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There are problems with TikTok as social media app that are shown under The Enemy Within in Movement for Global Literacy of Lyrarc.com that relate to global literacy of children spending many hours on the app taking time away from homework and reading, when over half of American children 12-18  perform below basic requirements on reading proficiency tests. Similar loss of reading comprehension in UK and France. China can regulate its internet by restricting it in ways that won't hurt literacy in China. India has banned the app.  There are problems with TikTok that relate to literacy and cultural literacy that Democrats or Republicans or the Supreme Court have failed to bring up let alone address. These concerns should grow in the minds of Americans concerned about preserving the cultural literacy that has existed in the US for the last 200 years- it is about who Americans are as a Nation of immigrants from Europe of the Renaissance and the Modern World. US is a mix of population from European nations of 204 million, of a black population of about 48 million in 2025, 7 million native Americans, and Spanish speaking Americans of 62 million, Asian population of 25 million. The US is at a critical juncture in deciding what kind of a nation it will be. Will it lose it's basic character of a nation which draws its inspiration from European civilization's defining characteristics of the Renaissance, the evolution of science and democratic forms of government leading to creation of the Modern World. The 25 million Asians immigrated to the US for a large part seeking this kind of modernization of society from what they left behind and this is largely true of Spanish speaking immigrants and Spanish settlers who settled California, Texas and Florida as Spain settled the American colonies before the English and French. TikTok ban opposed decreased from 2023 to end of 2024 by 18% from 50% to 32%, according to Pew Research. Pew does not say that this is the result of growing use of TikTok by teenagers and children for entertainment by 12-15% in the period 2023-2025. Between 2021 and 2023 use of TikTok in the US increased by 12% from 21% to 33% from which we can extrapolate that it increased by about 12-15% between 2023 and 2025 if it is growing at the same pace. Politicians oblivious of the effects on cultural literacy in the US are allowing it to be embedded in the US in ways that hurt basic reading and cultural literacy skills. ...

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The French government announced a 26 billion euros or $33 billion package as Stimulus spending. Its going into infrastructure projectsand investents by state owned firms like Electricite de France. It also includes aone-off payment of 200 euros for low-income households. Its valued at 1.3% of GDP. Under this plan, France will dig acanal north of Paris, renovate university buildings, and put new metro cars in service, and also fincnace the construction of 70,000 homes, on top of the 30,000 unfinished homes it is buying in 2009. Motorists who scrap thier old cars to buy new fuel efficient cars in 2009 will get a1000 euros bonus. This is aimed at reducing the stock of unsold cars which is at 1 million cars. And small companies will be exempted from social charges when they hire new employees.

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The South China Morning Post provides this view of China on the day of the 70th anniversary of the Communist Party of China, on the long road from the founding of the government in 1949 under Mao, the Cultural Revolution, and the shift to a state sponsored market economy under premier Deng in the 1980's.  From being at early stages of industrialization to a fully developed modern and industrialized country over three decades.  The challenges China faces are whether its growth will slow with a high debt situation, trade war with the U.S., aging population and the housing bubble that has created problems in Hong Kong. This could lead to a situation where its per capita income stays in the middle range at around $12,000 per capita, referred to as a middle income economy by the World Bank. Some experts believe that the factors that propelled China since 1990- a youthful labor force, globalization reducing tariffs and benefitting from entry into WTO, easy access to western technology, land sales for local governments to finance industrial development, rapid urbanization, and infrastructure investment in electricity rail and highways, are now reaching their limits with smaller incremental steps and growth in the future. The big gains made in the last three decades could be limited by other factors also such as the high debt economy, build up of industrial overcapacity, limited domestic consumption to take the place of exports facing high tariffs. Countries normally face some slowdown in such situation after a period of rapid growth, Japan and South Korea being recent examples. During the transition period to a new kind of economy from the manufacturing export push Asian model many unseen social and other problems emerge. The situation in Hong Kong shows how the housing bubble can also lead to problems that require resources and attention.  There are other social problems that continue to remain hidden. It does not take long for hidden problems to emerge as the situation in Brazil for lack of sanitation and epidemic prevention shows. In China the cost of too rapid development has led to pollution of rivers and land that will need to be cleaned up. The effect of contamination of food supply is an ever present risk with the contamination of land and water. Little attention is paid to prevalence of smoking and its damaging effects on health. The one child policy also brings with it cultural issues of how a whole new generation of children without siblings. Many other social problems that affect the quality of life become evident as growth slows and addressing these problems can actually benefit the country and its people. ...

