#2
That launch, and especially the simultaneous landing of the two boosters, is the most amazing thing I've seen in quite a while. I hope everyone saw the video.
The center booster had two engines fail out of three and hit the ocean near the recovery ship at 300 mph. Debris showered the ship and took out both engines. That must have been rather exciting.
#6
The orbit has to go out to the asteroid belt to catch up to Mars. Presumably the path takes it close enough to Mars for it to slow down and get captured by Mars gravity.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
02/07/2018 22:53 Comments ||
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[All Africa] State owned enterprise, the Zim-bob-we Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) has struck a lithium mining deal with a "quoted company" and an announcement will be made soon.
Speaking on Tuesday morning at an Investors' Breakfast meeting here, Mines and Mining Development Minister Mr Winston Chitando said since the new government took over in November last year, most expressions of interest have been in the lithium sub-sector.
Apart from the deal that has been concluded, Minister Chitando said there were two other projects that were currently finalizing feasibility studies.
Further, an additional two projects are at exploration or "source-quantification stage," said Mr Chitando.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/07/2018 00:00 ||
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#1
What is the Rantburg over-under on the quoted company being ChiCom (publicly or through cut-outs)? My bet is on ChiCom, of course.
#6
What g(r)omgoru said, the Chinese are... persistent (I am being nice hear in my choice of terminology).
IIRC, an American military talking to a NVA general years later on why the Vietnamese were leery of Chinese 'help': "We knew the Americans would leave in ten years or so. It took a thousand years to drive out the Chinese the last time."
#8
"In the green corner: the Patient Serpent vs 'Africa Wins Again'! Gentlemen, place your bets!"
Posted by: ed in texas ||
02/07/2018 10:33 Comments ||
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#9
The Chinese treasury is about to get dinged, as it was in Venezuela. But the point of many of these deals isn't actually to make money or even buy influence, even though these are the official (and ostensible) reasons. The real purpose is to generate large commissions for the relevant Chinese officials - via reach around arrangements with the relevant (suborned) foreign officials - who can then salt it away in their personal bank accounts, to be invested in countries without extradition treaties with China. From an American perspective, it's an excellent use of Chinese government funds that might otherwise have been spent on China's burgeoning military establishment.
#12
We need all the help we can get. The Chinese don't have our installed base of equipment. But their military expenditures, at $200b, are already higher than ours (~$700b), when adjusted for salary differentials. A PLA lieutenant makes about http://english.chinamil.com.cn/news-channels/china-military-news/2015-01/19/content_6314553.htm $500 a month compared to his US Army counterpart's https://www.goarmy.com/benefits/money/basic-pay-active-duty-soldiers.html $3K. And they don't have to deal with the transportation expenses of personnel, supplies and equipment related to large global expeditionary forces.
The shitheads who make up our military dependents allies in the Far East (including Australia, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan) don't seem to realize that if we fight China 20 years from now, Uncle Sam won't be able to wade in alone even if he wants to. We are gonna be like the Greek states fighting the Persian empire or Carthage fighting the Roman Republic - the underdogs. These morons are spending 1%, 2% or 3% of GDP on defense. China is spending 3%. They need to be spending like Israel - 5.8%. In fact, they should be spending at Eisenhower levels - https://www.usgovernmentspending.com/defense_spending" 10%.
#15
In fact, most of these countries should be introducing a mandatory draft. They are in the position of an Israel facing the combined Arab armies. That is, if Arabia were unified under a single ruler.
[Dhaka Tribune] Bogra Sadar police on Monday submitted a charge sheet against 10 members of the "Tufan Bahini" regarding the rape and torture of a young woman in the Chaksutrapur area of Bogra town.
The charge sheet mentioned that Tufan allegedly raped the victim, a recent SSC graduate, on July 17 last year after luring her into his house in Chaksutrapur with the promise of financial help for her college admission.
Later, when the victim fell ill, she was given birth-control pills and sent home. Subsequently, her family was threatened and told to leave Bogra.
Officer-in-Charge (OC) Shamim Hasan Talukdar submitted the charge sheet to a juvenile court after a long investigation.
According to the supplementary charge sheet, the accused are expelled Bogra Sramik League leader Tufan Sarker, his wife Tasmin Rahman Asha, Bogra Municipality Ward 2 Councillor Marzia Hasan Rumki, Tufan’s mother-in-law Lovely Rahman Rumi, associates Mehdi Hasan Rupom, Atiqur Rahman Atiq, Md Munna, Ali Azad Dipu, Emarat Alam Khan Jitu and runaway Samiul Huq Shimul.
Tufan’s father-in-law Jamilur Rahman Runu and barber Robidas, also among the accused, have pleaded for exemption from the case as none of the allegations against them were proven.
