Monthly Archives: December 2016

News for Today (12/20/16)

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Bogus News Story Of The Day.

Nothing for today. I guess my outrage receptors are getting dull.

In The News

Trump wins Electoral College vote. Two republican electors switched from Trump. Eight democratic electors switched from Hillary (or tried to, not clear that all will be allowed to.

In Russia, Dozens Die After Drinking Alcohol Substitute

Case Against Berlin Suspect Crumbles

Breaking: Green on Blue Murder, Russian Ambassador to Turkey It shows that assassin as having amazingly good trigger discipline for that part of the world.

Marais: the chic Paris district where rats outnumber residents

Not In The News But Should Be

Ignore the stuff about counterinsurgency and focus on the details about Chicago crime that don’t often make it to the news.

Chicago’s Gangland Counterinsurgency

Entertainment of the Day

The below clip tells you something you already know and it is not all that scientific. Still, it should be required viewing by all idiots who think that all season tires are sufficient.

News for Today (12/19/16)

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Bogus News Story Of The Day.

Don’t have anything for this.

In The News

Stronger ‘superbugs,’ and no new drugs to fight them

The Ghost Ship

OxyContin goes global — “We’re only just getting started”

Molten iron river discovered speeding beneath Russia and Canada

Is Mental Health Declining in the U.S.?

Truck Crashes into Christmas Market in Berlin

Not In The News But Should Be

China’s November Reserve Drain

Entertainment of the Day

You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive

News for Today (12/18/16)

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Bogus News Story Of The Day.

“The electoral college is enshrined in the Constitution, but that doesn’t necessarily make it constitutional.”

In The News

The NYT Is Having a Meltdown Over Trump’s Israel Nominee

It’s Official: Clinton’s Popular Vote Win Came Entirely From California

Solar System’s biggest asteroid is an ancient ocean world

Most of Greenland Melted In the Recent Past, Study Finds

World Energy Hits a Turning Point: Solar That’s Cheaper Than Wind I am skeptical that they have the grid issues resolved. But in some poor parts of the world, it should be a good option. Plus most Third world countries are use to having an unreliable grid.

Pharma Execs Arrested in Shockingly Organized Scheme to Overprescribe Notorious Opioid

Not In The News But Should Be

Don’t have anything.

Entertainment of the Day

In my opinion, Michiel de Ruyter is a better Admiral then the better known Nelson. Granted, he often had the advantage of fighting in his home waters. But Ruyter fought the comparatively competent English where as Nelson fought poorly trained and led French. Anyway, somebody decided to make a movie about Ruyter fighting the English and it looks pretty cool to a history nerd like me. If I had to guess, I would say it is centered around the 4 day battle.

A lot of things don’t look right to me. For one thing, I don’t think that the English wore uniforms at this point in their navy’s history but I am sure the movies makers did that to make it easier to tell who is who. But over all, the clips look like someone trying to do justice to sailing age warfare.

News for Today (12/17/16)

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Bogus News Story Of The Day.

Tech Upgrades Just Aren’t That Great Anymore. Someone more technical then me can correct me if I am wrong, but I am pretty sure the author’s problems with tech upgrades are primarily issues that Apple has created and not problems with the state of technology in general. Granted, faster processor speeds don’t do you much good anymore, but there are lots of other benefits from upgrading if you are not slavishly loyal to Apple.

In The News

Mylan launches EpiPen generic at $300 per two-pack . Only means something if you remember the fuss. But I do find it odd that a company is launching a generic version of its own brand. Why not drop the price of the original?

The Fall of Aleppo

The Government Finally Has A Realistic Estimate Of Killings By Police . A little bit dubious.

Autism linked to vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy, researchers find

How critical should we be of Vladimir Putin?

Total Loss: Overnight House Fire Levels Triangle Home

The chilling stories behind Japan’s ‘evaporating people’

Not In The News But Should Be

Don’t have anything for this today.

Entertainment of the Day

Some context for the final showdown.

I am not a big fan of western stare at each other and shoot fights. But I will make an exception for this one.

https://youtu.be/NE3mHhpGV2A

News for Today (12/15/16)

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Bogus News Story Of The Day.

“The Russians hacked the election” stories are starting to drive me insane. They are everywhere and stupid beyond belief so there is no point in linking to one particular one. Instead, I will link to somebody trying to be sane (And she was an Obama voter).

In The News

EgyptAir crash: Explosives found on victims, say investigators

South China Sea Artificial Islands Have Weapons Installed: Report

Did Obamacare Really Insure 20 Million?

