RandySF
RandySF's JournalGreece Shuts Banks; Limits Daily ATM Withdrawal to 60 Euros
Athens: Greece moved to check the growing strains on its crippled financial system on Sunday, closing its banks and imposing capital controls that brought the prospect of being forced out of the euro into plain sight.
After bailout talks between the leftwing government and foreign lenders broke down at the weekend, the European Central Bank froze vital funding support to Greece's banks, leaving Athens with little choice but to shut down the system to keep the banks from collapsing.
Banks will be closed and the stock market shut all week, and there will be a daily 60 euro limit on cash withdrawals from cash machines, which will reopen on Tuesday. Capital controls are likely to last for many months at least.
"The more calmly we deal with difficulties, the sooner we can overcome them and the milder their consequences will be," a sombre-looking Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said in a televised address. He promised bank deposits would be safe and salaries paid.
http://profit.ndtv.com/news/global-economy/article-greece-shuts-banks-limits-daily-atm-withdrawal-to-60-euros-776242
12 Devastating Consequences if Greece Returns to the Drachma
1. Rapid devaluation of the drachma against other currencies (the rate might surpass 1,000 ???/1€). An attempt to tie the drachma to the euro and lock the conversion rate is doomed to fail (as it failed in the case of Argentina), because of the huge capital flight and depletion of foreign exchange reserves.
2. The devaluation will lead to skyrocketing inflation at levels equal and greater than 40 percent, further limiting thereby the purchasing power of citizens.
3. Capital flight and a sharp increase in non-performing loans will be the coup de grace for the weak country's financial system, which would collapse, "drying" the real economy.
4. In such an eventuality the wage and pension freeze payment will be inevitable for a while until the partial restoration of liquidity. The consequences from social unrest that will likely follow are unpredictable.
5. Gross domestic product will likely shrink to about 2/3 of the current level.
6. The public debt of Greece, totaling 322 billion euros, will increase automatically depending on the amount of the depreciation of the drachma, multiplying our borrowings.
7. Even if, after bankruptcy, a partial debt restructuring follows, it will not be painless. It will be accompanied by a new rescue package (only from the IMF now) and very burdensome fiscal adjustment measures.
8. There will be an equal increase of private debt through the skyrocketing of lending and depositing rates in an effort to control inflation. Higher interest rates will also make it difficult for businesses to raise capital.
9. Suffocation of import business due to a weakened market, the devaluation of the drachma and the obvious lack of credit.
10. Failure of imports will bring shortage of essential items on the market since, as we know, Greece is not self-sufficient in raw materials and meets its needs (eg. wheat, milk, meat) by imports from foreign countries.
11. Invasion of predatory foreign investors, who will acquire companies, property, and public property at derisory prices. It will lead to a sellout of the country, now claimed by the proponents of the drachma.
12. Diplomatic and economic isolation of Greece, who, being in a very difficult situation, will not be able to follow geopolitical developments in the region, as well as any challenges by its neighbors.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dimitriosgiokas/12-consequences-if-greece-returns-to-the-drachma_b_7682982.html
'Ant-Man' Mid & Post Credit Scenes REVEALED! (SPOILER WARNING)
Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) gives the WASP costume with wings to Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly). Hank explains to Hope what happened to Hope's mother Janet Van Dyne.
Final credits scene:
This one leads into Captain America: Civil War.
The scene has Captain America, The Falcon, and The Winter Soldier. Cap and Falcon have located The Winter Soldier to a remote location where The Winter Soldier is tied up.
Falcon asks Cap "Should I call Stark?"
Cap replies "No."
Falcon replies "I know who to call." Implying Ant-Man.
In case you didn't know, Falcon is in Ant-Man in a few key scenes.
There ya have it.
http://heroichollywood.com/home-1/2015/6/26/ant-man-mid-post-credit-scenes-revealed-spoiler-warning
Biden attends services at Charleston church
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Vice President Joe Biden worshipped and spoke at the Sunday service of the historic African-American church where nine people were gunned down during Bible study earlier this month.
