Borgfeldt

I'm not a Terrorist, I'm a Photographer by David de Groot

NaplesNews.com

NEW YORK — Criminal court combed via a charred sports utility automotive and also a crude assortment of explosives Sunday for clues to some failed bombing in Instances Square — a key tourist location — being a monitoring set noted how the Pakistani Taliban received claimed obligation for that terrorist threat.

An intelligence monitoring class released a one-minute video clip allegedly within the Pakistani Taliban, by which it claimed duty for any failed bombing in the smoking SUV left parked inside town on Saturday night time, clearing 1000s of holidaymakers and theatergoers from your city’s busiest district.

The U.S.-based Website intelligence team, which monitors militant sites, mentioned the Pakistani Taliban claims the invasion is revenge for that death of its leader Baitullah Mehsud as well as latest killings on the prime leaders of al-Qaida in Iraq. Pictures with the slain militants are proven as an unidentified voice recites the message. English subtitles are with the bottom in the display.

New York authorities ended up examining the SUV in the forensic lab for fingerprints and DNA evidence and experienced isolated a 200-pound (90-kilogram) gun locker in the court arrest firing rang inside the Bronx. They have been attempting to find out whether or not the locker, recovered through the SUV, could consist of a lot more potent explosives that may have detonated the major explosive apparatus.

The bomb, which partly detonated but malfunctioned, perhaps have sprayed shrapnel that killed pedestrians from the rapid vicinity, best NYPD spokesman Paul Browne reported.

“We avoided what could have been completely an incredibly deadly occasion,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg stated. “It surely might have exploded and obtained a really large fire as well as a good quantity of explosive result.”

Bloomberg referred to as the explosive unit “amateurish” but possibly deadly, noting: “We are pretty fortunate.”

The NYPD bomb squad “has viewed advanced equipment prior to plus they described this one particular as crude,” Browne claimed. “But it had been however lethal.” If detonated accurately, it might have produced a significant fireball and sprayed shrapnel — metal through the propane tanks and vehicle pieces — which could have killed pedestrians while in the fast vicinity, Browne explained.

Countless numbers of vacationers have been cleared on the streets for 10 a long time immediately after two vendors alerted criminal arrest towards the suspicious auto, which contained 3 propane tanks, fireworks, two filled 5-gallon (19-liter) fuel containers, and two clocks with batteries, electrical wire along with other parts, Criminal arrest Commissioner Raymond Kelly stated.

No suspects have been in custody. Criminal court ended up being intending by way of surveillance video clip that showed the vehicle driving west on 45th Street ahead of it parked involving Seventh and Eighth avenues. Criminal arrest ended up being searching for additional movie from workplace buildings that weren’t open on the time.

Homeland Safety Secretary Janet Napolitano mentioned on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that officials are treating the incident for a probable terrorist breach.

A federal law enforcement official, speaking on ailment of anonymity considering the probe in its original stage, explained investigators hold the automotive identification amount enabling them to trace the ownership from the SUV. It truly is a 1990s auto whose ownership historical past consists of other regions from the region and not New York, reported the official, who declined to say which regions.

A T-shirt seller plus a handbag seller alerted criminal court at about six:30 p.m. (2230 GMT), the height of dinner hour in advance of theatergoers head to Saturday nights indicates.

Duane Jackson, a 58-year-old handbag seller, reported he recognized the auto at all-around six:30 p.m. and wondered who received left it there.

The Saint of Saints....St. Islam by COMRADE I.G BLITZKRIEG

“That was my very first considered: Who sat this vehicle below?” Jackson mentioned Sunday.

Jackson mentioned he looked while in the auto and noticed keys within the ignition with 19 or 20 keys on the ring.

He reported he alerted a passing mounted criminal court officer.

They have been seeking inside auto “when the smoke commenced coming out after which it we observed the small pop pop pop like firecrackers heading out and which is when everyone scattered and ran back again,” he claimed.

“Now that I discovered the propane tanks along with the fuel, what if that would have ignited?” Jackson claimed. “I’m fewer than 8 feet (a couple of.five meters) aside on the automobile. We dodged a bullet in this article.”

Connecticut license plates around the car or truck didn’t match up, and court arrest acquired interviewed the Connecticut motor vehicle seller, who told them he acquired sent the plates with a nearby junkyard, Bloomberg explained.

Seriously armed criminal arrest and emergency cars shut down the city’s busiest streets, choked with taxis and men and women on one among the 1st summer-like days of this calendar year. Instances Square lies about four traffic-choked miles north of where by terrorists bombed the Globe Trade Middle in 1993, then laid waste to it on Sept. 11, 2001.

The automobile was parked on on the list of prime blocks for Broadway displays, with 7 theaters housing these kinds of huge indicates as “The Lion King” and “Billy Elliot.”

The curtain at “God of Carnage” and “Red” opened a half-hour eventually than common, however the demonstrates weren’t canceled, mentioned spokesman Adrian Bryan-Brown.

Element of your Marriott hotel was evacuated for hrs, unnerving countless numbers of holidaymakers attending Broadway present, museums along with other town sights.

Top rated federal law enforcement and intelligence officials — Obama’s nationwide safety adviser James Jones, nationwide intelligence director Dennis Blair, CIA chief Leon Panetta, Napolitano and Lawyer Common Eric Holder — planned to participate inside of a meeting after Sunday for the bomb.

Officials claimed the product observed Saturday was crudely made, but Islamic militants have employed propane and compressed gas for decades to enrich the force of explosives. All those situations consist of the 1983 suicide invasion over the U.S. Marines barracks along at the Beirut airport that killed 241 U.S. services members, along with the 2007 approach around the international airport in Glasgow, Scotland.

In 2007, the U.S. military announced that an al-Qaida front party was employing propane to rig automobile bombs in Iraq.

PC ProSchool

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Ahead of I overlook this with all that’s proceeding on, I arrived throughout a brand new source in town when I used to be speaking my certification check last week (or was it the week before?).  I used to be shopping on the internet to get a position to take my experiment when the “PC ProSchools” link arrived up being a doable check site.  It turns out it is definitely close to me (I-96 and East Beltline) and is very new (as well new for Google Maps - about a year old).

I believed I realized of a lot of the Microsoft coaching facilities in town and had never noticed of them.  I got to my analyze about 15 minutes early and they had been completely booked so I began asking about their applications and reading through a number of their materials.  I ended up having a tour with the amenities and applications by a guy named Richard Fera (who was genuinely valuable).

They had a fantastic instruction lab (area for 50 at brand-new machines, dual projectors, dual stations from the back again with the area for more trainers (3 trainers out there inside a full school)).  They had an open lab and what looked like a server room / wiring closet (which turned out for being an “advanced lab” place).  Their focus is for the infrastructure side (i.e. the MCSE route) on having the servers up and working and all varieties of troubleshooting.  They do not provide you with plans for computer software improvement (i.e. the MCPD route).  So they had for no reason noticed on the test I was having nonetheless it was quite clear that their testing lab received very a tad of use.

These are a Microsoft Platinum Partner provider for exercising (which says a lot about volume, graduation fee, certification charge, and placement fee (>70%)).  It can be an intriguing model because they run it form of like something concerning a technical trainer (i.e. providing a person class at a time) along with a higher education (full-blown multi-year routine).  They present an intense one-year routine which is open to any high-school graduate who meets some standard criteria.  The classes are either M/W or T/Th (which has a few Fridays thrown in for test-prep and labs) from 5:30-10:30, which is quite a tad of do the job.  But in the conclusion you ought to have your MCSE.

Add to this that they also do placement and also have work looking for men and women - positioned 48 from the lass school of 50.

Examining this post it seems sort of like an advertisement, however it actually isn’t.  I’d create about any new resource category, classes, book, and so forth. that could be practical to individuals doing what I do (or supported the servers I have to run on) and do that fairly frequently.  If I knew a person who was interested in servers and hardware, and hunting for a employment not having committing 2-4 ages to institution, this appears to be such as the kind of issue you’d have to have to keep you on record and get it carried out swiftly.  It is an option worth looking at out at smallest.

Have you been among countless numbers who feel as if they’re stuck in a dead end employment? Maybe you devote several several hours everyday wondering how you’ll be able to escape and move on to anything greater. If not a profitable job, at smallest one thing a smaller amount stressful and far much more rewarding. You’ve observed the commercials about each of the options in IT, but is it for you personally? Can you truly succeed in this type of area?

The response is really a resounding yes. It’s currently among the speediest developing fields around the work market place. Correct now stands out as the perfect time to leap in and grow to be an IT pro.  Laptop or computer Proschools can aid you receive there.

Gurus predict that just about 50 percent from the workforce from the United States will probably be employed in industries in which IT services are abundant. This really is undoubtedly evident as many businesses right now rely on technological know-how to perform far more effectively and retain up with all the fierce competition. The IT business can provide you with the energy to obtain employment exactly where you’re financially rewarded and respected to your abilities, some thing we all want and deserve.

Under we now have listed some facts about the IT sector for ones examine. This info ought to present you with an notion on the best way to find that successful occupation you’ve been hunting for.

Careers in IT are predicted to raise at a price of 36% over the subsequent 10 several years

The IT subject accounts for an estimated 25% with the work developed from 2002 towards the recent day

Computer-related work are among the very best 20 most effective growing professions from the United States. This amount is anticipated to boost far more than twice as speedy as other occupations

It’s been reported that IT projects present the highest earnings of the many 20 quickest expanding professions.

It’s certainly one of the fasted increasing places of employment in the country. This domain continues to provide programs to thousands as much with the work produced for IT go unfilled as a result of the lack of certified candidates.

The options in Info Technologies are endless as this area can only enhance. Just have a look at what we’ve currently witnessed so far. Inside a quick quantity of time, it might be you reaping the rewards of this booming sector. With several nearby institutions and on-line courses like Desktop Pro Educational facilities, having started off has certainly not been easier.

