About half of American doctors in a new study regularly give their patients placebo pills without telling them.
That contradicts advice from the American Medical Association, which recommends doctors only use treatments to which patients have given their informed consent.
"It seems like doctors are doing things they shouldn't be doing," said Irving Kirsch, a professor of psychology at the University of Hull, who has studied the use of placebos. Kirsch was not linked to the research, published Friday in the British Medical Journal.
"Doctors may be under a lot of pressure to help their patients, but this is not an acceptable shortcut," he said.
Placebos were defined in the study as treatments whose benefits derived from patients' beliefs they would work, not from the actual drug itself. They included painkillers, vitamins, antibiotics, sedatives and sugar pills.
Studies have shown that patients given a fake treatment can often improve, despite the pill having no known impact on their condition.
Researchers at the U.S. National Institutes of Health sent surveys to a random sample of internists and rheumatologists across the country. They received 679 responses, of which 62 percent believed that using placebo treatment was ethically acceptable.
Half of the doctors reported using placebos several times a month. Nearly 70 percent of those who did so described the treatment to their patients as "a potentially beneficial medicine not typically used for your condition." Only five percent of doctors explicitly called it a placebo treatment.
Jon Tilburt, the study's lead author, said he believed the doctors surveyed were representative of internists and rheumatologists across the U.S. No statistical work was carried out to establish whether the study results would apply to other medical specialists like pediatricians or surgeons.
In the survey, doctors were asked if they would recommend a sugar pill for patients with chronic pain if it had been shown to be more effective than no treatment. Nearly 60 percent of doctors said they would.
Smaller studies done elsewhere, including Britain, Denmark and Sweden have found similar results.
The U.S. research was paid for by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine and the Department of Bioethics at the National Institutes of Health.
"It's a disturbing finding," said Franklin G. Miller, director of the research ethics program at the National Institutes of Health and one of the paper's authors. "There is an element of deception here which is contrary to the principle of informed consent."
The authors said that most doctors probably reasoned that doing something was better than doing nothing. Other situations where placebos were used included doctors giving vitamins to patients with difficult conditions, such as chronic fatigue syndrome, or giving antibiotics to patients with bronchitis to make them feel better.
Scientists still don't understand how the placebo effect works whether it is just psychological or whether there is also a physiological reaction to the treatment.
Irving said it might be possible to get the psychological impact without using a fake pill. "If doctors just spent more time with their patients so they felt more reassured, that might help," he said.
Experts also don't know if the placebo effect would be undermined if patients were explicitly told they were getting a dummy pill.
But some patients said the truth was paramount.
"I would feel very cheated if I was given a placebo," said Ruth Schachter, an 86-year-old London resident who has had skin cancer. "I like to have my eyes wide open, even if it's bad news," she said. "If I'm given something without being warned what it is, I certainly would not trust the doctor again."
#1
To make matters a lot worse, diagnosis isn't easy.
Internists face a multitude of similar symptoms with different causes, patients who evidence some symptoms and not others as well as extraneous conditions that appear to be symptoms, and multiple and overlapping conditions. Misdiagnosis is very common.
Patients also have strange and unpredictable expectations of treatment, and in America often assume that physicians can 100% repair, unrepairable conditions.
Rheumatologists are especially under pressure, because inflammatory conditions are unique to individuals, and different parts of the same person often respond differently to the same treatment. The conditions are also often reactive to barometric pressure and to a lesser extent temperature.
#4
Think about this. Do they charge for placebos at the same rate they charge for the real medicine? Does the bill reflect the same cost? I doubt placebos costs as much as the real thing, so where does the difference go to?
#11
"All placebos are not the same," Eli Lilly spokesman Giles French said. "Pacifex is the only placebo that's green and shaped like a triangle. Pacifex: A doctor gave it to you."
#13
I'll have to look at the study, but at first blush I don't believe it.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/25/2008 13:23 Comments ||
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#14
Are nutriceuticals effective or placebo? Often enough a doctor will suggest taking Co-Q10 or extra vitamin B-12 or ginko biloba with the statement that it might help the patient. In some cases there is research behind the suggestions, in other cases very small scale studies at best. And yet, if the patient's symptoms respond positively, how is the doctor to test if the cause was biochemical or placebo?
