Salsa dancing gay lover gets pokey for betrayal of ... er secrets and a very user friendly Welsh Judge

The Mills of the Law grind find ... and it appears mighty fast. The Jury found Iranian-born Army interpreter Daniel James of spying yesterday but couldn't agree on verdicts to charges of collecting documents useful to an enemy (namely Mohammad Hossein Heydari, an Iranian military assistant based at Tehran's embassy in Kabul) and wilful misconduct in public office (offering salsa lessons to a General whilst in uniform).

As a consequence and without further delay or deliberation 62 year old Mr Justice Roderick Evans discharged them and the CPS will "consult" glass tirling and colour co-ordinated Attorney General Baroness Scotland on whether James should be re-tried.Mr Justice Rod Evans is one of Wales' most senior judges and is famous (?) for freeing a Rapist as the victime, a girl, aged 10, 'looked older' (reported in Apr 5 2007 Western Mail ***)

Gen David Richards, who is so dumb that the exotic gay, salsa dancing polylingual elderly but surprisingly athletic sergeant was behaving in a rather unsoldierly fashion has been appointed head of the British Army by the deeply Christian General Dannatt.

A discreet veil will now be drawn over the activities of General Richards and Sergeant James.

*** A 20-year old who had sex with a girl of 10 was yesterday spared jail after a High Court judge agreed his victim looked older.Mr Justice Roderick Evans said he understood why Liam Edgecombe, of Haverfordwest, thought the girl was 16.Taking that into account, he granted Edgecombe a conditional discharge despite him having admitted rape - an automatic charge for anyone who has sex with a child under 13. See here

The judge, Mr Justice Roderick Evans sentenced Edgecombe to a conditional discharge.

He said he had considered ordering Edgecombe to do unpaid community work but he already had a full-time job. Edgecombe was also made to sign the sex offenders' register.

Passing sentence at Swansea crown court, Judge Evans said it was a "wholly" exceptional case and he had to balance the need to protect young girls with the need to punish Edgecombe.

He told Edgecombe: "She was a girl of 10 and you are a man of 20. Those bald facts do not properly represent the true facts of this case.

"The prosecution accepts that you believed she was 16 and that that belief was reasonable. "She was looking for a man and got what she wanted."

Daily Mirror 5th April 2007

Why does a Welsh Judge get called to the Old Bailey for such a major Official Secrets Trial ?

Shock, surprise result Obama wins !

Well Lord Patel was wrong that Fred Thompson would receive the Republican nominaion and also to suggest that a handy bet on Mac the Nife would quintuple yer money ...evidently his political advice is no more valuable than Sarah Palin's.

One thing is certain, Obama's supporters will be ringin' the bells now, but will be wringing their hands in 6 months time.

BBC World Service at its best - Listen to this week's Forum

The BBC World Service has a first rate program whci you cam reach heere and listen to or download as a podcast This week on The Forum

American writer and commentator Fareed Zakaria outlines his vision for a major global power shift, New Zealand psychologist James Flynn warns human intelligence is both more and less than we think it is and philosophy professor Anthony Grayling explores the psychology of trust and why we ignore it at our peril.

This is the BBC at its best - James Flynn is sparkling and illuminating. He is now 73 (pic) and he says,"too old to worry about offending anyone". Excellent article and exegisis of his ideas and the "Flynn" effect ( why IQ scores are rising) which is essential reading for any parent.

Grayling also explains why bankers simply produced balance sheets which were fiction as the concept of commercial trust simply evaporated.

Spanish UN force commander in DR Congo Lt. Gen. Vicente Diaz de Villegas resigns after 7 weeks in job

Now Congo becomes another "unexpected" hotspot the commander of U.N. peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo resigned on Tuesday after just seven weeks in the job.

Lt. Gen. Vicente Diaz de Villegas of the Spanish contingent "has indicated that for personal reasons he will not be able to continue with his assignment as planned," U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas told a regular news briefing. Ghanain Brig.-Gen. Ishmeel Ben Quartey is acting as commander meanwhile. Pic shows Diaz being welcomed in post by UN Sec Gen Ban Ki-Moon.

His appointment as force commander for the U.N. mission in Congo (17,000 strong - the biggest UN military force in the field anywhere ) , known by its French acronym MONUC, was announced on September 9.

The 1998-2003 war was a humanitarian disaster in which it is guessed 5.4 million people died, mainly from hunger and disease.

Congolese Tutsi insurgents of the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) loyal to renegade Gen. Laurent Nkunda advanced towards the strategic eastern city of Goma on Monday after launching a new offensive over the weekend. Local people angered by the fighting rioted at the U.N. base in the town, and one person was killed, a U.N. spokesman said.

It is claimed by some a civilian was killed by US forces.

Fighters overran an army base at Kibumba on Sunday north of Goma. Rebel rockets destroyed two MONUC armored vehicles during Sunday's clashes, wounding several UN peacekeepers.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is extremely concerned.

French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner said on Wednesday that France was interested in sending troops, but the EU's Solana wouldn't hear of it. This was a resurrection of the French-led Artemis team sent in 2003 to Bunia in Ituri.

The head of the UN Mission in the Congo, Alan Doss, spoke Tuesday with the Press by video link from Kinshasa. He chided Congolese locals for protesting against MONUC inaction or retreat, urging them to understand the Mission's mandate.

Joe Bavier, a freelance journalist working in North Kivu, told Al Jazeera that the anti-government offensive was rapidly taking control of territory.

"For the last few days we have had fighting just north of the provincial capital, Goma. That calmed a bit, but now there has been a fresh offensive by the rebels, pushing north along the main road out of Goma towards Rutshuru," he said.

"Rutshuru is one of four urban areas that MONUC has vowed to defend at all costs. Today UN humanitarian workers are preparing to evacuate the town.

"We are still trying to verify whether the town has fallen into the hands of the rebels."

The scale of humanitarian losses is that some 250,000 civilians have fled their homes in North Kivu since a very flaky peace deal collapsed in August.

The UN says that about 850,000 people had been displaced in two years of sporadic fighting before a previous peace deal was signed in January.

The Environment Agency said an 'unforeseeable and freakish' combination of factors had led to the extreme conditions in Ottery St Mary.

If Obama is (still alive) elected

"What happens when you replace a sociopathic lunatic with an eloquent, sane man who espouses the exact same policies? I think it will become even more apparent to the world that America is helplessly in the grip of corrupt corporations and a hoplessly corrupt Congress and that it’s time for a serious worldwide boycott of all things American, including the dollar. The dollar is all that America understands."

Posted comment by Jonathan on October 29th, 2008

To article Note to Progressives for Obama: What Happens After Election Day?
by Joshua Frank at Dissident Voice.

The considered view of Lord Patel is that the Bush gang AKA McCain etc., is such a bunch of Gangstas that somehow the vote will, as in 2000 and 2004, be hi-jacked.

To believe that Obama will bring in a liberal and open minded administration is to believe in perpetual energy machines and Universal Love.... one thing is certain, the US will carry on fighting the Zionist's wars for them.

