Weekday NEWS to Comfort the Disturbed and Disturb the Comfortable.
Tuesday 11.13.2012
Morgan Stanley sees Silver
to outperform Gold in sustained risk
NEW YORK (Commodity Online): A leading global financial services firm Morgan Stanley looks for silver to fare better than gold whenever risk sentiment improves on a sustained basis.
According to Morgan Stanley, the precious metals outperformed most other assets classes last week, especially after United States elections as the so-called fiscal cliff became the top concern of financial markets.
Physical Gold Demand: Secrets To Be Unveiled?
Gold Silver Worlds
….The situation in the physical gold market can be summarized as being incredibly tight. Both Jim Willie and the host Alasdair Macleod agree on that. Apart from the zero percent interest rates and the unlimited bond monetization, Jim Willie believes that the physical tightness will be a major driver of the gold price. He takes it even a step further: he believes that we are moving into a global gold war which will be driven by the physical market. It will probably become the next financial scandal and it will be much bigger than LIBOR.
Bill Gross: Fiscal Cliff Is Worse Than You Think
By JOHN MELLOY, CNBC - FiscalTimes.com
Two of the most influential market prognosticators today — Pimco's Bill Gross and Goldman Sachs's Jim O'Neill — both warned clients over the weekend of the perils of the coming "fiscal cliff," when tax increases and spending cuts kick in at the end of the year.
"(The) U.S. fiscal cliff (is) deeper than advertised," said Gross, whose firm oversees $1.9 trillion, in a tweet. "It's a Grand Canyon. Washington will defer entitlement cuts & raise revenues only marginally."
Pimco-to-DWS See Economy Escaping Cliff as Stocks Fall
By John Detrixhe - Bloomberg.com
The world's biggest investors say the rout that erased $1 trillion from the value of global equities after President Barack Obama was re-elected overlooks the fact that the world economy is improving while U.S. leaders start discussions that may avoid the so-called fiscal cliff.
Money managers at firms overseeing more than $8 trillion said investor concern that the U.S. economy will slow as Obama and Congress fail to avert $607 billion in tax increases and spending cuts next year are overblown. U.S. stocks had the biggest weekly decline since June while yields on Treasuries fell to two-month lows and gold advanced the most since September.
Congress comes back Tuesday to confront "fiscal cliff"
By Rachelle Younglai and Jason Lange
WASHINGTON | Mon Nov 12, 2012 9:28pm EST
(Reuters) - Amid a global fright over Washington's political brinkmanship, U.S. lawmakers return to the capital on Tuesday with a seven-week deadline to reach agreement on scheduled tax hikes and budget cuts that threaten to trigger another recession.
The post-election battle over the so-called fiscal cliff is shaping up as an extension of the political campaign with Democrats trying to rally support for raising taxes on the wealthy as part of any deal, and Republicans countering that such an approach would devastate "job creators" across the country.
4 Ways the Fiscal Cliff Mess Could Play Out The Fiscal Cliff Showdown: 4 Ways It Could Play Out
By Yuval Rosenberg, Fiscal Times
The victory celebrations sure didn't last long. As soon as the results from Tuesday's election became official – before, even – politicians, pundits and investors fixed their attention on the next piece of urgent business facing the country: the fiscal cliff.
The focus has been both immediate and intense, as this chart from Bank of America's Matthew Fleury, via Joe Weisenthal of Business Insider, shows. The number of articles mentioning the cliff has spiked far higher than coverage of the debt ceiling debate ever did.
How Mitt Romney Can Save Us From the Fiscal Cliff A $50,000 deduction cap would raise taxes on the rich as much as letting the Bush tax cuts for the rich expire would -- and without raising tax rates
By Matthew O'Brien - TheAtlantic.com
Elections have consequences. And the big consequence of the 2012 election looks to be higher taxes for the rich. With President Obama still in office, that's what will happen on January 1, 2013 when the Bush tax cuts expire, whether John Boehner likes it or not. The big question is whether Obama and House Republicans can make a deal undoing the rest of the so-called fiscal cliff.
They can. If they listen to Mitt Romney.
Dollar higher; Greece takes center stage Stronger Japanese yen checks dollar index
By Deborah Levine and William L. Watts, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — The dollar hovered near its highest level against the euro in two months on Monday as euro-zone officials met to discuss Greece's long-delayed tranche of aid from its international creditors.
