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Saturday, November 30, 2013

Jobs vs. Employment Analysis Suggests Huge Obamacare Impact (And Way Less Job Growth than Anyone Thinks)

Jobs vs. Employment Analysis Suggests Huge Obamacare Impact (And Way Less Job Growth than Anyone Thinks)


Every month (on average), for about a year, there has been a startling discrepancy between employment as measured by the household survey and jobs as reported by the establishment survey.

I believe the discrepancy is yet another Obamacare artifact.

Read more at http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/11/jobs-vs-employment-analysis-suggests.html#tCPDZlfDAmz0dCGd.99


http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/11/jobs-vs-employment-analysis-suggests.html

Time for Banks to Be Banks, Not Hedge Funds or Slush Funds; Free Money Math vs. 100% Gold Backed Dollar

Time for Banks to Be Banks, Not Hedge Funds or Slush Funds; Free Money Math vs. 100% Gold Backed Dollar  
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/11/time-for-banks-to-be-banks-not-hedge.html

Provision in Obamacare Likely to Force Up Cost of Many Family Plans

Provision in Obamacare Likely to Force Up Cost of Many Family Plans


In an ongoing trend, unrelated to Obamacare, companies have been passing on more and more healthcare costs to employees.

However, an ACA gotcha has impacted the way costs are passed on, with families taking a bigger hit than individuals at many companies.

Please consider Companies Prepare to Pass More Health Costs to Workers.

Read more at http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/11/provision-in-obamacare-likely-to-force.html#63uOYBHUBWSccUMd.99

Provision in Obamacare Likely to Force Up Cost of Many Family Plans


In an ongoing trend, unrelated to Obamacare, companies have been passing on more and more healthcare costs to employees.

However, an ACA gotcha has impacted the way costs are passed on, with families taking a bigger hit than individuals at many companies.

Please consider Companies Prepare to Pass More Health Costs to Workers.

Read more at http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/11/provision-in-obamacare-likely-to-force.html#63uOYBHUBWSccUMd.99
 Provision in Obamacare Likely to Force Up Cost of Many Family Plans  
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2013/11/provision-in-obamacare-likely-to-force.html

New Faster Moving Version of HIV Identified



New Faster Moving Version of HIV Identified
http://www.darkgovernment.com/news/new-faster-moving-version-of-hiv-identified/

Patients infected with new HIV strain develop AIDS over two years faster than
those with other versions of the virus.

A new and more aggressive strain of HIV discovered in West Africa causes
significantly faster progression to AIDS, researchers at Sweden's Lund
University have found.

The strain, called A3/02, was discovered in 2011 and is part of [...]

Cayman Islands and Costa Rica Set to Expose U.S. Account Holders Information


Cayman Islands and Costa Rica Set to Expose U.S. Account Holders Information
http://www.darkgovernment.com/news/cayman-islands-and-costa-rica-set-to-expose-u-s-account-holders-information/

The alleged tax havens have signed agreements with the United States to tell the
IRS about funds held offshore by Americans

The Cayman Islands will turn over details of Americans' offshore accounts to US
tax authorities. Photograph: David Doubilet/National Geographic/Getty Images

The United States has signed agreements with the Cayman Islands and Costa
Rica to help those countries' banks comply with an anti-tax [...]

The Next ObamaCare Mirage

The Next ObamaCare Mirage

The new line is that the health-care law will save money. That's also not true.


http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303653004579213841747969928

CNN Analysis: No Obamacare subsidy for some


CNN Analysis: No Obamacare subsidy for some

Bayoubuzz - ‎Nov 25, 2013‎
Washington (CNN) -- One of the basic tenets of Obamacare is that the government will help lower-income Americans -- anyone making less than about $45,900 a year -- pay for the health insurance everyone is now mandated to have. But a CNN analysis ...http://www.bayoubuzz.com/politics/us-politics/item/557406-cnn-analysis-no-obamacare-subsidy-for-some
 

Despite promises, Obamacare subsidies for the young come up short

American Thinker (blog) - ‎Nov 25, 2013‎
Unless you are covered on your parent's insurance plan, it appears that most young people - especially in urban areas - will not be able to afford Obamacare insurance. A CNN analysis shows that because of the way the subsidies have been designed, even ...http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2013/11/despite_promises_obamacare_subsidies_for_the_young_come_up_short.html

Many Won't Get O'Care Subsidy

Patriot Post - ‎Nov 25, 2013‎
Young, low-income Americans have yet another reason to reject ObamaCare. CNN reports: “One of the basic tenets of Obamacare is that the government will help lower-income Americans – anyone making less than about $45,900 a year – pay for the health ...http://patriotpost.us/posts/21888
 
