Global News (01/31/09)

Australian PM calls for new economic order (AFP):
SYDNEY (AFP) — Australia’s prime minister has called for a “new world order” of government intervention and regulation, blaming capitalist greed for the global economic crisis.

UN: Babies caught in Sri Lankan crossfire (CNN):
A “handful” of United Nations staff are working around the clock to save a growing number of children caught in heavy crossfire between government forces and Tamil rebels in Sri Lanka’s volatile northeast, a U.N. spokesman said Saturday.

Bush shoe sculpture ‘taken down’ (BBC News):
A sculpture of a shoe erected in Iraq to honour a journalist who threw his footwear at George W Bush has been dismantled, reports say.

DEA quits Bolivia on Morales’ order (Market Watch)

Canada’s Economy Shrinks the Most Since 2003 Blackout (Bloomberg)

Thousands protest across Russia (BBC News):
Thousands of people have held rallies across Russia protesting against what they describe as the government’s mismanagement of the economy. The biggest demonstration took place in the eastern city of Vladivostok, where protesters demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Buckling Europe fears protests may spark a new revolution (The Age)

Homelessness surges as funding falters (msnbc)

Gannett To Take Quarterly Charge Of Up To $5.2 Billion (CNNMoney):
CHICAGO (Dow Jones) — Gannett Co., the largest U.S. newspaper publisher, said Friday that it will take non-cash charges of as much as $5.2 billion against financial results for the fourth quarter, as a number of its assets have diminished in value because of the worldwide financial crisis.

It’s time to rattle and bang in protest at this outrage (Guardian):
Delving into the truth of corporate taxes has taken our Guardian team months. What they have found is truly shocking

S&P may cut Gannett into junk territory (Reuters)

Are we in a Depression? (321gold)
(A rhetorical question)

Banks to transfer $535 million to Madoff firm trustee (Reuters)

Steep Slide in US Economy as Unsold Goods Pile Up (New York Times)

Catholic US Lawmakers Call for Direct Repudiation (Washington Post)

US pours cold water over hopes of Iran deal (Times Online)

Groups review Gaza conflict for war crimes (Globe and Mail)

Deficits For The Shrinking World Economy (The International Forecaster)

Weather Channel Founder Blasts Gore Over Global Warming Campaign (FOX News)

Humans ‘will be implanted with microchips’ (Ninemsn)

Global News (01/30/09)

Japanese economy hit by “perfect storm” (Telegraph):
The indicators were so bad that analysts have described it as the day the “perfect storm” came ashore.

Japan heads for worst recession since the second world war (Guardian)

Global Worries Over US Stimulus Spending (New York Times)

US set for ‘big bang’ financial clean-up (Financial Times)

U.S. Economy Shrinks at 3.8% Pace, Most in 26 Years, as Spending Crumbles (Bloomberg)

Stocks in U.S. Retreat, Extending Losses in S&P 500’s Worst-Ever January (Bloomberg)

Barack Obama abandons Afghan President Hamid Karzai (Telegraph):
The Barack Obama administration has abandoned Afghan President Hamid Karzai and now believes he is a major obstacle to defeating the Taliban-led insurgency.

Saddam’s hometown unveils statue dedicated to man who threw shoe at President Bush (New York Daily News)

Germany plans individual ‘bad banks’ (Financial Times)

Toyota set to post first net loss since 1963 (Guardian)

Zimbabwe abandons its currency (BBC News)

Opec warns of further oil output cuts (Guardian):
Oil producers’ cartel tells World Economic Forum its members need a higher price if they are to have sufficient income to invest

Mobs arrested as rioters call for ‘Sarko out’ (This is London)

Strikes spread across Britain as oil refinery protest escalates (Guardian)

‘British jobs for British workers’: Wildcat strikes spread over foreign workers shipped into the UK (Daily Mail)

Up against basic principle of EU law (Independent)

Debt has become a drug. Withdrawal will be painful (Guardian)

Pakistan envoy suggests India faked Mumbai transcripts (Times Online)

Florida beans and corn destroyed, potatoes delayed (The Packer):
“All of our beans were wiped out,” said Bryan Biederman, assistant sales manager for Pioneer Growers Co-op, one of the region’s largest growers of beans and corn. “Any corn we had planted for the month of March has been wiped out. It was truly a setback for our winter program.”

Global News (01/29/09)

Officials: Army suicides at 3-decade high (AP):
WASHINGTON – Suicides among U.S. soldiers rose last year to the highest level in decades, the Army announced Thursday. At least 128 soldiers killed themselves in 2008. But the final count is likely to be considerably higher because 15 more suspicious deaths are still being investigated and could also turn out to be self-inflicted, the Army said.

