Nederlanders staan wereldwijd bekend om twee zaken: water en geld. Voor JdeW klopt dat ook, met slechts een kleine variatie: geld als water.
Van water hebben Nederlanders inderdaad veel verstand. Waar ook ter wereld een probleem is met water, zie je een Nederlandse bedrijf dat het moet oplossen. Het tweede - verstand van geld - blijkt echter gebaseerd op een misverstand, aldus een onderzoek van de ING-bank. Daar hebben Nederlanders weinig kaas van gegeten.
Er zit wat in. Vooral als we vaststellen wie dit onderzoek heeft gedaan.

DutchNews - The Dutch have a low financial IQ. That’s the outcome of research in ten countries, carried out by ING bank. What’s more, the research shows the Dutch deal with money in a unique way.
Apparently, the Dutch are less interested in financial affairs than people of other nationalities. And worse, they are not particularly interested in learning how to improve their financial skills. When people in the rest of the world get into debt, they feel fear, shame, desperation, sadness and guilt. The Dutch just feel guilty. [read on] (more…)

Days after a number of dead birds appeared to fall from the sky in America a similar event has happened in Sweden. Tests are being carried out in a bid to find out what happened. Shortly before midnight on Tuesday, residents of Falkping, southeast of Skvde in southern Sweden, found 50 to 100 jackdaws lying in the street.
[read on] (more…)

by yaakov kirschen, the jerusalem post, dry bones

As greenhouse continues to build in the atmosphere, 2010 is entering the history books as the hottest year on record. And a year of unprecedented extreme weather which killed tens of thousands of people and affected millions. The year is ending with yet more climate disasters, from winter tornadoes across America to floods in Australia.
Australia is being ravaged by unprecedented flooding, following tremendous rainfall for months. Floods now cover an area “the size of France and Germany combined.” Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced millions of dollars of relief funding as she described the record-breaking floods:
[read on] (more…)

pants on the ground, nr 4 most watched video

Here is the list of what Americans consider the ten best viral videos of 2010. Well, what Mary Elizabeth Williams of Salon considers the best viseo’s of 2010. Number 10, 8, 5, 3 and 2 have been seen on drasties.
Not this one though, number one viral video in 2010.
It’s about the ugly homophobic bullying in the United States and the outbreak of teen suicides. It did put the spotlight on the abuse and harassment too many gay and lesbian kids live with daily.
Columnist and author Dan Savage started the “It Gets Better” project. Savage launched it with his own testimony, and that of his husband, Terry, about overcoming their own difficult teen years to get to the place of being “ecstatic to be alive.” Is was followed by a deluge of responses from regular folks and celebrities, from Perez to the president. The result has been a moving testament to the best side of the Net’s nature, and the power of community to stand up for love and tolerance in the face of hate. And bullies? As a clever satire warns — it will not get better for you.
[video>>] (more…)

Al vele jaren woon ik in het buitenland. En al die jaren krijg ik een Nederlandse krant thuis bezorgd. Heerlijk. Iedere dag ben ik bezig op het internet, iedere dag uren achter de computer maar ook ga ik mijn hele leven al iedere dag buitenshuis lunchen en dan wil ik een Nederlandse krant in de handen houden. Een krant die je overal kunt lezen. In de auto in de file, tijdens het eten, tijdens het werk, als je zit te wachten. Heerlijk. Ik kan me niet voorstellen dat het er ooit uitgaat.
Dat kan door NewspaperDirect.
Ik kan kiezen welke krant ik wil. Wil ik veel sport zonder moeilijk te doen, dan bestel ik de Telegraaf. Wil ik weten hoe het allemaal is gekomen, dan lees ik die dag de Volkskrant. Wil ik kwaliteit, dan bestel ik uiteraard het NRC Handelsblad.
Dat kan met NewspaperDirect.
NewspaperDirect print de kranten zelf uit, op een wat kleiner maar goed leesbaar formaat en bezorgt ze in grote steden thuis. Ze hebben afspraken met 1.740 kranten uit 93 landen in 47 talen. Ook in grote hotels en op vliegvelden kunt u NewspaperDirect tegenkomen.
NewspaperDirect kranten kun je zelfs bij de drukker ophalen. Bijvoorbeeld in Jakarta, Indonesië. Je gaat eten in het Eastern Promise Bar & Restaurant en je laat gelijk even die krant drukken waar je op dat moment zin in hebt.
Binnen 15 minuten heb je hem.
Vroeger, toen ik een van de weinige klanten was van het door een Nederlander in Thailand begonnen bedrijf, waren Nederlandse kranten de meest populaire kranten. Nu ziet het lijstje van de Top-15 bestsellers er als volgt uit:
(more…)

