krome2ez

I guess watching Mary Poppins would be traumatic and outta the question then.

Obama Aide Lipton Chosen by Lagarde to Be Top IMF Deputy July 12, 2011, 7:45 PM EDT July 12 (Bloomberg) -- Christine Lagarde chose David Lipton, an adviser to President Barack Obama and a former U.S. Treasury Department official in the Clinton administration, to be her top deputy at the International Monetary Fund. A week after taking over as the IMF’s managing director, Lagarde also created a fourth deputy managing director position for China’s Zhu Min, a move that will raise that nation’s status at the institution. Zhu, a special adviser to the fund’s chief, will take up his post July 26. Lipton also will start then as a special adviser and assume the deputy’s job on Sept. 1. Lipton combines “international expertise, public sector policy making and private sector experience and a proven track record in economic crisis management,” Lagarde said in an e- mailed statement. Zhu “will play an important role in working with me and the rest of my management team in meeting the challenges facing our global membership in the period ahead, and in strengthening the fund’s understanding of Asia and emerging markets more generally,” she said. The choices reflect the growing influence of China, the world’s second-largest economy, and the U.S.’s traditional lock on the fund’s second-ranking job. Both countries supported Lagarde over Mexican Central Bank Governor Agustin Carstens, who failed last month to get enough support from emerging countries to end a 65-year European monopoly on the IMF’s top job. ‘Important Acknowledgement’ The ascension of a Chinese official to a top IMF management position for the first time “is an important acknowledgement of China’s primary role within the” membership, said Domenico Lombardi, a former IMF board official and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington. It may “enhance the ability of the IMF to act as a facilitator between the U.S. and China.” The new position follows the appointment of Justin Lin as World Bank chief economist in February 2008. Lipton, who worked at the IMF for eight years after receiving a Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University, held various positions at Treasury from 1993 through 1998, including undersecretary for international affairs at the time of the Asian crisis. Bonus Pay Before the White House job, Lipton was head of global country risk management at Citigroup Inc., taking home a $1,275,000 bonus in 2008 and a $762,000 bonus in 2009, according to White House financial disclosure reports. He will replace John Lipsky, whose term ends in August. Lipsky stepped in as acting managing director after the arrest and resignation of former IMF chief Dominique Strauss- Kahn, who has pleaded not guilty to sexual assault charges in New York City. Lipsky represented the IMF yesterday as finance ministers from the euro region discussed a new strategy to contain the debt crisis. At the White House, Lipton, 57, served as special assistant to Obama and at the National Economic Council and the National Security Council, helping handle such matters as the sovereign debt crisis in Europe and emerging economies. “He will bring a very heavy political clout that will make the institution closer to the senior political leadership of the world,” Brookings’ Lombardi said. Zhu, 58, who was a deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China, joined the IMF in May 2010. He previously was an executive vice president at Bank of China Ltd. --Editors: Jim Rubin, Don Frederick To contact the reporters on this story: Sandrine Rastello in Washington at srastello@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Christopher Wellisz at cwellisz@bloomberg.net http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-07-12/obama-aide-lipton-chosen-by-lagarde-to-be-top-imf-deputy.html

Remains of man missing for 27 years discovered in bank chimney The remains of a man who has been missing for 27 years have been discovered lodged in the chimney of a bank in Louisiana. Joseph Schexnider who went missing in 1984 was found twenty seven years later in the chimney of the Abbeville National Bank in Abbeville, Louisiana Photo: EPA By Jon Swaine, New York 11:41PM BST 27 Jul 2011 Joseph Schexnider, who was 22, disappeared from the town of Abbeville in January 1984, after missing a court hearing over charges of possessing a stolen vehicle. It is thought his family did not report him missing because police officers had arrived at their home searching for him following the missed court appearance. Mr Schexnider’s mother said at the time that he had been known to leave abruptly – including once to work on a circus – and was this time thought to be on a “rendezvous”. However, human remains were discovered with a pair of gloves, a cigarette lighter, a watch and a wallet in a chimney during renovations carried out to Abbeville National Bank in May. This week DNA tests by a Louisiana State University laboratory confirmed that the remains in the chimney, which was sealed off later in the 1980s, were those of Mr Schexnider. It has been speculated that Mr Schexnider died of dehydration or starvation. However, Ms Manheim told ABC News, “Nobody will ever know” precisely how he died. He had no bag with him so is not suspected of trying to rob the bank, police have said. Lt. David Hardy, a local detective, said: “Hopefully this will give the family some closure. There's no signs of foul play in this investigation, so as of now it's going to be a closed case.” “His mother is upset that she lost a son, of course, but she is at ease that she now knows where her son is”. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/8667026/Remains-of-man-missing-for-27-years-discovered-in-bank-chimney.html

