The child sexual abuse trial of a Philadelphia Catholic priest and a parochial school teacher, both accused of raping the same altar boy in separate incidents, begins Tuesday.
Fear over cat bug risk to humans
Fear over cat bug risk to humans: Experts urge more research into a disease spread by cats as figures suggest 350,000 people a year in the UK get infected with toxoplasmosis.
Kleptocrats Are Fleeing China With Loot In Tow
Kleptocrats Are Fleeing China With Loot In Tow:
There was another chapter in the China Kleotocracy story the past week. Western press reported on a fellow by the name of Wang Guoqiang. Wang fled China with $30Mn in his pocket back in April. The problem is that the loot was stolen from the treasury of the city of Fencheng (Pop. 580,000).
The BBC and the Neue Zurcher Zeitung had the story. (I did not see it in the US press.):
Some quotes:
Think of it differently. If the Treasurer for the city of Las Vegas (Pop. 580,000) stole $30Mn of tax payer money and fled to Canada or Australia, the US FBI would have the Aussies and Canucks hunt them down and have them extradited back home. Why aren’t the Chinese doing the same thing?
On 9/29, Air China flight 981 from Beijing to NYC was ordered returned to Beijing airport. The “official” reason was, “they had received a threatening message.” There is some curious information about this:
-The plane was 7 hours into the NYC flight before it turned around. If there was a “threat” on board (bomb?), why didn’t the plane make a landing before going all the way back to Beijing? The passengers were not told about the U-turn.
I have no idea what actually happened with flight 981. I do know that the internet speculation in China is that the plane was ordered back because another kleptocrat was on board and trying to escape.
I wonder if the exodus of the kleptos (and the Chinese internet traffic on this story) can go unchecked for much longer. The question of “when” might be answered after a new government is installed. I also wonder which banks the Kleptos are keeping their loot with. We might get an answer to these question in the not-too-distant future.
Note:
My interest in the kleptocracy story was piqued when I read John Hempton’s article on this topic. (Link).
There was another chapter in the China Kleotocracy story the past week. Western press reported on a fellow by the name of Wang Guoqiang. Wang fled China with $30Mn in his pocket back in April. The problem is that the loot was stolen from the treasury of the city of Fencheng (Pop. 580,000).
The BBC and the Neue Zurcher Zeitung had the story. (I did not see it in the US press.):
Some quotes:
More than a million public servants have sent large sums abroad.
A million public servants? That’s a lot of crooks.That officials create huge amounts abroad and then flee with their families is so common that the Chinese language has its own term: “Luo guan” literally “bare squad”.
It is the practice that corrupt officials get their families out of the country first, hence the term “bare.” I think this means that the Chinese are broadly aware that their political leaders are leaving the country with stolen money. It must be hard to govern when even slang language reflects what is happening.In 2011, the Central Bank reported that corrupt officials had transferred more than 120 billion U.S. dollars abroad.
$120Bn? Where is this money going?Popular flight destinations for fleeing officials are the USA, Australia and Canada.
The USA, Australia and Canada? The numbers reported above are huge! let’s say 70% of the crooks went to America. This creates an estimate of 700,000 crooks (and their families) that have fled China with $80Bn in stolen money, and are now in the USA. How can so many people with so much money hide in the US without somebody making a a stink?Think of it differently. If the Treasurer for the city of Las Vegas (Pop. 580,000) stole $30Mn of tax payer money and fled to Canada or Australia, the US FBI would have the Aussies and Canucks hunt them down and have them extradited back home. Why aren’t the Chinese doing the same thing?
The authorities enacted a ban immediately to report on the case, and blocked Wang’s name in search engines. However, in blogs, the news spread faster than censors could delete it.
Kleptocracy is a very open secret in China. The Chinese leaders must hate the internet, and the fact that secrets can’t be kept secret any longer. There has been another story circulating in the Chinese internet the past few days that may be connected to the kleptocracy story.On 9/29, Air China flight 981 from Beijing to NYC was ordered returned to Beijing airport. The “official” reason was, “they had received a threatening message.” There is some curious information about this:
-The plane was 7 hours into the NYC flight before it turned around. If there was a “threat” on board (bomb?), why didn’t the plane make a landing before going all the way back to Beijing? The passengers were not told about the U-turn.
One passenger said he suspected the plane might be flying back because of the route information on the screen in front of him but a flight attendant told him there was “something wrong with the screen.”
Shortly before landing, there was an announcement that the plane was encountering some turbulence and attendants asked passengers to close all the window shades.
“But when we opened the sunshades again, we saw the ground of Beijing,” another passenger said.
-The initial “official information” was that the report of the threat came from a reliable source; the USA. But that was incorrect. (link)“It could have been forged and released from inside the country”, a Beijing airport police spokesman told China Daily on condition of anonymity.
Other sources including the country’s civil aviation authority and airport police, declined on Thursday to reveal specifics of the threat.
The plane and passengers were searched, nothing was found. The flight took off again an hour later. Of potential interest:Some passengers opted to abandon their trip
Abandon trips? Or get arrested?I have no idea what actually happened with flight 981. I do know that the internet speculation in China is that the plane was ordered back because another kleptocrat was on board and trying to escape.
A spokesman denied rampant speculation on social-media sites that the flight returned because a wanted corrupt official who was trying to flee the country was on board.
Something is brewing in China with the kleptocrats.The Bo Xilai and the murderess Gu Kailai scandal appears to have been a tipping point. Another tipping point for China is the leadership changes that will take place in October.I wonder if the exodus of the kleptos (and the Chinese internet traffic on this story) can go unchecked for much longer. The question of “when” might be answered after a new government is installed. I also wonder which banks the Kleptos are keeping their loot with. We might get an answer to these question in the not-too-distant future.
Note:
My interest in the kleptocracy story was piqued when I read John Hempton’s article on this topic. (Link).
Queen rejects Government's apprenticeship programme
Queen rejects Government's apprenticeship programme: The Queen has refused to sign up to a Government apprenticeship scheme to provide publicly funded placements within the Royal Household, it was reported.
German pharmaceuticals firm Merck announces job cuts
German pharmaceuticals firm Merck announces job cuts: German chemicals and pharmaceuticals company Merck has announced that its massive restructuring program will also involve laying off over 1,000 employees in Germany. The firm is struggling to increase profitability.
Australian customers could pay for govt spying: Optus
Australian customers could pay for govt spying: Optus: ISP customers might have to pay for the privilege of having their internet browsing data stored for law-enforcement agencies if government plans go ahead, according to Optus.
