Lots to cover, given our slow post of late, including political madness at home, more grim numbers, the Greek debacle, and a stunning rise in radiation leaked from Fukushima.
We begin with the suggestion of a homeopathic cure from The Atlantic Wire:
Big Business Wants to Defeat the Tea Party by Being More Like the Tea Party
Frustrated business groups think they may have a way to counteract the tea party’s influence: Act more like it.
Xinhua, the Chinese state news agency, reports on a downgrade:
Dagong downgrades U.S. credit rating to A-
Dagong Global Credit Rating Co. Ltd., a Chinese credit rating agency, on Thursday downgraded the local and foreign currency credit ratings of the United States to A- from A, maintaining a negative outlook.
Xinhua also offers up another rater’s dim view of American governance:
Interview: Fitch move warns U.S. of “lousy governance,” fiscal challenge
Fitch Ratings’ decision to place the AAA credit rating of the United States on a negative watch list is a timely reminder for some Republicans and the world ‘s largest economy needs to improve its long-term fiscal sustainability, said Arvind Subramanian, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Peterson Institute for International Economics, Wednesday.
Quartz reports on another slice in the death by a thousand cuts of the American service worker:
An army of robot baristas could mean the end of Starbucks as we know it
Salon covers the unChristian side of the GOP’s Fundie backers:
Family Research Council: Christians should not want the government to care for the poor
“The government has a responsibility to care for the poor? That’s not what Scripture says”
From MarketWatch, revealing that Ted Cruz is a classical Republican, perhaps:
Ted Cruz reportedly failed to disclose ties to Caribbean private equity firm
Sen. Ted Cruz, the Texas Republican and leader of the conservative effort to tie a curtailment of Obamacare to funding the government, is coming under scrutiny for failing to disclose ties to a Caribbean-based private equity fund.
So Cruz is a money-grubbin’ sleaze. Business as usual, right? Well, maybe there’s something a whole lot scarier goin’ on, reports Talk to Action, which has a video of the speech in question:
Cruz’ Father Suggests Ted Cruz “Anointed” to “Bring The Spoils Of War To The Priests”
In a sermon last year at an Irving, Texas, megachurch that helped elect Ted Cruz to the United States Senate, Cruz’ father Rafael Cruz indicated that his son was among the evangelical Christians who are anointed as “kings” to take control of all sectors of society, an agenda commonly referred to as the “Seven Mountains” mandate, and “bring the spoils of war to the priests”, thus helping to bring about a prophesied “great transfer of wealth”, from the “wicked” to righteous gentile believers.
The Atlantic Wire brings us a heart-warmer [or not]:
Dick Cheney Very Nearly Died in 2010
Dick Cheney very nearly succumbed to longtime heart disease in 2010, but it was okay, because he was “at peace” and enjoying sweet dreams of an Italian villa.
From Mother Jones, something to strike terror in the hearts and stomachs of the poor:
GOP Picks Anti-Food Stamp Crusader to Determine Future of Food Stamps
OpenSecrets Blog reports on true fandom:
Fundraising Down for GOP Dissidents, but Koch and Citizens United Stayed True
And the World Socialist Web Site covers the latest despicable move of Barry O’s BFF and former chief of staff:
Chicago mayor announces elimination of retiree health care subsidies
Chicago’s Democratic Party mayor Rahm Emanuel announced on October 9 that the city would go forward with a plan to entirely eliminate health insurance subsidies for retired city workers at the end of 2016. An estimated 21,100 workers, along with 9,100 of their spouses and dependents, will see their health costs rise dramatically.
From the Washington Post, grim reality:
Study: Poor children are now the majority in American public schools in South, West
A majority of students in public schools throughout the American South and West are low-income for the first time in at least four decades, according to a new study that details a demographic shift with broad implications for the country.
More grim reality, this time from the London Daily Mail:
Racism still exists when cutting a deal: Black people have to offer MORE money to seal the same contract
People from other races, however, didn’t suffer the same discrimination
Research was inspired by the 2011 U.S. Government’s debt ceiling debates
Scientists observed how at this time, political parties were prepared to reject a deal even if it appeared to damage their own supporters
From International Business Times, a tearjerker:
Government Shutdown Over: Fox News Is Angry, Will Miss The Ratings
And for our first transcontinental item, a warning from European Union Financial Services Commissioner Michel Barnier via Reuters:
EU’s Barnier warns U.S. of tit-for-tat action over banks
The European Union’s financial services chief warned of tit-for-tat action if the United States pushes ahead with plans to impose extra capital requirements on foreign banks.