What have we to look forward to ? Well the Presidential Pardons as he leaves the Oval office will make fascinating reading. You can be certain that the clients of the interesting Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP whose plush Washington Offices at 1615 L Street, could figure as their partner Theodore V. Wells Jr (see pic) notably worked for Scooter Libby who was handed a get out of jail card by the President. he has along list of successful defendants and some less so, such as Michael Milliken.

The Bailey Law Group are next door at Suite 1350 on L Street, Washington having increased thei offices from 10,000 sq feet to 30,000 sq feet.Dicinson Wright who usedto be on L street have moved to newer bigger offices 1875 Eye St., N.W., Greenberg Traurig are another very interesting firm of lawyers with interesting cliients.

Boeing will cut outsourcing on 787 and on future projects - More Airbus 380's delivered

Boeing vice president for engineering Mike Denton has confirmed the company will scale back outsourced engineering on the next 787 variant (787 - 9) and reduce participation by outside partners on all future commercial aircraft programmes.

His remarks were aimed at the Boeing members of the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA), a union now entering the final month of negotiations on a new labour contract.

They also indicate how big a mistake the 787's once-heralded production system relying on six major partners in three countries to make vast financial, engineering and production contributions to the Dreamliner.

Boeing mistakenly judged that its partners were capable of participating beyond build-to-print work, and then compounded that error by failing to track their progress he says. "Our engineers and production workers are basically correcting the problems that should have never come to us in the first place -- problems that are the result of the partners really not being done."

In a major volte face he went on in a company podcast today ... "We will probably do more of the design and even some of the major production for the next new airplanes ourselves as opposed to having it all out with the partners."

"We see that as building on lessons of the 787, taking advantage of the parts that were really good, but doing some course corrections so that we can not relive some of the harder lessons that we have experienced recently."

SPEEA, however, appears still far part with Boeing management on the issues. A mid-afternoon electroic message by Goforth on 30 October read: "SPEEA ends today's meeting early citing Boeing intransigence."

When will Dreamliner fly ? ScuttleBut says late '09 and if it works, enter service late 2010.

Airbus deliveries continue

Quantas have started using their first Airbus 380 on the Melbourne-Los Angeles services and from 24th October will operate the aircraft on some of its Sydney-Los Angeles services and from January will use it for some of its services to London via Singapore - wher it will compete with Singapore Airlines.

Emirates have taken delivery of their 2nd Airbus 380 for use on its Dubai-New York route which started operating on Wednesday 27 th October providing a daily service .

Two more 380's are scheduled for delivery to Emirates by the end of 2008.

German Typhoon EF2000 First visit at Cornfield Range

On the Western end of the Island of Vlieland off the Dutch coast is a live gunnery range NATO codename Cornfeld. A German Typhoon E2000 2 seat trainer , visited on 28th October to practice strafing with 100 bullets from the wing mounted Mauser machine gun. More pics at link.

Picture above from here and a 3 minute recording of the event can be overheard here, in which the pilot says they are tight on fuel having flown from Neuberg - home location of Jagdgeschwader 74 which have been on QRA alert since January this year .

With increased activity from Russian bombers, maintaining aircraft on QRA for the RAF is a major burden, while the Tornados now guarding the Falkland Islands need to be replaced ( planned October 2008).

Many believe that the RAF simply can’t spare a frontline Typhoon squadron for an extended overseas commitment (Afghanistan) , though others expect that a much smaller, brief deployment might still be made to demonstrate the capability. (For purposes PR etc).

Plans to deploy RAF Typhoons to Afghanistan in July were abandoned - meanwhile with just two frontline squadrons operational and a shrinking Tornado F.Mk 3 fighter force, maintaining the RAF’s existing fighter commitments is becoming problematic.

Barack Obama is a Neocon in Disguise (and only thinly disguised)

Barack Obama's deceptive message on foreign policymake him a neocon in sheep's clothing.

For those who think Obama wants to shrink the US military footprint, read Renewing American Leadership by Barack Obama -From Foreign Affairs, July/August 2007 Journal of Foreign Relations , especially the section "Revitalising the Military" ...

"We should expand our ground forces by adding 65,000 soldiers to the army and 27,000 marines. Bolstering these forces is about more than meeting quotas. We must recruit the very best and invest in their capacity to succeed. That means providing our servicemen and servicewomen with first-rate equipment, armor, incentives, and training -- including in foreign languages and other critical skills. Each major defense program should be reevaluated in light of current needs, gaps in the field, and likely future threat scenarios. Our military will have to rebuild some capabilities and transform others. At the same time, we need to commit sufficient funding to enable the National Guard to regain a state of readiness."

see - Thursday, July 24, 2008 Obama's trumpet sounds an uncertain note - bringing down the walls .. or putting them up ?

Also read : Barack Obama: Neocon Warrior - Remarks of Senator Barack Obama to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs April 23, 2007

Thanks for tips to aangirfan

Hedge funds get trimmed on Frankfurt Bourse

Short sellers got caught short on VW stock which reached €1,005.01,yesterday valuing the company at €296 billion or US$370.4 billion, closing slughtly lower at €945 - this morning shares fell to €528.09 ... Hedge funds are said to have lost €20 billion (£15.9 billion) and €30 billion covering their positions.

What's that handy German word to describe the euphoria at enjoying the losses and misfortunes of others ? ...schadenfruede

Technical details of how Porsche pulled off the Stuttgart sting.

Drax in major biomass energy investments.

On October 1st Drax Power Station announced a £10 million (US$18 million) Engineering, Procurement and Construction (”EPC”) contract with Doosan Babcock Energy Limited (”Doosan Babcock”) to supply direct injection biomass co-firing systems to all six coal-fired generating units at the 4,000MW Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire. These will be in operation by end 2009.(Doosan Babcock have been involved in large scale refurbishment projects in Kosovo and Serbia. )

Co-firing involves the mixing and burning of renewable biomass materials with coal and, given the carbon neutral status of biomass, is a recognised carbon abatement technology that has significant potential to reduce carbon dioxide (”CO2”) emissions from coal-fired power stations.

The direct injection firing systems represent a major component of the new co-firing facility at Drax and are designed to receive and transport processed biomass materials to the power station’s coal-fired boilers.

On completion, the biomass co-firing facility will be the largest of its type in the world, which alongside Drax’s existing co-firing capability will provide a total of 500MW of renewable electricity, or the equivalent output of over 600 wind turbines. In the half year report the company announced that the plant maintained a high plant availability of 93%.

3 new biomass plants planned jointly with Siemens

Drax have also announced plans to build, own and operate three 300MW biomass-fired generation plants in the UK at a cost of £2 Bn (Immingham , Drax and one to be decided). It has entered into a joint development agreement with Siemens (whose turbine technology will be used in the new plants) which will also own 40 % of the new business.

With all 3 plants running in 2014 Drax will supply 15 % of the UK's renewable power, and 10 % of total UK electricity supply. Commitments to construction contracts and financing will be finalised in the next 12-18 months.

Drax's equity investment will be funded by a cut in the dividend from 2010. The new distribution policy targets a pay-out ratio of 50 % of underlying earnings from 2010 onwards.

The Fed are are beyond clever. They are insane. How M3 disappeared ... and why.