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Loukas Tsoukalis, professor of European Integration at the University of Athens and the president of the Hellenic Foundation of European and Foreign Policy, provides a view of the debt crisis from inside Greece. A default on Greece's debt of $500 billion would seriously affect other European countries and also affect the U.S. Tsoukalis says a national unity government is needed to take the bold steps that are needed to privatize state assets, cut public sector jobs and increase tax collection. Growth is critical, as an austerity program that fails to do this will fail to pull Greece out of the debt crisis. He calls for agreement on the question of who should bear how much of the cost for the mistakes of the past, taxpayers and private creditors. Discussions on this question are being undertaken by governments and private creditors as the crisis enters a new and dangerous phase. And for the countries involved in this crisis - Ireland, Portugal, Spain - there is the question of what will happen after two decades of European integration, whether these achievements will be undermined by excessive borrowing, consumption and poor financial management....

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With Republicans elected to a majority in both chambers of the state legislature and a Republican governor, Wisconsin is moving ahead with a sweeping plan to fix its budget deficit. Walker promised he would get public workers' compensation in line with other workers. He is now proposing a plan which will go to the legislature for swift approval that will simply go ahead and cut public employees benefits without negotiating. He says he doesn't have anything to negotiate with, because with the growing deficit he has nothing to give. His plan: limit collective bargaining for most state and local government employees to the issue of wages (instead of to many issues such as vacations, health coverage), require government workers to contribute 5.8% of pay to pensions, and have state employees pay at least 12.6% of health care premiums (instead of the 6% most pay today). The plan will save $30 million in the current budget and $300 million in the next budget. Republican leaders are saying the alternative is to lay off some 6000 state workers, and take away Medicaid coverage for thousands of children, which is a much worse alternative....

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China is changing the way its fuel pricing and taxation system will work, that will ensure a number of goals like energy conservation, improve highway funding, protect consumers and ensure decent profit margins for oil companies. Oil prices are set by the government and oil prices have not been reduced as prices have dropped so that Chinese pay twice as much at the pump for cars than does the average American. A series of road fees which are used to finance higheway construction were cancelled and a fivefold increase made to the fuel consumption tax from 0.2 yuan to 1 yuan per liter of gasoline, ccording to the National Development and Reform Commission. Taxes in diesel which are 0.1 yuan rise to 0.8 yuan. THe changes that go into effect January 1, 2009 will also bring China's fuel prices and pricing mechnaism more in line with international oil markets. This should result in lower prices at the pump next year for Chinese filling up their cars at gas stations, because of the policymakers concern that Chinese consumers and the economy get a stimulus including the benefit of lower oil prices....

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Indian prime minister Modi says India "will go above and beyond" the 2015 Paris climate change accord. He said at a news conference with French president Macron that it was "our duty to protect Mother Earth." He said after the meeting that the Paris accord was "the common heritage of the world," and "a gift that this generation can give." India has set ambitious goals for solar and wind energy as costs of solar become competitive with coal. Because India desperately needs energy for over 200 million people who lack electricity, India's shift away from reliance on coal may be a lesson learned from the damage to air and water in China's two decade industrial expansion based on coal.

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EU leaders, the ECB and the European Financial Stability Facility, in negotiations for a "selective default" for Greece. The ECB is persuaded to accept a selective default, with one option being to protect ECB from losses by the EFSF buying 50 billion euros of Greek bonds at cost price. Another concern of ECB about contagion is being addressed through a statment that this is designed only for Greece because "of its exceptional situation." A draft document under discussion by EU leaders has a plan for cutting the interest rates on Greece's bailout loans from 5.5% to 3.5% and doubling the repayment period to 15 years. EU officials see giving Ireland and Portugal the same interest rates on their bailout loans. The high interest rates and the shorter maturities made earlier plans unworkable. Private investors are encoraged but not required to exchange their old Greek bonds for new bonds with maturities of upto 30 years. Also being discussed is a buyback of Greek bonds at a heavy discount to face value at which they are trading. EFSF will also get new powers to make bailout loans on a precautionary basis. EFSF would also have powers to lend to eurozoe governments to help recapitalize banks and buy back bonds from other countries....

