Current Events for the Week of 16 January 2012

Current Events for Monday, 16 January 2012

U.S. remembers Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Occupy protesters ready igloos in Davos for World Economic Forum (WEF) sit-in
Saudi Arabia expresses doubts with Iranian claim of ability to block Strait of Hormuz
Thai police discover bomb-making materials after detention of Lebanese man suspected of plotting terror attack
Cruise ship industry weighs cost of Costa Concordia disaster
Likely Chinese next president Vice-President Xi Jinping: China, U.S. should work more closely to defuse international crises
Germans cancel planned meeting between Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, French President Nicolas Sarközy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel
Reuters: U.S. unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV, “drone”) strike killed Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud
Residential Beirut building collapse kills 13
Greek private sector investors: “unreasonable” demands from partners put debt swap talks in jeopardy
Former U.S. Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman (R.) indefinitely suspends presidential campaign, endorses former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney (R.)
Iran lashes-out at fellow Gulf nations, condemning suggestions they would increase production to cope with oil sanctions against Iran
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, unions fail to reach compromise agreement over oil revenue
Former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum (R., PA) strikes-back at Republican party (GOP) front-runner Romney after receiving endorsement from evangelical leaders
Texas Governor Rick Perry (R.): U.S. White House “overreacting” to video showing four U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) soldiers urinating on the corpses of dead Taliban fighters
Russian Federation: Fobos-Grunt space probe fell into Pacific water off Chilean coast Sunday
Al-Qaeda militants seize small southern Yemeni town
Ten killed when Iraqi militants storm Ramadi police headquarters
Iran sends letter to Washington, D.C. claiming it has evidence U.S. was behind last week’s assassination of nuclear scientist
Reuters/Ipsos poll: Governor Romney opens 21-point lead in South Carolina
German Chancellor Merkel vows faster eurozone reforms after Standard & Poor’s cut ratings of several eurozone nations
PepsiCo Inc. confirms tests of Tropicana orange juice show traces of carbendazim, levels still well-below federal standards
Kathimerini poll: most Greeks support Prime Minister Lucas Papademos, dislike coalition government
Hacker “Yama Tough” threatens to release source code of Symantec Corp.’s “flagship” antivirus software Norton Antivirus
Former U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director Mohammed ElBaradei pulls-out of Egyptian presidential election
Qatari Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani proposes sending troops into Syria to quell civil violence
U.S. Department of State announces plan to offer Bangladesh $1 billion aid over next five years
Incumbent Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou claims victory in elections
U.S. federal judge upholds new federal gun regulation requiring gun sellers in four states border Mexico to report multiple rifle sales
U.S. President Barack Obama (D.) asks U.S. Congress for broad powers to make sweeping changes to “inefficient” federal bureaucracy, close U.S. Department of Commerce
U.S. regulators expanding anti-trust investigation of Google Inc.
U.S. federal judge refuses to order candidates put on Virginia ballot
Burma frees more political prisoners, U.S. Department of State applauds
JPMorgan Chase & Co. announces forth-quarter (Q4) 2011 profits down, paints rosy 2012 picture
The Associated Press becomes first Western news agency to open bureau office in Pyongyang
Zappos.com warns 24 million customers their information may have been hacked
Moody’s keeps French AAA credit rating
Pakistani Supreme Court issues contempt order against Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani

Current Events for Tuesday, 17 January 2012

Greeks strike against austerity measures as E.U., International Monetary Fund (IMF) ministers visit
Rescue workers using “controlled explosions” in search for 29 Costa Concordia missing
U.S. Council on Jobs and Competitiveness: U.S. should overhaul its corporate tax law, expand domestic drilling and introduce new regulatory reforms
The Samsung Group announces plans to invest $41 billion in 2012
Standard & Poor’s (S&P) downgrades European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) credit rating
The Washington Post/ABC News opinion poll shows disapproval of U.S. Congress hits new all-time high of 84%
Nigerian trade unions suspend strike after President Goodluck Jonathan announces he will cut fuel prices by one-third
Human Rights Watch (HRW): tens of thousands of Ethiopians being forced off land so it can be leased to foreign companies
Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) raises rates for first time in 30 years
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) to show U.S. support for reconciliation process
U.N. to train Arab League’s Syria monitors
GOP debate fizzles, same-old-same-old doesn’t inspire; Governor Romney emerges bruised but strong, U.S. Representative Ron Paul (R., TX) attacked on foreign policy answers
The Definitely Not Coordinating With Stephen Colbert Super PAC launches first South Carolina advertisement, calls on Republicans primary voters to cast ballot for Herman Cain
English-language Wikipedia to shut-down for 24-hours on Wednesday, 18 January 2012 in protest of Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA, H.R. 3261)
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R.) to headline U.S. House of Representatives (House) GOP retreat
U.S. Attorney-General Eric Holder uses MLK day to highlight voting irregularities around the country
U.S. First Family maintains MLK day tradition of volunteering

