Clipmarks | Crisis Clips

'We Were Told We Were Fighting Terrorists; the Real Terrorist Was Me'

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:58:04 GMT

I threw families onto the street in Iraq, only to come home and ﬁnd families thrown onto the street in this country, in this tragic and unnecessary foreclosure crisis. Our enemies are not ﬁve thousand miles away, they are right here at home, and if we organize and ﬁght, we can stop this war, we can stop this government, and we can create a better world.

We were told we were ﬁghting terrorists; the real terrorist was me, and the real terrorism is this occupation. Racism within the military has long been an important tool to justify the destruction and occupation of another country. Without racism, soldiers would realize that they have more in common with the Iraqi people than they do with the billionaires who send us to war.

We never got any explanation for our orders. We were only told that a group of ﬁve or six houses was now property of the U.S. military, and we had to go in and make those families leave their houses.

Tags: racism, iraq war, afghanistan, winter soldier hearings, winter soldier

Nature loss 'dwarfs bank crisis'

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:31:50 GMT

clipped by: fredondo

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Nature loss 'dwarfs bank crisis'

The global economy is losing more money from the disappearance of forests than through the current banking crisis, according to an EU-commissioned study.

It puts the annual cost of forest loss at between $2 trillion and $5 trillion.

World Bank Under Cyber Siege - "unprecedented crisis"

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:06:22 GMT

clipped by: willhelm

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

The World Bank Group's computer network — one of the largest repositories of sensitive data about the economies of every nation — has been raided repeatedly by outsiders for more than a year, FOX News has learned.

It is still not known how much information was stolen. But sources inside the bank confirm that servers in the institution's highly-restricted treasury unit were deeply penetrated with spy software last April. Invaders also had full access to the rest of the bank's network for nearly a month in June and July.

In total, at least six major intrusions — two of them using the same group of IP addresses originating from China — have been detected at the World Bank since the summer of 2007, with the most recent breach occurring just last month.

In a frantic midnight e-mail to colleagues, the bank's senior technology manager referred to the situation as an "unprecedented crisis."

A Children’s Treasury Of Poverty Iconography

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:43:21 GMT

clipped by: Jorjor
clipper's remarks: The Comics Curmudgeon is Josh Fruhlinger, whose daily blog at http://joshreads.com/ offers snarly commentary from Josh and his readers on the comic strips you love to hate. He also comments on editorial and political cartoons at Wonkette, the DC Gossip.

Clip Source: wonkette.com

By the Comics Curmudgeon
So apparently 60 percent of you think that we are on the verge of a new Great Depression! Hopefully those of your who believe this are preparing yourself for the coming crisis, by putting your money in low-yield, low-risk investments, stocking up on canned food and ammo, and drinking heavily. But there aren’t just practical preparations to be made; you’ve got to get ready aesthetically, too, to understand the common visual language of total social and economic collapse. Get ready for the symbols of our new lives!

Hobos.

Clip Source: content.cartoonbox.slate.com

Clip Source: wonkette.com

Barrel-based wardrobes.

Clip Source: content.cartoonbox.slate.com

Clip Source: wonkette.com

Fat rich dudes smoking cigars.

Clip Source: content.cartoonbox.slate.com

Clip Source: wonkette.com

MONOPOLY, from Parker Brothers!

Clip Source: content.cartoonbox.slate.com

Clip Source: wonkette.com

Terrifying jawless tentacled Cthulhu-beasts, bursting up through the Earth’s surface from their unspeakable lairs deep in the bowels of hell.

Clip Source: content.cartoonbox.slate.com

Tags: depression, poverty, icons, editorial cartoons, comics curmudgeon, josh fruhlinger, politics, economy

Two Small Banks Fail, Bring 2008 Tally To 15

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:03:25 GMT

clipped by: Forbes Markets

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

U.S. regulators took over two small banks on Friday, in Michigan and Illinois, bringing the tally of bank failures to 15 so far this year.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said it had seized Main Street Bank of Northville, Michigan, and Meridian Bank of Eldred, Illinois.

Main Street Bank had total assets of $98 million and total deposits of $86 million as of October 7, the FDIC said, while Meridian Bank had $39.2 million in total assets and $36.9 million in total deposits as of September 25.

