RUSSIA TO ADOPT 1ST STRIKE NUKE POLICY

DANIEL 7:23-24
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast(THE EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADE BLOCKS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise:(10 NATIONS) and another shall rise after them;(#11 SPAIN) and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(BE HEAD OF 3 KINGS OR NATIONS).

Outlines emerging of new EU commission-There will be several familiar faces in the new commission (Photo: European Commission)HONOR MAHONY Today OCT 15,09 @ 17:43 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The next European Commission is set to be filled with conservative and liberal commissioners, feature several familiar faces, and plenty of new job titles. However, when it will be set up remains the great unknown.With just over two weeks to go before the current commission officially ends its term, and with weighty portfolios the most desired, member states have begun jostling to get a substantial seat at the commission table for the next five years. Several commissioner hopefuls have expressed an interest in an economic portfolio. A few member states, including Finland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Estonia, Latvia, Slovenia, Spain and Slovakia, have either officially re-nominated the same commissioner or are thought likely to do so.But for the vast majority of the 27 member states, there is a question mark over who they will send to Brussels. Most notable among the not-yet-named list are Germany, France and the UK. Those who are nominated late may find that the plum positions are already taken.In Germany, speculation has centred around interior minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, secretary of state Peter Hintze or centre-right MEP Elmar Brok. Romania has nominated former agricultural minister Dacian Ciolos and is looking for the farm portfolio, while Poland is considering nominating centre-right MEP Janusz Lewandowski and is eyeing the budget dossier. Ireland is deliberating between former president of the European Parliament Pat Cox and former justice minister Máire Geoghegan-Quinn - and while Dublin has resigned itself to winning a less substantial portfolio than the internal market job it currently holds, it will also be looking to be rewarded for the recent Yes vote to the EU treaty.Malta's Joe Borg would like to stay on in Brussels while Denmark's climate minister, Connie Hedegaard, may be heading to the EU capital. France is reportedly deliberating between Michel Barnier, former commissioner and current MEP, and Christine Lagarde, the highly respected economy minister.The most powerful posts include internal market, competition, industry and trade. Those at the other end of the scale include transport, communication, education and multilingualism, with the latter viewed almost as an insult.European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, himself one of the returning faces, has the power to choose who gets what post, a position that gives him quite some clout. But the selection process can also mean payback time for past favours.Spanish Prime Minister Jose Rodriguez Zapatero is said to want a strong commission post for the returning Joaquin Almunia, currently in charge of economic and monetary affairs. His leverage is that Spanish Socialists in the parliament are thought to have voted in favour of Mr Barroso, a centre-right politician, for a second term as commission chief.

New titles

For his part, Mr Barroso has invented a slew of new job titles for his next team. These include commissioners for climate change, interior security, fundamental rights and innovation. He is also set to have a chief scientific advisor. The next college is likely to have even fewer social democrat commissioners, clocking in at four - from Spain, the UK, Hungary and Greece. This is down from seven at the beginning of the first Barroso commission in 2004. It could also have its first non-European origin commissioner in the form of Shriti Vadera, a former UK business minister of Indian origin.Watchers of the European Commission will be keen to see if the next commission carries over some of the trends of the current set-up, including its much more presidential style.Piotr Kaczynski, a researcher at the Brussels-based Centre for European Studies, notes that this commission is much more concentrated around the figure of the president and much less collegiate.He adds that while it is capable of taking technical decisions, it lacks the capacity to take political decisions. According to Mr Kaczynski, the weekly meetings of 27 commissioners are much shorter than in the past. So even if the college is bigger, they talk less,he says, with Mr Barroso and a few engaged commissioners tending to take the decisions of the moment.The commission under Mr Barroso is also widely viewed as no longer being the agenda-setter in the EU, with much of the political impetus coming instead from member states.

Caretaker commission

But even if Mr Barroso is keen to get his new team up and running, the question is when this will happen.The commission term formally ends on 31 October. As of yet, it is not clear what legal basis will be used for forming a new commission, with the EU hoping to pass on to a new set of institutional rules, but being delayed by ratification problems in the Czech Republic. EU leaders are meant to discuss the commission posts and the new jobs created by the Lisbon Treaty at their end-of-October gathering but whether they can do this will depend on a positive signal by the Czech president that he intends to the sign the treaty.The Swedish EU presidency remains keen to have the institutional questions resolved as quickly as possible and the issue is still on the October summit's agenda. Meanwhile, MEPs on Thursday (15 October) were told to be on the alert for holding commissioner hearings in December. They are reportedly ready to try and fast-track the process by holding two hearings day.This would likely mean the new Barroso commission being voted on by European Parliament in mid-January.But if EU leaders are forced to wait until December to sort out the new line up in the commission as has been mooted, it could see the new team put in place as late as March next year.This would mean four months of a caretaker commission. Even a month or two of a lameduck commission is seen as politically dangerous as the EU heads into international climate change talks and member states look to buck key internal market rules amid the ongoing economic crisis.

Turkish press freedoms no concern of Brussels, says Ankara
LEIGH PHILLIPS Today OCT 15,09 @ 09:13 CET

Strong concerns about the state of freedom of the press in EU-candidate country Turkey expressed by the European Commission have irked Ankara, which has responded by saying that the matter is none of Brussels' business.In its annual report released on Wednesday (14 October) on how different countries that are applying to join the European Union are faring in bringing their legal frameworks in line with EU norms, for the first time, the commission criticised Turkey over freedom of the press for the record €2.2 billion fine slapped on the Dogan Yayin company, the country's largest media group.The tax fine imposed on the Dogan group is a matter for the Turkish Finance Ministry, not foreign authorities, and if it can't solve it, it is a matter for the Turkish judicial system,Turkey's chief European Union negotiator Egemen Bagıs told reporters shortly after the EU report was published, according to Turkish daily Zaman.The commission had said that the fine, imposed for unpaid taxes, could be a sign of political interference in the press, as the group's publications have featured articles focussing on alleged corruption within the ruling AK Party.The high fines imposed by the revenue authority potentially undermine the economic viability of the group and therefore affect freedom of the press in practice,the commission report said.The group owns much of the country's newspaper and television market and has complained that the fine will cripple it.

There is a need to uphold the principles of proportionality and of fairness in these tax-related procedures.I have asked the Turkish authorities to treat this matter very seriously,EU enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn told reporters on Wednesday.The episode comes just a week after liberal and left-wing deputies in the European Parliament sought a resolution condemning Italy for the government's alleged threats to freedom of the press.Both conservatives in the house and the European Commission argued that the EU institutions had no competence to criticise EU member states over press freedoms.At the time, Dutch liberal MEP Sophie in t Veld said: When we are negotiating with candidate states, we insist on the highest standards of press freedom. Why do we apply higher standards than in the EU? How can we tell candidate countries to improve their freedom of the press when we cannot tell this to member states?

Brussels dangles visa-free prospect in front of Kosovo
ANDREW RETTMAN Today OCT 15,09 @ 09:20 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The European Commission plans to set wheels in motion for visa-free travel with Kosovo despite its non-recognition by five EU states and high levels of both corruption and poverty. The EU executive in a report on Kosovo out on Wednesday (14 October) said it proposes to draft a comprehensive strategy to guide Kosovo's efforts to meet the EU's requirements for visa liberalisation.The process is open-ended for now, with visas to be scrapped only when the necessary reforms will have been undertaken.The move is a political response to popular feeling among Kosovar Albanians that Serbia, which is held responsible for the 1999 war and numerous atrocities, is being given privileged treatment by the EU while the victims of the conflict are left behind. Serbia, Macedonia and Montenegro will enjoy visa-free EU travel from January 2010. The Kosovo visa-free project is being launched despite the fact that Spain, Romania, Slovakia, Greece and Cyprus do not recognise it as an independent country.Notwithstanding EU member states' differing positions on Kosovo's status, the approach of diversity on recognition, but unity in engagement provides a constructive basis for progress,Wednesday's report said.An EU official pointed out that despite the legal complexities of the situation, Greece currently accepts Kosovo passports as valid travel documents, while Romania is a big contributor to Eulex, the EU police mission to the quasi-state. The EU report painted a worrying picture of Kosovo one and a half years on from Pristina's declaration of independence, an initiative orchestrated by the EU and US.

It complained of political interference in high-level appointments in the civil service, inadequate investigations into allegations of judicial corruption, lack of police access to Serb-controlled areas and porous borders with neighbouring states. Kosovo's economy grew by 5.4 percent last year but this was largely due to massive public spending and Kosovar expats sending home money from abroad. Meanwhile, GDP per capita was just €1,726, a fraction of the level in even the poorest EU state, Bulgaria (on around €8,000). Unemployment stood at 40 percent, rising to over 70 percent among young people.In a curious snapshot of Kosovo society, the EU paper said 50 percent of people own mobile phones, but just one third of homes are connected to sewage pipes.The wide possession of weapons by the civilian population remains a serious concern,the report added.

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)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
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)(HAMAS) 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.

Magnitude 6.0 quake hits off Samoa: USGS Wed Oct 14, 2:50 pm ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A strong magnitude 6.0 quake struck in the ocean off Western Samoa, the U.S. Geological Survey reported on Wednesday, less than two weeks after the Pacific islands were hit by a series of tsunamis sparked by a powerful 8.0 earthquake.The USGS said the quake struck at 6 a.m. on Thursday local time (1800 GMT on Wednesday) and was only 6.2 miles deep. It was centered 227 miles west of Apia in Western Samoa.(Reporting by Sandra Maler, Editing by Frances Kerry)

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.

Tropical Storm Patricia peters out near Mexican coast Wed Oct 14, 9:24 am ET

MIAMI (AFP) – Tropical Storm Patricia weakened rapidly into a remnant low early Wednesday just as it threatened to lash Mexico's resort-dotted Baja California peninsula, US forecasters said.The Miami-based National Hurricane Center said all storm warnings in effect along the southern part of Baja California from the town of Buena Vista to Agua Blanca, were lifted as Patricia imploded.At 0900 GMT Wednesday, the remnants of Patricia were located 25 kilometers (about 15 miles) southeast of Cabo San Lucas and were heading west-northwest at nine kilometers (six miles) per hour, with diminishing top winds around 45 kilometers per hour (30 mph).Gradual weakening is expected and the low is expected to dissipate in the next day or two, the hurricane center said in an advisory.Rainfall from the storm had been forecast to total as much as eight centimeters (three inches) across southern portions of the peninsula.The Mexican government had placed Los Cabos and La Paz under a state of emergency and other nearby towns on alert in the event Patricia held together into Wednesday.In September, Hurricane Jimena struck the peninsula, leaving one person dead, and causing widespread flooding and property damage.

FAMINE

REVELATION 6:5-6
5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.
6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.(A DAYS WAGES FOR A LOAF OF BREAD)

FAMINE

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: 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.

UN: Record 1 billion go hungry By TOM MALITI and ARIEL DAVID, Associated Press Writers – Wed Oct 14, 4:46 pm ET

NAIROBI, Kenya – Parents in some of Africa's poorest countries are cutting back on school, clothes and basic medical care just to give their children a meal once a day, experts say. Still, it is not enough.A record 1 billion people worldwide are hungry and a new report says the number will increase if governments do not spend more on agriculture. According to the U.N. food agency, which issued the report, 30 countries now require emergency aid, including 20 in Africa.The trend continues despite a goal set by world leaders nine years ago to cut the number of hungry people in half by 2015.It's actually a world emergency that calls for action from both developing and developed countries,said Otive Igbuzor, the head of international campaigns for ActionAid International.

