Just how stupid do they think we are?Fury as MPs finally publish their expenses - with swathes of evidence blacked outThen award themselves $16,400 annual pay rise at a time like this( They say it is to protect the MP's security that these details have been purposely hidden.Too right! They certainly do need to fear for their security!! This must be the straw whichbroke the camels back, especially as they are also holding-out about the Iraq enquiry not beingout in the open). GJ (UK)MPs were accused of taking the public for fools last night with a blatant attempt to cover up expenses scams.
After weeks of public fury at leaked details, Commons officials unlocked their files.
Far from launching a new era of transparency, however, they covered crucial details in thick black ink.
Officially, the 'blackwash', which left many pages of claims totally obscured or with more ink than text, was intended to protect MPs' security.But it meant MPs who 'flipped' homes to claim on different properties - or charged for services such as moat-cleaning - were spared further embarrassment. Commons authorities compounded the outrage by slipping out a list of 200 MPs who are paying back almost £500,000 - with no explanation of why.
To cap another dark day for Parliament, it was also revealed that MPs are to be rewarded for their greed with a £10,000 pay rise.The head of the body that will now set their pay said they were underpaid by '10 to 15 per cent'. Illustrations......
Tony Blair claimed £7,000 for new roof two days before leaving No.10 ( As did Mandelson with a £3,000 claim less than a week
before he resigned last time)
I think Tony Blair's wife, being a member of the Judiciary, would agree that it would not be unreasonable " In Law" ,to suspectvery serious fraud, when we are also told that records of his expense claims, whilst in Office, had been accidentally destroyed. GJ (UK)"There is only one reason that the Iraq inquiry is being heard in private and that is to protect past and present members of
this Government." (SEE http://bit.ly/INXF6)
1) IRAQ INQUIRY IS BUCKET OF WHITEWASH
Stop the War organised a protest outside parliament on 15 June
as Gordon Brown was announcing his inquiry into the Iraq war.
It is to be held in secret by a committee of house-trained
toadies (four Sirs and a Baroness) and have no power to make
recommendations or hold to account the warmongers who took us
into an illegal and immoral war.
Even army chiefs are calling Brown's inquiry a cover-up, with
Air Marshal Sir John Walker, summarising its real purpose:
"There is only one reason that the inquiry is being heard in
private and that is to protect past and present members of
this Government." (SEE http://bit.ly/INXF6)
Rose Gentle, from Military Families Against the War, whose son
was killed in Iraq in 2004, says Brown's inquiry is a waste of
time and the pressure is building to get it made public, even
by warmongering newspapers like the Daily Mail, which called
Brown's plan a "joke" (SEE http://bit.ly/Es4hz) .
Stop the War has long called for a full public inquiry and
will be campaigning to overturn yet another bucket of
whitewash after the Hutton and Butler reports, which were also
devised to hide rather than reveal the truth of an illegal war
which has cost over one million lives. (SEE
http://bit.ly/Dsle2)
EMERGENCY PROTEST:
It seems likely -- with the Conservatives and Liberal
Democrats, plus Labour rebels, calling for the inquiry to be
made public -- that there will be a debate on the issue in
parliament next week. Stop the War will call an emergency
protest outside parliament when we have timings for the
debate, which we will publicise through email, our website and
Twitter. Do join us if you can.
***************************************The free press in AmericaEven the most wild-eyed conspiracy theory underestimates to the extent to which
the "news" media controls the flowof information in the land of the free.
The reality would make even a gangster blush.
When it comes to food, it would be in your best interest to realize that you are being lied to on a daily basis.
If a big company grows it, processes it and sells it, then it's probably garbage that you'd be better off not consuming.
In some cases, this problem goes far beyond "garbage" into another realm entirely.
This video is a rare glimpse behind-the-scenes of how news is really "made" in America and why corporate and "public" broadcasting - like corporate food - is entirely unreliable.
To learn about REAL food, visit The Real Food Channel
Here's how it works in real life:
http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/648.html
Brasscheck TV
2380 California St.
San Francisco, CA 94115
Breaking News and Commentary from Citizens For Legitimate Government18 June 2009All items are here:Iraqi Oil Minister accused of mother of all sell-outs --To public fury, the country is handing over control of its fields to foreign companies 18 Jun 2009 Furious protests threaten to undermine the Iraqi government's controversial plan to give international oil companies a stake in its giant oilfields in a desperate effort to raise declining oil production and revenues. In less than two weeks, on 29 and 30 June, the Iraqi Oil Minister, Hussain Shahristani, will award service contracts to the world's largest oil companies to develop six of Iraq's largest oil-producing fields over 20 to 25 years... Iraqis are wary of the involvement of foreign oil companies in raising production in super giant fields like Kirkuk and Bai Hassan in the north and Rumaila, Zubair and West Qurna in the south. They suspect the 2003 US invasion was ultimately aimed at securing Western control of their oil wealth. The nationalisation of the Iraqi oil industry by Saddam Hussein in 1972 remains popular and the rebellion against the service contracts has been gathering pace all this week. [Notice the US media does not cover such protests in Iraq -- only dissent in Iran. --LRP]
Ex-KBR Worker Convicted In Bribery, Fuel Conspiracy --KBR has received billions of dollars since 2001 [one of the key motives behind the 9/11 inside job] to be a major provider of food and shelter services to U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. 18 Jun 2009 A former employee of KBR Inc. has been convicted on federal charges in a bribery and fuel-diversion scheme at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan. Raschad L. "Sean" Lewis was a former fuel-section employee assigned to Bagram, where KBR, a former Halliburton Co. subsidiary known as Kellogg Brown and Root, had a contract to provide support services to the U.S. Army. Lewis was found guilty Wednesday of conspiracy, false writing, bribery of a public official and false claims.
Japan warns that North Korea may fire missile at U.S. on Independence Day 18 Jun 2009 North Korea may launch a long-range ballistic missile towards Hawaii on American Independence Day, according to Japanese intelligence officials. The missile, believed to be a Taepodong-2 with a range of up to 4,000 miles, would be launched in early July from the Dongchang-ni site on the north-western coast of the country. Intelligence analysts do not believe the device would be capable of hitting Hawaii's main islands, which are 4,500 miles from North Korea.
U.S. Navy tracks North Korean ship 18 Jun 2009 The United States is monitoring a North Korean ship for weapons and has deployed anti-missile assets to the Pacific in case Pyongyang launches more missiles, U.S. officials said on Thursday. The U.S. Navy is monitoring a vessel called Kang Nam at sea under new U.N. sanctions that bar North Korea from exporting weapons, including missile parts and nuclear materials, they said.
US ready for possible NKorean missile launch to Hawaii: Gates --Defense Secretary approved deployment of THAAD missile weaponry, radar to Hawaii --US and South Korean officials have said North Korea might be readying another ballistic missile test after three previous launches 18 Jun 2009 The United States has concerns about a possible North Korean missile launch toward Hawaii and has taken steps to ensure the protection of US territory, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Thursday. The defense secretary said he had approved the deployment of THAAD missile defense weaponry to the US state and radar "to provide support" in case of a possible North Korean missile attack.
Senate Approves $106 Billion Supplemental War Spending Bill 18 Jun 2009 The Senate today overwhelmingly passed a bill that would fund military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan through Sept. 30, giving congressional backing to President Obama's plan to increase troops and resources for the war in Afghanistan. The 91-5 vote sends the bill to President Obama for signing.
US Senate Committee approves $1.5 billion in Pakistan aid 17 Jun 2009 The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday unanimously passed the Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act, (Kerry-Lugar Bill) authorising $1.5 billion annually to the key
anti-terror ally for the next five years. The bipartisan measure will now have to pass the full chamber before the Senate and the House of Representative hold a conference to arrive at a reconciled version of the bill. The US House has already passed the bill. [See: Pentagon: Billions in U.S. terror aid to Pakistan diverted 06 Jun 2009; US Pledges Additional $200 Million in Aid to Pakistan 03 Jun 2009; Billions in U.S. Aid to Pakistan Wasted, Officials Assert 24 Dec 2007; US Senate approves Pakistan aid worth $785m 20 Dec 2007.]Pentagon delays Afghan air raid report 18 Jun 2009 The release of a Pentagon report into deadly US air strikes in Afghanistan has been delayed amid an internal debate about what details should be revealed. The probe, ordered by the head of the US Central Command General David Petraeus, examined bombing raids on May 4 in the western Farah province in which the Kabul government says 140 civilians were killed.
