Venezuelan peace talks will commence – Europe wants to take another whack at reducing obscene executive bonuses – The “go to” drug in flu epidemics may not be all that – And a lot more in your CareerSpot World News Briefs:

When Thursday arrives in Venezuela, peace talks with the government and opposition will be broadcast live on TV.  UNASUR – the regional diplomatic bloc spearheaded by Hugo Chavez to challenge the US influence of the Organization of American States (OAS) – will mediate, with the foreign ministers of Ecuador, Brazil, and Colombia sitting at the table.  Even with the two sides trying to end weeks of deadly political unrest, the worst in a decade, hardliners among the protesters are refusing to recognize the elected government’s legitimacy.

Oscar Pistorius felt the bite of the “Bull Terrier” at his murder trial.  That’s the nickname for prosecutor Gerrie Nel, who has earned a reputation in Pretoria for being ruthless in getting at the truth.  Pistorius refused to look at the crime scene photo of his girfriend Reeva Steenkamp’s body, as Nel demanded the defendant state that he killed her.  Pistorius’ defense says he shot the woman wrongly believing she was a burglar, prosecutors say he killed her after a row.

MH370:  They heard more pings similar to those emitted by flight data recorders, still haven’t found the missing Malaysian Airlines flight.

The European Union is proposing new rules to allow shareholders to vote on and approve executive salaries, often seen as out of control after the 2008 economic crisis.  It comes after Barclays, RBS, and other large banks announced yet another round of hefty bonuses.  The new proposals would not cap executive salaries, and would only apply to publicly traded firms.  Since the global financial crisis began, the EU has banned banker bonuses of more than twice the level of fixed pay, and set stricter pay rules for managers of hedge funds and other EU investment vehicles.

Republicans in the US blocked a bill that would have pulled women’s’ salaries equal with men’s, for the same work.  The US Census Bureau confirms that women earn US$0.77 for every dollar that men earn, and Paycheck Fairness Act would have at least partially closed that gap.  The conservative party claimed the bill is unnecessary (tell that to America’s more than 11 Million single Mums), and would invite “lawsuits”, whatever that means.  The republicans claim the bill was an election year ploy – Gee, I wonder how women will vote this fall NOW?

Speaking of America, a big, giant rat terrorized passengers on the subway in New York City.

111 people dead from Ebola in Western Africa, but some people have survived.  Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) says at least seven patients have recovered and left the group’s treatment compound outside Conakry, Guinea.  A young woman aged just 18 years was the first person in this outbreak to beat Ebola – but she had to shower with chlorine and wear different clothes before being allowed to leave.  MSF and the World Health Organization says Ebola kills up to 90 percent of those infected, but those who catch it early can survive with treatment of the symptoms including fever, nausea, and diarrhea.

MSF is accusing the United Nations of “shocking indifference” to the plight of thousands of war refugees in South Sudan.  About 21,000 people were “living in flood water contaminated with fecal matter” at the UN base in the capital Juba.  When the rains come, the latrines collapse according to MSF, and diarrhoeal, respiratory, and skin disease are breaking out among the people.  The UN has not yet reacted. 

Are governments wasting hundreds of millions of dollars on stockpiling the drug Tamiflu in case of flu epidemics?  An updated Cochrane Review published by The Cochrane Collaboration – an independent global healthcare research network – and the BMJ said Tamiflu shortened the symptoms of influenza by only half a day. There was no good evidence to support claims it reduced admissions to hospital or complications of influenza.  Tamiflu is made by the big pharmaceutical company Roche, which says the research is flawed and stands by its product.

At least 20 people died in a bomb attack on a crowded market in one of the poorest area of Pakistan’s capital Islamabad.  More than 100 people are injured.  The Pakistani Taliban, which has a ceasefire with the government, denies responsibility.  Interior Minister Chaudry Nissar says the attack was “a dastardly act by criminals.”