Posts - Americans

New Research Links Smoking To Psychotic Episodes

Health & Wellness

Groundbreaking research conducted at King’s College London’s Institute of Psychology suggests that smoking may be risk factor in the development of psychosis. This disturbing conclusion came after extensive analysis of 273,000 non-tobacco users as well as 15,000 tobacco users and their different rates of psychosis. Individuals with psychosis experience symptoms such as paranoia, delusions and hearing voices inside their head.

With Schizophrenia affecting 1 in 100 people, this new research could help in identifying major contributing factors as well as possible treatments for this mental illness.

One of the leading researchers of the study, and a psychosis expert himself, James MacCabe, said that “”While it’s always hard to determine the direction of causality, our findings indicate that smoking should be taken seriously as a possible risk factor for developing psychosis.” MacCabe admitted that tobacco only represented one of many risk factors. Others include genetics, lifestyle, diet as well as other influences.

People suffering from Schizophrenia typically experience symptoms such as psychotic experiences and disruptions in perception and thinking. This psychiatric disorder usually begins to reveal itself in early adulthood. Until this research, many doctors had prescribed smoking on a self-medication basis, encouraging their patients with psychosis to smoke tobacco to counteract the symptoms of Schizophrenia and for the side effects of treatment.

From the research conducted at King’s College, scientists studied individuals experiencing their first episodes of psychosis along with their smoking rates. They discovered that 57% of those patients were smokers. This leads to the conclusion that people experiencing their first episode of psychosis were also found to be three times more likely to smoke than the control groups.

After analyzing the results, Robin Murray, who worked with MacCabe on the research, suggests that one possible explanation for the causal link of psychosis and smoking may be activity of the brain’s dopamine system. Murray explains that because an excess of dopamine largely causes psychosis, it raises a red flag that nicotine exposure increases dopamine levels. Perhaps these increased levels caused by smoking can contribute to the development of psychosis, though further research will be needed to confirm that hypothesis.

‘Crowdsourced Terrorism’ Attacks Thwarted Over July 4th Weekend

News

According to FBI Director James Comey, ISIS terror plots set for the 4th of July were thwarted by the bureau. Although Comey didn’t specify the amount or the nature of the plots, he said they were intended “to kill people of the United States”. The plots reportedly reached nationwide and were unsophisticated in nature as knives, guns as well as other weapons were to be used, similar to many ISIS related plots. It is suspected that the encouragement for the attacks came from actors outside the United States. For the time being, very little information is being released about the precise details of the attacks.

Comey made the statement in Washington at the J. Edgar Hoover Building saying that people in the U.S. are being encouraged and instructed by members of ISIS to carry out attacks on U.S. soil. Comey stated more specifically, “Sometimes there is a suggestion from an ISIS fighter to do something specific.” Interestingly enough, this form of terrorism that Comey is calling “crowdsourcing terrorism” is beginning on social media mediums such as Twitter.

Comey explained the probable series of events that lead to these communications. Starting on Twitter, a US citizen would be following an ISIS member. From there, the two would begin communicating via direct messaging. Soon enough, the conversation disappears when moved to a more secure application. As Comey admitted before Senate last Wednesday, there are 21,000 English speakers following ISIS on Twitter. With the ease of communication offered through Twitter, ISIS has a pipeline to thousands of potential supporters.

These reports come after several safety and precautionary measures were taken in order to prevent such potential attacks during the Fourth of July weekend. A few weeks ago, memos by the National Counterterrorism Center, the Department of Homeland Security as well as the FBI identified possible targets for ISIS attacks. On this list were several Mohammad drawing contests and the holiday weekend.

According to an analysis conducted by CNN of Justice Department records, since the start of 2015, U.S. officials have charged 49 alleged ISIS supporters. Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi, who attempted at attack in Texas at a Mohammad drawing contest, weren’t included in the number. Although no specific reports have been released about this most recent issue, people will await for information about these alleged Fourth of July attempts.

Japanese Rocks Reveal 110 Million Year Old Dinosaur Eggs

Culture

Researchers have discovered the first known dinosaur nesting site in Japan after uncovering a tennis court sized patch of rock that has yielded 90 different pieces of fossilized dinosaur eggs from five separate dinosaur species.

Although similar sites have been found all over the world and there have fragments found from individual dinosaur eggs in Japan before, this is the first evidence of a whole nesting site there.

The country’s geology and volcanism has compressed ancient rock layers making fossilized eggs hard to distinguish.

Darla Zelenitsky, a paleontologist at the University of Calgary said “It is difficult to find fossil eggshell fragments in Japan because the rock is so hard and needs to be broken apart manually.”

Fossil hunters led researchers to a riverside site in southern Japan in 2006 and since then it has yielded the remains of ancient lizards, mammals and frogs and a few , dinosaurs remains but no-one had expected it would contain evidence of a dinosaur nesting site.

Zelenitsky said the fragments came from 110-million-year-old eggshells from different dinosaurs. The majority of the eggs most probably came from meat-eating dinosaurs called theropods like the well known T-rex , but some are from the ornithopod species which were larger plant eating dinosaurs.

The theropod eggs were some of the tiniest ever discovered with researchers estimating their original weight must have been anywhere between one to five ounces.

One of Zelenitsky’s paleontology graduate students, Kohei Tanaka, who did the majority of analysis of the egg fragments said they would enable researchers to piece together a detailed story “about the evolution, reproduction, and biology of dinosaurs in this region.

Using very powerful microscopes researchers can find structural patterns on the eggs giving them clues as to what species produced them.

Researchers now hope the site will reveal fully preserved nests.

Avian Flu Outbreak Sees Egg Prices Go Sky High

Finance

The price for a breakfast of bacon and eggs is starting to skyrocket following an outbreak of Avian flu in the U.S. Midwest. The outbreak has reduced egg production by ten percent.

The wholesale price for eggs has jumped by almost 70 percent since the outbreak began in April meaning Americans already paying more for store bought eggs may soon be charged more for egg based dishes at restaurants.

Consumers have seen supermarket egg prices rise from $1.69 for a dozen Grade A large eggs in May to $2.19 this week.

Co-founder and CEO of the Famous Toastery restaurant chain Robert Maynard said “If you’re in this industry, especially the breakfast and lunch space, that’s all you really talk about. It’s a problem”.

He said each of the chains six locations were paying $800 to $1,000 weekly for eggs which was “a significant hit to the bottom line”.

“We bear the brunt of these price increases but there comes a point when raising prices is inevitable. We’ve been doing everything we can not to raise prices, but we’re going to be in a position where we have to.” Maynard said.

Prices of egg based products such as salad dressing, ice cream and baked goods are also expected to increase meaning weekly grocery budgets will be shot, but the biggest worry is what the Avian Flu outbreak will do for the economy overall.

At a meeting of the Senate Agriculture Committee earlier this week, North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis said the outbreak was taking its toll on Midwest communities.

