Consumer confidence slips unexpectedly

Americans still worried about jobs; home prices rise for third month

CHICAGO - Americans' confidence about the U.S. economy fell unexpectedly in October as job prospects remained bleak, a private research group said Tuesday, fueling speculation that an already gloomy holiday shopping forecast could worsen.

The Consumer Confidence Index, released by The Conference Board, sank unexpectedly to 47.7 in October — its second-lowest reading since May.

Forecasters predicted a higher reading of 53.1.

A reading above 90 means the economy is on solid footing. Above 100 signals strong growth.

The index has seesawed since reaching a historic low of 25.3 in February and climbed to 53.4 in September.

Economists watch consumer confidence because spending on goods and services by Americans accounts for about 70 percent of U.S. economic activity by federal measures. While the reading doesn't always predict short-term spending, it's a helpful barometer of spending levels over time, especially for expensive, big-ticket items.

Recent economic data, from housing to manufacturing, has offered mixed signals but some evidence that an economic recovery might be slow.

But on Tuesday, the figures showed that shoppers have a grim outlook for the future, The Conference Board said, expecting a worsening business climate, fewer jobs and lower salaries. That's particularly bad news for retailers who depend on the holiday shopping season for a hefty share of their annual revenue.

"Consumers also remain quite pessimistic about their future earnings, a sentiment that will likely constrain spending during the holidays," said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board's Consumer Research Center.

Economists expect holiday sales to be at best flat from a year ago, which saw the biggest declines since at least 1967 when the Commerce Department started collecting the data.

The Consumer Confidence Index survey, which was sent to 5,000 households, had a cutoff date of Oct. 21.

The news came on the heels of rosier data about the nation's housing market.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price index, which studies real estate transactions in 20 major cities, showed home prices rose in August, the third straight monthly increase and a sign that a housing recovery might be taking hold.

The measure showed the home price index climbed 1 percent from July to a seasonally adjusted reading of 144.5. While prices are down 11.4 percent from August a year ago, the annual declines have slowed since February.

Prices are at levels not seen since August 2003 and have fallen almost 30 percent from the peak in May 2006.

The latest index shows a widespread turnaround with prices rising month-over-month in 15 metro areas since June.

The Dow Jones industrials wavered on the dueling reports, but the index was up 65 points to 9,933 in midmorning trading.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

New jobless claims climb more than expected

WASHINGTON - The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for jobless benefits rose more than expected last week, after falling in five of the past six weeks, as employers remain reluctant to hire even with the economy showing signs of recovery.

The Labor Department said Thursday that new jobless claims rose to a seasonally adjusted 531,000 last week, from an upwardly revised 520,000 the previous week. Wall Street economists had expected only a slight increase, according to Thomson Reuters.

Economists closely watch initial claims, which are considered a gauge of layoffs and an indication of companies' willingness to hire new workers.

The four-week average of claims, which smooths out fluctuations, fell slightly to 532,250, the lowest since mid-January and about 125,000 below the peak for the recession, reached this spring. But claims remain well above the 325,000 that economists say is consistent with a healthy economy.

The number of people continuing to claim benefits did drop for the fifth straight week to 5.9 million, from just over 6 million. The figures on continuing claims lag initial claims by a week.

Many recipients are moving onto extended benefit programs approved by Congress in response to the recession, which began in December 2007 and is the worst since the 1930s. Those extensions add up to 53 weeks of benefits on top of the 26 typically provided by the states.

When those programs are included, the total number of recipients dropped to 8.8 million in the week ending Oct. 3, the latest data available, down about 50,000 from the previous week. That decline is likely due to recipients running out of benefits, rather than finding jobs, economists say.

Many analysts expect the economy grew as much as 3 percent in the July-September quarter, but employers are reluctant to hire as they wait to see if such growth can be maintained.

The unemployment rate rose to 9.8 percent in September from 9.7 percent, the department said earlier this month, as employers cut 263,000 jobs. The recession has eliminated a net total of 7.2 million jobs.

More job cuts were announced this week. Sun Microsystems Inc. said it plans to eliminate up to 3,000 jobs, or 10 percent of its worldwide work force, as it awaits a takeover by Oracle Corp., a deal being held up by antitrust regulators in Europe.

Among the states, Florida had the largest increase in claims, with 9,976, which it attributed to layoffs in the construction, service, manufacturing and agriculture industries. New York, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Arkansas had the next largest increases. The state data lag initial claims by one week.

