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It looks like the latest returns ~doubled over the last one so things are looking up. I imagine going forward will be similar if not more.
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What it does is force foreign accounts, hedge funds, stock brokers, banks etc to report to the IRS all account activity of US citizens and vice versa. I doubt Russia will participate so you're safe on BTC-e.
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MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia plans to sign a contract with Iran this year to build two more nuclear reactors at its Bushehr power plant as part of a broader deal for up to eight reactors in the Islamic state, a source close to the negotiations told Reuters on Thursday.
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It was not immediately clear how this might affect six global powers' talks with Iran addressing disputed aspects of its nuclear program. Iran has resisted demands for cuts in its uranium enrichment capacity, pointing to plans for a future network of nuclear power stations.
Western powers want any lasting agreement with Iran to put to rest suspicions that it could develop nuclear weapons-making ability through enrichment. Iran denies any such intent.
The talks ended last week with little progress; they are to resume in Vienna in June.
Russia, one of the six powers, built Iran's only operating nuclear power reactor, at Bushehr.
"Russia and Iran may sign an intergovernmental agreement this year on building from four to eight nuclear reactors, and, under the deal, the contract for the construction of the first two reactors as additions to Bushehr," the source said.
Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom said earlier it was in talks with Iran on the potential construction of more reactors there but revealed no details. Rosatom officials could not immediately be reached for comment on Thursday.
Longstanding Western fears that the Bushehr project could yield spent fuel of use in nuclear weapons - something it denies it is seeking to do - receded after Iran promised to send the material back to Russia.
Moscow voted for four rounds of U.N. Security Council sanctions against Iran over its contested nuclear activity but has sharply criticized additional measures imposed by the United States and European Union, calling them a hindrance to diplomacy in search of a permanent settlement with Tehran. Video from Reuters @ http://news.yahoo.com/russia-may-build-eight-nuclear-reactors-iran-134635604.htmlI know the western freak show over Iran going nuclear is way overblown but it is sure used as a boogyman by neocons (the war on terror was yesteryear's boogy) to maintain support w/i the republican party by pretending to be defense hawks which shrouds their whoring for MIC profits. Anyone remember the clip of Obama whispering to Putin prior to his reelection saying that afterwards he'd have more leeway in foreign affairs.. I wouldn't be surprised if this Ukraine stuff and this nuclear biz is all meant to keep money flowing to weapons and tech innovation for all related top world companies as sort of a shell cold war 2.0 game. It's obvious to anyone w/ any semblance of intelligence that the US has already sold the farm and there's no financial way out besides inflation and war games to provide cover and shift domestic tension elsewhere the best they can. Think of the way North Korea plays their cards. |
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The bottom line aside from all these comments is that most people don't like ghetto looking or acting people irrespective of skin coloring. Problem is the race card is always brought in from the middle of the deck (easily found since it's worn after regular use) so it's hard to put into words that which is meant to either change behavior or ostracize.
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It has been a little freaky tonight. It was down for quite some time and when it popped back up, I sent a hefty payment from one exchange to my wallet there about 2 hours ago and it still hasn't shown up yet.  |
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How's the offline activities going lately? It'll be interesting to see how this pans out.
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Affirms Status Quo in $601 Billion Military BudgetRep. Adam Schiff’s (D – CA) efforts to repeal the 2001 Authorization on the Use of Military Force (AUMF), which the Bush and Obama Administrations have used as the legal cover for virtually all military operations since, failed today in a 191-233 vote.
The bill had initially been seen as having some administration support, but that myth evaporated after yesterday’s fiasco in the Senate, where officials argued the AUMF had nothing to do with anything, and that President Obama would attack whomever he pleased, whenever he pleased. The officials came out for vague, non-specific changes to AUMF, but not for repeal.
This led hawks to angrily condemn Rep. Schiff’s bill, with Rep. Mac Thornberry (R – TX) accusing him of having “forgotten” 9/11. The Senate’s AUMF efforts don’t look promising either, with some now arguing in favor of “revisions” that would greatly expand the war powers to authorize President Obama’s attacks on groups not even cursorily linked to al-Qaeda.
Underscoring just how little appetite there is for even the illusion of change, Rep. Adam Smith (D – WA) introduced an amendment to allow transfer of Gitmo detainees, something President Obama demanded, and that too was rejected. The White House had threatened a veto if they didn’t get this, but where they stand now is unclear.
