Friday, August 06, 2010

The Samson Option?

by Alexander Maistrovoy

“When people speak about human rights, everyone has in mind his own ones”, a German scientist and publicist Wilhelm Schwebel wrote. His words perfectly reflect the issue of “breaking” the Gaza blockade. These actions are as related to human rights as Josef Stalin’s “fight for peace”. Till now not a single person has died of hunger in Gaza . They die in the other point of the world, in Kirghizia , but nobody cares about it. The rights of Palestinians are above the rights of Uzbek people. As well as the Sudanese Christians, Iraqi Kurds, Boers in Southern Africa, “Ahmadyya” in Pakistan and Baha’is in Iran. Palestinians are the high caste of mankind because fortunately they are up against Israel , and the international community has its own rights and interests in this conflict.

What are they? Interests of all the players are very clear except for the West.

The goal of Iran is to strengthen its base on the Mediterranean Sea coast to escalate the confrontation with Israel and moderate Sunni Arab regimes, and at the same time to distract the world attention from its nuclear program.

The goal of Turkish Justice and Development Party led by Erdogan is to get points before the elections, make Turkey the leader of the Sunni world and to revive the national ambitions lost with the fall of the Ottoman Empire .

Russia is supporting Iran and Turkey in attempt to restore the previous Soviet influence, push the US out of the region, and recover the lost imperial greatness.

The aims of these powers are completely contrary to the aims of the other two leading players in the region: Israel and the moderate Arab regimes.

The goal of Israel is to provide its safety by weakening HAMAS and depriving it of its life support: weaponry, rockets and building materials to fortify smuggling and transportation tunnels and defensive bunkers.

The goal of the moderate Arab regimes coincides with that of Israel . Arabs fear of the Iranian Shiites. Nor do they want Turkey , which they dislike and fear too, to raise its role in the Middle East . Least of all they are interested in strengthening the Palestinian enclave where the Iranians and Turks will rule. First of all it concerns the Mubarak regime that fears the Muslim Brotherhood’s (of which Palestinian HAMAS is an offshoot) popularity.

Theoretically both Israel and the Arab regimes are allies of the West. So it would be right to assume that the West will protect them from regional predators. Alas! Common sense and political expediency do not work. Why? There are two reasons: irreparable losses of spiritual and cultural values by once the greatest world civilization and banal political cowardice.

The radical left and liberal part of the Western elite has voluntary deprived itself of its own heritage, values and ideals. It has refused itself right to exist, reconciled to the secondary role and even recognized its own uselessness.

The supposed “Alliance of Civilizations ” of Zapatero and Obama is nothing else but accepting voluntary the status of dhimmitude, invitation of an alien strong, dominant, and aggressive civilization to take the place of their own bankrupt and degrading one. Obama’s bows to King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia , a mosque in the place of WTC, k?f?yä on Zapatero’s neck, the Libyan terrorist who had blown up the plane over Lockerby released “for health reasons” – all are the displays of this outlook. As Israel is the main irritant to Muslims, it loses its right to exist.
Zapatero recognizes the idea almost openly, Obama does it less obviously, but the essence does not change. His recent demands of Israel to open its nuclear program for IAEA oversight and to remove Gaza ’s blockade are more eloquent than any other words.

The other part of the Western political elite, European right and social-democrats, don’t accept this attitude. However, they don’t have any outlook at all. Their only goal is to keep their power up to the following elections and not to “rock the boat”.

The ideology of surviving at all costs leads to the policy of appeasement. Sarkozy (“Disproportionate application of force” by Israel ) and Kouchner (“Recognize Palestinian state before the agreement between Israel and the PA is signed”); Brown (“Labourites have a lot in common with Muslims”) and Miliband (“More respect” to Muslims), Baroness Ashton (The blockade is “unacceptable and politically counterproductive”) and Berlusconi kissing the hands of Muammar Kaddafi are certainly not anti-Semitic. Some of them are even Jews. They have nothing against Israel , as it is. They have little concern for the simple fact that the Muslim “sea” floods their own house washing away its foundations. So what use to speak about Israel , Mubarak and the Hashemite dynasty? Why to speak at all, if it is so comfortable to be silent? Especially, if there are big business, EU officials, “Greens” and anti-globalists, “Human Rights Watch” and their own cultural elite to resist? So they meekly follow the “Alliance of Civilizations”.

The more timorous is the policy of the West, the more aggressive Ahmadinejad and Erdogan become. The USA and Western Europe encourage these hysterical politicians, and their wild behavior can lead to uncontrollable consequences.

If the situation does not change (that is extremely improbable), we will witness a two-act drama. The first act will be the fall of moderate Arab regimes in Egypt , Jordan and the Persian Gulf states. If it happens, the second act will follow. Israel will be backed into his corner, surrounded by uncontrollable mad regimes. It will face the total Islamic hysteria. It will see how the circle of its enemies such as Turkey , Syria , Iran and their puppets in Lebanon and Gaza unite with “revolutionary” Muslim brothers in Egypt and Jordan .

It will see the silent indifference of the West at best and shouts of triumph and jeering at worst. The next Holocaust will cease to be an abstraction and become a reality.

Israel will be left with only two options: to die without a fight or to be lost, having destroyed the enemies. The option of falling victim to genocide or the “Option of Samson”. Zapatero and Obama believe that Israel will choose the first one. Considering the tragic and painful history of Jews, from Maccabeus and Jerusalem ’s zealots to the Warsaw ghetto and the Six-day war, I would not hurry up with conclusions. And in this case there will be no outside observers.

Monday, November 09, 2009

Man Shot While Waiting At Stoplight

Posted: 6:24 am EDT March 12, 2009Updated: 5:05 pm EDT March 12, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Orlando police are looking for two people who shot a man at gunpoint while waiting at a stoplight. When the driver tried to speed away, the suspects opened fire.
Eyewitness News spoke with the police department's watch commander and was told the victim's injuries are not life threatening.

Stanley Stinson, 45, was on his way home when he was stopped by the stoplight at Kirkman Road and Arnold Palmer Drive (see map) at about 11:15 Wednesday night. A man and a woman in another car pulled up next to him when one of them jumped out with a gun.
When Stinson tried to drive away from the suspects, gunshots were fired. One of the bullets struck the victim in the leg, but he managed to drive himself to the McDonald's parking lot at the same intersection. That's when he called 911.

"The guy pulled up into this parking space and told everybody, 'I've been shot. I've been shot,'" said eyewitness Kim Peters.