We know a child dies every six seconds of malnutrition,he said.Spiraling food prices have added to hardships, especially in the world's most desperate countries where the poor could barely afford a single daily meal to begin with. The inflated prices — which caused riots across the globe last year — have stabilized but remain comparatively high, especially in the developing world, Jacques Diouf, director general of the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, told AP Television News.In Somalia, ravaged by violence and anarchy for almost two decades, the monthly expenditure for food and other basic needs for a family of six has risen 85 percent in the past two years, said Grainne Moloney of the Somalia Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit.On average, such a family spent $171 in September this year, compared with $92 for the same amount of food and other needs in March 2007, said Moloney, a nutrition expert for the Horn of Africa nation.Families are cutting out the school, cutting out the clothes. A lot of them are going for cheaper cereals," said Moloney, adding that despite those desperate measures, one in five children in Somalia is acutely malnourished.Igbuzor said the trend can be seen in impoverished countries across Africa.In Kenya, herders have seen scores of their animals die and crops have withered because of drought. Today, 3.8 million people in Kenya need food aid, up from 2.5 million earlier in the year.After worldwide gains in the fight against hunger in the 1980s and early 1990s, the number of undernourished people started climbing in 1995, reaching 1.02 billion this year amid escalating food prices and the global financial meltdown, the FAO said in its Wednesday report.

The long-term trend is due largely to reduced aid and private investments earmarked for agriculture since the mid 1980s, the Rome-based agency said in its State of Food Insecurity report for 2009.In 1980, 17 percent of aid contributed by donor countries went to agriculture. That share was down to 3.8 percent in 2006 and only slightly improved in the last three years, Diouf said.In the fight against hunger the focus should be on increasing food production,Diouf said.It's common sense ... that agriculture would be given the priority, but the opposite has happened.The decline may have been caused by low food prices that discouraged private investment in agriculture and competition for public funds from other aid fields, including emergency relief, said FAO economist David Dawe.Governments and investors may also have chosen to put their money into other economic sectors because agriculture's share of the economy in some developing countries dropped as people moved to cities and found work in industry.But agriculture still needs sustained investment to feed people in developing countries, Dawe said. The world's most populous region, Asia and the Pacific, has the largest number of hungry people — 642 million — followed by Sub-Saharan Africa with 265 million. Diouf said world leaders are starting to understand that investment in agriculture must be increased. He cited the goal set by the Group of Eight summit in L'Aquila, Italy, in July to raise $20 billion to help farmers in poor countries produce more — a shift from previous emphasis on delivering food aid.However, more investments will be needed to fulfill pledges like the U.N. Millennium Development Goals, which aim to halve the number of those living in hunger and poverty by 2015, the report said.The FAO says global food output will have to increase by 70 percent to feed a projected population of 9.1 billion in 2050.To achieve that, poor countries will need $44 billion in annual agricultural aid, compared with the current $7.9 billion, to increase access to irrigation systems and modern machinery as well as build roads and train farmers.Associated Press writer Ariel David reported from Rome.

Faith-Based Reform Veers Into Israeli Policy - It’s Clearly Outside the Scope of The Office,’ Says One Observer By Rebecca Dube Published October 14, 2009, issue of October 23, 2009.

A task force charged with improving the White House’s faith-based initiative program has waded into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, raising eyebrows and concern among Jewish leaders.Most of the attention around the controversial Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, begun by President George W. Bush and continued by President Obama, has centered on church-state separation issues. On October 13, a White House-appointed advisory council released its first set of recommendations for addressing those issues, urging both greater emphasis on transparency and stronger prohibitions against proselytizing by religious institutions receiving federal funds.

But in the final days of drafting the recommendations, a six-member task force on addressing interfaith issues inserted language about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into its recommendations for the faith-based program — which helps religious and community groups tap into federal funding for local projects such as drug rehabilitation, job training and soup kitchens.The task force, one of several that were presenting recommendations, said the Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships should create a working group of multi-religious and community organizations focused on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, to advise administration officials at the National Security Council and the State Department on a just resolution of the conflict.One task force member explained that in order to promote interfaith dialogue, especially with the Muslim world, it was important to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But Jewish leaders across the spectrum expressed concern, saying it makes no sense to single out one foreign policy issue in a document devoted to improving a domestic program focused on local neighborhood projects.My initial reaction is, it’s clearly outside the scope of the office,said Deborah Lauter, civil rights director of the Anti-Defamation League.Nathan Diament, public policy director of the Orthodox Union, served on that advisory task force and said he does not think the Israeli-Palestinian language will make it into the final recommendations that will go to Obama in February 2010.

These are still preliminary drafts,he said.

Meanwhile, Jewish leaders expressed satisfaction with the draft recommendations on strengthening church-state separation in the faith-based initiatives program, even though one of the largest issues was off the table. They’re starting to hear us, and we’re starting to feel better about it,Lauter said.The recommendations reflect a lot of consensus that I am comfortable with,Diament said.

During the presidential campaign, Obama pledged to continue the Bush administration’s

faith-based program, but he promised one important change: Taxpayer money would no longer go to groups that discriminate in hiring. (Many religious groups do hire people based on their religious values, a practice protected by the 1964 Civil Rights Act.)After the election, Obama reneged on the second half of that campaign promise. He appointed an advisory panel, divided into several task forces, to make reform recommendations, but he said the Justice Department and White House counsel would sort out the hiring discrimination issue.The fact that [the advisory council members] were instructed not to address it was a huge disappointment for us, Lauter said.More conservative organizations, however, hope to preserve the status quo. To us, faith-based groups — both as a matter of religious liberty and as a foundation for their effectiveness and success — must be allowed to maintain their religious character and mission, and hiring policies are an integral part of that equation, said Rabbi Abba Cohen, director of the Washington office of the ultra-Orthodox umbrella group Agudath Israel of America.Since its inception, the faith-based office has distributed more than $2 billion in federal funding, the ADL estimates, and the federal stimulus package is now making even more money available to religious and community groups. The first draft of task force advice aims at more clearly separating church and state, including the following recommendations:
-Strengthen prohibitions against proselytizing to program beneficiaries, and ensure that people who get federally funded services through religious programs know their rights.
-Increase transparency by posting a list online of groups that receive money through the faith-based initiatives office.
-Strengthen the language in the Executive Order that created the faith-based program, to make it clear that sticking to constitutional principles is as important as distributing money efficiently.It looks like they would immediately set in motion needed improvements,Lauter said.For eight years… billions in taxpayer money has been flowing to sectarian organizations, primarily churches, without safeguards.Contact Rebecca Dube at dube@forward.com

We must do everything to stop Iran Wednesday, 14 October 2009 05:41 News from Jerusalem .Defense Minister and Labor chair Ehud Barak

Israel retains all options, including military action, to stop Iran's nuclear program, Defense Minister Ehud Barak told Czech Prime Minister Jan Fischer on Tuesday during talks in Prague.Barak traveled to Prague to speak at the fourth meeting of the Forum 2000, a gathering of world leaders started by former Czech president Václav Havel and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie Wiesel.Before the forum opened, Barak met with Fischer and Czech Defense Minister Bogdan Klich and called to impose tough sanctions on Iran that would have a time limit.Iran is a threat to the entire world and not just Israel,Barak said. The international community needs to unite together against this threat and recruit countries like Russia, China and India. Israel believes that everything needs to be done to stop Iran from becoming nuclear.Barak also referred to the Goldstone Report on Operation Cast Lead and said it was biased and distorted and would encourage terrorism while restricting democracies around the world in fighting terrorism.He called on the Palestinian leadership to build up the courage to advance the peace process and start negotiations with Israel.I do not think that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the source of all the problems in the Middle East, since even if there [were] peace, the Ayatollahs in Teheran would still not recognize Israel's right to exist,Barak said.On Wednesday, Barak will travel to Poland for talks with the Polish leadership. He will also visit Auschwitz with a group of IDF officers.jpost

ISRAEL DISARM HEZBOLLAH
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TRcgjU-JAA&feature=player_embedded

Israel: Disarm Hezbollah Wednesday, 14 October 2009 05:57 News from Jerusalem .Stop Hezbollah rearmament.Shalev

Israeli ambassador to the UN Gabriella Shalev on Tuesday filed an official complaint with Secretary-General Ban-Ki-moon over what she said was Hezbollah's violation of Security Council resolution 1701, which ended the war between Israel and the Shiite group in 2006.The compliant referred to Monday evening's explosion at the home of a Hezbollah operative in south Lebanon, which according to Israel proved the Shiite group was illegally storing weapons south of the Litani River in violation of the UN resolution. Shalev mentioned another explosion which took place at a Hezbollah arms cache three months ago.In the aftermath of the explosion, Hizbullah operatives sealed off the area and, according to reliable information, used two trucks to remove evidence from the scene to a nearby village three kilometers from Tyre Filsi, Shalev wrote in the complaint letter.The ambassador said Hezbollah was using residents of villages in south Lebanon as human shields.The aforementioned incidents leave no doubt regarding Hizbullah’s modus operandi to place its military weapons and facilities in civilian villages and houses. Such use of civilians as human shields endangers their safety,Shalev wrote.Earlier Tuesday the IDF released footage showing weapons being loaded onto trucks near the home of Hezbollah operative Abdel Nasser Issa in the southern Lebanon village of Tayr Filsi, on the outskirts of Tyre.

Issa and his son were reportedly killed Monday evening during an explosion that took place inside their home, which the IDF claims was used to store weapons.Shalev said in the complaint that elements in the Lebanese army were purposely ignoring the rebuilding of Hezbollah's infrastructure, adding that Israel considers the Lebanese government responsible for any incident that occurs in its territory and therefore expects it to take necessary measures to prevent Hezbollah's rearmament in south Lebanon.The ambassador demanded that UNIFIL forces stationed in south Lebanon launch an investigation into Monday's blast and called on the Security Council to address Hezbollah's rearmament when it convenes at the end of the month to discuss the implementation of Resolution 1701.Shalev urged the Security Council to disarm Hezbollah and enforce the weapons embargo on Lebanon.ynet

BBC: Downplaying Sderot's Suffering Wednesday, 14 October 2009 15:27 News from Jerusalem .Sderot life under threat of terror Katya Adler's report pays lip service to the plight of Israeli schoolchildren.

As part of its Hunger to Learn series, the BBC's Katya Adler meets children in Gaza whose schooling has been repeatedly interrupted by conflict.Undoubtedly, Palestinian children have suffered as a result of difficult conditions in Gaza. However, Adler's report demonstrates typical BBC bias:The report implies that Israel deliberately bombed a primary school during the recent Gaza conflict. Israel's motivations for taking military action are subtly questioned: Israel says this is in response to rocket and mortar fire by Gaza militants, aimed at Israeli citizens. Does the BBC believe it possible that Israel took military action in Gaza simply for the sake of it? Indeed, while Israel does not deliberately target schoolchildren, the same cannot be said of Palestinian terrorists who have deliberately launched rocket attacks at specific times when Israeli children are travelling to their schools, considering it an achievement if a rocket lands (as they have done on numerous occasions) on schools or kindergartens.Adler discusses the mental scars of Gazan children due to Operation Cast Lead, referring to psychological and social problems and difficulty concentrating. While this may be the result of Israel's three-week operation, the same descriptions could be equally applied to the Israeli children of Sderot who have suffered from 8 years of rocket attacks from Gaza.According to a 2008 NATAL study (Center for Victims of Terror and War), between 70% to 94% of Sderot children suffer from symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder while 28% of children are diagnosed with PTSD. About 30% of Sderot adults are also diagnosed with PTSD.In addition, over 5,500 patient files have been opened in the Sderot Mental Health Center in light of continuous rocket fire. In the year 2007 alone, 1,117 trauma victim files were opened. Anxiety symptoms among children often include sleeping difficulties, nightmares, sweating, development regressions, wetting beds, and fear of the outside.