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Victor Allis, CEO of software company Quintiq, in the Netherlands, describes his approach to managing in this exceptional interview with Adam Bryant of the NYT. He delves into personality when hiring, looking for aspects that show the person will take responsibility whatever hand he is given, and in the process be willing to tackle adversity. Respect for all people, no matter what their situation and work, is part of the culture he acquired from his dad, a plant manager at Fokker Aircraft. This extends to giving out 15% of profit to all employees, equally distributed so that the CEO receives the same as the receptionist. A math expert at a young age, Allis went into consulting and then starting a software company, instead of becoming a math professor. He has a 5 minute rule where he tells employees to look for help in the company, when they cannot figure out the solution to a problem after 5 minutes of thinking- the suggestions from outside could help or others can act as a sounding board. In selecting people for projects he looks for motivation as much or more than skills. Simple but powerful thoughts and practice expressed with astonishing clarity, coming from the Netherlands....

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Paying one cent more for every pound of tomatoes picked by farm workers from central America has been resisted by Burger King and other fast food chains and by the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange. Taco Bell and McDoalds have signed up for this increase. The extra cent per pound is the first pay increase workers have received in 30 years. A picker would have to fill 15 of 32 pound buckets an hour to earn Florida's minimum wage of $6.79 even with the one cent increase per pound.

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Toyota resale prices are dropping. Analysts at Kelley Blue Book estimate the price of a new Toyota Camry will fall by $500 to $1000 and a new Prius hybrid by $1000 to $1500 from the effects of the recalls now in motion. This is already in cars being resold at dealerships. Toyota was able to get higher prices for its cars because of higher resale values, so this will cut into the profitability at Toyota. The premium for Toyota used to be $1000 to $2000 on cars priced in the $20,000 to $25,00 range and this may be beginning to disappear for the first time in decades.Cost of lost sales estimated by Toyota at 100,000 vehicles from the recalls and $2.01 billion.

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Speaking on national television in the U.S., President Obama outlined his plans for action relating to the BP Gulf Oil Spill. He is appointing former Mississippi governor Ray Mabus, as head of a Gulf Resoration program to work in cooperation with communities, conservationists, fishermen, and local residents. Obama also said he will tell the chairman of BP's board, Carl Henric-Svanberg, that he will have to set aside resources for compensating workers and business owners who have suffered through this Oil Spill. The White House wants to see an escrow account for this purpose and is negotiating this- the amount varies from an estimate of $20 billion by Senate Democrats to other estimates. Other action was appointment of Michael Bromwich, as head of the Minerals Management Service.

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England wicketkeeper Jamie Smith's 184 helps England  get to 407 at Edgbaston against India, July 3, 2025. Smith hit the fastest century for an England batsman except for Jessup by doing this in 80 balls. Gilbert Jessup was at the Oval in 1902 against Australia, with a century hit in 76 balls. Smith's century will go in the books as the fastest for England in the last 100 years,  a feat thoroughly enjoyed by cricket fans.

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The doubts among the unvaccinated and America's pandemic of the unvaccinated in the south and west of the country, difficulty reaching a consensus on things as basic as spending $45 billion or 2% of the $2 trillion Biden plan for workers and families on 2 years of community college, or finding a way to stem what is an alarming decline in enrollment in college of young men in America, all go back to a standoff between Republicans and Democrats. Tennessee in the South is Republican yet passed a bill supporting state paid community college with a supermajority, yet at the national level it is lacks support of Republicans and centrist Democrats. To see how this happens this NYT report presents the picture from the Democrats side of how Montana residents blocked a National Heritage area in the state. Other stories relate to distortions from the other side from the Republican point of view. One man, one vote is not entirely the way Democracy was designed by Jefferson, Madison and other founders. The Senate of the US is based on one state one vote, giving Montana an equal vote as California or New York. At one time Mike Mansfield, Democrat of Montana was the Senate majority leader. The intent was to design a system that looks not just for democracy but checks on majorities of the moment.  This means unity is the way to renewal of America, for building its infrastructure, education and health care. If Tennessee feels that way about community college it should express it, so should other states in supporting president Biden's plan to Build Back Better. ...

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With only 63 million metric tons of food storage facilities and 75 metric tons of foodgrains stocks after the 2012 harvest season, India faces an acute shortage of storage capacity. About 3-4 million tons of additional capacity are planned by May or June 2012, and 11 million tons in 2013, according to India's Food Ministry, but more capacity will be needed this year. If not corrected this could mean that about 8 million tons of foodgrains could rot out in the open or in makeshift conditions. This is a major problem as about 200 million people in India are considered to be food-insecure, and an estimated 42% of children suffer form malnutrition.

