Mad Statists

Middle East oil companies targeted in cyber war

"Middle Eastern oil and gas companies have been targeted in massive attacks on their computer networks in an increasingly open cyber war where a new virus was discovered just this past week. US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta also referred publicly for the first time about the 'Shamoon' virus that hit Saudi Arabia’s state oil company Aramco in August, disabling more than 300,000 computers. The virus also hit Rasgas, a joint venture between US oil firm Exxon Mobil Corp and state-controlled Qatar Petroleum. Panetta warned of the possibility of a 'cyber-Pearl Harbor' to justify a policy of moving aggressively against threats." Continue reading →

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What Ben Bernanke Will Do When the Accelerated Price Inflation Hits

"Many are familiar with the Ben Bernanke book, Essays on the Great Depression, which is a compilation of writings about the Great Depression by various economists. Fewer, however, are aware that Bernanke contributed to a work on inflation, Inflation Targeting. This second book may provide us with important clues as to how Bernanke will act if price inflation begins to accelerate. And, indeed, it appears that some time in 2013 a perfect storm of actors may develop to push price inflation much higher." Continue reading →

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CIA chiefs face arrest over horrific evidence of bloody ‘video-game’ sorties by drone pilots

"The Mail on Sunday today reveals shocking new evidence of the full horrific impact of US drone attacks in Pakistan. A damning dossier assembled from exhaustive research into the strikes’ targets sets out in heartbreaking detail the deaths of teachers, students and Pakistani policemen. It also describes how bereaved relatives are forced to gather their loved ones’ dismembered body parts in the aftermath of strikes. It is set to trigger a formal murder investigation by police into the roles of two US officials said to have ordered the strikes. They are Jonathan Banks, former head of the CIA’s Islamabad station, and John A. Rizzo, the CIA’s former chief lawyer." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCIA chiefs face arrest over horrific evidence of bloody ‘video-game’ sorties by drone pilots

Nation Tunes In To See Which Sociopath More Likable This Time

"According to reports, millions of viewers across the country are expected to tune in to tonight’s town-hall-style presidential debate at Hofstra University in order to determine which complete and utter sociopath they find more likable this time around. The debate figures to be especially important for undecided voters, 91 percent of whom said in a pre-debate poll that they were still waiting for one sociopath to win them over with the perfect combination of superficial charm, deluded grandeur, and pathological lying." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNation Tunes In To See Which Sociopath More Likable This Time

French business erupts in fury against “disastrous” François Hollande

"France is sliding into a grave economic crisis and risks a full-blown 'hurricane' as investors flee rocketing tax rates, the country’s business federation has warned. Spending has risen to 55pc of GDP, similar to Sweden but without Nordic labour flexibility. French economic growth has been near zero for the past five quarters. It may have tipped into recession over the summer as the malaise spread from Italy and Spain. New car registrations were down 7.7pc in the third quarter from a year earlier. Unemployment has reached a post-euro high of 10.6pc. The fear is that a fiscal shock in 2013 will tip the economy into a sharp downward slide." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFrench business erupts in fury against “disastrous” François Hollande

Industry sues over NYC crackdown on sugary drinks

"Soda makers, restaurateurs and other businesses sued Friday to try to block the city's unprecedented move to restrict sales of super-sized, sugary drinks, an effort the city called a coup for public health but the businesses view as wrong-minded meddling. A spokesman for Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the regulation's chief champion, called the lawsuit a groundless effort to stop a groundbreaking policy, noting that the city also won fights over outlawing smoking in bars and offices and forcing fast-food restaurants to list calorie counts on their menus." Continue reading →

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Lunch lady slammed for food that is ‘too good’

"A talented head cook at a school in central Sweden has been told to stop baking fresh bread and to cut back on her wide-ranging veggie buffets because it was unfair that students at other schools didn't have access to the unusually tasty offerings. 'A menu has been developed... It is about making a collective effort on quality, to improve school meals overall and to try and ensure everyone does the same,' Katarina Lindberg, head of the unit responsible for the school diet scheme, told the local Falukuriren newspaper. The school's vegetable buffet will be halved in size and Eriksson's handmade loafs will be replaced with store-bought bread." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLunch lady slammed for food that is ‘too good’