Despite this, nowhere in the online text is any reference to the suffering and trauma of Israeli children whose education and daily lives have also been affected by conflict. However, perhaps in a poor attempt to claim a semblance of balance, Adler interviews two Israeli pupils from Sderot in the second of two short video segments.Deliberately downplaying the situation in Sderot, Adler says to them: When you talk to schoolchildren in Gaza they say look at us, so many of us are killed in wars with Israel, whereas in Sderot not many children die, not many are injured, not many rockets are actually fired.Would Adler consider questioning Gazan pupils about their views on rockets fired at their Israeli counterparts? In fact, some 12,000 rockets and mortars have been fired from the Gaza Strip since 2001 while over 1,000 people have been wounded as a result.Indeed, the attitude and presentation between the two videos is striking. Israeli pupils are interviewed in a sterile and quiet school playground environment, pictured talking directly to Adler. In stark contrast, the segment in Gaza is interspersed with dramatic scenes of conflict and destruction to accompany the interviews with Palestinian children. There are plenty of images and footage available of rocket attacks on Sderot but the BBC evidently chose not to use them thus downplaying their effects.Katya Adler's lip service to balance is yet another example of the BBC's anti-Israel bias.Perhaps more disturbing is an almost identical video clip adapted from Adler's report for Children's BBC Newsround, aimed specifically at British schoolchildren. Complete with images of the Gaza conflict, there is no attempt to provide context to the military operation other than to say that a school had been bombed by Israel to protect its own soldiers from attack.There is no mention of Sderot, Hamas, Palestinian terror or any other details, even in a simple form that might aid a child's understanding of the situation. Instead, young minds will invariably perceive Israel as the bad guy in the story. Yet more pernicious reporting from the BBC - poisoning children against Israel.You can send your comments to the BBC Complaints website - http://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints.Honest Reporting.

MUSLIM NATIONS

EZEKIEL 38:1-12
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW)and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY)of the north quarters, and all his bands:(SUDAN,AFRICA) and many people with thee.
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.(RUSSIA-EGYPT AND MUSLIMS)
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.

ISAIAH 17:1
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.

PSALMS 83:3-7
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they (MUSLIMS) have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,(JORDAN) and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, PALESTINIANS,JORDAN) and the Hagarenes;(EGYPT)
7 Gebal,(HEZZBALLOH,LEBANON) and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA,ARABS,SINAI) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)

DANIEL 11:40-43
40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south( EGYPT) push at him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) and the king of the north (RUSSIA AND MUSLIM HORDES OF EZEK 38+39) shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.
41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.(JORDAN)
42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.
43 But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.

EZEKIEL 39:1-8
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.

JOEL 2:3,20,30-31
3 A fire(NUCLEAR BOMB) devoureth before them;(RUSSIA-ARABS) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army,(RUSSIA,MUSLIMS) and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.(SIBERIAN DESERT)
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(NUCLEAR BOMB)
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.

Russia to adopt first strike nuclear policy: official MOSCOW, Oct 14 (AFP) Oct 14, 2009

Russia will revise its military doctrine to allow a preventative nuclear strike against would-be aggressors, a top Kremlin policy-maker was quoted as saying on Wednesday.Nikolai Patrushev, the secretary of the powerful security council, said the conditions under which Russia could resort to atomic weapons are being reworked in the main strategy document and will be reviewed by President Dmitry Medvedev by the end of the year.The conditions have been revised for the use of nuclear weapons to rebuff an aggression with the use of conventional weapons, not only on a massive-scale but on a regional and even local level,Patrushev told the Izvestia newspaper.

Variants are under considerations for the use of nuclear weapons depending on the situation and potential of a would-be aggressor,he said.In a critical situation for national security, a preventative nuclear strike on an aggressor is not ruled out.
Under its current military doctrine, Russia says it would only carry out a nuclear strike if it were attacked with weapons of mass destruction or if it were the victim of large-scale aggression using conventional arms.Russian and US negotiators are now working furiously to agree on new arms cuts of their nuclear arsenal before a key Cold War-era disarmament treaty expires on December 5.US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reiterated the joint drive to achieve new arms reductions by this deadline after talks in Moscow this week.Since the 1991 Soviet collapse, Russian military planners have relied increasingly on the country's huge nuclear deterrent as the capabilities of its conventional forces have deteriorated.Patrushev, the former director of Russia's powerful FSB security service, has headed efforts to develop a new military doctrine in recent years to coincide with plans for a radical modernization of Russia's armed forces.

John Bolton Suggests Nuclear Attack on Iran
Daniel Luban The Faster Times Wednesday, Oct 14th, 2009

This Friday, the American Enterprise Institute will host an event addressing the question Should Israel attack Iran? The event includes, among others, Iran uberhawk Michael Rubin and infamous torture lawyer John Yoo, but the real star is likely to be John Bolton, the former U.N. ambassador whose right-of-Attila views left him an outcast even within the second Bush administration. (Bolton was eventually forced out when it became clear that he would be unable to win Senate confirmation for the U.N. post.)If Bolton’s recent rhetoric is any indication, his AEI appearance may accomplish the formidable feat of making Michael Rubin sound like a dove. Discussing Iran during a Tuesday speech at the University of Chicago, Bolton appeared to call for nothing less than an Israeli nuclear first strike against the Islamic Republic. (The speech, sponsored by the University Young Republicans and Chicago Friends of Israel, was titled , apparently without a trace of irony, Ensuring Peace.)

Negotiations have failed, and so too have sanctions,Bolton said, echoing his previously-stated belief that sanctions will prove ineffectual in changing Tehran’s behavior. So we’re at a very unhappy point — a very unhappy point — where unless Israel is prepared to use nuclear weapons against Iran’s program , Iran will have nuclear weapons in the very near future.Bolton made clear that the latter option is unacceptable. There are some people in the administration who think that it’s not really a problem, we can contain and deter Iran, as we did the Soviet Union during the Cold War. I think this is a great, great mistake and a dangerously weak approach…Whatever else you want to say about them, at least the Soviets believed that they only went around once in this world, and they weren’t real eager to give that up — as compared to a theological regime in Tehran which yearns for life in the hereafter more than life on earth…I don’t think [deterrence] works that way with a country like Iran.While Bolton coyly refused to spell out his conclusion, the implications of his argument were clear. If neither negotiations, nor sanctions, nor deterrence are options, then by his logic the only remaining option is for Israel…to use nuclear weapons against Iran’s program.Of course, it is nothing new for Bolton and his neoconservative allies to threaten an Israeli strike against Iran. But Bolton’s use of the n-word is, I believe, new for him, and marks a significant rhetorical escalation from the hawks. An Israeli strike, nuclear or otherwise, without U.S. permission remains unlikely. But as it often the case, I suspect that Bolton’s intention is less to give an accurate description of reality than it is to stake out positions extreme enough to shift the boundaries of debate as a whole to the right.

RUSSIA KEY TO IRAN
http://live.radioamerica.org/loudwater/player.pl?name=wnd&url=http://feeds.radioamerica.org/podcast/DWP/audio/000007_013607.mp3

Obama’s Nobel, Israel’s problem? Wednesday, 14 October 2009 06:38 News from Jerusalem .More inclined to dismiss the military option against Iran after winning the Nobel Peace Prize?

Although warm and effusive in their congratulations, Israeli officials fear President Obama's Nobel Peace Prize could limit his options on Iran.They argue that Obama, having won the prestigious award for restoring the role of diplomacy in international affairs, may be more inclined to take the military option off the table, paving the way for Iran to advance its nuclear plans with relative impunity.

The Israelis have similar concerns on the Palestinian track, fearing the prize might encourage Obama to redouble his efforts for an independent Palestinian state by 2012 by pressing Israel to make far-reaching concessions.Even before news of the Nobel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had deep misgivings about the new U.S. diplomatic engagement with Iran.Successful dialogue could lead to pressure on Israel to dismantle its reputed nuclear arsenal. One Israeli nightmare scenario is that Iran demands Israeli nuclear disarmament as a condition of its agreement to drop its nuclear weapons program.Were this to happen, the Israelis fear the praise the Norwegian Nobel committee heaped on Obama's advocacy of a nuclear-free world could exacerbate their predicament.What worries Israeli strategic thinkers more is the more likely scenario of a U.S.-Iran dialogue that fails to produce conclusive results, sucking the Obama administration into a long-meandering process the Iranians use as a cover to advance their nuclear activities.The concern persists despite U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's reassurance in London last weekend that the international community will not wait indefinitely for evidence that Iran is prepared to live up to its international obligations.With all these developments, the Netanyahu government seems to be developing a pragmatic Iran strategy. Netanyahu seems resigned to waiting out Washington’s efforts at dialogue and to giving international sanctions a chance if dialogue fails. Some of Netanyahu's close advisers say the dialogue stage is necessary so that when it fails -- as it is bound to do, they argue -- Obama will be able to muster an effective and widely backed sanctions regime.The main plank of the Israeli waiting game, however, is to coordinate throughout as closely as possible with Washington on intelligence and on possible military action. Netanyahu, who has warned repeatedly that Israel will not tolerate a nuclear Iran, does not want to act without close U.S. coordination.

That’s where this month's huge joint military exercise in Israel’s Negev Desert comes in. In maneuvers dubbed Juniper Cobra, the Israel Defense Forces, the U.S. European Command and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency will test four defense systems against incoming ballistic missiles, such as those from Iran. The main purpose will be to hone the interoperability of Israel’s Arrow 2 and three state-of-the-art American systems: the high altitude THAAD, the ship-based Aegis and the lower altitude Patriot PAC 3.All four will be coordinated by American X-Band Radar, deployed in the Negev since last October and capable of tracing an object as small as a baseball from a distance of approximately 3,000 miles. This means that with X-Band and the various interceptor systems, Israel theoretically could shoot down Iranian Shihab missiles shortly after take-off and possibly still over Iranian territory. Israelis also would get warning time of 5 to 7 minutes to take cover after Iranian missile firings.About 1,000 U.S. soldiers and 15 U.S. naval vessels are taking part in the exercise, the fifth of its kind since 2001 and by far the biggest and most complex.After the exercise, the Americans may leave behind some PAC-3 interceptors and deploy Aegis vessels in the Mediterranean and Red seas. Washington is considering deploying parts of the missile defense system it had intended for Eastern Europe in Israel, Turkey and the Balkans. U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates says this will enable the United States to have a partial system working by 2011, whereas in Eastern Europe it would have taken until 2017.All this sends a strong message to Iran. Attacking Israel would mean confronting an Israeli-American defensive umbrella at the very least, and possibly a lethal Israeli-American counter-offensive.But it also sends a strong message to Israel. If it can count on a strong American umbrella, it should feel less compelled to act against Iran on its own, less concerned about giving up its reputed nuclear arsenal and more inclined to make concessions to the Palestinians.Of course, that still leaves the $64,000 question unanswered: What happens if the United States gets sucked into a long, seemingly aimless dialogue with Iran, and Israel sees smoking-gun evidence of an incipient Iranian nuclear capability that America chooses to ignore? That's the scenario Netanyahu hopes his coordination strategy will help avoid. Otherwise he is facing one of the hardest choices of any Israeli leader: To antagonize America or face the consequences of a nuclear Iran.JTA

WE WILL SEE WHO GETS PUNISHED AND EATIN BY THE MIGRATING BIRDS AND ANIMALS WHEN RUSSIA,MUSLIMS MARCH TO ISRAEL.....GET PREPARED ISLAM-RSSIA.

