Oxford, England Marc Stuart and Pedro Moura Costa have become multimillionaires in a booming new market designed to fight global warming. I thought Algore said that this market was to be 'Al'truistic?
Now, their empire is under attack. Their firm, United Kingdom-based EcoSecurities Ltd., helps companies in the industrialized world meet their obligations to pollute less by selling them credits that fund clean-air projects in poorer nations. Last year, some $9.4 billion in these credits were traded, up from almost none four years earlier.
The markets anything-goes early days appear to be ending. United Nations officials who regulate the trade started questioning scores of proposed projects, from hydroelectric plants in China to wind farms in India. The issue: whether they provide real environmental gains, or are just padding the pockets of middlemen like EcoSecurities. Not typical of Turtle Bay. UN reacting to some other influence?
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
04/16/2008 08:10 ||
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#1
Sounds like another pig wants its turn at the trough.
Each credit is essentially a permission slip to emit one ton of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Currently these credits sell for $16 to $24 apiece.
Powder River Basin coal sells for $14/ton on the spot market (less under contract). One ton of it burns to produce 1.8 tons of CO2. Under this scheme (and it is a lucrative scheme, a 1000MW power plant will burn 20,000 tons or more/day) $14 coal magically becomes $43-$57 coal. The price of electricity is doubled and the parasitic class has sunk another hook into the economic artery.
Posted by: ed ||
04/16/2008 10:16 Comments ||
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#3
If the carbon credit folks were truly intending to help the environment they'd be buying up massive swaths of land (Arctic, jungle, whatever) to help protect it.
If the UN was serious they'd give some kind of credits to nations that created national parks in "vital" areas as well.
If the UN was serious they'd go almost entirely virtual and stop the jet-setting.
#4
They know it's all Bullshit, but it's lucrative Bullshit, so they have to be at the trough, while apearing to condemn it.
UN SOP
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
04/16/2008 13:36 Comments ||
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#5
Related smoke and mirrors story: A friend of Mrs RET does taxes for people and recently had a client who claimed $68k in selling virtual money to gamers so they could upgrade their weapons and'stuff.'
wunnerful world we live in.....
(AKI) - The Supreme Court of Afghanistan has in the past few weeks confirmed 100 death sentences issued by provincial courts. "These people, who have been accused of crimes such as murder and rape have been sentenced in the first petition and the second appeal and the punishment has also been confirmed by the Supreme Court," Abdel Rashid Rashed, a member of the Supreme Court told reporters.
Capital punishment has to be approved by the president before the sentence can be carried out in Afghanistan.
In the past 12 months, 15 death sentences have been carried out in Afghanistan. "The court proceedings are carried out behind closed doors, without the presence of defence attorneys, and often without the presentation of any proof on the part of the public prosecutor," said Wadir Safi, a jurist and law professor at the University of Kabul. "In essence, we can say that justice in our country does not work and the accused do not enjoy any form of guarantee."
These charges have been rejected by Rashed, who said that "all death sentences have been issued on the basis of Islamic law and confirmed by all three petitions provided for under current legislation."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Accused of crimes such as murder and rape
As long as they're guilty, and as long as the crimes don't include others like 'showing too much ankle' beyond the 'such as'.
Gordon Brown directly accused Robert Mugabe yesterday of stealing the presidential election, as Britain abandoned its softly, softly approach to Zimbabwe. In a hardening of British rhetoric, the prime minister used an address to the UN security council to say Mugabe was thwarting the will of the Zimbabwean people. "No one thinks, having seen the results at the polling stations, that President Mugabe has won this election," Brown told a special UN debate on Africa. "A stolen election would not be a democratic election at all.
"So let a single clear message go out from here that we are and will be vigilant for democratic rights, that we stand solidly behind democracy and human rights for Zimbabwe, and we stand ready to support Zimbabweans build a better future."
Thanks for noticing. What do you plan to do about it?
Brown's remarks, to a meeting chaired by South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki and attended by other African leaders, were stronger than Britain's recent interventions.
There were signs too of a firmer stance from Mbeki, who has been criticised for his soft approach towards Mugabe. "The very fact that we have a mediation process like this on the political side is because we say there are things that have gone wrong," Mbeki said. "There are many wrong things with the politics of Zimbabwe."
Britain decided to harden its stance in response to what it regards as a changing mood among African leaders and a blunt intervention by UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon in yesterday's debate. He called for "decisive action" by Zimbabwe and its neighbours, and said he was prepared to send UN observers to monitor a second round in the election.
Good old flaccid soft power at work ...
"The situation could deteriorate further with serious implications for the people of Zimbabwe," the UN secretary general said. "The Zimbabwean authorities and the countries of the region have insisted that these methods are for the region to resolve. But the international community continues to watch and wait for decisive action. The credibility of the democratic process in Africa could be at stake here."
He indicated he was not keen on a second round for fear it might be used by Mugabe to produce the result he failed to secure in the first round. But the UN was prepared to send monitors to ensure "a fair and transparent" election.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/16/2008 22:11 ||
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The Zimbabwe opposition's campaign to force the release of results from last month's presidential election suffered a fresh blow on Tuesday when a call for a general strike went largely unheeded. Despite the stay-away call by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), most shops and services were open for business as usual and an initial heavy security presence was eased as it became apparent the job boycott had flopped.
The MDC had called for workers to stay at home indefinitely after the high court on Monday rejected its petition calling on the electoral commission to immediately declare the outcome of the March 29 poll.
Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai claims he beat 84-year-old President Robert Mugabe outright, but the ruling party says neither man won a clear victory and insists a run-off will be needed. Tsvangirai, who had previously ruled out his participation in a second ballot, rowed back from that position on Tuesday and indicated he would be prepared to compete if international observers oversee the polls.
In an interview with South Africa's private e.tv channel, Tsvangirai accused Mugabe's ruling party of trying to lay the groundwork for a run-off that would be fixed in his favour. "I can tell you honestly that we will not be part of that unless a new electoral environment is assured with the participation of SADC, participation of the international community," said the 56-year-old opposition leader.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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China may have been hoping to garner positive global attention in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics, but the issue of Tibet has shattered its image. A new poll shows that Europeans now see China — not the US — as the biggest threat to global security.
A few weeks' bad press, and China's attempts to portray itself in a positive light before the Beijing Summer Olympics have all but turned to dust. The full impact of the crackdown on Tibetan protestors (more...) and the subsequent protests against the Olympic torch relay (more...) has now been made apparent in a new poll of European opinion.
China has now overtaken the United States as the greatest perceived threat to global stability in the eyes of Europeans, according to the opinion poll commissioned by the Financial Times.
The poll, carried out by the Harris agency between March 27 and April 8 and published on Tuesday, found that 35 percent of respondents in the five largest EU states see China as a bigger threat to world stability than any other state. Last year, that figure was 19 percent, and in 2006 it was only 12 percent. In contrast, the US has slipped back into second place, with 29 percent of the respondents viewing it as the biggest threat, down from 32 percent in 2007.
The poll was carried out in Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom shortly after the brutal suppression of the unrest in Tibet in mid-March. Many of the respondents would have seen images of subsequent protests against the Olympic torch relay.
