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Japan Debt Update: ¥1,020,000,000,000,000.00

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– Japan Debt Update: ¥1,020,000,000,000,000.00 (ZeroHedge, May 10, 2014):

It’s been a while since we looked at Japan’s debt situation. Here is the dire update.

From Japan News:

Japan’s national debt totaled a record-high ¥1.02 quadrillion as of the end of March, up ¥33.36 trillion from a year earlier, the Finance Ministry said.

The central government debt, which increased ¥7.01 trillion from the end of December last year, kept rising mainly due to ballooning social security costs in line with the aging of the population.

Read moreJapan Debt Update: ¥1,020,000,000,000,000.00

The DJIA Stock Market Index Is A Hoax

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– The DJIA Stock Market Index Is A Hoax (The Burning Platform, March 29, 2014):

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) Index is the only stock market index that covers both the second and the third industrial revolution. Calculating share indexes such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average and showing this index in a historical graph is a useful way to show which phase the industrial revolution is in. Changes in the DJIA shares basket, changes in the formula and stock splits during the take-off phase and acceleration phase of industrial revolutions are perfect transition-indicators. The similarities of these indicators during the last two revolutions are fascinating, but also a reason for concern. In fact the graph of the DJIA is a classic example of fictional truth, a hoax.

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The MERS Virus: Been Down This Road Before?

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– The MERS virus: been down this road before? (Jon Rappoport, May 3, 2014):

by Jon Rappoport

We are told the first MERS virus case has now arrived in the US. The CDC and the World Health Organization have a new potential pandemic to hype.

As I’ve documented in past articles, we’ve been down this road before. Swine Flu, West Nile, Bird Flu, SARS. All duds. All hyped to the sky…and then the case numbers are miniscule.

You could take all the deaths from these “epidemics” and put them in one small footnote of the assessment that, every year, between 300,000 and 500,000 people around the world die from ordinary regular seasonal flu.

Yes, seasonal flu, about which there is no hype.

But even, you see, with regular seasonal flu, there are gigantic lies.

Read moreThe MERS Virus: Been Down This Road Before?

Ukraine Crisis: William Hague States ‘Blow To Democracy’ If Russia Prevents Election

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H/t reader squodgy:

“Here’s why William Hague is an idiot.

Played right into Putin’s hand.”

– Ukraine crisis: William Hague states ‘blow to democracy’ if Russia prevents election (Telegraph, May 7, 2014):

William Hague says it would be a “terrible blow to democracy” if covert Russian fighters stop Ukraine holding presidential election

Russia is deploying covert fighters and “enormous propaganda” to prevent Ukraine holding a presidential election later this month, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Wednesday during a visit to Kiev.

If Moscow succeeds, it would be “a terrible blow to democracy,” said Hague, who accused Russia of engineering an independence referendum in Ukraine’s east this weekend to undermine the May 25 presidential poll.

Read moreUkraine Crisis: William Hague States ‘Blow To Democracy’ If Russia Prevents Election

Fukushima Pref. Fish Sold At Tokyo’s Tsukiji Fish Market For First Time Since Nuclear Crisis

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– Fish from Iwaki sold at Tsukiji for first time since nuclear crisis (Asahi Shimbun, May 9, 2014):

Fishery products from Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, were traded at Tokyo’s bustling Tsukiji fish market for the first time on May 9 since the disaster began to unfurl at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in March 2011.

Of a total of 1.6 tons of flatfish, octopus and other seafood caught the previous day in trial trawling off the coast of Iwaki, 90 kilograms of pricey willowy flounder, 6 kg of greeneyes and another type of fish were traded at the market.

Before being put up for auction, the fishery products underwent voluntary checks for radioactivity levels by the Iwaki city fishery association and other parties. While 13 becquerels per kg were detected from the willowy flounder–well under the government standard of 100 becquerels per kg–readings for the greeneyes were below detectable levels.