US lawmakers vote to restrict Guantanamo transfers 17 Jun 2009 The US House of Representatives Armed Services Committee voted Wednesday to restrict the transfer to the United States of prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay facility for suspected terrorists. The panel voted 61-0 for legislation covering the Defense Department's budget for the 2010 fiscal year that starts October 1 -- 550.4 billion dollars -- but no money for moving Guantanamo Bay prisoners to US soil. And it includes language restricting any such efforts, which could be crucial if President Barack Obama is to meet his self-imposed timetable for closing the facility by January 22, 2010.
Senate OKs bill to keep detainee abuse photos private --If Congress doesn't keep pictures private, White House will, senator says 17 Jun 2009 The Senate Wednesday passed by unanimous consent a bill that would prevent the release of controversial photos of alleged U.S. abuse of prisoners and detainees. The bill, sponsored by Sens. Joe Lieberman, R-Israel, and Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, had originally been part of the war funding supplemental bill passed Tuesday by the House. But House Democrats stripped that part of the measure from the bill, and the senators proposed it as stand-alone legislation. Earlier Wednesday, Graham said at a Judiciary Committee hearing that he had received assurance from White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel "that the president will not let these photos see the light of day." [CLG is willing to publish them. All-around hypocrite -- Joe LieberBush -- doesn't decide what should or shouldn't see the light of day (while condemning Iran for blocking text messages and Tweets of anti-government demonstrations), in an effort to hide evidence of US abuse/torture of prisoners and other war crimes. --LRP]
Khalid Sheikh claims to have lied under CIA torture --Muhammad claimed whenever he gave them information, whether true or false, he was left alone, but whenever he refused to cooperate, he was tortured. 17 Jun 2009 Khalid Sheikh Muhammed, one of the Al Qaeda's top operatives and 'self-confessed mastermind' of the 9/11 attacks, claimed to have lied under torture by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), according to government transcripts released on Monday. "I just make up stories," he said in broken English, telling a 2007 military tribunal at Guantanamo Bay of an interrogation session, during which he was asked about the location of Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden. "Where is he? [I said] I don't know. Then he torture me," Muhammed said.
Iran elections: Supreme leader to speak out as silent, angry protests continue --Mousavi urges supporters to repeat protest marches 18 Jun 2009 Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is expected to combine a call for calm tomorrow with a warning of severe consequences if protests continue over last week's "stolen" presidential election. Khamenei's address, to be made during Friday prayers at Tehran University, will be carefully scrutinised for clues as to how the Islamic regime plans to proceed a week after the disputed poll triggered the worst unrest since the 1979 revolution.
Nosy parker #1: Israel wants 'policy change' in Iran 18 Jun 2009 Israel's controversial Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman says Israel wants a change in Iran's policies no matter who wins the post-election dispute in Iran. Meanwhile he stressed that any regime change in Iran is unlikely despite the demonstrations taking place in the country. Asked by Israel's Channel 10 television about who Israel would prefer to prevail in the Iranian contest, Lieberman replied, "What is preferable for Israel is for there to be a change in Iranian policy."
Proof: Israeli Effort to Destabilize Iran Via Twitter Iran Election By Charting Stocks 15 Jun 2009 Right-wing Israeli interests are engaged in an all out Twitter attack with hopes of delegitimizing the Iranian election and causing political instability within Iran. Anyone using Twitter over the past few days knows that the topic of the Iranian election has been the most popular. Thousands of tweets and retweets alleging that the election was a fraud, calling for protests in Iran, and even urging followers hack various Iranian news websites (which they did successfully).
Nosy parker #2: US values 'free and fair' election in Iran [Right, anywhere but in the US.] 18 Jun 2009 The US denies that it has been trying to meddle in Iran's internal affairs, reiterating that whatever the outcome of the election, it will try to diplomatically engage the country. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton responded to what Tehran had described as 'interfering remarks', saying that the US has no plans to meddle in Iran's domestic affairs. [LOL! See: US funds terror groups to sow chaos in Iran 25 Feb 2007 and US seeking 'international front' against Iran 17 Jun 2009.]
Nosy parker #3: 'Canada will not stay out of Iran politics' 19 Jun 2009 Canadian Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon has declared that his country will continue to put pressure on Iran over its post-election tension. Earlier, Canada was advised through its chargé d'affaires in Tehran to "stay out of our politics," after having raised concerns over post-election tumult in Iran, Cannon told CBC.
Nosy parker #4: Over $1.6 bn of Iranian assets frozen in Britain 18 Jun 2009 Nearly one billion pounds ($1.64 billion) of Iranian assets are frozen in Britain under international sanctions imposed against the country over its nuclear program. "The total assets frozen in the UK under the EU (European Union) and UN sanctions against Iran are approximately 976,110,000 pounds," Ian Pearson, Britain's Economic Secretary to the Treasury said in a written statement to parliament on Thursday. [Outrageous! Why aren't US assets frozen over *its* nuclear program?]
Iran: A snub for the West By Anti-Imperialist Camp 14 Jun 2009 Ahmadinejad wasn't the candidate of the establishment, but of the lower classes 1. From an anti-imperialist point of view, the overwhelming victory of Ahmadinejad in the elections is positive, because the incumbent and president-elect stands for confrontation with the U.S.-led new order for the "Near East". 2. Even the Western media had to admit that it is the poor who strongly support the president... 7. Our joy over the success of Ahmadinejad does not mean that we overlook the deep-seated problems of Iran and its regime.
Carter wants Hamas off US terror list 17 Jun 2009 Former US President Jimmy Carter has advised the Obama administration against keeping the Hamas resistance movement on its list of terror organizations. Carter, who was in the Gaza Strip to meet rulers of the area, says he will meet with officials in the Obama administration in two days to discuss his latest trip to the Middle East.
Lieberman to Clinton: Israel won't freeze settlements 18 Jun 2009 Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman told U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday that Israel could not accept the Obama administration's demand to "completely" halt activity in West Bank settlements. "We have no intention to change the demographic balance in Judea and Samaria," Lieberman said during his talks with the secretary of state in Washington.
9,200 potentially deadly Fort Detrick pathogens possibly missing --FBI investigators concluded that Fort Detrick probably was the source of the anthrax spores used in the deadly mailings of 2001. --Ebola virus, anthrax bacteria, botulinum toxin, hemorrhagic fever and others 'not accounted for' 18 Jun 2009 An inventory of potentially deadly pathogens at Fort Detrick's infectious disease laboratory found more than 9,000 vials that had not been accounted for, Army officials said yesterday, raising concerns that officials wouldn't know whether dangerous toxins were missing. After four months of searching about 335 freezers and refrigerators at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases in Frederick, investigators found 9,220 samples that hadn't been included in a database of about 66,000 items listed as of February, said Col. Mark Kortepeter, the institute's deputy commander.
9,200 uncounted vials found at Army biodefense lab 18 Jun 2009 An inventory of deadly germs and toxins at an Army biodefense lab in Frederick found more than 9,200 vials of material that was unaccounted for in laboratory records, Fort Detrick officials said Wednesday. The 13 percent overage mainly reflects stocks left behind in freezers by researchers who retired or left Fort Detrick since the biological warfare 'defense' program was established there in 1943, said Col. Mark Kortepeter, deputy commander of the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases.
'Something different' happening with new flu - CDC 18 Jun 2009 The new strain of H1N1 flu is causing "something different" to happen in the United States this year -- perhaps an extended year-round flu season that disproportionately hits young people, health officials said on Thursday. The new strain of swine flu is officially a pandemic now, according to the World Health Organization. So far the virus has killed at least 167 people and been confirmed in nearly 40,000 globally. The United States has been hardest hit, with upward of 100,000 likely cases and probably far more, with 44 deaths and 1,600 hospitalized. "The fact that we are seeing ongoing transmission now indicates that we are seeing something different," the CDC's Dr. Daniel Jernigan told a news briefing.