#15
Studies have proven red placebos are more effective than those of any other color. I eagerly await the marketing of sustained-release placebos (just take one a month), the placebo patch, and extra-strength placebos (double the inactive ingredients for just 40% more).
#17
Unless these doctors are prescribing otherwise harmless drugs off-label, I don't see how this could possibly work.
Except for samples, I get all my scripts from Express Scripts after one of my doctors faxes the prescription in. Having looked up that the scripts are all prescribed "on label" my question is this: Is there some sort of double-secret-probation-handshake that codes for "send the sugar pill"instead of the med.?
Posted by: Minister of funny walks ||
10/25/2008 16:22 Comments ||
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#18
TW I am on high dose (14gr/day) fish oil/omega-3 to raise HDL-C and it has done that. Other things started changing with my health (inflammation reduction, neurological function etc). I looked for a possible cause for these changes after the fact and one possible reason is that they also could be due to fish oil. My take on OTC supplements is that they can indeed help, but only at several times the recommended dose that is on the label.
Posted by: Minister of funny walks ||
10/25/2008 16:33 Comments ||
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#19
Another ethical problem with doctors prescribing placebos: some do it because they think their patients have a psychosomatic disorder instead of a real disease. They figure giving placebos will (a) make the patient happy, and (b) make the patient go away. Problem is, a lot of so-called psychosomatic disorders are real -- the doctor just hasn't done the research. Instead of sending them to someone who might actually believe they're not crazy, they charge for ineffective treatments. Not good.
#20
What does the patient care as long as they get better. In fact, Placebo's have ZERO side effects, so if you can get better with a placebo you don't have to worry about your kidneys dying on you. Another attempt of the illuminaties trying to scare us that someone is out to get us. Doctors do the best with what they have to work with and sometimes it just takes a little positive reinforcement to get a person better.
The world's petro-powers -- the oil-exporting nations armed with vast, high-priced crude reserves -- are looking a little less imposing now that prices are tumbling. Instead of flexing their financial muscle abroad, cash-rich oil exporters have been forced to bolster institutions at home, spending billions of dollars to prop up banks, currencies, stock markets and other aspects of their economies.
Around the world, oil price shock has given way to aftershock. Yesterday, crude oil prices briefly touched a 16-month low before closing at $67.84 a barrel, up $1.09 but less than half their July peak as traders worried that a global economic slowdown will shrink demand for petroleum products.
For oil exporters, the price decline has compounded the global financial crisis. Kazakhstan has raided its once sacrosanct national oil fund to bolster banks that borrowed from abroad; Iran, which drained much of its rainy day fund to pump up its economy even before oil prices fell, is now having trouble financing oil and gas development projects; Venezuela might run a deficit to pay for massive social spending; Mexico has spent billions of dollars defending the peso; and Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have dipped into their cash hoards to rescue domestic financial institutions.
The sudden change in fortune will dominate the agenda at today's emergency meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries; the 13-member cartel that is expected to slash output by 1 million to 2 million barrels a day to stop the slide in oil prices.
"The meeting this week shows they're concerned and they need to micromanage [output] some more," said Fareed Mohamedi, head of country strategies at PFC Energy, a Washington consulting firm.
To members of OPEC, this moment recalls the Asian financial crisis in 1997, when the oil cartel increased production to ease international economic pressures only to see oil prices collapse. Now, in a new economic crisis, OPEC members will only be debating how big a cutback is needed.
There is, however, no need to pass the tin cup for oil exporting countries, analysts note. The six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council have $2 trillion of financial reserves. Russia's and Kazakhstan's financial reserves are big enough, for now, to stave off the kind of crisis that shook both nations in 1998. Even populous and impoverished Nigeria has paid off foreign debts and built up reserves.
Moreover, the average oil price has still been higher than in the previous year, according to OPEC. Kuwait's finance ministry said last week that it had collected $54 billion in revenue in the first half of the year, more than it had anticipated for the entire year.
The spike in prices has also happened so quickly that oil exporting nations haven't had time to raise the price assumptions used for spending plans. The Saudi 2008 budget assumes prices between $40 and $45 a barrel. "Many of these countries were much more prudent than they were in past," said Robin West, chairman of PFC Energy. As a result, he said, most oil exporters "are still in pretty good cash positions for now." $40 a barrel = $1 a gallon product, $1.50 a gallon for gas.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
gas is under $3/gallon for regular here
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/25/2008 9:56 Comments ||
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#2
TLH is 2.66 the gallon.
