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Browse for Healthcare Manufacturing Associate Jobs in United States. Find the job of your dreams on CareerCast Veterans Network today!
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29 days old
Aesculap Biologics
Breinigsville, PA US
Aesculap BiologicsManufacturing Associate IUS-PA-BreinigsvilleJob ID: 2020-16124Type: Regular Full-Time# of Openings: 1Category: ManufacturingAesculap Biologics LLCOverview Aesculap Biologics, LLC, was established in January 2012 as a division of Aesculap, Inc. and is focused on biological approac...
10 days old
Thousand Oaks, CA US
AmgenJob ID: R-91798_1Location: Thousand Oaks, CA, US 91360Amgen discovers, develops and delivers innovative human therapeutics. A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen was one of the first companies to realize the new science's promise by bringing safe, effective medicines from lab, to manufactur...

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Development Before Results!
For additional information about rates for training, please contact Maria Castro at 512-653-9486.
Click here to Schedule one or more Forza Campiones VIP training sessions using MindBody online scheduler.(have to create an online account to do so). See policy under Additional Fees below regarding no show charges and rescheduling.
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Israel In Prophecy
"Dr. Andre Oboler is a postdoctoral fellow in the Political Science Department at Bar-Ilan University, Israel. He received his PhD in computer science in 2007 at Lancaster University, UK. For the last four years he has run the website Zionism on the Web, which actively combats and monitors online antisemitism using technological means. He is currently a Legacy Heritage Fellow at NGO Monitor in Jerusalem where he works on Web 2.0 strategies to monitor and counter bias in the NGO community." See his article on Online Antisemitism 2.0.


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Personalised Love Birds Wedding Plate Hand Painted English Bone China
A unique gift for the happy couple - personalise with dates and locations. Why not add your own personal message on the back of the plate.
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Sales price: £40.00
Gifts that will be treasured for a lifetime. Capture memories of a special day or event with this colourful hand painted plate.
You can choose whatever wording you like around the rim and include a personal message on the back too
Each plate is hand painted to order. Please allow for slight variations in colour and design.
Plate measures approx. 10.5"
Made from high quality English bone china
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Caring for me
Do not use abrasive cloths or strong detergents on the design. Hand washing will extend the life of the design. Hand wash whenever possible
Please note: for display use only


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Bucharest: Athénée Palace Hilton
Where to stay in Bucharest? Athénée Palace Hilton has the reputation to be one of the best hotels in the Romanian capital. Check-in was not so great and the interior of the room is dated, but the Executive Lounge was a very positive surprise!
One Comment on "Bucharest: Athénée Palace Hilton"
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ERIC SOMMER: Demonizing the demon in Egypt and elsewhere
The following commentary is reprinted with permission from Pravda, Moscow. (Emphasis added by Inteltrends.)
Demonizing the demon in Egypt and elsewhere
© Eric Sommer
Source: Pravda.ru
February 21, 2011
I was personally involved in the movement against the U.S. intervention and bombing of Yugoslavia in the late 1990's under Clinton. At that time I coined the phrase 'Demonizing the demons'. I did so because I noted that progressive and well-meaning people in North America were often befuddled and divided as to whether to support the demonizing of Melosovik by the U.S. government or not.
The real problem was not that Melosovik was, in fact, a demon whose government had engaged in serious human rights violations in Croatia but that he was a demon whose actions had been, in a way, supported or condoned by the U.S. state and media to some extent previously before they decided to demonize and attack him.
At that time, I pieced together the following formula used by the U.S. government and media ever since World War II as a lynchpin of U.S. foreign policy:
Step 1: Actively support, or even instigate, the installation of a demonic dictator or semi-dictator. Especially do so in any case where there is danger of a socialist or even truly independent national government coming to power in a country.
Step 2: Support the U.S.-supported demonic dictator by continually supplying massive amounts of military equipment or funds each for such equipment each year, to prevent any internal opposition from gaining the upper hand. Mubarak in Egypt, for example, received around 1 Billion dollars in military aid each year. Also, impose IMF or other measures designed to advantage international capital, allowing for the looting of the local resources and cheap labour at ridiculously low rates when possible, and conceal or downplay any and all resulting extreme human rights violations and impoverishment of the dictators people;
Step 3: When it is no longer expedient to support the demonic dictator – either because internal opposition has grown too strong, or for geo-strategic or other reasons – then proclaim that he is a 'Demonic Dictator', ignoring the reality that he was installed and maintained in power by yourself.
This scenario of 'Demonizing the Demon' is the formula pursued ever since World War II by the U.S. state throughout the world.
Suharto in Indonesia, Marcos the dictator of the Philippines, Saddam Hussein in Iraq, Mubarak in Egypt, Pinochet in Chile, and many other 'demons' were installed with the support of the U.S. state and its CIA spy service and military aid; maintained in power by tremendous military and other non-socially-beneficial 'aid'; and then 'demonized' and deposed with the help of the U.S. state when they were no longer needed.
The losers in all cases have been the ordinary people who suffered – first from the Demonic dictators, then from their removal, and then from their replacements (the new demons chosen for them by the U.S. state).
Sound exaggerated? Consider this:
The Egyptian Example
A few weeks ago the media reported on a possible successor to Mubarak in Egypt as follows: "Mohamed ElBaradei, the former United Nations nuclear chief who has become an opposition figurehead, said he would 'serve if called on'. He earlier held his first negotiations with the American and British ambassadors, proposing potential scenarios for a transfer of power".
Note that Mohamed ElBaradei held "negotiations" with "American and British ambassadors" for a 'transfer of power'. Since when does a future 'leader' have to 'negotiate' with the representatives of the U.S. and British governments! Moreover, since when does a future leader need to "propose" to the representatives of two foreign powers the "scenarios for a transfer of power" in his own country!
It could not be any clearer that Mohamed ElBaradei – and the U.S. and British governments – do not really regard Egypt as a sovereign state; rather, they regard these two foreign powers as the real masters – or at least believe they should be the masters – of Egypt's destiny.
In Egypt as elsewhere, the process of installing, propping up, and then deposing 'demons' is the game of U.S. foreign policy. It's high time for the people of the world to put a stop to it.
RUSSIAN MEDIA: USA's 2011 National Military Strategy: We've got the power!
The following commentary is reprinted with permission from Pravda, Moscow.
USA's 2011 National Military Strategy: We've got the power!
© Pravda.ru
By Sergei Balmasov
February 10, 2011
The USA has unveiled the 2011 National Military Strategy for the first time in seven years. The strategy, as usual, serves for the preservation of the U.S. predominance in the world. The appearance of the document is based on recent major changes on the planet. The authors of the strategy pointed out a number of challenges for the United States in particular and for the Western civilization in general.
U.S. strategists claimed that the shortage of resources in the world may trigger territorial disputes, which poses a direct threat to American interests. They are also concerned about the fact that the national debt of the United States "poses a significant national security risk."
All of that is aggravated with a whole list of unsolved problems, which have become even more serious during the recent years. First and foremost, "the world's preeminent power" has not been able to defeat terrorism and extremism. The war in Afghanistan continues, and the fire of Afghan unrest is spreading into neighboring Pakistan. The strategists of the U.S. national security wrote that terrorists had nested on the Arabian Peninsula, in the countries of north-western Africa and in Somalia.
Nevertheless, the authors of the document said: "We will be prepared to find, capture, or kill violent extremists wherever they reside when they threaten interests and citizens of America and our allies." Therefore, it is not ruled out that the world will soon witness the USA launching another military adventure in the above-mentioned territories.
Secondly, the USA is concerned about the rising powers, India and China, as well as other regional powerful countries. The Americans are especially worried about China and its defense preparations in the Taiwan Strait.
In this connection, the Pentagon is not going to reduce its attention to South Asia and the Far East. However, the USA does not exclude increasing its military presence in potentially dangerous directions. "With partner nation support, we will preserve forward presence and access to the commons, bases, ports, and airfields commensurate with safeguarding our economic and security interests worldwide," the strategy runs. Here, it goes about such old allies as Japan and South Korea.
Thirdly, the nuclear proliferation issue remains unsolved as well. North Korea has proved the possession of nuclear weapons to the whole world. Iran is just about to do the same. "The prospect of multiple nuclear armed regimes in the Middle East with nascent security and command and control mechanisms amplifies the threat of conflict, and significantly increases the probability of miscalculation or the loss of control of a nuclear weapon to non-state actors," the document says.
To solve the problem, Washington intends to support regional allies, like Iraq, to develop the missile defense system, which Russia vehemently objects to, and to take defense measures against those violating the nuclear non-proliferation regime. The USA must be prepared to eliminate sources of weapons of mass destruction, the document runs.
Fourthly, by 2025, Washington predicts serious destabilization in a number of developing states because of the ongoing demographic explosion. The population of those countries will grow by 1.2 billion people, which will lead to serious food and water problems. "Conversely, in Europe and parts of Asia, populations are projected to decline and age with long term impacts to the global share of their economic output. Population growth and urbanization in the Middle East, Africa, and South Central Asia will contribute to increased water scarcity and may present governance challenges," the report says.