“Minnesota and Iowa, over the past year, saw somewhere around $1.6 billion in economic impact. For every job loss as a (egg) processor, we lose about two more other jobs in the supply chain, so these communities are very hard hit by this.”

The outbreak came at a time when there was a huge demand from consumers .U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) figures show egg consumption last year was the highest it has been for 30 years.

American Egg Board marketing senior vice president John Howeth said the huge demand for eggs was “because of the protein craze across the country.”

To help stem the rising prices, the FDA has allowed egg imports from the Netherlands for the first time in recent history, though it remains to be seen if these can be in large enough numbers to stop widespread price increases.

Crime Ridden Detroit’s Police Force Is All Time Smallest

News

Detroit, a city which has one of the highest crime rates in the U.S., does not have a big enough police force to deal with security after losing more than 35 percent of its police officers in the last three years.

President of the Detroit Police Officers Association Mark Diaz said “This is a crisis, and the dam is going to break. It’s a Catch-22: I know the city is broke, but we’re not going to be able to build up a tax base of residents and businesses until we can provide a safe environment for them.”

At present there are fewer police officers on patrol in Detroit than at any time since the 1920s. Once its police force numbered more than 5000 officers – today its just 1,590 and out of that number sit behind desks rather than patrol the city streets. The situation is so dire that at times some precincts have only one patrol car.

Budget cuts have forced layoffs but many officers have also left to work in other cities or have found new occupations.

Detroit Police Chief James Craig who came to the city via jobs in Portland, Maine and Los Angeles said “These officers do the most difficult job in the country, and they need to get paid more. “It’s hard to keep people when other cities can offer so much more money.”

He said he was making some progress with recruitment efforts but not at the speed he would like and needs to.

“Certainly the mayor and I have lots of discussions on what right sizing the police department should look like. I know that we’re looking at adding roughly 480 additional officers into the field. What could I do with that? I could do more,” he said.

The 480 Craig speaks off include officers currently on administrative duties and new recruits. At present 15 percent of the city’s police force have desk jobs but many of those officers could be put out on street patrol if qualified citizens could be found to take over some of their tasks.

Disney Forces Store Owner To Give Up Star Wars Domain Names

Finance

The Walt Disney Company is flexing its muscles, forcing an English fancy dress store to surrender its Star Wars website addresses.

The Berkshire, UK based Jokers’ Masquerade store, which has owned the domain names for more than ten years, uses the web address to attract shoppers to its Star Wars-themed costume section.

Last year Nominet the organization which controls domain names in Great Britain, under pressure from Disney, has now ruled the store must give up the domains.

Abscissa, Jokers’ Masquerade parent company, has also received order to hand over a further six domain names it also uses – star-wars.uk , starwars.uk , starwarsco.uk , star-warsco.co.uk , star-wars.co.uk , starwarsco.co.uk

The company has until July 21st to decide whether to appeal.

Abscissa’s chief executive Mark Lewis said it was ironic that for ten years Disney had not been interested in the domain names.

“If the new Star Wars films by Disney were not being released, we wouldn’t be having this discussion,” he said.

“That’s how we feel. Are we disappointed? Yes. Are we surprised? Not necessarily.”

Lucasfilm which had owned and had the rights to Star Wars sold them in 2012 to the Walt Disney Company in 2012 for $4.1 billion.

A Disney spokesman claimed with the purchase the company also acquired all Star Wars intellectual property.

Disney has previously used Nominet to take control of waltdisney.co.uk and disneycruises.co.uk .

Panicked Greeks Go On Shopping Sprees Ahead Of Bank Restructurings

Entertainment News

Fear of the financial unknown has sent many Greeks into a spending frenzy, using debit cards to buy anything they believe will hold its cash value, and even paying their taxes in advance before their money has the possibility of losing its value or being seized by the Government or banks.

Appliance and electronics chains report items literally going out the door as quickly as they come in. Despina Drisi, a sales associate at Kotsovolos, one of the largest appliance stores in Athens which caters to a upper-middle class demographic, said the last few weeks have been some of the busiest he has seen in his 12 years at the store.

“We have sold so much. We even sold display models. People have been pulling at my sleeves. We’re spacing things out now to cover the holes on the shelves.” he said.

Athens accountant Antonis Mouzakis said people are even wanting to pay their taxes rather than see the money they have possibly lose its value.

“Panicked doesn’t begin to describe how people feel. I have a huge number of customers wanting to file their taxes right here, right now, to have the tax calculated and paid instantly before a possible haircut. Even if the tax is 40 to 50 thousand euros, they pay it off in one go.”

In what many outside Greek may see as something contrary to usual Greek business practice, and completely opposite to what the Greek Government has done of late, many companies were attempting to pay off their debts quickly.

Mouzakis said they would rather pay off their debts now in case their bank deposits were annexed in a deal to rescue the country’s banks. He said business owners know only to well what happened in nearby Cyprus in 2013 where during a bank bailout, bank customers with over 100,000 euros lost approximately 40 percent of their deposits.

Athens jeweler George Papalexis said he had one customer who wanted to buy jewelry worth one million euros but he refused to sell because he felt more secure having the jewelry as an asset rather than risking depositing it into a Greek bank. He said he could not really believe what he had done but “I had to turn down the deal. It’s a measure of the risk we face”.

Although well off Greeks are being driven into panic buying, there are millions of Greeks who have no money to spend – the 25 per cent of the population who have lost jobs, the retired and those on Government benefits or pensions who have seen their pensions cut as the Government runs out of money.

Greece Begins To Feel Effects Of Rejecting Austerity Measures

Entertainment News

After failing to meet another deadline to pay back its creditors, Greece is now feeling pressure from its European lenders to implement austerity measures such as pensions cuts and tax hikes. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras took a vote on the issue last Sunday and campaigned for a “no” to the measures. However, despite the campaign, it is reported that Tsipras still expected the vote to be a “yes”.

Greek citizens answered with an overwhelming 61% voting “no” to the austerity measures.

Despite winning the support of their people, the Syriza government in Greece is now put into a difficult situation. According to Ambrose Evans-Pritchard of the Telegraph, “What should have been a celebration on Sunday night turned into a wake”. Following the landslide vote, Prime Minister Tsipras now has to decide between arguing a case to remain within the Eurozone or to yield to the austerity measures set forth by Greece’s many creditors.

Yanis Varoufakis, the Greek Finance Minister resigned shortly after the results of the vote were announced. His replacement, Euclid Tsakalotos met for an emergency talk in Brussels, Belgium without a plan.

The effects of these political issues are now being felt in Greece. After citizens were restricted to 60-euro ATM withdrawals per day from the local banks, Reuters reported Tuesday that the Greek banks will have funds for only two more days. To make matters worse, the European Central Bank has recently cut off emergency lending to Greece. Without any help from the ECB, it is still unsure how the banks will have the ability to open again.

Although a majority of Wall Street banks imagined the next step would be to remove Greece from the euro, any action has yet to be taken. It is reported that Tsipras turned down a plan that was devised before the referendum to help avoid a ‘Grexit’. This plan would have involved developing a parallel currency, taking cash from central bank branches and firing the governor of the Bank of Greece.