On July 28 last year, Rumki and Rumi had the victim and her mother dragged to the same house again, where Tufan’s aides brutally tortured the victims and had their heads shaved.
Tufan’s wife Asha tried to cover up her husband’s crime by consulting Bogra-2 Municipality councilor Rumki and her mother.
Most of the accused were jugged ... anything you say can and will be used against you, whether you say it or not... within a few hours of the case being filed, and Tufan was expelled from his party over the incident.
All of the accused, with the exception of runaway Shimul, were brought before a juvenile court on the day and the main document of the case was sent to the High Court.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/07/2018 00:00 ||
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[Al Ahram] North Korea accused the United States on Tuesday of seeking to aggravate the situation on the divided Korean peninsula by "deploying large nuclear assets" nearby and lay the ground for a possible pre-emptive strike against it.
"In view of the nature and scale of U.S. military reinforcements, they are designed to make a pre-emptive strike against the DPRK," North Korean diplomat Ju Yong Chol told the U.N.-sponsored Conference on Disarmament, referring to his country's official name the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
"U.S. officials including the defense secretary and the CIA director repeatedly talked about DPRK nuclear and missile threat to justify their argument for a military option and a new concept of a so-called 'bloody nose', a limited pre-emptive strike on the DPRK is under consideration within the U.S. administration," Ju said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/07/2018 00:00 ||
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#2
North Korea accused the United States on Tuesday of seeking to aggravate the situation on the divided Korean peninsula by "deploying large nuclear assets" nearby and lay the ground for a possible pre-emptive strike against it.
So a single MX missile with 10 100kT warheads, a few ships full of food and 100k troops to feed the masses after their army disappears?
#3
Gorb, I would much prefer if SKor or China do the occupation and feeding. Nothing to nation-build there and people will need "ReEducation". The ChiComs are quite good at the last one and we are not.
Polish President Andrzej Duda on Tuesday signed into law a bill making it a crime to blame the "Polish Nation or Polish State" for culpability in the Holocaust, despite a furious reaction from Israel and warnings from Washington that this could damage US-Poland ties.
Hours before he signed the bill, however, Duda said he would send it to the country’s Constitutional Tribunal for judicial review, leaving open the possibility of a last-ditch amendment to the legislation.
The Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem issued a statement saying: "We hope that within allotted time until the court’s deliberations are concluded, we will manage to agree on changes and corrections." Here in the ME we have a saying: "Every dog will have its day".
[Al Ahram] Macedonia is ready to add a geographical qualifier to its name to help resolve a dispute with Greece that has held up its prospects of joining the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... and NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis.... , Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said on Tuesday.
Macedonia joined the United Nations ...an idea whose time has gone... in 1993 with the provisional name "The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" because its neighbour Greece objected to the one-word name saying it implied a territorial claim to a Greek province of the same name.
"I would like the negotiations (with Greece) to succeed ... We are ready for a geographical qualifier in the name," he told news hounds in the capital Skopje on Tuesday.
He had pledged a speedy solution to the dispute last month during the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Most countries refer to the country that declared independence in 1991 from the former Yugoslavia as Macedonia. Diplomats say Northern Macedonia, New Macedonia or Upper Macedonia could be now acceptable to both sides.
Zaev also said his government has renamed the main airport and a key highway, which had both been named after Alexander the Great. That riled Athens as Macedonia was also the name of an ancient Greek kingdom ruled by Alexander.
Zaev said the airport will be renamed "International Airport Skopje" and the highway will be called Friendship.
"With today's decision ... we are confirming our step towards building friendship and confidence with Greece," he told news hounds in the capital Skopje.
On Sunday, hundreds of thousands of people demonstrated in northern Greece against any solution that would include the term "Macedonia."
Posted by: Fred ||
02/07/2018 00:00 ||
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#1
Most countries refer to the country that declared independence in 1991 from the former Yugoslavia as Macedonia.
I was under the impression they called it the Sh1th0le of Europe.
Hat Tip: gCaptain. Murder in beautiful, polluted Karachi.
A senior Chinese shipping company executive was shot dead in the violence-plagued Pakistani financial hub of Karachi on Monday in what police described as a targeted attack.
While there was no claim of responsibility and the motive was not immediately clear, China in December warned its nationals in Pakistan of plans for imminent attacks on Chinese targets.
China's presence is growing in Pakistan as Beijing has pledged $57 billion for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a flagship "Belt and Road" project that first focused on Chinese firms building roads and power stations but is now expanding to include setting up industries. Go ahead, Chicoms, dump good money after bad.
The man, identified as Chen Zhu, 45, was in his car when he was attacked in an upmarket area of the port city of Karachi.