I laff. Fill those damn things up. It's good for 'ye!
#3
Iran, which drained much of its rainy day fund to pump up its economy even before oil prices fell
This is a potentially dangerous situation. The typical response for a government, especially a quasi-totalitarian government, to internal crisis is to find an external scapegoat. In the case of Iran, that could be Israel. Israel may not have to bomb Iran's nuke plant - Iran may blow it up itself, accuse Israel, and then lead a war against Israel through Syria. It's Sunni neighbors would be handcuffed, oil prices would jump, and all internal hardship would be due to the Little Satan. How much could we do, given our exposed position, our thinly-streched force, and especially our lack of national and political will?
#4
Yea, but see Glenmore with a financial crisis at home, the World will have a lot less attention to spare for the iniquities of Juden Zionist Aggressors. Meaning, for the first time in 30 years, IDF won't have to fight with both hands tied behind its back and one foot in a block of cement.
#5
Meaning, for the first time in 30 years, IDF won't have to fight with both hands tied behind its back and one foot in a block of cement.
Wingnuts at home blame all of our problems on foreign forces, most usually the USA/the joooos, up to a point where there's some kind of a consensus at the main french wingnut blog that we need the USA to fall, to get our freedom of action back, or even to be militarily invaded by putin and russia to get rid of the USA/jooos/Big business-engineered mass-immigration from the third world.
Becasue, you know, our woes can't possibly be our fault, stuff we did or didn't do, our leadership being what we deserved, or anything like that. It's foreign forces, outside our control, there's nothing wrong with us ultimately, once the bad outside influences are removed, our people will stop being sheepish and blind, and will rise up. Of course.
"SANTA FE, N.M. -
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson is ordering cutbacks in state spending to help offset a projected budget shortfall of more than $200 million this year.
Richardson announced a plan Friday to trim spending, including a freeze on hiring.
State revenues this year are expected to be about $344 million lower than previously projected because of the slumping economy and lower prices for oil and natural gas, Richardson said.
That means revenues will fall at least $200 million to $250 million short of covering spending in the current budget year, which started in July and runs through June 2009."
Like the Donk he is, Bill didn't salt away the bounty when it was flowing. Doesn't take an elite bureaucrat, politicians, or economist to understand that its a variable item that should be handled after its been collected rather than betting on the future.
#8
I find it amusing to see the countries that so despise us are so tied economically to us. Watching the countries fail one at a time will be entertaining.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
10/25/2008 13:22 Comments ||
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#9
"countries that so despise us are so tied economically to us"
It's almost like one follows the other.
Posted by: Minister of funny walks ||
10/25/2008 16:52 Comments ||
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#10
Iran may blow it up itself, accuse Israel, and then lead a war against Israel through Syria.
And Israel, now that Olmart is no longer, could cut Syrian army to pieces. Anyway with oil at 150$ Iran was untouchable. But at under 65...
Police yesterday prevented three Islamist outfits from holding their scheduled anti-sculpture rallies near Zia International Airport and Baitul Mukarram mosque in the capital.
The activists of the outfits failed to take to the streets and stage demonstrations as a large number of police and intelligence personnel were deployed in those places preventing them from coming out of mosques after Juma prayers. However, the activists at the mosques chanted slogans against installation of sculptures at roundabouts and demanded installation of Hajj Minars at intersections of the city where there are statues.
Biman Bandar Gol Chattar Murti Pratirodh Committee, a committee against sculptures at the Airport intersection, had scheduled an anti-sculpture rally after Juma prayers near the airport yesterday.
The roundabout at the Airport intersection had five statues of Bauls (folk singers) which were removed following protest from an Islamist group. Police on Thursday asked them not to hold the demonstrations as it would be a violation of the Emergency Power Rules, 2007.
Police said around 650 policemen were deployed at the Airport intersection since yesterday morning. Over 300 policemen were also deployed outside Baitul Mukarram mosque to avert any untoward incidents as a few Islamist groups demanded construction of a Hajj Minar at the Airport intersection.
Witnesses said police prevented people from entering the hajj camp mosque for Juma prayers and only allowed hajj pilgrims. Activists of the committee could not enter the hajj camp area as there were police barricades. Police also prevented 300 activists inside Babus Salam Jam-e mosque from coming out and taking part in the agitation programme.
