## Global Ponzi meltdown/House of Cards ##
Austria
"Bad Bank" Goes Bad, $8.5 Billion "Bail-In"
Underway
Greece will not seek another bailout, prime minister says
Greece will not seek another bailout, prime minister says
Australian
coal industry takes another step closer to the abyss
The downturn in the Australian coal industry has deepened, with three major mining companies warning on Friday that more jobs will be cut, mines will close and assets will be written down to a shadow of their former value.
The downturn in the Australian coal industry has deepened, with three major mining companies warning on Friday that more jobs will be cut, mines will close and assets will be written down to a shadow of their former value.
The
boom is about to go bust (Australia)Asset
bubbles in shares and property could burst in the next six to 18
months, according to one of the country's more bearish investment
experts, who is warning baby boomers that their retirement savings
are at risk.
The
annual Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC)
conference kicked off in Toronto on Sunday. Not
surprisingly, the mood on the conference floor was a little
subdued as metal prices continue to slump, financing dollars remain
scarce, and the S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index trades
near an all-time low.
Governments
in some major Southeast Asian nations are struggling with hefty bills
run up by spending to encourage consumption.
## Airline Death Spiral ##Passengers fly into a rage over airlines' antics (KSA)
## Airline Death Spiral ##Passengers fly into a rage over airlines' antics (KSA)
Budget
2015: No major relief for struggling aviation sector, say
experts (India)Delayed
American Airlines flight at Dallas/Fort Worth left passengers
stuck on plane for nine hours
Passengers
trapped aboard an American Airlines flight at Dallas/Fort Worth
International Airport on Friday cursed, kicked seats and
raided the liquor cabinet in protest of their grueling
delay.
Iran's airline passengers are mad and aren't taking it anymore
Iran's airline passengers are mad and aren't taking it anymore
Businesses
are feeling sting of airport cutbacks
Fewer direct flights and smaller planes mean less room for cargo, more headaches
Fewer direct flights and smaller planes mean less room for cargo, more headaches
Southwest
maintenance glitch shows complexity of inspections
The episode illustrated the difficulties tracking inspections and conducting maintenance on complex modern aircraft.
The episode illustrated the difficulties tracking inspections and conducting maintenance on complex modern aircraft.
##
Fault lines/flashpoints/powder kegs/military/war drums ##
Asia
piracy cases rise 22% on year to hit 10-year high in 2014:
ReCAAP
The number of piracy and armed robbery cases against ships in Asia increased 22% year on year to hit a 10-year of 183 last year, anti-piracy watchdog ReCAAP said in its annual report released earlier this week.
Dismantle NATO Now—-It's A Relic That's A Hotbed For Warmongers
The number of piracy and armed robbery cases against ships in Asia increased 22% year on year to hit a 10-year of 183 last year, anti-piracy watchdog ReCAAP said in its annual report released earlier this week.
Dismantle NATO Now—-It's A Relic That's A Hotbed For Warmongers
Saudi
Eastern Fleet Request Advances
A second letter of request (LoR) from the Saudi government detailing requirements for the Eastern Fleet replacement program was delivered to the US Navy in February, barely a month after an initial request was sent, according to sources here at the International Defence Exposition show.
A second letter of request (LoR) from the Saudi government detailing requirements for the Eastern Fleet replacement program was delivered to the US Navy in February, barely a month after an initial request was sent, according to sources here at the International Defence Exposition show.
Playing
Chicken with Nuclear War
U.S.-Russian tensions keep escalating – now surrounding the murder of Russian opposition figure Boris Nemtsov – yet almost no one on the American side seems to worry about the possibility that the tough-guy rhetoric and proxy war in Ukraine might risk a nuclear conflagration.
U.S.-Russian tensions keep escalating – now surrounding the murder of Russian opposition figure Boris Nemtsov – yet almost no one on the American side seems to worry about the possibility that the tough-guy rhetoric and proxy war in Ukraine might risk a nuclear conflagration.
##
Global unrest/mob rule/angry people/torches and pitchforks ##Boko
Haram Protest in Cameroon Draws Thousands As Fighting
Intensifies And Nigerian Elections Approach
Riot
police called in as anti-Muslim rally in England boils over
Hong Kong Police Use Pepper Spray As Protests Against Chinese Shoppers Turns Ugly
Hong Kong Police Use Pepper Spray As Protests Against Chinese Shoppers Turns Ugly
## Energy/resources ##
Power
Shortages Challenge Eskom, Force Load Shedding in South
Africa
In a media presentation, CEO Tshediso Matona explained that Eskom's reserve margin is very low and that the company does not currently have enough capacity to meet demand. The situation has necessitated planned, controlled, and rotational load shedding to protect the power system from a total countrywide blackout.
