Daily News Summary
Saturday December 20, 2014
Last updated around 1pm, CST (GMT-6)
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74 protestors arrested in Milwaukee last night, blocking rush-hour traffic. Air Force admits flaws in rapid response nukes, fixable ($$$) by some accounts. Texas ranchers, battered by droughts, seek alternative incomes, like hunting leases. Pentagon: four Guantanamo inmates back to Afghanistan, as Obama aims to close gitmo. Obama condemns Sony for pulling "The Interview" movie under terror threats. FCC boost funding (+$1.5b/year) for broadband access in classrooms. Rand Paul (backs Obama) / Rubio Cuba feud preview of 2016 foreign policy debates. Ferguson prosecutor: some witnesses lied, including woman claiming saw the shooting. US deportations decline in fiscal 2014, partly due to less border crossings says DHS. California: 90k low-to-high-wage new jobs last month, YOY unemployment down 1.2%. Obama's Friday speech indicates likely veto of the Keystone XL pipeline. Colbert Report ends after 9 years, with record rating of 2.5 million viewers. In midst of police-violence protests, NY cop suspended for punching black youth during arrest, caught on widely shared video. Obama admin declares profitable end to US auto bailout, after selling last stocks of GM's financial arm.
Production caught up: Apple now shipping most iPhone 6 models within a business day. IRS hunts offshore accounts, issues summonses to FedEx, DHL, UPS, HSBC. Facebook sheds teenage users in 2014; many speculations, one of which is alternatives. Addiction to normally last-resort-tool of QE threatens global financial stability. 1.2 million Staples customers' credit cards possibly exposed in October data breach. Mercedes launches new compact hatchback, company's smallest vehicle in the US. Kentucky county's right-to-work ordinance forbids mandatory collection of union dues. Sony lawsuit by former employees tests company's legal liability on data breaches. Google sues MS AG to block subpoena on third-party content shown in search results. Chrysler expands US recall to 3.3 million vehicles, due to Takata airbags issues. Construction boom in China theme parks, led by Wanda Group, AMC franchise owner. Boeing to meet 787/Dreamliners year-end delivery targets; delays threaten profitability. Despite counterclaims, BBC says Apple didn't improve supplier working conditions.
ISS astronaut needs socket wrench, NASA emails him one! (A 3D-printing model :) T-mobile: $90m fine over unauthorized third-party charges on customer bills. Hackers selling online the next Sony-style attack, a very lucrative specialty. 5G, the new revolution in communication technologies: more channels for simultaneous connections, higher bandwidth, and lower-latency - all for less power consumption. Strong dollar is a problem for US-based software companies, affecting profits. Samsung considering Apple Pay competitor that would also read physical credit cards. NASA's Kepler spacecraft, despite issues, discovers new planet, 2.5 times Earth size. iPad as a school teaching tool: study tracks how kids think when using a tablet. FCC proposal to ease access to cable programming for online video companies. Amputee dog gets Oscar-Pistorius-like, 3D-printed running blades as front legs.
One century: remembering the Christmas Truce of WWI, on December 24th, 1914. China's regional influence grows as it extends $3bn aid and loans to Cambodia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand and Laos. Sweden: 2 car bombs explode in Malmo, city now largely populated by immigrants from Iraq, Kosovo, Bosnia and Lebanon. Algeria: socio-economic repercussions of falling crude prices, whose revenues provide 60% of government funding. French police shoots Islamist attacking police station, shouting "Allahu Akbar!" US drone strike in Pakistan kills 6 pro-Talibans, first since school massacre. Israel: 10th century BC clay seals indicate government in area previously thought rural. US / Egypt relations improving; US delivers 10 helicopters for counter-terrorism support. Paris: divisions over construction of massive "Triangle Tower"; iconic -and lucrative- city skyline is protected by regulations. North Korea, arguing innocence in Sony hacking, threatens US to let them collaborate in investigation. China arrests US missionary near North Korea border; increasing crackdown. Cuban national assembly backs restoring relations with the US. Liberia holds senatorial elections, postponed by Ebola outbreak. Saudi forces kill 4 militants in increasingly restive, Shia-populated eastern province. UN asks Israel to pay Lebanon $850m compensation for 2006 oil spill. Pakistan hangs two, convicted in school shooting (145 dead, of which 132 kids). Israel bombs Hamas militant base in Gaza strip in response to rockets fired earlier. Australia: woman arrested for killing 8 children, seven of them her own.