Army orders recall of body armor (AP)

Erdogan storms out of Davos debate (Financial Times)

Erdogan Clashes With Peres, Storms Out of Davos Panel on Gaza (Bloomberg)

Blockade thwarts postwar building boom in Gaza (Reuters)

Britain faces worst year since 1930s, warns IMF (Guardian)

UK ‘must cut spending or raise taxes,’ say experts (Independent)

The peers who work for their own consultancy firms (Telegraph)

Spanish police arrest six over massive ‘£420m London Stock Exchange fraud’ (Daily Mail)

Iraq bars Blackwater, tarnished by civilian deaths (AP)

Thursday job cuts could exceed 13000 (CNN Money)

Americans receiving jobless benefits hits record (AP)

Jobless claims hit record peak, orders plummet (Reuters)

Home sales fall to record lows (Reuters)

Bitter end for 6700 staff as coffee retailer Starbucks shuts shops (Telegraph)

Starbucks to Cut 6700 Jobs After Earnings Fall 69% (Bloomberg)

Ford reports $5.9B fourth-quarter loss (USA Today)

Ford to draw bank credit of $10.1bn (Financial Times)

Almost 24 million adults with poor numeracy skills, say MPs (Telegraph)

Five years on from Hutton and we STILL haven’t been told the truth about the war based on lies (Daily Mail)

Citigroup will not take possession of new aircraft (AP)

CLIMATE CHANGE: Tropical Forests Fight for Survival (IPS)

WORLD SOCIAL FORUM: “Wake Up, World!” – SOS from the Amazon (IPS)

Boy, 5, forced into adoption with gay couple pleads: ‘We want to stay with our gran and grandad’ (Daily Mail)

Have we all BIN conned? Recycling’s the new state religion but once again it’s been exposed as a sham (Daily Mail)

£20 broadband charge to fight online music and film piracy (Times)

Icy blast from Siberia set to bring snow and give Britain its coldest winter for 13 years (Daily Mail)

Global News (01/28/09)

House passes Stimulus without GOP help (San Francisco Chronicle):
President Obama won his first legislative victory as the House passed a $819 billion economic stimulus package Wednesday night, but his bid to woo Republicans failed to convince even a single GOP member to join Democrats to back the bill. Eleven Democrats joined the entire 177-member House GOP caucus in voting “no”…

UBS Cuts Bonus Pool for 2008 by More Than 80% to SF2 Billion ($1.75 billion)
(After having received $59.2 billion from the government the banksters are still paying themselves bonuses.)

Men who made £1bn as banks were bailed out (Guardian)

IMF predicts lowest global growth in 60 years (Financial Times)

Obama Picks Geithner And Lynn Aren’t ‘Change’ (CBS News):
The Obama administration made an exception to its ban on hiring lobbyists in nominating William Lynn, who lobbied for Raytheon, one of the military’s top contractors.

It seems exceptions are now the rule:
Geithner’s New Chief of Staff is Former Bank Lobbyist (Wall Street Journal):
WASHINGTON — The new chief of staff to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was a top lobbyist for Goldman Sachs Group Inc. until last year, and will have to recuse himself from some government duties under new White House ethics rules.

Fed Keeps Rate as Low as Zero, Says Prepared to Buy Treasuries (Bloomberg):
Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) — The Federal Reserve left the benchmark interest rate as low as zero and said it’s prepared to purchase longer-term Treasury securities to resuscitate lending and the economy. (…to create inflation, destroy the dollar and create the greatest depression.)

Tax Refunds Now on Hold in California (ABC News):
ABC News has learned that tax refunds are now on hold in California for the first time in state history, according to the state controller’s office.

Bleeding banks prompt talk of new big US bailout (Reuters):
WASHINGTON, Jan 27 (Reuters) – Major U.S. banks are still hemorrhaging red ink, despite massive taxpayer aid, and President Barack Obama is under pressure to take a high-stakes political gamble — asking for another bailout.

Warning over collapse in capital flows (Telegraph)

Wells Fargo takes $294m Madoff hit (Financial Times)

US houses sink at fastest rate on record (Times Online)

Soros closes sterling shorts (Financial Times)

Lilly May Spend $2 Billion More on Zyprexa Lawsuits (Bloomberg)

Santander offers €1.38 bn to compensate clients hit by Madoff (Times Online)

Pakistan predicts growth of up to 4% (Financial Times)

ALEX BRUMMER: British taxpayers are bailing out an Indian car giant in a deal that may pleaso no one (Daily Mail)

Japan joins world bail-out race (Financial Times)

Car industry to fight Barack Obama’s green proposals (Telegraph):
Car industry groups are gearing up for a long fight and the likelihood of legal action against proposals by President Barack Obama to allow California and other states to set their own regulations on greenhouse gas emission from vehicles.

