FIFTEEN employees of Cosco Shipyard returned home on Sunday after being abducted for 12 days by three Russian-owned fishing processing vessels. The owner of the three ships owes the yard $12.4m in repair fees, said Cosco. Took the ships out for a test drive, and then made a run for the border with Cosco employees still on board. Cheeky.
Thirteen technicians and two translators from Cosco Shipyard, a 51%-owned subsidiary of Singapore-listed Cosco Corp, went on the trial voyages of the three ships on October 20 after completing repair works. The three vessels that left Cosco's Zhoushan Liuheng Shipyard in Ningbo were supposed to return to Zhoushan on October 21. Woot! Right near here.
However, the "navigation routes were changed during the trial voyage without permission from the Chinese coastal authorities", said Cosco Corp.
On October 29, the three vessels were found in waters to the northeast of South Korea's Busan port by South Korea's national maritime police and China's Maritime Safety Administration. After two days of negotiation, the crew on board agreed to return the 15 hostages on October 31. It's surprising that more about this story hasn't surfaced...
The China-based shipbuilder said it has only received $3.8m of the $16.2m due for the repairs so far.
It did not identify the shipowner but posted on its website the names of the three vessels. They are the 1,106 dwt, 1984-built Kapitan Kuznetsov, the 1,810 dwt, 1982-built Ivan Lyudnikov and the Semiozyornoe.
Cosco also alleged on its web site that the three vessels had violated Chinese Law. It added that it refrained from discussing the incident because of concerns about the staff members' safety. Meanwhile, the Maritime Safety Administration is urging the ship's agent through the Russian Ambassador in China to send the vessels back to China for investigation. Yeah. That'll happen.
And our winner appears to be...No.4.
The Blue Angels will fly the balance of their 2008 season with five jets instead of six because of pending administrative action against one of the team's pilots. Marine Corps Capt. Tyson Dunkelberger, the Blue Angel's spokesman, allowed that the pilot had been removed from flying duties for an "inappropriate relationship" with a female member of the demonstration team. Dunkelberger would not, however, identify the rank or squadron billet of either party involved, citing legal reasons.
The five-plane demonstration will employ a diamond formation without the "slot" position, but Dunkelberger was quick to point out that the loss of Blue Angel No. 4 in the show did not necessarily mean that the pilot who has flown in that position during this season is involved in the inappropriate relationship. The mystery will be short-lived, however, as the Blue's are scheduled to perform a practice show today in San Antonio minus the flyer in question and his absence will be obvious to anyone in attendance holding a show program. Marine Corps Maj. Clint Harris pilots the No. 4 jet.
The Blue Angels have dealt with other personnel issues in recent years. In 2000 Blue Angel No. 2, a Marine Corps officer, was removed from the team for having another "inappropriate relationship" with the team's female public affairs officer. And last year, Lcdr. Kevin Davis, Blue Angel No. 6, flew his F/A-18 into the ground and was killed during a show near Beaufort, South Carolina. In each of these cases a pilot who had been on the team the year prior was pulled out of a fleet squadron and returned to the Blue Angels so that the team could fly the balance of the season with a full six-jet complement. Dunkelberger stated that there weren't enough shows left to justify that sort of effort in the current case. After the San Antonio shows this weekend, the Blue Angels will perform at the Kennedy Space Center and then close their season with two shows at their home base in Pensacola, Florida.
#4
Ifn you're gonna hit on a subordinate, you should fire them first. It solves the supervisor-underling conflict, and they ...uh... like you more? No, that doesn't work...damn. Don't dip at the company pool.
Posted by: Frank G ||
11/03/2008 22:19 Comments ||
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Escorted by two naval warships, Myanmar has arbitrarily deployed four ships for exploring oil and gas in Bangladesh maritime territory Saturday ignoring Bangladesh Navy warnings. Bangladesh Navy has also positioned three ships at the spot.
As Myanmar ignored the warnings, Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Towhid Hossain yesterday handed over a protest letter to Myanmar's ambassador in Dhaka Yu Fae Than U demanding withdrawal of the ships from the area until the maritime boundary is clearly demarcated through mutual understanding as per the UN guideline.
