OND is a community feature on Daily Kos, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00AM Eastern Time.
The OND concept was borne under the keen keyboard of Magnifico - proper respect is due.
Current Contributors are ScottyUrb, Bentliberal, wader,Oke, rfall, JML9999 and Neon Vincent.
BBC:Greece bailout: Cabinet approves draft bill for fresh cuts
Greece bailout: Cabinet approves draft bill for fresh cuts
Greece's cabinet has approved fresh austerity measures demanded by the eurozone and IMF in return for a 130bn-euro ($170bn; £110bn) bailout.
The draft bill must now be passed by the Greek parliament and approved by European finance ministers.
Five ministers have resigned from the government over the issue, with one junior party in the coalition saying the demands were "humiliating".
Unions began a 48-hour strike on Friday with protesters clashing with police.
BBC:UK sent nuclear sub near Falklands, says Argentina
UK sent nuclear sub near Falklands, says Argentina
Argentina's foreign minister has accused the UK of sending a nuclear-armed submarine to the South Atlantic, after making an official complaint to the UN over the Falklands dispute.
Hector Timerman demanded that the British confirm the location of nuclear submarines in the region.
But UK officials said the accusations of militarisation were "absurd".
UN chief Ban Ki-moon earlier called on both sides to avoid an "escalation" in tensions over the Falkland Islands.
BBC:Syria unrest: Aleppo bomb attacks 'kill 28'
Syria unrest: Aleppo bomb attacks 'kill 28'
At least 28 people have been killed and 235 wounded in two bombs targeting security compounds in Syria's second city of Aleppo, state media report.
State television said the death toll included both civilians and members of the security forces and blamed "armed terrorist gangs" for the attacks.
Within minutes, it broadcast footage showing corpses and mangled body parts.
The rebel Free Syrian Army said it was operating in the area at the time, but was not responsible for the blasts.
BBC:Uzbek man, 22, admits plot to kill Barack Obama
Uzbek man, 22, admits plot to kill Barack Obama
An Uzbek man has admitted at a court in the US state of Alabama to plotting to kill US President Barack Obama.
Ulugbek Kodirov, 22, who was arrested at a motel in the state last July, could face 30 years in jail.
Kodirov was charged with threatening to kill the president, possessing an automatic weapon and providing material support to terrorists.
Authorities say he was in the US illegally after he received a student visa but never enrolled at school.
BBC:Libya's Saadi Gaddafi threatens to lead uprising
Libya's Saadi Gaddafi threatens to lead uprising
One of the sons of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has threatened to lead an uprising against the country's transitional government.
Saadi Gaddafi made the comments in a television interview from Niger, where he fled after his father was toppled.
He said he still had many followers in Libya, including within the ruling National Transitional Council (NTC).
Col Gaddafi, who ruled Libya for four decades - was killed in October after months of civil war.
BBC:Twitter fuels Kim Jong-un assassination rumour
Twitter fuels Kim Jong-un assassination rumour
A rumour that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was assassinated in Beijing has spread across social media websites all over the world.
The story apparently originated on Chinese microblog site Sina Weibo and was later picked up by Twitter users.
The reports were also carried on at least two fake BBC Twitter accounts, which have since been closed.
Analysts say the story, claiming he was killed by gunmen at the North Korean embassy, is highly implausible.
Reuters:Anger in Greece as parliament to vote on bailout
Anger in Greece as parliament to vote on bailout
(Reuters) - Greek lawmakers will vote this weekend on a controversial austerity bill that Athens needs to avoid a messy default but which is fuelling a domestic political and social crisis that has brought thousands of Greeks out on the streets in protest.
The cabinet approved the draft bill late on Friday - paving the way for a new multi-billion euro bailout and a debt-cut plan - after another day of rocky politics where six cabinet members resigned over the additional austerity demands.
Analysts expect the deeply unpopular package to be adopted by parliament on Sunday after being discussed in committee on Saturday, but the political situation remains highly unstable and a number of lawmakers have said they would vote against it.
Even after the vote is completed, the EU expects the government to specify a further 325 million euros ($430 million)of spending cuts before it agrees to the 130-billion-euro bailout.
Reuters:Anxiety over incomes hits consumer morale
Anxiety over incomes hits consumer morale
(Reuters) - Americans felt worse about their personal finances in early February, but rising confidence in the labor market's prospects should help to support spending and the broader economy.
The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan overall index of consumer sentiment fell to 72.5 in early February, data showed on Friday, from 75.0 in January. It was the first drop in six months and reflected households' anxiety over their finances.
The ebb in morale comes despite the recent run of relatively strong data, including solid job growth and manufacturing activity.