The transformation of China's image from a land of economic opportunities to one of global threat is seen largely as a result of the Western media coverage of the Asian economic power. "The profile has changed," Mark Leonard from the European Council on Foreign Relations told the Financial Times. "The story of the last five years has been about economic opportunities. The story of the last six months has been about China as a threat in Darfur and in Tibet."
Leonard pointed out that Europeans only glean their information about China from the news coverage, which has recently been unfavorable, whereas their view of the US is also based on their exposure to American popular culture.
On Tuesday, there was yet another piece of bad press for China as Amnesty International named China the biggest perpetrator of capital punishment in the world in its latest report on the death penalty.
China put at least 470 people to death last year, Amnesty reported, with Iran coming in a close second with 377 executions in 2007. Although China has actually seen a reduction in death sentences after it reintroduced a review by its top court in all capital cases, Amnesty says that the number of executions may be far higher than the figure of 470.
Death penalty figures in China are treated as a state secret and Amnesty only used the most reliable sources to come to its minimum figure. The US-based Dui Hua Foundation, for example, which researches conditions in Chinese prisons, has said it estimates that around 6,000 people were actually executed in China last year.
Piers Bannister, a researcher with Amnesty, told the Associated Press, that the report was a "challenge to China to end the secrecy" surrounding the death penalty.
Posted by: john frum ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
CHIN MIL FORUM Posters argue that, directly or indirectly, ITS MORE THE USA THATS PUTTING CHINA'S BACK AGZ A WALL AS PER PERCEIVED US-LED/INDUCED, ANTI-PRC TIBETAN + UIGHUR INSTABLITIES, + MIL ASSISTANCE-SALES TO JAPAN, TAIWAN, + INDIA, even to PAKI, etc.
IOW, CMF Posters fear US-LED/INDUCED DESTABILIZATION + NATIONAL BREAKUP OF CHINA, at the very least CONTAINMENT = KEEPING CHINA WEAK vv US-Allies???
#2
China population: 1,330,044,000
1 execution per 2,788,352 (470 official)
1 execution per 221,674 (6000 estimate based on divination from liver and tea leaves)
Iran population: 65,875,223
1 execution per 174,734 (377 total)
Dunno, give China what's due, but in my book, Iran is eviler.
#4
Hey, I thought the US was the runaway winner in the 'biggest threat to global security' race! What happened - did we stop and take a nap, and get passed up?
#5
We need to work on our menacing grin. It hasn't been the same since Nixon left the scene.
Posted by: ed ||
04/16/2008 8:26 Comments ||
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"What happened - did we stop and take a nap, and get passed up?"
Yeah, thats the point of the story. on the one hand, Gates replaced Rummy, the surge is going kinda well, we aint talked about invading Iran lately and have spent more time working with the Euros on sanctions, the Sarkozy presidency has reduced tensions with France, we're starting to put out little feelers on global warming, the Israeli action in Lebanon is fading into memory while Hezb and Hamas continue to act like bastards - on the OTHER hand, China continues to provide succour to nastiness in Darfur and Burman, and to do nastiness itself in Tibet, and to sound like a spoiled child when anyone even suggests protesting via the olympics.
#7
Chinese thuggery has been shown in the limelight recently with the torch bearers hires goons throwing people around. The euro's have finally seen with their own eyes the mockery that is the Chinese government. They lie when ever it suits them, even to themselves. I'm not saying Iran's Government isnt a piece of sh_t. I'm just saying that finally the chinks have shown the rest of the world in a rather obvious way, that they are just a bunch of assh_les.
#9
I don't know, I'd just call that fickle. Their reasons for suddenly thinking the ChiComs a threat to global stability - being assholes at home and unpleasant in the press abroad - aren't really good reasons for the conclusion reached. There are *other* reasons - the Chinese inclination to partner with tyrannical forces in the Global South like the Bolivarian fascists, the Iranian mullahs, and ZANU-PF, the Taiwanese irredentist conflict, Chinese moves into the Indian Ocean - which supports that conclusion, but they're all orthogonal to the press they've gotten in the last couple weeks.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
04/16/2008 11:13 Comments ||
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#10
The same China the Europeans were wanting to sell their weapons to?
#13
Just goes to show how Knee-jerk the European public opinion is (and how blind it is to the Islamic threat).
Truth be told China doesn't seem like much of a threat to me. They have historically been very insular and very long term in thinking. I'd feel different if I was a living in China's neighborhood but as an American I think we have time to see if China will reform.
TwobyFour,
You're more accurate than you realize, since the Chinese are rumored to be taking Falun Gon followers, removing their organs, and selling them on the medical markets.
I hesitate to call them executions (as opposed to murders), but you can probably determine the number of executions in China by counting the number of human organs exported from China.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
04/16/2008 12:05 Comments ||
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g: The more the Western media spouts lies, the more the Chinese will buckle down and refuse to move. It's in their character.
Actually, the Chinese will do whatever they can get away with, regardless of what anyone else says. Telling the truth about China has made Chinese more strident in its defense, but that's actually a good thing - it serves to strip away the veneer of affability that has obscured China's real intentions.
#16
rjs: They have historically been very insular and very long term in thinking.
They are insular when weak and expansive when strong. Like every other country out there. Don't underestimate them. China started out as a little kingdom maybe the size of New Jersey on the banks of the Yellow River. Most of China's neighbors used to make their home in what is now Chinese territory (before they were driven out). China's entire history can basically be summarized in the following phrase - Manifest Destiny without the guilt.
#17
rjs: Just goes to show how Knee-jerk the European public opinion is (and how blind it is to the Islamic threat).
All Muslims know how to do is breed. They have no industrial base to speak of. And they're not exactly united either by religious denomination, ethnicity, class or race. They are an existential threat to Israel, but that's it.
Yessss, you just need to look at things the proper way ...
BRUSSELS - The European Union needs to grow up and stop letting negotiations on closer ties with Russia be taken hostage by new member states that were once Soviet satellites, Moscows envoy to Brussels said on Tuesday.
Ambassador Vladimir Chizhov said that after 18 months of waiting for the 27-nation EU to agree a negotiating mandate, Russia was in no hurry for new strategic partnership talks. If the European Union needs time to mature, as it obviously does, then so be it, Chizhov told a news conference. We would certainly wish to avoid seeing this negotiating process being taken hostage by certain interests of individual member states wishing to pursue their own agenda that has little or nothing to do with EU-Russia relations, he said.
Poland and Lithuania vetoed the start of talks in 2006 because of a Russian ban on imports of meat and other food products from Poland, and the suspension of Russian oil supplies to a Lithuanian refinery sold to a Polish company. Warsaw has indicated it is ready to drop its objection after Moscow lifted the meat embargo earlier this year. EU diplomats say they hope Vilnius will remove its veto later this month after member states appended a statement to the negotiating mandate setting out concerns about energy security.
Barring a last-minute hitch, EU foreign ministers should adopt the mandate on April 28 and the talks could be launched at an EU-Russia summit in Siberia on June 26-27 -- the first with President-elect Dmitry Medvedev, the diplomats said.
Chizhov said he was not privy to internal EU wrangling but was aware of intentions on the part of one or several countries to load the mandate with certain additions or annexes. If the EU negotiators have their hands tied behind their backs by certain national annexes it would not be conducive to a successful outcome to the talks, he said.