Basically hop around the net, confer which has a number of specialists and acquire the 1st phase in the direction of establishing your new vocation.


What’s Help Table?

A Help Receptionist counter vocation gives the foundation to explore other rewarding careers in personal computers. You really don’t will need preceding pc expertise to start your instruction and in just ten brief weeks it is possible to be starting your new career! If you would like a quick solution…get trained…and get functioning!

Assist Desk can be a needed department at each and every business that uses computer systems. Currently that is certainly essentially just about every business, producing Assist Workplace a recession evidence career! Guide Workplace technicians respond to telephone calls and e-mail messages from consumers shopping for support with computer problems. Let’s say an accountant suddenly can’t entry payroll information that’s stored on a pc program. This accountant would get in touch with you and it will be your responsibility to troubleshoot and repair this dilemma. In responding to these inquiries, help-desk technicians have to listen meticulously on the consumer, ask queries to diagnose the dynamics on the problem, after which it patiently stroll the consumer as a result of the problem-solving actions.
Have the correct education and learning swiftly so you can start off generating the appropriate cash more quickly.

Our Personal computer Help Receptionist counter software can consider your work knowledge as well as your recent talents, and blend it with an education focused on an example of the fastest growing occupations inside the U.S. in just ten weeks. For a Microsoft IT Academy with a confirmed and thorough program we can transform you right into a remarkably sought soon after Assist Cubical Specialized with sector normal certifications. This system is 100% on the net to help you to carry on to do the job whilst in institution. And our results speak for themselves.

The U.S. Dept of Training National Center for Instruction Statistics tells us that a 4 year higher education track now calls for 6 a long time with a 57% graduation charge and a two yr community college/tech university now calls for 3 several years with an alarming 23% graduation fee. Regrettably, many of us never have that model of time to start off making the funds we have to survive. And who desires to risk individuals odds of finishing the plan? Our graduation rates are in excess of 80%.
Take on the 1st stage toward getting again on observe.

Unemployment prices are hitting record substantial amounts and our region is struggling out of an economic recession; you cannot afford to wait any longer. Regardless of whether you could have undoubtedly been laid off, dread the loss of the career or just want to produce a change, a whole new occupation could be yours! You possibly can be on your method to the profession that supplies the salary and safety you’ll need.

See for yourself by registering for an informational seminar comprehensive with schedule and tuition info. Merely click within the “Attend Vocation Revival” button and you’ll be on your way!

Computer ProSchools Graduation Good results
Computer ProSchools, a Microsoft Academy, is proud to announce its earliest graduating course of 2008. In 2007 above 300 IT Experts graduated from Computer ProSchools’ Support Desk/MCSA routine.


FOR Immediate Discharge
PR Log (Press Discharge) – Apr 18, 2008 – In excess of 150 graduates and their guests filed in the State Inn & Suites in Brookfield, WI over a cool spring evening to celebrate a six month journey to becoming an IT specialized.

Last August, students in trail 183 began their journey at the Brookfield Campus of Personal computer ProSchools, a Microsoft IT Academy licensed by the Wisconsin Educational Approval Board and accredited by ACCET.   Track 183 contained manufacturers, construction workers, secretaries, retail representatives and office workers. All committed to changing their lives and becoming  Support Desk Analysts, Network Administrators or Computer Technicians to name just a couple of and on March 20, 2008 they had been a person move closer.

The Commencement ceremony began which includes a Welcoming Address from Campus Director Laura Polancich. Polancich, whose primary responsibility at Desktop Pro Colleges is to provide task placement companies was proud to congratulate the much more than fifty percent with the graduating school that had currently secured a work from the substantial paying IT industry and made a commitment to carry on assisting individuals still searching. Up coming Vice President of Educational Providers, Kate Pelchat, presented an Executive Address and congratulated the class for their hard work and dedication. Pelchat compared the graduates’ journey at Pc Pro Educational institutions for the CAT5 cable they had been given at their initial orientation highlighting the ups and downs and even the knots at times and shared a quote from Ernest Hemmingway that “It is good to have an end to journey in direction of but it may be the journey itself that matters inside end.”

Lead Instructor Mick Brentar stood just before the type for his final lecture, so to speak. He challenged them to keep on learning always and explained how proud he is to now call them colleagues inside the IT Business.
The Keynote Address was delivered by Ricardo Monteen, a Aid Receptionist counter Manager at Manpower Corporation and a former graduate of Pc ProSchools from 1 yr ago. He chronicled his journey, sharing how different his life is now. It was a total circle moment for everyone as Monteen explained how he had just hired four Laptop or computer Pro Universities graduates for his Guide Table team.

The mood was high as the evening concluded having a punch and cake reception where by families, graduates and faculty shared memories; all knowing that the sum of a journey is a new perspective of home and for all that perspective is quite different 6 months later.
Graduate Wendy Tokarz shared “Being able to graduate with my class and conquer this type of challenging goal feels excellent. My family and friends are so proud of me. It is just great!”

At the time of this publication, less than a person month later, above 75% of these graduates, including Tokarz have been offered IT positions and have begun enjoying the benefits of their new careers.

Desktop Pro Schools an ally in improving pc access among individuals with disabilities

Last Spring, New Horizons Un-Limited (NHU) had the good fortune of meeting Laura, the Campus Director of Pc Pro Schools’ Brookfield campus, at a Brew City HDI chapter meeting. At the meeting, NHU expressed a have to have for volunteer technicians to assist with their pc refurbishing and aid table activities. Seeing this opportunity as a approach to give again, though also supporting the profession goals of her students, Laura quickly recruited students to help NHU.

More than this past year, NHU has welcomed virtually a dozen Laptop or computer Pro Educational facilities students as volunteers. While all from the student volunteers have had a solid technical foundation, quite a few of them have been lacking that all important specialized practical knowledge to help them win their dream task.

What NHU presents in knowledge on the students is exceeded by what they, as volunteers, have contributed to NHU’s plan. They have expertly refurbished dozens of computer systems, which, in turn, have been donated to dozens of individuals with disabilities that would not have otherwise been able to afford a home laptop or computer.

Just like NHU’s student volunteers, the individuals that receive the refurbished pcs are trying to strengthen their lives by means of technology. A laptop or computer means additional to them than most of us could ever imagine.

To several of NHU’s recipients, a pc will be the tool they should pursue their dream work and ultimately their own financial freedom.

NHU’s refurbishing software is run entirely by volunteer technicians. It purely would not be doable with no the expertise and dedication of their volunteers.

NHU’s most recent group of volunteers will probably be graduating from Desktop Pro Educational facilities in just weeks. It’s NHU’s hope that the experience the students have received will assist the students reach their profession goals.

NHU would like to extend a special thank you to Craig, Dan, Fred, Jim and Jonathan for their dedication to seeing that all persons, no matter their income, may have admittance to a home personal computer.

Laptop or computer ProSchools Unveils New Website
Cutting edge engineering illustrates a apparent picture of this state-of-art Microsoft IT Academy. Desktop ProSchools, Inc. is excited to announce its new website located at www.pcproschools.edu.


FOR Fast Launch
PR Log (Press Discharge) – Apr 23, 2008 – Since 1994 Computer ProSchools has been providing IT coaching in the Milwaukee area. Over the many years, Personal computer ProSchools expanded operations opening campuses in Green Bay, WI and Madison, WI. In 2006 and 2007 the campuses in Grand Rapids, MI and Indianapolis, IN respectively opened. “As we grow we need to present a consistent brand image,” explains CEO James Brent. “When you enter a Starbucks, you immediately know wherever that you are as a consequence of the colors and décor and their promotional items and website carry this same sense and image.” 

Earlier this yr Desktop ProSchools hired InovaOne, a full-service strategic consulting business specializing in creative design and production, media delivery and extensive outsourcing companies located in Roswell, GA, to create a different branding concept. In addition to the website, InovaOne made a new logo, university colors and promotional materials to present a consistent image at the five Desktop ProSchools’ campuses located throughout the Mid-West.

“The objective of our new website is to provide prospective students using the initial details so they may be excited to take on the future move and routine a campus visit” shares Vice President of Marketing and Admission, Wendy Mirenda.  “When we very first started off speaking to InovaOne I used to be impressed with how they used high-tech avenues to present their messages. Being a state-of-the art Microsoft IT Academy, I believed we should be performing that.”  And the new website does just that! www.pcproschools.edu offers interactive videos to highlight all that Computer ProSchools has to offer you. In addition, a prospective student can examination their own IT knowledge as a result of the Pc Knowledge Assessment or sign up to visit a campus appropriate by way of the website.

Overall, the new website offers general details about Personal computer ProSchools, a series of student achievements stories shared directly from the students themselves in the video testimonial format, Profession Services and IT Business Specifics tabs providing insight into how Computer ProSchools gives students that winning advantage in the most effective growing industry inside US. Another added benefit is the new Employers page exactly where IT managers and employers can locate out additional and make contact with us directly to hire certainly one of our graduates.

Desktop ProSchools also switched towards .edu website address from the earlier .com address. This address is exclusive to educational institutions, requiring evidence of the accredited status just before even securing the complete address. Right after achieving accreditation with ACCET last yr Personal computer ProSchools certified for this educational based address line. “We’re an accredited college,” explains VP of Education and learning, Kate Pelchat, “we should be letting the general public know that by way of the use with the .edu address.” Visitors familiar with using the original website will now simply be redirected automatically on the www.pcproschools.edu website.
For a lot more information on Desktop ProSchools visit www.pcproschools.edu. For more facts about InovaOne visit www.inovaone.com.

Top Anti Drug Researcher Changes Mind, Says Legalize Marijuana
This is the reason America is falling apart

Obama “Likely” to Speak About Flight 253 - Political Punch

ABC News’ Yunji de Nies Reports: White House sources tell ABC News the President will.

