Tuesday December 23rd 2008

End of the year or end of the world (as we know it)?
Must Read - A quote...."Before all the Xmas BS gets in the way, an end-of-year essay of sorts is in order, especially so given the bumpy ride capitalism has bestowed on us this past twelve months. And the portents for 2009 look to be even worse as capitalism, desperate to shed over-valued assets, descends into the abyss. -- Look at it this way: after the Crash of ‘29 and the launch of the New Deal, it took some six years to engineer the outbreak of WWII, the surefire way of literally burning up surplus capital in awesome quantities."

Higher Wages or Bubblenomics: What's it gonna be? - To late, the choice has already been made....Depression.
Must Read - A quote...."December 22, 2008 "Information Clearinghouse" -- - -Wages, wages, wages. It all gets down to wages.  A strong economy must be built on a solid foundation of steadily rising wages. If wages don't keep pace with production, the only way the economy can grow is through the expansion of debt, which leads to disaster."

America Needs To Go To Rehab
Must Read - A quote...." Before we discuss what’s left of the economy, a few words about one brave man. -- The shoes Iraqi journalist Muntader al-Zaidi threw at George Bush in Baghdad had more courage and truth in them than all the honeyed, sycophantic words of America’s fawning media. Zaidi reminded the world that George Bush, Dick Cheney and their Iraqi Quislings have the blood of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis on their hands – perhaps as many as one million – and the blame for creating four million refugees."

Ponzi Democracy
A quote...."A Few Figs from Thistles,” best known for the lines....

“My candle burns at both ends;
It will not last the night;
But, ah, my foes, and, oh, my friends
It gives a lovely light.” -- *Edna St. Vincent Millay*

Madoff investor commits suicide - link posted at BuzzFlash
Financial "Suicide" Watch - A quote...."A French investment manager who put $1.4bn (£1bn) into Bernard Madoff's fraud-hit scheme has killed himself in his New York office, police said." -- For more on this issue see.... Financial Suicide Watch List

On Board the U.S.S. Titanic
A quote...."I can’t help but compare our country’s situation to the maiden voyage of the Titanic. Everyone has seen the movie, so can relate to the story. The captain (Alan Greenspan) has been handed the greatest ship (United States) ever made. It is unsinkable. The initial voyage across the Atlantic Ocean has drawn the rich elite ruling class (financers & bankers) onboard. But, the lower decks are filled with lowly peasants (Working Class) who are sneered at by those in the upper decks. A maiden voyage should always be taken slowly. A prudent captain would not take undue risks. Our captain (Alan Greenspan) wants to make his mark on history. He declares full steam ahead (reducing interest rates to 1%). Midway through the voyage, the captain is handed a telegram warning of icebergs (potential financial catastrophe) ahead. If he slows down the ship, he will not set the speed record. He ignores the warning and steams on to his rendezvous (eternal disgrace) with history."

U.S. Economy: Home Prices Fall Near Depression Pace (Update1)
A quote...."Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Sales of single-family houses in the U.S. dropped in November by the most in two decades and resale prices collapsed at a pace reminiscent of the Great Depression, dashing speculation the market was close to a bottom. "

U.S. Nov. existing-home sales fall 8.6% Home prices decline at fastest annual pace on record
A quote...."WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Resales of U.S. single-family homes and condos fell a surprisingly bad 8.6% in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.49 million, the National Association of Realtors reported Tuesday, even as home prices fell at the fastest annual pace on record."

Sales of New Houses in U.S. Dropped to 17-Year Low in November
A quote...."Purchases dropped 2.9 percent to an annual pace of 407,000, lower than forecast, according to figures from the Commerce Department today in Washington. The median sales price declined 11.5 percent from a year earlier."

US GDP drop of 0.5 pct unrevised for third quarter
A quote...."WASHINGTON (AFP) – US economic activity contracted at a 0.5 percent pace in the third quarter, according to government data unrevised from an estimate last month."

US economy posts worst results for 27 years
A quote...."With bad news pouring in from retailers and exporters, American economists are scrambling to lower their forecasts for growth in the world's largest economy.  Winter storms across the country appear to have dealt a final blow to retail sales as cash-strapped consumers stay home, and the US economy is now expected to post its worst performance in at least 27 years – and possibly since the Fifties."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Obama Wants Bush Pentagon Appointees to Stay
He promised "change" and like most lies that emanate from the walking pustules that now masquerade as "politicians" in this country, Bombs Away O-Bomb-a delivered the exact opposite of what he promised....less "change" than any previous president in history. - mpg -- Special Note - A quote...."If President-elect Barack Obama’s decision to keep Secretary of Defense Robert Gates in his position raised red flags about the sincerity of the former’s mantra of change, those flags have surely given way to blaring alarms today with the announcement that the new administration will retain hundreds of Bush appointees in the Pentagon." - bold by website editor

Obama, the military and the threat of dictatorship - The PNAC Plan to create a New Roman Empire is still in effect.
Special Note - A quote...."With his choice of Admiral Dennis Blair as director of national intelligence, President-elect Barack Obama has now named three recently retired four-star military officers to serve in his cabinet. This unprecedented representation of the senior officer corps within the incoming Democratic administration is indicative of a growth in the political power of the US military that poses a serious threat to basic democratic rights."

Feinstein: Bad Choice for Intelligence - posted at FPIF - The more things "change", the more they stay the same.
Special Note -- A quote...."Ignoring the pleas of those calling for a more credible figure, Senate Democrats have instead chosen Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) to lead the Senate Committee on Intelligence. Feinstein was among those who falsely claimed in 2002 — despite the lack of any apparent credible evidence — that Saddam Hussein had somehow reconstituted Iraq's arsenal of chemical and biological weapons, as well as its nuclear weapons program."

Base Alienation: Obama's Team of Rivals
Special Note - A quote...."With surprising haste and insensitivity, Barack Obama's alienating the most serious, activist component of his political base. The blogosphere's been seething in indignation for weeks. Chris Bowers, of the OpenLeft.com blog, calls Obama's cabinet "a center-right foreign policy team" and pronounces himself "incredibly frustrated. Progressives are being entirely left out of Obama's major appointments so far. . . Even after two landslide elections in a row, are our only governing options as a nation either all right-wing Republicans, or a centrist mixture of Democrats and Republicans? Isn't there ever a point when we can get an actual Democratic administration?" Markos Moulitsas, founder of the Daily Kos site, calls the Obama team "tone deaf" to the views of "the American electorate that voted in overwhelming numbers for change from the discredited Bush policies." -- They're all crying now, all classic cases recovering from AViDD "believer" Type-1 Syndromes - 11-04-08 - mpg
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Special Note -- The NYT reports that a judge has thrown out cases filed against 24 employees of the Ministry of the Interior having to do with forging i.d. badges and suspicions they were involved in a coup plot. The government is now backing down from charges that they had joined the banned al-Awdah party (an attempt to resurrect the Baath Party). The NYT speculates that the al-Maliki government was actually trying to move against the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, a Shiite fundamentalist party that more or less controls Interior (which is more like the American Homeland Security Dept.) Al-Maliki's Islamic Mission Party (Da'wa) will compete with ISCI in upcoming provincial elections. The problem with the ISCI theory of the arrests is that most of those incarcerated  were Sunnis. I still think that al-Maliki was cleaning house of old appointees by Ayad Allawi that he sees as ex-Baathists who are CIA assets. That Is, I think he is trying in various ways to become less dependent on the US, and to curb US influence." - bold by website editor -- Paragraph quoted from InformedComment

No evidence to convict 10,000 detainees– U.S. commander
A quote...."BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: U.S. forces in Iraq have detained 10,000 prisoners without evidence of their wrongdoing, a U.S. detention centers in Iraq commander said on Monday."

Britain gets ready for urgent Iraq pullout
A quote...."British commanders have been forced to plan for an immediate withdrawal from Iraq after the country’s parliament failed to vote on a resolution that would allow British troops to stay beyond the end of the year."

Iraq: Some U.S. Combat Troops To Be Reclassified
A quote...."The U.S-Iraq agreement calls for the withdrawal of combat forces from Iraq cities by June, but officials say many will remain as reclassified personnel. -- Military planners acknowledge many will be renamed "trainers" and "advisers" in what officials told The New York Times (NYSE:NYT) are essentially combat roles." -- Does that sound like a familiar policy to anyone? - mpg

Civilian casualties in conflicts on the rise in Afghanistan
A quote...."KABUL, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- Continued militancy and conflicts have claimed the lives of more civilians in Afghanistan in comparison to last year, spokesman of Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) Nadir Nadiri said Tuesday." -- also posted at WarInIraq

Afghanistan's President Karzai laments coalition use of 'thugs'
A quote...."The leader of Afghanistan faults U.S.-led forces, saying they have hired warlords who have then been sent to mistreat ordinary Afghans."

America Should Take Its Hands Off Lebanon
A quote...."The religious authority Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah noticed that many American personalities, of both the Republican and Democratic parties, from the American Congress and other groups, have been received in Lebanon recently. They repeated their traditional statements, which is that they would not change their position on Lebanon, and would not form(ally) agree to any compromise at Lebanon’s expense."

Detaining the United Nations - posted at FPIF
A quote...."The decision to keep Falk out fits a pattern of Israeli efforts to hide the human consequences of the siege of Gaza and of the escalating settlement expansion in the West Bank. Denying entry to the UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights is part of the same occupation playbook as keeping Palestinian human rights defenders such as Raji Sourani, director of the Palestine Center for Human Rights, locked up in Gaza and denied the right to leave to speak to the outside world. It's at one with the Israeli policy of blocking international journalists who might report on the spiraling humanitarian crisis (especially in Gaza). The same goal is evident in the beating and effort to intimidate the few Palestinian journalists who do manage the rare opportunity to get out and tell the world, such as Mohamed Omer, the young Gazan winner of the prestigious Martha Gellhorn Prize in Britain."

Obama and Bush, Two Sides of Same Coin - Bad news for the Palestinians. - mpg
Special Note - A quote...."The Palestinians should prepare for the grim reality of Obama’s foreign policy and stop counting on the US to help them achieve their national aspirations. It is most likely that Obama’s foreign policy team will reactivate the peace talks that were launched by President George W. Bush. The Palestinians should reject the resumption of the Annapolis process and demand from the international community to reaffirm the Palestinians’ rights as stated in the UN Resolutions 242,338 and 194. More open-ended moribund bilateral negotiations with the Israelis above and beyond the fifteen years since the signing of Oslo agreements with no effective intervention is a time for more land grabbing, settlements expansion and giving legitimacy to the occupation. The Palestinians must focus on reconciling their differences and unite around one national policy."

Ukraine’s “Orange” elite reunites to impose IMF-dictated austerity measures
A quote...."The temporary rapprochement between the two is at the behest of the Western powers and the local oligarchs. An alliance remains the favoured government of Washington, which opposes a return to power of the more pro-Russian Party of the Regions. However, patching the alliance became imperative because Ukraine has been among the hardest hit economies during the global economic crisis. -- The two leaders came under particular pressure to set aside their factional disputes in November, when World Trade Organisation talks on the future of Ukraine were stalled due to the government’s breakdown."

OSCE urged to recognise new realities in South Ossetia
A quote...."The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe should agree new terms with South Ossetia if it wants to continue working there, says Russia's Foreign Ministry. Moscow has vetoed the expansion of the organisation's current mandate which expires in a week."

Russia-Iran S-300 deal shrouded in mystery
A quote...."Russia says it will only sell exclusively defensive systems to Iran amid Western disgruntlement over Tehran-Moscow military cooperation."

US wants Russia's word on S-300
A quote...."Washington says it seeks clarification from Moscow on whether it is selling an advanced surface-to-air missile defense system to Tehran."

Hugo Chavez, the FARC Laptops, and the Non-Existent Emails
Special Note -- A quote...."Remember the laptop computer that, according to the Colombian government, miraculously survived the bombing of the Farc guerrilla camp in Ecuador? Yes, that one. The one that allegedly contained thousands of emails showing the extensive collaboration between the leadership of the rebel group and representatives of the Venezuelan president, Hugo Chavez." -- "....in early December, the official version, already widely disbelieved across Latin America, began to crumble. The Colombian government-appointed investigator, Captain Ronald Coy, stated under oath that he had found only word documents in the laptop, and not a single email: "

The Mumbia Attack - 1 Article - Tuesday - [ Day 26 ] ========== ========== ========== ====

Interpol: 'India should share Mumbai evidence'
Special Note - Since that would mean revealing to the entire world CIA, Saudi Royal, Mossad and India's BJP party's possible involvement with the attack....that ain't gonna happen. – mpg -- A quote...."India has given no information about last month's attacks in Mumbai to Interpol and information passed to media by Indian investigators should be shared if it is accurate, the police agency's chief said today. -- Pakistan, under pressure over Indian accusations that the 10 gunmen who attacked Mumbai came from Pakistan, has complained that India has yet to provide it with any evidence to push its investigation forward. -- Interpol Secretary General Ronald K. Noble told a news conference in Islamabad until Indian authorities shared information, police around the world would be unable to make any determination about the identity of the attackers." - bold by website editor

End - The Mumbia Attack - 1 Article - Tuesday - [ Day 26 ] ========== ========== ==========

Karl Rove Threatened Connell, Suspected of Sabotage and Murder
A quote...."Did Bush's guru Karl Rove order the Murder of Mike Connell because he knew too much? Attorneys for Mike Connell, recently killed in a suspicious 'plane crash', had sought protection for Connell and his family. Connell was being threatened by Karl Rove, the Republican guru, arguably the 'brains' behind Bush's rise to near absolute power in the White House. Connell, who was on John McCain's payroll, had also been 'warned' that his craft had been tampered with."

Rove's IT Guru Warned of Sabotage Before Fatal Plane Crash; Was Set to Testify - posted at Alternet
A quote...."Amy Goodman: A top Republican internet strategist who was set to testify in a case alleging election tampering in 2004 in Ohio has died in a plane crash. Mike Connell was the chief IT consultant to Karl Rove and created websites for the Bush and McCain electoral campaigns. He also set up the official Ohio state election website reporting the 2004 presidential election returns."