The EU wants the new agreement to cover the full range of relations between Russia and the bloc, including trade, energy, migration, human rights and political cooperation. Chizhov said the treaty should set out general principles of the relationship but might leave detailed binding arrangements on specific sectors to later sectoral agreements.
Russia is the EUs biggest energy supplier, providing a quarter of its gas needs. Brussels is keen to use the talks to try to force open Moscows gas pipeline network to third party traffic, breaking the monopoly of state-owned Gazprom.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Having exposed The Obama's elitism for all to see, the Huffasnuffaluffagus Post gives Hillary equal time:
. . . a telling anecdote from her husband's administration shows Hillary Clinton's attitudes about the "lunch-bucket Democrats" are not exactly pristine.
In January 1995, as the Clintons were licking their wounds from the 1994 congressional elections, a debate emerged at a retreat at Camp David. Should the administration make overtures to working class white southerners who had all but forsaken the Democratic Party? The then-first lady took a less than inclusive approach.
"Screw 'em," she told her husband. "You don't owe them a thing, Bill. They're doing nothing for you; you don't have to do anything for them."
The statement -- which author Benjamin Barber witnessed and wrote about in his book, "The Truth of Power: Intellectual Affairs in the Clinton White House" -- was prompted by another speaker raising the difficulties of reaching "Reagan Democrats." It stands in stark contrast to the attitude the New York Democrat has recently taken on the campaign trail, in which she has presented herself as the one candidate who understands the working-class needs. . . .
But those who were at the event say the 1995 episode fits into her larger viewpoint. "Surprise meter reading off-scale low, Captain."
"Thank you, Mister Data."
Posted by: Mike ||
04/16/2008 19:40 ||
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"There's a lot of people talking about elitism and all of that. But let me tell you who me and Barack are, so that you are not confused. Yeah, I went to Princeton and Harvard, but the lens through which I see the world is the lens that I grew up with. I am the product of a working-class upbringing. I grew up on the South Side of Chicago in a working-class community. I want people to know when they look at me, to be clear that they see what an investment in public education can look like."
#2
Does anyone know the 'real' background of 'Michelle O'?
According to this Newsweek Article she attended Princeton because of Affirmative Action and (according to a campaign spokeswoman) because her brother attended as a scholar athlete (presumable a scolarship).
#3
TOPIX US NEWS > THE BATTLE TO KEEP ANCIENT EGYPT BLACK. Black prof argues National Geographic article is racist and dubious as per belief that most of Egypt's Pharoahs-Rulers were black - ROME also had a black Emperor, hence made more sense to write an article denoting Roma's Black Emperors since most in Rome were white, NOT BLACK AS IN EGYPT.
#4
Got my National Review ODT today - cover story is "Mrs. Grievance: Michelle Obama and her discontent" with a finger-wagging scowl pic...even better, the article's by Mark Steyn
heh heh...I can't wait. This angry pampered elitist b*tch is awesome material...
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/16/2008 20:01 Comments ||
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#5
One always places oneself at the end of the list even yet, Procopius2k. When the group is the subject of the sentence, it is indeed "x, y, z, and I." "Me" is only used when one is the object, as in, "Between you and me." Mrs. Obama somehow managed to avoid getting a proper education up there at Princeton and Harvard, despite acquiring an esquire after her name.
BEIJING (Reuters) - U.S. television news network CNN said it did not mean to cause offence when one of its commentators said the Chinese were "goons" and that their products were "junk". Well then what DID you mean, Jack?
Jack Cafferty made the comments earlier this month on CNN's political program, The Situation Room, prompting an angry demand from China for an apology. The Chinese are second only to Muslim countries at throwing temper tantrums.
"It was not Mr. Cafferty's nor CNN's intent to cause offence to the Chinese people, and (CNN) would apologize to anyone who has interpreted the comments in this way," CNN said in a statement. Boy, the brave free press is at it again...
CNN said Cafferty was offering his "strongly held" opinion of the Chinese government, not China's people, adding that he clarified the point on Monday. How do you clarify "goons?"
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu condemned the "evil attack" by CNN on the Chinese people. It seems like a fair shot to me.
"Cafferty used the microphone in his hand to slander China and the Chinese people, and seriously violated reporting ethics," she said.
Cafferty had said the United States imported Chinese-made "junk with the lead paint on them and the poisoned pet food", adding: "They're basically the same bunch of goons and thugs they've been for the last 50 years." Sounds about right- how'd this guy get on CNN?
China came under international scrutiny following a series of food and product health scares last year. It says the vast majority of its products are safe and has accused Western media of over-hyping the problem.
China has lashed out at Western media organizations, including CNN in recent weeks following unrest in Tibet, accusing them of running distorted reports, siding with pro-Tibet independence groups and of demonizing China.
PHILADELPHIA, April 15 -- Lost in the Hillary Rodham Clinton campaign's aggressive attacks on Barack Obama in recent days is a deep and enduring problem that threatens to undercut any inroads Clinton has made in her struggle to overtake him in the Democratic presidential race: She has lost trust among voters, a majority of whom now view her as dishonest.
Her advisers' efforts to deal with the problem -- by having her acknowledge her mistakes and crack self-deprecating jokes -- do not seem to have succeeded. Privately, the aides admit that the recent controversy over her claim to have ducked sniper fire on a trip to Bosnia probably made things worse.
Clinton is viewed as "honest and trustworthy" by just 39 percent of Americans, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, compared with 52 percent in May 2006. Nearly six in 10 said in the new poll that she is not honest and trustworthy. And now, compared with Obama, Clinton has a deep trust deficit among Democrats, trailing him by 23 points as the more honest, an area on which she once led both Obama and John Edwards.
Continued on Page 49
#2
I'd really like a list of those who trusted Clinton in the first place (Either one)
Seems like a perfect list to give Nigerian Scammers and telemarketers.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
04/16/2008 13:45 Comments ||
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#3
I never had any trust in her to begin with. Can't lose what you don't have.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Democratic Rep. John Murtha says Republican Sen. John McCain is too old to be president. Murtha told a union audience Wednesday that the presidency is "no old man's job." Being a Senile Snide Senator is, though.
The Pennsylvania congressman is supporting Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. Murtha is 75, four years older than McCain. He says they are nearly the same age, and the rigors and stress of the presidential campaign is too much for guys their age. If elected, McCain will be the oldest president to occupy the Oval Office at the age of 72.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
04/16/2008 12:06 ||
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I take it that McCain won't be receiving an endorsement from the 'UnIndited treasonous corrupt political sacks of smelly old shit' political group. That's too bad....
His campaign said Wednesday Murtha's comments were "nonsense attacks."
Considering Traitor Murtha had also convicted good, honorable, men of committing murder in cold blood before they even had a trial, I would say 'nonsense' is too kind a word.
#4
as someone at AOSHQ noted: "2nd ex-marine since 1775 (1st was LH Oswald)"
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/16/2008 20:04 Comments ||
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Some can't handle the rigors of a presidential campaign at 40, Congressman Murtha. Others slow down at 90. Future-President McCain appears to be handling the rigors or running better than Murtha does sitting quietly in the Senate.
Legendary (geriatric)
all-American rocker and staple of playlists on Clear Channel stations employing the "all oldies, all the time" format
Bruce Springsteen has thrown his red bandanna into the political ring, today endorsing Barack Obama for President on his website. . . . "I heard what he said about bitter blue collar men (like I used to be 'fore I got rich) in towns where the jobs all left in the late Seventies, and it's like he must have all the lyrics from Darkness on the Edge of Town memorized or somethin'. What a smart guy!"
