Sudan - Humanitarian Crisis

Sudan is on the brink of yet another humanitarian crisis. 


The situation is dire and growing worse every day "Members of the Genocide Intervention Network  met villagers and refugees who have endured untold violence — suffering from aerial bombings and attacks from ground troops for months on the orders of President Omar al-Bashir. And now, unable to plant or harvest crops without becoming a target, entire communities — men, women and children — are facing the very real threat of starvation and disease as Bashir continues to block shipments of humanitarian supplies. Without immediate action, families will be out of food by March."


Read more. 

Syria - Violence worsens! and Iranian Jews conflicted

Syria - news report from NBC -   -Did the U.N. vote give the Syrian Regime the feeling they could attack citizens without consequences from the World?


and from NPR

Jews With Ties To Iran And Israel Feel Conflicted

Russia, China veto U.N. action on Syria; opposition group calls for strike - CNN.com

Russia, China veto U.N. action on Syria; opposition group calls for strike - CNN.com

- As international anger grows over reports of mass carnage at the hands of the Syrian regime, a U.N. Security Council draft resolution condemning Syria failed to be adopted Saturday after veto-wielding members Russia and China voted against it.

Syria - Violence - Should the U.S. be involved?

 What is happening in Syria - why does it matter? consider  Should the U.S. or the U.N.  assist the Syrians? What are the impacts of a potential U.N. Solution? Why doesn't Russia sign on?

Listen to an important moment in Syria's history - on NPR  - then watch a news clip from this week. Then you can  follow  todays events  in Syria here 

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

In Italy, Art As A Window Into Modern Banking : NPR

In Italy, Art As A Window Into Modern Banking : NPR

January 31, 2012

As Italy and much of Europe struggle with their finances, the city of Florence has staged an art exhibition looking at the critical — and controversial — role that financial institutions have played for centuries.

The recent Money and Beauty exhibit, held in the majestic 15th-century Palazzo Strozzi, illustrated how Florentine merchants got around the Catholic Church's ban on money-lending and bankrolled the Renaissance.

With the Bible explicitly condemning usury, the lending of money was relegated to Jews, one of the few professions they were allowed to practice.

Read more to see photos of pictures that are window into the commercial revolution that the Renaissance possible.

In Italy, Art As A Window Into Modern Banking : NPR

source:

In Booming Istanbul, A Clash Between Old And New : NPR

In Booming Istanbul, A Clash Between Old And New : NPR

An excerpt

On a frigid January morning, bundled-up travelers step off a ferry and scurry toward the imposing stone walls of the Haydarpasa train station, a 19th century landmark in Istanbul, a city full of history.

The people boarding this morning are nostalgic. They're longtime station employees, taking one of the last train runs to Eskesihir, where the station's first director-general is buried.

They're going, as it were, to give him bad news — that Haydarpasa's 150-year service as a public transportation center may be coming to an end.

Officially, the station is closing temporarily, for repairs and the laying of high-speed track. But employees fear that during the two-year closure, the decision will be made to convert the station to a more lucrative purpose. Plans are still under discussion, but possibilities include a luxury hotel, perhaps with a museum, and a shopping mall.

The potential closing of this iconic station is just one of the fast-moving major projects alarming urban planners and local activists.

Working-class neighborhoods have been cleared of their inhabitants to make way for villas and hotels. Public schools and hospitals, some in historic buildings, are being sold to private developers. And a third bridge across the Bosporus is planned, which would bring roads and development to a large swath of forest land in the city's northern reaches.

In Booming Istanbul, A Clash Between Old And New : NPR

Read more to discover why this story is important.