GRAVE ROBBERS

RON PAUL FED VIDEO
http://www.infowars.com/federal-reserve-threatens-congress-over-hr-1207/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSJ-gFt4J1A&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScI4a1-Bd0s&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FMvor-D5Ns&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZGGHDKx7EY&feature=player_embedded

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cnx6a5mlM9M (Ron Paul)
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDod-vegyhI (Ron Paul)
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8xG0wZfG4I
Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVGiJpHNIPk
Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyROultZMJA
Part 6: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQcYhW9MDD4

SENATORS OF CONGRESS
http://www.downsizedc.org/etp/campaigns/112
http://senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
http://www.opencongress.org/committee/show/146
RON PAUL ON AUDIT THE FED
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYiHE35kCQI&feature=player_embedded

AUDIT THE FED HAS 256 SIGNED UP AS OF SUNDAY.AND 8 SENATE SIGNED

Ron Paul’s Bill To Audit The Federal Reserve Now Has 224 Co-Sponsors
By tmartin • July 12, 2009

Ron Paul’s bill to audit the Federal Reserve (HR 1207) now has 256 co-sponsors, and the numbers keep growing! This is history in the making, and victory is within reach. Imagine what will happen if HR 1207, The Federal Reserve Transparency Act, comes up for vote in Congress! With more than 50% of the House of Representatives already co-sponsoring this bill, it has real potential to pass — BUT only if we educate and rally the people to support it and get our Congresspeople to put it to vote and pass it.

Step 1: Your Representative
If your representative is not on the following list of HR 1207 co-sponsors, call their offices, write to them, email them, etc. Let them know they need to support HR 1207. If you live in their district, let them know. Go to their office.

Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121

Step 2: Financial Services Committee
HR 1207 is now in the House Committee on Financial Services. This is THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP in this legislation! If it doesn’t get out of committee it will not come to a vote! There are 71 members on this committee and they are all listed below.

We need to let all members of the House Committee on Financial Services know that we want them to allow full House consideration of HR 1207 so it can move forward; we need them to support this. Now is the time.Call their offices, write to them, email them, etc. Let them know they need to support HR 1207. If you live in their district, let them know. Go to their office.

Help with this all important public outreach. NOW REALLY IS THE TIME!
Here’s a sample letter you can use:

Dear Representative,

Please co-sponsor and/or support H.R.1207, an effort to audit the Federal Reserve.

Recently, it has come to light that there is little to no accountability to the people on the part of the Federal Reserve. While the citizens of this country are required by law to give an accounting of every penny they come in contact with, the Federal Reserve has never been held to the same standard. During this time of extreme economic crisis, the people deserve an accounting of where our money is going.

Currently there are 256 co-sponsors for this legislation, and it is enjoying bi-partisan support. Your efforts in supporting this important legislation would go a long way in proving to your constituents that you not only hold the Federal Reserve to the same standard as you do your constituents, but it would also show that you believe in transparency. Anything less than support for this resolution suggests that you are in favor of secrecy and a lack of accountability to the people who pay the bills. We pay the tab; we have a right to know where our money is going.Unlike recent bills that you voted in favor of that had hundreds of pages and just a few hours to read, this bill can be read in under 5 minutes. I encourage you to take the time to read it, and then move to support it.Thank you in advance for your attention on this important legislation. I have every expectation that you will do right by your constituents and support this measure.

Sincerely,

Step 3: The People
Tell everyone you know about HR 1207 and ask them to support it and to contact their representative as well. Link to this page and to CampaignForLiberty.com.This initiative is crucial and we need to redouble our efforts to get HR 1207 passed.

Federal Reserve Threatens Congress Over HR 1207
Kurt Nimmo Infowars July 12, 2009

On Thursday of last week, the Federal Reserve’s vice chairman, Donald Kohn, threatened to jack up interest rates if Congress continues to expose some of the U.S. central bank’s most sensitive decisions to political scrutiny,Reuters reported.Any substantial erosion of the Federal Reserve’s monetary independence likely would lead to higher long-term interest rates as investors begin to fear future inflation,Kohn told a House of Representatives Financial Services subcommittee.Kohn’s threat came as Ron Paul’s bill to audit the Federal Reserve (HR 1207) has picked up 256 co-sponsors — more than 55% of the House of Representatives. HR 1207’s companion bill in the Senate, S 604, has already attracted 8 co-sponsors. Kohn and his boss Ben Bernanke are obviously very concerned over the prospect that the American people may soon have a look at their books.Ron Paul:political shenanigans going on with the Fed.

Kohn went before Congress as debate rages over Obama’s plan for regulatory reform, in effect granting the Fed power to gobble up companies in national socialist fashion and consolidate banking and securities across the board. In order to quell outrage over this brazen power grab, Obama and his bankster advisers propose a token council of regulators advise the Fed.On June 16, Goldman Sachs operative Timothy Geithner said:When you have too many people involved, there’s an accountability problem.In other words, Congress and the American people need to mind their own business. The Federal Reserve is an institution owned by the bankers, not the American people.Some people think the Federal Reserve Banks are the United States government’s institutions,Louis T. McFadden, Chairman of the Committee on Banking and Currency in 1932 during the Great Depression,had entered into the Congressional Record.They are not government institutions. They are private credit monopolies which prey upon the people of the United States for the benefit of themselves and their foreign swindlers.

McFadden’s international swindlers are running scared from HR 1207 and public anger over last year’s engineered financial crisis and Fed-orchestrated bailouts of investment bank Bear Stearns and insurer American International Group.The Federal Reserve strongly believes that removing the statutory limits on GAO audits of monetary policy matters would be contrary to the public interest by tending to undermine the independence and efficacy of monetary policy,said Kohn. He said accountability to the people would cast a chill on monetary policy deliberations held in secret behind closed doors.Kohn then threatened to jack up interest rates.The bond rating agencies view operational independence of a country’s central bank as an important factor in determining sovereign credit ratings, suggesting that a threat to the Federal Reserve’s independence could lower the Treasury’s debt rating and thus raise its cost of borrowing.Bernanke’s underling made no bones about the fact Paul’s bill is a direct threat to the independence of the Federal Reserve.History provides numerous examples of non-independent central banks being forced to finance large government budget deficits. Such episodes invariably lead to high inflation,he said. Given the current outlook for large federal budget deficits in the United States, this consideration is especially important.Talk about doublespeak. In fact, the Federal Reserve is all about huge federal budget deficits and a mounting federal debt. The Federal Reserve was established in 1913 by the banksters for the purpose of creating debt-based money secured by thin air. The American people are seriously and terminally indebted to the bankers and currently owe over $400 billion a year in interest alone, with no hope of every paying off the principal, which is in the tens of trillions.In 1910, before the passage of the Federal Reserve Act, the federal debt was a mere $1 billion, or $12.40 per citizen. Now the overall debt is over 80% of the annual output of the entire U.S. economy, as measured by the gross domestic product. When government obligations are considered, the debt balloons to an astronomical $56 trillion, or roughly $184,000 per American, according to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation.It is simple, really — the larger the debt, the richer and more powerful the international bankers become. The Federal Reserve is their front organization and it runs roughshod over Congress.The passage of HR 1207 is not certain and it faces an even more strenuous uphill battle in the Senate. It is, at this point, our only practical hope of auditing the Fed, revealing its numerous crimes, exposing its mega-grand theft scams, and delivering Donald Kohn, his boss Bernanke, and the minions of the international banksters to justice.

LOST TRIBE OF ISRAEL PATHANS IN PAKISTAN,AFGHANISTAN
http://www.disclose.tv/action/viewvideo/12884/
http://www.moshiach.com/tribes/ns/3.html
ISRAELIS MESSIAH BELIEFS
http://www.moshiach.com/topics/in-depth/maimonides.php
http://www.moshiach.com/topics/what/the-rationalist-approach-to-messianism.php
ISRAELI SIGNS OF LAST DAYS (A BIT DECIEVED)
http://www.moshiach.com/scholars/essays/a-taste-of-future.php
THE BIBLE SIGNS
http://israndjer.blogspot.com/2008/08/z-end-times-signs.html
http://israndjer.blogspot.com/2007/05/all-last-days-scriptures.html
PALESTINIANS OF JEWISH HERITAGE
http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-279707
JAY SHAPIRO TALKS ABOUT LIEBERMAN AND FOREIGN POLICY LAST 15 MINUTES OF SHOW,THIS COULD BE HOW THE EU FOREIGN MINISTER GUARENTEES ISRAELS SECURITY IN THE FUTURE.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Radio/News.aspx/1176
TORAH TIDBITS
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Radio/News.aspx/1169

EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH

GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

EARTHQUAKES

MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

Second small earthquake strikes near The Geysers
Bay City News Service 07/12/2009 09:42:51 AM PDT

The U.S. Geological Survey is reporting an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 3.0 struck this morning in Sonoma County.According to the USGS, the earthquake struck at about 4:30 a.m. and had a depth of 1.7 miles. The quake was centered two miles north of The Geysers and 11 miles east of Cloverdale, according to the USGS. It was the second small quake to strike in the area this morning. A 2.3 earthquake also struck nearby at about 2:15 a.m.That earthquake had a depth of 1.2 miles and was centered four miles east-southeast of The Geysers and 15 miles east of Cloverdale, according to the USGS.

STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES

LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Hurricane Carlos heading west over the Pacific JULY 12,2009

MIAMI – Hurricane Carlos is heading west over the open waters of the Pacific Ocean and has weakened slightly.The Category 1 hurricane has maximum sustained winds near 80 mph, down from around 85 mph earlier Sunday. But forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami say Carlos is expected to strengthen somewhat during the next 48 hours.As of 11 a.m. EDT, the hurricane was centered about 1,135 miles southwest of the southern tip of Mexico's Baja California peninsula.Carlos is moving west near 13 mph on a path taking it farther out to sea. Forecasters say hurricane force winds extend outward up to 25 miles from the eye of the storm.

Iraq lashed by sandstorms and battling drought By DEB RIECHMANN and SINAN SALAHEDDIN, Associated Press Writers - JULY 12,09

BAGHDAD – Below-average rainfall and insufficient water in the Euphrates and Tigris rivers have left Iraq bone dry for a second straight year, wrecking swaths of farm land, threatening drinking water supplies and intensifying fierce sandstorms that have coated the country in brown dust.The drought has dealt a harsh blow to hopes that reductions in sectarian violence over the last year would fuel an economic recovery. Instead, the government's budget suffered a double-hit: Lower than expected oil prices have crimped revenues and the scarcity of water will force Iraq to spend money to import most of the crops, especially wheat and rice, to meet domestic demand.

