The Fascist Coup Is Nearly Complete

The fascist coup in the United States is nearly complete.

Over the past few years the U.S. government has abolished countless freedoms of the American people... all in the name of "national security."

They've spent trillions of tax dollars - forced upon citizens under penalty of imprisonment - on an imperialistic military to fight an un-winnable war on terror, while all but neglecting our growing domestic problems.

The government and CONgress protects big business to create a symbiotic business/government relationship giving supreme power to the corporate elite.

And to top it all off, they've controlled mass media (notwithstanding the internet) to put a lid on the truth.

But don't worry. They're looking out for your best interests.

One Small Step for Elitists, One Giant Leap for Fascism

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few weeks, you've heard the U.S. government has now nationalized the entire mortgage industry with the acquisition of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. And now, it hopes to siphon $700 billion from American taxpayers to buy up the bad debt of financial institutions for the next two years.

Now, take a second or two... and think about how much $700 billion really is. It's seven hundred thousand million dollars! $700,000,000,000.00

Another perspective: It's enough to give every man, woman, and child in the city of Philadelphia a half-million dollars.

Listen... that $700 billion figure represents about 5.2% of the entire U.S. gross domestic product in 2007.

If approved, the bailout would raise the statutory limit on the national debt 6.6%... from $10.6 trillion to $11.3 trillion.

And what will U.S. taxpayers like you and I get in return?

Nothing. Zip. Zilch. Nada.
There are no plans for new regulations or oversights to help avoid this kind of crisis in the future.
There'll be no public interest givebacks to help the people whose homes are in the hands of the banks.
And, perhaps most shockingly of all, we will get absolutely no share in the profits if these fallen-from-grace financial giants bounce back... even though we are now assuming a great deal of the risk.
This is worse than a bad deal for us. In fact, it isn't even a deal!

The new rescue plan may restore a bit of investor confidence to battered financial markets. But investors will again begin to focus on the twin budget and current-account deficits and negative real U.S. interest rates. And eventually the government's plan will derail the dollar's three-month rally, which is, in effect...

The One Last Hurrah for the U.S. Dollar

The greenback has already started to retract. The U.S. Dollar Index, a measure of the value of the U.S. dollar relative to a basket of six foreign currencies, has pullback as much as 5.6% in the past two weeks.

Pirates 'want $35m for tank ship'

Pirates who seized a Ukrainian ship off the coast of Somalia have reportedly demanded a ransom of $35m (£19m) to release the vessel and its crew.
The pirates also warned against any attempt to rescue the crew or cargo of the MV Faina, which is carrying 33 T-72 battle tanks destined for Kenya.
But the Kenyan government later denied it had been issued with ransom demands.
A Russian Navy vessel is heading to the region and the US has said it is also monitoring developments in the area.
Ethiopia's Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, said he was concerned by the seizure of the military supplies on board the Ukrainian ship.

We are warning France and others who are thinking of carrying out a rescue that we have the power to reach them wherever they are
Januna Ali Jama
Alleged spokesman for the pirates
"They could be used to destabilise the region, and the whole situation on the high seas is a matter of great concern for all of us," he told reporters in New York before a meeting with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
"We very much hope the international community will respond."
The official Egyptian news agency, Mena, meanwhile has said that an Egyptian ship with 25 crew, which was hijacked by pirates earlier this month off the coast of Somalia's semi-autonomous region of Puntland, had been freed.
A local official in northern Somalia said a Japanese cargo vessel had also been released after a ransom was paid.
International concern
In an interview with the BBC, one of the pirates, Januna Ali Jama, claiming to be speaking on their behalf, said they were prepared to negotiate with the Kenyan government, but would not release MV Faina unless the ransom was paid.
"We are demanding a ransom of at least $35m."