U.S. bond markets and banks were closed in observance of the Veterans Day holiday.
Obama may now take the gloves off with Europe U.S. may put pressure on to solve euro crisis for good
By David Marsh - MarketWatch.com
JAKARTA, Indonesia (MarketWatch) — U.S. irritation with Europe's inability to solve the euro crisis is likely to come increasingly to the fore after Barack Obama's re-election. The U.S. president's relatively compelling victory will have three effects on the further development of economic and monetary union (EMU), none of them positive.
Merkel: EU Will Become a Superstate The German chancellor outlines her plans for the European Commission to transform into an EU government.
TheTrumpet.com
German Chancellor Angela Merkel outlined her vision of Europe in a speech to the European Parliament November 7. But it was when she stepped away from her prepared notes to respond to a statement by parliamentary leaders that she revealed most about the future she sees for the European Union.
The EU will transform into single nation—a superstate—"otherwise it will not work in the long term," she said. Here is Merkel's full statement:
I'm sure the Commission will become a government one day. I'm sure that the Council will become a second chamber one day. And I'm sure the European Parliament will take European responsibilities otherwise it won't work in the long term. But today we must save the euro and create the basis properly. And we must give people a little bit of time so that they can come with us.
Europe's Populists at the Gate
By Barry Eichengreen - Project-Syndicate.org
LONDON – Is Europe's crisis over? Investors, policy analysts, and even officials are quietly beginning to suggest that this might be the case. The euro has strengthened by nearly 10% against the dollar since European Central Bank President Mario Draghi vowed on July 26 to do "whatever it takes" to hold the currency together.
Similarly, the Euro VIX, a popular measure of expectations of euro volatility, has fallen significantly. The cost of buying protection against fluctuations in the euro/dollar exchange rate declined last month to its lowest level in nearly five years. Borrowing costs for the Spanish and Italian governments have similarly fallen dramatically.
Germany: No decision on Greece next week
BY VALENTINA POP - EUObserver.com
BERLIN - A decision on Greece's long-delayed bailout tranche is unlikely to be taken next week, German finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble has said, as international lenders are still at odds over how to keep Greece afloat in the coming years.
"I am afraid we will not be able to reach a decision on Greece in the coming week," Schaeuble said Thursday (8 November) during a conference in Hamburg.
Europe Gives Greece 2 More Years to Reach Deficit Targets
By James G. Neuger and Stephanie Bodoni - Bloomberg.com
Euro-area finance ministers gave Greece two extra years to wrestle down its budget deficit, pledging to plug the resulting financing gaps in order to keep the country in the single currency and prevent a renewed flareup of the debt crisis.
Finance ministers granted Greece until 2016 to cut the deficit to 2 percent of gross domestic product. They put off until Nov. 20 a decision on how to cover additional Greek needs of as much as 32.6 billion euros ($41 billion) and left unclear whether the International Monetary Fundwill continue to contribute.
Angela Merkel sticks to austerity script
in Portugal as revolt builds German Chancellor Angela Merkel braved hostile crowds in Portugal on Monday to show unflinching support for the country's austerity ordeal and plead for patience as social cohesion frays.
By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard - Telegraph.co.uk
The flying visit came as trade unions led a protest march through Lisbon "in defence of national sovereignty" and the Left Bloc in parliament said its top priority is to "bring down the government" and forge a salvation front.
Swooping into Lisbon amid tight security, Mrs Merkel praised the "courageous actions" of free-market premier Pedro Passos Coelho and vowed do to "everything possible" to help the country through hard times. Yet she also insisted that there would be no renegotiation of the country's €78bn (£62.5bn) EU-IMF Troika package or softer terms to alleviate the slump, saying austerity is the "only way forward".
* * * * *
Is the USA Facing Another Civil War? Secession of Southern states started the last one.
Secession petitions filed on White House Web site
Posted by Rachel Weiner - WashingtonPost.com
From states across the country, Americans have filed petitions on the White House Web site seeking to secede from the union and form new state governments.
While most of the petitions come from states that supported Mitt Romney in last week's election, a few swing states and even the deep blue Northeast are represented.
Petitions have been filed for Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.
'We the People' Petitions Filed in Nineteen States
Seeking Permission to Secede from the Union
By Neetzan Zimmerman - Gawker.com
In the aftermath of last week's presidential election, residents in at least nineteen states have put up petitions on the government's "We the People" petitioning website seeking the right to secede from the rest of the country.