Chief of the committee Noor Hossain Nurani was seen very angry with committee activists as they failed to hold the rally. Failing to hold the rally, leaders of the committee criticised the role of police and demanded that the government remove all sculptures set up at road intersections in the country.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shakti and Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan tried to stage separate demonstrations in the Baitul Mukarram mosque area after Juma prayers. Witnesses said the activists of the groups did not dare to take to the streets seeing the presence of a large number of law enforcers. They, however, chanted slogans against sculptures staying on the mosque premises.
Paltan police said the activists were asked to leave since police had imposed a ban on such programmes.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Do keep an eye out on http://bauliana.blogspot.com for updates on this evolving crisis
#1
Yup. Didn't need to be this severe but it could get worse if handled badly. If Obama wins, expect a very long deep recession/depression. If McCain wins, expect a shorter, somewhat shallower one. Any idiot bailed out corporate exec who goes partridge shooting in Scotland on company dollars is truly endangering himself. Word, d00ds.
#4
It's only just begun to effect the real economy and has much further to go. We will be lucky to get away with just an economic crisis and prolonged recession. If social instability starts then it's a whole new and much worse ballgame and yes it could be the end of the tranzi new world order civilization as we know and 'love' it. People will tolerate a lot less in bad times than good and we now have a system built upon the good times lasting for ever.
#7
The "worst ever financial crisis" will be over when we throw all the crooks out of our government in Washington. "Worst ever" is a little overblown.
#8
I am seeing a huge amount of exaggeration here. We have the for the first time in about two decades a chance that MAYBE economic output MIGHT contract a little and you would think it was the end of the world.
So we had a spike in oil prices that caused people to move out of SUVs in panic mode which hit the auto makers but gas prices are back down and I am going to go out on a limb here and guess that people are buying pickups again.
#9
'Worst financial crisis in human history', at least until Obama/Reid/Pelosi take over. That'll make the current situation look like a day in the park.
An explosion has destroyed a key bridge linking Georgia's breakaway republic of Abkhazia with the rest of the country. Georgian officials and Abkhazian authorities blamed each other for the blast.
Residents of Abkhazia's Gali district had used the bridge to reach Georgia's Zugdidi region. Georgian authorities have called the explosion an effort by separatist and Russian officials to cut off Abkhazia and another breakaway Georgian region, South Ossetia, from the rest of the country.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/25/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Pardon me, boyz, is that the CHATTANOOGA CHOOCHOO...." OR WAS IT CHICKAMAUGA???
Howmany people can say they have heard an authentic Rebel Yell?...more @ first Link..
To our knowledge this is the only surviving example of the Rebel Yell given by one of the 140,000 Tar Heels who defended the state of North Carolina. We encourage you to listen to this voice from the past, read the see information below to learn of the man behind the voice and how this audio treasure came to be recorded for posterity.
Click on a links below to hear the Rebel Yell from: Pvt. Thomas N. Alexander of the 37th North Carolina Troops....
In 2004 I had the privlege of being at the Charleston SC memorial service for the crew of the CSS Hunley. Naturally the place was filled with reenactors, and there were several full companies of CSA troops. Each of them gave the yell upon leaving the cemetery, and all I could think of - standing within a few feet of them when they let go - was that now I knew why grown men quailed in fear upon hearing that sound.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
10/25/2008 7:15 Comments ||
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#6
Thanks for that. I'd always wondered exactly what it was.
A continued flow of poor economic news undercut stocks across Asia and Europe again Thursday, with Japan reporting its lowest trade surplus in 27 years, factory orders dropping in Europe and consumer products giant Sony slashing its expected profit in half.
The accumulating evidence of a slipping economy and possible recession has pummeled global stocks in recent days, even as the financial and credit crisis shows some signs of abating.
Markets in Japan and across most of Asia fell again Thursday, as grim government numbers showed the region's real economy sinking along with global demand for its exports. The markets in Europe were generally flat. The benchmark Nikkei average skidded 7 percent in initial trading before recovering to close down 2.5 percent. Stocks in Hong Kong also recovered slightly after falling more than 6 percent, closing down 3.5 percent on the day.
Stocks in China rose for the first time in three days.
Government data suggested that the Asia-Pacific region is either headed for or mired in a recession.