Orlando police soon surrounded the McDonald's while crime scene investigators searched the victim's four-door, black car for any fingerprints the suspects might have left. They were able to collect some of the bullet casings in the middle of the road.

"When they opened the door, one of the shell casings fell out of the door, the other one was lodged in his hip," said Peters.

As of Thursday morning, police only know they were driving a light blue Nissan Altima.
Some eyewitnesses who were inside the McDonald's restaurant believe they may have seen the car police are looking for, coming through the drive-thru just before the shooting took place.
The restaurant has surveillance cameras throughout the property. Police will check those recordings to see if they can identify the suspect's vehicle.

Stinson remained heavily sedated in the hospital. Police hope to speak with him later to see if they can get a better description of the suspect's and their car.

Technically, the incident didn't happen in Metrowest, which starts across the street. But the Orlando police department's west tactical unit has been working to reduce crime in the area since last year because residents felt like crime was out of control and some of them still do.
"You tell someone you live in Metrowest and they look at you like you live in a war zone," said Metrowest resident Eric kessous.

Last year between January and March the tactical unit made 236 arrests, 165 in 2009.

Wednesday, May 06, 2009

Sunday, December 28, 2008

Why Wait for Martial Law to Cancel Trial by Jury?

Many expect that in the New World Order Jury Trials will be "Thing of the Past" a waste of money that could better be employed to pay salaries and other judicial perks.

Tukwila Jury Service Budget / Financial Information. 2008 City Budget ... Since trials may be CANCELLED, it is important for you to determine if your ...www.ci.tukwila.wa.us/mayor/courtjury.html - Jury

TrialsGrand Jury. LAFCO. IHSS Advisory Board. Advisory Boards. Budget & Finance ... NOT SEE YOUR TRIAL LISTED HERE, IT HAS BEEN CANCELLED!*** Disclaimer. Contact Us ...www.co.lake.ca.us/Residents/Law_And_Justice/Jury_Trials.htm -

Full Coverage: Many NH jury trials to be put on hold to save moneyLynn said the decision to cancel jury trials, which cost the state about $73,000 ... Courts to delay jury trials in budget crunch. seacoastonline.com. Dec 7, 2008 ...www.newstin.com/rel/us/en-010-008575474 -

CachedTexomasHomepage.com Media PlayerMore Debate About Wichita County Budget. A Jury Trial for a Man Accused of Sexually Assaulting a Teenage Boy is Cancelled ... Grand Jury Indicts Two Men ...texomashomepage.com/media_player.php?media_id=1493 - 356k -

CachedEven jury hiring is frozenDelays in jury trials in 2001 and 2002, during a previous budget crisis, caused ... a Manchester attorney, received cancellation notices last week for four ...mobile.latimes.com/setDefault.jsp?key=196925&rc=top&fullArticle=1 - Cached

Judiciary’s canceling of jury trials is hardly due to budget ‘cuts’

THE JUDICIAL branch has attempted to lay the blame for its decision to cancel jury trials in five out of the next 15 months on "cuts" in the judiciary’s budget made by the Legislature. But not only were there no "cuts" in the judiciary’s budget, the Legislature actually increased the budget for jury trials by more than 25 percent.

With this context, the decision to cancel the jury trials and blame the Legislature appears to have much more to do with pressuring the Legislature into further increasing the judiciary’s budget than with economics. The judiciary spent about $880,000 during the last fiscal year on jury trials and requested an increase of about $237,000 per year over the next two-year budget cycle.

The Legislature increased the judiciary’s budget for jury trials by the amount requested. The Legislature also increased the judiciary’s overall budget. According to the Supreme Court’s own press releases, the operating budget for the 2002 fiscal year will increase to more than $52.8 million and to nearly $53.2 million for the 2003 fiscal year.So why have we been told that the jury trials were canceled on account of budget "cuts" if the judiciary received all of the budget for jury trials that it asked for and its overall budget was increased?

Because what the judges mean by "cut" is the Legislature’s decision to give the judiciary less than the 18 percent budget increase it requested. In other words, a "cut" is budgeting less than the judges want to spend, even if that amount is more than was spent last year.What really happened is that the judiciary on its own decided to transfer about $250,000 of the amount budgeted by the Legislature for jury trials to other areas of its budget.

This $250,000 is less than one-half of one percent of the entire judicial budget.The judiciary has yet to explain how it could not achieve savings of a mere one-half of 1 percent in the remainder of its budget. While it has claimed that not canceling jury trials would require staff to be cut, there should be no reason to cut staff since the overall budget was increased.

The judiciary’s request for an 18 percent budget increase included an additional 49 staff positions, so perhaps "cutting" staff means not adding some or all of these new staff positions.

Shortly after announcing that the jury trials would be canceled, the judiciary announced that it would not allow the Legislature to conduct a planned audit to determine whether the judiciary is spending taxpayer dollars appropriately. The judiciary claimed that the audit would violate the separation of powers but gave no specifics to back up this claim.

The audit would not violate the separation of powers because its scope is limited to assuring that the judiciary is operating in a fiscally responsible manner. While it would be important for the Legislature to go forward with the audit under any circumstances, it is especially important to do so now that the judiciary has claimed that the budget it has been allotted only allows jury trials two out of every three months.Our system of government is one of checks and balances.

The "power of the purse" resides with the Legislature, not the judiciary, because the Legislature, unlike the judiciary, regularly stands accountable to the people whose hard work puts money in the purse. It would be an egregious dereliction of duty for the Legislature to simply give the judiciary a blank check.The audit may indicate that there is a need to increase the budget for the judicial branch. On the other hand, it may indicate that the judiciary is already adequately funded but is spending taxpayer dollars unwisely, such as on a press secretary for the Supreme Court rather than on jury trials.

This column, originally published in the Union Leader newspaper on 11/2/01, is used with the permission of the author, Attorney Edward C. Mosca.Attorney Mosca is currently with the Soltani Law Office819 Suncook Valley Highway Epsom, NH 03234.He may be reached at: Dosputt@aol.com

http://www.nhhra.org/Judiciary%20Cancels%20Jury%20Trials.htm

Sunday, November 30, 2008

A Lesson From Mumbai,India

In this photograph that has dominated the world's front pages , a newspaper photographer who hid inside a train carriage as gunfire erupted all around him. Sebastian D'Souza, a picture editor at the Mumbai Mirror, whose offices are just opposite the city's Chhatrapati Shivaji station, heard the gunfire erupt and ran towards the terminus.

