Swiss Voters Reject Guaranteed Income In Referendum

[From article]
Swiss voters rejected by a wide margin on Sunday a proposal to introduce a guaranteed basic income for everyone living in the wealthy country after an uneasy debate about the future of work at a time of increasing automation.
Supporters had said introducing a monthly income of 2,500 Swiss francs ($2,563) per adult and 625 francs per child under 18 no matter how much they work would promote human dignity and public service.
Opponents, including the government, said it would cost too much and weaken the economy.
Provisional final results showed 76.9 percent of voters opposed the bold social experiment launched by Basel cafe owner Daniel Haeni and allies in a vote under the Swiss system of direct democracy.
[. . .]



Conservative Switzerland is the first country to hold a national referendum on an unconditional basic income, but others including Finland are examining similar plans as societies ponder a world where robots replace humans in the workforce.
[. . .]
Employers heaved a sigh of relief that Switzerland, where unemployment is only around 3.5 percent, had not become the first country to embrace the guaranteed income measure.
The Swiss government had urged voters to reject the campaign, saying the scheme would cost too much and undermine social cohesion.
Interior Minister Alain Berset said the vote showed Swiss voters supported the economic and social system in place "and that this system works well."
[. . .]



An advanced social safety net already supports people who cannot pay for their own livelihood. Fewer than seven percent of people lived in poverty in 2014, official data show.

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/swiss-voters-decide-guaranteed-monthly-income-plan-103534182--business.html

Swiss reject free income plan after worker vs. robot debate
By Silke Koltrowitz and Marina Depetris
Yahoo News

(Reuters)

June 5, 2016

Migrants Attack Women in Zurich, Switzerland

Image of Zurich at night. Switzerland has one of the lowest crime rates in Europe.
[From article]

Zurich police revealed six women were allegedly robbed, groped and molested by a “crowd of multiple men with dark coloured skin”.
The number is unusually high for the country, which has one of the lowest crime rates in Europe.
A spokesperson for the police force added that the attacks were “a little bit similar” to the 120 cases of robbery and sexual abuse that took place in the German city of Cologne on the same night.
http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/632689/new-years-eve-sex-attacks-zurich-switzerland-police-probe?_ga=1.137864880.1488248579.1453163999

Did 1,000-strong sex gang ALSO strike in Zurich? Police probe ANOTHER string of attacks
POLICE are investigating a string of sex attacks that took place in Switzerland’s largest city on New Year’s Eve.
By VINCENT WOOD
PUBLISHED: 00:18, Fri, Jan 8, 2016 | UPDATED: 10:07, Fri, Jan 8, 2016

Immigration Top Concern For Swiss Voters

[From article]

Europe's migrant influx is the burning issue for Swiss voters electing a new legislature this weekend, with polls suggesting a boost for a nationalist party behind efforts to ban face-covering veils and construction of Muslim minarets.
Sunday's election is shaping up as a new sign of European anxiety about the influx of over a half-million migrants from Syria, Eritrea, Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere into Europe this year.
The vote to fill the two legislative chambers - the 200-seat National Council and 46-member Council of States - comes as a poll found nearly half of Swiss listed immigration, integration and foreigners as their top concern.
[. . .]
Switzerland hasn't faced a wave of migration like the one seen by some European Union states such as Germany and Sweden.
[. . .]
One of Switzerland's main upcoming issues is the implementation of a narrowly adopted referendum calling for immigration caps on all types of foreigners, including those from the European Union, within three years. The result forced the government last year to take up the delicate task of revising its treaties with the 28-nation bloc, and has strained ties with Brussels.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_SWITZERLAND_ELECTION?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-10-16-08-38-07

Oct 16, 8:38 AM EDT
Migrants the key issue as Swiss vote in national elections
By JAMEY KEATEN
Associated Press

Swiss Authorities Raid HSBC In Money Laundering Investigation

French former employee of HSBC Private Bank Herve Falciani looks on during his hearing at the National Assembly in Paris on July 2, 2013 

(AFP Photo/Kenzo Tribouillard)

[From article]
Swiss authorities on Wednesday raided British banking giant HSBC's Swiss unit as part of a money laundering probe into the bank that has been accused of helping clients to dodge millions of dollars in taxes.
The investigation comes just days after HSBC Switzerland became the centre of a global scandal following the publication of secret documents claiming it assisted many of its wealthy clients in thwarting the taxman.

http://news.yahoo.com/swiss-prosecutor-orders-probe-search-hsbc-offices-085355072.html

