Sarkozy at the G8 Summit...DRUNK

So France's newly elected Premier, Nicolas Sarkozy, at the recent G8 summit...a little tipsy...check out the video.

So relations between France and the US are to be mended because of the similar views held be Bush and Sarkozy...well they've surely got one thing in common...they're both alcoholics.

Musharraf Puts New Controls On Pakistani Media

Musharraf's regime is facing more criticism than ever these days. Since Musharraf suspended Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Mr. Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, the country has divulged into chaos. Mr. Chaudahry is now leading opposition.

So how do you control so much controversy and activism against you?.... you regulate the media...what a dip shit.

Musharraf hastily push through legislation while parliament wasn't even in session in order to put these new controls on media. The new controls extend beyond television to the Internet and broadcasts on mobile phones. There is also a new clause concerning "any foreign non-governmental organisation". It is not yet clear what this will mean.

This is pretty much Musharraf's way of controlling opposition towards him and his regime. Musharraf in the past has denounced media for broadcasting anything related to the opposition.

It is clear Musharraf is losing control and is acting in such a manner by implementing such harsh measures.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6719757.stm

Hong Kong to Develop a Commodities Derivatives Market

So as the boom has been here in the state over the past few years...commodities commodities commodities... this is where the future of the market lies, or at least a major portion of it.

The 70's was all about bonds, the 80's and 90's all about stocks and the emergence of private equity, today is all about futures and options within the commodities market.

Americans are generally pretty quick to catch on to trends in investing, hence the commercial forex boom of today. There are now even television commercials on trading forex.

Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd., which manages Asia's third largest stock market is now seeking to jump onto the band wagon and is seeking an advisor to set up such a market.

Whats so attractive in this market?? there is always a need for intermediary and raw goods, meaning this market will always flourish regardless of how the over all economy is doing. Beyond this smart investors and those knowledgeable and experienced in futures and options trading can always turn a profit regardless of market momentum and direction as long as one knows exactly when to move based on market volatility. By utilizing put and call options money can be made in both bear and bull markets.

When the Asian markets begin commodities trading as they soon will the market will be all that more powerful, which is great news for someone in my profession, an up and coming commodities broker.

Charles Taylor...No Show at the Hague

Ex Liberian President Charles Taylor failed to show up to his first trial by the ICC on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and violations of international humanitarian law.

Taylor supported the massacres in Sierra Leone while in office, as well as suppressing any sort of opposition in Liberia while arming various militias throughout Liberia, namely in the capital Monrovia.

While in office Taylor when ton lavish trips and safaris while at home his countrymen were impoverished.

Liberia, which looked to America for assistance during its most difficult days of fighting and chaos back in 2003, however the only relief America provided were troops to protect the US Embassy and ensure that the weekly shipments of beer were not disturbed, this was documented in a great piece titled "Liberia: An Uncivil War". Don't get me wrong, US efforts did not stop here, once the fighting stopped the US docked a aircraft carrier just off shore and evacuated all Americans.

So now Taylor is boycotting his trial...who does this clown think he is???

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6717485.stm

13 Still Locked Up 18 Years After Tiananmen Square Incident

A group named Chinese Human Rights Defenders claims there are still 13 people jailed from the Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989. China claims it has significantly improved its stance on human rights, but 18 freakin years for things as minor as speaking against the government or what the party has dubbed "counter-revolutionary sabotage" a term that again can include things as minor as speaking up against the party.

If China is to improve its human rights record and repertoire it must make small moves such as letting these people free, maybe even publicly pardoning those involved in the Tiananmen Square massacre...perhaps an apology.

has yet to catch up. Yes China still has an China's economy is great and liberalized significantly over the past decade but the governmentofficial communist stance but if it is to be apart of the global community it must adhere to some of the global communities social norms concerning human rights, no?



http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/06/05/wchina05.xml

As Copper And Nickel Prices Increase Indonesia Is Considering Taking Back Mines...

Over the past few months and even years there has certainly been an increase in demand for metals used in telecommunications including copper and nickel amongst various others. Indonesia has some of the worlds largest coal and copper mines and is now thinking resource preservation...a great move for any self interested state. Indonesia is stepping way from the idea of producing, or allowing foreign mining firms, to produce as much as possible.

