The number of Americans in poverty has jumped to an incredible 27-year high, with almost one in six people now falling into the bracket.More than 46 million people, or 15 per cent, are in poverty - which is up from 44 million, or 14 per cent, in 2009, the US Census Bureau said.
The number of people lacking health insurance increased to 50 million, which is a new high after revisions were made to 2009 figures. Losses were due mostly to working-age Americans who lost employer-provided insurance in the weak economy. Main provisions of the health overhaul do not take effect until 2014.
The median household income was $49,445, a 2.3 per cent fall from 2009. The 46.2 million people in poverty in 2010 represents the largest number in 52 years since estimates began. The U.S. poverty rate is only lower than three countries in 34 tracked by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in France.
For more: US poverty rate climbs to 27-year high with 1 in 6 Americans officially poor | Mail Online
9/13/11
Europe has firepower to addrress debts-US official
Europe knows it must do more to persuade financial markets it is coming to grips with its debt problems but there is no question it has the financial firepower to do so, a senior U.S. official said on Friday.
Speaking on condition of anonymity after a day-long meeting of Group of Seven financial chiefs, the U.S. official said there had been a heavy focus throughout the sessions on Europe's debt woes.
The official said Europe was eager to assure markets it could handle the debt problems and said there was no question that they had essentially unlimited capacity to address any funding needs of European banks.
For more: Europe has firepower to addrress debts-US official | Reuters
Speaking on condition of anonymity after a day-long meeting of Group of Seven financial chiefs, the U.S. official said there had been a heavy focus throughout the sessions on Europe's debt woes.
The official said Europe was eager to assure markets it could handle the debt problems and said there was no question that they had essentially unlimited capacity to address any funding needs of European banks.
For more: Europe has firepower to addrress debts-US official | Reuters
The Netherlands: Wilders booed by kids from a Helmond Primary School
Support for anti -Islam PVV parliamentary leader Wilders does not seem to be there when it comes to some of the Netherlands youngest citizens.Dozens of school children of the Helmond Firebird primary school greeted Wilders with loud boos as they left their school just when Wilders was leaving a town hall meeting with residents and workers of the downtown East neighborhood, from a building next to their school.
A father who was picking up his 10 year old from school noted: "it looks like our kids are more culturally integrated and have a better grip on reality than we have."
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China in talks over buying Italian debt
China could step in to help rescue Europe from its debt crisis after holding top-level talks with Italy's finance minister.
The Italian government confirmed on Tuesday that Giulio Tremonti had met the head of China Investment Corp, the country's sovereign wealth fund, in Rome last week. It is understood that Tremonti asked the Chinese delegation to consider buying Italy's sovereign debt and making strategic investments in Italian companies.
The Italian treasury declined to give details of the meeting, but traders were encouraged that Beijing might use its financial muscle to help the eurozone.
For more: China in talks over buying Italian debt | Business | guardian.co.uk
The Italian government confirmed on Tuesday that Giulio Tremonti had met the head of China Investment Corp, the country's sovereign wealth fund, in Rome last week. It is understood that Tremonti asked the Chinese delegation to consider buying Italy's sovereign debt and making strategic investments in Italian companies.
The Italian treasury declined to give details of the meeting, but traders were encouraged that Beijing might use its financial muscle to help the eurozone.
For more: China in talks over buying Italian debt | Business | guardian.co.uk
Look who is calling the kettle black: Obama calls on Europe to resolve debt problems
In a rare public expression of criticism aimed at America's transatlantic allies, US President Barack Obama has called on European leaders to develop a "more effective set of coordinated policies" to deal with the continent's sovereign debt crisis.
"Right now you have a single currency, but you don't have a single set of economic policies, and that's created great difficulty," Obama said in reference to the eurozone. "It's difficult to coordinate when you have that many countries with different politics and different economic situations trying to agree on a common course."
Speaking to a group of Hispanic journalists at the White House on Monday, Obama said Greece was "obviously the biggest immediate problem" and that the government there was "taking some steps to slow the crisis but not solve the crisis."
For more: Obama calls on Europe to resolve debt problems | Europe | Deutsche Welle | 13.09.2011
9/12/11
US Banking Industry: Countrywide bankruptcy? Bank of America keeps its options open
Is bankruptcy possible for Countrywide Financial Corp., the Calabasas-based home lender whose acquisition has cost Bank of America Corp. tens of billions of dollars?
BofA Chief Executive Brian Moynihan didn't rule that out Monday in addressing an analyst conference in New York, though he didn't elaborate on the chance of such an extreme action either.
Moynihan instead focused on Phase 1 of his cost-cutting plan for the bank, which other corporate officials said Monday would eliminate about 30,000 jobs from a base of about 287,000.
Countrywide bankruptcy? Bank of America keeps its options open - latimes.com
BofA Chief Executive Brian Moynihan didn't rule that out Monday in addressing an analyst conference in New York, though he didn't elaborate on the chance of such an extreme action either.
Moynihan instead focused on Phase 1 of his cost-cutting plan for the bank, which other corporate officials said Monday would eliminate about 30,000 jobs from a base of about 287,000.
Countrywide bankruptcy? Bank of America keeps its options open - latimes.com
Supply-side economics does not work
US Political environment: Obama bashing seems to be the only thing US right-wingers can come up with. In the 9 months that the Republican majority in Congress has been in power they themselves have not come up with anything constructive or bi-partisan on the economy, job creation, alternative energy ,or the environment, apart from presenting some "rehashed" existing conservative programs.
US economy: the Anglo-Saxon controlled financial and popular press - Wall Street Journal, Fox News - the Sun - the Telegraph etc - most of them owned by Rupert Murdoch and his cohorts - now blame Europe for all the economic problems the US is experiencing. Basically these "pundits" are feeding the people a lot of delusions and hogwash, instead of constructive and factual journalism. But as the saying goes; "keep telling a lie and eventually people will start to believe it". This they do very well.
The Problem: the worlds economic&problems should really be pinned on supply-side economics. The supply-side theory popularized by Republican Icon Ronald Reagan and British Iron Lady Margaret Thatcher, held that cutting taxes would lead to a great thrust of economic energy - and a rush of revenue into federal accounts that would replace the drain from the tax cuts themselves. Not true. The facts show that revenues as a percentage of the nation's gross domestic product declined from 19.6 percent when Reagan was inaugurated to 18.3 percent when he left Washington. Even among the influential and multi-partisan American Economics Association, which has close to 18,000 members, not more than about 10 call themselves supply-side economists.
US economy: the Anglo-Saxon controlled financial and popular press - Wall Street Journal, Fox News - the Sun - the Telegraph etc - most of them owned by Rupert Murdoch and his cohorts - now blame Europe for all the economic problems the US is experiencing. Basically these "pundits" are feeding the people a lot of delusions and hogwash, instead of constructive and factual journalism. But as the saying goes; "keep telling a lie and eventually people will start to believe it". This they do very well.
The Problem: the worlds economic&problems should really be pinned on supply-side economics. The supply-side theory popularized by Republican Icon Ronald Reagan and British Iron Lady Margaret Thatcher, held that cutting taxes would lead to a great thrust of economic energy - and a rush of revenue into federal accounts that would replace the drain from the tax cuts themselves. Not true. The facts show that revenues as a percentage of the nation's gross domestic product declined from 19.6 percent when Reagan was inaugurated to 18.3 percent when he left Washington. Even among the influential and multi-partisan American Economics Association, which has close to 18,000 members, not more than about 10 call themselves supply-side economists.
In American universities there is no major department that is called "supply-side", and there is no supply-side economist at any major US university department. This is significant, because academia in the 70s was dominated by conservative economic theory, and conservative economists normally welcome all ideas that make the case against government intervention. The fact that conservatives scrutinized supply-side theory and rejected it wholesale shows that supply-side economics has very little credibility.
Following Clintons inauguration Republican predictions forecast that his tax hike included in the 1993 deficit-reduction package would bring on an economic Armageddon? ( sounds familiar?) Looking back it would seem that the 21 million jobs added to payrolls during the Clinton era showed they were very wrong on that prediction.
Supply-side economics has not worked and never will, but conservative politicians are at it again. Unfortunately, this time the risks are far greater, and again, it won't work.
EU-Digest
Oil falls amid global economic woes
Oil fell by about $US1 this morning as investors shunned commodity risk because of Europe's deepening sovereign debt crisis, while economic gloom dampened the outlook for energy use.
Brent crude fell as much as 97 cents to $US111.80 a barrel and was recently down 0.7 per cent at $US111.99, while US crude slid 87 cents to $US86.37. The US dollar climbed about 0.25 per cent against a basket of currencies.
Risk aversion erased about 3 per cent of Brent's value in the previous two sessions on speculation Greece would default, while G7 finance ministers pledged a coordinated response on Friday to the global economic slowdown, but offered no specific steps and differed in emphasis on Europe's debt crisis.
For more: Oil falls amid global economic woes
Brent crude fell as much as 97 cents to $US111.80 a barrel and was recently down 0.7 per cent at $US111.99, while US crude slid 87 cents to $US86.37. The US dollar climbed about 0.25 per cent against a basket of currencies.
Risk aversion erased about 3 per cent of Brent's value in the previous two sessions on speculation Greece would default, while G7 finance ministers pledged a coordinated response on Friday to the global economic slowdown, but offered no specific steps and differed in emphasis on Europe's debt crisis.
For more: Oil falls amid global economic woes
9/11/11
Dutch Muslim MP calls on Muslims around the world to issue a final fatwa against terrorism
Marking the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Tofik Dibi, a Dutch Muslim member of parliament has called on Muslims around the world to issue a final fatwa against terrorism to help end a decade of hijacking Islam.Muslims make up one million of the Netherlands’s 16 million population, mostly from Turkish and Moroccan origin.
The Muslim lawmaker said his campaign, titled "The Last Fatwa”, offers an opportunity for the world to hear the voice of the "reasonable Muslims". Dibi said: "the voice of free-thinking Muslims needs to be heard," Dibi said.
“They are the ones standing up for freedom and democracy in the Middle East, and North Africa during the Arab Spring, and we hope this campaign will help to show that the majority of Muslims dream of freedom and democracy just like everyone else.”
A Britain-based Muslim scholar, Sheikh Tahir ul-Qadri, also issued a 600-page fatwa in May 2011, condemning suicide bombings, kidnappings and the killing of innocent people as “absolutely against the teachings of Islam”.
Dibi who is a rising star in the Dutch Greens political party confirmed that the new campaign appeals to the reasonable sounds of Muslims to reflect the true nature of Islam. “I’m appealing to common sense and refer to individual freedom," he said. “We all experience Islam in our own way.”
EU-Digest
The ambiguity of Jesus - by JW Fisch
There’s no way around it – Jesus was ambiguous. He always seemed to send people away scratching their heads – even his disciples. He was not a man with easy answers. He never gave a three-point message. His sermons don’t outline very well.
His favorite phrase when speaking a public message was “He who has an ear, let him hear.” Hear. He used it as an activity – something that some people do with their ears, but not necessarily everybody.
Jesus had a favorite method of speaking to people. He put it in a story – a parable. When his disciples asked him why he spoke to the people in parables, he replied: “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. This is why I speak to them in parables” (Matthew 13:11-123).
God does not pull all the strings. He counts us as too important for that. To find without seeking, to hear without listening, to say yes without the possibility of saying no is to negate the value of my seeking, my hearing, and my participating. I am not a puppet.
For more: The ambiguity of Jesus
His favorite phrase when speaking a public message was “He who has an ear, let him hear.” Hear. He used it as an activity – something that some people do with their ears, but not necessarily everybody.
Jesus had a favorite method of speaking to people. He put it in a story – a parable. When his disciples asked him why he spoke to the people in parables, he replied: “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. This is why I speak to them in parables” (Matthew 13:11-123).
God does not pull all the strings. He counts us as too important for that. To find without seeking, to hear without listening, to say yes without the possibility of saying no is to negate the value of my seeking, my hearing, and my participating. I am not a puppet.
