Greece takes 'first step' towards forming government - GREECE - FRANCE 24

AP - Hopes rose slightly Thursday that Greece could end its post-electoral deadlock without having to hold new elections, as international partners warned that Athens must stick to its hugely unpopular austerity program or abandon the euro.

Socialist leader Evangelos Venizelos, who received the presidential mandate to try and form a government after two other party chiefs failed, said a meeting Thursday with a left-wing potential kingmaker had proved encouraging.

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Sarkozy allies mull risky entente with far right - FRANCE - FRANCE 24

Faced with the likelihood of losing its majority in next month's parliamentary elections, France's centre-right Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) is being forced to do some soul-searching. Still stinging from defeat in Sunday's presidential poll, many UMP lawmakers will likely have to make a difficult choice between honouring the established tradition of blocking the far-right in elections and the threat of losing their seats in parliament.

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Just for German banks, not including the Greek indirect bailout.

Any ideas?

Brussels sees Spain missing budget targets | EurActiv

Spain is set to miss its deficit reduction targets this year and next unless it takes new measures, the European Commission will forecast on Friday (11 May), but Madrid insists the targets will be met, Spanish and EU officials said.

The EU's executive arm will announce on Friday its economic forecasts for the 27 countries in the European Union for this year and next, including growth, budget deficit and debt rates.

Spain's borrowing costs have soared on investor concerns that the government may have to bail out the banking sector. Madrid has promised to reduce the public deficit to 5.3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) this year from 8.5 percent in 2011, and to 3 percent in 2013.

However, the Commission will say that unless policies change, Spain will have a budget shortfall of 6.0 percent this year and just short of 4 percent in 2013, two EU officials said.

Merkel rejects putting growth before reforms | EurActiv

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is opposing economic stimulus policies that rely on new debt, amid calls to relax austerity measures from centre-left opponents in Germany and some European leaders.

In a speech on Thursday the German Chancellor told the lower house of the parliament, the Bundestag, that reducing debt and encouraging growth were "twin pillars" in European policy instead of other alternative ways.

"Growth through structural reforms is sensible, important and necessary. Growth on credit would just push us right back to the beginning of the crisis, and that is why we should not and will not do it," Merkel said.

U.N. Warns of Social Fall-Out from Spain's Austerity Plan - IPS ipsnews.net

GENEVA, May 10, 2012 (IPS) - An expert body of the United Nations has warned the Spanish government that the severe budget cutbacks it is applying must not undermine its commitment to upholding the economic, social and cultural rights of the country's people.

Austerity measures imposed by the government of centre-right Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy could have "a negative and disproportionate impact on the enjoyment of those rights," said the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR).

Committee Chairperson Ariranga Govindasamy Pillay, a native of Mauritius, said these concerns will definitely appear in the final conclusions of its review of Spain's compliance with the provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, to be released on May 18.

The Committee, made up of 18 independent experts from different regions of the world, monitors observance of the Covenant by the 160 states that have ratified it since its adoption in 1966 and its entry into force in 1976.

Eurointelligence Daily Briefing: Venizelos may just pull it off

Pasok leader is in a desperate last-ditch attempt to form a government of national unity with New Democracy and the small Democratic Left; that would establish Fotis Kouvelis, leader of the pro-euro, anti-austerity DL, as the kingmaker in Greek politics; Kouvelis wants a government that stays in office until 2014; the push for a unity government comes as the latest polls give the hard-left Syriza party a large lead over all the other parties; but platform of a new unity government would still include "disengagement" from the EU-IMF memorandum; Alexis Tsipras, Syriza leader, toned down his demands from rejection to re-examination of the memorandum; Bankia's auditors discovered another black hole, relating to tax credits of €2.5bn, which may need to be charged against equity; the governing PP has embarked on a blame game campaign to deflect attention from its own role in the collapse of Bankia; among those under attack from the government is the chief of Spain's central bank; the European Commission is ready to grant Spain an extra year to meet the deficit target,  but demands a number of quid-pro-quos, including an external supervision of the bank restructuring process;the German government is expected the highest tax revenues in the country history, due to falling unemployment and rising wages; Angela Merkel categorically rules out any debt financed growth measures; Francois Hollande wants to impose his tax on the rich as of June; Daniel Cohn-Bendi[t] warns of a return of military dictatorship in Greece; Germany's Bild is freaking out over the Bundesbank's acknowledgement that German inflation may temporarily exceed the eurozone average; Samuel Brittan, meanwhile, proposes a nominal GDP target (for the umpteenth time), this time as an alternative to austerity.