It is worth re-visiting what we noted about the new Man at the Fed, Benny Bernanke - Wednesday, January 03, 2007 The Mysterious case of the disappearing M3 relating to the decision to cease publishing M3. It was on March 23, 2006, the Board of Governors of the US Federal Reserve System announced that they .....

" will cease publication of the M3 monetary aggregate. The Board will also cease publishing the following components: large-denomination time deposits, repurchase agreements (RPs), and Eurodollars. The Board will continue to publish institutional money market mutual funds as a memorandum item in this release....... M3 does not appear to convey any additional information about economic activity that is not already embodied in M2 and has not played a role in the monetary policy process for many years. Consequently, the Board judged that the costs of collecting the underlying data and publishing M3 outweigh the benefits."

Senator Jim Bunning asked (the new) Fed Chairman Benny Bernanke why M3 was no longer published - who persisted that it is merely a cost saving exercise. It was of course touching that the great man responsible for Trillions was so careful with the candle ends.

However this piece of statistical legerdemain was critical and central to the concealment of the final splurge of insane monetary inflation allowing the boyz in the backroom to really let rip on all their debt shuffling which precipitated most (but not all) the world's banks into a credit crisis as they finally had to prepare balance sheets that bore a reemblance to the truth.

Simultaneously (almost) Michael Nystrom on January 10, 2006 published Is This Rally for Real? And Other Thoughts in which he listed the bearish points for 2006....

Rising short term interest rates
Inverted yield curve
Housing bubble slowdown / pop in the works (See this excellent article by Gary Schilling)
Massive slowdown and/or bankruptcy at GM and/or Ford on the horizon
Rising unemployment in home building, financial services, and manufacturing due to 3 & 4
Rising energy costs
Corresponding slowdown in consumerism due to 5 & 6
Stock market's four year / presidential cycle pointing down
Rising trade deficit
Rising budget deficit
Rising national debt
New Iranian oil bourse in the works to price oil in euros this spring
Falling dollar as a result of most of the above, but especially #12
New guy on the job at the Fed to deal with all of the above.

Which in the afterglow of hindsight, highlights the lily strewn path of dalliance led by the Fed and Ben.

Nystrom goes on however with some fascinating remarks on Bernanke's Fed speech on deflation (Deflation: Making Sure "It" Doesn't Happen Here).

"I remember the first time I heard his printing press remarks -- I was blown away. I didn't know who this guy was, other than that he was a new guy and that I thought the line about the printing press was an extremely irresponsible thing to be saying. I was sure that he would be fired, or at least reprimanded for his remarks, but look where he is now. Shows you how much I know. "

"This is what I gleaned from the speech last night: Bernanke tells a story, that if an alchemist invented a way to make gold in unlimited quantities, then released this news to the world and said he was going to start making and selling unlimited amounts of gold, the price would drop immediately, before the Alchemist made or sold a single ounce. He goes on to compare the Fed to that alchemist. He talks about the printing press, then says, "By increasing the number of U.S. dollars in circulation, or even by credibly threatening to do so, the U.S. government can also reduce the value of a dollar in terms of goods and services, which is equivalent to raising the prices in dollars of those goods and services."

"Then it struck me - this elimination of M3 in March is the credible threat.. It's a bluff. First they juice M3 like it is the end of the world (or 1999), and then they turn the lights out on the statistics. "

"Since we're all in the dark, the only thing we can assume is that the Fed is inflating like there is no tomorrow. But they really don't want to do that -- monetize debt, that is -- it is not good for their balance sheet -- so instead they engineer this bluff. Everyone believes it, and they (we) act accordingly, bidding up stocks and gold."

"If you don't think the Fed is that clever, I encourage you to read Bernanke's speech. It is a long treatise on stimulating demand and causing inflation in the event that interest rates fall to zero."

"After reading the speech, you may find that they are beyond clever. They are insane."

Peter Schiff of Euro Pacific Capital was on Bloomberg again yesterday, reminding everyone on Wall Street of what he said in August 2006 ..."The United States economy is like the Titanic and I am here with the lifeboat trying to get people to leave the ship ...I see a real financial crisis coming for the United States."

Schiff is the author of two books Crash Proof (Amazon - Review ..."Schiff argues that the U.S. economy is going to hell, and that clueless consumers, opportunistic Wall Streeters and pandering politicians are carrying the handbasket. Schiff's screeching tone is a bit grating ...That doesn't mean you shouldn't take him with a grain of salt, but this book was published in 2007, and in mid-2008, Schiff's forecasts of a weakening dollar, rising gold prices, a bursting real-estate bubble and strong foreign stock markets were spot-on..." )and The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets and was economic advisor to Ron Paul in his failed Presidential campaign.... during which he said;

"We need a plan that stimulates savings and production not more ofthe reckless borrowing and consumption that got us into this mess inthe first place. Ron Paul's plan is the only one that amounts to astep in the right direction. If you want meaningful change - for thebetter that is - Ron Paul is the only candidate capable of deliveringit. The others merely promise to continue the failed policies that areat the root of our current economic problems."

It cannot be said that no-one saw this train crash ***coming, or the reasons for it.

*** Schiff describes the proposed merger of Chrysler and GM as a a slo -mo crash of 2 garbage trucks.

First Snow in London and Eastern Seaboard

Greek Yoghurt, a freshly plucked and sliced fig, a drizzle of honey and warm Mediterranean sunshine......aaaahhh !!!

From War zone to Main street in a few years ... Ident is a reality.

We first wrote Anh Dhuong onWednesday, December 12, 2007

The "Bomb Lady" and finding out who you are - JEFF and what it means for you
Ardent Observervations and the Istanbullian drew our attention to "The Bomb Lady" Nguyet Anh Duong a disarmingly pretty Vietnamese / US weapons scientist and an article in Wapo about her recently receiving the the National Security Medal for significant contribution to the nation in activities related to national security.The blast from the thermobaric, or vacuum, bomb maintains its energy over a longer time and distance,enabling it to kill people hunkered deep underground.

"Her work is a significant reason that few U.S. soldiers died in hand-to-hand combat inside the Taliban's vast network of caves and tunnels in Afghanistan. Not only did she help us win the war, but we avoided the loss of many lives had we had to clear caves in a more traditional manner," said Navy Secretary Donald C. Winter presented Duong with the 2007 Service to America National Security Medal from the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service (PPS).
Duong dedicated her award to "the 58,000 names on the wall of the Vietnam War memorial and the 260,000 Vietnamese who died in order for people like me to earn a second chance at freedom."

She received a standing ovation.

(Pic of glamorous granny Senator Harman at a PPS Dinner)

The Bomb Lady's current e-mail address is anh.duong@navy.mil she also favours pink pearlescent nail polish (against her daughters wishes)

Born into an anti communist family, who fled to the US and were eventually granted asylum She graduated from the University of Maryland with both a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering and a B.S. degree in Computer Science and was launched on a 23 year distinguished career as a a weaposn scientist..

In 1983 she started working as a Chemical Engineer at the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division.

From 1991-1999, she managed all Navy basic, exploratory research and advanced development programs in High Explosives.

From 1999-2002, she managed all NSWC Indian Head's technical programs in Explosives and Undersea Weapons, from concept through engineering development to production and demilitarization.

