BY THE LIGHT OF A BURNING BRIDGE - "Now it seems the American people won’t even risk their credit ratings, student loans, the next piece of ass, or a sideways glance from people who look at them like AIDS patients for daring to deviate from the corporate, media-instilled norm. We have come a long way backward. Rodney King’s “Can’t we all just get along” has become the modern day theme song for the surrender of America’s character, and the L.A. Rebellion of 1992 was probably the last flame of will to fight injustice in American history."
Why Do We Hate Them? - "Now that the Stalinist/Maoist regimes have collapsed or evolved toward capitalism and no fascist states with imperial ambitions exist (besides the United States and its few allies), the American Empire needed to find a new "enemy” to replace Stalinists and Nazis. Much of the soft power employed by the leaders of America’s “top down democracy” stems from psychological manipulation of “the mob”. Mobilization of the masses against a common enemy “threatening the very existence of the American Way” has long been a staple in the United States’ ruling elites’ ongoing push to monopolize the world’s wealth, power, and prestige."
Politicians jousting over terrorism are missing the point, pollsters say - "Republicans and Democrats are beating each other up on the issue of terrorism in the wake of the alleged London airplane plot, but polls show that most Americans are far more worried about the war in Iraq. That's bad news for President Bush and his Republican allies because, with congressional elections less than 100 days away, most voters don't think the war was worth it and don't like Bush's handling of it. Pollsters say that any boost the president gets from the alleged plot to blow up trans-Atlantic aircraft isn't likely to alter negative opinions about the war. "Iraq is far and away the Number 1 issue. Nothing comes even close," pollster John Zogby said. "It's the elephant in the living room.""
The CIA Torture Loophole - "Congress and the Supreme Court have made it clear that there is a baseline standard of humane treatment below which no person can fall. If the administration gets its way with its legislative proposals, though, we will have both less clarity and possible authorization for the CIA to use techniques that do not meet even minimal humane treatment requirements. Until every agency of the U.S. government trains its personnel to the standard required by law, there will be more deaths of detainees in custody."
US says it has no plans to invade Cuba - " The United States has invaded and administered Cuba in the past, a subject of everyday political discussion by the Cuban government."
Families troubled by health care costs - "The study also found that while people are having difficulties paying for their health services, they are also unsatisfied with them. Forty-two percent of people surveyed said they had experienced poorly coordinated, inefficient or unsafe care at some points during the past two years. Their experiences included a medical error, a duplicate test or the failure to provide important test results to doctors or nurses. Three-quarters of the adults surveyed said the health care system needs fundamental change or a complete rebuilding."
AIDS attention turns to prevention - "During the 25 years of the AIDS epidemic, much of the focus has been on developing a vaccine or treatment, and prevention has sometimes seemed to take a back seat. But this week at the 16th International AIDS Conference in Toronto, the tables are turning."
AIDS a Glamorous Multi-Billion Dollar Industry - "Huge profits for pharmaceutical and condom manufacturers, bottomless grants for researchers and NGO’s, publicity and money for research foundations, six-digit salaries for advertising executives and increasing fame for big name celebrities are creating a disincentive to actually stop the disease say some AIDS activists. The “AIDS industry,” is a multi-billion dollar international enterprise now, and those who gather to enjoy lavish meals and hotels in Toronto this week, are more interested in “managing the disease” than in curing it or stopping its spread, says Martin Sempa, a leading AIDS fighter from Uganda."
Debt Education: Bad for the Young, Bad for America - "Student loans, for more than half those attending college, are the new paradigm of college funding. Consequently, student debt is, or will soon be, the new paradigm of early to middle adult life. Gone are the days when the state university was as cheap as a laptop and was considered a right, like secondary education. Now higher education is, like most social services, a largely privatized venture, and loans are the chief way that a majority of individuals pay for it."
MySpace users hit by hacker virus - "Experts believe that hackers have hit the hugely popular site and say the viruses in circulation can change settings, delete files, secretly track users' movements online and even damage computers. They believe that the hackers have hidden dangerous software on the site which means that computers can be attacked unaware to users while they are just viewing pages."
Apple uncover harsh conditions at Chinese iPod factory - "Apple Computer Inc.'s investigation into claims of poor conditions at a Chinese iPod factory found no forced labour but revealed that labourers were exceeding the company's limits on hours and days to be worked per week, the company revealed."
Spying an intelligent search engine - "While Google has set the standard for Web search, some technologists are promising a new age of search tools that are much more powerful because of advances in artificial intelligence."
Scientists: Ozone layer recovery will take longer - "Scientists said Friday it would take until 2065, instead of 2050 as previously expected, for the ozone layer to recover and the hole over the Antarctic to close."
Our cities are killing us - "Think of it as a vast experiment in human biology. Put millions of people in a limited space, then crank a few levers: increase the hours they work, and increase the distance they have to travel; tempt them with material goods but undermine their sense of security about the future; allow them almost unlimited access to food, but subtly direct their choice by making grease and sugar most accessible. See what happens. ... The population's physical health is starting to degrade."
Ford to slash production, shutter plants - "Ford Motor Co. on Friday announced sharp cuts in its North American production that would force it to partially shut down plants in the United States and Canada in the fourth quarter."
God Bless This Lube - "Christians sometimes get a bad rap in sex-positive writing. Some of them deserve it, considering how loudly they protest the existence of any type of sex-tech, from vibrators to online pornography to the Plan B emergency contraception pill. ... Those are the customers that Book22 seeks to attract. Book22, named for the twenty-second book in the Bible, "Song of Solomon," is a new adult novelty store positioning itself as a Christian source of intimacy products for married couples."
'Themepark Venice' to charge for entry - "Venice may soon become the first city in Italy to charge tourists for the pleasure of visiting it as authorities look to introduce an "entrance charge" to offset the damage done to the unique architecture by hordes of holidaymakers."
Quote of the Day
"Believe those who are seeking the truth. Doubt those who find it."
~ Andre Gide
No comments:
Post a Comment