波蘭‧波蘭紀念二戰70週年‧逾20國領袖出席活動

（波蘭．格但斯克港）9月1日是第二次世界大戰爆發的紀念日，多國領導人都在這天抵達波蘭參加二戰70週年的紀念活動。

在當地時間凌晨4時45分，波蘭總統卡欽斯基和總理圖斯克，連同各國大使以及許多退役軍人，一同悼念那些在二戰中喪命的受害者。據粗略統計，二戰共奪走了5000萬條人命，包括了被執行種族清洗的600萬名猶太人。

週二是第二次世界大戰爆發70週年，多國領導人齊聚波蘭格但斯克港， 參加系列紀念活動，悼念被無情炮火奪去生命的5千萬人，並祈願和平永存。其中最為引人關注的，是多年來與波蘭關係緊張的俄羅斯總理普汀，他此番高調亮相格 但斯克紀念活動，力圖從“二戰盟友關係”出發，修復雙邊關係。圖：普汀（左）與波蘭總理圖斯克（右）在活動上熱烈交談。（圖：法新社）

來自全球20多個國家的領袖，包括德國總理默克爾以及俄羅斯總理普汀，皆出席了這次的紀念活動。

波蘭總理圖斯克在儀式中致詞說：“我們在這裡，是要認清誰是侵略者、誰才是受害人。如果這項歷史被扭曲，那麼波蘭、歐洲甚至是全世界都不再安全了。”

本次的紀念活動在格但斯克港的維斯特布拉德半島舉行。

在1939年9月1日，德國軍艦向這個波蘭港口發射了第一炮。德軍攻打波蘭2天之後，英國同法國向德國宣戰，展開了可歌可泣的二次大戰歐洲戰役。

台灣‧三大弊案911判決‧陳水扁恐獄中終老

（台灣‧台北）台灣前總統陳水扁家人週二（9月1日）分別因偽證案被判刑，顯示陳水扁在弊案中涉及的貪污罪，在下週五（11日）一審判決中極有可能被判重刑。

陳水扁涉及的公務機要費案、龍潭購地案和家族洗錢案3宗貪污舞弊案將於下週五下午4時宣判，陳水扁很大機會被判20年至終身監禁，餘生大部份時間要在監獄度過。

陳水扁與吳淑珍夫婦貪瀆，吳淑珍認自己連累子女，但早知如此，何必當初。（圖：美聯社）

另外，承審偽證案的合議庭週二也主動向檢方告發另行偵查扁是否涉及偽證罪，扁又再涉一案。

稱做好被重判準備

正被羈押在台北看守所的阿扁週二未對家人被判刑發表任何談話，僅透過幕僚稱，自己對“911”判決已做好被重判的準備。

台北萬律法律事務所莊秀銘表示，假證供案的背景，是扁家子女對公務機要費提供發票報銷作假證供，現在法官對4人判刑，等於宣告扁家“公國務機要費是用在公務”之說是說謊，也間接證明陳水扁在公務機要費上貪污，並非用於公務，而是中飽私囊。可預見下週五陳水扁的公務機要費案，也會被判有罪，甚至會被判重罪。

料判20至30年刑期

根據扁被控罪名，利用職務詐取財物罪可判7至30年，侵佔公款罪是10年至無期徒刑，職務上收賄罪為7至30年，洗錢罪則為最高5年，因此，陳水扁最重可被判無期徒刑。

若3項重罪都罪名成立（這是最可能的結果），依台灣“一罪一罰”原則，陳水扁最輕刑期也要至少10年以上，最多30年。

不過，宋耀明及莊秀銘律師認為，20年至30年刑期應是最可能的結果。但不論一審宣判是無期徒刑還是判監20年，以陳水扁現年60歲來算，出獄時都垂垂老矣。

法官告發
扁家3人另涉貪瀆

扁家弊案衍生的偽證案，承審合議庭不單認定吳淑珍和子女、女婿4人，涉及偽證罪，還從審判中發現陳水扁和子女陳致中、陳幸妤、女婿趙建銘，分涉公務費偽證、貪瀆罪嫌，決定主動出擊，發函檢方告發4人，請求另行偵查有無涉及犯罪。

未來檢察官偵查後，如果認定罪證屬實，將可另行起訴。

合議庭認為陳致中、陳幸妤有5張發票，曾要求蓋章以供申報、核銷公務費非機密費部份，故陳致中、陳幸妤、趙建銘等人提供私人消費發票給吳淑珍，事先就知情，是要用來申領公務費，並非代扁珍購物餽贈的因支出消費。

另陳幸妤兒子滿月的彌月油飯，陳致中個人交通違規罰單和訂婚時喜餅支出等多張私人消費發票，也是申報公務費機密費支應。

至於3人是否和扁珍共犯詐領公務費貪瀆重罪，還是成立貪瀆罪幫助犯？檢方認為，扁家弊案在9月11日宣判時，將作認定。

查扁是否涉偽證罪

另外，合議庭認為，陳幸妤的證詞，已證實為虛偽陳述。扁和女兒的說法一致，扁的供述自屬虛偽無疑，不無事先套招、勾串之嫌，向檢察官告發另行偵查扁是否涉及偽證罪。

而陳幸妤假證案判刑6個月，至此，扁家人在貪瀆案中無一脫身，全家未來都將面臨牢獄之災。

不能自理生活
珍難入監服刑

吳淑珍因為教唆偽證被判刑2年，減刑為1年，未來如果判決有罪定讞，以吳淑珍目前的身體狀況，監獄可以拒絕收監；屆時要在哪裡服刑、如何執行刑期？成為扁家四大弊案宣判前，另一個待解決的課題。

台灣監獄行刑法第11條第一項規定，受刑人入監時，須進行健康檢查，但同項第4款則明文規定“衰老、殘廢，不能自理生活者，應拒絕收監。”

吳淑珍因車禍下半身癱瘓多年，以她的狀況，在不能自理生活下，符合前述拒絕收監規定。未來扁家弊案如果判決有罪定讞，在入監服刑是接受法律制裁下，如果硬要珍坐牢，反而獄方得安排更多人照顧她，失去刑罰的意義。

法界人士指出，前述監獄行刑第11條第二項也規定：“被拒絕收監者，應由檢察官斟酌情形，送交醫院、監護人或其他適當處所”。換句話說，不能自理生活的受刑人，還是可送交醫院或適當的處所執行刑期。

珍怨法官不給子女機會
邱毅：判決太輕

扁家偽證案無人獲判緩刑，律師林志忠說，吳淑珍感到失望，對自己的部份沒有意見，但抱怨法官不給子女機會；他已建議吳淑珍上訴，爭取緩刑。

陳水扁辦公室則對判決一事表示，“不瞭解、無評論、沒接觸，一切請問當事人律師”。

另一方面，立委邱毅認為法官判得太輕，質疑“他們有認罪嗎？犯後態度良好嗎？”

邱毅指出，刑法修正，若判刑6月以下，9月1日開始可聲請以易服社會勞動替代刑罰，一審雖判處陳幸妤、陳致中、趙建銘等1年徒刑，卻減為6個月，讓他們得以適用社會勞動新制，不必坐牢。