She successfully assembled and led a team of scientists and engineers to develop the payload for a new weapon, now known as the thermobaric bomb, then proceeded to limited production and delivery to the Air Force, all in an unprecedented period of 67 days.

Nguyet Anh successfully led the development and transition of a total of 10 high performing explosives into 18 different U.S. weapons in the past 12 years, which is an unprecedented record of its kind.

She served as a U.S. Delegate at the NATO AC310 Subgroup I for Explosives, and chairman/member of many national and international Panels/Technical Steering Groups.

Since 2002 Nguyet Anh has been Director of Science and Technology of Naval Surface Warfare Center, U.S. Department of Defense,(Pentagon) where she is responsible for Indian Head's overall technical investment strategies, guiding and overseeing research and development programs in all areas of science and technology and focusing these efforts toward the creation of future weapon generations for the United States.

Duong's most recent innovation, the Joint Expeditionary Forensics Facilities (JEFF) project or "lab in a box," analyzes biometrics in the field. It will be delivered to Iraq at the beginning of 2008, the Navy said, to help distinguish insurgents from civilians. (Useful Power Point presentation here) (No.NO. not useful - essential reading 1st page pic at top of post)

"The best missile is worthless if you don't know who to shoot," Duong said.
Thomas A. Betro, director of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service explains the military has been scanning the irises and taking the fingerprints of Iraqis, feeding a biometrics data base in West Virginia. To date, a few ad hoc labs have processed about 85,000 pieces of evidence taken from weapons caches or roadside devices. Duong's mobile forensic labs, with an initial budget of $34 million, will be deployed all over Iraq.


"What would worry me about this is that systems used by the Defense Department off American soil are going to find themselves migrating back to the U.S. … and turned on American residents," Steinhardt said.

Duong, supervised the "lab in a box" design.

Each collapsible, sand-colored, 20 x 20 foot foot unit has its own generator and satellite link(see sexy pic of the facility) . If things go as planned, data will beamed to the Biometric Fusion Center to check against more than a million Iraqi fingerprints. Hundreds of Marines will become scen of crime investigators - donning rubber gloves and laying aside their weapons.

The next stage is to miniaturize, create "a backpack lab," so that soldiers who encounter a suspect "could find out within minutes" if he's on a terrorist watch list, Duong said. "A war fighter needs to know one of three things: Do I let him go? Keep him? Or shoot him on the spot? In Vietnam, our guys didn't have this tool."

There are some interesting jobs being offered ...

Now how would such a mobile identification facility rest with a nationwide biometric Based ID card ?

Now this technology is hitting UK streets .... This was forecast in 2004 .... Lockheed Martin Information Systems, Seabrook, Md., which built the FBI's fingerprint system, was awarded $5 million by the Pentagon on Sept. 10 2004 for the first year of a five-year contract to begin building the military's fingerprint system.

Company officials issued a statement announcing the contract, but declined requests for an interview through a spokesman because of the "sensitivity of the project."

Barry Steinhardt, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's technology and liberty program, said the Pentagon's biometric efforts are worthwhile — as long as they focus outward.

The BBC report today ...On-street fingerprint checks plan

Hand-held fingerprint scanners enabling on-the-spot identity checks are to be made available to all UK police forces.

The devices, about the size of a mobile phone, will be rolled out from 2010 under a scheme managed by the National Policing Improvement Agency. The NPIA says trials of the devices have been a "stunning success"

The devices compare prints against the records of the 7.5m people on the police national biometric database ... and of course EU / USA / Interpol databases are a click away?

The initial phase of the the scheme is expected to cost police forces £30-£40m.

Apparently fingerprints collected will not be saved..... does anyone believe that ?

Who needs an ID card when you were given one at birth ?

How soon before they collect your fingerprints at UK airports for all passengers ?

Haider's lover, Stefan Petzner, steps down as party leader

Stefan Petzner, a 27-year-old former Beuty and fashion journalist became successor to the far right-wing party Alliance of the Future of Austria after Jorg Haider died on October 11th .

Just two weeks later, he was removed from his post. This came after he revealed on Austrian radio that he and Haider had been lovers for five years.

“We had a special relationship,” Petzner had said of the 58-year-old conservative extremist. “He was the man of my life… He often said that I was his.”

This announcement was preceded by a television interview with Krone TV in which Petzner was chain-smoking and crying uncontrollably, talking about his mentor. “I only had him, and now I am alone,” he said. Tongues began to wag.

Now we are told that , Haider had spent his final hours in a(n un named ) gay bar in the southern Austrian town of Klagenfurt, leading to the intoxication from which he suffered at the time of his car crash. It’s a final ironic nail in the coffin of a man whose anti-Semitic and reactionary principles led him to be called the closest thing to a Nazi that Austria has seen since the fall of the Third Reich.

Haider was married with two children at the time of his death. He had voted repeatedly against the expansion of gay rights. He was virulently anti-immigration, yet strangely was in favour of Turkey’s entering the EU.

Numerous German-language blogs, including one on shortnews.de, described Haider’s bisexuality as “an open secret.” Only the revelation of Petzner’s personal liaison contained any news to an informed Austrian.

So we are told.

Haider was supervised by Mossad

The Jewish leader of the Austrian liberal party (FPÖ), has admitted that for many years he co-operated with Mossad.

“I cooperated to the news magazine “profile” appearing in Vienna abaout Jorg Heider up to my retreat from the policy with the Mossad”, said the journalist and journalist in the year 2005.

Peter Sichrovsky worked in and the 90's 80's also for German publications, for “Der Spiegel” and the “South German newspaper”, and was joint founder of the Viennese newspaper “The Standard”. “I wanted to help Israel and did nothing illegal. I am not James Bond

Sichrovsky was at the beginning of 2003 the FPÖ delegate in the European parliament.

Apparently claimed Sichrovsky “Israel wanted Jörg Haider as bridge to Arab countries, with those no official contacts existed, uses”, said it. (wiwo.de < http://www.wiwo.de/politik/ex-fpoe-abgeordneter-half-israels-geheimdienst-102476/ >)

See more Also see an article in Searchlight the anti - fascist mag of the UK far left article in April 2000 -Who is Peter Sichrovsky? Peter Sichrovsky, the Freedom Party (FPÖ) MEP of Jewish origin wheeled out to front Jörg Haider’s sudden resignation as party chief, enjoys a special status.... in which he is described as ..

In addition, he has defended Haider’s infamous claim that the Nazi concentration camps were “penal camps” by attacking those who say Auschwitz-Birkenau was an “extermination camp”. His grounds for this twisted logic are that the term “extermination camp” is Nazi phraseology, even though the Nazis themselves never used this term. It is, therefore, not surprising that Sichrovsky cannot understand why the two activists of the FPÖ’s youth organisation who desecrated a Jewish cemetery in Eisenstadt have been branded “political culprits”.

But it is for Zionism and the state of Israel that Sichrovsky reserves special venom, deliberately misquoting the country’s first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, and resurrecting the canard about the wartime Hungarian Zionist leader, Rudolf Kastner, who controversially tried to rescue Jews from the clutches of Adolf Eichmann and was later accused of being a collaborator. In the 1980s, Perdition, a play on the same theme by the left-wing playwright Jim Allen, caused outrage in Britain.