The two failures are expected to cost the U.S. bank deposit insurance fund, that stood at around $45 billion at the end of June, between $46 million and $53.5 million, the FDIC said.

Tags: credit crisis, bank failures, fdic

After the global financial crisis comes the global humanitarian crisis?

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 14:47:43 GMT

clipped by: petercasier
clipper's remarks: What means a billion, a trillion if you survive on less than a dollar a day?

Clip Source: www.theroadtothehorizon.org

It seems like 2008 is becoming the year of global crisis. First we were faced with the worldwide food crisis, swiftly followed by, what now seems to be, a collapse of major financial institutions.

The question now is: how much money will be left for international aid?

Tags: economy, bail-out, humanitarian, aid, foreign policy, un, food crisis, news

Sumatran robusta growers suffer from price drop

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 13:51:19 GMT

clipped by: BirdBarista
clipper's remarks: The global financial crisis will impact all coffee farmers. In this case, the price of robusta is dropping. Here in Sumatra, this means many farmers may rip out their coffee and plant less eco-friendly crops. Also look for the big multinational companies to stock up on this low-quality coffee and pit growers against each other to further depress prices.

Clip Source: old.thejakartapost.com

Lampung coffee farmers and exporters claim the U.S financial crisis has contributed to the fall in the price of the commodity.

"In the past, 2001-2002, when the price fell to Rp 3,000 per kilogram, many frustrated farmers cut down their coffee trees."

Another coffee farmer, Suharno of Sumberjaya, West Lampung, said he was ready to "change" his coffee plantation if the price continued to drop.

Without giving the exact amount of money involved, exporters claimed to have suffered losses of 30 percent because of the decline in price of coffee at the London terminal.

Lampung is the largest robusta coffee producer in Indonesia. Currently the province has 163,837 hectares of coffee plantations with 218,447 workers.

Nature loss 'dwarfs bank crisis'

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 12:33:55 GMT

clipped by: vk2yoc
clipper's remarks: It's only money, could be worse, we could lose our planet.

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

The global economy is losing more money from the disappearance of forests than through the current banking crisis, according to an EU-commissioned study.

The figure comes from adding the value of the various services that forests perform, such as providing clean water and absorbing carbon dioxide

"It's not only greater but it's also continuous, it's been happening every year, year after year," he told BBC News.

"So whereas Wall Street by various calculations has to date lost, within the financial sector, $1-$1.5 trillion, the reality is that at today's rate we are losing natural capital at least between $2-$5 trillion every year."

The greatest cost to western nations would initially come through losing a natural absorber of the most important greenhouse gas.

A number of nations, businesses and global organisations are beginning to direct funds into forest conservation, and there are signs of a trade in natural ecosystems developing, analogous to the carbon trade,

VanGuard - perspective on challenging times

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 12:20:36 GMT

clipped by: forumgr

Clip Source: personal.vanguard.com

September 19, 2008

Vanguard CEO offers perspective on challenging times

Over the last few days, we've seen rapid and profound changes to the financial system, with several major firms facing a financial crisis that's led to extraordinary intervention by the federal government. These historic developments have been accompanied by large swings in the market. In an interview, Vanguard Chief Executive Officer Bill McNabb discusses the recent volatility and how Vanguard investors have responded. He also explains how Vanguard is well-positioned to meet the challenges of the current environment.

It's Called Hubris

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 12:13:50 GMT

clipped by: debbyski

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

WASHINGTON — George W. Bush began his presidency with the worst terrorist attack on American soil and he is ending it with the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. In between, he confronted a hurricane that nearly wiped New Orleans off the map as his administration showed ineptitude in its response.

Now, as he spends his last months in office trying to avert a global economic collapse, Mr. Bush has been telling people privately that it’s a good thing he’s in charge.

Mr. Bush has always been confident of himself, even when the American public was not, and that has not changed. Just as he is convinced he did the right thing in Iraq, he is convinced he is doing the right thing on the economy — despite job approval ratings at historic lows and a presidential campaign in which both candidates have used him as kind of a battering ram.

Recession? Depression? How Deep, How Far?

