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Thomas Paine

To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

24 Mar - Quick Links and Google FriendConnect

DammamImage via Wikipedia

 Before getting into work that didn't need doing, I decided to satisfy my curiosity on one point first.


is this site safe?


US-CHINA: Google Puts Ball in Beijing's Court
HEALTH-ZAMBIA: Government’s SMS System for HIV Test Results
Q&A: Debunking the Deniers
SOUTH AFRICA: Ready To Tackle Human Trafficking?
BRAZIL: Bringing the Multicoloured Soul of the Favela to Life
U.S.: Republicans Seek Deal on Detainees
TUNISIA: Rights Groups Condemn Harassment of Ex-Prisoners
LAOS: Residents Fret Over Parched Mekong River
AFRICA: Illegal Fishing in Guinea’s Waters "Worst in the World"
BAHRAIN: Debate on Proposed Alcohol Ban Far From Over
MIDEAST: 'Palestinian Life is Cheap'
POLITICS: G20 Big Powers Under Scrutiny by Smaller Nations MIDEAST: 'Palestinian Life is Cheap'
MIDEAST: Israeli Army World's Most Moral?
MIDEAST: Israel Hovers Between War and Peace
MIDEAST: Clinton Acknowledges "Daylight" Between US and Israel
MIDEAST: EU Boosts Israel Ties, Ignores Illegal Settlements

 

Brin Drove Google to Pull Back in China

Bad economy is a gift that keeps giving to Red Hat

Malware delivered by Yahoo, Fox, Google ads

Malware that exploits holes in popular applications is being delivered by big ad delivery platforms including those run by Yahoo, Fox, and Google, according to Prague-based antivirus firm Avast.
Viruses and other malware were found to be lurking in ads last year on high-profile sites like The New York Times and conservative news aggregator Drudge Report.com, and this year on Drudge, TechCrunch and WhitePages.com. The practice has been dubbed "malvertising."
Now, researchers at Avast are pointing fingers at some large ad delivery platforms including Yahoo's Yield Manager and Fox Audience Network's Fimserve.com, which together cover more than 50 percent of online ads, and to a much smaller degree Google's DoubleClick. In addition, some of the malicious ads ended up on Yahoo and Google sites, Avast claims.
"It's not just the small players but the ad servers connected with Google and Yahoo have been infected and served up bad ads," said Lyle Frink, public relations manager for Avast.

Burger King's secret cameras stun customers



CNet River
The CNET River offers a different view on CNET, blending the latest blogs, photo galleries, videos, and tweets from CNET editors. We think of it as a fresh starting point. With your feedback, we plan to add more content streams and other features to the River. 



CIA videotape investigation appears to be nearing a close

 

United States and Russia reach nuclear-arms deal

The new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) would replace a 1991 pact that expired in December. Experts called the new agreement the most significant arms-control accord since the 1993 signing of START II, which the Russians never ratified.
Officials in both countries would not discuss details of the new accord, but the general outlines have emerged during the year-long negotiations. Each side will reduce its most dangerous nuclear weapons -- those deployed for long-range missions-- from a ceiling of 2,200 to between 1,500 and 1,675. And the two militaries will make relatively small cuts in the number of jets and land- or submarine-based missiles that carry nuclear warheads and bombs.
A Kremlin spokesman told reporters that the two countries' presidents would talk soon to decide when to sign the pact. "All documents related to the new treaty have been agreed upon," he said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of diplomatic sensitivity.
The declaration appeared to surprise the White House, with spokesman Robert Gibbs saying that the two sides were "close" to a treaty but that it would not be announced until Obama could speak with President Dmitry Medvedev, probably in the next few days.
Still, U.S. officials confirmed that all major obstacles to the pact have been cleared. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said in Moscow last week that only technical details remained.

