Greek Economic Plan Very Effective, Needs to Improve in Tax Administration

Posted on August 10, 2010 by ronyl

Greece has suffered economic debts over the years, but has now recovered effectively and faster than scheduled because of its effective economic overhaul program. According to the European Union, the IMF or International Monetary Fund, and ECB or European Central Bank, the Greek government has done a tremendous job to take care of the economy, but still, there are risks remaining.

The three organizations, EU, IMF and ECB, made a joint statement last Thursday, stating that Greece’s economic plan has made a very good start, noting that some reforms have been made already way ahead of the scheduled date. Still, they said that challenges and risks still remain.

The main move that Greek authorities have done is spending way below the budget limit at the level of state. This has allowed make up for slippages in social security funds, hospitals and local governments. On the other hand, a particular area of interest that the IMF, ECB and EU pointed out that needs to be improved is on tax administration.

Particularly, the Greek government needs to find ways to make wealthy individuals and people that earn a lot of money pay their taxes religiously, and not allowing them to evade taxes.

Hungary Outlook Lowers as IMF Talks are Postponed

Posted on July 25, 2010 by ronyl

Hungary’s sovereign debt has been downgraded by two analysts because of two political moves that has affected the economic condition of the country. The first move is its refusal to come to terms with the International Monetary Fund or IMF. The second move is the rejection of the country to use strong measures to implement policies that are for economic growth.

One of the two analysis agencies is Moody. Moody put Hungary at a position where it predicted it will have lots of fiscal risks. The agency did this due to the fact that the International Monetary Fund, in cooperation with the entire European Union, halted its talks with officials at Budapest for a 25 billion dollar or 20 billion euro financial deal.

Another agency that reduced its outlook for Hungary is S&P. It’s rating for Hungary is already lower than that for Moody, but still it was lowered even more to a level of negative from being stable.

The Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, already predicted that this might happen. He stated that Hungary will experience pressure from the market, aside from weaknesses in currency which will not get any significant form of support from international lenders. Still, the agencies are hopeful that Hungary will continue its talks with IMF.

Sperm Originates from as Far Back as 600 Million Years Ago

Posted on July 25, 2010 by ronyl

According to scientists and evolutionists, the reason why the sperm or the seeds of reproduction are so familiar from almost all species in the world are the same is because it started from one ancestor some 600 million years ago. A few years ago, and ever since scientists started becoming curious as to whether the male reproductive seed originated from one ancestor or is a result of several stages of evolution, many scientists voted that the sperm was a result of batch evolutions.

This is because they could not find a common gene among all sperms of all species. Now, however, they have discovered a gene in all sperms which they called the BOULE. This gene can be found in all insects and mammals, and according to scientists, this can be a breakthrough discovery into understanding the infertility of some males.

Furthermore, according to medical scientists, the gene called DAZ is responsible for the fertility of species. Specifically, two forms of the gene the BOULE and DAZL found in humans and other species, is responsible for this feature. Upon investigating a database of other animals, they found out that some form of these genes can also be found in almost all of them.

The only animals that apparently did not contain a form of these genes are the very ancient animals, including sponges, and fungi.

United Airlines Plane Hits Strong Turbulence

Posted on July 21, 2010 by wahnews

United Airlines Hit Turbulence A United Airlines plane going from Washington D.C. to Los Angeles hit a very large turbulence while on air, rocking its passengers and injuring 22 of them, along with 4 flight attendants. Because of the tremendous turbulence, the plane had to land on another airport, the Denver International Airport.

A passenger, Kaoma Bechaz, describes it best when she stated that the whole thing was just a very large up and down. When it landed at the Denver International Airport, the airport officials set up a special place for the plane and its passengers to apply first aid to the injured.

The injured passengers were distributed among five major hospitals, the Aurora South Medical Center, and Children’s Hospital were among them. Majority of the injuries were not serious, and consisted of sprains, strains, whiplash injuries and bruises. According to Eric Tade, who is a spokesman for the Denver Fire Department, there was one who suffered major injuries and was seriously hurt.

