Saturday, January 18, 2014

18 Jan - Blogs I'm Following

BBC Newsnight's Peter Barron Responds to Guido...BBC Newsnight's Peter Barron Responds to Guido via The Editors Blog (3/3) (Photo credit: robinhamman)
4:23pm MST

Newsnight: 16 January 2014

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 41 minutes ago
Onto Thursday's edition of *Newsnight. * This began with the subject of the Abortion Act. As we know, this is an issue that arouses considerable feeling, and divides public opinion. According to YouGov, 47% favour keeping the legal limit at 24 weeks, 10% think it should be cut to 18 weeks, 8% think it should be cut to 12 weeks and 6% believe abortion should be banned altogether. The 4% figure in the survey is divided between those who think it should be lowered below 12 weeks and those at the opposite end of the spectrum who think it should be increased above 24 weeks. From tho... more »

This World IS My Home

theozarker at The Conflicted Doomer - 55 minutes ago
January 18, 2014 I have no real blog post today. I am too tired and frustrated with the endless warnings that business as usual can’t continue and the constant propaganda that it can/will/must. A few weeks ago, I put up … Continue reading →

Whatever Happened to Stoke BNP?

Phil at A Very Public Sociologist - 1 hour ago
Three local comrades are sat in a McDonald's. In come eight men who, before occupying their seats directly behind them, each buy a Happy Meal. So who were these oddballs? They were the eight remaining members of Stoke-on-Trent's British National Party. Yes, remember them? It was only a few short years ago that the party - along with Stoke City FC and Robbie Williams - were counted among the city's three biggest claims to fame. Over the last decade, it had picked up nine councillors. It came within a whisker of taking the elected mayoralty. They were barely off the front page of the... more »

SATURDAY NIGHT

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 1 hour ago

Why Alan Grayson's Big Brother Is Not Watching You Act Is The Way To Go AFter Obama's Disappointing Speech Yesterday

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 1 hour ago
After Obama's speech defending the incompetent and corrupt U.S. spy agencies, Democrats who disapprove of the way he has continued the Cheney NSA agenda that completely guts the Constitution, were in an awkward position. How to disagree with his bullshit authoritarian stand without completely trashing him. Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley gave it a try: “It is unacceptable that our government has indiscriminately swept up millions of cell phone records of law-abiding citizens. This is an outrageous abuse of Americans’ privacy. I’m glad the President has acknowledged the concerns with... more »

Newsnight: 17 January 2014

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 2 hours ago
Friday's edition's coverage of the Edward Snowden/NSA story took the *Guardian*'s line on the story - hook, line and sinker: Today, *even* as President Obama ordered new limits to U.S. surveillance practices, he was *still *defending the National Security Agency. Is it now time to give an amnesty to the man who triggered all of this, Edward Snowden? Alan Rusbridger could hardly have framed the story better. Zoe Conway's report was similarly sympathetic to the *Guardian *line, though her report balanced out that initial (slight) scepticism about President Obama by featuring the a... more »

Newsnight, Week Two: Introduction (that title will wow the punters!)

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 2 hours ago
It's about this time of the year that people's New Year's resolutions start being broken. My only New Year's resolution was related to this blog, and it was a commitment to monitor an entire year's worth of *Newsnight, *and I started thinking about breaking it before the end of the first week. My resolve wasn't helped either by reading a comment at *Biased BBC *which said, not unreasonably, "I would not make to big a song and dance about *Newsnight*. After all its audience has shrunk dramatically and it is on its way to irrelevance." Still, I'll stick at it...for the time being. ... more »

US' Creeping Front Against Thailand

Land Destroyer at Land Destroyer - 2 hours ago
*Image: According to the Thai regime USCongressman Michael Turner sent a letterto US President Barack Obama condemn-ing ongoing protests as "antidemocratic"and implored the president to publiclysupport upcoming Thai elections featuringa party openly run by a convicted criminal,who so happens to have close ties to WallStreet.**January 18, 2014* (ATN) - What began as just biased, slanted reporting is now taking shape as a concerted and focused campaign to back the regime of unelected, exiled dictator Thaksin Shinawatra and his proxy regime run by his own sister, Yingluck Shin... more »

Ineffably Stupid

Dave at The Galloping Beaver - 2 hours ago
That is how an analyst once described the writing of Rex Murphy. Murphy, in his latest pronouncement on Neil Young's position on the tar sands, proves nothing has changed. In the immortal words of Homer Simpson: Rock stars, is there anything they don't know? That's just the start of Murphy's diatribe and you could probably quit reading right there. Murphy, who regularly expounds on topics on

Stephen Harper and Benjamin Netanyahu: Love Affair

LeDaro at LeDaro - 3 hours ago
Both Harper and Netanyahu are singing songs for each other. I could not find the video where Netanyahu talks about his love for Stephen Harper and Canada. Below is a video about Harper's love affair with Zionism and Israel. According to CBC News Harper is taking some 200 business people with him to Israel on taxpayers' expense. *The Middle East is a particularly troubled region of the world, and this is where Harper’s most egregious double standards come to the fore. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which lies at the heart of the broader Middle East crisis, is an issue where ... more »

LOOK UP

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 3 hours ago

Fukushima Doomsdayers

Majia's Blog at Majia's Blog - 3 hours ago
A Mr. Nicholas Wright left a pointed argument to my ‘Fukushima doomsdaying’: *Nicholas Wright*January 17, 2014 at 11:50 AM OK, here are a few facts that need to be considered by Fukushima doomsayers, and which I haven’t seen front and centre in the debate as yet…. (here). Majia here: I decided to post my response here for everyone to read: I wish I had the time to engage with you fully because I adore a lively debate and I think I can win this one. Unfortunately, I can only make a quick rebuttal and reference you to my book, *Fukushima and the Privatization of Risk*. Chapter Four ... more »

For my French friends and relatives: Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman hadn't "...paid much attention to François Hollande, the president of France, since it became clear that he wasn’t going to break with Europe’s destructive, austerity-minded policy orthodoxy. But now he has done something truly scandalous."

David L Griscom at Cherchez la Verite - 3 hours ago
------------------------------ The Opinion Pages | OP-ED COLUMNIST *Scandal in France* ------------------------------ JAN. 16, 2014 I haven’t paid much attention to François Hollande, the president of France, since it became clear that he wasn’t going to break with Europe’s destructive, austerity-minded policy orthodoxy. But now he has done something truly scandalous. I am not, of course, talking about his alleged affair with an actress, which, even if true, is neither surprising (hey, it’s France) nor disturbing. No, what’s shocking is his embrace of discredited right-wing econ... more »

Failing Upwards Unmasked Elites Bring Destruction To Taxpaying Non-Elites (Rich White Guys Feel Need For Richer White Guy Club) Papers of Record? Not So Much (Anymore) Rethug Forward Motion BLOCKED In NC

I'm sure none of the following can be true. After all, us white guys stick together. Right? January 15, 2014 FAILING ELITES? The elites claim to be worried about the people's rage. In the Financial Times, on 15 January 2014, Martin Wolf writes that failing elites threaten our future. According to Martin Wolf: 1. The elites got us into the disastrous World War I. "This calamity

An Appeal To Those Who Are Truly Wanting A Better World, And Not Those Driven By Self-Interests

Northerntruthseeker at Northerntruthseeker - 3 hours ago
For this article, I want to discuss the recent "activities" and actions by those in what I have always known to be the fraud "truth movement"..... I have long said that there is no real "truth movement" and that a full 90% of those involved in this effort to expose the truths about our world and the machinations of the Jewish elite that wants to enslave us all, are actually working for this evil, and are in it for their own personal self interests and greed... Recently, the entire "truth movement" was turned upside down by the actions of some individuals to try to slander those see... more »

Special alert ! Russian Police Hunt For Alleged Suicide Bomber On The Loose in Sochi ...... Putin's hands are full ahead of the Olympics !

