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Monday, December 30, 2013

Hallmark of Walmart

From horsemeat to Ryanair’s rethink: an eventful year for consumers - Consumer News & Advice | Pricewatch, Money Advice | The Irish Time - Mon, Dec 30, 2013: "l WalMart came under fire after a store in Ohio launched a campaign looking for food donations for its own employees in order to help them enjoy Thanksgiving. Walmart is the biggest retailer in the world with recorded profits of $15.7 billion last year."

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Sunday, December 29, 2013

Shanghai - air of the matter

Shanghai Warns Children to Stay Indoors on ‘Heavy Pollution’ - Bloomberg: "Shanghai warned children and the elderly to stay indoors as PM2.5 levels reached almost six times that recommended by the World Health Organization for safe breathing.

The air quality index was 201 as of 7 a.m., indicating “heavy pollution,” second worst in a six-tier system, according to the website of the city’s environmental monitoring center.

The level of particles that are smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter was 141.6 micrograms per cubic meter. The pollutants are more hazardous than other particulate matter, according to WHO.

Shanghai saw record levels of smog earlier this month, forcing flight cancellations and prompting the government to issue warnings to keep children indoors and order vehicles off the road. The pollution index surged to a record 482 on Dec. 6, reaching the highest “severe” level, according to the China Daily."

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Saturday, December 28, 2013

Sales Hype- of Amazonian Proportions

Amazon Media Room: Press Releases:

More than one million customers become new Prime members in third week of December
On Christmas Day, Mayday response time on Kindle Fire HDX was just 9 seconds on average, better than the 15 second response time goal
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 26, 2013-- (NASDAQ: AMZN)—Amazon today announced a record-setting holiday season for Amazon Prime, the annual membership program offering unlimited Free Two-Day Shipping on millions of items. More than one million customers around the world became new Prime members in the third week of December. On Amazon’s peak shipping day, more Prime items were shipped worldwide than ever before. The entire 2013 holiday season was the best ever for Amazon, with more than 36.8 million items ordered worldwide on Cyber Monday, which is a record-breaking 426 items per second, and millions of customers unwrapped Kindle e-readers and Kindle Fire tablets this holiday season.
“Amazon Prime membership continues to grow, and we now have tens of millions of members worldwide. They benefit from all-you-can-eat free two-day shipping on millions of eligible items and our members have a voracious appetite,” said Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO ofAmazon.com. “We are extremely grateful to our customers around the world and wish everyone the very best for the coming year."
Kindle and Amazon Digital Media Facts:
  • Cyber Monday holiday shopping weekend was the best ever for Kindle Fire tablets and Kindle e-readers.
  • With thousands of Tech Advisors on call Christmas DayAmazon beat its goal for the Mayday button response time—the average response time was just 9 seconds.
  • Amazon’s digital media selection grew to more than 27 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines, books, audiobooks, and popular apps and games in 2013.
  • Prime Instant Video selection increased from 33,000 to more than 40,000 movies and TV episodes in 2013. Amazon Instant Video now includes more than 150,000 movies and TV episodes.
  • Prime Instant Video is the exclusive online-only subscription home for hundreds of TV seasons including PBS series “Downton Abbey” and “Mr. Selfridge,” the CBS summer blockbuster series “Under the Dome” and other hit TV shows including “Justified,” “Falling Skies,” “Grimm,” “Vikings,” “Workaholics,” “Suits” and “Covert Affairs.” Prime Instant Video also offers an exclusive collection of kids shows from Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. that customers won’t find on any other online-only subscription service, including favorites like “SpongeBob SquarePants,” “Dora the Explorer,” “Team Umizoomi,” “Blue’s Clues,” and “The Bubble Guppies.”
  • Amazon’s first original series “Alpha House” and “Betas” can also be found exclusively on Prime Instant Video.
  • Selection in the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library in 2013 grew from 250,000 books to more than 475,000 books—books that Kindle owners with a Prime membership can borrow for free with no due dates.
  • More than 200,000 exclusive books were added to the Kindle store in 2013.
  • The most gifted Kindle book during the holiday season was “Sycamore Row” by John Grisham.
  • 150 Kindle Direct Publishing authors each sold more than 100,000 copies of their books in 2013. Top sellers this year include “Hopeless” by Colleen Hoover and “Wait for Me” by Elisabeth Naughton.
  • The best-selling Kindle Direct Publishing author during the holiday season was H.M. Ward.
  • Kindle Direct Publishing authors sold hundreds of thousands of books in November through the new Kindle Countdown Deals.
  • Amazon Appstore selection worldwide more than doubled in 2013 – there are now more than 100,000 apps and games in the Amazon Appstore and on Kindle Fire devices.
Holiday Fun Facts:
Shipping:
  • Amazon shipped to 185 countries this holiday.
  • The last Prime One-Day Shipping order that was delivered in time for Christmas was placed on Dec. 23 at 10:22 p.m. PST and shipped to Carlsbad, California. The item was a Beautyrest Cotton Top Mattress Pad.
  • The last Local Express Delivery order that was delivered in time for Christmas went to Everett, Washington. It was a Plantronics Audio 655 USB Multimedia Headset in Frustration Free Packaging ordered at 12:26 p.m. PST on Christmas Eve and delivered at3:56 p.m. PST that same day.
  • Amazon.com shipped enough items with Prime this holiday to deliver at least one gift to every household in America.
  • Prime was so popular this holiday, that Amazon limited new Prime membership signups during peak periods to ensure service to current members was not impacted by the surge in new membership.
Customer Purchases:
  • On Cyber Monday, customers ordered more than 36.8 million items worldwide, which is a record-breaking 426 items per second.
  • More than half of Amazon customers shopped using a mobile device this holiday.
  • Between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, Amazon customers ordered more than five toys per second from a mobile device.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough Crayola Marker Makers to be able to draw a line around the world four times.
  • The new Xbox One and PlayStation 4 gaming consoles were so popular that at the peak of sales for each console, customers bought more than 1,000 units per minute.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough Rainbow Looms from third-party sellers that the bands can stretch around the circumference of the Earth.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough Hot Wheels from third-party sellers to stretch around the Daytona International Speedwayracetrack.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough miniature flashlights to satisfactorily light four collegiate football fields in accordance withNCAA standards.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough running shoes to provide a pair to every participant in the top 10 largest marathons in the world.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough winter boots to keep everyone living in three of the coldest cities in America – Duluth, MinnesotaButte, Montana, and Watertown, South Dakota – warm for the winter.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough cross-body purses to outfit every attendee at a typical Taylor Swift concert.
  • If you stacked every Himalayan Crystal Lamp purchased by Amazon customers this holiday season, the height would reach the top of Himalaya’s highest peak - Mt. Everest.
  • Amazon customers bought enough books in the Divergent Series – “Divergent,” “Insurgent,” “Allegiant,” and the complete box set – to wrap around Chicago’s Pier Park Ferris Wheel 263 times.