by keefe, the denver post

Nu New START is getekend is er een nieuw plafond voor het aantal strategische (intercontinentale) atoomwapens dat Rusland en Amerika mogen opstellen. Onder Bush senior was afgesproken dat ze er 6.000 mochten hebben, te verdelen over ten hoogste 1600 raketten of vliegtuigen.
In praktijk is dat nu overigens al minder dan de helft.
En nu hebben Obama en Medvedev dus beloofd slechts 1500 à 1675 atoomkoppen, te plaatsen op ongeveer 800 raketten en vliegtuigen.
Maar aan de tactische wapens die in Europa liggen wordt niets gedaan. Die naar schatting 180 atoombommen zijn uiteraard nergens voor nodig en kunnen weg. Dat vindt ook de Amerikaan Matt Eckel van Foreign Policy Watch.
Er is overigens wel enige beweging, zelfs bij de NATO. Als het de ontwapening helpt, aldus minister Verhagen, zou hun eenzijdige verwijdering niet langer onbespreekbaar zijn. De weg naar global zero is lang, maar ondanks Iran, Pakistan, Israël, en Noord-Korea: het ruikt in Europa een beetje naar lente.

Away with 180 atombombs in Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey

From the NYT:

Today, the United States retains about 500 tactical weapons, according to the figures released this year, and experts say about 180 of them are still stationed in Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey. Russia has between 3,000 and 5,000 of them, depending on the estimate, and American officials have said Moscow moved more of them closer to NATO allies as recently as last spring in response to the deployment of American missile defense installations closer to its territory. [read on] (more…)

The debt situation in Europe is deteriorating. Inflation threatens to derail emerging-market economies. And the U.S. faces a potential time bomb with its own sizable debt.
Yet in the face of all these hazards, the stock market is hitting two-year highs and investors are feeling more bullish than they have in years. Even the market’s “fear gauge” is trading near its lowest levels since April, indicating a lack of worry among professional options traders.
“The rally we’ve seen since the end of August has been more or less a straight line,” says Jeffrey Palma, a strategist at UBS. “Given some of the uncertainties in the world, it seems pretty tough to believe that we can hold sustained levels of low volatility through the next year.” (WallStreetJournal)

by frederick deligne, nice-matin, france

by joep bertrams, the netherlands

by joep bertrams, the netherlands

by patrick corrigan, the toronto star

Yesterday the Senate of the United States of America voted to ratify the START Treaty. It passed easily, 71 to 26, despite the whining and carping of Republicans like McCain, McConnell, Graham and Kyl. Thirteen Republicans voted for it: Lamar Alexander, Bob Bennett, Scott Brown, Thad Cochran, Susan Collins, Bob Corker, Judd Gregg, Johnny Isakson, Mike Johanns, Richard Lugar, Lisa Murkowski, Olympia Snowe, and George Voinovich.
And in case you missed it, here’s Democratic Senator John Kerry, slapping down the GOP lies about the treaty.

Now that Republican senator Scot Brown supports the New START treaty, Senate Democrats secured the nine Republican votes needed to ratify treaty with the Russians this week “and give President Obama his third major victory of the lame-duck session.” Republican senators Johnny Isakson (GA) and George Voinovich (OH) added their support yesterday, with Bob Corker (TN) and Judd Gregg (NH) “leaning toward supporting” as well.

De Verenigde Staten doet haar uiterste best om haar handelingen zoveel mogelijk te verbergen voor het publiek. Vandaar de pogingen om klokkenluiders als Bradley Manning en Julian Assange van WikiLeaks te vernietigen. Tegelijkertijd stelt de staat alles in het werk om zoveel mogelijk te weten te komen over wat haar eigen burgers doen.
Het dagelijkse leven wordt overal vastgelegd met camera’s. In de VS zijn de vingerafdrukken van 96 miljoen mensen verzameld. En volgens Glenn Greenwald worden er dagelijks 1,7 miljard emails, telefoontjes en andere vormen van communicatie onderschept, geanalyseerd en opgeslagen.
Doet het u ook steeds meer denken aan George Orwells 1984 waar de staat het doen en laten van haar burgers van achter een eenzijdige spiegel bespiedt. Zou het juist niet omgekeerd moeten zijn? Dat regeringsfunctionarissen hun werk voor iedereen zichtbaar in de openbare ruimte verrichten terwijl burgers het recht hebben om te leven in privacy?

The government’s one-way mirror

One of the hallmarks of an authoritarian government is its fixation on hiding everything it does behind a wall of secrecy while simultaneously monitoring, invading and collecting files on everything its citizenry does. Based on the Francis Bacon aphorism that “knowledge is power,” this is the extreme imbalance that renders the ruling class omnipotent and citizens powerless. [read on] (more…)

Is er “Stemmingmakerij tegen alles wat links en progressief is”, zoals Apiedapie schreef in een reactie onder: Ingehamsterd
Rechtse Bal vindt het tegendeel.