FDNY Lieutenant Admitted Plan To ‘Take Down’ WTC 7
Special Note - A quote...."Newly uncovered video from 9/11 featuring an interview with FDNY lieutenant David Rastuccio on MSNBC confirms that there was a plan to deliberately demolish WTC Building 7, as was originally indicated in Larry Silverstein’s infamous statement on the PBS documentary, America Rebuilds." -- For more on this issue see....9/11 - WTC7

NYC Man Admits He Helped Air Hezbollah TV
Must Read (For the outrage) - Censorship Alert - A quote...."The owner of a New York satellite TV company has pleaded guilty to providing material aid to a terrorist organization by letting customers receive broadcasts from Hezbollah's television station. Javed Iqbal entered the plea in federal court in Manhattan on Tuesday. He declined comment afterward. As part of the plea, Iqbal agreed to serve a prison term of up to six and a half years. Sentencing was set for March 24." -- Except for the Taliban, there are two -- and only two -- organizations in the ENTIRE Middle East classified as "terrorists" by the US-NRE that the US-NRE does NOT currently support, as opposed to every other “terrorist” organization out there which it does (see US Support of Terror).  One is Hezbollah the other is Hamas, both organizations overwhelmingly won the endorsement of their constituencies in elections that were demonstrably freer and fairer than those recently held here in the US-NRE, much less any elections held (if they were held at all) by the US-NRE's so-called "friends" and allies in the Middle East.  Our elites are lying hypocrites who are now arresting and incarcerating Americans (note: not Neo-Romans) under the dictats and policies of AIPAC !! - mpg

Rights Groups Demand CIA Turn Over 49 Cables Relating to Use of Waterboarding
A quote...."NEW YORK - December 23 - The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) must turn over information regarding 49 cables it has admitted it has in its possession related to the waterboarding of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, said three prominent human rights groups today. The groups-Amnesty International USA (AIUSA), the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), and the International Human Rights Clinic at NYU School of Law's Center for Human Rights and Global Justice (NYU IHRC/CHRGJ)-filed the papers Monday night, as part of an ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit they have brought against multiple government agencies, including the CIA, seeking information on the administration's secret detention, rendition, and torture program."

Guantanamo lawyer says Gates may have committed perjury
A quote...."In a letter sent to the Justice Department on Monday Dec. 15 (which has been seen by The Raw Story), Stafford Smith said he was trying to evaluate whether the defense secretary had deliberately perjured himself, or had been misled. -- “I will say that I am extremely disappointed in the declaration that was filed on behalf of Secretary Gates on Friday,” Stafford Smith wrote, adding, “There is no question but that it is false.” He said he couldn't conclude “whether I would categorize Mr. Gates’ statement as outright perjury, or as a misguided consequence of his reliance on an erroneous definition of the legal terms."

Rod Blagojevich vs Bank of America
Contains Video - A quote...."There is something very odd about the timing of the Governors arrest.  What is wrong with this picture? -- December 8 - Governor Rod Blagojevich announces the State of Illinois will cease doing business with Bank of America. -- December 9 - Governor Rod Blagojevich, who has been reportedly under investigation by the federal government for three years, is indicted based on a recent wire tap."

Monday December 22nd 2008

Obama & Biden To Protect Bush Administration Criminals
Must Read - A quote...."It’s par for the course for Obama and Biden, the men who promised “change” but in every step of their preparations for assuming office have pursued nothing but continuity, to acknowledge that they will protect criminals in the Bush administration from prosecution for authorizing torture, a complete violation of both the U.S. constitution and the Geneva Conventions." -- also posted at AmericanEveryman

Where's the Mea Culpa? The Complete and Total Failure of the Liberal Intelligensia
Special Note - A quote...."Now that the corporatist to install the permanent corporatist revolution has been elected, I’ve heard a lot of rumblings about the abysmal selections to Obama’s government from ‘progressive’ commentators and pundits. Some of us, all along were talking about, precisely what Barack Obama is doing (and has done since winning the election); before we watched him install some of the most regressive Democrats possible (obviously I’m well aware the Democratic Party seems to be on an eternal march rightward, but how some of these appointments are even Democrats is beyond my comprehension), to the highest positions of power and authority in his administration (he’s seem to be playing pick the Monsanto, Raytheon, Wall Street, military-industrial complex ’star’ player of the day). I haven’t heard any of the most prominent liberals/progressives (except for maybe this one article), who voted for Obama (and many no doubt encouraged others to do so) come out yet and say McKinney was right or that Nader was right (or that those progressives who were saying they can no longer support Republican-lite neoliberal Democrats were right) about Barack Obama and the Democratic Party."

The Movement to Try George W. Bush et al for War Crimes
Special Note - Contains Video - A quote...."Members of the Bush administration and George W. Bush personally conspired to violate the Geneva Convention, the Nuremberg Principles and US obligations to both. Bush and key members of his administration deliberately violated US criminal codes and tried to make their crimes legal after they had already committed them. Bush and his minions embarked upon this subversive action when it was made clear to them that they could be put to death for violations of US Codes which bind the US to Geneva and other treaties that were almost insisted upon by the United States."

International criminals
A quote...."There is pressure building on the incoming Obama Justice Department to somehow adjudicate the war crimes committed by the George W. Bush administration, starting at the top. The political problem is that these crimes also implicate leading Democrats, thereby rendering true justice nearly impossible."

Life Without Bubbles
Ignore the blather regarding Obama, he ain't gonna do anything at all for the "wee little folk", but Paul Krugman does make an important point here. -- see the bolded text shown below....mpg -- A quote...."A few months ago a headline in the satirical newspaper The Onion, on point as always, offered one possible answer: “Recession-Plagued Nation Demands New Bubble to Invest In.” Something new could come along to fuel private demand, perhaps by generating a boom in business investment. -- But this boom would have to be enormous, raising business investment to a historically unprecedented percentage of G.D.P., to fill the hole left by the consumer and housing pullback. While that could happen, it doesn’t seem like something to count on." -- Paul's wrong on that count, what this nation can "count on" is another shining and glorious war, a really BIG one this time.  For more on that issue see....Effective Fed Funds Rate & Total Nonfarm Payrolls - 03-24-07 - mpg & Standard Disclaimer and the Ten Year Cycle
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Yasmin Alibhai-Brown: They lied about Iraq in 2003, and they're still lying now
A quote...."Even the choral backers of Bush and Blair, once oh-so-influential, sound tinny now, out of tune. In a new book, The Liberal Defence Of Murder, Richard Seymour names many usually enlightened individuals who cheered on the disgraceful crusade and have now gone silent. Others who supported the adventure have escaped through passages of ingenious exculpation. Most Tories, for example, now say they were hypnotised by the Government's false dossiers. -- Really? Even hard-of-hearing Mrs Kirkpatrick down the road – she's 79 – understood that we were being deceived. The UN weapons inspectors Hans Blix and Scott Ritter both told us there were no WMDs. Ken Clarke said this weekend: "I opposed the Iraq war. I'm not sure whether anybody believed Saddam had weapons of mass destruction that were a threat to anybody. Most American spies didn't believe that, most British spies didn't believe that and most of the Foreign Office didn't believe that"." -- also posted at CommonDreams

Iraqis hope to sue U.S. troops under new accord
A quote...."BAGHDAD — The families of three men who were killed last week during a search of a grain warehouse want to press charges against American soldiers under the terms of a new security agreement between the U.S. and Iraq."

Has the Message Hit Home, Bush?
A quote...."During his last visit to Iraq, the outgoing American president, George W.Bush, was rewarded for invading the Arab country in a way that was meant to convey the utmost disgrace to its target."

More Iraqis rally to cause of reporter who threw shoes at Bush
A quote...."BAGHDAD — The Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at President George W. Bush intends to press charges against the people who he says beat him as he was taken into custody, said a member of the Iraqi parliament who's urging his release."

Iraqi Journalist Who Threw Shoes at Bush Was Tortured in Jail, His Brother Says
A quote...."BAGHDAD — The television reporter who threw his shoes at President Bush was burned by a cigarette in the hours after his arrest on Dec. 14 and was beaten so badly by Iraqi security personnel that one of his teeth was knocked out, the reporter’s brother said Sunday after a visit to the jail."

Attack of the Bush Shoe-Toss Games Continues - Yeah! More games to play. - mpg
A quote...."The surge of games, videos and creative websites that pay tribute to an Iraqi journalist's presidential shoe-toss continues to grow."

New additions
Bye Bye Bush
Shoe Bush Worldwide
Bush Game

Previous list - posted 12-17-08
Sock and Awe
Bash a Bush
Flying Babush - Note: in this one your cursor moves da'Bush
Bush Shoe Throwing Game
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Iran delivers 'crushing blow' to Jundullah
A quote...."A senior Iranian commander says the authorities have carried out major operations against the main body of the Jundullah terrorist cell."

Iran plays new game in U.S. backyard
A quote...."An unlikely force has emerged in the political landscape in South America - Iran. Political alliances are changing in the U.S.’s backyard: Iran, Russia and China are all raising their profiles with ambitions for a multipolar world."

AMSI Press Statement: Supporting Gaza
A quote...."The Association of Muslim Scholars in Iraq (AMSI) called on Arab and Muslim countries to work harder and faster to decrease the suffering of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip who are under the unjust embargo imposed by the occupation Zionist entity."

Press TV crew hit by Israeli forces
A quote...."Press TV's cameraman and correspondent have been injured in Nilin where Palestinians are protesting the Israeli apartheid wall."

Thousands at Congress Affirm Palestinian Right To Return
A quote...."More than 5,000 delegates filled the hall to overflowing at the Arab International Congress for the Right of Return, held in Damascus, Syria, on Nov. 23 and 24. Delegates came from 54 countries. -- The gathering was a strong demonstration of support for the struggle of the Palestinian people and their historic demands. -- The two-day event was aimed at establishing the Right To Return of Palestinian refugees, which was defined as a firm Palestinian and Arab principle that is not subject to bargaining, concessions or trade-offs and cannot lapse with the passage of time."

Qatar Calls UN to Persuade Israel to Withdraw from Syrian Golan
A quote...."Doha, SANA - Qatar called on the United Nations last night to work to convince Israel to withdraw from the occupied Syrian Golan and the still occupied Lebanese territories, stop its continued violations of Lebanese airspace and to implement its obligations under the road map and international legitimacy represented by the relevant UN Security Council and General Assembly resolutions."

Brazil and EU leaders hold summit
A quote...."Leaders from the European Union and Brazil are expected to focus on the financial crisis and climate change at a two-day summit in Rio de Janeiro.

Brazil Plans Military Upgrade To Be World Power
A quote...."With the commanders of Brazil's army, navy and air force in attendance, Da Silva said in a speech here that Brazil, despite its pacifist history, needed a stronger defense against potential aggression if it was to continue on the road to becoming a global power. -- The new strategic vision, more than a year in the making, calls for Brazil to invest more in military technology, including satellites, and to build a nuclear-powered submarine fleet that would be used to protect territorial waters and Brazil's deepwater oil platforms." -- bold by website editor. -- Gee whiz, what can Brazil be thinking?  Whom could they POSSIBLY suspect of trying to take over our oil?  Hmmmmm....It's all so perplexing, China doesn't even have one aircraft carrier, Russia would never attempt such a conquest.  The US-NRE has of course invaded and bombed dozens of countries while killing millions of their citizens to gain control over more of our petroleum resources, but our elites love our neighbors to the south and they would never do anything like that.  Besides, they know all those little dark people down there are perfectly aware they're sitting on our oil supplies, that they'll give us those supplies free of charge when we need them because we're such a special people, that we're beloved by all our grateful little domestic helpers south of the border.  That’s why it's just so confusing as to why Brazil would think they need nuclear submarines to defend "our" oil.  After all....we've got so many more submarines and we can do it for them! - mpg

Ukraine risks mass worker protests
A quote...."The crisis in the global economy has left many Ukrainians fearing for their future, with closures threatening key industries. Political instability is hampering the government's ability to act."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Galveston police haven't apologized for beating 12-year-old girl
Must Read - (For the outrage) -- A quote...."What would you do if you were a 12-year-old girl and several men jumped you, insisted you were a hooker and tried to drag you to their car? Would you submit or would you fight and scream for help?"

Watergate and the Future: News for 2009
Book Review - A quote...."In this guest column, award-winning investigative reporter Russ Baker gives some background on his new book [Family of Secrets: The Bush Dynasty, The Powerful Forces That Put it in the White House, and What Their Influence Means for America. -- GoGl Srch] which, in part, explores former President George H.W. Bush's CIA ties and his little known connections to the Watergate scandal."

US: Soaring Rates of Rape and Violence Against Women
A quote...."(New York, December 18, 2008) - A new government report showing huge increases in the incidences of domestic violence, rape, and sexual assault over a two-year period in the United States deserves immediate attention from lawmakers and the incoming administration, Human Rights Watch said today. The statistics show a 42-percent increase in reported domestic violence and a 25-percent increase in the reported incidence of rape and sexual assault."

Hah!  You think it's bad now, just you wait see.  We should all call it dating "occupation style"; just think of all the videos and really bad attitudes that have cropped up on the web and in the mass-media during the last eight years of war, mayhem, murder and "torture".  Just think of a falling economy where a man's worth in this society has always been based on the size of his now, newly diminishing, wallet.  Just think of how tense domestic situations can get when a man loses his job, despite the fact, (or even because of the fact), his wife may still be employed.  We all know it's true that if you don't bring home the bread, you don't get to go to bed....least not with your wife anyway. - mpg
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Michael Connell Cancelled Two Flights on Suspicion his Plane may be SABOTAGED !!!.
BREAKING - Special Note - Video - A quote...."Mike Connell I.T. guru who help Bush steal 00 and 04 goes down in a plane crash..Find out more about this case go here http://adap2k.blogspot.com/"

Rove Threat to Blackmail GOP IT Mastermind Triggers Immunity Request to Ohio AG by Election Lawyers
Special Note - A quote...."COLUMBUS, OHIO: The little story about how the GOP cyber-gamed the Ohio presidential election in 2004 is growing by the day, spurred on to greater heights Thursday when an Ohio election attorney asked the Ohio Attorney General to provide immunity protection to Mike Connell, the GOP IT mastermind who built various computer systems they say not only won Ohio for President Bush in 2004 but led to many other wins for Republicans over the years of the Bush Administration."