For more: The ambiguity of Jesus
9/11 threats: New York authorities fear terrorists disguised as construction workers
An NYPD police official said tonight terrorists could be trying to masquerade as construction officials in order to carry out an attack during tomorrow's 9/11 anniversary service.
Police are hunting for three stolen vans belonging to construction companies doing work in or around the World Trade Center site.
The news comes as the identity of one of the three alleged terrorists plotting a possible attack was revealed
For more: 9/11 threats: New York authorities fear terrorists disguised as construction workers | Mail Online
Police are hunting for three stolen vans belonging to construction companies doing work in or around the World Trade Center site.
The news comes as the identity of one of the three alleged terrorists plotting a possible attack was revealed
For more: 9/11 threats: New York authorities fear terrorists disguised as construction workers | Mail Online
9/11 threats: New York authorities fear terrorists disguised as construction workers
An NYPD police official said tonight terrorists could be trying to masquerade as construction officials in order to carry out an attack during tomorrow's 9/11 anniversary service.
Police are hunting for three stolen vans belonging to construction companies doing work in or around the World Trade Center site.
The news comes as the identity of one of the three alleged terrorists plotting a possible attack was revealedFor more: 9/11 threats: New York authorities fear terrorists disguised as construction workers | Mail Online
Police are hunting for three stolen vans belonging to construction companies doing work in or around the World Trade Center site.
The news comes as the identity of one of the three alleged terrorists plotting a possible attack was revealedFor more: 9/11 threats: New York authorities fear terrorists disguised as construction workers | Mail Online
Libyan oil production to resume in days says Minister
Libya’s interim oil and finance minister Ali Tarhouni said oil production will resume in three to four days and that output will reach pre-war levels within a year.
Oil production in the North African country has been at a virtual standstill for months as the war that ousted Muammar Qaddafi raged near coastal terminals, causing damage to facilities and scaring foreign workers away.
“On Tuesday or Wednesday we will start at Sarir and Mesla (oilfields),” Tarhouni said at the Brega export terminal.
For more: Libyan oil production to resume in days: Minister - Arab News
Oil production in the North African country has been at a virtual standstill for months as the war that ousted Muammar Qaddafi raged near coastal terminals, causing damage to facilities and scaring foreign workers away.
“On Tuesday or Wednesday we will start at Sarir and Mesla (oilfields),” Tarhouni said at the Brega export terminal.
For more: Libyan oil production to resume in days: Minister - Arab News
Airbus: New Composite Airbus Approaching Final Assembly
Several large composite pieces for the new Airbus passenger jet have been delivered over the past month as the airplane maker prepares for assembly of the first A350XWB. The new airplane is expected to make its first flight some time next year and is a competitor against Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner. Both the A350XWB and 787 feature significant use of composites. But each company chose very different ways to incorporate the materials into the airframe.
The upper cover for the wing is pictured above being loaded into the famous Airbus Beluga transporter. The company says it is the largest single piece made of carbon fiber used in the civil aviation market. The upper wing cover is flying today from Germany where it is fabricated, to the wing assembly plant in the United Kingdom. Earlier this month Airbus delivered the composite central wing box and fuselage keel beam to its fuselage assembly plant in France.
Airbus plans to fly the A350XWB for the first time in 2012. Slightly larger than the 787, the A350XWB also features composites throughout the design. In addition to the composite wings and tail sections, both airplane feature composite fuselages, though they are built using different techniques.
For more: New Composite Airbus Approaching Final Assembly | Autopia | Wired.com
The upper cover for the wing is pictured above being loaded into the famous Airbus Beluga transporter. The company says it is the largest single piece made of carbon fiber used in the civil aviation market. The upper wing cover is flying today from Germany where it is fabricated, to the wing assembly plant in the United Kingdom. Earlier this month Airbus delivered the composite central wing box and fuselage keel beam to its fuselage assembly plant in France.
Airbus plans to fly the A350XWB for the first time in 2012. Slightly larger than the 787, the A350XWB also features composites throughout the design. In addition to the composite wings and tail sections, both airplane feature composite fuselages, though they are built using different techniques.
For more: New Composite Airbus Approaching Final Assembly | Autopia | Wired.com
U.S. considering Ankara’s request to base Predators in Turkey to fight a Kurdish group in northern Iraq - by Craig Whitlock
The Obama administration is considering a request from Turkey to base a fleet of Predator drones on Turkish soil for counterterrorism operations in northern Iraq, a decision that could strengthen a diplomatic alliance but drag the United States deeper into a regional conflict.
The U.S. military has flown the unarmed Predators from Iraqi bases since 2007 and shared the planes’ surveillance video with Turkey as part of a secretive joint crackdown against fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. Unless a new home for the Predators is found, however, the counterterrorism partnership could cease by Dec. 31, when all U.S. forces are scheduled to withdraw from Iraq.
The Obama administration is considering a request from Turkey to base a fleet of Predator drones on Turkish soil for counterterrorism operations in northern Iraq, a decision that could strengthen a diplomatic alliance but drag the United States deeper into a regional conflict.
The U.S. military has flown the unarmed Predators from Iraqi bases since 2007 and shared the planes’ surveillance video with Turkey as part of a secretive joint crackdown against fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. Unless a new home for the Predators is found, however, the counterterrorism partnership could cease by Dec. 31, when all U.S. forces are scheduled to withdraw from Iraq.
Note EU-Digest: Since 2007, the United States has given the Turkish military video surveillance from Predator drones flying over northern Iraq so Turkey can launch attacks on Kurdish militant hideouts. U.S. diplomatic cables obtained by the anti-secrecy website Wikileaks provide a detailed inside look at how Turkey and the U.S. have collaborated to fight the militant group, known as the PKK. Although the U.S. government and the EU officially labels the PKK a terrorist organization, the group has not targeted American or European interests.
For more: U.S. considering Ankara’s request to base Predators in Turkey to fight a Kurdish group in northern Iraq - The Washington Post
The U.S. military has flown the unarmed Predators from Iraqi bases since 2007 and shared the planes’ surveillance video with Turkey as part of a secretive joint crackdown against fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. Unless a new home for the Predators is found, however, the counterterrorism partnership could cease by Dec. 31, when all U.S. forces are scheduled to withdraw from Iraq.
The U.S. military has flown the unarmed Predators from Iraqi bases since 2007 and shared the planes’ surveillance video with Turkey as part of a secretive joint crackdown against fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. Unless a new home for the Predators is found, however, the counterterrorism partnership could cease by Dec. 31, when all U.S. forces are scheduled to withdraw from Iraq.
Note EU-Digest: Since 2007, the United States has given the Turkish military video surveillance from Predator drones flying over northern Iraq so Turkey can launch attacks on Kurdish militant hideouts. U.S. diplomatic cables obtained by the anti-secrecy website Wikileaks provide a detailed inside look at how Turkey and the U.S. have collaborated to fight the militant group, known as the PKK. Although the U.S. government and the EU officially labels the PKK a terrorist organization, the group has not targeted American or European interests.
Military installations in Europe mark 9/11 anniversary - by Seth Robbins
Military installations throughout Europe held ceremonies Friday marking the anniversary or had them scheduled throughout the weekend.
Air Force Master Sgt. Carlos Pubillones credits the military with keeping his mother safe on Sept. 11, 2001. Pubillones, of Queens, N.Y., was home on leave from Europe with his brother, Jose, an Army sergeant.
The brothers’ homecoming stopped their mother, Maria-Elena Garcia, from going to her physical therapy appointment that day. The appointment, scheduled for 9 a.m., was inside the World Trade Center. “Who would have thought,” Pubillones said, “that our service would save her?”
In Bamberg, at the US base Middle/High School, about 100 students gathered on the front lawn for a commemoration ceremony.
Note EU-Digest: The question one must ask is why the US continues to have such a strong and costly military presence in Europe? Instead of it being a deterrent to terrorism it could also have the opposite effect.
For more: Military installations in Europe mark 9/11 anniversary - News - Stripes
Air Force Master Sgt. Carlos Pubillones credits the military with keeping his mother safe on Sept. 11, 2001. Pubillones, of Queens, N.Y., was home on leave from Europe with his brother, Jose, an Army sergeant.
The brothers’ homecoming stopped their mother, Maria-Elena Garcia, from going to her physical therapy appointment that day. The appointment, scheduled for 9 a.m., was inside the World Trade Center. “Who would have thought,” Pubillones said, “that our service would save her?”
In Bamberg, at the US base Middle/High School, about 100 students gathered on the front lawn for a commemoration ceremony.
Note EU-Digest: The question one must ask is why the US continues to have such a strong and costly military presence in Europe? Instead of it being a deterrent to terrorism it could also have the opposite effect.
For more: Military installations in Europe mark 9/11 anniversary - News - Stripes
US ceremonies mark 9/11 attacks
Commemorative events have begun in the US to mark the 10th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks and pay tribute to the thousands who died on that day.
US President Barack Obama on Sunday will visit New York, where hijackers flew airliners into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, as well as the Pentagon, also targeted by hijackers, and Pennsylvania, where a fourth passenger jet crashed into the ground near the town of Shanksville. He will later deliver a speech at a memorial event for the victims in Washington, the capital.
George W Bush, the former president who was in office 10 years ago, will join Obama in New York for a memorial ceremony at the side of the World Trade Center shortly before 8.40am local time, when the first tower was struck.
Moments of silence will be observed for each of the times that the four planes crashed, and the two times when the World Trade Center towers fell.
For more: US ceremonies mark 9/11 attacks - Americas - Al Jazeera English
US President Barack Obama on Sunday will visit New York, where hijackers flew airliners into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, as well as the Pentagon, also targeted by hijackers, and Pennsylvania, where a fourth passenger jet crashed into the ground near the town of Shanksville. He will later deliver a speech at a memorial event for the victims in Washington, the capital.
George W Bush, the former president who was in office 10 years ago, will join Obama in New York for a memorial ceremony at the side of the World Trade Center shortly before 8.40am local time, when the first tower was struck.
Moments of silence will be observed for each of the times that the four planes crashed, and the two times when the World Trade Center towers fell.
For more: US ceremonies mark 9/11 attacks - Americas - Al Jazeera English
9/10/11
Why 9/11 was good for religion - by Andrew Brown
9/11 strengthened fundamentalism in every global faith – and in atheism too. But it has also led to backlashes against these doctrines wherever they have appeared.
In Islam there have been positive developments. The attacks were repeatedly and clearly condemned by Muslim leaders all over the world. After Pope Benedict XVI's controversial Regensburg speech, the most notable response was the decision of 137 Muslim scholars to sign a declaration outlining what common values they shared with Christians.
This "common word" declaration is an example of "hard tolerance" – the increasing practice of making theological differences distinct and then talking about them, rather than trying to conceal them in a syrup of platitudes about love and mysticism. The aim is for priests, imams and rabbis to enter imaginatively into each other's ideologies, rather than simply agreeing.
For more: Why 9/11 was good for religion | World news | The Guardian
In Islam there have been positive developments. The attacks were repeatedly and clearly condemned by Muslim leaders all over the world. After Pope Benedict XVI's controversial Regensburg speech, the most notable response was the decision of 137 Muslim scholars to sign a declaration outlining what common values they shared with Christians.
This "common word" declaration is an example of "hard tolerance" – the increasing practice of making theological differences distinct and then talking about them, rather than trying to conceal them in a syrup of platitudes about love and mysticism. The aim is for priests, imams and rabbis to enter imaginatively into each other's ideologies, rather than simply agreeing.
For more: Why 9/11 was good for religion | World news | The Guardian
Europe still hotbed of Islamic terrorism
In the days after 9/11, shocked American intelligence authorities quickly surmised that Islamic terrorist networks in Europe — particularly Britain — need to be tackled head on. The fingerprints of Europe were all over the attacks on the Twin Towers: Zacarias Moussaoui, the only terrorist onvicted for 9/11, was a Frenchman radicalized in a British university.
A massive security review in 2005 led ex-Prime Minister Gordon Brown to repeatedly declare that 75% of all terrorist incidents in Britain had their origins in Pakistan. According to MI5 chief Jonathan Evans, that figure has now come down to 50% but he adds: “This does not mean that the overall threat has reduced but that it has diversified (to Somalia and other countries).”
