Wall Street shouldn’t have much to grumble about: Total pay at publicly traded banks and securities hit a new high of $135 billion last year, reports the Wall Street Journal. That’s up 5.7% from 2009 figures. “Things are shifting back to where they were before,” says a law professor….
Continue reading …Jon Stewart has figured out why Sarah Palin loves to wear red so often. Only a Soviet agent would purposefully twist around historic facts and put out a willful misunderstanding of President Obama’s words.
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Photo: nerissa’s ring / Creative Commons Whole grains are an integral part of a healthy diet — if you remember, they make up the hefty bottom portion of the food pyramid you studied in grammar school — but if you believe just whole wheat and brown rice fall in the healthy part of this category, it’s time to discover new horizons. Perhaps you’ve noted the frenzy around quinoa? The following five grains and grain-alternatives — all rich in flavor and nutritious antioxidants, and the talk of nutritionists, food… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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Photo credit: surfglassy / Creative Commons Even for non-surfers, there is something magical about using a little technology and a lot of skill, strength, and balance to harness a small bit of the energy embodied in a crashing wave. The intimacy shared between a surfer and the ocean is something anyone could learn from. But around the world, classic surf spots are under threat from pollution and development. Often, these th… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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Prime minister tells House of Commons that Egypt’s democratic reforms need to go beyond holding an election David Cameron today called on Egypt to draw up a timetable to convince people there will be a “rapid and credible” transition of power that will forge a “stable and more democratic future”. Describing scenes of the protests in Cairo as “incredibly moving”, the prime minister also told MPs he took a “very strong view” that political reform – “not repression” – was required following president Hosni Mubarak’s decision to stand down. In a speech broadcast on state television last night, Mubarak sought to quell a week of demonstrations by saying he would not be running for another term of office in the September elections. He promised to work during “the final months” of his term to ensure a “peaceful transfer of power”. But the delayed nature of Mubarak’s concession failed to appease protesters, who maintained their presence in Cairo’s main square today. US president Barack Obama also sought to maintain pressure on Mubarak, saying last night: “What is clear is my belief an orderly transition must be meaningful, it must be peaceful, and it must begin now.” Today, Cameron echoed Obama’s words and said a timetable was needed to convince people that an orderly transition was under way. Greater democracy in the Middle East and the Arab world were required to provide the stability required in “the long-term interests of Britain”, he told MPs at prime minister’s question time. “President Mubarak says he is going and we respect that,” Cameron said. “But what matters is not just the orderly transition but also that it is urgent, it is credible, it starts now. We should be clear we stand with those in this country who want freedom and democracy and rights the world over. “And the more they can do with a timetable to convince people it’s true, the more the country can settle down to a stable and more democratic future.” He said the reforms needed to go beyond simply holding an election. “Where we need to be clear is that when we talk about democracy, we don’t just mean the act of holding an election, we mean the building blocks of democracy,” he said. “I want to see a partnership for open societies where we encourage stronger civil society, stronger rights, stronger rule of law, a proper place for the army in society, proper independent judiciary.” The prime minister reinforced the call for faster progress, telling MPs the transition needed to be “rapid and credible and it needs to start now”. The Labour leader, Ed Miliband, said: “Far from indicating support for extremism, the people on the streets of Egypt are actually demanding some very basic things: jobs, freedom of speech and the right to choose by whom they are governed.” He said democracy represented the “best route to stability” in Egypt. Cameron told the Commons that the “first concern” remained the safety of UK nationals in Egypt. Travel advice for the estimated 30,000 UK nationals around the Red Sea area had not changed because matters there remain “calm and stable”. In Cairo, where there are about 3,000 citizens, and in Alexandria, with an estimated 300, many had been urged to return to the UK. There were still very good commercial flights and a flight commissioned by the UK government had been added, Cameron said. He told MPs that 1,000 had returned from Egypt in the past 48 hours, and praised the UK’s response. “I think the UK government has acted swiftly,” he said. “We had a rapid deployment of 25 special consulate staff to Cairo. The military logistics’ team of eight were sent out immediately and we were the first country to set up a team at the Cairo airport, which many other countries have gone on to imitate. “I don’t take any of this for granted, there needs to be absolutely no complacency, but I think our ambassador, Dominic Asquith, and his team have done an excellent job.” David Cameron Egypt Middle East Hosni Mubarak PMQs House of Commons Ed Miliband Hélène Mulholland guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …NJ EV owner with 50,000 miles logged dispels myth of cold weather battery woes
February 2, 2011 No Comment
