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ELIZABETH ECONOMY: If we could all take our seats so we can get started. We have a jam-packed afternoon.
Let me welcome you back. I hope you all managed to get something to eat. There will be food still out there during the break if you want to replenish yourselves.
It is my very great pleasure to introduce our keynote lunch speaker today. I think you know, over the past 30 years, virtually no issue related to China's rise has captured the imagination of the rest of the world as much as its spectacular economic success. And really, as I was thinking about it, over the past three decades China seems to have encountered very few speed bumps over the course of its development in many ways. Even in the midst of this global financial crisis, it is planning to post 8 percent growth this year.
And it leads me to wonder, are the Chinese simply doing everything right while the rest of us muddle along? Or are they bartering their future economic growth for growth today? Or are there transformations in their economy that they ought to make or that they're going to have to make to continue on this path of economic growth and economic success? And then, of course, how will China's economic choices affect the rest of the world?
I think these are questions that many of us probably find challenging to answer. Fortunately today we have Steve Roach, who, more than anybody I know, is capable of moving us along on a path of understanding better both the challenges that China faces today and the challenges the country is likely to face looking forward a decade from now, as well as the opportunities, of course, that the country already encounters and will.
Steve, as I think many of you know, was for many years Morgan Stanley's chief economist. He is now the CEO of Morgan Stanley Asia; holds a Ph.D. in economics from NYU and just came out with what I have to say is truly a terrific book. It's very engaging, very informative. It's really a collection of his writings, some testimony, some thinking over the past several years, brought very much up to date. And we will have it for sale right after this session outside of the table immediately as you exit.
And I should note that all of the royalties from the sale of the book are going to charities in China. One is the CEIBS (China Europe International Business School) in Pudong, and the other is a set of HIV/AIDS clinics in China that David Ho runs, which I think is really something special, and, even as much as the book is terrific, merits our support.
I think one of the things that I love most about Steve and his work, frankly, is that, unlike a lot of economists in our country, Steve spends a lot of time on the ground; even before he was the CEO of Morgan Stanley Asia, spent a lot of time on the ground in China trying to understand the reality of the situation, so not simply dealing with economic models and what should or ought to be or what he might read here, but actually getting to know all the players in China, understanding the problems of central-provincial-local relations, and all the real intricacies of China's economic system. And I think that is, in good measure, what makes him so illuminating, so special.
So let me turn to Steve, and he'll speak for about 20-25 minutes, and then we'll have a discussion. (Applause.)
STEPHEN S. ROACH: Thank you. Thank you very much, Liz. And it's terrific to be here. I do travel a lot, so if it's Monday, it must be Washington, right? I hope. And 2049, I look forward to coming back on that year with all of you in this room -- (laughter) -- and celebrating the 100th anniversary of the People's Republic of China.
Liz sort of set this up, I think, very nicely. Yes, China is going to hit its growth target - a target that is so important to the nation's leaders and to its people this year. Moreover, China will hit its target even in the face of a serious, or I should say terribly serious, global crisis and recession.
So if you judge China on the basis of hitting its target, all seems well on the surface. And it's not just that China is achieving its own aspirations, but, by growing close to 8 percent, it'll play a very important role in providing a broad impetus to the overall economy in Asia and it will play, obviously, an important role in providing impetus to an otherwise very sluggish global economy. So on that surface, you can say that China has arrived, not just as an engine of Asian growth, but also as a powerful engine of global economic growth.
The story does not stop there, though. You have got to dig beneath the surface in assessing the role of China as an autonomous source of growth in and of itself, as well as a source of growth for Asia, and as a source of growth for the broader world economy.
The best assessment of this conundrum has been provided by China's own premier, Wen Jiabao, when, a little over two and a half years ago, at the conclusion of the National People's Congress in Beijing, at a press conference that he held right after that congress was over, the premier stated categorically that, while China looks strong on the surface in terms of GDP growth, in terms of employment growth, beneath the surface, he, the premier, was worried about a Chinese economy that, at the time, was increasingly unstable, unbalanced, uncoordinated, and ultimately unsustainable. And he was dead right.
And, interestingly enough, at a large conference that Liz and I attended in Dalian in mid-September, the premier was the keynote speaker, and everybody expected him to come in and boast about China's vigorous recovery and its leadership role in Asia and the broader global economy. He said no.
The recovery is something that gratifies us, he pointed out, but it's fragile, and it reflects an economy that is increasingly, in his views, unbalanced, unstable, uncoordinated, and ultimately unsustainable.
What does he mean by that, by expressing those concerns? In terms of the imbalances, they're very clear. They reflect extraordinary distortions in the macro-structure of the Chinese economy. A couple of numbers say it all. As of right now, literally 80 percent of the country's GDP is concentrated in two sectors, exports and export-led fixed investment. By contrast, the internal private consumption share of the Chinese GDP was 35 percent last year and fell below that by the middle of this year.
It's an economy that is, as a result, more about supply than about internal demand, an economy that directs an increasing portion of its production to external markets rather than one that is supported by internal markets. This is a key and critical issue that I'll come back to in a couple of moments.
By unstable, the premier was referring to China's inordinate and increasingly intensive use of energy and other scarce resources such that the commodity intensity of the Chinese GDP - namely, resources per unit of GDP is more than double that of the typical economy in developing Asia and more than four times that of the typical developed economy.
So China has a seemingly insatiable demand for natural resources - prompting it to turn increasingly aggressive in its outward-bound foreign direct investment in trying to acquire strategic resources in Australia, in South America, and in Africa, in the commodity-producing area. And, of course, this insatiable demand for commodities has played an important role in driving the prices of these very commodities that a resource-inefficient China needs more and more of to source its economic growth.
By uncoordinated, the premier was referring to the well-known and longstanding fragmentation of the Chinese structure of governance, corporate control, and the financial system. There's an old Chinese proverb that says, "The mountains are high and the emperor is so far away." And it's emblematic of a China that has a control problem in Beijing.
And beyond the confines of Beijing, the provinces and municipalities, in many respects, still today do pretty much what is in their best interest -- rather than what is in the best interest of the nation as a whole. This lack of coordination certainly undermines the cohesion that any national economy needs to accomplish broad objectives. And the unsustainability that the premier was referring to -- and these are sort of my interpretations, but these are interpretations that he himself has fleshed out somewhat in subsequent speeches -- the unsustainability is right up Liz Economy's alley - in that it refers to the pollution-intensive character of China's economic growth and how ultimately this puts a stranglehold on the world's largest population mass.
So the interesting thing is that here's a leader of this vast nation that has experienced the most phenomenal progress that any of us have seen in our lifetimes with respect to economic development, and he's sending repeated warnings about these four "uns," as we call them, that draw into serious question as to whether or not China can stay the current course.
And I think that is a really good place to start in trying to get an assessment of what lies ahead in China. I also think it's a framework that also sheds an awful lot of light on what the broader economies of developing Asia face as well in the years ahead. That's because China does not have a monopoly on an economy that's unstable, unbalanced, uncoordinated and unsustainable. In many respects, these characteristics personify many of the other economies in developing Asia, although I hesitate and I caution all of you against painting Asia with one brush.
The interesting thing about the success of the stimulus package that has been put in place in China to deal with economic crisis and recession, is that on the surface has had such seemingly spectacular results in the first half of 2009. Yet, paradoxically, it actually compounds the very imbalances that Premier Wen is so worried about and has expressed so eloquently on several occasions.
The government enacted early last November a RMB 4 trillion fiscal stimulus plan funded by an absolutely massive and unprecedented binge of bank lending in the first six months of this year.
And if you pick apart the RMB 4 trillion and we've done that, about 72 percent of it is concentrated in infrastructure, and that includes about RMB 1 trillion that were directed at reconstruction after the Sichuan earthquake of a year and a half ago. And surprise of surprises or actually no surprise at all, when a centrally directed system orders the banks to lend and to funnel the proceeds of those loans to municipal governments who take the infrastructure projects off the shelves, you get growth. It's not like, you know, in the United States where we do middle income tax cuts and people have the discretion as to how they want to dispose of the funds. They have a GDP dial in central planning headquarters at the NDRC in Beijing and when they want eight, they'll give you eight.