Connell Round-Up...by Larisa Alexandrovna
Special Note - An "at-Largely" round-up regarding many of the articles on the possible assassination of Michael Connell. – mpg

EXCLUSIVE: OH Election Fraud Attorney Reacts to the Death of Mike Connell
Special Note - A quote...."The lead attorney in the widening 2004 federal election fraud conspiracy case which began in Ohio --- but is rapidly growing to other states and other elections --- says that the stunning death of a key witness last Friday is a blow to the case, but not the end of it by a long shot."

Mike Connell, GOP "IT Guru", Killed in Solo Plane Crash
Special Note - A quote...."The Akron Beacon Journal is reporting that the private plane of the GOP's highly-placed "IT guru" Mike Connell's went down in Lake Township, Ohio on Friday evening. Connell was killed in the crash and is reported to have been the only person on board. There are no reports of anyone on the ground being hurt, though his plane crashed in a residential neighborhood."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

The Mumbia Attack - 4 Articles - Monday - [ Day 25 ] ========== ========== ========== ====

Elements of an Inside Job in Mumbai Attacks
A quote...."Tuesday, December 23, 2008 -- Indian police last week arrested Hassan Ali Khan, who was wanted for investigations into money laundering and other illicit activities, and who is also said to have ties to Dawood Ibrahim, the underworld kingpin who evidence indicates was the mastermind behind the terrorist attacks in Mumbai last month.  --  Ibrahim is also alleged to have close ties with both Pakistan’s Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) agency and the CIA." -- also posted at BLN

Indian minister condemned for urging probe into killing of police chief during Mumbai
Can anyone say COVER-UP? - mpg -- A quote...."23 December 2008 -- A call by India’s minister for minority affairs, Abdul Rahman Antulay, for an investigation into the killing of the chief of the Maharashtra-state Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) during last month’s three-day terrorist attack on Mumbai has sparked a political furor. The Hindu-supremacist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), its right-wing allies, and many within the leadership of the Congress Party, the dominant partner in India’s coalition government, are pressing for Antulay’s resignation."

Uproar in Indian Parliament over Antulay’s remarks
Related Article -- A quote...."Tuesday, December 23, 2008 -- NEW DELHI: Indian parliament was repeatedly adjourned on Monday following an uproar by the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), protesting at comments made by Minority Affairs Minister Abdul Rehman Antulay. -- The opposition demanded Antulay’s immediate dismissal on his remarks questioning the circumstances under which Anti-terrorism Squad (ATS) chief Hemant Karkare and other top police officials were killed during the Mumbai terror strikes."

The [Nameless One] America
A quote...."21 December 2008 -- A quote...."The puzzle of the fake phone call made to the President of Pakistan Asif Zardari by the Indian Foreign Ministry has not yet been solved. Pakistan alleges that the threatening phone call was done by the Indian Home Ministry, a charge that Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherji denyies. The vital question here is that who made this phone call. This is an extremely sensitive issue. This should be investigated as well. Vigilance has to be kept on all the possible tactics that can be employed to spoil the relations between India and Pakistan. When only a fake phone call can raise tensions between the two countries, this fact should not be ignored that the forces that do not want India and Pakistan to come close are capable of wreaking tremendous havoc."

End - The Mumbia Attack - 4 Articles - Monday - [ Day 25 ] ========== ========== ==========

Protectionist dominoes are beginning to tumble across the world
Must Read - Financial Warning - Depression Warning -- It truly is the beginning of the end.  That ripping, crunching sound you'll be hearing for the next two years is the entire Anglo New Roman Empire's financial system coming unglued.  Never forget it started here in the US-NRE, that it was the elites here in this country that caused it ALL.  Never forget they did it to finance their wars of aggression which have so far killed over a million people.  Never forget they arranged 9/11 to further these plans of mayhem and murder as specified in the PNAC protocols. -- Never ever forget these facts when the time finally comes to render JUSTICE upon all those who are guilty of these crimes. - mpg -- A quote...."We are advancing to the political stage of this global train wreck. Regimes are being tested. Those relying on perma-boom to mask a lack of democratic or ancestral legitimacy may try to gain time by the usual methods: trade barriers, sabre-rattling, and barbed wire. " -- also posted at BLN & RougeGov

S&P's Downgrade of Financials Is a Definitive Bear Signal
Financial Alert -- A quote...."....it is the inability (even at this stage) of S&P and, for that matter, other rating agencies, to establish the structural balance between deteriorating asset portfolios, de-leveraging, operating margins and capital-adequacy that should create genuine concerns for those who are currently holding shares in financial institutions. Nobody should be buying shares in these financial institutions when even business model-related issues remain unresolved. In fact, the only actionable inference which can be drawn from the S&P press release is that the overall credit outlook is not only deteriorating but that the sheer complexity of that outlook is defying all conventional wisdom; while S&P forecasts that the unemployment rate will touch 8.5% next year, it provides no specifics on the potentially more contentious problem of underemployment."

World Faces "Total" Financial Meltdown: Bank of Spain Chief
Financial Alert -- A quote...."December 22, 2008 "AFP" -- -- The governor of the Bank of Spain on Sunday issued a bleak assessment of the economic crisis, warning that the world faced a "total" financial meltdown unseen since the Great Depression." -- also posted at BLN

Modified mortgages re-defaulting at high rates: regulators
Financial Warning - Some quotes...."The proportion of modified loans delinquent by 30 days or more was 55% after six months, according to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency...."  --  "One very troubling point is that, whether measured using 30-day or 60-day delinquencies, re-default rates increased each month and showed no signs of leveling off after six months and even eight months"  --  "During the third quarter of 2008, delinquency increased in all loan categories -- prime, Alt-A and subprime...." -- bold by website editor

Will Asia and Europe Decouple After All?
Special Note - Yes YES YES!! --  De-couple NOW!!  All countries must all get off the dollar while they still can or it will be the cause of their collective economic un-doing. - mpg -- A quote...."....a new report by LEAP/E2020 - a bunch of forecasters who called the economic crisis and have been right about many other things (although, like Schiff, they missed the dollar rally), argues that decoupling will occur after all. Specifically, LEAP/E2020 argues that Asia and Europe will recover from the worst of the economic crisis some 8 years before the U.S. or the UK:"

Washington Post: The Problem is YOU, Not "We"
A quote...."Imagine a major national newspaper that never saw an $8 trillion dollar housing bubble. Suppose its most often cited expert on the housing market was the chief economist of the National Association of Realtors, who also authored the 2006 bestseller : Why the Housing Boom Will Not Bust and How You Can Profit From It. -- Yes, I'm talking about the Washington Post, which had the gall today to run a column by Jim Hoagland complaining about how "we" are passing on a bad world to our children." -- also posted at CommonDreams

Guest Post: "If You Can't Tell Who The Sucker Is...."
A quote...."Thumbing through the sell-side research from their multitudes of Strategists, I notice some recurring phrases, small and innocuous as they may be, that trouble me. Time and again, they repeat, in various contexts, the mantras: "when things return to normal", "when markets return to normal", and "when x, y or z normalizes" with "normal" implied to be that which has been common over the past decade-or-so in respect of liquidity, leverage, asset prices, equity risk premiums, speculative activity, growth. Mulling this over, I wonder to myself: "is this not just the perfect "recency bias" example, defined by wikipedia as "a cognitive bias that results from disproportionate salience of recent stimuli or observations"? For as I consider what precisely is meant by "normal", it seems to me that there is a reasonable good chance insofar as this IS "The Big One" (as Bridgewater Associates precsiently termed it nearly a year ago) that all these things - debt, leverage, consumption vs. income, relative asset prices - are ALREADY returning to normal, and the strategists, demonstrating the old poker joke about "if you look around the table and you don't know who the sucker is, its you....", simply haven't yet fathomed the appropriate interval frame of the normality to which things are returning towards."

A Quiet Windfall For U.S. Banks - Talk about "suckers". - mpg
A quote...."The financial world was fixated on Capitol Hill as Congress battled over the Bush administration's request for a $700 billion bailout of the banking industry. In the midst of this late-September drama, the Treasury Department issued a five-sentence notice that attracted almost no public attention. -- But corporate tax lawyers quickly realized the enormous implications of the document: Administration officials had just given American banks a windfall of as much as $140 billion."

Wall Street tumble was preceded by financial bonanzas for bank executives, AP study finds
A quote...."Banks that have their hands out in Washington this year were handing out multimillion-dollar rewards to their executives last year." -- Yeah SO!?  They were doing it this year too, AFTER they got all those taxpayer funded, multi-billion dollar, bail-outs. - mpg

Lobbyists, Congress and the Ponzi Scheme -- Madoff's Money Trail Leads to Washington
A quote...."The forces of the universe sent us a corruption triple play the week of December 8th.  Just in case there were any slumbering souls still doubting the multi headed monster we need to slay to avoid becoming Rome, those benevolent forces assaulted our senses with a politician, a lawyer, and a Wall Street icon in a three-day sweep of unimaginable crime.  Unimaginable, at least, to those of us bereft of adequate imaginations to keep up with the criminals."

Banker Suicide: HSBC Head of Insurance, Who Also Happened to be a Danish Army Reserve Lieutenant Colonel, Hangs Himself in London Five Star Hotel Room -- Financial "Suicide" Watch -- A quote...."Knightsbridge An HSBC banker has been found hanged at a five-star hotel, after apparently committing suicide."

Banker Suicide: Manager of Secondary Marketing Stabs Herself to Death
Financial "Suicide" Watch -- A quote...."Keep in mind that secondary marketing refers to the securitization and selling of mortgage backed securities."

Sunday December 21st 2008

No posts. - mpg

Saturday December 20th 2008

How the GOP, Reagan, Bush Sr, Bush Jr Betrayed, Pillaged, then Sold the U.S.
Must Read - Some quotes...."Rome fell for the same reasons the US will have lost empire and world influence. Like Rome, the US has despoiled the land, waged war upon both the small farmer and the laborer, outsourced it's industry, devalued the dollar and subverted the products of labor --the sole source of 'value' in any economy. That the US 'current account balance' --as officially recorded by the CIA --is the highest in the world proves that US is bankrupt and has been for years. It also proves that GOP economics have made the US less productive vis a vis the rest of the world." -- "Rome fell because it became economically impossible. Wars of conquest ravaged the class of 'freeborn farmers' whose lands were seized whilst they were away at war. Slaves brought back to Rome permanently depressed the job market. Eventually, the free-born farmer was forced by policy and circumstance to compete with slaves for jobs. Rome had forgotten or never knew the source of wealth itself: labor! It is among the many 'evils' of slavery that in addition to being cruel, it robs the product of labor of its value."

Scorched Earth
Must Read - A quote...."December 20, 2008 "Information Clearinghouse" -- -- There comes a point, as the car careens out of control down the icy highway, when we are no longer the driver but just the person holding onto the wheel. We try to do what’s right but the situation changes from instant to instant and it appears that our actions have little effect."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

If criminal penalties are removed, what will deter lawbreaking by political officials?
Special Note - A quote...."Along with the desire for just retribution, one of the two principal reasons we impose penalties for violations of the criminal law is deterrence -- to provide an incentive for potential lawbreakers to refrain from breaking our laws, rather than deciding that it is beneficial to do so.  Though there is debate about how best to accomplish it and how effective it ultimately is, deterrence of future crimes has been, and remains, a core purpose of the criminal law.  That is about as basic as it gets." -- also posted at CommonDreams

American Politics 101
Special Note - A quote...."....here's a prediction: at some point shortly before he waddles off the national stage, Bush will issue a weasle-worded blanket pardon for all those involved in his torture and murder program. This will be presented as a measure to protect those "on the front lines of the War on Terror" -- the interrogators of the military and the various security agencies -- from "politically motivated prosecutions." But its true aim will be to absolve those responsible for this Hitlerian-Stalinist war crime: Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice, Gonzales, Feith, Yoo, and many others, including, of course, the jabbering putz in the Oval Office himself."

The Noose Tightens -- Rumsfeld, Ashcroft and other top Bush officials could soon face legal jeopardy.
Special Note - A quote...."The United States, like many countries, has a bad habit of committing wartime excesses and an even worse record of accounting for them afterward. But a remarkable string of recent events suggests that may finally be changing—and that top Bush administration officials could soon face legal jeopardy for prisoner abuse committed under their watch in the war on terror."

Robert H. Jackson's Opening Statement, Nuremberg, November 21, 1945 - Alt - (YuTb - 7 min 14 sec - 10/13/08)
Video -- A quote...."Justice Robert H. Jackson, the chief United States prosecutor, delivered his opening statement to the International Military Tribunal (IMT) at Nuremberg on Nov. 21, 1945. This statement has been deemed a forensic masterpiece. For more information on the trial and the complete text of Jackson's opening and closing statements, visit http://www.roberthjackson.org."

'Bad Apples' Didn't Fall Far From the Tree
A quote...."On the heels of a bipartisan Congressional report blaming high-level officials of the George W. Bush administration for employing harsh interrogation techniques on detainees captured in the "global war on terror", many of the world's most respected civil libertarians are calling for the establishment of an independent commission to investigate the alleged abuses."

Deterring Torture Through the Law
A quote...."First, let's kill all the lawyers" may have made sense in that Shakespearian scene, but there is a far simpler solution to the legal ambiguities regarding what to do now about the torture approved by President George W. Bush. We suggest this variant: First, let's have the lawyers review their notes from Criminal Justice 101."

8 years on the dark side
A quote...."VICE PRESIDENT Dick Cheney said this week that he directly approved waterboarding to torture terror suspects. "I was aware of the program, certainly, and involved in helping get the process cleared," Cheney told "ABC News." Asked if he believes the simulating of drowning is an appropriate technique, he said, "I do." -- also posted at CommonDreams

Cheney claims power to decide his public records
A quote...."WASHINGTON (AP) — Dick Cheney's lawyers are asserting that the vice president alone has the authority to determine which records, if any, from his tenure will be handed over to the National Archives when he leaves office in January."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Maliki's Secret Crackdown
A quote...."The story of the sweeping, and secretive, arrests, in Iraq's national security apparatus is getting curiouser and curiouser. It now appears as if the whole thing was a clumsy effort by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to get rid of political opponents, in advance of January elections."

Conflicting Reports Over Iraqi Officials’ Release
Related Article - A quote...."Yesterday, Iraqi Interior Minister Jawad al-Bolani declared the rumors of a coup plot linked to the arrests of dozens of his ministry’s officials “a big lie” and announced that all those arrested had been released. In most nations that would’ve been the end to the story, but in Iraq things are rarely so straightforward."