California reported the largest drop in claims, down 7,062, which it attributed to fewer layoffs in the construction, service, and manufacturing industries. Tennessee, Maine and Nebraska also reported decreases.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

New home sales take surprise tumble

Effect of the soon-to-expire, first-time buyer tax credit begins to fade

WASHINGTON - Sales of new homes dropped unexpectedly last month as the effects of a temporary tax credit for first-time owners started to wane.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that sales fell 3.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 402,000 from a downwardly revised 417,000 in August. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected a pace of 440,000.

It was the first decline since March. Sales in September were off 7.8 percent from a year ago. Despite the surprising decline, the market is up 22 percent from the bottom in January, though down more than 70 percent from the peak in July 2005.

The median sales price of $204,800 was off 9.1 percent from $225,200 a year earlier, but up 2.5 percent from August's $199,900.

The drop in sales was driven by a nearly 11 percent decline in the West and a 10 percent drop in the South. Sales rose 35 percent in the Midwest and were unchanged in the Northeast.

The report reflects contracts to buy homes, not completed sales. It has been taking longer to close a transaction this year because it's taking longer to get approved for a mortgage and to have a property appraised.

Those time lags could make buyers nervous they won't be able to complete the deal before the Nov. 30 deadline to take advantage of a tax credit of up to $8,000 for first-time buyers.

The report "demonstrates the power of the first-time homebuyers tax credit," said Bernard Markstein, senior economist with the National Association of Home Builders, which has been lobbying Congress to extend and expand the tax incentive. "We just haven't gotten the economy back to the point where we can step back and say the housing market doesn't need any more support."

Congress is considering extending the tax credit through March 31 and gradually phasing it out over the rest of next year. "If they don't extend it, then I think the pullback could be quite significant," said Brad Hunter, chief economist with Metrostudy, a real estate research firm.

Critics, however, say many buyers would have entered the market anyway and call the credit an unnecessary subsidy for people who don't need it.

Low mortgage rates, the tax credit and more affordably priced homes have provided a big lift to the housing market this year. Sales of previously occupied homes, for example, jumped more than 9 percent in September. That report measures completed sales rather than sales agreements.

There were 251,000 new homes for sale at the end of September, down almost 4 percent from August and the lowest inventory in nearly 27 years. At the current sales pace, that represents 7.5 months of supply.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

No jobs= No recovery

Check this link ..... http://bit.ly/60p8B

Turkey to use national currencies in trade with Iran, China

ANKARA, October 28 (RIA Novosti) - Turkey is switching to national currencies in trade with Iran and China, ending dependence on the U.S. dollar and the euro for about 20% of its commodity turnover, local media reported on Wednesday.

Turkey has already switched to settlements in national currencies with Russia amid weakening confidence in the greenback as the world's major reserve currency. The move was initiated by Turkish President Abdullah Gul during his visit to Moscow in February.

Turkey's decision to make settlements with Iran and China in national currencies was announced during a visit to Iran by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Turkish premier told a Turkish-Iranian business forum on Tuesday that the countries had prepared a legal framework for transition to settlements in national currencies.

"We have adopted a necessary legislative act and are prepared for the transition," the Turkish newspaper Milliyet quoted Erdogan as saying.

According to the paper, Turkey's trade with Russia, Iran and China exceeds $65 billion a year. Russia is Turkey's largest trade partner, with $37.8 billion commodity turnover registered last year.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on October 14 that Russia was ready to consider using the Russian and Chinese national currencies instead of the dollar in bilateral oil and gas dealings.

"We are ready to examine the possibility of selling energy resources for rubles, but our Chinese partners need rubles for that. We are also ready to sell for yuans," Putin said.

Britain's Independent newspaper reported in early October that Russian officials had held "secret meetings" with Arab states, China and France on ending the use of the U.S. dollar in international oil trade.

The countries are reportedly seeking to switch from the dollar to a basket of currencies including the euro, Japanese yen, Chinese yuan, gold, and a new unified currency of leading Arab oil producing countries.

The Independent said the meetings have been confirmed by Chinese and Arab banking sources, although Russian officials said they had no knowledge of the talks.

"Money Multipliers Have Collapsed Everywhere...Confidence Is Missing. I Don't See Any Way To Stabilise M3 In Such Circumstances"

Former officials are often more honest than current ones, since they aren't under pressure to spread happy talk.

