[News] Lost in Baghdad Newsletter - April 12, 2008
Carlos Mock
ctmock at gmail.com
Sat Apr 12 18:13:34 CST 2008
Lost in Baghdad By Carlos T Mock, MD. . April 10, 2008. President George
W. Bush and his bunch of neo-conservative allegations that the “surge” of US
troops in Iraq has worked are nothing more than hogwash. The
multi-sectarian conflict caused by the occupation has not been stopped and
success—which is an ever-shifting concept—is no closer than before the surge
started. General David Petraeus, the US commander in Iraq, spent two days
on Capitol Hill saying absolutely nothing—“the surge will work when it
does.” But when he was pressed for a timetable, he could give none.
Violence is down, but from catastrophic levels that have wrecked the
country, displaced one in six Iraqis, and driven the rest into hiding. The
perception that the violence is down is more a reflection on press coverage
than actual responses to the “surge”. The lower levels of killing have
taken second fiddle to the catastrophic economical realities of our
country—most of which is caused by the cost of the war itself.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/lost-in-baghdad.html
Frustrated Senators See No Exit Signs By Karen DeYoung and Thomas E. Ricks.
Copyright by The Washington Post. Wednesday, April 9, 2008; Page A01.
Asked repeatedly yesterday what "conditions" he is looking for to begin
substantial U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq after this summer's scheduled
drawdown, Army Gen. David H. Petraeus said he will know them when he sees
them. For frustrated lawmakers, it was not enough. "A year ago, the
president said we couldn't withdraw because there was too much violence,"
said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.). "Now he says we can't afford to
withdraw because violence is down." Asked Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.): "Where
do we go from here?" Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said: "I think people want a
sense of what the end is going to look like."
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/frustrated-senators-see-
no-exit-signs.html
Patience is not a policy By Steve Chapman. Copyright © 2008, Chicago
Tribune. April 10, 2008. When he was the Democratic leader in the Senate,
George Mitchell ruefully reflected that his job had given him "the
best-developed patience muscle in Washington." The war in Iraq has done
similar things for the rest of us. But the strengthening program is by no
means done. Gen. David Petraeus was on Capitol Hill this week explaining why
we need to keep on exercising forbearance, and keep on, and keep on. By
his reckoning, and that of Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, the
administration's policy of escalation has been a success. Violence has come
down, political reconciliation is under way, and the Iraqi government is
showing more initiative. Heck, Crocker marveled, you even see the newly
designed Iraqi flag in all parts of the country, not just some. We poured
in more troops, we accomplished what we set out to do, and now we can start
bringing our troops home—which, after all, was the whole point of the surge
announced by President Bush 15 months ago. Right? Wrong.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/patience-is-not-policy.h
tml
Your Lack of Money
‘Shocking’ GE results show size of crisis By Francesco Guerrera and Justin
Baer in New York. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008. Published:
April 11 2008 12:57 | Last updated: April 11 2008 19:04. General Electric
underlined the depth of the global financial crisis on Friday, announcing
its worst quarter in five years and slashing full-year forecasts. The news,
described as “shocking” by a senior GE executive, combined with data showing
that US consumer confidence was at a 26-year low to send shares lower. The
S&P 500 fell 2 per cent in New York to 1,332.83./General Electric profits
slump By Justin Baer in New York. Copyright The Financial Times Limited
2008. Published: April 11 2008 12:57 | Last updated: April 11 2008 16:31.
General Electric stunned investors with its first quarterly profit drop in
five years, as last month’s capital markets upheaval forced unexpected
writedowns on the value of some securities, and warned that full-year
earnings would miss its forecast. The results triggered a broader sell-off
on some the world’s stock markets amid concern that GE’s dreary outlook
reflected deteriorating economic conditions.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/general-electric-profits
-slump.html
US consumer confidence hits 26-year low By Chris Bryant. Copyright The
Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 11 2008 16:22 | Last
updated: April 11 2008 16:22. The soaring cost of basic foodstuffs and
weakening labour market sent US consumer confidence spiralling to a 26-year
low this month compounding the gloomy outlook for the US economy. Consumer
confidence as measured by the Reuters/University of Michigan consumer
sentiment survey fell to 63.2 in mid-April, from 69.5 in March, the lowest
since 1982 and much weaker than a reading of 68 forecast by economists.
One-year inflation expectations jumped by 4.8 per cent, their highest since
October 1990, and up from 4.3 per cent in March. “Consumers would appear to
be buying into the stagflation theme,” John Ryding, chief US economist at
Bear Stearns said.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/us-consumer-confidence-h
its-26-year-low.html
Struggles grow for retailers - Economy's slide sends more stores into
bankruptcy By Sandra M. Jones. Copyright © 2008, Chicago Tribune. April
12, 2008. It's a tough time to be a retailer, and it's expected to get
tougher. Wickes Furniture Co. and Bombay Co. have gone out of business.
Levitz Furniture is liquidating. Sharper Image Corp. and Lillian Vernon
Corp. filed for bankruptcy protection from creditors. And now Linens 'n
Things Inc. is said to be facing Chapter 11 bankruptcy as early as next
week. Americans appear to be in no mood to shop. A day after the nation's
retailers posted the worst March sales performance in 13 years, confidence
among U.S. consumers sank to a 26-year low, according to one measure, as
they worry about the value of their homes and the chances of losing their
jobs. Until recently, home stores have borne the brunt of the economic
downturn. Now the troubles are spreading throughout the mall. "Anybody
dealing with the consumer this year is going to be very challenged," said
Gerald Hirschberg, director at Standard & Poor's Rating Services. "Really
only the top luxury retailers may come away from this relatively unscathed."
