Europe

Bulgarian protesters: ‘Even if we are smiling, we are angry’

"The spark that ignited this latest crisis in the EU’s poorest country was the Socialist-backed government’s decision earlier this month to appoint a 32-year-old media mogul to head a powerful state security authority. For the protesters, this showed that the new administration was in cahoots with the same old powerful business interests and that its promises of a new era of transparency and accountability were lies. Even though the government quickly reversed the security chief decision, between 7,000 and 10,000 people have taken part in daily demonstrations since June 14 – marching and dancing, shouting and singing along Sofia’s boulevards every evening." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBulgarian protesters: ‘Even if we are smiling, we are angry’

Snap up a pint in Britain’s first Bitcoin pub

"Bitcoin has its first British boozer. The Pembury Tavern in Hackney, east London – as well as its sister pubs in Cambridge, Norwich and Peterborough – are now accepting the virtual currency. The system is quick and effective. The bar staff press two buttons on the till and the screen displays a QR code. The customer opens their digital Bitcoin wallet, takes a snap of the screen and confirms the payment. The staff press one more button and the transaction is complete. Snapping the QR code in a crowded bar could be a challenge but in a quiet pub it is faster than paying by card." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSnap up a pint in Britain’s first Bitcoin pub

Paul Craig Roberts: Stasi In The White House

"On June 19, 2013, US President Obama, hoping to raise himself above the developing National Security Agency (NSA) spy scandals, sought to associate himself with two iconic speeches made at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. Fifty years ago, President John F. Kennedy pledged: 'Ich bin ein Berliner'. In 1987, President Ronald Reagan challenged: 'Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.' Obama’s speech was delivered to a relatively small, specially selected audience of invitees. Even so, Obama spoke from behind bullet proof glass. Obama’s speech will go down in history as the most hypocritical of all time. Little wonder that the audience was there by invitation only." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPaul Craig Roberts: Stasi In The White House

Dutch Government Investigates Inaccurate Photo Speed Tickets

"Innocent motorists are getting tickets in The Netherlands from average speed cameras that are miscalculating the speed of some vehicles by as much as 18 MPH. National Ombudsman Alex Brenninkmeijer announced his office had opened an official investigation into the matter. Several members of parliament called for the system to be shut down until the problem is resolved, arguing there are many who just pay the fines of around 220 euros (US $290) without knowing whether they are legitimate. Fredrik Teeven, State Secretary for Security and Justice, rejected that proposal outright on Tuesday, saying a 'software update' would take care of the problem." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDutch Government Investigates Inaccurate Photo Speed Tickets

Post on Facebook and be damned

"Given that no mosques were burnt down in Portsmouth following the above Facebook post, it appears that the friends of 24-year-old Michaela Turner assumed that she was drunk. And they’d have been right – the young mum was indeed a few sheets to the wind. Sadly, Portsmouth police did not approach Turner’s drunk Facebook musings in the sober manner of her friends. No, the police decided to charge Turner under Section 127 of the Communication Act 2003. And last week, Turner was handed an eight-week suspended jail sentence. The case of Turner is not unique. The police’s monitoring of ‘community tension’ on Facebook has led to arrests all over the country." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPost on Facebook and be damned

National-Security State Toadies Are Guilty Of Hypocrisy On Snowden

"They say that Snowden should have stayed here in the United States instead of fleeing to Hong Kong. They say that if he were a genuine hero, as his supporters say he is, he would have remained in the United States, where the national-security state would have incarcerated him, tortured him, and executed him. Oh? Well, pray tell, national-security state toadies: Where were you all when those CIA agents skedaddled out of Italy after committing felonious offenses in that country? The problem with kidnapping and torture is that they’re criminal offenses under Italian law, which is precisely why those CIA agents got criminally indicted and later convicted and sentenced." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNational-Security State Toadies Are Guilty Of Hypocrisy On Snowden

Businesses in Berlin open arms to digital currency Bitcoin

"Cassandra Wintgens ceremoniously affixed the blue sticker with the thick, yellow 'B' to the pane in the front door of her guesthouse-cum-cafe. 'Bitcoin accepted here,' it read. The establishment Lekkerurlaub Notaufnahme, which translates roughly as 'Yummy Holiday Emergency Admission,' thereby became the seventh business in the Graefe neighbourhood of the multicultural Berlin district of Kreuzberg, to accept the digital currency — whether for an overnight stay or a cup of coffee in the cafe. 'I think it’s exciting,' she remarked. 'We don’t need banks for Bitcoins. They just muck us about anyway and don’t do anything for small-scale businesspeople.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBusinesses in Berlin open arms to digital currency Bitcoin

Cyprus Asks Creditors to Help Biggest Bank

"Cyprus has asked its European partners to help ease a cash crunch at the island's biggest lender, saying this spring's bank-rescue deal was struck 'without careful preparation' and was imperiling its ability to meet budget targets. In a letter sent to European leaders, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades said the success of the island's bailout depended on Bank of Cyprus PCL's survival, and he criticized capital controls put in place as part of the deal, which he said are severely damaging the economy. 'I stress the systemic importance of Bank of Cyprus, not only in terms of the banking system but also for the entire economy,' said the letter." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCyprus Asks Creditors to Help Biggest Bank

Britain’s Co-operative Bank faces nationalisation if junior bondholders reject ‘haircut’

"The Co-operative Bank's rescue recapitalisation needs the support of £1.05bn – or around 80pc – of the holders of £1.3bn of its junior debt or the lender could end up being nationalised. A group of pensioners and other retail investors in the Cooperative Bank are facing massive losses under the rescue. Holders of £370m of permanent interest bearing shares (PIBS) issued by the Co-op and Britannia Building Society before its takeover are expected to have their coupons cancelled, making them effectively worthless. Roughly 7,000 retail investors will be affected and the bank said that, on average, they held less than £1,000 in these bonds." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBritain’s Co-operative Bank faces nationalisation if junior bondholders reject ‘haircut’

Belgium opens beer temple in former stock market building

"Beer has always been one of Belgium’s biggest money-spinners but now Brussels is going a step further, announcing plans Thursday to open a temple to the amber nectar in its old stock exchange building. The 'Temple of Belgian Beer' project finds a use for the grand 19th century building near the Belgian capital’s famed Grand Place, which is fronted by corinthian columns and resembles a classical temple. The Brussels Bourse was abandoned by stockbrokers in 1996 after the computerisation of the financial markets and then became a site for temporary exhibitions." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBelgium opens beer temple in former stock market building