random notes

Unfortunately, the latest evidence suggests that, if anything, productivity growth is slowing unexpectedly. Over the past two years, in the non-farm business sector, it slowed to an annual average of 2% from an average of almost 4% in the previous three years.

Playing With Fire: America and the Dollar Illusion - International - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News: "The dollar is still the world's reserve currency, even though it hasn't deserved this status for a long time. The devaluation of the dollar can't be stopped -- it can only be deferred. The result could be a world economic crisis."

UN official: U.S. terror law may violate international treaties - iht,news,UN US Terrorism Law - Americas - International Herald Tribune: "GENEVA Washington's new anti-terrorism law could end up violating international treaties protecting detainees, with some provisions denying suspects the right to a fair trial, a key U.N. rights expert said Friday.

The New Atheists: Researchers Crusade against American Fundamentalists - International - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News: "In the United States, atheists are becoming an ostracized minority"

The $1bn trade that operates beyond the eyes of the law - World - Times Online: "THE body parts market is lucrative and lightly regulated in the US. Estimates of its value range from $500 million to $1 billion (£530 million) a year."

The World from Berlin: Germans in the Poorhouse - International - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News: "A report released this week suggests that this underclass includes about 8 percent of all Germans. The issue has turned into a major debate about class in a social democracy founded on the basic premise that there should be no massive divide between rich and poor. Some people warn of a potential menace to democracy, and German papers on Wednesday are arguing about about what to do."

back to the basics:
-recover land
-assign land to sustainable life communities - commons
-create a new space in economy from the base

E' morto Gillo Pontecorvo - Corriere della Sera: "E' morto Gillo Pontecorvo
Fu il regista de «La battaglia di Algeri» Sfiorò l'Oscar e guidò la Mostra di Venezia . Aveva 86 anni"

RFID chips for migrant workers in the US? | The Register: "VeriChip chairman Scott Silverman's appearance on American TV this week has raised fears of the introduction of RFID technology.

According to RNIF, he 'bandied about the idea of chipping foreigners on national television Tuesday'.
[Killed-http://ad.uk.doubleclick.net/ad/reg.internet.4159/digitalrights;pos=middle;site=us;sz=336x280;tile=3;ord=OtHk0EgD9jwAAHH4RYsAAAFA?-by-size]

RINF said Silverman appeared to be emboldened by the Bush Administration call to know 'who is in our country and why they are here'. He told Fox & Friends that the VeriChip could be used to register guest workers, verify their identities as they cross the border, and 'be used for enforcement purposes at the employer level'. He added: 'We have talked to many people in Washington about using it...'"

... hey, if hitler had that would have won the IInd war ??? ...

Grand Prix Cars - Alfa Romeo P3

Model T Ford Club International (MTFCI) Website

Another top banker shot dead during one month in Moscow - Pravda.Ru: "General Director of one of the departments of Russia's Vneshtorgbank, Alexander Plokhin, was killed in Moscow yesterday night. It has become the second assassination of a top banker during the recent month in Moscow."

"Drifting to disaster – is the UK living beyond its means? This article argues that the UK is in danger of a sterling crisis and a prolonged recession. 7th July 2006 – by Angus Hanton (business economist)

Please send comments to: "angus@woodlands.co.uk" (please state if you don't want your comments to be quoted. If you agree with the thrust of this article and would like more people to read it the best way you can do that is to put a link to it from your website - if you have one that you control/influence).

For a long time the UK has been spending more than it earns. Our appetite for spending has created problems which have recently intensified, and which are now endangering our economic well-being. The UK has been importing very large volumes of manufactured goods in a spending boom, which has been financed by the sale of capital assets to foreign buyers and by consumer borrowing. This process is like selling the family silver - and much of the family estate - to pay for current consumption ... and then borrowing to allow further consumption. This seems to have gone almost unnoticed by both the British people and the political establishment, but can surely only lead to a slump in the short term and impoverishment in the long term."

... the whole western world is ...
... when you admit standard inflation as a built in parameter for the economy ....
... this is the standard result ...
... the roman emperors ran an empire with 10% of taxation ...
... excessive public system creates inflation ...
... "strategic" today is only health, energy, justice and defense ...
... the rest is the cow that generates standard inflation ...

let me have back the gold standard
:)

Permessi agli immigrati, Amato precisa - Corriere della Sera: "CASO FOGGIA - «Il lavoratore irregolare arriva ad ottenere il lavoro grazie ad un'intermediazione» che «rinnova in termini molto gravi un fenomeno di caporalato che noi avevamo espulso dalla realtà nazionale» ha aggiunto Amato riferendosi alla situazione dei lavoratori in nero nelle campagne e in particolare al 'caso Foggia'. I caporali, ha spiegato, spesso «trattengono i passaporti agli immigrati» e prendono fino al 50 per cento della loro paga.
11 ottobre 2006"

... logico ...

Canada And USA - The Mother Of India's Bomb: "Globally, the deal cripples the main diplomatic and legal barrier to the spread of nuclear weapons. The United States is now trying to restrain the Iranian program by relying on the very treaty it has just weakened with the India deal."

