Geopolitical mosaic: Russian intelligence services are moving from computers to typewriters, and gold has run out in the basements of the US Federal Reserve
Al Qaeda vs SSA. - The biggest threat to the West. - Ultra-Orthodoxy vs. IDF. - American ships go to Egypt. - The emissary of Washington offered Mursi a deal. - “Truth can not be outstripped ...” - Estonia and the Russian language. - Will Russia apply sanctions to Ukraine? - Kosovo: Russians have been subjected to “black transplantology”. - “Die Welt”: Russians vs. Visitors. - “Google” is at odds with the Russian Constitution. - Tverskoy Moscow court gave Browder nine years of a correctional colony. - Step back: typewriters instead of computers. - Is the exodus from social networks coming? - Money for WikiLeaks. - Lost gold. - People without a future. - The Americans gathered to open a national park on the moon.
Al Qaeda vs SSA. Al-Qaeda-related militants in Syria killed yesterday a member of the command of the Syrian Free Army, Kamal Hamami. According to correspondent ITAR-TASS Roman Podervyansky with reference to Reuters, this fact was further evidence of an “expanding split” in the ranks of anti-government forces fighting in the Middle Eastern republic.
A member of the Supreme Council of the SSA, Hamami (nickname Abu Basel al-Ladkani), was killed when he arrived at negotiations with the grouping "The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant."
After the murder, the ISIL militants called the SSA and said that after Hama they would kill all the members of its highest council. CCA representative Kasem Saadeddin told Reuters news agency.
Hunger in Aleppo. Syrian rebels fired into the air to disperse a protest of civilians in the rebel-held area of Aleppo. People protested against the blockade, which does not allow them to receive food and medicine, remaining in this city in the hands of the opposition authorities, reports MIGnews.com.
The militants interrupted the delivery of humanitarian supplies to the city for several weeks. This tactic is aimed at blocking the supply routes for the Assad troops. But at the same time thousands of civilians remain hungry.
The biggest threat to the West. The report of the Security Committee of the House of Commons states that Al-Qaida in Syria is a terrorist threat to Britain, reports SANA.
The Guardian notes that al-Qaida fighters who are fighting alongside jihadists in Syria are the biggest terrorist threat to Britain and other Western countries. If a chemical falls into the hands of the members of this organization weapon, the consequences will be catastrophic.
British fear of terrorists in Syria confirms another fact. As transmits correspondent RIA "Novosti" Denis Voroshilov, the British parliament gave Prime Minister David Cameron the right to veto any lawmakers ’decision on the supply of weapons to Syria.
The reason for the decision was the fears of the leaders of the conservative party about the fact that arming moderate opposition would lead to the escalation of the conflict and the falling of arms into the hands of extremists.
Colum Lynch (American magazine "Foreign Policy"; source abbr. translation - "Inopressa") develops the theme of European fears.
Up to a thousand Europeans are participating in the Syrian civil war to help the rebels overthrow Assad, a columnist said. “They come from the outskirts of Paris, the London East End, German cities on the Fulda River and even from small towns in Ireland.” The ministers of these countries say they approve of the overthrow of Assad.
“But these same officials are simultaneously doing everything they can to stop these fighters - or, at a minimum, develop new laws to criminalize their actions. The reason is the fear that these irregular fighters will one day return to Europe, mastering the deadly military affairs, mastering the craft of international terrorism and embracing the extremist ideology of Al Qaeda and its Syrian brothers, the Al Nusra Front, the article says.
"This is a time bomb, and it is already ticking," said Manuel Valls, the French interior minister, in an interview. According to him, more than 600 Europeans are fighting in Syria, including 140 citizens of France. About 80% of them - Muslim youth, the rest of the French, who converted to Islam.
Radical clerics and militants are calling for a "holy war."
The Netherlands called the return of jihadists one of the main international threats to their security. In Belgium, the authorities created a national working group whose goal is to develop measures to prevent the spread of extremist ideas.
“The harsh truth is that there are more people associated with Al-Qaeda and its allies in Syria than ever before. And they are close to Europe and operate with an intensity that has no equal with 2006 of the year in Iraq, ”said Charles Farr, director general of the British Security and Counter-Terrorism Directorate. It is easy to get to Syria through Turkey, where citizens of many European countries enter without visas.
