Wednesday 31 July 2013
U.S.A. REP. DAVE CAMP (R-MI) ANNOUNCES RUN FOR UNITED STATES SENATE, MICHIGAN SEAT
Posted on 13:11 by Unknown
U.S.A. REP. DAVE CAMP (R-MI) ANNOUNCES RUN FOR UNITED STATES SENATE, MICHIGAN SEAT
By Todd Spangler, July 31, 2013, Detroit Free Press
U.S. Rep. Dave Camp, a key player in the nation’s capital and chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, is weighing a run for Michigan’s soon-to-be-open U.S. Senate seat.
Camp’s office confirmed this morning that he is considering running for the seat currently held by U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, a Democrat who announced in March he would not run for re-election next year. Levin has held the seat since 1979.
Camp told Politico on Tuesday that he was “looking at” the race and had already spoken to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., about a possible run.
“It’s a big decision, and I’m going to look at it very carefully and thoughtfully,” Camp told Politico, adding that he had no timeline for getting into the race.
If Camp, R-Midland, gets in, it could drastically change the political landscape surrounding the race. First elected in 1990, Camp has risen through the ranks to become chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee, a spot he will be forced to give up because of party-dictated term limits on chairmanship.
Camp has become a respected voice on the topics of tax policy and reform, and trade — issues the committee has vast authority over. This summer, he has been touring American cities with Democratic Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, talking about the need for rewriting the U.S. tax code.
He also would bring a big warchest to bear in any race: At the end of the June, he had more than $3 million in cash in his campaign funds, according to Federal Election Commission records.
U.S. Rep. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, is the only announced Democrat in the race, and is considered by many handicappers a strong selection to hold the seat for the party. Peters ended June with $1.8-million cash on hand.
Former Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land is the most prominent Republican who has announced for the race, but others, including U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, R-Cascade Township, have left the door open. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Howell, announced in June he would not run for the seat.
No Republican has won a U.S. Senate seat in Michigan since 1994, when Spencer Abraham won a single term. He was defeated in 2000 by Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow, now in her third 6-year term.
Camp, 60, battled non-Hodgkins lymphoma in 2012, receiving chemotherapy that left him bald. By the end of last year, he said that doctors had declared him cancer-free.
Contact Todd Spangler at 703-854-8947 or at tspangler@freepress.com.
By Todd Spangler, July 31, 2013, Detroit Free Press
U.S. Rep. Dave Camp, a key player in the nation’s capital and chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, is weighing a run for Michigan’s soon-to-be-open U.S. Senate seat.
Camp’s office confirmed this morning that he is considering running for the seat currently held by U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, a Democrat who announced in March he would not run for re-election next year. Levin has held the seat since 1979.
Camp told Politico on Tuesday that he was “looking at” the race and had already spoken to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., about a possible run.
“It’s a big decision, and I’m going to look at it very carefully and thoughtfully,” Camp told Politico, adding that he had no timeline for getting into the race.
If Camp, R-Midland, gets in, it could drastically change the political landscape surrounding the race. First elected in 1990, Camp has risen through the ranks to become chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee, a spot he will be forced to give up because of party-dictated term limits on chairmanship.
Camp has become a respected voice on the topics of tax policy and reform, and trade — issues the committee has vast authority over. This summer, he has been touring American cities with Democratic Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, talking about the need for rewriting the U.S. tax code.
He also would bring a big warchest to bear in any race: At the end of the June, he had more than $3 million in cash in his campaign funds, according to Federal Election Commission records.
U.S. Rep. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, is the only announced Democrat in the race, and is considered by many handicappers a strong selection to hold the seat for the party. Peters ended June with $1.8-million cash on hand.
Former Michigan Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land is the most prominent Republican who has announced for the race, but others, including U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, R-Cascade Township, have left the door open. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Howell, announced in June he would not run for the seat.
No Republican has won a U.S. Senate seat in Michigan since 1994, when Spencer Abraham won a single term. He was defeated in 2000 by Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow, now in her third 6-year term.
Camp, 60, battled non-Hodgkins lymphoma in 2012, receiving chemotherapy that left him bald. By the end of last year, he said that doctors had declared him cancer-free.
Contact Todd Spangler at 703-854-8947 or at tspangler@freepress.com.
U.S.A. HOUSE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION & INFRASTRUCTURE HEARING: "HOW TO IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY, SAFETY, & SECURITY OF U.S.A. MARITIME TRANSPORTATION - BETTER USE & INTEGRATION OF U.S.A. MARITIME JURISDICTION & DOMAIN AWARENESS DATA
Posted on 12:59 by Unknown
U.S.A. HOUSE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION & INFRASTRUCTURE HEARING: "HOW TO IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY, SAFETY, & SECURITY OF U.S.A. MARITIME TRANSPORTATION - BETTER USE & INTEGRATION OF U.S.A. MARITIME JURISDICTION & DOMAIN AWARENESS DATA
Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation | 2167 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 | Jul 31, 2013 11:00am
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LIVE STREAM OF U.S.A. HOUSE HEARING:
Video streaming by Ustream
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Opening Statements
Hearing on “How to Improve the Efficiency, Safety and Security of Maritime Transportation:
The Subcommittee is meeting this morning to review the status of Coast Guard maritime domain awareness programs. The Coast Guard operates a broad array of systems and sensors to gather data to enhance the Service’s awareness of activities in the maritime domain. At a time when budgets are being cut and the Coast Guard is being stretched thin, maritime domain awareness (MDA) provides critical information to more efficiently deploy personnel and assets. Although the Service has made progress over the last decade in acquiring new technology to collect, integrate, and disseminate MDA data, implementation has been slow, several gaps still exist, and budget realities mean the Coast Guard will struggle to achieve its goals for the MDA program.
The Coast Guard currently tracks large commercial vessels and other potential threats in the maritime domain, but the Service still lacks a single system capable of fully fusing, filtering, and displaying all MDA information in one common operating picture.
The concept of the common operating picture was also at the center of the Coast Guard’s effort to recapitalize its aging and failing legacy assets. The goal was to acquire new C4ISR technology that would enable recapitalized vessels and aircraft to collect and fuse MDA information into a common operational picture and then share it with one another and among shoreside installations. The Coast Guard has made progress toward that goal, but has yet to fully achieve it. The GAO recently reported that many recapitalized assets cannot fully share data because they operate different C4ISR systems at different classification levels.
Complicating the Coast Guard’s efforts to improve MDA is the current budget environment. Budget constraints have forced the Coast Guard to drop plans to install upgraded C4ISR systems on its aircraft and vessels in the future. Given this development, I am interested in hearing how the Service plans to ensure new assets acquired over the next 20 years will achieve their full capabilities and not suffer from obsolete technology.
I encourage the Coast Guard to review its MDA and C4ISR programs to improve ways to deliver these capabilities more efficiently. Our second panel of witnesses comprises a cross section of MDA stakeholders in private industry and academia. I look forward to their testimony on new technologies that could improve the Coast Guard’s MDA efforts in a cost effective manner.
Maritime domain awareness is a critical tool to maximize the Coast Guard’s capabilities to safeguard American interests in U.S. waters and on the high seas. If effectively implemented, MDA can improve the efficiency, safety, and security of maritime transportation. I am anxious to hear from the witnesses on what they think the future holds for the MDA programs and how we can best move forward to ensure the Coast Guard achieves the goals it has for MDA.
Witnesses
Panel I
Rear Admiral Mark E. Butt, Assistant Commandant for Capability, United States Coast Guard | Written Testimony
Mr. Stephen Caldwell, Director, Homeland Security and Justice, United States Government Accountability Office | Written Testimony
Panel II
Mr. Steve Morrow, President & CEO, Insitu; on behalf of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International | Written Testimony
Mr. Bill Vass, President & CEO, Liquid Robotics, Inc. | Written Testimony
Ms. Lisa Hazard, Operations Manager, Coastal Observing Research and Development Center, Scripps Institute of Oceanography | Written Testimony
Dr. Newell Garfield, III, Director, Romberg Tiburon Center, San Francisco State University | Written Testimony
Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation | 2167 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 | Jul 31, 2013 11:00am
**********
LIVE STREAM OF U.S.A. HOUSE HEARING:
Video streaming by Ustream
**********
Opening Statements
Hearing on “How to Improve the Efficiency, Safety and Security of Maritime Transportation:
The Subcommittee is meeting this morning to review the status of Coast Guard maritime domain awareness programs. The Coast Guard operates a broad array of systems and sensors to gather data to enhance the Service’s awareness of activities in the maritime domain. At a time when budgets are being cut and the Coast Guard is being stretched thin, maritime domain awareness (MDA) provides critical information to more efficiently deploy personnel and assets. Although the Service has made progress over the last decade in acquiring new technology to collect, integrate, and disseminate MDA data, implementation has been slow, several gaps still exist, and budget realities mean the Coast Guard will struggle to achieve its goals for the MDA program.
The Coast Guard currently tracks large commercial vessels and other potential threats in the maritime domain, but the Service still lacks a single system capable of fully fusing, filtering, and displaying all MDA information in one common operating picture.
The concept of the common operating picture was also at the center of the Coast Guard’s effort to recapitalize its aging and failing legacy assets. The goal was to acquire new C4ISR technology that would enable recapitalized vessels and aircraft to collect and fuse MDA information into a common operational picture and then share it with one another and among shoreside installations. The Coast Guard has made progress toward that goal, but has yet to fully achieve it. The GAO recently reported that many recapitalized assets cannot fully share data because they operate different C4ISR systems at different classification levels.
Complicating the Coast Guard’s efforts to improve MDA is the current budget environment. Budget constraints have forced the Coast Guard to drop plans to install upgraded C4ISR systems on its aircraft and vessels in the future. Given this development, I am interested in hearing how the Service plans to ensure new assets acquired over the next 20 years will achieve their full capabilities and not suffer from obsolete technology.
I encourage the Coast Guard to review its MDA and C4ISR programs to improve ways to deliver these capabilities more efficiently. Our second panel of witnesses comprises a cross section of MDA stakeholders in private industry and academia. I look forward to their testimony on new technologies that could improve the Coast Guard’s MDA efforts in a cost effective manner.
Maritime domain awareness is a critical tool to maximize the Coast Guard’s capabilities to safeguard American interests in U.S. waters and on the high seas. If effectively implemented, MDA can improve the efficiency, safety, and security of maritime transportation. I am anxious to hear from the witnesses on what they think the future holds for the MDA programs and how we can best move forward to ensure the Coast Guard achieves the goals it has for MDA.
Witnesses
Panel I
Rear Admiral Mark E. Butt, Assistant Commandant for Capability, United States Coast Guard | Written Testimony
Mr. Stephen Caldwell, Director, Homeland Security and Justice, United States Government Accountability Office | Written Testimony
Panel II
Mr. Steve Morrow, President & CEO, Insitu; on behalf of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International | Written Testimony
Mr. Bill Vass, President & CEO, Liquid Robotics, Inc. | Written Testimony
Ms. Lisa Hazard, Operations Manager, Coastal Observing Research and Development Center, Scripps Institute of Oceanography | Written Testimony
Dr. Newell Garfield, III, Director, Romberg Tiburon Center, San Francisco State University | Written Testimony
U.S.A. HOUSE COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY HEARING: "CRIMINAL MISCONDUCT AT THE TSA, TRANSPORTATION SECURITY AGENCY, BY AIRPORT SECURITY PERSONNEL"
Posted on 12:51 by Unknown
WATCH C-SPAN VIDEO HERE:
http://www.c-spanvideo.org/event/222456
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READ MORE, CLICK LINK:
Joint Subcommittee Hearing: TSA Integrity Challenges: Examining Misconduct by Airport Security Personnel | The House Committee on Homeland Security
http://www.c-spanvideo.org/event/222456
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READ MORE, CLICK LINK:
Joint Subcommittee Hearing: TSA Integrity Challenges: Examining Misconduct by Airport Security Personnel | The House Committee on Homeland Security
OBAMA'S CFTC-S.E.C. CROSS-BORDER 'SPLIT' IS A CONTINUUM OF TERRORIST TRAIN WRECKS FOR 'SWAPS'
Posted on 12:45 by Unknown
READ ARTICLE HERE:
http://www.risk.net/risk-magazine/news/2285813/cftcsec-crossborder-split-could-tarnish-us-swap-markets
http://www.risk.net/risk-magazine/news/2285813/cftcsec-crossborder-split-could-tarnish-us-swap-markets
NATIONAL RIGHT TO WORK LEGAL DEFENSE FOUNDATION LAUNCHES TELEVISION AD AGAINST THE INTERNATIONAL TERRORIST ORGANIZATION A/K/A THE S.E.I.U.: 'HEALTHCARE WORKERS KNOW YOUR RIGHTS' - (VIDEO)
Posted on 12:41 by Unknown
NATIONAL RIGHT TO WORK LEGAL DEFENSE FOUNDATION LAUNCHES TELEVISION AD AGAINST THE INTERNATIONAL TERRORIST ORGANIZATION A/K/A THE S.E.I.U.: 'HEALTHCARE WORKERS KNOW YOUR RIGHTS' - (VIDEO)
July 31, 2013
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WATCH YOUTUBE VIDEO HERE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKOVwhwO-qM&feature=youtube_gdata_player
**********
Across the country, union officials who have been experiencing a decline in union membership have been orchestrating so-called "corporate campaigns" to compel employers to hand over their workers and allow them to be shoved into union ranks. Often in these situations, the workers are caught in the struggle between the union and the company and are left in the dark about their rights.
You should learn about your rights from independent sources and should not rely on what self-interested union officials tell you.
You are not alone. If you feel that your rights have been violated or just want advice about them, contact the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation toll free at 1-800-336-3600, via email or by clicking here.
For over four decades, the National Right to Work Foundation has worked in the courts to expand and protect the rights of individual employees in such situations. It is the nation's premier organization exclusively dedicated to providing free legal assistance to employee victims of forced unionism abuse.
Healthcare employees should know they have the following rights:
(1) You have a legal right to refrain from signing a union authorization card. Whether you wish to sign a union authorization card is completely up to you. It is unlawful for an employer or a union to threaten or coerce any employee to sign a union authorization card, or to misrepresent the card's purpose.
(2) You have a legal right to revoke any union authorization card that you have signed. It is illegal for a union to restrict your right to revoke a union authorization card.
You may revoke any union authorization card you have signed by simply signing a letter, card, petition, or other document stating that you do not support the union, or that you support another union. That letter, card, or petition should be turned over to your employer.
(3) You have a legal right to sign and circulate cards or petitions against union representation. You have the legal right to campaign against union representation if you choose, provided that it is done on non-work time (such as during work breaks) and in non-work locations (such as in break or lunch rooms). An employer cannot discriminate against employees based on their support or opposition to union representation, if done on non-work time in non-work areas.
If you oppose union representation, signing and circulating such a petition against unionization is perhaps the most important thing that you can do to exercise your legal right to refrain from union representation. Click here to see a Sample Petition.
In conclusion, every employee has a protected legal right to decide whether to sign a union authorization card, free from threats, restraint, harassment, coercion or misrepresentation. The Foundation takes no position about how you should exercise your right to join a union or refrain from joining a union. The Foundation simply wants all employees to be able to make this choice in an atmosphere free of restraint, threats and coercion.
Go to the Foundation's "Know Your Legal Rights" page or contact a National Right to Work Foundation staff attorney toll free at 1-800-336-3600, or via email or click here to learn more about your rights today.
July 31, 2013
**********
WATCH YOUTUBE VIDEO HERE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKOVwhwO-qM&feature=youtube_gdata_player
**********
Across the country, union officials who have been experiencing a decline in union membership have been orchestrating so-called "corporate campaigns" to compel employers to hand over their workers and allow them to be shoved into union ranks. Often in these situations, the workers are caught in the struggle between the union and the company and are left in the dark about their rights.
You should learn about your rights from independent sources and should not rely on what self-interested union officials tell you.
You are not alone. If you feel that your rights have been violated or just want advice about them, contact the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation toll free at 1-800-336-3600, via email or by clicking here.
For over four decades, the National Right to Work Foundation has worked in the courts to expand and protect the rights of individual employees in such situations. It is the nation's premier organization exclusively dedicated to providing free legal assistance to employee victims of forced unionism abuse.
Healthcare employees should know they have the following rights:
(1) You have a legal right to refrain from signing a union authorization card. Whether you wish to sign a union authorization card is completely up to you. It is unlawful for an employer or a union to threaten or coerce any employee to sign a union authorization card, or to misrepresent the card's purpose.
(2) You have a legal right to revoke any union authorization card that you have signed. It is illegal for a union to restrict your right to revoke a union authorization card.
You may revoke any union authorization card you have signed by simply signing a letter, card, petition, or other document stating that you do not support the union, or that you support another union. That letter, card, or petition should be turned over to your employer.
(3) You have a legal right to sign and circulate cards or petitions against union representation. You have the legal right to campaign against union representation if you choose, provided that it is done on non-work time (such as during work breaks) and in non-work locations (such as in break or lunch rooms). An employer cannot discriminate against employees based on their support or opposition to union representation, if done on non-work time in non-work areas.
If you oppose union representation, signing and circulating such a petition against unionization is perhaps the most important thing that you can do to exercise your legal right to refrain from union representation. Click here to see a Sample Petition.
In conclusion, every employee has a protected legal right to decide whether to sign a union authorization card, free from threats, restraint, harassment, coercion or misrepresentation. The Foundation takes no position about how you should exercise your right to join a union or refrain from joining a union. The Foundation simply wants all employees to be able to make this choice in an atmosphere free of restraint, threats and coercion.
Go to the Foundation's "Know Your Legal Rights" page or contact a National Right to Work Foundation staff attorney toll free at 1-800-336-3600, or via email or click here to learn more about your rights today.
ANOTHER UNION MOBSTER FROM CHICAGO'S TRANSIT AUTHORITY RESIGNS AMID SCANDAL
Posted on 12:34 by Unknown
ANOTHER UNION MOBSTER FROM CHICAGO'S TRANSIT AUTHORITY RESIGNS AMID SCANDAL
July 31, 2013. Crain's Chicago, By Greg Heinz
After a series of financial scandals, you'd think that the leaders of the Chicago area's public transit agencies would be eager to clean house and avoid more bad publicity.
I mean, the papers have been filled all summer with stories about how Metra's ex-CEO and executive director, Alex Clifford, received a $718,000 "departure settlement" after squawking about alleged pressure to hire and promote pals of House Speaker Michael Madigan and other top pols. Other stories have centered on how Metra Chairman Brad O'Halloran was paid both for that job and for working as a village trustee, legally a no-no. Stories like these would make most agencies scour themselves of every piece of dirt.
Not in Chicago, though.
Today's transit story is about how a politically influential member of the Regional Transportation Authority board was allowed to hold that post and keep drawing his pay and benefits more than a half-year after being ordered to return a $91,000 state social services grant, a grant that the state says was frittered away without meeting even basic financial controls.
The board member is the Rev. Tyrone Crider, pastor of Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Chicago's Beverly neighborhood.
Actually, I should say former board member. Mr. Crider resigned from the RTA board this morning, about 24 hours after I began asking Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle's office why she had allowed him to remain even after his term expired, and even though the legal judgment against him was handed down more than a six months ago.
Here's the story:
Mr. Crider, who political insiders say can be quite helpful on the South Side and southern suburbs, was named to the board in 2008 by then-County Board President Todd Stroger. His term expired in March of this year, but he remained on the board because Ms. Preckwinkle did not name a successor.
Mr. Crider, who gets $25,000 a year for the RTA job plus health insurance and pension benefits, promptly made some news, attracting the attention of the Better Government Association, which reported that he had used his transit ties to secure $60,000 in ads for a newsletter he publishes for church-goers.
That matter eventually blew over. But around the same time, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office was getting ready to sue him in connection with a $91,000 grant he had received, doing business as the Pastors Network, from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.
According to the suit, which was filed in 2011 (and which you can browse at the end of this post), the money was supposed to go "to encourage middle school and high school students to continue in and graduate from high school and to enroll in college or university."
