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Parts of this book-length story were published prior to October 2011, when a man named Ali Nazerali filed a lawsuit against me and DeepCapture and convinced a Canadian court to issue (without any notice to us, and without giving us an opportunity to defend what I had written) an injunction that forced the entire DeepCapture website to be removed from the internet on October 19, 2011.
I could be wrong, but I do not believe anything like this had ever happened before. Never in history had a court outside the United States blacked out (censored) an entire American media website, much less at the behest of one man who did not like what was written in only one of hundreds of articles on many subjects that were published on that website in the exercise of First Amendment rights.
Fortunately, on December, 13, 2011, the court heard my application opposing a continuation of the injunction and considered my detailed affidavits defending this story. Finding in my favor, and refusing to extend the injunction, the court noted that the October 19 injunction was based on an incorrect legal test for pre-trial injunctions which had been suggested to the judge by lawyers for Mr. Nazerali at the earlier one-sided hearing.
Applying the correct legal test for injunctions, which my lawyer described in his submissions on December 13, the court ruled that our freedom of speech had to be restored, at least until Mr. Nazerali's claims were tested at a trial.
Since then, I have taken a few months to investigate further, and we are now publishing an updated version of this book-length story, chapter by chapter.
Even if you had followed DeepCapture prior to the interruption, I encourage you to read this updated version of the story because it goes quite a bit deeper, and contains additional evidence and information that supports my thesis. In addition, I have clarified and refined my argument, because some people had slightly misunderstood it, while others (such as Mr. Nazerali and the former journalist Gary Weiss, who features prominently in this story) had misrepresented what I had written.
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The Miscreants' Global Bust-Out
Chapter One
Was the United States Attacked by "Financial Terrorists"?
I did not think that Zuhair Karam was violent, but I telephoned him because I thought his biography was interesting. For example, it was interesting that soon after making a home in the United States, Zuhair Karam obtained finance to publish a semi-famous work of jihadist propaganda, and soon thereafter, became a proprietary day trader of equities and derivatives at a small, unregistered brokerage in Chicago.
Many of the other people who operated through this brokerage also had interesting biographies. One of them was a trader who had ties to Russian organized crime, and whose business partner was killed in a brutal gangland-style murder in New Jersey. Also trading through this little unregistered brokerage in Chicago was an account controlled by the top henchmen of a Russian oligarch and members of an organized crime syndicate that has been accused by U.S. officials of having ties to both Al Qaeda and the Russian government's intelligence services.
In addition there was (to name just one more) a trader whose family members worked for the Revolutionary Guard in Iran. One of this trader's close relatives (based outside Iran) had employed an undercover Iranian government agent who was implicated in a terrorist attack and who was caught shipping sophisticated weaponry to Hezbollah, the jihadist outfit that takes its directions from the Iranian regime.
Zuhair's little brokerage, meanwhile, maintained partnerships with a number of other brokerages, all of which were similarly interesting. Some of these brokerages were operated by people who had previously been principals at brokerages controlled by La Cosa Nostra, Russian organized crime syndicates, and (in most cases) both. Some of these brokerages had important ties to a man who is now (according to credible reports from Moscow) running financial crime operations for the Russian intelligence services.
One of these brokerages was a partnership with a Moscow bank that is (according to U.S. officials) controlled by the Russian intelligence services. Another brokerage in the network had ties to a U.S.-based Iranian government company that was (in 2009) not only investigated for transacting manipulative trading, but also accused by the Department of Justice of conducting espionage against the United States and funding Iran's nuclear weapons program.
Meanwhile, some owners and/or top employees of brokerages in this network included: a fellow who once worked for a man who commands a private army in Lebanon; another guy who had worked for a trader who orchestrated an ill-fated scheme to topple the government of Afghanistan in league with a heroin-smuggling warlord who worked closely with Iran; and an Iranian trader whose family was, in the 1990s, flying cargo planes filled with gem stones from a remote Illinois runway, in partnership with a money launderer who ran an organization that had hosted the leadership of Hezbollah.
Yet another of the brokerages in the network was connected to a Middle Eastern financial institution that has been accused of funding terrorism, and which financed a bank in Sudan that was founded by Osama bin Laden himself. Meanwhile, not just Zuhair Karam, but a number of traders who either controlled brokerages in this network or traded through the brokerages had business relationships with Islamic organizations that have been listed in a famous Muslim Brotherhood document as being organizations designated to lead a "Grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within."
Perhaps just as important, the clients of these brokerages included some of America's most notoriously destructive financial operators, many of whom themselves have business relationships with organized crime and, perhaps not coincidentally, also have business relationships with financiers of terrorism.
But what is most noteworthy about these brokerages is that they all cleared their trades through an outfit in Texas that was relatively obscure until late 2007, when it suddenly became (by volume) the largest brokerage on the planet. Moreover, data strongly suggests that most of this new volume was short selling targeting critical American companies, including the the nation's largest financial institutions.
Indeed, the data suggests that this one previously obscure outfit in Texas (an outfit whose principal clientele was the network of brokerages that I have just briefly described, and which this story will describe in far more detail) transacted more short selling targeting major American financial institutions than the combined short selling (targeting financial institutions) transacted by the broker-dealers of Wall Street titans Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, and Merrill Lynch.
Moreover, this barrage of short selling continued and intensified through September, 2008, when the Securities and Exchange Commission was moved to issue an "Emergency Order," stating that manipulative short selling had likely contributed to the collapse of major financial institutions (e.g. Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers) and was threatening to undermine the stability of the American financial system.
As for Zuhair Karam – well, I didn't know enough about him, but I knew a little. For example, I knew that he was born in Lebanon, and had recently spent some time overseas, where he came to be attached to an Islamic cleric named Sadathullah Khan, who tells the media that he is "moderate" – a term that, of course, has different connotations depending on your perspective.
Some people say that Sadathullah Khan is an extremist, partly because he has had ties to an outfit called the Supreme Council of Global Jihad, which espouses violence. Sadathullah Khan, meanwhile, has also worked closely on projects (an Islamic media project, for example) with a cleric named Zakir Naik, who has preached that "Every Muslim should be a terrorist."
When he talks to the Western press, Zakir Naik says he is not fond of Al Qaeda, but in a video made for his followers, he said, "If Osama bin Laden is fighting the enemies of Islam, I am for him…If he is terrorizing America the terrorist, the biggest terrorist, I am with him." Imam Naik also served as a mentor to Najibullah Zazi, an Al Qaeda operative who was arrested in 2009 shortly before carrying out a plan to plant explosives in the New York City subway system.
Imam Naik was banned from entering the United Kingdom after he was deemed to be immoderate, but the United States still grants him visas (he hasn't been charged with involvement with any terrorist plot) and perhaps he will one day return to Chicago, where he once gave what he calls "my most famous speech" at a gathering organized by an outfit that has worked closely with the Bridgeview Mosque, a house of worship in Bridgeview, a middle-class neighborhood on Chicago's south side.
Zuhair Karam, in addition to his work as a financial operator, has been fairly prominent among the small band of jihadis who congregate at the Bridgeview Mosque, where Zuhair's relative has helped organize the mosque's fund raising for groups such as Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
The Bridgeview Mosque, it should be said, serves thousands of ordinary people, most of whom probably harbor no politics other than a desire for peace. Many jihadis, meanwhile, are not themselves violent people, and merely support the political ideology of jihad. But there was a time when the Bridgeview Mosque's imam regularly gave fiery sermons urging jihadi freedom fighters to take up arms.
The sermons were toned down after the FBI began investigating, but it is assumed by some prominent terrorism experts that the Bridgeview Mosque's top officials (and Zuhair's family) are members of the Muslim Brotherhood. One reason to believe this is that the mosque is controlled by the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), which government investigators have identified as being a Muslim Brotherhood front.