As yet another deadline looms over Greece’s head, Tsipras and other government officials are pressured into making a decision before other members of the UN decide for them. Already, the latest news indicates that all members of the European Union are set to meet for a summit on Sunday.

JPMorgan Chase To Pay $136M For Illegal Debt Practices

Finance

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has charged JPMorgan Chase with yet another criminal misdeed, this time for its illegal debt collection practices. These include using illegal collections tactics that were targeted at credit card borrowers that were overdue. The CFB will charge JPMorgan Chase with over $136 million in penalties for its crimes.

The CFPB commented, “[JPMorgan Chase] sold ‘zombie debts’ to third-party debt buyers, which include accounts that were inaccurate, settled, discharged in bankruptcy, not owed, or otherwise not collectible”.

Richard Cordray, Director of the CFPB, outlined the crimes and the penalties to follow. In short, JPMorgan Chase broke the law by selling defective credit card debt and by robo-signing documents. The bank giant is being ordered to change their debt-sale practices and to permanently stop collections on over 528,000 accounts. The CFPB also promised to be more vigilant in the future in taking measures against illegal debt sales practices that hurt consumers.

JPMorgan Chase is being forced to pay up to $30 million to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in penalties and $50 million to refund consumers. This comes after the CFPB forced Chase to shut down their illegal attempts at dealing with over 528,000 accounts.

The agreement between JPMorgan and the CFPB also states that purchasers of such debt can only sell it back to Chase. The debt cannot be sold elsewhere. Also, before Chase can sell debts, they must be able to verify their validity. Finally, Chase must notify consumers when their debt is sold. These measures are hoped to put a stop to the illegal debt practices that were being used by Chase.

According to the Associated Press, 47 of the 50 states, along with the District of Columbia joined the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in the action against JPMorgan Chase. California, Mississippi and Wyoming were the only states that did not participate in the lawsuit. Ironically, California and Mississippi are currently in the middle of their own lawsuits against Chase. Wyoming is the only state without comment on the matter.

London Subway Strike Strands Millions Of Commuters

Entertainment News

On Thursday London, England’s underground train system was in the midst of what could possibly be the largest strike in over a decade forcing millions of Londoners to find alternative ways to travel.

London commuters either chose to pack on to buses or walk to work as the Tube services were scheduled to be shut down until Friday morning. Mike Brown, boss of London’s Underground, threatened that this strike was a result of a disagreement over work hours and would cause a huge interruption and said this strike was “totally unnecessary.”

Approximately 4 million trips are taken each day on the Underground and so if the system is down, the city of London comes to a screeching halt. The Underground system is most commonly known as the Tube and without it, commuters and tourists are required to get to their destinations another way, by train, bus, taxi or foot.

In a video posted on Instagram Wednesday night, commuters could be seen climbing over walls in an attempt to catch the last train home out of the Oxford Circus station. For the commuters who preferred to walk, Britain’s Independent newspaper shared via twitter a picture of a map displaying the walking times between the different stations.

The majority of subway trains were filled to capacity with commuters who left early in order to avoid the strike.

The entity that manages public transit throughout London, Transport for London, stated that anticipating this strike, extra buses and services from river boats have been enlisted. As of Thursday morning the road systems and all other services were crowded, with long lines for the well-known red buses.

London Mayor Boris Johnson stated on Wednesday that residents of London were “understandably furious” over this strike. “The thing is ridiculous, and it is not a well-founded strike,” he said, with hope that “common sense will prevail.”

The action to strike was initiated when the London Underground and unions were unable to come to an agreement on a pay deal concerning the new “Night Tube” service scheduled to begin in September.

Starting on September 12th, with the launch of the Night Tube, round-the-clock services will be available on portions of the networks on Fridays and Saturdays, which means that it will be easier for both shift workers and late night travelers to get home.

The unions state that the London Underground has not done enough to address the members’ concerns regarding various issues such as working conditions, pay, safety and health and promised job cuts.

The Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association, just one of four unions participating in the strike negotiations, blames “intransigence” for a portion of the London Underground strike, regardless of months of negotiations.

“We work to keep London moving day in, day out. We’re already often at work before 5 a.m. or can be found helping passengers get home safely in the early hours. We cope with an ever-increasing numbers of passengers — 100 million more in just the last five years — and are happy to do so,” according to a statement found on the TSSA website.

“We don’t object to working these hours, or the even longer ones due to the Night Tube. All we ask for is a sensible solution to the safety implications of the Night Tube, honest negotiations and a reasonable settlement on pay and hours.”

Mayor Johnson recently stated the Night Tube was “something that millions of people have wanted for a long time” and workers for the Underground were offered “a very, very fair deal” in exchange.

Afghan Female Supreme Court Nominee Rejected By Conservative Lawmakers

Entertainment News

Afghanistan almost took a giant leap in the area of women’s rights, as Anisa Rasouli was nominated by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to be a member of the Supreme Court. If voted in, Rasouli would have been the first woman member of the nine-member bench and the only woman residing currently. However, Islamic conservatives were upset by this notion of having a woman in such a powerful position. As a result, the nomination was rejected.

This comes as a major setback to improvements planned for by the government for advancing women to higher positions of power. Although the nomination for Rasouli was the first of its kind to such a high position, the country’s parliament still needed to approve the motion. In the end, the traditional ideals of the Islamic country won over.

After the vote, Deputy Chairman of the Parliament, Abdul Qadeer stated, “Unfortunately, Anisa Rasouli could not get the vote of confidence to become a member of the supreme court. We ask the president to introduce another candidate”. By only receiving 88 of the necessary 97 out of 193 votes to win, Rasouli lost the vote. This led the members of parliament to appoint a male instead.

One of the female members of parliament, Shukria Barakzai termed the incident a “disaster” and that the parliament hopes for another female nomination for a chance approve the vote. It may be a while until the parliament is given another opportunity since the judges of the supreme court have 10-year fixed terms.

The nomination of Rasouli was yet another attempt by the Afghan government and President Ghani to encourage women into higher profile positions. Several steps have been made in this direction as Ghani’s nominations for four female cabinet members were approved by lawmakers in April. Also, two female governors have been appointed for Ghor and Daikundi, two provinces of Afghanistan.

Despite these achievements, it seems as though Islamic conservatives are intent on denying progress to females within Afghan society. Just recently, a group met in Kabul and protested the mere possibility of a female appointment for judge of Supreme Court. Although it has been 14 years since the Taliban’s fundamentalist regime was in power, Afghanistan has a lot of work to do in the way of female equality and acceptance among the deeply conservative elders.

Ice Cream Maker Blue Bell Restarting Production After Contamination Recall

Finance

The Alabama Department of Health has announced that the iconic ice cream maker Blue Bell Creameries would restart ice cream production trial runs at their Sylacauga, Alabama plant. The trials are projected to start as early as July 20th of this year. To closely monitor and test new enhancement, training and procedures, the trials runs will be carried out on a limited basis.