Read moreFukushima Pref. Fish Sold At Tokyo’s Tsukiji Fish Market For First Time Since Nuclear Crisis

Israeli Military ‘Broke,’ Seeks Billions More In US Aid

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– Israeli Military ‘Broke,’ Seeks Billions More in US Aid (Antiwar, May 9, 2014):

IDF Shelves June Exercise, Citing Lack of Money

Israeli Defense Minister Moshe ‘Bogge’ Ya’alon has long been pushing for increased budgets, just as every other defense minister of the planet does, but this week revealed a rather shocking turn of events, the Israeli military is broke.

obama4

Despite billions of annual military aid from the US, Ya’alon announced next month’s “Turning Point 8? military exercise is cancelled, and all other drills are expected to follow, because Israel flat out can’t afford them.

Read moreIsraeli Military ‘Broke,’ Seeks Billions More In US Aid

US State Department Blames Protesters For Getting Attacked By Ukraine Military

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– State Dept Blames Protesters for Getting Attacked by Ukraine Military (Antiwar, May 9, 2014):

The US State Department responded to Ukraine’s military assault on the southeastern city of Mariupol today with a statement condemning the protesters that were killed by Ukraine’s invading tanks for “jeopardizing public order.”

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki insisted the violence was caused by “pro-Russian separatists” and insisted that their protesters were being carried out “in violation of Ukrainian law.”

Read moreUS State Department Blames Protesters For Getting Attacked By Ukraine Military

Anti-Sanctions? Putin Lifts ‘Limits’ And China Agrees To Increase Investment In Russia

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china russia flags

– Anti-Sanctions? Putin Lifts “Limits” And China Agrees To Increase Investment In Russia (ZeroHedge, May 10, 2014):

As Putin warned earlier in the week, they do not see the effectiveness of sanctions; but it seems he had something else in mind. By rolling back informal limits on Chinese investment, Putin has opened the door for significant capital inflows from his new best friend… and China has already agree to increase investment. While Putin is careful to note that the Chinese will not be allowed to invest in gold or diamond mining, or hi-tech projects, Russia hopes to lure cash from the world’s second-biggest economy into industries from housing and infrastructure construction to natural resources. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet in Shanghai May 20/21 and Chinese officials have already confirmed bilateral cooperation in the areas of investment and finance has made major progress as local currency settlement in two-way trade increases. Forget sanctions, just remove the US from the world trade equation…

Read moreAnti-Sanctions? Putin Lifts ‘Limits’ And China Agrees To Increase Investment In Russia

Obama Regime Directive Makes Mere Citing Of Snowden Leaks Punishable Offense

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intelligence whistleblower
Directive from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) makes mention of news reporting referencing unauthorized informatin, like that leaked by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, a punishable offense.

– Obama Directive Makes Mere Citing of Snowden Leaks Punishable Offense (Common Dreams, May 9, 2014):

Once promising the most transparent administration in history, White House reins in free speech of employees

In a new policy directive from the Obama administrative, national security and other government officials will no longer be allowed to publicly discuss or even reference news reporting that is based on “unauthorized leaks.”

President Obama once promised the American people that his administration would be the most transparent in history, but after years of fights with civil libertarians trying to obtain legal memos used to justify the president’s overseas assassination program, an unprecedented pattern of prosecuting government whistleblowers, the targeting of journalists, and all the secrecy and obfuscation related to the NSA’s mass surviellance programs made public by Edward Snowden, that claim is now met with near universal laughter, if not scorn, by critics.

According to the New York Times:

Read moreObama Regime Directive Makes Mere Citing Of Snowden Leaks Punishable Offense

Obama Regime Bars Intelligence Employees, Current And Past, From CITING NEWS LEAKS In Speeches, Opinion Pieces, Research Papers, Or Books

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– Intelligence employees, current and past, barred from citing news leaks (Ars Technica, May 9, 2014):

Order comes amid steady stream of disclosures from NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden

The Obama administration is barring current employees and contractors, as well as former workers at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence from addressing leaked media material.