So: Anyone who thinks that Barack Obama doesn't respect his small-town fellow Americans can take it up with the guy who wrote "Born In The U.S.A." and "Thunder Road," and "The River," and "Backstreets" and "Badlands" and pretty much a zillion classic songs about working-class life in small-town America ". . . and made so much money off of them that he'll never have to go back to that brownstone in Jersey and the '69 Chevy with the 396, fulie heads and a Hurst on the floor. It's Rolls Royces from here on out, baby!"
Springsteen is and always has been a talented musician. He wrote somegoodstuff in his peak years. (He even got the story of the firefighters on 9/11 right, which a lot of artists couldn't (or didn't want to).) I grew up in Northeast Ohio, and I give the man credit for capturing the mentality of fading rustbelt communities circa 1978, even if he was kinda faking it.
That doesn't mean I'd rely on him for political insight. (Or rely on John McCain to write melodies and chord progressions.) It's not 1978 any more.
Posted by: Mike ||
04/16/2008 11:21 ||
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#2
Don't forget the crucial Jersey college dropout vote! That's who I listen to when I need family, economic, foreign policy, scientific and societal organization advice.
Posted by: ed ||
04/16/2008 12:05 Comments ||
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#3
Springsteen? Overrated half-talented mumbling singer propped up by the NY Press. Decent song writer, but he sucked as a singer, he has all the vocal quality of a concrete truck on a railroad track.
Pink Floyds Roger Waters has attacked democratic hopeful Hillary Clinton calling the senator from New York ghastly. Big man, pig man, ha ha charade you are.
You well heeled big wheel, ha ha charade you are.
Waters, who admits to being a fan of Clintons rival for the democratic nomination, Barack Obama, And the worms ate into his brain.
said that Clinton would invade Iran if she was elected Americas next president.
I was so disappointed the other night when the ghastly Hillary got Texas and kept the whole thing going," he told the Independent. "Please God, let's not have this woman! Be careful with that axe ballot box, Eugene!
Hillary will want to make her mark and show that she can be just as good as a male president, and she will fucking invade Iran. Trust me. She voted to declare the Iranian Republican Guard a terrorist organisation!" The lunatic is in my head.
The lunatic is in my head.
Despite being ineligible to vote, Waters, who lives in New York, said he would buy a whole page in The New York Times in order to fly Obama's flag. Haven't you heard it's a battle of words
The poster bearer cried.
But I would be terribly afraid they'd go, 'This is that pinko shitbag who's attacking our President in time of war', he added. Well you wore out your welcome
With random precision, . . .
Clinton and Obama next face off against each other in the Philadelphia primary on April 22nd. . . . just two lost souls
Swimming in a fish bowl,
Year after year,
Running over the same old ground.
What have we found?
The same old fears.
I'm beginning to think "Brain Damage" is autobiographical.
Posted by: Mike ||
04/16/2008 08:07 ||
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#1
Pretty much all "artists" are spoiled losers that only think about getting themselves into the press.
#4
So that dungheap is living in New York but is too good for citizenship?
Who gives a fuck what he thinks? Waters hasn't written a line worth pissing to since sometime in 1980, anyways.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
04/16/2008 10:59 Comments ||
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#5
Yeah, like anyone in the US got to vote for the governments of Europe that sat in 1914 and 1939. If they'd had played nice, the Americans would have remained their quaint little selves content on the western shores of the Atlantic.
#6
Let's pitch in and move Waters into the penthouse apartment on Manhattan's tallest remaining skyscraper.
Posted by: ed ||
04/16/2008 11:04 Comments ||
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#7
Come in here, dear boy, have a cigar. youre gonna go far, fly high,
Youre never gonna die, youre gonna make it if you try;theyre gonna love you.
Well Ive always had a deep respect, and I mean that most sincerely.
The band is just fantastic, that is really what I think. oh by the way, Which ones pink?
And did we tell you the name of the game, boy, we call it riding the
Gravy train.
#8
Did people ask the opinions of Popstars back in the 50s and 60s? I know in the 60s they wrote their politics into songs. Now they want to posture without even that effort.
I liked Floyd but after the split it was never the same.
1. Drove Richard Wright out of the band.
2. Belittled Nick Mason to the point of not being able to play.
3. Awarded "Best Bass Guitarist" in Guitar Player Magazine for lines played by David Gilmour.
Not much of a lyricist or singer, maybe, but a real humanitarian.
Feel free to head back to Limeyville anytime, bud. I'm sure the Muzzies will give your musical tastes lots of respect and appreciation. As for the rest of us in the U.S. we DON'T "wish you were here."
Posted by: Thaimble Scourge of the Pixies4707 ||
04/16/2008 17:50 Comments ||
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#14
the only redeeming quality about Rog Waters is that his Dad fought and died at Anzio - he evidently doesn't get what those investments are all about.
...you take the blade, you make the chage, you re-arrange me until I'm sane......
Where the heck did CNN go to find a few illegals who pay taxes? In any case, they sould probably be paying tens if not hundreds of billions. They drive on the roads, they take advantage of the medical system, they send their kids to school, they get unemployment and other financial aid, they compete in the job market unfairly, and they export money to Mexico and wherever else.
The tax system collects its due, even from a class of workers with little likelihood of claiming a refund and no hope of drawing a Social Security check. Illegal immigrants are paying taxes to Uncle Sam, experts agree. Just how much they pay is hard to determine because the federal government doesn't fully tally it.
But the latest figures available indicate it will amount to billions of dollars in federal income, Social Security and Medicare taxes this year. One rough estimate puts the amount of Social Security taxes alone at around $9 billion per year. Paycheck withholding collects much of the federal tax from illegal workers, just as it does for legal workers.
#1
As already noted, it's great they bring in billions but the article conveniently fails to mention how many billions they cost us in food stamps and subsidized housing, schools, lost wages for legals, unemployment, medical etc. etc. Thus we can assume it is nothing more than the typical agenda driven, poorly researched propaganda crap that we have so become accustomed to.
What these articles never mention is that it is simply immoral to force these workers to stay in the shadows where they have no legal status so that businesses can have cheap labor. All of the arguments to keep them in this status are the same arguments that they made to keep the institution of slavery: the economy will collapse if we change it, they do jobs no one else wil do, and they are better off being taken advantage of than they would be if we ended this institution of undocumented labor. As I always say and will keep saying - it is simply immoral to continue this institution as it exists today.
#2
I seriously doubt this article. Gardeners, maid, nannys, and fieldworkers don't have salary checks and withholding. They are paid in cash. Their only tax is sales tax. If the Gov would allow us all to pay just sales tax they'd have higher approval ratings.
#5
$30 billion/year alone for just the education of illegal aliens' children, both foreign and US born. That implies their are over 3 million of their children here, given schoolkids cost a bit under $10,000/year to (mis)educate.
1. The agency estimates that for 2005, the last year for which figures are available, about $9 billion in taxes was paid
2. He calculates that illegal immigrants contributed $428 billion dollars
Going by the rule of thumb that wages are 70% of GDP and illegals don't max out SS wages, the same $300 billion earned by legal workers would generate $45.8 billion in SS+Medicare taxes.