According to the Waltz, France is preparing a law on the criminalization of relations with terrorist organizations.
In Turkey, the demonstration was again broken up. In Antakye, there were new clashes between demonstrators and the police, reports correspondent ITAR-TASS Kirill Zharov.
The cause of the action was the death of Ismail Korkmaz, a 19-year-old local resident. He was injured during the June 2 riots in Eskişehir and died 38 days later in hospital.
The demonstrators were allowed to arrange a small procession, but the police blocked their way to the Republic Square. The authorities called on the demonstrators to disperse, to which they responded with a sedentary action. After that, the protesters attempted to break through the police cordon.
Local television reports more than ten affected protesters, including hard. Detentions are underway.
It is also reported that in Istanbul at night, the court released 12 activists of anti-government demonstrations and members of the public platform "Solidarity Taksim", which occupied Gezi Park in June for more than two weeks. Earlier, on Thursday afternoon, 38 was released from a group of fifty July 8 detainees.
The detainees (employees and representatives of the leadership of trade union associations of architects, doctors, engineers, leaders of small political parties) were charged with creating a criminal organization, opposing the authorities and violating the law on holding mass events. Observers note that the arrest of the detainees could provoke new unrest.
Ultra-Orthodoxy vs. IDF. In the Jerusalem quarter of Mea Shearim, a mob of ultra-orthodoxes attacked an IDF soldier, reports newsru.co.il. MAGAV troops were sent to rescue him.
According to the Mako website, residents of the quarter met fighters of the border police with a hail of stones. Several dozens of ultra-orthodoxies took part in clashes with MAGAV servicemen. The soldier, who, according to Walla News, is himself a representative of a religious community, was evacuated from a dangerous area. The police detained about ten participants in the clashes.
Newsru.co.il notes that at the end of May, posters appeared in Mea Shearim, in which the ultra-Orthodox promised to avenge every “yoshibotnik” taken into custody for refusing to serve in the army. The authors of the leaflet reported that for each "ultra-Orthodox" they would beat one IDF soldier.
Splinters near Eilat. In the mountains, a few kilometers north of Eilat, IDF troops found fragments of the Grad rocket, which was supposedly released from the Sinai Peninsula last Thursday. In the place of the fall of the rocket caused by military sappers, passes newsru.co.il. The search continues for the location of the fall of the second rocket.
In the evening of July 4, residents of Eilat reported two explosions. The terrorist organization Ansar Bayt al-Makdas claimed responsibility for the shelling. Militants said they intend to continue the "jihad." Events in Egypt, "provoked by the long arm of the Jews," they will not interfere.
American ships go to Egypt. Two American warships sent to the coast of Egypt. This was announced yesterday by the commander of the US Marine Corps, General James Amos. The landing ships "San Antonio" and "Kearsarge" follow to the Red Sea area.
“Egypt plunged into crisis. When such things happen, we must take certain steps in order to control the situation, ”Amos said. According to representatives of the Marine Corps, the movement of ships closer to the coast will facilitate, if necessary, the use of helicopters and other equipment, transmit "Vesti" with reference to ITAR-TASS.
The emissary of Washington offered Mursi a deal. A few hours before the military coup in Egypt, the United States offered President Mursi a deal, promising to help him maintain power. This is reported by the channel "RT" with reference to the New York Times.
The advisers of the deposed president said that in the last hours of Mursi as head of state, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of an Arab country contacted him and said that he was acting as an emissary of Washington. This minister asked whether Mursi agreed to the appointment of a new prime minister and cabinet, which would take over all legislative powers and replace the provincial governors elected by him. This was a prerequisite for the United States to support the Egyptian president.
However, M. Mursi raised his hand to his throat, making it clear that "he would rather die than accept such conditions."
As the New York Times notes, he didn’t believe in the possibility of a military coup.
Meanwhile, the United States categorically denies the fact of intervention in the situation in Egypt. This was previously stated by both Barack Obama and John Kerry.
Repeated excess. Samples taken from the technical well at the Fukushima-1 NPP showed that the content of radioactive cesium-134 in them increased by a factor of 90 in three days. Experts do not exclude the possibility of radioactive water entering the Pacific Ocean, transfers the channel "RT" with reference to ITAR-TASS.