So they had 7.1 percent average growth in the first half of this year, and it will be like nine percent, you know, give or take a tenth of a point in the second half of the year and it will miraculously average to eight. But of the 7.1 percent growth that they had in the first half of the year, no surprise to me, 88 percent of it was concentrated in fixed investments -- 88. Go back and look at the GDP contributions of investment to China over the past ten years. The average over that ten-year period was 43 percent. There's never been such an outside investment contribution of GDP growth in modern China's history.
The Chinese leadership was very determined to achieve this outcome because the economy actually was in much, much worse shape late last year than the government let on to believe. They report their GDP growth on a year-over-year basis. If you believe the numbers and that's always a debate and an issue in China, the growth rate slowed sequentially to 6.4 percent late last year.
However, if you calculate growth on a sequential quarter-to-quarter basis, the 6.4 was a number close to zero. And for an economy with a vast reservoir of surplus labor, that's unacceptable and intolerable. In fact, the Chinese government admitted late last year that fully 20 million migrant workers had lost their jobs in export-sensitive Guangdong Province. That means there was an awful lot of labor related distress in the face of a complete reversal of China's most powerful sectoral growth driver exports. The sector had been growing plus 25 percent as recently as the middle of 2008, went to a minus 25 in the spring of '09.
And so with growth and the economy hitting a wall, the government was determined to attack the shortfall head-on and use the combination of state-directed bank lending and infrastructure spending much more aggressively than we've ever seen in the past.
Now here's where it gets interesting. If you look at the stimulus, it's a classic Chinese countercyclical stimulus action. They have words for these things in China, slogans, and they call this their "proactive fiscal stimulus." Such a policy impetus always consists of two pieces. First, there is the jump start to fixed investment, and they did that beautifully. And then there are increased tax incentives for exporters such that when the investment stimulus begins to fade and it will begin to fade around the middle of 2010, then the export machine comes on line and takes over where the investment stimulus leaves off.
There's a big problem with that approach. While it worked brilliantly a few times in the past especially after the Asian financial crisis of '97-'98, then again after the global recession of 2000 and 2001, it's not going to work this time. The investment delivered, but the export machine won't not because of export competitiveness issues in China but because external demand courtesy of what is likely to be, I think, a multi-year shake out from the over-extended American consumer, external demand is not going to snap back.
And so the second piece of the proactive fiscal stimulus is going to be disappointing. That underscores the likelihood of another slowdown in Chinese economic growth around the middle of 2010. And as was the case late last year when the economy slowed down and unemployment mounted, I think you can fully expect the Chinese to once again go back to the well with another round of bank-directed investment spending that will further exacerbate the imbalances, the structural imbalances of the Chinese economy.
So the premier had it right. Focus on imbalances. They're getting worse. They're not getting better, and the odds are that given that the global climate and the external underpinnings of this export led economy that the imbalances are going to continue to get worse in the years ahead. In the end, there's only one way out for China, and this is the subject of my new book, The Next Asia. The next Asia is one that's driven by a more balanced Chinese economy that moves away from the export model to one that's supported by internal private consumption. It is actually an exciting and very appealing and attractive story for China and for the rest of Asia.
There are a lot of theories about what it's going to take to stimulate internal private consumption in China. While there is no silver bullet, the point that I focus on the most is in transforming the savings culture of the society away from the excesses of fear-driven precautionary saving toward a more normal savings rate. The missing link in this equation is the lack of a social safety net in China.
China has failed to invest in social security, private pensions, medical care, and unemployment insurance. They tell you they have these institutions in place. But again you've got to dig beneath the surface. Just a couple examples: China's national social security fund currently today has U.S. $82 billion of assets under management. Do the math. That's $90 per worker of lifetime social security benefits.
Medical insurance. They did a big package -- big in quotes -- earlier this year. It was RMB 850 billion over three years. Again, do the math: this amounts to just $30 a person for three years. So these are not even baby steps. China really needs to commit massively to these types of programs. If they do, I think they can then be surprisingly successful in a relatively short period of time in drawing down the excesses of precautionary saving.
Let me give you an example of how saving continues to move up in China. The best estimates I've seen of household savings in China put the overall savings rate for the household sector at 27.5 percent in the year 2000 - and then rising to 37.5 percent in the year 2008. There's a lot of fear and uncertainty amongst Chinese families about job and income prospects, and it makes a lot of sense to increase rather than decrease savings in that climate. However, I think China can do a lot in altering that sense of insecurity with some aggressive social safety net initiatives.
Let me just conclude with just some comments on the major benefits of a rebalanced Chinese economy. I'll also end with just a few challenges that this trend might pose for the broader world economy. There are five benefits that I would highlight here in terms of shaping the medium to longer term outlook in China.
Number one, dealing with Premier Wen's concerns on macro sustainability. If you shift the structure of the Chinese growth model from supply to demand, you have a much better chance of a sustainable rather than increasingly unbalanced outcome. Secondly, by broadening out the support for consumer demand, you can begin to address some of the income disparities -- not just those in urban but also in rural China. It takes a lot more to address income disparities than a shift in the macro structure, but it's an important step in the right direction.
Thirdly, more of a pro-consumption model will reduce the nation's trade and current account surplus, and I think that will be helpful, but by no means decisive in reducing the risk of trade tensions that arise from an economy that's going the other way on the current account and trade balance.
Fourthly, this rebalancing of China will also make an important contribution to lowering the oil and natural resource intensity of the Chinese GDP. Such structural change could result in a cleaner and greener GDP. That's because consumption-led growth, especially if it's complemented by the development of the services sector places less of a claim on the materials and energy inputs that a pure industrial production type technology would otherwise deliver.
And fifth and finally, is a very important benefit from the services piece itself. Manufacturing, industrial production and growth is very capital intensive. Services are increasingly labor intensive. China needs a better balance to its growth model in order to absorb its surplus labor. That is a critical challenge that the nation faces, and I would argue that services are an important and missing piece of the equation. The services sector is only about 40 percent of Chinese GDP making it about the smallest service sector of any major economy in the world today.
Finally, three challenges to think about in terms of what this model means for the rest of us. Number one, right here at home. Let's say that China draws down its surplus savings, puts it to work in stimulating private consumption. That means they're going to have less savings to send our way to fund our current account deficit. Who's going to do the financing?
Secondly, and this is a big challenge for China. Let's just say they make progress in pushing to more of a consumer-led society. This introduces a whole element of free choice and aspirations of Chinese households that could be at odds with the one-party model of political control in China.
And then finally, how does the rest of Asia respond to China's rebalancing? Does this divert capital that might otherwise go to the rest of Asia, or does it open up a huge market of internal consumption? Do the small populations of Korea and Japan and others who are aging now have great opportunity to tap into China with their high value added output.
Those are, again, some of the benefits, some of the challenges. As I said before, China can continue to grow at a rapid rate. We all take great comfort in the fact that they delivered. But beneath the surface, the premier nailed it. This is an economy that while it's hitting its growth target is one that is increasingly unstable and balanced on coordinated and ultimately unsustainable. For China, and I think this is the lesson in this crisis; China is no different than the rest of us.
No, China does not get special dispensation from Econ 101. Its unbalanced growth can go on for longer than a pure market economy. But in the end, China is accountable to the same rules that the rest of us are.
Thank you. (Applause.)
ECONOMY: That's great. Come sit. So let me open the floor for questions and I'm sure there will be a number.
Sure. Right here. Please identify yourself.
QUESTIONER: (Off mike.) All right. So my name is -- (inaudible) -- from -- (inaudible) -- Associates. And you mentioned -- (inaudible) -- in control now -- (inaudible) -- until money supply increased -- (inaudible) -- to three percent -- (inaudible) -- loans -- (inaudible) --
(Off mike.) How much control does Beijing have over the ramifications where that money goes -- (inaudible) --