4th H1N1 Death Reported In Connecticut --Death Occurred At Hartford Hospital 18 Jun 2009 A fourth death related to the H1N1 flu has been reported in Connecticut. Department of Public Health officials said the victim was a resident of Hartford County and over the age of 40. They said the person had underlying health conditions.
Flu virus found in wild birds in Tuva 18 Jun 2009 A bird flu virus has been found in migrant waterfowl in Tuva. Fifty-eight dead birds were found on the coast of the lake of Ubsa- Nur in the Ovyur district in the Republic of Tuva, the Russian agricultural watchdog Rosselkhoznadzor's branch for the Novosibirsk region said in a press statement.
Justices Rule Inmates Don't Have Right to DNA Tests --Ruling is 5-to-4 decision 19 Jun 2009 Convicts do not have a right under the Constitution to obtain DNA testing to try to prove their innocence after being found guilty, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday. Since 1992, 238 people in the United States, some who were sitting on death row, have been exonerated of crimes through DNA testing.
Tarnished Republican drops leadership post 17 Jun 2009 In a new setback for the struggling Republican party, U.S. Senator John Ensign resigned from a party leadership post on Wednesday after admitting an affair with a female staffer. "He offered, and I accepted, his resignation as chairman of the (Senate Republican) Policy Committee," said Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell.
Worse than subprime? Other mortgages imploding slowly 18 Jun 2009 Call it son of subprime. Experts warn that a new wave of mortgage foreclosures may be coming soon and could rival the default rates for subprime mortgages and slow efforts to find bottom in a prolonged national housing slump. The mortgages in question are $230 billion of option adjustable-rate mortgages, creative lending products that flourished at the height of the housing boom.
Blackout: the great MPs' expenses cover-up 18 Jun 2009 MPs face universal condemnation over "disgraceful" censorship of their expenses claims. Party leaders struggled to explain the decision to publish heavily blacked-out versions of MPs' claims as public anger mounted. Despite a pledge from Gordon Brown that "transparency" was the only way to restore public faith in democracy, the files released by the Commons authorities withheld details that would have exposed the worst abuses of the expenses system.
Obama's bank regulation plan: A free pass for Wall Street By Barry Grey 18 June 2009 The plan outlined by Obama calls for enhanced powers for the Federal Reserve to oversee big financial firms, both bank and non-bank companies; higher capital reserve and liquidity requirements; minimal government oversight of some hedge funds; a privately-run clearinghouse for some forms of derivative trading; and a requirement that lenders retain a small stake in loans they sell to the banks to be turned into securities. All of these requirements can be easily circumvented by the banks. Moreover, the political forces responsible for enforcing them are bound hand and foot to Wall Street.
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Or, please mail a check or money order to CLG:
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Contributions to CLG are not tax deductiblePrevious lead stories:
UK: Hard to eradicate risk some allies use torture --Miliband: Disclosing documents could jeopardize Britain's intelligence relationship with US 16 Jun 2009 Britain has abandoned some attempts to gather intelligence from prisoners held overseas for fear they may be abused, the foreign secretary said Tuesday. But David Miliband also said he could not guarantee that Britain's allies would refrain from abusing detainees. Former Guantanamo prisoner Binyam Mohamed accused Britain of colluding with the United States in his alleged torture in Pakistan and Morocco. London police are deciding whether there is evidence that British intelligence officials should face criminal charges over allegations that they were complicit in the alleged torture of Mohammed. Separately, British courts are considering several lawsuits filed by men who claim the U.K. was aware of their mistreatment overseas.CIA pushing Obama to uphold torture secrecy 17 Jun 2009 The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is urging President Barack Obama to forestall efforts aimed at releasing parts of confidential torture memos seen as 'damaging.' According to US media, CIA is endeavoring to cover up large sections of a 2004 internal report that depicts officers administering "degrading" interrogation techniques to detainees held on suspicions of 'terror' activities.
N.S.A.'s Pinwale Examines Large Volumes of US E-mail Messages Without Court Warrants --E-Mail Surveillance Renews Concerns in Congress 17 Jun 2009 The National Security Agency is facing renewed scrutiny over the extent of its domestic surveillance program, with critics in Congress saying its recent intercepts of the private telephone calls and e-mail messages of Americans are broader than previously acknowledged, current and former officials said. A former N.S.A. analyst who, in a series of interviews, described being trained in 2005 for a program [Pinwale] in which the agency routinely examined large volumes of Americans' e-mail messages without court warrants. Two intelligence officials confirmed that the program was still in operation.
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CLG Managing Editor: Lori Price. Copyright © 2009, Citizens For Legitimate Government ® All rights reserved.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Information Clearing House NewsletterNews You Won't Find On CNN
June 18, 2009
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A time will come when a politician who has willfully made war and promoted international dissension will be as sure of the dock and much surer of the noose than a private homicide. It is not reasonable that those who gamble with men's lives should not stake their own: H.G. Wells
=
The soul of our country needs to be awakened . . .When leaders act contrary to conscience, we must act contrary to leaders: Veterans Fast for Life=
If we work in marble, it will perish; if we work upon brass, time will efface it; if we rear temples, they will crumble into dust; but if we work upon immortal minds and instill into them just principles, we are then engraving upon tablets which no time will efface, but willbrighten and brighten to all eternity: Daniel Webster=
Experts See So 'Smoking Gun' for Iran Election Fraud
By Andrew Beatty, Agence France-Presse
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's election victory is disbelieved by hundreds of thousands of Iranians who have poured onto Tehran's streets in protest, but experts say hard evidence of vote rigging is elusive.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22862.htm===
Does U.S. Poll Rule Out Fraud in Iran?
Video
Western media, along with thousands of Iranians protesting around the world, have formed a rough consensus over the six days since Iran's Presidential Election that Ahmadinejad's victory was the result of widespread fraud. However, a recent Op-Ed in the Washington Post references a rare public opinion poll in suggesting that the election may indeed have been fair.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22858.htm===
In case you missed it
Preparing the BattlefieldThe Bush Administration steps up its secret moves against Iran.
By Seymour M. Hersh
Late last year, Congress agreed to a request from President Bush to fund a major escalation of covert operations against Iran, according to current and former military, intelligence, and congressional sources. These operations, for which the President sought up to four hundred million dollars, were described in a Presidential Finding signed by Bush, and are designed to destabilize the country's religious leadership.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20203.htm===
'The Responsible Left': Funding Obama's Expanding Wars
By Jeremy Scahill
The cowardly Democrats who checked their spines at the door to Congress when they voted Tuesday try to defend their flip-flop on war funding. Frankly, it is embarrassing.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22860.htm===
New Film Chronicles Civilian Slaughter In Afghanistan
Video
The footage you are about to see is poignant, heart-wrenching, and often a direct result of U.S. foreign policy. - Warning - Viewer discreation advised.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22859.htm===
Obama Whitewashes US Foreign Policy
By Teo Ballve
President Obama is trying to whitewash the history of U.S. foreign policy. In two major speeches in the last month, he has spun a fairy tale.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22857.htm===
Massacre in the Amazon:
The U.S.-Peru Free Trade Agreement Sparks a Battle Over Land and Resources
By Raúl Zibechi
On June 5, World Environment Day, Amazon Indians were massacred by the government of Alan Garcia in the latest chapter of a long war to take over common lands-a war unleashed by the signing of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Peru and the United States.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article22861.htm===
In case you missed it
Nicaragua - A Nations Right To Survive
A Documentary Film By John PilgerJohn Pilger's 1983 film about the small nation of Nicaragua and its right to survive investigates the corruption in Central America. In 1979, the Sandinistas won a popular revolution in Nicaragua, putting an end to decades of the corrupt US-backed Somoza dictatorship. They based their reformist ideology on that of the English Co-operative Movement, but was to prove too 'radical' for the Reagan administration.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article15435.htm===
In case you missed it
The Panama DeceptionVideo Documentary
This film shows how the U.S. attacked Panama and killed 3 or 4 thousand people in an invasion that the rest of the world was against. The Panama Deception uncovers the real reasons for this internationally condemned attack, presenting a view of the invasion which widely differs from that portrayed by the U.S. media and exposes how the U.S. government and the mainstream media suppressed information about this foreign policy disaster.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article4078.htm===
The Secret History of the American Empire
The Truth About Global Corruption
Video - John Perkins, author of Confessions of An Economic Hit Man.
