Turkish Internet servers reeling under huge cyber-attack by unknown assailants.

Turkish Internet servers reeling under huge cyber-attack by unknown assailants. (ToI).

Experts unable to identify source of hack, but newspaper reports suggest Russia may be behind it.

ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish Internet servers are suffering a powerful cyber-attack, slowing banking services and fanning fears that it could be a politically motivated attack from abroad.

Nic.tr, a non-governmental organization that administers addresses for websites using the “tr” domain, said Thursday that the attack appeared to be from “organized sources” outside Turkey.

Transport and Communications Minister Binali Yildirim called it a “serious” attack and asked an Ankara-based university to beef up security measures, saying they were “insufficient.”

Banking sources said the attack has seriously disrupted transactions.

Experts have been unable to identify the source of the attack.

Some newspapers said it could have originated in Russia, citing fraught bilateral relations since the downing by Turkey of a Russian fighter jet last month on the Syrian border.

According to local media, the Anonymous hacking group posted a message saying it would continue to attack Turkey for “supporting the Islamic State by buying their oil and tending to their injured fighters.”

Anonymous takes credit for massive cyberattack on Turkey: https://t.co/BDPRcuoFtA pic.twitter.com/Uj3uZjB4Mx

— The Hill (@thehill) December 25, 2015

The Internet mirror - Ninety-nine percent of us live on the wrong side of a one-way mirror.

The Internet mirror - Ninety-nine percent of us live on the wrong side of a one-way mirror.(SA).

Imagine an Internet where unseen hands curate your entire experience. Where third parties predetermine the news, products and prices you see—even the people you meet.

A world where you think you are making choices, but in reality, your options are narrowed and refined until you are left with merely the illusion of control.

This is not far from what is happening today. Thanks to technology that enables Google, Facebook and others to gather information about us and use it to tailor the user experience to our own personal tastes, habits and income, the Internet has become a different place for the rich and for the poor. Most of us have become unwitting actors in an unfolding drama about the tale of two Internets. There is yours and mine, theirs and ours.

As a result, 99 percent of us live on the wrong side of a one-way mirror, in which the other 1 percent manipulates our experiences.

Some laud this trend as “personalization”—which sounds innocuous and fun, evoking the notion that the ads we see might appear in our favorite color schemes. What we are talking about, however, is much deeper and significantly more consequential.Read the full story here.

"May the power of the Cloud be with you?" - Power Outages a Sign of Cloud Computing’s Achilles Heel?

"May the power of the Cloud be with you?" - Power Outages a Sign of Cloud Computing’s Achilles Heel?(Heritage).By David Inserra.Last Friday, storms knocked out power for many in the D.C. metro area. Disruptions didn’t end there. Amazon Web Services, a cloud service provider, went down in the storm, taking several major companies’ websites and businesses offline.
Netflix, Instagram, and Pinterest, among others, also lost access to e-mail, applications, data, and other business services. 
While the disruption was brief, bugs in the system caused Amazon servers to spread the problem, leading to delays and disabling of services beyond the affected region.
Cloud computing is the movement of IT capabilities away from individual computers and servers to centralized providers that manage IT resources for their users via the Internet. But if the cloud cannot survive a thunderstorm, can it survive a dedicated cyber or physical attack?
There are good reasons to keep some services off the cloud, but worrying about disasters is not one of them. The Department of Defense, the National Security Agency, and other security services would be wise to keep highly sensitive information on their own servers. Even with the most secure cloud, the risk of losing even a small amount of information outweighs the benefits.
On the other hand, there are significant benefits to cloud computing. For most government agencies, the cloud would likely improve security, and any potential risks could be managed through proper contracts with the cloud provider.
Another major benefit is increased flexibility. Amazon shifted data and services to different cloud servers, albeit imperfectly, and restored most services within a few hours. If a normal server lost power, it would simply turn off, leaving employees without access to data or applications found on that server.In the cyber realm, there will always be failures and breaches; even without cloud computing, the federal government has its share of problems . Ultimately, whether it is on the cloud or on a private server, strong cybersecurity and a resilient electric grid are needed to keep computers going.Hmmmm......"May the power of the Cloud be with you?"Read the full story here.

Google Warns Million Users Could Lose Internet Access in July.

Google Warns Million Users Could Lose Internet Access in July.(Matzav).Google has warned that hundreds of thousands of internet users may be unable to access the web on July 9 if they do not get rid of malicious software, also known as malware, from their computers. Google has been alerting users to the threat of DNSChanger with the message “your computer appears to be infected” on machines infected by the software. The company had successfully alerted a million users last summer to a different type of malware. This time the method has been repeated with Google showing a special message appearing at the top of the Google search results page for users with affected devices. Google has warned that as many as one million computers may be infected with malware. The Domain Name System (DNS) converts web address names like google.com into numericals that enable computers to send traffic to the right place. DNSChanger changes the DNS settings and forces users to use malicious servers that redirect them to fake and other harmful sites. The malware also alters the settings on home routers and can infect other computers and mobile devices.A really good freeware Anti-spyware program can be found here @ Emisoft.Read the full story here.

FBI quietly forms secretive Net-surveillance unit.

FBI quietly forms secretive Net-surveillance unit.(CNET News).The FBI has recently formed a secretive surveillance unit with an ambitious goal: to invent technology that will let police more readily eavesdrop on Internet and wireless communications.

The establishment of the Quantico, Va.-based unit, which is also staffed by agents from the U.S. Marshals Service and the Drug Enforcement Agency, is a response to technological developments that FBI officials believe outpace law enforcement's ability to listen in on private communications.
While the FBI has been tight-lipped about the creation of its Domestic Communications Assistance Center, or DCAC -- it declined to respond to requests made two days ago about who's running it, for instance -- CNET has pieced together information about its operations through interviews and a review of internal government documents.
DCAC's mandate is broad, covering everything from trying to intercept and decode Skype conversations to building custom wiretap hardware or analyzing the gigabytes of data that a wireless provider or social network might turn over in response to a court order. It's also designed to serve as a kind of surveillance help desk for state, local, and other federal police.Here's the full text of the FBI's statement in a Google+ post.
One person familiar with the FBI's procedures told CNET that the DCAC is in the process of being launched but is not yet operational. A public Justice Department document, however, refers to the DCAC as "recently established."
The FBI has disclosed little information about the DCAC, and what has been previously made public about the center was primarily through budget requests sent to congressional committees. The DCAC doesn't even have a Web page.
"The big question for me is why there isn't more transparency about what's going on?" asks Jennifer Lynch, a staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a civil liberties group in San Francisco. "We should know more about the program and what the FBI is doing. Which carriers they're working with -- which carriers they're having problems with. They're doing the best they can to avoid being transparent."Hmmmm......."The most transparant Admin EVAH".Read the full story here.

Fighting Anti-Semitism on the Internet.

Fighting Anti-Semitism on the Internet.(INN).By Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld.“The International Network against Cyber Hate (INACH) fights discrimination and other forms of cyber hate on an international level by educating, acting for the removal of discriminatory postings, as well as initiating legal action. The network has twenty member organizations from nineteen countries. The Simon Wiesenthal Center is also a member. “There are major problems with Facebook concerning hate-postings. The main problems involve postings about Holocaust denial. In a difficult conversation we had with the European Director of Facebook he said, ‘We remove most of the postings on Holocaust denial.’ We said, ‘You should remove all of them.’ He replied, ‘There is also Holocaust denial which is not considered hatred.’ We laughed in his face and said, ‘The essence of Holocaust denial is anti-Semitism.’ Finally he said, ‘I’m sorry, but these are my American boss Mr. Zuckerberg’s views.’” Ronald Eissens is General Director and Co-Founder of the Dutch NGO Magenta Foundation, which focuses on international human rights and anti-racism. Along with Suzette Bronkhurst, he founded in the Netherlands the world’s first complaint bureau for combating hatred on the internet. He is also a Co-Founder of INACH. Eissens remarks, “On YouTube and Twitter, discriminatory remarks are also being posted. YouTube is unwilling to remove videos with discriminatory remarks, or does so only after much pressure and complaints. YouTube is now part of Google and INACH is at present in discussions with the legal counsel of Google Europe, who has promised that our requests will be handled faster and better. “The relationship with Twitter will hopefully also improve, as they will be opening regional offices in the near future. Until now, Twitter refused to remove discriminatory remarks because they are based in the U.S. and thus only have to comply with the lenient American legislation. The number of anti-Semitic postings and those about Holocaust denial on Twitter are fairly high. Read the full story here.

A Spanish Company Known As Scytl Will Be Reporting Election Results For Hundreds of U.S. Jurisdictions.Who or what is Scytl?

A Spanish Company Known As Scytl Will Be Reporting Election Results For Hundreds of U.S. Jurisdictions.Who or what is Scytl?(AP).By Michael Snyder.Do you know who is going to be counting the votes on Election Day 2012? Most Americans never even think about this. Most Americans just assume that their votes will count and that the government will ensure that the counting process is done honestly and fairly. But is this really the case?

Sadly, the vast majority of people never take the time to "look behind the curtain" to see how things really work. If they did, they might find themselves extremely upset about what they would find.

The integrity of our voting process is of the utmost importance. If we do not have the ballot box, then what avenues for changing our government do we have left? Unfortunately, the integrity of our elections has been called into question quite a few times in recent years, and now a Spanish company known as Scytl will be involved in reporting election results for hundreds of jurisdictions across the United States this upcoming election day. Will those election results be accurate?

It is absolutely amazing that a foreign company has been able to gain such control over the reporting of election results in the United States without it ever making a significant splash in the mainstream media.

You would think that there would be a law against this sort of thing, but apparently there is not.
So how did this all come about?

Well, the story starts with a company called SOE Software.

SOE Software was founded in 2002 and has been involved in reporting election results in 25 U.S. states....

Founded in 2002, SOE Software (SOE) has been working in 25 states to provide election management tools that include online pollworker training and election night reporting solutions to over 900 state and local election jurisdictions.

SOE Software was purchased by a company based in Barcelona, Spain known as Scytl earlier this year. This combination of the two companies has produced a giant firm. Scytl now has a dominant market position in the election software market....

With the acquisition of SOE Software, Scytl is now the industry leader in the election software market with a full range of solutions that cover the whole election process and include secure online ballot delivery, Internet voting, electronic pollbooks, election night reporting, and online pollworker training.

Scytl will be involved in reporting election results in more U.S. jurisdictions than any other company.
In fact, the new combined company will be involved in reporting the election results in 30 U.S. states....

The combined organization is the largest pure election software company in the United States and will be serving customers in over 1,100 jurisdictions in 30 states, including 15 state-wide customers.

So exactly how does all of this work?

Why should we be concerned about what Scytl does with our votes?Bev Harris of blackboxvoting.org has studied voting systems in the United States extensively. According to her, the combination of SOE Software and Scytl is going to make it much more difficult for observers to independently verify the integrity of the voting results in many jurisdictions. The following is an extended excerpt from a recent article by Bev Harris. It is a bit technical but it does a great job of breaking down how things have changed now that Scytl has acquired SOE Software....