According to "Tokyo electric power", the operating company "Fukushima", the content of cesium-134 isotopes in the obtained samples is 9 thousands of becquerels per liter. This exceeds the maximum permissible limits 150 times. The content of cesium-137 isotopes exceeds 18 thousand of becquerels per liter, which is already 200 times more than the permissible parameters.
The reasons for the increase in radiation levels are not clear. TEPCO experts promised to strengthen the monitoring of the situation.
A Japanese government commission fears that radioactive water from Fukushima-1 falls into the Pacific Ocean. “It is necessary to find a source of pollution and make every effort to take countermeasures,” said the head of the country’s nuclear energy control committee, Syun-ichi Tanaka.
"The truth can not drown out ..." The chairman of the Polish Seim, Eva Kopach, proposed that the Volyn Massacre of 1943 be recognized as genocide. Statement Kopach made 9 July, transmits IA "REX" with reference to OSTKRAFT.
“Truth cannot be outweighed or re-quoted. 100 of thousands of Poles - small children, women, men - died then, and these are facts about which there should be no discussion, ”said the head of the Seym.
According to UNIAN, the Polish parliament must unanimously adopt a statement on the Volyn massacre, according to UNIAN. It is noted that Kopach proposed “to separate contemporary politics and current relations with Ukraine from historical events 70 years ago ”.
The presentation of similar claims to Ukraine (and we are talking specifically about the claims, and specifically to Ukraine, whatever it is said that only the OUN-UPA is to blame for what happened), actually puts it on the same level as the state in the fight against which Poland in many respects he sees the meaning of his existence. But Ukraine is the main slave of Poland on the road to bright European happiness. Apparently, Poland is so seriously carried away by the role of the victim that it can no longer refuse it. ”
Estonia and the Russian language. The Estonian government has denied the right to teach in Russian to four Tallinn gymnasiums. Reports about it "Lenta.ru" with reference to "DELFI".
According to officials from the Ministry of Education, nothing prevents schools from teaching 60% subjects in Estonian. Postimees notes that they also reminded that in 2012, Russian schools from Tallinn were allocated an additional 370 thousand euros to support teaching in Estonian.
For permission to teach in Russian, the Tallinn Kesklinna Gymnasium, the Tallinn Russian Lyceum, the Tõnismäe Real School and the Russian Haabersti Gymnasium previously applied to the government.
According to Estonian law, at least 60% of subjects in Estonian should be taught in schools. Administration of educational institutions may choose another language of instruction, but for this they will have to get government permission.
As Lenta reminds, in 2011, the authorities of Tallinn asked the government to teach in some gymnasiums in Russian. They refused.
Will Russia apply sanctions to Ukraine? As Yuri Panchenko writes (Kommersant-Ukraine), in order to protect its automotive industry, Russia is ready to impose economic sanctions on Ukraine.
The increased duties that the Customs Union is going to introduce will affect Ukrainian chocolate, sugar, float glass, and hard coal. Moscow warned of its intentions to the WTO, explaining these actions by a desire to compensate for the damage in the amount of $ 36,1 million from the introduction of a special duty on car imports by Ukraine.
“After the introduction of this duty, the cost of our products in Ukraine increased by an average of 12%, which led to a decline in sales in 2-2,5 times,” said Igor Voznyuk, General Director of UkravtoVAZ (Lada importer).
The correspondent of Kommersant reminds that since April 13, Ukraine has applied a three-year duty on the import of cars with an engine capacity of 1-1,5 L (6,46%) and 1,5-2,2 L (12,95%) at the base rate of 10%. The introduction of special duties has caused protests, including in the EU, USA, Japan. Turkey - a member of the WTO - from July 12 received the right to introduce an additional duty in 23% on the import of walnuts from Ukraine. This step Ankara explained the desire to compensate for their damage in the amount of 6,11 million, caused by the deterioration of opportunities for Turkish imports. Experts called the actions of Turkey a precedent.
Russia calculated the damage in the same way - by multiplying the rates of duties by the amount of car exports to Ukraine in the 2012 year (327,6 million dollars). But, unlike Turkey, the decision of the Russian authorities needs to be confirmed by the Eurasian Economic Commission, the executive body of the Customs Union. Based on the principle of flat rates for all countries - members of the CU, higher rates for imports from Ukraine will be charged by Belarus and Kazakhstan.
