"Demonstrators marched against rising inflation, crime and corruption under President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, whose popularity has plummeted since she was re-elected last year as the economy wobbles, reports the UK's Standard. In Buenos Aires, crowds filled the Plaza de Mayo in front of the presidential palace and chanted: 'We’re not afraid.'" Continue reading →
"I’m in the Bailiwick of Jersey, which is a UK dependent territory off the coast of France. Jersey is a so-called tax haven, which I applaud because it helps encourage better tax policy in less enlightened parts of the globe. Because I’m such a cultured and sophisticated guy, today I used some of my free time to visit the Jersey Museum. I now know lots of useless trivia about how a tiny island 15 miles from France wound up as an English territory. But I also found something very interesting in the section on the economic history of Jersey. The museum explicitly recognizes the role of low taxation in promoting a prosperous society." Continue reading →
"Even when I was in Myanmar ten days ago, local pundits were engaged in the Obamney debate. Chile. Spain. Germany. Finland. Hong Kong. Thailand. Singapore. It was inescapable. The entire world seems fixated on this belief that it actually matters who becomes the President of the United States anymore… or that one of these two guys is going to ‘fix’ things. Fact is, it doesn’t matter. Not one bit. And I’ll show you mathematically." Continue reading →
"U.S. Representative Ron Paul, a Texas Republican, talks about U.S. fiscal policy, and the prospects of political compromise on the nation's budget defict. Paul speaks to Betty Liu on Bloomberg Television's 'In the Loop.'" Continue reading →
"There are several revealing lessons about this media swooning for Petraeus even as he exits from a scandal that would normally send them into tittering delight. First, military worship is the central religion of America's political and media culture. The military is by far the most respected and beloved institution among the US population - a dangerous fact in any democracy - and, even assuming they wanted to (which they don't), our brave denizens of establishment journalism are petrified of running afoul of that kind of popular sentiment. Second, it is truly remarkable what ends people's careers in Washington - and what does not end them." Continue reading →
"On this episode of Breaking the Set, Abby Martin talks to Ian Freeman, Host of 'Free Talk Live', about the police state and the erosion of American civil liberties. Abby then talks to RT Arabic Correspondent, Reema Abu Hamdieh, about the polarized views of Arabs in the Middle East toward a second Obama Administration. BTS wraps up the show with a look at torture, murder and rape by US military contractors going unpunished." Continue reading →
"Prescott was a Skull & Bones alumni, like his son H.W. and grandson W. The Bush's have been part of the CIA (H.W.), Governors (W. & Jeb), Vice-President (H.W.), and Presidents (H.W. & W.). In other words, when it comes to wielding political power, this family has got it! They've got the Medici touch. It also appears that yet another Bush is about to enter the political fray: George P. Bush, son of Jeb and nephew of W." Continue reading →
"It may not be surprising or any sort of revelation — it’s pretty well known that temporary measures taken by the state have a way of staying permanent, after all — but to hear a government official basically come right out and admit that they’re creating a shadow legal system is still amazing to me." Continue reading →
"Denmark said Saturday it would scrap a fat tax it introduced a little over a year ago in a world first, saying the measure was costly and failed to change Danes’ eating habits. 'The fat tax and the extension of the chocolate tax — the so-called sugar tax — has been criticised for increasing prices for consumers, increasing companies’ administrative costs and putting Danish jobs at risk,' the Danish tax ministry said in a statement. 'At the same time it is believed that the fat tax has, to a lesser extent, contributed to Danes travelling across the border to make purchases,' it added." Continue reading →
"US tech giant Apple has dished out 20 million Swiss francs ($21 million, 17 million euros) to compensate Swiss national rail operator SBB for using its famous clock without permission, a Swiss daily reported Saturday. The company agreed in October to pay the lump sum so it could continue using SBB’s Swiss-designed station clock face on its iPads and iPhones, the Tages-Anzeiger daily reported on its website, quoting several unnamed sources." Continue reading →