What Adam Curry is reading

Lance Armstrong May Testify Under Oath To U.S. Anti-Doping Investigators
  Link to Article
  Source: Radar Online
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 14:42
  In a surprising '-- and very last minute '-- change of heart, disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong may now testify under oath before the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) in a last-ditch effort to reduce his lifetime ban on participating in the sport that made him rich and famous.
  Armstrong '-- who has publicly said he ''deserves'' the chance to come back '' originally faced a deadline of Wednesday night (February 6) to tell-all to anti-doping officials, but USADA officials have granted him an extension in wake of his apparent willingness to come clean before the panel. If Armstrong '-- who last month was stripped of his bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Olympics '-- does fess up, his lifetime ban could possibly be reduced to eight years.
  PHOTOS: The Biggest Cheating Scandals In Sports
  ''We have been in communication with Mr. Armstrong and his representatives and we understand that he does want to be part of the solution and assist in the effort to clean up the sport of cycling,'' USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart said in a written statement Wednesday night. ''We have agreed to his request for an additional two weeks to work on details to hopefully allow for this to happen.''
  Armstrong's troubles don't end with the USADA '' he remains the target of a re-ignited federal criminal investigation into his doping. (A year ago, federal prosecutors told Armstrong that the two-year investigation into his use of performance enhancing drugs was over and that no charges would be filed.)
  PHOTOS: Sexy Stars Who Play With Pro Athletes
  ABC News reports that, according to a high-level source, ''agents are actively investigating Armstrong for obstruction, witness tampering and intimidation'' for allegedly threatening people who dared tell the truth about his cheating.
  The investigation was revived after Armstrong's mea culpa interview on OWN last month, in which, for the first time, he confessed to years of doping through all of his seven Tour de France titles and lying about it, while often bullying his accusers.
  PHOTOS: The Biggest Cheating Scandals In Sports
  If Armstrong does in fact get charged, the consequences of ''serious potential crimes'' could be severe, ABC News legal analyst Dan Abrams said, including ''possible sentences up to five, 10 years.''
  ABC News reports investigators are not so concerned with Armstrong's drug use, but his behavior in trying to keep his secret by allegedly threatening and interfering with potential witnesses, including his fellow teammates.
  PHOTOS: Check Out The World's Sexiest Olympians!
  Meanwhile, Armstrong remains the target of several civil suits would could cost him millions. The latest lawsuit '' expected to be filed any time now '' comes from SCA Promotions, a sports insurance company, that paid the cyclist more than $10 million in bonuses; it wants its money back.
Senate Committee to Hear from CIA Director Nominee | C-SPAN
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 14:37
  U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice and Acting Director of the CIA Michael Morrell met with Republican members of the Senate Armed Services Committee today on Capitol Hill. Senators John McCain (R-AZ), Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) spoke to reporters after the meeting, saying they are "significantly troubled" over responses to their questions regarding the explanation of the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
  More Info >>
Top Defense Chiefs to Testify on U.S. Consulate Attack in Libya | C-SPAN
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 14:37
  Ted Widmer is the editor of ''Listening In: The Secret White House Recordings of John F. Kennedy.'' The book contains two audio CDs with 75 minutes of recorded conversations from the oval office, cabinet meetings, telephone calls, and private dictations during Kennedy's presidency. Mr. Widmer describes how he was approached by the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation to select and introduce and transcribe the recordings. He shares numerous clips throughout the program including a phone call from President Kennedy to Defense department advisors about the best way to board inbound Soviet ships during the Cuban missile crisis. We hear as President Kennedy calls Dwight Eisenhower and Harry Truman seeking advice. Widmer also chose to share the contentious discussions between Kennedy and then Mississippi Governor Ross Barnett as they dealt with the riots over the enrollment of James Meredith as the first black student to attend the University of Mississippi. Widmer also reveals a more light-hearted side to the President in several of the recordings. Widmer reflects upon his academic training at Harvard, as well as his experiences serving both President Bill Clinton, during his presidency, and Hillary Clinton, during her time as Secretary of State.
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Oregon Drone Bill Would Claim the 'Airspace' Above Your Shoestrings
  Link to Article
  Source: Gitmo Nation News
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 14:25
  Can the air near your shoes be considered ''public airspace?'' In Oregon, at least, it soon might be.
  A new bill making its way through Oregon's state senate would establish something known as ''Airspace of Oregon'' which the state could use to regulate drone use by agencies and private citizens.
  Proponents of the bill are trying to get ahead of a nationwide push to set rules for unmanned aerial vehicle use by civilians, which some advocates worry could intrude on personal privacy.