ROACH: You can't -- even the Chinese can't control everything. So when you have liquidity injections in excess of the pace of real economic activity, they either go to repair balance sheet holes as is the case in the United States, or they spill over into other markets, which has been the case in China, with surging equity and property markets.
So liquidity-prone China remains vulnerable to ongoing bubbles in its markets. The regulators and the policy makers are worried about it. They've expressed these concerns, and they try to manage the banks away from making loans to property speculators and in trying to discourage the excesses. In the equity market sometimes their talk works, sometimes it doesn't, but the bias is one towards instability, and this will continue to be a problem.
QUESTIONER: (Off mike.) There's been much talk about -- (inaudible) -- with that said -- (inaudible) -- namely China, -- (inaudible) --
ROACH: Look. I'm a big believer that there are no major infrastructure bubbles in developing economies, especially as large as China. I will concede that most of coastal China has now been paved. So you've probably go to be suspicious if you see roads going into coastal China. But there continue to be serious questions about the most efficient way that the banks allocate capital. While the capital allocation process remains problematic, given the massive ongoing rural-urban migration, which is just an explosively powerful trend, I'm less worried about any immediate problems in the infrastructure and the commercial real estate area.
Having said all that, I'll just say that the investment share of the Chinese GDP is now to a number north of 45 percent. No country has ever experienced a number that large and gotten away with it for long. So this is just a clear symptom of the profound build-up of macro imbalances in China.
ECONOMY: Yeah, someone with a very strong hand back there. All right.
QUESTIONER: (Inaudible) -- from -- (inaudible) -- just last month in Istanbul the -- IMF managing directors -- Mr. Strauss-Kahn was pushing this idea of global reserve pool. He was saying that countries build up reserves because they want self-assurance, but why not you keep half the money down. We will have the use of ICR and use our flexible credit line facility to lend, but you know, the result was not so many people listened to him at that meeting, but I just want your view on that. How feasible is this idea?
ROACH: Look, I'm a big believer that the global architecture is so far mainly talk and not action. Ultimately, this is, I think, a big issue in dealing with the global imbalances that are very much an outgrowth of the integration of the world through trade flows, capital flows, information flows, and labor flows. So I am quite sympathetic in principle to what Mr. Strauss-Kahn says, although I have some questions about the actual practicality of the proposal.
But to me one of the biggest inconsistencies is of this new G20 framework is that there's broad agreement in theory, but amazing reluctance on the part of sovereign states to abdicate any power to a supranational authority. I think the managing director of the IMF is right to challenge sovereign leaders on this key point.
ECONOMY: (Off mike.) Oh, okay -- (inaudible) --
QUESTIONER: Dave Brown from SAIS. If Premier Wen is so insightful in his analysis of the weaknesses of the Chinese economy and made this assessment two years ago, why is it that the government adopts a policy to get out of this recession which, in fact, aggravates the problems and leaves China with a smaller percent of money going into his? Is it that they really have little control or is his line just something that he's saying to foreigners to make us feel happy that they've got a long-term plan that's consistent with what we'd like them to do?
ROACH: Fair point, but maybe a little bit like the pot calling the kettle black. I seem to remember on December 6th, 1996, a certain chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve claimed the stock market was irrationally exuberant and then went on to scope the speculative fires that led to a bubble dependent U.S. economy.
Why did Greenspan do it and why does Premier Wen do it? I think it's the same disease. Seduced by the superficial successes of artificial economic growth. China experienced growth beyond its wildest expectations when the export led model delivered at a time of explosive gains in global trade, and why fix what ain't broke? In the three years ending 2007, GDP growth reported was 12 percent. In 2007, it was 13 percent. Like the rest of us, I think, China found this outcome very seductive and was willing to go with the flow rather than do the heavy lifting that these sub-structural changes require.
This crisis ironically could be China's greatest wake-up call because sends a clear signal that the external demand underpinnings of the export machine are shot. Consequently, if you stay with this model, the very imbalances that you warn about have to get worse. As everybody knows by now, the Chinese word for crisis is weiji, a combination of danger and opportunity.
So this is China's opportunity to really look in the mirror here and they have been seduced. They were not alone in being seduced. The world went along for the ride.
ECONOMY: Okay. We'll take three questions in quick succession--
QUESTIONER: It's Dana Marshall with Dewey & LeBouef. It seems like that this conversation is sort of like a movie that one has seen several times before, I mean, going back at least in my recollection to John Taylor and the CEA. There's been the prescription of their rebalancing their growth pattern.
The question I have for you is why if there is now even more of a recognition and as you say the crisis kind of pushing them along, why would they not take --why are they so resistant to taking the one step which many suggest would help a lot, and that's of course, on the exchange rate?
ECONOMY: Okay. Back there. The young woman. Was there a young woman -- yep?
QUESTIONER: Hi, Kelley Currie. And thank you for the compliment, Liz.
I wanted to ask you if you think about this problem of the economic imbalance in terms of it being a massive wealth transfer from the average Chinese person who lacks financial services, has to save a large amount of their income to both the state in terms of the money being reinvested in the state sector and to the West, the wealthier West, in terms of the capital outflows that grow to support our debt habits. How does this feed into the four uns? It's seems that that's one of the most unsustainable parts of the whole equation.
QUESTIONER: Thank you -- (inaudible) -- the China and I remember that you were one of the few people in the United States who opposed forcing China to appreciate -- Renminbi, but right now you are talking about it in bad economy in China, and do you change your mind right now and do you think China need to default on the currency regime more quickly or further?
Thank you.
ECONOMY: Last question.
QUESTIONER: (Off mike.) -- that's whole rebound issue that one of the potential things that's causing -- giving them pause as they try to change their economy is they're worried that by allowing the service end to grow and allowing the small and medium enterprises to have more say in what goes on in the economy, that they -- the party will have some -- (inaudible) -- questions?
ROACH: Well, those are all great questions.
No, I haven't changed my view on the currency as a mechanism for rebalancing. I think that's a red herring. It's not the way to go in solving global problems. I realize that runs against the grain of the Washington consensus who believes that currency adjustments are the answer to any major imbalances that emerge between economies. I beg to differ. I think that today's global imbalances are a manifestation of structural disparities in savings patterns, the lack of a safety net in China, and bubble-dependent American consumers. These characteristics of both economies - the U.S. and China - have very little to do with currencies.
That's not to say that it won't be politically expedient for superficial politicians, a few of which reside in this town, to focus on the currency as the foil by which they can try to assuage the complaints of their understandably disgruntled workers. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to see another one of these crazy currency bills come out of Capitol Hill with bipartisan support. The question then arises: Is a President who laid his cards on the table a month or so ago on Chinese tire imports into the U.S., willing to say no to that type of legislation going into a mid-term election with the unemployment rate above nine percent? That's a big risk out there, and I think, you know -- I wouldn't be surprised to see the currency lever once again become a political foil in this contentious political climate.
John, your question on the politics of rebalancing is a really important question, and all I can say is that the emergence of a consumer-led society in any nation is typically associated with more individual choice, a broadening out of aspirations across the nation, and an IT (information technology)-enabled connectivity of cell phones and Internets. That allows people on the outside to now see what's going on on the inside. If the economic gains start to spread, and that is not accompanied by political reforms to say nothing of economical reforms, there could be a new outbreak of tension. That is a very fair and important point - and an especially challenging one for China going forward.
And I have forgotten the other questions.
ECONOMY: Okay. Questions on whether their support of our debt is one of the more unsustainable elements of the -- (inaudible) --
ROACH: Well, China's support of our debt is an outgrowth of their own imbalance - namely, that they continue to derive a disproportionate share of their growth from exports. Nor do they want to take any growth risks by letting the currency work against their export competitiveness. I suspect that as China moves away from the export model then the urgency to defend the currency will begin to diminish. I also suspect, as I said in my opening comments, that China's current account surplus will begin to diminish as a share of their GDP, leaving the nation with less surplus saving to send our way in order to fund our debt.
So if we don't come to grips with our own debt issues, the -- I think the odds are that going forward the external financing is going to be more difficult to come by and especially on the very attractive terms that we have enjoyed in recent years from the world surplus savers.
ECONOMY: Well, please join me in thanking Steve for an engaging and illuminating talk -- (applause).


