Soyinka
| credits: File copy
| credits: File copy
Playwright and Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka, says the President Goodluck Jonathan administration does not deserve a second term.
(Photo: shutterstock)
Warning: Stocks Will Collapse by 50%
It is only a matter of time before the stock market plunges by 50% or more, according to several reputable experts.
“We have no right to be surprised by a severe and imminent stock market crash,” explains Mark Spitznagel, a hedge fund manager who is notorious for his hugely profitable billion-dollar bet on the 2008 crisis. “In fact, we must absolutely expect it."
Unfortunately Spitznagel isn’t alone.
“We have no right to be surprised by a severe and imminent stock market crash,” explains Mark Spitznagel, a hedge fund manager who is notorious for his hugely profitable billion-dollar bet on the 2008 crisis. “In fact, we must absolutely expect it."
Unfortunately Spitznagel isn’t alone.
SA moves to stage 3 load shedding
Cape Town - Eskom moved from stage 2 to stage 3 load shedding at 16:00 on Thursday, which is expected to continue until 23:00. This is due to a further shortage of generation capacity as additional units have had to be taken out of service for unplanned maintenance caused by technical faults, the power utility said in a power alert.
In a tweet, Eskom said while it had implemented stage 3, it would only load shed as much as was necessary, indicating that some people might not feel the affects of that schedule.
Nigeria, Chad, others launch joint operation against B’Haram
• Chadian soldiers at the Nigerian border town of Gamboru in Borno State ... on Wednesday.
| credits: AFP.
| credits: AFP.
A total of 3,600 foreign soldiers
from Nigeria’s francophone neigbours have been deployed to work
alongside the Nigerian component of the Multi National Joint Task Force
to fight the members of the Boko Haram Islamic sect.
Investigation conducted by our
correspondent revealed that Chad with 2, 500 soldiers contributed the
largest number of troops to the new offensive against the sect.
Have you seen Toyin Aimakhu’s selfie with President Jonathan?
( Toyin Aimakhu-Johnson has officially declared her support for Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election bid. Photo: Toyin Aimaku)
Nollywood actress, Toyin Aimakhu-Johnson has officially declared her support for Goodluck Jonathan‘s re-election bid.The actress and producer, who is also the vice president of the AGN, was present at the recent meeting between Nollywood practitioners and Jonathan recently in Lagos and has shared a selfie with Nigeria’s number 1 citizen.
Toyin shared the pictures on Instagram today with the caption: ‘Selfie with our president….I love him very humble..#mychoice.’
© NET Newspapers 2014. All Rights Reserved. Please use sharing tools. Do not cut, copy or lift any content from this website without our consent.
Meet your 2015 governorship candidates [ABIA]
Tiwa Savage’s Husband Teebillz Did The Most Amazing Thing To Her Baby Bump…. And We Love Him For It – PHOTO!
Burna Boy, 2face, Ice Prince, DJ Jimmy Jatt… Others Party with AKA – PHOTOS
He was supported by Nigerian superstars including Burna Boy, who he featured on his hit track All Eyes on Me, Ice Prince who they worked together on N Word, legendary 2face Idibia and Nigeria’s most celebrated DJ, Dj Jimmy Jatt was also in attendance.
We didn’t offer pastors N6bn bribe –PDP
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh
| credits: trends.com.ng
| credits: trends.com.ng
The
national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party said it did not
offer a bribe of N6bn to some Christian leaders for the purpose of
helping President Goodluck Jonathan to win the February 14 presidential
election.
[Photos] Desmond Elliot Celebrates Birthday With Family and Friends
Nollywood actor/director and APC House of Assembly aspirant, Desmond Elliot added another year yesterday February 4th.
Desmond’s wife, family and friends celebrated his day with a small intimate birthday party.
SSAnother photo below:
INEC: Ballot papers ready, 48 million PVCs distributed
Nigerian permanent voters card
The Independent National Electoral
Commission on Wednesday said that the ballot papers for this month’s
general elections were ready.