  ''The use of drones domestically will raise significant new privacy issues which cannot be addressed by current law,'' says Becky Straus, legislative director of ACLU's Oregon office. ''We are not and should not be a surveillance state. Drones should never be used for mass surveillance. Law enforcement should only use them when there is individualized suspicion of criminal wrongdoing.''
  But experts say it's unclear whether Oregon would be allowed to regulate ankle-level airspace at all, since it's typically covered by the Federal Aviation Administration.
  Read more here: Oregon Drone Bill Would Claim the 'Airspace' Above Your Shoestrings '' US News and World Report.
Rickard Falkvinge: Sharing is a Constitutional Law Right, Copyright is an Ordinary Law Privilege '-- This is Huge Advance for Public Over Private Corruption
  Link to Article
  Source: Public Intelligence Blog
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 14:20
  Rickard Falkvinge
  Court Of Human Rights: Convictions For File-Sharing Violate Human Rights
  Civil Liberties:'‚ The European Court of Human Rights has declared that the copyright monopoly stands in direct conflict with fundamental Human Rights, as defined in the European Union and elsewhere. This means that as of today, nobody sharing culture in the EU may be convicted just for breaking the copyright monopoly law; the bar for convicting was raised considerably. This can be expected to have far-reaching implications, not just judicially, but in confirming that the copyright monopoly stands at odds with human rights.
  The European Court of Human Rights in Luxembourg is no dismissible small player. It is the court that oversees the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which is part of the Constitution of the European Union and of most (if not all) European states. When this court makes a decision, that decision gets constitutional status in all of Europe (except for Belarus, which is not a signatory).
  Therefore, the copyright monopoly as such '' which is ordinary law in European states '' was just defined as taking a back seat to the constitutional right to share and seek culture and knowledge, as defined in the European Convention on Human Rights, article 10:
  ''Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers.'' (ECHR 10)
  We have long claimed that the copyright monopoly stands in direct conflict with civil liberties (one of my most well-known keynotes, Copyright regime vs. civil liberties, even highlights this in the title). While the judiciary is slow to react to new phenomena, and issues like this percolate very slowly to the top courts where verdicts make a reak difference, I'm very happy to see that the issue did indeed get to the relevant court at last, and that the Court made the only reasonable decision.
  Read full article.
  Feb 7
"NO DRONES! I REPEAT! NO DRONES!"
  Link to Article
  Source: Uploads by MOXNEWSd0tC0M
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 14:13
Grey Scale Obama
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:51
  My children, I get enough comments from those who start out with "I don't agree with everything you say", that a few is too many, for this is simply the best blog in the world and is so by God's Grace, and every day there are little minds who look for something to not come be instantly, so what is posted here must be incorrect.As Drudge deliberately did not post on this, and all of the fringe did not bother to follow up on it, as the Insiders were telling you that Romney had 2012 in the bag, there is in this huge gas spike coming on Obamerika, the necessity of reminding the children and the brats something, as no one was paying attention to the article on Scooter Bush, your George Prescott Bush in Texas.
  What if I were to tell you of absolute proof that in the smoke and mirrors of 2012, while you are gawking at the girl called Keystone XL pipeline, that the Bush family was with their intelligence and carnivore capitalists were sealing the Obama election theft of 2012?
  What if I were to tell you that by doing what the Bush group did, made it possible for Obama to steal the entire northeast voting block, destroyed Mitt Romney in the process, IN LEAGUE with Obama, and it paved the way for 2016 Jeb Bush?
  Sound conspiritorial, and it was as in August 2012, the Obama regime reached out hard in a deal they put together to stop thee east coast's largest refinery from closing. A refinery which had lost a billion dollars. A refinery in Pennsylvania which if it closed, would have spiked fuel prices that would have been beyond hurricane Sandy and fat New Jersey Governor Christie would not have been able to build sand castles on the beach with Obama to stop that electoral implosion, the same which was being engineered on the east coast.
  Yes that is exactly what the Carlyle Group with Sunoco did, in they put together almost one quarter billion dollars to take over a refinery in the east, which was losing money, needed upgrades and would have been something no sane person would have invested in......especially if one was great friends with Mitt Romney and Karl Rove was backing your 2012 presidential bid.
  In what was a desperate move, and quite illegal move of electioneering, the Obama regime put together a deal where taxpayers in Pennsylvania shelled out 25 million in matching funds.