In a major step towards global centralization of election processes, the world’s dominant Internet voting company has purchased the USA’s dominant election results reporting company.

When you view your local or state election results on the Internet, on portals which often appear to be owned by the county elections division, in over 525 US jurisdictions you are actually redirected to a private corporate site controlled by SOE software, which operates under the name ClarityElections.com.

The good news is that this firm promptly reports precinct-level detail in downloadable spreadsheet format. As reported by BlackBoxVoting.org in 2008, the bad news is that this centralizes one middleman access point for over 525 jurisdictions in AL, AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, KY, MI, KS, IL, IN, NC, NM, MN, NY, SC, TX, UT, WA. And growing.

As local election results funnel through SOE’s servers (typically before they reach the public elsewhere), those who run the computer servers for SOE essentially get “first look” at results and the ability to immediately and privately examine vote details throughout the USA.

In 2004, many Americans were justifiably concerned when, days before the presidential election, Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell redirected Ohio election night results through the Tennessee-based server for several national Republican Party operations.
This is worse: This redirects results reporting to a centralized privately held server which is not just for Ohio, but national; not just USA-based, but global.

A mitigation against fraud by SOE insiders has been the separation of voting machine systems from the SOE results reports. Because most US jurisdictions require posting evidence of results from each voting machine at the precinct, public citizens can organize to examine these results to compare with SOE results. Black Box Voting spearheaded a national citizen action to videotape / photograph these poll tapes in 2008.

With the merger of SOE and SCYTL, that won’t work (if SCYTL’s voting system is used). When there are two truly independent sources of information, the public can perform its own “audit” by matching one number against the other.

These two independent sources, however, will now be merged into one single source: an Internet voting system controlled by SCYTL, with a results reporting system also controlled by SCYTL.

With SCYTL internet voting, there will be no ballots. No physical evidence. No chain of custody. No way for the public to authenticate who actually cast the votes, chain of custody, or the count.

So should we trust that whatever election results Scytl gives us are accurate? Of course not. The truth is that there have been all sorts of questions about the integrity of Scytl voting systems.

The following example comes from a recent article posted on westernjournalism.com....

The American advocacy group Project Vote has concluded that SCYTL’s internet voting system is vulnerable to attack from the outside AND the inside, a situation which could result in '…an election that does not accurately reflect the will of the voters…' Talk about having a flair for understatement!

There have also been very serious questions about SOE Software. Bev Harris of blackboxvoting.org says that there have been major problems with SOE Software election results in the past....

In Broward County FL, the results reported by Scytl-owned SOE Software in 2008 showed an entire candidate, who was winning, disappear into vapor in the middle of the count, and in Hillsborough County FL and Dallas County TX, votes that had been reported began to disappear.

So now we have a combination of SOE Software and Scytl. Considering the questions that have surrounded both firms in the past, it is easy to see why so many voting activists are deeply concerned.

There are a lot of rumors floating around the Internet that George Soros is at least a part owner of Scytl, but so far nobody has come forward with any solid evidence of this.

According to Scytl, the primary investors in the company are Balderton Capital, Nauta Capital and Spinnaker SCR. It is not known at this time whether George Soros has an ownership stake in any of those venture capital firms.

In any event, it is deeply troubling that a Spanish company will have control over the reporting of election results from hundreds of jurisdictions in the United States on election day.

Hopefully there will be no problems and the election results will be 100% honest and accurate.

But what if they are not? Hmmmm.....“Withholding information is the essence of tyranny. Control of the flow of information is the tool of the dictatorship.” ~ Bruce Coville. Read the full story here.

"Once Upon A Time In Iran " - funny israeli commercial in iran

Funny israeli commercial for one of the Israeli internet providers where an israeli walks through iranian street.
Simple translation: In life this is still not possible, but on the internet relationships like this are created every day.By the way, his t-shirt says "combat [soldiers] are the best, my brother."HT: IsraelMatzav.

European Commission’s proposal to create a sweeping new privacy right: "The Right to Be Forgotten".

European Commission’s proposal to create a sweeping new privacy right: "The Right to Be Forgotten".(SLR).At the end of January, the European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights, and Citizenship, Viviane Reding, announced the European Commission’s proposal to create a sweeping new privacy right—the “right to be forgotten.” The right, which has been hotly debated in Europe for the past few years, has finally been codified as part of a broad new proposed data protection regulation. Although Reding depicted the new right as a modest expansion of existing data privacy rights, in fact it represents the biggest threat to free speech on the Internet in the coming decade. The right to be forgotten could make Facebook and Google, for example, liable for up to two percent of their global income if they fail to remove photos that people post about themselves and later regret, even if the photos have been widely distributed already. Unless the right is defined more precisely when it is promulgated over the next year or so, it could precipitate a dramatic clash between European and American conceptions of the proper balance between privacy and free speech, leading to a far less open Internet.
In theory, the right to be forgotten addresses an urgent problem in the digital age: it is very hard to escape your past on the Internet now that every photo, status update, and tweet lives forever in the cloud. But Europeans and Americans have diametrically opposed approaches to the problem. In Europe, the intellectual roots of the right to be forgotten can be found in French law, which recognizes le droit à l’oubli—or the “right of oblivion”—a right that allows a convicted criminal who has served his time and been rehabilitated to object to the publication of the facts of his conviction and incarceration. In America, by contrast, publication of someone’s criminal history is protected by the First Amendment, leading Wikipedia to resist the efforts by two Germans convicted of murdering a famous actor to remove their criminal history from the actor’s Wikipedia page.Read the full story here.

A Magna Carta Moment for Internet Freedom

Video: Why we must fight for our online rights—before they’re sold, legislated, and programmed away.



Egyptian social activist Wael Ghonim said, "If you want to liberate a society just give them the Internet."
While the Internet certainly played a major role in the Arab Spring uprisings, access alone does not guarantee availability of all the information and opportunities the Web has to offer.
Rebecca MacKinnon, whose new book, Consent of the Networked: The Worldwide Struggle for Internet Freedom, was released last week, addressed the issue of Internet freedom at a TED Talk in Edinburgh last year. She spoke of the Internet's "border busting" potential, as well as how that potential is being stifled by censorship—and not just in the places you would expect.
There is, according to MacKinnon, a "Magna Carta moment" coming when the people will demand that "government and technology serve the world's people and not the other way around."Read the full story here.

Iran clamps down on internet use , installing 'Halal' Internet ?

• Iran clamps down on internet use.(Guardian).Iran is clamping down heavily on web users before parliamentary elections in March with draconian rules on cybercafes and preparations to launch a national internet.Tests for a countrywide network aimed at substituting services run through the world wide web have been carried out by Iran's ministry of information and communication technology, according to a newspaper report. The move has prompted fears among its online community that Iran intends to withdraw from the global internet.The police this week imposed tighter regulations on internet cafes. Cafe owners have been given a two-week ultimatum to adopt rules requiring them to check the identity cards of their customers before providing services."Internet cafes are required to write down the forename, surname, name of the father, national identification number, postcode and telephone number of each customer," said an Iranian police statement, according to the news website Tabnak."Besides the personal information, they must maintain other information of the customer such as the date and the time of using the internet and the IP address, and the addresses of the websites visited. They should keep these informations for each individuals for at least six months."In recent weeks, users in Iran have complained of a significant reduction in internet speed, reported the reformist newspaper, Roozegar, which has recently resumed publication after months of closure. The newspaper said it appeared to be the result of testing the national internet."According to some of the people in charge of the communication industry, attempts to launch a national internet network are the cause of disruption in internet and its speed reduction in recent weeks," Roozegar reported.Some government websites, however, cited other reasons for the drop in speed."If the national internet comes into effect, the internet in the country will act like an internal network and therefore visiting the websites needs permission from the people in charge. Users outside Iran also need permission to visit websites running from inside the country," Roozegar's report said.Speaking to the Guardian on condition of anonymity, an Iranian IT expert with close knowledge of the national internet project, which he described as a corporate-style intranet, said: "Despite what others think, intranet is not primarily aimed at curbing the global internet but Iran is creating it to secure its own military, banking and sensitive data from the outside world."Iran has fears of an outside cyber-attack like that of the Stuxnet, and is trying to protect its sensitive data from being accessible on the world wide web.""At the same time, Iran is working on software robots to analyse exchanging emails and chats, attempting to find more effective ways of controlling user's online activities," said the expert.A blogger in Tehran said recent news was of significant concern to the country's online community. "I'm addicted to the internet and can't imagine a day without the global internet," said the blogger. "But Iranians have always found ways to bypass the regime's censorship, for example by using illegal satellite dishes to watch banned television channels, and I'm sure in the 21st century we should be able to find alternatives should they opt to pull out of the world wide web."The authorities have said for some years that Iran should have a parallel network which would conform to Islamic values and provide "appropriate" services. In April, a senior official, Ali Agha-Mohammadi announced government plans to launch "halal internet".For Iranian officials, the need for such a network became more evident after the disputed presidential elections in 2009, when many protesters used social networks.Iran is suspected to have sought the support of China for its online censorship campaign but Huawei, a leading Chinese telecoms company, which has been accused of supplying Iran with equipment to enable censorship, denied any wrongdoing. More than 5m websites are filtered in Iran, but many Iranians access blocked addresses with help from proxy websites or virtual private network services. An Iranian official said last year that more than 17 million Iranians have Facebook accounts, although the site remains blocked in Iran.Read the full story here.

MFS - The Other News

                    Morning Posting.

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world seismic activity situation Japan 5.0   !More info here.

• Obama’s $4 Million Hawaii Vacation.(Heritage).President Obama had hoped to be in Hawaii today for the start of his 17-day Christmas vacation. Instead, he’s stuck in Washington until Congress finishes its work for the year. But in the Aloha State, residents are already abuzz about the first family’s trip — and its high price tag.Figures obtained by Hawaii Reporter reveal the trip is expected to run taxpayers about $4 million. It has already cost taxpayers about $100,000 extra just so first lady Michelle Obama and the president’s daughters, Sasha and Malia, could leave Friday before the president, according to White House Dossier.Hawaii Reporter’s comprehensive breakdown uses government data to calculate travel, housing, hotel and local costs. Hawaii Reporter research shows the total cost for the President’s visit for taxpayers far exceeded $1.5 million in 2010 — but is even more costly this year because he extended his vacation by three days and the cost for Air Force One travel has jumped since last assessed in 2000. In addition, Hawaii Reporter was able to obtain more specifics about the executive expenditures.The total cost (based on what is known) for the 17-day vacation roundtrip vacation to Hawaii for the President, his family and staff has climbed to more than $4 million.White House press secretary Jay Carney was asked about the vacation’s cost at a briefing last week. He dodged questions about Michelle Obama’s desire to travel separately from the president.Hmmm...."We feel your pain"?Read the full story here.