Europe still hotbed of Islamic terrorism - Hindustan Times
Ten years on, Europe — home to 15 million Muslims — remains a continent on the edge. If Britain is widely considered to be the epicenter of European Islamic terrorism, it is because of its large Pakistani-origin population — more than a million and growing, including 431,000 born in Pakistan.\
A massive security review in 2005 led ex-Prime Minister Gordon Brown to repeatedly declare that 75% of all terrorist incidents in Britain had their origins in Pakistan. According to MI5 chief Jonathan Evans, that figure has now come down to 50% but he adds: “This does not mean that the overall threat has reduced but that it has diversified (to Somalia and other countries).”
Europe still hotbed of Islamic terrorism - Hindustan Times
Threat of emergency law after Cairo riot - by Megan Detrie
Egypt is ready to implement emergency law after a weekend of violence in which protesters stormed the Israeli embassy.
The repeal of emergency laws was a key demand of protesters in the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in February. The country's military rulers said last month they had begun procedures to end the state of emergency before parliamentary elections expected in November.
In a televised message yesterday the information minister Osama Heikal said the government was committed to protecting all embassies in Egypt after three people were killed in overnight clashes, and authorities would apply "all articles of the emergency law to ensure safety".
For more: Threat of emergency law after Cairo riot - The National
The repeal of emergency laws was a key demand of protesters in the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in February. The country's military rulers said last month they had begun procedures to end the state of emergency before parliamentary elections expected in November.
In a televised message yesterday the information minister Osama Heikal said the government was committed to protecting all embassies in Egypt after three people were killed in overnight clashes, and authorities would apply "all articles of the emergency law to ensure safety".
For more: Threat of emergency law after Cairo riot - The National
Israel facing 'diplomatic tsunami' with Arab neighbors - by Sheera Frenkel
The attack on the Israeli embassy in Cairo has brought into sharp relief Israel's increasing isolation in a still region grappling with the changes of the so-called "Arab Spring."
Israel was forced to evacuate its ambassador and most of its diplomatic staff from Cairo this weekend after hundreds of Egyptian protesters tore down a security wall protecting the Nile-side embassy, ransacked its files and burned an Israeli flag. The move came less than a week after Turkey, Israel's other major ally in the Muslim world, announced it was expelling the Israeli ambassador and downgrading its relationship to the lowest possible level after a deadly skirmish involving a Turkish aid vessel that was attempting to deliver supplies in defiance of Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.
For more: srael facing 'diplomatic tsunami' with Arab neighbors - World Wires - MiamiHerald.com
Israel was forced to evacuate its ambassador and most of its diplomatic staff from Cairo this weekend after hundreds of Egyptian protesters tore down a security wall protecting the Nile-side embassy, ransacked its files and burned an Israeli flag. The move came less than a week after Turkey, Israel's other major ally in the Muslim world, announced it was expelling the Israeli ambassador and downgrading its relationship to the lowest possible level after a deadly skirmish involving a Turkish aid vessel that was attempting to deliver supplies in defiance of Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.
For more: srael facing 'diplomatic tsunami' with Arab neighbors - World Wires - MiamiHerald.com
Terrorism: The fiscal impact of 9/11: Billions lost to the war on terror - by Harvey Enchin
It may seem heartless to try to put a price tag on the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 that took the lives of nearly 3,000 people and affected the lives of so many more. No accounting can quantify the suffering and sorrow that continue to gnaw at the American psyche.
But the economic implications of that event and of the ongoing battle against terrorism that ensued cannot be ignored.
While the United States has incurred by far the lion's share of direct costs related to 9/11 and the security measures - including military interventions - that came about thereafter, Canada has had to cope with their economic consequences.
But the economic implications of that event and of the ongoing battle against terrorism that ensued cannot be ignored.
While the United States has incurred by far the lion's share of direct costs related to 9/11 and the security measures - including military interventions - that came about thereafter, Canada has had to cope with their economic consequences.
9/9/11
EU more optimistic than IMF on an Irish market comeback -
The European Commission voiced optimism on Friday that Ireland was on track to return to the borrowing market, offering a brighter assessment than the IMF issued this week.
Irish authorities have made progress in fixing the nation's wrecked finances, successfully completing the recapitalization of the banking sector while the economy is expected to return to growth this year, the commission said.
"Usually we are very prudent in our assessments... In this case we are particularly optimistic," Amadeu Altafaj, spokesman for EU economic affairs commissioner Olli Rehn, told a news briefing.
EU more optimistic than IMF on an Irish market comeback - Economy - Business - Ahram Online
Irish authorities have made progress in fixing the nation's wrecked finances, successfully completing the recapitalization of the banking sector while the economy is expected to return to growth this year, the commission said.
"Usually we are very prudent in our assessments... In this case we are particularly optimistic," Amadeu Altafaj, spokesman for EU economic affairs commissioner Olli Rehn, told a news briefing.
EU more optimistic than IMF on an Irish market comeback - Economy - Business - Ahram Online
Netherlands: Contacts with Bouterse of Suriname only functional
Bouterse’e election in particular would have put pressure on the relationship. In 2000, he was sentenced to 11 years in prison by a Dutch court due to his alleged involvement in drug trafficking. “In the December murders trial, Bouterse is also the main suspect. This fact also influences bilateral relations with Suriname,” Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Uri Rosenthal writes in a nine-page letter to the Dutch Lower House.
According to Rosenthal, that is why political relations with Suriname are determined in a certain framework. Among other things, the Netherlands respects the results of the democratic elections in Suriname, and the subsequent Parliamentary choice of Desi Bouterse as President. The Dutch will judge Suriname’s government on the basis of its appointments, policy intentions and policy deeds. “Contacts with President Bouterse are maintained on the basis of functional necessity.
For more: Holland: Contacts with Bouterse of Suriname only functional - Stabroek News - Guyana
Libyan Rebels Attack Qaddafi Loyalists in 2 Cities - by Rod Nordland
Libyan rebels began what they called full-scale attacks to subdue the loyalist holdouts of Bani Walid and Surt on Friday night, breaking their own deadline for surrender after taking enemy fire.
Germany, Netherlands to Greece: Shape Up or Ship Out
When it comes to money, Germany and the Netherlands aren’t kidding. Both nations are out of patience with Greece, although the message is divided, and both are beginning to talk about Athens being compelled to exit the euro zone.
For more: Germany, Netherlands to Greece: Shape Up or Ship Out
For more: Germany, Netherlands to Greece: Shape Up or Ship Out
Smartphone shipments surpass feature phones in Europe - by Hayley Tsukayama
Despite high handset prices and expensive data plans, smartphones are steadily growing in popularity worldwide. Now, research company IDC says that shipments of smartphones passed shipments of feature phones in Europe for the first time.
For more: martphone shipments surpass feature phones in Europe - The Washington Post
For more: martphone shipments surpass feature phones in Europe - The Washington Post
9/8/11
USA: FBI investigates terror 'threat' to New York or Washington
Officials have received a credible but unconfirmed terror threat having to do with New York or Washington, according to the Associated Press.
The news agency reported a counterterrorism official as saying that law enforcement officials have been investigating the intelligence since it was received late Wednesday night.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive security information.
For more: FBI investigates terror 'threat' to New York or Washington | World news | guardian.co.uk
The news agency reported a counterterrorism official as saying that law enforcement officials have been investigating the intelligence since it was received late Wednesday night.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive security information.
For more: FBI investigates terror 'threat' to New York or Washington | World news | guardian.co.uk
Obama Pushes $400 Billion Jobs Plan in Feisty Address to Congress - by Jake Tapper
A more fundamental step towards a fiscal union may be needed. One way forward is to introduce Eurobonds, which would pledge “joint and several” liability. In theory that could mean that a small state is on the line for such debt; in practice it would mean Germany. Advocates of Eurobonds point out that the public finances of the euro area, taken as a whole, compare favourably with other big economies such as America and Britain, whose governments are currently able to borrow at record low yields. If the euro area were able to borrow as a whole, it too should benefit from low borrowing costs, helped by the liquidity advantage of creating what could become a vast government-bond market.
Note EU-Digest: A feisty speech and a good speech by President Obama with a call for action. In his speech he said: " the election is 14 months away but Americans don't have the luxury to wait 14 months for action."
For more: Obama Pushes $400 Billion Jobs Plan in Address to Congress - ABC News
Note EU-Digest: A feisty speech and a good speech by President Obama with a call for action. In his speech he said: " the election is 14 months away but Americans don't have the luxury to wait 14 months for action."
For more: Obama Pushes $400 Billion Jobs Plan in Address to Congress - ABC News
Europe’s debt crisis: Fudge, the final frontier
The brief period of calm brought about by the European Central Bank (ECB) wading into the bond markets from early August to buy Italian and Spanish government debt is over. That intervention at first lowered Italian ten-year bond yields down from over 6% to around 5%. But yields have been creeping up since late August, and jumped above 5.5% on September 5th.
A more fundamental step towards a fiscal union may be needed. One way forward is to introduce Eurobonds, which would pledge “joint and several” liability. In theory that could mean that a small state is on the line for such debt; in practice it would mean Germany. Advocates of Eurobonds point out that the public finances of the euro area, taken as a whole, compare favorably with other big economies such as America and Britain, whose governments are currently able to borrow at record low yields. If the euro area were able to borrow as a whole, it too should benefit from low borrowing costs, helped by the liquidity advantage of creating what could become a vast government-bond market.
For more: Europe’s debt crisis: Fudge, the final frontier | The Economist
A more fundamental step towards a fiscal union may be needed. One way forward is to introduce Eurobonds, which would pledge “joint and several” liability. In theory that could mean that a small state is on the line for such debt; in practice it would mean Germany. Advocates of Eurobonds point out that the public finances of the euro area, taken as a whole, compare favorably with other big economies such as America and Britain, whose governments are currently able to borrow at record low yields. If the euro area were able to borrow as a whole, it too should benefit from low borrowing costs, helped by the liquidity advantage of creating what could become a vast government-bond market.
For more: Europe’s debt crisis: Fudge, the final frontier | The Economist
Facebook signs up to voluntary privacy code in Germany
Social networking website Facebook said Thursday it would sign up to a voluntary code of conduct in Germany. There have been concerns about the website's use of users' data - a topic which is particularly sensitive in Germany.
"We support this initiative towards self-regulation," said Richard Allen, Facebook's director of European public policy, after a meeting with Germany's Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich.
"It can be a very effective way to protect the interests of Internet users," he added.
For more: Facebook signs up to voluntary privacy code in Germany | Science & Technology | Deutsche Welle | 08.09.2011
"We support this initiative towards self-regulation," said Richard Allen, Facebook's director of European public policy, after a meeting with Germany's Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich.
"It can be a very effective way to protect the interests of Internet users," he added.
For more: Facebook signs up to voluntary privacy code in Germany | Science & Technology | Deutsche Welle | 08.09.2011
2012 elections: Believe it or not, Obama will win the Presidential election
There are three main reasons to call the Presidential race so early.
1) Economy: Given present economic indicators the US economy will be better off in November 2012 than it is now, because its almost impossible not to improve the economy from the very low point it is at now and also, given that many new government program, which have been put in place, will be starting to come on stream..
2) Employment:: if unemployment numbers are less than 9% by the time of the Presidential election, employment will become a non-issue.
3) Republicans: the Republicans main concern should be their own candidates. If Republicans give the crown to Rick Perry to run against Obama the election could turn into a disaster for them. Rick Perry will be pictured by the Democrats as a T-party candidate and even though Perry has not explicitly said so he will also be projected by his opponents as the candidate who wants to abolish social security. If Republicans give the leading role to Mitt Romney he might have a slightly better chance, but being a Mormon and having the reputation of frequently changing his position on major issues, including medicare, could work against him.The other 6 Republican candidates can only be described as bystanders and none of them has the potential and savvy to beat Obama.