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Mahnke, Kuder Soldier On With Green Lantern's "Rise of the Third Army"
"Green Lantern" artist Doug Mahnke and "Green Lantern: New Guardians" artist Aaron Kuder Spoke with CBR about the "Rise of the Third Army," developing the visuals for DC Comics' newest creepy alien threat and more.
DiDio & Lee Prepare for "Trinity War" and DC's New 52: Year Two
DC Comics Co-Publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee discuss their concrete goals for 2013, the past year of the New 52 and the lead up to next year's "Trinity War" event.
NYCC: Green Lantern -- Tomasi And Others Discuss Rise Of The Third Army
At the New York Comic Con DC Comics: Green Lantern panel writer Peter Tomasi, artist Aaron Kuder and others spoke about the "Third Army" and what's coming up for their books as the event ratchets up.
Bedard Readies For Third Army & Scarab History In "New Guardians" And "Blue Beetle"
"Green Lantern: New Guardians" and "Blue Beetle" writer Tony Bedard spoke with CBR about his #0 issues, the history of the scarab and how the Third Army will change Kyle and his team.
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King Pacific Lodge, Princess Royal Island
Posted on: November 6, 2011 at 4:07PM
Had a great stay ! The very first outing we did our boat was surrounded by about 30 whales jumping and feeding in the dark waters between the islands. They did something called bubblenet feeding amazing to watch so close up with schools of little swarm fish all around them. Apparently they do that to fatten up in late summer before they swim on to Hawaii. And the next day we had sea lions and otters catching salmon in front of the waterfall right next to the side balcony. Fab. Only drawback: No swimming in the bay the water is way too cold. But the hot tub with the view over the bay is an excellent option. The Lodge was really a place out of this world literally if you consider how far away from all civilization they are. Amazing how they manage to run a first rate luxury place in such a remote location. Food, wine, service: to stay there really is a treat.
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Boars Head Beef Frankfurters
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A new bank holiday a new DIY task lol.
Right I'm stuck already hehe trying to remove the rear bumper. The screws along the top and underside of the bumper just spins when I go to undo it.
Some git hit it, left a note saying sorry I hit your bumper. No contact details, my rear is bashed up cosmetic an a smashed rear fog. Bit miffed but there you go, I figure cheaper for me to fix than go through my insurance. The local body shop said if I bring the bumper in on its on he will fix and spray for £80 used him before and is good. He had a look and said a bit of plastic welding will easily sort it or even abs plastic filler. Said welding was better.
I'm guessing the bump is why they are not undoing, just feels as if its in a rawl plug spinning. So any tips on getting them out would be great. I tried wedging I small screwdriver and turning with another but no joy just spun.
Hope you guys are having a good bank holiday so far, anyone doing anything nice?