There are talks that the government may develop a ministry to extract such materials...sounds very Sukarno-esque don't ya think?? regardless, its great for Indonesia as it is South East Asia's largest economy.

Indonesia is seeking 22 billion dollars of outside investment to keep their economy growing...can this be done through halting extraction...sure...though Indonesia isn't a highly developed economy and does rely very heavily on industry, it is a major hub of the region. Indonesia's financial establishments are gaining momentum as more and more people are looking towards investment in developing economies...

The disappointing thing here is that Indonesia will soon allow for a foreign firm to mine copper on the Island of Sulawesi...this is where the Penan live...an untouched society but this will no longer remain nor will the Islands prestine beauty...bummer.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ajH8sUmCI8no&refer=worldwide

A.Q. Khan...Worst Man EVER????

So Abdul Qadir Khan, a Pakistani who has been dubbed "the father of the Islamic Bomb" has been called the most wanted man, and the worst man on the face of the earth...by our very Condi.

AQ Khan was a nuclear scientist who headed Pakistan's nuclear program and is recovered there as a national hero...when India had the bomb he made it possible for Pakistan to also have the bomb.

So why is this man the devil??? because he is a genius businessman. AQ Khan essentially turned nuclear weapons into a marketable combo package if you will. Nuclear proliferation throughout the world is apparently in part due to Khan.

Khan not only sold plans for centrifuges but actually marketed and sold the components required to enrich weapons grade nuclear materials...the guy made tons.

Anyhow I can write about this guy for days and days but would rather not do this now...you can just Google him.

At the end of the day western pressure on Musharraf led him and Pakistani officials to try the man domestically, not in world criminal courts as many suggested. He now lives in a huge mansion outside Islamabad and is on a form of house arrest...but is still a national hero.

Africa: A Continent Left in the Dust of Western Capital...Bailed out by China???

Emerging Markets/BRICS and Africa...

Yo, so I'm in the office and the trading day is over...got some time on my hands and facebook gets pretty lame after a while. Figured I would write another up to date, like as of the past few hours, market update/advice. If this gets boring and lame after a while well umm....don't read it.

So... as the subject line reads and as many people have been saying for months, and Goldman Sachs has said since 2003 with the release of their highly, highly acclaimed BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) report... get into emerging markets. well yea everyone knows this...a few things occurred today that will really make this sector volatile in the months and years to come...most of this stuff is long term advice as almost all advice dealing with developing markets is...so up until recently by emerging/developing markets, analysts have meant Asian/south east Asian some have advised on eastern European markets and some on Latin American markets...these are all good markets. India's got a very rapidly developing bio-tech sector and a damn good IT sector. China has crazy human capital allowing for a huge industrial sector and a bunch of engineers allowing for the micro-chip sector to flourish...not to mention very cheap operating costs. These markets are obvious and strong, recently to the point where Indian bio-tech, arguably, has been affecting western bio firms as they have seen a bearish qrtr sliding downward. Some analysts have recommended even less developed markets such as Lithuania, Lesotho and even Bangladesh...see these markets are nothing compared to others in the region and the world...but the fact of the matter is that in our global economy we are at a point where everyone is beginning to find a place in the market and with revolutions in technology and transport and low costs of labor and production it is becoming cost affective to invest in these states...Standard and Poors now offers emerging market indices...a ton of big investment banking firms offer things they are calling BRICS (S=South Africa) funds, BRICT (T=Turkey) Goldman Sachs offers a "B-List Fund" for 11 other emering markets including Egypt, Pakistan, Indonesia and Vietnam to name a few, this began in 2005 and has caught the eye of a few big funds ...recent figures have shown as much as 33% growth in some these economies...So, thats enough background info on emerging markets...now on to my findings as of today...