Look at this land. There is no water,said Ashur Mohamed Ahmood, slipping the tip of his black cane into deep cracks in his parched field. He cautioned children not to run, fearing their small bare feet would get stuck in the crevices crisscrossing the farm on the outskirts of Baghdad.Without water there are no plants. This is the plant,he says, uprooting a weed and throwing it back to the ground.Historically, Iraq has been one of the more fertile nations in the region, thanks to the Tigris and Euphrates, which flow southeasterly through the entire nation. But for a second year, cropland in the north and west is parched and farmers in south and central Iraq are suffering from low water flows in both rivers — a phenomenon caused in part by the construction of dams built in neighboring Turkey and Syria.Which country closed the water on us? Ahmood asked, reflecting the common belief among Iraqis that their country's neighbors are responsible for their plight. Let them open the water for us so we can live here and water our plants.As farmers complain of their ruined crops, the drought can be felt across the nation as gritty sandstorms lash Iraqis with increased frequency this summer. Last week's storm left tree leaves and vehicles coated with what looks like tan talcum powder.A decline in acreage where plant roots once knitted the soil has only increased the severity of sandstorms, which are blowing across Iraq with increased frequency — nearly 20 so far this year. Two people died in the eastern city of Kut, and hundreds of Iraqis complaining of respiratory problems crowded emergency rooms across Iraq during the most recent three-day sandstorm, which many said was the worst in memory.

The storms often ground commercial flights. They scuttled U.S. Vice President Joe Biden's scheduled trip earlier this month from Baghdad to the semiautonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, where much of the country's wheat is grown.Adding to the farmers' difficulties, the dwindling water supplies are suffering from high amounts of salt. The impact of the drought will continue for years to come unless there will be huge efforts to bring in modern irrigation systems and abundant water to drain areas affected with high levels of salinity,said Mahdi al-Qaisi, undersecretary of the Ministry of Agriculture.Desertification, especially in mid and southern Iraq, has been accelerated by people cutting down trees for firewood, underinvestment and the pounding the land has taken from military vehicles and operations, he said.The severity of the drought has resulted in a testy water dispute between Iraq and Turkey, which has built five dams along the Euphrates upstream from where it enters western Iraq. The quarrel recently cooled when Turkey agreed to release more water from its dams.Aoun Thiab Abdullah, director of the Iraqi Water Resources Ministry's national water resources center, said Iraq needs at least 500 cubic meters of water a second to flow from the Euphrates — nearly twice the current level — so that it can meet its needs in the south, especially in the areas where rice is grown.This year's grain harvest was forecast to be among the worst in a decade — virtually unchanged from last year and down about 45 percent from a normal year's harvest, according to Michael Shean at the U.S. Agriculture Department's foreign agriculture service. Rice won't be harvested until October, but water shortages earlier this year prompted Iraq to cut its rice crop in half in central and southern provinces.Alewi al-Shimmari, a father of six in Diwaniyah, south of Baghdad, used to grow rice on his entire 100-acre (40-hectare) farm, but the drought has left all but 12 acres (five hectares) useless for farming.More than 50 percent of families working as farmers left their villages and went to the city,al-Shimmari said.Lands that once were green farms are now turned to desert.U.S. State Department reconstruction teams in Anbar, an arid province in western Iraq, are helping Iraqis to continue drawing water from depleted lakes and ensure that water treatment plants can adequately treat the supply of drinking water.

They say some lakes in Anbar Province are 9 to 12 yards (30 to 40 feet) lower this year compared with last year. The water is so low that water intake pipes are exposed and cannot suck the water up into treatment plants. What water can be drawn is heavy with sediment. That coupled with increased salinity, sewage waste dumped into the Euphrates and agricultural runoff is making it increasingly difficult for water treatment plants to cleanse the supply of drinking water. As if ongoing bombings and drought weren't enough, Hassan al-Asadi, a member of the Dhi Qar provincial council in southern Iraq, said that a few months ago, water snakes that had lost their natural habitat along the rivers started to show up around houses near al-Chibaiysh marshland. The snakes were looking for food and dozens of people were bitten,he said, adding that for a time, Iraqi soldiers and policemen were shooting about 70 wayward snakes a day.Associated Press Writers Hamid Ahmed in Baghdad and Akram Mohammed in Nasiriyah, and cameraman Wameed Muwafaq Fathi in Baghdad, contributed to this report.

Spain liberalizing, but teen abortion hits a nerve By DANIEL WOOLLS, Associated Press Writer – Sun Jul 12, 11:31 am ET

MADRID – Spain's Socialist prime minister has irked his natural enemies on the right and in the Catholic church by legalizing gay marriage and instituting fast-track divorce. Now he has hit a raw nerve even among his supporters with a proposal to let 16-year-olds get abortions without parental consent.The debate is harsh and emotional, showing that for all the changes Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has introduced with his trailblazing social agenda since taking power in 2004, abortion remains sensitive in a country where most people call themselves Catholic, even if few churches are full on Sundays.Liberalizing teen abortion is part of a broader change proposed for Spain's abortion law, the main thrust of which is to allow the procedure with no restrictions up to 14 weeks into a pregnancy.The government gave the bill preliminary approval in May and Parliament is expected to take it up in the fall. Zapatero probably has the votes to get it passed. However, the outcry over teenagers may force him to backtrack.Under the current law, Spanish women can in theory go to jail for getting an abortion outside certain strict limits — up to week 12 in case of rape and week 22 if the fetus is malformed. But abortion is in effect widely available because women can assert mental distress as sole grounds for having an abortion, regardless of how late the pregnancy is.

Now Zapatero is seeking to deepen his mark on Spanish society. What he's proposing wipes away the threat of imprisonment and declares abortion to be a woman's right.
That is a qualitative change in Spanish culture and politics, said Javier del Rey, a professor of political communications at Complutense University in Madrid. Something that had been a crime is transformed into a right.Britain, France and Germany already allow minors to get abortions without parental permission. But here it's the issue that is dominating the debate.The conservative opposition Popular Party asks why a girl who cannot legally buy alcohol can have an abortion without asking her parents. The inconsistency is crushing," lawmaker Sandra Moneo wrote in the newspaper El Pais.No father or mother can understand the idea of a minor going through that trauma without the advice, support and opinion of her parents,Moneo said.Zapatero's camp counters by noting that 16-year-old Spaniards can choose to have open-heart surgery or chemotherapy without parental consent, but not an abortion.Tempers have flared on both sides. Conservatives were enraged when Bibiana Aido, the minister of equality, suggested abortion was no bigger an issue than breast enlargement.Socialists saw red when Antonio Canizares, a Spanish cardinal who holds a key position at the Vatican, seemed to play down a report detailing decades of sexual and other abuse of children by religious orders in Ireland and said abortion was worse.Zapatero himself was asked in a radio interview how he would feel if his daughter, after she turned 16, had an abortion without telling him.Zapatero said he would rather she tell him, and that it was up to parents to instill that kind of trust in their kids.But in the end, the decision is up to the person deciding whether to voluntarily interrupt a pregnancy, the premier said.Polling numbers are against him: A survey published last month by the newspaper La Vanguardia said 71 percent oppose the teenage abortion reform, and the proportion among Socialist voters was 60 percent. A poll in El Pais put the figures at 64 and 56 percent, respectively. Both surveys gave a margin of error of 3.2 percentage points.

Lawmaker Carmen Monton, the Socialists' point woman on the abortion bill, said it was designed to help girls from troubled families who need an abortion and cannot tell their parents. We are not legislating for model families with fantastic relations between parents and children. We are legislating for all of society,Monton said in an interview.Josefina Elias, president of the polling firm Instituto Opina, said she would not be surprised if Zapatero withdraws or tones down the proposal, and some suspect he put it forward to serve as something he can concede if necessary to win passage of the broader change.One idea already being floated is to oblige teens to tell their parents they plan to have an abortion, although not to obtain permission.

Elias said Zapatero's mistake was to forgo prior social debate about teen abortion. It has all been done like an elephant charging into a china shop,she said.

TRUTH ABOUT THE FLU SHOT
http://www.infowars.com/the-truth-about-the-flu-shot/

THERE GETTING US SUCKED IN TO GETTING MICROCHIP IMPLANTS INSTEAD OF USING PAY CARDS.THEY WANT A CASHLESS,CHEAPER WAY OF PAYING.

More universities won't accept credit cards for tuition
Updated Sun. Jul. 12 2009 10:03 AM ETThe Canadian Press

HALIFAX -- Students who are accustomed to the swipe now, pay later approach to tuition payments may have to re-think their finances this fall as more Canadian universities eliminate the option of paying with credit cards. Universities say they want to trim the transaction fees they pay to financial institutions and most schools are putting the money they save into their operating budgets, while others are directing the savings towards specific projects like bursaries for first-year students.This is the mark of a prudent university these days,said Alan Shaver, vice-president academic and provost at Dalhousie University in Halifax, which will stop processing credit card payments in September. About 40 per cent of Dalhousie students paid their tuition with a credit card last fall. That cost the school $1 million in processing fees.Shaver said the decision was made because Dalhousie's endowment isn't as large as it used to be. To keep the same number of scholarships and bursaries, money had to be cut from other areas. We're looking for ways where we can have the most bang for our buck,he said.Dalhousie joins St. Thomas University in Fredericton as the latest schools to make the shift away from plastic. The University of Prince Edward Island has announced plans to phase out credit cards next year, just as the universities of New Brunswick, British Columbia, Calgary and Alberta have done in recent years.

Taking away credit cards doesn't mean students will have to line up with stacks of cash. Students can still pay online and through telephone banking, debit, cheques, money orders and wire transfers.But student groups say these changes make a big difference to people who rely on credit to get to class. It's not just the convenience factor, or the ability to cash in with Air Miles. They say the change will hurt those who don't have any other options. A lot of students don't get enough loans and scholarships to cover the entire cost of their education and, therefore, they have to cover it with other ways and they rely on credit card payments to do that,said Shannon Zimmerman, president of Dalhousie's student union. Zimmerman said many Dalhousie students are frustrated they have to take on the extra cost in addition to paying the highest tuition in the country. In no case is paying by credit card an ideal situation but for some students it's going to be that much more difficult to get by when money is tight,said Katherine Giroux-Bougard, the national chairperson for the Canadian Federation for Students. Giroux-Bougard said it's difficult enough for students to pay for their education without worrying about having the funds up front.Dalhousie has put plans in place to waive late fees for students who are still waiting for their student loans to come in when tuition is due this September. Since the university made the decision to eliminate credit card payments over the summer, the school has been emailing students about the change.

Shaver doesn't anticipate problems in the fall.It's certainly possible for students to get a line of credit from their banks and who knows, they might even get a better interest rate than they would have putting it on their credit card,Shaver said. When the University of Alberta took credit cards off the list of payment options last year, thousands of concerned students joined Facebook groups calling for the administration to reverse the decision.Despite the reaction, the transition at the University of Alberta went smoothly, said Phyllis Clark, vice president of finance and administration.People have accepted that this is the way we do business, she said.Many schools like the University of Toronto, Queen's, McGill and Victoria have never processed credit card payments.

