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European Salon de News, Discussion et Klatsch - 14 February

by Fran Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 04:04:23 PM EST

 A Daily Review Of International Online Media 


Europeans on this date in history:

1944 – Alan Parker,an English film director, producer, writer and actor, was born.

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by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 10:45:05 AM EST
Thousands of Neo-Nazis, opponents mass in Dresden | Germany | Deutsche Welle | 13.02.2010

Thousands of neo-Nazis and their opponents gathered in Dresden on Saturday on the 65th anniversary of the Allied firebombing of the city.

 

Police spokesman Thomas Geithner said up to 7,000 far-right supporters from around Europe are expected at what organizers have called a "mourning march." By noon, about 1,000 had already turned up.

 

Twice as many left-wing opponents have organized rallies of their own in an attempt to block the rightist march.

 

"This year we are going to stop the Nazis," said Katja Kipping, deputy leader of the Left Party, at an anti-fascist protest in the city center.

 

Around 4,000 police, armed with water cannons and backed by five helicopters circling overheard, are in place to prevent clashes between the two groups.

 

Failed attempt to ban the march

 

The right-wing march is organized by a group known as the Junge Landsmannschaft Ostdeutschland (Young National Association of East Germany), or JLO, which is supported by Germany's right-wing party, the NPD.

 

German neo-Nazis claim the carpet bombing of Dresden at the end of World War II was a war crime and have been holding rallies since the 1990s to protest what they call the "bombing Holocaust."

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:27:01 AM EST
[ Parent ]
German protesters stop neo-Nazi march in Dresden | Reuters

DRESDEN, Germany (Reuters) - At least 10,000 Germans formed a human chain in Dresden on Saturday and stopped neo-Nazis staging a funeral march to remember victims of the Allied air raid that flattened the city 65 years ago.

World

About 5,000 neo-Nazis, clad in black, had gathered at Dresden's Neustadt station -- where Nazis once packed trains with Jews bound for the Auschwitz concentration camp -- hoping to stage Germany's biggest far-right march since 1945.

In the past few years, the February 13 anniversary of the destruction of Dresden, in which 25,000 people were killed, has become a focus for neo-Nazis who describe the blanket bombardment as a "bombing Holocaust."

But large numbers of anti-neo-Nazi protesters, who turned out despite freezing temperatures, stopped the far-right sympathizers from getting into the town center.

"Stopping the Nazi march was a great success for the Nazi Free Alliance Dresden," said Alliance spokeswoman Lena Roth.

"It wasn't easy -- there were people injured in Nazi attacks and it was horribly cold, but it was worth it," she said.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:47:33 PM EST
[ Parent ]
At least 10,000 Germans formed a human chain in Dresden on Saturday and stopped neo-Nazis

That's wrong. 10,000 people formed a human chain to hold a commemoration instead of the Nazis, while another 10,000 staged a blockade around the railway station where the Neo-Nazis gathered.

Such actions would be commonplace in West Germany, but less so in East Germany. The annual Dresden march was the last remaining regular big gathering of the Nazis, this was the first time it was prevented. Reading the long report in taz, most of the blockaders came from all around Germany.

When civil resistance wants to block a legal march of the far-right, police usually has no choice but to dissolve the blokades. But, while there were plenty of scuffles, this time the peaceful ones were dominant enough for police to not find a reason to dissolve the blockades.

*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.

by DoDo on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 01:14:54 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Conservatives rebel over German government's nuclear rethink | Germany | Deutsche Welle | 13.02.2010
Germany's environment minister said that no efforts should be wasted to replace nuclear technology as fast as possible, but German states with atomic power facilities are pushing for a 20-year delay.  

The conservative regional environment ministers from the states of Bavaria, Baden Wuerttemberg and Hesse said in a joint press conference on Friday, February 12, that Germany will need nuclear power for considerably longer before renewable energies are ready to viably replace the technology.

"We don't think that [Environment Minister] Norbert Roettgen's sums add up," said regional Environment Minister Tanya Goenner.

In an interview with the daily paper Sueddeutsche Zeitung earlier this week, Roettgen advocated extending the already limited running times of German nuclear power plants by a further eight years.

This would mean German atomic energy plants should shut down 40 years after they started operating, a deadline ranging between 2015 and 2029 for various plants across the country. Roettgen, however, also said that safety issues could lead to changes in the dates of disassembly.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:37:50 AM EST
[ Parent ]
The latest is an op-ed by economy minister Rainer Brüderle of the neoliberal FDP in the Sunday issue of tabloid Bild (the German Sun). He argues for nuclear to keep costs down, again bemoaning the cost of renewables. But, he kept to the coalition agreement formulation of "bridge technology" -- this time adding "clean coal"...

*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.
by DoDo on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 01:21:16 PM EST
[ Parent ]
FT.com / Europe - Europe trailing in dust of US recovery
The eurozone's economic recovery faltered late last year as a strong performance by France failed to offset stagnation in Germany and contraction in Italy and Spain.

Gross domestic product in the 16-country region crept just 0.1 per cent higher in the fourth quarter compared with the previous three months, reported Eurostat, the European Union's statistics office. That meant the eurozone was left behind by the US, which expanded 1.4 per cent in the same period.

The Financial Times is a Serious Newspaper™

Read it and tremble.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:49:31 AM EST
[ Parent ]
afew:
The Financial Times is a Serious NewspaperTM

Seriously wrong on this subject.

"The future is already here -- it's just not very evenly distributed" William Gibson

by ChrisCook (cojockathotmaildotcom) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 05:05:52 PM EST
[ Parent ]
If the QE rally on Wall Street is factored out, how much recovery would there have been in the USA?

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 10:13:36 PM EST
[ Parent ]
BiH, Serbia restore full diplomatic relations (SETimes.com)
Turkey's trilateral diplomacy brings tangible results. Serbia approves BiH's ambassador to Belgrade after a three-year diplomatic row.

Serbia has fully normalised diplomatic relations with Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), announcing the decision Tuesday (February 9th) after the fifth round of trilateral talks initiated by Turkey last October.

"I can confirm ... that Serbia did give official agreement to the ambassador to come to Belgrade and represent Bosnia and Herzegovina," Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said at a joint conference with his Bosnian and Turkish counterparts in Ankara on Tuesday.

"We've overcome the problems," said Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. "Bosnia will soon assign an ambassador to Belgrade."

Added Davutoglu: "We want to solve all disputes in the Balkans through diplomatic means and reach for regional prosperity and stability."

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:57:39 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Dutch lift veto on Croatia accession talks | Policies | Foreign affairs | Enlargement | European Voice

The Dutch government has lifted its reservations to the EU starting negotiations with Croatia on a crucial area of membership talks, after authorities in Zagreb set up a taskforce to find documents needed for the UN's prosecution of Croatian generals indicted for war crimes.

The UK, Denmark, Finland and Belgium dropped similar reservations earlier this month, leaving the Netherlands the last EU member state to block chapter 23 of the accession negotiations, on the judiciary and fundamental rights,

Chapter 23 had been blocked because a United Nations war-crimes court in The Hague was unhappy with the co-operation forthcoming from Zagreb.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:22:42 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Editorial: Ukraine's election a defeat for the EU - Politiken.dk

In Sunday's presidential election, Ukraine changed colours from orange, to the blue colour of its victor - or as a disappointed supporter of Premier Yulia Timoshenko put it - `Instead of a sweet orange, we got a bitter lemon'.