  • If you placed every upright vacuum purchased by Amazon customers end-to-end, they would reach 15 times the depth of the Marianas Trench, the deepest point in Earth's oceans.
  • If the Nylabone Dinosaur Chew Toys purchased during this holiday season were stacked on top of each other, they would be the height of more than 950 T-Rex dinosaurs.
  • The number of “Star Trek Into Darkness” Blu-ray combo packs purchased would span the distance of 25 Star Trek Enterprise space ships.
  • If you had a single plain M&M for each Eminem album purchased on the Amazon MP3 Store over the holidays, you’d have nearly 100 lbs. of candy-coated chocolate.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough youth archery kits to outfit every resident of Katniss Everdeen's hometown, District 12, four times over.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough Tovolo Sphere Ice Molds to fill Don Draper’s (of “Mad Men”) whiskey glasses for 251 years.
  • Amazon customers purchased enough Cuisinart Griddlers to place one in every McDonald’s restaurant in the world.
Holiday Best Sellers (Amazon.com only):
  • Tablets: Kindle Fire HD; Kindle Fire HDX 7”; Kindle Fire HDX 8.9”
  • TVs: Samsung 32” Smart LED HTDV; Samsung 40” LED HDTV; Samsung 22” Slim LED HDTV
  • Laptops: Samsung Chromebook; ASUS Transformer Book; Acer Chromebook
  • Cameras: Canon EOS Rebel T3i; Canon PowerShot A2500; Fujifilm Instax Mini 8 Instant Film Camera
  • Video Games: Call of Duty: Ghosts - Xbox 360; Just Dance 2014 - Nintendo Wii; Grand Theft Auto V - Xbox 360
  • Toys: Snap Circuits Jr. SC-100 Kit; Spot It; LEGO Green Building Plate
  • Baby: Baby Einstein Take Along Tunes; Lamaze Cloth Book; Baby Einstein Bendy Ball
  • Books: “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Hard Luck, Book 8” by Jeff Kinney; “Things That Matter: Three Decades of Passions, Pastimes and Politics” by Charles Krauthammer; “Rush Revere and the Brave Pilgrims: Time-Travel Adventures with Exceptional Americans” byRush Limbaugh
  • Kindle Books: “Sycamore Row” by John Grisham; “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak; “The Goldfinch” by Donna Tartt
  • Music: "Artpop" by Lady Gaga; "Wrapped in Red" by Kelly Clarkson; “The Marshall Mathers LP2 (Deluxe)” by Eminem
  • Amazon MP3: “The Marshall Mathers LP2” by Eminem; “Artpop” by Lady Gaga; “Pure Heroine” by Lorde
  • Movies & TV: “Despicable Me 2” (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy); “Star Trek Into Darkness” (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy); “Man of Steel” (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy)
  • Amazon Instant Video: “We’re the Millers”; “Man of Steel”; “Monsters University”
  • Prime Instant Video: “Alpha House” Season 1; “Downton Abbey” Season 3; “Falling Skies” Season 3
  • Home: Darice 80-Piece Deluxe Art Set; Black & Decker Dustbuster 15.6-Volt Cordless Cyclonic Hand Vacuum; Swarovski 2013 Annual Edition Crystal Star Ornament
  • Kitchen: Tovolo Ice Molds; Artisan Metal Works Silicone Non-Stick Baking Mat Sets; Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddle
  • Jewelry: Sterling Silver and Amethyst Flower Earrings; Sterling Silver "I Love You To The Moon and Back" Two Piece Pendant Necklace; Alex and Ani Bangle Bar "Tree of Life" Russian-Silver Expandable Bracelet
  • Women’s Clothing: Columbia Women's Benton Springs Full-Zip Fleece Jacket; Carhartt Women's Sandstone Duck Quilt Flannel Lined Active Jacket; Columbia Women's Arcadia Rain Jacket
  • Men’s Clothing: Levi's Men's 501 Jean; Levi's Men's 505 Straight Fit Jean; Levi's Men's 550 Relaxed Fit Jean
  • Shoes: Clarks Originals Men's Desert Boot; Tamarac Men's Camper Moccasin; Bearpaw Women's Emma 10" Shearling Boot
  • Beauty: Infiniti Pro by Conair Curl Secret; D & G Light Blue By Dolce & Gabbana For Women Eau De Toilette Spray; Olay Pro-X Advanced Cleansing System
  • Health & Personal Care: Fitbit Flex Wireless Activity + Sleep Wristband; Philips Sonicare Essence 5600 Rechargeable ElectricToothbrush; Braun Series Pulsonic Shaver System
  • Tools & Home Improvement: Mini CREE Led Flashlight Torch Adjustable Zoom Light Lamp; O'Keeffe's Working Hands Cream; WBM Himalayan Natural Crystal Salt Lamp with Bulb and Cord
  • Pets: KONG Cozie Marvin the Moose Dog Toy; Nylabone Durable Dental Dinosaur Chew Toy; Greenies Treat-Pak for Dogs, Original
  • Sports & Outdoors: LifeStraw Personal Water Filter; Magnesium Fire Starter; SKLZ Pro Mini Basketball Hoop
  • Grocery: Miracle-Gro AeroGarden 7-Pod Indoor Garden by AeroGrow; Donut Shop K-Cup for Keurig Brewers; Keurig My K-Cup Reusable Coffee Filter Set
About Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth’s Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books; Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home & Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health & Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web Services provides Amazon’s developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon’s own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. Kindle Paperwhite is the world’s best-selling and most advanced e-reader. It features new display technology with higher contrast, the next generation built-in light, a faster processor, the latest touch technology, and exclusive new features designed from the ground up for readers. Kindle, the lightest and smallest Kindle, features improved fonts and faster page turns. The new Kindle Fire HDX features a stunning exclusive 7” or 8.9” HDX display, a quad-core 2.2 GHz processor, 2x more memory, and 11 hours of battery life, as well as exclusive new features of Fire OS 3.0 including X-Ray for Music, Second Screen, Prime Instant Video downloads, and the revolutionary new Mayday button. The all-new Kindle Fire HD includes an HD display, high-performance processor and dual speakers at a breakthrough price.
Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.comwww.amazon.co.ukwww.amazon.dewww.amazon.co.jp,www.amazon.frwww.amazon.cawww.amazon.cnwww.amazon.itwww.amazon.eswww.amazon.com.brwww.amazon.in,www.amazon.com.mx, and www.amazon.com.au. As used herein, “Amazon.com,” “we,” “our” and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.
Forward-Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management’s expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment and data center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com’s financial results is included in Amazon.com’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.
Source: Amazon.com, Inc.
Amazon.com, Inc.
Media Hotline, 206-266-7180
www.amazon.com/prHYpe