In the end, the $601 billion military spending bill, which was bigger than even the Pentagon sought, passed easily in a 325-98 vote, and is now just waiting for the Senate to come up with their version, so they can reconcile the two. More @ http://news.antiwar.com/2014/05/22/house-rejects-measure-to-end-war-on-terror/Yep, we got it like that.  Meanwhile, each newly born owes ~$50k before they take their first breath. Thx to BTC, people can now opt out and flee if they need to, esp if the police state keeps roaring to new heights.
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the media, like you, will take this out of context.
 I was just trying to get a reaction but yeah, I totally get where he's coming from and would think similarly in a related scenario. Except, I've been around a lot of these types of whites and blacks and usually know how to handle each situation as I do it for a living. As someone who maybe doesn't encounter too many of these situations I could see how one would want to look or go the other way to avoid them. Self preservation is what it is. |
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i'm guessing that at least a considerable portion of police officers were bullies in their younger years.. "law enforcement" attracts a type of personality that is borderline egocentric/sociopath. it's funny because they are there to "protect and serve." their job is about extending their bullying from adolescence to adulthood.
Either that or they're fresh outta the military putting their expertise to use back here in the homeland. All police should have to have BAs in CJ so they at least have some intelligence going for them and not exclusively testosterone steroids. |
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https://twitter.com/DaveBratVA7th/status/469506330676707329Too bad there's no Twitter embedding but it displays a score card that scores Amash and Massie really high (because they're actually legit) and shows Cantor down in the Pelosi lot. Also, word on the ground is that Cantor is freaking out.
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Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has come under fire for comments he made at Inc.'s GrowCo conference in Nashville on Wednesday. In light of the Donald Sterling saga, Cuban talked about prejudice. He said he had to fight against internalizing stereotypes and that "none of us have complete pure thoughts," via the Sporting News:
“I also try not to be a hypocrite. I know I'm prejudiced. I know I'm bigoted in a lot of different ways,” he said. “I've said this before. If I see a black kid in a hoodie at night on the same side of the street, I'm probably going to walk to other side of the street. If I see a white guy with a shaved head and lots of tattoos, I'm going back to the other side of the street. If I see anybody that looks threatening, and I try not to, but part of me takes into account race and gender and image. I'm prejudiced. Other than for safety issues, I try to always catch my prejudices and be very self-aware.”
Cuban later recounted a story from the 1960s when his uncle served as a superintendent in the Washington, D.C., area. He recalled sitting down with his uncle and being told that everyone was equal, and it was never acceptable to treat people differently based on their creed, race, gender or ethnicity. At the same time, though, it did not mean that certain negative thoughts won't appear from time to time. http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/24569765/mark-cuban-on-race-and-bigotry-none-of-us-have-complete-pure-thoughtshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQFs462MvXcAnyone think he'll get the Sterling treatment? And, does anyone take any serious offense to this? |
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More and more everyday and in many instances, it allows people of said nations to have more honest money to exchange it peer-peer or larger scale business in a timely and fair manner. And, it's that much less capital being reallocated by the state for purposes of corporate handouts or the monopolization of force around the world through military operations. The base concept here is voluntary trade and interactions, something that doesn't usually stem from the state as an entity. Through voluntarism, everyone has an equal shot at worthwhile employment and compensation for one's efforts. No one but the market economy gets to pick winners and losers unlike the govt that gives to their buddies and punishes their enemies. The US govt is a prime example of that system of corporate oligarchs while paying lip service to individual rights. Of course, when a conflict of rights v. the state comes to be, the state's court usually rule in their favor and not for individual rights.
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Yeaaaah... 17 murders to 8 isn't really solid data for the same reason the 135% YOY increase in arson isn't relevant.
Haha, I have to admit I didn't view the city report. I'm from metro Detroit and was just imaging what those percentage decreases would look like in our neck of the woods for positive imagery. But hey, statistically there's 9 more people alive in Denver these days.  |
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I get it, causation doesn't equal correlation but ya have to admit the drop off is quite conveniently interesting. According to statistics recently released by the government in Denver, the amount of robberies and violent crimes significantly decreased since marijuana legalization went into effect. It is important to mention that this strong correlation is not definitive proof that legalization is the cause of this drop in crime, but it does strongly suggest that this is the case.