For many, this was a bitter choice between two evils.

On the one hand Viktor Yanukovich, who in collusion with Moscow attempted to wrest the presidency through electoral cheating in 2004. On the other, Yulia Timoshenko, the heroine of the Orange Revolution, which curbed Yanukovich at the time.

Since then, she has been disappointing in the expectations raised during the happy days of the revolution. Instead of honouring all the promises, she and outgoing President Viktor Yushchenko have been embroiled in a laborious power battle. And as head of government, she has by no means displayed what is necessary to relieve Ukraine's position as the European country hardest hit by the economic crisis.

Moscow beat the EU
One could ask if the Orange Revolution is now dead. The answer is a resounding `No'.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 01:19:09 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Al Jazeera English - Europe - Ukraine PM to challenge poll result

Yulia Tymoshenko, Ukraine's defeated presidential candidate, has declared that she will challenge the election which saw her opponent, Viktor Yanukovych, win the presidential run-off.

Tymoshenko said on Saturday that she will fight the result of last week's vote in Ukrainian courts, calling Yanukovych's win illegitimate.

"I want to clearly state: Yanukovych is not our president. Whatever happens in future, he will never become the legitimately elected president of Ukraine," she said in a televised broadcast.

She also called on the Ukrainian people to support her legal battle to overturn the election result.

But she said she would not call on her supporters to take to the streets in protest.



Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 03:24:07 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Silvio Berlusconi says immigrants not welcome but 'beautiful girls' can stay - Telegraph
Silvio Berlusconi has said that while illegal immigrants were not welcome in Italy he would make an exception for "beautiful girls".

The Italian prime minister, who is renowned for making jokes of questionable taste, was speaking to journalists after holding talks with the prime minister of Albania, Sali Berisha.

Mr Berlusconi, 73, said an accord between Italy and Albania had successfully clamped down on the trafficking of illegal immigrants across the Adriatic Sea by people smugglers.

He then joked: "I said to Sali - we'd make exceptions for anyone bringing over beautiful girls." Mr Berlusconi, whose wife is divorcing him for his alleged philandering, also joked with female Albanian journalists: "You know I'm single now."

by Fran on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 01:27:50 PM EST
[ Parent ]
FT || Berlusconi aide in corruption probe

Guido Bertolaso, right-hand man to Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's premier, was told by police on Wednesday that he was under investigation in connection with a probe into suspected corruption.

The inquiry related to building of facilities for last year's Group of Eight summit, hosted by Italy.

:::

Police arrested four people in connection with the investigation, including Angelo Balducci, a senior official in charge of public works. Special carabiniere forces were reported to have searched Mr Bertolaso's home and office. Media reported that more than 20 people were under investigation, including a Rome magistrate.

:::

 Mr Berlusconi spoke last month of giving Mr Bertolaso the rank of minister, voicing support for his aide just days after he had caused a diplomatic incident by making scathing criticism of the US-led relief effort in Haiti.

The government has tabled legislation that would give greater resources to the Civil Protection agency and change its status. Critics said the reorganisation would provide less transparency in issuing contracts. The centre-left opposition on Wednesday called for the legislation to be put on hold because of the corruption investigation.

by de Gondi (publiobestia aaaatttthotmaildaughtusual) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 06:52:09 PM EST
[ Parent ]
John Rentoul - Tory lead back up to 11 points
The Conservative lead has hardened at a level that would only just give David Cameron a majority, according to a ComRes poll for tomorrow's Independent on Sunday.

Conservative      40% (+2)
Labour                 29% (-2)
Lib Dem               21% (+2)
Others               &nbs p;   10% (-2)
(Changes since ComRes for The Independent, 2 February.)

The 11-point Tory lead would give Cameron an 18-seat majority according to Martin Baxter, but leave him three seats short according to the House of Commons Library (pdf: page xviii).


Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 02:42:51 PM EST
[ Parent ]
SVP-Politiker droht mit Offenlegung deutscher Politiker-Kontodaten | tagesschau.de

Ein Schweizer Parlamentarier hat im Steuerdatenstreit mit der Veröffentlichung der Konten deutscher Amtsträger gedroht. Nationalrat Alfred Heer von der rechtskonservativen SVP sagte der "Bild"-Zeitung: "Falls Deutschland gestohlene Bankdaten kauft, werden wir auf eine Gesetzesänderung hinarbeiten, dass sämtliche Schweizer Konten von deutschen Personen, die öffentliche Ämter bekleiden, offengelegt werden müssen."

In Schweizer Finanzkreisen gebe es Hinweise, dass viele deutsche Politiker und Richter in Liechtenstein und der Schweiz Konten oder Stiftungen unterhielten. "Die ersten Informationen darüber werden uns schon angeboten", sagte Heer dem Blatt. Heer ist SVP-Chef im Kanton Zürich und Präsident des Schweizer Steuerzahlerbunds.

A fast translation below:

A Swiss parliamentarian threatened in the tax data controversy with the publication of the accounts of German office-holders. National council Alfred Heer of the right-conservative SVP said to " Bild" - Newspaper: " If Germany buys stolen bank data, we will work on a law change that all Swiss accounts  by German persons, who occupy public offices must be revealed." In Swiss financial circles hints are given that many German politicians and judges maintained accounts or foundations in Liechtenstein and Switzerland. " The first information about it have already been offered to us; , Heer said to the Newspaper. Heer is a SVP boss in the canton of Zurich and president Swiss of the taxpayer federation.
by Fran on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 05:58:41 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Heh. Go for it!

*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.
by DoDo on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 01:26:44 PM EST
[ Parent ]
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 10:45:32 AM EST
New tax bombshell: 20% VAT - Times Online

A rise in VAT is looming whichever party wins the general election, as Labour and the Conservatives draw up plans to balance Britain's books.

Alistair Darling and George Osborne, the Shadow Chancellor, are both considering raising VAT to as high as 20 per cent -- the European average -- from the current rate of 17.5 per cent, The Times has learnt.

Doing so would raise an extra £13 billion a year at a time when financial markets are searching for signs that whoever takes power is serious about tackling Britain's £178 billion deficit.

Though Labour and the Tories have denied having any current plans to increase VAT, neither will rule it out and The Times understands a rise in the tax is being considered by both parties.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:01:58 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Conservatives deny considering plan to hike VAT to 20 percent | Top News | Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) - The Conservative Party, favourite to win a national election to be held this year, rejected a newspaper report on Saturday which said it was considering raising the sales tax VAT to as high as 20 percent.

"We have absolutely no plans to increase VAT," a party spokesman told Reuters, without giving any further details.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:50:25 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Raising taxes on consumption hits the poor the hardest (relatively speaking). I guess that is why such a tax hike is considered more serious then raising taxes on high incomes or wealth.

This is not to say that there should be no taxes on consumption, only that the damage to the poor should be offset with raised subsidies and lowered income taxes on the lowest incomes. Such a package would then land the tax burden on the middle and rich segments who can better afford it, but I guess that would be unserious.