Interfax: Russia suspends Kaliningrad missile plan (IHT)

Russian stability threatened by anger over economy (Telegraph)

Russia defence spending soars (Telegraph)

Ahmadinejad says Obama must apologise to the Iranian people for Bush (Times Online)

Canada set to unveil stimulus package (Financial Times)

First Reports of MRSA Isolation in US Swine and Hog Farmers (MedPage)

Israeli warplane bombs Gaza’s smuggling tunnels (Telegraph)

Chief Rabbinate of Israel cuts ties with Vatican over Holocaust bishop (Times Online)

Israeli strikes leave Blair project with major repairs (Independent)

Co-op bans eight pesticides after worldwide beehive collapse (Guardian)

Gates: Cash Cows of War Running Dry (Wired News)

Study Finds High-Fructose Corn Syrup Contains Mercury (Washington Post)

Global News (01/27/09)

President Obama leads US drive to topple Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe (Times Online)

Halliburton to pay record $559m to settle bribery case (Times Online)

Citigroup going through with $50 mln plane order-source (Reuters):
NEW YORK, Jan 26 (Reuters) – Citigroup Inc (C.N), which has received $45 billion of capital from the U.S. government, is going through with plans to buy a $50 million jet but a U.S. senator called the deal absurd and wants the Obama administration to block it.

OBAMA & CONGRESS BLAST CITI OVER JET (New York Post)

Week of mass strikes set to paralyse France in protest against against Sarkozy’s reforms (Guardian):
Nicolas Sarkozy this week faces the first mass-protests over his handling of the financial crisis as unions prepare to paralyse France in a general strike uniting train-drivers, air traffic controllers, journalists, bank staff and even ski-lift operators. “Black Thursday” is the first general strike since the French president’s election in 2007. All the leading unions have joined forces to protest that the government’s stimulus plans should focus less on companies and more on workers’ job-protection and purchasing power.

AP IMPACT: US bets execs can save banks, this time (AP):
WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s one of the ironies of the U.S. financial bailout: The banking executives now managing billions in taxpayer money are the same ones who oversaw the industry’s near collapse.

A Russian billionaire who apparently fell out with the Kremlin over his tax bill has become the latest oligarch to flee Russia and start a new life of exile in Britain.

Mobile phone oligarch flees Russia for new life in Britain (Guardian):
A Russian billionaire who apparently fell out with the Kremlin over his tax bill has become the latest oligarch to flee Russia and start a new life of exile in Britain.

Nomura posts $3.8bn fourth quarter loss (Financial Times)

Tata’s Corus to Cut 3500 Jobs in UK, Netherlands (Bloomberg):
Jan. 26 (Bloomberg) — Corus, Europe’s second-largest steelmaker, will cut 3,500 jobs as it reduces production following a collapse in demand from builders and carmakers.

Corning slashes 3500 jobs (CNN Money):
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — High-tech glass and ceramics maker Corning Inc. announced Tuesday it will cut 3,500 jobs, or 13% of the company’s workforce, by the end of 2009.

IBM cutting over 2800 jobs, labor group says (MarketWatch)

South Carolina unemployment rate rises to 9.5 percent in Dec. (Forbes)

NY financier Cosmo held on Ponzi scheme charge (Reuters)

UN crime chief says drug money flowed into banks (Reuters)

UN Official Wants to Prosecute Bush, Rumsfeld for Torture (The New American)

Police report crime spikes related to economy (USA Today)

Google plans to make PCs history (Guardian):
Google is to launch a service that would enable users to access their personal computer from any internet connection, according to industry reports. But campaigners warn that it would give the online behemoth unprecedented control over individuals’ personal data.

93-year-old froze to death, owed big utility bill (AP):
BAY CITY, Mich. – A 93-year-old man froze to death inside his home just days after the municipal power company restricted his use of electricity because of unpaid bills, officials said. Marvin E. Schur died “a slow, painful death,” said Kanu Virani, Oakland County’s deputy chief medical examiner, who performed the autopsy.

Forecasters see historic drop in retail sales (MSNBC)

Pelosi says birth control will help the US economy (Telegraph)

IMF chief turns up heat on China over yuan (Times Online):
The head of the International Monetary Fund turned up the heat on China over its exchange rate policies yesterday, arguing that it was clear that the Chinese yuan was “significantly undervalued”.

Global recession costs 80,000 jobs a day (Guardian)

Israeli soldier and Palestinian killed (Guardian)

Tony Benn:Liberty is crucial to democracy (Guardian):
This is not an issue of left or right – we must all ensure that government doesn’t rule over people but serves them

Turritopsis nutricula: the world’s only ‘immortal’ creature (Times Online)

Global News (01/26/09)

After less than a week in office, Barack Obama’s approval rating plunges 15 points (Daily Mail):
Barack Obama might have been in office for less than a week, but the euphoria is beginning to wane.
The new President’s approval ratings have fallen from a stratospheric 83 per cent to a more modest – although still impressive – 68 per cent.

