North Korea, not exactly known as a vacation destination, has opened a water park to improve its seriously dismal image. The Munsu Water Park, located east of the capital of Pyongyang, recently hosted an ostentatious opening. See photos here. Of course, the average citizen will not be able to afford the fun of a water slide. “The standard of living has deteriorated to extreme levels of deprivation... 

General practitioners in England have been receiving £50 bonuses for placing patients on controversial ‘death lists’ in order to reduce the number of occupied hospital beds. The move is yet another tactic aimed at cutting NHS costs, UK media reported. Each death which occurs outside an NHS hospital has been calculated to save the health system some £1,000 ($1,600) in England. On average, deaths... 

While in the West hundreds of thousands of demonstrators are protesting against the wide spread of genetically modified foods, Russia has taken a complex stance in relation to GMOs. On the one hand, the Russian President is hinting at the possibility of a total ban of such products, while on the other hand Russia has ratified international agreements that do not allow such bans. Meanwhile, a clear... 

Facing a shortage of supplies for lethal injections, US law enforcement officials have begun executing prisoners with an animal anesthetic that has not been approved at the federal level, with the first such execution coming this week. European pharmacies, citing a moral issue with capital punishment, have stopped sending certain drugs to regions of the US that still carry out the death penalty, areas... 

Highly-redacted documents obtained under Freedom of Information laws show the Australian Attorney-General’s Department prepared a secret briefing on the US PRISM spying program months before it was exposed in Edward Snowden’s leaks. The documents in question were requested and obtained by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). They reveal that the Attorney-General’s Department had a... 

The Washington scholar who was cited by US leaders calling for a military strike on Syria, only to lose her job for fabricating her academic credentials, has been hired by the office of US Senator John McCain, Foreign Policy magazine reports. Elizabeth O’Bagy was formerly employed by the Institute for the Study of War, where she quickly became a respected voice on the ongoing conflict between Syrian... 

Just 10 days until a possible US government shutdown, the House of Representatives passed a bill that keeps the government open but defunds the 2010 affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare. The House vote was 230-189. The Republican-drafted continuing resolution, or CR, keeps the government open until December 15. The CR would also cut spending on food stamps for the poor by $40 billion over 10 years. Republicans... 

Russian President Vladimir Putin Vladimir Putin, traditionally sharp-tongued and prickly, spoke about Syria, gay rights, and democracy at the Valdai Club political forum. During the two hour discussion, the leader said he has “not ruled out” running for a fourth presidential term. Putin addressed a wide range of topics at the Valdai International Discussion Club on Thursday, where over... 

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem welcomes Russia’s offer to put its chemical weapons under international control The White House remains adamant about having Congress authorize the use of military force against the Syrian government, even as that country’s leader is reportedly weighing a deal that would involve relinquishing a stock pile of chemical weapons. Notwithstanding reports that... 

If you committed a crime in your country of residence, go to London. London does not extradite. The British justice system is structured in such a way that offenders from any country except the United States can be granted asylum. This means not only shelter, but also the ability to live quietly, without looking back at the police. It is no accident that many oligarchs have a home in London. The UK... 

The Australian navy has tracked down four unexploded bombs that were dumped onto the country’s World Heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef by two US fighter jets during a botched military exercise last month. According to the Australian Department of Defense, its mine-hunting vessel HMAS Gascoyne has discovered the bombs and is currently working to retrieve the ordnance in a joint recovery operation... 

Israeli rabbi bans male handshaking An Israeli Zionist rabbi has issued a ban on handshakes between men, saying the act might lead to sin. The head of the Gur Education Department, Abraham Benjamin Silberberg, said at a meeting with educational officials that handshakes between men is banned because it can cause “sinful thoughts.” According to the new verdict, men can touch only each other’s... 

US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. After insisting that the government’s unprecedented capability to monitor communications must be assessed by an independent panel with regards to maintaining the trust of Americans, President Barack Obama has announced the formation of a new review group. A memo issued Monday by the White House said James Clapper, the United States director of national... 

There are rules for the common people and rules for their “leaders,” and only in rare cases do the same rules cover both. Chris Morran at the Consumerist points out how politicians (yet again) are being allowed to ignore the same laws that affect their constituents. Colorado legislators are immune from speeding tickets and parking tickets thanks to the special plates issued to lawmakers — ones... 

View of Uruguay’s lower house during the debate of a bill that legalizes marijuana, Montevideo, July 31, 2013. Uruguay’s parliament has passed a controversial bill that legalizes for the first time the production and distribution of marijuana by the government. The legislation was approved on Wednesday with 50 lawmakers out of 96 voting in favor of it following 14 hours of tough discussion. The...