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August 17, 2012 | | UNFRIENDED Shares of the social network plunged to new depths today, cutting May’s IPO price in half—and slashing CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s personal net worth by $600 million, according to Bloomberg. The Daily Beast’s Alex Klein on what’s behind the two-day dip and why there’s likely more tumbling to come. Moving On There once was a time when Wall Street loved Barack Obama. It was 2008, to be exact, but times have changed, it seems, and now more of those who make big money on Wall Street are giving it to Obama’s Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, and others in his party, $56.4 million dollars, in fact, through both individual donations and PACs. Comparitively, those in the same business have given $35.1 million to Democrats. This may not seem like a huge difference, 89 percent of the $43.7 million Wall Street donors have given to super PACs has gone to conservative groups. ‘SHEROES’ In the end, neither Madonna’s prayer nor Paul McCartney’s letter to Russia’s President was any help to the country’s now-famous feminist punk band. On Friday, the trio of performance artists known as Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years behind bars for ‘hooliganism motivated by religious hatred,’ despite protests across the West and in Moscow. The Daily Beast’s Anna Nemtsova reports on the verdict—and what it means for Putin. ENERGY Who says the president can't do anything about the price of oil? According to Reuters, the White House is "dusting off plans" to release controlled oil reserves in order to lower the price of gasoline and bolster Iranian sanctions. Since July, crude prices have spiked more than 20 percent to almost $120, making it harder to enforce the trade embargo with Iran, not to mention for consumers to feel the economic recovery in action. Any move to release strategic oil reserves would likely be met with Republican criticism, who would call it a political move to increase the president's popularity going into November. SOUTH AFRICA Unions are demanding an inquiry into bloody clashes between mine strikers and police Thursday as South African president Jacob Zuma rushed to the site of the shooting Friday. At least 30 people were allegedly shot to death by police, who claim they were forced to open fire dead protesters who were allegedly “firing shots” at them at the Marikana mine in the northeast. Violence in the region had already led to the death of 10 people, including two police officers, since miners began the strike a week ago. The platinum mine has been at the centre of a pay dispute worsened by tensions between two rival trade unions. | | 
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