Grappig, want dat is al sinds de jaren zeventig aan de gang vanuit de linkse hoek tegen de rechterkant van de samenleving gaande. Links Nederland reageert net zo als de Republikeinse partij in de USA. Moeite met het laten gaan van de “macht” inzoverre ze die hadden.

Naar ik me kan herinneren is er sinds de Tweede Wereldoorlog nog nooit een links persoon door een rechtse omgebracht vanwege zijn/haar mening. Andersom kunnen we helaas niet zeggen: Theo van Gogh, Pim Fortuyn,…..

Rechtse Bal

by martin sutovec, slovakia

Doctors in Berlin, working with an American patient, have declared that they believe they have cured the patient of both HIV and leukemia. It would be the first time an HIV patient has been cured. While the stem cell therapy is “creating a buzz” in the academic community, experts called for caution.
“‘Cured’ is a strong word. But this is very encouraging,” said co-director Scadden of the Harvard University Stem Cell Institute.

HIV patient ‘cured’ with stem cell procedure

[..]”Cured is a strong word. But this is very encouraging,” said Dr. David Scadden, co-director of the Harvard University Stem Cell Institute. “From all indications, there was no residual virus. It’s as good an outcome as one could hope.” [read on] (more…)

Zou de FIFA daar bij hebben stilgestaan toen de internationale voetbalbond het Wereldkampioenschap Voetbal in 2022 aan Qatar toewees?
Niet alleen is het gebruik van alcohol beperkt in het feodale moslimstaatje en is het er snikheet. Ook worden vrouwen gediscrimineerd en is homosexualiteit strafbaar.
Fijn voor de fans dus.
Misschien een goed moment voor homosexuele voetballers om wereldwijd uit de kast te komen. Ik gok op Messi!

FIFA-president, Sepp Blatter: I would say that [gay fans] should refrain from any sexual activities. [laughter] No, but we are living in a world of freedom and I’m sure when the World Cup will be in Qatar…you will see in the Middle East the opening of this culture. … I think there shall not be any discrimination against any human beings being on this side or that side or left or right of whatever because football is a game that does not effect any discrimination… If they want to watch a match somewhere in the Qatar in 2022, I’m sure they will be admitted to such matches.

FIFA President Blatter says gays football fans ‘should refrain from any sexual activities’ in Qatar

Earlier this month, FIFA shocked world soccer supporters when it chose the small Middle Eastern country of Qatar to host the World Cup in 2022. While many observers called the process corrupt, it also appeared unusual for a global audience, not only because of the country’s scorching summertime heat, but also because of some prohibitive local customs, for example limits on alcohol consumption and on provocative dress, and the fact that women are “subject to gender discrimination under a range of laws and practices” and homosexuality is illegal. [read on] (more…)

Commercial enterprise Space Exploration Technologies has flawlessly put a rocket into orbit around the Earth with a full sized capsule capable of carrying six astronauts.
So SpaceX now has an operational system capable of putting payload like satellites and eventually people (in maybe two years) into space that costs much less than the shuttle or the big Russian boosters.
What kind of savings does that mean?
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk: “A seat on the Dragon Spacecraft launched by the Falcon 9 rocket would cost less than $20 million, and it is 100% manufactured and launched in the United States. This means over a 1000 new high quality jobs while saving taxpayers $2 billion a year.” Asked about more ambitious journeys, Musk added, “After we master delivering payload and passengers to the ISS, we certainly have other destinations in mind …”

by rainer hachfeld, neues deutschland, germany

by riber hansson, sweden

wikileaks site here

The New Republic is a neoconservative magazine where the people gather who made this world into a much bigger mess than it already was. Todd Gitlin wrote an article about WikiLeaks and, as expected of a neocon, it is total rubbish.
Glenn Greenwald pointed that out. Now Todd responds on the website of New Republic. Here is what Greenwald has to say about Todd.

What’s new: ’Whole neocon column grounded in a pure falsehood’

Glenn Greenwald: At The New Republic, Todd Gitlin has now posted what he calls: “A response to Glenn Greenwald.“
I’ll leave it to everyone to decide on their own if what he wrote even remotely constitutes a sufficient or responsible acknowledgment of error, except I’ll just note that his principal excuse — that he wasn’t aware when he filed his piece of the AP article negating his whole premise — doesn’t change the fact that (a) the central premise of his denunciation of WikiLeaks was factually false and (b) all he had to do — and should have done — to know that what he wrote was inaccurate was look at WikiLeaks’ release of cables, which happened to be the topic of his article.
That would have immediately revealed that they were not indiscriminately dumping thousands of cables. By slothfully condemning WikiLeaks for its release of cables that he obviously never even bothered to look at — but instead just repeated what he heard elsewhere — he wrote a whole column grounded in a pure falsehood and now lacks the integrity to acknowledge that clearly.