  Behind the scenes Obama embraces private-equity - National ...www.examiner.com/.../behind-the-scenes-obama-embraces-private-e...Aug 23, 2012 '' Last month Carlyle agreed to take a two-thirds stake in the refinery plus an investment of at least $200 million in improvements. ... Sunoco to announce the closing of the refinery while Pennsylvania kicked in $25 million in ... he may well owe a debt to his two favorite whipping boys: Big Oil and private-equity.Carlyle Group invests in Philadelphia refinery - Washington PostJul 2, 2012 '' The Carlyle Group plans to invest in new energy technology to save a ... The venture seeks to exploit the vast U.S. reserves of oil and natural gas now ... The new project will include more than $200 million in capital ... under Pennsylvania and New York to help fuel the refinery, making it more cost-efficient.How the East Coast Avoided an Oil Crunchwww.cnbc.com/id/.../How_the_East_Coast_Avoided_an_Oil_CrunchAug 22, 2012 '' An oil refinery in Elizabeth, N.J. is shown in this aerial photo of ... they would each be closing their Pennsylvania refineries, it seemed like a dark day ... In addition, Carlyle will receive $25 million in state funds to match its $200...Sunoco's Philadelphia refinery will take $200M to fix up ...www.bizjournals.com/.../sunocos-philadelphia-refinery-will.html?...Jul 2, 2012 '' Revitalizing Sunoco Inc.'s refinery in South Philadelphia will require more than... ... Rodney Cohen, a managing director with The Carlyle Group, threw out ... The state of Pennsylvania will provide $25 million in assistance, ... to build a high- speed unloader for rail cars bringing in crude oil from the Midwest.You will notice how all of the Mockingbird stories, in even the Examiner, did not bother to link up the reality that EXACTLY in 2008, when Obama flipped 10 million GOP votes as only covered here, to steal the election from Palin and McCain with Karl Rove lying in stating that 10 million GOP voters "moved", that the Bush syndicate assisted Barack Hussein Obama in the 2012 election theft, by bailing him out at the last minute.There was a host of quid pro quo in this for the Bush family and Obama. If this refinery had shut down as planned, it would have had massive gas rationing on the east coast just before the election, and it would have doomed Obama in he could not have flipped enough votes to steal the election which in turn in the three electronic voting machines wiped out GOP candidates across America as this thing was running at 25% in vote trimming.
  There is no way that Obama could have gotten away with 2008, unless the Bush establishment had singed off on it. There is no way that Obama could have gotten away with the 2012 election theft if the Bush syndicate had not dumped the money into Sunoco, which was apparently shutting down the plant to cause the effect Romney required.
  Want to know the reality in, it was August 2012 when Romney had the election stolen from him. Sunoco was the big stick Romney had been promised, and the maul on the end of that stick was supposed to have been the hostage situation of Chris Stevens and other Americans, dragging out to Obama's embarrassment, as had been promised to Romney.
  Call that another Lame Cherry matter anti matter exclusive in putting this all together for you, and you can also say, "I don't agree with everything you say Ms. Cherry".Go right ahead and allow the board to move 100 steps ahead of where you are pondering as they are laughing at the joke, because you are too slow.
  So you got this in what Romney was promised and betrayed on, in a west coast oil crunch and the Pennsylvania generated oil crunch, all stuck up Chris Steven's ass when Obama tried to kidnap him for his rescue, but Stevens and the others were supposed to be held to humiliate Obama alla Jimmy Carter ......that is what funded that Ben Afleck fricking propaganda about Iran......Obama was supposed to on cue rescue all of them.This ALL was funded by the feudalists and I told you was in the Obama ledger, as more things are coming as the shoes drop. Romney was an engineered Straw Man......HIS BACKERS did think they were doing what needed to be done, but the real powers on the next level were just allowing them the current in the line to think they were doing was accomplishing things....so when November came, Romney knew the polls were in his favor, before he got it all jerked out from under him.
  Obama promised to give Jeb his chance at 2016, along with not trying to deport George W. to Europe again for war crimes, all in exchange for the propping up of the Pennsylvania refinery and their keeping their mouths shut again about Obama using "electronic vote flipping" as it would open the door to what Karl Rove did to John Kerry in 2004.
  What if you were to learn that the American Enterprise Institute's major director is Daniel A. D'Aniello, who founded Carlyle, and runs Carlyle and who is the one at the other end of 1600 Penn Avenue at their headquarters who bailed Obama's ass out in this gas shortage meltdown.Yes your conservative brand gave Obama the margin to steal the 2012 election, after Romneycrats had it stolen back.