According to a passenger, when they were on air, they first hit a small turbulence which was not a big deal, but right after, a huge turbulence struck them, and people were screaming. Still the flight attendants were quick to calm down the confused and terrified passengers.

BP Seal Gets 24 More Hours from US Government

Posted on July 20, 2010 by wahnews

BP Oil Spill Deadline The United States Government allowed BP to keep its well sealed for testing for another 24 hours. This means that the government allows BP to continue its integrity test despite the most recent anomalies which were observed around the well. So far, however, the sealing process has been a success, keeping oil from leaking out of the well for almost a week now, in what has become the first good news since the tragedy occurred.

Now, the latest reports show the presence of methane surrounding the well, and a recorded seep during Sunday morning. These irregularities are the first since the well was sealed successfully, and may affect the testing severely.

Still, Thad Allen, the National Incident commander, has allowed BP to continue for one more day. On the other hand, Allen and his crew will continue to deeply monitor the situation, looking for the slightest hints of malfunctions and any indication that the sealing will only make the situation worse.

BP is also monitoring the situation broadly, and is collaborating with the United States government to gather data and analyze whether the information obtained calls for the sealing to remain, or be taken away, allowing oil to spill out once more to the already vastly damaged Gulf.

NIH Vaccine for HIV Out in the Market Soon

Posted on July 11, 2010 by wahnews

NIH Vaccine for AIDS to be Released Researchers at the NIH Vaccine Research Center has found a way that and AIDS vaccine can really be available to AIDS patients real soon. The study revealed that the blood of an HIV infected person is capable of producing two powerful antibodies that can neutralize up to 91% of the HIV virus strains. Peter D. Kwong released an official statement that “We have proof that and AIDS vaccine is on the way…” Dr. Kwong is the chief of Structural Biology at the NIH Center.

It’s been a few decades since doctors and scientists started to study and research for a cure if not a cure, a vaccine for the deadly AIDS virus. They’re experimenting this and that, what they didn’t know is that the human body itself can produce its own antibodies that can protect itself from the virus.

According to Dr. Kwong’s team, it may take a while before they can produce the vaccine. But the fact that they found out how to produce a vaccine, that’s a big breakthrough! Can you imagine a HIV patient waiting for this vaccine, what he doesn’t know is that the vaccine is in his system already. Some of you may wonder, how come the antibodies doesn’t work right before the virus multiplies?

Dr. Kwong informed: “The problem is that the antibodies appear naturally only long after HIV has established a death grip on the body. Because the virus replicates often and mutates quickly, people don’t just carry a single strain of HIV — their blood swarms with a vast number of HIV “quasi-species.” By the time a person develops neutralizing antibodies, the virus has had time to evolve escape variants.” The solution then is to have yourselves vaccinated once the vaccine is out in the market. All we have to do is wait.

Iran Urged to Stop Stoning Women

Posted on July 10, 2010 by wahnews

Iran Should Stop Stoning Women According to the article 5 of the U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, no one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. But in Iran this rule is not being followed by the government.

Sakineh Mohammadie Ashtiani who was a mother of two children at that time could be stoned to death at any moment under the terms of a death sentence which was handed down by the Iranian authorities in 2006. It was because she had an illegal relationship with another guy out of marriage. Ashtiani endured that physical retribution in front of her son in 2006. Her son was of 17 years at that time. He had to see her mother getting the crucial punishment.

Sakineh Ashtiani, the convicted lady is from the northern city of Tabriz and she was convicted of adultery in the year of 2006. Some lawyers who are from human rights believe that a language barrier prohibited her from fully comprehending court dealings at the time. She is of Azerbaijani descent and speaks Turkish in stead of Farsi.

Though this is a crime, one should be punished in limit. The punishment that Iran Government gives to them is too much. So they must stop these activities and should follow the Human Rights’ rules.