In other words, the American supremacy is facing many challenges on different continents. One shall pay attention to the following telling phrase: "In this multi-nodal world, the military's contribution to American leadership must be about more than power – it must be about our approach to exercising power."
Thus, the U.S. National Military Strategy must be flexible to take account of all serious changes in the world. That is why the USA must be prepared to dealing with modern-day challenges without allies' help.
"Let us not forget, the Nation remains at war abroad to defend against and defeat threats to our homeland. Our foremost priority is the security of the American people, our territory, and our way of life." "We will pursue deliberate acquisition process improvements and selective force modernization with the cost effective introduction of new equipment and technology," the report says.
U.S. strategists point out the necessity to maintain high prestige of the U.S. Armed Forces. According to the document, the state must continue to pay increased attention to improving the well-being of its defenders. "Just as our Service members commit to the Nation when they volunteer to serve, we incur an equally binding pledge to return them to society as better citizens. We must safeguard Service members' pay and benefits, provide family support, and care for our wounded warriors," the report runs.
Needless to say that the Americans could not leave Russia out of their attention. On the one hand, the document declares the intention to develop military partnership, continue the reduction of arms and build security in Central Asia in cooperation with Russia. As for the Asian security, the Americans, most likely, are planning to get Russia involved in the Afghan war.
The new strategy also mentions more important things about Russia. For instance, the USA is going to continue its cooperation with Canada regarding the issues of regional security, such as the development of the Arctic region. It is an open secret that Russia claims its right on the Arctic shelf, which infuriates Canada in the first place.
Here is another, rather expressive statement: "NATO members act as a stabilizing force on its perimeter, which ranges from the Middle East and the Levant, Northern Africa, the Balkans, and the Caucasus." One shall assume that the Americans will continue to interfere in Russia's internal affairs.
The authors of the new National Military Strategy are certain that the USA will preserve its economic and defense power in the foreseeable future. The USA still places its stake on brutal military force, which, as the authors of the report say, will contribute to America's security and prosperity in the 21st century.
STANISLAV MISHIN: How the Muslim Brotherhood Saved the U.S. Dollar
The following column is reprinted with permission from Stanislav Mishin, a regular contributor to Russian newspaper Pravda.
How the Muslim Brotherhood Saved the U.S. Dollar
© Stanislav Mishin
Source: Mat Rodina
January 30, 2011
There are two truths that the Anglo Elites know all too well: democracy in the West means a ruling oligarchy with good PR, democracy in the Middle East means Islamic Jihadists and Fundamentalists. This has been a fact for many years and is not, in any way a shock or disconnect for any of the American elites now backing "democracy" revolutions.
1. Iranian revolution, 1978-1979: Mass protests by a wide coalition against the King. Result? Mullahs take over.
2. Egypt has free parliamentary elections. Results? The Muslim Brotherhood becomes the second most powerful party in the country, before being quickly banned.
3. Americans allow free elections in Iraq. Results? Islamist parties become the main power blocks in power.
4. Palestinians have free elections: Voters protest against corrupt regime. Result? Hamas is now running the Gaza Strip.
5. Beirut Spring: Christians, Sunni Muslims, and Druze unite against Syrian control. Moderate government gains power. Result? Hezbollah is now the main political force in Lebanon.
6. Algeria holds free elections: Voters back moderate Islamist group. Result? Military coup; Islamists turn (or reveal their true thinking) radical; tens of thousands of people killed.
Quite simply, the majority of the population has an insane infatuation with extremist Islam, be it Shiite or Sunni. Again, none of this is a surprise to the owners of the Anglo sphere. So why are they so actively backing revolutions and over throws throughout the Middle East?
Already a revolution has swept out the sectarian dictator of Tunisia, with Islamists quickly moving in. Exiled leader of Tunisian Islamist party returning to role in 'new era of democracy'.
Protests, demonstrations and revolutions have now spread to Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Albania, Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Egypt is by far, the worst hit, with the government teetering, mass looting and violence becoming the norm and the Muslim Brotherhood riding high.
All of this, of course is nothing new, it is a rehash of past and present events. So, my astute readers are now asking, again, why are the Anglo Elites servicing these revolutions and how will this save the U.S. dollar, or at least stave off its death for a few more years?
To answer that one must understand that to be a vassal, er, an ally of the Anglos is worse than to be an enemy. At least an enemy knows where he stands, while an ally will be used and when his or her utilization has reached its max, will be betrayed, back stabbed and sold out as best suits the Anglos, be it an Irishman or a Half Arab who sits in the Oval Office.
So now the time has come for a new round of betrayals, to prop up the USD at the expense of allies. You see, dear reader, the U.S. dollar is the exchange currency for Oil and Gas and the higher the price, the more the USD is demanded. The more that is demanded, to buy the more expensive oil and gas, the more debt currency the U.S. private Federal Reserve gets to print up and drop off on the world, allowing for accumulation of real resources, worth real value, as well as continuing pointless Marxist programs and the off-shoring of American hyper inflation to the rest of humanity.
This is nothing new. The U.S. 'colour revolutions' were used in the Central Asian states, to create havoc in areas adjacent to oil. The first was in Uzbekistan, where the socialist dictator and U.S. ally, Karimov, has been designated for removal by a U.S.-sponsored Islamic revolution. Unfortunately for the Americans, Karimov had no problem massacring the American paid for revolutionaries. He followed this by ousting the U.S. base on his lands and running to Moscow for protection.
The U.S. dollar did not get its intended boost in the Central Asian territories, at that time, however, the Americans did not give up. Even if a revolution fails in the directly affected area, one can be staged in an adjacent area which will lead to further instability in the intended area, thus driving up the price of oil and gas. To that end, the Americans created and backed the civil war in Tajikistan, where Uzbeki fanatics, in the south of the country now have defacto rule and will export their jihad to their own mother country, thus ensuring high levels of instability for decades to come.
To that same end, the Americans are backing the revolutions on the periphery of the main oil fields of the Middle East, in full knowledge that this will spill further and further into the oil producing regions. That is the plan, after all.
Tunisia, itself, a small time oil producer, accounts for 40,000 barrels/day.
Algeria and Yemen have also faced mass protests, funded and organized by Western NGOs, even as the owners of those NGOs pretend to be sympathetic to the rulers of the countries in question. However, as in Uzbekistan, these rulers have and will continue to respond with massive force, making sure that their U.S.-sponsored, home grown Islamics do not get very far. In Yemen, early Sunday, the government arrested Tawakul Karman, a prominent journalist and member of the Islamist party Isiah. He had organized protests through text messages and emails. All of the Western press are playing their roll, screaming to the high heavens about this Islamic fundamentalist's follow on release and her love of freedom, even though Fundamentalist Islam believes in Sharia and has no freedom, other than the right to murder unbelievers.
Jordan, one of the most stable regional powers, has also been rocked by protests, as more than 5,000 people took to the streets, demanding the King give up his power, to "the people".
Egypt has not been so lucky. Its government has proven, so far, to be weak, with many in the military openly siding with the Islamic Brotherhood and its Western NGO backers. Looting in the streets is rampant, as is direct confrontation with those special police forces, and special forces, still loyal to the dictatorship. The end is only a matter of time.
Egypt itself is responsible for the production of 680,000 barrels of oil per day. While this is about 1-2% of the world total output, Egypt further plays a massive role, with the Suez Canal and the alternate Surned pipeline, of passing an additional 1 million barrels of crude bound for the European and American markets. It is bad enough with the Somali pirates pushing up the price of oil, or why do you think that a trigger-happy America willing to invade just about anyone it can, including once upon a time Somalia, suddenly is too timid to deal with a bunch of rag tag pirates?
Other protests have erupted in Morocco, Libya, Lebanon and even Albania. All around the edges of the major oil players.
More worrisome than disruptions to Egypt's oil production is the prospect that the unrest spreads to other hard-line states in the region, such as Libya and Algeria, both members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Other countries in the region, including Tunisia and Yemen, have been wracked by anti-government protests in recent weeks, though neither is a major oil producer.
"If this thing spreads across the North African continent, gets into Libya, Algeria, then you've got trouble," said Stephen Schork, editor of the Schork Report energy newsletter.
Finally, this whole process is now spilling into Saudi Arabia and soon possibly into the whole of the Gulf princedoms. The oil shocks will be profound and will be quick.
Already, with just the Egyptian upheavals, and as expected, just on the Thursday and Friday violence, oil went up over 4%, some $3.70 per barrel. Another similar rise can be expected this week, if not higher. When, not if, Mubarak's government falls, oil should be expected to hit close to the $100 mark. With Nigeria also sinking into civil war, oil may well peak over $100/barrel by the end of February.
The American media and their other Western underlings and affiliates, are doing their part in colouring these as peoples' fights for freedom and human rights. Of course they know full well what this will lead to: Islamic fundamentalism, which is the only result that this has ever led to. Then when this happens, when the correct end result is in place, those very same self-serving hypocrites, will throw up their hands and declare that they are shocked that those stupid, dirty Arabs could not make any go of "freedom" even after all the help they were given.