移民美國夢碎
陳幸妤瀕臨自殺邊緣

正當外界一直認為陳水扁女兒陳幸妤，可在偽證案中脫身，獲緩刑之際，週二（9月1日）的一審結果卻讓各界感到意外。

被判刑半年的陳幸妤，雖然可申請社會勞動代替刑罰而免坐監，但因未獲緩刑，她移民美國夢碎。此外，陳幸妤姊弟及趙建銘等三人，未來還得再面對貪污重罪的官司。

曾為陳水扁打官司的律師顧立雄指出，扁女有嚴重情緒困擾，甚至瀕臨自殺邊緣，需尋求專業醫療協助。

第一個上班日不見蹤影

因家人涉多宗弊案，陳幸妤近年面對媒體變得脾氣暴躁、歇斯底里，為躲避傳媒，她近日已隨丈夫趙建銘遷往台南。週二本是陳幸妤南下的第一個上班日，但不見她的蹤影。

顧立雄被媒體追問是否知道陳幸妤的近況時，他表示，從和陳幸妤的聊天對話中，感覺到她很焦慮、憂鬱；若以台灣自殺防治中心的“心情溫度計”量表幫她計算，她的情緒困擾可能已達臨界點，需要高度關懷，尋求專業醫療協助。

陳水扁也曾表示，擔心女兒會自殺。陳幸妤因偽證罪成為被告後，今年6月26日到台北看守所探視 父親時，為了不能赴美留學一事，與父親爆發激烈爭吵，並希望父親能想想辦法。當扁坦承自己也束手無策時，她一度情緒崩潰，淚灑現場。幾日後，陳水扁為此還 寫了一封號稱是“119”的求救信給總統馬英九，在信中表示，擔心女兒不能去美國，可能會想不開，以致出現三種可能：一是她情緒失控精神錯亂；二是她會自 殺；三是她甚至可能會帶三個兒子自殺。但外界一直指扁家此舉是打悲情牌。

扁家適用社會勞動？法務部長：定讞後檢方認定

對於扁女陳幸妤、兒子陳致中及女婿趙建銘涉嫌偽證，一審判決6個月徒刑，是否適用社會勞動制度；法務部長王清峰今日（週三，9月2日）表示，待全案定讞後再由檢察官認定。

刑法增訂的社會勞動制度，1日上路，王清峰週三受詢時說，判刑6個月以下的當事人，可提出社會勞動申請。

至於陳幸妤等人是否適用，王清峰表示，待全案定讞，確定陳幸妤等人有罪，且刑期在6個月以下後，再由台北地檢署或當事人戶籍地地檢署認定。

6小時勞作抵銷1天刑期

台南地檢署檢察官說，一旦陳幸妤等人判刑6個月以下確定，就只能在入監服刑或社會勞動之間擇一，除非檢方認定當事人身心狀況或其他因素，不適用於社會勞動。

刑法增訂的社會勞動制度，適用於判刑6個月以下者，社會勞動6小時抵銷1天刑期，1年內必須完成社會勞動抵銷所有的刑期。

檢方表示，未來原則上會核准趙建銘、陳幸妤聲請義診替代服刑，但法律勞務暫不需要，因此陳致中可能被安排清潔社區。

法界人士分析，陳致中另涉扁家洗錢案，趙建銘還被控內線交易，既然他們對偽證案選擇認罪，最好的因應之道是儘速執行完畢；否則如果洗錢案、內線交易案被判徒刑確定，將失去以社會勞動取代入監的機會。

傳陳水扁“出訪”為洗錢
另1.5億海外巨款曝光

宣判日在即，扁家海外洗錢巨款卻一筆都沒匯回來，而週三有週刊報導，2006年陳水扁帶團參訪帕勞時，利用空軍一號運鈔出國，當地銀行突然存入14億（新台幣，下同）現鈔。

據報導，2006年9月，陳水扁二度風光帶團出訪帕勞，但在努力拼“外交”的背後，傳出內幕並 不單純。2006年9月間帕勞的“國家發展銀行”出現洗錢的可疑行動。事後，帕勞展開調查，發現當時陳水扁來訪，“國家發展銀行”突有4000萬美元（約 馬幣1億4176萬令吉）現鈔，折合台幣14億的現鈔存入，再分批匯到美國，而這間銀行的大股東與當時的總統雷蒙傑索很熟。

特偵組未積極追查

這麼大的金額與這麼巧合的時機點，當然引發外界質疑，不過卻沒引起特偵組積極追查。今年2月，帕勞總統來台，記者圍著問他，“（陳水扁）真的有帶500萬美金現鈔去帕勞嗎？其中有沒有誤會？你要不要澄清一下？”只見帕勞總統一臉尷尬。

報導指，對於這麼龐大的金額，偵組不但沒有追查，還爆出檢察官越方如打算縱放辜仲諒；對此，特偵組發言人陳雲南週三接受電話採訪時僅表示，媒體的報導“與事實不符”。

學者觀點

天子犯法與庶民同罪

（吳淑珍等5人涉偽證案被判刑）案件雖不屬扁家弊案的核心案件，但扁家人被定罪，對台灣社會仍有一定警示意義，不管涉案者有甚麼背景，來自何方，甚至是皇親國戚，違法必究，“天子犯法與庶民同罪”，是民主社會的通識。

──台灣文化大學教授蔡瑋

貪官和家人惶恐震動

大陸官場貪官污吏普遍，目前被揭露有限，但台灣法院的判決，定會令中共官場各級貪官和他們的家人惶恐、震動，“也許他們可以借助權力，延緩審判到來的時間，但最終無法阻止審判的到來，因為今日的世界，民主潮流不可阻擋。”

──北京大學前副教授焦國標

大陸政壇法律界借鑑

扁家弊案對大陸政壇和法律界有一定借鑑意義，但“借鑑程度如何，取決於政治和司法改革的進程。”

──人民大學台港澳研究中心教授張同新

台灣‧達賴訪颱風波‧傳中要台承諾三不

（台灣‧台北）據相關人士透露，圍繞達賴喇嘛訪問台灣一事，中國政府曾要求台方承諾“三不”，即達賴不召開記者會、國民黨高層不與達賴會面、達賴不發表演講。

國民黨高層人士於上週末訪問北京，就允許達賴赴台的條件做了說明。據稱，中國方面就此進一步提出了“三不”要求。

西藏流亡政府的國會議員凱度頓珠今日（週三，9月2日）向路透社表示，台灣政府在中國的壓力下，要求達賴喇嘛取消在台灣所有的公開演說和活動；同時，他也被禁止會見任何台灣領袖。

但他說，台灣是個民主之地，因此達賴喇嘛不會讓台灣政府難做。

台總統府否認中發出指示

台灣總統府發言人王郁琦否認了凱度頓珠的談話，指中國並沒有要求總統馬英九禁止達賴舉行任何活動。

他說：“達賴喇嘛本次的行程是出於私人安排，台灣政府會尊重他的意願。”