EU-Digest
Libya: Gaddafi denies fleeing to Niger
Ousted Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi has slammed reports he had fled to neighbouring Niger as "psychological warfare and lies" in an audio message aired by the Damascus-based Arrai television channel.
For more: Libya: Gaddafi denies fleeing to Niger - Telegraph
For more: Libya: Gaddafi denies fleeing to Niger - Telegraph
Dutch PM calls for Europe budget tsar - by Peter Spiegel and Matt Steinglass
The European Union should appoint a new budget tsar with powers to dictate taxes and spending in eurozone countries and who could ultimately adjudicate whether countries should be kicked out of the euro, the Dutch prime minister has argued.Writing in the Financial Times, Mark Rutte and his government's finance minister, Jan Kees de Jager, said the new "commissioner for budgetary discipline" should be given the authority to impose a gradually more painful series of penalties on profligate eurozone countries, including the withholding of EU development funds.
But if a country continues to flout EU demands for spending restraint, Mr Rutte's plan would force eurozone countries to submit their budgets to the commissioner, who could veto it before it is presented to parliament. Over the long term, Mr Rutte said, the eurozone should force countries to leave the euro if it did not abide by the commissioner's ruling.
Note EU-Digest: Good suggestion.
For more: Dutch PM calls for Europe budget tsar - CNN.com
9/7/11
Europe: Interview with Gerhard Schröder: 'Europe Needs to Wake Up' - Interview by Georg Mascolo and Christoph Schwennicke
"Democracy is slow, while the markets are fast. But that doesn't mean that politicians have to capitulate in the face of the markets. For instance, they set the rules through the G-20. Let's put it this way: The political system might be slower, but it has greater leverage. It just has to use it."
"Great Britain is causing the biggest problem. Great Britain is not part of the euro, and yet the British always want to have their say in the design of an economic zone. This is inconsistent. And besides, the British have been very skeptical about every integration step, and that's putting it very diplomatically."
"If you look at the economic data, Germany, as an exporting and industrialized nation, has benefited immensely from the euro. That's just the way it is. We will have to explain to people the benefits we have derived from the euro, economically, socially and politically. We will have to explain that in a common currency zone, you accept a joint responsibility for this currency and relinquish sovereignty rights."
For more: SPIEGEL Interview with Gerhard Schröder: 'Europe Needs to Wake Up' - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News - International
"Great Britain is causing the biggest problem. Great Britain is not part of the euro, and yet the British always want to have their say in the design of an economic zone. This is inconsistent. And besides, the British have been very skeptical about every integration step, and that's putting it very diplomatically."
"If you look at the economic data, Germany, as an exporting and industrialized nation, has benefited immensely from the euro. That's just the way it is. We will have to explain to people the benefits we have derived from the euro, economically, socially and politically. We will have to explain that in a common currency zone, you accept a joint responsibility for this currency and relinquish sovereignty rights."
For more: SPIEGEL Interview with Gerhard Schröder: 'Europe Needs to Wake Up' - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News - International
Are British Special forces hunting for Gaddafi ?
British TV station ITV reported that a large number of British Special Air Service officers are in Libya hunting for Muammar Gaddafi, who they believe is still in the country.
The British Ministry of Defense refused to confirm or deny the report, adding that it was government policy not to comment on special forces operations.
Since neighboring Algeria has denied Muammar Gaddafi entry and didn’t even envisage granting him asylum. All this adds to the assumption that Col Gaddafi must still be in Libya.
EU-Digest
The British Ministry of Defense refused to confirm or deny the report, adding that it was government policy not to comment on special forces operations.
Since neighboring Algeria has denied Muammar Gaddafi entry and didn’t even envisage granting him asylum. All this adds to the assumption that Col Gaddafi must still be in Libya.
EU-Digest
Libya: Getting to Know the Opposition - by Manal Omar and Tarkowski Tempelhof
With the overthrow of Moammar Gaddafi, Libya has a whole new political spectrum that covers a formal transitional government to remnants of the monarchy. Each will play some telling role over the next few months as the North African country struggles to redefine itself.
The transitional government emerged as four pillars: National Transitional Council (NTC), The Executive Board (TEB), the Libya Stabilization Team, and The Local Councils.
Among Eastern Libyans there is a consensus that an official body is needed, and few have expressed opposition to the NTC as a governing body. The main concern has been over the selection process.
The NTC seems to be dominated by two key-families: the Bogaigis and the Garianis. For most Libyans, faith is placed with the President, Mustafa Abdel Jalil who benefits from popular support. His recent announcement that he will be the first to stand trial in any country for transitional justice was well received, and confirmed people's faith in him to lead Libya into the transition.
For additional details: Manal Omar: Getting to Know the Opposition
The transitional government emerged as four pillars: National Transitional Council (NTC), The Executive Board (TEB), the Libya Stabilization Team, and The Local Councils.
Among Eastern Libyans there is a consensus that an official body is needed, and few have expressed opposition to the NTC as a governing body. The main concern has been over the selection process.
The NTC seems to be dominated by two key-families: the Bogaigis and the Garianis. For most Libyans, faith is placed with the President, Mustafa Abdel Jalil who benefits from popular support. His recent announcement that he will be the first to stand trial in any country for transitional justice was well received, and confirmed people's faith in him to lead Libya into the transition.
For additional details: Manal Omar: Getting to Know the Opposition
Wall Street advances 2 pct as Europe concerns ease
U.S. stocks rallied on Wednesday, reversing three days of losses on hopes the European debt crisis might ease after Germany's top court smoothed the way for Berlin's participation in bailout packages.
The S&P and Nasdaq both topped 2 percent, and all ten S&;P sector indexes were higher in a broad rally.
European stocks bounced back from a two-year low after the German court rejected lawsuits aimed at blocking the country from joining in to aid Greece
Note EU-Digest: listening to US news commentators "gloom and doom" reports about the World economy gives the impression as if Europe is the reason for the US economic troubles instead of the other way around
For more: US STOCKS-Wall St advances 2 pct as Europe concerns ease | Reuters
The S&P and Nasdaq both topped 2 percent, and all ten S&;P sector indexes were higher in a broad rally.
European stocks bounced back from a two-year low after the German court rejected lawsuits aimed at blocking the country from joining in to aid Greece
Note EU-Digest: listening to US news commentators "gloom and doom" reports about the World economy gives the impression as if Europe is the reason for the US economic troubles instead of the other way around
For more: US STOCKS-Wall St advances 2 pct as Europe concerns ease | Reuters
Why Eurozone should become United States of Europe, by David Cameron - by James Chapman and Alex Brummer
David Cameron was branded an EU ‘enthusiast’ by Tory Eurosceptics last night as he said Britain must let eurozone countries move towards a United States of Europe with a common economic policy.
The Prime Minister admitted he was not sure whether Germany and other countries had the political will to prevent a break-up of the single currency, but insisted they must be allowed to try – even if that meant closer integration.
The tumult on global financial markets intensified yesterday ahead of a crunch ruling by the German constitutional court on the legality of bailouts for debt-crippled nations.
Bill Cash, the Eurosceptic Tory MP who chairs the Commons European scrutiny committee, told the Prime Minister that while he had ‘certain reservations’ about the EU, it was clear that he was ‘actually rather an enthusiast’ for keeping the union together through integration.
The Prime Minister admitted he was not sure whether Germany and other countries had the political will to prevent a break-up of the single currency, but insisted they must be allowed to try – even if that meant closer integration.
The tumult on global financial markets intensified yesterday ahead of a crunch ruling by the German constitutional court on the legality of bailouts for debt-crippled nations.
Bill Cash, the Eurosceptic Tory MP who chairs the Commons European scrutiny committee, told the Prime Minister that while he had ‘certain reservations’ about the EU, it was clear that he was ‘actually rather an enthusiast’ for keeping the union together through integration.
Mr Cameron insisted he was a ‘practical Eurosceptic’ – but warned of economic disaster for Britain if the euro is allowed to collapse.
9/6/11
The Netherlands: Hacked site issued bogus security certificates
Hackers who broke into a "Dutch" web security firm DigiNotar, a subsidiary of Chicago-based Vasco Inc, have issued hundreds of bogus security certificates for spy agency websites including the CIA as well as for internet giants like Google, Microsoft and Twitter, the government said Monday.
DigiNotar is one of many companies which sell the security certificates widely used to authenticate websites and guarantee that communications between a user's browser and a website are secure.
Experts say they suspect the hacker — or hackers — operated with the co-operation of the Iranian government.
So far, only a handful of users in Iran are known to have been affected. In addition, the latest versions of browsers such as Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Google's Chrome and Mozilla's Firefox are now rejecting certificates issued by the firm that was hacked, DigiNotar.
But in a statement Monday, the Dutch Justice Ministry published a list of the fraudulent certificates that greatly expands the scope of the July hacking attack that DigiNotar first acknowledged last week. The list includes sites operated by Yahoo, Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Skype, AOL, Mozilla, TorProject, and WordPress, as well as spy agencies including the CIA, Israel's Mossad and Britain's MI6.
Gervase Markham, a Mozilla developer who has been involved in the response to the DigiNotar failure, warned Iranian internet users on Monday to update their browsers, "log out of and back into every email and social media service you have" and change all passwords.
Ot van Daalen director of Bits of Freedom, an online civil liberties group.said he believed the DigiNotar incident will ultimately lead to a reform of authentication technology.
Although no users in the Netherlands are known to have been victimized directly by the hack, it has caused a major headache for the Dutch government, which relied on DigiNotar for authentication of most of its websites.
For more: Hacked site issued bogus security certificates - Business - CBC News
DigiNotar is one of many companies which sell the security certificates widely used to authenticate websites and guarantee that communications between a user's browser and a website are secure.
Experts say they suspect the hacker — or hackers — operated with the co-operation of the Iranian government.
So far, only a handful of users in Iran are known to have been affected. In addition, the latest versions of browsers such as Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Google's Chrome and Mozilla's Firefox are now rejecting certificates issued by the firm that was hacked, DigiNotar.
But in a statement Monday, the Dutch Justice Ministry published a list of the fraudulent certificates that greatly expands the scope of the July hacking attack that DigiNotar first acknowledged last week. The list includes sites operated by Yahoo, Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Skype, AOL, Mozilla, TorProject, and WordPress, as well as spy agencies including the CIA, Israel's Mossad and Britain's MI6.
Gervase Markham, a Mozilla developer who has been involved in the response to the DigiNotar failure, warned Iranian internet users on Monday to update their browsers, "log out of and back into every email and social media service you have" and change all passwords.
Ot van Daalen director of Bits of Freedom, an online civil liberties group.said he believed the DigiNotar incident will ultimately lead to a reform of authentication technology.
Although no users in the Netherlands are known to have been victimized directly by the hack, it has caused a major headache for the Dutch government, which relied on DigiNotar for authentication of most of its websites.
For more: Hacked site issued bogus security certificates - Business - CBC News
Switzerland: Eastern Europe’s Borrowers See Relief as Swiss Peg Franc to Euro - by Zoltan Simon
Switzerland’s ceiling on the franc’s exchange rate will bring relief to eastern European borrowers struggling to repay Swiss franc loans and cash-strapped governments running out of options to help them.
The Swiss National Bank’s imposition of a minimum rate of 1.20 francs per euro sent the Hungarian forint soaring as much as 10 percent against the Alpine currency, the most on record, to as much as 225.784. The zloty rose as much as 9 percent to 3.453.
Hungary and Poland, the two countries most-indebted in Swiss francs, suffered after monthly installments soared when investors sought safety in francs and shunned euros and dollars as the European and U.S. debt woes roiled markets. Two-thirds of Hungarian mortgage loans and 54 percent of Polish loans are based in francs. That’s equivalent to 16 percent of gross domestic product for Hungary and 10 percent of GDP for Poland, according to UBS Wealth Management.
Eastern Europe’s Borrowers See Relief as Swiss Peg Franc to Euro - Bloomberg
The Swiss National Bank’s imposition of a minimum rate of 1.20 francs per euro sent the Hungarian forint soaring as much as 10 percent against the Alpine currency, the most on record, to as much as 225.784. The zloty rose as much as 9 percent to 3.453.