So what is the new stuff?...... Figures on Africa's economy...yes i said Africa...the continent that has been left in the dust of western capital...were released today. The region's economy is booming...they have a projected growth rate of nearly 6% by the end of the year which is totally possible as they had a proven regional growth rate of 5.5% in 2006 with some states doing as well as 7% and 8% (Nigeria and Ghana). So beyond those simple figures...China has been pumping billions into Africa over the past few months which is f-ing genious...they are tapping into a market and region the west has totally neglected and this will prove to be an awesome investment for china as it already has. Not only will this secure energy (oil) for china's rapidly expanding economy...but also opens markets to them. Africa has the potential to have a huge industrial sector which benefit china immensely as they, in the words of good ole Marx, will be the "those who own the means of production" and Africans will be blue collar working folks...but this is awesome in many ways...it allows for Africa to break from the shackles of poverty...but if you read between the lines it is clear that this will also allow for a consumer economy in Africa...as small as it may be...to emerge in Africa allowing for cheap Chinese goods to be sold there...China jumped on something the west should've done years ago but failed to.

Today Nigeria, through China, launched their first ever communications satellite...a 311million dollar venture...this will allow for increased tele-com, internet, etc...over the past few years the telecom sector has been huge...as everyone already knows...now in 3rd world states even beggars have cell phones as my mom saw recently during a visit to Bangladesh...Africa, namely Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa have also followed this trend...this new satellite will boost this sector in Africa and will allow the high demand to be met...look into investing in intl telecom or regional African telecom companies over the next few months along with African ISP companies...

Alright its 5 now, I'm leaving the office... ask if there are questions.

Ahmadinejad Visits UAE...Trying to Break US-Gulf Ties

Today Iranian President Ahmadinejad visited the United Arab Emirates. Just days after Vice President Cheney visited the region. Ahmadinejad was greeted with pomp and circumstance upon his arrival, though Emirati leaders kept their distance thereafter.

This was the first visit by an Iranian leader to the UAE. This is a major shift in relations compared to the previous two decades. There has always been a tension between the Gulf States and Iran as Iran has sought to export revolution and empower the Shia's throughout the gulf, which would be a problem as these states are led by Sunnis.

Throughout Ahmandinejad's trip he demanded that the US presence in the region, with its 60,000 troops stationed throughout ground bases and ships must leave the region. The Emirati public may have agreed with this stance to a certain extent, but by no means did the Emirati leadership agree. As a matter of fact the day Ahmadinejad left the UAE the Emirati foreign minister departed for the United States.

Is Iran still vying for regional dominance or genuinely seeking cooperation with neighboring states? there has been a proposed joint cooperation between the two states to help one another in developing various sectors of their economy, including tourism amongst others...

Ahmadinejad is now en route to Oman, where the US has troops at 3 airbases...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6633074,00.html

Pope Decries Rich-Poor Gap in Latin America

So the Pope is wrapping up a trip to Latin America. He has advised religious leaders to not involve themselves in politics, however he very much condemns the rich-poor gap in South and Latin America.

Is the Pope a commie? No I would say not, but he certainly pointed out the obvious....but there's Chavez and Morales down there to take care of that yea?

Though both Hugo Chavez and Evo Morales are looking to decrease this gap and spread the wealth can this be done while being states in what has historically been "America's Backyard"?

36 People Killed in Karachi Mob Violence

After days of political crisis in Pakistan mainly aimed towards Parvez Musharraf and many Pakistanis not being satisfied with the way he is running their state on Saturday mobs clashed in the countries main port in Karachi.

Pro government clashed with anti-government activists. Any fool could have predicted this as Musharraf is seen as a puppet rather than a legitimate leader.

What does this mean for Pakistan's future and Musharraf?

Many have claimed that Pakistan is not only a hot bead of terrorism but rather THE hotbed of terrorism and that tomorrows terrorists will rise from the state. Pakistanis are peace loving people who happen to have a dip shit dictator as their premier. I am confident that once Pakistani politics normalizes and returns to a state of democracy things should cool down.

It is extremely unfortunate that 36 people lost their lives.

One Third Of California's High School Seniors Did Not Graduate

California Graduation Rates Reach 10 Year Low...

Absurd!

Official reports were released showing that only 2/3 of California's high school senior receive

We live in a time where India and China are pumping out more engineers and IT grads than ever before. This coupled with the facts that we as a society must become a service and by that i mean high skilled, service sector. We will not have jobs for non grads, we may not even have enough jobs for high school grads. Its very upsetting to see a state in which the higher education system is amongst the world best, to have insanely low high school graduation rates. Really a bummer.