According to a press note, the Myanmar ambassador was requested to convey the protest note to his government. Bangladesh requested Myanmar to stop all its activities there as per Bangladesh Government's 1974 Territorial Water and Maritimes Zones Act and added that the government has the right to protect its interest.
Sources said Myanmar's ships started the exploration 50 nautical miles southwest of St Martin's Island. A South Korean company was awarded the oil and gas exploration contract there.
Three naval ships of Bangladesh--BNS Abu Bakar, BNS Madhumati and BNS Nirvoy--went to the spot challenging the Myanmarese ships but the Myanmar Navy responded by alleging that the Bangladesh Navy ships are trespassing.
These apparently are older merchant ships converted to naval service.
The commanding officer of BNS Abu Bakar is currently in a dialogue with the officers of Myanmar's naval ships there, sources said.
The Abu Bakar is apparently a training ship and has been used in the past for anti-air coverage.
"The Myanmar Navy told Bangladesh Navy that they have instructions from their government to come to these waters and they suggested that our navy should talk to our high-ups," said a source quoting Bangladesh Navy.
At least 50 people were working in the four exploration ships, two of which are registered in the Bahamas, one in Belize and one in India. A competent government source said the spot was "well inside" Bangladesh maritime boundary.
Foreign Secretary Md Touhid Hossain told the press yesterday that the dispute could be resolved through dialogue as Bangladesh has very good relations with Myanmar.
Additional Foreign Secretary MAK Mahmood, who led the Bangladesh-Myanmar maritime delimitation talks in Dhaka in September, said the matter will be raised at the upcoming talks with Myanmar on November 16 and 17. Mahmood pointed out that Bangladesh would also ask the South Korean company not to conduct the exploration work in the disputed area. He added that Bangladesh would also sit with India on the maritime boundary issue later this month.
The Bay of Bengal has become very important, especially after India's discovery of 100 trillion cubic feet of gas in 2005-06 and Myanmar's discovery of seven trillion cubic feet of gas during the same time. India also discovered oil. The Bay in Bangladesh's territory promises huge natural resources, experts say. The Daily Star reported in 2006 discovery of sedimentary rock oolite that promises oil and gas there.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/03/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Damn! Both Burma and Bangla have navies. Who knew?
#3
"As Myanmar ignored the warnings, Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Towhid Hossain yesterday handed over a protest letter"
The dreaded protest letter.™ Yeah, that'll work.
Try "handing over" a couple of shots across their bows....
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
11/03/2008 21:07 Comments ||
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#4
Myanmar navy! haha.
Its gonna be a handufl of Frigates and Corvettes against some Burmese bamboo boats. Friggin loosers..God knows what theyr thinkin!!
Posted by: Robin ||
11/03/2008 21:26 Comments ||
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Eleven policemen have been shot to death near Mexico City in a three-day string of drug-gang attacks, prosecutors said Sunday.
Mexico State prosecutor Alberto Bazbaz said 10 suspects believed linked to drug gangs have been arrested in the killings, which mainly occurred on highways and at police checkpoints in the state that loops around Mexico's capital. Some of the suspects were carrying rifles and grenades at the time of their arrest.
Bazbaz said that many of the suspects were from the neighboring state of Michoacan, a hotbed of drug violence dominated by a drug gang known as "The Family." But he said evidence indicates that low-level traffickers and criminals, rather than organized cartel hit squads, were responsible for the attacks. It was not clear if the killings were part of a coordinated plan.
Mexico State police commander German Garciamoreno said police patrols will be beefed up to confront the violence. The state, like many others across the country, has faced increased drug trafficking and threats against local authorities.
In Tijuana, on the northern border across from San Diego, California, police found two decapitated bodies wrapped in blankets in a vacant lot early Sunday. The victims' heads were found nearby in a plastic bag. Cartel hit men in Mexico have increasingly been decapitating their rivals, apparently to spread fear and intimidation.
