Thursday, May 15, 2014

@20:28, 5/14/14

|



1
Opinion

Still Tinkering

By LINDA GREENHOUSE | May 14th 2014
In a failed 2008 constitutional challenge to lethal injection, the dire warnings ended up coming true in the recent, botched execution in Oklahoma.
Capital Punishment; Eighth Amendment (US Constitution) 

We are still tinkering with the machinery of judicial killing.
The theory is wrong.
2
U.S.

90 Arrests Made, Mostly in Florida, in Crackdown on Medicare Fraud

By REUTERS | May 13th 2014
Ninety people, including doctors, pharmacy owners and elderly patients, were arrested this week in six cities and charged with submitting fake billings to Medicare worth nearly $260 million, federal officials said Tuesday.
Health Insurance and Managed Care; Elder Care; Frauds and Swindling; Medicare 

An average of three million each.  shocking.  
Learning their political affiliation would be interesting.
3
U.S.

California’s Thirst Shapes Debate Over Fracking

By NORIMITSU ONISHI | May 14th 2014
As concerns over environmental effects and water usage have grown, about a dozen local governments have voted to restrict or prohibit fracking in their jurisdictions.
Hydraulic Fracturing; Drought; Water; State Legislatures; Environment; Referendums 

It is a panic response.  It is also a good idea.
Three to four acre feet of water per well is surprising.

4
Science

New Neurons Found to Overwrite Old Memories

By DOUGLAS QUENQUA | May 12th 2014
The loss of childhood memories may be the result of the constant birth of new neurons in the brain, research with rodents suggests.
Amnesia; Rodents; Brain; Memory

I think Douglas Quenqua is speculating unjustifiably.
 
5
U.S.

Detroit Pension Ballot Poses Tough Choices

By STEVEN YACCINO | May 12th 2014
Detroit began a crucial stage in the city’s bankruptcy case that allows retirees, employees and bondholders to cast votes on a painful debt-shedding plan.
Pensions and Retirement Plans; Bankruptcies; Government Employees

It looks like "Baffel them with bullshit".
If the case for cuts were clear, the ballot would be clear. 
The only reason to offer great complexity is to induce uncertainty and fear.
 
6
World

Book Reveals Wider Net of U.S. Spying on Envoys

By CHARLIE SAVAGE | May 12th 2014
A book by Glenn Greenwald mentions one incident where Susan E. Rice asked the N.S.A. for help during negotiations with the United Nations Security Council on sanctions against Iran.
United States International Relations; Surveillance of Citizens by Government; Embargoes and Sanctions; Classified Information and State Secrets; Books and Literature; Espionage and Intelligence Services

The intelligence community has been caught working.
 
7
N.Y. / Region

Video: Governor Christie’s Spokesman Testifies

AP | May 13th 2014
Michael Drewniak, the press secretary for Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, testified before a legislative committee on the investigation into the closing of lanes at the George Washington Bridge.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/14/nyregion/christie-spokesman-testifies-that-he-was-misled-about-bridge-lane-closings.html

Christie is guilty.

8
Opinion

The Rise of Antibiotic Resistance

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD | May 10th 2014
The pharmaceutical industry must be encouraged to develop new drugs to supplement those that are losing their effectiveness.
Antibiotics; Drugs (Pharmaceuticals); Infections

Antibiotics and resistance to them are products of evolution.
Use them clinically only.

9
Business Day

Ford Recalls Vehicles for Air Bag Flaw

By CHRISTOPHER JENSEN | May 9th 2014
Ford, one of three automakers to announce vehicle recalls, said none of the defects had resulted in accidents or injuries.
Automobile Safety Features and Defects; Defective Products; Recalls and Bans of Products

Probably not willful.
 
10
Science

Radio Signals Skew Birds’ Internal Navigation

By DOUGLAS QUENQUA | May 12th 2014
Electromagnetic signals from man-made devices can interfere with the inner compass of migrating birds.
Animal Migration; Magnets and Magnetism; Birds

I want to know why this frequency range.
 
11
Automobiles

In Italy, the Targa Florio Rally Keeps an Eye on the Past

By BENJAMIN PRESTON | May 14th 2014
The Targa Florio endurance road race was last run in 1977, but the name continues today as a stop on the Italian and European rally circuit.
Automobiles; Antique and Classic Cars

There is always another promotor.
 
