A day after President Obama announced the US would recognize Syrian opposition as the official government of the country, the current government began firing ballistic missiles at citizens and rebel forces. Continue reading
Tag Archives: United States
Corn, Soy Prices Hit Record Highs; Worldwide Impact Feared
Surveys of American agriculture released Tuesday showed higher than expected crop damage driving commodity prices to record highs.
Corn jumped 1.7% to $8.39 a bushel while soybeans finished up 2.8% at $17.30 a bushel. In the last three months, corn prices have jumped 68%. Soybeans have jumped 39%. Continue reading
UN Asks US To Stop Biofuel Production
The United Nations has called on the United States to end production of biofuel ethanol because of the current worldwide food crisis.
Current US law requires that 40% of the nation’s corn must be used to create biofuel. Prices are currently facing significant increases with the USDA estimating the corn yield will be the lowest in 16 years. The shortfall is estimated to cause close to a 40 percent rise in prices per bushel. Continue reading
US Economy Slows In Second Quarter
A drop in consumer spending resulted in the US economy growth slowing to an annual rate of 1.5% according to the Commerce Department. That’s down almost a full percentage point from the first quarter of the year.
The Commerce Department also put some of the blame on an increase in imports during the same time period.
“As campaigning [for President] gets serious, the economy is losing momentum not gaining,” Mark Gregory of the BBC reported. “That’s bad news for President Obama’s chances of hanging onto his job in November.” Continue reading
US Troops Killed In Afghanistan
Six US soldiers were killed in Afghanistan by a roadside bomb while on a mission with other NATO forces. The incident comes after 14 civilians were killed in Taliban attacks on Sunday.
The civilians were also killed by roadside bombs that were aimed to cause maximum civilian causalities. The first bomb hit a car and then the second did not explode until a tracker arrived to rescue the wounded from the initial attack. Continue reading
US Economic Recovery “Tepid”
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has stated that the United States economic recovery “remains tepid” and has cut the estimated growth of the US economy by a tenth of a percentage point to 2% overall.
The IMF said that the eurozone debt crisis is a driving factor in the revised estimate but also uncertain domestic policies and the upcoming Presidential election. The IMF report also stated that “house prices have stabilized recently but remain at depressed levels.” Continue reading
Bad Economic News For US and Eurozone
The US economy’s unemployment rate increased slightly in April while the Eurozone’s held steady at a record high level.
The news sent all the US stock markets plunging lower in morning trading. The jobless rate in the US increased to 8.2%, up .1%, according to the Labor Department report. The number of jobs added in March and April was revised down by 49,000 and there are now five million fewer jobs in the US than at the start of the recession. Continue reading
Unmanned Drones Flying Domestically
Unmanned drones are flying missions throughout the United States. The information was discovered as a result of a Freedom of Information act lawsuit filed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
The report released by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) detailed the organizations that applied for licenses for the drones and their locations. The reports didn’t state the type of drones being used or how many drones are owned and operated by each entity. The FAA stated that information will be released at a later date. Continue reading