Sweden's finest (and perhaps only) collaborative, leftist e-newspaper Synapze.se

by A swedish kind of death on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 07:19:15 AM EST
[ Parent ]
But didn't you know that the tax system is an unfair attack on the middle classes? get with the program!

Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 09:14:07 AM EST
[ Parent ]
BBC News - Greek PM Papandreou calls EU response 'timid'

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou has criticised the European Union's response to the country's financial crisis as timid and too slow.

Mr Papandreou told cabinet members at a televised meeting in Athens that the EU lacked coordination and undermined Greece's credibility.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:30:20 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Treasuries Tumble on Supply, Europe's Pledge to Support Greece - Bloomberg.com

Feb. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Treasuries fell, with 10-year notes dropping for the first week this year, as the government sold a record-tying $81 billion in notes and bonds and Europe's pledge to aid Greece dulled the haven appeal of U.S. debt.

Ten- and 30-year yields rose the most in seven weeks as sales of the securities drew lower-than-average demand. The European Union said it was prepared to take action to support Greece, while leaving open how it might respond to a fresh wave of speculative attacks against member nations that are also struggling to cut deficits. U.S. consumer prices rose in January, a report is forecast to show next week.

"With all of the issues the EU had with the PIGS, one would think we would see a continued flight to quality," said Thomas L. di Galoma, head of U.S. rates trading at Guggenheim Partners LLC, a New York-based brokerage for institutional investors. He used an abbreviation for Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:42:12 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Eurozone in need of better management | Reuters

ROME (Reuters) - The fragility of the euro zone economy and public finances underline the need to extend and strengthen euro-wide economic management, European Central Bank Governing Council Member Mario Draghi said on Saturday.

"The euro is solid," Draghi told a gathering of market operators in Naples," but he called on the EU to extend and reform its economic structures "with the same vigour it devoted over the years to consolidating government budgets."

Draghi said investors will buy new securities issued by Greece, whose debt crisis has roiled markets in recent weeks, so long as the government "adjusts its budget with determination, with careful monitoring by the European Commission and the ECB."

More broadly, he said all governments should spell out how they plan to rein in budget deficits and debt levels which surged during the recession of 2008 and the first half of 2009.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:51:32 PM EST
[ Parent ]
POLITICO's daily debate with policymakers and opinion shapers - The Arena | POLITICO.COM

Next week dozens of honchos around Washington are going to be gathering to try to devise ways to ensure that ordinary working people pay for their incompetent management of the economy. This effort will pass under the guise of "fiscal responsibility."

The basic story of course is quite simple. Geniuses like Ben Bernanke, Alan Greenspan and the rest of the country's top economists and policymakers somehow either could not see an $8 trillion housing bubble or just thought it was cute.



Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 06:58:09 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Exclusive: The Bank Of England Engaged In Flagrant Gold Manipulation In The Interwar Period Via The New York Fed   Zero Hedge

An article written by University of Tennessee professor John R Garrett, "Monetary Policy and Expectations: Market-Control Techniques and the Bank of England, 1925-1931", which describes in exquisite detail the gold falsification measures undertaken by the Bank of England in the interwar period in order to impact interest rates in a favorable direction, performed with the full criminal complicity of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, may mean paranoid "gold bugs" could soon be forever absolved of their "tin hat" wearing status as outright gold, and other data, manipulation by a major central bank is now proven beyond doubt. The implications regarding the possibility of comparable deceitful and treasonous acts by modern central bankers are staggering.

   The Bank of England depleted its open-market portfolio by secretly sterilizing large gold inflows. Thereafter interest rates were influenced by manipulating reported gold flows.... A gold flow falsification was over two-thirds as effective as an open-market operation.

Falsifying critical gold data worked for Britain 70 years ago. Is it working now too? And is the BOE alone, or is Bernanke taking advantage of the Bank of England's experience? To be sure, the world was different with the Gold Standard the bedrock of monetary policy. Yet are the similarities between then and now not greater than the differences? With the shadow economy exposed as hinging on the investing community's desire to go with the prevailing "valuation" lie (a reason why the shadow economy in broad terms will take many years to return, if ever) the core asset is and always will be gold.

And yet the main question remains: why did the Bank of England openly and flagrantly manipulate critical data? Why did it mislead the citizens of the country it was supposed to serve? And if this happened in the past is it happening now? Is this the reason why the Federal Reserve is so opposed to exposing itself to public scrutiny and audits? If the BOE was engaging in outright fraud in the 1925-1931 period, why would today be any different?

Garett's mesmerizing report, published in the September 1995 issue of Monetary Policy and Expectations, has oddly not received much if any public notice, with not a single mention of the article or its implication in either the blogosphere or the mainstream arena. This is very unusual as Garret's disclosures would lend vast credence to not just gold bugs' claims that there is blatant (ongoing) gold data manipulation, but that Central Banks regularly engage in outright deception when it comes to achieving desired monetary policy results. To wit:

   Montagu Norman, the Governor of the Bank of England... engaged in a large-scale deception that greatly over-stated the size of the effective open-market portfolio, understated the size of the gold stock, and misstated the size and even the direction of gold flows

Not only that, but Garrett provides a direct link between secret gold market operations by the BOE and accumulation of US Treasuries: a critical concept not just in interwar Britain but more so currently, when faced with the need to finance trillions in budget deficits, the market is poised to decline by 25%+ should the US government experience a failed auction. Oh, and guess who was complicit in the BOE deception, and was used by the British central bank as a trading conduit? Why, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, of which Tim Geithner was president from 2003 to 2009.

   Norman sold pound-denominated securities to sterilize the additional bank reserves created by the gold inflow. He simultaneously sold gold for dollars, lowering the Bank's reported gold stock, and bought U.S. Treasury bills with the proceeds. He also had all transactions carried out on the New York market by the New York Federal Reserve Bank so that they could not be traced to the Bank of England. ...  The U.S. Treasury bills were comingled with pound-denominated "other securities" in the Bank's published open-market portfolio and were assumed by the markets to have been pound-denominated securities. In one stroke the gold inflow and the decline in the open-market portfolio were hidden. Bank Rate was kept at a very high level given the abysmal state of the economy, well over the level that would have prevailed under the Bank of England's prewar reaction function.


Yes, the bold is all Tyler's. Can't really blame him for getting a little excited about finding this paper. How in the Hell did it ever get published? And then languish unread and un-commented for nigh on to fifteen years?

John R. Garrett must be another heterodox economist. No one in Mainstream Economics would devote their time to economic history, especially a topic as radioactive as this. Might be worth a phone call. I have never been to Chattanooga. Should be beautiful in April or May. Perhaps there are more of these guys out there than I dared to hope.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 01:00:56 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Lies, lies, whisper more of those sweet nothing lies in my ear. Anything it takes to keep my, uhm, portfolio up. Happy Valentine's Day.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 01:05:40 AM EST
[ Parent ]
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 10:47:15 AM EST
RFI - Gbagbo dissolves government and electoral commission
Côte d'Ivoire's President Laurent Gbagbo dissolved the country's government and electoral commission on Friday. Speaking on national television he called on Prime Minister Guillaume Soro to form a new government before next Monday evening.

