Why Halliburton built those prison camps. ICE keeps up the budget numbers

In 2005 Tony Blair said "September 11 for me was a wake up call".

It certainly woke up the US - legislation poured from Congress. The borders were strengthened by the Homeland Security Act, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) forces were beefed up.

There was no new Pearl Harbour, the other shoe didn't drop.

The forces of law'n'order were not inactive. A signal event is described in a post from Sunday, January 14, 2007 Judge gives ICE until 22nd Jan to tell him where 220 plus illegals are from Swift , Greeley Plant.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raided Swift meat packing plants on Dec 12th 1,282 people were arrested. ICE has said about 220 face identity theft or other criminal charges and the rest face immigration charges, The plants raided were in Grand Island, Neb.; Cactus, Texas; Hyrum, Utah; Marshalltown, Iowa; and Worthington, Minn. and Greeley Colorado where 260 staff were arrested. (they didn't raid the Louisville, Kentucky and Santa Fe Springs plants) With more than $9 billion in annual sales, Swift & Company is the world’s second-largest processor of fresh beef and pork. It was founded in 1855 and headquartered in Greeley, Colorado.

Preparations had been going on since February 2006 after several reports of stolen identities were linked to the company. Strangely enough it was in February 2006 that The Army Corps of Engineers awarded a contract worth up to $385 million for building temporary immigration detention centers to Kellogg Brown & Root, the Halliburton subsidiary.

In retrospect it is interesting that The United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 7 filed suit in Denver federal court, alleging the arrests of the 265 Greeley workers violated their constitutional rights to due process. (No civil or criminal charges, filed by the government against Swift & Company or any of its current or former management employees.)

Involved in the claim to illegal processes are 61 detainees who were taken to El Paso, Texas instead of remaining in Colorado for complete deportation processing. Some detainees claim they did not know what they were signing when they agreed to leave the country willingly. If they return, they could face felony charges, but they claim agents told them they would be allowed to return legally.

The forces of law'n'order were not inactive. A second signal event took place a short while later and is described in a post from - Saturday, March 10, 2007 Insourcing by Michael Bianco and the US Military - see no evil....

Michael Bianco Inc ,89 West Rodney French Blvd, New Bedford, Ma. 02744 ( 47 miles south of Boston) is an American manufacturer of high quality leather goods they also make military equipment, airvests, medipacs etc.,

The factory was raided on Tuesday 6th March and 300 (out of 500 total workers) people were arrested by Homeland Security and Immigration and Custom Enforcement.

It appears that 240 were flown to Texas for deportation.90 people were flown from Devens Air Force base to a detention center in Harlingen, Texas, on and 116 others were flown to Albuquerque, N.M., on Thursday. See AP story for problems of dealing with mothers / children, providing welfare.

This was evidently a mammoth and well prepared raid ... Mr. Chadbourne, Boston-based field Director of Apprehension, Detention & Removal for ICE, said it took about a month to prepare the Devens area before the raid. His department is a section of the federal Department of Homeland Security.

About 700 agents were called from all over the country to complete what was the fourth largest such raid conducted in the country, he said. He also said about 60 percent of those arrested were from Guatemala. The second largest group was from El Salvador, followed by Brazilians. The women outnumbered men arrested 2-to-1.

It is of interest that owner (and supplier to the DOD / US forces) Francesco Insolia, 50, of 3 Country Club Circle, Pembroke, Massachusetts (also the address of Leather Bags an online leather bag store) ; payroll manager Ana Figueroa, 40, of 150 Thompson Street, New Bedford; plant manager, Dilia Costa, 55, of 43 Sherman Street, New Bedford; and office manager Gloria Melo, 41, of 135 Sprague Street, Fall River, with conspiring to encourage or induce illegal aliens to reside in the United States, and conspiring to hire illegal aliens.

There seems to have been a quietus in the activity of ICE on this front . Then came the big one.
Sunday, May 25, 2008 - Agriprocessors Kosher meat plant ICE raids result in rushed justice for illegals - top prices for Memorial Day beef for the BBQ

You can read the piece above but sufficient to say ICE (The raid …officials boasted… was “the largest single-site operation of its kind in American history.” )rounded up and 297 faced specially organised courts. Mainly Guatemalan, they required and were provided Spansh Court interpreters. A NYT story at the time gave an outline of the procedures. 'Fess up using false identities, take the rap, 5 months in pokey and go home. You wish to contest , lie around in jail and rot. Faceed with no choice they signed up for jail - perhaps who knows ,in Mr Halliburton's camps somewhere and will soon be off on their way home.

It doesn't appear that any of the plant owners, supervisors or managers have ben prosecuted - for anything.

Until that is one of the Spansh Court Interpreters,Erik Camayd-Freixas, Ph.D.
Florida International University incensed at what he experienced wrote an essay which is dated June 13, 2008. A copy is stored here and here and here at the Sanctuary and Docudhama has an excellent exegisis which it is pointless to copy - go look.

Here is a flavour ;

The essay begins:

On Monday, May 12, 2008, at 10:00 a.m., in an operation involving some 900 agents, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) executed a raid of Agriprocessors Inc, the nation's largest kosher slaughterhouse and meat packing plant located in the town of Postville, Iowa. The raid ...officials boasted... was "the largest single-site operation of its kind in American history." At that same hour, 26 federally certified interpreters from all over the country were en route to the small neighboring city of Waterloo, Iowa, having no idea what their mission was about.

Dr. Camayd-Freixas describes the place:

The NCC is a 60-acre cattle fairground that had been transformed into a sort of concentration camp or detention center.

Fenced in behind the ballroom / courtroom were 23 trailers from federal authorities, including two set up as sentencing courts; various Homeland Security buses and an "incident response" truck; scores of ICE agents and U.S. Marshals; and in the background two large buildings: a pavilion where agents and prosecutors had established a command center; and a gymnasium filled with tight rows of cots where some 300 male detainees were kept, the women being housed in county jails.

Later the NCC board complained to the local newspaper that they had been "misled" by the government when they leased the grounds purportedly for Homeland Security training.

He continues:

Then began the saddest procession I have ever witnessed, which the public would never see, because cameras were not allowed past the perimeter of the compound (only a few journalists came to court the following days, notepad in hand). Driven single-file in groups of 10, shackled at the wrists, waist and ankles, chains dragging as they shuffled through, the slaughterhouse workers were brought in for arraignment, sat and listened through headsets to the interpreted initial appearance, before marching out again to be bused to different county jails, only to make room for the next row of 10.

They appeared to be uniformly no more than 5 ft. tall, mostly illiterate Guatemalan peasants with Mayan last names, some being relatives (various Tajtaj, Xicay, Sajché, Sologüí...), some in tears; others with faces of worry, fear, and embarrassment. They all spoke Spanish, a few rather laboriously.

But the most telling thing is it became apparent what was really going on ...

It is no secret that the Postville ICE raid was a pilot operation, to be replicated elsewhere, with kinks ironed out after lessons learned. Next time, "fast-tracking" will be even more relentless.
Never before has illegal immigration been criminalized in this fashion. It is no longer enough to deport them: we first have to put them in chains.

At first sight it may seem absurd to take productive workers and keep them in jail at taxpayers' expense. But the economics and politics of the matter are quite different from such rational assumptions.

A quick look at the ICE Fiscal Year 2007 Annual Report (www.ice.gov) shows an agency that has grown to 16,500 employees and a $5 billion annual budget, since it was formed under Homeland Security in March 2003, "as a law enforcement agency for the post-9/11 era, to integrate enforcement authorities against criminal and terrorist activities, including the fights against human trafficking and smuggling, violent transnational gangs and sexual predators who prey on children" (17).

No doubt, ICE fulfills an extremely important and noble duty. The question is why tarnish its stellar reputation by targeting harmless illegal workers.

The answer is economics and politics. After 9/11 we had to create a massive force with readiness "to prevent, prepare for and respond to a wide range of catastrophic incidents, including terrorist attacks, natural disasters, pandemics and other such significant events that require large-scale government and law enforcement response" (23). The problem is that disasters, criminality, and terrorism do not provide enough daily business to maintain the readiness and muscle tone of this expensive force.

For example, "In FY07, ICE human trafficking investigations resulted in 164 arrests and 91 convictions" (17). Terrorism related arrests were not any more substantial. The real numbers are in immigration: "In FY07, ICE removed 276,912 illegal aliens" (4). ICE is under enormous pressure to turn out statistical figures that might justify a fair utilization of its capabilities, resources, and ballooning budget.

One fascinating item is that ..."There were 697 arrest warrants, but late-shift workers had not arrived, so "only" 390 were arrested: 314 men and 76 women; 290 Guatemalans, 93 Mexicans, four Ukrainians, and three Israelis who were not seen in court. "

The three Israelis were actually Rabbis who have to be present at the slaughter to provide the necessary kosher authority. It appears that they, like the whole of the plant management escaped prosecution.

So it goes on ...boston.com 16th July 2008 Immigration agents arrest 31 in courthouse sweep
Associated Press
About 20 cleaning workers from Central and South America remained in custody Wednesday after a sweep of six Rhode Island courthouses that targeted illegal immigrants, including some who investigators said used fake names and Social Security numbers to get hired.

"Simply put, illegal aliens using fake documents to work in the United States are a vulnerability to sensitive security sites," said Bruce Foucart, special-agent-in-charge of ICE's Office of Investigations in Boston.

Just to provide another perspective on the Postville incident here is a report on a far right blog ... White Reference ... "According to the search warrant application and affidavit dated May 9th, federal officials relied on a variety of sources, including former employees and at least one undercover source who wore a wire and became an employee of the plant at ICE's request. "

But as I disclosed in my previous post on this raid, *** see pic some pro-white activists affiliated with a local Klan organization were also reportedly involved in the takedown. They not only flooded ICE with complaints, but several volunteered to hire on at the plant and report on the activities from the inside.

This was also posted on another website of the far right , VNN Forum "Since August of 07 members of the Fraternal White Knights and the Iowa Knight riders along with members of the Aryan Werwulfe Brotherhood have been constantly calling ICE on the Postville plant here in Ia. When they demanded proof of illegals working in the jew owned plant, we sent members in to work there and gather that info. The results after many hard months of dedication paid off today and we hope they also get to the other plants we told them about."

Are they telling the truth ?

Sacramento Library has racked up US$4.6Mn unpaid fines (and counting) is this a world record ?

A Sacramento County grand jury in March was investigating the management of the library, They were told that US $2.5 million was due in unpaid fines.
A " revised assessment" comes in an agenda item released today in advance of the library board's monthly meeting, scheduled for next Thursday.

The report says library officials told the grand jury that there was a total of $2.7 million in unpaid fines and materials that had not been returned, but that "upon performing data review and error checking, a large error reflecting a negative amount owed of -$1.6 million was corrected...

"The analysis indicated that the corrected amount total owed by customers was $4.3 million," and additional checking shows the actual amount is now $4.6 million, the report says. They had (in April) 114,000 overdue users see report online.

The grand jury's report criticized library management for credit card abuses, questionable travel expenses and excessive use of consultants, in addition to what it reported at the time was $2.5 million in unpaid fines.

Library director Anne Marie Gold, (at US$145,000 per annum since 2002 ) was accusing of ignoring library employees who tried to warn officials about an alleged billing and kickback scheme. the grand Jury said she "failed to adequately safeguard public funds, and advised the library board that oversees library operations to "seriously consider removing" her from her position. (see biog.)

Facts about Librarians : It was a librarian who married George Bush, Philip Larkin was a librarian , Philip Larkin's dad admired Germany , attended 2 Nuremberg rallies and had a statue of Hitler on his mantlepiece ... George Bush's grandad read books as well.

Plans are already afoot for a George Bush Memorial Library - they can't have his books yet , he still has some left to colour in.

Klimov jet engine sales pitch reaches a climax at Farmborough

How the cunning Russkis sell their jet engines at Farnborough...ooops adults only, are you over ..er.. 21 ? You don't look it, take a peek anyway..Just watch that "cobra " strike on those big , powerful thrusting jets, screaming sidewinding on a "Cobra" strike as the missile fails to penetrate the Sukoi jockey's airspace ..oooh

Thank goodness the authorities have stopped all that. Let's hope BAE don't do any of that sort of thing .. or did for the Al Yamamah .. Typhoon deals.

PS : Boeing say Dreamliner's OK, doing fine, OK, no weight problems, certainly not on the stretch versions, no problems... share price is well up in a bad week...
Maybe it was US$119 a year ago.737 sales are booming ... A380..coming to New York, San Francisco, superb luxury Emirates .. fluff man, I'm telling you fluff. Passenger mile seat costs are lower .. don't give me that BS man..the tanker deal is ours ..nudge, nudge , Know what I mean ?

It's a strong bet that Boeing and Airbus don't use tactics like the Klimov...

Dwain Chambers not on GB team ....Hooray.Does that mean there are no drug fuelled GB athletes - No

The best news for athletes everywhere for some time. 30 year old sprinter and failed wannabe RL star, Dwain Chambers failed to have a lifetime suspension from the Olympics lifted by a London judge today. He won't be allowed to run for Britain in Peking next month - unless he successfully appeals the ruling.

Pity the ruling came from a Judge and not the pompous blazers who run sport today.

Chambers, was banned from the Olympic team in 2003 for taking steroids. He went to the High Court in London after winning the 100 metres in last weekend's trials in Birmingham. The top two finishers there are usually selected for the U.K. Olympic team.

Chambers wanted an injunction to be able to run and Justice Colin Mackay and the court was ``not convinced'' by his arguments. The ruling can be appealed. Jonathan Crystal, Chambers's lawyer, didn't comment as he left the court.

Chambers was the first athlete to be banned for testing positive for THG, the designer steroid distributed by Balco, the California-based Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative that has been at the center of a U.S. probe of drug use by top athletes.

He was also stripped of his 2002 European 100-meter title and had his British 100-meter record of 9.86 seconds annulled.

Victor Conte , the Balco guru chemist revealed that Chambers, who tested positive for the designer steroid tetrahydrogestrinone (THG) in 2003, actually took seven banned substances. The others were a testo-sterone/epitestosterone cream, EPO, insulin, human growth hormone, modafinil and liothyronine. Conte, who served a jail term for distributing steroids in 2005, previously limited himself to saying he gave Chambers “the full enchilada” of drugs.

Beautiful actresses, betrayal, double dealing, Mossad chief blabbed about double agent."Egyptian Flu" stops double talk about Al Yamamah

Egyptian film star Soad Mohamed Hosny (سعاد محمد حسني) was taping her fascinating diaries. Alone at the age of 58 , her body was found on a London sidewalk in front of 'Stuart Tower' (105 Maida Vale), June 1, 2001.

