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M5 Readers: Keep in Mind That Political News, By Nature, May Reflect Sequential Agenda
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April  2008 

Cheney's old firm, KBR, accused of stealing artwork, gold, and weapons in Baghdad  "KBR employees working in Iraq stole weapons, artwork and even gold to make spurs for cowboy boots, two former company workers told Senate Democrats on Monday. Appearing before a Democrats-only panel looking into allegations of contracting abuses in Iraq, the witnesses accused their former co-workers of widespread improper activity. KBR spokeswoman Heather Browne said the company would not comment at length because the claims are part of ongoing lawsuits. "The witnesses who testified today raised claims that KBR has previously addressed. The government has reviewed the claims and refused to join lawsuits asserting them," Browne said."

US Dept of Justice IP address blocked after 'vandalism' edits to Wikipedia  "Wikinews has learned that a United States Department of Justice (DOJ) IP Address has been blocked on Wikipedia after making edits to an article which were considered "vandalism". In two separate instances, the IP address from the DOJ removed information from the Wikipedia article about the organization Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA), regarding an attempt by the organization to secretly gain influence on the site. The IP address has been confirmed by Wikinews to be registered and used by the DOJ located in Washington, D.C."

Blast Effects Study Does Not Support Single ANFO Bomb at OKC  "Due to these conditions it is impossible to ascribe the damage that occurred on April 19, 1995 to a single truck bomb containing 4,800 lbs. of ANFO. In fact the maximum predicted damage to the floor panels of the Murrah Federal building is equal to approximately 1% of the total floor area of the building. Furthermore due to the lack of symmetrical damage pattern at the Murrah Building it would be inconsistent with the results of the ETS test one to state that all of the damage to the Murrah Building is the result of the truck bomb."  Related:  Proof there were additional explosive charges

U.S. Credit Card Debt Soars to Unprecedented Heights  "Studies indicate that credit card defaults and related write-offs increased drastically since 2006. Today, lenders write off 33 percent more in credit card debt than they did two years ago ... And as people are forced to use their credit cards just to eat, the problem will get worse. Credit and liquidity isn't the real problem. The real problem is solvency. Not enough new money is coming into the US economy to cover the money going out. And as the Federal Reserve pumps out more fiat currency to prop up the banks, the worth of the dollar declines, which means that foreign lenders will not want to loan us any more money, and indeed are trying to get out of the US debt they already hold, because it does not matter how hard people work and are taxed if the government is making the dollars worthless."  Related: Buffett says recession may be worse than feared 

UK: PG Tips and Coca-Cola among 100 household brands investigated over price-fixing  "Several leading supermarkets - including Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury's - were raided last week by OFT investigators and lawyers amid suspicion that retailers had conspired to fix the price of household products. Hundreds of emails between them and their suppliers were reportedly seized by the investigators ... The suppliers - including Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola, GlaxoSmithKline, Unilever and Andrex's US owner Kimberly-Clark - have been told to supply pricing information to the investigators. Any found guilty could be fined up to 10 per cent of their annual sales, which would be hundreds of millions of pounds ... It could also mean consumers had paid hundreds of millions of pounds more for their shopping than they should have at a time when food price inflation has already increased the average family's annual shopping bill by almost £800." The question is, to what degree are they doing this here?

MI5 accused of colluding in torture of terrorist suspects  "Officers of the Security Service, MI5, are being accused of "outsourcing" the torture of British citizens to a notorious Pakistani intelligence agency in an attempt to obtain information about terrorist plots and to secure convictions against al-Qaida suspects. A number of British terrorism suspects who have been arrested in Pakistan at the request of UK authorities say their interrogation by Security Service officers, shortly after brutal torture at the hands of agents of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency (ISI), has convinced them that MI5 colluded in the mistreatment. Those men have given detailed accounts of their alleged ordeals at the hands of the ISI over the last four years. Some of them appear to have been taken to the same secret interrogation centre in Rawalpindi, where they say they were repeatedly tortured before being questioned by MI5."

Federal Investigators: Millions in Iraq contracts never finished  "Millions of dollars of lucrative Iraq reconstruction contracts were never finished because of excessive delays, poor performance or other factors, including failed projects that are being falsely described by the U.S. government as complete, federal investigators say."  

Choppers sold to Israel ended up in service of Columbian drug cartel  "American officials demand Israel provide explanations for how U.S.-made choppers sold to Israel ended up in service of Columbian drug cartel. Incident may cloud relations between countries."  

Malaysia's ex-PM Mahathir wants Bush and Blair on war crimes charges  "Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has called for an international tribunal to try Western leaders with war crimes over the war in Iraq, a spokesman for the organisers said. In a speech at Imperial College, London, Mahathir called for a tribunal to try US President George W. Bush plus former prime ministers Tony Blair of Britain and John Howard of Australia for their part in the conflict, said a spokesman for the Muslim group the Ramadhan Foundation, which set up the event. Spokesman Mohammed Shafiq told AFP that Mahathir, who was in office from 1981 to 2003, wants to see the trio tried "in absence for war crimes committed in Iraq."

Wachovia Is Under Scrutiny in Drug Money-Laundering Probe  "Wachovia Corp. is one of several U.S. banks under federal investigation as part of a probe of alleged drug-money laundering by Mexican and Colombian money-transfer companies, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the probe. The bank is talking with the U.S. Justice Department about a deferred-prosecution agreement that would require federal oversight of the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company's compliance system, the Journal said ... The remittance industry transmits more than $50 billion from the U.S. to Latin America annually, the Journal said. Most of the money involves wages being sent to relatives, although drug traffickers may use the system to move proceeds from their U.S. narcotics sales."  Related: Wachovia Fined $140 Million for 'Unsound Practices'  "Regulators said on Friday that Wachovia has agreed to pay as much as $144 million to settle allegations it failed to help consumers who fell prey to schemes operated by telemarketers that maintained accounts at the bank. Wachovia this month posted a surprise first-quarter loss as credit problems from mortgages and other debt soared."

New poll reveals how unrepresentative neocon Jewish groups are  "A new survey of American Jewish opinion, released by the American Jewish Committee, demonstrates several important propositions: (1) right-wing neocons (the Bill Kristol/Commentary/ AIPAC/Marty Peretz faction) who relentlessly claim to speak for Israel and for Jews generally hold views that are shared only by a small minority of American Jews; (2) viewpoints that are routinely demonized as reflective of animus towards Israel or even anti-Semitism are ones that are held by large majorities of American Jews; and (3) most American Jews oppose U.S. military action in the Middle East -- including both in Iraq and against Iran."

Japan Finds Banned Spinal Material in U.S. Beef Shipment   "Japan found banned spinal material in a beef shipment from the U.S., prompting more inspections and threatening to delay an easing of import restrictions imposed after a 2003 case of mad-cow disease."  One has to wonder just what inspectors would be finding in beef processed here in the US, if we really had a working meat inspection system.

Construction Begins on North America’s Largest Solar Farm  "Construction began this week on North America’s largest solar farm. Located a short distance from Kingston, Ontario, Canada, the 300-acre plot of land will eventually gleam with the dark gold of some 200,000 panels soaking up 19-megawatts, or enough energy to annually power … wait for it… 2,000 homes ..."

