Tag: news

Man Leaps To Death After Girlfriend Refuses To Stop Shopping

Whether an unintended consequence of the push for over-consumption of the Chinese consumer or simply a man hitting his breaking point (as many Americans – we are sure – have considered in the last few weeks), 38-year-old Tao Hsiao lept to his death from a 7th story walkway in a Jiangsu mall after his girlfriend would not stop Christmas shopping. The 5-hour marathon ‘consumption’ ended badly after Tao’s girlfriend said he was “spoiling Christmas,” when he chided her that she “already had enough shoes…it was pointless buying more.” He died on impact, and no one else was injured. It is unknown if his girlfriend continued shopping…

 

Via Shanghaiist.com,

When his girlfriend insisted on prolonging their Christmas shopping marathon, 38-year-old Tao Hsiao leapt from a seventh-story walkway and killed himself in a Jiangsu shopping mall.

Tao and his girlfriend (whose name has not been released) had reportedly been in the Golden Eagle International Shopping Center, in Xuzhou, for some five hours before a rather routine relationship scuffle escalated drastically out of proportion.

Tao told his girlfriend that “she already had enough shoes, more shoes that she could wear in a lifetime and it was pointless buying any more,” according to a witness. Tao was then accused of “spoiling Christmas,” and the shouting match likely would have continued had Tao not chosen that moment to hurl himself over the seventh-story balcony.

Tao fell through elaborate christmas decorations and crashed into a shopping stall on the mall’s ground level, injuring no one but himself in the process. He died on impact.

 

It brings a whole new meaning to the term “shop til you drop”…but Tao’s last words do ring horribly true in this age of over-consumption


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/psRYalyCks8/story01.htm Tyler Durden

60 Minutes Offers Thoroughly One-Sided Look at NSA Scandal. Guess Which Side.

"Your campaign has the momentum of a runaway freight train. Why are you so popular?"So are any of those
conservative media critics going to file FCC complaints against
60 Minutes for the 20-minute blowjob correspondent John
Miller performed Sunday evening on Gen. Keith Alexander and other
National Security Agency leaders?

For those who missed it (perhaps, like me, they had recently
discovered French horror-mystery series The
Returned and were watching the marathon on the
Sundance Channel), 60 Minutes ran not one, but two full
segments about the NSA’s data collection and Edward Snowden
scandals, told entirely from the NSA’s perspective and with
absolutely no critical voices.

Some lowlights:

  • The poor “We are not reading your e-mails/listening to your
    phone calls” straw man is set on fire yet again. The guy is just
    ash by now. The explanation of the “metadata” the NSA collects is
    purposefully vague, giving viewers the very false impression that
    the only information the NSA gets is just literal phone numbers and
    call durations.
  • Miller brings up the Foreign Information Surveillance Court
    rulings indicating that the NSA has in the past overstepped its
    boundaries and
    collected data it shouldn’t collect    . Gen. Alexander deflects
    the question by stating that these were mistakes and were not
    “willful.” No mention is made of other privacy violations by NSA
    agents that were indeed willful.
  • NSA officials seem to believe that they have stopped China from
    destroying the world’s computers with a virus, thereby preventing
    widespread economic chaos. While the Chinese government and
    military are no doubt engaging in all sorts of cyber-espionage,
    there’s no explanation as to why exactly China — a leading exporter
    — of all countries would try to destroy the world’s economy.
  • Edward Snowden is dismissed as some sort of weirdo. NSA’s
    investigation of him after the fact determined that he cheated (via
    hacking) to pass the test to get his contractor position, which
    you’d think was something that should mark him as an up-and-comer,
    given the agency. He also covered up his computer at home so his
    girlfriend couldn’t see what he was working on, which everybody on
    camera seems to think is crazypants and not something a person
    whose job involves looking at classified data might do.
  • At the outset Miller discloses that he used to work for the
    Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversees the
    NSA. Disclosing past relationships is good, but recognizing when
    such relationships absolutely ruin the possibility of your
    objectivity and therefore stepping back, is even better. But then,
    would 60 Minutes have gotten this scoop without Miller? It
    was the NSA who approached 60 Minutes to do this story,
    not the other way around. Miller is also rumored to be leaving the
    network soon to go work for the
    NYPD    .