Cheney to CIA: Don’t Tell Congress
July 12, 2009

(ChattahBox)—A source confirmed to CNN that former Vice President Dick Cheney, directly ordered the C.I.A. to withhold information from Congress about a secret counterterrorism program devised days after the attacks of 9/11.The knowledgeable source confirmed that C.I.A. director, Leon Panetta, not only briefed the Senate and House Intelligence committees about the existence of the secret program, but also that Cheney was behind efforts to keep it hidden from Congress.The New York Times first reported on Saturday, citing an unnamed source, that Cheney was responsible for keeping Congress in the dark, when the counterterrorism program was created eight years ago. An unnamed Intelligence official told the Washington Post on Saturday night that it was generally known from the very beginning of the secret program that Cheney ordered it be kept from Congress.These same Intelligence officials confirm that the unidentified program did not involve the enhanced interrogation program or domestic intelligence activities.So, the big question is what exactly did the secret counterterrorism program involve and why did the Cheney and the C.I.A. place such importance on it? Intelligence and Congressional officials are, so far, remaining mum on the details of the project. But, what is known is that on June 23, Panetta first learned of the secret program formed within the C.I.A.’s counterterrorism unit from subordinates. Panetta then immediately shut down the program and briefed Congressional committees about the program the next day.

These new revelations involving Cheney, point to a larger problem during the Bush administration of engaging in illegal activities that it purposely kept from Congress, in the wake of the hysteria surrounding 9/11. Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi was vilified by Republicans, with Newt Gingrich even calling for her impeachment, when she charged the C.I.A with not informing her about the use of waterboarding on a terrorism suspect.Whatever was specifically revealed to Speaker Pelosi at that disputed briefing in 2002, according to the NY Times, in any case, the briefing occurred only after a terrorism suspect, Abu Zubaydah, had been waterboarded 83 times.Cheney’s obsession with secrecy is legendary and permeated all levels of the Bush administration. On Friday, the inspectors general of five agencies released a scathing report on the widespread and out of control National Security Agency’s domestic surveillance program, which was subject to Cheney’s fanatical secrecy.These new revelations of the C.I.A.’s withholding information arrive as lawmakers seek to amend the 1947 Intelligence Authorization Bill, to ensure that Congress is fully informed of future Intelligence activities.Lawmakers want to expand Intelligence briefings beyond the heads of house Intelligence oversight committees, the so-called Gang of eight. The White House is concerned some amendments go to far, raising significant executive privilege concerns.Congress and the White House are now negotiating on the parameters of the changes to the 1947 law.Meanwhile, the battle lines between Republicans and Democrats are beginning to take shape. Democratic lawmakers are outraged and plan to call for an investigation into the C.I.A.’s secret program, using its subpoena powers to compel testimony from intelligence officials involved in the secrecy.

This wasn’t an oversight. There was an order given to not inform Congress,said Democratic Rep. from Illinois, Jan Schakowsky.Republicans claim the Democrats are using the issue to support Speaker Pelosi’s claims that she wasn’t informed of the use of waterboarding.Republican lawmakers also contend that, since the secret counterterrorism program was only in the early planning stages and never got off the ground, the C.I.A. wasn’t required to notify Congress.The 1947 law also carved out a Congressional reporting exception, which states, to the extent consistent with due regard for the protection from unauthorized disclosure of classified information relating to sensitive intelligence sources and methods or other exceptionally sensitive matters.Despite Dick and Liz Cheney’s bombardment of the airwaves in recent weeks in support of the Bush administration’s use of torture, they both now have nothing to say are unavailable for comment, regarding Dick Cheney’s involvement in keeping the counterterrorism program secret from lawmakers.

Feinstein suggests CIA concealment broke law By PETE YOST, Associated Press Writer - JULY 12,09

WASHINGTON – Six months into Barack Obama's presidency, his Democratic allies are pushing for twin investigations into Bush-era torture and anti-terrorism policies.
Two senators including the head of the intelligence committee suggested Sunday that the prior administration broke the law by concealing a CIA counterterrorism program from Congress.The assertion that Vice President Dick Cheney ordered the concealment came amid word that Attorney General Eric Holder is contemplating opening a criminal probe of possible CIA torture.A move to appoint a criminal prosecutor is certain to stir partisan bickering that could prove a distraction to Obama's efforts to push ambitious health care and energy reform.Obama has repeatedly expressed reluctance to probing alleged Bush-era abuses. He resisted an effort by congressional Democrats to establish a truth commission,saying the nation should be looking forward and not backwards.Regarding the 8-year-old counterterrorism program, the Bush administration's failure to notify Congress is a big problem, because the law is very clear,said Senate Intelligence Committee chairwoman Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.

Congress should investigate the secrecy because it could be illegal,Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said.According to Feinstein, CIA director Leon Panetta told Congress late last month that he had just learned about the program, described it to us, indicated that he had canceled it and ... did tell us that he was told that the vice president had ordered that the program not be briefed to the Congress.We were kept in the dark. That's something that should never, ever happen again,said Feinstein.Feinstein said that she understands the need for strong countermeasures following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.However,I think you weaken your case when you go outside of the law,she added.Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said he agreed with Feinstein that the CIA should keep Congress informed. But Cornyn said the new assertion looks to me suspiciously like an attempt to provide political cover to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats. Pelosi has accused the CIA of lying to her in 2002 about its use of waterboarding, or simulated drowning.This continued attack on the CIA and our intelligence gathering organizations is undermining the morale and capacity of those organizations to gather intelligence,said Republican Judd Gregg of New Hampshire.

Reports about the counterterrorism program, Cheney's role in directing its existence be kept from Congress and the attorney general's consideration of a special prosecutor came on the eve of Senate Judiciary Committee hearings for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor.Regarding the Bush administration's conduct in the war on terror, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said that I've always preferred my idea of a commission of inquiry to look at all these issues.A Justice Department official told The Associated Press that Holder will decide in the next few weeks whether to appoint a prosecutor to investigate the Bush administration's harsh interrogation practices. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on a pending matter.In response to the report, Justice Department spokesman Matt Miller said Saturday that Holder planned to follow the facts and the law and noted that Holder has said that it would be unfair to prosecute any official who acted in good faith based on legal guidance from the Justice Department.Feinstein and Cornyn spoke on Fox News Sunday. Durbin appeared on ABC's This Week.Gregg spoke on CNN's State of the Union.Leahy spoke on CBS's Face the Nation.Associated Press writer Nedra Pickler contributed to this report.

Modified: Wednesday, July 8, 2009, 12:28pm Council on Foreign Relations backs amnesty for illegals, opposes Arpaio-style raidsPhoenix Business Journal - by Mike Sunnucks

The uber-establishment Council on Foreign Relations said Wednesday it favors granting legal status to many of the roughly 12 million illegal immigrants in the U.S., creating a guest worker program for low-skilled foreign workers to come and work in the U.S and opposes local police getting to conduct immigration raids.The CFR issued an immigration policy report Wednesday that looks to lift caps on foreign university students in the U.S. and allow skilled foreign graduates to get more work visas. The international policy group also wants to create legal paths to citizenship for the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants already in the U.S.The CFR also said local police should not take lead roles in immigration enforcements and workplace raids. Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas have been conducting immigration raids and prosecutions against businesses hiring illegal immigrants, as well as drop-houses used by smugglers trafficking illegal immigrants into Arizona from Mexico.The CFR report does not specifically mention Arpaio but the Valley’s sheriff is the most notable local enforcer of immigration laws in the U.S.

The CFR’s recommendations on guest workers and amnesty mirror plans to be pushed in Congress this year by President Barack Obama. Arizona State university professor Raul H. Yzaguirre and former Florida governor Jeb Bush served on the CFR task force that wrote the recommendations.The group also wants the U.S. to tweek or ease some post 9/11 security measures that have discouraged immigration and foreign tourism into the U.S. and want the U.S. government to develop new technologies to secure border areas, verify workers’ employment status and enforce immigration laws.The New York-based CFR is a heavyweight international policy group whose members includes powerful politicians, CEOs and university presidents as well as multinational corporations, media firms and private equity firms.The Council’s corporate members include Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, American Express, Chevron, ExxonMobil Corp., Rothschild North America Inc., News Corp., General Electric, KBR Inc., Lockheed Martin, Raytheon Co., Soros Fund Management and Google Inc.U.S. Sen. John McCain, former Arizona governor Bruce Babbitt, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, Arizona State University President Michael Crow and Thunderbird School of Global Management president Angel Cabrera are Arizonans that are CFR members.

Other notable CFR members include:Former U.S. Secretaries of State Henry Kissinger, Colin Powell, James Baker and Madeline Albright.Former U.S. Treasury secretaries Henry Paulson and Robert Rubin.Financier George Soros and JP Morgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon.Former Federal Reserve Bank chairmen Alan Greenspan and Paul Volcker.
Former presidents George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton and former vice president Dick Cheney.Media notables such as NBC’s Tom Brokaw, News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch, Newsweek International editor and CNN commentator Fareed Zakaria and New York Times publisher Arthur Ochs Punch Sulzberger.

LAND FOR PEACE (THE FUTURE 7 YEARS OF HELL ON EARTH)

JOEL 3:2
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

THE WEEK OF DANIEL 9:27 WE KNOW ITS 7 YRS

Heres the scripture 1 week = 7 yrs Genesis 29:27-29
27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.
28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.
29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.

DANIEL 9:26-27
26 And after threescore and two weeks(62X7=434 YEARS+7X7=49 YEARS=TOTAL OF 69 WEEKS OR 483 YRS) shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary;(ROMAN LEADERS DESTROYED THE 2ND TEMPLE) and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.(THERE HAS TO BE 70 WEEKS OR 490 YRS TO FUFILL THE VISION AND PROPHECY OF DAN 9:24).(THE NEXT VERSE IS THAT 7 YR WEEK OR (70TH FINAL WEEK).
27 And he( THE ROMAN,EU PRESIDENT) shall confirm the covenant with many for one week:(1X7=7 YEARS) and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,(3 1/2 yrs in TEMPLE SACRIFICES STOPPED) and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.

EU: Accept PA State as Full Member of UN
by Hana Levi Julian JULY 12,09

(IsraelNN.com) European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana is taking steps to move the establishment of a Palestinian Authority state through the United Nations, whether Israel agrees to it or not.Solana told a British audience in London on Saturday that Israel and the PA should be given a deadline by which to conclude negotiations for a two-state solution. If a final status agreement is not reached by that time, according to the Reuters news agency, Solana recommended that one be imposed by the United Nations instead.After a fixed deadline, a UN Security Council resolution should proclaim the adoption of the two-state solution, he said.It would accept the Palestinian state as a full member of the UN, and set a calendar for implementation. It would mandate the resolution of other remaining territorial disputes and legitimize the end of claims.He added, If the parties are not able to stick to it [referring to the UN-imposed timetable -ed.], then a solution backed by the international community should be put on the table.Solana added that the UN-imposed two-state solution should include resolution of issues such as control over Israel’s capital, the city of Jerusalem, as well as border definitions, security arrangements and the right of return by millions of foreign descendants of Arab refugees who abandoned their homes during the 1948 war.PA negotiator Saeb Erekat reiterated Sunday that no discussions between the Palestinian Authority and Israel would begin without a complete freeze of all Jewish construction in Judea Samaria. Erekat made the statement in response to a call by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to resume peace talks with Israel. There can be no compromises on construction, Erekat said.If Israel is allowed to build 1,000 or 2,000 housing units it will lead the PA and the Arab nations to believe the U.S. government cannot convince the Israeli government to stop building.PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has said repeatedly he is unwilling to come to the table unless Israel stops all building in the regions, including construction within the city limits of existing cities and towns.