Perkins zeroes in on hot spots around the world such as Venezuela, Tibet, Iraq, Israel, Vietnam and others and exposes the network of events in each of these countries that have contributed to the creation of the American Empire and international corruption in "The Secret History of the American Empire: Economic Hit Men, Jackals, and the Truth About Global Corruption"
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article21000.htm===
US airstrikes, Pakistan military kill 43 "militants":
Missiles believed to have been fired by US Predator drones hit Taliban hideouts in Pakistan's lawless tribal region near Afghanistan Thursday, killing at least nine Taliban militants, officials said.
http://snipurl.com/kdtou===
Pakistan Says U.S. Drone Kills 13:
Thirteen people have been killed and several wounded in an attack Thursday suspected to have been carried out by an American drone against the camp of a local Taliban commander in South Waziristan, a Pakistani intelligence official based in the area said.
http://snipurl.com/kdtr6===
Air Force Planning New Drone Fleet For Pakistan :
Among the new drones (which are all very small) are the Suburb Warrior (loaded with four or five mini missiles for semi-urban environments), the Sniper targeting system ("that can lock on to multiple targets, allowing a single drone pilot to coordinate the attacks of a squadron of robots"), and a backup fleet of flying buggies that act as suicide-bomber snipers.
http://www.esquire.com/the-side/feature/new-air-force-drones-in-pakistan-061709===
Eight Killed in Khost Firefight :
At least 6 militants, 2 police were killed and other dozen were wounded Wednesday
http://quqnoos.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3211&Itemid=48===
Two Civilians Killed in Kandahar Blast:
At least two civilians were killed and another four were injured in a roadside bomb blast in Kandahar on Thursday
http://quqnoos.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3215&Itemid=48===
Afghan government asks US military to stop bombing civilian areas:
Airstrikes in Afghanistan have caused many civilian casualties, resulting in an official request by the Afghan government to the US military to stop air and ground strikes within civilian populations.
http://story.irishsun.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/2411cd3571b4f088/id/509657/cs/1/===
Taliban leaders report progress in secret talks with the US and Afghanistan: Report:
Two Taliban leaders - who held high-ranking positions in the now-deposed Taliban government and who are directly involved in the talks - say they've recently established a framework of an agreement through the shuttle negotiations. They say the process has included contact with the spiritual leader of the Taliban, Mullah Mohammad Omar.
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/afghanistan/090617/taliban-talks===
24 Police killed in Algeria ambush:
The anti-government fighters set off two roadside bombs and then opened fire on the police, killing them and then stealing their weapons and uniforms. The attackers fled the scene with arms, weapons and six off-road police vehicles, according to the newspaper.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2009/06/20096189448297706.html===
Waziristan is still a hangover from the colonial headache:
When Lord Curzon was Viceroy of India at the turn of the last century, he delivered the following verdict on the rebellious tribesmen of Waziristan: "No patchwork scheme will settle the Waziristan problem. Not until the military steamroller has passed over the country from end to end will there be peace. But I do not want to be the person to start that machine."
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6524296.ece===
U.S.: McChrystal Looks to Spin Afghan Civilian Deaths Problem:
There are growing indications that his command is preparing to deal with the issue primarily by seeking to shift the blame to the Taliban through more and better propaganda operations and by using more high-tech drone intelligence aircraft to increase battlefield surveillance rather than by curbing the main direct cause of civilian casualties.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=47261===
Somali minister among 11 killed in attack:
Somalia's security minister has been killed in a suicide bombing at a hotel in Beledweyne, just north of the capital, Mogadishu, the country's information minister and witnesses have said.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2009/06/200961810154483156.html===
Four Iraqis killed in Mosul violence:
Two policemen were fatally shot in two separate gun battles with insurgents in the east of the city, police told the German Press Agency dpa, without giving details.
http://snipurl.com/kdtyt===
Iraqi Oil Minister accused of mother of all sell-outs:
To public fury, the country is handing over control of its fields to foreign companies
http://snipurl.com/kdtzu===
Brown forced into climbdown over 'secret' Iraq War inquiry:
Gordon Brown has been forced into a humiliating climbdown over the Iraq War inquiry after it was revealed some parts may be held in public.
http://snipurl.com/kdu16===
Iran's Mousavi addresses protesters:
He announced that a rally scheduled for Friday had been cancelled, and that his supporters should prepare for a major march planned for Saturday afternoon from Tehran's Revolution Square to Freedom Square.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/06/20096181391437647.html===
Robert Fisk: Secret letter 'proves Mousavi won' in Iran:
In a highly sophisticated society like Iran, forgery is as efficient as anywhere in the West and there are reasons for both distrusting and believing this document.
http://snipurl.com/kdu2t===
Thousands of Iranians march in defiance as death toll reaches 32:
Ahmadinejad's main election rival, Mir Hossein Mousavi, called for massive rallies around the country Thursday to mourn the dead in previous days' protests, which a leading Iranian human rights group said numbered 32.
http://www.newsobserver.com/1573/story/1573122.html===
National Interest:
What is occurring in the streets of Tehran is greatly misinterpreted by many in the West some of whom still recall similar images of unrest from 1979 when people revolted against the monarchist regime of the late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
http://www.iranian.com/main/node/68367===
Pictures from the protests in Iran:
Warning - Images should only be viewed by a mature audience
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fhashemi/sets/72157619758530748/show/===
ElBaradei lashes out at Israel over bombed site in Syria:
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Mohamed ElBaradei clashed with Israel Thursday over the country's lack of cooperation in uncovering the truth about an alleged nuclear reactor in Syria.
http://snipurl.com/kdu5g===
IAEA chief, Israel lock horns over Syria:
"When Israel took it upon itself to destroy a facility, what was claimed to be a nuclear facility, without giving the agency the opportunity to verify that ... this was not only making it almost impossible for us to establish the facts, but it was a clear violation of international law," he said.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i8l9o8EhmAEbE6XOfclVwEAhoG3g===
Lieberman to Clinton: Israel won't freeze settlements:
Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman told U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday that Israel could not accept the Obama administration's demand to "completely" halt activity in West Bank settlements.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1093701.html===
Israel is losing the PR war so badly that even evangelical support is eroding:
The war that Israel keeps losing is the war of world opinion, the war for individual hearts and minds. Consider recent stumbles.
http://snipurl.com/kdu76===
India blocked NKorean plane at US request:
US Lawmaker: India at the request of the United States had blocked its air space to a North Korean plane allegedly delivering illicit cargo to Iran last year forcing it to turn back," a US lawmaker has said.
http://snipurl.com/kdu8a===
Demonizing N. Korea:
N Korea 'chemical weapons a threat':
North Korea has several thousand tonnes of chemical weapons that can be used in a rapid missile strike against the South, a report released by the International Crisis Group (ICG) has said.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2009/06/20096187507916875.html===
Senate OKs block of alleged abuse photos:
The Senate passed by unanimous consent Wednesday a bill that would prevent the release of controversial photos of alleged U.S. abuse of prisoners and detainees.