The 60 Minutes reports can be viewed here.
The entire charade smacks yet again of the administration thinking
that all of its problems are due to poor “messaging,” not due to
any actual legitimate concerns by the populace. More criticism of
the segments may be found
here and
here.

from Hit & Run http://reason.com/blog/2013/12/16/60-minutes-offers-thoroughly-one-sided-l
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Japan's 2014 Budget To Approach Record 100 Trillion Yen

Since we live in a connected world, in which the central bank “Flow” must, well, flow, one emerging line of thought is that with the Fed set to taper (even by a modest $10 billion per month driven by Treasury market liquidity constraints where the Fed is now monetizing 1% of the entire bond market in 10 Year equivalents every three weeks), the BOJ will have to step in and boost its own monetization by a comparable amount. And as we noted in November, speculation that the BOJ will do just this set off the latest Yen crushing move, which has seen the EURJPY surge higher by a massive 1000 pips all but pricing in any BOJ moves for 2014. However, to be able to do this, Japan will need to provide its central bank with the capacity to monetize as many Treasurys (or more) as possible: after all, Japan like the US is already soaking up a record 70% of all gross issuance.

And Japan is ready to comply: as Reuters reports, in the next fiscal year, Japan’s budget will exceed 96 trillion yen, or about $930 billion. With Japan’s GDP standing currently shy of half a quadrillion Yen (not to be confused with Japan’s debt load which is now over the one quadrillion mark), it means the budget will be about 20% of the country’s entire economic output.

More from Reuters:

The government is in final negotiations on the general-account budget for the year from April, which will exceed 96 trillion yen ($931 billion), the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

 

The draft budget, to be approved by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet on December 24, will be up from this fiscal year’s initial budget of 92.6 trillion yen.

 

Abe, elected a year ago Monday, has used heavy government spending as one of his main tools in a bid to end 15 years of deflation and sluggish growth for the world’s third-biggest economy. But with public debt of more than twice the size of the economy, Abe also aims to balance the budget over time, starting with a sales-tax increase next April.

 

With an economic rebound and a tax increase, tax revenues next fiscal year are tipped to clear 50 trillion yen, a seven-year high, while bond issuance will decrease from this year’s 42.85 trillion yen, the sources said.

So while the total spending framework has already been set, it remains to be seen if and how much tax revenues will indeed pick up providing the funding for about half of the spending needs. And if they don’t, so much the better: it means debt deficit-funding will only rise, giving the BOJ even more dry powder which to monetize and flood the global system with even more excess reserves.


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/SUNcjaS83GE/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Japan’s 2014 Budget To Approach Record 100 Trillion Yen

Since we live in a connected world, in which the central bank “Flow” must, well, flow, one emerging line of thought is that with the Fed set to taper (even by a modest $10 billion per month driven by Treasury market liquidity constraints where the Fed is now monetizing 1% of the entire bond market in 10 Year equivalents every three weeks), the BOJ will have to step in and boost its own monetization by a comparable amount. And as we noted in November, speculation that the BOJ will do just this set off the latest Yen crushing move, which has seen the EURJPY surge higher by a massive 1000 pips all but pricing in any BOJ moves for 2014. However, to be able to do this, Japan will need to provide its central bank with the capacity to monetize as many Treasurys (or more) as possible: after all, Japan like the US is already soaking up a record 70% of all gross issuance.

And Japan is ready to comply: as Reuters reports, in the next fiscal year, Japan’s budget will exceed 96 trillion yen, or about $930 billion. With Japan’s GDP standing currently shy of half a quadrillion Yen (not to be confused with Japan’s debt load which is now over the one quadrillion mark), it means the budget will be about 20% of the country’s entire economic output.

More from Reuters:

The government is in final negotiations on the general-account budget for the year from April, which will exceed 96 trillion yen ($931 billion), the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

 

The draft budget, to be approved by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet on December 24, will be up from this fiscal year’s initial budget of 92.6 trillion yen.

 

Abe, elected a year ago Monday, has used heavy government spending as one of his main tools in a bid to end 15 years of deflation and sluggish growth for the world’s third-biggest economy. But with public debt of more than twice the size of the economy, Abe also aims to balance the budget over time, starting with a sales-tax increase next April.

 

With an economic rebound and a tax increase, tax revenues next fiscal year are tipped to clear 50 trillion yen, a seven-year high, while bond issuance will decrease from this year’s 42.85 trillion yen, the sources said.

So while the total spending framework has already been set, it remains to be seen if and how much tax revenues will indeed pick up providing the funding for about half of the spending needs. And if they don’t, so much the better: it means debt deficit-funding will only rise, giving the BOJ even more dry powder which to monetize and flood the global system with even more excess reserves.