Overweight, a result of spinal disease and medication , troubled with financial probems she allegedly jumped off the balcony of her friend’s sixth floor apartment.

Wire netting on the balcony had been cut, she had one shoe on , the other was in the bedroom - had she been dragged and thrown off the balcony ? A British coroner’s inquest ruled that it was suicide and the case was closed.

She was buried in Egypt . The tapes she was using to record the fascinating memoirs of a much loved young and beautiful actress who mingled with the high society of Egypt remain (as yet) undiscovered.

The First mysterious murder of an Egyptian

They may perhaps have shed some light on the mysterious and brutal murder of Major General Ali Shafik who also lived in London with glamorous with his glamorous wife, a singer Maha Sabry. Major General Ali Shafik was also head of the field marshal Abdel Hakim Amer’s office, who worked closely with Egyptian chief-of-staff Saad el Shazly in preparations for the Yom Kippur war.

It was the smell of his ten day old corpse that alerted the housekeeper of his his rented apartment in 133 Harley Street, London on Tuesday the 5th of July 1977 . Marylebone police station received a phone call from the house keeper who opened the door of the house after the weekend to find the terrible smell of the decayed apartment owner’s body lying in a pond of blood.

Ali Shafik was found dead, killed, he was dressed in full suit, the apartment was a blood messy, Shafik, an big man and ex boxer had struggled with his attacker(s) , he was hit with heavy item,, crushing his skull, and he had been stabbed many times.

In his right hand he was clutching a small suitcase. It contained one million pounds sterling.

The third mysterious murder of an Egyptian

Which is why there was such litle official interest in the apparent de-fenestration of 63 year old Ashraf Marwan, the son-in-law of the late President Gamel Abdel Nasser, found dead beneath his fourth-floor flat in Carlton House Terrace on June 27th 2007.

He was also the seller of a minor interest in Chelsea Harbour, owners of Chelsea Football Club , friend of their owner Ken Bates . he was also associated with rich gangsters, Adnan Khashoggi***, Tiny Rowland and even the Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi.

Police were treating the case as murder but nothing has surfaced.. until a nasty little spat has just surfaced amongst Mossad spies.

Marwan, was fingered by Harold Bloom in his book Eve of Destruction The Untold Story of the Yom Kippur War as a double agent stringing his Israeli contact along, telling them what they wanted or needed to believe, until the last hours before the shooting started. Son in law of Gamal Nasser he was also part of the gilded and rich inner circle of his successor, Anwar Sadat, who started the massively successful Yom Kippur war , 4 years earlier.

The Egyptian chief-of-staff Saad el Shazly developed his own concept of a limited war in which Egypt would seize positions; Israel would then have to counteract, with Egypt then bleeding its enemy dry.

A postwar Israeli inquiry commission said that there was a “ source”, that had been a closely guarded secret. Evidence pointed towards someone high in the Egyptian Establishment.

Israeli storytellers say Marwan was a “walk-in” who entered an Israeli embassy in Europe and offered his services in 1969.

The truth is that Marwan had come to London, ostensibly to consult a Harley Street doctor about a stomach ailment. The doctor he had chosen had offices that had been used previously for a covert meeting between King Hussein of Jordan and the general director of the Israeli prime minister's office.

Along with his X-rays, Marwan handed the doctor a file crammed with official Egyptian state documents. He wanted them delivered to the Israeli Embassy in London

Extensive checks convinced Mossad that he was not a double agent. Marwan was contacted by the Mossad in the champagne bar at Harrods, a shop, now owned by Mr Mohamed Fayed.

In the ensuing years Mr Marwan provided information on Egypt and the Arab world that Moshe Dayan, the Israeli Defence Minister, and others would later term priceless. Because of him he warned of the Yom Kippur war - 6 months too early. The Israeli army was mobilised - then stood down, he warned again. The Army and reserves were not called up.

Some believed that he was a double agent.

Mr Marwan denied the claims. he laughed at them claiming that he had never worked for the intelligence communities on any side. He was a simple, hard working business man, who just had a lot of money - said to be over £400 Mn.

Gamal Mubarak, the president's son and possible successor, and Omar Suleiman, the head of the Egyptian intelligence service, attended Marwan's funeral. Sheik Mohammad Seyed Tantawi, Egypt's highest-ranking imam, led the prayers over the coffin, covered with an Egyptian flag.

On the following day, in response to reporters' questions, President Hosni Mubarak called Marwan "a patriot," . "He carried out patriotic acts which it is not yet time to reveal."

His sister saw him some days before his death and said he was well and in good spirits. He was said to be writing a book, but no manuscript has been found.

That's 2 books unwritten, unpublished, unread.

Now we hear that The Shin Bet security service and the Israel Police are investigatingMilitary Intelligence (MI) chief Eli Zeira. Mongers of rumours say he is suspected of disclosing state secrets.

The state secret is that he revealed the name of Ashraf Marwan as a Mossad agent.

Deputy State Prosecutor Shai Nitzan, took over the case after Attorney General Menachem Mazuz recused himself for fear of the appearance of a conflict of interest, in light of his family connection with one of the figures associated with the case. Media restrictions have been eased since Haartez newspaper obtained the removal of 4 month gag order, started 2 months ago in Petah Tikva Magistrate's Court.

It seems that 2 former officers from the Israel Defense Forces' intelligence section, Brigadier General Amos Gilboa (President Shamir's first Advisor on Arab Affairs and co-founder of Jewish People Policy Planning Institute ) and Colonel Yossi Langotsky, filed a complaint against Zeira over four years ago. So did Mossad chief Zvi Zamir.

Zeira implied and explicitly stated to Israeli and foreign journalists that Ashraf Marwan was the Mossad agent who informed Israel about Egypt's plans to attack Israel on October 6, 1973. Zeira claimed that Marwan was a double agent who deceived Israel. This apparently happened at "some time in the 90's".
Dr. Aharon Bregman, an Israeli historian who teaches at King's College London in an interview to the Egyptian daily Al Ahram. in late 2002 was the first to reveal Marwan's role.

In claims for libel against Zamir by Zeira in June 2007, former Supreme Court justice Theodor Or found for the Zamir, ruling that Zeira had indeed leaked Marwan's name.

Last year after Marwan's death, Zamir said he had no doubt that Marwan had killed himself because of Zeira's disclosures. He did not of course mention or suggest that Marwan had any contact with BAE and the hideous prospective revelations of Swiss bank accounts and the Al-Yamamah deal.

*** Jonathan Aitken MP and Defence Minister for procurement was very much invoved with the BAE Al Yamamah deal. Petrina b.1981 was his daughter by Adnan Kashoggi's (ex) wife Soraya (AKA Sandra Jarvis- Daley from Leicester ). This was only made clear to Jonathan when she was 16 and proven with DNA tests. Adnan's's sister Samira (other of Dodi) was the first wife of Mohamed al Fayed whose revelations of Aitkens meetings at the Ritz (which he owned) led to Aitken's downfall, imprisonment and finding God.

Tiny Rowland was sometime friend of Mohamed al Fayed amd sometime enemy and played dirty poker throughout Africa.

Mohamed al Fayed has been married to gorgeous blonde , former Finnish model and wannabe Miss Suomi Heini Wathén since 1985 and has four living children by her: Jasmine (who has one child, Delilah), Karim, Camilla and Omar.

"We don’t have the luxury to have the debate we’ve been having about should we talk, should we not talk; the—the time for diplomacy here is rapidly coming to an end.”
—Elizabeth Cheney, former deputy secretary of state for Near East affairs (and daughter of VP and war criminal Dick Cheney, AIPAC Policy Conference Round Table, June 2, 2008

Dick Cheney publicly accused House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) of "bad behavior" for visiting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Elizabeth Cheney supported her dad and published an op-ed in the April 12, 2007 Washington Post. She argued that "conducting diplomacy with the regime in Damascus while they kill Lebanese democrats is not only irresponsible, it is shameful." She added: "Talking to the Syrians emboldens and rewards them at the expense of America and our allies in the Middle East. It hasn't and won't change their behavior. They are an outlaw regime and should be isolated."

Elizabeth (the Cheney child who digs heterosexual sex - and boy do we dig her ) is married to Philip Perry (m. 1993), at one time the general counsel for the White House Office of Management and Budget and very, very, very bright. He was involved on regulating the chemical industry. Post 9/11 there were concerns on safety - Environmental Protection Agency staff felt such fears even more acutely: agency data shows over 700 sites across the country could potentially kill or injure 100,000 or more people if attacked.

He told a meeting finalising legislation to grant regulatory authority over chemical security to the EPA. “If you send up this legislation,” he told the gathering, “it will be dead on arrival on the Hill.”

He left to lobby for the Washington law firm , Latham & Watkins - No 2 in American Lawyers List (he stated his legal life there along with a man called Chertoff who has miracle guts with feelings - both of them are also members of the conservative Federalist Society) that represents the American Chemistry Council, and also strong-arming the Department of Homeland Security for Lockheed Martin and General Electric.

Then Perry is back with the Administration as general counsel for the Department of Homeland Security, he gained authority for DHS to oversee chemical plant security. (see this)

So that's good news for the US Chemical Industry.

It was only in January last year that Perry stepped down as general counsel of the Department of Homeland Security and returned to Latham & Watkins. Elizabeth Cheney, Perry’s wife, had given birth to the couple’s fifth child in July 2006. Chertofff had gut feeling agian and supported Perry’s “decision to put his family first.” But there were other reasons for Philip Perry to leave government, too. After all, he’d done what he came to do.

Families - where would we be without 'em?

Send Karl Rove to Jail

Linda T. Sánchez is the Chairwoman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law. Linda is one angry lady.

Karl Rove's attorney sent the House Judiciary Committee a letter stating that Rove will not be attending a hearing that he has been subpoenaed for on July 10th, citing executive privilege. Instead he went abroad on a "long planned trip".

The Committee want to ask him a few questions about the way the Department of Justice fired some Attorneys - which resulted in Mr Gonzalez spending more time with his family.

Linda has ruled that they do not accept his claims for such privilege.

There are 2 ways for the Committe to move..

1. They can do nothing.
2. They can rule him in contempt and throw him in jail.

Robert Greenwald sent me this video explaining why they should throw him in jail.... he is also pimping his first Meet the Bloggers show which airs at 1pm ET / 10am PT, the first episode ever will be a discussion with bloggers Marcy Wheeler(FireDogLake.com), Liliana Segura (AlterNet.org), Baratunde Thurston (JackandJillPolitics.com), and special guest Arianna Huffington .They will be considering why Rove should be in the slammer.

This is not just some BJ in the Oval Office, this is how the Bush Administration have seized control over the Executive "Scooter" Libby got a jail term even after a Presidential pardon.. Rove is another crook .. the Internet offers bloggers a chance to get their views heard, sign the petition , watch, join in, air your views ..

Zippity doo-dah,Zippity Yayy - Friday's looking like a very good day ...

The Wall Street Journal today reports that " citing unnamed people familiar with the matter", Freddie Mac is "considering" selling up to US $10 billion in new shares to investors. One of their potential new investors over at Market Watch makes the wonderful pithy point , which raises the level of internet drollery to a new and higher level of informed financial comment.

CEsqy ..
"The invisible hand of the market slowly put its greedy fingers into the short stubby appendages of the latex glove and whispered to the Fed Chairman, "Its your turn today Ben."

The Market Watch library of his shots reveals (186 and counting) yet more compressed wisdom and cheer.

"The stock market, like housing, always goes up, till it don't."

"Rate's are going up, no matter what convoluted form the GSE bailout takes. Foreigners who support our addiction to credit realize they have the opium we don't have....American dollars. "

"President Bush was looking for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, but all he had to do was take a stroll down Wall Street and open his eyes to see the true Apocalypse. "

"WaMu and Wachovia are highly leveraged with toxic loans. Do your own diligence" ***

Have a good day, won't you all.

Chuck Saletta at Motley Fool has the best take on the Hank'n'Ben" End of the pier World Show. Graph (and much more here)

***Washington Mutual (WM) Wachovia (WB) curiously missing from SEC's list of firms stopped from shorting. Thrown to the Dogs asks Mish ?

For good measure "When will people learn that you can’t legislate (for) honesty?"asks Roger Schlesinger at the TownHall ,"Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before "

Tricastin radioactive fluid leak may be historical ... hiccup could will affect Gordon's grand nuclear build plan - that's show business folks!

A fluid leak was reported at the Tricastin nuclear power plant in SW France , 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Avignon last Tuesday. Whilst cleaning a tank containing a solution with traces of non-enriched uranium, a reservoir designed to collect it overflowed. Some 30,000 liters (7,925 gallons - comparison - a standard road petrol tanker holds 34,000 litres = £40,000) of solution seeped into the ground and two nearby rivers. Despite assurances, local authorities have now banned the use of well water from three nearby towns as well as using water from the contaminated rivers to irrigate crops. Residents have also been banned from swimming, water sports and fishing in the contaminated waters. See post on 14th May Klaus Töpfer ex German Minister of the Environment - "It would be disastrous if we were to consider a future with nuclear energy once again" with map of nuclear accidents in Europe including the then just announced Tricastin event.

France's nuclear safety agency (ASN) claimed that the "risk was slight." On Friday, the Institute for Radioprotection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN) -- which is responsible for safety inspections of France's nuclear facilities -- announced that it had discovered traces of uranium in the water that pre-dated the recent leak.

In October 1998, the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) reported that uranium had been secretly stored on the facility grounds since the 1970s in a mound of eatth / dirt six meters (20 foot) high. This (It now appears) contained nuclear waste with uranium from military stockpiles. Years ago there were warnings that rainwater could wash uranium out of the pile and into the ground.

French anti-nuclear umbrella group Sortir du nucleaire, or Abandon Nuclear Power have written to Environment Minister Jean-Louis Borloo demanding a comprehensive examination of France's nuclear industry. Thye make claims that other accidents have been kept secret "so as to not damage the reputation of nuclear energy."

Borloo has deflected criticism and action by electing a special committee to review the accident. Le Parisein reporty that he has asked for groundwater in the areas surrounding all French atomic plants to be tested. Which will byuy him time. he has also deflected the crticis by blaming Areva, the French nuclear contractor (bidding to supply UK plants in Gordon Brown's massive renaissance of the UK industry) that operates the Tricastin facility through its Socatri subsidiary, for its handling of the incident as well as unsatisfactory operational and safety procedures.

".. everything is under control," Borloo told the paper. "I intend to make sure." It is also almost August .... when nothing happens in Paris.

"Maybe it's the beginning of the truth," Sortir du nucleaire spokesperson Stephane Lhomme says optimistically.