The Muslim Brotherhood is a diverse organization, and at least publicly disavows violence. It is probably wise to engage the Brotherhood, rather than vilify and incite it. Nonetheless, it should be understood that the Brotherhood is united in its opposition to the foundational principals of Western civilization and is making efforts to undermine the United States.
It is also true that many Muslim Brotherhood figures in the West (including some officials at ISNA) have been accused of providing material support (including money, personnel, and sometimes weapons) to violent terrorist groups, including Al Qaeda.
The Bridgeview Mosque itself has not been accused of directly supporting Al Qaeda, but there is no question that it has funded other violent jihadist groups. For example, according to the Chicago Tribune and others, the mosque was one of the most important funders of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, an outfit that was spawned by the Muslim Brotherhood and also takes directions from the regime in Iran.
Zuhair Karam and his relatives are close family friends of Sami al-Arian, who was not only a founding director of ISNA, but also a U.S.-based leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, indicted in 2003 for funding terrorist attacks in Palestine. As Rachel Ehrenfeld, now director of the Economic Warfare Institute, first reported, FBI investigators suspected (though never proved) that Sami al-Arian provided support to the Al Qaeda hijackers who carried out the 9-11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The Bridgeview Mosque and many traders affiliated with brokerages discussed above were also among the principal supporters of the Holy Land Foundation, which was indicted on charges of financing terrorism in 2007 after prosecutors demonstrated that it was a principal U.S. front for Hamas, another Muslim Brotherhood creation that receives support from Iran. The mosque's directors, and one of Zuhair's family members, meanwhile, help administer investment funds worth billions of dollars controlled by the North American Islamic Trust, an investment bank (and a unit of ISNA) that has been tied to the Muslim Brotherhood and was named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the government's case against the Holy Land Foundation.
In addition, some Bridgeview Mosque congregants (a number of them close family friends of Zuhair Karam, and some of them also traders who operated through the same network of brokerages) were involved with a Chicago-based charity called The Benevolence International Foundation, which was actually an Al Qaeda front, founded by Osama bin Laden's brother-in-law. According to federal prosecutors, Benevolence was "involved in terrorist activities" and had contacts with "persons trying to obtain chemical and nuclear weapons on behalf of Al Qaeda."
More to the point of this story, Mark Flessner, a former U.S. prosecutor who was at the front lines of the government's "war on terrorism", has said that the Bridgeview Mosque was, at least until it came under closer government scrutiny, a "gold mine of information about terrorist finance."
So, obviously, I wanted to know more about the Bridgeview Mosque, and I wanted to know more about Zuhair's brokerage and other brokerages in its network. Zuhair, as I mentioned, was far from the only jihadi ideologue attached to these brokerages, though I do not mean to single out jihadis. It was perhaps more important that this network of brokerage had highly significant ties to organized crime syndicates. Some of those syndicates (especially the ones emanating from Russia) had become politicized and were hostile to the United States.
When I called Zuhair for the first time in 2010, our conversation did not go well. Zuhair began by demanding to know how I had come to possess his telephone number. I told him, honestly, that I had found his phone number in the White Pages, but he refused to believe me. When I explained that I had some questions about the little brokerage where he had worked, he insisted that he didn't know anything about the brokerage, and he said that he did not know anyone else who worked there.
After some additional prodding, Zuhair said, "Look, man, I'm just one of the little guys." I said, "Yes, I know, but let's meet anyway, I can tell you more about this investigation."
Zuhair seemed already to know about some investigation. He said, "Shit, man, I thought this was over." Which seemed strange to me because the only investigation I knew about was the investigation that I was conducting. But I wanted to be helpful, so I said, "Let's meet, I can tell you more about it."
Zuhair paused. He seemed to be figuring it all out. Finally, he said, "You're not a journalist, that's for sure, man, tell me who you are…Are you an Arabian?" No, I am not an "Arabian" – that's what I told Zuhair Karam. I said there's this investigation, I have information.
I did not have any negative feelings about Zuhair or the Bridgeview Mosque. I told him that I had some sympathy for some of the opinions expressed in the jihadist propaganda that he had produced. (The propaganda was focused on the situation in Palestine).
I had also developed a fascination with Islam, and considered it to be an attractive religion. I told Zuhair this, and I told him I would like to come down to the mosque to meet him. I said I'd also like to meet his father, Haaz Karam, who helped raise money for Islamic Jihad.
Zuhair said, "He's not my father." So I said, "Sorry, your relative." And Zuhair said, "Yeah, so…what is this? Man, the FBI — you say you're a journalist, why do you know about this investigation? That just isn't right…the FBI…man, I'm telling you, I'm just one of the little guys…the FBI…the FBI can come, let them come, they know where I live, let them come, let them try – see if I care."
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In his 2010 report to Congress, Admiral Dennis Blair, who was then the U.S. director of national intelligence, outlined one of the biggest threats to America's economic well-being and national security. He began by noting that transnational organized crime syndicates are closely intertwined with the intelligence services and governments of some countries (such as Russia) that are considered to be adversaries of the United States. He then stated that "the nexus between international criminal organizations and terrorist groups [including, but not limited to Al Qaeda]…presents continuing dangers."
In the same breath, the national intelligence director warned that transnational organized crime syndicates are "undermining free markets," and "almost certainly will increase [their] penetration of legitimate financial and commercial markets, threatening U.S. economic interests and raising the risk of significant damage to the global financial system."
We should understand the implications of what the national intelligence director was saying. He was saying that organized crime syndicates (and, by inference, the jihadist groups and foreign governments that maintain ties to organized crime syndicates) have the capability to disrupt the financial markets and harm the American economy. The only question was: had they already done so?
On August 12, 2011, President Barack Obama answered that question in dramatic fashion. The president reiterated that there was a clear "nexus" between transnational organized crime syndicates, multiple terrorist groups, international drug cartels, and some foreign governments and intelligence services that are hostile to the United States.
The president also reiterated that transnational organized crime syndicates (and, by inference, perhaps others in the "nexus") had not only "penetrated" the "legitimate" financial industry (i.e. Wall Street), but had already "undermined markets" to such an extent that they now posed an imminent "threat to the stability of the global financial system."
The president did not just reaffirm this assessment. He declared it to be a "National Emergency."
The president did not precisely define what he meant by "undermining markets," but many in the national security community believe that one of the bigger threats "to the stability of the global financial system" is manipulative short selling and what I refer to as the "bust outs" of publicly listed American companies, the wider markets, and the economy itself.
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The term "bust-out" is one that I borrowed from organized crime. In the old days, mobsters would take over, say, the corner bar, load it up with debt, loot the cash, declare bankruptcy, and force the bar out of business. In the modern world of high finance, "bust outs" come in many permutations, but most of them follow the same routine of leverage, loot, and destroy.
Some "bust outs" see traders financing a company (often legitimate companies; in other cases companies that are frauds to begin with) and gaining a degree of control over the company's stock price. The traders then "pump" the stock for a period of time, but ultimately the company is looted, the stock is "dumped," and affiliated short sellers attack the company, sending its stock into a death spiral.
In a typical "pump and dump," the manipulative short selling accompanying the "dump" ensures that the stock hits zero before the company has a chance to raise capital from more legitimate sources, and before shareholders have an opportunity to get out of the stock and cut their losses.
In other cases, individuals or firms will provide a legitimate company with toxic finance (often referred to as "death spiral" finance), which, for reasons explained in this story, immediately causes the company's stock price to lose value. The financiers and affiliated traders then attack the company with manipulative short selling, sending the stock into a death spiral, and making it impossible for the company to raise new capital from more legitimate sources.