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/SUNcjaS83GE/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Jacob Sullum on Mandatory Guilty Pleas

Before Weldon Angelos received the equivalent of
a life sentence for three small-time marijuana sales, prosecutors
offered him a plea deal that would have resulted in 40 fewer years
behind bars. When the penalty for going to trial can be that heavy,
says Senior Editor Jacob Sullum, it’s not surprising that only
three percent of federal drug offenders choose that option. Sullum
explains how mandatory minimum sentencing rules force drug
offenders to plead guilty.

View this article.

from Hit & Run http://reason.com/blog/2013/12/16/jacob-sullum-on-mandatory-guilty-pleas
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Swiss Propose Treating Bitcoin Like Any Other Foreign Currency

While the ECB (and the Fed) continues to warn (danger of theft), threaten (asset-ize and tax it!), or de-bunk the idea of virtual currencies (despite two of the world's largest banks apparently seeing value in the idea), the Swiss Parliament is proposing a different angle. A postulate signed by 45 (of 200) members of parliament asks for bitcoin to be treated as any other foreign currency – and examine the potential bitcoin-related opportunities for the Swiss financial sector.

Via Coindesk,

The Swiss Parliament is considering a postulate that asks for bitcoin to be treated as any other foreign currency. The goal of the postulate, introduced by representative Thomas Weibel, is to eliminate ambiguities and increase legal certainty related to bitcoin.

 

…

 

The postulate petitions the executive branch to reply to four basic questions: whether or not bitcoin represents an opportunity for the financial sector, should bitcoin be treated as a foreign currency, what regulatory instruments should be used to establish legal certainty for bitcoin and similar currencies, and what sort of regulatory changes are needed and when can they be implemented.

 

The postulate was co-signed by 45 members of parliament (out of a possible 200) after they came to the conclusion that bitcoin can create new opportunities for the Swiss financial sector and that measures should be taken to regulate the application of VAT and the execution of money laundering controls.

 

…

 

Luzius Meisser, president of Bitcoin Association Switzerland, told CoinDesk: “This would be quite revolutionary, as it provides bitcoin with additional legitimacy and could serve as a precedent for other countries. Also, it would pave the way for businesses to use bitcoins without legal uncertainty in Switzerland.”

The crucial point here, of course, is if Bitcoin is 'deemed' an asset (as EU regulators appear to want), it can (and will) be taxed; but it seems the Swiss beg to differ with that definition.


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/C1LhW-NCI0o/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Big Dog, Wild Cat And Cheetah: Meet Google's Brand New Robotic Zoo

Big Dog, Wild Cat, Cheetah… all names one wouldn’t associate with Google (if anything perhaps feline-named Apple operating systems). And yet, the company that is best know for its internet prowess and having more data about the search habits and private interests of each and every computer user than the NSA could ever dream of, is ever more aggressively moving into the animal kingdom. The robotic one that is.

After last weekend, 60 Minutes ran an amusing infomercial of Amazon’s latest very forward multiple boosting product development with its delivery drones, Google refuses to lag behind in the futurism department and promptly acquired Boston Dynamics, the creator of the world’s fastest running robot, as well as various other realistic animal-like machines supplied to the US military. As the FT reports, “The internet company’s acquisition of Boston Dynamics is latest in a string of robotics acquisitions in a mysterious initiative led by former Android chief Andy Rubin.”

Just what robotic creaters will carry Google’s logo?

Among the creations to crawl, jump and gallop from its labs are Big Dog, a four-legged robot that can clamber over uneven terrain such as snowy forests, even when assailed by kicks from its makers, and Cheetah, which claims to hold the record for the fastest legged robot in the world, running at more than 29 miles per hour.

 

Many of Boston Dynamics’ robots have been developed with funding from the US Department of Defense’s research unit, Darpa, making Google a military contractor, at least for now.

 

Google’s ultimate objective for its growing collection of robots remains unclear but Mr Rubin’s project sits among its so-called “moonshot” ventures, such as self-driving cars and balloons to provide internet connectivity to remote regions.

 

His other acquisitions include Bot & Dolly, a design studio that makes an automated camera system used in movies such as Gravity, and Schaft, a spin-off from the University of Tokyo whose bipedal robots boast much stronger “muscles” than other bots.

 

Boston Dynamics was founded in 1992 by Marc Raibert, formerly of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A much-viewed YouTube video shows Boston Dynamics’ four-legged WildCat robot “galloping” and “bounding” around a car park at speeds of 16 miles per hour, before – perhaps reassuringly – falling to its knees on ice.

