NewsRack: newstrust/poverty

'Green News Report' - May 17, 2012 - BradBlog

Thu, 17 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

TWITTER: @GreenNewsReport VIA SMART PHONE: Stitcher Radio! IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: House GOP attacks America's clean energy industry -- again; Solar becoming cheaper than coal -- finally; Coal industry panicking -- naturally; Americans willing to pay more for clean energy, as long as it's not nuclear; PLUS: Australians are hot -- ...

Iran Oil Production Drop Seen - NYT > World

By THOMAS ERDBRINK — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

A 12 percent decline in the first three months of the year is at odds with Iran’s assessment that there has been no significant change in output over the past year.

If the eurozone is serious about growth, it can have it | Mariana Mazzucato - The Guardian -- World Latest

Mariana Mazzucato — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Cameron's exhortation to 'get your house in order' is specious: the ECB needs to focus investment on rebalancing the economy In the recent elections in Greece and France , voters voted loudly for politicians who argue that with record levels of unemployment, poverty and despair, only a growth plan will prevent Europe disintegrating politically, economically and socially. The new emphasis on "growth" is due to the failure of austerity, in all countries, to kickstart a post-crisis recovery (or even reduce debt levels), and the failure of quantitative easing in achieving much but bailing out the banks that are now rich enough to start speculating again. Healthy banks in a sick economy: a bad mix. Yet this new emphasis on growth is hardly a consensus. Economists, since the time of Adam Smith's 1776 work, Wealth of Nations , have debated what causes growth. Indeed, some economists have long insisted that growth occurs precisely through thrift – that is, austerity. And in recent weeks we have ...

GOP Version of Violence Against Women Act Tries to Push Women Back Into the Home - AlterNet

Michelle Chen, In These Times — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

By raising barriers to economic assistance and legal recourse, the legislation sends the message to countless women living in violent households that their place is still at home.

Guess who's coming to dinner? Anger over Queen's jubilee bash guest list - The Guardian -- World Latest

Caroline Davies — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Protesters say invitation list includes monarchs of several countries accused of human rights abuses The trickiest part of hosting any big anniversary bash is always the guest list – as the Queen is discovering before an unprecedented lunch for the world's crowned heads on Friday. Does one invite the ruler accused of turning a "blind eye" to human rights abuses? Or the one with the "glad eye" and, at the last count, 13 wives? Then there is the cousin who snubs you over a little local difficulty. By Thursday evening, neither Buckingham Palace nor the Foreign Office had released any details of who would be attending the glittering diamond jubilee gathering at Windsor Castle. But the invitation list included the King of Bahrain, Hamad al-Khalifa, whose regime brutally suppressed pro-democracy protests last year. And Swaziland's polygamous King Mswati III seems set to take a seat amid the heraldic splendour of St George's Hall. One definite no-show will be Queen Sofía of Spain, ordered ...

Stocks open slightly lower in early trading on Wall Street - LA Times: Business

By Andrew Tangel — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Stocks open slightly lower in early trading on Wall Street

TED stages Mogadishu conference to celebrate city's 'rebirth' - The Guardian -- World Latest

David Smith — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

US brand of inspirational speakers takes its 'ideas worth spreading' to the final frontier: Somalia "I love Mogadishu, I love Mogadishu, I love Mogadishu!" chanted Amir Issa, a Somali businessman and camel farmer. "Please stand up, say that: I love Mogadishu!" A video camera panned around the room, showing the audience rising to its feet and joining in the chorus. The scene was streamed live to internet users around the world. TED , the California-cool brand of inspirational speakers with "ideas worth spreading", had reached its final frontier: war-torn Somalia . "The story of the Somalis is they are survivors," continued Issa, microphone in hand, standing on a simple stage against a white wall that bore the TEDxMogadishu logo. "They will survive in any climate … Mogadishu is ready to receive anybody … Mogadishu is ready for you." TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) was born in the US in 1984 and stages an annual conference once described as "three and a half days of intellectual ...

Stocks open lower as Europe overshadows jobs data - SFGate: Business & Technology

By PALLAVI GOGOI, AP Business Writer — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

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Egypt: Arab Spring could be wasted in youthful nations - New Scientist: Health

Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Egypt: Arab Spring could be wasted in youthful nations

Futures dip ahead of jobs data as Europe churns - Twincities.com: News

The Associated Press — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

NEW YORK—Stock futures are falling, with unease about Europe overshadowing what is expected to be another positive U.

Twin Cities hospital strike averted with contract deal - Twincities.com: Business

Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Unionized health care workers and hospitals operated by five health systems in the Twin Cities have reached a tentative agreement on contract terms, thereby averting a possible strike.

DealBook: HSBC Targets Extra Revenue from Business Units - International Herald Tribune: Business

By JULIA WERDIGIER — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

The bank has doubled its target to $2 billion for additional revenue HSBC plans to achieve by referring more clients between its investment banking and commercial banking units.