  Why is it no one bothers to bring things like this up? This bunch of feudalcrats managing the people on the right, are the ones who installed Obama both times and are the ones who are keeping criminal Obama in office.When this blog noted Chief Justice John Roberts was approached about Obamacare, and informed the people who gave him cover for his nomination in those Nazi babies he bought out of Latin America, would no longer be giving him cover if he did not vote for Obamacare.......that is this group of the Bush syndicate who were behind all of this.
  These are the fnanciers, the powers that be, that Obama was quoting. The ones who do the Limbaugh talking points on bio fuels, the ones who have Mark Levin telling you to wait in the gulag for another lection to imprison you further, the ones who have Mike Gallagher saying how great it is to give away rights to just get along with Obama.
  This is the money tap dripping right out of Obama in keeping him in power, when Foster Freiss perverts are propping up the Romney Straw Men......If you do not get it my babies, Alex Jones already told you that Rand Paul is this group's choice for VP and is who is supposed to be backed. THERE ARE STRAWMEN AND WOMEN ALREADY SET UP for Jeb Bush to knock the hell down to look like he won it.....that is if Obama does not Dr. Germ these feudal nazis to a grave like the message about old man Bush was sent.
  You were betrayed from your own side my children, just like the aristocratic Ashkenaz were selling the ghetto Jews as slave labor to the nazis in the 1930's.
  Enough of this as I have had enough.
  agtG 248
To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require labeling of genetically engineered fish. (H.R. 584)
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:43
  GovTrack's Bill SummaryWe don't have a summary available yet.
  Library of Congress SummaryThe summary below was written by the Congressional Research Service, which is a nonpartisan division of the Library of Congress.
  No summary available.
  House Republican Conference SummaryThe summary below was written by the House Republican Conference, which is the caucus of Republicans in the House of Representatives.
  No summary available.
  House Democratic Caucus SummaryThe House Democratic Caucus does not provide summaries of bills.
  So, yes, we display the House Republican Conference's summaries when available even if we do not have a Democratic summary available. That's because we feel it is better to give you as much information as possible, even if we cannot provide every viewpoint.
  We'll be looking for a source of summaries from the other side in the meanwhile.
To amend the National Organ Transplant Act to prevent the sale of bone marrow and umbilical cord blood, and for other purposes. (H.R. 589)
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:42
  GovTrack's Bill SummaryWe don't have a summary available yet.
  Library of Congress SummaryThe summary below was written by the Congressional Research Service, which is a nonpartisan division of the Library of Congress.
  No summary available.
  House Republican Conference SummaryThe summary below was written by the House Republican Conference, which is the caucus of Republicans in the House of Representatives.
  No summary available.
  House Democratic Caucus SummaryThe House Democratic Caucus does not provide summaries of bills.
  So, yes, we display the House Republican Conference's summaries when available even if we do not have a Democratic summary available. That's because we feel it is better to give you as much information as possible, even if we cannot provide every viewpoint.
  We'll be looking for a source of summaries from the other side in the meanwhile.
Catastrophic Health Insurance Plans - High Deductible Medical Plans
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  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:23
  Catastrophic Health InsuranceCatastrophic health insurance plans are designed to provide an emergency safety net to protect you against unexpected medical costs.
  Catastrophic plans are individual and family health insurance plans that emphasize coverage for hospitalization or serious illness. The word "catastrophic" is not always used in the name of the plan - they may also be referred to as hospital-only or short-term plans. Catastrophic plans may not provide coverage for other services such as prescription drugs, regular doctor's visits, immunizations or checkups.
  Monthly premiums for catastrophic plans may be lower than those of other health insurance plans but annual deductibles are usually higher. That means you may have to pay for the first $2000-$5000 of medical expenses each year before the insurance company begins to pay for covered services.
  If you're relatively healthy, young, or expect to have employer-based health insurance within 6-12 months, a catastrophic plan might be right for you. You'll want to be sure you can pay the deductible in case of emergency, but catastrophic coverage can still provide valuable financial protection in case of emergency.
  Catastrophic health insurance plans:Limit your medical expenses in case of emergencyMay offer affordable monthly premiumsUsually have a high annual deductibleMay have higher out-of-pocket costs for covered servicesDon't always provide coverage for preventive careA catastrophic plan may be right for you if:You have no pre-existing medical conditionsYou're not on regular prescription drugsYou rarely see the doctorYou can't afford more robust coverageYou expect to have other coverage within 6-12 monthsYou only want coverage in case of emergency
Mid Staffs report calls for sweeping changes to improve patient safety
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:19
  Report into scandal makes 290 recommendations to ensure patients' interests become top priority for NHS
  Stafford general hospital. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
  Hospital staff and managers should face prosecution if patients are harmed or killed as a result of poor care as part of sweeping changes to finally end the NHS's neglect of patient safety, the landmark report into the Mid Staffordshire scandal has recommended.
