Friday, April 24, 2015
News Links, April 25, 2015
## Global Ponzi meltdown/House of Cards ##
ECB Buys Negative Yield Covered Bonds; Trade Guaranteed to Blow Up
Nasdaq Composite Closes At All-Time High Not Seen Since Dotcom Bubble In 2000
## Global unrest/mob rule/angry people/torches and pitchforks ##
## Lifestyle Solutions ##
The Old Models of Work Are Broken
The only sustainable way to avoid being commoditized is to learn to create value in ways that cannot be commoditized.
## Environment/health ##
Nasdaq Composite Closes At All-Time High Not Seen Since Dotcom Bubble In 2000
## Airline Death Spiral ##
Cheaper fuel has airlines soaring to record profits
Cheaper fuel has airlines soaring to record profits
Airlines are getting such a price break that profits are surging even though their revenue is flat or declining.
American Airlines plans capacity cuts, tops 1st-qtr expectations
American Airlines Group Inc on Friday reported first-quarter profit above analysts' expectations and pleased investors with capacity cuts to match weakening international demand.
The Pathetic State of Airline Travel Today Was Predicted Long Ago
American Airlines Group Inc on Friday reported first-quarter profit above analysts' expectations and pleased investors with capacity cuts to match weakening international demand.
The Pathetic State of Airline Travel Today Was Predicted Long Ago
Allegiant Air suffers more mechanical problems than other airlines: report
Going to Bellingham to fly with Allegiant Air can save you a lot of money, but a new report commissioned by the union for the pilots could make you think twice.
## Fault lines/flashpoints/powder kegs/military/war drums ##
Ukraine Update: Not Quiet on the Eastern Front; Sanitized US News; Wakeup Call From Poland
Going to Bellingham to fly with Allegiant Air can save you a lot of money, but a new report commissioned by the union for the pilots could make you think twice.
## Fault lines/flashpoints/powder kegs/military/war drums ##
Ukraine Update: Not Quiet on the Eastern Front; Sanitized US News; Wakeup Call From Poland
US military instructors in eastern Ukraine combat zone – Russian military
Pentagon dismisses Moscow claim of U.S. troops in Ukraine combat zone
Islamic State offensives stretch Iraq's elite troops thin
China to deliver 50 Thunder fighters to Pakistan over 3 years
Iran's Arabian Sea Ship Convoy Heads Home Before Meeting U.S. Navy And Allies
Pentagon dismisses Moscow claim of U.S. troops in Ukraine combat zone
Islamic State offensives stretch Iraq's elite troops thin
China to deliver 50 Thunder fighters to Pakistan over 3 years
Iran's Arabian Sea Ship Convoy Heads Home Before Meeting U.S. Navy And Allies
Why Is Washington Supporting Saudi Arabia's Massacre In Yemen?
Vulnerable Frontier: Militarized Competition in Outer Space
North Korea's nuclear arsenal could be twice as big as earlier estimates
Vulnerable Frontier: Militarized Competition in Outer Space
North Korea's nuclear arsenal could be twice as big as earlier estimates
Kandahar city power project in jeopardy as USAID prepares to pull plug
TTIP negotiators get an earful from American critics
TTIP negotiators get an earful from American critics
## Global unrest/mob rule/angry people/torches and pitchforks ##
Work Tensions Rise in China, Despite Calls for Harmony
Labor disputes continued to swell in China over the first three months of this year, government data showed Friday, as slowing growth in the world's second-largest economy puts more pressure on workers.
Tensions Boil Over After Baltimore Police Call Protesters 'Lynch Mob'
Demonstrators still seeking answers over the mysterious and troubling death of Freddie Gray, who died of a spinal injury while in the custody of the Baltimore Police Department, circled City Hall on Thursday after Maryland Governor Larry Hogan announced that he had called in state troopers to help quell the protests.
Huge American Flag Protest Shuts Down Valdosta State University
Labor disputes continued to swell in China over the first three months of this year, government data showed Friday, as slowing growth in the world's second-largest economy puts more pressure on workers.
Tensions Boil Over After Baltimore Police Call Protesters 'Lynch Mob'
Demonstrators still seeking answers over the mysterious and troubling death of Freddie Gray, who died of a spinal injury while in the custody of the Baltimore Police Department, circled City Hall on Thursday after Maryland Governor Larry Hogan announced that he had called in state troopers to help quell the protests.
Huge American Flag Protest Shuts Down Valdosta State University
## Lifestyle Solutions ##
The Old Models of Work Are Broken
The only sustainable way to avoid being commoditized is to learn to create value in ways that cannot be commoditized.
## Environment/health ##
Oil And Gas Drilling Is Consuming Millions Of Acres Of US Farmland: Study
As oil and gas drilling ramps up in the central U.S. and Canada, the region is losing an increasing amount of cropland, ranches and forests to industrial activities. In recent years, huge swaths of the Great Plains have given way to well sites, oil pads, parking lots and gravel roads that service the energy industry, researchers say.