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Gbagbo said the country's peace process was "once again, broken" and his comments came one day after Soro announced the suspension of voter registration.

Voting in the country's presidential election, repeatedly postponed since 2005, was due to take place at the end of February or early March.

Gbagbo's announcement was strongly criticised by by Niamkey Koffi of the PDCI (Parti démocratique de Côte d'Ivoire) who said the President had undone progress in the country's peace process and had "sawn off the branch on which he was sitting".

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:29:50 AM EST
[ Parent ]
RFI - First casualties as 15,000 troops enter Marjah
Thousands of troops have launched an offensive, dubbed "Operation Mushtarak", in the Marjah district of Afghanistan's Helmand province. Nato's International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) says a combined force of 15,000 soldiers is being led by US marines, but also incorporates Afghan soldiers.

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Five Taliban fighters were killed on Saturday in two separate locations after the offensive began, according to Afghan officers.

US and British troops were dropped into the town by helicopter ahead of ground troops, said Lieutenant Josh Diddams, a US marines spokesperson. He said troops were meeting "minimal resistance" as they moved forward on the ground, but that they had come under fire from Taliban fighters.

Helmand Governor Mohammad Gulab said troops transported by 60 helicopters had taken 11 "strategic areas", but that there were "a lot of mines in the area", which are being defused.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:31:13 AM EST
[ Parent ]
News Analysis - Afghan Offensive Is New War Model - NYTimes.com
KABUL, Afghanistan -- For all the fighting that lies ahead over the next several days, no one doubts that the American and Afghan troops swarming into the Taliban redoubt of Marja will ultimately clear it of insurgents.

And that is when the real test will begin.

For much of the past eight years, American and NATO forces have mounted other large military operations to clear towns and cities of Taliban insurgents. And then, almost invariably, they have cleared out, never leaving behind enough soldiers or police officers to hold the place on their own.

And so, almost always, the Taliban returned -- and, after a time, so did the American and NATO troops, to clear the place all over again.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:54:17 AM EST
[ Parent ]
New? Is this not the strategic hamlet in new packaging?

Sweden's finest (and perhaps only) collaborative, leftist e-newspaper Synapze.se
by A swedish kind of death on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 07:28:33 AM EST
[ Parent ]
US-HAITI: The Loan that Wasn't - Part 1 - IPS ipsnews.net
It is an unusual combination of optimism and realism that is driving development experts to try to shed the blemished history of international aid to Haiti, rid the issue of a generation of devastating politicisation, and think way outside the conventional development paradigm.

The fate of one particularly important project is emblematic of factors that have consistently and severely reduced the effectiveness - even the existence - of viable development projects.

Eric Michael Johnson of the Department of History at the University of British Columbia in Canada told IPS, "The U.S. role towards Haiti can best be understood as a kind of abusive paternalism, at times condescending and at others domineering depending on how fully Haitian governments obey the patriarch's dictates."

To illustrate his point, Johnson told IPS what happened after the first coup d'etat and reinstatement of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in late 1994 to a term that ended in 1996. This was followed by five years of René Préval (who is president today).

In 2000, Aristide once again won overwhelmingly in the Haitian elections. Aristide's second election did not please the new U.S. president, George W. Bush.

Johnson then recounts how the Bush administration conspired to cut off funds already appropriated for a vital infrastructure and public health project.

An award of 146 million dollars from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) had already been approved, but at U.S. insistence was not being disbursed. Some 54 million dollars of this loan was intended for desperately needed water and sanitation projects.

"This decision likely resulted in the needless deaths of an untold number of poor Haitians," Johnson said.

In 2006, the Robert F. Kennedy Center filed a Freedom of Information Act Request to force the U.S. to release documents related to this decision.

According to the documents, "there was clear evidence that the United States blocked the loans because they objected to the election of Aristide," Johnson said.

The IDB approved these loans between 1996 and 1998, and Haiti paid around 10 million dollars in interest even before the loans were dispersed. By 2001, there was no reason for the IDB to continue blocking these loans. But block them they did.
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:15:17 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Rasmussen calls for NATO redirection NEW EUROPE - The European News Source

In the continuous struggle to decide what role NATO plays in international stability, the alliance's chief said this week that the entity may need to undergo a "cultural revolution" and serve as an international forum on global security in order to move forward as an organization. Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said in a video blog that NATO should serve as a global security forum where members can consult with partner countries on threats around the world. Rasmussen called this step "a necessity." "NATO must actively be engaged where threats arise," he said. "In today's globalized world we must realize that territorial defense begins beyond our borders and we need to act in close cooperation with other players and partners on the international scene." The comment comes at a time when NATO is trying to redefine its strategic concept for the 21st century. Former U.S. State Secretary Madeleine Albright is leading a group of experts to figure out where the alliance stands.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:25:51 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Eight die in India's first big attack since Mumbai | Reuters

PUNE, India (Reuters) - A bomb ripped through a packed restaurant in the Indian city of Pune on Saturday, killing at least eight people including four foreign women in the country's first big attack since the 2008 Mumbai massacre.

World

The explosion comes only a day after India and Pakistan agreed to meet for high-level talks in New Delhi on February 25. New Delhi suspended a four-year-old peace process with Islamabad after the Mumbai attacks, blamed on Pakistani-based militants.

At least 33 people were wounded on Saturday, police said. No-one has claimed responsibility for the attack.

"There has been a bomb blast," senior police official Rajendra Sonawane told reporters. "There was an abandoned bag which seems to have contained some IED. (improvised explosive device)."

The explosion at German Bakery occurred in the evening, when the restaurant was packed with tourists and foreigners. "Four women foreigners were killed. Their nationality is not known." Dilip Band, a senior police official, told CNN-IBN television.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:44:42 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Wen warns of challenges as China welcomes new year | Reuters

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao warned his people to keep a "sober mind" about the challenges ahead in the new year as the country welcomed the arrival of the Year of the Tiger with noisy celebrations on Saturday.

"In 2010, China will face a more complicated situation, both at home and abroad," the state news agency Xinhua paraphrased Wen as saying, in remarks carried in major newspapers.

People must "keep a sober mind and an enhanced sense of anxiety about lagging behind," the premier added.

Priority should be given to "persistence in taking economic development as the central task, forcefully promoting reform and opening up ... and doing a better job responding to the global financial crisis, in order to keep steady and relatively fast economic development."

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:46:50 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Gaza sources: Sole power plant to halt over Israel fuel blockade - Haaretz - Israel News
Gaza's sole power plant will cease functioning within hours, the Palestinian Ma'an news agency said on Saturday, quoting the Strip's Energy Authority.

The Gaza Energy Authority wrote in a statement that while of the power plant's generators has been shut down, the remaining amount of fuel will only suffice to to continue the plant's electricity output for a few hours longer.

"The power plant's output decreased to 30 megawatts and Gaza will experience blackouts as a result of an energy deficit of 50%," the statement added.
Advertisement

According to the Ma'an report, the Strip-based authority also claimed that the reduction of fuel transfers into Gaza continued, with the first week of February seeing 1,600 cubic meters of fuel entrring the costal enclave instead of the 2,200 cubic meters decided upon in an Israeli court decision.