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/06/17/detainee.photos/===
US to prosecute about 60 Guantanamo detainees: Holder:
Attorney General Eric Holder told US senators on Wednesday that fewer than 60 of the 230 detainees at the Guantanamo Bay prison could face eventual prosecution while the rest would be cleared for release.
http://rawstory.com/news/afp/US_to_prosecute_about_60_Guantanamo_06172009.html===
US lawmakers vote to restrict Guantanamo transfers:
The US House of Representatives Armed Services Committee voted Wednesday to restrict the transfer to the United States of detainees at the Guantanamo Bay facility for suspected terrorists.
http://snipurl.com/kdub0===
U.S.: Report Blasts Terror Financing Laws and Investigations:
Muslim charities in the United States are subject to unfair treatment by the government under terrorism financing laws, according to a new report which says the effect has been a chill on charitable giving that violates Muslims' right to freely practice an important requirement of their religion.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=47252===
Web beats TV, radio as preferred news source:
More than half of the people questioned in the Zogby Interactive survey said they would select the Internet if they had to choose only one source of news, followed by 21 percent for television and 10 percent for both newspapers and radio.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31410117/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/===
Dollar drops on reserve currency doubts:
The dollar fell against the euro and yen on Wednesday after major emerging economies cast doubt on its long-term future as the world's main reserve currency, dealers said.
http://snipurl.com/kdud9===
Suitcase With $134 Billion Puts Dollar on Edge: William Pesek: -
It's a plot better suited for a John Le Carre novel. Two Japanese men are detained in Italy after allegedly attempting to take $134 billion worth of U.S. bonds over the border into Switzerland. Details are maddeningly sketchy, so naturally the global rumor mill is kicking into high gear.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&sid=a62_boqkurbI===
Standard & Poor's Cuts Ratings On 22 Banks:
Credit ratings agency Standard & Poor's lowered its ratings and revised its outlooks on 22 U.S. banks on Wednesday, citing concerns that operating conditions will be less favorable than they were in the past due to volatile financial markets during credit cycles and tighter regulatory supervision.
http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=982139
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Our situation is critical.
This has been the worst response ever to our appeal for financial help with operating expenses
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===
Number Of Iraqis Slaughtered Since The U.S. Invaded Iraq "1,331,578"
www.justforeignpolicy.org/iraq/iraqdeaths.html=
Number of U.S. Military Personnel Sacrificed (Officially acknowledged) In America's War On Iraq 4,314
icasualties.org/oif/=
The War in Iraq Costs
$679,283,292,751
See the cost in your community
www.nationalpriorities.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=182=
Let Us Work Towards Peace And Joy
Tom Feeley
STOP THE WAR COALITION
NEWSLETTER
No. 1100 18 June 2009
Email office@stopwar.org.uk
Tel: 020 7801 2768
Web: http://www.stopwar.org.uk
Twitter: http://twitter.com/STWuk
IN THIS NEWSLETTER:
2) NEW CAMPAIGN TO DEFEND MUSLIM COMMUNITY
3) SELLING WAR: ARMED FORCES DAY
4) LIFE FOR WOMEN IN "LIBERATED" AFGHANISTAN
5) FREEDOM FOR TAMILS DEMONSTRATION
6) STOP THE WAR STUDENT CONFERENCE
7) THE REVOLUTION WILL BE TWITTERED
***************************************
2) NEW CAMPAIGN TO DEFEND MUSLIM COMMUNITY
A broad-based campaign to confront the growth of racist
attitudes towards Muslims, not least in the mass media, and
their harassment by government, police and other state
agencies, is being launched in London on Friday 26 June.
The election to the European parliament of the BNP -- a
fascist party which targets Muslims in its propaganda -- has
added to the urgent need for such a campaign.
The campaign's founding statement has already been endorsed by
Muslim organisations, MPs, trade unionists and prominent
figures from the world of arts, journalism and the legal
profession.
Stop the War is asking its local groups to collect signatures
for the statement, which can be downloaded here:
http://bit.ly/13fcOO
LAUNCH MEETING: DEFEND THE MUSLIM COMMUNITY
FRIDAY 26 JUNE 6.30PM
BISHOPSGATE INSTITUTE,
BISHOPSGATE, LONDON EC1
(Opposite Liverpool St tube)
Speakers include:
GEORGE GALLOWAY MP, DAUD ABDULLAH, DIANE ABBOTT MP, ANAS AL
TIKRITI, ISMAEL PATEL, LINDSEY GERMAN
For more details and to download leaflet go to:
http://bit.ly/13fcOO
***************************************
3) SELLING WAR: ARMED FORCES DAY
There is a concerted government publicity campaign to glorify
the armed forces, not least to distract attention from the
disastrous wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and to stimulate
recruitment among the young, who are sent to kill and be
killed in foreign lands.
Parades in high streets around the country, slick recruitment
campaigns in the media and in schools and colleges, "Action
Man" style army toys etc are just some of the methods being
used to change perceptions about the armed forces.
The publicity barrage will intensify on Saturday 27 June,
which has been designated Armed Forces Day. Stop the War has
asked its local groups to organise SUPPORT THE TROOPS: BRING
THEM HOME events on that day, for which a leaflet for
downloading will be available on our website:
http://stopwar.org.uk.
***************************************
4) LIFE FOR WOMEN IN "LIBERATED" AFGHANISTAN
When Tony Blair made his now notorious "we will not walk away
from Afghanistan" speech he highlighted the lives of Afghan
women as a priority for the countries "liberators".
Malalai Joya, member of the Afghan parliament, has described
how life for women in Afghanistan under occupation has become
so bad that some "would rather set themselves on fire than
endure the hell of life in our liberated country".
TO READ MALALAI JOYA'S ARTICLE GO TO http://bit.ly/14yhee
TO SIGN STOP THE WAR'S TROOPS OUT OF AFGHANISTAN PETITION, GO
TO: http://bit.ly/ft6BP
***************************************
5) FREEDOM FOR TAMILS DEMONSTRATION
The recent onslaught on Tamils by the Sri Lankan government
left tens of thousands of civilians dead and there are now
hundreds of thousands in internment camps, from which an
estimated 13,000 have "disappeared".
Britain's Tamil community, which over the last two months has
organised very large demonstrations, including outside
parliament, has called a FREEDOM FOR TAMILS demonstration in
London on Saturday 20 June and is encouraging the widest
support by non-Tamils.
FREEDOM FOR TAMILS
NATIONAL DEMONSTRATION
SATURDAY 20 JUNE 2009
ASSEMBLE 1PM HYDE PARK CORNER
MARCH TO TEMPLE - EMBANKMENT
More info: http://bit.ly/OWLfD
***************************************
6) STOP THE WAR STUDENT CONFERENCE
Israeli historian Ilan Pappe, George Galloway MP, Iraqi
activist Sabah Jawad, poet and rapper Lowkey, are among the
keynote speakers at the Stop the War Student Conference on
Saturday 19 September.
The conference will be an opportunity for anti-war students to
meet, discuss and plan future anti-war activities in colleges
and schools.
The event will be held in University of London Union, Malet
Street, London. Advance booking is recommended, cost just £3.
For more information and to book a place at the conference,
contact Stewart at the national Stop the War Office; email
stewart@stopwar.org.uk, tel 020 7801 2768
***************************************
7) THE REVOLUTION WILL BE TWITTERED
If you're already twittering, you will know that Twitter has
played a central role in getting news out instantly about the
election upheaval in Iran, with even the mainstream media
using it as a prime source for information.
In the past month, over 700 people have opted to follow Stop
the War on Twitter to get our daily updates.
If you haven't joined Twitter yet and want to know what the
fuss is about, have a look at Stop the War's Twitter, where
you can also sign up: http://twitter.com/STWuk
***************************************
----- Original Message -----Sent: Tuesday, June 16, 2009 8:32 PMSubject: Fw: TruthDig: The American Empire Is Bankrupt
Hi,
Want to read something disturbing...try this.
The American Empire Is Bankrupt
This week marks the end of the dollar's reign as the world's reserve currency. It marks the start of a terrible period of economic and political decline in the United States. And it signals the last gasp of the American imperium. That's over. It is not coming back. And what is to come will be very, very painful.
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20090614_the_american_empire_is_bankrupt/
The American Empire Is Bankrupt
Posted on Jun 14, 2009
By Chris Hedges
This week marks the end of the dollar's reign as the world's reserve currency. It marks the start of a terrible period of economic and political decline in the United States. And it signals the last gasp of the American imperium. That's over. It is not coming back. And what is to come will be very, very painful.
Barack Obama, and the criminal class on Wall Street, aided by a corporate media that continues to peddle fatuous gossip and trash talk as news while we endure the greatest economic crisis in our history, may have fooled us, but the rest of the world knows we are bankrupt. And these nations are damned if they are going to continue to prop up an inflated dollar and sustain the massive federal budget deficits, swollen to over $2 trillion, which fund America's imperial expansion in Eurasia and our system of casino capitalism. They have us by the throat. They are about to squeeze.