But Mr. Crider "failed to comply with the terms and conditions of the grant," the complaint states. Among other things, he "failed to supply adequate financial and programmatic records," failed to submit an audit, "failed to satisfy the scope of work prescribed in the grant agreement" and — my favorite —"engaged in the expenditure of grant funds contrary to the express and implied terms of the grant agreement."
Neither DCEO nor Ms. Madigan's office is saying whether Mr. Crider misspent the money, or just was a lousy bookkeeper. In fact, the records were so bad that they may not know for sure.
Anyhow, in a judgment order issued on Jan. 11 — also below for your perusal — Judge Sanjay Tailor issued summary judgment against Mr. Crider, who had not even responded in court to the motion. Collection efforts now are underway to get the $91,000 back for taxpayers.
The January court order should have been a bright light, certainly to Ms. Preckwinkle. But instead of asking him to step down, or replacing him when his term was up on March 31, Ms. Preckwinkle let him continue to serve under a provision of law that allows RTA commissioners to remain at work until they are replaced.
That was the situation when I emailed the president's spokeswoman yesterday, asking why, in view of the Metra mess, she was allowing Mr. Crider to serve on a board that regulates Metra.
Mr. Crider didn't return my call. But overnight, something happened. Ms. Preckwinkle, I'm told, called Mr. Crider and told him he would have to go. RTA officials began putting on their own pressure. And around 11 a.m. today, the RTA released a statement for Mr. Crider, announcing his resignation.
In it, he says: "I have a tremendous amount of respect for the RTA and its mission. I am also personally proud of my years of service with the RTA. In the interest of not distracting from that important work, I am resigning my position as an RTA board member effective immediately."
"Not distracting." Isn't that a nice phrase.
Ms. Preckwinkle, meanwhile, seems rather sad to see him go.
"I appreciate Rev. Crider's service to the board. I accept his decision to resign," she said in a statement. "I have known Rev. Crider for a long time and have seen firsthand his commitment to the community. I'm confident he will do good work in the future."
There's the true reform spirit!
12:45 p.m. update:
State Rep. Jack Franks, D-Woodstock, who has emerged as one of the more vigorous critics of how area transit agencies are run, will not be sad to see Mr. Crider go.
“This is a classic case of the fox watching the henhouse,” he told me yesterday, before Mr. Crider stepped down. “RTA and Metra are a repository of patronage. Cronyism and political hacks profit under this situation, because their patrons protect them.”
Meanwhile, at an unrelated news conference this morning, GOP gubernatorial hopeful Bill Brady, a state senator from Bloomington, proposed legislation to fire Metra's current board, limit its chairman to a two-year term and provide greater scrutiny over future appointees. Specifically, all appointees would have to be approved by a two-thirds majority of the appropriate city council or county board, rather than merely by an individual, such as a county board chairman.
Mr. Brady's bill also would require immediate disclosure of any requests for jobs and other items of value made to a board member of Metra, the Chicago Transit Authority or the Regional Transportation Authority by an agency outsider. Any such request would have to be reported to the appropriate inspector general.
“We're not trying to stifle legitimate communication with the boards, but to curb what might be perceived as undue outside influence,” Mr. Brady said.
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READ DOCUMENTS HERE:
http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20130731/BLOGS02/130739953/another-transit-mess-as-rta-member-resigns-under-fire?X-IgnoreUserAgent=1
July 31, 2013. Crain's Chicago, By Greg Heinz
After a series of financial scandals, you'd think that the leaders of the Chicago area's public transit agencies would be eager to clean house and avoid more bad publicity.
I mean, the papers have been filled all summer with stories about how Metra's ex-CEO and executive director, Alex Clifford, received a $718,000 "departure settlement" after squawking about alleged pressure to hire and promote pals of House Speaker Michael Madigan and other top pols. Other stories have centered on how Metra Chairman Brad O'Halloran was paid both for that job and for working as a village trustee, legally a no-no. Stories like these would make most agencies scour themselves of every piece of dirt.
Not in Chicago, though.
Today's transit story is about how a politically influential member of the Regional Transportation Authority board was allowed to hold that post and keep drawing his pay and benefits more than a half-year after being ordered to return a $91,000 state social services grant, a grant that the state says was frittered away without meeting even basic financial controls.
The board member is the Rev. Tyrone Crider, pastor of Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Chicago's Beverly neighborhood.
Actually, I should say former board member. Mr. Crider resigned from the RTA board this morning, about 24 hours after I began asking Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle's office why she had allowed him to remain even after his term expired, and even though the legal judgment against him was handed down more than a six months ago.
Here's the story:
Mr. Crider, who political insiders say can be quite helpful on the South Side and southern suburbs, was named to the board in 2008 by then-County Board President Todd Stroger. His term expired in March of this year, but he remained on the board because Ms. Preckwinkle did not name a successor.
Mr. Crider, who gets $25,000 a year for the RTA job plus health insurance and pension benefits, promptly made some news, attracting the attention of the Better Government Association, which reported that he had used his transit ties to secure $60,000 in ads for a newsletter he publishes for church-goers.
That matter eventually blew over. But around the same time, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office was getting ready to sue him in connection with a $91,000 grant he had received, doing business as the Pastors Network, from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.
According to the suit, which was filed in 2011 (and which you can browse at the end of this post), the money was supposed to go "to encourage middle school and high school students to continue in and graduate from high school and to enroll in college or university."
But Mr. Crider "failed to comply with the terms and conditions of the grant," the complaint states. Among other things, he "failed to supply adequate financial and programmatic records," failed to submit an audit, "failed to satisfy the scope of work prescribed in the grant agreement" and — my favorite —"engaged in the expenditure of grant funds contrary to the express and implied terms of the grant agreement."
Neither DCEO nor Ms. Madigan's office is saying whether Mr. Crider misspent the money, or just was a lousy bookkeeper. In fact, the records were so bad that they may not know for sure.
Anyhow, in a judgment order issued on Jan. 11 — also below for your perusal — Judge Sanjay Tailor issued summary judgment against Mr. Crider, who had not even responded in court to the motion. Collection efforts now are underway to get the $91,000 back for taxpayers.
The January court order should have been a bright light, certainly to Ms. Preckwinkle. But instead of asking him to step down, or replacing him when his term was up on March 31, Ms. Preckwinkle let him continue to serve under a provision of law that allows RTA commissioners to remain at work until they are replaced.
That was the situation when I emailed the president's spokeswoman yesterday, asking why, in view of the Metra mess, she was allowing Mr. Crider to serve on a board that regulates Metra.
Mr. Crider didn't return my call. But overnight, something happened. Ms. Preckwinkle, I'm told, called Mr. Crider and told him he would have to go. RTA officials began putting on their own pressure. And around 11 a.m. today, the RTA released a statement for Mr. Crider, announcing his resignation.
In it, he says: "I have a tremendous amount of respect for the RTA and its mission. I am also personally proud of my years of service with the RTA. In the interest of not distracting from that important work, I am resigning my position as an RTA board member effective immediately."
"Not distracting." Isn't that a nice phrase.
Ms. Preckwinkle, meanwhile, seems rather sad to see him go.
"I appreciate Rev. Crider's service to the board. I accept his decision to resign," she said in a statement. "I have known Rev. Crider for a long time and have seen firsthand his commitment to the community. I'm confident he will do good work in the future."
There's the true reform spirit!
12:45 p.m. update:
State Rep. Jack Franks, D-Woodstock, who has emerged as one of the more vigorous critics of how area transit agencies are run, will not be sad to see Mr. Crider go.
“This is a classic case of the fox watching the henhouse,” he told me yesterday, before Mr. Crider stepped down. “RTA and Metra are a repository of patronage. Cronyism and political hacks profit under this situation, because their patrons protect them.”
Meanwhile, at an unrelated news conference this morning, GOP gubernatorial hopeful Bill Brady, a state senator from Bloomington, proposed legislation to fire Metra's current board, limit its chairman to a two-year term and provide greater scrutiny over future appointees. Specifically, all appointees would have to be approved by a two-thirds majority of the appropriate city council or county board, rather than merely by an individual, such as a county board chairman.
Mr. Brady's bill also would require immediate disclosure of any requests for jobs and other items of value made to a board member of Metra, the Chicago Transit Authority or the Regional Transportation Authority by an agency outsider. Any such request would have to be reported to the appropriate inspector general.
“We're not trying to stifle legitimate communication with the boards, but to curb what might be perceived as undue outside influence,” Mr. Brady said.
**********
READ DOCUMENTS HERE:
http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20130731/BLOGS02/130739953/another-transit-mess-as-rta-member-resigns-under-fire?X-IgnoreUserAgent=1
A BUCKET OF CRAP JUST PASSED ME BY IN RIGHT-TO-WORK TEXAS, CAN I COLLECT $4.1 MILLION DOLLARS?
Posted on 12:31 by Unknown
A BUCKET OF CRAP JUST PASSED ME BY IN RIGHT-TO-WORK TEXAS, CAN I COLLECT $4.1 MILLION DOLLARS?
July 31, 2013, Crain's Chicago
(AP) — A Chicago attorney has been named to fill a seat on the five-member National Labor Relations Board.
Philip A. Miscimarra of the law firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP is among three Democrats and two Republicans approved to serve on the NLRB, which helps resolve labor disputes.
Without confirmation of at least one of them before Congress' recess, much of the NLRB's work would have ground to a halt by late August. That is when NLRB Chairman Mark Gaston Pearce's current five-year term expires, which would leave the agency with just two members — short of the three legally needed for it to conduct business.
"I applaud the Senate for putting in place a full board and look forward to working together on other steps we can take to grow our economy," President Barack Obama said in a written statement that put an optimistic face on upcoming battles with Congress over taxes and spending.
Besides renewing Pearce for another five-year term, senators also confirmed Democrats Kent Hirozawa and Nancy Schiffer, who both have long experience as labor lawyers, to the NLRB. Miscimarra is one of two Republicans approved who have worked with employers on labor issues; the other is Harry I. Johnson III.
July 31, 2013, Crain's Chicago
(AP) — A Chicago attorney has been named to fill a seat on the five-member National Labor Relations Board.
Philip A. Miscimarra of the law firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP is among three Democrats and two Republicans approved to serve on the NLRB, which helps resolve labor disputes.
Without confirmation of at least one of them before Congress' recess, much of the NLRB's work would have ground to a halt by late August. That is when NLRB Chairman Mark Gaston Pearce's current five-year term expires, which would leave the agency with just two members — short of the three legally needed for it to conduct business.
"I applaud the Senate for putting in place a full board and look forward to working together on other steps we can take to grow our economy," President Barack Obama said in a written statement that put an optimistic face on upcoming battles with Congress over taxes and spending.
Besides renewing Pearce for another five-year term, senators also confirmed Democrats Kent Hirozawa and Nancy Schiffer, who both have long experience as labor lawyers, to the NLRB. Miscimarra is one of two Republicans approved who have worked with employers on labor issues; the other is Harry I. Johnson III.
FITCH REVISES WEST CHINA CEMENT'S OUTLOOK TO 'NEGATIVE'
Posted on 11:43 by Unknown
FITCH REVISES WEST CHINA CEMENT'S OUTLOOK TO 'NEGATIVE'
Ratings Endorsement Policy 31 Jul 2013
Fitch Ratings-Hong Kong-31 July 2013: Fitch Ratings has revised West China Cement Limited's (WCC) Outlook to Negative from Stable. Its Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and senior unsecured rating have been affirmed at 'BB-'.
The Outlook change reflects continued weak average selling prices (ASP) of cement in Shaanxi and Xinjiang, WCC's core markets. If this trend persists, the company may face challenges in repaying its outstanding USD400m notes due in January 2016.
Key Rating Drivers
Weak ASPs lower margins: Continued weak ASPs have compressed WCC's gross profit to CNY47/ton in 2012 from CNY76/ton for 2011. ASP was CNY238/ton in 2012, down from CNY264/ton for 2011. Declines in the price of thermal coal - an input of cement - during the same period was unable to offset the impact from weak ASPs, which were due to overcapacity. Industry data shows nationwide utilisation rate for cement production was just 72% during 2012.
Inability to deleverage: WCC generated EBITDA of CNY1.06bn in 2012, which pushed its leverage to 3.2x, higher than the negative rating guideline of 3.0x. Based on Fitch's forecasts for 2013 ASP and WCC's profit margins, the leverage may remain higher than 3.0x for 2013. Latest industry data shows that ASP of P.O.42.5 cement in July dropped 14% YoY in Shaanxi province, and 29% YoY in Xinjiang. Although WCC's ASPs should not deteriorate at the same rapid pace in its core market Southern Shaanxi, Fitch does not expect WCC's 2013 EBITDA to be materially higher than in 2012, even as thermal coal prices in the region continue to fall.
Cash accumulation needed: WCC has an outstanding USD400m senior unsecured bond due January 2016 and onshore CNY800m MTNs due in March 2016. Fitch forecasts show that the company will need to generate around CNY4.5bn-CNY5bn EBITDA over the period of 2013 to 2015, before cash absorption from its CNY1.3bn capex budget and regular dividend payout, to meet these obligations without external financing. The current trend of weak ASPs and low gross profit per ton suggests WCC may be challenged to achieve this EBITDA target. Nonetheless, the company still has the flexibility to scale back capex and dividend payout before 2015.
Liquidity not immediate concern: At end-2012, WCC only had CNY518m cash at hand (including restricted deposits) compared with short-term borrowings of CNY1.178bn. However, Fitch does not view WCC's liquidity as an immediate risk as the company is able to roll over its short-term loans, due to the asset-based lending nature of Chinese lenders and WCC's fixed assets available for collateral. In addition, WCC has used part of its March 2013 MTN proceeds to repay some of the short-term loans and to improve its debt structure.
Ratings Endorsement Policy 31 Jul 2013
Fitch Ratings-Hong Kong-31 July 2013: Fitch Ratings has revised West China Cement Limited's (WCC) Outlook to Negative from Stable. Its Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and senior unsecured rating have been affirmed at 'BB-'.
The Outlook change reflects continued weak average selling prices (ASP) of cement in Shaanxi and Xinjiang, WCC's core markets. If this trend persists, the company may face challenges in repaying its outstanding USD400m notes due in January 2016.
Key Rating Drivers
Weak ASPs lower margins: Continued weak ASPs have compressed WCC's gross profit to CNY47/ton in 2012 from CNY76/ton for 2011. ASP was CNY238/ton in 2012, down from CNY264/ton for 2011. Declines in the price of thermal coal - an input of cement - during the same period was unable to offset the impact from weak ASPs, which were due to overcapacity. Industry data shows nationwide utilisation rate for cement production was just 72% during 2012.
Inability to deleverage: WCC generated EBITDA of CNY1.06bn in 2012, which pushed its leverage to 3.2x, higher than the negative rating guideline of 3.0x. Based on Fitch's forecasts for 2013 ASP and WCC's profit margins, the leverage may remain higher than 3.0x for 2013. Latest industry data shows that ASP of P.O.42.5 cement in July dropped 14% YoY in Shaanxi province, and 29% YoY in Xinjiang. Although WCC's ASPs should not deteriorate at the same rapid pace in its core market Southern Shaanxi, Fitch does not expect WCC's 2013 EBITDA to be materially higher than in 2012, even as thermal coal prices in the region continue to fall.
Cash accumulation needed: WCC has an outstanding USD400m senior unsecured bond due January 2016 and onshore CNY800m MTNs due in March 2016. Fitch forecasts show that the company will need to generate around CNY4.5bn-CNY5bn EBITDA over the period of 2013 to 2015, before cash absorption from its CNY1.3bn capex budget and regular dividend payout, to meet these obligations without external financing. The current trend of weak ASPs and low gross profit per ton suggests WCC may be challenged to achieve this EBITDA target. Nonetheless, the company still has the flexibility to scale back capex and dividend payout before 2015.
Liquidity not immediate concern: At end-2012, WCC only had CNY518m cash at hand (including restricted deposits) compared with short-term borrowings of CNY1.178bn. However, Fitch does not view WCC's liquidity as an immediate risk as the company is able to roll over its short-term loans, due to the asset-based lending nature of Chinese lenders and WCC's fixed assets available for collateral. In addition, WCC has used part of its March 2013 MTN proceeds to repay some of the short-term loans and to improve its debt structure.
FITCH AFFIRMS 'NEGATIVE OUTLOOK' FOR SUNDERLAND MARINE'S IFS RATING
Posted on 11:41 by Unknown
FITCH AFFIRMS 'NEGATIVE OUTLOOK' FOR SUNDERLAND MARINE'S IFS RATING
Ratings Endorsement Policy 31 Jul 2013
Fitch Ratings-London-31 July 2013: Fitch Ratings has affirmed Sunderland Marine Mutual Insurance Company's (SMMI) Insurer Financial Strength (IFS) Rating at 'A-' with a Negative Outlook.
KEY RATING DRIVERS The affirmation reflects Fitch's assessment that SMMI's capital adequacy has remained supportive of the rating despite the company incurring a loss in 2012 of GBP1.4m (2011: loss of GBP8.0m). Fitch expects SMMI's trend of improved underwriting profitability to continue and expects the company to return to underwriting profitability in 2013. The company's low financial leverage, conservative investment strategy, well-established franchise and high customer retention are other factors that support the rating.
The Negative Outlook reflects the agency's concern regarding the company's current weak financial performance, with losses incurred in 2011 and 2012 being driven by unfavourable claims experience. However the 2012 result was a significant improvement on 2011 with the Fitch-calculated combined ratio improving to 107.5% from 119.5%. Fitch believes that the very poor 2011 result was of an exceptional one-off nature.
SMMI's main challenge is to improve its underwriting margins to make up for lower investment income. The company's ability to restore and maintain profitability will be a key rating driver over the near term. The agency will monitor closely the results through the remainder of 2013.
SMMI is a leading insurer in its chosen niche markets, which include marine, liability and aquaculture insurance. It conducts business in over 50 countries and wrote gross premiums in 2012 of GBP95.3m (2011: GBP75.1m). The group's business portfolio includes hull & machinery (60%), protection & indemnity and personal accident (20%) and storm damage and disease risks for aquaculture (20%). It is geographically well diversified and derives 14% of its premiums from the UK, 44% from North America, 13% from Europe, 18% from Australia and New Zealand and 11% from other areas.
RATING SENSITIVITIES Key rating triggers for a downgrade include a failure to return to profitable underwriting in 2013. If it becomes apparent that Fitch's expectation of a return to underwriting profitability is not being met, the rating could be downgraded.
Reduced use of reinsurance, which could weaken SMMI's Fitch-assessed capital position, could also lead to a downgrade.
Given the company's current financial and strategic profile, the agency does not foresee an upgrade within the medium term.
Ratings Endorsement Policy 31 Jul 2013
Fitch Ratings-London-31 July 2013: Fitch Ratings has affirmed Sunderland Marine Mutual Insurance Company's (SMMI) Insurer Financial Strength (IFS) Rating at 'A-' with a Negative Outlook.
KEY RATING DRIVERS The affirmation reflects Fitch's assessment that SMMI's capital adequacy has remained supportive of the rating despite the company incurring a loss in 2012 of GBP1.4m (2011: loss of GBP8.0m). Fitch expects SMMI's trend of improved underwriting profitability to continue and expects the company to return to underwriting profitability in 2013. The company's low financial leverage, conservative investment strategy, well-established franchise and high customer retention are other factors that support the rating.
The Negative Outlook reflects the agency's concern regarding the company's current weak financial performance, with losses incurred in 2011 and 2012 being driven by unfavourable claims experience. However the 2012 result was a significant improvement on 2011 with the Fitch-calculated combined ratio improving to 107.5% from 119.5%. Fitch believes that the very poor 2011 result was of an exceptional one-off nature.
SMMI's main challenge is to improve its underwriting margins to make up for lower investment income. The company's ability to restore and maintain profitability will be a key rating driver over the near term. The agency will monitor closely the results through the remainder of 2013.
