Archive for the 'Dictatorship' Category
Why Are the Chinese Buying Record Quantities of Gold?
January 31st, 2012Via: Forbes: This month, the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department reported that China imported 102,779 kilograms of gold from Hong Kong in November, an increase from October’s 86,299 kilograms. Beijing does not release gold trade figures, so for this and other reasons the Hong Kong numbers are considered the best indication of China’s gold […]
Portable DNA Sequencer Demonstrated at World Economic Forum
January 30th, 2012Via: Medical Express: It was the talk of Davos, grabbing the imagination of a forum otherwise shrouded in gloom: a miracle machine that cracks the code of life within hours and could revolutionise healthcare. Patients will no longer have to wait weeks to know if they have cancer and their doctors will know immediately what […]
Britain: Paratroopers Are Trained for Riot Control
January 29th, 2012Via: Telegraph: British troops are being trained in riot control tactics amid fears that violence and looting will return to Britain’s streets this summer. Hundreds of soldiers from 3rd battalion The Parachute Regiment spent last week learning how to contain and arrest “rioters” in a series of exercises mirroring last summers violence. Defence sources have […]
Copyright Industry Calls for Broad Search Engine Censorship
January 29th, 2012Via: Torrent Freak: At a behind-closed-doors meeting facilitated by the UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport, copyright holders have handed out a list of demands to Google, Bing and Yahoo. To curb the growing piracy problem, Hollywood and the major music labels want the search engines to de-list popular filesharing sites such as The […]
Killing the Competition: How the New Monopolies Are Destroying Open Markets
January 29th, 2012Via: Harper’s Magazine: Fear, in any real market, is a natural emotion. There is the fear of not making a sale, not landing a job, not winning a client. Such fear is healthy, even constructive. It prods us to polish our wares, to refine our skills, and to conjure up—every so often—a wonder. But these […]
Iran Hits Back at EU with Own Oil Embargo Threat
January 29th, 2012Via: Reuters: Fighting sanctions with sanctions in a test of strength with the West over its nuclear ambitions, Iran warned on Friday it may halt oil exports to Europe next week in a move calculated to hurt ailing European economies. … “They are the masters of bluffing,” one Mediterranean crude oil trader said of remarks […]
Twitter to Censor Content in Some Countries
January 27th, 2012Via: Montreal Gazette: Twitter announced Thursday that it would begin restricting Tweets in specific countries, renewing questions about how the social media platform will handle issues of free speech as it rapidly expands its global user base. Until now, Twitter had to remove a tweet from its global network if it received a takedown request […]
Illinois Semi Automatic Firearm Owners: Be Aware of HB1294
January 27th, 2012If you bother to read the full text of the legislation, you’ll find that the definition of “assault weapons” is very broad and covers a lot of rifles, handguns and shotguns. Via: Illinois General Assembly: Synopsis As Introduced Amends the Criminal Code of 1961. Provides that 90 days after the effective date of this amendatory […]
UK Bioethicist: Pregnancy and Natural Birth Should Not Be Tolerated
January 27th, 2012Make ready the municipal hatcheries. Via: Bioedge: Pregnancy and childbirth are so painful, risky and socially restrictive for women that public funding should urgently be directed to the development of artificial wombs. This is the only way to achieve true equality between men and women for then neither women nor men would then be limited […]
LAPD and Special Forces Conduct Military Maneuvers in Skies Above Downtown LA
January 27th, 2012Via: CBS: The Los Angeles Police Department teamed with military special operation forces Wednesday evening to conduct multi-agency tactical exercises in the skies above downtown LA. Many questioned what was going on Wednesday night as a Black Hawk helicopter and four OH-6 choppers – or “Little Birds” – flew over the city, at one point […]
