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Former Tiffany & Co. exec pleads guilty to stealing $2.1 million in jewelry

“Ingrid Lederhaas-Okun, 46, a former vice president of product development, pleaded guilty to a count of interstate transportation of stolen property less than a month after she was arrested in connection with the theft. Under a plea agreement, Lederhaas-Okun has agreed to forfeit more than $2.11 million and pay $2.24 million in restitution. Prosecutors said she had been allowed to check out jewelry from Tiffany for reasons that included showing items to potential manufacturers for cost production estimates. Rather than bringing the jewelry back, Lederhaas-Okun allegedly would report the items missing or damaged, subsequently selling the items to a jewelry reseller.” Continue reading →

Researcher’s paper banned for containing luxury car security codes

“A British-based computer scientist has been banned from publishing an academic paper revealing the secret codes used to start luxury cars including Porsches, Audis, Bentleys and Lamborghinis as it could lead to the theft of millions of vehicles. The high court imposed an injunction on the University of Birmingham’s Flavio Garcia, who has cracked the security system by discovering the unique algorithm that allows the car to verify the identity of the ignition key. They argued that ‘the public have a right to see weaknesses in security on which they rely exposed’. Otherwise, the ‘industry and criminals know security is weak but the public do not’. Continue reading →

29 arrested for singing anti-Walker lyrics in Wisconsin state capitol

“Dozens of protesters were arrested Thursday night for singing in Wisconsin capitol, in the second round of arrests triggered by a judge’s ruling that all groups over 20 people must obtain a permit before demonstrating. At least 29 people with ‘Solidarity Sing-Along’ were cuffed and taken away on Thursday night, according to local media. The arrests came a day after police took 24 singers into custody, making good on their oft’ repeated threats to enforce the permit rule. The group has maintained a daily presence in the capitol for over two years, singing well-known songs every afternoon featuring anti-Republican lyrics, according to The Associated Press.” Continue reading →

Glenn Greenwald and other NSA critics to testify before Congress

“Congress will hear testimony from critics of the National Security Agency’s surveillance practices for the first time since the whistleblower Edward Snowden’s explosive leaks were made public. Democrat congressman Alan Grayson, who is leading a bipartisan group of congressman organising the hearing, told the Guardian it would serve to counter the ‘constant misleading information’ from the intelligence community. The hearing, which will take place on Wednesday, comes amid evidence of a growing congressional rebellion [on] NSA data collection methods.” Continue reading →

Halliburton pleads guilty to destroying Gulf spill evidence

“Halliburton Co has agreed to plead guilty to destroying evidence related to the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Thursday. The government said Halliburton’s guilty plea is the third by a company over the spill and requires the world’s second-largest oilfield services company to pay a maximum $200,000 statutory fine. Halliburton also agreed to three years of probation and to continue cooperating with the criminal probe into the April 20, 2010, explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig. Houston-based Halliburton also made a separate, voluntary $55 million payment to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.” Continue reading →

St. Louis Fed: The Financial Crisis Timeline 2007-2009

http://timeline.stlouisfed.org/index.cfm?p=timeline

The Relentless Market for “Saturday Night Specials”

“The phrase ‘Saturday night special’ used to be applied to cheap handguns available to gangs. These days, the gangs have Uzis. But I am sure that low-budget criminals still buy Saturday night specials. About 30 years ago, I applied the phrase to describe the microcomputer. I said that this would shift power away from the federal government. It would provide the common man with a tool of resistance. The American government worries about its lack of gun control: the decentralization of power. But that is nothing when compared to the threat of Android.” Continue reading →

Unintended Consequence: Colorado’s Gun Control Law Kills Gun Buy-Back Program.

“The group wanted citizens to come down and sell their guns, cheap, to the group. Well, under the July 1 gun control law, the group cannot pay for any guns. It’s not licensed. To go through with the plan, the group must find a licensed gun dealer to host the event. Then the people with guns to sell must come to the gun dealer and sell them. Then the group can legally buy them — after the mandatory background checks, purchase by purchase. The local police chief called off the event. It’s illegal.” Continue reading →