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The really useful silver thread (AG)
squirrel888 - 12 Jun 2013 10:30
mabel - 15 Sep 2013 18:58 - 798 of 1034
Here's one that I found interestin - from Consortiumnews.
mabel
How War on Syria Lost Its Way
September 14, 2013
Exclusive: What looked like another U.S. march to war in the Mideast has turned toward a peaceful accord that carries hope of getting Syria to relinquish its chemical weapons and achieving a cease-fire, maybe even an end to the civil war. But some want to resume the drive toward a U.S. attack, ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern says.
By Ray McGovern
The just announced U.S.-Russia agreement in Geneva on a “joint determination to ensure the destruction of the Syrian chemical weapons (CW) program in the soonest and safest manner” sounds the death knell to an attempt by Israel, Turkey and Saudi Arabia to get the U.S. into the war in Syria.
Equally important, it greatly increases the prospect of further U.S.-Russia cooperation to tamp down escalating violence in Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East. That the two sides were able to hammer out in three days a detailed agreement on such highly delicate, complicated issues is little short of a miracle. I cannot remember seeing the likes of it in 50 years in Washington.
resident Barack Obama holds a bilateral meeting with His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al Sabah, the Amir of Kuwait, in the Oval Office, Sept. 13, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Just two short weeks ago, the prospect of a U.S. military strike against Syria looked like a done deal with Official Washington abuzz with excitement about cruise missiles being launched from American warships in the Mediterranean, flying low toward their targets and lighting up the night sky of Damascus like the “shock and awe” pyrotechnics did to Baghdad in 2003.
On Aug. 30, Secretary of State John Kerry seemed to seal the deal with an impassioned address that declared some 35 times that “we know” Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had crossed President Barack Obama’s “red line” against using chemical weapons with an Aug. 21 attack and needed to be punished.
Along with Kerry’s speech, the White House released a four-page “Government Assessment” declaring with “high confidence” that Assad’s regime was guilty of the attack on a Damascus suburb that killed precisely “1,429” people and “at least 426 children.” Though the white paper included not a single verifiable fact establishing Assad’s guilt – nor did it explain where its casualty figures came from – the assessment was accepted as true by most of the mainstream U.S. news media.
At that moment, Israel and its many backers had every reason to believe they had won the day and that at least the first stage of the retribution would be delivered before President Barack Obama flew off on Sept. 3 to Europe and to the G-20 summit. But then came a series of disappointments for them, beginning with Obama’s abrupt Aug. 31 decision to seek congressional authorization.
Still, the prevailing attitude was that the Israel Lobby would simply get to work whipping members of Congress into line with a variety of arguments (and a mix of threats and inducements) to ensure that a use-of-force resolution was passed and sent to the President’s desk.
The confidence was so high that there was no need to disguise what was afoot. Usually the mainstream media avoids mentioning the extraordinary influence of the Israel Lobby on Congress, but this time the New York Times displayed unusual candor describing who was egging on the march to war.
An 800-Pound Gorilla
In an article posted online Sept. 2, the Times reported, “Administration officials said the influential pro-Israel lobby group Aipac was already at work pressing for military action against the government of Mr. Assad. … One administration official, who, like others, declined to be identified discussing White House strategy, called Aipac ‘the 800-pound gorilla in the room,’ and said its allies in Congress had to be saying, ‘If the White House is not capable of enforcing this red line’ against the catastrophic use of chemical weapons, ‘we’re in trouble.’”
This warning about “loss of credibility” is a familiar one, artfully promoted in Saturday’s Wall Street Journal in an article by Leon Aron titled “America, Syria and the World.” Aron quotes a long list of Israel loyalists like Brookings Saban Center’s Kenneth M. Pollack, who warn that foreigners may come to view us as wimps if strong action is not taken against Syria.
A contrary point of view was expressed by former U.S. Ambassador Chas Freeman, who commented: “There is another possibility, however. And that is that they have come to see us as bullies, prone to resort to force rather than diplomacy when problems arise. The latter possibility puts a whole different face on Obama’s hesitation to go to war with Syria.”
In any case, to the surprise of many Washington insiders, the dreams of U.S. bombs raining down on another Mideast country began to slip away as many members of Congress listened to their constituents speaking out against war, and some even disbelieving the administration’s assessment because no hard, checkable evidence was being revealed to the American people.
Morose at CNN
As the march toward war began meandering off in unexpected directions, I was lucky enough to observe, up-close and personal, the angry reaction of some of Israel’s top American supporters on Monday evening. That was after Russia drew Obama a new map for how to reach the desired destination of removing chemical weapons from Assad’s arsenal without going to war.
After doing an interview on CNN International, I opened the studio door and almost knocked over a small fellow named Paul Wolfowitz, President George W. Bush’s former under-secretary of defense who in 2002-2003 had helped craft the fraudulent case for invading Iraq. And there standing next to him was former Sen. Joe Lieberman, the neocon from Connecticut who was a leading advocate for the Iraq War and pretty much every other potential war in the Middle East.