Animals stuck in time, with no sense of time extending into the past or future  "Pet owners, who have noticed that their pet seems equally delighted to see them after five minutes away as five hours, may wonder if animals can tell when time passes. Newly published research from The University of Western Ontario seems to answer that very question. 

Judge: Says FBI and Department of Homeland Security Must Reveal 'Watchlist' Status for Americans  "In rejecting the government's argument that revealing any information about the plaintiffs' status on the TSDB would reveal "secret" information, Judge Schenkier wrote that "courts may not uncritically accept the government's assertion of the state secrets privilege." After reviewing arguments on both sides, Judge Schenkier noted that the government "on certain occasions has disclosed to persons information that would tend to confirm or deny their TSDB status." Judge Schenkier's reference was to several letters written to members of Congress who inquired about the repeated stops of their constituents."

Adolf Hitler doll which comes with a change of clothes - and a spare head with a kind face  "An action-man style doll of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler has gone on sale in the Ukraine, with saleswomen comparing the doll to Barbie. Supermarkets in the capital Kiev are stocking the 40 centimetre high figure of the fuhrer, complete with jackboots, leather trench-coat and swastika armband. The £100 figure has a spare head "with a kind expression on it," glasses and several changes of clothes."   Ha! ... think of all the damn uniforms and accessories, it would cost a mint, and ...  Dolls ... arghhh! Will there be a Cheney and Bush doll, too? The originals have 'Brains not included' stickers. Cheneys would come with a reptilian attachment, and the Bush doll would bend over, and  .... ok ...ok .... well, it's a real-life metaphor, anyway. Too many Lewis Black videos ...

Why Microsoft Won't Extend Windows XP Lifespan  [Blog] "As it stands Microsoft plans to stop selling XP on June 30 (and that means both retail and OEM copies to computer makers). Of course some PC makers, like Dell, have already said they will continue to offer XP even after the end-of-life deadline passes. But if you look carefully at Dell’s plan you’ll see why Microsoft is unlikely to find that customers are clamoring for XP. Microsoft offers what it calls “downgrade rights” which allow anyone purchasing a Windows Vista Business or Ultimate license to downgrade to Windows XP Professional. The downgrade option comes in the form of an XP image CD, which is somewhat different than an actual install CD. Dell is offering to do a factory install of XP from the image CD, which is a nice touch, but you’re still buying the rights to Vista and then downgrading. Thus, when Microsoft shows its sales reports, it looks like you bought a copy of Vista. Even if Dell reports the number of downgrading customers, all Microsoft has to do is point to the sales records to show that Vista is the customer favorite ..."

Microsoft not ruling out Windows XP extension  "Microsoft Corp. CEO Steve Ballmer offered a glimmer of hope on Thursday to fans of the company's Windows XP operating system, saying the company may reconsider its decision to stop selling it soon. But Ballmer was adamant that most people who buy PCs today buy them with XP's successor, Vista." No, Steve - it's because they only see computers with Vista offered to them. It's NOT because they want them with Vista. Most people who buy computers want them to give them the same value they had before .... not virtual inoperability and a system hopelessly hobbled by bullshit and control.

The collapse of the United States is accelerating: Oil in Euros vs. US dollars  "In the last eight years implementing the plans for the Project for the New American Century (PNAC) designed "to promote American global leadership" has backfired. To accomplish PNAC's goals, all threats needed to be eliminated. From the onset, the United Sates earmarked two countries as mortal enemies: Venezuela and Iran. With Venezuela, it is well documented that the CIA attempted to overthrow the democratically elected government of Chavez. And with Iran, the United States continues to use it as a scapegoat for its failures in Iraq. These cold war tactics however are proving to be US's undoing." 

Israelis Claim 4-year old Secret Agreement With U.S., Americans Insist No Deal Made  "A letter that President Bush personally delivered to then-Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon four years ago has emerged as a significant obstacle to the president's efforts to forge a peace deal between the Israelis and Palestinians during his last year in office. Ehud Olmert, the current Israeli prime minister, said this week that Bush's letter gave the Jewish state permission to expand the West Bank settlements that it hopes to retain in a final peace deal, even though Bush's peace plan officially calls for a freeze of Israeli settlements across Palestinian territories on the West Bank. In an interview this week, Sharon's chief of staff, Dov Weissglas, said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice reaffirmed this understanding in a secret agreement reached between Israel and the United States in the spring of 2005, just before Israel withdrew from Gaza. U.S. officials say no such agreement exists, and in recent months Rice has publicly criticized even settlement expansion on the outskirts of Jerusalem, which Israel does not officially count as settlements. But as peace negotiations have stepped up in recent months, so has the pace of settlement construction, infuriating Palestinian officials, and Washington has taken no punitive action against Israel for its settlement efforts. Israeli officials say they have clear guidance from Bush administration officials to continue building settlements, as long as it meets carefully negotiated criteria, even though those understandings appear to contradict U.S. policy ..." 

ACLU Urges Senate Committee to Pass Strong State Secrets Bill  "As the Senate Judiciary Committee meets today to mark up key legislation, the American Civil Liberties Union urged the body to pass a bill that would allow Americans to hold their government accountable. The bill, introduced by Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA), would limit the scope of the state secrets privilege. The Bush administration, which has threatened to veto Senator Kennedy’s bill, has used the privilege to halt several important lawsuits against the government, including an ACLU case involving the extraordinary rendition of an innocent German citizen, Khaled El-Masri ... "The administration’s frequent and broad use of the state secrets privilege goes to the very root of its abuse of power," said Caroline Fredrickson, director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office. "The privilege has been misused and abused for long enough. Senator Kennedy’s legislation will allow for a court to review the government’s national security claims and will rightly reinstate the role of the judiciary."

No spying on US since 1985 - Israel  "Israel has assured the US that it has not spied on its key ally since 1985, after the arrest in New York of a US Army veteran charged with passing defence secrets to the Jewish state nearly 30 years ago." Oh, really? How about these examples! (DOC file)

Chemotherapy drugs more toxic to healthy brain cells than cancer cells  "A commonly used chemotherapy drug causes healthy brain cells to die off long after treatment has ended and may be one of the underlying biological causes of the cognitive side effects – or “chemo brain” – that many cancer patients experience. That is the conclusion of a study published today in the Journal of Biology ... This study is the first model of a delayed degeneration syndrome that involves a global disruption of the myelin-forming cells that are essential for normal neuronal function,” said Mark Noble, Ph.D., director of the University of Rochester Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Institute and senior author of the study. “Because of our growing knowledge of stem cells and their biology, we can now begin to understand and define the molecular mechanisms behind the cognitive difficulties that linger and worsen in a significant number of cancer patients ... Two years ago, Noble and his team showed that three common chemotherapy drugs used to treat a wide range of cancers were more toxic to healthy brain cells than the cancer cells they were intended to treat. While these experiments were among the first to establish a biological basis for the acute onset of chemo brain, they did not explain the lingering impact that many patients experience."

Gore Used Fictional Video to Illustrate 'Inconvenient Truth'  "It goes without saying that climate realists around the world believe Nobel Laureate Al Gore used false information throughout his schlockumentary "An Inconvenient Truth" in order to generate global warming hysteria. On Friday, it was revealed by ABC News that one of the famous shots of supposed Antarctic ice shelves in the film was actually a computer-generated image from the 2004 science fiction blockbuster "The Day After Tomorrow."

