Archive for July, 2015
Gold Slumps to Five-Year Low, Dollar at Highest in Months
July 20th, 2015Via: Reuters: Gold prices plunged to their lowest in more than five years on Monday, at one point dropping 4 percent on aggressive selling out of China, while the U.S. dollar hit a three-month high on expectations for higher U.S. interest rates.
Lockheed Martin Buying Sikorsky for $9 Billion
July 20th, 2015Via: Reuters: Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) has agreed to buy United Technologies Corp’s (UTX.N) Sikorsky Aircraft for over $8 billion, two sources said on Sunday, cementing a deal that would confirm Lockheed’s dominance in weapons making and giving the Black Hawk helicopter to the maker of the F-35 fighter jet. The deal will add further […]
The Military Built Another Multimillion-Dollar Building in Afghanistan That No One Used
July 20th, 2015Via: ProPublica: Unlike many buildings commissioned by the U.S. in Afghanistan, the new military warehouse facility in Kandahar was well built, an inspector general investigation concluded. There was, however, one glaring problem: no one was around to use the gleaming, $14.7 million complex. The four warehouses and an administration building were empty, because the intended […]
Stephen Hawking and Russian Billionaire Start $100 Million Search for Aliens
July 20th, 2015Hmm. This is Hawking back in 2010: In a new Discovery Channel documentary, which premiered Sunday night, British astrophysicist Stephen Hawking said that communicating with aliens could be a threat to Earth. Hawking said it is likely that alien life exists, but a visit from extraterrestrials might be similar to Christopher Columbus’ arrival in the […]
Pension Funds Burn Cities as $1 Trillion Shortfall Set to Grow
July 19th, 2015Via: Bloomberg: The cost to American cities for their cash-strapped pension funds is starting to look a lot worse, and it’s not because the stock-market rally may be losing steam. Houston was warned by Moody’s Investors Service this month that it may be downgraded because of mounting retirement bills, the latest municipality put on notice […]
Detroit-Area Doctor Sentenced for Widespread Cancer Treatment Fraud
July 15th, 2015Via: The Detroit News: U.S. District Judge Paul Borman on Friday called Fata’s crimes “horrific and unprecedented” before sentencing him for the complex, far-reaching conspiracy aimed at defrauding Medicare and Blue Cross Blue Shield of $34 million by prescribing unnecessary treatments. Fata, 50, is ineligible for parole. Fata’s conspiracy ensnared several hundred patients across Metro […]
Nearly One-Third Of 847,000 Veterans In Backlog For VA Health Care Already Died
July 15th, 2015Via: Huffington Post: More than 238,000 of the 847,000 veterans in the pending backlog for health care through the Department of Veterans Affairs have already died, according to an internal VA document provided to The Huffington Post.
NASA’s Three-Billion-Mile Journey to Pluto Reaches Historic Encounter
July 14th, 2015Via: NASA: NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is at Pluto. After a decade-long journey through our solar system, New Horizons made its closest approach to Pluto Tuesday, about 7,750 miles above the surface — roughly the same distance from New York to Mumbai, India – making it the first-ever space mission to explore a world so […]
Son of Boston Police Captain Arrested as Possible Terrorist
July 14th, 2015Via: ABC: The estranged son of a respected Boston police captain was arrested July 4 by FBI agents as part of a counter-terrorism operation against alleged ISIS-inspired domestic terrorists, federal officials told ABC News today. Alexander Ciccolo, 23, of Adams, Mass., was taken into custody on gun charges after buying two pistols and two rifles […]
London Is Now the Global Money-Laundering Centre for the Drug Trade, Says Crime Expert
July 13th, 2015Via: Independent: The City of London is the money-laundering centre of the world’s drug trade, according to an internationally acclaimed crime expert. UK banks and financial services have ignored so-called “know your customer” rules designed to curb criminals’ abilities to launder the proceeds of crime, Roberto Saviano warned. Mr Saviano, author of the international bestseller […]
