May 8, 2012 Edition

The US government has foiled a plot by Al-Qaeda’s branch in Yemen to blow up an airliner and recovered an explosive device, but stressed the public was never in danger. BBC said the plan was to detonate an upgraded version of the failed 2009 “underwear bomb,” which is now in the possession of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The White House said President Barack Obama was informed about it last April. Authorities said the plot was discovered at an early stage. On Christmas Day in 2009, terrorists attempted – but failed – to blow up a US-bound plane using plastic explosives hidden in a Nigerian man’s underwear.

Read the full story on Rappler

France’s new president Francois Hollande, in his victory speech, sent signals he would end the sharp budget cuts that Europe has adopted across the board to cope with the global financial crisis. “Austerity can no longer be something that is inevitable,” he said after winning a tough race against Nicolas Sarkozy. But there would be no honeymoon for Hollande, with German chancellor Angela Merkel stressing that the European Union fiscal pact is non-negotiable, which was championed by Merkel and Sarkozy. Merkel has invited Hollande to a meeting in Berlin next week.

Read the full story on Rappler

For more on Hollande read CNN

Google violated copyrights owned by Oracle Corp for the Android mobile platform, a jury has ruled in a high-profile technology case. But the jury failed to agree on whether to award damages. In a partial verdict, jurors were unable to decide on a key point of whether Google’s use of copyrighted Java software was “fair use” that made it acceptable.
The verdict prevents any potential for an Oracle windfall, but the case between the two tech titans now moves to another phase on whether Oracle’s patents were violated.

Read the full story on Rappler

An ally of Philippine President Benigno Aquino III has submitted to the office of Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile purported “transaction records” of Chief Justice Renato Corona’s dollar and euro accounts. The move was made by Kaya Natin lead convenor Harvey Keh on Monday, May 7, when the Coronal trial resumed after a long break. Keh is one of the complainants in a forfeiture case filed against Corona before the Ombudsman. The latter has ordered Corona to respond to allegations he has amassed US$10-M in various banks which are “grossly disproportionate” to his income. Senators said they want the trial to end by May 31.

Read the full story on Rappler

What do geeks in China, Russia and the US have against Indonesia? The Jakarta Globe reported Tuesday, May 8, that Indonesian Web sites were the focus of nearly 1.5 million hacking attacks a day in 2011, quoting the country’s communications and information minister. Because of this, Indonesia plans to build an Internet security center to counter similar attacks in the future, according to Communications and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring. He said his department is looking at Japan for models on cyber security. Most of the attacks were traced back to China, Russia and the US.

Read the full story in the Jakarta Globe

Chinese authorities have forced Al Jazeera to close its English channel’s China news operations on Monday, May 7, with the government offering no explicit reason for the move. China decided against renewing the visa of Al Jazeera correspondent Melissa Chan without saying what rules she broke, said the Beijing-based Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China. China was apparently angered by a recent Al Jazeera documentary on Chinese re-education through labor camps. The Club said Ms Chan took no part in the documentary.

Read the full story in the New York Times

The global luxury market is forecast to grow by up to 7% in 2012 despite the financial crisis, as China continues to drive consumption, a study by an Italian foundation released on Monday, May 7, showed. Sales will exceed the 200 billion euro ($260 billion) mark but growth is forecast to fall short of the 10% seen in 2011. Apart from China, drivers of the high-end goods include Spain, Italy and Japan. Leather accessories, jewels and watches are the most dynamic markets. 

Read the full story on Rappler

And it gets more riveting. A day after Philippine Daily Inquirer Ramon Tulfo was mauled by friends of actor Raymart Santiago and wife Claudine Baretto, his brothers used their TV show to come to his defense. The brothers Tulfo (Raffy and Erwin) ranged themselves behind their embattled older brother in a show of unity, hijacking the Monday early evening airwaves to let rip a string of threats against the showbiz couple. Both threatened Santiago and Baretto, advising them to “pray.” Said one of the brothers: “My advice to you and your wife, don’t leave home. Because if we see each other in NAIA Terminal 1, Terminal 2, Terminal 3, you will get it from me, and I don’t care, even your wife will get it from me. You better pray our fates never cross.” All major TV networks headlined the word war between both camps, certainly increasing viewer ratings that day.

Read the full story on Rappler

The statistics are either grim or great – depending on your perspective. In a US research compiled by Presta Electronics and published by mashable Tuesday, May 8, 38% of students said they can’t go more than 10 minutes without checking any device. In 2009 alone, according to the research, students spent US$13-B on electronics. And by 2014, more than 3.5 million American students will take all their classes online, the mashable story added. Presta used material from the Pew Research Center, Chronicle of Higher Education, Mashable and other sources to come up with the data.

Read the full story on mashable

Entertainment online reported that an anonymous masseur has sued John Travolta for sexual battery and claimed the actor tried to have sex with him. Travolta however branded the case as “complete fiction and fabrication.” Identified only as John Doe, the plaintiff accused Travolta of touching his penis and later apologizing for his behavior, EI reported. He’s seeking US$2-M in damages. Travolta’s camp said he was in the East Coast when the supposed incident happened in California.

Read the full story on E! Online