Near-collisions between drones, airliners surge, new FAA reports show →

Many of the previously unreported incident reports — released Wednesday by the FAA in response to long-standing public-records requests from The Washington Post and other news organizations — occurred near New York and Washington.

The FAA data indicates that drones are posing a much greater hazard to air traffic than previously recognized. Until Wednesday, the FAA had publicly disclosed only one other near-collision between a drone and a passenger aircraft: a March 22 incident involving a US Airways regional airliner near Tallahassee, Fla.

Political Twist: A Combined Electoral System in Myanmar →

Last week, in a surprising twist to the ongoing debate over the potential switch to a national PR system, Myanmar’s Upper House approved the change to a nationwide PR system. The implication of this vote is that Myanmar will have two different voting systems in the Upper and Lower Houses of Parliament during the 2015 elections, the first general elections since the unfair and unfree election of 2010, which led to the development of the new democracy in Myanmar. Elections under a combined electoral system have taken place in other democracies such as Japan, Germany, and Mexico, but certainly not in such a nascent democracy as Myanmar.

A national switch from a majoritarian FPTP system to a PR system has been a hot topic for debate in Myanmar for the last few months, and would greatly influence the future of electoral politics in Myanmar, and especially the political participation of underrepresented ethnic minorities within the country. In the current FPTP system, whoever wins the majority of votes for a constituency wins the seat to represent the entire constituency in parliament. In a PR system, the number of parliament seats won by each party is proportionate to the number of votes each party receives. - See more at: http://www.indopacificreview.com/political-twist-combined-electoral-system-myanmar/#sthash.kI3plDyr.fvE8zYOW.dpuf

Rage in Jerusalem →

With all the despairing talk today of the impossibility of a two-state solution and the inevitability of protracted civil war in a single state, it is easy to forget how different the conflict looked two intifadas ago. Before the First Intifada, no one of any importance spoke of Palestinian statehood, rather than autonomy. Today statehood is publicly accepted, even if only rhetorically, not just by the US and the UN but by a long-serving Israeli prime minister from the hawkish Likud. Before the First Intifada, Israel and the US refused to engage with the PLO. Dividing Jerusalem was unthinkable, as was the idea of partition along the pre-1967 borders, with equal swaps. Today these are the positions of most of the international community and growing numbers in Israel. Many Israelis, however, see no reason for their country to take substantial risks and pay a large cost to change an imperfect but long-lasting and manageable status quo. It would be a great tragedy if nothing less than a third uprising, at a terrible price, could convince them otherwise.

Putin’s far-right ambition: Think-tank reveals how Russian President is wooing – and funding – populist parties across Europe to gain influence in the EU →

Lovely:

President Vladimir Putin is widely suspected of being behind an extraordinary Russian cash and charm offensive that is reported to be trying to woo Europe’s far-right populist parties in order to strengthen the Kremlin’s political influence within the European Union.

In recent weeks, the Kremlin’s targets have included France’s xenophobic Front National (FN) party, and politicians from three German parties including the neo-Nazi National Democratic Party (NPD), the Eurosceptic Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the Social Democrats (SPD).

Future Uncertain for Asian Immigrants Facing Deportation in US →

One group often overlooked in the U.S. immigration debate is the estimated 1.3 million illegal immigrants from Asia. President Barack Obama’s recent executive order can provide a temporary reprieve from deportation to about 400,000 of those people, but for many more, the future is uncertain.

Egyptian Judges Drop All Charges Against Mubarak →

An Egyptian court dropped all remaining criminal charges against former President Hosni Mubarak on Saturday in a sweeping repudiation of the Arab Spring uprising that forced him from power.

The court dismissed murder charges against Mr. Mubarak in the killing of protesters demanding an end to his 30-year rule — charges that once inspired crowds to hang the president’s effigy from the lampposts of Tahrir Square in Cairo and captivated the region. His reviled security chief and a half-dozen top police officials were acquitted.

A simple guide to the sudden collapse in oil prices →

The most immediate reason is that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries -- a  group of 12 nations including Saudi Arabia, Iran and Venezuela that holds enormous power over global energy markets, producing 40 percent of global oil supply  --  decided on Thursday not to cut production at their meeting in Vienna...
The long term reasons include booming U.S. and world oil production, little demand in Europe and Japan, and improving automobile fuel efficiency standards.