How’s That “Change” Working Out For Ya?

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.

This video says it all…

Note to Michelle Obama: If you happen to see an application for the position of Intern with the last name Lewinsky, you might want to keep an eye out…

Gerry Ashley

Pelosi Must Go. Now.

 

FoxNews has damaging footage of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi calling US immigration laws “un-American.” Ms. Pelosi was speaking in front of an audience of both legal and illegal immigrants at St. Anthony’s Church in San Francisco ten days ago.

Video is here: watch in horror.

Damned by her own words, Pelosi must go.

Stoutcat

Russia Arming Itself… And Iran

 

Hard on the heels of Alan’s post about Russia re-arming itself comes confirmation of something long suspected: that Russia is also arming Iran with S-300 air defense missiles. Via USAToday:

Russian news agencies cited a top defense official Wednesday as confirming that a contract to sell powerful air-defense missiles to Iran was signed two years ago, but saying no such weapons have yet been delivered.

Russian officials have consistently denied claims the country already has provided some of the S-300 missiles to Iran. They have not said whether a contract existed…

I guess it depends on what “is” is.

A prominent Russian analyst, Ruslan Pukhov of the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, said the missile contract was seen by the Kremlin as primarily a political rather than commercial matter.

“The S-300 contract, and cooperation with Iran in general, is regarded by Moscow only as an instrument of political bargaining with the West and not as a way of realizing the fundamental defense and commercial interests of Russia,” he was quoted as saying by RIA-Novosti.

Medvedev (and by extension, Putin) are playing hardball in the major leagues here. I hope President Obama will be ready when he comes to bat.

Stoutcat

Russia Re-Arming

Oh goody… Back on January 12th, 2009 we wrote “Russia Continues to Claw Upwards”.

Now there’s a formal announcement that Russia intends to re-arm with “gusto” (or “удовольствие”.)

Toss into the mix Obama’s willingness to consider stopping the missile defense system in exchange for Russia’s “help” in stopping Iran’s nuclear weapons program, and… well… There you go.

I wish this post was longer (though the links might keep you busy), but there ain’t much to say. On so many fronts, the handwriting is on the wall…

Alan Speakman

Actress Natasha Richardson Declared Brain Dead

The New York Post reports that Natasha Richardson, Tony-winning actress and star of such films as The Handmaid’s Tale, Nell, and Maid in Manhattan, has been declared brain dead and is expected to be removed from life support within the next few hours. She was 45 years old.

Ms. Richardson had been skiing with her elder son, Michael, 13, at Mont Tremblant resort, in Quebec, Canada. She fell while taking a private lesson on one of the beginner’s trails. The resort reported that Ms. Richardson said she felt fine; however the ski patrol at the resort followed their procedures, escorted Richardson to the bottom of the trail, and requested that she see a doctor. At this time, it is unclear whether she did so.

About an hour later, Ms. Richardson complained of a headache. While there was no blood or visible mark from the fall, she was immediately sent to the local hospital, and subsequently transferred to Hopital du Sacre-Coeur in Montreal, where she was declared brain dead. No other medical information is available at this time as to what caused her condition.

Ms. Richardson’s husband Liam Neeson had been filming in Toronto. When he was notified, he went directly to the Montreal hospital to be with his wife.

She is currently being transported back to New York, where she will be removed from life support in the circle of her family and close friends.

Our condolences go out to Ms. Richardson’s family.

Stoutcat

The Great Gold Rush Conundrum

If you haven’t been paying attention to world events regarding money issues, now might be a good time to pull your head from the sands or abandon all hope for your future.

Strong opening line, huh?  Good. It was meant to grab your attention, because all signs indicate that something wicked this way cometh, and I’m not talking about a remake of Saturday Night Fever with Clay Aiken in the role that made John Travolta a movie star.

We’re hearing it from economists. We’re hearing it from analysts. We’ve seen it happen in Iceland already. Glenn Beck has been sounding his panic alarm on this for some time now: The world’s monetary system is in turmoil and the you-know-what is going to hit the fan somewhere in the 2012-2013 time frame, according to some.

Everywhere you turn, people are promoting the idea of buying gold. Gold, being a precious metal, is expected to increase in value according to the market demand, as opposed to world currencies which will, supposedly, tank.

A good friend of mine suggested I liquidate my assets and invest in gold. It would seem to make sense, except for several problems:

• The thought occurred to me that, with so many people running around, crying “Buy gold! Our currency will be worthless in three years”, might that just create enough fear to start a run on banks and for people to bail out of the stock market? Then in turn, could that cause markets around the world to crash, thus becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy?
• With a limited supply of gold in the world, there is simply no way there will be enough for everyone who wants it. And if an entity like China wants to buy up all the remaining supply, what does that do to the economy of the rest of the world?