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 3 hours ago
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-01-18/russian-police-hunt-alleged-suicide-bomber-loose-sochi Russian Police Hunt For Alleged Suicide Bomber On The Loose in Sochi [image: Tyler Durden's picture] Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/18/2014 12:46 -0500 - New York City inShare Up until now, most terrorist provocations surrounding the Sochi winter olympics set to begin on February 7, had been in the surrounding cities (here is dramatic video footage of the recent suicide bombing in Sochi) while the actual venue has been largely left untouched. Perhaps this is due to the security g... more »

Don't choose sides in the false rivalry of Judaism and Islam: Reject BOTH.

Rufus News From Atlantis at News From Atlantis. - 3 hours ago
In Europe today we are faced with a pincer-style assault on all that we hold dear. From the top we have the fully Judaised Establishment's legal obliteration of our culture, traditions, freedom to speak the truth and - which is the worst of all - freedom to have pride in ourselves and our kin. From the bottom we have the Islamic colonisation of our towns and cities, with its destructive use of rape, heroin and all manner of barbarity to destroy our people; especially our children. This dual attack has had the effect of polarising those who are prepared to defy the legal silencing of ... more »

Smiling Brown: Gente de Bronce – People the Color of the Earth

Roberto Rodriguez at Dr Cintli - 4 hours ago
Re the Smiling Brown: Gente de Bronce – People the Color of the Earth Project: A draft of a preliminary article appears in Truthout.org: http://www.truth-out.org/speakout/item/17461-smiling-brown-people-the-color-of-the-earth It has been reworked and updated and submitted as an academic article for the spring of 2014. It is slated to become a book, play and videologues. This week, I’ve received about ten more contributions, adding to the 75 or so previously received. This is an ongoing project, so feel free to contribute at any time. Looking for vignettes re color consciousness, ... more »

Who had weapons Tesla September 11, 2001? Study elements of the global ekotsidno-genocidal program

Jason Leewig at Our Manmade Disasters - 4 hours ago
*The search for truth is not done with joy, and with the excitement and anxiety, but still need to look for it because without finding the truth and not love it, you will die.* *Blaise Pascal , French mathematician, physicist and philosopher ( 1623-1662 ).* *Opening Keely would lead to the acquisition of one of the most occult secrets, secrets that can never be given to the disposal of the masses.* *EP Blavatsky . Secret Doctrine , etc. 1, Part 3, p. 63 , 1888* *Our world is immersed in a vast ocean of energy [...] Before us is a daunting task - to find ways of making this energy.T... more »

Bipartisanship Isn't Always A Dirty Word-- Take Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH) And Michael Burgess (R-TX) For Example

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 5 hours ago
All too often "bipartisan" has come to mean Democrats being led down the path to slaughter by transpartisan conservatives. It's not just Republicans who are screwing working families… it's also the Republican wing of the Democratic Party-- the Blue Dogs, New Dems and their fellow travelers, like Steny Hoyer and Steve Israel. New Hampshire's two congresswomen offer a stunning contrast. As we've explained before (like here and here), Ann Kuster is in a far bluer district (D+3) than Carol Shea-Porter (R+1), but it is Shea-Porter who sticks to progressive values and principles in def... more »

BBC scum just cannot help themselves

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 6 hours ago
When Nelson Mandela died nary a word about his terrorist background was allowed to be mentioned. When Ariel Sharon died, his obituary included: '... after Israel's invasion of Lebanon in 1982 he was found to have been responsible by an Israeli inquiry of failing to prevent the massacre of Palestinians by Christian Phalangist militia in Beirut's Sabra and Shatila refugee camps.' When Nelson Mandela died, there was no similar mention of Nelson Mandela's failure to prevent his wife and her associates from 'necklacing' other South Africans. So when I heard that Lord McAlpine had died, ... more »

Obama: "Where Congress isn't acting, I'll act on my own"...(video)

Adrienne at Adrienne's Corner - 6 hours ago
*no, really - he said it.* And what's with the creepy teleprompter flicking eyes? Are the techies at the White House too stupid to know how to set up a televised address so that doesn't happen? I know, I know - I keep asking stupid questions. Meantime in New York, the new commie mayor's ex-lesbian wife *wants her very own office in city hall and a staff so she can pursue her "issues." * and Governor Cuomo (you know - the guy who lives with his mistress) *thinks conservatives, defined as those who believe in not killing babies, marriage between and man and a women is the way it s... more »

Doug Noland January 17 , 2014 Missive : " Historic Year 2014 Thesis " ..... JIM WILLIE: A FAILED STATE LIES BEFORE US!

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 6 hours ago
Must read quality items for the weekend.... http://www.prudentbear.com/2014/01/historic-year-2014-thesis.html Historic Year 2014 ThesisJanuary 17, 2014 posted by Doug Noland EM trades poorly and more China Credit developments, while the Fed hawks build their case. I’m proceeding with the view that 2014 is poised to be a key year in economic/financial history. Actually, I suspect future historians will look back at 2013 as a critical juncture. Last year saw the Fed and Bank of Japan combine for almost $2 TN of QE. Of significant consequence, an over-liquefied and increasingly s... more »

Rachel Maddow’s a real piece of work!

bob somerby at the daily howler - 6 hours ago
*SATURDAY, JANUARY 18, 2014* *The silly dissembling rolls on:* Rachel Maddow’s a real piece of work. We don’t mean that as a compliment. Her ridiculous clowning on TV never seems to stop. Based on appearances, she dissembles in much the way chimpanzees breathe—without giving the process a thought. Consider something she said last night in her dramatic opening segment concerning the Fort Lee mess. As usual, Maddow was helping her viewers see that the other tribe—the tribe to which they *don’t* belong—is a nest of dimwits and liars. Quite routinely, Maddow dissembles in order to se... more »

Sovereignty 101:Installment 13 - Will you judge?

Sophia Love at AMERICAN KABUKI - 6 hours ago
This journey we are on, called life, is one of the most spectacular trips available. The experience of physical existence has within it every possibility. This planet is filled with over 7 billion humans – there are many who choose to visit here. To be clear, all facets of this life are known as possibilities before birth. There are no tricks played or secrets kept. In full awareness we incarnate, happy for the chance to live again. This talk of an “experiment” may have led you to think otherwise – to think that you’d been duped and your plan to be here at all was made... more »

Unreasonable fanatics

sue at Is the BBC biased? - 6 hours ago
Oh dear. There’s a spat - or maybe just a spat*ette* - between BBCWatch and the BBC’s Berlin correspondent Steve Evans - it revolves around a pause. No - two pauses to be precise. Largely responsible for all the fuss are the two commas that BBCWatch employed to denote two specific pauses, arguably to clarify a point. Here’s the sentence: *“It was a time when Jews,* *who displeased the Nazis*, *risked their lives* .” That was from BBCWatch’s transcription of a broadcast; the commas were there to denote pauses in Steve Evans’s delivery. Having listened to the item, which occurred ... more »

Photos Rights of Nature Tribunal Ecuador 2014

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 6 hours ago
Photos by Pennie Opal Plant . Photos by Pennie Opal Plant, thank you for sharing your photos with Censored News! Rights of Nature Summit and Tribunal in Ecuador this week! 2014. By Censored News Bolivia's Pablo Solon, among those instrumental in the Mother Earth Conference in Cochabamba, Bolivia, in 2010, was at the gathering in Ecuador this week. Solon

My first exposure to the DC IMPACT evaluation system

Shaun Johnson at @ THE CHALK FACE - 6 hours ago
From the very beginning, I’ve noticed that the DCPS teacher evaluation system fosters a mood of suspicion, confrontation, and anxiety. It doesn’t have to be that way. A lot of things don’t have to be that way. But they are, and it is. First, let me do a little math. So far this school year, […]

