Mainstream News

France’s triumphant ‘Joan of Arc’ vows to bring back franc and destroy euro

"'We cannot be seduced,' she said, brimming with confidence after her party secured 46pc of the vote a week ago. Her candidate trounced the ruling Socialists in their own bastion of Villeneuve-sur-Lot. 'The euro ceases to exist the moment that France leaves, and that is our incredible strength. What are they going to do, send in tanks?' 'Europe is just a great bluff. One side there is the immense power of sovereign peoples, and on the other side are a few technocrats,' she said. It is her defence of the French welfare model and her critique of capitalism that gives her a Leftist hue -- some call it 1930s national socialism -- so far in outlook from Britain's UKIP." Continue reading →

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Shanghai Futures Exchange To Begin Gold/Silver Night Trading

"'The U.S. and Europe still have the pricing power, although prices are usually being affected by a number of factors, such as liquidity and overall economic conditions,' said Yang Maijun, chairman of the Board at the Shanghai Futures Exchange, which is going to start night trading hours for its gold and silver contracts on July 5. 'The purpose of night trading is to help prices [on the Shanghai exchange] better connect with global prices, and to help achieve our goal of internationalizing our contracts,' Mr. Yang told the audience at the Lujiazui Forum, an annual gathering of financial policy makers and executives in Shanghai." Continue reading →

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Public Approval of Supreme Court Falls to All-Time Low

"The U.S. Supreme Court finished its term with big decisions on voting rights, affirmative action and same-sex marriage. Following those rulings, public approval of the court has fallen to the lowest level ever recorded in more than nine years of polling. Just 28% believe the Supreme Court is doing a good or an excellent job. At the same time, 30% rate its performance as poor. That’s the highest-ever poor rating. It’s also the first time ever that the poor ratings have topped the positive assessments. These numbers are even weaker than the numbers recorded following the Supreme Court ruling upholding the president’s health care law last year." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPublic Approval of Supreme Court Falls to All-Time Low

Colorado secede? Counties weigh exit plan to form state of ‘North Colorado’

"It’s an uphill climb that looks Rocky Mountain high, but a collection of independent-thinking counties may mount an effort to secede from the rest of Colorado and form their own new state. The idea is rooted in the political rift that many Coloradans – especially rural ones – feel with a Denver-based state legislature that has taken a liberal turn in recent years. A new state, if it formed, might be called North Colorado. Similar ideas have sprung up in other US states. But again, since 1863, secession to form a new state hasn’t actually happened." Continue reading →

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Marijuana’s March Towards Mainstream Confounds Feds

"It took 50 years for American attitudes about marijuana to zigzag from the paranoia of 'Reefer Madness' to the excesses of Woodstock back to the hard line of 'Just Say No.' The next 25 years took the nation from Bill Clinton, who famously 'didn't inhale,' to Barack Obama, who most emphatically did. Now, in just a few short years, public opinion has moved so dramatically toward general acceptance that even those who champion legalization are surprised at how quickly attitudes are changing and states are moving to approve the drug - for medical use and just for fun." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMarijuana’s March Towards Mainstream Confounds Feds

Pot Is Legal, but Some Towns Won’t Partake

"More than two dozen cities and towns have already prohibited marijuana retail stores, according to the Colorado Municipal League, a lobbying group for the state's cities. Others, like Aurora outside of Denver, decided to postpone a decision on whether to allow sales. In Denver, leaders want to allow pot sales, but have said they want to push back the starting date for new businesses other than medical-pot outlets. The opt-out clause included in the Colorado pot law doesn't exist in Washington, which also legalized recreational pot last November. But local officials are using licensing and zoning to keep pot shops at bay." Continue reading →

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Dutch court finds six coffee shop owners guilty of selling cannabis to non-residents

"A Dutch court on Wednesday fined six coffee shop owners and workers for selling cannabis to non-residents, in a victory for Dutch authorities’ fight against drug tourism. Prosecutors had sought up to one-month suspended jail terms for the owners and staff of cannabis cafes in Maastricht for selling pot to foreign non-residents in defiance of a controversial law. The court was relatively lenient as the coffee shops had deliberately flouted the law because they hoped the case would set a legal precedent in their favour, arguing that the residence criterion was unconstitutional." Continue reading →

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Gold price falls fuel ‘record’ bullion sales at UK’s biggest internet gold dealer

"BullionByPost said its sales hit £87m in the year to April, presenting a rise of 58pc on the previous year. Founder Rob Halliday-Stein said the plunge in the price had increased enthusiasm, describing Friday as a 'record' day with over £1m sales. 'For every seller, there’s a buyer,' he said. 'The sellers tend to be big and fast and the buyers smaller and slower. The reason they are buying has not changed - it is because they are worried about the medium to long term outlook for the economy, and QE.' He set up the internet delivery business in 2008 after he found it difficult to buy physical gold after inheriting money following the death of his mother." Continue reading →

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Privacy debate looms as Canada prepares to share bank data with U.S.

"A debate over fighting tax evasion versus protecting personal privacy looms large for Canada as it prepares to announce a deal with the United States to share banking information. FATCA was signed into law in March 2010, and many of its provisions start on Jan. 1, 2014. It requires financial institutions in other countries to tell the U.S. Internal Revenue Service about Americans’ offshore accounts worth more than $50,000. Canada and the U.S. are negotiating whether Ottawa or the financial institutions will send the information, but the clock is ticking. If no deal is reached, banks operating in Canada will have to give the data directly to the IRS." Continue reading →

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The Latest Suburban Crime Wave

"One mother is hauled off to the police station. Another is clapped in handcuffs. The mothers' offenses? They let their kids wait in the car while they ran a quick errand. The laws differ in their particulars, but basically they state that a child under age 6, 7 or, in Utah, 9, cannot be left alone in the car for more than five or 10 minutes. In Nebraska, having your 6-year-old wait in the car is an offense in the same category as allowing the child to be 'deprived of necessary food' or 'sexually exploited.' In Louisiana, a second kid-in-car infraction carries a sentence of not less than one year in prison, 'with or without hard labor.'" Continue reading →

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