The production runs come after two Blue Bell plants in Texas and Alabama were closed after being traced to 10 cases of listeriosis, a bacteria which can cause death. Three cases were found in Texas along with five in Kansas, one in Arizona and one in Oklahoma. Kansas saw three of the five infected patients die from the disease.

After these discoveries, the Center for Disease Control began an investigation at the suspected plants. According to the CDC, just last month, the investigation following the listeria outbreak ended. In a May statement, the CDC also suggested that consumers not eat the affected products and for providers to not sell them as “people could continue to get sick”.

Blue Bell has been working tirelessly to resume test production by preparing their facilities. Vice President of Operations, Greg Bridges stated that Blue Bell is, “very excited about taking these important steps as part of the process of getting high-quality Blue Bell products back to consumers. Bridges also added that the focus of these trial runs is to guarantee the public that Blue Bell’s products will be safe when returned to the market.

Before starting the trial runs, Blue Bell has been ordered by the Texas Health Department to issue a notification of resuming operations. However, the Texas Health Department has yet to receive this notification from Blue Bell. Although there is no set date, the company’s attempt to clean up their tainted facilities is a sign of progress. The public inspection records linked to the investigation were released by the Food and Drug Administration in May.

Television Network Showtime Joins HBO In Online-Only Offering

Finance

Pay TV network Showtime announced it is now joining HBO by giving its viewers the ability to stream their content through the Internet. Hit shows on Showtime such as Weeds, Dexter, and Homeland that were once only available on TV with a cable subscription can now be found online. As of Wednesday, viewers can purchase Showtime through AppleTV and Roku at a price of $10.99 per month. This comes with a 30-day free trial.

Although Showtime offered some of their trailers and season premiers via online streaming, this is a first for the company as they bring their shows to an online platform. It is media giants such as Showtime and HBO, which make it difficult for cable companies such as Time Warner Cable and Comcast to stay in business.

The market has changed drastically with the creation of services such as Vudu, Netflix and Hulu that allow users to stream their favorite shows online. Before this age in entertainment, there was no monetary incentive for networks to abandon their cable partners and make themselves available elsewhere. Now, as Internet speeds increase along with the popularity of streaming devices and services, we are seeing more and more networks break their ties with cable companies and begin offering themselves online.

Starting the trend, HBO signed a deal with Apple making themselves exclusively available via AppleTV. While still offering their main shows on exclusive platforms, HBO and Showtime have both been offering their older shows on other streaming platforms. The new streaming market is only projected to grow within the next few years as popularity continues to grow exponentially.

Currently, AppleTV and Roku are the streaming platforms that are dominating the market. AppleTV holds the market with around 40% of the sales with Roku close behind at 30%. Last month, it was anticipated that AppleTV and Roku would release the 4th generation Apple TV and the Roku 4. Both companies failed to come out with their new devices however. Some suspect the companies are holding each other at a standstill as they both wait for the other to make a move.

All along, Amazon, who has 15% of the market thanks to its Prime video service, has been working to distinguish itself from its competitors. Amazon hopes this will help them propel sales for the future and make them a bigger competitor. Last month, they released GameFly streaming which is an app that allows users to rent several games at a time in a “bundle”.

With media giants such as Showtime and HBO cutting their ties with large cable companies and moving their content to online streaming, it is an exciting future and one that will yield unpredictable results in the market as the industry grows rapidly and consumers are pressed for subscription fees that are larger than they have been paying on cable.

Study Finds Female Job Seekers Less Likely To See Ads For High Paying Jobs On Google

Finance

New research has found that Female Google users in search of a job are far less likely to be shown advertisements for highly paid jobs than men.

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon constructed an automated test system named AdFisher that acted like male or female job seekers. The nearly 20,000 fake profiles had only visited job related sites and were shown over 600,000 ads which the team tracked and analyzed.

The study’s authors concluded that “in particular, we found that males were shown ads encouraging the seeking of coaching services for high paying jobs more than females.”

An example of this bias was a case where Google displayed ads for a coaching service for “$200k+” executive jobs. The ads were displayed to 1,852 members of the male group yet just 318 times to the female group.

Google’s ad targeting system is complex, taking into account various factors of personal information, browsing history and internet activity and also pairing this information with data from advertisers on when ad clicks led to a sale.

The fake users began with completely fresh profiles and behaved in the exact same way, aside from visiting female and male oriented websites respectively. Yet while this could show gender discrimination it is not necessarily the ad networks or advertisers purposely doing this.

Advertisers show ads where they make the most money. Clicks need to be translated into sales and advertisers respond to this clicks to sales ratio. If females are less likely to respond to online ads for spammy career advancement services advertisers will simply stop showing ads and that may just happen to be for all females.

A Google spokeswoman confirmed this fact, saying that: “Advertisers can choose to target the audience they want to reach, and we have policies that guide the type of interest-based ads that are allowed.”

Yet the study authors warned that even if its just about ad performance the discrimination is still occurring and its effects will still be felt. “Male candidates getting more encouragement to seek coaching services for high-paying jobs could further the current gender pay gap. Even if this decision was made solely for economic reasons, it would continue to be discrimination,” said the authors.

Yet the study is problematic because the authors did not control for re-marketing, where the ads they see will be based on pages they have visited. If the list of websites they visited was skewed female or male it could have influenced the results of the study.

“One possible reason why Google served more male ads could be re-marketing, a marketing strategy that encourages users to return to previously visited website,” the authors confirmed.

Multiple examples of sites were found that had been observed serving ads and were also included in the list of sites the fake profiles visited. Such behavior would trigger ad serving not based on gender but based on the site visited previously.

Google did not comment directly on the discrimination issue but said that it prohibits ad targeting within its “sensitive category policy”, which includes substance abuse and other health issues. It also does not allow re-marketing within the same sensitive areas.

Russian Motives Questioned As It Unveils ‘Heterosexual Flag’

Entertainment News

Russian Bloggers are calling today’s supposed announcement by the country’s leading political party that is launching a “heterosexual flag” to honor traditional family values bogus.

The announcement was reported in today’s edition of the Izvestia newspaper.

An article claimed Andrei Lisovenko, deputy head of the Moscow branch of United Russia, the country’s ruling political party, had shown reporters the flag which features the outlines of a woman and man holding hands with three children. The flag also displays the Russian-language hashtag “A Real Family”.

Lisovenko is reported as saying the flag would be officially unveiled at Moscow’s Sokolniki park as part of a United Russia’s Day of Family, Love and Fidelity.

If there is in fact an official Russian Government sponsored “heterosexual flag”, its unveiling comes on the heels of the recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court which legalized same-sex marriage. The White House honored the decision by being bathed in lights showing the colors of the LGBT community’s rainbow flag symbol.

“This is our response to same-sex marriage, to this mockery of the concept of the family. We have to warn against gay-fever at home and support traditional values in our country,” Lisovenko is reported to have said.