  The report by Robert Francis QC, who chaired the 31-month public inquiry into the scandal, amounted to a damning indictment of NHS attitudes, practices and organisations.
  Francis made no fewer than 290 recommendations, which he said were designed to ensure that patients' interests became the top priority for the NHS and that in future any lapses in care standards are detected and stopped right away, unlike at Stafford hospital.
  Ministers will have to contemplate further changes to the NHS's system of regulation '' which Francis has found to be seriously wanting '' and monitoring of hospitals.
  David Cameron, apologising on behalf of the government and country for the way the system had allowed "horrific abuse to go unchecked and unchallenged" for so long, said the report's evidence of systemic failure means "we cannot say with confidence that failings of care are limited to one hospital".
  He confirmed a new post of chief inspector of hospitals would be created from the autumn and demanded that the General Medical Council and Nursing and Midwifery Council, the professional bodies policing doctors and nurses, explain why no one had been struck off for their part in the failings. He also said the Health and Safety Executive must say why there had been no prosecution.
  An estimated 400-1,200 patients are believed to have died between January 2005 and March 2009 as a result of poor care at Stafford hospital in one of the biggest NHS scandals.
  As the report was published, Francis delivered an excoriating verdict on conditions at Stafford and demanded a change of culture to put patients first from the top to bottom of the NHS, which, he said, had "betrayed the public".
  He said: "This is a story of appalling and unnecessary suffering of hundreds of people. They were failed by a system which ignored the warning signs and put corporate self-interest and cost control ahead of patients and their safety.
  "We need a patient-centred culture, no tolerance of non-compliance with fundamental standards, openness and transparency, candour to patients, strong cultural leadership, caring compassionate nursing, and useful and accurate information about services."
  Francis said that while the hospital trust itself bore most of the responsibility for allowing "appalling suffering of many patients" to go unchecked between 2005 and 2009, multiple failures by a wide array of organisations and individuals across "the NHS system" allowed poor care to persist and meant opportunities to intervene were not taken.
  Patients were left at risk at the hospital even after the then NHS regulator sounded the alarm about unusually high death rates there, he added. Checks and balances designed to protect patients did not prevent "serious systemic failure of this sort".
  In a scathing assessment of the trust's board of directors, Francis accused it of "a serious failure" of its duties. "It did not listen sufficiently to its patients and staff or ensure the correction of deficiencies brought to the trust's attention. [It also] failed to tackle an insidious negative culture involving a tolerance of poor standards and a disengagement from management and leadership responsibilities," he said.
  But he also cited the hospital A&E unit's need to treat 98% of patients arriving there within four hours to meet the government's key NHS targets, the trust's attempts to balance its books and its "seeking foundation trust status '... at the cost of delivering acceptable standards of care" as contributory factors.
  Francis said in future the NHS should have a relentless focus on fundamental standards of care which, if breached should lead to serious sanctions.
  "Any service or part of a service that does not consistently fulfil the relevant fundamental standards should not be permitted to continue," Francis said, in a move that could lead to the closure of hospital units arousing concern.
  In addition, "non-compliance with a fundamental standard leading to death or serious harm of a patient should be capable of being prosecuted as a criminal offence, unless the provider or individual concerned can show that it as not reasonably practical to avoid this", he recommended.
  Francis also recommended the creation of, in effect, one new super-regulator for the NHS to scrutinise both clinical and financial standards. Those tasks are currently performed separately by two watchdogs '' the Care Quality Commission (CQC), which regulates care, and Monitor, which regulates semi-independent foundation trust hospitals and is due to become the NHS in England's overall financial regulator in April.
  In a letter to the health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, accompanying his report, Francis said the causes of the NHS's failings at Mid Staffs included:
  ' A culture focused on doing the system's business '' not that of patients
  ' Too great a degree of tolerance of poor standards and of risk to patients
  ' An institutional culture which ascribed more weight to positive information about the service than to information capable of implying cause for concern
  ' A failure of communication between the many agencies to share their knowledge of concerns.
  Action against Medical Accidents welcomed the recommendation to make it a statutory duty for NHS staff to own up to their mistakes, for which it has been campaigning strongly.
  Its chief executive, Peter Walsh, said ministers must accept the recommendation, "which would represent the biggest advance in patient safety and patients' rights in the history of the NHS", he said.
  Walsh added: "So far they have fiercely resisted this. The duty of candour, together with other recommendations to ensure full openness and transparency, represent a new dawn for the NHS. Organisations that sweep errors under the carpet do not learn lessons. An open and transparent NHS will be a safer NHS."
