While Spaniards suffer with the sacrifices of government-imposed austerity, Spain’s top politicians have been pocketing envelopes of cash. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/16/world/europe/bookkeeper-at-center-of-spanish-graft-inquiry.html?ref=world  The scandal has shined an uncomfortable light on how the political parties operate and their  relationship with a corporate elite in an alliance that stifles competition throughout the economy to the detriment of the middle and […]

Drones are becoming a darling of law enforcement authorities across the country. But they have given rise to fears of government surveillance. Surveillance technologies have become ubiquitous in American life, like license plate readers or cameras for catching speeders, drones have evoked unusual discomfort in the public consciousness. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/16/technology/rise-of-drones-in-us-spurs-efforts-to-limit-uses.html?hp&_r=0  The Department of Homeland Services offers […]

70 journalists had been killed while doing their jobs in 2012, which is a 43 percent increase and more than 35 journalists had disappeared with 232 journalists who had been imprisoned. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/15/world/attacks-on-journalists-rose-in-2012-group-finds.html?ref=world A leading press advocacy group reported an alarming rise in the number of journalists killed and imprisoned around the world in 2012, attributing […]

The Bosnian Book of the Dead, is a new comprehensive statistical analysis of the killing in Bosnia after federal Yugoslavia fell apart at the close of the 20th century. The book’s four hardback volumes list almost 100,000 dead, civilian and military, in alphabetical order, their ethnicity, and when and where they died. http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2013/02/15/world/africa/15reuters-bosnia-dead.html?hp  It provides […]

The journal Environmental Science and Technology found antidepressants like Prozac and Zoloft in the brains of fish collected downstream from wastewater discharge in Colorado and Iowa. Many of these chemicals are not removed by wastewater treatment plants, which are intended to remove bacteria and nutrients. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/15/science/traces-of-anxiety-drug-may-affect-fish-behavior-study-shows.html?ref=us

“Shipping middle-class jobs to China, or hollowing them out with machines, is a win for smart managers and their shareholders. They call the result higher productivity. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/15/us/15iht-letter15.html?ref=us  But looked at through the lens of middle-class jobs, it is a loss. Capitalism and democracy are at cross-purposes, and no one yet has a clear plan for […]

A teenager was shot and killed during clashes with the kingdom’s security forces on Thursday.  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/15/world/middleeast/bahrain-young-protester-killed.html?ref=world  Arab monarchies were not allowed to be overthrown by the Arab spring.

Guards seized confidential legal documents during inspections of the cells of three defendants while they were attending court or meeting with their lawyers this week. On Thursday a prosecutor said that to allay any fears of illegal surveillance, prison officials would remove microphones that look like smoke detectors in meeting rooms.  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/15/us/legal-clashes-at-hearing-for-defendants-in-9-11-case.html?ref=us

Longtime star of the British soap opera “Coronation Street” Michael Le Vell has been charged with child sex offenses including rape and indecent assault and faces 19 charges related to offenses against a child between 2001 and 2010.  http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2013/02/15/world/europe/ap-eu-britain-actor-charged.html?ref=world

“Unscrupulous criminal elements have been profiting from these unfortunate animals by exploiting a hopelessly flawed horse passport scheme, lax animal export controls at ports, and slaughterhouses willing to compromise animal welfare and public safety for a quick profit,”“In a cash-rich business like the meat industry, there is ample opportunity for criminals to bribe bureaucrats,” http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/15/world/europe/britain-says-equine-drug-may-have-entered-food-chain.html?ref=world

Maureen O’Connor spends exorbitant amount gambling including more than $2 million stolen from a charity. To wager a billion dollars over the course of her nine-year gambling spree, Ms. O’Connor would have had to bet the equivalent of more than $300,000 a day, seven days a week.http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/15/us/over-a-decade-maureen-oconnor-spent-1-billion-on-bets.html?hp

EU and US  aim for new free-trade agreement that could undermine EU restrictions on GMO foods and crops. “For us, everything is on the table, across all sectors, including across the agricultural sector, whether it is GMOs [genetically modified organisms] or other issues,” Mr Kirk said.  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21439945  “We should be ambitious and we should deal […]

The House Intelligence Committee has said it now planned to revive its cyber threat information-sharing bill or Cispa. The proposed law would give permission to US companies to share cyber threat information with the government and others in the private sector.   http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21441957   Once data was handed over it might “also be used for purposes […]

The US military reserves its highest decorations, obviously, for those who display gallantry and valor in actions where their lives are on the line, but the Pentagon finds that recognition is necessary for the extraordinary achievements that directly impact combat operations and do not involve acts of valor or physical risk but remove the enemy […]

The Canadian Royal Mounted Police (Mounties) abuse native american women with impunity. Aggressive policing and inappropriate use of strip searches and accusations of sexual assault. One woman reported that she had been gang raped by police officers. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-21447735

Additional civilian deaths were attributed to NATO and the CIA in Afghanistan this week. Aside from the airstrike that killed women and children, NATO-led forces were checking a stretch of heavily traveled highway between Kandahar and Spinbaldak for explosives during a road clearance mission and shot at an oncoming car that was carrying people from […]

Prosecutors in Rome impounded $30 million from the Vatican Bank in an investigation linked to money laundering. Also, a tell-all book appeared, based on stolen confidential documents detailing profound mismanagement and corruption inside the Vatican. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/13/world/europe/constant-drumbeat-hastened-the-popes-exit.html?hpw  The Catholic Church was further implicated when Rev. Marcial Maciel Degollado, the Mexican founder of the Legionaries of Christ, […]

US wants the same banks accused of abusing homeowners with shoddy foreclosure practices to disclose the mortgage fraud they committed. The banks, eager to end the costly process, would take shortcuts as they comb through loan files for errors, potentially diverting aid from the neediest homeowners. http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/02/12/big-banks-are-told-to-review-their-own-foreclosures/?hp Banks in haste to meet tight deadlines, could […]

Yemen fails to investigate the 2011 killing of 45 anti-government protesters. On  March 18, 2011, the government unleashed security forces on the demonstrators in the capital resulting in the deaths. Several senior former and current government officials appear to have played a role in the massacre. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/13/world/middleeast/group-accuses-yemen-of-ignoring-protesters-killings.html?ref=world