• Senior MP: Oil Sanction against Iran Means Closure of Strait of Hormuz.(Fars).TEHRAN (FNA)- A senior Iranian lawmaker warned the western countries against the consequences of banning Iran's oil sales, saying that Tehran will not allow even a single barrel of oil to pass through the Strait of Hormuz if the West boycotts Iranian crude supplies. "According to the international laws, including Paragraph 4 of Article 14 of the Geneva Convention, in case Iranian oil is sanctioned, we will not allow even a single barrel of oil to pass through to reach the hostile countries," Isa Jafari told FNA on Sunday. He reiterated that enemies, specially the US, should know that the Strait of Hormuz which is the world's energy bottleneck is controlled by Iran and based on their own estimates by 2020 a daily volume of over 35 million barrels of oil will pass through this waterway. The US, Israel and Britain are pressuring the European Union to ban oil imports from Iran while many EU member states are on the verge of bankruptcy and cannot tolerate any higher oil prices. In relevant remarks earlier this week, Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qassemi had also dismissed oil sanctions against Iran by the EU and other western countries, saying the world is in dire need of Iranian oil supplies. "Imposing sanctions on Iranian oil is not a wise move, and the market would pay a high price for it," Qassemi said, explaining that there will be no replacement for Iranian oil in the market. "I believe Iranian oil has a unique place in the market, and in terms of its volume and quality there is no replacement for it." Despite recent talk about imposing sanctions on Iranian oil, European Union members have failed to reach a consensus in this regard. With some EU members heavily dependent on Iranian oil, a European boycott of Iran's energy sector looks impossible. While there has been mention of Saudi Arabia selling more crude oil in the possible absence of Iranian oil, Qassemi indicated that "the Saudi Oil Minister has completely rejected such an approach." Qassemi said his Saudi counterpart has vowed that if the western, specially the European, states ban Iranian oil imports, Riyadh would not replace Tehran as their source of crude supplies. Read the full story here.

• House GOP Revolts Over Senate Payroll Tax Bill.(BigGovernment).WASHINGTON (AP) – House Speaker John Boehner said Sunday that he opposes a Senate-approved bill that extends a payroll tax cut and jobless benefits for just two months and said congressional bargainers need to write a new version that would last an entire year.As if to suggest other changes he would like in the legislation, the Ohio Republican mentioned a provision that would block Obama administration anti-pollution rules and “reasonable reductions in spending” that were in a House-passed version of the payroll tax bill that the Senate ignored.Boehner’s comments came a day after House Republicans used a conference call to complain bitterly about the Senate bill, putting House passage in serious jeopardy.House Republicans dislike the Senate bill for many reasons, including its lack of what they consider real spending cuts and its removal of restrictions on Obama administration rules. Others are unhappy about extending unemployment benefits or oppose cutting the payroll tax, which is used to finance the Social Security system.“It’s pretty clear I and our members oppose the Senate bill,” Boehner said on “Meet the Press” on NBC. He added, “I believe two months is just kicking the can down the road.”House leaders have scheduled a vote on the bill for Monday.The bill would force President Barack Obama to make a decision in the next two months on whether to build the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. The president had initially said he would postpone a decision on the 1,700-mile-long pipeline until after next year’s elections and threatened to kill the payroll tax bill if it included the pipeline provision. But he backed off this week as the Senate payroll compromise took shape.Republicans strongly support the pipeline, which is supposed to pump oil from Alberta, Canada, to Texas, for the thousands of jobs it is expected to create. Unions favor the plan but environmentalists oppose it, forcing Obama to choose between two Democratic constituencies.The Senate bill says Obama can reject the pipeline only if he decides building it would not be in the national interest.Hmmmm......Merry Christmas?Read the full story here.

• Egypt’s richest Library set on Fire.(DPNews).CAIRO- The 213-year-old Egyptian maps and historical manuscripts -- described as "irreplaceable" -- were destroyed after a library in Cairo was set ablaze during the clashes, Egyptian officials said Sunday. A fire that engulfed the building of the historic Egyptian Scientific Institute on Saturday morning has been extinguished. The extent of the damage has not yet been determined. The fire started on the lower floors of the building, which is on Qasr al-Aini Street in central Cairo, but later reached the higher floors. The firemen, who arrived very late at the site, could not initially control the fire. State news agency MENA said that firemen eventually managed to control it, but state TV reported that the fire damaged the whole building and all of its collections. The building is adjacent to the Shura Council building, and both MENA and state TV accused protesters of throwing a Molotov cocktail at the institute. Eyewitnesses were reported to have seen protesters throwing a Molotov cocktail at stone-throwing soldiers at the Shura Council building, but the projectile missed the intended target and instead landed in the Egyptian Scientific Institute. The website of Youm7 newspaper alleged that a protester was set on fire after trying to set the building on fire. No other source confirmed this news. Hmmm....."Das war ein Vorspiel nur, dort wo man Bücher verbrennt, verbrennt man auch am Ende Menschen." ("That was but a prelude; where they burn books, they will ultimately burn people also.") ~ Heinrich Heine.Read the full story here.

• Russian Oil rig sinks, more than 50 feared dead.(Yahoo).MOSCOW (Reuters) - A drilling rig with 67 crew on board capsized and sank off Russia's far eastern island of Sakhalin on Sunday while being towed through a winter storm, leaving more than 50 dead or missing in the icy Sea of Okhotsk.Emergency officials said the crew of an icebreaker and tugboat rescued 14 workers alive from the jack-up rig, the 'Kolskaya', which was operated by a Russian offshore exploration firm. They recovered four bodies from the water."The Kolskaya keeled to its side ... and sank within 20 minutes. The depth of the water at the site is 1,042 metres (3,400 feet)," Russia's federal water transport agency said on its website.Four of the survivors, suffering from hypothermia, were airlifted by helicopter to land and taken to hospital after the disaster struck at 12:45 p.m. (0145 GMT).The rest of the crew were missing, 200 km (125 miles) off the coast of remote Sakhalin island. The water temperature was one degree Celsius (33.8 Fahrenheit), giving survivors around 30 minutes before freezing to death, according to maritime and rescue websites.Three rescue craft, as well as helicopters, were sent to scour the waters for survivors from the rig owned by Arktikmorneftegazrazvedka (AMNGR), a unit of state-owned Zarubezhneft."There is no ecological danger. The vessel was carrying the minimum amount of fuel as it was being tugged by two craft," said a spokesman for AMNGR.The incident was a blow to efforts by Russia, the world's largest energy producer, to step up offshore oil and gas exploration to stave off a long-term decline in onshore production.The jack-up rig, which has three support legs that can be extended to the ocean floor while its hull floats on the surface, was heading from Kamchatka to Sakhalin when it overturned in stormy conditions with a swell of up to 6 metres."(President) Dmitry Medvedev has ordered all necessary assistance be provided to the victims of the drilling platform accident and has ordered a probe into the circumstances of the loss of the platform," the Kremlin said. The Emergencies Ministry said it would work through Sunday night.Winter often lasts 220-240 days in the waters off Sakhalin, where the main companies operating are ExxonMobil, Gazprom, and Royal Dutch Shell. They produce oil and gas, sometimes in icebound conditions, for export largely to Asian markets.Sakhalin-2, in which Shell and Mitsui also have stakes, produces 10 million tonnes per year of liquefied natural gas at Russia's only LNG plant in the port of Prigorodnoye for export to Asia, much of it to Japan.Read the full story here.

• Vaclav Havel, Dissident Playwright Who Led Czechoslovakia, Dead at 75.(NYT).Vaclav Havel, the writer and dissident whose eloquent dissections of Communist rule helped to destroy it in revolutions that brought down the Berlin Wall and swept Havel himself into power, died on Sunday. He was 75.His assistant, Sabina Tancevova, said that Mr. Havel died at his country house in northern Bohemia. A Czech embassy spokesman in Paris, Michal Dvorak, said in a statement that Mr. Havel, a heavy smoker for decades who almost died during surgery for lung cancer in 1996, had been suffering from severe respiratory ailments since last spring. A shy yet resilient, unfailingly polite but dogged man who articulated the power of the powerless, Mr. Havel spent five years in and out of Communist prisons, lived for two decades under close secret-police surveillance and endured the suppression of his plays and essays. He served 14 years as president, wrote 19 plays, inspired a film and a rap song and remained one of his generation’s most seductively nonconformist writers. All the while, he came to personify the soul of the Czech nation. His moral authority and his moving use of the Czech language cast him as the dominant figure during Prague street demonstrations in 1989 and as the chief behind-the-scenes negotiator who brought about the peaceful transfer of power known as the Velvet Revolution, a revolt so smooth that it took just weeks to complete, without a single bullet fired. He was chosen as democratic Czechoslovakia’s first president — a role he insisted was more duty than aspiration — and after the country split in January 1993, he became president of the Czech Republic. He linked the country firmly to the west, clearing the way for the Czech Republic to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1999 and the European Union five years later. Both as a dissident and as a national leader, Mr. Havel impressed the West as one of the most important political thinkers in Central Europe. Political ideas, not economics, interested him. His country, widely considered to have made a smooth transition from Communism to market democracy, came in for his devastating critique in December 1997, when he attacked corruption and the sell-off of government-run industries in a thinly veiled barb at his political nemesis, the longtime prime minister — and now president — Vaclav Klaus. Expressing disdain for what had happened to Czech society under Mr. Klaus — an ally of convenience in the days of the 1989 revolution — Mr. Havel told parliament that a “post-Communist morass” had allowed “the most immoral people” to achieve financial success at the expense of others. Mr. Klaus, a right-wing maverick who espouses the untrammeled capitalism Mr. Havel disliked, succeeded Mr. Havel as president in 2003. On Sunday, Mr. Klaus paid tribute to Mr. Havel, calling him “the symbol of the new era of the Czech state.” While many in the West worshiped Mr. Havel — President Bill Clinton once compared him to Gandhi — in his native country he was regarded with deep affection but also ambivalence, and even scorn. His slogan during the revolution that truth and love must prevail over lies and hatred was mocked by foes, who accused him of naïveté. Read the full story here.

• Don’t Be Fooled: The Horrible Anti-Internet Bill Is NOT Being Shelved Until Next Year.(Washingtonsblog).The Committee Members Who Support SOPA Sneakily Changed the Hearing Date to December 21st, Trying to Trick the American People Into Thinking It Was Over Until After the Holidays So We Won’t Fight Back!News reports initially said that the despicable anti-Internet bill – SOPA – has been delayed until next year. As Huffington Post notes:

After two days of debate, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) abruptly halted a key hearing on the Stop Online Piracy Act, postponing a Committee vote on the bill until 2012. The move marks a win for hordes of internet activists who oppose the bill, but gives lawmakers another opportunity to juice deep-pocketed corporations for campaign contributions.“This is a huge victory for everyone who uses the Internet — and proof that millions of people speaking out can still make a difference in a Congress usually run by corporate lobbyists,” said Aaron Swartz, co-founder of Reddit and Demand Progress, an organization that has staunchly opposed the bills for months.“It is good news,” said Sherwin Sie, deputy legal director Public Knowledge, a non-profit group opposing the bill. “The last thing you want is to get something like this rushed through at the last minute while people are trying to do something else. That’s been the message of SOPA opponents throughout. What’s the big rush?”