June 2nd 2005 the Times also ran a story Mossad spied on far-right Austrian by Roger Boyes.

THE ISRAELI secret service spied on Jörg Haider, the right-wing Austrian populist, using one of his closest aides to gather information on his contacts with Arab dictators. Peter Sichrovsky said that he had been a Mossad informant for five years until retiring from politics in 2002.

“I wanted to help Israel and certainly did not do anything wrong,” said Herr Sichrovsky who was secretary-general of Herr Haider’s Freedom party and a member of the European Parliament. The Austrian state prosecutor said yesterday that he would open an investigation to determine whether Herr Sichrovsky should be prosecuted. Spying for a foreign power carries a jail sentence of up to three years in Austria.

intersting chap Mr Peter Sichrovsky ...

Austrians agog at wooden airplane

26th October and Austria commemorates the Declaration of Neutrality, signed in 1955. On the Heldenplatz in Central Vienna, 700,000 citizens had a knees up. The declaration which is part of the Constitution followed the Austrian State Treaty of May 15th marking the withdrawal of the troops of occupation of the Western Allies after WWII and officially establishing Austrian independence and sovereignty....Allied troops left on October 25th.

Not missing the chance Österreichs Bundesheer chose the national holiday to display their 1: 1 wooden Typhoon / Eurofighter whilst tanks rumbled past and helicopters buzzed overhead. More pics

What this neutral country will do with these weapons is a political problem few wish to discuss or answer. Some explanation how they were supplied by Germany here.

Rolf Steiniger in his book Der Staatsvertrag. Österreich im Schatten von deutscher Frage und Kaltem Krieg.Studienverlag, Innsbruck-Wien-Bozen 2005, 198 Pages provides a unique and fascinating insight into the position of Austria, the Allies interets in the Anschluss, the post war question and the the curent position of the Austrians uin Europe. Brief review at Rolf's website here. See also

Want to quintuple your money overnight ?

Bet on McCain / Republican to win odds of 5/6/7 to 1 ina 2 horse race. See

Sure fire certainty since Scott McClellan endorsed Obama ... when has HE ever been on the winning side ?

Pelamis - wave energy

The First Wave Energy Farm of the World...It's About Time...
Posted by Luis de Sousa on October 2, 2008 - 9:15am in The Oil Drum: Europe

On Tuesday the 23th of September, the deployment of the first commercial wave energy farm in the world started. A Pelamis unit was towed into the sea, connected to an underwater cable and moored to the sea floor, at a site were it will stay for the next 15 years. The Industry was present at the highest level, as so a Minister and even the Navy showed up with a frigate to join the celebration....

We have written about Pelamis over the years identified more by hype and hope than results ... ... here is an excellent and brief well informed article to bring those interested up to date.

NB : Do NOT confuse with TIDAL energy.

All aboard my hearties and fill yer swag bags in the sun on the good ship Venus

Andrew Simon Feldman,(b 25th/2//66) (Haberdashers' Aske's,Elstree, ) a university chum (Brasenose - they jointly organised the May Ball in their year ) of Bullingdonite David Cameron , lawyer (of sorts - Lord Patel's sources say Ed Vaizey says he could be heavyweight commercial QC) but something to do with family rag traders Jayroma T/O in £40 Mn region , gross Trading Profit £7Mn. which magically became trading profit of £300K.m. 2 offspring.

Visitor with Conservative Party Shadow Boxing Chancellor of the Exchequer on board the modest runabout of RUsAL owner, Mr Oleg Deripaska this summer off Corfu .....who was NOT asked for any money for Conservative Party funds, nor were any offered, given, discussed , thought about, mentioned, directly or indirectly or scribbled on a stray paper serviette, supplied in a Waitrose shopping bag in the form of US$100 bills. ....

In September 2003, Orka Holdings arranged for Mr Feldman (the newConservative party bagman (AKA CEO) at the time) and David Cameron, to attend the England-Macedonia football international in Skopje. Orka picked up the tab for a four-day stay at the Aleksandar Palace hotel, where the England team were staying, and also for the match itself. Mr Cameron declared this hospitality in the register of members' interests

Surprisingly rag trader Orka, suppliers to Jayroma is owned / run by "colourful " Macedonian businessman 40 yr old Jordan "Orce" Aged 35, m. twice and divorced twice - father in law mayor of Earthquaked victim toewn Skopje.(see pic)

Orka holdings, founded by his dad , Ilija, after the "privatisation" in the 1990s of a former state sports clothing company. The Macedonian prime minister opened the business's new Skopje factory in 2002; it was said to have cost €10m in investment, some €500,000 from Mr Feldman's Jayroma by all accounts locally.

Jordan Kamcev has been under criminal investigation for tax evasion and VAT fraud. Forced to spend a brief spell outwith Macedonia in 2003 he returned to spend 12 hours in a Skopje prison before being bailed for €70,000.

Jordan recently (March '08) became chairman of Football Club FK Vardar after fans ousted president Braco Vujčić and the complete leadership of FK Vardar .

PS : Andrew Feldman helped fund the Cameron leadership bid or at least Jayroma provided 10,000 roubles Pounds - but then like Lord Levy he is also a tennis Party of the Dear leader.

Foreign Company funds re-routed through UK branches to Conservative Party

CVS Management, the management consultancy that is a subsidiary of a British Virgin Islands-registered, Swiss-based investment company. Who should mastermind this but Corvus Capital home of the eye line wearing "colourful" business man Andrew Regan, he who was narrowly cleared of stealing £2.4 million from a food company where he was chief executive in a complicated swindle to buy the Co-op.

Now, like so many fugitive financiers a denizen of the land of cuckoo clocks.

Markland Holdings (UK) is a small chunk of Sean Mulyan and Paddy Kelly's widespread property ventures based in sunny Dublin who gave £100,000 to the Conservatives this year .

Venson Automotive Solutions, is a bit of Dermot Desmond's empire, the squillionaire Irish owner of Celtic FC so soundlty beaten last week whilst John Reid AKA Ex Cabinet Minister and now Chairman watched at Old Trafford.

Loss making Star Reefers UK, (- £400K last year) the British wing of a family shipping business whose parent company is chaired by Norwegian, Kristian Siem another habitue of cuckoo clock land. Coppered up enough to send dear david £50,000 to the Tories.

Sleepwell Hotels UK owned by a tree legged trust in Douglas IOM (MD Denholm Eke) sent £50,000 in June '08 although Companies House show they failed to trade.

Inconveniently UK law states that a company must be “carrying on business” for a political donation to be eligible. Denholm Eke, said the corporate donor was part of a business running hotels in Blackpool and the Isle of Man. A restructuring meant that Sleepwell Hotels UK was now clearly trading and this would be reflected in future accounts.

Mr Eke apparently told the Times “It’s because we are very interested in Blackpool ,the Conservative Party would provide the most obvious political impetus for a Blackpool regeneration. It [Blackpool] is very sad and run down.”