 
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Sally Pipes: Obamacare Subsidies Will Collapse the System


Sally Pipes: Obamacare Subsidies Will Collapse the System

Newsmax.com - ‎Nov 25, 2013‎
For all the problems coming to light with Obamacare, it may be its subsidy system that causes President Barack Obama's signature healthcare law to collapse, because it imposes a massive tax increase on middle and upper-income earners, healthcare expert ...http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Obamacare-collapse-subsidies-Pipes/2013/11/25/id/538535

Obamacare Is In Serious Trouble, And Obama's Subsidies Are Worth Refusing


Obamacare Is In Serious Trouble, And Obama's Subsidies Are Worth Refusing

http://www.forbes.com/sites/sallypipes/2013/11/25/obamacare-is-in-serious-trouble-and-obamas-subsidies-are-worth-refusing/

Obamacare enrollment deadline extended by one week

Obamacare enrollment deadline extended by one week Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON — Moving to accommodate consumers frustrated by the troubled healthcare.gov website, the Obama administration announced Friday that ...http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/politicsnow/la-pn-obamacare-signup-deadline-extended-20131122,0,2819793.story#axzz2mAJMPv1r

JFK Assassination: Why So Many Government Lies? by James Bovard Jimbovard.com

JFK Assassination: Why So Many Government Lies?
by James Bovard
Jimbovard.comhttp://jimbovard.com/blog/2013/11/20/jfk-assassination-many-government-lies/

Iran: It’s Not about Nuclear Weapons by Sheldon Richman


Iran: It’s Not about Nuclear Weapons

by http://fff.org/explore-freedom/article/iran-its-not-about-nuclear-weapons/

Pressure builds on Boehner for NSA vote


Pressure builds on Boehner for NSA vote

http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/191536-boehner-under-pressure-on-nsa-reforms

Previous Home Next WHO WOULD GOD VOTE FOR?

From documentary filmmaker Adam Curtis:

"When you bring God into politics very strange things happen. You can see this now in both America and Iran—in their elections and also in the growing confrontation between them. But it wasn't always like this—in fact for most of the 20th century fundamentalist religion in both America and Iran had turned it's back on the world of politics's and power.

"But in the 1970s everything changed.  For that was the moment when religion was deliberately brought into politics in both countries with the aim of using it as a revolutionary force. And those who did this—Khomeini in Iran, and right-wing activists in America—were inspired by revolutionary theories and organizations of the left and their ambition to transform society in a radical way.

"I want to tell the forgotten story of how this happened—and how in the 1980s both the Americans and the Iranian idealists came together in a very odd way—with disastrous consequences."

The near future of Iraq is dark’: Warning from Muqtada al-Sadr - the Shia cleric whose word is law to millions of his countrymen

The Independent

The near future of Iraq is dark’: Warning from Muqtada al-Sadr - the Shia cleric whose word is law to millions of his countrymen

In a rare interview at his headquarters in Najaf, he tells Patrick Cockburn of his fears for a nation growing ever more divided on sectarian lines

As Experts Weigh in, Warmongers Emerge as Sole Opponents of Iran Nuke Deal

As Experts Weigh in, Warmongers Emerge as Sole Opponents of Iran Nuke Deal
by Jon Queally
"As Israeli leaders fume and fears that Congress could still dash progress by legislating new sanctions, polling shows that support among the public is high for a deal that avoids war, eases tensions and offers a diplomatic pathway to a final deal."http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/11/25-5

Scared to Death in the USA My Safety ‘Tis of Thee, Sweet Land of Security by Tom Engelhardt

Scared to Death in the USA

My Safety ‘Tis of Thee, Sweet Land of Security

JFK's Vision of Peace: RFK Jr. on John F. Kennedy's Attempts to End the Cold War | Politics | Rolling Stone

JFK's Vision of Peace: RFK Jr. on John F. Kennedy's Attempts to End the Cold War | Politics | Rolling Stone


http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/john-f-kennedys-vision-of-peace-20131120#ixzz2mA3lyjLS


Iran nuclear deal may deny neoconservatives their next war

Iran nuclear deal may deny neoconservatives their next war


http://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-iran-nuclear-deal-20131125,0,3657351.story#axzz2mAJMPv1r

Why One Key Iraq-War Supporter Is Hopeful About the Nuclear Deal With Iran By Joe Coscarelli