There are meetings being held Monday and Tuesday in Yekaterinburg, Russia, (formerly Sverdlovsk) among Chinese President Hu Jintao, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and other top officials of the six-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organization. The United States, which asked to attend, was denied admittance. Watch what happens there carefully. The gathering is, in the words of economist Michael Hudson, "the most important meeting of the 21st century so far."
It is the first formal step by our major trading partners to replace the dollar as the world's reserve currency. If they succeed, the dollar will dramatically plummet in value, the cost of imports, including oil, will skyrocket, interest rates will climb and jobs will hemorrhage at a rate that will make the last few months look like boom times. State and federal services will be reduced or shut down for lack of funds. The United States will begin to resemble the Weimar Republic or Zimbabwe. Obama, endowed by many with the qualities of a savior, will suddenly look pitiful, inept and weak. And the rage that has kindled a handful of shootings and hate crimes in the past few weeks will engulf vast segments of a disenfranchised and bewildered working and middle class. The people of this class will demand vengeance, radical change, order and moral renewal, which an array of proto-fascists, from the Christian right to the goons who disseminate hate talk on Fox News, will assure the country they will impose.
I called Hudson, who has an article in Monday's Financial Times called "The Yekaterinburg Turning Point: De-Dollarization and the Ending of America's Financial-Military Hegemony." "Yekaterinburg," Hudson writes, "may become known not only as the death place of the czars but of the American empire as well." His article is worth reading, along with John Lanchester's disturbing exposé of the world's banking system, titled "It's Finished," which appeared in the May 28 issue of the London Review of Books.
"This means the end of the dollar," Hudson told me. "It means China, Russia, India, Pakistan, Iran are forming an official financial and military area to get America out of Eurasia. The balance-of-payments deficit is mainly military in nature. Half of America's discretionary spending is military. The deficit ends up in the hands of foreign banks, central banks. They don't have any choice but to recycle the money to buy U.S. government debt. The Asian countries have been financing their own military encirclement. They have been forced to accept dollars that have no chance of being repaid. They are paying for America's military aggression against them. They want to get rid of this."
China, as Hudson points out, has already struck bilateral trade deals with Brazil and Malaysia to denominate their trade in China's yuan rather than the dollar, pound or euro. Russia promises to begin trading in the ruble and local currencies. The governor of China's central bank has openly called for the abandonment of the dollar as reserve currency, suggesting in its place the use of the International Monetary Fund's Special Drawing Rights. What the new system will be remains unclear, but the flight from the dollar has clearly begun. The goal, in the words of the Russian president, is to build a "multipolar world order" which will break the economic and, by extension, military domination by the United States. China is frantically spending its dollar reserves to buy factories and property around the globe so it can unload its U.S. currency. This is why Aluminum Corp. of China made so many major concessions in the failed attempt to salvage its $19.5 billion alliance with the Rio Tinto mining concern in Australia. It desperately needs to shed its dollars.
Copyright © 2009 Truthdig, L.L.C. All rights reserved.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=
This is a one-time mailing from Truthdig, (www.truthdig.com) on behalf of the sender.
The Coming Economic CollapseGraham Summers
June 12, 2009Today's essay details the ongoing collapse of the US economy with a focus on why this coming fall will prove the "worst is over" crowd wrong yet again. Earlier this week, I detailed three major developments. They were:
- The US's economic shift from manufacturing to services (mainly financial)
- The massive drop in US incomes
- The beginning of the debt bubble
Today, we're addressing how the debt bubble encapsulated the US government as well as why Obama's Stimulus Plan won't fix anything.
To revisit the above three points, the US began outsourcing jobs in earnest soon after we re-opened trade with China in 1971. As outsourcing spread to higher and higher skilled jobs, this meant fewer jobs in the US market. This resulted in US consumers having to use credit to maintain their standard of living. It also meant more than one parent working to make ends meet.
On a national level, the US government began living beyond its means as well. Adjusted for inflation, gross tax receipts have only risen 40% in the last 39 years. However, over the same time period, total government spending increased 2,600%!!!
To fund this insanity, the US issued debt in the form of Treasuries. Foreign governments (most notably China) which were generally getting richer selling us stuff loaded up. The whole scheme is similar to buying a toy from the store, then having the store lend you money to buy another toy… ad infinitum: hardly a sensible long-term plan for financial solvency.
Now, everyone knows we run deficits. But not everyone knows that the deficits we publish are unbelievably understated. Corporations, in order to qualify for generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) have to count their pension and healthcare expenses for retirees.
Uncle Sam doesn't.
John Williams of www.shadowstats.com notes that official US deficit statistics do NOT include net present value of unfunded social security OR Medicare expenses. A lot of folks have made a big deal about the US running a $1 trillion deficit this year. Well, if you included the net value of those unfunded Social Security and Medicare expenses we cleared a $1 trillion deficit in 2007, a $5 TRILLION deficit in 2008 and are on course to clear a $9 TRILLION deficit this year.
To give you an idea of how big a problem these deficits are, consider that the US government could tax its citizens 100% of their earnings and NOT have a balanced budget.
In light of these issues, the government's $787 billion stimulus package doesn't exactly breed confidence in an economic turnaround. Incomes have lagged inflation in this country for 30+ years. Creating a bunch of temporary positions related to construction and the like is NOT going to alter this in any significant way.
Moreover, most of the job growth in the last 10 years has come from Bubbles: two out of five jobs created between 2002 and 2007 came from the housing industry. The irony here, of course, is that the Stimulus Plan is merely following this trend, creating jobs from our latest (relatively unreported) Bubble: the bubble in government spending and employment.
Bottomline: the US needs to create sustained job growth involving skilled professionals with high wage earning potential, NOT more guys laying concrete. We need fundamental structural changes to the US economy, NOT temporary positions resulting from one-time government projects.
And with a $9 trillion deficit in the works, $787 billion doesn't really mean much in terms of increased tax receipts. Also, and this is bit of a personal aside, it's hard to believe that throwing $787 billion towards creating jobs really shifts our economy away from financial services when we've thrown $2 trillion+ towards Wall Street and the banks (via direct loans and lending windows).
The US has a MAJOR debt problem. Including future social security and Medicare expenses we owe $65 TRILLION. Because we live in a world in which the words, "billion" get thrown around with too much ease, I'd like to put that number into perspective.
Let's say you have a stack of $1,000 bills. $1 million would be a stack eight inches high. $1 billion would be a stack 800 feet high (think the Washington Monument). And $1 trillion would be a stack 142 miles high. Total US debt, if laid on its side, would be a stack of $1,000 stretching more than 1/3 of the way around the earth.
Ok, so where is the US economy REALLY at right now?
Year over year real employment, real industrial orders, real housing starts, and real retail sales are all posting their largest drops since the production shutdown following WWII. Put another way, the last time the US economy fell this hard this fast, we were intentionally shutting down the monster than was the US war machine in WWII.
This is no recession. We are already on our way to a Depression (a GDP contraction of 10%) possibly even another Great Depression. One in nine Americans are currently receiving food stamps. Real unemployment (without birth/death seasonal nonsense and all the other Federal gimmicks) stands at 20%.
So I don't buy the "green shoots" theory at all. Having things get horrendous at a slightly slower rate is NOT a sign of a recovery. Green shoots can pop up anywhere including the asphalt in the parking lot outside my office. That doesn't mean the parking lot is about to become a lush meadow.
No, the US is heading for a really, really rough time. The US monetary base has doubled in the last year. We owe $65 trillion in liabilities. The US government could tax every company and every American 100% of their annual incomes AND NOT PAY THIS OFF. The Feds will have to inflate this mess away. And they've got a master money printer Ben Bernanke overseeing this situation.
Now, I cannot foretell precisely how this will all play out. Typically when a bubble bursts it takes 10+ years, possibly an entire generation, before the assets that participated in the Bubble return to new highs (sometimes they NEVER do).
Now, we just got off the biggest credit/ debt bubble in the world's history. I'm talking about 30+ years of spending money we don't have culminating in a period in which Americans were speculating in the single largest asset they ever purchase (a house) without putting a cent of their own money at risk (0% down NINA loans).