When the company is forced into bankruptcy, the people who provided the finance (often the same people as the short sellers) receive what is left of its assets, and they pocket short selling profits in excess of the cost of the initial toxic finance.
In still other cases, miscreants simply invest in a company's shares or bonds, and gain a degree of control over the company's management, either by demanding seats on the board or by exerting influence as major shareholders or creditors. Often the financial operators will then work with corrupt insiders to loot the company or engage in more complex schemes to saddle a company with toxic assets (purchased from the miscreants themselves or from their associates).
Ultimately, the goal is to loot and weaken the company.
If the company is publicly listed (private companies are also "busted out," and this final step does not, of course, apply to them), the miscreants or their associates eventually attack the company with manipulative short selling. For complex reasons (to be outlined in this story), owning a company's bonds (especially convertible bonds, sometimes known as "toxic converts") makes it easier for the bond owners and their associates to engage in manipulative short selling.
There is also a long history of miscreants not just investing in a company, but taking the company over entirely, and looting its assets. Once sufficiently looted, the company is, as usual, attacked with manipulative short selling. Before the company's board of directors or regulators have an opportunity to oust the miscreants, the company's stock goes into a death spiral, making it impossible for the company to raise new capital, and forcing a bankruptcy.
In such cases, the tendency is to say, "Well, it was bad company, so its bankruptcy was inevitable." But often, the companies are good companies until they are "busted out," and often even troubled companies would be salvageable if it were not for the rapid death spirals of their stock prices, which do not allow time for restructuring or the ousting of the miscreants who gained control over the company.
There are also plenty of cases in which financial operators do not gain any control over their target company, but merely attack it with a steady barrage of manipulative short selling, meanwhile deploying any number of other tactics (for example, spreading false rumors about the company's health, and manipulating credit default swap prices, which are an important measures of a company's well-being) to drive down the company's stock price.
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Financial operators have, in fact, been "busting out" major American companies since at least the 1980s, when numerous savings and loan banks were "busted out," fueling what came to be known as the "savings and loan crisis," which delivered a devastating blow to the financial system. Many of the perpetrators of those "bust-outs" (see, for example, the book "Inside Job," which is the seminal work on the savings and loan crisis) had ties to organized crime.
Sometimes organized crime syndicates perpetrate "bust outs" for the purposes of laundering money. The dirty cash goes into companies in the form of toxic finance, and comes out clean in the form of short selling profits. In cases where short sales are not "covered" (i.e. in many cases involving manipulative short selling, and in all cases where the target stock hits zero), the short selling profits do not even have to be reported to tax authorities.
Former FBI investigators and experts who study financial crime say that market manipulation and "bust outs" of publicly listed companies is one of the more important money laundering techniques deployed by the world's leading organized crime syndicates and other miscreants. Indeed, many of history's biggest "money laundering" scandals were, in fact, market manipulation and "bust out" scandals.
In 1999, for example, a famous scandal saw the Russian government and organized crime syndicates with ties to the Russian intelligence services laundering upwards of $7 billion through the Bank of New York. As later chapters of this story will demonstrate in great detail, this money laundering was (according to a careful reading of indictments, statements of government investigators, and other information) the tail end of a large scale market manipulation ("bust out") network that destroyed countless U.S. public companies.
Some of the destroyed companies were pure frauds that were "pumped and dumped." But many of the companies had been going concerns until they were targeted by people who had ties to Russian organized crime, and who gained control over the companies' stock prices. Once in control, they "pumped" and then "dumped" the stocks while engaging in manipulative short selling that sent the stocks into death spirals.
Today, Russian organized crime continues to "bust out" public companies with a vengeance. While this activity has gone largely unreported by the media, a notable exception is Forbes magazine's Nathan Vardi, who has written multiple stories (see, for example, his story, "Sewer PIPEs") that note the extensive involvement of financial operators with ties to Russian organized crime syndicates in one form of "death spiral" finance (so-called "PIPEs") and the manipulative short selling that usually comes with such finance.
As we will see, there is no question that Russian organized crime syndicates have (as White House national security staffers maintain) ties to the Russian intelligence services. It is, moreover, my contention that when "bust-outs" are perpetrated by organized crime syndicates with ties to the Russian intelligence services, we should consider whether they are motivated, at least to some extent, by politics, and specifically by Russia's disdain for the United States and the prevailing economic order.
But, of course, Russian organized crime is not the only concern. As we know, the president and his national security staff say that there is a "nexus" between transnational organized crime syndicates (including, but not limited to those emanating from Russia) and other potentially hostile constituencies, including jihadist organizations and foreign governments besides Russia.
Therefore we must ask whether sophisticated financiers with ties to jihadist organizations or hostile foreign governments are among those who have "undermined markets," thereby inspiring the president to declare a "National Emergency."
It is not often that a president issues a formal declaration of a "National Emergency," and it is even less often that a president suggests that he is doing so because transnational organized crime syndicates (and perhaps others in the nexus, including terrorist organizations and hostile foreign governments) have "penetrated" the "legitimate" financial sector (i.e. parts of Wall Street) and are now posing a "threat to the stability of the global financial system."
One would think that this would be front page news. But, amazingly, the president's declaration of a "National Emergency" received almost no coverage at all from the major media outlets. One rare exception was the highly respected Economist magazine (based in Britain), which noted the "National Emergency" (and also noted the dearth of U.S. media coverage of the emergency) in a December 2011 article (titled, "Financial Terrorism") that noted the possibility that the financial system might already have been attacked by hostile entities.
While America's media and financial regulators seem largely uninterested in this issue, some in the national security community are devoting a lot of attention to it. A 110 page report commissioned by the Department of Defense Irregular Warfare Support Program even goes so far as to state that there is high likelihood that the economic cataclysm of 2008 was significantly worsened by politically motivated "financial terrorists intent on wiping out the American financial system."
The report (a copy of which can be found at DeepCapture.com) makes reference to the massive volumes of short selling that went through the previously obscure brokerage that I discussed at the outset of this story. While the report for the Department of Defense does not identify the brokerage by name, I will do so in later chapters of this series, and I will also name its client brokerages (i.e. the network that I briefly described above). However, to understand the significance of these brokerages, we must first cover some other ground.
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The report for the Department of Defense states with good reason that the weapons most likely to be used by financial terrorists are so-called "naked" short selling and other forms of short-side market manipulation.
Before I continue, let me stress that short selling is a perfectly legitimate practice. It involves traders borrowing shares and then selling them, hoping the price will drop so that they can repurchase the shares at a discount, return them to the lender, and pocket the difference.
In "naked" short sales, however, traders do not borrow or purchase stock before they sell it. They simply sell what they do not have – phantom stock. You probably can imagine how easy it is for miscreants to suppress the price of a security if they are able to swamp a market with artificial supply.
Of course, by definition, if people are selling a phony supply of a security, then they cannot be delivering what they are selling. Regulators and Wall Street folks call this "failure to deliver."
There are, in fact, a variety of methods that can be deployed to create "failures to deliver." There are technical differences among the methods, but all share this one basic idea: generate "failures to deliver" that act as phony supply to drive down a security's price. Because "naked short selling" is the most famous of these methods, and because the differences among it and the other methods are generally so technical as to interest only experts, I intend to refer to this whole class of methods as "naked short selling", or even more generally, "market manipulation."
As the report commissioned by the Defense Department correctly points out, foreign governments, terrorist groups, or organized crime syndicates wishing to manipulate the markets would not have to do the dirty work themselves. They would need only to invest in one among the multitude of American hedge funds that have ties to organized crime and have demonstrated that they are willing to deploy financial weapons of mass destruction for profit.