But Tech Dirt gives the following update:

Update…. Or not. Despite the fact that Congress was supposed to be out of session until the end of January, the Judiciary Committee has just announced plans to come back to continue the markup this coming Wednesday. This is rather unusual and totally unnecessary. But it shows just how desperate Hollywood is to pass this bill as quickly as possible, before the momentum of opposition builds up even further.Hmmmm.....Every Bill in the past that was bad for the American people had been passed during the Christmas period......Be warned!Read the full story here.

• It’s Time to “Occupy the Dream:” African-American Faith Community Joins Forces with Occupy Wall Street – First Day of Action on MLK Day, Jan 16 at Federal Reserve Banks.(WB).Members of the African-American faith community have joined forces with Occupy Wall Street to launch a new campaign for economic justice inspired by the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.. Faithful to its philosophical origin, the “Occupy the Dream” coalition has called for a National Day of Action on Martin Luther King Day – Monday, January 16, 2012 – when they will “Occupy the Federal Reserve,” in multiple cities nationwide, focusing attention on the gross injustice visited upon the 99% by the financial elite. This will be the first of many actions leading up to a mass gathering in Washington D.C., to be held April 4 – 7, when millions will unite in celebration of the life and legacy of Dr King.Hmmmm......Play the Race card?Read and see the full story here.

• Full-Speed Ahead for Obama-Sanctioned ‘Taliban Embassy’ in Qatar.(BigPeace).Qatar: host to the US military, al-Jazeera, the Muslim Brotherhood– and now, the world’s first Taliban embassy– at the behest of the Obama administration.On his Facebook page, Big Peace contributor Walid Phares brought my attention to a report in the Pakistani website The Nation that Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani, the premier of US ally Qatar, is prepared to open an embassy for the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan”– otherwise known as the Taliban. He said, “A solution in Afghanistan requires the participation of the Taliban in a way that must be decided by the Afghans.”An office of the self-styled Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan would be the first internationally recognized representation for the Taliban since it was ousted from power by the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001…. Western diplomats have said it is hoped the opening of a Taliban office would push forward the prospect of talks intended to reconcile insurgents with the Afghan government and end the decade-long war.This story was first reported around the time of the 9/11 anniversary and it’s not a surprise that Obama himself downplayed the news. As The Australian wrote in September: THE US has given its blessing for the Taliban to be brought in from the cold with a critical step towards reconciliation as the world paused to mark the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. "Washington has endorsed plans for the Islamist network to open political headquarters in the gulf state of Qatar by the end of the year. The move has been devised so the West can begin formal peace talks with the Taliban."In addition to being home to In his post, Dr. Phares reminds us that Qatar is the address of al-Jazeera, the Muslim Brotherhood’s most influential figure, Yusef al-Qaradawi, his website OnIslam.net and his popular al-Jazeera tv show, “Shariah and Life”: The Qatari regime, funding power behind al Jazeera, which expresses [the] Muslim Brotherhood agenda, is calling for the recognition of the Taliban and will be opening an embassy for the Taliban regime. It was reported that the US Administration has encouraged Qatar to engage in this direction. Note that the United States is at war with the Taliban and considers it as a terrorist organization. Taliban and their allies of al Qaeda have killed thousands of US civilians and military.”Read the full story here.

• US Congress may restrict aid to Egypt- Camp David Peace Accords with Israel condition to receiving further aid .(BikyaMasr).CAIRO: The United States Congress may restrict aid to Egypt, as part of a $53.3 billion bill set to restructure US foreign aid.As a state of political chaos unravels through Egypt’s post-Mubarak transition to democratic rule, Congress has moved to reconsider the $1.3 billion in security service funding it gives to the Egyptian military annually.Under the terms of the bill, $250 million in US economic assistance for Egypt would also be blocked for review.The funds would be released when the secretary of state assures Congress that Egypt is obeying the 1979 Camp David Peace Accords with Israel, and supporting a transition to a civilian-led government in Egypt by “implementing policies to protect freedom of expression, association and religion and due process of law.”“In a difficult economic and political climate, this bill meets our national security needs and global responsibilities while implementing tough restrictions and requirements on recipients of US assistance,” said Rep. Nita Lowey.The Republican-backed bill was passed in the House of Representatives on Friday, and will be up for a Senate vote this weekend. It comes amid efforts to cut the United State’s budget deficit, as Republicans push to reduce overseas spending.The United States government has given Egypt an average of $2 billion in aid since 1979, the majority of which goes to the Egyptian military.In 2010, $1.3 billion went to the Egyptian forces. Another $1.9 million was allocated to help train the Egyptian military and bolster long-term cooperation between the United States and Egypt.The Obama administration requested the same amount of assistance for the 2011 fiscal year.The bill under debate devotes $3.1 billion in security assistance for United State’s ally Israel. It also restructures US foreign aid for Pakistan and the Palestinian Authority.Meanwhile, political violence in Egypt continues, as the military wages an attack on anti-government protesters for the third consecutive day, leaving at least 10 dead and nearly 400 injured, according to official Ministry of Health death tolls.Hmmmm.....Finally some common sense.Read the full story here.

• Bollywood actress Veena Malik reported missing after nude FHM photo scandal.(Mirror).There were fears today for the wellbeing of Bollywood actress Veena Malik after she was reported missing by her manager.The controversial Pakistani model and actress, who is suing FHM magazine after she claimed they doctored photos to make her look nude, has not been seen since yesterday morning.She had complained of feeling depressed, but also was the subject of death threats over the photos.Her manager Pratiek Mehta said he received a text from Malik saying she was ill and depressed.Mr Mehta said she had been filming a movie called Mumbai 125 Kilometers at Goregaon and was last seen leaving in a car after shooting had finished.He added: "I have been trying to reach her since yesterday, but have failed. I have approached the officials at Bandra police station and have sought help in finding the whereabouts of Veena."However, the police at Bandra said she had not officially been reported as a missing person..The film’s director Hemant Madhukar said: "Veena left after the pack-up yesterday (Friday) morning. In the afternoon, I received an SMS from her where she apologised for not being able to concentrate on the shooting, stating that she was disturbed."I called her immediately, but her number was not reachable. I have not been able to get in touch with her since.”Last week Malik was reported to have said the stress of the controversy had aged her 10 years.Referring to FHM India, the 33-year-old said: “I feel completely cheated. They've added 10 years to my age.”Malik, who appeared on Bigg Boss, the Indian version of Big Brother, created controversy earlier this month when FHM India published a nude picture of her on its cover.Read the full story here.

• Update - Missing Veena Malik wearing Burka secretly reaches Pakistan.(Timesofindia).According to sources, she arrived back for visa renewal to Lahore via Wagha border, where her friend Ashmit Patel had come to drop her. She had mysteriously disappeared from Mumbai where she was shooting for a film.Actress was in the heat of a storm for posing nude in the Indian edition of FHM magazine with only an ISI tattoo on her arm.She alleged that the magazine airbrushed out the thong she was wearing during the shoot.Sources said that she walked into Pakistan from the Wagah border on Friday, where some of her friends picked her up and left for an unknown destination, The Nation reported.She had come to India on a 45 days visa, which was about to expire and a couple of days back she was asked by the authorities to get the visa renewed.Her arrival in Pakistan went unnoticed because she was wearing a burqa and her passport carried her real name Zahida.Earlier, A missing person's case has been registered at the Bandra police station in Mumbai. Her manager Prateek said, "Even if she was planning to go home, Veena would have told me. I got a call from her at 5.30am on Friday, but I couldn't speak to her. Post that I haven't been able to speak to her." But a source close to Veena is skeptical. "Really? I have no clue about this. From what I know she is in Mumbai." Sohail Rashid, Veena's manager in Pakistan, said, "Post the nude photo shoot incident, I too received abusive messages.Read the full story here.More here.

• Serious human rights violations committed by Egypt’s army.(Bikyamasr).More evidence has emerged documenting the ongoing crimes of Egypt's military.CAIRO: The Egyptian military has committed serious human rights crimes and violations against protesters, as more documentation of the violence emerges on social networking websites, showing video footage of harsh and excessive use of force against the protesters, including women and elderly people.Women have been beaten and stripped of their clothes, assaulted and threatened with rape prior to being detained.Activists say the military is escalating their violence and attacks. The number of missing people is increasing, as the death toll reached 10 on Saturday evening and the count of injured nears 400, according to official estimates from the Egyptian Ministry of Health.One woman in particular was seen in a video receiving a grave beaten by many soldiers. Her shirt snapped open, publicly reveling her skin and bra. She and a companion were running from the troops when she fell. Her companion tried to help her but received an equal beating. She was beaten with heavy wooden batons, and the soldiers in the video were seen kicking her in the chest. One soldier slammed his heavy army boots with tremendous power on the woman, who seemed to have passed out.The still image of the woman, bear chested in her bra and laying on the ground while a soldiers foot remains in the air, heading to her body, made headlines on Egypt’s press on Sunday and gave talk shows hosts and their guests much to talk about on Saturday night. Egyptians woke up to an unpopular fact– the military is not good for us. Newspapers like al-Tahrir enlarged the image, putting it as the headline of its front page.The military and the prime minister said the image is not real, calling it “Photoshopped.” Activists responded by releasing the whole video that shows the full reality of the beating.Another video showed an elderly woman with gray hair being dragged by four soldiers, with no consideration for her age. She was man handled and dragged from her clothes by the young soldiers.Other clips show military officers using live ammunition on protesters, while the other soldiers ran after their prey. Activists said many women were arrested and kept in the Egyptian cabinet building on the street of the sit-in.Since, the military had the street rebuilt in a matter of hours, paving the ground again and fixing the sidewalks, making it hard to imagine how much of a mess it was less than 14 hours ago.The soldiers were also featured setting the protesters’ tents on fire, tearing them apart with their own hands in anger.The violence erupted after a man was kidnapped from the sit-in in front of the Magles al-Sha’b building in downtown Cairo. He returned, badly injured and almost deformed by the beating he suffered at the hands of the soliders.Other protesters were angered at the attack, especially as rumors of kidnappings circulated over the last week. Some people remain missing.The military spilled gasoline on the sit-in’s tents and set it ablaze. Protesters who were trying to flee the fire were beaten badly and chased in the surrounding streets.The military was filmed on roof tops of buildings throwing large pieces of rocks and marble at the protesters below. Eyewitnesses reported that the army used Molotov cocktail bottles, fire crackers and water hoses on the protests.Ghada Kamal Ahmed Abdel Khaleq, an activist with the April 6 Youth Movement, gave her testimony of what happened to her while she was in detention in a video.She said she was trying to rest as the military attacked the street. As she looked back at the running wave of soldiers, she spotted a women being hit by soldiers. Abdel Khaleq stopped and ran back to “relive her from some of the batons– I thought I could lay on her”, she said, but she was not given a chance. She was surrounded with soldiers, who were not shy about using their batons on a woman. She received many hits on her head, cracking her skull open, necessitating stitches.After the beating, she was taken inside the Cabinet building to talk to the officers. One officer, who identified himself with a fake name, wanted her for himself.She said he pushed back the soldiers and told her he recognize her from the street and that she was insulting them. “I will show you how much of a man I am tonight, you are mine” he told the bleeding woman.“Dying is okay, we go out knowing that could happen, but for a woman to be threatened by rape and sexual violence, that is much harder,” she said.Women have repeatedly reported being molested, kicked and hit in sensitive areas and groped by soldiers who see it as a chance.Abdel Kahleq was rescued by a doctor who came inside to take away those who were in need of immediate medical help. He choose to take the women first. Abdel Kahleq says there were about 8 women there, some injured. She had to whisper to the doctor to communicate to him that the officer wanted to keep her overnight. She was taken out after the doctor insisted that she had to join the other women in the clinic.As Abdel Kahleq was leaving, the officer told her he will shoot her if he sees her again outside in the street.Other videos and testimonies continue to emerge, a clear picture is forming of what really went on during the clashes.Read the full story here.