Another week of GW News, December 27, 2009 : A Few Things Ill

Later he told a news conference that a bloc of key emerging economies - Brazil, South Africa, India and China - had worked to protect the rights of the developing world. 2009/12/25: Reuters: China defends Wen Jiabao’s role in Copenhagen …

cBS News: Presidential Vacations Are Hard! | Right Wing News

Right Wing News is the best source on the net for conservative news, views, & interviews.

blacks


The proposal would trade labs seen as benefiting white students for resources to help struggling minority students.

Berkeley High School is considering a controversial proposal to eliminate science labs and the five science teachers who teach them to free up more resources to help struggling students.

The proposal to put the science-lab cuts on the table was approved recently by Berkeley High’s School Governance Council, a body of teachers, parents, and students who oversee a plan to change the structure of the high school to address Berkeley’s dismal racial achievement gap, where white students are doing far better than the state average while black and Latino students are doing worse.

Paul Gibson, an alternate parent representative on the School Governance Council, said that information presented at council meetings suggests that the science labs were largely classes for white students. He said the decision to consider cutting the labs in order to redirect resources to underperforming students was virtually unanimous.

Science teachers were understandably horrified by the proposal. “The majority of the science department believes that this major policy decision affecting the entire student body, the faculty, and the community has been made without any notification, without a hearing,” said Mardi Sicular-Mertens, the senior member of Berkeley High School’s science department, at last week’s school board meeting.

Sincular-Mertens, who has taught science at BHS for 24 years, said the possible cuts will impact her black students as well. She says there are twelve African-American males in her AP classes and that her four environmental science classes are 17.5 percent African American and 13.9 percent Latino. “As teachers, we are greatly saddened at the thought of losing the opportunity to help all of our students master the skills they need to find satisfaction and success in their education,” she told the board.

The full plan to close the racial achievement gap by altering the structure of the high school is known as the High School Redesign. It will come before the Berkeley School Board as an information item at its January 13 meeting. Generally, such agenda items are passed without debate, but if the school board chooses to play a more direct role in the High School Redesign, it could bring the item back as an action item at a future meeting.

School district spokesman Mark Coplan directed inquiries about the redesign to Richard Ng, the principal’s assistant at Berkeley High and member of the School Governance Council. Ng did not return repeated calls for comment.

The Berkeley High School Governance Council is considering, with “virtually unanimous” agreement, an ingenious (or perhaps ungenius) proposal to close its “dismal racial achievement gap, where white students are doing far better than the state average while black and Latino students are doing worse.” (HatTip to a reader from Berkeley.)

The solution is both obvious and simple: “eliminate science labs and the five science teachers who teach them to free up more resources to help struggling students.”

Paul Gibson, an alternate parent representative on the School Governance Council, said that information presented at council meetings suggests that the science labs were largely classes for white students. He said the decision to consider cutting the labs in order to redirect resources to underperforming students was virtually unanimous.
Once the principle underlying this proposal is accepted, the possibilities become virtually endless. True, as in any war there will be collateral damage — in this case, the minority students who will be casualties along with the whites. For example, Mardi Sicular-Mertens, the senior member of Berkeley High School’s science department, told the Governance Council that “there are twelve African-American males in her AP classes and that her four environmental science classes are 17.5 percent African American and 13.9 percent Latino.”

Well, war is hell, and one can easily understand why the Berkeley High School Governance Council would conclude that depriving a few minority students of science labs and advanced placement courses is a small price to pay for the advantage of depriving a larger number of whites and Asians (who presumably are not a minority) of those classes.

But wait. Why stop with high school science? The last times I looked (here and here), blacks made up only 4% of the entering class at that other large school in Berkeley, the University of California. If it were closed, think how many resources the state could “free up … to help struggling students” at community colleges, city colleges, and the less white (or Asian) state colleges and universities.

The Berkeley High School Governance Council is considering, with “virtually unanimous” agreement, an ingenious (or perhaps ungenius) proposal to close its “dismal racial achievement gap, where white students are doing far better than the state average while black and Latino students are doing worse.” (HatTip to a reader from Berkeley.)

The solution is both obvious and simple: “eliminate science labs and the five science teachers who teach them to free up more resources to help struggling students.”

Paul Gibson, an alternate parent representative on the School Governance Council, said that information presented at council meetings suggests that the science labs were largely classes for white students. He said the decision to consider cutting the labs in order to redirect resources to underperforming students was virtually unanimous.
Once the principle underlying this proposal is accepted, the possibilities become virtually endless. True, as in any war there will be collateral damage — in this case, the minority students who will be casualties along with the whites. For example, Mardi Sicular-Mertens, the senior member of Berkeley High School’s science department, told the Governance Council that “there are twelve African-American males in her AP classes and that her four environmental science classes are 17.5 percent African American and 13.9 percent Latino.”

Well, war is hell, and one can easily understand why the Berkeley High School Governance Council would conclude that depriving a few minority students of science labs and advanced placement courses is a small price to pay for the advantage of depriving a larger number of whites and Asians (who presumably are not a minority) of those classes.

But wait. Why stop with high school science? The last times I looked (here and here), blacks made up only 4% of the entering class at that other large school in Berkeley, the University of California. If it were closed, think how many resources the state could “free up … to help struggling students” at community colleges, city colleges, and the less white (or Asian) state colleges and universities.

Attack of the killer tomatoes

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/attack-of-the-killer-tomatoes-1834638.html

Vegetarians, look away now.

Potatoes and tomatoes make good eating but they may also have a vicious side that makes them deadly killers on a par with venus fly traps and pitcher plants.

They have been identified as among a host of plants thought to have been overlooked by botanists and explorers searching the world’s remotest regions for carnivorous species.

Researchers at Royal Botanical Gardens Kew now believe there are hundreds more plants that catch and eat insects and other small animals than they previously realised. Among them are species of petunia, ornamental tobacco plants, potatoes and tomatoes and shepherd’s purse, a relative of cabbages.

“Widely recognised carnivorous plants number some 650 and we estimate that another 325 or so are probable additions – so an increase of about 50 per cent,” said Dr Mike Fay, of Kew.

Researchers realised the plant world was more bloodthirsty than had been realised when they carried out an assessment of carnivorous plants to celebrate the bicentenary of Charles Darwin’s birth.

Darwin himself had been fascinated by carnivorous plants and conducted many experiments in which he fed them meat, and in 1875 his book on them, Insectivorous Plants, was published.

Dr Fay said it is likely that the meat-eating qualities of many plants has gone unrecognised because they are missing some of the prime characteristics associated with carnivorous species.

Pitcher plants and venus fly traps have specialist structures to kill and devour their prey but other plants are more subtle and rely on supplementing their usual diet by passive means.

Among them are plants such as ornamental tobaccos, and some species of potatoes and tomatoes which have sticky hairs which trap aphids and other small invertebrates. It is thought that rather than devour the prey directly the dead bodies decay slowly and the nutrients fall to the ground where they are taken up by the roots.

“They catch little aphids on the sticky hairs all the time. As these insects break down and drop to the ground the ground becomes enriched and the plants absorb them through the roots,” he said.

Such an ability is comparable to that of Roridula in Southern Africa which has sticky leaves on which flies get stuck but has no means of digesting them. It relies on a bug which devours the flies and the plant is then able to extract nutrients from the faeces which drop to the ground.

Domestic varieties of tomatoes and potatoes retain the ability to trap and kill small insects with their sticky hairs and are likely to absorb the nutrients through their roots when the animals decay and fall to the ground.

They are, however, thought to derive little benefit because they are so well-supplied with fertilisers whereas in the wild it might be an important source of food.

Professor Mark Chase, of Kew and Queen Mary, University of London, said: “The cultivated tomatoes and potatoes still have the hairs. Tomatoes in particular are covered with these sticky hairs. They do trap small insects on a regular basis. They do kill insects.

“We suspect in the domesticated varieties they are getting plenty of food through the roots from us so don’t get much benefit from trapping insects. In the wild they could be functioning in the way that could properly be considered carnivorous.”

Shepherd’s purse is thought to be carnivorous, at least in part, because its seeds are covered in a thin layer of a substance that both attracts tiny organisms in the soil and kills them. Furthermore, the seeds secrete an enzyme which can break down the bodies so the nutrients can be taken up during germination.

Dr Fay said the study’s findings backed up the idea that all flowering plants began with the capacity to eat meat when they evolved but that only some of them made use of and retained the ability.

The researchers, publishing their finding in The Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, added: “We may be surrounded by many more murderous plants than we think.

“We are accustomed to think of plants as being immobile and harmless, and there is something deeply unnerving about the thought of carnivorous plants.

“Overall, angiosperms [flowering plants] of many types may be involved in a degree of carnivory and be ‘proto-carnivorous’; perhaps we should be more curious about why more plant species have not developed a ‘taste’ for animal-derived nutrients.”

Blood-curdling tales of meat-eating plants have fascinated people in Britain ever since the first live venus flytrap to reach London caused a sensation across Europe in the 18th century.

Stories of man-eating specimens have held a particular attraction since featuring in such stories as The Day of the Triffids (1951) and The Little Shop of Horrors (1960) – more recently in the Harry Potter books, whose Venomous Tentacula tries to seize living prey with its grasping vines.

One 19th-century tale of a tree in Madagascar with tentacles that would grab hold of people and drag them to their doom even purported to be based on eyewitness accounts and was only discounted in the 20th century. Another reported a man-eating tree in Central America which would crush bodies with its tentacles “until every drop of blood is squeezed out of it and becomes absorbed by the gore-loving plant”.

The potato can only dream…

hehe look how cute these decorations are



“Good news is that I truly out did myself this year with my Christmas  decorations. The bad news is that I had to take him down after 2 days. I had more people come screaming up to my house than ever.Great stories. But two things made me take it down.

First, the cops advised me that it would cause traffic accidents as they almost wrecked when they drove by.