Zionist global Imperial journey - summary

Jason Leewig at Our Manmade Disasters - 7 hours ago
by BK Lim, FASEI, et al (Dec 14, 2013). *Note & forward*: (Dec 31, 2013) We apologise for the delayed publication of this series of articles. Our original investigation into BPGOD (BP Gulf Oil Disaster) led us into a rabbit hole much deeper and wider than we had originally thought. When it became abundantly clear in 2011 that BPGOD was a planned mega disaster (PMD), almost all of our insider friends scratched their heads with disbelief. PMDs do not occur out of the blues, in isolation with no rhyme or reason. The insurance frauds, insider trading of B... more »

BAD Science in a (Twitter) Nutshell

noreply@blogger.com (fern hill) at DAMMIT JANET! - 7 hours ago
The brouhaha over recent "explosive" data from Asia absotively proving the Abortion = Breast Cancer (ABC) link, continues. The Chinese study, eviscerated by Joyce Arthur here, fatally flawed by many scientific sins, but most egregiously (and obviously even to a lay-person) is Joel Brind's bland dismissal of the fundamental contradiction in it. (See Joyce's article for details.) So what do lying liars do when challenged? Brind, the grandaddy of the ABC lie, doubles down. The Bhadoria study of 320 breast cancer patients and 320 age and socio-economic status-matched healthy control w... more »

" Targeting " Target ( as well as other Retailers ) Krebs on Security looks at the Target Hack attack and Malware..... how wide is the impact ? Russian Security Firm Group IB published an analysis of it ( the crimeware involved ) stating that “customers of major US banks, such as such as Chase (Newark, Delaware), Capital One (Virginia, Richmond), Citibank (South Dakota), Union Bank of California (California, San Diego), Nordstrom FSB Debit (Scottsdale, Arizona), were compromised by this malware.”

Catharsis Ours - 7 hours ago
Something else to ponder....... *Was "Metadata" leaked in the Target breach?*Posted by Sean @ 13:43 GMT ------------------------------ The Target data breach has been big news ever since Brian Krebs broke the story several weeks ago. And our analysts have been investigating the related malware samples, all very interesting, but one thing I'd like to know is this: if Target knows you're pregnant… do the hackers now know, too? Back in February of 2012, the New York Times published an article by Charles Duhigg based on his book, The Power of Habit. And one of the more interesting thi... more »

Sloppy Seconds

jurassicpork at Welcome Back to Pottersville - 7 hours ago
These are some of my better tweets for the month thus far. I'm in the middle of a struggle with publisher Create Space and their sudden problematic conversions from .docx to .pdf formats. Anime revealed as French word meaning, "Pornographic Japanese cartoons." 11 million fanboys at once commit suicide by dumping inhalers. — Robert Crawford (@jurassicpork59) January 18, 2014 I went to a diner for my birthday today. The TV was set to the ObamaCare/Benghazi Network, aka Fox "News". #RWNJs #p2 #p21 #tlot #UniteBlue — Robert Crawford (@jurassicpork59) January 16, 2014 If our gov... more »

How much is a Lars Hansen autographed reprint worth?

Greg Mankiw at Greg Mankiw's Blog - 7 hours ago
A student is trying to find out. He emails me: I'm a 1st year MBA student at Chicago Booth -- where even the Marketing Professors have a PhD in Economics. I'm taking a class this quarter called Entrepreneurial Selling (more info here). One of the coolest assignments is a bartering challenge: Prof. Wortmann gives everybody a simple Chicago Booth pen and we need to barter it for something with larger monetary value, and then keep bartering once a week until the end of the quarter. I did my first trade with Prof. Lars Peter Hansen (Economics Nobel Prize 2013). In exchange for my pe... more »

Inuit Customary Adoption

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 8 hours ago
The Inuktuitut word describing adoption means, "the one we took" or "my adopted," Inuit do not use words such as "give up" or "give away" to describe adoption. Rather, the word describes the practice from the perspective of the adoptive parent-choosing and wanting the child. In Inuit society, there is no stigma attached to being adopted. It is a practice that is open and flexible, in which a child knows his or her birth parents and family members. If an adopted child lives in the same community as her or his biological parents and family, the child will know them and visit with th... more »

Sum of integers and oversold common sense

Luboš Motl at The Reference Frame - 8 hours ago
P.Z. "Pharyngula" Myers, a self-described randomly ejaculating biological godless liberal (can't this disorder be cured?), decided to write a blog post – well, something like eight sentences – about mathematics: The sum of all natural numbers is not \(-1/12\) It's not hard to see that the title is in some "tension" with at least one of the titles of older TRF blog posts about this issue, Zeta-function regularization (2007) Why is the sum of integers equal to \(-1/12\) (2011) These texts of mine were actually linked to by some Pharyngula's readers who are my semi-fans – folks who wou... more »

An Information Holocaust

Owen Gray at Northern Reflections - 9 hours ago
Andrew Nikiforuk has been documenting the closure of government libraries and the wholesale destruction of their contents. The process has been chaotic and blind: "The fact that many materials were thrown away or given away [most of the books at Saint Andrews Biological Station] is heartbreaking to those of us who are dedicated to marine science and the history of science in Canada," said ocean pollution expert and former federal researcher Peter Wells. The dismantling of the libraries was so chaotic that no attempt was made to retrieve books on loan. At some of the closed librar... more »

Untitled

New Orleans Ladder at New Orleans Ladder - 9 hours ago
*Judge Marullo subpoenas Sheriff Gusman over easy treatment of contemptuous DA spokesman ~Dan Lawton, special to The Advocate* *Reports: Ex-Saint Darren Sharper arrested on rape charges ~WWLTV* *Advocate reporter Michelle Millhollon named one of the top statehouse reporters in the country* *Disaster Psychiatry Emerges as DOD Field of Study ~DisasterMap.net* *Drones made at NASA Michoud & Stennis ~It's New Orleans, Out to Lunch* *Louisiana strawberries scarce but plenty for Ponchatoula fest* *Sound Ordinance Protest Gathers Hundreds Together Outside City Hall ~Frank Ethridge, offBeat*

Would YOU Touch Chris Christie With A Ten Foot Pole?

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 9 hours ago
"Expanding Nationwide in 2016?" It doesn't look that way any longer Today, New Jersey's embattled corrupt governor, Chris Christie, isn't in icy New Jersey. He's in sunny Florida… raising money for one of the few governors even worse than himself: Rick Scott. But even Scott is steering clear. In fact no Florida GOP elected officials want to be seen-- let alone photographed with Christie, who was the Republican presidential frontrunner when this fundraising trip was put together. Now he's been forced too do all his fundraising behind closed doors, meeting furtively with the GOP high r... more »

'Bang, bang'

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 9 hours ago
This Wednesday's edition of *Newsnight *reported on the findings of an academic study which claims to have shown that viewers' empathy with/sympathy for the victims of foreign disasters is diminishing. The academics from the University of East Anglia studied the viewing patterns of a hundred viewers over three months and found that those who watch short news reports are particularly indifferent to suffering in other countries. One of the authors, Dr Martin Scott, commented that such short news reports come and go, often over no more than a few days, and fail to reach the depths o... more »

A Few More Dots: Corporate School Indiana Update

Doug Martin at Schools Matter - 10 hours ago
By Doug Martin Since I’m busy preparing my book *Hoosier School Heist*for the printers, I've decided to note a few things not in the book and several recent happening in the corporate school movement in the Hoosier state. 1. The Friedman Foundation, which gave out free t-shirts of Milton to anyone who left comments on its site responding to Diane Ravitch's take on the group's new "research," has flung its corporate school tentacles wider in Indianapolis. Ben Hunter’s wife Keri Jo is now employed by the group. Ben is District 21’s representative to the Indianapolis City-County Co... more »

Untitled

        AMERICAN KABUKI at AMERICAN KABUKI - 10 hours ago

Common Ground is not so Common

Angel Cintron Jr. at @ THE CHALK FACE - 10 hours ago
Reblogged from Ward 8 DC Teacher: In the words of Mark Twain, “We have not all had the good fortune to be ladies. We have not all been generals, or poets, or statesmen; but when the toast works down to the babies, we stand on common ground.” Finding common ground is difficult, yet it’s often necessary for […]

Why is he 'reluctant'?