Why One Key Iraq-War Supporter Is Hopeful About the Nuclear Deal With Iran


http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/11/kenneth-pollack-iran-nuclear-deal-iraq-war.html

From Tehran to Tokyo, U.S. Geo-Strategic Shifts in Motion

http://www.lobelog.com/from-tehran-to-tokyo-u-s-geo-strategic-shifts-in-motion/

From Tehran to Tokyo, U.S. Geo-Strategic Shifts in Motion

  By Jim Lobe
WASHINGTON, Nov 29 2013 (IPS) – From the Middle East to the East China Sea, the last week’s events have offered a particularly vivid example of the much-heralded shift in foreign policy priorities under the administration of President Barack Obama.

Bob Dreyfuss: Block the US-Afghan Security Agreement!

Bob Dreyfuss: Block the US-Afghan Security Agreement!
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/11/29-3

Sonali Kolhatkar: World Fights Back Against the Biggest Brother in History

Sonali Kolhatkar: World Fights Back Against the Biggest Brother in History
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/11/29-1

From Tehran to Tokyo, US Geo-Strategic Shifts in Motion

From Tehran to Tokyo, US Geo-Strategic Shifts in Motion
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/11/29-0

East China Sea Tensions Soar as China Scrambles Fighter Jets Against US/Japan

East China Sea Tensions Soar as China Scrambles Fighter Jets Against US/Japan
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/11/29-2

Friday, November 29, 2013

Mobs, Stampedes, Fights, Brawls, A Stabbing And Shooting: A Video Compilation Of Black Thursday 2013

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-11-29/mobs-stampedes-fights-brawls-stabbing-and-shooting-video-compilation-black-thursday-

Editor's comment: What a sad commentary on the life of greed in the U.S. People should be ashamed.

ObamaScare - The Uncomfortable Truths


ObamaScare - The Uncomfortable Truths


http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-11-28/obamascare-uncomfortable-truths

Strassel: Piano Sonata in FTC Minor


Strassel: Piano Sonata in FTC Minor

Music teachers, beware. The feds are onto you. Better not try to raise the price of your lessons.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303562904579224251626379422

Obamacare Rationing Coming? You bet!—Mark Halperin

Obamacare Rationing Coming? You bet!—Mark Halperin - CNBC.com
Time magazine's Mark Halperin told CNBC that Obamacare will cause rationing because it requires huge cost-cutting measures.
www.cnbc.com/id/101232526
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Obamacare: Seven Major Provisions And How They Affect You

Obamacare: Seven Major Provisions And How They Affect You Forbes
Obamacare, or the PPACA if you prefer, will drastically change major aspects of “the finest healthcare system in the world.” Without question, our system had its ...http://www.forbes.com/sites/mikepatton/2013/11/27/how-obamacare-will-change-the-american-health-system/

Obamacare Won't Make Healthcare More Affordable: Here's What Will Forbes
The past two months have a put a sharp focus on the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as 'Obamacare'. With the revelation that millions of American's are ...http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/11/27/obamacare-wont-make-healthcare-more-affordable-heres-what-will/

Drone Victims Come Out of the Shadows


Drone Victims Come Out of the Shadows

http://fpif.org/drone-victims-come-shadows/

JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters Review of James Douglass' Book

JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters

Review of James Douglass' Book


http://www.globalresearch.ca/jfk-and-the-unspeakable-why-he-died-and-why-it-matters/16273

Massive Pentagon Waste, Fraud and Grand Theft by Stephen Lendman

Massive Pentagon Waste, Fraud and Grand Theft

by Stephen Lendman 
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/11/20/18746572.php

America's 'army of lawyers' is almost as deadly as its drones


America's 'army of lawyers' is almost as deadly as its drones

The US has relentlessly argued that targeted killings are legal under international law. The third world has to push back

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/nov/20/us-drone-strikes-pakistan-legal-debate

Government Is the Problem by Sheldon Richman

Government Is the Problem

by
http://fff.org/explore-freedom/article/government-is-the-problem-2/

"Delusions" and Disappointment in Pakistan


"Delusions" and Disappointment in Pakistan

http://nationalinterest.org/commentary/delusions-disappointment-pakistan-9470

Christmas Time on Wall Street


"Cha-ching!"