• UK - Muslims outraged at police advert featuring cute puppy sitting in policeman's hat.(DailyMail).A postcard featuring a cute puppy sitting in a policeman's hat advertising a Scottish police force's new telephone number has sparked outrage from Muslims.   Tayside Police's new non-emergency phone number has prompted complaints from members of the Islamic community.The choice of image on the Tayside Police cards - a black dog sitting in a police officer's hat - has now been raised with Chief Constable John Vine.The advert has upset Muslims because dogs are considered ritually unclean and has sparked such anger that some shopkeepers in Dundee have refused to display the advert.Dundee councillor Mohammed Asif said: 'My concern was that it's not welcomed by all communities, with the dog on the cards. 'It was probably a waste of resources going to these communities.'They (the police) should have understood. Since then, the police have explained that it was an oversight on their part, and that if they'd seen it was going to cause upset they wouldn't have done it.'  Councillor Asif, who is a member of the Tayside Joint Police Board, said that the force had a diversity adviser and was generally very aware of such issues.He raised the matter with Mr Vine at a meeting of the board.The chief constable said he was unaware of the concerns and that the force had not sought to cause any upset but added he would look into the matter.Councillor Asif said: 'People who have shops just won't put up the postcard. But the police have said to me that it was simply an oversight and they did not seek to offend or upset.'Cards featuring police dog-in-training Rebel have been distributed to communities throughout the area to advertise the single number point of contact for non-emergency calls to the police.Rebel has proved a popular recruit for Tayside Police after coming through the very first Lothian and Borders Police dog-breeding programme in February.   One of seven German Shepherd pups born in early December, he has now completed his course of inoculations, and is free to venture out onto the streets of Tayside.A spokesman for Tayside Police said: 'Trainee police dog Rebel has proved extremely popular with children and adults since being introduced to the public, aged six weeks old, as Tayside Police's newest canine recruit.'His incredible world-wide popularity - he has attracted record visitor numbers to our website - led us to believe Rebel could play a starring role in the promotion of our non-emergency number.'We did not seek advice from the force's diversity adviser prior to publishing and distributing the postcards. That was an oversight and we apologise for any offence caused.'Hmmm........Read the full story here.

• Saudi Security Forces Arrest 42 Ethiopian Christians For Praying.(Persecution).Washington, D.C. (December 17, 2011) – International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that Saudi security forces arrested 42 Ethiopian Christians at a prayer gathering in Jeddah on Thursday. The location of the detained Christians is unknown.On December 15, Saudi police and security officers raided an evening prayer meeting at the home of an Ethiopian Christian in the Al-Safa district of Jeddah. Those attending the service were reportedly beaten and threatened before being arrested.Security officials broke [into] the house and captured… beat and threatened them for death… They divided the men and the women and they are torturing them [in prison],” an Ethiopian and Eritrean Christian immigrant community living in Europe wrote in an urgent appeal for help to the ambassadors of European embassies in Riyadh on Friday.Saudi Arabian officials have arrested Christians in the past but it is unprecedented for them to arrest 42 Christians at one time,” a church leader in Jeddah, who asked not to be named for security reasons, told ICC. “We are particularly concerned about the children of the detained Christians.”Two Ethiopian fellowships in Saudi Arabia informed ICC that they will temporarily postpone services until the situation calms. Christians in Saudi Arabia, most of who enter the country as foreign workers, are not allowed to practice their faith openly. Saudi police have been known to raid private worship gatherings in homes, arrest and deport congregants, and confiscate Christian materials, including Bibles.Aidan Clay, ICC Regional Manager for the Middle East, said, “Though not permitting a single church building where Christians can worship in Saudi Arabia, the Saudi government goes even further to assault the religious freedoms of its citizens and foreign workers by hunting for and arresting Christians who attend services in the privacy of their own homes. As a signatory to the UN Convention against Torture, we urge Saudi Arabia to end the abuse that the Ethiopian Christians have reportedly suffered in prison and to ensure their immediate release.Hmmmm....."Islamophobia".... anyone?Read the full story here.

• A financial Dunkirk: Britain draws up plans to rescue expats if Spain and Portugal are hit by financial oblivion.(DailyMail).Evacuation plans for British expats stranded in Spain and Portugal if their banking systems collapse are being drawn up by the Foreign Office.The contingency plans are being put in place to help thousands of Britons if they were unable to get to their money in the event of a catastrophic banking collapse in two of the most vulnerable eurozone economies.Around one million British expats live in Spain, particularly around Marbella and Malaga, and some 50,000 in Portugal.The Foreign Office is concerned that those who have invested savings in their adopted countries would face losing their homes if banks called in loans and they were unable to access money.Last week ratings agency Standard and Poor's downgraded 10 Spanish banks, including Banco Popular.Among options being considered for a 'nightmare scenario' include sending planes, ships and coaches to evacuate expats - some through Gibraltar.Small loans could also be made available to stranded Britons and pressure would be exerted on the Spanish and Portuguese governments to allow access to funds to pay for everyday essentials.Both countries have a deposit guarantee, like the UK, which means depositors are covered for up to €100,000.But in the event of a collapse, most banks would limit withdrawals.Many expats have retired to the south of Spain on fixed incomes, having used their savings to buy villas and apartments.A senior Foreign Office source told The Sunday Times: 'The nuclear scenario would be having thousands of Brits stranded at the airports in Spain and Portugal with no way to get money from the cash dispenser and no way to get home.'Who would be blamed for this? The Foreign Office.'We are looking at how we can help evacuate them if the banks in Spain and Portugal collapse, getting people cash, things like that, sending planes.'Expats could face losing their villas and apartments because they were unable to afford mortgage payments or withdraw enough cash as banks tried to stop money leaving the country.They could also lose savings if banks in either country collapsed.Jeremy Cook, chief economist at World First - foreign currency exchange specialists - told the newspaper: 'Countries have individual safeguards on deposits but for people with large deposits in a bank it would be difficult to say whether all that money would be protected.'Read the full story here.

• Highly Toxic Mercury Present in Processed Foods, Yet FDA Does Nothing.(BlacklistedNews).By Anthony Gucciardi - Activist Post.Why has the FDA ignored the fact that mercury, an element that is highly toxic in all forms, was found in a large number of brand-name processed foods?Specifically, the mercury content was found to be contained in high-fructose corn syrup, which also reportedly contains genetically modified ingredients.Instead of addressing this major public health concern, the FDA is focusing their time on crushing beneficial supplements through ridiculous NDI regulations that threaten the entire infrastructure of the nutraceuticals industry.Researchers from two U.S. studies reported that about half of tested samples of high-fructose corn syrup contained mercury. Mercury was also found in nearly a third of 55 popular brand-name food and beverage products which listed high-fructose corn syrup as the first-or-second-highest labeled ingredient.Following the report, organizations like the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy called on the FDA for immediate action:  ‘Mercury is toxic in all its forms. Given how much high-fructose corn syrup is consumed by children, it could be a significant additional source of mercury never before considered. We are calling for immediate changes by industry and the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] to help stop this avoidable mercury contamination of the food supply,”’the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy’s Dr. David Wallinga, a co-author of both studies, said in a prepared statement.Americans Consumed Over 37 Pounds of Mercury-Laden HFCS in 2008. Mercury is toxic in any dosage, but the information becomes even more alarming when you consider the fact that the average American consumed 37.8 pounds of high-fructose corn syrup in 2008! If this is not explosive enough on its own, remember the fact that this is but one source of mercury exposure. CFL light bulbs, mercury-contaminated seafood, and some dental fillings are a few sources of mercury exposure that affect millions of individuals.The ubiquitous nature of high-fructose corn syrup in processed food products makes it difficult to avoid if you are on a junk food diet that is devoid of essential nutrients. Unfortunately, a large number of people worldwide subscribe to this nutritional program while in the dark regarding the true effects that such a diet can have on the human body. Until the FDA decides to step in (which simply will not happen unless activists make enough noise), protecting yourself and your family against HFCS is your priority. If you eat 100% organic food items, or grow your own organic food, you will not have to worry about toxic high-fructose corn syrup.It’s time to tell the FDA to focus on the real issues, like toxic elements in our food supply — not health-promoting supplements that have improved lives and boosted immune systems.Read the full story here.

MFS - The Other News

                      Afternoon Posting.

• Libya Live Blog - May 02. Here .(Al-Jazeera).

• Syria Live Blog - May 02. Here (Al-Jazeera). 

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world seismic activity in philippines  today  5.1! More info here.

• Japan - Latest official Situation Update No. 101.
  Source : Here .

• Japan  : For the most accurate info on the nuclear disaster go to : Paul Langley's Nuclear History Blog

• Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has denied the reports that Osama Bin Laden was killed, Geo News reported.Source.

• Chopper crashes, three blasts heard near PMA Kakul.(thenewspk).ABBOTTABAD: Three loud blasts were heard near the Pakistan Military Academy (PMA) Kakul Road late Sunday night and a military helicopter also crashed. Sources told Geo News that heavy firing was heard in the area before the chopper crashed.Windowpanes of the nearby buildings and houses were smashed due to the intensity of the blasts, the sources said. Eyewitnesses said first sound of heavy firing was heard and then there was a huge blast. Fire erupted at the scene of the occurrence and according to latest reports police and fire brigade teams were rushing towards the blast scene. Security forces cordoned off the entire area and military helicopters were also hovering over the area.Hmmmm......Very strange a Pakistani paper and...NOT A WORD ABOUT OSAMA BIN LADEN?Read the full story here.

• Raw Video: Inside Bin Laden Compound After Special Forces Raid.Via WeaselZippers here.

• Live blog: Osama bin Laden killed by US forces.(Al-Jazeera).1:57pm The death of bin Laden was greeted with near-silence on Monday from Gulf Arab states, including his birthplace Saudi Arabia.By mid-afternoon, the only official comment from the Arabian Peninsula came from Yemen, bin Laden's ancestral homeland, where an official speaking on condition of anonymity hoped the killing would "root out terrorism throughout the world".Saudi Arabia's official news agency merely noted that the United States and Pakistan had announced bin Laden had been killed in a US military operation in Pakistan but gave no clue to Riyadh's thinking.The foreign ministers of Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, attending a meeting of Gulf foreign ministers in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi, all declined to comment on bin Laden's death.