Authorities appealed to international and humanitarian organizations, as well as Arab states and the Organization of the Islamic Conference to end the ongoing electricity deficit in Gaza.
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 01:13:18 PM EST
[ Parent ]
What Gaza needs is a solar thermal power plant.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 10:40:54 PM EST
[ Parent ]
great idea!

'The history of public debt is full of irony. It rarely follows our ideas of order and justice.' Thomas Piketty
by melo (melometa4(at)gmail.com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 04:22:14 AM EST
[ Parent ]
The Israelis would just bomb it.  Electricity is terrorism, donchya know.
by IdiotSavant on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 08:01:01 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Sad but true.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 09:41:01 AM EST
[ Parent ]
News | About Vancouver | Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games | CTV Olympics

Riot police with batons, bullet-proof vests and some with machine guns clashed with masked protesters dressed in black in Vancouver Saturday, the first full day of the Vancouver Winter Games.

Vancouver Police say a group of more than 200 masked protesters have amassed in the downtown core, kicking and vandalizing cars and businesses. Lions Gate Bridge has been shut down in both directions.

Organizer Harsha Walia says there were several hundred protesters gathered in the downtown and witnesses say the windows of the HBC Olympic superstore were smashed.

Alissa Westergard-Thorpe, of the Olympic Resistance Network, disavowed her group from the vandalism and violence, saying that the protest was "a day of autonomous actions, independent groups, with a diversity of tactics around the Olympics.''



Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 03:22:58 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Reuters AlertNet - Israel general doubts power to hit Iran atom sites
ERUSALEM, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Israel may lack the military means for successful preemptive strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities, its former top general said on Saturday.

While endorsing international efforts to pressure Tehran into curbing sensitive nuclear technologies, Israel has hinted it could resort to force. But some analysts say Israeli jets would be stymied by the distance to Iran and by its defences. Asked in a television interview about Israeli leaders' vows to "take care" of the perceived threat, ex-general Dan Halutz, who stepped down as armed forces chief in 2007, said: "We are taking upon ourselves a task that is bigger than us."

"I think that the State of Israel should not take it upon itself to be the flag-bearer of the entire Western world in the face of the Iranian threat," Halutz, whose previous military post was as air force commander, told Channel Two.

"I'm not some passer-by ... I've filled a few positions that give me a different level of information to the average person," he said without elaborating.



Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 03:41:49 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Oh! Oh! What can poor Israel do? Besides using the US$1 billion aid per year to bribe or intimidate even more US politicians to get the US to bomb, bomb, bomb...

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 10:44:22 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Palestinian protesters pose as Na'vi from "Avatar" - Yahoo! News

JERUSALEM - Palestinian protesters have added a colorful twist to demonstrations against Israel's separation barrier, painting themselves blue and posing as characters from the hit film "Avatar."

The demonstrators also donned long hair and loincloths Friday for the weekly protest against the barrier near the village of Bilin.

They equated their struggle to the intergalactic one portrayed in the film.



Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 08:23:08 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Imaging Imperial Washington  H/T Naked Capitalism

Link to original where blurbs appear when the cursor is passed over a figure.


"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:48:19 PM EST
[ Parent ]
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 10:47:51 AM EST
ENERGY: Nuclear Does Not Make Economic Sense Say Studies - IPS ipsnews.net
BERLIN, Feb 12, 2010 (IPS) - The enormous technical and financial risks involved in the construction and operation of new nuclear power plants make them prohibitive for private investors, rebutting the thesis of a renaissance in nuclear energy, say several independent European studies.

The risks include high construction costs, likely long delays in building, extended periods of depreciation of equipment inherent to the construction and operation of new power plants and the lack of guarantees for prices of electricity.

Adding to these is the global meltdown and the consequent cautious behaviour of investors as also fiscal and revenue difficulties of governments in the industrialised countries, say the studies.

In the most recent analysis on the feasibility of new nuclear power plants, the Citibank group concludes that some of "the risks faced by developers ... are so large and variable that individually they could each bring even the largest utility company to its knees financially."

The Citibank paper, titled `New Nuclear - The Economics Say No', lists five major risks developers and operators of new nuclear power plants must confront. These risks are planning, construction, power price, operational, and decommissioning. According to the study, most governments in industrialised countries today have only "sought to limit the planning risk" for investors.

But, while it is "important for encouraging developers to bring forward projects, [planning] is the least important risk financially," the survey goes on. According to the Citibank group, the most important risks are construction, power price, and operational. The paper dubs these risks "the corporate killers."
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:36:33 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Link to the study: https://www.citigroupgeo.com/pdf/SEU27102.pdf

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes
by Jerome a Paris (etg@eurotrib.com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 04:09:38 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Climate change impact of soil underestimated: study
Helsinki (AFP) Feb 8, 2010
Finnish researchers called for a revision of climate change estimates Monday after their findings showed emissions from soil would contribute more to climate warming than previously thought.

"A Finnish research group has proved that the present standard measurements underestimate the effect of climate warming on emissions from the soil," the Finnish Environment Institute said in a statement.

"The error is serious enough to require revisions in climate change estimates," it said, adding that all climate models used soil emission estimates based on measurements received using an erroneous method.

The institute said that while emissions from soil were known to have a significant influence on climate warming, previous studies took into account short-term measurements which gave "systematically biased estimates on the effects of climate change on the emissions."

The Finnish scientists' experiments in boreal forests used radiocarbon measurements and showed that the more abundant, slowly decomposing compounds in soil were more sensitive to rises in temperature, the statement said.

This showed "carbon dioxide emissions from the soil will be up to 50 percent higher than those suggested by the present mainstream method," if the mean global temperature rose by the previously forecasted five degrees Celsius before the end of the century, and if the carbon flow to soil did not increase.

The institute said a 100 to 200 percent increase of forest biomass was needed to offset the increasing carbon emissions from soil, whereas previous estimates called for a 70 to 80 percent increase.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:13:34 PM EST
[ Parent ]
CLIMATE CHANGE: The Day After Tomorrow Might Have Been Yesterday - IPS ipsnews.net
As Washingtonians finally dug themselves out Friday to brave clogged metro trains and icy roads on the way to the office, one of the lasting impacts of the past week is the discussions it has provoked about how climate change has impacted the current weather - and how this weather might impact the ongoing debate here over how the U.S. government should address the threat of climate change.

Dubbed the "snowpocalypse" - or sometimes "snowpocalypse II" in deference to the previous storm that blanketed Washington in December - the scenes on the streets this past week have actually seemed eerily post-apocalyptic. Silent, monochrome and empty, they have, for some, forebode a world in which no action is taken to stem the effects of climate change.

Others, though, see the wintry landscape as undermining the direness - or even the reality - of the threat posed by climate change, which they prefer to refer to as global warming, thus underscoring what they see as the incongruences between the phenomenon and the snowy spell.

On Wednesday, for example, climate change denier Sen. James Inhofe told The New York Times that the recent weather furthered doubts over whether climate change is "unequivocal" or a human-made phenomenon.

Fox News commentators likewise raised throughout the week what they felt was the "inconvenient" connection between the blizzard and the theory of global warming.

And conservative Republican Sen. Jim DeMint posted the comment "It's going to keep snowing in DC until Al Gore cries 'uncle'" to his Twitter account Tuesday morning.

