Monthly Archives: July 2013

Ask the Expert – Marc Faber – Sprott Money News

"In this exclusive interview, Marc Faber answers questions from our readers about the gold and silver markets and his outlook on the economy. Marc Faber is a leading investment advisor and director of Marc Faber Ltd. He is known notably for his monthly investment newsletter, 'The Gloom Boom & Doom Report', which highlights unusual investment opportunities. He is also an author of several books, including Amazon.com best seller Tomorrow's Gold, and a regular contributor of leading financial publications worldwide. A regular speaker at various investment seminars, Dr. Faber is well known for his 'contrarian' investment approach." Continue reading →

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A Black Box for Car Crashes

"Fourteen states have passed laws that say that, even though the data belongs to the vehicle’s owner, law enforcement officials and those involved in civil litigation can gain access to the black boxes with a court order. In these states, lawyers may subpoena the data for criminal investigations and civil lawsuits, making the information accessible to third parties, including law enforcement or insurance companies that could cancel a driver’s policy or raise a driver’s premium. Privacy advocates have expressed concern that the data collected will only grow to include a wider time frame and other elements like GPS and location-based services." Continue reading →

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Law professor: Should 3rd Amendment prevent government spying?

"If the government places a surveillance device in your home, is that sufficiently like quartering troops there to trigger Third Amendment scrutiny? What if it installs spyware on your computer or your cable modem? What if it requires 'smart meters' that allow moment-to-moment monitoring of your thermostat settings or toilet flushes? These specific concerns weren't what the Framers had in mind. In their day, to spy on a family in its own home, you'd have to put a soldier there. But now we have electronic troops in the form of software, gadgets and sensors. Maybe the law needs to take account of this." Continue reading →

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Snooping Fears: German Firms Race to Shield Secrets

"Edward Snowden's revelations about data surveillance have left German firms feeling acutely vulnerable to industrial espionage. In the medium-sized business sector, which contains a host of world leaders in high-tech fields, the race is on to shield vital know-how. Be it Prism, Tempora or XKeyscore, reports about mass electronic surveillance and tapped Internet hubs and trans-Atlantic data lines have alarmed German companies. Many firms are now worried that the intelligence services aren't just trying to pinpoint terrorists but to get at German industrial secrets as well. They fear that their lead over US, British and French competitors could be at risk." Continue reading →

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U.S. General: US military intervention in Syria would create ‘unintended consequences’

"The top US military officer warned senators on Monday that taking military action to stop the bloodshed in Syria was likely to escalate quickly and result in 'unintended consequences', representing the most explicit uniformed opposition to deeper involvement in another war in the Middle East. Dempsey's letter came after McCain announced he would block the general's reappointment to chair the joint chiefs of staff, the most senior position in the US military, until Dempsey provided the Senate with his assessment of the merits of US military action in Syria." Continue reading →

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New Hampshire governor signs medical marijuana bill into law

"New Hampshire on Tuesday became the 19th state to legalize the use of marijuana for medical purposes. 'This legislation is long overdue and comes as a relief to the many seriously ill patients throughout New Hampshire who will benefit from safe access to medical marijuana,' said Matt Simon, a New Hampshire-based legislative analyst for the Marijuana Policy Project. The Republican-led New Hampshire legislature approved a similar medical marijuana bill last year, but it was vetoed by Democratic Gov. John Lynch. The governor claimed the proposed law would be abused by those who didn’t really need the drug." Continue reading →

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Colorado Springs bans recreational marijuana shops

"Officials in Colorado’s second-largest city voted on Tuesday to ban recreational marijuana shops, becoming the largest community in the state to utilize an opt-out provision of a law that legalized the non-medical use of pot. Colorado Springs has a population of about 420,000 with a large military and evangelical Christian presence and is one of the most conservative and Republican areas in a state which in recent election cycles has turned leftward. The federal government lists cannabis as a dangerous narcotic and considers it illegal for any purpose, a point underscored by Colorado Springs residents who spoke on Tuesday in favor of the ban." Continue reading →

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Brazil becomes world’s 7th most violent country with 1 million murders in 30 years

"More than one million people were murdered in Brazil between 1980 and 2011, making it the world’s seventh most violent country, a survey showed Thursday. During the period, homicides soared 132 percent to claim 1,145,208 lives, from a rate of 11.5 murders for 100,000 inhabitants in 1980 to 27 per 100,000 in 2011, according to the Map of Violence report, In 2011, Brazil, now home to 194 million people, recorded 51,198 homicides, ranked seventh among the world’s most violent nations after El Salvador, the US Virgin Islands, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, Colombia and Guatemala." Continue reading →

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