Swiss raid HSBC in money laundering probe
By Nina Larson
February 18, 2015

Swiss Hostage Escapes Philippine Terrorists

Lorenzo Vinciguerra  
Photo: Reuters

[From article]
Lorenzo Vinciguerra, 49, made his daring escape while government forces were firing artillery rounds near the jungle forest where he was being held in mountainous Patikul town in Sulu province. He grabbed a long knife, hacked an Abu Sayyaf commander and then ran away, but was shot and wounded by another militant, security officials said.
Philippine army scout rangers later found him and escorted him to safety.
“He was wounded, but he’s well and recovering in a hospital,” regional military commander Lt. Gen. Rustico Guerrero said by phone.
In Bern, the Swiss government expressed relief that Vinciguerra had regained his freedom, but regretted that his Dutch companion remained in captivity.
[. . . ]
Vinciguerra was seized by the militants in nearby Tawi Tawi province in February 2012 while on a bird-watching trip with Horn and Ivan Sarenas, a Filipino birdwatcher who served as their guide.
[. . .]
The Abu Sayyaf was founded in the early 1990s on Basilan island, near Jolo. With an unwieldy collective of Islamic preachers and outlaws, it vowed to wage jihad, or holy war, in the predominantly Roman Catholic Philippines, but lost its key leaders early in combat, sending it on a violent path of extremism and criminality.
Washington has listed the Abu Sayyaf as a terrorist group and blames it for deadly attacks on American troops, foreign missionaries, and tourists and civilians in the south.
The al-Qaida-inspired group still has an estimated 400 fighters split into about six factions.

http://nypost.com/2014/12/06/swiss-hostage-makes-dramatic-escape-from-filipino-extremists/


Swiss hostage makes dramatic escape from Filipino extremists
By Associated Press
New York Post
December 6, 2014 | 12:12pm

Swiss Scientists Release Research Data From Particle Collider

The first data to be released on the Open Data Portal will be from the LHC's Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment, pictured here. The CMS team will release data three years after it has been collected, to give those on the team time to analyse the data before others get their hands on it.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2843983/Could-solve-mysteries-universe-Cern-releases-data-Large-Hadron-Collider-public.html

Could YOU solve the mysteries of the universe? Cern releases data from Large Hadron Collider to the public
Cern in Geneva has begun releasing collision data from the LHC on their Open Data Portal website
The public are invited to use the information for research and education
Data will come from various experiments at the particle accelerator
Users will need Linux to download and use the software to view the data
It is the first time the collision data has been made openly available
By Jonathan O'Callaghan for MailOnline
Published: 07:36 EST, 21 November 2014 | Updated: 20:37 EST, 21 November 2014

Mother Of Teen Shot Dead By Missouri Police Travels to UN In Geneva To Speak About Police Brutality

[From article]
The mother of 18-year-old Michael Brown, the unarmed black teenager shot to death by a police officer during an altercation in Ferguson, Mo., is going to Geneva, Switzerland to address the United Nations on police brutality.
Never mind that the investigation into the incident is ongoing, and it has yet to be determined that Officer Darren Wilson is guilty of any such brutality.
In fact, according to The Washington Post, Justice Department investigators “have all but concluded they do not have a strong enough case to bring civil rights charges against Darren Wilson.”
[. . .]
Nevertheless, Lesley McSpadden will be in Switzerland next month to talk about her son and other victims of police brutality, according to Vice News.
McSpadden was in the news last week when she was involved in a physical altercation with other family members, including Brown’s grandmother, who were selling swag bearing his name from a parking lot.
“You can`t sell this shit,” McSpadden yelled, according to one eyewitness.
Police were called and a cousin was taken to the hospital, but there were no arrests.

http://www.bizpacreview.com/2014/11/01/michael-browns-mother-to-address-un-in-geneva-on-police-brutality-are-you-kidding-me-156245

Michael Brown’s mother to address UN in Geneva on police brutality – are you kidding me?
November 1, 2014
by Tom Tillison

Swiss Voters Reject National Government Health Plan

[From article]
Swiss voters on Sunday rejected a plan for a seismic shift from the country's all-private health insurance system to a state-run scheme.
Referendum results showed that almost 62 percent of voters had shot down a reform pushed by left-leaning parties which say the current private system is busting the budgets of ordinary residents.
The results also underlined the national divisions over the hotly-contested issue as the country's German-speaking regions voted against the plan, while their French-speaking counterparts were in favour.

http://news.yahoo.com/public-versus-private-swiss-mull-health-system-shift-073917245.html;_ylt=AwrBJSAxZihUJXUA8YHQtDMD

