Ah!
It is possible to exasperate China.
When
a retired Chinese general with impeccable Communist Party credentials
recently wrote a scathing account of North
Korea as a recalcitrant ally headed for collapse and unworthy of
support, he exposed a roiling debate in China
about how to deal with the country’s young leader, Kim
Jong-un.
… “China has cleaned up the D.P.R.K.'s mess too many times,”
General Wang wrote in The Global Times, using the initials of North
Korea’s formal name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
“But it doesn’t have to
do that in the future.”
Of
the government in North Korea, he said: “If an administration isn’t
supported by the people, ‘collapse’ is just a matter of time.”
Moreover, North Korea had violated the spirit of the mutual defense
treaty with China, he said, by failing to consult China on its
nuclear
weapons program, which has created instability in Northeast Asia.
(Related)
They probably would have skipped this anyway.
North
Korea skipping UN Security Council meeting
… Instead of a showdown, North Korea says it will not attend
Monday's meeting. It accuses the United States and its allies of
using the human rights issue as a weapon to overthrow the leadership
of the impoverished but nuclear-armed nation. It also calls the
dozens of people who fled the North and aided the commission of
inquiry "human scum."
(Related)
Inevitable, as long as the public (voters) remain interested.
…
“Congress should to schedule hearings for the American people to
learn if other countries assisted North Korea in this attack, see
what series of events led theater owners to self-censor, and to know
the full threat of cyber warfare that is facing us,” Kirk said in a
statement.
The
perfect stocking stuffer?
Kim
Jong Un game spoof 'Glorious Leader!' moving forward
The
creator of a satirical video game that depicts Kim Jong Un as a
gun-toting, unicorn-riding hero has no plans to cancel his zany
creation following a cyberattack and threats of violence against Sony
Pictures that the FBI has attributed to North Korea.
In
fact, "Glorious Leader!" creator Jeff Miller is now more
motivated than ever to finish his game.
…
The retro-style, run-and-gun game comically puts players in the
shoes of a super-powered Kim Jong Un as he battles waves of American
drones and soldiers with weapons like a machine gun and bazooka.
Miller is planning levels set in such locations as the streets of
Pyongyang and atop Paektu Mountain. He's now planning another on the
Sony Pictures backlot.
"We
want the game to be a topical as possible," said Miller, adding
he hasn't received any threats from North Korea or hackers and isn't
afraid of any backlash because the game makes Kim Jong Un "look
totally awesome."
It
looks like the reaction to the Sony breach is mutating. Has the
government ever “moved” against hackers, other than issuing
arrest warrants?
President
Obama should move have moved swiftly against North Korea following a
cyberattack on Sony Pictures that has cost the company tens of
millions of dollars and caused it to pull its controversial comedy,
“The Interview,” House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike
Rogers (R-Mich.) said Sunday.
(Related)
What do they know that we don't know? Is this reality or rhetoric?
Sen.
John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Sunday rejected President Obama’s
description of North Korea’s hacking of Sony Pictures Entertainment
as “cyber vandalism,” saying the attack was “a new form of
warfare.”
“I
think, again, the president does not understand this is a
manifestation of a new form of warfare,” McCain told CNN’s “State
of the Union.” “When
you destroy economies, [Huh?
Bob] when you are able to impose censorship on the world
— and especially the United States of America — it’s more than
vandalism, it’s a new form of warfare that we’re involved in, and
we need to react and react vigorously.”
These
are most likely people who made their money before or in spite of
Putin. If they stay, they risk having their wealth confiscated to
plug holes in the Russian economy. (If they are Putin's pals, then
Russia is closer to collapse than I thought.)
Super-Rich
Russians Are Fleeing To The UK In Record Numbers
According
to Home Office statistics, the number of Russians granted fast-track
visas — given to those who will invest at least £2 million ($3.1
million) in the UK — jumped by 69% in 2014, compared with the
previous year, The
Sunday Times first reported.
…
The Times notes a dramatic uptick in visa applications after March,
when the first round of western sanctions were placed on Russia over
its military action in Ukraine. The ruble's slide and falling oil
prices are also to blame for the flight out of Russia.
Under
the terms
of Britain's Tier 1 Investor visa, recipients can stay for a
maximum of 3 years and 4 months with an investment of £2 million or
more in UK government bonds or UK-registered companies.
(Related)
How bad is it?
Russian
ruble's fall: A classic 'currency collapse'
…
The fall of the ruble has been swift and devastating. Carl
Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics, referred to
the currency’s plummet as “an unrecoverable spiral” in a note
to clients on Tuesday. He argues that what we are seeing now is a
classic “currency collapse,” brought on by both economic factors
like sanctions and falling oil prices as well as financial factors
like the Russian central bank printing
money to help state-owned oil company Rosneft cover its debt
denominated in foreign currencies.
What
makes the situation in Russia that much worse is that the nation’s
companies, both private and state-owned, hold $670 billion in debt
denominated in foreign currencies. This debt is about one-third the
size of the entire Russian economy, and it
will become impossible for Russian companies to service it if the
ruble continues to fall.
…
The question now is whether the economic pain will convince Russia
to back down, or double down, in Eastern Europe. Weinberg, for one,
worries that Putin will instruct Russian companies to renege on their
foreign obligations. This could spell bad news for banks and
investors across Europe and the U.S. that have loaned money to
Russian companies, and it could allow Russia’s financial
instability to infect other emerging markets and the already shaky
E.U. economy.
For
all my students. Take the time to look at these tools!
The
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Contrary
to your expectations, I do read these articles, especially the ones
written by actual bloggers. I just don't follow any of the
suggestions.
How
to Write a Successful Blog
In
2004, I left the corporate world and started this tech and how-to
blog called Digital
Inspiration. I have been blogging for more than 10 years now and
lot of things have changed in these years.
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