Hungary and Poland, the two countries most-indebted in Swiss francs, suffered after monthly installments soared when investors sought safety in francs and shunned euros and dollars as the European and U.S. debt woes roiled markets. Two-thirds of Hungarian mortgage loans and 54 percent of Polish loans are based in francs. That’s equivalent to 16 percent of gross domestic product for Hungary and 10 percent of GDP for Poland, according to UBS Wealth Management.
Eastern Europe’s Borrowers See Relief as Swiss Peg Franc to Euro - Bloomberg
Germany: Merkel: Countries will not be kicked out of eurozone but cash can be cut off
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said that kicking countries out of the eurozone is excluded as an option, but that Greece must impose the austerity and restructuring measures that are a condition of the bail-out, or Athens will not receive its latest tranche of rescue funds.
EU Council President Herman Van Rompuy meanwhile has said that still further political pressure needs to be applied to Greece and Italy to slash their debt levels.
For more: EUobserver.com / Economic Affairs / Merkel: Countries will not be kicked out of eurozone
EU Council President Herman Van Rompuy meanwhile has said that still further political pressure needs to be applied to Greece and Italy to slash their debt levels.
For more: EUobserver.com / Economic Affairs / Merkel: Countries will not be kicked out of eurozone
Battle under way for soul of 'United States of Europe'
Star economists and former national leaders now happily argue that resolving the eurozone debt crisis will eventually demand the surrendering of sovereignty to create a fully-fledged United States of Europe.However, as they press for the political integration they say is needed to prevent the currency union collapsing on an Achilles heel of Greek debt, even advocates in unguarded moments admit resistance to the surrender of national sovereignty is rising.
Either Europe moves forward to "political union," Nobel Prize-winning economist Nouriel Roubini said in Brussels on Monday, or the result will be "eventual disintegration, break-up."
Roubini was speaking at the launch of a manifesto by the self-appointed "Council for the Future of Europe," a think tank set up by Nicolas Berggruen, the billionaire son of a famed German-Jewish art collector.
For more: AFP: Battle under way for soul of 'United States of Europe'
Libya: Gaddafi Regime Unraveling As Cash And Gold Is Brought Into Niger from Sirte
Reuters reports a convoy of 10 vehicles crossed into Niger carrying money taken from a branch of the Central Bank of Libya, confirmed by a spokesman for the ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) today. "They took the money from the central bank in Sirte," Abdel Hafiz Ghoga, an NTC spokesman told Reuters in Benghazi. Sirte is the birthplace of fugitive strongman Muammar Gaddafi.
An NTC official earlier said a Libyan convoy of 10 vehicles carrying gold and cash crossed into Niger late on Monday, citing sources among the Tuareg people who live in the Sahara desert on both sides of the frontier. Reuters said today that what appears now to be a string of 200 to 250 vehicles could have been part of a dramatic secret attempt by Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi to find refuge in a friendly African state, possibly Burkina Faso, which has offered him asylum. But other reports suggested that the vehicles were carrying Tuareg fighters who had been paid to fight for him.
The possibility might also exist that France may have brokered a deal between the rebels and Colonel Qaddafi but the French government declined to confirm the report. France was the first country to recognize the rebels who launched their uprising in February and has played a central role along with Britain and the United States in the NATO air campaign to weaken his forces.
Asked whether NATO was aware of the convoy’s reported movements, officials of the alliance at its headquarters in Brussels and its Libya operations base in Naples, Italy, declined to comment, saying they did not discuss intelligence matters.
EU-Digest
An NTC official earlier said a Libyan convoy of 10 vehicles carrying gold and cash crossed into Niger late on Monday, citing sources among the Tuareg people who live in the Sahara desert on both sides of the frontier. Reuters said today that what appears now to be a string of 200 to 250 vehicles could have been part of a dramatic secret attempt by Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi to find refuge in a friendly African state, possibly Burkina Faso, which has offered him asylum. But other reports suggested that the vehicles were carrying Tuareg fighters who had been paid to fight for him.
The possibility might also exist that France may have brokered a deal between the rebels and Colonel Qaddafi but the French government declined to confirm the report. France was the first country to recognize the rebels who launched their uprising in February and has played a central role along with Britain and the United States in the NATO air campaign to weaken his forces.
Asked whether NATO was aware of the convoy’s reported movements, officials of the alliance at its headquarters in Brussels and its Libya operations base in Naples, Italy, declined to comment, saying they did not discuss intelligence matters.
EU-Digest
9/5/11
European Car Industry - alternative energy: Extended-range hybrids pick up steam
Extended-range hybrid electric cars are a new breed of electric cars that differ from traditional hybrid electric cars, which run a powertrain with both electric power and gasoline. The extended-range model powers an engine entirely from battery power, and then when the battery runs dry it uses a gas-powered motor to recharge the battery and extend the range of the car. If drivers limit their driving habits, the car essentially behaves like a battery-powered electric car.
“We really feel like the plug-in hybrid is going to be the most popular for the widest variety of customers,” Ford technology communications manager Alan Hall told VentureBeat. “Hybrids today have been very successful with customers because you don’t have the range anxiety that might come from owning a battery-powered electric car.”
Ford isn’t the only company that expects the plug-in hybrid to win out. Clean technology research firm Pike Research expects 754,000 extended-range hybrid electric vehicles to hit the road by 2017, compared to around 504,000 battery-electric vehicles. It’s around a three-to-two ratio, which should continue for the foreseeable future in the United States, Pike Research analyst John Gartner told VentureBeat..
For more: Extended-range hybrids pick up steam | VentureBeat
“We really feel like the plug-in hybrid is going to be the most popular for the widest variety of customers,” Ford technology communications manager Alan Hall told VentureBeat. “Hybrids today have been very successful with customers because you don’t have the range anxiety that might come from owning a battery-powered electric car.”
Ford isn’t the only company that expects the plug-in hybrid to win out. Clean technology research firm Pike Research expects 754,000 extended-range hybrid electric vehicles to hit the road by 2017, compared to around 504,000 battery-electric vehicles. It’s around a three-to-two ratio, which should continue for the foreseeable future in the United States, Pike Research analyst John Gartner told VentureBeat..
For more: Extended-range hybrids pick up steam | VentureBeat
US Presidential election: Obama strongly leads Republican candidates in California poll - lby Cathleen Decker
President Obama's standing has slumped among California voters, but he holds an expansive lead over potential Republican opponents, including two who have leaped ahead of the GOP presidential pack in California, a new USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll has found.Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney were tied at 22% among Republican voters. Two others, Texas Rep. Ron Paul and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, were barely in double digits, and a parade of other candidates fell well behind.
The poll by The Times and the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences underscored the abrupt alterations in the Republican contest. Romney has been campaigning for the presidency for years; Perry had been in the race for mere days before vaulting into the shared lead in California.
For more : Obama strongly leads Republican candidates in California poll - latimes.com
US Banking System:: China wanted to invest in U.S. banks during '08 crisis - by Rick Rothacker
During the throes of the 2008 financial crisis, a top Chinese banker told U.S. officials that his company and others in China were interested in taking significant stakes in U.S. banks but expected a backlash from regulators and the American public, according to U.S. diplomatic memos.
The chairman of China Construction Bank, one of the world's largest banks, made the comment during two separate meetings in November 2008, according to State Department cables obtained by McClatchy through WikiLeaks.
At the time, U.S. banks were desperate for capital to absorb losses from mortgage-related investments and rising loan losses. But no Chinese investments were made, apparently because it would have opened the Chinese banks to regulatory scrutiny in the United States.
Still, the memos provide a window into the thinking of Chinese banking officials as their counterparts in the U.S. suffered through an epic financial meltdown. One of the Chinese investment funds eventually won Federal Reserve approval for an investment in New York-based Morgan Stanley, although not until last year.
WikiLeaks: China wanted to invest in U.S. banks during '08 crisis - National Business - MiamiHerald.com
The chairman of China Construction Bank, one of the world's largest banks, made the comment during two separate meetings in November 2008, according to State Department cables obtained by McClatchy through WikiLeaks.
At the time, U.S. banks were desperate for capital to absorb losses from mortgage-related investments and rising loan losses. But no Chinese investments were made, apparently because it would have opened the Chinese banks to regulatory scrutiny in the United States.
Still, the memos provide a window into the thinking of Chinese banking officials as their counterparts in the U.S. suffered through an epic financial meltdown. One of the Chinese investment funds eventually won Federal Reserve approval for an investment in New York-based Morgan Stanley, although not until last year.
WikiLeaks: China wanted to invest in U.S. banks during '08 crisis - National Business - MiamiHerald.com
China, Libya, and Oil: Update
China is positioning the country to engage with the new Libyan government, despite comments from at least one Libyan rebel that China might lose out for not being part of the forces backing the rebels. I doubt that will happen, and I predict that Chinese companies, which had signed some $18 billion in infrastructure contracts, will be actively trying to restart those projects and others. They will succeed in a lot of this. Reconstruction after all the NATO bombing will mean lots of new business.
About 75 Chinese companies operated in Libya before the war, involving about 36,000 staff and 50 projects, according to early Chinese media reports. Many of those firms were engaged in building roads, buildings and infrastructure.......China's top three state oil firms CNPC, Sinopec Group and CNOOC all had engineering projects in Libya, but no oil production yet, company officials said. China shipped in roughly 150,000 barrels per day of crude oil from Libya last year through Unipec, the trading arm of Asia's top refiner Sinopec Corp that holds the long-term supply contract. That amounted to about one tenth of Libya's crude exports.
China was unusually quick to support the [National Transitional Council] ...Relative to China's typical foreign policy response, that was quite important, but relative to what Europe and the United States did, that falls short. So I think they will struggle," said Ben Simpfendorfer, managing director of Silk Road Associates, a Hong Kong-based consultancy that specializes in business between China and the Middle East.
For more: China in Africa: The Real Story: China, Libya, and Oil: Update
About 75 Chinese companies operated in Libya before the war, involving about 36,000 staff and 50 projects, according to early Chinese media reports. Many of those firms were engaged in building roads, buildings and infrastructure.......China's top three state oil firms CNPC, Sinopec Group and CNOOC all had engineering projects in Libya, but no oil production yet, company officials said. China shipped in roughly 150,000 barrels per day of crude oil from Libya last year through Unipec, the trading arm of Asia's top refiner Sinopec Corp that holds the long-term supply contract. That amounted to about one tenth of Libya's crude exports.
China was unusually quick to support the [National Transitional Council] ...Relative to China's typical foreign policy response, that was quite important, but relative to what Europe and the United States did, that falls short. So I think they will struggle," said Ben Simpfendorfer, managing director of Silk Road Associates, a Hong Kong-based consultancy that specializes in business between China and the Middle East.
For more: China in Africa: The Real Story: China, Libya, and Oil: Update
Euro Soccer 2012 -- group favorites are nearing qualification in group play
Germany (via math), Spain (via stats) and the Netherlands (via domination) moved closer to the final tournament last weekend as 2012 Euro qualification was back in full swing. There are many more key matches Tuesday.
As we mentioned in last Friday's post, Euro qualifying is a bit complicated, but the easiest thing to remember is all group winners automatically qualify for the final tournament. This is the only way to guarantee a spot in next summer's championship. This should be the goal of all contending squads entering the tournament.
Group A was mathematically decided Friday when Germany defeated Austria 6-2 in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. Turkey has a great chance to finish second in the group -- 96 percent to be exact, according to ESPN's Soccer Power Index (SPI). It is very unlikely to finish as the best second-place finisher, however, so Turkey is almost assured of entering into a two-legged playoff for one spot in the final tournament later this year.
Soccer Euro 2012 -- group favorites are nearing qualification in group play -- soccer - ESPN
As we mentioned in last Friday's post, Euro qualifying is a bit complicated, but the easiest thing to remember is all group winners automatically qualify for the final tournament. This is the only way to guarantee a spot in next summer's championship. This should be the goal of all contending squads entering the tournament.