Under one scenario described in the Defense Department report, "a terror group could direct investments to a feeder hedge fund. The feeder fund would locate a Cayman Islands based hedge fund on their behalf that was predisposed to sell short financial shares. With sufficient new money, the hedge fund would expand its short selling activity (naked and traditional) and trade through dark pools or with sponsored access. At the same time, the same terror group might invest heavily in [credit default swaps] of the targeted short sales…"
Experts painted similar scenarios in testimony before a September 2010 informal meeting of the House Committee on Homeland Security. These experts were unanimous in their opinion that a hostile foreign entity could crash the U.S. financial markets. And to do so, it would most likely engage in manipulative trading through one of several brokerages that offer platforms – such as dark pools or so-called "sponsored access" – that enable miscreant financial operators to trade in anonymity.
Partly because such trading platforms exist, and for several other reasons (see Patrick Byrne's DeepCapture story, "A Peace Sign to Wall Street"), SEC data reflects only a fraction of the naked short selling that occurs in the markets. But even the SEC's partial data show that an average of 2 billion shares "failed to deliver" nearly every day in the months and weeks leading up to the 2008 market meltdown. Those shares, as I have explained, "failed to deliver" because they were phantom shares – artificial volume that drove down stock prices.
The SEC's incomplete data also shows that more than 13 million shares of Bear Stearns sold short during the week before that bank's demise in March 2008 failed to deliver. Soon after Bear Stearns collapsed, the CEOs of Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, and other major financial institutions began complaining to the SEC that naked short sellers had caused the demise of Bear Stearns and were now targeting their own banks.
We need to take seriously the complaints of the Wall Street CEOs because they were intimately familiar with the crime of naked short selling. Many of their own brokerages had engaged in it. When people are raising hell about a crime that has previously lined their pockets, it is reasonable to assume that they know what they are talking about.
Moreover, the Wall Street CEOs continued to demand that the SEC take action against the market manipulators even after their high-paying hedge fund clients (some of whom might themselves have been naked short sellers, others of whom were merely inclined to object to stronger regulation of any sort) asked the CEOs to stop their campaign.
When the CEOs continued to complain about the naked short selling, many of their big hedge fund clients began to pull their business in protest. It goes without saying that Wall Street CEOs do not sacrifice large chunks of their profits to speak out against crimes that do not exist.
On July 15, 2008, the SEC responded to the Wall Street CEOs by issuing an "Emergency Order" that temporarily protected 19 of the nation's largest financial institutions (the biggest banks plus Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) from naked short selling. The stock prices of these financial institutions immediately soared in value, and it looked like a major crisis had perhaps been averted.
Amazingly, though, the SEC lifted its "Emergency Order" just weeks later, on August 12. The next day, the naked short sellers resumed their attacks. The SEC's own data (which, again, incompletely reflects the full magnitude of the problem) shows failures to deliver rising steadily from August 12 onwards, and these failures to deliver correspond directly to the downward spiral of stock prices.
According to the SEC's partial data, Lehman Brothers saw an astounding 30 million of its shares fail to deliver during the week before the bank collapsed on September 15, 2008.
And make no mistake: Lehman might well have survived if it were not for the naked short selling and other attacks (such as the seemingly deliberate insertion of damaging false rumors into the marketplace, and the apparent manipulation of credit default swaps) that hammered its stock price.
Three days after Lehman's collapse, on September 18, the SEC issued another Emergency Order, this one banning all short selling. In that Emergency Order, the SEC (without mentioning any banks by name) stated clearly that manipulative short selling was contributing to the collapse or near collapse of multiple banks, and thereby threatening to collapse the entire financial system.
In the weeks before Lehman's collapse, the bank had plenty of liquidity to remain a going concern, and it had deals in the pipeline that would have enabled it to raise capital. But the free fall of Lehman's stock price and (I will show) other maneuverings by short sellers derailed those deals, and panicked clients pulled their cash. Only then was Lehman forced to declare bankruptcy.
Lehman was not a healthy bank, to be sure. And there is no doubt that it was weakened with help of corrupt insiders who leveraged and looted. But that leverage and looting was only one part of a larger "bust out" that saw miscreants selling to the corrupt insiders toxic assets (which I will describe in a moment), while others attacked the bank with manipulative short selling.
If it were not for that manipulative short selling, the stock would not have gone into a death spiral, and there might have been time to restructure and oust the corrupt insiders. Lehman was a venerable bank that had survived plenty of bouts of ill health and worse economic downturns. But it had never faced an assault on its stock price like the one that it saw in the lead-up to September 18, 2008.
And nearly every other major bank, regardless of its health, faced precisely similar fates during the gory month of September, 2008. All seemed doomed to collapse until the SEC issued its September 18 "Emergency Order" banning all forms of short selling, legal or otherwise.
There was no reason to ban legal short selling (a crackdown on illegal naked shorts would have been enough), but the Emergency Order gave the markets some breathing room while the Treasury Department prepared the massive (and now notorious) bailouts that signified that the government would not allow any more banks to collapse, no matter what sort of attacks might be directed at them.
As the authors of the report for the Defense Department's irregular warfare unit conclude, there is no question that short-side market manipulators contributed to the collapse or near-collapse of many of America's largest financial institutions in 2008. The report states further that "the [short selling] attacks on [America's biggest banks] were so brazen that it is difficult to imagine that they were uncoordinated."
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It wasn't just the banks that were attacked. The SEC's partial data shows that there was also massive naked short selling of exchange traded funds, or ETFs. These are publicly listed funds that are often highly leveraged and typically trade a basket of multiple stocks across a given industry. When market manipulators attack an ETF, they inflict damage on the entire industry that the fund indexes – and the high leverage magnifies the impact.
Meanwhile, there is strong evidence that the markets for U.S. government debt have also come under attack. The first naked short selling assault on U.S. Treasuries was launched in September 2001, at the time of Al Qaeda's attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Prior to the 9-11 tragedy, a daily average of $1.5 billion worth of U.S. government bonds failed to deliver. During the week immediately after 9-11, the daily failures to deliver were an astounding average of $1.5 trillion.
This was new and unusual market manipulation on a Herculean scale, but it was even worse during the months leading up to and following the 2008 crisis, when an average of $2.5 trillion worth of U.S. Treasuries failed to deliver every day. The authors of the report for the Defense Department speculate that financial terrorists, having precipitated the financial crisis, might have intended to attack the government bond markets in an attempt to bankrupt the national treasury.
Unfortunately, the government has done little to address the problem. Despite having issued its 2008 "Emergency Order" stating that manipulative short selling had contributed to the demise of major banks and now threatened to collapse the financial system, the SEC has yet to prosecute even one manipulative short seller involved in those attacks. That is, the SEC has yet to prosecute even one of the people who (according to the SEC) nearly obliterated the global financial system in 2008.
Meanwhile, after the president declared a "National Emergency" in 2011, he never said another word about it. The government has yet to prosecute any of the "legitimate" Wall Street outfits that have (according to the president) been "penetrated" by transnational organized crime syndicates. Nor has the government arrested any members of transnational organized crime syndicates that have (according to the president) "undermined markets" to such an extent that they now pose an imminent "threat to the stability of the global financial system."
* * * * * * * *
The media fails to give sufficient attention to these problems, insisting instead on reinforcing the narrative that the financial crisis was in essence caused by "reckless" lending to home buyers who could not pay back their mortgages. It is correct that the financial crisis of 2008 had its proximate cause in the collapse of the mortgage and property markets a year earlier, but that is only the surface of the story.
The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC) made clear in its January 2011 report to Congress that the principal cause of the mortgage and property disaster was the freakish collapse in 2007 of the market for collateralized debt obligations (CDOs), which are packages of mortgages that trade like securities.