Finding myself in the same room with two gentlemen responsible for so much misery in the world, I fell back on my recent training in non-violence, as we watched Piers Morgan try earnestly to spin the day’s astounding events. On the tube earlier, Anderson Cooper sought counsel from Ari Fleischer, former spokesman for George W. Bush, and David Gergen, long-time White House PR guru.
Fleischer and Gergen were alternately downright furious over the Russian initiative to give peace a chance and disconsolate at seeing the prospect for U.S. military involvement in Syria disappear when we were oh so close. After some caustic and condescending outbursts, an almost surreally disconsolate mood set in. It looked like these fellas were not going to get their war.
Later remarks by Lieberman and Wolfowitz reflected a distinctly funereal atmosphere. I felt I had come to a wake with somberly dressed folks (no pastel ties this time) grieving for a recently, dearly-departed war.
Among Lieberman’s vapid comments was the hope-against-hope assertion that President Obama, of course, could still commit troops to war without congressional authorization. I thought to myself, wow, here’s a fellow who was a senator for 24 years and almost our vice president, and he does not remember that the Founders gave Congress the sole power to declare war in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution.
So I dug into my back pocket, pulled out my little copy of the Constitution, and carefully tore out Article 1. Then I lurked in the ornate elevator waiting area for Joe and Paul to come out. After the usual pleasantries (all politicians feel compelled to “remember” you once you say your name as though they should), I said, “Joe, I couldn’t believe what you said about the President not being required to get the approval of Congress before attacking a country like Syria. So, here; I tore out Article 1 of the Constitution for you; I have another copy, so you can keep it. Go home, read it, and see if what you just said is correct.”
It was a bad evening for war and for those pundits who like to joke about “giving war a chance.” For those of us who think war is not such a good idea – and truly should only be considered as an absolutely last resort – it was an uncommon day for rejoicing at the failure of the warmongers to again send young men and women to kill folks who pose no threat to us.
Salt in the Wounds
As sad as the war proponents were – including the cable news channels cheated out of some great video of flashing bombs illuminating the shattered buildings of ancient Damascus – they would face another humiliation in reading Thursday’s New York Times, which published an op-ed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. He made sensible points about the value of international law prohibiting one country from attacking another except in self-defense or with approval of the United Nations Security Council.
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-New Jersey, chair of the Foreign Relations Committee and an Israeli favorite, spoke for many Washington insiders by saying, “I was at dinner, and I almost wanted to vomit.” [For more on this topic, see Consortiumnews.com’s “Rewarding ‘Group Think’ on Syria.”]
Menendez had just cobbled together and forced through his committee a resolution, 10-to-7, to authorize the President to strike Syria with enough force to degrade Assad’s military. Now, at Obama’s request, the resolution was being put on the shelf.
Events were now moving swiftly away from a U.S. missile strike. Obama dispatched Kerry to Geneva to work out an agreement with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. But the hope for war still was not fully extinguished.
Sen. Carl Levin, D-Michigan, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, was still rooting for a chance to revive the military option and – like Lieberman – suggesting that the President didn’t really need congressional approval and shouldn’t be deterred by popular opposition either.
At a breakfast session with reporters on Sept. 11, Levin said, “I just don’t think you can be guided, when it comes to this kind of an issue, by public opinion polls. … It would not be a surprise at all to me, even if there were no congressional authority, that he [Obama] would use his Article 2 authority” as commander in chief. (Not incidentally, Levin has been the recipient of more money from AIPAC-related organizations than any other member of Congress.)
At this point, Israel and its lobby had every reason to be disappointed in another longtime close friend, John Kerry. He had succeeded in driving the war, which was to be fought over Obama’s “red line,” into what football fans might call the “red zone” but Kerry was unable to push the plan for missile strikes over the goal line.
Instead, Kerry clearly is under new orders from President Obama to figure out a way in cooperation with Minister Lavrov to defuse the crisis. Putin, Obama, Lavrov and Kerry have just won some laurels from the people around the world hoping to advance the cause of peace. But they won’t have the luxury of resting on them, while so many others in and around Syria have powerful incentives to reverse the progress made.
One still has to wonder what might revive prospects for U.S. missile strikes. Some in the Middle East are worried about the possibility that radical jihadists among the Syrian rebels might try to derail peace talks by launching a chemical weapons attack against Israeli targets with the hope that the provocation will be blamed on the Assad regime and set off a rush to retaliate.
Whether likely or not, it is a threat that the cooler heads in the Obama administration should anticipate and be ready to head off.
Ray McGovern works for Tell the Word, a publishing arm of the ecumenical Church of the Saviour in inner-city Washington. He served as an Army Infantry/Intelligence officer prior to working for 27 years as a CIA analyst. He is co-founder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS).
mabel
How War on Syria Lost Its Way
September 14, 2013
Exclusive: What looked like another U.S. march to war in the Mideast has turned toward a peaceful accord that carries hope of getting Syria to relinquish its chemical weapons and achieving a cease-fire, maybe even an end to the civil war. But some want to resume the drive toward a U.S. attack, ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern says.