Iraqi Parliament Defeats Bill on Foreign Troop Presence in 2009
A quote...."The Iraqi parliament has rejected a draft bill submitted by the government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki specifying the rules under which some 4,000 British troops and small contingents from Australia, El Salvador, Estonia and Romania may remain in Iraq past Dec. 31, 2008."

Iraqi Preachers Call for Journalist’s Release
A quote...."As Sunni and Shi’ite preachers across Iraq gave their Friday sermons today, the aftermath of Sunday’s Bush-Maliki press conference and the arrest of journalist Muntadar al-Zeidi took center stage. After throwing his shoes at President Bush, Zeidi was beaten and arrested, and is facing years of prison time. But he’s also become a hero of almost mythical proportions in the nation, and comments from religious leaders of both sects reflected that reality." -- also posted at WarInIraq

Iraqi shoe-thrower: I would do it again  - And this website editor would pay big money to see it again. - mpg
A quote...."Sat, 20 Dec 2008 09:45:11 GMT  -- The Iraqi journalist who shocked the world by throwing his shoes at the US president reportedly says he would do it again if given the opportunity."

Shoe Hurled at Bush Flies Off Turkish Maker’s Shelves
Some Humor - A quote...."The shoe hurled at President George W. Bush has sent sales soaring at the Turkish maker as orders pour in from Iraq, the U.S. and Iran. -- The brown, thick-soled “Model 271” may soon be renamed “The Bush Shoe” or “Bye-Bye Bush,” Ramazan Baydan, who owns the Istanbul-based producer Baydan Ayakkabicilik San. & Tic., said in a telephone interview today. -- “We’ve been selling these shoes for years but, thanks to Bush, orders are flying in like crazy,” he said. “We’ve even hired an agency to look at television advertising.” -- bold by website editor
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Czech Parliament Calls for End to Afghan, Kosovo Deployments
A quote...."The lower chamber of the Czech Parliament voted today on the extension of the mandate for foreign troop deployments in Afghanistan and Kosovo, and with 101 votes needed in the 200 seat house, the government netted only 99 yes votes, defeating the measure."

Two killed in NATO-supply route attack
A quote...."Two people have been killed and one injured when their oil tankers coming back from the Afghanistan border, came under insurgency attack." -- also posted at WarInIraq

U.S. report: Hezbollah fought Israel better than any Arab army
A quote...."A new report from the U.S. Army War College warns that the American military must learn the lessons of the Second Lebanon War, in which Hezbollah operated more like a conventional army than a guerrilla organization."

You gotta love those Greeks!
A quote...."Greece, often called the cradle of Democracy is alive, well and kicking in Athens, where student protesters dodged security guards on Wednesday at the Acropolis and let fly two giant pink banners, covering a wall near the Parthenon to ignite support for ongoing demonstrations against the government."

Christmas Holiday cold snap for Ukraine?
A quote...."Russian energy giant, Gazprom, says it will stop gas supplies to Ukraine starting January 1, until the country pays off its $2 Billion gas debt for supplies in November and December, and a new contract is concluded."

Upsetting the Balance of Power
A quote...."The head of Israeli Defense Ministry’s Security-Diplomatic Bureau visited the Kremlin this week, intent upon convincing the Russians that equipping Iran, and perhaps Syria, with an upgraded version of their S-300 air defense system "would disturb the balance of power in the Middle East. -- What balance?"

Severed cable disrupts net access
Head's up!  They're doing "it" again. Is this another test of their capabilities or is the balloon gonna really pop this time?  We'll all find out soon enough. - mpg -- A quote...."Internet and phone communications between Europe, the Middle East, and Asia have been seriously disrupted after submarine cables were severed. -- It is thought the FLAG FEA, SMW4, and SMW3 lines, near the Alexandria cable station in Egypt, have all been cut." -- bold by website editor

Yushchenko: questioned and mocked
A quote...."Getting rid of their President seems to be an issue of primary concern for ordinary Ukrainians. At least that is what the leading question at the annual online conference between the President and the people of Ukraine seems to suggest."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

People 'still willing to torture'
Wow!  Seven out of ten people you see walking out there on "Main Street NRE" are sick, little, twisted, obedient, wannabe torturers....that's seven out of ten want to "please" their masters by hurting other people.  It's just totally disgusting.  Welcome to the New Roman Empire folks. - mpg -- A quote...."Decades after a notorious experiment, scientists have found test subjects are still willing to inflict pain on others - if told to by an authority figure. -- US researchers repeated the famous "Milgram test", with volunteers told to deliver electrical shocks to another volunteer - played by an actor. -- Even after faked screams of pain, 70% were prepared to increase the voltage, the American Psychology study found."

No Justice for the African-Americans Targeted by White Vigilantes After the Katrina Flooding
A quote...."In the days after Hurricane Katrina swept through Louisiana and Mississippi, the bodies of African American men began to turn up on the streets. But these weren't the bloated corpses of drowned Gulf residents whose images were beamed around the world. Instead, their nameless bodies contained bullet holes, slain at the hands of persons unknown."

The Warning - Alt - (YouTube - 1 min 17 sec - October 04, 2008)
Video - A quote...."The Warning. Five authors, one warning. Trailer for new documentary film."

White House Lied About Iraqi Yellowcake Buy, But That's Not the Biggest Scandal
A quote...."A new congressional report is belatedly confirming what many have long known: that the White House and in particular then White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales, lied to Congress in 2004 when he told them the Bush administration was not repeatedly warned by the CIA not to make the claim that Saddam had tried to buy uranium ore from Niger."

White House consultant who rigged 2004 election dies suspiciously
Special Note -- A quote...." I don't usually reveal sources, but I think this is incredibly important. Michael Connell died in a plane crash last night. He was a key witness in the Ohio election fraud case that I have been reporting on. More importantly, however, he had information that he was ready to share."

Check out all these unexpected deaths of people involved with elections
Special Note -- A quote...."Keep your coincidence caps handy, folks. People involved in elections and voting machine companies seem very unlucky.  Especially those in Ohio (4 of the 7) and Georgia (2 of the 7)."

Bloody Karl
Special Note - A quote...."Whereas Clinton's enemies made much of his imaginary homicides and fascist plans, they've mostly been stone-silent on the subject of Bush/Cheney's overt strikes against US democracy (e.g., the Patriot Act, etc.)--and on the many unexplained and/or suspicious deaths that have occurred throughout the dark years of this presidency."

Editor's Note: To All Whistle Blowers -- Regarding the three articles shown above, please avoid all transport by air, walking alone in deserted areas, medical treatments by new or unknown doctors and any and all types of high elevations until you've fully blown your whistle.

Ohio Attorneys Seek Protection for Mike Connell and his Family against Alleged Threats from Karl Rove
A quote...."Sources close to the Ohio Corrupt Practices Act/RICO claim sent us a copy of the following letter that asks Attorney General Mukasey for protection for Michael Connell and his family who have been allegedly threatened by Karl Rove. Rove is believed to be the strategic mastermind behind the Bush 2004 re-election campaign and the possible Ohio election improprieties. The alleged threats appear to be the result of the re-opening, through the Ohio Corrupt Practices Act/RICO claim, of the stalled investigation into the 2004 Ohio Elections."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Yep: I Just Can't Let 9/11 Go....
A quote...."Doing some research in my spare time, I tried to find the original statement by Bin Laden, issued by him on Al Jezeera on Sept. 16th 2001... 

"In it he denied any responsibility for 9/11, stating: "The U.S. government has consistently blamed me for being behind every occasion its enemies attack it." -- "I would like to assure the world that I did not plan the recent attacks, which seems to have been planned by people for personal reasons," bin Laden's statement said." -- "I have been living in the Islamic emirate of Afghanistan and following its leaders' rules. The current leader does not allow me to exercise such operations,"...-- *Osama bin-Laden*
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Dick Cheney admits Bin Laden is innocent of 9/11! - (YouTube - 1 min 20 sec - September 23, 2008)
Video - A Freudian slip perhaps? - mpg -- A quote...."

"So we've never made the case, or argued the case that somehow Osama bin Laden was directly involved with 9/11.  That evidence has never been forthcoming." -- *Dick Cheney*

Cheney obviously meant Saddam Hussein, for more on that issue see Bush's statements shown below....

Bush Says Saddam Hussein Was Not Connected to 9/11
Special Note-- A quote...."Addressing the Saban Forum on December 5 [2008] , President George W. Bush stated: "It is true, as I've said many times, that Saddam Hussein was not connected to the 9/11 attacks." -- bold/underline by website editor -- posted 12-20-08

So for all those stupid, drooling morons out there who for the last eight years have repeatedly lied and stated there was a connection between 9/11, Saddam and Iraq -- every single one of them selling their souls so this nation could go invade that poor country, help murder over a million of its citizens, squat there like a large bloated toad, and try to steal their oil -- a message from this website editor to all of you....will you please just SHUT your lying mouths and give the rest of the "fact based" community some peace and quite for a change. - mpg

9/11 Cheney Connection - (YouTube - 9 min 44 sec - August 21, 2008)
Video - A quote...."A review of compelling evidence that incriminates Dick Cheney with actionable foreknowledge before 9/11, criminal misconduct on 9/11, and obstruction of the investigation after 9/11. This is not about theory, rather the historical facts."

The Mumbia Attack - 5 Articles - Saturday - [ Day 23 ] ========== ========== ========== ====

Proxy war between India and Pakistan will benefit 'divide and conquer' agenda of the USA and Israel
A quote...."11.12.2008 -- The USA has been the chief supporter of Pakistan for the past several decades. During the Russian occupation of Afghanistan, the USA funneled vast amounts of war materiel to Afghanistan through Pakistan, and much of that war material was diverted, with US permission, to Pakistani Terrorism against India. The USA actually created Al Qaeda, and Osama bin Laden worked as a CIA asset in Afghanistan and also in Kosovo."

576. Mumbai attack (2) (12/12/08)
A quote...."December 18, 2008 - 6:07pm  -- Pakistan is an Islamic country. The Muslim of that country is hostile to Israel. India historically has problem with Pakistan. The two countries had wars before. They still have conflict in controversial land - Kashmir. To provoke a conflict between India and Pakistan accord with the interest of Israel - let others fight and die for your own interest. The best way is to manipulate extremist group. So when Mumbai ATS found there is connection between Hindutva extremists and Israeli Mossad, there was no surprise. But the discovery led to the elimination - a few days after they uncovered the secret the high ranking police officers of the Mumbai ATS were killed near the Nariman Jewish House. It became an important site in Mumbai attack."

Pakistani Defence Forum -- BJP, Mumbai, Hindu Terrorists, False Flag
A quote...."Dec 14 2008, 06:14 PM -- The Information war is continuing and the enemies have deleted the threads and postings related to exposing the reality behind the Hindu terrorism in Bombay. So I'm going to recreate one of those threads."

Mumbai Terror: Evidence being deliberately ignored?
Pictures - A quote...."November 29, 2008...11:07 am -- Strange that none of the media (TV or Print) have picked this up at all. Or have they been deliberately ignoring it?"

POTA 3.0: India's New Terror Law Shows Old Genes
Awww!!  Isn't that so sweet? - It seems various politicos among India's BJP party have finally learned how to ape their colonial masters in the US's DemoRepub Party and implement their own version of the "Patriot Act".  It’s truly sad however to see just how inept and farcical were their pitiful attempts to follow in their masters footsteps by trying to create their own version of an Indian 9/11.  Tsk, tsk, tsk, you'd think they would have done a better job after seeing how 9/11 turned out, or at least come up with something more original -- Sigh.....one would guess it’s just another case of “White Man’s Burden” and the US-NRE’s security apparatus will just have to pick up the pieces and bury the evidence on behalf of these primitives as it has done so many times before.  One does wish however that the Wogs would finally get their act together, they’re simply making the whole operation so obvious that it's becoming tedious, not to mention highly embarrassing, for everyone involved.- mpg -- A quote...."20 December, 2008 -- In a country were human rights activists can be incarcerated for months without bail the introduction of a new 'tougher' anti-terror law should be no news. Successive governments and architects of anti-terror laws in India have shown scant disregard for human rights and lack of vision in evolving a successful counter-terrorism strategy based on the values of democracy."

End - The Mumbia Attack - 5 Articles - Saturday - [ Day 23 ] ========== ========== ========== ==

The devil and Bernard Madoff
Must Read - For those who love a little bit of Schadenfreudness in their life....enjoy. - mpg -- A quote...."Now that the whole horrible truth has come to light, I have no more reason to conceal my true identity. I am Bernard Madoff. -- Well, not really. But I wish I were. Few Americans have done more to punish stupidity, pretension and complacency than Madoff, whose apparent US$50 billion swindle calls to mind the caper by Mephistopheles in the second part of Goethe's Faust. The fictional devil persuaded the emperor to issue paper money against buried treasured yet to be discovered." -- PS: This is the first time this website editor has ever posted anything from Spengler.

Peter Schiff Was Right 2006 - 2007 (2nd Edition) -- (YuTb - 9 min 59 sec - Nov. 02, '08)
Must View Video - Peter Schiff was right and everybody else (in the video) was wrong, you gotta see it, it's pretty funny. Kudos to jdouche. -- A quote...."This is a set of clips of Peter Schiff from 2006 and 2007. I added labels and 2008 predictions to the first video."

Rogers: The Elite Are Turning A Recession Into A Depression
Special Note - Contains Video -- A quote...."Veteran investor Jim Rogers warns that the policies of central banks and politicians are turning what would have been a recession into a new great depression, and that Barack Obama’s taxation agenda will only make the problem much worse."

Madoff and Bernanke: Doing the math (or: Soylent Green Finance)
A quote...."Investors in structured product didn’t do their sums, either, with the result that write-downs in the global financial system to date have reached $993.9 billion, against $919 billion in capital — which is to say that the entire global financial system is insolvent, except for Fed bailouts. Bloomberg (the professional service, not the publicly available news) has done the numbers, and they are impressive. Freddie Mac had $56 billion of writedowns against $15.6 billion of capital, Freddie Mac had $58.4 billion of losses against $20.8 billion of capital, Washington Mutual had $45.6 billion of writedowns vs $12.1 billion of capital, and so forth."