The Americans have been preparing for this for years. Many foolishly blame this on Obama, he is a part of this, but his is only the final chapter in the preparation for one of the last ditch efforts to stave off Judgment Day of the U.S. dollar and its debt built and house of cards economy.
"What happened in Georgia with the Rose Revolution and Orange Revolution in Ukraine in 2003-2004 was part of a long-term strategy orchestrated by the Pentagon, the State Department and various U.S.-financed NGOs like Freedom House and National Endowment for Democracy to create pro-NATO regime change in those former Soviet Union areas and to literally encircle Russia," author and researcher William Engdahl told RT.
"What is going on in the Middle East with the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia that we saw a few days ago, and now in Egypt with Mubarak in his 80s, and obviously a regime that is not exactly the most stable one, we have a food crisis taking place as a backdrop and the IMF coming and telling these countries to eliminate their state food subsidies so you have, of course, the explosive background for popular unrest. Within that you have these NGOs, like Freedom House, training activists and trade unions and various other organizations to demand democracy, demand human rights and so forth," he added.
This earlier report by RT ["TV Novosti"] sums the process up even better:
Dr. William Robinson is one of the foremost experts on Washington's democracy promotion initiatives, he wrote the book 'Promoting Polyarhcy.'
"In Latin America, in Eastern Europe with the Velvet Revolutions, in Africa, in the Middle East, really all over the world, the U.S. set up these different mechanisms now for penetrating these civil societies in the political systems of countries that are going to be intervened and to assure the outcome is going to be pleasing to Washington's foreign policy objectives," said Robinson.
Lawrence Wilkerson, the former Chief of Staff to former Secretary of State Colin Powell said, "We do this through surrogates and non-governmental organization and through people who are less suspecting of the evil that may lurk behind their actions than perhaps they were before. Have we learned some lessons in that regard? You bet! Do we do it better? You bet! Is it still just as heinous as it has always been? You bet!"
The Americans call this process Creative Destruction, that is the new catch phrase for world revolutions, no different than that which was exported from our own country while it was ruled by Anglo financed Marxists. While the PR may be promising and alluring, the results will be misery and death for those in ground zero: with tourism and industry fleeing fundamentalist regimes, resulting in yet more starvation and poverty, and a massive enrichment for the top 1% of the Anglo elite who could not give a bigger damn, no matter what their fully owned media mouth pieces may be saying.
The massive increases in the price of oil, as well as the increased demand for weapons by those states who border these areas, will line the pockets of thousands of executives and politicians in America, and to a smaller level, of England, for decades to come. If a war or three are spawned from this, even better.
Furthermore, with refugees and terrorism flooding Europe, which is finally starting to react violently to the virus that is attacking the body social at large, and the confiscation of European industry in Northern Africa, the Euro will be on the front lines of these new Islamic plagues, like never before. It will take another beating, with the dollar remaining a "safe" investment. Just another big plus, not to mention the new missions for NATO and that military-industrial complex, this will generate.
As for the American serfs, the little people? Well, the $6-10/gallon ($1.50-$2.25/liter) gasoline will crush them. Sure, the socialist welfare programs that their government will finance by selling yet more dollars, will help some, but it is a mild treatment for a terminal disease. Their falling wages, in the face of mass and growing unemployment as well as soaring inflation, will drag the last of the middle class into poverty and slavery. However, unlike the Arabs or the French or most other people of the world, they will do what their British cousins have been doing for the past 30 years, put up a stiff upper lip and accept this as their reality. And yes, as before, for the world at large, their owners in NYC, DC and London, could not really give a bigger damn.
A passive people, believing in their own illusionary freedoms and high on their own self importance, make for the best slaves and no where are there more such slaves than in the USA.
The rest of us will also have to live with an ever more violent world, courtesy of the biggest sponsor of Islamic insanity the world has ever had the sorry state of knowing.
Uncertain World: Terrorism's local roots
The following column is reprinted with permission from RIA Novosti.
Uncertain World: Terrorism's local roots
© RIA Novosti
By Fyodor Lukyanov
January 27, 2011
International terrorism was at the forefront of global politics in the first decade of this young century. The concept is actually relatively new.
After the September 11 attacks shook America to its core, the Bush administration declared war on "international terrorism" and sought to enlist others in the cause. This was initially intended to serve as the organizing principle for a new international system. But really it was the same good-versus-evil dichotomy, with international terrorism taking the place once occupied by the Soviet threat.
It seemed at first that they might succeed. The broad coalition in the "war on terror" overthrew the Taliban in Afghanistan and drove them out of Kabul. But this was the high watermark for the coalition.
There was a design flaw in the war on terror. A global counterterrorism campaign must be comprehensive and rooted in cooperation, but the United States ended up using it as a tool to maintain global dominance. That drive toward dominance included exerting pressure – hard and soft – on other countries to follow America's lead. But no one likes to be pressured.
Washington's dubious motivation was only part of the problem. Many began to doubt that "international terrorism" really existed as a distinct phenomenon.
In the era of globalization, we are more interconnected and interdependent than ever before. The "martyrs" are no longer confined to the Middle East. They are found on the Moscow subway system and at Russian airports. However, the recent attacks in Moscow and Nalchik were not committed by the abstract international terrorists we are called on to fight. These attacks were carried out by specific Islamic groups from the Caucasus.
Terrorism today can have a global impact while still being rooted in local problems. International terrorism is, in fact, a collection of various separatist and nationalist movements. Each of these groups – in Russia, Indonesia, Sudan, Palestinian Territories, Afghanistan, China, India, Turkey or Yemen – is opposed to its respective government and calls for self-determination or the overthrow of the current regime.
Even the unprecedented attacks of September 11 were a specific extremist group's response to U.S. ambitions in the world, which successive administrations have been pursuing since the end of the Cold War. They see America as a global empire controlling vast territories, either directly or indirectly.
As such, George W. Bush's attempt to make international terrorism the focus of global politics was doomed from the start. First of all, the concept was overly broad and subject to various interpretations by different political leaders. Most governments tried to use the perceived terrorist threat to expand their power. U.S. intelligence agencies were granted greater authority, while Russia put an end to the direct election of regional governors.
Second, because international terrorism is a manufactured concept, it could not bring countries together to work toward a common goal. Each new country joining the coalition against international terrorism brought its own interpretation of the concept. Again, this was to be expected, as there was no common threat in actuality. Terrorists are not a monolith, even if they do share some motives and means. As a result, the war on international terrorism is at best an empty slogan and at worst a source of irritation between countries caused by the inevitable double standards.
Third, there can be no one-size-fits-all solution to terrorism, because terrorism is rooted in local grievances specific to each country.
The purpose of a major terrorist attack is to undermine a specific government, to make it look weak and ineffectual. Therefore, the initial reaction of the government is always to prove its strength by striking back with sanctioned violence.
If a quasi-state is involved, such as the self-proclaimed Chechen Republic of the late 1990s or the Taliban regime, it becomes the target of revenge. Both Russia and the United States sent in troops that ultimately succeeded in destroying the basic terrorist infrastructure in Chechnya and Afghanistan, respectively. But neither knew what to do next, when the surviving enemies fled and became ghosts in the hills, posing even greater danger.
No government has found the answer yet. The illusion of stability brought by the use of overwhelming force fades very quickly, and it becomes clear that the new, unconventional war may drag on forever. Each new act of retribution swells the ranks of the enemy.
Eliminating the roots of terrorism is a long and complex process with no guarantee of success. The United States learned this lesson in the deserts of Iraq and Afghanistan. Russia learned it in the mountains of the Caucasus. America can at least leave these foreign lands when the situation becomes unbearable, although the terrorists could strike again on U.S. soil. Russia is not so fortunate. Russia cannot leave the Caucasus, and so it will have to keep trying to find a balance between suppression and development in its fight against terrorism.
Fyodor Lukyanov is Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs journal – the most authoritative source of expertise on Russian foreign policy and global developments. He is also a frequent commentator on international affairs and contributes to various media in the United States, Europe and China, including academic journals Social Research, Europe-Asia Studies, Columbia Journal of International Affairs. Mr. Lukyanov is a senior member of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy and a member of the Presidential Council on Human Rights and Civic Society Institutions. He holds a degree from Moscow State University.
Iraqi security forces on arrest campaign against Baaquba intellectuals
The following article is from Iraqi newspaper Azzaman.
Iraqi security forces on arrest campaign against Baaquba intellectuals
© Azzaman
By Kareem al-Zair
January 26, 2011
In a fresh crackdown, Iraqi security forces have arrested more than 100 intellectuals from the restive Province of Diyala of which Baaquba is the capital.
The crackdown comes amid reports of an upsurge in security in the province which groups resisting U.S. occupation and the current government have turned into a stronghold.
Among those arrested are four top medical professors teaching at the Diyala University's Medical College, professors Mazen Razzouqi, Adel al-Hussaini, Ali al-Husaini and Bahaa Abed.
It is not clear why Iraqi security forces have arrested the intellectuals at a time the Diyala University suffers from severe faculty shortages.