Although homosexuality is not illegal in Russia, a June 2013 law bans promotion of “nontraditional” sexual relations to minors. A poll published in May by the Levada Center showed 37 percent of Russians think homosexuality is a disease which needs to be cured.

After news broke of the heterosexual flag’s design, Russia’s microblogging site RIP Novosti questioned the flag’s originality.

On its Twitter account it posted a photo of a similar flag bearing the symbol of France’s anti-gay marriage movement La Manif Pour Tous.

The Day of Family, Love and Fidelity was introduced in 2008. Four Russian regions — Amur, Tula, Kurban and Kaluga have banned divorce proceedings on the day.

Washington Redskins Lose Right To Trademark Controversial Name

News

The campaign to have the Redskins change their controversial name notched up another win today after a federal judge ordered a stop to the Washington Redskins’ federal trademark registrations.

The NFL team has been battling calls by Native American activists for decades to change its name which the activists claim are racist and disparaging.

The trademark registration cancellation order can not go into effect until the Redskins organization has exhausted all available appeals processes. Team President Bruce Allen said his organization would appeal today’s decision.

“We are convinced that we will win on appeal as the facts and the law are on the side of our franchise that has proudly used the name Washington Redskins for more than 80 years,” said Allen.

Legal expert said that even if the Redskins take the case all the way to the Supreme Court and lose, it can still use “Redskins” and seek state law trademark protection.

Today U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee affirmed last year’s ruling by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board which said because the team name was offensive to Native Americans, it was not able to have federal trademark protection.

Lee threw out the team’s argument that between 1967 and 1990 when the trademarks were granted, most Native Americans did not object to the name. He questioned why the NFL team ever chose the name, citing the Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary 1898 definition of Redskins as “often contemptuous”, which he said was “seventy years prior to the registration of the first Redskins Mark”.

Lee however said the team does not have stop using its name or selling team gear emblazoned with the word Redskins.

One of the attorneys for the Native Americans activists Jesse Witten said after the court decision that “This is a huge victory. Getting this ruling from a U.S. District judge is a watershed event”.

Bruce Allen said the team would never change its name.

Russia Pushing Siberian Swamps As Next Hot Tourist Destination

Culture

Siberia is known more commonly as a desolate wasteland where Russian dissidents were sent under the Stalin regime, but now the country has begun promoting itself as a winter ecotourism destination.

The promotion is centered on the 53,000km sq Vasyugan Mire, the largest swamp in the northern hemisphere, which is home to a huge range of unique flora and fauna.

Recently the Russian Geographical Society’s Tomsk branch organized a six person, 120 kilometer expedition through the area to test drive plans for such trips for tourists and to compile a comprehensive list of what the swamp’s ecosystem contains, to be used as a lure for eco-tourists.

The “expedition” despite encountering freezing conditions was heralded a success by the Professional Expeditions Tourist Center which bankrolled the inaugural trek.

A documentary shot during the week-long trip will be premiered later this year.

Twenty five year old Danil Barashkov, a biologist from Tomsk described the trip as a “great adventure.”

“There were lots of interesting things.’I remember a chance encounter with wood grouse that jumped in front of us on the path and flew away.Most of all I remember the stunning sunsets. They were an indescribable sight – the play of light, clouds, the tops of miniature pine trees and snow expanses merged into a single breath-taking picture,” he said.

Formed 10,000 years ago, Vasyugan Mire is home to large numbers of endangered species like the fish hawk and the white-tailed eagle.

The only female member of the trip Svetlana Pakhomenko said she felt “a real sense of infinity.”

“Everywhere we went there was a fantastic sun. Never have I seen such a beautiful setting sun. It gave us a cosmic feeling.” she enthused.

However the trip wasn’t all rosy and by the descriptions of overall conditions, only the most hardy of eco-tourists would list the it on their must see bucket-list.

Barashkov said deep snow slowed the group down at times and progress was not helped by having to carry heavy backpacks filled with all the equipment needed to enable the trekkers to be 100 percent self-sufficient.

He said at temperatures at night dropped to -40 degrees fahrenheit.

“It was very hard psychologically to get out of the sleeping bag in the morning because of the cold. We had ordinary tents and the temperature inside them was almost equal to the temperature outside,” said Barashkov.

“As a rule, in such circumstances you need to become laid back to some extent. And you can’t have a sense of fear in such an expedition. The imagination loves to play with a person, and if you give it a reason to, you can see a lot of silhouettes of people or human-like creatures, especially in the evening at dusk. Still, we never saw anything supernatural – except the indescribable beauty of the sunsets.”

Netherlands Public Image Takes Huge Hit Over Domestic Spying

Entertainment News

The Netherlands public image as one of the world’s leaders in personal freedoms has taken a bashing with news its government is seeking to beef up its online snooping capabilities to spy on its law abiding citizens.

It wants changes to the Dutch Intelligence & Security Act of 2002 which will allow for compelled decryption and bulk data surveillance and interception of “any form of telecom or data transfer”.

The proposed changes would give Dutch intelligence services power to force anyone to “help” decrypt data, by handing over either encryption keys or actual decrypted data.

As the Netherlands is a major cross road for internet traffic – connecting data freeways from Europe to the Middle East, from the United States to Hong Kong and back -the new proposals would also give Dutch authorities the ability to spy on global communications, perhaps even on behalf of the NSA or British GCHQ that have operate such arrangement presently.

Public input into the changes to the Intelligence & Security Act will be taken util September 1st.

If the proposals are passed into law, experts said the Netherlands would have “the most permissive snooping regime in the Western World” giving credence to the claims made earlier this year by super snitch and whistle blower Edward Snowden who called the Dutch “the Surveillance Kings of Europe”.

Snowden is the American computer professional and former CIA employee who in 2013 leaked classified information from the U.S. National Security Agency. Snowden is holed down in Russia with the backing of Russian authorities, with the U.S. government trying to figure out how to get him back to the States to face charges.

Snowden told Dutch television the U.S. National Security Agency and its partners in Europe were “encouraging” Dutch intelligence services to join the “Five Eyes ” group made up of the U.S, United Kingdom Canada, Australia and New Zealand who swop electronic surveillance under a multilateral treaty drawn up during the Cold War.

Commentators say Dutch intelligence heads would get a bigger kick from having the Netherlands perceived as a super spy nation than being the world leader in personal freedom laws which saw it become one of the first countries to legalize dope smoking, prostitution and euthanasia.

New Russian ‘Carrier Killer’ Submarine More Dream Than Reality According To Experts

Entertainment News

An announcement that Russia is building up its arsenal of military hardware with the development of a new class of nuclear submarines was more bluff than substance according to experts in the U.S.

The announcement came from Anatoly Shlemov the head of the state-owned United Shipbuilding Corporation’s state defense order department who said the new submarine class will be divided up into “underwater interceptor” and “aircraft carrier killer” vessels.