Chief Rabbi: Land Reform Violates Jewish Law
by Hillel Fendel JULY 12,09

(IsraelNN.com) Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger has weighed in with a lengthy opinion sharply negating Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s proposed land privatization scheme – but is it too little, too late? Netanyahu is strongly pushing his land-reform program, a package that enjoys wide support as a means of reducing the seemingly-endless bureaucracy that has overtaken any aspect of life having to do with purchasing, selling, leasing or building on land in Israel.However, one important aspect is the subject of strong opposition – namely, his intention to privatize land owned by the Jewish nation and make it available for sale to private elements.At the behest of MK Zevulun Orlev (Jewish Home), Rabbi Metzger prepared a detailed, 20-page Halakhic [Jewish legal] opinion, in which he wrote that Netanyahu’s reforms violate the Torah’s commandments that the Land must never be sold forever and not to allow foreign elements to gain proprietorship over the Land.After going into the precise Halakhic categorizations of resident Muslims, Christians, idol-worshipers and friendly foreigners known as gerei toshav,Rabbi Metzger writes,Our country is still in a state of war, and we must therefore fear that hostile elements might seek to take advantage of the opportunity to buy lands privately, and will offer very high prices – something that will sorely test Jewish land-owners [Jews who currently lease land from the State – ed.]. Economic elements from enemy countries are likely to help [Arab] purchasers… This reform could lead, Heaven forbid, to the sale of parts of our Land to hostile foreigners.

MK Orlev said in response,It turns out that selling state-owned lands is not only an abuse of national treasures, as well as Zionist and national wantonness, but is also unacceptable from a Halakhic and Jewish standpoint.Rabbi Yuval Cherlow, a member of the board of Hebrew Nature, an organization that promotes Jewish-environmentalist responsibility in Israel, wrote a recent article entitled, They’re Selling Us.Rabbi Cherlow wrote that what he calls the great robbery of Jewish lands will endanger the character of the Jewish State, return us to the days of feudalism, and will subjugate the future of open areas to narrow economic interests.The land-reform package is included in the Likud’s coalition agreements with the Shas and Jewish Home parties. However, while Shas is hesitant to break this agreement, the Jewish Home is not, and has been working strongly against it. The United Torah Judaism party tends to favor it in the hope that it will ease the housing crunch for young hareidi-religious couples.The only hope, in terms of Shas,says a leading opponent of the plan,is to have Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef come out against it. However, he has already said that one of the major objections – that the land may not be sold forever – does not apply when the Jubilee laws are not in effect, such as nowadays. But he has yet to explain his position on the prohibition of lo techanem - Do not allow them proprietorship over the Land.Regarding the six MKs of the UTJ party, the source said, It is hoped that Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, the leading hareidi Torah authority, will somehow be approached on this issue and issue a ruling on the gravity of the Biblical ban lo techanem.

Throwing Out National Lands Together with Bureacracy
Uri Bank, a Knesset candidate in the last elections, represents the National Union party on the board of directors of the Jewish National Fund and is a leading opponent of the land reform. All agree on the need for a major reform in the Israel Lands Authority (ILA),Bank told Israel National News.Unfortunately, Netanyahu feels that this means not only doing away with the ILA, but also privatizing the 80% of the country’s land that is controlled by the ILA.Adi Arbel, of The Institute for Zionist Strategies, explained that the immediate effect of such a change would be that whoever is currently leasing any land from the ILA would become, after paying a certain amount, the immediate owners of the land. This means, first and foremost, churches and the land that they lease in built-up areas such as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

Strong Left-Wing Opposition
Bank noted that the opposition is across-the-board: MKs such as Yaakov Katz (Ketzaleh) of the National Union, Orlev, Danny Danon of the Likud, Shelly Yechimovitch of the left flank of Labor, Chaim Oron of Meretz, and even Arab MKs, are all against the plan.Asked why the left-wing opposes the plan, Bank explained,They are against privatization in general, fearing that real estate sharks and foreign or local millionaires will buy up the land, thus hurting the little guy and forcing prices sky-high. If land is privatized, the average young couple in Israel will simply not be able to purchase an apartment.

Vote is Scheduled for Next Week
The Knesset vote is scheduled for a week from now, after the vote on the national budget this week. This was our only achievement so far,Bank said, having it separated from the budget deliberations. But I don’t know if that will help us so much…There is yet a chance that the vote will be further delayed, however. It is connected to the fact that the government is trying to have the Jewish National Fund's city lands included in the deal by trading Negev lands for the urban areas. Though the JNF board approved the deal by a 15-6 vote, three court cases are currently pending against this deal. Bank, Arbel and the others hope that the government will not want to pass the law without being sure that the JNF lands are included.

Coins in the Blue and White Boxes
Trying to do his part to ensure that Jewish national lands remain Jewish, Bank is opposing the JNF trade from within – and from without; he has filed one of the suits against it: We have the historic responsibility of preserving our national lands and keeping them Jewish. These lands were bought by the Jewish people, individually and collectively, by the pennies and dimes that Jews around the world placed in their little blue-and-white boxes over the past century.Specifically about the proposed trade, Bank says,We don’t have the moral right to trade top-quality city land for low-quality Negev land; it might bring cash now, but in the end, we will lose.

Supreme Court Option
Opponents of the privatization of the Jewish Nation’s holdings in the Land of Israel also say that if they fail and the law is passed, they will file a suit in the Supreme Court to the effect that the law voids a constitutional-type Basic Law regarding nationally-owned lands.

Israel's Netanyahu invites Abbas to talk peace By ARON HELLER, Associated Press Writer-JULY 12,09

JERUSALEM – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday invited the Palestinians to sit down immediately to talk peace, but the Palestinian leader rebuffed the call, saying that Israel must first halt all West Bank settlement construction.The issue of Israeli settlements has emerged as a major sticking point in efforts to restart peace talks, which halted shortly before Netanyahu took office in March. The Palestinians have been bolstered by the United States' insistence that Israel freeze the settlement construction on lands claimed by the Palestinians.

Netanyahu, who for years was a vocal critic of Mideast peace efforts, recently reversed himself and for the first time endorsed the goal of establishing an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel as part of a final peace agreement. However, he attached a series of conditions rejected by the Palestinians, and they have been cool to his offer.There is no reason Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and I should not meet, anywhere in this country, to advance the political process,Netanyahu told the weekly meeting of his Cabinet.Netanyahu said he already has made a series of gestures, such as the removal of several military checkpoints in the West Bank, meant to improve the Palestinian economy.In recent weeks, we have made many efforts to ease their lives, especially regarding freedom of movement for Palestinians,he said.But I would like to make it clear that all of these efforts are unilateral on Israel's part. All these efforts can only go so far, and the results will multiply many times if only there is cooperation from the other side. ... Let us make peace, diplomatic peace and economic peace. Let us cooperate on these projects, he said.The Palestinians have been skeptical about Netanyahu's intentions. They say the Israeli gestures are not enough to revive an economy beaten down by years of conflict, and fear that Netanyahu is using his economic program as a way to divert attention from the core diplomatic issues of negotiating a final peace deal.Abbas has refused to meet Netanyahu and reiterated his stance at a news conference on Sunday that for negotiations on the key issues to resume, there must be a complete halt to settlement activities.

Netanyahu's predecessor, Ehud Olmert, spent more than a year negotiating with Abbas. The peace talks yielded no major breakthroughs, and during that time, Israel continued to build up its settlements. Nearly 500,000 Israelis now live in the West Bank and east Jerusalem — areas captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war and claimed by the Palestinians.Israel agreed under the U.S.-backed road map peace plan to freeze all building in the West Bank. But it has not honored that 2003 obligation, saying the Palestinians have not fulfilled their commitment to crack down on militant groups.

DOCTOR DOCTORIAN FROM ANGEL OF GOD
then the angel said, Financial crisis will come to Asia. I will shake the world.

JAMES 5:1-3
1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.
3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.

REVELATION 18:10,17,19
10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.

EZEKIEL 7:19
19 They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.

REVELATION 13:16-18
16 And he(FALSE POPE) causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:(CHIP IMPLANT)
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.(6-6-6) A NUMBER SYSTEM

WORLD MARKET RESULTS
http://money.cnn.com/data/world_markets/

HALF HOUR DOW RESULTS MON JULY 13,2009

09:30 AM +8.91
10:00 AM +13.37
10:30 AM +13.90
11:00 AM +76.86
11:30 AM +76.25
12:00 PM +128.93
12:30 PM +122.65
01:00 PM +120.99
01:30 PM +148.88
02:00 PM +132.48
02:30 PM +147.22
03:00 PM +139.51
03:30 PM +149.82
04:00 PM +185.16 8331.68

S&P 500 901.05 +21.92

NASDAQ 1793.21 +37.12

GOLD 919.30 +6.80

OIL 59.94 +0.05

TSE 300 9891.93 +144.80

CDNX 1047.63 +2.08

S&P/TSX/60 599.07 +9.02

MORNING,NEWS,STATS

YEAR TO DATE PERFORMANCE
Dow -7.18%
S&P -2.67%
Nasdaq +11.35%
TSX Advances 676,declines 737,unchanged 315,Volume 1,498,194,048.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 329,Declines 369,Unchanged 387,Volume 166,464,677.

Dow +30 points at 4 minutes of trading today.
Dow -15 points at low today.
Dow +85 points at high today so far.
GOLD opens at $911.60.OIL opens at $59.25 today.

AFTERNOON,NEWS,STATS
Dow -15 points at low today so far.
Dow +150 points at high today so far.

DAY TODAY PERFORMANCE - 12:30PM STATS
NYSE Advances 2,360,declines 1,092,unchanged 119,New Highs 15,New Lows 41.
Volume 1,935,998,195.
NASDAQ Advances 1,369,declines 1,055,unchanged 142,New highs 9,New Lows 19.
Volume 668,484,971.
TSX Advances 421,declines 696,unchanged 280,Volume 616,231,394.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 176,Declines 255,Unchanged 232,Volume 50,553,260.