Kosovo: Russians have been subjected to “black transplantology”. This was told by Alexander Samozhnev ("Russian newspaper").
Eleven Russian citizens were the victims of illegal transplantation of human organs in Kosovo. This became known from the report of the Office of the OSCE Special Representative on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings made public.
"Black Transplantology" was carried out in the Medicina clinic in Pristina. It was here that the Russians were donors. At least twenty-four people passed through this medical center, including citizens of Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. The services of underground transplantologists were used by citizens of the United States, Israel, Germany, Canada, and Poland.
In April, 2013 was convicted of five people in this case. An independent investigation into the seizure of organs in Pristina is being carried out by the EU mission on the rule of law and order in Kosovo (EULEX).
The gang of "transplant" was about twenty people. The main persons involved in the case are the Turkish doctor Yusuf Sonmez, who operated on patients, and the Israelite Moshe Harel, who provided the clinic with new patients. These people were declared internationally on Interpol and then arrested.
“Die Welt”: Russians vs. Visitors Julia Smirnova («Die Welt»; source abbr. translation - "Inopressa") reminds readers that the city of Pugachev in southern Russia was in turmoil.
Hundreds of residents, the correspondent of the German edition writes, gathered in the central square and demanded that all the “Caucasians” should be removed from the region. The riots were provoked by the murder of a young local resident and, according to the author, are associated with widespread dissatisfaction among Russians, which manifests itself in hatred of visitors and distrust of state law enforcement agencies. This is in the hands of the Russian nationalists. The level of right-wing violence in Russia is extremely high.
According to the SOVA human rights organization, in the first half of 2013, 6 was killed in Russia in the first half of the year and 76 was beaten. Most often, the victims of the nationalists are visitors from the Central Asian republics and from the Caucasus.
Nationalists are carrying out “wild raids” against illegal migrants. According to the expert of the Sova Center, Vera Alperovich, “nationalist raids are trying to replace national legal systems.”
According to the Levada Center, a public opinion research institute, 68,5% of respondents believe that there are too many migrants in Russia, 48% reports that they support the slogan “Russia for Russians”.
A candidate for mayor of Moscow, Sergei Sobyanin, the article says, used the problem of migration in the interests of the election campaign, saying that "without migrant crimes, Moscow would be the most law-abiding city in the world."
The Secretary General does not know. After 1991, Moscow reduced by four times the arsenal of non-strategic nuclear weapons that it inherited from the USSR, which, unlike the stocks of other nuclear powers, is located exclusively in Russia, said Russia's permanent representative to NATO Alexander Grushko. So he commented on the statement by NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, according to which after the end of the Cold War, the countries of the alliance "significantly reduced their arsenals of tactical nuclear weapons, but did not see the response from the Russians," the newspaper said "Sight".
“We are somewhat surprised by such a statement by the Secretary General. Let me remind you that within the framework of the implementation of the well-known presidential initiatives of the 1991 of the year, Russia reduced by four times the arsenal of non-strategic nuclear weapons inherited from the USSR, transferred them to the category of undeveloped and concentrated on centralized storage bases. I would like to especially emphasize that the mentioned storages are located strictly within the national territory of the Russian Federation, ”ITAR-TASS quoted Grushko as saying.
“Google” is at odds with the Russian Constitution. The Google User Agreement violates the Russian Constitution and the European Convention for the Protection of Personal Data. This is the conclusion reached on the basis of the audit in the Federation Council. Now the senators, the Ministry of Communications and Roskomnadzor intend to force the company to rewrite the document so that it cannot transmit data about users to anyone, writes Olga Gritsenko ("Sight").
Senator Ruslan Gattarov stressed that as a result of the verification of the user agreement of Google, a huge number of violations were revealed, including the Basic Law of the state. "The agreement allows you to send personal data to a Google service center, which violates the constitutional right to privacy," - said the ITAR-TASS senator.
According to Gattarov, the user agreement is made in such a way that “a person cannot completely remove his personal data from this service”. “The Russian law on personal data has been violated, since Google can transfer personal data to a wide range of third parties, taking advantage of a large number of exceptions to the rules,” said Comrade Gattarov.
Claims against Western network companies appeared in Russia and other countries after Edward Snowden made public the revealing information about American intelligence services and their access to Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook and other companies.