As the FCIC also made clear, the collapse of the CDO market was by no means inevitable. Nor did it have much to do with "predatory" lending or the quality of most subprime mortgages. Rather, the problem was that more than half of the CDOs issued in 2006 and 2007 were so-called "synthetic" CDOs, every single one of which was deliberately designed to self-destruct.
That is, just a few firms that specialized in marketing "synthetic" CDOs worked with a select number of bankers and short sellers to hand-pick a relatively small number of mortgages that seemed certain to default. The miscreants then packaged bets against those relatively few toxic mortgages into so many self-destruct CDOs that they came to account for (I must repeat) more than half of the overall market.
It is not quite correct to say that this was phantom supply similar to what is generated by naked short selling. But there is no question that the "synthetic" CDOs created a market that was, alas, "synthetic." It was a market overwhelmed by a supply of instruments that purported to contain representative samplings of an underlying asset (subprime mortgages) that a reasonable person might expect to have some value, but which actually contained (as only the short sellers knew) assets that were worth zero.
In other words, a small number of miscreants effectively flooded the market with massive volumes of synthetic toxicity.
As these miscreants surely knew, the self-destruct CDOs would, indeed, self-destruct, and thereby wipe out the overall market for CDOs, causing property values to crash. And when that happened, the banks that had leveraged themselves to the hilt to buy CDOs and overvalued property would be weakened. They would not be so weak that they had to die. But their weakness would create negative sentiment that could be turned into a panic if miscreants were to circulate exaggerated rumors about the banks' problems and unleash waves of naked short selling that would send stock prices into death spirals.
In short, the report commissioned by the Department of Defense Irregular Warfare unit was correct to note that the financial crisis that nearly destroyed the nation went "far beyond normal expectations…" The authors of this report were also right to note that all of the events that precipitated the financial cataclysm raise "serious questions about whether this was a purposeful attack and if so, by whom, and why?"
By whom? And why? Over the coming weeks, DeepCapture will be publishing the remaining chapters of this book-length story, which is the product of a years-long investigation into the underworld of market manipulation and the vulnerability of the U.S. economy to malicious attacks. To that first question – by whom? – we do not have all the answers, but we have quite a few. That is, our investigation has led us down many paths, but they all seem to circle back to a distinct network of individuals and financial firms.
This social and business network did not singlehandedly wreck the economy, but we will see that financial operators in this network were responsible for much of the mortgage fraud that occurred in the lead-up to the crisis, while others in the network created (with fraudulent mortgages) most of the self-destruct CDOs that crashed the CDO market in 2007.
People in this network also sold toxic assets to corrupt insiders at the leveraged big banks. These toxic assets included not just CDOs, but also (we will see) a number wildly overvalued properties whose prices were certain to collapse, and all the more so after the CDOs self-destructed. Once poisoned by the toxic assets, the banks were vulnerable to the short selling attacks that came in 2008. And the social and business network described by this story includes many of the world's most notorious short sellers and market manipulators.
Moreover, this social and business network nicely illustrates the "nexus" described by the president and his national security staff on August 12, 2011, when the president stated that the "legitimate" financial sector (i.e. parts of Wall Street) had been "penetrated" by transnational organized crime syndicates with ties to terrorist organizations and hostile foreign governments. As we know, the president suggested that this "nexus" had "undermined markets" and now posed a "threat to the stability of the global financial system."
In other words, the social and business network (or "nexus") described in this story is comprised mostly of "legitimate" American financial operators. However, to the extent they are actually "legitimate" deserves scrutiny given the extent to which they have "undermined markets," and given that many of them have done business with others in a "nexus" that includes transnational organized crime syndicates, agents of hostile foreign governments, and sophisticated financiers with ties to the global movement of radical jihad.
Before I continue, though, let me define what I mean by "network." It is not the case that all of the people in this network know each other, and it is certainly not the case that all or any of its constituencies (i.e., terrorist financiers, transnational organized crime syndicates, agents of rogue states, and "legitimate" American financial operators, among others) gathered in some secret meeting hall to hatch one grand conspiracy to wipe out the global financial system. Some of the relationships I will describe in this story are, in fact, once or twice removed.
However, it is the case that a number of "legitimate" firms and individuals in this network have engaged in activities (sometimes in tandem with organized criminals, terrorist financiers, and/or agents of hostile foreign governments) that have done damage to the markets. I also feel that it is fair (indeed a matter of some urgency) to describe the larger "social network" and the relationships between the people who inhabit this network.
Nobody, of course, is guilty by virtue of his relationships alone. That a "legitimate" financial operator (whether he be from the United States, Canada, Saudi Arabia, or wherever) has done business with, say, a Russian organized crime boss or a Saudi billionaire who has funded Al Qaeda, does not mean that the "legitimate" financial operator supports terrorism or would knowingly participate in a politically motivated act of financial terrorism against the United States.
Nonetheless, there is strong reason to believe that the report for the Department of Defense Irregular Warfare Support Program was right: the United States was attacked by financial operators with ties terrorist organizations and rogue states. There is also clear reason to believe that "legitimate" American financial operators and transnational organized crime syndicates have attacked the markets. In addition, there is reason to believe that some relationships between these various constituencies are not altogether irrelevant, and might, indeed, account for the magnitude of the damage done to the financial system.
The evidence is not 100 percent conclusive, but the facts are suggestive. At a minimum, they point to a scenario for how things might have played out in 2008–a scenario that needs to be taken seriously because it does show that the United States is, without doubt, vulnerable to future attack. Indeed, there is every reason to believe that such an attack is inevitable.
When the attack comes, I hope that this story will have provided at least a few good answers to that first question: "By whom?"
As to the Defense Department report's second question – why? – I have no definitive answers. And ultimately, the question might be irrelevant. The damage to the economy is the same whether it has been done in the name of profit or jihad; in the name of terror, geopolitics, another billion bucks, or nothing more than the fun of the game. The financial operators who will be described in this story come in many stripes, but their various activities pose a collective threat to American prosperity and national security.
In Chapter 2, I introduce some information about prominent Saudi billionaires alleged to have financed Al Qaeda, and one fellow who ran an Islamic organization accused of inserting Al Qaeda spies into the U.S. military, and who subsequently set up a financial weapon of mass destruction that has, without doubt, done damage to the American markets.
To be continued…Click here to read Chapter 2 of this series
* * * * * * * **
*Zuhair Karam is an alias.
* * * * * * * *
Mark Mitchell is a journalist who spent most of his career working as a correspondent for mainstream media publications before joining DeepCapture.com.
If this essay concerns you, and you wish to help, then:
1) Use the Social Media buttons at the top of the article to help it go viral;
2) Email it to a dozen friends;
3) Go here for additional suggestions: "So You Say You Want a Revolution?"


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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Thursday Aug 09 2012
Another new attorney delays Skim X murder caseBy: Penne Usher, Press Tribune Correspondent
The woman accused of being an accessory to murder after the fact appeared in a Placer County courtroom and was appointed a new attorney. Averill Easley, 34, is the co-defendant in a case of murder in which her ex-husband Christopher J. Northam, 25, is accused of fatally shooting his father Christopher D. Northam last year. Easley had hired attorney Tasha Paris Chalfant, however, during Wednesday's court appearance Chalfant filed a motion to withdraw from the case over what appears to be a matter of finances. When asked if she had the money or means to pay for an attorney, Easley replied, "No, I don't." The Barry Zimmerman Law Firm has now been appointed to the case. The Zimmerman group is conflict attorney for Placer County. Under normal circumstances the public defender would have been appointed to represent Easley, however, that office had previously represented Northam until he retained attorney Mary Beth Acton. The appointment of a new attorney will further delay the case. Northam, 25, has been charged with one count of murder and a special allegation of murder for financial gain for the May 30, 2011, killing of his father. He and Easley have both pleaded not guilty to the charges against them. Acton had previously requested that the court ensure that evidence in the case, specifically law enforcement notes, be retained until reviewed by the defense and not released to third parties. Prosecutor Dave Tellman had objected to the motion at a previous hearing, but has since reconsidered. "We won't release any evidence without councils consent," he said Wednesday. The agreement pertains specifically to witness interviews. Northam was arrested Feb. 22 and has been held without bail in the Placer County Jail accused of murdering his father at the elder Northam's Roseville business — Skim X — on Memorial Day 2011. It is alleged that the younger Northam used a .223-caliber rifle to kill his father for financial gain. Northam and Easley are scheduled to return to court Oct. 11 in Dept. 13 of Placer County Superior Court for an early status conference.