What happens is the wage differentials and unpaid taxes are pocketed by a slimy, but wealthy, elite and taxpayers are given the task of picking up the tab for the 12+ million illegals.
Posted by: ed ||
04/16/2008 8:04 Comments ||
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#6
But one indicator is the 9 million W-2 forms with mismatched names and Social Security numbers it received in 2004. The IRS said the W-2 forms with invalid Social Security numbers reported about $53 billion in wages and about three-fourths of that, $40 billion in wages, had taxes withheld
lessee: $40B divided by 9M = $4444 avg claimed wages with taxes w/h....how much tax would be taken out? At 8% (prolly way high for that low a bracket, more likely 0%) = $356. Ima call CNN Bullshit, and an agenda-driven study.
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/16/2008 8:04 Comments ||
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#7
pocketed by a slimy, but wealthy, elite
The people who underpay illegals and pocket the difference range from other illegals running small crews, small and medium sized businessmen undercutting their competitors to stockholders in national corporations. The slimy... comment refers to an ex-brother in law, but is common in the southwest, and more recently, nationwide.
Posted by: ed ||
04/16/2008 8:11 Comments ||
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#8
They may put in billions in taxes, but they take out multi-billions in services, jail and other expenses. Of course, according to government accounting that is coming out ahead! For the rest of us, that means bankruptcy if we don't change our spending habits.
#9
The Internal Revenue Service doesn't have an estimate of how many illegal immigrants pay income tax.
Well lookey there the obligatory No one really knows for sure statement buried half way into the article. This is the authors subtle way of conceding that this entire report is complete bullshit. The low estimate for illegal aliens currently in the US is at 8-12 million however the high estimate puts it at 18-20 million. And all the researchers of those estimates fully admit that their methodology is based, in large part, on assumptive figures. Of course, that doesnt stop the authors of this trash to make improvable projections based on acknowledged inventions. And it certainly wont stop some politician during the next immigration debate from entering this article citing statistics with a plus/minus ratio of 12 million people into the congressional record.
#10
Abolish the income tax and all the additional taxes (excise taxes, gasoline taxes, etc). Replace it with a flat 12% (no deductions for anything) for any income above the poverty level. This includes all capital gains, etc. Treat it all as income. Taxes become simple: How much did you make? Subtract the poverty level set by Congress for the year. Send in 12% of whats left.
Add in a national sales tax to pay the differential. That way Congress has to raise taxes when they raise spending above 10% of the gross national income above poverty level.
#13
Old Spook: I have a better idea - everybody pays, regardless of poverty level. Every penny of earned income is taxed. The lowest level, the first $20,000 in earned income, is taxed at 1%. Earned income between $20K and 50K is taxed at 2.5%, regardless of your overall income. Earned income between 50K and 250K is taxed at 5%, income between $250k and $1million is taxed at 7.5%. Anyone making over $1million pays 10% on all income over $1mil. Everybody pays the same amount on each level of income. The higher your level of income, the higher your taxes (also the greater benefit you get from Federal services). No deductions, no exemptions, no reductions. Everybody pays, everybody is affected by government behavior. I think we'd see a higher turnout in the polls if everybody had to pay taxes, regardless of how little or how much they made. As for illegals, hanging a few of them along the "fence" would do wonders toward stopping the invasion.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
04/16/2008 16:31 Comments ||
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#14
Add to that - everyone has to write a check and actually pay - no more 'automatic withholding'. As long as they have to do something to pay their taxes (and realize just how much is being taken out).
If more people actually saw the money leaving their posession the more they will want to know where the hell it's going to.
#15
If there was no withholding and everyone had to pay all the taxes they owed to the USG at once on April 15, there would be armed insurrection nationwide beginning in mid-February. You'd have to call out the 82nd Airborne to stop the massive torch-and-pitchfork march on Washington in April.
Posted by: Thaimble Scourge of the Pixies4707 ||
04/16/2008 17:43 Comments ||
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#16
Thaimble - the 82d Airborne has to pay too much tax, too, just like the rest of us.
They'd probably say, gee, love to help ya' but posse comitatus and all that, and offer to help direct traffic toward D.C. :-D
(Yeah, I know Congress can vote for an exemption, but do you really think those clowns could get it together in time?)
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
04/16/2008 19:22 Comments ||
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#17
My son used to manage a fast food restaurant in a mall. Most of his workers were Mexican. On their W-4s, they would claim lots of exemptions, so that they had little or nothing withheld (other than FICA). Yeah, its illegal to claim too many exemptions, but since they were already here illegally, what did they care? Then they never bothered to file their income tax, since they weren't getting a refund anyway.
Posted by: Rambler in California ||
04/16/2008 19:39 Comments ||
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Democratic Sen. Barack Obama on Tuesday dismissed a voter's suggestion that when Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton called her rival elitist it "bordered on uppity."
"It's politics," the presidential candidate told a town-hall meeting on veterans affairs. "This is what we do politically, when we start getting behind in races. We start going on the attack."
Obama holds the lead in votes, pledged delegates and states won with 10 contests remaining, including the Pennsylvania primary next Tuesday.
Seeking to undercut his advantage, Clinton has seized on Obama's comments in which he told donors at a private San Francisco fundraiser that blue-collar voters "cling to guns or religion" because of bitterness about their economic lot. Clinton also began airing an ad in Pennsylvania that shows a handful of voters saying they were insulted by what he said.
Obama has said he chose the wrong words to characterize the economic insecurity many people face.
At the town-hall meeting, an audience member said he was angry at Clinton's suggestion that Obama's comments were elitist. "As a white person, this term, the way it's being used against you, it isn't far from 'uppity,'" the man said. "I think the Clintons are getting away with something that they must be called on. They will continue to do it until somebody states, 'Mrs. Clinton, you are really close to prejudice here.'"
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
"Uppity"?
What the hell does that mean? Was he comparing it to Clinton calling Obama "uppity", or was the "voter" calling Clinton uppity? Because that term can be used in a misogynistic context as well as a racist context, although that use isn't as common.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
04/16/2008 11:17 Comments ||
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#2
"As a white person, this term, the way it's being used against you, it isn't far from 'uppity,'" the man said. "I think the Clintons are getting away with something that they must be called on. They will continue to do it until somebody states, 'Mrs. Clinton, you are really close to prejudice here.'"
Why I'm glad you asked that Mr. Typical White Guy Planted in the Audience...
Wonder if anyone's checking that out?
#3
Prejudice: merriam-webster 1: injury or damage resulting from some judgment or action of another in disregard of one's rights; especially : detriment to one's legal rights or claims
2 a (1): preconceived judgment or opinion (2): an adverse opinion or leaning formed without just grounds or before sufficient knowledge b: an instance of such judgment or opinion c: an irrational attitude of hostility directed against an individual, a group, a race, or their supposed characteristics
An attempt at yet another o-turn. Uppity may be leading the horse, but b.o. said obviously prejudiced remarks about Rural America. Met a black dude while layed over in Atlanta - him and I got to talking and he was from a small town in Georgia. We both talked about how everyone knew what everyone else was doing, each had a 'sheriff jones' we were always getting away from yet allowed to get away from, small town grocery stores, church on sunday, damn near everything identical - just a couple rural kids shootin the shit. He is/was a cop on his way back to New York City; I was on my way to see my small town friend who just got back from Iraq. Our fire department sent a detachment over 45 miles away (some sent a truck greater than 120 miles) to fight a fire in tough country as volunteers - that is not paid - for 12 hours and I bet most left before eating dinner (I didn't get to go because we only sent one truck, and were in fire danger locally).
