Mainstream News

3D Printing Technology Poised for New Industrial Revolution

"Engineers at the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) have used this technique to print out an entire bicycle that only needs added tires and a chain to be fully functional. British researchers, meanwhile, have printed a maneuverable drone with a rear-engine drive. Printed components are also used in Formula 1 racing and at NASA. Dental laboratories use 3-D printers to produce crowns, while doctors experiment with artificial heart tissue. Filmmakers also print animation models and automotive parts suppliers create replacement parts. The printing of electronic components is even in the works." Continue reading →

Continue Reading3D Printing Technology Poised for New Industrial Revolution

EPA’s illegal human experiments could break Nuremberg Code

"The Obama Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says no law empowers any judge to stop it from conducting illegal scientific experiments on seniors, children and the sick. That astounding assertion will be tested Friday, when a federal district court in Alexandria decides whether it has jurisdiction to hear claims made by the American Tradition Institute that EPA researchers are exposing unwary and genetically susceptible senior citizens to air pollutants the agency says can cause a variety of serious cardiac and respiratory problems, including sudden death." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEPA’s illegal human experiments could break Nuremberg Code

Japan approves £73bn stimulus package

"The government will spend the funds on public works, incentives for corporate investment and financial aid for small firms to help the economy emerge from a mild recession triggered by falling exports last year. It expects the stimulus to raise real economic growth by 2 percentage points and create 600,000 jobs. The government will sell around 5 trillion yen more bonds than originally planned for the current fiscal year to fund the stimulus, a government official said. Mr Abe is gambling that a shift to a more expansionary fiscal policy and more monetary easing from the central bank can end years of stop-start growth." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJapan approves £73bn stimulus package

Japan and China step up drone race as tension builds over disputed islands

"Drones have taken centre stage in an escalating arms race between China and Japan as they struggle to assert their dominance over disputed islands in the East China Sea. China is rapidly expanding its nascent drone programme, while Japan has begun preparations to purchase an advanced model from the US. Both sides claim the drones will be used for surveillance, but experts warn the possibility of future drone skirmishes in the region's airspace is 'very high'." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJapan and China step up drone race as tension builds over disputed islands

Switzerland and Britain are now at currency war

"'Everybody is trying to weaken their currency at the same time. The Swiss have got away with it and now the Japanese want to try. The Sandinavians are pulling their hair out. The Turks are cutting rates even though the economy is overheating, and putting in credit controls instead because they don’t want the currency to rise. Policymakers are doing things that if you had suggested four years ago they would have put you in a straitjacket and thrown you in a cell. I don’t rule out anything any longer in this market. Desperate times lead to desperate acts,' said David Bloom, currency chief at HSBC." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSwitzerland and Britain are now at currency war

Portugal warns EU-IMF troika to back off on austerity demands

"Portugal has taken its medicine with stoicism until now, winning praise from the EU leaders for sticking to its bail-out terms. But Troika officials fear that 'social cohesion' is fraying as the slump deepens. The country saw the biggest street protest this autumn since the end of the Salazar dictatorship. Portugal’s jobless rate has risen from 13.7pc to 16.3pc over the past year, reaching 39pc for youth, even before the full impact of austerity hits." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPortugal warns EU-IMF troika to back off on austerity demands

North Korea Enlists German Help to Prepare Economic Opening

"Pyongyang may be preparing to open up its economy. A report in a prominent newspaper claims the regime has enlisted the aid of German economic and legal experts to lay the groundwork for foreign investment in North Korean companies. The move could be made as soon as this year. Still, even as there are many in the country's leadership who are in favor of opening up the country to investments from Japanese, South Korean and Western companies, the professor the paper cites notes that it is far from a done deal. 'The military in North Korea,' he told the paper, 'will not want to give up power.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNorth Korea Enlists German Help to Prepare Economic Opening

Turkish gold exports rise 800 pct on demand from Iran

"Turkey is Iran's biggest natural gas customer but Western sanctions prevent it from paying Tehran in dollars or euros. Iran is instead paid in Turkish lira - of limited value on international markets but ideal for buying gold in Turkey. Couriers carrying millions of dollars worth of gold bullion in their luggage have been flying from Istanbul to Dubai, where the gold is shipped to Iran, industry sources with knowledge of the business told Reuters last year. New sanctions are due to take effect in February and could include measures to try to curb the trade." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTurkish gold exports rise 800 pct on demand from Iran

America’s tactical interests cannot dictate Britain’s sovereign destiny

"The White House does not want to be distracted by internecine European disputes as it switches its main focus to the Pacific Rim – the 'Asian Pivot' – and deals with the really dangerous issue of China’s maritime conflict with Japan and South East Asia. But at the end of the day, the British people cannot let America’s taste for tidy structures in Europe determine policy on matters that go to the heart of our democracy and sovereign self-government. For me the snapping point was the disgraceful saga of the European Constitution, which I covered in minute detail as it wended its way through the Convention." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAmerica’s tactical interests cannot dictate Britain’s sovereign destiny

Obama mocks Lew’s loopy signature: Don’t devalue the dollar with illegible writing

"President Barack Obama jokingly joined in criticism of Jack Lew’s signature on Thursday, urging his Treasury nominee to change it before it appears on the greenback and risks devaluing the dollar. Lew’s doodle-like eight-loop signature — a cute but utterly undecipherable scrawl described as an 'unraveled slinky' by one graphologist — has quickly drawn more media buzz than the budget guru’s politics." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama mocks Lew’s loopy signature: Don’t devalue the dollar with illegible writing