Apple buying a third of world's gold to meet demand for iWatch
In a media presentation, CEO Tshediso Matona explained that Eskom's reserve margin is very low and that the company does not currently have enough capacity to meet demand. The situation has necessitated planned, controlled, and rotational load shedding to protect the power system from a total countrywide blackout.
Apple buying a third of world's gold to meet demand for iWatch
Most
French Nuclear Plants 'Should Be Shut Down' Over Drone
Threat
"You don't need massive amounts of force to allow a nuclear plant to go into instability. The plant has enough energy to destroy itself. Drones can be used to tickle the plant into instability."
"You don't need massive amounts of force to allow a nuclear plant to go into instability. The plant has enough energy to destroy itself. Drones can be used to tickle the plant into instability."
Cheap
Oil Threatens Debt Squeeze for Smaller UK North Sea
Producers
Small and mid-sized independent oil producers in the British North Sea could face a financing squeeze this year as banks cut lending linked to the value of oil reserves, following last year's oil price sell off.
Small and mid-sized independent oil producers in the British North Sea could face a financing squeeze this year as banks cut lending linked to the value of oil reserves, following last year's oil price sell off.
Bulgaria's parliament
scrapped preferential prices for new renewable energy installations
on Thursday as the country is struggling to cut deficits in
the energy sector and keep a lid on consumers' utility bills.
Eclipse
of the Sun has European solar power producers worried
Hundreds of millions of Europeans will experience a solar eclipse ranging from 40% to 97% obscuration on March 20th. Iceland will have a total blackout. The solar power industry is very concerned about how it will manage when an estimated 35,000 MW of electricity vanishes from the system, then comes surging back two hours later.
Hundreds of millions of Europeans will experience a solar eclipse ranging from 40% to 97% obscuration on March 20th. Iceland will have a total blackout. The solar power industry is very concerned about how it will manage when an estimated 35,000 MW of electricity vanishes from the system, then comes surging back two hours later.
US
Will Never Gain Oil Market Crown Says IEA Head
No matter how much oil the United States produces over the next few years, it will never become the next Saudi Arabia in the global oil market, according to Fatih Birol, the new executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA). What's especially interesting about this forecast is that it directly contradicts what Birol said only three months ago, and he gave no explanation for his change of mind.
No matter how much oil the United States produces over the next few years, it will never become the next Saudi Arabia in the global oil market, according to Fatih Birol, the new executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA). What's especially interesting about this forecast is that it directly contradicts what Birol said only three months ago, and he gave no explanation for his change of mind.
Senate
OKs Noy powers to address blackouts (Philippines)
People
hit hard by shortage of power and water (India)
## Got food? ##
## Got food? ##
Panic
in Ukraine Over Food, Empty Stores and Protests; Strategic Food
Reserve Empty
Kew quest to prevent coffee dying out
Scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew have begun a desperate bid to find a new bean of coffee which can thrive as the climate warms, before the world's supplies run out.
Top Russian grocery stores 'freeze' food prices
Kew quest to prevent coffee dying out
Scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew have begun a desperate bid to find a new bean of coffee which can thrive as the climate warms, before the world's supplies run out.
Top Russian grocery stores 'freeze' food prices
## Environment/health ##
Deadly
bacterium 'released from US high-security lab'
Officials in Louisiana investigating how a potential bioterror agent escaped but insist there is no threat to public
Officials in Louisiana investigating how a potential bioterror agent escaped but insist there is no threat to public
Crop
herbicides play a role in shrinking monarch population
A butterfly being considered for federal protection is emblematic of the plight that pollinating insects face in part because farmers, enticed by ethanol mandates, are growing more herbicide-resistant crops, which has stripped millions of acres of crucial plant habitat.
A butterfly being considered for federal protection is emblematic of the plight that pollinating insects face in part because farmers, enticed by ethanol mandates, are growing more herbicide-resistant crops, which has stripped millions of acres of crucial plant habitat.
Scientists
hope an AIDS vaccine lies in llamas
The cute Andean animal's antibodies are nearly 100 percent effective in stopping the deadly virus from spreading, researchers say.
The cute Andean animal's antibodies are nearly 100 percent effective in stopping the deadly virus from spreading, researchers say.
##
Intelligence/security/internet/cyberwar ##Facebook
employees can access your FB account without password
Cybergeddon:
Why the Internet could be the next "failed state"
If you think the Internet can go on being just like it is, here's some bad news.
If you think the Internet can go on being just like it is, here's some bad news.
Are
Banks In Store For An 'Armageddon' Cyber Attack?