text:
Deadly, indiscriminate surface longlines are killing Atlantic bluefin tuna at a shocking rate. Populations have dropped by at least 64%.
Unless we can convince NOAA to put a stop to this wasteful and destructive practice, these magnificent fish are in danger of extinction.
Nearly 200,000 people have already spoken up to protect these "tigers of the sea" – now we need your help to convince NOAA to take the steps needed to protect these remarkable creatures.
Fill out the fields below to add your voice by the 12/10 deadline for public comments.
Copyright © 2014. All rights reserved.
While all the organizations participating in the Save Our Environment Action Center share the common goal of
protecting the environment, individual groups can, and sometimes do, differ in their approaches to specific issues.


text:
quote:don't think that's really what the OP is going for.
quote:Athletes better known by nicknames
quote:could have swore he asked for nicknames
quote:Magic (Johnson) would not
quote:A-Rod may be getting there
quote:Shaq is the first four letters of his name. Probably 50 percent of people go by a variation of their first name or their middle name. I think he means names that the public use to refer to athletes that nobody would ever use inside of their family.


text:
If budgets are going to shrink, and we cannot continue to try to do everything, this is a perfect time to get everyone back into their hedgehog.
Tag Archive for defense intelligence
DIA: getting it
by Mike • • 4 Comments
Scooped by Shloky: The U.S. Department of Defense's lead intelligence agency is using wikis, blogs, RSS feeds and enterprise "mashups" to help its analysts collaborate better when sifting through data used to support military operations. The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)…
fusion, what a concept
by Mike • • 0 Comments
From Inside the Pentagon (subscription required): The head of the Defense Intelligence Agency is on the cusp of deciding how best to integrate two largely separate worlds of military intelligence: tips collected from people on the ground, dubbed "human intelligence"…