SMMI is a leading insurer in its chosen niche markets, which include marine, liability and aquaculture insurance. It conducts business in over 50 countries and wrote gross premiums in 2012 of GBP95.3m (2011: GBP75.1m). The group's business portfolio includes hull & machinery (60%), protection & indemnity and personal accident (20%) and storm damage and disease risks for aquaculture (20%). It is geographically well diversified and derives 14% of its premiums from the UK, 44% from North America, 13% from Europe, 18% from Australia and New Zealand and 11% from other areas.
RATING SENSITIVITIES Key rating triggers for a downgrade include a failure to return to profitable underwriting in 2013. If it becomes apparent that Fitch's expectation of a return to underwriting profitability is not being met, the rating could be downgraded.
Reduced use of reinsurance, which could weaken SMMI's Fitch-assessed capital position, could also lead to a downgrade.
Given the company's current financial and strategic profile, the agency does not foresee an upgrade within the medium term.
EU ADOPTS FISH SANCTIONS AGAINST FAROE ISLANDS
Posted on 11:36 by Unknown
ITALIAN LEADER CRITICISES GREEK-SBERBANK BAILOUT TERMS
Posted on 11:32 by Unknown
ITALIAN LEADER CRITICISES GREEK-SBERBANK BAILOUT TERMS
By Honor Mahoney, July 30,2013
EUobserver.com / Economic Affairs / Italian leader criticises Greek bailout terms
S - Greece's international lenders approved the latest tranche of its bailout money Monday (29 July) amid criticism that the reform programme Athens is expected to do in return has "worsened the crisis."
Greece is to get €5.7 billion in total from the International Monetary Fund, the eurozone bailout fund (EFSF) and eurozone central banks.
The bailout payout came after weeks of negotiations, particularly on how Athens should slash thousands of public sector jobs, a move that has caused strong anger in Greece.
Germany, paying most towards the bailout, held out until the last to make sure that Greece undertook promised reforms.
But still the country's lenders are complaining about its slow progress.
An assessment by the European Commission Monday said it was falling behind on reforming the public sector and business rules. Privatisation also needs to be stepped up.
IMF chief Christine Lagarde was also critical of Greece's efforts.
"Progress on institutional and structural reforms, in the public sector and beyond, has still not been commensurate with the problems facing Greece."
Referring specifically to the public sector reform, with Greece meant to cut a total of 150,000 jobs between 2010 and 2015, she said "efforts should focus on ensuring the exit of unqualified personnel to create room to hire new staff with the relevant skills."
But Greece has a public ally in the Italian prime minister.
In Athens to discuss the countries' EU presidencies next year, Enrico Letta said that had Greece's reform programme been designed differently, it would have caused less of a negative impact on the eurozone crisis.
“The timing was wrong. The instruments were wrong. The interventions were not made in the right way and at the right time and this worsened the crisis," he said, reports ekathimerini.
He also warned that if the EU does not manage to solve Greece's crisis, then there is a risk that this will play into the hands of eurosceptic parties in next year's European elections.
"If Europe is seen to be powerless to resolve Greece's economic crisis, voters will say that Europe does not function and will probably turn to eurosceptic and anti-European parties," said Letta.
He said there was a "big risk" that such parties will gain over 30 percent of the seats in the European Parliament.
In Greece itself, where disillusionment with how the EU is handling the crisis is high, the far-right anti-immigrant Golden Dawn party won almost 7 percent of the vote in last year's general election. Opinion polls show that its support is growing.
For his part, Greek leader Antonis Samaras also urged greater focus on growth-making policies.
He said that Greece's recession - now in its sixth year - was hindering the government's efforts to reduce debt while the broader eurozone recession was not helping either.
‘‘Greece, Italy, and all of Europe are in need of policies that combine reforms and deficit reduction with growth,’’ Samaras said, reports the Associated Press. ‘‘Of course we cannot have growth while Europe is retreating into recession.’’
By Honor Mahoney, July 30,2013
EUobserver.com / Economic Affairs / Italian leader criticises Greek bailout terms
S - Greece's international lenders approved the latest tranche of its bailout money Monday (29 July) amid criticism that the reform programme Athens is expected to do in return has "worsened the crisis."
Greece is to get €5.7 billion in total from the International Monetary Fund, the eurozone bailout fund (EFSF) and eurozone central banks.
The bailout payout came after weeks of negotiations, particularly on how Athens should slash thousands of public sector jobs, a move that has caused strong anger in Greece.
Germany, paying most towards the bailout, held out until the last to make sure that Greece undertook promised reforms.
But still the country's lenders are complaining about its slow progress.
An assessment by the European Commission Monday said it was falling behind on reforming the public sector and business rules. Privatisation also needs to be stepped up.
IMF chief Christine Lagarde was also critical of Greece's efforts.
"Progress on institutional and structural reforms, in the public sector and beyond, has still not been commensurate with the problems facing Greece."
Referring specifically to the public sector reform, with Greece meant to cut a total of 150,000 jobs between 2010 and 2015, she said "efforts should focus on ensuring the exit of unqualified personnel to create room to hire new staff with the relevant skills."
But Greece has a public ally in the Italian prime minister.
In Athens to discuss the countries' EU presidencies next year, Enrico Letta said that had Greece's reform programme been designed differently, it would have caused less of a negative impact on the eurozone crisis.
“The timing was wrong. The instruments were wrong. The interventions were not made in the right way and at the right time and this worsened the crisis," he said, reports ekathimerini.
He also warned that if the EU does not manage to solve Greece's crisis, then there is a risk that this will play into the hands of eurosceptic parties in next year's European elections.
"If Europe is seen to be powerless to resolve Greece's economic crisis, voters will say that Europe does not function and will probably turn to eurosceptic and anti-European parties," said Letta.
He said there was a "big risk" that such parties will gain over 30 percent of the seats in the European Parliament.
In Greece itself, where disillusionment with how the EU is handling the crisis is high, the far-right anti-immigrant Golden Dawn party won almost 7 percent of the vote in last year's general election. Opinion polls show that its support is growing.
For his part, Greek leader Antonis Samaras also urged greater focus on growth-making policies.
He said that Greece's recession - now in its sixth year - was hindering the government's efforts to reduce debt while the broader eurozone recession was not helping either.
‘‘Greece, Italy, and all of Europe are in need of policies that combine reforms and deficit reduction with growth,’’ Samaras said, reports the Associated Press. ‘‘Of course we cannot have growth while Europe is retreating into recession.’’
GREEK-SBERBANK RIP-OFF $14 BILLION IN THE HOLE: LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES RALLY AGAINST THE IMF'S GREEK-SERB BAILOUT
Posted on 11:31 by Unknown
GREEK-SBERBANK RIP-OFF $14 BILLION IN THE HOLE: LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES RALLY AGAINST THE IMF'S GREEK-SERB BAILOUT
By Peter Spiegel in Brussels, July 30, 2013, Financial Times
Brazil’s representative to the International Monetary Fund’s executive board abstained from approving the fund’s new €1.8bn contribution to Greece this week and issued a stinging criticism arguing Athens may be unable to repay its rescue loans.
Paulo Nogueira Batista, who represents 11 central and South American countries on the IMF board, said Greece’s political and economic difficulties “confirm some of our worst fears”, and said the fund’s own economists were making “over-optimistic” assumptions about economic growth and the sustainability of its debt.
“Never-ending economic depression and severe unemployment levels have led to political discord,” Mr Batista wrote. “The widespread perception that the hardship brought on by draconian adjustment policies is not paying off in an any way has further undermined public support for the adjustment and reform programme.”
Developing countries have long been uncomfortable about the outsized fund resources being devoted to the eurozone crisis, with Brazil in particular voicing concern that an organisation aimed at helping poorer countries is being used to shore up some of the world’s largest economies.
But Mr Batista’s abstention and harsh statement –which included his assessment that the IMF’s Greece staff was “one step short of openly contemplating the possibility of a default or payment delays by Greece on its liabilities to the IMF” – is one of the toughest stands taken since the Greek bailout began three years ago.
It came as the IMF itself issued a report calling on eurozone countries to provide €11bn more funding for the Greek bailout and consider big writedowns of their bailout loans to Athens in order to reduce debt to more reasonable levels.
“This abstention undermines the belief that IMF disagreement between the Europeans and emerging markets over Greece are a thing of the past,” said Mujtaba Rahman, head Europe analyst at the Eurasia Group risk consultancy. “Ahead of difficult negotiations on a third bailout and debt writedowns this fall, this signal of disarray from within the IMF could not have come at a worse time.”
The warnings come amid a national election campaign in Germany where tolerance for more Greek aid and debt relief is waning and opposition parties have attempted to make Chancellor Angela Merkel’s handling of the bailout a campaign issue.
German officials pointed to recent findings by international monitors, which include the IMF, that the bailout was hitting its fiscal targets, arguing it was therefore not appropriate to discuss new Greek assistance.
In an interview, Mr Batista said that while he had abstained in the past, he is now convinced Greece’s second €172bn bailout suffers from the same rosy assumptions that hobbled the first rescue, which was later harshly criticised by the IMF itself. “The second programme suffers from many of the same problems as the first,” he said.
Mr Batista’s abstention will have no direct impact on Greece’s aid; the Brazil-led group represents only 2.6 per cent of IMF board votes, which are dominated by European and American members. The board approved the payment on Monday, just two days before an end-of-month deadline.
But it will raise the pressure on IMF officials to take an increasingly tough stand with eurozone leaders, who are reluctant to accept losses on their existing bailout loans.
Brazil’s belligerence has grown since 2009 when, after decades of relying on the IMF to bail it out of a series of financial crises, it became a net creditor of the fund when it provided $10bn in financing to help developed countries hit by the financial crisis.
Since then, Brazil’s finance minister, Guido Mantega, has emerged as one of the most outspoken critics of the IMF, calling for greater representation of developing countries on the board.
Brazil’s new confidence as a global economic power has also led the country to put increasing pressure on the IMF on issues ranging from the acceptance of capital controls in global markets to even its methodology for calculating debt.
Last week, it emerged Brazil had asked the IMF to change the way it measures nations’ gross debt, which it said unfairly inflated its own liabilities.
Additional reporting by Joseph Leahy and Samantha Pearson in São Paulo and Quentin Peel in Berlin
By Peter Spiegel in Brussels, July 30, 2013, Financial Times
Brazil’s representative to the International Monetary Fund’s executive board abstained from approving the fund’s new €1.8bn contribution to Greece this week and issued a stinging criticism arguing Athens may be unable to repay its rescue loans.
Paulo Nogueira Batista, who represents 11 central and South American countries on the IMF board, said Greece’s political and economic difficulties “confirm some of our worst fears”, and said the fund’s own economists were making “over-optimistic” assumptions about economic growth and the sustainability of its debt.
“Never-ending economic depression and severe unemployment levels have led to political discord,” Mr Batista wrote. “The widespread perception that the hardship brought on by draconian adjustment policies is not paying off in an any way has further undermined public support for the adjustment and reform programme.”
Developing countries have long been uncomfortable about the outsized fund resources being devoted to the eurozone crisis, with Brazil in particular voicing concern that an organisation aimed at helping poorer countries is being used to shore up some of the world’s largest economies.
But Mr Batista’s abstention and harsh statement –which included his assessment that the IMF’s Greece staff was “one step short of openly contemplating the possibility of a default or payment delays by Greece on its liabilities to the IMF” – is one of the toughest stands taken since the Greek bailout began three years ago.
It came as the IMF itself issued a report calling on eurozone countries to provide €11bn more funding for the Greek bailout and consider big writedowns of their bailout loans to Athens in order to reduce debt to more reasonable levels.
“This abstention undermines the belief that IMF disagreement between the Europeans and emerging markets over Greece are a thing of the past,” said Mujtaba Rahman, head Europe analyst at the Eurasia Group risk consultancy. “Ahead of difficult negotiations on a third bailout and debt writedowns this fall, this signal of disarray from within the IMF could not have come at a worse time.”
The warnings come amid a national election campaign in Germany where tolerance for more Greek aid and debt relief is waning and opposition parties have attempted to make Chancellor Angela Merkel’s handling of the bailout a campaign issue.
German officials pointed to recent findings by international monitors, which include the IMF, that the bailout was hitting its fiscal targets, arguing it was therefore not appropriate to discuss new Greek assistance.
In an interview, Mr Batista said that while he had abstained in the past, he is now convinced Greece’s second €172bn bailout suffers from the same rosy assumptions that hobbled the first rescue, which was later harshly criticised by the IMF itself. “The second programme suffers from many of the same problems as the first,” he said.
Mr Batista’s abstention will have no direct impact on Greece’s aid; the Brazil-led group represents only 2.6 per cent of IMF board votes, which are dominated by European and American members. The board approved the payment on Monday, just two days before an end-of-month deadline.
But it will raise the pressure on IMF officials to take an increasingly tough stand with eurozone leaders, who are reluctant to accept losses on their existing bailout loans.
Brazil’s belligerence has grown since 2009 when, after decades of relying on the IMF to bail it out of a series of financial crises, it became a net creditor of the fund when it provided $10bn in financing to help developed countries hit by the financial crisis.
Since then, Brazil’s finance minister, Guido Mantega, has emerged as one of the most outspoken critics of the IMF, calling for greater representation of developing countries on the board.
Brazil’s new confidence as a global economic power has also led the country to put increasing pressure on the IMF on issues ranging from the acceptance of capital controls in global markets to even its methodology for calculating debt.
Last week, it emerged Brazil had asked the IMF to change the way it measures nations’ gross debt, which it said unfairly inflated its own liabilities.
Additional reporting by Joseph Leahy and Samantha Pearson in São Paulo and Quentin Peel in Berlin
U.S.A. HOUSE REPUBLICANS SEND LETTER TO NEWLY CONFIRMED FBI DIRECTOR JAMES COMEY REQUESTING FORMAL INVESTIGATION INTO THE BENGHAZI TERRORIST ATTACK OF 09/11/12
Posted on 11:11 by Unknown
U.S.A. HOUSE REPUBLICANS SEND LETTER TO NEWLY CONFIRMED FBI DIRECTOR JAMES COMEY REQUESTING FORMAL INVESTIGATION INTO THE BENGHAZI TERRORIST ATTACK OF 09/11/12
By: James Arkin July 31, 2013, Politico
In the draft of a letter to new FBI Director James Comey, several Republican members of Congress called the Obama administration’s investigation of the 2012 Benghazi attack “unacceptable” and encouraged an “aggressive” investigation.
“It has been more than 10 months since the attacks,” a draft of the letter obtained by POLITICO states. “We appear to be no closer to knowing who was responsible today than we were in the early weeks following the attack. This is simply unacceptable.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) initiated the letter, and have both been outspoken in their criticism of the administration over its handling of the Benghazi attack.
“Rumors continue to swirl about the whereabouts of suspects involved in the attack,” the GOP lawmakers write. “The FBI continues to add pictures of potential assailants to its website and asks the Libyan people to assist with identifying the alleged perpetrators. We struggle to understand why we don’t know more about those who attacked two U.S. compounds and murdered four brave Americans.”
Comey was confirmed as FBI director Monday by a Senate vote of 93-1. The lawmakers hope to have the letter finalized sometime Wednesday with additional Senators and Congressmen signed on, a spokesperson for Graham’s office told POLITICO. The draft of the letter congratulates Comey on his confirmation and encourages an aggressive investigation of the attack.
“We encourage you to be aggressive in your investigation to properly hold accountable those who attacked our compounds in Benghazi. We owe the families of those killed, and the people of this nation, answers to who was responsible and ensure they are held accountable,” the letter reads. “We ask that you provide a status report on the investigation within 30 days of the date of the signing of this letter”
© 2013 POLITICO LLC
By: James Arkin July 31, 2013, Politico
In the draft of a letter to new FBI Director James Comey, several Republican members of Congress called the Obama administration’s investigation of the 2012 Benghazi attack “unacceptable” and encouraged an “aggressive” investigation.
“It has been more than 10 months since the attacks,” a draft of the letter obtained by POLITICO states. “We appear to be no closer to knowing who was responsible today than we were in the early weeks following the attack. This is simply unacceptable.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) initiated the letter, and have both been outspoken in their criticism of the administration over its handling of the Benghazi attack.
“Rumors continue to swirl about the whereabouts of suspects involved in the attack,” the GOP lawmakers write. “The FBI continues to add pictures of potential assailants to its website and asks the Libyan people to assist with identifying the alleged perpetrators. We struggle to understand why we don’t know more about those who attacked two U.S. compounds and murdered four brave Americans.”
Comey was confirmed as FBI director Monday by a Senate vote of 93-1. The lawmakers hope to have the letter finalized sometime Wednesday with additional Senators and Congressmen signed on, a spokesperson for Graham’s office told POLITICO. The draft of the letter congratulates Comey on his confirmation and encourages an aggressive investigation of the attack.
“We encourage you to be aggressive in your investigation to properly hold accountable those who attacked our compounds in Benghazi. We owe the families of those killed, and the people of this nation, answers to who was responsible and ensure they are held accountable,” the letter reads. “We ask that you provide a status report on the investigation within 30 days of the date of the signing of this letter”
© 2013 POLITICO LLC
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA'S COAST GUARD INDICTS NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT OVER MARITIME PORT SECURITY
Posted on 10:40 by Unknown
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA'S COAST GUARD INDICTS NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT OVER MARITIME PORT SECURITY
By Godwin Ortise, 07/22/13
ISPS: US Coast Guard indicts FG over confusion at ports
The United States of America Coast Guard has indicted the Nigerian government over the confusion at the nation’s ports, as to who has the authority to implement the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code in the country among the various government agencies.
This is coming as the 90 days ultimatum on port security issued by the United States government to Nigeria expires in about two weeks. The United States Coast Guard is again set for another visit with a view to auditing the level of Nigeria’s compliance with the ISPS Code. The US Coast Guard team is expected in Nigeria on the 26th of August just as plansto receive them have been concluded.
Since the threat to withdraw shipping services from Nigeria was issued by the American government, both the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, and the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, have been making frantic efforts to ensure that all is set for the US Coast Guard inspection. Should Nigeria fail to pass the audit exercise, it will spell doom for the nation’s economy as the American government and its allies will stop their vessels from sailing to Nigeria.
Already, the United States Coast Guard in its report after last year’s visit to Nigeria thumbed down Nigeria’s preparedness as to the implementation of the ISPS Code and noted that there is considerable confusion as to who has the authority to implement the ISPS Code in the country among the various government agencies with overlapping functionsatthe ports.
It was after the absence of a Designated Authority at the nation’s maritime service was brought to the notice of the Nigerian government that NIMASA was asked to take up the responsibility of Designated Authority, D\A.
In the report, the American government through its Coast Guard expressed concern over the fact that even NIMASA as presently constituted has not developed any form of expertise to tackle the issue of terrorism in the maritime industry.
The US government also expressed concern that there is no anti-terrorism measures in place in Nigerian ports and threatened to impose sanctions on Nigeria if measures are not put in place within 90 days.
The report read in part: “The embassy of the United States of America presents its compliment to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the honour to request that the Ministry forward this message to and the attached Aide Memoire to the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, Olugbenga Ashiru, Honourable Minister of Transport, Idris .A. Umar, Senior Special Adviser to the President on Maritime Affairs, Mr. Leke Oyewole, Director-General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Mr. Patrick Akpobolokemi, Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, Mallam Habib Abdullahi.
“The embassy has the honour to note that the government of the United States of America appreciates the willingness of the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to host the visit by the United States Coast Guard (USCG) team to Nigeria to assess the effectiveness of anti-terrorism measures at ports and continued efforts to comply with the International Ship and Ports FacilitySecurity (ISPS) Code.
“Overall, with some noteworthy exceptions noted in the attached Aide Memoir, the United States Coast Guard team determined that Nigerian Ports did not have in place effective anti-terrorism measures. Based on such observations during these visits to the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the government of the United States of America would like to communicate several areas of concern.
