The list of SOPA opponents also includes 425 venture capitalists and entrepreneurs — i.e. job creators. The editorial boards of The New York Times and Los Angeles Times are on the list, as are 39 public advocacy groups, nonprofits and think tanks who believe that SOPA will stifle freedom of speech. These are joined by 61 international human rights groups, and 116 academics and law experts from the nation's top law schools. In short: The list of SOPA critics could not be any more legitimate.
Internet Architects and Security Experts Warn Against SOPA
Digital Trends also reports that the creators of the Internet and security experts oppose SOPA:
83 Internet pioneers — we're talking people like Vint Cerf, co-designer of TCP/IP; Jim Gettys, editor of the HTTP/1.1 protocol standards; Leonard Kleinrock, a key developer of the ARPANET; in other words, the very people who built the Internet — who say that SOPA (and the Protect IP Act, PIPA), "will risk fragmenting the Internet's global domain name system (DNS) and have other capricious technical consequences" because of the bills' requirement that Internet service providers block domain names of infringing sites.
In their letter to Congress, this group of Internet founders also argues that SOPA "will create an environment of tremendous fear and uncertainty for technological innovation, and seriously harm the credibility of the United States in its role as a steward of key Internet infrastructure."
***
Former Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Stewart Baker … agrees with the Internet founders when he says that SOPA will "do great damage to Internet security, mainly by putting obstacles in the way of DNSSEC, a protocol designed to limit certain kinds of Internet crime," among other repercussions.
Indeed, the Internet and security experts opposing this horrible legislation include luminaries such as:
• More U.S. Part-Timers Find Full-Time Jobs (Bloomberg) • Wall Street’s Big Banks Are the Real Threat to Our Economy (Fox News) • QE3 or Not? (Tim Duy’s Fed Watch) • Leading Indicators and the Risk of a Blindside Recession (Hussman Funds) see also How Austerity Is Killing Europe (NY Review of Books) • Addiction to Prediction (Process Maximus) • The boy wonder of the MF Global nightmare (Fortune) • Americans Stumble on Math of Big Issues (WSJ) see also Americans and Innumeracy (The Monkey Cage) • Montana Supreme Court Defies Citizens United Ruling (Law.com) • How Many Stephen Colberts Are There? (NYT Mag) • New Details Emerge On The Porsche 918 Spyder Hybrid Supercar (Motorauthority)
Jim O’Neill, creator of the acronym BRICs 10 years ago, is positive on the prospects of the BRIC economies but also of other “growth” markets such as Turkey and Mexico. He talks to Tracy Corrigan, Editor-in-Chief of The Wall Street Journal Europe.
The acceleration in global economic activity since the lows in October gained traction in December.
The JP Morgan Global Composite Index improved to 53.0 from 52.0 in November after falling to 51.4 in October. While the improvement in the composite PMI could virtually be attributed entirely to a significant improvement in business conditions in the U.S., the improvement in December was more broad based. The U.S. continues to lead the way, though, as my GDP-weighted Composite ISM PMI taking into account the Non-manufacturing Business Activity Index (the basis Markit uses to calculate the composite PMIs) instead of the PMI itself improved further to 55.7 from 55.4 in November. The manufacturing sector experienced accelerated growth increasing to 53.2 from 52.7. The ISM Business Activity Index remained unchanged at a relatively robust 56.2.
China, Brazil and India contributed significantly to the acceleration in global economic activity. China reversed the unseasonal slump in November in both the manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors while Indian industries accelerated to near robust levels.
The contraction in the Eurozone's private sector eased markedly for the second consecutive month. My calculated GDP-weighted PMI for the Eurozone rose to 48.3 from 47.2 in November and 46.6 in October. After stagnating in November, growth in Germany's services sector is accelerating again while the services sector in France has stopped contracting. Elsewhere in the Eurozone the situation is dire to say the least, with the services sector in Ireland joining the contraction in the other debt-ridden Eurozone countries. However, the contraction in the Eurozone's manufacturing sector, including France and Germany, continues. The acceleration in growth in the U.K.'s services sector from near stagnation in November is noteworthy.
The situation in Australia' manufacturing and services sectors has stabilized while Japan is showing signs of acceleration in growth. The contraction in Hong Kong and Taiwan eased somewhat but the contraction in South Korea's manufacturing sector deepened. In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia's economy remains robust but growth in the Emirate states is faltering.
GDP-weighted/ Composite PMI
Direction
Rate of change
Country
Dec-11
Nov-11
U.S.***
52.9
52.2
Growing
Faster
U.S. BAI***(note 1)
55.7
55.4
Growing
Faster
Eurozone****
48.3
47.2
Contracting
Slower
Germany*
51.3
49.4
Growing
From contracting
France*
50.0
48.8
Stagnated
From contracting
U.K.****
52.8
50.8
Growing
Faster
Japan*
50.1
48.9
Stagnated
From contracting
Emerging Economies
China**
52.6
49.3
Growing
From contracting
China S/A**
52.4
49.5
Growing
From contracting
Brazil*
53.2
51.5
Growing
Faster
India*
54.7
52.3
Growing
Faster
Russia*
53.5
54.6
Growing
Slower
Hong Kong*
49.7
48.7
Contracting
Slower
UAE*
51.7
52.5
Growing
Slower
Saudi Arabia*
57.7
58.1
Growing
Slower
JP Morgan Global Composite*
53.0
52.0
Growing
Faster
Note: ISM Non-manufacturing Business Activity Index used instead of Non-manufacturing PMI.
A pair of telling charts, courtesy of Ron Griess of the Chart Store. It is terribly obvious that the post credit crisis employment situation is far uglier than ordinary cyclical recessions.
At least the red line in the chart at bottom is pointing upwards . . .
Brett Arends of the WSJ gets more specific, and suggests a five-step plan to fix your 401(k):
1. Take control. 2. Cut your costs. 3. Lighten up on U.S. stocks. 4. Look internationally. 5. Review your bond funds.
Most od the 401(k) plans I review unfortunately offer a rather limited range of investment options — few ETFs, too many similar funds. Rolling over your plan into a self-directed individual retirement account allows you many more options for retirement. All you need to do is change jobs or quit.
I have an idea: National 401(k) Roll Over Day — even if you don’t quit! What are the odds of getting that passed . . . ?
• Hardly a contrarian signal: Why stocks will beat bonds over the next 20 years (Market Watch) see also After 12 years, bulls see stocks coming out of rut (LA Times) • 10 Stocks Analysts Say to Sell (Smart Money) • The Fed's Sleazy Idea Of "Transparency" (Implode Meter Blog) • Enron's 'Teflon Lou' (The Daily) • Unemployment Scars Likely to Last for Years (WSJ) • Agency vs Principal: The Root Of Some Evil (Epicurean Dealmaker) • A New Year, the Same Ol’ Pessimism (WSJ) see also Wall Street Is Squeezed by Slowdown in Trading (WSJ) • A Tech Show Loses Clout as Industry Shifts (NYT) • Death-by-Smartphone Spurs Camera Makers (Bloomberg) see also Everything you need to know about buying a camera (The Verge) • Remarkably dry and warm winter due to record extreme jet stream configuration (Wunderground)
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