By Ray McGovern
The just announced U.S.-Russia agreement in Geneva on a “joint determination to ensure the destruction of the Syrian chemical weapons (CW) program in the soonest and safest manner” sounds the death knell to an attempt by Israel, Turkey and Saudi Arabia to get the U.S. into the war in Syria.
Equally important, it greatly increases the prospect of further U.S.-Russia cooperation to tamp down escalating violence in Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East. That the two sides were able to hammer out in three days a detailed agreement on such highly delicate, complicated issues is little short of a miracle. I cannot remember seeing the likes of it in 50 years in Washington.
resident Barack Obama holds a bilateral meeting with His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al Sabah, the Amir of Kuwait, in the Oval Office, Sept. 13, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Just two short weeks ago, the prospect of a U.S. military strike against Syria looked like a done deal with Official Washington abuzz with excitement about cruise missiles being launched from American warships in the Mediterranean, flying low toward their targets and lighting up the night sky of Damascus like the “shock and awe” pyrotechnics did to Baghdad in 2003.
On Aug. 30, Secretary of State John Kerry seemed to seal the deal with an impassioned address that declared some 35 times that “we know” Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had crossed President Barack Obama’s “red line” against using chemical weapons with an Aug. 21 attack and needed to be punished.
Along with Kerry’s speech, the White House released a four-page “Government Assessment” declaring with “high confidence” that Assad’s regime was guilty of the attack on a Damascus suburb that killed precisely “1,429” people and “at least 426 children.” Though the white paper included not a single verifiable fact establishing Assad’s guilt – nor did it explain where its casualty figures came from – the assessment was accepted as true by most of the mainstream U.S. news media.
At that moment, Israel and its many backers had every reason to believe they had won the day and that at least the first stage of the retribution would be delivered before President Barack Obama flew off on Sept. 3 to Europe and to the G-20 summit. But then came a series of disappointments for them, beginning with Obama’s abrupt Aug. 31 decision to seek congressional authorization.
Still, the prevailing attitude was that the Israel Lobby would simply get to work whipping members of Congress into line with a variety of arguments (and a mix of threats and inducements) to ensure that a use-of-force resolution was passed and sent to the President’s desk.
The confidence was so high that there was no need to disguise what was afoot. Usually the mainstream media avoids mentioning the extraordinary influence of the Israel Lobby on Congress, but this time the New York Times displayed unusual candor describing who was egging on the march to war.
An 800-Pound Gorilla
In an article posted online Sept. 2, the Times reported, “Administration officials said the influential pro-Israel lobby group Aipac was already at work pressing for military action against the government of Mr. Assad. … One administration official, who, like others, declined to be identified discussing White House strategy, called Aipac ‘the 800-pound gorilla in the room,’ and said its allies in Congress had to be saying, ‘If the White House is not capable of enforcing this red line’ against the catastrophic use of chemical weapons, ‘we’re in trouble.’”
This warning about “loss of credibility” is a familiar one, artfully promoted in Saturday’s Wall Street Journal in an article by Leon Aron titled “America, Syria and the World.” Aron quotes a long list of Israel loyalists like Brookings Saban Center’s Kenneth M. Pollack, who warn that foreigners may come to view us as wimps if strong action is not taken against Syria.
A contrary point of view was expressed by former U.S. Ambassador Chas Freeman, who commented: “There is another possibility, however. And that is that they have come to see us as bullies, prone to resort to force rather than diplomacy when problems arise. The latter possibility puts a whole different face on Obama’s hesitation to go to war with Syria.”
In any case, to the surprise of many Washington insiders, the dreams of U.S. bombs raining down on another Mideast country began to slip away as many members of Congress listened to their constituents speaking out against war, and some even disbelieving the administration’s assessment because no hard, checkable evidence was being revealed to the American people.
Morose at CNN
As the march toward war began meandering off in unexpected directions, I was lucky enough to observe, up-close and personal, the angry reaction of some of Israel’s top American supporters on Monday evening. That was after Russia drew Obama a new map for how to reach the desired destination of removing chemical weapons from Assad’s arsenal without going to war.
After doing an interview on CNN International, I opened the studio door and almost knocked over a small fellow named Paul Wolfowitz, President George W. Bush’s former under-secretary of defense who in 2002-2003 had helped craft the fraudulent case for invading Iraq. And there standing next to him was former Sen. Joe Lieberman, the neocon from Connecticut who was a leading advocate for the Iraq War and pretty much every other potential war in the Middle East.
Finding myself in the same room with two gentlemen responsible for so much misery in the world, I fell back on my recent training in non-violence, as we watched Piers Morgan try earnestly to spin the day’s astounding events. On the tube earlier, Anderson Cooper sought counsel from Ari Fleischer, former spokesman for George W. Bush, and David Gergen, long-time White House PR guru.