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 11 hours ago
The Times front page has an article entitled 'Police fear inner cities take law into own hands' which includes this passage: 'Chief Inspector of Constabulary... Tom Windsor... said "There are some communities born under other skies who will not involve the police at all. I am reluctant to name the communities in question, but there are communities from other cultures who would prefer to police themselves. There are cities in the Midlands where the police never go because they are never called. They never hear of any trouble because the community deals with that on its own."' The ... more »

Foreign Exchange Reseve Data.......China is in a league of its own !

Catharsis Ours - 11 hours ago
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-01-15/china-s-treasury-holdings-rose-to-record-in-november-data-show.html China’s holdings of U.S. Treasuries increased $12.2 billion to a record$1.317 trillion in November, data released on the Treasury Department’s website showed. The figures, scheduled for release at 9 a.m. tomorrow in Washington, were inadvertently posted on the Treasury’s website. Japan’s holdings rose $12 billion to $1.186 trillion, the figures showed. China’s swelling foreign-exchange reserves, reported today to have reached a world record $3.82 trillion at the end of Decembe... more »

UK MEP NIGEL FARAGE TO GREECE: Call your NEW DEMOCRACY party what is is, NO DEMOCRACY party. Greece is occupied!

        AMERICAN KABUKI at AMERICAN KABUKI - 11 hours ago
*Dear friends* *In case you are interested in the grand experiment that is underway in Greece nowadays, you might be willing to watch the short video you can find through the link below.* *http://www.toxwni.gr/ellada/item/10651-binteo-o-faratz-ta-exose-ston-samara-na-onomasete-to-komma-sas-mi-dimokratia-i-ellada-brisketai-ipo-katoxi#.Uta3jvtbFEP* *The Greek text, that accompanies the video, is essentially of no significance; it is just a comment about the incident for the Greek readers. You can find more about the case at* *http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/01/16/ukip-nigel-fara... more »

Breaking news...

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 11 hours ago
Compare and contrast Sky and the BBC's reporting of the breaking news of the death of Lord McAlpine: *BBC News*: *Tory grandee Lord McAlpine dies in home in Italy* *Lord McAlpine died at his home in Italy* Lord McAlpine, the former UK Conservative Party deputy chairman has died, his family has announced. The 71-year-old, who was an aide to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, died last night in Italy, his family said. In a statement, they said: "It is with great sadness that the family of Lord McAlpine announce his peaceful death last night at his home in Italy." As well as a politic... more »

Bears

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 12 hours ago

King Lear, his Daughters and the "non-violent" Islamist

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 12 hours ago
Another interesting Radio 4 documentary on Thursday was *Crossing Continents*, which reported on the rise and (apparent) fall of Gulnara Karimova - the powerful, glamorous, pop-singer daughter of ruthless Uzbek strongman Islam Karimov. BBC reporter Natalia Antelava had a personal angle on the story, having been long engaged in a Twitter 'discussion' with Gulnara. Having subsequently decided to visit Uzkekistan, Natalia was surprise to cause a considerable stir at Tashkent airport when staff there recognised her name and realised who she was. She was sent packing. The programme ... more »

The Parti Québécois has lost touch with reality

CM at LILITH NEWS - 12 hours ago
The first week of hearings into the Parti Québécois’ new "charter of values" concluded Thursday - and it is self evident that the Parti Québécois has lost touch with reality. Why? Because they are making up fictional scenarios to justify the implementation of the charter. The charter is a proposed ban on public-sector workers in Quebec wearing religious symbols - specifically kippas, yamakas, burkas, niqabs, kufi hats, turbans, and any overly large crosses or other symbols. (No precise size has been determined for what is considered "overt".) The ban would be a clear violation of th... more »

The symphony of life, revealed: New imaging technique captures

        AMERICAN KABUKI at AMERICAN KABUKI - 12 hours ago
Using a new imaging technique they developed, scientists have managed to observe and document the vibrations of lysozyme, an antibacterial protein found in many animals. This graphic visualizes the vibrations in lysozyme as it is excited by terahertz light (depicted by the red wave arrow). Such vibrations, long thought to exist, have never before been described in such detail, said lead researcher Andrea Markelz, a UB physicist. Credit: Andrea Markelz and Katherine Niessen. http://phys.org/news/2014-01-symphony-life-revealed-imaging-technique.html *The symphony of life, revealed: New ima... more »

Quenelka

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 13 hours ago
Alan at *Biased BBC* notes the BBC's lack of interest (so far) in the news from *Marketing Week* that "Zoopla is threatening to axe its multi-million pound shirt deal with West Bromwich Albion if Nicolas Anelka continues to play for the club over fears the brand’s Jewish roots are being tarnished by the worsening furore around his controversial ‘quenelle’ goal celebration." [Zoopla is "co-owned by Jewish businessman Alex Chesterman".] As he says, other media outlets are less reticent: *Daily Telegraph*: West Bromwich Albion shirt sponsors threaten to cancel deal over Nicolas Anelk... more »

The Ultimate Act of Freedom

        AMERICAN KABUKI at AMERICAN KABUKI - 13 hours ago
http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2014-01-17/ultimate-act-freedom *The Ultimate Act of Freedom * 01/17/2014 19:57 -0500 By Cognitive Dissonance Which came first, the chicken or the egg? I ask not because I require an answer, but rather because I desire to ask better questions both of myself and of the world around me. Asking a question that seems to compel the questioner to chase his or her tail is not as pointless as it may seem if the query can be redirected to challenge ‘common’ knowledge or long standing beliefs. So let me try again with a different question. Which came ... more »

Heroes and Heroin

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 14 hours ago
You will have heard commentators before, many times perhaps, complaining that it's almost impossible to have 'a sensible, grown-up debate' about drugs policy in this country. Whenever a politician dares to peep out from behind the privet hedge of acceptable parliamentary opinion and say what he or she really thinks about drugs policy, all Hell descends upon them, breathing fire, and they scuttle away with a pitchfork or two still sticking out of their jacksies. That's certainly true, though you may have noticed that those breaking cover tend to do so on the pro-liberalisation sid... more »

Casting the Hammer aside

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 15 hours ago
I have to say that I agree with chrish about this week's *In Our Time. * I love *In Our Time *(and think Melvyn Bragg is an excellent presenter of the programme)*, *but chrish is right to describe its account of the Battle of Tours as being a "slyly-biased" one, and his concern is exactly the same as mine: "that the BBC will only have one side of the debate aired." I'd read up on the Battle of Tours in the days leading up to the programme. *Wikipedia *was my source. (You may say 'tut tut' to that, but that's the source the *In Our Time *website also links to.) *Wikipedia*'s accou... more »

Trans-Pacific Partnership Deal Guts Enviro Laws – WikiLeaks ........ Louisiana sinkhole updates January 16 , 2014 ( h/t Louisiana Sinkhole Bugle )

Catharsis Ours - 15 hours ago
Trans-Pacific Partnership Deal Guts Enviro Laws – WikiLeaks JANUARY 16, 2014 3 *The Environment Chapter* of the deal exposed. *Secret Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) – Environment Consolidated Text* Today, 15 January 2014, *WikiLeaks* released* the secret draft text* for the entire TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) Environment Chapter and the corresponding Chairs’ Report. The TPP transnational legal regime would cover 12 countries initially and encompass 40 per cent of global GDP and one-third of world trade. *The Environment Chapter has long been sought by journalists and e... more »

things i heard at the library: an occasional series: #12

laura k at wmtc - 15 hours ago
I'm enjoying my new position so much! Things are going really well so far. I'm preparing for teen book club, researching display ideas, and planning some (I hope) interesting programs. I'll write about those as they happen. So far I'm feeling well, too. I'm still adjusting to full-time work, but I'm not collapsing from it, either. Readers, you were right. Doing work that you love makes a huge difference. So does a more humane work environment. In the library, no one expects everything done yesterday, everyone understands the concept of a learning curve, and most people truly underst... more »

Addressing the problem directly?