Lhomme points out that Borloo's planned testing will only be conducted on groundwater and that possible gas emissions will be ignored.They also want all nuclear plants testing not simply nucklear power plants.

Nuclear watchdog IRSN also has a conflict of interest. "We want an independent group that we can trust doing the checking," Lhomme said. "We don't want the state to be telling everyone: 'Hey, everybody, there's no problem.'"

Instead, Sortir du nucleaire would prefer for the Commission for Independent Research and Information on Radioactivity (CRIIRAD) -- an independent French NGO founded in the wake of the Chernobyl disaster -- to conduct the tests. The group was not large enough to conduct all the tests, and that it should be joined by other international independent organizations.

Transparency Ho.Ho.Ho.

In a company statement, Areva CEO the fragrant and beautiful Anne Lauvergeon announced Wednesday that she would personally visit the Tricastin facility tomorrow and meet with public officials blah, blah

Sortir du nucleaire will not be invited to participate in the examinations or discussions. "If you are not for nuclear power in France," Lhomme laments, "then you are nothing. We are given absolutely no rights to see what's happening inside nuclear plants."

Tricastin is one of 59 nuclear plants in France, which supply nearly 80 % of France's domestic electricity ... and some of the UK's. French President Nicolas Sarkozy is an enthusiast for nuclear energy. His government is cooperating with a number of other nations in building nuclear facilities, and his government decided in May to establish a state agency to export French nuclear technology. France is currently cooperating with Saudi Arabia, India and a number of North African countries to help install nuclear power plants,

Greenpeace's Marillier said: "This accident just shows that what Sarkozy says is wrong and that this will never be a clean-energy industry. Even though France wants to export nuclear power to the world, it isn't even able to keep things clean on its own sites."

Third crazy cyclist tumbles out of Tour de France taking chemical cocktails

It was to be hoped that after last year, the Tour de France would be clean. We now have 3 rider testing positive for EPO (erythropoietin) . Today 's result on 24year old Riccardo Ricco of team Saunier-Duval (who have pulled from the race) was a result after testing in the 4th stage, an individual time trial in Cholet last week, the same as Moisés Dueñas Nevado . Manuel Beltran has also been tested positive for EPO.

Ricco, is the winner of two stages in this year's Tour - the 6th and the 9th - he was 9th in the general classification and was holder of both the polka-dot and white jerseys, for the race's leading climber and youth rider respectively.He finished 2nd in the Giro d'Italia earlier this year - pic at the prize ceremony.

Rumors have been circulating that some cyclists were using an allegedly undetectable variant of EPO. The French Anti-Doping Agency, have said a urine sample provided last week by Riccò after the fourth stage of the race in Cholet contained metabolites of synthetic EPO as well as evidence of a new substance known generically as CERA, or continuous erythropoiesis receptor activator.

The new drug is a longer-lasting treatment for anemia associated with kidney disease that is marketed in Europe by Roche. Clinical tests by the company showed that patients who required injections of EPO three times a week to treat their anemia could use Micera once or twice a month with the same effect. Micera or Methoxy polyethylene glycol-epoetin beta injection was only approved for clinical use by the US Food and Drugs Administration on November 14, 2007 and was approved by the European Commission in August 2007.

These guys and their "medical advisors" are playing on the edge.

International Cycling Union president Pat McQuaid who has tried so hard to ensure a clean race said "It's completely shocking - someone must have advised those guys to take some form of EPO thought to be undetectable because we haven't caught guys in this fashion for a long time."

McQuaid accused Spanish cycling in particular of failing to clean up its act. "He's not Spanish but he's connected to Spain,"

In the real race Mark Cavendish made cycling history by becoming the first British rider to land three stage victories in a single Tour de France by winning the 12th stage 168.5-km from Lavelanet to Narbonne.

Ricco's team-mates, Juan Joes Cobo Acebo, 8th overall and David De La Fuente, was just behind Ricco, in the King of the Mountains standings are hit hardest of all. The unbeleivable lure of the Mountains and the money that goes that entrapped their colleague will hit their reputation and their pockets.

Michael Portillo - a case in point

"This week" is a fairly lighthearted weekly look at the Westminster political scene with host Andrew "Brillo Pad" Neil, Diane Abbott (Body Mass Index = her majority) and Michael Portillo.

Whilst waiting for the grapes to be peeled Lord Patel couldn't help but be shaken by the remarkable weight loss shown by Michael Portillo. Is he a well man ?

Or is he Martin Amis ?

Natalie Bracht and children - an everyday story of very strange goings on on Dartmoor - has the dog barked in the night ?

Lord Patel : An Urgent Personal Statement

Speaking on behalf of Lord Patel today, Toni Fabuloso said "A great deal of Press and TV comment has been recently directed by leading political figures and commentators at remarks made by Lord Patel. He wishes to state that he has not, nor has ever been a member of any Political Party [1]."

" Lord Patel formed the Forthcoming UK Energy Defecit (FCUKED), formally, in 2001 to highlight the diminishing natural energy resources of the UK and it's central and critical importance to the UK economy. Membership is automatic and open to all, without charge, merely by sharing in the dwindling, coal, gas and oil reserves of this once, rich and productive island you automatically become a member. It is impossible to refuse membershp other than by emigrating."

"FCUKED is a subsection or special interest group (SIG) of the Sunshine Party whose origins lie shrouded in time and mystery and whose continuing membership is somewhat indeterminate and to date unknown - a hidden (or spent) force. Their political platform is, regrettably stolen , a hazy amalgam of all the other parties claims, encapsulated in a single (but nonetheless powerful) political promise - Vote for the Sunshine Party - we promise Sunshine tomorrow and every day."

"The Sunshine Party is based in the UK, but invites a global membership.

FOOTNOTES FOR EDITORS :

[1] Like all political truths this contains the germ of a lie. Lord Patel attended as a youth , and rude provincial oik, a "Freshers Fair" on entering University. A smiling young lady with ash blond locks, the freshest of smiles, the whitest of teeth, the bluest the greenestwith sparkling hazel eyes, the most moist, kissable lips and beguilingly attractive and seductive honeyed tones, wreathed in the perfumes of ... allowed him to gaze fixedly at her tits whilst he signed a cheque.

In the morning she was just a faint and aromatic memory , he was ten shillings poorer , and owner of a beigey coloured pasteboard card which said " XXXXester University Liberal Club, Membership Card."

There have been many other similiar wallet lightening moments in a rich and varied life, but none that he recalls involved becoming a member of a political party.

[2] This picure of Toni Fabuloso is quite old. Will it do ?

Public Service Announcement for UK Treasury, BERR, Bank of England, Foreign and Commonwealth Office , FSA , MEPC etc., etc., URGENT

This is highly specialised secret information about the prospects for coal / iron / freight rates from Brazil / Australia which may have an impact on future industrial / energy costs for the whole of the UK.

The sources are very difficult to find and require very skilled operators to develop economic espionage networks (pic Lord Patel discussing price of conch shells used as currency by primitive Pacific islanders - newspapers, TV news, speaking to folks involved with iron ore / coal imports, heavy users of same etc., people in bus queues, ..... (BTW Aluminium - the principal component of which is electrical energy, has also hit all time highs ever, of US$ 3,100- US$ 3,200 per metric tonne for Primary Aluminium 3mo Official Confirmed)

Platts are reporting some remarkable figures on bulk cargo mineral freight rates some of which are at historical highs and are expected to go higher as winter approaches.

Capesize ships from Brazil to China and/or Southeast Asia iron ore is being fixed at the US $88.00-88.50/mt level for 160,000 mt cargoes (up from mid June US$82/mt) although they have dropped from May all time highs of US $108.50/mt but are still at historically high levels.

For example South Korea's Posco fixing a 170,000 mt iron ore cargo from Ponta da Madeira to Kwangyang on an August 1-15 loading window at $88.50/mt on a Transfield ship that has yet to be nominated.

These rates apply to SE Asian destinations other than the China mainland especially South Korea, as Chinese charterers have cut back spot buying and rely on longer term iron ore contracts for 2008/2009. Chronic port congestion at the main discharge terminals and a need reduce stockpiles to more manageable levels after the plant shutdowns to ensure clean air for the peking Olympics has slowed spot buying.

Western Australia to China freight rates have fallen dramatically by some 50% since mid-May, when the market peaked at around $48/mt - related essentially to the consequences of flooding in the fields. (see Friday, February 08, 2008 Floods wreak havoc in Queensland coalfields - global coal prices shift up a gear )

On Monday, BHP Billiton fixed a 170,000 mt cargo from Port Hedland to Qingdao at $27/mt for a late July-early August loading window on the 2006-built, Mineral Shikoku (206,312 dwt). The same charterer also reportedly fixed a 160,000 mt cargo from Port Hedland to Qingdao for a July 25-30 loading window at $28/mt on the 1995-built Bet Scouter (173,149 dwt). It is of interst to note here that BHP Billiton have closed a deal with South Korean steel giant Posco for a price of US$300 (A$325) a tonne for coking coal in 2008-09, up from US$97 in 2007-08.

"Coal prices rose throughout the year to record highs. The price of annual coal delivered to European ports, commencing January 2009, rose from US$72/tonne at the start of April 2007 to US$124/tonne as at 31 March 2008. (British Energy Half year results to 31/3/08 Page 12 )

Longer shippping times from Brazil are affecting prices as Iron ore , loading in Western Australia can be in China in two weeks, once the ship leaves its loading port .

Australian suppliers are expecting Iron ore prices to rise 70-85% this year and thermal coal for power stations is expected to more than double from its existing level of US$56 a tonne.

The impact of the coking and thermal coal price rises alone would boost Australia's annual 2008-09 export revenue by $35 billion to $56billion.

PS : If you don't work for UK Treasury, BERR, Bank of England, Foreign and Commonwealth Office , FSA , MEPC etc ., but know someone who does .. pass it on.

Tricky work being an economic spy .. salt water plays havoc with yer Gucci loafers.

How the Government waste their time and your money Part 7,465

The British Government today became the first in the world to announce plans to slash the carbon footprint of its computer systems.

Information and communication technology (ICT) is responsible for up to 20% of carbon emissions generated by Government offices - around 460,000 tonnes a year. (and ££££Squillions on useless unworkable projects) Under the plan announced today by Cabinet Office Minister Tom Watson the Government aims to make energy consumption of ICT carbon neutral within four years.

Departments will be asked to take 18 key steps. They include:

Automatically switching off desktop computers outside working hours. Turning off every desktop PC in central Government for the 16 hours that fall outside the standard working day could save up to 117,500 tonnes of CO2 per year - equivalent to taking 40,000 cars off the road.

Yes and if they use Windows Vista the user will spend 30 minutes per day watching the fucking thing wind itself up and down, asking do you really want to shut down etc,

More of this shit here ....

Cabinet Office Minister Tom Watson said:

"Worldwide, computers are responsible for the same quantity of carbon emissions as the airline industry. It is a serious problem that requires a serious solution.

"That's why I'm so proud that we are the first Government anywhere in the world to formally set out exactly what we're going to do to make our ICT systems carbon neutral within four years.

Andrew Lee, Chief Executive of the Sustainable Development Commission (SDC), said:

"This is a welcome move and a radical target. As the SDC reported earlier this year, government departments have a long way to go on reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions, and tackling IT will be crucial to this effort.

God, it makes you weep.

Just discovered Bob Marshall Andrews, barrister at law, MP, part time Judge, Old Mill Hillian, supporter of the wretched Bill for rushing through criminal trials with anonymous grasses and Gordon Brown (he nominated him for leadership) called Tom Watson a "faggot" which apparently in the circles in which he moves carries a meaning that suggests not only that the person is a homosexualist but also went to public school.

Apparently it was all a misunderstanding and he was (what we lawyers call) "misheard" and he actually called him a "nasty litle turd strangler".

42" plasma screens all round Doris !

David Davis - Another silly conspiracy theory from Lord Patel

There are many observers, players, commentators, on the Westminster scene puzzled by ;
1. David Davis MP's resignation
2. The response of David Cameron in actively campaigning for and with him
3. The muted response from his Party
4. The total and rapid unwillingness of the Labour Party to field a candidate
5. The total and rapid unwillingness of the Liberal Party to field a candidate
6. The curious case of Shami Chakrabarti very publicly swinging the non - political Liberty behind David Davis's campaign
7. The curious and shadowy role of an expensive and very well connected PR company, Fleishman-Hillard in so swiftly erecting David Davis's website (not to mention the source of funds to do it etc.,)
7 (a) The clumsy attempt to conceal the role of Fleishman-Hillard
8. The extraordinary coverage that the BBC gave to David Davis across the spectrum, Radio 5 Live phone in (1.5 hr), You and Yours (1 hr), Womans Hour (20 mins), Question Time (1 hr), Any Questions (1 hr) (plus repeat and Any Answers), Newsnight ...not to mention endless news items covering the election without any opposing or dissenting views
9. The role of the new Total Politics magazine that has so mysteriously appeared, fully financed by unknown sources, and with the ubiquitous help of Shami Chakrabarti OBE CBE , Governer of the Ditchley Foundation along with Lady Dame Jane Baroness Pauline Neville Jones.

There was however, a curiously congruent and interlocking series of events also going on, which received virtually no coverage and certainly no discussion....Criminal Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Bill.

June 18th The Lords Davis ruling on anonymous witnesses published (but of course known of within Government circles)
June 18th - Also the day when David Davis applies for the Chiltern Hundreds

June 21st (Saturday) war criminal Jack Straw announces he is going to rush through legislation to allow anonymous witnesses

June 23rd Judge Paget halts trial using anonymous witnesses

On BBC June 24th Commissioner Bob Quick, for example, called the ruling “catastrophic” and criticised the criminal justice system for “too much principle and not enough pragmatism”. (This was the guy who with Sir Ian Blair couldn't remember how any terrorist plots there were when asked by MP's. see Counter terrorism Bill ..and the Old Bill... Fiction is stronger than the truth )

June 26th “Chaos as Law Lords ruin trials” (The Sun, 25 June); “Anarchyis unleashed” (The Sun, 25 June); and “Terrorists, murderers and other violent criminals will escape justice unless emergency laws are passed within weeks” (Daily Mail, 26 June).“Britain could witness unrestrained violence like the slaughter in Zimbabwe” ( Sun 25 June). (All these quoted in Liberty brief Page 4 - "Thankfully" says Liberty n contrast to the Press "Thankfully, the response of Government and opposition parties to the decision did not follow suit. It was, in contrast measured and informed."

June 26th the Government makes routine sotto voce outline the plans for legislation with dates for debate in Commons on 8th July and Lords on 10th July (Bill published July 3rd). This after cross party "consultation".