Fleischer and Gergen were alternately downright furious over the Russian initiative to give peace a chance and disconsolate at seeing the prospect for U.S. military involvement in Syria disappear when we were oh so close. After some caustic and condescending outbursts, an almost surreally disconsolate mood set in. It looked like these fellas were not going to get their war.
Later remarks by Lieberman and Wolfowitz reflected a distinctly funereal atmosphere. I felt I had come to a wake with somberly dressed folks (no pastel ties this time) grieving for a recently, dearly-departed war.
Among Lieberman’s vapid comments was the hope-against-hope assertion that President Obama, of course, could still commit troops to war without congressional authorization. I thought to myself, wow, here’s a fellow who was a senator for 24 years and almost our vice president, and he does not remember that the Founders gave Congress the sole power to declare war in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution.
So I dug into my back pocket, pulled out my little copy of the Constitution, and carefully tore out Article 1. Then I lurked in the ornate elevator waiting area for Joe and Paul to come out. After the usual pleasantries (all politicians feel compelled to “remember” you once you say your name as though they should), I said, “Joe, I couldn’t believe what you said about the President not being required to get the approval of Congress before attacking a country like Syria. So, here; I tore out Article 1 of the Constitution for you; I have another copy, so you can keep it. Go home, read it, and see if what you just said is correct.”
It was a bad evening for war and for those pundits who like to joke about “giving war a chance.” For those of us who think war is not such a good idea – and truly should only be considered as an absolutely last resort – it was an uncommon day for rejoicing at the failure of the warmongers to again send young men and women to kill folks who pose no threat to us.
Salt in the Wounds
As sad as the war proponents were – including the cable news channels cheated out of some great video of flashing bombs illuminating the shattered buildings of ancient Damascus – they would face another humiliation in reading Thursday’s New York Times, which published an op-ed by Russian President Vladimir Putin. He made sensible points about the value of international law prohibiting one country from attacking another except in self-defense or with approval of the United Nations Security Council.
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-New Jersey, chair of the Foreign Relations Committee and an Israeli favorite, spoke for many Washington insiders by saying, “I was at dinner, and I almost wanted to vomit.” [For more on this topic, see Consortiumnews.com’s “Rewarding ‘Group Think’ on Syria.”]
Menendez had just cobbled together and forced through his committee a resolution, 10-to-7, to authorize the President to strike Syria with enough force to degrade Assad’s military. Now, at Obama’s request, the resolution was being put on the shelf.
Events were now moving swiftly away from a U.S. missile strike. Obama dispatched Kerry to Geneva to work out an agreement with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. But the hope for war still was not fully extinguished.
Sen. Carl Levin, D-Michigan, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, was still rooting for a chance to revive the military option and – like Lieberman – suggesting that the President didn’t really need congressional approval and shouldn’t be deterred by popular opposition either.
At a breakfast session with reporters on Sept. 11, Levin said, “I just don’t think you can be guided, when it comes to this kind of an issue, by public opinion polls. … It would not be a surprise at all to me, even if there were no congressional authority, that he [Obama] would use his Article 2 authority” as commander in chief. (Not incidentally, Levin has been the recipient of more money from AIPAC-related organizations than any other member of Congress.)
At this point, Israel and its lobby had every reason to be disappointed in another longtime close friend, John Kerry. He had succeeded in driving the war, which was to be fought over Obama’s “red line,” into what football fans might call the “red zone” but Kerry was unable to push the plan for missile strikes over the goal line.
Instead, Kerry clearly is under new orders from President Obama to figure out a way in cooperation with Minister Lavrov to defuse the crisis. Putin, Obama, Lavrov and Kerry have just won some laurels from the people around the world hoping to advance the cause of peace. But they won’t have the luxury of resting on them, while so many others in and around Syria have powerful incentives to reverse the progress made.
One still has to wonder what might revive prospects for U.S. missile strikes. Some in the Middle East are worried about the possibility that radical jihadists among the Syrian rebels might try to derail peace talks by launching a chemical weapons attack against Israeli targets with the hope that the provocation will be blamed on the Assad regime and set off a rush to retaliate.
Whether likely or not, it is a threat that the cooler heads in the Obama administration should anticipate and be ready to head off.
Ray McGovern works for Tell the Word, a publishing arm of the ecumenical Church of the Saviour in inner-city Washington. He served as an Army Infantry/Intelligence officer prior to working for 27 years as a CIA analyst. He is co-founder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS).
snurkle1 - 16 Sep 2013 10:40 - 799 of 1034
Great article Mabel. Thanks for posting.
squirrel888 - 18 Sep 2013 10:55 - 800 of 1034
Just catching up with posts.
Things moving fast - will all chem wps be found, handed in/destroyed by mid 2014 or is this all just hogwash & a solar flare decides?
Int er est ing.
Things moving fast - will all chem wps be found, handed in/destroyed by mid 2014 or is this all just hogwash & a solar flare decides?