Former prosecutor says new spy case shows that Pollard case was bigger than thought  "A former US attorney says the arrest of a US Army veteran on charges he spied for Israel confirms that the 1985 case of Jonathan Pollard was bigger than suspected."

Saudis put off longer-term oil capacity rise to save fields for future  "Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil producer, has put on hold plans to increase long-term production capacity from its vast oil fields beyond existing proposals, its most powerful policymakers have said. In a series of statements, including one by the king himself, the kingdom has warned consumers it does not reckon there is a need for further expansion beyond 12.5m barrels a day, an assumption disputed by the world’s biggest developed countries. The realisation Saudi Arabia will not increase production to 15m barrels a day as quickly as important consumers and the markets had assumed could put further pressure on oil prices, which touched fresh records last week ... King Abdullah, reported by the official news agency this month, said: “I keep no secret from you that when there were some new finds, I told them: ‘No, leave it in the ground, with grace from God, our children need it’.”

Missing Contractor: U.S. Military Mechanics May Hold the Keys    "Ryan Manelick was killed in a drive-by shooting just after leaving a meeting at Camp Anaconda, later renamed LSA Anaconda, just south of Balad. Shortly before his murder, Manelick had alleged fraud within his company, fraud that involved US Army officers. That's the short version of the story. The longer version, as is often the case, is much more involved." 

Impeachment Now Or Apocalypse Later?    "After eight years, the multiple examples of ethical and felonious crimes of the Bush Administration are now abundantly clear and beyond rational dispute. Most compelling among them is the crime of authorizing torture as state policy."   Apocalypse later, if one must know.... or maybe sooner than people think ...

Rupert Murdoch Firm Hired Hackers To Sabotage Rival, Lawsuit Alleges    "...On the hot spot is NDS Group, a UK-Israeli firm that makes smartcards for pay-TV systems like DirecTV. The company is a majority-owned subsidiary of Murdoch's News Corporation. The charges stem from 1997 when NDS is accused of cracking the encryption of rival NagraStar, which makes access cards and systems for EchoStar's Dish Network and other pay-TV services. Further, it's alleged NDS then hired hackers to manufacture and distribute counterfeit NagraStar cards to pirates to steal Dish Network's programming for free ..."

Mentally ill Australian troops tell of bullying and neglect    "Serving and former soldiers have broken ranks to expose the neglect, bullying and bastardisation faced by some Australian Defence Force personnel with mental health problems. The soldiers, who have served in the Middle East, East Timor and Africa, claim they were denied adequate support and ostracised after seeking help for mental health problems."

US Financial Collapse Will End Bush/Cheney Iraq War    "Wars are won politically, not militarily. Bush doesn't understand this. He still clings to the belief that a political settlement can be imposed through force. But he is mistaken. The use of overwhelming force has only spread the violence and added to the political instability. Now Iraq is ungovernable. Was that the objective? Miles of concrete blast-walls snake through Baghdad to separate the warring parties; the country is fragmented into a hundred smaller pieces each ruled by local militia commanders. These are the signs of failure not success. That's why the American people no longer support the occupation. They're just being practical; they know Bush's plan won't work. As Nir Rosen says, "Iraq has become Somalia."

McCain Presidency: Anger Management Candidate with His Finger on the Button    " It looks like we're screwed. A few months ago, it appeared the Democrats had themselves an almost guaranteed White House shoo-in. Now they seem to be sabotaging their party from the inside out, throwing the election to the wind. Of course, the corporate media is helping along this process by concentrating on "anti-American" preachers, Hillary's fairy tales about life under sniper fire, and even Obama's bowling score, if you can believe it. Democrats will not save us, they were selected by the same elite that selects Republicans. Hillary and Obama are following the globalist script and continually talk of taking a swing at Iran while at the same time mildly rebuking the neocons for the mess in Iraq."  Related: Meet the Real John McCain: North Vietnam's Go-To Collaborator "Nothing equals the astounding tact with which his claque on the press bus avoids the topic of McCain’s collaborating with his Vietnamese captors after he’d been shot down. How McCain behaved when he was a prisoner is key. McCain is probably the most unstable man ever to have got this close to the White House. He’s one election away from it. Republican senator Thad Cochrane has openly said he trembles at the thought of an unstable McCain in the Oval Office with his finger on the nuclear trigger."| More On McCain's Raging Temper

The Criminal Mortgage Service Industry: Borrowers Buried By Fees    "Slowly but surely, a handful of public-minded bankruptcy court judges are drawing back the curtain on the mortgage servicing business, exposing, among other questionable practices, the sundry and onerous fees that big banks and financial companies levy on troubled borrowers ... The second illuminating case emerged in federal bankruptcy court in Delaware and involved a problem that lawyers representing troubled borrowers say they often encounter: fees levied after a borrower has satisfied all obligations under a Chapter 13 bankruptcy and the case is discharged. Mortgage lenders argue that their contracts allow them to recover all the fees and costs they incur when a borrower files a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan, even those not approved by the court and charged after a case is resolved. But borrowers contend that because such charges have not been approved, they should be disallowed ... “These cases clearly indicate that bankruptcy courts are no longer being fooled by the maze of fees, firms and flimflams of the mortgage servicing industry,” said O. Max Gardner III, a lawyer who represents borrowers in Shelby, N.C. “The servicers and their lawyers should recognize the clear and present danger of these decisions while they still have time to turn their ships around and do the right thing.” ... Another judge in a different case wrote: “Without informing debtors, Chase Home Finance makes it impossible for J.P.Morgan Chase Bank branches to accept any payments,” Judge Morris wrote. “It appeared that Chase Home Finance intended to commence an unwarranted foreclosure action, due to ‘arrears’ resulting from Chase Home Finance’s handling of the case in its bankruptcy department, rather than any default of the debtors.” 

Food Crisis Hitting Japan    "Japan's acute butter shortage, which has confounded bakeries, restaurants and now families across the country, is the latest unforeseen result of the global agricultural commodities crisis. A sharp increase in the cost of imported cattle feed and a decline in milk imports, both of which are typically provided in large part by Australia, have prevented dairy farmers from keeping pace with demand. While soaring food prices have triggered rioting among the starving millions of the third world, in wealthy Japan they have forced a pampered population to contemplate the shocking possibility of a long-term — perhaps permanent — reduction in the quality and quantity of its food. A 130% rise in the global cost of wheat in the past year, caused partly by surging demand from China and India and a huge injection of speculative funds into wheat futures, has forced the Government to hit flour millers with three rounds of stiff mark-ups. The latest — a 30% increase this month — has given rise to speculation that Japan, which relies on imports for 90% of its annual wheat consumption, is no longer on the brink of a food crisis, but has fallen off the cliff." 

Carter: Hamas will accept Israel    "Former US President Jimmy Carter has said that Hamas is prepared to accept the right of Israel to "live as a neighbour next door in peace. But Carter warned that there would not be peace if Israel and the U.S. continue to shut out Hamas and its main backer, Syria." Note: The problem is that Israel and the US will insist that HAMAS "prove" its sincerity by halting all violence. But Israel will continue as it always has, bulldozing, killing, stealing, until HAMAS once again realizes that Israel is not bargaining in good faith. HAMAS will then call off the cease fire and Israel will put the blame for the "failure" of the peace process onto them.

