Tag Archives: London

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Don’t Let Wall Street Offshore Its Recklessne​ss

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Dogs Dealing Securities at JP Morgan, after Ca...
Dogs Dealing Securities at JP Morgan, after Cassius Marcellus Coolidge (Photo credit: Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com)

by James Lardner

Much of the reckless gambling that caused the financial meltdown of 2008 took place outside U.S. borders. AIG received a $160 billion taxpayer bailouts for derivatives trades made in London. Bear Stearns was brought down by the failure of hedge funds based in the Cayman Islands. And more recently, JP Morgan’s “London Whale” lost billions on derivatives trades.

This is why the Dodd-Frank Act called for regulation of all derivatives trades that have “a direct and significant connection with” U.S. commerce. And it’s why the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has followed the law by drafting rules that cover all derivatives transactions, wherever they occur, with the potential to damage our financial security.

But now Wall Street is leaning on Congress to limit enforcement to derivatives traders physically based in this country. HR 1256, the “Swaps Jurisdiction Certainty Act,” would open a major escape hatch in financial reform. This bill would make it much easier for our biggest banks, which routinely channel their transactions through foreign markets, to escape U.S. oversight.

HR 1256 is set for a vote tomorrow – Wednesday, June 12. So there’s no time to waste.

Tell your representative to Vote No on HR 1256, a bill that would inevitably lead to a new surge of Wall Street recklessness.

Click here to find the name and phone number of your House member.  Or dial the Capitol switchboard at 202-225-3121.
You can report back here. 

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Official Google Blog


 

officalgoogle

Tenth annual Global Code Jam registration opens today

Posted: 12 Mar 2013 12:03 PM PDT

Algorithmic competitions are to programmers what tournaments are to tennis players: an opportunity to feel the rush of competition, learn new techniques and face off against their best counterparts from around the globe. Code Jam, Google’s worldwide online programming competition, gives developers a chance to use their favorite programming languages to solve algorithmic problems created by a team of contest champions at Google.

Our 10th annual global Code Jam kicks off next month, starting with a qualification round on April 12. After three more online rounds, the top 25 contestants will be invited to Google’s London office on August 16 for a final matchup and a chance to win the coveted title of Code Jam Champion.

With more than 20,000 participants last year, Code Jam has grown leaps and bounds since it began in 2003*. To celebrate the competition’s 10th anniversary, we’ve raised the stakes: the winner will claim $15,000, and will automatically qualify for the 2014 Code Jam finals to defend his or her title.

If you’re up to the challenge of solving tough problems and coding elegant solutions (and perhaps debugging less elegant solutions), then register now. Want to warm up for the Qualification Round with a problem or two? How about finding the margin of safety for contestants on a television show, optimizing a tower defense game or swinging through the jungle on vines? You have a whole month to prepare yourself for the first hurdle on Friday, April 12.

Posted by Onufry Wojtaszczyk, Software Engineer, Google Code Jam

*To the mathematically inclined (all of our competitors), 2003-2013 sounds like enough time for 11 Code Jams. Nevertheless, this one will actually be our tenth global contest: we went through a major format change between 2006 and 2008, and there wasn’t a global contest in 2007.

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First Lady Michelle Obama …


The Decision to Move Forward: First Lady Michelle Obama Meets Paralympian Lt. Brad Snyder
Brad Snyder’s story is a remarkable one. Just one year ago, Lieutenant Snyder was blinded by an IED while serving in Afghanistan. This summer, he competed in the London Paralympics, bringing home two gold medals and a silver medal in swimming. Watch as Brad shares his story with First Lady Michelle Obama. “Overcoming adversity is a decision that everyone makes,” Brad said, “And you can let that beat you or you can make the decision to move forward.”
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Shelby Knox, Change.org


Change.org
Tell the AIBA: Don’t force female Olympic boxers to compete in miniskirts
Sign the Petition

Women’s boxing will make its debut at this year’s Olympic Games in London — a huge victory for female boxers who have fought for years to be taken seriously. But now it seems their participation will come with an outrageous catch: female boxers might be required to wear miniskirts in the ring.

The Amateur International Boxing Association (AIBA) is reportedly considering the new dress code because it thinks skirts will make the female athletes look “elegant” and help “distinguish” them from their male counterparts.

Elizabeth Plank, an amateur boxer based in London, is petitioning the AIBA to abandon the miniskirt regulation. Click here to sign Elizabeth’s petition right now.

Elizabeth says, “The idea that female boxers should be made to wear skirts reduces these skilled athletes to sex objects. It undermines the respect they have long fought for.” Worse, competing in unfamiliar clothing could even negatively impact the boxers’ performances.

And Elizabeth isn’t the only boxer speaking out against the proposed dress code. When asked about the policy, three-time world champion Katie Taylor says, “I don’t even wear miniskirts on a night out, so I definitely won’t be wearing miniskirts in the ring.”

Fortunately, the AIBA will be considering public opinion and feedback from the boxing world before making its final decision next week. That means if enough people sign Elizabeth’s petition, you can force the AIBA to abandon the proposed dress code for good.

Click here to sign Elizabeth’s campaign calling on the AIBA to abandon its sexist plans to require female boxers to wear miniskirts in the ring.

Thanks for being a change-maker,

– Shelby and the Change.org team