The spokesman for the INEC’s National Chairman, Kayode Idowu, made this known to The PUNCH just as feelers indicated that in Abuja that Thursday’s(today) Council of State meeting might be stormy.
Dbanj Reacts To Reports Of Amber Rose Walking Out Of His Party
Dbanj has however cleared the air through his publicist, Bukky Karibi-Whyte, who issued the statement below:
‘My Dear Media Friends that attended our event. I am sending this email to clear the air on some stories that circulated this morning regarding Amber Rose leaving D’banj’s Party. ‘Please be advised that Amber Rose DID NOT storm out of the venue as indicated by some blogs. She arrived in Nigeria that same evening from another show in Amsterdam (5.50pm), went straight to her hotel, and then eventually came as D’banj’s date to the party. ‘Amber Rose did leave early because she was tired (long flights) and was escorted back to her nearby hotel by D’banjs entourage and security.’…
Islamic State: Can its savagery be explained? - omonaijamp3
Since
the sudden appearance of the extremist Sunni Islamic State (IS), the
group has seized headlines with a shocking level of blood-letting and
cruelty - but can its savagery be explained, asks Fawaz A Gerges.
Islamic State has become synonymous with viciousness -
beheadings, crucifixions, stonings, massacres, burying victims alive and
religious and ethnic cleansing.Can you stop a paedophile before they even start? - omonaijamp3
Between
1-2% of men are thought to be paedophiles. Some become dangerous
criminals preying on children, while others never act on their feelings.
However views are divided on how and when to intervene in order to
protect children.
In a terraced house in Barrow-in Furness, Cumbria, two mothers are looking intently at a computer screen.They are studying pictures of convicted paedophiles. The two women scan local newspapers and the internet for information about court cases, then update their website. Their mission is to name and shame men convicted of abusing children.
King Abdullah returns to Jordan after Islamic State kill pilot' - omonaijamp3
King Abdullah was greeted by crowds of supporters as he returned to Jordan after a trip to the US
King
Abdullah II has returned to Jordan for crisis talks after curtailing a
trip to the US following the killing of a Jordanian pilot by Islamic
State.
'Sister Wives' star divorces one wife, marries another
(CNN)The world's highest-profile polygamist now has a new wife ... sort of.
Kody
Brown and his four wives -- Meri, Christine, Janelle and Robyn -- star
in the TLC series "Sister Wives," a reality show about life with their
family,
Obamacare, Back at the Supreme Court: Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the King v. Burwell case important?
Big stakes—both human and political.
What is the case about?
Who gets federal subsidies to help pay for health insurance
How is the court likely to rule?
It's a close call.
Who could lose subsidies?
Six million people immediately. Up to 10 million over time.
Would other people be affected too?
Yes, a decision for the plaintiffs could disrupt insurance markets.
What are the two sides' arguments?
They disagree on the meaning of one phrase in the health law.
If the plaintiffs win, what will the Obama administration do?
Make it as easy as possible for states to establish exchanges.
Why would Republicans want to help save the subsidies?
It could help them obtain other concesssions on the health law.
How is this case different from the 2012 Obamacare case?
It’s narrower, but still significant.
Which states are most likely to respond?
A few are close to running their own exchanges.
Who is bringing this case?
Four individuals, backed by an advocacy organization.
When will the case be decided?
Probably in June.
:
Why is the King v. Burwell case important?
↖ Back to top
The case is one of this year's most
important news subjects. It has the potential to roll back a major
portion of Obamacare — the subsidies that some 6 million middle-income
people, across more than 30 states, now receive to buy health insurance.
Without those subsidies, many people would not be able to afford health
insurance. And without those people in the insurance markets, prices
are likely to rise for everyone else. A victory for the plaintiffs would
represent a major blow to the health law.
:
What is the case about?