Second, a 55 year old lady grabbed the 75 pound ladder almost killed herself putting it against my house and didn’t realize it was fake until she climbed to the top (she was not happy). By the way, she was one of many people who attempted to do that. My yard couldn’t take it either. I have more than a few tire tracks where people literally drove up my yard.”

If we had to consider the most valuable contributions to mankind from Japan, it had to be the high tech gadgets, Haiku, Sushi and Anime, and while Anime has been popular in the west only recently, it was popular in Asian countries from a very long time.

Anime for all practical purposes is animation originating from Japan, but it certainly has a character of its own to be considered as a genre. There have been both hand drawn and computer generated Anime which has been used in television series, films, video, video games, commercials, and Internet-based releases.

Manga refers to Japanese comics which feature similar characters and share the commonality of Japanese thought and culture. This Christmas, it would be awesome to have an Anime Girls and Manga Gadgets themed Christmas trees in your house and create an atmosphere of animated beauty that transports you to a land of comics, video games, story books and movies from Japan.

Christmas Tree ornaments inspired by Anime are found across the world, especially when it is growing so popular and hence, decorating your Christmas tree with Anime themed ornaments should not be difficult. Let us take a look at the many ornaments which are already available.

Lucky Star Christmas Tree Ornaments

Lucky Star is an amazing and glossy Japanese four-panel comic strip Manga by Kagami Yoshimizu which is best known for characters like Kagami Hiiragi and Tsukasa Hiiragi. In this ornament here, you can see them both sharing a great moment in a Christmas themed scene.You could get these kind of ornaments and decorate your tree to bring the Anime feel to your Christmas.

Image Source: 1

Haruhi Suzumiya Christmas Tree Ornaments

If you like mystery, adventure and changes in reality, you would love the light novels by Nagaru Tanigawa called Haruhi Suzumiya. The story of the novel centers around Haruhi Suzumiyawho is a high school girl who can change reality in an unconscious manner.

Here are some cool Haruhi ornaments which I am sure you would like a lot on your Christmas tree. If you are in a slightly melancholic mood, you would also like the Mikuru Asahina Christmas ornament.

Image Source: 1, 2, 3, 4

Bishojo Christmas Tree Ornaments

A Bishojo always features in Japanese Anime and Manga. A Bishojo is a beautiful young girl who is seen in almost all Manga and Anime. The male version of this beautiful Bishojo is a Bishonen. The beauty of a Bishojo or a Bishonen is their innocence and youth, which has a universal appeal. You could “Deck the Halls” with this amazing Bishojo Christmas tree ornament.

Image Source: 1

Kodama Christmas Tree Ornaments

Anime and Manga are full of Japanese supernatural beings and the most prominent ones are the Kodama. The Kodama is a spirit which is believed to live in certain trees and is similar to the Greek Dryad.

If you cut down a tree where a Kodama lives, you would be cursed and would bring you great misfortune.

You could decorate your Christmas Tree with Kodama Ornaments and hope that no misfortune befalls you.

Image Source: 1, 2, 3, 4

Amigurumi Christmas Tree Ornaments

Amigurumi is the Japanese art of knitting small stuffed animals which look really cute. They have been used in Manga and Anime many times. You could take a look at this cute Amigurumi Christmas teddy bear.

Image Source: 1

Yotsuba Koiwai Christmas Tree Ornaments

If you are a great fan of Yotsuba Koiwai, you could check out his cute Yotsuba Christmas tree ornament which would brighten up your Xmas. Yotsuba is a fictional character from the self titled comedy Manga series and known for naiveté and childish energy.

Image Source: 1

Naruto Christmas Tree Ornaments

Naruto is an epic Manga series whose plot tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki. It is a story of honour, pride and the need for power. With great wisdom and artistic beauty, Naruto tells the story of humans who are caught in a struggle. These Naruto ornaments would add up to your anime/Manga themed Christmas tree.

You could also check out Itachi Uchiha ornament.

Image Sources: 1, 2, 3

Bleach Christmas Tree Ornaments

Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki are famous for their roles in the Anime and Manga franchise “Bleach”. The Bleach tells the story of protecting people from evil spirits called hollows and sending the good spirits to Soul Society. These Ichigo and Rukia ornaments look great and the Christmas tree would not be complete with them.

Image Source: 1

The Adventures of Hamtaro Christmas Tree Ornaments

The Adventures of Hamtaro is one of the most popular children’s storybook series in Japan. Get this brave master called Hamtaro on your Christmas tree for a cool Anime themed Christmas.

Image Source: 1

Domo Kum Christmas Tree Ornaments

Domo Kun is the mascot of Japan’s NHK TV channel but has been replicated in Anime and Manga several times. Get this cool Domo Kum ornament for your Christmas tree!

Image Source: 1

Kokeshi Christmas Tree Ornaments

Like the Russians have Matryoshka dolls, the Japanese have the Kokeshi. These wooden handmade dolls are simple but beautiful. These days, they are featured regularly in Anime and Manga. Take a look at these cool Kokeshi Christmas ornaments.

It may be a little out of the box to decorate your Christmas tree with Anime themed ornaments, but trust me you would not regret it!

Image Sources: 1, 2

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Its approaching one of my favourite times of year!

I love Christmas, not so much for the presents I get myself (I find myself mostly disppointed with the presents I get… Only because I put so much consideration and hard work into mine, and it kinda sucks when all you get in return is a gift card, you know?) but for the expressions on people’s faces when they open the presents that you’ve spent time and under the $20 limit to get them =)

This year I have gotten a little creative with my Christmas presents! I really want there to be a personal touch with the stuff I give, and I think I’ve finally found my creative bone after its been hidden all these years! lol

I got in trouble from my BFFF for buying her a Christmas present when we said that we weren’t going to give presents to each other this year… But I couldn’t help myself! I saw this beautiful writing journal and I knew that I had to get it to replace the writing book she lost… Even if she bakes cookies for everyone else, it won’t matter because I know how much she loved it!! (Shes gonna love the other part of the present, which she will actually get at Christmas!! YAY!!)

Anyway, the main point of this post is to talk about the annual tradition of decorating the Christmas tree =)

I love decorating the tree, my brother and I get really competitive about it! We jostle each other for prime decoration spots, and abuse each other if two green decorations are too close to each other… But its not the store bought decorations that are my favourites… My favourite decorations are the ones that we have been putting on the tree for as long as I can remember… Hence the argument I got into with my family last night…

My brother and my mother want the Christmas tree to look like a “Myer” Christmas tree (in other words, all arty and pretty much heartless) but my dad and I think that the decorations Mitch and I brought home from school and the ones that we’ve had for 20+ years are full of love and deserve pride of place on the tree!

After all, thats what Christmas is about, isn’t it?

Theres even a Donald Duck decoration that I’m pretty sure came from a Happy Meal, but 5 year old me wanted it on the tree and 15 years later its still on there!
Don’t even get me started on the Minnie Mouse “Baby’s First Christmas” that has been there since the year I was born… I would die (metaphorically of course =P) if anything happened to it…

I just can’t believe that some members of my family would want to get rid of the decorations that bring back memories of the joy and laughter we have shared over the years, you know?

What do you guys think? Do any of you have any Christmas traditons that are close to your heart?

Peace on Earth, and Merry Mild!

xx

P.S. We lost out on the house we applied for… I is very sad =( Winter wonderland

Thousands attend annual Jaycees’ Christmas parade



By Toby Tate
Staff Writer


2009-12-06 23:09:30.0

Thousands of area residents lined the streets for Sunday night’s 2009 Elizabeth City Jaycees Christmas Parade, which had been rescheduled from Saturday night due to rain and wind.

City Manager Rich Olson said he walked from Muddy Water’s Coffee House to the

waterfront for the boat parade and said the crowd was four or five people deep all the way down Main Street.

“I heard that it was the same way on Eringhaus,” he said.

He estimated there were 8,000 to 10,000.

The parade began a little differently than usual, with Elizabeth City Mayor Steve Atkinson doing a countdown in front of the courthouse for the turning on of the downtown lights.

Olson said several school marching bands were not able to make the parade because of the change in schedule, including Northeastern High School and Elizabeth City State University. At least 56 businesses, churches, schools and civic organizations signed up to march in the parade, according to parade organizer Alison Herns.

Olson said he thought the Jaycees did an excellent job coordinating the parade.

“It was a little bit of a crisp night, but people dressed warm and there was a lot of hot chocolate sold,” he said. “Muddy’s was standing room only and the City Wine Sellar was busy — all of them were doing quite well.”

This year’s parade theme was, ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.’”

According to Herns, first place winners of the parade judging was New Life Assembly of God in the Church Float category; Harris Lawn care of Camden in the Business category; Pasquotank County High School in the Marching Band category; Pasquotank Camden Library in the Civic Organization category and Weeksville Elementary School for the School Clubs category.

After the downtown parade was a boat parade at the Elizabeth City waterfront featuring several sailboats adorned with Christmas decorations and lights.

Boat judging contest in the Small Boats category were Ricky Edwards, first place and Jim Waddell in second place.

In the Big Boat category was the boat “Dilagents” in first place; “Great Escape,” owned by Earnst and Sandra Davenport in second place; and Jim Weeks’ “Gracefully II” in third place.

And though Kim has been looking more fit than ever lately, Khloe says she’s been struggling with her weight a bit since getting married.

She explained, “Kim is at her weight goal.  I’m not.  I’ve gained a little love weight.  But I know by this summer I will have my ultimate bikini body. But I’m still happy!”


Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Kim and Khloe Kardashian out at Trevor Projects 12th Annual Cracked Christmas (December 6).

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Can anyone tell me why the CA HOA doesn’t like solar panels?

Even as California and the federal government encourage solar power, homeowners often have to fight homeowners associations for their right to install the systems.

Solar panels

Mike Bartz, back to camera, and his brother Bradley install solar panels to power a pump for a hot tub in Palos Verdes Estates. (Jay L. Clendenin /os Angeles Times / November 20, 2009)




When Leonardo DiCaprio walked on stage for a special announcement at last night’s Academy Awards, he was accompanied by former Vice-President of the United States, Al Gore.