"While there is plenty of positive momentum in the economy there is still plenty to worry about," said Lindsey Piegza, an economist at FTN Financial in New York.
Reuters:Italy doesn't need firewalls, Europe does: Monti
Italy doesn't need firewalls, Europe does: Monti
(Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said Rome will not need bailout funds to overcome its debt crisis, but he reiterated that Europe should build large financial firewalls to "impress the market and take the perception of risk away."
Fears that Europe's current rescue funds are insufficient to contain a possible escalation of the euro-zone debt crisis have been roiling financial markets. Italy's 1.9 trillion debt load is about four times the size of a permanent bailout fund that EU leaders are set to sign at the beginning of March.
"I believe firewalls are necessary. The higher they are in terms of financial resources, the more likely it is that those financial resources will not have to be used," Monti said in an interview with CNBC on Friday.
"I don't say this because Italy might be in need because I don't believe that Italy, with the tough policies that we're pursuing, will be in need," he added.
Reuters:Oil falls on Greece deal doubt, but up on week
Oil falls on Greece deal doubt, but up on week
(Reuters) - Oil prices fell on Friday, but posted gains for the week, as the latest hitches in negotiations on a Greek bailout package pressured oil, the euro and equities.
A reduced oil demand growth forecast from the International Energy Agency (IEA), the sixth consecutive monthly report with diminished growth expectations, also helped pressure oil.
The euro fell and the dollar index .DXY strengthened after the leader of the far-right party in Greece's coalition declined to back a bailout agreement, once more raising concerns about the risk of a default.
"Today's selloff across the complex was easily explainable as oil simply became entrenched in a broad based risk-off trade related to continued lack of progress on a Greek debt deal," Jim Ritterbusch, president at Ritterbusch & Associates, said in a note.
Reuters:Asia giants join Iran diplomacy as sanctions hurt trade
Asia giants join Iran diplomacy as sanctions hurt trade
(Reuters) - China said on Friday it would send a senior official to Tehran to discuss Iran's nuclear standoff with the West, and India indicated it would also weigh in, as Asia's two giants seek to head off new sanctions already playing havoc with trade.
New financial sanctions imposed by the United States and European Union are making it difficult for Iran to pay for staple food and other imports, causing hardship for its 74 million people with just weeks to go before an election.
Commodities traders revealed this week that Iran has resorted to barter trade - swapping gold bullion in overseas vaults or tankerloads of oil for food - to avoid payments problems in international banks over sanctions.
On the streets of Iran, prices for food in dollar terms have doubled or tripled in recent months.
Reuters:Obama budget to propose election year spending on jobs, roads
Obama budget to propose election year spending on jobs, roads
(Reuters) - President Barack Obama will project lower deficits and request billions of dollars for infrastructure and jobs in his 2013 budget, laying out a plan he will sell to voters in November, despite Republican criticism of rising federal debts.
Obama's budget proposal, which he will submit to Congress on Monday, will project a $901 billion deficit for fiscal 2013, a sharp drop from the $1.33 trillion funding gap that is predicted for this year, a senior administration official said on Friday.
Obama is expected to repeat a call for millionaires to pay a minimum tax rate of 30 percent, while taking aim at the foreign profits of big U.S. corporations.
Congress may ignore Obama's 2013 budget proposal, and with elections approaching in November, Republicans will likely declare it dead on arrival.
Tech Crunch:VEVO CEO Tries To Explain Their Hypocritical Act Of Piracy At Sundance
VEVO CEO Tries To Explain Their Hypocritical Act Of Piracy At Sundance
Yesterday I reported on a bizarre incident I witnessed at Sundance last month: VEVO, the music portal owned by some of the biggest record labels in the US, had a pirated NFL playoff game playing on screens throughout its ‘PowerStation’ venue.
The incident was immensely hypocritical, given that VEVO is owned in part by Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment (with EMI licensing its content to the service) — the same music labels that have made a habit of attacking consumers over alleged acts of piracy.
Now VEVO CEO Rio Caraeff has written a post to the VEVO blog, where he tries to explain what happened. In it, he writes that the game was accessed and streamed by a guest of the event without VEVO’s knowledge.
A guest of our lounge asked for an NFL game to be aired. We said no. There was a laptop hooked up to VEVO.com that fed into the large TV screens around the bar. Unfortunately, the laptop was easily accessible to the public. That was our mistake for not making sure the laptop was more secure. While VEVO staff was in other areas of the venue, the game was put on – via a website transmitting ESPN’s broadcast of the NFL game – without our permission or knowledge.
As soon as we realized the game was airing to the room, we removed it and went back to playing VEVO videos. The game was not aired in its entirety. Rest assured, we rectified this mistake as soon as we became aware what was going on.
What happened was unfortunate and we can’t take back what happened.