Tverskoy Moscow court gave Browder nine years of a correctional colony. The Tverskoy Court of Moscow sentenced in absentia to nine years in prison in a general regime correctional colony the head of the British Hermitage Capital Foundation, William Browder, found him guilty of tax evasion. The case against Sergei Magnitsky was terminated due to his death, reports "Voice of Russia".
According to the investigation, the head of the fund, on behalf of Cameo LLC, illegally purchased at a lower intermarket price more than 130 million shares of Gazprom worth at least 2 billion rubles, which caused damage to the Russian Federation on a large scale.
Step back: typewriters instead of computers. Dag Stanglin (USA Today, USA; source of translation - "InoSMI") reports that, according to the newspaper "Izvestia", the Russian Federal Security Service decided to return to the use of typewriters and paper documents. This decision is associated with recent spy scandals caused by the activities of the American NSA.
FSO, engaged in the protection of high-ranking Russian officials and the Kremlin communications, has already ordered twenty typewriters "Triumph Adler."
One of the main reasons for using typewriters is that each of them creates a unique “signature”, which can then be traced, Izvestia notes.
An unnamed source says that many of the most important Russian departments, including the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the security services, did not switch to electronic document management. “From a security point of view, any kind of electronic communication is vulnerable,” says State Duma deputy and former head of the FSB, Nikolai Kovalev.
Microsoft and special services. Microsoft has worked closely with the US intelligence agencies, including helping NSA spies bypass its encryption systems. This is stated in the publication “The Guardian”, based on the revelations of Snowden.
According to the publication, even before the commercial launch of products, Microsoft opened the NSA access to encryption systems, allowing security officials to then intercept any user messages. This was the case with correspondence through “Outlook”. The technology of Skype telephony last year was opened by US intelligence to collect video calls and audio conversations, note "Vesti" with reference to ITAR-TASS.
As for the corporation itself, then, as stated to correspondent of RIA “Novosti” Peter Martynychev representative of the company, commenting on the message of the Guardian newspaper, Microsoft does not provide the authorities with comprehensive access to the Outlook mail client, the popular Skype service and SkyDrive file storage.
“Microsoft” does not provide any state structures with full or direct access to SkyDrive, Outlook.com, Skype and other products, ”said a company representative.
According to him, any data can be transferred to law enforcement agencies only within the framework of the legal process, and the company checks how legitimate the requests for information are.
“In addition, we execute orders relating only to specific accounts or users, and we would not respond to all-encompassing access orders that have been discussed in the press over the past few weeks,” said the source.
Is the exodus from social networks coming? Due to the scandal surrounding the surveillance of ordinary citizens, which erupted thanks to exposer E. Snowden, an increasing number of people delete their Facebook pages, writes Anna Khrustaleva ("Voice of Russia").
Of course, representatives of social networks do not advertise the trend, and there is no exact data on the flight. But independent experts are sure: the exodus is ahead.
It's not just a matter of revealing. Among other reasons for refusing to participate in social networks, experts cite user fatigue from spam, advertising, the dominance of politics.
As for Facebook, the results of research by Piper Jaffray & Co. indicate its possible fall. According to the company, teen interest in Facebook has dropped by as much as 10 percentage points over the past year, from 33 percent to 23 percent.
Comrade Snowden is not a criminal. According to data from a University of Connecticut study at Quinnipiak, 55% of US citizens do not believe that Edward Snowden betrayed the country. They see the whistleblower in it. Only a third of the respondents disagree with this statement. Moreover, it is noted that, according to 45% of respondents, the government has gone too far in its fight against terrorism, reports fbii.org.
Compared to 2010, the position of Americans vis-à-vis counterterrorism measures has changed noticeably. If three years ago 63% supported these measures, considering that they do not limit the rights of citizens, now only 40% of respondents support the government's fight against terrorism.
The survey was conducted by telephone from June 28 to July 8. 2014 people participated in it.
Money for WikiLeaks. Kathleen Dickson and Eliza Shapiro ("The Daily Beast"; source abbr. translation - "Inopressa") talked about where the money came from WikiLeaks.
This organization was lucky: Snowden supporters generously donate money to it - after WikiLeaks began to promote the truth-seeker from the NSA, The Daily Beast writes.