guaranteed to evoke a violent reaction from police is to challenge their right to "define the situation." --- David Graeber citing Marc Cooper

It's a fine line between homage, parody, and consumer opportunism. Jess Walter

EUobserver.com / Institutional Affairs / MEPs block budget approval for three EU agencies, EU Council

BRUSSELS - The European Parliament on Thursday (10 May) decided to withhold approval on the 2010 accounts of three EU agencies marred by conflicts of interests.

The council of ministers, which is refusing to disclose the way it spends money, also got a red light.

The votes come one day after Diana Banaty, a top official, resigned from the EU food safety authority (Efsa) in Italy to go and work for the same food lobby outfit she was criticised for having been a member of two years ago.

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EUobserver.com / Economic Affairs / German bank breaks anti-inflation taboo

BRUSSELS - In a marked shift from its age-old taboo of accepting higher inflation, the German Bundesbank on Wednesday (10 May) said it may tolerate a devaluation of the common currency to help out crisis-hit countries suffering under a strong euro.

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JPMorgan reveals $2 billion trading loss, CEO Dimon admits egg on face | Reuters

(Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase & Co, the biggest U.S. bank by assets, said it suffered a trading loss of at least $2 billion from a failed hedging strategy, a shock disclosure that hit financial stocks and the reputation of the bank and its CEO, Jamie Dimon.

For a bank viewed as a strong risk manager that went through the financial crisis without reporting a loss, the errors are embarrassing, especially given Dimon's public criticism of the so-called Volcker rule to ban proprietary trading by big banks.

"This puts egg on our face," Dimon said, apologizing on a hastily called conference call with stock analysts. He conceded the losses were linked to a Wall Street Journal report last month about a trader, nicknamed the 'London Whale', who, the report said, amassed an outsized position which hedge funds bet against.

JPMorgan said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that since end-March, its Chief Investment Office has had significant mark-to-market losses in its synthetic credit portfolio - these typically include derivatives in a way intended to mimic the performance of securities.

Deadly Syria bombings draw international condemnation - SYRIA - FRANCE 24

AFP - Two suicide bombers killed at least 55 people and wounded nearly 400 in the Syrian capital Damascus on Thursday, authorities said, in the deadliest attacks of the country's 14-month uprising.

The government and the opposition traded blame, with Syria's foreign ministry, in a letter to UN chief Ban Ki-moon hours after the attacks, saying they were the work of "terrorists" armed and funded by foreign organisations and media.

The blasts during morning rush hour left an apocalyptic scene of destruction and further put into question a UN-backed ceasefire that has failed to take hold since it went into effect on April 12.

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U.S. Treasury Claim of Iran-Al-Qaeda "Secret Deal" Is Discredited - IPS ipsnews.net

WASHINGTON, May 10, 2012 (IPS) - The U.S. Treasury Department's claim of a "secret deal" between Iran and Al-Qaeda, which had become a key argument by right-wing activists who support war against Iran, has been discredited by former intelligence officials in the wake of publication of documents from Osama bin Laden's files revealing a high level of antagonism between Al-Qaeda and Iran.

Three former intelligence officials with experience on Near East and South Asia told IPS they regard Treasury's claim of a secret agreement between Iran and Al-Qaeda as false and misleading.

That claim was presented in a way that suggested it was supported by intelligence. It now appears, however, to have been merely a propaganda line designed to support the Barack Obama administration's strategy of diplomatic coercion on Iran.

Under Secretary of Treasury David S. Cohen announced last July that the department was "exposing Iran's secret deal with Al-Qaeda allowing it to funnel funds and operatives through its territory." The charge was introduced in connection with the designation of an Al-Qaeda official named Yasin al-Suri as a terrorist subject to financial sanctions.

