Are Millennials the Screwed Generation? - Newsweek and The Daily Beast

Are Millennials the Screwed Generation? - Newsweek and The Daily Beast: "Today’s youth, both here and abroad, have been screwed by their parents’ fiscal profligacy and economic mismanagement. Neil Howe, a leading generational theorist, cites the “greed, shortsightedness, and blind partisanship” of the boomers, of whom he is one, for having “brought the global economy to its knees.”"

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The Freedom of the Hijab - NYTimes.com

The Freedom of the Hijab - NYTimes.com: "It’s been over two months since I decided to become a hijabi — one who wears a head scarf and adheres to modest clothing — and before you race to label me the poster girl for oppressed womanhood everywhere, let me tell you as a woman (with a master’s degree in human rights, and a graduate degree in psychology) why I see this as the most liberating experience ever."

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BBC News - Q&A: Senegal legislative elections

BBC News - Q&A: Senegal legislative elections: "The West African state of Senegal will hold legislative elections on 1 July to vote for members of the National Assembly, four months after a new president was elected to end 12 years under Abdoulaye Wade.

The elections were originally set for 17 June but President Macky Sall pushed them to 1 July saying more time was needed to file the electoral lists."

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BBC News - Wisconsin Republican Governor Scott Walker survives recall

BBC News - Wisconsin Republican Governor Scott Walker survives recall: "There should be a good-sized health warning over the result of Wisconsin's bitterly contested recall election. The lopsided campaign spending - 7-to-1 in favour of the Republicans - was peculiar to this race. The passion was peculiar to the politics that Scott Walker introduced in 2010.

But Republicans will be delighted by the result and Democrats will be downcast. Wisconsin has been Democratic territory since Ronald Reagan left office. Now it cannot be taken for granted by the Obama campaign. Momentum is important in politics, and Wisconsin's Republican have the wind in their sails.

And remember what started all of this? Scott Walker trod where few others were prepared to go - attacking public sector unions and forcing public sector employees to yield up what looked to many to be very comfortable healthcare and pension deals."

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Insight: Malaysia government losing ethnic Chinese support | Reuters

Insight: Malaysia government losing ethnic Chinese support | Reuters: "Ethnic Chinese voters, upset over policies that favor majority Malays, have become increasingly alienated from Malaysia's ruling coalition, raising the risk of racial polarization and a slowdown in the pace of reforms.

Support for Prime Minister Najib Razak among Chinese voters plunged to 37 percent in May from 56 percent in February, a survey by the independent Merdeka Center showed on Friday. It found 56 percent of Chinese were dissatisfied with the government, compared to 30 percent of Indians and 23 percent of Malays."

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BBC - Future - Technology - Vacuum trains: a high-speed pipe dream?

BBC - Future - Technology - Vacuum trains: a high-speed pipe dream?: "Transatlantic passengers on Concorde often referred to the supersonic plane as their “time machine” for its ability to land in New York two hours before it left London.

But that kind of illusion could look like child’s play if so-called vacuum trains ever take off.

These futuristic transporters, designed to hurtle through tunnels that have had all of the air sucked out of them, could theoretically hit speeds of up to 4,000 km/h (2,500 mph), cutting the commute from Europe to North America to just one hour.  In this high-speed future, passengers would arrive a full four hours before they set off. "

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BBC News - Mali Tuareg and Islamist rebels agree on Islamist state

BBC News - Mali Tuareg and Islamist rebels agree on Islamist state: "Two rebel groups that seized northern Mali two months ago have agreed to merge and turn their territory into an Islamist state, both sides say.

The Tuareg MNLA, a secular rebel group, and the Islamist group Ansar Dine signed the deal in the town of Gao, spokespeople said.

Ansar Dine, which has ties to al-Qaeda, has already begun to impose Sharia law in some towns.

The groups took advantage of a coup in March to seize the territory.

Correspondents say the deal is yet another worrying development for Mali and may complicate efforts to stabilise the country."

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