Winners & Losers

Winners

China’s missile program: Stuns the world with its successful test of an anti-satellite weapon.

Mahmoud Abbas: Israel comes through on its delivery of $100 mil for the beleaguered PA leader on the eve of talks with Hamas.

Global golden globes: Mexican director wins best picture. Brit wins twice for portraying Elizabeths I and II. American wins for playing African dictator. And don’t forget Borat.

Poor Mexicans: Faced with public outrage over the soaring price of tortillas, Calderon abandons his laissez-faire background and puts a cap on the price of corn products.

Losers

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: Gets slapped by Supeme Leader Khamenei’s newspaper for being a loose cannon on nukes. 

The Egyptian parliament: Who wants to see this MP (at left) do a striptease on the chamber floor?

Turkish modernity: Prominent Turkish editor who wrote of Armenian genocide is gunned down in broad daylight.

Oil producers: For the first time in 20 years, oil consumption dropped last year in developed countries. Even worse, the feds are taking $15 billion of your money and investing it in renewable technologies. Ouch.