Stay true to the dreams of thy youth

• The Secret James Bond Missed in 'Skyfall' - Bloomberg

  "Last year, shortly after the excellent James Bond film “Skyfall” was released, I asserted in a column that an anagram at the heart of the film suggested that a critical subplot had been left on the cutting-room floor. I received several e-mails asking why I hadn’t disclosed what I thought I knew. The answer is that I couldn’t explain the anagram without including several spoilers. Now that a year has passed since the U.S. opening (November 9, 2012), I suppose it’s time to explain what I meant. (Warning: Those aforementioned spoilers are below!) "

  tags: interesting bond anagrams wordplay freud

• France has played its cards right on Iran - FT.com

  "y blocking a deal on Iran’s nuclear programme, France has achieved the unusual feat of annoying the American and Iranian governments simultaneously. If the French had genuinely scuppered the chance of an agreement – making war much more likely – they would deserve all the anger directed at them. But by playing “bad cop” to the Obama administration’s good cop, the French have actually made it more likely that an eventual deal will achieve its goal of preventing an Iranian bomb. "

  tags: iran france unitedstates negotiations nuclear politics

• Middle East instability poses greatest threat to GCC’s food security, report says | The National

  "nstability in the Middle East is the biggest threat to the Arabian Gulf’s fragile food security, according to a report by Chatham House. Related Food security issue for GCC is linked to supply, not prices ■ Rising population fuels demand for processed food in the Middle East ■ UAE to focus on food security at Milan Expo 2015 ■ Key partner in UAE's food security strategy looks to Latin America ■ Arab world urged to close food supply gap The region is vulnerable because imports account for between 80 and 90 per cent of food consumption in the GCC, where food self-sufficiency is unattainable due to high temperatures, low rainfall and scarce renewable freshwater sources."

  tags: foodsecurity watersecurity middleeast gcc food

• Kerry stoic under fire on Middle East policy | The National

  "During nine days of on-the-road diplomacy, John Kerry has been lambasted by Israel’s prime minister over possible concessions to Iran and lectured by Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister about getting tougher with Syria. "

  tags: kerry palestine iran israel unitedstates obama lobby

• Financial innovation is the next big thing in clean energy and efficiency | SmartPlanet

  "A new wave of innovation is sweeping the energy transition sector, promising to accelerate deployment and cut the costs of energy-efficiency measures, as well as wind and solar generation. It isn’t a technological improvement, like cutting hardware and labor costs. It isn’t a policy mechanism like feed-in tariffs. It isn’t even a new business model, like selling storage services. It’s financial innovation."

  tags: finance renewableenergy development energysecurity

• Al Qaeda’s Most Dangerous Stronghold - The Daily Beast

  "Al Qaeda is building its most dangerous stronghold ever in the borderlands between Syria and Iraq. Hundreds of new jihadist fighters are flocking to this battlefield in the heartland of the Middle East. And with the civil wars in both countries all but certain to endure for the foreseeable future, the danger from this stronghold is growing. "

  tags: syria iraq iran alqaeda terrorism instability revolution

• Russians exercise right to free subway rides | SmartPlanet

  "Fed up with paying for public transportation? Or maybe you’re panicking because you left your card and cash at home and you need to hop on the subway now? Don’t fret. If you’re in Moscow, you have another option. No, it’s not leaping over the turnstile, but it’s equally energetic: For the price of performing 30 deep knee bends within two minutes, you can climb aboard, which may be exactly how you would have to physically embark once you finish the rigorous leg movements."

  tags: russia exercise random health transportation

• BBC News - Naked artist nails himself to Red Square in protest

  "A performance artist has been detained in Moscow after stripping naked and nailing his scrotum to the cobblestones of Red Square in a protest. Pyotr Pavlensky, 29, reportedly sat for an hour and a half on the square on Sunday afternoon, with a nail driven through his genitals into the ground."

  tags: russia protest dissent authoritarianism europe

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.