Former European Central Bank chief economist Otmar Issing recently said what current officials aren't addressing:

Nobody can be sure that we have a self-sustaining recovery. The challenges facing the ECB are tremendous. "Money multipliers have collapsed everywhere. What M3 is telling us is that confidence is missing. I don't see any way to stabilise M3 in such circumstances.

As Ambrose Evans-Pritchard notes:

Data from the European Central Bank shows that the M3 broad money supply has contracted over the last six months, confounding expectations that ultra-low interest rates would soon boost monetary growth. Loans to the private sector fell 0.3pc from a year earlier, the first such decline since the data started in 1983.

The M3 figures include a wide range of bank accounts...

The picture is even starker in America where M3 has shrunk at an annual rate of 6.5pc over the last three months, a pace of contraction not seen since the 1930s. US bank loans have plummeted since May.

(While the Fed stopped reporting M3 in 2006, people are still tracking it).

How can M3 have collapsed when governments world-wide are printing money faster than IHOP can cook pancakes?

Well, professor Tim Congdon from International Monetary Research says:

A key reason for credit contraction is pressure on banks to raise their capital ratios... "The current drive to make banks less leveraged and safer is having the perverse consequence of destroying money balances," he said. "It strengthens the deflationary forces in the world economy. That increases the risks of a double-dip recession in 2010."

But isn't it good that governments are requiring banks to raise their capital rations?

Sure, but unless they force the banks to write off their bad debts, they will remain giant black holes, and will never be adequately capitalized. If they are never adequately capitalized, they will never release money out into the economy through loans and other economic activity which increases M3.

As just one example, remember that the nominative amount of outsanding derivatives dwarfs the size of the global economy. As another example, remember that several of the too big to fails have close to a trillion dollars each in toxic assets in off-book SIVs.

IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn says that the history of financial crises shows that "speedy recovery" depends on "cleansing banks' balance sheets of toxic assets". "The message of all financial crises is that policy-makers' priority must be to stop the quantity of money falling and, ideally, to get it rising again," he said.

As many people have repeatedly written (including me), the world's governments must restore sound economic fundamentals - which includes forcing banks to write down their bad assets - instead of cranking up the printing presses and trying to paper over all of the problems.

Moreover, as Mish, Michael Rivero, and many others have pointed out, governments can create all the credit they want, but if people do not have jobs, they will not borrow that money.

In addition, the amount of credit and wealth destroyed exceeds the amount of money pumped into the system.

When will the politicians listen? Will they wait until after the next huge market crash? When there are tent cities everywhere? After their governments default and they essentially lose sovereignty under "austerity measures" imposed by the IMF, World Bank or other agency?

韓國‧胡錦濤邀金正日訪華

（韓國‧首爾）中國國家主席胡錦濤邀請朝鮮領導人金正日，在方便的時候訪問中國。

朝中社報導，胡錦濤是週三（10月28日）接見朝鮮勞動黨中央書記崔泰福時，提出這項邀請。崔泰福被視作朝鮮最高領導人金正日的密友。

報導稱，胡錦濤表示，兩國應為維護地區和平穩定共同努力。

朝10月導彈試射失敗

另外，有報導指，朝鮮10月較早前進行的短程導彈試射徹底失敗。5枚導彈中，4枚沒有命中目標，還有一枚甚至無法成功發射。

自由亞洲電台週四（10月29日）引述消息人士指，朝鮮10月12日在東岸外海，用發射器發射5枚射程120公里的KN-02型導彈。其中2枚在發射後立刻墜落海面，另外2枚沒有命中目標，最後一枚甚至無法發射。

韓國軍方及國家情報單位沒有置評。

美國‧阿諾信中藏粗話

（美國）加州州長阿諾舒華辛力加早前去信民主黨州議員安米亞諾，否決他提出的法案。但信中暗藏密碼，只要把左邊每行第一個字母打直讀，竟然是粗口“I Fxxx You”。

安米亞諾提出法案，要求將三藩巿一個舊船塢活化為新社區。法案獲州議會通過，但阿諾否決之餘，按慣例去信解釋原因。本來信件平平無奇，但若將八行內容左邊第一個字母串起來，卻是粗口。