BSN Capital Partners, is a fascinating bijouette London-based hedge fund advisory business run by two Americans and a Briton. Ultimate ownership is on a sandbar off a remote Cayman island partly owned by Icap, the Conservative Party treasurer Michael Spencer they stumped up £100,000 in these distressed times for hedge funds = 25% of profits.

Their gift of £100,000 amounted to nearly a quarter of last year’s profits.

There have been 23 corporate donations of exactly £50,000 and five of £100,000 during the Cameron era. Michael Spencer explained that this figure was first suggested by Sir Hayden Phillips during his official review of party funding.

'Twas on the good ship Venus,
By Christ you should have seen us,
The figurehead
Was a whore in bed, ....etc.,

Tinpot Aluminium gangster pals out with Lord mandelson and Conservative bagmen in Corfu whilst Murdoch watches

Conservatives dragged into row over Russian billionaire
The Tories, oligarch Oleg Deripaska and a £50000 question
Tory shadow cabinet members 'tried to solicit £50000 donation ...
The Tories and the oligarch: key characters
The richest Rothschild of them all Mail Online

Courtesy aangirfan Pic of deripaska's "yacht" Queen K alongside at Gibraltar.

Mr Deripaska has fascinating ties to the family of the late president Boris Yeltsin who hand picked Mr Putin. He married Polina Yumashev in 2001, the daughter of Mr Yeltsin's former chief of staff. Mr Yumashev is married Mr Yeltsin's younger daughter Tatyana b 1959 . Aeroflot is headed by Valery Okulov who is married to her sister Yelena b 1957.

The US State Department revoked a multi-entry visa for Mr Deripaska in 2006, declining to explain its reasons. That decision has not been reversed. The Wall Street Journal also reported this month that Mr Deripaska was under investigation by US and British authorities over a $57.5 million wire transfer routed through Barclays Bank in New York and London.

One of these will come in handy soon....

In 1991 Glock made a 1000 off limited edition series of specially engraved Glock 17 handgun. A list of names of all the coalition countries is engraved down the top of the slide; "Operation Desert Storm/January 16-February 27, 1991" is engraved on the right side. On the left side is "New World Order/Commemorative".

No 1 went to Dubya's Dad. No 2 to Stormin' Norman Schwartkopf etc.,

"European Union President Nicholas Sarkozy and European Commission President J. M. Barroso meet with United States President George W. Bush to press for a sweeping overhaul of the Global financial system to include a blueprint for a Worldwide Currency System.

October 18, 2008"Sarkozy: 'We must make haste, because we must stabilize the market as swiftly as possible by coming up with answers... Global Worldwide Solution... Thank you, Mr. President... for using your term of office right up until the very end to help the world find the answers to a crisis that we must contain. We must not give way to fatalism.'"

Barroso goes on to discuss merging our economies... 'a New Global Financial order and the Rule of Law."

Eight Steps to a New Financial Order
Alan S. Blinder
From Foreign Affairs, September/October 1999

Summary: The economic conflagrations that lit up the world throughout the last half decade sent a very clear message: There are fatal flaws in the global financial architecture. The Bretton Woods system was designed for a very different world. The IMF, part schoolmarm and part firefighter, no longer plays either role well. Too often, it ignores the real victims and makes crises worse. The system must be redrawn to stabilize markets and head off panics before they spin out of control. Herewith a simple, eight-point plan for such reforms that uses existing institutions and respects current notions of national sovereignty

We cannot expect to design an international financial system that totally eliminates risk. Manias, panics, and speculative excesses are inherent in free-market capitalism. Speculative markets have always been subject to alternating waves of greed and fear; they go to extremes, exhibit herdlike behavior, and probably always will. All this is part of the price we pay for vibrant, highly productive capitalism -- a necessary blemish on an economic system that has produced a dazzling record of achievement.

White supremacists stuck in the headlights over Obama

A tall, extra-hot mocha in his hand and a .380-caliber pistol on his hip, Bill White sat near the window of a Starbucks in Roanoke, Va., last month and discussed his political predicament as the leader of one of the nation’s more established neo-Nazi groups.

“Right now,” said Mr. White, the head of the American National Socialist Workers Party, “we’re facing the potential of a half-black candidate financed by Jewish money going up against a white candidate financed by Jewish money, who are both advocating the same policy. So you’ve got two terrible choices.”

That's the start of an article in today's NYT by Jim Rutenberg. read on ...

General Sir David Richards -- fit for purpose ???

Chief of the General Staff General Sir Richard Dannatt is pleased to announce that Her Majesty The Queen has graciously approved his recommendation that he be succeeded by General Sir David Richards. Currently serving as Commander-in-Chief Land Forces, General Sir David Richards will take up post as Chief of the General Staff in August 2009.

This was the same General Sir David Richards who as Lieutenant-General David Richards was the the commander of the British contingent of Nato forces in Afghanistan and whose gay club bouncer and dance instructor from Brighton and salsa-dancing Territorial Army interpreter Corporal Daniel James, 44, (AKA "General James " and originally Esmail Mohammed Beigi Gamasai)a military intelligence officer is currently in the Old Bailey charged under section one (1) (C), of the Official Secrets Act 1911 - that on 2 November 2007, for a purpose prejudicial to the safety of the state, he “communicated to another person information calculated to be directly or indirectly useful to the enemy” ...plus a charge of wilful misconduct, .

General Sir David Richards who as Lieutenant-General David Richards was the the commander of the British contingent of Nato forces in Afghanistan and was referred to by American supreme commander of NATO at the time, General Jim Jones, who was happy to let it be publicly known , that Lieutenant-General David Richards "would have been sacked if he had been an American officer". and that he was "too political". December 6th 2006

In a fascinating performance last week at the Old Bailey General Richards, appeared as a prosecution witness and said that on occasions he had whispered to James, telling him to lower his voice and stop acting the part of a general.

Asked whether he knew that Corporal James had begun calling himself General James, he said: “I didn't know that but it doesn't surprise me.”

General Richards, now Commander-in-Chief Land Command, said that the corporal had a character that “bordered on the bizarre”. He admitted that he was “completely dependent” on him because there was no alternative, and his previous interpreter, a captain, had not been good enough.

"He was very ebullient, something of a Walter Mitty character," said Gen Richards. "He obviously didn't mind being pointed out. "We have a floppy sun hat to keep the sun off and he would wear a cape-y thing at the back. He would also go to the gym a lot and he was keen to look after himself. He liked the limelight a lot."

Maj James Driscoll, who worked as the general's military assistant, said he found Mr James to be "always polite" although he sometimes had a "slightly overinflated opinion of himself".

£1.5 Mn a throw for uparmoured Rdigeback to replace Snatch Land Rovers in Afghanistan/ Iraq

£81 Million pounds is being spent by the MOD on converting US made Force Protection Inc. ( (NASDAQ: FRPT - News )vehicles - the Cougar 4x4s , into what are described by Minister for Defence Equipment and Support, Quentin Davies as the "awesome" Ridgeback -"supplement the excellent work currently carried out by the hugely successful Mastiff. As a smaller version than Mastiff it will offer our forces first-rate protection with greater manoeuvrability and easier access to urban areas. " (MOD pic)

The contract has gone to NP Aerospace in Coventry and 157 Ridgback vehicles will be retrofitted into an "uparmoured and weaponised version" with additional protection, weapons, communications systems and specialist electronic counter-measures equipment.