Group A was mathematically decided Friday when Germany defeated Austria 6-2 in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. Turkey has a great chance to finish second in the group -- 96 percent to be exact, according to ESPN's Soccer Power Index (SPI). It is very unlikely to finish as the best second-place finisher, however, so Turkey is almost assured of entering into a two-legged playoff for one spot in the final tournament later this year.
Soccer Euro 2012 -- group favorites are nearing qualification in group play -- soccer - ESPN
EU - Barroso says Europe will avoid return to recession
Europe will not slide back into recession, and the euro remains "strong and resilient", the president of the European Commission has said. Jose Manuel Barroso added that the Commission and national governments were "doing all it takes" to tackle the debt problems in the eurozone area.
S&P now expects the economy across the 17 nations that share the euro to expand 1.7% this year, down from its previous forecast of 1.9%.
Council of Europe demands truth on CIA 'black sites'
The human rights commissioner for the Council of Europe urged countries that have hosted secret CIA prisons to come clean Monday, as the tenth anniversary of 9/11 approaches.
Thomas Hammarberg said Poland, Romania and Lithuania were among at least seven countries that hosted "black sites" for "enhanced interrogation" during the "war on terror."
"Darkness still enshrouds those who authorized and ran the black sites on European territories," he said. "The full truth must now be established and guarantees given that such forms of co-operation will never be repeated."
For more: Council of Europe demands truth on CIA 'black sites' - CNN.com
Thomas Hammarberg said Poland, Romania and Lithuania were among at least seven countries that hosted "black sites" for "enhanced interrogation" during the "war on terror."
"Darkness still enshrouds those who authorized and ran the black sites on European territories," he said. "The full truth must now be established and guarantees given that such forms of co-operation will never be repeated."
For more: Council of Europe demands truth on CIA 'black sites' - CNN.com
France: Carla Bruni-Sarkozy: new baby will be kept out of media spotlight - by Kim Willsher
The French first lady, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, has spoken publicly for the first time about the child she and the president, Nicolas Sarkozy, are expecting in a few weeks.
Until the television interview on Sunday night, neither one of the couple had discussed the pregnancy. The nine-minute interview was recorded at the Elysée Palace earlier this week. The baby will be her second child and Sarkozy's fourth.
Bruni-Sarkozy insisted the child would be shielded from the spotlight. "I will never show a photograph of this child and will never expose it [to publicity]," she said, admitting she regretted allowing her son Aurélien, now 11, to be photographed in Jordan in 2008 before she and Sarkozy were married.
Sarkozy became 56 on January 28 and Carla Bruni-Sarkozy is 43
For more: Carla Bruni-Sarkozy: new baby will be kept out of media spotlight | World news | The Guardian
Until the television interview on Sunday night, neither one of the couple had discussed the pregnancy. The nine-minute interview was recorded at the Elysée Palace earlier this week. The baby will be her second child and Sarkozy's fourth.
Bruni-Sarkozy insisted the child would be shielded from the spotlight. "I will never show a photograph of this child and will never expose it [to publicity]," she said, admitting she regretted allowing her son Aurélien, now 11, to be photographed in Jordan in 2008 before she and Sarkozy were married.
Sarkozy became 56 on January 28 and Carla Bruni-Sarkozy is 43
For more: Carla Bruni-Sarkozy: new baby will be kept out of media spotlight | World news | The Guardian
Divide and Rescue: Berlin Lays Groundwork for a Two-Speed Europe
Herman Van Rompuy tends to be overlooked whenever European heads of state and government meet for their summits. The Belgian politician, president of the European Council, is an inconspicuous man with a receding hairline and metal-rimmed glasses, someone who doesn't seek the limelight, and who enjoys writing haikus about nature in his free time. He is one of the most powerful politicians in Europe, but he is almost unknown in most EU countries, including Germany.
Van Rompuy has been traveling a lot lately. His current schedule includes meetings with Finnish Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen and French President Nicolas Sarkozy. On Monday, Van Rompuy meets with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin, where he can look forward to a particularly pleasant conversation. Merkel wants to propose giving the European Council president even more power.
The chancellor is planning her next political policy reversal . Until very recently, she has insisted that she was firmly opposed to creating divisions within Europe. But under the pressure of the euro crisis , Merkel has recently been thinking about abandoning the concept of a unified EU -- and assigning a key role to Van Rompuy in the process.
For more: Divide and Rescue: Berlin Lays Groundwork for a Two-Speed Europe - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News - International
Van Rompuy has been traveling a lot lately. His current schedule includes meetings with Finnish Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen and French President Nicolas Sarkozy. On Monday, Van Rompuy meets with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin, where he can look forward to a particularly pleasant conversation. Merkel wants to propose giving the European Council president even more power.
The chancellor is planning her next political policy reversal . Until very recently, she has insisted that she was firmly opposed to creating divisions within Europe. But under the pressure of the euro crisis , Merkel has recently been thinking about abandoning the concept of a unified EU -- and assigning a key role to Van Rompuy in the process.
For more: Divide and Rescue: Berlin Lays Groundwork for a Two-Speed Europe - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News - International
USA: Labor Day 2011: unions at a crossroads
There are the usual picnics and parades. But after its most tumultuous year in decades, unions have little to celebrate this Labor Day .
Unemployment stood at 8.5 percent in Indiana in July, only slightly better than the national figure of 9.1 percent. And on Friday, a new jobs report showed no net gain of jobs in August, as whatever jobs were added in the private sector were erased by the jobs lost in the public sector.
At the same time as their members were losing jobs nationwide, unions saw their collective bargaining rights under attack in statehouses across the nation, includingIndiana.
Note EU-Digest: The Labor Day holiday was first proposed in 1882, according to the U. S. Department of Labor's website.
Some historians say Peter McGuire, the general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, was first to suggest a day to honor those "who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold."
However, many historians credit Matthew Maguire, a machinist, with first suggesting the holiday. The first Labor Day in the US was celebrated on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City under the guidance of the Central Labor Union.
According to labor statistics from 2009, here is a breakdown of the number of professionals in various fields.
Unemployment stood at 8.5 percent in Indiana in July, only slightly better than the national figure of 9.1 percent. And on Friday, a new jobs report showed no net gain of jobs in August, as whatever jobs were added in the private sector were erased by the jobs lost in the public sector.
At the same time as their members were losing jobs nationwide, unions saw their collective bargaining rights under attack in statehouses across the nation, including
Note EU-Digest: The Labor Day holiday was first proposed in 1882, according to the U. S. Department of Labor's website.
Some historians say Peter McGuire, the general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, was first to suggest a day to honor those "who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold."
However, many historians credit Matthew Maguire, a machinist, with first suggesting the holiday. The first Labor Day in the US was celebrated on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City under the guidance of the Central Labor Union.
According to labor statistics from 2009, here is a breakdown of the number of professionals in various fields.
- Firefighters: 258,000
- Hairdressers, hairstylists and cosmetologists: 718,000
- Chefs and head cooks: 281,000
- Musicians, singers and related workers: 179,000
- Bakers: 183,000
- Taxi drivers and chauffeurs: 286,000
- Service station attendants: 96,000
- Farmers and ranchers: 825,000
- Pharmacists: 232,000
- Teachers: 6.5 million
9/4/11
The Environment: Russia: - Green weekend - by Olga Khrustaleva
While the ecological situation may be getting worse, the only silver lining in the cloud of pollution is that the level of ecological awareness is rising. Following Europe’s example, activists in Russia’s big cities are trying their best to draw attention to the country’s environmental issues.
The Art of Survival festival scheduled to take place this weekend aims to highlight pressing ecological problems via the medium of art. The festival will be held at a newly opened art space with the ecological name “Taiga” located on Palace Square.
“I think such festivals play a significant role in raising environmental awareness,” said Angelina Davydova, a representative of the Russian-German Ecological Information Bureau. “On the one hand, we are trying to draw people’s attention to environmental problems, showing their causes and consequences, and on the other hand we are discussing ways of solving them at different levels: From political measures to private initiatives.
For more: The St. Petersburg Times - Green weekend
The Art of Survival festival scheduled to take place this weekend aims to highlight pressing ecological problems via the medium of art. The festival will be held at a newly opened art space with the ecological name “Taiga” located on Palace Square.
“I think such festivals play a significant role in raising environmental awareness,” said Angelina Davydova, a representative of the Russian-German Ecological Information Bureau. “On the one hand, we are trying to draw people’s attention to environmental problems, showing their causes and consequences, and on the other hand we are discussing ways of solving them at different levels: From political measures to private initiatives.
For more: The St. Petersburg Times - Green weekend
On Wall St., a Keynesian Beauty Contest - by Robert J.Schiller
The extraordinary surge of stock market volatility during the last month can’t be explained by conventional means. Yes, hundreds of scholarly papers have tried to predict the size of such swings, and whole markets — like those for futures and options — thrive on these movements. Yet we still don’t have a clear, mathematical understanding of volatility’s source.
For more: On Wall St., a Keynesian Beauty Contest - NYTimes.com
For more: On Wall St., a Keynesian Beauty Contest - NYTimes.com
Chinese PM Wen says: Europe Remains a Major Market for China
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said China will continue to regard Europe as one of its main investment destinations and called on the region to ensure the safety of Chinese-held assets.
China “has always had confidence in the European economy and the euro,” Wen told European Commission President Jose Barroso in a telephone call yesterday, according to a report carried by the state-run Xinhua News Agency. The Asian nation is “closely watching Europe’s economic conditions,” Wen said.
China will continue to “seek diversification in the management of reserve assets,” central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan said in August. The country holds the world’s largest foreign-currency reserves at more than $3 trillion.
For more: Wen: Europe Remains a Major Market for China - Bloomberg
China “has always had confidence in the European economy and the euro,” Wen told European Commission President Jose Barroso in a telephone call yesterday, according to a report carried by the state-run Xinhua News Agency. The Asian nation is “closely watching Europe’s economic conditions,” Wen said.
China will continue to “seek diversification in the management of reserve assets,” central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan said in August. The country holds the world’s largest foreign-currency reserves at more than $3 trillion.
For more: Wen: Europe Remains a Major Market for China - Bloomberg
Libyan fighters target Gaddafi stronghold - by Andrew Beatty
Fighters loyal to Libya's new rulers advanced on one of Muammar Gaddafi's last remaining bastions on Sunday, as secret files shed light on his regime's links to US and British spy agencies.
A commander of the fighters said talks aimed at securing the peaceful surrender of Gaddafi's forces in Bani Walid had been scrapped and an assault on the oasis town southeast of Tripoli was imminent.
"We are getting ready," said Mohamed al-Fassi, checkpoint commander in the village of Shishan, 70km north of Bani Walid.
For more: Libyan fighters target Gaddafi stronghold
A commander of the fighters said talks aimed at securing the peaceful surrender of Gaddafi's forces in Bani Walid had been scrapped and an assault on the oasis town southeast of Tripoli was imminent.
"We are getting ready," said Mohamed al-Fassi, checkpoint commander in the village of Shishan, 70km north of Bani Walid.
For more: Libyan fighters target Gaddafi stronghold
9/3/11
Google Confirms It Aims to Own Your Online ID - by Mathew Ingram
Ever since Google (GOOG) launched its new Google+ social network, we and others have pointed out that the search giant clearly has more in mind than just providing a nice place for people to share photos of their pets. For one thing, Google needs to tap into the “social signals” that people provide through networks such as Facebook so it can improve its search results. There’s a larger motive, too: As Chairman and former Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt admitted during an interview in Edinburgh over the weekend, Google is taking a hard line on the real-name issue because it sees Google+ as an “identity service” or platform on which it can build other products.
Schmidt’s comments came during an interview with Andy Carvin, the National Public Radio digital editor who has become a one-man newswire during the Arab Spring revolutions. Carvin asked the Google chairman about the company’s reasoning for pushing its real-name policies on Google+—a policy that many have criticized (including us) because it excludes potentially valuable viewpoints that might be expressed by political dissidents and others who prefer to remain anonymous. In effect, Schmidt said Google isn’t interested in changing its policies to accommodate those kinds of users: If people want to remain anonymous, he said, then they shouldn’t use Google+.
