Word: banking
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...Western European country has adopted similar, if not more stringent, policies. The British banned the hoary pastime of Sir John Walter Raleigh last July; smoking indoors now carries fines of ?600 for the offending party, and twice that for the publican. The formerly indomitable French, for whom smoky left-bank cafés and ennui are cultural staples, will follow suit beginning January 1, 2008. And cannabis-fans in the once surreally tolerant Netherlands will have to take their joints down to the banks of the canals and out of the world-famous coffee houses by next July...
...Likewise, in the article, the professors wrote that the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Gaza have led to “crimes perpetrated against the Palestinians.” While they do not back off this claim, they acknowledge in the book that “virtually all states have committed serious crimes at one time or another” and that “some of Israel’s Arab neighbors have at times acted with great brutality...
...state. Let's have "national champions," such as the giant merger between two utilities, Gaz de France and its rival Suez - essentially a monopoly under government control. Sworn to competition, the E.U. won't like this. But Sarko has already attacked the independence of the European Central Bank, another pillar of the European construction...
Although the generals have been adept at political repression, their record on economic management is abysmal. In 1987 a former regime leader demonetized Burma's currency, wiping out the savings of millions, and introduced new bank notes that were divisible by the number 9 simply because he considered the digit auspicious. Things haven't gotten much better since then--even though Burma is blessed with lucrative natural resources like natural gas and timber. Obsessed with its own survival, the junta spends 40% of the nation's annual budget on the 450,000-strong army while 90% of the population lives...
...economic front is no better. Roughly 90% of the population lives near or below the poverty line, even though Burma is blessed with lucrative resources like natural gas and timber. The country's generals are hardly known for their financial savvy: one former regime chief denominated bank notes by the number nine simply because he considered the digit auspicious. Obsessed with its survival, the junta has dramatically expanded the military; 40% of the nation's annual budget is believed to be spent on the 450,000-strong army. Inflation is running at more than 30%. Last month's fuel hike...