text:
Right, so let's just get this clear. If you don't like what I have to say on the grounds I'm being unbeknowingly insensitive, sorry... Except I don't care. This is my journal. This is about me. It's your choice to take dat shit personally. Don't like it, then
ANYWAY! I'm moving out which is BULLSHIT. The fucker over reacted, just because I s'd the D of the kid that he's infatuated in. Like, sorry, not sorry. You don't own his D and you don't own my mouth. So let's pony up and be real people. BUT NOOOOOO! I have to move out. Nevermind the fact I could have pressed charges for assault and then suddenly his furnishing alcohol to a minor, possessions charge and underage drinking charges come back. Which means he wouldn't be able to go to school. Or live. So that's kind of shitty.
But like, the kid went bat shit crazy on me for what? Sleeping with not even his ex-boyfriend. That's right everyone! Tanner and Michael never everrrrr dated! And Tanner is confused as to why Michael is oh so infatuated with him.
Well, all that bullshit aside, I getta live with my parents (AKA, on friend's couches, 'cause FUCK DAT) and move in somewhere new in August. WOOOOOOH! Except I have to move all my plants so many times! And I just feel so bad for 'em!
Okay, yea, my plants are my kids. I have like, over 18 of them, and I've acquired all of them within the past like... year and a half. I just want dem all!lllll!
In other news, I think I might wanna slut it up. Not like, one night stand it. Dem bitches gotta work for dis ass! I like, have a couple guys I've been texting. And like, Tanner is obsessed with me soooooo yea. Ionno, I'm fine with being a needy bitch.
OH OH OH! I ALMOST FORGOT. I saw Michael at my friend's, when he was picking up stuff. I was like, WHAT THE FUCK. Except we didn't look at eachother. He didn't really acknowledge me. It was sooopa awk. I just hope he knows he can stay the fuck away from mah friends. Except, half the people there didn't know we had broken up, so it was mad awksaustastic y'all.
Okay, i'm done. Fo' real. Peace out girl scout!
you were so wrong; I'm not!
The only element I'm not grasping is why you feel obliged to move rather than Michael... that's all!
There was a huge comment thread on the previous post that I subsequently removed, but it is safe to say that message was not to you. ;-)
"You don't know you're beautiful." - Harry Styles
Yes I don't know who it was that it could have been for. They must have been a really bad person.
And those who did it know their blame... and any guilt and remorse that they must feel about what they have done. Is worse than any punishment than they might receive.
Well that is all I am going to say about... poor Nanook.
I think you need to let go of the moving thing. You did it to move on and not have to deal with this anymore, so... time to do that.
Sounds like you're single, Tanner's single, and Michael's single. So, if you and T want to S, F, R, L, T and E one another's Ds, As, Bs, and Cs, then Michael will just have to deal with it. Sounds like Tanner isn't interested in Michael's A anyway?
You've already nearly conditioned your sluthood to resembling something respectable, I mean, you know them in advance?! How slutty is that?! ;-) So, all seems fine on that front.
Tell your friends. It isn't a secret. You can leave out the Ds you Sd, though, since that was already post-breakup.
"You don't know you're beautiful." - Harry Styles
Ah Karma at work here... F'ing ass.... taking names... and sucking D's....
Only without taking the names. Well maybe lessons will be learned next time, and frankly if I were you, I just would have brought up all that crap he did to you and made him move out. Obvious he had fewer people on his side... I mean what he is going to do... lay a hand on you. Fuck that... at that point you can beat him into the hospital. :P
I am curious though. Why does your friend group seem like a bunch of drama queens? Are all gay guys like this... except me? Oh and you got to hook me onto the secret on how to get as many people to fuck and suck as it sounds like you do bro... because man... you must have some serious lock jaw from the amount of Ds it sounds like you get in the M if we are playing a letter game here. That is not a joke, but a serious question. How in the fuck do you get that much.
Again, don't elevate yourself. My life is dramatic, because it's drug and alcohol infused, and because I'm very social. Combine homosexuality, substances and being a real person, and suddenly life happens.
And I know how to attract people. I know how to hook them. I placate their ego and then challenge it. I use my sex appeal and beauty. I am attractive. I know it. I am fit (somehow). I weigh 150, and am five nine. I have a level of sophistication, I have a lot of culture and class. I know how to make a guy know I have my shit together with money, but I don't make it central.
In short, I'm hot, I'm wealthy, I'm funny, and I know how to play mind games.
Was not even trying to elevate myself. I was seriously asking for advice, because I am a loser, who thinks about sex on a constant biases enough to the point that it gets in the way of life. Yeah I can function, but no matter what I am doing, I am thinking about sex non stop... and everyone I meet is simply that to me. Just a potential something to fuck... not that they will ever know. I am just that good at keeping everything hidden.
I seriously wanted to know how I could start getting laid as much as you do and the consequences be damned. So it seems all I need to do is work out, get my job with my degree, learn how to tell jokes, and well... I got the mind games on lock down. I also take so many meds that are supposed to react with alcohol, but I have drank before and it doesn't effect me badly in anyway that I can see. So maybe I need to add that one to, since I don't really care if it kills me in the first place. I mean your life sounds like a blast so emulating it seems like a sure thing to turn my dull one around.
Thanks Nanook. Your a real nice guy to tell me your secret and again I am not being sarcastic in any of this. It is a truly serious post.
You've somehow gotten life backwards, and are asking for help in doing something Nanook and most likely no one else has done.
Nanook isn't skinny, cute, educated, funny, social, drunk or high in some massive ploy to get laid (Thommy, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, heh). These are all things he did normally, and they get him laid as a result.
Sexual interest/attention/activity is a by-product of living properly and socially.
You're supposed to work out, get a job, be social, and engage with people. Those aren't meant to be part of some intricate scheme, they are just how people live their lives.
There is no secret.
"You don't know you're beautiful." - Harry Styles
Yes jeff, but what you are saying only really matters for nuro-typical people.
Also they are only for people who enjoy taking the time to learn humor that is not extremely dark and sometimes very offensive (Basically humor that can be used in general situations), who enjoy the company of people (I hate humans, and frankly most of my porn is of furries, but they are not real and so I am willing to be fucked in the ass or suck off the next best thing available.) I hate working out, and frankly don't give a shit about what I look like or frankly about my hygiene in most cases... because that kind of stuff is an annoying waste of time. I don't like drinking and getting high either, but if they serve a social purpose then so be it....
Sex becomes a massive ploy to get laid jeff when it is the only thing that you have which motivates you to do all of those things. So if they are simply just the way that people live there lives, then well I am simply living my life trying to get laid and finally rid myself of a very extreme and I believe (Though my shrinks won't listen) dangerous inferiority complex.
Our world has become too technologically advance to be of any interest to me beyond this one thing. If was living in the year 1700 or the 1600s things would be the shit... especially given my current socioeconomic status. Back then there was still stuff to explore and government didn't regulate all the fun stuff... like the owning of exotic animals... and frankly if I had the cash I could have my own boat and go get myself killed while having adventures, or retire with interesting stories to tell. You can do that today, but anything you do today pales in comparison and is a crappy illusion of trying to do the same shit... so that is my reason for thinking the way I do. So don't tell me there is anything else interesting in this world to do or to fawn over...
You are asking advice of neuro-typical people, though.
If you just want to figure out how to have sex without doing any of these things that most people do (or attempt to) as a matter of course, then it's easy: hire someone.
"You don't know you're beautiful." - Harry Styles
I wasn't asking that question.... I was asking what it is that people do in order to get sex and frankly you brushed it off in a rude way. No Jeff the things you said are not how people 'live' there lives and as a bi-product get sex. I know people who don't do some of those things and get laid. There has got to be some master plan involved that people are doing to get laid and frankly I want to know what it is.
I have done everything right for a long time. I have gotten a good education. I have worked hard. I dress nice. I do my best to look as decent as I can, given I do have off days when depression makes it hard to take shower, but that is not very often. I take my meds. I get treatment for my mental illness... I don't drink, I don't smoke, I don't do drugs. I do everything that could possibly help me be an attractive mate... and yet I see the worse people around me, who do bad things all the time getting laid all the time around me... and taking advantage of other people... and hell look at them... IT MAKES ME SO MAD. I mean really... what is the point of doing the right thing when you just get nothing for it... I have nothing to show for it. NOTHING. I am more angry and hateful towards the world when I am coming out of college then when I went in, and believe me jeff I tried... oh I have never tried so hard to be social in my life.
I didn't brush it off. I answered it. Hire a sex worker and you're laid tomorrow. I have friends who are sex workers, so I don't have a negative viewpoint on them.
I don't think most people come up with a series of manipulations and plans to do things in which they are otherwise disinterested so that they can have sex as their only objective.
I think you are creating something specific to you, and assuming everyone else has the same thing and is just unwilling to help you out. Except, no one else has such a master plan.
We're not holding out on you. We don't have the information you're asking for.
UPDATE: This reply written before you added the second paragraph above. But, it's bedtime now. Start a separate journal on this, though.
"You don't know you're beautiful." - Harry Styles
I don't live in an area were the male sex worker is readily available and if they where I wouldn't know were to find them. Frankly I would have taken this opinion already if it were available, and really using it a few times would have solved a lot of problems. No... It would just cause guilt issues... over things having been done the easy way, and none of my pain to get this far in life having been justified.
While you may not believe me... I came to college for that reason. I don't give a shit about a job or money. I came to college, so that I get a education and make myself more attractive in the way that is best for me because I have a lot of psychical disfigurements, which can only be fixed so far, but that doesn't mean I will settle.
What do you mean by that? About the everyone not having a master plan thing. And the me creating something specific to me...
Are you saying that there is no way for me to figure out what I need to do to get what I want...?
UPDATE: Why... If I do that then people here will just call me an insane mad man. Besides no one really wants to help, because they are all getting what they want, and don't want to tell people like me...
No one lives where there are no male sex workers. I'm curious if you go on rentboy.com if there are really no locals. ;-)
My view on sex, relationships, etc. is that they are the result of being someone people want to be around in general. People who are driven, passionate, have interests, etc, and of course, hot, attractive, etc., can also help, too.
But these people didn't break it down and find something to be interested in, something to be passionate about, something to do as a hobby, etc., etc., as a means to find sex, relationships, etc.
So, you can't look at the people having sex and try and trace back why they are able to have it, and use that as some blueprint, because the choices they made about who they are was unlikely to have been informed by sexual motivations. I mean, sure, if you go the gym and look good, that can make a less interesting person more sexually attractive, but that isn't how it works.
And that seems how you want it to work.
But, start your own journal on this stuff. There is almost nothing here connected to Nanook at this point, except he had sex, and the whole site is based on sexual orientation, so that's hardly unique. ;-)
I'm not commenting here anymore.
"You don't know you're beautiful." - Harry Styles
You obviously have little knowledge of anyone with Asperger... I mean it really shows... because if you did, you would understand my obsession for finding out the reason people are able to do it... piece by piece. But I will explain more in PMs and other journals...
I've never claimed to know anything about Asperger's, so that's not really surprising.
I started a journal in your name. I'm not a huge fan of PMs. I'm more of a public commenter.
"You don't know you're beautiful." - Harry Styles
Hmmm your a public commenter... I wonder why...
Sounds like this Mike was just using you, which sucks, obviously. I would avoid him altogether. Maybe something could develop with Tanner, but that's your call bro.
Not sure of the timeframe, and Thommy didn't mention its length on here, but this was a pretty longish relationship. Several years, if I am recalling properly...
"You don't know you're beautiful." - Harry Styles
I gathered it was a long relationship, but it still sounds like he was using him. You know, using his car to hook-up with another guy and lying about it.
I mean, if you suddenly don't feel the same about someone, it makes more sense to tell them and get that part over with. It sucks having to honest like that, hurting someone's feelings and all. I would have to believe it's better than the alternative. On the other hand, he did hook-up with one of his other boyfriends, so there's that, but I wouldn't associate with Mike anymore or live with him.
That was what I said originally, but some people just can't handle the truth you know.
Yama, what gets people to like you is by not trying to get someone to like you. I NEVER EVER go after someone infatuated with me or someone trying desperately. That's bad news central. Humility is the most attractive thing for me. I don't parade around about my money. Sure I have pretty American expresses but I don't flaunt them. I don't flaunt my beauty. I don't flaunt my body. I know that having a good body generally interests people. That's why I style my hair. But above all, I act like myself and I don't force myself into friendships. If I don't want to do something, I don't. I don't like E. I don't do it. People will respect that and being able to say no is attractive.
I used to think like that Nanook... but I stopped doing that, because it never worked. Doing that only seems to work when you are attractive, do have money, and basically a laundry list of things people want so you don't have to try. When your like me, and everything is working against you then you do. If I were to not care, then I wouldn't ever leave my room because I hate to socialize. It is just too emotionally painful, even successful socialization. I just don't like the extreme anxiety that goes with it. My interest are extremely narrow, so I can't usually help, but be surprised when someone actually likes the same things. Anyone would be. Again if I didn't force myself into friendship then I wouldn't have any... Because I don't enjoy them. You see my entire life is spent acting like what I am not to be successful in a society that requires socialization to get by. I am sorry, but the my reason for doing all my socialization is that one overarching goal, which I recently came to a realization during a shrink appointment is not achievable given my inability to emotionally attach myself to people.
Just popped in five days late to say that when I first saw the journal title, I thought it said, "Fuck dem titties" and I giggled.


