Thursday, December 18, 2014

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

This Israeli Election Matters - NYTimes.com

This Israeli Election Matters - NYTimes.com:



"Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu has set new elections in Israel for March 17. Israel has had critical elections before, but this could be its most important, because the Israeli right today is no longer dominated by security hawks and free-marketeers like Netanyahu. It is dominated by West Bank settlers and scary religious-nationalist zealots like Naftali Bennett, who, if they run the next government and effectively annex the West Bank, will lead Israel into a dark corner, increasingly alienated from Europe, America and the next generation of American Jews."



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Slowdown in China Bruises Economy in Latin America - NYTimes.com

Slowdown in China Bruises Economy in Latin America - NYTimes.com:



SANTIAGO, Chile — Few people are as intensely worried about the slowing Chinese economy as Latin Americans."



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Saturday, December 13, 2014

Thousands March in Washington to Protest Deaths by Police - NYTimes.com

Thousands March in Washington to Protest Deaths by Police - NYTimes.com:



"WASHINGTON — Tens of thousands of Americans marched along the National Mall in Washington on Saturday to protest the deaths of unarmed black men and boys at the hands of the police. The demonstrators — many of them wearing T-shirts that read “Black Lives Matter” and chanting “I can’t breathe” — filed in from the blocks along Pennsylvania Avenue, evoking memories of civil rights marches of past decades as they moved toward the Capitol."



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Thursday, December 11, 2014

Mad as Hellas - NYTimes.com

Mad as Hellas - NYTimes.com:



"The Greek fiscal crisis erupted five years ago, and its side effects continue to inflict immense damage on Europe and the world. But I’m not talking about the side effects you may have in mind — spillovers from Greece’s Great Depression-level slump, or financial contagion to other debtors. No, the truly disastrous effect of the Greek crisis was the way it distorted economic policy, as supposedly serious people around the world rushed to learn the wrong lessons."



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C.I.A. Director, Admitting Agency Mistakes, Calls for End to Interrogation Debate - NYTimes.com

C.I.A. Director, Admitting Agency Mistakes, Calls for End to Interrogation Debate - NYTimes.com:



"WASHINGTON — John O. Brennan, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, on Thursday acknowledged problems and misstatements during the agency’s former interrogation program as he called for an end to a rancorous debate over brutal interrogation tactics.

"



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Wednesday, December 10, 2014

What Mexico’s President Must Do - NYTimes.com

What Mexico’s President Must Do - NYTimes.com:



"MEXICO CITY — President Enrique Peña Nieto has shown remarkable leadership in passing key reforms to reanimate the economy and further the development of Mexico. But now he must act quickly to re-establish his political credibility and limit damage to his moral standing. The present crisis requires it."



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Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Senate Torture Report Condemns C.I.A. Interrogation Program - NYTimes.com

Senate Torture Report Condemns C.I.A. Interrogation Program - NYTimes.com:



 "WASHINGTON — A scathing report released by the Senate Intelligence Committee on Tuesday found that the Central Intelligence Agency routinely misled the White House and Congress about the information it obtained from the detention and interrogation of terrorism suspects, and that its methods were more brutal than the C.I.A. acknowledged either to Bush administration officials or to the public."



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Monday, December 8, 2014

Oil Falls to 5-Year Low, and Companies Start to Retrench - NYTimes.com

Oil Falls to 5-Year Low, and Companies Start to Retrench - NYTimes.com:



"HOUSTON — The price of crude oil continued to collapse on Monday, plunging to a five-year low, as oil giants began to scale back their drilling ambitions and pare the ranks of their workers."



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Curiosity Rover’s Quest for Clues on Mars - NYTimes.com

Curiosity Rover’s Quest for Clues on Mars - NYTimes.com:



"More than 3.5 billion years ago, a meteor slammed into Mars near its equator, carving a 96-mile depression now known as Gale Crater."



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Friday, December 5, 2014

Slide in Oil Prices Is Mostly a Blessing - NYTimes.com

Slide in Oil Prices Is Mostly a Blessing - NYTimes.com:



"The plunge in oil prices — to about $66 a barrel from over $107 in late June — has many pundits wringing their hands. They have cited the risks of falling prices and social and political unrest overseas, not to mention the economic threat to the booming mid-American oil basin, running from Texas to North Dakota and Alberta."



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Thursday, December 4, 2014

Democrats Against Reform - NYTimes.com

Democrats Against Reform - NYTimes.com:



 "It’s easy to understand why Republicans wish health reform had never happened, and are now hoping that the Supreme Court will abandon its principles and undermine the law. But it’s more puzzling — and disturbing — when Democrats like Charles Schumer, senator from New York, declare that the Obama administration’s signature achievement was a mistake."



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Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Iranian Fighter Jets Strike ISIS in Iraq - NYTimes.com

Iranian Fighter Jets Strike ISIS in Iraq - NYTimes.com:



"TEHRAN — Iranian fighter jets conducted bombing raids against Sunni extremists in Iraq last week, hitting targets near a 25-mile buffer zone that Iran has declared along its border, an Iranian politician, American officials and independent analysts have confirmed."



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Tuesday, December 2, 2014

The Gift That Keeps Giving - NYTimes.com

The Gift That Keeps Giving - NYTimes.com:



 "Flying into New York the other day, I got my first good look at the Freedom Tower, now known as 1 World Trade Center, the skyscraper that sits atop 9/11’s ground zero. It does, indeed, scrape the sky, topping out at a patriotic 1,776 feet. Thirteen years after 9/11, I appreciate the nationalist pride that, while terrorists can knock down our buildings, we can just build them right back up. Take that, Osama bin Laden."



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