These statistics are especially convincing considering the short amount of time that this drastic reduction in crime has taken place. In just one short year the number of homicides dropped by 52.9%. Sexual assaults were reduced by 13.6%. Robberies were down by 4.8% and assaults were down by 3.7%. I posted the numerical content here to bolster the title but the key surrounding, mitigating reasonings are at http://thefreethoughtproject.com/denver-crime-rate/ w/ a link to the citywide report. It's obviously huge news when any place has a reduction in violent crime but when an inner urban city has its homicide rate drop by over half that is epic  . |
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May 2014 is really early and 473 people is a small sample size, but... It's exciting to see Rand Paul at the top.  - Does anyone know if his wife gave a green light, I heard she didn't want Rand to run?
you guys really think rand paul would make a difference? especially with how the political system works? as in, if he's going to be the republican elect, he's going to have to make huge promises to corporations and billionaires. it's kind of like the people who thought obama was going to actually do things he said he'd do (i admit, i am one of them). Have you ever read the articles he wrote for his school paper in college? (they can be found online) Yes, Rand Paul can make a difference.* *If nothing else (with some help from Bitcoin), he can get blamed for crashing the economy. how's he going to make a difference when he has to sell himself out to big corporations and billionaires? in our last election cycle, i think obama had something like $700 million to romney's $600. in order for rand paul to be elected president, he'd have to fundraise probably even more than the last election.. a big chunk of it will be from big corporations or billlionaires who will want "favors." that's why i don't need to read his papers; because our political system is rigged so that even if someone truly wanted to make a difference, it'd still be impossible. edit: they spent, collectively, $2 billion. unprecedented. http://townhall.com/tipsheet/danieldoherty/2012/11/07/obama_and_romney_collectively_spent_2_billion_this_election_cycleIt's in the primary where one can see what interests are lining up where. Billionaire Sheldon Adelson is casino magnet in Vegas and his main issues are keeping online gambling illegal and constant warfare and military-industrial complex money being spent and burned on behalf of Israel. In other words, an extreme interventionist foreign policy that the likes of prospective presidential candidates Bush, Santorum, Christie, Romney, Rubio, et al. would toe the slab for. There was some republican jewish conference last month and the main topic on the table w/o mentioning it was the rise of Rand Paul. So, the war hawks and the govt-subsidized big business folk would back the former types while Rand is trying to appeal to people like us, fiscal hawks, privacy advocates and true freer market business types. He's just not trying to be hated by the war hawks so he's threading the needle when framing foreign policy arguments. Rand has his own chest of rich folk that he's lining up and I'm sure many of us here will be able to max out to his campaign in addition to perhaps starting a pro-Crypto/BTC PAC w/ excess funds to help him in key states if needed to counteract the FUD and nonsense that will undoubtedly be spewed by the corporatists and war hawks. All that said, if he makes it as the GOP nominee you'll see the former Bush-Christie folks swing over back to their hawks in the Democratic party and support their nominee be it Hillary (if she runs), Biden or whoever they get the media to manufacture support for. Rand is already in General Election mode and you can see it be his constant meetings w/ and appeals to blacks by pushing sentencing reform, charter schools (school choice) and economic freedom zones for depressed areas; privacy issues such as pushing back at the NSA which resonates hugely w/ the youth demo that the Dems have owned for so long; and women on issues such as toughening penalties on sexual assault in the military. His major obstacle, in my eyes, is not being too libertarian on social issues such as abortion cause you don't want to alienate the single-issue Evangelical voters in playing to the woman vote as woman typically vote democrat and you probably can't outdo the dems on pro-abortion issues. |
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Update: AP Sources: Justice Dept. to Reveal Drone MemoBy NEDRA PICKLER Associated Press
WASHINGTON May 21, 2014 (AP)
On the eve of a critical Senate vote, the Obama administration signaled it will publicly reveal a secret memo describing its legal justification for using drones to kill U.S. citizens suspected of terrorism overseas.
Two administration officials told The Associated Press that the Justice Department has decided not to appeal a court order requiring disclosure of a redacted version of the memo under the Freedom of Information Act. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
The decision to release the documents comes a day before the Senate is to vote on advancing President Barack Obama's nomination of the memo's author, Harvard professor and former Justice Department official David Barron, to sit on the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., had vowed to attempt to block Barron's confirmation with a filibuster if the documents were not made public. Paul issued a statement Tuesday saying he still opposes Barron's nomination.
