News of the Week
Arab Revolts *************** Top Syrian Generals Defect – Announce Formation of Free Syrian Army to Fight Assad (Video) Posted by Jim Hoft The End of the Murderous Assad Regime May Be Near– A top general in Syria defected on Friday and released video urging the army to quit killing freedom protesters and join the Free Syrian Army. Obamacare *************** U.K.: Cataracts, hips, knees and tonsils: NHS begins rationing operations By Oliver Wright, Whitehall Editor Hip replacements, cataract surgery and tonsil removal are among operations now being rationed in a bid to save the NHS money. *************** Walnuts Are Drugs, Says FDA Written by Michael Tennant Seen any walnuts in your medicine cabinet lately? According to the Food and Drug Administration, that is precisely where you should find them. Because Diamond Foods made truthful claims about the health benefits of consuming walnuts that the FDA didn’t approve, it sent the company a letter declaring, “Your walnut products are drugs” — and “new drugs” at that — and, therefore, “they may not legally be marketed … in the United States without an approved new drug application.” The agency even threatened Diamond with “seizure” if it failed to comply. "Hide the Decline" *************** New NASA Data Blow Gaping Hole In Global Warming Alarmism By James Taylor NASA satellite data from the years 2000 through 2011 show the Earth's atmosphere is allowing far more heat to be released into space than alarmist computer models have predicted, reports a new study in the peer-reviewed science journal Remote Sensing. The study indicates far less future global warming will occur than United Nations computer models have predicted, and supports prior studies indicating increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide trap far less heat than alarmists have claimed. *************** The Latest Job Killer From the EPA The agency's ozone rule will be the most expensive in history—and isn't required by law. War & Terror *************** Iran revolutionary guards' commander set to become president of Opec Rostam Ghasemi, who is blacklisted by western powers, could have major role in determining global oil price *************** Iran: ‘We Have No Option but to Destroy Israel’ Explosive comments from Mohammad-Reza Naghdi, head of the Basij forces. *************** China Was Testing for EMP Attack on Taiwan Seth Mandel According to a declassified 2005 report released last week, China had been testing the effects of an electromagnetic pulse attack–the detonation of a nuclear device at high altitude to maximize the area affected by the EMP–possibly meant for Taiwan. According to the report, China was actually testing two kinds of nuclear blasts and the effects the resulting radiation would have on humans. (China was testing them on animals, which experienced “high mortality rates.”) *************** Obama administration mulls India-style nuclear pact with Saudi Arabia US officials are planning to hold talks with Saudi Arabia next week over a potential civilian nuclear pact. But Israeli concerns and Saudi Arabia's rivalry with Iran could complicate matters *************** NATO: Will Turkey Give Secrets to China and Russia? Michael Rubin I’ve written here before about how Turkey surprised the Pentagon by holding war games with the Chinese Air Force. I also raised concern about the Obama administration’s willingness to sell Turkey our next generation F-35 Joint Strike Fighters without so much as reporting to Congress on the possibility the stealth technology upon which U.S. national security will depend might be reverse engineered should Turkey give its new allies China and Iran access to the plane. *************** Classified report: Russia tied to blast at U.S. embassy By Eli Lake The Washington Times U.S. intelligence agencies concluded in a classified report late last year that Russia’s military intelligence was responsible for a bomb blast that occurred at an exterior wall of the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi, Georgia, in September. National *************** VT’s Sen. Sanders Weighs 2012 Challenge Many on the Left believe Obama has let them down, that he’s just too much of a centrist for them. One of these is Sen. Bernie Sanders (Independent.-Vt.) who recently appeared on a talk show and said this about deciding to challenge the party leader *************** Chicago council OKs earlier curfew *************** Who are the Real Criminals? Posted by Ben Howe The United States Federal Register adds an average of about 220 pages per day. Yes, you read that right. And yes, that means we are in the 80,000 pages per year zone. These are the rules that govern our lives, that (some say) cost the country about $1.5 Trillion dollars per year. *************** California Wages War On Single-Family Homes In recent years, homeowners have been made to feel a bit like villains rather than the victims of hard times, Wall Street shenanigans and inept regulators. *************** NATO seeks urgent exit strategy in LibyaLONDON, July 26 (UPI) -- NATO is seeking an urgent exit strategy from Libya that will end the fighting and decide the future of embattled leader Moammar Gadhafi, even if that means letting him stay in the country though out of power, it emerged Tuesday after British and French foreign ministers met in London. *************** Goodwin Liu Nominated to California Supreme Court By Ed Whelan The Los Angeles Times is reporting that California governor Jerry “Moonbeam” Brown has just nominated failed Ninth Circuit nominee (and Berkeley law professor) Goodwin Liu to the California supreme court *************** A Tale of Two Shale States Pennsylvania's gain vs. New York's missed opportunity. *************** Rep. Wu resigning following sex allegations 'I cannot care for my family the way I wish while serving in Congress' *************** A New Chapter for Vallejo A judge approved a plan for the city of Vallejo on Thursday, allowing them to emerge from a three-year bankruptcy. *************** House Committee passes bill requiring your ISP to spy on every click and keystroke you make online and retain for 12 months Posted by Cory Doctorow Yesterday, the House Judiciary Committee voted 19-10 for H.R. 1981, a data-retention bill that will require your ISP to spy on everything you do online and save records of it for 12 months. California Rep Zoe Lofgren, one of the Democrats who opposed the bill, called it a “data bank of every digital act by every American” that would “let us find out where every single American visited Web sites.” *************** Horsford-led IFC may have illegally plundered millions from College Savings Plan Participants in Higher Education Prepaid Tuition Program may now have grounds to sue By Steven Miller Did Nevada’s most powerful legislators, sitting as the Interim Finance Committee last year, illegally plunder millions from a college savings program serving almost 10,000 Nevada families? *************** The Higher Education Bubble By Mark J. Perry Economy