WRAPUP,NEWS,STATS
Dow -15 points at low today.
Dow +185 points at high today.
Dow +2.27% today Volume 253,519,516.
Nasdaq +2.12% today Volume 1,814,746,280.
S&P 500 +2.49% today Volume N/A

G-8 CONCLUDED FRIDAY
http://watch.ctv.ca/news/latest/g8-summit/#clip192472
HARPER MEETS WITH THE POPE
http://watch.ctv.ca/news/latest/private-audience/#clip192549
GEITHNER INTERVIEW ON GPS FAREED ZAKARIA
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2009/07/12/gps.geithner.exclusive.cnn
OBAMA EUGENICS PROGRAM FOR AMERICA AND THE WORLD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGOmlZGqfbg&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puLCxuDrBeo&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-N3pmMolu6Q&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWLfGJB0Jb0&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBCMLmrK6C0&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaDG1kcUCX0&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BLsgALB15o&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZQ6k44mL14&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Tp5ZGS1-AU&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vavWXqQO0I&feature=player_embedded

Geithner Says Pace of Economic Decline Slowed Dramatically
By Catherine Dodge

July 11 (Bloomberg) -- Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said that while the pace of decline in the U.S. economy has slowed dramatically,there are still enormous challenges.It’s going to be a while before we’re confident we’re going to have a strong, sustainable recovery in place,Geithner said, according to the transcript of an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS show to be broadcast tomorrow. The pace of job losses has slowed, consumers and businesses are more confident and financial markets are improving, Geithner said. If you think back to where we were at the end of last year, beginning of this year, you know, we had an economy falling at a remarkably rapid rate,he said. Investor concern that a recovery from the deepest recession in half a century may be delayed pushed stocks down for a fourth week. The unemployment rate rose in June to 9.5 percent, the highest in almost 26 years, and U.S. employers cut 467,000 jobs, according to a government report released last week.

The world’s largest economy contracted at a 5.5 percent annual pace in the first quarter of the year, capping the worst six-month performance in half a century. The economy probably shrank at a 1.8 percent rate from April to June, according to a Bloomberg survey of economists, who also predicted a return to growth in the current quarter.Geithner said it was too soon to determine whether a second economic stimulus package is needed.I don’t think that’s a judgment we need to make now, can’t really make it now prudently, responsibly.

Biggest Thrust

Economists expect the biggest thrust of the $787 billion stimulus measure that President Barack Obama signed into law in February will take effect in the second half of this year, Geithner said.We’re going to start to see that happen,he said.

Obama defended the stimulus plan today in his weekly radio and Web address, saying it has worked as intended.Republicans have stepped up criticism of the recovery program for not rescuing the economy. Some Democrats, including House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland, have said they are leaving open the possibility of another measure to augment the first package.Geithner praised Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, saying he is doing a terrific job in handling the economic crisis and deserves a lot of confidence.What the Fed did during this period was absolutely essential and helped stave off a much more catastrophic outcome,Geithner said Asked whether he was endorsing Bernanke’s reappointment, Geithner replied: Again, I said that the chairman has done an exceptional job, and I think he deserves a lot of confidence.Geithner also reiterated the Treasury’s position that a strong dollar is in the interest of the United States.To contact the reporter on this story: Catherine Dodge in Washington at cdodge1@bloomberg.net

EU nations, Turkey sign major pipeline deal
By Hande Culpan – JULY 13,09

ANKARA (AFP) — Four EU countries and Turkey signed an accord Monday on building a major US-backed gas pipeline to reduce European reliance on Russia amid lingering uncertainty on who will supply the gas.The prime ministers of Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Turkey, inked the intergovernmental accord, hailing it as a milestone in the Nabucco pipeline project, long delayed by lack of commitment from gas-exporting nations.The 3,300-kilometre (2,000-mile) conduit is planned to become operational in 2014 at an estimated cost of 7.9 billion euros (10.9 billion dollars), with a capacity to pump 31 billion cubic metres of gas from the Caspian Sea to Austria via Turkey and the Balkans, bypassing Russia.The project is of crucial importance for EU's and Turkey's energy security,European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said at the ceremony.Sometime ago people said the project would not go ahead. I believe this pipeline is now inevitable rather than just probable,he said.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan voiced confidence that the more steps we take (on realising the project), the more the interest of supplier countries will grow.His Hungarian counterpart Gordon Bajnai warned of extremely difficult moments in the coming years that will require the highest level of commitment.Azerbaijan is seen as the primary potential provider of gas for the conduit, with Turkmenistan, Iraq and Egypt also mentioned for the long term.Azerbaijan insists it has enough reserves for the conduit. But last month it raised concerns among Nabucco proponents, signing a deal to export gas to Russia starting in 2010.The Nabucco project aims to avoid a repetition of cut-offs that have disrupted Russian supplies to Europe during the winter, with Moscow accused of using the gas as a political weapon.A quarter of all gas used in Europe comes from Russia, with several southern European countries depending almost exclusively on Russian supplies.Russia is expected not to hinder directly or indirectly the Nabucco project,said Bulgarian premier Sergey Stanishev, whose country was among the hardest hit by the cut-offs.Nabucco is in direct competition with Russia's South Stream project, which will carry Russian gas through Bulgaria to Western Europe under the Black Sea.The project appeared to get a boost Friday when Turkmenistan said it was prepared to supply Nabucco with gas, despite its earlier reluctance.And Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, who attended Monday's gathering here, said his country might contribute 15 billion cubic meters of gas.

But a US official cast doubt on the proposal, pointing at lingering disputes over natural resources between Baghdad and the Iraqi Kurds, who control oil- and gas-rich northern Iraq.Iraq needs some time to figure out how it is going to develop its natural resources and where it will sell that gas,Matthew Bryza, US deputy assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, told reporters.Iran is another possible supplier, but both the United States and the EU are opposed to its participation.Still, Erdogan insisted Monday that Iran and even Russia might join the project when conditions allow in the long term.Two European banks have expressed readiness to finance the project, but analysts say securing the cost could be difficult in the global economic slowdown and uncertainty over suppliers.The project has been delayed also by Turkish demands to use 15 percent of Nabucco's gas for domestic use or even for re-export.EU officials said Ankara's concerns were to be addressed by an arrangement under which the pipeline would operate both ways, giving Turkey access to European stockpiles in times of need.Erdogan said the pipeline "will elevate Turkey to a significant position" for European energy security and help boost its struggling EU membership bid.Barroso praised Turkey's role, saying the project could open the door to a new era in relations between Turkey and the EU, and beyond.
The pipeline's shareholders are Austria's OMV, Turkey's Botas, Bulgaria's Bulgargaz, Hungary's MOL, Romania's Transgaz and Germany's RWE.

Britain and France record highest June job cuts
LUCIA KUBOSOVA Today JULY 13,09 @ 09:39 CET

Job losses across the European Union continue to outnumber job gains, with the highest number of announced lay-offs recorded in June in France and Britain, a fresh EU report showed.The situation in the labour market in the 27-member bloc keeps deteriorating, according to a monthly monitor conducted by the European Commission and published on Friday (10 July).The report points out that between September 2008 and June of this year, some 640,000 jobs disappeared while 219,000 posts were created. Last month alone there were 87 cases of restructuring-related job losses, which led to 50,000 workers being put out of work. France with 19,625 announced lay-offs and Britain with 11,528 jobs to go, topped the June list of EU countries with the highest number of restructuring cases in the labour market, followed by the Czech Republic (3,070), Poland (2,310), Germany (1,960) and (1,950).Manufacturing and education were among the sectors most affected by lay-offs last month, accounting for almost two-thirds of announced job losses, 33,000 out of a total of 50,000.While manufacturing has proven to be the most damaged sector – almost 340,000 jobs have been lost since last September, half of the total job losses – the June statistics in education result from plans by the French education ministry to next year not refill the some 16,000 posts of departing staff.Another area reporting significant job cuts last month was financial services with 8,000 jobs lost, including over 4,500 posts in the UK's Lloyds Banking Group.

Over a longer period, the retail sector has registered the most large-scale closures and lay-offs, with companies such as the UK's Woolworths and Stylo as well as Germany's Arcandor most indicative of the sector's difficulties.Despite the new figures however, the highest unemployment rates continue to be recorded in Spain (18.7%), Latvia (16.3%) and Estonia (15.6%), according to the latest figures by Eurostat, the EU's statistics office. On a slightly more positive note, some 10,000 jobs were announced in June, with 8,000 in the manufacturing sector, most significantly in Polish shipyards at Szczeczin (3,000 jobs) and Gdynia (2,000 jobs) and in the Czech Republic's Kutna Hora (1,000 jobs). Brussels' report claims that although unemployment continues to rise across Europe and the labour market outlook for the coming months remains bleak, there are increasing signs that the pace of deterioration is moderating.

EU-backed Nabucco to receive legal certainty
RENATA GOLDIROVA Today JULY 13,09 @ 08:21 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The Nabucco project, designed to cut the dependence of energy-hungry Europe on Russian gas, will reach an important milestone later today (13 July) as EU governments and Turkey are set to sign a key transit pact.The signature will show that we are determined to make the Nabucco pipeline a reality as quickly as possible,European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said ahead of the signing ceremony, which would effectively end six months of intense negotiations on the use of the pipeline. The 3,300-kilometer pipeline is expected to run between the Caspian Sea region and Austria, crossing Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary. Ankara, for its part, wanted to take 15 percent of the gas flowing through Nabucco at a discounted price for internal consumption or even for re-exportation, but was not granted this.The Nabucco's entire capacity amounts to 31 billion cubic metres of natural gas per year.The [EU-Turkey] agreement is a very significant one, says Karel Hirman, an energy expert from the Slovak innovation and energy agency.Turkey sought to become a gas dealer, while this agreement will make it a regular transit country profiting from transit fees.Once the basic legal pact is sealed, companies keen to use the Nabucco pipeline can bid for its capacity by signing contracts with the Nabucco Gas Pipeline International, a consortium consisting of gas companies from the five countries concerned plus Germany's energy giant RWE.Things have to be done step by step,the European Commission energy spokesperson Ferran Taradellas Espuny said, explaining that once the gas is contracted, then you start building the pipeline.

Brussels has put aside €200 million from EU coffers as a little carrot for companies to begin construction work as quickly as possible. The incentive is part of the bloc's €5 billion recovery package and so needs to be spent in 2009 and 2010 in order to boost the ailing European economy. The Nabucco International Company has to make a proposal of how it intends to spend the money before 15 July,the commission spokesperson said. Construction is expected to begin in 2011, with the €7.9 billion project possibly up and running by 2015. However, its success hangs by a thin thread, being highly dependent on whether a sufficient number of countries commit themselves to put gas into the Nabucco pipe. The EU's executive body has put its biggest hopes on Azerbaijan. The country, with proven natural gas reserves of some 850 billion cubic metres, is seen as Nabucco's first source of gas. In addition, Turkmenistan's president Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov on Friday (10 July) said that Ashgabat had a surplus of natural gas available to foreign customers, including the Nabucco pipeline.

Iraq, Egypt and even Iran at a later stage are also seen as potential suppliers, with the commission's Ferran Taradellas Espuny arguing that the European market, including price conditions, is extremely attractive for gas producers in the region.But Karel Hirman, a Slovak-based energy expert, pointed to possible competitors such as Russia and China.China has intensified efforts to be present in Central Asia, Mr Hirman said, pointing to a pipeline between the Asian tiger and Turkmenistan that should be operational from next year.The EU-backed Nabucco project gained fresh momentum after Russia at the beginning of the year turned off its gas taps, leaving Ukraine and a number of European customers stranded.Bulgaria and Slovakia - entirely reliant on Russian supplies - were most affected, with Bratislava claiming the economic damage amounted to some 0.5 percent of the country's gross domestic product.