Whatever its specific interests, Google clearly sees Facebook as a competitive threat, not just because it has developed a gigantic social network with hundreds of millions of devoted users, but because it has also become a kind of identity gatekeeper—with tens of millions of those devoted users happily logging into other websites and services with their Facebook credentials, thus sending Facebook valuable data about what they are doing and where they are doing it. The ubiquitous “like” button provides even further data, something Google is also trying to mimic with its +1 buttons.Whatever its specific interests, Google clearly sees
Facebook as a competitive threat, not just because it has developed a gigantic social network with hundreds of millions of devoted users, but because it has also become a kind of identity gatekeeper—with tens of millions of those devoted users happily logging into other websites and services with their Facebook credentials, thus sending Facebook valuable data about what they are doing and where they are doing it. The ubiquitous “like” button provides even further data, something Google is also trying to mimic with its +1 buttons.
For more: Google Confirms It Aims to Own Your Online ID - BusinessWeek
Schmidt’s comments came during an interview with Andy Carvin, the National Public Radio digital editor who has become a one-man newswire during the Arab Spring revolutions. Carvin asked the Google chairman about the company’s reasoning for pushing its real-name policies on Google+—a policy that many have criticized (including us) because it excludes potentially valuable viewpoints that might be expressed by political dissidents and others who prefer to remain anonymous. In effect, Schmidt said Google isn’t interested in changing its policies to accommodate those kinds of users: If people want to remain anonymous, he said, then they shouldn’t use Google+.
Whatever its specific interests, Google clearly sees Facebook as a competitive threat, not just because it has developed a gigantic social network with hundreds of millions of devoted users, but because it has also become a kind of identity gatekeeper—with tens of millions of those devoted users happily logging into other websites and services with their Facebook credentials, thus sending Facebook valuable data about what they are doing and where they are doing it. The ubiquitous “like” button provides even further data, something Google is also trying to mimic with its +1 buttons.Whatever its specific interests, Google clearly sees
Facebook as a competitive threat, not just because it has developed a gigantic social network with hundreds of millions of devoted users, but because it has also become a kind of identity gatekeeper—with tens of millions of those devoted users happily logging into other websites and services with their Facebook credentials, thus sending Facebook valuable data about what they are doing and where they are doing it. The ubiquitous “like” button provides even further data, something Google is also trying to mimic with its +1 buttons.
For more: Google Confirms It Aims to Own Your Online ID - BusinessWeek
An apocalyptic end to the dollar hegemony is coming - by Dee Woo
The US debt crisis and the recent downgrade of its sovereign rating by rating agency Standard & Poor’s have brought the whole world to a point where there’s great uncertainty about the future. Nobody knows how to respond to a possible US default. The whole world has taken the US’s solvency for granted for way too long. The global trade boom has been so heavily collateralised against the US deficit that we don’t know how it will function in an alternative scenario.World trade today is a game in which the US produces dollars and the rest of the world produces things that dollars can buy. All the other central banks need to accumulate dollars to keep their currency undervalued against the dollar and retain comparative trade advantage. So what happens if the US government goes bankrupt and the dollars become worthless?
This is really a wake-up call. The world needs to decouple its well-being from the US deficit. We can’t delay the inevitable forever, because next time it will be more than just a close call.
We need to be prepared for a world without the dollar as the dominant reserve currency, and without the US consumption economy as the vital export growth engine. We need the Euro to step up and take over more responsibilities from the dollar. And we need China to unleash a consumption economy to help address the global imbalance.
For more: An apocalyptic end to the dollar hegemony is coming | Firstpost
European Unity: : Europe needs more perfect union - by Dan Perry
AP reports that Finance officials and experts gathered in Italy mostly agreed Saturday that Europe needs deeper political union to preserve the troubled euro — even though persistent national identities made the prospect politically unlikely in the near future.
Speakers at the annual Ambrosetti forum labored to articulate the emerging existential dilemma: Monetary union struggles without central budget control, but member nations want independence; and the imbalances that result could lead to a calamitous breakup of the euro — which no one wants either, especially since it could send the world economy into a tailspin.
Unless Europeans agree "to complete economic and monetary union ... with a fiscal union, with a strong governance, with a feeling that some political decision should be adopted in common by those who are sharing the single currency, we will not succeed," said Joaquin Almunia, a vice president of the EU commission, the closest thing to a central government in the union.
EU-Digest
Speakers at the annual Ambrosetti forum labored to articulate the emerging existential dilemma: Monetary union struggles without central budget control, but member nations want independence; and the imbalances that result could lead to a calamitous breakup of the euro — which no one wants either, especially since it could send the world economy into a tailspin.
Unless Europeans agree "to complete economic and monetary union ... with a fiscal union, with a strong governance, with a feeling that some political decision should be adopted in common by those who are sharing the single currency, we will not succeed," said Joaquin Almunia, a vice president of the EU commission, the closest thing to a central government in the union.
EU-Digest
Libyan intelligence documents show ties to CIA - by Ben Hubbard
The CIA worked closely with Moammar Gadhafi's intelligence services in the rendition of terror suspects to Libya for interrogation, according to documents seen Saturday by the AP, cooperation that could spark tensions between Washington and Libya's new rulers.
The CIA was among a number of foreign intelligence services that worked with Libya's agencies, according to documents found at a Libyan security agency building in Tripoli.
Reports of such cooperation have surfaced before, but the documents provide new details on the ties between Western countries and Gadhafi's regime. Many of those same countries backed the NATO attacks that helped Libya's rebels force Gadhafi from power.
Note EU-Digest: this is not anything abnormal. Legitimate Governments cooperate together whether they are democratic or not. Once a government loses power by whatever means, alliances shift accordingly.
For more: The Associated Press: Libyan intelligence documents show ties to CIA
The CIA was among a number of foreign intelligence services that worked with Libya's agencies, according to documents found at a Libyan security agency building in Tripoli.
Reports of such cooperation have surfaced before, but the documents provide new details on the ties between Western countries and Gadhafi's regime. Many of those same countries backed the NATO attacks that helped Libya's rebels force Gadhafi from power.
Note EU-Digest: this is not anything abnormal. Legitimate Governments cooperate together whether they are democratic or not. Once a government loses power by whatever means, alliances shift accordingly.
For more: The Associated Press: Libyan intelligence documents show ties to CIA
9/2/11
The Netherlands: Dutch Game Show Criticizes Government's Harsh Immigration Policy
On Thursday evening, the Dutch television channel VPRO aired Weg Van Nederland, or Out Of The Netherlands, a game show in which five rejected asylum seekers compete to take home Euro 4,000 once they are deported.
Cheap entertainment? Shockingly inappropriate? Merely cruel? That is far from what VPRO intended. Instead, Out Of The Netherlands is a harsh critique of the Dutch PM Rutte's conservative government aggressive and often inhumane immigration policy masterminded by its coalition party leader Geert Wilders. As the show's website reads: "An asylum seeker's life is like a game show. Before you can even realize it, you're out."
The five asylum seekers on the first show were all young and well-educated. Among them also one who was an aeronautical engineer from Cameroon, while another, a student of Slavic languages will be returned to Chechnya. Gulistan, an 18-year-old Kurd whose family fled Armenia 11 years ago, won the Dutch trivia quiz by correctly answering questions like, "Who was the first king of the Netherlands?" and artistically carving a map of the Netherlands out of a slab of cheese.
VPRO programming and editor-in-chief Frank Wiering who initially was not enthusiastic when production house Skyhigh pitched the quiz said: "My first reaction was: terrible idea, we're not doing that. Then I looked into the issue more deeply and decided: we have to do this! Weg van Nederland focuses attention on the fact that, these days, many asylum seekers who are being expelled have children who have lived in the Netherlands for eight years or more. They have had a good education, speak perfect Dutch and have only seen their country of birth on television. We believe it's time to stop and think about this."
EU-Digest
Cheap entertainment? Shockingly inappropriate? Merely cruel? That is far from what VPRO intended. Instead, Out Of The Netherlands is a harsh critique of the Dutch PM Rutte's conservative government aggressive and often inhumane immigration policy masterminded by its coalition party leader Geert Wilders. As the show's website reads: "An asylum seeker's life is like a game show. Before you can even realize it, you're out."
The five asylum seekers on the first show were all young and well-educated. Among them also one who was an aeronautical engineer from Cameroon, while another, a student of Slavic languages will be returned to Chechnya. Gulistan, an 18-year-old Kurd whose family fled Armenia 11 years ago, won the Dutch trivia quiz by correctly answering questions like, "Who was the first king of the Netherlands?" and artistically carving a map of the Netherlands out of a slab of cheese.
VPRO programming and editor-in-chief Frank Wiering who initially was not enthusiastic when production house Skyhigh pitched the quiz said: "My first reaction was: terrible idea, we're not doing that. Then I looked into the issue more deeply and decided: we have to do this! Weg van Nederland focuses attention on the fact that, these days, many asylum seekers who are being expelled have children who have lived in the Netherlands for eight years or more. They have had a good education, speak perfect Dutch and have only seen their country of birth on television. We believe it's time to stop and think about this."
EU-Digest
Bad mouthing Europe : a favorite right-wing and euro-sceptic sport
Does anyone notice that every time we hear about problems in Europe, the rabid right-wing capitalists come out of their well protected corrupt holes and immediately spout a bunch of "I told you so's".
Forgetting of course that the world's current strongest and fastest growing economies have or have had socialist leanings ... Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, Brazil, Turkey, India, and yes CHINA! The latter being a truly bastardized and prostituted version of both.
This all is not really about economics, or is it? Maybe we should not see it that way. Try and see it as a way to look at an era of broken ideals where we are trying to reinvent socially sustainable ways to live - sans the ever present emphasis on finance!
EU-Digest
Forgetting of course that the world's current strongest and fastest growing economies have or have had socialist leanings ... Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany, Brazil, Turkey, India, and yes CHINA! The latter being a truly bastardized and prostituted version of both.
This all is not really about economics, or is it? Maybe we should not see it that way. Try and see it as a way to look at an era of broken ideals where we are trying to reinvent socially sustainable ways to live - sans the ever present emphasis on finance!
EU-Digest
US Economy: The GOP’s Mythical Jobs Agenda - by
This is the House Republican’s idea of a “jobs agenda”? They must be joking. In fact, the policy platform outlined by House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) offers a laundry list of half-baked policies that are resounding jobs killers. That’s because, across the board, the Republican “jobs agenda” reduces demand, undermines middle class families, blocks development of renewable energy industries, and recreates the possibility of future financial crises.
The Republican budget plan, for instance, is the most complete articulation of the GOP’s flawed strategy for job creation and economic growth. Passed by the House on a party-line vote in April, it was rejected by the Senate. But the plan still illustrates core party principles that voters should know are at stake in the 2012 elections. The Republican budget:
For more: The GOP’s Mythical Jobs Agenda | ThinkProgress
The Republican budget plan, for instance, is the most complete articulation of the GOP’s flawed strategy for job creation and economic growth. Passed by the House on a party-line vote in April, it was rejected by the Senate. But the plan still illustrates core party principles that voters should know are at stake in the 2012 elections. The Republican budget:
- Ends Medicare as we know it, kicking low income and middle class retirees into the Kafkaesque and inefficient private insurance market.
- Tears gaping holes in public investments in education and lifelong learning, efficiency enhancing infrastructure and energy modernization, and science research and technological R&D that create jobs today, “crowd-in” private investment, and provide a foundation for long-run sustained economic growth.
- Offers tax cuts to U.S. billionaires paid for by raising taxes on the middle class and shredding social protections for those hit hardest by the economic downturn, the most efficient policies to boost jobs and economic growth in the short-term.
For more: The GOP’s Mythical Jobs Agenda | ThinkProgress
US Economy: Job growth ground to a halt in August - "stimulus programs are not the answer"
Employment growth ground to a halt in August, as sagging consumer confidence discouraged already skittish U.S. businesses from hiring, keeping pressure on the Federal Reserve to provide more monetary stimulus to aid the struggling economy.