Big Mac - eat in small pieces to feel full, per McD

McDonald’s Takes Down Resources Website After Scrutiny - Bloomberg: "McDonald’s Corp. (MCD), under pressure to increase pay for its workers, is removing a resources website for employees, after critics pummeled the burger maker for such tips as breaking food into small pieces to feel more full.

“A combination of factors has led us to re-evaluate,” the Oak Brook, Illinois-based company said in a statement on its website. “Between links to irrelevant or outdated information, along with outside groups taking elements out of context, this created unwarranted scrutiny and inappropriate commentary.”"

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Friday, December 27, 2013

Oil-y research, and grease-y researchers

Academics Who Defend Wall St. Reap Reward - NYTimes.com: "But interviews with dozens of academics and traders, and a review of hundreds of emails and other documents involving two highly visible professors in the commodities field — Mr. Pirrong and Professor Scott H. Irwin at the University of Illinois — show how major players on Wall Street and elsewhere have been aggressive in underwriting and promoting academic work.

The efforts by the financial players, the interviews show, are part of a sweeping campaign to beat back regulation and shape policies that affect the prices that people around the world pay for essentials like food, fuel and cotton.

Professors Pirrong and Irwin say that industry backing did not color their opinions.

Mr. Pirrong’s research was cited extensively by the plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed by Wall Street interests in 2011 that for two years has blocked the limits on speculation that had been approved by Congress as part of the Dodd-Frank financial reform law. During that same time period, Mr. Pirrong has worked as a paid research consultant for one of the lead plaintiffs in the case, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, according to his disclosure form."