"They were shooting from waist height and fired at anything that moved. I briefly had time to take a couple of frames using a telephoto lens. I think they saw me taking photographs but they didn't seem to care." "I only wish I had a gun rather than a camera."

The ease from which the gunmen moved about shooting unarmed citizens at will, was like shooting fish in a barrel, by the time the authorities got their act together it was too late scores of people lay dead and countless others wounded. This as well as other tragedies such as the recent shooting at Virgina Tech University in the USA that left 33 people dead ( A gun free zone). Want to know why psychos go to "gun free zones" like schools and churches and shoot up folks? It's because they know the likelihood of someone in there being armed and taking them out is next to nil.
Illinois or Wisconsin have no CCW capabilities and the rest of us are facing strong anti NRA sentiment to weasel away the rights of citizens to carry and bear arms, if there is one lesson to be learned from this is we must resists the efforts to legislate our right to bear and carry arms.

"Sadly this represents a clear danger for us, and one we can only hope our armed citizens could help prevent. But as many folks have pointed out, that puts a bullseye on the areas where the government has disarmed the populace. I read the Constitution in English and so as per the Second Amendment I recognize no government's right to disarm me. But if you are Ahmed the soon to be dead terrorist, wouldn't you rather shoot up a mall full of unarmed victims, or do you want to pull your AK and catch a .357 round to the temple joint as soon as you start spraying? Ahmed is dead either way, but the body count will be significantly different". by Jimbo of Blackfive.Net

The time to take action is Now! Write your legislator and let him know that the first line of defense against terrorists wishing us harm is an armed populace and that you oppose a gun ownership control/ban.

Related: Guns Save Lives : EXCLUSIVE: Signs Of An Attempted Coup In New Delhi

Update:Indian air and missile forces on war footing, Pakistani armored units diverted from Afghan border.-DEBKAfile's military sources report that on Sunday, Nov. 30, Asia's two nuclear powers, India and Pakistan, took their first steps towards a conventional war. India, claiming evidence of Pakistan's involvement in the Islamist terrorist assault on Mumbai, placed its air and missile units on war preparedness, while Pakistan, disclaiming the charge, diverted its armed divisions from the Afghan border to its frontier with India.Military experts fear a full-blown war could spill over into combat with tactical nuclear weapons.

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Victory Day In Iraq? Not so fast!


I guess victory means different things to different peoples, I checked with my Iraqi source and here is what she had to say:

"I havent read much news in the past few days. Ok, Im lying, yes I read and watched news on tv and this security deal is bugging the hell out of me. I was also conversing with HUBBY on skype. Looks like Obama will win, he said. What do you think Neurotica? Wow, I was actually impressed he asked my opinion, for in the past few days he has been pretty sick and not really conversive. I wish Obama wins, I typed. I wish he wins and withdraws all the troops by end of the year. HUBBY was shocked at my answer. How come Neurotica? If the US leaves there will be chaos and Iran will jump in. We cant let that happen.


I Lol’ed so much, for Iran is ALREADY in. The government of Iraq is nothing but Iran’s puppet. “Neighbouring countries should respect the sovereignty of Iraq” is ALL BS. I really really want the troops to leave, and Im serious. Ive said it before. And Im repeating it again. I think the max they should stay if any is beginning of next year. That’s the ultimate maximum.
I want chaos to break. YES. I DO. This is the only solution. The only solution to the current Iraqi govt. They are useless, and will continue to be so because even though they say they want the forces to leave, they know it wont happen, and so every night when they go to bed, they're confident that a soft cushion awaits their empty heads. They depend on the forces. I get really angry when I talk about this subject. I get really upset, that such a rich, resourceful country has ended up in such filthy hands. Filthy, corrupt and no loyalty. No loyalty to the earth they are walking on. I want them to suffer.


Yes chaos will break from all directions. Qaeda will come back. Mahdi Militias will restart their hideous murders, awakening members will start their revenge killings on the militias, and the government. WOW. And best of all Iran will just take over. I want to see how the hell will the so called “sovereign” Iraqi govt take control? I really wanna see it.
Youre gonna tell me but it’s the average Iraqi that will become the victim. YES. Unfortunately its always been the average Iraqi. All those who were able to leave, left. And that BS of refugees coming back to their country is just that, BULSHIT!


You know why they’re going back? They are going back Because they ran out of money. Theyre living in the most dire conditions. They have been treated like trash. They have BECOME trash everywhere. Oh where are you from? People ask with a smile. When you say Iraq, they immediately frown and have that distinctive disgusted look on their faces. You know why these people are going back? Theyre going back because they have no other choice. Their bloody govt failed them! They didn’t aid them. And if they did, its peanuts compared to what they could have done. Westerners are more EMPATHETIC than the so called SOVEREIGN GOVERNMENT! GOD!!! It just pisses me off. I swear it does.


Yes, Obama, please win. Win and withdraw the troops. Personally I believe the US is wasting its time. Its time, money and effort. Try and save the fallen economy instead with the money you will be wasting on Iraq. Iraq has enough money. Iraq is rich. Unfortunately the wealth is going into Ammar al Hakeem’s pockets, and his repulsive likes. Do you know that he bought properties here in the Emirates worth millions of dollars? No you don’t know that fact. He spends millions while the children of Iraq die of starvation, cholera, typhoid, abuse, rape and torture. WELL DONE Ammar!!! Lets see what happens to you when the forces leave? I want to see you torn apart, exactly the same way a lion preys on his victim. Is what Im saying vicious? I really hope so.


I hope the security deal wont be signed, and I hope the US will carry out their threats. Its wishful thinking I know.But its good to hope. Its healthy. Right? My mood is just like a candle. A candle flickering with the weather. The Thundery Baghdadi Weather"by http://neurotic-iraqi-wife.blogspot.com/

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Amid The Financial Confusion: Serious Tribulations Lie Ahead

By Lord Stirling

The United States has agreed to sell to Israel 1,000 of the very advanced bunker buster GBU-39 bombs.....This indicates that the Israeli Government has succeeded in its request that America allow it to attack Iranian nuclear facilities.

The Israeli political landscape is about to change. I have been expecting former Israeli Prime Minister, and super war hawk, Benyamin Netanyahu to make a well timed major move.

Count on Bibi Netanyahu lighting a blowtorch in the dry kindling that is the Middle East.

There is a real technical question if the GBU-39 can destroy all of the key known or suspected Iranian nuclear sites, as well as key military sites in Lebanon and Syria. The hardest sites are very well protected. Some experts think that several dozen to a hundred plus GBU-39s targeted at the same spot can take out even the deepest/most harden site; others say that a micro or mini nuke will be required.