How to Deflate the Superpower of Toilet Papers
A quote...."December 20, 2008 "Information Clearinghouse" -- It may have made some sense, post-World War II to dollarise international trade when the so-called “Free World” was supposedly threatened by the “Communist Bloc” and the Imperial United States was offering “protection” in exchange for financial dominance. - The imperial design for financial dominance was the Bretton Woods dollar reserve currency scheme. - Since those days, the US has been abusing its financial power by the use of its greatest invention, the “toilet paper printing press” (now, the modern “electronic printing press”) to issue irredeemable fiat money."

Hedge Funds Gain Access To $200 Billion In Fed Aid - When....exactly....is all this gonna stop?!?! - mpg
A quote...."Hedge funds will be allowed to borrow from the Federal Reserve for the first time under a landmark $200bn programme intended to support consumer credit."

China says lending to US will not go on forever
A quote...."BEIJING (AFP) – China warned Wednesday it would not keep lending money to the US economy indefinitely, even as new data showed it had consolidated its position as the top buyer of American government bonds." -- also posted at RougeGov

Kucinich: "Is this the US Congress or the board of directors at Goldman Sachs?"
A quote...."'Is this the U.S. Congress or the board of directors at Goldman Sachs??” asks Dennis Kucinich, the one Democrat probably in all of Congress even worth listening to."

Do Elliot Wave and Other Predictive Stock Indicators Work?
Market Tech Note: -- A quote...."Robert Prechter ignored and/or did not foresee many things that could keep the credit bubble expanding. Let's start with a flashback to conditions of the 70's and 80's. -- Why The Credit Bubble Lasted For Decades"

        * Single household breadwinner became two household bread winners
        * Interest rates were at 18% headed to 1%
        * Internet revolution provided tremendous numbers of jobs
        * Lending standards declined
        * Housing boom provided jobs
        * Rising asset prices supported consumption

"Like a meteorologist who checks technical readings but doesn't actually look out the window (and satellite photos), people who use only technical indicators and not also macroeconomic information are trying to navigate with one eye closed."

FDA Stuns Scientists, Declares Mercury in Fish to be Safe for Infants, Children, Expectant Mothers!
That's just great, more than half this country's population can already be classified as moronic, now they'll all be crazy/brain damaged too. - mpg  -- A quote...."In a truly astonishing betrayal of public safety (even for the FDA), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration today revoked its warning about mercury in fish, saying that eating mercury-contaminated fish no longer poses any health threat to children, pregnant women, nursing mothers and infants.practically."

Friday December 19th 2008

All roads lead out of Afghanistan
Must Read - Geo-Political Prediction -- A quote...."The measure of success of president-elect Barack Obama's new "Afghan strategy" will be directly proportional to his ability to delink the war from its geopolitical agenda inherited from the George W Bush administration. -- It is obvious that Russia and Iran's cooperation is no less critical for the success of the war than what the US is painstakingly extracting from the Pakistani generals. Arguably, Obama will even be in a stronger negotiating position vis-a-vis the tough generals in Rawalpindi if only he has Moscow and Tehran on board his Afghan strategy.  --   But then, Moscow and Iran will expect that Obama reciprocates with a willingness to jettison the US's containment strategy towards them. The signs do not look good. This is not only from the look of Obama's national security team and the continuance of Robert Gates as defense secretary.  --  On the contrary, in the dying weeks of the Bush administration, the US is robustly pushing for an increased military presence in the Russian (and Chinese) backyard in Central Asia on the ground that the exigencies of a stepped-up war effort in Afghanistan necessitate precisely such an expanded US military presence."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

The Betrayal of The Commons
Must Read - A quote...."The cornerstone of capitalism, it has been said, is a handshake. -- The legal embellishments that constitute the law books lining the shelves of any lawyer, those laws are footnotes to the many ways people have betrayed trust, betrayed the letter of the law, the spirit of the contract, the meaning of the handshake. -- Trust, not money, makes the world go around. Money is an emblem of the exchange of trust. It doesn't exist except as an invention. -- And trust has been broken."

Flying Shoes, Bursting Bubbles
A quote...."The most remarkable thing about the gesture was the fact that it was an act of defiant contempt, rather than one of criminal violence. Bush's reaction was remarkable only in the sense that he displayed, for perhaps the last time before he becomes deservedly inconsequential, the depth of his ignorance and the utter impregnability of his unearned self-regard."

Honor Thy Leader
A quote...."Whenever a liberal "of impeccable credentials" shouts "long prison sentence!" I reach for my deconstruction toolkit. First, a rhetorical question: Should Marylin Klinghoffer, of Achille Lauro fame, have gone to jail for a rather long time after she spat in the faces of the terrorists who murdered her husband? After all, no one wants to make light of or license the physical assault on any man, no matter how much he's deservedly hated. This is not how we do justice, unless we're in favor of something tending toward anarchy, or fascism."

POLITICS:  U.S. Military Defiant on Key Terms of Iraqi Pact
A quote...."WASHINGTON, Dec 18 (IPS) - U.S. military leaders and Pentagon officials have made it clear through public statements and deliberately leaked stories in recent weeks that they plan to violate a central provision of the U.S.-Iraq withdrawal agreement requiring the complete withdrawal of all U.S. combat troops from Iraqi cities by mid-2009 by reclassifying combat troops as support troops." -- also posted at CommonDreams

Should Dick Cheney Be Hanged? By Rachel Maddow Video And Transcript - posted at ICH
Must View Video - Outstanding! - mpg -- A quote...."We hanged people for waterboarding as a war crime, in Dick Cheney's lifetime. With that as the historical context, the vice president cavalierly told ABC News that he specifically approved that same technique being used against the prisoner named Khalid Sheikh Mohammad."

Cheney Throws Down Gauntlet, Defies Prosecution for War Crimes
A quote...."Dick Cheney has publicly confessed to ordering war crimes. Asked about waterboarding in an ABC News interview, Cheney replied, "I was aware of the program, certainly, and involved in helping get the process cleared." He also said he still believes waterboarding was an appropriate method to use on terrorism suspects. CIA Director Michael Hayden confirmed that the agency waterboarded three Al Qaeda suspects in 2002 and 2003." -- also posted at CommonDreams & ICH

John Dean: 'Serious consequences' if Obama doesn't prosecute torture
A quote...."Vice President Dick Cheney's admission that he authorized waterboarding has focused attention on possible Bush administration war crimes, and former Nixon White House counsel John Dean believes there will be "serious consequences" if the Obama administration tries to avoid singling out those involved for prosecution." - bold by website editor

CIA Warned Condi on Niger Claims - posted at Consortium News
A quote...."A high-ranking CIA official warned Condoleezza Rice in September 2002 that allegations about Iraq seeking yellowcake uranium from Niger were untrue and that she, as national security adviser, should stop President George W. Bush from citing the claim in making his case against Saddam Hussein’s regime, according to new evidence released by a House committee." - bold by website editor
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Iraqi Interior Minister: Coup Reports “Big Lie,” All Arrested Now Released
A quote...."Wednesday night’s breaking story about the arrests of high ranking Interior Ministry officials in Iraq continues to unfold in the press, but exactly what happened still isn’t clear. Even the initial story’s report that General Ahmed Abu Raqeef was among the arrested has been thrown into doubt, as the Interior Ministry now claims that has was an "investigating officer" in the case, not an arrested officer."

Peter Galbraith and US Imperialism Today
A quote...."Over the course of a dozen years before the invasion and occupation of Iraq, and ever since, one of the major operatives in the campaign has been one Peter W. Galbraith. He has been in the middle of the drive to divide Iraq and destroy the leadership which withstood the onslaughts and brought prosperity to its people in a context of national dignity and self-determination."

Karzai: US forces alienated Afghans
A quote...."Afghan President Hamid Karzai has criticized the US strategy in troop deployment, admitting his government's mistake concerning security."

Israel’s Refusal to Allow UN Human Rights Investigators to Enter Gaza: The Response of the Mainstream Press
A quote...."There is something decidedly wrong when two UN special envoys are denied access to the occupied Gaza strip. In May of this year, Israel refused to allow peace laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu, while on a UN fact-finding mission, to enter Gaza. Then on December 15, it did the same to Dr. Richard Falk---Professor Emeritus of International Law and Practice at Princeton University and currently Distinguished Visiting Professor at the University of California at Santa Barbara---who sought to enter Gaza in order to perform his role as the UN’s special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian Territories."

Arabs' Deadly Silence: All Quiet on the Gaza Shore
Must Read - A quote...."Although located in the middle of the Arab world and bordering one of its principal and most populous countries, it could very well be in the middle of the ocean, isolated and unbeknownst to anyone. Its residents, if given the choice, may actually prefer this setting than bear witness to the malignant neglect afforded them by their fellow Arabs as Gaza inexorably withers under the barbaric Israeli siege.  --  If there were any doubts of its dire situation, they were removed by Dr. Richard Falk, UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the Palestinians Territories.  --  On Dec. 9, Falk clearly and forcefully stated that, "An urgent effort should be made at the United Nations to implement the agreed norm of a responsibility to protect a civilian population being collectively punished by policies that amount to a Crime Against Humanity.”

Taking Human Rights Watch to Task on the Question of Venezuela’s Purported Abuse of Human Rights Part 2
A quote...."We write to call your attention to a report published by Human Rights Watch that does not meet even the most minimal standards of scholarship, impartiality, accuracy, or credibility. The document, A Decade Under Chávez: Political Intolerance and Lost Opportunities for Advancing Human Rights in Venezuela, appears to be a politically motivated essay rather than a human rights report. Indeed, the lead author of the report, Jose Miguel Vivanco, stated as much when he told the press just a few days after its publication, ‘We did the report because we wanted to demonstrate to the world that Venezuela is not a model for anyone…’"

Russia to abandon missile plans 'if US drops shield'
A quote...."Russia is ready to abandon plans for a wholesale renewal of its nuclear missile arsenal if the United States stops deployment of a controversial missile shield, a Russian general said Friday."

Russian air defence deal with Iran under way - report
War Alert - A quote...." MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia is currently fulfilling a contract to deliver S-300 air defence systems to Iran, RIA news agency quoted confidential sources as saying on Wednesday. -- In October Russia's Foreign Ministry denied media speculation that Moscow would sell the S-300 system, which could help the Islamic republic fend off air strikes by arch foes Israel and the United States on its nuclear sites."

Russia and Iran: Comrades in contradiction
Book Review - A quote...."Persian Dreams by John W Parker [GoglSrch] -- This is an exhaustive untangling of Russia's and Iran's imploding, fluctuating and expanding ties since the latter's revolution in 1979. It triangulates the nations' relationships with the United States, illuminates the contradictions of their dealings during the civil wars in Tajikistan and Afghanistan, and brings to light the pivotal role a newly resurgent and perhaps nuclear Iran will play in Moscow's chessboard across Central Asia and the Caucasus."

Corruption scandal over Ukraine's emission money
A quote...."The Central Bank of Ukraine has manipulated the market to drop the exchange rate of the national currency, the hryvnia, twofold, Yulia Timoshenko said Thursday. It also distributed the money it raised through emission between several banks affiliated with the Central Bank's head Vladimir Stelmakh so they could buy dollars and euros on the market, Timoshenko charged, saying the reserves will later be poured back, when the hryvnia becomes stronger, and the revenues will be pocketed by officials involved in the corruption scheme."

Bush Says Saddam Hussein Was Not Connected to 9/11
Special Note-- A quote...."Addressing the Saban Forum on December 5, President George W. Bush stated: "It is true, as I've said many times, that Saddam Hussein was not connected to the 9/11 attacks."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

9/11 - From The History File...Remote Control and the 9/11/01 Attack
ARIES: NASA's 'Flying Lab' Takes Wing
9/11 and Global Hawk
Boeing's 767-400ER: Ethernet Technology Takes Wing
Operator Benefits of Future Air Navigation System
Future Air Navigation System (FANS) Economics versus Technology
Flight Deck - The 757-200 flight deck - Future Air Navigation System (FANS)
Civil Reserve Air Fleet
Enhancement of the Civil Reserve Air Fleet
The Civil Reserve Air Fleet: balancing risks and incentives
The Civil Reserve Air Fleet - Future Credibility
Jane's All The World's Aircraft Entry - Boeing 767
Jane's All The World's Aircraft Entry - Boeing 757-200

For more on this issue see.....9/11 - NORAD
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Ground Zero on Wall Street: Fed Funds and T-Bills Hit 0% Interest
Must Read - A quote...."What is going on?  The credit market remains so tight that state and local governments are being forced to pay interest rates as high as 20 percent.  Why is the debt of our insolvent federal government so much more desirable that investors are clamoring to buy it when the return is zero or even negative?  The U.S. government is the most indebted nation in the world, with an official federal debt topping $10 trillion.  Everyone knows that this debt never can or will be paid off with taxpayer dollars, now or in the future.  Commentators have been warning for years that the federal debt would soon be so crippling that foreign investors would flee and the interest alone would be more than the taxpayers could pay.  Why are investors now rushing in to buy the U.S. government’s exploding debt, even at a 0% return?   Wouldn’t their money be safer and more liquid tucked under the mattress or left in cash in the bank? "

Macroeconomics Quiz #2: Monetary Policy, Fiscal Policy, and International Trade & Quiz #1
A quote...."Far too much time has passed since the last quiz was offered here at The Dark Wraith Forums, and given that your host just completed Autumn Semester 2008 final exams, what better time to challenge astute, educated, engaged, aware readers with yet another test of great relevance to the current economics of this recession-oriented nation?"

Newsweek: US should incur “extraordinary levels of debt” to help economy
Special Note -- A quote...."It’s true,” Newsweek acknowledges, “that we would run the risks of serious inflation”, but we shouldn’t worry about that now, because to do so “would be Hooveresque” (whatever that means). So we can just provide this “stimulus” on the order of $2,000,000,000,000 (yes, $2 trillion is what Newsweek recommends) over two years so the global economy doesn’t collapse.  --  So, it’s okay for the global economy to collapse later, and leave an even bigger mess for future generations to clean up, with the risks associated with a global economic collapse even more catostrophic, just so long as we can get people to go out and start buying crap they don’t need in the short term.  --  Pure genius. The intelligence of so many academics, writers, and journalists never ceases to amaze me. I mean, it really just blows my mind. It also says a lot about our education system that the more “educated” a person gets, the more totally asinine their perceptions and analyses get."

