Arkansas governor pardons own son for a pot offense. He should pardon a lot more people … Mike Beebe, the Arkansas Democrat whose term as governor is expiring early next year, has formally announced that he plans to pardon his own son for a 2003 marijuana conviction. The plan was first reported last month by local media. It's perfectly reasonable to believe that dealing marijuana –...Read More
Is Europe Too Rigid to Survive? … The European Union is suffering from a democracy problem: Too many Europeans feel that integration is being forced upon them. What's worse, they may be right … New research from a group of economists – Luigi Guiso, Paola Sapienza and Luigi Zingales – paints a grim picture of the European project from the perspective of its participants....Read More
Arkansas governor pardons own son for a pot offense. He should pardon a lot more people … Mike Beebe, the Arkansas Democrat whose term as governor is expiring early next year, has formally announced that he plans to pardon his own son for a 2003 marijuana conviction. The plan was first reported last month by local media. It's perfectly reasonable to believe that dealing marijuana –...Read More
Draghi says will not allow dissenters to block possible ECB action … European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi addresses an ECB news conference December 4, 2014, for the first time in the ECB's new 1.3 billion euro headquarters in Frankfurt … The European Central Bank will decide early next year whether to take further action to revive the euro zone's economy, its pres...Read More
It is now 65 years since George Orwell died, and he has never been bigger. His phrases are on our lips, his ideas are in our heads, his warnings have come true. One answer to "why Orwell?" is because of his posthumous career. Five years before his death in 1950, he was, in the words of one of his biographers, D.J. Taylor, "still a faintly marginal figure" … It was only wi...Read More
Draghi says will not allow dissenters to block possible ECB action … European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi addresses an ECB news conference December 4, 2014, for the first time in the ECB's new 1.3 billion euro headquarters in Frankfurt … The European Central Bank will decide early next year whether to take further action to revive the euro zone's economy, its pres...Read More
It is now 65 years since George Orwell died, and he has never been bigger. His phrases are on our lips, his ideas are in our heads, his warnings have come true. One answer to "why Orwell?" is because of his posthumous career. Five years before his death in 1950, he was, in the words of one of his biographers, D.J. Taylor, "still a faintly marginal figure" … It was only wi...Read More
I love this character of the young, proud Highlander Jaime soo much!!!?(TM)? And so now it was time to do this : )Enjoy!!!Song: Zack Hemsey - "See what i've become"I own nothing.Read More
Five reasons why markets are heading for a crash … Hold onto your hats. Stock markets look much as they did in 2000 and 2007 … We had a slight premonition of what's to come in the October mini-crash … Many stock markets are close to their all-time highs, the oil price is plummeting, delivering a significant boost to Western and Asian economies, the European Central Bank is ge...Read More
How Science Suffers During Government Shutdown … Congress (probably) won't defund the government next week. But if they do, their decision will be disastrous for science … No one wants another government shutdown. Not President Obama, who needs the funding to fight ISIS and Ebola abroad. Not Speaker Boehner, who warned House Republicans last month that defunding the government woul...Read More
Five reasons why markets are heading for a crash … Hold onto your hats. Stock markets look much as they did in 2000 and 2007 … We had a slight premonition of what's to come in the October mini-crash … Many stock markets are close to their all-time highs, the oil price is plummeting, delivering a significant boost to Western and Asian economies, the European Central Bank is ge...Read More
How Science Suffers During Government Shutdown … Congress (probably) won't defund the government next week. But if they do, their decision will be disastrous for science … No one wants another government shutdown. Not President Obama, who needs the funding to fight ISIS and Ebola abroad. Not Speaker Boehner, who warned House Republicans last month that defunding the government woul...Read More
The Gold Fairy Tale Fails Again … Will they never learn? Yesterday, oil rallied 4.3 percent and gold gained 3.6 percent as commodities had an up day after a long and painful fall. The fascinating aspect of the trading wasn't the $45 pop in gold, nor the even greater percentage rally in oil, but the accompanying narrative. … When it comes to speculating, especially in precious metal...Read More
Here Are Exactly What Types Of Porn The UK Just Banned … The UK just announced a change in the guidelines that govern online pornography, and people are scared that the government is embarking on a far-reaching crackdown on porn. The Independent, for instance, is reporting that "the measures appear to take aim at female pleasure." That's not really true. There isn't a lengt...Read More
The Gold Fairy Tale Fails Again … Will they never learn? Yesterday, oil rallied 4.3 percent and gold gained 3.6 percent as commodities had an up day after a long and painful fall. The fascinating aspect of the trading wasn't the $45 pop in gold, nor the even greater percentage rally in oil, but the accompanying narrative. … When it comes to speculating, especially in precious metal...Read More
Here Are Exactly What Types Of Porn The UK Just Banned … The UK just announced a change in the guidelines that govern online pornography, and people are scared that the government is embarking on a far-reaching crackdown on porn. The Independent, for instance, is reporting that "the measures appear to take aim at female pleasure." That's not really true. There isn't a lengt...Read More
Rand Paul dives back into Ferguson debate … Rand Paul wrote a column for TIME following the decision in Ferguson. He said that politicians are to blame in Ferguson and elsewhere … Individuals, he argued, are ultimately responsible for their own fate … His comments are part of his aggressive minority outreach. – CNNDominant Social Theme: This is a crazy conservative who does...Read More
The People's Republic of Plymouth … The strange and persistent right-wing myth that Thanksgiving celebrates the pilgrims' triumph over socialism. The first Thanksgiving, socialism "Down with the Commies! Let's eat!" … This Thursday, Americans will gather together for an evening of family, food, football, and arguing with the relatives about politics. And why shoul...Read More
Rand Paul dives back into Ferguson debate … Rand Paul wrote a column for TIME following the decision in Ferguson. He said that politicians are to blame in Ferguson and elsewhere … Individuals, he argued, are ultimately responsible for their own fate … His comments are part of his aggressive minority outreach. – CNNDominant Social Theme: This is a crazy conservative who does...Read More