Meanwhile, federal police reported on Saturday that they arrested the reputed leader of the violent Gulf drug cartel for the border city of Reynosa, across from McAllen, Texas. Federal police said in a statement that Antonio Galarza was arrested in the northern city of Monterrey on Friday on suspicion of weapons violations and organized crime. He is being held under house arrest while authorities complete their investigation.
Reynosa is a major shipping point for cocaine heading to the U.S. market and is dominated by the violent hit squad known as the Zetas.
Also on Saturday, unidentified persons strung a series of drug cartel messages on banners along roadsides in the Pacific coast resorts of Acapulco and Zihuatanejo. The messages appeared to have been written by the Zetas and accused federal officials of protecting a rival cartel.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/03/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
How to sometimes tell the differnce between the "gunmen" and the "police". Mexico has lost what government needs to exist - a monopoly on power. Mexico is a narcostate.
BARACK Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has died of cancer at the age of 86.
Senator Obama announced the news today, on the eve of the US election.
"It is with great sadness that we announce that our grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has died peacefully after a battle with cancer,'' Senator Obama said in a joint statement with his sister Maya Soetoro-Ng.
"She was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength, and humility.
"She was the person who encouraged and allowed us to take chances.
"She was proud of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren and left this world with the knowledge that her impact on all of us was meaningful and enduring. Our debt to her is beyond measure.''
Senator Obama took a day off from the campaign late last month to visit Ms Dunham in his native Hawaii after saying she may not live until the election.
Ms Dunham, whom he affectionately knew as "Toot", helped raise Senator Obama, who barely knew his Kenyan-born father, and she was the last surviving close older relative, after his mother died of cancer over a decade ago.
#6
She passed "knowing" her grandson will be president.
May she rest in peace.
May she be proved WRONG in her belief.
Posted by: Minister of funny walks ||
11/03/2008 18:11 Comments ||
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#7
...There is a special place for Grandmothers in Heaven, and from what I have read, Mrs.Dunham more than earned hers. My deepest sympathies to Senator Obama and his family.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
11/03/2008 18:14 Comments ||
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#8
Cancer? Mom and Grandma? And the O-man is a pack-a-day smoker for how long?
(WSAZ) -- With only hours before election day, coal has become a major topic of Decision 2008.
Sunday, comments resurfaced from a taped interview Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama did with the San Francisco Chronicle in January. In the interview, which has been available online for months, Obama talks about the importance of coal. He went on to talk about his cap and trade proposal to help curb global warming.
"If somebody wants to build a coal power plant they can, it's just that it will bankrupt them because they are going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that's being emitted," Barack Obama said to the San Francisco Chronicle in January.
The campaign for Republican presidential candidate John McCain jumped on those comments today and is already sending out taped phone messages to voters in Ohio.
Campaigning in Marietta today, McCain's running mate Sarah Palin mentioned the Obama comments. "He said that, sure, if the industry wants to build coal-fired power plants, then they can go ahead and try, he says, but they can do it only in a way that will bankrupt the coal industry, and he's comfortable letting that happen. And you got to listen to the tape," Sarah Palin said.
The Obama campaign says the quote is being taken out of context and that Obama is actually from a coal state and is a strong supporter of the industry.
The campaign sent a statement today saying "the point Obama is making is that we need a transition from coal burning power plants built with old technology to plants built with advanced technologies."
Which we don't have yet.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/03/2008 07:48 ||
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"the point Obama is making is that we need a transition from coal burning power plants built with old technology to plants built with advanced technologies."
Just not nuclear or natural gas. But other than that, he's cool with it.
#2
Hawaii is a coal producing state - I had no idea.
You know, for someone who is supposed to be so smart and articulate we sure have got a lot of these day-after clarification statements from his campaign managers, especially after his visits to San Francisco. How anyone can automatically believe anything which comes out of his mouth is the bigger mystery - you may agree with it initially but inevitably he backtracks.
#6
I'm impressed as hell that the McCain campaign held this to Sunday. If I were the candidate I would have had it out there in September or early October, and its effect would be gone now.
McCain really believes in this "don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes" ...
