RationalWiki:What is going on in the world?/November 2011

November 2011
Engineering the avian flu into a death machine? Probably not a good idea. In a mere 19 words Rick Perry makes two major gaffes. Anders Behring Breivik is declared batshit insane. [http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/11/27/376197/media-flawed-study-climate-sensitivity/ A co-author of the recent Schmitter et al study on climate sensitivity says that if the study is correct, sensitivity will likely be greater than current models predict, not lower. Oops.] How just one neoconservative government north of the 49th parallel can brainwash the minds of a vast sector of the civilian population. The stupid, it burns. One of the Republicans' favorite boogeymen, Bawney Fwank, is leaving. Everyday I'm shuffling stalling. Sam Brownback: I'm a conservative, and I hate political correctness.

Durex apologises for cock up. Australian MP desperately warns the populace that Australians are unknowingly being converted to Islam by eating Halal meat. NATO kills 24 Pakistan soldiers with a flying robot. The Mars Science Laboratory, the largest and most capable rover yet built is on its way to Mars.

Just in time for Christmas, US retailer Sam's Club pulls the Brick Bible off of its shelves. Anonymous finally challenges SOPA/PROTECT IP. ''Hack! Hack! Hack!'' A new climatology study (don't worry, it's from Science) suggests that we might have a little bit more time to stop the effects of AGW than previously thought. Unfortunately, almost every news outlet that publishes the story provide titles for their articles that will make deniers go wild. [http://news.yahoo.com/egypt-pm-claims-more-powers-predecessor-142921289.html Egypt meets the new boss. Worse than the old boss?] <vote poll=world4324 closed="yes">[http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/11/25/black-friday-shopping.html At least it wasn't a firearm. Gunshots confirmed]. <vote poll=world4323 closed="yes">Lynn Margulis dies aged 73. <vote poll=world4322 closed="yes">Gabrielle Giffords well enough to serve Thanksgiving dinners to Air Force personnel stationed in her district. <vote poll=world4321 closed="yes">In March, J.P. Morgan-Chase bought $400 million worth of Twitter stock. So, is it a coincidence that the Occupy Wall Street movement has noticed what seems to be strange treatment regarding OWS-oriented tweets? <vote poll=world4320 closed="yes">Australian families told: Immunise, or lose your family tax benefits. <vote poll=world4319 closed="yes">Cyborg insects. <vote poll=world4318 closed="yes">The Occupy movement protests have cost Americans approximately $13 million during its first two months. (That's about 20-25 minutes worth of war in Iraq, since you asked.) <vote poll=world4317 closed="yes">Wait... WHAT?! Department: The EU bans claim that water can prevent dehydration. <vote poll=world4316 closed="yes">VIDEO: Run for your lives, all ye starfish and anemones! The icy finger of god known as the brinicle cometh, and striketh dead all in its path! <vote poll=world4315 closed="yes">Truth is stranger than fiction: A heretical Amish sect have been arrested for hate crimes after they forcibly de-bearded some local orthodox Amish.

<vote poll=world4314 closed="yes">Ok RW, hyperdrive systems on. <vote poll=world4312 closed="yes">Someone is attempting to make Climategate II: The Sequel <vote poll=world4311 closed="yes">It seems that drones are starting to put themselves out of business. <vote poll=world4310 closed="yes">Oregon's governor says "no more executions on my watch". <vote poll=world4309 closed="yes">You know the Casually Pepper Spray Everything Cop? Megyn Kelly just made it 50 times funnier.

<vote poll=world4308 closed="yes">Stephen Harper's Environment Minister doesn't know what ozone is. Oh, excuse me... <vote poll=world4307 closed="yes">South Africa's "democratic" government borrows from apartheid and passes the Secrecy Act. The Protection of Information Bill means that any government department can declare any information a "state secret" and possession of that information can result in a 5-year prison term. Of course, it has nothing to do with corruption. <vote poll=world4306 closed="yes">Any fool knows that Fox News is worse than any other news source out there. But did you know it's worse than paying no attention to the news at all?