Japan's trade surplus plunged 86 percent in the past six months and is the smallest in nearly 27 years, said the Finance Ministry, where officials acknowledged this week that Japan was probably in a recession. A soaring yen, collapsing global demand and rising import costs are hobbling the world's second-largest economy, which depends on exports to the United States, Europe and China for growth -- and all three are facing economic slowdown.
The rise in the Japanese currency and falling global demand led Sony to cut by well over 50 percent its expected profit for the year. Sales of some of the company's staple products -- flat-panel televisions and compact digital and video cameras -- will "be lower than the previous forecast due to a deterioration in the market environment brought on by the slowing global economy," Sony said in a news release.
Another telling measure of prospects for Japanese exports was the price of stock in Mazda Motor Corp., which fell 11 percent Thursday. Japanese exports to the United States have declined for 13 consecutive months.
As export demand slumps, so does the value of shipping companies. World shipping rates for commodities fell this week to a six-year low. The stock of Japan's third-largest shipping firm, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., fell Thursday to its lowest level in five years.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2008 00:00 ||
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#4
Some Marxists are funny. Some are not. Bill Ayers remains of of America's most dangerous people.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon ||
10/25/2008 11:48 Comments ||
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#5
Ayers is a complex dangerous person. To understand him is to realize that there are two critical periods to his life.
The first one was his underground terrorist days when the worst he did was cause the death of his girlfriend and two co-ideologues.
The next period was his propagandist period, which I think is his most dangerous period.
Ayers had an epiphany while he was enrolled at Columbia Universitys Teachers College in 1984.
This is why Obama gets perplexed when people accuse him of being a terrorist because of his working relation with Ayers.
The point is that Ayers understood that pedagogy is more powerful than bombs, a point of view that he shared with Obama.
An attack on their link should be done on their dangerous education ideology and not Ayers prior terrorist history. Then he would have to defend both of their adherence to the Maxine Greens critical pedagogy as epitomized by their Annenberg co-operative effort.
#6
I saw Fox News trying to interview Ayers outside his house today. Ayers was wearing a tee shirt with a large red star--the Communist star most likely. If the guy hates this country so much why doesn't he go to Russia or Venezuela or Cuba where his ideology is more aligned with those dictator run countries. Could it be that he really likes living where he can really enjoy his leftard elitist status and the adulation that is showered upon him by the compatriots on the left?
#7
If the guy hates this country so much why doesn't he go to Russia or Venezuela or Cuba where his ideology is more aligned with those dictator run countries.
a) Because he intends to destroy this one.
b) Because he grew up the spoiled son of rich man.
#9
John Q, if he went to any other Marxist country he would be low-man-on-the-totem-pole. If he stays here he believes he will be The-Man-What-Am-in Charge. It's all about power.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
10/25/2008 19:39 Comments ||
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#10
I do believe we've found the trainer of Obama, the new communist Manchurian candidate.
Notice I didn't say brainwasher....
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/25/2008 21:10 Comments ||
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#11
I would to see little ol' illuminati Katie C do an interview with Ayers.
Katie: Its so nice to have such a wonderful man on our program.
Ayers: I'm going to destroy America as we know it.
Katie: Oh that's so funny! What's your favorite IceCream?
.....
#12
I re-read the Rasmussen poll on Ayers linked above. The following excerpt caught my eye:
Sixty-eight percent (68%) of Republicans say the Ayers issue is at least Somewhat Important. Only 16% of Democrats agree along with 37% of voters not affiliated with either major party.
16% per cent of Democrats were willing to state that the Ayers issue is at least somewhat important. In 2004, Kerry took 89% of the registered Dem vote.
As to what kind of influence Bill Ayers might have with Obama, that depends on the quality of Bill's photographic, tape, and document archives.
After releasing this mornings numbers showing McCain ahead in Ohio and Florida, the Strategic Vision polling company received several death threats through the contact e-mail on the companys web site.
David Johnson, the CEO of Strategic Vision, shared the messages with National Review Online.
One of the messages stated:
My goodness, your polls stinks. There are 3 polls that have Obama by double digits and only yours has Obama down. WOW!. How come your poll is the only one giving Palin high favor ratings? I think you nee dto be careful tonight when you get in your car and might want to check underneath your car. SCRAP YOUR IDIOTIC POLLS OR ELSE!
Another stated:
A poll that gave Sarah Palin and Barack Obama the same favorability rating is wrong off the bat. Be careful going outside tonight because you might not see tomorrow.
