News Stories

[bladeofdarkness]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Looters smash treasures and mummies in Egyptian Museum

Spoiler for text:

I hope the curse of the pharaohs are still as potent as they say.

this event right here, is why Mubarak or his administration might just remain in power.

the situation in Egypt has devolved from "Protests" to "Riots" in the last couple of days, and the Egyptians do NOT like this at all.
you have armed gangs robbing people at knife point, and stores and businesses being looted.
partly its because the protesters have no clear leadership behind it, and partly its because the police is gone, but the situation in Egypt is bad.
a large part of why the protests faded away yesterday, was many people going back home because they fear for their own front door.

that Museum thing is seen as a VERY severe event by many Egyptians.
to compare, its like people in America smashed the Liberty bell during a protest, only 10 times worse.

Egypt historically, does not abide Anarchy and lawlessness, and thats what you have in many places in Cairo and other cities.
the Protesters wanted democracy, free speech, better economic conditions and all the other good stuff that they are right to want.
but i doubt that they wanted a situation where people are afraid to leave their homes for fear of being mugged.

Originally Posted by ChainLegacy

In elections, yeah, since it's unlikely one candidate is THAT much better liked. But this isn't about electing someone; this actually is an issue I can see 90% of people agreeing on. Now whether it's true or not I don't know, but I don't think what you said applies.

a 99% vote for something just strikes me as too one sided.

[solomon]

If Mubarak does step down, I truly wonder if it would be immediate.

As pundits have pointed out, there is no central leader of the opposition. Like it or not, he needs to stay there as a buffer at least until the next election cycle in the fall or the chaos will be much worse in the political and economic sphere.

[sneaker]

I guess Germany won't have to deal with the recent claim on the Nefertiti bust by Egypt for a while.

[AnimeFan188]

Originally Posted by bladeofdarkness

this event right here, is why Mubarak or his administration might just remain in power.

the situation in Egypt has devolved from "Protests" to "Riots" in the last couple of days, and the Egyptians do NOT like this at all.
you have armed gangs robbing people at knife point, and stores and businesses being looted.
partly its because the protesters have no clear leadership behind it, and partly its because the police is gone, but the situation in Egypt is bad.
a large part of why the protests faded away yesterday, was many people going back home because they fear for their own front door.

that Museum thing is seen as a VERY severe event by many Egyptians.
to compare, its like people in America smashed the Liberty bell during a protest, only 10 times worse.

Egypt historically, does not abide Anarchy and lawlessness, and thats what you have in many places in Cairo and other cities.
the Protesters wanted democracy, free speech, better economic conditions and all the other good stuff that they are right to want.
but i doubt that they wanted a situation where people are afraid to leave their homes for fear of being mugged.



a 99% vote for something just strikes me as too one sided.

"There have been a growing number of reports of looters/thugs conducting smash and grabs across Cairo.
Interestingly, there's also a growing number of reports that when these thugs are caught, they have
police/interior ministry identification on them. If this is so, the reasons for it are:

1. It tars the insurgency as a group of criminals and thugs.
2. It provides a reason for a reluctant army to get involved and enact a curfew.
3. It forces a percentage of the movement to stay at home (to guard the neighborhood)."

See:

http://globalguerrillas.typepad.com/...nsurgency.html

It could also be a case of simple corruption. Grab while the grabbin's good, and all that.......

[SaintessHeart]

Japan Dec. industrial production beats forecast

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Japan's industrial production index rose a seasonally adjusted 3.1% during December, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said Monday. The increase beat economists' expectations, as reported by Dow Jones Newswires, for a 2.9% rise. The sectors driving the gains were, in order, transport equipment, electronic parts and devices, and iron and steel, the ministry said. Compared to December 2009, the index was up 4.6%

OMH IT IS ONLY EFFING 0.2%. Which analyst couldn't tell the difference between 0.2 and 0.5?

Caution : don't dump too much capital in it.
Disclaimer : Anime figurines are not affected.

[ganbaru]

Are Arab states going to collapse like Eastern European dictatorships in ’89?
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle1888086/

[AnimeFan188]

"The House Republicans' first major technology initiative is about to be unveiled: a
push to force Internet companies to keep track of what their users are doing.

A House panel chaired by Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin is scheduled to
hold a hearing tomorrow morning to discuss forcing Internet providers, and perhaps
Web companies as well, to store records of their users' activities for later review by
police."

See:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-20...?tag=cnetRiver

[flying ^]

House GOP to redefine rape
http://motherjones.com/politics/2011...-rape-abortion

[Irenicus]

Originally Posted by flying ^

House GOP to redefine rape
http://motherjones.com/politics/2011...-rape-abortion

Your comment's a bit misleading -- it isn't redefining rape legally so much as it's trying to abandon the principle of permitting abortion in case of rape, by using the worthless term "forcible rape" as a tool.

Of course, both notions tend to spring from the same ideological tendency. If the bill passes, well, just another victory for the reactionary scum. No surprises, move along, life goes on...just a few more victims to be forgotten in the annals of history. The ideology has inflicted plenty already, and we will likely see more to come.

[bladeofdarkness]

Originally Posted by ganbaru

Are Arab states going to collapse like Eastern European dictatorships in ’89?
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...rticle1888086/

And its all thanks to Facebook.

I always knew that it would be a Jewish invention that would cause the arab world to collapse.
but i always assumed it would be an alternative fuel source...

Originally Posted by AnimeFan188

"There have been a growing number of reports of looters/thugs conducting smash and grabs across Cairo.
Interestingly, there's also a growing number of reports that when these thugs are caught, they have
police/interior ministry identification on them.
See:

http://globalguerrillas.typepad.com/...nsurgency.html

It could also be a case of simple corruption. Grab while the grabbin's good, and all that.......

I doubt Mubarak needs to send his own people to loot, as opportunistic bastards aren't hard to find .
and i REALLY doubt he'd send his own people to loot, while carrying business cards that say "I work for the government".
its more likely that those "reports" are being made by opposition siding media outlets.

the other option you mentioned is much more likely.
when the cops are away, the mice will play.

[Haak]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

OTOH :

Looters smash treasures and mummies in Egyptian Museum

I actually hear about that on BBC but they also stated that the people themselves decided to take action, and went in there to drag the looters out.

[Ithekro]

Wouldn't be surprised. Ancient Egypt is a major tourist attraction and earns the locals a bit of money. Breaking their past and their livelihood would be enough for people to get on those looters. Also one imagines that stuff to be a source of national pride. It would be like swiping stuff of from the Smithsonian American History Museum. Sure it might be worth something to the right buyer...but who's going to by something like that if there is really only one of a kind, and it was stolen? (the metals and gems might find a market...but only after they get destroyed)

(On the other hand maybe they stole the secrets of the mystical past and will use that knowledge to make a future where everyone settles their differences in one way only....card games )

[ganbaru]

As Myanmar parliament opens, junta's shadow looms large
http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNew...70U0S620110131

[JMvS]

China initiates Thorium Molten Salt Reactor program.

The People’s Republic of China has initiated a research and development project in thorium molten-salt reactor technology, it was announced in the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) annual conference on Tuesday, January 25. An article in the Wenhui News followed on Wednesday (Google English translation). Chinese researchers also announced this development on the Energy from Thorium Discussion Forum.

Led by Dr. Jiang Mianheng, a graduate of Drexel University in electrical engineering, the thorium MSR efforts aims not only to develop the technology but to secure intellectual property rights to its implementation.

[...]

Chinese energy demand is growing rapidly, and despite the world’s largest campaign of new nuclear construction, the vast majority of Chinese power generation still comes from fossil fuels. China has abundant supplies of coal, but their combustion has led to some of the worst air quality in the world. The ability of thorium MSRs to operate at atmospheric pressure and with simplified safety systems means that these reactors could be built in factories and mass-produced. They could then be shipped to operational sites with standard transportation. Their thorium fuel is compact and inexpensive. Chinese rare-earth miners have been rumored to have been stockpiling thorium from rare-earth mining for years, and if this is true, the Chinese will have hundreds of thousands of years of thorium already mined and available for use.

The Chinese now have the largest national effort to develop thorium molten-salt reactors. Whether other nations will follow is an open question.

[Melpomene]

I'm glad China is doing this. The air quality is so bad there they say jogging is bad for your health. The conditions have also lead to so many lung type issues. This is really good news and I hope it takes on quickly.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by JMvS

China initiates Thorium Molten Salt Reactor program.

There is one part of the equation that makes this entirely funny.

When Thorium mutates into U-233, it gives out beta particles and anti-neutrinos to stabilise itself. The question is - where are these anti-neutrinos going to be absorbed to?

