Archive for November 2008
Home Office Bugging
The pressure is growing on the Home Office after it was revealed that the office of Tory immigration spokesman Damian Green, arrested in the week, along with those of his staff and colleagues, is regularly swept for bugs amid fears of covert monitoring.
I’m not even remotely the biggest fan of Jacqui Smith but this seems to be becoming a game of party politics as the Tories grasp a string and pull hard. However, Smith’s record is increasingly Big Brother-like and honestly, I think it’s time she gets going before her full vision comes into force.
Irish Gang Problems
The Guardian has a report on the gang troubles currently plaguing Ireland, dominated primarily by the Dundon-McCarthy gang which oversees the majority of the £50m drug trade.
With the problems in Mexico at present, it appears the war on drugs may come back into focus for global governments.
Clinton Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton is to be confirmed tomorrow as the US Secretary of State under Barack Obama, a widely anticipated move which will give Clinton a platform from which to launch her next presidential bid in eight years time.
The announcement will also see Robert Gates retained, for now, as Secretary of Defense, and Marine General James L Jones as National Security adviser.
Dragon May Buy Woolies
Theo Paphitis, the Dragon’s Den star and distressed business reviver, is reportedly interested in buying some of the profitable parts of the Woolworths business, according to administrator Deloitte.
The accountancy has said a number of expressions of interest were made for Woolworths following its collapse last week. Paphitis is known for his work in reviving the fortunes of troubled retailers, including stationer Rymans and lingerie chain La Senza.
Daily Morsels
Skiing just got even more awesome.
Wondermark cards are stupefyingly hilarious.
Charming portraits of 70s rock stars at home with the ‘rents.
Michael Phelps is a goddamn fish. I mean, seriously.
Tescticle cookbook. True story, click the link if you don’t believe me.
Armed Forces Recruitment Surges During Downturn
In these troubled times military enrollment in America is on the up. The economic woes felt by millions is evidently enough to drive them to the recruitment offices.
Criterion Quietly Revolutionise Movie Streaming
Criterion have made a few ripples with the emergence of their new website that lets users stream movies for $5 a showing. While it seems a little steep the streaming quality has to be seen to be believed. It’s a fantastically well-programmed site with the added bonus that they’re currently showing lesser-known films in full for free.
This is probably coming off like a horrible plug but the site really is rather wonderful. Big name studios and TV networks could learn a lot from the Criterion approach, if you give users the quality they feel they deserve and a good rotation of ad-supported free content then maybe they’ll stop being naughty little thieves.
Wall Street’s Moral Battle
As executives at UBS forego bonuses in a completely justified act of penance to clients and investors after losing a boatload of money during the sub-prime crisis, counterparts on Wall Street continue to find ways to spend more money on compensation of high earners.
George Packer comments on the need for these executives at AIG and the like to be shamed rather than authorities simply trying to force them to cut compensation through fear. It does seem an incredible slap in the face, especially from somewhere like AIG, that bonuses will still be given to executives at a company receiving $150bn in rescue capital, and likely more in the future. These executives should be named, shamed and face the wrath of the public currently paying for them to fuck up the entire financial system through greed.
Banks Need Cure, Not Shock Therapy – Times
Camilla Cavendish, writing for The Times, says attempts by Mandelson and Mervyn King to try and force the commercial banking market in the UK back into life is more likely to cause more problems that find solutions. She argues that pandering to populist calls for banks to simply start lending again will not give a solution to the problem. It’s likely this will just put more pressure on the banks and breed further negative sentiment.
Her key argument is that the government needs to understand is that dealing with the recession is the short-term problem and what really needs focus is the systemic impact of the credit crunch.
Why Churches Fear Gay Marriage
Salon has an interview with Richard Rodriguez, a gay, Catholic author, who discusses the true reasons the church so fears the advent and acceptance of gay marriage in mainstream society.
While conservative churches are busy trying to whip up another round of culture wars over same-sex marriage, Rodriguez says the real reason for their panic lies elsewhere: the breakdown of the traditional heterosexual family and the shifting role of women in society and the church itself. As the American family fractures and the majority of women choose to live without men, churches are losing their grip on power and scapegoating gays and lesbians for their failures.
Iraq: Victory or Humiliation?
The Economist comments on the Iraq war as it begins its slow march towards an end and questions whether how it will be viewed in history. There is much to suggest that for all the bungling and terrible planning, the US intervention may well end up producing a democracy in the country which thrives and perhaps provides some form of example for other dysfunctional nations. However, so many questions remain that it is near impossible to even enter a vague prediction as to whether the defining conflict of modern generations will end up considered a success rather than the quagmire experienced over the past few years.
Outside Help Likely with Attacks in Mumbai
Counter-terrorism officials from India, Europe and the US have all suggested that the scale, coordination and the targets hit in the Mumbai attacks in the past few days suggest that the gunmen had received training from outside groups. The officials said this became apparent through the difference in the attacks this week to previous terrorist incidents within India.
Likely culprits identified includes Islamist networks from inside Pakistan which have, in the past, received support from intelligence agencies from inside that country. More here.
Noonan: ‘Hundred Days Are Happening Now’
Peggy Noonan’s latest column for The Wall Street Journal is a little overdramatic in places, but her first paragraph makes it worth a read.
The hundred days are happening now. That’s the real headline on President-elect Obama’s series of news conferences and his announcements of intended administration policy, such as an economic stimulus package. We don’t really have to wait till after the inauguration on Jan. 20 for the new administration to begin. What the Obama transition has become is historically unprecedented. He is filling the vacuum created by a collapsed incumbency and an acute economic crisis. He is moving forward with what looks like a high, if ad hoc, awareness of the delicacy of the situation. He can’t seem presumptuous or aggressive: “We only have one president at a time.” At the same time he can’t hide. The White House exhibits chastened generosity, refusing to snipe, mock or attempt to undermine.
