Wednesday, January 14, 2015

@11:50, 1/13/15

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1
Business Day

A Touch Screen to Ease Airport Stress


Adds are not a substitute for life.
Airports should only be visited.

2
U.S.

Woman Dies After Smoke Fills Washington Metro Tunnel

Scores were taken to hospitals after a Washington Metrorail tunnel filled with smoke during the evening rush.
Deaths (Fatalities); Subways

A report of a trash fire in a tunnel.
Maintenance is important.

3
The Upshot

Letter From the Editor: Marriage, and When Liberals Are Wrong

A new study on marriage offers a reminder that the evidence suggests family structure really does matter.
Marriages; Income Inequality; Taxation; Liberalism (US Politics)

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/disingenuous

"We should also be willing to say when we think liberals don’t have a claim on the evidence — such as when they argue that education is overrated (but still send their own children to expensive colleges) or when they argue that marriage isn’t very important."

Harvard is overrated.  Education is vital to our culture.

Marriage is a civil contract.  Contracts are the basis of civilization.
Religion is a personal choice.

4
false

Christie Speech Points to a Presidential Path

Gov. Chris Christie’s State of the State speech will provide a framework for a potential presidential race.
Budgets and Budgeting; Elections, Governors; Pensions and Retirement Plans; Property Taxes; State of the State Message (NJ)

Christie should not be in any public office.

5
Business Day

What a Great Place to Work Ought to Look Like

In the Life@Work column, Tony Schwartz provides a step-by-step guide to how employers can invest more in their employees so they feel motivated to invest more of themselves at work.
Labor and Jobs; Living Wage; Minimum Wage; Paid Time Off; Productivity; Wages and Salaries

The list requires more thought.
The living wage is required.
The shape of work depends on the shape of the business paying the bills.

6
Science

Sparrows Don’t Just Sing Same Old Song

The birds can convey vastly different meanings by varying the length and context of their whistles and trills, researchers find.
Birds; Language and Languages

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codec

"A codec encodes a data stream or signal for transmission, storage or encryption, or decodes it for playback or editing."

It is basic to language.

7
Business Day

When the Parking Space Becomes a Park

Often commissioned by small businesses hoping to attract customers, “parklets” can brighten streetscapes and create community gathering spaces.
Area Planning and Renewal; Urban Areas; Parking

The private automobile is toxic to cities.

You are probably in Oakland.

8
World

From Sergeant-at-Arms to Canadian Ambassador, After Ottawa Attack

Kevin Vickers, the sergeant-at-arms of Canada’s House of Commons, rose from relative obscurity when his role in ending an attack on Parliament was revealed.
Diplomatic Service, Embassies and Consulates; Terrorism

There is no Jehadi government capable of declaring war.
Reactionaries are always ready to grab power in any form.

9
The Upshot

What a Stronger Dollar Means for the Economy

The seemingly inexorable rise of the dollar versus the euro and most other currencies has broad implications this year and beyond.
US Dollar (Currency); Euro (Currency); United States Economy; Travel and Vacations; Inflation (Economics); International Trade and World Market; Economic Conditions and Trends

This is a misconception of  the world economy.
The dollar and the euro are equally strong.
The driver is deflation.
The euro is at much higher risk of destruction due to breakup of its currency union.
Sports

U.S.O.C. Chooses Boston as Candidate for 2024 Summer Olympics

U.S.

Volkswagen and Ford Take Top Awards at the Detroit Auto Show

Opinion

God, Gays and the Atlanta Fire Department


Obama, in Tennessee, Begins Selling His Community College Tuition Plan

U.S.

Obama Facing Rising Pressure on Keystone Oil Pipeline

Technology

A Small Software Company Sees a Future in Containers of Code

A software start-up is in the forefront of a move to package applications much as shipping containers hold physical goods.
Software

Google light.
World

Conspiracy Theories Mix With Official Condolences

Russian reaction to the violence in Paris fell quickly into two camps: official condemnation, followed by accusations that Western depravity and even the United States was to blame.
Freedom of Speech and Expression; Terrorism

We can expect such.
N.Y. / Region

New York City Settles Three Brothers’ Wrongful Conviction Cases for $17 Million

As part of a strategy to settle civil rights cases before they become lawsuits, the city comptroller, Scott M. Stringer, reached a deal on the cases, which all involved Louis Scarcella, a retired homicide detective.
False Arrests, Convictions and Imprisonments; Murders, Attempted Murders and Homicides; Civil Rights and Liberties; Suits and Litigation (Civil)

Sometimes it is cheaper to plead guilty.


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@21:40

1
World

Libyan Militants Aligned With Islamic State Claim Kidnapping of 21 Egyptian Christians

The group claiming to have seized the hostages identified itself as the Tripolitania Province of the Islamic State, named for the region around the capital, Tripoli, in western Libya.
Kidnapping and Hostages; Christians and Christianity; Terrorism 

They are trying to tease the west.