10:22am Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood said that US soldiers should be withdrawn from Afghanistan and Iraq after the killing of Osama bin Laden. Essam al-Erian, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood's governing body, told Reuters:With Bin Laden's death, one of the reasons for which violence has been practised in the world has been removed. It is time for Obama to pull out of Afghanistan and Iraq and end the occupation of U.S. and Western forces around the world that have for so long harmed Muslim countries.For continious updates click here.

• Reactions on the Death of Osama Bin Laden.(Al-Jazeera).Ismail Haniyeh - head of Hamas in the Gaza strip.We condemn the assassination and the killing of an Arab holy warrior. We ask God to offer him mercy with the true believers and the martyrs.We regard this as a continuation of the American policy based on oppression and the shedding of Muslim and Arab blood.

P. Chidambaram - Indian home minister

We take note with grave concern that part of the statement in which (US) President Obama said that the firefight in which Osama bin Laden was killed took place in Abbottabad 'deep inside Pakistan'.This fact underlines our concern that terrorists belonging to different organisations find sanctuary in Pakistan.Read more reactions here.

• Iran - 'Bin Laden was killed years ago'.(PressTV).A 2007 Benazir Bhutto interview in which she says the al-Qaeda leader was 'murdered' years ago contributes to the uncertainty surrounding US claims about Osama bin Laden's death. On Monday, US President Barack Obama announced that the al-Qaeda leader was killed by US forces after he was found hiding in a compound in Pakistan. This is while in an interview following a failed assassination attempt on Pakistan's former premier in October 2007, Bhutto says bin Laden has already been killed. In the interview, she identifies the man who killed the notorious al-Qaeda leader as one Omar Sheikh , excerpts of which was sent to Press TV's UReport. In response to a question whether any of the assassins had links with the government, Bhutto said, "Yes but one of them is a very key figure in security, he is a former military officer … and had dealings with Omar Sheikh, the man who murdered Osama Bin Laden." Bhutto was assassinated on December 27, 2007 in a bomb attack as she was leaving an election rally in Rawalpindi when a gunman shot her in the neck and set off a bomb. The announcement of bin Laden's death comes almost ten years after the September 11 attacks on the United States. Meanwhile, a US official says bin Laden's body has been buried at sea, alleging that his hasty burial was in accordance with Islamic law, which requires burial within 24 hours of death. This is while burial at sea is not an Islamic practice and Islam does not determine a timeframe for burial. The official added that finding a country willing to accept the remains of the world's most wanted man was difficult, so the US decided to bury him at sea. Read and see the full story here.

• WHILE YOU ARE ALL DISTRACTED!Obamination: The Birth Certificate That Ain't.(BloggerBase).Both documents purported by the White House to certify that he was born in Hawaii have one indisputable fatal flaw: neither one bears the seal of the Hawaii Department of Health required to authenticate them. They lack probative value. Observe that I have annotated the image to point out three defects.

1.The Certificate # has been obliterated. Why would Obama obliterate it? It discloses nothing, it serves only as confirmation. A forgery could be discovered by revelation of a real certificate bearing the same number. Also, if the real certification of Obama's birth was revealed, and the numbers did not match, the forgery would be exposed.

2.The embossed seal of the State Health Department is not present. Only a few indecipherable characters, which appear to be inverted numbers, appear where it should be.

3.The document declares that it is invalidated by any alteration. That includes obliterating the serial number.Obama's purported certificates are defective: they lack the state seal with which the real certificates are embossed. Both have been altered, which would invalidate the genuine document. This is my third post on this subject, because one of my Muslim critics needs a good slapping down. This one's for you, Ema. Diversion, distraction, obfuscation & Tu-quoque do not cut the mustard. Try to come up with some relevant, verifiable facts to support your fantasy.Hmmmm.....Diversion, distraction, obfuscation...nobody even thinks about the birthcertificate anymore?Read the full story here.

• Display Bin Laden’s Body At Ground Zero. Then Destroy The Al Qaeda Legacy.(BigGovernment).Just as Islamist extremists sought to use Ground Zero as a triumphal place to build their mosque, the United States should use the site to display Osama bin Laden’s naked body for all Americans to see. We have a right to view our nation’s tormentor face to face, to make sure he is dead, and to spit on him if we choose.Then the U.S. should unceremoniously destroy the carcass, flush it into the Manhattan sewer, and start grinding up bin Laden’s legacy among his followers.Here are some immediate thoughts of what the U.S. must do.

1. Display the body. The free world, particularly the United States, has a right to make sure Osama bin Laden is really dead. Every American has a right to walk right up to bin Laden’s corpse and view it. We are entitled to know for a fact that the witch is dead. No shroud for dignity’s sake, please – bin Laden’s naked, bullet-riddled corpse should be put on display in lower Manhattan for all the world to see. The entire body should be digitally scanned, inside and out – and made available for everyone to take his or her own picture.This isn’t as morbid a thought as it might seem. Bodies are routinely scanned and photographed during autopsies, their digital images preserved. And across most of the world’s cultures they are placed on display prior to burial or cremation. For us Doubting Thomases out there – we need to see in order to believe.No future Elvis sightings, please. Leave no room for conspiracy theories that the CIA faked bin Laden’s death, that bin Laden is living in comfortable exile somewhere, or that 20 years from now he’ll still be out there, calling the shots. All of us is entitled to see that the beast has indeed been killed.

2. Make the body disappear. The US made mistakes in the past by returning the bodies of dead terrorists to their families or hometowns for burial. This is a nice and sentimental gesture, but it had the net effect of spawning more extremism and terrorism. The graves that contained the physical bodies became shrines for extremist pilgrims, educational tools to propagandize young people, and models to inspire future terrorists.Even though they were atheists, the Soviets understood the propagandistic importance of bodies. That’s why they mummified Lenin, put the remains in a mausoleum, and turned the corpse into the core of a personality cult. That’s why, too, the Soviets ordered the physical destruction of Adolf Hitler’s corpse, burning it and burying it and re-burying it before ultimately dumping the ashes in a river. There would be no pilgrimage point for future Nazis.And so, after a thorough public examination, bin Laden’s body should be burned, its ashes flushed into the New York City sewer system.

• 3. Describe how bin Laden spent his last days and died. In what type of luxury did the al Qaeda leader live as his fanatical devotees crawled around their rabbit holes and scratched out a miserable existence? What did he surround himself with in that mansion outside Islamabad? Was he Spartan-like? Or did he live, perhaps, like the Tunisian and Egyptian strong men overthrown by their own people?Was bin Laden, the puritanical Islamist, really just another religious phony? A total hypocrite whom it would prove shameful to follow? Did the CIA find the types of disgusting double lives that our military discovered among the many suicide bombers who murdered in his name – the liquor, the cyber porn, the pederasty? What about his body? Did the autopsy reveal symptoms of the anal gonorrhea so prevalent among his totally un-gay followers in rural Afghanistan?Did he go down fighting, or did he cower and plead for his life?No need to give bin Laden a clean bill of health here – we’re looking at destroying his legacy, not being fair and balanced. If there’s anything truthful that can be used to discredit him, let’s use it.If there isn’t, then it isn’t important to know. This is political warfare, not public relations.Bin Laden may be dead (I’ll believe it when I see it), but al Qaeda is still alive.I’m going to raise a mug of beer and munch a Hebrew National pork sausage to celebrate the brave CIA men who took bin Laden down.Then it’s back to work to destroy what the al Qaeda leader left behind. That means piling dirt on bin Laden’s legacy, destroying his appeal, and providing the world with all the necessary facts to heap humiliation on anyone who insists on continuing to follow his cause.Read the full story here.

• Sen. Graham questions decision to dispose of bin Laden's body.(TheHill).A leading Republican senator on Monday questioned the U.S. government's decision to dispose of Osama bin Laden's body within 24 hours. Bin Laden, the former al Qaeda leader killed by U.S. forces on Sunday, was buried at sea within 24 hours of his death in accordance with Islamic law. Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), a top Republican on the Armed Services Committee, is skeptical of the decision."To me, that didn't make a lot of sense," Graham said during an interview with conservative radio talk show host Laura Ingraham.U.S. forces were able to capture bin Laden's body after killing him at a compound outside Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad, but he was buried at sea soon afterward, reportedly not to leave a shrine to him. The Obama administration is debating whether to release photos of bin Laden's body after some have expressed concern that the U.S. needs to do so to prove his death. But others in the administration have been hesitant due to the graphic nature of the photos. Michael Scheuer, a former CIA official, said Monday morning that the U.S. will likely release the photos to eliminate any doubt that he is dead.Hmmm....During the live White house briefing the question was asked if a recording was made of the burial at sea?NO ANSWER WAS GIVEN TO THE PRESS!Is it all a giant FAIRYTALE for election purposes?Read the full story here.

• After Osama: Extracts from Anwer Sher’s forthcoming book, Arabia Besieged: A Muslim Insider Looks at Islam’s Deepening Crisis.(Al-Arabia).Osama Bin Laden, like all mortals, was to eventually die, but as much as moderate Muslims would have hoped he would die of natural causes, the sensational nature of his demise—in a US Navy Seals raid on a house he occupied near Islamabad—afforded Osama the one way he wanted to die: under gunfire. While the form of his death would not erode his stature within the radical elements of the Muslim world, the fact he died, and how he did, will in a sense heighten his standing. However, Osama bin Laden, leaves behind an unaccomplished task, of establishing his form of rule in the Muslim Ummah, (community), a task for which violence, as a means of achieving the objective, was considered normal.The question now will be how the movement of change he inspired and often called Al Qaeda will transform in the post Osama bin Laden era. In the first instance the command and control structure of Al Qaeda was never strictly hierarchical and in the aftermath of the Taliban’s ouster from Afghanistan, where Osama headquartered his movement, an element of flexibility within the rank and file of the Al Qaeda appeared. Osama Bin Laden’s hiding place was not, after all, a cave in the mountains of Pakistan, but a large villa in an area near the military garrison in Abbottabad, less than 60 kilometers from Pakistan’s capital city of Islamabad. It is possible that his hiding place was well chosen as no one would suspect the world’s most wanted man would be so close to the very military that might be used to hunt him down. It is clear that such an operation to kill or capture Osama bin Laden could not have happened without the help and support of the Pakistan military, which was all the more visible in minutes after the US raid.Osama’s presence near Pakistani military establishments seems to suggest similarities with the modus operandi of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed’s preference for a safe house; Khalid was captured by Pakistani military intelligence near the military headquarters in Rawalpindi in 2003. It seems that being close to the military garrisons would afford less suspicion than being in the more obvious tribal areas of Pakistan.The question is more now centered, over the next few years, on the shape and direction of the leadership that will emerge in the aftermath of Osama bin Laden’s death.On the one hand Ayman Zawahiri will assert the spiritual leadership, and operational leadership will be of more interest. Currently the suspected operational leadership is in the hands of Adnan Gulshair al Shukrijummah, commonly known as Abu Arif, but it has always remain unclear as to how much control he has over the operational elements in different regions. It would seem more likely that Al Qaeda would offer more leadership to its commanders in the field, which would well be a dangerous development, as impulsive attacks will increase.Osama bin Laden’s failing health and the fact he was in hiding for almost decade did mean that his leadership was perhaps more symbolic and one could argue that in terms of leadership Al Qaeda’s will remain unaffected. It is also quite possible that Al Qaeda’s leadership will mould various militant closer, showing a greater sense of cohesiveness than before.Read the full story here.