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 16 hours ago
During the reign of Pope Benedict XVI, sections of the BBC personally hostile to Benedict - especially Ed Stourton's *Sunday *and the BBC's Rome correspondent David Willey - would feature regular criticism of Benedict's Vatican for doing too little about priestly child abuse in the Catholic Church. Here's one 2010 example from David Willey: Pope Benedict has plenty of opportunity during his brief weekend visit to Malta to talk about the clerical sexual abuse which has scandalised members of his faith around the world, and created a credibility crisis for the world's largest Chur... more »

Undercover Street

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 16 hours ago
Fraser Nelson, writing in the *Telegraph* about Channel 4's *Benefits Street*, observes: Make a documentary about poverty in Uganda and you could win an award. Look at problems in Britain and you’re reported for thought crime — sometimes successfully: BBC One ran an excellent documentary two years ago in which John Humphrys returned to the neighbourhood outside Cardiff in which he grew up and found a quarter of its residents on benefits. How had this “age of entitlement” come about, he asked? The BBC Trust was barraged into finding him guilty of presenting “a personal view on a co... more »

Benefits Street

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 16 hours ago
What with even the wonderful *More or Less *following the rest of the BBC and 'dissing' Channel 4's *Benefits Street, *it's time for a joke. It's a joke that's cropping up all over the place, and all manner of people are passing it off without a tip of the hat to its creator. Unfortunately, it's hard to know who its creator is. All we can say is that it's very unlikely to be Marcus Brigstocke, Mark Steel or Jeremy Hardy. Having watched Benefits street, it's not much different to Sesame Street. Both have a big bird, a bloke living out of a bin, and people trying to learn the alph... more »

A Huge Update

Zoe Brain at A.E.Brain - 16 hours ago
The page Transsexual and Intersex Gender Identity has just been updated with a similar list of references of equal size, and very little overlap. The list is at http://www.cakeworld.info/home/gender-sex-and-all-that/What-causes-transsexualism

Belated Thursday Links – It’s Still Thursday Somewhere Right?

Josh Busby at Duck of Minerva - 17 hours ago
So, your humble blogger found himself subsumed by first week of class duties and fell behind on the job! To make amends, I’ve flagged some stories that caught my eye, which should make for some welcome weekend reading. My eye this week was mostly trained on energy and environment stuff (U.S. greenhouse gas emissions on Continue reading

NSA bulk data collection not cheap or effective in terrorism fight

noreply@blogger.com (Say No To Corporate America!) at Say No To Corporate America - 17 hours ago

A Wi-Fi censorship story with a happy ending -- more or less

KenInNY at DownWithTyranny! - 18 hours ago
*Note the "free WI FI" promise right there on the window.* *by Ken* This is a good-news, bad-news -- or perhaps glass-half-full, glass-half-empty -- story about open Internet access. No, we're not talking about the recent DC Circuit Court of Appeals overturning the FCC's none-too-vigorous attempt at mandating "Net neutrality," or equal access for all content providers, opening the way for ISPs to offer higher speed for higher pay, very likely putting pressure on poorer providers. No, we're talking about a perennial access problem, especially with Net access in public places: site-... more »

Harper salutes coastal British Columbia ...

Dave at The Galloping Beaver - 18 hours ago
With a sneer and a raised middle finger. The Harper government spent $26 million of your tax dollars investigating the reasons for the collapse of the 2009 Fraser River sockeye run. The Cohen Commission Final Report (PDF) was delivered to the Governor in Council on 31 October 2012 after 18 months of hearings and investigation. During that 18 months, scientists conducting studies into the

Is There A Ceasefire In The Making In Syria? Will It Be Enforceable?

Saman Mohammadi at The Excavator - 19 hours ago
Related: *'Ceasefires possible in areas of Syria', says John Kerry [Source: Euronews] (January 13)*. Photo Source: * Manu Brabo/AP.* For many of the Jihadist extremists who have invaded Syria in the hopes of *establishing a radical Islamic emirate*, fighting until the end means fighting until the end of Assad, and then fighting some more. The word ceasefire does not exist in their worldview. They are seeking the complete destruction of the secular state in Syria. They will not abandon this idea. But there are some reasonable people among the opposition forces, sprinkled here and t... more »

Rundown On Fake Christie Presidential Candidacy (It Was Christie Tough-Guy Talk That, Notably, He Was Too Cowardly To Repeat In New Jersey. He Told the Awed Ultra-Rich That, By Cutting Teacher Pensions, He Could Stop Democrats' Attempts to Tax Millionaires)

Bet you didn't know that your pensions, social security, medicare and medicaid were tradeoffs for no tax cuts for the rich. Turns out that the criminals in business know they are criminals (not heroes). That's the reason they obfuscate their actions so purposively (and carefully), and never cease congratulating themselves on their vision and imagination (and connections). It's not a surprise

CNT-f Faces Eviction

mollymew at Molly'sBlog - 20 hours ago
CNT-F FACES EVICTION FROM LONG-TERM HEADQUARTERS The CNT-f is the larger of the two anarchosyndicalist/revolutionary syndicalist union federations in France. They have traditionally been called the 'CNT-Vignoles' after their headquarters at 33 rue Vignoles in Paris. They have survived a previous attempt to evict them in 1996, but now they are facing a fresh attack from the Mayor of Paris. The following is their statement on the events. The original French version can be here. You can follow events from either their website or from the site of their newspaper Combat Syndica... more »

Your moment of Zen

Libby Spencer at The Impolitic - 21 hours ago
Moonrise over Seattle. [Photo: Chuck Hilliard] via [NWCN on Facebook]

Freedom Industries Files For Chapter 11

jurassicpork at Welcome Back to Pottersville - 21 hours ago
That's my fucking response.

The Slog blogsite calls out Greece PM Samaras as lying about the financial picture of Greece........BREAKING….GREEK DEFAULT OFFICIAL: Without further loans, Greece will default 20-21st May 2014

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 22 hours ago
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2014/01/greece-needs-another-bailout-before-may.html ( Mish concurs with the Slog... ) Greece Will Default in May Without Another Bailout or Change in Terms Cash flow analysis shows Greece is in serious trouble again in spite of having a current account surplus. Specifically, Greece needs a change in payback terms or another bailout or it will default in August, if not May. I use the words "will default" imprecisely. The only way Greece is making loan payments now is with money from the Troika. The scam works like this: bailout mon... more »

It's too bad the president led people to expect fireworks in a speech that was far from un-serious

KenInNY at DownWithTyranny! - 22 hours ago
*by Ken* Here's what I think about the president's speech: I don't know why he made such a big production about it. That set it up fora big whuppin', and decreased the amount of attention likely to be paid to what he actually said. The people who thought he's "soft on security" will still think so. (They mostly won't have any idea what the heck he was talking about.) The people who thought he's a traitor on civil liberties will still think so too. I didn't see or hear the speech, but I did read it. I don't say I *studied*it, but I do go back over several sections that left me puzz... more »

Imágenes con mensajes bonitos para el Día del Amor y la amistad

José Luis Ávila Herrera at FOTOFRONTERA - 22 hours ago
[image: Corazón con mensaje te amo] [image: Felíz día de San Valentín] [image: Mensaje para los amigos] [image: corazón flechado] [image: Rosas y corazones] [image: Ositos con mensaje de abrasos] [image: Corazón con una paloma] [image: Corazón de rosas y hojas verdes] [image: mensajes para facebook de amistad] [image: Adista en una postal] [image: Corazón con mensaje te quiero] [image: Betty boop]

IMF Representative Wabel Abdallah Killed In Coordinated Taliban Assault On Upscale Kabul Restaurant - at least 16 killed in a coordinated attack as the Taliban leave the West a calling card....