The vice president's surprise appearance came on the second Sunday the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church held regular services following the June 17 shooting. Police contend the attack was racially motived and have charged a 21-year-old white man with the killings.
Biden said he'd visited Emanuel before and knew the Rev. Clementa Pinckney, the pastor of the church who was among those killed.
"We came back because my family and I wanted to show solidarity with the families and with the church," said Biden, wearing a purple tie, a traditional color of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.
Biden, a Catholic, showed the congregation the rosary beads he wore around his wrist and spoke about the feeling of loss within his own life.
The vice president's son, Beau, died late last month of brain cancer. Beau Biden narrowly avoided death as a young boy in a 1972 car crash that killed Joe Biden's first wife and his daughter.
"The reason I came was to draw strength from all of you," Biden said. "I wish I could say something that would ease the pain."
Biden received a standing ovation during the 2 ½-hour service after reading a selection of scripture. He later joined the congregation in holding hands and singing, "We Shall Overcome."
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/biden-attends-services-at-charleston-church/ar-AAcfVpt?ocid=mailsignout
Greece Will Close Banks to Stem Flood of Withdrawals
ATHENS — Greece will keep its banks and stock market closed on Monday and place restrictions on the withdrawal and transfer of money, banking executives said Sunday night, as Athens tries to keep its financial crisis from growing worse.
The government’s decision to close banks temporarily and impose other so-called capital controls came hours after the European Central Bank said it would not expand an emergency loan program that has been propping up Greek banks in recent weeks while the government was trying to reach a new debt deal with international creditors.
The debt negotiations broke down over the weekend after Prime Minister Alexis Tsprias said he would let the Greek people decide whether to accept the creditors’ latest offer. That referendum vote is to be held next Sunday, after the current bailout program will have expired.
The government was expected on Sunday night to issue a statement, presumably to explain the bank closings and any other steps it might be taking to try limiting the financial damage from its escalating crisis.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/29/business/greek-debt-crisis-european-central-bank.html?_r=0
Early Ant Man reviews are generally positive.
The summer movie season has already delivered big hits like Joss Whedon’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron, George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road, and Colin Trevorrow’s Jurassic World - but if you think we’re close to done you better think again, as the next couple months are filled with more anticipated blockbusters. Certainly towards the top of the list is the latest effort from Marvel Studios – Peyton Reed’s Ant-Man - and while the film isn’t coming out for a few more weeks, social media reactions have already begun pouring in.
The first press screenings of Ant-Man were held Thursday night, and journalists have begun sharing their thoughts on the upcoming film. So what did they think? Check out a sampling below!
http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Ant-Man-Reactions-Here-What-Critics-Saying-72250.html
CNN host to Donald Trump: ‘What’s traditional about being married three times?’
CNN host Jake Tapper recently confronted Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump about how his three marriages were morally justified if he only believed in so-called “traditional marriage” values.
After the U.S. Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage on Friday, Trump accused Chief Justice John Roberts of letting the country down.
Although the candidate has said his views are “evolving,” his campaign position is that only “traditional marriage” between “a man and a woman” should be legal.
CNN’s Tapper asked Trump if he could justify his view on marriage in an interview that aired on Sunday.
“What do you say to a lesbian who’s married or a gay man who’s married who says, ‘Donald Trump, what’s traditional about being married three times?'” Tapper wondered.
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/06/cnn-host-calls-out-donald-trump-whats-traditional-about-being-married-three-times/
Are killer whales persons?
That is the essence of the challenge the killer whales pose to humans, especially those humans who hold them captive. But it is also a larger challenge to all of us, especially if we endeavor to take our role as stewards of the world in which we live seriously. It is a strange and alien concept in a world dominated by Western thought, in which humans have historically been regarded as exceptional beings apart from nature and in which all nonhuman occupants of the world are considered animals, at best property and at worst vermin, the extermination of which is required for the sake of human well-beings.