He said “The main purpose of the underwater interceptor is to protect groups of ballistic missile carrying submarines, and to battle with enemy submarines. The second ship will be a cruise missile carrier used for defeating coastal and surface targets.”

No other information was released about the supposed Russian fifth generation submarine.
American naval analyst Norman Friedman said he was is skeptical about the reality of the Russian announcement.

“I would be skeptical. There’s a history in that country of laying down things that don’t get finished for a long time. No question they’ll lay down the subs, but actually building them after that is a more interesting question — I get the feeling for all the big talk from the Russians about building a new fleet, they’re probably having trouble getting stuff.” he said.

Friedman said Russia has also lost a lot of expertise in its shipbuilding industry.

“A lot of people quit the yards — If they lost a lot of their smarter people, there’s a difficulty in recreating what they had. Coming back 15 years later and trying to recreate it is kind of dubious.”

There have been other announcements of military hardware from Russia in the past that have as yet not seen the light of day.

Two years ago, the Malakhit Marine Engineering Design Bureau which is based in St. Petersburg reported it would be equipping new stealth features in Russia’s submarine fleet – new noise reduction technology, new reactor safety sand control systems, and new long-range weapons.

But in June, the Bureau’s CEO Vladimir Dorofeyev said that the new class of submarines will be based on a “network-centric system” and that everything will not be new revolutionary technology.

“The reactor will be certainly based on new principles, but there will be no revolution, and it is not needed after all.” said Dorofeyev.

Russian Police Publish Guide To Taking Safer Selfies After Spike In Accidents

Health & Wellness

Russian police have published a How-To-Take-Safer-Selfies guide in response to growing numbers of people being killed or injured taking the self portrait photographs.

The guide is headlined “A cool selfie could cost you your life” and comes after a 21 year old Moscow woman shot herself in the head accidentally while attempting to take a selfie, holding a loaded pistol.

In Russia this year, at least 10 people have died and 100 injured in accidents while taking selfies on their camera phones in dangerous places or hazardous situations. These range from posing with a hand grenade or a loaded gun to taking a photo on top of a railway bridge.

In what could be seen as funny if it were not about a serious problem, the selfie safety campaign uses images similar to road safety signs to show dangerous selfie taking situations – a person with a selfie stick standing on a railway line, another on top of an electricity pylon.

Tips included in the guide include the cautionary note that “a selfie with a weapon kills” , maybe a reference to an incident earlier this year in which two youths in the Urals blew themselves up taking a selfie, holding a hand grenade with the safety pin pulled out. The cell phone survived the explosion, with photos of stupidly dangerous selfie pose.

In May a teenager was electrocuted when he touched live wires while trying to take a selfie on a railway bridge.

On releasing the guide a spokesperson for the Russian Interior Ministry, Yelena Alexeyeva, said: “Unfortunately we have noted recently that the number of accidents caused by lovers of self-photography is constantly increasing. Since the beginning of the year we are talking about some hundred cases of injuries for sure.”

“The problem really exists and leads to very unfortunate consequences,” she said. “Before taking a selfie, everyone should think about the fact that racing after a high number of ‘likes’ could lead him on a journey to death and his last extreme photo could turn out to be posthumous.”

Selfie deaths are not a problem peculiar to Russia as can be seen if you type into Google search “how many people are killed in the world taking selfies.”

Mobile phone are increasingly distracting their users, with one American university even installing dedicated texting while walking lanes to avoid pedestrian injuries.

Afghan Officials Hold First Ever Peace Talks With Taliban

Entertainment News

Earlier this week, the Afghan government held what they called “the start of the first ever official peace talks” between itself and the Taliban leaders in Afghanistan. The “peace talks” are an attempt to curb the violence that the war-torn country has seen for so many years. The talks took place at a resort in the hills of Pakistan. Officials of the United States and China were also in attendance.

As the talks are intended to lead to a more peaceful situation, all participant nations have agreed to “create an environment conducive for peace and reconciliation”, as Pakistani government officials stated Wednesday. All of this comes after Ashraf Ghani, the Afghan President, finally sought dialogue with the Taliban after much urge from the United States. The nation’s leaders are expected to meet again after Ramadan, an Islamic holy month.

Although it is still unknown what the outcome of the discussion will be, the United States and other nations involved are hopeful of the results as they could mean an end or ease to the death destruction that has plagued Afghanistan for so many years. Josh Earnest, the White House Press Secretary, shared the Obama Administration’s feelings on the issue as he stated, “This is an important step in advancing prospects for a credible peace”.

The talks hold a lot of weight as the Taliban forces in Afghanistan grow stronger and begin to spread. This comes at the same time that troops of the US and NATO begin reducing their numbers in Afghanistan. The Afghan Foreign Ministry also weighed in on the matter stating that they have hopes these meetings are a starting point to a peaceful future in their home country.

The United States ended their combat mission in Afghanistan earlier the previous year yet still play a role in supporting the Afghan troops against the Taliban. The same goes for the remaining NATO troops that are only there to train and support other troops. Both officials of the US and NATO hope that this empowerment of the Afghan resistance against the Taliban will produce a political reconciliation.

The UN’s secretary general’s special representative for Afghanistan, Nicholas Haysom shared his thoughts on the matter saying that “peace is not a luxury” but a “necessity”. Many fear that the Taliban will withhold from the peace talks in an effort to gain a better negotiating position in the future. In the past, peace talks with the Taliban haven’t always lived up to the hype. The US and Afghan leaders look to the next meeting with the Taliban to help move closer to peace agreements.

Dangerously High Caesarean Birth Rates In Brazil Prompt Lawmaker Action

Health & Wellness

The amount of Caesarean sections is at dangerous high in Brazil. According to the World Health Organization, Caesarean sections should make up no more than 10-15% of total births. In the case of Brazil, C-sections account for more than half of births in total. More specifically, 85% of births in private hospitals and 45% in public hospitals consist of C-sections. With numbers this high, Health Minister Aruthur Chioro called it an “epidemic” as the government puts forth measures to help curb this dangerous trend.

The regulations put forth by the Brazilian government are set this week and aim to encourage women to choose traditional birth over C-sections. Doctors are now forced to inform women about the potential risk factors of the Caesarean section. Patients must also sign a waiver before the doctor is permitted to perform the operation. If a C-section is performed, a doctor must then fill out a comprehensive record describing the birth and why it was necessary to perform the surgery.

The Director of the National Health Agency, Jose Carlos de Souza Abrahao justified the governmental regulations stating, “By informing her of the risks that could come with an unnecessary surgical procedure, she will be more sure in her decision regarding the delivery, choosing what’s best for her health and for her baby’s health”. Clearly, officials feel as though women in the past weren’t given sufficient information to make an informed decision on their own. It is hoped that these new regulations encourage women to think critically about their decision.