Catharsis Ours - 22 hours ago
Death toll rises in Taliban attack at Kabul restaurant January 17, 2014 1:24PM ET Updated January 18, 2014 7:30AM ET Group says attack was retaliation for Afghan military operations this week in eastern Parwan province Topics: Afghanistan Taliban International

Libya updates January 17 , 2014 -- Present instability seemed centered around the actual and perceived weakness f PM Ali Zeidan ...... Revealing some of the internal divisions that exist between the government, the GNC and the Chief of Staff, and that are contributing to the ineffectiveness of the new Libyan state and the current political paralyses, Prime Minister Ali Zeidan admitted during Tuesday’s press conference that the Chief of Staff was refusing to take orders from him or send troops to the recent hotspot of Sebha .

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 23 hours ago
GNC is coerced and laws passed are legally unsound – Zeidan *By Sami Zaptia.* *Tripoli, 18 January 2014:* Speaking at last Tuesday’s press conference on Libya’s current political impasse, Zeidan, admitted that the GNC is coerced by the threat of force into passing, or not passing, certain laws. Zeidan, with a certain hint of irony, also indirectly admitted that his continued presence as head of the executive is due largely to the Transitional Constitutional Declaration (TCD) of August 2011. The TCD is the current political roadmap or social contract between the Libyan citizens and the... more »

Turkish news of note - January 17 , 2014 ..... Iraq will take legal and other measures to punish Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan, as well as foreign companies, for any involvement in Kurdish exports of “smuggled” oil without Baghdad’s consent, the oil minister said on Jan. 17. ......... Corruption scandals updates

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 23 hours ago
Oil Politics..... http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2014/01/18/Turkey-purges-bank-watchdog-telecoms-body-state-TV-in-graft-probe-backlash.html Reuters, Ankara Saturday, 18 January 2014 Turkey has extended a purge of official bodies to the banking and telecoms regulators and state TV, firing dozens of executives in moves that appear to broaden Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s backlash against a corruption investigation. The authorities have already sacked thousands of police officers, dozens of prosecutors and some state television officials in response to the corrup... more »

DILBIT : NEBBY's Fish 'n Chips!

Alison at Creekside - 23 hours ago
*Northwest Coast Energy News: DFO hands over fisheries protection along pipelines to the NEB.* "The Department of Fisheries and Oceans has handed responsibility for fish and fish habitat along pipeline routes over to the Alberta-based, energy friendly National Energy Board. The same agreement also gives the National Energy Board responsibility for dealing with First Nations fisheries if a pipeline or power line crosses their traditional territory. As of December 16, 2013, Enbridge no longer has to apply to DFO for permits to alter fish habitat alon... more »

Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink

Libby Spencer at The Impolitic - 1 day ago
Well here's a surprise. The ominpotent invisible hand of the free market flips the bird to approximately one third of the residents of West Viriginia. Freedom Industries tells its creditors to take a flying leap: CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Freedom Industries, the company that fouled thousands of West Virginians' water with a chemical leak last week, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy today. The company's assets and liabilities are "unknown," according to the filing. Under the bankruptcy code, Chapter 11 permits a company to reorganize and continue operating. Chapter 11 also requires all ... more »

Gold items of note January 17 , 2014 - German Gold Manipulation Blowback Escalates: Deutsche Bank Exits Gold Price Fixing .....Shortage Of Gold Bars Develops In London - Follow The Money ......Spectacular Gold Demand (79 Tons) on SGE in Week 2, 2014

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 1 day ago
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-01-17/german-gold-manipulation-blowback-escalates-deutsche-bank-exits-gold-price-fixing German Gold Manipulation Blowback Escalates: Deutsche Bank Exits Gold Price Fixing [image: Tyler Durden's picture] Submitted by Tyler Durden on 01/17/2014 10:31 -0500 - Credit Default Swaps - default - Deutsche Bank - Germany - LIBOR - London Fixing - Precious Metals - Reuters inShare11 Germany's blowback against gold manipulation is accelerating. Following yesterday's report that Bafin took a hard line against precious me... more »

ECUADOR Rights of Nature Tribunal hears 8 cases

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 1 day ago
First Global Tribunal on Rights of Nature hears 8 cases By Global Alliance Friday, January 17th, 2014 Censored News   FIRST WORLD TRIBUNAL ON RIGHTS OF NATUREHEARS EIGHT CASES FOR ADMISSIBILITY GLOBAL ALLIANCE FOR RIGHTS OF NATURECOMMITS TO DEEPEN AND EXPAND THE WORLDWIDE MOVEMENTQUITO, ECUADOR The world’s first Tribunal on the Rights of Nature is being held in Quito, Ecuador, today.

Catholic Tribunal Courts Not Used Often Enough

John Carroll at Dying in Haiti - 1 day ago
Bishop Daniel Jenky of Peoria refused a Tribunal Court against OSF. He wanted to protect OSF like other bishops wanted to protect pedophile priests. Bishop Jenky declined Tribunal Court...Pope Benedict Defrocked 400 Priests in 2 Years for Child Abuse http://t.co/X91S68DEWF via @TIMEWorld — John A. Carroll (@haitianhearts) January 17, 2014

Intermission

Roobin at THROUGH THE SCARY DOOR - 1 day ago

EATING REAL LOCAL

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 1 day ago
*Tim Rinne in Nebraska tends his winter garden and shares his story.* *The following guest editorial by friend and GN board member Tim Rinne appeared in the December 8th edition of the *Lincoln Journal Star* and was reprinted in the Wednesday, December 11th edition of the *Grand Island Independent*.* How embarrassing. Here I am, a lifelong resident of one of the premier agricultural regions of the world, whose family has farmed in the state since 1868, and I didn’t get it. You would have thought that eating at least three times a day for 50 years would have stirred me to take an i... more »

FIGHTING FOR SURVIVAL

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 1 day ago
A story of pirates in Somalia told from the perspective of a struggling, young Somali fisherman. Among other awards, this short film won the Grand Jury Prize in short filmmaking at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.

A Victory For Lee Rogers In CA-25, Is A Victory For Progressive Values Across America

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 1 day ago
If you missed me putting Buck McKeon's resignation from Congress into context for KPFK listeners yesterday, here's a short, abbreviated version above. This morning, *Washington Post* columnist Greg Sargent, under the eye-catching headline, "A Dem Candidate Who Would Expand O'Care And Social Security," went beyond the Beltway conventional wisdom/claptrap and got to the heart of why the race in the Santa Clarita, Antelope and Simi Valleys (CA-25) is so important for progressives. Yesterday, GOP Rep. Buck McKeon, a longtime member of Congress and chairman of the Armed Services Comm... more »

What's for dinner?...

Adrienne at Adrienne's Corner - 1 day ago
*these sound good.* I'll substitute almond and coconut flour for the Panko. If video doesn't load, go *HERE* to watch Alton Brown make them.