Quartz covers yet another instance of Banksters Behaving Badly:
How traders might have made money manipulating massive currency markets
Regulators in Europe, the US, and as of yesterday, Hong Kong are looking into whether the $4.7 trillion market for currency is being manipulated by a handful of traders in order to gouge their clients and pocket big profits.
And the CBC covers the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement [CETA]:
Canada-EU free trade deal signed
Canada and the European Union have signed a tentative deal to open up markets and drop nearly all import taxes on everything from food to cars.
And Independent.ie offers a key detail:
EU finally strikes trade deal with Canada
The European Union and Canada agreed a multi-billion-dollar trade pact today that will integrate two of the world’s largest economies and paves the way for Europe to do an even bigger deal with the United States.
EurActiv debunks euromyth:
‘Benefits tourism’ in the EU is a myth, report says
There is little evidence of “benefits tourism” in Europe, according to a new European Commission study, which contradicts claims by the UK, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands that EU social security systems are under strain from Romanian and Bulgarian migrants.
From EurActiv again, hints of changes, likely too little and too late:
Minimum wage issue resurfaces in Paris election debate
Proposals for a continental minimum wage and jobs-creation dominated the first of a series of European Parliament panel debates in Paris on Tuesday (15 October), as EU-wide elections approach. EurActiv.fr reports.
From Europe Online, a most interesting pre-crash tale:
Ex-EU chief says he was “brutally” sidelined by Germany and France
Former European Commission president Romano Prodi recalled on Friday how he was “brutally” sidelined by France and Germany when he objected to them breaching the bloc’s strict deficit rules a decade ago.
And Bloomberg Businessweek covers another grim reality:
As Utility Bills Go up, European Consumers Go Ballistic
With temperatures dropping across Europe, a new controversy is heating up fast as households across the region face soaring utility bills.
Next up, Old Blighty’s austerian darkside comes into focus, declares the head of the British government’s Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, on the issuance of its first annual report via BBC News:
Alan Milburn says child poverty ‘no longer problem of the workless and work-shy’
Working parents in Britain “simply do not earn enough to escape poverty”, the government’s social mobility tsar Alan Milburn has warned.
And the London Telegraph covers austerian hypocrisy from Britain’s money minister:
Osborne: Britain must up its game to compete in global economy
Britain has lost its sense of ambition and optimism and has allowed “the bits that were great” to wither, George Osborne has said as he called on the country to “up our game”
But some folks got game, via the London Daily Mail:
The James Bond of prams! Aston Martin release £2,000 buggy in time for Christmas – modelled on their £1.2m coupe
Only 800 Silver Cross Surf Aston Martin Edition on sale in Harrods
Features an Alcantara ultra-soft Italian suede interior and winged logo
Leather push bar and alloy wheels based on £1.2m One-77 coupe
Ireland next, with another austerian hit via Independent.ie:
Families hit by €360 hikes for health insurance
FAMILIES will be hit with hikes of up to €360 in the annual cost of health insurance after a move in the Budget to change the tax treatment of premiums.
Next up, France, first with some blowback to racism from on high via BBC News:
French schoolchildren march in anger over expulsions
Thousands of schoolchildren in Paris and other parts of France have been demonstrating in anger over the expulsion of two foreign teenagers.
The students were especially angry over the deportation of a 15-year-old Roma girl, reports RFI:
Paris school students protest after Kosovo Roma girl’s deportation
Police fired teargas in Paris Thursday after clashes at a school students’ protest against the deportation of a 15-year-old Roma from Kosovo and a 19-year-old Armenian.
And France 24 brings us up to date with coverage of more demonstrations Friday:
Paris students intensify protests over deportations
Thousands of high school students in Paris took to the streets for a second consecutive day on Friday to protest against the deportation of foreign pupils following the controversial expulsion of 15-year-old Leonarda Dibrani earlier this month.
The Christian Science Monitor reports on xenophobia translated into political action:
Xenophobes of the world, unite? French, Dutch far-right weigh alliance
France’s National Front and the Netherlands’ Freedom Party are set to meet next month to discuss a joint anti-EU platform. Can an international alliance of nationalists work?
Deutsche Welle adds another dimension:
French recession, insecurity ‘good for Marine Le Pen’
France’s far-right National Front (FN) won a victory in a local by-election. Nonna Mayer, Research Director at the National Research Centre in Paris, spoke to DW about the ramifications.
