Even in recession the rich get richer: Savers have been hit for £70bn as printing money 'helps rich' admits Bank of England

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Mail Online
Hugo Duncan, August 23, 2012

The Bank of England has admitted that ow interest rates have robbed savers of £70billion

The Bank of England has admitted that low interest rates have robbed savers of £70billion

Record low interest rates have robbed savers of more than £70billion while printing money to revive the economy has mainly benefited the rich, the Bank of England admitted yesterday.

Interest rates have been pegged at 0.5 per cent since March 2009 – the lowest level in the Bank’s 318-year history – in an attempt to prop up the economy.

To read the rest of this story, visit dailymail.co.uk.

Brinkley: Citizen protests making an impact in China

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St.Augustine.com
August 25, 2012,By JOEL BRINKLEY



The way the Chinese government is behaving right now, you’d almost think it had converted to democracy. Half a dozen times in recent weeks, government officials have backed down in the face of angry citizen protests — canceling unpopular industrial projects, freeing wrongly imprisoned citizens or arresting one of its own for his reprehensible behavior.

That’s not how a communist dictatorship is supposed to behave.

To read the rest of this story, visit St.Augustine.com.

Greek town protests against migrant holding centre

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The Express Tribune

AFP/August 25, 2012

Plans by Greece's government to house undocumented migrants in disused army camps have sparked outrage in one town.

CORINTH: Plans by Greece’s government to house undocumented migrants in disused army camps have sparked outrage in one town, as immigrants in Athens protested Friday what they say is rising xenophobia.

The mayor of the town of Corinth, west of Athens, pledged Friday to resist the move – which would see thousands of migrants temporarily lodged in camps around the country.

To read the rest of this story, visit Tribune.com.pk.

Saudi Shiite clerics condemn violence in restive Qatif

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Al Arabiya News
August 21. 2012

Eleven people were killed in Qatif protests since November. (Reuters)

Eleven people were killed in Qatif protests since November. (Reuters)
 
A number of Saudi Shiite clerics this week have condemned the violence that has rocked the Eastern Province of the country in recent months. The restive area of Qatif, a stronghold of Saudi Arabia's Shiite minority, has witnessed repeated confrontations between protesters and security forces.

“We ask the people of this town to stand firmly against violence in all shapes and forms, and to condemn transgressions against lives and property,” the clerics said in a statement released Sunday.
 

To read the rest of this story, visit alarabiya.net.

Al Khalifa regime doesn’t represent the Bahraini people: Analyst

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PressTV
August 25, 2012

Bahraini protesters have taken to streets across the country to show their solidarity with political prisoners and renew their call for the downfall of the Al Khalifa regime, Press TV reports.
 

The anti-regime protests were held in several villages, including Diraz, Sadad and Bu Quwwah, on Friday.

To read the rest of this story, visit PressTV.com.

Secret Libor Committee Clings to Anonymity Following Scandal

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Bloomberg
By Liam Vaughan - Aug 21, 2012

Financial Services Authority MD Martin Wheatley

Martin Wheatley, managing director of the Financial Services Authority. (Simon Dawson/Bloomberg)

Every two months, representatives from the world’s largest banks meet at an undisclosed location to review the London interbank offered rate.

Who sits on the British Bankers’ Association’s Foreign Exchange and Money Markets Committee, the body that governs the benchmark for more than $300 trillion of securities worldwide, is a secret. No minutes are published. The BBA won’t identify any members, saying it wants to protect them from being lobbied, and declined to make the chairman available for interview.

RBS Nearing Libor Settlement: Report

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Huff Post

Reuters | Posted: 08/24/2012 11:30 am

Updated: 08/24/2012 12:52 pm

By Matt Scuffham and Sarah White

* Settlement seen in early fourth quarter - sources
* RBS likely to be next bank to settle - sources
* RBS fine could be higher than Barclays - lawmaker

Rbs Libor Deal

LONDON, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Royal Bank of Scotland is expected to agree a settlement in the next two months with U.S. and UK authorities investigating its role in an interest-rate rigging scandal, according to industry sources, regulatory officials and lawyers familiar with the case.


The part-nationalised bank, which is 82 percent-owned by the government, is working towards a settlement early in the fourth quarter, two of the sources said.

Scientists build squishy, camouflaging robots with DARPA

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Computer World
By August 20, 2012

Robots that glow in the dark could be used for search and rescue

Researchers at Harvard University's Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering developed this robot made of silicone. It can walk, change color and light up in the dark. It can even change temperature. (Video: Courtesy of DARPA)
 

Computerworld - Harvard University researchers have developed a squishy robot that can disguise itself or change its color to stand out from its background.

Those features, scientists say, could help surgeons plan complicated operations or aid search and rescue crews after disasters.

U.S. Arms Sales Make Up Most of Global Market

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                                      New York Times

                                                          By THOM SHANKER

 

                                                  Published: August 26, 2012 

 

                                  

WASHINGTON — Weapons sales by the United States tripled in 2011 to a record high, driven by major arms sales to Persian Gulf allies concerned about Iran’s regional ambitions, according to a new study for Congress. 

 

 Overseas weapons sales by the United States totaled $66.3 billion last year, or more than three-quarters of the global arms market, valued at $85.3 billion in 2011. Russia was a distant second, with $4.8 billion in deals.

AP Exclusive: Romney campaign uses secretive, high-tech data-mining to find wealthy donors

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Newser
By JACK GILLUM | Associated Press | Aug 24, 2012

AP Exclusive: Romney uses secretive data-mining

FILE - In this Aug. 18, 2012 file photo, Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney gets into his car to attend a fundraising event on Saturday, Aug. 18, 2012 in Nantucket, Mass. The unprecedented success of Romney to raise hundreds of millions of dollars in the costliest presidential...
FILE - In this Aug. 18, 2012 file photo, Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney gets into his car to attend a fundraising event on Saturday, Aug. 18, 2012 in Nantucket,... (Associated Press)
 

Mitt Romney's success in raising hundreds of millions of dollars in the costliest presidential race ever can be traced in part to a secretive data-mining project that sifts through Americans' personal information _ including their purchasing history and church attendance _ to identify new and likely, wealthy donors, The Associated Press has learned.

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