The arrests have angered university staff and students who have demanded their immediate release.
The security forces decline to say why they have made the arrests and whether there will be any charges.
IRAQ: How will Muqtada Al-Sadr save Hezbollah and Syria from Hariri's indictment?
The following article is reprinted with permission from Roads to Iraq, intel blog.
How will Muqtada Al-Sadr save Hezbollah and Syria from Hariri's indictment?
© Roads to Iraq
January 16, 2011
Managed to maintain its strength among the masses, Al-Sadr employed this force to achieve political gains ahead of all the other Islamic forces, holding forty parliamentary seats, seven ministries, and the parliament Deputy-presidency, which made the leader of the Movement a major political player with the ability to influence the overall political process.This political weight would give Muqtada Al-Sadr a semi-immunity against emergency circumstances.
The real strategic secret behind Muqtada Al-Sadr's return to Iraq is precisely calculated. We already know that Al-Sadr has a strong relation with the Syrian leadership, as well as a special "family, organizational and logistical" ties with Hassan Nasrallah and Hezbollah, not to mention his relation with Iran, which is for Iraqi Shiite politicians is the highest Shiite political reference, and a strategic ally.
The International tribunal's decision or indictment against for the assassination of "Hariri" is very close [Monday according to the French Le Monde], especially after the failure of the initiative "Syria and Saudi Arabia" with pressure from the U.S. and France.
We already know that the indictment will accuse members of the Lebanese Hezbollah and perhaps some Syrian officials. This will put the "Lebanese-Syrian-Iranian" front in a regional declaration of war.
Since Iraq has become linked geopolitical and logistically to Lebanon and vice versa. Iraq will be affected by any development in Lebanon, and this forced Al-Sadr to return to Iraq as quick as possible, to not to leave Lebanon, Hezbollah, Syria and Iran without insurance, protection from the weak Iraqi link. At the same Hezbollah, Syria and Iran will back the Sadrist Movement within the same strategy.
Here is Iraq's FM Zebari saying:
Iraq was following up developments of the tribunal … We are also a party in this equation. We are not absent from U.S.-Iranian relations, [Iran's] nuclear issue, the situation in Lebanon, the tribunal's decision or indictment and from relations with Syria.
At this point, Al-Sadr will raise the readiness of the Sadrist Movement and all its military wings to open a front against the U.S. to ease the tension on Hezbollah and Syria, if both sense the danger of U.S.-Israel military activities.
This is what the Syria newspaper Al-Watan wrote two days ago:
Washington military bases in Iraq and Afghanistan … Will collide against the Arab and Islamic forces who do not accept and resist the American military intervention.
The return of Muqtada al-Sadr is a message to the Americans in the first place to reshuffle its agenda, The U.S. tried to identify the approach adopted by al-Sadr after his return in dealing with the overall political and security situation in Iraq, circulating the the leader of the movement is less radical than before, despite his focus on "resisting the occupation" in his recent speech "peacefully".
Timed after Biden's visit and his talks with Sistani (lasted about 3 hours in private), Al-Sadr adopted the "Liwa'a Al-Youm Al-Maoud" "The Promised Day" militia today and promised to continue the fight against the Americans, saying:
"Liwa'a Al-Youm Al-Maoud" belongs to us and is not affiliated to any one else. They are obedient and ask God to grant them victory.
Washington considers "the Promised Day", "Hezbollah in Iraq", "Revenge of God" and the "League of the Righteous" are militias linked and funded by Iran.
Because the Sadrists feel that they allowed Maliki to his second term, the presence of its leader in the arena may influence the performance of the government and thus will force the prime minister to implement the U.S. withdrawal without delay according to the security agreement signed between the two sides, and that will put the Prime Minister in a very difficult position in the dramatic developments in Lebanon.
The Balkanization of Sudan: The Redrawing of the Middle East and North Africa
The following commentary is reprinted with permission from Global Research.
The Balkanization of Sudan: The Redrawing of the Middle East and North Africa
© Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya
Source: Global Research
January 16, 2011
Sudan is a diverse nation and a country that represents the plurality of Africa through various tribes, clans, ethnicities, and religious groups. Yet the unity of Sudan is in question, while there is talk of unifying nations and of one day creating a United States of Africa through the African Union.
The limelight is on the January 2011 referendum in South Sudan. The Obama Administration has formally announced that it supports the separation of South Sudan from the rest of Sudan.
The balkanization of Sudan is what is really at stake. For years the leaders and officials of South Sudan have been supported by America and the European Union.
The Politically-Motivated Demonization of Sudan
A major demonization campaign has been underway against Sudan and its government. True, the Sudanese government in Khartoum has had a bad track record in regards to human rights and state corruption, and nothing could justify this.
In regards to Sudan, selective or targeted condemnation has been at work. One should, nonetheless, ask why the Sudanese leadership has been targeted by the U.S. and E.U., while the human rights records of several U.S. sponsored client states including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the U.A.E., and Ethiopia are casually ignored.
Khartoum has been vilified as a autocratic oligarchy guilty of targeted genocide in both Darfour and South Sudan. This deliberate focus on the bloodshed and instability in Darfour and South Sudan is political and motivated by Khartoum's ties to Chinese oil interests.
Sudan supplies China with a substantial amount of oil. The geo-political rivalry between China and the U.S. for control of African and global energy supplies is the real reason for the chastisement of Sudan and the strong support shown by the U.S., the E.U., and Israeli officials for the seccession of South Sudan.
It is in this context that Chinese interests have been attacked. This includes the October 2006 attack on the Greater Nile Petroleum Company in Defra, Kordofan by the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) militia.
Distorting the Violence in Sudan
While there is a humanitarian crisis in Darfour and a surge in regional nationalism in South Sudan, the underlying causes of the conflict have been manipulated and distorted.
The underlying causes for the humanitarian crisis in Darfour and the regionalism in South Sudan are intimately related to economic and strategic interests. If anything, lawlessness and economic woes are the real issues, which have been fuelled by outside forces.
Either directly or through proxies in Africa, the U.S., the E.U., and Israel are the main architects behind the fighting and instability in both Darfour and South Sudan. These outside powers have assisted in the training, financing, and arming of the militias and forces opposed to the Sudanese government within Sudan. They lay the blame squarely on Khartoum's shoulders for any violence while they themselves fuel conflict in order to move in and control the energy resources of Sudan. The division of Sudan into several states is part of this objective. Support of the JEM, the South Sudan Liberation Army (SSLA), and other militias opposed to the Sudanese government by the U.S., the E.U., and Israel has been geared towards achieving the objective of dividing Sudan.
It is also no coincidence that for years the U.S., Britain, France, and the entire E.U. under the pretext of humanitarianism have been pushing for the deployment of foreign troops in Sudan. They have actively pushed for the deployment of NATO troops in Sudan under the cover of a U.N. peacekeeping mandate.
This is a re-enactment of the same procedures used by the U.S. and E.U. in other regions where countries have either formally or informally been divided and their economies restructured by foreign-installed proxy governments under the presence of foreign troops. This is what happened in the former Yugoslavia (through the creation of several new republics) and in Anglo-American occupied Iraq (through soft balkanization via a calculated form of federalism aimed at establishing a weak and de-centralized state). Foreign troops and a foreign presence have provided the cloud for state dismantlement and the foreign takeover of state infrastructure, resources, and economies.
The Question of Identity in Sudan
While the Sudanese state has been portrayed as being oppressive towards the people in South Sudan, it should be noted that both the referendum and the power sharing structure of the Sudanese government portray something else. The power sharing agreement in Khartoum between Omar Al-Basher, the president of Sudan, includes the SPLM. The leader of the SPLM, Salva Kiir Mayardit, is the First Vice-President of Sudan and the President of South Sudan.
The issue of ethnicity has also been brought to the forefront of the regional or ethno-regional nationalism that has been cultivated in South Sudan. The cleavage in Sudan between so-called Arab Sudanese and so-called African Sudanese has been presented to the outside world as the major force for the regional nationalism motivating calls for statehood in South Sudan. Over the years this self-differentiation has been diffused and socialized into the collective psyche of the people of South Sudan.
Yet, the difference between so-called Arab Sudanese and so-called African Sudanese are not that great. The Arab identity of so-called Sudanese Arabs is based primarily on their use of the Arabic language. Let us even assume that both Sudanese ethnic identities are totally separate. It is still widely known in Sudan that both groups are very mixed. The other difference between South Sudan and the rest of Sudan is that Islam predominates in the rest of Sudan and not in South Sudan. Both groups are still deeply tied to one another, except for a sense of self-identification, which they are well in their rights to have. Yet, it is these different identities that have been played upon by local leaders and outside powers.
Neglect of the local population of different regions by the elites of Sudan is what the root cause of anxiety or animosity between people in South Sudan and the Khartoum government are really based on and not differences between so-called Arab and so-called African Sudanese.
Regional favouritism has been at work in South Sudan.