California: Climate change and erratic weather

LeDaro at LeDaro - 1 day ago
I was watching NBC nightly news and this piece was an eye-opener. If some people still don't believe in climate change then I don't know what will convince them. Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Love With the Proper Stalker

Karen Garcia at Sardonicky - 1 day ago
"We don't spy on ordinary people who don't threaten our national security," Barack Obama double-negatively insisted today. Translation/caveat: Since every man, woman and child on the face of the planet is considered a threat to the security of the United Stasi unless proven otherwise ex post facto, the spying and the cyber-stalking will continue. Other Orwellian tidbits in the speech: The NSA probably maybe won't continue storing all your communications, but rest assured that all your communications will continue to be stored. The mystery bureaucracy storing all your communi... more »

MIKAEEL KULAR - MOTHER DETAINED

Anon at aangirfan - 1 day ago
Just before midnight on 17 January 2014, the body of three-year-old *Mikaeel Kular* was found in woodland just yards from his mother *Rosdeep*'s *former*home in *Kirkcaldy* in Fife. Rosdeep's former house is currently occupied by Rosdeep's sister Pandeep. Rosdeep's mother Harjinder, a retired doctor, lives nearby. Mikaeel is understood to have been known to social services in Fife, which suggests problems. *Dunvegan Avenue in Kirkcaldy, where the body was found.* Mikaeel's mother,* Rosdeep*, has been detained by the police Kirkcaldy is about 25 miles from Edinburgh, where Rosdee... more »

Rumor Control

KRandle at A Different Perspective - 1 day ago
There are a couple of things that I think need to be straightened out. First, as I was surfing the net (yes, I googled my name… Oh yeah, you’ve never done that) I discovered a number of my books were being offered as free downloads. There are apparently many out there who believe that if a book is twenty years old, there are no copyright issues. Well, this isn’t true. The books are still under copyright protection and the penalties for violation can be stiff. I attempted to download one of the books so that I could get a handle on the site and let the owners know that they were gui... more »

Peculiar statements never cease, Diane Ravitch division!

bob somerby at the daily howler - 1 day ago
*FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014* *Connecticut is for spinners:* Last week, Jay Mathews analyzed Diane Ravitch’s eleven solutions for public schools. He focused on just seven. We love, but also dislike, Jay’s upbeat approach to such matters. We’d planned to start with his piece this week, but Fort Lee madness intruded. We want to say good things about Ravitch. We *plan* to say such things in the future. But we’re not sure we’ve ever seen someone with such a wanton approach to even the most basic facts. This remarkable, characteristic behavior shines a real light on our culture. At issue... more »

Pro-Life

Libby Spencer at The Impolitic - 1 day ago
I'm pro-life in the sense that I want everyone alive to have a decent existence, meaning they have food, shelter and a real opportunity for meaningful work at a living wage. For the rabid pro-life because sanctity of the unborn though, this remains a timeless commentary. [Nick Anderson cartoon]

Informed Consent

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 1 day ago
Bollman v. Soenen, 2014 ONCA 36: [18] The trial judge's determination of liability on informed consent was based on a misapprehension of the law. In the context of medical treatment, battery arises when there is no consent at all. An example would be when the wrong operation or procedure was conducted. When there is an allegation of a deficiency in the explanation of risks, the issue is that of informed consent. [19] This distinction was clarified by the Supreme Court of Canada in *Reibl v. Hughes*, [1980] 2 S.C.R. 880. At pp. 890-92, Chief Justice Laskin said: ... more »

Israel's an apartheid state?

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 1 day ago
Watch this video, what say you now? Apart from the dreadful attempt to rhyme compare with terror, it's a very thought provoking video. Do watch it all. And he's right, "And if you think that's Apartheid it's because You don't know what Apartheid really was" People say Israel's an Apartheid state But I can't relate to that baseless hate It's not really fair to try and compare A racist regime with the war on terror Using common sense against violence Israel had to build up the border fence And if you think that's Apartheid it's because You don't know what Apartheid really was For two ... more »

can the gulf survive?

Jason Leewig at Our Manmade Disasters - 1 day ago

Does the Gates Foundation’s MET Address Real-World Issues for Using High-Stakes Value-Added?

John Thompson at @ THE CHALK FACE - 1 day ago
I the first three posts of this series (see Diane Ravitch’s summary of them here), I argue that Matt DiCarlo’s retrospective analysis of market-driven reform research in 2013, “The Year in Research on Market-Based Education Reforms: 2013,” gives short shrift to practical realities. DiCarlo complains, however, that the Gates Foundation’s Measures of Effective Teaching (MET) study was […]

The Policy Implications of Market-Driven Education Research in 2013

John Thompson at @ THE CHALK FACE - 1 day ago
My previous posts regarding Matt DiCarlo’s commentary on 2013 research, “The Year in Research on Market-Based Education Reforms: 2013,” can be found here, here, and here. My entire tirade comes down to two arcane points. I would not bother with them if teachers, unions, and students were not being damaged by market-driven reforms. DiCarlo properly […]

伊拉克人刻錄到一個清晰的由美海軍陸戰隊!

Barbara Diamond at American Scofflaw - 1 day ago
[image: http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2014/01/18/2003581577] [image: http://rinf.com/alt-news/latest-news/gruesome-photos-depict-us-marines-burning-iraqis/]

Ted Cruz talks about Obamacare and gun control with Greta Van Susteren...

Adrienne at Adrienne's Corner - 1 day ago
*"Elected officials don't like being held responsible."* What is most astonishing to me is that even one person would log onto the Obamacare site and plug in their personal information to buy an over-priced crappy product. What the hell is wrong with the people of this country? Are they so dumbed down and anesthetized by TV, sports, and lousy education that they can no longer think? Yeah, right! Silly question. Speaking of sports, do you realize that Super Bowl ticket prices range from $2600.00 to over $15,000.00? Seriously? To endure invasive pat downs, carry your crap in a t... more »

Script never sleeps, Susan Rice division!

bob somerby at the daily howler - 1 day ago
*FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014* *New York Times leaves her under the bus:* On Wednesday, a Senate report about Benghazi largely comported with the account Susan Rice gave in real time. We were able to figure that out from reading the New York Times front-page analysis of the report. Halfway through, on page A3, we found ourselves reading this: MAZZETTI/SCHMITT/KIRKPATRICK (1/16/14): On the contentious issue of the role of Al Qaeda or other international terrorist organizations in the attack on the diplomatic mission, the Senate committee’s report found that individuals “affiliated wit... more »

No Debate. Evah.

noreply@blogger.com (fern hill) at DAMMIT JANET! - 1 day ago
January is a busy month for abortion activists (pro and anti) on both sides of the US/Canada border. January 22 marks the 41st anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision in the US. January 28 marks the 26th anniversary of Canada's Supreme Court Morgentaler ruling. And January 27 this year will see the return of the House of Commons after the holiday break. Retiring fetus fetishist MP and fave here at DJ! expects his last kick at the can -- two motions to "study" abortion -- will come up for debate fairly soon afterwards. The motions are expected to fail spectacularly because eve... more »

Zero 7 - Destiny

Phil at A Very Public Sociologist - 1 day ago
Yes, I'm lazy. Incredibly so. And to mark my sloth here's a down tempo number from 2006. It's not trance, so there's a chance some of you regulars might like it :)

Skyfall question

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 1 day ago
I'm just watching Skyfall again and that bit where Javier Bardem comes down in that lift rang a bell. Does anyone else think it's reminiscent of Frankenfurter's entrance in the Rocky Horror Picture Show?

Abbey Clancy - not Strictly dressed - A Friday night Rule 5 post - NSFW

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 1 day ago
Abbey Clancy was the deserving winner of Strictly Come Dancing this year. I was never a fan of Abbey Clancy but she came over very well in this reality dancing show. If you want to see more of Abbey Clancy then here you are...