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RIch, but not wealthy, commentary

Brainwashed by the cult of the super-rich | Priyamvada Gopal | Comment is free | The Guardian: "Last week, Tory MP Esther McVey, Iain Duncan Smith's deputy, insisted it was "right" that half a million Britons be dependent on food banks in "tough times". Around the same time, the motor racing heiress Tamara Ecclestone totted up a champagne bill of £30,000 in one evening. A rich teenager in Texas has just got away with probation for drunkenly running over and killing four people because his lawyers argued successfully that he suffered from "affluenza", which rendered him unable to handle a car responsibly. What we've been realising for some time now is that, for all the team sport rhetoric, only two sides are really at play in Britain and beyond: Team Super-Rich and Team Everyone Else."
The rich are not merely different: they've become a cult which drafts us as members. We are invited to deceive ourselves into believing we are playing for the same stakes while worshipping the same ideals, a process labelled "aspiration". Reaching its zenith at this time of year, our participation in cult rituals – buy, consume, accumulate beyond need – helps mute our criticism and diffuse anger at systemic exploitation. That's why we buy into the notion that a £20 Zara necklace worn by the Duchess of Cambridge on a designer gown costing thousands of pounds is evidence that she is like us. We hear that the monarch begrudges police officers who guard her family and her palaces a handful of cashew nuts and interpret it as eccentricity rather than an apt metaphor for the Dickensian meanness of spirit that underlies the selective concentration of wealth. The adulation of royalty is not a harmless anachronism; it i
...s calculated totem worship that only entrenches the bizarre notion that some people are rich simply because they are more deserving but somehow they are still just like us.

McSUpression of Big Mac Truth

McDonald's removes worker site in fast food flap: "After yet another PR headache, McDonald's has taken down its employee resources website following what it deemed "unwarranted scrutiny and inappropriate commentary."

On Monday, CNBC reported the McResource Line site included multiple posts bashing fast food, the industry that McDonald's has spent decades spreading throughout the world.

Several excerpts from the posts, which were created from a third-party vendor, warned against the negative effects of fast food, even going so far as labeling a cheeseburger and fries, core items on its menu, as an "unhealthy choice.""

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Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Toys R Us's Stockholm superstore - can the de-gender-alization of toys be transferred to all countries?

Toys R Us's Stockholm superstore goes gender neutral | World news | The Guardian: "In a huge Toys R Us warehouse on the Kungens Kurva retail estate in south-west Stockholm, cute and cuddly rubs shoulders with cool and crazy – closer in layout to the jumble of a child's bedroom than a normal store.

In Sweden's largest toy store, play kitchens stand opposite train sets; baby strollers are piled beside a stack of toy guns; My Little Pony stares at swords and ninja costumes; princess dresses brush up against firefighter outfits. Even the Barbie house – that last redoubt of the candy-pink – is under pressure from a Lego display. "Children are not coded to blue for boys and pink for girls – they should be free to choose what they want to play with," said Jan Nyberg, sales director in Sweden for Top-Toy, which owns the franchise for Toys R Us in Nordic countries. Top-Toy is the largest toy retailer in northern Europe.

The gender debate in Sweden has intensified in the last few years, he says, and retailers have had to move with the times. The firm is also changing packaging on its own brands, and will gradually spread the gender-neutral concept to stores across the country."

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Monday, December 23, 2013

Political posturing, or holding the no-national firms accountable?

Starbucks to Audi Face China Clampdown on Foreign Firms - Bloomberg: "This month, after China’s ruling Communist Party promised to make markets “decisive” in shaping the world’s second-largest economy, carmakers Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Plc, Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (7270)’s Subaru division and Audi AG became the latest targets when state media accused them of charging “unfair” prices for spare parts.

The automakers joined foreign companies from Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) to Burberry Group Plc (BRBY), Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) and Apple Inc. (AAPL) in the roll of those with deepening challenges in China even as the year-old leadership team headed by President Xi Jinping seeks to elevate the private sector. Rising scrutiny of overseas firms by regulators and state media follows a jump in labor costs that may diminish the lure of investing in the $8.2 trillion economy."

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Air travel... not yet grounded in reality

Many complaints about air travel these days...