As oil and gas drilling ramps up in the central U.S. and Canada, the region is losing an increasing amount of cropland, ranches and forests to industrial activities. In recent years, huge swaths of the Great Plains have given way to well sites, oil pads, parking lots and gravel roads that service the energy industry, researchers say.
Bees may get hooked on nicotine-linked pesticides
Minnesota declares state of emergency over bird flu in poultry
Minnesota declares state of emergency over bird flu in poultry
Health of World's Ocean 'Collapsing Before Our Eyes'
Exercise Can't Save Us From Too Much Sugar In Our Diets, Say Experts
## Intelligence/security/internet/cyberwar ##
How Tor is building a new Dark Net with help from the U.S. military
Exercise Can't Save Us From Too Much Sugar In Our Diets, Say Experts
## Intelligence/security/internet/cyberwar ##
How Tor is building a new Dark Net with help from the U.S. military
Cybersecurity A Growing Safety Issue for Oil, Gas Industrial Plants
## Propaganda ##
Lawsuit against rigged presidential debates
## Propaganda ##
Lawsuit against rigged presidential debates
A Field Guide to Negative Progress (The Archdruid Report)
Emergency room visits for mental health skyrocket in Chicago
## US ##
Automakers to gearheads: Stop repairing cars
Automakers are supporting provisions in copyright law that could prohibit home mechanics and car enthusiasts from repairing and modifying their own vehicles.
Emergency room visits for mental health skyrocket in Chicago
Remember I have said that national space programs will increasingly lean toward military/security purposes. -- RF
Man turns himself in to Fukui police, saying he landed drone at Abe's office
Banks face huge losses on bonds if interest rates rise: BOJ
Banks face huge losses on bonds if interest rates rise: BOJ
The aging of Japan's industries threatens to worsen the hollowing-out of domestic manufacturing experienced in recent decades, undermining Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's efforts to stoke an economic recovery from a recession last year. The latest signals underscore the concern: a central bank survey of companies this month indicated they plan to cut investment this year, even amid near-record holdings of cash.
The government is short on cash and the recovery effort is faltering, as predicted. As I've said from the start, what was destroyed will never be rebuilt. -- RF
China's factory activity contracted at its fastest pace in a year in April, a private survey showed, suggesting that economic conditions are still deteriorating despite increasingly aggressive policy easing by the central bank.
Urban employment declines, raising hopes for stimulus
The job market in China's big cities is showing signs of worsening, raising the likelihood the government will boost spending on infrastructure and roll out other stimulus measures.
The job market in China's big cities is showing signs of worsening, raising the likelihood the government will boost spending on infrastructure and roll out other stimulus measures.
China to scrap duties on rare earth exports
## UK ##
Tony Blair, a Walking, Talking, Grinning Conflict of Interest
## UK ##
Tony Blair, a Walking, Talking, Grinning Conflict of Interest
## US ##
Automakers to gearheads: Stop repairing cars
Automakers are supporting provisions in copyright law that could prohibit home mechanics and car enthusiasts from repairing and modifying their own vehicles.
Alert readers will recall this article, showing that much the same thing is happening with farm tractors. (And here's another, newer article Definitely read it.) It appears that the idea is to control everything but the steering wheel. Here's an example where complexity works for the corporations and against the people. Vehicles are now so complex that you need expensive specialized diagnostic equipment to read and interpret the data stored in a vehicle's chips. And now manufacturers are trying legal means to keep vehicle owners totally dependent on corporate maintenance regimes. For more on the implications of this, see this week's Archdruid Report, above. -- RF
$100 Million Taxpayer Dollars Missing in Afghanistan
America Ranks Below Israel In World Happiness Index
Mind The Inflection Points: Unemployment Claims Up 17% In Texas And 69% In North Dakota
Houston Cop and Former "Officer of the Year" Indicted for Trafficking Weapons for Los Zetas Drug Cartel
America Ranks Below Israel In World Happiness Index
Mind The Inflection Points: Unemployment Claims Up 17% In Texas And 69% In North Dakota
Houston Cop and Former "Officer of the Year" Indicted for Trafficking Weapons for Los Zetas Drug Cartel
Gen. Petraeus: Too Big to Jail
## Hillary Clinton ##
Hillary Clinton Hires Former Monsanto Lobbyist To Run Her Campaign
More Clinton Foundation Cronyism – The Deal to Sell Uranium Interests to Russia While Hillary was Secretary of State
Clinton charities will refile tax returns, audit for other errors
More Clinton Foundation Cronyism – The Deal to Sell Uranium Interests to Russia While Hillary was Secretary of State
Clinton charities will refile tax returns, audit for other errors