Afghanistan to Disband Irregular Police Force Set Up Under NATO
By MATTHEW ROSENBERG and ALISSA J. RUBIN, NY Times
KABUL, Afghanistan — President Hamid Karzai has taken steps to disband a little-known, irregular police force financed by the American military with members in at least four northern provinces. Some members of the force are former militiamen and thugs known as much for extorting money from ordinary citizens as for intimidating insurgents and upholding the law.
The decision appeared aimed at stopping at least some of the militias that are beyond the control of Mr. Karzai’s administration and could one day challenge the government. It also appeared to be an effort to constrain the independence of northern Afghanistan, where strongmen and power brokers, especially the governor of Balkh Province, have often seemed to operate with only nominal deference to the central government in Kabul.
Additionally, it was a slap at NATO, which has had a hand in establishing this particular force, known as the Critical Infrastructure Police.
Welcome to the Overnight News Digest
(graphic by palantir)
The OND is published each night around midnight, Eastern Time.
The originator of OND was Magnifico.
Current Contributors are ScottyUrb, Bentliberal, wader, Oke, rfall, JML9999 and NeonVincent who also serves as chief cat herder.
Stephen Glass' lies in focus as he seeks law license
sfgate - Stephen Glass faked all or parts of more than 40 articles for national magazines from 1996 to 1998. In 2003, he acknowledged that his violation of journalistic standards was so severe that he would "never be welcomed within journalism, and rightly so."
Now the California Supreme Court will decide whether Glass' behavior was so bad as to make him morally unfit to practice law.
Glass, whose frauds were the subject of the 2003 film "Shattered Glass," is now a 39-year-old law clerk at a firm in Beverly Hills. He passed the bar exam and applied for an attorney's license in 2007, but the State Bar's Committee of Bar Examiners turned him down, questioning his claims of remorse and rehabilitation and saying he had not yet shown he could be trusted.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/...
Finland Releases Impounded Ship, Without Missiles
Transport officials in Finland say a ship that docked in the Scandinavian country earlier this month has been allowed to leave after its cargo of 69 Patriot surface-to-air missiles and at least 150 tons of explosives were removed from the vessel.
Authorities said Monday that the ban on the Thor Liberty was lifted Monday but that its cargo remains impounded.
Cinemas open eyes and ears to audiences
Cinemas open eyes and ears to audiences
Jessica Wright, Sydney Morings Herald
December 27, 2011
AN OUTING to the cinema on Boxing Day is as much an Australian tradition as spinnakers unfurling across Sydney Harbour or a Mexican wave circling the MCG on the opening day of the Test.
This year, more than 3 million Australians who have hearing or vision loss will be able to settle into a good flick at the cinemas, with technology providing digital captioning and audio descriptions installed at 31 theatres and 61 screens across the country.
The Disability Discrimination commissioner, Graeme Innes, who is blind, tried out the new technology yesterday, taking his daughter to see George Miller's Happy Feet Two.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/...
Didn't this used to be called just telling your friends?
App aims to make a social network more personal
By Natasha Baker
TORONTO | Mon Dec 26, 2011 9:16am EST
TORONTO (Reuters) - Interested in sharing more personal moments of life to a small group of friends rather than a large network? An app called Path could help
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Inspired by British anthropologist and Oxford professor Robin Dunbar, Path limits the number of social connections a user can have to 150 people. It is considered the upper limit of the number of trusted relationships a person can have, and is a direct function of our biology.
The average user on Path has five to ten connections.
Since its re-launch, Path has experienced a 30-fold increase in the number of daily users, according to its creators.
Cleaning up your mess
Japan Times - What if the next washing machine you buy could actually tell you how dirty your clothes are? Panasonic's latest prototype Eco-Navi washing machine does just that.
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it has four high-tech sensors, with this new model including for the first time a detector in its water outlet. By checking the clarity of the exiting water of a laundry load, the machine is able to adjust the amount of detergent and water needed, and precisely control the time and power of spin cycles, to get those whiter than white shirts. Seeing through the jargon — a "dancing pulsator" and some "intelligent inverters" — whether you are doing a family load or just a couple of days worth of socks, it'll only use the energy needed, helping streamline your household bills.