US may ditch twice-yearly talks China (Telegraph):
Strained relations between the US and China are likely to increase in the coming months as a number of senior officials in President Barack Obama’s administration are believed to be keen to axe bi-annual economic meetings between the two superpowers.

Obama administration warns public to expect rise in US casualties (Guardian):
The Obama administration is to double the number of US troops in Afghanistan to 60,000 and when asked in a television interview if the US public should expect more American casualties, Biden said: “I hate to say it, but yes, I think there will be. There will be an uptick.”

Geithner to Press Mortgage, Bank Relief in Growing Rescue Plan (Bloomberg):
Jan. 26 (Bloomberg) — President Barack Obama’s financial rescue plan will be unveiled soon and is likely to be larger and more ambitious than originally planned as the economy and banking system worsen.

Report: U.S. Soldiers Did ‘Dirty Work’ for Chinese Interrogators (ABC News):
U.S. military personnel at Guantanamo Bay allegedly softened up detainees at the request of Chinese intelligence officials who had come to the island facility to interrogate the men — or they allowed the Chinese to dole out the treatment themselves, according to claims in a new government report.

Obama to put Bush car pollution policies into reverse (Guardian)

Barack Obama to tighten Wall Street regulations (Telegraph)

RAF ‘ordered to shoot down UFOs’ (Telegraph)

A chill wind blows through Davos as global crisis bites (Telegraph)

Evo Morales hails ‘new Bolivia’ as constitution is approved (Guardian)

Dutch bank sheds chief executive and 7000 other jobs (Guardian):
The bank, one of Europe’s biggest, took immediate action by shedding its chief executive, Michael Tilmant, after what it said was the worst quarter for equity and credit markets for a quarter of a century. It is due to post an underlying loss of €3.3bn, including €2bn in structured products, for the final three months of 2008. ING, which employs 130,000 globally,

Barclays bullish despite £8bn credit crunch hit (Guardian)

Corporate cuts spread as 6000 face axe (Telegraph):
Corporate Britain is preparing itself for one of the bloodiest weeks of the economic downturn so far with up to 6,000 redundancies set to be announced across the manufacturing, retail and services sectors.

Companies in US to Slash More Jobs, Business Economists Say (Bloomberg)

Wall Street investment banks have a way of snookering commercial rivals (Telegraph)

Report: Toyota’s output seen down 25 percent (AP)

Toyota Denies Report Global Output May Fall 20% on Recession (Bloomberg)

Caterpillar Moves to Cut 20000 Jobs (New York Times)

Bad news: we’re back to 1931. Good news: it’s not 1933 yet (Telegraph):
Barack Obama inherits an economy already contracting at an annual rate of 6pc, much like the mid-Depression year of 1931 (-6.4pc). This may beat Germany (-7pc) Japan (-12pc) and Korea (-22pc) over the fourth quarter. But that merely underlines the dangers ahead as the collapse of global trade chokes the mini-boom in US exports, setting off another stage of the crisis.

Tens of thousands face hunger amid Liberian insect plague: official (AFP)

Deaths as thousands riot in Madagascar (Telegraph)

Global News (01/25/09)

Here comes ‘terrible’ (CNN Money):
The week ahead: Investors gear up for a deluge of weak earnings and the biggest plunge in GDP in 26 years.

Report: IBM quietly lays off North American staff (CNET News)

GM, Ford, Chrysler Lost About 988 Auto Dealers During 2008 (Bloomberg)

Cities, towns expect to fire thousands (Boston Globe)

Downturn Accelerates As It Circles The Globe (Washington Post):
The world economy is deteriorating more quickly than leading economists predicted only weeks ago…

Obama’s team turn to EU bank for inspiration (Independent)

Obama Sides With Bush in Spy Case (Wired):
The Obama administration fell in line with the Bush administration Thursday when it urged a federal judge to set aside a ruling in a closely watched spy case weighing whether a U.S. president may bypass Congress and establish a program of eavesdropping on Americans without warrants. (More change!)

Pakistan Urges Obama to Halt Drones (ABC News)

Afghan President Condemns US Raid He Says Killed 16 Civilians (Voice of America)

Obama’s partisan, profane confidant reins it in (IHT):

Official: £40000 loss for every taxpayer (Guardian):
Latest City figures reveal that the plummeting stock market and plunging house prices have wiped out £1.2 trillion of Britain’s national wealth

Fed up companies plan to launch their own lender (Independent):
City law firm Taylor Wessing is believed to be working on a plan to create a bank backed by six leading UK listed corporates disenchanted with the failing lending institutions in the Square Mile.

Inquests into Troubles deaths to be kept secret (Guardian):
Under new laws, key parts of inquests into the deaths of people killed by British security forces in Northern Ireland during the Troubles will be held in secret, without the scrutiny of juries.

Bank of England goes for broke with asset buying (Telegraph)

Corus to axe 3500 jobs as crash hits steelmakers (Times Online):
BRITAIN’s largest steelmaker, Corus, is poised to cut up to 3,500 jobs this week in one of the biggest blows yet to the faltering manufacturing sector.