Kuwaiti government insists to build Mubarak Port "till the end" 7/27/2011 12:02 PM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: The Kuwaiti government has announced on Wednesday its intention to build the Mubarak Port “till the end,” whilst Kuwaiti diplomatic sources said that the port’s project had been settled politically and won’t be discussed with the Iraqi side in the next meeting of the High Kuwaiti-Iraqi Committee, scheduled to convene in Baghdad after the month of Ramadan, according to the Kuwaiti al-Siyasa newspaper. Al-Siyasa, in its Wednesday issue, has quoted the Official Spokesman for the Kuwaiti government and the State Minister for the Kuwaiti Council of Ministers, Ali Al-Rashid, as saying that “the Kuwaiti government is marching forward, without stop, to build the Mubarak Port’s project ‘till the end,’ denying that explosions have taken place close to the Port 10 days ago. On the other hand, the Kuwaiti newspaper quoted high-level Kuwaiti diplomatic sources in the Foreign Ministry as saying that “the Grand Mubarak Port has been settled politically and won’t be discussed by the Iraqi side, during the next meeting of the High Kuwaiti-Iraqi Committee, scheduled to be held in Baghdad after the month of Ramadan.” It pointed out that “the schedule of the Committee’s works shall include dossiers that were not settled till now, including the maintenance of the border signs, the restoration of the remains of the prisoners-of-war (POWs) and the issue of the compensations.” The same sources pointed out that “the Iraqi delegation that shall visit Kuwait soon, according to an announcement by Iraq’s Foreign Minister, Hoshiar Zibary, shall discuss some technical matters, related to the Port, without discussing Kuwait’s right in building a port on its territories and within its territorial waters.” As regards to the UN Security Council’s Resolution 833, the said sources stressed that the “Resolution confirms cooperation between Kuwait and Iraq, regarding the safe passage through Khor-Abdullah and the sea navigation freedom, on basis of which the Iraqi Delegation for Cooperation & Coordination would be received, and not to discuss Kuwait’s constant right in the construction of the Port, works for which are continuing well.” Kuwait had announced on April 6th last the beginning of works to construct the Mubarak Port after one year of Iraq’s announcement of its intention to build its Grand Faw Port, whilst the Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs and the Development Minister, Ahmed al-Fahad, had stated that the project, construction of which was agreed upon with the South-Korean Hondai Company, would be “friendly to environment.” The Kuwaiti Ministry also confirmed that the project “includes major goals to achieve hopes and ambitions of the Kuwaiti people, who have always wished to build a port in the said strategic and active location, in order to make Kuwait a financial and trade center on both Regional and International levels.” Noteworthy is that Iraq’s Transport Ministry had laid down the foundation stone for the Grand Faw Port’s project, designs of which point out to its compromise of a containers terminal stretching to 39 km and a pavement extending to 2,000 km, as well as a square container with an area of more than one million square meters, along with a field of multi-purpose area of 600,000 square meters, with a capacity of 99 million tons annually. The Ministry had estimated the total cost for the construction of the said Port would reach 4 billions ( and 400 million Euros, with the hope that the connection of the port, through the railways would link the Gulf area through the ports of Iraq and the ports of turkey in northern Europe. http://en.aswataliraq.info/Default1.aspx?page=article_page&id=143977&l=1

Secret accord exists between Kurdistan Coalition and U.S. to keep part of latter’s troops in Kirkuk, MP charges 7/28/2011 1:33 PM BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: A Legislature from Al-Ahrar Bloc, belonging to the Shiite Al-Sadr Trend, has said on Thursday that a secret agreement existed between the Kurdistan Region and the American side to keep part of the U.S. forces in north Iraq’s Kirkuk Province. “There is a secret agreement between the American side and the government of Kurdistan Region on possibility to keep American troops in Kirkuk, being an area of conflict,” Legislature Ali al-Tamimy stated on Thursday, charging that “Kurdistan Region strives to capture the city of Kirkuk, after splitting it from Iraq.” The oil-rich city of Kirkuk, 255 km to the northeast of Baghdad, is among the areas in conflict between the Federal Government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Region. Noteworthy is that the U.S. combat troops had withdrawn from Iraq at the end of August last, according to the Strategic Agreement, signed between Baghdad and Washington at end of 2008, whilst the remaining U.S. non-combat troops, estimated at 50,000, would withdraw by the end of December this year. http://en.aswataliraq.info/Default1.aspx?page=article_page&id=144001&l=1