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/struggles-grow-for-retai
lers-economys.html
Frontier files for bankruptcy By Reuters and FT reporters. Copyright The
Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 11 2008 09:43 | Last
updated: April 11 2008 09:43. Frontier Airlines Holdings filed for
bankruptcy protection on Friday, citing unexpected problems with its credit
card processor, but said it would operate its flights normally. The
low-cost carrier’s move to operate normally despite its troubles sets it
apart -- at least for now -- from four small struggling U.S. airlines that
said last week that they would stop flying. Record fuel prices, along with
a steadily weakening U.S. economy, have put the brakes on the airline
industry’s recovery from a long downturn. Low-cost airlines, even some big
ones, are beginning to feel the effect. Last week, Aloha Airlines, Champion
Air, ATA Airlines and Skybus Airlines all said they had shut down
operations.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/frontier-files-for-bankr
uptcy.html
Lehman closes $1bn funds By Dan Pimlott. Copyright The Financial Times
Limited 2008. Published: April 10 2008 13:52 | Last updated: April 10 2008
13:52. Lehman Brothers, the fourth biggest US investment bank, said that
it had liquidated three investment funds in its first quarter after “market
disruptions”. The value of the assets held by these funds was about $1bn.
Lehman said it had also bought some “deteriorated assets” from certain funds
for $800m. Both sets of assets were included in the company’s earnings
report on 29 February, and are now managed in its capital markets fixed
income business. Lehman said that the funds were among various private
equity or other alternative investment funds with third party investors that
were typically organised as limited partnerships, but that it did not
include in its results. It said that typically it could offer support to
these funds but was not obliged to do so.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/lehman-closes-1bn-funds.
html
WaMu gets $7bn injection from investors By Deborah Brewster in New York.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 8 2008 15:46 |
Last updated: April 8 2008 15:46. Washington Mutual, the largest savings
and loan group in the US, will get a $7bn cash infusion from investors to
boost its capital and cover losses arising from its subprime mortgages.
WaMu said on Tuesday it would raise the money by issuing 176m shares to an
investment vehicle led by private equity group TPG and including several of
WaMu’s existing investors. The shares will be priced at $8.75 - a discount
to Friday’s closing price of $10.15. It would also issue 55,000 shares of
convertible preferred stock, with an exercise price of $8.75. The group
said it expected to make a loss of $1.1bn in the first quarter, and it would
cut its quarterly dividend to one cent a share, from 15 cents, which would
amount to $490m in capital saved. It would write off $1.4bn in loan losses,
it said. In the fourth quarter, it reported its first quarterly loss since
1997.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/wamu-gets-7bn-injection-
from-investors.html
Citigroup offloads Diners Club By Francesco Guerrera in New York and Chris
Hughes in London. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008. Published:
April 7 2008 21:49 | Last updated: April 7 2008 21:49. Citigroup’s chief
executive moved on Monday to streamline the troubled financial services
conglomerate by selling the Diners Club International credit card network to
Discover for $165m. The decision to sever the 27-year tie with Diners comes
as Vikram Pandit and his lieutenants conduct a review that could lead to up
to 25,000 job losses across global operations, say people close to the
situation. Diners, which handles $30bn in transactions a year, had given
Citigroup the ability to compete with large credit card networks. A sale
was part of Mr Pandit’s efforts to divest marginal businesses and free up
resources for core activities, executives said. Ed Eger, head of
international cards at Citigroup, said the decision was “consistent with
Citi’s efforts to streamline its businesses to focus on what Citi does
best”.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/citigroup-offloads-diner
s-club.html
Gold and Commodities
Oil $112.21
Silver Bullion $17.77
Gold Bullion $926
Platinum Bullion $ $2020
Financial Times Editorial Comment: IMF releases an Instability Report.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 8 2008 19:30 |
Last updated: April 8 2008 19:30. The International Monetary Fund has had a
strange credit crunch. Like a mighty navy rendered impotent because all of
the fighting is inland, the IMF has been impotent: all of the liquidity and
solvency problems have hit individual banks, rather than the countries it is
set up to rescue. That makes its policy and monitoring efforts, such as
Tuesday’s Global Financial Stability Report , all the more important. The
report gives a snapshot of the credit squeeze – problems spreading beyond
subprime to other debt markets, feedback loops as credit problems hurt house
prices and investment, resilient emerging markets – and updates its estimate
of ultimate US debt losses to $945bn. The IMF offers a list of sensible,
although not especially new, policy actions for the public and private
sectors.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/financial-times-editoria
l-comment-imf.html
Housing
Pending US home sales hit fresh low By Chris Bryant in Washington.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 8 2008 16:26 |
Last updated: April 8 2008 16:49. Pending home sales fell to a new record
low in February as slumping house prices and tighter lending standards
continued to persuade buyers to shun the housing market. The news came as
the International Monetary Fund estimated losses stemming from the US
mortgage and credit crisis could hit almost $1,000bn. The National
Association of Realtors’s index of pending sales of previously owned homes
fell 1.9 per cent to 84.6 in February after the previous month’s reading was
revised slightly higher to 86.2. The new figure was the lowest reading
since records began in 2001 and compared with a consensus forecast for a
decline of only 0.7 per cent.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/pending-us-home-sales-hi
t-fresh-low.html
Chicago housing market makes winners, losers - Housing market here has
winners -- it comes down to location BY SANDRA GUY sguy at suntimes.com.
Copyright by The Chicago Sun-Times. April 6, 2008. Noelle Gaffney has
lived through the South Loop's boom and its slowdown. She profited from
being a pioneer in the neighborhood 20 years ago, selling her first two
homes just as the market was getting hot and making robust profits on them.
In 2001, she enthusiastically bought a condo under construction. But she's
struggled for three years to sell the 2,040-square-foot duplex-style home.
