Swiss to Ban Big Cash Purchases to Curb Money Laundering

"Switzerland is proposing to ban cash payments in excess of 100,000 francs ($107,500), including on watches and real estate, and wants to tighten the due diligence requirements for banks to prevent money laundering. Transactions above that amount will have to be processed through a bank. According to the proposal, banks will also have to undertake thorough checks to ensure funds are tax-compliant and must in the future refuse to accept any funds they believe are not declared. The measures implement recommendations from the Financial Action Task Force, an international organization tasked with co-ordinating the fight against money laundering." Continue reading

Continue ReadingSwiss to Ban Big Cash Purchases to Curb Money Laundering

Red White: Why a Founding Father of Postwar Capitalism Spied for the Soviets

"In the 1930s, internationalists in the U.S. Treasury Department were determined to resolve the flaws in the international economic system once and for all. In the words of Harry Dexter White, a then little-known Treasury official who became the unlikely architect of the Bretton Woods system, it was time to build a 'New Deal for a new world.' Working with his British counterpart, the revolutionary economist John Maynard Keynes, White set out to create the economic foundations for a durable postwar global peace. Despite having never held any official title of importance, White had by 1944 achieved implausibly broad influence over U.S. foreign and economic policy." Continue reading

Continue ReadingRed White: Why a Founding Father of Postwar Capitalism Spied for the Soviets

U.S. calls on UN to ban drunken diplomats from budget negotiations

"The assembly’s budget body, the Fifth Committee, holds marathon negotiations in December each year on spending and national contributions. These often last all night for several days in a row so that a vote can be held before the end of year holidays. Some envoys have turned up for talks 'falling down drunk,' said one diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity. 'On one occasion the note-taker who was meant to be recording the talks was so intoxicated he had to be replaced,' said another. Both spoke on condition of anonymity." Continue reading

Continue ReadingU.S. calls on UN to ban drunken diplomats from budget negotiations

China’s Property Bubble – Why Is ’60 Minutes’ Telling the Tale?

"Western Money Power doesn't have the same control in China. China has a Western system but ultimately the ChiComs are the ones that run it. And maybe they have run it into the ground. Either it was planned or it was not. Or a combination of both. But we wrote that when the property bubble burst, if it did burst (as all bubbles must) then the Chinese Communist Party itself would be in trouble. So listen to this video snippet, excerpted above: the part where one of the largest builders of homes in China (and thus the world) is interviewed. He seems paralyzed by fear, and says a housing bust would be a disaster. He even predicts regime change." Continue reading

Continue ReadingChina’s Property Bubble – Why Is ’60 Minutes’ Telling the Tale?

UN investigator: Obama must release details of Bush kidnapping and torture program

"Ben Emmerson, the U.N. special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights while countering terrorism, will release a new report on Tuesday detailing his findings about the Bush-era program, according to Reuters. The report was not published online ahead of a planned hearing set for Tuesday, and a spokesperson was unavailable for comment. He added that there is 'credible evidence' that the CIA under the Bush administration had 'black sites' in Thailand, Poland, Morocco, Lithuania and Romania. Emmerson’s report is expected to urge lawmakers in those countries to fully investigate the matter and prosecute former officials if necessary." Continue reading

Continue ReadingUN investigator: Obama must release details of Bush kidnapping and torture program

Nigel Farage’s ‘Fruitcakes, Loonies & Closet Racists’ Libertarian UKIP knocks down Tories into third

"The British Conservative party has for the first time been pushed into third place in a by-election in the town of Eastleigh, by a party David Cameron dubbed 'fruitcakes and loonies and closet racists.' The UKIP (the UK Independence Party) strongly opposes immigration, and advocates for the UK to leave the European Union. In the Eastleigh vote, the Lib Dem Party polled at 13,342 votes, UKIP at 11,571, the Conservatives at 10,559 and Labour at 4,088. UKIP took almost 28 percent of the vote, one of their best-ever results in a British parliamentary election." Continue reading

Continue ReadingNigel Farage’s ‘Fruitcakes, Loonies & Closet Racists’ Libertarian UKIP knocks down Tories into third

My life as a tyrant

"I became a police officer because I wanted to be a good guy. Even though we’ve all seen reports of police brutality and corruption, I still believe we cops are the good guys. I’ve seen cops perform brave, selfless acts for strangers on countless occasions. Even the worst cops I’ve ever known would risk their lives to defend the innocent. But I have to say this anyway. Before you start throwing shoes, hear me out. I have a good reason for saying it. If you think our police are no threat to your freedom, you’re living in a fantasy world." Continue reading

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New Petition Demands that UN Offset Its Carbon Footprint

"The United Nations has come under attack for not practicing what it preaches. It is the ambition of the UN and of the Money Power that sits behind it to monetize 'carbon pollution.' Within this context, it seems perfectly logical to request that UN officials support their own green efforts by participating in the commerce they are attempting to inflict on everyone else. We doubt that the UN will do what it demands of others." Continue reading

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Austerity’s End Could Bring Additional German Turmoil

"Is Brussels backing away from austerity? If the top Eurocrats that have pushed so hard for it are now finding it impossible to implement, then we begin to ask underlying questions once more: Who pays for European insolvency? The obvious answer is the Germans. And this confirms what we have been arguing for the past several years. The Germans are not so much the 'leaders' of Europe as they are the victims of it. Ms. Merkel may not want a Euro-crisis before German elections but she may get another one after them." Continue reading

Continue ReadingAusterity’s End Could Bring Additional German Turmoil