Kuwait "astonished" with Iraqi demand to cease Mobarak Terminal 7/27/2011 9:44 PM BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: Kuwaiti government affirmed its continuation in the implementation of Mobarak terminal and any statement will "not terrorize" it, pointing out its "astonishment of Iraqi demand to stop the work in the terminal." Kuwaiti News Agency reported the government speaker and minister of state of cabinet affairs Ali Al-Rashid that Kuwait will continue its operations in the terminal, and affirmed that Kuwait "will not accept any breach to its sovereignty." "What is going on in Mohaarak terminal is within Kuwaiti sovereignty and will not accept any interference in this matter, because the site of the terminal does not obstruct Iraqi maritime routes." Iraqi government speaker Ali Al-Dabbagh demanded Wednesday that the Kuwaiti side should stop the work in the terminal till checking that Iraqi interests will not be affected in order to keep the friendly relations between the two countries. Dabbagh statement , copy received by Aswat al-iraq, said that "the Iraqi government expresses its grave concern for building Mobarak terminal, due to the lack of information and according to international law and US Security Council's resolutions. He added that the Iraqi government demands Kuwait to stop the work in the terminal till to be sure that Iraqi maritime rights are not affected. Commenting on this demand, the Kuwaiti government expressed its "astonishment," stating that it does not stand on legal or logical connotation, because the port is built on Kuwaiti soil. The news agency reported the Iraqi delegation sent to Kuwait last May, and Kuwaiti government's readiness to receive another technical delegation to be informed on the technical aspects that guarantees the flow and safety of maritime movement in Khor Abdullah. Last April, Kuwait announced the start of work in the terminal, after one year of Iraqi declaration to build the Greater Fao Port. Fao Port designs contained a pier for containers with the length of 39 km, and another one with 2000 meters length, in addition to an open space of more than one million square meters. The total cost of Fao Port is expected to reach 4.4 billion Euros, which shall be connected with a railway line to Turkey and north Europe http://en.aswataliraq.info/Default1.aspx?page=article_page&id=143993&l=1

Jul 27 2011 Commander of the Navy: We Have Received the Oil Port of Basra, U.S. Forces Formally Basra, U.S. forces handed over responsibility of the oil port of Basra to Iraqi forces, in preparation for a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq. The commander of Naval Forces, Major General Ali Hussein, a reporter for the Agency (news) on Tuesday: We received today the responsibility of oil port of Basra by the U.S. forces. Hussein added: that U.S. forces that existed in the port she left and remained a small force, a quarter of the force that was deployed and focused its mission to train Iraqi forces to be withdrawn are also gradually. The move comes nearly five months of the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country under an agreement signed between Iraq and the United States. http://iraqdailytimes.com/commander-of-the-navy-we-have-received-the-oil-port-of-basra-u-s-forces-formally/

Jul 28 2011 Iraq: The Crude Oil Market Is Witnessing a Remarkable Balance Erbil, July (Rn) – The Iraqi Oil Minister expressed his belief that oil markets see a balance, denying the existence of any flaws or deficiencies in the production of crude oil. The news agency quoted (Mehr), the Iranian semi-official Iraqi Oil Minister Abdul-Karim and coffee as saying in the Gallery visit Iran on Monday that “crude oil prices at this time is acceptable, and Lawless, there is no shortage in oil production,” noting that “there is a balance in oil markets, crude “. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced that the price per barrel of oil of 113.66 U.S. dollars, and this whole oil prices in the 12 member countries of the Organization. Saudi Arabia has tried to reduce the price of oil to 70 or 80 dollars per barrel, and that is called several times to raise oil production to maintain supply the global market, and production reached the kingdom in recent months to 9.5 million barrels a day, the percentage of exports it to 11 percent of the global production. Thus, the production of the “OPEC” to the highest level in more than 25 years. According to the report of the (OPEC) has increased the demand for oil in the second half of this year to 30.66 million barrels per day, which the organization must increase exports to 1.7 million barrels, in order to achieve balance in the global oil market between supply and demand. http://iraqdailytimes.com/iraq-the-crude-oil-market-is-witnessing-a-remarkable-balance/

