Bitcoin Dealers Are Running Into Problems In Canada

"Two Canadian businessmen recently got some bad news from their banks. James Grant, owner of Canadian Bitcoins, got a letter. Melvin Ng, proprietor of CADBitcoin, got a phone call. Both men run online exchanges where you can purchase Bitcoins for Canadian dollars. And both were informed their businesses’ accounts frozen by Canada’s largest banks. 'It’s a weird situation,' Ng told us by phone recently. 'We’re a normal Canadian business, we’re registered with the government, and a Canadian bank can just block it off.' Grant was more blunt: 'They just don’t like Bitcoins.'" Continue reading

Continue ReadingBitcoin Dealers Are Running Into Problems In Canada

Swiss banking chief tries to quell clamor about gold

"Swiss National Bank President Thomas Jordan won't exclude increasing the central bank's gold holdings at some point and said most of its reserves are held domestically. More than 70 percent of the SNB's 1,040 tons of gold are held in Switzerland, with about 20 percent at the Bank of England and 10 percent at the Bank of Canada, he said, for the first time disclosing where the physical assets were stored. The SNB's gold holdings are the target of a popular initiative, which demands that at least 20 percent of the central bank's assets be in the form of gold. The measure would also block the sale of such holdings and require all SNB gold to be located in Switzerland." Continue reading

Continue ReadingSwiss banking chief tries to quell clamor about gold

EU against austerity: Protesters clash with police amid unrest in Spain, Portugal

"Police detained at least 15 in Madrid, including one minor, as they used force to quell an angry mob of protesters near the Spanish parliament, united under a 'Besiege Congress' slogan calling for the government to quit. The riots come as Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is set to announce a raft of measures on Friday aimed at tackling the country's recession. An estimated 1,400 policemen were deployed around the chamber as politicians cancelled the session for the day. Protesters held signs that read '6.2 million reasons' in a reference to the latest jobless figures and when police charged them they chanted 'You have jobs, we do not.'" Continue reading

Continue ReadingEU against austerity: Protesters clash with police amid unrest in Spain, Portugal

Syrian Rebels Claim Government Using Chemical Weapons; Hagel Takes Dictation

"Syrian rebels have been entrusted by US intelligence to collect information to show that the Syrian government has used chemical weapons against its own citizens and, surprise, they have come back with the 'evidence' the warmongers have sought to satisfy rebel demands for a US attack. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, in a stunning about-face, has dutifully reported back to Congress these 'findings' as fact and in so doing has shifted the US war machine from 'neutral' into 'drive'." Continue reading

Continue ReadingSyrian Rebels Claim Government Using Chemical Weapons; Hagel Takes Dictation

Connecticut: “No Guns, No Gold”

"You probably know about the gun control bill that was voted into law this month. Gun manufacturers are threatening to move out of the state. The story is here. The state is now about to shut down all coin stores. A bill to require complete record-keeping on all sales, including photos of every coin sold, and recording the ID of every buyer and seller, is about to be passed into law. The cost of complying will shut down the stores." Continue reading

Continue ReadingConnecticut: “No Guns, No Gold”

Missouri senate votes to stop issuing driver’s licenses after concealed carry records leak

"Missouri state senators on on Monday voted to eliminate all funding for the Department of Revenue’s driver’s license bureau because they were angry about the way the agency was keeping concealed carry gun records. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Kurt Schaefer (R) said that he had created that draconian cuts to send a message to Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon’s administration. In addition to $3.5 million of funding for the driver’s license offices, Schaefer is also targeting the Department of Public Safety and computer operations at the state Office of Administration because they had a role in sharing concealed carry records." Continue reading

Continue ReadingMissouri senate votes to stop issuing driver’s licenses after concealed carry records leak

Twelve States ask SCOTUS to challenge EPA on ‘clean air’ CO2 regulation

"Twelve States (Texas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina and South Dakota) today filed a petition to have the Supreme Court review the D.C. Circuit’s decision not to strike down EPA’s climate regulations. The States argue that the Congress never intended for the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gases. The Clean Air Act was designed in 1970, in order to fight smog. The law’s tools and mechanisms are totally inappropriate for regulating greenhouse gas emissions, which are much more prevalent than the pollutants that cause smog." Continue reading

Continue ReadingTwelve States ask SCOTUS to challenge EPA on ‘clean air’ CO2 regulation

New Jersey Governor Imposes Red Light Camera Freeze

"Chris Christie has gone from red light camera proponent to active photo ticketing opponent in a matter of months. On Thursday, the state Department of Transportation (NJDOT) announced there will be no new red light cameras installed in the Garden State with the notice specifically mentioning it was the political decision of the 'Christie Administration.' Less than nine months ago, Christie had backed red light cameras. Data from the first year of camera use show a spike in the number of injury-causing and severe accidents. The results ran counter to the promise that photo ticketing reduces 'more dangerous' angle collisions." Continue reading

Continue ReadingNew Jersey Governor Imposes Red Light Camera Freeze

California: Audit Finds Nearly Non-Existent Yellow At Red Light Camera Intersection

"Red light camera opponents often charge municipalities exploit intersections that have dangerously short yellow times for the purpose of issuing tickets. An outside audit of the Sacramento, California red light camera program confirmed that tickets were issued at an intersection where the yellow warning period on occasion flashed by faster than the eye could see. The Redflex camera system reported seeing yellows as short as 0.056 seconds on July 11, 2012 at around 9:30am. The report also chided officials for not trimming trees when the limbs hide the cameras and legally required warning signs." Continue reading

Continue ReadingCalifornia: Audit Finds Nearly Non-Existent Yellow At Red Light Camera Intersection

Bloomberg News Writes About Americans ‘Paying Up’ Wherever They Reside…

"Why not renounce you say? Because, I never had a clue until now (at age 50) that USA even considered me a taxpayer. Why would I? It makes no sense to tax people who DO NOT LIVE in USA, never worked there, never earned income there, and never plan to live there. No other country does this. Since all the publicity surrounding FATCA, I discover I am in big trouble for not filing all these years, even though I have always paid taxes to the Canadian government. USA will not let me renounce unless I can prove 5 years of US tax compliance which requires paying 10′s of thousands in lawyers and accounting fees and risking PENALTIES for previous non-filing." Continue reading

Continue ReadingBloomberg News Writes About Americans ‘Paying Up’ Wherever They Reside…