@21:10 12/2/13

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1

World

Drone Surveillance Begins in Congo

By REUTERS | Dec 2nd 2013

The United Nations will start using surveillance drones for the first time in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Tuesday, United Nations officials said Monday.

Drones (Pilotless Planes); International Relations; Defense and Military Forces 

Using drones in that area makes good sense.

 

2

World

Parliament in Somalia Votes to Remove Prime Minister

By MOHAMMED IBRAHIM | Dec 2nd 2013

A “constitutional dispute” between President Hassan Sheik Mohamud and Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon resulted in a no-confidence vote.

Legislatures and Parliaments 

I don't know what the fight is about.

http://allafrica.com/somalia/

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/02/somalia-ejects-prime-minister

"Somali politicians have voted 184-65 to oust the prime minister and his cabinet after 14 months in office. Abdi Farah Shirdon would remain in office until the president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, nominated a new prime minister, who would have 30 days to appoint a cabinet, the parliamentary speaker, Sheik Osman Jawari Jawari, said.
The vote came after disputes emerged between Shirdon, a former businessman, and Mohamud. Politicians said Shirdon had refused to include the president's choices in his cabinet."

3

Automobiles

Monday Motorsports: Toyota Finally Wins a World Endurance Championship Race

By JERRY GARRETT | Dec 2nd 2013

Anthony Davidson, Sébastien Buemi and Stéphane Sarrazin pick up a W.E.C. win; Don Panoz sues Nissan over DeltaWing lookalike.

Automobiles; Automobile Racing 

There might be something interesting here.  

I don't see it.  Electrics are in the hunt.

 

4

Science

Finding Japan’s Aircraft-Carrier Sub

By LOUIS LUCERO II | Dec 2nd 2013

The I-400, an enormous World War II submarine, was sunk by the United States — in 1946, after the war, to keep it out of the hands of the Soviet Union. The submersible Pisces V found it.

Submarines and Submersibles; World War II (1939-45) 

Let it rest.

 

5

Opinion

Years of Mourning the Losses in Mumbai

By MIRA KAMDAR | Nov 30th 2013

My family, like many others in the city, seeks ways to carry on.

Terrorism 

There is no new war.  

That is a victory.

6

Multimedia

The Final Frontier, in Photographs

By JOHN SCHWARTZ | Nov 26th 2013

Twin exhibitions throw together both scientific and fictitious depictions of space, from the 19th century to the present.

Art; Earth; Photography; Saturn (Planet); Space and Astronomy 

Pretty pictures.

 

7

U.S.

As Homeless Line Up for Food, Los Angeles Weighs Restrictions

By ADAM NAGOURNEY | Nov 25th 2013

Facing an uproar from homeowners in a county that has one of the worst homeless problems in the nation, two members of the City Council have called for the city to ban the feeding of homeless people in public spaces.

Homeless Persons; Food; City Councils 

I know no good solution.  

 

8

World

A Dalit Village Waits Uneasily for Justice

By NEYAZ FAROOQUEE | Dec 2nd 2013

The recent acquittals of the men accused of killing 58 Dalits in Bihar are just the latest obstacle in the low-caste villagers’ struggle for equal rights.

Agriculture and Farming; Capital Punishment; Defense and Military Forces; Land Use Policies; Landlords; Murders and Attempted Murders; Nineteen Hundred Seventies; Sentences (Criminal) 

There is no comfort for the relatives of the lynched.

 

9

N.Y. / Region

With New Agreement, N.Y.U. Would Again Recognize Graduate Assistants’ Union

By STEVEN GREENHOUSE and ARIEL KAMINER | Nov 26th 2013

Some 1,200 graduate assistants at New York University and the Polytechnic Institute of N.Y.U. in Brooklyn are scheduled to vote on Dec. 10 and 11 on whether to join the union.

Colleges and Universities; Graduate Schools and Students; Organized Labor 

Graduate assistants work for wages.  They are employees. 

The assistants have the right to form a union.

 

10

Opinion

Gaza Need Not Be a Sewer

By ALON TAL and YOUSEF ABU-MAYLA | Dec 2nd 2013

Gaza’s hydrological nightmare must be dealt with, regardless of the region’s other, more intractable issues.

Water; Sewers and Sewage; Desalination; Palestinians 

Gaza also need not be at war with Israel and also with the West Bank.

Gaza is at war.