Jul 27 2011 Iraq to See Explosion in Income ~ Iraqis’ Living Standards Are Expected to More Than Double in Less Than Four Years Iraqis’ per capita income to shoot to $9000 in 2014 Per capita income in Iraq will surge to $9000 from the current $4000 in 2014, the Central Bank says. The new per capita income forecast means that Iraqis’ living standards are expected to more than double in less than four years. The promising economic prediction for the war-torn country is a rare good piece of news. “The per capita income will more than double by the end of the investment plan in 2014” said Mudher Saleh, a Central Bank consultant. Saleh put the country’s growth rate at a little more than 9 per cent and said his figure was based “on the aggregate growth forecast for 2014-2014.” If Iraq achieves the growth rate predicted for the investment plan, the country will see an explosion in income, he said. There will be enough income to finance infrastructure projects in various fields, he said. Saleh said the country’s bloated civil service sector was currently among the most prosperous in the country. He said while average per capita income was $4000, civil servants earned an average of $6000 a year. Oil revenues, he said, would still make the lion’s share of the country’s income. “The importance of oil royalties in financing investment projects is of vital importance,” he said. “Maximizing oil earnings is the philosophy the oil sector is pursuing to provide steady access to resources to finance the national development plant http://iraqdailytimes.com/iraq-to-see-explosion-in-income-iraqis%e2%80%99-living-standards-are-expected-to-more-than-double-in-less-than-four-years/