...
Until now, the administration has fought in court to keep the writings from public view. But administration officials said that Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr. has decided not appeal an April 21 ruling requiring disclosure by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York and that Attorney General Eric Holder concurred with his opinion.
The release could take some time, since the redactions are subject to court approval. And the administration also is insisting that a classified ruling on the case also be redacted to protect information classified for national security, but not the legal reasoning, one of the officials said.
... More at http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/ap-sources-justice-dept-reveal-drone-memo-23802330?singlePage=trueDepending on how things go tomorrow, another media win for Rand is likely. It would almost be the holy grail to get on Fox and say he made the O regime back down. On most cases the regime just does what it wants but they must fear an appeals court forcing their hand anyway. Developing... |
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I've always been fascinated by those that go through the mental hell and anxiety that one must face to flee the NK border and go meander from China to Thailand where they refugee status and then get flown to Seoul to start their new life. It must be hard for any of us to comprehend what life is like in the DPRK and all the strict socialism, propaganda (well, not so much), Kim idolization, strict state policing that can end someone or their relatives into slave labor or education camps (currently about ~200k North Koreans) where they're brutally beaten, assaulted, starved, worked to death, fed next to nothing, etc. Then to get new opinions on their current views of their fatherland's state of the union is quite intriguing. Keep in mind, most of these defectors are coming out of the cold war 50s-70s mindsets into the bright lights and tall buildings of 21st century Seoul, most of whom are separated from family for the rest of their lives and thus feeling quite lonely. So, hope you enjoy the cross-posted commentary with all of the former in mind. Execution of Jang Song Thaek, growth of cell phone network, and emergence of middle class, among factors From the execution of Jang Song Thaek last December to the death of Kim Jong Il two years prior, it’s safe to say that the past few years have witnessed some of the most significant changes in North Korea in decades. But while rumors about Kim Jong Il’s poor health had been swirling since 2008, the rapid purge and execution of Jang Song Thaek showed just how unpredictable events in North Korea can be.
But of course, beyond these major stories broken by North Korean state media, other events and phenomena have occurred that could also have significant impact in the future. From the rise and acceptance of the market economy,to the spread of cell phone technology, to an increasingly affluent middle class, a number of bottom-up changes are occurring in North Korea that could one day have game-changing ramifications.
For the final article in our defector survey, we therefore asked our panel of eleven refugees to tell us what the biggest surprise has been in the way North Korea has developed since they left the country. While many of the responses echo observations made by long-time North Korea watchers such as Andrei Lankov and Victor Cha, some of the refugee respondents were very vocal about pointing out that there had been little, if any, meaningful changes worth talking about. ----- Defector "Hyun-Moo Jung" I watched a documentary about North Korea on KBS (a major South Korean broadcasting service) in February. Throughout the documentary, the narrator kept saying that there have been many changes in North Korea in recent years. But in my opinion, the country hasn’t changed a bit.
It was ludicrous for the narrator to say that changes have come in North Korea. Actually, the only change in North Korea is that there’s an even greater economic gap between the haves and have-nots.
The economic gap between rich and poor wasn’t that bad when I was in North Korea. If you had one million dollars, you’d be considered one of the richest people in the country. But now most party officials and traders who are abroad have at least 10 million dollars. Despite these new riches, the have-nots are still suffering from abject poverty and there’s a growing number of kotchebi (꽃제비 – homeless children).
It ached my heart to see a poverty-stricken North Korea on the documentary and I wanted to tell the producers that actually nothing has changed in North Korea. Change is never possible in North Korea. As long as Kim Jong Un’s family is in power, it is an undeniable truth that there’ll be no change ever in North Korea.
Don’t you dare to say that change has come in North Korea. That is what this defector would like to yell at the entire world. Defector "Jimin Kang" Well…in my opinion, North Korea has not changed all that much since I left. I am actually baffled by how it has regressed.
For any President, the first thing he would do after being elected would be to carry out policies to generate people’s support. But in the case of North Korea, Kim Jong Un started his administration with public executions and military threats toward the South.
In other words, he already knows that it’s impossible to convincing the people to support his cause. Because to get the people’s support would require economic progress, and economic progress would be impossible without reform and opening up.