But later in a tersely-worded statement, a spokesman for the Kenyan government said they had not received any credible demands for a ransom to release the ship.
He went on to say that the government would not negotiate with what it called international criminals, pirates and terrorists, and said efforts to recover the hijacked ship and its cargo would continue.
The BBC's Karen Allen in Nairobi says there is growing international concern for the fate of the Ukrainian vessel, which went missing in what are considered some of the world's most dangerous waters.
There are unconfirmed reports, our correspondent says, that it is currently being steered by the pirates towards ports just north of the Somali capital, Mogadishu - an area controlled by Islamist militants.
'Big business'
On Friday, Ukrainian Defence Minister Yury Yekhanurov confirmed that 33 Russian T-72 tanks and "a substantial quantity of ammunition" were aboard the MV Faina.

Ukraine's foreign ministry said the ship had a crew of 21 and was sailing towards the Kenyan port of Mombasa.
The ship's captain had reported being surrounded by three boats of armed men on Thursday afternoon, it said.
Earlier reports suggested that the cargo had been destined for south Sudan, but Kenyan government spokesman Alfred Mutua confirmed the tanks were heading to Kenya.
"The cargo in the ship includes military hardware such as tanks and an assortment of spare parts for use by different branches of the Kenyan military," he said.
Security analyst Knox Chitiyo told the BBC the latest incident showed the waters off Somalia's coast had become a "global security problem".
"Piracy has become big business and there seems to be no concerted response to the problem," said Mr Chitiyo, from the London-based Royal United Services Institute.
'Mother ships'
Authorities in Puntland say they are powerless to confront the pirates, who regularly hold ships for ransom at the port of Eyl.
Senior UN officials estimate the ransoms pirates earn from hijacking ships exceed $100m (£54m) a year.
Pirate "mother ships" travel far out to sea and launch smaller boats to attack passing vessels, sometimes using rocket-propelled grenades.
Last week, France circulated a draft UN resolution urging states to deploy naval vessels and aircraft to combat such piracy.
France, which has troops in nearby Djibouti and also participates in a multi-national naval force patrol in the area, has intervened twice to release French sailors kidnapped by pirates.
Commandos freed two people whose boat was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden earlier this month and in April, six arrested pirates were handed over to the French authorities for trial.
Russia announced on Friday it would start carrying out regular anti-piracy patrols in the waters off Somalia to protect Russian citizens and ships. A warship was sent to the area earlier this week.
Somalia has been without a functioning central government for 17 years and has suffered from continual civil strife.

How Big is $700 Billion

check out a short skit http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=95099470

U.S. Consumer Product Safety CommissionRecalls Apeks Scuba Diving Regulators Due to Drowning Hazard

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Apeks Second Stage Scuba Regulators

Units: About 25,000

Distributor: Aqua Lung America of Vista, Calif.

Manufacturer: Apeks Marine Equipment Ltd., of Blackburn, England

Hazard: These regulators can be missing the diaphragm cover which can cause the diaphragm to become displaced during a dive, allowing water to enter the scuba regulator. This poses a drowning hazard to divers.

Incidents/Injuries: None.

Description: This recall involves Apeks TX, ATX, and XTX second stage regulators that have never been serviced. Apeks and TX, ATX, or XTX is printed on the regulator.

Sold at: Authorized Apeks dealers nationwide from February 2000 through June 2008 for between $420 and $1,450.

Manufactured in: England

Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop diving with these regulators and visit an authorized Apeks dealer for a free inspection and free installation of a diaphragm cover, if the cover is missing.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Aqua Lung toll-free at (877) 253-3483 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. PT Monday through Friday, or visit the company's Web site at www.aqualung.com

To see this recall on CPSC's web site, including pictures of the recalled products, please go to: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/084

Beijing may force Starbucks to close its outlet inside 587-year-old Imperial Palace

BEIJING: Caretakers of the Forbidden City in Beijing may force Starbucks to close its outlet inside the 587-year- old imperial palace after the world's largest coffee-shop chain was criticized by a Chinese news anchor on his blog.

The outlet is "a symbol of low-end U.S. food culture" and "an insult to Chinese civilization," Rui Chenggang, an anchor at state broadcaster China Central Television, wrote on his personal Web log.