  1. Nickel-and-diming customers to a painful state even before boarding the plane
  2. Packed like sardines, crude fellow passengers, etc. 
  3.  Devaluation of frequent flier miles

Air travel still has quite a way to go...fares also have quite a way to go.
A government that has approved mergers among giants is not expected to interfere and protect/enforce basic customer rights.

Saturday, December 21, 2013

Drunk, and loost...

Court overrules Diageo’s Indian share purchase - FT.com: "However, the deal has faced complications as a result of Mr Mallya’s troubles with the creditors of Kingfisher. The airline was once one of India’s most popular carriers, but was forced to stop flying after protests from staff, who had not been paid.
“This judgment is not the end of the saga – but sure, it does raise the question ‘when will Diageo start to loose patience,’” said Mr Mathur.
If the judgment stands – leaving Diageo with just 16 per cent of the company, shareholders could question Diageo’s management control of the firm."

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Thursday, December 19, 2013

G2G (Governments to Google) = Delete chunks of the web

Google: Surge in pressure from govts to ERASE CHUNKS of the web • The Register: "Governments, judges, cops and politicians are continuing to lobby Google to tear down online material critical of their operations, we're told.

Today, the advertising giant said that, in the first six months of 2013, it received 3,846 demands from public officials to remove 24,737 personal blog posts, YouTube videos and other pieces of content it hosts. That's up 68 per cent on the second half of 2012.



And according to the web giant, which has just published its latest transparency report, 93 requests focused on content that was critical of people in public office. Defamation and copyright infringement were often cited, but less than one third of the highlighted material was removed in the first half of 2013."

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Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Big Tax Avoiders- Too Big to Tax

HMRC 'lost nerve' over big tax avoiders, say MPs | Politics | The Guardian: "British officials have "lost their nerve" in tackling tax avoidance by global corporations and have presided over a £35bn tax gap as they pursue easy prey such as small businesses and individuals, a committee of MPs says.

In a report that highlighted how the Treasury is owed missing tax payments of £35bn, the public accounts committee added that HM Revenue and Customs has left the state with another multibillion pound shortfall by failing to gather £2.6bn of an expected windfall from Swiss banks.

The findings follow a series of damning reports into HMRC by the committee which have addressed its failings over taking on tax-avoiding corporations such as Google, Starbucks, Vodafone and Amazon.

On Wednesday Vodafone, one of Britain's leading multinationals, made a rare gesture of tax transparency by breaking down its payments on a country-by-country basis."

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Monday, December 16, 2013

Harleys and an even bigger problem for India: Big sized Noise Pollution

Harley-Davidson Pushes Slimmer Model for India’s Gridlock - Bloomberg: "Harley will start building the new Street next year in India, the world’s second-biggest motorbike market, targeting young urbanites who want a nimbler ride more suited to Mumbai

gridlock and potholes than U.S. highways. With 750-cc and 500-cc variants, the liquid-cooled Street will be the smallest in a lineup that includes the 1.5 million-rupee ($24,500), 1,688-cc Fatboy -- and will cost about one-third as much."

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Saturday, December 14, 2013

e-waste of rich nations, pollution of poor nations

Toxic 'e-waste' dumped in poor nations, says United Nations | Global development | The Observer: "Millions of mobile phones, laptops, tablets, toys, digital cameras and other electronic devices bought this Christmas are destined to create a flood of dangerous "e-waste" that is being dumped illegally in developing countries, the UN has warned.

The global volume of electronic waste is expected to grow by 33% in the next four years, when it will weigh the equivalent of eight of the great Egyptian pyramids, according to the UN's Step initiative, which was set up to tackle the world's growing e-waste crisis. Last year nearly 50m tonnes of e-waste was generated worldwide – or about 7kg for every person on the planet. These are electronic goods made up of hundreds of different materials and containing toxic substances such as lead, mercury, cadmium, arsenic and flame retardants. An old-style CRT computer screen can contain up to 3kg of lead, for example."