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/03/2008 10:01 Comments ||
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#7
If McCain wins, it is only because the chosen One shot himself in the foot so often the MSM could no longer cover up the blood.
#8
Hawai'i has one small coal-fired plant for a sugar mill that is being converted to bio-mass. He is an uneducated idiot when it comes to energy. We have the cleanest coal burning power technology in the world and that includes that bastion of fluidized bed technology - Finland. We are now able to incrementally upsize coal-gasification combined cycle to baseload numbers like 750MW. We can build super critical coal fired boilers in the 1250 to 1350 MW range with scrubbers that make natural gas more attractive for polymers than power. The man and his advisors are really dangerous. I have forgot more about designing and building power plants than he will ever know.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
11/03/2008 10:27 Comments ||
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#9
Top coal-producing states
State 2005 production (short tons)
Wyoming 404,319
West Virginia 153,650
Kentucky 119,734
Pennsylvania 67,494
Texas 45,939
Montana 40,354
Colorado 38,510
Indiana 34,457
Illinois 32,014
North Dakota 29,956
Virginia 27,743
Well, thank God none of 'em are important swing states, right, Barack????
(On a side note....if he does get in, in spite of this, I personally will have no sympathy for any coal industry personnel who are out on their butts who voted for Obama. I'll be too damn busy scrounging up cornstalks to burn for heat in the winter.)
Cornstalk burning will violate the low-carbon fuel standards of the Obama regime and will be strictly prohibited. Anyone found burning, considering the burning or discussing the burning of cornstalks will be reported to the Obama Civilian Assistance Corps (CAC).
"You can burn cornstalks if you want to, but we'll tax you out of your house." anon
#11
Anyone found burning, considering the burning or discussing the burning of cornstalks will be reported to the Obama Civilian Assistance Corps (CAC).
Ironically, the punishment for this environmental heresy will be burning at the stake.
Do you think McCain was sitting on this bombshell?
My understanding is that an unknown blogger found the tape on the SF Chronicle's website, lisstened to the audio, and then put the word out on The One's intent to bankrupt the coal industry.
I have been given to understand that McCain's "opposition research team" dropped the ball on this bombshell.
Recall: weeks ago Joe Biden said that no new coal plants would be built in the USA. There was a brief hue and cry. The One came out and said: no...you're taking what Joe said out of context....blah...blah...blah...
Actually, Joe Biden was telling the truth when he spoke. The One covered his ass by saying otherwise.
THAT would have been the time to drop the SF Chronicle qoute on Barack. McCain didn't. Because he didn't have it.
Why not? Because his reasech people didn't know it existed. They should have, but they didn't.
McCain has run a terrible campaign on so many levels and now some of the "insiders" want to blame his pick of Sarah (which is the only good thing he has done in months) as an excuse for failure.
#16
As a not proud resident of Massaholia I suffered through Romney's governorship.
As best I could tell he's a pander bear supreme in the mode of the old Rockefeller Repus. Despite his talk he had no walk.
The problem in judging him is that the overwhelming Democrap / loony left here distorts anything. It's like trying to judge his appearance when viewed in a fun-house mirror.
#17
.5MT, where'd I do that? Got those stats from Platts. I know they don't match up exactly with Kentucky Educational Television, but the states listed are the same.
#18
Blondie, that table should be times thousand tons.
Posted by: ed ||
11/03/2008 19:26 Comments ||
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#19
So if the Big O bans coal burning, where in the f*ck are we going to get energy to make the transition off petroleum? 95% of Congress are idiots when you talk about energy. They do not have a clue.
Maybe they will jump on the bandwagon and push a program for vernalization for agriculture, like Stalin's TD Lysenko did to ruin the USSR's agriculture.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
11/03/2008 21:40 Comments ||
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#20
Push comes to shove, it would be a real educational experience for all the coal fueled power plants to shut down. Then the nation can sweat for the day or 2 while they are brought back on line.
Posted by: ed ||
11/03/2008 21:44 Comments ||
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#21
95% of Congress are idiots when you talk about energy
fixed for you
Posted by: Abu do you love ||
11/03/2008 22:12 Comments ||
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#22
One question - why did it take so long for this to come out?