We see you in comments, chiming in on every EV post about how worthless they are in the cold. Charles Lane from The Washington Post recently did the same, saying things like “A change of ten degrees can sap 50% of a battery’s output” and speculating that the EV industry is “just one well-publicized malfunction away from disaster.” Not so, says Tom Moloughney, and he should know. He’s spent the last 49,500 miles of his commuting life in an all-electric Mini E , an average of 2,500 miles per month. Now, this car is a prototype and a fairly early example of the modern electric vehicle, meaning it has no preconditioning tech to let you warm up the battery packs before you go. Despite that, Tom has logged every trip he’s made in the car and indicates he rarely sees more than a loss of about five percent from the vehicle’s usual range. More importantly, he’s made his way through many a cold commute without getting stranded — or freezing to death. NJ EV owner with 50,000 miles logged dispels myth of cold weather battery woes originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Feb 2011 09:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Michele Bachmann may not have to worry about “naked pictures” of herself winding up on the Internet anymore—or, at least not clearly defined ones. The TSA yesterday began testing a more modest full-body scanner at three airports. The system uses the same machines, but new software, which ditches the…
Continue reading …Al Sharpton Continues Politically Motivated Campaign to Censor Rush Limbaugh
February 2, 2011 No Comment
Al Sharpton appeared on MSNBC's “The Ed Show” Monday night to once again demand that the federal government censor Rush Limbaugh. As he always does, Sharpton couched his clear political agenda in the language of racial righteousness. He cited Rush Limbaugh's satirical mocking of Chinese president Hu Jintao as evidence of “why we must have standards” for radio and television broadcasters. Of course Sharpton isn't actually concerned about “civility” or “standards” for broadcasters. But this is a golden opportunity for him to advance his “silence Rush Limbaugh” campaign ( video below the fold ). If Sharpton were actually concerned with radio hosts making incendiary remarks, he might have started by castigating the man interviewing him. Ed Shultz has, after all, wished for Dick Cheney's death and claimed conservatives want to kill Barack Obama, all on his nationally-syndicated radio talk show (these and other examples throughout this post drawn from the Media Research Center's special report on the ” Real Radio Hatemongers “). Certainly if mocking the Chinese language is forbidden under Sharpton's new rules for radio broadcasters, wishing for the death of an American vice president would also be forbidden. But then Sharpton is only interested in silencing popular conservative talkers, not in beneficently – and non-ideologically – policing the airwaves. If Sharpton were actually concerned about the tone of political radio talkers, he might've mentioned the psychotic Mike Malloy, who often calls for the deaths of people he doesn't like, such as Limbaugh himself: I’m waiting for the day when I pick up the newspaper or click on the Internet and find that he’s choked to death on his own throat fat, or a great big wad of saliva or something, whatever. Go away, Limbaugh, you make me sick. Malloy really does not like Rush Limbaugh. Here he is again wishing death on Rush: I hope he keeps going, because that means he will soon croak. You know, like I’ve said, he will eventually choke to death on his own throat fat. Did I mention Malloy wants Limbaugh dead? I’m alive when this, when this guy dies. I really do. He is so morbidly overweight. He smokes. He eats his Viagra and goes down to the Dominican Republic to bugger little boys. I just hope that I’m around when he croaks. I don’t know why, but I do. And here's Malloy wishing Glenn Beck would kill himself: I have a good news to report: Glenn Beck appears ever closer to suicide. I’m hoping that he does it on camera. Suicide is rampant in his family, and given his alcoholism and his tendencies towards self-destruction, I am only hoping that when Glenn Beck does put a gun to his head and pulls the trigger, that it’s on television, because somebody will capture it on YouTube and it will be the most popular little piece of video for months. Or how about libtalker Montel Williams? He's also fond of wishing death on conservatives. His rhetorical targets have included Michele Bachmann: So, Michele, slit your wrist! Go ahead! I mean, you know, why not? I mean, if you want to — or, you know, do us all a better thing. Move that knife up about two feet. I mean, start right at the collarbone. These are just a few examples of liberal radio hosts wishing death on others on the air. The full extent of the vitriol these talkers spew over the broadcast airwaves is far deeper than just these quotes – Republicans are responsible for 9/11 and the Oklahoma City bombing, they want all poor people and minorities to die, they enjoy eating babies, etc. So why hasn't Sharpton gone after these talkers? Because doing so would not advance his leftist political agenda. He is far less interested in “civil” airwaves than he is in liberal (or at least less conservative) ones. If that means censorship on the bogus grounds that Rush Limbaugh or Glenn Beck or any other commentator is uniquely “uncivil,” than so be it. Truth must be subordinated to the agenda. I know that will seem obvious to most people who read this, but it's worth reiterating, just in case some nutty regulator decides to co-opt Sharpton's plan.
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The Daily Mail has an adorable set of photos of rock penguins that will warm your heart. When brothers Will and Matt Burrard-Lucas traveled from London to the Falkland Islands to take pictures of albatrosses, they found that the resident penguins took up most of their attention as they showered in waterfalls and made friends with the photographers. We do love penguin photos around here, especially unusual ones like all-black penguins , or adorable ones like w… Read the full story on TreeHugger
Continue reading …Pilot Recycles Plastic Bottles Into Nice New Pens – But Will You Refill Them As Intended?
February 2, 2011 No Comment
photo: Matthew McDermott I don’t normally write pen reviews, nor product reviews, nor really cover recycling–Lloyd is TreeHugger’s resident recycling pundit. But when I got an email from Pilot Pen asking if I’d be willing to meet with them to talk about their new Bottle 2 Pen project (that’s B2p), “the world’s first recycled pen made from plastic bottle!”, I somehow said yes. Considering that I do like a good pen and am quite particular about them, it seemed appropriate. A few days later I… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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