\(Na_3Bi\), a three-dimensional cousin of graphene, discovered

Luboš Motl at The Reference Frame - 1 day ago
Synchlavier, a FB contact of mine, has focused my attention on a Berkeley Lab press release: Natural 3D Counterpart to Graphene Discovered: Researchers at Berkeley Lab’s Advanced Light Source Find New Form of Quantum Matter It promotes an October 2013 experimental paper Discovery of a Three-dimensional Topological Dirac Semimetal, \(Na_3Bi\) by Z.K. Liu and 11 co-authors (arXiv, PDF, APS meeting) This unusual molecule involving sodium and bismuth is claimed to have similar, but three-dimensional, properties that make it a higher-dimensional counterpart of the miraculous two-dimens... more »

Sovereignty 101:Installment 12 - Running out of "time"

Sophia Love at AMERICAN KABUKI - 1 day ago
The background of each of us is irrelevant. It is the foreground that matters to the rest of us. Who is it you are today? How do you spend your moments while we are sharing them? It doesn’t matter what took place before now. Not that these things don’t have value, they do. When we were involved in them they mattered very much. Now that they are a thing of the “past”, they do not. Time is an aspect of the day to day that can serve or inhibit us. It is held in our mind and its relative effect takes place there as well. It doesn’t really exist – there is no such thing as “ti... more »

Last Night 26 Republican Senators Voted To Shut Down The Government Again

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 1 day ago
Last night 26 Senate Republicans-- basically, the hardcore lunatic fringe-- voted to shut down government operations. The day before the House passed the bill-- and, remember, everyone knows that's the crazy, dysfunctional end of Congress controlled by the Koch brothers and their teabagger brigades-- 359-67, just the lunatic fringe, kooks like Bachmann (MN), DesJarlais (TN), Salmon (AZ), Pompeo (KS), Coffman (CO), Rohrabacher (CA), Pearce (NM), Steve King (IA), Gohmert (TX), Jordan (OH), Huelskamp (KS), Broun/Gingrey (GA) and Amash (MI), voting against it. The Senate equivalents, ... more »

YOUNG MAINERS SPEAK OUT

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 1 day ago
This video is from the January 9 rally in Augusta inside the state capital. There was a special effort to get young people to speak. The rally was multi-issue that connected all the dots. This particular video segment from the rally shows the public divestment movement on campuses across Maine. Video/audio Peter Woodruff. Edit/video Martha Spiess.

How Would You Blackmail Colin Powell, Samuel Alito, Gen. Petraeus, Barack Obama? (Controlled Leaks Very Useful for . . . Fascists . . . and Citizens Trained To Be Passive) Why (Really) Haven't the Financial Executives Been Prosecuted?

How else could you obtain the most favorable policies for your pet gambits? Like theeeesssse. Abby: What do you think? I mean, based on your experience, Russ. What could the reason be, for wiretapping and spying on people like Obama, Judge Alito, Petraeus, … Tice: I think you hit the word. To me, I don’t know for sure, but that would be a means of control. If you were to look and be able

2002 Oct 12 (1012) Bali Bombing was another Zionist plot.

Jason Leewig at Our Manmade Disasters - 1 day ago
1012 Bali Bombing in 2002 one day, one month and a year after 2001, 9/11. 1226 Boxing Day Tsunami followed. Formula: 2002 + 2 years later = 2004. Oct(10) + 2 = Dec (12) day(12) x 2+ 2 = day (26) It was all planned by the Zionist Korpo-Ratz Banksters. Order out of world-wide chaos. Arise the Zionist-controlled authoritarian NWO empire (ZOOWE). And they need to depopulate the world first by whatever means including epidemic, planned disasters, weaponised natural calamities, financial collapse etc. Did ExxonMobil Pay Torturers? The oil giant ha... more »

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (or TPP) is a trade deal that is being negotiated in secret between the U.S. and 11 other Pacific bordering nations. The secrecy is necessary because TPP's objective is to be NAFTA on steroids, whereas twenty years of NAFTA cost "one millon U.S. jobs lost, mass displacement and instability in Mexico, record income inequality, [and] scores of corporate attacks on environmental and health laws" according to Public Citizen. The highly instructive videos below are in chronological order, Dec 15 first and then Jan 16.

David L Griscom at Cherchez la Verite - 1 day ago
------------------------------ Originals here and here *Wikileaks TPP Revelations Prove US in "Left Field" With Trade Deal* Kevin Zeese: U.S. Trade Representative wants to keep the public in the dark because TPP will threaten food safety and raise drug prices, and many Asian countries involved in negotiations are also turned off by the deal - *December 15, 13* More at The Real News *Leaked TPP Document Reveals No Regard for Environment in Trade Agreement* President Obama's fast track process for TPP gets dealt another blow by leaked environment chapter - *January 16, 14* M... more »

DANGER ZONE

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 1 day ago
This graphic tells the story. The US military "pivot" into the Asia-Pacific is provocative. Imagine if another nation was moving 60% of its military might right off the shores of the US's east and west coasts. Washington would take it as a declaration of war. When the US does it no one is supposed to bat an eye. China is the target. North Korea, that pip-squeak with mostly outdated military technology (according to the Pentagon), is just the excuse. When I was in the Air Force I had a friend that had once been stationed in Korea near the DMZ during the late 60's. Cold Wa... more »

Basic Questions for the White Privilege Conference

John Friend at John Friend's Blog - 1 day ago
** I sent the following email to Marqita Jones, the contact person for the White Privilege Conference scheduled for March 26-29 in Madison, Wisconsin. After reading An Open Letter to a Person of Privilege posted on the Libertarian Realist blog, I pitched the idea of writing an article about the White Privilege Conference to the editor of American Free Press, and he thought it was a good idea. Since I doubt any of my questions will be answered, I've decided to post this email here for the record. ** Hi Marqita, I am a reporter for American Free Press, a weekly national newspaper bas... more »

WATCHING STORY GROW: Concerning that alleged traffic study!

bob somerby at the daily howler - 1 day ago
*FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014* *Interlude—What the AP said:* With apologies, we want to show you an AP report we didn’t see until this very morning. The report appeared last Saturday. In an overview of the thousands of pages of emails and texts which were released the day before, two AP reporters mused about the “traffic study” which devoured Fort Lee. Overall, the AP report painted an unflattering picture of the conduct of the Christie team during and after the now-famous lane closings. (“In the documents, officials appointed by Christie seemed more concerned about the political fall... more »

Full Interview, Part III, with Former Charter Teacher at Brooklyn Ascend

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 1 day ago
Below is Part III of my interview with Emily Talmage. Parts I and II can be found here and here. INT: When you think of Brooklyn Ascend, what comes to mind? R: The first thing that comes to mind is that I am so happy I'm not there. INT: Is there an image that you end up with? R: Yeah. The image that comes to mind is this kid with their mouth closed, with their hands by their side, and really not looking happy. There wasn't a lot of happiness there. The image that comes to mind is kids with either their hands folded, or their hands by their side, with their mouth shut. Als... more »

OAIS Blogging Awards Voting Begins

Jon Western at Duck of Minerva - 1 day ago
We’re a week behind, but the nominees are in and voting is now open. We sent out ballots today to those who registered for voting. If you did not receive one or if you haven’t registered yet, please email us for a ballot. Voting runs through February 7. As with last year, we will use a Borda-count Continue reading

More from the genius that is @The_Mitch92

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 1 day ago
I've been debating with @The_mitch92 on Twitter. The trouble he's not the brightest of individuals; he's a 9/11 troofer but more of that later. He made a statement that he didn't trust any Israeli and then narrowed that down to any supporter of the Israeli government. The debate moved on a bit to UK politics, you can see the whole debate on Twitter, and then he posted this... Priceless...

AGW inquisition burns a journal, Pattern Recognition in Physics

Luboš Motl at The Reference Frame - 1 day ago
*One sentence in Scafetta's paper on solar/climate patterns was too much for the AGW loons and their cowardly slaves and collaborationists* The only justifiable concern connected with the climate are the climate alarmists' efforts to suppress the freedoms – the economic freedoms, the academic freedoms, and sometimes basic human rights including the free speech. Three days ago, I discussed the climate alarmist UNFCCC boss' praise for Chinese communism and criticism of the U.S. democracy and Willie Soon just informed me about a new story of a similar kind. *Burning of Mister John Hu... more »

VIDEO: King Faisal II Opens Kirkuk Oil Pipeline 1952

Joel Wing at MUSINGS ON IRAQ - 1 day ago
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