Baroness Warsi loses job as David Cameron begins reshuffle
Baroness Warsi loses job as David Cameron begins reshuffle: David Cameron began his first government reshuffle last night by removing Baroness Warsi as Conservative Party chairman." />
Monday, 3 September 2012
Germany's Export Collapse
Germany's Export Collapse:
The grimmest aspect of today's German PMI report concerned exports:
The grimmest aspect of today's German PMI report concerned exports:
Companies that reported a decrease in production levels in August generally linked this to lower
volumes of new business and fewer outstanding workloads at their plants. August data highlighted a
sharp fall in new order levels, although the rate of contraction eased slightly from July’s low. The slower pace of decline largely reflected a less marked drop in domestic demand, as new export work fell at the steepest rate since April 2009.
Survey respondents commented on a general slowdown in global demand and particular weakness in new business inflows from Southern Europe. Investment and intermediate goods producers recorded the steepest reductions in new export orders. Meanwhile, August data signalled a rapid fall in outstanding business at manufacturing firms, which extended the current period of contraction to 12 months.
volumes of new business and fewer outstanding workloads at their plants. August data highlighted a
sharp fall in new order levels, although the rate of contraction eased slightly from July’s low. The slower pace of decline largely reflected a less marked drop in domestic demand, as new export work fell at the steepest rate since April 2009.
Survey respondents commented on a general slowdown in global demand and particular weakness in new business inflows from Southern Europe. Investment and intermediate goods producers recorded the steepest reductions in new export orders. Meanwhile, August data signalled a rapid fall in outstanding business at manufacturing firms, which extended the current period of contraction to 12 months.
Ataque suicida mata 5 perto de consulado americano no Paquistão
Ataque suicida mata 5 perto de consulado americano no Paquistão:
PESHAWAR, Paquistão - Ao menos cinco pessoas morreram nesta segunda-feira por causa de um ataque suicida perto do escritório do Alto Comissário da ONU para Refugiados (Acnur) e do consulado americano, em Peshawar, no Paquistão. Segundo autoridades locais, dois americanos teriam morrido no atentado, mas a embaixada dos EUA nega. Entre os 19 feridos estão dois americanos, funcionários do consulado.
Um homem-bomba bateu seu veículo no carro do consulado perto de um edifício, informou o ministro de Informação Regional, Mian Iftikhar Hussain. Segundo a polícia, cerca de 100 quilos de explosivos foram usados no atentado. Logo após o ataque, Hussain anunciou que dois americanos tinham morrido no incidente, mas a embaixada negou a informação. A autoridade paquistanesa, no entanto, chegou a dar detalhes de como os americanos foram mortos. Segundo ele, os dois funcionários do consultado andavam pela cidade escoltados por guardas quando foram atacados.
- Dois funcionários americanos e dois paquistaneses do consulado ficaram feridos. Nenhum americano do consulado morreu - afirmou, em comunicado, a embaixada americana em Islamabad.
Segundo o chefe da polícia local, o carro-bomba estava estacionado a uns 25 metros da sede do Acnur antes de o terrorista atirá-lo contra outro veículo. Quatro policiais paquistaneses ficaram feridos.
Nenhum grupo assumiu a autoria do ataque, que deixou uma cratera ao longo de uma rua movimentada. A maioria dos atentados no Paquistão é atribuída ao Talibã do Paquistão, que tem ligações com a rede al-Qaeda. Na última sexta-feira, um outro carro-bomba matou 12 pessoas e deixou uma dezena de feridos na periferia de Peshawar.
PESHAWAR, Paquistão - Ao menos cinco pessoas morreram nesta segunda-feira por causa de um ataque suicida perto do escritório do Alto Comissário da ONU para Refugiados (Acnur) e do consulado americano, em Peshawar, no Paquistão. Segundo autoridades locais, dois americanos teriam morrido no atentado, mas a embaixada dos EUA nega. Entre os 19 feridos estão dois americanos, funcionários do consulado.
Um homem-bomba bateu seu veículo no carro do consulado perto de um edifício, informou o ministro de Informação Regional, Mian Iftikhar Hussain. Segundo a polícia, cerca de 100 quilos de explosivos foram usados no atentado. Logo após o ataque, Hussain anunciou que dois americanos tinham morrido no incidente, mas a embaixada negou a informação. A autoridade paquistanesa, no entanto, chegou a dar detalhes de como os americanos foram mortos. Segundo ele, os dois funcionários do consultado andavam pela cidade escoltados por guardas quando foram atacados.
- Dois funcionários americanos e dois paquistaneses do consulado ficaram feridos. Nenhum americano do consulado morreu - afirmou, em comunicado, a embaixada americana em Islamabad.
Segundo o chefe da polícia local, o carro-bomba estava estacionado a uns 25 metros da sede do Acnur antes de o terrorista atirá-lo contra outro veículo. Quatro policiais paquistaneses ficaram feridos.
Nenhum grupo assumiu a autoria do ataque, que deixou uma cratera ao longo de uma rua movimentada. A maioria dos atentados no Paquistão é atribuída ao Talibã do Paquistão, que tem ligações com a rede al-Qaeda. Na última sexta-feira, um outro carro-bomba matou 12 pessoas e deixou uma dezena de feridos na periferia de Peshawar.
Madagascar cattle thieves killed
Madagascar cattle thieves killed: More than 60 suspected cattle rustlers are killed by villagers in southern Madagascar, police say.
First refugees from Libyan conflict arrive in Germany
First refugees from Libyan conflict arrive in Germany: The first of 900 refugees have arrived in Germany under a resettlement program agreed to in 2011. Nearly all of them were displaced during the conflict in Libya that deposed Moammar Gadhafi.
Soy production endangers Argentina
Soy production endangers Argentina: Argentina’s soy industry saved the nation from the 2001 economic crisis. But the impact of soy production on Argentinians and the environment in nearby regions has been devastating - and yet the state turns a blind eye.
El FROB injectarà 4.500 milions d'euros a Bankia "de forma immediata"
El FROB injectarà 4.500 milions d'euros a Bankia "de forma immediata":
La Comissió Rectora del fons justifica la decisió per “restablir els nivells de capital regulatori del grup”
Conclou que Catalunya Banc “compleix amb els requeriments de solvència”
La Comissió Rectora del fons justifica la decisió per “restablir els nivells de capital regulatori del grup”
Conclou que Catalunya Banc “compleix amb els requeriments de solvència”
Jovem é condenado a um ano de prisão por ‘assassinato do Facebook’
Jovem é condenado a um ano de prisão por ‘assassinato do Facebook’:
ARNHEM, Holanda - Um adolescente holandês de 15 anos foi condenado a um ano de detenção numa instituição juvenil nesta segunda-feira após confessar ter esfaqueado até a morte uma estudante, num caso que parece ter começado com um atrito no Facebook. O crime teria sido encomendado por um casal de jovens.