26th June East Riding of Yorkshire council announced the long, long , varied and entertaining list of accepted candidates and date of election to be 2 weeks on Thursday 10th July.

So the Bill is to be debated (?) 8/9/10th July which means press comment could be 9th/10th/11th but curiously enough they were busy looking at Gemma Garretts teeth and tits and Elvis and the Cow girl.

Of course David Davis gets his seat back, without actually having said a fucking thing, except a few mildly critical remarks about useless CCTV pictures, and DNA databases. But he and Shami had very effectively hi-jacked the so called debate on "civil liberties" - and she hen goes on to pat herself and David on the back (see top).

Debate on the Criminal Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Bill, somehow, slips by and " 42 days or not 42 days " has monopolised any concern about stealing fundamental liberties and freedoms and the proper conduct of trials. Psyops success, in fucking spades.

What about dear sweet, doe eyed, scarf adjusting, Shami Chakrabarti offering TLC to DD in late at night , heart to heart's on the cellphone? The ex Home Office lawyer whose non-political Liberty winds up supporting a politician's election, one who agrees to 28 days and the loss of habeas corpus.

Shami Chakrabarti the ex Home Office lawyer who leads the non-political Liberty but ends up helping edit Total Politics ?

Shami Chakrabarti the ex Home Office lawyer who leads the non-political Liberty who provided a brief for the Government which agrees in principle to the Criminal Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Bill.

Shami Chakrabarti the ex Home Office lawyer who leads the non-political Liberty who provided a brief for the Government written by Jago Russell & Michael Spencer which agrees in principle to the Criminal Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Bill.

Prior to his post at Liberty, Jago Russell worked as a legal specialist in parliament where he advised select committees on a range of matters including counter-terrorism laws and corporate accountability. He has particular expertise in international and comparative human rights law, the UK government’s anti-terrorism policy, constitutional and criminal justice issues and has written and spoken on these and other matters for parliamentary and wider audiences.

Nu Labour has an eye for colourful ladies they can promote Baronesses, Vadera, Amos, Scotland .... arise Baroness Shami Chakrabarti of the Pashminas .... you have earned it.... and who knows maybe to join her soulmate and phone-sex pal David will reluctantly pass on his seat at the next election to a Tory hopeful and pass onwards and upwards as Baron Davis of the Blinding Diversion

Of course Liberty will need a new leader ... someone with the right ideas.. step forward Jago Russell.

PS : Here's a nice summertime job for a media studies student .. and god knows there are plenty of them... A good detailed annotated Timeline, fleshed out with details of all press coverage / comment , of the above.

Queen ready to give Assent to Criminal Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Bill - Rush to judgement - Liberty be damned !!!!

The preamble to the Criminal Evidence (Witness Anonymity) Bill says it all ...

New rules relating to anonymity of witnesses
(1) This Act provides for the making of witness anonymity orders in relation to
witnesses in criminal proceedings.
(2) The common law rules relating to the power of a court to make an order for securing that the identity of a witness in criminal proceedings is withheld from the defendant (or, on a defence application, from other defendants) are abolished.
(3) Nothing in this Act affects the common law rules as to the withholding of
information on the grounds of public interest immunity.

The full html text of the Bill is here the full parliamentary history from 4th July to Royal Assent (probably tommorrow) is here. Explanatory notes are here.

This is what war criminal Jack Straw said when introducing the Bill Hansard 8 July 2008 : Column 1304

"There has been an intensive period of consultation since my statement, the product of which is reflected both in the Bill as introduced and in the Government amendments standing in my name. I am very grateful indeed to the spokesman for the official Opposition and to the Liberal Democrats for the constructive approach that they have adopted in the course of the consultation. In the intervening period, too, we have sought the most up-to-date information available from the Crown Prosecution Service regarding the scale of the use of anonymous witness evidence. "... ie it's all stitched up and the MP's have been told to shut up.

Mr. Edward Garnier (Harborough) (Con) said inter alia (and to his credit) ..."we do not want to encourage lazy policing, lazy prosecuting or an informal process to emerge under which such orders become the norm" , of course not, but that is what we have had and what we will have more of, and there is nothing to stop it.

The only change made was to institute a so called "Sunset" of 31 December 2009, but orders can continue .....(b) may not be made unless a draft of the instrument containing the order has been laid before and approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament.’. Which makes things even worse ... what should be a judicial decision will become a political decision, thus blurring the control of the Judiciary.

In the Lords , God Bless her Ann Mallalieu expressed her misgivings about the speed of legislation, the slow slide to it's use in magistrates courts and the fact that the bulk of outstanding cases was not to protect public witnesses but state witnesses. This Bill as she points out is " is an attempt to validate retrospectively those 580 cases (!!!) in which it seems, as a result of Davis, that unlawful orders have been made."

It is worth pointing out that Clause 12 (1) a of the Act ..."Interpretation
In this Act— “court” means— (a) in relation to England and Wales, a magistrates’ court, the Crown Court or the criminal division of the Court of Appeal;

Reminded by Baroness Butler-Sloss that Liberty, which has nothing to do with political parties, does not object in principle to the Bill, " she replied that she did ..." My Lords, I am very much aware of that. I have read the helpful briefing that Liberty has sent, but I disagree with it."

Geoffrey Roberston , QC in the Guradian on the 8th July There can be no fair trials with this perjurer's charter said ....

Parliament will this week be asked to make the most serious single assault on liberty in memory. The witness anonymity bill abolishes the right of defendants to know the identity of their accusers. This will result in thousands of unfair trials; and the principles of open justice, which this nation has contributed to the lexicon of human rights, will be gutted by a panic-stricken measure that encourages courts, in criminal cases of any kind, to suppress the identity of crucial witnesses.

He adds that safeguards have been overlooked or dismissed ..

There are no safeguards for the citizen. The prosecution does not even have to prove that a witness has been intimidated or fears any kind of mental or physical threat: any "harm to the public interest" is sufficient - a formula that might cover up questionable police operations. There is no safeguard against a conviction relying entirely on the evidence of an anonymous witness; incredibly, this bill does not require judges to ensure corroboration (independent evidence pointing to guilt), or even to warn juries about the dangers of convicting on the word of witnesses who can't be effectively cross-examined. There is no right of appeal against the granting of anonymity orders.

He also points out that war criminal Jack Straw makes false claims under EU HUman Rights Legislation

The Bill is prefaced by a statement from Jack Straw that it conforms with the European Convention on Human Rights. It does not: article six of the convention says that "everyone charged with a criminal offence" has, at minimum, a right "to examine or have examined witnesses against him" - and you cannot examine a distorted voice.

So MP's were silenced by a behind the chair deal, Liberty led by their pretty (ex?) Home Office Lawyer who is so concerned to defend Freedom with David Davis has no problem with the principles in the Bill.

The Press have been silent, so the public have been unaware of the progress of this Bill and it has been left to the old war hoses opf the legal left geoffey Roberston and Ann Mallalieu to try to stop the State's juggernaut.

The CPS say they have over 550 criminal cases in the pipeline (our resourceful rsearch staff cannot find this report - it is not on the CPS website) requiring the use of anonymous witnesses which is astonishing.

Now this device can be used in Magistrates courts - where you can be certain it will be used.

We have done out little bit .. Tuesday, June 24, 2008 Rush to judgement for anonymous trial witnesses...wronging a Right....more hastily prepared laws restricting ancient Common Law Rights
Thursday 26th June 2008 - War Criminal Jack Straw and Conservatives and Lib Dems stitch up to breach of common law rights in allowing anonymous witnesses in criminal cases
Thursday, June 26, 2008 Lord Thomas of Gresford QC for Lib - Dems slams War criminal Jack Straw's proposals on witness anonymity
Saturday, June 28, 2008 10 cases where anonymous witnesses helped secure a conviction

Curiously the world of blogistes has been remakably silent on this one.....

Monging rumours @ Sacks of Gold - shock moves on the Street : Amazing Pictures !!!!

The Wall Street Journal have a shocking story today ,"Goldman is queried on Bear's fall"

Apparently Alan Schwartz, who headed Bear Stearns Cos. at the tiome it sunk in March, called Goldman Chief Executive Officer Lloyd Blankfein to ask if there was any truth to talk that in the days preceding Bear Stearns's fall, if traders in the Goldman London office manipulated the struggling firm's stock. (A "spokesman" for the Goldman CEO says he doesn't recall having such a conversation with Mr. Schwartz)

By coincidence CEO Richard Fuld Jr of struggling Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. whose shares (and reputation) have been battered, has also contacted Mr. Blankfein.

To those inoccents abroad (fed a diet of stories ... My word is my bond etc.,) who don't sit in the plush banking parlours of Wall Street or Bishopsgate - spreading rumors one knows to be false with the intention of manipulating a public company's price is illegal.

But rumours haven't stopped there , and these fancy Credit Default Swaps (CDS's), a fancy sort of insurance / casino chip / IOU which banks bet with have left a toxic trail ...
Which may just ring a bell to those who read the post Thursday, June 12, 2008 Lehman shuffle the team, no new faces, no new ideas, ... the Bonfire of the Vanities ... Wail Street just needs a few more sparks about the semi-exit of glamorous lawyer, Alpha female and short lived CFO at Lehman Bros. Ms. Erin Callan.

In which Lord Patel remarked ..."Erin is of course good pals with Chicagoan Kenneth C Griffin and has helped over several years (with Lehman's dosh) his US$20 Bn, Chicago based Citadel Investment Group. He is of course a big noise in Chicago, a supporter of Barak Obama and also the lovely Michelle. Citadel daily trading activity reportedly is reputed to account for "more than 10% of daily U.S. listed equity options contract volume" and issued investment grade bonds in 2006."

Now the immensely rich, immensely powerful Kenneth C Griffin didn't get where he is today by acting on false rumours... no he, naturally, prefers the facts.

So, speaking hypothetically, any CFO half way out the door marked Exit in possession of a great deal of accurate information, maybe looking for another, safer berth ....

For those unfamiliar with the glamorous good looks of 42 year old Ms Callan , but who will no doubt be interested in her future career on Wall Street , here is a picture.

Late news .."Credit Suisse today announced that Erin Callan will be joining the Bank as a Managing Director and Head of its Global Hedge Fund Business. In this newly created position, Ms. Callan will join the Investment Bank Management Committee and the Global Client Steering Committee. Her appointment is effective September 2, 2008 and she will be based in New York."

Anyway here is a picture of this fascinating lady....

In one of those crazy co-incidences Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein $27 million Goldman's Whitehall real estate investment fund is a 30% investor in brand spanking new apartment on the swanky "Tower" side of gleaming white 15 Central Park West where Erin recently took a 31st floor apartment... price not known. Hedge funder Daniel Loeb stopped the traffic when he paid $45 million, or $4,200 a square foot, for his pad on the "Tower" side ...... two years ago, asking prices are now US$6,000 per sq. ft plus.

Handy too for her personal buyer Michelle Beauvais at Bergdorf Goodman to pop round with a rail of frocks for her to try on.

RUSH UPDATE - http://www.spartacuslives.org/node/18821 How Goldman won big on mortgage meltdown Wall Street Journal Dec 14, 2007 On Mortgage Meltdown, A Team's Bearish Bets Netted Firm Billions; A Nudge From the CFO A useful link provided some time ago by George Dutton Many Thanks GD

Remote Lap-top / PDA access to CCTV images anywhere in the world

Wireless CCTV is a part of Cellhire plc and operates from Rochdale. They do what it says on the tin. They provide CCTV systems that send a wireless (radio) signal of images - this has hitherto been to a centralised control room, where images are viewed, monitored, recorded. They have also sold over 23,200 sets to UK Government services / Police of their body cam kit which they introduced earlier this year. see pic

Now they can offer remote portable lap top /PDA access to signals from their cameras using 3G telephone technology .

Running under Windows Mobile , users can access and screen capture , Live / Archived video and control over Pan-Tilt - Zoom in real time of specific cameras.

This means for example that a user in Rochdale could access town centre cameras , from say RMBC Town Hall council offices, of the many cameras overlooking Albanian drug dealers at work outside the town centre Post Office, where they operate by the red Gilbert Scott telephone boxes with their fleet of youthful cycle couriers.

The alternative is they could just look out of the window.

Obama - quite who is he at war with ? , Michelle, Bernardine and home grown radicalised terrists

If you don't read the WSWS you might start with this ....

Obama outlines policy of endless war
By Bill Van Auken
16 July 2008

Any misconception that Barack Obama is running in the 2008 election as an “antiwar” candidate should have been cleared up Tuesday in what was billed by the Democratic presidential campaign as a “major speech” on national security and the US war in Iraq.

Speaking before a backdrop of massed American flags at the Reagan Building in Washington, Obama made it clear that he opposes the present US policy in Iraq not on the basis of any principled opposition to neo-colonialism or aggressive war, but rather on the grounds that the Iraq war is a mistaken deployment of power that fails to advance the global strategic interests of American imperialism.

What emerges from the speech by the junior senator from Illinois is that the November election will not provide the American people with the opportunity to vote for or against war, but merely to choose which of the two colonial-style wars that US forces are presently fighting should be escalated. mehr >>

Writing in Foreign Affairs a year ago (published by those highly interesting folks at the Council on Foreign Relations - Chairman Peter G Paterson ) , Obama stressed that the lesson of the Iraq debacle was the necessity to prepare for new US wars. "We must use this moment both to rebuild our military and to prepare it for the missions of the future," he stressed. "We must retain the capacity to swiftly defeat any conventional threat to our country and our vital interests. But we must also become better prepared to put boots on the ground in order to take on foes that fight asymmetrical and highly adaptive campaigns on a global scale." Don't say you didn't realise .....

Meanwhile for those who seem to have lost (or misunderstood) the reference to afro haired, Kalshnikov toting, cammo be-trousered, Michelle Obama on the Noo Yorker cover this week ...

Here is a picture of Michelle Obama with her friend Ex Weatherwoman and Sidley Austin Partner Bernardine Dohrn at a political rally.see Monday, April 28, 2008 Obama. Ayers Rocks.

Bernardine (on the right) is the wife of Weatherman Bill Ayers and mother of his 2 children. She went to prison on various charges - Dohrn and Ayers became legal guardians of the son of former members of the Weather Underground, Kathy Boudin and David Gilbert, after they were convicted of murder of a security guard and 2 police officers during a 1981 Brinks armoured car robbery.

We have yet to turn up a single news story that mentions the Obama connection with these fascinating folks who were involved with The Weathermen in bombing the Pentagon, the US Capitol, the New York Police Benevolent Association, the New York Board of Corrections, as well as the offices of multinational companies.

