Black Swan (Calvin Teo) COGwriter Scoop, a New Zealand based organization, had the following: Dec 12, 2013 One of the more interesting recent economic metaphors is that of the ‘black swan’. It is used to mean an unknowable event; or at least an event deemed too unlikely to be predictable by any academic model. Like […]
Month: December 2013
Do you understand the ramifications of the ‘Lady of Guadalupe’?
Claimed ‘Lady of Guadalupe,’ Mexico City (Photo by Jan Zatko) COGwriter December 12th is designated by the Church of Rome as the memorial day for “Our Lady of Guadalupe.” Here is some additional information about it from a Catholic source: Guadalupe is, strictly speaking, the name of a picture, but the name was extended to […]
Time names Pope Francis ‘Person of the Year’
COGwriter Pope Francis was named ‘Person of the Year’ by Time magazine: December 11, 2013 Time magazine named Pope Francis its Person of the Year on Wednesday, crediting him with shifting the message of the Catholic Church while capturing the imagination of millions of people who had become disillusioned with the Vatican. This is the […]
Another debt creating budget deal, if approved, kicks the debt can down the road again
COGwriter There is a tentative budget deal once again in 2013 that will not resolve the problem with the debt of the USA. Some feel that it may not be approved, and hence create another short-term ‘crisis,’ while others are more optimistic: Congressional negotiators reached a modest budget agreement Tuesday to restore about $63 billion […]
Life to Mars? Life on/from Mars?
COGwriter There have been news items related to life being on and/or from Mars and as well as a plan to send life to Mars. The first item came out several hours ago: An ambitious project that aims to send volunteers on a one-way trip to Mars unveiled plans for the first private unmanned mission […]
An attempt to revive Muslim Brotherhood objectives in Egypt was announced
Anti-Interim Government Demonstrators (Photo by Mohamed Elsayed) COGwriter Some opposed to the interim government that lead Egypt announced a new party today: December 10, 2013 Development and Change Party founder Bassem Khafagy has announced the formation of a new alliance aiming for the downfall of the current regime. The group, called The Egyptian Alliance, is meant […]
China’s air pollution ‘benefits’ claimed, while millions suffer. When will it end?
Beijing After Rain Beijing on a Normal Sunny Day COGwriter Although China’s problems with pollution seem to be increasing, one news source there claimed it provided benefits to the Chinese. Others found that appalling: BEIJING — Commentaries by two of China’s most influential news outlets suggesting that an ongoing air pollution crisis was not without […]
BlackRock cautioning against USA stocks; European finance ministers meeting
COGwriter The world’s largest investment company, BlackRock, Inc., has concerns about the future of stock values in the USA in 2014: World’s biggest investor BlackRock says US rally nearing exhaustion BlackRock has advised clients to be ready to pull out of global stock markets at any sign of serious trouble http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/10507003/Worlds-biggest-investor-BlackRock-says-US-rally-nearing-exhaustion.html BlackRock: The Most […]
Biblical and Catholic warnings about ‘Christmas trees’
COGwriter What does the Bible teach about using trees in worship? Have Catholic writers made warnings against Christmas trees? First, notice that the Bible has a lot of warnings about trees: 2″Do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by signs in the sky, though the nations are terrified by them. 3 […]
Spain expects European banking union by the end of the month
European Central Bank, Frankfurt (Eric Chan) COGwriter The Prime Minister of Spain is calling for a European banking union to be finalized this month: December 9, 2013 Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy urged more unity for Europe and said a banking union for the region should be finalised this month, El País reported in an interview published… […]