Gaffney, who already bought and moved into a nearby town home, first put the
condo on the market at $725,000, including parking. She dropped the price to
$640,000 in 2006. She found no buyers, and so she took it off the market and
has rented it for the last two years.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/chicago-housing-market-m
akes-winners.html
International
Police, Protesters Clash in North Egypt By PAUL SCHEMM. Copyright 2008
Associated Press. 3:19 PM CDT, April 7, 2008. MAHALLA EL-KOBRA, Egypt -
Egyptian police attacked protesters who tore down a billboard of President
Hosni Mubarak in a northern city Monday in the second day of violence fueled
by anger over low wages and rising prices. In another sign of
dissatisfaction with the U.S.-backed government, the country's most powerful
opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, said it was reversing a decision
to participate in local elections Tuesday because of mass arrests of its
members in recent months. Prices of cooking oil, rice and other staples
have nearly doubled since the beginning of the year and there are widespread
shortages of government-subsidized bread throughout the country of 76
million people. Nearly 40 percent of Egyptians live under the
internationally defined poverty line of $2 a day. Complaints that the
government is not doing enough to help the poor have turned simmering
dissatisfaction with repression and lack of economic opportunity into rare
open unrest.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/police-protesters-clash-
in-north-egypt.html
China
Financial Times Editorial Comment: Playing with fire. Copyright The
Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 8 2008 19:13 | Last updated:
April 8 2008 19:13. China is feeling the heat. Instead of a smooth series
of positive images ahead of the Beijing Games, the grand plans for a world
tour by the Olympic torch have produced a new international sport:
extinguishing the flame as a pro-Tibet protest. At the weekend there were
damaging scenes of a squad of Chinese attendants jostling demonstrators in
London. After the disruption of the torch’s progress through Paris comes the
sight of protesters on the Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco. These are
not reasons to curtail the tour. On the contrary, the “journey of harmony”
is a valuable chance to give Beijing vivid proof that significant swathes of
international opinion deeply oppose the recent crackdown. The protests gain
added power ahead of the torch’s trip through Tibet itself. The opportunity
for political expression that comes from taking the torch around the globe
is an innovation from 2004, when the games returned to Athens. But the
modern Olympic movement has long had a complex relationship with politics.
The first tour of the torch came in the run-up to the 1936 Olympiad, as part
of the Nazi propaganda which made Berlin the most notorious games of recent
times.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/financial-times-editoria
l-comment_09.html
Chicago Sun-Times Editorial - 'Journey of Education' is a lesson for China.
Copyright by The Chicago Sun-Times. April 8, 2008. China is beset by a
public relations nightmare of its own making. As host of this summer's
Olympic games, China has sent the Olympic torch on a 130-day relay journey,
only to be humiliated by chaotic human rights protests all along the way.
In Paris on Monday, scuffling between police and protesters grew so
dangerous that the torch had to be snuffed out and carried by bus. In
London the day before, a team of Olympic torch bearers only barely managed
to keep the flame alive, dodging protesters -- one of whom just missed with
a fire extinguisher -- with the help of more than 2,000 police officers.
Around the world, the chant was heard: "Shame on China." Shame on China,
indeed.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/chicago-sun-times-editor
ial-journey-of.html
Tibet protests force Beijing into IOC talks By Roger Blitz and Jimmy Burns
in London, Ben Hall in Paris and Richard McGregor in Beijing. Copyright The
Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 7 2008 09:21 | Last updated:
April 8 2008 01:06. Beijing officials are to hold urgent talks with senior
members of the Olympic movement about the torch relay, as concern grows
among International Olympic Committee members over the effect of pro-Tibet
protests on the games. The proposed discussions follow a second consecutive
day of disruption for the torch relay in Europe. Protests by hundreds of
pro-Tibetan campaigners and some French politicians against Chinese human
rights abuses yesterday forced organisers to cut short the Olympic torch’s
28km trip through Paris. IOC insiders ruled out routes being curtailed or
cancelled, but one said talks with Beijing would cover “how the integrity of
the torch can be maintained”. One said the backlash against China’s action
in Tibet was in danger of casting a “stain on the Olympic movement”.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/tibet-protests-force-bei
jing-into-ioc.html
Bush to attend Olympic opening ceremony By Demetri Sevastopulo and Daniel
Dombey in Washington. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008.
Published: April 9 2008 06:23 | Last updated: April 9 2008 06:23. President
George W. Bush will not skip the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in
Beijing to protest the Chinese government crackdown on protestors in Tibet,
according to a senior US official. Ambiguous comments from the White House
sparked speculation on Tuesday that Mr Bush might be considering a boycott
of the opening ceremony. Asked several times whether the president was
considering attending only the sporting events, Dana Perino, White House
spokeswoman, replied: “I would not put it that way”. A senior official
later told the Financial Times that Mr Bush was not considering skipping the
opening ceremony. He said the president had “made clear in recent
discussions with foreign leaders that he is not interested in skipping the
opening ceremony”.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/bush-to-attend-olympic-o
pening-ceremony.html
Mess-o-potamia
Financial Times Editorial Comment: Adrift in Baghdad. Copyright The
Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 9 2008 19:31 | Last updated:
April 9 2008 19:31. The claims made by President George W. Bush and an
increasingly reedy chorus of neo-conservative boosters for the “surge” of US
troops in Iraq have long been ludicrous. The multi-sided ethno-sectarian
conflict fuelled by the occupation has not been “turned around” and
strategic success – whatever that now means – is nowhere in prospect.
General David Petraeus, the US commander in Iraq, does not make such claims;
nor does he go out of his way to deflate them. He wants more time for the
strategy, a pause in the drawdown of troops after the five brigades of surge
reinforcements depart in the summer. But there are no signs the surge can
deliver enduring gains. It is not even clear how much longer it can keep
Iraq in its present holding pattern, a bloodsoaked gridlock of militia rule
fragmenting the country.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/financial-times-editoria
l-comment_10.html
Militants Kill 17 Afghan Road Workers By AMIR SHAH. Copyright 2008
Associated Press. 11:47 AM CDT, April 8, 2008. KABUL, Afghanistan -
Militants killed 17 road workers in Afghanistan's lawless south Tuesday,
part of a spike in violence that left 40 people dead over two days. Sixteen
other construction workers were wounded in the attack in Zabul's Shinkay
district, said Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary. Afghan and
international security forces responding to the ambush killed seven
militants and wounded 12, he said. Road-building is a key part of Afghan
reconstruction and many projects are in remote, insurgency-plagued areas.