The issue is also compounded by social class. The people of South Sudan believe that their economic status and standards of living will improve if they form a new republic. The government in Khartoum and non-Southerner Sudanese have been used as the scapegoats for the economic miseries of the people of South Sudan and their perceptions of relative poverty by the local leadership of South Sudan. In reality, the local officials of South Sudan will not improve the living standards of the people of South Sudan, but maintain a klepocratic status quo. [1]
The Long-Standing Project to Balkanize Sudan and its links to the Arab World
In reality, the balkanization project in Sudan has been going on since the end of British colonial rule in Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. Sudan and Egypt were one country during many different periods. Both Egypt and Sudan were also one country in practice until 1956.
Up until the independence of Sudan, there was a strong movement to keep Egypt and Sudan united as a single Arab state, which was struggling against British interests. London, however, fuelled Sudanese regionalism against Egypt in the same manner that regionalism has been at work in South Sudan against the rest of Sudan. The Egyptian government was depicted in the same way as present-day Khartoum. Egyptians were portrayed as exploiting the Sudanese just as how the non-Southern Sudanese have been portrayed as exploiting the South Sudanese.
After the British invasion of Egypt and Sudan, the British also managed to keep their troops stationed in Sudan. Even while working to divide Sudan from Egypt, the British worked to create internal differentations between South Sudan and the rest of Sudan. This was done through the Anglo-Egyptian Condominium, from 1899 to 1956, which forced Egypt to share Sudan with Britain after the Mahdist Revolts. Eventually the Egyptian government would come to refuse to recognize the Anglo-Egyptian Condominium as legal. Cairo would continously ask the British to end their illegal military occupation of Sudan and to stop preventing the re-integration of Egypt and Sudan, but the British would refuse.
It would be under the presence of British troops that Sudan would declare itself independent. This is what lead to the emergence of Sudan as a separate Arab and African state from Egypt. Thus, the balkanization process started with the division of Sudan from Egypt.
The Yinon Plan at work in Sudan and the Middle East
The balkanization of Sudan is also tied to the Yinon Plan, which is a continuation of British stratagem. The strategic objective of the Yinon Plan is to ensure Israeli superority through the balkanization of the Middle Eastern and Arab states into smaller and weaker states. It is in this context that Israel has been deeply involved in Sudan.
Israeli strategists viewed Iraq as their biggest strategic challenge from an Arab state. This is why Iraq was outlined as the centre piece to the balkanization of the Middle East and the Arab World. The Atlantic in this context published an article in 2008 by Jeffrey Goldberg called "After Iraq: What Will the Middle East Look Like?" [2] In the Goldberg article a map of the Middle East was presented that closely followed the outline of the Yinon Plan and the map of a future Middle East presented by Lieutentant-Colonel (retired) Ralph Peters in the U.S military's Armed Forces Journal in 2006.
It is also no coincidence that aside from a divided Iraq a divided Sudan was shown on the map. Lebanon, Iran, Turkey, Syria, Egypt, Somalia, Pakistan, and Afghanistan were also presented as divided nations too. Of importance to East Africa in the map, illustrated by Holly Lindem for Goldberg's article, Eriteria is occupied by Ethiopia, which is a U.S. and Israeli ally, and Somalia is divided into Somaliland, Puntland, and a smaller Somalia.
In Iraq, on the basis of the concepts of the Yinon Plan, Israeli strategists have called for the division of Iraq into a Kurdish state and two Arab states, one for Shiite Muslims and the other for Sunni Muslims. This has been achieved through the soft balkanization of federalism in Iraq, which has allowed the Kurdistan Regional Government to negotiate with foreign oil corporations on its own. The first step towards establishing this was a war between Iraq and Iran, which is discussed in the Yinon Plan.
In Lebanon, Israel has been working to exasparate sectarian tensions between the various Christian and Muslim factions as well as the Druze. The division of Lebanon into several states is also seen as a means of balkanizing Syria into several smaller sectarian Arab states. The objectives of the Yinon Plan is to divide Lebanon and Syria into several states on the basis of religious and sectarian identities for Sunni Muslims, Shiite Muslims, Christians, and the Druze.
In this regard, the Hariri Assasination and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) have been playing out to the favour of Israel in creating internal divisions within Lebanon and fuelling politically-motivated sectarianism. This is why Tel Aviv has been very vocal about the STL and very supportive of it. In a clear sign of the politized nature of the STL and its ties to geo-politics, the U.S. and Britain have also given the STL millions of dollars.
The Links between the Attacks on the Egyptian Copts and the South Sudan Referendum
From Iraq to Egypt, Christians in the Middle East have been under attack, while tensions between Shiite Muslims and Sunni Muslims are being fuelled. The attack on a Coptic Church in Alexandria on January 1, 2011 or the subsequent Coptic protests and riots should not be looked at in isolation. [3] Nor should the subsequent fury of Coptic Christians expressed towards Muslims and the Egyptian government. These attacks on Christians are tied to the broader geo-political goals of the U.S., Britain, Israel, and NATO in the Middle East and Arab World.
The Yinon Plan stipulates that if Egypt were divided that Sudan and Libya would also be balkanized and weakened. In this context, there is a link between Sudan and Egypt. According to the Yinon Plan, the Copts or Christians of Egypt, which are a large minority in Egypt, are the key to the balkanization of the Arab states in North Africa. Thus, the Yinon Plan states that the creation of a Coptic state in Upper Egypt (South Egypt) and Christian-Muslim tensions within Egyptian are vital steps to balkanizing Sudan and North Africa.
The attacks on Christians in the Middle East are part of intelligence operations intended to divide the Middle East and North Africa. The timing of the mounting attacks on Coptic Christians in Egypt and the build-up to the referendum in South Sudan are no coincidence. The events in Sudan and Egypt are linked to one another and are part of the project to balkanize the Arab World and the Middle East. They must also be studied in conjunction with the Yinon Plan and with the events in Lebanon and Iraq, as well as in relation to the efforts to create a Shiite-Sunni divide.
The Outside Connections of the SPLM, SSLA, and Militias in Darfour
As in the case of Sudan, outside interference or intervention has been used to justify the oppression of domestic opposition. Despite its corruption, Khartoum has been under siege for refusing to merely be a proxy.
Sudan is justified in suspecting foreign troops and accusing the U.S., Britain, and Israel of eroding the national solidarity of Sudan. For example, Israel has sent arms to the opposition groups and separatist movements in Sudan. This was done through Ethiopia for years until Eritrea became independent from Ethiopia, which made Ethiopia lose its Red Sea coast, and bad relations developed between the Ethiopians and Eritreans. Afterwards Israeli weapons entered South Sudan from Kenya. From South Sudan, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), which is the political arm of the SSLA, would transfer weapons to the militias in Darfur. The governments of Ethiopia and Kenya, as well as the the Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF), have also been working closely with the U.S., Britain, and Israel in East Africa.
The extent of Israeli influence with Sudanese opposition and separatist groups is significant. The SPLM has strong ties with Israel and its members and supporters regularly visit Israel. It is due to this that Khartoum capitulated and removed the Sudanese passport restriction on visiting Israel in late-2009 to satisfy the SPLM. [4] Salva Kiir Mayardit has also said that South Sudan will recognize Israel when it separates from Sudan.
The Sudan Tribune reported on March 5, 2008 that separatist groups in Darfur and Southern Sudan had offices in Israel:
[Sudan People's Liberation Movement] supporters in Israel announced establishment of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement office in Israel, a press release said today.
"After consultation with the leadership of SPLM in Juba, the supporters of SPLM in Israel have decided to establish the office of SPLM in Israel." Said [sic.] a statement received by email from Tel Aviv signed by the SLMP secretariat in Israel.
The statement said that SPLM office would promote the policies and the vision of the SPLM in the region. It further added that in accordance with the Comprehensive Peace Agreement the SPLM has the right to open in any country including Israel. It also indicated that there are around 400 SPLM supporters in Israel. Darfur rebel leader Abdel Wahid al-Nur said last week he opened an office in Tel Aviv. [5]
The Hijacking of the 2011 Referendum in South Sudan
What happened to the dreams of a united Africa or a united Arab World? Pan-Arabism, a movement to unit all Arabic-speaking peoples, has taken heavy losses as has African unity. The Arab World and Africa have consistenly been balkanized.
Secession and balkanization in East Africa and the Arab World are on the U.S., Israeli, and NATO drawing board.
The SSLA insurgency has been covertly supported by the U.S., Britain, and Israel since the 1980s. The formation of a new state in the Sudan is not intended to serve the interests of the people of South Sudan. It has been part of a broader geo-strategic agenda aimed at controlling North Africa and the Middle East.
The resulting process of "democratization" leading up to the January 2011 referendum serves the interests of the Anglo-American oil companies and the rivalry against China. This comes at the cost of the detriment of true national sovereignty in South Sudan.
[1] A kleptocracy is a government or/and state that works to protect, extend, deepen, continue, and entrench the wealth of the ruling class.
[2] Jeffrey Goldberg, "After Iraq: What Will The Middle East Look Like?" The Atlantic, January/February 2008.
[3] William Maclean, "Copts on global Christmas alert after Egypt bombing", Reuters, January 5, 2011.
