The truth at any cost lowers all other costs — curated by former US spy Robert David Steele.
June 4, 2009:
“..The United States has been one of the greatest sources of progress that the world has ever known. We were born out of revolution against an empire.”
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-cairo-university-6-04-09
Underground world hints at China's coming crisis
To understand how far ordinary Chinese have been priced out of their country's property market, you need to look not upwards at the Beijing's shimmering high-rise skyline, but down, far below the bustling streets where nearly 20m people live and work.
There, in the city's vast network of unused air defence bunkers, as many as a million people live in small, windowless rooms that rent for £30 to £50 a month, which is as much as many of the city's army of migrant labourers can afford.
. . . . . .
Continue reading “Underground world hints at China's coming crisis”
Central Asia: Decay and Decline
International Crisis Group Report 201 3 Feb 2011
Quietly but steadily Central Asia’s basic human and physical
infrastructure – the roads, power plants, hospitals and schools and the
last generation of Soviet-trained specialists who have kept this all
running – is disappearing. The equipment is wearing out, the personnel
retiring or dying. Post-independence regimes made little effort to
maintain or replace either, and funds allocated for this purpose have
largely been eaten up by corruption. This collapse has already sparked
protests and contributed to the overthrow of a government.
Madison's Nightmare: How Much Should We Spend for National Insecurity?
Chuck Spinney, FEB 3, 2011
The Atlantic (for James Fallows)
Brother Chuck makes three key points:
1. He quotes Madison, as we have, on the importance of public knowledge as the basis for the Republic keeping the government accountable and in check.
2. He points out that the defense budget has never been audited, cannot be audited, and is both totally “out of control” and irresponsibly chaotic and grotesquely excessive.
3. He proposes regular persistent cuts in the defense budget until such time as it can actually pass an audit.
Continue reading “James Madison: US Security Budget a Nightmare”
Re-Imagining Journalism is a small, invitation-only summit of young journalists from a diverse cross-section of the industry. The one-day gathering seeks to explore not simply the production and delivery of news, but to delve deeply into the craft of journalism.
WikiLeaks Nominated For Nobel Peace Prize (Associated Press)
A Norwegian lawmaker has nominated WikiLeaks for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, saying Wednesday that its disclosures of classified documents promote world peace by holding governments accountable for their actions.
Continue reading “WikiLeaks Nominated For Nobel Peace Prize”
‘Al-Qaida on brink of using nuclear bomb'
By Heidi Blake and Christopher Hope, The Daily Telegraph February 1, 2011
Al-Qaida is on the verge of producing radioactive weapons after sourcing nuclear material and recruiting rogue scientists to build “dirty” bombs, according to leaked diplomatic documents.
A leading atomic regulator has privately warned that the world stands on the brink of a “nuclear 9/11”.
Security briefings suggest that jihadi groups are also close to producing “workable and efficient” biological and chemical weapons that could kill thousands if unleashed in attacks on the West.
Comment and Other Sources Below the Line….
Continue reading “‘Al-Qaida nuclear bomb' + Egypt Push-Back”