Freshman Senator from Illinois - those I know didn't sit around and hope the government would get to Greensburg in time to save people. We last night didn't sit around and hope the wind would change. We don't have the luxury to hope things get better - hope is something you do when there is nothing else to do, and there is always one more thing you can do. If you do not get that, you are ignorant of the people you wish to govern and are not qualified. If you do get that, you just threw the working people you wish to govern under the bus and are definately not qualified. Small town people and blue collar workers are especially aware of BS artists and you, sir, are a BS artist. You are not a Caravaggio, you are a half worhal.
#4
swksvolFF, you folks (volunteer firefighters) are a Godsend for places like Ordway, that is currently facing being wiped off the map by a grass fire. Another is threatening housing at Fort Carson and an exclusive subdivision west of there. There's another fire in Carbondale, over on the Western Slope, and an arson-set fire that's now contained that threatened the town of Elicott about 25 miles east of here. Two people died in the Ordway fire, and a slurry plane crashed fighting the Fort Carson fire, killing the pilot. ANY ONE of you, man or woman, is more "man" than BO will ever be. God keep you safe and active!
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
04/16/2008 16:37 Comments ||
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#6
Thank you Old Patriot, keep safe there that is a nasty set of fires out that way. Our task force is out again today, taking off work for no pay, to tackle this 20000+ acre fire (at last count, 8 miles wide by 4 miles deep).
A little prayer for the Air Support who gave all. I can guar-un-tee that when that bell rang nobody asked, 'which neighborhood?'.
The government makes 45 cents per gallon on taxes. Oil companies make 8 cents a gallon profit per gallon. Who is raping who here? McCain may have a good point. Either way, he shows he is opposite of the dhimocrats.
PITTSBURGH - John McCain wants the federal government to free people from paying gasoline taxes this summer and ensure that college students can secure loans this fall, a pair of proposals aimed at stemming pain from the country's troubled economy.
At the same time, the certain Republican presidential nominee says Democratic rivals Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton would impose the single largest tax increase since World War II by allowing tax cuts pushed to passage by President Bush to expire.
"Both promise big 'change.' And a trillion dollars in new taxes over the next decade would certainly fit that description," McCain said in remarks prepared for delivery Tuesday. "All these tax increases are the fine print under the slogan of 'hope:' They're going to raise your taxes by thousands of dollars per year and they have the audacity to hope you don't mind." Ouch. It hurts 'cuz it is true.
That was a play on the title of an Obama book.
McCain twice voted against the very tax cuts he now supports; he says failing to extend them would amount to tax increases for millions of people. Gotta sound conservative, ya know.
The four-term Arizona senator was presenting his proposals and blistering his Democratic rivals in a wide-ranging economic speech at Carnegie Mellon University. It's part of an ongoing effort to counter the notion fueled by his own previous comments that he's not as strong on the economy as he is on other issues. He's also seeking to fend off criticism from Democrats, including Obama and Clinton, that his small-government, free-market stances don't mesh with people feeling the pinch particularly those hurting now.
His speech comes a day after he said he believes the country has already entered a recession, a label the Bush administration has resisted even as a credit crisis, a housing slump, soaring energy costs and rising layoffs combined to soften the economy.
To help people weather the downturn immediately, McCain was calling for Congress to institute a "gas-tax holiday" by suspending the 18.4 cent federal gas tax and 24.4 cent diesel tax from Memorial Day to Labor Day. He also renewed his call for the United States to stop adding to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and thus lessen to some extent the worldwide demand for oil. Combined, he said, the two proposals would reduce gas prices, which would have a trickle-down effect and "help to spread relief across the American economy."
Addressing the feared fallout of the ongoing credit crunch, McCain also said the Education Department should work with the country's governors to make sure that each state's guarantee agency nonprofits that traditionally back student loans issued by banks has both the means and the manpower to be the lender-of-last-resort for student loans.
Lawmakers, students and financial experts are worried that the credit crisis might make it more difficult for students and their families to find loans. Nearly two dozen lenders have dropped out of the federally backed student loan program.
Among other proposals, McCain said he would:
_Raise the tax exemption for each dependent child from $3,500 to $7,000.
_Require more affluent people couples making more than $160,000 enrolled in Medicare to pay a higher premium for their prescription drugs than less-wealthy people.
_Offer people the option of choosing a simpler tax system with two tax rates and a standard deduction instead of sticking with the current system.
_Suspend for one year all increases in discretionary spending for agencies other than those that cover the military and veterans while launching an expansive review of the effectiveness of federal program.
#2
What if the jihadis of various stripes don't suspend the war with us, Trudy dear? What happens to the poor Iraqis in the middle then, the many normal people who only want to live in peace? I don't know about you, but of all the taxes Mr. Wife and I pay, the gas tax is one of the smallest.
Adding yet another layer of alternatives is NOT simpler.
Make every legislator fill out their own taxes, entirely by themselves - then we'd be likely to see true simplification.
Or there's the Democrat version of simplification:
'How much do you make? Send it in.'
#4
suppend? suppending? Do the idiot moonbats have their own language?
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/16/2008 8:15 Comments ||
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#5
Would this mean more bridges on the Interstates will be falling down, or simply that the government will have less money to bail out people who bought bigger houses than they could afford?
#8
swksvolFF: Wordlish, that's a pretty good neologism. Did you come up with it, or is there a link you can point us at? Sounds like a needed term.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
04/16/2008 11:21 Comments ||
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#9
Oh, and by the way? I'm not fond of this gas tax suspension thing. Gas taxes are consumption taxes, and better to drop capital taxes & income taxes than something that approximates a carbon tax. A temporary suspension strikes me as something that's going to distort the market without really helping anyone except speculators who are sufficiently quick on their feet. The energy market needs less turbulence, not more.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
04/16/2008 11:24 Comments ||
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#10
Mitch it is precisely because its a consumption tax that he'd recommend it, cause it affects 'women, children, poor'(tm) directly. It's stealing the Donk playbook. Everyone sees the pump regularly. They identify with it, not something that indirectly and unfathomably touches their lives. I'm sure the Donk are too distracted with their fratricide to pay attention, till it'll be too late come fall when he demonstrates the elites still don't understand what effects the common American on a daily basis.
#11
While I can definitely understand where McCain is coming from, I wholeheartedly disagree with suspending the gas tax. Overall it is a bad idea. And this is coming from someone who drives a 20mpg SUV 50 miles a day. Mitch H is right it will distort the market. Demand will rise and supply will fall causing prices to go up even higher, so when they reinstate the tax you get a double-whammy. Although his idea of suspending adding to the Strategic Reserve may have merit, but that would depend on how much is in the reserve. Ultimately, it comes down to reducing demand by different means, I prefer increased fuel mileage of our autos, of course people may just drive more, who knows. Let me state up front, I think AGW is a crock of shit, but I am all for anything that will get us off the arab-gas-teet. Significant increases in fuel efficiency is absolutely doable and wouldn't cost terribly much. I could say a lot on this but work is calling...