O caso, conhecido na Holanda como "o assassinato do Facebook", provocou um amplo debate sobre o papel da rede social em crimes violentos. O tribunal disse que o adolescente Jinhua K. não conhecia a vítima e que assassinou a estudante "a pedido e instruções de outros". Ele tentou ainda assassinar o pai da menina.
A imprensa holandesa informou que a jovem de 15 anos, identificada como Joyce “Winsie” Hau, brigou por semanas com dois contatos na rede social antes de eles supostamente pedirem ao réu, com 14 anos na época, para matá-la.
Segundo a imprensa holandesa, o adolescente recebeu uma proposta de mil euros para cometer o crime. Polly W. e Wesley C. teriam dado a ele um papel com o endereço da vítima e indicações de quando ela estaria em casa.
- Eu não estou feliz com um ano (de detenção) pela vida da minha filha - disse o pai de Winsie fora do tribunal. - Mas é isso o que diz a lei.
Além de um ano numa instituição juvenil, Jinhua terá que passar também três anos numa clínica psiquiátrica. O condenado pediu desculpas no tribunal pelo crime e disse que estava sob forte pressão da mandante. Médicos dizem que ele sofre de desordem comportamental e tendências psicopatas.
ARNHEM, Holanda - Um adolescente holandês de 15 anos foi condenado a um ano de detenção numa instituição juvenil nesta segunda-feira após confessar ter esfaqueado até a morte uma estudante, num caso que parece ter começado com um atrito no Facebook. O crime teria sido encomendado por um casal de jovens.
O caso, conhecido na Holanda como "o assassinato do Facebook", provocou um amplo debate sobre o papel da rede social em crimes violentos. O tribunal disse que o adolescente Jinhua K. não conhecia a vítima e que assassinou a estudante "a pedido e instruções de outros". Ele tentou ainda assassinar o pai da menina.
A imprensa holandesa informou que a jovem de 15 anos, identificada como Joyce “Winsie” Hau, brigou por semanas com dois contatos na rede social antes de eles supostamente pedirem ao réu, com 14 anos na época, para matá-la.
Segundo a imprensa holandesa, o adolescente recebeu uma proposta de mil euros para cometer o crime. Polly W. e Wesley C. teriam dado a ele um papel com o endereço da vítima e indicações de quando ela estaria em casa.
- Eu não estou feliz com um ano (de detenção) pela vida da minha filha - disse o pai de Winsie fora do tribunal. - Mas é isso o que diz a lei.
Além de um ano numa instituição juvenil, Jinhua terá que passar também três anos numa clínica psiquiátrica. O condenado pediu desculpas no tribunal pelo crime e disse que estava sob forte pressão da mandante. Médicos dizem que ele sofre de desordem comportamental e tendências psicopatas.
Why Walmart Can Pull Off 'Everyday Low Prices' But Everyone Else Keeps Failing
Why Walmart Can Pull Off 'Everyday Low Prices' But Everyone Else Keeps Failing:
NEW YORK (AP) — Joelle Daddino is making it difficult for stores to make money.
Like many Americans who've grown accustomed to deep discounts, Daddino has become so obsessed with sales that she refuses to shop any place that isn't having one.
"If I don't have a coupon or it's not on sale, I just won't buy it," says the Yaphank, N.Y., resident.
During the recession, retailers had more sales to lure cash-strapped Americans into stores. Now, that strategy has backfired. It has bred a group of deal junkies that won't shop unless they see "70 percent" signs or yellow clearance stickers. They're a thorn in the side of most retailers because the discounts it takes to get them into stores eats away at profits. In fact, retailers' annual profit growth was cut in half between 2006 and last year, according to a survey of 122 merchants by Retail Metrics, a research firm.
So, big chains like J.C. Penney and Lowe's are trying to wean sale-addicted customers off of sales in favor of everyday low pricing. It's the biggest shift in pricing in decades, but retailers have a long way to go to convince shoppers that predictable pricing is better than the temporary promotions that they've grown to love. In fact, early this year, nearly three-quarters of 1,000 shoppers surveyed by consumer research firm America's Research Group said it would take discounts of at least 50 percent to get them to buy a given item. That's up from 52 percent in 2005.
Paco Underhill, whose company Envirosell studies consumer behavior, says retailers are to blame for the increase. He says their discounting during the downturn created shoppers who think everyday pricing "takes some fun out of" shopping. To help break the vicious cycle of discounting, Underhill says merchants have to think of ways to attract shoppers that can be just as intoxicating as two-hour sales or coupons. That could mean top-notch service or exclusive merchandise, for instance.
"Sales are just like heroin," he says.
Now, retailers are trying to replicate the success of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer that was founded 50 years ago on "everyday low" prices. Experts say Wal-Mart's strategy has worked because it built its reputation on being able to offer customers the lowest prices every day.
In fact, the company's revenue at stores opened at least a year in its U.S. namesake business fell for two years when it veered away from the strategy in favor of temporary price cuts. The company has since been able to turn around its business in part by renewing its commitment to everyday low prices.
Penney executives say they considered Wal-Mart's model when they decided to change the retailer's pricing strategy. It was part of an attempt to turn around the Plano, Tex-based chain, which has had annual sales declines in four of the past five years.
In February, J.C. Penney Co. eliminated coupons and the nearly 600 sales it used to have annually. It lowered prices in its stores permanently by 40 percent. The company's three-tier price strategy also included monthly sales on select items and clearance sales every other Friday.
"Wal-Mart taught us all in the '80s when you get a steady sales process, what happens? You can manage the business better," Penney's CEO and former Apple executive Ron Johnson says. "All good happened from a predictable sales pattern."
But Penney, which has 1,000 stores, has learned that it's not so easy to duplicate Wal-Mart's magic. Customers have not embraced the new pricing: Penney recently reported its second consecutive quarter of big losses due to severe sales drops. And its stock has lost over 40 percent of its value since early February.
Now, Penney is changing its pricing — again — to add back more sales. Among other changes, the company began eliminating last month its monthlong sales and instead is increasing its clearance sales to every Friday. Johnson acknowledged that Penney made some mistakes, but he's vowing to stick to the everyday pricing plan.
"Withdrawing from our promotional model to a more everyday model has been harder than we anticipated," Johnson told investors in August. "But it doesn't change our conviction that the promotional model had run its course, and we have a far better path forward."
Wendy Ruud, a former Penney's customer, isn't waiting around to see if Penney executives are right. The Boca Raton, Fla. resident hasn't been back to Penney since the new pricing plan was implemented earlier this year. Instead, she's gone to Macy's Inc. and Sears, Roebuck and Co. for clothing.
