Sir Bandelot

We are only looking after their bests interests. They might end up nuking themselves!

Nothing will change, until the consumers open their purses. And I believe thats not going to happen very soon. The system is in a viscous negative cycle, with people buying less they are getting penalized more by their creditors, by the losses of investment in mutual funds and pension plans caused by the greedy investors clawing back every last cent they can, which only results in further retreat fir the consumer, which further hurts the investor, and so on.

Sage words from a wise man.

No, I would never do that. Now that you've stopped snickering, the point of my post is to raise the question, why don't they have faith in their own intel? Or maybe they actually do, and this is all just a charade.

Meanwhile, in closed-door discussions, American spy agencies have stood firm in their conclusion that while Iran may ultimately want a bomb, the country halted work on weapons design in 2003 and probably has not restarted that effort — a judgment first made public in a 2007 National Intelligence Estimate. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33065418/ns/wo...new_york_times/ Just a little snippet to throw in here... the assessment by their own intell. But of course only in "closed-door discussions".

U.S. income gap widens in slump The recession has hit middle-income and poor families hardest, widening the economic gap between the richest and poorest Americans, census figures show. "No one should be surprised at the increased disparity," said Richard Freeman, an economist at Harvard University. "Unemployment hurts normal workers who do not have the golden parachutes the folks at the top have." No, no one should be surprised that the bailout helped the rich more than the middle class or poor. For them there is no bailout. Because for one thing the "golden parachute the folks at the top have", came right out of their pockets.

I sure would wring something, if I could... lol

Are you done now

The comparison is irrelevant, they died in acidents. They were not ordered by our government to go in the street and stand in front of cars.

Agreed, and the fraudulent election has really pulled the rug out from under us. The failure of this election is a pivotal moment, now tiping towards failure. The situation is quickly deteriorating to an emergency level. Ths leaves me feeling dumbfounded, upset, angry at the fools in parliament for kissing ass so hard to please the Bush administration. Oh we're a team player alright

Right. What next, hockey players? Movie stars? Away with these charlatans and rogues

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has ordered the replacement of the US dollar by the euro in calculating the value of the country's Oil Stabilisation Fund (OSF). The edict, issued on Sept 12, follows a recommendation by the trustees of the country's foreign reserves, Iran's English-language daily The Tehran Times said on Monday, citing Iran's semi-official Mehr News Agency. http://www.arabianbusiness.com/568241-tehr...dollar-for-euro This occurred on September 12, just prior to the UN conference. Coincidence? I think not

Finally, perhaps but now at this time the US is preparing to change their strategy. General McCrystal recommends what amounts to a pull back scheme, retreat to the urban areas and defend them, the main focus on protection of what's left that we still hold under our control. NOT, seeking out and confronting Taliban in remote regions.

The reason is mainly due to 9-11, IMO. Other factors before and after may have contributed, but they are probably just part of a normal economic cycle that waxes and wanes. But 9-11 was the game changer. Its constantly amazing how much the 9-11 attack has affected us. We are not yet fully aware of its ramifications, in terms of its impact on economics, cultural and demographics. Somehow when those tremendous icons of western capitalism were brought down, it created a fundamental shift in our values. The damage did not only come directly from the attack on the very symbols of western capitalism, but it also changed our collective psyche, world wide. Suddenly people became sick of buying useless items and unnecessary junk luxuries. This is the death of mass consumption, and it has happened to us without the influence of business or government reforms. It is happening silently, a silent revolution, across the board and in large numbers. Our society is undergoing a subconscious transformation. We have known for generations, that we've excessively squandered resources and caused damage to the ecosystem. Yet despite all the information, campaigns and efforts to make people more aware of their excesses, nothing really changed. Blame human complacency, where there's no fire why do we need water. Well, on 9-11 we saw a fire alright, and it burned itself into our consciousness, a catastrophe, even steeped in the ancient symbolism of towers struck down. What I'm seeing is most people are trying to do more with less, being satisfied with less, making do with what they have. Learning to make things themselves instead of buy them. But its not just simple resignation to the current financial crisis we find ourselves in, its more than that - it's intentional. Some of the people I know are not hoarding cash, they don't have much extra. They are aworking less, making less income and in some ways enjoying it more.

I believe that Iran likely wants to have nuclear weapons. I believe that most countries who are in similar conditions, who are not allies of the United States/ West, also want nuclear weapons. Part of the problem is that countries can't get respect or cooperation unless they have the nukes. And that is a huge mistake for the whole world. In this game, it is illegal for the goalie to even possess a grenade. If one team accuses the other of having a grenade, and the other team says we will allow you to search us for any grenades, then we should do that first. To me the IAEA is like the referee, and the rules of the game are defined by laws. Although the existence of laws do not give us 100% assurance of our safety. But without it I believe we would fall into violent chaos. Law is one of the few things we have to keep in check those with ruthless ambitions, who manipulate facts and media to make things happen, for their own personal advantage. I believe that people like this exist, and they are a great a threat to us. Now today, EVERYBODY is getting on the slam Iran train. Even Boob Rae is trying to score political points with it in his statements. My guess is that Obama and others know what it's all about. - The US knew this facility existed for a while already. - Iran suspected it would be used against them in a surprise announcement at the UN, and sent a letter to the IAEA at the last minute to take some of the heat off themselves. I believe the US knows what kind of facility it is. Obama is playing a poker game with Iran, to put them in a vulnerable position where they can be dealt with more effectively at the political table. We the public are merely subjects to this high theatre. It's a risky strategy that could either be a success, or cause another pre-emptive war that might not be necessary.