Christmas Time on Wall Street

by MIKE WHITNEY
Remember how Quantitative Easing was going to “get the banks lending again”?
http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/11/27/christmas-time-on-wall-street/

Stop the Metaphor Madness

Stop the Metaphor Madness

There are no comparisons—Obamacare stands alone.http://www.nationaljournal.com/all-powers/stop-the-metaphor-madness-20131128

The Week with IPS


Aiming at NATO, Hitting Afghans
Ashfaq Yusufzai
A blockade of NATO supplies to Afghanistan by cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan’s party has ended up hitting Pakistan’s legal trade with its neighbour, say local traders and truckers. They say the agitation by Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI) is hurting the common people of Afghanistan as the ... MORE > >

Uganda’s First Female Funeral Director – From Taboo to Mainstream
Amy Fallon
Uganda may have the third-highest fertility rate in the world but where there is life, death is inevitable. And it is a certainty that Regina Mukiibi Mugongo made the most of when she became this East African nation’s first ever funeral director almost two decades ago. But in a country where a ... MORE > >

GM Crop Could Migrate Dangerously
Ranjit Devraj
Food security activists who secured a moratorium on introducing genetically modified brinjal (aubergine) into India fear that their efforts are being undermined by the release of GM brinjal in neighbouring Bangladesh. "India and Bangladesh share a long and porous border and it is easy for GM ... MORE > >

‘Business Is Business, Moses Is Moses’
Pierre Klochendler
As civil war paralyses Syria’s transit routes and political flux in Egypt may affect security at the Suez Canal, Israel is busy repositioning itself as a transhipment hub and trade gateway to the Middle East. With the government initiating massive infrastructure reform, Israeli businesses are ... MORE > >

The Other Rearguard of Colombia’s FARC Rebels
Humberto Márquez
The presence of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) is evident in Venezuela’s Amazon region, where the guerrillas can be seen on speed boats, in camps, or interacting with local indigenous communities. “We see them once in a while passing by in a boat in the evening, dressed in ... MORE > >

Spring Bursts Among the Toubou in Libya's Desert
Karlos Zurutuza
"Can there possibly be anything more satisfying than teaching your own language to your own people?" Abdel Salam Wahali remarked to IPS. He is a teacher of Tebu, an ancient language which is experiencing a boom in post-Gaddafi Libya. "Lessons start at 5:00 PM and finish at 7:30 PM because the ... MORE > >

Almost 20 Years On - International Justice Still Fails Rwandans
Adam Bemma
"There is a saying that all Rwandans believe in. You can't forgive if you forget, but when you remember, you know what harmed you and you can forgive and move forward," Honore Gatera tells IPS as he walks through the grounds of the Kigali Memorial Centre in Rwanda’s capital. The museum was ... MORE > >

Taking Efforts to Fight Prejudice in Cuba to the Barrios
Patricia Grogg
From a very young age, Irma Castañeda has braided her curly hair and cared for it with natural recipes inherited from her mother, ignoring the widespread conception that black women’s hair is “ugly” or “bad”. Gently, with skilful hands, she aims to chip away at something much more complex: the ... MORE > >

Lebanon’s Splintered Law Wrecks Lives
Rebecca Murray
Married women in Lebanon who suffer abuse at home remain at the mercy of the country’s multitude of religious courts, because the hard-fought civil law against domestic violence has been stalled for a vote in parliament since the summer. One woman demanding a divorce and custody rights is Aisha, ... MORE > >

A Google for India’s Poor
Keya Acharya
Deep in the forests of central India live the Gond tribals, an almost forgotten lot, neglected as much by the state as by mainstream media. Many cannot read or write. But thanks to a new technology, and the rapid spread of mobile phones through India, they are now picking up their cell phone and ... MORE > >

Murders, ‘Protection Payments’ Mark Elections in Honduras
Thelma Mejía
The capital of Honduras, one of the world’s most violent countries, has turned into a huge cage, where people lock themselves into their homes behind barred windows and iron doors along the steep winding, narrow streets of the city. And in the poor areas of Tegucigalpa, a city of 1.6 million, ... MORE > >

China heightens fears of widening tensions in Asian airspace

China heightens fears of widening tensions in Asian airspace


http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e657c1da-58bf-11e3-a7cb-00144feabdc0.html

Gaza: Life and death under Israel's drones

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2013/11/gaza-life-death-under-israel-drones-20131125124214350423.html

 


Gaza: Life and death under Israel's drones



Drones buzzing overhead are a source of daily trauma for Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip.

Last updated: 28 Nov 2013

Thursday, November 28, 2013

The 1% Are The Very Best Destroyers Of Wealth The World Has Ever Seen

The 1% Are The Very Best Destroyers Of Wealth The World Has Ever Seen
 
By George Monbiot
 
If wealth was the inevitable result of hard work and enterprise, every woman in Africa would be a millionaire.

