Things Noticeable this week - Page 3051

**Brecht** · July 29th, 2017, 06:34 PM

There's a growing tension between Germany and the US. It seems that for the first time since the end of WW2 the German establishment feels strong enough to reconsider its relationship to the US. They have some big plans like the set-up of a powerful European army, under its leadership naturally, but with France as partner. Germany & France have already teamed up to build a new fighter jet together to replace the Eurofighter. The Austrian minister of defense, Hans Peter Doskozil, recently announced that Austria will be getting rid of the Eurofighter in 2020.

The background to the recent brickering between Germany and the US is the Russian-European Nord Stream 2 project, a gas pipeline planned to become operational in 2019. The project includes two pipeline strings, with a total annual capacity of 55 billion cubic meters of gas, from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea. Its biggest opponents in Europe are Poland and the Ukraine who fear that they may lose their transit fees for the Russian gas supplied to Europe.

The Americans are putting pressure on Germany and everyone involved in the project. For the Germans, this is blatant meddling in European affairs which it is, of course. The new sanctions against Russia, Iran and North Korea, that were approved by US House of Representatives on Tuesday, contain passages that express threats to European and German companies who do business with Russia, especially if they're involved with the Nord Stream 2 project. What arrogance!

But what are the reasons for this blackmailing from America? Well, thanks to fracking, the US is floating in excess capacities of natural gas but this has become a problem for American gas corporations because of the low prices. American providers pay $88 for 1000 cubic meters while European providers pay €350 for the same amount of gas. US corporations want to export their gas to Europe, otherwise the low prices (good for US consumers but bad for corporations) may result in a market collapse at home. Their plan is to deliver their gas liquefied and in tanks which is not economically viable for Europe as the costs would be too high. The transport of this otherwise cheap fracking gas is very expensive.

The unpredictable potential for escalation is growing in an already ongoing multipolar economic war.

**diamelsx** · July 29th, 2017, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xyzde69

Nobody mentionned this story on this forum:

On 24th July

Chainsaw attack at Swiss insurance company leaves several people injured

https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...n-schaffhausen

Dangerous people are everywhere.

damn dude went full Leather face with it...

**otokonomidori** · July 29th, 2017, 09:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xyzde69

Nobody mentionned this story on this forum:

On 24th July

https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...n-schaffhausen
(

I spent a fortnight in Schaffhausen - the guy was probably angry at Swiss prices.

**Puhbear69** · July 30th, 2017, 04:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by otokonomidori

I spent a fortnight in Schaffhausen - the guy was probably angry at Swiss prices.

It was at the border to Germany - he could compare the prices with German prices.

It's much more likely that this issue is having to do with the Swiss insurance company; probably they denied him an operation or a medical treatment.

**Devius** · July 30th, 2017, 07:46 AM

Two people have been killed and three seriously injured in a nightclub shooting in the German city of Constance, police say.

A man opened fire at about 04:30 (01:30 GMT) on Sunday, killing one person. The gunman was then shot and injured by police, and died later in hospital.

The attack unfolded at the Grey club on Max-Stromeyer-Strasse.

Multiple German reports said the second person killed was a guest at the club.

Others were able to save themselves by fleeing outside or hiding, police said.

A doorman appeared to have been shot with an automatic pistol as he tried to stop the attacker, witnesses told broadcaster SWR.

One police officer was also wounded in the exchange of fire. The officer's injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.

Police and prosecutors said in a statement (in German) that special commando forces and a police helicopter had been deployed, as it was not yet known if the suspect had accomplices.

Early reports say the gunman was a 34-year-old Iraqi citizen who had been living in Germany for a long time.

The motive for the shooting is not immediately clear.

Details:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-40767954

**Wendigo** · July 30th, 2017, 07:54 AM

Record 141 prison sentences increased after complaints
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40767206

I wonder how widely known this matter is, with the soft arsed do-gooder attitudes of some of our allegedly "learned friends"

it's good to have a means of redress when the system fails the public and keeps some of these vermin off the streets a bit longer

From 8 August, an additional 19 terror-related offences will be added to the list of sentences that can be increased if found to be unduly lenient.

You know the script so if some feeble minded judge gives a slap on the wrist when the whole hand should have been cut off and fed to the pigs just let them know

**rewbear** · July 30th, 2017, 09:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seany65

I remember seeing one episode of either that or a similar programme, where the presenter said the wood burning stove was 'Carbon Neutral'!

Quote:

Originally Posted by scoundrel

Technically that is what the statement means. Fossil fuels release CO2 which has been out of the atmosphere for millions of years. Wood burning stoves recycle CO2 which was already there when the tree was growing.