[4] "Sudan removes Israel travel ban from new passport", Sudan Tribune, October 3, 2009:
[5] "Sudan's SPLM reportedly opens an office in Israel – statement", Sudan Tribune, March 5, 2008:
Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya is a Research Associate of the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG).


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Border wars: Plumbers union fights green building because the waterless no-flush urinals will "spread disease". Um, don't you mean they will spread "less work for plumbers?"
I'm intrigued by stories such as this one in the ABC News about the plumbers union in Philadelphia who claim that no-flush green urinals are a health threat. I wonder if the union sees them more as a health threat to the UNION DUES than to the USERS.
Does anybody have any information on negative health effects of waterless urinals??


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BnB Chalet-Gafri
Set in Wilderswil, BnB Chalet-Gafri provides accommodation with access to a garden. Free WiFi is provided. The bed and breakfast offers a flat-screen TV and a private bathroom with slippers, free toiletries and shower. There is a seating and a dining area in all units. A continental breakfast is available each morning at the property. BnB Chalet-Gafri offers a barbecue. Both a bicycle rental service and a car rental service are available at this property, while skiing and cycling can be enjoyed nearby. Bern is 45 km from the accommodation. The nearest airport is Bern-Belp Airport, 39 km from the property.


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Month: December 2013
Letter from Minister Noonan to Irish Fiscal Advisory Council responding to the council's November 2013 Fiscal Assessment Report
Draghi: Der Spiegel Interview
This interview provides a useful end-of-year perspective on the current agenda facing the ECB: here.
Christmas Economics Books
This Christmas, along with the usual socks, ties, and shoe polishing kits (no, not really), my presents given and received included quite a few economics books, and book vouchers. Here are the ones I got as presents–which ones do you think we should all look at in the next few months? Put a link (and just one link, as comments with more than one link need to be approved) in the comments.
The Battle of Bretton Woods. This book by Benn Steil shows us the story of how Bretton Woods negotiations evolved, how Keynes and US bureaucrat Harry Dexter White fought over the design of the post war international economy, and how White turned out, in the end, to be a Soviet spy. The book is riveting so far.
Political Arithmetic: Simon Kuznets and the Empirical Tradition in Economics. This book is a scientific biography of Nobellist Simon Kuznets and a trip through the development of national income accounting. The writing is somewhat turgid in places, but in fairness, it is hard to make the NIPA sexy.
The Economy of Prestige: Prizes, Awards, and the Circulation of Cultural Value. This is an attempt to understand why prizes proliferate in modern society, and why they are so important as signalling devices. The writing is great and it is an ambitious work of sociology.
Jan 31st Conference on Economic Policy
On January 31st 2014, the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), the Department of Economics at the University of Limerick (UL) and the Geary Institute at UCD are hosting a conference on Irish economy policy at the Institute of Bankers.
The conference will explore current issues in economic policy in key areas: Industrial Relations, Housing Debt, Banking, Fiscal Policy, Migration and the teaching of Economics. The outline programme is set out below.
The conference aims to provide a forum for discussion of new ideas on the conduct of Irish economic policy, including the extent to which economics and related disciplines can make a greater contribution to the conduct of economic policy in Ireland, and the extent to which policy can be designed more effectively. The speakers and chairs come from a range of institutions and disciplines and there also be online access to presentations to ensure to enable debate through blogs and twitter. There will be a registration charge of €20. There is no charge for student participants. Coffee will be provided mid-morning and there will be a break at 12.45 to enable participants to take lunch.
Registration will open early in the New Year.
Irish Economic Policy Conference 2014
Theme: Economic Policy after the Bailout
Venue: The Institute of Bankers
Date: 31st January 2013
Session 1 9:30 – 10:50
1A. The Impact of the Crisis on Industrial Relations
Chair: TBC
– Kieran Mulvey (DJEI)
– Shay Cody (Impact)
– Michelle O'Sullivan/Tom Turner (UL)
1B. Economics: Teaching and Practice
Chair: Ronan Gallagher(DPER)
– Brian Lucey (TCD): Economics and Finance Education Before and After the Crash
– Liam Delaney (Stirling): Graduate Economics Education
– Third Speaker TBC
Session 2 11:20 – 1:00
2A. Migration and the Labour Market
Chair: Philip O'Connell(UCD)
– Piaras MacÉinri (UCC)
– Peter Muhlau (TCD)
– Alan Barrett/Irene Mosca (TCD)
2B. Debt and Default
Chair: Fiona Muldoon (CBI)
– Greg Connor (NUIM)
– Ronan Lyons (TCD)
– Third Speaker TBC
Session 3 2:10 – 3:30
3A. Health and Recovery
Chair: TBC
David Madden (UCD)
Charles Normand/Anne Nolan (TCD/ESRI)
Paul Gorecki (ESRI)
3B. Fiscal Policy
Chair: Stephen Kinsella (UL)
– Seamus Coffey (UCC): "The continuing constraints on Irish fiscal policy"
– Diarmuid Smyth (IFAC)
– Third speaker TBC
Session 4 3:50 – 5:00
Plenary Session: Future of Banking
An Irish Economy Christmas Carol by Gavin Kostick
An Irish Economy Christmas Carol
Part One
Old Trichet was dead. This fact must be distinct or nothing of the wonder of what follows is to be understood. As dead as the French Franc.
Ebeneezer Draghi certainly understood it. He had helped to carry Old Trichet's coffin, had buried him and now had his picture on the wall in his cramped office at Frankfurt Towers.
It was a bitingly savage Christmas Eve, and outside the windows the winds howled and boomed like giants at some kind of utterly destructive, savage play.
The markets, thought Draghi gloomily, they don't like Christmas. They don't like the idea of a day off, why any moment now –
"Snr, Draghi?"
And there it was: Shay Crachit was looking up expectantly from his desk.
"What is it Mr Crachit?"
"About tomorrow. Christmas Day."
"What about it?"
"I was thinking perhaps I might have the morning off."
"With pay I suppose."
"It is customary, sir."
"Certainly, Mr Crachit, now you mention it, you may have the whole day off."
"Why thank you, sir."
"And the whole week, and the whole month. I'm putting you on a zero hour contract."
"What's that, sir?"
"It's what we're giving everyone. No guarantee of work, no guarantee of pay, but you have to be available twenty four hours a day, seven days a week and no holidays. What do you say to that Mr. Crachit?"
"Sounds most fair sir, we workers must be grateful for what the bosses chose to create for us what with their creative ability to magic up wealth which we so sadly lack."
"Less of the class politics, Shay. Besides, there's no workers now."
"Destroyed them all have we, sir?"
"No, we're all taxpayers now. Except the bloodsucking idlers."
Continue reading "An Irish Economy Christmas Carol by Gavin Kostick"
Irish Economic Association Annual Conference: Call for Papers
The 28th annual Irish Economic Association Conference will be held at the Castletroy Park Hotel, Limerick on Thursday May 8th and Friday May 9th, 2014. The ESR guest lecture will be given by Rachel Griffith (Manchester) and the Edgeworth Lecture by Jordi Gali (CREI). Submissions can be made through this site, the deadline for submitted articles is February 7th, 2014.
IMF on Ireland: Twelfth Review Under the Extended Arrangement and Proposal for Post-Program Monitoring
Domestic demand in historical context
Today's CSO readings are good news and should be seen in their recent historical context.
News headlines are pointing to the 'domestic' part of the economy experiencing an uptick. Let's look at final domestic demand as one measure of this. The two figures below bear this out, with the latest data coloured in red, and the series indexed to 2008 Q1, the peak of final domestic demand. The first plots out the movement from 2002 until 2013 Q3, the second from 2010.
The clear uptick can be seen, but the economy is obviously still fragile and the uptick, in the context of a rather demand-depressed economy, shouldn't be overstated.
One of the data mysteries in Ireland in the last few years has been the accumulation of large "net errors and omissions" in the balance of payments in 2010-2012 (summing to €26.4 billion over that period) – the large measured current account surpluses should have a counterpart in large measured net financial outflows but these are not to be found in the data, with one interpretation that the net financial outflows has been of an "unrecorded" nature. The data for Q1-Q3 in 2013 suggest that the NEO term this year should be small – but with no dent made in the large stock of NEO from the last few years. (Usually, negative NEO values are quickly followed by positive NEO values so that the accumulated stock reverts to zero.)
This matters in terms of understanding the overall international financial position of the economy, which is a key indicator for many investors and in relation to working out the repair of sectoral balance sheets in Ireland.