Int er est ing.
mabel - 18 Sep 2013 16:06 - 801 of 1034
Posted by Traderabc in another place, this really, really is a MUST watch.
It's more than likely that more than 90% of the people of both this country and America have no idea what is being done and has already been done in their name. It is shameful.
Please don't be put off because it is 55mins long, every minute is worth watching.
mabel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-NIOthWsjk&feature=player_embedded#t=112
It's more than likely that more than 90% of the people of both this country and America have no idea what is being done and has already been done in their name. It is shameful.
Please don't be put off because it is 55mins long, every minute is worth watching.
mabel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-NIOthWsjk&feature=player_embedded#t=112
mabel - 18 Sep 2013 17:09 - 802 of 1034
Sorry, it hasn't worked. Will try again.
mabel
mabel
mabel - 18 Sep 2013 17:13 - 803 of 1034
No good, can't get it to work.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-NIOthWsjk&feature=player_embedded#t=112
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-NIOthWsjk&feature=player_embedded#t=112
goldfinger
- 18 Sep 2013 17:28
- 804 of 1034
goldfinger
- 18 Sep 2013 17:31
- 805 of 1034
Working now mabel.
On the chain icon above at side of U underline, FIRSTLY make sure you scrub out ......
http:// in that box, THEN enter your link address.
cheers GF.
On the chain icon above at side of U underline, FIRSTLY make sure you scrub out ......
http:// in that box, THEN enter your link address.
cheers GF.
mabel - 18 Sep 2013 19:06 - 806 of 1034
Many thanks goldfinger.
mabel
mabel
squirrel888 - 22 Sep 2013 07:48 - 807 of 1034
Mabel, good vid. Everyone knows the truth. Everyone is free to talk about it.
No one wants to DO anything about it.
No one wants to forego the comforts.
No one cares when it isn't happening on their own doorstep.
So what does that make everyone?
Uncomfortable question I guess.
No one wants to DO anything about it.
No one wants to forego the comforts.
No one cares when it isn't happening on their own doorstep.
So what does that make everyone?
Uncomfortable question I guess.
mabel - 22 Sep 2013 12:30 - 808 of 1034
squirrel,
Thanks for watching, I wish others would watch it too.
It really is hard to know what exactly TO DO about it, other than talking to others. Mind you, the reaction of those I talk to is one of sheer disbelief, and the last thing they are going to do is watch the video.
My experience of talking to others about 9/11, 7/7 and the Boston bombing is that they find it inconceivable that these events could be anything other than muslim terrorism. I've given up trying to suggest that anything might have been an inside job. Much too uncomfortable for them.
The world is in utter turmoil and most people don't even realize, unless it happens to be affecting them at this particular moment.
The MSM has indeed been very successful in its task, especially in that they have made the majority of the public extremely fearful, which of course plays right into the hands of those wanting to impose more and more restrictions to our liberty. The internet has become the enemy of state control and I fear that there will be no limit to the lengths the state will go to restrict access.
mabel
Thanks for watching, I wish others would watch it too.
It really is hard to know what exactly TO DO about it, other than talking to others. Mind you, the reaction of those I talk to is one of sheer disbelief, and the last thing they are going to do is watch the video.
My experience of talking to others about 9/11, 7/7 and the Boston bombing is that they find it inconceivable that these events could be anything other than muslim terrorism. I've given up trying to suggest that anything might have been an inside job. Much too uncomfortable for them.
The world is in utter turmoil and most people don't even realize, unless it happens to be affecting them at this particular moment.
The MSM has indeed been very successful in its task, especially in that they have made the majority of the public extremely fearful, which of course plays right into the hands of those wanting to impose more and more restrictions to our liberty. The internet has become the enemy of state control and I fear that there will be no limit to the lengths the state will go to restrict access.
mabel
snurkle1 - 24 Sep 2013 17:40 - 809 of 1034
Hi all, just a quick update.
Op went well yesterday. Lump removed and first set of nodes for testing.
Result will be before the 4th October.
Fingers crossed no spread.
Op went well yesterday. Lump removed and first set of nodes for testing.
Result will be before the 4th October.
Fingers crossed no spread.
gazkaz - 03 Oct 2013 11:57 - 810 of 1034
"Houston ....we have a problem"....as they say
These are the "Official World Bank Figures"
- for "Total Reserves"
of .......The United States
- for the undermentioned years
2008 = 294,045,678,447
2009 = 404,098,902,069
2010 = 488,928,295,253
2011 = 537,267,272,428
2012 = 139,133,877,266
Link to World Bank Chart Re Above
http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/FI.RES.TOTL.CD
The chart is headed up (very kindly)
- with the following clarification
(Quote)
Total reserves comprise holdings of monetary gold, special drawing rights, reserves of IMF members held by the IMF, and holdings of foreign exchange under the control of monetary authorities.
The gold component of these reserves is valued at year-end (December 31) London prices. Data are in current U.S. dollars.
(unquote)
Can anybody spot the "bit of a conundrum" ?????
