What Could Possibly Go Wrong

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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Bond bubble threatens financial system, Bank of England director warns

"A key Bank of England policymaker has warned of the risks to global financial stability when 'the biggest bond bubble in history' bursts. In a wide-ranging testimony to MPs, Andy Haldane, Bank of England director of financial stability, admitted the central bank's new financial policy committee is taking too long to force banks to hold more capital and appeared to criticise the bank's culture under outgoing governor Sir Mervyn King. Haldane told the Treasury select committee that the bursting of the bond bubble – created by central banks forcing down bond yields by pumping electronic money into the economy – was a risk 'I feel acutely right now'." Continue reading →

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Jordan wargames: Patriot batteries, F-16s and 4,500 US troops near Syrian border

"Multinational military exercise 'Eager Lion' has been launched in Jordan amid condemnation from neighboring Syria and its ally Russia. The US brings Patriot missile batteries to the Syrian border, which could remain deployed afterwards. The exercises will last for 12 days, bringing together about 8,000 personnel from 19 countries, mostly Arabic, but also including the US and Europe. The maneuvers will also involve some 3,000 Jordanian and 500 British troops. The US military revealed it may indefinitely leave behind the Patriot batteries and F-16s deployed in Jordan due to the threat of the violence in Syria crossing into Jordanian territory." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJordan wargames: Patriot batteries, F-16s and 4,500 US troops near Syrian border

CIA preparing to deliver Syrian rebels weapons through Turkey and Jordan

"The CIA is preparing to deliver arms to rebel groups in Syria through clandestine bases in Turkey and Jordan that were expanded over the past year in an effort to establish reliable supply routes into the country for nonlethal material, U.S. officials said. The bases are expected to begin conveying limited shipments of weapons and ammunition within weeks, officials said, serving as critical nodes for an escalation of U.S. involvement in a civil war. Syria experts cautioned that the opposition to Assad remains a chaotic mix of secular and Islamist elements, highlighting the risk that some American-provided munitions may be diverted from their intended recipients." Continue reading →

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Law enforcement demands smartphone ‘kill switch’

"A coalition of law enforcement officials, political leaders and consumer groups, called the Secure Our Smartphones (S.O.S) Initiative, wants a 'kill switch' installed on all new smartphones that would make them useless anywhere in the world if they are reported stolen. They want all smartphones equipped with a kill switch by early next year and they don’t want customers to foot the bill for this security technology. The S.O.S. Initiative is spearheaded by Gascon and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. The two prosecutors hosted a 'Smartphone Summit' in New York City on Thursday with the major mobile device manufacturers." Continue reading →

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James Bamford: The Secret War

"Tens of thousands of people move through more than 50 buildings—the city has its own post office, fire department, and police force. But as if designed by Kafka, it sits among a forest of trees, surrounded by electrified fences and heavily armed guards, protected by antitank barriers, monitored by sensitive motion detectors, and watched by rotating cameras. To block any telltale electromagnetic signals from escaping, the inner walls of the buildings are wrapped in protective copper shielding and the one-way windows are embedded with a fine copper mesh. This is the undisputed domain of General Keith Alexander, a man few even in Washington would likely recognize." Continue reading →

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Margin Debt Hits Record High

"Investors ramped up their borrowing against brokerage accounts in April, taking margin debt to its highest-ever level. Investors borrowed $384.4 billion against their investments in April, a 1.3% gain from the previous month, and a 29% rise from the same month last year, according to the New York Stock Exchange. The rising level of debt is seen as a measure of investor confidence, as investors are more willing to take out debt against investments when shares are rising and they have more value in their portfolios to borrow against. The latest rise has been fueled by low interest rates and a 15% year-to-date stock-market rally." Continue reading →

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Why John McCain Wants to Aid Lung-Eating Syrian Terrorists

"He told us the invasion and occupation of Iraq would be 'fairly easy.' He pontificated that the anthrax attacks were delivered by the Iraqis. His preferred policy for Afghanistan: we should 'muddle through,' rather than withdraw. When the North Koreans started acting out, he averred we ought to threaten them with 'extinction.' And when Russia and the former Soviet republic of Georgia got into an armed conflict over the breakaway province of South Ossetia, McCain announced 'Today, We Are All Georgians' and demanded we go to war with Moscow. He thinks Iran is training Al Qaeda: he also thinks Iraq shares a border with Pakistan." Continue reading →

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Rand Paul: Helping Syrian rebels a dangerous risk

"The United States has a history of often picking sides in Middle East conflicts to its own detriment. Empowering Islamic extremists to achieve questionable short-term goals does not serve America's long-term security or interests. Nor does it serve the interests of nearly 2 million Christians in Syria who fear they could suffer the same fate as Iraqi Christians who were abused and expelled from that country as radical Islamic forces gained influence and power." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRand Paul: Helping Syrian rebels a dangerous risk

Family Concerned After John McCain Wanders Into Syria

"Members of Sen. John McCain’s family expressed deep concern Tuesday after receiving word that the aging legislator had wandered off into Syria. 'Unfortunately, this has been happening a lot lately; he’ll walk out of the Capitol building, get disoriented, and then we get a call late at night saying that John is in Syria,' McCain’s wife Cindy said upon learning that her 76-year-old husband turned up in the war-torn country after ambling across the Turkey-Syria border and delivering a rambling, incoherent speech to a group of rebels." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFamily Concerned After John McCain Wanders Into Syria