The Israeli and American war planners may be counting on all sides refraining from the use of WMD. Rather like Saddam held back his 29 WMD armed (chemical and anthrax) Scud-type guided missiles during the First Gulf War and like Hezbollah did during the Second Lebanon War in 2006. If this is the strategy it is one very, very, massive risk to all involved.

Israel has most likely over 600 nuclear warheads from micro nukes to high mega tonnage hydrogen bombs, as well as advanced biological weapons, chemical weapons, radiological weapons, and fuel air explosive based weapons. The Iranian/Syrian side has radiological weapons, fuel air weapons, chemical weapons, advanced biological weapons, and maybe a crude nuclear device or two (doubtful but a remote possibility).

The Iranians have made it clear that they will close the Gulf to oil shipping in the event of a war. Americans have just had a taste of $5/gallon gasoline with Hurrican Ike. A general Middle East War could bring $10/per gallon gas prices to America. The world's economy, already headed to a global depression, will be thrust into the worst depression in human history.

The Iranians are also apt to hit American targets in the Middle East. In any case, any closing of the Gulf will bring a massive American and allied response making the Middle East War a likely global one as massive US/allied air attacks and naval attacks plummet Iran well beyond what Israel began.

If Iran feels that its population is seriously in danger or that its existance as a nation state is at risk, she is apt to use her strategic MAD (mutually assured destruction) force WMD (weapons of mass destruction) on the west and Israel. These weapons are DNA recombination, genetically engineered, advanced biological weapons; man-made viruses that are designed to spread throughtout North America and western Europe using humans as vectors ~ viruses that have never existed before and for which we humans have NO DEFENSE. Iran began an advanced biowar program years ago using out-of-work former Soviet advanced biowar experts, and currently has a world-class advanced biowar program.

Throw Russia and China into this mix and you have World War Three.

Abridged for E.A. for the uncensored story go to Rense.Com>>

Monday, September 15, 2008

A culture of Complacency on the path to Destruccion

We have become complancent, as long as it doesn't take food off our table, What do we care, As long as is somone else doing the suffering and the dying, We don't want to get involved.
America want to be nice to it's enemies and put the screws to our friends.
We want to negotiate with Iran bring syria to the negotiationg table , we want the Israelis to go back to 1967 borders , we want them to give back the Golan Heights, We want them to give up the Farm, We want the Palestinians to have a Estate so they can live in peace .

We have discusions, will they even be there in 50 years, Do they have a right to exist?
Do they have a right to be there, or are the Jewish people a freak of nature, who never had claim on Holy lands, but came out the gates of hell, to invade Arab lands?

Thursday, September 11, 2008

The Dragon Released to Gather The Nations for Battle


Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. Mark 13:12

Art used by Pat Marvenko Smith, copyright 1992. To order prints visit her "Revelation Illustrated" site, http://revelationillustrated.com/

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Venenzuela Welcomes Russian Navy/Air Force


CARACAS - Several Russian ships and 1,000 soldiers will take part in joint naval maneuvers with Venezuela in the Caribbean Sea later this year, exercises likely to increase diplomatic tensions with Washington, a pro-government newspaper reported on Saturday.

Plans for the naval operations come at a time of heightened diplomatic tension and Cold War-style rhetoric between Moscow and the United States over the recent war in Georgia and plans for a U.S. missile defense system in the Czech Republic and Poland.
Chavez: Russian Planes Welcome

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, an outspoken critic of Washington, has said in recent weeks that Russian ships and planes are welcome to visit the South American country.

Chavez has bought fighter jets and submarines from Russia to retool Venezuela's aging weapons and says he is also interested in a missile defense system.

Abridged MSNBC=>>

MOSCOW, January 29 (RIA Novosti) - Six Tu-95MS Bear strategic bombers joined on Tuesday a Russian naval task force in the Atlantic to take part in the final stage of the current naval exercise, an Air Force spokesman said.
During the exercises, Russian pilots will practice reconnaissance, missile and bomb strikes on mock adversary naval force, and will fly simulated air combat and air patrolling missions.

The current operation is the first large-scale Russian Navy exercise in the Atlantic in 15 years. All combat ships and aircraft involved carry full combat ammunition loads.

wa

'Deja vu' Cuban Missiles Coming to 90 Miles from Key West

Igor Sechin, center, one of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's closest aides, walks through the historic center of Old Havana in late July.


By Paul Richter, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

Nikolai Patrushev, who is secretary of the Russian Security Council and former director of the FSB, the domestic successor agency to the KGB, met with the Cuban defense and interior ministers on the trip. Afterward, the council issued a statement saying that the two countries planned "consistent work to restore traditional relations in all areas of cooperation."

Afterward, Putin said, "We need to reestablish positions in Cuba and in other countries."

The Russian Defense Ministry dismissed a report in the newspaper Izvestia in July that quoted an unidentified Russian official as saying the government intended to begin basing Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack and Tupolev Tu-95 Bear nuclear bombers in Cuba
.

by Tom Cash

The US placing missiles into Poland is viewed by the Russians in the same light as the US viewed the Russians placing missiles into Cuba in 1962. It is a dangerously provocative act that backs Russia up against the wall. The really frightening aspect of it is that there are only two interpretations for the action. Either, like the Russians in 1962, America has totally failed to realize the catalytic nature of the provocation, or they are, at the very least, bent on increasing military tensions.

Whilst US Intelligence has, with a degree of regularity, failed quite spectacularly and visibly over the past decades, it beggars belief that they have not yet figured out that the Russians are very upset about being militarily encircled. One has to assume that the US is aware that they are causing military tensions which the Russians will be unable to ignore. The question has to be posed: why would the US wish to raise military tensions with Russia at the moment?

Certainly a damned good war has often been summonsed to take people's minds off the fact that their living standards are falling. Having the fear of a nuclear bomb dropping in the back garden would certainly take the edge off American's worrying about losing the family home and not being able to feed the children.

The Russians have been repeatedly threatened and lied to by the US. Assurances that NATO would not encroach on Russia's border areas after the collapse of the USSR were routinely ignored. As soon as the opportunity presented NATO was in like a rat up a drainpipe.

Newspapers in 1914 showed no awareness of that which was pending. When war came it was a major surprise to all parties. There comes a point where without a circuit breaker, namely one party backing down, simple momentum becomes sufficient to lead to war, even though no one (?) intended it. There is a sense that neither Russia nor the US are prepared to back down at the moment. Momentum is building.