“The visiting team noted the lack of clarity regarding which agency in the Federal Republic of Nigeria has the overall responsibility for overseeing anti-terrorism measures at these ports, as well as the uneven quality and consistency of oversight. As a result, the United States Coast Guard identified areas for improvement regarding anti-terrorism measures in Nigerian ports.
“The government of the United States of America respectfully request corrections of issues identified in the attached Aide Memoir within 90 days of receipt of this notification. Correction of such issues would allow the United Sates Coast Guard to refrain from implementing additional conditions of entry on all vessels sailing to United States ports that have called at non-exempted ports in the Federal Republic of Nigeria within five port calls of arrival in the United States of America.
“The Embassy has the further honour to note that the United StatesCoast Guard must provide public notice of such changes in condition of entry. The Embassy adds that vessels arriving from Nigerian port facilities assessed as having effective anti-terrorism measures, as listed in the attached Aide Memoir, will remain exempt. The Embassy respectfully notes that these additional conditions of entry, when implemented, would slow down maritime trade between our two countries and increase costs for Nigerian and other regional exporters using Nigerian ports.
‘The government of the United States of America, therefore, requests that the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria implement necessary actions as soon as possible to remedy specific port deficiencies noted in the attached Aide Memoir.
‘The Embassy recognises that authorities may face significant difficulties in instituting the needed measures and would welcome follow-on discussions.
The US Coast Guard report further said “The Embassy has the honour to note that International Port Security Liaison Officer Commander, David Gates, remains prepared to assist the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in addressing these issues so that the United States Coast Guard can change this determination as soon as possible.
“The Embassy respectfully requests that the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria identify a point of contact for future dialogue on this issue. The United States government, however, noted and commended some individual terminals and port facilities who are currently maintainingeffective anti-terrorism measures.”
Meanwhile, the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority has prepared both Port Facility Security Plans (PFSP) and Port Facility Security Assessment (PFSA) on every terminal and facilities across the country. In the report, the American government also expressed concern over the ability of NIMASA to midwife and implement the Code.
Some of the deficiencies noted by the U S Coast Guard team in some of the terminals visited include inadequate training programmes, inadequate access control measures, and the failure to ensure that effective drills and exercises are carried out at several terminals.
“The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency claims some legal authority for ISPS Code matters, but has not been exercising the duties of a Designated Authority for port facilities and has not developed security expertise.
“The future of the current Designated Authority remains in doubt and intense friction remains between the various government ministries and agencies vying for authority over port security.
Reacting to the report, NIMASA’s spokesman, Mr. Isichei Osamgbi, said that the agency is working hard to ensure that Nigeria as a country is compliant to the ISPS Code.
Recall that the Presidential Implementation Committee on Maritime Security and Safety (PICOMSS) was responsible for the ISPS Code until NIMASA became uncomfortable with its presence and moved against it to be scrapped.
Even after PICOMSS was scrapped, NIMASA was still at a loss as to what to do until the government directed it to oversee the implementation of the Code in Nigeria.
As at the time of filling this report, the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority was making arrangement to acquire trained dogs that will be distributed to every port across the country.
In his reaction to the development, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers Council, Mr. Hassan Bello, explained that Nigeria has obligation to the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code and all itsattachments.
He, however, opined that Nigeria is currently complying with some aspect of the Code, adding that with time, it will be fully implemented in Nigeria.
By Godwin Ortise, 07/22/13
ISPS: US Coast Guard indicts FG over confusion at ports
The United States of America Coast Guard has indicted the Nigerian government over the confusion at the nation’s ports, as to who has the authority to implement the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code in the country among the various government agencies.
This is coming as the 90 days ultimatum on port security issued by the United States government to Nigeria expires in about two weeks. The United States Coast Guard is again set for another visit with a view to auditing the level of Nigeria’s compliance with the ISPS Code. The US Coast Guard team is expected in Nigeria on the 26th of August just as plansto receive them have been concluded.
Since the threat to withdraw shipping services from Nigeria was issued by the American government, both the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, and the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, have been making frantic efforts to ensure that all is set for the US Coast Guard inspection. Should Nigeria fail to pass the audit exercise, it will spell doom for the nation’s economy as the American government and its allies will stop their vessels from sailing to Nigeria.
Already, the United States Coast Guard in its report after last year’s visit to Nigeria thumbed down Nigeria’s preparedness as to the implementation of the ISPS Code and noted that there is considerable confusion as to who has the authority to implement the ISPS Code in the country among the various government agencies with overlapping functionsatthe ports.
It was after the absence of a Designated Authority at the nation’s maritime service was brought to the notice of the Nigerian government that NIMASA was asked to take up the responsibility of Designated Authority, D\A.
In the report, the American government through its Coast Guard expressed concern over the fact that even NIMASA as presently constituted has not developed any form of expertise to tackle the issue of terrorism in the maritime industry.
The US government also expressed concern that there is no anti-terrorism measures in place in Nigerian ports and threatened to impose sanctions on Nigeria if measures are not put in place within 90 days.
The report read in part: “The embassy of the United States of America presents its compliment to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the honour to request that the Ministry forward this message to and the attached Aide Memoire to the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, Olugbenga Ashiru, Honourable Minister of Transport, Idris .A. Umar, Senior Special Adviser to the President on Maritime Affairs, Mr. Leke Oyewole, Director-General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Mr. Patrick Akpobolokemi, Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, Mallam Habib Abdullahi.
“The embassy has the honour to note that the government of the United States of America appreciates the willingness of the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to host the visit by the United States Coast Guard (USCG) team to Nigeria to assess the effectiveness of anti-terrorism measures at ports and continued efforts to comply with the International Ship and Ports FacilitySecurity (ISPS) Code.
“Overall, with some noteworthy exceptions noted in the attached Aide Memoir, the United States Coast Guard team determined that Nigerian Ports did not have in place effective anti-terrorism measures. Based on such observations during these visits to the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the government of the United States of America would like to communicate several areas of concern.
“The visiting team noted the lack of clarity regarding which agency in the Federal Republic of Nigeria has the overall responsibility for overseeing anti-terrorism measures at these ports, as well as the uneven quality and consistency of oversight. As a result, the United States Coast Guard identified areas for improvement regarding anti-terrorism measures in Nigerian ports.
“The government of the United States of America respectfully request corrections of issues identified in the attached Aide Memoir within 90 days of receipt of this notification. Correction of such issues would allow the United Sates Coast Guard to refrain from implementing additional conditions of entry on all vessels sailing to United States ports that have called at non-exempted ports in the Federal Republic of Nigeria within five port calls of arrival in the United States of America.
“The Embassy has the further honour to note that the United StatesCoast Guard must provide public notice of such changes in condition of entry. The Embassy adds that vessels arriving from Nigerian port facilities assessed as having effective anti-terrorism measures, as listed in the attached Aide Memoir, will remain exempt. The Embassy respectfully notes that these additional conditions of entry, when implemented, would slow down maritime trade between our two countries and increase costs for Nigerian and other regional exporters using Nigerian ports.
‘The government of the United States of America, therefore, requests that the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria implement necessary actions as soon as possible to remedy specific port deficiencies noted in the attached Aide Memoir.
‘The Embassy recognises that authorities may face significant difficulties in instituting the needed measures and would welcome follow-on discussions.
The US Coast Guard report further said “The Embassy has the honour to note that International Port Security Liaison Officer Commander, David Gates, remains prepared to assist the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in addressing these issues so that the United States Coast Guard can change this determination as soon as possible.
“The Embassy respectfully requests that the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria identify a point of contact for future dialogue on this issue. The United States government, however, noted and commended some individual terminals and port facilities who are currently maintainingeffective anti-terrorism measures.”
Meanwhile, the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority has prepared both Port Facility Security Plans (PFSP) and Port Facility Security Assessment (PFSA) on every terminal and facilities across the country. In the report, the American government also expressed concern over the ability of NIMASA to midwife and implement the Code.
Some of the deficiencies noted by the U S Coast Guard team in some of the terminals visited include inadequate training programmes, inadequate access control measures, and the failure to ensure that effective drills and exercises are carried out at several terminals.
“The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency claims some legal authority for ISPS Code matters, but has not been exercising the duties of a Designated Authority for port facilities and has not developed security expertise.
“The future of the current Designated Authority remains in doubt and intense friction remains between the various government ministries and agencies vying for authority over port security.
Reacting to the report, NIMASA’s spokesman, Mr. Isichei Osamgbi, said that the agency is working hard to ensure that Nigeria as a country is compliant to the ISPS Code.
Recall that the Presidential Implementation Committee on Maritime Security and Safety (PICOMSS) was responsible for the ISPS Code until NIMASA became uncomfortable with its presence and moved against it to be scrapped.
Even after PICOMSS was scrapped, NIMASA was still at a loss as to what to do until the government directed it to oversee the implementation of the Code in Nigeria.
As at the time of filling this report, the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority was making arrangement to acquire trained dogs that will be distributed to every port across the country.
In his reaction to the development, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers Council, Mr. Hassan Bello, explained that Nigeria has obligation to the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code and all itsattachments.
He, however, opined that Nigeria is currently complying with some aspect of the Code, adding that with time, it will be fully implemented in Nigeria.
THE U.S.A. & SHELL OIL CALL FOR TOUGHER SANCTIONS ON NIGERIA OIL THIEVES & NIGERIAN SHIPPING PORTS
Posted on 10:37 by Unknown
THE U.S.A. & SHELL OIL CALL FOR TOUGHER SANCTIONS ON NIGERIA OIL THIEVES & NIGERIAN SHIPPING PORTS
Lagos (Platts)--31July 2013
Shell said Wednesday that the Nigerian government needs to ensure oil thieves are prosecuted and sanctioned in order to tackle the growing problem effectively.
"I believe the perpetrators of these crimes need to be arrested and prosecuted, to serve as a deterrent," the chairman of Shell companies in Nigeria, Mutiu Sunmonu, said in an address delivered at an industry conference in Lagos.
Sunmonu said oil theft, if not checked, posed a major challenge to Nigeria's bid to increase its oil production to 4 million b/d and reserves to 40 billion barrels by 2020.
"At a point this year, over 60,000 barrels of crude oil were stolen from SPDC [Shell] lines every day," he said.
Nigeria's special military unit, the Joint Task Force, in the first half of the year impounded 24 vessels involved in loading crude oil stolen in Niger Delta creeks, with 608 suspects arrested during raids by government forces, a military spokesman said Wednesday.
JTF spokesman Onyema Nwachukwu said in a statement that troops seized 133 barges involved in oil theft and destroyed a total of 748 illegal refineries in the Niger Delta in the first half of this year.
"We've taken into custody about 608 suspects who are involved in oil theft and oil theft-related cases," Nwachukwu said.
While a government amnesty for Niger Delta militants in October 2009 helped to curb violence in Nigeria's main oil-producing region, crude oil theft and pipeline sabotage has become a growing problem for the country's economy.
Armed gangs are tapping crude from pipelines either for local refining or to move it onto barges for sale to tankers waiting off the coast.
Nigeria's oil industry auditors said Monday that Africa's top producer lost a total of 146 million barrels of crude oil to theft and pipeline vandalism between 2009 and 2011, amounting to $11.79 billion, or 7.7% of the country's total revenue.
Nigeria has sought help from the international community, including the UK, to check oil theft.
--Staff, newsdesk@platts.com --Edited by Jonathan Fox, jonathan.fox@platts.com
Lagos (Platts)--31July 2013
Shell said Wednesday that the Nigerian government needs to ensure oil thieves are prosecuted and sanctioned in order to tackle the growing problem effectively.
"I believe the perpetrators of these crimes need to be arrested and prosecuted, to serve as a deterrent," the chairman of Shell companies in Nigeria, Mutiu Sunmonu, said in an address delivered at an industry conference in Lagos.
Sunmonu said oil theft, if not checked, posed a major challenge to Nigeria's bid to increase its oil production to 4 million b/d and reserves to 40 billion barrels by 2020.
"At a point this year, over 60,000 barrels of crude oil were stolen from SPDC [Shell] lines every day," he said.
Nigeria's special military unit, the Joint Task Force, in the first half of the year impounded 24 vessels involved in loading crude oil stolen in Niger Delta creeks, with 608 suspects arrested during raids by government forces, a military spokesman said Wednesday.
JTF spokesman Onyema Nwachukwu said in a statement that troops seized 133 barges involved in oil theft and destroyed a total of 748 illegal refineries in the Niger Delta in the first half of this year.
"We've taken into custody about 608 suspects who are involved in oil theft and oil theft-related cases," Nwachukwu said.
While a government amnesty for Niger Delta militants in October 2009 helped to curb violence in Nigeria's main oil-producing region, crude oil theft and pipeline sabotage has become a growing problem for the country's economy.
Armed gangs are tapping crude from pipelines either for local refining or to move it onto barges for sale to tankers waiting off the coast.
Nigeria's oil industry auditors said Monday that Africa's top producer lost a total of 146 million barrels of crude oil to theft and pipeline vandalism between 2009 and 2011, amounting to $11.79 billion, or 7.7% of the country's total revenue.
Nigeria has sought help from the international community, including the UK, to check oil theft.
--Staff, newsdesk@platts.com --Edited by Jonathan Fox, jonathan.fox@platts.com
SARASOTA, FLORIDA MAN SENTENCED FOR INTERNATIONAL HEROIN TRAFFICKING
Posted on 10:32 by Unknown
SARASOTA, FLORIDA MAN SENTENCED FOR INTERNATIONAL HEROIN TRAFFICKING
July 31, 2013
A 33-year-old Sarasota man has been sentenced to a 20-year federal prison term for trafficking in heroin, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Arlin Troncoso-Pena was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.
Troncoso-Pena pleaded guilty in March.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Troncoso-Pena arranged for two women couriers to transport the heroin from Boston to Florida.
The investigation of Troncoso-Pena was initiated after police stopped his vehicle in Osceola County, as he left a train station. One of the two female passengers in his car had 150 grams of cocaine.
In 2012, authorities set up a sting in which a detective arranged to purchase heroin from Troncoso-Pena.
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office, the Sarasota Police Department, the Osceola County Investigative Bureau, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).
It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joseph W. Swanson.
July 31, 2013
A 33-year-old Sarasota man has been sentenced to a 20-year federal prison term for trafficking in heroin, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Arlin Troncoso-Pena was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.
Troncoso-Pena pleaded guilty in March.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Troncoso-Pena arranged for two women couriers to transport the heroin from Boston to Florida.
The investigation of Troncoso-Pena was initiated after police stopped his vehicle in Osceola County, as he left a train station. One of the two female passengers in his car had 150 grams of cocaine.
In 2012, authorities set up a sting in which a detective arranged to purchase heroin from Troncoso-Pena.
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office, the Sarasota Police Department, the Osceola County Investigative Bureau, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).
It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joseph W. Swanson.
WELL ... HOW 'BOUT THAT LAWYERS' FLYING URINE STORY? HOW THE FEDS BUSTED A ZETA NARCO-TERRORIST TRAFFICKING RING SUPPLYING DALLAS, TEXAS?
Posted on 10:26 by Unknown
WELL ... HOW 'BOUT THAT LAWYERS' FLYING URINE STORY? HOW THE FEDS BUSTED A ZETA NARCO-TERRORIST TRAFFICKING RING SUPPLYING DALLAS, TEXAS?
July 30, 2013, By Eric Nicholson
The feds were quite pleased in 2010 when Operation Greedy Grove, their months-long takedown of a Pleasant Grove-based crack ring, resulted in 28 arrests and the seizure of several kilograms of cocaine, more than a dozen guns, and $210,000 cash. But the guys they picked up -- "Rat," "Ron Don," and "G-Bone," among others -- were small-fry gang-bangers, violent but unsophisticated. They may have disrupted one small corner of North Texas' drug market and made life in Pleasant Grove a bit less dangerous, but, in the grand scheme of things, they'd made scarcely a dent.
The most valuable thing to come out of Greedy Grove was information. The man who supplied the Highland Hills Posse, NFL Boyz, and other targeted street gangs with cocaine agreed to cooperate with DEA and FBI agents as they looked for targets higher up the supply chain. And so, on January 19, 2011, he led them to the parking lot of a Spring Creek BBQ.
There, as cars whizzed past on Wheatland Road, he met with a man named Arturo "Flaco" Picaso, 32, and agreed to buy a kilogram of cocaine for $23,800. They didn't make the deal until a month later, when they met again in the parking lot of an apartment complex in far southwest Dallas. Federal agents were watching as Picaso rolled up in a gold Mercedes, his girlfriend and infant child in the car with him, and handed off a package of coke and complimentary razor blade.
This was enough to get a wiretap on Picaso's phone, which led them up another rung to 52-year-old Ricardo Morales Sr. Picaso called Morales to resupply after his recent sale, but Morales said he wanted to take it slow so he could be sure not to fall behind on payments.
"Well, they took those that didn't pay them over there. Do you understand?" he said. "But, ah, I don't want to get too involved with them because they are assholes, and if something happens, and then they could come and those assholes could do something to me, you understand?"
In another conversation, Morales explained that "those damn men, fucking Zetas," had locked down highways in a region of Mexico and were stopping and searching every car that passed through, delaying Dallas-bound drug shipments.
It's not clear from court documents if or when Picaso got more cocaine, since a subsequent wiretap of Morales' phone shifted agents' attention yet another rung up the ladder to his supplier, Rosendo "Borardo" Chappa.
On July 8, Chappa sent a courier to Morales' house to pick up $22,300 he was owed. Federal agents watched the whole thing and, as the man was leaving, alerted Dallas police. Officers then found some reason to make a traffic stop and arrested him on outstanding warrants. Inside the car, they found the cash and 17.7 grams of cocaine hidden behind the passenger-side airbag. The courier agreed to cooperate.
His first major tip came two weeks later when, on July 23, he told agents that Chappa was going to buy 20 kilograms of coke from Omar "Pilas" Acosta. The agents were too late to catch the sale, but they made sure to be there early the next day when Chappa met Acosta in a Burger King parking lot and handed over $88,000 while agents took pictures from afar.
Acosta, in turn, led them to Alonzo de la Rosa Jordan, a.k.a. "Gordo," who drove a white Ford F-150, the bed of which was often laden with carpet drums filled with 100 or more kilograms of cocaine that he would distribute to Acosta and Chappa.
The feds finally began closing in on August 19. They staked out the parking lot by Nordstrom at the Galleria, where Chappa handed Acosta a package full of money. They had Dallas police pull him over as he left for changing lanes without signaling. He didn't have his license but offered to fetch it from his apartment nearby. Officers accepted his invitation to come inside, then placed him under arrest for outstanding warrants.
Acosta was happy to let officers search his truck but became upset when they asked to inspect the other apartment unit for which he had a key. But they didn't need his permission, just the trained nose of Jan, their police canine, who went wild at the scent of six kilograms of cocaine hidden in the apartment in question. Officers also seized more than $200,000 in cash.
News of Acosta's arrest set off something of a panic among the others, who feared he might cooperate with the feds. Jordan called Chappa and asked to store 26 kilograms of cocaine at his place. Problem was, the feds had gotten a wiretap and were listening in. It wasn't hard from there to find the tightly packed bundles tucked in a hidden compartment behind the stove.
Federal investigators have since linked the cocaine ring to Los Zetas cartel. They say it was importing upwards of 100 kilograms of cocaine per month in exchange for large vacuum-sealed bags of cash.
All 10 men arrested in the conspiracy have been convicted. Acosta, the final participant to be nailed, was sentenced last week to 84 months in federal prison.
July 30, 2013, By Eric Nicholson
The feds were quite pleased in 2010 when Operation Greedy Grove, their months-long takedown of a Pleasant Grove-based crack ring, resulted in 28 arrests and the seizure of several kilograms of cocaine, more than a dozen guns, and $210,000 cash. But the guys they picked up -- "Rat," "Ron Don," and "G-Bone," among others -- were small-fry gang-bangers, violent but unsophisticated. They may have disrupted one small corner of North Texas' drug market and made life in Pleasant Grove a bit less dangerous, but, in the grand scheme of things, they'd made scarcely a dent.
