News from Monday, April 11, 2016

Springtime Democracy Arrested

More than 400 people were arrested in Washington, D.C. on Monday from a group calling itself “Democracy Spring,” which rallied at the U.S. Capitol building against the influence of money in American politics.  Prominent individuals arrested included television host Cenk Uygur and activist and former police captain Ray Lewis.

Please Be Afraid, NIH Urges

The National Institutes of Health, an agency of the U.S. federal government, reiterated on Monday its calls for people to be afraid of the Zika virus.  While claims that Zika causes microcephaly in babies have not been proven — and commentators have pointed out that the rise in birth defects in Brazil correlates to increased use of a specific pesticide — this year’s “swine flu”-style scare continues to garner headlines.  The Obama administration is seeking $1.9 billion to hand to private pharmaceutical companies, in addition to the millions which have already been gifted them to “increase laboratory capacity” in relation to the scare.  The Zika virus has been tracked by scientists since 1947, affects only a small percentage of people infected, and has been understood since its discovery to cause only minor illness.

Refugees: Cheaper Than Clay Pigeons?

For centuries, much of what is called “hunting” consisted of trapping animals in a confined space and taking pot shots at them while they try to flee or hide.  Since February, tens of thousands of Syrian citizens fleeing terrorist violence have been trapped on the Greek island of Idomeni, as borders and escape routes were forcibly closed to them.  On Monday, Macedonian police went hunting, shooting rubber bullets, stun grenades, and tear gas canisters at the trapped refugees, injuring children among others.  International refugee laws and humanitarian laws, dozens of which have repeatedly been violated in the treatment of the hunted, had no comment.

Today’s Political Theater Tips

The American presidential race continued to confuse observers on Monday, as ethnically Jewish agnostic Bernie Sanders reiterated that he is a fan of the global role played by Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church, especially in his stressing the need for creation of a “moral economy.”  Also on Monday, nominal Christian Hillary Clinton said that, “New York values are really good for America.”  Since 2000, New Yorkers have terminated almost half of their pregnancies by abortion, while venereal disease is epidemic across the city.  As New York is known globally as the home and origin of some of history’s worst financial parasites, the values to which Ms. Clinton intended to refer are not immediately clear.

In the Republican presidential race, meanwhile, Canada-born Cuban-America Ted Cruz was awarded a victory in a Colorado primary in which citizens were not allowed to vote.

India Asks Monopoly to Accept Lower Profits

In India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated his commitment to genetically modified crops, but begged the U.S.-based public Monsanto Company to accept government-dictated prices for local purchases of its genetically modified cotton seeds.  Monsanto reports that Indian farmers plant its genetically modified seeds on 90 percent of the country’s cotton acres as of 2010, and has long denied reports that suicides surged among Indian cotton farmers after introduction of its patent-protected seeds in the country.

Sisi SellSells Egyptian Territory to Terrorists

Unelected US-backed Egyptian dictator Abdel al-Sisi came under fire locally on Monday for handing ownership of the islands of Tiran and Sanafir to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.  In return for undisputed control of the islands, Saudi Arabia agreed to send its real estate developers to exploit certain Egyptian properties, and to burden the Egyptian taxpayers with an additional $2 billion of debt for petroleum-extraction infrastructure.  Saudi King Salman was in Egypt this weekend to secure Egyptian support for Turkish dictator Recep Erdogan (whose administration yesterday repeated its demands that Germany criminally prosecute local comedians for mocking the premier).

Terrorists Socialize in Turkey

King Salman arrived in Ankara, Turkey yesterday to confer with Erdogan on their continuing efforts to destroy the infrastructure and government of Syria, and in preparation for the summit of the “Organization of Islamic Cooperation” on Wednesday.  Chemical weapons arriving from Turkey were used last week by terrorists in Syria and two weeks ago in northern Iraq, while Saudi Arabia is understood to have heavily funded terrorists in both countries while also attempting to destroy the infrastructure and government of Yemen through military attacks.

Want to Live Longer?  Stop Being Poor

Researchers at the American Academy of Pediatricians reported on Monday that the gap in life expectancy between rich and poor Americans has increased by more than 2 years since 2001.  Rich men can now expect to live 14 years longer than the poorest men in America, while rich women can anticipate an additional decade of life.  Poor people in Nevada, Indiana and Oklahoma have the shortest life expectancy, while poor Americans in California, New York and Vermont can all expect to live more than 80 years.  While life expectancy figures are theoretical projections, this data can be understood to reflect an increasing difference in infant mortality rates and disease between economic classes in America.

Goldman Chuckles, Again

Also in the news on Monday was the $5.1 billion Goldman Sachs has agreed to pay to settle claims related to its defrauding investors regarding the quality of mortgage-backed securities.  As Goldman paid $20 billion in bonuses alone to its parasite-employees in 2009, the settlement is unlikely to affect staffers' future efforts to defraud customers.  A total of $0 of the settlement amount is to be directed to individual investors who lost money as a result of the intentional misrepresentations of Goldman's sales staff.  Despite accounting for the penalty, Goldman recorded a net profit for the fourth quarter of 2015.  Its Q1 2016 profits will be reported publicly next week.

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