Welcome to NATO: "Headquartered in Washington, D.C., with a second office in North Hollywood, California, NATO represents its members in the heart of the nation's capital as well as the center of the entertainment industry"

... hey, if we join this NATO instead than the other one, maybe we can get the vatican to join too ...

:)

American lawyers conduct parallel investigation into Brazilian air crash - iht,america,Brazil Plane Crash - Americas - International Herald Tribune: "Their well-being stirred concern among members of the U.S. Congress.

Rep. Steve Israel, a New York democrat, said in a statement e-mailed to the Associated Press that the embassy had helped arrange legal representation for them.

'I plan on staying closely apprised and hope that these men continue to be treated fairly, in accordance with Brazilian law and diplomatic agreements,' he said.

Local media said several U.S. lawmakers expressed concern about the pilots to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, but an aide to Israel could not confirm the report."

... sarebbe interessante vedere cosa sarebbe successo, se lo stesso caso si fosse verificato negli us, alla luce della nuova legge approvata il 26 settembre, ove qualunque cittadino non us possa essere fermato indefinitamente e senza formulazione di accuse, ne' senza alcuna garanzia giuridica ...

Interview with Disney Game Head Graham Hopper: "Hollywood Burnt Their Fingers" - International - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News: "'Hollywood Burnt Their Fingers'

Disney is hoping to gain market share with video games based on their movies. SPIEGEL ONLINE spoke with Disney's game boss Graham Hopper about using games for branding, why games based on movies are often so terrible, and how the process can work in reverse."

... logical ...
... build the videogame first ...
... movie thread and add scenes gets you the movie ...
... adjust timing of cycles ...
... release at the same time ...

Sheri's Ranch - Home - Southern Nevada's Premier Legal Brothel

... enjoy ...

«Dico sì a colpire i clienti delle prostitute» - Corriere della Sera: "Dico sì a colpire i clienti delle prostitute»
Amato: non sono interessato alla privacy di squallidi maschi a caccia di ragazze a pagamento «Molti italiani sfruttano gli immigrati, ne fanno una fonte di reddito. L'Ucoii? Non è illegale»"

... cari catto-marxisti, perche' non riaprite i bordelli di stato ...

E' nato YouOs, il sistema operativo via web - Corriere della Sera: "E' nato YouOs, il sistema operativo via web"

... nice idea, pocket size wi-fi xterminal ...
:)

"Monster" fossil found in Jurassic graveyard - Yahoo! News: "'Monster' fossil found in Jurassic graveyard"

Jokers Club - TechEnclave: "Jokers Club
Calling all jokers, you are cordially invited to post here. within the Entertainment at TechEnclave" ... he he he ...

The Slack/390 Linux Project ... hey, when i get a home i'll buy a 390 used :) ...

Madonna plans to adopt child in Malawi, government officials say - Pravda.Ru: "Madonna plans to adopt child in Malawi, government officials say"

Francisco Franco - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "the Most High General " - the cost of neutrality

Turkish man hijacks passenger jet to avoid army service (Photo) - Pravda.Ru: "Turkish man hijacks passenger jet to avoid army service"

CNN.com - U.S. pilots may face manslaughter charge in Brazil crash - Oct 4, 2006: "U.S. pilots may face manslaughter charge in Brazil crash"

mited-001.jpg (JPEG Image, 1200x805 pixels) - Scaled (63%) mittelbau dora entrance

Gulags For American Citizens In Final Planning Stages: "Gulags For American Citizens In Final Planning Stages
Halliburton sex slave trade criminals prepare camps for political dissidents"

Senate Immigration Bill Would Allow 100 Million New Legal Immigrants over the Next Twenty Years: "Senate Immigration Bill Would Allow 100 Million New Legal Immigrants over the Next Twenty Years
by Robert Rector
WebMemo #1076"

logical
:)

Push-Button Beauty: Insta-Manipulation and the New Digital Age - International - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News: "The list of examples could continue ad infinitum. Much of the arduous work photographers used to perform on the computer using software like Photoshop is now done automatically."

A Brief History of Time - Stephen Hawking... Chapter 5: "The value of the grand unification energy is not very well known, but it would probably have to be at least a thousand million million GeV. The present generation of particle accelerators can collide particles at energies of about one hundred GeV, and machines are planned that would raise this to a few thousand GeV. But a machine that was powerful enough to accelerate particles to the grand unification energy would have to be as big as the Solar System – and would be unlikely to be funded in the present economic climate. Thus it is impossible to test grand unified theories directly in the laboratory. However, just as in the case of the electromagnetic and weak unified theory, there are low-energy consequences of the theory that can be tested."

MIT promises safer, more efficient nuclear plants | The Register: "By modifying the shape of the uranium pellets used to fuel the plants, the researchers say they can lower the operating temperature of the plant, and increase heat transfer, Reuters reports.

On the face of it the technique seems very simple, although as it took three years to develop, it's probably actually quite complicated."