GKN to offer ‘token dividend’ as it slashes workforce by thousands (Telegraph):
GKN, the British car and aircraft parts maker, is expected to announce this week that it has cut several thousand jobs, with more to cuts to come, as the deepening recession inflicts further pain on the manufacturing industry.

IMF set to slash global growth forecast (Financial Times)

Third Bank Is Seized This Year (New York Times)

State lawmakers bet gambling can help with budgets (AP)

Economy in U.S. Probably Contracted Most Since 1982 as Spending Collapsed (Bloomberg)

Home Price Declines Compound US Economic Decline (VOA)

Flood of foreclosures: It’s worse than you think (CNN Money):
Banks are moving slowly to list repossessed homes for sale, which could mean that housing inventory is even more bloated than current statistics indicate.

Madoff’s UK investors set to sue (Times Online)

A shameful war: Israel in the dock over assault on Gaza (Independent)

Iran vows to pay for Gaza aid as children return to UN schools (Telegraph)

Tunnel vision sees Gazans dig for victory (Scotland on Sunday)

China Reports 6th Case of Bird Flu This Year (Voice of America)

Car dealers try to survive as economy, sales drop (AP)

Chocolate prices set for further increases (Financial Times)

12 Die in Storms in Western Europe (New York Times)

Global News (01/ 24/ 09)

The Fed: Life after zero (CNN Money):
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The Federal Reserve has a two-day meeting next week to discuss what to do with interest rates. That’s two days more than the central bank needs.

False Fears of Deflation in Dangerous Inflationary Waters
(American Institute for Economic Research)

Tim Geithner: Too Close to Goldman Sachs to Be Treasury Secretary, Critic Says (Yahoo Finance)

China Rejects Currency Manipulation Charge (New York Times)

China denounces US currency accusation (Reuters)

Obama Signals Tough Restrictions on Banks in Rescue Package (Bloomberg)

McCain Now Obama’s No. 1 Senate Ally (NewsMax):
GOP Sen. John McCain is positioning himself to be one of President Barack Obama’s strongest supporters, effectively giving Democrats the votes they need to override any GOP attempt to block the new administration’s legislative agenda.

Intelligence Agencies’ Databases Set to Be Linked (Wall Street Journal)

California jobless rate jumps to 9.3 percent (Reuters)

‘Stealth tax’ on recession victims (Independent)

Lights go out across Britain as recession hits home (Guardian)

Minister unleashes savage attack on ‘masters of the Universe’ over recesssion (Daily Mail)

City Minister Lord Myners attacks bankers for greed and arrogance (Times Online)

Venture Capital Fell 33% Last Quarter to Lowest Level Since ’05 (Bloomberg):
Jan. 24 (Bloomberg) — Venture-capital investment dropped 33 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, hammered by a recession that drove software deals to their lowest levels in a decade and cut access to capital for alternative energy firms. Total investment in startup companies fell to $5.4 billion, the lowest total since early 2005,

Schlumberger sheds 5,000 after oil price fall (Financial Times):
Schlumberger, the world’s biggest oil services company, on Friday said it would reduce its staff by 5,000 worldwide as it reported a 17 per cent drop in fourth-quarter earnings following the collapse of oil prices.

Bank of America holders sue over Merrill purchase (BusinessWeek)

Pressure builds on BofA’s Lewis (Financial Times)

Taro Aso gives Japanese £100 each to spend way out of recession (Times Online):
The move, which he has described as “the best economic measure of all”, involves a handout of at least 12,000 yen (£100) to every citizen over the age of 18. The prospect of the windfall has unleashed a national wave of speculation about how the money might best be spent, and the eccentric world of Japanese retail is pushing hard to attract the cash. (What can you say???)

Big Inflation Coming (Gold Seek)

US allows use of embryonic stem cells (Financial Times)

FDA approves human embryonic stem cell study (CNN)

Frogs are being ‘eaten to extinction’ with one billion taken from wild each year (Daily Mail)

Global Economic Crisis Accelerating

“We can have confidence in the long term foundation of our economy. And I believe we will come through this challenge stronger than ever before.”
– George W. Bush (15 July 2008)

More than half Americans say they are ‘struggling’: poll (AFP)

Solbes Says Spain Faces Deepest Recession in 50 Years (Bloomberg)

California to delay some payments (LA Times)

GE Capital May Cut as Many as 11000 Jobs This Year (Bloomberg)

Two US banks fail, first casualties in 2009 (Reuters)

21000 Jobs Worldwide Erased in Day as Recession Chokes Demand (Bloomberg)

£200bn to save banks from bad debt (Telegraph):
The taxpayer will be forced to underwrite up to £200 billion of bad banking debt under a government plan to take control of assets belonging to Britain’s major high street lenders, The Daily Telegraph can disclose.

