China Allows Banks to Default on Commodity Positions
September 2nd, 2009Wow. I don’t know what the Hell is happening here, but it’s something to keep an eye on for sure.
Via: Reuters:
U.S. gold and soybean markets fell on Monday following a weekend report that China’s state companies may default on commodity derivative contracts with banks providing over-the-counter hedging services.
Traders in other commodities markets in the United States were cautious, underscoring China’s predominance as a buyer in global markets from metals to grain to oil after it played a key role in rallying prices to record highs last year.
In a measure of the country’s influence over the global economy, U.S. stocks fell after the Shanghai Composite index .SSEC fell nearly 7 percent to a three-month low on fears Beijing is trying to moderate growth and choke off speculation in its stock market by tightening bank lending.
Commodities markets were chilled by a report in Caijing magazine quoting an unnamed industry source as saying Chinese state-owned companies will be allowed to default on commodity derivative contracts. The report provoked anger and dismay among investment banks that feared a damaging precedent.
China’s regulator of state owned enterprises, the Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC), has told six foreign banks that SOEs reserved the right to default on contracts, the magazine said in an article published on Saturday.
A government official said that the Bureau of Financial Supervision and Evaluation under SASAC was handling the issue. The official declined to be named and did not elaborate.
“A Chinese agency said they reserve the right to walk away from bad derivatives contracts and that stirred up a lot of worry not only about the stock market but soybeans as well,” said Paul Haugens, vice president at Newedge USA.
China, the world’s top importer of soybeans, has been an aggressive buyer of U.S. supplies, helping drive prices higher as stockpiles fell to the lowest level in over three decades.
US SOY, GOLD MARKETS FALL, COTTON RECOVERS
Chicago Board of Trade soybean futures for November delivery SX9 fell 31-1/2 cents, or 3 percent, to $9.79-1/2.
December gold GCZ9 fell $5.30 to $953.50 an ounce at the New York Mercantile Exchange’s COMEX division. U.S. cotton futures fell in early trading due to the news, but closed higher on month-end position squaring.
“Historically, it is not so unusual for China to either renegotiate or abandon some deals that have been made. Some traders who have been around for a while are certainly aware of that possibility,” said Bill O’Neill, managing partner at New Jersey-based LOGIC Advisors.
Spokespersons at Goldman Sachs (GS.N), UBS (UBSN.VX), JPMorgan (JPM.N) and Morgan Stanley declined to comment, along with the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association and International Swaps and Derivatives Association Inc.
The reported letter to the six banks follows an order from SASAC in July that required all state companies trading in derivatives to make quarterly reports about their investments, including details of holdings and performance.
“I won’t be surprised if more state firms emerged with big derivatives trading losses. Or else SASAC won’t come out with such a radical move,” a Hong Kong-based derivatives analyst said.
“As far as I know, there are another number of state firms bogged down in such losses besides those surfaced ones,” said the analyst, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.
‘ABNORMAL PRACTICE’
A SASAC media official said he was waiting for the “relevant department’s” official comment before clarifying the situation with the media.
The report deals another blow to investment banks hoping to sell more derivatives hedges in China, the world’s fastest-expanding major economy and top commodities consumer.
“It’s a handful of companies who are being encouraged by regulators to renegotiate. It’s outrageous, but it’s China so everyone is treading very carefully,” said a banking source.
Beijing-based derivatives lawyers said the so-called “legal letter” has no legal standing — SASAC as a shareholder of SOEs has no business relationship with international banks.
“This can also lead to market chaos. For example, a foreign bank can tell its Chinese clients that it can reserve the right to default on contracts that will bring losses to the bank,” said a lawyer from the derivatives risks committee of the Beijing Lawyers Association.
No bank names were reported in the Caijing report. The SASAC media officer also declined to specify any.
Chinese state firms, especially those that have suffered big losses in derivatives trading, have been complaining that their foreign banks sometimes did not disclose full information of potential risks when selling them complicated products.
Greek Stock Exchange Bombed
September 2nd, 2009If my choice of category on this one doesn’t make sense, know that I arbitrarily lump all symbolic attacks in with False Flag. If the fiber had been cut and the electricity had been knocked offline, for example, then it would be War.
When it comes to affecting political change, creating work for janitors is the equivalent of waving signs. Unless, of course, the state did the bombing. The state can point to symbolic bombings and gasp TERRORISM! TERRORISM! TERRORISM!
