Full coverage as the Apple chief unveils its latest iPhone – find out what’s new 5.35pm: Welcome: and is your popcorn popping? It’s iPhone 5 launch time. It seems so long since we were last here. We know some details already: there’s going to be an iPhone 5. Given that at WWDC in June, Steve Jobs described the next version of the software powering the iPhone as “iOS 5″, and since every launch of a new number of iOS has seen a new version of the phone (3G, 3GS, 4 – see Wikipedia ), the idea that there won’t be an “iPhone 5″ just doesn’t hold any water. Then there’s the question of whether the crowd has managed to figure this out ahead of time – if you’re reading this before 6pm UK time, then our crowdsourcing experiment is still open (and if you’re reading it later, it’s closed: tick off the results as they come by). We also know that: • the phones will be in the UK from 14 October : reserve your place outside the stores now; • “iTunes in the Cloud” (so you can get your purchased music on any iOS device, without syncing with a PC or Mac) is coming to Europe , and to the UK first. Why no iTunes Match to sync all your music library? Still being negotiated with record labels, we understand. We suspect that the iPod Classic is for the chop, but that’s not certain. Sales of iPods are tailing off at about 5% annually, and iPod Touches (the app-enabled ones) taking more and more share – now up to 50% of iPod sales. There’s a huge amount at stake today. Apple is presently the world’s largest mobile phone company (by revenue; Samsung is expected to be the biggest in terms of shipments). It’s possible that Samsung will have overtaken it in smartphone shipments in the third quarter (July-September) just ended; it will be interesting to see if Cook announces any iPhone shipment numbers for the quarter, because this should be the “quiet period” ahead of the financials. Possibly he’ll announce “iOS shipments”, which would be iPod Touch, iPhone and iPad. Being biggest is no guarantee you’ll continue, though: just look at Nokia, which just one year ago could claim the title. Now it’s plunged into loss and we’re still waiting for its first Windows Phone device. Everyone knows that with Steve Jobs having stepped down as chief executive, Cook needs to keep the executive team and the staff weaving the magic that has made Apple the biggest company by value in the world. That’s no small order. Everyone will be looking for the slightest flaw. And now, on with the show… iPhone Apple Smartphones Charles Arthur Josh Halliday guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …For all intents and purposes, the movement known as the tea party started in the mainstream media, on a national show. CNBC’s Rick Santelli, fired what cable news would later dub “the shot heard around the world” in 2009, when he lamented paying for the mortgages of the “losers” who couldn’t pay their bills. “President Obama, are you listening?” he bellowed. Well, it was broadcast on national television. By the way they snarl about the mainstream media on Fox News, you’d think they were disseminating their programs via ham radio instead of on the number one cable news network in the country. Fox News is as mainstream a media as any. And they’ve puffed up and promoted their pet protest group called the tea party for the last two and half years. And just like the imaginary death panels in the health care reform act or the fantasy Sharia law threat – the tea party got its legs from Fox News. So when criticism is lobbed at the tea party as being an astroturf re-branding of the Republican Party, sponsored by interest groups and corporate media, it’s because it is. To put this into perspective, look at movement Fox News hasn’t endorsed and Karl Rove’s group, American Crossroads, haven’t chartered busses for: meet Occupy Wall Street. Occupy Wall Street started as a couple thousand protesters marching through lower Manhattan and camping out at the detonator of the economic meltdown. For the first two weeks, the protest was largely ignored by actual mainstream media. Then NYPD officer Anthony Bologna pepper sprayed a couple of young women peacefully assembling at this public demonstration. The footage landed on YouTube: Then there was attention. A skirmish with police. A Story. Last Saturday, 700 of the protesters were arrested by the NYPD. Another Story. Worthy of a mention even on the venerable Sunday Shows. Who are these people? Are they the anti-tea party? No. In fact they are not in any way like the tea party. If they were the tea party, the media would be giving value to all their political peccadilloes. Yes, “What does the tea party think?” has become a staple in American political discourse. And for what? They’re identical to Republicans. They have a public approval rating, according to some polls of 26 percent. And the tea party-led House suffers a historic low of around 13 percent (more people approve of salmonella). Yet the tea party is given credence and credibility as a swell of a movement to give rich people and corporations more tax breaks. How is that populist, exactly? It’s a protest movement that just so happens to be suspiciously business-friendly. How, as they say in corporate-speak, synergistic. This tea party now has a seat at the table of power. Their corporate sponsors must snicker every time they hear about the “tea party’s take” on whatever issue. I was at an Occupy Wall Street solidarity demonstration over the weekend in Los Angeles. Around 3,000 people were there when I arrived. The first thing apparent is the crowd is