Foreign Investors Flock to Iraq Jul 27 2011 Baghdad, Iraq David Rosenberg – It was just another day in Iraq on July 15. In the city of Kerbaba, two car bombs killed a total of seven people and wounded 19. An American soldier was killed in Baghdad while in another part of the capital an Iraqi policeman was injured by a sticky bomb placed under a vehicle. More bombs wounded soldiers in Samarra and in Mosul. But July 15 also saw the grand re-opening of Baghdad’s renowned Al-Rasheed Hotel after a $65 million renovation. Britain’s Harlow International undertook the construction work while Holland’s Kempinski Hotel group will manage it. “The rebuilding of infrastructure, including palaces and airports, is evidence of the ability of Iraqis to achieve what they want,” Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Even as Iraq suffers an upsurge of violence – June alone saw 155 civilians killed in attacks, the most since January – foreign investors are flocking to the country. Dunia Frontier Consultants, a Washington, DC-based consulting firm, estimates that foreigners were responsible for $45.6 billion in investments, service contracts and other business in Iraq in the first half of the year. That was double the amount the same time in 2010. Where others see carnage, chaos and corruption, investors see a potentially oil-rich economy whose population of some 30 million is desperate for housing, roads, consumer products and services. “What you have is a country that produces oil, which makes it very attractive for the hydrocarbon industry to invest there. It’s a country with a very large population,” Daniel Broby, chief investment officer at London’s Silk Invest, told The Media Line. “The middle class suffered a lot of problems but they are educated and there is a lot of home ownership, so banking and telecommunications industries are very attractive for foreign investment.” Driven by high energy prices, Iraq’s economy will grow 12.5 percent this year, according to the International Monetary Fund. Iraq’s Oil Ministry said in June alone petroleum brought in $7.17 billion as exports averaged 2.273 million barrels a day at an average price of more than $105 a barrel. With the government’s coffers swelling, Planning Minister Ali Al-Shukri told Reuters on Monday Iraq is looking to raise its 2012 investment budget by 50 percent to as much as 60 trillion Iraqi dinars ($51 billion). Iraq’s oil and gas sector drives the Iraqi economy, but residential real estate is the biggest target for foreign investors. According to the Dunia report, it accounted for a third of all foreign commercial activity last year. Iraq has a shortfall of 1.6 million homes. Transportation infrastructure was next followed by electricity and manufacturing. “A lot of the money going in is going into things as a result of the Iraq’s oil business,” said the editor of Iraq Business News, a portal dedicated to keeping foreigners abreast of business in the country. The site was launched in February 2010 and since then the number of subscribers to its weekly newsletter has jumped to 90,000 from 3,000. “The bulk of the deals announced are in real estate,” he told The Media Line, speaking on condition of anonymity. “So much needs to be done there in terms of infrastructure. The government plans to build 1 million homes financed by oil revenues … Then you’ve got other stuff related to that, shopping malls and so on.” The revival of the Al-Rasheed is only one example of how Iraq is turning into an investment magnet – and how investors have to take special precautions to make sure their business ventures literally don’t blow up in their faces. In Al-Rasheed’s case, the hotel is situated in the Green Zone, an area that once served as the U.S. military’s Baghdad headquarters and is now favored by foreign business people and other visitors because it is cordoned off by concrete walls to protect it against attacks. Business people coming to Iraq have to take unusual measures to ensure their personal safety and that of their property. Businesses that can keep assets out of Iraq usually do, although the government is trying to bring an end to the practice, say investment advisers. One company with a franchise to import vehicles keeps the cars parked in a lot in neighboring Kuwait and delivers them to its Iraqi customers once the price is paid in cash. Except for relatively peaceful Kurdistan, a semiautonomous region in the north, even a single expatriate will travel in a convoy of three or four vehicles. “Security costs are a major deterrent,” T. Keyzom Ngodup, executive director of Ideas sYnergy, an Iraq-based consulting company, told The Media Line. “An organization or project that has maybe 14-20 expats in a quarantined compound may have security costs of about $300,000 per month.” The World Bank says Iraq is one of the world’s worst countries to do business. It ranked Iraq 166th out of 183 economies for “ease of doing business,” an assessment that includes dealing with construction permits, protecting investors, enforcing contracts and registering a property. It ranks 175th out of 178 for corruption. And Iraq’s chronic violence may yet push it off the business cliff. Gen. Lloyd Austin, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, said earlier this month the failure to curb bombings and attacks by militia groups and insurgents in Iraq could spark a flight of foreign investment. The U.S. is now scheduled to remove the last of its forces by the end of the year. “These violent criminal elements if left unchecked will create an environment that forces foreign investors to pull out of the country …. Violence and economic prosperity cannot co-exist,” Austin said. But the opening of the Al-Rasheed is also an example of how for now at least the wheels of business are gradually starting to turn in Iraq. Airlines have begun flying to the country – a prerequisite for hotel development – both by Middle East-based carriers such as Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways as well as those outside the region, such as Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa. As a result, hotel chains such as Rotana, Safir, Best Western, Swiss-Belhotel International and Millennium & Copthorne are coming to Iraq. Global chains have signaled they will be following. Strangely enough, the U.S. has been slow to pick up on the newfound interest in Iraq, even though its forces led the coalition that toppled Saddam Hussein. Last year, it accounted for just 4.7 percent of all foreign commercial activity in Iraq, behind Turkey, Italy, France and South Korea. Ngodup said the U.S. lost its “first-mover advantage” by failing to give enough support to visiting executives. There is no American-Iraqi Chamber of Commerce and other countries provide more consular support. Another deterrent is the country’s fearsome reputation for violence, said the editor of Iraq Business News. Turkey, the No. 1 investor, in Iraq, has focused on relatively tranquil Kurdistan, but it has gradually started to move south into the rest of Iraq, especially as the southern port of Basra has become an investment epicenter. “You have to be comfortable with the risk and in that respect the Turks are comfortable,” said Silk Invest’s Brody. “They are much closer geographically.” http://iraqdailytimes.com/foreign-investors-flock-to-iraq/

China Begins Oil Production in Iraq Amman: China National Petroleum Corp, known as CNPC, yesterday started crude oil production from the Al Ahdab oil field in central Iraq, Iraqi oil officials said. The officials said output is running at a rate of 40,000 barrels per day, and will rise to 60,000 barrels a day within the next few days. By the end of the year, the field, which has reserves of 1 billion barrels, should be producing 120,000 barrels, rising to 160,000 barrels a day by the end of 2012, the officials said. Oil will be sent to a gathering station in Tuba in southern Iraq before being pumped to export terminals. “Crude oil for export from [Al] Ahdab is expected to reach Tuba on August 10,” an official said. In March 2009, CNPC secured the first major oil-development deal with Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussain in 2003 with its $3 billion (Dh11 billion) project to develop the Al Ahdab field, which lies in Wasit governorate, some 160 kilometres south of Baghdad. Under the agreement, CNPC will charge a service fee of $6 for each produced barrel of oil as well as the costs incurred to develop the field. China is a leading player in Iraq’s oil sector. In 2009, CNPC sealed a deal along with Britain’s BP PLC (BP) to ramp up production at Iraq’s biggest oil field, Rumaila, which has estimated reserves of 17.7 billion barrels. In December of that year, a consortium led by CNPC won the right to develop Halfaya oil field in southern Iraq, whose reserves are estimated at 4.09 billion barrels. Also, Chinese companies had secured a deal to upgrade Missan oil fields in southern Iraq http://iraqdailytimes.com/china-begins-oil-production-in-iraq/