Algerian elections offer gradual change - Africa - Al Jazeera English

Algeria's government has announced a relatively high turnout for Thursday's legislative polls that contrasts starkly with the widespread voter mistrust and disaffection that marked the campaign.

Interior Minister Daho Ould Kablia, who is overseeing the election, said he would announce the results at 3:00 p.m. (1400 GMT) on Friday. Earlier, he said turnout was 42.9 per cent, not the mass abstention many people had been expecting.

The government had earlier said a turnout of 45 per cent would be a "success" and President Abdelaziz Bouteflika made a plea to young Algerians to at least cast blank votes rather than abstaining.

But many Algerians are deeply suspicious of official figures.

Voter participation is the statistic of most concern to the authorities. These elections would be different, officials promised, but there were many calls for boycotts in the lead-up to the vote.

The ruling National Liberation Front has dominated the country's political life since the country won independence from France 50 years ago, but has been forced to offer room to a broader range of voices after uprisings toppled governments in other North Afican countries, including Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.

Green growth is not just for rich nations: World Bank - FRANCE 24

AFP - The World Bank urged global governments Thursday to heed the environment when pursuing prosperity, rejecting what it called a myth that green growth is a luxury most countries cannot afford.

The bank in a report said political considerations, entrenched behaviour and a lack of appropriate financing systems are the chief obstacles to environmentally friendly development.

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Laos says building of controversial dam on hold - FRANCE 24

AFP - Laos has postponed construction of a controversial dam on the Mekong, an official said Thursday, dismissing fears that the work was going ahead despite growing regional opposition.

"There is no construction on the Mekong river," Viraphonh Viravong, director general of the Ministry of Energy and Mines' department of electricity, told AFP by telephone.

Thai company CH Karnchang announced in April that it had signed a contract worth $2.4 billion with the Xayaburi Power Co. "for the engineering, procurement and construction" of the Xayaburi hydroelectric power plant.

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Increasing speed of Greenland glaciers gives new insight for rising sea level

Changes in the speed that ice travels in more than 200 outlet glaciers indicates that Greenland's contribution to rising sea level in the 21st century might be significantly less than the upper limits some scientists thought possible, a new study shows.

"So far, on average we're seeing about a 30 percent speedup in 10 years," said Twila Moon, a University of Washington doctoral student in Earth and space sciences and lead author of a paper documenting the observations published May 4 in Science.

The faster the glaciers move, the more ice and meltwater they release into the ocean. In a previous study, scientists trying to understand the contribution of melting ice to rising sea level in a warming world considered a scenario in which the Greenland glaciers would double their velocity between 2000 and 2010 and then stabilize at the higher speed, and another scenario in which the speeds would increase tenfold and then stabilize.

Peru says 5,000 birds, nearly 900 dolphins dead

The Peruvian government said Wednesday that 5,000 birds, mostly pelicans, and nearly 900 dolphins have died off the country's northern coast, possibly due to rising temperatures in Pacific waters.

The country's northern beaches were earlier this week declared off-limits as scientists scrambled to pin down what was causing such a massive toll, with non-government organizations blaming oil exploration work.

But Peru's deputy environment minister Gabriel Quijandria, disputed this and said warming waters, which disturbs species' food supplies, was a possible cause.

He said that although tests conducted on 877 dolphins found dead on the coast had not been completed, contamination from heavy metals or the presence of bacterial infections was not responsible.

Conservative thinktanks step up attacks against Obama's clean energy strategy | Environment | guardian.co.uk

A network of ultra-conservative groups is ramping up an offensive on multiple fronts to turn the American public against wind farms and Barack Obama's energy agenda.

A number of rightwing organisations, including Americans for Prosperity, which is funded by the billionaire Koch brothers, are attacking Obama for his support for solar and wind power. The American Legislative Exchange Council (Alec), which also has financial links to the Kochs, has drafted bills to overturn state laws promoting wind energy.

Now a confidential strategy memo seen by the Guardian advises using "subversion" to build a national movement of wind farm protesters.

Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.