German debate on EU decision-making powers heats up
HONOR MAHONY Today JULY 13,09 @ 17:30 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Germany's debate on how much national say there should be over further EU integration is intensifying two weeks after the country's constitutional court handed down a significant judgement on the EU's Lisbon Treaty.The judgement was initially greeted with relief by the pro-integration camp as it did not say the EU treaty was incompatible with the German constitution. But the 147-page ruling, now scoured by legal and constitutional experts, is causing strong discussion in political circles, just weeks before a new draft law incorporating the court's points is to be published.Only after this law has been approved by parliament, may final ratification of the Lisbon Treaty - the signature by the German president - be completed.The 30 June judgement said that parliament should have final say when the EU seeks to extend competences beyond what is foreseen in the Lisbon treaty.The CSU, sister party of the governing Christian Democratic Union, fired the first shot in the debate after intensely discussing the issue over several days.

Its chief Horst Seehofer on Saturday (11 July) said his party wants parliament to have veto power on EU decisions. He said the parliament should be allowed to take a stance on certain issues and the government should be bound by it, but that parliament does not have to be asked for its opinion on every single EU decision.We want the EU to be able to function but it must also be democratically legitimised, said Mr Seehofer.The CSU's position has been supported by the left wing Die Linke, which was one of the co-plaintiffs in the original court case arguing that German's democracy was being undermined. Gregor Gysi, head of Die Linke, told Deutschland Funk that the maximum should be made out of the judgement, so that lower house and senate get as much co-powers as possible.Tuesday (14 July) is set to be an important day for the Lisbon Treaty debate as chancellor Angela Merkel will attend a CSU convention to discuss the issue.

The regions, too

Other actors are also getting in on the discussion. The country's regions (Länder) have said they want a say on EU decisions. Wolfgang Reinhart, head of the Europe committee in the senate and leader of a working group on the regions, told the Sueddeutsche newspaper:We do not want the government to carry on doing what it wants in those areas where, according to the constitution, we have core competences.He also suggested that it should have more say in EU decisions on family policy, criminal law and internal security when regional interests are affected, noting that if the new law following the court judgement is not watertight then others will also try and bring a case before the court.The scope law is set to have strong repercussions for Berlin's room for manoeuvre in Brussels negotiations as well as on any steps for further integration in the EU, with Germany traditionally being the engine behind EU cooperation.

The Austrian model?

German politicians are already looking to other member states where parliament has a say over EU decisions, such as Austria.Austrian foreign minister Michael Spindelegger told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung that on important issues he must consult with parliamentarians. According to the law, their position can be legally binding, he said.Austrian MPs receive all EU documents beforehand and can choose which themes they want to have a say on.According to Mr Spindelegger, some lessons have been learned over the 14 years in which the system has been in place. As an example, he said that at the beginning the position taken by parliament was sometimes too narrow so that the minister had no scope for flexibility. This reduced the parliament's position rather than enhanced it, he indicated.The minister said that now the parliament's opinions were normally formulated as recommendations giving Austrian politicians in Brussels flexibility so long as they follow certain important points or directions set by MPs.The formal binding [to parliament] and co-ordination of Austria's Europe policy is not a disadvantage. If a minister sets out good arguments, then the parliament will also follow the argumentation. That's democracy at work,Mr Spindelegger said.A first draft of the law is due on 26 August with the whole process supposed to be wrapped up before the general elections on 27 September.The extremely tight timetable is being made further difficult by the fact that politicians are now in election campaign mode. In addition, some of the law-makers supposed to take a leading role in forming the legislation have gone on holiday.

European Parliament gets on its feet
HONOR MAHONY Today JULY 13,09 @ 08:08 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – A new generation of MEPs will be trying to find their way around the famously labyrinth-like European Parliament building in Strasbourg this week as the constitutive session of the assembly gets under way.Almost half (49.8%) of the 736 deputies have been elected for the first time while women will represent just over a third of the assembly, which is also host to eight former prime ministers and boasts two octogenarians.The main buzz in the corridors will be one of deal-making as deputies divide up committee membership, firm up political alliances and formalise the political groups in parliament.There are 160 national groups represented within the parliament the vast majority of which are housed in the seven political groups ranging from the centre-right European People Party (265 MEPs) to the smallest, the newly-formed eurosceptic and right wing Europe of Freedom and Democracy (EFD) with 30 members.Just 28 MEPs are not non-attached, including the deputies from Britain's far-right BNP and the France's National Front.While the EFD rose out of the ashes of the equally eurosceptic Independence/Democracy group in the last parliament, there is a whole new group this time round in the form of the anti-federalist European Conservative and Reformists.

British Conservatives form the backbone of this group and there has already been much speculation about how much influence it will have over the next five years, with many of its members previously having been allied to the European People's Party.The group already looks set to scoop a major committee however. Parliament insiders suggest British Conservative Malcolm Harbour will chair the internal market committee. Other important committees include the environment committee, set to be chaired by German socialist Jo Leinen and the industry committee, which could land in the lap of German centre-right deputy Herbert Reul.The parliament will also elect its new president. But the secret ballot, taking place on Tuesday, is unlikely to be nail-biting event as most groups have said they will vote in favour of Jerzy Buzek, a Polish centre-right MEP.This parliament, the seventh legislature since direct elections began in 1979, is set to be of extra interest to political scientists who have already remarked that it is more fragmented than previously, making it more difficult to forge majorities.This legislature also appears to have a more cohesive front of eurosceptics, who are gathered in two groups, representing 11.6 percent of deputies. In addition, after voters decided to punish or not vote for the left in large numbers in the June elections, it is also more right wing.A coalition of the EPP, the Liberals and the new European Conservatives group would give the right an absolutely majority in parliament.The liberals have ruled out working with what they call anti-Europeans however meaning that parliament is set to continue its traditional modus operandi of thrashing out deals between the two biggest groups, the EPP and the Socialists.

There are some major pieces of legislation coming its way in the coming months including new laws on financial regulation, to be proposed by the European Commission in the autumn, a telecoms bill which failed at the 11th hour in the last parliament and legislation on cross-border health care.The parliament, while finding its feet over the next couple of months, will also be keenly waiting for the new Lisbon Treaty to come into force. If ratified across the Union, the treaty will greatly increase MEPs' powers of co-legislation.The institution has already flexed its muscles by scuppering member states' plans to have a July vote on the next president of the European Commission, postponing it to autumn instead.

Swedish Presidency: research must focus on grand challenges
[2009-07-10]

At a conference on research and innovation held in Lund, Sweden, hosted by the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, approximately 350 researchers, policy makers and representatives from industry and research funding institutions agreed on a declaration stating that European research policy should focus on global grand challenges such as climate change, water shortage and pandemics.The Lund Declaration, approved at the New world - New solutions conference, was handed over on 9 July to Tobias Krantz, the Swedish Minister for Higher Education and Research.The global community is facing grand challenges,the declaration states. The European Knowledge Society must tackle these through the best analysis, powerful actions and increased resources. Challenges must turn into sustainable solutions in areas such as global warming, tightening supplies of energy, water and food, ageing societies, public health, pandemics and security,it adds.It must tackle the overarching challenge of turning Europe into an eco-efficient economy.The declaration followed two days of discussions about the direction of research, during which Dr Krantz elaborated on the three main research priorities of the Swedish presidency.

First, we must find ways to enhance the cooperation between research, education and innovation, he said.Second, we want to develop a new governance structure for the European Research Area (ERA). [...] We must be able to argue that money invested in European research is money well spent. A more efficient system is a prerequisite for winning that fight.Dr Krantz stressed that the Member States must engage themselves more in the development of the ERA, allowing better flow of knowledge and resources between Member States. Political will and determination must go hand in hand with academic freedom, he highlighted.The third priority, said Dr Krantz, is to re-examine the structure of the EU's research framework programme (FP).Instead of being overly bureaucratic with a technical thematic structure, I believe it should be focused on achievements. We should use the European research programme to build knowledge to meet the grand challenges we face: climate change, water shortage, poverty, diseases. This will not only help improve Europe's competitive advantage; I believe it will also make the framework programme easier to understand and more accepted,he explained.

Basic research is vital to academic freedom,the Swedish minister underlined. Researchers must have the guts and the resources to ask impolite and uncomfortable questions. Sometimes curiosity is a good enough reason to start a research project: [you] never know what it might lead to. That does not mean that private companies can't fund a research project - they certainly can. It just means that they will have to be prepared to get an answer they may not like.The Lund Declaration echoes this sentiment, and promotes strengthening frontier research initiated by the research community itself. It is fundamentally important to create knowledge diversity, endowing the European Union with expertise, especially when confronted with unforeseen grand challenges and shocks,it reads.Competition among researchers will ensure that research carried out in Europe is of international excellence.The declaration also calls for support of both business development and public policy goals. Measures are needed to maximise the economic and societal impact of new knowledge in areas such as industrial, environmental and social policies, agriculture and regional development,it reads.Links between these policy areas and research policies must be strongly improved.The document stresses the importance of well-networked knowledge institutions, calling for the modernisation of universities and cooperation between universities and research institutions. This is a key element for enhancing the competitiveness of European research, it says, also urging the creation and maintenance of world-class research infrastructures in Europe, including installations for big science as well as those serving the needs of social sciences and humanities.The Lund Declaration is a strong plea for increased resources for European research, for better cooperation between different levels and for more edgy innovation systems,said Pär Omling, Director-General of the Swedish Research Council.
The Declaration is a good start [to] the work that we will conduct during the next six months. The proposals in the declaration conform well with the priorities we have made,said a pleased Dr Krantz.For more information, please visit: Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union: http://www.se2009.eu

UNION OF THE MEDITERRANEAN BACKROUND
http://www.eubusiness.com/Finance/upm-guide
EU COMMISSION CORDIS
http://cordis.europa.eu/news/home_en.html
OBAMA ADVISER WANTS WORLD POPULATION REDUCTION
http://www.prisonplanet.com/obama-science-advisor-called-for-planetary-regime-to-enforce-totalitarian-population-control-measures.html
MEDVEDEV SHOWS OFF NEW WORLD CURRENCY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDiKsstR5M0&feature=player_embedded
GORE CLIMATE BILL TO BRING ABOUT WORLD GOVERNMENT
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKKG-Xw2sFE&feature=player_embedded

EU releases EUR 72m for Mediterranean projects
10 July 2009, 18:25 CET Euromed

(BRUSSELS) - The European Commission announced Friday that it has allocated an additional 72 million euros (100 million dollars) for projects in the Mediterranean Sea region for 2009 and 2010.To mark the first anniversary of the Mediterranean Union, sealed in Paris on July 13, 2008, the EU's executive arm has decided to focus 22 million euros on cleaning up the sea.A 7.5-million-euro slice of the funds will be used for transport infrastructure, while five million will target alternative energy forms, with a focus on solar power.Other money will be spent on higher education, research and business investment, bringing the total overall European contribution for the two years to 90 million euros.More funds are provided by the European Investment Bank, participating states and the private sector.Launched to great fanfare by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, the union brings together EU members with states from north Africa, the Balkans, the Arab world and Israel to try to foster cooperation in a volatile region.But like its regional predecessor, the Barcelona Process which stalled in large part over Arab-Israeli disputes, the Mediterranean Union got bogged down by Israel's attack on the Gaza Strip in response to Hamas missile strikes.The initiative resumed last month when environment ministers, including representatives from Israel and the Palestinian territories, met in Paris, while finance ministers held talks in Brussels this week.