We also saw a bubble in stocks, Treasuries, and most every other asset you can invest in. So the idea that we can recover from this in a couple of years seems over enthusiastic to say the least.
Remember, Japan experienced a similar Bubble (though they had higher savings than we did) and "lost" a decade of economic growth. It's worth noting that Japan WAS NOT an Empire like the US. Japan did not have with bases in 170 countries, a world reserve currency, and a crippled job market (history rhymes, it does not repeat).
So in terms of the real US economy, I don't foresee a recovery anytime soon. The stock market may soar thanks to the Fed's money printing, but a jump in financial speculation is NOT an economic recovery. If the S&P 500 goes to 20,000, but we're drinking $1,500 beer and wiping ourselves with $100 bills, we haven't gotten richer (never mind the fact that an S&P 500 of 20,000 DOESN'T create jobs).
So how will we know when a bottom is in and the economy will recover? I've postulated a few signs (some humorous, others not so pleasant). Bear in mind, much of this in tongue in cheek. But like all sarcasm, there's a grain of truth.
We will bottom WHEN:
- CNBC and Bloomberg start firing anchors and cutting their coverage time by hours, not minutes.
- Maria Bartiromo and Jim Cramer start telling investors to short the market with all they've got.
- Questions like "do you think we're heading for a recovery" result in the questioner getting punched in the face or ignored like a loony tune.
- People HATE stocks and stock ownership has plummeted back to one in ten Americans (the pre-401(k) levels).
- Investing is no longer a hobby and people fight tooth and nail to retain their nest egg (honestly what the hell is "play" or "speculative" money?)
- The number of mutual funds has fallen by at least half (why are we paying fees for people who can't beat the market?).
- People no longer want to get an MBA to become a broker or a financial advisor.
- Our economy is based on "making something," not "offering advice."
- Books about Warren Buffett no longer comprise an entire publishing industry (seriously, Amazon lists 5,000+ books on him).
- The Richest 500 people in the world are no longer all billionaires (never happened before in history… how's that for concentration of wealth?)
- Guys like me are no longer writing about finance or investing but instead take up a respectable profession.
Then… we will have probably hit bottom. In the meantime, I've prepared a FREE Special Report detailing three investments that will soar when the Second Round of the Financial Crisis hits. I call it the Financial Crisis Round Two Survival Kit. Swing by www.gainspainscapital.com/roundtwo.html to pick up your free copy today.
Graham Summers
-----Forwarded Message-----
From: Lajocanda@aol.com
Sent: Jun 18, 2009 3:14 AM
Subject: U.S. Beats War Drum as Iran Dumps the Dollar
Jun 17 20:07
U.S. Beats War Drum as Iran Dumps the Dollar
http://www.politicallore.com/politics/presidential-candidates/hillary-clinton/us-beats-war-drum-as-iran-dumps-the-dollar/252
This plan to publicly present evidence of Iranian support for Shiite militias inside of Iraq comes at virtually the same time that Iranian officials have confirmed that they have completely dumped the dollar in their oil trades.
----- Original Message -----From: vterranova@juno.comTo: Undisclosed-recipientsSent: Thursday, June 18, 2009 12:36 PMSubject: Are we beginning to see a pattern here?
Bankster Bailouts Of 2008/9 Exceed Over 200 Years Of Major Government Spending
Combined cost of major historical events does not even come closeThe amount of US taxpayer money committed to bailouts over the last 12 months by far exceeds the combined cost of major historical events dating back over 200 years.
The combined amount spent, lent, consumed, borrowed, printed, guaranteed, assumed or otherwise committed to bailouts by the government from March 2008 to March 2009 amounts to some $15 TRILLION.
To emphasize how much money that is, the producers of the book Bailout Nation, put together the following graphic, which illustrates how almost every large one time expenditure of the US over the last 206 years is a drop in the ocean compared with the current level of spending.
The cost of World War Two, the race to the moon, the New Deal, and the Iraq, Vietnam and Korean wars combined does not come close to the amount spent so far in just 12 months on the bailout of a handful of privately owned offshore corporations.
Click for enlargement:
The graphic is based on the following inflation adjusted figures, put together by Bianco Research President James Bianco:
That amounts to $11 TRILLION+ less than the cost of the financial crisis so far.
The only event in US history that gets anyway near the current level of spending is World War Two, which originally cost $288 billion, $3.6 trillion according to Bianco's inflation adjustment figures.
That means that the most expansive and encompassing military venture in human history still cost the US taxpayer over four times less, during a six year period, than the "rescue" of a select number of banks and financial institutions did in just one year.
If you still cannot imagine how much money we are talking about, watch the following clip which shows you what just $1 TRILLION looks like:
Now multiply that by fifteen.
Now multiply that by sixty-five.
And so on...
It Comes Down to This!
Jim Kirwan
6-17-9
"In a move certain to fuel the debate over Obama's qualifications for the presidency, the group "Americans for Freedom of Information" has released copies of President Obama's college transcripts from OccidentalCollege. Released today, the transcript indicates that Obama, under the name Barry Soetoro, received financial aid as a foreign student from Indonesia as an undergraduate at the school. The transcript was released by Occidental College in compliance with a court order in a suit brought by the group in the Superior Court of California. The transcript shows that Obama (Soetoro) applied for financial aid and was awarded a fellowship for foreign students from the Fulbright Foundation Scholarship program. To qualify for the scholarship, a student must claim foreign citizenship."
This is the man now sitting in the oval office that we're talking about above. He is also a lawyer; that is a sworn officer of the courts system, and a member of the Bar that actually taught Constitutional Law in Illinois, before running for the office he now occupies.
This immediately brings up a number of direct conflicts of interest that in themselves create several indefensible positions for the fraud that Barack Hussein Obama, formerly Barry Soetoro, truly appears to be. How could Obama the lawyer not know that he took grant money for financial aid, from the Fulbright Foundation that was intended only for foreign citizens? How then to square this with his supposed Naturalized American-citizen status that he claimed in order to run for president? He cannot be both things in the same person; especially not at the same time.
Also Obama is a lawyer so how can he excuse himself, from lying under oath, either as a president or as a candidate; not-to-mention deceiving the public as to his actual qualifications for the office he now supposedly holds?
"This document would seem to provide the smoking gun that many of Obama's detractors have been seeking. Along with the evidence that he was first born in Kenya and there is no record of him ever applying for US citizenship, this is looking pretty grim. The news has created a firestorm at the White House as the release casts increasing doubt about
Obama's legitimacy and qualification to serve as president. When reached for comment in London, where he has been in meetings with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Obama smiled but refused comment on the issue."
There are far more lawyers in America than almost any other profession—so how is it that as a professional body lawyers have remained silent on so many aspects of this quagmire? For instance what has the National Bar Association said about these apparent conflicts of interest between Obama's oath as a lawyer vs. his oath as the president? But there's an even more basic question which has to do with how does Obama balance the lies he routinely tells the world, as opposed to his duty as an officer before the National Bar of Justice? Internationally, our commander-in-chief has placed himself and his administration even further beyond the laws than even Cheney and George W. Bush dared to go—on top of all his campaign promises that have been massively shattered at almost every turn!
"Britain's Daily Mail has also carried the story in a front-page article titled, "Obama Eligibility Questioned," leading some to speculate that the story may overshadow economic issues on Obama's first official visit to the U.K. In a related matter, under growing pressure from several groups,Justice Antonin Scalia announced that the Supreme Court agreed on Tuesday to hear arguments concerning Obama's legal eligibility to serve as President in a case brought by Leo Donofrio of New Jersey.
This lawsuit claims Obama's dual citizenship disqualified him from serving as president. Donofrio's case is just one of 18 suits brought by citizens demanding proof of Obama's citizenship or qualification to serve as president."
The interesting aspects of this quagmire concern the following: How many times has Barack Hussein Obama lied to get where he is today. If he was not a citizen; how was he able to pass the bar and take the oath to enforce the law that he was breaking by swearing to uphold the constitution of a country that he was not clearly a citizen of? When he ran for and won an office in the State Legislature and again when he ran for and won the office of US Senator for the State of Illinois—both those jobs require swearing an oath of office that, if his birth certificate was not valid; had to have been illegally held—yes?