And RFI tracks the latest racist outrage, smearing an African-born French official:
Front National suspends candidate for comparing justice minister to ape
France’s far-right Front National (FN) has sacked one of its candidates in next year’s local council elections after she posted an image of Justice Minister Christiane Taubira as an ape on Facebook.
From EurActiv, another controversial French gambit:
French bid to boost aid by taxing finance stirs hornets nest
The French National Assembly’s finance committee has green-lighted an amendment to the country’s draft 2014 budget law, significantly increasing the amount of aid funds that can be generated from the upcoming financial transactions tax (FTT), EurActiv.fr reports.
Germany gets some sobering news, via Xinhua:
German economic institutes cut 2013 growth forecast
Germany’s leading economic thinktanks on Thursday cut their 2013 growth forecast by half to 0.4 percent, but said domestic demand and better global climate will help Europe’s biggest economy to rebound in 2014.
But Europe Online offers some Germanic reassurance:
Advisers to German government forecast robust growth in 2014
The German government’s panel of economic advisers on Thursday forecast robust growth for the country’s economy next year, after a lacklustre start this year, as well as surging tax revenues.
And the Christian Science Monitor notes that things could be looking up for those at the bottom of the German pyramid in a nation currently without any minimum wage laws or regulations:
Federal minimum wage a step closer to reality… in Germany
Germany’s SPD and CDU announced today they would begin talks to form a coalition government – talks that the SPD had predicated on a federal minimum wage law.
Switzerland next, where the banksters at Frey & Co have voted to close up operations and return 2 billion Swiss francs {$2.2 billion] to depositors, reports the Economic Times:
Second Swiss bank closes over US tax pressure
A second Swiss bank has decided to close its doors as the United States cranks up pressure on financial institutions for abetting tax evasion.
On to Spain, first with some bankster boomerism from El País:
Brussels sees Spain making a clean exit from bailout program
In political success story scenario, ECB also feels there will be no need to extend rescue loan’s maturity
EU will wait to rule on bailout extension for Spain
From thinkSPAIN, another pump-priming effort:
Plan PIVE relaunched: Great deals for car-buyers as Spanish motor industry flourishes
A FOURTH version of a ‘scrap-for-cash’ part-exchange scheme allowing drivers to get new cars at heavily-discounted prices is due to be launched in the next few days thanks to a government investment of 70 million euros.
While El País covers the latest move to head off foreclosures in a country where the mortgage-holder remains indebted even after the property has been seized:
Strasbourg intervenes to stop eviction of 16 families from Girona apartments
Protestors rejoice in Salt as squatters given reprieve at least until end of the month
thinkSPAIN covers an anti-austerian reaction:
Three regional governments take legal action over hospital drug payment rules
THE Basque Country’s regional government intends to take legal action over new pressure on patients to pay for drugs dispensed in hospital.
Europe Online spots a dark cloud looming:
Amount of bad loans hits record levels in Spain
The share of bad loans on the balance sheets of Spanish banks, cooperatives and credit establishments rose in August to the record level of more than 180 billion euros (245 billion dollars), the Bank of Spain said Friday.
And El País reports on the new austerian budget:
Government unveils four-billion-euro fiscal adjustment plan for 2015
Rajoy administration has not confirmed whether personal income tax hike will remain in place
Italy next, with a lone headline from the European Union Times:
Italians go on strike to protest austerity measures
Thousands of Italian civil servants and transport workers have gone on strike in the capital Rome and other cities to protest against austerity measures enforced by the government.
After the jump, the latest grim Greek tidings, developments in Latin America, conflicting signals from Moscow, Delhi, and Beijing, and the latest catastrophic news from Fukushimapocalypse Now!. . .
We begin our Greek coverage with an editorial cartoon from EnetEnglish.gr:
Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras heads to negotiations with the troika. By Vangelis Papavasiliou.
Kathimerini English reports on signs of resistance:
PM to oppose troika bid for more cuts
As fears mount that troika envoys will push for more austerity measures when they return to Athens, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is reportedly planning to adopt a tough stance, insisting that any more horizontal cuts would be politically and socially disastrous.