While the petitions themselves may not be significant, the reaction could be.
Petitions for secession filed from Louisiana and Texas have already received well over 10,000 signatures. Per the website's own rules, petitions that garner 25,000 signatures or more within 30 days require a response from the Obama administration.
Why did the southern states secede from the U.S.? The fundamental cause of southern secession (and ultimately the Civil War) was the US's inability to solve slavery at the national level.
History.StackExchange.com
The Civil War was not fundamentally about "states rights". Asserting a state's right to secede doesn't speak to why the state wants to secede. Steven's citation of reasons in his answer only serve to underline this. When the northern states were threatened by the War of 1812, they considered secession. When South Carolina was threatened by a tariff, they attempted to nullify the law. When a state's self interests come into play, they'll take advantage of whatever political mechanism they can imagine to assert that self interest, up to and including nullification, secession, and war.
The real story is not in the political mechanics but the underlying interest in preserving slavery that forced the South to become so hell bent on their "states rights". If Northern states had seceded over the War of 1812, we wouldn't assert the fundamental cause was a debate over state's rights. Rather we'd say it was their opposition to the War of 1812. The same applies for the South's secession as well. Their interest in preserving slavery drove them to use untested constitutional mechanism and eventually go to war.
Multiple states petition Obama to secede from Union,
start own governments (Video)
BY: CHARISSE VAN HORN - Examiner.com
On November 12, 2012, Policy Mic reported that 18 states have filed petitions with theWhite House to withdraw from the Union and create their own governments. The petitions followed President Obama's tight race that left many Republicans and Independents surprised and in shock. As fear mounts as to what four more years under Obama's leadership spreads amongst many citizens nationwide, many have turned to signing their state's official petition on the White House website. While many debate the results the petitions will have in the end, they do signify that a portion of the nation remains divided after the nation has faced the costliest presidential election in U.S. history.
Missouri residents petition White House for secession
By JASON HANCOCK, Kansas City Star - MidwestDemocracy.com
Residents in Missouri and nearly two dozen states have filed petitions on a White House website seeking approval for their state to "withdraw from the United States of America and create its own NEW government."
The secession petitions were inspired by President Barack Obama's re-election to a second term.
The petitions appear on a section of the White House website called "We the People" that invites users to submit or sign petitions about policy changes they would like to see. If a petition gets 25,000 signatures within a month the White House staff will "review it, ensure it's sent to the appropriate policy experts, and issue an official response."
Citizens in Arizona, Oklahoma file petitions
to secede from United States
BY: JOE NEWBY - Examiner.com
On Saturday, citizens in Arizona andOklahoma posted petitions at the White House "We the People" web site, asking permission to secede from the United States, bringing the total number of states with citizens making such requests to 21.
Both petitions cite the Declaration of Independence and ask that they be allowed to "peacefully" withdraw from the Union in order to form a new government.
Nullification Goes Mainstream States Defy Washington on Drugs and Health Care
BY JOHN RUBINO - FinancialSense.com
As the federal government gradually assimilates the rest of the country, a few states have begun to fight back. From the Kansas City Star:
No state-run health insurance exchanges in Missouri or Kansas
Missouri will be unable to implement a key provision of federal health care law, Gov.Jay Nixon announced Thursday.
Meantime, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownbacksays he won't support an application from Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger to establish a state-federal health insurance marketplace.
GOP's Red America forced to rethink
what it knows about the country
By Eli Saslow - WashingtonPost.com
HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. — She arrived early to take apart the campaign office piece by piece, just as she felt so many other things about her life were being dismantled. Beth Cox wore a Mitt Romney T-shirt, a cross around her neck and fresh eyeliner, even though she had been crying on and off and knew her makeup was likely to run. A day after the election, she tuned the radio to Glenn Beck and began pulling posters and American flags off the wall.
Her calendar read "Victory Day!!" and she had planned to celebrate in the office by hosting a dance party and selling Romney souvenirs. But instead she was packing those souvenirs into boxes, which would be donated to a charity that sent clothes to South America. Instead a moving company was en route to close down the office in the next 48 hours, and her friends were calling every few minutes to see how she was doing.
Figures suggest UK economic recovery is in doubt New data showing an increase in the inflation rate and rising unemployment will dampen optimism about recovery prospects, economists are warning.