Federal spending soars 25% before bailout - link posted at ICH
A quote...."The government's spending commitments exploded by 25 percent in 2008, putting taxpayers more than $1 trillion in the hole even before the astronomical costs of the economic bailout were taken into account, according to an annual report released Monday by the White House."

"It's Kristallnacht Two!" An Ethnic Cleansing in America
Must Read - This was a lot of fun to read, in an evil Schadenfreudian way. - mpg -- A quote...."Call any Jewish friend across the few days and the degrees of separation from someone financially devastated by Bernie Madoff are often only one or two. One rich Jewish friend in New York volunteers that because of some intricate family dispute his own money hadn’t been parked at Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC. On the other hand his uncle had woken up the morning after Madoff’s arrest to discover that the $40 million he’d entrusted to Bernie was gone forever, along with the multi-million pension fund of his workforce, which he’d also entrusted to Madoff. -- It’s not just ruined heiresses in the Palm Beach Country Club now faced with the prospect of dividing the contents of the Whiskas can into two equal portions for mistress and cat, it’s academics on Ivy League campuses, doctors in Santa Monica, rich people from Boston to San Francisco to the West Side of Los Angeles finding their retirement nest eggs or charitable trusts wiped out overnight."

Two Most Widely-Followed Economists Were Cheerleaders for Tyranny
A quote...."In Keynes And Friedman Were Both Wrong, I argued the two most widely-followed economists both misdiagnosed the fundamental problem which led to the Great Depression and both prescribed the wrong medicine for getting out of such a slump."

Leading indicators fall in November
A quote...."NEW YORK (AP) — A private research group's measure of the economy's health fell again in November and its six-month rate of decline hit the worst level since 1991."

Philadelphia factories continue weak performance
A quote...."WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Factory activity continued to contract in the Philadelphia region in December, although at a less-rapid pace than in the prior month."

[California] State jobless rate at 14-year high
A quote...."(12-19) 12:07 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- California's unemployment rate rose to 8.4 percent in November, its highest level in more than 14 years, as employers cut 41,700 payroll jobs, according to a report issued Friday by the state Employment Development Department." - bold by website editor

Schwarzenegger orders hiring freeze, worker cuts
A quote...."SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Friday ordered a state hiring freeze and payroll cuts to conserve cash as California struggles to deal with a $42 billion budget deficit. The governor issued an executive order that requires state agencies to reduce payroll by 10 percent, which could lead to massive layoffs. He also ordered the state's 235,000 employees to take two days off a month without pay, starting Feb. 1."

U.S. Throws Lifeline to Detroit
A quote...."WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration said it would lend $17.4 billion to General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC, buying them a few weeks of financial relief but leaving the biggest decisions about the industry's future to President-elect Barack Obama." -- For more on this issue see....The Merchant of Venice and the Detroit Three - 11-22-08 - mpg

and It’s a Deal… “Just Give Us The Rest of the TARP”… Paulson
A quote...."***UPDATE*** - As I predicted, it seems that they are using this auto-industry bailout to justify pushing for the rest of the TARP money."

George Monbiot questions Fatih Birol on peak oil
Video - A quote...."Britain's leading green commentator, George Monbiot, tackles the International Energy Authority's chief economist, who reveals for the first time a startling and worrying prediction for the date of peak oil." -- For more on this issue see....Oil Producing Countries Past Oil Peak - Chart

Thursday December 18th 2008

The mother of all paradoxes, the American social model
Must Read - Missed this one - mpg -- A quote...."(Rome) It’s undeniable that the American social model is a paradox in the world. All you have to do is look around at other nations and the difference is clear as the Rome sky in July. Even though today at the nadir of its profound social crisis because of its flagrant, outright failure, America continues unabashedly to hammer away at its people how fortunate they are, while simultaneously proposing itself to the world as the paradigm, the quintessence, the very epitome of western civilization. But is history not carrying America into a faded American Dream?"

The Correct Way to Sell a Senate Seat Blago didn't do anything so very unusual. He just went about it the wrong way. -- Must Read- A quote...."What Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich attempted is about as destructive to democracy as it gets. And yet, selling a Senate seat is not as uncommon as we'd like to think. In fact, the corrupt practice happens with such regularity that our system of government has a special term for it. It's called an "election." -- also posted at CommonDreams

Things Are Not as They Seem
Must Read - A quote...."I am disgusted with liberal politics as usual. I am disgusted with the self-congratulations, the self-gratification, the feeling of moral and intellectual superiority voiced by liberal pundits and their sickeningly predictable, patent, self-important, arrogant and superior-feeling followers. Is it enough to be happy that people are throwing shoes at Bush? Are people so gratified with Bush-bashing that they have forgotten that the entire capitalist system is on the brink of collapse? Do they not wonder in disgust as their liberal Democratic heroes work like mad to save the sinking ship? Shouldn't they wonder why such repairs as they recommend come solely at the expense of working people like themselves? Shouldn't the conclusions of leadership be more drastic? Liberalism as it stands has no answers. No answers for the disaster that faces us. Even Barack Obama stated that the usual list of remedies for liberal economic reform is just about spent. Liberalism has nothing left, or next to nothing. What it does have left will not fix what ails us."

The Bubble of Empire -- It's been popped …
Must Read - A quote...."The idea that the United States is the global hegemon, that we have first dibs on the title of world policemen – indeed, our entire post-WWII foreign policy – is nothing but a delusion. That is one of the chief lessons of the recent economic downturn, one that, unfortunately, the incoming administration has yet to face up to – and the pundits (ensconced as they are in the culture of hubris) have yet to realize." -- For more on this issue see....Effective Fed Funds Rate & Total Nonfarm Payrolls - 03-24-07 - mpg

PJB: Obama’s War
Must Read - A quote...."Just two months after the twin towers fell, the armies of the Northern Alliance marched into Kabul. The Taliban fled. -- The triumph was total in the “splendid little war” that had cost one U.S. casualty. Or so it seemed. Yet, last month, the war against the Taliban entered its eighth year, the second longest war in our history, and America and NATO have never been nearer to strategic defeat." -- also posted at AntiWar

The American-Made Insurgency in Afghanistan - A Million McVeighs Now - posted at ICH
Must Read - A quote...."December 17, 2008  --- The "Good War" in Afghanistan – the Bush-launched war that Barack Obama tells us we must fight and win – continues to deteriorate before our eyes. Just like every other operation in the so-called "War on Terror" (another Bush-launched campaign that Obama has fully embraced as his own), the Afghan war, now in its seventh year, has proven entirely counter-productive to its stated aims. Instead of stabilizing a volatile region and denying it as a base for violent extremism, it has of course done the opposite. The shock waves of the heavy-handed American-led invasion of Afghanistan – a country that no foreign power has ever conquered and held – have spread across Central Asia, most dangerously into Pakistan." -- also posted at GlobResrch
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

How History Will View Bush
A quote...."Originally, the invasion of Iraq was justified primarily on grounds that Iraq had substantial quantities of chemical and biological weapons and had "reconstituted" its nuclear weapons development program, and that it could give terrorists "weapons of mass destruction." -- But there was no actual evidence Iraq had such weapons, and the White House knew it."

Will War Crimes Be Outed? - The short answer is they already have been, will they be prosecuted though...nope.
A quote...."As the officials of the Bush administration pack up in Washington and move into their posh suburban homes around the country, will they be able to rest easy, or will they be haunted by the fear that they will be held accountable for war crimes? -- There are many reasons to anticipate that the incoming Obama administration and the new Congress will let sleeping dogs lie. Attention to criminal acts by the former administration would probably anger Republicans, whose support Obama is hoping to win for his first priority, his economic program. Democratic Congressional leaders have known a great deal about Bush administration lawlessness, and in some cases have even given it their approval--making an unfettered review seem unlikely." -- also posted at CommonDreams

Prosecuting Bush and Cheney for Torture: No One Can Be Above the Law
A quote...."A month before he takes office, it has become the conventional wisdom in our conventional media that Barack "No Drama" Obama will not seek or even allow any prosecution of Bush administration officials for crimes committed over the past eight years-not even for authorizing and promoting the illegal use of torture on captives of America's wars on Iraq, Afghanistan and "terror."

How People Elsewhere Fight For Real “Change”
A quote...."As Barack Obama stacks his cabinet and White House staff with DLC/Republican globalists, while blathering platitudes about “Change” and “Hope” for those who are still too disconnected to see what is going on… opposition party lawmakers in South Korea are fighting to keep the biggest free-trade agreement since Clinton’s NAFTA, from being adopted in their Parliament. I guess they want to do something before “WalmartClinton” does to them what she and her letch husband did for Mexico."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Iraq Ministry Says US Troops Kill Employees, Burn Office
Full quote...."Iraq’s Trade Ministry issued a statement condemned a pre-dawn raid by US forces on a flour mill belong to the Iraqi Grain Board, and demanding an apology. -- During the raid, the ministry says US forces killed at least three of the mill’s security guards in their sleep, set fire to offices and searched through files and computers. It was unclear what prompted the raid and the US military declined to confirm the incident, though the statement claims a US officer returned to the scene later to apologize, saying the raid was a mistake."

Iraq arrests 50 over coup plot: security official
A quote...."BAGHDAD (AFP) — Iraq has arrested about 50 interior ministry officials for plotting a coup against the Shiite-led government, a senior Iraqi security official said on Thursday. -- "Fifty interior ministry civil servants, including senior officials, were arrested over the past three days for trying to topple the government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity."

"...Al-Hayat writing in Arabic suggests that the arrest of 38 officials from the Interior and Defense ministries was tied to the electoral ambitions of Interior Minister Jawad Bulani, who founded his own party and made his brother the secretary-general. Al-Maliki is said to have been disturbed at the idea of a cabinet minister engaging in electoral politics. Those arrested were accused of belonging to the al-Awdah or "Return" party, a reformulation of the banned Baath Party. These low-level officials, it was admitted on Thursday, could not actually have made a coup. -- Paragraph quoted from InformedComment

'I was still holding my grandson's hand - the rest was gone' - Article also posted at ICH
Contains Video - A quote...."It was 7.30 on a hot July morning when the plane came swooping low over the remote ravine. Below, a bridal party was making its way to the groom's village in an area called Kamala, in the eastern province of Nangarhar, to prepare for the celebrations later that day. -- The first bomb hit a large group of children who had run on ahead of the main procession. It killed most of them instantly."

UN agency suspends Gaza food aid
A quote...."The United Nations has halted the distribution of food aid in the Gaza Strip after its stocks of wheat flour ran out. -- The UN Relief and Works Agency said on Thursday that "irregular border access" meant deliveries had been unable to reach the improverished territory, where about 750,000 people depend on food assistance."

Jokes From the Middle East
A quote...."The Palestinians probably rubbed their eyes in disbelief but it wasn’t a mistake: according to word from New York, Russia and the United States were proposing a resolution on the Middle East to the UN Security Council which would codify “the progress made in negotiations in recent months.” What progress? The proposed resolution is conspicuously silent on that point."

Scott Horton Interviews Gareth Porter
Audio Interview -- A quote...."Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist, discusses his recent visit to Iran to determine the receptivity of government officials to U.S. diplomatic overtures, the divide in Iranian opinion over Obama, how U.S. interference abroad allows defiant nationalistic governments stay in power, Obama’s potential to learn from his foreign policy mistakes despite the influence of hawkish advisers and how Iran’s increased regional influence and friendly relations with Iraq make nuclear weapons less likely."

Oman reprimands US for anti-Iran confab
A quote...."Oman has criticized the United States for sponsoring a meeting on Persian Gulf security to which Washington did not invite Iran. The New York meeting, the first of its kind, was held on Tuesday with the presence of several permanent members of the UN Security Council and several Arab foreign ministers. Oman and Qatar, however, boycotted the meeting because the US refrained from inviting Iran." -- also posted at WarInIraq

Latin America brushes off Iran sanctions
A quote...."Members of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) have held a trade fair in Tehran to increase cooperation with the country. -- ALBA was launched in 2005 by Venezuela as a counterpunch to the Bush administration launch of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)." -- also posted at WarInIraq

Latin America and the Caribbean reinforce regional integration
A quote...."COSTA DE SAUIPE, Brazil, December 17.— "The first Latin American and Caribbean Summit has concluded in this coastal resort with the conviction that the political, economic, social and cultural integration of the region constitutes a necessary factor on the road to sustainable development and the social wellbeing of its citizens."

Venezuela’s Chávez Participates in Historic Regional “Mega Summit” in Brazil
A quote...."Carora, December 18, 2008 (venezuelanalysis.com)-- Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez participated in the two day "mega summit" in Brazil that included four meetings of regional organizations, joining leaders from 33 Latin American and Caribbean nations, which aim to confront the world financial crisis with increased regional economic and political integration."

Latin America, Caribbean must demand Obama's view - Lula
A quote...."While hosting four summits in Brazil this week - including the First Summit of Latin America and the Caribbean, which the Trinidad and Tobago Minister of Foreign Affairs Paula Gopee-Scoon is attending - President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said it is time for Latin America to demand a political discussion with the United States about how the superpower sees the rest of the continent, also known as its neighbours."

The Rightwing Government is Headed for Its Downfall Days of Rage in Greece
A quote...."On the night of December 6, a special police squad in Athens murdered a 15-year-old student in cold blood in Exarchia, a neighborhood with a long tradition of activism among young people, the left and anarchists."

French nuclear firm Areva says it will deliver uranium to India
A quote...."PARIS: French nuclear power engineering company Areva will deliver 300 tonnes of uranium to India under an agreement signed in September, the French company said in a statement on Thursday. "

Russian Navy to dock in Cuba
A quote...."Warships from Russia’s Northern Fleet are set to arrive in Cuba for the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union. A unit led by the Destroyer Admiral Chabanenko will moor in Havana on Friday and stay there for at least four days."

