Understanding Malaysia’s Political Earthquake

Supporters of Mahathir Mohamad outside the National Palace in Kuala Lumpur on May 10, waiting for his swearing-in as Malaysia’s prime minister after his surprise election victory.CreditUlet Ifansasti/Getty Images

The events of recent days in Malaysia have been dizzying.

A former prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, 92, returned to power last week after a stunning upset vote, defeating not just his former protégé, but the very party he helped create.

Justice Department and F.B.I. Are Investigating Cambridge Analytica

The London offices of Cambridge Analytica in March. The now-defunct political data firm has faced intense scrutiny since it was revealed to have harvested information from tens of millions of Facebook profiles.CreditDaniel Leal-Olivas/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

The Justice Department and the F.B.I. are investigating Cambridge Analytica, the now-defunct political data firm, and have sought to question former employees and banks that handled its business, according to an American official and other people familiar with the inquiry.

Israelis Reflect on Gaza: ‘I Hope at Least That Each Bullet Was Justified’

A view of Gaza on Tuesday from the southern Israeli kibbutz of Nahal Oz. As the protests wound down, kibbutz residents grappled with the killings the day before.CreditJack Guez/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Daniel Rahamim, 63, had four Palestinians from nearby Gaza at his wedding in 1983. He remembers sunbathing on Gaza’s beaches, and drinking tea at a friend’s antique shop there.

But that was long ago — before Hamas, and the wars that traumatized his children, and the security barrier that now fences off the Gaza Strip like an open-air prison.

On Monday, as gunfire echoed across the wheat, sunflower and jojoba fields stretching several hundred yards to the fence, Mr. Rahamim felt conflicting emotions. “When we hear of the dead, it pains us,” he said the next afternoon. “I hope at least that each bullet was justified.”

From the agricultural hamlets with their backs up against Gaza to the busy sidewalks of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, and all the way to Israel’s northern borderlands, Israelis grappled in different ways with the staggering casualty reports from the Gaza protest on Monday: 60 killed, more than 1,700 hospitalized, according to Palestinian officials. It was the worst one-day total since the 2014 Gaza war. Israel said that only a small number of those shot had been armed.

Via: New York Times

North Korea’s Full Statement on Meeting With Trump

North Korean soldiers visiting statues of the former leaders Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang last month.CreditEd Jones/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Here is an official translation of a statement released by the Korean Central News Agency of North Korea on Wednesday.

Kim Kye Gwan, the first vice-minister of Foreign Affairs of the DPRK, made public the following press statement on Wednesday:

Kim Jong Un, the chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, made a strategic decision to put an end to the unpleasant steps for peace and stability in the Korean peninsula and the world.

In response to the noble intention of Chairman Kim Jong Un, President Trump stated his position for terminating the historically deep-rooted hostility and improving the relations between DPRK and the U.S.

I appreciated the position positively with an expectation that upcoming DPRK-U.S. summit would be a big step forward for catalyzing detente on the Korean peninsula and building a great future.

But now prior to the DPRK-U.S. summit, unbridled remarks provoking the other side of dialogue are recklessly made in the U.S. and I am totally disappointed as these constitute extremely unjust behavior.

High-ranking officials of the White House and the Department of State including Bolton, White House national security adviser, are letting loose the assertions of so-called Libya mode of nuclear abandonment, “complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization,” “total decommissioning of nuclear weapons, missiles and biochemical weapons” etc. while talking about formula of “abandoning nuclear weapons first, compensating afterwards.”

This is not an expression of intention to address the issue through dialogue. It is essentially a manifestation of awfully sinister move to impose on our dignified state the destiny of Libya or Iraq which had been collapsed due to yielding the whole of their countries to big powers.

I cannot suppress indignation at such moves of the U.S., and harbor doubt about the U.S. sincerity for improved DPRK-U.S. relations through sound dialogue and negotiations.

World knows too well that our country is neither Libya nor Iraq which have met miserable fate.

It is absolutely absurd to dare compare the DPRK, a nuclear weapon state, to Libya which had been at the initial state of nuclear development.

We shed light on the quality of Bolton already in the past, and we do not hide our feelings of repugnance towards him.

If the Trump administration fails to recall the lessons learned from the past when the DPRK-U.S. talks had to undergo twists and setbacks owing to the likes of Bolton and turns its ear to the advice of quasi-”patriots” who insist on Libya mode and the like, prospects of upcoming DPRK-U.S. summit and overall DPRK-U.S. relations will be crystal clear.

We have already stated our intention of denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and made clear on several occasions that precondition for denuclearization is to put an end to anti-DPRK hostile policy and nuclear threats and blackmail of the United States.