By Roland Gribben - Telegraph.co.uk
They feel that the clutch of official statistics due out this week will show the third quarter increase in economic growth, boosted by the fillip from the Olympic Games, has exaggerated the turnaround.
Their caution is reinforced by mixed indicators from surveys published on Monday pointing to an increase in business confidence but a gloomy outlook for manufacturing in a still fragile economy.
White House Plans Public Appeal on Deficit Counting on the Election's Momentum, President Obama Will Try to Marshal Support for Tax Increases, Spending Cuts
By DAMIAN PALETTA and JANET HOOK - WSJ.com
WASHINGTON—The White House plans an aggressive public campaign to build support for its approach to reduce the deficit through tax increases and spending cuts, a sharp contrast to its private talks with Republicans that faltered last year.
President Barack Obama will meet with labor leaders Tuesday and a number of chief executives on Wednesday, in an effort to solidify backing for his proposals.
President Obama's Cabinet: Who's in, who's out?
Posted by Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake - WashingtonPost.com
Now that President Obama has secured a second term, the official Washington speculation machine — and, no, that doesn't actually exist (or does it?) — has turned to the heavy turnover expected in his Cabinet.
While only Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has made clear she plans to leave early in the Obama second term, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner has also clearly suggested he is on his way out, and Attorney General Eric Holder has been noncommittal of late about his future plans. CIA Director David Petraeus' stunning resignation on Friday creates another high-profile opening (although not a Cabinet-level position) for the president to fill.
GOP Is Ready to Throw Millionaires to the Tax Wolves
By JOSH BOAK, The Fiscal Times
Staring down the fiscal cliff, Republicans are calling on a possible compromise with Democrats to increases taxes for Americans earning more than $1 million a year — a policy first championed months ago by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.
The lower tax rates first enacted under George W. Bush will expire at the start of next year, hitting the country with a potential $200 billion tax hike. President Obama was reelected last week on a platform that included keeping the lower income rates for Americans making less than $250,000 a year, which could increase federal coffers by $44 billion next year.
The Hard Fiscal Facts Individual tax payments are up 26% in the last two years.
WSJ.com - Opinion
While the rest of America was holding an election last week, the gnomes at the Congressional Budget Office released the final budget totals for fiscal 2012. They're worth reporting because they illuminate the real fiscal choices that confront the country, as opposed to the posturing you'll be hearing over the next few weeks.
The nearby table lays out the ugly details. The feds rolled up another $1.1 trillion deficit for the year that ended September 30, which was the biggest deficit since World War II, except for each of the previous three years. President Obama can now proudly claim the four largest deficits in modern history. As a share of GDP, the deficit fell to 7% last year, which was still above any single year of the Reagan Presidency, or any other year since Truman worked in the Oval Office.
In Praise of Price Gouging
BY RON PAUL - FinancialSense.com
As the northeastern United States continues to recover from Hurricane Sandy, we hear the usual outcry against individuals and companies who dare to charge market prices for goods such as gasoline. The normal market response of rising prices in the wake of a natural disaster and resulting supply disruptions is redefined as "price gouging." The government claims that price gouging is the charging of ruinous or exploitative prices for goods in short supply in the wake of a disaster and is a heinous crime But does this reflect economicreality, or merely political posturing to capitalize on raw emotions?
Obama 2.0
By Christopher R. Hill - Project-Syndicate.org
DENVER – It's over. After a year-long campaign costing $2.5-6 billion (estimates vary widely), President Barack Obama has won a second four-year term, with 49 states reporting their results on election night (Florida, for the second time in four presidential elections, did not). Obama now has a chance to define the United States' role in the international system for years to come.
Second terms can often be productive times for US foreign policy, largely because presidents cannot seek a third. George W. Bush, for example, used his second four years in office to fix mistakes made during his first (his second-term team was busy).
Obama, Boehner Dig in their Heels over 'Cliff' Taxes
By JOSH BOAK and ERIC PIANIN, The Fiscal Times
The presidential election might just have been the opening skirmish in a class warfare that is unfolding—albeit politely—in Washington.
President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) have each pledged some give-and-take in addressing the budget issues in the fiscal cliff, but neither is willing to back down from their core position on tax cuts that are set to expire this year.
Business Rejects Obamacare How the law will slash low-wage worker hours while failing to provide them with health insurance.