Palestinians urge Israeli punishment over Gaza By EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press Writer – Wed Oct 14, 7:06 pm ET

UNITED NATIONS – The Palestinians called Wednesday for global action to punish Israel for alleged war crimes during its military assault on Gaza last winter, warning that the credibility of the United Nations and international human rights law was at stake.The demand was based on the findings of a commission headed by former South African judge Richard Goldstone that accused both Israeli forces and Palestinian militants of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity during their Dec. 27-Jan. 18 war.Israel immediately rejected the commission's report, calling it one-sided, biased and therefore wrong.The report became the focus of the Security Council's monthly Mideast meeting on Wednesday after an about-face by the Palestinians.Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Al-Malki and Israel's U.N. Ambassador Gabriela Shalev opened the council meeting Wednesday by trading accusations about the Goldstone report. The session ended Wednesday evening after nearly 50 speeches.

The U.N. Human Rights Council commissioned the report and took it up in early October, but Palestinian diplomats agreed to delay consideration until March under heavy pressure from the United States. The U.S. feared it would jeopardize attempts to revive the Mideast peace process.The call for a delay sparked scathing criticism of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and led the Palestinians to reverse course, first seeking an emergency Security Council meeting and then seeking to reopen the Human Rights Council debate, which will happen on Thursday.The Goldstone report concluded that Israel used disproportionate force, deliberately targeted civilians, used Palestinians as human shields, and destroyed civilian infrastructure during its incursion into Gaza to root out Palestinian rocket squads.It accused Palestinian armed groups of deliberately targeting civilians and trying to spread terror through its rocket attacks on southern Israel. Hamas, the Palestinian Authority's main rival, controls Gaza and most armed groups in the territory.Al-Malki said the savage Israeli military aggression exhibited a callous disregard for human life and deliberately destroyed thousands of homes, schools, mosques and industrial and agricultural facilities.He called the report another wake-up call to the international community that must not be ignored,adding that the credibility and foundations of international human rights and humanitarian law, as well as of the U.N. as a whole, is at stake.

Israel's Shalev countered that the report favors and legitimizes terrorism.She insisted that it denies Israel's right to defend its citizens. ... It permits terrorists to victimize civilians, target the innocent, and use as human shields those it claims to defend.Shalev accused the world of doing nothing about Hamas' smuggling of Iranian arms into Gaza, its launching of attacks from schools, mosques and hospitals, or its firing if 12,000 rockets against innocent Israeli civilians.

And she accused Libya — the only Arab member on the council — of trying to hijack its agenda by raising the Goldstone report, noting that three weeks ago Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi called the Security Council a terror council.The report recommended that the Security Council require both sides to carry out credible investigations within three months into alleged abuses during the conflict — in which 13 Israelis and almost 1,400 Palestinians, including hundreds of civilians, were killed — and to follow that up with action in their courts.If either side refuses, the investigators recommended that the Security Council refer the evidence for prosecution by the International Criminal Court, the world's first permanent war crimes tribunal, within six months.France's U.N. Ambassador Gerard Araud called the allegations in the report grave indeed and urged both parties to conduct independent investigations that meet international standards. Britain's U.N. Ambassador John Sawers expressed regret that Israel refused to cooperate with the commission and urged the Israeli government to carry out full, credible and impartial investigations.The draft resolution to be considered at this week's Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva would condemn Israel's failure to cooperate with Goldstone's fact-finding mission and endorse the report's recommendations. The draft calls on the U.N. and other bodies to ensure implementation of the recommendations, calls on Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to submit a report to the council on the status of implementation, and asks the General Assembly to take up the Goldstone report in the current session.The Human Rights Council is expected to vote on the resolution on Friday, and approval will likely return the issue to the Security Council.

But council diplomats say there is little chance that the Security Council will take any action, primarily because of objections by the United States, Israel's closest ally, which said the report should be handled by the Human Rights Council. U.S. deputy ambassador Alejandro Wolff reiterated Wednesday that the report and the allegations of human rights and humanitarian law violations ... are not a matter for Security Council action.He also criticized what he termed its unbalanced focus on Israel.Wolff said Israel has the institutions to seriously investigate the allegations and we encourage it to do so.On the other hand, he added:Hamas is a terrorist organization and has neither the ability nor the willingness to examine its violations of human rights.

MEDIA MATTERS White House blasted for assault on Fox News Criticism from unexpected sources, including left-leaning media October 13, 2009 3:18 pm Eastern By Aaron Klein 2009 WorldNetDaily

TEL AVIV – The White House's recent frontal assault on the Fox News Channel is drawing criticism from some unexpected sources, including members of the left-leaning media. Cutting off a media outlet can be a risky strategy. It can reduce the voice and effectiveness of a politician or a party,Doug Heye, a blogger for U.S. News and World Report, wrote today. It's not likely to work, however. The far-left may love potshots at O'Reilly and Sean Hannity, but it loves a healthcare public option, card check, and closing Gitmo even more,Heye added of the White House campaign. David Zurawik, a media critic for the Baltimore Sun is usually harshly critical of Fox News. But Zurawik blasted the White House campaign as dangerous to press freedom, and it should concern everyone in the press, not just Fox.He slammed White House Communications Director Anita Dunn, who has led the charge against America's top-rated cable news network as sounding so uninformed and blatantly biased.Dunn is absolutely wrong about Fox's coverage of the election last fall. I did watch it every day and wrote about it several times a week for this blog. And while I didn't like a lot of what I saw with soft interviews and only favorable coverage of Sarah Palin, it wasn't all about Bill Ayers and ACORN by a long shot, added Zurawik.Writing at the Atlantic website, Derek Thompson sniped the White House looks petty and pathetic taking on Fox News. On CNN, the network's senior political analyst David Gergen called the White House attacks a risky strategy, and it's not one that I would advocate.

DISEASES

REVELATION 6:7-8
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword,(WEAPONS) and with hunger,(FAMINE) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE).

DRUG PUSHERS AND ADDICTS

REVELATION 18:23
23 And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries (DRUGS) were all nations deceived.

REVELATION 9:21
21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries (DRUGS), nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

Woman Blames Paralyzing Neurological Disease On Flu Shot - 25-year-old can barely walk or talk just two months after being vaccinated Steve Watson Infowars.net
Wednesday, Oct 14, 2009

A Virginia woman is adamant that a flu shot has caused her to contract a debilitating and irreversible neurological disease, while the CDC refuses to comment on her case.25-year-old Desiree Jennings was a fit and healthy cheerleader up until two months ago when she got a seasonal flu shot.Ten days after the shot she began experiencing flu like symptoms, followed by severe convulsions and black outs.Now she can barely talk or walk and her life has all but been destroyed.After seeing around 60 doctors, Jennings was eventually diagnosed with dystonia, a paralyzing neurological disorder that causes the muscles to relentlessly contract and spasm.

Bizarrely, increased physical activity causes her heart rate to decline, meaning she can run for hours, however, her resting heart rate is 90 and walking a few steps is exhausting and almost impossible.There is no cure for the disease and it gets worse over time.The causes of the disease are not yet fully understood, however, it is thought that physical trauma, infection, heavy metals poisoning or adverse reaction to drugs are possible triggers.Jennings is certain that the flu shot caused the disease and has pledged to do all she can to warn others.Nothing else explains such a fast moving neurological damage. The medical hospitals ruled out everything, CAT scans normal, blood normal, MRI normal. The only thing that explains it is the shot caused the neurological damage.she told WUSA News.

Watch a WUSA news report on the story:
http://www.prisonplanet.com/woman-blames-paralyzing-neurological-disease-on-flu-shot.html

The Centers for Disease Control has said it cannot comment on the case but added that it has no evidence to suggest flu vaccines can be connected to dystonia.
However, neuropathy and paralysis resulting from disorder of the cranial nerves are routinely listed as possible side effects resulting from flu shots.In rare cases flu shots are known to cause the debilitating nerve disease Guillain-Barré Syndrome, which killed more people than the actual flu virus the last time a pandemic was declared in 1976.In addition, studies have shown a direct relationship between the mercury based preservative thimerosal in flu shots and neurological disorders.Cases of the neural development disorder autism amongst children have doubled since 2003, in line with an increase in the amount of thimerosal-containing childhood vaccines.

Further studies have shown a decline in neurodevelopmental disorders after the removal of thimerosal-containing vaccines.Of course, there will be few repercussions should more people develop diseases from the new mercury and squalene containing H1N1shots, given that the government has provided pharmaceutical companies blanket immunity from lawsuits. You know, just in case.

OUTBREAK! Nurses sue to block mandatory swine-flu shot Hundreds of co-workers feel just as strongly against the vaccine October 13, 2009 9:45 pm Eastern
By Chelsea Schilling 2009 WorldNetDaily

Several nurses are suing the state of New York to protect themselves from mandatory swine flu vaccinations – saying threats of being fired for refusing shots violate their civil rights. Albany Medical Center nurses face a week of suspension without pay and termination if they don't accept both the H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccinations by Oct. 27.According to a New York mandate, all health-care workers must be vaccinated by Nov. 30. But the four nurses argue that proper hygiene – such as washing hands and covering mouths and noses when coughing and sneezing – is an equally effective method for combating the flu. They also expressed concerns about possible side effects of the H1N1 vaccine. I have had more staff that have become ill after the flu vaccines this year than co-workers that have actually come down with the illness,Lorna Patterson, one of the nurses, told Albany's WTEN-TV. She said she believes more time is needed to learn about the vaccine's effectiveness. Patterson, a nurse for 28 years, said she hasn't receive the flu shot since she was a teenager.Patterson's co-worker, nurse Katheryn Dupuis, said she's only received a flu shot once in her 10-year career as an emergency room nurse. We're going to lose our jobs if we do not get this vaccine,Dupuis said.There are hundreds of co-workers of ours that feel just as strongly against the vaccine.The nurses are collecting signatures on petitions to area hospitals and health-care providers. They have at least 500 signatures on one, and several others are circulating through the community. They have also scheduled a protest at the capitol Wednesday at 1 p.m.

According to Albany's WRGB-TV 6, the group is concerned that pharmaceutical companies have been given immunity in case complications from the vaccine arise.The nurses plan to file their lawsuit against state Health Commissioner Dr. Richard Daines in New York Supreme Court by the end of this week.The Department of Health says it will vigorously defend itself in the lawsuit, and health officials are confident the regulation will be upheld by the court, WXXA-TV 23 reports.But Patterson and Dupuis said they will retire or find nursing positions outside of New York if the state doesn't withdraw its mandate.I don't think anybody wants to achive that kind of result,their lawyer, Terry Kindlon, told WTEN.The health-care workers are being stampeded into this, and we're supposed to be a thoughtful, rational society that deals with things through due process and careful reflection. That's not what [New York] wants them to do here.They're saying, Look you guys, get the shots or in the next two weeks, you're on the street.That's criminal. That's ridiculous. That's insane.Aother lawsuit filed in New York City against Daines and Jeffrey Kraut, chairman of the state Hospital Planning and Review Council, argues that the state does not have the authority to mandate vaccines.Kindlon said other lawsuits are arising throughout the state, and the New York Civil Liberties Union may file a legal complaint in coming weeks.