The most valuable thing to come out of Greedy Grove was information. The man who supplied the Highland Hills Posse, NFL Boyz, and other targeted street gangs with cocaine agreed to cooperate with DEA and FBI agents as they looked for targets higher up the supply chain. And so, on January 19, 2011, he led them to the parking lot of a Spring Creek BBQ.
There, as cars whizzed past on Wheatland Road, he met with a man named Arturo "Flaco" Picaso, 32, and agreed to buy a kilogram of cocaine for $23,800. They didn't make the deal until a month later, when they met again in the parking lot of an apartment complex in far southwest Dallas. Federal agents were watching as Picaso rolled up in a gold Mercedes, his girlfriend and infant child in the car with him, and handed off a package of coke and complimentary razor blade.
This was enough to get a wiretap on Picaso's phone, which led them up another rung to 52-year-old Ricardo Morales Sr. Picaso called Morales to resupply after his recent sale, but Morales said he wanted to take it slow so he could be sure not to fall behind on payments.
"Well, they took those that didn't pay them over there. Do you understand?" he said. "But, ah, I don't want to get too involved with them because they are assholes, and if something happens, and then they could come and those assholes could do something to me, you understand?"
In another conversation, Morales explained that "those damn men, fucking Zetas," had locked down highways in a region of Mexico and were stopping and searching every car that passed through, delaying Dallas-bound drug shipments.
It's not clear from court documents if or when Picaso got more cocaine, since a subsequent wiretap of Morales' phone shifted agents' attention yet another rung up the ladder to his supplier, Rosendo "Borardo" Chappa.
On July 8, Chappa sent a courier to Morales' house to pick up $22,300 he was owed. Federal agents watched the whole thing and, as the man was leaving, alerted Dallas police. Officers then found some reason to make a traffic stop and arrested him on outstanding warrants. Inside the car, they found the cash and 17.7 grams of cocaine hidden behind the passenger-side airbag. The courier agreed to cooperate.
His first major tip came two weeks later when, on July 23, he told agents that Chappa was going to buy 20 kilograms of coke from Omar "Pilas" Acosta. The agents were too late to catch the sale, but they made sure to be there early the next day when Chappa met Acosta in a Burger King parking lot and handed over $88,000 while agents took pictures from afar.
Acosta, in turn, led them to Alonzo de la Rosa Jordan, a.k.a. "Gordo," who drove a white Ford F-150, the bed of which was often laden with carpet drums filled with 100 or more kilograms of cocaine that he would distribute to Acosta and Chappa.
The feds finally began closing in on August 19. They staked out the parking lot by Nordstrom at the Galleria, where Chappa handed Acosta a package full of money. They had Dallas police pull him over as he left for changing lanes without signaling. He didn't have his license but offered to fetch it from his apartment nearby. Officers accepted his invitation to come inside, then placed him under arrest for outstanding warrants.
Acosta was happy to let officers search his truck but became upset when they asked to inspect the other apartment unit for which he had a key. But they didn't need his permission, just the trained nose of Jan, their police canine, who went wild at the scent of six kilograms of cocaine hidden in the apartment in question. Officers also seized more than $200,000 in cash.
News of Acosta's arrest set off something of a panic among the others, who feared he might cooperate with the feds. Jordan called Chappa and asked to store 26 kilograms of cocaine at his place. Problem was, the feds had gotten a wiretap and were listening in. It wasn't hard from there to find the tightly packed bundles tucked in a hidden compartment behind the stove.
Federal investigators have since linked the cocaine ring to Los Zetas cartel. They say it was importing upwards of 100 kilograms of cocaine per month in exchange for large vacuum-sealed bags of cash.
All 10 men arrested in the conspiracy have been convicted. Acosta, the final participant to be nailed, was sentenced last week to 84 months in federal prison.
LAWYER WHO BEAT CHEVRON IN ECUADOR FACES TRIAL OF HIS OWN
Posted on 10:20 by Unknown
LAWYER WHO BEAT CHEVRON IN ECUADOR FACES TRIAL OF HIS OWN
By CLIFFORD KRAUSS July 30, 2013
Steven R. Donziger — environmental hero or charlatan, depending on whom you talk to — is one of the toughest lawyers around, or slightly crazy.
Possibly both.
For the last two decades Mr. Donziger has been battling the Chevron Corporation over an environmental disaster that happened in the jungles of Ecuador. Two years ago, he won an $18 billion case against the oil giant, the kind of victory that most lawyers can only dream of.
But Chevron has yet to pay a penny of the award, and has turned the tables on him. Now, he is defending himself against a Chevron lawsuit charging that he masterminded a conspiracy to extort and defraud the corporation. The trial is scheduled for October.
Across a table in his two-bedroom apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, Mr. Donziger for the first time in recent years spoke publicly about the personal travails that he says have engulfed him. He says shadowy men have trailed him. Watched his family. Sat in cars outside his home. He had his apartment swept for bugs, but found nothing.
All of that might sound like the ravings of a Grade A conspiracy theorist. But Mr. Donziger, who played basketball with Barack Obama at Harvard Law School, has a serious following among environmentalists. He and his supporters say he is being vilified — potentially ruined — for unmasking Chevron’s questionable environmental record. Chevron, which is suing him and his associates for damages that could reach billions of dollars, says he is simply a con artist.
It is a remarkable turn of events for Mr. Donziger, who has chased after Chevron with the single-mindedness of Ahab. Reports of questionable ethical conduct have cast doubt over his motives. He is accused of engineering the ghostwriting of a crucial report submitted to the Ecuadorean court that decided the case, a claim he says is exaggerated and misconstrues local legal customs. Some of his former allies have abandoned him and signed statements taking Chevron’s side.
Even his lawyer in the fraud case has withdrawn himself because, he said, Mr. Donziger could no longer pay his bills. And this month U.S. District Court Judge Lewis A. Kaplan denied Mr. Donziger’s plea for a delay in the trial, expressing skepticism that he and his backers did not have the money to hire another lawyer. (Judge Kaplan noted in his ruling that Mr. Donziger stood to gain a fee of over $1 billion should the Ecuadorean judgment, which Chevron is challenging, be enforced.)
The particulars of the case have been litigated and relitigated. Mr. Donziger insists that Chevron’s predecessor, Texaco, cut through the Amazon, spilled oil into pristine rain forests and left behind what remains to this day a toxic mess. Chevron says he is an ambulance-chaser who has fabricated facts for his own financial ends, blaming the company for pollution mostly caused by Petroecuador, the national oil company that was once a partner of Texaco and continues to produce oil in the region.
But Mr. Donziger, a bear of a man with a quick laugh and a robust ego, says he is unbowed.
“It is creepy and scary,” Mr. Donziger, 51, said of his experiences during a six-hour interview at his home. Chevron, a company worth $240 billion, is trying to scare him away, he says. “When I walk into a deposition and see 15 Chevron lawyers there ready to eat me for lunch, I realize I’ve been bestowed an honor,” he said, smiling.
To which Chevron says: Nonsense. “He thinks he can one-up P. T. Barnum and fool all the people all the time,” said Randy Mastro, a lawyer working for Chevron. “But it’s his own confidants who have now turned on him.”
Many environmentalists, perhaps predictably, are still behind him.
“I have admiration for anyone who is willing to take on a rich, powerful oil company,” said Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club and a longtime supporter of Mr. Donziger’s efforts. “And to do it for more than two decades is either crazy or impressive and probably both.”
These days, Mr. Donziger spends much of his time working at his dining room table below an expansive portrait of Mao walking among his people — more of a joke than an expression of his political beliefs, he says. He still finds time to take his 6-year-old son to school, take yoga classes and walk the dog. His apartment is virtually a gallery of the case. Photographs of Ecuadorean Indians, jungle pipelines and the first day of the Ecuadorean trial hang on its walls.
The origins of the case go back to the 1970s, when Texaco, which was later acquired by Chevron, operated as a partner with the Ecuadorean state oil company Petroecuador in the Amazon.
Mr. Donziger, who had worked as a journalist in Nicaragua, was a Harvard Law School student when he heard about the cause from a fellow student of Ecuadorean descent. Even though Texaco had reached a $40 million agreement with Ecuador that obliged it to clean some of the waste pits and well sites, villagers filed a class-action suit in 1993. Mr. Donziger dived in and emerged as the lead legal organizer.
Mr. Donziger’s activism is something of a birthright. He remembers how his mother, a social activist from Jacksonville, Fla., took him as a young boy to a picket line in front of a grocery store to back César Chávez’s lettuce boycott. His grandfather, Aaron E. Koota, was a Brooklyn district attorney and judge who decorated his office with pictures of himself with Hubert H. Humphrey and Robert F. Kennedy.
Inspired by them, he said he went to law school committed to help people who otherwise could not get access to legal services.
Two years out of law school, he traveled to Ecuador in 1993. “I saw what honestly looked like an apocalyptic disaster, almost like the end of the world,” he said, describing seeing entire jungle lakes filled with oil and children walking barefoot on oil-covered roads. That set the stage for a life dominated by the case.
Chevron never accepted the validity of the Ecuadorean judgment, and has looked for any opening to discredit it.
It found one in the documentary film “Crude,” which essentially stars Mr. Donziger, and highlighted his unorthodox style. Chevron lawyers argued before Judge Kaplan that the release of outtakes could prove that the company had been wronged.
Judge Kaplan agreed, and the flood of damaging revelations began.
One outtake filmed in a restaurant showed Ann Maest, a scientist working for Stratus Consulting, telling Mr. Donziger that there was no evidence that contamination spread from the oil pits and that “nothing has spread anywhere at all.” Mr. Donzinger, who had hired the company to research the contamination, was unmoved. “This is Ecuador, O.K.,” he said. “At the end of the day, there are a thousand people around the courthouse, you will get whatever you want. Sorry, but it’s true.”
Mr. Donziger has also been compelled to surrender a diary that revealed his secret meetings with Ecuadorean judges. He has been forced to hand over e-mail correspondence that contains several messages from one of his Ecuadorean colleagues about “paying the puppeteer” that Chevron insists are references to bribes to a judge. (Mr. Donziger says that was a joke, referring to “a former very bossy lawyer” with whom his team has a longstanding fee dispute.)
Sworn statements by environmental consultants who formerly worked with him have contended that he ignored scientific evidence that challenged his allegations of widespread contamination and that he engineered the ghostwriting of the critical report to the Ecuadorean court.
“Donziger created this fiction of massive environmental contamination,” said Kent Robertson, a Chevron spokesman, who acknowledged that the company had hired private investigators to protect itself from fraud.
Mr. Donziger countersued Chevron for fraud and extortion, accusing Chevron of corruption, bribes and threats to officials in Ecuador, but Judge Kaplan dismissed the case this week.
Mr. Donziger denies that he has crossed any ethical line, and says the sworn statements against him were obtained under legal pressure from Chevron, which he refuses to bow to.
“A giant oil company is trying to destroy me because I was able to hold them accountable for toxic dumping on a mass scale,” he said.
By Mr. Donziger’s account, however, Chevron is also feeling the heat. Even though today it has no meaningful operations in Ecuador, it faces enforcement actions to confiscate its assets in Canada, Brazil and Argentina. He added with typical bluster, “As I take the long view, it’s Chevron that faces the risk, not Steven Donziger.”
As he prepared to leave the lobby of his building the other day to take his cocker spaniel for a walk, he said of himself and his family, “It’s stressful, but we’ll be fine.”
By CLIFFORD KRAUSS July 30, 2013
Steven R. Donziger — environmental hero or charlatan, depending on whom you talk to — is one of the toughest lawyers around, or slightly crazy.
Possibly both.
For the last two decades Mr. Donziger has been battling the Chevron Corporation over an environmental disaster that happened in the jungles of Ecuador. Two years ago, he won an $18 billion case against the oil giant, the kind of victory that most lawyers can only dream of.
But Chevron has yet to pay a penny of the award, and has turned the tables on him. Now, he is defending himself against a Chevron lawsuit charging that he masterminded a conspiracy to extort and defraud the corporation. The trial is scheduled for October.
Across a table in his two-bedroom apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, Mr. Donziger for the first time in recent years spoke publicly about the personal travails that he says have engulfed him. He says shadowy men have trailed him. Watched his family. Sat in cars outside his home. He had his apartment swept for bugs, but found nothing.
All of that might sound like the ravings of a Grade A conspiracy theorist. But Mr. Donziger, who played basketball with Barack Obama at Harvard Law School, has a serious following among environmentalists. He and his supporters say he is being vilified — potentially ruined — for unmasking Chevron’s questionable environmental record. Chevron, which is suing him and his associates for damages that could reach billions of dollars, says he is simply a con artist.
It is a remarkable turn of events for Mr. Donziger, who has chased after Chevron with the single-mindedness of Ahab. Reports of questionable ethical conduct have cast doubt over his motives. He is accused of engineering the ghostwriting of a crucial report submitted to the Ecuadorean court that decided the case, a claim he says is exaggerated and misconstrues local legal customs. Some of his former allies have abandoned him and signed statements taking Chevron’s side.
Even his lawyer in the fraud case has withdrawn himself because, he said, Mr. Donziger could no longer pay his bills. And this month U.S. District Court Judge Lewis A. Kaplan denied Mr. Donziger’s plea for a delay in the trial, expressing skepticism that he and his backers did not have the money to hire another lawyer. (Judge Kaplan noted in his ruling that Mr. Donziger stood to gain a fee of over $1 billion should the Ecuadorean judgment, which Chevron is challenging, be enforced.)
The particulars of the case have been litigated and relitigated. Mr. Donziger insists that Chevron’s predecessor, Texaco, cut through the Amazon, spilled oil into pristine rain forests and left behind what remains to this day a toxic mess. Chevron says he is an ambulance-chaser who has fabricated facts for his own financial ends, blaming the company for pollution mostly caused by Petroecuador, the national oil company that was once a partner of Texaco and continues to produce oil in the region.
But Mr. Donziger, a bear of a man with a quick laugh and a robust ego, says he is unbowed.
“It is creepy and scary,” Mr. Donziger, 51, said of his experiences during a six-hour interview at his home. Chevron, a company worth $240 billion, is trying to scare him away, he says. “When I walk into a deposition and see 15 Chevron lawyers there ready to eat me for lunch, I realize I’ve been bestowed an honor,” he said, smiling.
To which Chevron says: Nonsense. “He thinks he can one-up P. T. Barnum and fool all the people all the time,” said Randy Mastro, a lawyer working for Chevron. “But it’s his own confidants who have now turned on him.”
Many environmentalists, perhaps predictably, are still behind him.
“I have admiration for anyone who is willing to take on a rich, powerful oil company,” said Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club and a longtime supporter of Mr. Donziger’s efforts. “And to do it for more than two decades is either crazy or impressive and probably both.”
These days, Mr. Donziger spends much of his time working at his dining room table below an expansive portrait of Mao walking among his people — more of a joke than an expression of his political beliefs, he says. He still finds time to take his 6-year-old son to school, take yoga classes and walk the dog. His apartment is virtually a gallery of the case. Photographs of Ecuadorean Indians, jungle pipelines and the first day of the Ecuadorean trial hang on its walls.
The origins of the case go back to the 1970s, when Texaco, which was later acquired by Chevron, operated as a partner with the Ecuadorean state oil company Petroecuador in the Amazon.
Mr. Donziger, who had worked as a journalist in Nicaragua, was a Harvard Law School student when he heard about the cause from a fellow student of Ecuadorean descent. Even though Texaco had reached a $40 million agreement with Ecuador that obliged it to clean some of the waste pits and well sites, villagers filed a class-action suit in 1993. Mr. Donziger dived in and emerged as the lead legal organizer.
Mr. Donziger’s activism is something of a birthright. He remembers how his mother, a social activist from Jacksonville, Fla., took him as a young boy to a picket line in front of a grocery store to back César Chávez’s lettuce boycott. His grandfather, Aaron E. Koota, was a Brooklyn district attorney and judge who decorated his office with pictures of himself with Hubert H. Humphrey and Robert F. Kennedy.
Inspired by them, he said he went to law school committed to help people who otherwise could not get access to legal services.
Two years out of law school, he traveled to Ecuador in 1993. “I saw what honestly looked like an apocalyptic disaster, almost like the end of the world,” he said, describing seeing entire jungle lakes filled with oil and children walking barefoot on oil-covered roads. That set the stage for a life dominated by the case.
Chevron never accepted the validity of the Ecuadorean judgment, and has looked for any opening to discredit it.
It found one in the documentary film “Crude,” which essentially stars Mr. Donziger, and highlighted his unorthodox style. Chevron lawyers argued before Judge Kaplan that the release of outtakes could prove that the company had been wronged.
Judge Kaplan agreed, and the flood of damaging revelations began.
One outtake filmed in a restaurant showed Ann Maest, a scientist working for Stratus Consulting, telling Mr. Donziger that there was no evidence that contamination spread from the oil pits and that “nothing has spread anywhere at all.” Mr. Donzinger, who had hired the company to research the contamination, was unmoved. “This is Ecuador, O.K.,” he said. “At the end of the day, there are a thousand people around the courthouse, you will get whatever you want. Sorry, but it’s true.”
Mr. Donziger has also been compelled to surrender a diary that revealed his secret meetings with Ecuadorean judges. He has been forced to hand over e-mail correspondence that contains several messages from one of his Ecuadorean colleagues about “paying the puppeteer” that Chevron insists are references to bribes to a judge. (Mr. Donziger says that was a joke, referring to “a former very bossy lawyer” with whom his team has a longstanding fee dispute.)
Sworn statements by environmental consultants who formerly worked with him have contended that he ignored scientific evidence that challenged his allegations of widespread contamination and that he engineered the ghostwriting of the critical report to the Ecuadorean court.
“Donziger created this fiction of massive environmental contamination,” said Kent Robertson, a Chevron spokesman, who acknowledged that the company had hired private investigators to protect itself from fraud.
Mr. Donziger countersued Chevron for fraud and extortion, accusing Chevron of corruption, bribes and threats to officials in Ecuador, but Judge Kaplan dismissed the case this week.
Mr. Donziger denies that he has crossed any ethical line, and says the sworn statements against him were obtained under legal pressure from Chevron, which he refuses to bow to.
“A giant oil company is trying to destroy me because I was able to hold them accountable for toxic dumping on a mass scale,” he said.
By Mr. Donziger’s account, however, Chevron is also feeling the heat. Even though today it has no meaningful operations in Ecuador, it faces enforcement actions to confiscate its assets in Canada, Brazil and Argentina. He added with typical bluster, “As I take the long view, it’s Chevron that faces the risk, not Steven Donziger.”
As he prepared to leave the lobby of his building the other day to take his cocker spaniel for a walk, he said of himself and his family, “It’s stressful, but we’ll be fine.”
WHAT SPARKED THE 'TAVARES' GAS PLANT EXPLOSION? SHOULD WE ASK THE BOSTON MARATHON RUNNERS, OR TAKE THE ADVICE OF THE 'SNOWDENS'?
Posted on 10:17 by Unknown
WHAT SPARKED THE 'TAVARES' GAS PLANT EXPLOSION? SHOULD WE ASK THE BOSTON MARATHON RUNNERS, OR TAKE THE ADVICE OF THE 'SNOWDENS'?
By Amy Pavuk, Stephen Hudak, July 30, 2013
The late-night fireball that set off a series of spectacular explosions at a propane depot in Lake County may have been sparked by equipment failure and human error, Tavares Fire Chief Richard Keith said as federal authorities joined the inquiry.
Investigators were forced to suspend their probe Tuesday amid the smoldering hunks of metal at the Blue Rhino plant because of the risk posed by a huge, leaking storage tank.
The tank, one of three bulk containers holding about 30,000 pounds of liquefied propane, withstood the intense heat that melted vehicles in the employee parking lot but may have been damaged by propane cylinders that flew like missiles from the flames.
Keith wouldn't elaborate on the possible cause but said sabotage was not suspected.