阿諾的發言人麥克利爾否認阿諾暗中用粗言穢語辱罵議員，指純屬巧合。但許多人相信阿諾今次趁機報復，因26個字母中，這8個字母串在一起的機會僅80億分之一。

印度‧油庫爆炸5死6人困火海

（印度）西部一個大型油庫發生爆炸引致大火，造成至少5死150傷，6人被困火場，死傷人數可能上升。

現場位於西部拉賈斯坦邦首府齋浦爾附近的Sitapura工業區。工業區內的油庫發生大爆炸，火災蔓延到半徑3公里以內的幾家工廠。15公里外也可見到濃煙。

事發於當地時間週四（10月29日）晚7時半左右，現場附近多家民宅玻璃被震碎，政府已經下令附近居民撤離。

美國‧傳宗接代無需性伴侶‧人工精卵5年成真

（美國‧華盛頓）人類生育醫學取得驚人突破，以後男男女女，生兒育女，只需靠自己！

美國科學家已成功培育出人工精子和卵子的雛形，意味著男人女人傳宗接代的天職，可由實驗室代替！

美國史丹福大學科學家佩拉領導的研究小組，在新一期《自然》科學雜誌，發表了這項足以改變生命之源的研究成果。

科學家利用形成只有數天的早期胚胎進行實驗，抽取出幹細胞，混合不同的化學物質和維他命，成功誘使一些細胞發展成為配子細胞，即類似精子或卵子等成熟的生殖細胞。

利用這種方式製造出來的精子，有頭部和短短的尾巴，相信有能力令卵子成孕；至於利用這種方法製造出來的卵子，則仍然處於極早期階段，但比其他同類研究，向前邁進了一大步。

佩拉預計，人工精子和卵子技術5年後便夠成熟，可正式投入應用。

儘管新技術可幫助不育夫婦及同性戀者透過人工精卵生育下一代，但也引起道德爭議，或會破壞家庭倫理，因為人類將來可以透過人工方式培育“人工寶寶”，即使沒有性伴侶，也可以有下一代，婚姻和父母的角色將會變得可有可無。

皮膚細胞培育精子卵子

科學家下一步是希望用成人的皮膚細胞，“倒撥”其生理時鐘，將之“還原”為胚胎幹細胞，再培育成精子和卵子。

在新技術下，理論上經由皮膚細胞便可孕育出精子和卵子，即男性用皮膚細胞就可造出卵子，女性則可造出精子，男人或女人都可單性繁殖下一代，但男性仍要靠代母懷胎。

不過，由於女性細胞沒有男性的Y染色體，科學家對是否能用來製造“女性精子”存疑。

女性染色體是XX，男性是XY。由於男性有X染色體，用男性幹細胞製造卵子不難；但女性染色體只有X沒有Y，所以用女性皮膚製造精子，複雜困難得多。

加拿大‧詐騙曼谷銀行3億‧流亡金融家被引渡回泰

（加拿大‧溫哥華）詐騙泰國曼谷商業銀行巨額款項的印度裔金融家拉克什，在加拿大流亡多年後，於週四（10月29日）被遣送到泰國。

泰國官員指有關詐騙案是導致1990年代亞洲金融危機的因素之一。

拉克什被控挪用曼谷商業銀行8800萬美元（約馬幣3億令吉）鉅款，為避免被引渡，他與加拿大移民部打了13年的官司。而曼谷商業銀行已於1995年倒閉。

加拿大司法部女發言人肯汀指出，他們已把拉克什移交給泰國當局，目前他正被押送到泰國。據律師指出，拉克什將從溫哥華先抵達北京，再轉機到曼谷，預料他將在今日（週五，10月30日）晚抵達。

加拿大最高法院週四駁回審理拉克什案件的要求，啟動了遣送拉克什的程序。

3月時中風須坐輪椅

拉克什在今年3月中風後不良於行，必須依靠輪椅移動。在打官員期間的軟禁期，他大多數時間是在位於溫哥華的豪宅中渡過。

泰國檢察長辦公室一名發言人表示，拉克什面對20項控狀。

拉克什曾在曼谷商業銀行擔任顧問，他在1996年被控侵吞這間銀行公款，而遭泰國警方發出逮捕令。拉克什隨後逃離到加拿大，但當年稍後被逮捕。

荷蘭‧患怪病後獨沽一味‧婦女吃下78隻匙叉

（荷蘭‧鹿特丹）日本卡通片《IQ博士》裡的小吉愛吃螺絲，但強中自有強中手，荷蘭一名婦女不吃螺絲，獨沽一味吃餐具，直到胃痛求醫，醫生一看X光片嚇傻了眼，因為因為她肚里有78隻匙叉！