2
Opinion

God, Gays and the Atlanta Fire Department

The mayor of Atlanta was right to dismiss the chief of the fire department for imposing his virulent anti-gay views on his work force.
Fires and Firefighters; Discrimination; Homosexuality and Bisexuality; Editorials; Freedom of Speech and Expression; Freedom of Religion; Religion-State Relations; First Amendment (US Constitution) 

Atlanta may have trouble finding a Fire Chief

3
U.S.

Justices Take Broad View On Hostage-Taker’s Penalty

Bank robbers are subject to mandatory 10-year sentence increases if they force others to accompany them for even very short distances, the Supreme Court ruled.
Bank Robberies; Kidnapping and Hostages; Mandatory Sentencing 

I would have had to concur.

4
Business Day

A Touch Screen to Ease Airport Stress

In November, OTG, which designs, builds and operates airport dining outlets, began installing iPads at Newark Liberty International Airport.
iPad; Airports; Travel and Vacations; Business Travel; Customer Relations 

Shopping is not what I want to do when stuck at the airport.

5
false

Christie Speech Points to a Presidential Path

Gov. Chris Christie’s State of the State speech will provide a framework for a potential presidential race.
Budgets and Budgeting; Elections, Governors; Pensions and Retirement Plans; Property Taxes; State of the State Message (NJ) 

New Jersey's gift to the national debate.

6
Opinion

No Exit for Greece

No.
The Greeks will exit.
7
Health

No Smoke, but Haze Around E-Joint

Addiction specialists worry that a new high via electronic vapor cigarettes with no smoke or smell may be far too convenient, especially for teenagers.
Marijuana; E-Cigarettes; Smoking and Tobacco; Medical Marijuana

Worry on.
The object is the destruction of the unlawful trade in drugs.
Removing the profit motive will destroy any trade.

8
World

10 Are Killed in Ukraine as Diplomacy Hits a Wall

A shell or rocket that appeared to be aimed at an army checkpoint in southeastern Ukraine hit a bus. The episode came as plans for a peace summit meeting collapsed.
Civilian Casualties

The West must bring more pressure on the Russians in general and Putin specifically.
We cannot engage in open warfare.
Nukes do that.

9
Science

Thermal Imaging Allows for Picturing the Invisible

Thermal imaging, once limited to the police and the military, is becoming a mainstream technology.
Sensors; Temperature; Cameras; Surveillance of Citizens by Government; Airport Security

If John Markoff  is going to write about thermal imaging he should learn about the subject.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermography
"Thermography has a long history, although its use has increased dramatically with the commercial and industrial applications of the past fifty years."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrared_photography

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imaging_science

10
U.S.

ISIS Is Cited in Hacking of Central Command’s Twitter and YouTube Accounts

Messages posted on the U.S. military accounts, the hackers claimed, listed the names and phone numbers of military personnel, but the documents appeared to be public records.
United States Defense and Military Forces; Cyberwarfare

Resources plus desire equals action.

11
World

Obama Assures Netanyahu That U.S. Opposes Palestinians’ Bid to Join Court

President Obama told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Monday that the United States opposed the Palestinian Authority’s bid to join the International Criminal Court, the White House said.
Palestinians; United States International Relations

Palestine is not a nation state.
U.S.

For Washington Metro, a Death Is Rare but Problems Are Almost Daily

National Transportation Safety Board investigators were on the scene a day after an electrical malfunction filled a Metrorail tunnel with smoke and killed a woman.
Subways; Deaths (Fatalities); Evacuations and Evacuees; Rescues

"An ambitious capital plan to fix the system — the second-largest mass transit system in the nation — has been undermined by its unwieldy, multijurisdictional governing system in which everyone wants more services but few wish to pay for it"

12
Opinion

Can Jeb Bush Defy the Tea Party and Win?

Bill Clinton did something similar to the left wing of his party in 1992, but the depth of our political polarization makes the task much harder now.
Tea Party Movement; Presidential Election of 2016

I hope not.
It does not look likely.

13
Science

Sparrows Don’t Just Sing Same Old Song

The Upshot

The Best-Positioned Rival to Jeb Bush May Not Be the Best Known

Scott Walker, the governor of Wisconsin, has the potential to attract broad support throughout the G.O.P.
Presidential Election of 2016; Primaries and Caucuses

Not good enough.
There are not enough Republicans to win. 

15
World

6 Men, Said to Have Attacked the Police, Are Killed in China’s Far West

The authorities said the men had explosives “on their bodies,” but they did not provide further details.
Bombs and Explosives; Attacks on Police; Uighurs (Chinese Ethnic Group)

China has problems.
Among them are racism, recession, drought and pollution.

16
Business Day

Study Finds Local Taxes Hit Lower Wage Earners Harder


Yes.

17
World

Grief and Defiance in Pakistan as Survivors of Taliban Massacre Return to School

Among the crowd were young people wearing bandages or casts after being wounded during an eight-hour assault on the Army Public School in December.
School Shootings and Armed Attacks

Their army is working on the problems.

 18
World

Russian and Ukrainian Officials Meet in Germany

The meeting was the latest attempt to ease the crisis in eastern Ukraine, where about 4,700 people have been killed since the conflict erupted last spring.
International Relations

No hope there.

19
Business Day

Europe’s Trade Chief Calls for More Study on Proposed Pact With U.S.

At issue is a provision that would give companies the right to sue national governments to enforce the terms of an eventual trade deal.
International Trade and World Market


Cecilia Malmstrom will ultimately say no.



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