young. These are not cantankerous retirees worried about the government getting involved in Medicare. No these are the children of the middle-class’ Lost Decade. These are kids whose American Dream has been eroding while the rich have gotten richer. These are the young people on Facebook and Twitter calling for an “American Autumn” to match the Arab Spring. And the Arab Spring is a far better comparison for this group. Like the Egypt and Tunisia uprisings, Occupy Wall Street are youths worried about their futures’ downgrade. It’s about the lack of prospects in the “land of opportunity.” Their battle cry: “We are the 99 percent and we are too big to fail.” They’ve succinctly stated their goal is “economic justice.” Pandering to the wealthy minority is the disease: Occupy Wall Street is a symptom. What does economic justice mean? Maybe a better question is: How top-heavy can the wealth inequality get before something tumbles? The hurdle for Occupy Wall Street is that it was not birthed on cable news. Cable news doesn’t own it so it can’t show it off like they have the tea party. But the Arab Spring revolution wasn’t televised; it was re-tweeted. Tweet Cross posted at TinaDupuy.com
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enlarge As much as the Koch brothers would like this story to go away–and the corporate media does appear to be helping them– I have some hope that it might not be that easy : Following the disturbing revelations reported in today’s Bloomberg article “Koch Brothers Flout Law With Secret Iran Sales” -and the fact that the company’s political action committee gave $50,000 to Texas Governor Rick Perry and donated to Representative Michele Bachmann in the past as well-the National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC) today called upon all Republican presidential candidates as well as the GOP national party committees to return any past Koch Brothers donations immediately, and directly address exactly where they stand on trading with Iran. “It’s shocking, dangerous and hypocritical in the extreme for the Republican Party and national GOP figures to be courting the Koch Brothers and their money while those funds were obtained in part by ‘thwarting a U.S. trade ban’ on Iran, to use Bloomberg’s words,” said NJDC President and CEO David A. Harris. [..] “Assuming they don’t approve of sidestepping U.S. laws barring trade with Iran, the GOP presidential candidates who have received Koch Brothers donations, candidates who are seeking their support, and the RNC and the Republican Party Committees must do two things immediately. First, they must return any KochPAC funds previously received. Second, they must state clearly where they stand on circumventing U.S. laws banning trade with Iran, as Koch Industries clearly has -and they must speak out vociferously condemning Koch’s profoundly damaging activities.” I love it. I think each and every Republican candidate should be confronted and take a stand clearly over whether they agree with the Koch brothers’ actions and willing to accept these funds or not. Let their party see exactly how craven and above-the-law they think they are.
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Andrew Hamilton, Oxford University’s vice chancellor warns that the UK could lose top academics and students overseas unless the government ramps up research funding Cuts to government funding of universities mean the UK is now “treading water” and risks losing top academics and students to its international competitors, the vice chancellor of Oxford University has warned. Professor Andrew Hamilton said that while public expenditure on higher education was growing in China and the US, the share of GDP spent on UK universities dropped from 1.3% to 1.2% in the last year. Other governments are “ramping up investment in higher education, particularly for research”, he told academics at his annual oration on Tuesday. Harvard receives 80% of its research income from the state, while Oxford receives just over 40%. China is investing billions of pounds in creating 100 top universities this century. Hamilton said it often took many years for research to reap rewards and accused ministers of impatience. Funding postgraduate research “doesn’t always sit easily with short-term political imperatives”, he said. But without postgraduates, “many of the roots of our research would soon wither or die”. He also attacked what he saw as over-zealous rules on overseas postgraduates and academics entering the UK. The new restrictions pose “serious risks, both scholarly and academic”, he said. Hamilton said the UK was particularly poor at funding postgraduate students, whohe described as “the engine of ground-breaking experimentation”. A growing number of universities abroad provide “five-star packages” for almost all their doctoral students, he said. But at Oxford, fewer than one in every three postgraduate in a social science or humanities field receives a full scholarship. On average, just half of all the university’s postgraduates do. He said this was forcing many of the finest students to turn down offers for postgraduate work at his institution. “Sadly there are too many examples of Oxford losing bright graduate students to overseas universities because of the funding gap,” he said. In particular, bright doctoral students from low or average income homes could be deprived of the chance to further their research, he warned. This is particularly unfair because in some fields, having a master’s or PhD is now a necessity, he said. “Postgraduate funding is