#12
I too think this is a gimmick. He needs to focus on keeping the Bush tax cuts, reducing non-defense spending and simplifying the tax code. The donks are against all three of these. Nothing could place him in more stark contrast to their idiocy.
#13
McCain needs to win the election. This is a clever move as it distances him from Bush, shows he cares about every American working person, even the bitter ones in small town Pennsyltucky,, is not a long term commitment or entitlement and requires the donks to pass it and agree with his good idea or fight it and appear mean. It's a campaign tactic and not fiscal or energy policy. And it's a good tactic.
#15
Open up about 900 million acres of land currently off limits to drilling of any kind, and you'd see an explosion of US oil and gas production. Combine it with building the 30+ new refineries we need to meet current and projected demands, and most of the problems we have today with gas price fluctuations would disappear. The current "gas crunch" is contrived by those that want to see the US "more like Europe", or who want to lock everything away "for the future". If the future you're shooting for is one of abject misery for 90% of the population, they may hit the mark. Personally, I think it's time to set a season on "environmentalists", and issue hunting licenses.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
04/16/2008 16:45 Comments ||
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#16
Should have added: AlGore is my first choice of target - a bloviated idiot betting on the stupidity of people to make himself rich, while screwing everyone else.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
04/16/2008 16:46 Comments ||
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#17
Hear Hear OP,
and we should be using Government legislation to block the thousands of lawsuits by the Battalions of Soros Lawyers, Commie lawyers, Ted Kennedy Lawyers etc. from blocking our long over due Energy Development Needs.
And if needed for real damages to the environment and or malfeasance use Gubmint to properly regulate the Industry: by using Bonds and FINES that are proportionate to the profits of that industry to keep the business clean and fair for all the citizens.
No more $.005 penalties on $15,000,000,000 profits if rip-off scams by CEOs and other white collar Energy Scams were any part of the deal..
Penalties for the Officers of the Energy Corporations. If Guilty
Revoke the Monster Homes, Trophy Wives, Biz-Jets, Co Loans, all Bonuses and their Golden 'chutes for billions and do hard prison time for [as much time as drug addicts/pushers get].
#19
I'd settle for Fred Thompson's 2 tax choice plan.
Current system continues unabated. IN parallele, a new system is flat rate, no deductions other than poverty level baseline. Basically filling out a postcard, how much did you take in, subtract poverty level, send in 15% (or so) of whats left.
Choose whichever you want.
As for Medicare, Socizl Security,e tc - they need to be means tested. There is no reason someone with 100K a year income as a retiree should be subsidized for his or her medication or retirement SSI from MY pocket.
(Xinhua) -- The heads of Pakistan's ruling coalition parties on Tuesday renewed commitment to restore judges sacked by President Pervez Musharraf in November, a coalition spokesman said. Asif Ali Zardari, co-chairman of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) leader Nawaz Sharif as well as other heads pledged to restore the deposed chief justice and 60 senior judges, Farhatullah Babar said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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The top Muslim cleric in Jerusalem, Mohammed Hussein, on Tuesday said he would object to Israel carrying out repair work on the Western Wall. Hussein said that the wall is a part of the attached Al Aksa mosque, warning that any Israeli action there would be seen as aggression.
The rabbi who oversees the wall has said that some of its stones need to be restored. Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz said small stone blocks on top of the wall were sliding apart. He said he hoped to have them fixed in the summer.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Working to erase history as quickly as can be done.
#2
The Israelis should just relocate the wall to a more suitable and safer location. It would still be the same wall and just as revered.
It was holding up the mosque? Oops.
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
04/16/2008 8:18 Comments ||
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#3
It's not a mosque. It's the stolen Church of St. Mary of Justinian. Evict the arab thieves and wall repair will be no problem.
Posted by: ed ||
04/16/2008 8:47 Comments ||
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#4
Exactly. It is a joke that the British did not set things straight when they had the chance. Worse that the Israelis do not do so now. It is our misplaced courtesy that will get us all killed.
#5
the wall isnt part of the mosque, its a support wall for the mount on which the mosque (or whatever you learned gentlemen call it) sits. To claim its part of the mosque is just pushing, rug dealer style. Its very simple to push back and move ahead with repairs.
#6
The Knights Templar laid claim to it centuries ago, using al Aqsa as their HQ. Sovereignty in perpetuity? Some believe Freemasons are modern descendents of the Templars, so maybe the Shriners could lend a hand in rebuilding!
#8
A little napalm on a Friday afternoon would put an end to the problem in perpetuity. Of course, you've got to have steel cojones to do something like that. Unfortunately, that's EXACTLY what is needed to deal with ay-rabs.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
04/16/2008 16:53 Comments ||
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Burma's military junta yesterday arrested a close aide to the detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Myo Nyunt, a National League for Democracy youth member, added to the toll in detention after more than 20 other party activists were held as they campaigned against the forthcoming constitutional referendum.
The arrests came as the UN human rights investigator for Burma, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, dismissed the May 10 referendum that is part of the isolated regime's seven-point "road map to democracy". "The government continues detaining people and repressing people who are trying to do some campaigning for a no in the referendum," said Pinheiro. "How can you have a referendum when you make repression against those that are intending to say 'no'? This is completely surreal."
The proposed 194-page constitution, finalised in February but only revealed in leaks last month, bars Suu Kyi, 62, from the political process because she was married to a foreigner, the late Michael Aris, a Briton. Critics of the draft constitution, which took 14 years to write, maintain it is designed to perpetuate the military's 46-year grip on power. The NLD has urged voters to reject the document despite threats of imprisonment for those campaigning against it.
Myo Nyunt was taken from his home near Rangoon; the other activists were arrested in the city of Sittwe as they staged a rally against the referendum, according to an NLD spokesman, Nyan Win.
The NLD opposes the constitution as it was drafted under the military's control, and demanded that international observers must be allowed to monitor the poll if it is to have a shred of credibility. Pinheiro echoed the call, saying the poll would be reduced to window dressing without independent oversight, even though the junta has already rebuffed the offer of help from the UN special Burma envoy, Ibrahim Gambari.
The junta has refused to give Pinheiro a visa to return to Burma following his last trip in November, when he said he believed at least 31 pro-democracy demonstrators were killed when troops opened fire, more than double the official figure.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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NEW YORK (AP) -- Energy traders rewrote the record books again Tuesday, pushing oil futures past $114 a barrel as gasoline and diesel prices struck new highs of their own at the pump. Light, sweet crude for May delivery jumped as high as $114.08 a barrel shortly after regular trading ended on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That is nearly $2 above an intraday high set last week.
Concerns about insufficient global supply, stoked by a high-profile report by the International Energy Agency that said Russian oil production dropped this year for the first time in a decade, was largely responsible for the surge. Oil prices rose as high as $113.99 a barrel during the regular session before settling at $113.79, up $2.03 from Monday's record close of $111.76 a barrel.
Prices at the pump also charged ahead. Retail gasoline prices rose to a new average national record of $3.386, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. Prices were highest in California, where mid-range and higher grades are now averaging more than $4 a gallon. Diesel prices at the pump jumped to $4.119 a gallon, also a record, setting the stage for even higher prices on food and other goods transported by truck, ship and rail.