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Thursday, December 05, 2013

You've got mail, and ADHD

That’s Men: Staying in touch while missing out on life - Family News & Advice | Parenting, Marriage & Kids | The Irish Tim - Tue, Dec 03, 2013: "I was stopped in my tracks though by the statement by Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence, that in the US, corporate executives are getting prescriptions for anti-ADHD drugs to help them focus on their work.
These executives don’t have ADHD. What they have is an addiction to the distractions offered by smartphones and tablets. Writing in the December issue of Mindful magazine, Goleman states that teenagers are also pretending to have ADHD so that they can get drugs to help them to focus on their studies. And it’s not just the students: a college professor confessed that when reading a book on his speciality, he is overwhelmed after every two pages by the urge to check his emails."

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Wednesday, December 04, 2013

The next star of Irish tourism marketing is the landscape - Marketing News | Daily Media Trends & More | The Irish Times - Thu, Dec 05, 2013

The next star of Irish tourism marketing is the landscape - Marketing News | Daily Media Trends & More | The Irish Times - Thu, Dec 05, 2013: "Tourism Ireland will feel like pouring relief-champagne after visitor numbers rose 7 per cent this year and revenue climbed 6 per cent. But resources are tight, the agency says, meaning it must concentrate its investment on the markets that deliver the best return (North America and mainland Europe) and target the consumers that represent the industry’s “best prospects”. In glorious marketing-speak, it has segmented these into “Social Energisers”, the “Culturally Curious” and “Great Escapers”."

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Facebook- Likes Cayman, Rips off Ireland

Facebook paid €1.9m in Irish tax on €1.7bn turnover - Technology Industry News | Market & Trends | The Irish Times - Thu, Dec 05, 2013: "Facebook Ireland, the Dublin-based company that forms a key part of its global corporate structure, grew its turnover by €737 million last year to €1.78 billion, but only generated an Irish corporation tax charge of €1.9 million.
The company recorded a pre-tax loss of €626,000, according to the accounts, which show how the gross profit made by the company was turned into a loss when administrative expenses, paid to other group companies, were taken into account.
These expenses included royalty payments of €770 million to its immediate parent, Facebook Ireland Holdings, an unlimited company registered in Ireland but not believed to be tax-resident here. Its shareholders include a number of Facebook companies based in the Cayman Islands, where there is no corporation tax."

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Monday, December 02, 2013

Almost-instant Amazonian Gratification with Octocopterization

Amazon testing drones for parcel delivery - UK News | Online Newspaper | The Irish Times - Tue, Dec 03, 2013: "Amazon is testing delivering its parcels using drones, the company’s chief executive has revealed. The company hopes to have the scheme up and running within five years.
Jeff Bezos unveiled the idea, which would be known as Amazon Prime Air, on the American news programme 60 Minutes on Sunday night.
“The big idea is half-hour delivery,” he said. “You order something and within half an hour you can have a drone land on your front porch, drop off a little box and off it goes.”"

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Sunday, December 01, 2013

No marathon in the park- Shanghai'd indoors

Shanghai Warns Children to Stay Indoors on Severe Air Pollution - Bloomberg: "Shanghai warned children and the elderly to stay indoors as the level of the most harmful pollutants exceeded more than 10 times the level deemed safe by the World Health Organization.
The air pollution index in the nation’s commercial hub exceeded 300 as of 10 a.m., placing it in the “severe” range and the highest of six levels, the Shanghai Environmental Monitoring Center said on its website today. PM2.5 pollutants -- particles smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter that pose the biggest health risk -- reached 288.9 as of 8:27 a.m., more than 10 times the WHO threshold.
Heavy pollution may undermine Shanghai’s plans to attract foreign investment and multinational firms, as the city implements a free-trade zone as part of a broader goal to become a global financial and logistics center by 2020. Today’s smog warning comes a day after about 35,000 runners from 84 countries turned out for the 2013 Shanghai International Marathon, according to the People’s Daily newspaper."

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