TIME magazine reports that Hillary Clinton’s team has signed a lease for a campaign HQ in downtown Brooklyn meaning she will have to announce her candidacy by April 15th. Is Brooklyn the right image for Hillary?
Is prelim nuke agreement w/ Iran a good deal?
The United States along with other key world powers have reached a framework agreement with Iran over it's nuclear program. With President Obama calling it a “historic understanding” that could make the world safer and Iranians celebrating in the streets, opposition exists from Israel, Arab nations and many skeptical individuals in Congress. A key element in the deal is Iran's acceptance of 10 years of restrictions on nuclear capability in trade for lifting of sanctions.
BACKGROUND Via the NY Times:
Under the Terms, Iran...
• Is allowed to keep its nuclear facilities, which it insists are for civilian uses only, but they would be subject to strict production limits. Two facilities will be converted into research sites without fissile material.
• Cuts the number of its centrifuges, which are used to enrich uranium, by two-thirds to 5,060, and reduces its stockpile of low-enriched uranium from 10,000 kilograms to 300 kilograms — not enough for a nuclear weapon — for 15 years. Thousands of centrifuges will be put into storage.
• Agrees to redesign a heavy-water reactor at Arak in a way that would keep it from producing plutonium, a weapons-usable fuel.
• Gets relief from a range of international sanctions that have sharply reduced its sale of oil and impeded access to the international financial system.
Negotiations over research and development of more advanced centrifuges were particularly difficult. The Iranians won the right to research, but not to use more modern machines for production for the next 10 years.
Some Delicate Issues Remain
• The timing of sanctions relief. Iran wants all sanctions removed quickly. The United States says sanctions would be removed in stages after Iran shows compliance with the terms of a final nuclear agreement.
• The Americans want all nuclear facilities “anywhere in the country,” including military bases, to be subject to inspections that could “investigate suspicious sites or allegations of a covert enrichment facility.”
• The process for ensuring Iran remains in compliance with the terms of the agreement and the process for reimposing sanctions if its is found to fall out of compliance.
• The details of how Iran’s existing stockpile of nuclear fuel would be diluted, neutralized or removed from the country.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/04/world/middleeast/the-iran-nuclear-deal-what-you-need-to-know.html?ref=middleeast
Better April Fools prank on a late night host: Rihanna or Katie Couric?
Would subjecting pilots to additional mental health exams prevent next Germanwings disaster?
After the crash of Germanwings Flight 9525, we’ve heard lots of ideas on how to prevent something similar from happening again. Proposals include psychiatric tests, new cockpit gadgets, and new in flight rules for flight crew. Is subjecting pilots to mental health screenings the right approach?
Should Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) resign after indictment on corruption charges?
U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) made news by being the first sitting member to be indicted by the Feds on bribery charges since 1980. The 14-count indictment accuses him of using his position to help his friend Dr. Salomon Melgen's businesses including intervening over Medicare charges. Each count carries a sentence of up to 15 years in prison. Read more: NY Times http://tinyurl.com/k9qop59
Sen. Menendez released a statement expressing outrage at the indictment and confidence that he will be vindicated. He said: "I'm not going anywhere...The people...elected me to serve and represent their interests in the United States Senate and that is exactly what I will do, no matter how long it takes to clear my good name."
(http://www.menendez.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/STATEMENT%20FROM%20SENATOR%20MENENDEZ.pdf)
Should he resign?
Kevin Durant says he wants to stay in OKC. Is he lying?
Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant told Revolt TV in a recent interview that he wants to say in OKC for the rest of his career. Durant is going to be a free agent in the summer of 2016 and is expected to be courted by hometown Washington Wizards along with the Knicks and Lakers. Is he keeping it real with Thunder fans or is he a liar?
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence says relig. freedom law wasn't intended to discriminate. Is he lying?
Will negotiators reach preliminary deal on the Iranian nuclear program before deadline?
Today is the deadline for Iran and six world powers including the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China to decide whether there is a framework understanding that would spark continuing talks that would move toward achieving a final agreement regarding Iran's nuclear ambitions by June.
