Friday, July 10, 2015

CLG: To facilitate passage of TPP, U.S. upgrades Malaysia in annual human trafficking report - sources, 'Serious' flaw found in French nuclear reactor



News Updates from CLG
10 July 2015
 
Previous edition: NYSE, United Airlines, WSJ website hit with computer problems
 
To facilitate passage of TPP, U.S. upgrades Malaysia in annual human trafficking report - sources | 08 July 2015 | The United States is upgrading Malaysia from the lowest tier on its list of worst human trafficking centers, U.S. sources said on Wednesday, a move that could smooth the way for an ambitious U.S.-led free-trade deal with the Southeast Asian nation and 11 other countries. The upgrade to so-called "Tier 2 Watch List" status removes a potential barrier to President Barack Obama's signature global trade corporate takeover deal. A provision in a related trade bill passed by Congress last month barred from fast-tracked trade deals Malaysia and other countries that earn the worst U.S. human trafficking ranking in the eyes of the U.S. State Department.
 
President Obama Accepts Slavery in Order to Win TPP Trade Deal | 09 July 2015 | So that U.S. President Barack Obama can end a roadblock and win the agreement of other nations for his proposed Trans Pacific Partnership, he has decided to remove one of the nations, Malaysia, from the U.S. State Department's official list of countries that allow slavery. Malaysia, which recently found over a hundred graves of discarded slaves, has been on the U.S. State Department's "Tier 3" list of slave nations...but, unlike those other countries, Obama wants Malaysia to be included in his Trans Pacific Partnership; so, he has decided to remove Malaysia from that official list.
 
Foreign Office Tunisia terror warning: UK tourists 'to be given military escort to airports for flights home' | 09 July 2015 | British tourists will reportedly be given a military escort to the airport to catch their flights home from Tunisia. The vehicles will be driven to Enfidha airport, which is heavily fortified with security personnel following the two terrorist attacks on tourists on Tunisia this year. Around 20 planes are due to fly Brit tourists and staff home to Manchester, Gatwick and other UK airports. It comes after the Foreign Office advised British holidaymakers to leave Tunisia as a further terror attack is deemed to be 'highly likely.'
 
Brits Told to Leave Tunisia Amid Terror Warning | 09 July 2015 | Britons in Tunisia have been told to leave the country as the Foreign Office warns more terror attacks are "highly likely" after last month's beach shootings. Extra flights are being put on to bring tourists home and two holiday companies, Thomson and First Choice, are returning their staff to the UK. The Foreign Office said Britons should leave unless they definitely have to stay, adding that people planning to travel there should not unless it was "essential". An estimated 3,000 Britons are currently on holiday in Tunisia and about 300 others are travelling independently.
 
FBI Director James Comey said that law enforcement stopped several plots to 'kill people in the United States' over the Fourth of July holiday | 09 July 2015 | FBI Director James Comey said that law enforcement officials stopped an undisclosed number [?!?] of plots to 'kill people in the United States' over the Fourth of July holiday. The plots were linked to the Islamic State terror group who wanted to carry out attacks which would have caused mayhem across the country. But they were thwarted by federal agents who have ramped up security efforts in recent months to arrest Islamic State sympathizers across the country.
 
Exxon knew of global warming in 1981, email says -- but it funded deniers for 27 more years | 08 July 2015 | ExxonMobil, the world's biggest oil company, knew as early as 1981 of climate change global warming -- seven years before it became a public issue, according to a newly discovered email from one of the firm's own scientists. Despite this the firm spent millions over the next 27 years to promote climate denial. Exxon's public position was marked by continued refusal to acknowledge the dangers of climate change global warming, even in response to appeals from the Rockefellers, its founding family, and its continued financial support for climate denial. Over the years, Exxon spent more than 30m on think tanks and researchers that promoted climate denial, according to Greenpeace.
 