12
Opinion

Sotomayor and Race

May 14th 2014
Roger J. Bernstein, a lawyer, writes that critics of Justice Sonia Sotomayor ignore established constitutional jurisprudence.
Courts and the Judiciary; Race and Ethnicity; Brown v Board of Education (Supreme Court Decision)

Applause.
 
13
Science

Science Best Sellers

May 12th 2014
Top-selling nonfiction titles based on the sciences.
Books and Literature; Science and Technology; Mathematics

Mostly self help in disguise.
 
14
Opinion

My Kind of Town?

May 11th 2014
A reader writes that city dwellers who move to the suburbs can’t expect to have everything they had in the city.
Rural Areas; Urban Areas; Real Estate and Housing (Residential)

Let us go and observe. 
The community that is and will be matter to me.
I do not want to join the homeless on the streets.

15
Sports

At California, Olympians and Collegians Swim and Learn Side by Side

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | May 10th 2014
There are a lot of swimmers with Olympic medals on the pool deck at the University of California, Berkeley.
Olympic Games; Swimming

Swimming is important.  Not all towns swim.  We will make it a feature.
16
Business Day

Fresh Signs Point to Possible European Central Bank Stimulus Plan

By JACK EWING | May 14th 2014
Officials signaled they would take action next month, but they were clear that the bank was unlikely to inject money into the European Union.
Inflation (Economics); Quantitative Easing; Banking and Financial Institutions; Government Bonds

This plan has not worked.

Paul Krugman:

"

Not On The Mend

There have been many proclamations that the euro crisis is over, that Europe’s economy is on the mend. Behind these proclamations lie something very real — a huge convergence in interest rates, thanks to the ECB’s support and growing belief that the political risks to the euro have receded — and something more dubious — a modest uptick in debtor-country growth.
So it’s worth saying that the latest GDP numbers are really disappointing.
It’s not just that overall growth remains slow — although after an extended slump economies are supposed to have a period of above-average growth as they return to trend, and 0.9 percent at an annual rate doesn’t cut it. It’s also that the growth is in the wrong places. We need to see convergence between the austerity-ravaged peripheral countries and the core; in fact, Germany is the main source of growth, with the periphery falling further behind.
Oh, and has anyone noticed that the Baltic miracles are looking a bit less miraculous now? Estonia is actually down on the year, and Latvia is growing no faster than the US.
The European story remains one of deeply destructive economic policies, which have inflicted vast harm — but have not led to unraveling, because the political cohesion of the euro is stronger than people like me realized. The cohesion is a good thing, I guess, but the policies still aren’t working."

17
Technology

A Victory for Airbnb in New York

By NICK WINGFIELD | May 13th 2014
The apartment-sharing service’s victory may be short-lived, as the state attorney general said he would address the court’s concerns in a new subpoena.
Decisions and Verdicts; Renting and Leasing (Real Estate); Real Estate and Housing (Residential)

We are seeing the return of the rooming house.
The hotels don't like it.
 
18
U.S.

Ex-Deputy in Arizona Kept Cache of Evidence

By FERNANDA SANTOS | May 9th 2014
Bags containing drugs, hundreds of drivers’ licenses and other items were retrieved last week from the home of a former Maricopa County sheriff’s deputy who was found dead there.
Suicides and Suicide Attempts; Search and Seizure; Police Brutality, Misconduct and Shootings

This appears to be a corruption case.
Who was corrupt is to be determined.
 
19
U.S.

Judge Wants Trials for 3 in Bombing Case to Stay in Boston

By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE | May 13th 2014
Judge Douglas P. Woodlock of United States District Court said he wanted to find juries in Boston for the trials of three friends of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the marathon bombing suspect.
Boston Marathon Bombings (2013); Jury System

All monsters are not Muslims.
 
20
Real Estate

Paltry Office Pantries Give Way to Sleek Social Spaces

By RONDA KAYSEN | May 13th 2014
The once-drab company kitchen is increasingly becoming the office hub, outfitted with plush furniture that invites employees to linger and interact.
Real Estate (Commercial); Interior Design and Furnishings; Kitchens; Employee Fringe Benefits; Workplace Environment

There are different ways to organize efforts.
The divide seems to be the presence or absence of a domestic staff.
If there is a professional cook the kitchen belongs to the cook.
In the past social interaction among the workers has been undesirable.
There was considered to be no down time on the clock.

Cooperative creation does not fit with copyright and patent law. 

I have not found a way to make this model work.
It does look comfortable.

There is good reason to separate home and office.


| 



:
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)