By Arnold Ahlert - PatriotPost.us
Elections, as it is often said, have consequences. As a result of the president's reelection, the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare, will be fully implemented. Unsurprisingly, several businesses are looking for ways to avoid the costs associated with the law. Just as unsurprisingly, American leftists consider such efforts to keep one's business profitable -- or solvent -- unseemly.
Zane Tankel, chairman and CEO of Apple-Metro, an Applebee's New York-area franchise, explains the obvious. "We've calculated it will [cost] some millions of dollars across our system," Tankel told Fox Business Network last Thursday. "So what does that say -- that says we won't build more restaurants. We won't hire more people." Apple-Metro runs 40 Applebee's restaurants and employs from 80 to 300 people at each of its locations.
No state-run health insurance exchanges in Missouri or Kansas
By JASON HANCOCK - Kansas City Star - MidwestDemocracy.com
Missouri will be unable to implement a key provision of federal health care law, Gov. Jay Nixon announced Thursday.
Meantime, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownbacksays he won't support an application from Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger to establish a state-federal health insurance marketplace.
That means it will be up to the federal government to establish health insurance exchanges in Missouri and Kansas. The exchanges are designed to be online marketplaces where individuals and small businesses can compare and buy private insurance plans.
Real Danger of "Obamacare":
Insurance Company Takeover of Health Care
By Nomi Prins - NomiPrins.Squarespace.com
Election rhetoric shuns the big picture in favor of the bigger platitude. Now that The Show is over, we are left with the equivalent of a Sunday morning hangover following a binge of promises and lies. We leave the theatre of political spectacle on steroids for the real world of unstable economy, a globally and publicly subsidized financial sector, and increased costs of living on everything from food to education to health-care; outpacing declining median incomes. The average cost for health insurance for a family is $15,745per year vs. a median income of $50,502, or about half post-tax take-home pay.
Budget-cutters eye healthcare law's insurance subsidies
By Sam Baker - TheHill.com
Supporters of President Obama's healthcare law breathed a sigh of relief Tuesday, but they're already back at work trying to protect one of its key provisions from budget cuts.
As the election fades into the rearview mirror and attention turns more seriously toward the looming "fiscal cliff," lobbyists and advocates are once again wondering whether Congress might look to the healthcare law for spending cuts.
Taking it from the POOR... Ohioans' food stamp aid to be reduced Benefit to fall $50 a month starting in January
BY KATE GIAMMARISE - Toledo Blade
Ohio families receiving food stamps could get an unwelcome surprise come January: $50 less every month in assistance.
For the 869,000 households enrolled in the program for the poorest Ohioans, that could amount to about $520 million annually out of the grocery budgets.
Because of the way the federal government calculates utility expenses for people receiving the benefit, a mild winter nationwide last year, and a lower price for natural gas, many families could experience a significant cut in aid, those familiar with the program say.
TEACHERS FLOCK TO NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
FOR 'MARXIST CONFERENCE'
by REBEL PUNDIT - Breitbart.com
This Saturday, the Midwest Marxist Conference was held at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. The event was teeming with teachers who spoke about the new found bond between the radical socialists and their Teachers Union. The all-day event, which collected money to support Chicago Socialists and featured a communist bookstore, provided students on-campus along with the radical left community to plan the next phase in their activism.
Becca Barnes, a Chicago Teachers Union teacher and organizer with Chicago Socialists, proclaimed at the beginning of the conference that "the struggle here in the United States has entered a new phase. Nowhere have we pointed the way forward more clearly than here in Chicago with the teachers union strike."
Journalist Tossed from Marxism Conference
at Northwestern Journalism School
Jeremy Segal "RebelPundit" of Breitbart.com was Tossed from Marxism Conference at Northwestern Journalist Center. Segal was a registered attendant of the event. However, after Segal had been peacefully observing breakout sessions from 10:45am to 4pm, Dennis Kosuth recognized Segal and asked him to leave because he did not share the same Marxist beliefs as those who organized the event. The event was ironically held at the Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism.
Hard Facts about US Energy that Obama and Romney Avoided
By Richard Heinberg and Tom Butler - OilPrice.com
One hard truth: The era of cheap oil is over. Even the recent glut of US oil and gas was driven by high prices, which gave industry the incentive to use expensive, risky drilling technology.
The latest presidential campaign may be remembered more for what wasn't said than for what was, especially when it comes to the pivotal issue of energy. We heard assertions that America has a century's worth of cheap natural gas, that domestic drilling will soon free us of the need to import oil, and that the president of the United States is responsible for high gasoline prices – all exaggerations at best. We didn't hear the hard truth about our nation's energy conundrum.