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/
CNBC VIDEOS
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15839263/site/14081545/?tabid=15839796&tabheader=false

HALF HOUR DOW RESULTS THU OCT 15,2009

09:30 AM -5.85
10:00 AM -4.23
10:30 AM -27.73
11:00 AM -23.80
11:30 AM -28.72
12:00 PM -20.63
12:30 PM -11.49
01:00 PM -19.95
01:30 PM -15.72
02:00 PM -9.90
02:30 PM -2.79
03:00 PM +18.82
03:30 PM +7.79
04:00 PM +47.08 10,062.94

S&P 500 1096.56 +4.54

NASDAQ 2173.29 +1.06

GOLD 1,049.90 -14.80

OIL 77.60 +2.42

TSE 300 11,504.51 -28.27

CDNX 1328.40 -8.30

S&P/TSX/60 684.79 -1.27

MORNING,NEWS,STATS

YEAR TO DATE PERFORMANCE
Dow +14.12%
S&P +20.90%
Nasdaq +37.74%
TSX Advances 971,declines 611,unchanged 211,Volume 500,003,745.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 482,Declines 498,Unchanged 317,Volume 278,173,900.

Dow -30 points at 4 minutes of trading today.
Dow -37 points at low today.
Dow +4 points at high today so far.
GOLD opens at $1,053.40.OIL opens at $75.43 today.

INVENTORIES
CRUDE OIL +400,000 Barrels
GASOLINE -5.2 MILLION Barrels
DISTILLATE INV -1.1 MILLION Barrels
REFINERY UTILIZATION -4.1% TO 80.9%

AFTERNOON,NEWS,STATS
Dow -37 points at low today so far.
Dow +4 points at high today so far.

DAY TODAY PERFORMANCE - 12:30PM STATS
NYSE Advances 1,499,declines 2,132,unchanged 109,New Highs 363,New Lows 36.
Volume 2,994,269,486.
NASDAQ Advances 889,declines 1,700,unchanged 117,New highs 111,New Lows 07.
Volume 966,861,765.
TSX Advances 581,declines 798,unchanged 220,Volume 238,396,384.
TSX Venture Exchange Advances 364,Declines 410,Unchanged 277,Volume 135,328,988.

WRAPUP,NEWS,STATS
Dow -37 points at low today.
Dow +48 points at high today.
Dow +0.47% today Volume 252,476,764.
Nasdaq +0.05% today Volume 2,088,324,171.
S&P 500 +0.42% today Volume N/A

DOW 10,000 FOCUS
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1295601059&play=1
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1295583173&play=1
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1295600531&play=1
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1295598680&play=1

Runaway Canadian dollar puts Bank of Canada in spot Globe and Mail Update
Published on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009 12:29PM EDT

The Bank of Canada is in a bit of a box as it heads into next week's policy meeting, with the surging Canadian dollar (CAD/USD-I0.97-0.009-0.95%) threatening to dampen the fledgling recovery, economists and currency strategists said Thursday.The runaway Canadian dollar will be high on the agenda when Bank of Canada governors meet on Tuesday, Douglas Porter, deputy chief economist of BMO Nesbitt Burns, said in an interview.The markets will also be watching closely for any nuances on the central bank's interest rate policy. The Bank of Canada has pledged to hold the line on its benchmark interest rate of 0.25 per cent until well into next year.Despite this commitment, speculation that the Bank of Canada might follow the lead of the Reserve Bank of Australia and raise its rates sooner has helped propel the Canadian dollar towards parity with the United States currency.Few Canadian economists believe the central bank will intervene directly in foreign exchange markets. But much stronger language is expected, following Prime Minister Stephen Harper's statement earlier this week that too rapid a rise in the dollar is a risk to our recovery.The Canadian dollar has gained 5 per cent against the U.S. currency since the beginning of October.The Bank of Canada is expected to dampen the speculation by reiterating its commitment to stay the course on interest rates – a course that has been successful in stimulating the economy.We have lots of evidence that the extreme lows in rates are working their magic in the interest-sensitive sectors, most notably housing, Mr. Porter said after the Canadian Real Estate Association reported record Canadian home sales in the third quarter of this year.What do economists expect when the Bank of Canada holds its policy meeting Tuesday, followed by its quarterly monetary policy report Thursday?

They don't have to do anything just yet

They are in a bit of a tough spot, but they don't have to do anything yet, Mr. Porter said.Expect stronger language about the threat posed by the strong Canadian dollar – that's going to move up their worry list.But don't expect any change in interest rate policy at this point.They don't even have to make any signals one way or another on their conditional commitment to keep interest rates flat until the middle of next year,Mr. Porter said.They'll have another crack at it in December and then again early next year. I don't think there are going to be any significant changes.

A ratcheting up of the rhetoric would deflate the loonie-It will not be enough for the Bank of Canada to merely reiterate its earlier warnings about the threat to growth posed by the strong dollar, which is weighing on Canadian exports, Scotia Capital currency strategists said in a research note Thursday.However, a ratcheting up of the rhetoric would deflate the loonie, with the most serious impact coming from any suggestion by the Bank of Canada that Canadian dollar strength has become such a constraint that the bank changes its conditional commitment to hold the current policy rate until the second quarter of 2010, and instead extends the conditional period of ultra-accommodative policy,Scotia Capital currency strategists Camilla Sutton and Sacha Tihanyi said in a research report.This would certainly impact rate expectations.We don't see them moving to quantitative easing-Toronto-Dominion Bank economist Grant Bishop noted that Canada's hot real estate market could force the Bank of Canada to move on interest rates sooner than planned if the market does not cool on its own in response to higher mortgage rates.However, as it now stands, he does not expect the central bank to move on rates until the fourth quarter of next year to allow the economy to build on its momentum as it emerges from the recession.A lot of people have speculated on a move to quantitative easing, which we think is a very far outside possibility,Mr. Bishop said. Quantitative easing is a rarely used policy instrument that dilutes the value of a currency by increasing money supply.There would be risks associated with raising rates earlier than planned, Mr. Bishop added.Higher interest rates would mean a higher dollar because they attract financial flows based on the prospective returns.The central bank could dampen Canadian dollar speculation just by reiterating its current interest-rate policy stance, he said.

Dollar to Hit 50 Yen, Cease as Reserve, Sumitomo Says (Update1)
By Shigeki Nozawa

Oct. 15 (Bloomberg) -- The dollar may drop to 50 yen next year and eventually lose its role as the global reserve currency, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp.’s chief strategist said, citing trading patterns and a likely double dip in the U.S. economy.The U.S. economy will deteriorate into 2011 as the effects of excess consumption and the financial bubble linger,said Daisuke Uno at Sumitomo Mitsui, a unit of Japan’s third- biggest bank. The dollar’s fall won’t stop until there’s a change to the global currency system.The dollar last week dropped to the lowest in almost a year against the yen as record U.S. government borrowings and interest rates near zero sapped demand for the U.S. currency. The Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against the currencies of six major U.S. trading partners, has fallen 15 percent from its peak this year to as low as 75.211 today, the lowest since August 2008. The gauge is about five points away from its record low in March 2008, and the dollar is 2.5 percent away from a 14-year low against the yen.We can no longer stop the big wave of dollar weakness,said Uno, who correctly predicted the dollar would fall under 100 yen and the Dow Jones Industrial Average would sink below 7,000 after the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. last year. If the U.S. currency breaks through record levels,there will be no downside limit, and even coordinated intervention won’t work,he said.China, India, Brazil and Russia this year called for a replacement to the dollar as the main reserve currency. Hossein Ghazavi, Iran’s deputy central bank chief, said on Sept. 13 the euro has overtaken the dollar as the main currency of Iran’s foreign reserves.

Elliott Wave

The greenback is heading for the trough of a super-cycle that started in August 1971, Uno said, referring to the Elliot Wave theory, which holds that market swings follow a predictable five-stage pattern of three steps forward, two steps back. The dollar is now at wave five of the 40-year cycle, Uno said. It dropped to 92 yen during wave one that ended in March 1973. The dollar will target 50 yen during the current wave, based on multiplying 92 with 0.764, a number in the Fibonacci sequence, and subtracting from the 123.17 yen level seen in the second quarter of 2007, according to Uno.The Elliot Wave was developed by accountant Ralph Nelson Elliott during the Great Depression. Wave sizes are often related by a series of numbers known as the Fibonacci sequence, pioneered by 13th century mathematician Leonardo Pisano, who discerned them from proportions found in nature. Uno said after the dollar loses its reserve currency status, the U.S., Europe and Asia will form separate economic blocs. The International Monetary Fund’s special drawing rights may be used as a temporary measure, and global currency trading will shrink in the long run, he said.To contact the reporter on this story: Shigeki Nozawa in Tokyo at snozawa1@bloomberg.net.Last Updated: October 15, 2009 03:34 EDT

OCTOBER 15, 2009, 9:38 A.M. ET.Libyan Ctrl Bker: No Alternative To Dollar As Reserve FX Now

LONDON (Dow Jones)--There is no alternative to the dollar as an international reserve currency at present, but it would be desirable if an alternative could be created, Libya's central bank governor said Thursday.Speaking at a financial forum in London, Farhat Omer Bengdara said the fact that the U.S. economy remains the largest economy in the world by a big margin makes it likely that the dollar will retain its reserve currency status.But if there is an international currency it would be much better than the dollar, of course, if there is some creative opportunity in future for an international reserve currency,Bengdara said.Jordanian central bank Governor Umayya Salah Toukan, who was also present at the forum, agreed it wouldn't be easy to replace the dollar due to the size of the U.S. economy.He also said he isn't optimistic that attempts by Gulf Cooperation Council countries to create a new currency will succeed because it has no economic content.-By Natasha Brereton, Dow Jones Newswires; +44-20-7842-9254; natasha.brereton@dowjones.com

Metals Stocks Oct. 15, 2009, 11:13 a.m. EDT -Gold futures fall below $1,050 an ounce as dollar rebounds By Moming Zhou & Nick Godt, MarketWatch

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures fell Thursday for a second session, moving below $1,050 an ounce, with weakness in equities helping the U.S. dollar rebound from a 14-month low against the euro, reducing gold's appeal as a hedge against a weaker currency.Gold also fell as some investors questioned whether the metal's recent rally has been overdone, analysts said. Gold has gained in seven of the past 10 sessions and has rallied nearly 20% this year.Gold futures for October delivery lost $9.40, or 0.9%, to $1,054.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The more actively traded December contract lost $9.20, or 0.9%, to $1,055.70 an ounce.Holdings in SPDR Gold Trust /quotes/comstock/13*!gld/quotes/nls/gld (GLD 103.03, -1.15, -1.10%) , the biggest exchange-traded fund backed by physical gold, stood at 1,109.31 metric tons Wednesday, unchanged for a sixth session.Notably, the price gains of the past few days were not accompanied by meaningful inflows into gold ETFs,said Carsten Fritsch, an analyst at Commerzbank. In view of the large amount of speculative net-long positions, the risk of a correction is increasing.On the Comex, net long, or buying, positions held by speculators rose to a record high of 239,668 contracts in the week ended Oct. 6, according to the latest weekly report by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

That's up 6.7% from a month ago and nearly double the level at the end of last year, when gold was trading below $900 an ounce. See related story.In currencies trading, the dollar rose against the euro, with the European currency down 0.4% at $1.4872. The dollar index /quotes/comstock/11j!i:dxy0 (DXY 75.38, -0.17, -0.23%) added 0.1% to 75.627. A stronger greenback tends to push down dollar-denominated commodities prices.The dollar, which has competed with gold as a safe-haven asset over the past year, advanced as U.S. stocks gave up some gains from Wednesday's sharp rally that saw the Dow industrials /quotes/comstock/10w!i:dji/delayed (INDU 9,995, -20.63, -0.21%) top 10,000 for the first time in more than a year.In other metals trading, January platinum, the most active contract of the metal, lost $11.60, or 0.9%, to $1,355.00 an ounce. December palladium fell $1.70, or 1.7%, to $329.10 an ounce.