DiCaprio announced that this year’s Oscars ceremony had officially gone green.

“Green” is a semi-recent term, used to describe that which is environmentally-aware. In light of the recent debacle concerning global warming and the newfound interest in the environment, “green” has become a common staple of knowledge.

This year marked the first time in history that, as Vice-President Gore acknowledged, the entire Academy Awards process has “gone green.”

Then something odd happened. Completely with regard to convenience, DiCaprio mentioned how perfect the current moment might be for either of them, had they been planning on making some other big announcement to the millions of viewers. He posed the question to Vice-President Gore.

Vice-President Gore’s demeanor suddenly turned to that of utmost seriousness, as he began addressing the nation in a manor similar to what follows:

“Fellow citizens of the United States of America, I would like to take this opportunity to formally announce my intent to…”

As his speech continued, it quickly became obvious that the Oscars ceremony is not the time to announce presidency, however. Just as he was about to speak the words so many long to hear, the familiar music was turned on, which signaled that Vice-President Gore’s time at the microphone had expired.

A former leader of our country, Al Gore was unable to find the time to complete his announcement.

This was all, of course, planned. Does Al Gore have a sense of humor? It seemed as though he did last night.

There was still hope for many that Gore would gain take the stage to accept an Oscar, and that wish came true. But still, there was no completion of the earlier tease.

A classy decision to leave politics to another time and place, Vice President Gore allowed the Oscars to remain solely as they were intended: A celebration of the art of film and its virtuosos.

And not only did the Oscars go green, but Gore’s film won two Oscars - one for “Best Documentary Feature” and another for “Best Song,” an honor that was awarded to Melissa Etheridge for her original song, “I Need to Wake Up.”

As evidenced last night, it seems the nation is ready to listen to the truths about global warming, and with the insinuation of a possible big announcement from Al Gore, many continue to hope a series of specific words will soon be uttered from his lips. However, we must all wait to see.

Tory Muslim peer pelted with eggs

Conservative peer Baroness Warsi of Dewsbury, named Britain’s most powerful Muslim woman, has been pelted with eggs during a visit to Luton.

Baroness Warsi was taking part in a walkabout in the predominantly Muslim Bury Park area of Luton when she was confronted by a group of protesters.

The male protesters accused her of not being a proper Muslim and supporting the death of Muslims in Afghanistan.

Baroness Warsi, who was hit by at least one egg, debated with the men.

The shadow minister for community cohesion and social action was then taken into a nearby shop.

‘Views challenged’

Baroness Warsi told the BBC that the men were “idiots who did not represent the majority of British Muslims”.

She said these type of protesters “bring Muslims into huge disrepute”.

“I stood up to this group and said I challenge your views,” she told BBC News.

“They just weren’t prepared to listen. They shouted. I said if you want to have this debate, listen.”

She continued her walkabout with a police escort.

One of the protesters against Baroness Warsi, Sayful Islam, told the BBC they were “against everything she stands for”.

He said: “She is not a practising Muslim. Clearly by looking at her she does not represent Muslims.”

He said he and his fellow protesters did not throw the eggs at her.

Baroness Warsi was named as one of the most powerful women in The Power List - chosen by a panel led by Trevor Phillips, chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

The award was set up to celebrate high performers in business, the arts, media, voluntary and public sectors.


Part 5: Jihad in America, Muslim prime directive…

Islam grows so powerful in Europe; few dare expose its underbelly, its provocative actions, its arcane rituals and its final obsession: submission of all people to Islamic precepts.  Why?  They could get killed in their own country by core Islamic extremists living in Europe.

Peter Wagner wrote, “When talking about “The Religion of Peace,” detractors will point to other verses in the Koran that contradict the hateful ones.  What most people are unaware of is that in Islam there is the “law of abrogation.”

“Basically, when Mohamed or Allah have said something contradictory, and there are lots of those, the last command takes precedence over the earlier command and renders the earlier command null and void.  Since the books of the Koran are not in chronological order one needs to know which command came last.   Much of the “kill the infidel” stuff is the more recent commands.

“Part of the problem with “peaceful Muslims” is that none will repudiate the “kill the infidels” commands of their god and prophet because to do so would make one worse than an infidel with another command by Allah to put the apostate to death.  In fact, “Radical Islamists” are nothing more than true believers doing exactly what Mohammed and Allah are telling them to do.  The “peaceful Muslims” are actually the unbelievers and the Jihadists are the true believers.  Check the ‘murtadd’; it also explains why “peaceful Muslims” won’t condemn the Jihad at Fort Hood. If you want personal proof, when talking to a Muslim, ask them to condemn and repudiate the grossly hateful and kill-the-infidel stuff in the Koran.  You will get some interesting answers.”

Whereas true Christians “turn the other cheek, love their enemies, do unto others…” etc.  True Muslims kill the infidels.  Both are just doing what their god and prophet told them to do.

From two years ago, the six Fort Dix terrorists followed their progression of jihad on America.  They followed the tenets of fundamentalist Islam.  As their numbers grow in America, more fundamentalist Muslims force their way into every sector, every level and every aspect of American society.  Whether by legal means, or violent— they continue on a quest that may take decades.

Muslims, if anything, prove clever.  Those now in the U.S. know their power grows in numbers, and also aware that they are “in competition” with the burgeoning Hispanic-Latino population.   Muslims, therefore, reproduce at a rate that is much higher than other groups in the U.S.

Their methods in the U.S. — use our Constitution to their advantage.  Once they gain outright population power, they intend to revert to Sharia Law.

Fundamental to the obligations of every Muslim are the Five Pillars of Islam.

The “Muslim Nation” works the implementation of Sharia law in France at this moment— where the French have given up on whole city sections in Paris.  They’re working it in Holland. They tried it in Australia, but officials rebuked them.  They will keep pressing until success.

France elected their first non-socialist president in a long time.  The nation of France prepares for an internal war— an insurrection.

Up to one hundred thousand Muslims immigrate (legally and illegally) into the United States annually, now numbering seven to eight million— brought to us by an “Open-Borders” Congress that supports the injection of jihad into this nation.  Most arrive as naturalized citizens, sponsored by relatives already here.   Meanwhile, each Muslim works double-time to increase the Muslim birth-rate in the U.S.

Former President Bush, in 2008, signed a bill (”immigration waiver exception”) to accept 25,000 Iraqi Sunni refugees into America.  President Obama signed another $20.3 million bill to bring in more Muslims from Palestine.  I’ll bet they’re going to make a happy bunch of campers on American soil!

Ignorance in the U.S. electorate is NOT bliss

No one stops them; precious few understand what is going on; no one speaks out.  Given enough time, every American faces jihad within his or her own community.

In 1908, President Teddy Roosevelt said,

“The one absolutely certain way of bringing this nation to ruin, of preventing all possibility of its continuing as a nation at all, would be to permit it to become a tangle of squabbling nationalities.”

It will prove interesting when the Muslims spreading from East to West across America meet the reconquista La Raza Mexicans spreading west to east.  Both groups maintain a mission of conquest.  Both sustain a resolve to make America their own.

The Fort Dix Six— signs of things to come.

How can we stop Islam’s conquest of America?  Simple: Stop all immigration from Middle Eastern and African countries immediately.  Anything less equals national suicide.

TOTAL moratorium on all immigration for ten years

On the other hand, if you are one of the tens of millions of Americans that remain oblivious— trusting in the proverbial tooth-fairy— you invite national suicide— right along with the entire Open Borders advocates.

We rush toward an insurrection in the U.S. as the Muslim and Catholic (Hispanic-Latino) powers finalize their plans to confront one another.   My guess; this mess will explode in 2011–2015, after the U.S. Congress district boundaries are thrown into chaos as a result of the 2010 census.

What we choose not to know or deny can hurt us— in fact, kill us.

To turn this mess around, we need urgent and radical actions;

1.  Take total control of our borders, using the U.S.M.C. for seven years.

2.  Construct a world-class PHYSICAL security-fence along our southern border.

3.  Implement a total immigration moratorium, for ten years.

4.  Investigate, prosecute, and punish the criminals who entice and employ foreign-nationals.

5.  Investigate, prosecute, and punish the 630,000 criminal-aliens who have absconded, ignoring lawful orders to submit to deportation.

6.  Investigate, prosecute, and punish the criminals who entice and employ foreign-nationals (the root-cause).

7.  Temporarily double the size and staff of the U.S. District Courts, U.S. Immigration Courts, and the U.S Attorney Offices—and build temporary tent-city jails-prisons along our southern border, with built-in courtroom facilities.

8.  Reinvent the DHS.

9.  Put the U.S. Marshal Service and DOJ-FBI in charge of the DHS-ICE function in the interim.

10. Carefully and thoroughly (10-finger prints and iris scan) add each illegal alien to our NCIC-IAFIS date base as they voluntarily repatriate, and leave the U.S.

11. Put a benevolent leader in the new post of U.S. Immigration Czar.

12. Author a world-class U.S. Immigration Strategic Plan that includes a “U.S. Sustainable Immigration Policy of 100,000 or less annually” after a 10 year moratorium.

13.Aggressively (this is a major, gigantic new-paradigm effort) train & educate U.S. children– “grow-our-own”– to work the high-tech, manufacturing, and agricultural jobs as we emerge from the current “immigration chaos.”

Our nation stands in the cross hairs of cultural and national suicide.  If we continue on our current path, we’re finished as a nation of laws, as a cohesive people, as a language and as a peaceful civilization.

Part 6: treatment of Muslim women by Muslim men.

Eid ul-Adha begins with a short prayer followed by a sermon. The holiday is celebrated with a distribution of food to the needy, the giving of gifts, and social gatherings. During the celebration, Muslims exchange the greeting “Eid Mubarak” or “Blessed Eid.” Chicago Muslim charities will be distributing meat to needy families in and around the city.

