The Syrian War What You're Not Being Told

Published on Sep 3, 2013 | What's really going on in Syria?

The Pathology of the Rich

- Chris Hedges on Reality Asserts Itself (1/2)

Published on 5 Dec 2013 | with Paul Jay, Chris Hedges discusses the psychology of the super rich; their sense of entitlement, the dehumanization of workers, and mistaken belief that their wealth will insulate them from the coming storms

Top 5 Conspiracy Theories That Are True!

Published on Oct 22, 2013 | Abby Martin speaks with BTS producer Manuel Rapalo about a few of the most shocking US government conspiracies that turned out to be true.

Saudi Agenda...TRNN discussion

Al Qaeda and the Saudi Agenda - Toby Jones on Reality Asserts Itself (1/2)

Published on 15 Jan 2014 -Toby Jones tells Paul Jay that the Saudis use of terrorism is driven by a fear of democracy and a desire to be the regional and oil hegemon

Are the Saudi's Fueling a Sunni-Shia War?

Published on 16 Jan 2014 | Toby Jones, a Prof. at Rutgers University specializing in Middle East history, tells Paul Jay the Saudis are committed to victory in their rivalry with Iran and use money and sectarian ideology to achieve their geo-political interests

China Pulverizes $10 Million Worth of Ivory in Fight Against Illegal Trade

Today China destroyed six tons of ivory from its official stockpile in an effort to discourage the ongoing trade the illicit substance. China is one of the world’s biggest markets for ivory from elephant tusks due to the material’s perceived value as a status symbol and the country’s growing middle class. Even though the Chinese government still has an undisclosed amount of ivory stored away, wildlife groups say the unprecedented move shows growing concern about the black market trade by authorities.

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London's famous black cabs are going to the Japanese?

2015 London Taxi Nissan NV200 World Premiere

Published on 6 Jan 2014 : Nissan's newly-redesigned taxi has been developed for London, in London, by Nissan Design Europe (NDE) in Paddington, the same design centre responsible for the Qashqai and Juke. The new taxi will be launched in December 2014 with a modern, clean, 1.6-litre petrol engine equipped with an automatic gearbox. Furthermore, Nissan will launch a zero emission electric version of the NV200 taxi in 2015.

More Details here:

London's famous black cabs are going green

Published on 6 Jan 2014 ; London's famous black cabs are going green. And Japanese technology aims to help Britain's capital city from being choked with exhaust fumes. Al Jazeera's Simon McGregor-Wood reports from London.

India Downgrades Diplomatic Ties with the US

Renewable Energy Now Cheaper Than Fossil Fuel

Renewable energy is becoming more and more competitive. Alternative and renewable energy sources are increasingly becoming more affordable. According to a new study published in the Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, it is now less costly in America to get electricity from wind turbines and solar panels, than it is to get it from coal-fired power plants. The study shows, when climate change costs and other health impacts were factored in, that it is even more cost effective to convert an existing coal-fired power plant with a wind turbine, than it is to keep the old fossil fuel-burning plant.

Unsubsidized renewable energy is now cheaper than electricity from coal and gas power stations in Australia as well. Wind farms in Australia can produce energy at AU$80/MWh. Meanwhile, coal plants are producing energy at AU$143/MWh and gas at AU$116/MWh. And the myth that alternative energy sources were enormously more costly than the typical fossil fuels, is proving to be untrue. And after initial investment costs are waged, making them now ameliorated, and the raw materials for solar and wind power are free, besides costs of upkeep, and the harvesting of those sources doesn’t cause mayhem to the environment. Making it an ever-more appealing alternative energy source.

“The perception that fossil fuels are cheap and renewables are expensive is now out of date… The fact that wind power is now cheaper than coal and gas in a country with some of the world’s best fossil fuel resources shows that clean energy is a game changer which promises to turn the economics of power systems on its head,” – Michael Liebreich, chief executive of Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

“Burning coal is a very costly way to make electricity. There are more efficient and sustainable ways to get power,… We can reduce health and climate change costs while reducing the dangerous carbon pollution driving global warming.” – Dr. Laurie Johnson, chief economist in the Climate and Clean Air Program at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Since 1990, wind-generated power has grown 26 percent per year, and solar has risen 48 percent. In the United States, renewable energy accounted for 13.2 percent of the domestically produced electricity in 2012. U.S. wind power installed capacity now exceeds 60,000 MW and supplies 3% of the nations electricity. Not very inspiring figures. But the interest in finding new, cheaper, preferably renewable sources are inspiring innovation. Researchers at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) developed an inexpensive solar cell that can be painted or printed on flexible plastic sheets. Which can then essentially be slapped onto a wall, roof, or billboard, in order to create a power station for the homeowner. In an effort to create something more affordable, Twin Creeks Technologies, a US-based solar energy company, created an ultra-thin solar cell that will cost half as much to produce as comparable cells.