Mitt Romney, Servant of the Right - American Prospect

Jamelle Bouie — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

T he defining feature of the Republican presidential primaries was the constant Sturm und Drang over Mitt Romney’s ability to win Republican voters. Pundits claimed that Romney had a “ceiling” with conservatives in the party, and opponents like former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum routinely assailed the front-runner as a candidate whose commitment to conservatism was short-lived and inauthentic—a human “Etch A Sketch,” in the words of Romney’s own campaign spokesperson. But when Romney locked up the nomination after months of bitter fighting, the party promptly came together behind him. Santorum, Romney’s main competitor, dropped out of the race on April 10. One week later, polls showed that 90 percent of Republican voters supported Romney against Barack Obama—identical to the number of Democrats who said they backed the president. What drove the quick embrace of the former Massachusetts governor? It wasn’t love; conservatives aren’t thrilled with Romney, even as they prepare to ...

South Sudan slides towards destitution amid border conflict with Sudan - The Guardian -- World Latest

David Smith — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Food insecurity rises as fighting and hunger drive record numbers into South Sudan and rains threaten to deepen crisis South Sudan is facing a humanitarian crisis with more than half its population threatened by food shortages because of its ongoing conflict with Sudan, the UN has warned. Fighting on the neighbours' disputed border, the halting of oil production and inter-communal violence have "raised fears that the South Sudanese are sliding into destitution", the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said. Its report comes amid fears that South Sudan is on the brink of economic disaster less than a year after it gained independence from Sudan. The UN says food shortfalls have worsened in the first four months of 2012. Based on research from the World Food Programme, it estimates that at least 1 million people will suffer food insecurity this year and a further 3.7 million are vulnerable. It adds that the country is set to suffer a deficit of nearly half a million ...

Bill Clinton, Boehner, And Some Other Rich White Guys Had A "Summit" And Agreed: It's Your Fault - AlterNet

RJ Eskow, Blog for Our Future — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Any questions? Let's hope not, because they're all busy men and it's great golfing weather this week in DC.

Mitt Romney, Servant of the Radical Right - American Prospect

Jamelle Bouie — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Threatened Twin Cities hospital strike averted with contract deal - Twincities.com: News

Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Unionized health care workers and hospitals operated by five health systems in the Twin Cities have reached a tentative agreement on contract terms, thereby averting a possible strike.

Republican House candidate: 'Either way, people and stegosaurs were living at the same time' - NewsTrust Yahoo Pipes Feed

rss@dailykos.com (Kaili Joy Gray) — Sun, 13 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Note: This did not actually happen ( Derek Chatwood ) Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Crazy Town) has a new favorite candidate for the House, and he sure seems like an interesting fellow : Allen Quist, a 67-year-old soybean farmer and onetime anti-sodomy crusader who believes that humans and dinosaurs may have coexisted in Southeast Asia as late as the 11th century. [...] During his time as a state representative, Quist slammed a gay counseling clinic at Mankato State University by comparing it to the Ku Klux Klan (both would be breeding grounds for evil—AIDS, in this case) and went undercover at an adult bookstore and a gay bathhouse in an effort to prove to a local newspaper reporter that they had become a "haven for anal intercourse." Quist doesn't just hate gays, though. He's not very fond of women either: In one memorable interview, Quist told a British reporter he believed women were "genetically predisposed" to be subservient to men, pointing to, among other things, the behavior ...

Go to school longer, live longer, CDC finds - Star Tribune: Latest

Colleen Stoxen — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

More-educated people with higher incomes suffer from fewer chronic diseases and live longer

Opinionator | The Conversation: Playing Left, Right — or Center - NY Times: Editorials

By DAVID BROOKS and GAIL COLLINS — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Brooks and Collins on Cranbrook and Columbia, Romney and Obama. Can we really learn anything from what we've been told about their school days?

India: Crackdown on Tamil Nadu Anti-Nuclear Plant Protests - Global Voices

Rezwan — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Activists are protesting the commissioning of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project in Tamil Nadu, India. The government has cracked down on demonstrators, detained many and had given prohibition orders for further protests.

India Ink: Image of the Day: May 16 - NY Times: Asia-Pacific

By THE NEW YORK TIMES — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

The Indian rupee hits a record low of 54.46 against the U.S. dollar.

India Ink: Piramal Healthcare Continues Overseas Expansion With Decision Resources Deal - NY Times: Asia-Pacific

By NEHA THIRANI — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

Indian drug company buys U.S. health care information provider for $635 million.

Latitude: Former President of South Africa, F.W. de Klerk, Shatters His Anti-Apartheid Legacy on CNN - International Herald Tribune: Editorials

By EUSEBIUS MCKAISER — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

When he helped end apartheid, F.W. De Klerk may have been politically shrewd, but he was not morally upstanding.

Today in Congress: Republicans fake VAWA in the House and fake budgets in the Senate - NewsTrust Yahoo Pipes Feed

rss@dailykos.com (David Waldman) — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

First day of the work week in the House , and that means suspension bills. Eleven were scheduled, seven were dispensed with and four votes were postponed. Nothing terribly exciting to report on that front. The Senate , per its agreement, considered and rejected all five of the precious Export-Import Bank bill amendments that Republicans just had to have in order to allow the motion to proceed to move forward. And guess what? They were all massively unpopular, some of them embarrassingly so, while the bill itself passed overwhelmingly. And even so, Republicans objected to moving to the bill quickly, and even threatened to filibuster and vote against cloture on the motion to proceed. Yet, interestingly enough, not a single one of the five amendments got 40 votes, which is what it would have taken (had every Senator voted on the cloture question) for Republicans to have enforced their filibuster threat. Hell, Rand Paul (R-KY) and Mike LEE (R-UT) each offered an amendment, and the two couldn't ...