WHEN: Friday, November 27th – (Congregational prayers are held in the morning. Festivities continue throughout the day).

WHERE: For a list of prayer locations in the Chicago area, scroll to the bottom of this email. (Eid prayers and festivals are held either in local mosques or in public facilities designed to accommodate large gatherings.)

PHOTO OPPORTUNITY: Each year Muslims from America and many different countries come to prayer in colorful dress. The prayers themselves are quite visual, with worshipers arranged in neat rows and bowing in unison. Participants exchange embraces at the conclusion of the prayers.

NOTE: Because this is a religious service, reporters and photographers of both genders are advised to dress modestly. Photographers should arrive early to get into position for the best shots. Photographers are also advised not to step directly in front of worshipers and to seek permission for close-up shots.

CAIR-Chicago is a chapter of America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

– END –

CONTACT: Ahmed Rehab, Executive Director, CAIR-Chicago, 202-870-0166, E-Mail: arehab@cair.com; Amina Sharif, Communications Coordinator, CAIR-Chicago, 630-935-5562 or 312-212-1520, E-Mail: asharif@cair.com Copyright © Old Holborn 2007-2008 and the respective owners whoever they may be - though it’s hardly likely is it?. All rights reserved. Every single one. None of the materials provided on this web site may be used, eaten, reproduced, masturbated over or transmitted, in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, carrier pidgeon, osmosis, semaphore, chav txting (gr8) recording or the use of any information storage and retrieval system, papyrus, bits of old toilet paper, fag packets, carrier bags, mystic meg etc., except as provided for under fair use, without permission in writing from the publisher - me and my dog. To request such permission and for further enquiries, contact the dog using the contact form. Offer her a bone. She likes bones.To be governed is to be watched, inspected, spied upon, directed, law-driven, numbered, regulated, enrolled, indoctrinated, preached at, controlled, checked, estimated, valued, censured, commanded, by creatures who have neither the right nor the wisdom nor the virtue to do so. To be governed is to be at every operation, at every transaction noted, registered, counted, taxed, stamped, measured, numbered, assessed, licensed, authorized, admonished, prevented, forbidden, reformed, corrected, punished. It is, under pretext of public utility, and in the name of the general interest, to be placed under contribution, drilled, fleeced, exploited, monopolized, extorted from, squeezed, hoaxed, robbed; then, at the slightest resistance, the first word of complaint, to be repressed, fined, vilified, harassed, hunted down, abused, clubbed, disarmed, bound, choked, imprisoned, judged, condemned, shot, deported, sacrificed, sold, betrayed; and to crown all, mocked, ridiculed, derided, outraged, dishonoured. That is government; that is it’s justice; that is its morality. There is an unexpected air of sculpture whenever perpetrators of unpeaceful attacks channelize out to be from non-Islamic protestantism backgrounds equivalent the casing during the Virginia Tech lincoln butchery in Apr 2007 in which a Southwest Peninsula killed 32 students. I sail my brain disagreeable to gestate a understanding as to why these group do the brazen things they do. The head numbing emotions that all muslims apportion are tumid of glumness prevails amongst us. Why oh why do they person to onslaught in the argot of establishment? Do they property people gift be terrified and will stand Mohammedanism? Is this the way to let peple couple almost Monotheism at the component of massacaring absolved humans? Who give understand the overlooking ideals this faith propounds, the whitener for all of humanities problems that it offers, if the multitude locomote to much inhumane methods. Do these grouping jazz that we fall our heads in shame with see at us accusingly! All the feeling that we bang nearly us existence Muslims gets washed forth. We seem justificative and change to regain the sect text to hiding our sentience of indignity.
I’ve been watching this development in Europe with great interest. The Swiss have passed a ban on the building of Islamic Minarets in their country. Check out this article on Fox. I thought the most amazing statement was when an Islamic leader said that with this ban in place, Muslims won’t feel safe anymore. Hmmm, welcome to our world. I don’t know an American who has felt safe since 9/11. But there’s a big difference between a ban on a building and blowing strategic buildings and their innocent occupants sky high. Scrambling to contain its fallout, the Swiss government said that the ban was a violation of the right to freedom of religion to all peoples.

“These guarantees are binding on Switzerland under international law,” Widmer-Schlumpf said.

“The fundamental freedom of religion and conscience applies to all religions.”

The Justice Minister stressed that the ban was not a rejection of Swiss Muslims.

“The vote must not lead to mutual distrust,” she said.

“Marginalization and exclusion on the basis of religious and cultural differences would be devastating for an open country such as Switzerland.”

The minister said that the ban could be appealed at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

“We will have to deal with the consequences of a possible decision by the court to approve the appeal,” she said.

The Green Party has already announced that it was considering an appeal against the minaret ban.

Measured Response

Switzerland’s Muslims called for a measured reaction to the minaret ban.

“We need some time to evaluate the situation and look into its future repercussions,” said Maizer.

He warned that a violent reaction to the ban would be useless and counterproductive.

“We call for a responsible response to see where the initiative proponents would go and whether they would seek more restrictions on Swiss Muslims.”

Hani Ramadan, the head of the Islamic Center in Geneva, also called for calm.

“The ban was a big surprise for Switzerland’s Muslims,” he told IOL.

“This requires Muslims to build bridges and seek frank and calm dialogue with fellow Swiss.”

The Swiss leader also called on Muslims worldwide to respond calmly to the ban.

“We urge the Muslim world for calm response in order to help understand the reasons behind the Swiss support for the ban.”

Yousef Abram, a mosque imam in Geneva, echoes a similar call.

“The coming phase will be difficult and Muslim organizations have a lot to do to build bridges with Swiss society.”

Islam is the second religion in Switzerland after Christianity, with Muslims estimated at nearly 400,000.

There are nearly 160 mosques and prayer rooms in Switzerland, mainly in disused factories and warehouses.

Only four of them have minarets, none of them used to raise the Azan, the call to prayer, which is banned.



With the explosion in person to person, or P2P, trading on the internet it is obvious that the Web ‘low life’ will step in to exploit the goodwill necessary to trade online. However, in days gone by, we felt a degree of comfort knowing we could report scams and crime to the police in full expectation of a hearing at least, if not a remedy. However it appears now that too many victims are under the impression the UK police don’t want to know about these crimes and, if they are reported, will do nothing to assist.

I ask the question: Is it performance statistics that make it better these crimes go ‘offcially unreported’ or uninvestigated? Or is it just a lack of resources to tackle the issues? After all, rip enough people off for twenty pounds here or fifty pounds there each day, and you’ve got a nice little tax free earner going!

I now read reports that police forces in the UK are refusing to investigate incidents where less than £1,000 (Approx $1,900) has been stolen. Apparently the existence of this ‘threshold’ for online crimes was exposed by online powerhouse eBay recently having received complaints from users that the police were refusing to follow up on their complaints.

Ebays UK Head of Trust & Safety, Gareth Griffith, told the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee on Personal Internet Security; “When we try to get police involved, sometimes they will say, ‘We’d love to help you, but if it is not over a (certain) threshold of thousands of pounds, we cannot’. Gareth continued, “Users come back to us (eBay) saying the police are not interested because it is only a £500 ($950) laptop.”

In this modern day era of spin and, being frank, political BS, we seem to have arrived at a stage in the UK where politicians are happy to claim lowering crime rates simply by turning a blind eye to an officially condoned huge level of unreported crime because it is no longer considered worthy of investigation by police.

Even with this woeful attitude, prisons in Britain are full to bursting point. I shudder to think what the real numbers of crimes, convictions and prisoners would be in the UK if all reported crime were properly logged, investigated and included in the politicians’ stats.

It seems a fraudster has to bid very high on eBay to merit the attention of a policeman now.

The writer is a moderator for the online auction forum Pheebay.

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Tax cuts?

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Distance learning programs have come a long way since Sally Strothers hawked them on late night television commercials. With the proliferation of institutions like National Louis University, the University of Phoenix and Strayer University, colleges now offer a myriad of accelerated programs in everything from business certifications to master’s degrees. Now Donald Trump, creator of the television phenomenon “The Apprentice” and one of New York’s largest real estate developers, wants in on the action.

“In today’s hyper-competitive business climate, the need for the highest quality education has become more crucial than ever,” Trump said recently as he announced the university that will bear his name. “But people are looking beyond the traditional business education model, which involves hours in the classroom and relies primarily on book learning.”

The core of the Trump University, which opened in May, is virtual with staff hoping to encourage “a vibrant online community,” according to its website. Courses will also be offered through audio and video channels as well as live seminars. The Donald has tapped Fortune 500 talent to serve as the faculty of the university. The focus of the college is on teaching students about marketing, real estate and entrepreneurship.

“People need education fast and it has to be practical, something they can apply immediately to real-world business problems,” Trump said in a statement.

Michael Sexton, a consultant in the business of developing emerging companies, is Trump’s pick to hold the university’s presidency. Sexton has pulled faculty members from top colleges like Dartmouth and Columbia to join the staff, but it’s unclear as to just how much interaction students will have with the esteemed scholars. Most of the faculty are more engaged in curriculum development than actual instruction.

“We wanted to have a solution that was scalable at the end of the day,” Sexton said. “The faculty have a lot of interaction up front in designing the curriculum. That was our plan from the beginning because we wanted to make the delivery of the instruction to be self-paced, and we’re packaging learning in a different way.”

Sexton notes that there have been requests for more instructor-led teaching and said that the university is putting the finishing touches on some courses that will include more interaction with the faculty, most likely through the avenue of a “one-to-many webinar” where professors will lecture online and take questions from a global student audience. The university is partnering with Microsoft to use the LiveMeeting platform for these webcasts. Trump himself led a recent webcast, which Sexton characterized as “highly successful.”