But now, the U.S. is miscalculating the magnanimity and broad-minded initiatives of the DPRK as signs of weakness and trying to embellish and advertise as if these are the product of its sanctions and pressure.

The U.S. is trumpeting as if it would offer economic compensation and benefit in case we abandon nuke. But we have never had any expectation of U.S. support in carrying out our economic construction and will not at all make such a deal in future, too.

It is a ridiculous comedy to see that the Trump administration, claiming to take a different road from the previous administrations, still clings to the outdated policy on the DPRK - a policy pursured by previous administrations at the same time when the DPRK was at the stage of nuclear development.

If President Trump follows in the footsteps of his predecessors, he will be recorded as more tragic and unsuccessful president than his predecessors, far from his initial ambition to make unprecedented success.

If the Trump administration takes an approach to the DPRK-U.S. summit with sincerity for improved DPRK-U.S. relations, it will receive a deserved response from us. However, if the U.S. is trying to drive us into a corner to force our unilateral nuclear abandonment, we will no longer be interested in such dialogue and cannot but reconsider our proceeding to the DPRK-U.S. summit.

Via: New York Times

Putin Opens Bridge to Crimea, Cementing Russia’s Hold on Neighbor

President Vladimir V. Putin climbed aboard a large orange construction truck on Monday and drove it across a new 12-mile bridge to Crimea, inaugurating his latest megaproject and tightening Moscow’s claim to the disputed territory.

The bridge, finished six months ahead of schedule, established a land link from Russia to the Crimean peninsula, which the Russian military seized from Ukraine in 2014.

“This is a remarkable result, which makes Crimea and legendary Sevastopol even stronger, and all of us are even closer to each other,” Mr. Putin told a crowd of cheering workers after completing the roughly 15-minute drive at the head of a convoy of construction vehicles.

The bridge connects the Crimean city of Kerch, on the eastern coast, to the Russian mainland and is fed by local roads. But the opening was more theatrical than real because the main highways feeding the bridge on both the mainland and across Crimea to Sevastopol in the west, long the headquarters of the Black Sea fleet, remain under construction.

Via: New York Times

What happens over at Google every minute?

Well there are a lot of things, I am sure, that is happening in Google every minute passes by. I am sure there are a lot of search queries on google.com itself but what else is happening over at the, arguably, world's largest tech company? For starters, there are 400 Chromebooks shipped every minute, 642 new Google+ users, and 199 people search for a coupon. The infographic above will show you what actually happens. Astonishing numbers, right? I am not surprised. Are you?

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Atlanta Stadium with 8-sided operable roof by 360 Architecture

To serve as the future home for the NFL team the falcons, construction has begun on the new Atlanta stadium in Georgia’s capital city. led by senior principal Bill Johnson, 360 Architecture has designed a striking structure both in terms of formal composition and functional performance.

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The 1st Cagayan de Oro Business Youth Summit

Are you business oriented? A student with a business related course? Then let me introduce you to the 1st ever Cagayan de Oro Business Youth Summit! The 1st CBYS is a project headed and organized by students of Xavier University's School of Business and Management. It is aimed to inculcate to the business minded youth that, even if Cagayan de Oro is known to be the fastest growing economy or city in the Philippines, the city is still not immune to economic and business problems. With that, CBYS aims to inform and how the future business leaders in the city to react on issues that might pop-out. Futhermore, not only are the delegates supplied with issues and whatnot within CDOC, the major aims of this summit is to really enhance, ignite, empower, and bring the essential business leadership traits to aspiring business leaders in the city. CBYS carries the theme: "Igniting YoungKagayanon's Entrepreneurial Competence and Leadership Potentials: A Foundation for the youth to be in the forefront of Entrepreneurial Developmet and Leadership in Cagayan de Oro Ciy and the Country."

Facebook vs Google+ - which social networking site is better?

Friendster had its time and was battling the social networking (SN) world with Myspace. Twitter then entered the microblogging scene, which is also considered a social networking site. When Mark Zuckerberg, the man behind Facebook, launched his SN site, it took the world by storm and eventually gained the title of being the largest social networking site with over 750,000,000 users. But their's someone new to this industry who is joining the battle and mind you they do have a good chance of winning it. The newest, youngest, and the fastest growing social networking site is called Google+.

From Facebook to Twitter

A few years ago, it was Myspace and Friendster who ruled the social networking industry. When Facebook became available, it was a blockbuster hit and still continues to be so. Anyway, the point is, Facebook rules that part of the world (social networking) with more or less than 750 million users to date. Of course, we should also take note of Twitter's success which has more or less, 250 million users.