Via: BBC:
A bomb has exploded outside the Athens stock exchange, slightly injuring a female passer-by and damaging the building, police say.
The bomb – which set fire to several cars – was hidden in a stolen van.
Another bomb went off outside a government building in Thessaloniki, causing minor damage and no injuries.
The blasts may be the work of a Greek extremists’ group, Revolutionary Struggle, says the BBC’s Malcolm Brabant in Athens.
Earlier this year the group claimed responsibility for two bombs aimed at the American Citibank group.
Flying glass
A warning of the Athens explosion was telephoned to a local newspaper, enabling police to seal off the area in the west of Athens before the bomb went off.
The windows at the bourse were blown out, and a neighbouring car dealership was damaged along with nearby trees and parked cars.
One passing woman was slightly injured by flying glass, but there were no injuries inside the building and the stock exchange opened as normal.
“We know for the moment that there is damage to a number of staff workstations and desks, but the core operations are up and running,” a bourse spokesman told AFP.
The bomb in Thessaloniki caused minor damage around the ministry responsible for Greece’s two northern provinces of Macedonia and Thrace.
In a letter to a satirical newspaper, Revolutionary Struggle had promised more attacks against economic targets.
It said: “We need to rid ourselves for good of all the scum of economic and political power so that humanity can free itself from these criminals.”
Greece has been dogged by unrest since police shot a teenager dead last December.
The death sparked the country’s worst riots in decades, leading to clashes between police and protesters in the weeks that followed.
Florida and Iowa Quarantine Documents
September 1st, 2009These PDF files are hosted on the Centers for Disease Control website. I’ve dumped the unformatted text from the documents below.
What and where are the detention quarantine secure facilities???
Florida: QUARANTINE DETENTION ORDER
Department Of Health
__________ County Health Department
QUARANTINE DETENTION ORDER
By authority of Chapter 381 and 252, Florida Statutes
and Chapter 64D-3, Florida Administrative Code
_____ CHD Order #____________.
Pursuant to the authority vested in this office by Chapter 381, Florida Statutes, and by your refusal to comply with the Orders of the _______ County Health Department, you, __________ _(name)____________ are hereby DETAINED under QUARANTINE in the following secure facility, ___________________________. You are further classified as non-compliant with quarantine because after you were counseled about a communicable disease or unsafe condition that poses a threat to the public health, and methods to minimize the risk to the public and, despite such counseling, you indicated an intent by (words or actions) to expose the public to ________________. All other reasonable means of obtaining your compliance with quarantine have been exhausted; no less restrictive alternative exists.
You shall remain in detention from the date of this Order until (date) or until released from DETENTION QUARANTINE by the undersigned, such determination to be made upon the recommendation of the State Epidemiologist or State Health Officer.
While in DETENTION QUARANTINE, you shall comply with all orders of the detention facility regarding your medical care. You shall cooperate with the detention facility’s access to you and access to your medical records for purposes of delivering or monitoring your medical care.
Other Requirements/Orders:
1
Reasons For Above:
DONE and ORDERED by the ________ County Health Director/Administrator this ____
day of ___________, 20___.
By order of:
___________________________
________ County Health Department
_________Area Code & Phone Number
(for quarantine review requests, contact person)
DUTY TO COMPLY: This action is taken under the police power authority of the health department and your cooperation is required by law. Violation of any term of this Order or failure to comply during the life of this Order with the above-stated directives, including any attempt by a person to enter, exit or behave in a manner prohibited by the Order, is a CRIME.
RIGHT TO REVIEW. Upon request to the CHD, this Quarantine Order will be reviewed on an expedited basis. Review can be initiated by a phone call to the telephone number of the official whose name appears on this Order.
RIGHT TO CHALLENGE: This Quarantine Order may be challenged, such as through petition for writ of habeas corpus, Ch. 79, F.S., following the procedures set out in Rule 1.630, Florida Rules of Civil Procedure (extraordinary remedies) or by Petition For Administrative Review, sec. 120.569 et seq., F.S.
If you have concerns or questions regarding this Quarantine Order that you wish to discuss with your attorney please do so by telephone. Do not go to your attorney’s office or break this Quarantine in any way.