台灣《中國時報》引述國民黨主席吳伯雄的談話指出，未來幾天非常關鍵。

馬英九：溝通解決

《聯合報》則引述消息稱，馬英九認為，讓達賴入境的方向是正確的，但後續的努力和溝通必須同步進行。政府的諸多努力降低衝擊，對岸應該可以瞭解台方釋出的善意。

《聯合報》報導，面對中共的“軟抵制”，黨政高層認為目前的情勢並未失控，嚴格說來是傷皮未傷骨，不需過度悲觀看待。

韓國‧法院稱不保護不自愛女性‧韓淫魔姦64女子無罪

（韓國‧首爾）韓國一名41歲男子在8個月內誘騙姦淫64名女子，又威脅要公開她們的性愛錄影片段，證據確鑿，但竟然獲判無罪，當庭獲釋。

原因是，韓國司法制度只保護潔身自愛女性的貞操，對那些不自愛的，卻不保護，造成法律漏洞，讓犯事者能逍遙法外。

首爾鐘岩警署週一（8月31日）透露，這名41歲被告姓金，是個商人，自稱是旅居美國的韓僑，畢業於首爾一間名牌私立大學的英語系。他自今年1月7日開始，在網上結識20多歲的女子，近8個月誘騙了共64個女人上床，包括一名27歲姓李女子。

這些受害人在這名男子的淫威下，被迫就範，不敢報警，間接鼓勵他繼續犯案。直至警方從一個婚姻介紹網站收到情報，展開調查，最終將涉案男子捉拿歸案。

可是，經審訊後，法院認為那些女受害人不潔身自愛在先，於是按國家司法“僅保護自愛女性健全和純潔的貞操，但不保護不自愛女性貞操”的立場，判被告無罪。

韓國‧美國2獲釋女記者講述經歷‧“朝鮮兵在中國境內捉人”

（韓國‧首爾）此前遭朝鮮扣押長達數個月的兩名美國女記者指出，她們當日被朝鮮士兵強行由中國境內拉回朝鮮境內，然後被捕。

《洛杉磯時報》網站週二（9月1日）刊登女記者凌志美和李誠恩首次透露被捕經過。

她們表示，在今年3月曾非法進入朝鮮境內，但逗留不足1分鐘，即掉頭返回中國境內，2名朝鮮士兵追捕她們。她們確定已返回中國國境，但朝鮮士兵卻強行拖她們返回朝鮮境內。

2人被朝鮮判勞改12年，美國前總統克林頓在8月到朝鮮斡旋，與朝鮮領袖金正日會晤，最後2人獲特赦。

兩人指出，遭朝鮮拘禁後，她們的筆記、錄影等遭沒收以及被摧毀。

兩人亦表示，她們被囚禁的一些情景與悲痛難以公開述說，但她們的經驗“若與困苦的朝鮮人民和中國非法移民比較起來，算不上甚麼”。

菲律賓‧2010年總統大選‧科拉松馬可斯兒子或碰頭

（菲律賓‧馬尼拉）菲律賓已故前總統科拉松的獨生子小阿奎諾，在黨主席的撐腰下，料將參加2010年總統大選；與此同時，也有消息傳出，指前獨裁總統馬可斯的兒子也可能參與競選，與小阿奎諾爭奪總統寶座。

菲律賓自由黨主席、參議員羅哈斯週二（9月1日）宣佈放棄參加明年的總統大選，讓路給小阿奎諾，並希望他能令所有在野黨團結一致。

羅哈斯在對自由黨黨員和支持者發表談話時稱，他將全力支持小阿奎諾競選總統寶座。

他說：“小阿奎諾已經向我明確地表示，希望可以參選總統，我在考慮後決定作出讓步。”

現任總統阿羅約的任期將在2010年屆滿。

伊美黛慫恿兒子參選

另一方面，也有消息指出，馬可斯的兒子小馬可斯可能會參加2010年的總統大選。

馬可斯夫人伊美黛說：“沒錯，我正慫恿兒子競選更高的職位。”

現年51歲的小馬可斯，與小阿奎諾一樣是父母唯一的兒子。他的從政生涯在父母的庇蔭下，也擁有非凡的成就。

不過，小馬可斯在早前已經宣佈明年競選參議員，因此他尚未表態參加總統大選。

預料2010年菲律賓總統大選將陷入一場混戰，至今雖有超過10人表示有意競選，不過卻沒有人正式表態。

新加坡‧醫生勸勿信無根據調查‧喝咖啡不會令乳房縮小

（新加坡）新加坡醫生指出，有關女性每日喝咖啡超過3杯，會讓乳房“縮水”的說法沒根據。

鷹閣醫院婦產專科方壯威醫生說，他並沒聽過喝咖啡會導致乳房縮小的說法，並認為這報導無須盡信。

他也勸諭愛喝咖啡的女性，千萬別因為這些無科學根據的調查而停止喝咖啡。

他說︰“我本身也是一名咖啡飲用者，曾試過長時間每天飲用3大杯咖啡，導致一整週都出現難以入眠、心跳快速、脾氣略躁等狀況。”

日飲咖啡不應超過2杯

但方醫生強調，懷孕女性假如每日飲用超過2杯咖啡，將大大提高流產的風險。

方醫生說︰“無論是孕婦，還是普通成人，我還是建議他們每天飲用不超過2杯咖啡。”

張茂績中醫師以中醫的角度分析道︰“咖啡因具備興奮作用，攝入過量會導致情緒高昂、容易激動、出汗、急躁等狀況，因此不鼓勵人們以咖啡提神。”

他說，體力不好或已經透支的人，假如又加上咖啡，身體如雪上加霜。

據報導，瑞典科學家發現，女性每日喝咖啡超過3杯，會讓乳房“縮水”。

據網站資料顯示，腫瘤研究人員對300名女性進行了一項檢測，發現半數女性體內，含有一種特殊基因，而這種基因就在她們攝入咖啡因時，導致乳房縮小。

位於瑞典的隆德大學教授海倫娜指出︰“喝咖啡的女性，其實不必擔心她們的乳房會在一夜間變小。乳房其實是逐步地縮小，但並不會完全消失。”

英國‧為了坐火車‧4歲童離家出走15次

（英國‧倫敦）寶貝智多星？

英國4歲的菲爾德是個“過動兒”，過去7週，小小年紀的他竟離家出走了15次，只為了要坐火車。

4歲的菲爾德是個瘋狂火車迷，玩厭了家中的火車頭玩具，戀上真火車，三番四次離家出走坐火車。（圖：互聯網）

小小人兒“不安於室”，全因他是個瘋狂火車迷，玩厭家中的火車頭玩具，戀上真火車，7月首次出征，由肯特郡寓所走了1.6公里到馬登站，跟職員說要到薩塞克斯郡黑斯廷斯市的來回車票，還途經曾與爸媽度假的湯布里奇市。

車站職員一臉錯愕後報警，嚇破膽的爸媽惟有趕到車站，將笑開懷的菲爾德接回家，豈料兒子“食髓知味”，之後7週再出走14次，有次更是避開職員視線，穿過鐵絲網，爬8月台。