Seizing on a newly released audio tape picked up by the Drudge Report, Sarah Palin took the opportunity here in coal country to accuse Barack Obama of "talking about bankrupting the coal industry."
"He said that, sure, if the industry wants to build coal-fired power plants, then they can go ahead and try, he says, but they can do it only in a way that will bankrupt the coal industry, and he's comfortable letting that happen," Palin said. "And you got to listen to the tape."
The audiotape Palin was referring to was recorded by the San Francisco Chronicle in a Jan. 17 interview.
"Why is the audiotape just now surfacing?" Palin asked, leading someone in the crowd to shout, "Liberal media!"
"This interview was given to San Francisco folks many, many months ago," Palin said. "You should have known about this, so that you would have better decision-making information as you go into the voting booth."
In the audiotape, Obama reiterated his call for a cap and trade system on carbon and greenhouse gases. "So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can," Obama said. "It's just that it will bankrupt them because they're going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that's being emitted."
An Obama spokesperson said that Obama's remarks were taken out of context and pointed out that in another part of the interview, Obama said that the idea of eliminating coal plants was "an illusion."
"The point Obama is making is that we need to transition from coal burning power plants built with old technology to plants built with advanced technologies--and that is exactly the action that will be incentivized under a cap and trade program," the spokesperson said. "We know that additional work is necessary to develop and deploy these technologies. That is why Obama has argued for a robust funding program for carbon capture and sequestration. It's strikingly similar to what McCain has said (in fact McCain goes a step further saying he wants to transition completely away from coal)."
Posted by: Fred ||
11/03/2008 07:47 ||
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#1
Even with the clarification - he is still an idiot and you and I are going to pay the price.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
11/03/2008 10:29 Comments ||
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#2
ever notice everything he says is taken out of context?
Posted by: Frank G ||
11/03/2008 11:36 Comments ||
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#3
You just need another glass or two of the kool-aid, Frank. (waves hand) These are not the contexts you are looking for.
#4
It's strikingly similar to what McCain has said
You mean like the debates, where ohbama would say he agrees with McCain's policy and when he goes further, basically reworded what McCain just said.
Wouldn't it be interesting if for 1 week California was not allowed to import electricity?
West Kansas tried to build a new coal plant recently and would have used Colorado coal IIUC - the Sierra Club came in and lobbied against it and our d governor vetoed the passed bill 3 times.
#5
Hay! Thats Alaska Paul's airplane! I did not know he had been hire by the Palin team!
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
11/03/2008 15:46 Comments ||
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#6
Wouldn't it be interesting if for 1 week California was not allowed to import electricity?
It was kinda like that a couple of years ago when we were trying to "deregulate" our utilities. Enron took advantage and reamed us all righteously. Utility rates skyrocketed. We had "rolling" brownouts and blackouts. Good old Gray Davis.
Interesting? You try living in Bakersfield without AC. Or driving to work at midnight to make sure your UPS allowed the computers to do an orderly shutdown during a power outage.
It's a well known fact that California's infrastructure is inadequate in a number of ways including power plants.
But don't look for the state to go red tomorrow. Between the LA Times and the San Fran Chronic most folks will never even hear about this. They won't understand it or believe it even if they do. This is like all the other accusations against Obama. As true as it may be it just won't stick. The MSM keep telling people that Obama is gonna win so that's who they're gonna vote for. They do NOT want to be confused with facts.
#7
Just to be clear, I would not wish that upon California, as the first in line to condemn additional powerplants would be the first to hightail out of California should something like that happen while the plebes suck it. I remember seeing the news about the power stuggles and it did not look like a good time.
That being said, out here we had the opportunity to add to the grid and Sebelius (d, was talked as possible running mate of obama) vetoed the popular initiative three times while an out of state PAC lawyer group hit the initiative in court.
Villagers in areas of Balochistan hit by a powerful earthquake demanded shelter on Sunday, saying they need help before a bitter winter sets in.