At least 10 shots were fired at the car and Chen suffered a single bullet wound in the head, police said.
"The incident appears to be targeted attack, (it) doesn't look like a mugging," Azad Khan, deputy inspector general of Karachi's south zone, told Reuters. Brilliant deduction, Azad.
Chen was the Pakistan general manager of Cosco Shipping Lines Co, a company spokeswoman said, adding that the cause of the attack was unclear.
"The company has taken steps, first to ensure the safety of our staff overseas; secondly to inform the family so that they can go and make funeral arrangements; and thirdly, we immediately contacted the local consulate and embassy to get their assistance," the spokeswoman said.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters in Beijing the Chinese consulate had asked the Pakistani police to bring the killer to justice.
Tens of thousands of Chinese nationals have come to Pakistan, but the new arrivals face dangers, creating a headache for Pakistani security officials. Same thing has been going on for a while.
Islamic State's abduction and killing last June of two Chinese nationals in the southwestern province of Baluchistan highlighted the security risks that have put off many Western companies.
Karachi, Pakistan's largest city, still has a reputation for gang shootings and other violence, despite a paramilitary crackdown that began in 2013 and sharply reduced killings.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
02/07/2018 16:50 ||
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#1
You wanted a high profile and international standing - welcome to the club.
[DAWN] Punjab 1.) Little Orphan Annie's bodyguard
2.) A province of Pakistain ruled by one of the Sharif brothers
3.) A province of India. It is majority (60 percent) Sikh and Hindoo (37 percent), which means it has relatively few Moslem riots.... government spokesperson Malik Ahmad Khan on Tuesday confirmed that a DNA sample has matched with the evidence collected from the body of a four-year-old girl who was killed after being raped in Mardan.
The 4-year-old was playing outside her house in the Gojar Ghari area when she went missing last month. Her body was found a day later in a nearby sugarcane field. The medico-legal report of the incident says the girl died by strangulation and also points to sexual violence against the victim. Later, a forensic report of the crime confirmed that she was raped before being killed.
According to the spokesperson, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government had sent DNA samples of some 145 suspects, out of which one of the sample has matched.
He said that the report of the DNA has been sent to the KP government for further action.
The girl's murder had sparked outrage in the province as well as the country. The Supreme Court has also taken notice of the murder. Police had announced a Rs500,000 reward for anyone providing information in the rape and murder case or for aiding in the arrest of the suspect.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/07/2018 00:00 ||
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[Al Ahram] Maldives President Abdulla Yameen's administration said on Tuesday it had put down a coup after declaring a state of emergency the day before and arresting two Supreme Court justices and opposition figures.
"We have managed to ensure the failure of the coup attempt by some people," Defence Minister Adam Shareef Umar said on state television ... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
While the government seemed in control on Tuesday, it was unclear whether the political crisis in the Indian Ocean island nation, best known as a luxury holiday destination, was over.
On the same day, an exiled former president urged regional power India to send an envoy backed by its military to release Maldivian political prisoners.
The Maldives plunged into crisis last week after the Supreme Court quashed terrorism convictions against nine leading opposition figures including the exiled, first democratically elected president, Mohammed Nasheed.
Tensions came to a head when Yameen's government rejected the ruling and on Monday imposed an emergency and then in the early hours of Tuesday morning tossed in the calaboose Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'! the chief justice and another judge of the court. In doing so, the government ignored calls from the United States and the international community to respect the court's verdict.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/07/2018 00:00 ||
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#1
It was only a few decades ago when they had the same problem with invading mercs looking for a home. What is the deal with coups in this island? Something in the water? Also WTF do they need heavy weapons for?
#6
Kim Jong-un, unwilling to fail again,
Posthumously signs up Spike Milligan:
Some parts off the shelf,
A used Kia ("KIMSELF"),
And a sponsorship offer for Gillian!
Alternate title - Five middle-aged women decide it's time to start saving for retirement.
The Spice Girls are getting back together for a reunion tour that will take them to the U.S. ... TMZ has learned.
As we reported, Mel B, Victoria Beckham, Geri Halliwell, Emma Bunton and Melanie C met last week with their former manager, Simon Fuller. Sources connected to the women tell us the meeting was for "rough planning" and the goal is a world tour that will kick off in late summer.
Our sources say the plan now is for the group to hit the stage in England first and then migrate over to the U.S. There is NO plan for a Vegas residency and no plan to record new music.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
North Korea
AGER-2, unfinished business from 1968. Imagine what the current President might do if the NORKS (or anyone else) pulled something like this again. 
[DAWN]
[Al Ahram] Maldives President Abdulla Yameen's administration said on Tuesday it had put down a coup after declaring a state of emergency the day before and arresting two Supreme Court justices and opposition figures.