"When you have a sale, you really feel you are getting a better deal or a bargain," Ruud, 49, said.
Penney isn't the only retailer finding that everyday pricing is a tough sale to shoppers. Even merchants who are returning to their roots of offering permanently low prices are finding it tricky.
Like Wal-Mart, Lowe's, the nation's second largest home improvement chain, built its business around "everyday" low pricing. But then the company strayed away from that and started offering more sales when the housing market tanked in 2006. Shortly after, the company's performance began to lag behind its bigger rival Home Depot, which never veered away from its everyday pricing strategy.
Since last summer, Lowe's flip-flopped. It has been permanently cutting prices on a wide variety of items to better compete with Home Depot. But the strategy hasn't worked. Lowe's posted a 10-percent drop in net income amid a 0.4 percent decline in revenue at stores opened at least a year in the second quarter.
Lowe's Cos. acknowledged that the pricing shift has been a problem. The company says it experienced light traffic over Memorial Day weekend in appliances, flooring, cabinets and countertops because of its reduced discount offerings. So executives say the retailer overcompensated by increasing promotions too much afterward, which hurt profit margins.
Lowe's is still sticking to its everyday price plan, but it's re-evaluating to find the right balance between everyday low prices and temporary promotions.
"We knew it was going to be difficult," CEO Robert Niblock says. "But we may have been overly optimistic."
Not every retailer is finding it hard to convince shoppers that everyday low pricing is better than fleeting sales. Clothing chain Stein Mart has had some bumps, but it's starting to see positive results from its pricing shift.
At the end of last year, Stein Mart started cutting back on coupons, which it had relied on for two years. It's now concentrating on what made the chain successful: offering permanent discounts of up to 60 percent on major brands such as Lucky and Nine West that department stores carry at full price. The company permanently cut prices up to 8 percent on select items, though it declined to offer details.
The 260-store chain, based in Jacksonville, Fla., says it changed its pricing after it found out that coupon purchases accounted for almost a third of sales in recent years, up from just around 5 percent from 2004 through 2006. Its goal is to cut coupon use by 50 percent this year.
Stein Mart says its pricing shift has been successful in part because it has simultaneously focused on boosting its offerings of trendy, brightly-colored merchandise in stores. It says that has helped to offset any backlash from it cutting back on coupons.
In the latest quarter, Stein Mart's net income dropped 44 percent, dragged down by expenses related to software-related costs. But revenue at stores opened at least a year rose 1.6 percent. It's a modest increase, but it's significant because it reversed four straight quarters of sales declines.
"Our strategy is working very well for us," the retailer's interim CEO Jay Stein, the grandson of founder Sam Stein, told investors last month. "We're getting back to our old self, a successful specialty-store environment at discount prices."
NEW YORK (AP) — Joelle Daddino is making it difficult for stores to make money.
Like many Americans who've grown accustomed to deep discounts, Daddino has become so obsessed with sales that she refuses to shop any place that isn't having one.
"If I don't have a coupon or it's not on sale, I just won't buy it," says the Yaphank, N.Y., resident.
During the recession, retailers had more sales to lure cash-strapped Americans into stores. Now, that strategy has backfired. It has bred a group of deal junkies that won't shop unless they see "70 percent" signs or yellow clearance stickers. They're a thorn in the side of most retailers because the discounts it takes to get them into stores eats away at profits. In fact, retailers' annual profit growth was cut in half between 2006 and last year, according to a survey of 122 merchants by Retail Metrics, a research firm.
So, big chains like J.C. Penney and Lowe's are trying to wean sale-addicted customers off of sales in favor of everyday low pricing. It's the biggest shift in pricing in decades, but retailers have a long way to go to convince shoppers that predictable pricing is better than the temporary promotions that they've grown to love. In fact, early this year, nearly three-quarters of 1,000 shoppers surveyed by consumer research firm America's Research Group said it would take discounts of at least 50 percent to get them to buy a given item. That's up from 52 percent in 2005.
Paco Underhill, whose company Envirosell studies consumer behavior, says retailers are to blame for the increase. He says their discounting during the downturn created shoppers who think everyday pricing "takes some fun out of" shopping. To help break the vicious cycle of discounting, Underhill says merchants have to think of ways to attract shoppers that can be just as intoxicating as two-hour sales or coupons. That could mean top-notch service or exclusive merchandise, for instance.
"Sales are just like heroin," he says.
Now, retailers are trying to replicate the success of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer that was founded 50 years ago on "everyday low" prices. Experts say Wal-Mart's strategy has worked because it built its reputation on being able to offer customers the lowest prices every day.
In fact, the company's revenue at stores opened at least a year in its U.S. namesake business fell for two years when it veered away from the strategy in favor of temporary price cuts. The company has since been able to turn around its business in part by renewing its commitment to everyday low prices.
Penney executives say they considered Wal-Mart's model when they decided to change the retailer's pricing strategy. It was part of an attempt to turn around the Plano, Tex-based chain, which has had annual sales declines in four of the past five years.
In February, J.C. Penney Co. eliminated coupons and the nearly 600 sales it used to have annually. It lowered prices in its stores permanently by 40 percent. The company's three-tier price strategy also included monthly sales on select items and clearance sales every other Friday.
"Wal-Mart taught us all in the '80s when you get a steady sales process, what happens? You can manage the business better," Penney's CEO and former Apple executive Ron Johnson says. "All good happened from a predictable sales pattern."
But Penney, which has 1,000 stores, has learned that it's not so easy to duplicate Wal-Mart's magic. Customers have not embraced the new pricing: Penney recently reported its second consecutive quarter of big losses due to severe sales drops. And its stock has lost over 40 percent of its value since early February.
Now, Penney is changing its pricing — again — to add back more sales. Among other changes, the company began eliminating last month its monthlong sales and instead is increasing its clearance sales to every Friday. Johnson acknowledged that Penney made some mistakes, but he's vowing to stick to the everyday pricing plan.
"Withdrawing from our promotional model to a more everyday model has been harder than we anticipated," Johnson told investors in August. "But it doesn't change our conviction that the promotional model had run its course, and we have a far better path forward."
Wendy Ruud, a former Penney's customer, isn't waiting around to see if Penney executives are right. The Boca Raton, Fla. resident hasn't been back to Penney since the new pricing plan was implemented earlier this year. Instead, she's gone to Macy's Inc. and Sears, Roebuck and Co. for clothing.
"When you have a sale, you really feel you are getting a better deal or a bargain," Ruud, 49, said.
