Archive for the 'Economy' Category
China’s Slow Economy Forces College Grads to Live in ‘Ant Colonies’
August 6th, 2013Via: CBS: Despite having a college degree, wages are low for job seekers. At a recent Beijing job fair, graduates know the odds: only 35 percent have found work. More than a million recent graduates have ended up crammed into cheap subdivided apartments. They’re packed in so tight, they’re nicknamed “ants.” These apartments — “ant […]
Serco: The Company That Is Running Britain
August 3rd, 2013Via: Guardian: From prisons to rail franchises and even London’s Boris bikes, Serco is a giant global corporation that has hoovered up outsourced government contracts. Now the NHS is firmly in its sights. But it stands accused of mismanagement, lying and even charging for non-existent work. Research Credit: afterhours
Al-Qaeda Backers Receive U.S. Government Contracts in Afghanistan
August 2nd, 2013Via: Bloomberg: Supporters of the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan have been getting U.S. military contracts, and American officials are citing “due process rights” as a reason not to cancel the agreements, according to an independent agency monitoring spending. The U.S. Army Suspension and Debarment Office has declined to act in 43 such cases, John […]
‘Not a Crisis, but an Economic Transition’: Australia to Impose Levy on Bank Deposits
August 2nd, 2013Via: BBC: Australia has unveiled a levy on some bank deposits to raise money towards a fund aimed at safeguarding against a banking collapse. Deposits up to A$250,000 will have to pay a levy of 0.05% from January 2016. It will be imposed on banks and not account holders. But banks have warned costs may […]
Sweden: Peak Garbage
August 2nd, 2013The number of times that the word oil appears in this piece: Zero. A lot of that stuff that they’re burning is made out of petroleum. In other words, they’re burning a lot of oil. Via: New York Times: This is a city that imports garbage. Some comes from England, some from Ireland. Some is […]
Volvo Gave Away the Most Important Design They Ever Patented
August 2nd, 2013Via: Priceonomics: In 1958, people rarely buckled up. While race car drivers and fighter pilots wore harnesses, the seat belts available in cars simply banded across one’s lap. In crashes, they frequently did more harm than good. The sudden pressure put on the abdomen during a crash caused internal injuries. At the time, Volvo was […]
How Hollywood Helped Hitler
August 1st, 2013Via: Hollywood Reporter: Beginning with wholesale changes made to Universal’s 1930 release All Quiet on the Western Front, Hollywood regularly ran scripts and finished movies by German officials for approval. When they objected to scenes or dialogue they thought made Germany look bad, criticized the Nazis or dwelled on the mistreatment of Jews, the studios […]
Former Israeli Intelligence Operatives Now Working For Hedge Funds
July 31st, 2013Via: Forbes: A company staffed with former operatives of Israel’s top intelligence agencies and founded with the help of the former head of the Mossad is being used by hedge funds looking for an edge in the financial markets. Kela Israeli Intelligence has increasingly become a popular service on Wall Street. The firm employs about […]
German Activists Claim They Were Targeted Because of Work Against Monsanto
July 31st, 2013I posted this a couple of weeks ago on cryptogon.net, but I didn’t post it here because I was waiting to find a better English translation from the original German language piece that appeared in Süddeutsche Zeitung. There are many Germans reading Cryptogon, so I’m sure I’ll hear from someone if there are any substantial […]
First Open Source Airplane Could Cost Just $15,000
July 30th, 2013Via: Wired: There’s an open source airplane being developed in Canada, and now its designers are looking to double down on the digital trends, turning to crowdsourced funding to finish the project. The goal of Maker Plane is to develop a small, two-seat airplane that qualifies as a light sport aircraft and is affordable, safe, […]