Mr Clarence Mitchell - a mystery, wrapped inside an enigma

One can only assume that the collective settlement of Mr Murat's claims against the UK Press will not help the future (but let us hope succccessful) career of Mr Clarence Mitchell the Cabinet Press guru ,who turned up so rapidly at the scene of Miss McCann's disappearance in Pria da Luz last year.

His ever helpful, entertaining and detailed briefings to the Press must have helped them greatly in pursuing aspects of the case which may perhaps led the Press into by-ways and blind alleys that they might perhaps not have imagined.

Saturday, May 26, 2007 Clarence Mitchell - busy spokesman ... but who for .. and why ? is a good place to start and Monday, June 11, 2007 Madeleine's parents face tough questions from Hessischen Rundfunk's Sabina Muller a more interesting tale of PR wizardry.

This was a fascinating (hagi)biography produced at the BBC Online last September by Laurie Margolis, which makes interesting reading to anyone unfamiliar with Clarence's stellar career.

They really should check that Holy Water

Last year in Ireland 160 priests died and only 9 were ordained. 228 nuns died in 2007 and only 2 took their final vows.

Phorm - act today .... Barbican all day.

Phorm Protest

Just a reminder that the Phorm Protest takes place tomorrow in London outside BT's AGM at the Barbican Centre. The purpose of the event is to protest against plans by BT Group PLC, Virgin Media and Car Phone Warehouse to deploy intrusive technology across their broadband networks for the purpose of profiling the behaviour of their customers, with the intention to sell this to Phorm Inc. (formerly 121Media) and used for their Open Internet Exchange (OIX) service.

The purpose of the protest is twofold:

1. To raise public awareness on the issues surrounding behavioural advertising and threats it places on privacy.

2. To present the City of London Police with a case file based on covert trials carried out by BT and Phorm (then 121Media) in 2006/2007. The Covert Trials In 2006 and 2007 Bt and Phorm (then 121Media) carried out two covert trials of this technology (called PageSense in 2006, ProxySense in 2007 and WebWise in the present) which means they did not seek the consent of their customers. These trials constituted criminal and civil offenses under various laws. You can read more information about this here plus a legal analysis of the trials here .

Baroness Miller is kindly giving a speech at 1:15pm as well as a few other people including Alex Hanff in the noon-2pm period.

The protest starts at 10am and will continue through to the late afternoon.

Alex will be presenting the CoL Police with a dossier of evidence calling for an investigation of the BT Covert Trials in 2006/2007.

Alex had a meeting with CoL Police last week and they have agreed to look at the dosier officially (as opposed to just passing the buck) so that is at least some progress.

More details here https://nodpi.org/category/events/ and here http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/02/29/phorm_roundup/
Phormwatch
e-mail: phormwatch at fastmail dot net
Homepage: http://phormwatch.blogspot.com/

Instructions how to get there ..

See post Monday, March 03, 2008 Phorm - we can feel the Spring Surge - take action NOW and also Sunday, March 02, 2008 Just when you thought it was safe to browse the Web. .. Phorm is run by Kent Ertegrul, a serial entrepreneur alumnus of blue chip St Paul's School, London and holds a Bachelor's degree in Politics from Princeton University.

He started his career in investment banking, working at JP Morgan, Credit Suisse and Morgan Stanley before going into business on his own. His past ventures include selling joyrides on Russian fighter jets - Migs Etc.

Previously, his most notable foray online was as the founder of PeopleOnPage, an ad network that operated earlier in the decade and which was blacklisted as spyware by the likes of Symantec and F-Secure.Security firm F-Secure describes PeopleOnPage's software here.

It says: "The spyware collects a user's browsing habits and system information and sends it back to the ContextPlus servers. Targeted pop-up advertisements are displayed while browsing the web."Each installation is given a unique ID, which is sent to the ContextPlus server to request a pop-up advertisement." ContextPlus was the rootkit that PeopleOnPage used to harvest data and hide its presence.

The similarities between this business model and that which could be kicked off by Phorm in the coming months are striking.

UPDATE Wednesday 2.00 pm BST BT have been using Google blogsearch function to hoover up blogiste comment , they called by recently.

aangirfan , sniffing out the truth with her nose to the grindstone

aangirfan has been on her holidays and has returned with some stunning roundups, which anyone interested should take a look at ;

International Paedophile rings - THE ZANDVOORT NETWORK, JERSEY, DUTROUX, PORTUGAL..... and Jersey children raped, tortured, murdered and burned... grisly stuff but with some increasingly fascinating connections being exposed.

She has maintained a file on Lockerbie for years - IRAN TO BE FRAMED FOR LOCKERBIE? DID THE CIA BRING... sameold, same old, but finally the truth is half emerging.

The Russian-Israeli Mafia in the US and UK plus the odious Con Coughlin and MI6-Mossad propaganda? Tony's crony Boris Berezonsky AKA UK citizen Platon Elenin with a handy Israeli passport and the very odd case of JIC Chairman Spy, Alex Allan, found 'with blood everywhere.' not forgetting Mossad in the UK (who of course don't operate...)

Most unlkely of all...Britain must act to prevent an attack on Iran

Co-op land in the divvy as Ronnie Cohen's Apax give Somerfield away - Lovering the "hot deal maker" with egg all over his fat happy face

In November 2005 Gordon Brown's friend, Ronnie Cohen and his Apax Partners took over struggling Somerfield plc in a £1.1 Bn. all-cash take-over offer with Barclays Capital (they already owned 12.4%) , and Iranian-born Robert Tchenguiz and his younger brother Vincent who fled from the Shah in 1979. They have just 4% share of the UK food market

The star studded management team (see below) were happy to quickly unload (for an undisclosed sum) the old loss making (£40Mn a year) Kwik Save just 3 months later, in February 2006 with 171 stores and 4,000 employees to BTTF the optimistically entitled Back to the Future consortium led by Peacock Group's Chief Executive Richard Kirk which includes Paul Niklas, the former managing director of Formica. (Sunday, March 04, 2007 Ronnie Cohen, Gordon Brown, Israel, There is no Israeli Lobby )

Somerfield is Headed by John Lovering (D. Tel " regarded as one of private equity's canniest deal-makers ??)as Chairman who is also and Chairman of Debenhams and led several consumer-focused private-equity transactions including Fitness First, Laurel High Street, Homebase, Odeon Cinemas, Birthdays Group and Peacock. He was Chief Operating Officer at Tarmac plc and Finance Director at Sears plc. and by Februaru 2006 he had appointed a strong team of retail mega stars.

CEO Paul Mason (42) was the European President of Levi Strauss and previously CEO of Matalan Plc (Jan 2002 - March 2003) and President and Managing Director of Asda Wal Mart (2000 - 2001) and had been with B & Q.

Colin Smith ,Trading and Marketing Director (50) who joined from Tesco where he had been for along time.

John Cleland Retail Director (40) was the Commercial Managing Director of B&Q since January 2005. Prior to this he was Senior Vice President Operations at Wal-Mart, Japan and Retail Managing Director at Wal-Mart UK .

Some stores were closed, others (12) were sold to Sainsbury's and lot of money spent on re-vamping and store design.

140 Texaco fuel stations were bought from Texaco Chevron in 2007 and Somerfield have been busy "integrating thei brand" which means tripling store size, format and brand tofit the overall Somerfield brand. This lifted floor space from 83,000 sq ft to about 250,000 sq ft. The cost was not made public but intelligent guesses were in the region of £100Mn.

The stores have been up for sale for some time and interets expressed and Somefiled have been mentioning figures of up to £2.5Bn.. anyway the Co-op, (worlds largest with 1.5 million economically active members) their principal competitor and fifth biggest food retailer, is said to have finally offered £1.6 Bn. take it or leave it, which Ronnie choking on his Dubonnet has accepted - well Barcap are desperate for some cash in their till - there is every possibility they have extractedsome dosh on a sale and leaseback on the property of course.

On the face of it this looks as if Ronnie Cohen and his pals and the ever smiling Mr Robert Tchenguiz will just have washed their face during their brief ownership.

This is good news for the Co-op, it will extend their national spread, move them into more prosperous areas and bring fuel into the mix, yielding revenues and boosting footfall. Last year they turned over £9.4bn with 87,000 employees serving around 10 million customers a week through food, healthcare, travel, funeral care and financial services and paid a £19 Mn divvy to customers in 2006 which on 26th June they announced would be doubled this year to £38 Mn..

£550,000 of this divvy, to rounding down is given to community groups. They are of course very active in sourcing fair trade foods.

Meanwhile all eys are on ITV to see if Ronnie decides that now they are at a give away price of 42 p his pal Ronnie Lauder, and co- owner of Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. (CME) (NASDAQ/ Prague Stock Exchange: CETV) who have TV interests in East Europe , Ukraine (Studio 1+1, Studio 1+1 International, Kino etc ) decide to gobble them up. See Thursday, August 30, 2007 Igor Kolomoisky and Ronie Lauder kiss and make up at CETV and for the whole history see here.

Trebles all round in Balloon Street tonight for the lads.

For a brief history of the origins of the Co-op Movement go here

UPDATE : Times Online - Co-op wraps up £1.6bn takeover of Somerfield

Somerfields QOLI unaffected by Co-op divvy -

Whilst undertaking some research on the Co-op / Somerfield deal our under - employed research department discovered this Somerfield press release on 11th March 2008.

Hart in Hampshire (on the River Hart - pop 87,500, 32,500 households) comes out top of Somerfield’s Quality of Life Index (QOLI) closely followed by Wokingham (in Berkshire) and Surrey Heath (in Surrey) in the unique study which examined factors including income, job security, health, fear of crime and debt.

Access to London is key for the QOLI , as all of the top 10 ranking local authorities are within 50 miles of central London and all of the top 20 are within 75 miles.

Coming top for job security and having the second highest average household income of £33,738 (44 per cent above the national average*) means Hart residents are financially very secure - they also have the highest life expectancy in the UK. Richmond-upon-Thames has the highest average household income of £35,019 - which is probably less than local celeb Mick Jagger's take home pay.

Hart's top position coincides with the second lowest fear of crime in the UK (after Isles of Scilly) and third place for good health.

Somerfield’s Quality of Life Index was compiled by exploring the individual differences between Britain’s towns and cities. This first-of-its-kind micro-examination of UK neighbourhoods was carried out by combining findings from the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS), TGI and MOSAIC types.

Wealth was measured by looking at individual income, health by total hospital admissions (more chance of being hit by a golf ball than stabbing by a hoody) and prevalence of good and bad health. Wokingham and Surrey Heath had the cleanest bill of health in the UK - and some damn fine golf courses. This was combined with other key indicators such as job security, examined by unemployment rate and concern of redundancy. Fear of crime and level of debt were also analysed to create a score for overall life satisfaction.

It's a fair bet that you won't find many Co-op stores thriving in these areas ... just a guess.



The chart - as Gemma Garrett says, just click to enlarge.

Information Commissioner gets his defence in early - showdown due on the Data Communications Bill - a bas la surveillance !!

Richard Thomas is a lawyer. he was first appointed the Information Commissioner in November 2002 by the Queen which term she graciously extended to next November. Sounds like an all round good egg. Answerable to Parliament - like say the Auditor General . Previously Director of Public Policy at blue chip City lawyers , Clifford Chance; Director of Consumer Affairs at the Office of Fair Trading; Head of Public Affairs and Legal Officer at the National Consumer Council and Solicitor with the Citizens Advice Bureau Service and Freshfields.

Freshfields maybe, but he is certainly heading for stormy waters,(and probably pastures new if Gordon Brown has a hand in it) based upon the rather tart ( but wholly welcome) remarks he made today when launching his annual report.

When Gordon Brown played at being a Queen for a day and introduced his own Queen's speech he mentioned en passant a Data Communications Bill which had been clothed with some detail in May. Basically, the Authorities (Police , spooks, GCHQ, HMCR, etc.,) can (and frequently do) ask telco's to provide them with details of citizens, telephone cals, texts, e-mails and sundry other uses of of fixed and cellular wireless telecomms... chasing serious criminals, bomb throwing terrists, people who want their child in a particular school etc.,

Now they , want to save the telco's all that hassle of requests and actually doing the work for them .Wizard money saving wheeze is they will simply hoover up carrier details of every single telephone conversation, text, e-mail, file transfer, dowloan and store in a handy database. Some folks say that's 57 Billion datasets annually they can fiddle about with, maybe even share with other folks and keep forever.

Well Information Commissioner, Richard Thomas, is warning today this would (in his words) be, ‘a step too far’

Any government run database holding the telephone and internet communications of the entire population would raise serious data protection concerns he says., clearly and unambiguoulsy, pre-empting detauls of any any Data Communications act that the real Queen might unveil later this year when the underpaid MP's are back from their well earned hols, shooting grouse and such.

Such a database Richard Thomas says would be ‘a step too far for the British way of life’.

“I am absolutely clear that the targeted, and duly authorised, interception of the communications of suspects can be invaluable in the fight against terrorism and other serious crime. But there needs to be the fullest public debate about the justification for, and implications of, a specially-created database – potentially accessible to a wide range of law enforcement authorities – holding details of everyone’s telephone and internet communications. Do we really want the police, security services and other organs of the state to have access to more and more aspects of our private lives? "


Richard Thomas doesn't stop with this database. he believes that ,"there has not been sufficient parliamentary or public debate on proposals to collect more and more personal information without proper justification, and cites the continued expansion of the DNA database and the centralised collection and retention of data from Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR)", cameras as two recent examples. (Although you will never know quite who was driving Chief Constable's Todds Police Range Rover between his flat (festooned with dozens of celebbrity starfucker photos of the CC and celebrity pals) in Manchster and the foot of Snowdon in the pretty village of Lanberis, or where it went on the day he was killed.) Interestingly a litttle known factoid is that "The Surveillance Studies Network noted the findings of a Home Office research study that the 13 CCTV schemes it assessed had "little overall effect on crime levels"

Richard Thomas says: “We welcomed last month’s report from the all-party Home Affairs Committee warning of the dangers of excessive surveillance. I entirely agree that before major new databases are launched careful consideration must be given to the impact on individuals’ liberties and on society as a whole. Sadly, there have been too many developments where there has not been sufficient openness, transparency or public debate.”

On top of this the battling IC 's office is today serving enforcement notices against HMRC and MoD following recent high profile data breaches. The notices require both departments to provide progress reports documenting in detail how the recommendations have been, or are being, implemented to improve Data Protection compliance. Failure to comply with an Enforcement Notice is a criminal offence.

PS : The ICO received 2,646 freedom of information complaints over the last year and closed 2,658. Three hundred and ninety-five formal Decision Notices were issued and of these, 30% ruled in favour of the complainant while 25% upheld public authorities’ original decisions. In 45% of cases the ICO upheld some elements of the complaint in favour of the complainant and agreed with the public authority on others.