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Retailer reports profit, but weak forecast due to payroll tax increase, gas prices, late refunds
As the fortunes of many Americans go, so goes Wal-Mart, so goes the economy.
Even as the world's largest retailer on Thursday reported an 8.6 percent rise in fourth quarter profit during the busy holiday shopping season, it offered a weaker forecast for the coming months. The problem? The poor and middle-class Americans that Walmart caters to — and who are big drivers of spending in the U.S. — are struggling with rising gas prices, delayed income tax refunds and higher payroll taxes.
It's widely known that Americans in the lower income brackets continue to struggle even as higher earners benefit from improved housing and stock markets, but Walmart's results signal that matters may be getting worse for the nation's poor and middle-class. Walmart is the latest in a string of big-name companies from Burger King to Zale to say those Americans are being squeezed by new challenges. But since Walmart accounts for nearly 10 percent of nonautomotive retail spending in the U.S., it is a bellwether for the economy.
"Walmart moms are the barometer of the U.S. household," said Brian Sozzi, chief equities analyst at NBG Productions who follows the retailer. "Right now, they're afraid of higher taxes and inflation."
Tax changes also have hit the nation's lowest earners especially hard. On Jan. 1, Social Security payroll taxes rose 2 percentage points after a temporary tax cut expired. That sliced about $1,000 from the take-home pay of a household earning $50,000. Since the Social Security tax is levied against income only up to $114,000, it disproportionately affects middle- and lower-income households.
An even larger challenge for many lower-income Americans has been the government's delay in processing income taxes and paying refunds. That's because income tax rates weren't set until a last-minute deal between the White House and Congress on Jan. 1. So the IRS pushed back the start of tax-filing season to Jan. 30, two weeks later than usual.
Walmart, based in Bentonville, Ark., said while its business has been volatile since December, the month of February, in particular, has been "slower than planned" largely due to the tax refund delay. The company said it's also unclear how the payroll tax will affect customers' spending habits. As a result, it is offering smaller packaging and less expensive products.
Walmart earned $5.6 billion, or $1.67 per share, during the fourth quarter that ended Jan. 31, up from $5.16 billion, or $1.50 per share, a year earlier. Results were helped by a lower tax rate, which was 27.7 percent, compared with the rate of 30.9 percent a year ago. Net sales rose 3.9 percent to $127.1 billion. Earnings topped Wall Street estimates, but sales fell short.
During the current quarter, Walmart says it expects earnings to range from $1.11 to $1.16 per share, below the $1.18 per share analysts are expecting. For its namesake U.S. business, Walmart expects first-quarter revenue at stores open at least a year, a measure of a retailer's health, to be unchanged from a year ago. For the year, it expects earnings of between $5.20 and $5.40 per share, while analysts expect $5.38 per share.


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Your Customers want Targeting whether they know it or not
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Consumers expect—and want—highly relevant digital experiences, but many are suspicious of being targeted because they've encountered poor experiences before. Marketers are challenged to offer compelling and relevant content that provides customer experience satisfaction while meeting key business objectives. Learn how you can utilise your consumer and performance data to deliver tailored, personalised experiences that resonate with your visitors and drive conversion.
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Report: Man busted in sex sting told detective he wanted to contract a disease
Polk County Sheriff's Office undercover detectives busted 19 folks during a two-day sting, according to a news release from the Polk County Sheriff's Office.
Both female and male detectives posted and answered ads for sex on Backpage.com.
Check out the round-up of losers.
Among those busted, according to the release:
John David Szydlowski, 54, of Lakeland: A married dad and an accountant — at All Saints Academy.
Eugene Agbebaku, 32, of Wesley Chapel: Another married dad and UPS driver. Agbebaku reportedly requested a condom not be used. He later told detectives he wanted to contract a disease and 'fessed up to being a sex addict who solicits prostitutes three to four times a week for unprotected sex.
Desiree Sunshine Dorrance, 39, of Winter Haven: Married with children. Allegedly agreed to provide sexual acts and spanking for money and admitted to being extremely active online.
Now her kids will have red cheeks — from all the embarrassment, that is.
Who else?
Find out and get the DUHtails from the news release.
Photo: John David Szydlowski (l);Eugene Agbebaku (r)
Polk County Sheriff's Office


text: Power Sector Below is a list of companies under this industry, click on any to view job listings and apply. Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) is the independent regulatory agency mandated by Government to monitor and regulate the electricity industry in Nigeria. The Commission is committed to promoting and ensuring efficient market structures and an investor-friendly industry to meet Nigeria's need for safe, adequate, reliable and affordable electricity. To drive the achievement this mandate, the Commission seeks to recruit qualified professionals for vacant positions in the Office of the Chairman and its 6 specialised Divisions as follows: Divisions/Departments (Total no. of vacant positions)Office of the Chairman (17) Finance and Management Services (11) Renewable Energy and Rural Electrification (9) Market Competition and Rates (6) Engineering Standards and Safety (6) Licencing, Legal and Enforcement (9) Government and Consumer Affairs (8)


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Madera County Sheriff John Anderson said Wednesday that he has sent a written request to two Valley Congressional leaders asking for assistance in resolving an ongoing election dispute between factions of the Chukchansi Indians.
He is asking both Congressman Jim Costa, D-Fresno, and Congressman Jeff Denham, R-Fresno, to urge the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, or another entity to assist in mediating the situation.
The Chukchansi tribal administration building was occupied Sunday night by followers of Tribal Council members who had been elected Dec. 3, but locked out of administration facilities since Dec. 26 over disagreement about whether the Dec. 3 election was valid.
The dispute turned violent Monday night and early Tuesday when fights broke out. One person was stabbed and another badly beaten after foes of the newly elected council threw a burning log through a window and shot bear spray into the building. That's when the sheriff and local law enforcement stepped in...


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31 wks w/Gest. Diabetes and SOOO Hungry
I am 31 weeks and was just diagnosed with gestational diabetes. I am on the "6 small meals a day" plan for now and am checking my blood glucose levels 4 x's a day. My problem is that I am sooo hungry and I think the baby is too! Between work and growing a baby, I am too tired when I get home to cook an elaborate protein heavy meal. What are my options? How can I get full at each meal without overdoing the carbs? I've never had to diet before and haven't put on a lot of weight with this baby. I just don't want the baby to starve. Looking for some quick, delicious, diabetic friendly recipes. Any help would be appreciated!
Posted: 09/28/2007 by meemsstauffer
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I am 27 weeks and also diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Like yourself, I feel very hungry but for the sake of my baby's health and my health I have to stick to the '6 small meals a day'. I recently found out that drinking a glass of water before your heaviest meal lunch or dinner may help you control the portions of food you take in particularly an overload of carbs. It is working for me so far.posted 10/01/2007 by a BabyCenter Member
Eat lots of salads specially lettuce, this can supplement carbs. Salad is very good and it's helped me alotposted 11/06/2007 by Nicolemendieta
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In general:
Toothache indicate problems, that you should not let it get into your life. And by acting early, they can be resolved soon.