Swiss reject switch from private to state health insurance

By Jonathan FOWLER
September 28, 2014

Pro Hamas Swiss Mayor Blames Jews For Scandal

[From article]
Geri Muller, the pro-Hamas mayor of the Swiss town of Baden, is embroiled in a sex scandal that has resulted in fresh conspiracy theories against his Jewish opponents. A 33 year old woman who identified herself as N.W. rang the doorbell of Muller’s ex wife and, while making suicide threats, was armed with nude selfies of the Mayor, who lewdly invited her to a sexual encounter.
The scandal in Switzerland, known as Geri-gate has led to accusations that the Jews are behind it all, with allegations that N.W. met with prominent figures in the Swiss Jewish community prior to the revelation. Baden Jewish community president, Josef Bollag and Sacha Wigdorovits were accused of coaching N.W. to get revenge against the Mayor’s support of Hamas. Wigdorovits and Bollag admitted that they were approached by N.W., but said they referred her to third parties.
[. . .]
In 2010, Muller went to the Gaza strip and posed for a photo with Hamas minister Ismail Haniyeh. He also had another selfie snapped with Hamas spokesman Mushir al-Masri. Muller is involved in the Council for European Palestinian Relations, which Israeli officials says is a Hamas front organization. Muller got in a tangle with Bollag when he compared Israelis to the Nazis in their dealings with Palestinians, and reportedly commented that Muller is turning the area into a haven for radical Islamists and anti-Semites.

http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2014/09/09/badens-mayors-nude-selfie-breeds-anti-jewish-conspiracy-theories/

Baden’s Mayor’s Nude Selfie Breeds Anti-Jewish Conspiracy Theories
Published On: Tue, Sep 9th, 2014
By Lily Bethlehem

Swiss Proposal To Guarantee Income For All

[From article]
As I said at the top, this could be the ultimate Petri dish for some of the questions we’ve been wrestling with here at home. What happens if you just lay out the welcome mat and say that everyone, regardless of whether you are able bodied or disabled, has the choice of just staying home and making a survivable, though certainly not extravagant, income, absolutely guaranteed by the government, no questions asked. For the rest of your life. How many people would still work? How much would it cost those who were working to pay this income to the rest, and how long would they continue to pay it? On a related note, how would they control a potential flood of suddenly interested “immigrants” who show up a the door?

http://hotair.com/archives/2013/10/06/swiss-look-to-go-all-in-on-socialism-assure-income-to-everyone-even-without-working/

Swiss look to go all in on socialism, assure income to everyone even without working
POSTED AT 9:31 AM ON OCTOBER 6, 2013
BY JAZZ SHAW

$1 million Cash Missing From Swiss Air Flight That Landed at JFK

Posted June 25, 2013 4:22 AM ET; Last updated June 27, 2013 2:39 AM






[From article]

The exterior cargo container — the receptacle holding the smaller container that should have been holding the $1.2 million — showed no signs of being compromised, according to a source familiar with the investigation.
[. . .]
The weight of $1 million in $100 bills, for example, is estimated at 22 pounds, according to the US Treasury.
The largest cash heist in JFK Airport history occurred on Dec. 11, 1978, when an estimated $5 million was swiped at the Lufthansa Airlines terminal.
[. . .]
Airlines regularly transport large sums of US cash under “enhanced” security protocols, such as when fulfilling large banking transfers or when vast amounts of American currency are being permanently taken out of circulation prior to destruction.
Those sums can total up to $1 billion or more on a single flight, said a source with direct knowledge of such shipments.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/queens/jfk_heist_lNPACrbzA4GzAyxHJIqV9I

$1.2 million missing from Swissair jet after JFK stop
By PHILIP MESSING
New York Post
Last Updated: 2:15 AM, June 25, 2013
Posted: 1:57 AM, June 25, 2013
* * *

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/queens/workers_at_jfk_face_heat_in_heist_tYAWbpwdG3iZWRn2sK4DvJ

Feds believe $1.2M heist from Swiss air shipment may be inside job
By PHILIP MESSING
New York Post
Last Updated: 9:53 AM, June 26, 2013
Posted: 12:59 AM, June 26, 2013

Swiss Eating Dogs and Cats

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2255684/Farmers-Switzerland-routinely-EATING-cats-dogs-meals.html

Farmers in Switzerland routinely EATING cats and dogs with their meals
Practice still common among farmers in areas of Switzerland
The most popular type of dog is a breed related to the Rotweiler
Commercial sale of dog meat is banned in the country, eating is not
By ALLAN HALL
Daily Mail (UK)
PUBLISHED: 13:00 EST, 1 January 2013 | UPDATED: 13:00 EST, 1 January 2013

Former Swiss Patient Shoots Five, KIlls Three

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2256412/Swiss-village-shooting-Former-mental-health-patient-killed-3-women-questioned-Alps-massacre.html

Former mental health patient who 'killed three women in Swiss village
gun rampage' to be questioned about Alps massacre of British family
The killer wielded three weapons as he fired indiscriminately in the street
Reports say 'drunk' man was wounded in police shootout and arrested
He murdered three people and injured several more before he was stopped
All were reportedly known to the gunman, with one thought to be his uncle
Two of the victims were married and the parents of young children
The massacre has striking similarities to Alps attack on British family
By PETER ALLEN
Daily Mail (UK)
PUBLISHED: 23:03 EST, 2 January 2013 | UPDATED: 12:28 EST, 3 January 2013