hardly equitable or likely to promote social mobility” at the moment, he said. “It is time for a fresh look at it. “It is striking … that there is nothing in the UK that can compare with the US government’s federal loans scheme, to enable graduate students to finance their study. “It is hard to escape the logic … if this competitive disadvantage in funding is not addressed, the UK higher education sector will increasingly lose out to its international competitors on the recruitment of the best students and academics.” Hamilton was a chemistry professor and provost of Yale University in the US before returning to the UK in 2009. He said he would not yet talk about next autumn’s fees of £9,000 for undergraduates because it was a year away. “There would be time and place aplenty as we get a better handle on the likely consequences, intended and unintended,” he said. University funding Research Higher education University of Oxford Postgraduates Students Tuition fees Jessica Shepherd guardian.co.uk
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Pauline Pearce, nicknamed ‘the Hackney Heroine’ after speaking out against rioters in east London, gets a taste of mainstream politics Richard Sprenger Michael White
Continue reading …Pauline Pearce, nicknamed ‘the Hackney Heroine’ after speaking out against rioters in east London, gets a taste of mainstream politics Richard Sprenger Michael White
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The suicide attack is the most devastating since the al-Qaida-linked group withdrew from Mogadishu in August A suicide truck bomb has exploded outside a compound housing government buildings in Mogadishu, killing at least 65 people and maiming scores in one of the most devastating attacks claimed by al-Shabaab insurgents since they withdrew most of their forces from the Somali capital. The explosion ripped through the K4 (Kilometre Four) area of Mogadishu, which is under the control of government troops and African Union peacekeeping forces. Many of those killed and injured were students and parents waiting for exam results at the Ministry of Higher Education. Buildings were destroyed and rescue workers struggled to free people trapped in the debris while the walking wounded made their way to the battered city’s hospitals. News reports said students had gathered inside the compound to take exams. “We have carried 65 dead bodies and 50 injured people,” the ambulance co-ordinator Ali Muse told Reuters. “Some are still lying there. Most of the people have burns.” A Reuters reporter said scores of people with burns were walking to a nearby hospital and police were trying to evacuate more students trapped inside the damaged buildings. The Somali government put the death toll at 15 with more than 20 injured from the suicide bombing. “The casualties are mostly students and parents who were waiting for results of scholarships from the Ministry of Higher Education,” the government said in a statement. “The attack shows that the danger from terrorists is not yet over and that there are obviously still people who want to derail the advances that the Somali people have made towards,” it said. Lieutenant Colonel Paddy Ankunda, a spokesman for the African Union peacekeeping force Amisom, which has 9,000 troops in the country, said the explosion had been caused by a suicide vehicle bomb, but that he had no definite figures yet on casualties. “We have conflicting reports. Some people are still lying under the debris because buildings fell down … we are trying to pull them out. Amisom has sent excavators,” he told the Guardian by phone. Al-Shabaab, which is linked to al-Qaida, claimed responsibility for the blasts, Reuters reported. The group, which is fighting the weak Transitional Federal Government, pulled most of its fighters out of Mogadishu in early August but threatened to carry out attacks on government installations. “This is the biggest attack since al-Shabaab was defeated,” said Ankunda. “This was expected because we knew they would go more into this kind of attack, including suicide attacks,” he said. Asked what Amisom’s response would be, he said: “Vigilance. We need more vigilance.” A Somali living in Nairobi, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described what he had heard about the blast. “My house is in K6, which is 1km from the bombing, and all the glass windows are shattered so that tells you how strong the blast was,” he said. Somalia Global terrorism Africa guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …The suicide attack is the most devastating since the al-Qaida-linked group withdrew from Mogadishu in August A suicide truck bomb has exploded outside a compound housing government buildings in Mogadishu, killing at least 65 people and maiming scores in one of the most devastating attacks claimed by al-Shabaab insurgents since they withdrew most of their forces from the Somali capital. The explosion ripped through the K4 (Kilometre Four) area of Mogadishu, which is under the control of government troops and African Union peacekeeping forces. Many of those killed and injured were students and parents waiting for exam results at the Ministry of Higher Education. Buildings were destroyed and rescue workers struggled to free people trapped in the debris while the walking wounded made their way to the battered city’s hospitals. News reports said students had gathered inside the compound to take exams. “We have carried 65 dead bodies and 50 injured people,” the ambulance co-ordinator Ali Muse told Reuters. “Some are still lying