“The organization desperately needs every extra dollar to pay legal fees and living expenses of its founder, Julian Assange, and now Snowden, without getting into debt,” Kathleen Dickson and Eliza Shapiro say.
In 2012, WikiLeaks collected almost 90 thousand dollars. And since she took Snowden in custody, about 1300 dollars go into her accounts every day. Donators - people from around the world.
Assange and his team claim that the current level of donations is too low.
“In 2012, WikiLeaks’s current budget was 510197 dollars, which is a lot of money when you consider that it’s just a .org site with a staff of three salary programmers,” the authors note.
“WikiLeaks” “deliberately confuses its finances, and it’s almost impossible for donors to figure out how their money is transferred and what it is going to,” the journalists wrote. There are different ways to donate money to this organization: send a personal check to the subscription box at the Melbourne post office, transfer Bitcoin virtual money, buy a T-shirt on the website, promising that part of the proceeds go to WikiLeaks accounts.
WikiLeaks uses unusual channels because the payment systems Visa, PayPal, Western Union, etc. refused to work with it.
The main artery for transferring network donations is the hacker group Wau Holland (Berlin). “She manages the finances of WikiLeaks, at least in public,” the article says.
One of the founders of Wau Holland, Bernd Fix, explains: "The level of donations increases when the organization is mentioned in the press."
In 2012, WikiLeaks spent about five and a half times more than it received from donors. The article notes that many Assange lawyers work for free.
Broken trust. US Ambassador to Austria William Iko answered the questions posed by the republic’s ministry of internal affairs and the republic’s ministry of internal affairs last week regarding the facts of the American intelligence services of citizens and authorities of the country. According to Johanna Mikl-Leitner, the Minister of the Interior, quoted by the Austrian news agency APA, the ambassador confirmed to her that the data of Austrian citizens could be at the disposal of the US special services, reports correspondent ITAR-TASS Mikhail Scherbakov.
In a conversation with the Minister, the American diplomat clarified that the NSA receives information from servers located in the United States, and a huge number of Austrians are registered on social networks and use the services of the American giants of the network industry, their data could get into the system.
The press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs noted that the American side did not give Austria a written response to the request.
“We also took note of this,” the department said, stressing at the same time that “the trust in American colleagues is undermined, and it will take a long time to restore it.”
Gold is missing. The manager of the Hong Kong hedge fund, William Kay, who had worked for Goldman Sachs in the field of mergers and acquisitions for a quarter of a century, recently talked about the missing gold of the Fed and Germany. This is reported by Eric King (King World News; source of translation - Mixednews.ru).
Kay told King that the gold was leased to China. This was recognized by the main central banks - the Fed, and the European Central Bank, and the Bank of England. They participate in the wholesale lease of gold to the market.
Here is a description of this “leasing” practice: the Fed contacts its agent, usually JP Morgan, less often Goldman Sachs, and they say, “OK, the price of gold should be limited, here are 20, 30, 40, 50 tons of gold, which we give you for rent as your agent. But theoretically we can call him back. ”
This is in theory. In practice, "JP Morgan" and "Goldman Sachs" the resulting gold is simply sold on the market. These banks in operations with precious metals occupy mainly short positions in gold, benefiting from lower prices, Kay said. And the Fed says: “... well, we still have a contract, according to which, in theory, we can withdraw gold. So, in official documents, we’ll let you know that we still own it. ”
This gold, which at the time of arrival in Hong Kong could be a symbol of the Bundesbank, a leading processor, one of the largest in the world, working with the People’s Bank of China, certified: “Yes, we received gold that we can deliver. We melted it, we determined the sample. Perhaps it was the sign of the Bundesbank on admission, but now it is melted. This is 0,9999 (pure) gold. ”
Gold Fed, which the Americans consider their own, has left. German gold, about which the Germans said that they would take it away after seven years, is generally no longer with the Fed. It is anywhere: at the People's Bank of China, at the Reserve Bank of India, at the Russian Central Bank.
At present, concludes Comrade Kay, the Fed and the US Treasury, "probably have nothing."
Designer vacuum cleaners. As it turned out, the alleged organizer of the 11 attacks of September 2001, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, being in a secret CIA prison in Romania from 2003 to 2006, asked the jailers for permission to work in his specialty - an engineer, reports "Lenta.ru" with reference to the Associated Press.