Legal Authority: s.381.0011(4),(5),(6) and s.381.0012(5), and s. 252.36(2), F.S.; Rules 64D-3.005 and 64D-3.007, Florida Administrative Code
Florida: QUARANTINE TO RESIDENCE ORDER
Department Of Health
__________ County Health Department
QUARANTINE TO RESIDENCE ORDER
By authority of Chapters 252 and 381, Florida Statutes
and Chapter 64D-3, Florida Administrative Code
_____ CHD Order #____________.
You, _________(name)_____________________, are hereby quarantined for protection from ________________________________, an unsafe condition or communicable disease that poses a threat to public health. You are QUARANTINED to your residence at __________________________, and shall remain there from the date of this Order until (date) or until QUARANTINE is released by the undersigned authority. YOU ARE NOT PERMITTED TO LEAVE YOUR RESIDENCE.
While in QUARANTINE, you must wear a surgical mask at all times while in the presence of any individual, including any caregiver. Your visitors and/or caregivers also must wear surgical masks at all times when in your presence. The County Health Department (CHD) will call your residence daily to obtain your temperature record, which you must take and record two times daily.
You must comply with all orders regarding your medical care. You must cooperate with the CHD including CHD access to you and access to your medical records for purposes of delivering or monitoring your medical care.
Other Requirements/Orders:
Reasons For Above:
2
DONE and ORDERED by the ________ County Health Director/Administrator this ____
day of ___________, 20___.
By order of:
___________________________
________ County Health Department
_________Area Code & Phone Number
(for quarantine review requests, contact person)
DUTY TO COMPLY: This action is taken under the police power authority of the health department and your cooperation is required by law. Violation of any term of this Order or failure to comply during the life of this Order with the above-stated directives, including any attempt by a person to enter, exit or behave in a manner prohibited by the Order, is a CRIME.
RIGHT TO REVIEW. Upon request to the CHD, this Quarantine Order will be reviewed on an expedited basis. Review can be initiated by a phone call to the telephone number of the official whose name appears on this Order.
RIGHT TO CHALLENGE: This Quarantine Order may be challenged, such as through petition for writ of habeas corpus, Ch. 79, F.S., following the procedures set out in Rule 1.630, Florida Rules of Civil Procedure (extraordinary remedies) or by Petition For Administrative Review, sec. 120.569 et seq., F.S.
If you have concerns or questions regarding this Quarantine Order that you wish to discuss with your attorney please do so by telephone. Do not go to your attorney’s office or break this Quarantine in any way.
Legal Authority: s.381.0011(4),(5),(6) and s.381.0012(5) and s. 252.36(2), F.S.; Rules 64D-3.005 and 64D-3.007, Florida Administrative Code
Florida: QUARANTINE TO RESIDENCE ORDER (NON-COMPLIANCE)
Department Of Health
__________ County Health Department
QUARANTINE TO RESIDENCE ORDER (NON-COMPLIANCE)
By authority of Chapters 381 and 252, Florida Statutes
and Chapter 64D-3, Florida Administrative Code
_____ CHD Order #____________.
You, __________ _(name)____________, have been identified as a person classified as a _______________ “contact,” or identified as a confirmed case, a probable case, or suspect case of ______________________________, a communicable disease or unsafe condition that poses a threat to the public health. You are further classified as non-compliant with quarantine because after you were counseled about a communicable disease or unsafe condition that poses a threat to the public health, and methods to minimize the risk to the public and, despite such counseling, you indicated an intent by (words or actions) to expose the public to ________________. All other reasonable means of obtaining your compliance with quarantine have been exhausted; no less restrictive alternative exists.
YOU ARE NOT PERMITTED TO LEAVE YOUR RESIDENCE. You are QUARANTINED to your residence at __________________________, and while QUARANTINED there shall continuously wear an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet on your ankle, or alternatively ________________________________________, from the date of this Order until (date) or until released from DETENTION QUARANTINE by the undersigned, such determination to be made upon the recommendation of the State Epidemiologist or State Health Officer.
While in QUARANTINE, you must wear a surgical mask at all times while in the presence of any individual, including any caregiver. Your visitors and/or caregivers also must wear surgical masks at all times when in your presence. The County Health Department (CHD) will call your residence daily to obtain your temperature record, which you must take and record two times
daily. If you do not answer your telephone or are not at home during two consecutive contact attempts, the CHD may order you to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet to ensure that you do not leave your residence. If you leave your residence while monitored, the CHD may forcibly detain you in a quarantine facility.