It was a joke... about the reaction of right wingers to Obama. There are many people in the United States who claim that the Dems stole the election, and that Obama is not a legitimate president. Just ask Shady

Exactly, but only a little bit, right? or not... It depends on if you get the double entendre.

Therefore nothing is wrong??? What the heck are you talking about. I definitely believe something is wrong. Something went wrong for someone else, and Canada got sucked in. To "surmise" my post, I'm saying that taking the government and bankers at their word, is to risk being deluded. I doubt there ever was an impending financial collapse coming for Canada. The evidence seems to say otherwise. But if there was, certainly Canadians should be pissed that they had tightened their belts and dug in to reduce our deficit, we made the sacrifices and did the hard work, and someone else got the money.

If what I have shown is correct, then Iran did not lie. The main point being, they must declare the existence of such a facility no less than 6 months before it goes operational. If it is 18 months away from completion, they still have another 12 months to declare it to the IAEA. Also apparently in its application to the IAEA last week they did indicate that they will allow inspectors to examine it. http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090926/ts_af...nuclearpolitics "This site will be under the supervision of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) and will have a maximum of five percent (uranium) enrichment capacity," Ali Akbar Salehi said on state television. The plant, which is "not an industrial scale" unit, will be operational in two years' time, he said. Now look, I am not trying to defend Iran... I certainly wouldn't trust them over anyone else. But I know a little bit about the power play and the theatre that goes on the international scene, and I don't trust any country. They simply cannot be honest, because of each other.

You think wrongly. Just because I ask a loaded question doesn't mean I'm confused... just leading up to something. I do recall our Prime Minister declaring that the economic crisis did not affect Canada significantly, that Canada is somewhat protected from the US economic downfall and should be able to ride it out. Next thing you know, bankers and economists are jumping up and down, saying that if US banks get a handout, it puts ours at a disadvantage. If you agree with that I want to ask you HOW, since their banks are in financial crisis and ours are healthy. Now, a few months later we see that Canada is doing far better than expected. Wow, what a pleasant surprise... or is it? "the central bank, led by governor Mark Carney, said economic growth would return in the third quarter, marking an end to a short, but deep, recession. Growth of 1.3% was expected in the third quarter, followed by an expansion of 3% in the final three months of the year – for average growth of 2.15% in the second half." http://www.financialpost.com/story.html?id=1979270 I had my doubts before about whether we ever had an economic problem at all, or whether we were financially "obligated" to play along with someone else's big problem. I still have those doubts now. In other words, Canadian tax payers dollars used to bail out another countries banks, and line our bankers pockets nicely at the same time. Canadians paid down the debt for years to be financially responsible and in a strong position, only to lose that investment and take on a huge deficit, from someone else who was far less responsible. What heros we are Ok mr. taxman, I got the next bag of cash for you to take away.

I give no trust, just information. Besides, there are liars, and then there are those who conveniently omit the truth. In either case we have a politician. But the rules of the IAEA are unambiguous. Or so it seems This case comes down to whether the facility is more, or less than 6 months from completion, as well as its technical capabilities for making nuclear material. Inspectors will tell us this. So if Iran is not in legal violation, we should soon know about that. For real, not from a politician. Information from inspectors has been conveniently ignored by our leaders in the past, so it still means nothing.

August deadliest month of 2009 for Afghan civilians, UN says --- "McChrystal is pulling back forces from thinly populated outlying areas where some of the most intense fighting against the Taliban has taken place. The troops will be deployed to defend major population centres from the Taliban and bolster support for President Hamid Karzai's administration, tainted by corruption and election rigging, amid growing recognition that if the politics fails the war will be lost." http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/sep/2...new-afghan-plan Looks like theres a LOT more work to do, General McCrystal.

Whats also unbelievable is the amount of fear and visceral attitude of some in the right wing towards Obama. Considering he has only been in power for a short time, and probably most of the difficult diecisions were already laid out before he took the office, his blame for the current situation seems minimal. Did George Bush have the same problem? It doesn't seem like it. Maybe being overly emotional is a characteristic of right wingers? - What the GOP has done to America

Hype hype hype. Let's all be a mob, and point at the "bad" guys, and tell half-truths and omissions of truth. "The IAEA only actually requires that it be informed six months before an enrichment facility comes online, and the new site is at least that far from completion. Nuclear material has not been added, and the IAEA says that the data they’ve been given suggests that as with the existing Nanatz facility, the new site is only designed to enrich uranium to 5%, useful for energy production at the nation’s Bushehr power plant but not for military purposes. Western leaders are now demanding that UN inspectors be given access to the new site. Such a demand would be seemingly reasonable, if Iran hadn’t already promised to do so days ago to the IAEA and publicly said hours before the “demands” that they have every intention of doing so." http://news.antiwar.com/2009/09/25/as-requ...nrichment-site/ - According to various sources the new Iranian nuclear facility won't be ready for operations for another 18 months - According to IAEA there has been no shipment of nuclear material to the facility (no breach of regulations has occurred). When we don't tell the public about what Iran said (offer to allow inspections), but stand at the podium and demand loudly that they comply fully with regulations and allow inspectors in, then when Iran does what they said they would do anyway, gosh we look good...

Here's a question for all you arm-chair economists. How is it that only 12% of the stimulus has been spent, but we are hearing lots of talk about how Canada is quickly coming out of the recession and is expected to see about 3% growth next year. So whats with the huge bailout and stimulus package then? Can we have our remaining 88% back please