‘MySpace Suicide’ Case Could Have Wide Impact
The ‘MySpace Suicide’ case recently wrapped in Los Angeles with analysts suggesting the verdict, if held up on appeal, could have a widespread impact on users of major social networking sites including MySpace and Facebook.
You can read about the full case and the judgement at The Christian Science Monitor but the situation is a difficult case. The jist was that Megan Meier hung herself after being receving criticism from a MySpace profile under the name ‘Josh’. The profile was later found to have been run by Lori Drew, the mother of a former friend of Meier, who then befriended and subsequently attacked through the site before Meier took her own life.
If anything, you might argue that Drew should at bare minimum be punished in some way for such a juvenile and petty act. But the case verdict, in which Drew was convicted of illegally accessing computers but a stalemate was reached over a conspiracy charge, raises questions about the freedom of usage on the internet and the complexities for legal oversight of the medium. Could be an interesting appeal process.
Stimulus Should Focus on Human Capital
Thomas Cooley, writing in his column for Forbes, makes a strong point that any major fiscal stimulus package for the US economy should provide foundation for the future, rather than just curing the problems of today. He argues that the government should focus on investment in educational programmes which will foster talent for future generations and provide innovative and industrious thinking.
I would add to this that what needs to be taught is the mistakes of today, with the view to preventing this happening again. It will, there can be little doubt on that. Traders across the world, along with constantly aspirational people, will look to make more money and rise further up the chain for the rest of time, but teaching the root cause of these mistakes to young people now should at least provide some kind of shield or cure method for when the problems strike once more.
Indonesia Confident of Pharma Firms
Indonesian Foreign Minister Siti Fadilah Supari has expressed confidence that big pharmaceutical firms will comply with new rules which require them to open factories in the country. He believes they will be unable to resist gaining access to the $2bn drugs market in the country.
The pharma industry must be considering some strong expansion programmes at this point as all the major players remain strong in the face of the downturn. Fact is, people are probably getting more headaches and colds than they ever have before.
Daily Morsels
Chinese farmer constructs army of robots.
Santa is fired from Selfridges for being “too friendly”.
Drinking heavy water might have geriatric qualities, may not turn eyes blue within blue however.
Cold-hearted b*stards want to deny a disabled child his miniature pony.
London Mayor Scraps Congestion Charge Zone Extension
London Mayor Boris Johnson has announced plans to scrap the controversial western extension to the congestion charge zone. The zone extension covers Kensington, Chelsea and part of Westminster and you’d think that residents of these boroughs would be able to afford it, no? The lovely bit is that Transport for London stand to lose around £70m when the zone is dropped in 2010, how will they recoup this lost bit of revenue? Fare hikes, that’s how.
Woolworths Pension Crisis Looms
As Gordon Brown pledges support for the beleaguered retailer comes an analysis that the pension debt situation with Woolworths may be worse than initially thought. The potential pension bailout could be as much as £100m, one of the largest bailouts that the Pension Protection Fund has ever administered. Otherwise it’s looking as though Woolworths pensions might take a hit to the tune of 20%.
Thailand May Declare State Of Emergency
It was only a matter of time really, after the protests at two Bangkok airports the Thailand cabinet are mulling whether or not to declare a state of emergency. Considering this is a country that has seen 18 military coups in the last 50 years this should come as no surprise. By the way, that works out around one coup every three years.
City Bonuses Slashed
The traditionally epic bonuses for bankers will be slashed this year by more than 60% in a bid to prevent public outcry, but will still take into account the real top performers. Bankers in the city will be following in the footsteps of AIG in severely cutting back the incredible bonus packages that they receive.
Woolworths In Administration
While writing this, it was reported that Woolworths will appoint Deloitte in the next few hours to act as administrator as the work by the government has failed.
Ailing High Street retailer Woolworths has become the target of a campaign to save the company by Peter Mandelson and his Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform team. The group called crisis talks last night between lenders and Woolworths management to try and stave off a full-blown crash of the company. Shares in the retailer were suspended from trade this morning.
The situation has parallels to the US auto bailout. Woolworths is not ‘too big to fail’ but it is a traditional UK company with a hair under a century of history under its belt. It’s place on the High Street has been in jeopardy for some time and likely the best solution now is for the company to bring in administrators who can strip out and sort the business into workable form, likely through extensive asset sales across both business unit and property, and whatever emerges, if anything does, will be the Woolworths for the future. Otherwise, perhaps its time to say goodbye to the first big High Street name in the crisis.
Also today, furniture retailer MFI fell into administration over unpaid tenancy bills.
China Pulls Out Of EU Simmit
China will be boycotting an EU-led summit in protest against Nicolas Sarkozy’s proposed meeting with the Dalai Lama. Such contact with the Dalai Lama by world leaders is vehemently opposed by China who blame Tibet’s spritual leader for inciting anti-Chinese riots earlier this year.
Sugar Molecule Discovered Across The Galaxy
From the article:
A sugar molecule linked to the origin of life was discovered in a potentially habitable region of our galaxy. The molecule, called glycolaldehyde, was spotted in a large star-forming area of space around 26,000 light-years from Earth in the less-chaotic outer regions of the Milky Way. This suggests the sugar could be common across the universe, which is good news for extraterrestrial-life seekers.
There’s been lots of good news recently from the depths of space, new planets, sugar molecules, dropped handbags… What next from beyond the stars?
Politalking 