The 6.5 magnitude earthquake struck Balochistan on Wednesday, destroying or damaging thousands of mud houses and killing at least 215 people. The epicentre was in Ziarat -- a picturesque valley where night-time temperatures have falling below freezing.
"We've got food, we've got relief, but we don't have tents which can save our children from the cold," said Rehmat Kakar, a 70-year-old farmer standing by the rubble of his house in Wam Khazi village. "We want those tents urgently ... please save our children, don't let them die," said Kakar, adding that four of his seven children were killed in the quake. Scores of aftershocks -- some nearly as strong as the original quake -- have jolted the region since Wednesday.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has appealed for $7.7 million to step up its emergency operations. "Our priority will be to provide shelter as winter sets in," said Pascal Cuttat, the head of the ICRC delegation in Islamabad. "Because of continuing aftershocks, many people decided to sleep outdoors at altitudes of 2,000 to 2,500 metres," he said.
Another villager said with winter just weeks away, government aid efforts would be too slow. "They should just give us money and let us rebuild our own houses," said Abdul Wahid.
There have been no reports of outbreaks of disease since the quake, but aid officials say without proper shelter, people, especially children, would be vulnerable to common health risks.
A doctor from the paramilitary Frontier Corps helping with the relief effort said he was seeing many people, most of them children, with upper respiratory tract infections. "We're receiving about 100 patients daily and the number may go up in coming weeks because of the cold," said the doctor, Usman Ahmed, at a clinic set up in Wam Khazi. "Medical facilities are here, but we need to do something urgently to keep people warm," he added.
The quake is one more headache for a government struggling with a balance of payments crisis and a surge of militant violence, but allies have promised help.
Saudi Arabia is giving $100 million, while the US and China had promised $1 million each for rehabilitation work. Japan and several other countries had also promised help, and the World Health Organisation said it was sending two truckloads of essential medicines and supplies. The World Food Programme said it would provide 700 tonnes of dry food rations in initial relief supplies for an estimated 20,000 homeless. But one aid group complained of poor coordination. "There's duplication, like two agencies doing similar jobs in the same place," said Hafizullah Khan of the Muslim Hands international aid group.
Meanwhile, official sources said that survey teams would start assessing the damage in the quake-hit areas of Balochistan on Monday. They said the findings would facilitate the government in its plans for rehabilitation. The sources also rejected reports that the pace of relief efforts is not up to the mark.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/03/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Allan will provide
Posted by: Frank G ||
11/03/2008 7:29 Comments ||
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#7
I suggest having a look at the movie " beyond the call"
then you can really see how true USA military guys act.
Posted by: eric the norwegian ||
11/03/2008 14:54 Comments ||
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#8
Thanks, eric -- they are countrymen to be proud of, indeed. It seems to me some of our Rantburgers are/were associated with that outfit, but my memory is a bit porous these days.
An OPEC decision to cut output by 1.5 million barrels a day will not immediately affect oil prices, the organization's chief says. The ministers of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) agreed last week to cut 1.5 million from its 28.8 million barrels.
This decision 'will take a long time to produce a definite effect' as the demand for oil is still beyond the organization's revised production, the OPEC president, Chakib Khelil, said.
The price of crude oil has more than halved from a record high of 147 dollars in July. The free fall will be devastating on oil producing countries, as most are economically dependant on the commodity.
The OPEC president, also the Algerian Energy Minister, said he expects the worsening financial crisis to have an intense effect on crude prices. "Everything depends on the global economic situation. If it continues to deteriorate, it is clear that demand for oil will drop, which is likely to further lower prices," he said.
He also predicted prices to rise within 'the next two to three years' because of 'a lack of investment' (in drilling for more oil) which has brought many projects to a halt.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/03/2008 00:00 ||
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, it is clear that demand for oil will drop, which is likely to further lower prices,"
Some good out of this mess anyway.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
11/03/2008 9:15 Comments ||
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#2
Doesn't a cartel violate US law? Why are we not prosecuting, convicting and then confiscating cartel assets?
