The families of trapped Chilean miners offered a ceremony, almost a positive prayer, for their loved ones today. It has been one month since the mineshaft collapsed around the 33 workers now cast into darkness of Chile’s mining country. Sounding horns and whistles, families placed a solitary flag for each of those trapped over 2300 feet beneath the San Jose mine entrance.

Chilean officials are frantically trying to reach the miners, just reports reveal that psychologically many of the trapped men are near nervous collapse. Some reports indicate the effects of confinement, lack of light, and possible panic are taking their toll – the miners appear to be rebelling against any government action to regulate them. NASA and other experts had suggested monitoring and establishing such things as good sleep habits were essential to the miner’s well being.

Still, being literally buried alive so far underground has to have its effects after a so long. Officials are under some criticism now, from miners and the public, for censoring communication between families and their trapped love ones. Rescuers have said only positive messages will be delivered to the weary miners – those trapped are not rebelling against such ideas.

The biggest cause for concern for the trapped miners appears to be not know how much longer they will be pinned beneath the ground. Some reports say too that the trapped men are still driving vehicles and acting irresponsibly as their rescuers attempt to free them – no doubt understandable psychological effects. Above ground engineers plan contingency efforts in case their other plans to free the miners are unsuccessful. Obviously the eyes of the world are on Chilean officials for a happy ending to this horror tale.

In the video below, the 33 trapped miners communicate with their loved ones above. The world’s prayers are with the miners and their families. The rescue efforts may take up to four months according to some estimates.

Credits – Top image from Christian Science Monitor

Google caused quite a stir this Tuesday, when the company released an interactive “bouncy balls” mystery doodle. The Google logo is today animated, and any mouse-over move searchers make over the logo cause the colored balls forming it to “bounce.” The media titled the doodle “Google balls” and rushed to guess what is behind this unusual representation of the logo.

According to some reports, the Google balls logo is celebrating Google’s anniversary, stating that the company was officially incorporated on September 7, 1998. But according to Google, the company filed for incorporation in California on September 4, which would make this the official date. However, on September 4 this year Google celebrated the 25th Anniversary of Buckyball with an original, animated logo, so it is possible that they “postponed” their own anniversary for three days, although very much unlikely.

If you read Search Engine Land, the idea that the logo is related to Google’s birthday falls from the table: the logo “is not related to Google’s birthday but is fast, fun and interactive, just the way we think search should be,” a Google spokesperson told Barry Schwartz. But could this logo be in any way related to the colored balls that suggested safe search in the past?

Other media reports suspect that today’s Google doodle has something to do with the 15th anniversary of JavaScript, which was called LiveScript when it first shipped in beta releases of Netscape Navigator 2.0 in September 1995. This makes sense, since the Google Balls doodle uses HTML 5 and JavaScript to create the particle simulator effect.

The third theory is that Google is celebrating Stephen Hawkings’ “The Grand Design” which was released today, and that the “bouncing balls” refer to quarks, which are elementary particles and a fundamental constituent of matter. According to Wikipedia: Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nuclei.

What do you think? Which of these theories is most likely to be true?

Regardless what lays behind this animated doodle, one thing is clear: the media loves writing about it, and in fact, the media loves writing about all Google doodles. And Google loves media attention. But these “doodles” also have a brand enforcement effect: they bring the logo in the foreground on occasions that are most likely to be remembered. There is a certain psychological effect that turns passive users into active users, through the “wow” effect of such a logo.

In news from Paris, workers across France staged strikes and walkouts in protest of the government’s plans to raise the retirement age there. According to reports, as many as 200 coordinated demonstrations across France went on today. Private and public sector workers took part in the massive demonstrations.

Workers from industry, transportation, education, medical professions, even banking gathered to protest what is in effect France’s version of what many nations are doing to balance or rescue economies. We just covered Romania’s variant of pension pinching for that economy, and now France’s workers are being asked to pay deficits with their life’s blood too. The strikes in France have been planned since June to show solidarity against the government’s proposed raising of the retirement age to 62. Over a dozen unions and worker’s federations called for and helped organize the demonstrations.

Obviously, many services were affected by the strikes, especially transportation in and around the locations. Some reports indicate French business and transportation are at a standstill actually. For French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s administration, this could well be the defining moment. Sarkozy already has pitifully low approval ratings, and most believe taxing the rich is preferential to basically robbing the middle class to balance deficits. However, not unlike Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel, bending to the popular will does not seem to be on Sarkozy’s agenda. Few expect the administration to alter coarse on this plan.