New CSO Data Releases
Winter 2013 Issue of ESR
Vol 44, No 4, Winter (2013)
Table of Contents
|Competitive Balance and Match Attendance in European Rugby Union Leagues
|Vincent Hogan, Patrick Massey, Shane Massey
|Increasing the State Pension Age, the Recession and Expected Retirement Ages
|Alan Barrett, Irene Mosca
|Determinants of Default: Evidence from a Sector-level Panel of Irish SME Loans
|Martina Lawless, Fergal McCann
Policy Section Articles
|Tax Policy Challenges in EU Countries: A Few Lessons from the 2012 Commission Tax Reform Report and the European Semester
|Gilles Mourre
|The Structure of Ireland's Tax System and Options for Growth Enhancing Reform
|Brendan O'Connor
BOI downgraded by Moody's
Yesterday Moody's downgraded BOI, lowering deposits to Ba2 and senior unsecured debt to Ba3, with negative outlook. These are the same speculative grades it applies to AIB. The agency has PTSB lower with a B1 rating for deposits and B3 for unsecured debt.
The Moody's report on BOI is here and gives some useful insights into the reasoning applied by Moody's. The rating on subordinated debt in BOI was raised from C to B2 with preference stock raised to Caa2 also from C. Senior bonds covered by the ELG remain at Ba1 with stable outlook.
This is a chart of Moody's recent deposit ratings for BOI.
"The Irish economy has turned the corner"
Details of the Winter 2013 QEC from the ESRI are here.
From the Executive Summary:
Also included the in the QEC are:
- Special Article: Distributional Impact of Tax, Welfare and Public Service Pay Policies: Budget 2014 and Budgets 2009-2014, by Tim Callan, Claire Keane, Michael Savage and John R. Walsh
- Special Article: Lost in Transition? The Labour Market Pathways of Long-term Unemployed Individuals in Ireland Pre and Post the Great Recession, by Elish Kelly and Seamus McGuinness
- Research Note 2013/3/1: The Impact of Fiscal Policy on the Economy, by John FitzGerald
The Medium Term Economic Strategy for the seven years to 2020 is available here.
The main projections are in this table
EBA Transparency Exercise 2013
A useful summary report is here.
Detailed results on the Irish banks involved are also available:
All the material published is available here.
New IEA Website
Is here. We'll be updating the content incrementally.
St Gallen on the Irish Bailout
Irish Economic Policy Conference 2014
Irish Economic Policy Conference 2014
ESRI-DEW-UL-UCD Geary
Theme: Economic Policy after the Bailout
Venue: The Institute of Bankers
Date: 31st January 2013
The conference aims to provide a forum for discussion of new ideas on the conduct of Irish economic policy, including the extent to which economics and related disciplines can make a greater contribution to the conduct of economic policy in Ireland, and the extent to which policy can be designed more effectively. The speakers and chairs come from a range of institutions and disciplines and there also be online access to presentations to ensure to enable debate through blogs and twitter. There will be a registration charge of €20. There is no charge for student participants. Coffee will be provided mid-morning and there will be a break at 12.45 to enable participants to take lunch.
9:15 – 10:45: Plenary: The Impact of the Crisis on Industrial Relations
Chair: Aedín Doris (NUI Maynooth)
· Kieran Mulvey (Labour Relations Commission) Prospects for Pay and Industrial Relations in the Irish Economy
· Shay Cody (IMPACT Trade Union) "The impact of the crisis on industrial relations – a public service focus"
· Michelle O'Sullivan/Tom Turner (University of Limerick) "The Crisis and Implications for Precarious Employment'"
10.45-11.15: Coffee Break
11:15 – 12:45: 2A. Migration and the Labour Market
Chair: Philip O'Connell (UCD Geary Institute)
· Piaras MacÉinrí (UCC) 'Beyond the choice v constraint debate: some key findings from a recent representative survey on emigration'
· Peter Muhlau (TCD) "Social ties and the labour market integration of Polish migrants in Ireland and Germany"
· Alan Barrett (ESRI & TCD) and Irene Mosca (TCD) "The impact of an adult child's emigration on the mental health of an older parent"
2B. Economics: Teaching and Practice
Chair: Ronan Gallagher (Dept of Public Expenditure and Reform)
· Brian Lucey (TCD): "Finance Education Before and After the Crash"
· Liam Delaney (Stirling): "Graduate Economics Education"
· Jeffrey Egan (McGraw-Hill Education) "The commercial interest in Third Level Education"
12:45 – 1:45: Lunch Break
1:45 – 3:15: 3A. Health and Recovery
Chair: Alex White, TD, Minister of State
· David Madden (UCD) "Health and Wealth on the Roller-Coaster: Ireland 2003-2011"
· Charles Normand TCD) and Anne Nolan (TCD & ESRI) "The impact of the economic crisis on health and the health system in Ireland"
· Paul Gorecki (ESRI) 'Pricing Pharmaceuticals: Has Public Policy Delivered?"
3B. Fiscal Policy
Chair: Stephen Kinsella (UL)
· Seamus Coffey (UCC) "The continuing constraints on Irish fiscal policy"
· Diarmuid Smyth (IFAC) 'IFAC: Formative years and the future'
· Rory O'Farrell, (NERI) "Supplying solutions in demanding times: the effects of various fiscal measures"
3:15 – 3:30: Coffee Break
3:30 – 5:00: Plenary: Debt, Default and Banking System Design
Chair: Fiona Muldoon (Central Bank of Ireland)
· Greg Connor (NUI Maynooth) "An Economist's Perspective on the Quality of Irish Bank Assets"
· Kieran McQuinn and Yvonne McCarthy (Central Bank of Ireland) "Credit conditions in a boom and bust property market"
· Colm McCarthy "Designing a Banking System for Economic Recovery"
· Ronan Lyons (TCD) "Household expectations and the housing market: from bust to boom"
EC Autumn 2013 Review
The latest European Commission staff review of the EU/IMF programme is here.
UPDATE: Here is one chart from the review. There are many others.
Irish Debt Trio Eased the Way to Bailout Exit
This Reuters/NYT article highlights the role of NTMA roadshows in the return to market access – here.
Nick Crafts on debt and the ECB
ESRI Studies on Taxes and Transfers
Here are links to two studies released through the ESRI this week. One chart is taken from each but there is much more detail in both particularly the second.
Distributional Impact of Tax, Welfare and Public Service Pay Policies: Budget 2014 and Budgets 2009-2014
Winter 2013 QEO from NERI
Available here.
Minister Noonan at Bloomberg
Yesterday's Irish Times covered an appearance by the Minster for Finance at Bloomberg with 'Noonan vows to end cycle of boom-and-bust economics'.
A recording of the short address given and the subsequent Q&A session is available here.
Data releases
Banking Union Speeches
Balance Sheet Assessments
AIB and Bank of Ireland have released statements (one somewhat shorter than the other) following the results of the balance sheet assessments carried out by the Central Bank.
UPDATE: The statement released from PTSB at 11am also reflects a paucity of information.


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- New dentures always require a period of adjustment. First-time denture patients may require several weeks to get used to their new appliance. Speech may be altered, and may require adaptation of the tongue and lips.
- For the first few days, you should wear your dentures for as long as possible, and chew soft food in small bites. Remember, dentures do not have the same chewing efficiency as natural teeth and may affect your taste of food. If your bite feels uneven after several days, we can adjust the way your teeth contact at follow-up visits.
- It is not unusual for sore spots to develop in isolated areas of the mouth. These areas can be relieved easily at follow-up appointments. If a severe sore spot develops which prevents wearing the denture and an appointment is made for adjustment, please wear the denture for 24 hours prior to the appointment. This will greatly aid in locating the exact location of the area, and make adjustments significantly easier and more predictable.
- Do not wear your complete or partial dentures to bed. It is important to allow your gum tissues and jaw bones to rest in order to prevent further tissue irritation, infection (due to fungus) and future bone shrinkage.
- Over time, or with weight loss or gain, the supporting gum tissues and bone may change shape and size. Periodic relines of your dentures may be necessary to ensure a retentive fit. Denture teeth may wear or chip over time. For this reason, an annual check of your tissues and dentures is recommended.
- Immediate Denture: For patients wearing immediate denture do not remove the denture for the first 24 hours after extractions. Follow all the post-operative instructions for extractions. Remove the denture after 24 hours and clean using proper care instructions listed below. Keep all your follow up appointments with the doctor who performed the extraction(s). Your denture will loosen up as your gums and bone heal. At this stage, you will need to come in for a reline appointment for a better fit of the immediate denture. If you do not wear your partial, immediate, or regular denture for a period of time, you will notice that it will not fit properly. This is due to the natural changes that occur to your jaw bone. In these cases relining, rebasing or even a new dentures will be recommended.
- Proper cleaning of your denture is important to prevent stains and bacteria from accumulating on your appliance. The most important way of caring for your dentures is to brush them at least once a day – inside and out! You can use a soft tooth brush or special denture brush which we will provide when we deliver the denture. Either regular toothpaste or denture cream will work well. Occasional soaking in a denture cleansing solution can also be helpful. Generally, soaking on a weekly basis at least once a week followed by a thorough brushing will be adequate.
- Take care not to drop your dentures when cleaning them, dropping them will make them fragile, which will cause the denture to fracture in the future. It is helpful to clean your dentures over a washcloth or over a sink full of water to prevent breaking the denture if dropped.
Here are some brands of denture cleansing solutions that can be helpful:
-Denture Cleanser


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The A-Z of burning more calories
Aerobic is key: Don't leave out your aerobic workouts. Sessions such as running, walking and swimming are all examples of this. It is a key way of getting fitter, slimmer and burn more calories.