The blog has attracted more than 540,000 hits and thousands of responses in Internet chat rooms since last Friday.

This has prompted the caretakers to study the matter. They plan to decide by the end of June whether the Starbucks in the Forbidden City should remain or be abolished, The Beijing Morning Post reported Tuesday, citing a Forbidden City spokesman, Feng Naien.

A Forbidden City spokeswoman, who would only gave her family name, Liu, told Bloomberg News on Thursday that the management office was considering its course of action.

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The controversy underscores the increasing power of the Internet in China in shaping public opinion and shifting public policy.

Starbucks, which opened its first outlet in China in 2000, has more than 200 shops in 21 mainland cities.

"Should Starbucks be forbidden in the Forbidden City?' said James Chau, a news anchor at CCTV's Channel 9. "I don't know. I would've said the same if I needed the free publicity for my blog."

China represents the biggest opportunity for Starbucks and will become its biggest market outside the United States, the chairman of the chain, Howard Schultz, said during an interview early this month.

Starbucks, he said, is educating the Chinese market about coffee and introducing people to beverages they have never had before.

"Starbucks appreciates the deep history and culture of the Forbidden City and has operated in a respectful manner that fits within the environment," Eden Woon, the coffee company's China vice president, said in an e- mailed statement Thursday.

Not every blog reader has taken Rui's side. Some have berated him for his unabashed nationalism.

Rui, who says he buys Starbucks coffee, said he was "anything but" a nationalist.

"I support them coming into the Chinese market, but it's a matter of respecting and protecting our own culture as Chinese," he said during an interview.

The Starbucks outlet is in a building that was used by court officials during the Qing dynasty, which ruled from 1644 to 1911.

Court officials spent time there while they waited for their morning audience with the emperor.

The magnificent palace grounds were used by 24 Chinese emperors and are a major international tourist attraction.

Starbucks is not the only overseas company to display its corporate logo in the Forbidden City, which was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987 by the United Nations. American Express has its logo under every sign board that provides descriptions of the palace halls.

Starbucks submitted a bid to provide beverages in the palace six years ago. The company replaced its signage with a discreet logo after complaints.

Rui's blog includes comments he said were from an e-mail sent by the chief executive of Starbucks, James Donald.

"When Starbucks was invited by museum officials to open a store six years ago, we did so with great sensitivity to, and respect for, the historic and cultural heritage of the Forbidden City," the e-mail said.

"We are honored and humbled to have been invited to offer customers a place to relax and enjoy a cup of coffee with their local barista."

Death Of The Brokerage: The Future Of Wall Street

The decision by Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to become bank holding companies is nothing short of a historic realignment of the financial services industry. It marks the end of the securities firm model that has dominated Wall Street since the Great Depression.

Here, a look at what the change means to the future of investment banking.

Why did Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley decide to become bank holding companies?

The decision enables both firms to gain access to the Federal Reserve's discount window — the same line of credit that is open to other depository institutions. That's in addition to the temporary financial lifeline, called the Primary Dealer Credit Facility, that the Fed established for Wall Street broker-dealers after it bailed out Bear Stearns in March. The transformation into bank holding companies also allows Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to tap into deposits from retail customers.

Goldman Sachs said that over the past several weeks it began discussions with the Fed regarding the possibility of becoming a bank holding company. "We understand that the market views oversight by the Federal Reserve and the ability to source insured bank deposits as providing a greater degree of safety and soundness," the company said in a statement.
Morgan Stanley CEO and Chairman John Mack said the bank holding structure would place his firm in the "strongest possible position — with the stability and flexibility to seize opportunities in the rapidly changing financial marketplace." On Monday, Morgan Stanley announced that it was pursuing a "strategic alliance" with Mitsubishi UFJ financial group Inc., the second-largest bank holding company in the world, with $1.1 trillion in deposits. If the deal closes, Mitsubishi would gain a 20 percent equity share in Morgan Stanley and a seat on its board. Mack said the alliance would enable Morgan Stanley to grow its business in Asia.