The state Fire Marshal's Office is heading the investigation, but agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, part of a team that investigated April's deadly fire and explosion at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas, were expected to arrive in Tavares late Tuesday.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration also has opened an investigation into the latest incident, said Lindsay Williams, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Labor.
The plant, which refurbishes and fills 20-pound cylinders commonly used to fuel outdoor barbecue grills, passed inspections by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services in March and as recently as July 19 with no violations, according to state records.
Tavares Mayor Robert Wolfe said during a tour of the devastation Tuesday that he has confidence in the company's safety record.
"It would be different if they were continually getting gigged by OSHA on safety issues, but they haven't," he said as firefighters worked to contain a hot spot behind the plant. "The only thing I'd like to see is — if they do plan on reopening, which I hope they do — I'd like to see a little better fail-safe plan in place for the waterlines."
Fire officials said fleeing employees did not manually activate waterlines designed to protect the bulk tanks.
Firefighters, police and paramedics listed injuries to nine people, eight of whom were workers. Five of the injured employees were listed in critical condition Tuesday, according to Jerry Smith, the county's Emergency Medical Services interim executive director.
Names of the injured workers have not been released, and hospitals in Orlando, Ocala and Gainesville said the workers and their families declined interview requests Tuesday.
One of the workers was Kaghy Sam, 29, of Leesburg, who was struck by a sport utility vehicle as he fled the fire and explosions that led to the evacuations of homes and neighborhoods within a mile of the plant.
The man whose car struck Sam, Gene Batson of Mount Dora, described a "fearful" sight as "the pops started and cans started to fly — it sounded like artillery shells going off everywhere."
Batson spotted Sam standing in the middle of the road — seemingly marveling at the spectacle — but didn't have time to react. Batson, 72, said several men fleeing the plant called out to Sam to move, but it was too late. The worker was launched into a ditch, and Batson's vehicle was disabled by the crash.
Batson called 911, but when he tried to approach Sam, the heat overtook him. He said he told the dispatcher he was afraid the fire would reach the three largest propane tanks.
Sam was flown by helicopter to Ocala Regional Medical Center, where he was listed Tuesday in serious condition.
'World War III'
An estimated 53,000 propane canisters were on Blue Rhino's fenced-in property when the fire erupted about 10:30 p.m.
Most ignited, and some flew into the night sky in fiery arcs, clanging dangerously off the large tanks and rolling under trucks, spreading the fire and the risk. One crashed through the roof of Herb Welder's trailer.
"It sounded like World War III," said Welder, who owns 23 acres abutting the plant property and who has been wary of the facility since it opened 10 years ago.
Blue Rhino is a subsidiary of Ferrellgas, based in Overland Park, Kan., and one of 60 licensed petroleum-gas dealers licensed in Central Florida. Company officials offered little explanation or comment Tuesday.
"We know very little so far. It's very early, it's very preliminary," said Ferrellgas spokesman Scott Brockelmeyer, who offered praise for emergency workers.
OSHA had previously cited Blue Rhino's Tavares operation for a "serious" safety violation in October 2011, which involved a power tool used for cleaning, according to an agency document. The violation was corrected.
Fire crews battled Tuesday's blaze with water and foam but, because of the intensity of the fire, were forced to let much of the fire burn itself out.
The flames, which leapt an estimated 200 feet into the air and were visible from Mount Dora and Leesburg, were fed by fuel in the propane canisters, some of which were stacked in trucks parked behind the facility.
Exhausted but relieved firefighters said the fire could have been far worse and more widespread if three bulk storage tanks, each holding 30,000 pounds of liquefied propane, had not withstood the searing heat and high-speed collisions with flying propane canisters.
"The fact that those things didn't explode, that's the reason I go to church on Sundays," said Eric Wages, 44, a Tavares battalion chief whose fire crew was first on the scene Monday night.
Those bulk tanks — and the enormous risk they posed — kept firefighters on edge.
"They're ... mini A-bombs," Lake County Fire & Rescue Battalion Chief Chris Croughwell said.
He feared a larger, more devastating explosion, explaining why he recommended increasing the evacuation area.
Gov. Rick Scott stopped in Tavares briefly Tuesday to praise the work of the first responders.
Residents evacuated
About 24 second-shift workers were in the main building on County Road 448 when the first explosion erupted, said Lt. John Herrell, a spokesman for the Lake County Sheriff's Office. Eight of those on duty at the time were assigned to the plant by a staffing agency.
Keith, the fire chief, said officials "spent a good part of our night actually searching for employees."
Some witnesses who live nearby thought it was fireworks at first. Others thought the sight of flames in the distance was a downed airplane.
The smaller explosions — which also could be felt miles away — continued for half an hour, causing a deluge of 911 calls.
"The windows shook in my house," said Lake County School Board member Debbie Stivender, who lives nearby. "I thought we were being bombed."
Keith said about 60 firefighters from multiple agencies responded to the blaze.
Thousands of twisted cylinders intended for barbecue grills littered nearby railroad tracks and pastures Tuesday morning, landing in smoking heaps.
Roads were closed, and residents from about 50 homes were forced to evacuate but were allowed to return about 2:40 a.m., when the fire was contained.
Crews thought the fire was extinguished by daylight, but even as reporters were granted access to the site Tuesday morning, firefighters discovered burning plastic tank caps in a large container.
"The fact that there are no fatalities is a blessing," Tavares City Administrator John Drury said. "This was a big deal, and a lot of people responded quickly and took care of the situation."
Staff writers Jerry Fallstrom, Susan Jacobson, Lauren Ritchie, Arelis R. Hernández, Ludmilla Lelis and EloÃsa Ruano González contributed to this report.
By Amy Pavuk, Stephen Hudak, July 30, 2013
The late-night fireball that set off a series of spectacular explosions at a propane depot in Lake County may have been sparked by equipment failure and human error, Tavares Fire Chief Richard Keith said as federal authorities joined the inquiry.
Investigators were forced to suspend their probe Tuesday amid the smoldering hunks of metal at the Blue Rhino plant because of the risk posed by a huge, leaking storage tank.
The tank, one of three bulk containers holding about 30,000 pounds of liquefied propane, withstood the intense heat that melted vehicles in the employee parking lot but may have been damaged by propane cylinders that flew like missiles from the flames.
Keith wouldn't elaborate on the possible cause but said sabotage was not suspected.
The state Fire Marshal's Office is heading the investigation, but agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, part of a team that investigated April's deadly fire and explosion at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas, were expected to arrive in Tavares late Tuesday.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration also has opened an investigation into the latest incident, said Lindsay Williams, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Labor.
The plant, which refurbishes and fills 20-pound cylinders commonly used to fuel outdoor barbecue grills, passed inspections by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services in March and as recently as July 19 with no violations, according to state records.
Tavares Mayor Robert Wolfe said during a tour of the devastation Tuesday that he has confidence in the company's safety record.
"It would be different if they were continually getting gigged by OSHA on safety issues, but they haven't," he said as firefighters worked to contain a hot spot behind the plant. "The only thing I'd like to see is — if they do plan on reopening, which I hope they do — I'd like to see a little better fail-safe plan in place for the waterlines."
Fire officials said fleeing employees did not manually activate waterlines designed to protect the bulk tanks.
Firefighters, police and paramedics listed injuries to nine people, eight of whom were workers. Five of the injured employees were listed in critical condition Tuesday, according to Jerry Smith, the county's Emergency Medical Services interim executive director.
Names of the injured workers have not been released, and hospitals in Orlando, Ocala and Gainesville said the workers and their families declined interview requests Tuesday.
One of the workers was Kaghy Sam, 29, of Leesburg, who was struck by a sport utility vehicle as he fled the fire and explosions that led to the evacuations of homes and neighborhoods within a mile of the plant.
The man whose car struck Sam, Gene Batson of Mount Dora, described a "fearful" sight as "the pops started and cans started to fly — it sounded like artillery shells going off everywhere."
Batson spotted Sam standing in the middle of the road — seemingly marveling at the spectacle — but didn't have time to react. Batson, 72, said several men fleeing the plant called out to Sam to move, but it was too late. The worker was launched into a ditch, and Batson's vehicle was disabled by the crash.
Batson called 911, but when he tried to approach Sam, the heat overtook him. He said he told the dispatcher he was afraid the fire would reach the three largest propane tanks.
Sam was flown by helicopter to Ocala Regional Medical Center, where he was listed Tuesday in serious condition.
'World War III'
An estimated 53,000 propane canisters were on Blue Rhino's fenced-in property when the fire erupted about 10:30 p.m.
Most ignited, and some flew into the night sky in fiery arcs, clanging dangerously off the large tanks and rolling under trucks, spreading the fire and the risk. One crashed through the roof of Herb Welder's trailer.
"It sounded like World War III," said Welder, who owns 23 acres abutting the plant property and who has been wary of the facility since it opened 10 years ago.
Blue Rhino is a subsidiary of Ferrellgas, based in Overland Park, Kan., and one of 60 licensed petroleum-gas dealers licensed in Central Florida. Company officials offered little explanation or comment Tuesday.
"We know very little so far. It's very early, it's very preliminary," said Ferrellgas spokesman Scott Brockelmeyer, who offered praise for emergency workers.
OSHA had previously cited Blue Rhino's Tavares operation for a "serious" safety violation in October 2011, which involved a power tool used for cleaning, according to an agency document. The violation was corrected.
Fire crews battled Tuesday's blaze with water and foam but, because of the intensity of the fire, were forced to let much of the fire burn itself out.
The flames, which leapt an estimated 200 feet into the air and were visible from Mount Dora and Leesburg, were fed by fuel in the propane canisters, some of which were stacked in trucks parked behind the facility.
Exhausted but relieved firefighters said the fire could have been far worse and more widespread if three bulk storage tanks, each holding 30,000 pounds of liquefied propane, had not withstood the searing heat and high-speed collisions with flying propane canisters.
"The fact that those things didn't explode, that's the reason I go to church on Sundays," said Eric Wages, 44, a Tavares battalion chief whose fire crew was first on the scene Monday night.
Those bulk tanks — and the enormous risk they posed — kept firefighters on edge.
"They're ... mini A-bombs," Lake County Fire & Rescue Battalion Chief Chris Croughwell said.
He feared a larger, more devastating explosion, explaining why he recommended increasing the evacuation area.
Gov. Rick Scott stopped in Tavares briefly Tuesday to praise the work of the first responders.
Residents evacuated
About 24 second-shift workers were in the main building on County Road 448 when the first explosion erupted, said Lt. John Herrell, a spokesman for the Lake County Sheriff's Office. Eight of those on duty at the time were assigned to the plant by a staffing agency.
Keith, the fire chief, said officials "spent a good part of our night actually searching for employees."
Some witnesses who live nearby thought it was fireworks at first. Others thought the sight of flames in the distance was a downed airplane.
The smaller explosions — which also could be felt miles away — continued for half an hour, causing a deluge of 911 calls.
"The windows shook in my house," said Lake County School Board member Debbie Stivender, who lives nearby. "I thought we were being bombed."
Keith said about 60 firefighters from multiple agencies responded to the blaze.
Thousands of twisted cylinders intended for barbecue grills littered nearby railroad tracks and pastures Tuesday morning, landing in smoking heaps.
Roads were closed, and residents from about 50 homes were forced to evacuate but were allowed to return about 2:40 a.m., when the fire was contained.
Crews thought the fire was extinguished by daylight, but even as reporters were granted access to the site Tuesday morning, firefighters discovered burning plastic tank caps in a large container.
"The fact that there are no fatalities is a blessing," Tavares City Administrator John Drury said. "This was a big deal, and a lot of people responded quickly and took care of the situation."
Staff writers Jerry Fallstrom, Susan Jacobson, Lauren Ritchie, Arelis R. Hernández, Ludmilla Lelis and EloÃsa Ruano González contributed to this report.
U.S.A. SENATE SOUNDLY REJECTS PROPOSAL TO HALT AID TO EGYPT IN TRANSITION TO DEMOCRATIC CONSTITUTIONAL FORM OF GOVERNANCE
Posted on 09:27 by Unknown
U.S.A. SENATE SOUNDLY REJECTS PROPOSAL TO HALT AID TO EGYPT IN TRANSITION TO DEMOCRATIC CONSTITUTIONAL FORM OF GOVERNANCE
Townhall, July 31, 2013
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has roundly rejected a proposal to redirect U.S. aid for Egypt into bridge-building projects in the United States.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky's amendment to next year's transportation bill would have halted the $1.5 billion in mainly military assistance the U.S. provides Egypt each year. He cited the U.S. law prohibiting aid after military coups and the need to reinvest the money in the United States.
The Senate voted 86-13 against Paul's proposal Wednesday.
Many Democrats and Republicans in Congress see continued aid to Egypt as critical to its stability and neighboring Israel's security.
For those reasons, the Obama administration is refusing to call the Egyptian army's July 3 overthrow of Mohammed Morsi a coup.
Townhall, July 31, 2013
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has roundly rejected a proposal to redirect U.S. aid for Egypt into bridge-building projects in the United States.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky's amendment to next year's transportation bill would have halted the $1.5 billion in mainly military assistance the U.S. provides Egypt each year. He cited the U.S. law prohibiting aid after military coups and the need to reinvest the money in the United States.
The Senate voted 86-13 against Paul's proposal Wednesday.
Many Democrats and Republicans in Congress see continued aid to Egypt as critical to its stability and neighboring Israel's security.
For those reasons, the Obama administration is refusing to call the Egyptian army's July 3 overthrow of Mohammed Morsi a coup.
RAMIREZ EDITORIAL CARTOON * JULY 31, 2013
Posted on 09:20 by Unknown
http://www.investors.com/editorial-cartoons/michael-ramirez/665723
JACKSON-LEE'S 'MUSLIM MAFIA': A HOMELAND SECURITY CHIEF IN BED WITH ISLAMIC TERRORISTS?
Posted on 09:17 by Unknown
JACKSON-LEE'S 'MUSLIM MAFIA': A HOMELAND SECURITY CHIEF IN BED WITH ISLAMIC TERRORISTS?
July 30, 2013, INVESTORS BUSINESS DAILY EDITORIALS
Cabinet: Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee reportedly is vying to replace Janet Napolitano as Homeland Security secretary. It would be hard to find a choice worse than the gonzo Houston Democrat.
Jackson-Lee has the backing of the Congressional Black Caucus, which has been aggressively lobbying President Obama to diversify his Cabinet.
Given Obama's radical second-term picks — from Thomas Perez to Mel Watt — we can't be sure he'll pass on the recommendation, nutty as it is.
According to the Houston Chronicle, the head of the Black Caucus last week in a letter to Obama praised Jackson-Lee as a "voice of reason" for Homeland Security, giving a whole new meaning to "reason."
Jackson-Lee's outrageous remarks over the years — including her comment that welfare entitlements are "earned," and famously asking where she could find photos of our flag planted on Mars — have made her a laughingstock.
Still, the letter asserts, "Rep. Jackson-Lee would serve as an effective DHS secretary because she understands the importance of increasing border security and maintaining homeland security."
Yes, Jackson-Lee currently serves on a homeland security subcommittee. But she's never run any organization, certainly not one as big and critical as DHS.
And Jackson-Lee actually voted against the Homeland Security Act of 2002, which created the DHS.
More concerning is Jackson-Lee's free association with people DHS is supposed to protect us from. She's in the pocket of Islamist groups who support terrorism.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, she is among the top 10 recipients of Arab-Muslim cash and has helped unindicted terrorist co-conspirators raise cash.
At one annual fundraiser for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, she presented the terror-tied group with a congressional recognition award — even though the FBI has banned the group from outreach meetings.
"How proud I am to have been associated with CAIR's legislative work," she said at a 2007 CAIR event. "We need CAIR and we need all of you supporting CAIR."
That same year, she placed at least one CAIR worker in her office, according to "Muslim Mafia."
This isn't someone who should be running an agency dedicated to protecting us from Islamic terrorists.
July 30, 2013, INVESTORS BUSINESS DAILY EDITORIALS
Cabinet: Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee reportedly is vying to replace Janet Napolitano as Homeland Security secretary. It would be hard to find a choice worse than the gonzo Houston Democrat.
Jackson-Lee has the backing of the Congressional Black Caucus, which has been aggressively lobbying President Obama to diversify his Cabinet.
Given Obama's radical second-term picks — from Thomas Perez to Mel Watt — we can't be sure he'll pass on the recommendation, nutty as it is.
According to the Houston Chronicle, the head of the Black Caucus last week in a letter to Obama praised Jackson-Lee as a "voice of reason" for Homeland Security, giving a whole new meaning to "reason."
Jackson-Lee's outrageous remarks over the years — including her comment that welfare entitlements are "earned," and famously asking where she could find photos of our flag planted on Mars — have made her a laughingstock.
Still, the letter asserts, "Rep. Jackson-Lee would serve as an effective DHS secretary because she understands the importance of increasing border security and maintaining homeland security."
Yes, Jackson-Lee currently serves on a homeland security subcommittee. But she's never run any organization, certainly not one as big and critical as DHS.
And Jackson-Lee actually voted against the Homeland Security Act of 2002, which created the DHS.
More concerning is Jackson-Lee's free association with people DHS is supposed to protect us from. She's in the pocket of Islamist groups who support terrorism.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, she is among the top 10 recipients of Arab-Muslim cash and has helped unindicted terrorist co-conspirators raise cash.
At one annual fundraiser for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, she presented the terror-tied group with a congressional recognition award — even though the FBI has banned the group from outreach meetings.
"How proud I am to have been associated with CAIR's legislative work," she said at a 2007 CAIR event. "We need CAIR and we need all of you supporting CAIR."
That same year, she placed at least one CAIR worker in her office, according to "Muslim Mafia."
This isn't someone who should be running an agency dedicated to protecting us from Islamic terrorists.
NINE U.S. WOMEN HAVE FILED A U.S.A. FEDERAL LAWSUIT AGAINST BRITISH DEFENSE CONTRACTOR, BAE, FOR CRIMINAL SEXUAL HARASSMENT WHILE CONTRACTING WORK ON U.S.A. SOIL IN U.S.A. SHPYARDS
Posted on 09:11 by Unknown
NINE U.S. WOMEN HAVE FILED A U.S.A. FEDERAL LAWSUIT AGAINST BRITISH DEFENSE CONTRACTOR, BAE, FOR CRIMINAL SEXUAL HARASSMENT WHILE CONTRACTING WORK ON U.S.A. SOIL IN U.S.A. SHPYARDS
By Robert McCabe The Virginian-Pilot © July 31, 2013
NORFOLK
Nine women have filed a complaint in federal court against BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair Inc., alleging that the company sexually discriminated against them by denying them equal pay and allowing a hostile work environment.
The lawsuit, which seeks class-action status, was filed Monday on behalf of the women and all other non-managerial female employees at BAE's shipyard from Oct. 5, 2007, to the present. Eight of the nine women listed as plaintiffs still work at the yard.
"The complaint alleges a pervasive culture of discrimination against women at the BAE shipyard," said Joshua Friedman, the New York-based attorney for the plaintiffs.
The discrimination, Friedman said, begins with the shipyard executive responsible for the day-to-day operations and extends to managers who, he said, frequently communicate their belief that women do not belong there.
"Women should be home cooking my dinner while I'm out working," a weld supervisor told one plaintiff, the suit alleges.
In a statement, BAE disputed the allegations.
"BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair values its employees and is committed to treating each and every one fairly and with respect," Neil Franz, a spokesman, wrote in an email. "We treat allegations of discrimination very seriously and have well-established policies prohibiting discrimination in our workplace. BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair disagrees with the allegations in the lawsuit, and will respond appropriately."
The allegations include graphic accounts of sexual harassment. One plaintiff who made such allegations eventually resigned late last year.
"Over the past four years I have been subjected to frequent vulgar language, offensive comments about women's bodies, offensive physical contact and romantic come-ons, bigoted statements about women's role in the workplace, and more, from management, coworkers and contractors working at BAE," she said in her resignation letter, cited in the suit.