These are the "Official World Bank Figures"
- for "Total Reserves"
of .......The United States
- for the undermentioned years
2008 = 294,045,678,447
2009 = 404,098,902,069
2010 = 488,928,295,253
2011 = 537,267,272,428
2012 = 139,133,877,266
Link to World Bank Chart Re Above
http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/FI.RES.TOTL.CD
The chart is headed up (very kindly)
- with the following clarification
(Quote)
Total reserves comprise holdings of monetary gold, special drawing rights, reserves of IMF members held by the IMF, and holdings of foreign exchange under the control of monetary authorities.
The gold component of these reserves is valued at year-end (December 31) London prices. Data are in current U.S. dollars.
(unquote)
Can anybody spot the "bit of a conundrum" ?????
gazkaz - 03 Oct 2013 15:29 - 811 of 1034
The answer to the problem above......
The header to the "World Bank Chart" - states that "The Gold Element"
- of TOTAL reseves
- is calculated at the...London MARKET Rate - as of the December
(ie NOT the arbitrary $34 or so per oz ...as used in the FED balance sheet)
The USA alledgedly has a "gold element" reserve holding of... 8134 Tonnes
- on the back of a fag packet calculation using the market rate at the time, that's
- $430,000,000,000
The World Bank quotes the U.S
Total.... Reserves ...(Including... the Gold Element at market rates) as just,
- $139,133,877,266
ie TOTAL reserves.....are the thick end of
- $300,000,000,000 LESS
than what - just... the Gold Elememt.....should be.... !!!!!!
..............................................................................
Conjecture re - the above..
Has the World Bank....discounted ...any value being attributed to....leased gold
within the total reserves figure ??
If.. so - it might not only account for the - massive drop between 2011 & 2012
in not only the..... Total U.S Reserves
- but also for the massive drops of
.....Germany & France
Check 'em out :o)
The header to the "World Bank Chart" - states that "The Gold Element"
- of TOTAL reseves
- is calculated at the...London MARKET Rate - as of the December
(ie NOT the arbitrary $34 or so per oz ...as used in the FED balance sheet)
The USA alledgedly has a "gold element" reserve holding of... 8134 Tonnes
- on the back of a fag packet calculation using the market rate at the time, that's
- $430,000,000,000
The World Bank quotes the U.S
Total.... Reserves ...(Including... the Gold Element at market rates) as just,
- $139,133,877,266
ie TOTAL reserves.....are the thick end of
- $300,000,000,000 LESS
than what - just... the Gold Elememt.....should be.... !!!!!!
..............................................................................
Conjecture re - the above..
Has the World Bank....discounted ...any value being attributed to....leased gold
within the total reserves figure ??
If.. so - it might not only account for the - massive drop between 2011 & 2012
in not only the..... Total U.S Reserves
- but also for the massive drops of
.....Germany & France
Check 'em out :o)
gazkaz - 09 Oct 2013 01:41 - 812 of 1034
Former "World Bank" Senior Counsel
- gives a great - insight
- gives a great - insight
snurkle1 - 09 Oct 2013 15:34 - 813 of 1034
Good link Gaz.
Nice to have you back on here.
Haven't posted much anywhere. Doing other things atm.
Had fab news. I'm all clear.
Now I have a few decisions to make......
Nice to have you back on here.
Haven't posted much anywhere. Doing other things atm.
Had fab news. I'm all clear.
Now I have a few decisions to make......
squirrel888 - 09 Oct 2013 17:50 - 814 of 1034
Is the US really going to default?
squirrel888 - 09 Oct 2013 17:54 - 815 of 1034
Snurks - one thing I'm learning about "cancer" is the ability for some people to self-heal.
Go for it. I've seen both sides with my own eyes. Being Reiki Master I veer towards self-healing :-)
Go for it. I've seen both sides with my own eyes. Being Reiki Master I veer towards self-healing :-)
gazkaz - 09 Oct 2013 20:33 - 816 of 1034
Snurkle - totally brilliant & fabulous news, honestly made a good day a really wonderful day for me.
Not been posting much myself either.
Have been totally distracted reading much, much science which is actually backing up a credible source who asserted - that everything
(& I mean ...everything)
- from the sub atomic, thro absolutely eveything up and thro' the solar system
(inc planetery size, orbit distance & patterns),
- and even including the whole galaxy is based on..... the "sacred geometry of the platonic solids".
Has been a quite fascinating journey ....well at least IMO
(as it totally blows the doors off everything we are taught & told in mainstream science ....from the big bang theory, right down the line through to quantum physics).
Not been posting much myself either.
Have been totally distracted reading much, much science which is actually backing up a credible source who asserted - that everything
(& I mean ...everything)
- from the sub atomic, thro absolutely eveything up and thro' the solar system
(inc planetery size, orbit distance & patterns),
- and even including the whole galaxy is based on..... the "sacred geometry of the platonic solids".