Many blame it on the high school exit exam which was instituted for the class of 2004 onward. However this exam tests students on basic knowledge that all high school grads should possess. diplomas. Statewide graduation rates for the class of 2006 were a 67%. Whats happening?

Check it out...

Energies Energies Energies

Get in on energies, strongest sector in the market thus far. look for crude as well as wti oil (western Texas intermediary) to go up. Repairs have been announced on major US refineries and platforms throughout the gulf. that coupled with the fact that major operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) will be completely shut down for massive repairs and the fact that operations in the Nigerian river delta have been waaay fucked up over the past few months due to local militia's kidnapping workers and such. beyond all this, the strait of Hormuz as of today has been shut down to oil transport. so all in all US oil supply will be low low low. at the end of this month we have this great holiday called Memorial day during which nine-0 bros and bro hoes like driving big gas guzzling trucks down to the river and dunes and romp around in gas guzzling boats and ATV's this sparks the summer season which traditionally has meant high high demand for gas which equates to oil being in high demand and with this low supply due to the shit i mentioned above oil is goin up up up. I would recommend getting in on Oil futures RIGHT NOW before they go up more. get in on futures contracts allow them to mature and sell of in early august or be a puss bag and bail sooner either way commodities namely energy is the way to go. I tried explaining this as easy as possible so you guys understand whats goin on. Its still a fundamentals based market when it comes to volatility. if you have questions on commodities do ask.

Chinese Fantan Fighters Spotted Over Skys of Darfur

Chinese Agree to Send Envoy to Darfur

After months of scrutiny China sees it as a good idea so send an envoy to Darfur. The Chinese government has a very intimate relationship with the Sudanese, as China has interests in Sudan's vast oil reserves. China is making friends throughout the African continent as a means of securing oil to fuel China's boom.

China has been accused by the US and UN of selling arms to the Sudanese government, arms which make their way into the hands of the governments Janjaweed Militias and adds further to the atrocities throughout Darfur.

It was only after the US sent Hu-JinTao a letter regarding their economic and arms meddling in Sudan, that China reacted.

If China is looking to make friends in Africa they should also make friends with the people of Africa, as opposed to their leaders and most importantly Resources.

Kabul Seeks Talks With Taliban

Afghan officials have expressed their anger towards the US and NATO in its on going efforts to sustain or even establish peace in various regions of Afghanistan, namely the North. Law makers have proposed a cease fire and negotiations with the Taliban.

So we the US was to eradicate the Taliban a few years back, no? well instead we pulled troops out of that state and shipped them over to Iraq. Thus the Taliban is not only still in existence but is certainly flourishing, acting as local power brokers.

The Taliban is doing so well that the government is looking to negotiate with them. Possible Taliban seats within the next Afghan government?...

Huge Blast Rocks Kurdish City of Irbil

The relatively calm Kurdish northern region was rocked by a massive bomb today. The city of Irbil is a major hub in that northern region of Iraq. The Kurdish state has been relatively autonomous since the early 1990s and has since then experienced relative calm.

Thus far sectarian violence has not struck the region as Kurds are an entirely different ethnicity than that of the dueling Sunni and Shia Arabs.

This bomb blast signifies rifts within the Kurdish people, which may arise as a huge problem as there are now multiple Kurdish parties within Iraq, but also within Turkey, Syria and Northern Iran.

Will this region of Iraq divulge into chaos in the near future?

Oh yea, Dick Cheney was in Iraq when this occured.

New Era For France...Sarkozy

End of Socialist Economics?

So Nicolas Sarkozy is the new Premier of France. Sarkozy is rather conservative relative to previous French administrations. So does this mean France will become more American?...hahah Yeah, right.

Sarkozy is looking to liberalize or further liberalize Frances economy, is looking to further trade, but all while keeping Frances amazing social welfare programs intact...

Sarkozy is also looking to bring an end to the countless demonstrations and even violence brought about by xenophobic Jacques and immigrant North Africans...

It will certainly be interesting to see how he will steer France in the coming years...

More Bodies Found in Chinese Mine Blast...

Death Toll Rises to 28...

So there has been yet another Chinese mine blast explosion. It has sadly almost become routine for these types of accidents to occur.