there. Most of the people have burns.” A Reuters reporter said scores of people with burns were walking to a nearby hospital and police were trying to evacuate more students trapped inside the damaged buildings. The Somali government put the death toll at 15 with more than 20 injured from the suicide bombing. “The casualties are mostly students and parents who were waiting for results of scholarships from the Ministry of Higher Education,” the government said in a statement. “The attack shows that the danger from terrorists is not yet over and that there are obviously still people who want to derail the advances that the Somali people have made towards,” it said. Lieutenant Colonel Paddy Ankunda, a spokesman for the African Union peacekeeping force Amisom, which has 9,000 troops in the country, said the explosion had been caused by a suicide vehicle bomb, but that he had no definite figures yet on casualties. “We have conflicting reports. Some people are still lying under the debris because buildings fell down … we are trying to pull them out. Amisom has sent excavators,” he told the Guardian by phone. Al-Shabaab, which is linked to al-Qaida, claimed responsibility for the blasts, Reuters reported. The group, which is fighting the weak Transitional Federal Government, pulled most of its fighters out of Mogadishu in early August but threatened to carry out attacks on government installations. “This is the biggest attack since al-Shabaab was defeated,” said Ankunda. “This was expected because we knew they would go more into this kind of attack, including suicide attacks,” he said. Asked what Amisom’s response would be, he said: “Vigilance. We need more vigilance.” A Somali living in Nairobi, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described what he had heard about the blast. “My house is in K6, which is 1km from the bombing, and all the glass windows are shattered so that tells you how strong the blast was,” he said. Somalia Global terrorism Africa guardian.co.uk
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Click here to view this media In his speech to the “Take Back The American Dream” conference Monday, former Obama advisor Van Jones held up the “Occupy Wall Street” movement as an example of what progressives could do to force change. “I’m not mad at [the tea party] for being so loud,” he said. “I’m mad at us for being so quiet the last two years.” “Something just came across the news wire,” Jones announced. “It’s an extraordinary thing. We know we have the young folks and the struggling folks who are down there on Wall Street… They went down there to the scene of the crime against our future. They went down there and they have been camping in the rain. They’ve been beaten. They’ve been pepper-sprayed. They’ve been falsely arrested. And when they police were dragging them away, they said, We’re out here, the 99 percent, we’re fighting the one percent. You, officer, are part of the 99 percent. We’re fighting for your pensions too. We’re fighting for your pensions too.’ This is a new movement.” “And because of their courage and the character they showed, today it was announced that in their dress blues, Marines are going to protect them and stand with them. In their dress blues! The Marines! The veterans!” He added: “This is a movement moment! Something’s happening in America! Something’s happening in America! Don’t you give up on this country! Don’t you give up on this movement!” “They’re going to stand out there with those young people in their dress uniforms. And one of them had a sign and the sign said, ‘This is the second time I fought for my country… It’s the first time I’ve known who my enemy was.’”
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Prime minister says ‘fat tax’ could help prevent health costs soaring and life expectancy falling The government will consider introducing a “fat tax” to tackle Britain’s growing obesity levels, the prime minister, David Cameron, has said. Cameron said drastic action was needed to prevent health costs soaring and life expectancy falling. Under measures introduced in Denmark recently, a surcharge is being placed on foods that contain more than 2.3% saturated fat. The levy targets high-fat products such as butter, milk, cheese, pizza, meat, oil and processed food. Danish consumers have criticised the move, which has left many retailers complaining of excessive bureaucracy. However, Cameron said the introduction of a similar idea in the UK should not be ruled out. “I think it is something that we should look at,” he told 5 News during a round of broadcast interviews at the Tory conference in Manchester. “The problem in the past when people have looked at using the tax system in this way is the impact it can have on people on low incomes. “But frankly, do we have a problem with the growing level of obesity? Yes. Do we have a kind of warning in terms of – look at America, how bad things have got there – what happens if we don’t do anything? Yes, that should be a wake-up call.” He added: “I am worried about the costs to the health service, [and] the fact that some people are going to have shorter lives than their parents.” He warned that obesity was on the verge of overtaking smoking and drinking as the biggest health challenge facing Britain. “Don’t rule anything out, but let’s look at the evidence and let’s look at the impact on families,” he added. Conservative conference 2011 David Cameron Health policy Tax and spending Conservative conference Obesity Health guardian.co.uk
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