Archive for the 'Economy' Category
In Sweden, Cash Is King No More
March 19th, 2012Maybe the Greeks are on to something with the tems, which is quite different from other schemes in that each account may only hold a limited amount of the currency. This is a very interesting idea because it prevents speculation, encourages commerce and eliminates large targets for thieves. Via: AP: Sweden was the first European […]
China: 30 Million People Live in Caves
March 19th, 2012One for your Doomstead Ideas file folder. Via: Los Angeles Times: Like many peasants from the outskirts of Yanan, China, Ren Shouhua was born in a cave and lived there until he got a job in the city and moved into a concrete-block house. His progression made sense as he strove to improve his life. […]
Greece: Euro Free Alternative Currency Takes Off
March 18th, 2012I just helped out some people here in New Zealand recover from a bad computer virus situation. They paid me with a one year old heifer that we’re going to eat! In terms of the time I spent on the job and the tangible value of that heifer, this represent the best compensation that I […]
Using Mobile Phone User Location Data for ‘Crowd (Soft) Control’
March 18th, 2012shewhomeasures.com: Via: PhysOrg: Eighty-eight percent of Americans now own a cell phone, forming a massive network that offers scientists a wealth of information and an infinite number of new applications. With the help of these phone users — and their devices’ cameras, audio recorders, and other features — researchers envision endless possibilities for gathering huge […]
Three in Ten Young Adults Live with Parents, Highest Level Since 1950s
March 17th, 2012Via: Christian Science Monitor: A weak economy and high debt levels are prompting more young adults to return to the family nest, a new survey shows. Perhaps surprisingly, most are happy with their living arrangements. After graduating from Brown University in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in comparative literature and completing a Fulbright scholarship in […]
Consumer Prices in U.S. Rose in February as Gasoline Jumped
March 16th, 2012Via: Bloomberg: The cost of living in the U.S. rose in February by the most in 10 months, reflecting a jump in gasoline that failed to spread to other goods and services. The consumer-price index climbed 0.4 percent, matching the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, after increasing 0.2 percent the prior month, […]
Bamford Claims NSA Has Made “An Enormous Breakthrough” in Cryptanalysis
March 16th, 2012Well, it has been the $64,000 question for a couple of decades: Can NSA break something like PGP? While there might be other black world technologies that could be up to the task (there’s no way to know), what we do know is that a practical quantum computing capability would be, for all intents and […]
Comment Posted on U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Website
March 16th, 2012Update: Comment Removed CFTC Website I made sure to post the full text below, but here’s another mirror, just in case. —End Update— At a minimum, this makes for an interesting read. Via: U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission: From: Z A N Organization(s): JPMorgan Chase Comment No: 57019 Date: 3/14/2012 Comment Text: Dear CFTC Staff, […]
IRAN’S BANKS TO BE BLOCKED FROM GLOBAL BANKING SYSTEM ON SATURDAY
March 15th, 2012Flashback to a couple of weeks ago on Cryptogon: If SWIFT actually pulls the plug, I’d consider the fuse to be lit. Also, if SWIFT does it before 20 March, this is probably the real reason: Last week, the Tehran Times noted that the Iranian oil bourse will start trading oil in currencies other than […]
“What’s the next ‘shocking’ headline: ‘Prostitution in Vegas!?’”
March 15th, 2012As many of you noticed, I took a pass on posting the boring op-ed piece about the Goldman Sachs vampire squid. Oh shock horror, the squid makes fun of blowing up their own customers. I mean, no shit, Sherlock. I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole thing turned out to be a frontrunning setup for […]