兒子反斗，31歲媽媽柯絲蒂說：“這真是噩夢，我們一秒鐘都不能分神，他對火車完全是著了魔。”

夫婦惟有在火車站張貼“通緝令”，詳列兒子劣行和火車知識，呼吁乘客遇見小傢伙，就要通知職員或報警。

中國‧腹大如鼓似懷孕‧1歲半女童懷“胎中胎”

（中國‧河南）1歲半女童懷孕？

河南漯河年僅1歲半的幼女，莫名其妙的腹大如鼓。經檢查，女童腹中竟是一個發育不完全的胎兒。

1歲半的女童小夢如（化名）來自漯河市召陵區姬石鄉康洼村。平素乖巧的小夢如長到1歲，突然變得愛哭愛鬧起來，肚子也開始漸漸長大，如今已經大如鼓。

1歲多的女童竟然“懷孕”，村裡的小朋友再也不敢和小夢如玩了。

為弄清究竟，最近，家人帶著小夢如到當地醫院做個全面檢查。結果發現，小夢如肚子裡確實有一個未發育成熟的胎兒，醫生表示這是“胎中胎”，屬一種先天性的疾病。

通俗地說，就是一個卵細胞受精後發育成兩個胎兒，但如果兩個細胞團一大一小，且小的發育不良，就會被包入強大細胞團的內細胞群所發育的胎兒體內，成為包人性寄生胎。因此，寄生胎與寄主都是孿生的兄弟或姐妹。

目前，小夢如父母正籌錢欲給她做手術。

日本‧被爆娶離婚婦‧鳩山：我從全體女性中選妻

（日本‧東京）即將成為日本下任首相、現任民主黨黨魁鳩山由紀夫，被爆當年為愛搶人妻。鳩山為此曾說：“大家都從單身女性中去挑選另一半，我是從全體女性中挑選。”

對於愛情，今年62歲的鳩山只獨鍾大他4歲，並且結過一次婚的鳩山幸。據瞭解，鳩山是在美國與夫人認識，當時鳩山的父母因不放心兒子獨自到美國攻讀博士，拜託一對在加州經營日本料理店的夫婦幫忙照顧兒子，這對夫婦，即是鳩山幸和前夫渡米。

鳩山太太鳩山幸（左）是日本新時代的女性。鳩山被指是第三者搶人家的老婆，他們的婚姻引起日人議論紛紛。（圖：法新社）

由於同在異鄉，鳩山與這對夫婦感情極佳，特別是鳩山和幸都愛音樂，在鳩山留學期間，兩人經常一道去聽音樂會，雖互生情愫，但始終因幸當時仍是有夫之婦，而無下文，等到幸離婚後，鳩山才與她結婚。

為此，鳩山曾說：“大家都從單身女性中去挑選另一半，我是從全體女性中挑選。”讓妻子幸極為感動。

在日本政治家族的觀念裡，鳩山要娶離過婚的女子，恐怕是經過一場家庭革命才得以如願。日本社會對兩人結婚的消息亦是議論紛紛，外界批評鳩山似乎搶了別人的老婆，直指這是一樁“不道德的婚姻”。

Gesundheit, Elmo: US Teams With Sesame Street to Slow Swine Flu

Three federal agencies are teaming up with the colorful muppets of Sesame Street to teach children and families how to prevent the spread of swine flu this fall, such as by washing their hands, sneezing into the bend in their arms and not touching their faces.

But don't worry parents -- the show's garbage can-dwelling Oscar the Grouch won't be preaching cleanliness. The spots are expected to feature the gentle Elmo and human character Gordon.

"We are thrilled to partner with Elmo, Gordon, and Sesame Workshop again to emphasize the steps kids and their parents can take to stay happy and healthy this school year," Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said.

The partnership continues a series of public service announcements created in May by Sesame Workshop, the group that produces the children's public television program, HHS, and the departments of Homeland Security and Education.

Children and young families are expected to be among groups most at risk of infection with the new H1N1 virus. DHS faced criticism last year when it tried to enlist the furry Sesame Street denizens to teach emergency preparedness to young kids, but a swine flu
campaign featuring the Muppets of Plaza Sésamo was popular in Mexico, where celebrities also donated time to the messages.

By Spencer S. Hsu

Schoolgirls rumble Ribena vitamin claims

Jenny Suo (left) and Anna Devathasan test the vitamin C content in Ribena at the science lab of Pakuranga College on 29 March 29, 2007 in Auckland, New Zealand. Photograph: Sandra Mu/Getty Images

• NZ students find almost no vitamin C in drink
• GlaxoSmithKline could face up to £1.1m fine

Two New Zealand schoolgirls humbled one of the world's biggest food and drugs companies after their school science experiment found that their ready-to-drink Ribena contained almost no trace of vitamin C.

Students Anna Devathasan and Jenny Suo tested the blackcurrant cordial against rival brands to test their hypothesis that cheaper brands were less healthy.

Instead, their tests found that the Ribena contained a tiny amount of vitamin C, while another brand's orange juice drink contained almost four times more.

"We thought we were doing it wrong. We thought we must have made a mistake," Anna told New Zealand's Weekend Herald. The girls were both 14 and students at Pakuranga College in Auckland when they did the experiment in 2004.

Given Ribena's advertising claims that "the blackcurrants in Ribena have four times the vitamin C of oranges", they were astonished and wrote to the manufacturers, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). When they got no response, they phoned the company, but were given short shrift. "They didn't even really answer our questions. They just said it's the blackcurrants that have it, then they hung up," Jenny said.

But then the girls' claims were picked up by a TV consumer affairs programme, Fair Go, which suggested they take their findings to the commerce commission, a government watchdog.

GSK said the girls had tested the wrong product, and it was concentrated syrup which had four times the vitamin C of oranges. But when the commerce commission investigated, it found that although blackcurrants have more vitamin C than oranges, the same was not true of Ribena. It also said ready-to-drink Ribena contained no detectable level of vitamin C.

GSK is in court in Auckland today facing 15 charges relating to misleading advertising, risking fines of up to NZ$3m (£1.1m).

In Australia, GSK has admitted that its claims about Ribena may have misled consumers. The Australian competition and consumer commission said last week that claims on the nutrition information panel of Ribena's ready-to-drink cartons implied that the product had four times the vitamin C of orange juice drinks, when this was not correct. The girls have since visited GSK to be thanked "for bringing it to our attention".

GSK said in a statement yesterday that concerns about vitamin C only affected some products in Australia and New Zealand."GSK has conducted thorough laboratory testing of vitamin C levels in Ribena in all other markets. This testing has confirmed that Ribena drinks in all other markets, including the UK, contain the stated levels of vitamin C, as described on product labels."

THIS is Big Government

The U.S. Postal Service was established in 1775 - they've had 234 years to get it right; it is broke, and even though heavily subsidized, it can't compete with private sector FedEx and UPS services.

Social Security was established in 1935 - they've had 74 years to getit right; it is broke.

Fannie Mae was established in 1938 - they've had 71 years to get it right; it is broke. Freddie Mac was established in 1970 - they've had 39 years to get it right; it is broke. Together Fannie and Freddie have now led the entire world into the worst economic collapse in 80 years.