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Some of the statements on the IMF Blog on Inclusive Growth raises the question-Does the IMF, the International Monetary Fund, as an American institution funding developing countries, and economists, grasp what people find troubling in 2022? One of the lessons of the economic crises for families and workers in the US and other countries is that wisdom, a grasp of the soul of a country and its people through the thinking of its founders, and common sense, should drive managing of economies, with a knowledge of how economies work- not economists. Some of that is already happening. America's central bank is headed by Jerome Powell who has wide experience and has knowledge of how the economy runs, is not an economist. He was chosen by president Trump and continues to have the confidence of president Biden for this very reason. Some of the statements on the IMF economic blog are- "Why jobs are plentiful and workers are scarce" Jan 2022 "In the US and UK recent labor market the puzzle, can be partly explained by mismatch, the pandemic's effect on women and older workers leaving the work force." The Reality Wages for teachers are depressed compared to workers in the financial and economics industries, in a frighteningly disproportionate way. When it comes to logistics, hospitality, leisure and restaurants industries workers were paid poorly for what is hard work and long days. In case the IMF economists, and economists at companies, missed this it was called the Great Resignation, people simply choosing to reject the conditions that were handed down to them by the financial industry and economists who built the economic structures of recent decades. Women leaving the workforce are faced with issues of mental health coping with added responsibilities of children at home for the two years, loss of income and widespread mental health problems. The word mental health may be beyond the grasp of economists and the financial industry, yet it is the one of the biggest problems for people. Another pernicious effect noted on the pages of the WSJ is that young white men are dropping out after school because they cannot afford college in alarming numbers. Leading to the kind of discontent for workers and families that president Biden is struggling to address. On IMF Blog- "IMF Podcasts: The Year in Review" Dec. 2021 "The past year has brought us new challenges even as the old ones persist. If anything, the ongoing pandemic has taught us to think differently abut tackling the challenges and questions when it comes to thinking about big issues such as climate change, gender equality, inflation and economic measurement." The Reality Climate change lumped in with economic measurement and inflation. The floods, fires, river and reservoir water levels affecting access to basic life supporting water, drought, all over the world are of a magnitude that is missed entirely.The response to a challenge of this type requires the kind of leadership that president Biden has provided for the world with his $360 billion climate change bill as just the first step of many, and  comprehensive policies covering all aspects of the climate crisis. ON IMF bog- "How Domestic Violence is a Threat to Economic Development." "Stopping violence against women is not only a moral imperative, new evidence shows it can help the economy." The Reality Domestic violence hurts children growing up in such households. It is not so much a moral imperative as it is bad for men, women and children. So many things are wrong about it and it is made worse in conditions of low wages and poor working conditions in poor neighborhoods lacking education. These neighborhoods are also affected by lack of healthcare and the opioid crisis and mental health issues. Not investing in education and healthcare in these communities is what is simply wrong, and which the founders of America as a nation, particularly Lincoln, would find appalling.   Relationship between Capital (the Financial Industry) and Labor (Workers and Families) On the basic issue of the relationship between capital and labor, the IMF and the financial industry, economists, and the economic structure they built in recent decades, have simply got it wrong. It violates both common sense and wisdom, and violates the spirit of the founders particularly Abraham Lincoln. This is what Abraham Lincoln had to say on Upward Mobility, the ease with which each generation can do better than the one before it, as critical in the fight to save the Union. This is from the Annual Message to Congress Dec. 3, 1861, at the start of the Civil War. That upward mobility has been lost in the US with ideas that "place capital on an equal if not above labor, in the structure of government," for the last three decades in the US after the early post war period of Truman and Eisenhower, Kennedy-Johnson.  And Lincoln says this about a hired laborer being fixed in that condition for life, or of future generations of that hired laborer facing disabilities and burdens, similar to the loss of upward mobility for the people today. "Now there is no such relation between capital and labor as assumed, nor is there any such thing as a free man being fixed for life in the condition of a hired laborer. Both these assumptions are false, and all inferences based on them are groundless." "Labor is prior to, and independent of capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed, if labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration. Capital has its rights, which are worthy of protection as any other rights." "Again: there is not, of necessity, any such thing as the free hired laborer being fixed to that condition for life. Many independent men everywhere in these states, a few years back in their lives, were hired laborers. The prudent penniless beginner in the world, labors for wages awhile, saves a surplus with which to buy tools or land for himself, then labors on his own account another while, and at length hires another new beginner to help him. This is the just, and generous, and prosperous system, which opens the way to all- gives hope to all, and consequent energy, and progress, and improvement of condition to all." Lincoln even offers this warning- No men living are more worthy to be trusted than those who toil up from poverty- none less inclined to take, or touch, aught which they have not honestly earned. Let them beware of surrendering a political power which they already possess, and which if surrendered, will surely be used to close the door of advancement against such as they, and to fix new disabilities and burdens upon them, till all of liberty shall be lost." US president Biden has these ideas in mind as he struggles with one piece of legislation after another to restore what once was, to open the door of advancement, to remove these disabilities and burdens that Lincoln speaks of, and in so doing restoring liberty.   ...

