News Stories

[Anh_Minh]

Haven't read the article, but I guess it's counted in your data plan anyway. Well, I guess you can call from a free wifi hotspot.

[ganbaru]

Mortgage Plan Gives Homeowners Bulk of the Benefits
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/10/bu...omeowners.html

After months of painstaking talks, government authorities and five of the nation’s biggest banks have agreed to a $26 billion settlement that could provide relief to nearly two million current and former American homeowners harmed by the bursting of the housing bubble, state and federal officials said in Washington on Thursday. ...

[Ithekro]

US licenses first nuclear reactors since 1978

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/20...ors-since-1978

The licensing covers two reactors estimated to cost $14 billion that the Southern Company wants to add to its existing Vogtle nuclear plant in Georgia. Preliminary work has already begun and plans are for the first new reactor to be operating in 2016.

....................

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has taken steps to improve safety at the 104 reactors across the U.S. In particular, better defenses against earthquakes, floods and fires are in the works after Fukushima.

[Xellos-_^]

Originally Posted by ganbaru

Mortgage Plan Gives Homeowners Bulk of the Benefits
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/10/bu...omeowners.html

It doesn't do anything for me since i am not behind or underwater

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Ithekro

US licenses first nuclear reactors since 1978

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/20...ors-since-1978

No wonder the jobless rate went down.

[Ithekro]

The reactors are of the AP1000 type. There are 12 other reactor (in pairs at 6 locations) awaiting approval in several southern states.

[ganbaru]

U.S. squeezes French-led satellite maker over China
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8181F020120209

The United States has threatened action that could disrupt a French-led satellite maker's supply chain, spurred by suspicion that it illegally used U.S. know-how or parts in spacecraft launched by Chinese rockets.

U.S. military seeks more access in Philippines
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8180Q020120209

The United States is seeking more access to Philippines ports and airfields to re-fuel and service its warships and planes, diplomatic and military sources said on Thursday, expanding its presence at a time of tension with China in the South China Sea.

[Ithekro]

I like that the one comment to that article accusses Reuters of treason for not calling it the "West" Philippine Sea.

You aren't just able to rename a sea that you've been calling one thing for a long time just because of a political squabble an call it treason if someone doesn't use your new term. Especially when the maps still say South China Sea, and have for a long time. If it was Vietnam I would understand (they call it the East Sea if I recall), but the Philippines has been calling it the South China Sea (Dagat Timog Tsina) for a long time.

[Ithekro]

Marines posed with Nazi SS symbol in Afghanistan

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46329740

The U.S. Marine Corps once again did damage control after a photograph surfaced of a sniper team in Afghanistan posing in front of a flag with a logo resembling that of the notorious Nazi SS — a special unit that murdered millions of Jews, gypsies and others.

The Corps said in a statement that using the symbol was not acceptable, but the Marines in the photograph taken in September 2010 will not be disciplined because investigators determined it was a naive mistake.

The Marines believed the SS symbol was meant to represent sniper scouts and never intended to be associated with a racist organization, said Maj. Gabrielle Chapin, a spokeswoman at Camp Pendleton, where the Marines were based.

"I don't believe that the Marines involved would have ever used any type of symbol associated the Nazi Germany military criminal organization that committed mass atrocities in WWII," Chapin said. "It's not within who we are as Marines."

The Corps has used the incident as a training tool to talk to troops about what symbols are acceptable after it became aware of the photograph last November, Chapin said.

From what I understand, they have been using this syblom for a long time. Something like using one's enemies symbols of fear and turning it against them.

Makes one wonder. It is truely alright to "never forget" to the point where symbols cannot be used without evil intent? Even if the symbol was used prior to the evil for other purposes? Maybe work should be done to remove the corrupted taint off some of those symbols and make them mean something positive....while still remembering what happened so that it might not happen again. While the exact imagry might remain forever corrupted (black swastika on a blood red field), it might be an idea to repurpose the symbols so that not all uses of a shape are considered evil (I recall that the Finnish military use to use light blue swastika, and the symbol is used for religious purposes in both Asia and by Native Amerincas).

Is it wrong to think that maybe we can move on. Remembering the past, without being stuck by it? Knowing what evil is and try to avoid it, yet not letting their symbols control one's fears and hatreds. Because then, it some ways, they won on a psycological level.

[mechabao]

Originally Posted by Ithekro

I like that the one comment to that article accusses Reuters of treason for not calling it the "West" Philippine Sea.

You aren't just able to rename a sea that you've been calling one thing for a long time just because of a political squabble an call it treason if someone doesn't use your new term. Especially when the maps still say South China Sea, and have for a long time. If it was Vietnam I would understand (they call it the East Sea if I recall), but the Philippines has been calling it the South China Sea (Dagat Timog Tsina) for a long time.