## Propaganda ##Conservative Audience Laughs as Former NSA Chief Refers to Himself as an 'Unrelenting Libertarian'
## Propaganda ##Conservative Audience Laughs as Former NSA Chief Refers to Himself as an 'Unrelenting Libertarian'
The
Rise of a 'Democratic' Fascism
Traditional fascism is defined as a right-wing political system run by a dictator who prohibits dissent and relies on repression. But some analysts believe a new form of fascism has arisen that has a democratic façade and is based on relentless propaganda and endless war.
Traditional fascism is defined as a right-wing political system run by a dictator who prohibits dissent and relies on repression. But some analysts believe a new form of fascism has arisen that has a democratic façade and is based on relentless propaganda and endless war.
Neocons
Want 'Regime Change' in Iran
A curious trait of America's neocons is that they never change course or learn from past mistakes. They simply press on for more and more "regime change," explaining their determination to sink the Iranian nuclear talks to reopen the pathway to more war.
A curious trait of America's neocons is that they never change course or learn from past mistakes. They simply press on for more and more "regime change," explaining their determination to sink the Iranian nuclear talks to reopen the pathway to more war.
48
infrastructure entities to get cybersecurity cooperation
requests
The government will ask 48 entities in charge of key pieces of infrastructure to help it take countermeasures against cyberthreats, an official said Sunday.
The government will ask 48 entities in charge of key pieces of infrastructure to help it take countermeasures against cyberthreats, an official said Sunday.
Japan's
high child poverty rate driven by an increasing number of
single-parent families
Japan is one of the world's richest countries but one in six Japanese children now live in poverty - one of the worst rates in the industrialised world.
Japan is one of the world's richest countries but one in six Japanese children now live in poverty - one of the worst rates in the industrialised world.
Number
of neglected graves increasing
An increasing number of graves have been abandoned across the nation as no one is taking care of them due to lower birthrates and depopulation.
An increasing number of graves have been abandoned across the nation as no one is taking care of them due to lower birthrates and depopulation.
The
aerial photograph shows that almost all the land in the photographed
area is still vacant. From the very beginning I have maintained that
what was destroyed will never be rebuilt. -- RF
Groundbreaking
Smog Documentary Divides Chinese
Audiences
China may further lower growth target for 2015
China may further lower growth target for 2015
## UK ##UK blocks Russian oligarchs' deal to buy North Sea fields
Britain has blocked a deal by Russian billionaires, Mikhail Fridman and German Khan, to buy 12 oil and gas fields in the North Sea as part of their acquisition of Germany's oil firm DEA from RWE, citing possible sanctions against Russia.
NHS
lets down patients with appalling standards at weekends, says
top doctor
Patients are suffering shameful safety risks and higher death rates because the NHS is failing to provide proper care at weekends, a damning report will warn this week.
Patients are suffering shameful safety risks and higher death rates because the NHS is failing to provide proper care at weekends, a damning report will warn this week.
Odierno
Raises Alarm Over UK Spending Levels
US Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno has added his voice to the chorus of senior politicians and military figures on both sides of the Atlantic voicing concerns over the potential impact of further defense cuts to Britain's armed forces.
US Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno has added his voice to the chorus of senior politicians and military figures on both sides of the Atlantic voicing concerns over the potential impact of further defense cuts to Britain's armed forces.
## US ##
Illinois
Pension Plans 39% Funded; Taxpayers On the Hook for $105 Billion in
Liabilities; It Will Get Worse!
The long inflation con on the public
The long inflation con on the public
How
the CPI severely underreports inflation and the slow erosion
in the American standard of living.
Q4 Household Debt Report——What Deleveraging?
Q4 Household Debt Report——What Deleveraging?
North
Carolina Lobbyists Can Officially Screw Politicians
Legally
A clandestine sexual relationship between a lobbyist and a government official they lobby may sound unethical, but the North Carolina Ethics Commission says it's perfectly legal.
A clandestine sexual relationship between a lobbyist and a government official they lobby may sound unethical, but the North Carolina Ethics Commission says it's perfectly legal.
If
a group of regular citizens had pulled this on someone, they'd
all likely be facing criminal conspiracy charges on top of
the perjury and other charges. So why aren't these cops and
prosecutors?
The
Real American Exceptionalism
From Torture to Drone Assassination, How Washington Gave Itself a Global Get-Out-of-Jail-Free Card
From Torture to Drone Assassination, How Washington Gave Itself a Global Get-Out-of-Jail-Free Card
Wells
Fargo puts a ceiling on subprime auto loans
Wells Fargo, one of the largest subprime car lenders, is pulling back from that roaring market, a move that is being felt throughout the broader auto industry.
Wells Fargo, one of the largest subprime car lenders, is pulling back from that roaring market, a move that is being felt throughout the broader auto industry.
And
finally...
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