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Pope Francis calls for reconciliation between ethnic groups in Sri Lanka during his visit in Jan. 2015. Joseph Vaz of Sri Lanka will be canonized as a saint in the Catholic Church.

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After a disastrous drop in sales in Mexico, Spain and the US and the $15 billion Rinker acquisition, Cemex has pledged to use all cash flow to bankers till 2014 for repayment.

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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh won a no confidence motion in Parliament by 275 to 256 margin with 10 abstentions and will push for the ratification of the nuclear deal with the USA.

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Much of India's relations with Britain as a colonial power, and the US as the first real democracy (defined in a new way without colonial interests) after Britain in the modern world, were set in the period when Gandhi mentored by Gokhale and Tilak in 1900 set the independence struggle of the 1930's and 1940's. Modi merely restored the Gandhian spirit with a development focus and honest administration. This enormous contribution of Gandhi revered by all leaders including Modi is a benevolent one recognizing the important and one might say virtuous role played by the US under Wilson and Roosevelt to colonized nations such as China and India as can be seen in the personal letter to FDR written in the 1940's by Gandhi. There are two defining relations of the US, the first related to its founding as a British colony and a war of independence fought with the help of the French. And the other related to Asia, to Japan, China, and India as they modernized in 1900-2000. Of this the relationship with the most ancient of ancient civilizations in India is the dominant US relationship in 2025, because it unlocks the mysteries of westernization without the religious ethos of Buddhism in an imperialist Japan and now expanding Communist China. This religious ethos of China, Japan and Vietnam lies in Indian soil and in the ethos of the Indian people, and where Gandhi drew his inspiration. From this ethos comes the idea that India as a true friend of America and a Europe (that includes Russia) cannot ignore the devastation of Ukraine and inadvertently find itself a participant through its purchase of Russian oil at $119 billion a year (even when China under a expanding Communist government purchases Russian oil at $136 billion a year). The cost of the war is about $213 billion in a Russian wartime economy which also hurts the Russian economy and the cost of living through inflation for the Russian people. India will seek to do some soul searching and find the right path Gandhi would hold on to for Britain, America, and rest of Europe including the Russian people. ...

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This article in DW.com says Russia's open intervention in Syria with bombing attacks on Aleppo comes with risks. It says the prevailing opinion is that Russia is trying to show its superpower  status in the Middle East and other areas. Other views are that it is showing that it will counter all civil society movements following the one that toppled Yakunovych in Ukraine, and sending a message to civil society movements in Russia. President Obama after meeting with Putin in Hangzhou in September 2016 for 90 minutes, said it appears that Russia is willing "to live with constant low grade conflict" for a long time. DW.com says this is risky for Russia, and it offers so little in return, with the loss of credibility with world public opinion. Compared to Georgia where ethnic Russian ties were involved, and Ukraine where Russia has historically had ties with the eastern part of Ukraine, Russia has no interests of this kind in the region of Syria-Iraq. In its ties with Iran Russia was historically one of the colonial powers like Britain and the U.S., with U.S. relations having worsened only after the 1950's, so no historic ties exist with Iran either.   ...

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The influence of young disaffected voters as a decisive force for change in Japanese politics. The effort to court these voters by running youthful candidates by the Democratic Party of Japan. How this will change postwar Japanese governance for the first time.

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The FTC's $108 million settlement with the Bank of America for some of the questionable practices of Countrywide in its mortgage business, and its billing of borrowers way beyond the usual rates for services. The money will go to some 200,000 borrowers.

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Competing effectively for passengers on Asia routes and on other global routes is critical to generate 90% of synergy savings for the new American Airlines after the merger with US Airways, says Denning. Winning passengers from Delta and United will require good execution.