The revelation of the edict, first disclosed by Secrecy News, means that those working for the agency that supervises the nation’s 17 spy organizations cannot mention any leaked material in speeches, opinion pieces, research papers, or books. It does not even matter whether the material is classified, according to the edict from the office run by James Clapper, the director of national intelligence.

Citing leaked material is prohibited, according to the new “pre-publication review policy,” (PDF) because it “can confirm the validity of an unauthorized disclosure and cause further harm to national security.”

Read moreObama Regime Bars Intelligence Employees, Current And Past, From CITING NEWS LEAKS In Speeches, Opinion Pieces, Research Papers, Or Books

Study: 27% Of US Veterans From Iraq, Afghan Wars Going Hungry

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Homeless US military veterans eat a free lunch at a Stand Down event hosted by the Department of Veterans Affairs
Homeless US military veterans eat a free lunch at a “Stand Down” event hosted by the Department of Veterans Affairs

– 27% of US veterans from Iraq, Afghan wars going hungry: Study (PressTV, May 9, 2014):

More than a quarter of US veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have difficulty getting enough food, almost double the food insecurity rate in the general population, according to new research.

Researchers from the University of Minnesota and the Minneapolis Department of Veterans Affairs surveyed 922 US veterans and found that 27 percent reported not having access to enough food for three meals a day.

Read moreStudy: 27% Of US Veterans From Iraq, Afghan Wars Going Hungry

Kiev Intensifies Military Op In Eastern Ukraine LIVE UPDATES

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More here:

– Kiev intensifies military op in Eastern Ukraine LIVE UPDATES (RT, Updated May 10, 2014):

Kiev’s “anti-terrorist” operation in East Ukraine is in full swing, with dozens reported dead in the ensuing violence. Anti-government activists remain defiant and refuse to leave the seized buildings, demanding that Kiev’s troops withdraw.

Saturday, May 10

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Inside The CIA’s Ukrainian Death Squads (Video)

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Added: May 9, 2014

Description:

David Knight covers the unconstitutional actions of the secret FISA court, the laws that allow hidden control of our government as well as the issues facing the West in the Ukraine.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/artic…

http://www.infowars.com/the-secret-ba…

Our Man In New Zealand: We Haven’t Yet Had To Push The Big Central-Bank Button Labeled ‘Panic & Self-Destruct’

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– Our Man In New Zealand: We Haven’t Yet Had To Push The Big Central-Bank Button Labeled “Panic & Self-Destruct” (Testosterone Pit, May 10, 2014):

Wolf here: Lee Hughes in New Zealand sent me an awesome and funny commentary in response to my article, Scorched-Earth Monetary Policy in the US, And What Happened in New Zealand. So I want to share it. Enjoy.

By Lee Hughes, New Zealand:

You’re absolutely right that NZ hasn’t engaged in QE and hasn’t suppressed interest rates to the degree that the US has done and also that the labour force participation rates are high and unemployment is low. No shit – the labour force figures produced aren’t tweaked either. Unemployment really has dropped steadily for five years now, and pay has risen a little too. But there are a few other factors in play that help explain NZ’s present comfort at a time when other developed economies are tanking.

Read moreOur Man In New Zealand: We Haven’t Yet Had To Push The Big Central-Bank Button Labeled ‘Panic & Self-Destruct’

When $1.2 Trillion In Foreign Bank Funds In The US Dissipate

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– When $1.2 Trillion In Foreign Bank Funds In The US Dissipate (Testosterone Pit, May 9, 2014):

It fits the pattern of gratuitous bank enrichment perfectly, but this time, the big beneficiaries of the Fed are foreign banks. A JPMorgan analysis, cited by the Wall Street Journal, figured that in 2014 the Fed would pay $6.74 billion in interest to the banks that park their excess cash at the Fed – half of that amount, so a cool $3.37 billion, would line the pockets of foreign banks with branches in the US.

This is where part of the liquidity ends up that the Fed has been handing to Wall Street through its bond purchases. Currently, the Fed requires that banks keep a minimum balance of $80.2 billion at the Fed. Banks can keep up to $88.2 billion at the Fed as part of the “penalty-free band.” In theory, as “penalty-free” implies, there’d be a penalty on balances above $88.2 billion.

