Monthly Archives: December 2012

Tehran residents urged to flee ‘dangerous’ pollution

"Efforts by Tehran officials to boost public transport, including extending the subway lines and establishing lanes for buses only, have barely dented the problem because of the ever-growing number of cars, many of which are inefficient and old. Western sanctions on fuel imports to Iran have also forced the country to rely on its own production of petrol — of a lower grade, and therefore more polluting, than in many other countries." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTehran residents urged to flee ‘dangerous’ pollution

Bitcoin Not Bombs

"In the beginning I pretty much only used it to buy baklava. Now I’m buying gold and silver bullion with Bitcoin, and accepting it as payment for the various things that I sell. So, I have a pretty good sense of how the system works and I’m just starting to really get the economic ramifications of a digital peer-to-peer currency. I theoretically understand the impact it could have politically, at least domestically, but I’m just starting to get the first inkling of what the international political ramifications of Bitcoin might be. This rabbit hole begins with US sanctions against Iran." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitcoin Not Bombs

Bitcoin Not Bombs

"In the beginning I pretty much only used it to buy baklava. Now I’m buying gold and silver bullion with Bitcoin, and accepting it as payment for the various things that I sell. So, I have a pretty good sense of how the system works and I’m just starting to really get the economic ramifications of a digital peer-to-peer currency. I theoretically understand the impact it could have politically, at least domestically, but I’m just starting to get the first inkling of what the international political ramifications of Bitcoin might be. This rabbit hole begins with US sanctions against Iran." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitcoin Not Bombs

Glenn Greenwald: Obamacare architect leaves White House for pharmaceutical industry job

"Whatever one's views on Obamacare were and are: the bill's mandate that everyone purchase the products of the private health insurance industry, unaccompanied by any public alternative, was a huge gift to that industry. More amazingly still, when the Obama White House needed someone to oversee implementation of Obamacare after the bill passed, it chose a former health insurance industry executive. Now, Liz Fowler is once again passing through the deeply corrupting revolving door as she leaves the Obama administration to return to the loving and lucrative arms of the private health care industry." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGlenn Greenwald: Obamacare architect leaves White House for pharmaceutical industry job

Glenn Greenwald: Obamacare architect leaves White House for pharmaceutical industry job

"Whatever one's views on Obamacare were and are: the bill's mandate that everyone purchase the products of the private health insurance industry, unaccompanied by any public alternative, was a huge gift to that industry. More amazingly still, when the Obama White House needed someone to oversee implementation of Obamacare after the bill passed, it chose a former health insurance industry executive. Now, Liz Fowler is once again passing through the deeply corrupting revolving door as she leaves the Obama administration to return to the loving and lucrative arms of the private health care industry." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGlenn Greenwald: Obamacare architect leaves White House for pharmaceutical industry job

Behind Google’s mission to map the world

"Eight years ago, Google bought a cool little graphics business called Keyhole, which had been working on 3D maps. Along with the acquisition came Brian McClendon, aka 'Bam', a tall and serious Kansan who in a previous incarnation had supplied high-end graphics software that Hollywood used in films including Jurassic Park and Terminator 2. It turned out to be a very smart move. Today McClendon is Google’s Mr Maps – presiding over one of the fastest-growing areas in the search giant’s business, one that has recently left arch-rival Apple red-faced and threatens to make Google the most powerful company in mapping the world has ever seen." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBehind Google’s mission to map the world

Obama’s inauguration committee to accept corporate cash

"President Obama’s inauguration in January will be funded in part by corporate cash, a reversal from 2008 when he declined corporate donations and capped individual donations to $50,000. Donations from both corporate donors and individuals to the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Committee will not have an upper limit, although the committee will not take funds from PACs or lobbyists. President of Public Citizen, Robert Weissman, told the Post, 'It’s not a bribe' but 'they’re going to expect access and the ability to have their views heard more favorably than they otherwise would be. And that’s not how the system should work.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama’s inauguration committee to accept corporate cash

Obama gives 83% of export loan guarantees to Boeing

"The Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im)’s primary way of subsidizing exports is through loan guarantees: a private bank lends money to a foreign buyer (such as a foreign company or government) who is buying an American good. Ex-Im guarantees the loan, meaning that if the foreign buyer defaults, U.S. taxpayers foot the bill. In fiscal year 2012, Ex-Im issued $14.7 billion in loan guarantees. $12.2 billion of that money subsidized Boeing sales. That’s right: 82.7% of all of Ex-Im’s taxpayer-backed loan guarantees benefitted one corporation." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama gives 83% of export loan guarantees to Boeing

Crony America: Goldman Sachs Settles with CFTC Run by Former Goldman Partner

"Goldman Sachs has agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle charges that it failed to supervise the activities of a former trader who in 2007 was able to amass an $8.3 billion trading position without detection. The head of the CFTC, Gary Gensler, is a former Goldman partner, who was recruited by Goldman right out of Wharton. CFTC Commissioner Bart Chilton said the settlement did not go far enough. Chilton dissented in part from the agreement and said the starting point for penalties should have been $7.8 million." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCrony America: Goldman Sachs Settles with CFTC Run by Former Goldman Partner

10-Year Veteran TSA Screener Busted for Stealing iPads at JFK

"A Transportation Security Administration screener has been arrested on charges he swiped iPads and other electronic devices from passengers' luggage at John F. Kennedy Airport. Port Authority spokesman Steven Coleman said Wednesday that 32-year-old Sean Henry, of Brooklyn, was nabbed in a sting operation using decoy bags in cooperation with the TSA. Coleman says Henry was arrested after leaving work carrying in his backpack two planted iPads and other electronic devices. He says stolen items were also found in Henry's home." Continue reading →

Continue Reading10-Year Veteran TSA Screener Busted for Stealing iPads at JFK