text:
Hey, I am looking at putting together an automated brew system. I would love to see one in action. If there is anyone in Colorado preferably in the Denver to FoCo area that wouldn't mind showing off their system, I would really appreciate it. I might take a few pics/notes if that is ok. Thanks
Not sure how automated youre talking about, but have a single tier rims system thats somewhat automated. In Littlleton CO. Joe
Joe, how automated is yours? I am a firm believer thin the idea that the more automated the better. Would you mind if I was able to check it out and get some ideas for what I am looking into doing?
We put in a pretty automated system at Oskar Blues recently. O wait you mean home brewing.
I have seen a few of the big boys systems, I work a Left Hand, but I am looking at the homebrew level.


text: The stuff is bizarre enough that you might expect to see it pried from the clinging fingers of a vintage shopping virtuoso on an episode of BBC America's What Not to Wear and tossed into the trash barrel by hosts Trinny and Susannah. It's feisty duck feathers, kinky Moroccan lamb fur, drawstring suede boots, drapes turned into capes, and everything common sense says shouldn't be worn together. But these are far from common part haute couture, part flea market finds paired by fashionista Iris Apfel. So back off fashion fascists it's art! You can too pair chunky coconut bangles with Rorschach-patterned silk without sending an "I'm nuts" message, if you are an eccentric society type. A re-packaging of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's exhibit "Rara Avis: Iris Apfel and the Art of Fashion," "Rare Bird of Fashion: The Irreverent Iris Apfel" begins with a mock runway show set-up complete with flashing cameras and the first gallery develops the theme. To the sounds of jazz, the gallery offers virtual Apfels throughout the exhibit, presented as identical, white mannequins, often with the trademark owl glasses of the fashion maven dressed in urban neutrals and posed as if seated in the audience or strutting down the catwalk. Offering more of an installation art experience than just a mere tour of wacky costumes, the exhibit's music and backdrop themes evolve with the fashion trends. So the gallery with the exotic tapestries and animal prints offers tunes with oriental flair and red. The mannequins in the last gallery play circus music for clownish displays of sparkly, ballooned jumpsuits and acrobatically inspired counterparts. If you're inspired to hit the vintage stores and put together your own kooky attention-getter, a video interview with Apfel offers an insight into the method behind her divine madness. Through May 27 at Norton Museum of Art, 1451 S. Olive Ave., West Palm Beach. Call 561-832-5196.


text:
(4 star hotel)
including 8 days parking
from the airport
customer rating
Indulge in extravagance this holiday
Adjectives just tumble out as you explore this opulent landmark hotel. Remodelled as a hotel in 2008, this Grade II listed building was the original Speke Liverpool airport terminal. It's now been redesigned to the highest standard for you to enjoy a truly luxurious pre-holiday stay.
This four-star hotel is just a mile from Liverpool airport, so you can rest in your decadent bedroom or suite until just moments before your departure time.
A DH89 Dragon Rapide aircraft stands outside what was the entrance to the airport, now the hotel reception desk. At nighttime, the aircraft twinkles with the fairy lights that adorn it. The slate and deep red entrance to reception introduces the masculine colour scheme which continues throughout, softened by the hotels spaciousness and ample, elegant soft furnishings.
A star-studded starting point
This is where John, Paul, George and Ringo stepped off their plane to hordes of screaming fans in the sixties, and so the Beatles theme runs throughout the hotel. The hotel has recently come under new management, who will thoroughly celebrate the Beatles history here. Youll soon find Beatles-inspired drinks and meals.
A huge David Lloyd gym now occupies what used to be the airport hangar, just 200 yards from the Crowne Plaza hotel. The gym has a childrens Play Den creche, so you can have a little you-time while you work out. There are plenty of gym staff on hand to show you the ropes, and theres even a cafe area to restore your energy levels afterwards. For a real post-gym or pre-flight pamper session, Saks make-up artists are on hand for last-minute hair and beauty treatments for both men and women.
We recommend the Crowne Plaza at Liverpool Airport for:
Luxury - The hotel is of an excellent standard, down to the last detail, and service is exemplary. If youre looking to make the most of your holiday experience, check in to the Crowne Plaza at Liverpool airport for the tasteful design and modern facilities that make this hotel a stand-alone break all by itself.
Convenience - Its only a short drive from the airport, and there are numerous shops just across the road for a little last-minute retail therapy. WHSmith, Next, H&M and JD Sports are just some of the big-name brands within walking distance.
David Lloyd gym next door - Possibly the biggest gym you have ever seen! Guests at the Crowne Plaza hotel have free access to its mirrored dance studio, free weights, exercise machines with TVs, power plates, six indoor tennis courts, six outdoor tennis courts, three squash courts, four badminton courts, indoor and outdoor swimming pools (the latter of which is lit up at night), spa bath, steam room... the list goes on.
Check-in is from 2pm. You must check out by noon.
Crowne Plaza at Liverpool AirportSpeke Aerodrome,
Speke Road,
L24 8QD Top


text:
Kori Newkirk
by greater-la
Kori Newkirk was born in the Bronx in 1970, and attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Skowhegan School of Painting, and the University of California, Irvine. Turning at times to installation, sculpture, photography, and video, throughout his practice Newkirk consistently test ideas of identity – whether it is founded on gender, race, generation or geography. His work has been exhibited at Locust Projects, Miami; Gagosian Gallery, Los Angeles; the Studio Museum in Harlem, New York; ICA, London; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and elsewhere.


text:
Trainee Online Marketing Job in Manchester
Thanks to support from Northwest Vision and Media, we are now able to recruit for a trainee online marketeer. This is an initial 6 months placement with a good salary. As you would expect with us, the succesful candidate is going to get their hands very dirty very quickly. The formal job description is: Length… Continue reading


text:
Updated: 3/17/2014 11:51 am
Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - The Philadelphia 76ers have signed forward James Nunnally to a 10-day contract.
Nunnally had played for Bakersfield and Texas of the NBA Development League and was averaging 18.1 points with 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in a combined 35 games.
A D-League All-Star this season, he also appeared in four games for the Atlanta Hawks.
The Sixers also waived guard Eric Maynor, who was acquired last month as part of a three-team trade with Washington and Denver.
Crossroads Today is a community service of the Victoria Television Group. © 2015 Saga Broadcasting, LLC All Rights Reserved.
Non-Discriminatory Advertising Letter | ADVISORY PUBLIC NOTICE - NON-DISCRIMINATORY AD CONTRACTS
EEO Filing | FCC Inspection File | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use


text:
Organizers of Rockford AirFest 2013 have said the show will go on with or without the U.S. Navy Blue Angels.
It will be without.
The acrobatic air team Tuesday canceled all performances for 2013. The decision was prompted by automatic cuts to military budgets after Congress failed to agree on a deficit reduction plan.
According to the Associated Press:
Tom Frosch, the Blue Angels lead pilot and team commander, announced the news late Tuesday at the team's Pensacola Naval Air Station headquarters standing in front of the one of the iconic blue-and-gold jets. Frosch said the news marks the first time since the Korean War that the team would not make the air show rounds.
"The Navy held off as long as possible with the hope of salvaging some of the season," Frosch said. "We hope we'll be turned back on for 2014."
Location, ST | website.com


text:
quote: You can't really formulate a opinion from that vid.
quote:You can't really formulate an opinion from that vid.
quote:Looks like he stood his ground, little kid needs to watch out where the frick he's going.
quote:It looks like standard reflex to me. If anyone is going to run into you, most likely you'll put your arms out and try to get him to fall.