Note EU-Digest: a monetary stimulus would be more water down the drain. Job creation programs are what is needed and US corporations must be forced to get involved in these programs instead of hoarding their profits abroad and paying none or hardly any taxes on their profits.
For more: Job growth ground to a halt in August - TODAY News - TODAY.com
Note EU-Digest: a monetary stimulus would be more water down the drain. Job creation programs are what is needed and US corporations must be forced to get involved in these programs instead of hoarding their profits abroad and paying none or hardly any taxes on their profits.
For more: Job growth ground to a halt in August - TODAY News - TODAY.com
Turkey expels Israel ambassador over flotilla raid
Turkey expelled Israel's ambassador and said Friday it is cutting military ties with the country over its refusal to apologize for last year's raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that killed nine people.
Turkey's move came before the anticipated publication Friday of a U.N. report on violence aboard a Gaza-bound protest flotilla, further straining a relationship that had been a cornerstone of regional stability.
For more: Turkey expels Israel ambassador over flotilla raid - San Diego, California News Station - KFMB Channel 8 - cbs8.com
Turkey's move came before the anticipated publication Friday of a U.N. report on violence aboard a Gaza-bound protest flotilla, further straining a relationship that had been a cornerstone of regional stability.
For more: Turkey expels Israel ambassador over flotilla raid - San Diego, California News Station - KFMB Channel 8 - cbs8.com
Libya rebel leader plays down Islamist past
The rebels' Tripoli military commander, a former leader of an Islamic militant group that sent fighters to Iraq and Afghanistan, insisted Friday that the new Libya will shun extremism and won't become a breeding ground for terrorism.
The commander, Abdel Hakim Belhaj, said he was detained in 2004 in Malaysia and sent to a secret prison in Thailand where he was tortured by CIA agents. Then he was sent to Libya and jailed for seven years by Muammar Qaddafi's regime.
But Belhaj, 45, played down his Islamist past, seeking to allay concerns about his emergence as a prominent figure in the Western-backed Libyan opposition movement.
He insisted he holds no grudges against the West because of the shared goal of ousting Qaddafi. "Revenge doesn't motivate me personally," he told The Associated Press in an interview at his headquarters at the sprawling military airport in central Tripoli.
For more: Libya rebel leader plays down Islamist past - CBS News
The commander, Abdel Hakim Belhaj, said he was detained in 2004 in Malaysia and sent to a secret prison in Thailand where he was tortured by CIA agents. Then he was sent to Libya and jailed for seven years by Muammar Qaddafi's regime.
But Belhaj, 45, played down his Islamist past, seeking to allay concerns about his emergence as a prominent figure in the Western-backed Libyan opposition movement.
He insisted he holds no grudges against the West because of the shared goal of ousting Qaddafi. "Revenge doesn't motivate me personally," he told The Associated Press in an interview at his headquarters at the sprawling military airport in central Tripoli.
For more: Libya rebel leader plays down Islamist past - CBS News
9/1/11
France: Libya war marks new chapter in EU-US relations - by Andrew Rettman
The EU will in future play a bigger role vis-a-vis the US in providing hard security in north Africa and the Middle East, French President Nicolas Sarkozy has said.
Speaking to French ambassadors gathered in Paris on Wednesday (31 August), the French leader said the war in Libya is a "lesson" for EU foreign policy: "Europeans have shown for the first time that they are capable of intervention in a decisive way, with their allies, in an open conflict on their doorstep."
He added that the Libya model - in which France and the UK took the lead with American support - marks a new division of labour between the EU and US: "The world is changing. [US] President Obama has presented a new vision of American military engagement which involves the Europeans assuming their responsibilities."
Sarkozy noted the union should also play a bigger role in the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Speaking to French ambassadors gathered in Paris on Wednesday (31 August), the French leader said the war in Libya is a "lesson" for EU foreign policy: "Europeans have shown for the first time that they are capable of intervention in a decisive way, with their allies, in an open conflict on their doorstep."
He added that the Libya model - in which France and the UK took the lead with American support - marks a new division of labour between the EU and US: "The world is changing. [US] President Obama has presented a new vision of American military engagement which involves the Europeans assuming their responsibilities."
Sarkozy noted the union should also play a bigger role in the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Greece - Dutch, Finnish, German finance ministers to meet next week
The finance ministers of the Netherlands, Germany and Finland are to meet next Tuesday to discuss the European debt crisis, website nu.nl reported on Thursday.
The controversial question of Finland's demand for collateral from Greece in return for its support of the bail-out will be on the agenda but is not central, nu.nl said, quoting finance minister Jan Kees de Jager.
Finland surprised the other eurozone countries two weeks ago by signing a bilateral deal with Greece which would enable Finland to receive collateral in return for its participation in the €109bn international bail-out.
For more: DutchNews.nl - Dutch, Finnish, German finance ministers to meet next week
The controversial question of Finland's demand for collateral from Greece in return for its support of the bail-out will be on the agenda but is not central, nu.nl said, quoting finance minister Jan Kees de Jager.
Finland surprised the other eurozone countries two weeks ago by signing a bilateral deal with Greece which would enable Finland to receive collateral in return for its participation in the €109bn international bail-out.
For more: DutchNews.nl - Dutch, Finnish, German finance ministers to meet next week
Saudi Arabia's Revolutionary Triage - "the writing on the wall is ignored"
The house of Saud is pulling out all the stops to strengthen its legitimacy as the tsunami of revolution sweeps Arabia. As the self-proclaimed "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques" in Mecca, protecting and developing the Grand Mosque is a way of underscoring the royal family's God-given right to rule. But trouble is closing in all around the royals.
This summer King Abdullah dedicated the new Royal Clock Tower in Mecca. The world’s second-tallest building (behind Dubai), it measures over six hundred meters and can be seen from all parts of the city. Bigger than Big Ben, it’s a symbol of Saudi power for every hajji making the pilgrimage to Mecca.
As the king reaffirms Saudi Islamic credentials, his brother Interior Minister Prince Nayef gave a recent interview describing the kingdom as surrounded on all sides by enemies. Without giving any details, Nayef said the country remains at high risk from al-Qaeda. The interior minister is the voice of the kingdom’s hard-liners, who see only peril and folly in reform and the Arab awakening. He quashed the Manama uprising last March in tiny Bahrain.
And the family's biggest headache won't go away: Yemen, which is boiling this summer. President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has been recovering in Saudi hospitals from wounds suffered in an assassination attempt last spring, refuses to give up power and threatens to return home. His son commands those troops remaining loyal to the regime in Sanaa and is preparing for full-scale civil war. The opposition is arming just as furiously. Saudi Arabia has invested billions in trying to rent Yemeni politicians for decades, but it now seems powerless to stop the slide into chaos. Saleh is oblivious to Saudi calls for peaceful change. No wonder building towers and mosques seems so much simpler.
For more: Commentary: Saudi Arabia's Revolutionary Triage | The National Interest
This summer King Abdullah dedicated the new Royal Clock Tower in Mecca. The world’s second-tallest building (behind Dubai), it measures over six hundred meters and can be seen from all parts of the city. Bigger than Big Ben, it’s a symbol of Saudi power for every hajji making the pilgrimage to Mecca.
As the king reaffirms Saudi Islamic credentials, his brother Interior Minister Prince Nayef gave a recent interview describing the kingdom as surrounded on all sides by enemies. Without giving any details, Nayef said the country remains at high risk from al-Qaeda. The interior minister is the voice of the kingdom’s hard-liners, who see only peril and folly in reform and the Arab awakening. He quashed the Manama uprising last March in tiny Bahrain.
And the family's biggest headache won't go away: Yemen, which is boiling this summer. President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has been recovering in Saudi hospitals from wounds suffered in an assassination attempt last spring, refuses to give up power and threatens to return home. His son commands those troops remaining loyal to the regime in Sanaa and is preparing for full-scale civil war. The opposition is arming just as furiously. Saudi Arabia has invested billions in trying to rent Yemeni politicians for decades, but it now seems powerless to stop the slide into chaos. Saleh is oblivious to Saudi calls for peaceful change. No wonder building towers and mosques seems so much simpler.
For more: Commentary: Saudi Arabia's Revolutionary Triage | The National Interest
Censorship of the internet in Morocco
The policy of the Morocco in the access to Internet was until recently rather liberal, the Government has encouraged the development of the media. Nevertheless, more than two years the trend reversed and cases of censorship are becoming more and more common.
Cases of censorship are primarily the result of the telephone operator and Internet dominant Morocco Telecom (a subsidiary of Vivendi), it is practiced in a manner totally arbitrary and opaque, Morocco telecom claiming technical problems for claim. It is characterized by the absence of recourse to a court decision, although the Morocco proclaims a “State of law”.
Morocco Telecom blocked several blogging sites, such as LiveJournal. Reporters without borders says that the Morocco often censor political websites claiming independence of Western Sahara. Google Earth was also blocked by Morocco Telecom at a time for reasons that remain obscure, some hypotheses suggest that the goal would be to make the difficult location of the Royal palaces, others say that it is to hide the locations of secret prisons. This block is completely arbitrary and is outside any judicial procedure, what can that generate the most far-fetched hypotheses as to his motives.
For more: Censorship of the internet in the Morocco | Sahara Press Service
Cases of censorship are primarily the result of the telephone operator and Internet dominant Morocco Telecom (a subsidiary of Vivendi), it is practiced in a manner totally arbitrary and opaque, Morocco telecom claiming technical problems for claim. It is characterized by the absence of recourse to a court decision, although the Morocco proclaims a “State of law”.
Morocco Telecom blocked several blogging sites, such as LiveJournal. Reporters without borders says that the Morocco often censor political websites claiming independence of Western Sahara. Google Earth was also blocked by Morocco Telecom at a time for reasons that remain obscure, some hypotheses suggest that the goal would be to make the difficult location of the Royal palaces, others say that it is to hide the locations of secret prisons. This block is completely arbitrary and is outside any judicial procedure, what can that generate the most far-fetched hypotheses as to his motives.
For more: Censorship of the internet in the Morocco | Sahara Press Service
Libya: Comments from Paris conference on Libya
"The representatives of Libya asked us, the 63 countries present, to unfreeze assets. And after going around the table, its about $15 billion of Libyan assets in our countries that are immediately unfrozen. France ... released 1.5 billion euros today. We want to give back to the Libyans the money that was frozen and that was stolen."
"As regards France, we are on the side of the Arab people in pursuing their aspirations to democracy and we will not change our policy. All of our work now will focus on building a consensus for stronger sanctions that are more effective against Syria."
"The struggle is not yet over... NATO and our allies will continue our operations ... for as long as it is necessary to protect civilian lives.
"Freedom in Tripoli is bringing to evidence unspeakable crimes... These crimes must be investigated and the guilty brought to justice. "I don't think anybody should be complacent about what's happening in Libya, but what I've seen every time the NTC has been challenged, it's come up to the mark.
"Some people warned, as Gaddafi himself did, that Libyan people could not be trusted with freedom, that without Gaddafi there would be chaos. Some people thought that chaos would start the moment the regime fell. What we're seeing emerging now, despite the years of oppression ...is immensely impressive.
For more: Comments from Paris conference on Libya | Reuters
"As regards France, we are on the side of the Arab people in pursuing their aspirations to democracy and we will not change our policy. All of our work now will focus on building a consensus for stronger sanctions that are more effective against Syria."
"The struggle is not yet over... NATO and our allies will continue our operations ... for as long as it is necessary to protect civilian lives.
"Freedom in Tripoli is bringing to evidence unspeakable crimes... These crimes must be investigated and the guilty brought to justice. "I don't think anybody should be complacent about what's happening in Libya, but what I've seen every time the NTC has been challenged, it's come up to the mark.
"Some people warned, as Gaddafi himself did, that Libyan people could not be trusted with freedom, that without Gaddafi there would be chaos. Some people thought that chaos would start the moment the regime fell. What we're seeing emerging now, despite the years of oppression ...is immensely impressive.
For more: Comments from Paris conference on Libya | Reuters
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