The War on Poverty was started in 1964 - they've had 45 years to get it right; $1 trillion of our hard earned money is confiscated each year and transferred to "the poor"; it hasn't worked.

Medicare and Medicaid were established in 1965 - they've had 44 years to get it right; they are both broke; and now our government dares to mention them as models for all US health care.

AMTRAK was established in 1970 - they've had 39 years to get it right; last year they bailed it out as it continues to run at a loss!

This year, a trillion dollars was committed in the massive political payoff called the Stimulus Bill of 2009; it shows NO sign of working; it's been used to increase the size of governments across America, and raise government salaries while the rest of us suffer from economic hardships. It has yet to create a single new private sector job. Our national debt projections (approaching $10 trillion) have increased
400% in the last six months.


"Cash for Clunkers" was established in 2009 and went broke in 2009 - -after 80% of the cars purchased turned out to be produced by foreign companies, and dealers nationwide are buried under bureaucratic paperwork demanded by a government that is not yet paying them what was promised.

So with a perfect 100% failure rate and a record that proves that each and every "service" shoved down our throats by an over-reaching government turns into disaster, how could any informed American trust our government to run or even set policies for America's health care system - - 17% of our economy?

Maybe each of us has a personal responsibility to let others in on this brilliant record before 2010, and then help remove from office those who are voting to destroy capitalism and destroy our
grandchildren's future.


I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the
government from wasting the labours of the people under the pretence
of taking care of them.

by Thomas Jefferson

Obama Man

“The Government Can”

(with apologies to Leslie Bricusse and the late Anthony Newley)

UPDATE: Tony Pivetta sent another slam against Obamanable—also using “The Candy Man”—by comedian Greg Morton:

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Provocateurs At End The Fed Rally?

According to testimony given at a Missouri House of Representatives meeting yesterday, anarchists attempted to get other protesters to commit criminal acts during the End the Fed protests late last year, in what was a possible attempt to instigate chaos to justify a harsh crackdown on behalf of the authorities.

In March it came to light that the End the Fed protests, which took place at banks and regional Federal Reserve branches across the country on November 22, were being monitored closely by the United States Army Reserve Command, who implied that those protesting against the Fed and the bankster bailout were essentially terrorists.

On November 22, 2008, Alex Jones led a rally at the Federal Reserve Bank in Dallas Texas. The Dallas protest is specifically mentioned in the official Army document. Ron Paul’s brother was also in attendance.

During testimony given in response to the infamous Missouri Information Analysis Center (MIAC) report, a document authored by Missouri Highway Patrol and distributed to fellow law enforcement agencies that characterizes Ron Paul supporters, libertarians, people who display political bumper stickers, people who own gold, or even people who fly a U.S. flag as potential domestic terrorists, one of the organizers who attended the protests said that “anarchists” attempted to recruit followers and encouraged them to commit illegal acts.

“My group was at the End the Fed rally and there were a bunch of different groups there,” Cisse Spragin told the Missouri House of Representatives on Monday. “And there was this group of anarchists who started talking to us. And then they tried to recruit us or have us join their group. Then they started telling us what should we should write on our signs, and insisting on letting them re-write some of our signs. Later we overheard them saying they couldn’t even get us to jaywalk.”

Spragin’s testimony suggests that the anarchists were attempting to steer the nature of the protests in the opposite direction to guidelines published by End the Fed rally organizers before the protests which called for “Cooperation and respect for local laws and authorities,” and “No blocking of pedestrian or vehicular traffic.”

This wouldn’t be the first time that anarchist groups have been used as a tool with which to stir chaos. As we have documented before, the black bloc anarchist groups are routinely infiltrated and steered by authorities who use them to provoke disorder as a pretext to crack down on legitimate demonstrators.

During the April 2009 G20 summit in London, police stood back and watched anarchists attack banks and other buildings in an incident that had all the hallmarks of a staged event.

Following the SPP protests in Canada in 2007, Quebec provincial authorities were forced to admit that three rock-wielding black mask-wearing “anarchists” were in fact police infiltrators used to gather information on protesters.

Video shows two of the provocateurs pick up rocks and try to incite violence before they are outed as cops by legitimate demonstrators. The two thugs then tried to slip behind police lines before their fellow officers were forced to stage their arrest. Again, the fact that they were cops in disguise was later admitted by authorities. Watch the video.

Alex Jones’ film Police State 2: The Takeover exposed how the black bloc anarchists were completely infiltrated and provocateured by the authorities during the violent 1999 WTO protests in Seattle.

The authorities declared a state of emergency, imposed curfews and resorted to nothing short of police state tactics in response to a small minority of hostile black bloc hooligans. Police allowed the black bloc to run riot in downtown Seattle while they concentrated on preventing the movement of peaceful protestors. The film presents clear evidence that the black bloc anarchist group was actually controlled by the state and used to demonize peaceful protesters. Watch the video below.

At the WTO protests in Genoa 2001 a protestor was killed after being shot in the head and run over twice by a police vehicle. The Italian Carabinere also later beat on peaceful protestors as they slept, and even tortured some, at the Diaz School. It later emerged that the police fabricated evidence against the protesters, claiming they were anarchist rioters, to justify their actions. Some Carabiniere officials have since come forward to say they knew of infiltration of the so called black bloc anarchists, and that fellow officers acted as agent provocateurs.

At the Free Trade Area of Americas protests in Miami in late November 2003, more provocateuring was evident. The United Steelworkers of America calling for a congressional investigation, stated that the police intentionally caused violence and arrested and charged hundreds of peaceful protestors.

Paul Joseph Watson

Two months left to read the book on US collapse

Professor Igor Panarin, whose book “The Crash of America” is just out, claims that by November the book will be yesterday’s news.

Panarin believes President Obama will lead his country to a breakup. Panarin compares Obama to former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev.

“Obama is “the president of hope”, but in a year there won’t be any hope. He’s practically another Gorbachev – he likes to talk but hasn’t really managed to do anything. Gorbachev at least had been a secretary of a regional communist party administration, whereas Obama was just a social worker. His mentality is totally different. He’s a nice person and talks nicely – but he’s not a leader and will take America to a crash. When Americans understand that – it will be like a bomb explosion,” Panarin said, speaking to journalists during the unveiling of his book.

Panarin made his controversial forecast back in 1998, saying 2010 would be the starting point of the collapse. He spent the following eleven years monitoring the events around the US and says they largely confirm his theory.

“Today I received another confirmation that the collapse of the dollar and the US is inevitable. Japan’s Democratic Party won the election, and I’d like to remind you that its leader [Yukio Hatoyama] has the snubbing of the dollar among his economic plans. In plainer words, he plans to transfer Japan’s monetary reserves from US dollars into another currency. The move will seriously accelerate the dollar’s exchange slump as early as this November. Disintegration will follow shortly,” he added.

Amid all these pessimistic statements, Panarin – once labeled by a WSJ journalist as “a polite and cheerful man with a buzz cut” – insists he is by no means a US-hater but, rather, just a scientist.