BUT

If the tree was growing for more than 10-20 years then the CO2 was captured a long time ago and is being re-introduced. Not carbon neutral surely?

If the tree was planted and cut down somewhere in Siberia and the wood was burned in central London, then the carbon is being removed from a place where no one lives and released into a densely populated area to pollute the air for as many people as possible.

'Carbon Neutral' refers to the situation where a process such as burning wood in a stove, or manufacturing the stove in the first place, or delivering it to the shop, gives off carbon, as Carbon Dioxide or Methane for example, but those emissions are 'offset' in some way. Some would have you believe that simply replanting sufficient trees to replace those being burnt makes your stove carbon neutral but as scoundrel says it is necessary to take into account the complete 'Carbon Footprint' of the stove, as outlined above, and offsetting all of those emissions before the stove could be described as 'Carbon Neutral'.

**Devius** · July 30th, 2017, 12:05 PM

Just saw this featured on BBC News Channel's tech show (Click), so I searched for the original news story from May 2017 (so apologies if this has already been posted on the VEF):

The iris-recognition feature in Samsung’s new Galaxy S8 smartphone has been defeated by German hackers, less than a month after it hit shelves around the world.

A video posted by the Chaos Computer Club, a long-running hacker collective formed in Berlin in 1981, shows the security feature being fooled by a dummy eye into thinking that it is being unlocked by a legitimate owner.

The artificial eye – which is made using just a printer and a contact lens to match the curvature of the eye – is best created using pictures of the iris taken with a digital camera in night mode.

“The security risk to the user from iris recognition is even bigger than with fingerprints, as we expose our irises a lot,” said the group’s spokesperson, Dirk Engling. “If you value the data on your phone – and possibly want to even use it for payment – using the traditional pin-protection is a safer approach than using body features for authentication.”

Engling warns that “under some circumstances, a high-resolution picture from the internet is sufficient to capture an iris”, but a Samsung spokesperson said it would be “impossible” to use a normal picture of an iris, however high resolution it is, to fool the security feature

Full story:
https://www.theguardian.com/technolo...etric-security

Video showing how to defeat Samsung's iris scanner
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtQ4yzbsi-c

I was always under the impression that biometric security such as iris-recognition was infalliable. Guess I was wrong...

**Puhbear69** · July 30th, 2017, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Devius

Two people have been killed and three seriously injured in a nightclub shooting in the German city of Constance, police say.

A man opened fire at about 04:30 (01:30 GMT) on Sunday, killing one person. The gunman was then shot and injured by police, and died later in hospital.

The attack unfolded at the Grey club on Max-Stromeyer-Strasse.

Multiple German reports said the second person killed was a guest at the club.

[...]

The perpetrator was a 34 years old Kurdish from Iraq who was no asylum seeker; he lived since 1991 in Germany.

The automatic pistol (the witnesses said) turned out as an M16 rifle.

Of course: weapons are not allowed in Germany, much less any weapons of war.

One policeman was injured an other was shot at the head, only his helmet saved him of being killed too.

Speculations are, it would have been a relational act.

**otokonomidori** · July 30th, 2017, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Puhbear69

It was at the border to Germany - he could compare the prices with German prices.

Tell me about it!!! I drove over the border every day for fags and milch and brotchen.

July 30th, 2017, 07:46 AM	#30505
Devius Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: It's a London Thing.... Posts: 23,588 Thanks: 142,460 Thanked 228,847 Times in 23,624 Posts	'One dead' in German nightclub shooting Two people have been killed and three seriously injured in a nightclub shooting in the German city of Constance, police say. A man opened fire at about 04:30 (01:30 GMT) on Sunday, killing one person. The gunman was then shot and injured by police, and died later in hospital. The attack unfolded at the Grey club on Max-Stromeyer-Strasse. Multiple German reports said the second person killed was a guest at the club. Others were able to save themselves by fleeing outside or hiding, police said. A doorman appeared to have been shot with an automatic pistol as he tried to stop the attacker, witnesses told broadcaster SWR. One police officer was also wounded in the exchange of fire. The officer's injuries are not thought to be life-threatening. Police and prosecutors said in a statement (in German) that special commando forces and a police helicopter had been deployed, as it was not yet known if the suspect had accomplices. Early reports say the gunman was a 34-year-old Iraqi citizen who had been living in Germany for a long time. The motive for the shooting is not immediately clear. Details: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-40767954 __________________ "I've had it with them, I've had it with you, I've had it with ALL THIS - I WANT ROOM SERVICE!* I want the club sandwich, I want the cold Mexican beer, I want a $10,000-a-night hooker!"* Johnny Mnemonic (1995) Last edited by Devius; July 30th, 2017 at 09:26 AM.. Reason: More info...