荷蘭醫學雜誌《精神病在線雜誌》近日呼吁讀者提供怪病紀錄，首次公開這宗30年前發生的個案。

這張X光照是在30年前拍下的，但依然震撼醫學界。醫生在達爾曼胃中發現一大團白影，起初以為是一條大墨魚，觸鬚特別多，但仔細檢查下，赫然發現是一大堆餐具，那些“觸鬚”其實是糾纏在一起的叉叉匙匙，足足有78隻之多。（圖：互聯網）

患者是52歲秘書達爾曼，30年前，年僅22歲的她某天因胃痛難忍，到鹿特丹一家醫院檢查，

診斷結果令人瞠目結舌：她的胃裡竟然有78隻銀製匙子和叉子。

醫生立即為她實施了手術，將胃中的匙叉一隻接一隻取出來。在場的醫生和護士十分不解，她為甚麼會吞餐具。

從不吃刀

原來，達爾曼患上奇怪的“邊緣型人格失調症”，每次坐到餐桌前，看見滿桌美味食物，她會口水直流，但她覺得美味的不是食物，而是擺在兩旁的叉和匙。開餐了，她就會情不自禁地拿起叉和匙一個勁兒地往嘴裡塞，“骨碌”一聲吞下。

奇怪的是，達爾曼從不吃刀，連自己也無法解釋。

手術後，達爾曼接受了針對邊緣性人格障礙的治療，現已完全康復，並恢復了正常人的飲食習慣。

新加坡‧每小時500顆‧11月18有流星雨

（新加坡）今年11月18日清晨5時，數以萬計的獅子座流星雨將劃過新加坡天空。

新加坡天文學會會長林志雲受訪時說，這次的獅子座流星雨估計可達每小時500顆，算是“半個暴風雨”。一般來說，每小時可見1000顆流星時，稱為“暴風雨”。

“這次獅子座流星雨出現的時候，正逢沒有月光，因此公眾能看到不受月光影響的流星雨。”

他表示，曾於2001年在泰國與其他20名天文學會成員，見證過獅子座流星暴風雨。

“那是我所見過最壯觀的天文景觀之一。”

針對11月18日的流星雨，他說，雖然清晨5時是被認為是最適合看流星雨的時間，但由於是預測的時間，因此流星雨很可能從11月17日午夜就開始，並隨著破曉而加劇。

如果公眾想見證這美麗的一刻，林志雲建議在一個黑暗，並能不受阻擋地看到東方的地方觀看。

中國‧半空起火逾百乘客驚魂‧貴州客機驚險降落

（中國‧貴州）中國一架載有逾百乘客的客機，從江西南昌飛往貴州貴陽途中機頭突然起火，冒煙驚險飛行個多小時後平安降落。

據《貴陽晚報》報導，由於起火位置於機頭，機上的逾百乘客，於事發時毫不知情。

上演九霄驚魂的客機是於週三（10月28日）上午9時40分於南昌起飛，飛至湖南長沙上空時，機師驚見擋風玻璃前有煙霧飄過，機組人員檢查後發現，機頭左邊著火冒煙，即動用滅火器救火。

機師向貴州民航局求救，在民航局專家指導下展開搶救工作。

報導指，雖然其後飛機火勢已受控制，但仍然冒煙，隨時有墜機可能，情勢危急。機組人員為免造成恐慌，並未向乘客通報。

客機在飛行近1小時後，進入貴州上空，為控制火勢，機師降低飛行高度，由9300公尺降至3600公尺，一度準備逼降就近的銅仁機場。

但民航局地面控制中心無法正常指揮客機，為安全起見，客機唯有放棄臨時降落銅仁，直飛貴陽。

冒煙客機在飛行半小時後進入貴陽，至11時06分，拖著一道黑煙的客機，終於安全降落貴陽機場，機上所有乘客無恙。

經當局初步調查，飛機起火是由於機內風擋設備電線短路引致，但確實原因仍有待進一步調查。

Death stats for US

Check this link ..... http://bit.ly/a2w6V

Cluster Bomb Trade Funded by World's Biggest Banks

HSBC earned more than £650m in fees from work for Textron, US manufacturer of cluster weapons

The deadly trade in cluster bombs is funded by the world's biggest banks who have loaned or arranged finance worth $20bn (£12.5bn) to firms producing the controversial weapons, despite growing international efforts to ban them.

HSBC, led by ordained Anglican priest Stephen Green, has profited more than any other institution from companies that manufacture cluster bombs. The British bank, based at Canary Wharf, has earned a total of £657.3m in fees arranging bonds and share offerings for Textron, which makes cluster munitions described by the US company as "leaving a clean battlefield".