Airlines Face Acute Shortage of Pilots
By SUSAN CAREY, JACK NICAS and ANDY PASZTOR - WSJ.com
U.S. airlines are facing what threatens to be their most serious pilot shortage since the 1960s, with higher experience requirements for new hires about to take hold just as the industry braces for a wave of retirements.
Federal mandates taking effect next summer will require all newly hired pilots to have at least 1,500 hours of prior flight experience—six times the current minimum—raising the cost and time to train new fliers in an era when pay cuts and more-demanding schedules already have made the profession less attractive. Meanwhile, thousands of senior pilots at major airlines soon will start hitting the mandatory retirement age of 65.
Oil industry tax breaks face the 'fiscal cliff'
By Ben Geman and Zack Colman - TheHill.com
The oil industry's long record of success in defending its tax breaks faces new tests as lawmakers and the White House negotiate to avoid the "fiscal cliff."
House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) won't rule out targeting oil-industry deductions in a broad deal to avoid the higher income tax rates and deep automatic spending cuts set to take effect in 2013.
Shale Gas Will be the Next Bubble to Pop -
An Interview with Arthur Berman
By James Stafford - OilPrice.com
The "shale revolution" has been grabbing a great deal of headlines for some time now. A favourite topic of investors, sector commentators and analysts – many of whom claim we are about to enter a new energy era with cheap and abundant shale gas leading the charge. But on closer examination the incredible claims and figures behind many of the plays just don't add up. To help us to look past the hype and take a critical look at whether shale really is the golden goose many believe it to be or just another over-hyped bubble that is about to pop, we were fortunate to speak with energy expert Arthur Berman.
Moody's predicts Obama will approve Keystone XL pipeline
By Ben Geman - TheHill.com
President Obama will give the proposed Keystone XL oil sands pipeline a green light, Moody's predicts in a new report.
The fate of TransCanada Corp.'s proposed Alberta-to-Texas pipeline is shaping up as a major post-election battle.
Environmentalists oppose Keystone and will stage a Nov. 18 demonstration at the White House, while a number business groups and unions want the State Department to permit the project.
Department Of Homeland Security
To Scan Payment Cards At Borders And Airports
BY JON MATONIS - FinancialSense.com
Travelers leaving or entering the United States have long had to declare aggregated cash and other monetary instruments exceeding $10,000. Now, under a proposed amendment to the Bank Secrecy Act, FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network) will also require travelers to declare the value of prepaid cards that they are carrying, known now as "tangible prepaid access devices."
Expected to be finalized by the end of this year, the cross-border reporting modifications stem from a broader October 2011 definition of payment methods and form factors that replaced the term "stored value" with the term "prepaid access" in an effort to more accurately describe the process of accessing funds held by a payment provider.
Ron Paul Speaks Out Against Bilderberg Takeover
Alex talks with Rep. Ron Paul about Obama's re-anointment and the economic implosion now slowly taking out the pinions of the once mighty U.S. economy.
Japan's Last Remaining Nuclear Power Plant
may be Built on an Active Fault Line
By Joao Peixe - OilPrice.com
Following the disaster at the nuclear power plant in Fukushima last year, nearly all of Japan's reactors have been shut down. The only power plant to remain operational today is the Oi nuclear plant in western Japan.
A geologist working as part of team looking at the power plant, its location, and the geological history of the area, has now stated that the power plant is built on top of a fault line that can be described as 'active' (a fault line that experienced tectonic movement in the last 130,000 years), and advises that it be shut down immediately.
FBI Agent in Petraeus Case Under Scrutiny
By DEVLIN BARRETT, EVAN PEREZ
and SIOBHAN GORMAN - WSJ.com
WASHINGTON—A federal agent who launched the investigation that ultimately led to the resignation of Central Intelligence Agency chief David Petraeus was barred from taking part in the case over the summer due to superiors' concerns that he had become personally involved in the case, according to officials familiar with the probe.
New details about how the Federal Bureau of Investigation handled the case suggest that even as the bureau delved into Mr. Petraeus's personal life, the agency had to address questionable conduct by one of its own—including allegedly sending shirtless photos of himself to a woman involved in the case.
