Monday 13 October 2014

Headlines


## Airline Death Spiral ##

## Fault lines/flashpoints/powder kegs/military/war drums ##
It was heinous. It was underhanded.  It was beyond the bounds of international morality. It was an attack on the American way of life.  It was what you might expect from unscrupulous Arabs.  It was “the oil weapon” -- and back in 1973, it was directed at the United States. Skip ahead four decades and it’s smart, it’s effective, and it’s the American way.  The Obama administration has appropriated it as a major tool of foreign policy, a new way to go to war with nations it considers hostile without relying on planes, missiles, and troops.  It is, of course, that very same oil weapon.

## Global unrest/mob rule/angry people/torches and pitchforks ##

## Energy/resources ##
What a surprise! Who would have thought? -- RF
As with the first test, the scientists reported nearly unbelievable results which, of course, is the problem.
This sounds like the savior of the world economy, but basically nothing would change, because — even if it really works — it doesn't change the economic system. It would just goose the global Ponzi and keep it going for a while longer, while strip-mining the planet at an accelerated rate. Although carbon emissions would be significantly reduced, renewed economic growth would more than make up for that reduced environmental burden by spurring other kinds of pollution and contamination. My prediction is that, in the long run, this would just aggravate all our problems and make the inevitable crash all the worse. Limits to growth do exist. -- RF

## Infrastructure scavenging ##
Low-level criminals stealing copper to sell on the black market is the stuff of TV and film plots, but every day, real-life crooks lift everything from bags of gravel to backhoes from construction sites across the 905 region – often in broad daylight.

## Got food? ##
By studying the immune systems of plants, they've developed a technique that eliminates the need for chemicals.
If you garden or farm, this is a must-read. -- RF

## Environment/health ##
State health commissioner granted quarantine power

## Intelligence/propaganda/security/internet/cyberwar ##
There have been a total of 589 data breaches recorded so far in 2014 by the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC). About 76.7 million records have be exposed, including the breach of 56 million credit and debit card numbers at Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD), the largest breach ever recorded for a retail company.

## Systemic breakdown/collapse/unsustainability ##

## Japan ##

## China ##

## UK ##
Residents have been asked by a council to fill in potholes themselves in order to save money on road repairs.
The government has today hired three banks to help the UK become the first Western state to issue bonds in the Chinese currency renminbi. The Treasury has appointed HSBC, Standard Chartered and the state-owned Bank of China to run the sale. The new bonds will help to diversify the UK’s public reserves, which are currently held in US and Canadian dollars, euro and yen.

## US ##

Anyone recall how the war in Iraq would pay for itself? That was the US Defense Department estimate in 2003.

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