Campaigners maintain the deadly weapons can explode years after combat, killing or maiming innocent people.

HSBC will face protests outside its London headquarters today. Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, JP Morgan and UK-based Barclays Bank are also named among the worst banks in a detailed 126-page report by Dutch and Belgian campaign groups IKV Pax Christi and Netwerk Vlaanderen.

Goldman Sachs, the US bank which made £3.19bn proft in just three months, earned $588.82m for bank services and lent $250m to Alliant Techsystems and Textron.

Of the banks named, only Barclays was prepared to comment. It said: "Barclays group provides financial services to the defence sector within a specific policy framework. It is our policy not to finance trade in nuclear, chemical, biological or other weapons of mass destruction.

"Our policy also explicitly prohibits financing trade in landmines, cluster bombs or any equipment designed to be used as an instrument of torture." A spokeswoman added that Barclays had supplied money to Textron, which makes cluster bombs, but that the US firm was a broad-based weapons manufacturer.

Last December 90 countries, including the UK, committed themselves to banning cluster bombs by next year. But the US was not one of them. So far 23 countries have ratified the convention. The UK has yet to do so, but the Foreign Office confirmed that it would form part of the government's legislative programme before the next election.

A Foreign Office spokesman said the tightest export control order had been placed on cluster bombs, which extended to banks supplying money to manufacturers. The government was aware the control order was not working and "is working on it".

Esther Vandenbroucke, of Netwerk Vlaanderen and one of the report's authors, said: "The responsibility to ban cluster munitions is a shared responsibility. It requires courage, and it requires an effort. We are just months away from an international treaty entering into force and it is time for signatory states to the Convention on Cluster Munitions for non-signatory states and for financial institutions to act now."

Last December, the New Zealand government's pension fund sold shares in Lockheed Martin because of its link to the manufacture of cluster bombs. Similar actions have been taken by the Irish and Dutch governments.

Millions of people will be endangered by up to tens of millions of cluster bomblets that have not yet exploded, causing lasting economic and social harm to communities in more than 20 countries for decades to come, campaigners have warned. The vast majority of cluster bomb casualties occur while victims are carrying on their daily lives.

On Monday, a Lebanese 20-year-old man had his leg amputated after a cluster bomb exploded in southern Lebanon Houla village. A security source said he was collecting wood in his border village when the explosion occurred.

The Israeli army made extensisve use of cluster bombs during the war in south Lebanon three years ago. Cluster bombs were most recently used by both the Georgians and the Russians in the dispute over South Ossetia. They were also used in the Iraq and Afghanistan invasions.

by Nick Mathiason

Shot Fired Into Home of Lou Dobbs of CNN!

Check this link ...... http://bit.ly/1wWZv0

Merck Scientist Admits Cancer & AIDS Came From Vaccines

Check this link ....... http://bit.ly/2juOEM

Ron Paul - Sanctions on Iran are an Act of War!

Check this link ..... http://bit.ly/45BDlb

Cash for Clunkers: Good for dealers, automakers, bad for taxpayers

Car sales and research site Edmunds.com estimated today that each new car sold under the Cash for Clunkers government subsidy program cost the American taxpayers more than $24,000.

Edmunds estimated that 82 percent of vehicle sales during the program would have happened anyway (then or at some point in the near future), so the program only enticed about 18 percent of the buyers who participated in the program, which moved 690,000 new vehicles off the lots of very relieved dealers.

This means that the much-touted government program only got 125,000 new vehicles on the road than already would have gotten there without a government subsidy.

Edmunds' math goes like this: 690,000 vehicles sold with the $4,500 subsidy during the program divided by 125,000 new vehicles equals more than $24,000 for each new vehicle, or the amount ponied up by the American taxpayer.

So, if you bought a new vehicle during the program, go to each of your neighbors and thank them. Even though they didn't know they were helping you.

'Hummer Rabbi' who tortured kids expelling demons extradited

Check this link ........ http://bit.ly/12NXR9

China TV centre 'safe' after fire

A landmark building in central Beijing will not have to be pulled down following a fire earlier this year, according to the architect.

The hotel, part of the new headquarters for China's national broadcaster, CCTV, was severely damaged in a blaze started by fireworks.

Rumours suggested the fire could have undermined the whole 5bn yuan ($730m, £450m) broadcast centre project.

But the man in charge of the scheme said the luxury hotel can be repaired.

Unapproved fireworks

The project is being built by the Office for Metropolitan Architecture, based in the Netherlands, for China Central Television (CCTV).