Box: If you haven't tried boxing, then get your gloves on! Boxing is a serious workout that will burn fat and help to give you serious shape on your arms.
Cut the carbs before your workout: To increase the amount of fat you burn during your session, simply eat a protein only meal beforehand.
Day off: Don't forget to take at least one rest day per week to allow the body to recover. When the body is rested you can train harder and you will burn more calories naturally.
Endurance: For certain body types long endurance work can increase your metabolism and fat burning better than any other form of exercise. Different bodies react differently so try different ways to see what works best for you.
Flexibility: Don't forget to add in your flexibility work. A body that is flexible is less prone to injury, meaning that you will train year round without injury.
Green tea: Research has proven that green tea can help you to burn more calories and more fat during the day. Aim for two to three cups per day.
Hydrate: Drinking fluid during the day, ideally water, will ensure that you aren't dehydrated. Sometimes hunger can be confused with thirst, especially if you are dehydrated.
Intervals: This is one of the key components of burning calories and burning fat. Simply pick two speeds, one fast and one slow. As you get fitter increase the fast one and decrease the slow one.
Juices: While you may think that you are being healthy drinking juices, the super high sugar content will do you more harm than good. Unless the juices are freshly squeezed yourself you shouldn't be having them.
Keep it real: No matter what ad you see with the new quick fix solution, remember there is no easy way to lose weight or change your body. I have been around the industry a long time and have yet to find one.
Legs: Your legs are the power house of your body, so don't leave them out of your workout. Squats and lunges are simple exercises that will give you strong and lean legs.
Meat: Eating plenty of protein in your diet is a key way to improve your muscle mass on your body, increasing the amount of calories you burn. Meat, fish and eggs are great examples of this. Aim for at least 1.5g per kg of bodyweight.
Nutrition: Your diet is at least 60% of the results that you get. All the training in the world won't compensate for a bad diet!
Operation Transformation: The website for the show is www.rte.ie/ot and this stays live all year round, providing you with free workouts and recipes to get you fit and healthy.
Porridge: By getting a slow release carbohydrate into your body in the morning, you will stay fuller for longer, have more energy and raise your metabolism. Breakfast is the one meal you can't afford to skip!
Quality not quantity: To get the most from your workout and burn the most calories you should focus on the quality of the sessions. Three quality sessions a week are a lot more beneficial than five low quality sessions.
Resistance is key: Resistance workouts, such as weights, help to increase the amount of muscle on your body, helping you to burn more calories naturally during the day.
Spice it up: Add chilli and spices to your meals to burn more calories. The spicier the dish, the more calories you will burn digesting that meal and they can also help with your metabolism.
Time: You shouldn't be spending any longer than an hour in the gym. Aim to get your workout and cool-down done within this time, as any longer and you are reducing the quality of your session.
Vary your sessions: Your body is an amazing machine that adapts to the stress placed upon it. So by changing your workouts as often as possible, you are ensuring that you help it change fast. Mix it up as much as you can and watch the results.
Water: If your body is achy or injured, then get into the pool or the sea for your sessions. Swimming or running the water is a great way to get active and burn calories without the joint impact that might be causing the pain.
X-train: By X-training you mix up your workouts, doing different sessions to ensure your body isn't overtraining and ensuring you work different muscle groups.
Yes you can: Set your goals, work towards them and just look at what you can achieve.
Zumba: If you find exercise is a little boring then maybe Zumba is the exercise for you. It's a fun group activity to get you fit and active and will help you to burn lots of calories in the process. No matter what exercise you choose it's essential that you make it fun.


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Meet Our Consultants
Every member of the WorldBridge team is an expert with deep roots in their industry. We are proud of the fact that our recruiters all have an average of 10+ years of industry and/or recruiting expertise.
Meet the dedicated, passionate experts who have completed more than 15,000 successful placements.
Peter RansomExecutive Search Consultant
With over 20 years of national recruiting experience, Pete has established himself as a leader in the recruiting industry. His deep understanding of the recruitment process could only have been achieved through his tireless dedication and passion for recruitment excellence.
Pete has successfully recruited at all levels within Operations, IT Engineering and Finance. Pete's "leaving no stone unturned" approach gives his clients peace of mind with their hiring decisions.
Pete earned his Bachelor of Arts from Westfield State University.


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#1 Staffing Company to Work for in the NATION!
Yep, it's true. Staffing Industry Analysts announced the winners of the 2013 Best Staffing Firms to Work for survey. Medical Solutions took the top spot at #1 for medium sized companies.
Also, in our hometown of Omaha, we were voted one of the top companies to work for 5 years running!
Both of these awards are truly an honor. We are dedicated to helping our employees reach their professional and personal goals, we are a company that understands work can be and should be fun, a company that makes everyone proud to be a part of and a company that understands that happiness leads to success for all.
And of course, we wouldn't have been able to do it without all of you. Our happy employees mean you get the best customer service and dedication out there. So thank you for being fantastic Travelers.


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a backup of the original: https://chechar.wordpress.com
Category: Miscellany
Dear Cesar,
Listening to the Waves by Vig Let me be clear, I don't need any advertising or publishing in WDH of the image I sent you. I am a Dutch sculptor and painter and recently sold a number of my works to private people in Germany whom I consider to be part of the true Germans,…
Unz commenter, 9
White people generally love being insulted and spat upon by people who hate them. For example, they made Oprah ("white people just have to die") Winfrey a billionaire. They idolized Bill Cosby too. White women even still eagerly seek out OJ Simpson's infamous company. This most likely occurs because whites have nothing but contempt for…
Lacrimae lunae
– sticky post – Why white nationalism is massively flawed from the point of view of National Socialism can be seen: here. Even their revolutionary wing borders lunacy. This site provides a cure for lunatics through access code to the finis Africae. A couple of banned books of the finis Africae are Rome contra Judea;…
On banning commenters
I am sorry, but when a commenter calls 'Jew' another commenter on this site with no proof of his Jewish background, he or she has to be banned. (Usually, this happens when he who cries 'Jew!' is losing an argument in the comments section.)
Articles of interest
Note of March 25, 2016: I've just removed the content of this entry—basically a link to another article at my Addenda—because I've deleted the Addenda article, "Links of interest".
Addendum's new URL
I've just changed the Addenda address from https://kevinmacdonaldespanol.wordpress.com/ to https://caesartort.wordpress.com I didn't bother to purchase a redirect. However, I'll be linking to the new address those Addenda posts I consider important.
Recent comments
On the sidebar they just disappeared. I only see "There are no public comments available to display". If you see them, please let me know. This is not the first time that WordPress' gremlins play with me. I'll delete this entry if the links to "Recent comments" appear again with its avatars…
Donate button
Don't want the flow of posts to be interrupted due to external forces? Make a contribution (donate button, at the bottom of this page).
Traffic on WDH posts
John Martínez's recent comment about my posting tastes moved me to add this entry: Irmin Vinson on the Holocaust – 12,270 What Germany was trying to prevent – 5,952 Hellstorm (book review) – 5,286 Lycanthropy – 3,267 This blog in a nutshell – 3,194 Wagner's wisdom – 2,507 A slim book that nationalists should be…


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Do You Want To Work For Shell's Feed?
Are you interested in working at Shell's Feed in Tampa, Florida? Here's a little bit about us, and what's expected of you.
Who We Are
We are a small family-owned business serving Tampa and surrounding communities for nearly 60 years with their pet, farm, and gardening supply needs.
We are proud to be a part of the community and look to make new contacts and customers with every action, every day.
What You'll Be Doing
First, you probably should know we sell live chickens and rabbits. Some people keep these animals as pets, or as farm animals to produce eggs. Some people eat these animals. You have to be all right with this in order to work here. Our animals are well-cared for and are humanely treated while they are here.
Work with us is labor intensive, but rewarding. Most employees lift heavy loads multiple times per day, whether it's stocking products in the store, flat-stacking pallets for storage, unloading trucks, or loading customer purchases into their vehicles. Sometimes we'll ask you to put something together for a customer. If you know how to drive a forklift, that's an added bonus!
You will also work directly with customers to help them find what they need to do whatever they came in for help with. Treating people with respect is a must here – we live in a very culturally-diverse neighborhood, and people from all walks of life come to us for what they need for their pets, gardening, pest control, and more.
You'll need to have a willingness to learn about the products we carry so you can point customers in the right direction. Don't worry, this part seems overwhelming at first, to know about all the types of products we carry for pets, gardening, home pest control, and farming – but you'll get it. We're happy to teach you, so just listen and learn, you'll be fine.
People who work with us need to be able to perform work tasks asked of them in a timely manner, but all focus must be placed on customers who need assistance as a priority. Taking direction from our owner, manager, and assistant manager is required, not only so that you can learn your job well but also for your safety. There are many hazards in a feed store, and you must be aware of what they are and how to handle the products we carry.
Below is our current list of positions that are open:
There are no open positions at this time. Check back!