  Clare Gerada of the Royal College of GPs said: "At a time when the NHS is under greater than ever financial pressure, it is imperative that the needs of patients are put first, and that cuts are not made which could jeopardise the safety of patient care."
  Cathy Warwick of the Royal College of Midwives also welcomed the duty of candour suggestion. "We hear far too often from midwives who are genuinely petrified about raising the alarm bell over poor quality of care," she said. "They fear that senior managers will come down on them hard simply for raising concerns '... NHS staff must never again be afraid to raise concerns about standards of NHS care. Today must be a watershed for the NHS."
  (C) Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved.
Cameron apologises and vows to tackle NHS 'complacency'
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:18
  PM announces fast-tracked reforms to increase accountability, including a new chief inspector of hospitals, in wake of Francis report
  Stafford hospital, where up to 1,200 patients died as a result of poor care over the 50 months between January 2005 and March 2009. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
  The prime minister has formally apologised for the care scandal at the Mid Staffordshire NHS hospital trust and announced immediate moves to improve patient care, increase accountability of hospitals and tackle a culture of "complacency" in the NHS.
  Among the fast-tracked reforms were proposals that hospital boards could be suspended for ongoing serious care failures; an element of performance-related pay for nurses would be introduced; a new chief inspector of hospitals modelled on the Ofsted inspection agency for schools; and an inquiry into hospitals with the highest mortality rates nationwide.
  David Cameron made the statement in the House of Commons after Robert Francis QC published his report into the institutional and structural failings in the NHS that allowed a catalogue of horrific incidents to occur from 2005-2009, despite complaints from patients, families and staff members.
  Cameron opened his statement by insisting he had a "deep affection" for the NHS and that most staff did a good job most of the time: "It's a fantastic institution, a great organisation '... I always want to think the best of it," he said.
  Listing a series of findings about failures '' ranging from the board of the hospital trust through layers of bureaucracy to regulators and the Department of Health, including doctors who "kept their heads down" and the Royal College of Nursing, which Francis said was "ineffective" as a professional body and a trade union '' Cameron said the report identifed three "fundamental problems" with the culture of the NHS. They were: a focus on finance and figures rather than patient care; a view that patient care was "always someone else's problem"; and a tendency towards "defensiveness and complacency".
  "All too often there's a culture of only examining the positives, rather than any critical analysis," said the prime minister. "Managers were suppressing inconvenient facts in favour of looking for comfort in positive information '... What this inquiry tells us was that there was a manifest failure to act on the data available to the hospital and more widely."
  Cameron commended the previous government for apologising for the scandal when it was exposed, but said the latest report revealed that blame went far further than staff and managers at the hospital. "I'd like to go further and apologise to the families of all those who have suffered for the way that the system allowed this abuse to go unchecked and unchallenged for so long," he added. "On behalf of our government and indeed our country, I'm truly sorry."
  The government would consider all the report's 290 recommendations, and make a further statement in March, said Cameron. However, he also announced immediate moves to tackle underlying problems.
  Among those were proposals that hospital boards in future could be suspended for serious and ongoing care failures, not just for financial failure. The government has already extended the list of "zero harm" issues it wants to see eliminated totally from the NHS, including bed sores, which for too long had been seen as an "occupational hazard". In future, nurses would be hired for compassion and not just academic qualifications, and pay rises would be linked to quality of care not just the length of time served, said the prime minister.
  Other recommendations for immediate action included a review of the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the General Medical Council for doctors, with possible changes to their structures; the possible transfer of powers to launch criminal prosecutions for care scandals from the Health and Safety Executive to the Care Quality Council; and a new inspection regime, which would focus more closely on how clean, safe and caring hospitals were.
  National reviews have also been ordered into the hospitals with the highest mortality rates, and how complaints are handled in the NHS, said Cameron.
  Cameron's focus on quality of care, and his conciliatory tone towards the Labour administration of the time, will be seen as part of health secretary Jeremy Hunt's strategy to shift the debate on the NHS from last year's inflammatory reform of the health system structure, to less divisive issues such as care standards.
  However, both sides will be aware that proposals such as performance-related pay and Labour's immediate backing for the report's call to benchmark staff numbers are likely to cause controversy as they emerge, something highlighted by Labour MPs using the debate to raise concerns about seriously understaffed hospitals.
  In a notably consensual exchange, the Labour leader Ed Miliband also praised the vast majority of NHS staff, who he said "share our horror" at the "appalling betrayal" of events at Stafford hospital.