Penney isn't the only retailer finding that everyday pricing is a tough sale to shoppers. Even merchants who are returning to their roots of offering permanently low prices are finding it tricky.
Like Wal-Mart, Lowe's, the nation's second largest home improvement chain, built its business around "everyday" low pricing. But then the company strayed away from that and started offering more sales when the housing market tanked in 2006. Shortly after, the company's performance began to lag behind its bigger rival Home Depot, which never veered away from its everyday pricing strategy.
Since last summer, Lowe's flip-flopped. It has been permanently cutting prices on a wide variety of items to better compete with Home Depot. But the strategy hasn't worked. Lowe's posted a 10-percent drop in net income amid a 0.4 percent decline in revenue at stores opened at least a year in the second quarter.
Lowe's Cos. acknowledged that the pricing shift has been a problem. The company says it experienced light traffic over Memorial Day weekend in appliances, flooring, cabinets and countertops because of its reduced discount offerings. So executives say the retailer overcompensated by increasing promotions too much afterward, which hurt profit margins.
Lowe's is still sticking to its everyday price plan, but it's re-evaluating to find the right balance between everyday low prices and temporary promotions.
"We knew it was going to be difficult," CEO Robert Niblock says. "But we may have been overly optimistic."
Not every retailer is finding it hard to convince shoppers that everyday low pricing is better than fleeting sales. Clothing chain Stein Mart has had some bumps, but it's starting to see positive results from its pricing shift.
At the end of last year, Stein Mart started cutting back on coupons, which it had relied on for two years. It's now concentrating on what made the chain successful: offering permanent discounts of up to 60 percent on major brands such as Lucky and Nine West that department stores carry at full price. The company permanently cut prices up to 8 percent on select items, though it declined to offer details.
The 260-store chain, based in Jacksonville, Fla., says it changed its pricing after it found out that coupon purchases accounted for almost a third of sales in recent years, up from just around 5 percent from 2004 through 2006. Its goal is to cut coupon use by 50 percent this year.
Stein Mart says its pricing shift has been successful in part because it has simultaneously focused on boosting its offerings of trendy, brightly-colored merchandise in stores. It says that has helped to offset any backlash from it cutting back on coupons.
In the latest quarter, Stein Mart's net income dropped 44 percent, dragged down by expenses related to software-related costs. But revenue at stores opened at least a year rose 1.6 percent. It's a modest increase, but it's significant because it reversed four straight quarters of sales declines.
"Our strategy is working very well for us," the retailer's interim CEO Jay Stein, the grandson of founder Sam Stein, told investors last month. "We're getting back to our old self, a successful specialty-store environment at discount prices."
Proibição de lâmpadas incandescentes na UE preocupa alemães
Proibição de lâmpadas incandescentes na UE preocupa alemães: A Europa sela o fim da clássica lâmpada incandescente a fim de melhorar a eficiência energética. Mas muitos alemães se negam a adotar as novas lâmpadas econômicas, com receio do mercúrio encontrado dentro delas.
Mexico lowers alert level for simmering volcano
Mexico lowers alert level for simmering volcano: MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico has lowered the alert level for the Popocatepetl volcano near Mexico City four months after the simmering giant raised the alarm when it began spewing red-hot fragments of rock.
Grünenthal Group Apologizes to Thalidomide Victims
Grünenthal Group Apologizes to Thalidomide Victims: The Grünenthal Group’s apology, but no admission of liability, came 50 years after the defect-causing drug was taken off the market.
In final interview, Cardinal says Church "200 years out of date"
In final interview, Cardinal says Church "200 years out of date": ROME (Reuters) - The former archbishop of Milan and papal candidate Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini said the Catholic Church was "200 years out of date" in his final interview before his death, published on Saturday.
Struggling Spanish Consumers Now Face A Crippling Tax Hike
Struggling Spanish Consumers Now Face A Crippling Tax Hike:
Cash-strapped Spanish shoppers and small businesses were resigned to more pain on Saturday, as everyday living costs like heating, phone bills, clothes and haircuts all become more expensive following a hike in value-added tax (VAT).
Spain's center-right government has raised its main VAT rate by three percentage points to 21 percent as part of a drive to slash 65 billion euros ($82 billion) from the public deficit by 2014 and save the country from a full international bailout.
But many in the country, which has already tapped international help for its banks and where one in four is out of work, fear the move will only deepen a second recession in three years.
"I've got children, my wife is sick and can't work, so this VAT hike is going to affect us a lot. But then, what can you do? The government takes these measures and we just have to accept what comes," said Carlos Asis Alema as he shopped for food at the Mercado de las Ventas, a large market with stalls in Madrid.
Asis Alema said his income as a house painter was small enough that the tax rise would have a big impact on his family.
The Organisation for Consumers and Users, or OCU, estimates the tax hike will increase the average family's spending by 470 euros a year.
Some larger companies such as Inditex, which owns the Zara clothes chain, and leading supermarket chain Mercadona said they would not pass the higher cost on to their customers.
That had smaller businesses concerned they will suffer since they cannot squeeze margins the way the big firms can and retail sales have fallen every month for more than two years.
Mirardo Moya Cota, employee at a dry cleaner and clothes mender in the Mercado de las Ventas, said the business where he works has had to raise prices.
While the prices don't look too much higher on individual items, it adds up bit by bit, he said.
"It's horrible, it hurts all of us, especially those of us who are less well off," said a woman shopping at a butcher stand, who declined to give her name. The tax on meat rose to 10 percent from 8 percent.
Defaults on consumer and mortgage loans have soared in Spain, and evictions from homes have also jumped. Companies and the public sector have cut wages. The government does not expect an economic recovery to start until next year and job creation may still be several years off.
SPAIN TRAPPED
Spain is trapped in a vice. On the one hand the government must drastically cut spending and lay off public workers to show investors it can control the public deficit and try to bring down sky-high borrowing costs.
On the other hand, tax revenue is shrinking because of joblessness and recession so the government has increased taxes to try to keep the deficit in line, which in turn inhibits consumer spending and makes the recession worse.
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who pledged in his campaign last year not to raise VAT, recognized in a speech on Saturday that the tax hike was "painful". But he said it was not in vain because the revenue would help Spain continue to fund schools and hospitals at a time of intense budget cuts.
The VAT hike puts Spain broadly in line with other European countries. The 18 percent rate was lower than most.
Some shoppers rushed purchases on Friday, particularly on items that used to be in a lower tax bracket such as haircuts which jumped to a 21 percent rate from 8 percent and schoolbooks which soared to 21 percent from 4 percent.
"We're here getting the boys haircuts to save a bit of money, given the economic crisis we're in," said Antonio, who took his two sons to the barber a day ahead of the increase.