Militants have targeted work crews in roadside bomb attacks, ambushes and
kidnappings. In January, militants in eastern Nuristan province beheaded
four road construction workers.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/militants-kill-17-afghan
-road-workers.html
Hundreds Flee Fight in Shiite Stronghold By ROBERT H. REID. Copyright 2008
Associated Press. 4:20 PM CDT, April 7, 2008. BAGHDAD - Hundreds of people
fled fighting in Baghdad's Shiite militia stronghold Monday as U.S. and
Iraqi forces increased pressure on anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who
faces an ultimatum to either disband his Mahdi Army or give up politics.
Al-Sadr's aides said he would only dismantle the powerful militia if ordered
by top Shiite clerics -- who have remained silent throughout the
increasingly dangerous showdown. Although al-Sadr holds considerable
influence through the Mahdi fighters -- estimated at up to 60,000 --
political exile for his movement would shatter his dream of becoming the
major power broker among the country's Shiite majority.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/hundreds-flee-fight-in-s
hiite.html
Iran steps up uranium enrichment By Anna Fifield and Najmeh Bozorgmehr in
Tehran. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 8
2008 13:07 | Last updated: April 8 2008 15:42. Iran has started installing
an additional 6,000 advanced uranium enrichment centrifuges at its main
nuclear facility, President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad declared on Tuesday, in a
move that will heighten western fears about Tehran’s nuclear intentions.
The extra equipment will enable Iran to triple its enrichment capacity. In
theory, analysts say this means Tehran could produce three nuclear weapons a
year if all the centrifuges were working efficiently, though Iran insists
its programme is purely for peaceful energy production. “Today, the process
of installing 6,000 new centrifuges at the facility in Natanz has started,”
Mr Ahmadi-Nejad said on Tuesday during a visit to the plant to mark national
nuclear technology day.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/iran-steps-up-uranium-en
richment.html
National
Airlines Fare Poorly in Quality Survey By JENNIFER C. KERR. Copyright 2008
Associated Press. 3:47 PM CDT, April 7, 2008. WASHINGTON - Low-cost
carriers AirTran, Jet Blue and Southwest took the top three spots in a
national survey of airline quality, while the industry overall hit its
lowest rating in the nearly two decades of the study. The poor ratings come
at a time of rising fuel prices and increasingly fed-up consumers. At the
bottom of the list released Monday were Comair, American Eagle and in last
place: Atlantic Southeast Airlines. The past year "was the worst year ever
for the U.S. airlines," said Brent Bowen, a study co-author and professor at
the Aviation Institute at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. "Overall
operational performance and quality declined once again to the lowest level
that it's ever been."
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/airlines-fare-poorly-in-
quality-survey.html
New cancellations deepen US airport chaos By Kevin Allison in San Francisco,
Hal Weitzman in Chicago and Daniel Pimlott in Washington. Copyright The
Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 10 2008 19:06 | Last
updated: April 10 2008 19:06. Chaos gripped US airports for a third
straight day on Thursday as the government’s top transportation watchdog
called for changes to airline safety oversight, citing an “overly
collaborative” relationship between airlines and their regulator, the
Federal Aviation Administration. Calvin Scovel III, the US transportation
department’s inspector general, made his comments before Congress as
American Airlines cancelled 900 flights to perform safety checks, stranding
thousands of air passengers. American Airlines had been forced to cancel
more than 1,400 flights on Tuesday and Wednesday to ensure that its fleet of
MD-80 jets was in compliance with government “airworthiness directives”.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/new-cancellations-deepen
-us-airport.html
American cancels another 1,500 flights By Kevin Allison in San Francisco,
Hal Weitzman in Chicago and Daniel Pimlott in Washington. Copyright The
Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 10 2008 19:06 | Last
updated: April 11 2008 00:57. American Airlines cancelled 570 flights on
Friday, setting up US airports for a fourth day of chaos and bringing the
number of flights cancelled by the carrier this week to more than 3000. The
cancellations, coming after 900 on Thursday, brought further chaos to US
airports, as AA raced to perform safety checks. The cancellations came after
Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and US Airways pulled flights after
officials announced spot inspections of all US airlines’ safety paperwork.
Airlines have been under increased scrutiny since early March, when details
surfaced of a congressional investigation into claims that the Federal
Aviation Administration, the regulator, had permitted Southwest Airlines to
fly aircraft that were not compliant with airworthiness standards.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/american-cancels-another
-1500-flights.html
Bush Whacking
Fraud Loophole Documents Delayed By LARA JAKES JORDAN. Copyright 2008
Associated Press. 8:24 PM CDT, April 7, 2008. WASHINGTON - The Bush
administration has delayed delivering documents to Congress explaining how a
multibillion-dollar loophole exempting overseas work from scrutiny was
slipped into a rule intended to crack down on fraud in government contracts.
A House panel will hear April 15 from White House and other administration
officials about the loophole, which drew protests from Democrats and
Republican lawmakers alike and been disavowed by Attorney General Michael
Mukasey. "If this loophole was a bureaucratic mistake as some in the
administration have claimed, then our requests should be easy to meet," Rep.
Peter Welch, D-Vt., said in a statement Monday. "This should be simple.
Someone in the administration made this change and it should be easy to
explain why. A delay only raises more questions."