While To Vima covers the grim reality on the ground:
Five migrant workers beaten up for refusing to work
Pakistani workers claim they had not been paid in months – Police still searching for missing employers
ANSAmed with more grim reality:
Greeks increasingly make recourse to soup kitchens
One in three can’t pay back home loans
And still more from ANA-MPA:
Overwhelming majority of housing loans cannot be repaid, based on GSEE consumer association survey
The number of unserviced housing loans skyrocketed to 75 pct, according to a survey by the Working Consumer Association of the private sector umbrella union GSEE made public on Thursday.
From To Vima, harsh numbers form Athens:
Municipal study indicates degree of poverty explosion in Athens
Over 20,000 people in Athens rely on municipal social services – over 1,000 homeless live in city center
More from EnetEnglish.gr:
As poverty increases, more citizens turn to municipal social services for survival
More than 20,000 Athenians now depend on city social services for daily needs
Through its social services agency Kyada, Athens municipality provides extensive support through a network of soup kitchens, a social grocery where citizens in need can obtain footstuffs and household goods, family support and programmes to support the homeless
And Greek Reporter covers one consequence:
Desperate Greek Father Robs Bank To Pay Off Debt
An unprecedented story of true desperation and human drama unfolded in Ioannina. A man robbed a bank in order to pay his debt to a company via another bank.
Theatrical politics from Greek Reporter:
Greek Protesters March to Finance Ministry Bringing Food
Athens’ municipal workers marched to the finance minister’s office in the Greek capital today with baskets of olive oil, tomatoes and a whole chicken on Thursday in an ironic protest after he suggested his family was suffering like other Greeks in the economic crisis.
And some resistance on the right, via Greek Reporter:
Kammenos Urges: Vote Against New Austerity Measures
Panos KammenosPanos Kammenos, leader of Independent Greeks (the right-wing anti-austerity political party with 18 MPs in the Hellenic Parliament) earlier today, urged the MPs of the two government parties, New Democracy and PASOK, to vote against any new austerity measures that may be proposed.
From Greek Reporter again, cuts to the one industry doing well:
Budget Cuts for Greece’s Tourism Promotion
In a press conference that the Greek Tourism Development Minister, Olga Kefalogianni gave yesterday, while accompanied by the general secretary of Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO) Panos Leivadas, it was made clear that the tourism promotion budget will be reduced from 10 million euro in 2013 to 7.5 million euro in 2014
While Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras and Deputy Minister of National Defense Fofi Gennimata tackle a commons sell-off, via To Vima:
No deal with troika for defense industries EAS, ELVO and LARKO
Teleconference for defense industries cancelled – Stournaras & Gennimata to coordinate in finding solution
From To Vima again, more that a wrist slap:
Kalamata courts dispense life sentences for false invoices
Appeal Court found four men guilty of trading falsified invoices for tax returns scam
ANA-MPA brings us our first Golden Dawn tale:
Parliament to vote on suspension of state funding to political parties on Tuesday
A vote on all riders incorporated in the environment ministry-sponsored draft bill on renewable energy sources (RES) – including an amendment that will suspend state funding for political parties whose officials and MPs face criminal charges – will take place on Tuesday following a decision reached in the Conference of Parliament Presidents On Thursday.
More from To Vima:
Government and opposition agree on Golden Dawn funding suspension
Parliamentary Assembly to vote on amendment – Voutsis pleased with Ministry of Interior’s proposals
According to SYRIZA’s Nikos Voutsis, the government and opposition have come to an agreement regarding the suspension of funding for political parties, such as Golden Dawn.
And Greek Reporter brings us an appointment:
Chief Magistrate Appointed for Golden Dawn Case
The court of appeal appointed Ioanna Klapa as the chief investigative magistrate in order to examine the Golden Dawn case. Maria Dimitrakopoulou is also appointed to help in the interrogation of the Golden Dawn’s members.
While Spiegel reports on some role-reversing:
Wasted EU Funds: Brussels Ignores Tip-Offs from Greek Official
Anti-corruption officials in Brussels have failed to investigate reports of squandered EU funds at a training institute in Greece, a German paper reported Friday. Well-connected teachers were allegedly paid up to €610 per hour for up to 225 work hours per month.
On to Cyprus, with this from Deutsche Welle:
Russia’s rich dominate Cyprus’ largest bank
Russians who lost their deposits in the Bank of Cyprus under the EU’s bailout conditions got shares in return – and ended up holding the majority of the bank. For many Cypriots that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
Russia next, with a report from Spiegel:
Organized Crime: Moscow Protests Spark Crackdown on Markets
Following the alleged murder of a young Russian by a foreigner, angry protesters rioted at a nearby wholesale market known to employ immigrants. Now authorities have cracked down on the market, believed to be controlled by criminal gangs.
