El Nino May Bring Civil Unrest This Winter

OCT 22, 2015 09:50 AM ET // BY EMILY SOHN

When an unusually powerful El Niño struck in 1997, civil conflicts erupted across the tropics, from Sudan to Peru -- as floods, droughts and fires devastated crops, fisheries and livelihoods.

It wasn’t an isolated case, suggests growing evidence that links El Niño’s extreme weather with a spike in violent conflicts in tropical regions. As one of the strongest El Niño events in recorded history gains steam this fall, some experts are warning of the potential for more unrest to come – and the urgent need to take preventive action.

“Half the world’s population is exposed to a higher risk of violence this year,” says Solomon Hsiang, professor of public policy at Berkeley. “Now that we know what to expect, we shouldn’t necessarily sit back and watch sparks fly. There are a lot of things we can do.”

Civilizations That Withered in Drought

Collapses of entire civilizations have been linked to climate shifts, with examples that go back centuries. The Little Ice Age in the mid-1600s, for example, has been blamed for widespread wars and political crises that occurred around much of the world at the time.

More recently, scientists have focused on the devastating potential of El Niño, a phenomenon that happens every few years, when surface waters in the Pacific become warmer than normal. That extra heat rises, altering atmospheric circulation patterns and affecting weather conditions around the world.

El Niño events play out in various ways from region to region, often but not always bringing rain to the American West and mild conditions to the upper Midwest. But El Niño hits hardest and most predictably in the tropics, with rising temperatures and rainfall extremes that go both ways.

Already, this year’s El Niño has sparked forest fires in Indonesia, drought in Ethiopia and a wimpy monsoon season in India, says Marc Cane, a climate scientist at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University in New York, who created the first predictive model for El Niño.

Flooding is expected in Uruguay, southern Brazil and northern Argentina, while parched conditions are likely in most of Southeast Asia, Africa, the South Pacific and much of South and Central America.

Those weather extremes can be economically disastrous in the tropical world, where crops often fail when it’s too hot, dry or wet. Farmers struggle to make a living. Food prices go up. And people who already spend a large portion of their income on food end up facing financial stress. Conflict, according to accumulating evidence, often follows.


Sohn, Emily. "El Nino May Bring Civil Unrest This Winter."
Discovery News. N.p., 22 Oct. 2015. Web. 26 Oct. 2015.

From <http://www.easybib.com/cite/view>


This article discusses the lack of rain that is expected for this year.  This article says that the lack of rain can lead to political unrest, and conflict. This author does not seem to have a big bias if any.  There is no side to take for the subject of this article. This concept of no rain bringing unrest makes sense. If there is no rain, crops can die, people can starve, and products can be limited. This things put a strain on the government and economy. When the government is strained the people react in negative ways, causing conflict and unrest. If there is expected to be low rainfall this year that will mean a lot of countries that will struggle and we should be praying for that.

Hacker Who Sent US Data to ISIS Is Arrested

OCT 16, 2015 08:35 AM ET // BY AFP

Malaysian police have arrested a "terrorist hacker" wanted by Washington for allegedly stealing data related to more than a thousand US military and government personnel and providing the information to the Islamic State group.

In a statement late Thursday, Malaysian police said the 20-year-old man was arrested on September 15 and that he had arrived in the Southeast Asian country last year to study computer science in a private university.

The US Department of Justice said in a statement on Thursday it was seeking the extradition of the man, which it identified as Kosovo citizen Ardit Ferizi, known by his hacking moniker "Th3Dir3ctorY."

"This case is a first of its kind and, with these charges, we seek to hold Ferizi accountable for his theft of this information and his role in ISIL’s targeting of US government employees," the statement quoted Assistant Attorney General John P. Carlin saying, referring to the Islamic State group (IS).

The justice department statement dubbed Ferizi "a terrorist hacker," saying he had submitted hacked data to an IS member who then posted a 30-page document on twitter containing "the names, e-mail addresses, e-mail passwords, locations and phone numbers for approximately 1,351 US military and other government personnel."

The Twitter message read: “NEW: U.S. Military AND Government HACKED by the Islamic State Hacking Division!”

"We are in your emails and computer systems, watching and recording your every move, we have your names and addresses, we are in your emails and social media accounts, we are extracting confidential data and passing on your personal information to the soldiers of the (caliphate), who soon with the permission of Allah will strike at your necks in your own lands!” the document said, according to the justice department.

The statement added that the document was meant for IS supporters in the US and elsewhere to use the data "belonging to the listed government employees for the purpose of encouraging terrorist attacks against those individuals."

If found guilty in the US, the hacker will face up to 35 years in jail.

Over the past year, Malaysian police have arrested numerous suspects whom they say were IS sympathizers plotting attacks in the country.

Malaysia's senior counter-terrorism official Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay told AFP in June that authorities had so far arrested 108 people who had suspected links to IS or were trying to travel to Syria or Iraq.

Muslim-majority Malaysia practices a moderate brand of Islam and has not seen any notable terror attacks in recent years.

But concern has risen in the multi-faith nation over growing hardline Islamic views and the country's potential as a militant breeding ground.


"Hacker Who Sent US Data to ISIS Is Arrested."
Discovery News. N.p., 16 Oct. 2015. Web. 19 Oct. 2015.

From <http://www.easybib.com/cite/view>



This article discusses a recent development in the fight against ISIS. A hacker was arrested. This author does a good job of not being biased. The author might have a slight bias towards the US, but they don’t make that abundantly evident. I find it interesting how the author discusses Malaysia. The author discusses arrests that have been made in Malaysia and the fact that they might be a possible breeding ground. The author tries to represent both sides of the situation, in that sense. I think that it is terrible that someone could hack into a computer and find the lives, in numbers, of over one thousand people.  Now just because those people work for the government of America they, and their families, are targets. That concept is awful to me.

Iran Agrees to Historic Nuclear Deal (July 14):
Iran and the group of six nations, the United States, UK, France, China, Russia, and Germany, reach a historic agreement to limit Iran's ability to produce a nuclear weapon in exchange for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions. "Today's announcement marks one more chapter in our pursuit of a safer, more helpful and more hopeful world," says U.S. President Barack Obama. He also says the agreement is "not built on trust, it is built on verification." Obama now faces the difficult task of persuading the U.S. Congress to endorse the agreement. Congress has 60 days to vote on the deal. Obama vows to veto any legislation that blocks implementation of the agreement. "Today is the end to acts of tyranny against our nation and the start of cooperation with the world," says President Hassan Rouhani. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calls the agreement a "historic mistake," and says, "Iran will get a jackpot, a cash bonanza of hundreds of billions of dollars, which will enable it to continue to pursue its aggression and terror in the region and in the world." Iran agrees to reduce its stockpile of enriched uranium by 98%, place two-thirds of their installed centrifuges under international supervision, give the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) permanent access "where necessary when necessary," and accept a resumption of sanctions if Iran violates any of the terms.

"Iran Agrees to Historic Nuclear Deal."
Infoplease. Infoplease, 14 July 2015. Web. 05 Oct. 2015.

From <http://www.easybib.com/cite/view>

This article talks about a deal recently made between Iran and America. This article is not very biased. The author tries to portray more than one view on the agreement. The author is slightly biased towards America's point of view, in that they mention more quotes from America's point of view.  If this agreement works out the way Obama wants it to, I think it would be a great thing for relations. However I do see where the Israeli Prime Minister is coming from as well. This being said I think America is taking good precautions to help cushion their all if the agreement does end up the way the Prime Minister thinks it will. I think it will be interesting to see the outcome of this agreement.