Union for the Mediterranean: Commission increases contribution to priority projects - briefing10 July 2009 by eub2 -- last modified 10 July 2009

On the eve of the first anniversary of the launching of the Union for the Mediterranean (Paris, 13 July 2008), the European Commission has announced an additional contribution of EUR 72 million, for 2009-2010, to the areas identified as priorities by the Euro-Mediterranean Heads of State and Government in Paris. Work will focus on the de-pollution of the Mediterranean Sea, maritime and land highways, alternative energies, with a focus on the Mediterranean Solar Plant, higher education and research and supporting investment in businesses. Part of the funds will be dedicated to support the running of the Union for the Mediterranean Secretariat. With this contribution, the total community budget dedicated since July 2008 to the priorities identified by the Union for the Mediterranean amounts EUR 90 million.

Environment - De-pollution of the Mediterranean (EUR 22 million for 2009-2010)

The programme Sustainable Water Management and De-pollution of the Mediterranean will promote sustainable water management policies and practices in the region in the context of increasing water scarcity, combined pressure on water resources from a wide range of users and desertification processes in connection with climate change. Part of the funds will be dedicated to support the Mediterranean Water Strategy.EUR 7 million will be dedicated to the implementation of the Horizon 2020 Programme as from September 2009, with an additional EUR 1 million (pre-accession instrument) to allow the participation of the Balkan countries and Turkey in the programme.

Maritime and Land Highways (EUR 7.5 million)

The Mediterranean Motorways of the Seas, phase II and Integrated Maritime Policy for the Mediterranean programmes will contribute to the development of an efficient and integrated Mediterranean Transport Network. Building on phase I, the Mediterranean Motorways of the Seas II will focus on maritime and port operations and on connecting the railway routes with the maritime connections.

Alternative Energies: Mediterranean Solar Plan (EUR 5 million)

The creation of a Mediterranean Solar Plan is one of the major concrete initiatives of the Union for the Mediterranean. To support this initiative, t he Commission is carrying out studies to identify the most effective strategy to develop and implement the Mediterranean Solar Plan and to identify areas where the EU assistance could be more efficient. The Commission will cooperate, with EUR 5 million, to the establishment of favourable conditions (institutional, legislative, technological and investment climate) for the development of renewable energy resources in the Mediterranean partner countries, including the Solar Plan.

FEMIP ( EUR 32 million for 2009-2010)

The Facility for Euro-Mediterranean Investment and Partnership provides capital to the private sector on terms that are not available locally. FEMIP will contribute during 2009 and 2010 to the de-pollution of the Mediterranean, under the Horizon 2020 , to the development of renewable energy in the Mediterranean region under the umbrella of the Mediterranean Solar Plant, and to the development of sustainable transportation infrastructures, as foreseen in the Maritime and Land Highways priority project. Higher Education and Research - Euro-Mediterranean University.The Commission is providing a contribution of EUR 1 million to the Euro-Mediterranean University in Portoroz (Slovenia) to allow non EU Mediterranean students to participate in the programmes.The European Commission is in the process of identifying the financial needs and possibilities related to the running of the UpM Secretariat in order to allocate funds.Before this new package, the Commission had allocated EUR 18 million to projects such as Development and reinforcement of the civil protection in the region by building and strengthening the reaction capacity.
The Invest in Med initiative which supports investments in the region.Mediterranean Maritime Security via the SAFEMED programme.

(2nd LD) S. Korea, EU to announce conclusion of FTA later Monday: official
By Byun Duk-kun

STOCKHOLM, July 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the European Union (EU) have reached agreement on a proposed free trade deal, leaving only initialing and signing of the agreement before it can be submitted to their respective legislatures for ratification, a South Korean official said Monday.South Korea and the EU began negotiations on an free trade deal two years ago. In March this year, they reached a tentative agreement on the deal with two stickiest issues -- duty drawback and rules of origin -- remaining unsettled. The official said what he called a virtual conclusion of the free trade agreement (FTA) will be declared later Monday by South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, who are set to hold a bilateral summit here.Sweden assumed the six-month presidency of the EU at the beginning of the month.The leaders will announce that a mutual agreement on all remaining points of contention has been reached and will call for an early initialing of the deal following swift legal reviews,the official, well versed in the Korea-EU FTA negotiations, told reporters here.This means all negotiations have been concluded and that a Korea-EU FTA has been reached,the official added.Lee and Reinfeldt, in their announcement, are expected to say only that the negotiations have culminated rather than declare an official accord. The declaration, technically, needs to be made by the European Commission, the executive committee of the EU that has led the FTA negotiations with Seoul.At least three EU member states were earlier said to have opposed the EU's trade deal with South Korea, but the South Korean official, currently accompanying the president, said all the countries have withdrawn their reservations, with only one country saying it needs a little more time to deal with any domestic opposition.The sides should be able to conclude their legal reviews after a couple of meetings by the end of August and then hold an initialing ceremony sometime in September,the official told reporters.Brussels had claimed that the so-called duty drawback, which allows Seoul to return import tariffs to South Korean companies that use imported materials to make products for exports, would favor South Korean exporters.

The EU does not allow duty drawbacks under its existing free trade accords with Mexico and Chile. Also, South Korea wants items made at a joint industrial complex in North Korea to be treated as South Korean goods.The EU was South Korea's second-largest trading partner after China last year, with two-way trade reaching more than US$98 billion.If the pact is finalized, it will boost South Korea's exports by $11 billion and gross domestic product by 3.08 percent, according to a forecast by the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy.South Korea, Asia's fourth-largest economy, reached a free trade deal with the United States in March 2007, shortly before it launched talks with the EU, but the deal has remained stalled in both legislatures.sam@yna.co.kr(END)

GOP unifies against any more stimulus spending By PHILIP ELLIOTT, Associated Press Writer - JULY 12,09

WASHINGTON – Republicans lined up Sunday in opposition to a second economic stimulus package, a rare demonstration of unity from an out-of-power political party in search of a rallying cry against President Barack Obama.Republicans called Obama's $787 billion spending plan a flop and said it hasn't fulfilled its hype. They criticized the White House for increasing the federal deficit and doing little to combat an unemployment rate that hit 9.5 percent in June.The reality is it hasn't helped yet, said Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz. Only about 6.8 percent of the money has actually been spent. What I proposed is, after you complete the contracts that are already committed, the things that are in the pipeline, stop it.Obama urged patience with his spending program, which administration officials acknowledge was designed with incorrect or incomplete economic data.The stimulus package is working exactly as we had anticipated,Obama told CNN in an interview from Ghana that aired on Sunday.We always anticipated that a big chunk of that money then would be spent not only in the second half of the year, but also next year. This was designed to be a two-year plan and not a six-month plan,he said.

Republicans, though, were not willing to sit by idly.

I do think it is fair to say that the stimulus is a flop,said Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va. The goal that was set when we passed it was unemployment wouldn't rise past 8.5 percent, and what we see now is businesses just aren't hiring. Even the best projections have us losing 750,000 more jobs this year.Congress passed Obama's economic stimulus plan over the objection of out-of-power Republican lawmakers. Since then, GOP aides on Capitol Hill and officials alike have seized on the spending's shortcomings and unfilled promises.A lot of it has been spent on ridiculous projects, said Sen. John McCain, the Arizona Republican who was his party's presidential nominee last year.Obama's allies defended the spending they helped usher into law.It's a two-year plan and we're four months into it,said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.

Some, including billionaire Warren Buffett, have called for a second round of spending to steady the economy. Obama and his allies have said it's too early to make that decision; his critics, though, pledged to redouble their opposition to any second spending bill.I think that would be the biggest mistake we could ever make, McCain said.Kyl and Durbin appeared on ABC's This Week.Cantor spoke with Fox News Sunday.McCain was interviewed on NBC's Meet the Press.

ALL BUSINESS: More toxic loans could haunt banks By RACHEL BECK, AP Business Writer – Sat Jul 11, 5:43 am ET

NEW YORK – Japan's economy was paralyzed for a decade as banks failed to deal with their troubled loans. That's why it's nothing short of stunning to discover some U.S. banks are doing the same thing now.Despite all the tough talk out of Washington and Wall Street about how the U.S. can't repeat what happened in Japan, the reality is that banks are granting extensions to borrowers in one key category, commercial real-estate loans, so they don't default. It's a bet that economic conditions will improve before the loans come due.They are kicking the can down the road, hoping things will be better soon,said Barry Ritholtz, head of the financial research firm FusionIQ and author of the new book Bailout Nation.This maneuvering is being called extend and pretend in financial circles, reflecting banks' willingness to extend loan maturities because they believe — or hope rental rates and building values could come back to levels seen during the peak of the real-estate market in 2007.Ritholtz and other financial experts worry that banks are just delaying the inevitable by not dealing with troubled loans now. And since commercial loans are such an important part of the portfolio of many small and midsized banks, it also could constrain their ability to make other new loans. An average of 20 percent of local and regional banks' loan exposure is in commercial real estate vs 4 percent for the nation's biggest banks, according to data from Deutsche Bank.This is a bad strategy,said Bryan Marsal, CEO of the corporate restructuring firm Alvarez & Marsal.It is really about not facing up to where you are today.Unlike fixed-rate home mortgages, most commercial property loans are structured as balloon notes. Borrowers pay only interest for the first five or 10 years until the loans mature, and then the entire amount must be paid back.In the boom years, rising rents and property values made it easy for borrowers to find multiple lenders willing to roll over these loans into new and often larger principal amounts that allowed owners to take out millions of dollars in cash to buy other properties.That game has come to a crashing halt. Cash flows are down on many properties as rental and occupancy rates have fallen, causing the value of many properties to drop significantly. That's made it tougher for owners to refinance their loans.Delinquency rates on commercial loans have doubled in the past year to 7 percent as more companies downsize and retailers close their doors, according to the Federal Reserve.

