Tag Archives: Bullshit Artists

Merkel calls Obama about ‘US spying on her phone’

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“German Chancellor Angela Merkel has called US President Barack Obama after receiving information that the US may have spied on her mobile phone.  A spokesman for Mrs Merkel said the German leader ‘views such practices… as completely unacceptable’.  Mrs Merkel called on US officials to clarify the extent of their surveillance in Germany.  ‘The United States is not monitoring and will not monitor the communications of the chancellor,’ White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Wednesday.  But the spokesman did not address whether Mrs Merkel’s phone had been monitored in the past.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24647268

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France tells U.S. to stop snooping but cools dispute

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“Asked if France was considering any form of reprisals against the United States over the NSA’s conduct, government spokeswoman Najat Vallaud-Belkacem played down the possibility.  ‘It is up to Foreign Minister Fabius to decide what line we take but I don’t think there is any need for an escalation (of the situation),’ Vallaud-Belkacem told France 2 television.  ‘We have to have a respectful relationship between partners, between allies. Our confidence in that has been hit but it is after all a very close, individual relationship that we have.’  US officials have acknowledged that the French have a legitimate basis for complaint but described some of the reporting on the NSA program as ‘distorted.'”

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/10/22/france-tells-u-s-to-stop-snooping-but-cools-dispute/

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Why You Should Triple-Check the Ticker Before Buying That Stock

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“Investors sure are antsy to start trading Twitter stock. No wonder: social media is red hot. I just got a marketing email this morning touting the track record of ‘the only Social Media ETF,’ ticker: SOCL. Apparently, it has outperformed the S&P 500 threefold in 2013.  What’s the driver here? It sure as heck isn’t fundamentals. Facebook sports a P/E ratio of 211x, and LinkedIn 646x. Groupon is losing money. Yet it’s worth about $8 billion. Those nosebleed valuations would make the dot-com era darlings jealous. I’m sure their potential is breathtaking if they can execute. But that’s a big if. Remember what happened the last time investors ascribed triple-digit P/E ratios based on potential alone?”

http://www.caseyresearch.com/cdd/why-you-should-triple-check-the-ticker-before-buying-that-stock

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British prime minister: Edward Snowden harmed national security

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“Cameron’s comments were the highest profile intervention by a British official in a debate about whether the left-leaning daily was right to publish Snowden’s revelations about US and British spy programmes. ‘I think the plain fact is that what has happened has damaged national security,’ Cameron told parliament.  ‘And in many ways the Guardian themselves admitted that when they agreed — when asked politely by my national security adviser and cabinet secretary to destroy the files they had — they went ahead and destroyed those files. So they know that what they’re dealing with is dangerous for national security.'”

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/10/16/british-prime-minister-edward-snowden-harmed-national-security/

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China downgrades U.S. credit rating, accuses of ‘holding world hostage’

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“Dagong lowered its ratings for U.S. local and foreign currency credit from A to A-, maintaining a negative outlook, the agency said in a statement.  The announcement came after the U.S. Congress passed and President Barack Obama signed a bill that extends the nation’s borrowing authority and ends a two-week government shutdown. ‘The fundamental situation that the debt growth rate significantly outpaces that of fiscal income and gross domestic product remains unchanged,’ Dagong said in the statement, adding Washington’s solvency was vulnerable as old debts were still repaid through raising new debts.”

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/10/17/china-downgrades-u-s-credit-rating-and-accuses-lawmakers-of-holding-world-hostage/

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Traffic Camera Company Uses False Threats To Extract Ticket Payment

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“American Traffic Solutions (ATS) is threatening Texas vehicle owners with drivers’ license suspensions if they fail to pay up when a red light camera ticket is sent in the mail. Under state law, the company cannot make good on its threat. A red light camera ticket fine is $75, or $100 if not paid within thirty days. To encourage payment, ATS includes a brochure with the citation that purports to describe additional consequences of not sending in a check immediately. The notice, sent to a vehicle owner for a citation received in the city of Burleson, does not accurately describe the consequence of nonpayment under state law.”

http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/42/4234.asp

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Venezuelan Inflation Rate Tops 49 Percent

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“Venezuela’s Central Bank says prices have risen nearly 50 percent since last September as the country struggles to rein in a quickening rate of inflation and widespread shortages.  The country’s leftist government has spent heavily on social programs, rapidly increasing the amount of currency in circulation. It also tries to control prices while restricting access to bolivars at the official rate of exchange of 6.3 per dollar. That leads many to pay seven times as much for dollars on the black market.  Officials say speculators are to blame for soaring prices and shortages.  The inflation rate for 2012 was 20.1 percent.”

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/venezuelan-inflation-rate-tops-49-percent-20541914

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Skewed Rhetoric On Metals And Markets Obscures Best Plays

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“The currency chief for Goldman Sachs (GS) last week decreed another lower target price for gold. Jeffrey Currie said the precious metal now is worth $1000/oz. and may sink to $800. He has followed up this tarot reading by saying it was a ‘slam dunk’ to sell gold. GS guidance was echoed by the astrologists at Credit Suisse who YTD have issued almost monthly downgrades on gold. Those investing in the sector must understand that until PM sentiment from major banks and media changes, they will continue to suffer disproportionately on most red days despite strong fundamentals, especially for silver.”

http://seekingalpha.com/article/1737802-skewed-rhetoric-on-metals-and-markets-obscures-best-plays

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Bill Bonner: Watch the Parking Meters

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Bill-Bonner2

“‘What does Cristina [Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, Argentina’s president] get paid for? Lying to us. Stealing our money. Generally making a mess of the economy. But at least she puts on a good show. You turn on the TV, and there she is – with more lies. The amazing thing is that everybody knows they are lies. We all know the cost of living is going up three times faster than she admits. We all know the country is headed for bankruptcy. We all know the central bank is printing up funny money to pay her bills. But nobody cares about that. She’s just doing her job. Just like you and me. My job is to drive a taxi. Her job is to lie to me.'”

http://www.bonnerandpartners.com/watch-the-parking-meters/

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In Test Project, N.S.A. Tracked Cellphone Locations

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“The project used data from cellphone towers to locate people’s cellphones.  In his testimony, Mr. Clapper revealed few details about the project. He said that the N.S.A. does not currently collect locational information under Section 215 of the Patriot Act, the provision the government says is the legal basis for the N.S.A.’s once-secret program under which it collects logs of all domestic calls from telephone companies.  He added that the N.S.A. had promised to notify Congress and seek the approval of a secret surveillance court in the future before any locational data was collected.  An official said its purpose was to see how the locational data would flow into the N.S.A.’s systems.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/03/us/nsa-experiment-traced-us-cellphone-locations.html?smid=tw-share&_r=0

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