SeaWorld Burglars Turn Out to Be ... Frat Pledges
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Chinese Premier Li Keqiang gives an address during a news conference with French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault (not pictured) in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing December 6, 2013.
Credit: Reuters/Mark Ralston/Pool
The use of drones is much resented by many Pakistanis who resent the high levels of civilian casualties
US Secretary of State John Kerry has concluded a visit to Pakistan by pledging to end drone strikes against militants “very, very soon”.
Correspondents say his comments are intended as a message to ease anti-American resentment in strategically important Pakistan.
On Thursday Mr Kerry agreed to resume high-level talks over security issues.
The talks were stalled after 24 Pakistani soldiers were killed by the US on the Afghan border in 2011.
‘Sovereignty violation’
CIA drone strikes strikes have killed up to 3,460 people in Pakistan since 2004.
Most strikes take place in the troubled border region of North Waziristan, which is regarded as an al-Qaeda and Taliban stronghold.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who won elections in May, met Mr Kerry on Thursday.
Mr Sharif has consistently demanded an end to such attacks, saying they violate Pakistan’s sovereignty.
His foreign affairs adviser, Sartaj Aziz, told reporters the US should stop the strikes “not just curtail them”.
Correspondents say the issue is complicated by the fact that some Pakistani officials have been accused of criticising the use of drones in public while co-operating with them in private.
‘Constructive and positive’
“I think the programme will end as we have eliminated most of the threat and continue to eliminate it,” Mr Kerry said in a television interview.
“The president has a very real timeline and we hope it’s going to be very, very soon,” he said when asked whether the US had a schedule for ending the strikes.
Analysts say his comments went further than those of President Barack Obama, who said in a 23 May speech that drone strikes would decrease in “the Afghan war theatre” as US troops withdraw by the end of 2014.
The number of strikes has fallen significantly over the past 30 months – totalling 17 so far this year compared to 48 in all of 2012 and 73 in 2011, according to estimates compiled by the New America Foundation.
Speaking after meeting Mr Sharif on Thursday, Mr Kerry said their talks were “constructive” and “positive”.
“We are here to speak honestly with each other, openly about any gaps that may exist that we want to try to bridge,” Mr Kerry said. “Our people deserve that we talk directly.”
U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz gestures during an interview with Reuters in Vienna June 30, 2013.
Credit: Reuters/Leonhard Foeger
VIENNA |
VIENNA (Reuters) – Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said on Sunday he expected to have a “fair amount of action” during 2013 in evaluating applications by companies to export natural gas from the United States.
“I’m planning to go through them as rapidly as I can … I certainly expect to have a fair amount of action this year,” Moniz, who took office last month, said in an interview in the Austrian capital.
U.S. companies hoping to export natural gas are frustrated by lengthy delays and rule changes as they await Department of Energy approval of their applications.
But some U.S. manufacturers and lawmakers have warned that a rapid and unlimited push to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) could lead to a sharp rise in gas prices and harm consumers and energy-intensive industries.
(Reporting by Fredrik Dahl; editing by Jane Baird)
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A shopper selects produce at a Wal-Mart in Deptford, N.J.
Matt Rourke/AP
The nation’s largest retailer announced Monday that it will be delivering produce from farms to stores faster by buying fruits and vegetables directly from growers.
The plan is to source about 80 percent of fresh produce directly, explained Jack Sinclair, executive vice president of the food business for Wal-Mart U.S., during a conference call that we participated Monday morning.
In many instances, Sinclair says it will be possible to “cut out the middleman,” but he added that local wholesalers will continue to “play an important role for us in the areas we serve.”
The announcement comes on the heels of complaints that Wal-Mart isn’t staffing its stores with enough employees to stock shelves efficiently or manage produce, resulting in complaints about the freshness of fruits and vegetables on display. As The New York Times reported in April, internal Wal-Mart memos showed the company struggling with “low customer confidence in its produce and poor quality.”
To address such concerns, Sinclair says, Wal-Mart will launch Fresh Produce School training for 70,000 associates. Managers and employees will be taught, for example, to identify fruits and vegetables that should no longer be on the shelves — and in general, they’ll learn more about handling of produce.
And if Wal-Mart shoppers aren’t happy with the quality of a peach or pear, the retailing giant is reinforcing its commitment to a 100 percent money-back guarantee.
Sinclair says there’s no need to return the food item: Just bring in a receipt and the store will refund shoppers for the full amount, “no questions asked.”
Sinclair said Wal-Mart is on target to meet its commitment to increase the amount of local produce found in retail stores by the year 2015 (a pledge made in 2010). There have been complaints, however, that some small farmers aren’t benefiting from the initiative.
And with the goal of making nutritious food more affordable, Sinclair says Wal-Mart is open to new opportunities. One incentive program I wrote about in March, where health insurers nudge shoppers to buy broccoli instead of brownies by offering rebates, is an example of attempts to incentivize healthy choices.
The House voted 36 times to fully repeal or replace Obamacare in the last session of Congress, but freshmen members have not yet had the opportunity to do so.
“I am pleased Eric Cantor has scheduled a vote to repeal Obamacare,” Republican freshman Rep. Trey Radel of Florida told Newsmax. “When even the architects of the bill are referring to it as a train wreck, it’s clear Obamacare is a terrible policy.”
The limited-government, free-market Club for Growth welcomed the upcoming House vote.
“We strongly support the full repeal of Obamacare and we hope that Congress acts to stop this disastrous, anti-growth monstrosity,” Club for Growth spokesman Barney Keller told Newsmax.
As he released the House legislative schedule for May, Cantor said that the House will also vote on tying student loan interest rates to market rates for federal borrowing. The House voted to extend the current rate of 3.4 percent last summer when it was scheduled to increase to 6.8 percent. The current extension runs out at the end of June.
“In the near-term this is expected to provide an interest rate lower than the 6.8 percent fixed in law and over the long-term provide savings for taxpayers,” Cantor said, adding that it will take the politics out setting interest rates and provide a long-term fix.
The House will also vote on the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, creating accountability with the Securities and Exchange Commission, responding to the U.S. hitting its limit on borrowing over the summer, a flex-time bill for private-sector workers, and funding pediatric research.
Cantor said that the House Republicans can expect a heavy workload after it returns from a Memorial Day recess at the end of the month.
“We have a busy legislative agenda planned this summer and our schedule will undoubtedly require further additions,” he said.
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