Pension reform is likely to be a defining moment in Sarkozy’s presidency. Like few other issues facing French or other leaders, pension reform seems to be the most hotly contested and disruptive of policy decisions. Interestingly though, neither the Romanian and apparently not the French leaders seem willing to compromise. Greece’s workforce fell victim to the same fiscal policies back  in 2008, and the trend for indebted nations is obviously not in favor of the worker either.

Today’s strikes in France represent for some the growing separation between government and the people, not just in France, but around the world. Pensions slashed, jobs eliminated for one reason or another, big business and powerful lobbies interests placed above the average citizen – and the most powerful politicians around the globe seemingly acting independent of any public license.

This is how world politics for so many appear early in this century. For French workers, any workers to be told to basically extend their retirement contract with their government? Is that not the worst kind of breech? French workers say yes.

France is owes one of the largest public debts, and has one of the highest unemployment rates in the EU. This is especially serious given France’s position as one of the largest economies in Europe. Clearly the answers to France’s economic problems should not be robbing pension funds – but in creating jobs and rational taxation. Can you imagine anyone in the image below taking a pension hit?

Do the French still eat cake? No pension hits by these leaders - or their wives.

In news from Berlin this morning, police raided alleged neo-Nazi locations across Germany in search of evidence. According to the Interior Ministry, officers conducted raids targeting the country’s largest neo-Nazi organization, HNG, in search of violations of the German constitution.

Officials declined to discuss exactly how many officers were involved in the raids, but it is clear the supposed 600 members of the Aid Organization for National Political Victims and their Relatives (HNG) is the subject of growing concern. German officials suspect the HNG of attempting to strengthen far right groups across Germany. Deputy Interior Minister Klaus-Dieter Fritsche commented pointing out that if evidence is found showing the HNG in violation of Germany’s constitution, then the group’s activities can be banned.

Supposedly, HNG members have been in continual contact with imprisoned neo-Nazis, among other suspicious and even illegal activities. It is against the law in Germany to either deny the Holocaust or even display Nazi symbols. Germany has struggled in recent years with the proliferation of anti-immigrant and other extremist groups, as well as neo-Nazi across the nation.

Though National Socialism is far from being a force in German politics, the numbers of neo-Nazis has increased by as much as 4 percent. Last year the German government banned one neo-Nazi organization, the Heimattreue Deutsche Jugend, after the group began practicing anti-Semitic activities and recruiting young people. These violent groups have actually become a powerful subculture within Germany that some fear might gain significantly in following given hard economic times like these.

Neo-Nazi activity in Germany since the 1960′s has taken many forms, most largely based on Strasserism – (not strictly the doctrine of Adolph Hitler). However, recent immigration extremists are an obvious target for recruitment for hard core neo-Nazi groups.

Leadership of the far right groups in Germany, names like Udo Voigt of the NPD, have been in a continual back and forth battle with German officials. Voight’s last run in being a suspended sentence for supposedly distributing racially inflammatory pamphlets in 2009.

Udo Voigt, Head of Germany's NPD

Kia Motors Corp. announced on Tuesday the promotion of Lee Hyoung-keun to vice chairman, after Chung Sung-eun resigned on Friday as a result of an ongoing recall of more than 35,000 vehicles in the United States and more than 104,000 globally. In China a Kia Motors joint venture, Dongfeng Yueda Kia Motor Co, separately recalled 18,147 Sorento, Borrego and Soul models, AFP reports. Different media outlets report that Chung Sung-eun was fired by group chairman Chung Mong-Koo, but company spokesman Michael Choo dismissed the rumors: “His resignation comes in the light of the recent global recall issued by Kia Motors.”

The company said it had discovered a fault in the wiring circuits associated with the interior illumination, that in certain circumstances could lead to over-heating of the wires, which could cause a fire. Specifically, the recall affects the owners of 73 Soul models and 476 Sorento KX-3 vehicles with mood lighting.

“The risk of a fire is very small and would only occur under extreme circumstances but we want to make sure none of our customers should be anxious about the safety of their vehicles,” Hamish McCowan, after-sales and logistics director at Kia Motors (UK), said in a statement.