Le lien entre la maladie de Parkinson et les pesticides officiellement reconnu

C'est un pas de plus vers la reconnaissance des maladies professionnelles des agriculteurs. Lundi 7 mai, est entré en vigueur un décret qui reconnaît la maladie de Parkinson comme maladie professionnelle et établit explicitement un lien de causalité entre cette pathologie - seconde maladie neurodégénérative en France après Alzheimer - et l'usage des pesticides.

It's a fine line between homage, parody, and consumer opportunism. Jess Walter

Reactions to Obama's gay marriage endorsement - US POLITICS - FRANCE 24

In the wake of US President Barack Obama's historic endorsement of gay marriage in a TV interview Wednesday, France24.com checked in with analysts, activists and voters across the political spectrum. Here's a selection of their reactions.

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Online scams cost $485 mn in US in 2011: survey - FRANCE 24

AFP - Online scams including identity theft schemes, "advance fee" and "romance fraud" cost Americans some $485 million in 2011, a report prepared for the FBI said Thursday.

The Internet Crime Complaint Center annual report said the number of complaints about online fraud rose 3.4 percent to 314,246.

The most common complaints included FBI-related scams, in which criminals impersonate the FBI to gain sensitive data, identity theft and advance fee fraud -- schemes in which emails pledge to release funds for a transaction fee.

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In other gay news, the Colorado statehouse has managed to put off so much stuff to the very last minute that they now find themselves in a pickle. There's a civil unions bill up for a vote, which the GOP chairman unaccountably allowed to move out of committee and into the full house. Of course that turned into a long bickering match, which used up all the time for the (fixed ending date) session--and left around 30 bills unaccounted for.

So now they're having to set up a special session to try to get it all resolved. Which is ok, and the civil unions bill will not be approved and some of the others will. But the real question is, what was the GOP leadership thinking when they got themselves into this fix in the first place???

Democrats blame Speaker Frank McNulty for the death of a civil unions bill, but the Highlands Ranch Republican is the only reason the measure even made it to the House floor this year. McNulty sent the bill to the House Judiciary Committee, knowing Republican lawmaker B.J. Nikkel was a "yes" vote, setting in motion a chain of events that would move the bill to the House for debate.

During a two-hour recess, the speaker and Gov. John Hickenlooper were outside the Capitol and drank bourbon underneath a tree. Hickenlooper, a Denver Democrat who attended the speaker's wedding last summer, urged the speaker to allow the bill to be heard, even telling McNulty he was likely to call a special session if it didn't pass. McNulty would not budge, and the bill died on the calendar without a debate.

The question now swirling throughout the Capitol and Colorado's political landscape is "What was Frank McNulty thinking?"

http://www.denverpost.com/legislature/ci_20588187/colorado-house-speakers-civil-unions-decisions-may -echo#ixzz1uWjAy5DW

The governor and the speaker of the house taking a break from legislative session to sit under a tree drinking whiskey and arguing...that about sums up Colorado politics.

Journalism is Not `More Fun' in the Philippines - IPS ipsnews.net

MANILA, May 10, 2012 (IPS) - Reporters working in the Philippines, the world's third most dangerous nation for journalists, are having difficulty identifying with the "It's More Fun in the Philippines" tourism promotion campaign launched by the Liberal Party-led government of President Benigno Aquino III.

The Southeast Asian nation's reputation for press freedom and safety has yet to recover from the notorious Ampatuan Massacre of Nov. 23, 2009 in Maguindanao, Mindanao, in which 58 persons, including 32 reporters, were slaughtered by the private army of a local political clan chief, Andal Ampatuan Sr.

A total of 196 persons have been charged in the massacre, including clan patriarch Andal and his grandson, Anwar Ampatuan Jr, but less than 100 have been arrested and not a single one convicted of any crimes.

While the government attempts to paint over the tragedy with billboards proclaiming the joys of holidaying in the Philippines, media workers are continuing the fight for accountability.

A formal statement issued by the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) to mark World Press Freedom Day on May 3 declared, "There is little reason for celebration since not a single mastermind in any of the 152 murders of journalists since 1986 has been arrested, prosecuted and convicted."

Impossible internet connection tonight, apologies for the light touch salon.  

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