Honda halts production for another two months as car misery continues (Telegraph)

Latvia Is Shaken by Riots Over Its Weak Economy (New York Times)

Barclays loses billions off its share value (Times Online)

Dubai Skyscraper Delayed Amid Cutbacks, Layoffs (Wall Street Journal):
DUBAI — Construction of a one-kilometer-tall tower slated to be the world’s tallest has been delayed by its government-owned developer, in a sign of how a city that seemed to have limitless resources and ambition now is struggling to avoid a hard crash.

British Tax Haven’s Safety, Secrecy Face Brown, Obama Challenge (Bloomberg)

Ireland Is In Trouble (George Washington’s Blog)

ConocoPhillips to Eliminate About 1300 Jobs, Cut Capital Spending (Wall Street Journal)

World Demand Collapse, Bonds Next (Gold-Eagle)

The Fed’s Bubble Trouble Will Cause Rates to Spike and Spawn Hyperinflation (Money Morning)

Exclusive Interview with Jim Rogers: Inflation Is Coming (Seeking Alpha)

Peter Schiff – Credit Where Credit is Due (Motley Fool)

Jim Rogers: US creditor nations to shun Treasuries (Reuters):
“If I were the Chinese, I wouldn’t buy another single U.S. government bond,” said Rogers, who was speaking by teleconference in an interview with Reuters. “I can’t imagine anybody is going to give the U.S. government money for 30 years at 2.5 percent or even 4 percent or 4.5 percent. It’s mind boggling to me.”

Retailers who have filed for bankruptcy protection (AP)

Reviving the world’s burst-bubble economy seems further away than ever (Telegraph)

Bank crisis reignites as US giants post massive losses (Independent)

Monetary union has left half of Europe trapped in depression (Telegraph)

The Recession crimewave (Independent)

Global Economic Crisis Accelerating

Bernanke tells Obama $775bn fiscal package is not enough (Independent)

Ruble Devalued to Six-Year Low as Gas Dispute Deters Investors (Bloomberg)

UK trade deficit balloons to a record (Telegraph)

Treasury mulls bad bank for toxic debt (Telegraph)

Greece’s Sovereign Credit Rating Cut to A- by S&P (Bloomberg)

Shipping rates hit zero as trade sinks (Telegraph)

Ohio Forced To Borrow Federal Money For Unemployment (NBC4i):
COLUMBUS, Ohio—It’s a sign of the times: The state of Ohio’s unemployment fund has run out of money and how Ohio has been forced to borrow from the federal government to keep paying out benefits.

LA board OKs layoff plan for nearly 2,300 teachers (AP)

Thousands of UK jobs go in bleak day for economy (Telegraph):
In a dark day for the UK economy, more than 3,500 jobs were cut or placed in immediate jeopardy yesterday, overshadowing attempts by the Government to reduce unemployment.

U.S. Economy: Retail Sales Decline for a Record Sixth Month (Bloomberg)

China’s authorities are running scared (Telegraph)

Financial Crisis Hits Home-Loan Banks (Wall Street Journal)

Toyota, Facing Crisis, Turns to Founding Family Scion (Bloomberg)

Nortel Files for Bankruptcy, Victim of Falling Sales (Bloomberg):
Jan. 14 (Bloomberg) — Nortel Networks Corp., North America’s biggest maker of telephone equipment, filed for bankruptcy protection in the U.S., a victim of the global credit crunch and declining sales.

Ukraine blocks gas after Russia turns taps on (Telegraph)

Results: California companies planning layoffs !!! (San Jose Mercury News):
California’s WARN law requires certain companies with more than 75 employees to provide 60 days advance notice of a plant closing or mass layoff involving 50 or more employees.

Northern Rock investors tell court they were cheated (Guardian):
Former shareholders in Northern Rock yesterday accused the government of cheating them of compensation when the bank was nationalised last year.
In the high court, lawyers representing the two largest shareholders argued that the government had unfairly rigged an independent valuation of the bank to ensure investors would end up with next to nothing.

Saudis cut oil output beyond Opec limit (Financial Times)

UK economy downturn ‘frightening’ (BBC NEWS)

Study: Grape Seed Extract Kills 76% Of Leukemia Cancer Cells In 24 Hours

Grapeseed Extract Kills 76% Of Leukemia Cancer Cells In 24 Hours (Natural News, Jan. 06, 2009):

A new study conducted at the University of Kentucky in the United States, and published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, found that leukemia cancer cells exposed to grapeseed extract (GSE) were rapidly killed through a process of cell suicide known as “apoptosis.”

In these laboratory studies, an astonishing 76% of leukemia cells committed suicide within 24 hours thanks to the ability of GSE to activate a protein called JNK, which regulates apoptosis.