What's the difference between a bank holding company and an investment bank?

A bank holding company is essentially an umbrella organization that runs commercial banks, which accept deposits from retail customers. These institutions are regulated by the Federal Reserve and are also subject to oversight by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

Investment banks help companies and governments raise funds by selling and issuing securities, and they offer advice on transactions, such as mergers and acquisitions. These firms operate with less oversight than commercial banks and are regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Now that Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have switched to bank holding companies, there are no independent investment banks left on Wall Street.

As of June, Citigroup was the largest bank holding company in the U.S., with $2.1 trillion in assets, followed by JPMorgan Chase, with $1.8 trillion in assets, according to the Federal Reserve. Goldman said it would become the fourth-largest bank holding company. Morgan Stanley did not announce where it would stand in U.S. rankings.

Why is this such a big change in the financial services landscape?

It's a huge change in the way Wall Street has done business since the Great Depression. In 1933 — in the aftermath of the stock market crash of 1929 — Congress passed the Glass-Steagall Act. Many people blamed the crash on commercial banks that were too eager to put deposits at risk on the stock market. In response, the act divided the banking universe into two camps: lending institutions and brokerages.
Officially, this wall of separation crumbled in 1999, when Congress passed the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which once again allowed commercial and investment banks to consolidate. However, in practice, this consolidation was slow to take place, because at the time, many investment banking companies did not want to be regulated by the Fed, says financial consultant Bert Ely, the head of Ely & Co.. a financial institutions consulting firm.

So what's changed? Ely says the Bear Stearns bailout followed by Lehman Brothers' collapse and the sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America all increased both regulatory and political pressure for Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to adopt the more stable — and more regulated — financial holding company model.

Will there be more regulation of these financial services companies under this model?

Yes. More agencies will have a hand in regulating the two firms.

Goldman already operates two banks — one in the United States and one in Europe — with more than $20 billion in deposits. As part of its reorganization, Goldman said that it would move assets into Goldman Sachs Bank USA. Morgan Stanley said that as of August, it has $36 billion in bank deposits and over 3 million retail accounts.

Ely says the three bank charters that Morgan Stanley owns and the two that Goldman possesses have been operating under special exemptions without FDIC oversight. "The more significant regulatory change is that the Fed becomes their primary regulator," says Ely.

The SEC will still regulate their broker-dealer subsidiaries, and the FDIC will be involved with these firms' banking activities.

Is this the end of investment banking activities on Wall Street?

Not at all. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley and other firms will still be able to engage in investment banking activities. Their function in the marketplace will be very much the same. But now they'll engage in activities under the supervision of the Fed.
Lloyd Blankfein, chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs, said the firm's decision to become a bank holding company was based on the market view that regulation by the Federal Reserve provides a"greater degree of safety and soundness." AP

John Mack, chairman and CEO of Morgan Stanley, said the firm would enter an alliance with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., the second-largest bank holding company in the world, with $1.1 trillion in deposits. AP

Alaska Women Reject Palin

ASK YOUR TV STATIONS WHY THEY DIDN'T COVER WHAT HAS NOW BEEN CALLED THE BIGGEST RALLY IN ALASKA HISTORY?



[The]Alaska Women Reject Palin-rally was planned for outside the front lawn of the Loussac Library in midtown Anchorage. Home made signs were encouraged, and the idea was to make a statement that Sarah Palin does not speak for all Alaska women or men.

The rally was organized by a small group of women, talking over coffee. These women hatched the plan, printed up flyers, posted them around town, and sent notices to local media outlets. One of those media outlets was KBYR radio, home of Eddie Burke, a long-time uber-conservative Anchorage talk show host.Eddie Burke not only announced the rally, but called the people who planned to attend the rally "a bunch of socialist baby-killing maggots," and read the home phone numbers of the organizers aloud over the air, urging listeners to call them. The women, of course, received some nasty, harassing and threatening messages.

In Anchorage, if you can get 25 people to show up at an event, it's a success. So, I thougt if we can actually get 100 people there that aren't sent by Eddie Burke...

