1.1 million more Americans in poverty

The poverty rate is increasing in the USA...

They really don't have a clue about welfare, and protecting the poorest citizens!
37 millions Americans live in poverty, 12,7% of the population...

And then they complain about over 11000 people shot dead every year, and a society where rich people have to live in specially guarded area in order to feel safe!

The minimum wage is basically the same since the 70s!
And in the mean time, the big bosses earn more and more compared to the average Joe.

And all these people governing are supposed to be Christians!? What a joke!

Iran to start selling oil for Euros

So from 2006, Iran will start selling its oil against Euros...

Well, if you don't understand why this is an important news for the world economy, read the article and also the recommended ones at the end of it.

The USA enjoy a HUGE benefit from having the oil sold and bought with US dollars. It forces the others nations to acquire dollars first in order to buy oil later on. Not only it makes the US dollar the de facto world reserve currency, but also allows them to finance their deficit on the cheap.

To put things into perspective, the US dollar now accounts for 68% of the world currency reserves, yet in 2000, the US share of global exports was only 12.3% and its share of global imports was 18.9%.

Basically, the consequences of selling more of the world oil against Euros are tremendous.

Crocodile blood fights HIV

Article posted in The Register.

These creatures are quite amazing if you ask me!
They seem to have an incredible immune system.

Imagine how cool it would be for us to enhance ours to this level :)
And with the continuous research going on, it might be available to us during our lifetime...

Dreams, dreams, dreams...

How sound is the US economy?

Once again, a good article from Paul Krugman.

The US economy doesn't seem as robust as people would like to think, and most of it seems to be fuelled by the housing market. The problem today with this is interest rate increase the Fed has to apply to the economy in order to prevent it from overheating.
and when you get pulled back to reality, where your economy is based on wind, not on sound productivity increase, the landing can get harsh!

This can be bad for all of us, because the US plays such a big role in the world economy.

And I am not even mentioning the oil price going through the roof, China diversifying its foreign currency reserve and the US spending way over what would be reasonable.

Why U.S.A Dropped The A-Bomb on Japan

Indeed, why?
The essay is very critical of the official reason which was to end the war with Japan.
It looks like there were more political reasons to bombing Japan.
Quoting Churchill: "It would be a mistake to suppose that the fate of Japan was settled by the atomic bomb. Her defeat was certain before the first bomb fell."

If you are curious about the details, read the essay.

Comment welcome as usual :)

Mike Ruppert

THE TRUTH & LIES OF 9/11

I would like to attract your attention on a documentary my Mike Ruppert (former LAPD cop).
It is called "The Truth and Lies about 9/11".
It is not so focus on 9/11 actually, but more about what the USA are doing around the world and at home.

I am not saying that this is the Holy Truth, but it is a MUST watch.
All the claims are really very well documented, hence the worth of it. It is much more serious that Farenheit 9-11 for example.

It talk about:
- CIA deals drug on a huge scale to keep the US economy afloat.
- How the Patriot Act is voiding 3 main amendments of the US constitution and why this is an abuse of power, critize even by the founding Fathers.
- US economy addicted to drug money and let's many corporations and banks launder tons of it
- Corporations are running big economic decisions (nothing new, but on a scale that scares me. Reminds me that I have to read "The silent Take-over"!)
- The US knew about the 9/11 attacks and did nothing to stop it. Worse, it helped by doing nothing.
- and more...

Here is his website:
www.copvcia.com

He also wrote a book which good real good critics (didn't read it yet though):
Crossing the Rubicon
http://tinyurl.com/blbfo

China's taking over the world economy

Informative report about the Chinese place in the world economy.
Thanks to their ability to produce a lot cheaply, the chinese have contributed to keep inflation low in the developped countries, but have also contributed to keep the salaries increase low.
And with the huge pile of US dollars (over 500 billions!) it has more and more influence over the value of the greenback. Hence Washington is loosing control over its own currency in favor of Beijing.

Actually I start to wonder where will the chinese expansion and influence stop!
When things will turn nasty to secure oil supplies and they will have to compete with the USA to secure them, we might see a nice fight!

Anyway, it is quite impressive to see what the chinese achieve in less than 15 years.

Opinions vs Facts

This article is a good reminder of the difference between opinions and facts.
Too often it is enough for some people to say "I believe in this", and if it is repeated and broadcasted enough it will convince a non negligeable part of the population that it is true.
The fictious example in the article about the example where Bush wer to say "The Earth is flat" is close to the truth.
Where it becomes despicable is when people use this to advance their personal agenda. It goes from "The insurgency is in its last throes" to "Abortion gives breast cancer" to "It depends what the definition of is is".

Everybody is entitled to have an opinion, but the danger is when people believe everything and its opposite, without really checking the facts, or the scientifical evidences. And here I think the journalist have a huge responsability. They have to check the facts properly before writing about something. Because the world we live in is a world where the population has no time/wish to check what they are served. Bread and circus has been and will be the people's philosophy!

It reminds me of a quote (which I unfortunately can't remember precisely) saying something like "The people arguing the most about an issue are always the ones knowing little about it".
Indeed, when you think about it, when the true facts are on the table, there is not much left to discuss! Then it is only a question of politics and it takes 2 seconds to choose your camp :)

P.S: Be careful about the "Get the Facts" push by some people/companies. More than often they are self interested.

Bolton appointed U.S ambassador to the UN

Please have a look (either read the transcript or watch the videostream) at this report from Democracy Now.
In the first part, they show what Bolton said in 1994 about the UN. The way he said it talks for itself. A must watch!!

And the beautiful little speech from Bush when he appointed him is simply pathetic...
I quote: "The United States Senate held thorough confirmation hearings, and a majority of United States Senators agree that he is the right man for the job. Yet because of partisan delaying tactics by a handful of senators, John was unfairly denied the up or down vote that he deserves."
When you know that the White House never released some official documents the senators requested to make up their mind, plus the fact that some republicans (together with all the democrats) were against Bolton's nomination, you start to understand better that W is full of it!

But he doesn't really give a f*ck about democracy and uses the recess of the Senate to force Bolton against the will of the senators. Very democratical. W the Uniter!

Planting trees is not always good

This article shows that trees can be more harmful to the environment that previously thought, or at least more harmful than the common knowledge would let us think.
In arid and semi-arid areas, trees can consume more water than they help trap.

There is a correction to this article here.