Putin's Spectacular Return to Great Power Politics

http://www.williampfaff.com/article.php?storyid=654

Putin's Spectacular Return to Great Power Politics

William Pfaff

We’re now entering the post-HealthCare.gov phase of Obamacare

We’re now entering the post-HealthCare.gov phase of Obamacare


http://venturebeat.com/2013/11/27/post-healthcare-gov/

Few Think Affordable Care Act Has Improved Their Lives


Few Think Affordable Care Act Has Improved Their Lives

http://fdlaction.firedoglake.com/2013/11/27/few-think-affordable-care-act-has-improved-their-lives/

Even if website works, Obamacare could see trouble ahead

Even if website works, Obamacare could see trouble ahead


http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/27/us-usa-healthcare-enrollment-idUSBRE9AQ13M20131127

Michelle Obama 'leans in', just not in the direction privileged feminists want

Michelle Obama 'leans in', just not in the direction privileged feminists want

Politico bashed the first lady recently, but her fights for children and low-income communities are the kind of activism we need

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/nov/26/michelle-obama-feminism-activism-politico

Party Claims It Identified Top C.I.A. Spy in Pakistan


Party Claims It Identified Top C.I.A. Spy in Pakistan


http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/28/world/asia/pakistani-party-identifies-man-it-says-is-cia-station-chief.html?ref=international-home&_r=0

NSA surveillance: Europe threatens to freeze US data-sharing arrangements


NSA surveillance: Europe threatens to freeze US data-sharing arrangements

After Edward Snowden revelations, EU executive underlines US compliance with European law and 'how things have gone badly'

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/26/nsa-surveillance-europe-threatens-freeze-us-data-sharing

If It Happened There … America’s Annual Festival Pilgrimage Begins

If It Happened There … America’s Annual Festival Pilgrimage Begins


http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_world_/2013/11/27/if_it_happened_there_how_the_u_s_media_would_cover_thanksgiving_if_it_was.html

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Pays $1 Million to Families USA to Distribute Happy ObamaCare Stories

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Pays $1 Million to Families USA to Distribute
Happy ObamaCare Stories
http://www.darkgovernment.com/news/robert-wood-johnson-foundation-pays-1-million-to-families-usa-to-distribute-happy-obamacare-stories/

Families USA has received a $1 million grant from the Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation, which it will use to collect and distribute to the media personal
stories of those who have benefited from the new health insurance exchange
rolled out by the Obama Adm

Will you be Having Anti-Biotics With That Turkey?



Will you be Having Anti-Biotics With That Turkey?
http://www.darkgovernment.com/news/will-you-be-having-anti-biotics-with-that-turkey/

Take a close look at how the livestock industry in the U.S. uses antibiotics,
and what that might mean for human health.

And so as Americans prepare to roast and baste plump, juicy holiday birds, we
couldn't help but wonder what antibiotics the average turkey might have been
given.

Unfortunately, it's not possible to answer that question [...]

NSA Spied Sexual Habits to Discredit Radicals


NSA Spied Sexual Habits to Discredit Radicals
http://www.darkgovernment.com/news/nsa-spied-sexual-habits-to-discredit-radicals/

The National Security Agency has been gathering records of online sexual
activity and evidence of visits to pornographic websites as part of a proposed
plan to harm the reputations of those whom the agency believes are radicalizing
others through incendiary speeches, according to a top-secret NSA document. The
document, provided by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, [...]

2010 Tax Law Forcing Some Americans to Renounce Citizenship


2010 Tax Law Forcing Some Americans to Renounce Citizenship
http://www.darkgovernment.com/news/2010-tax-law-forcing-some-americans-to-renounce-citizenship/

For Ruth Anne Freeborn, it boiled down to a choice between country and family.

Born in Oklahoma, Freeborn has lived in Kingston, Ontario, for more than 30
years as an American expatriate, with a Canadian husband and 22-year-old son.

But a U.S. law passed in 2010 that will require international financial
institutions to provide the Internal Revenue [...]