The world meandered into the First World War with very little understanding of either the horrors of modern war, or its dreadful financial attendants. In 1918 the world emerged from WW1 a very different place. The UK was financially and intellectually devastated. Much like the Ancient Greeks the English never recovered their greatness and are now in permanent decline. Let us hope that the world is not meandering into another modern war without sufficient regard for the modern methods of killing. At least we don't have to worry about the economy this time. That's already destroyed.

[...from the 11-14th November 2008. It is the only seminar anywhere in the world where all aspects of the gold and silver basis are discussed. Meet and hear one of the giants of our age. Bookings for the seminar can be made through:-
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Aug 30, 2008
Tom Cash
email: tomcashgold@yahoo.com

Saturday, September 06, 2008

Is Your Bank About to Implode? The FDIC is Hinting, YES!


By Moe Bedard as Published in Loan Safe Solutions

The lender carnage, death and destruction litter the home page of Aaron Krowne’s Mortgage Lender Implode-O-Meter like the beach at Normandy on D-Day. The infamous list has grown from September 2006 when Aaron started the website with approximately 10 failed lenders to a whopping 276 major U.S. failed lending operations today.


That comes out to about one failed lender every two days over the last two years. This is no anomaly- An anomaly is an irregularity, a mis proportion, or something that is strange or unusual, or unique.

Yes, 276 failed lenders are FAR from unique.

If you truly think about what is going on in our country right now and from the actual evidence on the ML-Implode.com website, your will realize that this is really not the “twilight zone” and our banking system is on the verge of complete collapse.

I think the question now is not “if” your bank will fail, but “when” will your bank fail.
Wall Street Journal - Exhibit A is the revelation by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair that her $45 billion deposit insurance fund may not be adequate to pay off account holders as banks continue to fail. This has been inevitable for months, but neither Ms. Bair nor Treasury wanted to admit the truth in public for obvious political reasons. Yet now we learn that the insurance fund shrank by $7.6 billion in the second quarter, bringing its reserve ratio well below the minimum required by Congress.

Quick Fact - The FDIC is a government agency that insures deposits in the U.S. against bank failure; it was created in 1933 to maintain public confidence and encourage stability in the financial system.

The frightening facts are that the US Banking system is in dire straits and our government does not want you to panic and make a run on your bank. It would be the Great Depression all over again in a heartbeat if we were all to take what little cash we Americans have out of these “insolvent” banking establishments and place it under our mattresses.

That would really make them fail and fast. But will our money be safer under our mattress than these banks of cards? Ms. Bair and the FDIC may be hinting to us all, YES!

ML-Implode has listed 276 various lenders that have met their deaths and another 19 on the ailing list of lenders “about” to implode. But only the FDIC truly knows the “true” state of our nation’s banks and the hints and news coming from this mighty agency is nothing short of frightening.

Slate - You can add the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to the list of entities that may be in line for a Treasury Department bailout, the Wall Street Journal reports, following an interview with the agency’s chairwoman. The FDIC is a bit cash-strapped these days as it props up failing banks across the country. It announced on Tuesday that 117 ailing banks are now under its care and that the FDIC holds an astounding $78 billion in distressed bank assets, the Guardian points out. And, the New York Times says, the FDIC sees the banking crisis going from bad to worse.
Moe Bedard - America, get your head out of the sand, turn off American Idol, turn off Squawk Box and get a clue to the true state of our economy and failing banking system. Your bank may be next!

One of our country’s fathers warned us about the banks and the evil they create over 200 years ago. Yet, here we sit, paying the price for letting these banks run wild for the last couple hundred years.

Moe Bedard is a leading expert and trusted authority in regards to loan workouts and loan modifications. Moe is the founder and President of Loan Safe Solutions, LoanSafe.org and the main contributor to LoanWorkout.org. He has blogged on this subject more than any other person on earth and has personally been involved in over 300 loan workouts and mortgage audits.

Analyst: FDIC Will Need Half A Trillon Dollars
Chris Whalen, managing director of Institutional Risk Analytics, in an interview on CNBC, said:
They need about a half a trillion dollars in borrowing authority, and they need a vehicle to own these banks while we triage them and sell them.The FDIC Deposit Insurance Fund currently has approximately $50 billion in assets.

Friday, September 05, 2008

Up and Coming Surprise COG Plans

Though few Americans realize it, Cheney and Rumsfeld worked through the 1980s and 1990s on emergency nuclear-response plans which allegedly suspended the American constitution and also Congress.[1] (Through these decades Rumsfeld was CEO of a major pharmaceutical firm, and in the later 1990s Cheney was CEO of Halliburton; but their private status did not deter them from continuing to exercise a supra-constitutional planning power conferred on them by Ronald Reagan.)

Even fewer Americans know that these rules, originally dealing with a nuclear attack on America, were extended by Reagan Executive Order 12656 to cover “any occurrence, including natural disaster, military attack, technological emergency, or other emergency, that seriously degrades or seriously threatens the national security of the United States.”[2] And few Americans realize that at least some of these rules, known technically as Continuity of Government or COG rules, were invoked before 10:00 AM on September 11, 2001.[3]

As he did in 2007, President Bush has again, on August 28, 2008, continued for another year the national emergency first officially proclaimed on September 14, 2001, along with “the powers and authorities adopted to deal with that emergency:”

Notice: Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to Certain Terrorist Attacks

Consistent with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), I am continuing for 1 year the national emergency I declared on September 14, 2001, in Proclamation 7463, with respect to the terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center, New York, New York, the Pentagon, and aboard United Airlines flight 93, and the continuing and immediate threat of further attacks on the United States.

Because the terrorist threat continues, the national emergency declared on September 14, 2001, and the powers and authorities adopted to deal with that emergency, must continue in effect beyond September 14, 2008. Therefore, I am continuing in effect for an additional year the national emergency I declared on September 14, 2001, with respect to the terrorist threat.

This notice shall be published in the Federal Register and transmitted to the Congress.