A third message stated:
Why would your presidential election poll results be so drastically different from every other reputable poll taken over the same time period? Are they that dumb or are you guys that smart? Smart guys wind up dead.
The company has contacted the FBI and appropriate authorities, Johnson said. There was, thankfully, nothing in the messages that indicated that the sender had actually sought out the location of the company or its employees. Johnson noted that while the messages came from different addresses, they all came within a short period of time, and that it was possible they were from the same person.
Johnson said hes not fearful, but taking appropriate measures.
Its probably just a bunch of nut cases, but this is first time weve ever experienced something like this, Johnson said. Its highly, highly unusual. We get messages in the vein of 'your numbers are wrong, the other guy's numbers are right' all the time. But this has never happened before.
#6
I've been keeping an informal count of the number of incidents involving shooting. So far, I've found two. One against a man with a McCain-Palin sign in his yard. The other against a McCain-Pallin campaign bus in N. M. Whodda thunk? With all that right-wing wacko racist rage out there you'd think that they would pop off a few rounds from their vast right-wing armaments. Instead, the few incidents we have seem to come from peace-loving, gun-hating Lefties. Hard to figure.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon ||
10/25/2008 11:39 Comments ||
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#7
On the bright side, if The Messiah (TM) wins, there will be no more need for polls.....
#8
Uncle Phester, if the One wins, there will be no need for elections either.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
10/25/2008 14:46 Comments ||
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#9
Those words were written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer just days before he was executed by the Nazis for his complicity in the plot to assassinate Hitler. Surrounded by evil of a terrifying degree, with genocide as his environment and torture as his companion in word dark, dark, dark and with despair and good reason for it, Dietrich Bonhoeffer could sing:
By gracious powers so wonderfully sheltered,
and confidently waiting come what may,
we know that God is with us night and morning,
and never fails to greet us each new day.
Yet is this heart by its old foe tormented,
still evil days bring burdens hard to bear;
Oh, give our frightened souls the sure salvation
for which, O Lord, you taught us to prepare.
And when this cup you give is filled to brimming
with bitter suffering, hard to understand,
we take it thankfully and without trembling,
out of so good and so beloved a hand.
Yet when again in this same world you give us
the joy we had, the brightness of your Sun,
we shall remember all the days we lived through,
and our whole life shall then be yours alone.
BHUBANESWAR: The Orissa government on Saturday changed its stance and said it will rebuild churches damaged in Kandhamal district during the communal violence that killed 37 people and rendered thousands homeless.
"The state government has asked the district administration to submit a report on the church damage within a fortnight," home secretary T.K. Mishra told reporters.
The state government earlier this week had rejected Bhubaneswar-Cuttack archbishop Raphael Cheenath's demand for a Rs.30 million assistance for the reconstruction of damaged and demolished churches saying that giving grants to religious places was against its secular ethos.
The change of stance came after the Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the state to "take a generous view" of the matter.
The court had asked the government to identify the damaged churches, assess the extent of the damage and take steps towards rebuilding them.
Kandhamal district witnessed communal violence following the killing of a Hindu leader and four of his aides Aug 23 in his Ashram at Jaleshpata.
Officials on Saturday said normalcy was returning to the region as there was no major violence there since September 30.
Posted by: john frum ||
10/25/2008 16:07 ||
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The creation of a new Israeli government hung in the balance Friday after a powerful ultra-Orthodox party said it would not join a coalition headed by Premier-designate Tzipi Livni. The decision by Shas could lead to an early general election, a move likely to cast a long shadow over already sluggish Middle East peacemaking.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2008 00:00 ||
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Thailand has escaped the global financial panic with only minor immediate damage, in part because of an ethic of financial caution that it learned in the 1997 financial crisis, which almost stopped its economy.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2008 00:00 ||
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The Sri Lankan defence ministry says it is suspending the release of casualty figures during the current fighting in the north of the country. The move comes after the defence ministry said 33 troops were killed at the weekend, an unusually high figure for the authorities to admit to.
The figures were later denied by another government department. Defence experts say both sides greatly exaggerate their successes.
The military is engaged in a major operation to capture the Tamil Tiger's administrative HQ in Kilinochchi town. Journalists are not allowed access to the fighting in Sri Lanka and casualty figures given by the government and the rebels are viewed with widespread scepticism.