Army doubled felony waivers for recruits in year of Iraq surge    "The Army doubled the number of waivers it issued to allow convicted felons to enlist between 2006 and 2007, while felony waivers issued to Marine recruits increased by nearly 70 percent, according to newly released numbers from the Pentagon. According to the new data, the Army and Marines have allowed recruits who have been convicted of assault with a dangerous weapon, burglary, drug abuse, sexual assault; in a few instances recruits were cleared to join after convictions on terrorism or bomb-threat related charges."

Business Week: There is no gas shortage    "But Washington, Wall Street, and ethanol and oil and gas companies want you to think there is, says automotive expert Ed Wallace..." 

Bio-electromagnetic Weapons: The ultimate weapon    "Electromagnetic weapons operate at the speed of light; they can kill, torture and enslave; but the public are largely unaware that they exist, because these weapons operate by stealth and leave no physical evidence. Electromagnetic weapons have been tested on human beings since 1976. By widely dispersing the involuntary human test-subjects, and vehemently attacking their credibility, it has been possible for the United States to proceed with these human experiments unhindered by discussions or criticisms, let alone opposition."

Why Gold Was 'Hacked' on April 18, 2008, and How     "All of this is happening while major dealers continue to run out of silver eagles coins . Today, the financial press explains all of this away as a reaction to a"rebounding" dollar. Yeah, right. If that is so, what drove the dollar's "recovery", then? According to Reuters , some "positive earnings news" from Citi. So, what were the positive earnings news? Reuters doesn't tell us. What the article does tell us is that Citi booked a 5.1 billion dollar quarterly loss! Somebody please explain to me how an over $5 billion loss engenders positive "sentiment" in the markets that the worst of the credit crisis "may be over". I must be really stupid for not seeing that. So, to recap: Silver and gold get trounced, supposedly because of a rise in the dollar that supposedly was caused by "positive" earnings news from Citi, and that "positive" news was a $5.1 billion quarterly loss on top of a previous quarterly loss . And all of that is happening on a day on which the CME's Globex trading platform is secretly launched in the precious metals markets, covering all time zones around the globe when NYMEX is not in session." 

IMF May Have No Gold    "Correspondence between GATA and the International Monetary Fund suggests that the IMF cannot or will not account for the gold it claims to be preparing to sell. That is, the IMF will not specify how much of its gold is held at each its four national depositories, nor disclose whether that gold is audited. Further, the IMF's correspondence with GATA implies that the IMF's gold is actually just a claim on the gold reserves of its member nations, not gold segregated in any way from those national reserves. Second, the Federal Reserve, in response to GATA's freedom-of-information request for access to documents involving gold swaps, has confirmed that it has such documents, that some of those documents contain secrets about gold, and that the Fed plans to keep these secrets." 

20+ Vista Features that Harvest User Data for Microsoft    ""In excess of 20 Windows Vista features and services are hard at work collecting and transmitting your personal data to the Redmond company. Microsoft makes no secret about the fact that Windows Vista is gathering information ..." 

Experts see Depression parallels in U.S. crisis    "Events surrounding the U.S. housing crash in many ways resemble the Great Depression, including strings of failed bailout plans and a reliance on voluntary compliance, policy experts said on Thursday."

Behind Military Analysts, the Pentagon's Hidden Hand    "Hidden behind that appearance of objectivity, though, is a Pentagon information apparatus that has used those analysts in a campaign to generate favorable news coverage of the administration's wartime performance, an examination by The New York Times has found."

U.S. Ends Effort to Ban Sale Of Enrichment Technology "The Bush administration has given up its push for an international ban on sales of uranium-enrichment technology to non-nuclear states, a move that will complicate its nuclear diplomacy toward both Iran and India, and could open the way for a wave of new entrants into the enrichment club."

Exposed: the great GM crops myth (UK) "Genetic modification actually cuts the productivity of crops, an authoritative new study shows, undermining repeated claims that 'a switch to the controversial technology is needed' to solve the growing world food crisis."

Afghanistan moves to center stage  "The United States' monopoly of the Afghan war is coming under serious public challenge. Iran and Turkey have been vocal in their criticism of the way things are going - or not going. At the same time, erstwhile bitter enemies of the Taliban from the former Northern Alliance are now involved in direct talks with "important people" from the Taliban. Simultaneously, the geopolitics of energy are inextricably drawing China, Russia and Iran towards Afghanistan ..."

Iraqi cleric threatens 'open war'      "Radical Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr has threatened to wage "open war" on the Baghdad government if it does not halt operations against his supporters. Sadr said he was giving the government a "last warning", and urged it to take "the path of peace". His statement came as Iraqi troops, with US and UK support, clashed with his forces in Baghdad and the south."   Within the next 30 days the Iraq situation will become much worse.  Related: Iraqi Army Seizes Basra From Militia as Cleric Threatens New Uprising

Congress Quietly Repealed Martial Law Provision in Jan 2008     "In late 2006, Congress revised the Posse Comitatus Act and the Insurrection Act to make it far easier for a president to declare martial law. Those changes were repealed at the end of this January as part of Public Law 110-181 (HR 4986), the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (signed into law by President Bush on January 28, 2008). Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt), who championed the opposition to the original law, was also the hero of the repeal. It helped that all the nation’s governors opposed the 2006 law. Boise State Professor Charlotte Twight, the author of the excellent Dependent on DC, alerted me to the change last night. I checked on Nexis and the only news coverage I found regarding the repeal was a 322-word Gannett News wire story from February 1 that focused on how the repeal made governors happy. I first wrote about the Posse/Insurrection peril for American Conservative a year ago. My most recent piece on the subject was an article for the January issue of the Future of Freedom Foundation’s (FFF) Freedom Daily. The law was changed between the time the piece was published and when FFF posted the January article online on April 9."

After 61 years in power, Paraguay's ruling party faces defeat     Several years ago, George W. Bush bought a huge plot of land in Paraguay as an 'escape plan' haven. Now, with the right-wing government teetering, the future solace of GWB there is in question.

Soros: Euro Can't Replace USD     "The euro cannot replace the dollar as the world's main reserve currency, and a system of two reserve currencies would be unstable, billionaire investor George Soros said on Thursday. "I don't think the euro can replace the dollar, and a system with two major reserve currencies is not a stable system," Soros said. The euro has surged to record highs against the U.S. currency as the U.S. economy is seen going into recession. "What we have now is a period of instability and heightened uncertainty," Soros said. He was in Brussels to promote his latest book, "The New Paradigm for Financial Markets: The Credit Crisis of 2008 and What It Means" ..."  Related: (UK) Authorities Lose Patience With Collapsing USD

Oklahoma Sheriff Faces 467 Years In Prison for Jail Sex-Slave Operation     "An Oklahoma sheriff resigned after an investigation reveals he was running a sex-slave operation from his jail ..."        Get'em out, head'em out, Rawhide! Bizarre.

Pakistan opposes US nuke oversight "A Plan by the US to seek direct "oversight" of Pakistan's powerful nuclear arsenal and the command structure that controls it was heading for rejection last night after it was denounced in Islamabad as "outright interference" in the country's affairs."

