Corruption threatens global economic recovery, greatly challenges countries in conflict
Berlin, 17 November 2009
As the world economy begins to register a tentative recovery and some nations continue to wrestle with ongoing conflict and insecurity, it is clear that no region of the world is immune to the perils of corruption, according to Transparency International’s 2009 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), a measure of domestic, public sector corruption released today.
“At a time when massive stimulus packages, fast-track disbursements of public funds and attempts to secure peace are being implemented around the world, it is essential to identify where corruption blocks good governance and accountability, in order to break its corrosive cycle” said Huguette Labelle, Chair of Transparency International (TI).
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Afghanistan slips in corruption index despite aid
BERLIN – Afghanistan has slipped three places to become the world's second most-corrupt country despite billions in aid meant to bolster the government against a rising insurgency, according to an annual survey of perceived levels of corruption.
Only lawless Somalia, whose weak U.N.-backed government controls just a few blocks of the capital, was perceived as more corrupt than Afghanistan in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index.
Iraq saw some improvement, rising to 176 of 180 countries, up two places up from last year. Singapore, Denmark and New Zealand were seen as the least corrupt countries in the list based on surveys of businesses and experts.
Assessment Report (2007)Briefing with NotesBriefing without Notes
Phi Beta Iota: We have been highlighting our couinterintelligence deficiencies since the 1990's, primarily focused on the need for religious counterintelligence, but also on the need to recognize that sub-state and non-state groups are legitimate threats in and of themselves. Today the US military it thoroughly penetrated by multiple networks from Opus Dei and the Mormons to radical Islamics and plain street gangs happy to not only receive advanced training, but access to easily stolen weapons–one of the dirty little secrets of the US military is how little control it has over the primary weapon of mass destruction on the planet, small arms (which we also like to sell liberally to anyone with cash and especially dictators).
Time for change – Water saving – Ecademy Identify the true cost of water. Do you know how much your business spends on water per annum or how much is water costing you? Check your water bills for the last 3 years and note the annual consumption and cost. …
Phi Beta Iota: Researcher Berto Jongman is a disciple and most respectful student of the work of Alex Schmid and more recently, the Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) practices of Researcher Arno Reuser, who leads one of a handful of military OSINT teams that are truly on the bleeding edge of accomplishment and global access (analog & unpublished as well as the obvious).
COVER STORY: The Cyberwar Plan It's not just a defensive game; cyber-security includes attack plans too, and the U.S. has already used some of them successfully.
by Shane Harris Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009
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14 tech firms form cybersecurity alliance for governmentLockheed Martin, top suppliers launch initiative for government market
By Wyatt Kash Nov 12, 2009
Phi Beta Iota: It is a scam, big time. The U.S. does not have–outside of our small number of colleagues in Hackers on Planet Earth and the Silicon Valley Hackers/THINK Conference–the brainpower and cummulative skills to fill the Potemkin Center, much less staff a capability with global reach.
Most Americans have this whole Fort Hood massacre all wrong. Maj. Nidal M. Hassan was not a terrorist. And he wasn’t a mass murderer. And he may not even have been a coward. Maj. Hassan was an enemy combatant.
A Man in a HundredBy ALEXANDER COCKBURN CounterPunch Weekend Edition November 13-15, 2009
The general obviously doesn’t have Edward Gibbon’s Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire on his bedside table. Gibbon wrote flatly that the introduction of foreigners “into Roman armies became every day more universal, more necessary and more fatal.”
Something has gone terribly wrong in the entire reaction to the Ft. Hood massacres, as evidenced by the media, the administration, the military authorities, and perhaps the public at large.
CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq — Transition teams throughout southern Iraq attended a conference June 12, at Contingency Operating Base Adder.
The conference provided a forum for transition team leaders to establish new relationships, share best practices and receive guidance from the commander of 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division. The BCT deployed to Iraq last month as the first “Advise and Assist” Brigade to complete specialized Stability Operations training and be given the job of helping train Iraqi Security Forces.
“You all have the hardest jobs,” said Col. Peter A. Newell, commander, 4th BCT, 1st Armored Div. “Our mission success is based on the ability of the Iraqi Security Forces to accomplish their mission. You are the tip of the spear in paving our way to going home.”