Prices are widely expected to keep rising as summer approaches. Gasoline futures jumped by nearly 6 cents to finish at a settlement record of $2.881. That is less than a nickel below the all-time intraday high for the benchmark contract that was set as Hurricane Katrina made landfall in 2005.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
When the Fed dumps a couple hundred billion on the market to rescue gamblers on Wall Street, you have more dollars chasing limited resources. The prices go up. The value of everyone else's dollar goes down. It's a bailout no matter how creative they want to describe it and we pay in the end.
#2
Oil is also a weapon is this war. The only effective weapon muslims have.
Posted by: ed ||
04/16/2008 8:50 Comments ||
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#3
Gotta wonder how much of this is demand/supply, and how much is simply specualtion driven by hedge funds and other market manipulations, like what is going on with a lot of basic commodities.
#4
These are not market manipulations. They are the result of the policy Bush has followed for 7 years of weakening in the dollar. The world is flooded with dollars and they are chasing commodities whose value will fluctuate less than financial assets.
Note that the price of oil in Euros is not going up. And the manipulating AQrabs sell a lot more of it to EUrope than to the US. We have no one to blame for this predicament except ourselves.
#7
See also ASIA TIMES > RISING POWERS/SHRINKING [energy] PLANET: THE RISE OF THE NEW ENERGY WORLD/GLOBAL ORDER; + PRAVDA > THE WORLD IS DOOMED TO HUNGER AND WARS.
*IRNA > Iran is demanding restructuring of the UNO, UN SECURITY COUNCIL, agz World-UN harming "US unilateralism".
Inflation at the wholesale level soared in March at nearly triple the rate that had been expected as the costs of energy and food both climbed rapidly. The Labor Department reported Tuesday that wholesale prices rose by 1.1 percent last month, the largest increase since a 2.6 percent rise last November, which had been the biggest one-month jump in 33 years. Analysts had been expecting a much more moderate 0.4 percent rise in wholesale prices for the month.
Core inflation, which excludes energy and food, was better behaved last month, rising by just 0.2 percent, down from a worrisome 0.5 percent rise in February. For the past 12 months, wholesale prices are up by 6.9 percent and core inflation is up by 2.7 percent, the biggest year-over-year increase in nearly two years.
The inflation pressures are occurring at a time when the overall economy is slowing and many analysts believe may have toppled into a recession. That raises concerns that the country could be facing another bout of stagflation, the malady that last occurred in the 1970s when economic growth stagnated but inflation kept rising.
Such a development would put the Federal Reserve in a bind. The central bank has been cutting interest rates in an effort to combat the current slowdown. However, if inflation pressures keep rising, it might be forced to stop cutting interest rates for fear that it would make inflation worse.
For March, energy prices jumped 2.9 percent, the biggest increase since November. The price of gasoline was up 1.3 percent while natural gas rose by 4.2 percent. Home heating oil shot up by 13.1 percent and diesel fuel, used to power the nation's trucking fleet, increased by 15.3 percent.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
TOPIX > CHOSUN ILBO - looks like new SOKOR Prez LEE desires to secure and contract ARABLE FARM LAND in nations outside of SOKOR proper, e.g. SIBERIA + SE ASIA, and ostensibly to help feed NOKOR's starving masses. Speculates that NOKOR farmers-laborers by international agreement could hypothetically be allowed to travel, reside, and work in SIBERIA, etc, for the anti-Famnine benefit of NOKOR - SOKOR can also benefit nationally from such guaranty of [major]outside food sources. ARTICLE - LEE INFERS STRONG PERSONAL BELIEF IN INEVITABLE NK-SK REUNIFICATION.
#3
The falling dollar is a pay cut for Americans v the rest-of-the-world.
When America sneezes, the rest of the world catches pneumonia. It's going to be interesting to watch the expansion in China flatten out and the social repercussions.
#5
Bright Pebbles, according to the latest issue of Businessweek, you British are actually carrying a higher personal debt load than are we Americans. I don't disagree about sneezes and pneumonia, though. You might be surprised at how much Americans have put away into retirement investment accounts, though, which for some reason are never included as savings for this kind of thing.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
with a 100% loan secured against the property investment, if the property price is not in profit then just walk away and it's the loan originators problem!
Banks were really really stupid. So was Greenspan.
#3
House next door to me just sold in less than two weeks - I don't know the sale price, but it was quite a handsome list price. At least fo rnow, and in my immediate neighborhood the real estate market seems to have bottomed.
#4
Businessweek has an article in the latest issue about this. Apparently the banks were required by the government to make such loans in service to the concept of non-discrimination... with predictable results, unfortunately.
#8
#7: 100% of banks at risk of Bankruptcy though.
Not really, BP. Most of the people at risk are mortgage loan companies that sell mortages to "individuals" (I.E., investment companies, retirement funds, etc.). Banks are "insured" against huge losses. Some other people that are going to suffer big-time are credit card companies and other unsecured loan organizations. The losses will be in the billions, but compared to the daily activities of most of these companies, won't be enough to drive them into bankruptcy. Profits will go down, and some banks and lending companies MAY show a net loss, but overall, the US economy will continue to tick. A lot of "investors" may lose their shirts, but the average financial business will continue to operate.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
04/16/2008 15:35 Comments ||
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#9
Oldpatriot,
I respectfully disagree with your assessment, but would be happy to be wrong. See the chart at this link: http://calculatedrisk.blogspot.com/2007/10/imf-mortgage-reset-chart.html
The mortgage-related problems will be in the hundreds of billions. But, the scary thing is that these mortgage securitization activities were only a small window into the types of deals large banks are doing all the time with asset classes of all types. http://www.leap2020.eu/photo/520054-635448.jpg
Concealing and mitigating the derivative problem (notional value in excess of $100 trillion) is the biggest challenge the Fed is facing. The rushed sell off of Bear Stearns is only one of the clues as to how big of a problem we face. The reason the Fed brokered the sale to JPM is because BSC was a counter-party to many of JPM's derivatives trades.
It's time to stop laughing at the gold bugs and buy Kruggerands.
#10
OP,
Your comment that
> Banks are "insured" against huge losses
is true, but the insurers cannot pay out in the event of a systematoc default. i.e. they are bankrupt too.
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(AKI) - The Supreme Court of Afghanistan has in the past few weeks confirmed 100 death sentences issued by provincial courts. "These people, who have been accused of crimes such as murder and rape have been sentenced in the first petition and the second appeal and the punishment has also been confirmed by the Supreme Court," Abdel Rashid Rashed, a member of the Supreme Court told reporters. 
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Democratic Sen. Barack Obama on Tuesday dismissed a voter's suggestion that when Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton called her rival elitist it "bordered on uppity." 
(Xinhua) -- The heads of Pakistan's ruling coalition parties on Tuesday renewed commitment to restore judges sacked by President Pervez Musharraf in November, a coalition spokesman said. Asif Ali Zardari, co-chairman of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) leader Nawaz Sharif as well as other heads pledged to restore the deposed chief justice and 60 senior judges, Farhatullah Babar said.
NEW YORK (AP) -- Energy traders rewrote the record books again Tuesday, pushing oil futures past $114 a barrel as gasoline and diesel prices struck new highs of their own at the pump. Light, sweet crude for May delivery jumped as high as $114.08 a barrel shortly after regular trading ended on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That is nearly $2 above an intraday high set last week.
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