Morning Media Summary
The following is a roundup of the morning’s media. We hope you will make a daily stop at Open Market to read the latest updates.
Tech:
Gillard announces unique Australian IBM R&D lab for better world, points to NBN as reason:
“Gillard today announced a unique IBM Research and Development lab to be based at the University of Melbourne and open in 1st quarter 2011.”
Big media wants more piracy busting from Google:
“When it comes to fighting online piracy, some music and film industry executives think Google could be doing more to help. ”
Global Warming / Environment / Energy:
EPA funnels taxpayer money to dozens of liberal community activist groups:
“The Environmental Protection Agency recently listed 76 community groups and government agencies that will share almost 2 million taxpayer dollars in the form of “environmental justice grants.””
Occidental Petroleum CEO to step down:
“The chief executive of Occidental Petroleum Corp. says he’ll relinquish his role as CEO next year and plans to retire at the end of 2014.”
Snow to hit Britain:
“Forecasters warned snow is due in Scotland and possibly northern England next week, with frost as far south as southern England, which will see bitter 48F (9C) daytime maximum temperatures.”
Insurance / Gambling:
Malta Rules Online Gambling Debts Unenforceable:
“In a ruling that is sure to make any online gambler think twice about gambling online in Malta has become a necessary fear. The Lottery and Gaming Authority has ruled that the “civil code” articles which when translated into simpler terms to understand say any gambling debt whether from players or from gambling establishments that are not licensed by the LGA are not enforceable. Meaning if you win at an online casino that is not licensed by the LGA good luck getting your winnings if the casino decides to not pay for whatever reason they put forth. This has become an issue ever since an online player who won over 167,500 Euros’ on a progressive jackpot at Casino Club.com has refused to pay the player even though the player was in good standings. The LGA found in favor of the casino but its reasoning has not been made clear as of yet.”
Health / Safety:
Medicare actuary: Reform will cost some seniors:
“A Medicare official concedes that seniors may have to dig deeper into their wallets next year thanks to the health care law. ”
Scientists suggest that cancer is purely man-made:
“The study of remains and literature from ancient Egypt and Greece and earlier periods – carried out at Manchester’s KNH Centre for Biomedical Egyptology and published in Nature – includes the first histological diagnosis of cancer in an Egyptian mummy.”
Economics:
P.J. O’Rourke: In for a Penny, in for $16 Million:
“How much would you think it would cost the U.S. mint to produce a penny? You’re half right. To manufacture this little item of pocket clutter is about twice as expensive as its nominal value. And its nominal value is nominal indeed. A penny will not buy a penny postcard or a pennywhistle or a piece of penny candy. It will not even, if you’re managing the U.S. mint, buy a penny. ”
Capitalism Saved the Miners:
“It needs to be said. The rescue of the Chilean miners is a smashing victory for free-market capitalism.”
Israel unlikely champ in global real estate:
“Israel, despite perennial fears of war, has emerged as one of the hottest – and least likely – property markets in the world: Since real estate collapsed around the globe in 2008, at least one industry watchdog lists it as the fastest-rising property market on earth.”
India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani moves into 630m home:
“Ambani, his wife and three children have moved into the building which is named Antilia, after a mythical Island. It contains a health club with a gym and dance studio, at least one studio, a ballroom, guestrooms and a range of lounges and a 50 seater cinema.”
Foreclosures hit post-bust peak in third quarter:
“Lenders seized more U.S. homes this summer than in any three-month stretch since the housing market began to bust in 2006. But many of the foreclosures may be challenged in court later because of allegations that banks evicted people without reading the documents.”
Dollar hits fresh 15-year-low against yen:
“The dollar fell to a fresh 15-year-low against the yen in Tokyo on Thursday amid growing speculation that the U.S. Federal Reserve will ease monetary policy next month.”