“Right now, there is no one besides a human who is a person,” says dolphin scientist and ethicist Lori Marino. “They’re all property, no matter how complex they are, no matter how much we love them. They have no inherent rights of their own.”
Yet the more we learn about dolphins in general, and killer whales in particular, the more that our assumption of innate superiority looks like a presumption. Orcas, with their big brains, complex social structures, mysterious communications, and mind-boggling sixth sense, by their very existence, challenge the long-standing belief that human beings are the planet’s only intelligent occupants. Social life for killer whales, as we have seen, is deeper and more omnipresent than it is for humans; their identities are defined by their families and tribal connections; and their empathy is powerful enough to extend to other species. If orcas have established empathy as a distinctive evolutionary advantage, it might behoove a human race awash in war and psychopathy to pay attention.
We’ve also learned that these creatures have rich emotional lives. Their brains are extremely developed in the areas associated with emotional learning, and their tight social arrangement, in which family bonds remain for life, is complex and sophisticated. They also have a demonstrated capacity for empathy. Nor, for that matter, is this only true of dolphins and cetaceans generally. The more we learn about a number of creatures that have always been deemed non-persons by dint of their nonhuman status, the more their emotional lives are being revealed: chimpanzees and all the great apes, elephants, even cats and dogs and pigs and cattle, all have more developed emotional centers than we had previously supposed.
http://www.salon.com/2015/06/27/are_killer_whales_persons_the_more_we_learn_about_orcas_the_more_our_assumption_of_innate_superiority_looks_like_a_presumption/
Bill Maher Slams Bristol Palin and the Homophobic GOP
he host of ‘Real Time with Bill Maher’ went after the GOP presidential candidates for not supporting the SCOTUS gay marriage ruling, and also Bristol Palin for her pregnancy.
“What a week!” exclaimed Bill Maher. “The Confederate flags are going down, and the rainbow flags are coming up—which made it a very weird week for Lindsey Graham.”
Indeed, it was one of the most eventful weeks in the Obama presidency. Following the racially-motivated Charleston massacre, public opinion turned against the Confederate flag, with even Republican politicians who’d been adamant supporters of the symbol of hatred and division reversing their stances and calling for the flag to be taken down.
And on Friday, the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in a landmark 5-4 decision. Naturally, several of the GOP’s presidential candidates had choice words for the ruling.
“Of course, the Republican candidates for president are all against this—but they took the news with grace and good will. I’m joking, of course. They all went completely ape-shit and said crazy things,” said Maher. “‘We will not honor any decision,’ Rick Santorum said, ‘which will force us to violate our clear, biblical understanding.’ Mike Huckabee said, ‘The Supreme Court can’t overrule God.’ Bobby Jindal said, ‘This ruling paves the way for an all-out assault on religious freedoms of Christians.’ Fellas, you do realize that this is not mandatory. You don’t have to have sex with another man—it’s just an option now. OK, I just wanted to make that clear.”
“They’re such drama queens, aren’t they?” he added.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/06/27/bill-maher-slams-bristol-palin-and-the-homophobic-gop.html
Paul Wolfowitz and Scooter Libby teaching course on Iraq War 'decision-making'
Paul Wolfowitz and Scooter Libby, two key players in the George W. Bush administration, are teaching a course this fall on decision-making in the 2003 Iraq War.
The course, titled "The War in Iraq: A Study in Decision-Making", will examine some "key strategic decisions" during the war, according to a description by the Hertog Foundation in D.C., which will offer the week-long course.
Wolfowitz, who served as deputy defense secretary between 2001 and 2005, and Libby, who served as national security adviser to then-Vice President Dick Cheney and Bush during that time, both advocated for the war.
"History takes on a different aspect when viewed not from years removed and with the consequences of decisions taken known, but from the viewpoints of the actual policymakers as decisions approached and as unexpected events, rivalries, counter-moves, mistakes, and imperfect understandings intervened," a course description reads.
http://thehill.com/policy/defense/246378-former-bush-officials-teaching-course-on-iraq-war-decision-making
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