All of the plaintiffs had filed grievances with the company and most later took their complaints to the
The commission eventually issued notices to them advising them of their right to sue while the
The suit states that as of early fall 2012, "there were only one or two female supervisors" in BAE
It alleges that at about the same time, when BAE officials learned that a lawsuit could be filed, more women were made supervisors. Among other things, the suit demands back pay, damages for lost compensation and job benefits, and damages for emotional distress.
By Robert McCabe The Virginian-Pilot © July 31, 2013
NORFOLK
Nine women have filed a complaint in federal court against BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair Inc., alleging that the company sexually discriminated against them by denying them equal pay and allowing a hostile work environment.
The lawsuit, which seeks class-action status, was filed Monday on behalf of the women and all other non-managerial female employees at BAE's shipyard from Oct. 5, 2007, to the present. Eight of the nine women listed as plaintiffs still work at the yard.
"The complaint alleges a pervasive culture of discrimination against women at the BAE shipyard," said Joshua Friedman, the New York-based attorney for the plaintiffs.
The discrimination, Friedman said, begins with the shipyard executive responsible for the day-to-day operations and extends to managers who, he said, frequently communicate their belief that women do not belong there.
"Women should be home cooking my dinner while I'm out working," a weld supervisor told one plaintiff, the suit alleges.
In a statement, BAE disputed the allegations.
"BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair values its employees and is committed to treating each and every one fairly and with respect," Neil Franz, a spokesman, wrote in an email. "We treat allegations of discrimination very seriously and have well-established policies prohibiting discrimination in our workplace. BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair disagrees with the allegations in the lawsuit, and will respond appropriately."
The allegations include graphic accounts of sexual harassment. One plaintiff who made such allegations eventually resigned late last year.
"Over the past four years I have been subjected to frequent vulgar language, offensive comments about women's bodies, offensive physical contact and romantic come-ons, bigoted statements about women's role in the workplace, and more, from management, coworkers and contractors working at BAE," she said in her resignation letter, cited in the suit.
All of the plaintiffs had filed grievances with the company and most later took their complaints to the
The commission eventually issued notices to them advising them of their right to sue while the
The suit states that as of early fall 2012, "there were only one or two female supervisors" in BAE
It alleges that at about the same time, when BAE officials learned that a lawsuit could be filed, more women were made supervisors. Among other things, the suit demands back pay, damages for lost compensation and job benefits, and damages for emotional distress.
SOVIET UNIONIZED TEAMSTER ANDY SMITH TO LEAVE SBERBANK CIB AFTER APOLOGY OVER RIVAL'S REPORT
Posted on 09:03 by Unknown
SOVIET UNIONIZED TEAMSTER ANDY SMITH TO LEAVE SBERBANK CIB AFTER APOLOGY OVER RIVAL'S REPORT
By Ksenia Galouchko and Jason Corcoran July 31, 2013 Bloomberg
Andy Smith, Sberbank CIB’s head of equity research, said he is leaving the Russian investment bank after signing off on a corporate governance report using unattributed material from a competitor’s research note.
Sberbank CIB, the investment banking arm of Russia’s biggest lender, said in a July 26 statement that it had apologized for failing to give “appropriate referencing” to a 2012 research note by Moscow-based Aton Capital.
“As lead author of a recent research report, I take full responsibility for the content, conclusions and subsequent issues raised by this report,” Smith said in statement e-mailed by Sberbank CIB today. “In the interest of all parties involved, I have made the decision to step down.”
To fight plagiarism in Russia, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev appointed Igor Fedyukin, then deputy education minister, in March to try to stamp out the practice of awarding unmerited doctorates to politicians and businessmen. A commission headed by Fedyukin, who has since stepped down, discovered “a fake thesis factory” at a Moscow college.
In 2006, President Vladimir Putin faced scrutiny over a degree he’d received about a decade earlier from the St. Petersburg State Mining Institute when researchers at the Brookings Institution said that 16 pages were reproduced almost verbatim from a study by two University of Pittsburgh professors. Putin hasn’t publicly addressed the claims.
Presentation Pulled Sberbank CIB pulled its presentation of the research note to investors in the U.S. after Finparty.ru published the accusations last week, Vedomosti reported on July 26. An intern may have copied part of the Aton report, two people with knowledge of the matter said, asking not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue.
Along with Smith, who had joined state-controlled Sberbank in March of last year, the report lists chief strategist Kingsmill Bond and analysts Andrey Kuznetsov and Iskander Abdullaev as authors on the report. Abdullaev declined to comment, while Bond and Kuznetsov didn’t reply to e-mails or calls to their office phones seeking comment.
Paolo Zaniboni, the London-based head of the investment research department, will take managerial responsibility for the equity research team until further notice, according to Sberbank’s statement.
Sberbank Investment Research was named Russia’s leading brokerage in June in the 2013 Thomson Reuters Extel survey after its analysts topped the rankings in nine categories. The research team was also voted Russia’s best in Institutional Investor’s 2013 ranking, the bank said. Smith won best head of research in Europe, Middle East and Africa from Sammons Associates, a London executive-search company.
State-controlled OAO Sberbank, which holds just less than 50 percent of the nation’s deposits, acquired Troika Dialog brokerage group in January 2011 for an initial $1 billion. Troika, Russia’s oldest brokerage, was rebranded Sberbank CIB last year.
To contact the reporters on this story: Ksenia Galouchko in Moscow at kgalouchko1@bloomberg.net ; Jason Corcoran in Moscow at jcorcoran13@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Wojciech Moskwa at wmoskwa@bloomberg.net
By Ksenia Galouchko and Jason Corcoran July 31, 2013 Bloomberg
Andy Smith, Sberbank CIB’s head of equity research, said he is leaving the Russian investment bank after signing off on a corporate governance report using unattributed material from a competitor’s research note.
Sberbank CIB, the investment banking arm of Russia’s biggest lender, said in a July 26 statement that it had apologized for failing to give “appropriate referencing” to a 2012 research note by Moscow-based Aton Capital.
“As lead author of a recent research report, I take full responsibility for the content, conclusions and subsequent issues raised by this report,” Smith said in statement e-mailed by Sberbank CIB today. “In the interest of all parties involved, I have made the decision to step down.”
To fight plagiarism in Russia, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev appointed Igor Fedyukin, then deputy education minister, in March to try to stamp out the practice of awarding unmerited doctorates to politicians and businessmen. A commission headed by Fedyukin, who has since stepped down, discovered “a fake thesis factory” at a Moscow college.
In 2006, President Vladimir Putin faced scrutiny over a degree he’d received about a decade earlier from the St. Petersburg State Mining Institute when researchers at the Brookings Institution said that 16 pages were reproduced almost verbatim from a study by two University of Pittsburgh professors. Putin hasn’t publicly addressed the claims.
Presentation Pulled Sberbank CIB pulled its presentation of the research note to investors in the U.S. after Finparty.ru published the accusations last week, Vedomosti reported on July 26. An intern may have copied part of the Aton report, two people with knowledge of the matter said, asking not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue.
Along with Smith, who had joined state-controlled Sberbank in March of last year, the report lists chief strategist Kingsmill Bond and analysts Andrey Kuznetsov and Iskander Abdullaev as authors on the report. Abdullaev declined to comment, while Bond and Kuznetsov didn’t reply to e-mails or calls to their office phones seeking comment.
Paolo Zaniboni, the London-based head of the investment research department, will take managerial responsibility for the equity research team until further notice, according to Sberbank’s statement.
Sberbank Investment Research was named Russia’s leading brokerage in June in the 2013 Thomson Reuters Extel survey after its analysts topped the rankings in nine categories. The research team was also voted Russia’s best in Institutional Investor’s 2013 ranking, the bank said. Smith won best head of research in Europe, Middle East and Africa from Sammons Associates, a London executive-search company.
State-controlled OAO Sberbank, which holds just less than 50 percent of the nation’s deposits, acquired Troika Dialog brokerage group in January 2011 for an initial $1 billion. Troika, Russia’s oldest brokerage, was rebranded Sberbank CIB last year.
To contact the reporters on this story: Ksenia Galouchko in Moscow at kgalouchko1@bloomberg.net ; Jason Corcoran in Moscow at jcorcoran13@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Wojciech Moskwa at wmoskwa@bloomberg.net
JP MORGAN CHASE UNDER INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION IN MONTE PASCHI PROBE
Posted on 09:03 by Unknown
JP MORGAN CHASE UNDER INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION IN MONTE PASCHI PROBE
By Silvia Ognibene and Silvia Aloisi, July 31, 2013
SIENA/MILAN (Reuters) - Italian prosecutors probing Monte dei Paschi's 2007 acquisition of a smaller rival are investigating U.S. investment bank JP Morgan over an alleged crime committed by one of its employees, according to a prosecutors' document.
The document, seen by Reuters, said the alleged crime was the obstruction of Italian regulators by an unknown JP Morgan employee relating to a 1 billion euro ($1.3 billion) hybrid financial instrument used to partly fund Monte dei Paschi's purchase of Antonveneta.
JP Morgan denied any wrongdoing and said it would defend itself vigorously. "We believe that JP Morgan and its employees acted correctly at all times," it said in an emailed statement.
Monte dei Paschi is also under investigation in the probe for a range of alleged crimes including market manipulation and making false statements to the market, as are its former chairman Giuseppe Mussari, its former director general Antonio Vigni and seven other former bank employees.
Under Italy's 231 law, a company can be held responsible if it is deemed that it failed to prevent, or attempted to prevent, a crime by an employee that benefited the company.
In the document, Italian prosecutors allege the JP Morgan employee failed to inform the Bank of Italy of a deal which they say violated requirements set by the central bank over the hybrid instrument, known as FRESH 2008.
They allege the unknown employee had "a representative, administrative and management role" at the U.S. bank.
The document, which wraps up a preliminary investigation started in October 2011 and was sent to all the parties involved, says the alleged crime was committed "in the interest and to the benefit of JP Morgan".
The FRESH 2008 instruments in question were essentially notes convertible into Monte dei Paschi's shares that JP Morgan sold to a number of investors.
The prosecutors allege that Monte dei Paschi struck a so-called indemnity agreement with JP Morgan which protected the U.S. bank from potential losses related to FRESH 2008.
JP MORGAN DENIES ALLEGATIONS
JP Morgan said it never benefited from the indemnity, which it said "only existed for a matter of days."
"No claim was ever made under this indemnity ... either for the benefit of JP Morgan or any of its employees," it said.
The FRESH notes were issued as part of a deal under which JP Morgan underwrote a 950 million euro capital increase in Monte dei Paschi to help the Italian bank fund the acquisition of Antonveneta from Spain's Santander. The acquisition was announced in November 2007 and completed in May 2008.
Prosecutors allege the deal hid the real risks faced by Monte dei Paschi, which was already stretched and struggling to afford the 9 billion euro price tag for Antonveneta.
They also allege the indemnity agreement violated requirements set by the Bank of Italy by making FRESH 2008 work like a bond rather than an hybrid equity instrument.
Monte dei Paschi needed to show the Bank of Italy that it had sufficient equity capital in place to win approval for Antonveneta takeover.
Based on the information officially received from the bank, the regulator allowed Monte dei Paschi to calculate those notes as core Tier 1 capital, a measure of a bank's financial strength which is closely monitored by regulators, boosting its capital base and allowing it to demonstrate its finances were solid enough to absorb the Antonveneta deal.
The central bank had initially raised objections about the FRESH operation, saying in its original form its was too similar to a bond, and demanded changes to ensure that if Monte dei Paschi made no profit, it would have no financial obligations towards JP Morgan or the investors in FRESH 2008.
However, prosecutors allege the secret indemnity agreements violated that requirement, putting the financial burden of the operation squarely on Monte dei Paschi.
The Monte dei Paschi probe widened this year to loss-making derivative contracts carried out by its previous management. The lender received a 4 billion euros state bailout in February.
($1 = 0.7547 euros)
(Writing by Silvia Aloisi; Editing by Patrick Graham and Mark Potter)
By Silvia Ognibene and Silvia Aloisi, July 31, 2013
SIENA/MILAN (Reuters) - Italian prosecutors probing Monte dei Paschi's 2007 acquisition of a smaller rival are investigating U.S. investment bank JP Morgan over an alleged crime committed by one of its employees, according to a prosecutors' document.
The document, seen by Reuters, said the alleged crime was the obstruction of Italian regulators by an unknown JP Morgan employee relating to a 1 billion euro ($1.3 billion) hybrid financial instrument used to partly fund Monte dei Paschi's purchase of Antonveneta.
JP Morgan denied any wrongdoing and said it would defend itself vigorously. "We believe that JP Morgan and its employees acted correctly at all times," it said in an emailed statement.
Monte dei Paschi is also under investigation in the probe for a range of alleged crimes including market manipulation and making false statements to the market, as are its former chairman Giuseppe Mussari, its former director general Antonio Vigni and seven other former bank employees.
Under Italy's 231 law, a company can be held responsible if it is deemed that it failed to prevent, or attempted to prevent, a crime by an employee that benefited the company.
In the document, Italian prosecutors allege the JP Morgan employee failed to inform the Bank of Italy of a deal which they say violated requirements set by the central bank over the hybrid instrument, known as FRESH 2008.
They allege the unknown employee had "a representative, administrative and management role" at the U.S. bank.
The document, which wraps up a preliminary investigation started in October 2011 and was sent to all the parties involved, says the alleged crime was committed "in the interest and to the benefit of JP Morgan".
The FRESH 2008 instruments in question were essentially notes convertible into Monte dei Paschi's shares that JP Morgan sold to a number of investors.
The prosecutors allege that Monte dei Paschi struck a so-called indemnity agreement with JP Morgan which protected the U.S. bank from potential losses related to FRESH 2008.
JP MORGAN DENIES ALLEGATIONS
JP Morgan said it never benefited from the indemnity, which it said "only existed for a matter of days."
"No claim was ever made under this indemnity ... either for the benefit of JP Morgan or any of its employees," it said.
The FRESH notes were issued as part of a deal under which JP Morgan underwrote a 950 million euro capital increase in Monte dei Paschi to help the Italian bank fund the acquisition of Antonveneta from Spain's Santander. The acquisition was announced in November 2007 and completed in May 2008.
Prosecutors allege the deal hid the real risks faced by Monte dei Paschi, which was already stretched and struggling to afford the 9 billion euro price tag for Antonveneta.
They also allege the indemnity agreement violated requirements set by the Bank of Italy by making FRESH 2008 work like a bond rather than an hybrid equity instrument.
Monte dei Paschi needed to show the Bank of Italy that it had sufficient equity capital in place to win approval for Antonveneta takeover.
Based on the information officially received from the bank, the regulator allowed Monte dei Paschi to calculate those notes as core Tier 1 capital, a measure of a bank's financial strength which is closely monitored by regulators, boosting its capital base and allowing it to demonstrate its finances were solid enough to absorb the Antonveneta deal.
The central bank had initially raised objections about the FRESH operation, saying in its original form its was too similar to a bond, and demanded changes to ensure that if Monte dei Paschi made no profit, it would have no financial obligations towards JP Morgan or the investors in FRESH 2008.
However, prosecutors allege the secret indemnity agreements violated that requirement, putting the financial burden of the operation squarely on Monte dei Paschi.
The Monte dei Paschi probe widened this year to loss-making derivative contracts carried out by its previous management. The lender received a 4 billion euros state bailout in February.
($1 = 0.7547 euros)
(Writing by Silvia Aloisi; Editing by Patrick Graham and Mark Potter)
U.S.A. SENATE SOUNDLY REJECTS PROPOSAL TO HALT AID TO EGYPT IN TRANSITION TO DEMOCRATIC CONSTITUTIONAL FORM OF GOVERNANCE
Posted on 08:54 by Unknown
U.S.A. SENATE SOUNDLY REJECTS PROPOSAL TO HALT AID TO EGYPT IN TRANSITION TO DEMOCRATIC CONSTITUTIONAL FORM OF GOVERNANCE
Townhall, July 31, 2013
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has roundly rejected a proposal to redirect U.S. aid for Egypt into bridge-building projects in the United States.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky's amendment to next year's transportation bill would have halted the $1.5 billion in mainly military assistance the U.S. provides Egypt each year. He cited the U.S. law prohibiting aid after military coups and the need to reinvest the money in the United States.
The Senate voted 86-13 against Paul's proposal Wednesday.
Many Democrats and Republicans in Congress see continued aid to Egypt as critical to its stability and neighboring Israel's security.
For those reasons, the Obama administration is refusing to call the Egyptian army's July 3 overthrow of Mohammed Morsi a coup.
Townhall, July 31, 2013
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has roundly rejected a proposal to redirect U.S. aid for Egypt into bridge-building projects in the United States.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky's amendment to next year's transportation bill would have halted the $1.5 billion in mainly military assistance the U.S. provides Egypt each year. He cited the U.S. law prohibiting aid after military coups and the need to reinvest the money in the United States.
The Senate voted 86-13 against Paul's proposal Wednesday.
Many Democrats and Republicans in Congress see continued aid to Egypt as critical to its stability and neighboring Israel's security.
For those reasons, the Obama administration is refusing to call the Egyptian army's July 3 overthrow of Mohammed Morsi a coup.
U.S.A. SENATE PANEL MOVES TO GUT PENTAGON MONEY FOR CONTRACT WITH RUSSIAN FIRM SUPPLYING WEAPONS TO BASHIR AL ASSAD, RESPONSIBLE FOR OVER 100,000 KILLINGS TO DATE
Posted on 08:45 by Unknown
U.S.A. SENATE PANEL MOVES TO GUT PENTAGON MONEY FOR CONTRACT WITH RUSSIAN FIRM SUPPLYING WEAPONS TO BASHIR AL ASSAD, RESPONSIBLE FOR OVER 100,000 KILLINGS TO DATE
July 31, 2013, Fox News
A U.S.A. Senate panel is pushing to strip funding for helicopter contracts with a Russian firm supplying the Syrian regime, after the Pentagon tried to defy congressional warnings and move ahead with the chopper deal.
The Senate Defense Appropriations subcommittee on Tuesday signed off on a 2014 defense spending bill that guts funding for the Mi-17 helicopters and includes restrictions on purchases from the Russian company that makes them -- Rosoboronexport.
The move is the latest play in a long-running dispute between the Pentagon and Congress. The Pentagon last month announced a new contract with the company, to produce military helicopters that will go to Afghan security forces. The Pentagon argues the helicopters are the only option, but Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas --who has led the charge against them -- is adamant that the U.S. find an alternative considering the company's ties to the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
The decision by the leaders of the defense subcommittee to strip the funding was hailed by Cornyn.
"The Obama administration's arrogant circumvention of Congress' efforts to put an end to our role in subsidizing Assad's murderous campaign against his own people is mystifying and disturbing, particularly when there are other ways to provide helicopters for the Afghans," he said in a statement. "American taxpayers should not be indirectly subsidizing the murder of Syrian civilians, and I'm pleased committee leaders have joined this effort to end our relationship with Assad's arms supplier."
Cornyn first challenged the Pentagon over a prior contract with Rosoboronexport last year, and was able to successfully pass an amendment in November barring the use of funds for contracts with the company.
But the latest contract used money from the fiscal 2012 budget, which was approved before Cornyn's amendment.
The most recent $572 million contract would purchase 30 Mi-17 helicopters for Afghan security forces, which deals with counterterrorism and other missions. The contract also includes spare parts, test equipment and engineering support services. The contract lasts through the end of 2014. It's unclear whether Congress can do anything about that particular helicopter purchase, or just block future purchases.
The Pentagon has defended its arrangements with Rosoboronexport, arguing that the Mi-17 helicopters are "uniquely suited" for Afghanistan.
Spokeswoman Maureen Schumann said last month that the Russian government has notified the U.S. that Rosoboronexport is the "sole legal exporter of Mi-17s for military use."
"The department explored whether there were any alternatives to contracting with Rosoboronexport to meet this requirement, but none were identified," she told FoxNews.com.
As for the company's work with Syria, Russia's government has claimed the company's arms cannot be used against Syria's civilian population.