PPS : We look forward to freedom loving David Davis's views on the concept of the Data Communications Act as outlined above... as well as David Cameron, Ed Vaizey, Grey Panther Lady Dame Jane Baroness Pauline Neville Jones

PPPS: The IC do commission some excellent work , for example ..Professor Ross Anderson of the Foundation for Information Policy Research (FIPR) referred to work undertaken in connection with FIPR's report for the Information Commissioner on children's databases, which looked at a range of crime reduction initiatives:

Yes, there may be some placebo effect from having large numbers of closed circuit television cameras around, but the analysis of the crime statistics which we cite tends to show that although they are good at reducing crime in car parks they are not so good at reducing crime in town centres and there is a very serious question about whether far too much money has been spent on these and not enough money on other crime reduction initiatives.

UPDATE : Daily Mail Wednesday 16th June 'Big Brother' warning over Government database that records EVERY phone call and e-mail in Britain

Daily Telegraph 'Big Brother' database of all phone calls and emails condemned by watchdog

John Bolton : text book case of how having no power can drive a man crazy

Probably we should be grateful to Rupert Murdoch for having taken over the Wall Street Journal so crazies like John Bolton , who used to be the USA Ambassador at the UN, can publish things like his op/ed in the WSJ today, Israel, Iran and the Bomb Bomb. Bomb. Bomb. Iran...

An irreversible, turning point was reached he claims , when Iran stage managed their military missile fireworks and adjusted their rattling sabres last week.

Using two faced greasy wog diplomatic charm with the cheese eating surrender monkeys (how do you say the name of Javier Solana, without spitting ?) and exploiting military might is an exclusive privilege of the US , so naturally he feels it's pretty bad when someone steals Uncle Sam's thunder.

Not only this, these sand niggers are just buying time to ," produce deliverable nuclear weapons" - say, like ..er .. Israel did for so long.

But warns John ..." a shadow may fall: targeted military action, either Israeli or American."

5 years of failed diplomacy by the EU-3 (Britain, France and Germany), and Iran is 5 years closer to delivering Armageddon - which is where Israel (with a lot of US help) is today.

Hey .. Look what is coming down the Pike, wake up you guys !!! The limp wristed Bushies are on their way out and the newbies will need 6 months to get their act together - that's another 12 months of inaction ( presumably whilst the dithering cheese eating surrender monkeys share their canapes with Khamaini and his mullahs).

Sanctions (John reveals), have just been a stone in their shoe , " Iran's real economic woes stem from nearly 30 years of mismanagement by the Islamic Revolution." .. and everyone else's when they blockade Hormuz ?

More sanctions ..." will simply be too little, too late." Like say Zimbabwe John ?

Regime change , a good idea before, fomenting internal discontent even, they are now a busted flush. (Is this the lesson John has eventually learn from the masterful changing of the regime in Iraq, Afghanistan , Maliki and Kharzai are just such pussy cats ? Mind you those Albanian gangstas are still toeing the line in Kosovo... well, so far.)

So ..."Israel is now at an urgent decision point: whether to use targeted military force to break Iran's indigenous control over the nuclear fuel cycle at one or more critical points." We bomb the German suppliers of high purity magnesium ? The Swiss bearing suppliers for the centrifuges ?

He admits this won't resolve the problem that these damn sand niggers really, really want those nukes ... it also provides however "the potential to buy considerable time"....presumably for regime change ... fomenting more discontent.....

The alternative is we will have both Israel and Iran with nuclear weapons, the most deeply unattractive alternative of all. Apparently...

The urgency has passed the EU-3 cheese eating surender monkeys by and that quasi Muslim terrist Chicago gangsta Barack Obama and his terrist moll (that's at least something the New Yorker got right eh ? John ?).

Look, let's face it says John , "There was a time when the Bush administration might itself have seriously considered using force, but all public signs are that such a moment has passed." Even good old boy ( and boy do we mean old) John McCain's response is to build a sooper , dooper, new , really, really hi-tech Raytheon missile shield.

Wake up John boy old man, shields are ex post facto, they are after the event, they only work when these sand niggers have got the missiles...Goddam it, doesn't anyone around here get it ? Why does nobody listen ?

Dammit we can rely on the Israeli's - they said they would bomb that shed in the Syrian desert. What did they do ? Why Goddam they bombed it. They levelled it. End of. Mission accomplished. (Pollard ? The AIPAC spies ? ..lies .. bad apples everywhere ..not true patriots)
Goddam it who cares what price gas costs ? Well for sure John doesn't ... but then he has never been elected has he ? ..."When the real source of the threat, not just a surrogate, nears the capacity for nuclear Holocaust, can anyone seriously doubt Israel's propensities, whatever the impact on gasoline prices?"

Look, we are going to be blamed for any strike anyway , so let's see how we can provide what .." cooperation the U.S. will extend to Israel before, during and after a strike on Iran. "

Whooop de doo boys ... "place no obstacles in Israel's path, and facilitate its efforts where we can."

PS : AIPAC .. Will this do ? Shalom, salaam , Peace , whatever, send the cheque to the usual account .. John

You now need US$1.6036 to buy 1 Euro

At the time of Mission Accomplished US$1 - 1Euro.

Korova Jacqui Smith gets a good tolchocking from the malchick droogs opposite in ultra-violence khorosho

Kebab loving Jacqui Smith variously described as Home Secretary has obviously been getting her ideas from Stanly Kubrick / Alan Burgess

In 2 public TV interviews, this weekend, including one with Sky News's bulky Adam Boulton on Sunday, she was asked by Boulton: "One of those proposals is that people caught carrying knives should be taken to see people in hospital that have been stabbed or to meet the families of victims. Is that correct?" Smith replied: "It is."

Smith said yesterday she wanted those responsible for knife crimes to go on weapons awareness workshops at which they would see graphic images of the impact of knife crime. "We are not, and I have never said we are, proposing to bring young people into wards to see patients."

Set in a dystopian sometime future, Clockwork Orange features a disturbingly adult and violent 15 year old, Alex. His droogs Pete, Georgie and Dim, who roam the streets at night, committing violent crimes ("ultraviolence") for enjoyment speaking in Burgess's inventive bastardized Russian / Slovenian Nadsat.

Alex gets 14 years for murder. As an assistant to the chaplain he plays with an interest in religion, and amuses himself by reading the Bible for its lurid descriptions of "the old yahoodies (Jews) tolchocking (beating) each other", imagining himself taking part in "the nailing-in" (the Crucifixion) of Jesus.

Alex hears about an experimental rehabilitation programme called "the Ludovico Technique", of Drs Brodsky (Bad Cop) and Branom (Good Cop) which promises that the prisoner will be released upon completion of the two-week treatment, and will not commit crimes afterwards.

Alex becomes the first guinea pig in the crazy full scale Ludovico Technique of aversion therapy. Alex is given a drug that induces extreme nausea while being forced to watch graphically violent films for two weeks. One of the films has a soundtrack of Alex's beloved Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, (some of the first Moog music) and through his pleading to stop the music, they refuse. It is for your own good and that the music is the "punishment element".

Later the ardent insensitive and excited clinicians demonstrate the Ludovico Technique 's success in front of an audience (including the prison chaplain): a man taunts and abuses Alex is abused and taunted , unable to defend himself as each time he tries he becomes nauseated (He must lick the man's boots to appease him). Then a beautiful, naked woman (Jacqui Smith ?) is shown him, but Alex is unable to think of touching her without feeling ill.

Maybe Mad Max Mosley has had an effect on her ?

Well it was an original idea .. but not hers - maybe she should be locked up to watch Clockwork Orange non-stop for 42 days, whilst we think of something to charge her with ...even if it is only Bed and Breakfast.

Singin' in the Rain - when Lord Patel taught in a detention centre in the 70's the inmates claimed his was the best part of the film ... catchy number.

Bank of England warns "There's NOTHING we can do ...er .... right ....."

This is what Lord King Chairman of the Bank of England said in his annual speech to the great and the good of the City of London at the Mansion House just over one year ago on the 16th June 2007...

"Our central view remains that inflation will fall back this year as the rises in domestic gas and electricity prices last year drop out of the annual comparison, and the recent cuts in prices feed through to household bills."

PS : Mervyn has a pension pot of £4.8million, which should be worth nearly £180,000 a year on retirement...which cannot come too soon.

Peter G Peterson , the Blackstone Group and selling it all away to China.... but Ex Comptroler General has the correct analysis of the problems ...

Peter G Peterson founded the Blackstone Group with Stephen A. Schwarzman with $400,000 in seed capital. "Blackstone" is a wordplay on the founders' names, Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson. Schwarz is German for black. Peter, or Petra in Greek, means stone or rock.

On June 21, 2007, The Blackstone Group went public. Their IPO was to raise $4 billion on March 22, 2007 by selling 133.3 million shares priced at $31.00 per unit. The stock began trading on the NYSE on July 22, 2007.

The Chinese State Investment Company took 10 % stake ($3 billion) stake. By the way the People's Bank of China announced today that total reserves at the end of June reached $1.809 trillion (around 45-50% of annual GDP). This breaks down to $153.9 billion growth in the first quarter of 2008 and a $126.6 billion growth in the second.

Anyway this made Mr Peterson very, very, rich. So, as the Peter G Paterson Foundation website says, he set about giving the money back.

It also made his co-partner very, very rich but if you read Friday, July 13, 2007 Tax cuts for the very,very rich - how it works... and where some of the money goes you will find he has a fucking expensive wife with a fucking expensive lifestyle....

A philanthropist and student of philanthropy, as well as a longtime advocate for securing America's fiscal future, Pete decided to devote much of his new fortune - $1 billion - to a foundation that would tackle some of the critical challenges threatening the nation's well-being. Among them: large and growing budget deficits, dismal national and personal savings rates, and a ballooning national debt that endangers the viability of Social Security, Medicare, and our economy itself.

For too long, these issues have been the increasingly costly gorilla in the room. Policymakers of all stripes know they are unsustainable, and yet they've been politically untouchable, with special interests and career-minded elected officials lined up to block efforts to address them. The media and the business community seem to share Washington's short-sightedness, preferring to focus on today instead of covering and investing in the future.

Pete decided to invest much of his personal fortune in an unprecedented effort blah, blah read the est of this self promtional stuff on his tax dodging Foundation website.....Finally, Pete decided that this foundation would make a special effort to inform and engage the people who are most threatened by the collective reluctance to address these issues: young adults.

Pete's dedication to America stems from his own life story, a classic tale of the American dream. He is the son of a Greek immigrant who moved to America as a teenager with no money, no knowledge of English, and only a third-grade education. Taking a job as a railroad dishwasher, he slept and ate in a caboose and saved his wages, eventually opening an all-night restaurant in Kearney, Nebraska. He sent his son to college. From there, Pete went on to succeed in the corporate world, serve in the Cabinet, and on one summer morning, become an instant billionaire.

The Foundation is dedicated to securing the future of all Americans, and to reversing the recent loss of faith that our children will have better lives than we do. By promoting responsibility today and opportunity tomorrow, we will do our best to keep the country strong and keep this very American dream alive.

Tonight Lord Patel cannot make a screening in "downtown" Washington laid on for the Press about I.O.U.S.A WHICH IS HIS BIG IDEA ..

Our Vision
To keep America strong and the American Dream alive by promoting responsibility and accountability today to create more opportunity tomorrow.

Go to the website and see the movie trailer ... we've even got a scrappy crappy screen shot for you .. guess what ? The US of A is in hock to China.!!!!!..Guess what ..he thinks that's a bad idea and wants to change it.

Skadden represented Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. and Citigroup Global Markets as the lead underwriters in The Blackstone Group's initial public offering.Skadden is representing Fresenius AG, a health care company in Germany, in its approximately US$5 billion acquisition of APP Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a provider of pharmaceutical products which we wrote about last week.

Skadden (AKA Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP) a big Washington / global outfit and no doubt involved in Peter's IOUSA have spent quite some time looking at this post ... there's a surprise.

We now discover that IOUSA is exoplained on Wikipedia ....I.O.U.S.A. is a 2008 documentary film directed by Patrick Creadon.

It is scheduled to compete in the Documentary Competition at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.
The film focuses on the shape and impact of the United States National Debt. The film focuses on Robert Bixby, director of the Concord Coalition, and David Walker, 55 the U.S. Comptroller-General, as they travel around the United States on a tour to let communities know of the potential dangers of the National Debt. This is a tour carried out through the Concord Coalition, and is known as the "Fiscal Wake-Up Tour." In February 2008, Walker announced that he would be resigning from his post as Comptroller General of the office of Goverment Accountability to become the president and CEO of the newly established Peter G. Peterson Foundation. His term was supposed to end in 2013. He states that he feels he can more freely draw attention to the serious issues the U.S. is facing from this position.

Walker said. “My new position will provide me with the ability and resources to more aggressively address a range of current and emerging challenges facing our country, including advocating specific policy solutions and courses of action.”

There are some excellent clear and well illustrated Presentations from Former Comptroller General David Walker to be found here especially recommended Saving Our Future Requires Tough Choices Today

Here is a fascinating slide - remember the GAO serves Congress...

Klaus Töpfer ex German Minister of the Environment - "It would be disastrous if we were to consider a future with nuclear energy once again"

Klaus Töpfer, the 69- year- old former head of the United Nations Environment Program, spent 11 years a member of former Chancellor Helmut Kohl's cabinet. He spearheaded environmental policy as Minister of Environment and introduced ground breaking environmental regulations and laws such as the law on the life-cycle economy and the packaging recycling system "Green dot".

He was Federal Minister of Regional Planning, Building and Urban Development as well as Coordinator of the Transfer of Parliament and Federal Government to Berlin from 1994 to 1998. He held office as Federal Minister of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety from 1987-1994 - when he took up this office he stated "We must invent a future without nuclear energy."

Prior to becoming a member of the German Federal Cabinet he was State Minister of Environment and Health of the Federal State of Rhineland-Palatine (1985-1987) and State Secretary at the Ministry of Social Affairs, Health and Environment for the same state (1978-1985).

He also initiated several laws to ban the use of environmentally harmful substances such as SO2 and ozone depleting substances. He actively contributed to the success of the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 and was a forerunner in the negotiations for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the establishment of the Global Environment Facility (GEF). In 1998, Töpfer went to Nairobi to serve as director of the United Nations Environment Program. He currently works as a consultant, advising the Chinese government on climate policy issues and teaching sustainable development at prestigious Tongji University in Shanghai.

Der Speigel interviewed him to discuss discusses the new nuclear energy consensus, the global hunger for energy and the leading role played by Germany in creating a world without atomic power.