China is simply growing far too fast for itself. Its great that the Chinese economy is doing as well as it is...I mean after a few decades of hell...the Cultural Revolution Era...it is all well deserved...but can it all be handled?

Internally the government is concerned with high levels of extraction as to move the economy forward...maybe it should stop and think about regulation and workers safety...nah who cares?

China is more energy hungry than over...hence the massive amounts of investment in Africa. China's domestic energy infrastructure is not up to par to handle the mass amounts of extraction taking place. China needs to revamp its domestic infrastructure before it pumps billions into Africa, yea?



http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-05/07/content_866795.htm

Planet Earth...Documenting Our Planet for Our Forthcoming Generation...

Check out the clip below from the Discovery and BBC's "Planet Earth"

I see this as a way of documenting things that will not be around in the not so distant future.

Sick series! I'm buying the DVD set

They discovered over a 100 new species over the five years it took to film this.

The majority of stuff on television these days is garbage...this is Money!

Daewoo Workers Kidnapped in Nigeria

Yet Another Kidnapping Incident in Nigeria...This Time Koreans at a Daewoo Plant.

So this seems all too common now...one week its oil workers in an oil field...next week its oil workers off a ship...then workers off a rig...then Ethiopian oil fields...is this ever going to stop?

Well the low cost of labor, zero regulation and unending resources certainly looks attractive to the western investors eyes but most definitely comes at a price...a rather high one at that.

A group of Koran ex-pats working at a Daewoo plant in the Niger River delta were abducted and kidnapped by local guerrilla groups. This is the second of such incidents on the same plant and group of workers in the last nine months.

So how are these attacks to be prevented...perhaps sharing the wealth or maybe setting up some sort of welfare program for the local, dirt poor Nigerians...or maybe even providing jobs to the locals...they can surely provide unskilled menial labor. Or maybe just stay in the MNC's home state... I don't know just a suggestion...

http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200705/200705040030.html

Pam Anderson Moving to Greece...In Dubai

So today Pam Anderson and former husband/rocker Tommy Lee have announced they are planning on buying a plot within the "World" offshore housing development off the coast of Dubai in the UAE.

Tommy says he chose Greece because his ancestors are Greek....What a fuckin Schmuck.

So the World Islands are quite the development...i think write a blog on that rather than stupid celeb garbage.

Fastest Walkers...

A group of British researches released their findings today concerning the speed at which people walk. Researches did their studies in the major metropolitan cities of the world. According to there studies the fastest walkers are residents of Singapore, followed by those residing in Copenhagen, followed by those walkers in Madrid.

So who cares? Well I guess this can be a sign of our fast paced lives and the increasing speed of our daily lives. These studies show that over the past decade there has been a 10% increase in walking speed. Walking works in Singapore as it is rather small, likewise in the metropolitan districts of Madrid and Copenhagen but why would this not be feasible in the states? Because everything is spread out, with the exception of maybe portions of Manhattan or Chicago, walking is not an option in the states.

"Nobody walks in LA"

Beijing and Shanghai were once renowned for their high number of cyclists, however as they are gaining more capital these bikes are disappearing and people are buying motor vehicles, this will significantly increase as the Chinese are soon to make their own domestic productions vehicles.

Walking is good for health both for us humans as well as our planet. WALK WALK WALK!!

Oil Goes Up Following Nigerian Attack

Soooo.....as I just wrote the other day about oil fluctuating due to these attacks on foreign controlled oil fields....Its occurred again today. This time in Nigeria. Rebels attacked a Chevron corporate ship killing a Nigerian sailor and kidnapping six foreign oil workers. Chevron is a California based company so there is a slight possibility the kid napped may have even been Californians.

At our trading floor today at Main Street Trading, the commodities trading firm I work at, we experienced the impact of this attack. Due to this attack Chevron said it had to shut down the pumping of nearly 15,000 barrels per day. This is especially bad as we are entering summer when oil in the states is in very high demand. Those that bought their oil futures three months ago were stoked, as we made them tons of profit as oil rose 75 cents per barrel. Because of this heating oil, Brent crude and even WTI (western Texas intermediary) saw fluctuations making holders of those contracts happy. Again this is a sign of how interconnected our global economy has really become, and geopolitics are of utmost important when it comes to commodities.