New Bill in Maine Introduces Concept of “Visual Sexual Aggression” And Makes It A Crime    "A new bill in the Pine Tree State would make it a crime to peer at children in public. It’s been asserted that some legislators can justify making any action a crime–as long as they add the magic words “for the children” to the mix."  Don't look, don't think, don't tell? We think you thought, so you're under arrest. Thought crime is introduced. Which in itself is bad enough ... but since they cannot know a persons thoughts, it's predicated on a logical fallacy.

Top Neocon Calls For Destruction Of Constitution    In a recent edition of the Austin-American Statesman a book review of Phillip Bobbitt's new book Terror and Consent goes into how the book calls for the shredding of the Constitution. The article written by James E. McWilliams features an image of the Constitution being torn with a big bold headline that states "Everything must go." The words "How to Fight Terrorism", are put in place of where the Constitution is torn. The article is blatant propaganda to make people think that the answer to fight terrorism is to destroy the Constitution. As disgusting as this is, the contents of Bobbitt's book advocates exactly what the picture depicts. Bobbitt endorses using nongovernmental organizations and multinational corporations to take over the roles and functions of nation states. He also endorses giving the United Nations the authority to wage war without approval from the Security Council and the use of non-lethal chemical weapons to fight terrorism. If he really wanted to end terrorism using non-lethal chemical weapons, he should be endorsing the use of non-lethal chemical weapons on the headquarters of the CIA, British Intelligence and Mossad because that's where the majority of terrorism comes from. Of course, Bobbitt won't mention that fact.

Documents Obtained By ACLU Describe Charges Of Murder And Torture Of Prisoners In U.S. Custody     "Newly Released Government Documents Show Special Forces Used Illegal Interrogation Techniques In Afghanistan."

Merck Wrote Drug Studies For Doctors    "The drug maker Merck drafted dozens of research studies for a best-selling drug, then lined up prestigious doctors to put their names on the reports before publication, according to an article to be published Wednesday in a leading medical journal. The article, based on documents unearthed in lawsuits over the pain drug Vioxx, provides a rare, detailed look in the industry practice of ghostwriting medical research studies that are then published in academic journals."

Congress May Seek Criminal Probe of Altered Earmark  "The Senate moved yesterday toward asking the Justice Department for a criminal investigation of a $10 million legislative earmark whose provisions were mysteriously altered after Congress gave final approval to a huge 2005 highway funding bill ... The total number and dollar value of earmarks rose sharply in the final six years of Republican rule on Capitol Hill, becoming increasingly controversial as law enforcement authorities pursued several corruption cases centered on their use. Even as their numbers shrank last year, congressional earmarks accounted for $18 billion in the federal budget."

Credit crisis triggers downturn in Iceland  "Few here dispute that Iceland is in deep trouble, perhaps the starkest national casualty yet of the worldwide credit crisis."

Netanyahu says 9/11 terror attacks good for Israel     "The Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv on Wednesday reported that Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu told an audience at Bar Ilan university that the September 11, 2001 terror attacks had been beneficial for Israel. "We are benefiting from one thing, and that is the attack on the Twin Towers and Pentagon, and the American struggle in Iraq," Ma'ariv quoted the former prime minister as saying. He reportedly added that these events "swung American public opinion in our favor." 

Washington 'speechless' after Ahmadinejad 9/11 comment    "The United States said Wednesday it was "speechless" after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad voiced doubts about the accepted version of the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington. "I am not sure what you say about a statement like that. It leaves one speechless," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack."  Related: Ahmadinejad casts doubt on 'suspect' Sept 11

Artificial hormones in U.S. beef linked to breast cancer, prostate cancer    "British Veterinary Products Committee (VPC) member and chemical expert John Verall was appointed to the government's VPC to represent consumer interests. He recently defied a government gag order, revealing evidence from the study which showed a rise in the rates of breast and prostate cancer in the United States, where two-thirds of all cattle are pumped full of hormones ..."

USA 2008: The Great Depression    "Food stamps are the symbol of poverty in the US. In the era of the credit crunch, a record 28 million Americans are now relying on them to survive – a sure sign the world's richest country faces economic crisis ..."

First HD Moon Map Released, Uranium Sites Located    "Selene, Japan's lunar spacecraft and HD peeping Tom, keeps sending stunningly-detailed information ..."  

A New World Order as U.S. sinks     "The US, the economy at the centre of the turmoil, is dragging down world growth."

UK: Suspected Israeli drug smugglers to remain in custody    "Three Israelis suspected in giant drug smuggling affair appear in British court; translator required as suspects claim not to speak any English."

Riots, instability spread as food prices skyrockets    "Riots from Haiti to Bangladesh to Egypt over the soaring costs of basic foods have brought the issue to a boiling point and catapulted it to the forefront of the world's attention, the head of an agency focused on global development said Monday. "The finance ministers were in shock, almost in panic this weekend," he said on CNN's "American Morning," in a reference to top economic officials who gathered in Washington. "There are riots all over the world in the poor countries ... and, of course, our own poor are feeling it in the United States." World Bank President Robert Zoellick has said the surging costs could mean "seven lost years" in the fight against worldwide poverty." 

Brazil oil field a huge find    "A deep-water exploration area could contain as much as 33 billion barrels of oil, an amount that would nearly triple Brazil's reserves and make the offshore bloc the world's third-largest known oil reserve, a top oil official said Monday." 

Housing Woes in U.S. Spread Around Globe    "The collapse of the housing bubble in the United States is mutating into a global phenomenon, with real estate prices swooning from the Irish countryside and the Spanish coast to Baltic seaports and even parts of northern India."

‘CIA Infiltration’ Charges Prompt Shake-Up in Ecuador Armed Forces    "President Rafael Correa’s allegations that intelligence services in Ecuador had been infiltrated by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) have led to a shake-up in the armed forces of unforeseeable consequences. Resignations and dismissals are the order of the day. Wellington Sandoval resigned as defence minister Wednesday and was replaced by Correa’s personal secretary Javier Ponce. The head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Hector Camacho, army commander Guillermo Vásconez, and the chief of police, General Bolívar Cisneros, also stepped down ..."  Related: CIA said to control Ecuador's military intelligence 

Bernanke and Paulson turn to G-7 for ideas to stem global financial meltdown    "In a recent interview with the New York Times, former Secretary of the Treasury Paul O' Neill, was asked how the problems with subprime mortgages could lead to a financial crisis of global proportions. O' Neill said, “If you have 10 bottles of water, and one bottle has poison in it, and you don't know which one, you probably won’t drink out of any of the 10 bottles; that’s basically what we’ve got here.”

Some Classified DoD Assets Are Too Secret to Protect    "In a stark illustration of how secrecy may undermine rather than reinforce security, the Government Accountability Office found that the Department of Defense has omitted many of its most sensitive assets from critical infrastructure protection planning because they are too secret to be identified ..."

