Archive for August, 2011
Germany: Facebook Data Collection Under Fire Again
August 25th, 2011I use a custom filter in AdBlock+ to block all Facebook nonsense. I haven’t seen one of those ‘Like’ buttons in years. (Not on my computer, anyway.) If you don’t know what this ‘Like’ button garbage is all about, it’s a little widget that site operators put all over the place that lets Facebook users […]
Cisco and Abuses of Human Rights in China
August 25th, 2011Via: Electronic Frontier Foundation: What responsibility do corporations have to consider human rights when making business deals? Are companies that build and market equipment for the purpose of surveilling and censoring pro-democracy activists in authoritarian regimes culpable when those activists are imprisoned or tortured? Do companies bear a special responsibility if they customize products to […]
Britain Will Take in Billions of Pounds from Taxes on Swiss Bank Accounts
August 25th, 2011Via: BBC: A UK government minister has defended a deal with the Swiss that could capture tax of up to £5bn but keep bank account holders’ identities secret. Undeclared money held by UK taxpayers in Swiss accounts will be taxed for the first time, at up to 34% of the total. Treasury minister David Gauke […]
Cheney Says He Urged Bush to Bomb Syria in ’07
August 25th, 2011Ahh, so that’s who Obombya is channeling… Via: New York Times: Former Vice President Dick Cheney says in a new memoir that he urged President George W. Bush to bomb a suspected Syrian nuclear reactor site in June 2007. But, he wrote, Mr. Bush opted for a diplomatic approach after other advisers — still stinging […]
Warren Buffett to Invest $5 Billion in Bank of America
August 25th, 2011Via: Reuters: Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway will invest $5 billion in Bank of America, stepping in to shore up the company in the same way he helped prop up Goldman Sachs during the financial crisis. Bank of America shares rose 24 percent to $8.65 in early trading, erasing a large part of the stock’s August […]
British Government Discusses Riots with Social Media Firms
August 25th, 2011Via: CBC: Executives from Facebook, Twitter and Canadian BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Ltd. are meeting the British government and police Thursday in the wake of the riots to discuss how to prevent social networks from being used to plot violence. Police and politicians claim young criminals used Facebook, Twitter and BlackBerry’s simple and largely […]
IKEA Founder Ingvar Kamprad Was Nazi Recruiter
August 25th, 2011Via: news.com.au: IKEA’S founder Ingvar Kamprad is many things. He’s a billionaire. He’s a frugal shopper. And according to a new book, he’s also in denial about his Nazi past. Author Elisabeth Asbrink says Mr Kamprad was such an enthusiastic supporter of the Swedish Nazi party that he recruited new members and “missed no opportunity […]
Kevin Slavin: How Algorithms Shape Our World
August 25th, 2011Via: TED: Kevin Slavin argues that we’re living in a world designed for — and increasingly controlled by — algorithms. In this riveting talk from TEDGlobal, he shows how these complex computer programs determine: espionage tactics, stock prices, movie scripts, and architecture. And he warns that we are writing code we can’t understand, with implications […]
Gold: Intraday Prints Under $1800
August 24th, 2011Warning: This is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any financial instrument. Spot gold: $1798. That is all… Update: Initial Pullback Targets Based on Fibonacci Retracements of Recent Ramp Up Hint: There’s more to that 38.2% level than meets the eye. I’ve left substantial woowoo off this chart, but if you’re looking for […]
New York Police Department Runs Intelligence Operations Outside Its Jurisdiction with Help and Personnel from CIA
August 24th, 2011This week in The Land of the Free… Via: AP: In New Brunswick, N.J., a building superintendent opened the door to apartment No. 1076 one balmy Tuesday and discovered an alarming scene: terrorist literature strewn about the table and computer and surveillance equipment set up in the next room. The panicked superintendent dialed 911, sending […]