However, it is has been reported in Brazil that mothers who intended and requested to give natural birth were unable to due to the lack of proper beds. A majority of these cases took place in a private hospital and the beds were unavailable due to reservations made for scheduled deliveries. This issue has led experts to declare C-sections as a safer alternative to natural births in Brazil based on the shortage of beds necessary for live births. With reports of doctors encouraging women to have a C-section to avoid pain of natural birth, it seems as though curbing this epidemic may be a difficult undertaking.

‘No’ Vote To Austerity Pushes Greece Closer To Euro Exit

Entertainment News

After voting ‘no’ to more austerity measures issued by its creditors, Greece is now at the mercy of the European Union. Greece failed yet again to meet another deadline for paying back some of their massive debt. While the Greek people asked for a three year bailout plan, its Eurozone creditors demanded that Greece put in place more austerity measures such as increased taxes and cuts in pensions. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras moved the decision to a vote and the Greek citizens answered resoundingly ‘No.’’

As the EU now must make decisions, other European countries are talking openly about kicking Greece out of the Eurozone. Jean-Claude Juncker, the European Commission President stated that Europe already has a “Grexit scenario prepared in detail.” Greece’s economy is on the brink of collapse as the stock market has come to a halt and banks are running out of money as people rush to take out what money they have left.

Greece’s Prime Minister traveled to Strasbourg, Germany on Wednesday in a final attempt to stay in the Euro. This came after Angela Merkel, Germany’s Chancellor, announced that she was “not especially optimistic” about coming to a conclusion with Greece. This didn’t stop Prime Minister Tsipras, as staying in the Euro is his greatest priority. After all, if Greece is kicked out of the euro, they are truly on their own, although there are rumors China’s new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank could be interested in lending them money.

If Greece really wants to stay put, they must come up with a convincing strategy for their economy by 8:30pm this Friday. To be convincing, Greece’s proposal will most certainly have to include some of the austerity measures detailed by the creditors.

If not accepted, Greece will likely be slowly removed from the Euro. First, the ECB will simply stop giving Greek banks Euros. This will force the country to issue IOU’s and this will eventually lead to a parallel currency that will replace the euro within Greece.

Greece’s 5-year struggle with debt and corruption have let to a point that no country in the EU would have expected. The Eurozone was created to unite countries as one and to prevent isolation. It seems as though the economic tension between Greece and its loaners has proved to be too taxing on their relationships. As talks move closer and closer to kicking Greece out of the Eurozone, many wait in anticipation as Europe wanders into uncharted territory.

Uber To Pay Licensing Fees, Revenue Tax To Operate In Mexico City

Finance

Taxi hailing app Uber will see its drivers needing permits to work in Mexico City according to draft reports of legislation leaked to local media. The proposal would also force the company itself to pay into a transport fund, the first such regulatory crackdown for the company in Latin America.

The proposal would also ban Uber, as well as similar companies, from taking cash payments from customers, using taxi stands or offering prepaid plans.

The cost to Uber for each vehicle licensed would be about $100 per year, with 1.5 percent of revenue generated within Mexico being given to a city transport fund under the proposed plan.

While negotiations over the plan are still ongoing, officials close to the transport ministry said the full proposal should be made public next week.

Uber Mexico spokeswoman Ana Paula Blanco said the company is happy to pay some costs if the result is playing on a “level field” with local taxis. Mexico is a massive market for Uber and since its launch in 2013 it has gained about 300,000 users.

Taxi union leader Ruben Alcantara, who appears to have leaked the draft, claimed he was told Uber would have to pay between three and five percent of gross revenue into the transportation fund, well below the 1.5 percent leaked by city officials.

Mexico City has seen street protests against Uber by its more than 140,000 registered taxis, similar to those it recently garned in Paris when taxi drivers there rioted to stop the company’s low cost UberPOP service.

Uber faces headwinds in Latin America as recently in Sao Paulo, Brazil’s largest city, and the capital Brasilia, lawmakers voted to ban the service after protests by taxi drivers. Sao Paulo even seized 23 unlicensed Uber vehicles last summer in response to continued opposition by taxi drivers.

In Bogota, Columbia, Uber drivers have been regularly attacked by regular taxi drivers. Colombia has declared Uber to be illegal and police have impounded vehicles offering Uber services.

Uber, which has taken an extremely aggressive approach to expansion, said it will continue to operate in both Brazil and Colombia because of strong public demand.

ISIS Kills Children While Blowing Up Historical Iraqi Church

Entertainment News

Four children were killed “accidentally” by Islamic State (ISIS) terrorists while they were blowing up a historical Christian church in the Iraqi city of Mosul, according to Kurdish officials.

The media officer for the Mosul branch of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (PDK) Saeed Mamuzini said the children were near the historical St Mary’s church when bombs planted in the church exploded on Monday.

Mamuzin said the church, which stood in central Mosul, was “thousands of years” old.

It was the latest historical landmark in Mosul destroyed by ISIS in its rampage of destruction and terror since taking control of Iraq’s second largest city.

The terrorists have blown up dozens of Christian churches and Shia mosques saying they were ‘heretical structures’ , including the 1,800-year-old Assyrian Christian church and the tomb of Prophet Jonah. The group released photos and videos of their sacrilegious acts.

The St Ephrem’s Cathedral in Mosul, which once was the seat of the Syriac Orthodox archdiocese, is now used by ISIS as an ammunition depot. Experts say it is typical of ISIS to store military equipment and munitions in historical religious buildings they have not destroyed, as they believe American forces and their allies will not bomb them.

Similarly other terrorist organization in the Middle East launch rocket attacks from residential areas and use human shields to deter retaliatory strikes. If there is a strike back which kills civilians, they then use these deaths as propaganda tools saying their enemies kill civilians.

Chinese Stocks Plummet In 1929 Style Crash

Finance

As people turn their attention to Greece as the austerity measures have been voted on and recently denied, on the other side of the world China is feeling their own financial pain. It has been a record setting 12 continuous days that the margin debt balances in China have plummeted. This less of capacity to hold securities in trading accounts, due to insufficient margin, has resulted in a loss of around $2.6 trillion or roughly 40 percent of the Chinese market’s total value.

Since last night, accumulative amounts greater than 54 percent of all Chinese stocks have been frozen at a standstill. Approximately 270 out of 1694 Shenzhen stocks have been halted or suspended along with hundreds more from Shanghai.

In an attempt to curb this massive drop in value, reminiscent of the great 1929 stock market crash in the United States, China has taken some measures to help manage leverage within the market. They have done this primarily by lightening up the rules for insurers who purchase blue chips. In addition, China has also directly financed the shares of smaller companies when purchased by outside shareholders.

Despite China’s best efforts, leverage is still at record setting heights as the collateral value is dropping at a rate that is faster than margin debt, forcing people to sell. Shanghai has seen its largest one-day drop in history as the margin debt plummeted a stunning 8.5% yesterday.

Although China has had one of the most successful and fruitful economies in the past few years, it is important to watch their stocks closely. Any sort of fluctuation or shifts, especially ones as violent as these recent events, can be felt around the world. With the Eurozone on the brink of kicking out their first member, and the Chinese stock market experiencing its largest plummet ever, these next few months will be a critical time for the world economy.