( I muse if my technical difficulties are related to the Stratcom story about unilateral U.S. reductions : link posted at the unavailable my.opera.com/oldephartte/links/  You see...I posted it on this blog...and the story won't display.  )

Saudi Arabia detains dozens of 'al-Qaeda militants' 

 A large group of 101 suspects, described as a network, was composed of 47 Saudis and others from Yemen, Somalia, Eritrea and Bangladesh, interior ministry spokesman Mansour al-Turki said.

The network "specialised in targeting security personnel," he said.
Map of Saudi Arabia
Al-Qaeda in Arabian Peninsula
Two other groups totalling 12 suspects, described as terrorist cells, were also arrested, he said.
Weapons, cameras, documents and computers were seized with the suspects.
"The network and the two cells were targeting the oil facilities in the Eastern Province and they had plans that were about to be implemented," Mansour al-Turki said.
( Interesting that separatist groups suddenly become eligible to be described as 'al Qaeda' after the U.S. starts bombing the hell out of them )

Scoop - NZ

Israeli Arab family denied right to rent home

Avatar http://www.jkcook.net
First scooped by Claudia 2 ago | Discuss
The Zakai and Tarabin families should be a picture of happy coexistence across the ethnic divide, a model for others to emulate in Israel. But Natalie and Weisman Zakai say the past three years – since the Jewish couple offered to rent their home to Bedouin friends, Ahmed and Khalas Tarab   More »

Trackback | Tags: human rights prejudice ideology | Category: Commentary | Share

Key’s mining plan a pay-back for Crosby/Textor?

Avatar http://www.thestandard.org.nz
First scooped by kaarangaranga 1 5 ago | 1 Comment
John Key is pushing ahead with his mining plan despite all the political trouble that’s brewing. The flames of the argument are flicking at his shorts, and as John Armstrong notes, the battle for public opinion “is already half lost”.

Why then is Key determined to push on with this immense   More »

Trackback | Tags: analysis key motivation strategy | Category: Commentary | Share

Target BNP: The Battle for East London

Avatar http://www.guardian.co.uk
First scooped by Honest.John 3 ago | 2 Comments
The "war-room", as it has become known, occupies a vast space in a derelict building in the far east of London. A giant banner, draped across the back wall, bears the words "hope not hate". Inside, political activists, local councillors and researchers are hunched over computer screens or huddl   More »

Trackback | Tags: bnp searchlight politics uk fascism | Category: Commentary | Share

Tony Blair and the Middle East peace process

Avatar http://soapboxnewzealand.blogspot.com
First scooped by cynthia 1 21 ago | Discuss
The search for a humane, peaceful solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine is an ongoing one. The stakes are higher than before with the increasing tension between Israel and Iran.
What is Blair's real purpose for being in the Middle East? He is a tainted partisan and has no credibil   More »

Trackback | Tags: israel peace middle east tony blair | Category: Politics | Share

The Ashcroft Affair: Eight questions for Hague

Avatar http://www.guardian.co.uk
First scooped by Res.Publica 5 ago | Discuss
1. Why did the then Tory chief whip, James Arbuthnot, help Michael Ashcroft broker a deal that would allow him to avoid the "tens of millions" a year in tax that William Hague had previously assured Tony Blair he would pay?

2. What exactly did Arbuthnot tell William Hague about the details of   More »

Trackback | Tags: ethics peerage money uk | Category: Commentary | Share

Nestle-give orangutans a break !

Avatar http://www.celsias.co.nz
First scooped by ponkey 2 ago | Discuss
What is it that we cant get cheating corporations to respect any rules on palm oil production? And then we find we are eating it in all our favourite foods,with many of our best known brands -often unwittingly .
The mass destruction of forest for palm oil is a coprorate crime on a massive scale   More »

Trackback | Tags: food business environment | Category: Environment | Share

The Growing Movement for Publicly Owned Banks

Avatar http://www.yesmagazine.org
First scooped by CommonGood 4 ago | 1 Comment
Michigan, which has an unemployment rate of 14 percent, has been particularly hard hit by the economic downturn. Virg Bernero, mayor of Lansing, the state’s capital, and a leading Democratic candidate for governor, proposes to relieve the state’s economic ills by opening a state-owned bank. He   More »