When I got there, about 20 minutes early, the line of sign wavers stretched the full length of the library grounds, along the edge of the road, 6 or 7 people deep! I could hardly find a place to park.

Never, have I seen anything like it in my 17 and a half years living in Anchorage. The organizers clicked off well over 1400 people (not including the 90 counter-demonstrators). This was the biggest political rally ever, in the history of the state. I was absolutely stunned. The second most amazing thing is how many people honked and gave the thumbs up as they drove by.This just doesn't happen here.

Then, the infamous Eddie Burke showed up. He tried to talk to the media, and was instantly surrounded by a group of 20 people who started shouting O-BA-MA so loud he couldn't be heard.Then passing cars started honking in a rhythmic pattern of 3, like the Obama chant, while the crowd cheered, hooted and waved their signs high.

The Alaska Women Reject Palin rally was significantly bigger than Palin's rally that got all the national media coverage! So take heart, sit back, and enjoy the photo gallery. Feel free to spread the pictures around to anyone who needs to know that Sarah Palin most definitely does not speak for all Alaskans. The citizens of Alaska, who know her best, have things to say.

BPA-compound found in baby bottles and water bottles

Watch CBS Videos Online
The debate is heating up over the safety of a common household plastic called BPA-compound found in baby bottles and water bottles. Maggie Rodriguez talks with Dr. Holly Phillips about it.

New eBay Site Strives For "World Of Good"

WorldofGood.com To Sell Goods Produced With Social And Environmental Goals In Mind
Most consumers probably associate eBay Inc. more with vintage lunch boxes and low-priced electronics than with laptop bags made from recycled plastic by women in New Delhi.

The online auction operator is trying to change that perception with WorldofGood.com, a Web site due to launch Wednesday to sell goods produced with social and environmental goals in mind.

EBay developed the site with World of Good Inc., a startup focused on "ethical supply chains" behind consumer products, and licensed the group's name for the marketplace. World of Good will get a share of the revenue from the site, which had been operating for the past six months as an online community focused on the social impact of business.

The site will sell fixed-price goods that purportedly have some positive effect on people and the planet. The goal is to help consumers align their social values with their shopping decisions, WorldofGood.com general manager Robert Chatwani said.

Shoppers will be able to search for products by certain social or environmental categories, revealing, for example, a photo of the man who produced the fair-trade coffee you're interested in buying, details of its origins and whether some of the proceeds support a charitable cause.

Independent third-party organizations like Rainforest Alliance and Co-op America will screen sellers and verify the items listed on the site.

"We really want consumers to drill down into the detail of what's behind that product," Chatwani said.

Already the market for products that emphasize social and environmental awareness is growing. Chatwani cited the Natural Marketing Institute's estimate that the U.S. market for such goods was $209 billion in 2005, and the group projects that will rise to $420 billion in 2010.

And while there are plenty of places to buy such items already, eBay and its 84.5 million active users might dramatically increase awareness for artisans. WorldofGood.com items will also be cross-listed on eBay proper, blended into standard search results.

The arrangement drew praise from Roberto Milk, chief executive of Novica, which works with artisans around the world to sell their home decor items on eBay. The National Geographic Society owns a stake in the company.

Novica has sold things on eBay since 1999, but given the enormous nature of the site, "nobody knows we're on eBay," he said. This could change with additional sales on WorldofGood.com, where Novica will sell items it has either bought or taken on consignment.

"All our artisans really need is exposure," he said.

As on eBay, sellers on WorldofGood.com will pay fees to list items and give eBay a commission on successful sales. All transactions will be made through eBay's electronic payment system, PayPal. At launch, the site will have several hundred sellers, including many merchants who are also current eBay sellers.

Fox News - Tina Fey Returns To SNL To Spoof Sarah Palin / Hillary Clinton

TOO SEE THE COMPLETE SNL SKIT CLICK ON TITLE ABOVE

WORLD WAR 3 SECRET

Freedom of speech? - Bush Heckled "war criminal"