Non-IT News Thread
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Volkswagen in 'dieselgate' talks with motorists
Volkswagen has said it is in talks with a group of German drivers who are suing the car giant over excessive emissions from its diesel cars.
The motorists say they were affected when VW "cheated" emissions rules by installing unlawful "defeat devices" in its diesel cars. The carmaker and the Federal Association of Consumers (VZBV) said the talks were at an early stage. There was "no guarantee" of a settlement, they said. "The common goal of VZBV and Volkswagen is a pragmatic solution for the benefit of the customer," they declared, adding that they had agreed to keep the talks confidential. The class action case is among the first of its kind in Germany. Because of a new draft law in 2018, consumer rights groups became able to represent customers taking companies to court - and to bear their costs. -
BBC News - US politician drives drunk after warning people not to drive drunk
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-50977380 -
BBC News - Man who threw 'lucky' coins into plane engine fined
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-50979485 -
@scottalanmiller said in Non-IT News Thread:
BBC News - Man who threw 'lucky' coins into plane engine fined
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-50979485wtf are people thinking?
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@Obsolesce said in Non-IT News Thread:
@scottalanmiller said in Non-IT News Thread:
BBC News - Man who threw 'lucky' coins into plane engine fined
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-50979485wtf are people thinking?
But... Lucky!
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Paris stabbing: Man 'neutralised' by police in Villejuif
French police have shot dead a man who stabbed a number of people in a park near Paris, local media report.
The knife attack happened in the town of Villejuif, 7km (4 miles) south of the French capital.
Four people are reported to have been stabbed and one person is believed to have been seriously injured. The attacker was chased by police and then shot nearby. Some reports suggest he was wearing an explosive vest. Police have advised people to avoid the area near to the Hautes-Bruyères State Park. -
Soleimani: Huge crowds pack Tehran for commander's funeral
Huge crowds have packed the streets of the Iranian capital Tehran for the funeral of Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani.
Soleimani was assassinated in a US drone strike in Iraq on Friday on the orders of President Donald Trump. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei led prayers and at one point was seen weeping. Iran has vowed "severe revenge" for the death of Soleimani and on Sunday pulled back from the 2015 nuclear accord. Soleimani, 62, headed Iran's elite Quds Force, and was tasked with protecting and boosting Iran's influence in the Middle East. -
Iran attack: US troops targeted with ballistic missiles
Iran has carried out a ballistic missile attack on air bases housing US forces in Iraq, in retaliation for the US killing of General Qasem Soleimani.
More than a dozen missiles launched from Iran struck two air bases in Irbil and Al Asad, west of Baghdad. It is unclear if there have been any casualties. The initial response from Washington has been muted. President Trump tweeted that all was well and said casualties and damage were being assessed. Two Iraqi bases housing US and coalition troops were targeted, one at Al Asad and one in Irbil, at about 02:00 local time on Wednesday (22:30 GMT on Tuesday). It came just hours after the burial of Soleimani, who controlled Iran's proxy forces across the Middle East. -
UK ban on US chlorinated chicken 'to continue after Brexit'1
Chlorine-washed chicken and hormone-treated beef will be kept out of the UK under any trade deal with the US, the environment secretary has promised.
Theresa Villiers told the BBC the current European Union ban on the two foods will be carried over into UK legislation after Brexit. Until now the UK has been wavering on the issue. But she told BBC Countryfile: “There are legal barriers to the imports and those are going to stay in place.” Ms Villiers has previously talked of imposing tariffs on any future imports of US chicken and beef. But she’s been under great pressure from Britain’s farmers. In the exclusive interview with the Countryfile programme, she said: “We will defend our national interests and our values, including our high standards of animal welfare." -
Man and child arrested for BWI. Banking while Indian.
BBC News - Indigenous man and girl handcuffed for opening bank account
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-51054120 -
Boeing 737 Max: Worker said plane 'designed by clowns'
The release of a batch of internal messages has raised more questions about the safety of Boeing's 737 Max.
In one of the communications, an employee said the plane was "designed by clowns". The planemaker described the communications as "completely unacceptable". The 737 Max was grounded in March 2019 after two fatal crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia, which killed almost 350 people in total. Boeing said it had released the hundreds of redacted messages as part of its commitment to transparency. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and US Congress were given unredacted versions of the communications last month. -
@mlnews said in Non-IT News Thread:
Boeing 737 Max: Worker said plane 'designed by clowns'
Now that is an interesting headline!
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Coming of age day was today in Japan.
http://mainichi.jp/english/graphs/20200113/hpe/00m/0na/001000g/1
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@JaredBusch said in Non-IT News Thread:
Coming of age day was today in Japan.
http://mainichi.jp/english/graphs/20200113/hpe/00m/0na/001000g/1
Without knowing the tradition, aren't people "coming of age" ( I assume consent etc ) all the time in Japan, like literally every day?
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US reverses China 'currency manipulator' label
The US has reversed its decision to brand China a currency manipulator as the two countries prepare to wind down their trade war.
The US said it made the change because China had agreed to refrain from devaluing its currency to make its own goods cheaper for foreign buyers. Washington and Beijing are expected to sign that "phase one" pact this week. The deal is aimed at de-escalating the tit-for-tat tariff war the two countries have engaged in since 2018."China has made enforceable commitments to refrain from competitive devaluation, while promoting transparency and accountability," US Treasury Secretary, Steven Mnuchin, said. President Donald Trump has repeatedly accused China of allowing the value of the yuan to fall, making Chinese goods cheaper. -
BBC News - Facebook: Star Wars' Mark Hamill deletes account over political ads
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-51090918 -
BBC News - Jerusalem rabbi arrested for 'holding women in slavery'
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-51098770 -
Iran nuclear deal: European powers trigger dispute mechanism
European powers have triggered a formal dispute mechanism over Iran's breaches of key parts of the 2015 nuclear deal - a move that could spell its end.
Iran has gradually lifted all limits on its production of enriched uranium, which can be used to make reactor fuel but also nuclear weapons. It has said it is entitled to do so in response to sanctions reinstated by the US when it abandoned the deal in 2018. France, Germany and the UK said they did not accept Iran's argument. The mechanism, set out in article 36 of the deal, involves the dispute being referred to a Joint Commission that will have a minimum of 15 days to resolve the issue. -
BBC News - Plane dumps fuel over school in emergency landing to LAX
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-51112630 -
What happened in the Democratic debate?
There have been nine official Democratic debates but this one had a real sense of urgency - in less than three weeks the candidates will face their first test.
The primary season begins on 3 February with the Iowa caucuses, when the Democratic voters in this state will pick who they want to take on Donald Trump in November. As the six White House hopefuls took to the debate stage in Des Moines, the Republican US president they have in their sights was mocking them at a rally 400 miles east in Wisconsin. Here are some key moments from the debate - and the Trump rally. The biggest news story in campaign politics over the past few days was the growing tensions between the two most liberal candidates, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. Warren had alleged that Sanders told her in December 2018 that a woman couldn't win the presidency - something Sanders denied.