Dreams of toothache very rarely occurs, when dreamer really have it. Dreaming of toothache may refer us in waking life to the notice with alarm, that we have done something wrong. Or anything, that we can not agree with our conscience. Sometimes the tooth pain is nothing but lovesickness.
– To have: your sadness will soon turn into joy.
– Toothaches in dream: announces painful news, but will follow soon joy after sorrow;
– To have toothache in dream: let it push you not, a related party will hurt you.
* Please, also see other dreams meanings: pain, teeth.


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See All Contributors »
Tough loss for the Boilermakers.
Per Andy Katz tweet:
"Purdue officially sent out press release that Robbie Hummel is done for year with ACL. But Purdue can still be a No. 1 if it keeps winning."
Mizzou starter Justin Safford is out with a torn ACL too.
MU's Safford has torn ACL - KansasCity.com
That really sucks about Hummell, injuries have really hampered both Purdue and him the last 2 years.
They're screwed for sure now. Pur-don't.
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Founded in 2003, Loll is a modern outdoor furniture manufacturer specializing in the use of recycled materials to make long lasting no maintenance outdoor furniture. Loll began as a way to utilize extra material from the construction of municipal skate parks.
We strive to improve the relationship between the furniture people own and their ability to enjoy it in a healthy environment. Sustainability is at the core of the business; we attempt to achieve a product and company balance between the environment, profitability, and employee and community well being.


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Revision history of "UnNews:Even Blair unable to come up with something nice to say about Blair"
From Uncyclopedia, the content-free encyclopedia
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(cur) = difference from current version, (prev) = difference from preceding version, m = minor edit, → = section edit, ← = automatic edit summary


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Determination of various kinds of liquid density, show intuitional, convenient operation,incidental electronic balance function.
Wrist Blood Pressure Meter meter with readout function blood pressure monitor with voice CE(MDD) approval
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This job posting is no longer available on Indeed.
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- CANDURA Instruments jobs
Company Profile:
Candura Instruments has been designing and manufacturing portable electric power measurement instruments since 1999. We are a small company with eight full time employees. We do our own complete product development from initial design specifications, prototyping, circuit board layout, parts procurement, mechanical assembly, final electrical assembly, testing and calibration. Our data analysis software is key feature of our products.
Our customers, both domestic and international, are electric utilities, large industrial companies and consultants. See http://www.candura.com/feedback/feedback.html for a representative sample of our customers.
The successful candidate will be a college/university graduate with a degree in computer science. Experience with C#, Visual Studio and .net 3.5 framework is required. A basic understanding of electrical power is a desirable asset. The individual we are looking for will have initiative, good analytical skills and the flexibility to be successful in a small company environment.
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Tuesday Mar 01 2011
Committee approves list of priorities
By: Margaret Snider, Special to the Loomis News
Restrooms and skate plaza top recommendations
The Loomis Parks, Recreation and Open Space Committee has come up with recommendations for elements to the new downtown park, and a water feature did not make the cut. The park is taking shape next to the Loomis Depot, where Koch Excavating, Inc. has started construction. Committee members first voted to recommend to the Town Council that the possible features be prioritized, with restrooms first, the skate plaza second, and a water spray feature third. After further deliberation during the Feb. 22 meeting, it was recommended to eliminate the water spray feature. The main reason cited was the waste of water and its usability in the hot summer months only. Decisions still must be made on use of funds for the remaining features. A number of youth and adults in favor of the proposed skate plaza were among those in attendance. "Skateboarders are young, they're active, they're itching to get out," said Wes Davis, who grew up in Loomis and whose father, Steven Davis, is on the parks committee. "They're going to be there every day, it's going to drive a ton of traffic into that area … The younger kids can come, the parents can come, everybody can spend a large amount of time in downtown and not feel that they're being isolated or being chased away." Others expressed a contrasting view. "I have 13 grandchildren and I would love to be able to bring my grandchildren here (to the new down park)," said Kathy Jibson. "I see my aged parents who enjoy being able to watch the young children in the park. I think they would also enjoy the atmosphere at the spray park." "My concerns as a retired law enforcement officer are the element that will be brought to the park if there is a skate park plaza there," said John C. Bailey, Jr. "When I say element I'm talking about drugs, I'm talking about alcohol use, I'm talking about illegal tobacco use, and I'm talking about unsupervised youth." Other issues brought up against the skate plaza included graffiti, vandalism and liability issues. Committee members pointed out that the plaza would be used for more than skateboarding. It would also be useful as a site for a variety of performing arts, including plays and music. Walt Scherer, a Loomis councilman, suggested control of expenses by use of volunteers, an idea that was supported by many others present. "Community participation can … build a greater sense of connectivity as we grow and develop," Scherer said, "rather than losing it and expecting the government to take care of everything for us." Another issue that arose was money for open space, or passive parks. "I'm concerned that we're depleting all of our money that would go for what appears to be mostly an active park," said Irene Smith. "What's left for open space?" After the public comments, committee members stated their own feelings and ideas. "I'm glad you're here to speak up and say the truth," said Paulette Emert. "It's obvious to me, if that money can only be spent for parks, recreation and open space, then let's find things to do with that money, and the park is one." Town manager Perry Beck said the first phase, which is now underway, must be completed by June in order to utilize the $220,000 in state bond funds for the $466,910 project. Development fees paid to the town will cover the remaining $246,910 balance. Completion of the base work — which includes clearing and grading, concrete and electrical work, erosion and sediment control, fencing, landscaping and construction of a tot-lot and shade structure — is expected in May. Committee members attending were Paulette Emert, Kathryn Seers, Shawna Martinez, Allen Newton, Tom Seth, Jennifer Knisley, Nancy Beck, Hillery Wallis and Pat Miller, the chairwoman. The meeting was the last for Miller, who has been appointed to the town's planning commission. She will be succeeded as chairwoman by Nancy Beck, with Jennifer Knisley serving as vice chair.


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WHEN: Friday and Saturday, May 20 - 21, 2016
WHERE: Russellville Depot
If you're a bargain hunter, then don't miss the huge 2-day rummage sale at the historic Russellville Depot. Shop a selection of items including clothing & accessories, books & games, appliances, lawn & garden, furniture, children's items and much more!
For more information, contact Main Street Russellville at 479-967-1437.


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Who's on Heather's desk?
by Heather's Thingies
posted Sep 26 2011 10:23AM
1st chat on my desk went well with the director & lead actor of a movie that is opening
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Looking for a mostly fun and feel good movie, I say mostly because there are a few sad parts, but for the most part, fun and light hearted. Great date and/or friends out movie. The
Alamo Draft house
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The appearance of advertisements and product information on this site does not constitute an endorsement by Equipment World Magazine, and Equipment World Magazine has not investigated the claims made by any advertiser. Product information is based solely on material received from suppliers.
Hyundai 250D-7E Diesel ForkliftThe Hyundai 250D-7E diesel forklift is equipped with a powerful Cummins QSC 8.3L engine, producing 260 HP@2,200 rpms which provide a travel speed of up to 25 mph. The durable ZF electronic shift transmission includes an automatic shift with 3 forward and 3 reverse speeds. It is equipped with the combination of the QSC engine and ZF transmission. Password activated Engine Start Limit (ESL) intercepts fuel delivery to the engine without proper identification, eliminating equipment theft. According to load demand, Economic Mode and Power Mode can simply be... Read More


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Updated: 06/02/2014 9:40 PM
Created: 06/02/2014 5:00 AM WHEC.com
The City of Rochester and RTS announced a plan for increased bus service to and from the popular "Concert by the Shore" series at Ontario Beach Park.