Sometimes the simplest ideas are the most eye-catching. When they make a mundane or necessary everyday task interesting, they are even more impressive. Whenever you turn on a tap, the pressure of the water rushing up through the pipes holds a lot of energy. Plumbing and bathroom company Toto have developed a dynamo, which when placed between the water source and the tap converts some of that energy into electrical power. When your hand triggers a sensor, it opens and closes a valve, releasing water toward those grubby fingers — providing mains power and touch-free washing for the hygiene conscious.
Fukushima accident: disaster response failed - report
BBC - A lack of preparedness for a disaster and failures in the response to it exacerbated the effects of the nuclear accident at Japan's Fukushima plant in March, a new report says.
The government-commissioned study said plant operators and regulators had failed to adequately anticipate a huge tsunami and its likely impact.
The interim findings were issued by an independent panel set up in May.
More than 20,000 people were killed when an earthquake and tsunami struck.
Cuba expands free-market reforms
BBC - Cuba says it is expanding free-market reforms, opening more of the retail services sector to private business.
From 1 January workers including carpenters, locksmiths, photographers and repairmen will be allowed to become self-employed.
They will be able to set their own prices, while paying taxes and leasing their premises from the state.
The measures are the latest reforms aimed at reviving Cuba's socialist economy by boosting private enterprise.
South Korea ex-First Lady Lee Hee-ho meets Kim Jong-un
BBC - South Korea's former First Lady Lee Hee-ho has met the North's designated new leader Kim Jong-un during a trip to Pyongyang, Seoul officials say.
Mrs Lee, 89, had a brief meeting with Kim Jong-un during a visit to offer condolences for the death of his father, Kim Jong-il.
Seoul insists that she is on a private trip, and is not carrying any message from the government.
Beit Shemesh ultra-orthodox Jews clash with police
BBC - Ultra-orthodox Jews have clashed with police in the Israeli town of Beit Shemesh, near Jerusalem.
One police officer was slightly hurt and a number of Orthodox Jews detained, say reports.
The town has become a focus of friction between secular Jews and ultra-Orthodox men demanding strict gender segregation and "modest" dress for women.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Sunday to end attempts to enforce segregation of the sexes.
China and Japan plan direct currency exchange agreement
BBC - China and Japan have unveiled plans to promote direct exchange of their currencies in a bid to cut costs for companies and boost bilateral trade.
The deal will allow firms to convert the Chinese and Japanese currencies directly into each other.
Currently businesses in both countries need to buy US dollars before converting them into the desired currency, adding extra costs.
It is the latest step by China as it seeks a more global role for the yuan.
This is a really good article on the FP that hasn't gotten much read yet:
| Reviving the Making Work Pay tax credit could solve the payroll tax cut problem
by Joan McCarter
Now that there's a whole two months in which to talk about the payroll tax cut and unemployment insurance extension, and because the House Republicans have been substantially weakened by the fight, maybe a better idea than the payroll tax cut can get some traction. It's an idea, in fact, that we've already tried.
 A new report from CTJ shows that the Bush tax cuts supported by Senator Kyl will provide $231 billion in benefits to the richest fifth of taxpayers in 2012 and just $3 billion to the poorest fifth of taxpayers during that same year. [...]
The CTJ report points out that a better option would be to revive the Making Work Pay Credit that expired at the end of last year, which has been discussed by some Senators but ignored by leaders of both parties.
The report finds that if the Making Work Pay Credit was in effect in 2012, the richest fifth of taxpayers would receive $11 billion while the poorest fifth of taxpayers would receive $7 billion, making it a less costly and more targeted tax cut.
(read more):
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Okay, I admit I picked this next one partly for the translator's colorful word choice in the promo, but also for the content:
Le Point, France: Iraq: A Historic Disaster/Irak : un désastre historique
The Iraq expedition, championed by George Bush and the feather-brained hawks who surrounded him, is, above all, a geopolitical catastrophe.
By Pierre Beylau, Translated By Micaela Bester, 14 December 2011
| The Iraq expedition, championed by George Bush and the feather-brained hawks who surrounded him, is, above all, a geopolitical catastrophe. The destruction of Iraq has opened a path for Iran. The Shatt al-Arab river is no longer a frontier between the Shiite and the Sunni worlds, between the Persians and the Arabs.