Mohammed, the holder of the corresponding diploma, asked for permission to design a new model of vacuum cleaner. Prison authorities contacted the CIA headquarters, where the request of the alleged terrorist found no objection. The source of the agency in the special services explained that Mohammed was allowed to do this business so that he did not go crazy.
The creation of a vacuum cleaner, the prisoner was able to do only after the CIA received from him all the required information, says "AP". Before that, he was often tortured: he was left without sleep for 180 hours, 183 was heated several times, and kept in solitary confinement for a long time.
Get rid of the cross. An employee of the American Sonoma State University asked a student who helped first-year students with a professional orientation to hide a Catholic cross, reports "RT".
The methodologist at the University’s vocational guidance center asked its 19-year-old assistant Audrey Jarvis to take off a small cross-stitch, according to Fox News. He substantiated such a demand by the fact that the university director pursues a policy against wearing religious symbols. In other words, the girl’s lawyer, Hiram Sasser, said, a methodologist told a Catholic believer that "the signs of her faith can offend other students, make them feel uncomfortable."
Audrey was shocked by the statement by a university employee: “I was offended because I always believed that my prerogative as a true Catholic was that I could make others understand that I was committed to my faith. And I can do it in any way that does not harm other people. This statement simply contradicts the principles of Sonoma State University, which include tolerance and openness. ”
This is not the only incident. Another time, the teacher advised the girl to get rid of the cross. The lawyer calls these actions “obvious religious discrimination” and demands an apology from the teacher.
University management apologized to Audrey Jarvis.
Soap bubbles in American education. Some students at Winston-Salem State University in North Carolina were subject to final grades because of the color of their skin. The administration corrected the marks that teachers gave to black students. The goal was to improve the image and the rise of the university, reports fbii.org.
About the overestimation of grades it became known after the statement of three former employees of the university: the director of academic technology Shira Hejpet and two professors who wished to preserve anonymity.
“Some students have changed the final grade because of their race. No other racial groups have changed their assessments, ”the text of their statement by the University Herald provides. Hedgepet noted that in high school acted circular responsibility. Everyone knew that African-Americans were over-estimating - and, in turn, were also overstated.
People without a future. The latest Gallup survey on American personal finances revealed a trend: the older a US citizen, the less he worries about his financial prospects, reports Interfax.
Americans of different ages were asked to confirm or deny the statement: "I have more than enough money to do everything that I want." The maximum number of “yes” answers is recorded in the oldest age group.
55,7% of Americans aged 88 to 91 are satisfied with their financial situation.
The percentage of yes answers among the young and mature population varies from 22,1% (citizens in 42-45 age) to 33% (young people in 18-21 age).
The border between satisfied and dissatisfied with their financial condition, as it turned out, passes through the baby boomer generation: children who appeared in the post-war birth rate. They are divided into two categories: senior and junior. The percentage of people satisfied with income increases significantly among older baby boomers (Americans from 57 to 67 years).
The difference between the older and the younger is that the former managed to pay off their debts - they paid off the mortgage before the crisis began, and on the whole suffered less from the recession. But the younger ones need to pay loans for the education of children, and because of inflation, their cost is higher than a few years ago.
Another one reason for the uncertainty of the younger generation is the upcoming changes in the US pension system.
Older baby boomers are likely to take full advantage of social benefits: state pension, health insurance and disability insurance. But at the time when the younger ones retire, state funds may go bankrupt. It is unlikely that the federal government will have enough resources to provide these pensioners with the same benefits as the older ones. This means that younger age groups will have to take care of their financial future themselves ...
The Americans gathered to open a national park on the moon. The bill with the lunar project was sent to Congress by the Democrats. Luna Park will be located in the Apollo 11 landing area, where in 1969, Neil Armstrong made a "small step for a man, but a giant leap for all of humanity," reports "RT".
The park will be created no later than a year after they pass the law. The project will take the US Department of the Interior and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), writes "The Hill".
Next year, the Interior Ministry and NASA must agree on how to manage the lunar territory.
The US is also counting on financial assistance from foreign companies and other governments that can help "provide visitors with all the necessary services within reasonable proximity to the historic park."
Thus, let us add on our own, the Americans not only decided to assign a part of the territory of the Earth satellite, but also demand payment for their own expansion from other countries. They have a crisis, you see ...
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