December silver futures dropped 29 cents, or 1.6%, to $17.62 an ounce. December copper lost 3 cents, or 1%, to $2.81 a pound. Moming Zhou is a MarketWatch reporter based in New York.Nick Godt is MarketWatch's markets editor, based in New York.

Mining stocks and bank earnings lead TSX lower Malcolm Morrison THE CANADIAN PRESS Published On Thu Oct 15 2009

The Toronto stock market was lower late Thursday morning as mining stocks declined amid lower prices while investors were unimpressed with the latest earnings reports from the U.S. financial sector.The S&P/TSX composite index lost 39.3 points to 11,493.5. The TSX Venture Exchange fell 11.15 points to 1,325.55.The Canadian dollar was having a rare down day, declining 0.35 of a cent to 97.13 cents US after a weak U.S. currency sent the loonie up a full cent on Wednesday.On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported that declines in the aerospace and vehicle manufacturing segments were largely responsible for a 2.1 per cent drop in manufacturing sales in August. The dip followed a 5.2 per cent gain in July.Production in the aerospace product and parts industry fell 35.6 per cent while manufacturing sales in the motor vehicle industry fell 6.3 per cent during August.Commodity stocks led the way lower on the TSX with the gold sector down one per cent as the December bullion contract on the Nymex eased $5.90 to US$1,058.80. Kinross Gold Corp. (TSX: K) lost 27 cents to $23.80.The energy sector was down 0.32 per cent even as the November crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 67 cents to US$75.85 a barrel. Oil prices took off after the U.S. Department of Energy reported that crude inventories rose by 400,000 barrels last week but gasoline levels dropped by 5.2 million barrels while distillates fell 1.1 million barrels.

New York markets were also weak after Goldman Sachs said Thursday that it earned US$3.19 billion, or US$5.25 per share in the third quarter. Analysts had been expecting earnings of $4.24 per share, on average.However, investors reacted coolly to the firm's results as revenue from its mergers and acquisitions operations dipped sharply from the previous quarter, reflecting the general slowness in takeover activity, and its shares lost $4.06 to US$188.22.It was interesting with Goldman (with) people sort of focusing on their M&A work because I actually think the M&A cycle is something that is probably going to persist,said Norman Raschkowan, chief investment officer at Mackenzie Financial Corp.But I think the financials have gotten ahead of themselves, in the U.S. in particular in that they still have a tough road – especially those that have exposure to commercial real estate.Citigroup reported a slightly smaller loss per share than expected but said its credit losses remain high. Its shares fell 24 cents to US$4.76.

The Dow Jones industrials lost 15 points to 10,009.9.

Results from JPMorgan set a high bar for its peers on Wednesday, reporting a US$3.59 billion profit that came in well above Wall Street's expectations and sent the Dow above 10,000 for the first time in a year.The Nasdaq composite index declined 9.35 points to 2,162.88 while the S&P 500 index moved down 2.4 points to 1,089.6.Also depressing sentiment was world-leading mobile phone maker Nokia Corp. The Helsinki-based company reported a loss of euro559 million (US$832 million) in the third quarter, taking hits from a 20 per cent drop in sales and a one-time charge for the fallen value of its network equipment unit.Nokia made a profit of euro1.09 billion (US$1.61 billion) in the same quarter of 2008 and its shares fell $1.73 to US$13.66.

Tech firms Google Inc., IBM Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices will issue their results after the market's close Thursday.Other commodity prices were also soft with December copper down a cent to US$2.83 a pound.The TSX base metals sector fell 0.9 per cent with Teck Resources (TSX: TCK.B) off 49 cents to $33.84.Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. (TSX: IVN) executive chairman Robert Friedland says financing the Oyu Tolgoi project in Mongolia is the least of our concerns. And he promises no funding delays between now and when the copper-gold mine reaches commercial production in 2013. Ivanhoe shares dipped 23 cents at $12.58.In other corporate news, Pottruff & Smith Travel Insurance Brokers Inc., one of the largest travel insurance brokers and third-party administrators in Canada, has been acquired by Manulife Financial Corp. (TSX: MFC).

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed and Manulife shares declined 19 cents to $22.29.Canwest Global Communications Corp. said it has been notified by the Toronto Stock Exchange that its subordinate voting shares (TSX: CGS) and non-voting shares (TSX: CGS.A) will be delisted at the close of trading Nov. 13 because of failure to meet listing requirements. Trading in the shares will be suspended.The media conglomerate's stock was halted Oct. 5 when it filed for creditor protection under a mountain of debt.In Asia, stocks had rallied hard, as investors caught up with the gains posted in Europe and the U.S. Wednesday.In Japan, the Nikkei 225 stock average gained 1.8 per cent, and Hong Kong's benchmark added 0.5 per cent, hitting a new high for the year during trade.London's FTSE 100 index was down 0.32 per cent, Frankfurt's DAX fell 0.35 per cent while the Paris CAC 40 was flat.

EU initials Korean trade deal as US looks on
ANDREW WILLIS Today OCT 15,09 @ 17:08 CET

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – After two years of negotiations, the European Commission initialled a landmark free-trade agreement with South Korea on Thursday (15 October), a deal that promises to create up to €19 billion in new trade opportunities for EU exporters.At a news conference after the document's signing, the EU's trade commissioner Catherine Ashton described the agreement as a very, very good deal for European industry.The event will not have gone unnoticed in the US, where a similar bilateral trade deal with South Korea has floundered in Congress, a fact noted by Ms Ashton.I think there is no doubt that America is very interested that the European Union has been able to move forward,she said.Under the deal, full details of which are unavailable, annual import duties worth €1.6 billion on European agricultural and industrial exports entering South Korea will be pulled down. In return, the EU will eliminate €1.1 billion in import duties for Korean goods entering the bloc.The agreement also sets out to tackle non-tariff barriers such as consumer standards for automotive, pharmaceutical and consumer electronics, with South Korea set to now recognise many European standards and certificates. In the services sector, the new FTA aims to open up opportunities for European businesses in areas such as telecommunications, environmental, shipping and financial services.

Member state support

The document will now be passed to EU member state governments and the European Parliament for approval before being fully finalised.Although parts of the deal could be passed by a majority vote, the commission will seek the unanimous approval of member states rather than risk isolating particular countries.While broad support for the deal is expected, concerns exist that greater imports of small Korean cars could hit European car manufacturers such as Italy's Fiat which competes in the same size range.But Ms Ashton denied that there was any link between commission plans to extend import duties on Chinese and Vietnamese footwear – a measure supported by Italy but opposed by many member states – and the proposed Korean FTA.I've never done a dodgy deal in my life and I don't intend to start now,said the commissioner when questioned on the possible tie-up.Senior officials in the EU executive insist that Europe stands to gain from the differential timetables regarding the dismantling of car import duties, set at three years for medium-to-large cars and five years for small cars.De facto we get much faster access to Korea's market," the EU's chief negotiator Ignacio Garcia Bercero told EUobserver, on the basis that Korean manufacturers concentrate on small car production.

Concerns remain

But certain car manufacturers still harbour concerns that the deal offers too many concessions to Korean companies in the area of duty drawbacks, a mechanism under which Korean companies can claim back EU import duties on car components purchased outside Korea.The economic significance of this is very small at the moment,said Mr Bercero, adding that a safeguard clause would allow the EU to restrict drawback claims to five percent of their total if the level of claims rose substantially in the future.Limited to a simple choice of accepting or rejecting the negotiated package, MEPs are unlikely to create much fuss when asked to agree the deal once member state approval has been secured.A number of MEPs had raised concerns over the possible inclusion of North Korea's Kaesong Industrial Region in the deal, despite the country's poor human rights record.In the end, negotiators decided to leave the area, which contains a number of South Korean car plants, out of the deal, with the possibility to return to the issue in the future.Ms Ashton denied that Thursday's agreement – expected to enter into force in the second half of 2010 – would erode the need for the Doha development round of multilateral trade discussions to be completed.

Dollar loses reserve status to yen & euroBy PAUL THARP 3:16 AM, October 13, 2009 1:44 AM, October 13, 2009

Ben Bernanke's dollar crisis went into a wider mode yesterday as the greenback was shockingly upstaged by the euro and yen, both of which can lay claim to the world title as the currency favored by central banks as their reserve currency.Over the last three months, banks put 63 percent of their new cash into euros and yen -- not the greenbacks -- a nearly complete reversal of the dollar's onetime dominance for reserves, according to Barclays Capital. The dollar's share of new cash in the central banks was down to 37 percent -- compared with two-thirds a decade ago.Currently, dollars account for about 62 percent of the currency reserve at central banks -- the lowest on record, said the International Monetary Fund.Bernanke could go down in economic history as the man who killed the greenback on the operating table.After printing up trillions of new dollars and new bonds to stimulate the US economy, the Federal Reserve chief is now boxed into a corner battling two separate monsters that could devour the economy -- ravenous inflation on one hand, and a perilous recession on the other.He's in a crisis worse than the meltdown ever was,said Peter Schiff, president of Euro Pacific Capital.I fear that he could be the Fed chairman who brought down the whole thing.Investors and central banks are snubbing dollars because the greenback is kept too weak by zero interest rates and a flood of greenbacks in the global economy.They grumble that they've loaned the US record amounts to cover its mounting debt, but are getting paid back by a currency that's worth 10 percent less in the past three months alone. In a decade, it's down nearly one-third.Yesterday, the dollar had a mixed performance, falling slightly against the British pound to $1.5801 from $1.5846 Friday, but rising against the euro to $1.4779 from $1.4709 and against the yen to 89.85 yen from 89.78.Economists believe the market rebellion against the dollar will spread until Bernanke starts raising interest rates from around zero to the high single digits, and pulls back the flood of currency spewed from US printing presses.That's a cure, but it's also going to stifle any US economic growth,said Schiff.The economy is addicted to the cheap interest and liquidity.Economists warn that a jump in rates will clobber stocks and cripple the already stalled housing market.Bernanke's other choice is to keep rates at zero, print even more money and sell more debt, but we'll see triple-digit inflation that could collapse the economy as we know it.The stimulus is what's toxic -- we're poisoning ourselves and the global economy with it.