<vote poll=world4305 closed="yes">The only thing that both parties of US Govt can agree on is that they disagree about everything. <vote poll=world4304 closed="yes">Russia creates its own monetary union, reportedly to piss off the EU. <vote poll=world4303 closed="yes">Parents of 'Adolf Hitler' Lose Custody of Newborn <vote poll=world4302 closed="yes">Respect the Bird!

<vote poll=world4301 closed="yes">[http://www.kutnews.org/post/ut-scientists-find-great-lake-under-surface-jupiter%E2%80%99s-moon There's water under Europa's ice... a LOT of water.] <vote poll=world4300 closed="yes">Well, conservatives, Occupy Wall Street won't be going away for a loooooong time. <vote poll=world4299 closed="yes">Saif al-Islam Gadaffi arrested for real this time.

<vote poll=world4298 closed="yes">Tonight on Fox News: is Richard Branson a socialist? <vote poll=world4297 closed="yes">That's it, Jim Al-Khalili, we've got you now. Update: He's now getting bombarded with boxer tweets. <vote poll=world4296 closed="yes">It seems that SOPA and the PROTECT IP Act might actually have enough support to pass through both houses. The survival of the Internet now rests on the hope that Obama has the balls to use the veto hammer. <vote poll=world4295 closed="yes">America - Greatest Country on Earth™, Land of the Free, Home of the Brave®, where everyone can live their American Dream©! And more than one in five children lives in poverty. <vote poll=world4294 closed="yes"> Apparently it now takes an all-out Twitter swearfest for Canadians to notice that their current government has completely shut down debate on five major bills in a little more than a month, the worst abuse of such a tool in the country's history. <vote poll=world4293 closed="yes">This is your brain on sex. <vote poll=world4292 closed="yes">Virgin Money buys back Northern Rock from the UK government - Well, only the useful and profitable part of it. For about half of what the government effectively paid for it. While the government still retains all the debt. George Osborne calls this a "good thing". <vote poll=world4291 closed="yes">McGill Scientist gets 5 million big ones to promote science awareness and to fight woo. <vote poll=world4290 closed="yes">VIDEO: Because Victoria Jackson's bigotry and fondness for teh stoopid cannot be contained, she has created a TV web-based talk show that has been called a homophobic, Islamophobic, et cetera version of The View.

<vote poll=world4289 closed="yes">Herman Cain: "I'm not supposed to know anything about foreign policy. Just thought I'd throw that out."

<vote poll=world4287 closed="yes">Obama on his re-election campaign strategy: "We may just run clips of the Republican debates verbatim." <vote poll=world4286 closed="yes">Ever just want to get away from your wireless devices and traffic when you're on vacation? Well, North Korea might just be the place for you. You will have a good time (or else!)