'Serious' flaw found in French nuclear reactor | 09 July 2015 | A weakness has been discovered in a French nuclear reactor of the type set to be built at Hinkley in the UK. France's nuclear safety regulator told the BBC the flaw in the steel housing the reactor core at the nuclear plant being built in Normandy is "serious". He added that unless he was satisfied with the plans to put it right, he could stop the project. The troubled European Pressurised Reactor (EPR) under construction in France is one of the standard bearers for the next generation of nuclear power plants.
 
Anonymous 'predicted' NYSE trading incident in 7 July tweet --Did Anonymous predict NYSE trading incident? | 08 July 2015 | The international hacktivist group Anonymous sent a curious tweet yesterday at 11:45 p.m. ET in which it wondered aloud if there'd be a disruption today on Wall Street. "Wonder if tomorrow is going to be bad for Wall Street.... we can only hope." Twelve hours later, trading on the New York Stock Exchange was abruptly halted.
 
NYSE glitch caused by software update, exchange says | 09 July 2015 | A computer malfunction that forcedthe New York Stock Exchange to suspend trading for more than three hours on Wednesday was caused by an update to part of the exchange's trading software before markets opened. The update threw off the entire system. The NYSE reopened at 3:10 p.m. ET the same day, after being halted shortly after 11:30 a.m. On Thursday, the exchange elaborated on that explanation, saying an update to the software the exchange uses to properly determine timestamps on trades was improperly rolled out.
 