Read moreStudy: Grape Seed Extract Kills 76% Of Leukemia Cancer Cells In 24 Hours

The Incredible Benefits of Coconut Oil: Weight Loss – Kills Candida, Harmful Bacteria and Viruses (Incl. HIV) – Boosts Immunity – Healthy Skin

(NaturalNews) Research indicates, animal fats have long chain saturated fat, while coconut oil contains healthy, healing, medium chain triglycerides (MCTs). This saturated fat is considered a rare and important building block of every cell in the human body, and can actually reduce cholesterol and heart disease.

This incredible food boosts immunity, kills bacteria and viruses, protects against cancer and other degenerative diseases, and prevents osteoporosis by promoting calcium absorption. It also slows down ageing and is good for skin radiance.

Weight Loss from Coconut Oil/Butter

American farmers attempted to plump up their cattle by feeding them coconut oil. Instead of gaining weight, their cows lost weight!

This is because:

1. The long-chain fats nearly always go to fat storage, while the MCFAs (medium chain fatty acids) are burned for energy… which is why you feel great after eating this coconut super food.

2. Coconut oil helps to stimulate the metabolism, so you burn more calories each day, which helps with weight loss and energy levels.

Coconut Oil/Butter is Packed with Lauric Acid

Coconut oil, like human breast milk, is rich in lauric acid, which boosts immunity and destroys harmful bacteria and viruses. In fact, coconut oil is one of the closest foods on the planet to breast milk.

Scientists in the Philippines researched the effects of coconut oil and lauric acid on patients with the HIV virus that causes Aids. The results were amazing. Most of the Aids patients showed a dramatic drop in the HIV virus count, in some cases to “undetectable” levels. While there needs to be a lot more research, there is certainly evidence to suggest that people with this virus would benefit from having a diet rich in coconut.

Read moreThe Incredible Benefits of Coconut Oil: Weight Loss – Kills Candida, Harmful Bacteria and Viruses (Incl. HIV) – Boosts Immunity – Healthy Skin

FDA Issues Health Warning Over Amalgam

Related article:

Mercury Fillings Shattered! FDA, ADA Conspiracy to Poison Children with Toxic Mercury Fillings Exposed in Groundbreaking Lawsuit:

“The FDA has, for decades, ridiculously insisted that mercury fillings pose no health threat whatsoever to children. While dismissing hundreds of studies showing a clear link between mercury amalgam fillings (“silver fillings”) and disastrous neurological effects in the human body, the FDA denied the truth about mercury and effectively protected the mercury filling racket that has brought so much harm to so many people.

For over a hundred years, a cabal of “mercury mongers” made up of the American Dental Association, mercury filling manufacturers and indignant dentists have reaped windfall profits by implanting toxic fillings into the mouths of children, all while insisting that mercury – one of the most toxic heavy metals known to modern science – posed no health threat whatsoever.”


US issues health warning over mercury fillings (Independent, June 29, 2008):

Some 500 dentists in Britain have set up mercury-free practices

They’re in millions of mouths worldwide, but have been linked to heart disease and Alzheimer’s. Now a report concedes they may have a toxic effect on the body

Amalgam dental fillings – which contain the highly toxic metal mercury – pose a health risk, the world’s top medical regulatory agency has conceded.

After years of insisting the fillings are safe, the US government’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a health warning about them. It represents a landmark victory for campaigners, who say the fillings are responsible for a range of ailments, including heart conditions and Alzheimer’s disease.

Earlier this month, in an unprecedented U-turn, the FDA dropped much of its reassuring language on the fillings from its website, substituting: “Dental amalgams contain mercury, which may have neurotoxic effects on the nervous systems of developing children and foetuses.” It adds that when amalgam fillings are “placed in teeth or removed they release mercury vapour”, and that the same thing happens when chewing.

The FDA is now reviewing its rules and may end up restricting or banning the use of the metal.

Read moreFDA Issues Health Warning Over Amalgam

Experts prepare for lunar ‘Doomsday Ark’

STRASBOURG, France, March 9 (UPI) — Plans are being made for the installation of an information storage bank on the moon, experts said at a science meeting Strasbourg, France.The so-called “Doomsday ark” would provide the tools for the reconstruction of the human race in case civilization is ever destroyed, The Sunday London Times reported.

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Moon — Western Near Side

Read moreExperts prepare for lunar ‘Doomsday Ark’

Fluoride, Aspartame And Agenda 21 (Video)

“Fluoride causes more human cancer, and causes it faster, than any other chemical.”
– Dean Burk, Chief Chemist Emeritus, US National Cancer Institute



YouTube

More on Aspartame: HERE

More on Agenda 21: HERE

More info on fluoride:

Dr. Dean Burk Former Head Of National Cancer Institute Research: ‘Fluoridated Water Amounts To Public Murder On A Grand Scale’ (Video)

‘The Great Culling: Our Water’ (Documentary – Trailers)

Non Organic Foods That Contain Upwards Of 180 Times The Fluoride Level Of Tap Water

Guinness Made In Dublin Brings You FLUORIDE!