 

11

Health

Oxytocin Found to Stimulate Social Brain Regions in Children With Autism

By PAM BELLUCK | Dec 2nd 2013

The results of a small study of children with mild autism given oxytocin suggests that their brains’ social regions are not irrevocably damaged.

Autism; Oxytocin (Hormone); Children and Childhood 

"“We’re still really in the early stages of understanding whether oxytocin is going to be an effective treatment for autism,” Dr. Dawson said."

Hope from a possible breakthrough.   It is still only a hope.

 

12

Business Day

Economists Are Different From You and Me

By BINYAMIN APPELBAUM | Dec 2nd 2013

The general public may think preventing inflation should be a priority, but many economists disagree, and a new paper is the latest evidence.

Economics (Theory and Philosophy); Inflation (Economics); United States Economy 

Binyamin Appelbaum wishes to confuse his readers.

All borrowing is not the same.

Personal easy credit can "blow a bubble" without producing inflation.

After a big bubble pops there is no personal credit without high interest and security.  Government  debt is seen as secure and pays very low interest.  The government should borrow and spend in times of tight credit.

It can do so without causing inflation as long as the borrowed credit quickly lands in savings which are held as cash or government bonds.

It is best if the credit first purchases several cycles of goods before it becomes savings.

13

U.S.

A Tax Plan to Please Both Sides

By ALBERT R. HUNT | BLOOMBERG VIEW | Dec 1st 2013

A proposal by a Columbia law professor would create a more progressive tax system, but be accompanied by a 12.9 percent value-added levy.

Income Tax; Sales and Excise Taxes; United States Politics and Government 

No on several grounds.

A V.A.T. is the most regressive tax there is that looks "fair".

Progressive taxation should follow some kind of a smooth curve with the peak rate at the highest income.

 

14

Opinion

Debt and Taxes

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD | Dec 1st 2013

Unless Congress acts soon, a law that protects borrowers from unexpectedly large tax bills will expire.

Foreclosures; Real Estate and Housing (Residential); Taxation; Subprime Mortgage Crisis; Editorials; Mortgages 

Yes.

15

World

Hard Times for a Small (and Fuzzy) Group of Europeans

By RAPHAEL MINDER | Nov 28th 2013

In an era of austerity, donkeys have been swept up in the debate over just how far the European Union should go to maintain its farming regions.

Donkeys; Agriculture and Farming

16

N.Y. / Region

Diamond-Paved, Deal-Obsessed

By ALEX VADUKUL | Nov 29th 2013

The diamond district, on a block of West 47th Street, pulses with the competition of the jewelry sellers, who are always looking for a way to make a deal.

Diamonds; Jewels and Jewelry; Photography 

My connections to the diamond district are not what they were.

I will try to get you your choice of stone and setting.

 

17

Opinion

Tale of Two Midwest States

| Nov 29th 2013

A reader responding to a Sunday Review article discusses the policy differences between Minnesota and Wisconsin.

States (US); Economic Conditions and Trends 

Only pain seems to instruct the electorate.

I am against pain and for instruction. 

Understanding our economy requires effort and thought.

Neither of these are in any sense common.

 

18

Health

Timing of Baby's First Solids May Affect Allergy Risk

By NICHOLAS BAKALAR | Dec 1st 2013

Breast-feeding exclusively for 4 to 6 months, and introducing solid foods while breast-feeding continues, may be a good way to reduce the risk for food allergies in children, a new study suggests.

Allergies; Babies and Infants; Baby Foods; Breastfeeding; Food 

"“Don’t introduce solids until 17 weeks,” said the lead author, Kate E. C. Grimshaw, a nutritionist at the University of Southampton, “and if you can wait longer, that’s fine, too. At whatever age you begin solid foods, you should continue breast-feeding as well. And for those who cannot breast-feed, the advice not to introduce solid foods until 17 weeks is still applicable.”"

Good advice in my very limited experience.

 

19

Science

Men Can Be Such Worms (and Vice Versa)

By DOUGLAS QUENQUA | Dec 2nd 2013

Male roundworms shorten the life spans of females, according to a new study, and the researchers believe their findings are linked to sex.

Worms; Research 

Reproduction is the ultimate goal.

People get much more fussy about knocking off old women.

 

20

N.Y. / Region

The Magic of Witch Hazel

By DAVID TAFT | Nov 27th 2013

Witch hazel, better known as a bottled astringent than a native shrub, likes to grow in damp woodlands and propels its seeds for yards.

Flowers and Plants 

My experience is February for bloom.  I will look at the twigs.

There is the native in yellow and a Japanese with brown petals.