GEORGE W. BUSH

THE WHITE HOUSE,

August 28, 2008.[4]

Once again appropriate personnel in Congress should learn and review what those “powers and authorities” are, since almost certainly they include COG (Continuity of Government) rules. In 2007 National Security Presidential Directive 51 (NSPD 51), issued by the White House, also extended for one year the emergency proclaimed in 2001; and it empowered the President to personally ensure "continuity of government."[5]

NSPD 51 also contained "classified Continuity Annexes" to "be protected from unauthorized disclosure." Congressman DeFazio twice requested to see these Annexes, the second time in a letter cosigned by House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson and Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Christopher Carney. The White House denied these requests, claiming that the congressmen lacked the requisite clearances. But as I wrote earlier this year,

"Congress has a right to be concerned about Continuity of Government (COG) plans refined by Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld over the past quarter century….The story, ignored by the mainstream press, involved more than the usual tussle between the legislative and executive branches of the U.S. Government. What was at stake was a contest between Congress's constitutional powers of oversight, and a set of policy plans that could be used to suspend or modify the constitution."[6]

Oliver North, who worked on COG planning with Rumsfeld and Cheney in the 1980s, was asked in the Iran-Contra Hearings about his work on an emergency plan “that would suspend the American constitution.” Democratic Senator Inouye, who was presiding, pounded his gavel and interjected that this was a “highly sensitive and classified matter,” not to be dealt with in an open hearing.[7] Congress has never discussed COG plans publicly since that time.

According to Wikipedia, “The National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601-1651) is a United States federal law passed in 1976 to stop open-ended states of national emergency and formalize Congressional checks and balances on Presidential emergency powers. The act sets a limit of two years on states of national emergency. It also imposes certain "procedural formalities" on the President when invoking such powers, and provides a means for Congress to countermand a Presidential declaration of emergency and associated use of emergency powers (emphasis added).

Bush’s denial of the Homeland Security’s right to review the COG plans in the classified Appendices of NSPD-51 should have been seen as a constitutional crisis -- a line in the sand for Congress to assert its constitutional rights and duties. Now, one year later, I understand (although I cannot corroborate it from the Internet) that Congressman Kucinich has introduced or will introduce a bill for Congress, under the terms of the National Emergencies Act, to countermand the presidentially proclaimed national emergency. This is an important move, but it should not obviate the need for Congress to review rules which allegedly restrict its own powers under the constitution.

Between now and November the American electorate have an opportunity to present this demand to everyone running for office: that they will insist on vigorous congressional action to expose and dispose of these secret COG rules -- rules that allegedly suspend the American constitution.



Notes

[1] "One of the awkward questions we faced was whether to reconstitute Congress after a nuclear attack. It was decided that no, it would be easier to operate without them," said one of the COG planners in the 1980s, who spoke to James Mann (The Rise of the Vulcans, 141-42). James Bamford reported the same remark in his book Pretext for War (p. 74).


[2]

The provisions of Executive Order 12656 of November 18, 1988, appear at 53 FR 47491, 3 CFR, 1988 Comp., p. 585, “Executive Order 12656—Assignment of Emergency Preparedness Responsibilities,” http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/codification/executive-order/12656.html. The Washington Post


(Gellman and Schmidt, “Shadow Government Is at Work in Secret,” March 1, 2002) later claimed, incorrectly, that Executive Order 12656 dealt only with “a nuclear attack.”


[3]

Peter Dale Scott, The Road to 9/11: Wealth, Empire, and the Future of America (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2007), 228; citing 9/11Commision Report, 38, 326; Richard A. Clarke, Against All Enemies: Inside America’s War on Terrorism (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004), 8.


[4]

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/08/20080828-7.html .


[5]

National Security Presidential Directive 51, http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/05/20070509-12.html.


[6]

Peter Dale Scott, “Congress, the Bush Adminstration and Continuity of Government Planning: The Showdown,” http://www.counterpunch.org/scott03312008.html.


[7]

Scott, Road to 9/11, 9, 23, 184. The New York Times published a complete transcript of the interchange on July 14, 1987, but did not mention it in its news story about North’s testimony.

Peter Dale Scott is a frequent contributor to Global Research. Global Research Articles by Peter Dale Scott

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Critize Your Government BEAR the Consecuences!

The owner of a website who was a vocal critic of Moscow's policies in the Caucasus has died after reportedly being shot while in police custody, according to the Interfax news agency.

Magomed Yevloyev, who ran the website ingushetiya.ru, a major source of information in the region, died on Sunday the agency reported, quoting prosecutors.

An Enemy of my Enemy is my Friend


US intelligence fears the Kremlin will supply the sophisticated S-300 system to Tehran , the S-300 can track 100 targets at once and fire on planes up to 75 miles away.

There are reports that Russia has already moved some basic components for the system to its close ally Belarus, ready for possible transfer to Iran. Dr Friedman said that if it became operational, it would effectively rule out Israeli air raids and seriously complicate any US aerial bombardment.

Dan Goure, a long-time Pentagon adviser, said: "If Tehran obtained the S-300, it would be a game-changer in military thinking for tackling Iran. That could be a catalyst for Israeli air attacks before it's operational."

A senior Iranian military commander warned yesterday that any attack on Iran would start a major conflict. "Any aggression against Iran will start a world war," deputy chief of staff for defence publicity, Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri, said in a statement. "The unrestrained greed of the US leadership and global Zionism... is gradually leading the world to the edge of a precipice."

Saturday, August 30, 2008

"We want everybody to play by the same rules."

“We don’t have any special rules of our own by which we are going to play. We want everybody to play by the same rules. These are called international law. But we don’t want anyone manipulating them - playing it one way in one region, and another way in another region, to suit their own interests. We want to have the same rules for everyone, which would take into account the interests of all members of the international community”. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin

Countdown to Midnight : Time To Move The Clock Forward?


The number of minutes before midnight, measuring the degree of nuclear, environmental, and technological threats to mankind, is periodically corrected; currently, the clock reads: five minutes to midnight, having advanced two minutes on 17 January 2007.


07-08-2008 Iran Has Technology for a Nuclear Warhead to Fit Shehab-3 Missile

07-16-2008 Mossad Chief Empowered to Prepare Groundwork for Iran Strike

08-07-2008 Fighting between Russia and Georgia began after the Georgian military tried to retake South Ossetia by force.

08-11-2008 President Bush demanded an immediate cease-fire, the withdrawal of Russian troops from the conflict zone and a return to the status quo as of Aug. 6.

08-12-2008Russians move 2 SS-21 Medium Range Ballistic Missile Launchers into South OssetiaCol. Sam Gardiner notes, in an interview with Amy Goodman on Democracy Now, Russia has deployed tactical nuclear weapons to South Ossetia.

08-19-2008 Russia
Commandeers US Humvees sensitive equipment awaiting shipment out of Georgia, says it will leave Georgia when it's military objectives have been met.