The US will be divided to six areas of foreign influence according to Panarin

“I’m not anti-American, the US population has nothing to do with the part of its political elite that implements an absurd and aggressive policy that aims to create conflicts around the planet…….I hope to see the reasonable part of the American elite – I know there is one – benefiting in these two months left till the collapse. I can name two people that belong to this reasonable part – US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns. If they triumph in the political strife, the consequences of the collapse will be minimized.”

“The 2009 US budget deficit is 4.5 times the 2008 deficit, while firearms sales are up 40%. On October 1, the coupons that were given to state workers are to be cashed out. When the workers realize that they are getting nothing for those coupons, they will take out their firearms and chaos will unfold. Meanwhile, in a separate issue, as the financial year draws to a close on September 30, its results will be published. They are destined to shock investors worldwide. After that, and the snubbing of the dollar by Japan and, especially, China, which will transfer 50% of its international operations to Yuan starting in 2010, the currency will then flow like a landslide out of style. Argentina and Brazil are excluding the dollar from mutual financial operations starting January 2010, while Brazil offers to move toward alternative currencies throughout the whole of South America,” Panarin noted.

He also suggested Russia follow suit and begin selling oil and gas for roubles.

Panarin still leaves room for miscalculation, which would actually make him happy. And should the collapse not start in November, he is ready to explain why it didn’t happen by December. But at the moment, the collapse looks quite likely.

“In my opinion, the probability of the US ceasing to exist by June, 2010 exceeds 50%. At this point, the mission of all major international powers is to prevent chaos in the US,” Panarin concluded.

Glenn Beck: Speak Without Fear & Question Boldly [FOX News]

Must watch link ......... http://bit.ly/2oT58C

Alex Jones Tv:The Globalist Final Push to End America!!

www.infowars.com

Recent Concentration of Volume in Financial Stocks: Coordinated Capital Infusion?

I just wanted to add some color to my recent post regarding why the NYSE TRIN indicator might be broken

Reader Brian adds a very interesting perspective, indicating that he’s watched TRIN and C side by side and has seen a very strong correlation. When C flips from up to down (or vice versa), there is a corresponding huge move in TRIN. This could only be the case if a stock like C comprised a large share of total NYSE volume, which indeed seems to be the case, as noted by The Big Picture blog.

Above I took C, FNM, and FRE and expressed their *composite* volumes (e.g., the volumes transacted across all exchanges) as a fraction of NYSE volume. What we see is that, early in 2007, those three stocks accounted for only 1-3% of NYSE volume. During the financial crisis of late 2008 and again as the market was bottoming in early 2009, that ratio skyrocked to well over 50%.

Recently, however, the volume in these three stocks has hit astronomical levels relative to total NYSE trading, as all three have made phenomenal percentage gains during August. Indeed, the composite volume of these three stocks alone has recently doubled total NYSE volume. If we look at just the NYSE trading of these firms, they are accounting for about 40% of NYSE volume. It is not surprising that Brian would notice TRIN flipping up and down as these stocks change direction.

Again, the question is what all this means. There is no way that mom and pop trader and investor are involved in any meaningful way in generating these kind of daily trading volumes. Nor are proprietary trading shops capable of generating volumes that exceed those of the entire New York Stock Exchange. While I have no doubt that the algorithmic trade close to the market is participating in this movement, the directionality of the involvement suggests that large financial institutions are systematically buying the beaten-up shares of the poster children for TARP: C, FNM, FRE, AIG, and the like.

It is worth noting in this regard that other major (healthy) financial firms, such as GS and JPM, have seen no such surge in their volume or their trading prices.

My best guess? We’re seeing a massive infusion of capital into very troubled financial institutions, no doubt aided by short covering and the participation of program traders and proprietary daytrading firms. Where is the capital coming from? Why has it poured in so suddenly (the really large infusions began in early August)? Why is it coming in at such a pace that it is dominating NYSE volume? Zero Hedge rightly wonders why this hasn’t triggered alarms at the exchange. And why is it happening with only the weakest financial institutions?

If you were the government and you saw that these institutions were on the verge of a major fail, with billions of taxpayer dollars at risk, I’m not sure you’d announce that to the world. Nor, at this point politically, could you ask for yet another bailout package. But you would only pour money into those stocks at a frantic pace (capable of detection) if you perceived a dire need for the capital.

I’m not inclined toward conspiracy theories, but it’s difficult to imagine a scenario in which this is not a (frighteningly necessary) coordinated capital infusion, with taxpayer dollars ultimately at work in financial markets.
.

War Criminal Cheney Thinks Torture is OK & That He's Offended by Torture Investigation. To Quote Cheney, "So?"

Check this link ....... http://tinyurl.com/qf6e4q

Sex Education?

S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford may be an amateur Romeo, but it looks like he’s got nothing on his appointment to the S.C. State Board of Education.

Kristin Maguire, an Upstate evangelical and one of South Carolina’s most respected social conservatives, has been one of the governor’s closest education policy advisors for years. She’s also Sanford’s appointment to the S.C. Board of Education, which last year elected her its Chairwoman.

What else is she?

The prolific author of hardcore erotic fiction on the Internet, according to documents provided to the governor’s office earlier this summer and later obtained by FITS.

Maguire, a professed Christian who home-schools her four children, declined to comment for our story but did not deny that she had previously frequented websites that feature such X-rated material. Maguire believes that a former friend is leaking the information to the media in an effort to ruin her political career.

As for the specific writings alleged to have flowed from Maguire’s pen, most have been deleted from the Internet.

FITS was able to use conversations in various Internet chat rooms, however, to link at least two “erotic stories” to Maguire’s alleged pen name, “Bridget Keeney.” From there, numerous similarities between “Bridget” and Maguire emerged, including commonalities in age, geographic location, engineering background, hobbies (knitting, for example) and number of children. One comment left in an erotic chat room by “Bridget” even reveals the name of a professor who was at Clemson University’s College of Engineering at the time when Maguire was a student there, while another comment references a specific medical procedure that Maguire underwent several years ago.

Confronted with these numerous identifying markers, Maguire spoke to FITS of difficult times in her life and acknowledged that she had visited certain websites where such material was posted and reviewed. She did not admit to authoring erotic fiction, however.

A source familiar with Sanford’s response to receiving this information tells a different story, however. This source says that Maguire emphatically denied that the writing samples were hers, and that she and the governor’s chief of staff, Scott English, immediately set about to ensure that none of the material remained on the Internet.

None of the writings attributed to Maguire are illegal, obviously, and none of them coincide with her tenure as Chairwoman of the State Board. But they do coincide with her extensive interaction with the Governor’s Office during Sanford’s first term.

That part of Maguire’s life is now facing intense scrutiny – especially in light of the way Sanford’s office appears to have helped put a lid on the information being leaked about Maguire.

For example, several sources have related to FITS an incident involving Maguire and Scott English at a Columbia area bar at the end of the 2004 legislative session.

“She was giving him a lap dance,” says a witness at the bar. “There’s no other way to describe it.”