Night Of The Living Goyim    "Zionist Jews believe they are 'God's Chosen', although the question of whether the 'God' doing the choosing is the biblical 'Almighty Creator', the 'God of Abraham' or a mere symbol standing for the existence and self-selected Zionist destiny of the Jews themselves is debated among them. Either way, being the Chosen means they are favored to obtain the inheritance of the gentiles and to rule over them -- and that as the pre-destined masters of the gentiles they have no obligation to deal fairly with non-Jewish people or to look out for their interests. The notion that every man is responsible to every other man is exactly the opposite of viewpoint of the Zionist when it comes to the goyim. Putting gentiles on an equal footing in ethics and social standing -- genuine friendship or counting their loss as equal to the loss of a Jew -- is systematically discouraged, even punished ..."

Bush speaks on the possibility of another 9/11     "US President George Bush has said he believes another 9/11 attack on the United Sates should be considered a strong possibility and warned that such an attack could originate from Pakistan. In an interview with America’s ABC TV, Mr Bush said: "If another September 11 style attack is being planned, it probably is being plotted in Pakistan, and not Afghanistan ..."

Anti-Terror Laws Used To Spy On UK Families    "A family who were wrongly suspected of lying on a school application form have discovered that their local council used anti-terrorism surveillance powers to spy on them ..."

Ron Paul Questions General Petreaus    Video  (4/11/08) See how nervous and condescending Petreaus (Betray Us) is.

Senators Accuse DHS Of Bullying States    "A committee has criticized the Department of Homeland Security for pressuring balky states to adopt new federally approved drivers licenses, with one accusing Secretary Michael Chertoff of “bullying” the states into compliance under a threat of blocking citizens’ travel ..."

Australian Prime Minister Faces Cabinet Revolt Over New Terror Laws   "Gordon Brown is facing a cabinet revolt over controversial new terror laws amid concern in the government about an unprecedented collapse in his authority ..."

US banks Citigroup and Merrill Lynch reveal fresh $15bn loss   "Citigroup and Merrill Lynch will heap further pain on Wall Street this week as they reveal additional sub-prime write-downs totaling $15 billion (£7.6 billion) or more ..."

Government Cover-up on the Shifting of Earths Axis in 2006  | Illustration and Website    Well, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to discern that if the one pole is getting warmer, and the other is getting colder, an axis shift has happened. This is the first source I have been made aware of that discusses this, with links. The orientation of the axis has a part to play in alignment of other dynamics.

Largest US Municipal Bankruptcy Looms in Alabama    "They're talking more about Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy in Jefferson County, Alabama, the home of the largest city in the state, Birmingham ..."

Police Remove Olympic Torch Bearer On Orders Of Chinese Paramilitary Thugs    "Communist Chinese-style political oppression came to San Francisco on Wednesday when police, acting on the orders of Chinese paramilitary cops, removed and shoved to the sidewalk an Olympic torch bearer for displaying a Tibetan flag, as the woman's pleas that she had the right to free speech as an American citizen fell on deaf ears. After seizing the Tibetan flag, the blue tracksuit-clad specially trained Chinese paramilitary police thugs who manhandled protesters in London made the torch bearer known to the San Francisco police were all too willing to do their dirty work for them. Equally outrageous as Carter having her right to free speech violated is the fact that San Francisco police were following the orders of the Chinese paramilitary cops who turned her over to them in the first place. This is completely illegal and lawsuits need to be brought on the basis that the city allowed foreign cops to police Americans, which is completely unlawful unless a state of martial law has been announced. The people of San Francisco have a basic human right to know whether or not their city is operating under martial law ..."  Related: Protesters turned off by torch guard ‘thugs’  Beijing

Cities Tamper With Red Light Cams For Profits    "Six U.S. cities have been found guilty of shortening the amber cycles below what is allowed by law on intersections equipped with cameras meant to catch red-light runners. The local governments in question have ignored the safety benefit of increasing the yellow light time and decided to install red-light cameras, shorten the yellow light duration, and collect the profits instead. The cities in question include Union City, CA, Dallas and Lubbock, TX, Nashville and Chattanooga, TN, Springfield, MO, according to Motorists.org, which collected information from reports from around the country. This isn't the first time traffic cameras have been questioned as to their effectiveness in preventing accidents. In one case, the local government was forced to issue refunds by more than $1 million to motorists who were issued tickets for running red lights." 

What Every American Needs to Know: How to Stop the Banks from Taking Your Home    "Politically and economically the United States of America functions as a corporation. This means that all parties wishing to do business in this democracy must follow the established rules and regulations. In essence, all the t’s must be crossed and all the i’s must be dotted. Fortunately for some, in their mad rush to sign as many people as possible to predatory mortgages, many banks forgot to do exactly that – they forgot to keep proper records ..."

Consumer-based society mimicks behavioral patterns of substance abuse    "In last year's powerful independent documentary, What A Way To Go: Life at the End of Empire, producer Sally Erickson pulled from her 20 years working as a therapist in private practice to attempt to explain why so many people, perhaps even you, are so unhappy. The film from writer-director TS Bennett is an epic exploration of a Middle American, middle-class white father of three coming to grips with climate change, resource crises, environmental meltdown and the demise of the American lifestyle. It is as compassionate a film as it is utterly terrifying ..."

 The Bush Regime's Revolution in Legal Affairs  "If audacity were wealth, John C. Yoo would be richer than Croesus. But then, if wisdom were breath, he would have died of asphyxiation long ago ... He is the chief author of the so-called "Bybee Memorandum," the August 1, 2002 document that provided pseudo-legal justification for torture under the color of supposed presidential authority. (Jay S. Bybee, who signed the memo composed by Yoo, was the assistant Attorney General for the White House Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) at the time; he has since been appointed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals)."

 Evidence That the CIA Murdered RFK  "A new BBC documentary supports the conclusion that the CIA planned and executed the assassination of Robert Kennedy. The new video and photographic evidence -- the result of a three year long investigation --"puts three senior CIA operatives" at the scene of the murder."

 Military Items from Bush War on Terror on eBay, Craigslist  "Night-vision goggles, armor vests, F-14 fighter components that could only be used by Iran -- these and other sensitive military items, some stolen from the U.S. military, have been purchased by undercover government officials . . . on Craigslist and eBay, according to the Government Accountability Office ..."

1947: U.S. Jailed Japan Officer For Water Torture   "Republicans have turned the clock back on human rights by 60 years, according to an expert. "In 1947, the U.S. sentenced a Japanese military officer, Yukio Asano, to 15 years of hard labor for using a form of water-boarding," Maureen Byrnes, Executive Director of Human Rights First, said. Water-boarding, a method of torture where the victims are subjected to mock drowning, was sanctioned by US Vice President Dick Cheney last year, and endorsed more recently by Republican Presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani. "Such actions are abusive and illegal, rarely produce reliable intelligence, and cause the United States to lose the moral high ground,” she added in a statement regarding Republican candidates’ discussion of interrogation techniques in the debate held May 15, 2007 in South Carolina. At the debate, all republican candidates apart from John McCain vowed to carry on with torture. "This discussion focused on the so-called 'ticking time bomb' scenario, which is a fundamentally flawed hypothetical and not a sound basis for making policy," Byrnes said. "In this context, references to 'enhanced interrogation techniques' are a euphemism for abusive treatment."