For The First Time In History A Female Is Running A Mexican Drug Cartel

Finance

The Arellano Felix cartel, one of the most infamous groups of drug smugglers in Tijuana now has a new leader. This time it is not a man suspected to be in charge, but a woman a feat virtually unheard of in the world of Mexican drug cartels.

As the male roles of the Arellano Felix clan were making a name for themselves during the eighties in the Tijuana drug circuit as brutally violent narcotics dealers with an appetite for wild parties and inhumane torture, it is reported that Enedina Arellano Felix, currently suspected of leading the cartel, was studying at a private university to become an accountant.

With her background in accounting, it wasn’t long before Enedina operated the entire financial side of the cartel. This role both helped to keep Enedina out of several quarrels with other drug cartels and also gave her an advantage of having experience in the business. Before rising to the top of the Arrelano Felix Cartel, Enedina used to run several businesses through which the cartel would launder their drug profits. These businesses have since been blacklisted by the U.S. Treasury under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Act.

Mexican journalist Javier Valdez commented “The women who rise high in [cartels] are very rare. They have to be extremely intelligent, talented and brave.” Valdez was referring to the fact that Enedina is one of the only known female leaders of a drug cartel. While there have been female narcotics dealers in the past none have been suspected of running a whole cartel.

Enedina Arellano Felix seems to have all the tools she needs to rebuild the Arellano Felix cartel. She has the business background and has been successful in staying out of the many wars her other male counterparts would have jumped into without hesitation. Drug cartels have a long history of the mistreatment of women as they are typically used and then brutally killed. As a leader in the cartel, Enedina is in a position to change the cartel culture and bring it into the 21st century, if she doesn’t end up arrested or assassinated.

Pentagon Report Shows U.S. Forces Have Trained Just 60 Troops In Syria

Entertainment News

As ISIS continues to pose a greater threat to the stability of the surrounding Middle East, as well as the national security of the United States, the U.S. influence in Syria is becoming more critical than before. However, some recent news from the Secretary of Defense Ash Carter has many people questioning the Obama Administration’s foreign policy on this issue as Carter admitted before several U.S. official that only 60 fighters have been successfully trained in Syria thus far.

Due to the Obama administration’s promise to keep U.S. troops out of this conflict, training Syrian fighters was one piece of the Administration’s plan to train troops in Syria to fight against ISIS.

The training program was projected to have successfully prepared at least 5,000 within the first year, making it abundantly clear that the program is far behind its goals and largely ineffective. Secretary Carter received harsh criticism from U.S. officials during a conference as he admitted the failings of this program. Carter blamed the strict vetting process for the lack of successful conversions.

All Syrian troops being trained undergo a strict onboarding process meant to ensure a few critical points. First and foremost, the troops must have the ability to fight ISIS. They must then pass a counterintelligence screening. Lastly, troops must meet the standards set forth by the U.S. for armed conflict. With 7,000 Syrian Kurds volunteering for this program, the vetting process has only allowed for 60 thus far.

Senator John McCain has been one of the harshest critics when it comes to President Obama’s strategy, calling it “delusional.” The comments came following a press conference at the Pentagon in which the President asked for patience as he said the effort in Syria will be a multi-year one. Carter and Obama argue that the effectiveness of the program will only improve over time as more and more troops are vetted.

Critics such as McCain, as well as American citizens, are calling the effectiveness of the program into question as ISIS continues to take several key cities and the instability in the area continues to grow. There are also calls for increased U.S. military presence in the conflict which the Obama administration is keen to avoid as it counters his legacy as a President who withdrew U.S. troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Three North Korean Sailors Defect After Rescue By South Korea

Entertainment News

South Korea announced on Tuesday that three sailors from North Korea have made the decision to stay in the South after the South Korean Coast Guard rescued the three, as well as two others, after their ship started to sink on Tuesday. The ship was found off the northeast coast of South Korea near the island of Ulleungdo. It has not been reported where the sailors were heading.

As the conditions in North Korea worsen, thousands of North Koreans attempt to flee to their neighbors to the South each year. Since the Korean War ended in 1953, over 28,000 people from North Korea have fled to South Korea with a majority of them making the trek through China while a few take the risk of crossing the heavily guarded borders on land as well as water.

After discussing with the sailors, South Korea has contacted the North and reported that they are sending two of the five sailors back upon their wish. The other three have defected to stay in the South. The exchange is set to take place at a village between the two countries known as Panmunjom. Although the North demanded to have all of the sailors returned, from a humanitarian perspective, the South has agreed to keep the other three per their request.

This is certainly not the first time that sailors have ended up in South Korea after leaving from the North. On purpose or not, a majority of the sailors make the decision to defect and stay in the South should they get the chance. The North, and its manic leader Kim Jong-un, is never happy with this decision due to the negative press it generates for the hermit kingdom.

The North will often imprison the families of defectors, which serves as a deterrent to would-be escapees. Yet threats of violence have failed to stem the tide of refugees from the impoverished North as on Kim Jong-un’s birthday this year six prominent scientists and their families made the daring escape, angering the Jong-un deeply.

Ancient Town Now Running All Public Services Through Twitter

Entertainment News

2,200 years ago, Romans founded the small Andalusian town of Jun, near the city of Granada. While still being a quaint little town known for its pottery, Jun is making a name for itself as being avant-gardes in the realm of using social media to run a town. Complete with an obelisk in the center of the town’s roundabout, Jun has leapt ahead into the 21nd century by using Twitter to help decrease bureaucracy, run a more successful administration and to serve its people.

The Mayor of Jun, José Antonio Rodríguez Salas, has promoted the use of Twitter in his town by encouraging everyone to make an account. This is a project that Salas has pursued for many years, and the hard work is starting to pay off. This is not the first time Jun has used the Internet to their advantage as previous election campaigns have all been conducted online, saving the town a lot of money. Not surprisingly, this comes from a town that made Internet a basic public service and a right of its citizens in December of 1999.

All residents of Jun who wish to use the services provided need to register their account with at the local town hall. Some of the services provided include communication between the residents with the local police officer as well as the local street sweeper. Via Twitter, residents can contact these people directly about concerns they have.

These services have increased productivity within Jun and have allowed Mayor Salas to reduce the police force from four down to one. All of this has been accomplished through the ease of communication that Twitter allows its users. While the communication is done online, it still hasn’t killed the bustling social scene in Jun. According to Twitter’s chief data scientist, Deb Roy, who visited Jun earlier this year, “[T]he town hall still buzzes with people and [Mayor Salas] is very visible in the town.”

Deb Roy as well as Dick Costolo, former CEO of Twitter, paid a visit to the small town of Jun to see how their social media platform was helping a whole town to run more effectively and efficiently. It is no doubt that Twitter isn’t effective enough to help a larger city to run smoothly, but the experiment in Jun is certainly a testimony to the importance of communication between a small group of individuals.