Courses are relatively low-cost compared to traditional programs, with the first courses out of the university coming in at around $300. With titles like “Think Like an Entrepreneur,” “Market Your Way to Profits and Growth,” and “Buy a Home Like a Real Estate Pro,” Trump is focusing his courses where he believes universities are most lacking: in giving insightful, practical business advice.

Trump University hit Barnes & Noble bookstores Jan. 2 with an offering of nine different audio courses, though more are expected throughout 2006. The courses include three audio CDs, a CD containing supporting documents and a downloadable workbook as well as a year’s subscription to a course web site. In keeping with the goal of increasing instructor-led components to Trump University instruction, the faculty member who authored the course will be expected to do several web conferences a year to reinforce the course content, Sexton said. The audio courses sell for around $50.

“We’re very flexible with how we package our content,” Sexton said. “[The courses] are very experiential. Everything we do is focused on being practical and actionable. We don’t want to put something out there that’s purely theoretical.”

While there are no admissions standards, degree programs or commencement ceremonies, Trump University is focused on educating students who want its practical offerings. “People will learn by doing,” Sexton said, “the courses are more like simulations.”

What Ever Happened to the Good Times the Tax-Cutters Promised?

Sam Pizzigati's picture

Don’t expect an answer from the ranters and ravers who frequent ‘Tea Parties’ — or the politicians who egg them on.

You don’t have to dig particularly deep, in the United States today, to find some striking similarities between today’s virulently anti-Obama “Tea Party” crowd and the media darlings who birthed the “Tax Revolt” phenomenon back in the late 1970s.

The Tax Revolters burst onto the national scene amid an inflation-battered economy. They blamed “big government” for what ailed America, and they offered a simple remedy: cut taxes. Lower taxes, they promised, would get average Americans back on track.

Family wealth chartThe Tea Party zealots have, like the Tax Revolters, also coalesced in tough economic times. They attack “big government,” too. They even make the same promises about taxes.

But the Tea Party types, so far at least, haven’t scored any early political success. The Tax Revolters did. In 1978, in a ballot-box stunner, they passed a statewide initiative in California known as Prop 13, an unprecedented cap on property taxes.

Within a few short years, almost half America’s states had followed suit with tax cuts and caps of their own. In 1980, at the national level, this Tax Revolt surge would carry Ronald Reagan into the White House. One year later, a pliant Congress would give President Reagan the biggest across-the-board federal tax cut in U.S. history.

Tax relief had become, in the wink of an eye, America’s most potent political creed. Tax cutting and capping would go on to dominate the nation’s political discourse for the next three decades, an entire generation.

And what do we have to show for all this cutting and capping? Last week, researchers offered up two new studies that offer up a useful assessment.

The first, funded by the Social Security Administration, looks at the wealth of American families. That wealth, the Tax Revolters assured us,would start amassing again once taxpayers yanked “big government” out of our pockets.

The second new study zeroes in on state and local taxes. After years of tax revolting, this Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy report asks, who exactly is paying taxes at the state and local level? Who has benefited the most, in tax terms, from the Tax Revolt the Tea Party zealots are now so fervently seeking to extend?

The answer: The rich have benefited the most. The Tax Revolt that began back in the late 1970s has, in state after state, let the affluent off the tax hook.

In fact, notes the new Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy analysis, “nearly every state and local tax system takes a much greater share of income from middle- and low-income families than from the wealthy.”

In the entire United States, the analysis adds, “only two states require their best-off citizens to pay as much of their incomes in taxes as their very poorest taxpayers must pay, and only one state taxes its wealthiest individuals at a higher effective rate than middle-income families have to pay.”

America’s most affluent 1 percent now pay, on average, just 6.4 percent of their incomes in state and local taxes. But they actually pay even less than that, since they can deduct their state and local taxes from their federal tax bill. The state and local tax burden on America’s rich, after taking this offset into account, drops to 5.2 percent.

Middle-income families — to be precise, those families who make up the middle fifth of America’s income distribution — pay, after the federal offset, 9.4 percent of their incomes in total state and local taxes.

America’s poorest families pay even more. Tax collectors take 10.9 percent of the incomes of households in the nation’s bottom 20 percent, more than double the share they take from the incomes of the nation’s top 1 percent.

The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy paper, Who Pays? A Distributional Analysis of the Tax Systems in All 50 States, covers non-elderly households. Incredibly, the study details, some states “ask their poorest residents — those in the bottom 20 percent of the income scale — to pay up to six times as much of their income in taxes as they ask the wealthy to pay.”

Now you could argue that none of this matters. The Tax Revolters, after all, didn’t claim that their tax cutting and capping would have low- and middle-income people paying taxes at a lower rate than the rich. They claimed, instead, that massive tax cuts, taken as an amorphous whole, would help just about everybody get considerably richer.

That hasn’t happened, as Brookings Institution researchers Barry Bosworth and Rosanna Smart document in a paper just published by the Boston College Center for Retirement Research, with funding support from Social Security.

Bosworth and Smart “explore the consequences of the housing price bubble and its collapse for the wealth of older households.”

Along the way, the two investigators dive into the overall family wealth data the Federal Reserve has been collecting since the early 1980s. Tapping into another federal data set, they bring the family net worth picture up-to-date for 2009.

For low- and middle-income families, their numbers tell a depressing story.

All American households — poor, middle, and rich — have lost wealth since the subprime mortgage collapse and last fall’s financial meltdown. On average, since 2007, Americans have lost 26 percent of their total net worth.

But low- and middle-income households under age 50 haven’t just lost a big chunk of the wealth they held in 2007. These households have actually lost all the wealth they had gained since 1983, the first year with Federal Reserve family wealth data available.

subplugBack then in 1983, the bottom third — by income — of U.S. families under age 50 had an average $24,000 in net worth to their names, as measured in year 2000 dollars. The housing bubble helped boost this bottom-third average net worth to $27,000 in 2007.

Today, in the wake of that bubble’s collapse, researchers Bosworth and Smart put average bottom-third net worth at just $17,000, in those same year 2000 dollars.

Middle-income households under age 50, meanwhile, held an average net worth of $50,000 in 1983. The current net worth of this middle third, after adjusting for inflation: $45,000.

Older households in the bottom and middle income thirds — those over age 50 — have, to be sure, seen their after-inflation net worths increase between 1983 and 2009. But these households have lost at least 22 percent of the wealth they held in 2007. As older families, Bosworth and Smart note, they now “have less time to recover.”

That recovery may take some time.

Back in the middle of the 20th century, governments in the United States routinely taxed the rich to pay for the programs that built a vibrant middle class. The Tax Revolt that began three decades ago, by demonizing taxes, gave the rich a free ride and gutted those programs.

That demonization today continues, with politicos beholden to that rich cynically fanning the Tea Party flames. They don’t care who gets burned. The rest of us should.

My God.

Copyright Treaty Is Policy Laundering at Its Finest

The blogosphere is abuzz over an apparently leaked document showing the United States trying to push its controversial DMCA-style notice-and-takedown process on the world. But since Threat Level already lives in the land of the DMCA, or Digital Millennium Copyright Act, we’re more bothered by the fact that the U.S. proposal goes far beyond that 1998 law, and would require Congress to alter the DMCA in a manner even more hostile to consumers.

At issue is the internet section of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement being developed under a cloak of secrecy by dozens of countries. The leaked document is a three-page European Commission memo written by an unnamed EU official, which purports to summarizes a private briefing given in September by U.S. trade officials.

The language in the Sept. 30 memo shows the United States wants ISPs around the world to punish suspected, repeat downloaders with a system of “graduated response” — code for a three-strikes policy that results in the customer eventually being disconnected from the internet with the ISP alone deciding what constitutes infringement and fair use.


While the proposal specifically says that three strikes wouldn’t be mandated, it might as well be. That’s because companies that refused to implement the policy would be ejected from the immunity or “safe harbor” that otherwise protects them from copyright infringement lawsuits over the actions of their customers.

Currently, the DMCA grants safe harbor status to internet companies that promptly remove allegedly infringing content at the request of the copyright holder. Only if they fail to do so can they be held liable in court, and face up to $150,000 in damages per infringement.

Under the U.S. proposal described in the memo, removing infringing content would no longer be enough to qualify for safe harbor. Companies would have to actively work to combat the flow of unauthorized copyrighted material through their pipes, and specifically implement the “graduated response” program.

Here is the key paragraph:

“On the limitations from 3rd party liability: to benefit from safe-harbours, ISPs need to put in place policies to deter unauthorized storage and transmission of IP infringing content (ex: clauses in customers’ contracts allowing, inter alia, a graduated response). From what we understood, the US will not propose that authorities need to create such systems. Instead, they require some self-regulation by ISPs.”

Threat Level obtained the document on condition it not be posted, and we haven’t independently verified its authenticity, or that it accurately reflects the positions of the U.S. trade representatives. The document indicates the U.S. refused to turn over anything in writing itself, and briefed E.U. representatives on the plan orally in the hope of avoiding leaks.

The Obama administration has been obsessively secretive about the draft ACTA treaty — even, at one point, claiming national security could be jeopardized if the proposed treaty’s working documents were disclosed to the public. Now, it seems, we know what the administration is hiding.

Obama hasn’t asked Congress to implement a three-strike policy, which could anger consumers and watchdog groups. But if the administration gets three strikes written into ACTA, and the United States signs and ratifies the treaty, Congress would be obliged to change the DMCA to comply with it, while the administration throws its hands in the air and says, “It wasn’t our idea! It’s that damn treaty!”

That practice is common enough to have a name: policy laundering.

Language in the leaked text throws open the door to ISP filtering for unauthorized content, though there’s no way for filters to know whether the material constitutes fair use. That plan is similar to a proposal by the Motion Picture Association of America, which wants ISPs to filter for unauthorized motion pictures.

The three-strikes language would be gold to companies like MediaSentry, which browse peer-to-peer networks for infringing content, and identify a user’s IP address and ISP. MediaSentry’s work was crucial in the RIAA’s 6-year-long litigation campaign that amounted to about 30,000 copyright lawsuits against individual file sharers using Kazaa, Limewire and other services.