Despite the massive recalls, and Chung Sung-eun’s demise, Kia Motors didn’t get much negative press. The company’s strategy to counter such reactions also includes statistics that show that recalls are part of normal business operations and are unlikely to have a huge impact on the company’s profits. Indeed, Kia’s second-quarter net profit this year soared 61% from a year earlier thanks to strong sales in domestic and overseas markets. But after the recalls last Friday, shares of Kia ended down 0.2%.

Labor Day differs in every essential from other holidays of the year in any country. All other holidays are in a more or less degree connected with conflict and battles of man’s prowess over man, of strife and discord for greed and power, of glories achieved by one nation over another. Labor Day is devoted to no man, living or dead, to no sect, race or nation. ~ Samual Gempers

Labor wants also pride and joy in doing good work, a sense of making or doing something beautiful or useful – to be treated with dignity and respect as brother and sister ~ Thorstein Veblen

You must often make erasures if you mean to write what is worthy of being read a second time; and don’t labor for the admiration of the crowd, but be content with a few choice readers. ~ Horace

That eminence of learning is not to be gained without labor, at least equal to that which any other kind of greatness can require, will be allowed by those who wish to elevate the character of a scholar; since they cannot but know that every human ac. ~ Samuel Johnson

Labor was the first price, the original purchase-money that was paid for all things. It was not by gold or by silver, but by labor, that all wealth of the world was originally purchased. ~ Adam Smith

Man is so made that he can only find relaxation from one kind of labor by taking up another. ~ Anatole France

When people ask me, ‘Why can’t labor organize the way it did in the thirties?’ the answer is simple: everything we did then is now illegal. ~ Thomas Geoghegan

All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr

Labor disgraces no man; unfortunately, you occasionally find men who disgrace labor. ~ Ulysses S. Grant

Workingmen are at the foundation of society. Show me that product of human endeavor in the making of which the workingman has had no share, and I will show you something that society can well dispense with. ~ Samuel Gompers

Feature image courtesy Eat Sleep Ruck.

He is another celebrity hit by the curse of the stars: the infamous “sex scandal” seems to affect any known superstar sooner or later, and it’s not a matter of gender. Female and male celebrities are easy targets: they beg for privacy, they try to live a “normal” life and they are refused the privilege. John Travolta is the latest “victim” in the hunt for sensational, and the timing couldn’t be worse.

The “talented” and “morally vertical” people at National Enquirer decided to stir the media with news about John Travolta alleged infidelities. The star has been in the news for similar claims in the past, but this time, the tabloid media goes too far. Travolta’s wife, Kelly Preston is expecting a baby, and stress is the last thing she should have in her life right now. But consideration and human decency are not Enquirer’s attributes. The problem is that this particular publication had a few stories in the past that proved accurate, and Perez Hilton doesn’t shy to add some extra straws to the fire:

But hasn’t she known for years that her husband probably has “lovers?” Especially of the male variety!

Personally, I don’t believe the story to be true – I believe that National Enquirer had a bad news day and re-iterated already-known rumors, adding some spice to the piece to entice the readers beg for more. We have a “secret gay spa” and a “source” who claims that John Travolta will make Tiger Woods look like a boy scout (which I doubt it is even possible).

But whether it is true or not, the story could become a PR nightmare for the star – since it is already a personal one. No matter how much Kelly trusts her husband, such titles are disturbing, and deeply upsetting for a pregnant lady. If the story is true, National Enquirer should have waited with breaking the news. If the story is not true, no matter what Travolta does or says in his defense, there will always be ways to turn his words against him.

Apple’s new social media music service Ping (iTunes® 10 with Ping) was launched this Wednesday, and it got one million users in less than 48 hours, after an effortless media push from Apple, consisting of a press release, a bulk newsletter and a few “exclusive” statements to selected media.

But the “record number” is not really a record if we consider that iTunes already has over 160 million users in 23 countries. A social networking feature to enhance user experience on iTunes was a logical step. Ping is entirely dependent on iTunes, a strategical move seen as a flaw by many tech writers. Everything Apple does is sales oriented – this company is not famous for freebies. The press release alone is all the proof you need to understand this strategy. It’s not a communique about Ping alone, it is a communique about iTunes 10 with Ping. And, while the Ping social media music service is free, the intent of the release is clear:

With iTunes 10, you can rent your favorite HD TV shows commercial free from ABC, ABC Family, Fox, Disney Channel and BBC America and watch them at home or on the go for just 99 cents an episode.