Deutsche Welle has more on xenophobia rising:
DW survey: Russians want limits on migration
Nine out of 10 Russians are in favor of measures limiting migrant workers coming to the country. There is particularly high resentment of workers from the Caucasus region and Central Asia, as a DW survey shows.
Latin America next, starting with a headline from the Santiago Times:
Thousands march, challenge presidential candidates on education
More than 50,000 students, teachers and union members marched in Santiago on Thursday in a mass protest calling for education reform only weeks ahead of presidential and parliamentary elections.
More disturbances from the Rio Times:
Man Shot During Tuesday’s Protest: Daily
The Teacher’s Day protests held in Rio’s downtown area on Tuesday night once again ended in violence, with two police officers and six demonstrators sustaining injuries, while one 18-year-old man was shot in both forearms. The confrontation between police and protesters after the peaceful demonstration also caused substantial damage to private and government property.
And a MercoPress headline leaves us wondering just what sort of “person” the U.S. Supreme Court thinks a corporation really is:
US Supreme Court raises doubts about corporation responsibility during Argentina’s ‘dirty war’
A majority of US Supreme Court justices raised doubts this week over whether Germany’s Daimler-Chrysler can be sued in federal court for allegations that a subsidiary violated the human rights of workers at a plant in Argentina during the last military dictatorship that was in power from 1976-1983.
And some healthy economic numbers, via MercoPress:
Paraguay’s economy roaring ahead is estimated to expand 13.6% this year
The country has recovered its main beef markets following a short FMD spell
Paraguay’s central bank increased the country’s growth estimate for 2013 from 13% to 13.6%, the highest for Latinamerica. Estimates have been on the increase since October last year, 9.5%; December, 10.5%; April 13% and now, 13.6% which compares to the 0.9% contraction of 2012, when drought and Foot and Mouth Disease hit Paraguay’s main export items, soybeans and beef.
Off to India, with a simber forecast via the Financial Express:
Moody’s on India: Gone are the days of 8 pct growth
‘We expect fixed investment to grow 3.5 per cent in 2014 after being flat in 2013′
The Economic Times has the latest on the commodities market head whose warehouses turned out to be empty or only partially filled:
Former NSEL head Anjani Sinha arrested; properties may be attached
Hours before he was arrested, Anjani Sinha, former MD & CEO, NSEL, in a statement to the Mumbai police, said the board, comprising Jignesh Shah and Joseph Massey, was aware of the goings on at the exchange.
China next, starting with a mixed report from Deutsche Welle:
China growth strongly rebounds, but outlook clouded
Between July and September, China’s economy grew at its fastest pace this year boosted by strong investment. But the surprise upswing may be short-lived, analysts warn, as September data indicates expansion will weaken.
China Daily adds a cautionary note:
China warns of emerging markets’ slowing demand
China’s exporters face a difficult time in coming months as demand from emerging markets slows, the Chinese trade ministry warned on Thursday after the latest trade data showed sales to Southeast Asia slowed sharply in September.
And South China Morning Post sounds another warning:
Beijing expected to announce major reforms to national pension scheme
The mainland is close to announcing long-awaited reforms to its pension system, whose assets are estimated to have already fallen US$3 trillion behind projected future payouts, as it seeks to create a sustainable safety net for its rapidly ageing population.
From SINA English, the latest in a rash of “mistress stories” coming out of the People’s Republic:
Official falls to death from home of his suspected mistress
A deputy director of the educational department in E China’s Anhui province fell to his death from the fourth floor of an apartment building the day before yesterday, according to local media reports. It was learned that he jumped from the home of a female teacher, who is rumored to be his mistress.
From the South China Morning Post, another odd story:
US businessman Vincent Wu accused of being mob boss in China
When more than 500 policemen swooped in to arrest 40 suspected gangsters in southern China last year, the alleged kingpin was a Los Angeles businessman who had hoisted an American flag amid a crowd to welcome Xi Jinping to California.
SINA English covers another disturbing trend with a catchy name:
Report reveals ‘naked officials’
Senior executives of State-owned enterprises, financial institutions and corrupted government officials make up a major composition of absconded Chinese “naked officials” who have fled abroad with billions in the past decade, which has harmed capital security in China, according to a cover story by Caijing magazine.