The tax on theatre and cinema tickets and other cultural and entertainment items also rose to 21 percent from 8 percent, which has art institutions fearing their industry could be pushed over the edge.
($1 = 0.7933 euros)
Cash-strapped Spanish shoppers and small businesses were resigned to more pain on Saturday, as everyday living costs like heating, phone bills, clothes and haircuts all become more expensive following a hike in value-added tax (VAT).
Spain's center-right government has raised its main VAT rate by three percentage points to 21 percent as part of a drive to slash 65 billion euros ($82 billion) from the public deficit by 2014 and save the country from a full international bailout.
But many in the country, which has already tapped international help for its banks and where one in four is out of work, fear the move will only deepen a second recession in three years.
"I've got children, my wife is sick and can't work, so this VAT hike is going to affect us a lot. But then, what can you do? The government takes these measures and we just have to accept what comes," said Carlos Asis Alema as he shopped for food at the Mercado de las Ventas, a large market with stalls in Madrid.
Asis Alema said his income as a house painter was small enough that the tax rise would have a big impact on his family.
The Organisation for Consumers and Users, or OCU, estimates the tax hike will increase the average family's spending by 470 euros a year.
Some larger companies such as Inditex, which owns the Zara clothes chain, and leading supermarket chain Mercadona said they would not pass the higher cost on to their customers.
That had smaller businesses concerned they will suffer since they cannot squeeze margins the way the big firms can and retail sales have fallen every month for more than two years.
Mirardo Moya Cota, employee at a dry cleaner and clothes mender in the Mercado de las Ventas, said the business where he works has had to raise prices.
While the prices don't look too much higher on individual items, it adds up bit by bit, he said.
"It's horrible, it hurts all of us, especially those of us who are less well off," said a woman shopping at a butcher stand, who declined to give her name. The tax on meat rose to 10 percent from 8 percent.
Defaults on consumer and mortgage loans have soared in Spain, and evictions from homes have also jumped. Companies and the public sector have cut wages. The government does not expect an economic recovery to start until next year and job creation may still be several years off.
SPAIN TRAPPED
Spain is trapped in a vice. On the one hand the government must drastically cut spending and lay off public workers to show investors it can control the public deficit and try to bring down sky-high borrowing costs.
On the other hand, tax revenue is shrinking because of joblessness and recession so the government has increased taxes to try to keep the deficit in line, which in turn inhibits consumer spending and makes the recession worse.
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who pledged in his campaign last year not to raise VAT, recognized in a speech on Saturday that the tax hike was "painful". But he said it was not in vain because the revenue would help Spain continue to fund schools and hospitals at a time of intense budget cuts.
The VAT hike puts Spain broadly in line with other European countries. The 18 percent rate was lower than most.
Some shoppers rushed purchases on Friday, particularly on items that used to be in a lower tax bracket such as haircuts which jumped to a 21 percent rate from 8 percent and schoolbooks which soared to 21 percent from 4 percent.
"We're here getting the boys haircuts to save a bit of money, given the economic crisis we're in," said Antonio, who took his two sons to the barber a day ahead of the increase.
The tax on theatre and cinema tickets and other cultural and entertainment items also rose to 21 percent from 8 percent, which has art institutions fearing their industry could be pushed over the edge.
($1 = 0.7933 euros)
Syrie : les combats s'intensifient entre les rebelles et l'armée
Syrie : les combats s'intensifient entre les rebelles et l'armée: Les combats entre les forces régulières et les rebelles en Syrie ont redoublé d'intensité samedi. Les insurgés ont multiplié les attaques notamment contre les infrastructures de l'armée de l'air.
Première victime de la grippe porcine aux États-Unis
Première victime de la grippe porcine aux États-Unis: Une Américaine de l'Ohio est décédée après avoir contracté le nouveau virus de la grippe porcine transmis de l'animal aux humains, ont confirmé, vendredi, les centres américains de contrôle et de prévention des maladies (U.S. Centers for Disease Control).
Human safaris may be banned, but still tourists flock to Andaman Islands
Human safaris may be banned, but still tourists flock to Andaman Islands:
Eight months after the Observer revealed the shocking story of how tourists were paying to gawp at reclusive tribe, Gethin Chamberlin returns to find the practice still goes on
"Jarawa!" The cry goes up from the front of the bus and, in an instant, the tourists are on their feet, craning their necks to see a small boy clutching a short spear.
He is standing on the edge of the jungle, watching the convoy of vehicles thunder past on the Andaman trunk road. The tourists lurch towards the right-hand side of the vehicle to catch one last glimpse of him and then the government-run bus is past and he is gone.
It is Wednesday morning, three days before the start of the official tourist season and eight months since an Observer investigation into the plight of the aboriginal Jarawa tribe, and an accompanying video of young tribal women dancing semi-naked for food, scandalised India and brought international condemnation of the Andaman human safaris.
The spectacle of more than a third of a million people pouring through the dwindling tribe's jungle reserve each year, many of them intent on catching a glimpse of its largely reclusive inhabitants, prompted an outpouring of fury that could not be ignored.
The Indian government moved swiftly to introduce laws punishing interference with the Jarawa with seven years in jail. Two policemen were arrested over the video, and the inspector general of police was transferred after he was caught taking his family on a human safari. In July the country's supreme court – which ordered the closure of the road in 2002 – banned commercial and tourist activity inside a 5km buffer zone around the tribal reserve, warning that any breach of the order would amount to contempt of court. That should have been the end of the human safaris, the term coined to describe the eight daily convoys of vehicles that run up and down the road through the heart of the pristine jungle.
Last week, however, when the Observer returned to the Andamans, it was business as usual for the human safari industry. Not only does it continue, but it does so with the blessing of the Andaman and Nicobar administration, which runs its own daily tourist bus through the reserve. It costs 1,000 rupees (£11.36) for a ticket on the air-conditioned bus (850 rupees without air conditioning), ostensibly to visit a limestone cave and mud "volcano" on Baratang island, which lies 100km north of the capital, Port Blair – and inside the buffer zone fixed by the supreme court.
Hundreds of private tour operators offer their own versions of the tour. But as the reactions of the bus passengers testify, the real attraction of the trip is that it runs through the Jarawa reserve on South Andaman island and offers the opportunity to see the inhabitants in their natural habitat.
The white bus, with the national tourism advertising slogan "Incredible !ndia" painted on its side in large blue letters, picks up its first passengers next to the statue of Gandhi in the centre of Port Blair at 6.30am. A private bus company offering the same trip is collecting passengers from the same spot. It has been raining heavily, but it starts to ease as the bus heads north, entering the tall forest with its mix of hardwood trees and coconut palms. The bus draws up at the last checkpoint before the reserve to await the start of the second convoy of the day. The 13 passengers climb out and head for the stalls selling snacks and drinks.