#4
Well they do violate US law and practice business with US entities. And have assets in the US. We got money from Ghadaffy for Lockerbie. I think the US government should try it.
Opec countries must implement agreed production cuts if they want stable oil prices, the cartel's head has warned. Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, would be key to the success of any cutbacks, said Chakib Khelil. Mr Khelil said markets were waiting for Opec countries to cut output, as agreed in Vienna last month.
Meanwhile Russia has said it will cut its oil export duties, in order to help the country's oil producers cope with declining prices.
Mr Khelil made his remarks as UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown was on a tour of the Gulf, to ask states to do more to help tackle the global economic crisis. Mr Brown had criticised Opec's decision to cut production.
The prime minister repeated his calls for a "stable" crude oil price on Sunday, citing the need for "a sustainable transition to a more low carbon emissions economy".
Qatar's Energy Minister, Abdulla bin Hamad al-Attiyah, rejected criticism over the production cuts, saying there was a lot of oil which no-one was buying because of the economic conditions.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) decided at a meeting in Vienna on 24 October to cut production by 1.5m barrels a day - about 5% - in order to halt the slide in oil prices. Opec hopes its production cuts will lead to oil prices stabilising between $70 and $80 a barrel.
Meanwhile, Russia's export tariff cut of $85 a tonne has disappointed oil producers, who were hoping for a larger reduction. The duty was set at $287 a tonne from 1 November, down from $372.20.
Russia is the world's second-largest oil exporter, and it has been hit by falling prices. Exporters have held back oil, that would otherwise have been sold abroad. Russia's oil export tariffs - or taxes - have been a significant part of government revenue in recent years helped by booming oil prices. It has said it would not join Opec countries' efforts to bolster prices by cutting production, but has said it would like closer ties with the cartel and more influence on prices.
HONOLULU U.S. Navy officials say one of two short-range ballistic missiles shot from a military facility in Hawaii in a defense system test was hit by an interceptor missile fired from a Navy ship.
Vice Adm. Samuel J. Locklear says Saturday's trial marked the first time that the Navy rather than the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency oversaw the firing of a so-called Standard Missile-3 interceptor against a ballistic missile target.
The San Diego-based U.S. Third Fleet had command and control of the mission, in which two target missiles were fired from the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai island.
An SM-3 fired from the USS Paul Hamilton directly hit the first target missile. Another ship, the USS Hopper, failed to intercept the second target missile that was fired.
Tens of thousands of supporters of Thai former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra gathered at the Rajamangala Stadium Saturday to hear the speech of the ousted leader.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/03/2008 00:00 ||
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From the Star Tribune:
Chari, Christiano and University of Minnesota economist Patrick Kehoe, in a working paper published in October, note that bank deposits actually have climbed even as commercial-paper borrowing fell precipitously in recent weeks.
"One possibility is that banks are reducing their borrowings from the commercial-paper market and substituting deposits for these borrowings," the authors wrote. "If so, it's difficult to see why this substitution should create major problems for either the financial sector or the rest of the economy."
Four claims about the nature of the nation's financial crisis appear to be myths, they concluded.
Their findings:
Bank lending to corporate America and individuals has not declined.
Lending between banks has not dried up.
Commercial paper (short-term borrowing by nonfinancial companies) has fallen, but not seized up as a source of commercial lending. (Indeed, commercial-paper levels last week started to head back up for the first time since the failure of Lehman Brothers, in mid-September.)
Banks do not, as popularly believed, play a large role in channeling money from savers to borrowers. So all these stories about Great Depression II are a little premature.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
11/03/2008 11:38 ||
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#1
I applied for and was accepted for 3 new credit accounts last month. I don't need them. I'm not going to use them. Getting them was easy. Easier than I thought, given all the doom and gloom reporting.
Not that I am terribly surprised by this.
Posted by: Minister of funny walks ||
11/03/2008 13:50 Comments ||
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#2
I've noticed the world hadn't gone all black and white on us yet.