NSA Lawyer Questioned Over Cellphone Location Tracking of Americans July 27, 2011 Is the government using cellular data to track Americans as they move around the U.S.? According to the general counsel of the National Security Agency, it may have that authority. Matthew Olsen, who is currently at the NSA and has been nominated to lead the National Counterterrorism Center, discussed the possibility at a confirmation hearing Tuesday morning in the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Although Olsen acknowledged the possibility, he also said “it is a very complicated question” and that the intelligence community is working on a memo that will provide a better answer for the committee. http://patriotupdate.com/10096/nsa-lawyer-questioned-over-cellphone-location-tracking-of-americans

Panhandler robs cupcake store with AIDS infected syringe July 27, 2011 Denver police are searching for a man they say robbed a cupcake store armed with a syringe. The robbery happened at Gigi’s Cupcakes at 550 Grant Street. The thief got away with a small amount of cash. According to clerk Kendra Jackson, the suspect pulled out the syringe and threatened to stick a patron if another clerk didn’t comply with his demands. “He had a syringe that he said was filled with blood that had been infected with AIDS and he said he was going to stick her if he didn’t open up the cash registers,” Jackson said. http://patriotupdate.com/10099/panhandler-robs-cupcake-store-with-syringe-filled-with-infected-blood

Obama Secretly Signals Banks: ‘No Default’ July 27, 2011 While officials from the Obama Administration raised their rhetoric over the weekend about the possibility of a debt default if the debt ceiling isn’t raised, they privately have been telling top executives at major U.S. banks that such an event won’t happen, FOX Business has learned. In a series of phone calls, administration officials have told bankers that the administration will not allow a default to happen even if the debt cap isn’t raised by the August 2 date Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner says the government will run out of money to pay all its bills, including obligations to bond holders. Geithner made the rounds on the Sunday talk shows saying a default is imminent if the debt ceiling isn’t raised, and President Obama issued a similar warning during a Friday press conference after budget negotiations with House Republicans broke down. While the negotiations to craft a budget remain at an impasse, Republicans and Democrats on Monday began crafting their own plans to cut spending that could lead to an agreement to raise the debt ceiling. It’s unclear if a broad agreement can be reached any time soon, but even if a deal is struck, a complicating issue for lawmakers and the administration is the possibility of a downgrade to the US debt rating, which would cut the triple-A rating on the nation’s debt to a lower level. Major ratings firms — namely Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s — have said even if the country raises the debt ceiling and doesn’t default, there’s a strong likelihood that the triple-A bond rating will be cut to double-A unless a budget can be crafted that results in $4 trillion in savings, the result of the massive debt load the country has accumulated in recent years. The nation’s outstanding debt is more than $14 trillion. http://patriotupdate.com/10093/obama-secretly-signals-banks-no-default

Damn, my belly hurts from laughing so much!!