While in QUARANTINE, you shall comply with the orders of medical personnel regarding your medical care. You shall cooperate with the County Health Department (CHD) and with CHD access to you and to your medical records for purposes of delivering or monitoring your medical care.
Other Requirements/Orders:
Reasons For Above:
DONE and ORDERED by the ________ County Health Director/Administrator this ____
day of ___________, 20___.
By order of:
___________________________
________ County Health Department
_________Area Code & Phone Number
(for quarantine review requests, contact person)
DUTY TO COMPLY: This action is taken under the police power authority of the health department and your cooperation is required by law. Violation of any term of this Order or failure to comply during the life of this Order with the above-stated directives, including any attempt by a person to enter, exit or behave in a manner prohibited by the Order, is a CRIME.
RIGHT TO REVIEW. Upon request to the CHD, this Quarantine Order will be reviewed on an expedited basis. Review can be initiated by a phone call to the telephone number of the official whose name appears on this Order.
RIGHT TO CHALLENGE: This Quarantine Order may be challenged, such as through petition for writ of habeas corpus, Ch. 79, F.S., following the procedures set out in Rule 1.630, Florida Rules of Civil Procedure (extraordinary remedies) or by Petition For Administrative Review, sec. 120.569 et seq., F.S.
If you have concerns or questions regarding this Quarantine Order that you wish to discuss with your attorney please do so by telephone. Do not go to your attorney’s office or break this Quarantine in any way.
Legal Authority: s.381.0011(4),(5),(6) and s.381.0012(5), and s. 252.36(2), F.S.; Rules 64D-3.005 and 64D-3.007, Florida Administrative Code
Florida: QUARANTINE OF FACILITY ORDER
Department Of Health
__________ County Health Department
QUARANTINE OF FACILITY ORDER
(Hospital/Medical/Security/Parts Thereof)
By authority of Chapters 381 and 252, Florida Statutes
and Chapter 64D-3, Florida Administrative Code
_____ CHD Order #____________.
Due to an outbreak and/or the high volume of ______________ cases which is a communicable disease or unsafe condition, you, _____________(name)_______________, as the administrator, authorized representative, or person in charge of the ________________________ facility are hereby notified by the _______ County Health Department (CHD) that ___________________ of your facility is placed under a QUARANTINE. This order is in force from the date below until (date) or until QUARANTINE is released by the undersigned authority. No person shall be allowed to enter or leave your facility without the written approval of the undersigned.
While this QUARANTINE is in effect, you shall comply with all orders of the _______ County Health Department.
Other Requirements/Orders:
Reasons For Above:
1
2
DONE and ORDERED by the ________ County Health Director/Administrator this ____
day of ___________, 20___.
By order of:
___________________________
________ County Health Department
_________Area Code & Phone Number
(for quarantine review requests, contact person)
DUTY TO COMPLY: This action is taken under the police power authority of the health department and your cooperation is required by law. Violation of any term of this Order or failure to comply during the life of this Order with the above-stated directives, including any attempt by a person to enter, exit or behave in a manner prohibited by the Order, is a CRIME.
RIGHT TO REVIEW. Upon request to the CHD, this Quarantine Order will be reviewed on an expedited basis. Review can be initiated by a phone call to the telephone number of the official whose name appears on this Order.
RIGHT TO CHALLENGE: This Quarantine Order may be challenged, such as through petition for writ of habeas corpus, Ch. 79, F.S., following the procedures set out in Rule 1.630, Florida Rules of Civil Procedure (extraordinary remedies) or by Petition For Administrative Review, sec. 120.569 et seq., F.S.
If you have concerns or questions regarding this Quarantine Order that you wish to discuss with your attorney please do so by telephone. Do not go to your attorney’s office or break this Quarantine in any way.