Until today, the most alarming thing in the proposed ACTA treaty has been the secrecy surrounding it. But now the threat level is higher. It seems the executive branch would rather negotiate with other nations, instead of its own elected officials, about the future of a free and open internet.

La blogosphère est en effervescence sur un document montrant apparemment fui les États-Unis tentent de pousser son controversé DMCA avis de style et de processus de takedown sur le monde. Mais depuis Threat Level vit déjà dans le pays de la DMCA, ou Digital Millennium Copyright Act, nous sommes plus gênés par le fait que la proposition des États-Unis va bien au-delà de cette loi de 1998, et nécessiterait le Congrès pour modifier la DMCA d’une manière même plus hostile pour les consommateurs. L’enjeu est la section Internet de l’Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement développé sous le sceau du secret par des dizaines de pays. La fuite d’un document est un de trois pages de la Commission européenne note rédigée par un fonctionnaire anonyme de l’UE, qui prétend résume un exposé privée donnée en Septembre par des responsables américains du commerce. La langue dans la note de service le 30 septembre montre que les États-Unis veulent que les FAI à travers le monde pour punir les suspects, downloaders répéter avec un système de “riposte graduée” - code pour la politique de la grève de trois qui se traduit par le client d’être finalement déconnecté d’Internet avec l’ISP seul de décider ce qui constitue une infraction et l’usage loyal. Télécommandes Universelles »http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/11/policy-laundering/ ‘;
/ / -> Alors que la proposition est dit expressément que trois grèves ne seraient pas prescrites, cela aurait tout aussi bien. C’est parce que les entreprises qui ont refusé d’appliquer la politique serait éjectée de l’immunité ou la “sphère de sécurité» qui protège contre les poursuites autrement les droits d’auteur d’infraction dans les actions de leurs clients. Actuellement, les subventions DMCA statut de “sphère de sécurité pour Internet d’entreprises qui éliminent rapidement incriminées des contenus à la demande du titulaire du droit d’auteur. Seulement si elles ne le font pas peuvent-ils être tenus responsables en justice, et faire face à 150.000 $ en dommages et intérêts par infraction. En vertu de la proposition américaine décrit dans le mémo, élimination de la teneur de contrefaçon ne serait plus suffisante pour bénéficier d’une “sphère de sécurité. Les entreprises auraient à travailler activement pour lutter contre le flux de matériel non autorisé sous copyright par leurs tuyaux, et en particulier mettre en œuvre la “riposte graduée” du programme. Voici le paragraphe clé: “Sur les limites du 3e responsabilité civile: pour bénéficier de« refuge », les FAI doivent mettre en place des politiques visant à dissuader le stockage et la diffusion illicites de contrefaçon de la propriété intellectuelle du contenu (ex: les clauses dans les contrats clients» permettant, entre entre autres, une réponse progressive). D’après ce que nous avons compris, les USA ne proposera que les autorités doivent créer de tels systèmes. Au lieu de cela, ils nécessitent une certaine auto-régulation par les FSI. “Threat Level obtenu le document à la condition qu’il ne pas être affiché, et nous n’avons pas vérifiées de manière indépendante l’authenticité, ou qu’il reflète fidèlement les positions des représentants commerciaux des États-Unis. Le document indique que les États-Unis ont refusé de remettre quelque chose dans l’écriture elle-même, et a informé l’UE représentants sur le plan oralement dans l’espoir d’éviter les fuites. L’administration Obama a été obsessivement secret sur le projet de traité ACTA - même, à un moment donné, en faisant valoir la sécurité nationale pourrait être compromise si des documents de travail du projet de traité ont été divulgués au public. Maintenant, il semble, nous savons ce que l’administration se cache. Obama n’a pas demandé au Congrès pour mettre en œuvre une politique à trois grève, qui pourrait la colère des consommateurs et des groupes de surveillance. Mais si l’administration reçoit trois grèves inscrit dans l’ACTA, et les États-Unis le signent et ratifient le traité, le Congrès serait obligé de changer le DMCA pour s’y conformer, tandis que l’administration lève ses mains en l’air et dit: “Il n ‘était pas t notre idée! C’est ce traité damn! “Cette pratique est assez commun d’avoir un nom: le blanchiment des politiques. Langue dans le texte fuite ouvre grand la porte à l’ISP de filtrage des contenus non autorisés, mais il n’existe aucun moyen pour les filtres de savoir si le matériel qui constitue une utilisation équitable. Ce plan est similaire à une proposition de la Motion Picture Association of America, qui veut que les FAI à filtrer pour les films non autorisés. Les trois grèves de la langue serait l’or à des sociétés comme MediaSentry, qui broutent peer-to-peer pour avoir enfreint le contenu et identifier un utilisateur, l’adresse IP et ISP. MediaSentry travail a été crucial dans la 6, la RIAA ans de campagne à long contentieux qui s’élevait à environ 30.000 poursuites en justice contre les partageurs de fichiers individuels en utilisant Kazaa, Limewire et autres services. Jusqu’à aujourd’hui, la chose la plus alarmante dans le projet de traité ACTA a été le secret qui l’entoure. Mais maintenant le niveau de menace est plus élevé. Il semble que le pouvoir exécutif serait plutôt de négocier avec d’autres nations, au lieu de ses propres fonctionnaires élus, sur l’avenir d’un Internet libre et ouvert.

The Coming Collapse of the Municipal Bond Market

A money manager friend showed me an interesting research report by Frederick J. Sheehan titled “Dark Vision: The Coming Collapse of the Municipal Bond Market. This is a product of weedenco.com and available only to subscribers, but I will summarize it here.

Sheehan starts off by noting that a lack of panic by the ratings and government agencies does not indicate health for a financial market. He cites the fact that the Fed did not anticipate how bad the subprime collapse was likely to be and obviously the Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s ratings were ridiculous.

Sheehan notes that “spending is rising and revenue is collapsing” for all levels of government. Pension fund losses will require governments to double their contributions to pension plans (see my blog posting on public employee pensions). Spending is rising, e.g., in New York City from an average of $65,401 in compensation per public employee in 2000 to $106,743 in 2009. The number of full-time employees in NYC grew as well, despite falling school enrollment. The number of state and local government workers grew from 4 million in 1955 to 20 million in 2008 (5x growth, against less than 2X growth in U.S. population). Those workers receive an average of 43 percent more pay and benefits than a private sector worker.

Municipalities dealt with the separation between taxes and expenses by borrowing. In the mid-1990s, states and cities were retiring as much debt as they were incurring. During the 2000s, though, they borrowed about $150 billion per year in aggregate, peaking at $215 billion in 2007 by which time $2.7 trillion in debt was outstanding, more than two years’ worth of tax receipts.

Barring some sort of miraculous boom in the economy and pension fund investment returns, state and local governments are headed for insolvency and default. This means that valuing a municipal bond becomes a matter for a legal expert rather than an accountant. Even for the legal expert, it is apparently tough to predict what will happen. Let’s start with the Wikipedia article on Chapter 9 bankruptcy: “Previous to the creation of Chapter 9 bankruptcy the only remedy when a municipality was unable to pay its creditors was for the creditors to pursue an action of mandamus, and compel the municipality to raise taxes. During the Great Depression this approach proved impossible so in 1934 the Bankruptcy Act was amended to extend to municipalities.”

Without bankruptcy protection, a city that couldn’t pay bondholders would be forced to raise taxes until it could. This happened to West Palm Beach, Florida in the Depression and property tax rates rose to 42.5 percent of assessed value. Potentially bondholders might demand that the city hand over real estate to satisfy its debts. With bankruptcy protection, it is unclear what happens. Vallejo, California went bankrupt 18 months ago and their obligations have not yet been resolved (story). If courts allow municipalities to walk away from debt they’ll have every incentive to declare bankruptcy and start afresh. There are no shareholders in a municipality to wipe out and therefore the only negative consequence of a bankruptcy filing would possibly be having to pay higher interest rates for future borrowing. If on the other hand, governments are not allowed to walk away from many of their obligations, they will simply run out of cash. Are bondholders senior to pension obligations or not? It may be up to the individual judge. This is “uncharted territory for investors” as my money manager put it (he does not buy U.S. muni bonds).

Municipal bonds are still perceived as almost risk-free by most investors and consequently offer a low yield, according to Sheehan. He points out that if the municipalities don’t default, the investor gets only a slightly better return than in Treasuries. Why take the risk if you’re not getting paid for it?

This ends my summary of Sheehan’s report. My own opinion is that the main lesson of subprime is that an investor cannot rely on the ratings agencies or the government to protect his or her interests.  The never-employed guy in Cleveland with the house in a crummy neighborhood and no down payment? The risk that he would never make a payment should have been apparent to any investor who dug underneath the asset-backed security. Similarly, an investor in muni bonds can look at the municipality. Does the state have a shrinking population, high public employee salaries, and a big pension obligation overhang from when the population was larger? They probably will eventually default. And if an insurance company was dumb enough to insure the bonds, they’ll probably be bankrupt too.

http://www.taxfoundation.org/research/show/268.html gives a table of per-capita debt in each state and also the ratio of that debt to GDP. Massachusetts comes in at #1, with more than $10,000 of debt for each citizen and 20 percent of GDP. Each Texan owes about $1,000, by contrast, or 2 percent of GDP. The difference in yield between a Massachusetts bond and a Texas bond is probably not large enough to compensate for the increased risk of Massachusetts defaulting.

[Separately, this table should be looked at whenever you’re reading about an economist who says that the U.S. should borrow and spend more on “stimulus”. They’ll tell you that we can afford to borrow another 20 percent of GDP, citing the current federal debt-to-GDP ratio. What they don’t tell you is that your state and local government may already have borrowed an additional 20 percent of GDP!]

More: A discussion of Sheehan’s report is available at the Daily Kos.