Irony

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

U.S. to meet with Taliban ‘within days’

"The United States on Tuesday welcomed the Taliban’s decision to open an office in Qatar and senior US officials said they hoped to meet with their Afghan foes within days. The Taliban opened a political office in Doha on Tuesday, planning to hold talks with Afghan leader Hamid Karzai’s government on ending the conflict that erupted when the Islamist group was ousted from power in 2001 by US troops sent in after the September 11 terror attacks. Confirming that the United States will also use the office to communicate with the guerrillas, who are still battling US-led NATO and Afghan troops on the ground, the official said the road ahead would be difficult." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. to meet with Taliban ‘within days’

Florida man’s attorney claims NSA phone records will prove client’s innocence

"An attorney for a Florida man accused of robbing armored bank cars in 2010 filed a motion this week demanding that the government turn over phone location records theoretically stored in the National Security Agency’s (NSA) massive archives, which he believes could exonerate his client on at least one of the charges against him. In the trial of Terrance Brown, this is a twist not even his attorneys could have seen coming, all predicated upon NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden’s explosive revelations." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFlorida man’s attorney claims NSA phone records will prove client’s innocence

Mexico: Border schools adjust to influx of English-speaking students

"Thousands of school children have arrived in Mexican schools from the US in the past several years amid a record number of deportations and a foundering US economy. New migration patterns are returning Mexican nationals to their homeland years after they settled in the US, married there, and had children. Teachers read from textbooks that touch on the reasons for the reverse migration currently taking place, and oftentimes, Zatarain told the teachers, parents are deported while their children are in school and the experience can traumatize youngsters." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMexico: Border schools adjust to influx of English-speaking students

Thatcher’s funeral cost British taxpayers $2.5 million

"Margaret Thatcher’s funeral cost British taxpayers an estimated £1.6 million, with a further £2 million spent on police who would have been on duty anyway, Downing Street said Thursday. Though never likely, back-of-an-envelope newspaper guesses in the run-up to the former prime minister’s funeral last week estimated the cost at £10 million. That inflamed far-left activists, angry at the expenditure on the Conservative titan amid the public spending cuts aimed at reining in Britain’s budget deficit. Of the £1.6 million figure, £1.1 million went on policing and security, Downing Street said. The remaining £500,000 was spent on ceremonial costs." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThatcher’s funeral cost British taxpayers $2.5 million

Homeland Security agents indicted for falsifying records in corruption investigation

"Two Department of Homeland Security employees have been indicted in a scheme to falsify investigative documents to disguise a lack of progress on cases in their South Texas office. The Justice Department announced Wednesday that 49-year-old Eugenio Pedraza was indicted Tuesday on charges of falsifying records, obstructing justice and conspiracy. Pedraza is a former head of DHS's Office of the Inspector General in McAllen. Agent Marco Rodriguez also was charged. The IG's office investigates wrongdoing in the DHS, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHomeland Security agents indicted for falsifying records in corruption investigation

Government Fees, Parking Tickets May Soon Be Paid in Bitcoin

"While some call Bitcoin an 'existential threat to the state,' local governments could soon embrace the digital currency and payment system as a practical alternative to credit and debit cards. E-Gov Link, an Ohio company that helps municipalities accept payments online for parking tickets, permits, and the like, now allows its customers to take bitcoin.- Bitcoin transactions can be processed at a fraction of the cost of other payment methods because they avoid the interchange structure of the legacy card processors." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGovernment Fees, Parking Tickets May Soon Be Paid in Bitcoin

Cuba auctions cigars to raise money for health system

"An auction of luxury cigar humidors in Cuba fetched $1.1 million, which will go toward the public health system, the state news agency said Sunday. The sale came at an international cigar festival attended by celebrities such as American actor Danny Glover and German tennis great Boris Becker, Prensa Latina said. Six fancy wooden humidors containing between 350 and 550 cigars each were sold at the auction Saturday night, the report said. Glover received a silver sculpture in thanks for his support for Cuba and for his role in the 'fight for peace and justice,' the agency said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCuba auctions cigars to raise money for health system

Removal of Berlin Wall temporarily halted due to protests

"A property developer in Germany at the centre of running protests over part of the once-detested Berlin Wall being knocked down said on Monday that the dismantling had been temporarily halted. While dozens of protestors again gathered at the Wall’s longest surviving stretch, Maik Uwe Hinkel, the head of the company Living Bauhaus, said in a German newspaper that he was open to compromise. Since 1990, the outdoor gallery has been covered in brightly coloured graffiti murals, including the famous 'Fraternal Kiss' depicting Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev and his East German counterpart Erich Honecker." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRemoval of Berlin Wall temporarily halted due to protests

Idaho lawmaker’s bill forces students to pass ‘Atlas Shrugged’ test to graduate

"The chairman of the Idaho Senate’s Education Committee says that he introduced a bill to require all students to read Ayn Rand’s 'Atlas Shrugged' because the book 'made my son a Republican.' State Sen. John Goedde (R) introduced the bill in committee on Tuesday to mandate that each student pass a test on the novel before they are able to graduate from high school, according to The Spokesman-Review." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIdaho lawmaker’s bill forces students to pass ‘Atlas Shrugged’ test to graduate