But the total balance was $2.66 trillion in April, up from $2.62 trillion in March and from $1.83 trillion a year ago. The balances in excess of the “penalty-free band” have reached $2.57 trillion. The highest ever. The penalty on that?

Read moreWhen $1.2 Trillion In Foreign Bank Funds In The US Dissipate

Ukraine Claims To Have Detained ‘Terrorists’ With 100,000 Pre-Marked Referendum Ballots

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Sure!

– Ukraine Claims To Have Detained “Terrorists” With 100,000 Pre-Marked Referendum Ballots (ZeroHedge, May 10, 2014):

While the following YouTube clip is – in the eyes of the West – irrefutable proof of potential vote-rigging ahead of tomorrow’s referendum, we find it somewhat intriguing that a group of heavily-armed “rebels”, carrying boxes with 100,000 pre-marked ‘positive’ referendum ballots

Ukraine Claims To Have Detained Terrorists With 100,000 Pre-Marked Referendum Ballots-1

…would be detained by Ukraine’s anti-terrorist operations without firing one shot…

Ukraine Claims To Have Detained Terrorists With 100,000 Pre-Marked Referendum Ballots-2

…still men laying down with bags on their head proves it… right?

Ukraine Scrambles Fighter Jets, Intercepts Airplane Carrying Russian Deputy Premier

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– Ukraine Scrambles Fighter Jets, Intercepts Airplane Carrying Russian Deputy Premier (ZeroHedge, May 10, 2014):

A few short hours ago, a Russian delegation which contained the deputy premier of Russia Dmitry Rogozin was flying back from Moldova’s capital Chisinau following his visit to Tiraspol as part of May 9 celebrations, when Ukraine scrambled fighter jets to intercept the Yak-42 carrying the Russian vice premier and forced it to promptly land back in Moldova.

The reason why this is surprising is that Rogozin was well aware in advance of taking off that Ukraine had closed its airspace to the Russian delegation.

But the punchline is that while Rogozin managed to fly into Moldova over Romanian airspace, on his return the EU and NATO member country served him with a surprise – it followed in Ukraine’s footsteps and blocked off its airspace to the Russian Deputy PM as well.

So suddenly Rogozin found himself unable to access the airspace of either Ukraine or Romania. Which is a problem, because as the map below shows, Moldova has a contiguous border with just these two countries, and in effect if both neighbors block their airspace to Russians in the country, there is no way to depart.

Read moreUkraine Scrambles Fighter Jets, Intercepts Airplane Carrying Russian Deputy Premier

Ukraine: Donetsk Region May Shift To Rubles After 1.7 Million Vote In Referendum

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– Donetsk Region May Shift To Rubles After 1.7 Million Vote In Referendum (ZeroHedge, May 10, 2014):

Despite denouncements from the West (how did that work out in Crimea?) and diplomatic calls for postponement from Putin, tomorrow appears to be setting up for the next crucial catalyst in the ever-escalating civil (and not so civil) war in Ukraine. As RIA reports, Referendum organizers printed about 1.7 million ballots and on the day of voting in the region there will be more than 1,600 polling stations. The referendum will ask voters to answer the simple question: “Do you support the act of state independence of the People’s Republic of Luhansk.” and will take place from 8am to 8pm local time. Organizers claim that “the willingness to vote is almost total,” which makes the decision of the People’s Mayor that “after the referendum… gradually, we will move to the Russian ruble,” even more economically significant for the IMF-supported nation.

The referendum poll is happening:

Read moreUkraine: Donetsk Region May Shift To Rubles After 1.7 Million Vote In Referendum

Fukushima’s Cesium-137 Levels ‘50% Higher’ Than Previously Estimated

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– Fukushima’s Cesium-137 levels ‘50% higher’ than previously estimated (RT, May 10, 2014):

The amount of Cesium-137 leaked from the Fukushima nuclear power plant could be worse than expected, a Japanese research team has concluded. They believe 50 percent more of the radioactive material could have escaped into the atmosphere and seawater.