But Human Rights Watch claimed last year that Rosoboronexport nevertheless appears to be Syria's main weapons supplier, questioning how the company tracks how its weapons are being used.
The Pentagon contract comes at a vital time, as the Obama administration steps up its support for the anti-Assad opposition by pledging to provide small arms to certain opposition groups. The contract potentially puts the U.S. government in the uncomfortable position of funding a company that is aiding the other side of that civil war.
Despite Russia's claims, a Pentagon official wrote a letter to Cornyn in March 2012 that acknowledged "evidence" that Rosoboronexport's arms "are being used by Syrian forces against Syria's civilian population."
July 31, 2013, Fox News
A U.S.A. Senate panel is pushing to strip funding for helicopter contracts with a Russian firm supplying the Syrian regime, after the Pentagon tried to defy congressional warnings and move ahead with the chopper deal.
The Senate Defense Appropriations subcommittee on Tuesday signed off on a 2014 defense spending bill that guts funding for the Mi-17 helicopters and includes restrictions on purchases from the Russian company that makes them -- Rosoboronexport.
The move is the latest play in a long-running dispute between the Pentagon and Congress. The Pentagon last month announced a new contract with the company, to produce military helicopters that will go to Afghan security forces. The Pentagon argues the helicopters are the only option, but Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas --who has led the charge against them -- is adamant that the U.S. find an alternative considering the company's ties to the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
The decision by the leaders of the defense subcommittee to strip the funding was hailed by Cornyn.
"The Obama administration's arrogant circumvention of Congress' efforts to put an end to our role in subsidizing Assad's murderous campaign against his own people is mystifying and disturbing, particularly when there are other ways to provide helicopters for the Afghans," he said in a statement. "American taxpayers should not be indirectly subsidizing the murder of Syrian civilians, and I'm pleased committee leaders have joined this effort to end our relationship with Assad's arms supplier."
Cornyn first challenged the Pentagon over a prior contract with Rosoboronexport last year, and was able to successfully pass an amendment in November barring the use of funds for contracts with the company.
But the latest contract used money from the fiscal 2012 budget, which was approved before Cornyn's amendment.
The most recent $572 million contract would purchase 30 Mi-17 helicopters for Afghan security forces, which deals with counterterrorism and other missions. The contract also includes spare parts, test equipment and engineering support services. The contract lasts through the end of 2014. It's unclear whether Congress can do anything about that particular helicopter purchase, or just block future purchases.
The Pentagon has defended its arrangements with Rosoboronexport, arguing that the Mi-17 helicopters are "uniquely suited" for Afghanistan.
Spokeswoman Maureen Schumann said last month that the Russian government has notified the U.S. that Rosoboronexport is the "sole legal exporter of Mi-17s for military use."
"The department explored whether there were any alternatives to contracting with Rosoboronexport to meet this requirement, but none were identified," she told FoxNews.com.
As for the company's work with Syria, Russia's government has claimed the company's arms cannot be used against Syria's civilian population.
But Human Rights Watch claimed last year that Rosoboronexport nevertheless appears to be Syria's main weapons supplier, questioning how the company tracks how its weapons are being used.
The Pentagon contract comes at a vital time, as the Obama administration steps up its support for the anti-Assad opposition by pledging to provide small arms to certain opposition groups. The contract potentially puts the U.S. government in the uncomfortable position of funding a company that is aiding the other side of that civil war.
Despite Russia's claims, a Pentagon official wrote a letter to Cornyn in March 2012 that acknowledged "evidence" that Rosoboronexport's arms "are being used by Syrian forces against Syria's civilian population."
SAN DIEGO CITY COUNCIL VOTES TO FILE LAWSUIT AGAINST DEMOCRAT MAYOR BOB FILNER FOR CRIMINAL SEXUAL HARASSMENT RIOTS
Posted on 08:43 by Unknown
SAN DIEGO CITY COUNCIL VOTES TO FILE LAWSUIT AGAINST DEMOCRAT MAYOR BOB FILNER FOR CRIMINAL SEXUAL HARASSMENT RIOTS
July 31, 2013, Newsmax,
The San Diego City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to sue Mayor Bob Filner to shield the city from liability in a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against the mayor by his former press secretary.
The City Attorney's Office said in a statement that the council voted unanimously in closed session on Tuesday to authorize the filing of what amounts to a new lawsuit against the mayor.
"If Bob Filner engaged in unlawful conduct and the city is held liable, he will have to reimburse us every penny the city pays and its attorney fees," City Attorney Jan Goldsmith said in a statement.
Seven women have publicly accused Filner of unwanted sexual advances.
Editor's Note: ObamaCare Is About to Strike Are You Prepared?
One of them, former press secretary Irene McCormack Jackson, filed a sexual harassment lawsuit on July 22. The City Council's action is meant to protect city funds in that case.
The other women include a retired U.S. Navy admiral and a college dean.
The decision by the City Council on Tuesday to authorize a legal action against the mayor came on the same day the council was set to discuss a request from Filner's private attorney, Harvey Berger, that the city pay the costs of defending the mayor in the sexual harassment lawsuit. That discussion was set for Tuesday evening. Goldsmith has declined to defend the mayor.
Filner, a 70-year-old Democrat, faces mounting pressure to resign over the allegations against him. Last week, he acknowledged a "failure to respect women" and vowed to attend two weeks of counseling beginning on Aug. 5, but he has refused to step down. (Reporting by Marty Graham; Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Greg McCune, Bernard Orr)
© 2013 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.
July 31, 2013, Newsmax,
The San Diego City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to sue Mayor Bob Filner to shield the city from liability in a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against the mayor by his former press secretary.
The City Attorney's Office said in a statement that the council voted unanimously in closed session on Tuesday to authorize the filing of what amounts to a new lawsuit against the mayor.
"If Bob Filner engaged in unlawful conduct and the city is held liable, he will have to reimburse us every penny the city pays and its attorney fees," City Attorney Jan Goldsmith said in a statement.
Seven women have publicly accused Filner of unwanted sexual advances.
Editor's Note: ObamaCare Is About to Strike Are You Prepared?
One of them, former press secretary Irene McCormack Jackson, filed a sexual harassment lawsuit on July 22. The City Council's action is meant to protect city funds in that case.
The other women include a retired U.S. Navy admiral and a college dean.
The decision by the City Council on Tuesday to authorize a legal action against the mayor came on the same day the council was set to discuss a request from Filner's private attorney, Harvey Berger, that the city pay the costs of defending the mayor in the sexual harassment lawsuit. That discussion was set for Tuesday evening. Goldsmith has declined to defend the mayor.
Filner, a 70-year-old Democrat, faces mounting pressure to resign over the allegations against him. Last week, he acknowledged a "failure to respect women" and vowed to attend two weeks of counseling beginning on Aug. 5, but he has refused to step down. (Reporting by Marty Graham; Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Greg McCune, Bernard Orr)
© 2013 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.
Tuesday 30 July 2013
U.S.A. HOUSE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE HEARING: BENGHAZI TERRORIST ATTACK 09/11/12 - JULY 31, 2013
Posted on 14:23 by Unknown
TOWNHALL.COM * CARTOON * JULY 30, 2013
Posted on 14:23 by Unknown
http://media.townhall.com/Townhall/Car/b/Foden20130731-Alien20130730013513.jpg
OBAMA PURCHASES BOMBS TO KILL CHRISTIANS IN SYRIA - (VIDEO)
Posted on 14:15 by Unknown
OBAMA PURCHASES BOMBS TO KILL CHRISTIANS IN SYRIA - (VIDEO)
July 30, 2013, IMPEACHOBAMACAMPAIGN.COM
Tragically, the Obama Administration has allied itself with the enemies of freedom and of Western Civilization. This video is narrated by William Murray, son of famous atheist Madeline Murray O’Hair.
WATCH YOUTUBE VIDEO HERE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JpBYlBEvoo&feature=youtube_gdata_player
July 30, 2013, IMPEACHOBAMACAMPAIGN.COM
Tragically, the Obama Administration has allied itself with the enemies of freedom and of Western Civilization. This video is narrated by William Murray, son of famous atheist Madeline Murray O’Hair.
WATCH YOUTUBE VIDEO HERE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JpBYlBEvoo&feature=youtube_gdata_player
UNITED AIRLINES CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE & HIS 'GANG MEMBERS' FACE U.S.A. FEDERAL INDICTMENT FOR STALKING ASIANA CRASH VICTIM/PASSENGERS & STEALING THEIR LUGGAGE
Posted on 13:59 by Unknown
UNITED AIRLINES CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE & HIS 'GANG MEMBERS' FACE U.S.A. FEDERAL INDICTMENT FOR STALKING ASIANA CRASH VICTIM/PASSENGERS & STEALING THEIR LUGGAGE
Published July 30, 2013 | FoxNews.com
**********
PHOTOS:
http://global.fncstatic.com/static/managed/img/U.S./KTVUMUGS.jpg
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A United Airlines customer service representative was charged Monday with stealing luggage from travelers whose flights were diverted after the Asiana Airlines crash.
"It was a crime of opportunity and the opportunity was there," Sgt. Wesley Matsuura, from the San Mateo Sheriff’s Department, told KTVU.com.
According to the report, Sean Crudup, 44, and his girlfriend, Raychas Thomas, 32, could be seen on surveillance footage allegedly taking bags with another unidentified woman.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the alleged victims' luggage contained clothing worth $30,000. The diverted passengers made the drive from Los Angeles to San Francisco after their plane was re-routed. When they arrived at the airport, their baggage was gone, the report said.
Thomas allegedly returned the clothes to a nearby Nordstrom store and received $5,000 for the items.
KTVU.com reported that a personal shopper at the store called one of the alleged victims, her client, about her sister returning all the clothes. The client reportedly responded: "I don’t have a sister."
The two were arrested on July 25 at San Francisco International boarding a flight to Hawaii, the report said.
In a search of Crudup's home, more stolen items from the victims' bags were found, prosecutors told the station.
Crudup and Thomas were released from custody on bail. Crudup has pleaded not guilty and Thomas is scheduled for arraignment on Aug. 26. The Los Angeles Times reports that they both could get a maximum sentence of four years in state prison for the offense.
Published July 30, 2013 | FoxNews.com
**********
PHOTOS:
http://global.fncstatic.com/static/managed/img/U.S./KTVUMUGS.jpg
**********
A United Airlines customer service representative was charged Monday with stealing luggage from travelers whose flights were diverted after the Asiana Airlines crash.
"It was a crime of opportunity and the opportunity was there," Sgt. Wesley Matsuura, from the San Mateo Sheriff’s Department, told KTVU.com.
According to the report, Sean Crudup, 44, and his girlfriend, Raychas Thomas, 32, could be seen on surveillance footage allegedly taking bags with another unidentified woman.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the alleged victims' luggage contained clothing worth $30,000. The diverted passengers made the drive from Los Angeles to San Francisco after their plane was re-routed. When they arrived at the airport, their baggage was gone, the report said.
Thomas allegedly returned the clothes to a nearby Nordstrom store and received $5,000 for the items.
KTVU.com reported that a personal shopper at the store called one of the alleged victims, her client, about her sister returning all the clothes. The client reportedly responded: "I don’t have a sister."
The two were arrested on July 25 at San Francisco International boarding a flight to Hawaii, the report said.
In a search of Crudup's home, more stolen items from the victims' bags were found, prosecutors told the station.
Crudup and Thomas were released from custody on bail. Crudup has pleaded not guilty and Thomas is scheduled for arraignment on Aug. 26. The Los Angeles Times reports that they both could get a maximum sentence of four years in state prison for the offense.
THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA FILES U.S.A. FEDERAL LAWSUIT AGAINST MAJOR BANKS FOR LIBOR MANIPULATION OF U.S. CURRENCY & MUNI-BOND RIGGING
Posted on 13:59 by Unknown
THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA FILES U.S.A. FEDERAL LAWSUIT AGAINST MAJOR BANKS FOR LIBOR MANIPULATION OF U.S. CURRENCY & MUNI-BOND RIGGING
July 29, 2013
(Reuters) - The city of Philadelphia is the latest of a series of U.S. municipalities, following Houston a week ago, to sue some of the world's biggest banks for financial losses incurred in the Libor interest-rate rigging scandal.
Philadelphia sued nine banks and several subsidiaries on Friday in Pennsylvania Federal Court, seeking punitive and other damages and claiming that the banks' behavior "was nothing short of naked price-fixing."
Other local governments - including Baltimore, and the California counties of San Diego and Sacramento - have also sued in connection with the scandal over manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate, or Libor.
The governments say that rate swap agreements that cities use to hedge borrowing costs were manipulated by the financial institutions to their own advantage.
The parent banks named in the Philadelphia complaint are Bank of America Corp, Barclays Bank Plc, Citigroup Inc, Credit Suisse Group AG, Deutsche Bank AG, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Royal Bank of Canada, Royal Bank of Scotland and UBS AG.
The scandal surrounding the Libor, against which trillions of dollars worth of products ranging from derivatives to mortgages are priced, has become a symbol of the brazen arrogance with which some in the financial industry have pursued their own interests.
The U.S. municipalities claim that they lost money when they received lower interest rate payments than they should have, or had to pay artificially inflated rates because of the alleged manipulation.
Philadelphia also said local governments were forced to pay "sometimes devastating" penalties to terminate investment agreements.
Between 2009 and 2011, the city paid nearly $110 million altogether in termination fees to various banks to unwind swap agreements built around interest rates, including the Libor, according to its complaint.
The complex swaps "have cost state and local governmental entities hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars, depleting treasuries, ruining budgets, and hindering the delivery of public services," Philadelphia said in its lawsuit.
Citigroup and Credit Suisse declined to comment, and a representative for another bank did not immediately reply to requests for comment on Monday.
Three banks - Britain's Barclays and RBS and Swiss UBS - have paid around $2.6 billion to date to secure civil settlements with regulators in the United States and Britain over Libor manipulation.
(Reporting by Hilary Russ; editing by Tiziana Barghini, Peter Galloway and Richard Chang)
July 29, 2013
(Reuters) - The city of Philadelphia is the latest of a series of U.S. municipalities, following Houston a week ago, to sue some of the world's biggest banks for financial losses incurred in the Libor interest-rate rigging scandal.
Philadelphia sued nine banks and several subsidiaries on Friday in Pennsylvania Federal Court, seeking punitive and other damages and claiming that the banks' behavior "was nothing short of naked price-fixing."
Other local governments - including Baltimore, and the California counties of San Diego and Sacramento - have also sued in connection with the scandal over manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate, or Libor.
The governments say that rate swap agreements that cities use to hedge borrowing costs were manipulated by the financial institutions to their own advantage.
The parent banks named in the Philadelphia complaint are Bank of America Corp, Barclays Bank Plc, Citigroup Inc, Credit Suisse Group AG, Deutsche Bank AG, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Royal Bank of Canada, Royal Bank of Scotland and UBS AG.
The scandal surrounding the Libor, against which trillions of dollars worth of products ranging from derivatives to mortgages are priced, has become a symbol of the brazen arrogance with which some in the financial industry have pursued their own interests.
The U.S. municipalities claim that they lost money when they received lower interest rate payments than they should have, or had to pay artificially inflated rates because of the alleged manipulation.
Philadelphia also said local governments were forced to pay "sometimes devastating" penalties to terminate investment agreements.
Between 2009 and 2011, the city paid nearly $110 million altogether in termination fees to various banks to unwind swap agreements built around interest rates, including the Libor, according to its complaint.
The complex swaps "have cost state and local governmental entities hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars, depleting treasuries, ruining budgets, and hindering the delivery of public services," Philadelphia said in its lawsuit.
Citigroup and Credit Suisse declined to comment, and a representative for another bank did not immediately reply to requests for comment on Monday.
Three banks - Britain's Barclays and RBS and Swiss UBS - have paid around $2.6 billion to date to secure civil settlements with regulators in the United States and Britain over Libor manipulation.
(Reporting by Hilary Russ; editing by Tiziana Barghini, Peter Galloway and Richard Chang)
U.S.A. COURT HEARS APPEAL FROM YEMENI AL QAEDA TERRORIST & EU HIGH COURT U.N. TERRORIST DEFENSE ATTORNEYS
Posted on 13:58 by Unknown
U.S.A. COURT HEARS APPEAL FROM YEMENI AL QAEDA TERRORIST & EU HIGH COURT U.N. TERRORIST DEFENSE ATTORNEYS
July 30, 2013
BOSTON - A lawyer for a Massachusetts man convicted of conspiring to help al-Qaida has argued that numerous terror-related images used by prosecutors at his trial prejudiced the jury against him.
Tarek Mehanna was sentenced to 17 1/2 years in prison after being convicted last year.
Prosecutors say Mehanna traveled to Yemen for training in a terrorist camp and intended to go to Iraq to fight U.S. soldiers. When that failed, prosecutors say, Mehanna returned to the U.S. and disseminated materials online promoting violent jihad.
In arguments Tuesday before the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Mehanna's lawyer said prosecutors showed images of the Sept. 11 terror attacks and others during his trial to frighten jurors.
But a Justice Department lawyer said the images demonstrated that Mehanna wanted to help al-Qaida.
July 30, 2013
BOSTON - A lawyer for a Massachusetts man convicted of conspiring to help al-Qaida has argued that numerous terror-related images used by prosecutors at his trial prejudiced the jury against him.
Tarek Mehanna was sentenced to 17 1/2 years in prison after being convicted last year.
Prosecutors say Mehanna traveled to Yemen for training in a terrorist camp and intended to go to Iraq to fight U.S. soldiers. When that failed, prosecutors say, Mehanna returned to the U.S. and disseminated materials online promoting violent jihad.
In arguments Tuesday before the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Mehanna's lawyer said prosecutors showed images of the Sept. 11 terror attacks and others during his trial to frighten jurors.
But a Justice Department lawyer said the images demonstrated that Mehanna wanted to help al-Qaida.
EU HUMAN RIGHTS COURT'S UNITED NATIONS TERRORIST DEFENSE ATTORNEYS ASSISTING CHICAGO'S BOEING MAINTENANCE FIRM RESPONSIBLE FOR POLAND AIR CRASH THAT KILLED POLAND'S PRESIDENT & CABINET MEMBERS
Posted on 13:58 by Unknown
EU HUMAN RIGHTS COURT'S UNITED NATIONS TERRORIST DEFENSE ATTORNEYS ASSISTING CHICAGO'S BOEING MAINTENANCE FIRM RESPONSIBLE FOR POLAND AIR CRASH THAT KILLED POLAND'S PRESIDENT & CABINET MEMBERS
July 29, 2013
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has agreed to a second lawsuit against Poland over the CIA “black site” on the campus of an intelligence academy, with both cases involving tortured Saudi detainees.
This lawsuit comes from Abu Zubaydah, a heavily tortured Gitmo detainee who was considered a “high value” detainee at the time but has backed off of most allegations against him. Zubaydah remains held, and has never been charged.
The Polish government has been probing information about the black site for years, and after the previous government issued repeated blanket denials has at least come to terms with the fact that the site existed, though their own legal system seems more or less permanently stalled on the matter.
Zubaydah’s case will be heard alongside Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, who was similarly tortured in Poland and sentenced to death in absentia in Yemen for the USS Cole bombing. He is also being held at Guantanamo Bay on the basis of confessions he made while being waterboarded.
July 29, 2013
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has agreed to a second lawsuit against Poland over the CIA “black site” on the campus of an intelligence academy, with both cases involving tortured Saudi detainees.
This lawsuit comes from Abu Zubaydah, a heavily tortured Gitmo detainee who was considered a “high value” detainee at the time but has backed off of most allegations against him. Zubaydah remains held, and has never been charged.
The Polish government has been probing information about the black site for years, and after the previous government issued repeated blanket denials has at least come to terms with the fact that the site existed, though their own legal system seems more or less permanently stalled on the matter.
Zubaydah’s case will be heard alongside Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, who was similarly tortured in Poland and sentenced to death in absentia in Yemen for the USS Cole bombing. He is also being held at Guantanamo Bay on the basis of confessions he made while being waterboarded.
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