↖ Back to top
The Affordable Care Act — the
official name for the heath law — sets up marketplaces in every state
where people who don’t have insurance can shop for individual health
plans. Most blue states set up their own marketplaces, known as
exchanges. Most red states did not, instead allowing the federal
government to do so. Across all states, about 85 percent of customers
qualify for federal subsidies to help pay for the coverage, based on
their income.
One section of the law says that subsidies should flow to customers.
Plaintiffs argue that language means that only people in the state-run
marketplaces--and not those in federally run marketplaces--can get the
subsidies.
:
How is the court likely to rule?
↖ Back to top
The fact that the court agreed to
hear the case suggests that at least four justices are already giving
serious consideration to rolling back those subsidies. (For the court to
hear a case, four justices must vote to accept it.)
Legal
experts assume that the four justices appointed by Democratic presidents
will all rule for the government; the question is whether any of the
five appointed by Republicans will join them and preserve the subsidies.
In 2012, Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the four Democratic
appointees and ruled the health-care law constitutional. He — along with
Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy — remains the Republican appointee
most likely to side with them again this time.
:
Who could lose subsidies?
↖ Back to top
Precise answers are hard, because
exchanges take several forms – not simply federal- or state-based -- and
both the Court and the federal government may have leeway in defining
what it means for an exchange to be “established by the state.” But the
subsidies could disappear in as many as 37 states, meaning about 6.2 million people would most likely lose their tax credits.
A decision for the plaintiffs would probably cancel the subsidies for a
majority of people nationwide with exchange plans so far. And more
people are expected to sign up for coverage through the exchanges in the
next few years, so the current estimates undercount the long-term effect of a ruling. Those affected would be predominantly white, Southern, employed and middle-aged.
:
Would other people be affected too?
↖ Back to top
Beyond the immediate cancellation of subsidies, a decision for the plaintiffs would also have secondary effects on insurance markets.
As subsidies disappear and most lower-income customers drop out of the
market, only the sickest such patients are likely to keep paying for
insurance. That, in turn, will lead to higher prices for everyone,
pricing out even people who don't now need subsidies.
A recent analysis
suggests that 1.4 million people who could otherwise pay their whole
premium themselves might lose coverage because they would no longer be
able to afford it.
:
What are the two sides' arguments?
↖ Back to top
The plaintiffs argue that the clear
language in one section of the law means that only residents of
state-run exchanges are allowed to receive subsidies. The exchanges
being managed by the federal government, they say, do not count as
“established by the state” under the law.
The Obama
administration says that the phrase is a term of art, which Congress
intended to mean both state and federally run marketplaces. They further
argue that many other parts of the law suggest that Congress intended
the money to go to people in every state. And there is a long history of
courts ruling that, if Congress says something confusing, then
interpreting the law falls to regulators and not courts.
:
If the plaintiffs win, what will the Obama administration do?
↖ Back to top
Obama administration officials are
keeping mum about any possible contingency planning around the case. But
if the court rules for the plaintiffs, the administration will most
likely do everything it can to help states that haven’t yet established
their own exchanges do so. Possibilities include loosening requirements
for what states must do to get an exchange approved and shifting
deadlines to make the process more flexible. Whatever the administration
does, it won’t be easy for states to set up exchanges quickly.
The broadest solution would involve working with Congress on a
legislative solution. A relatively simple change to the law — changing
just one phrase — would remove the legal doubt around the case. Of
course, most of these responses require cooperation from Republicans, in
states or in Congress.
:
Why would Republicans want to help save the subsidies?
↖ Back to top
Many Republicans have fought the law
at every turn and still favor repealing it. It's possible that
Republicans in Congress and in states would prefer to let the law
shrivel than to address any issues created by a Court decision.
But some legal experts think cooperation isn't out of the question.
Republican politicians may be sensitive to a situation in which millions
of their constituents lose their health insurance coverage. And some
Obamacare opponents recognize that the resulting crisis might create an
opportunity for negotiation with the White House, which has vowed to
veto most major legislative changes to the health law. It's likely that
insurers, fearing a breakdown in the marketplace, will lobby for a fix.