The Shiite prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, put in place by Washington, has but one single concern from now on: to please Iran, where he lived in exile for many years. With allies like Maliki, the Americans have no need for enemies. Maliki behaves, moreover, as a dictator-in-training, imprisoning those who displease him without batting an eyelid.
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Unfortunately, it is very likely that in the coming months, if not weeks, the confrontation between the Shiite majority and the Sunnis will escalate. Then there is the fate of the unhappy and dwindling Christian community, which will effectively vanish very soon. On a regional scale, the “spread of democracy” put forth by George Bush has never worked. The Arab Spring, arising eight years after the invasion of Iraq, bears no relation to the overthrow of Saddam Hussein.
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Mais surtout l'expédition voulue par George Bush et les faucons écervelés qui l'entouraient est une catastrophe en termes géopolitiques. La destruction de l'Irak a ouvert un boulevard à l'Iran. La traditionnelle frontière du Chott al-Arab entre le monde chiite et le monde sunnite, entre le monde perse et le monde arabe a été effacée.
Le Premier ministre (chiite) Nouri Maliki, mis en place par Washington, n'a désormais qu'un seul souci : complaire à l'Iran où il a d'ailleurs vécu en exil pendant de longues années. Avec des alliés tels que Maliki, les Américains n'ont pas besoin d'ennemis. Maliki se comporte, de surcroit, en apprenti dictateur faisant embastiller sans sourciller ceux qui lui déplaisent.
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Il est malheureusement fort probable que dans les prochains mois, sinon les prochaines semaines, la confrontation entre les chiites (majoritaires) et les sunnites va s'exacerber. Sans parler du sort de la malheureuse communauté chrétienne qui se rétracte comme peau de chagrin et ne sera plus, demain, que résiduelle. Sur le plan régional, la "contagion démocratique" mise en avant par George Bush n'a jamais fonctionné. Le Printemps arabe survenu huit ans après l'invasion de l'Irak n'a aucun rapport avec le renversement de Saddam Hussein.
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Path Is Cleared for Yemeni Leader to Get Care in U.S
(NY Times) HONOLULU — The Obama administration has decided in principle to allow the embattled president of Yemen, Ali Abdullah Saleh, to enter the United States for medical treatment, subject to certain assurances, two administration officials said Monday.
But those conditions — including a proposed itinerary — have not yet been submitted to the American Embassy in Yemen, these officials said, and no visa has yet been issued to Mr. Saleh.
The decision of whether to admit Yemen’s longtime leader has stirred a vigorous debate within the administration, with some officials fearing sharp criticism for appearing to provide a safe haven for a reviled Arab figure accused of responsibility for the death of hundreds of antigovernment protesters.
Fiscal Crisis Takes Toll on Health of Greeks
(NY Times) PERAMA, Greece — The free clinic here opened about a year ago to serve illegal immigrants. But these days, it is mostly caring for Greeks like Vassiliki Ragamb, who was sitting in the waiting room hoping to get insulin for her young diabetic son.
Four days earlier, she had run out of insulin and, without insurance and unable to pay for more, she had gone from drugstore to drugstore, pleading for at least enough for a few days. It took her three hours to find a pharmacist who was willing to help.
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Greece used to have an extensive public health care system that pretty much ensured that everybody was covered for everything. But in the last two years, the nation’s creditors have pushed hard for dramatic cost savings to cut back the deficit. These measures are taking a brutal toll on the system and on the country’s growing numbers of poor and unemployed who cannot afford the new fees and co-payments instituted at public hospitals as part of the far-reaching austerity drive.
Lynn Samuels, a Brash Radio Talker, Dies at 69
(NY Times) Lynn Samuels, whose brash political opinions and unrestrained New York accent made her an unmistakable voice in the male-dominated world of political talk radio, died on Saturday at her apartment in Woodside, Queens. She was 69.
Ms. Samuels, one of the first women to host a political radio show, was found dead by the police, who investigated after she failed to show up for a scheduled 10 a.m. show on Sirius XM Satellite Radio, a company spokesman said.
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Ms. Samuels made her name on WABC radio in the 1980s and ’90s as the voice of liberalism in a lineup composed mainly of right-leaning men, including Rush Limbaugh.