NP Aerospace (473 Foleshill Road Coventry CV6 5AQ England United Kingdom UK - which is the successor to Courtaulds Bakelite Moulding ) produce 4 variants including an Ambulance or command post vehicle - to enable it to carry out different roles within Afghanistan.

All the Ridgback vehicles will feature:
* Strong axles and suspension to cope with the harsh terrain
* Weapons systems
* Additional armour
* Communications systems
* Modified seats to offer the crew more protection from bomb blasts

Top speed: 55mph Weight: 19.5 tonnes

Weapons: A mixture of weapons systems, including a 7.62 Heavy Machine Gun; General Purpose Machine Gun; Grenade Machine Gun mounted.

Some will also be fitted with a remotely controlled weapons system which will allow the user to operate Ridgback's weapons by using a camera and joystick from inside the vehicle.

This contract is on top of the procurement announced in December 2007 of the original vehicles for £150 Mn

NP Aerospace was also awarded a £61M contract to deliver Mastiff 2, the next generation of Mastiff vehicles, on 18th September 2008.

It may interest many that NP Aerospace were part of the mysteriously owned Carlyle Group, the global private equity house which bought the company for £30 million from Reinhold Industries in 2005 - then in August 2007 Morgan Crucible particpitated in a a £71 million trade buy-out (TBO) to end u[p with a minority stake.

Force Protection Inc. have a fascinating history in supplying wjhat are calle MWRAP (Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected ) vehicles to the US forces, shared traded as high as US$25 dollars 6 months ago but are trading today at US$2.05. see Tuesday, January 22, 2008 Ist US fatality in MRAP in Iraq - Force Protection slides

What this story means is that the Mastiff unveiled by Lord Drayson (now motor racing) in September 2006 which Lord Patel described as

Too Large, Too Late and incredibly expensive MOD runabouts bound for sunny Afghanistan.

Presented as a replacement (at £1/4 Mn per throw) for the inadequately armoured "snatch" Land Rovers this hugely expensive sticking plaster adds a further burden of costs of spares, and base training , and a further front line burden , of training mechanics, the need for low loaders , more back up equipment, spares to carry and a higher overhead of maintenance staff, plus their housing , catering etc., Press reports state they cost £1/4 Mn. each but the manufacturers press release at the date of order 11th August (4 weeks ago!) states the order for 85 vehicles is US$63 Mn. = approx £400,000 "The contract also includes associated spares, technical manuals, and field service support and is worth approximately $63 million. "

So now the MOD are spending at least £150 Million buying some more ( and nimbler 4 x 4 Cougars) for £150 Mn and another £81 Million = £231 Million adding things like ;

* Strong axles and suspension to cope with the harsh terrain
* Weapons systems
* Additional armour
* Communications systems
* Modified seats to offer the crew more protection from bomb blasts

Which one might assume would come as original equipment - so we make it that each of thes "awesome 4 x 4 Ridgebacks" which are basically to replace the "snatch Land Robver" will cost and eyewatering £1.5 Mn each.

The MOD provide no date for delivery.

A seventh Daubenton's Bat found with European Bat Lyssavirus - in Shropshire

We brought attention to the rabid bats amongst us earlier this year Friday, May 09, 2008 Rabid killer bat found - expect the headlines.

Now another dead bat has been found and been found positive for European Bat Lyssavirus type 2 (EBLV-2), by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA) in Weybridge, Surrey which was found in Shropshire. See the very informative Defra webpage about the virus and its occurrence in the UK here - Rabies virus, including EBLV, can be transmitted to humans and to other animals. One such example was the tragic death of a Scottish bat conservationist (David McRae, 55, a volunteer naturalist and wildlife artist see Independent report 2/10/2002)from rabies caused by EBLV-type 2 in 2002.

A limited survey has shown that about 2% of Daubenton’s bats in England are seropositive which suggests they have been exposed to rabies virus and may be capable of transmitting it.

Since 1966 7 bats have been found and tested positive for the virus in Sussex, Lancashire, Surrey, Oxfordshire, and Shropshire.

Standard advice from the Health Protection Agency (HPA) is that if anyone is bitten by a bat the wound should be cleaned with soap and water and they should seek medical advice immediately.

Daubenton's bat (Myotis daubentonii ) is rarely found far from rivers or lakes and is characterised by a steady steady flight, often within a few centimetres of the water surface and is frequently said to look like a smallhovercraft.

Daubenton’s bats take aquatic insects, their larvae and pupae from on or close to the water surface.They have even been seen taking prey directly from the water surface, using their distinctive large furry feet as a gaff or the tail membrane as a scoop.

They are sometimes called the water bat.

They hibernate in small colonies and emerge in the spring and can range up to 7 kilometres from their roosts. They are not a threatened species in the UK, but they are endangered in West Germany and Austria.

You can hear recordings of their ultrasonic signals at this website. More information here

Powell embraces Nancy Pelosi and everyone will be surprised to learn AIPAC

Chris Floyd at Empire Burlesque disembowels the White House Uncle Tom, ColIN Powell ... the man who covered up My Lai ... the bagman who sold invading Iraq to the UN waving his little phial of death and phony pictures of the Winnegaboes of Death ...

Read his coruscating piece here

" ...... No provocation necessary. No legality required. Just a thuggish elite raining death on the world, for profit and power, sowing hatred for the once-great nation they have hijacked – and ensuring more death and terror for its people. "

Your place or mine Nancy ... Harry reid is looking real sore..

Commercial Aircraft Leasing has slowed to a halt ... Boeing on strike

International Lease Finace Corp is one of the wheels that came off in the AIG train wreck. this premier aircraft Leasing Company which has been led for years by Chairman & Chief Executive Officer / Founder the legendary Steven F. Udvar-Hazy is up for sale.

No - one wants to buy as oil prices slump.

No - one wants to finance a buy out.

The company website hasn't had a Press release posted for over a months suggesting deals have dried up.

CRash ! Bang! Wallop! Doom ... the rapture draws on...

"The crash we have been expecting finally happened last week and it was global in scope. The resulting recession/depression will be severe, since recent recessions have been staggered, meaning they never occurred all at once everywhere. While some national economies fell into recession, others were healthy and could pull the weak ones back up with their demand. When all economies crash at once, only governments can stimulate demand by massive deficit spending. But the United States, home to the world’s reserve currency, has been engaging in massive deficit spending throughout the last expansion, leaving it in a very weak position to do more. But do more it must, as we have seen with bailout after bailout in recent weeks, all of which will be added to the deficit and the public debt. That will increase interest rates, thereby plunging the U.S. economy further into full-scale depression. The result will most likely be a collapse in the value of the dollar and the end of the United States as a military hegemonic superpower."

Finally the voice behind the Signs of the Economic Apocylypse which many readers here will have followed for several years was able to write the draft epitaph.

The analysis and the history is simple. The banks and associated institutions successivelt prepared, produced and published fraudulent balance sheets.

On the basis of these convoluted lies - which even their highly prized and highly praised, not to say highly priced and highly paid CEO's were happy to claim a sedentary ignorance they declared profits , bonuses, rewards and dividends that when paid destroyed the capital base of those institutions.

