Monthly Archives: January 2013

U.S. GDP Shrinks. WSJ Says ‘No Reason to Panic.’

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thelrcblog-50016

“According to the feds, the US GDP shrank 0.1% (annualized) in Q4. These are preliminary figures, of course, and recent revisions have been mostly down. This also comes on the heels of recent news from the UK where the economy shrank, and where, according to The Telegraph, the economy is headed for a ‘triple dip.’  Most alarmingly, all of this contraction comes as central banks continue to print money like there’s no tomorrow, underlying the true weakness in the economy.”

http://www.lewrockwell.com/blog/lewrw/archives/131570.html

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Zimbabwean Finance Minister Says the Country Has Just $217 In The Bank

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“After paying public workers’ salaries last week, the balance in cash-strapped Zimbabwe’s government public account stood at just $217, Finance Minister Tendai Biti said Tuesday.  Zimbabwe’s economy went into free-fall at the turn of the millennium, after President Robert Mugabe began seizing white-owned farms.  The move demolished investor confidence in the country, paralysed production, prompted international sanctions and scared off tourists.  Zimbabwe’s government has warned it does not have enough money to fund a constitutional referendum and elections expected this year.”

http://www.businessinsider.com/zimbabwe-has-just-217-in-the-bank-2013-1

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France ‘totally bankrupt’, says labour minister Michel Sapin

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“‘There is a state but it is a totally bankrupt state,’ Mr Sapin said. ‘That is why we had to put a deficit reduction plan in place, and nothing should make us turn away from that objective.’  The comments came as President Hollande attempts to improve the image of the French economy after pledging to reduce the country’s deficit by cutting spending by €60bn (£51.5bn) over the next five years and increasing taxes by €20bn.  Data from Banque de France showed earlier this month that a flight of capital has already left the country amid concerns that France’s Socialist leader intends to soak the rich and businesses.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/9832845/France-totally-bankrupt-says-labour-minister-Michel-Sapin.html

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Honduras ‘no longer functioning’ after plunging over fiscal cliff

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“Street surveillance cameras in one of the world’s most dangerous cities were turned off last week because Honduras’ government hasn’t paid millions of dollars it owes. The operator that runs them is now threatening to suspend police radio service as well.  Teachers have been demonstrating almost every day because they haven’t been paid in six months, while doctors complain about the shortage of essential medicines, gauze, needles and latex gloves.  Honduras is also grappling with $5 billion in foreign debt, a figure equivalent to last year’s entire government budget.”

http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/01/25/16692051-honduras-no-longer-functioning-after-plunging-over-fiscal-cliff?lite

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Doug Casey interviews Peter Schiff

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Doug Casey interviews Peter Schiff

“Casey Research chairman Doug Casey interviews financial pundit and author Peter Schiff. Their conversation covers a range of issues: gold, the validity of the US dollar, the Federal Reserve system and the Schiff family’s fight with the IRS.”

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Video of Big Brother’s spy drone that can watch you from 17,500 ft

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Video of Big Brother’s spy drone that can watch you from 17,500 ft

“Curious as to how the Defense Department could be spying on you next? PBS checked in with DARPA about the latest in drone camera technology for the NOVA special ‘Rise of the Drones,’ including the world’s highest-resolution camera.  Actually seeing the sensor on ARGUS-IS, or Autonomous Real-Time Ground Ubiquitous Surveillance Imaging System, is still classified, but the basics of how it works have been deemed fit for public consumption…  It can store a million terabytes of video a day, up to 5,000 hours of footage, so soon drones will not only be able to see everything that happens on the ground, but also keep that record.”

http://www.economicpolicyjournal.com/2013/01/video-of-big-brothers-spy-drone-that.html

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Glenn Greenwald: Pentagon’s new massive expansion of ‘cyber-security’ unit is about everything except defense

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“This Cyber Command Unit operates under the command of Gen. Keith Alexander, who also happens to be the head of the National Security Agency, the highly secretive government network that spies on the communications of foreign nationals – and American citizens.  The Pentagon’s rhetorical justification for this expansion is deeply misleading. Beyond that, these activities pose a wide array of serious threats to internet freedom, privacy, and international law that, as usual, will be conducted with full-scale secrecy and with little to no oversight and accountability, with a small army of private-sector corporations who will benefit most from this expansion.”

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/28/pentagon-cyber-security-expansion-stuxnet

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The Internet Has Been Conquered: Get Busy With the Next Steps

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“For years, people like me have been telling everyone who will listen that they need to start using encryption and to stop cooperating with the strangling of the Internet. Sadly, not many people cared. They were far more interested in free services and shiny new iGadgets. Ah well… at least I did my part.  My point today is this:  It’s over. The state has won. The Internet will be fully controlled in just a few years.  Actually, it’s worse than that. Within that same amount of time, the Internet will not only be a Worldwide Surveillance Web, but it will be a Worldwide Manipulation Web.”

http://dailyanarchist.com/2013/01/30/the-internet-has-been-conquered-get-busy-with-the-next-steps/

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The New Fourth Estate: Anonymous, Wikileaks, and –archy

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“The press has been captured by a handful of news corporations that are generally uncritical of government and fail to expose corporate injustice. The techno-libertarian culture has birthed the do-it-yourself fourth estate—usurping the illegitimate media and furnishing a viable alternative to the cartelized press. Two entities, Wikileaks and Anonymous, have emerged under this banner. This inquiry seeks to understand their history, methods, and to ascertain whether use of the discrete figurehead is efficacious.”

http://c4ss.org/content/16677

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U.S. ranked 32nd in press freedom index

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“Reporters Without Borders on Wednesday launched a new indicator measuring global press freedom by aggregating the scores of its annual index, from perennial table-topping Finland to worst offenders Eritrea.  ‘In view of the emergence of new technologies and the interdependence of governments and peoples, the freedom to produce and circulate news and information needs to be evaluated at the planetary as well as national level,’ the Paris-based watchdog said.  Northern European countries topped the rankings of its separate Press Freedom Index, while the small, reclusive African nation of Eritrea came last.”

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/01/29/u-s-ranked-34th-in-press-freedom-index/

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