2011/07/31

"We don't want to become an Islamic society"

Islamophobic parties in Europe have established a tight network, stretching from Italy to Finland. But recently, they have extended their feelers to Israeli conservatives, enjoying a warm reception from members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition. Some in Israel believe that the populists are Europe's future. spiegel

Note: "I am looking for ways to lessen the Islamic influence in the world," Kara told the Israeli daily Maariv in June. "I believe that is the true Nazism in this world. I am the partner of everyone who believes in the existence of this war."

"For decades, politicians in Europe have ignored demographic developments and we are now in a situation where we have to warn that we are experiencing the Islamification of Europe," Strache says. "We don't want to become an Islamic society."
Tea Party takes America to the brink

America has raised its debt ceiling 140 times since the war without controversy. Now compromise has become a dirty word. guardian

Note: "The Tea Party rose out of anger over the scale of federal spending, and in particular in bailing out the banks and the car industry.
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Although much of the blame for the scale of debt rests with George W Bush's wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and his tax cuts for the wealthy, Obama gets the blame too for spending billions trying to stimulate the economy."

2011/07/30

Oriana Fallaci

Oriana Fallaci (29 June 1929 – 15 September 2006) was an Italian journalist, author, and political interviewer. A former partisan during World War II, she had a long and successful journalistic career. Fallaci became famous worldwide for her coverage of war and revolution, and her interviews with many world leaders during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.

After retirement, she returned to the spotlight after writing a series of articles and books critical of Islam that aroused both support as well as controversy and accusations of racism and intolerance. wikipedia

2011/07/27

One Million Dollars Baby

$1,000,000 - Not as big of a pile as you thought, huh?

Still this is 92 years of work for the average human on earth.
The makings of human tragedy in the hell on Earth

An estimated 10 million people in the Horn of Africa are believed to be facing a “humanitarian emergency” as the region grapples with its worst drought in 60 years.

Several seasons of failed rains compounded by spiralling global food prices means the drought will affect more than 12 million people across Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya. Somalia though, is set to be the hardest hit.

The UNHCR warned this week that “one of the world's worst humanitarian crises” is being turned into a “human tragedy of unimaginable proportions”.
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In Somalia and Ethiopia 65% of the population are pastoralists, making their living by raising livestock. The drought has seen scores of animals die of dehydration, cruelly cutting off millions of people from their only source food. If anything, this serves to remind us that the global food system is mired in abject failure. A system that allows 925 million people to go without food daily is flawed by nature.

A system that forces millions of people to leave their homes and walk for days on end to seek sustenance is not working. Emergency aid to East Africa will go a long way to feeding hundreds of thousands in the short-term, but it will not solve the crisis.

People, be they Somali, or North Korean will still go hungry – not because there is not enough food to go around. There is plenty - but there is a spectacular imbalance in the way that food is distributed. We produce far more food than we actually need.
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Al-Shabaab had banned aid agencies in 2009 believing the groups could host spies or promote an un-Islamic way of life.
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According to UNHCR, there are more and more tales of children younger than five dying of hunger and exhaustion during their journey to Dadaab. The children who do make it to the complex are in such feeble conditions when they eventually reach Kenya that they die within 24 hours despite the emergency care and therapeutic feeding they immediately receive. thedailymaverick

2011/07/26

Sunday July 24, 2011

The mass detentions campaign launch by Assad officials continues with dozens of arrests reported all over the country … Military and security forces lay siege to several Damascene suburbs, including Al-Qadam, Qaboun, Douma and Barzeh … Assad sacks the Governors of Deir Ezzor and Quneitra … Syrian Revolution Digest

2011/07/22

Lucian Freud

Born in Berlin, Freud was the son of an Austrian Jewish father, Ernst Ludwig Freud, an architect, and a German Jewish mother, Lucie née Brasch. He was a grandson of Sigmund Freud, elder brother of the late broadcaster, writer and politician Clement Freud (thus uncle of Emma and Matthew Freud) and of Stephan Gabriel Freud. He moved with his family to St John's Wood, London in 1933 to escape the rise of Nazism. He became a British citizen in 1939,having attended Dartington Hall School in Totnes, Devon, and later Bryanston School. wikipedia
Norway Shocked by Twin Attacks

The people of Norway were in a state of shock on Friday evening following twin attacks which have shaken the normally peaceful Scandinavian nation to its core.