Trackback | Tags: banking community economy | Category: Commentary | Share

Perils & pitfalls of electronic campaigning

Avatar http://www.guardian.co.uk
First scooped by John.Law 3 ago | Discuss
I've just received another personal email from Barack Obama. "Andrew," he begins. We've been on first-name terms for more than two years. "I wanted to take a moment to thank you directly for the outstanding work you've been doing…" I'm flattered, Barack, that you've had time to notice my   More »

Trackback | Tags: electronic campaigning perils benefits | Category: Commentary | Share

Huljich dogs Banks media campaign

Avatar http://www.thestandard.org.nz
First scooped by bite.the.bullet 3 ago | 1 Comment
How much is the Huljich Kiwisaver figure-fudging scandal hurting John “the dodgy-director” Banks’ mayoral chances? Answer: a lot. Lord Mayor Banks Of Remuera trades on the fact he is a successful businessman. He constantly talks up his strong business credentials as standing him in good   More »

Trackback | Tags: huljich banks campaign media | Category: Commentary | Share

Cantabrians! Your democracy is at stake!

Avatar http://blog.greens.org.nz
First scooped by citizen.journalist 4 ago | 1 Comment
I can’t believe the people of Canterbury are going to allow a democratically elected Council—Environment Canterbury—to be thrown out and replaced by an unelected and unaccountable political appointee—most likely Jenny Shipley.

What is happening in Canterbury is eerily similar to what is   More »

Trackback | Tags: rogernomics phase 2 canterbury | Category: Commentary | Share

Fending Off Digital Decay, Bit by Bit

Avatar http://www.nytimes.com
First scooped by deranged.technophile 7 ago | 1 Comment
Among the archival material from Salman Rushdie currently on display at Emory University in Atlanta are inked book covers, handwritten journals and four Apple computers (one ruined by a spilled Coke). The 18 gigabytes of data they contain seemed to promise future biographers and literary scholars a   More »

Trackback | Tags: decay digital | Category: Sci-Tech | Share

Ashcroft's 'unequivocal assurance' secured peerage

Avatar http://www.guardian.co.uk
First scooped by Res.Publica 5 ago | Discuss
When Lord Ashcroft of Chichester sat down to pen his memoirs, he wasted no more than a few paragraphs on those vexed events of March 2000 which saw him rejected for a peerage for a second time, nor on the manner in which his close friend and ally William Hague managed deftly to reverse that misfort   More »

Trackback | Tags: integrity ethics peerage uk follies | Category: Commentary | Share

Obama to Disclose Legal Basis for Drone Strikes

Avatar http://washingtonindependent.com
First scooped by Claudia 6 ago | 1 Comment
It’s not been the greatest week for the Obama administration’s commitment to open government. But Harold Koh, the State Department’s legal adviser, told Shane Harris of National Journal that the administration is open to disclosing the legal underpinnings of one of its most controversial and   More »

Trackback | Tags: assassination legality drones | Category: Commentary | Share

Seeing red, from plum to beetroot

Avatar http://www.guardian.co.uk
First scooped by Res.Publica 5 ago | Discuss
The public administration select committee might have a boring title but it often has the most amusing meetings. Yesterday it held an inquiry into the Ashcroft affair.

Trouble was, nobody who knew much about it was there. It was a squirm-making event for the Tories. Lord Ashcroft and William Hag   More »

Trackback | Tags: fruity shades of red ashcroft | Category: Commentary | Share

UK: Labour to replace House of Lords

Avatar http://www.guardian.co.uk
First scooped by Res.Publica 9 ago | 3 Comments
Ministers are working on proposals to transform the House of Lords into a democratically elected second chamber based loosely on the US Senate.

The transport secretary, Lord Adonis, who would lose his seat in the Lords and his post in government under the plans, confirmed today that they would b   More »



 


 

 

 

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