Homeland Security invokes nuclear bomb, as Bush quietly links cybersecurity program to NSA   "Department of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff has dropped the bomb. At a speech to hundreds of security professionals Wednesday, Chertoff declared that the federal government has created a cyber security "Manhattan Project," referencing the 1941-1946 project led by the Army Corps of Engineers to develop American's first atomic bomb. According to Wired's Ryan Singel, Chertoff gave few details of what the government actually plans to do. He cites a little-noticed presidential order: "In January, President Bush signed a presidential order expanding the role of DHS and the NSA in government computer security," Singel writes. "Its contents are classified, but the U.S. Director of National Intelligence has said he wants the NSA to monitor America's internet traffic and Google searches for signs of cyber attack." Yesterday, documents acquired by the Electronic Frontier Foundation under the Freedom of Information act showed the FBI has engaged in a massive cyber surveillance project that targets terror suspects emails, telephone calls and instant messages -- and is able to get some information without a court order. Last week, the ACLU revealed documents showing that the Pentagon was using the FBI to spy on Americans. The military is using the FBI to skirt legal restrictions on domestic surveillance to obtain private records of Americans' Internet service providers, financial institutions and telephone companies, according to Pentagon documents."

World food shortages to stay, riots a risk  "Food riots which have struck several impoverished countries could spread with shortages and high prices set to continue for some time, the head of the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said. The problem is very serious around the world due to severe price rises and we have seen riots in Egypt, Cameroon, Haiti and Burkina Faso," he told reporters in New Delhi ... Five people have been killed in a week of demonstrations in Haiti over high food prices in the poorest country in the Americas, while unions in the West African nation of Burkina Faso called a general strike over soaring food and fuel costs. "There is a risk that this unrest will spread in countries where 50 to 60 percent of income goes to food," Diouf added. He said world cereal stocks were enough to meet demand for eight to 12 weeks, while grain supplies were at their lowest since the 1980s ..." Related: Looters running wild in Haiti's food riots

Is David Petraeus Dirty? Col. Ted Westhusing Said So, and Then He Shot Himself  "The beleaguered military ethics scholar left a suicide note, revealing the extent to which personal greed, corruption and lies behind the policy formation decisions and behavior of his commanders in Iraq left Westhusing guilt-ridden and plagued with despair, which, upon his return to the U.S., caused him to take his own life. As it turns out, one of the two commanders Westhusing was referring to was none other than David Petraeus, the point person behind the recent "surge" campaign."  Related: Petraeus' Personal Greed A Factor In Army Colonel's Suicide    

Mobile T-Rays Ready To Go: Terahertz Device Offers Clear View Of Hidden Objects    "Terahertz waves, which until now have barely found their way out of the laboratory, could soon be in use as a versatile tool. Researchers have mobilized the transmitting and receiving devices so that they can be used anywhere with ease." 

US water pipelines are breaking    "It is a powerful warning sign of a larger problem around the country: The infrastructure that delivers water to the nation's cities is badly aging and in need of repairs. Billions for wars without end .....but no money for fixing the infrastructure."

Secret US plan for military future in Iraq    "The draft strategic framework agreement between the US and Iraqi governments, dated March 7 and marked "secret" and "sensitive", is intended to replace the existing UN mandate and authorises the US to "conduct military operations in Iraq and to detain individuals when necessary for imperative reasons of security" without time limit."

Iran proposes missile shield against U.S., Israel    "Iran's defense minister said on Monday the world needs a missile shield to protect against threats from Israel and the United States. Tehran has joined Russia in opposing U.S. plans to deploy elements of its missile defense system in Central Europe to counter possible strikes from "rogue states," specifically Iran. "If the world needs an anti-missile shield, it must be used to counter missiles and the nuclear menace coming from the U.S. and Israel, which directly or indirectly threaten different countries with aggression and war," Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said. The minister said U.S. claims that the European missile shield would defend against Iran's missiles were nothing but a sham. "Our country's missile arsenal is purely defense-oriented and is only a threat to aggressors," the minister said. Washington plans to deploy interceptor missiles in Poland in addition to installing radars in the Czech Republic. The ten missiles in Poland could be placed on duty by 2013. Najjar said Tehran was open to cooperation with every country except Israel, which Iran does not recognize, to ensure stability and security in the Middle East."   Note:  This 'could precipitate a response' and 'provide the very excuse' the US is 'looking for'. However, in reality, Bush and Armadinajad are on the SAME page in a larger sense, so it IS a set-up, of course:

Major powers plan to meet on Iran in mid-April-US    "Senior diplomats of the five U.N. Security Council permanent members and Germany plan to meet in mid-April to discuss a strategy they hope will persuade Iran to rein in its nuclear program, the U.S. State Department said Monday. Tehran said it would negotiate only with the United Nations and has refused to freeze its enrichment program."  One has to wonder if this is the engineered to not work,/publicly paraded propaganda of "....we tried diplomacy...and it failed!" before a US/Israeli attack goes forward against Iran.

New Documents Detail FBI Eavesdropping On Americans' Emails, IMs and Phone Calls   "Fresh documents reveal that the FBI is actively engaged in the monitoring of electronic communications and cell phone calls of American citizens without the prior approval of a court."

Republicans muzzle credit card victims   "Four workers robbed by their credit card companies sat silently at recent congressional hearings on the matter, afraid to share their horror stories with the people elected to represent them. After long journeys to the nation's capital from Chicago, Denver and Niagara Falls they were gagged by a GOP partisan maneuver -- a demand that they sign waivers allowing their banks to discuss their private financial business publicly in any forum, at any time."

Japan's foreign reserves hit record $1 trillion   This is what happens to countries that actually MAKE good products that other nations wish to buy.

Losing the War for Reality   "When future historians look back at the sharp decline of the United States in the early 21st Century, they might identify the Achilles heel of this seemingly omnipotent nation as its lost ability to recognize reality and to fashion policies to face the real world."

Iceland’s big freeze is a lesson for independence   "The Icelandic prime minister, Geir Haarde, has declared war on the international financial speculators. He claims "false rumours" are behind a recent run on the krona, which has lost a third of its value. The international investors say Iceland simply lived too fast and furious in the boom years and is now paying the price. This tiny, energy-rich country, with its ambitious banks and industrious population, has certainly been targeted by the hedge funds and short-sellers who nearly brought down Halifax Bank of Scotland three weeks ago. So far, the hedgies are winning. Interest rates have been hiked to 15% to hold down inflation, which has been running at nearly 7%. Is this a reality check for Scotland, too? Iceland has figured prominently in SNP mythology as a part of the Nordic "arc of prosperity" that Alex Salmond wants Scotland to join. With one of the world's highest GDPs per head, based on one of the smallest populations, Iceland has shown that small countries can do well in the new globalised order. Its economy, like Scotland's, is strong on fish, energy, tourism and financial acumen. But Iceland is beginning to look like a victim of too much independence, as well as economic hubris."

Uruguay seeks secret US archives on 'dirty war'   "President Tabare Vazquez has asked US President George W. Bush to declassify US documents on Uruguay's "dirty war" (1973-1985) for possible clues to a 1978 murder and other crimes, his office said Monday. "My government hopes it can count on the cooperation of the US government in clarifying all disappearances and human rights violations during that painful period in Uruguay's history," Vazquez told Bush in a letter already sent to the White House."

