“Tepco lacks a sufficient sense of urgency for this crisis,” Shinji Kinjo, a high-level official at the country’s nuclear regulatory watchdog, said Tuesday in an interview. Tepco now says the groundwater is emptying into the plant’s man-made harbor at a rate of 400 tons a day. While the company did not specifically say how much of the water was contaminated, it offered a calculation for the amount of tritium being released that assumed all of the water was contaminated.

Some critics contend that the plant has emitted far more radioactive materials than it is saying, based in part on levels of contaminants discovered in the harbour. Mr Kinjo said that the levels of contamination in the water that had collected in the reactor buildings was too low to account for the radiation levels seen in the groundwater now flowing into the ocean. The most likely source appears to be pools of highly radioactive water that collected in the plant’s maze of underground conduits.

Khamenei praised the “selection of a worthy individual who has more than three decades of service to the system of the Islamic Republic… and who from the time of the revolutionary struggle… has resisted the enemies of the Islamic Revolution.” Outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad left office predicting the complete destruction of Israel was increasingly close at hand. “I swear to God that a ferocious storm is coming and it will uproot the Zionist entity,” Ahmadinejad declared on Friday, which was “Quds Day,” the day Muslims mark each year in opposition to Israel and the Jewish people controlling Jerusalem and vowing to reclaim Jerusalem and all of “Palestine” for Islam.

Also speaking on Friday, Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah — a key agent of Iran — also called for the destruction of Israel. “The elimination of Israel is not only a Palestinian interest,” said Nasrallah. “It is the interest of the entire Muslim world and the entire Arab world.” The Hezbollah leader also said Israel is a “cancer” in the region and declared that “the only solution is to destroy it without giving it the opportunity to surrender.”

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu warned that while the face of the Iranian regime has changed, the objectives have not, and hinted that Israel was fully prepared to take military action if necessary to prevent Iran from acquiring and deploying nuclear weapons. “Rouhani’s true face has been revealed earlier than expected,” Netanyahu said. “Even if they will now rush to deny his remarks, this is what the man thinks and this is the plan of the Iranian regime. These remarks by President Rouhani must rouse the world from the illusion that part of it has been caught up in since the Iranian elections.”

“The President there has changed but the goal of the regime has not: To achieve nuclear weapons in order to threaten Israel, the Middle East and the peace and security of the entire world. A country that threatens the destruction of the State of Israel must not be allowed to possess weapons of mass destruction.”

Rouhani is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Ahmadinejad was a wolf in wolf’s clothing. Rouhani is perceived widely in the White House and in the Western media as a moderate. But he is certainly not. He was part of the inner circle of the Ayatollah Khomeini. He has been a long-time member of the inner circle of the pro-terrorism, pro-Radical Islam leader of Iran, the Ayatollah Khamenei.

But perhaps the man who knew Rouhani best was his eldest son who committed suicide a number of years ago, and this is what he said in his suicide note: “I hate your government, your lies, your corruption, your religion, your double acts and your hypocrisy. I am ashamed to live in such environment where I am forced to lie to my friends each day, telling them that my father isn’t part of all of this. Telling them my father loves this nation, whereas I believe this to be not true. It makes me sick seeing you, my father, kiss the hand of Khamenei.”

New plans from Brussels threaten the German economy according to the "Made in Germany" label. "The label 'Made in Germany' is in serious danger," said the head of the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK), Eric Schweitzer, the "world".

Anton Börner, president of the trade association, BDI, warned that the EU is "trying to compromise through the back door under the guise of consumer protection, our proven German quality indicator". Börner warned the agency responsible for the plans EU Commission: "Hands off 'Made in Germany'!"

Shortly afterwards Downing Street announced that Mr Rajoy had agreed to scale down strict new border controls between Spain and Gibraltar which have caused long traffic jams for residents of the Rock. But within minutes a statement from the Spanish government made no mention of any concessions to Britain and defended border checks.