• Letter from Cairo: Down goes the terrorist, hail to the martyr.(Al-Arabia).Osama bin Laden is dead. Since the crack of dawn, this has become Cairo’s new “good morning” and “how are you doing?” and “any plans for tonight?” All those I’ve met or talked to since the fate of the much-hyped militant was made known to the whole world seem to have been connected to Osama bin Laden in one way or another and his death suddenly seemed like the piece of news that is bound to change their lives. Which, really, is quite interesting since as far as I know, very few Egyptians cared about bin Laden if not because he does not have a direct impact on Egypt then maybe because his destructive powers were believed to have been blown out of proportion by the US administration to justify its war on terror. For several others, bin Laden is just this crazy man who every now and then makes a TV appearance threatening to wipe the United States off the map or blow up the whole world or, of course, he’s this cartoon character who gets highest viewer rates on YouTube.While average Egyptians may focus on bin Laden the man, intellectuals are preoccupied with bin Laden the tool. For them, bin Laden was just a pretext for a neo-colonial approach adopted by the United States under the pseudonym of “the war on terror.” Hunting down the reported perpetrator of the Twin Towers attack and several other terrorist operations, they argue, was the excuse the American Administration used to pose as the world’s promoter of democracy and the rescuer of “backward” nations from the quagmire of autocratic/ extremist regimes—the same rationale used in Iraq, only with Islamic fundamentalism replaced by weapons of mass destruction. Double standards are also not hard to detect here, for the same bin Laden of whom the United States made a hero owning to his ability to crush the Soviets had suddenly become the most menacing threat to the world’s security and wellbeing, and his elimination had become as necessary as destroying Nazi Germany… or may be even bombing Hiroshima and Nagasaki!For both categories of folks, bin Laden’s death was definitely not good news. For the first, the United States has become the new “infidel” enemy of Islam—remember Bush’s remark about “crusades”—and Osama’s death signals an unmatched victory of a country whose influence on the Muslim world has so far been nothing but destructive. This sentiment is becoming more overtly highlighted with the increasing influence wielded by the Islamist trend in Egypt and with the way it portrays the United States as the promoter of Western ideals that violate the principles of Islam. Some of them might realize that bin Laden is no angel, yet they do not want to see America emerge victorious from what they perceived as its war on Islam, and they do not want to see the repercussions of this victory echoing in their homeland. “If Americans rule the Muslim world, they will ban the veil, allow gay marriages, and spread vice all over the place,” goes the most common answer to “Why don’t you like America?”While realizing that bin Laden is indeed a criminal, the other group is categorically opposed to the way his end was orchestrated—same reservations being voiced about the trial and execution of Saddam Hussein. The fact that the United States is now posing as the superhero that saved the world is absolutely unacceptable for Egyptian intellectuals who are very well aware of the “fine line” between imperialism and benevolence. Their realization of how the bin Laden card will be flashed for decades to come in the face of anyone who dares question America’s sincere wish to see justice prevail and might even serve as a pretext for more “wars on terror” in the futures makes them extremely apprehensive. The anticipated rise of US hegemony in the region following the “heroic” taking out of the “villain” is, according to them, a prelude to another occupation… not one with tanks and warplanes, but the more dangerous type—that which makes you fully and totally under the mercy of a Big Brother who for the sake of protecting you keeps threatening to kill you!Between this and that, there remains one fact: terrorist or martyr, dead or alive, bin Laden has indeed managed to baffle the world. How he managed to do that does not really matter. Who enabled him to do is what really matters… and that will be enough food for thought until we manage to solve the conundrum… if we ever do! Hmmmm......."The fact that the United States is now posing as the superhero that saved the world is absolutely unacceptable for Egyptian intellectuals".Read the full story here.

• Obama 'honors' Bin Laden while Islamic scholars criticize bin Laden's sea burial.(AP).CAIRO — Muslim clerics said Monday that Osama bin Laden's burial at sea was a violation of Islamic tradition that may further provoke militant calls for revenge attacks against American targets.Although there appears to be some room for debate over the burial — as with many issues within the faith — a wide range of senior Islamic scholars interpreted it as a humiliating disregard for the standard Muslim practice of placing the body in a grave with the head pointed toward the holy city of Mecca.Sea burials can be allowed, they said, but only in special cases where the death occurred aboard a ship.Bin Laden's burial at sea "runs contrary to the principles of Islamic laws, religious values and humanitarian customs," said Sheik Ahmed al-Tayeb, the grand Imam of Cairo's al-Azhar mosque, Sunni Islam's highest seat of learning.A radical cleric in Lebanon, Omar Bakri Mohammed, said, "The Americans want to humiliate Muslims through this burial, and I don't think this is in the interest of the U.S. administration."A U.S. official said the burial decision was made after concluding that it would have been difficult to find a country willing to accept the remains. There was also speculation about worry that a grave site could have become a rallying point for militants.The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive national security matters.President Barack Obama said the remains had been handled in accordance with Islamic custom, which requires speedy burial, and the Pentagon later said the body was placed into the waters of the northern Arabian Sea after adhering to traditional Islamic procedures — including washing the corpse — aboard the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson.According to Islamic teachings, the highest honor to be bestowed on the dead is giving the deceased a swift burial, preferably before sunset. Those who die while traveling at sea can have their bodies committed to the bottom of the ocean if they are far off the coast, according to Islamic tradition."They can say they buried him at sea, but they cannot say they did it according to Islam," Mohammed al-Qubaisi, Dubai's grand mufti, said about bin Laden's burial. "If the family does not want him, it's really simple in Islam: You dig up a grave anywhere, even on a remote island, you say the prayers and that's it.""Sea burials are permissible for Muslims in extraordinary circumstances," he added. "This is not one of them."But Mohammed Qudah, a professor of Islamic law at the University of Jordan, said burying the Saudi-born bin Laden at sea was not forbidden if there was nobody to receive the body and provide a Muslim burial."The land and the sea belong to God, who is able to protect and raise the dead at the end of times for Judgment Day," he said. "It's neither true nor correct to claim that there was nobody in the Muslim world ready to receive bin Laden's body."Clerics in Iraq, where an offshoot of al-Qaida is blamed for the death of thousands of people since 2003, also criticized the U.S. action. One said it only benefited fish."If a man dies on a ship that is a long distance from land, then the dead man should be buried at the sea," said Shiite cleric Ibrahim al-Jabari. "But if he dies on land, then he should be buried in the ground, not to be thrown into the sea. Otherwise, this would be only inviting fish to a banquet.""What was done by the Americans is forbidden by Islam and might provoke some Muslims," said another Islamic scholar from Iraq, Abdul-Sattar al-Janabi, who preaches at Baghdad's famous Abu Hanifa mosque. "It is not acceptable and it is almost a crime to throw the body of a Muslim man into the sea. The body of bin Laden should have been handed over to his family to look for a country or land to bury him."Prominent Egyptian Islamic analyst and lawyer Montasser el-Zayat said bin Laden's sea burial was designed to prevent his grave from becoming a shrine. But an option was an unmarked grave."They don't want to see him become a symbol, but he is already a symbol in people's hearts."Hmmmmm.......President Barack Obama said the remains had been handled in accordance with Islamic custom, which requires speedy burial,According to Islamic teachings, the highest honor to be bestowed on the dead is giving the deceased a swift burial, preferably before sunset.So once again he honors ISLAM.Read the full story here.

• Confirmed: Bin Laden Given Religious Funeral Prior to Sea Burial.(FOX).Osama bin Laden was given a religious funeral prior to his burial at sea, senior military officials told Fox News.Religious rites were conducted on the deck of the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier at about 1:10 a.m. Monday in the Persian Gulf. In accordance with Islamic practice, bin Laden was washed and wrapped in a white sheet before buried at sea at 2 a.m. local time, senior U.S. military and intelligence officials said.Bin Laden, who resisted capture, was “living rather comfortably” in the compound, an official told Fox News.Senior administration officials said the DNA testing alone offered near 100 percent certainty that bin Laden was among those shot dead. Photo analysis by the CIA, confirmation by a woman believed to be bin Laden’s wife on site, and matching physical features like bin Laden’s height all helped confirmed the identification.Still, it was unclear if the world would ever get visual proof.Senior U.S. officials said bin Laden was killed toward the end of the firefight, which took place in a building at a compound north of Islamabad, the Pakistani capital. An official familiar with the operation said bin Laden fired on U.S. forces and was hit by a barrage of carefully aimed return fire.The official spoke on condition of anonymity because aspects of the operation remain classified.The official says two dozen SEALs in night-vision goggles dropped into the high-walled compound in Pakistan by sliding down ropes from Chinook helicopters in the overnight raid.The SEALs retrieved bin Laden’s body and turned the remaining detainees over to Pakistani authorities.Hmmmm.....In other news Elvis was seen leaving the White House?Read the full story here.

• The FCC is Again Being ‘DC Disingenuous’ About the Internet.(BigGovernment).the looming annual broadband deployment report from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) (called the 706 Report).In which they are going to again give U.S. broadband deployment a failing grade – just as they did last year.Which is completely “DC Disingenuous.” In other words, the FCC is lying through its bureaucratic teeth.The FCC is doing this because of the desired ends – the complete eradication of all private sector broadband – so as to replace it with government monopoly broadband.Accordingly (to them), any spoken means are thusly justified.Think I may be overstating?Ever since the November elections – in which the American people in historic fashion exhibited a passionate desire for smaller, more accountable government – the FCC has been on a big government Internet regulatory rampage. Again and again going WAY outside its legal limits to ram through huge new Web power grabs.The Obama-era Commission has all along wanted to impose the terrible idea that is Network Neutrality, but didn’t (and still doesn’t) have any legal authority over broadband – as Julius Genachowski, the FCC’s Chairman, readily admits.But why let the law stop them? In fact, they didn’t – voting themselves wired Internet Overlords on December 21 so as to then impose Net Neutrality.Not having placed a sufficient stranglehold on the wireless Internet, the FCC went back and did so with their just-as-illegal April 7 data roaming power grab.These incessant government assaults on the broadband industry are intended, again, to effect an ideological outcome – the end of all private broadband providers, and the birth of the government broadband monopoly.But don’t take my word for it – take Robert McChesney’s. He’s the godfather of the Media “Reform” Movement – the Media Marxists who have been pushing this anti-free market agenda from the very beginning.“At the moment, the battle over network neutrality is not to completely eliminate the telephone and cable companies. We are not at that point yet. But the ultimate goal is to get rid of the media capitalists in the phone and cable companies and to divest them from control.” Any questions?McChesney co-founded the lead Media Marxist outfit – the very ridiculous Free Press. Whom the FCC very ridiculously cited fifty-three times in their illegal December Internet power grab order.In many, many ways, the Media Marxists are driving the FCC train.Which again brings us to the impending FCC broadband report.For the FCC to allegedly “justify” their ever-increasing, illegal encroachments on private sector broadband, they have to say that private sector broadband is failing. Which is a flat-out lie.Let us do what the FCC did not – consider some facts. Facts that in fact come from – the FCC.Last year, the FCC’s National Broadband Plan reported : 290 million Americans—95% of the U.S. population—live in housing units with access to terrestrial, fixed broadband infrastructure capable of supporting actual download speeds of at least 4 Mbps.Last year, remember, the FCC gave this impressive private sector effort – an F.When I was in school, 95% got you a slightly higher grade than that.I got Fs, and did so with numbers FAR lower than this.So let us move to this year. Where we find that the FCC’s most recent broadband report says that 98% of U.S. Census tracts have at least one broadband provider, and 85% of U.S. Census tracts have access to at least two (including wireless). The FCC gives this an F?Yes, because again the Commission wishes to “get rid of the media capitalists in the phone and cable companies and to divest them from control.”So they must pretend that what is undoubtedly the most successful portion of the private sector – possibly ever – is failing. To “warrant” their more illegal actions to come.Their desired ends justify ANY – even these most absurd – means.Please keep all of this in mind when the FCC issues this year’s broadband Internet report.And the Media Marxists – on cue – go nuts(er), demanding even more government action to rectify yet another completely and obviously non-existent “problem.”Hmmmm.......And no doubt the Government provider WILL BE GOOGLE?Hmmmm......Pcs without Harddiscs, everything stored on online server(s) .....cloud computing.Big Brother is really going in overdrive now!Read the full story here.