He's refering to the screen name: anothernewbie

Cloward–Piven strategy From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search The Cloward–Piven strategy is a political strategy outlined in 1966 by American sociologists and political activists Richard Cloward (1926-2001) and Frances Fox Piven (b. 1932) that called for overloading the U.S. public welfare system in order to precipitate a crisis that would lead to a replacement of the welfare system with a national system of "a guaranteed annual income and thus an end to poverty". Cloward and Piven were a married couple who were both professors at the Columbia University School of Social Work. The strategy was formulated in a May 1966 article in left-wing[1] magazine The Nation entitled "The Weight of the Poor: A Strategy to End Poverty".[2] The two were critical of the public welfare system, and their strategy called for overloading that system to force a different set of policies to address poverty. They stated that many Americans who were eligible for welfare were not receiving benefits, and that a welfare enrollment drive would strain local budgets, precipitating a crisis at the state and local levels that would be a wake-up call for the federal government, particularly the Democratic Party, thus forcing it to implement a national solution to poverty. Cloward and Piven wrote that “the ultimate objective of this strategy [would be] to wipe out poverty by establishing a guaranteed annual income...”[2] There would also be side consequences of this strategy, according to Cloward and Piven. These would include: easing the plight of the poor in the short-term (through their participation in the welfare system); shoring up support for the national Democratic Party then-splintered by pluralist interests (through its cultivation of poor and minority constituencies by implementing a national solution to poverty); and relieving local governments of the financially and politically onerous burdens of public welfare (through a national solution to poverty). [edit] The strategyCloward and Piven’s article is focused on forcing the Democratic Party, which in 1966 controlled the presidency and both houses of the United States Congress, to take federal action to help the poor. They stated that full enrollment of those eligible for welfare “would produce bureaucratic disruption in welfare agencies and fiscal disruption in local and state governments” that would “deepen existing divisions among elements in the big-city Democratic coalition: the remaining white middle class, the working-class ethnic groups and the growing minority poor. To avoid a further weakening of that historic coalition, a national Democratic administration would be constrained to advance a federal solution to poverty that would override local welfare failures, local class and racial conflicts and local revenue dilemmas.”[3] They wrote: “ The ultimate objective of this strategy—to wipe out poverty by establishing a guaranteed annual income—will be questioned by some. Because the ideal of individual social and economic mobility has deep roots, even activists seem reluctant to call for national programs to eliminate poverty by the outright redistribution of income.[3] ” Michael Reisch and Janice Andrews wrote that Cloward and Piven "proposed to create a crisis in the current welfare system – by exploiting the gap between welfare law and practice – that would ultimately bring about its collapse and replace it with a system of guaranteed annual income. They hoped to accomplish this end by informing the poor of their rights to welfare assistance, encouraging them to apply for benefits and, in effect, overloading an already overburdened bureaucracy."[4]

Easy, I like your new moniker "Certified Guru Pumper lol." Keep up the good work.

Your right on the money on alot of things, but I think your way way off on "green" jobs. The government is going "green" not to save the planet or our economy, but to control the people. To tell them what they can drive, if they can drive, what they will eat and how much they can eat, the thermostat setting in your house etc. They are already doing it with the incandesant light bulb. Tried it with Cap and Trade, but since it didn't go through, they will just "regulate" using the power of agencies like the EPA. If the Free Market developes "green" technology, WITH OUT GOVERNMENT SUBSIDIES, well then awesome. I trust the Free Market far far more than I do the government. The green movement in Spain should set the example of what doesn't work when governement controls the market. 2 jobs lost for every 1 new 'green" job, and a country soon to be bankrupt. Not too good.

[/quote/] sonhischest I honestly dont care if the cross is there or not that wasnt my point. My point was how ridiculous it is to call someone a fool for not believing in the fairy tales from the bible. I dont care what someone believes, but i think your logic of basically playing it safe and believing just in case it is all real probably wouldnt get you very far even if it all were true. Again im not trying to be confrontational either but coming on here and speaking out as a christian then calling someone names for not being one seems hypocrytical to me. Call the Bible "Fairy Tales" and then in the same breath claim "not trying to be Confrontational." BULL CRAP !!!!

US Congresswoman in Iran Says U.S. Gov Responsible for Assassinations, Most Violent on Planet Posted on July 25, 2011 by Conservative Byte US Congresswoman In Iran Says U.S. Government Responsible For Domestic Assassinations, Most Violent On Planet & Lead by Misguided Men At UN Supported Conference on Global Fight Against Terrorism http://conservativebyte.com/2011/07/us-congresswoman-in-iran-says-u-s-gov-responsible-for-assassinations-most-violent-on-planet/

Soros to Quit Hedge Fund and Return Cash to Investors Posted on July 26, 2011 by Conservative Byte Bloomberg is reporting some interesting news regarding George Soros: he’s quitting. The outlet says that the liberal billionaire financier is dissolving the non-family aspect of his hedge fund that put him on the monetary map: [T]he billionaire best known for breaking the Bank of England, is returning money to outside investors in his $25.5 billion firm [is] ending a career as hedge-fund manager that spanned more than four decades. Soros, who turns 81 next month, will hand back the money, less than $1 billion, by the end of the year, according to two people briefed on the matter. His firm will focus on managing assets solely for Soros and his family, according to a letter to investors. Keith Anderson, 51, chief investment officer since February 2008, is leaving, said the letter, signed by Soros’s sons Jonathan and Robert, who are co-deputy chairmen. http://conservativebyte.com/2011/07/soros-to-quit-hedge-fund-and-return-cash-to-investors/