Kim Jong Un is not someone who is capable of carrying out reform. It’s surprising how North Korea’s political elites fail to see their future, and fail to see the people’s sentiments.
Another thing that has surprised me is that the internal power struggles in North Korea have become so acute that they are now visible from the outside world. The current situation in North Korea – with the public execution of his uncle Jang Song Thaek and the public release of this news – is quite unprecedented. That also means that things are quite urgent there.
You can also sense change through the expressionless faces of the North Korean people right after Kim Jong Ils death. This is no comparison to what happened with Kim Il Sung’s death. The people’s tears for Kim Il-sung were tears of absolute support and sorrow. But when Kim Jong Il died, the people were neither devasted nor stricken with grief. This is just one instance of how much the people themselves have changed.  Youth highway in DPRK Defector "Soon Kyung Hong" It has been 13 years since I left North Korea. In this time, the most surprising change I have seen has been the vitalization of the market economy in North Korea – and the public’s increasing dependence on it.
The market economy has developed significantly, to an unimaginable point at the time when I was there. As such, the North Korean people’s dependence to the government is decreasing every day. This means that the control of the North Korean regime is weakening day by day.
“The most surprising change I have seen has been the vitalization of the market economy in North Korea”
Also, I have heard that North Korean people, in private settings, increasingly complain or share their true thoughts about the regime. This was all unimaginable when I was in North Korea. Defector "Mina Yoon" It is very hard to think of any major changes in North Korea since I left. However, I can tell from the execution of Jang Song Thaek that the regime is unstable compared to the Kim Jong Il-era.
When Jang was executed I thought to myself, “Kim Jong Un must have worried so much that he had to execute his own uncle.” I could also tell from what happened that there was a group in the regime that was opposed to Jang Song Thaek. They might feel safer now that Jang Song Thaek is gone. But those elites won’t be as loyal as before.
Beyond the politics, I’m surprised by how quickly cell phones are spreading in North Korea. In the past, I wondered when I’d be finally able to own a cell phone. But now many people in North Korea own and use cell phones. I heard that rich North Koreans even use touch phones. They also use tablet PCs. This would have been something inconceivable for all of us even a few years ago.
If North Koreans are ever allowed to use the internet freely and communicate with people in other countries, changes will come to North Korea much more quickly. More @ http://www.nknews.org/2014/05/what-has-been-the-biggest-surprise-since-you-left-north-korea-defector-survey/ Mini-Dubai in Downtown Pyongyang  What interior Pyongyang really looks like  The shape of most cities/towns in DPRK |
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He's one of the few American politicians worth his salt that does anything on behalf of his constituents' liberty and those that are affected by this gubmint. Remember, he made a name for himself (outside the political liberty movement) last year in March by doing a 13hr filibuster over the Obama regime's drone policy. Now, the guy that ultimately drafted that policy is being nominated to be a federal appeals court judge. Gee, I wonder where he'll stand when anything in federal court is appealed to his jurisdiction. Pro-state on everything. Whether this halt actually succeeds, it'll further showcase Rand's political acumen and solidify his leadership capabilities to all that give a flip about civil liberties and the like. Sen. Rand Paul intends to take the Senate floor Wednesday to contest the nomination of David J. Barron to be a federal appeals court judge, though it doesn’t appear the Kentucky Republican will halt Barron’s confirmation.
It’s unclear exactly how long Paul plans speak, but staffers around the Capitol are preparing for a late Wednesday session.
The government’s use of unmanned drones to target U.S. citizen is the same subject that prompted last year’s the #standwithrand filibuster of John O. Brennan’s nomination to be CIA director. Barron wrote memos justifying the Obama administration policy when he served as acting assistant attorney general for the Office of Legal Counsel.
“I rise today to oppose the nomination of anyone who would argue that the President has the power to kill American citizens not involved in combat,” Paul plans to say on Wednesday, according to an excerpt from his office. “I rise today to say that there is no legal precedent for killing American citizens not directly involved in combat and that any nominee who rubber stamps and grants such power to a President is not worthy of being placed one step away from the Supreme Court.”
The extended Paul floor speech won’t be a filibuster, really. In fact, the Senate may well have agreed to a time limit on the debate before he speaks.
... http://blogs.rollcall.com/wgdb/rand-paul-to-take-the-floor-again-contest-drone-policy/ |
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