Has been a quite fascinating journey ....well at least IMO
(as it totally blows the doors off everything we are taught & told in mainstream science ....from the big bang theory, right down the line through to quantum physics).
gazkaz - 09 Oct 2013 21:59 - 817 of 1034
Squirrel
- thoughts on the new $100 Bill
(& ....timing....of it's introduction)
I can't give links/references or books backing up any of the following thoughts
- as I read so much I don't keep links & when I have read a book I give it away. Often I will glean just ..one tiny piece.. in what I call the "Big Picure" jigsaw from having read a whole book.
Anyway here we go.
(remain seated, keep your hands inside the car, and....pop on the foil hat provided please)
- I have read much actual science which is backing up a multitude of what I will term as just ....ancient (& supressed)...knowledge.
- Compressing a small encyclopaedia's worth of reading.....we are currently in a major transition point in - "the cycles of time"
- this is born out by one of the articles I posted above by - Russia's prima donna astro phycisist
- as well as the truly stunning inordinate amount of time & effort spent by the ancients (Sumarians, Aztecs, Incas....and Myans) - measuring & tracking time to a phenomenal degree that I cannot begin to convey.
- including contruction of truly hugeworldwide monoliths etc.
- plus evidence (again supressed) that many advanced human civilisations have occupied earth before
- huge jumps in eveolution (which follow a time pattern)
- and far too much more to list.
Americas founding fathers were all very high degree stonechippers, with much esoteric ancient knowledge
- in many circles America is known as the grand experiment or... the great quest
- Manly P Hall who wrote the epic "Teaching of all Ages"
(A truly mammoth read. comparable, with plowing thro Quigley's 1300 plus pages of "tragedy & Hope")
- whilst Hall only in his 20's & is the only person ever invited into the upper grand mufty type levels of the stonechippers
- without having to go thro'...the lower degrees
- he states in one of his works - that America - was founded..."To fulfil ..a destiny"
- I will digress briefly to point out ....timing
- in that all - the ancients (Myans, Sumarians Hopi Indians and many etc's) - deemed 2012 as
- "The end of an....age" and that we will then progress into a ...new age
- transition to that new age will begin in 2013 and generally all the above suggest it will be transition into....a Golden Age
- With that note on "Timing" - Moving back to....America
- The reverse of the "Great Seal" of America - has a completely ...different...design to the front which is currently - in use
- it largely is a replica of the pyramid/eye which appears on the "one dollar bill"
- and based on an interpretation of the latin inscription....also alludes to... a Golden Age/Golden Race
- Using the ancient Mayan periods of time (19.7 yrs) on a - per step basis - & applied to the depicted Pyramid puts us at....the flat topped apex of the pyramid.
Skipping a book or three for brevity - adding 2 + 2
- America has reached what visually and metaphorically - is the plateau - of the point where it's destiny... is then ......
- to begin the final phase of fulfillment of its destiny.
As an aside (& another short digression)
- In the cycles of time
- we are entering the "age of aquarius" and...
- the end of "The Great Cycle" 25,960 yrs precession of the equinoxes.
Plus we are beginning the pass accross "the dark rift" which leads directly...to the centre of the galaxy.
Hence
- the left hand side of the new $100 bill "could" be seen
- as the old age of fiat values and.... all that goes with it
- and the right hand side
- with it's gold ink pot, gold liberty bell gold feather and gold $100.....potentially signifying in symbology
- progression into the - final phase - of the transition into....the above
- "golden age"
By way of synchronicty
- The final step (19.7yrs) in the fulfillment of.... Americas Destiny would end in 2032
- MrO on t'other side linked to Bob Geldoff's recent prophetic warning in his speech
- citing...by 2030
....................................................................................................................
I could go on - supporting the assertion of - being in a major period of transition & expand on......
- the schuman resonance after decades of stability around 8 ish - has rapidly increased to 12 and ins some areas 14
- the magnetic north pole has and is moving at an ever increasing rate (airports have recently had to resign runways to reflect the move)
- every planet in the solar system is experiency truly huge - geophysical changes
(much, much downplayed by TPTB)
- the number of earthquakes - sink holes - rifts is significantly increasing year by year.
- and much more
But it would bore the pants off you.... and....most other people :o)
................................................................................................................
Many may scoff (& I have no problem with anyone that does)
But - I will leave the above musings....... with two final comments to ponder tho
- TPTB have constructed
- underground bunkers the size of cities
- and spent a - bob or two.....constructing "private" underground - seed vaults
(Such as the one in Norway....and...others)
So - Make of it.....what you will :o)
Heres a piccy
..................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................
Printed bottom right on the front of the bill
(From Dec of Independence)
- is.................
"That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People
- to alter or to abolish it,
- and to institute new Government,
laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."
It is in the - "Golden Age" part of the bill
- and one could possibly conclude......a requirement...for it
(The final step in "America's destiny" perhaps ?....
- a return to core moral...and spiritual values... of humanity and the US constitution...?)
Recent - Efforts of "the people" to secede their states from the USAinc....?
- and moves outlined in - the video - of my previous post.....?