If anything, though, the weather should help discredit climate change deniers, contend major climate scientists and activists.
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:14:22 PM EST
[ Parent ]
BIODIVERSITY: India Bans Farming of GM Aubergine - IPS ipsnews.net
NEW DELHI, Feb 9, 2010 (IPS) - After India's Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh announced Tuesday a ban on the cultivation of Bt brinjal, the country's first genetically modified (GM) food crop, food security experts and activists said this major farming country has been saved from a biodiversity disaster.

"This is a historic decision. The minister deserves to be congratulated, given that he was under enormous pressure to give approval for Bt brinjal, especially after the country's Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) cleared it," leading food security specialist Devinder Sharma told IPS.

Had Bt brinjal - more widely known as eggplant or aubergine - been cleared in India, it would have opened the floodgates to a technology that is regarded with huge suspicion around the world, Sharma said. "Countries like the Philippines and Bangladesh were waiting to see which way India would go on this."

Sharma said Ramesh's decision had several implications, starting with the credibility of the GEAC which had earlier approved the cultivation of genetically modified Bt cotton. Both Bt cotton and Bt brinjal carry a gene taken from a bacterium, bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), that is toxic to pests and supposedly saves on pesticides.

The introduction of Bt brinjal has not been as smooth as that of Bt cotton and the public outcry that followed GEAC's approval of Bt brinjal on Oct. 14, 2009 was so fierce that Ramesh was compelled to announce the holding of public hearings before final clearance.
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:15:56 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Energy for complexity: big government vs big business - it doesn't really matter which you hate (environmentalresearchweb blog) - environmentalresearchweb

What has unfortunately been quite absent from most of the political discussions about how to get the economy "back on track" is the true role of energy resources and technologies. With all of the talk in the United States about the need to "connect the dots" for the "War on Terrorism", what we really need to do is accept the way the energy and economic dots are connected in our modern industrial society.

By taking the following factors into account and enhancing our knowledge of how we can and cannot affect these indicators, we will "connect the dots" on our future as well as possible:

  • (1) Jevon's Paradox states that increased efficiency in the use of resources (in this case energy resources) through the use of technology and structural change increases total resource consumption.
  • (a) Policy point: if we target increasing efficiency, we can expect to only delay environmental problems.
  • (2) The energy return on energy invested (EROI) for the combination of energy resources, renewable and fossil, together with technology that converts those resources into services dictates the level of complexity attainable by society.
  • (a) Policy point: society seems to have reached a level of complexity in the last 1-3 decades such that:
  • (3) The EROI of energy services has been extremely high with the use of fossil fuels, and EROI will eventually come to a value such that it is equal for fossil and renewable resources. That time of EROI equality will mark a turning point in human civilization.
  • (4) The human species has now grown in size that it is capable of affecting the environment on a global scale as opposed to only very localized impacts before the industrial revolution.

The connecting of the dots goes as follows:

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 12:17:28 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Jevon's Paradox also states that increasing the effeciency with which fossil fuel is utilized increased the rate at which it is consumed (and thus decreases the time to peak fossil fuel.)

The last point of the article seems problematic:

(5) The inherently lower EROI of renewable resources will not enable the same level of economic production and societal complexity as provided by higher EROI fossil fuels. This is because renewable technologies are based upon current flows of energy (e.g. sunlight, wind, waves), as compared to fossil fuels which are based upon stocks of energy stored over hundreds of millions of years.

The EORI of renewable energy sources, such as wind and tidal power, could be far greater than that of fossil fuels, as quality and life span improvements in the devices will increase the total power generated by a given investment over time. It might be an abomination to the finance community as once the initial cost of a windmill or water turbine is paid off, the resulting energy is almost free. But I suppose concerned investors could always hire hit men to go out and destroy generators that no longer require financing.  :-)

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:03:54 PM EST
[ Parent ]
ARGeezer:
It might be an abomination to the finance community as once the initial cost of a windmill or water turbine is paid off, the resulting energy is almost free

nailed. in. one.

there's a whole lot of kings going to see their crowns rolling on the floor when that happens.

ergo all the misinfo, all the time...

ARGeezer:

This is because renewable technologies are based upon current flows of energy (e.g. sunlight, wind, waves),

haha. nice try! big stupid...

use it as a metaphor for ideas, too. why use ones with no future, stuck in the past, (hey, it worked for granpa), when you can use/initiate ones that are generous in 'current flows', and infinite into the future?

keep spinning guys, your hologram is coming apart at the edges, but you don't see that, do you, as you're paid not to. time turning table...

'The history of public debt is full of irony. It rarely follows our ideas of order and justice.' Thomas Piketty

by melo (melometa4(at)gmail.com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 04:19:06 AM EST
[ Parent ]
It might be an abomination to the finance community as once the initial cost of a windmill or water turbine is paid off, the resulting energy is almost free.

They could always charge lower rates over longer periods of time if they're that worried. ;)

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

by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 09:29:10 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Had they more than one neuron they might consider all of the possibilities available with cheap energy--AGAIN!

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 09:38:41 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Eating rhubarb may fight diseases like cancer

The Daily Telegraph today said that rhubarb crumble is the "new cancer-busting superfood".

This news story was based on research to determine how cooking rhubarb would affect the amount of antioxidant chemicals it contains. Some scientists believe that antioxidants offer protection from diseases such as cancer, although it should be noted that this research did not directly look at any aspect of human health. It will take further research to assess how cooking affects the breakdown of these antioxidant chemicals and how this may affect any health benefits from the food.

  Where did the story come from?

This research was carried out by Dr Gordon McDougall and colleagues from Sheffield Hallam University and the Scottish Crop Research Institute in Dundee. The study was funded by Sheffield Hallam University's Food Innovation Project. It was published in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Food Chemistry.

This research was inaccurately reported on by The Daily Telegraph. The published research did not investigate the effect of rhubarb extracts (or polyphenols) on cancer cells or human health in general. This study only looked at how the concentrations of these chemicals in rhubarb were affected by different cooking methods.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 01:16:59 PM EST
[ Parent ]
The researchers found that polyphenol content was generally greater in cooked rhubarb than raw rhubarb. The highest polyphenol levels were found in slow-cooked and baked rhubarb.

The researchers could identify and measure the amounts of 42 different chemicals found in their rhubarb samples. They said that this `chemical profile' was different to other species of rhubarb. They also found that cooking times had different effects on different types of polyphenols. Anthocyanins made up one fifth of the total polyphenol content of raw rhubarb. In baked rhubarb, the amount of anthocyanin was increased.

Oh, my, how I
Love that rhubarb pie.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:09:49 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Well as it's been repeated in the Daily Mail...

Kill or cure?

Help to make sense of the Daily Mail's ongoing effort to classify every inanimate object into those that cause cancer and those that prevent it.


Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 09:32:05 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Dana Milbank - Global warming's snowball fight - washingtonpost.com

The back-to-back snowstorms in the capital were an inconvenient meteorological phenomenon for Al Gore.

"It's going to keep snowing in D.C. until Al Gore cries 'uncle'," Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) exulted on Twitter.

Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) posted photos on Facebook of "Al Gore's New Home" -- a six-foot igloo the Inhofe family built on Capitol Hill.