Indians...the Dot Kind...in the Antarctic...arghhh???

Today India came one step closer to establishing their second Antarctic research base. Yeah, second. The ATCM or Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meet approved India's proposal. Indian scientists want to set up this second station to continue doing research on how and why India broke apart from Antarctica...didn't we learn that back in Middle School or something...plate tectonics and the super Continent and blah blah blah.

Well yeah it seems bizarre, but I applaud their attempts at another ice base. I can really give two shits about their research there but the fact that India will soon have multiple research bases in Antarctica shows something rather significant. India is becoming a big boy and is slowly becoming a part of an elite group. The fact that India and its slightly over 50 year democracy now has the capital to commit to such a project is a direct sign of its growing economy, prosperity and wealth. Not too many states have the excess funds laying around and scientific smarts to set up such a project.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/ATCM_to_clear_Indias_proposal_on_new_Antarctic_base/rssarticleshow/1980955.cms

Iran's Assistance In Iraq

Egypt Is to Hold a Key Meeting Regarding Iraq...Iran is to Attend.

So today Iran's foreign minister announced that he and a delegation from Iran will be in attendance at a conference to be held at the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. Our very own Condi is to be there as well, and she has made it very clear that this is not a conference at which US-Iranian relations will be brought up. She has made it clear that this a conference for Iraq and is Iraq is of utter importance...

There is no way around the US-Iranian relations when it comes to the matter of shared security or dually assisted security and reconciliation of the various sectarian groups within Iraq. For Iraq to stabilize it is of utmost importance that her neighboring states have a hand in doing this, as I mentioned in my "Iraq's Contiguous States" blog. Not only will the help of Iran lead to a stable Iraq, it should also help to normalize relations with the US, or maybe even mend the image of the US within the region, one that has dubbed the US "The Great Satan".

The reason I say there is no way around US-Iran relations is because both states accuse one another of destabilizing Iraq and the region. Iran claims the US has spies embedded within their nation and the US claims the Iranians are assisting the Shia militias including that of Muqtada al-Sadr in the South. There is talk that a US-Iran conference or at least meeting, a bilateral meeting, will come out of the talks at Sharmel-Sheikh.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6604943.stm

IPI Pipeline to be Built by June 30

So today members of the Indian and Iranian governments met to continue talks on the so-called trilateral regional friendship. All three states have resources to offer whether it be Iran's massive amounts of crude, or India and Pakistan vast reserves of natural and other types of gas.

What does all this mean for the region and the rest of the world? Up until recently Iran had a very "you with us or against us" mentality when it came to foreign affairs. Iran has for decades been looking export revolution and Islamic governments, as some claim they are still attempting within a few gulf states. This trilateral friendship within which one member happens to be the worlds second fastest growing economy maybe seen as a threat, on the economic scale by many in the west. India can potentially lock down and secure the mass amounts of oil required to fuel their economy into the future, Iran can be a significant power in the region, while gaining key allies and creating a favorable market for their oil...Pakistan's role in this is rather questionable. Pakistan is certainly an asset to this trilateral partnership...but Musharraf's role in this may hurt his image more here in the west which will put him further on this tight rope he has been walking on between the West and Pakistanis. Come June 30th we'll see how this goes...

Polygamous Lesbians Flee Sharia

So, about 7 years ago Nigeria adopted Sharia law, Islamic Law and Jurisprudence. It was reported today that a group of 5 Polygamous Lesbians fled the country in order to avoid being stoned or possibly put to death. Within Sharia law lesbianism is outlawed as is polygamy. These women are now seeking asylum in various states, but have ran into complications as many governments do not allow polygamy coupled with lesbianism.

Check out the flyer from the big wedding pow-wow!!!

Sudan Turns Down Food Aid...

Sudan's Turns Away "GM" Sorghum...

Today members of the UN WFP (world food program) inspected and allowed a shipment of Sorghum from the US to be given as aid to the 2.4 million refugees they are feeding in Southern Sudan.

Initially Sudanese authorities did not allow the shipment claiming it had been genetically modified, however there is no such thing as genetically modified Sorghum, or not yet at least.