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 11:53:00 GMT

clipped by: thisnamecantbetaken
clipper's remarks: A survey of what some of the best thinkers believe we're facing in the coming months and years -- and the best ways to prevent complete disaster.

Clip Source: www.alternet.org

Recession? Depression? How Deep, How Far and What Can Be Done?

The question on most people's minds is just how far and deep the fallout from the crisis will go. Are we looking at the kind of recessions we've seen -- and survived -- in the early 1980s, early 1990s and at the beginning of this century, or are we staring into an abyss that will be far more painful, one that will profoundly transform our lifestyles?

There's no definitive answer. We're in uncharted waters, and anyone who says they know what will transpire in the next few years is selling snake oil. But some deep thinkers who have a solid command of the structures of the global economy can help us understand the best- and worst-case scenarios

a number of leading experts

all highly respected in their field --

get their reads on the possible impacts of the financial sector's meltdown, the likelihood of the recent bailout having the desired effect and where we might go from here.

from historian doris kearns

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 11:39:28 GMT

clipped by: doodleicious
clipper's remarks: i luv TED ....felt this was a good time to share it

Clip Source: by112w.bay112.mail.live.com

This week on TED.com, listen to historian Doris Kearns Goodwin as she tells stories of American presidents. Studying the people who've held this critical job, she finds stories of decision-making, resolve, humor and great character -- and she shares lessons that have meaning for all of us, in the US and around the world, in moments of crisis. Steven Johnson talks about the wisdom of self-healing systems like the Web and the city, and John Markoff talks about a few great tech stories that didn't make the front page but should've. James "AudioPoet" Burchfield spins up some tongue-twisting turntablism using only his vocal cords, and in a much-discussed TEDTalk, game designer David Perry asks if we've reached the point where video games are more satisfying than real life.

Re-prioritize Your Opportunities.

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 09:53:33 GMT

clipped by: clipsaved

Clip Source: blogs.bnet.com

STEP #6: Re-prioritize Your Opportunities. The financial crisis is changing the business landscape very quickly. As a result, a company that three weeks ago looked like a hot prospect might be a dead loser today. Therefore, you must run though your entire list of leads and opportunities and, based upon what you know and can learn with some research, prioritize your opportunities, based upon likelihood to buy and ability to pay quickly. Put your long-term “strategic” opportunities on hold.

Fear is the Mind Killer of the Silicon Valley Entrepreneur

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 07:09:48 GMT

clipped by: rmowery
clipper's remarks: Very insightful and well written, even if one does not live in the valley.

Clip Source: 500hats.typepad.com

Fear is the Mind Killer of the Silicon Valley Entrepreneur (we must be Muad'Dib, not Clark Kent)

Okay folks... i am getting really fucking tired of all your

negative shit.

yeah, i know it's gonna be tough. and the credit crunch / downturn / whatchamacallit has already changed the balance of power from entrepreneur to investor in less than a month. if you are lucky enough to *GET* financing, your term sheets are gonna suck ass (learn about liquidation preferences & protective provisions). if you are running an existing startup, you are probably going to have to cut spending, cut hiring, and you may even end up firing people / doing layoffs. and then you pay taxes and then you die.

Tags: 500hats, silicon valley, dave mcclure, entrepreneur, credit crisis

Elections Astrology: Obama, Lincoln, JFK, Bailout Games and Palin's Potency

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 07:00:51 GMT

clipped by: cakebelly
clipper's remarks: A long and detailed look at the Astrology of the elections and of the candidates.

Clip Source: www.realitysandwich.com

Elections Astrology: Obama, Lincoln, JFK, Bailout Games, and Palin's Potency

Obama, Lincoln, JFK

I have recently received a few emails from people who are actively meditating and visualizing healing, protective light energy around Barack Obama and his family. It is my feeling that we must not only isolate our prayers and luminous meditations to Obama, but also to McCain, the other candidates, and to the bankers and all government officials at this crucial time. This national crisis is an invitation on a personal level to examine our souls. We have the power to flow unconditional love out in all directions, without prejudice or preference, but for the healing of the entire nation.

In some of my research over the last few months, I discovered powerful links in the charts of Abraham Lincoln, JFK, and Barack Obama.