Netanyahu and Sisi Building Strong Security Ties

Iran starts nuclear program after US ‘violation’ of deal

One boy dead, another recovering after being trapped in snowbank

Not In The News But Should Be

So Who Gets to Pay for Italy’s Banking Crisis?

Entertainment of the Day

Today’s Entertainment comes from the CIA. This use to be classified (Warning, link downloads a PDF). Background on this file here

News for Today (12/14/16)

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Bogus News Story Of The Day.

The Daily 202: Ayn Rand-acolyte Donald Trump stacks his cabinet with fellow objectivists.

In The News

Trump names Elon Musk, Uber CEO to advisory team

Cyber: the DNC Hack

The Futuristic Utensils Designed to Help You Eat Bugs

Tillerson’s record at Exxon shows a tough pragmatist

Not In The News But Should Be

Demonetisation for behavioural change

Entertainment of the Day

News for Today (12/13/16)

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Bogus News Story Of The Day.

Bipartisan Electors Ask James Clapper: Release Facts on Outside Interference in U.S. Election. People have such a hard time resisting obvious lies. In this case the lie is the word “bipartisan” (to be fair, I think there is one nominal Republican in the bunch but that would not make it “bipartisan” if the shoe were on the other foot).

In The News

One Weight-Loss Approach Fits All? No, Not Even Close

Found: A Lost City in Greece. Nothing that noteworthy. Just a reminder of how little they know about even the areas that have been study to death.

Records: Too many votes in 37% of Detroit’s precincts. I have been beating this one to death. But the rumour mill has been constantly pointing towards fraud in this city long before it became somewhat “Official”. It will be interesting to see where the “Audits” go.

After their big election victory there is nothing to stop Republicans from dismantling Obamacare. So naturally they’re figuring out how to blow it.

Viruses may have evolved to hit men hard but go easy on women

Not In The News But Should Be

Exclusive: Top U.S. spy agency has not embraced CIA assessment on Russia hacking – sources For all the fuss about the CIA saying the Russians waged cyber warfare to help get Trump elected, you have to read far and wide to figure out what the CIA thinks they actually did.

Entertainment of the Day

News for Today (12/12/16)

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Bogus News Story Of The Day

Methane surge needs ‘urgent attention’. What makes this story bogus is the allegation that the sudden surge over the last few years in methane emissions comes from agriculture sources. They don’t even try to pinpoint those sources or explain why it suddenly spiked.

Why do they pick on agriculture as opposed to fracking or other sources that could produce a more plausible sudden upsurge? I have read in other sources that this is because fracking or pipeline bursts should be locatable. Since they can’t locate any obvious culprits, they blame agriculture solely on the ground that it is impossible to prove that agriculture did not cause the sudden increase in the last few years.

In The News

Europeans Debate Nuclear Self-Defense after Trump Win

As U.S. Shale Seeps Into Biggest Oil Market, Saudis Hone Defense

All These Spy Planes Over Tunisia — Where Are They Coming From?

Not In The News But Should Be

Mosul Dam collapse ‘will be worse than a nuclear bomb’ . This Dam was in the news when people thought that ISIS might blow it up. But the real problem is the dam itself. And if the descriptions of the problems with it are accurate, it can’t really be fixed. My personal bet on how it fails involves heavy rains that political pressure requires them to be held back (this does happen on occasion even in this part of the world).

Entertainment of the Day

I don’t have anything for today.

News for Today (12/11/16)

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Bogus News Story Of The Day

I don’t have anything.

In The News

Half of Detroit votes may be ineligible for recount

Italy Gets a New Prime Minister, But Not Yet a New Government, Let Alone a New Banking System

Chetty et al and the metamorphosis of the earnings curve

Venezuela seizes Christmas toys to distribute to poor

Shackles and Dollars. In my view, this is a debate that goes back to founding of this country. Southern leaders have always believed that slavery was crucial to the wealth of the entire country and that northern wealth was built on the backs of the south via tariffs and other political tricks. It was felt that if the south withheld cotton the entire industrial world would come to its knees and Europe would be compelled to intervene on the side of the south to bring the cotton back to market. In my opinion, history in the form of the civil war has already empirically demonstrated who was right. And it was the not the people who think that slavery was crucial to America’s wealth.

The economics of Theodor Herzl and his Zionist vision

Not In The News But Should Be

The Man Who Invented the World’s Most Important Number

Entertainment of the Day