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/fraud-loophole-documents
-delayed.html
Indecision 2008
Religious logic - Copyright by The Chicago Tribune, April 12, 2008
By the logic that Barack Obama supported his pastor's thoughts by not
leaving his church, all those who continue to go to Catholic churches
support pedophiles.
--Darwin Corrin Chicago
‘Reagan Democrats’ switch allegiance By Edward Luce in Doylestown,
Pennsylvania. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April
11 2008 20:04 | Last updated: April 11 2008 20:04. Neil Samuels is typical
of many Democrats in Bucks County, Pennsylvania – a picturesque suburb of
northern Philadelphia. A former Republican, Mr Samuels is one of thousands
who have switched loyalties and turned Bucks County into a majority
Democratic zone for the first time in living memory. “Ronald Reagan once
said: ‘I didn’t leave the Democratic party, the Democratic party left me’,”
says Mr Samuels, who is deputy chair of his county’s Democratic party. “Well
I didn’t leave the Republican party. The Republican party left me.” The
sharp trend away from the Republican party is not confined to Bucks County.
Fuelled by disaffection with the Iraq war, the Bush administration’s alleged
mismanagement of the US economy and its departure from fiscal conservatism,
Pennsylvania as a whole has shifted from being a swing state into a
Democratic state over the past few years.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/reagan-democrats-switch-
allegiance.html
McCain in battle to keep his cool By Andrew in Washington. Copyright The
Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 10 2008 18:54 | Last
updated: April 10 2008 18:54. It was the telltale sign that John McCain was
getting mad. During the last few Republican presidential primary debates,
when his battle with Mitt Romney became increasingly rancorous, a forced
smile would spread across the Arizona senator’s face every time his opponent
went on the attack. Asked about the expression by a reporter later, he
described it as a “defence mechanism” to mask feelings of anger and
frustration. Mr McCain has been battling to control his infamous temper
since childhood, when schoolmates nicknamed him “McNasty” and “Punk”. Now,
as he prepares to carry the Republican banner into November’s election,
critics are questioning whether his fiery temperament could be a liability
as commander-in-chief.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/mccain-in-battle-to-keep
-his-cool.html
Slams at Obama show Smiley is out of touch By LAURA WASHINGTON
LauraSWashington at aol.com. Copyright by The Chicago Sun-Times. April 7,
2008. The suits at PBS must perspire profusely when they consider the
latest from Tavis Smiley on the subjects of Sen. Barack Obama and the Rev.
Jeremiah Wright. Smiley, the PBS talk show host and public television's
Numero Uno black guy, is a vociferous and cagey Obama critic. On a recent
HBO broadcast, Smiley took up the Obama conversation and made one of the
most outlandish utterances I've ever seen on TV -- we'll come back to that
momentarily. Lately, black folks have been buttonholing me with one or
another variation of the same question: "What's the deal with Tavis? Why is
he dogging out my man Obama?" Well, boys and girls, Mr. Smiley has had a
problem with Sen. Obama for quite a while. It all goes back to Smiley's
February 2007 State of the Black Union confab at Hampton University in
Virginia. Every year, Smiley hosts a series of discussions with some of the
biggest names in black America.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/slams-at-obama-show-smil
ey-is-out-of.html
Outpouring of hate greets Obama column BY ANDREW GREELEY. Copyright by The
Chicago Sun-Times. April 9, 2008. I was swept away last week by an
avalanche of hate mail, far more than I usually receive (and favorable mail
usually outnumbers the contentious). The first letter asserted the pope was
coming to America this month to dispose of priests like me. The second said
the writer had left the church because of me and priests like me, especially
the archbishop of Boston (name not given). The third suggested I was part
of the Jewish-Communist conspiracy against the church and the United States.
Another argued I had failed in my priestly duty because I had not revealed
the names of secret pedophile priests to the church and the police. My
crime was a column I had written recently in which I argued that the
outrageous resentment toward Sen. Obama by some columnists has poisoned the
current political campaign. Naomi Schaefer Riley of the Wall Street Journal
had said the senator had joined Trinity United Church of Christ because he
was a radical at Harvard and wanted the support of that large congregation
when he ran for political office. Professor Thomas Sowell accused him of
hypocrisy because when he decided to run for office he found it useful to
present an image as a "post-racial" black. As one who knew the facts about
the senator's life and counts him as a friend, I rose to his defense. Both
writers, I asserted, bore false witness and displayed the kind of personal
resentment that President Kennedy encountered and that created the
atmosphere in which real crazies would kill him and his brother.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/outpouring-of-hate-greet
s-obama-column.html
Funding scandal may damage Quinn’s campaign for mayor. Copyright by The
Chicago Free Press. April 9, 2008. NEW YORK—Christine Quinn was widely
thought to have a shot at becoming New York’s first female and openly gay
mayor. But that bid may be complicated by revelations that the New York City
Council, under her leadership, allocated millions of dollars to fake
organizations. Quinn admitted this week that the council has appropriated
some $17.4 million dollars since 2001 to groups that didn’t exist. Quinn,
considered a likely Democratic mayoral candidate for the race to succeed
Mayor Michael Bloomberg next year, has tried to make open government a
hallmark of her agenda. With federal and city investigators now looking into
the fake funding and other council finance issues, she could end up paying
the political consequences. Quinn, who is in her third year as speaker of
the 51-member council, is the third council speaker since 1989, when the
position was created. It is widely considered to be the second-most powerful
seat in city government, largely because of its influence over budget
matters.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/funding-scandal-may-dama
ge-quinns.html
Clinton move ‘too little too late’ By Edward Luce in Washington. Copyright
The Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 7 2008 19:18 | Last
updated: April 7 2008 23:16. Hillary Clinton’s decision to remove Mark Penn
as her chief strategist on Sunday came too late to save her campaign and
amounted to too little to restructure it, Democrat officials have said. In
spite of being demoted, Mr Penn, who has so far billed Mrs Clinton for $13m
(€8.26m, £6.52m) worth of campaign work, will stay on as her consultant,
pollster and direct mail provider. Mr Penn, who was undone by a meeting
last week with the Colombian ambassador in his role as chief executive of
Burson-Marsteller, the public relations company, was originally due to be
demoted in early January following Mrs Clinton’s poor third place showing in
the Iowa caucuses, which kicked off the nominating season. But the former
first lady’s unexpected victory in New Hampshire five days later saved Mr
Penn and others, including Patti Solis Doyle, her campaign manager, who was
eventually removed in February. Had Mrs Clinton lost New Hampshire, she
would have radically restructured her campaign, say insiders.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/clinton-move-too-little-
too-late.html
Bill Clinton Visits Puerto Rico, Rich in Culture and Delegates By Eli
Saslow. Copyright by The Washington Post. Tuesday, April 8, 2008; Page
A01. BARCELONETA, Puerto Rico, April 7 -- The four sound trucks filed onto
potholed streets at 8 o'clock Monday morning, weighed down by the 800-pound
speakers rigged to their roofs. They drove past the pineapple plantations,
past the black-sand beaches, past the multicolored tiendas downtown. All
morning, the trucks blasted the same short message, as if repetition might
make it more believable: "Sí! Bill Clinton está aquí!" Yes, a few hours
later, Bill Clinton did come to this farming town 1,200 miles from the U.S.
