- Riot Watch! Riot Watch! Nigeria is the place and oil is the reason for massive protests that are gripping the western African nation. The government threw the first punch in the fight when it ended oil subsidies that had kept gasoline prices artificially low. As of Jan. 1, Africa's largest oil producer removed subsidies that kept prices down and the cost of a liter of gasoline shot up from 65 naira (40 cents) to at least 141 naira (86 cents) almost overnight. That is an increase of 107 percent and it inspired thousands of Nigerians to take to the streets and stage ‘Occupy Nigeria’ protests and mass demonstrations across the country. Police have responded with a predictable show of excessive force and one death has already been reported because of it. Student Muyideen Mustafa was allegedly struck and killed by a police bullet in Ilorin, Kwara State during a protest. Police in Kano State also confirmed that they fired teargas into a crowd staging a midnight protest Wednesday even though the gathering of Muslims and Christians was largely peaceful. The government eliminated oil subsidies as part of its push to deregulate the oil sector in the country. Officials believe subsidizing consumption of oil is a drain on public finances and cannot work in the long term. In fact, they have argued that fuel importers were the only real beneficiaries of the subsidies and claim the move will save the Treasury more than 1 trillion naira ($6.13 billion) in 2012. Reuben Abati, spokesman for President Goodluck Jonathan, said that money will help to improve public amenities and build much-needed infrastructure. Nigerians would contend that better roads are worthless if they cannot afford the gas necessary to drive on them. Its oil and gas arrangement is odd because it produces around 2.4 million barrels of crude oil a day but imports 70 percent of its gasoline from as far away as Venezuela because its own refineries are inoperative after years of neglect. Those realities are less immediate to Nigerians than waking up and seeing the prices of gas has more than doubled. They are hit with that immediate hardship as well as the increased cost of transport, food, medicine, rent and school fees. With most Nigerians living on less than $2 a day in a country with little infrastructure, high unemployment and only intermittent electric power, cheap gasoline was one of the main tangible benefits. That benefit is now gone and instead the country is being fueled by the power of outrage and riots…………
- Hockey just isn't what it used to be. Back in the day, a player could punch whomever he wanted in the face, whenever he wanted. Technically that may be an exaggeration, but fighting was definitely a bigger part of the game in the past. But with the long-term effects of head injuries and specifically concussions a focal point for all sports, not just hockey, the NHL is trying to make fighting a much smaller part of the game. There are still brawls during games, but not the way there once was. That’s not OK with Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke, one of the biggest proponents of rough-and-tumble hockey. Burke’s team is founded on skill and speed instead of brute force and he doesn’t like the direction hockey is heading. "If you want a game where guys can cheap-shot people and not face retribution, I'm not sure that's a healthy evolution," he said Thursday. "The speed of the game, I love how the game's evolved in terms of how it's played. But you're seeing where there is no accountability." The NHL’s own statistics show that fighting is down significantly this season. Approximately one-third of the way through the season, there has been an average of 0.8 fighting majors per game compared with 1.2 at the same point last year. That’s a 33 percent decrease and Burke believes that a lack - again, a lack - of fighting is actually dangerous for hockey. "To me, it's a dangerous turn in our game," Burke said. His own team isn't exactly looking to drop gloves every chance they get as the Leafs are in the bottom third of NHL teams in fighting majors per game with just 13 of them prior to facing Winnipeg Thursday night. Burke doesn’t seem very concerned that former NHL tough guys Derek Boogaard, Rick Rypien and Wade Belak died within a short span during the summer and researchers ound evidence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative neurological condition, in Boogaard's brain, as they have with other former fighters. Instead, he cracked on new league disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan and suggested that on-ice discipline is the superior alternative. "These guys that won't back it up, won't drop their gloves, run around and elbow people in the head and hit people from behind. They never have to answer for that in the game. They used to have to answer for that in the game,” Burke fumed. "The players (used to) police the game and now it's Brendan Shanahan." Bitter much, eh Burke……….