  In addition to the PM's immediate action, he raised particular recommendations from the report for the government to consider acting upon, including benchmarks for staff numbers and skills in each NHS organisation, merging the care regulator the CQC and financial regulator Monitor into a single body, training and regulation of the small army of healthcare assistants who work in the NHS, and better integration of health and social care.
  "We cannot turn the clock back and undo the damage that happened at Stafford," added Miliband. "But we owe it to those who suffered, to the people of Stafford and the country as a whole to work together to act on this report and stop a scandal like this happening elsewhere, and we on our side of the House will play our part in making them happen."
  (C) Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved.
Patinten creperen in ziekenhuizen - De Standaard
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:17
  Tussen 400 en 1.200 patinten stierven tussen 2005 en 2009 door slechte behandeling in het ziekenhuis van Stafford, in Noord-Engeland. De sterfte was zo opvallend en de zorg zo ontoereikend, dat nabestaanden zich verenigden. Na een lange strijd konden ze een doorlichting afdwingen.
  Dat rapport, uit 2010, bracht schrijnende toestanden aan het licht. Het ziekenhuis was zo onderbemand dat familieleden er zelf kwamen helpen om patinten te voeden en verschonen. Patinten die pijnstillers nodig hadden konden er uren om hulp roepen, sommigen werden wekenlang niet gewassen of lagen uren in hun eigen vuil in bed omdat er geen verpleegkundigen waren om hen te helpen naar de wc te gaan. Het gebrek aan respect voor de patint in dit ziekenhuis was volgens de onderzoekers 'schokkend'. Sommige patinten dronken het water uit vazen met bloemen op omdat ze zelf urenlang niets te drinken kregen. Ook werden er abnormaal veel verkeerde diagnoses gesteld.
  Dat alles was al bekend, maar de verantwoordelijken van de National Health Service wasten hun handen in onschuld. Dit lag immers hoofdzakelijk aan de directie van het ziekenhuis, dat een semi-onafhankelijke status had afgedwongen '' nota bene door zeer sterk te besparen op personeel.
  De publieke verontwaardiging was echter zo groot dat een grondiger officieel onderzoek werd bevolen, onder leiding van een ervaren topjurist. Deze Robert Francis heeft nu zijn rapport van drieduizend pagina's klaar. Volgens Francis is ook de hele controle op wanpraktijken binnen de National Health Service '' tot aan de minister van Volksgezondheid toe '' krakkemikkig.
  Lat ligt laag
  'Hoe zwaar ook de verantwoordelijkheid van de directie van het ziekenhuis, het vreselijke lijden van vele patinten kon voortduren door veelvuldige fouten van allerlei organisaties en individuen binnen het systeem.' Francis zegt dat er een cultuur heerst binnen de NHS 'die meer gericht is op het goed functioneren van het systeem dan het welzijn van de patint'. Over het algemeen is er 'een aanvaarding dat de lat qua zorgkwaliteit erg laag ligt, met alle risico's van dien voor de patint'.
  290 aanbevelingen telt het rapport. Francis vindt onder meer dat ziekenhuisdirecties en artsen strafbaar moeten worden voor de dood van patinten, als ze niet kunnen aantonen dat ze hun werk behoorlijk gedaan hebben. Hij stelt ook belangrijke wijzigingen voor aan het controlesysteem.
  Premier Cameron zelf reageerde gisteren in het parlement: hij verontschuldigde zich namens de natie tegenover patinten en familieleden voor 'de verwerpelijke catalogus aan fouten die in dat ziekenhuis werden vastgesteld'.
  Moeilijker is wat er met het hele systeem '' toch een stukje Britse nationale trots '' moet gebeuren: door de aangekondigde besparingen zullen de ziekenhuizen het veeleer met nog minder handen aan het bed moeten doen.
Deur gaat dicht voor goudfraude
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:15
  BRUSSEL - Kilo's goud alleen met contant geld aankopen zal niet meer kunnen. Zo wil de regering de toenemende fraude in de goudsector aan banden leggen.
  Bijna 1,2 miljard euro aan verdachte transacties in de goudsector kreeg de antiwitwascel vorig jaar doorgeseind.
  Dat is een record, waardoor het totaalbedrag van de opgespoorde witwasdossiers bij die Cel voor Financile Informatieverwerking (CFI) minstens vier keer hoger ligt dan in 2011.
  Uit cijfers van minister van Financin Steven Vanackere (CD&V) blijkt namelijk dat de cel tussen januari en oktober vorig jaar 2,29 miljard euro frauduleus geld op het spoor kwam.