<vote poll=world4285 closed="yes">WTF of the Day: Just read the goddamn article. <vote poll=world4284 closed="yes">Mayor Quan co-ordinates with other cities a crackdown on Occupy movements and then talks out of her ass saying that Occupy has been infiltrated by anarchists and completely misses the point of the Occupy movement. <vote poll=world4283 closed="yes">Rick Perry's great new idea: "Lets privatize Homeland Security!" Wait, WTF? <vote poll=world4282 closed="yes">Randroids rising. <vote poll=world4281 closed="yes">The next great threat to animals according to PETA? Super Mario! Hope no one tells them about Sonic the hedgehog.</Vote> <vote poll=world4280 closed="yes">Ian Paisley sets off into the sunset with a no doubt lucrative book deal on the horizon. <vote poll=world4279 closed="yes">The first on the chopping block by the US bi-partisan deficit reduction committee: the entire F-35 fighter program. Guess this blockhead won't be happy. <vote poll=world4278 closed="yes">Bloomberg orders Zuccotti Park Liberty Plaza to be cleared out. <vote poll=world4277 closed="yes">Tobacco -- Leading the way for a green future? <vote poll=world4276 closed="yes">Co-founder of the fledgling social network site Diaspora found dead at the age of 22. <vote poll=world4275 closed="yes">The Supreme Court will review the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; it'll hear five hours of oral argument next March for an end-of-June decision. <vote poll=world4274 closed="yes">After a Russian Soyuz crash almost crippled the ISS in August, manned flights resume again, fingers crossed. Make sure you see 0.21 for lulz. <vote poll=world4273 closed="yes">Darn job killin' creatin' neutral regulations. <vote poll=world4272 closed="yes">Atlas Shrugged: "Ayn Rand's timeless novel of courage and self-sacrifice," says the newly released DVD of the miserable film. Oops. <vote poll=world4271 closed="yes">Perry, Cain, Bachmann, and aides of Mitt Romney openly admit that they would violate the Geneva Conventions if elected. Only Huntsman and Paul disagree. <vote poll=world4270 closed="yes">Ford's Theater deputy superintendent on Bill O'Reilly's "history" of the Lincoln assassination: [http://www.salon.com/2011/11/12/fords_theatre_flunks_oreillys_lincoln_book/singleton/ This is a National HISTORIC Site. We don't sell propagandistic bullshit books in our bookstore!] <vote poll=world4269 closed="yes">University has a course on "Homosexuality as Gateway Drug". That the university is located in Waco, Texas is surely a coincidence. <vote poll=world4268 closed="yes">Occupy Portland channels Joe Paterno. <vote poll=world4267 closed="yes">District court judge calls bullshit on anti-gay groups' persecution complex. <vote poll=world4266 closed="yes">Ok guys. Who farted out radioactive isotopes? <vote poll=world4265 closed="yes">After weeks of attacks on the CBC, the people have responded: fuck off. Those who were more likely to want funding decreased/eliminated were, not surprisingly, Conservative men in Alberta over the age of 50 (aka. those who would vote Republican if they had the chance).

<vote poll=world4264 closed="yes">Mittens "Me Mormon? - look over there!" Romney would have a better chance of winning GOP'ers over if he was black. <vote poll=world4263 closed="yes">OWS spawns a fledgling third party in Ohio. Just give it a better name, guys. <vote poll=world4262 closed="yes">"Watch Rick Perry's campaign end before your eyes." "Ah done my lernin' from th'excellent Texas Board of Education textbooks ah did yessir let's BURN DOWN EDUCASHUN an' sum'n else which wun hangon ooops. <vote poll=world4261 closed="yes">Big warning from the International Energy Agency (which, since 2007, has been headed by centre-right politicians): If we can't establish a comprehensive renewable energy agreement by 2017, we're fucked. Update: More commentary from Joe Romm. <vote poll=world4260 closed="yes">Last week, a French publication was firebombed for criticising Islam - rather than shut up shop and give in, they respond brilliantly. <vote poll=world4259 closed="yes">The first approved set of exoskeleton legs go on sale for a mere £95,000! <vote poll=world4258 closed="yes">Ohioans repeal Governor Kasich's attempt to strip collective bargaining rights for public sector unions. <vote poll=world4257 closed="yes">Fertilized eggs are not people in Mississippi. <vote poll=world4256 closed="yes">Bush's Stepford Wife wants a third party to be formed, to "reform the tax code, so many of these large corporations that paid no taxes last year...maybe they would." Wait, what? <vote poll=world4255 closed="yes">Bye Bye Berlusconi! Update: "A chorus of Handel's 'Alleluia' rang out Saturday as Silvio Berlusconi resigned." <vote poll=world4254 closed="yes">Australia finally drags itself into the real world. <vote poll=world4253 closed="yes">Who cares if France banned the burka, Sarkozy is a Hamas-loving anti-Semite! /sarcasm <vote poll=world4252 closed="yes">Just what Mississippi needs, higher rates of teen pregnancy <vote poll=world4251 closed="yes">And that's number four. <vote poll=world4242 closed="yes">After a week-long clusterfuck of stupidity, The Paps still remains as Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic. And it doesn't help that this retard is the head of the next country needing massive austerity measures to keep the Euro afloat; as usual, his mind is on how nice Helle Thorning-Schmidt's ass is. Update: Never mind, Mr. Referendum will leave as a unity government is being formed.