A later call between Foreign Secretary William Hague and his opposite number Jose Garcia-Margallo – who recently threatened a £43 crossing fee – seemed to have been less cordial in tone. The disagreement flared after claims an artificial reef of concrete blocks created by Gibraltar to protect its waters has damaged fishing grounds and nets used by Spanish fishermen.

Mr Cameron said his 15-minute conversation with Mr Rajoy was “clear and constructive”. Mr Cameron added: “We agreed to make some progress but I will only really be satisfied when this is properly de-escalated and the interests of people in Gibraltar are properly looked after.” But a statement by the government in Madrid insisted the border controls were legal and necessary to stop smuggling, although it did not explicitly refuse to reduce them.

The Saudi politician has orchestrated his country’s foreign policy in recent months. "Bandar offered to intensify energy, military and economic cooperation with Moscow," a senior Syrian opposition figure told Reuters. "Bandar sought to allay two main Russian fears: that Islamist extremists will replace Assad, and that Syria would become a conduit for Gulf, mainly Qatari, gas at the expense of Russia."

The $15 billion figure was touted by a representative of the anti-Assad opposition, which Saudi Arabia has strongly backed throughout the rebellion in Syria which has lasted more than two years. Meanwhile, a Gulf source claimed that no specific figure was involved.

Moscow and Riyadh, which traditionally acquires its arms from the United States, have had a massive contract on ice since 2008. Under Saudi Arabia’s terms, Russia would supply a huge assortment of equipment, including 150 T-90 tanks and more than 100 attack helicopters. In the past, Moscow has supplied billions of dollars worth of weapons to Assad, as well as maintained a naval base in Syria.

Both sides called their supporters on to the streets on Thursday, while Mursi supporters in two protest camps in Cairo strengthened sandbag-and-brick barricades in readiness for any action by security forces. Acting President Adli Mansour, in a message on the eve of the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday, said Egypt was in critical circumstances. The interim government would press on with its own plan to hold new elections in nine months, he said.

"The train of the future has departed, and everyone must realize the moment and catch up with it, and whoever fails to realize this moment must take responsibility for their decision," he said. US envoy William Burns headed home after days of trying to broker a compromise between the government and Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood. European Union envoy Bernardino Leon stayed on in the capital in the slim hope of reviving the effort.

But Brussels and Washington said they were very concerned that the Egyptian parties had not found a way to break what they called a dangerous stalemate.

This year, there is another reason why Europe has pressed the pause button for August. With a looming election in Germany, few wish to undermine Chancellor Angela Merkel’s likely victory. After all, Germany is central to Europe’s wellbeing, and Merkel’s steady hand has allowed the continent to overcome a series of challenges over the last few years. As a result, many are eager to postpone any controversial policy decisions rather than rock the German political boat.

Some of the recent economic news has seemed to justify this approach. At the end of July, the widely watched indicator of European manufacturing activity crossed the threshold signalling expansion for only the second time in 23 months.

The effort to upgrade the relationship has fallen victim to the rapidly shrinking common ground between the former Cold War rivals, including extreme differences over the Syrian civil war, Russia's domestic crackdown on civil rights and — the final straw — the asylum granted to National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden.

The US and Russian foreign and defense ministers will sit down in Washington later this week, but Obama canceled his planned early September summit in Moscow with Putin because of what the White House called a lack of "recent progress" on a wide array of critical issues. Such steps are not taken lightly, and the decision will almost certainly herald a new frostiness in already chilly ties.

"We have informed the Russian government that we believe it would be more constructive to postpone the summit until we have more results from our shared agenda," the White House said in a statement, citing deep differences over missile defense, arms control, trade, global security and human rights. "Russia's disappointing decision to grant Edward Snowden temporary asylum was also a factor that we considered in assessing the current state of our bilateral relationship," it added.

The IMF said Germany’s vast trade surplus must be slashed in half to rectify the eurozone’s North-South imbalances, and warned that fiscal overkill could abort recovery and set off an EMU-wide chain reaction.

While the language of the IMF report is polite, it masks a bitter dispute between the Fund and Germany over the nature of the EMU malaise, and whether austerity and reform really have cleared the way for a viable recovery.