It consists of two main buildings, one housing the hotel, the other will become CCTV's new production and broadcast centre.

The fireworks party at CCTV quickly got out of control

"The preliminary findings are that the building can be repaired," said architect Ole Scheeren, the building project's leader.

"It's still intact and safe. There will mainly be a repair effort, but not a complete rebuilding."

He also said rumours that the hotel shared the same foundations as the broadcast centre were false.

"I think it's very important to dispel this kind of story that the two buildings are connected and one depends on the other. That's absolutely not true," he said.

The 241-room hotel, which was due to be run by the Mandarin Oriental group, was set alight by an unapproved fireworks display in February.

CCTV had hired a company to set off hundreds of top -grade fireworks outside the hotel to mark the end of the Chinese New Year.

Shows using these types of fireworks are banned in Beijing without police approval. CCTV did not get approval, and even ignored official warnings to cancel the show.

The fire lit up the night sky over Beijing and one firefighter died trying to put it out.

Twelve people, including the former head of CCTV's construction office, were arrested in connection with the fire.

The project was due to be completed by 2010.

By Michael Bristow
BBC News, Beijing

Passport with 9/11 suspect's name found in Pakistan

Sherwangei, Pakistan (CNN) -- A passport bearing the name of Said Bahaji, a suspect linked to the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington, has been found in a town captured by the Pakistani military.

The passport was found in South Waziristan, where the Pakistani military has been battling to wrest territory from the Taliban in Pakistan. It contained a Pakistani visa issued in August 2001 showing that the bearer entered Pakistan on September 4, 2001, and appeared unusually new for a document eight years old.

CNN has not independently confirmed its authenticity.

Bahaji is suspected of having fled Germany for Pakistan on September 3, 2001, after receiving a tip that the attacks were imminent.

The photo in the passport resembles images of Bahaji posted on Interpol's Web site. It shows a clean-cut man wearing a red sweater.

Bahaji, 34, is alleged to have been a member of the Hamburg, Germany-based cell that provided money to the hijackers who carried out the September 11 attacks, which killed about 3,000 people.

He is wanted in Germany and Spain on terrorism charges, according to Interpol.

A U.S. counterterrorism official said only that Bahaji is a senior propagandist for al Qaeda who had ties to some of the September 11 hijackers and is very much of interest to the United States.

He lived with one of the leaders of the hijackers, Mohammed Atta, in Germany before the attacks, according to the September 11 report. He is a German citizen of Moroccan descent.

CNN's Reza Sayah saw the passport and another one from Spain along with other documents during a trip to South Waziristan for journalists run by the Pakistani military. It was the first time the army had taken journalists to the region since the offensive against the Taliban began on October 17th, he said.

The army showed journalists a pile of documents that they said they had seized.

Among the papers was the German passport in Bahaji's name, which included his signature and a photo of him in a red shirt.

Pakistani military spokesman Gen. Athar Abbas was not aware of the passport until reporters asked him about it.

300 days

Palestinian equal rights joins the progressive agenda on ‘The Daily Show’

Exclusive – Anna Baltzer & Mustafa Barghouti Extended Interview Pt. 1

www.thedailyshow.com

Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c
Exclusive – Anna Baltzer & Mustafa Barghouti Extended Interview Pt. 2
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

As I entered the television studio, Aerosmith was blaring over speakers and the familiar set of The Daily Show stood empty. As can be expected, it looked much smaller in person, but everyone was excited regardless. A mixture of tourists, students and others filed in around an hour before shooting was to start. I noticed there were a few keffiyeh’s wrapped around some shoulders, a couple "Shalom" pins, and one cowboy hat covered in a huge Code Pink anti-war sticker. This was because of tonight’s guests – Dr. Mustafa Barghouti and Anna Baltzer. We were there to watch the struggle for Palestinian equal rights go prime time.

Throughout the day I had been hearing through the grapevine that The Daily Show was having second thoughts about doing the show as they had been getting pressure to cancel it. I sat towards the front, all the way to the left of the stage. In front of me was a pretty glamourous trio of three young people. The man directly in front of me wore his hair slicked back and a tailored black suit, while the woman he came in with was wrapped in a faux fur jacket that they promised wouldn’t bite. The third guy in their party had a shaved head and I noticed his jeans had a patch with an Israeli flag on it. In the pre-show tension it stood out, but it was the kind of thing you see everyday.