Perovskites (a calcium titanium oxide mineral species composed of calcium titanate) have been known for over a century, but no one thought to try them in solar cells until recently. “While conventional silicon solar panels use materials that are about 180 micrometers thick, the new solar cells (using perovskites) use less than one micrometer of material to capture the same amount of sunlight.” New research on the combination, aims to reduce the cost or solar panels to between 10 and 20 cents per watt, current panels typically cost around 75 cents per watt.

Renewable energy sources (such as Hydro and wind) are expected to be plentiful enough to supply the needs of humanity for almost a billion years. We do not have to worry about renewable energy sources being depleted. And they are cleaner sources of energy which have a lower environmental impact than conventional sources.

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Gold mine creates controversy in Romania

Published on 12 Nov 2013 | Romania's Parliament debates whether to explore a massive new gold mine, in the Carpathian Mountains, which could contribute billions of dollars to the economy over 16 years, but opponents say might destroy the natural environment. Protests against it have rattled the governing coalition. Al Jazeera's John Psaropoulos reports from the Romanian village at the heart of the controversy

Sarah Harrison and Jeremy Hammond: People Have A Right to the Truth

Published on 10 Nov 2013 | Michael Ratner: Jeremy Hammond faces ten years in prison Nov. 15 for major act of civil disobedience hacking global intelligence.

100,000 overseas Filipino workers in Saudi face jail, deportation?

P2 billion reintegration fund ready for OFWs - Palace

MANILA -- The government is ready to assist Filipinos who have yet to come home from Saudi Arabia as a result of an immigration law.

An analyst, however, fears more than 100,000 overseas Filipino workers could be arrested if they are found to be working with employers other than their original visa sponsors.

Lito Soriano, a migration and recruitment consultant, said the Saudi government is bent on weeding out undocumented OFWs and other expatriates because of the so-called “Saudization.”

Citing a Commission on Overseas Filipinos data, Soriano said there are around 108,000 irregular or undocumented Filipinos in Saudi Arabia as of December 2012.

The Saudi king has yet to respond to a letter of Vice President Jejomar Binay seeking another extension of the four-month grace period given in July. The amnesty period, which allows foreign nationals to correct their statuses or return to their home countries, lapses on November 3.

Soriano said the Ministry of Labor there has already ruled out an extension. Countrywide raids are expected on November 4, he said.

“The inspection of commercial premises will begin on Monday as planned. Various arms of the ministry are ready for the inspections. The government agencies, however, will not arrest those holding relevant documents and waiting to legalize their status or be repatriated,” he said.

In an interview on radio dzRB, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. assured the OFWs and their families that the government is already doing what it can to help in repatriation proceedings.

He said a total of 9,000 have been given travel documents, while some 1,500 are still waiting for their clearances from the immigration office.

According to Coloma, around 4,371 OFWs have already returned home ever since the new immigration law has been implemented.

“We will be giving them all the legal, financial and other necessary assistance,” Coloma said, adding that a P2-billion reintegration fund under the Department of Labor and Employment is readily available for the Filipinos.

Otherwise, the effect of the Saudization will be minimal since some of the Filipinos have already found other jobs, he said.

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Uruguay preparing for pot legalization

Published on 28 Oct 2013 | Pot smokers in Uruguay are happy. Lighting up a joint is expected to be made legal any day now. And so is the production and distribution of marijuana, as the government tries to undermine the drugs cartels. Monica Villamizar reports from Monevideo.

First-Ever Case of Canadian Mining Company Going To Trial In Canada For Alleged Abuses Abroad

Published on 27 Oct 2013 | The trial of HudBay Minerals marks a first-time legal precedent of a Canadian company being held to account in Canadian courts for alleged shootings and gang rapes in Guatemala.

How the Internet Has Changed the News (VOA Oct. 25)

Published on 25 Oct 2013 | VOA multimedia reporter Kate Woodsome joins On Assignment's Imran Siddiqui to talk about the effects of the Internet age on reporting. Kate says covering breaking news on the Web is like being an air traffic controller -- sifting through multiple sources of information to get to the heart of what's happening.