The series runs Wednesday nights starting June 4. It runs through August 28.
Rides will be $1 each way. The buses will help ease the traffic congestion in the Port area of Rochester during the marina construction project.
Free parking for bus customers will be provided by Kodak in Lot 46 of Eastman Business Park on Keehl Street between Lake Avenue and Maplewood Drive. The buses will run between Keehl Street and Lake Avenue and the Robach Community Center in Ontario Beach Park from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. on concert nights.
For complete RTS bus schedule times and maps, please visit www.rgrta.com/festivals.
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This 475-acre project on retired cropfield in Marais des Cygnes National Wildlife Refuge planted mast-producing and roost trees along the Marais des Cygnes River. The goal is to provide food, cover, and roost sites for wild turkeys and other wildlife; control erosion and improve water quality; and improve opportunities for hunters and wildlife watchers. Other wildife that will benefit from the conversion include bald eagles, wood ducks, deer, squirrel, and neotropical songbirds, including 36 species of warblers. This site was bottomland hardwoods before European settlement, at which time the land was cleared for agriculture. Due to relatively infrequent flooding (the land is in the floodplain), seeding rather than tree planting is recommended. Partners in the project include the Kansas Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
This project was supported by our corporate partner, the Alcoa Foundation.
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Advice on tall [20 inches] fast growing plants...and others...
I am thinking of adding live plants to my 55 gal, to hide the mirror background a bit.
I cannot remove it, and am thinking that it may be better to just hide the mirror in plants, instead of draining and adhering a background to the inside of the tank.
The only place around me that sells AQ plants is Petsmart. So ive made a list of the ones they have listed on their website. [Question, are these plants the same plants that are in the plastic tubes?]
Can you guys tell me some more about these plants? Im basically a newbie in this aspect. o.O
Corkscrew Vals, 20 inches tall
Caboma, 20 inches tall
Hornwort, 2 feet tall
Green and white Acorus, 12 inches tall slow grower
Moneywort, 12 inches tall
Anacharis, 2 feet tall
Water Wisteria, 20 inches
I need something thats going to grow into the top level of my tank, 12-25 inches...And easy. Low light, i have 2 14 watt energy saver bulbs right now, hoping to get a better light fixture, but its kind of a last thing, since the lights i have light the tank up pretty good, just not sure how they would be for plants.
Also, hopefully a fast grower, but id prefer a plant that grew more wider and more stems than fast and straight with one stalk.
Anacharis is your best bet for what you want, its a fast grower in low-med light and will fill up alot of space - val is a pain to get growing and the rest were floaters or plants i wouldnt trust to actually be underwater plants more like cheap crap they want to sell you
Have you checked with a mirror distributor that also repairs them. They may have something to dissolve the coating.
All of those except the Green and white Acorus are aquatic plants and can be used under water.
When you look at the 'tube' plants at Petsmart, avoid every single one that has a 'semi-aquatic' sticker on the top. Those are the ones that will die if kept under water.
In my area, they only sell Java Fern, Anubias, Wisteria, and Amazon Sword in the tubes, but that will very on your region.
"Stem Plants" like Anacharis, Wisteria, Cabomba, Hornwort, Moneywort, etc generally need at least a moderate amount of light to grow well. If kept under too low of light, they'll grow slow, the bottom of the stems will go bare, and if too low they just won't survive. Stem plants though will keep growing until they hit the surface. Some do better than others in low light.
Amazon Sword is a good plant that will eventually grow tall, they do best in deep tanks because of this.
If your water is medium hard, or hard you can use Corkscrew Vallisneria. This plant does not do well in soft water. It will grow tall, and if not trimed will bend over and cover the top of the water.
I know Petsmart does not carry it, but in my 125 gallon tank I'm really falling in love with the look of the Cryptocoryne spiralis. It's similar to a Corkscrew Vallisneria but with more slender leaves, and it works well in my soft water.
If you want to up your lighting for not a lot of money go to a hardware store and buy a 48" shop light that has a metal reflector built in. The reflector will keep the bulbs off the glass (and keep from blinding you when you look at the top of the tank). These use two 48" T8 bulbs, which cost under $10 at the same hardware store for a two pack (Get 6500K Daylight bulbs). The fixtures are generally under $20 (Home Depot/Lowes) so for $30 you get a new light and good bulbs. That might be a bit bright on a 55 gallon though. A single 48" T8 would work (32 watts) but those you have to get at the Petstore, and will cost a lot more.
The problem with too much light is the fish don't like it, and if nutrients are not kept in balance you'll get algae. Adding floating plants can make that balance very easy to obtain and gives shade to the fish below.
The limited light will not be sufficient for some of the plants mentioned. Can you detail exactly what you have? Different tubes/bulbs might help, but first need to know what's there. Fluorescent tube or screw-in, and what you have in watts/kelvin.
What i have is a ten gallon hood, with screw in bulbs. The bulbs are each 14 watts each.
I did get a light fixture that fit the tank from the guy i bought it from, but it broke when i tried to put a new bulb in it.
Im planning on getting a better lighting system, but they are generally more expensive brand new, so im hoping i can find one on craigslist...
My tank isnt 48 inches long. =/
I just measured it, and its 36x24x12, which means its 45.
Well, its a good thing i didnt buy it based on gallons!
Im assuming ill still need the double t5's correct?
What about regular florescent lighting? Could i use those?
or high efficiency dual T5's its basically a T8's with a lower electric bill
wait, so two t5's equal a t8?
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|LAB S.R.L. Patent applications
|Patent application number
|METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROCESSING INFORMATION RELATING TO A VEHICLE - A system for processing information relating to a vehicle includes one or more electronic control units which can be connected to one another through a vehicle network. The system includes an electronic control device adapted to interface to and exchange data with the network and a nomadic device adapted to exchange data with the electronic device, wherein the electronic control device includes an automatic configuration module adapted to automatically detect parameters of the network so as to retrieve a network database of the vehicle. The network database includes the information required for properly interpreting the data circulating in the network.


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Home >
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Complements Embellishment
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Last year, the Texas Rangers had a big marketing push headed by the phrase, "It's time."
Now more than ever that slogan holds true. The Rangers' lead in the American League West is now down to 4 games over the Angels, and 4 1/2 games over Oakland. It's time to light a torch under the Rangers' butts to get them going. To show some life, to act like the AL representative to two World Series. I feel like someone needs to do something. It's time to get going!
Losing Colby Lewis really hurt. He was our number one starter.
Zack Greinke signs with the Angels.
Josh Hamilton hears some boos.
Alexi Ogando stretches out a bit
I like Ogando, but I like Ogando in the bullpen. He only has one pitch, and thats his fastball. You can't live very long in the majors by just throwing one pitch, unless you are only gonna throw that pitch to a few batters.
Lack of execution hurts Rangers. Come on guys. Many of you are in a batting slump of some kind, the least you could do is play hard in the field.
Watching the Rangers go through all of this is like watching your soda being spilled in slow motion. You see bad things happening, you just can't stop it.
It's time to get going. Time to start playing smart, time to start winning.
The Rangers have yet yo beat the White Sox in four games this season. Time to lay it on them.


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Big Wildlife is part of the Earth Island Institute, a global network of conservation organizations. Go to:
Keystone carnivore species play a vital role in maintaining ecology integrity and preserving species diversity by regulating prey species, influencing behavior of other predators and prey, and exerting a top-down influence on natural systems. The disappearance of keystone species triggers the loss of other species and the intricate connections among the remaining residents begin to unravel.
Importance of Carnivores >>