"Where is Al Gore?" taunted Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.).

"He has not been seen since the snow and the arctic blast have pummeled the Eastern Seaboard in America, turning it into a frozen tundra," reported Fox News's Glenn Beck, who also tastefully suggested hari-kari for climate scientists.

<snip>

Al Gore, for one, seems to realize it's time for a new tactic. New TV ads released during last week's blizzards by Gore's climate advocacy group say nothing about climate science. They show workers asking their senators for more jobs from clean energy.

That's a good sign. If the Washington snows persuade the greens to put away the slides of polar bears and pine beetles and to keep the focus on national security and jobs, it will have been worth the shoveling.



Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 04:44:52 PM EST
[ Parent ]
What a putz Dana Milbank is! Someone of some profile needs to push back on this idiotic meme. Have none of these idiots noticed that this has been a record warm January in Vancouver Canada. Geez, how can it be warmer in Canada in January than in Washington D.C.? Couldn't be heat being extracted from mid-latitudes for transport to the Arctic. That would be so confusing. These fools probably think cold is a quantity.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:15:32 PM EST
[ Parent ]
See above.
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 03:43:55 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Weed Killer in the Crosshairs: Concerns prompt reexamination of atrazine's safety
By Janet Raloff   Science News

Each year, American farmers and turf managers apply some 34 million kilograms of atrazine to quash broad-leaved and grassy weeds. Most treatments go to protect corn, sorghum, sugarcane and cotton, though golf courses sometimes tap the weed killer to maintain immaculate fairways and putting greens.

....

Atrazine, an organic compound belonging to the triazine family of herbicides, stops pre- and post-emergent weeds by inhibiting electron transport, ultimately blocking photosynthesis. The EPA reexamined data on the herbicide's putative toxicity four years ago as part of a systematic review of the safety of older pesticides -- those initially registered for use before 1984. Atrazine was reregistered -- meaning it could continue to be sold -- after the EPA concluded that its regulated use could continue without posing undue risks to health and the environment. The chemical is banned by the European Union and, ironically, in Switzerland, where atrazine's leading manufacturer, Syngenta, is headquartered.

In a surprising turnabout, the EPA instructed its Scientific Advisory Panel on pesticides, a group of outside experts, to reevaluate the weed killer's safety through three meetings this year, the first of which took place earlier this month. The panel will review human data and any studies, including animal or test-tube assays, that might suggest risks to people.

EPA admits this new review was prompted by a flurry of recent news stories and critical reports by advocacy groups, which continue to show that large numbers of people are being exposed to atrazine through drinking water (SN: 11/3/01, p. 285) and which offer new data suggesting health concerns.

Among these new criticisms was a report in August by the Natural Resources Defense Council: "Poisoning the Well: How the EPA is ignoring atrazine contamination in surface and drinking water in the central United States." Its analysis of data that the EPA collected -- but didn't publicly release --shows that traces of atrazine frequently pollute not only rivers but also water exiting the tap, oftentimes at concentrations exceeding EPA's 3-parts-per-billion limit for drinking water.


A welcome development in the USA is the revisiting of poor decisions made by EPA and others in an environment of political pressure under G. W. Bush.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 01:27:58 AM EST
[ Parent ]
A couple of links 1 and 2 on the effects of atrazine on amphibians.

Banned in the EU, but unfortunately hugely used over the years before that.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 04:06:09 AM EST
[ Parent ]
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 10:48:36 AM EST
Three killed, 3 wounded in Alabama campus shooting
WASHINGTON, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Three people were killed and three others were injured when a woman faculty member opened fire at the University of Alabama's Huntsville campus on Friday, a spokesman for the university said.

Spokesman Ray Garner told reporters in Huntsville, Alabama, that the shooter was caught outside a science building in the campus. But the spokesman declined to identify the shooter or the victims.

According to the spokesman, five of the victims, including all three of those killed and two of the injured, were faculty members of the university. The third injured was a staff member. No students were involved in the incident.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:34:49 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Professor Is Charged After 3 Are Killed in Alabama - NYTimes.com
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- This city of rocket scientists and biotechnology entrepreneurs prides itself on having one of the highest per-capita numbers of Ph.D.s in the country.

 On Saturday, it was still reeling from the news that one of them, a neurobiologist with a Harvard doctorate named Amy Bishop, had opened fire in a faculty meeting at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, according to the authorities, killing three fellow professors and wounding three more people.

As of Saturday morning, the authorities said, Ms. Bishop had been charged with one count of first-degree murder and more charges were expected.

The shootings opened a window into the pressure-cooker world of biotechnology start-ups, where scientists often depend on their association with academia for a leg up. Ms. Bishop was part of a startup that had won an early round of funding in a highly competitive environment, but people who knew her said she had learned shortly before the shooting that she had been denied tenure at the university.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:52:28 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Professor accused in Ala. slayings shot her brother in Mass. 24 years ago - Local News Updates - The Boston Globe

The University of Alabama biology professor accused of slaying three of her colleagues fatally shot her brother in an apparent accident in Massachusetts more than two decades ago, a local police chief said.

Braintree Police Chief Paul Frazier confirmed the 1986 shooting in his town and slated a news conference this afternoon to discuss the incident.

The Globe reported at the time that Amy Bishop had shot her 18-year-old brother, Seth M. Bishop, an accomplished violinist who had won a number of science awards.



Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 02:25:26 PM EST
[ Parent ]
RIGHTS: U.N. Goals on Education Under Widespread Attack - IPS ipsnews.net
UNITED NATIONS, Feb 11, 2010 (IPS) - The relentless attacks on educational institutions in war zones - along with growing threats against academics, teachers and school-going children - have jeopardised one of the U.N.'s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) - education for all by 2015.

As a result, over 40 million children worldwide are missing out on primary school, particularly in conflict-affected fragile states, says a new report released here by the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

Many of the children are forced to miss school "due to direct attacks on their learning spaces, their teachers or even on themselves as learners."

"In situations of armed conflict and insecurity, deliberate attacks on, and threats against learners, academics, teachers and educational facilities are both a barrier to the right to education, and a serious protection issue," says Mark Richmond, director of UNESCO's division for the coordination of U.N. priorities in education.

The commitment made by the international community to achieve the goal of "education for all" (EFA) by 2015 has been threatened by these attacks, he adds.
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:35:41 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Google Buzz - anatomy of a slow motion train wreck - broadstuff
It is quite interesting watcing this unfold. As far as I can see, with Buzz Google made a number of fundamental errors:

- The team that developed Buzz are apparently all young, male, supergeeks - alpha early adopters - who have clearly supped deep of the Kool Aid that is Google approach to Privacy (ie its dead, get used to it), a la Eric Schmidt

- The Google Business Model wants to open up people's data as much as possible (hence the Schmidtian view on Privacy), and thus the service was built to grab and expose all data it sees as the default condition

- Google say Buzz product was user tested, but I suspect it was by the same demographic who built it rather than the people who may use it.

- Older, Wiser heads were clearly either not involved in the product review process, or overruled due to the above points' considerations.


So the stage is set for a service that is built to be massively abusive of user privacy.


Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 02:18:32 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Sums up Google Bust perfectly.

After Hubris cometh Nemesis....