:
How is this case different from the 2012 Obamacare case?
↖ Back to top
The first case focused on
constitutional challenges: particularly, whether Congress could require
people to buy insurance or pay a penalty. The court ruled 5-4 that
Congress could. The King case concerns a more technical legal question
of how to interpret the law.
Another major difference is that the
King challenge is focused only on the question of premium subsidies. A
ruling against the government would have substantial effects. But it would not risk overturning the Affordable Care Act in its entirety.
The Medicaid expansions in many states would stand, as would
regulations of insurance company profits, changes to Medicare payments,
requirements that chain restaurants publish calorie counts, and the
requirement that young adults be offered coverage on their parents’
policies, among many other provisions of the complex law.
:
Which states are most likely to respond?
↖ Back to top
The states using the federal exchange are not uniform in their opposition to Obamacare. Eleven
of the states that could be affected have gone so far as to ask the
Supreme Court to preserve the subsidies. Seven states, including
Illinois and Arkansas, are currently splitting management duties with
the federal government, in a kind of partnership. If subsidies were at
stake, those states might be more likely to take over the rest of
exchange management, though it would take a lot of work.
There are also three states, Nevada, New Mexico and Oregon, that
planned to run their own exchanges, but then switched to parts of the
federal system after their computer systems failed. They could
potentially try to fix those systems to keep their subsidies Of course, many other states have shown little enthusiasm for exchange-building. Some big states, including Florida and Texas, are in this category. Seven states, including North Carolina and Missouri, have even passed laws preventing their governors from pursuing exchange-building activities.
:
Who is bringing this case?
↖ Back to top
Four individuals — David King,
Douglas Hurst, Brenda Levy and Rose Luck — are suing to challenge the
federal government’s offer of subsidies to them. All four live in
Virginia, a state that did not set up its own exchange. The plaintiffs
object to a provision of the law that requires everyone who can afford
insurance to obtain it or pay a tax penalty. If subsidies in Virginia
were cut off, the plaintiffs would no longer be required to buy coverage
because it would no longer be considered affordable under the law.
They
are not the only people to challenge the law — cases in other states
were brought by people with similar circumstances — but theirs is the
one the Supreme Court took. The case has been funded by an organization
called the Competitive Enterprise Institute. The lead lawyer on the case, Michael Carvin,
from the law firm Jones Day, also worked on the 2012 challenge to the
Affordable Care Act. The Obama administration defendants — including
Sylvia Mathews Burwell, Mr. Obama’s Secretary of Health and Human
Services — are represented by the Justice Department.
:
When will the case be decided?
↖ Back to top
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear
oral arguments on the case on March 4, which means it won’t rule before
then. Typically, the Court announces its opinions in its biggest cases
at the very end of its term, in late June. There’s no hard and fast rule
that it has to save this case for last, but given the intense public
interest, it is likely to be one of the final decisions of the term.
In
the meantime, both sides in the case, and many interested outside
parties, will be filing written briefs with the courts. The website
SCOTUSblog is compiling them.
Correction: February 3, 2015
An earlier version of this article misstated the source of funding for lawsuits challenging the Affordable Care Act’s rules on subsidies. Two of them, including King v. Burwell, have been funded by the Competitive Enterprise Institute; the institute has not funded all such cases.
An earlier version of this article misstated the source of funding for lawsuits challenging the Affordable Care Act’s rules on subsidies. Two of them, including King v. Burwell, have been funded by the Competitive Enterprise Institute; the institute has not funded all such cases.