You can read the interview in full here .... Here are some quotable quotes ...

"a dramatic rise in the global thirst for energy, especially in countries like China and India, has led to exploding prices in the West. The emerging nations want to participate in economic growth. As a result, people in industrialized nations like Germany are now afraid that they will no longer be able to drive their cars, pay for electricity and heat their homes. I stand by my words: We must invent a future without nuclear energy, "

"We need to face the fact that energy will never be as cheap as it once was."

"You know, many conveniently overestimate the importance of nuclear energy in protecting the climate. Conversely, the risk that nuclear material could end up in the wrong hands is often underestimated. That's my main argument against nuclear energy: the proliferation of weapons-grade nuclear material."

"it's high time that we hurry up and develop alternatives to nuclear energy. US President George W. Bush warned against a third world war, because Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons. North Korea bluffed hard with the nuclear threat. And French President Nicolas Sarkozy is offering relatively unstable North African countries nuclear power plants. Time is running out."

SPIEGEL asks the question :" If the nuclear power plant operators had their way, they would extend the operating life of their plants by 30 years, in line with the international standard of 60 years. How much of an extension would you permit?"

Töpfer: "We should not give in just because America and France are urging us to abandon the path we have chosen. I am familiar with the concern that extending operating life would only be used to push back efforts to develop renewable energy sources. This absolutely cannot be allowed to happen."

"As cabinet minister, I was responsible for Germany's nuclear power plants for seven-and-a-half years, so I'm not exactly like a blind man explaining color. No one is unprincipled enough to operate a nuclear power plant or extend its operating life when he knows that it's unsafe. Of course, there is always a residual risk with any nuclear reactor. Besides, the question of disposal of nuclear waste also remains unresolved. That's why I'm so concerned about the fact that so few young people are interested in these technologies."

"It would be disastrous if we were to consider a future with nuclear energy once again, simply for the sake of possibly extending the operating lives of plants by a few years. Germany has been a leader in the development and promotion of renewable forms of energy. Now it's time to prove that a flourishing economy can develop an energy supply without nuclear energy. If we don't do it, who will?"

Who benefits from Mr Paulson's Lost Weekend ?

The top five foreign holders of Freddie and Fannie long-term debt are China, Japan, the Cayman Islands, Luxembourg, and Belgium. In total foreign investors hold over $1.3 trillion in these agency bonds, according to the U.S. Treasury's most recent "Report on Foreign Portfolio Holdings of U.S. Securities. (see table at bottom of post) For detail on China see Holdings of U.S. Securities: Implications for the U.S. Economy - Updated May 19, 2008 latest figure = US$1 Trillion - note that Hong Kong + Macao also own US$200Bn of US securities

FreedomWorks President Matt Kibbe commented (11/7/08), "The prospectus for every GSE bond clearly states that it is not backed by the United States government. That's why investors holding agency bonds already receive a significant risk premium over Treasuries.

"A bailout at this stage would be the worst possible outcome for American taxpayers and mortgage holders, who have been paying a risk premium to these foreign investors. It would change the rules of the game retroactively and would directly subsidize the risks taken by sophisticated foreign investors."

"A bailout of GSE bondholders would be perhaps the greatest taxpayer rip-off in American history. It is bad economics and you can be sure it is terrible politics."

Mike Steinhardt at (Desperately) Seeking Alpha points out a warning he made last July...

The Bush Administration via US Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson is trying to get China to buy more government-backed mortgage bonds - specifically more Ginnie Mae offerings.

Bloomberg Josephine Lau - U.S. Urges China to Buy Mortgage-Backed Securities In an article that started "The Bush administration is urging China's central bank to buy more government-backed mortgage bonds in an effort to sustain financing for U.S. home loans." she pointed out that ...

"China held $107.5 billion in U.S. mortgage-backed securities as of June 2006, up from $3 billion three years earlier, according to HUD's Web site. The figures include securities offered by Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, HUD said, without detailing the holdings in each agency. "

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson was in Beijing to meet central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan and Minister of Construction Wang Guangtao in Peking apparently to "tap China's $1.33 trillion of foreign-currency reserves, the world's largest, after surging defaults on subprime mortgages caused the near-collapse last month of two hedge funds run by Bear Stearns Cos. "

On the back of this he advised folks (as does Lord Patel ) to read his comments on 3rd June 2008 at hedgefolios on what he calls The Ultimate Counterparty

It is copied here because it puts the finger on the spot. Now that Lord Patel's crack team of tea leaf and chicken entrail gazers finally unwound what the credit default swaps market is - basically a version of musical chairs paid with IOU's totalling US$45 trillion dollars in which he trick is to leave the game having milked the " false belief that the risks of default in the subprime tranche were compensated by the higher cash flows and the supposed certainty and smoothing provided by the Alt-A and prime tranches" just long enough to leave someone else holding the last IOU - who now the US public is discovering , very, very late in the game ,is the US taxpayer , who is rescuing, amongst many others, the Chinese Government from ill judged (?)investments in GSE bonds. (For a slightly more elaborate view (with pictures and graphs)of the irgins and growth of the CDS market see The Next Shoe to Drop: Credit Default Swaps (CDS) and Counterparty Risk - Beware what lies beneath!

It must have been evident that the decline in the value of the dollar is , as Mike Steinhardt says..." reflects investor confidence in our government and that it will be able to make good on its promises when needed."

Here is the piece to read and ruminate upon. Don't write and complain.Get in touch with your Congressman.

For far too long, Counterparty risk was ignored throughout the world’s fixed income and structured credit instruments. The markets expanded on this underlying concept of insurance where there were no limits to what could be created (or how much of it) so long as we could say that risk was mitigated. The CDO market could expand exponentially because of the false belief that the risks of default in the subprime tranche were compensated by the higher cash flows and the supposed certainty and smoothing provided by the Alt-A and prime tranches. And even if they were wrong, the bigger failsafe was said to be the monoline insurance that would make good on any payment disruptions in the underlying CDO. After all, the monoline had AAA ratings that would all but crush any hint of counterparty risk. We are paying the price for that ignorance now.

But that is not the only example. Just consider the counterparty effects on the municipal bond market. Additionally, there are elements of counterparty risk in the Asset Backed Commercial Paper market when the assumption that liquidity from investors would continue forever and that the big banks providing backup commercial paper lines of credit would soak up the volume if it ever would be needed. In a sense, those banks and their AAA ratings and backup facility were providing the role of counterparty that kept yields low and volume high. Can ABCP issuers still count on them being there? Can ABCP investors feel confident that they will be there to cover the rollover risk?

The biggest example that is still being ignored is the entire Credit Default Swap market. Every once in a while we see hints of the losses that will eventually hit, but they are always downplayed. Never mind that it is the embodiment of counterparty risk and has a notional amount of approximately $45 trillion. Somehow the lovers of CDS feel it is immune to loss simply because it is designed to counter counterparty risk. Eventually we will suffer from that ignorance.

There are multiple tiers where moral hazard meets counterparty ignorance. The higher it goes, the bigger the consequences. The ultimate counterparty? The United States Government.

Look at our currency. To me, the decline in the dollar reflects investor confidence in our government and that it will be able to make good on its promises when needed. More and more, our government is either called upon or volunteers to provide the ultimate insurance. When it comes to banks needing liquidity, the Fed makes sure they get as much as they need. Is there any reason to believe they will not continue to do so? After all, it is the lender of last resort. And if a bank fails? The FDIC supposedly insures that depositors will get their money back. Is there any reason to believe they won’t? If mortgages fail and foreclosures mount, we now have the Dems putting together a proposal for the government to create a new HOLC and provide the ultimate backstop. There may be no limit to what a government can do to prop up an economy but there are consequences for it.

When I see the problems with GSE debt now getting publicity, it really rests on the Ultimate Counterparty. If investors are losing their appetite for agency debt and need an assurance that they have the full faith and credit of our government before they will hold them, we are facing the Ultimate Counterparty risk.

Readers are advised, if they wish to pursue this further to read the notes "What If China Reduces its Holdings of U.S. Securities?" pages 12-16 this gives a flavour - and evidence that someone, somewhere in Washington has thought about this ....

"A potentially serious short-term problem would emerge if China decided to suddenly reduce their liquid U.S. financial assets significantly. The effect could be compounded if this action triggered a more general financial reaction (or panic), in which all foreigners responded by reducing their holdings of U.S. assets. The initial effect could be a sudden and large depreciation in the value of the dollar, as the supply of dollars on the foreign exchange market increased, and a sudden and large increase in U.S. interest rates, as an important funding source for investment and the budget deficit was withdrawn from the financial markets. The dollar depreciation would not cause a recession since it would ultimately lead to a trade surplus (or smaller deficit), which expands aggregate demand.(Empirical evidence suggests that the full effects of a change in the exchange rate on traded goods takes time, so the dollar may have to “overshoot” its eventual depreciation level in order to achieve a significant adjustment in trade flows in the short run.) However, a sudden increase in interest rates could swamp the trade effects and cause a recession. Large increases in interest rates could cause problems for the U.S. economy, as these increases reduce the market value of debt securities, cause prices on the stock market to fall, undermine efficient financial intermediation, and jeopardize the solvency of various debtors and creditors. Resources may not be able to shift quickly enough from interest-sensitive sectors to export sectors to make this transition fluid. The Federal Reserve could mitigate the interest rate spike by reducing short-term interest rates, although this reduction would influence long-term rates only indirectly, and could worsen the dollar depreciation and increase inflation."

Don't worry however(Page 17)they have an answer .... "In January 2007, Secretary of Treasury Henry Paulson was asked at a Senate Banking Committee hearing *** whether or not he was concerned over China’s large ownership of U.S. debt. Paulson stated that the daily volume of trade in Treasury securities was larger than China’s total Treasury securities holdings and concluded: “given the size of our debt outstanding and the way it trades and the diversity and so on, that’s not at the top of the list.”

*** Congressional Transcripts, Congressional Hearings, Senate Banking, Housing and Urban
Affairs Committee, Hearing on U.S.-China Strategic Economic Dialogue, January 31, 2007.

PS : at market close US$ 1 = 1.5909 Euros

Emily Freeman runs superb 200metres for GB team place in Peking beats muscle mass and definition of Christine Ohuruogu

The National Championship meeting over the weekend which is supposed to be pivotal in selecting the GB team for Peking was remarkable in many ways. Considering this was the decisive moment after 4 years for team selection, the public support was negligible.

The BBC as ever provided excellent coverage of the events but with the inane jingoistic voice overs and coverage we have to accept as standard.

The most remarkable event was the women's 200 metres.

This featured, remarkably, Christine Ohuruogu, allegedly our 400m gold medal prospect who didn't run in the 400 metres which was won by 29 year old Scot, Lee McConnell in 52.31 seconds.

Just to recap, Christine Ohuruogu was the Commonwealth Gold medal winner at Melbourne in 2006 in 50.28 seconds and also in the Osaka World Championships last year winning her heat, semis and final.
This appearance was 24 days after a suspension resulting from having missed three out of competition drugs tests, one in October 2005 and two in June 2006. According to IAAF and British Olympic Association rules, she received a one-year ban for missing these tests. The British Olympic Association also banned her from competing at future Olympic Games for Great Britain. John Scott, UK Sport's director of drug-free sport, defended Ohuruogu's punishment at the time and said: "The sanction is in line with that set out within the IAAF's rules and reflects the seriousness of the offence. "

She appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, but the original decision was upheld.

She appealed against her Olympic ban - having claimed apparently that if her claim failed she would run for Nigeria In the event, her ban was overturned on 27 August 2007, leaving her free to compete for Britain in future games, then in November her Olympics ban was overturned.

Her ban was completed on the original date of 5 August 2007.

In the 200 metres final yesterday , slim , shy 27 year old, Emily Freeman from Mirfield and a member of the Wakefield club produced a stunning, solid Olympic A standard time (23 secs B Standard is 23.20 secs) of 22.92 seconds , with Ohuruogu on her shoulder at 22.99.

Emily was close to her personal best and was fastest in heats, semis and the final. She is actually a civil engineer and decided last October to become a full time athlete - 23.01 on June 8 in Regensburg she pushed her personal best down to 23.01 seconds and then last week at Leiden clocked 22.72 - 5th fastest ever for a GB athlete - where she also did a season best in the 100metres at 11.39 seconds.

Nobody could fail to be impressed by the sheer body bulk , upper body muscle mass and well defined muscular structure of Christine Ohuruogu when she was interviewed post race by the BBC alongside Emily Freeman .

It is worth noting that the womens 200 metre world record still stands from Seoul 29/09/1988 when Florence Griffith-Joyner "Flo-Jo" ran 21.34 - her pre-1988 best at 200 meters was 21.96, a mark not even in the top 20 runs on the all-time list. In 1988 she improved that by 0.67 seconds, another time which has not been approached and long since ascribed to illegal drug use to which many attribute her early death. Another remarkable performance was in New Orleans, LA on 26th June 1992 when Marion Jones (now disgraced and self confessed illegal drug user) was a youth she ran 22.38 sec. Heike Drechlser is still recorded as holding the European title with 21.71 run both at Jena and Stittgrta in 1986 - she was then running for the GDR after having been trained in East Germany suing drugs and acting as a Stasi spy. (She is of course the FDR representative for the next Wordl Championships) see post Tuesday, May 06, 2008 Stasi spy Heike Drechsler represents Germany on IAAF - expect great results for Germany in IAAF World Championships in Berlin 2009

The IAAF show that the fastest runner this year has been Isabel Le Roux who ran 23.05 secs at Germiston in South Africa and won the 16th African Championships at Addis Abba in May with 22.69 seconds. She will join her colleague Thuso Mpuang in Peking.

PS : From the BBC website with GB team biogs Emly weighs in at 56 Kilos = 125 pounds = 8stoe 13 lb and Christine weighs in at 70 Kilos = 154 pounds= 11 stone which if Christine is 5ft 6" gives her a BMI of 25 = overweight.

Day 1 : Paulson's "trickle up" economics

Comment on the actions of the US administration in the UK press is limited as the announcement came too late. The BBC 4 Financial commentators in the early hours appear to think that this papering over another gaping hole in the global financial system is fine. No mention of the way the market will short Lehman Bros.

Probably the best knee - jerk public reactions come from the reader comments in the New York Times to Paulson's announcement.

The very best first - this from frd-Chicago

"Taxpayers are going to make a killing on this deal."

"This bloated quasi-govt monopoly openly supported and donated to the Republicans and Bush in the elections in order to keep their gilded fiefdom humming along while they abuse, manipulate, profit, and contort economic reality on the backs of the average American. "

"The seeds of this debacle were planted nearly 30 years ago when Ronald Reagen unleashed his reign of voodoo trickle-down economics."

