Month: January 2013

News

Portraits of Marx and Lenin Removed from Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang

The once dominant portraits of Marx and Lenin that were featured alongside a portrait of Eternal President Kim Il-Sung in Kim Il-sung Square (김일성광장) were removed in October 2012 and have not been replaced.   The pictures feature prominently in North Korean military parades and were visible ties to its Soviet-satellite past.   North Korea […]

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News

Finance Minister Tendai Biti: $217 Remains in Zimbabwe’s Sovereign Account

In a report from Agence France Presse, Tendai Biti told reporters in Harare that Zimbabwe would have $217 remaining after it paid government workers, leaving the nation’s finances in a state of paralysis.   Zimbabwe had extraordinarily high levels of inflation in 2011 and 2012 which the IMF claims have only recently moderated at levels beneath […]

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News

United Nations Begins Inquiry Into United States’ Drone Program

The United Nations announced that it will be launching an inquiry into the United States’ deployment of combat drones and the legal frameworks governing such use.   Ben Emmerson from the United Kingdom, the United Nations‘ special rapporteur on human rights and counterterrorism, opened the inquiry on January 24 and will focus on deployments in […]

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Music
Video

Jazmine Sullivan, Holding You Down (Goin’ In Circles)

Adele before Adele, Jazmine Sullivan has been in the R&B game for a while now. Holdin’ You Down (Goin’ In Circles) is one of her best tracks and evokes that soul that Adele has popularized in the market.

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Video Games

Sim City’s Gameplay Still as Addictive as Ever According to 1UP

The staffers over at 1up were lucky enough to get in on the Sim City beta test and have shared their thoughts in a lengthy, must-read piece for those waiting for the next Sim City.   After having waiting for nearly a year, most Sim City fans cannot wait for the game’s release in February […]

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News

Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands Abdicates in Favor of Her Son, Prince Willem-Alexander

The Netherlands’ long-reigning monarch Queen Beatrix announced in a television broadcast that she would be abdicating the throne in favor of her son, Prince Willem-Alexander.   The queen announced she would leave the throne on April 30, transitioning the  crown to her son because she said he was ready to rule and it was time […]

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News

Should Britain Continue Foreign Aid to India?

The United Kingdom gives India, a former colony, over £1.4 billion annually in development aid but many Britons are questioning this given that India is quite developed, even boasting its own space program.   Economists estimate that India’s economy will overtake Britain’s by 2022 with 20% annual increases in the number of millionaires in India […]

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News

Israel Threatens to Strike Syria If Rebels Gain Access to Chemical Weapons

Silvan Shalom, Israel’s vice premier, said that if it appeared that the Syrian government was losing control of its chemical weapons stockpile in its struggle against rebels fighting against the government of Bashar al-Assad that Israel would launch military strikes on those bases.   Silvan Shalom was commenting on a report that leaked to the […]

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News

New Flag Proposed for Australia

The new flag would leave the nation’s British heritage and push forward with a fusion of Aboriginal elements in a reinterpretation of the current flag.   Australian National University military historian Dr. John Blaxland designed the flag and worked to incorporate the nation’s past, its aboriginal heritage, and a multicultural future.   The flag features […]

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News

Iran’s Nuclear Ambitions Huge Issue in Upcoming Presidential Elections

The election to succeed outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is less than six months away but already speculation is heating up about who will succeed the controversial leader who has staked his legacy on Iran’s pursuit of a nuclear program.   Many of the potential contenders have one thing overwhelmingly in common – they are all […]

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