More Women Than Ever in Congress, but With Less Power Than Before
Battles Continue Outside Syria's Kobani After Kurds Claim Victory Reuters Posted: 01/27/2015 7:41 am EST Updated: 01/27/2015 6:59 pm EST KOBANI Share 28 Tweet 11 Comment 6 Share on Google+ (Adds details from Kobani, Turkish police prevent people reentering) By Sylvia Westall BEIRUT, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Kurdish forces battled Islamic State fighters outside Kobani on Tuesday, a monitoring group said, a day after Kurds said they had taken full control of the northern Syrian town following a four-month battle. Known as Ayn al-Arab in Arabic, the mainly Kurdish town close to the Turkish border has become a focal point in the international fight against Islamic State, an al Qaeda offshoot that has spread across Syria and Iraq. There were clashes to the southeast and southwest of Kobani, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, although it added the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) had managed to recapture a village outside the town. The YPG said on Monday Kobani had been "completely liberated" from Islamic State, which it referred to using the pejorative Arabic acronym "Daesh." "The defeat of Daesh in Kobani will be the beginning of the end for the group," a statement on its website said. Islamic State still has fighters in hundreds of nearby villages. The Observatory reported airstrikes around Kobani on Tuesday, and on Monday the Pentagon said the fight for the town was not yet over. Islamic State supporters denied the group had been pushed out. Television footage aired on Tuesday from Kobani showed entire blocks leveled by bombardment, tangled steel and chunks of cement sprawled along muddy streets. Roads were littered with unexploded ordnance and mortar casings. The militant group launched an assault on Kobani last year using heavy weapons seized in Iraq and forcing tens of thousands of locals over the border into Turkey. U.S.-led air strikes and Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga fighters have backed up the YPG, which called for international help during the siege. Turkey is hosting around 1.5 million refugees from across Syria. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan called for more international attention to the besieged city of Aleppo. "When it is about Kobani, the whole world stands up and cooperates. Those who flee Kobani come to us, 200,000 people. "We tell them about Aleppo, nobody listens. 1.2 million people live there, there is economy, history and culture, why aren't you interested?" he said. Ankara is wary of support for Syrian Kurds because of their links to the separatist PKK in Turkey, currently holding a ceasefire in a conflict that began in 1984. Turkish police fired tear gas on Tuesday to stop people trying to cross back into Kobani to celebrate its retaking, a Kurdish politician and a journalist said. (Additional reporting by Oliver Holmes in Beirut, Tulay Karadeniz in Ankara and Ayla Jean Yackley, Dasha Afanasieva and Humeyra Pamuk in Istanbul; Editing by Dominic Evans)
By omonaijamp3
BEIRUT, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Kurdish forces battled Islamic State fighters outside Kobani on Tuesday, a monitoring group said, a day after Kurds said they had taken full control of the northern Syrian town following a four-month battle.
The World's Greatest Lost Treasures, Still Waiting To Be Found
These days, thanks largely to Google Earth, it seems not an inch of this planet is left unexplored or a single treasure left undiscovered. But that’s just not true. Some of the world’s most incredible riches, from pirate treasures to royal jewels, are still out there somewhere, lost, waiting to be found.
Some of them are legendary and a mere mention spurs the imagination: the Holy Grail, sought after for centuries by devout men hoping to find the cup that once held the blood of Christ. Or El Dorado, the mythical Incan city paved with gold and unimaginable treasure that drove waves of conquistadores mad with greed.
Deadly Car Bomb Explodes After President's Rally In Nigeria
GOMBE, Nigeria, Feb 2 (Reuters) - A car bomb went off near a stadium in the northeastern Nigerian city of Gombe on Monday, a few minutes after President Goodluck Jonathan left a party rally there.
Kurdish Fighters In Iraq Struggle To Hold Gains Against ISIS
"Smoking is banned" has been scribbled in Arabic outside one cafe. A nearby building bears the warning: "Submit to the Islamic State, you infidels."
Has the Greek Revolt Buried German Austerity?
BERLIN -- Not long ago, German politicians and journalists confidently declared that the euro crisis was over; Germany and the European Union, they believed, had weathered the storm. Today, we know that this was just another mistake in an ongoing crisis that has been full of them. The latest error, as with most of the earlier ones, stemmed from wishful thinking -- and, once again, it is Greece that has broken the reverie.