Now, forced to expose the extent of their lies which runs worldwide to trillions , they have turned to the only source of succour, support and funds ... the poor sap, the taxpayer.

Nicely timed as the US is sat like a constipate awaiting the result of a rigged election.

No-one dare raise a voice of protest. Anywhere.

Worst week for global markets since 1929

"Amid the market turmoil, the reality of the decay of American capitalism was summed up by the fact that General Motors felt compelled to announce that it was not contemplating filing for bankruptcy. After decades of plant closures, wage cuts and attacks on the benefits and pensions of auto workers, justified by the claim that they were necessary to restore the biggest US auto maker to profitability and enhance its competitive position, this one-time icon of American capitalism is teetering on the edge of collapse."


18/3/05 GM makes you sick

US manufacturing industry has failed to understand and react to a rapidly changing world. Emboldened by the strident, pre-emptive, transformational world of the Bush imperialist gang, exporting by force of arms and bribery their distorted vision of democracy, their own has been disembowelled.

Black Monday II coming soon at a Stock Market near you.

In depth report on Markets Turmoil by Economist

from aangirfan

Mr Putin's Bears are getting to be a nuisance ... and Iceland are in no position to argue

“RAF Typhoons prepare for Iceland QRA duty”, is the title of an piece by Tim Ripley in subscrition only Jane’s Defence Weekly.

This - which we cannot reproduce , explains how the Royal Air Force are to deploy six Eurofighter Typhoons from RAF Coningsby to Keflavik Air Base, Iceland, for a couple of weeks as part of an allied rotation of fighter units to provide air surveillance and intercept cover over the Greenland-UK gap.

Joint Strike Fighter a victim of the Credit Crunch ?

Haaretz had a story last week that the IDF will need to reevaluate its procurement of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) in light of the global economic crisis, as ..."cracks appearing in the coalition producing the plane could push up the price of the jet. "

Last month, the Pentagon announced plans to sell Israel 75 JSF jets in a deal that could reach over $15 billion. Israel said it will likely exercise the right to buy 25 planes, which it would like to begin receiving in 2014 but rumours abound of a delay.

Italy, one of the project's nine partners, said last week it would not purchase two early models of the jet it had intended to use for testing and evaluation although it remains a partner and is committed to buying 130 planes. JSF manufacturer Lockheed Martin confirmed that Italy would not purchase the test aircraft but that Rome was still a full-fledged partner in the program and was committed to buying the final version.

They also report cold feet in the MOD (who have run out of money for the forseeable future). British had planned to buy 150 planes. It had intended to deploy the jets on the Royal Navy's new aircraft carriers. According to the report, Britain has commissioned studies (?)to analyze whether Eurofighters could be adapted to fly off the carriers instead..... Lord Patel has alreadt commissioned a technical report and the carriers are some 1,600 feet short.

There are no reports yet that the multi role Typhoon / Eurofighter is to be used as a passenger aircraft... yet.

The sun set on Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities 12 months ago ... did someone know the gig was up ?

If you land on the Sidley Austin website that covers the activities of their Mortgage-Backed Securitization / Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securitization you will find their is a degree of refreshing historical data about thier activities ...

For 2006, Sidley was ranked by Commercial Mortgage Alert as number two issuer counsel and number four underwriter counsel for U.S. Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities. For 2005, we were ranked number two issuer counsel and number three underwriter counsel. In the past year our lawyers closed, or otherwise played critical roles in, the issuance of more than $25 billion of commercial mortgage-backed securities. This reflects our continuous leadership in the field, beginning with the representation of the registrant in the first CMBS “shelf” registration statement to be declared effective, and in the first CMBS shelf “takedown.”

...their last activity ...as recorded by a Press Release (and Sidley Austin, employees of both Michelle Obama and Bernardine Dohrn wife of Prof. Bill Ayers are not shy of issuing Press releases is of interest to shareholders in the yet to implode Barclays bank ...

Sidley Austin Advises Barclays Capital on £918,862,000 GEMINI (ECLIPSE 2006-3) PLC CMBS November 30, 2006
London – The London office of Sidley Austin has advised Barclays Capital on its recent £918,862,000 GEMINI (ECLIPSE 2006-3) PLC UK CMBS transaction, one of the largest sterling CMBS issuances undertaken this year. The transaction is the seventh issuance in Barclays Capital's CMBS conduit programme, which is branded "ECLIPSE", but it is the first occasion on which Barclays Capital has instructed Sidley Austin as its counsel.

The transaction involved the offering of £918,862,000 notes by GEMINI (ECLIPSE 2006-3) PLC. The notes offered were backed by a single loan secured over a portfolio of 36 commercial real estate assets (comprising office, industrial, retail and leisure assets) located across the UK.

Sidley Austin also acted for Barclays Bank PLC as lender in the origination of the loan which was made in early August of this year. Partners in the Sidley Austin Finance Group Debbie Carslaw, Mark Menhennet, Graham Penn and Partha Pal led the team handling the origination of the loan, assisted by a team of associates including Paul Gray, Sharon Smith, Pamela Clarke, James Bucke, Kirsten Bradby and Sunil Desaur. Partha Pal led the team handling the securitisation, assisted by associates Lisa Avellini, Alex Campbell, Paul Gray and Michael Killourhy.

Partner Andrew Bliss advised Barclays Capital Mortgage Servicing Limited as Master Servicer and Special Servicer on the transaction. Partner John Russell advised The Bank of New York as Trustee on the transaction, assisted by Sarah Murphy.

Partner Graeme Harrower advised on UK taxation for all aspects of the transaction, assisted by Kate Aubury.

Which leaves you wondering what Debbie Carslaw, Mark Menhennet, Graham Penn and Partha Pal, Paul Gray, Sharon Smith, Pamela Clarke, James Bucke, Kirsten Bradby, Sunil Desaur, Andrew Bliss , John Russell , Sarah Murphy, Graeme Harrower and Kate Aubury have been doing for the last 12 months.

FDA treads water on Effient (prasugel) approval

The blockbuster blood thinner Plavix from Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) and Sanofi-Aventis (SNY), looks under even less of a threat from Lilly's Effient (prasugel) --which the FDA is going to kick back to one and maybe two, advisory committees early next year.

Advisory committees are outside panels of industry "experts" that review products for the FDA, (removing responsibility from as well) usually when there are safety and/or efficacy concerns, who then (eventually) make elusive and non binding recommendations and leave it (much later) for the FDA to think what to do.

In tests reporteed so far Effient (prasugel) works as well or better than the Plavix but there is a downside that it may cause some patients to bleed internally too much.

New CEO John Lechleiter wason CNBC's David Faber on "Squawk on the Street" from the Business Council's meeting in South Carolina and revealed he was unable to provide timing on an FDA decision.

...we keep going off on these trips....

The ingenuity of the illegal drugs industry never ceases to surprise.

Plod arrested 7 cruisers from Brummagham and Manchester in an early morning raid today, on the luxury P&O cruise liner, Arcadia, when it docked in Southampton - four carrying 30 Kg of high quality cocaine about their persons. (Worth £1.2 Mn says Plod - US$2Mn)