Zurich To Open Sex Boxes For Prostitutes

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/switzerland/9708726/Zurich-to-open-drive-in-sex-boxes.html

Zurich to open drive-in sex boxes
The Swiss city of Zurich is to open drive-in sex boxes in an attempt
to rid the town of street prostitution.
By Matthew Day
2:47PM GMT 28 Nov 2012

Earthquake in Portland ME

During a presentation at The Swiss Consulate in Cambridge about Paul Klee by Dr. Michael Baumgartner, the earth quaked for about three seconds. 

http://www.wickedlocal.com/cambridge/news/x346782307/Minor-earthquake-shakes-region#axzz29V8TN4S7

Minor earthquake shakes region
WCVB
Posted Oct 16, 2012 @ 07:48 PM
Cambridge Chronicle

Swiss Banker Gave Obama $500 K

[From article]
Wolf’s company, UBS, gave an additional $532,000, making it the 15th largest contributor to Obama’s first presidential run.
[. . .]
Upon taking office in early 2009, Obama appointed Wolf to the Economic Recovery Advisory Board that would help craft the controversial $787 billion stimulus package. Shortly after Wolf was appointed, UBS admitted to conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service and agreed to pay $780 million to ward off a federal investigation into its activities.

http://freebeacon.com/obamas-swiss-banker/

OBAMA’S SWISS BANKER
HEAD OF SWISS FINANCE HOUSE UBS INVESTMENT BANK IS ONE OF PRESIDENT’S BIGGEST BUNDLERS
BY: Andrew Stiles
April 24, 2012 2:34 pm

Six Trillion in Fake US Bonds Seized

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/17/us-usa-bonds-forgery-idUSTRE81G11620120217

Italian police seize $6 trillion of fake U.S. bonds
By Elisa Forte and Gavin Jones
POTENZA, Italy
Fri Feb 17, 2012 5:27pm EST
* * *
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/international/polish_police_seize_in_fake_us_treasury_rr7URv3s5sXD2iwAK5Ti0K

Polish police seize $100M in fake US treasury bonds
NEWSCORE
New York Post
Last Updated: 9:16 AM, March 19, 2012
Posted: 9:15 AM, March 19, 2012

Calabrian Crime Moving Into Switzerland

[From article]
"Ducry claimed that two financial companies -- PP Finance and World Financial Services -- were controlled by members of organised crime outfits.
"They gathered money that they had stolen in part from their clients by driving the two companies into bankruptcy. They then hid a part of this money and bought land in Sardinia.
[. . .]
Stephanie Oesch, author of the book "Organised Crime, A Threat for the Swiss Financial Centre?", estimates that the Italian mafia have laundered "between 20 to 30 billion Swiss francs" (20.8 to 31.2 billion US dollars) in the past five years in Switzerland through investments in restaurants, property, art or luxury."

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=CNG.78e0d6ea454a7aaf3314a8dbd2c58027.131&show_article=1

Italian mafia spreads in Switzerland
AFP
Breitbart.com
Dec 26 04:51 AM US/Eastern

Gunmen Rob Swiss Casino

http://in.news.yahoo.com/137/20100328/778/tod-armed-gang-steals-six-figure-sum-fro.html

Armed gang steals six-figure sum from Swiss casino

Sun, Mar 28 07:57 PM

Jonathan Lynn

Yahoo News

Stimulus Fraud Can reach $50 billion


http://www.marketwatch.com/story/stimulus-fraud-could-hit-50-billion?siteid=rss&rss=1#mod=BOL_hps_BOL2MW

or

http://tinyurl.com/ltqn4b

Jun 12, 2009, 4:41 p.m. EST
Fraudsters eye huge stimulus pie, consultant says
Companies will face extra requirements to prevent problems
By Greg Morcroft
MarketWatch

* * *

Two Arrested at Swiss Border with $134 B in US Bonds

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601101&sid=ayy1QKcwcGN0

or

http://tinyurl.com/kjo3ezplus tags of

Japan Probes Report Two Seized With Undeclared Bonds
By Shunichi Ozasa and Makiko Kitamura
Bloomberg News
June 12, 2009

* * *

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&sid=a62_boqkurbI

or

http://tinyurl.com/mdwkqp

Suitcase With $134 Billion Puts Dollar on Edge: William Pesek
Commentary by William Pesek
Bloomberg.com
June 17, 2009

* * *

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/82091ec2-5c2f-11de-aea3-00144feabdc0.html

or

http://tinyurl.com/lpzvkn

Mafia blamed for $134bn fake Treasury bills
By FT reporters
June 18 2009 19:52
Last updated: June 18 2009 19:52