In some cases, banks are offering a temporary fix by granting borrowers an extension on loan maturities. On paper, that looks like a plus for the bank because the borrower pays a fee or agrees to pay a higher interest rate, or both. This allows banks to avoid having to foreclose or write down these loans as impaired assets. They also can keep the loans on their books as if nothing were amiss.This lets the banks post results that are misleading because the loans have more risk to them than they are disclosing,said Len Blum, managing partner at the investment-bank Westwood Capital.They can pretend things are better than they are.That's just what banks in Japan did back in the 1990s. After its debt-fed real estate bubble burst, Japan slid into what has come to be known the lost decade because of its drawn out economic and financial malaise.Even though the Japanese government injected trillions of yen into its banking system, new lending was constrained because troubled loans clogged banks' balance sheets. In some cases, banks refused to foreclose when owners couldn't even pay the interest. Instead, they added the unpaid interest to the loan's principal in the hope that borrowers' problems would be alleviated by an improving economic climate, which never materialized.What's worrisome is the lack of transparency about how often this is happening now in the United States. Due to privacy issues, banks aren't required to disclose details of specific loan extensions, and most news that does trickle out comes from public companies announcing that they have reached accommodations with their lenders.Just this week, Bluegreen Corp., a Boca Raton, Fla.-based timeshare resort developer, said it had gotten the maturity dates of a combined $130.1 million in liabilities extended. Others getting loan extensions in recent months were Toys R Us, Tanger Factory Outlets and Washington Real Estate Investment Trust.The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. believes that extending the maturity on commercial real-estate loans can be a value-maximizing and prudent approach,said FDIC spokesman Andrew Gray.

Gray said that its examiners are trying to make sure the loan extensions are being done prudently, and that credit losses are being recognized appropriately. The FDIC directly examines and supervises about 5,160 banks and savings banks. Bob Seiwert, who heads the Center for Commercial Lending and Business Banking at the American Bankers Association, said loan extensions should be done on a case-by-case basis and aren't necessarily a bad thing. Banks need to assess the chances of the principal amount being repaid and evaluate the viability on the loan on an ongoing basis, he said.It may still be a good project,Seiwert said.It just may need more time.There are already clear signs that worries about the commercial real estate market have constrained lending. The latest Federal Reserve Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey, from April, showed almost two-thirds of domestic banks had reported tightening lending standards and terms on commercial real estate loans over the previous three months.When lenders do the extend and pretend' routine because they don't want to deal with the problem ... what that causes them to do is to restrict their future lending. They pull back into their shell,said Marsal, who is also leading the liquidation of Lehman Brothers. When and if we do have an economic recovery, what it will do is slow the pace.Now imagine if the loans that are being extended turn up rotten a year or two from now. That could further hamper lending at local banks — the backbone of many small-town economies — meaning companies wouldn't be able to get loans to build new facilities or do renovations or repairs. Hiring would be curbed or more jobs cut, slowing consumer spending.The banks seem to think it is OK to hide their head in the sand and keep these kinds of loans on their balance sheets,said Westwood Capital's Blum.Until the banks really clean up their books, we risk repeating what happened in Japan.Rachel Beck is the national business columnist for The Associated Press. Write to her at rbeck(at)ap.org.

Canada eyes broader forum in addition to G8 Fri Jul 10, 9:15 am ET

L'AQUILA, Italy (Reuters) – Canada, which takes over G8 presidency next year, plans to create a broader forum to accompany deliberations of the eight major industrialized nations, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Friday.
Separately, Harper also pledged not to hike taxes to end the deficit and said he saw evidence that job losses were slowing.(Reporting by Randall Palmer)

No light at end of tunnel in Canada jobs, trade data
By Louise Egan – Fri Jul 10, 11:21 am ET

OTTAWA (Reuters) – Trade and employment data showed Canada still mired in recession at the middle of this year, and virtually guaranteed that the Bank of Canada would keep interest rates at rock bottom until mid-2010.Figures from Statistics Canada showed that fewer people lost their jobs in June than analysts had expected.But that appeared to be due largely to what one analyst dubbed a do-it-yourself recovery people trickling back to work through self-employment or in part-time jobs while full-time job creation was scarce.Net job losses in June totaled 7,400 and the unemployment rate rose to 8.6 percent from 8.4 percent in May, the highest since February 1998, Statscan said on Friday.The data triggered a short-lived rise in the Canadian dollar, but the mood darkened on closer look at the report.The good news, such as it is, stops at the headline, said Doug Porter, deputy chief economist at BMO Capital Markets.Eric Lascelles, chief economics and rates strategist at TD Securities, said the numbers were better than expected but not proof of a recovery in the labor market.We need to be somewhat cautious though because the quality of those jobs are not what one might desire,he said.The Canadian dollar rose as high as C$1.1615 to the U.S. dollar, or 86.09 U.S. cents, after the report.

But it soon erased those gains. By 10:45 a.m., the Canadian unit was at C$1.1649 to the U.S. dollar, or 85.84 U.S. cents, down from C$1.1623 to the U.S. dollar, or 86.04 U.S. cents, at Thursday's close.The good news was that the pace of job losses slowed sharply in the second quarter at 13,000 compared with 273,000 in the first quarter, according to Statscan.But the economy shed about 48,000 full-time jobs in June and added 40,000 part-time positions. Self-employment rose by 37,000, while 45,000 regular jobs were lost.Clearly, a grim labor market is forcing many Canadians to eke out a living through self-employment,said Erin Weir, economist with the United Steelworkers.

PRIME MINISTER SEES MORE JOB LOSSES

Prime Minister Stephen Harper, speaking in Italy after the G8 summit, said he expects more job losses in coming months, although he put an upbeat spin on the numbers.Right now we have greater stability. We don't yet have full recovery, he said.We have definite signs the severity of the recession is slowing.The data point to unchanged central bank policy on July 21 -- the bank's next rate announcement -- and beyond. The Bank of Canada has cut its key interest rate to 0.25 percent, which it considers the lower limit, and promised to keep it there until June 2010 unless inflation spikes.Friday's jobs report showed that inflation was easing slightly, according to one key measure. Wages for permanent employees rose a year-on-year 3.4 percent in June, down from the average 4.2 percent pace in the first quarter. Statscan also said Canada posted its largest trade deficit on record in May at C$1.42 billion ($1.22 billion) as energy and autos exports to the dominant U.S. market plummeted. The deficit was C$389 million in April.New housing prices slipped 0.1 percent in May and were down 3.1 percent on the year.The bottom line is simply that the disturbing trend of weaker global trade is continuing to be an albatross around the neck of the Canadian economy,said Millan Mulraine, economics strategist at TD Securities. We expect trade to remain a source of drag on Canadian economic activity in the second quarter.Weak U.S. and global demand pushed exports down 6.9 percent to their lowest since September 1998. Exports fell in volume terms but also because of a sharp rise in the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar in the month. Shipments to the United States, which buys about three-quarters of Canada's exports, tumbled 8.1 percent and Canada's trade surplus with its neighbor shrank to C$1.5 billion from C$2.6 billion in April.Total imports declined 3.5 percent.(Additional reporting by Frank Pingue and Nina Lex in Toronto; editing by Janet Guttsman)

Obama urges patience on economic stimulus plan July 12,09

WASHINGTON – With the economy still firmly in the grip of a tenacious recession, President Barack Obama is urging Americans to have patience and give his economic recovery plan time to work.Restating themes he laid out in his weekly radio and Internet address, Obama said in an op-ed posted early Sunday on The Washington Post's Web site that his $787 billion stimulus program was not expected to return the economy to full health, but to provide a boost that would stop the free fall.So far, it has done that,the president wrote.It was, from the start, a two-year program, and it will steadily save and create jobs as it ramps up over this summer and fall.He said his stimulus plan must be given time to work and appealed to Americans, who are increasingly uneasy with rising unemployment and ballooning budget deficits, to let his plan work the way it's supposed to, with the understanding that in any recession, unemployment tends to recover more slowly than other measures of economic activity.

The public has said in polls that it was willing to give Obama time to deal with the economic mess he inherited from President George W. Bush, but with unemployment pushing toward 10 percent, that patience will likely be tested.Republicans, sensing a political opening, have seized the opportunity to argue that Obama's economic stimulus plan was expensive and ineffective.Simply put, this is now President Obama's economy and the American people are beginning to question whether his policies are working,Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, the House Republican whip, said in the GOP's weekly address.Obama, in the op-ed, said Even as we rescue this economy from a full-blown crisis, I have insisted that we must rebuild it better than before.Health care costs must be controlled, jobs created within the U.S., worker training programs established and budget deficits reduced, he said.On the Net:
http://www.washingtonpost.com http://www.whitehouse.gov

SINS OF PEOPLE

2 TIMOTHY 3:1-5
1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,
7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

DECIEVERS WAXING WORSE AND WORSE.

2 TIMOTHY 3:13
13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

MORE SIN SIGNS

EPHESIANS 5:5-8
5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.
7 Be not ye therefore partakers with them.
8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:

GRAVE ROBBERS
http://watch.ctv.ca/news/latest/grave-crimes/#clip192550
MEXICO DRUG VIOLENCE AGAINST POLICE IN 6 CITIES
http://watch.ctv.ca/news/latest/drug-war/#clip192576

July 10, 2009
Grave robbers hit historic site

CHICAGO - GRAVE robbers stripped at least 300 plots at a historic black cemetery outside Chicago, dumped many of the bodies and then resold the plots for a profit, officials said on Thursday.The years-long scheme was carried out by the cemetery's manager and three gravediggers who sold the used graves so they could pocket the fees rather than pass them along to the Arizona-based owners. This was not done in a very delicate way, Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart said at a press conference.They would excavate a grave, excavate the entire site and then they would proceed to dump the remains wherever they found a place to do it in the back of the cemetery.They would also sometimes leave the remains in the grave and pound them down and put someone else on top,Sheriff Dart said.It will likely take months before authorities can identify all of the bodies and restore the gravesites, Sheriff Dart said, adding that efforts will be complicated by the fact that the cemetery's records were destroyed and altered.We don't know what else to tell the people, but we are horrifically sorry they have been subjected to this,Dart said.We are working on making this right.The scheme came to light when Burr Oak Cemetery's Arizona-based owners contacted the sheriff's department after discovering a large discrepancy in the cemetery's finances.Burr Oak is one of Chicago's oldest predominantly African-American cemeteries and is home to a number of historic figures, including Emmett Till, whose 1955 murder galvanized the civil rights movement. Blues legend Dinah Washington and boxing champ Ezzard Charles are also buried at Burr Oak.

The gravesites that were stripped and then resold were very old and appeared not to have regular visitors, officials said.Scores of distraught family members flooded the cemetery to check on the graves of their loved ones and try to find answers.There should be a special place in hell for these graveyard thieves who have done so much to hurt these families,civil rights leader Reverend Jesse Jackson said at the afternoon press conference.The cemetery's manager, Caroyln Towns, is also accused of pocketing cash from a fund she set up to build a memorial museum for Till. Towns and grave diggers Keith Nicks, Terrence Nicks and Maurice Daily were charged with dismembering a human body.This crime is a whole new dimension that shows us what lengths people would go through for financial gain,said Cook County prosecutor Anita Alvarez. -- AFP