Legal Authority: s.381.0011(4),(5),(6) and s.381.0012(5), and s.252.36(2), F.S.; Rules 64D-3.005 and 64D-3.007, Florida Administrative Code
BEFORE THE IOWA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH _____________________________________________________________________ DIRECTED TO: ) [insert case #] ) [insert full name and ) address of subject of order] ) HOME QUARANTINE ORDER _____________________________________________________________________ The Iowa Department of Public Health (Department) has determined that you have had contact with Novel Influenza A H1N1. Novel Influenza A H1N1 is a disease which is spread from person to person and is associated with fever (greater than 100.0 F), cough, sore throat, rhinorrhea (runny nose), nasal congestion, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Novel Influenza A H1N1 presents a risk of serious harm to public health and if it spreads in the community severe public health consequences may result. The Department has determined that home quarantine of persons who have been exposed to Novel Influenza A H1N1 is necessary to prevent further spread of this disease. The Department has determined that quarantine in private homes is the least restrictive means necessary to prevent the spread of Novel Influenza A H1N1. The Department is therefore ordering you to remain in your home and to comply with the following provisions during the entire period of quarantine: 1. Terms of confinement. You are ordered to remain in your home at _____________________[insert address] from ___________ to ____________[insert dates of quarantine]. 2. Requirements during confinement. During the period of quarantine:
a. You must not leave your home at any time unless you have received prior written authorization from the Department to do so.
b. You must remain reachable by telephone at all times and answer and respond fully and truthfully to telephone calls from Department staff and other persons acting on behalf of the Department.
c. You must not come into contact with anyone except the following persons:
(i) family members and other persons who reside in your home;
(ii) authorized healthcare providers; (iii) authorized Department staff or other persons acting on behalf of the Department; and (iv) such other persons as are authorized by the Department.
d. If family members or other persons who reside in your home have not been issued a Home Quarantine Order, they may leave your home to carry on their daily routines and to assist you with any needs you may have during the period of confinement. If you live alone, or if every
5/1/2009
member of your household is under Home Quarantine Order, you should arrange by telephone for relatives, neighbors, or friends to assist with any needs you may have during the period of confinement. These persons should not have direct contact with you. If you need assistance in providing for your daily needs, you should call [insert telephone number]
e. You must follow the directions contained in the attachment to this order labeled Attachment A to monitor your health status on a daily basis.
f. If you develop any symptoms of Novel Influenza A H1N1 detailed in Attachment A, including with fever (greater than 100.0 F), cough, sore throat, rhinorrhea (runny nose), nasal congestion, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue, you should immediately call a public health official at [insert telephone number]. If emergency medical treatment is required for conditions other than those listed in this paragraph (e.g. chest pain or severe accidental injury at home), you should call 911 for an ambulance. When seeking such assistance, you must inform the operator of the 911 line and the ambulance that you are under Home Quarantine Order.
g. If other persons also reside in your home you must maintain good personal hygiene at all times, including complying with the directions contained in Attachment A, to prevent disease transmission. If any member of your household develops any symptoms of Novel Influenza A H1N1 detailed in Attachment A, such person should immediately call a public health official at [insert telephone number].
h. You should inform your employer that you are under home quarantine and are not authorized to physically come to the work place, although you may work from home via electronic or other means if appropriate. You should be aware that Iowa law prohibits an employer from firing, demoting, or otherwise discriminating against an employee due to the employee’s compliance with a quarantine order issued by the Department. (Iowa Code section 139A.13A).
3. Information about Novel Influenza A H1N1. You should review the information contained at Attachment A for information about Novel Influenza A H1N1. In order to find out more information about Novel Influenza A H1N1 and its symptoms and spread, you may access the Department’s web-page at www.idph.state.ia.us. If you do not have access to the internet from your home, you may contact the Department at 1-800-362-2736. 4. Legal authority. This order is issued pursuant to the legal authority contained at Iowa Code chapters 135, 139A, and 641 Iowa Administrative Code chapter 1, a copy of which is labeled Attachment B and is attached to this order for your review. The Department shall comply with the principles for quarantine contained in subrule 1.9(3) of this attachment when issuing and implementing this order.
5. Ensuring compliance. In order to ensure that you strictly comply with this Home
5/1/2009
Quarantine Order the Department or persons authorized by the Department may contact you by telephone on a regular basis and may carry out spot checks of your residence.
6. Violations of order. If you fail to comply with this Home Quarantine Order you may be ordered to be quarantined in a hospital or other facility as determined by the Department. In addition, failure to comply with this order is a simple misdemeanor for which you may be arrested, fined, and imprisoned. 7. Your rights B appeal rights. While under quarantine you have the rights as described in subrule 1.9(8) of Attachment B. In addition, you have the right to appeal this order pursuant to subrule 1.9(7) of Attachment B.