  'Die stijging is vooral toe te schrijven aan de toenemende interesse van criminelen in goud', zegt CFI-topman Jean-Claude Delepi¨re aan De Standaard .
  'De grote schaal waarop goud en andere edelmetalen in de onderwereld over de toonbank gaan, is op zijn minst verontrustend te noemen.'
  Delepi¨re spreekt van een tiental zware fraudedossiers, die zich vooral situeren in het Brusselse en Antwerpse goudmilieu.
  Gat in de wet
  Vandaag bespreekt de ministerraad een gezamenlijk voorstel van minister van Justitie Annemie Turtelboom (Open VLD), Vanackere en staatssecretaris John Crombez (SP.A) dat het criminelen moeilijker moet maken om goud wit te wassen.
  Door een gat in de wet is het tot op heden mogelijk om als (goud)handelaar aankopen volledig contant te betalen. Interessant wanneer zich een klant met dubieus goud aanbiedt, want overschrijvingen zijn op te sporen.
  In de toekomst mag het aankoopbedrag van de handelaar hoogstens vijfduizend euro zijn. Zodra dat wordt overschreden, mag maximaal tien procent daarvan nog cash worden betaald. Anders gezegd: als u morgen voor zesduizend euro aan goud wilt verkopen aan een handelaar, zal u zeshonderd euro cash krijgen. De rest wordt in principe overgeschreven.
  verdere berichtgeving.
Idaho lawmaker's bill forces students to pass 'Atlas Shrugged' test to graduate
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:14
  By David EdwardsWednesday, February 6, 2013 13:49 EST
  The chairman of the Idaho Senate's Education Committee says that he introduced a bill to require all students to read Ayn Rand's ''Atlas Shrugged'' because the book ''made my son a Republican.''
  State Sen. John Goedde (R) introduced the bill in committee on Tuesday to mandate that each student pass a test on the novel before they are able to graduate from high school, according to The Spokesman-Review.
  But Goedde said that he filed the bill to make a point and does not plan on pushing the issue.
  ''It was a shot over their bow just to let them know that there's another way to adopt high school graduation requirements,'' Goedde said during the committee meeting. ''I don't intend to schedule a hearing on it.''
  Rand's 1957 novel has become a favorite of libertarians and tea party Republicans in recent years. Ninety Catholic faculty members at Georgetown University noted last year the the Republican budget authored by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) reflected ''the values of your favorite philosopher, Ayn Rand, rather than the Gospel of Jesus Christ.''
  ''Her call to selfishness and her antagonism toward religion are antithetical to the Gospel values of compassion and love,'' the group said, adding that the budget was in line with Rand's philosophy of Objectivism, one of the tenets of which is that greatest purpose in life is one's own self interest or happiness.
  ''When I read Atlas Shrugged, and it's been probably 30 years since I read it, but it certainly gives one a sense of personal responsibility,'' Goedde explained on Tuesday. ''I don't plan on moving this forward '' it was a statement.''
  [Photo: YouTube]
Art Cashin On Big VIX Bet - Business Insider
  Link to Article
  Thu, 07 Feb 2013 05:57
  Sam Ro|Feb. 6, 2013, 9:37 AM|20,528| Stocks have been rallying relentlessly to post-crisis highs.Meanwhile, the volatility index (aka the VIX, aka the "fear index") is near historic lows.
  But according to UBS's Art Cashin, some options trader has made an enormous $11.25 million bet that the VIX will explode higher very soon.
  And a rally in the VIX is usually accompanied by a drop in the stock markets.
  From this morning's Cashin's Comments(emphasis ours):
  A Very Big Bet In A Somewhat Unlikely Instrument '' My friend, Jim Brown, the ever-alert consummate professional over at Option Investor pointed us to a rather unusual trade. Here's what he wrote in last night's edition of his valuable newsletter:
  In past years I have reported on trades that were so large it appeared someone had inside knowledge of a pending event. Sometimes those were massive put positions on the S&P. A new trade just appeared that suggests there will be a market event in the near future. Last week somebody put on a call spread on the VIX using the April 20 and 25 puts. They bought 150,000 contracts for a net of $75 per contract. That is an $11,250,000 bet that the VIX will move over 20 over the next 60 days. You would have to be VERY confident in your outlook to risk $11 million on a directional position with the VIX at five year lows and the markets trying to break out to new highs.
  Jim then goes on to list some of the scheduled events and deadlines visible over the next 60 days (mostly in Washington). When you add in the broad variety of geo-political possibilities, it's a decent reason to stay extra alert.
  Hopefully, this person is wrong.
  SEE ALSO: The Stupidest Reason To Sell Stocks >