8-25-2008 Russian Lawmakers Urged the Kremlin to recognize the independence of two separatist Goergian regions heightening tensions with Georgia where the government said hundreds of Russians Soldiers remained.

Bush called on the Russian leadership to meet its commitment and not recognize these separatist regions, "Georgia territotial integrity and borders must command the same respect as every other nation's including Russia's,"he said.

Medvedec signaled the criticism was of little concern to the Kremlin Mr Medvedev said relations with the West were deteriorating sharply.

The BBC's Humphrey Hawksley, in Moscow, says the recognition is bound to dramatically heighten tensions in Russia's already fragile relationship with the West.




He says this and a series of other announcements indicate that Russia is preparing itself for a showdown. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is making a strong statement. She is going to Warsaw on Wednesday and will sign an agreement under which 10 US anti-missile missiles will be stationed in Poland.

Russia's deputy chief of General Staff Col.-Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn told reporters Friday that Poland risks a military attack, possible nuclear, for agreeing to allow a U.S. anti-missile defense system to be based in Poland.

08-26-2008 US aid warship will defy Russian control of Georgian port of Poti
Russian forces announced they would search all incoming cargoes.

The Russians are clearly marking out their control of the Black Sea in the face of the USS McFaul guided missile destroyer’s arrival with aid for Georgia. Our sources report that the McFaul carries 50 Tomahawk cruise missiles capable of striking land and sea targets.

The Black Sea confrontation between Russia and the US-led NATO forces predicted by DEBKAfile last week is building up inexorably to a climax.

Military sources report that a clash is becoming inevitable, whether among these hostile fleets or over Russian troops’ demand to search the cargoes of the two US warships when they dock at Poti Wednesday: the US Coast Guard cutter Dallas and the command and control USS Mount Whitney

The Georgian conflict over South Ossetia is spiraling into a contest between the US and Russia over control of the Black Sea region and the eastern Mediterranean.

The Russian Navy chief, Adm. Vladimir Vysotsky announced that its warships in the Mediterranean region have been placed under the command of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

The American aircraft carrier, the Iwo Jima Expeditionary Strike Group, heading a six-vessel contingent, sets sail Tuesday for the Mediterranean and Persian Gulf, with 6,000 sailors and marines aboard.Boosting the US naval buildup in the region, Tuesday, Aug. 26, the USS Iwo Jima leaves Norfolk for the Mediterranean and Persian Gulf at the head of a large group which includes the USS San Antonio amphibious transport dock ship.

Meanwhile, Russia - seen by the West as flouting international law - today demanded NATO abide by an obscure agreement signed before the Second World War limiting its warships in the Black Sea.

NATO has said it is undertaking pre-arranged exercises in the Black Sea

They will be joined Friday by the amphibious dock landing ship USS Carter Hall , the guided missile cruiser USS Vella Gulf and the guided missile destroyer USS Ramage . Another guided missile destroyer. the USS Roosevelt and the fast attack submarine USS Hartford will be part of the group.

“The US Navy destroyer USS McFaul, which is currently docked in the Georgian port of Batumi, carries about 50 Tomahawk cruise missiles on board. They are outfitted with nuclear warheads and are meant to hit ground targets.

08-27-2008 U.S. Navy comes within seconds of opening fire on Iranian boats the Iranian boats turned away literally at the very moment that U.S. forces were preparing to open fire in self defense.

NATO’s navy delivers weapons to Georgia under the guise of humanitarian aid Mr Putin's spokesman said: 'Certainly some measures of precaution are being taken. It's not a common practice to deliver humanitarian aid using battleships.'

08-27-2008 Military help for Georgia is a 'declaration of war', says Moscow in extraordinary warning to the West




08-28-2007 E.U. Warns Russia of sanctions

08-29-2008 Russia Warns E.U. If EU introduces sanctions against Russia, Europe will have severe problems with fuel

08-30-2008 Teheran: New strides in enrichment Iran has increased the number of operating centrifuges at its uranium enrichment plant to 4,000, a top official said Friday, pushing ahead with the nuclear program despite threats of new UN sanctions.

08-30-2008
Jerusalem has begun preparing for a separate, independent military strike.

08-30-2008 'Attack on Iran would cause WWIII'

Russia Issues War Warning To NATO: A top Russian military figure, the President of the Academy of Geopolitical Studies (in Moscow) Colonel General Leonid Ivashov said "We are close to a serious conflict". The British publication, 'This is London', calls the Russian position, as articulated by Ambassador Rogozin, an "extraordinary warning to the West".

Russia: We'll react militarily to US Russia successfully tests ICBM designed to beat anti-missile systems spokesman for Russia’s strategic nuclear forces said the Topol RS-12M was tested to “develop equipment for potential combat and use against ground-based missiles.”

Another leading London newspaper, 'The Mail', said "Tensions between Russia and the West were ratcheted even higher today after Moscow warned that the American naval build-up in the Black Sea could be seen as a 'declaration of war'."

8-31-08 Third US ship due in Black Sea next week The USS Mount Whitney, flagship of the US 6th Fleet

9-01-08 BRUSSELS, Belgium — Russia warned the West on Monday against supporting Georgia's leadership, suggesting that the United States carried weapons as well as aid to the ex-Soviet republic and calling for an arms embargo until the Georgian government falls."If instead of choosing their national interests and the interests of the Georgian people, the United States and its allies choose the Saakashvili regime, this will be a mistake of truly historic proportions," Lavrov said.

9-05-08 Georgia will be in our Nato alliance, Cheney warns Moscow Mr Cheney's warm words for Georgia's Nato aspirations are likely to cause consternation in several European capitals, particularly Berlin and Paris.As the Vice-President spoke, the USS Mount Whitney, the flagship of the Navy's 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean, was steaming through the Dardanelles, heading for the Georgian port of Batumi with a cargo of humanitarian aid. Mr Cheney's comments are likely to fan tensions in the volatile region, a week after Dimitri Medvedev, the Russian President, warned the West that he was ready for a renewed Cold War.

Russia: We'll react militarily to US Russia successfully tests ICBM designed to beat anti-missile systems spokesman for Russia’s strategic nuclear forces said the Topol RS-12M was tested to “develop equipment for potential combat and use against ground-based missiles.”

Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri, said in a statement. "The unrestrained greed of the US leadership and global Zionism... is gradually leading the world to the edge of a precipice."