Lawmakers turn up heat on FBI over investigation of Petraeus
By Jeremy Herb and Jordy Yager - TheHill.com
Senior lawmakers on Monday sharpened their criticism of the FBI over its handling of the investigation that led to the resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus.
The lawmakers questioned how FBI officials began an investigation into Petraeus and yet did not inform the congressional Intelligence Committee heads — or President Obama — that such a high-level probe was under way.
"We must take human nature as we find it, perfection falls not to the share of mortals." --George Washington
"David Petraeus's resignation [as CIA Director] marks the end of one of the great postwar military and government careers.... But for now, the explanation of Petraeus's resignation unfortunately raises more questions than it answers, in a number of significant ways: Fairly or not, questions will be raised why this Washington-style Friday-afternoon resignation occurred after rather than before the election -- a question that does not necessarily suggest that Petraeus did not take the proper nonpartisan course. But just days after [the election], we are already beginning to hear of all sorts of 'sudden' news: the Iranian attack on a U.S. drone; the plight of the Hurricane Sandy victims ... as much more severe than we were led to believe; the sudden publicity of the 'fiscal cliff'; and the Benghazi hearings. In that unfortunate politicized landscape comes the Petraeus bombshell. We were beginning to sense that the crime of Benghazi ... and the cover-up ... were not the entire story of the 9/11/2012 attack.... If rumors are true that the liaison may have involved biographer Paula Broadwell, co-author of an extremely favorable biography of Petraeus, then there are additional ethical issues that, fairly or not, call into question Broadwell's bona fides as an author and the portrait of Petraeus in her warmly received book. And if the FBI was involved, then additional questions arise over the reasons they also became interested -- when, why, how, and on whose prompt?
Holly Petraeus enraged over husband's affair
with Paula Broadwell, says friend
BY: CINDY ADAMS - Examiner.com
A friend and former spokesperson of David Petraeus said his wife, Holly Petraeus is indescribably angry over her husband's affair with biographer Paula Broadwell.
U.S. Army Col. Steve Boylan told ABC Newson Nov. 12, "Well you can imagine, she's not exactly pleased right now… In a conversation with David Petraeus this weekend, he said that, 'Furious would be an understatement.' And I think anyone that's been put in that situation would probably agree. He deeply hurt his family."
Mistress Revealed CIA Ops as Petraeus' Mouthpiece
By Noah Shachtman and Spencer Ackerman - Wired.com
The mistress of former CIA Director David Petraeus publicly discussed sensitive and previously unknown details about the assault on the U.S. mission in Benghazi, Libya.
In an Oct. 26 alumni symposium at the University of Denver, Paula Broadwell said that the CIA annex at the Benghazi consulate came under assault on Sept. 11 because it had earlier "taken a couple of Libyan militia members prisoner and they think the attack on the consulate was an effort to try to get these prisoners back. It's still being vetted." (That information was not part of the CIA's timeline of the Benghazi assault, though Fox News' Jennifer Griffin did mention it on air. Eli Lake of the Daily Beastreports that the CIA has denied any such detention.) "I don't know if a lot of you have heard this," Broadwell prefaced her remarks by saying.
Paula Broadwell
Paula Broadwell confirmed in October that the CIA annex in Benghazi asked for reinforcements when the consulate came under attack on September 11. Broadwell was speaking at her alma mater, the University of Denver, on October 26.
Lawmakers turn up heat on FBI over investigation of Petraeus
By Jeremy Herb and Jordy Yager - TheHill.com
Senior lawmakers on Monday sharpened their criticism of the FBI over its handling of the investigation that led to the resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus.
The lawmakers questioned how FBI officials began an investigation into Petraeus and yet did not inform the congressional Intelligence Committee heads — or President Obama — that such a high-level probe was under way.
State of New Jersey Awards Radiant
RFID 5-Year Emergency Management Solution Contract Radiant RFID will provide the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness (OHSP) with an RFID-based managed evacuation solution that tracks evacuees, pets, emergency transport vehicles and commodities deployed at state shelters in preparation for and in the event of a hurricane, natural disaster or other incident to assist in reunification of families.
PRWeb.com
Austin, Texas (PRWEB) October 18, 2012
Radiant RFID ("Radiant") announced today that the State of New Jersey has awarded the company a five-year contract to assist evacuation and emergency tracking during catastrophic events.