I've never heard anyone over here call it the Western Philippine Sea. He must be one of those ultranationalist, anti-Chinese nutters we see from time to time. I remember one of them trying to hand me a pamphlet containing anti-Chinese rambling outside my school maybe five or six years ago.

[DonQuigleone]

Originally Posted by Ithekro

Marines posed with Nazi SS symbol in Afghanistan

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46329740

If you're going to steal a logo, you may as well steal from the best.

I think they're sincere, but I do have to say that the Nazis really had all the best logos and symbols.

[Haak]

That's just as silly as the whole Swastika earrings in New York crap a couple weeks back. They're just symbols. What's the big deal?

Greek Bailout: Possible Default
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16987644

[Vexx]

The Nazis were fashion geniuses in outfits and symbology grafting ... but yes, they were evil. I'd really like to retake the swastika from them so people start thinking of eastern religion again instead of auto-goto-Nazi.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Vexx

The Nazis were fashion geniuses in outfits and symbology grafting ... but yes, they were evil. I'd really like to retake the swastika from them so people start thinking of eastern religion again instead of auto-goto-Nazi.

Well, the initials for "Scout Sniper" and "Schutzstaffel" are the same.

Now that they have taken up the Nazi logo, they can be friends with Iran! After all, Ahmadinejad denied the Holocaust and staunchly believes that Jews should be wiped off the face of the Earth. *sarcastic*

Originally Posted by Xellos-_^

It doesn't do anything for me since i am not behind or underwater

Looks like a good time to redo your house, since the property market might pick up after this news, prompting more housing-related services to be offered and driving down their cost.

In the long term, I feel that the property market in US is going to be quite rocky this year after this "reimbursement" due to increased caution. All the worse if they are hoarding that cash and not spending.

[Endless Soul]

Kim Jong Un Assassinated?

Pretty sure this is fake, which would make him Kim Jong Un-dead.

However, what would happen if this as actually true? Hoo boy!

Endless "I have an airtight alibi" Soul

[Ithekro]

New Navy ship named after Gabrielle Giffords

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/20...ielle-giffords

The Navy on Friday named its newest combat ship after former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who attended the Pentagon event with the mother of a 9-year-old girl slain in the Tucson shooting rampage that left Giffords gravely wounded.

The 3,000-ton ship, known as an Independence Variant Littoral, will be built in Mobile, Ala., by Austal shipbuilding, as part of the Navy’s strategy to provide access and dominance in coastal waters, according to NBC News.

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus made the announcement before a gathering at the Pentagon’s Center Courtyard. "It's a major part of the future of our Navy," he said about the vessel, which measures 419 feet in length and can travel in excess of 40 knots. "She's going to provide our Navy and country with fast and flexible capability ... this ship can perform an amazing variety of missions."

Well the ship type has not real naming convention, so I don't entirely reject this idea. It is usually not considered a good idea to name a warship after a living person. And of course people tend to no like having ships named after politicians. Though in this day and age, more and more ships are getting named for political people. However there are ship types that are named after soldiers and sailors. Destroyers and frigates are named after people that served in the Navy generally I I recall. Transports are named after marines and I think army men that have lost their lives in combat. Ballistic missile subs and newer attack subs are named after states now (as oppose to battleships and cruisers). Cruisers are named, usually after famous battles (taking the names the world war II carriers had) Assualt ships had names after famous island battles but may be shifting to old carrier names, while the carrier are being named for politicans, with Enterprise being the only remaining active carrier not named after a person.

[Xellos-_^]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Looks like a good time to redo your house, since the property market might pick up after this news, prompting more housing-related services to be offered and driving down their cost.

already finance to a 15yr rate. Only added about $170 to my mortgage but will save about 200k

[Ithekro]

'Tango Down': Anonymous claims attacks on CIA, Alabama state sites

http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news...ma-state-sites

The hacker group Anonymous, or elements claiming to be part of it, claimed it launched an ambitious set of attacks Friday, saying it had taken down the CIA's website and had harvested the personal information of 46,000 people in Alabama.

Neither claim could immediately be confirmed, but the CIA's site remained unavailable late Friday afternoon.

An Anonymous member tweeted CIA TANGO DOWN, using a military expression for the killing of an important target

Whaaaaaa?

[ganbaru]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Now that they have taken up the Nazi logo, they can be friends with Iran! After all, Ahmadinejad denied the Holocaust and staunchly believes that Jews should be wiped off the face of the Earth. *sarcastic*

They would probably very liek to send him a cal.50 bullet...as a friendship gift .

[MrTerrorist]

UK sent nuclear sub near Falklands, says Argentina

Woah, Argentina is using all sorts of wild stories to villainize Britain.