This could be an attempt by the Sudanese government to try to get the UN WFP to purchase domestically produced Sudanese foods as a means of helping their economy. This however cannot be done as the various aid groups including UNWFP cannot afford to do this and rather take the food aide given.

It may be far fetched to say this...but perhaps the Sudanese govt. is looking to use the revenue from the purchase of domestic foods to continue their support of the Janjaweed Militias in the south.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6594947.stm

Ethiopian Rebels Attack Chinese Operated Oil Field. 74 Killed

These occurrences have become far too common. It seems every month our trading floor goes crazy because some European or American and now Chinese has been kidnapped from an oil field in Nigeria because the local militias decide they want to disrupt extraction.

These attacks cause massive fluctuations in crude oil prices for the consumer.

Can you blame these rebels?

The latest attack was one in Ethiopia, until recently foreign oil operations in Ethiopia have not experienced such attacks, but it seems this type of attack is increasing throughout Africa, starting in Nigeria, now on to Ghana, Sierra Leone and Ethiopia amongst others.

These local militia groups attack these oil fields because they are being robbed of their countries resources and essentially wealth. Don't get me wrong...these big firms pay these states tons of money, provide some oil revenue and subsidized prices but none of this ever reaches the people. It is for this reason these militias attack, their land is stolen and they are given nothing...its a shitty situation yea??

Somalia....who? huh? ummmm.....

Millions Are Being Killed in Somalia...Mogadishu is Burning...But Nobody Seems to Care....WTF

Somalis are caught up in the worst violence of the last sixteen years, yet no one knows or seems to care. Millions are dying there, yet it is not even aired on nightly news broadcasts...whats the deal? Of the worlds states Somalia can certainly be considered one hell of a failed state, yes. The US went into Mogadishu to act as the defenders of the free world, one incident (the downing of a Black hawk and the subsequent events that followed) acted as the catalyst for the western world to forget about the plight of the millions of Somalis who are being killed, raped, brutalized and forcible removed from their lands. With the new year came an effort by the west, but not a helping effort but rather an effort that killed many more thousands and drove out the Islamist regime within Somalia. The US and Ethiopian governments staged a well executed aerial assault on what the US has claimed is a part of its on going efforts in the war against terrorism. However, these so-called terrorists, are actually the only force able to restore calm in the country and the US went ahead and eradicated that group to again allow the country to fall into the hands of various war lords who cannot provide peace...which is the first step in fixing the problem of this failed state.

Drop Food not Bombs...Popular western media pays no attention to the cause...as the theme has been...Africa is the forgotten about continent...maybe second however to Antarctica and all them penguins... even with the Genocide occurring in Darfur western media may play a small snippet here and there and this is done because they are pressured to do so. So what about the Somali's?? The AU claims they cannot enter because it is far to dangerous...the UN just doesn't seem to care...the Arab League has tried holding talks...these efforts will do nothing...ground forces are required in order to stabilize the state or region or call it what you will. Though Somalia is a failed state the UN, as fellow human beings, should intervene for the sake of humanity.
http://news.scotsman.com/latest_international.cfm?id=632972007

I JUST F-IN HAD TO!!!!!

"If the Bees Disappear Man Would Have Only Four Years of Life Left" -Albert Einstein

Cell Phones to be Blamed for the End of Human Life on Earth...

A recent story was released in which scientists throughout the US and Europe is claiming that Bees are being killed off due to excessive cell phone use...pretty bizarre. The claim is that bees are dying off through what has been dubbed CCD or Colony Collapse Disorder. The basic claim is that the low levels of radiation released through cell phone transmissions are interfering with bees’ navigation systems and leading them to stray away from their hives and colonies only leaving the queen, and a few measly youngins and eggs behind. The number of commercial bees on the west coast has dropped by 60% in recent years and as high as 80% decline on the east coast and now this phenomena is hitting Western Europe. For years the scientific community has been puzzled about this bizarre happening but now there is evidence to back the claim of CCD due to cell phone use.