Even Ping’s description has a subliminal sales pitch (can you isolate it?):

Ping lets you follow your favorite artists to see what they’re up to, check out photos and videos they’ve posted, see their tour dates and read comments about other artists and albums they’re listening to.

Whatever move Apple make has to be seen from a financial perspective and the critics have to understand that Apple know exactly when to strike to get more ROI. For example, right now Ping’s features are somewhat limited, as described by Jay Yarow:

What the biggest problem with Ping? It is fundamentally flawed because it doesn’t interact with your iTunes music collection. It only plays nice with the limited selection of music obtained through Apple’s store.

But, as the BusinessInsider author notes, Apple has to capitalize on Ping’s potential by improving the service, and adding the ability to listen to the user’s music for example. No doubt, in time, Apple will do the necessary upgrades. It’s not “hip” to launch a perfect service these days, you see. User feedback means press, and press is something Apple know how to manipulate. They refined the art of getting free PR beyond Google.

The former Prime Minister Tony Blair will announce later today whether the book-signing event of his memoirs in central London will take place as scheduled.

It was not the right time for Tony Blair to publish a book, but then again, it probably was. Readers buy the book to hate it, and when the author appears to a book signing event, protesters “welcome” him with shoes, eggs and other projectiles (as you can see in the video below).

This type of “warm welcome” determined Tony Blair to “considering canceling” another high-profile signing session of his memoir in central London: “I do not want to put everyone through a lot of cost and hassle on this Wednesday’s signing so I am thinking about that.” he told on ITV1′s new Daybreak program.

Tony Blair has already been paid a 4 million pound advance for his memoirs, entitled A Journey: My Political Life. The book sells for $18.50 at Amazon, and it is eligible for free shipping with Amazon Prime. Despite the protests, A Journey outsold all Waterstone’s recent titles and it is considered the chain’s fastest-selling autobiography ever. This Wednesday the book was already throning over the top of Amazon.co.uk’s best-seller list; however, in other countries in Europe, A Journey doesn’t make the top ten. In the US the autobiography is currently the 7th best seller, and same in Canada.

A 720 pages volume, according to the Amazon description, A Journey is Tony Blair’s firsthand account of his years in office and beyond. Here he describes for the first time his role in shaping our recent history, from the aftermath of Princess Diana’s death to the war on terror. He reveals the leadership decisions that were necessary to reinvent his party, the relationships with colleagues including Gordon Brown, the grueling negotiations for peace in Northern Ireland, the implementation of the biggest reforms to public services in Britain since 1945, and his relationships with leaders on the world stage—Nelson Mandela, Bill Clinton, Vladimir Putin, George W. Bush. He analyzes the belief in ethical intervention that led to his decisions to go to war in Kosovo, Sierra Leone, Afghanistan, and, most controversially of all, in Iraq.

Chancellor Angela Merkel believes that her government’s plans to extend the lifespans of Germany’s nuclear power plants will not need the approval of the upper house of parliament.

When the world struggles to find renewable energy alternatives, trying to get away from the energy solutions that damage the environment, German chancellor Angela Merkel fights to prolong the life of Germany’s nuclear power plants, and wins. The “victory” was announced Sunday night, after a ten-hours meeting between chancellor Angela Merkel, environment minister Norbert Roettgen, economy minister Rainer Bruederle, finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble and other leaders of the center-right coalition.

Germany’s energy future is no longer “uncertain”, as Phil Butler described it. It is nuclear. The country’s 17 nuclear power plants will remain active for 12 more years on average, with older plants getting an extra eight years and more recent ones 14 additional years beyond 2021. The coalition leaders also agreed that energy companies would pay a nuclear fuel tax intended to raise 2.3bn EUROS annually to help the development of renewable energy sources.

The opposition called this Sunday, “a black day for Germany’s energy policy” and many environmentalists will have to agree. But the agreement will have to pass parliamentary scrutiny – there’s still hope, some may believe. Well, they’d be wrong.

As any other political decision in the history of any country on this planet, the force that seals the deal is financial. The good old EURO in this case.

“It would get more expensive if nuclear power is turned off, because it would require many more expensive energy carriers to take over the portion of nuclear power,” Juergen Grossmann, chairman of the board at RWE, told Deutsche Welle not long ago.

The same publication brings other important details on the table: that prolonging the lifespan of nuclear power plants could create 7,000 construction jobs and it could also contribute to economic growth of 0.6 percent through 2050 and create 100,000 jobs.