____________________________________ ___________ DIRECTOR or MEDICAL DIRECTOR DATE IOWA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH Lucas State Office Building Des Moines, IA 50319 Attachments to this Order: Attachment A — Facts About Novel Influenza A H1N1 Attachment B — 641 Iowa Administrative Code chapter 1
Saudi Royal Escapes Assassination Attempt
September 1st, 2009How did the assassin get so close to Mohammed Bin Naif with a bomb? I read several articles about this incident and none of them made any sense. Surely, the security procedures would have revealed the bomb. Right?
Yes, friends, behold: The rectum-packed-with-explosives trick.
Via: The Media Line:
New details reveal the man who tried to assassinate a Saudi prince got past palace security with explosives hidden in his rectum.
The man who tried to assassinate Saudi Arabia’s anti-terror chief last Thursday managed to get past security in a Jeddah palace by hiding explosives in his rectum.
Details of the assassination attempt, the first against a member of the Saudi royal family in decades, were revealed to the pan-Arab Al-Arabiyya.
The method of hiding explosives inside the body is unprecedented among Al-Qa’ida terrorists, and may draw a re-examination and alteration of security arrangements around sensitive facilities and individuals in the Saudi kingdom.
The man targeted, Prince Muhammad Bin Naif, is assistant to the Interior Minister for Security Affairs, and is spearheading the fight against terrorism.
The assailant called the Ministry of Interior and asked to declare his repentance in front of the prince and make a statement urging his peers to abandon Al-Qa’ida’s ideologies.
On Thursday evening, he went to the prince’s palace in the coastal town of Jeddah and sailed through the security checks with the undetected explosives inside him.
When the prince was informed of his arrival, he walked into a six-by-seven-meter long room next to his office in the palace to greet the man he thought would be a remorseful terrorist.
The terrorist came to the entrance of the room and the prince moved towards the door to usher him in. He greeted him and invited him to sit down on one of the sofas, while the prince himself sat on another sofa no more than two meters away from where the bomber was located.
The prince got a call on his cell phone and began talking, and at that moment the bomber detonated the explosives.
French Government Document on Swine Flu Vaccination Program
August 31st, 2009I have no idea how credible the English translation is since I don’t read French at all. However, there are many Cryptogon readers in France so I thought I would post this in case it is useful for any reason.
Via: The Flu Case:
The document dated August 21st and signed by the French Health Minister Rosaylne Batchelot-Narquin and the French Minister of Interior, Minister of the Interior, Overseas Territories Brice Hortefeux is addressed to the heads of each of France’s defense zones. the regional prefects in charge of police and the gendamerie, the prefects of departments and the heads of regional health authorities for hospitalization.
The objective of the 19-page document is the systematic vaccination of the entire French population in the period October, November, December 2009 and January 2010.
Secure facilities are to be established in every region that will serve as “vaccination centers”.
On page 3 the order is explicitly given that no medical establishments should serve as vaccine centers.
GPs are to play no role in the vaccination programme.
School age children are to be vaccinated by special mobile pandemic vaccination teams in their schools.
The largest vaccination facilities – Centers of Vaccination of a Large Capacity (Centres de vaccination de grande capacite (CVGC) – with added security (fonctionnement renforce) are calculated to vaccinate 2,100 people each day.
Vaccine “teams” are to work in parallel vaccinating people in three 4-hour blocs each day, and the document calculates that two teams operating in this way will allow 184,800 injections to be given to 92,400 people in a center working five days a week for the entire four month period of the mass vaccination campaign.
No explicit mention of forced vaccination is made but the document states that everyone in the country without exception is to be vaccinated.
‘Blood Oath’ Sealed Stanford Deal, Court Is Told
August 31st, 2009Via: New York Times:
R. Allen Stanford’s relationship with the chief regulator of his Antigua bank was closer than most.
At a meeting in 2003, they became blood brothers, cutting their wrists and mixing their blood in a “brotherhood ceremony” that Mr. Stanford’s chief financial officer said promoted an elaborate scheme to hide a multibillion-dollar fraud from American and other regulators.
The assertion that the two took a “blood oath” was laid out in a plea agreement signed by the officer, James M. Davis, and filed Thursday. After the pact, Leroy King, Antigua’s chief banking supervisor, called Mr. Stanford “Big Brother.” He received Super Bowl tickets, valued at thousands of dollars, for himself and his girlfriend. And he accepted regular bribe payments from a secret Swiss bank account that Mr. Davis said he was told to handle by Mr. Stanford.