Mikhail Gorbachev compared the showdown to the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, when the world teetered on the brink of nuclear war. Mr Gorbachev urged political leaders in the Kremlin and the West to act now to stop matters running out of control.

"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them;the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences." - Proverbs 22:3

--------------------------------

The role of an Elder Blogger is to raise consciousness as to the issues that affect us all, it is our sincere desire that Elder Protection Laws that are said to be 20 years behind child protection laws can be reformed before world events eclipse this important need.

We will always push elder reform but when world events warrant we will shift gears into survival mode as it is no longer a question of if! but rather a question of when? This guide out lines steps you can should take to protect your family ! See here=>>




You Will Survive Doomsday

By Bruce Beach

Our purpose in publishing this document is to ameliorate the effects of a nuclear holocaust for as many people as we can reach, and to locate as many people as we can who are willing and able to join our nuclear survival group. Read entire Article here=>>

Who is Playing Poker and Who Is Playing Chess?


Former Russian Black Sea Fleet commander, Adm. Eduard Baltin was quoted by Moscow media as saying Friday, Aug. 29: “Despite the apparent strength of the NATO naval group in the Black Sea… a single salvo from the Moskva missile cruiser and two or three missile boats would be enough to annihilate the entire group. Within 20 minutes, the waters would be clear.”
Adm. Baltin added: "We will not strike first, and they do not look like people with suicidal tendencies."

The Russian Fleet deploys 16 warships in the Black Sea compared with 10 NATO vessels – three American, Polish, German and Spanish frigates, and four Turkish warships, soon to be augmented by another six, including the USS Mount Whitney, which is considered one of the most advanced warships in the world.

In Washington, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino rejected Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin’s assertion that US personnel were in the combat zone during the war in Georgia and “someone in the United States” provoked the conflict to help one of the candidates in the American presidential race.

------------------------------

Military experts doubt the Russian claim that the naval group could be destroyed in 20 minutes, even Pearl Harbor took longer than that . As some play poker and some play chess, they are playing for pawns in this deadly game of oneupmanship? Some of us wonder what will it take, this time to wake up the sleeping giant ?

Gen. Franks Doubts Constitution Will Survive ....

John O. Edwards, NewsMax.com

Gen. Tommy Franks says that if the United States is hit with a weapon of mass destruction that inflicts large casualties, the Constitution will likely be discarded in favor of a military form of government.

In the magazine’s December edition, the former commander of the military’s Central Command warned that if terrorists succeeded in using a weapon of mass destruction (WMD) against the U.S. or one of our allies, it would likely have catastrophic consequences for our cherished republican form of government.

Discussing the hypothetical dangers posed to the U.S. in the wake of Sept. 11, Franks said that “the worst thing that could happen” is if terrorists acquire and then use a biological, chemical or nuclear weapon that inflicts heavy casualties.

If that happens, Franks said, “... the Western world, the free world, loses what it cherishes most, and that is freedom and liberty we’ve seen for a couple of hundred years in this grand experiment that we call democracy.”

Franks then offered “in a practical sense” what he thinks would happen in the aftermath of such an attack.

“It means the potential of a weapon of mass destruction and a terrorist, massive, casualty-producing event somewhere in the Western world – it may be in the United States of America – that causes our population to question our own Constitution and to begin to militarize our country in order to avoid a repeat of another mass, casualty-producing event. Which in fact, then begins to unravel the fabric of our Constitution. Two steps, very, very important.”

Franks didn’t speculate about how soon such an event might take place.

Already, critics of the U.S. Patriot Act, rushed through Congress in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, have argued that the law aims to curtail civil liberties and sets a dangerous precedent.

But Franks’ scenario goes much further. He is the first high-ranking official to openly speculate that the Constitution could be scrapped in favor of a military form of government.

Friday, August 29, 2008

Americans Find Billboard Warnings Offensive


After customer complaints of "scary" ads at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Republican Party Convention goers will be treated to the usual idyllic lake scenes from the local tourism board, Explore Minnesota, and similarly non-offensive advertising.

Northwest said it made the request in response to customer complaints, which referred to the ad as "scary"

Source=>>

Florida’s Food Stamp Participation Rate Up by 37.5%

With jobless rates still rising in Florida (we were up .5% from April - May 08 and up 1.6% for the year) and food costs going even higher, more and more working poor are falling in to crises. According to the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) from March 2007-March 2008, the price of milk has risen 13.3%, egg prices rose 30%, cheese increased by 12.5% and bread costs 15% more. Caught in the squeeze many families are for the first time ever needing to reach out for help.

FRAC reports that 1.5 million more people nationwide participated in the USDA’s food stamp program in March 2008 as compared to March 2007. In Florida we saw an increase of 19% for the same time period. That’s an increase of more than a quarter million persons for our state alone. From March 2003 - March 2008 we Florida saw a staggering increase of 37.5% in the number of persons participating in the program. What is even more amazing is that the USDA estimates that approximately 1/3 of all eligible households have not even applied for benefits.

Source=>>

Besides helping families purchase nutritious food, the food stamp program provides local economic stimulus. According to the USDA, for every $5 in new food stamp benefits, $9.20 is generated in local community spending. (Click here for the story from the USDA) They further estimate that a 5% increase in the national participation rate would create 2.5 billion in new nationwide economic activity.

Navigating the system can be tricky for first time users. If you, or someone you know, wants to find out about eligibility they can either come on down to The Cooperative Feeding Program (we operate a satellite food stamp office on our campus) or check out DCF’s website for eligibility guidelines and other information.


Source=>>


US Home Foreclosures Increase 55%

More than 272,000 people in the US received a foreclosure notice in July, a rise of 55% on a year earlier, according to analysts Realtytrac.

Florida and California had the highest rate of foreclosures, figures showed.

In a further indication of the severe problems affecting the US housing market, more than 77,000 homes were repossessed in July.

As a result of this increase, 17% of all homes for sale in the US are repossessed properties.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Russia as Abusive Ex, Georgia as Battered Wife

Clouthier Gets it Right on Spousal Abuse Analogy
Melissa Clouthier over at Pajamas Media presents a great analogy today saying Georgia is the abused spouse to a bullying Russia. She gets it right from all angles, including the inexcusable role society plays in blaming the victim and supporting the aggressor.
I love, love, love this analogy. To play it out yet further… when abused spouse Georgia begs the courts for help, the judges offer only ineffective mediation, but do nothing while aggressor Russia plunders at will.Susan Katz Keating:
UPDATE: CHINA CONFIDENTIAL makes three good points:
Updates by : Atlas Shrugs