Dow closes above 10,000 for 1st time in a year By TIM PARADIS, AP Business Writer – OCT 14,09

NEW YORK – When the Dow Jones industrial average first passed 10,000, traders tossed commemorative caps and uncorked champagne. This time around, the feeling was more like relief.The best-known barometer of the stock market entered five-figure territory again Wednesday, the most visible sign yet that investors believe the economy is clawing its way back from the worst downturn since the Depression.The milestone caps a stunning 53 percent comeback for the Dow since early March, when stocks were at their lowest levels in more than a decade.It's almost like an announcement that the bear market is over, said Arthur Hogan, chief market analyst at Jefferies & Co. in Boston. That is an eye-opener — Hey, you know what, things must be getting better because the Dow is over 10,000.Cheers went up briefly when the Dow eclipsed the milestone in the early afternoon, during a daylong rally driven by encouraging earnings reports from Intel Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. The average closed at 10,015.86, up 144.80 points.It was the first time the Dow had touched 10,000 since October 2008, that time on the way down.I think there were times when we were in the deep part of the trough there back in the springtime when it felt like we'd never get back to this level,said Bernie McSherry, senior vice president of strategic initiatives at Cuttone & Co.Ethan Harris, head of North America economics at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, described it as a relief rally that the world is not coming to an end.The mood was far from the euphoria of March 1999, when the Dow surpassed 10,000 for the first time. The Internet then was driving extraordinary gains in productivity, and serious people debated whether there was such a thing as a boom without end.If this is a bubble,The Wall Street Journal marveled on its front page,it sure is hard to pop.

It did pop, of course. And then came the lost decade.The Dow peaked at 14,164.53 in October 2007, then lost more than half its value after the financial meltdown last fall. At its low point, the average stood at 6,547.05. The breathtaking rally since then brings stocks to roughly break-even for the past 10 years.On Wednesday, the Dow rose 144.80, or 1.5 percent, to 10,015.86, its biggest gain since Aug. 21 and highest close since Oct. 3 last year.Broader indexes also climbed to 2009 highs. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 18.83, or 1.8 percent, to 1,092.02. The index, the basis of many mutual funds, is up 61.4 percent from a 12-year low in March.The Nasdaq composite index rose 32.34, or 1.5 percent, to 2,172.23. It's up 71.2 percent since March.

So where does the market go from here? Some market watchers see 10,000 as an illusion because there are still lingering threats to an economic recovery — rising unemployment, weak consumer spending and a battered housing market.The investors who have driven stocks higher since March are the pros: hedge funds and institutions whose furious selling hastened the collapse of the market in the first place. And red flags are showing up in the technical charts that professional investors use as they make their trading decisions. The Dow sits about 18 percent above its average of the past 200 days. The market by all technical indicators is completely overbought, just like back in March it was completely oversold,said Rich Hughes, co-president of Portfolio Management Consultants in Los Angeles.On the other hand, Wall Street analysts say 10,000 is more than just a number — it can have legitimate psychological implications.A recovering stock market soothes the psyche as people watch their portfolios and 401(k) retirement accounts being replenished. And if people start spending again, that may persuade more investors, including some reluctant pros, to go back into the market.Psychology plays a huge role in investing, so when you're trying to overcome the huge levels of panic and fear that we've seen over the last year, psychology shouldn't be discounted,said Carl Beck, a partner at Harris Financial Group. Many investors, especially individuals, are afraid they'll put money into the market only to watch it disappear if stocks plunge again. It's happened before: In 1975, stocks rose 53 percent in less than four months after a recession. Then they lost 11 percent before climbing again in early 1976.If stocks follow historical patterns, they could be nearing their peak. Assuming the recession technically ended this summer, as many economists believe, the Dow's surge since March puts it near where past rebounds have started to fade.

On top of that, there are still plenty of problems that could trip up the market. Companies posted better-than-expected earnings in the second quarter, but mostly because of cost-cutting, not the sales increases needed to keep growing.Earnings reports from chip maker Intel Corp. and banker JPMorgan Chase & Co. gave the Dow its final push past 10,000. JPMorgan, the first major bank to report third-quarter earnings, stoked the market's optimism as it easily beat Wall Street's expectations, reporting a profit of $3.59 billion for the July-September period. The stock, a Dow component, rose $1.50, or 3.3 percent, to $47.16.Financial stocks have posted the biggest gains since the rally began, but they were also among the most decimated. JPMorgan is up 197 percent and Bank of America Corp. is up 492 percent.Intel also beat analysts' estimates, reporting a smaller-than-expected drop in profits and sales after the market closed Tuesday. Intel rose 34 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $20.83.Individual investors remain cautious. In August, well into the rally, they put $11 into bond funds for every dollar they put into stock funds, according to the Investment Company Institute, the mutual fund trade group.But they appear to slowly be coming back to stocks. Retail brokerage TD Ameritrade reported an average of 431,000 trades a day in August, up from barely more than 300,000 when the market was sliding in January and February.If the market can hold Wednesday's milestone, investors should grow even more confident.It wouldn't surprise me if it made Joe Main Street more comfortable,David Kelson, portfolio manager of Talon Asset Management in Chicago.Bond prices fell as stocks soared. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.42 percent from 3.35 percent late Tuesday.Oil jumped $1.03 to settle at $75.18 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 12.24, or 2 percent, to 623.94.

Fed officials were conflicted over revival program By JEANNINE AVERSA, AP Economics Writer – OCT 14,09

WASHINGTON – Amid uncertainties about strength of the budding recovery, Federal Reserve policymakers last month were conflicted over whether to expand or cut back a program intended to drive down mortgage rates and prop up the housing market, according to a document released Wednesday.In the end, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues agreed to slow down the pace of a $1.25 trillion program to buy mortgage securities from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Instead of wrapping up the purchases by the end of this year, the Fed said it would do so by the end of March.

But minutes of the Fed's closed-door deliberations on Sept. 22-23, revealed some members thought an increase in the mortgage securities buying program could help the economy recover more quickly. Another member believed a reduction was warranted because the recovery was showing signs of picking up.The minutes don't identify speakers by name, but rather seek to provide a more detailed account of the Fed's discussions.The central bank last month also agreed to slow down purchases of $200 billion in debt from Fannie and Freddie, although there were no fractured thoughts on that action.At the same time, the Fed held its key bank lending rate at a record low near zero. It pledged to hold it there for an extended period to nurture the recovery. Private economists say rates will stay at super-low levels into part of next year.Fed policymakers judged that the costs of growth turning out to be weaker than anticipated could be relatively high,according to the minutes.The Fed left open the possibility of expanding or scaling back its programs depending how economic and financial conditions unfold.

Economists from Barclays Capital Research said the minutes showed a growing divergence among Fed policymakers.The minutes ... only hint at the apparent tensions developing between the hawks and doves,said economist Paul Ashworth of Capital Economics.Among the issues on policymakers' minds was how the economy will hold up once government supports — including President Obama's $787 billion stimulus package of tax cuts and increased government spending — fade.Fed policymakers expressed considerable uncertainty about the likely strength of the upturn once those supports were withdrawn or their effects waned,according to the minutes.The housing market led the country into recession. It needs to get back on stronger footing for the national economy to return to full health. Home sales have firmed, helped by low mortgage rates and an $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers, Fed officials noted. That credit is scheduled to expire at the end of November.Another concern is how consumers — whose spending accounts for 70 percent of all economic activity — will hold up in the months ahead given job cuts, the loss of wealth from housing and stocks hit by the recession, and hard-to-get credit.

Households still face considerable headwinds,the minutes said.Retail sales fell 1.5 percent last month, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, a plunge that reflected the end of the government's popular Cash for Clunkers program. Still, that drop was less than the 2.1 percent fall economists expected.Removing autos, sales rose a better-than-expected 0.5 percent, led by gains at furniture stores, general merchandise stores and specialty clothing stores.Not only are consumers likely to be cautious spenders, but businesses indicated they would be cautious in hiring and investing even as demand for their products picked up,according to the minutes.

Against this backdrop,the economic recovery was likely to be quite restrained,and the labor market will log only a slow improvement,Fed officials believed.The nation's unemployment rate — now at a 26-year high of 9.8 percent — will drop to 9.25 percent by the end of 2010, the Fed said. It will fall to about 8 percent by the end of 2011. Private economists predict that the unemployment rate won't drop to a more normal 5 or 6 percent until 2013 or 2014. Inflation, meanwhile, should stay subdued, the minutes said.Most Fed policymakers anticipated that slack in the economy would prevent companies from jacking up prices or wages. But some policymakers were skeptical about whether such slack — referring to plants and other businesses operating well below capacity — was a useful barometer for determining future inflation pressures.All Fed policymakers, however, recognized the importance of keeping close tabs on inflation expectations of investors, consumers and businesses and to be on the lookout for any changes in their behavior as a result. To keep inflation expectations well anchored,Fed policymakers agreed they must clearly communicate that they have the tools and the political will to reel in the unprecedented amount of money the central bank has pumped into the economy. That will be a high-wire act for the Fed. Removing those supports too soon could short circuit the recovery, while removing them too late could unleash inflation.Even with all the concerns about the pace of future growth, Fed policymakers suggested that the worst recession since the 1930s was over.Most thought an economic recovery was under way and that growth in the second half of this year was better than they had anticipated in August, the minutes said.Private analysts believe the economy grew at a pace of at least 3 percent in the third quarter, helped by the a burst in car sales from the now defunct clunkers program. The economy contracted at a pace of 0.7 percent in the second quarter.

IMF runs into political turbulence By Pan Pylas, Ap Business Writer – Wed Oct 14, 1:34 pm ET

LONDON – The International Monetary Fund is facing key political crunch points in its dealings across Eastern Europe even though it has done much to lose its previous reputation as an advocate of austerity.Tuesday's collapse of Romania's center-right government led by Prime Minister Emil Boc, has raised concerns about adherence to conditions on the IMF's loan program with the country, just a month before presidential elections.Though economic matters were not a direct reason for the government's collapse, Romania is now another potential headache for the IMF, alongside Ukraine, which faces turbulence ahead of Jan. 17 presidential elections, and Latvia, where the IMF is among lenders pushing for budget cuts.At the start of the week it was Latvia and their reluctance to cut the budget deficit to shape, but now the Romanian government has been defeated during office, which has not been seen for 20 years and confirms how politicians want to remain popular, with the economic outlook so explosive,said Guillaume Tresca, an analyst at Calyon Credit Agricole.

Romania's IMF representative Mihai Tanasescu said Wednesday a delegation would arrive in Bucharest next week to determine whether the country can keep to the terms of an agreement under which the IMF agreed to give the country $17.1 billion loan package to deal with the financial crisis. The IMF is concerned that instability could lead to Romania being unable to meet an agreed budget deficit of not more than 5.9 percent of gross domestic product next year.Ironically, the IMF and its head, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, are encountering a bumpy political environment after shedding much of the IMF's reputation for being overly severe in enforcing austerity on governments it loans money to.However, the IMF has shown increased flexibility and started a no-strings loan program for countries considered relatively good risks. Mexico and Poland have been two countries that have benefited from this new flexible credit line.Meanwhile, the IMF was given up to $750 billion more resources by the Group of 20 rich and developing countries to help countries whose state finances and currencies have come under serious pressure due to the world financial and economic crisis.And though it's been quick to make its new financial firepower available to troubled countries, the IMF still expects things in return.Neil Shearing, emerging Europe economist at Capital Economics, said the IMF has recently shown a much more lenient side throughout Eastern Europe, particularly in Ukraine but that there was a limit.For Romania, he said the economic impact of the political crisis "depends largely on the immediate implications for relations with the Fund and that the longer the country is without an effective government raises the possibility of the government missing its IMF budget targets.

