The death of Osama Bin Laden deprives Islamic fundamentalist terrorism of a key symbol but its impact will be rather more obvious in the Western media than either in the threat posed by Islamic fundamentalists, or in the military ventures and systematic restrictions on civil liberties.
US
Rundle: the world changed this week. And it’s only Monday
When the diplomatic correspondence of an entire nation can be loaded onto a memory stick, then security is only as good as the least ‘dependable’ individual in the whole chain.
Essential: Voters rate Joe on banks, and we want to get closer to China
More of us want to get closer to China than the United States, Essential Research’s new poll shows. And there’s strong support for gay marriage as well.
Crikey Says: Crikey says: Voters recognise that China is the main game
Australians, it seems, are well aware that their governments must operate in a far more multi-polar world than in previous decades.
California’s water wars rage on
California lawmakers have approved several bills that could significantly change the state’s troubled water system, fueling hopes that a generation of feuds over the state’s most vital and overexploited natural resource might soon be over.
Brown pelicans are back, baby: birds defy extinction
Thirty years ago, the brown pelican was on the brink of extinction. Thanks to a ban on DDT and preservation of nesting sites, they’re back.
Vale Les Paul, symbol maker of rock
Les Paul, one of the seminal figures of rock n roll history, has died at age 94.
US investors keep the blinkers on
For the third time in 10 days American markets and investors have received a reminder of the fragile state of the current recovery and market boom, writes Glenn Dyer.
High-ranking defectors spill the beans on Scientology
Scientology leader David Miscavige is the focus of a special report from the St. Petersburg Times in which former executives of the Church of Scientology, including two of the former top lieutenants to Miscavige, have come forward to describe a culture of intimidation and violence.
Bulldozing the burbs
Razing declining neighborhoods doesn’t seem to be a priority right now for the Obama administration, but Harvard urban economist Edward Glaeser thinks it should be. In fact, Professor Glaeser argues that some cities just aren’t going to come back.
Mexican drug cartels recruit young men for murder-for-hire rings
In the minds of many Americans, the Rio Grande divides Mexico, a corrupt land where drug cartels have the upper hand, from the US, a nation of law and order, where the authorities keep criminal gangs in check. But in reality, the border is much more blurred.
Viral movie marketing: one giant practical joke
Viral movie marketing campaigns rely upon a temporary suspension of disbelief. After initial confusion wears off, as the operating principal goes, people will agree to play along with what is essentially a massively scaled practical joke.
Bargain hunting with Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton loves to shop. In a crafts store in Lima, Peru, he hunts for presents for his wife and the women on his staff back home. He moves across shelves of wooden carvings, jewelry and sculptures as he searches for something distinctive to bring home to the Secretary of State.
weird 
Man without fingerprints confounds US customs
An estimated one in 50 people around the world lack matchable fingerprints. One cancer patient’s fingerprints were so eroded by the medication he was taking that the US authorities couldn’t let him into the country.
Roll on recession: the fashion industry is ready for you
Last year the boom that began in the 1980s ended with breathtaking rapidity and finality. Luckily, a contingent of people at the heart of fashion have been readying for post-crash style for years…
Jonas brothers need to cross over before tweens tire
Pop sensations the Jonas Brothers need to cross over, and fast. The tween market is fickle and allegiances come and go faster than ever. The band needs to strike before its core fans — young girls — “age out” of the experience.
Can’t afford a $66K glass Artichoke lamp? Try $12 sheep’s milk soap instead
Hard hit luxury stores are getting creative, banking on people to continue being just a little self-indulgent — say, splurging on a fancy garden trowel instead of a chandelier.
Does improving fuel efficiency encourage people to drive more?
When you reduce the need for a fuel, you also reduce its cost, thereby increasing demand. So mandating cars that use less petrol will make driving cheaper, encouraging people to drive more, right?
The top ten firms lobbying Washington on climate change
A new analysis of Senate disclosure records shows that more than 880 businesses and interest groups registered to lobby on climate change in the first quarter of 2009 — up more than 14%.
Obama ushers in new era of fuel efficiency
President Obama announces tough new nationwide rules for automobile emissions and mileage standards, embracing standards that California has sought to enact for years over the objections of the auto industry and the Bush administration.
Plug in hybrids too hyped?
The value and effectiveness of plug-in technology is being questioned, even as President Obama pledges to have 1 million plug-in hybrids on the road by 2015.
What Thatcher could teach Obama
Thatcher’s true genius was her relentless focus on making policy in support of a remarkably prosaic goal: to let middle-class folk feel that hard work would be rewarded in a better future for their children.
Throw Obama’s cash for cars plan on the scrap heap?
Obama’s plan to offer cash towards a new car if people promise to send their old one to become scrap metal is pitched as a win for the economy and the environment. But is it wrong on both counts?
Dyer’s Real Economy wrap: Grim news for German growth, Cruise industry sinking
What’s the German word for spin? … German growth looking grim … More deals for air travellers? … Cruise lines are sinking … Read the fine print on housing news … How do you solve a problem like Japan? … Chock biscuits sales fall, Big pizzas up … Oroton shows them how it’s done … CK suffers.