#7
It does no good to point out myths and fail to give an explanation, nor even a description, for current events. James (son of John) Kenneth Galbraith was interviewed in the Friday NYT about all the economists who failed to predict the current crisis:
"Its an enormous blot on the reputation of the profession. There are thousands of economists. Most of them teach. And most of them teach a theoretical framework that has been shown to be fundamentally useless."
#8
WORLD MILITARY FORUM > US, WORLD SUFFERS FEW LOSSES IN KEY ECONOMIC INDUSTRIES DESPITE FINANCIAL CRISIS; + US BANKING CRISIS IS A [covert] POLITICAL BLACK SHROUD/CURTAIN FOR US GLOBAL IMPERIALISM; + MELAMINE: PEOPLE OF THE US, EUROPE BEING DEFRAUDED BY THEIR OWN GOVTS, NOT BY CHINA.
Oh wait...
From TFA:
Goldman Sachs is on course to pay its top City bankers multimillion-pound bonuses - despite asking the U.S. government for an emergency bail-out.
The struggling Wall Street bank has set aside £7billion for salaries and 2008 year-end bonuses, it emerged yesterday. Each of the firm's 443 partners is on course to pocket an average Christmas bonus of more than £3million. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas
For everyone but us. Usually you don't get bonuses if your company has to go hat in hand to the government for more money, but in this case, that was its apparent purpose
The size of the pay pool comfortably dwarfs the £6.1billion lifeline which the U.S. government is throwing to Goldman as part of its £430 billion bail-out. Comfort being the most important concept here, except for taxpayers...
#1
And you wonder why these people seem to donate their pol money to the likes of the 'redistribution' candidate? It's because each lives in a artificial environment and can not grasp how things are down outside that environment. Their perspective of the 'Christmas Bonus' is one of entitlement, just as so many of those voting themselves other peoples' money view it as an entitlement. They can not, they will not view their behavior from the perspective of those literally footing the bill.
#2
Goldman Sachs, David Axelrod, Soros.... all riding in the same Amish buggy. Always have, always will. The hatless, skinny litte guy and pal of Bill Ayers is just thier designated horse holder.
#5
Great! I'll be able to salvage the money I lost on Christie by renting my house in Southampton for big money.
Posted by: Peter Cooke ||
11/03/2008 10:16 Comments ||
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#6
Geez, get a loan for my (overpriced) house and they know whether I prefer a KC Strip to Ribeye, government loans itself hundres of billions with no accountability. Talk about rules for thee and me.
#7
The real bitch is that Obamination and Company have pretty successfully managed to blame all of this on Bush and, by extension, McCain. You can count on CBS, CNN and the NYT to ignore the fact that it all started with Jimmuh Carter. But none of that matters anymore. People don't care how it happened. They probably aren't capable of understanding anyway. They don't care about Iraq, Iran or Pakistan. They don't care that Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama voted for the bailout right along with John McCain. They're just mad as hell when they see these rich bastards lining their pockets. Bush let it happen on his watch and McCain will lose the election for it. It's all so convenient and so well timed that you have to wonder if it was a set up. Hope these bankers are happy with President Obama.
#10
If this story gains any traction it seems to me a simple amtter of voting with your feets, and moving the money from GM-S to 'somebody else.' even if'n its one of them do it yourself houses.
works for me in a variety of industries, no reason why it can't work here.
#11
thank you Geaorge W, for giving those poor banks and financial institutions money that they desperately need to keep those tropical family month long vacations on track for 2008.
#12
Once again I would like to remind you that this was not a George W deal. This bailout was proposed by Paulson (Sherson Leaman democrat), Bernake, and Greenspan (Sherson Leaman democrat) and pushed by the democrates in both the house and the senate. Even if W would have vetoed this shit sandwich, it would have been overidden by the Senate. I could go on about Franks Dodd and Barry having a vested interest on blaiming this on W, but I need to sight in my M-4 Dissipater.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
(WSAZ) -- With only hours before election day, coal has become a major topic of Decision 2008. 
Seizing on a newly released audio tape picked up by the Drudge Report, Sarah Palin took the opportunity here in coal country to accuse Barack Obama of "talking about bankrupting the coal industry." 