Capitalism on Campus?:
“American college professors are predominantly hostile to laissez-faire capitalism. That hostility ranges from tepid (the typical liberal Democrat who believes the country needs a welfare “safety-net” and ever-increasing economic regulation) to scalding (the Marxist who would like to abolish private property). Vigorous advocates of economic liberty and free enterprise are few and far between.”
Great news: Obama says he’s learned that “there’s no such thing as shovel-ready projects” for public works:
“Hey, we all make mistakes. This one just happens to involve hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars.”
Report criticizes TARP contracts to Fannie and Freddie:
“The report by the congressional panel overseeing the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), said that the $437 million in Treasury contracts to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and private companies to manage critical aspects of the bailout program raised a number of concerns about public oversight and conflicts of interest.”
Legal:
Dell Settlement approved:
“A federal judge on Wednesday approved Dell Inc.’s $100 million settlement with the government of civil fraud charges.”
Microsoft will look to courts for botnet takedown:
“Microsoft has seen a dramatic drop in the number of computers infected with Waledac, a piece of malicious software affiliated with a botnet that was once responsible for a massive amount of spam.”
UBS: no legal actions against former execs:
“UBS, Switzerland’s largest bank, said Thursday it will not take legal action against former executives and board members for the huge losses suffered during the U.S. subprime crisis that forced a bailout.”
New York Appellate Judge James Catterson: “there is no longer any judicial oversight of eminent domain proceedings “:
“In the past 11 months, New York’s highest court—the Court of Appeals—has had two perfect opportunities to perform its basic constitutional duty and carefully review the highly controversial use of eminent domain by the state’s powerful Empire State Development Corporation. It failed both times. First, in Goldstein v. New York State Urban Development Corporation, the high court rubber stamped New York’s land grab on behalf of real estate tycoon Bruce Ratner and his Atlantic Yards basketball stadium project. In that opinion, the majority actually admitted that eminent domain abuse might be occurring, but then declared that it had no business second-guessing the state officials who had made the dubious blight determination:”
Labor:
Hospitals Seize on SEIU’s Kaiser Victory to Lay Off Workers:
“In the wake of SEIU-UHW’s electoral victory last week over NUHW at Kaiser, nearly 200 UHW members are being laid off at two hospitals that had no union layoffs for at least twenty years. SEIU is not helping employees resist the layoffs at Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital and Seton Medical Center, and in the former case the union’s stance is likely related to its members voting last spring to join NUHW (though SEIU filed a challenge and still collects dues). The layoffs are an important reminder that media framing of the SEIU-NUHW dispute as based on personalities and egos ignored the contrast between two fundamentally different models for representing workers. SEIU has facilitated layoffs or simply failed to enforce workers’ contract rights, whereas the prior UHW leadership team (now with NUHW) negotiated strong protections against layoffs and aggressively defended workers’ jobs and contracts.”
Transportation/ Land Use:
Will We Ever Have High-Speed Trains?:
“High-speed rail systems have long flourished in Japan and Europe, and now in China, 42 new high-speed lines with trains that travel at more than 210 miles per hour will open by 2012. In the United States, trains that go faster than 100 miles per hour are mostly a pie-in-the-sky dream.”
Transportation secretary envisions nation connected by high-speed rail:
“U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told a Las Vegas gathering of transportation officials from western states that he expects 80 percent of American cities to be connected by high-speed rail in 25 years.”
New York Appellate Judge James Catterson: “there is no longer any judicial oversight of eminent domain proceedings “:
“In the past 11 months, New York’s highest court—the Court of Appeals—has had two perfect opportunities to perform its basic constitutional duty and carefully review the highly controversial use of eminent domain by the state’s powerful Empire State Development Corporation. It failed both times. First, in Goldstein v. New York State Urban Development Corporation, the high court rubber stamped New York’s land grab on behalf of real estate tycoon Bruce Ratner and his Atlantic Yards basketball stadium project. In that opinion, the majority actually admitted that eminent domain abuse might be occurring, but then declared that it had no business second-guessing the state officials who had made the dubious blight determination:”
Photo via: Alex Barth