mainland, bringing with him the 2008 Democratic presidential campaign. The
former president walked into the humid courtyard of a university to a
drumroll from boys banging on steel garbage cans, past security guards in
Hawaiian shirts and women dancing to salsa music, to make the case for his
wife, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/bill-clinton-visits-puer
to-rico-rich-in.html
Chicagoland
Chicago Tribune Editorial - The Jone$ solution. Copyright © 2008, Chicago
Tribune. April 7, 2008. Democrats in the Illinois Senate have found their
perfect solution to their governor's projected $750 million budget
shortfall. They want to . . . spend an additional $678 million, give or
take. Perhaps, unlike Senate President Emil Jones and his Democrats, this
is not how you resolve a money shortage in your household. Perhaps, unlike
Jones and his Democrats, you are disinclined to ramp up your spending to
nearly double your shortage. Perhaps too, unlike Jones and his Democrats,
you are not so maddeningly tormented by House Speaker Michael Madigan that
you'd even consider a stunt this foolish. The Senate Democrats like to
think they're in the select and senior chamber. They resent Madigan, who
frequently outmaneuvers them, the way Hillary resents Barack.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/chicago-tribune-editoria
l-jone-solution.html
Technology
Yahoo rejects Microsoft’s $42bn offer By Chris Nuttall in San Francisco.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008. Published: April 7 2008 12:13 |
Last updated: April 7 2008 18:47. Yahoo has positioned itself for the
endgame in its battle with Microsoft by issuing its strongest rejection to
date of its rival’s $42bn takeover offer. However, analysts said the
rhetoric from both sides suggested a negotiated settlement might happen,
with Microsoft offering a deal worth more than its initial $31 a share.
Yahoo’s swift response to Microsoft’s move to set a deadline on Saturday of
three weeks to conclude an agreement came in the form of a “Dear Steve”
letter to Steve Ballmer, Microsoft’s chief executive, from his Yahoo
counterpart, Jerry Yang, and Roy Bostock, chairman of the board. It said
Microsoft was still substantially undervaluing Yahoo, whose board had
received significant support from shareholders. It said they were impressed
by projected revenues in a three-year financial and strategic plan unveiled
last month.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/yahoo-rejects-microsofts
-42bn-offer.html
Immigration
Chicago Sun-Times Editorial - Close door on bad wall idea. Copyright by The
Chicago Sun-Times . April 8, 2008. Homeland Security is bulldozing along
with plans to expand a border wall. Security czar Michael Chertoff has
issued waivers to bypass environmental laws to speed construction of 470
miles of fence from California to Texas. The wall threatens the environment
and wildlife, including the ocelot, the jaguarundi and migratory birds. It
also would cut through federally protected wilderness areas. In response,
conservationists have petitioned to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that the
REAL ID Act, which allows Homeland Security to grant such waivers, is
unconstitutional and violates federal environmental laws. But let's not
pretend. A wall won't end illegal immigration. As the saying goes: "Build a
50-foot wall and someone will build a 51-foot ladder." "Coyotes" --
immigrant smugglers -- will find a way above or around.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/chicago-sun-times-editor
ial-close-door.html
GLBT
HIV/AIDS Lobby Days: 120 travel, call for sound policies by Amy Wooten.
Copyright by The Windy City Times. 2008-04-09. The eighth annual HIV/AIDS
Lobby Days was a “huge success,” according to the event's organizers. Over
120 people rallied in the rotunda of the State Capitol on April 2, calling
for sound HIV/AIDS policies. Wearing T-shirts emblazoned with this year's
“Mission: Possible” theme, HIV/AIDS advocates spoke to their state
legislators about critical pieces of HIV/AIDS legislation. Joining the
advocates during the rally were state Sen. David Koehler, D-Peoria, and
Reps. Greg Harris, D-Chicago, Sara Feigenholtz, D-Chicago, and Cynthia Soto,
D-Chicago. AIDS Foundation of Chicago's Jim Merrell, who organized the
event, told Windy City Times that Lobby Days was extremely successful this
year. In addition to the rally, roughly 75 advocates were trained April 1.