Can a Minor Offense Eliminate Your Right to Bear Arms? Posted on July 26, 2011 by Conservative Byte The Ohio appellate court handed down a critical 2nd Amendment-bending decision over the weekend that may have given us a glimpse of how states will maneuver to infringe upon your right to bear arms. The defendant in the case- Paul Stone- has just been told by the appellate court that he must face felony gun possession charges after Montgomery County court initially dismissed the charges. Stone believed he legally obtained his weapon and violated no statute in its possession or use, and it seems the lower court agreed. So why has the appellate court decided in State vs. Stone that a possible felony occurred? Because he was caught with a small amount of marijuana five years ago, and that now constitutes a legal “disability” when it comes to gun ownership in Ohio. http://conservativebyte.com/2011/07/can-a-minor-offense-eliminate-your-right-to-bear-arms/

Atheists Sue to Stop Display of Cross at World Trade Center Memorial Posted on July 26, 2011 by Conservative Byte A group of atheists is up in arms over the display of a cross at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. The World Trade Center memorial, which is intended to serve as a reminder of the tragic terror attack that occurred nearly 10 years ago, is scheduled to open on the event’s 10th anniversary. When the Twin Towers collapsed on September 11, 2001, two beams perfectly formed the cross, which many view as both symbolic and iconic. It is this object — a steel cross — that is perfect fodder for atheists and non-believers who do not wish to see any religious items included in the memorial. http://conservativebyte.com/2011/07/atheists-sue-to-stop-display-of-cross-at-world-trade-center-memorial/

U.S Funding Taliban? By Kerry Patton Published July 25, 2011 | FoxNews.com Reports have emerged demonstrating U.S. funding the Taliban--the very enemy which our best and brightest have been fighting in Afghanistan since 2001. This should be no surprise to many. In May, Fox News reported similar activities of funding these Pashto insurgents through Pakistan. The article compared and contrasted the Afghan National Police and Afghan insurgent’s pay scales. “The United States has been pumping billions of dollars into Pakistan—a poor country that will do anything to keep foreign aid flowing into its corrupt regime’s hands. One of our biggest concerns should be that once our foreign aid is disseminated abroad, it is extremely difficult to track. In fact, it’s so hard to follow the money that an individual could argue that the United States cannot be 100 percent certain that our own U.S. foreign aid has not wound up assisting in the funding of America’s enemy.” Today, a devastating Senate report details flaws of contracts inside Afghanistan. Contracting in Afghanistan is a very unique business. Money starts from the U.S. Government, an initial contract is agreed to a local Afghan prime contractor, that prime contractor fulfills another solicited proposal to fellow Afghans, and the madness continues. Contracting in Afghanistan is complex. A one million dollar road construction project could inevitably turn out to be only a $75,000 project when the finalized contract is agreed upon. The initial awardee can take up to a 50% cut off the original contract; his sub-contractor could take another 50% leaving only $250,000 dollars for the infrastructure project. Do this two more times and you wind up with a $75,000 contracted project—a process not uncommon in Afghanistan. Very few have the capabilities to monitor $925,000 of lost U.S. tax payer money in Afghanistan. It’s easy to track back who obtained the initial contract but it’s extremely difficult to determine the hands of those whom these types of funds eventually procure— a one million dollar contract is pennies on the dollar in comparison to the magnitude of monetary expenditures for infrastructural nation building taking place in Afghanistan. Afghanistan has been a quantitative war masking the horrors of reality. Numbers mean everything as they demonstrate a false sense of success for those operating in the country. Persons are promoted based off how many insurgents were killed or captured during their tour of duty. Promotions occur when reports demonstrate monetary dollars spent on nation building programs. Our obsession with quantity has backfired considering the little quality which resulted in our quantitative endeavors. Today, our lack of qualitative oversight demonstrates how Afghan insurgents were capable of funding their own initiatives—they use U.S. tax payer dollars. http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/07/25/us-funding-taliban/?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Heritage%2BHotsheet Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/07/25/us-funding-taliban/#ixzz1TFYvC7sw