Another former Sanford staffer tells FITS that Maguire once unbuttoned her blouse and hiked up her skirt in front of him to show off her see-thru, light blue underwear. This incident allegedly occurred not at a bar, but inside the governor’s office – at the unoccupied desk of First Lady Jenny Sanford, no less.

“Lies, lies, lies, lies,” a friend of Maguire’s told FITS. “These are all lies. That is not Kristin and shame on any person who says that it is.”

Maguire’s involvement in S.C. politics goes well beyond her leadership of the S.C. Board of Education or her involvement with the Sanford administration. She is an executive committeewoman of the S.C. Republican Party, as well as the woman responsible for drafting the party’s education platform.

Prior to being elected Chairwoman, Maguire led the panel responsible for approving education standards taught in South Carolina classrooms, including what textbooks were to be used and how teachers were to be certified. She has been a strong supporter of “abstinence only” sex education, as well.

When Maguire was elected to lead the S.C. Board, her appointment was hailed as a victory for social conservatives and feted on Christian blogs and websites across the Southeast.

Maguire’s alleged alter-ego would obviously be quite a contrast from her carefully-cultivated public persona.

“I fantasize about being the ’second’ F (female) in a MFF (threesome) where the other two are in a committed relationship,” the sultry “Bridget” writes on one post. “I would like to focus on pleasuring her and ‘enhancing’ their intercourse …”

So, did Sanford’s office help Maguire engage in a cover-up of this highly-sensitive information? Or, as English told FITS, was the Governor’s Office simply reeling from the distraction caused by the governor’s own sex scandal? Who knows, but shortly after Sanford’s office was informed of the alleged connection between Maguire and “Bridget,” her writings began disappearing from the web.

WEB EXTRAS

(Editor’s Note: These are samples of the erotic fiction written by “Bridget Keeney,” who is alleged to be S.C. Board of Education Chairwoman Kristin Maguire. Please note that these documents contain EXCEEDINGLY GRAPHIC DESCRIPTIONS OF SEXUAL ACTS and as such are NSFW – or NOT SAFE FOR WORK).

By fitsnews

Beijing's derivative default stance rattles banks

BEIJING, Aug 31 (Reuters) - A report that Chinese state-owned companies will be allowed to walk away from loss-making commodity derivative trades provoked anger and dismay among investment bankers on Monday as they feared it may set a damaging precedent.

The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the regulator and nominal shareholder for state-owned enterprises (SOEs), told six foreign banks that SOEs reserved the right to default on contracts, Caijing magazine quoted an unnamed industry source as saying in an article published on Saturday.

While the details of the report could not be confirmed, it was Monday's hot topic in financial circles from Shanghai to Singapore as commodity marketers feared that companies holding underwater price hedges could simply renege on the deals, costing banks millions of dollars in profit.

The warning from SASAC follows a series of measures from Beijing this year to crack down on the sale of derivative products by foreign banks to Chinese enterprises, principally big consumers, who bought protection against higher prices last year only to watch the market collapse -- leaving them with losses.

While many companies including top airlines have come clean on the losses, some analysts fear another wave may follow.

"I wouldn't be surprised if more state firms emerge with big derivatives trading losses, otherwise SASAC wouldn't come out with such a radical move," said a Hong Kong-based derivatives analyst, who like most other industry officials and bankers declined to be named due to the high sensitivity of the issue.

A SASAC media official said on Monday that he was waiting for the "relevant department's" official comment before he can clarify to media. A government official said that the Bureau of Financial Supervision and Evaluation under SASAC was handling the issue. The official declined to be named and did not elaborate.

Spokespersons at Goldman Sachs (GS.N) and UBS (UBSN.VX) declined comment, and media officials at Morgan Stanley (MS.N) and JPMorgan (JPM.N) were not immediately available for comment. All are major global providers of commodity risk management.

No bank were named in the Caijing report. The SASAC media officer also declined to identify any specific banks.

"It's a handful of companies who are being encouraged by regulators to re-negotiate," said a second banking source. "It's outrageous, but it's China, so everyone is treading very carefully."

For banks that are hoping to sell more derivatives hedges in China, the world's fastest-expanding major economy and top commodities consumer, the danger goes beyond the immediate risk to existing contracts to the longer-term precedent that suggests Chinese companies can simply renege on deals when they like.

The report follows an order from SASAC in July that required all central government-controlled state companies engaged in trading derivatives to make quarterly reports about their investments, including details of holdings and performance.

But the reported letter opened several important questions that could not immediately be answered.

"If we were among the banks receiving that letter, we would be very angry. But now the key is to find out more details on the letter: In whose name the letter was issued, the government or the corporate's? And under what was the reason for defaulting?" said a Singapore-based marketing executive with a foreign bank.

The source, whose bank did not receive a letter, said that Air China, China Eastern and shipping giant COSCO -- among the Chinese companies that have reported huge derivatives losses since last year -- had issued almost identical notices to banks.

"If it's in the name of the government, the impact will be very negative," said the source, who declined to be named.

Beijing-based derivatives lawyers said the so-called "legal letter" has no legal standing -- SASAC as a shareholder has no business relationship with international banks.

"It's like the father suddenly told the creditors of his debt-ridden son that his son won't pay any of his debt," said a lawyer from the derivatives risks committee of the Beijing Lawyers Association.

It's also unclear why Chinese state firms, which have complained that their foreign banks sometimes did not disclose full information of potential risks when selling them complicated products, did not seek redress through the courts.

"If that is the case, these firms should seek through legal measures to safeguard their rights, instead of turning to the authorities for political interference," said a different lawyer.

SASAC took over the job of overseeing SOEs' derivatives trading from the securities regulator in February after several Chinese firms reported huge losses from derivatives.

For a factbox of China's derivatives debacles:[ID:nPEK206094] (Reporting by Eadie Chen and Chen Aizhu in Beijing, Alfred Cang in Shanghai, George Chen and Michael Flaherty in Hong Kong; Editing by Jonathan Leff)

By Eadie Chen and Chen Aizhu

The Corruption of Empire

Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz predicted in 2003 that the cost of the Iraq war would be covered by Iraqi oil revenue, which would also pay for reconstruction. The Iraq war has in fact cost the United States more than $900 billion, including more than $145 billion US and Iraqi dollars for rebuilding and local contracting to support US forces. Six years of reconstruction has been a failure, with most projects unfinished or so poorly built that they have been abandoned. Water and electricity has not been restored to the level enjoyed under Saddam Hussein. Even those inclined to look on the bright side acknowledge that at least $13 billion has been lost to fraud, theft, and waste. Most would put the number much higher, possibly as much as $125 billion if one includes both American and Iraqi money.

Just as the United States is winding down its reconstruction of Iraq, the largest nation building project in history, President Obama wants to do the same for Afghanistan only do it better and bigger. Before he gets in too deep, he should listen to the non-partisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) which is sounding alarm bells over concerns that the White House is not sharing with it plans for the reconstruction. GAO envisions massive multi-billion dollar shortfalls bringing projects crippled by corruption and waste grinding to a halt. Government auditors note that more than $5 billion in reconstruction funds already cannot be accounted for in Afghanistan.