The unusual twist to the case, in which Mr. Stanford is accused of operating a multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme, was disclosed by Mr. Davis as he pleaded guilty on Thursday to fraud and conspiracy in Federal District Court in Houston. Mr. Davis, who oversaw the movement of vast sums of money at Stanford International Bank, also said in a plea agreement that Mr. Stanford ordered him to report false revenue and false investment portfolio balances to banking regulators as far back as 1988, when Mr. Stanford ran an offshore bank on the Caribbean island of Montserrat.
Research Credit: jb, dilinger
Marc Faber: Lateline Business Interview
August 31st, 2009Via: YouTube:
The World’s 50 Safest Banks
August 31st, 2009For whatever it’s worth…
Via: Global Finance:
With bank stability still high on corporate and investor agendas, Global Finance publishes its 18th annual list of the world’s safest banks.
What Every American Should be Made to Learn About the IG Torture Report
August 31st, 2009Via: Salon:
The fact that we are not really bothered any more by taking helpless detainees in our custody and (a) threatening to blow their brains out, torture them with drills, rape their mothers, and murder their children; (b) choking them until they pass out; (c) pouring water down their throats to drown them; (d) hanging them by their arms until their shoulders are dislocated; (e) blowing smoke in their face until they vomit; (f) putting them in diapers, dousing them with cold water, and leaving them on a concrete floor to induce hypothermia; and (g) beating them with the butt of a rifle — all things that we have always condemend as “torture” and which our laws explicitly criminalize as felonies (“torture means. . . the threat of imminent death; or the threat that another person will imminently be subjected to death, severe physical pain or suffering . . .”) — reveals better than all the words in the world could how degraded, barbaric and depraved a society becomes when it lifts the taboo on torturing captives.
FBI Investigating Laptops Sent to U.S. Governors
August 31st, 2009Via: Computer World:
The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation is trying to figure out who is sending laptop computers to state governors across the U.S., including West Virginia Governor Joe Mahchin and Wyoming Governor Dave Freudenthal. Some state officials are worried that they may contain malicious software.
According to sources familiar with the investigation, other states have been targeted too, with HP laptops mysteriously ordered for officials in 10 states. Four of the orders were delivered, while the remaining six were intercepted, according to a source who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation.
The West Virginia laptops were delivered to the governor’s office several weeks ago, prompting state officials to contact police, according to Kyle Schafer, the state’s chief technology officer. “We were notified by the governor’s office that they had received the laptops and they had not ordered them,” he said. “We checked our records and we had not ordered them.”
State officials in Vermont told him they’ve received similar unsolicited orders, Schafer said. Representatives from those states could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Schafer doesn’t know what’s on the laptops, but he handed them over to the authorities. “Our expectation is that this is not a gesture of good will,” he said. “People don’t just send you five laptops for no good reason.”
The computers are now being held as evidence by state police, who are working with the FBI to figure out how the machines were sent to the governor’s office, said Michael Baylous, a sergeant with the West Virginia State Police.
The West Virginia laptops were delivered Aug. 5, according to the Charleston Gazette, which first reported the story.
The laptops sent to the Wyoming governor’s office arrived in two separate shipments on Aug. 3 and Aug. 6, according to Cara Eastwood, a spokeswoman for Governor Freudenthal.
“We received one package, opened it and realized that it was an error since no one in our office had ordered them,” she said. “The next day we received another package. At this point we realized that they needed to be turned over to law enforcement.”
Although there is no evidence that the computers contain malicious code, HP confirmed Thursday that there have been several such orders and that they have been linked to fraud. “HP is aware that fraudulent state government orders recently have been placed for small amounts of HP equipment,” spokeswoman Pamela Bonney said in an e-mail message. “HP took prompt corrective action to address the fraudulent orders and is working with law enforcement personnel on a criminal investigation.”
With users now more reluctant to install suspicious software or open attachments on their networks, scammers appear to be looking for new ways to get inside the firewall.
Criminals have tried to put malware on USB devices and then left them outside company offices, hoping someone would plug them into a computer and inadvertently install malicious software on the network. Many Windows systems are configured to automatically run software included on CDs and USB devices using a Windows feature called AutoRun.
Many organized criminals would be happy to spend the cost of five PCs in order to access government computers, said Steve Santorelli, director of investigations with security consultancy Team Cymru. “What is a netbook? $700? You send five of them; you’re dropping three grand, and say you get into the Congressional e-mail system. How valuable would that be?”