Recipe for Catastrophe: Climate, Fuel, and Food   "This didn't start with the current economic crisis which comes with the so-called "mortgage crisis." It doesn't start with the recent sky rocketing increase in oil and gasoline. It started with the U.S. turn to bio-fuels production. It has been accelerated by multiple other issues. The U.S. bio-fuels incentives put not just the U.S. food supply, but the global food supply, in competition with the fuel supply. Farmers (and corporate agriculture) in the U.S. took much of the corn crop to the refinery rather than to the food processing plants. Most of the food price increases seen in the U.S up until about a month ago were due solely to this shift." 

Terrorism has peaked: ex-Mossad boss   "The one-time chief of Israel's shadowy spy service Mossad believes the threat of global terrorism has passed its peak — a judgment at odds with warnings by US officials."    I bet it is. How would they know, unless they were responsible for some of it?

2.5 million US children taking Anti-psychotic pharmaceuticals   "Antipsychotic drugs for children have taken off in the US on the back of a willingness to diagnose those with behavioural problems as having manic depression. Even children barely out of babyhood are getting a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, the modern term for the condition."

Blackwater: What American taxes are paying for and why the insurgency in Iraq will never end   "Now that the United States has renewed Blackwater’s contract in Iraq, lets take a look at what Americans will be paying for with their tax dollars. The following articles and videos are a good summary of “America's Private Army”: ...."   Related: Blackwater Bulks Up Air Power Using Little-Known Company  "Private security contractor Blackwater Worldwide has purchased a light attack counterinsurgency aircraft, and over two dozen other aircraft, under the name of an obscure aviation company."

Murky CIA Activity at Military Outposts   "Foreign military bases have served as launch pads for American military adventures. Increasingly, they are also being used as CIA 'black sites'." 

U.S.-Russia row over Kosovo escalates with Moscow aid shipments   "Russia is sending humanitarian supplies worth $1.7 million directly to Kosovo Serbs, challenging the authority of the US-backed government in Pristina."   This declaration of an independent Kosovo was an absolute poke in Russia's eye with a sharp stick on the part of the US and Europe. However this ends, it cannot end well.

U.S. Government will sell deleted uranium stockpiles worth billions   "With worldwide uranium supplies tight and prices soaring, those canisters of depleted uranium in Kentucky and Ohio are getting a new look as a potential moneymaker for the federal government ..."  More psychopathic bullshit from the people who bring you the darkside party on Earth.

DHS ignores civil liberties in domestic spy satellite plan   "A controversial plan that would allow domestic law enforcement agencies to use data gathered by US spy satellites still lacks necessary civil liberties and privacy protections, and three Democratic lawmakers are urging Department of Homeland Security Chair Michael Chertoff to established a legal framework for the new plan he promised six months ago."

The 9-11 Fairy Tale And The Elders Of Zion  by Christopher Bollyn  "One might ask, how could American Jews, a very small minority, be so well organized to manipulate the levers of power and control the 9-11 investigation and process? This is a very important historical question ..."  Related: Democrats demand Attorney General explain remarks about pre-9/11 phone call

List of 272 Republicans charged with criminal activity, 60 of which are pedophiles   "An internet agitprop artist publishing the website “Republican Offenders dot com” has produced a list of 272 Republicans charged with criminal activity, 60 of which are pedophiles. Each name is linked to a group heading of the type of crime alleged or convicted. (Among the categories are rape, bribery and “assorted felonies”."  What about the democrats.

Naval Research Lab Bounced High Power Waves Off Moon To Detect Sub-surface Structures in 2008   "In the lunar echo experiment (more properly called a lunar bi-static radar experiment), the Air Force/Navy High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) high power transmitter, located near Gakona, Alaska, launched high power radio waves toward the moon. The reflected signal, weakened because of the long distance to the moon and back, was detected by receiving antennas in New Mexico. NRL consultant scientist Dr. Paul Rodriguez, of NRL’s Information Technology Division, who conceived and proposed the experiment explains, “Analysis of the echo gives information on the properties of the lunar sub-surface topography, because the low frequency radar waves propagate to varying depths below the visible surface of the moon."   Why would they begin to want to detect the presence of underground structures at certain locations on the moon at the beginning of this year? Is the timing important to another set of ongoing scenarios behind the scenes?  Rhetorical questions, but still something to consider as concepts.

Yoo's Memo Hints at Bush's Secrets   "The Pentagon's declassification of a five-year-old memo authorizing military interrogators to use brutal methods to extract information from prisoners at Guantanamo Bay sheds new light into the dark corners of the Bush administration's legal theories that put the President and his subordinates beyond domestic and international law."

Saudi Arabia Calls for Israel To Sign Nuclear Proliferation Treaty   "Saudi Arabia has called for international pressure to compel Israel to accept the international monitoring over its nuclear activities."

Drug Makers Near Old Goal: A Legal Shield   "The Bush administration has argued strongly in favor of the doctrine, which holds that the F.D.A. is the only agency with enough expertise to regulate drug makers and that its decisions should not be second-guessed by courts. The Supreme Court is to rule on a case next term that could make pre-emption a legal standard for drug cases. The court already ruled in February that many suits against the makers of medical devices like pacemakers are pre-empted."

UK: Child database will ‘pry into family life’   "The new national children’s database will contain details of relatives with drinking problems and of relationship difficulties between parents. The register is intended to identify and help youngsters felt to have problems holding them back at school. It is not designed for children at risk of harm but for those with any health, learning or general wellbeing problems. The highly personal data will be gathered as part of the common assessment framework, a key part of the government’s commitment to “early years” intervention. Critics have attacked the move towards a computerised database - which will begin next year - as an unjustified intrusion into family life ..."

Embarrassed U.S. Starts to Disown Basra Operation    "As it became clear last week that the "Operation Knights Assault" in Basra was in serious trouble, the George W. Bush administration began to claim in off-the-record statements to journalists that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had launched the operation without consulting Washington ..."

Monsanto Meets Resistance in Mexico   "Mexican farmers fight back against a genetically-engineered invasion."

Soros: End of the road for cheap and easy borrowing   "The City of London faces a severe recession and the UK economy is set to follow the US into a sharp downturn, according to a gloomy prognosis from the billionaire financier George Soros. Faced with over-valued houses, mountains of personal debt and a rise in unemployment, the UK is especially vulnerable to the effects of the credit crisis sweeping through financial markets, Mr. Soros said, and he warned not to expect a rebound at any point in the near future. Indeed, the crisis is so serious that it will up-end 25 years of free-market thinking and bring to an end an era of cheaper and easier borrowing, he predicted. "It is not going to be like the 1930s – we are not going to allow financial institutions to fail – but this is a historic event like the Great Depression was ... Regulators have abandoned their duty by letting markets regulate themselves. It's because a market fundamentalist ideology has come to dominate the behaviour of market participants and market regulators over the past 25 years ... and the idea that markets are best left to their own devices became policy.""

McCain Mentally Unstable And Not Fit To Be President   "John McCain's depressing tour of places where he used to be young has also reminded America of his high-school nickname, "McNasty." Even before he was a brain-damaged old psychopath, McCain was a mean, angry creep. Let's remember all the times Walnuts went nuts in public, so we can prepare for the inevitable campaign-trail explosion that will end his campaign to be America's Oldest