A violent explosion in central Oslo on Friday afternoon killed at least seven people and wounded at least 15. That was followed by a shooting incident on the island of Utoya outside the capital which left at least 9 people, and as many as 20, dead.

Speaking after the blast, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said the situation was "very serious." He spoke in a telephone call to the Norwegian TV2 television without revealing his location, having been advised by police to keep his whereabouts secret. spiegel


Utøya gunman boasted of links to UK

Anders Brehing Breivik, the man accused of the murder of at least 91 Norwegians in a bomb and gun massacre, boasted online about his discussions with the far-right English Defence League and other anti-Islamic European organisations. guardian


Breivik's claims he met 'mentor' in UK

In the manuscript Breivik describes his "mentor" as an Englishman he identifies as "Richard", and says his journey into violent extremism began at a small meeting in London in 2002 where a group of like-minded extremists met to "reform" the Knights Templar Europe, a military group whose purpose was "to seize political and military control of western European countries and implement a cultural conservative political agenda". guardian


"Helpers of the Global Jihad" claim responsibility

According to Expressen.se of Sweden, the little known terrorist group Ansar al-Jihad al-Alami, or Helpers of the Global Jihad, has issued a statement claiming responsibility for the terrorist attacks today in Norway. examiner

2011/07/17

Arturo B. Michelangeli - Debussy - Reflets dans l'eau
Kohl says Merkel is "breaking" Europe

Helmut Kohl is apparently less than pleased with the work of his erstwhile protégé Angela Merkel. The former chancellor reportedly told a friend privately that Merkel's European policies were "very dangerous." thelocal


"Impossible targets based on but pure ideology"

Moreover, rather than replace failing banks' management, following, for example, the practice of the US FDIC, the MoU (p.7) states that the capital increases “will be designed in way that preserves the control of the management of the banks by their non-state owners”. That is, the taxpayer will likely recapitalize the private banking system, in effect nationalizing it, and yet management control will remain with the old owners. One possible explanation for the troika’s inaction on the banks Special Resolution Regime is the conflicts of interest faced by one of the troika members, the ECB. The ECB is a member of the Eurosystem, which would have faced large losses if a proper bank resolution procedure were adopted immediately.

2011/07/15

Fisk: Why I had to leave The Times

When he worked at The Times, Robert Fisk witnessed the curious working practices of the paper's proprietor, Rupert Murdoch. Despite their jocular exchanges, the writer knew he couldn't stay... independent


Intercept communications and corruption

Rebekah Brooks has been arrested by officers investigating allegations of corruption and phone hacking.

The 43-year-old went to a London police station by appointment at midday today and is being held on suspicion of conspiring to intercept communications and corruption allegations. yahoo/skynews


Ex-NOTW whistleblowing reporter found dead

A former News of the World reporter who alleged Andy Coulson "encouraged" him to hack phones was found dead today. independent
Dollar and euro will fall together

There will be NO dollar rally that destroys the precious metals market. We are way too far gone for that to happen. Germany is anything but stable and the dollar and euro will fall together. Gold has outperformed every asset class since 1969

1. Gold's average annual return = 11% (What interest rate is your bank paying you on that CD?)

2. Gold - 12 month return = 20% 24 month return =37% 5 year return = 250% 10 year return = 700%

July 12, 2011 10:41 PM

2011/07/10

World's worst mass murderer

Sudan's President al-Bashir is the world's worst mass murderer. Indicted by the International Criminal Court for genocide, he has for 20 years repeatedly butchered whole communities that challenged his rule. And it's happening again -- unless we stop him for good.