Half a dozen cars are parked at the side of the road, also waiting for the convoy to start. Five minutes before the tour is due to depart, a loudspeaker crackles into life, instructing those waiting by their vehicles to stick to the rules, which are set out on the board – not yet updated –next to the police post: don't give the Jarawa bananas and biscuits, don't take pictures, don't stop, don't let the Jarawa into your vehicles. Anyone breaking the law faces five years in jail.
The passengers board the bus and a policeman with a luxuriant handlebar moustache joins the tour, clutching an ancient Lee-Enfield .303 rifle. Then the convoy is off, picking up speed and bouncing along the uneven surface. The rain has stopped and the trees glisten with moisture. Those on board do not have to wait long.
"Jarawa!" The driver points to the side of the road ahead. The tourists are on their feet, eager to catch a glimpse. A man is crouching by the road with a bow on his knees. The bus flashes past. "Jarawa," the tourists say contentedly to each other as they sit down. This is what they came for. The cave is an unimpressive gash in a limestone cliff, the mud "volcano" merely a large puddle that occasionally belches out a few bubbles of gas from decomposing vegetation trapped below. This is the main event. But they have heeded the warnings: no one tries to take pictures and the sealed bus windows make throwing out food an impossibility.
The bus breaks down and everyone is decanted on to the private vehicle that is following behind. There is another hiatus as the convoy squeezes past another, larger one, coming in the opposite direction. Then it is off again, moving swiftly, the new vehicle bouncing fiercely.
"Jarawa!" This time it is two women, naked from the waist up, with bright red cloth wrapped around their heads. The tourists are on their feet.
"Jarawa!" Every few minutes, the cry goes up. Each time the tourists spring up, but there are several false alarms.
The policeman, also standing now, forgets his rifle, propped against the back of a seat, and it crashes to the floor of the bus as the vehicle hits another pothole. He picks it up, glances sideways, then stares straight ahead.
There are 22 people on the bus now and most are on their feet, peering out of the windows on the left side. Then the forest ends abruptly and the bus pulls up next to a jetty. The passengers board a ferry and a local bus and a couple of cars squeeze in behind them. It takes less than 10 minutes to reach Baratang, where a small flotilla of motorboats is waiting to convey the tourists to the walkway that gives way to a muddy path leading 1.2km inland to the cave. A few people make appreciative noises as the guide points out the stalagmites and stalactites inside.
Although Baratang lies within the buffer zone, the island's administration has allowed the tours to continue, claiming that it has sought an eight-week stay to allow time for an appeal, a request refused by the supreme court.
Two boat rides later and the tourists are back on the bus. A couple ask about the "volcano", but the guide shrugs and says it is not worth seeing. At 3pm the convoy sets off, and for those hoping to see members of the tribe it is a vintage afternoon. "Jarawa!" "Jarawa!" "Jarawa!" A woman, then a man, then the child with his spear, then another woman. The tourists are leaning forward, some not even bothering to sit down as they try to get a better view through the windscreen.
This is not a big convoy: a dozen cars, four buses and a couple of lorries. Even so, the vehicles are carrying about 100 people. Another convoy squeezes past, heading towards Baratang, the last northbound convoy of the day, made up of 10 cars and five buses. At the height of the tourist season there can be as many as 150 private tour vehicles on the first convoy of the day alone, along with the tour buses and commercial vehicles. During the tourist season, which runs from September to May, an estimated 250 vehicles use the road each day. The number drops to 150 during the off season.
Even using the low vehicle and passenger figures from this one trip, that amounts to almost 150,000 people a year going up and down the road. Factor in the much higher numbers travelling when the tourist season is at its peak and a very conservative average of 500 people on the road every day produces an annual total of 180,000 people. Even if only half of them were tourists, they outnumber the Jarawa by 228 to one.
There is widespread agreement that this volume of interference with the Jarawa's nomadic, largely insular existence can only hasten their demise.
The Andamans lie in the Bay of Bengal, closer to Burma than to India, and anthropologists say the tribe has been there for tens of thousands of years, probably having migrated from Africa. It is only 14 years since they dropped their hostile attitude towards outsiders and started to come out of the jungle in any numbers. Before that, intruders had to risk attack from members armed with bows and arrows and there were numerous fatal clashes. Some younger members of the tribe are voluntarily seeking contact now, but most shun it.
Environmental groups, including Survival International, warn that interaction with outsiders will lead to destruction of the Jarawa, as it has done with other tribes on the islands, including the Great Andamanese, who once lived in large numbers around Port Blair. Survival has repeatedly called for closure of the road, but the islands' administration appears determined to keep it open to provide access for settlers. It is 10 years since India's supreme court first ordered the closure of the road to protect the Jarawa.
Despite the international outrage, despite the anger of the government in Delhi, despite the rulings of the highest court in the land, despite the repeated interventions of Congress party leader Sonia Gandhi on behalf of the Jarawa, the human safaris go on.
"Jarawa!" The cry goes up from the front of the bus and, in an instant, the tourists are on their feet, craning their necks to see a small boy clutching a short spear.
He is standing on the edge of the jungle, watching the convoy of vehicles thunder past on the Andaman trunk road. The tourists lurch towards the right-hand side of the vehicle to catch one last glimpse of him and then the government-run bus is past and he is gone.
It is Wednesday morning, three days before the start of the official tourist season and eight months since an Observer investigation into the plight of the aboriginal Jarawa tribe, and an accompanying video of young tribal women dancing semi-naked for food, scandalised India and brought international condemnation of the Andaman human safaris.
The spectacle of more than a third of a million people pouring through the dwindling tribe's jungle reserve each year, many of them intent on catching a glimpse of its largely reclusive inhabitants, prompted an outpouring of fury that could not be ignored.
The Indian government moved swiftly to introduce laws punishing interference with the Jarawa with seven years in jail. Two policemen were arrested over the video, and the inspector general of police was transferred after he was caught taking his family on a human safari. In July the country's supreme court – which ordered the closure of the road in 2002 – banned commercial and tourist activity inside a 5km buffer zone around the tribal reserve, warning that any breach of the order would amount to contempt of court. That should have been the end of the human safaris, the term coined to describe the eight daily convoys of vehicles that run up and down the road through the heart of the pristine jungle.