Moreover, as a lawyer now, and a former professor of Constitutional law: how can he continue to do the massively illegal things that he is doing each and every day as resident dictator from the oval office? Why has Obama the man, not been disbarred for cause? Also in matters of legality, the office has the White House Office of legal affairs that comes with the job – but as an officer of the courts: Obama is technically not allowed to run roughshod over all the settled laws of the United States—which he has been doing with intensity of late.
Does Obama bear an even greater responsibility when as Commander-in-Thief he orders things like illegal torture and expanded illegal wire-taps; along with claiming for himself and the administration special privileges when it comes down to abiding by the laws or crushing them under the jack-boots of his 'administration's long term goals?
Perhaps this glaring statistic might shed some real-time light on that topic?
"Gary Kreep of the United States Justice Foundation has released the results of their investigation of Obama's campaign spending. This study estimates that Obama has spent upwards of $950,000 in campaign funds in the past year with eleven law firms in 12 states for legal resources to block disclosure of any of his personal records?"
Mr. Kreep indicated that the investigation is still ongoing but that the final report will be provided to the U.S. Attorney General, Eric Holder.
Mr. Holder has refused to comment on the matter".
There is also the rumor that Michelle Obama's license to practice law in the State of Illinois was revoked—but so far at least no one seems to be able to get to the bottom of that additional bit of current presidential folklore.
Why should not Obama be prosecuted for fraud against the people, and if this pans out, will this equal possible treason against the country; depending on how deeply his lies have gone into the blood and bone of the constitution that his directives have been aimed directly at, on how many different occasions?
In effect when Barack Obama was specifically asked about what the change would look like, prior to being selected, he said: "I AM THE CHANGE." The inference being that 'change' was not so much about policies to be made, but rather it would be confined to his person as the new face that is the holder of the title who had taken over from the old face that was his predecessor. This goes a long way toward understanding why the new face does not want to prosecute the old face; since they both were and are working on the same unholy goals and illegal wars—but mainly on the enslavement and destruction of this country as a viable nation. That's why Cheney Bush are not being prosecuted; because in every instance Obama has now exceeded anything that Cheney-Bush ever did before he arrived.
We need the non-lawyers in Washington to investigate the selection that sits in the Oval Office as resident dictator. The public needs to get some straight answers about just what and who our lawyer-leader-dictator really is. Most of all we need to know to what or to whom does he actually owes his allegiance as president! If he cannot clarify these things then he needs to be removed from office and publicly tried for what he has attempted to do beyond the laws of this country and the constitution!
NOTE: The quoted passages above are from Carl F. Worden
IF ALL THIS IS TRUE, OBAMA IS IN REAL TROUBLE -- Worden
Long time Brasscheck TV viewers know that we've been warning about Gardacil for over two years now.
Gardacil is an injected product that's being fraudulently promoted as a vaccine again cervical cancer.
States are actually looking at making this vaccine mandatory for all school aged girls.
Here's the news two years after we issued our unambiguous warning.The consequences
We warned about this two years ago.
In fact, we were so concerned be made our own video about the subject.
We said that Gardasil was a pharmaceutical/government fraud not only based on bad science and bad medicine, but also a serious danger to the girls and young women who were being herded into receiving it.
I would much rather have been proven wrong.
Government officials in many states would still like to make this three series vaccination mandatory for all girls.
By the way, it's total fraud to say that Gardasil prevents cervical cancer. It does not such thing.
The idiots in the mainstream news media who are complicit helping sell this garbage at least owe it to the public to get the basic facts straight.
Details:
http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/646.html
Brasscheck TV
2380 California St.
San Francisco, CA 94115
The smoking gun
In June of 2000, the Center for Disease Control, the World Wealth Organization, the FDA, "leading" scientists and representatives of the pharmaceutical industry got together for a secret meeting.
Their focus was the growing public and scientific awareness that mercury used as a preservative in vaccines for children had unleashed an epidemic of autism.
The participants came to three conclusions:
1. They acknowledged the autism/mercury connection was true (or at least highly plausible)
2. They conspired to create a statistical smokescreen to obscure the science
3. They agreed not to disclose anything that took place at the meeting
Your tax dollars at work.
Clip from the movie Autism: Made in the USA
Details:
http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/644.html
Brasscheck TV
2380 California St.
San Francisco, CA 94115
Another read-to-go replacement for the gasoline (i.e. toxic waste) fueled automobile. Good luck finding one.
The existence of this oil industry busting Japanese car has never been reported in the US or Europe.
I only stumbled on it on an Asia-only Reuters news feed from 2008.
Reported by Reuters
Reuters Asia reported on the existence of this car last year.
I bet you haven't heard of it.
Why not?
The "hydrogen cell" technology pushed by Bush & Co. is a preposterous over-complication of a simple idea.
Hydrogen is already in water and the energy from hydrogen can be released from water in the car. There's no reason on earth to produce hydrogen centrally, truck it around and create hydrogen fillings stations.
The fact that Obama & Co. are not all over this is a sign of how profoundly compromised he is by the oil industry. There are already several replacements for gasoline powered cars ready to go right now.
We know what the hold up is.
Details:
http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/645.htmlBrasscheck TV
2380 California St.
San Francisco, CA 94115
- How stupid do they think we are? MPs finally publish their expenses - with swathes of incriminating evidence blacked out
- Tony Blair's last-minute £7,000 roof repair
- Mother sees woman snatch her newborn baby from ward
- Fred the Shred 'to give back half his £700,000 pension so he can come home'
- Pupils made to wear goggles to handle Blu Tack as health and safety reaches 'ridiculous' heights
- Let healthy people take Ritalin to boost brain power, says expert
- Little girls left with horrific burns after stepping barefoot on newly-laid tarmac beach path
- 100 pupils walk out in protest at ban on short skirts to save male teachers' blushes
- Not In My Front Yard: Now the recycling industry joins rebellion
- Stores launch cut-throat summer sales
- Retreat! Is Brown heading for full-scale U-turn on Iraq probe secrecy?
- Tony Blair 'knew of secret policy that allowed torture of Britons'
- Passenger jet lands safely after pilot dies mid-flight
- North Korea plans to fire missile at Hawaii on Independence Day, says Japan
- Criminal gang staged British citizenship ceremony - including fake Home Secretary - to con Chinese immigrants
- First gay couple to become fathers in UK expecting fourth child
- Viagra available on High Street for first time
- Pictured: The pensioners battered to a pulp by four men for clipping another car's wing mirror
- Berlusconi does not need to pay for showgirls - he can get them for free, claims his lawyer
- Prince William vows 'to fight in Afghanistan'
- £10m Heathrow heist will be first trial to be heard without a jury over 'tampering' fears
- Call girl jailed for eight years after shooting dead billionaire who called her a whore
- Woman walks free as loophole means baby battering charges are dropped
- Heavily pregnant driver fined for parking in parent and child space because she hasn't given birth yet
- Teachers ordered to close Facebook and Bebo accounts after breasts boast
- The British Bullet: 140mph train unveiled... but passengers will pay for slashed commuter times
- Hooray for June 19: Why today's the high point for happiness
- MORE HEADLINES
RON PAUL " I TOLD YOU SO..." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PIEGK0IbA4
The Elephant In The Room: Full Movie http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4701757632630708538&hl=en
2nd U.S. Revolt http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKFKGrmsBDk&eurl=http://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message587756/pg1
David Icke http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4799447112501062338&q=4799447112501062338&ei=aqJzSKXlE5SK2wLd6JGoAQ
Illuminati enslaves http://rense.com/general83/ilum.htm Collapse of the $ http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/437.html
Jerusalem http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17CRVGojwic Rothschilds http://www.iamthewitness.com/DarylBradfordSmith_Rothschild.htm
http://www.theforbiddenknowledge.com/hardtruth/the_rothschild_bloodline.htm
Alex Jones Interviews David Icke - One hour & a half video - in 10 minute segments
http://www.heyokamagazine.com/heyoka.21.davidickealexjones.htm
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Palash Biswas
Pl Read:
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