‘We Are Suffering A Slow-Motion Nuclear War’ – Interview

‘We Are Suffering A Slow-Motion Nuclear War’ – Interview


http://www.eurasiareview.com/27112013-suffering-slow-motion-nuclear-war-interview/

Call-Log App Aims to Reverse-Engineer NSA Surveillance

Call-Log App Aims to Reverse-Engineer NSA Surveillance

Sharing your call data with researchers could help show what the NSA can deduce from the data it harvests.

http://www.technologyreview.com/news/522076/call-log-app-aims-to-reverse-engineer-nsa-surveillance/?utm_campaign=newsletters&utm_source=newsletter-daily-all&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20131128
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WPR Articles 23 Nov 2013 - 27 Nov 2013


Iran Nuclear Deal a Welcome First Step, by Judah Grunstein
To Succeed, Iran Deal Needs a Dose of Realism, by Steven Metz
Beyond Nuclear Chapter, Many Obstacles Remain to U.S.-Iran Thaw, by Eric Auner
 

WPR Articles 23 Nov 2013 - 27 Nov 2013

Iran Nuclear Deal a Welcome First Step

By: Judah Grunstein | Briefing
The agreement signed in Geneva over the weekend by the P5+1 powers and Iran is inarguably good news. If the deal holds, the next six months will be the first time in eight years that Iran’s nuclear program has been slowed for reasons other than technical difficulties and outside sabotage. The agreement is but the first step in what remains an arduous task, but it is a significant and welcome first step.

Strategic Horizons: To Succeed, Iran Deal Needs a Dose of Realism

By: Steven Metz | Column
The ink was not dry on the agreement with Iran over the weekend before criticism exploded. The freshly signed deal is not intended to be permanent or final. At best it is a tentative first step toward diminishing the threat that Iran poses to its region. Even so, much of the criticism is uninformed by the history of strategy or chooses to distort it. What the Iran issue desperately needs is cold realism.

Global Insights: With Air Defense Zone, China Scores ‘Own Goal’ in South Korea

By: Richard Weitz | Column
China’s decision to establish an air identification zone that encompasses its disputed islands with Japan is yet another attempt to expand its territorial claims by presenting neighboring countries with a fait accompli. But in this case Beijing may have overreached. The declared zone encompasses several important South Korean national territories, triggering sharp rebukes from Seoul not seen in several years.

Policy Debate Over Drone Strikes Muddied by Competing Data

By: Ritika Singh | Briefing
The debate about U.S. targeted killing policy has become familiar. Proponents argue that drones’ accuracy limits civilian casualties and that drones are a valuable tool in an asymmetric war. Opponents argue that civilian casualties are much higher than government estimates, and that the policy creates more terrorists than it kills. It is difficult to reconcile these competing claims with publicly available data.

Diplomatic Fallout: Europe’s Struggle for Strategic Competitiveness, Part I

By: Richard Gowan | Column
The European Union has long aspired to be both a regional and global power. The union’s leaders articulated these goals in the first—and so far only—European Security Strategy in 2003. The strategy prioritized “building security in our neighborhood” and “an international order based on effective multilateralism.” The document will reach its 10th birthday this December. Is it still fit for purpose?

Beyond Nuclear Chapter, Many Obstacles Remain to U.S.-Iran Thaw

By: Eric Auner | Trend Lines
The conclusion of an interim deal on Iran’s nuclear program opens the possibility that the U.S. can engage on other areas of concern.

Despite Recent Tensions, Mozambique’s Politics Show Signs of Maturity

By: Alex Vines | Briefing
Mozambique has attracted headlines over the past year mainly for the return to armed conflict in central Mozambique by ex-rebels as well as for new discoveries of world-class offshore gas reserves. But while the results of Mozambique’s recent municipal elections have not attracted the same level of international attention, they are an important indicator of the health of the nation’s political pluralism.

Global Insider: Indonesia’s Response to Australia Spying Row Suggests Two No Longer Equal Partners

By: The Editors | Trend Lines
In an email interview, Richard Chauvel, senior lecturer at the School of Social Sciences and Psychology at Victoria University, discussed the security relationship between Australia and Indonesia.

Pakistan’s Kayani Leaves Behind Mixed Legacy of Reform as Army Chief

By: Shehzad H. Qazi | Briefing
On Nov. 29, Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Pakistan’s powerful chief of army staff, will retire after a six-year tenure. Kayani commanded the Pakistan army through a tumultuous time and was instrumental in enabling it to better cope with security threats. He also distanced the army from politics after a decade of military rule. In other areas, however, his accomplishments were limited and the gains fragile.
background
See more Articles at World Politics Review

Is Obamacare worsening the liquidity trap? The Economist

Is Obamacare worsening the liquidity trap? - The Economist
The White House Council of Economic Advisers last week released a long and thorough study on the recent slowdown in the growth of health care spending.
www.economist.com/blogs/.../11/health-spending-slowdown
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