I saw a link in my favorite property whining blog to an article in New York Times, which talks about mortgage-backed financial securities in the US and their role in the current housing boom.

Even more interes

Когда в английской прессе разгорался скандал вокруг иракской войны (а было это после того, как коалиции не удалось найти так называемое оружие массового уничтожения, будто старый добрый Калашников - это детский совочек, и им нельзя перебить несколько миллионов)

An interesting commentary on the recent developments in the conflict.

I don't want to go into details about the current conflict between Israel and Lebanon. The Internet is full with explanations, cont-explanations, insinuations and accusations. However, you can have a look at the moving picture not via the viewfinder of BBC/CNN/Sky, but through the eyes of people who actually live on both sides of the border.

Israeli blog, maintained by people from the northen part of the country: Israel north blog

According to an article in FT, EU is actively discussing the issue of taxes on diapers. I especially liked the phase, that it has "exposed a rare split in the otherwise harmonious 25-strong executive body of the EU" - I think it's rather ironic.

I was quite surprised to learn that Iran is actually importing almost half of its petroleum. This is despite the fact, that the country is one of the largest oil producers in the world. Also, the price is heavily subsidized - a liter would cast you around 5 pence! However, they are about to cut the import and start imposing limits for consumption, according to