July 30th, 2017, 07:54 AM	#30506
Wendigo Former Staff Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Blighty Posts: 113,893 Thanks: 259,993 Thanked 1,140,490 Times in 114,014 Posts	Record 141 prison sentences increased after complaints http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-40767206 I wonder how widely known this matter is, with the soft arsed do-gooder attitudes of some of our allegedly "learned friends" it's good to have a means of redress when the system fails the public and keeps some of these vermin off the streets a bit longer From 8 August, an additional 19 terror-related offences will be added to the list of sentences that can be increased if found to be unduly lenient. You know the script so if some feeble minded judge gives a slap on the wrist when the whole hand should have been cut off and fed to the pigs just let them know __________________ RIP Doctor Who To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. 23 November 1963 to 25 December 2017, sacrificed on the altar of identity politics. The show is dead to me, but my DVD's live on If you can re-up dead links please consider adding this to your signature. It helps when looking at reports of dead posts. Please PM me re any dead images although it is likely if it is outside Celebs I may no longer have the content

July 30th, 2017, 12:05 PM	#30508
Devius Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: It's a London Thing.... Posts: 23,588 Thanks: 142,460 Thanked 228,847 Times in 23,624 Posts	Samsung Galaxy S8 iris scanner fooled by German hackers Just saw this featured on BBC News Channel's tech show (Click), so I searched for the original news story from May 2017 (so apologies if this has already been posted on the VEF): The iris-recognition feature in Samsung’s new Galaxy S8 smartphone has been defeated by German hackers, less than a month after it hit shelves around the world. A video posted by the Chaos Computer Club, a long-running hacker collective formed in Berlin in 1981, shows the security feature being fooled by a dummy eye into thinking that it is being unlocked by a legitimate owner. The artificial eye – which is made using just a printer and a contact lens to match the curvature of the eye – is best created using pictures of the iris taken with a digital camera in night mode. “The security risk to the user from iris recognition is even bigger than with fingerprints, as we expose our irises a lot,” said the group’s spokesperson, Dirk Engling. “If you value the data on your phone – and possibly want to even use it for payment – using the traditional pin-protection is a safer approach than using body features for authentication.” Engling warns that “under some circumstances, a high-resolution picture from the internet is sufficient to capture an iris”, but a Samsung spokesperson said it would be “impossible” to use a normal picture of an iris, however high resolution it is, to fool the security feature Full story: https://www.theguardian.com/technolo...etric-security Video showing how to defeat Samsung's iris scanner https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtQ4yzbsi-c I was always under the impression that biometric security such as iris-recognition was infalliable. Guess I was wrong... __________________ "I've had it with them, I've had it with you, I've had it with ALL THIS - I WANT ROOM SERVICE!* I want the club sandwich, I want the cold Mexican beer, I want a $10,000-a-night hooker!"* Johnny Mnemonic (1995)

July 29th, 2017, 06:34 PM	#30501
Brecht Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 10,657 Thanks: 180,485 Thanked 188,145 Times in 10,453 Posts	There's a growing tension between Germany and the US. It seems that for the first time since the end of WW2 the German establishment feels strong enough to reconsider its relationship to the US. They have some big plans like the set-up of a powerful European army, under its leadership naturally, but with France as partner. Germany & France have already teamed up to build a new fighter jet together to replace the Eurofighter. The Austrian minister of defense, Hans Peter Doskozil, recently announced that Austria will be getting rid of the Eurofighter in 2020. The background to the recent brickering between Germany and the US is the Russian-European Nord Stream 2 project, a gas pipeline planned to become operational in 2019. The project includes two pipeline strings, with a total annual capacity of 55 billion cubic meters of gas, from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea. Its biggest opponents in Europe are Poland and the Ukraine who fear that they may lose their transit fees for the Russian gas supplied to Europe. The Americans are putting pressure on Germany and everyone involved in the project. For the Germans, this is blatant meddling in European affairs which it is, of course. The new sanctions against Russia, Iran and North Korea, that were approved by US House of Representatives on Tuesday, contain passages that express threats to European and German companies who do business with Russia, especially if they're involved with the Nord Stream 2 project. What arrogance! But what are the reasons for this blackmailing from America? Well, thanks to fracking, the US is floating in excess capacities of natural gas but this has become a problem for American gas corporations because of the low prices. American providers pay $88 for 1000 cubic meters while European providers pay €350 for the same amount of gas. US corporations want to export their gas to Europe, otherwise the low prices (good for US consumers but bad for corporations) may result in a market collapse at home. Their plan is to deliver their gas liquefied and in tanks which is not economically viable for Europe as the costs would be too high. The transport of this otherwise cheap fracking gas is very expensive. The unpredictable potential for escalation is growing in an already ongoing multipolar economic war.