Rights activists denounce Russian treason bill
A quote...."MOSCOW - Rights activists Wednesday denounced new legislation backed by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin that would allow Russian authorities to label any government critic a traitor, calling it a chilling throwback to times of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Holy fascist police state, Batman! US military mobilizes troops for inauguration --7,500 active duty troops and 4,000 national guard troops will take part in operations 17 Dec 2008 The US military plans to mobilize thousands of troops to protect Washington against potential terrorist attack during the inauguration of president-elect Barack Obama, a senior US military commander said Wednesday. They will fly combat air patrols and man air defenses, organize large scale medical support, and help local law enforcement provide security in the capital, said General Gene Renuart, head of the US Northern Command. [Bye-bye, Posse Comitatus!]" -- Paragraph quoted from CLG

'Widespread civil violence inside the United States would force the defense establishment to reorient priorities in extremis.'[I got my extremis for ya' right here.] Ariz. police say they are prepared as War College warns military must prep for unrest --IMF warns of economic riots 17 Dec 2008 A new report by the U.S. Army War College talks about the possibility of Pentagon resources and troops being used should the economic crisis lead to civil unrest, such as protests against businesses and government or runs on beleaguered banks. "Widespread civil violence inside the United States would force the defense establishment to reorient priorities in extremis to defend basic domestic order and human security," said the War College report. The study says economic collapse, terrorism and loss of legal order are among possible domestic shocks that might require military action within the U.S. U.S. Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., and U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif., both said U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson brought up a worst-case scenario as he pushed for the Wall Street bailout in September. Paulson, former Goldman Sachs CEO, said that might even require a declaration of martial law, the two noted." -- Paragraph quoted from CLG

Undercover Cops Leap From Van, Beat 12 Year Old Girl; In-House Investigation Results? They Followed “Procedure”
A quote...."(What the f-ck are the procedures these days that allow for 3 plain clothes cops to leap from an unmarked van, try to snatch-up a little girl, and then beat her when she (surprise) tries to resist being stuffed in a van and abducted by three middle aged men? Then it gets better; three weeks later the cops go to her school and arrest her for… assaulting police officers, just to cover their asses.)"

Military probe: Gitmo guard admitted to abuse
They like's it....ummmmm it's so good.  Welcome folks, to the New Roman Empire - mpg -- A quote...."SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The allegations were explosive: Two guards at Guantanamo had bragged about abusing detainees and described the mistreatment as routine."

The Bill Nobody Noticed: [US-NRE] National DNA Databank
A quote...."In April of 2008, President Bush signed into law S.1858 which allows the federal government to screen the DNA of all newborn babies in the U.S. This was to be implemented within 6 months meaning that this collection is now being carried out. Congressman Ron Paul states that this bill is the first step towards the establishment of a national DNA database."

Body of Evidence
A quote...."In September 2005, roughly a week after Hurricane Katrina ripped into the Gulf Coast, a group of New Orleans police officers discovered the burned shell of a car sitting on an earthen levee overlooking the bloated Mississippi River. Inside the scorched sedan, scattered across the back seat, lay black ashes and bones. Human bones. A charred skull, shards of rib, an arm bone, clumps of roasted flesh. Equipped with a digital camera, one cop clicked off a string of photos of the tableau."

Tom Vilsack's Kind of Agriculture Another Shill for Monsanto
A quote...."Yesterday's announcement that former Iowa Governor, Tom Vilsack, has been selected as the new Secretary of Agriculture sent a chill through the sustainable food and farming community who have been lobbying for a champion in the new administration."

The YouTube Boycott: In support of universal access to all knowledge
A quote...."As was previously stated, there is a very good possibility that the  World War III option  is an attempt to control the Internet by eliminating  Net Neutrality and  online free speech. It appears that the boundaries set between countries through treaties are vanishing due to the  exponential dissemination of information through the Internet. This is in conflict with the wishes of the oligarchy who are  willing to do anything  to maintain control." -- For more on this issue see....Attempts to Control the Internet

Legal minds respond to landmark 9/11 civil suit against Rumsfeld, Cheney
Special Note - A quote...."On behalf of Spc. April Gallop, who served in the Network Infrastructure Services Agency as an administrative specialist, California attorney William Veale on Monday filed a civil suit against former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Vice President Dick Cheney and former US Air Force General Richard Myers, who was acting chairman of the joint chiefs on 9/11. -- The suit alleges they engaged in conspiracy to facilitate the terrorist attacks and purposefully failed to warn those inside the Pentagon, contributing to injuries she and her two-month-old son incurred. Additional, unnamed persons with foreknowledge of the attacks are also named." -- For more on this issue see....9/11 - NORAD

White House: 9/11 Wasn't Foreseeable & Santa Claus is Real
A quote...."The White House is on a blitz to try to persuade Americans that 9/11 wasn't foreseeable."

The Mumbia Attack - 3 Articles - Thursday - [ Day 21 ] ========== ========== ========== ====

No firm proof gunmen came from Pakistan: Zardari - link posted at ICH
A quote...."Thursday, December 18, 2008 -- LAHORE: Rejecting Indian claims yet again that there is ‘clear evidence’ suggesting the Mumbai terror attacks originated inside Pakistan, President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday told BBC there is still no conclusive proof. -- Zardari has previously pointed out several times that there is still no firm proof that gunmen who attacked Mumbai came from Pakistan. The president, however, promised Pakistan would take action if a link was proved. Zardari told BBC’s Alan Little in Islamabad that Pakistan was prepared to act if adequate evidence of any Pakistani complicity in the attacks emerged."

Double Cover [5]: Lining Up The Suspects
A quote...."Thursday, December 11, 2008 -- Previously in this series, I explained how we know that last month's attacks in Mumbai, India, were a well-coordinated false-flag commando raid, and I wrote: -- In reality-based situations [...] the analysis of such a horrible crime would begin with the known facts, and it would proceed in a systematic fashion, from the knowns to the unknowns. -- We could turn to stone waiting for mainstream analysts to do this, so we may as well do it ourselves."

'ISI cleared of Mumbai involvement'
Some quotes...."The FBI has cleared Pakistan Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of any involvement in last month's terror attack on India's financial hub." -- "Citing other sources, The Dawn said investigations had also revealed that the attackers had crossed the border from Pakistan, where the well-orchestrated plot was sketched by the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). The ISI was accused of being involved in the Mumbai attacks due to its past associations with the LeT, which received CIA and ISI support to fight the soviet-backed government in Afghanistan. The CIA had built extensive bases for the LeT in Pakistan and Afghanistan to train thousands of guerrilla fighters, according to Frontline magazine."

The FBI are just this nation's designated ass-kissing cover-up boys for the CIA and toilet washers for the Saudi Royals.  This whole thing stinks, it reeks as if it oozed out from the Washington DC cess-pit that is this nation's new "imperial" capital, this was Pakistan saying you don't talk about our past and current association with LeT and we won't talk about you, or the Saudi Royals on-going support of LeT (not to mention what really happened on 9/11), nor the BJP party's  prior knowledge and even possible assistance regarding the terrorist attack on Mumbai. - It's so completely disgusting!!  

What do you have to do nowadays to get into the FBI, claim previous experience with covering-up US-NRE sponsored terrorist attacks and wiping the collective asses of this nation's (and other nation's) filthy rich elites?? - mpg

For more on this entire issue see.....US Support of Terror

End -- The Mumbia Attack - 3 Articles - Thursday - [ Day 21 ] ========== ========== ==========

London Banker: "The market has failed, and officialdom is perpetuating that failure." - posted at ICH
Must Read - Financial Warning -- A quote...."December 18, 2008 "Information Clearinghouse" --- Ever since the two Bear Stearns hedge funds defaulted 17 months ago triggering a global financial crisis, the Federal Reserve has been busy putting out one fire after another. Fed chief Ben Bernanke has slashed interest rates to .25 percent, handed out billions in emergency funding to teetering insurance companies and mortgage lenders, and provided $8.3 trillion in loan guarantees to keep the financial system from collapsing. Unfortunately, nothing the Fed has done has either stabilized the markets or stopped the contagion from spreading to the broader economy where consumer spending has fallen sharply, unemployment has skyrocketed, manufacturing has slipped to a 30 year low, and housing prices have plummeted." -- also posted at OnlineJournal

A most desperate move by the Fed
Must Read - Financial Warning -- Some quotes...."Last Tuesday, December 16, the Bernanke Fed took the most unusual step of lowering the overnight inter-bank lending rate, the federal funds rate, to a level never reached before, i.e., zero percent with an upside limit of 0.25 percent. It also announced that it will buy “large quantities of” mortgage-backed securities and is considering doing the same thing with Treasury bonds of longer maturities, in order to lower the entire yield curve." -- "by taking over private financial markets, the Fed is, in effect, covering its own mistakes (and those of the SEC and of the U.S. Treasury) for having allowed the building up of a shaky pyramid of asset-backed securities (ABS), not the least being the toxic mortgage-backed securities, and the gambling-prone credit default swaps (CDS), that has been crumbling to the ground. -- It is my feeling that the Fed, by creating a bond bubble, at this time is only postponing the day of reckoning and is buying time. When the bond bubble bursts, and believe me, it will burst, as all bubbles do, this will push the U.S. economy further down. For instance, when this happens, many capitalized pension funds could fail and many retirees could be then pushed toward poverty. Future spikes in interest rates will hurt investments and damage the economy even more. -- Meanwhile, a bout of competing currency devaluations has been launched, since other governments and other central banks will have to try to debase their own currencies if they want to avoid importing the worst of the U.S. economic downturn. This will be reminiscent of what happened during the 1930s’ economic depression. Not a pretty prospect for the future of fiat currencies." -- bold/underline by website editor -- For more on this issue see.....

Dollar Declines to 13-Year Low Against Yen After Fed Rate Cut
Special Note -- A quote...."The dollar fell to a 13-year low against the yen and the weakest versus the euro in 11 weeks after the Federal Reserve cut its target interest rate to the lowest among the world’s industrialized nations." -- Right after all those foreigners "rushed" into US-NRE bonds for "safety".  Now due to the magic of dollar depreciation, they're losing even more money.  When will they ever learn? What is wrong with them?  Do they like giving Bush and his Wall Street crony friends all their hard earned money or are they just simply stupid? - mpg - posted 12-17-08

GM Is Likely to File for Bankruptcy, Report Says
A quote...."General Motors is likely to file for bankruptcy protection with government backing, giving bondholders a recovery of more than 25 cents on the dollar, according to Moody's Investors Service. -- There is a 70 percent probability that the restructuring plan for U.S. automakers will consist of a prepackaged bankruptcy financed by government loans to get GM and Chrysler through to 2009, Moody's said in a report dated Dec. 15. Under that scenario, bondholders would be likely to lose less than 75 percent of their investment, Moody's said."

Amy Goodman: Workers laid off, execs paid off
Special Note - A rollicking good read, it's truly disgusting to see all those fat pigs feeding at the public trough. - mpg -- A quote...."The sums these titans of Wall Street are walking away with are staggering. In their annual "Executive Excess" report, the groups United for a Fair Economy and the Institute for Policy Studies reported 2007 compensation for Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs (Paulson's replacement), of $54 million, and that of John Thain, CEO of Merrill Lynch, a whopping $83 million. Merrill has since been sold to Bank of America, after losing more than $11 billion this year — yet Thain still wants a $10 million bonus." - also posted at CommonDreams

Nazi Economics
A quote...."Nearly every day brings new reports of the collapse of a large financial institution or the impending bankruptcy of a major company. Plans for bailouts and government intervention are in the air. Even those who profess devotion to free enterprise have wavered. Are we not faced with an emergency that calls for immediate action to "save" capitalism? Faced with this situation, we need to be more resolute than ever in defense of the free market, with no government restrictions whatever. If we do not defeat these measures, we face grave danger. The record of National Socialist Germany during the 1930s shows how quickly government intervention leads to full-scale socialism. Ludwig von Mises warned of this many years ago."

As 2008 Fades Away
A quote...."As 2009 approaches and 2008 fades away, I have a few thoughts about our economy. Perhaps you can factor them into your forecasts of what lies ahead....."

Why such drastic action? The Fed is utterly petrified
A quote...."During the decade leading up to the crash of 2007, some of us warned that excessive lending by reckless banks was an accident waiting to happen. We were told not to be so silly. The gods of the financial markets knew what they were doing.  --  When the global financial system seized up in August of that year, we said there was a risk of an economic pandemic that might plunge the world's economy into a dangerous tailspin. This was greeted with derision. The system was robust, we were told. Economies were well-placed to withstand any problems, we were told. The problem would be contained because policymakers had matters in hand, we were assured.  --  All of which goes to show that Schopenhauer was bang on the money when he said that truth goes through three stages. In the first stage, it is ridiculed. In the second stage, it is violently opposed. And in the third stage, which of course is where we are now, it is accepted as self-evident." -- also posted at RougeGov

LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA
A quote...."That's the sound of someone with their fingers in their ears making noise so they don't have to listen to the person talking in front of them. -- The list includes...." -- also posted at BLN

At Last, A Date - Article also posted at ICH
A quote...."Can you think of a major threat for which the British government does not prepare? It employs an army of civil servants, spooks and consultants to assess the chances of terrorist attacks, financial collapse, floods, epidemics, even asteroid strikes, and to work out what it should do if they happen. But there is one hazard about which it appears intensely relaxed. It has never conducted its own assessment of the state of global oil supplies and the possibility that one day they might peak and then go into decline." -- also posted at CounterCurrents -- For more on this issue see....Oil Producing Countries Past Oil Peak - Chart

Dollar No Longer Haven After Fed Moves Rate Near Zero (Update2) - link posted at ICH
A quote...." Dec. 17 (Bloomberg) -- The world’s biggest currency-trading firms say the dollar’s appeal as a haven amid the financial crisis all but evaporated. -- The U.S. currency slid to a 13-year low against the yen today and had its biggest one-day decline versus the euro after the Federal Reserve reduced its target interest rate yesterday to a range of zero to 0.25 percent, the lowest among the world’s biggest economies. CMC Markets said today the currency’s prospects appear “ominous.” State Street Global markets said the dollar’s outlook has been “undermined.”

Wednesday December 17th 2008

Muntadar al-Zeidi: Hero, Martyr, Symbol of Resistance
Special Note - A quote...."The shoe-throwing Iraqi journalist, who is, by now, probably half beaten to death for the "crime" of paying back – in very small measure – George W. Bush for his crimes against the Iraqi people, is a folk hero to millions. And his admirers aren't all Iraqis or other Arabs, not by a long shot. -- The shoe-wielding Iraqi television reporter, one Muntadar al-Zeidi, managed to sum up, in a single gesture, how much of the world feels about the 43rd president of the United States – including Americans."