Slowly the studio filled up, and a warm up comedian came out to get the crowd going. Soon thereafter, Jon Stewart came out himself to take some pre-show questions. He seems to be as naturally funny as he appears on the show, and he answered questions about whether he had ever done the show stoned (no answer), or if Comedy Central ever exerts editorial control over the show (answer: Have you seen the things they show on this network?). Then the last question: "Jon, what do you think about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict?" He kind of rolled his eyes, as if to say here we go, and said that this show had been different than shows in the past because they usually have to wait until after the show to get calls complaining, but this time the calls started beforehand. He said whenever he gets calls about Israel/Palestine, from either side, he treats them like calls from his grandmother (and he mimicked holding the phone away from his ear as he went about his business). The crowd laughed. It was time to start the show.

The first two segments of the show were classic Daily Show. The first dealt with the health care debate and how the single payer option refuses to die. The crowd went wild as Stewart eviscerated Fox’s slanted coverage, and the Democrats mealy response to the progressive groundswell. The bit ended with an extended joke at Joe Lieberman’s expense where the crowd booed his name and the howled at Stewart’s droopy dog impersonation. The second segment featured contributor John Hodgeman (of mac/pc commercial fame) doing a parody of a corporate idea man who is looking to rehabilitate the country’s CEO’s as their popularity continues to plummet during the recession. Pitchforks were out as corporations continue to avoid accountability and get one over on taxpayers through government bailouts. All in all, both were a near perfect reflection of a progressive base in the US frustrated by Obama and raring for a fight.

Finally, it was time for the Barghouti/Baltzer interview. Until I saw them walking on stage I expected that it would be canceled and we’d get some last minute fill in instead, but there they were. The interview ran nearly 15 minutes and it was clear it would have to be edited down to air it. The full interview is posted above, and it is well worth watching the whole thing. Right off the bat it was clear this would be a historic moment:

Baltzer: "We’re part of a large movement of Palestinian and Jews working together. This is not new or novel."

Barghouti: "Jewish Americans have been in the avant garde struggling for justice, in this country at least, and for democracy and in this particular case it is just normal that people like Anna are with us because we are struggling for liberty, we’re struggling for freedom, we’re struggling for justice."

Then, as Dr. Barghouti said that Palestinians have been subjected to a system of segregation, the man with slicked back hair sitting directly in front of me pulled a Joe Wilson and yelled "Liar!" (it’s at 1:49 of the first part of the interview).

Dr. Barghouti was unfazed and explained his reason for working with Anna – "It’s just natural to have an alliance of people who believe in the same values." He returned to this theme of values several times and applause grew every time. He finally made it clear what the Palestinians are calling for – equal rights.

Over the next few minutes he mentioned the names of leaders in whose footsteps he’s following – Martin Luther King Jr, Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. With each passing mention the trio in front of me squirmed in their seats, and most of the rest of the audience grew more excited.

I think Stewart did a reasonable job with the interview. Although the version that ran on air made it look like he dominated the conversation, in fact he gave the speakers plenty of time to make their points. When he gave them the obligatory question on Israel’s security, Baltzer hit it out of the park:

There is nothing defensive about denying Palestinians water. There is nothing defensive about preventing people from having materials to build their homes. So many of the institutions that I understood to be defensive cannot be justified by security anymore. Building a wall between Palestinians and Palestinians?

This was too much for "Slick" in front of me to take, and he burst out again. You can hear him in the background at 7:47 of the first clip. He was escorted from the studio at 8:11 where he was belittled by Stewart ("Bye sir, you can, uh, certainly visit our sedar"). The crowd laughed and cheered as he was led away, and his faux fur clad friend was truly perplexed both by what Baltzer was saying ("Why is she saying that? What is she saying?"), as well as the crowd’s overwhelming support for the speakers.

I don’t want to recount the whole interview, you can watch it. I have to say, I was blown away. Although I was laughing out loud for the first two segments, I was on the verge of tears throughout the interview. Here was a Palestinian leader demanding equal rights and an anti-Zionist Jew calling for boycott, divestment and sanctions to pressure Israel towards peace on The Daily Show and they were being applauded, while the traditional pro-Israel hasbara was being shown the door.

Palestinian equal rights was placed directly next to health care and the economy on The Daily Show’s progressive agenda and the audience was totally along for the ride. I could hardly believe my eyes, and yet it made perfect sense at the same time. Who can argue that it is necessary to deny people water? Who can argue against equal rights? The answer is increasingly no one, and if The Daily Show’s audience is any indication, the next generation will be leading this fight in a much different direction.