In recent months the government has regularly said it has killed more than 20 rebels in the previous day's fighting while admitting much smaller numbers of soldiers dying. But now such reports are being suspended.
"We took this decision to stop confusion. Recent times, there were instances when different government agencies had given conflicting figures of casualties," the Director General of the Media Centre for National Security, Laxman Hulugalle, told the BBC Sinhala service. "Casualty figures varied depending on the source. I accept that they are all government sources but they do not always have the same figures. This can be damaging when quoted by the media.
"In a war situation like the one we are in at the moment, it is important to be selective about what can be revealed. In a battle it is important to concentrate on the territory we gained rather than the amount of men we lose," Mr Hulugalle said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/25/2008 00:00 ||
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Ethanol producers are jockeying for a seat on the increasingly crowded bailout bandwagon. Just last Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer addressed the plight of those poor, poor businessmen who got locked into the cost of corn this summer. Just like oil and natural gas, the current price is half of what it was at its peak. Fierce competition and the economic downturn are contributing to thinning of their ranks. Schafer claims that the ethanol industry is too important to the nation to allow it to go into more financial difficulty. The USDA is prepared to provide bailouts loans of up to $25m an offer which sparked a backlash from livestock producers. Theyve been whiplashed by the price of corn, first as it shot up thanks to ethanol production, then by taking long positions and taking a hit as corn prices plummeted. As usual, the customer is going to get the shaft: dont expect much of a price break on your E85 or pork bellies anytime soon.
#2
They are just raiding the US treasury much like CEO's raid the corporations and then once there is nothing left, they declare bankruptcy and leave the share-holders holding the bag.
Signs of a sharp slowdown in Europe and a barrage of profit warnings and job cut announcements from companies around the world intensified fears of deep global recession on Friday.
Stock markets slid across the globe, currencies experienced almost unprecedented volatility, and oil and other commodities tumbled on fears of plummeting demand that would accompany a global economic slowdown.
"I would characterize this as a shell-shocked mentality out there," said Thomas di Galoma, head of government bond trading at Jefferies & Co. in New York. "It's all the deleveraging of equities ... It's causing an issue for everyone."
The economic crisis prompted further U.S. government intervention: Officials stepped in to help finance the sale of ailing Cleveland-based National City Corp and prepared to announce 20 more banks will receive capital injections.
Speculation about a bailout of the U.S. auto industry also increased as General Motors has intensified negotiations to buy Chrysler's auto operations, intending to seek U.S. government aid to support any deal, people familiar with the talks told Reuters. Chrysler said it was slashing about 5,000 white-collar jobs and industrial conglomerate ITT said it would also cut an unspecified number of positions.
Many analysts declared recession in Europe after reports showed the private sector economy in the 15 euro zone countries on track for its worst performance since the recession of the early 1990s. Britain's economy experienced a much deeper-than-expected 0.5 percent contraction in the third quarter, its first contraction in 16 years, making a recession all but inevitable.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
It doesn't take anything to actually happen to grow fear. Fear is one of those things that feeds on itself. The more "fear" is spread, the more the likely the reality will come to pass.
For what its worth, the mall was packed today, the parking lot was full to brimming. The stores were full. People are spending money.
I have not seen anyone wearing a "sandwich board" seeking a job and no new soup kitchens have opened here since the 1930's.
#2
This is just Reuters doing their part to scare the public into voting for Bambi.
Expect more Doom! Gloom! and 'WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!!' from the Tanning Bed Media as we close in on election night.
#3
This is just Reuters doing their part to scare the public into voting for Bambi.
Expect more Doom! Gloom! and 'WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE!!!!' from the Tanning Bed Media as we close in on election night.
#4
You got to remember for the MSM it is a depression. Papers dropping staff by the bushel full or going out of business. Earnings in the tank. Wait till corporations wake up to the drop in viewership on the 'news' programs during the economic retrenchment. When the ad revenue drops accordingly, we'll get another outcry of pain. Fear is something at everyone in that business is now living with. It's a feature, not a bug. :)
OPEC said yesterday it will slash oil output by 1.5 million barrels a day from November 1 as it seeks to shore up crude prices, triggering a verbal backlash from recession-threatened Britain and the United States.