Ukraine, like Romania has suffered badly from the financial crisis and the ensuing global recession. The IMF estimates that the Ukrainian economy will shrink 14 percent this year; Romania by around 10 percent.The IMF could delay or withhold the next $3.7 billion installment to Ukraine due to be transferred in November if authorities — already engaged in politicking for the Jan. 17 presidential election — refusal to make unpopular moves such as raising household gas prices and cut back on government spending.The rivalry between Prime Minister and presidential hopeful Yulia Tymoshenko and President Viktor Yushchenko has intensified ahead of the vote, with both leaders seeking to undo each other's policies. The biggest opposition Party of Regions has been paralyzing the parliament's work in recent weeks, demanding an increase in social spending.Meanwhile, Latvia's government is in a tight spot after its recent 2010 budget fell short of promises made to international lenders. The euro7.5 billion euro economic recovery program for Latvia is mainly financed by the European Union, though the IMF is playing its part. Much of Latvia's pain, however comes from its own decision to keep its lat currency pegged to the euro, a move that means tough economic trade-offs.It was top EU financial official Joaquin Almunia who held an emergency meeting with Latvian officials and urged them to make the additional budget cuts.The government has backtracked and said it will outline how it will make 500 million lats ($1.1 billion) of cuts next year in a statement at the end of the month.Even with the new IMF, being bailed out is still tough.The country will live from hand to mouth,in the words of Finance Minister Einars Repse.

Warmer ties for Russia, China with big gas deals By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV and TINI TRAN, Associated Press Writers – Wed Oct 14, 1:08 pm ET

BEIJING – Russia and China are closing in on a mammoth energy deal which could insure that Beijing has the fuel to run its factories and cities and Moscow has a vast new market for its natural gas empire.Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Wednesday wrapped up a three-day visit to the Chinese capital, during which Russia signed dozens of commercial pacts worth $3.5 billion and set the framework for a separate, multibillion-dollar agreement to build two natural gas pipelines to China from gas fields in Russia's Far East.Together, those pipelines would be capable of supplying China with 68 billion cubic meters (2.4 trillion cubic feet) of natural gas annually, representing a whopping 85 percent of the gas China currently consumes.

Once the energy partners agree on a final price and the pipelines are built, China could become Russia's single biggest customer for natural gas.The agreement highlights the determination of both nations to diversify their economies and seek new customers and vendors. It also reflects a political desire by both to steer a course independent of Western powers and especially the United States.But many experts say the deal doesn't necessarily signal that China and Russia are preparing to forge a major new strategic alliance.I don't buy this idea that China is Russia's future,said Chris Weafer, chief analyst at the Moscow-based Uralsib bank. The key relationship always has been and will be Europe.Lilit Gevorgyan, an analyst for London-based IHS Global Insight, said the Sino-Russian relationship, though closer in recent years, remains primarily based on economic needs.Of course the size of the deal will increase the importance of the relationship, but I wouldn't say that it's deliberately designed to shift the attention of Russia's foreign strategic goals from West to East,she said.Russia is reeling from the recession's impact. It's cash-strapped. Siberia has a very scarce population and lots of natural resources — something that's reversed in China. So it's only a logical marriage of two economic powers,she said.

Russia and China have a long history of mutual suspicion and tensions, and 50 years ago they split bitterly over interpretations of Communist ideology. In recent years, their relationship has warmed but they remain divided by geography, culture and a preference in both capitals for acting independently.China has historically looked inward, although that is changing, while Russia has turned to Europe, with which it shares long-standing economic and cultural ties.Still, Russia is the world's biggest energy producer and neighboring China is the world's second-largest energy consumer after the United States. Both see themselves as rivals to Washington and all three are permanent members of the U.N. Security Council. Political forces are clearly driving Beijing and Moscow closer.There's more than pragmatism here,said Gilbert Rozman, a Princeton University professor who has studied Sino-Russian relations. There's national identity. They both want to change the world order... They have strong views about how they can pressure the U.S. and the West so I think there are very important motives driving the two together.The energy agreement signed Tuesday between Russia's Gazprom and China National Petroleum Company sets a framework for final price negotiations. Russian officials have predicted they could sign a final pact next June, with the first gas deliveries possibly starting around 2014 or 2015.

China, however, may not be in a hurry to close the deal.Alexander Nazarov, oil and gas analyst at the Metropol investment bank in Moscow, said there could be a lot more haggling ahead. So far it's just a love letter, not a marriage contract,he said.
Russia is keener to get on with this than China is,said Weafer. He noted that China already produces about 76 billion cubic meters of natural gas each year, and only consumes about 80 billion cubic meters, with most of the rest coming from Australia as liquefied natural gas. So there are no gas shortages.But Beijing is gradually replacing coal and other energy sources with cleaner-burning gas, Weafer said, meaning China can afford to take its time in negotiating gas deals.In addition, China is building a 4,000-mile (6,500-kilometer) pipeline to bring 30 billion cubic meters of gas annually from Turkmenistan in Central Asia, undercutting Russia's near-lock on gas supplies in that former Soviet region.That pipeline will ensure that China has some leverage with Russia's Gazprom.

China is playing the long game,Weafer said.Some experts say Moscow may feel pressure to lock up the Chinese market as long-term prospects for growth of Russian gas exports to the European Union nations look bleak, as the EU strives to diversify energy sources and supply routes.Russian gas shipments to Europe have been interrupted several times in recent years due to financial disputes between Russia and Ukraine, which has pipelines that Russia needs to get its gas to Europe. Russia supplies about one quarter of the European Union's natural gas, and some officials have accused Moscow of using the threat of gas cutoffs as a diplomatic weapon. Last January, Russia ignited a Europe-wide uproar as it cut gas supplies for nearly two weeks.With its economy hit hard by the global financial crisis and the government suffering from a liquidity crunch, Russia also badly needs Chinese investment to explore and develop prospective energy fields.More than half of gas Russia has promised to supply to China is slated to come from yet-unexplored gas fields in eastern Siberia, which would require a multibillion dollar investment.Russia, meanwhile, is not putting all its hopes into China. Moscow is also courting foreign energy companies from the U.S. and Europe as partners in development of the vast natural gas fields of the northern Yamal peninsula in Siberia.Ideally, for Russia, they would like to have energy and trade deals with both east and west,Weafer said.And ultimately do deals with India as well. It's always been Russia's strategy not to over-rely on any one relationship.

Strong oil boosts TSX despite gold's fall By Ka Yan Ng – Wed Oct 14, 6:02 pm ET

TORONTO (Reuters) – Toronto's main stock index closed higher on Wednesday as rising oil prices lifted Suncor Energy and other oil and gas shares, while upbeat U.S. corporate earnings helped boost sentiment.Suncor, the biggest contributor to the gain, jumped 4.29 percent to C$40.36, while shares of fellow oil company Canadian Natural Resources advanced 3.4 percent to C$77.49.The rally in energy stocks came as the price of oil surged to a 2009 high above $75 a barrel due to optimism about a global economic rebound that would lead to higher energy demand.The S&P/TSX composite index hit its highest level in nearly three weeks, closing up 119.24 points, or 1.04 percent, at 11,532.78.In New York, the Dow industrials average pierced the 10,000 level for the first time in a year, encouraged by better-than-expected U.S. retail sales for September and surprisingly robust financial results from banking and technology bellwethers JPMorgan Chase and Intel Corp.That helped light a fire under bank stocks in Toronto. Royal Bank of Canada added 1.5 percent to C$55.94, and Toronto-Dominion Bank rose 1.7 percent to C$65.72.(JPMorgan's) capital markets division performed extremely well, so that's a good read-through for the Canadian banks that are more levered to capital markets,said Eric Brass, a portfolio manager with MFC Global Investment Management in Toronto.Canada's earnings calendar starts to ramp up in the next several weeks, and the market will look to see if corporate results show improvement to the bottom line beyond cost-cutting now that the global economy is emerging from recession.The market wants to see companies showing stronger organic sales growth. They want to see the economic recovery impacting revenue growth within companies, so cost-cutting won't necessarily be sufficient,Brass said.

Gold-mining shares were among the heavy losers on Wednesday as they took a breather after the price of bullion ended well off the record high it set early in the session.It probably won't stay there long. As long as the U.S. dollar continues its weakness, the golds should continue to be firm,said Lex Kerkovius, senior research analyst at McLean & Partners Wealth Management Ltd in Calgary.Nothing looks to be on the horizon immediately that's going to change that outlook.Five gold companies were among the top notable decliners, led by Goldcorp, off 1.4 percent at C$43.76, and Barrick Gold, down 0.92 percent at C$40.98.Some active issues on Wednesday included Canadian silver miner Pan American Silver Corp, which said it plans to acquire exploration company Aquiline Resources Inc in a deal valued at C$626 million.Pan American shares fell almost 6 percent to C$25.12, while those of Aquiline shares closed up 19.2 percent at C$6.52.(Editing by Peter Galloway)

Canadian dollar hits 14-month high, helped by oil, equity rise By Jennifer Kwan – Wed Oct 14, 7:50 pm ET

TORONTO (Reuters) – The Canadian dollar zoomed to its highest level in just over 14 months on Wednesday as upbeat U.S. corporate results boosted investor optimism about a global recovery, whetting appetite for riskier assets.Reports this week from JPMorgan Chase & Co and Intel Corp contributed to a broad-based downturn in the U.S. dollar, as investors bought assets and currencies viewed as more geared to global economic growth.Investor sentiment was also boosted by U.S. retail sales data on Wednesday, which helped to propel North American stock indexes higher. The Dow Jones industrials broke through the 10,000-mark for the first time in a year.As well, the price of oil, a key Canadian export, hit a record high for the year above $75 a barrel.The move higher was supported by oil prices and continued risk appetite, said Matthew Strauss, senior currency strategist at RBC Capital Markets.The Canadian currency shot to C$1.0251 to the U.S. dollar, or 97.55 U.S. cents, its loftiest level since August 1, 2008.The Canadian unit finished at C$1.0259 to the U.S. dollar, or 97.48 U.S. cents, up from C$1.0365 to the U.S. dollar, or 96.48 U.S. cents, at Tuesday's close.All eyes will be on movements in the U.S. currency as investors await a string of U.S. data on Thursday including U.S. inflation numbers and weekly jobless claims, said Strauss.At this point, the U.S. dollar selloff is quite overextended from a technical perspective,he said.But the Canadian dollar may not see huge movements for the remainder of the week, he added.Even if there's reason to rally further the market will probably be reluctant to push the Canadian dollar up to parity so close ahead of the Bank of Canada meeting,said Strauss.

The central bank, which holds its rate-setting meeting next week, has voiced concern about the currency's stunning rally, which it fears will hurt exporters, endanger the tentative economic recovery, and cause inflation to undershoot the bank's target.
But market players are also skeptical about the Bank of Canada's willingness to intervene to weaken the currency.Last week, Australia's central bank hiked rates, making it the first of the Group of 20 central banks to raise interest rates as the global financial crisis eases.The move sparked speculation on which central bank will hike next, though the strong Canadian dollar makes the Bank of Canada less likely to follow.Canada's central bank earlier this year chopped its key rate to a record low of 0.25 percent and pledged to keep it there until the middle of 2010.

BONDS LOWER

Domestic bond prices fell across the curve, tracking the move in the bigger U.S. Treasury market, with the move lower driven by the corporate results and economic data, said Eric Lascelles, chief economics and rates strategist at TD Securities. The two-year bond fell 5 Canadian cents to C$99.06 to yield 1.702 percent, while the 10-year bond sank 23 Canadian cents to C$101.77 to yield 3.530 percent. The Canadian market outperformed U.S. Treasury bonds, with the 10-year Canadian yield about 11 basis points above its U.S. counterpart, compared with around 16.4 basis points on Tuesday.(Reporting by Jennifer Kwan; Editing by Jeffrey Hodgson)