An international team of astronomers has used nearly three years of high precision data from NASA’s Kepler spacecraft to make the first observations of a planet outside our solar system that’s smaller than Mercury, the smallest planet orbiting our sun. The planet is about the size of the Earth’s moon. It is one of three [...]
Kepler Spacecraft Helps Astronomers Find Tiny Planet Beyond Our Solar System
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Nigeria Government Ordered To Pay for Human Rights Violations
By Heather Murdock Fourteen years after the Odi community in Nigeria’s Niger Delta was flattened in what many call a ‘massacre,’ a Nigerian court this week ordered the government to pay the community nearly $240 million within the next three weeks. Exactly what happened in Odi, a town in oil-rich Bayelsa State, is still unclear. [...]
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Connecting Entitlement Reform To Immigration Reform – OpEd
I was born in 1946, just when the boomer wave began. Bill Clinton was born that year, too. So was George W. Bush, as was Laura Bush. And Ken Starr (remember him?) And then, the next year, Hillary Rodham was born. And soon Newt Gingrich (known as “Newty” as a boy). And Cher (Every time [...]
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Chaos In Bulgarian Energy
An energy crisis has triggered mass demonstrations, the resignation of the Bulgarian government and cyber attacks on electricity distributor CEZ. A long-running failure to maintain generating capacity underlies the country’s problems. Issues came to a head for the country after power bills surged on winter heating demand. The State Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (SEWRC) [...]
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Sri Lanka’s Authoritarian Turn
As the UN Human Rights Council prepares to open its 22nd session next week, the Sri Lankan government has made no meaningful progress on either reconciliation or accountability and instead has accelerated the country’s authoritarian turn, with attacks on the judiciary and political dissent that threaten long-term stability and peace. Sri Lanka’s Authoritarian Turn: The [...]
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Modifying Infant’s Diet May Reduce Celiac Disease Risk
Celiac disease is much more common in Sweden than in the rest of Europe and the U.S., but may be prevented with gradually introducing gluten-containing foods to breast-feeding infants, according to a comprehensive study led by researchers at Umeå University. Celiac disease, also known as gluten intolerance, is a chronic disease whose only treatment is [...]
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Saudi Arabia, Qatar Call For More Support To Syrian Rebels
Saudi Arabia and Qatar share the West’s alarm at the rise of al Qaeda-aligned groups in Syria, but say the answer is for outsiders like them to be more involved in backing rebels there, according to Reuters. The two Gulf Arab states rooting for President Bashar al-Assad’s overthrow appear to be chafing at Western pressure [...]
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Rescuing Mali From Islamist Militants – OpEd
By Samir Amin I am one of those who out of principle condemn all military interventions by Western powers in the countries of the South, these interventions being by nature subject to the requirements of the deployment of control of the planet by the capital of the monopolies that dominate the system. Is the French [...]
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Burma: Let Us Give Bogyoke Aung San A Second Chance – OpEd
How can it be possible to give a dead man (assassinated in 1947) a second chance? No! It was to his ideas and vision that the Union of Burma was born on 12. February 1947 just before his untimely death when the ethnic nationalities joined a major ethnic group calling themselves Burman — now called [...]
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U.S.–Mexico Border: Tighter Border Security Requires Mexico’s Cooperation – OpEd
By Ray Walser, Ph.D. and Jessica Zuckerman As the debate over immigration reform heats up, the topic of border security—especially on the southwest border with Mexico—looms larger. Washington policymakers ask: How many miles of fence, how many Border Patrol agents, how many billions of tax dollars will be enough to finally “secure” the border? There [...]
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Pistorius’s Story Challenged, Bail Decision Pending
By Anita Powell Lawyers have concluded their arguments in the bail hearing of South African Olympic runner Oscar Pistorius, who is charged with murder in the shooting death of his girlfriend, model Reeva Steenkamp. The prosecution says Pistorius, a double amputee athlete, committed pre-meditated murder, while the defense maintains he thought he was shooting a [...]
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The Destruction Of The NHS In North West London – OpEd
Yesterday’s news was expected, but it still hit hard. Following proposals put forward last June, the Joint Committee of North West London Primary Care Trusts proposed the closure of four of the nine A&E Departments at hospitals in north west London, and on Tuesday, despite vigorous campaigns throughout the area against the proposals, the committee [...]
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Obamacare’s Marriage Penalty – OpEd
In almost every case under the Affordable Care Act, married couples will fare poorly compared to unmarried couples. The reason: subsidies in the newly created health insurance exchange will treat two singles better than a married couple. Suppose you are earning 200 percent of the federal poverty level (currently $21,660). You will be required to [...]
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Amid Tensions, US, South Korea To Hold Annual Military Drills
The United States and South Korea have announced plans for large-scale joint military exercises next month, just weeks after North Korea’s latest nuclear test raised regional tensions. A statement issued by the Combined Forces Command on Thursday says the annual war drills will begin on March 1 with a month-long series of air, ground and [...]
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Sen. Lindsey Graham Says U.S. Drones Have Killed Nearly 5,000 People
For the first time ever, a senior US senator has publicly announced the number of victims of America’s ever expanding drone war — and apparently it’s even bigger than some independent researchers have suggested. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) put a number on the United States’ growing tally of kills caused by Uncle Sam’s arsenal [...]
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India Blast Leaves 12 Dead, 52 Injured
At least 12 people were killed and 52 injured when three bombs shook the southern Indian city of Hyderabad late on Thursday, police said. “I can confirm that 12 people have lost their lives and at least 52 people have been injured,” Amit Garg, a senior police officer at the scene of one of the [...]
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India: Growing Inequality And Destructive Development: Misery For The Many, Benefits For The Few – OpEd
Upon a foundation of deep spirituality and philosophical treasures, proclaiming unity, justice and service, New India, horns honking in violation of the good; is racing, no time to spare towards the Alter of Materiality and Market Fundamentalism. Under the careful guidance of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) The Indian government has [...]
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Afghanistan: Karzai Looks For Religious Support To End Suicide Attacks – Analysis
Afghan President Hamid Karzai flew to Egypt from Oslo on February 5, after signing a strategic Partnership Agreement with Norway. He arrived in Cairo to attend the 12th summit meeting of the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) that began on February 6 with leaders from 56 Islamic nations, excluding Syria, gathered in Cairo to [...]
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Israel Starts Oil Exploration in Golan Heights
The Israeli government has issued the first license to explore for oil on the Golan Heights, the plateau in south-western Syria captured and annexed by Israel, the license holder Genie Energy said on Thursday. The license allows Genie Energy’s Israeli subsidiary to conduct oil exploration on an area of almost 400 sq km (155 square [...]
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Gaddafi Planned Terrorist Attacks In Saudi Arabia, According To Leaked Files
The slain Libyan strongman, Muammar Gaddafi, sought to recruit armed militants to carry out terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia, according to leaked files published Wednesday by the London-based Asharq al-Awsat newspaper. Fighters, including al-Qaeda mercenaries, were actively sought out in countries including Somalia, Yemen and Iraq, by the then-Libyan leader. One of the documents published [...]
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