Current Events for Wednesday, 18 January 2012

The World Bank slashes global gross domestic product (GDP) forecast, warns developing economies to prepare for “real” risk of eurozone crisis escalation
Joint Task Force Guantanamo Commander U.S. Navy (USN) Rear Admiral David Woods testifies, defends prison mail review
Canada, Denmark, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand sign-on to pay $620 million of $1 billion cost for building, operating ninth satellite in new U.S. military communications grid
Italian divers suspend search after Costa Concordia hull shifts
Yahoo! Inc. co-founder Jerry Yang resigns position in move to appease investors
Samsung Electronics Co. denies reports it is looking into deal with Research In Motion Inc. (RIM)
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Inspector-General H. David Kotz leaving agency
Governor Romney admits in exchange he “probably” pays 15% tax rate, may not release tax returns until April
Governor Romney: “I get speaker fees, but not very much;” last year, he earned just under $375,000 in speaker fees
U.S. Department of the Treasury begins dipping into federal employee pension funds to provide more credit to pay government bills
Idahoan Oscar Ortega-Hernandez formally charged with attempted assassination of a president
Kraft Foods Inc.: splitting into two companies would cut around 1,600 North American jobs, raise 2011 profit margin by 10%
Carnival Corp. shares drop 15%
Russian billionaire, presidential hopeful Mikhail Prokhorov: Russian politics, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin must change or face Arab Spring-like uprisings
E.U. spokeman: European Commission plans to take legal steps against Hungary over country’s laws on its central bank
Wells Fargo & Co. posts better-than-expected Q4 2011 profits
Syrian troops attacking Zabadani rebels agree to ceasefire
Pakistan postpones visit by U.S. Special Envoy Marc Grossman until after parliamentary review of bilateral relations is completed
Hundreds of supporters turn-out to see Burmese democracy advocate Aung San Suu Kyi register to run for parliamentary seat
U.S. Secret Service investigating #Occupy smoke bomb thrown over White House fence
Chinese data shows cooling economy
Mexican security forces find 12 shipping containers of methylamine
Iraq war veteran Itzcoatl Ocampo charged by California state police with stabbing deaths of four homeless men
The Internet Society announces 6 June as internet protocol, version 6 (IPv6) launch day
At least 51 South Sudanese killed in ethnic clashes
Yemeni Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Qirbi: next month’s planned presidential election may need to be postponed due to instability
Lawyers for ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak open defense case
Indian physicians report tuberculosis infections totally resistant to all antibiotic treatments
7,000 websites go dark in protest of SOPA
Former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin: if I was a South Carolina voter, I’d vote for Newt Gingrich
Seattle braces for “generational” storm

Current Events for Thursday, 19 January 2012

BP plc likely to accept U.S. Department of Justice offer of $20-25 billion to settle all civil, criminal claims against it relating to the Deepwater Horizon Gulf of Mexico oil spill
Eastman Kodak Co. files for bankruptcy protection, receives $950 million credit facility from Citigroup Inc.
Iran claims it is “in touch” with West about new nuclear talks, U.S. denies contact
In legal tax practice to reduce burden, Governor Romney gave Mormon chuch substantial stock holdings while at Bain Capital
U.S. President Obama rejects proposed TransCanada Corp. Keystone XL pipeline
Eight U.S. lawmakers— U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R., FL), Roy Blunt (R., MO), Orrin Hatch (R., UT), Ben Cardin (D., MD) and U.S. Representatives Ben Quayle (R., AZ), Lee Terry (R., NE), Dennis Ross (R., FL), Tim Holden (D., PA)—change tune on Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act of 2011 (PROTECT IP Act, PIPA, S. 968), Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA, H.R. 3261), cite internet blackout
U.S. Department of Justice charges Chinese computer programmer with stealing Federal Reserve Bank of New York software
IMF seeks to double size of rescue fund, to $600 billion, faces stiff opposition from U.S., other nations
AT&T Inc. begins data plan price hike ahead of anticipated usage booms
eBay Inc. reports higher-than-expected profits, outlook still cautious
U.S. House defeats 239-176 U.S. Obama administration request to increase debt limit by $1.2 trillion in largely political, symbolic vote
U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Shaun Donovan: about one million American households will received mortgage write-downs
British Prime Minister David Cameron speaks to economic crisis, urges “moral capitalism”
Facebook adds array of new applications (apps) in bid to have users spend more time on social networking website
U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues David Scheffer named advisor in Khmer Rouge trials by Cambodian government
Newsnight: British Special Air Service (SAS) soldiers were “on ground” in Libya, fighting next to rebels
Twin Helmand attacks kill 13, many wounded, including North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) International Security Assistance Force—Afghanistan (ISAF-A) soldiers
U.N. Security Council (UNSECO) awaiting Arab League’s Syrian monitors’ report
Last summer’s debt deal driving faster-than-expected cuts in core defense appropriations
Speaker Gingrich: I’d like Palin in my White House
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton (D.): MSNBC is “our version of Fox”
Movement to recall Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker turns-in over one million signatures to put recall vote on ballot
GQ releases annual 50 most influential people in Washington, D.C. list:

Top 5

U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R., VA)
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., KY)
U.S. Senior Advisor to the President David Plouffe
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton

Bottom 5

Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) Chairman Chris Dodd
Major League Baseball’s (MLB) Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg
Former U.S. Representative Jack Quinn (R., NY)
Restaurateur James Alefantis, owner of Comet Ping Pong, Buck’s Fishing & Camping
Bradley Graham and Lissa Muscatine, owners of Politics & Prose

Current Events for Friday, 20 January 2012

Greece, creditors move closer to deal in race against time
Syrian killings continue as Arab League monitors’ mandate expires
General Motors Co. (GM) regains top-selling automaker title, Toyota Motor Co. slips to number three, Volkwagon Group maintains two
U.S. Army report shows violent sex crimes committed by U.S. soldiers is on the rise, suicide rates going down
U.S. Department of Justice shuts-down megaupload.com, charges founders and several employees with numerous copyright infringements, Anonymous retaliates
Costa Concordia rescue efforts happered by bad weather
GOP presidential candidates less than civil in last debate before South Carolina primary
U.S. Department of Defense: senior al-Qaeda operations organizer Aslam Awan killed in one of two UAV attacks last week in Pakistan
Google Inc.’s Q4 2011 results disappoint. rare miss tumbles shares 9%
Iowan GOP certifies caucuses results: former U.S. Senator Santorum won by 34 votes
Texas Governor Perry drops-out of GOP presidential race, endorses former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich
Former U.S. House Speaker Gingrich’s second wife, Marianne, tells ABC News’s Nightline program Gingrich wanted “open marriage”
Reuters poll of some 600 international economists: global economic momentum to die in 2012
Apple Inc. launches iBooks 2 software
U.S. jobless claims fell to four-year-low last week, mid-Atlantic factory activity picked-up
Bank of America Corp. announces profit increase for Q4 2011, cautions about over-optimism
Spanish long-term bond sale sells more than expected
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels (R.) chosen to give GOP response to U.S. President Obama’s State of the Union address, former GOP presidential hopeful Herman Cain tapped to give alternative response
Fitch Ratings announces it expects need to downgrade by one or two notches some eurozone states
IMF Managing-Director Christine Lagarde, World Bank President Robert Zoellick warn against austerity measures, call on countries to implement free trade, reform their economies, protect economic growth
Somali government forces in major offensive against al-Shabab militants in Mogadishu
Mogadishu refugee camp suicide bomb attack kills six, Médecins Sans Frontière (MSF, Doctors Without Borders) closes two centers
Four French ISAF-A soldiers killed, 16 wounded in incident involving Afghan National Army soldier
Six ISAF-A soldiers killed in Afghan helicopter crash
At least seven killed in suicide attack at Kandahar airport used by ISAF-A
Burmese President Thein Sein: nation is on “right track” to democracy, no plan to “draw back”
Cuban dissident Wilmar Villar dies after 50-day hunger strike
Nevada firefighters contain wildfire threatening Reno
Indonesian officials confirm Influeza A virus subtype H5N1 [A(H5N1)] death, Cambodia and Vietnam both reported one last week
Johnson & Johnson settles for $158 million over allegations a subsidiary defrauded Texas Medicaid program
Intel Corp. beats Wall Street expectations for Q4 2011
Microsoft Inc. Q4 2011 profits down slightly
Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) Aziz Dweik arrested by Israeli security forces at checkpoint for involvment in terrorist activities
Eastman Kodak Co. files five patent suits against The Samsung Group
U.S. authorities confirm former Liberian President Charles Taylor, accused of war crimes, worked for U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)