Secondly, when the U-233 splits, it gives out not just 1 neutron, but 2-3 neutrons. This means that the control rods will have to be changed more regularly than a normal reactor. With regards to cost efficiency, that isn't going to be cheap. One can say : oh the sale of the elements harvested from the splitting can be used to offset costs. But the thing is, how often does the occurrence of marketable "nuclear waste" will be produced for each reaction?

Pretty skeptical about this technology being cost efficient. Still it is good to see that such technology is being developed elsewhere other than the US of A. The biggest fuckup about this is that they are trying to secure IP rights to the technology - effectively controlling the world energy in the future in a monopoly if it runs through.

[JMvS]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

There is one part of the equation that makes this entirely funny.

When Thorium mutates into U-233, it gives out beta particles and anti-neutrinos to stabilise itself. The question is - where are these anti-neutrinos going to be absorbed to?

Secondly, when the U-233 splits, it gives out not just 1 neutron, but 2-3 neutrons. This means that the control rods will have to be changed more regularly than a normal reactor. With regards to cost efficiency, that isn't going to be cheap. One can say : oh the sale of the elements harvested from the splitting can be used to offset costs. But the thing is, how often does the occurrence of marketable "nuclear waste" will be produced for each reaction?

Pretty skeptical about this technology being cost efficient. Still it is good to see that such technology is being developed elsewhere other than the US of A. The biggest fuckup about this is that they are trying to secure IP rights to the technology - effectively controlling the world energy in the future in a monopoly if it runs through.

Err... I fail to see the issue regarding the anti neutrinos. Won't they simply pass trough the Earth?

Studied design for Thorium reactor simply don't have control rods: those are breeder design, which would use the excess neutrons to transmute a Th-232 blanket into U-233 fuel, control of the reaction being exerted trough isotopes feeding/extraction/transfer in both the fuel and blanket part of the reactor.

For more details on experimental and theoretical concepts, designs and economics, see:
Hargrave R., Moir R., Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactors, American Scientist, 2010 July-August, Volume 98, 304-313.

And yeah, if nobody else move, they're gonna pull again a REE strategic control crisis.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by JMvS

Studied design for Thorium reactor simply don't have control rods: those are breeder design, which would use the excess neutrons to transmute a Th-232 blanket into U-233 fuel, control of the reaction being exerted trough isotopes feeding/extraction/transfer in both the fuel and blanket part of the reactor.

From what I have read, it looks like a giant bowl to me.

And yeah, if nobody else move, they're gonna pull again a REE strategic control crisis.

I don't think anybody else is going to move. India is too much caught up in their own political shit like US, and the rest of the world seems to be submissive and pandering to China for resources.

Welcome to the New World Order.

[ganbaru]

A interesting reading related to what's happening now in Egypt:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/31/op...31douthat.html

[bladeofdarkness]

Originally Posted by ganbaru

A interesting reading related to what's happening now in Egypt:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/31/op...31douthat.html

one particularly noteworthy paragraph from this document is this

But history makes fools of us all. We make deals with dictators, and reap the whirlwind of terrorism. We promote democracy, and watch Islamists gain power from Iraq to Palestine. We leap into humanitarian interventions, and get bloodied in Somalia. We stay out, and watch genocide engulf Rwanda. We intervene in Afghanistan and then depart, and watch the Taliban take over. We intervene in Afghanistan and stay, and end up trapped there, with no end in sight.

the writer makes it seem like the world is just looking to screw the U.S at every turn, and yet he completely misses the point.
he misses the REASON why everything keeps blowing up in their faces.

they support dictators - it backfires.
they support democracy - it backfires

they intervene in humanitarian crisis - it backfires
they stay out of them - it backfires.

they intervene for short terms - it backfires.
they intervene long terms - it backfires.

did it ever occur to the writer that America's problem is that it can't seem to decide what it actually wants to do as a matter of policy, and then always act according to that policy ?
if you keep flip flopping around without a clear policy, of course you're going to get into problems.

supporting democracy is a good idea - if you actually follow through with it all the way, and not just support "Elections" (democracy is a system, and holding regular elections is the final step in the process of creating democracy).
intervening in Humanitarian crisis is a good idea - provided you're willing to actually try and stay until the problem is SOLVED.
and the U.S would have a much greater effect in Afghanistan, or Iraq, or anywhere else its intervening in, if it made it clear that it won't be leaving until at least 2099 (if the bad guys know they just need to wait you out, you'll never win).

decide on ONE course of action, and follow it through.