The shoe heard around the world
Special Note - A quote...."An Iraqi journalist, Muntader al-Zaidi, an Arab, a Muslim, may have just launched the Muslim “Shoe Revolution” on behalf of the millions of Iraqis, dead, injured, ill and disabled, due to the illegal, immoral, and murderous invasion of his country by an aloof, disconnected, and disoriented from reality cowboy president selected by Cheney, Israel’s supporters, the Ashke-Nazi Neo-cons, and Corporate America to fulfill their dream of cheap oil and eliminating one of Israel’s enemies."

Video: Protesters celebrate shoe-throwing journalist in protest outside White House
Videos - Photos - A quote...."A small group of anti-war activists gathered outside the White House Wednesday to show solidarity with the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at President Bush last weekend."

The Pathetic End to the Bush Era -- Cartoons of the Week.
Cartoons

Bush 'shoe attack' leads to explosion of online games
A quote...."MOSCOW, December 18 (RIA Novosti) - Online games inspired by the Iraqi journalist who hurled his shoes at U.S. President George Bush in Baghdad have taken the Internet by storm. -- Ever since Muntazer al-Zaidi, a correspondent for the Cairo-based al-Baghdadiya TV, threw both his shoes at the outgoing U.S. leader on Sunday, online games have begun to spring up giving players the chance to succeed where the Iraqi journalists failed."

A very small sample of the "shoe" games out there....
Sock and Awe
Bash a Bush
Flying Babush - Note: in this one your cursor moves da'Bush
Bush Shoe Throwing Game

US Troops Open Fire On Fallujah Students at Shoe Rally
A quote...."Besides making an international celebrity out of Iraqi reporter Muntadar al-Zeidi, the now infamous shoe-throwing incident is cropping up in surprising ways across Iraq, where a population beaten and exhausted from years of war is once again finding its voice against the US military presence and the Iraqi government seen as its enablers."

Al-Zaidi, Injured, Pleads Guilty; Mosul Still in Turmoil
A quote...."Iraqi journalist  Muntazar al-Zaidi suffered, according to his brother, "suffered a broken hand, broken ribs and internal bleeding, as well as an eye injury" and had to go to hospital after he protested Bush's press conference in Baghdad by throwing shoes at the president. The Doha Center for Media Freedom has expressed concern about the injuries allegedly inflicted on al-Zaidi and has called on Iraqi authorities "to ensure that the rights of this prisoner are respected.”

Iraqi official says he's quitting over shoe-tosser
A quote...."Iraq's parliament speaker announced his resignation Wednesday after a parliamentary session descended into chaos as lawmakers argued about whether to free a journalist who threw his shoes at President George W. Bush.
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

35 Key Iraqi Officials Arrested Over Coup Plot
Special Note - A quote...."35 high ranking members of Iraq’s Interior Ministry have been arrested over the past three days, including Director of Internal Affairs General Ahmed Abu Raqeef and three others generals. The arrests were coordinated through Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s counterterrorism force."

Britain to pull troops from Iraq by May 31
A quote...."British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Wednesday his country's troops will leave Iraq by May 31, ending a mission that provided the second-largest military presence in Iraq after the United States."

Hamas Approves First Gaza Bank
A quote...."With Gaza families eating wild grass to survive in the continued absence of humanitarian shipments to the beleaguered strip, the banking sector is likely far from the mind of the average Gazan. Still, Hamas made news today with the announcement that it would approve the establishment of the first Gaza-based bank operating under the authority of its government. The move looks to spark yet another factional fight between Hamas and the Fatah-run Palestinian Authority."

Stripping Israel of Its Blanket Immunity
A quote...."On December 14, UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur to the Palestinian Territories, Richard Falk, was deported from Israel after arriving at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport from Geneva. Falk, an elderly Jewish American professor, was forced to spend the night in one of Ben Gurion's infamous holding cells before being transported back to Switzerland. -- For all those who are well-versed in Israel's relationship with international personalities sympathetic to the Palestinians, the writing was already on the wall way before Falk's plane landed."

Abandoned by the World: UN Declares Open Season on Somalia
Special Note - A quote...."The UN Security Council voted unanimously Tuesday to authorize nations to conduct military raids, on land and by air, against pirates plying the waters off the Somalia coast... The U.S.-drafted resolution authorizes nations to "use all necessary measures that are appropriate in Somalia" in pursuit of pirates, as long as they are approved by the country's transitional federal government. " -- "The provision about the "approval" of the Somalia's "transitional federal government" is, of course, a cynical joke on the part of the Security Council. This so-called government – put in place by foreign invaders, riddled with warlords and paid CIA assets – has not only lost control of virtually the entire country; it is now in the process of completely disintegrating. In the past few days, the Somali president, Abdullahi Yusuf, dismissed Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein and appointed someone else in his place, as Reuters reports. The Somali parliament rejected Yusuf's move and reinstated Hussein, who met this week with his cabinet. "

US Somalia Peacekeeping Idea Bombs at UN
A quote...."Fresh off their successful effort to get the United Nations to authorize ground raids by foreign militaries to combat piracy in Somalia, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pressed a much more difficult proposition, calling for a UN “peacekeeping” force to be sent to Somalia quickly."

Bolivia: Expel all US ambassadors
A quote...."     COSTA DO SAUIPE, Brazil (AP) - Bolivia's president says all Latin American nations should expel U.S. ambassadors until the Cuban embargo is ended. Evo Morales made the demand while speaking at a summit of Latin American and Caribbean leaders. Morales expelled the U.S. ambassador to Bolivia in September, accusing him of siding with violent opposition protests."

Latin American revolutionary to meet Medvedev
A quote...."The Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega Saavedra is in Moscow after a 20-year hiatus in a bid to revive old ties between the two countries."

Pakistan to buy Chinese AWACS to boost air defence
A quote...."ISLAMABAD - Pakistan is to buy an airborne warning and control system (AWACS) from China to boost its air defences, a Pakistani newspaper reported on Thursday. The News newspaper said a $278 million agreement had been struck for Pakistan to get the Chinese system within four years, on a deferred payment basis."

Israel goes all-out to stop S-300 sale to Iran
A quote...."Israel is reportedly set to send a top security official to Moscow to pressure Russia against the sale of an advanced anti-aircraft system to Iran."

Russia justifies arms sales to Iran
A quote...."A senior Russian official says military cooperation between Moscow and Tehran will continue to ensure stability in the Middle East."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

Obama and Miracles that Never Happen
A quote...."If 10 times more people claimed to have attended Woodstock than were actually there, I suspect 10 times more people claim to have wept at Obama’s election victory than actually did. Weeping on the night of November 4 – or claiming you did -- has now become a fashion. I, too, wept, though not because Obama won, but because the number of times I heard the words “Obama is the embodiment of hope” was too much to bear."

The Mindset That Got Us Into War Is Alive and Well - Obama and Iran
Special Note - A quote...."I must admit that, like most progressives and antiwar activists in the coalition that played a crucial role in the victory of President-elect Barack Obama, I have been greatly disappointed with his national security team (NST). Gone are all the hopeful signs of real change in the American foreign policy that we saw – as it now appears self-deludedly – coming with the election of Obama. Instead, we must confront the cold – but by now very familiar – reality that the main players in U.S. foreign policy for several years to come will be people we have disagreed with very strongly, even despised, over the years."

Now Where Have I Heard That Before?
A quote...."Barack is frustrated that he can’t let us in on the secret evidence that is going to prove Gov. Blagojevich did something wrong… and that is why Obama has already chimed in publicly asking for Blago’s resignation. Poor Barack; he would tell us the truth if only he wasn’t so darn confined by those pesky laws."

[Dick Cheney] lauds Obama's choice of national security team - Isn't that just great. Isn't that just wonderful. - mpg
A quote...."I must say, I think it's a pretty good team," Cheney said of Obama's national security choices, in a segment of the interview broadcast Tuesday on "Good Morning America." -- "I'm not close to Barack Obama, obviously, nor do I identify with him politically. He's a liberal. I'm a conservative," he said. But the vice president also said he thinks "the idea of keeping (Bob) Gates at defense is excellent. I think (retired Gen.) Jim Jones will be very, very effective as the national security adviser."

Leon Kuhn | This Week War is a criminal enterprise...?
Cartoon

The Mumbia Attack - 3 Articles - Wednesday - [ Day 20 ] ========== ========== ========== ====

Pakistan demands India provide Mumbai evidence
A quote...."7 hours ago - [posted 12-17-08 6:25 pm PST] ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistan sought to put some of the pressure over the Mumbai bloodshed on India, demanding Wednesday that its neighbor hand over "concrete evidence" against Pakistani citizens and groups allegedly involved in the terror attack."

Pakistan groups banned but not bowed
A quote...."Dec 18, 2008 -- KARACHI - Pakistan submitted to the will of the international community and cracked down on the Lashkar-e-Taiba (Army of the Pure - LET), already banned as a terror outfit and linked to the Mumbai attacks last month, and the Jamaatut Dawa, last week labeled by the United Nations Security Council as a front for the LET."

Pakistani Hindus rally to support Islamic charity
A quote...."Dec 16, 2008 09:11 EST -- HYDERABAD, Pakistan, Dec 16 (Reuters) - About 200 Hindu women protested in Pakistan on Tuesday against restrictions on an Islamic charity that India says is a front for a militant group it blames for attacks in Mumbai last month."

End - The Mumbia Attack - 3 Articles - Wednesday - [ Day 20 ] ========== ========== ==========

Whistleblower exposed NSA wiretapping because 'this is crazy
A quote...."The whistleblower who exposed the Bush administration's warrantless wiretapping program three years ago told MSNBC's Rachel Maddow on Monday that he was motivated by a sense that "this is crazy."

9/11 kin holding out for trial won't have an answer until March
A quote...."Three families who have vowed to hold the airlines and Massport responsible for failing to stop the Sept. 11 terrorists have to wait until March to find whether they'll get their day in court. Manhattan federal Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein yesterday delayed his decision on setting a trial date, saying he must decide first on a defendant motion to have FBI and CIA agents testify about the increased terror threat in the weeks before the attacks."

Children Forced Into Cell-Like School Seclusion Rooms
A quote...."A few weeks before 13-year-old Jonathan King killed himself, he told his parents that his teachers had put him in "time-out." -- "We thought that meant go sit in the corner and be quiet for a few minutes," Tina King said, tears washing her face as she remembered the child she called "our baby ... a good kid." -- But time-out in the boy's north Georgia special education school was spent in something akin to a prison cell -- a concrete room latched from the outside, its tiny window obscured by a piece of paper. -- Called a seclusion room, it's where in November 2004, Jonathan hanged himself with a cord a teacher gave him to hold up his pants."
========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

GCC single currency should track basket, say DIFC economists
A quote...."DUBAI —The long-awaited GCC common currency should be pegged to a basket of global currencies to enable Gulf Central Banks adequate flexibility to tailor monetary policy that can address domestic conditions and withstand external shocks, according to economists at the Dubai International Financial Centre."

Dollar Declines to 13-Year Low Against Yen After Fed Rate Cut
Special Note -- A quote...."The dollar fell to a 13-year low against the yen and the weakest versus the euro in 11 weeks after the Federal Reserve cut its target interest rate to the lowest among the world’s industrialized nations." -- Right after all those foreigners "rushed" into US-NRE bonds for "safety".  Now due to the magic of dollar depreciation, they're losing even more money.  When will they ever learn? What is wrong with them?  Do they like giving Bush and his Wall Street crony friends all their hard earned money or are they just simply stupid? - mpg

“The Biggest Bubble Of All . . . U.S. Government Debt”
A quote...."PhD economist Marc Faber said in a recent interview that the last bubble to crash will be in long-term U.S. treasury bonds. Indeed, Faber has suggested shorting long-term treasuries at just the right moment. (He also is confident that - sooner or later - the U.S will go bankrupt)."

A Temporary Suspension Of Minor And Outdated Laws May Be Necessary To Stabilize The Economy
A quote...."If you started reading this because you thought there might be a reason to suspend a law, you're in danger of falling prey to propaganda. My purpose in writing this is to inoculate you against this type of propaganda."

Bankers: FDIC rules will ban new banks
A quote...."The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. may be implementing what is effectively a ban on new banks in metro Atlanta and other distressed areas nationwide, as the financial industry’s and broader economy’s deterioration accelerates."

Secrecy Worsens Wall Street Mess - posted at ConsortiumNews
A quote...."Editor’s Note: With multiple scandals sweeping Wall Street, it might seem like an odd time for anyone to say “trust me” when it comes to spending trillions of dollars in bailout money, but that’s basically what the Bush administration and the Federal Reserve are telling the public. -- In this guest essay, Brent Budowsky examines how secrecy has contributed to the crisis – and is now threatening a resolution:"

Chrysler shuts down all production
A quote...."Close of business Friday will be the start of a monthlong [or longer] closure of 30 U.S. plants. Company cites 'continued lack of consumer credit.'"

[State's] Budget gap could widen to $200 billion
A quote...."States face their worst fiscal challenge in 25 years as the national recession could punch a $200 billion hole in state budgets over the next two years, the head of the National Governors Association said Dec. 15."

No rest for the unemployed
A quote...."The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the US Department of Labor reported that nonfarm payrolls fell by a whopping 533,000 jobs in November, and the official government-approved unemployment rate rose from 6.5% to 6.7%."

Fresh credit strains in Europe as Deutsche Bank shocks markets
A quote...."Deutsche Bank has refused to redeem a bond issue in an unprecedented move that has rattled Europe's credit markets and cut short the relief rally following America's dramatic move to zero rates."

[British] Retailers suffer worst trading conditions for 25 years
A quote...."The high street is suffering its most difficult trading conditions for at least 25 years with a "vast number" of retailers expected to go bust in the New Year, figures showed yesterday."

[British] Unemployment rockets towards three million
A quote...."Unemployment is rising at its fastest rate in almost two decades, and could climb as high as three million by 2010. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported yesterday that a further 75,700 Britons found themselves on Jobseeker's Allowance last month, the steepest rise since 1991."

China slumps as global recession deepens
A quote...."In the latest shock to the global economy, China's industrial production is declining sharply, indicating that the entire national output is contracting. The official statistics for November are a staggering measure of how quickly the world slump is worsening, cutting off demand for Chinese exports."

========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====

121708-122308 - links page

========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ========== ====