For many years, violent crime had actually decreased in the United States, but now the trend is going the other way. Violent crime in the US increased in both 2011 and 2012, and it is being projected that it will increase in 2013 as well. The frightening thing is that crime statistics are going up even though police departments in some major cities have publicly announced that they will not even respond to certain crimes anymore. This has the effect of making crime statistics look lower than they actually should be.

For example, in the city of Chicago police will no longer respond in person "to 911 calls reporting vehicle theft, garage burglary or simple assault". So if someone steals your car or breaks into your garage, you can file a report over the phone if you want, but it probably won't do much good.

So what is causing the rise in crime and violence? Well, we live at a time when economic opportunities for young people are extremely limited. The younger you are, the more likely you are to be unemployed, and poverty in America has been steadily rising even in the midst of this so-called "economy recovery". When people are poor and feel like they are out of options, they tend to get desperate. And desperate people do desperate things.

Meanwhile, the condition of the family in America continues to deteriorate. We have the highest divorce rate in the world and approximately one out of every three children in the United States lives in a home without a father. Without stable families to depend on, our young people have become increasingly vulnerable to other influences.

Even though communities all over America now feel under siege by the growing wave of crime and violence that we have been witnessing, the truth is that this is only just the beginning. When the next major economic downturn strikes things are going to get much worse. The seeds that we have been planting for decades are now springing to life, and America is about to reap a very bitter harvest. I hope that you are getting prepared.

The weapons deal would include 681 Stinger anti-aircraft missiles and 40 truck-mounted launchers, as well as three Hawk anti-aircraft batteries with 216 Hawk missiles, according to Agence France Presse. The sale is primarily viewed as a way to bolster a possible no-fly zone in Iraq, though it would also help to cut off Iranian supplies to Syria through Iraqi air space.

"This capability will provide Iraq with the ability to contribute to regional air defenses and reduce its vulnerability to air attacks and also enhance interoperability between the government of Iraq, the US, and other allies," the Pentagon said in a statement.

Needless to say, arming Iraq might not be the best decision for Washington. The country is on the brink of total dissolution, the Kurds are acting autonomously in Syria as well as Iraq, and sectarian fighting is approaching mid-2006 levels.

Here's the Washington Post:

Rützler [the food scientist] gave the chef an appreciative nod. "It's close to meat, but it's not as juicy," she said. "I was expecting the texture to be more soft. The surface was surprisingly crunchy." She added: "I would have said if it was disgusting." Schonwald [the author] said the product tasted like "an animal protein cake."

Okay, that last phrase doesn't exactly pique the appetite, but you have to admit, it's not a bad showing for a product that came not from a cow grazing a lush meadow, but rather from tissue derived from bovine stem cells and grown in "nutrient solution."

Then there's the feed question. "The growth medium that provides nutrients, vitamins, and growth hormones to the cells is currently made with a mixture of sugars and amino acids supplemented with fetal bovine serum — literally the blood of unborn cows," she writes. Fetal bovine serum is a slaughterhouse byproduct (it comes from cows' blood) used mainly by the pharmaceutical industry. Current cost: $250 per liter — which is one major reason the five-ounce burger tested in London set Sergey Brin back $330,000.

In Cyprus, the depositors were “bailed in” (stripped of a major portion of their deposits) to re-capitalize the banks. In Detroit, it is the municipal workers who are being bailed in, stripped of a major portion of their pensions to save the banks.

Bank of America Corp and UBS AG have been given priority over other bankruptcy claimants, meaning chiefly the pensioners, for payments due on interest rate swaps they entered into with the city. Interest rate swaps – the exchange of interest rate payments between counterparties – are sold by Wall Street banks as a form of insurance, something municipal governments “should” do to protect their loans from an unanticipated increase in rates. Unlike ordinary insurance, however, swaps are actually just bets; and if the municipality loses the bet, it can owe the house, and owe big.

The swap casino is almost entirely unregulated, and it is a rigged game that the house virtually always wins. Interest rate swaps are based on the LIBOR rate, which has now been proven to be manipulated by the rate-setting banks; and they were a major contributor to Detroit’s bankruptcy.