Even before the leftist Syriza party's overwhelming victory in Greece's recent general election, it was obvious that, far from being over, the crisis was threatening to worsen. Austerity -- the policy of saving your way out of a demand shortfall -- simply does not work. In a shrinking economy, a country's debt-to-GDP ratio rises rather than falls, and Europe's recession-ridden crisis countries have now saved themselves into a depression, resulting in mass unemployment, alarming levels of poverty and scant hope.
Warnings of a severe political backlash went unheeded. Shadowed by Germany's deep-seated inflation taboo, Chancellor Angela Merkel's government stubbornly insisted that the pain of austerity was essential to economic recovery; the EU had little choice but to go along. Now, with Greece's voters having driven out their country's exhausted and corrupt elite in favor of a party that has vowed to end austerity, the backlash has arrived.
But, though Syriza's victory may mark the start of the next chapter in the euro crisis, the political -- and possibly existential -- danger that Europe faces runs deeper. The Swiss National Bank's unexpected abandonment of the franc's euro peg on Jan. 15, though posing no immediate financial threat, was an enormous psychological blow, one that reflected and reinforced a massive loss of confidence. The euro, as the SNB's move implied, remains as fragile as ever. And the subsequent decision by the European Central Bank to purchase more than €1 trillion ($1.14 trillion) in eurozone governments' bonds, though correct and necessary, has dimmed confidence further.
The Greek election outcome was foreseeable for more than a year. If negotiations between the "troika" (the European Commission, the ECB, and the International Monetary Fund) and the new Greek government succeed, the result will be a face-saving compromise for both sides; if no agreement is reached, Greece will default.
Though no one can say what a Greek default would mean for the euro, it would certainly entail risks to the currency's continued existence. Just as surely, the mega-disaster that might result from a eurozone breakup would not spare Germany.
A compromise would de facto result in a loosening of austerity, which entails significant domestic risks for Merkel (though less than a failure of the euro would). But, in view of her immense popularity at home, including within her own party, Merkel is underestimating the options at her disposal. She could do much more, if only she trusted herself.
In the end, she may have no choice. Given the impact of the Greek election outcome on political developments in Spain, Italy, and France, where anti-austerity sentiment is similarly running high, political pressure on the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers -- from both the right and the left -- will increase significantly. It does not take a prophet to predict that the latest chapter of the euro crisis will leave Germany's austerity policy in tatters -- unless Merkel really wants to take the enormous risk of letting the euro fail.
There is no indication that she does. So, regardless of which side -- the troika or the new Greek government -- moves first in the coming negotiations, Greece's election has already produced an unambiguous defeat for Merkel and her austerity-based strategy for sustaining the euro. Simultaneous debt reduction and structural reforms, we now know, will overextend any democratically elected government because they overtax its voters. And, without growth, there will be no structural reforms, either, however necessary they may be.
That is Greece's lesson for Europe. The question now is not whether the German government will accept it, but when. Will it take a similar debacle for Spain's conservatives in that country's coming election to force Merkel to come to terms with reality?
Nothing but growth will decide the future of the euro. Even Germany, the EU's biggest economy, faces an enormous need for infrastructure investment. If its government stopped seeing "zero new debt" as the Holy Grail, and instead invested in modernizing the country's transport, municipal infrastructure, and digitization of households and industry, the euro -- and Europe -- would receive a mighty boost. Moreover, a massive public investment program could be financed at exceptionally low (and, for Germany, conceivably even negative) interest rates.
The eurozone's cohesion and the success of its necessary structural reforms -- and thus its very survival -- now depend on whether it can overcome its growth deficit. Germany has room for fiscal maneuver. The message from Greece's election is that Merkel should use it, before it is too late.
© Project Syndicate sourcehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/joschka-fischer/greece-german-austerity_b_6592032.html?utm_hp_ref=world