Archive for the 'Elite' Category
Step Right Up and Take a Ride on Thomas Friedman’s Hamster Wheel to the Good Life
September 10th, 2012The truth is, if you want a decent life, make sure that you’re engaged in lifelong learning about how to avoid the hellish circle jerk described in this New York Times piece. Check out the comments at the link if you need some comedy gold. Most people are telling Friedman where to insert it. Via: […]
Even Government Admits Fracking Mess in Wyoming
September 10th, 2012“The one—and only—place in the nation where fracking is causing water contamination…” Mmm hmm. Via: Bloomberg: Louis Meeks, a hay farmer in Pavillion, Wyo., holds a mason jar under a faucet in his house and turns on the water. It’s a demonstration he’s given to a slew of neighbors and government officials. The water, drawn […]
Open Thread: The One About Organic Food vs. Conventionally Produced Food
September 8th, 2012I saw the headline come up in a few places in my feed reader, but I didn’t bother to click through. I’m sure you know the one I’m talking about. Readers are submitting it now. Feel free to discuss, agree or disagree with it, but this one is like debates about Republicans and Democrats to […]
Silvio Berlusconi’s ‘James Bond-Style’ Underground Cave
September 8th, 2012Via: Telegraph: Silvio Berlusconi’s summer retreat on Sardinia’s exclusive Costa Smeralda, which gained notoriety for parties with topless models, features an underground cave, complete with an emergency escape exit to the sea.
‘The Euro Is Irreversible’: ECB Will Buy Debt Nobody Else Wants
September 6th, 2012Via: New York Times: The European Central Bank on Thursday announced a sweeping program for buying the bonds of troubled euro zone countries, giving the bank potentially unprecedented power. While the bank’s president, Mario Draghi, insisted that the central bank was not violating a prohibition on its financing governments, it was effectively becoming lender of […]
Honduras Sets Stage for 3 Privately Run Cities
September 6th, 2012Update: It’s Over for Now: Honduran Supreme Court Rejects ‘Model Cities’ Idea This was sent in by almaverdad2. Via: AP: Honduras’ Supreme Court has struck down a plan to build a series of model cities with their own independent tax and justice systems, a proposal that was meant to spur economic growth in this Central […]
Arizona: Three Hour Emergency Room Visit for Scorpion Sting Cost $83,046
September 6th, 2012Identical treatment in Mexico: $200. Via: Arizona Republic: Her symptoms subsided after she received two doses of the drug Anascorp through an IV, and she was discharged from the hospital in about three hours. Weeks later, she received a bill for $83,046 from Chandler Regional Medical Center. The hospital, owned by Dignity Health, charged her […]
Not The Onion: Eurozone Demands Six-Day Work Week for Greece
September 5th, 2012Via: Guardian: Greece’s eurozone creditors are demanding that the government in Athens introduce a six-day working week as part of the stiff terms for the country’s second bailout. The demand is contained in a leaked letter from the “troika” of the country’s lenders, the European commission, European Central Bank, and International Monetary Fund. In the […]
Estonia to Teach Programming in Schools from Age 6
September 5th, 2012Via: Geek.com: With the launch of the Raspberry Pi, computers are becoming affordable again for the younger generations. Now what we need is kids learning about computers in greater detail, including what the hardware is inside the box, and how to create rather than just use software. Estonia looks to be the pace setter in […]
Depression, Suicides Rise as Euro Debt Crisis Intensifies
September 5th, 2012Just hand more billions of euros to criminal bankers and tax the victims to pay for it. Brilliant plan. Via: CNBC: Europe is approaching a crisis as the region’s debt crisis and austerity measures increase the rates of depression, suicide and psychological problems – just as governments cut healthcare spending by up to 50 percent, […]