Last week, however, when the Observer returned to the Andamans, it was business as usual for the human safari industry. Not only does it continue, but it does so with the blessing of the Andaman and Nicobar administration, which runs its own daily tourist bus through the reserve. It costs 1,000 rupees (£11.36) for a ticket on the air-conditioned bus (850 rupees without air conditioning), ostensibly to visit a limestone cave and mud "volcano" on Baratang island, which lies 100km north of the capital, Port Blair – and inside the buffer zone fixed by the supreme court.
Hundreds of private tour operators offer their own versions of the tour. But as the reactions of the bus passengers testify, the real attraction of the trip is that it runs through the Jarawa reserve on South Andaman island and offers the opportunity to see the inhabitants in their natural habitat.
The white bus, with the national tourism advertising slogan "Incredible !ndia" painted on its side in large blue letters, picks up its first passengers next to the statue of Gandhi in the centre of Port Blair at 6.30am. A private bus company offering the same trip is collecting passengers from the same spot. It has been raining heavily, but it starts to ease as the bus heads north, entering the tall forest with its mix of hardwood trees and coconut palms. The bus draws up at the last checkpoint before the reserve to await the start of the second convoy of the day. The 13 passengers climb out and head for the stalls selling snacks and drinks.
Half a dozen cars are parked at the side of the road, also waiting for the convoy to start. Five minutes before the tour is due to depart, a loudspeaker crackles into life, instructing those waiting by their vehicles to stick to the rules, which are set out on the board – not yet updated –next to the police post: don't give the Jarawa bananas and biscuits, don't take pictures, don't stop, don't let the Jarawa into your vehicles. Anyone breaking the law faces five years in jail.
The passengers board the bus and a policeman with a luxuriant handlebar moustache joins the tour, clutching an ancient Lee-Enfield .303 rifle. Then the convoy is off, picking up speed and bouncing along the uneven surface. The rain has stopped and the trees glisten with moisture. Those on board do not have to wait long.
"Jarawa!" The driver points to the side of the road ahead. The tourists are on their feet, eager to catch a glimpse. A man is crouching by the road with a bow on his knees. The bus flashes past. "Jarawa," the tourists say contentedly to each other as they sit down. This is what they came for. The cave is an unimpressive gash in a limestone cliff, the mud "volcano" merely a large puddle that occasionally belches out a few bubbles of gas from decomposing vegetation trapped below. This is the main event. But they have heeded the warnings: no one tries to take pictures and the sealed bus windows make throwing out food an impossibility.
The bus breaks down and everyone is decanted on to the private vehicle that is following behind. There is another hiatus as the convoy squeezes past another, larger one, coming in the opposite direction. Then it is off again, moving swiftly, the new vehicle bouncing fiercely.
"Jarawa!" This time it is two women, naked from the waist up, with bright red cloth wrapped around their heads. The tourists are on their feet.
"Jarawa!" Every few minutes, the cry goes up. Each time the tourists spring up, but there are several false alarms.
The policeman, also standing now, forgets his rifle, propped against the back of a seat, and it crashes to the floor of the bus as the vehicle hits another pothole. He picks it up, glances sideways, then stares straight ahead.
There are 22 people on the bus now and most are on their feet, peering out of the windows on the left side. Then the forest ends abruptly and the bus pulls up next to a jetty. The passengers board a ferry and a local bus and a couple of cars squeeze in behind them. It takes less than 10 minutes to reach Baratang, where a small flotilla of motorboats is waiting to convey the tourists to the walkway that gives way to a muddy path leading 1.2km inland to the cave. A few people make appreciative noises as the guide points out the stalagmites and stalactites inside.
Although Baratang lies within the buffer zone, the island's administration has allowed the tours to continue, claiming that it has sought an eight-week stay to allow time for an appeal, a request refused by the supreme court.
Two boat rides later and the tourists are back on the bus. A couple ask about the "volcano", but the guide shrugs and says it is not worth seeing. At 3pm the convoy sets off, and for those hoping to see members of the tribe it is a vintage afternoon. "Jarawa!" "Jarawa!" "Jarawa!" A woman, then a man, then the child with his spear, then another woman. The tourists are leaning forward, some not even bothering to sit down as they try to get a better view through the windscreen.
This is not a big convoy: a dozen cars, four buses and a couple of lorries. Even so, the vehicles are carrying about 100 people. Another convoy squeezes past, heading towards Baratang, the last northbound convoy of the day, made up of 10 cars and five buses. At the height of the tourist season there can be as many as 150 private tour vehicles on the first convoy of the day alone, along with the tour buses and commercial vehicles. During the tourist season, which runs from September to May, an estimated 250 vehicles use the road each day. The number drops to 150 during the off season.
Even using the low vehicle and passenger figures from this one trip, that amounts to almost 150,000 people a year going up and down the road. Factor in the much higher numbers travelling when the tourist season is at its peak and a very conservative average of 500 people on the road every day produces an annual total of 180,000 people. Even if only half of them were tourists, they outnumber the Jarawa by 228 to one.
There is widespread agreement that this volume of interference with the Jarawa's nomadic, largely insular existence can only hasten their demise.
The Andamans lie in the Bay of Bengal, closer to Burma than to India, and anthropologists say the tribe has been there for tens of thousands of years, probably having migrated from Africa. It is only 14 years since they dropped their hostile attitude towards outsiders and started to come out of the jungle in any numbers. Before that, intruders had to risk attack from members armed with bows and arrows and there were numerous fatal clashes. Some younger members of the tribe are voluntarily seeking contact now, but most shun it.
Environmental groups, including Survival International, warn that interaction with outsiders will lead to destruction of the Jarawa, as it has done with other tribes on the islands, including the Great Andamanese, who once lived in large numbers around Port Blair. Survival has repeatedly called for closure of the road, but the islands' administration appears determined to keep it open to provide access for settlers. It is 10 years since India's supreme court first ordered the closure of the road to protect the Jarawa.
Despite the international outrage, despite the anger of the government in Delhi, despite the rulings of the highest court in the land, despite the repeated interventions of Congress party leader Sonia Gandhi on behalf of the Jarawa, the human safaris go on.
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One of the solutions to the crisis may lie in human medicine. Prof. Eugene Rosenberg of Tel Aviv Univ
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Captivated by a strange coiling behavior in the grasping tendrils of the cucumber plant, researchers at Harvard University have characterized a new type of spring that is soft when pulled gently and stiff when pulled strongly.
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These fiercely independent men in their seven-metre (23-foot) boats bring a touch of authenticity to a region that has largely dedicated itself to t
The fishing villages have become chic resorts and the yachts of the wealthy dominate the waters of the French Riviera, but the 300 odd fishermen who remain on this sunny coast are determined to keep up a tradition that is also their livelihood.
These fiercely independent men in their seven-metre (23-foot) boats bring a touch of authenticity to a region that has largely dedicated itself to t
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