That evening, AFC also honored HIV/AIDS activists for their hard work during
an awards ceremony. Advocate Marla Francisco, a client representative for an
HIV consortium, was given the 4th annual Mary Dixon Advocacy Award.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/hivaids-lobby-days-120-t
ravel-call-for.html
Unmarried Couples - Unequal Legal Rights. Copyright by Gay Chicago Magazine
and Roger McCaffrey-Boss. April 8, 2008. There are many examples where
LGBT couples are not afforded the same legal rights as are afforded married
couples: The estate of one partner who dies may be subject to sizable
federal estate taxes, while married spouses can leave everything to their
spouse free of federal estate tax. One partner who is not a natural or
adoptive parent has no legal rights to the other partner’s children, even if
they have lived together for many years. A LGBT partner has no rights to
their partner’s pension or social security benefits. A surviving partner
has no right to inherit any of their lover’s property unless they are
specifically provided for in either a will, joint tenancy ownership, named
beneficiary of an IRA or life insurance policy or beneficiary under a living
trust declaration. LGBT couples who plan a long-term relationship should
consider all the estate planning and retirement needs for their
relationship. As only about one-quarter of all adults die with a valid will
such an oversight could be disaster for the surviving partner. Along with
naming a partner in a will all couples need to review who holds title to
what property and who is listed as the beneficiary of insurance policies,
annuities and retirement plans.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/unmarried-couples-unequa
l-legal-rights.html
Views: Thomas Beatie's pregnancy: What does it change? by Yasmin Nair.
Copyright by The Windy City Times. 2008-04-09. Thomas Beatie, a
transgender man who has retained his female reproductive organs and is six
months pregnant, recently appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Let me be
clear at the outset: I support Beatie's decision. I also think it's
remarkably brave of him to be public about his decision. It takes a lot to
be out as a transgender person, even in famously liberal Oregon, but to be a
pregnant man in public goes beyond the pale. Sure, I could have done without
all the gendered rhetoric, as when his wife said, “He's going to be the
father; I'm going to be the mother. It doesn't change how I feel about him
as the husband.” This will be a family with a father who gives birth to his
child. But this will not, apparently, be a feminist family.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/views-thomas-beaties-pre
gnancy-what.html
PlanetOut agrees to sell magazine business for $6 million by Steven E.F.
Brown. Copyright by The San Francisco Business Times. April 9, 20008. Gay
and lesbian media portal PlanetOut Inc. agreed to sell its magazine and book
publishing business to Here Networks for $6 million in cash. San
Francisco-based PlanetOut signed a letter of intent with Regent Releasing,
an affiliate of New York-based Here, which is a gay and lesbian television
network. A formal agreement should be done by April 30 and the deal should
close by August 31. The price in the letter of agreement is $6 million, with
$1 million coming on April 30 or sooner, if the agreement is finished
earlier. Other $1 million payments will be made on the 15th of the month
from May through September. The letter, signed by PlanetOut CEO Karen Magee
and Regent CEO Paul Colichman states: "The funds shall be treated as prepaid
advertising, to be applied as the marketing occurs." The ads must run by
March 31, 2009.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/planetout-agrees-to-sell
-magazine.html
Kennedy reignites ENDA controversy By Andrew Miga. Copyright by The
Associated Press. April 9, 2008. WASHINGTON—Sen. Edward M. Kennedy is
jumping into the middle of an uproar within the gay community whose causes
he has long championed. The Massachusetts Democrat is leading a push in the
Senate for a federal ban on job bias against gays, lesbians and
bisexuals—but not transsexuals, cross-dressers and others whose outward
appearance doesn’t match their gender at birth. “We will strongly oppose
it,” said Roberta Sklar, of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.
“Leaving transgender people out makes that a flawed movement.” The House in
November approved the bill, written by openly gay Rep. Barney Frank
(D-Mass.), despite strong protests from many gay rights advocates that it
didn’t cover transgender workers.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/kennedy-reignites-enda-c
ontroversy.html
Obama Talks All Things LGBT With The Advocate By Kerry Eleveld. Copyright
by The Advocate. April 10, 2008. In an exclusive Chicago sit-down with The
Advocate's Kerry Eleveld, Democratic front-runner Barack Obama discusses
"don't ask, don't tell," the Reverend Wright, and what he would do for LGBT
Americans if he becomes president. Democratic presidential front-runner
Barack Obama has been weathering a small storm lately in the LGBT community
for being too tight-lipped with gay and lesbian news media. Unlike his
rival Hillary Clinton, who's given interviews to Logo and several local
papers since appearing on the cover of The Advocate last fall, the Illinois
senator has talked only once, to The Advocate, to address the Donnie
McClurkin controversy. But last week his campaign offered our magazine an
exclusive sit-down in Chicago with the man who may well become the next
president of the United States. To some extent, it symbolizes the
brilliance of a protracted primary contest where candidates continually
pivot and adjust in order to engage ever more voters. Had the race stopped
cold in the snows of New Hampshire, gays and lesbians would have been left
with one interview of record for each Democratic candidate in total.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/obama-talks-all-things-l
gbt-with.html
Obama favors repealing 'don't ask, don't tell' policy Copyright by The BY
ASSOCIATED PRESS. April 10, 2008. WASHINGTON---- Barack Obama says if
elected president he will not require that his Joint Chiefs of Staff be
opposed to the ''don't ask, don't tell'' policy that prevents gays from
serving openly in the military. The Democratic presidential front-runner
favors repealing the policy, which was instituted during the Clinton
administration. He said his priority for the Joint Chiefs will be that they
make decisions to strengthen the military and keep the country safe, not
their position on the policy. ''I would never make this a litmus test for
the Joint Chiefs of Staff,'' Obama said in an interview with The Advocate, a
gay newsmagazine.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/obama-favors-repealing-d
ont-ask-dont.html
Exhibit documents war Nazis waged against gays By Eric Tucker. Copyright by
The Associated Press. April 9, 2008. SOUTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. — In Nazi
Germany, some gay men were castrated and prosecuted under draconian laws
prohibiting homosexuality. Others were subjected to crude medical
experiments designed to "correct" their sexual orientation. Gay men in
concentration camps were singled out with distinctive pink triangle badges
and assigned backbreaking labor that often killed them. A traveling exhibit
from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum uses photographs, documents
and artwork to chronicle the Nazis' arrests and persecution of tens of
thousands of gay men. The exhibit, which recently ended its run at the
University of Rhode Island, gives voice to what its curator describes as
"one of the lesser-known stories of the Nazi era."