And the South China Morning Post leaves us stunned:
Shanghai couple ‘sell’ daughter for iPhone
A young Chinese couple are facing criminal punishment for “selling” their daughter and using part of the proceeds to buy an Apple iPhone, state media said on Friday.
As does this offering from the official SINA English:
Operation halted until doctors get more money
Health authorities in south China are investigating reports that a young woman was left bleeding on an operating table for three hours while doctors demanded more cash to complete the surgery.
While Want China Times covers another peculiarity of a “communist” state:
Forbes identifies 168 billionaires in China
And from South China Morning Post, a purge:
Peking University expels liberal economist Xia Yeliang
An elite Chinese university has decided to expel an outspoken economist who champions free speech and the rule of law, a move critics say underscores the Communist Party’s intolerance for discussion of democratic values that it believes threatens its legitimacy.
And now, Fukushimapocalypse Now!
We being with this from NHK WORLD:
Test fishing process in Fukushima
In the test fishing off the coast of Fukushima prefecture, fishermen are allowed to operate in limited waters and catch only certain types of seafood. This is to ensure the products’ safety and win consumer trust.
But then there’s this from the Japan Times’ Thursday edition:
Radiation level in Fukushima No. 1 ditch hits record high
The highest level yet of beta ray-emitting radioactive substances, including strontium, has been detected at one point in a drainage ditch at the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant where measurements are regularly taken, Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Thursday.
But Thursday was just the start, as Friday’s edition of the Japan Times notes:
Strontium readings spike 6,500-fold in one day
Water radiation soars at Fukushima No. 1
Radiation levels in groundwater under Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant are soaring, Tepco said Friday after taking samples from an observation well.
Jiji Press has still more:
Tritium Levels Triple in Fukushima Groundwater
Tritium levels have more than tripled in groundwater at the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power station in northeastern Japan, Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Friday.
NHK WORLD covers still another leak:
TEPCO reports another tank leak
The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant says radioactive water has overflowed from a tank storing pumped-up groundwater.
And the Asahi Shimbun covers yet another facet of the never-ending crisis:
Typhoon flushes out radioactive strontium at Fukushima nuclear plant
Rain from Typhoon No. 26 apparently flushed out radioactive materials at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, leaving water with high strontium levels in a drainage ditch that connects to the ocean.
From the Japan Daily Press, another stunning admission:
Senior adviser for Fukushima cleanup says foreign assistance needed
One of the senior advisers of the Fukushima cleanup said that Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) needs foreign assistance. The utility operator may have already sought foreign assistance, but the ones currently available seem to be not enough to ensure that the defunct nuclear plant causes no more trouble.
Jiji Press covers politics as usual:
Abe Vows All-Out Effort to Address Radioactive Water Leaks
The Japanese government will take all possible measures to deal with leaks of radioactive water at the stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Thursday.
And the Asahi Shimbun reports another form of cost:
Board of Audit: Taxpayers face 79 billion yen tab for TEPCO assistance
The cost to taxpayers to help Tokyo Electric Power Co. compensate victims of the Fukushima nuclear disaster and clean up radioactive contamination could total 79.4 billion yen ($810 million), according to Board of Audit estimates.
NHK WORLD gives us more politics:
Abe pledges to minimize nuclear power dependence
Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has pledged to reduce the country’s reliance on nuclear energy as much as possible.
And the London Telegraph leaves us wondering if someone has been bathing in all that leaked water:
Japan’s tsunami-hit Fukushima nuclear plant to become tourist attraction
Despite the land and ocean around Japan’s crippled Fukushima nuclear plant being contaminated by dangerous levels of radiation, plans are being drawn up to turn the no-go zone into a tourist attraction.
Meanwhile, on another energy front, there’s this from euronews:
Romania: a small village’s anti-fracking protest spreads to the capital
Some 2,000 anti-fracking demonstrators gathered outside government buildings in the Romanian capital Bucharest in solidarity with residents of rural Pungesti. The village is located near a site where drilling is due to begin.
And this from CNN:
Protests in Canada turn violent
At least 40 people were arrested Thursday in New Brunswick, Canada, when protests over gas exploration turned violent, according to authorities.
While Quartz leaves us in chills:
Jellyfish are taking over the seas, and it might be too late to stop them
And The Guardian leaves us aghast:
Obesity experts appalled by EU move to approve health claim for fructose
Food firms using fructose will be able to boast of health benefits despite fruit sugar being implicated in soaring US obesity levels