"So a bankrupt government is going to save bankrupt lenders."

"It's taken 7 years and a lot of hard work but it looks like the Bush administration will successfully leave our country in international and domestic ruin by the time they slink from office in in January 2009."

"My question is, what if even the government's billions don't restore confidence?"

"According to Treasury Direct, the National Debt stands at $9.503 trillion today, slightly more than $300 billion below the debt ceiling, and up about $75 billion since June 30. If the government continues to accelerate its borrowing like this, how long will it take before we exhaust the "full faith and credit" of the country and become a nation dependent on the kindness of strangers?"

"If we're going to get into nationalizing huge chunks of private industry, why not nationalize something useful, like the healthcare industry?"

"That this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom; and that government of the money lenders, by the money lenders, for the money lenders, shall not perish from the earth."

"The US economy has not been a truly capitalist system for a very long time. We have actually been a socialist state (managed capitalism in the current jargon) for a very long time. Strip out the military-industrial complex, social security and related programs, government salaries and construction, farm aid, etc. and what would our economy actually look like?"

.... and finally ...

"We have lost the trust of investors around the world and now placed the full faith and trust of our government, out of necessity, to back the mortgage loan market that remains. Our journalists concentrate so eagerly on the families facing foreclosure but ignore the families, around the world, that have lost trust in our mortgage bonds. "

On the Company website , Richard F Syron , Chairman and CEO of Freddie Mac says ...."This affirmation of the important role of the GSEs, and that we should continue to operate as shareholder-owned companies, should go a long way toward reassuring world markets that Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will continue to support America's homebuyers and renters. I applaud Secretary Paulson and Chairman Bernanke for their leadership and encourage Congress to act quickly to pass the new legislative proposals."

Freddie Mac sells three-month and six-month reference bills every Monday, which will be the time when world opinion crystallises into buying into what is promised a new way of running the business. Bloomberg quotes Wrightson ICAP LLC, a research company that specializes in government finance, in Jersey City, New Jersey. .."``We were glad to read that Treasury officials had been calling around to ensure adequate participation in the auction,'' Wrightson wrote, without attributing the information .. and the BBC talked of arms being twisted up backs.

They also quote Mizuho Asset, with US $37.5 billion funds as part of Japan's second-largest bank, who have no plans to bid at Freddie Mac's auction today.

``We are concerned about the U.S. housing market, so we don't have any agency debt,'' said Hiromasa Nakamura, a senior fund manager at Mizuho. ``It will be a difficult auction.''

Japan's Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance Co. said there's a risk those losses ( above the declared US$400Bn (ish) losses already declared by those exposed to US residential mortgage securities)will spread and recommended investors put their money into government debt, pinpointing Germany or France.

What Lord Patel cannot fully grasp is that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac between them hold US$5 Trillion load and mortgages and the US Government have now effectively told the bond holders that their bonds are 100% secured. So that effectively increasesUS Government indebtedness from the current US$ 9.5 Trillion (approx) to say US$14.5 Trillion whichever way you slice the deal.

White House Announcement due on making "Implicit Guarantee" for Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac real, with US Govt taking up shares , backing Fed loans

The Authorities haven't closed the market down but have let the New York Times know in the last few minutes that the Bush administration will ask Congress to approve a rescue package that would give the government the authority to buy billions of dollars in stock in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and also lend to the companies to meet their short-term funding needs.

In concert the Federal Reserve voted on Sunday to also open a lending facility for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, if they need emergency capital. The two companies would be able to post their own securities as collateral.

The plan apparently asks Congress to give the government the authority over the next 2 years to buy an unspecified amount of stock in the two companies.

Simultaneously it would permit the companies to have greater access to the Treasury, by expanding the credit line that each company has from the Treasury. Each company now has a $2.25 billion credit line, set nearly 40 years ago by Congress. At the time, Fannie had only about $15 billion in outstanding debt. It now has total debt of about $800 billion, while Freddie has about $740 billion.

The 2 companies also hold or guarantee mortgages valued at more than $5 trillion.

This will require an immediate lifting of the national debt limit which requires Congressional approval . It will ask Congress to give the Federal Reserve a role in setting the rules for how big a capital cushion each company must hold which they think will re-assure markets.

When President Bush took office five years ago, the national debt was at $5.6 trillion; it was increased for the 5th time in his Presidency on September 27th last year 850 billion U.S. dollars to 9.815 trillion dollars by a vote of 53-42 . Last week it stood at over US$9.39 trillion, or US$124,400 for a family of four. Interest payments on the debt are already 9.5 % of all government expenditures.

An official statement is expected some time later

The Bush administration wants a fast reolsution and want Congress to adopt the plan immediately.

Last Friday, the Senate approved a measure that will form ther basis of the Amdiminstartions plans .

This "surprise" announcement is intended to send a sharp signal to both stock markets and debt markets that the government was standing behind the mortgage companies.

The credit line provided by the Treasury to the companies has always been seen by the market place as evidence that the two companies would be rescued by the government if they ever encountered severe financial problems.

This is despite years of denial by leaders from the Federal Reserve and to officials from Republican and Democratic administrations has denied the existence of a so-called “implicit guarantee.” Those who denied the existence of the guarantee included Treasury secretaries Robert Rubin, Lawrence Summers and Henry M. Paulson Jr., and Federal Reserve Chairmen Alan Greenspan and Ben S. Bernanke.

The implicit guarantee was a useful device both for the companies and the federal government. It has enabled the companies to get money in the debt markets at rates far lower than other companies and close to the same as treasury securities. At the same time, the Federal government did not have to record on its budget any significant liabilities for the large subsidy it was, in effecting, providing to the companies. Yet it also raised concerns among critics, who said it was unfair to rival companies and that it promoted a management laxity since executives knew that the companies could always count on a hand from the government if they began to falter.

Motivating the change was the central role of the two institutions and the depth of ownership in the paper they have issued. Every major bank, and many mutual funds and pension funds and foreign governments, hold significant amounts of securities issued by Fannie and Freddie, which have been viewed over the years as being almost as safe as treasury securities. A default by either one of the companies could be catastrophic for the financial system.

No mention of Lehman Bros. Nor of closing the market for a day , which would seem sensible until this plan is actually enacted.

PS : Apparently the Commander in Chief ducked announcing this grand plan of showering money on Wall Street and left it to Mr Paulson (Ex CEO Sacks of Gold) to talk to his own, from the steps of the Bell Tower entrance of the White House.

For those seeking a straightforward brief account of the role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac there is an excellent piece in the New York Times today by Peter Goodman - Government as the Big Lender

Driving the Poor to starve - Redux

We posted " Driving the Poor to starve" on Saturday May 12th 2007 and now we read in the Sunday Telegraph today "The Great Biofuels Con" , By Christopher Booker and Richard North

So it is probably worth re-posting.... If you want to see the very many post on the subject simply search on "biofuels"

“How Biofuels Could Starve the Poor" C. Ford Runge and Benjamin Senauer ,Foreign Affairs May/June 2007

C. Ford Runge is Distinguished McKnight University Professor of Applied Economics and Law and Director of the Center for International Food and Agricultural Policy at the University of Minnesota. Benjamin Senauer is Professor of Applied Economics and Co-director of the Food Industry Center at the University of Minnesota. If you read nothing else about ethanol - read this.

The authors demonstrate how Washington's fixation on corn-based ethanol has distorted the national agenda and diverted its attention from developing a broad and balanced strategy to energy independence.

Because of current high oil prices and hefty production subsidies, corn-based ethanol is promoted as a major step in increasing national energy independence in the US. Reliance on high input corn crops drives up prices (corn peaked Feb US$4.37 a bushel, trading today US$3.90 dropped 4% in last 4 weeks) and pushes up grain prices worldwide - the price of grain fed protein sources, poultry, pigs and beef is shooting up as well as secondary markets such as milk and eggs. A bad, cold, wet spring has delayed planting and with 40 million acres of corn to plant in the weeks ahead reduced yields could push prices up further gain later in the year.

Filling the 25-gallon tank of an SUV in the US with pure ethanol would require over 450 pounds of corn -- which contains enough calories to feed one person for a year. It requires a US$13 Federal subsidy to the ethanol refiner, protected by a 51 cents a gallon tariff barrier - if the entire corn crop in the United States were used to make ethanol, that fuel would replace only 12 % of current U.S. gasoline use.

Direct subsidies to corn growers of the mid-west were $8.9 billion in 2005 - which will fall as producer prices soar.

2.1 billion bushels of corn grown 78 million acres produced ethanol at 106 plants nationwide this is expected to grow to 3.5 billion bushels ( U.S. Department of Agriculture showed 15 percent more corn planted than 2006, some 90.4 million acres) this year as corn output jumps to benefit from the US$4 a bushel price ( US$2 only 2 years ago). Farmland devoted to other crops is also being diverted. Cotton acreage this year in the US will drop 14 % on 2006, according to the National Cotton Council. Soybeans, wheat, barley, oats and alfalfa are also being displaced.

The biofuel industry has long been dominated not by market forces but by politics and the interests of a few large companies. In the United States, at least, corn and soybeans have been used as primary inputs for many years thanks in large part to the lobbying efforts of corn and soybean growers and Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM), currently the biggest ethanol producer in the U.S. market.

ADM started making ethanol and other products resulting from the wet-milling of corn in the 1970's , such as high fructose corn syrup and grew to be a major player in the feed market and key force in driving ethanol use. By 1980, ADM's ethanol production had reached 175 million gallons per year, and resultant high fructose corn syrups had become a ubiquitous sweetening agent (and alternative to much criticised raw sugars) in processed foods. ByIn 2006, made just over 1 Bn gallons of ethanol and was the major US producer 4 times the size of , VeraSun Energy (as corn cost rose Vera Sun posted a loss after in Q1 2007). Last year they planned to increase investment in ethanol from $700 million to $1.2 billion in 2008 and increase production by 50%, or close to 500 million gallons, by 2009.

Legislators such as Vice President Hubert Humphrey the Minnesota senator promoted special subsidies , as did Bob Dole (R-Kans.) - critics have pointed out that nearly half of ADM's profits have come from products that the U.S. government has subsidized or protected.

Now protection has gone down the food chain and the 51 cents a gallon subsidy is augmented by a further 10 centsa gallon tax reduction on the first 15 million gallons produced. Many states (Indiana is notable) also provide all sorts of tax breaks on new built plants.

The poor are faced not only with higher energy costs but a resultant rise in food costs - none more dramatically recently than in Mexico earlier this year who import 80% of their corn from the US .Late 2006, the price of tortilla flour doubled . mexican tortillas are made of home grown white corn and the price rose as feed producers swapped supplies from US$4 a bushel corn to cheaper white corn - speculation and hoarding pushed prices even higher.

With about half of Mexico's 107 million people living in poverty and relying on tortillas as a main source of calories, the public outcry was fierce with food riots erupting. In January this year , Mexico's new president, Felipe Calderón, was forced to cap the prices of corn products.

Mark Rosegrant, a director of The International Food Policy Research Institute, in Washington, D.C., projects that given continued high oil prices, the rapid increase in global biofuel production will push global corn prices up by 20 percent by 2010 and 41 percent by 2020. The IFPR calculate that ...

The price of oilseeds, (soybeans, rapeseeds,sunflower )to rise 26% by 2010 and 76% by 2020
Wheat prices by 11 % by 2010 and 30 % by 2020 (which probably undersestimates Australian and Indian drougths this year and rising demand in Egypt)

In the poorest parts of sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Latin America, where cassava is a staple (and is being tested as an ethanol crop) , its price is expected to increase by 33 percent by 2010 and 135 percent by 2020.

The United Nations Millennium Development Goals of 2000 to halve the world's chronically underfed population from 16% in 1990 to 8% in 2015 will never be met as biofuels use supplant food use and world hunger grows. There is only one result when you spend 50-80% of household income on food and the staple crops double in price.

Of course the drive for food based fuels rests on a hidden but unwelcome truth - ethanol is neither fuel efficient nor environmentally friendly - Argonne National Laboratory and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory have calculated that the net energy ratio of gasoline is 0.81, a result that implies an input larger than the output. Corn-based ethanol has a ratio that ranges between 1.25 and 1.35, which is better than breaking even. Petroleum diesel has an energy ratio of 0.83, compared with that of biodiesel made from soybean oil, which ranges from 1.93 to 3.21. (Biodiesel produced from other fats and oils, such as restaurant grease, may be more energy efficient.)

Comaring biofuels gasoline such as greenhouse gas emissions shows that the complete cycle of the production and use of corn-based ethanol releases less greenhouse gases than does that of gasoline, but only by 12 to 26 %. The production and use of biodiesel emits 41 to 78 percent less such gases than do the production and use of petroleum-based diesel fuels.

Even worse is relative fuel efficiency. Using gasoline blends with 10 percent corn-based ethanol instead of pure gasoline lowers emissions by 2 percent. If the blend is 85 percent ethanol (which only flexible-fuel vehicles can run on), greenhouse gas emissions fall further: by 23 percent if the ethanol is corn-based and by 64 percent if it is cellulose-based. Likewise, diesel containing 2 percent biodiesel emits 1.6 percent less greenhouse gases than does petroleum diesel, whereas blends with 20 percent biodiesel emit 16 percent less, and pure biodiesel (also for use only in special vehicles) emits 78 percent less. On the other hand, biodiesel can increase emissions of nitrogen oxide, which contributes to air pollution. In short, the "green" virtues of ethanol and biodiesel are modest when these fuels are made from corn and soybeans, which are energy-intensive, highly polluting row crops.

Ethanol made entirely from cellulose fibre from wood by product, special grasses, field crop residues has an energy ratio between 5 and 6 and emits 82 to 85 percent less greenhouse gases than does gasoline. As corn grows scarcer and more expensive, enzyme technology is improving (To learn more search through this site for Novozymes) and novel closed cycle gasification technologies offfer a promising source of biofuel in the future but significant industrial scale production is at least a decade away. Key technologies are currently not owned by US companies.

Some of the problems are simply logistical one calculation shows that fueling an ethanol plant with switchgrass, a much-discussed alternative, would require delivering a semitrailer truckload of the grass every six minutes, 24 hours a day.... every day.

If you want to drive ... someone somewhere will starve.

Two billion people suffer from hunger daily. The struggle against hunger is made harder as agrifuels for the rich supplant food crops for the hungry. Hunger is a universal scourge - the rapid transformation of agriculture to feed the apparently insatiable and irrational demand for fuels will drive food prices, impact on water resource, adding even more pressures to the overpopulated and underfed.

There is a choice.