- The annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas has fired up and brought the requisite slate of new and gimmicky products with it. Each year the show draws in all of the major players in the technology world and many of them debut their latest gadgets for the world to see. Vizio is among those looking to make an impact with something new this year. The company is best known for its budget flat-panel TVs, but at CES it is seeking to cross over into the computer market. TV sales have been relatively flat for the past two years and Vizio has turned its sights toward what will probably be an ill-fated foray into computers in an attempt to resuscitate its profit margins. Sales of traditional desktop computers have also been modest with the surging enthusiasm for tablets and smartphones, but Vizio believes there is life left in the PC world. The way consumers are actually using PCs "is expanding, not contracting," says Matt McRae, Vizio's chief technology officer. "They come home and use their PC for e-mail, but they're also using it for entertainment experiences." Vizio is introducing five new computers at CES: two all-in-one desktops with 24-inch and 27-inch monitors, two laptops with 15.6-inch screens and a thinner notebook with a 14-inch screen. All five models will go on sale in May, but no prices have been announced. Vizio has said only that price points will be similar to its TV prices, which are designed to undercut competitors. It will find plenty of competitors in the field of subpar personal computers, where the fight is fierce and the products are typically anything but…………
- A good military coup is the gift that never stops giving. Turkey’s alleged military coup has soldiered on for months now and although it has not yet materialized into a full-fledged coup attempt with the requisite death, corruption and drama, the entertainment value has still been high. The alleged coup added another suspected conspirator to its list Friday when former Turkish military chief Gen. Ilker Basbug was jailed after being accused of leading an Internet campaign to stir the revolt to topple the country’s civilian government. Basbug was the most senior officer to face trial in the anti-terror probes that began years ago. Hundreds of suspects were detained in the alleged coup, most of them retired and active-duty military officers. The government characterizes the inquiries as a triumph for the rule of law and democracy, but law and democracy generally don’t involve long imprisonments without verdicts or allegations of bias and vindictiveness. Basbug’s arrest didn’t exactly spark a public uproar, an ironic development in a country where generals once held immense influence over civilian leaders. The balance of power shifted to the civilian side during the past decades as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan challenged the military’s once-untouchable status. The military is still a point of national pride and assists in Afghanistan and other NATO missions, but has taken some significant hits of late. Its reputation suffered a blow last week when 35 civilians were mistakenly killed in an airstrike meant to target Kurdish rebels. Basbug’s fall from grace continued when he was arrested and placed in a prison near Istanbul after seven hours of questioning by prosecutors investigating allegations that the military financed websites undermining Erdogan’s government in 2009. The general retired in August, but led the military at the time of the alleged misdeeds. Basbug’s lawyer, Ilkay Sezer, said his client has joined other suspects in the case in denying all accusations during questioning. Basbug reportedly went so far as to coin a new term to describe the claims against him, calling them “tragicomical.” All of this brought to you as part of the sheer joy of an alleged coup…………
- The real stunner isn't that Rick Gervais is returning to host the Golden Globes for the third consecutive year. The true surprise is that anyone gives a damn. After all, the Globes are one in a long line of meaningless, self-congratulatory, narcissistic award shows that feature A-listers handing out tacky little statuettes to one another while wearing overpriced threads and rubbing elbows with their arrogant peers in some stuffy theater. They have no more meaning or cachet than any other award show, but Gervais livened up the event last year when he offended many stars with jokes perceived to be over the line and disrespectful. He joked about Charlie Sheen’s turn toward insanity and cracked on Robert Downey Jr. for his stint in jail. Gervais said he didn’t understand what all of the outrage was about. “I don't know what I did wrong really, what did I say that was untrue? The controversy is irrelevant to me. That is people's opinions outside my jokes,” he said. After his performance last year, the common belief was that he had hosted his last Golden Globes. When asked what factored into his decision to return, Gervais admitted he heard the critics who claimed he would never be invited back and when the offer came, he accepted in part to stick it to those critics. “I do it my way. I get final edit on everything. And they don't know what I'm going to say. And they won't know what I'm going to say 'til I say it,” he insisted. In his mind, Gervais’ on-stage persona is merely a character he plays who is “a lot brasher, more arrogant, more confident than me.” That more arrogant version of Gervais will be on stage doing his thing when the Golden Globes take place on Jan. 15…………
No comments:
Post a Comment