US Sees Mineral Reserves Potential in Afghanistan

Posted on June 14, 2010 by wahnews

Lithium Deposits in Afghanistan A huge deposit of minerals has been found in Afghanistan by U.S. geologists. The mineral wealth is enough to turn the tides around in this impoverished country and turn it into worthwhile mining centers.

Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of the United States Central Command, told reporters, “There is stunning potential here. There are a lot of ifs, of course, but I think potentially it is hugely significant.”
They have discovered approximately a trillion dollars worth of untapped mineral deposits. These minerals included cobalt, iron, copper and gold. There were also some industrial metals found like lithium. Pentagon was quoted as saying that with these findings, Afghanistan could become the “Saudi Arabia of lithium.” Lithium is a great material which is used in batteries for mobile phones and laptops. Try checking your battery and you will see the label, Lithium ion battery.

Last month in his visit to Washington, Hamid Karzai, Afghanistan’s president, said that the Pentagon’s estimate is far from his. He says there could be even up to $3 trillion worth of mineral deposits there.

The U.S. Geological Survey has been monitoring Afghanistan since 2006. They started with aerial surveys of the resources. The reason for their surveying is to follow the leads that mining experts have collected during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s.

The biggest mineral deposits found were iron and copper. They also found a large amount of niobium which is used in producing superconducting steel.

This truly is a great discovery but this is not confirmed as an instant business opportunity. They still have to consider the competition and the demand for the elements as well.

New Zealand Dubbed as Most Peaceful Nation

Posted on June 9, 2010 by wahnews

New Zealand is Most Peaceful Country The 2010 GPI, otherwise known as Global Peace Index, has honored New Zealand as the world’s most peaceful nation. This is the same index that has awarded Iraq as the most violent country last year. The criteria for judging a nation is the crime rate, respect for human rights and budget allocation for defense or defense spending.

This index is compiled annually by the Institute of Economics and Peace and the Economist Intelligence Unit. This is the second year in a row that New Zealand has bested close to 150 countries. The others in the top 5 were Iceland, Japan, Austria and Norway. Apart from Japan, the other three were also in the top 5 the previous year. Japan moved up from the 7th spot. Another important thing to note is the United States rank. From 83rd last year, it worsened to 85th.

Their findings also conclude that the world’s overall peacefulness has declined for the second year in a row. The institutions data showed that the growing instability and rise of conflicts arose due to the global economic downturn that spared no one in 2008. There is a noticeable increase in violent demonstrations, discontent, homicides and crimes in several countries as the global economy still seeks to stabilize itself.
The data also shows that the Korean Peninsula has become less peaceful for the past two years. Partially to blame for this is the constant tension between the North and South. Not to mention the recent investigation being made by several countries on the sinking of a South Korean navy ship only worsens their disposition.

Soldiers Undergo Flying Rhino Exercise before Deployment

Posted on June 8, 2010 by wahnews

Flying Rhino Military Excercise British Army Soldiers need to go undergo military exercise training in the Czech Republic before deployment to Afghanistan. Gunner Luis Hulyer, an 18 year old soldier from Plumstead, who joined the army in 2008, has been training as a signaler. A signaler records and relays target information for heavy artillery AS90 guns.

Hulyer is part of Germany based 26 Regiment Royal Artillery. Almost 2,000 British soldiers’ men and women have attended the three-week Exercise called Flying Rhino. Flying Rhino was the British Army’s biggest multinational Air Land integration exercise lasting three weeks. The exercise includes: fast jets, helicopter and self-propelled artillery. Hulyer said; “The training here is good and we are preparing well. Over the coming year we will do a lot of exercises preparing for our mission. It’s just over a year before I deploy to Afghanistan but I wouldn’t say I am worried. But as it gets closer there is a chance I could wake up one morning with a few nerves.”

During the exercise, Hulyer was firing harmlessly onto a mocked-up enemy position on a hill in the Czech countryside. The planner at the headquarters (nearly 200 miles away) have coordinated the attacks. They use electronically generated virtual world to see their targets through computer monitors.

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