text:
Block ads in Safari
Safari AdBlock lives up to its namesake: It blocks ads, for free, in Safari for Mac.
Built on GPL, the open source and free Safari AdBlock was written with help from the folks who created AdBlock Plus, the popular Firefox plug-in. This iteration for Safari is simple and needs no configuration, although there are a few options for users if they want them. Users can choose from blocking ads in a multitude of languages including English, German, French, Ukranian, Russian, Korean, Chinese, and more. That's about it for customization.
In our extremely scientific testing, whereby scientific we mean utterly and shamelessly empirical, we checked out a few Web sites with big ads including CNN.com, NYTimes.com, and TheOnion.com, and AdBlock successfully killed ads on all three of those sites. Up until now, the best way to block ads in Safari have been pay-for-play options. But for free and open-source goodness, Safari AdBlock is the way to go. Hopefully future versions will have more features, and a few ads did get through in our testing, but by and large this is a very effective ad-blocker.


text:
24th June 2014
Gay sauna defends safety policy at tribunal after drug deaths
4:39 PM — The owner of a gay sauna in south London has told a coroner that its drug searches have become "more aggressive" following several fatal overdoses.
30th October 2012
London: Second man dies following gay sauna incident 32
7:59 PM — The Metropolitan Police have launched an appeal for information following the death of two men after they collapsed in a London sauna.
29th October 2012
London: Police investigate death at gay sauna 47
12:24 PM — The Metropolitan Police have launched an investigation after a man died at a gay sauna in central London during the weekend.


text:
UPDATED: Friday, April 13, 2012 - 8:54am
WACO -- The swat team had a busy night, trying to rescue a woman, after a known dangerous man barricaded himself inside her home.
This wasn't the first time Waco Police have been called out to the 1000 block of Adams.
Waco's public information officer, Patrick Swanton said, "he's a pretty violent offender. He'd been there before, he'd assaulted this girl before and threatened to kill her."
20-year old Herman Matthews was arrested just last week for burglary and assault and then last night, someone called 9-1-1 before hanging up.
The SWAT team was called out to the apartment complex because they knew Matthews had a violent history.
When SWAT teams arrived at the complex, the victim ran out the back door. Matthews ran out the front, not knowing police were out there waiting for him.
Matthews has broken a protection order four times before.
"Knowing he'd already assaulted her, knowing he'd already thumbed his nose at the judge's order and said he'd go over there whenever he felt like going over there. We knew we were dealing with a violent offender," said Swanton.
Kathy Reid with the Family Abuse Center says these situations happen far too often. "The rumor mill is that a protective order is just a piece of paper so what good does it do, but it's a very important tool for law enforcement."
That's because a protective order is the only way police can arrest abusers on the spot.
To find out more about the Family Abuse Center click here [1].


text:
Bristol-Myers squibb executive arrested on insider trading charges
August 2, 2012 |
NEWARK, N.J. – An executive with global pharmaceuticals giant Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. was arrested this morning on insider trading charges related to illegal trades he made based on information concerning three BMS acquisition targets, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Robert Ramnarine, 45, of East Brunswick, N.J., is charged in a criminal Complaint with three counts of securities fraud. Ramnarine was arrested this morning by agents of the FBI and is scheduled to appear this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark federal court.
According to the Complaint unsealed today:
Ramnarine was employed by Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. since 1997, and from March 2008 through the present, held a variety of high-level, executive positions at the company, including director of Pensions and Savings Investments (March 2008-June 2011), executive director of Pensions and Savings Investments (June 2011-July 2012), and assistant treasurer for Capital Markets (since July 2012). As a result of these positions, Ramnarine was involved in evaluating potential BMS acquisition targets, including publicly traded companies, and was privy to inside company information concerning such transactions. At all times, he owed a fiduciary duty of trust and confidence to BMS not to disclose confidential information and material, nonpublic information he learned through his employment with BMS, or to use such information for his personal benefit or the benefit of others.
Between August 2010 and June 2012, however, Ramnarine, traded on material, nonpublic information regarding BMS's anticipated acquisitions of the following publicly traded companies: ZymoGenentics, Inc., Pharmasset, Inc., and Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. The material, nonpublic information available to Ramnarine enabled him to reap substantial profits by engaging in lucrative trading in stock options of these companies shortly before they were either acquired by BMS in the case of ZymoGenetics and Amylin, or by another company in the case of Pharmasset. Ramnarine generated approximately $311,361 in illicit profits pursuant to this scheme.
While trading on inside information he obtained through his work at BMS, Ramnarine attempted to conceal his illegal trading activities. In November 2011, Ramnarine learned (1) that Pharmasset was participating in a limited auction process, whereby it would be sold to the highest bidder, and (2) that the auction would close on November 17, 2011. Before trading ahead of the sale of Pharmasset, however, Ramnarine conducted numerous Yahoo! Internet searches from his work computer concerning means to avoid detection for insider trading, including the following terms: "can option be traced to purchaser"; "can stock option be traced to purchase inside trading"; and "insider trading options traceillegal [sic]." Based on these searches, as well as others, between Nov. 2, 2011, and Nov. 3, 2011 Ramnarine visited a number of websites and viewed articles discussing the purpose of insider trading laws, examples of insider trading violations, as well as ways to avoid insider trading violations.
The securities fraud charge carries a maximum potential penalty of twenty years in prison and a fine of $5,000,000.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Michael B. Ward, in Newark, with the ongoing investigation leading to the criminal Complaint. He also thanked the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's Market Abuse Unit and Philadelphia Regional Office, under the direction of Daniel M. Hawke for its assistance, and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company for its cooperation during the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gurbir S. Grewal and Mala Harker of the U.S. Attorney's Office Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
This case was brought in coordination with President Barack Obama's Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.
The charges and allegations contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.


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Father: Anthony NAY b: 27 APR 1788 in Hampton, Rockingham, New Hampshire, USA Mother: Anna Lovina LEAVITT b: 20 JAN 1792 in Probably Coos County, New Hampshire, USA Marriage 1 Bethia Swan BRIGGS b: 8 FEB 1835 in Woodstock, Oxford, Maine, USA
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