& Taxes *************** Chinese Cities’ Risky Borrowing Binge Cities are building rapidly, despite questionable land values and demand *************** The government's twice the size it was 10 years ago. It's 30 percent bigger than it was when (Barack) Obama became president. *************** MCCLINTOCK: Debt reduction means difficult decisions Families get what Washington doesn’t: Live within your means *************** Breaking Bad: California vs. the Other States – Revised 22 July, 2011 Posted by Richard Rider Here’s a depressing but documented comparison of California taxes and economic climate with the rest of the states. The news is breaking bad, and getting worse *************** "I'm Just Quitting" Mollie Hemingway, Ed. David McElroy writes that he was attending a public meeting in Birmingham when he witnessed someone go Galt. That's what we call it when someone gets so sick of government encroachment that they quit their business. I'm not sure about the particulars and perhaps there's more to this story, but after a few hours of people bashing coal mining businesses, an actual coal mine operator stood up to speak *************** Gang of 22 House Speaker John Boehner’s (R., Ohio) deficit reduction plan passed the House on Friday, but just barely (218 to 210). Even with the last minute addition of measure requiring that Congress pass a balanced-budget amendment before a second installment of new debt can be authorized, 22 Republicans voted ‘nay. *************** The Platinum Coin Option By Matthew Yglesias Sovereign governments such as the United States can print new money. However, there’s a statutory limit to the amount of paper currency that can be in circulation at any one time. Ironically, there’s no similar limit on the amount of coinage. A little-known statute gives the secretary of the Treasury the authority to issue platinum coins in any denomination. So some commentators have suggested that the Treasury create two $1 trillion coins, deposit them in its account in the Federal Reserve and write checks on the proceeds. *************** China's spectacular real estate bubble is about to go pop By Jeremy Warner Economics So you thought that UK housing was unaffordable. Try Beijing and Shanghai, where as can be seen from the graphic below, prices are off the scale relative to income, the commonly used yardstick for measuring affordability. OK, so these are the boom cities of the Chinese economic miracle, but even on a nationwide basis, affordability is no lower than in the UK. *************** Obama administration's charm offensive fails to win over business groups By Peter Schroeder and Bernie Becker The Obama administration’s push to mend its relationship with business has gone cold only six months into the effort. *************** International *************** Durban III: The Monaco Factor by Claudia Rosett On Sept. 22, the United Nations will strike a blow for bigotry, by hosting Durban III — the third in what has become a series of UN gatherings dedicated in name to fighting racism, but devoted in practise to whipping up and institutionalizing anti-Semitism. *************** Singer Morrissey says Norway shooting "nothing compared" to McDonalds, KFC *************** The Myths of Oslo by Michael Ledeen The more I look at the Oslo massacre, the more I am struck by how archaic it all is. The killer fancies himself a noble defender of a Western world that no longer exists, and has not existed, really, since the First World War destroyed it. He is the sort of fascist who believes in the myth of a Golden Age that must be restored, and vaingloriously sees himself a member of the elite chosen by history to defend the mythical West. *************** China's High Speed Rail System Has First Major Accident By Megan McArdle With all the other horrible events of the weekend, China's high speed rail crash sort of faded into the background. But the toll is horrific: 43 dead, and hundreds more injured after one high speed train ran into another. Critics, such as Michael Sainsbury of The Australian, are now arguing that this is the result of cut corners in the construction process *************** Chinese netizens outraged over response to fatal bullet train crash By Steven Jiang, CNN Beijing (CNN) -- Nationwide outrage continued Monday in China over the government's response to a deadly bullet train collision last weekend, even as operations resumed on the affected high-speed rail lines. *************** Could accused Norway killer land in luxurious prison? By Liz Goodwin Confessed mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik may end up serving time in a newly built maximum-security prison that's considered among the world's most luxurious, according to The Telegraph. *************** Pole Dancing Class For 7-Year-Olds Slammed BOLTON, England - Family campaigners have blasted a British fitness group for teaching pole dancing to girls aged seven -- and putting pictures of them on the internet. *************** Where convicts lead the good life In Norway, even murders and rapists have a shot at landing in "open prison." *************** Norway Terrorist Can Only Be Sentenced To…..21 Years Max; Will Be Out By Age 53! *************** Opinion *************** Atlas Shrugged Comes to Detroit Posted by Daniel J. Mitchell In a perverse way, I’m glad that there are places such as Greece and Illinois. These profligate jurisdictions are useful examples of the dangers of bloated government and reckless statism. *************** America is merely wounded, Europe risks death We have a glimmer of hope. The key indicators of the US money supply are at last firing on all cylinders, a dramatic turn for the better that would normally signal recovery or even a mini-boom within the next six to 12 months. *************** Without Tea Party Votes, Boehner Speakership Hits Rough Waters *************** California: The Pickpocket State A big tax battle is erupting in California. The immediate numbers involved are not big—about $200 million—but the principle is huge, and the outcome will have an enormous impact on our economy. *************** How Los Angeles Lost Its Mojo The city's misguided political leaders could turn this economic dynamo into an Athens by the Pacific. *************** The Debt Ceiling Fight as a ‘Kobayashi Maru’ By Jim Geraghty One of my regular correspondents sends in a thoroughly depressing report. It is anecdotal, so take it with as many grains of salt as you deem necessary, but rest assured, this correspondent wants to see conservative Republican victories in 2012 and beyond… *************** |
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