The original estimate of 13,600 terabecquerels was made by Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), the operator of the power station. However, a new report by Japanese researchers estimates that between 17,500 and 20,500 terabecquerels have been released, which is 50 percent higher than originally thought.

Michio Aoyama, a professor at Fukushima University’s Institute of Environmental Radioactivity who is part of the team, told Kyodo News that TEPCO is “underestimating” the amount of Cesium-137 that was released into the atmosphere and later fell into the sea.

Read moreFukushima’s Cesium-137 Levels ‘50% Higher’ Than Previously Estimated

Barclays ‘Bold Simplification’ Will Slash 19,000 Jobs

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barclays1

– Barclays ‘bold simplification’ will slash 19,000 jobs, create ‘bad bank’ (RT, May 8, 2014):

Britain’s second-biggest bank will eliminate 19,000 jobs over the next three years, with major cuts aimed at its investment bank, signaling the lender has given up becoming a major player in global investment banking.

Barclays will phase out about 15 percent of its staff of 140,000. By 2016, about 7,000 investment bankers in London and New York out of the total 26,000 will be given pink slips.

The major overhaul will cut 14,000 positions this year, 2,000 more than announced in February. Another 5,000 jobs will be cut in 2015-2016.

Read moreBarclays ‘Bold Simplification’ Will Slash 19,000 Jobs

China’s Bitcoin Crackdown Intensifies As Two More Platforms Closed

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bitcoin123

– China’s Bitcoin crackdown intensifies as two more platforms closed (RT, May 9, 2014):

China has stepped its war on Bitcoin up a notch, shutting down two trading platforms. Fear of the crypto-currency in the country has been intensifying, with concerns that it is being used for money laundering and evading currency controls.

China Guangfa Bank and Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co Ltd stated on Thursday that they had banned customers from using accounts to trade Bitcoins.

According to a Wednesday Wall Street Journal report, China’s central bank summoned executives to encourage them to put a stop to all Bitcoin-related business and tighten monitors on its trade.

Read moreChina’s Bitcoin Crackdown Intensifies As Two More Platforms Closed

Japan Times: Fukushima fallout in N. America at 400,000,000,000,000 Bq of Cesium-137 – Study: Hazardous on a ‘continental scale’ – Physicist: “Cancer a certainty” if you inhale or ingest radioactive dust – CBS: Inaccurate internet reports stoked fear radiation had somehow come our way

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–  Japan Times: Fukushima fallout in N. America at 400,000,000,000,000 Bq of Cesium-137 — Study: Hazardous on a ‘continental scale’ — Physicist: “Cancer a certainty” if you inhale or ingest radioactive particle dust — CBS: Inaccurate internet reports stoked fear radiation had somehow come our way (VIDEO) (ENENews, May 9, 2014):

Japan Times, May 8, 2014: The team’s finding on the cumulative amount of cesium-137 is nearly 1.5 times more than the estimate by plant operator [TEPCO.] The team announced its findings on cesium-137 during an academic session of the European Geosciences Union […] Michio Aoyama, a professor at Fukushima University’s Institute of Environmental Radioactivity who is part of the team, told Kyodo News that TEPCO “underestimates” the amount of cesium-137 […] Scientists are trying to detect the levels of radioactive cesium due to the potential, long-term risks it brings to the land and sea. […] Aoyama said the release of radioactive cesium has a “big impact on the ocean” since the Fukushima nuclear complex is located near the coast. […] up to 400 terabecquerels fell on North America, while Europe was hardly affected.

Read moreJapan Times: Fukushima fallout in N. America at 400,000,000,000,000 Bq of Cesium-137 – Study: Hazardous on a ‘continental scale’ – Physicist: “Cancer a certainty” if you inhale or ingest radioactive dust – CBS: Inaccurate internet reports stoked fear radiation had somehow come our way