Obama is gambling that the pervasive corruption in Iraq can somehow be avoided. It is a risky bet, both because corruption is a genie that is hard to return to the bottle and because bribery in Afghanistan, like in Iraq, is a bedfellow of government. And, tragically, it has taken hold among the American occupiers. When American military officers ran the Iraqi Defense Ministry in 2004-5, an entire year’s procurement budget of $1.3 billion disappeared on "contracts" signed in Poland and Pakistan for materiel that was never delivered. As as the New York Times’ Frank Rich put it astutely, in Iraq "corruption has been at the center of the entire mission," possibly even a primary factor in the failure of the reconstruction program, a calamity that has hitherto been blamed on inadequate planning and a high level of violence.

The United States has never lacked for war profiteers aided and abetted by dishonest officials but the Iraq War has elevated corruption to a new level. In an environment in which many billions of unaccountable dollars were stacked in shrinkwrap pallets or floating around without any real oversight, it was perhaps inevitable that corruption would establish a new gold standard. Efforts to overcome fraud and waste might eventually become, as one observer has put it, the "second war" in that unhappy land. It was also inevitable that the corruption involving Iraqis would sooner or later ensnare the Americans involved, demonstrating once again that war produces "blowback" that damages the institutions of victor and vanquished alike.

The United States has spent $145 billion on reconstruction and military support projects in Iraq. The reconstruction money, which is twice what was spent on rebuilding post-World War II’s devastated much larger and more populous Japan, has mostly been wasted. Numerous American officials, particularly those involved in contracting, have been investigated for corruption. There have been twenty-nine convictions, several suicides, and the investigations and trials promise to drag on. It is reported that more than two dozen indictments of Americans are pending.

Army contracting officer Major Gloria Davis and Air Force procurement officer Charles Riechers both committed suicide over contracting fraud while Colonel Ted Westhusing shot himself after sending an accusatory letter to General David Petraeus concluding "I cannot support a mission that leads to corruption, human rights abuse and liars." Some believe that Westhusing was murdered because he was about to turn whistle blower.

Robert Stein, the former US Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) controller for South Central Iraq, was one of the first successful prosecutions for corruption. Stein diverted $8.6 million through a business run by Californian Philip Bloom. Bloom admitted paying more than $2 million in bribes to US officials including four Army Colonels—Curtis Whiteford, Bruce Hopfengardner, Debra Harrison, and Michael Wheeler. Army Major John Cockerham accepted nearly $10 million in bribes while in Kuwait and his successor Army Major James Momon received $5.8 million. Army Major Christopher Murray, Army Lt. Col. Levonda Selph, Army Major John Rivard, Captain Michael Dung Nguyen, and Captain Bryant Williams have all been imprisoned for taking bribes. In Iraq’s Anbar province, local Iraqis report that US officers routinely demand 15% of all reconstruction project funds.

One corruption whistleblower might even have been killed. American businessman Dale Stoffel went to the US authorities in Baghdad to complain that US military officers had been taking bribes in pizza boxes stuffed with hundred dollar bills at the contracting offices to conceal the payments. The use of dead drop points for leaving cash in paper bags was common throughout the green zone. Stoffel was threatened and was murdered in December 2004. Two US military officers, Army Colonel Anthony Bell and Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Ronald Hirtle, were identified by Stoffel before his death and are currently reported to be under investigation.

Particularly disturbing is the growing evidence of widespread involvement of senior US military officers and civil servants in the corruption, which was driven by windfall profits on contracts requiring little or no work. Apart from the Army and Air Force officers who have gone to prison, reports from Kuwait suggest that at least sixteen American flag officers, generals and admirals, are currently under investigation by the Justice Department, the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (Sigir), or by the Department of Defense. Sigir alone has carried out 300 investigations and more than 250 audits. Government sources report that 154 criminal investigations are still open.

The assumption that Afghanistan will somehow be different than Iraq might actually mean that it will be worse. Where Iraq had a recent history of functioning governments Afghanistan does not. Where Iraq had a decent infrastructure of roads and tradition of the government providing services, Afghanistan does not. What Afghanistan does share with Iraq is pervasive corruption at all levels of government at all times. A total of $32 billion have already been largely wasted on reconstruction projects in Afghanistan, making potential donors nervous about further engagement where there is so little to show. The Europeans have already made it clear that they want out at the first opportunity.

So as the US presence in Iraq winds down there is a lesson to be learned. Military occupation inevitably corrupts the occupier. Many US military officers involved in managing the billions of dollars spent on reconstruction and support of allied forces have succumbed to temptation. Afghanistan might well be different, but there is no reason to assume that to be the case. Indeed, given the harsh physical environment and pervasive corruption in Afghanistan itself everything might well be worse. If it is not too late to halt the march of the juggernaut, it might be wise for the Obama Administration to step back and consider what it is doing. The nation building exercise in Iraq was brought to its knees at least in part by corruption which has spread alarmingly among US government officials eager to take their share of the easy money and that experience will likely be repeated in Afghanistan. Is it worth repeated that experience in support of a war that makes no sense and that is surely being lost? Undoubtedly, no.


Copyright © 2009 Campaign for Liberty
By Philip Giraldi

Burmese unrest may provoke reaction from China

An uneasy calm settled over northern Burma on Sunday as rebels and refugees continued to cross the border into southern China after an assault by the Burmese military.

The United Nations and overseas Burmese groups say upward of 10,000 refugees and hundreds of ethnic Kokang fighters are in southern China, presenting a logistical headache for the central government in Beijing.

Still unclear, analysts said, is whether this is only a lull in the fighting and how great an effect this human tide will have on relations between China and its ally, Burma, which is also known as Myanmar.

In the past, Beijing has played down political, social and human-rights problems raised by the West, contending that these were internal Burmese issues that didn't affect regional stability or China's national interest. This stance may be harder to maintain now that the problem has washed over into Chinese territory.

"India will remain quiet as long as its national interests aren't affected," said Aung Zaw, the editor of The Irrawaddy, a news magazine published out of Chiang Mai, Thailand. "But this puts China in a difficult situation."

A number of considerations appear to have fueled Burma's decision to launch a campaign against the Kokang militants, analysts said.

"This is a several-prong strategy," said Zarni, a senior fellow at the London School of Economics and Political Science who uses only one name.

The move may be aimed at boosting domestic support in advance of promised elections in 2010, the first in two decades. The elections are being held under a new constitution widely seen as favorable to the nation's military rulers.

Northern Burma is better off financially than many other parts of the impoverished nation because of smuggling, Chinese investment, trade and other factors. So an attack on the Kokang, the weakest of several armed groups in the area, could win points among voters farther south who envy the area's relative prosperity.

The attack on a group that is ethnically and linguistically Chinese also may be a way to send a signal to Beijing that Burma doesn't want to be pushed around.

Although this risks awakening the sleeping giant, Burma also knows that China's Communist Party doesn't want trouble in advance of the nation's politically sensitive 60th anniversary of party rule.

Furthermore, China recently staked $1 billion on an oil pipeline project through Burma, which probably will make it think twice about applying too much pressure on the military junta.