• US Government Begins Its Move To The Cloud.(Itproportal).The US government has decided that it will begin moving services to the cloud, some in the near future, intensifying competition in this growing field.Google, Microsoft and Amazon are working to establish themselves as major cloud service providers but analysts believe that the market for cloud computing will continue to expand, providing more room for all three companies, as well as currently unknown start-ups, to thrive.According to an article in the Washington Post, the US government’s recent decision to make cloud computing the first choice for new IT projects has sparked off a race amongst companies to be first to provide cloud computing services to the government. The US government has even mandated that some agencies migrate services to a cloud platform in the next 18 months.This competition is obvious in recent spats such as whether or not Google's cloud services meet a standard called FISMA.Microsoft and Google are looking to offer cloud based platforms and applications to public and private sector organisations while Amazon Web Services is thought to have an early advantage developing the infrastructure necessary for a cloud computing platform, despite its recent outages.Read the full story here.

• Secure applications to meet the needs of government Google Apps for Government, now with FISMA certification.(Google).With Google Apps for Government, agencies can benefit from the scale and redundancy of one of the most robust networks of distributed datacenters in the world. The protection of the data and intellectual property on these servers is our top priority, with extensive resources dedicated to maintaining data security. Google is committed to providing the best security in the industry on an ongoing basis.Obtaining Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) certification & accreditation for Google Apps is critical to our US federal government customers, who must comply with FISMA by law. All customers – both public and private sector – benefit from this governmental review and certification of our security controls.

•Google is the first in the industry to complete FISMA certification for a multi-tenant cloud application.

•Google Apps has received an authority to operate at the FISMA-Moderate level; an independent auditor assessed the level of operational risk as Low.

•Google's FISMA documentation is available for review by interested agencies.This enables agencies to compare the security of Google Apps to that of existing systems.Hmmmm.......The only thing is when you go to the FISMA website you get "FISMA IS TEMPORARILY UNAVAILABLE"?What is going on here?Read the full story here.

• Google's FISMA certification: A technicality, misunderstanding or outright lie?(ZDNet).Google has suddenly found itself in hot water, exposed - by Microsoft, no less - for being a “liar, liar” when it comes to the security certification it has been touting for its Google Apps for Government offering.After all, the revelation that Google’s product, in fact, was not certified to be compliant under the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) is pretty major. In part, that’s because it’s the Apps suite that was tailor-made for government agencies and security - extra security, actually - was one of its biggest selling points.Now, before anyone gets into some panic over government data no longer being secure, there’s little concern that Apps for Government isn’t secure or that it won’t eventually get its FISMA certification. Apps for Government, as Google explains it, is a more secure subset of Google Apps Premier, a product that obtained FISMA certification well before Government was announced last summer. With that rationale, it’s no wonder that Google thought it was OK to go around and start touting Apps for Government as being FISMA-certified.Unfortunately, the truth got in the way.Google might have been naive about the way the government’s FISMA certification process works and just assumed that since Premier was already certified, then Government must be certified, as well. But as we now know - thanks to Microsoft’s discovery of a court document that tells otherwise - that’s not how the certification process works.Google says it has not applied for FISMA certification for Apps for Government, but instead is “updating the existing authorization.” At a hearing in Washington earlier today, an official with the General Services Administration said that a product has to be re-certified if it changes - and, in essence, Government is a altered version of Premier. That official said Google’s products are going through a re-certification based on the changes, according to a report on the Business Insider blog.Google can spin this any way it wants but, at the end of the day, it has been deceptive in marketing Google Apps for Government as being FISMA-certified. Ignorance of the process is no excuse.Simply said, Google - a company that has spent millions of dollars and countless hours developing this suite of applications specifically for government agencies - shouldn’t be making assumptions about something as significant as FISMA-certification, especially when that’s one of the biggest selling points over the competition. (Microsoft is currently awaiting FISMA-certification for its cloud apps offering, as well.) The only thing Google had to do was ask. Plain and simple.Instead, Google has done itself a world of harm by making assumptions about government process. It’s not only created a feeling of uncertainty around the security of its product but also created a perception of itself as a company that flirts with the truth for the sake of scoring a government contract. Does it really need to give its critics even more reason to argue that its motives are evil?Sure, when all is said and done, Google will likely be granted FISMA certification for Apps for Government - but the damage will have already been done. Google says its product is FISMA-certified - but how do we really know? Google needs government agencies to take them on their word - but, for the moment, there’s not much value behind that word.Maybe we’re splitting hairs here. Maybe this was just a technicality. Maybe it was all a misunderstanding. But as long as Google continues to stick by that lame argument about a certification for Premier also applying to Government, the company won’t be able to shake the “Liar, Liar” image that it now has.And the longer it waits to take its lumps, the harder it will be to shake that image.Hmmmm......Meanwhile FISMA is not 'reachable'?Why do i feel The Obama regime is behind this?Read the full story here.

• Bin Laden killing prompts Arab - Palestinian anger, relief.(Reuters).Some Arabs mourned him as a holy warrior and martyr, while others saw him as a "pillar of evil" whose deadly attacks on the United States unleashed a backlash against Muslims across the world.The U.S.-backed Palestinian Authority welcomed bin Laden's killing as "good for the cause of peace." Its rival and prospective power-sharing partner, Islamist Hamas, deplored his death."We condemn the assassination and the killing of an Arab holy warrior," said Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Hamas administration in Gaza, which faces a challenge from al Qaeda-inspired groups that consider it too moderate."We regard this as a continuation of the American policy based on oppression and the shedding of Muslim and Arab blood."Those who revered bin Laden were still in denial about his death but many in the Arab world felt it was long overdue.Some said the killing of bin Laden in a raid by U.S. forces in Pakistan was scarcely relevant in an Arab world fired by popular revolt against oppressive leaders who had resisted violent Islamist efforts to weaken their grip on power.Some see bin Laden as the only Muslim leader to take the fight against Western dominance to the heart of the enemy -- in the form of the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington in 2001."Bin Laden defended the dignity of Muslims and now the U.S. and the West will answer for their occupation," said Egyptian Abdullah Ali, a Salafist taxi driver in his 60s.Abdel-Qader Abu Shaaban, a 53-year-old Palestinian from Gaza, described bin Laden's killing as "a very criminal act."Tareq al-Zumar of Egypt's Islamist group al-Gama'a al-Islamiya, which took up arms against the state in the 1990s said: "Bin Laden will become a symbol of resistance to occupation... The U.S. killing of bin Laden will undoubtedly galvanize reaction and retaliation attempts."But there was disbelief and sorrow among many Saudis."He would be a loss to all Muslims because he had good qualities. He portrayed Muslims in a good and strong way... He is the person that left the worldly riches for jihad," said one man taking a cigarette break outside his office in Riyadh."Omar Bakri, a Lebanese Sunni cleric, mourned bin Laden as a martyr: "His martyrdom will give momentum to a large generation of believers and jihadists. Al Qaeda is not a political party, it is a jihadist movement. Al Qaeda does not end with the death of a leader."Egypt's influential Muslim Brotherhood said U.S. troops should now quit Iraq and Afghanistan."With bin Laden's death, one of the reasons for which violence has been practiced in the world has been removed," said Essam al-Erian, a senior member of the Brotherhood which renounced violence to achieve change in Egypt decades ago.Other Islamists in Egypt, whose thinkers have inspired Islamic movements and activists around the world, said bin Laden's followers should review their methods because their actions had only made the "enemy" more aggressive.Hmmmmm.......Overall opinion"We still hate the infidels and hope they are all killed"?Read the full story here.

• Iran says no excuse for US in region after bin Laden death.AFP - Iran said on Monday the death of Osama bin Laden has removed "any excuse" for the United States and its allies to deploy forces in the Middle East under the pretext of fighting terrorism."US and their allies have no more excuse to deploy forces in the Middle East under pretext of fighting terrorism," foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast was quoted as saying on the website of Iran's English-language Press TV channel.He said Iran hopes this development will help to "establish peace and security in the region," adding that it is Iran's policy to "strongly condemn terrorism all over the world."Shiite Iran has always considered Al-Qaeda as a Sunni ultra-radical and anti-Shiite threat to its security.Tehran even cooperated with Western forces when they invaded Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001 attacks to hunt bin Laden and the Taliban religious regime which had given him refuge.But Iran quickly criticised the presence of the Western forces in Afghanistan, saying it prevented any negotiated settlement of the Afghan conflict.Several senior Al-Qaeda members had taken refuge in Iran during the international intervention in Afghanistan, and some were detained, according to media reports which Iranian authorities never confirmed.But the British daily The Times reported in December that several of them were released by Tehran in order to rebuild the extremist Islamic organisation in Afghanistan, where it supports the Taliban in their fight against the Western military presence.Some bin Laden family members continue to live under house arrest in Tehran, according to several members who managed to escape in 2010.Read the full story here.

• Israeli Jets Prepare For Imminent Strike Against Iran.(PressTV).Israeli jet fighters have reportedly conducted drills at a military base in Iraq in order to strike targets inside Iran. A considerable number of Israeli warplanes were seen at al-Asad base in Iraq, reported a source close to prominent Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sader's group.

The aircraft reportedly included F-15, F-16, F-18, F-22, and KC-10 jet fighters. The warplanes carried out their week-long exercises at nights, the same source added. The drills were reportedly aimed at preparing to strike Iran's air defense systems, disrupt Iran's radars and attack targets deep inside Iran. Iraqi officials had not been notified of the exercises, which were conducted in collaboration with the US military. The United States maintains numerous bases in Iraq, and the Baghdad government is not involved in any of the military deployments taking place there.Read the full story here.