Dr. Paul Connett: The Case Against Water Fluoridation – The Truth About Fluoride (Video)

Fluoridegate (Documentary)

25 Studies Prove That Fluoride Reduces Your IQ

Read moreFluoride, Aspartame And Agenda 21 (Video)

African seed collection first to arrive in Norway on route to Arctic seed vault

LAGOS, NIGERIA (31 January 2008)-Twenty-one boxes filled with 7,000 unique seed samples from more than 36 African nations were shipped to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, a facility being built on a remote island in the Arctic Circle as a repository of last resort for humanity’s agricultural heritage.The vault is being built by the Norwegian government as a service to the global community, and a Rome-based international NGO, the Global Crop Diversity Trust, will fund its operation. The vault will open on 26 February 2008.

The shipment, which was sent by the Ibadan, Nigeria-based International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), consists of thousands of duplicates of unique varieties of domesticated and wild cowpea, maize, soybean, and Bambara groundnut. The seeds from the IITA genebank in Ibadan, Nigeria, were packed in 21 boxes weighing a total of 330 kg. The processing by IITA staff took several months, and the boxes were packaged over a three-day period, with 10 staff checking the accession list, reporting errors, and adjusting the inventory, as needed.

The seeds were shipped on to Oslo on route to the village of Longyearbyen on Norway’s Svalbard archipelago, where the vault has been constructed in a mountain deep inside the Arctic permafrost.

Read moreAfrican seed collection first to arrive in Norway on route to Arctic seed vault

Hungary to start the world’s first wild seed bank

The world’s first gene bank for wild plants is to be established in Hungary, reports geographic.hu, the online version of National Geographic magazine’s Hungarian edition. The collection would be stored at the Institute of Agrobotany in Tápiószele, Pest County, and store the genes of 85,000 types of cultivated plants, making it Europe’s fifth largest agrobotany gene bank.
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Colchicum hungaricum (Magyar kikerics), one of Hungary’s protected plant species that lives only on the highest hill in the Villány Hills, the Szársomlyó, in Baranya County.

Read moreHungary to start the world’s first wild seed bank

Former British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook: ‘Al-Qaida, Literally “The Database”, Was Originally The Computer File Of The Thousands Of Mujahideen Who Were Recruited And Trained With Help From The CIA To Defeat The Russians’

At around 2:20 pm, on 6 August 2005, whilst walking down Ben Stack in Sutherland, Scotland, Cook suddenly suffered a severe heart attack, collapsed and lost consciousness.
(Source: Wikipedia)

CIA Whistleblower talks about Heart Attack gun

YouTube


The struggle against terrorism cannot be won by military means (Guardian, by Robin Cook July 8, 2005):

In the absence of anyone else owning up to yesterday’s crimes, we will be subjected to a spate of articles analysing the threat of militant Islam. Ironically they will fall in the same week that we recall the tenth anniversary of the massacre at Srebrenica, when the powerful nations of Europe failed to protect 8,000 Muslims from being annihilated in the worst terrorist act in Europe of the past generation.Osama bin Laden is no more a true representative of Islam than General Mladic, who commanded the Serbian forces, could be held up as an example of Christianity. After all, it is written in the Qur’an that we were made into different peoples not that we might despise each other, but that we might understand each other.

Bin Laden was, though, a product of a monumental miscalculation by western security agencies. Throughout the 80s he was armed by the CIA and funded by the Saudis to wage jihad against the Russian occupation of Afghanistan. Al-Qaida, literally “the database”, was originally the computer file of the thousands of mujahideen who were recruited and trained with help from the CIA to defeat the Russians. Inexplicably, and with disastrous consequences, it never appears to have occurred to Washington that once Russia was out of the way, Bin Laden’s organisation would turn its attention to the west.

The danger now is that the west’s current response to the terrorist threat compounds that original error. So long as the struggle against terrorism is conceived as a war that can be won by military means, it is doomed to fail. The more the west emphasises confrontation, the more it silences moderate voices in the Muslim world who want to speak up for cooperation. Success will only come from isolating the terrorists and denying them support, funds and recruits, which means focusing more on our common ground with the Muslim world than on what divides us.

More on Al-CIAda:

“The truth is, there is no Islamic army or terrorist group called Al Qaeda. And any informed intelligence officer knows this. But there is a propaganda campaign to make the public believe in the presence of an identified entity representing the ‘devil’ only in order to drive the TV watcher to accept a unified international leadership for a war against terrorism. The country behind this propaganda is the US.”
– Robin Cook, Former British Foreign Secretary

Al Qaeda Doesn’t Exist or How The US Created Al Qaeda (Documentary)

BBC: Al-Qaeda Does Not Exist