Don’t get me wrong: I appreciate those who are qualified and well-versed in economic matters laying out the possible scenarios. But this is the time for responsible restraint in one’s approach to the issue.

For every person with legitimate credentials voicing their concern, there are hundreds of “repeaters” who just can’t wait to be the first to start a new one of those perpetual e-mails circulating the globe. And if they misinterpret the facts as mentioned by someone who has credentials, you know as well as I, a “Chicken Little” message of panic will result, pointing to the expert as verifying the conditions. By the time Snopes.com clears things up, the damage is done.

If there is ample evidence that is absolutely irrefutable, we are justified in warning our friends. But short of that, we need to procede very carefully or we will create a self-fulfilling prophecy… and a horribly serious one. By all that is holy, I implore: Proceed with caution!

Should gold investing be your choice, here are some things you might want to consider:

Somewhere in the Sands of the Desert

It’s strange that the Iranians would be so careless as to let one of their surveillance UAVs linger over Iraq for more than an hour last month (that is, until we shot it down). That drone, an Ababil 3, is manufactured by Hesa, an Iranian company recently designated by the U.S. Treasury as a military firm which has had involvement in Iran’s nuclear or ballistic missile programs.

In other happenings involving Iran recently, charges were unsealed today against an Iranian “businessman”, Hossein ali Khoshnevisrad,  who was arrested last Saturday at San Francisco International Airport. The charges? Two felony counts of unlawful exports of U.S. goods to Iran and two counts of conspiracy to unlawfully export U.S. goods to Iran. Specifics? Helicopter engines and advanced aerial cameras for fighter bombers. Destination? Hesa. Innocent mistake on the part of a harried businessman? Not on your life.

It turns out that the FBI has been tracking Mr. Khoshnevisrad and his company, Ariasa, for quite some time.

They tracked Khoshnevisrad as he instructed an Irish company to purchase 17 military-use helicopter engines in Indiana for over $4 million. They followed the engines (purportedly destined for the firm for use in Ireland) as they were re-routed to an alleged publishing company in Malaysia, which turned out to be a freight-shipping entity which shipped the engines to an Iranian arms manufacturing company — Hesa.

The FBI also tracked the aerial cameras Mr. Khoshnevisrad attempted to purchase. He arranged for a Dutch company to order several of the cameras (which were designed for the U.S. Air Force for use on bombers, fighters and surveillance aircraft, including the F-4E Phantom fighter bomber, which is currently used by the Iranian military), and induced the company to falsely affirm that the end destination of the cameras was the Netherlands. Once there, the Dutch company informed Mr. Khoshnevisrad that the cameras had arrived and were about to be re-shipped to Teheran.

One question: how many other “businessmen” have flown below the radar, avoided the notice of the FBI and our other security agencies, and have successfully brought their cargoes to Iran. How much technology has been “appropriated” by those who wish to do us harm? We only know the ones we’ve caught. How to tell how many weren’t?

Things are falling apart, and the pace is quickening. Iran is already slouching toward Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and ultimately, Washington DC. I hope President Obama understands this and stands ready to take action.

UPDATE: Israel Matzav has similar worries.

Alan Speakman

Oh, He’s Changing the World, All Right

 

Remember the creepy Stepford children singing about Dear Leader?

“We’re gonna spread happiness
We’re gonna spread freedom
Obama’s gonna change it
Obama’s gonna lead ‘em
We’re gonna change it
And rearrange it
We’re gonna change the world.”

I think it’s high time we re-wrote the lyrics, don’t you?

 

Stoutcat

The Hole Gets Deeper…

Sorry to be such a pest (and a pest and a pest), but someone has to do it… America is digging a hole it can’t get out of.

Getting nervous? So are the Chinese…

Bottom line? Well, it’s all very short and not so sweet… The markets may well rebound through 2010… But somewhere around 2012 our national debt to GDP ratio will hit about 5:1 to 6:1… After that, look out.

Alan Speakman

UPDATE: Concerning that 6:1 ratio…

Stunning Technology

This is an unbeatable combination of art, photography, travel, inspiration (both spiritual and otherwise), and technology. It is utterly breathtaking in its scope, artistry, and technological skill, all bundled into one clickable link which takes you instantly to a baroque basilica, built in the early 1700s in Vienna’s 8th district.

It may take a few moments to download, but it is well worth the wait.

In the words of various LOL photos:
INTERNETZ: UR DOIN IT RITE.

Click the picture and be amazed.

Stoutcat