So what do we do? Cell phones have undoubtedly become a very necessary piece of our lives, but hey we got by before them...well we can't get rid of them so I certainly am not suggesting that. It seems we have come to a point, not recently but a long, long time ago, a point where we as humans have realized that we can very easily bring our end through so-called progress. We have interfered with our natural world and surroundings so much that there really is no turning back. We must utilize our genius and know-how to repair the damage or merely sustain what we still have. I sure as hell hate getting stung, but a world without bees...are you kidding me?

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=143&art_id=vn20070422090610628C964265

Fake Elections in Bhutan

Today the tiny, extremely isolated Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan staged a mock election. This sounds rather bizarre, yes, but in a country where the former king, Jigme Wangchuk, said he did not care about the Gross Domestic Product of his state (GDP) but rather the GNH or Gross National Happiness of his people it shouldn't come as much of a surprise. The pristine state has intentionally isolated itself for decades and even centuries as a means of preserving their heritage which is centered around Buddhism. This tactic of isolation goes as far as not allowing foreign visitors until very recently and even then visitors must purchase daily visit visa permits at a whopping rate of $300 a day.

The reason for the mock election is to train the people of Bhutan how a democratic system works. This mock election involves various parties who are named after the national symbol of the dragon, the parties are the blue, green red and yellow thunder dragon parties. This mock election involves high school students as candidates and the two parties that receive the highest votes will go to Thimphu for the second phase of the election.

The state has advisers from neighboring India monitoring the elections. Though we in the west are firm believers in Democracy, there in Bhutan is it really required? The country has flourished for centuries under the same type of monarchy but this will all change by 2008. The states neighbors, namely Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar (Burma) have all experienced tremendous political turmoil and have very flawed "democracies". In a state where voting is completely foreign and the status quo is very much accepted and works very well is there a need to complicate the lives of these peaceful people with the turmoil, corruption and bullshit that comes about through complicated politics? especially in that region of the world???

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6578421.stm

Asian Markets Continue to Develop and Flourish

Sensex Closes 277 Points Up

So today the sensex, which is the Bombay stock exchange rallied and closed at 13,987 points, which was a 277 pt gain from market opening. These figures have been steadily increasing for the past few years, but very much so over the past few months as there have been some major mergers and acquisitions on the part of Indian firms.

Today's gnarly rally was headed by the big IT firms, namely Satyam Computers and IT giant Wipro. Along side the IT firms Indias industrial sector and also certainly helped the markets. TATA which has diversified into various sectors of industry of the past decade remains one of India's largest firms. TATA along with the world's largest steel firm, Mital have led India's and Asias economy to the point they are at today.

This shows that it is still an awesome time to get into these foreign or developing markets. India's economy is developing quite rapidly and is moving away from strictly human capital based industry into mo

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Mkt_buoyant_Sensex_closes_277_pts_up/RssArticleShow/articleshow/1928557.cms

States contiguous to Iraq

So today US Defence Secretary Robert M Gates was in Egypt. While in Egypt Mr.Gates addressed a few issues while speaking before the American Chamber of Commerce in Cairo. One major issue of discussion is an obvious one…hmmm what’s been going on in the Middle East concerning Americans for a little while now…yea that’s right… the building of another Pizza Hut in the UAE…no, that’s not right. The issue at hand was obviously that of Iraq. Mr. Gates made it clear that the assistance and backing of Egypt is required if Iraq is to be kept from divulging into further chaos

The issue at hand is not just Iraq divulging into further chaos, but the possibility that the entire region could be destabilized based on the notion of sectarian differences coupled with a historical desire of the ruling Islamist regime of Iran to export revolution and strengthen Shia Muslims throughout the region. It is really a scary thought if you think about it. For decades Saudi Arabia has been Iran’s ideological enemy as well as Sectarian opposition. Historically Saudi has been the regional power broker, a position Iran has been seeking for quite some time.

In many states throughout the Gulf, Qatar and Bahrain to name a few, have very similar social structures to that of Iraq, minus the Kurdish population. Within many gulf states there are Shia populations of significant size that are not represented as they are led by governments installed during the British Mandate Era that are Sunni dominant. This creates a powder keg in the region as far as sectarian differences go.

If the states contiguous to Iraq (Syria, Iran), and neighboring states to Iraq are not allowed to play a significant role in the reconstruction there could very well be massive chaos across the region and the Iraq issue will not be resolved