The White House denounced what it called OPEC's "anti-market" decision to cut production following the cartel's emergency meeting in Vienna, even though oil prices subsequently slumped to $61 on fears of a global recession.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was left "disappointed" by OPEC's output reduction and urged oil producers to show a responsible attitude in the current crisis, his spokesman said.
Analysts had expected the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to cut its daily output by at least one million barrels per day as a global economic slowdown amid a worsening financial crisis reduces demand for energy.
Question is, will they really cut production? The pressure to cheat is enormous ...
OPEC, which produces 40 percent of world crude, announced a cut to production in a bid to support crude prices which "have witnessed a dramatic collapse -- unprecedented in speed and magnitude," according to an official statement from the cartel.
Yet after OPEC agreed to reduce its official output quota to 27.3 million barrels per day, the price of Brent North Sea crude sank close to 61 dollars, the lowest point since March 2007.
Crude futures in London and New York have plunged by almost 60 percent from record highs of above 147 dollars a barrel reached only three months ago when supply concerns sent prices soaring.
"Crude oil is heading lower again... on fears that the (OPEC) cut might not be sufficient to compensate the shortfall of demand due to a global recession," said Dresdner Kleinwort analyst Peter Fertig.
OPEC said in its statement published alongside its decision to cut production that "the financial crisis is already having a noticeable impact on the world economy, dampening the demand for energy, in general, and oil in particular."
"Moreover, forecasts indicate that the fall in demand will deepen, despite the approach of winter in the northern hemisphere."
However White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said the United States desired "markets to be well supplied."
She added: "The high oil prices from the past year contributed to the slowdown in demand and the subsequent downturn in the economy, and we would ask that everyone keep that in mind."
White House spokesman Tony Fratto said in reference to OPEC's cut: "It has always been our view that the value of commodities, including oil, should be determined in open, competitive markets, and not by these kinds of anti-market production decisions."
In London, Prime Minister Brown's spokesman said "OPEC needs to consider the impact that the decision will have on the world economy."
He added it was important "that all decisions that are taken by the oil producers are designed to ensure there is long-term stability in the price of oil and transparency in pricing."
Brown had angered OPEC nations ahead of the Vienna meeting by saying that a cut in production would be "scandalous."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/25/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
if Chavez needs $97 bbl and Iran needs $91..
There will be cheating
#2
Question is, will they really cut production? The pressure to cheat is enormous ...
SOme of the countries don't have the ability to cheat, because although they might have more oil than Saudi Arabia their lifting and infrastructure costs are higher and they've been letting their infrastructure rot.
#6
Venezuelan and Iranian production have fallen to the point where they can no longer produce up their quotas. That's why they're always in the forefront of calls for cuts.
#7
Ok, So how is it that the price of oil has dropped below the cost to produce it? Simple economics would force producers to slow and stop production until prices level off to a margin with profit, no matter how much we hate the Arabs. Threatening to cut producetion is media hype and actual cutting production is pure economics. It costs Saudi $72 a barrel to produce oil, or so we are told. Why would they even concider producing millions of barrels of oil at a $10 a barrel loss?
The oil market was driven up by the same jerks that screwed the housing market up, Wall Street. Now it is resetting, like the housing market. The worlds oil market will settle, some countries will suffer and not be able to produce, I only hope that is Iran and the Russians. I would expect them to settle around the Saudi price margin, they seem to set the market.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
10/25/2008 13:13 Comments ||
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#8
It does not cost the Saudis anything close to $72 to produce a barrel of oil - unless you include the cost of supporting the Royal Family.
It DOES cost $72 per barrel to produce the incremental barrel in the US and other super-mature producing areas (includes the cost of finding and developing as well as actually producing.) Small remaining pockets, ultra-deep water, oil shale & tar sands, enhanced recovery are quite expensive. Many such projects also have long lead times between big spending and start of production - the risk of change in prices during that multi-year period means succesful projects need high profit margins to compensate for the ones where the money was invested 'betting on' $140 oil but when the oil was finally produced it only could sell for $65. (Look at the 1982-98 period for examples.)
#9
There is a difference between cost to produce and cost to find and drill. Once oil has been found and the pumping rigs established the marginal costs are below $70. That oil will be pumped.
What is more than $70 is the cost of exploring for, finding and then establishing the production platforms. What comes to a halt at prices under $70 is exploration and drilling for new fields. What also stops is attempts to convert tar sands, shale and coal to oil.
#10
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