The response has so far been one of mild amusement: “Which company that owns all our private data and has the motto “Don’t Be Evil” just bought a military robotics firm?” tweeted Joe Randazzo, creative director at Adult Swim, a comedy and satire channel. “‘Don’t be evil,’ he cried, while being chased by the robot hounds,” quipped Andy Baio, a tech entrepreneur and founder of the XOXO conference, in a tweet.

One can only hope that in borrowing some robotic folklore from Isaac Asimov, the prime directive of Google’s robotic farm will indeed be “don’t be evil” or else the amusement will be short-lived.

A quick summary of Google’s latest robotic product portfolio:


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/V_h5_vJVqBc/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Big Dog, Wild Cat And Cheetah: Meet Google’s Brand New Robotic Zoo

Big Dog, Wild Cat, Cheetah… all names one wouldn’t associate with Google (if anything perhaps feline-named Apple operating systems). And yet, the company that is best know for its internet prowess and having more data about the search habits and private interests of each and every computer user than the NSA could ever dream of, is ever more aggressively moving into the animal kingdom. The robotic one that is.

After last weekend, 60 Minutes ran an amusing infomercial of Amazon’s latest very forward multiple boosting product development with its delivery drones, Google refuses to lag behind in the futurism department and promptly acquired Boston Dynamics, the creator of the world’s fastest running robot, as well as various other realistic animal-like machines supplied to the US military. As the FT reports, “The internet company’s acquisition of Boston Dynamics is latest in a string of robotics acquisitions in a mysterious initiative led by former Android chief Andy Rubin.”

Just what robotic creaters will carry Google’s logo?

Among the creations to crawl, jump and gallop from its labs are Big Dog, a four-legged robot that can clamber over uneven terrain such as snowy forests, even when assailed by kicks from its makers, and Cheetah, which claims to hold the record for the fastest legged robot in the world, running at more than 29 miles per hour.

 

Many of Boston Dynamics’ robots have been developed with funding from the US Department of Defense’s research unit, Darpa, making Google a military contractor, at least for now.

 

Google’s ultimate objective for its growing collection of robots remains unclear but Mr Rubin’s project sits among its so-called “moonshot” ventures, such as self-driving cars and balloons to provide internet connectivity to remote regions.

 

His other acquisitions include Bot & Dolly, a design studio that makes an automated camera system used in movies such as Gravity, and Schaft, a spin-off from the University of Tokyo whose bipedal robots boast much stronger “muscles” than other bots.

 

Boston Dynamics was founded in 1992 by Marc Raibert, formerly of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A much-viewed YouTube video shows Boston Dynamics’ four-legged WildCat robot “galloping” and “bounding” around a car park at speeds of 16 miles per hour, before – perhaps reassuringly – falling to its knees on ice.

The response has so far been one of mild amusement: “Which company that owns all our private data and has the motto “Don’t Be Evil” just bought a military robotics firm?” tweeted Joe Randazzo, creative director at Adult Swim, a comedy and satire channel. “‘Don’t be evil,’ he cried, while being chased by the robot hounds,” quipped Andy Baio, a tech entrepreneur and founder of the XOXO conference, in a tweet.

One can only hope that in borrowing some robotic folklore from Isaac Asimov, the prime directive of Google’s robotic farm will indeed be “don’t be evil” or else the amusement will be short-lived.

A quick summary of Google’s latest robotic product portfolio:


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/V_h5_vJVqBc/story01.htm Tyler Durden

S&P 500 Surges 30 Points Off Overnight Lows

“Priced In” appears to be the meme of the day but the overnight collapse in S&P 500 futures – perfectly tagging the 50DMA – was met with a slowly building avalanche of BTFATH-ers unable to resist missing out of the December Triple Witching seasonality. While stocks are screaming higher, the USD is practically unchanged, gold and silver have rallied back to unchanged, and Treasuries are modestly lower in yield.

 

 

Bonds moved first on the IP data, then stocks spiked on the US open…


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/R2Zo_9fsfdo/story01.htm Tyler Durden

S&P 500 Surges 30 Points Off Overnight Lows

“Priced In” appears to be the meme of the day but the overnight collapse in S&P 500 futures – perfectly tagging the 50DMA – was met with a slowly building avalanche of BTFATH-ers unable to resist missing out of the December Triple Witching seasonality. While stocks are screaming higher, the USD is practically unchanged, gold and silver have rallied back to unchanged, and Treasuries are modestly lower in yield.

 

 

Bonds moved first on the IP data, then stocks spiked on the US open…


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/R2Zo_9fsfdo/story01.htm Tyler Durden