"The future is already here -- it's just not very evenly distributed" William Gibson

by ChrisCook (cojockathotmaildotcom) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 05:02:54 PM EST
[ Parent ]
A local tech reviewer described the whole obnoxious, invasive process and concluded by asking why anyone needs the "service". Hope the market tells Google to stick the buzz up their ass.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:19:28 PM EST
[ Parent ]
by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 10:49:01 AM EST
Nicolas Sarkozy revives ceremonial hunting party to win friends and influence - Times Online

Had he returned to Chambord, the great château on the Loire, yesterday Louis XIV would have recognised the scene: a gaggle of dignitaries shooting boar, attended with pomp by the palace guard and ending in a torchlight ritual and banquet.

But this ceremonial hunting party was not the revival of the ancien régime. It was President Sarkozy's latest wheeze to reward today's courtiers and cultivate French and foreign VIPs of value to the Republic.

However, the presidency has been thrown on the defensive this week after the media rumbled the regal battues, or game shoots, which Mr Sarkozy quietly revived in December.

The chasse présidentielle was dropped by President Chirac in 1995 as unfitting for modern democracy. During the 1970s and 1980s, Presidents Giscard and Mitterrand used the chasse to bestow favours and cultivate foreign leaders, including the late Shah of Iran and the late Emperor Bokassa of the Central African Republic.

by Fran on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 01:28:12 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Times:
But this ceremonial hunting party was not the revival of the ancien régime.

Er, actually...

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 09:35:21 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Austrian count claims small underpants breached his human rights - Telegraph
A multi-millionairre Austrian count has claimed that his human rights were abused in a British jail because his prison issue underpants were too small.

Alfons Mensdorff-Pouilly, who owns a palace in Austria and a house in London's affluent Sloane Square spent seven days in jail as part of a Serious Fraud Office (SFO) fraud investigation into a BAE arms deal.

He was eventually released after BAE struck a deal with UK and US authorities over alleged bribery and corruption charges.

After returning to his palace in Burgenland, Austria, he said: "In the UK human rights are not exactly respected like they are in Austria. I wasnt given underwear that was my size despite asking for it several times. And they didnt give me a comb."

The 56-year-old also complained that the prison issue disposable razor had been used before, saying: "I found stubble in it - so I demanded and was given a vaccination against Hepatitis B."

by Fran on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 01:30:41 PM EST
[ Parent ]
That's gonna be a fun one to see argued.

keep to the Fen Causeway
by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 05:15:03 PM EST
[ Parent ]
On the grounds of a man's biggest fear medical evidence?

Twist and Shout: A Clinical and Experimental Review of Testicular Torsion
Links to the pdf file of a paper in the Korean Journal of Urology. And yes, joke aside, real testicular infarction is a medical emergency.




You're clearly a dangerous pinko commie pragmatist.
by Vagulus on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 07:21:03 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Indeed!  (From the article):
Purpose: This review addresses different aspects of testicular torsion from
the clinical perspective as well as the basic cellular and molecular events
responsible for the post-torsion testicular changes and pathology, including
tissue ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Take-away: If you get your underwear in a knot, make certain your testicles are not in them.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 11:25:45 PM EST
[ Parent ]
ARGeezer:
tissue ischemia-reperfusion injury.

is that medicalese for a kick in the nuts?

'The history of public debt is full of irony. It rarely follows our ideas of order and justice.' Thomas Piketty

by melo (melometa4(at)gmail.com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 04:29:09 AM EST
[ Parent ]
AKA "Lucky Gypsy Kick In The Crotch, Sir?"

You can't be me, I'm taken
by Sven Triloqvist on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 05:14:29 AM EST
[ Parent ]
I would read it as a cut-off of blood flow to the testes and the problems with getting it restarted. Sorta like the equivalent of an ischemic stroke, angina or a "heart attack" in one's testes. It can seriously adversely affect one's sperm count.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 09:34:19 AM EST
[ Parent ]
I first heard about testicular torsion in the context of sports injuries, but I don't know if this is the most frequent type of occurrence for it.

Testicular torsion

Twisting of the testis on its cord causes intense ischaemic pain localized in the testis. Usually there is localized tenderness and vomiting (which may be the sole presenting feature) but no significant swelling. These patients require urgent surgery to salvage the testis and must be transferred immediately to hospital.

Greaves et al. (eds), Emergency care: a textbook for paramedics (1997)


For those interested in words, and where they come from: ischemia, or ischaemia, was introduced into medical language by the German physician, scholar, and politician, Rudolf Virchow (1821-1902).

Among Rudolf Virchow's many research interests was his fascination with the ways in which disease affects arteries, veins, and their contained blood constituents. He elucidated the principles of embolism, thrombosis, and leukemia and invented the words to describe them. Seeking a term to designate the mechanism by which cells and tissues are deprived of their blood supply, Virchow seized (this word is chosen advisedly) upon the Greek ischano -- 'I hold in check' or 'I quench' -- derived from the Indo-European root segh, which refers to 'seizing' or 'holding' or 'causing to pause'. By combining it with aima, or 'blood', the Greeks had created the word ischaimos, to signify a holding in check of the flow of blood. Ischemia was chosen by Virchow to designate the consequences of diminishing or totally stopping blood flow to some structure of the body, whether a small as a cell or as large as a leg or a section of heart muscle.

S. B. Nuland, How we die (1994)



You're clearly a dangerous pinko commie pragmatist.
by Vagulus on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 11:50:43 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Greaves et al? I thought it was Jones and Gascoigne :)

Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 11:59:51 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Well spotted! Brings to mind the old saying, 'Football is a gentlemen's game played by thugs and rugby is a thug's game played by gentlemen'.

You're clearly a dangerous pinko commie pragmatist.
by Vagulus on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 12:48:34 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Ammann wins first gold medal of Games | NBC Olympics
Switzerland's Simon Ammann has won the ski jumping normal hill gold medal for the first Olympic title awarded at the Vancouver Games.


Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
by ceebs (ceebs (at) eurotrib (dot) com) on Sat Feb 13th, 2010 at 02:49:04 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Richard Hamilton: A masterclass from the father of pop art

Richard Hamilton invented the term 'pop art' 53 years ago, and, from his 60s Swingeing London series to Tony Blair as a cowboy, he has been ahead of the curve ever since.


You can't be me, I'm taken
by Sven Triloqvist on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 03:41:12 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Part 104

Football (of a sort) in knee-deep snow

Time once agin for the annual Snow Soccer World Championships. Forget Vancouver, Hyrynsalmi in Eastern Finland is where the action is.

Women's third division football team FC Niin Ookoo ("So OK") from the western city of Vaasa have also set their sights on winning the whole thing.
      "We came here with victory in mind", confirms Johanna Tamsi.
      "We have prepared carefully. We trained not once but twice."
      Pushing the team minibus back on the road from an excursion into the ditch the previous night also served as a last-minute fitness test.
      It seems to have helped: FC Niin OoKoo breeze through their qualifying group undefeated, scoring eight goals without reply.
      But they fall in the semi-finals and can hope for no better than bronze.


You can't be me, I'm taken
by Sven Triloqvist on Sun Feb 14th, 2010 at 09:16:50 AM EST
[ Parent ]


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