Yearly Archives: 2013

This One Group of Bankers Can Help You Predict the Markets

"Fifty-eight of the world’s largest central banks are members of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), a group that meets every two months behind closed doors in Basel, Switzerland. At their bi-monthly dinner meetings, the central bankers supposedly discuss monetary policy, the global markets and international money flows. But we don’t really know, because the meetings are private — no transcripts, no minutes and no journalists allowed. Even staff members are barred from the room. What is certain is that any major policy decisions made by any of the world’s large central banks are cleared through the BIS first. Its latest warning is a doozy." Continue reading →

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They Think You’re Naïve…

"When it comes to the financial markets, Bernanke is, without a question, the most powerful man in the world. On May 22, he suggested that the Fed may soon reduce the size of its money-printing program, known as QE. Since then, the market has experienced a small meltdown. More than $2.5 trillion has already been erased from the value of global equities. Some analysts think the Fed announcing the end of QE would be a good thing. They think it would indicate the Fed is confident the economy is strong enough to operate without stimulus. The only problem is the Fed is thinking about ending QE for a reason that has nothing to do with healthy economic growth." Continue reading →

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Obama Says Bernanke Has Been at Fed ‘Longer Than He Wanted’

"President Barack Obama said Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke has stayed in his post 'longer than he wanted,' one of the clearest signals the central bank chief will leave when his current term expires next year. 'Ben Bernanke’s done an outstanding job,' Obama said in an interview with Charlie Rose that aired yesterday on PBS, when asked about nominating him for another term subject to Senate approval. 'He’s already stayed a lot longer than he wanted or he was supposed to.'" Continue reading →

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Read more about the article No Rest for the Weary Landowners and Their Advocates

No Rest for the Weary Landowners and Their Advocates

As the Texas Tribune reported, we’ve started the ball rolling AGAIN asking for interim studies and public hearings on common carrier pipelines and eminent domain abuse in our state. We knew public input (pulling wisdom from the minds of men and women) would be an important element in the search for solutions to protecting private property and water while providing fertile ground for oil and gas development. There was ONE and only ONE public hearing … Continue reading →

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When You Need To Disappear

"Whistleblower Edward Snowden needs to disappear if he is to avoid kidnapping, assassination, extradition, or deportation to the United States. If you’re ever faced by a situation in which you need to disappear, right away, what would you do? Perhaps someone is bent on revenge and has threatened to kill you. Perhaps you’re caught in an impossible personal or financial situation and you feel that 'going underground' is the only way out. Or perhaps like Snowden, you find yourself an enemy of the state. If you’re in such a situation, privacy may be a matter of life or death. You need to be prepared to act quickly, and when the time comes, not to hesitate." Continue reading →

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How The USA Captures Whistleblowers And Other Political Enemies

"Snowden’s case would likely fall under the political crime statute of the U.S.-Hong Kong extradition treaty. Any extradition request would be difficult, complicated, and probably ultimately unsuccessful. However, if Snowden succeeds in fighting extradition from Hong Kong, the United States can revoke his passport. It’s also possible that because of the likely difficulty of extradition, U.S. authorities will simply revoke Snowden’s passport and demand his return, and bypass the extradition option entirely. Notice of the revocation, meaning that the suspect would then be illegally in the country, would be sent to Hong Kong authorities who could then deport Snowden." Continue reading →

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Obama on prosecuting Edward Snowden: I will leave it up to the Department of Justice

"Barack Obama addressed what he described as the public 'ruckus' over the leaked National Security Agency surveillance documents on Monday, indicating that the US authorities would pursue extradition from Hong Kong of the whistleblower Edward Snowden. Obama did not offer any more details about the process in his PBS interview. Instead, he addressed criticism that he has shifted a long way from the liberal positions he championed during his 2008 White House race. Obama said: 'My concern has always been not that we shouldn’t do intelligence gathering to prevent terrorism, but rather are we setting up a system of checks and balances.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama on prosecuting Edward Snowden: I will leave it up to the Department of Justice

NSA Snooping on Americans Is Unconstitutional and Outrageous

"Even after 9/11, an American’s chance of being killed by terrorists is about the same as that of being killed by an asteroid and less than that of being struck down by lightning. President Obama recently gave a speech seemingly shining a light on the end of the tunnel in the war on terrorism. Apparently, that didn’t apply to snooping on Americans in that war. As a candidate prior to becoming president, Obama argued that no tradeoff existed between security and America’s unique and sacred liberties; yet after these government spying programs were leaked, he contradicted his early stance and opined we couldn’t have 100% security and 100% liberty." Continue reading →

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Smell of marijuana: Who needs a search warrant when police use their nose?

"The ability to conduct warrantless searches based on the smell of marijuana has faced some challenges. In Florida, recent cases in Sarasota and Pinellas County have cast doubt on some officers' claims they were able to smell the marijuana cited in their probable cause affidavits and search warrant applications. And in Massachusetts, where voters decriminalized small amounts of marijuana in 2008, a state court struck down the ability to smell and search in 2011. Defense attorneys argue that youths and minorities are targeted disproportionately and say that because the search relies solely on an officer's word, it's prone to misconduct." Continue reading →

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Apple pioneer Steve Wozniak one step closer to becoming Australian

"Steve Jobs's former right hand man and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is one step closer to becoming a permanent Australian resident and citizen. Wozniak, who quit the company in 1987 after 12 years, today told Australian tech blog Gizmodo he was finalising the paperwork for a move down under, a plan he flagged during his visit to Australia in September. 'It is a high priority this month for me to finish some medical and police reports for my residency application,' he said. The former Apple guru also confirmed he was still keen on getting Australian citizenship." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingApple pioneer Steve Wozniak one step closer to becoming Australian