...................................................................................................................
Interrrrr....est....ing ......times ahead
- thoughts on the new $100 Bill
(& ....timing....of it's introduction)
I can't give links/references or books backing up any of the following thoughts
- as I read so much I don't keep links & when I have read a book I give it away. Often I will glean just ..one tiny piece.. in what I call the "Big Picure" jigsaw from having read a whole book.
Anyway here we go.
(remain seated, keep your hands inside the car, and....pop on the foil hat provided please)
- I have read much actual science which is backing up a multitude of what I will term as just ....ancient (& supressed)...knowledge.
- Compressing a small encyclopaedia's worth of reading.....we are currently in a major transition point in - "the cycles of time"
- this is born out by one of the articles I posted above by - Russia's prima donna astro phycisist
- as well as the truly stunning inordinate amount of time & effort spent by the ancients (Sumarians, Aztecs, Incas....and Myans) - measuring & tracking time to a phenomenal degree that I cannot begin to convey.
- including contruction of truly hugeworldwide monoliths etc.
- plus evidence (again supressed) that many advanced human civilisations have occupied earth before
- huge jumps in eveolution (which follow a time pattern)
- and far too much more to list.
Americas founding fathers were all very high degree stonechippers, with much esoteric ancient knowledge
- in many circles America is known as the grand experiment or... the great quest
- Manly P Hall who wrote the epic "Teaching of all Ages"
(A truly mammoth read. comparable, with plowing thro Quigley's 1300 plus pages of "tragedy & Hope")
- whilst Hall only in his 20's & is the only person ever invited into the upper grand mufty type levels of the stonechippers
- without having to go thro'...the lower degrees
- he states in one of his works - that America - was founded..."To fulfil ..a destiny"
- I will digress briefly to point out ....timing
- in that all - the ancients (Myans, Sumarians Hopi Indians and many etc's) - deemed 2012 as
- "The end of an....age" and that we will then progress into a ...new age
- transition to that new age will begin in 2013 and generally all the above suggest it will be transition into....a Golden Age
- With that note on "Timing" - Moving back to....America
- The reverse of the "Great Seal" of America - has a completely ...different...design to the front which is currently - in use
- it largely is a replica of the pyramid/eye which appears on the "one dollar bill"
- and based on an interpretation of the latin inscription....also alludes to... a Golden Age/Golden Race
- Using the ancient Mayan periods of time (19.7 yrs) on a - per step basis - & applied to the depicted Pyramid puts us at....the flat topped apex of the pyramid.
Skipping a book or three for brevity - adding 2 + 2
- America has reached what visually and metaphorically - is the plateau - of the point where it's destiny... is then ......
- to begin the final phase of fulfillment of its destiny.
As an aside (& another short digression)
- In the cycles of time
- we are entering the "age of aquarius" and...
- the end of "The Great Cycle" 25,960 yrs precession of the equinoxes.
Plus we are beginning the pass accross "the dark rift" which leads directly...to the centre of the galaxy.
Hence
- the left hand side of the new $100 bill "could" be seen
- as the old age of fiat values and.... all that goes with it
- and the right hand side
- with it's gold ink pot, gold liberty bell gold feather and gold $100.....potentially signifying in symbology
- progression into the - final phase - of the transition into....the above
- "golden age"
By way of synchronicty
- The final step (19.7yrs) in the fulfillment of.... Americas Destiny would end in 2032
- MrO on t'other side linked to Bob Geldoff's recent prophetic warning in his speech
- citing...by 2030
....................................................................................................................
I could go on - supporting the assertion of - being in a major period of transition & expand on......
- the schuman resonance after decades of stability around 8 ish - has rapidly increased to 12 and ins some areas 14
- the magnetic north pole has and is moving at an ever increasing rate (airports have recently had to resign runways to reflect the move)
- every planet in the solar system is experiency truly huge - geophysical changes
(much, much downplayed by TPTB)
- the number of earthquakes - sink holes - rifts is significantly increasing year by year.
- and much more
But it would bore the pants off you.... and....most other people :o)
................................................................................................................
Many may scoff (& I have no problem with anyone that does)
But - I will leave the above musings....... with two final comments to ponder tho
- TPTB have constructed
- underground bunkers the size of cities
- and spent a - bob or two.....constructing "private" underground - seed vaults
(Such as the one in Norway....and...others)
So - Make of it.....what you will :o)
Heres a piccy
..................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................
Printed bottom right on the front of the bill
(From Dec of Independence)
- is.................
"That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People
- to alter or to abolish it,
- and to institute new Government,
laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."
It is in the - "Golden Age" part of the bill
- and one could possibly conclude......a requirement...for it
(The final step in "America's destiny" perhaps ?....
- a return to core moral...and spiritual values... of humanity and the US constitution...?)
Recent - Efforts of "the people" to secede their states from the USAinc....?
- and moves outlined in - the video - of my previous post.....?
...................................................................................................................
Interrrrr....est....ing ......times ahead
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