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/exhibit-documents-war-na
zis-waged.html
Clinton talks with Philly gay paper; Obama refuses By Nedra Pickler.
Copyright by The Associated Press. April 10, 2008. WASHINGTON—Democratic
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton said she would defend gay rights as president
and eliminate disparities for same-sex couples in federal law, including
immigration and tax policy. Clinton said states such as New Jersey and
Massachusetts are extending rights to gay couples “and the federal
government should recognize that and should extend the same access to
federal benefits across the board. I will very much work to achieve that.”
Clinton’s comments came in an interview with the Philadelphia Gay News that
was posted on its website April 3. Clinton said she and her husband have
many gay friends that they socialize with when they get the chance. “I’ve
got friends, literally, around the country that I’m close to. It’s part of
my life,” she said.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/clinton-talks-with-phill
y-gay-paper.html
Transitioning into inclusion at Michigan By Jennifer Vanasco. Copyright by
The Chicago Free Press and Jennifer Vanasco. April 9, 2008. Seventeen
years after Nancy Burkholder was ejected from the Michigan Womyn’s Music
Festival because she was outed as a transwoman, people on the Michigan
Internet forums are still talking about transgender inclusion in the lesbian
community. I find this amazing. And when I say “amazing,” I mean it in a
good way. One of the things I like best about Michigan is how seriously
issues are taken that have long been dropped from mainstream
discussions—it’s a place and a community where feminism is still important,
where gender is still important, where academic topics like power dynamics,
degrees of oppression and social conditioning are discussed, debated and
lived. Because women who attend Fest and transwomen who want to attend all
feel so strongly about it, the “womyn-born-womyn only” policy is one that’s
painful for all sides.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/transitioning-into-inclu
sion-at.html
Health Care
States fear plant could become next marijuana By Jessica Gresko . Copyright
2008 Associated Press. April 8, 2008. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — On Web sites
touting the mind-blowing powers of Salvia divinorum, come-ons to buy the
hallucinogenic herb are accompanied by warnings: "Time is running out!" and
"stock up while you still can." That's because this species of salvia is
being targeted by lawmakers concerned that the inexpensive and
easy-to-obtain plant could become the next marijuana. Eight states including
Illinois have placed restrictions on Salvia divinorum, and 16 others are
considering a ban or have previously. "As soon as we make one drug illegal,
kids start looking around for other drugs they can buy legally. This is just
the next one," said Florida state Rep. Mary Brandenburg, who has introduced
a bill to make possession of Salvia divinorum a felony punishable by up to 5
years in prison. On Jan. 1, Salvia divinorum became a Schedule I substance
in Illinois. Possession or sale is a felony, with legal consequences as
severe as those for heroin or LSD.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/states-fear-plant-could-
become-next.html
Drugmaker hid contraceptive data - Company to wield FDA approval as shield
from lawsuits By Gardiner Harris and Alex Berenson. Copyright by The New
York Times . April 6, 2008. For years, Johnson & Johnson obscured evidence
that its popular Ortho Evra birth control patch delivered much more estrogen
than standard birth control pills, potentially increasing the risk of blood
clots and strokes, according to internal company documents. More than 3,000
women and their families have sued the company, saying use of the Ortho Evra
patch caused heart attacks, strokes and, in some cases, death. But because
the Food and Drug Administration approved the patch, the company is arguing
in court that it cannot be sued by women who claim they were injured by the
product—even though its old label inaccurately described the amount of
estrogen it released. This legal argument is called pre-emption. After
decades of being dismissed by courts, the tactic now appears to be on the
verge of success, lawyers for plaintiffs and drug companies say.
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/drugmaker-hid-contracept
ive-data.html
Other
When is it time for Senior drivers to give up their car keys? By Jay
Hamburg. Copyright © 2008, Orlando Sentinel. April 6, 2008. Ray Reynolds,
a 76-year-old retired minister from Orlando, is on a mission to force folks
his age to face a question they hate to hear, much less discuss openly with
family or friends. How old is too old to drive? Reynolds doesn't have a
quick answer to what he calls a "firestorm" issue for older drivers, many of
whom fear the loneliness and anger that follow when a spouse or child wrests
away their car keys. Still, that doesn't stop the soft-spoken man from
posing the question at public meetings, buttonholing listeners or gently
prodding the conversation when surrounded by other seniors, as he was
recently at an exercise class in Winter Park. "I don't want to be a hazard
on the road," Reynolds said to members of his water-aerobics class at the
Crosby YMCA Family Center. "And I do want seniors to begin to think about
this."
http://iretiredfromnewsletters.blogspot.com/2008/04/when-is-it-time-for-seni
or-drivers-to.html
New! Carlos now has an online store. Order your books directly from Carlos
and have them signed and dedicated. http://www.carlostmock.com/catalog/
In Pride (orgullo),
Carlos T. Mock, MD
Www.carlostmock.com
Author: Borrowing Time: A Latino Sexual Odyssey - Floricanto Press 2003.
Nominated for a Stonewall Award by the American Library Association GLBT
Round Table.
Author: The Mosaic Virus – Floricanto Press 2007. Nominated for a Stonewall
Award by the American Library Association GLBT Round Table, and a Lammie
from The Lambda Literary Foundation
Author: Author: Papi Chulo – Floricanto Press 2007. Nominated for a
Stonewall Award by the American Library Association GLBT Round Table, and a
Lammie from The Lambda Literary Foundation
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