No 'nefarious actor' in NYSE, United outages, Homeland Security chief says | 08 July 2015 | First, United Airlines had a "network connectivity" issue that grounded all its planes for over an hour. Then, the New York Stock Exchange halted trading. And around the same time, the website of the Wall Street Journal went down. Wednesday's outages immediately ignited speculation about a coordinated cyberattack. No evidence so far points to any kind of hacking, but the series of major outages nonetheless underscored the vulnerability of large and vital institutions in the digital age.
US: More Than 21 Million Affected by Government Data Breach | 09 July 2015 | Hackers stole Social Security numbers, health histories and other highly sensitive data from more than 21 million people, the Obama administration said Thursday, acknowledging that the breach of U.S. government computer systems was far more severe than previously disclosed. The scope of the data breach -- believed to be the biggest in U.S. history -- has grown dramatically since the government first disclosed earlier this year that hackers had gotten into the Office of Personnel Management's personnel database and stolen records for about 4.2 million people. Since then, the Obama administration has acknowledged a second, related breach of the systems housing private data that individuals submit during background investigations to obtain security clearances.
South Carolina governor signs bill to remove Confederate flag | 09 July 2015 | South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley signed legislation on Thursday to permanently remove the Confederate battle flag from the state capitol grounds, following an emotional debate spurred by the massacre of nine black churchgoers last month. Haley signed the bill into law in the State House Rotunda before an audience of legislators and dignitaries shortly after 4 p.m. EDT (2000 GMT), and her office said the flag would be taken down at 10 a.m. (1400 GMT) on Friday. The rebel banner will go to the "relic room" of South Carolina's military museum in Columbia, the state capital.
South Carolina House approves bill removing Confederate flag | 09 July 2015 | The South Carolina House has approved taking down the Confederate flag from the Capitol grounds, a stunning reversal in a state that was the first to leave the Union in 1860 and raised the flag again at its Statehouse more than 50 years ago to protest the civil rights movement. The House approved the Senate bill 93-27, and still has one more vote that appeared to be perfunctory since they had met two-thirds approval. The bill would then go to Republican Gov. Nikki Haley, who supports it.
Texas judge orders DHS to court | 08 July 2015 | A federal judge in Texas is threatening to hold top immigration enforcement officials in contempt of court. This is for not fixing problems with work permits mistakenly awarded under President Barack Obama's executive immigration action after the judge had put it on hold. The Justice Department had said about 2,000 individuals were sent three-year work authorizations after a judge in Brownsville temporarily blocked the immigration action on February 16.
To Help US Veterans Charity, George W. Bush Charged $100,000 | 08 July 2015 | Former President [sic] George W. Bush charged 100,000 to speak at a charity fundraiser for U.S. military veterans severely wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan, and former First Lady Laura Bush collected 50,000 to appear a year earlier, officials of the Texas-based Helping a Hero charity confirmed to ABC News. The former President was also provided with a private jet to travel to Houston at a cost of 20,000, the officials said.
Jeb Bush: People Need to Work Longer Hours | 08 July 2015 | Today, Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush...uttered a phrase that may not go over too well with the constituency he seeks to reach. During an interview that was live-streamed on the app Periscope, Bush told New Hampshire's The Union Leader that to grow the economy, "people should work longer hours." Already the Democratic National Committee has pounced, releasing a statement that calls his remarks "easily one of the most out-of-touch comments we've heard so far this cycle," adding that Bush would not fight for the middle class as president.
Who really runs N.J. when Christie is away? | 09 July 2015 | Gov. Chris Christie, who has been out of state nearly half of his second term in office, is expected to be away from New Jersey more than ever now that he's launched his presidential campaign. By early July, Christie had spent more time out of state this year than he's spent in it. When his latest trip to Allen & Company's annual financial conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, this week ends, the governor will have spent 100 of the last 192 days traveling out of state campaigning or laying the groundwork for his White House bid. [The defective 'Shift' button on my keyboard would do a better job running the state, so I think it's a 'plus' that Christie isn't there much of the time.]
Trump vows to press Ford to cancel $2.5 billion Mexican plant that will 'take away thousands' of U.S. jobs | 16 June 2015 | Republican presidential candidate and billion-ire Donald Trump threatened [corpora-terrorists] Ford Motor Co. with punitive taxes if the Dearborn automaker proceeds with a new 2.5 billion Mexican plant that will "take away thousands" of U.S. jobs. In April, Ford said it would add 3,800 jobs in Mexico as part of a 2.5 billion investment -- on top of the 11,300 Ford already employs in Mexico. The investment will include a new engine plant and new transmission plant allowing for exports of engines to the United States and elsewhere. [This predatory capitalism -- exporting jobs for cheap labor in other countries, skipping taxes, and selling the products back in the US -- needs to STOP. Like or dislike Donald Trump (and his offensive comments), this topic is important; Trump and Bernie Sanders are the only candidates discussing the issue.]
Tom Selleck Accused of Stealing Public Water for his Hidden Hills Ranch | 08 July 2015 | Actor [sic] Tom Selleck has been accused of stealing public water for use on his spacious ranch in Hidden Hills, California. A truck registered to the "Magnum, P.I." actor was allegedly caught pumping water from a public hydrant in Thousand Oaks then transporting it back to his home, according to a lawsuit filed by the Calleguas Municipal Water District. The agency hired a private detective, who claims to have observed the actor's vehicle being filled with water.
Baltimore police commissioner fired after riot, killings | 08 July 2015 | Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts was fired on Wednesday following criticism of his handling of rioting over the death of a black man from an injury in police custody and a skyrocketing homicide rate. Mayor [corporate-owned] Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said the focus on Batts and the leadership of the 2,500-officer force had become a distraction in fighting resurgent crime and was hurting her goal of attracting families privatization to the city. Batts and other police commanders told officers to "hold the line" with rioters rather than confront people causing damage or threatening police.
Petition Seeks to Revoke Bill Cosby's Presidential Medal of Freedom | 09 July 2015 | Bill Cosby may lose one of his biggest honors after new details surfaced about his history of sexual misconduct raping women. A petition that asks for the star's Presidential Medal of Freedom to be removed is gaining steam. Filed on the White House's website, the "Revoke the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Bill Cosby" petition made its way online in the aftermath of the Associated Press's scathing report on the comedian. As previouslydetailed, the AP article unearthed documents from 2005, in which Cosby admits to obtaining Quaaludes for the purpose of giving them to the women to whom he was attracted.
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