Radiant will provide the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness (OHSP) with a managed evacuation solution that tracks evacuees, pets, emergency transport vehicles and commodities deployed at state shelters in preparation for and in the event of a hurricane, natural disaster or other man-made incident to assist in reunification of families. In addition, Radiant will manage hardware components, deployment processes and training as well as all maintenance and management functions in support of the State of New Jersey.
Facebook Says Lawsuit
Claiming Half Ownership of Site Is a 'Farce'
BY DAVID KRAVETS - Wired.com
Declaring it a "massive fraud" and a "farce," Facebook is demanding a federal judge dismiss a lawsuit that claims a New York man owns half of the social-networking service.
In documents filed late Friday, Facebook noted for the first time that the plaintiff in the suit was arrested last month and has been charged with a multi-billion-dollar scheme to defraud the social-networking site and its chief executive and founder Mark Zuckerberg through his lawsuit.
3D printing photobooth makes you into an action figure
By Philippa Warr - Wired.co.uk
A Japanese pop-up photobooth will use 3D printing technology to create action figure-sized replicas of its subjects.
The Omote 3D photobooth, which opens in the Eye of Gyre exhibition space in the Harujuku district of Tokyo on November 24, features a 3D scanner and 3D printer setup which takes the likeness of its visitors and convert them into miniature figurines.
Posers must stand in position for around fifteen minutes as the manually-operated scanner records a full-body image. The raw data can then be modified and tweaked to achieve a better likeness and fine detail can be added before the 3D colour print is made.
Have humanoid UFOs returned to India? The army thinks so
By Liat Clark - Wired.co.uk
The flying humanoid UFOs allegedly spotted in northern India in 2004 appear to have returned, according to more than 100 reports from soldiers describing yellow spheres hovering in the sky.
India Today unflinchingly announced the news thus, "UFO sightings in Ladakh spook soldiers", before explaining that the story echoes the "clearest 'UFO' sighting yet" made in 2004, 100km south of the region in Lahaul-Spiti. At that time, a group of geologists and glaciologists linked to the nation's Space Applications Centre were exploring the mountainous region when they spotted a four-foot tall "robot-like" humanoid figure stalking the valley edge 50 metres from them for about 40 minutes, before jetting off and disappearing from sight. Despite 14 people witnessing the mysterious spectacle -- including six scientists -- and passing film footage to intelligence units and the army, the matter, saysIndia Today, was "buried".
Twelve EU countries likely to back Palestine's UN bid
BY ANDREW RETTMAN - EUObserver.com
BRUSSELS - Palestine can count on about 12 Yes votes by EU countries when it tries to upgrade its UN status, in a move expected later this month.
EU foreign affairs spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic told EUobserver on Thursday (8 November) that foreign ministers will discuss the subject at a regular meeting in Brussels on 19 November.
Rocket attacks force Israelis to spend nights in bomb shelters
By MATTHEW KALMAN - Independent.co.uk
Israeli leaders have begun preparing domestic and international opinion for a renewed onslaught against Palestinian militants after more than a million Israeli citizens spent a third night in bomb shelters as more than 100 rockets rained across the Gaza border in less than 48 hours.
Politicians and former generals lined up to urge Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to take decisive action to stop the most intensive rocket barrage since Israel's ill-starred invasion of the Hamas-controlled enclave ended in January 2009. Mr Netanyahu is under increasing pressure from both politicians and residents to end Israel's policy of pinpoint attacks against weapons smuggling, storage or production facilities and "ticking bombs" – militants identified with specific attacks.
Threat-focused Iran launches "biggest ever" air drills
By Yeganeh Torbati
DUBAI | Mon Nov 12, 2012 11:24am EST
(Reuters) - Iran launched military drills across half the country on Monday, warning it would act against aggressors less than a week after Washington accused Iranian warplanes of firing on a U.S. drone.
The manoeuvres take place this week across 850,000 square kilometres (330,000 square miles) of Iran's northeast, east, and southeast regions, Iranian media reported.
Iran Launches Massive War Simulation
By PAUL D. SHINKMAN - USNews.com
Iran launched massive military "wargames" on Monday, involving thousands of troops, aircraft and surveillance equipment aimed at testing the country's ability to repel an air attack against "hypothetical sensitive sites," according to its state news agency.
The maneuvers seem to have been planned before Iranian jets reportedly fired on an unmanned U.S. drone earlier in November, and come on the heels of Austere Challenge 2012 in Israel, the largest ever missile defense exercise organized by Israel and the U.S. that began in October.