<vote poll=world4250 closed="yes">Occupy Vancouver to be shut down after woman dies. <vote poll=world4249 closed="yes">Herman Cain caught sucking Koch. <vote poll=world4248 closed="yes">RIP one cranky old man. <vote poll=world4247 closed="yes">Archdiocese of Boston: Homosexuality is caused by Satan interfering with pregnant women. Oh yes, and he's responsible for natural disasters too. Update: Avila tenders his resignation. <vote poll=world4246 closed="yes">Robert Schuller: "My wife is ill. Please put food into limos to be delivered to her. <vote poll=world4245 closed="yes">Remember the (imaginary) "war on light bulbs"? Now there's a sequel. <vote poll=world4244 closed="yes">Ireland closes its Vatican embassy. <vote poll=world4243 closed="yes">What is the world coming to!!! Scottish Conservative Party elects a new leader: young (32), female and gay. <vote poll=world4241 closed="yes">Got screwed over by Screws News of the World? Click here. <vote poll=world4240 closed="yes">The institution of heterosexual marriage is the cornerstone of strong families and a normal society, unlike what teh gayz would do. <vote poll=world4239 closed="yes">Again, China? <vote poll=world4238 closed="yes">Lowest corporate tax rates in Canadian history, largest job loss since the recession. Keep signing the tax cut blood oath... <vote poll=world4237 closed="yes">Orly Taitz is running for the United States Senate. O RLY? <vote poll=world4236 closed="yes">A Texas court refuses to grant a DNA test that could exonerate a death row inmate. At this point, Texas should just drop the pretense of being a civilized state concerned with administering justice and simply hold a lottery to determine which innocent person, whether or not he's a child or mentally retarded, to execute to more efficiently sate its bloodlust. <vote poll=world4235 closed="yes">Science's next brilliant idea - build the Death Star tearing a hole in the very fabric of space. <vote poll=world4234 closed="yes">Would Republicans leave the United States' infrastructure to rot, just to oppose Obama? The answer, no surprise, is... happily so! <vote poll=world4233 closed="yes">Germany/France to Greece: If you don't take the money, GTFO the EU. Watching the world economy crumbling to the ground is now getting strangely entertaining. <vote poll=world4232 closed="yes">America is a country of deep income divisions, divided into two classes - the 99% of us who aren't millionaires, and [http://slatest.slate.com/posts/2011/11/02/conservative_study_finds_teachers_are_overpaid.html? the filthy rich teachers of America who lord it over the rest of society]. Their only goal? To live in Luxembourg. <vote poll=world4231 closed="yes">This is probably the most sense Rick Perry will ever make. <vote poll=world4230 closed="yes">So, how did Andrea Rossi's latest cold fusion test go? You can probably guess. <vote poll=world4229 closed="yes">Church of England reads their own brochures and realises the protestors might have a point.

<vote poll=world4228 closed="yes">Screw the irony meter - we now need a. Update: The satirist in question rips Perry a new one. <vote poll=world4227 closed="yes">Just clicking this headline is a waste of your time. <vote poll=world4226 closed="yes">If conservatives couldn't get any lower... <vote poll=world4225 closed="yes">Greek PM George Papandreou will now ask the largest angry mob in the world on what they think of his trillion-dollar bailout plan. Update: Hold on to your Euros, it's going to be a wild ride. <vote poll=world4224 closed="yes">One Japanese MP has some giant balls. Update: The steel testicles are everywhere today!