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But Prime Minister Édouard Philippe upended expectations with an announcement of an international competition to replace the iconic spire that collapsed into Monday’s inferno. He also raised the prospect of a 21st-century twist atop a 12th-century creation. “This is obviously a huge challenge, a historic responsibility,” Philippe said, noting that the new design would have to be “adapted to technologies and challenges of our times.”

This week financial news organization CNBC gave some mainstream attention to the largest money laundering and racketeering lawsuit in United States History, in which “Banksters” and their U.S. racketeering partners are being accused of laundering of 43 trillion dollars worth of ill gotten gains. The lawsuit is said to involve officials located in the highest offices of government and the financial sector. Since this information was surprisingly revealed by the mainstream news organization there has been a very suspicious and deadly fallout at the CNBC headquarters. Within hours the original page for the article was taken down, and CNBC senior...

Full title: Breathtaking video shows installation of final section of the World Trade Center spire as it's fastened to America's tallest building A camera attached to the bottom of One World Trade Center's highest component has provided dizzying footage from the top of New York City's tallest building.The final section of the spire, adorned with an American flag, was lifted by crane to the top of the skyscraper on Friday.A GoPro camera mounted near its base documented the careful rise of the iron piece, as dozens of construction workers watched in awe.    (edit)

Beach in Portugal Click to see the original 10x larger.

Funny thing about this one; I was trying to use the newly flawed Panoramio to find a interesting picture of the geology of Kazakhstan (for fun). Well, it turns out the Kazakhstan looks a lot like Kansas. But when I used Kazakhstan as a keyword in Panoramio, I found this. It's in Pakistan, end of the Karakoram Range. Ultar Realize that Panoramio is a branch of Google; this does not say much for the accuracy of their search function. But it's a very impressive peak. A killer of climbers too, from the background information I read. Click the first and...

CHICAGO — This may be the only city in the world where architecture ranks as a sport. Bleachers are erected around construction sites so the locals can sit and watch cranes swing steel beams into place. In fact, Chicagoans are so engaged in the state of their skyline, public opinion in 2001 sounded the death knell for initial renderings of the Chicago Trump Tower. Critics argued that the proposed structure would not look right among its iconic brethren. Two renderings later, Chicago Trump Tower now edges its way upward. The handsome design will tickle the sky by 2009, along with...

Is this a ghost in the spire? A GHOSTLY mystery has come to light at Halifax's Square Church spire, baffling council chiefs and workers. Last week, the Evening Courier reported how a pair of lovebirds could halt restoration of the historic landmark. But when steeplejacks zoomed in to get a photograph of the birds’ nest, they ended up with an unexpected snapshot. Foreman Barry Done says the digital snap shows a ghostly figure hovering in the steeple – and the find has worried council bosses so much it was the hot topic at their Monday morning meeting. “I was gobsmacked...