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This is a scalable context timeline. It contains events related to the event Before September 26, 2001: FBI Says It Will Be Some Time Before Those Responsible for 9/11 Will be Charged. You can narrow or broaden the context of this timeline by adjusting the zoom level. The lower the scale, the more relevant the items on average will be, while the higher the scale, the less relevant the items, on average, will be.
Document for wire transfer on June 21, 2000 [Source: US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division]Plot facilitator Ramzi bin al-Shibh wires over $10,000 from Germany to 9/11 hijacker Marwan Alshehhi in the US. The money is apparently withdrawn from Alshehhi's Dresdner bank account, to which bin al-Shibh has access. On June 13, he wires $2,708.33 to Alshehhi in New York; On June 21, he wires $1,803.19 to Alshehhi in New York; On July 25, he wires $1,760.15 to Alshehhi in Florida; On September 25, he wires $4,118.14 to Alshehhi in Florida; [9/11 Commission, 8/21/2004, pp. 134-5 ; US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, 7/3/2006 ; US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, 7/3/2006 ; US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, 7/3/2006 ; US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, 7/3/2006 ] Bin al-Shibh also sends money to Zacarias Moussaoui in the US (see July 29, 2001-August 3, 2001). The hijackers also receive various other transfers (see June 2000-August 2001).
Entity Tags: Ramzi bin al-Shibh, Marwan Alshehhi
Timeline Tags: Complete 911 Timeline, 9/11 Timeline
After leaving Yemen following the bombing of the USS Cole (see Around October 12, 2000), 9/11 hijacker Khalid Almihdhar travels to various countries in Asia. He is reportedly in Malaysia in October (see October 2000); From late 2000 to February 2001 he stays with his cousin in Mecca, Saudi Arabia (see Late 2000-February 2001); He then returns to Yemen, to stay with his family at an al-Qaeda communications hub monitored by US intelligence (see February 2001, Late August 1998, and (Mid-June-Mid-July 2000)); Following this, he goes to Afghanistan; There are some reports he travels to the United Arab Emirates in June (see June 2001); He is also said to be in Malaysia again in June (see June 2001); Finally, he goes to stay with his cousin in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, for another month. Before flying to New York (see July 4, 2001), Almihdhar tells his cousin that Osama bin Laden is planning five attacks on the US and asks the cousin to watch over his family, because he has a job to do (see Between June 1 and July 4, 2001). [9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 237; 9/11 Commission, 8/21/2004, pp. 137 ] After 9/11, there will be speculation that during this period Almihdhar is coordinating the arrival of the other muscle hijackers. According to FBI Director Robert Mueller, this would his explain his stay in Saudi Arabia and his return only after all the other hijackers had arrived. [US Congress, 9/26/2002] However, there is some evidence suggesting that Almihdhar may have visited the US in this time frame, perhaps using a passport in a false name (see June 10, 2000).
Entity Tags: Khalid Almihdhar, Robert S. Mueller III
Zacarias Moussaoui and two of the 9/11 hijackers purchase flight training equipment from Sporty's Pilot Shop in Batavia, Ohio. November 5, 2000: Mohamed Atta purchases flight deck videos for a Boeing 747-200 and a Boeing 757-200, as well as other items; December 11, 2000: Atta purchases flight deck videos for a Boeing 767-300ER and an Airbus A320-200; March 19, 2001: Nawaf Alhazmi purchases flight deck videos for a Boeing 747-400, a Boeing 747-200, and a Boeing 777-200, as well as another video. Alhazmi also purchases maps around this time from another shop (see March 23, 2001); June 20, 2001: Zacarias Moussaoui purchases flight deck videos for a Boeing 747-400 and a Boeing 747-200. [Sporty's, 6/20/2001; US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, 12/11/2001 ] However, it is not clear whether Moussaoui was to take part in 9/11 or some other operation (see January 30, 2003).
Entity Tags: Zacarias Moussaoui, Mohamed Atta, Nawaf Alhazmi, Sporty's Pilot Shop
Future 9/11 hijackers Mohamed Atta, Marwan Alshehhi, and Waleed Alshehri are seen flying small aircraft at an airport in Oklahoma, and Zacarias Moussaoui is there at the same time. This is according to a 2002 FBI document about the 9/11 attacks. The document notes that "several employees" at Million Air, located at Wiley Post Airport in Bethany, Oklahoma, see Atta, Alshehhi, and Alshehri on the same Beechcraft Duchess aircraft at the same time. Furthermore, Moussaoui is seen there in the same timeframe, although the FBI report will not mention if Moussaoui is ever seen with the other three. The employees cannot give exact dates when these people are seen, but all the visits are in the six months leading up to 9/11 and two visits are said to take place after August 4, 2001. [Federal Bureau of Investigation, 4/19/2002] Other Local Connections - Moussaoui takes flying lessons in Norman, Oklahoma, which is about 30 miles away from Bethany, from February to June 2001. Apparently he stays there most of the time until early August (see February 23-June 2001). Atta and Alshehhi visited the flight school in Norman in July 2000 (see July 2-3, 2000). A motel owner will later claim that around August 1, 2001, he saw Moussaoui, Atta, and Alshehhi together at his motel. The location of the motel is not specified, except that it is about 28 miles from Norman and off Highway 40, which runs about five miles south of Bethany (see August 1, 2001). [LA Weekly, 8/2/2002] Why No Mention in Moussaoui Trial? - Several years after 9/11, US officials will charge Moussaoui with a role in the 9/11 attacks. Strangely, these sightings in Oklahoma will never be mentioned in the trial, even though almost no evidence is put forward in the trial physically linking Moussaoui to any of the 9/11 hijackers in the US (see May 3, 2006).
Entity Tags: Marwan Alshehhi, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Mohamed Atta, Waleed Alshehri, Zacarias Moussaoui
After entering the US, Zacarias Moussaoui engages in activities that appear to mirror those of the 9/11 hijackers. Both Moussaoui and the hijackers do the following: Take flight training (see February 23-June 2001 and July 6-December 19, 2000); Physically import large amounts of cash (see October 2000-February 2001 and January 15, 2000-August 2001); Purchase knives with short blades that can be carried onto airliners (see August 16, 2001 and July 8-August 30, 2001); Take fitness training (see August 16, 2001 and May 6-September 6, 2001); Obtain several identification documents (see April 12-September 7, 2001 and August 1-2, 2001); and Purchase flight deck videos from the same shop (see November 5, 2000-June 20, 2001). In addition, Moussaoui is supported by some of the same al-Qaeda operatives as the 9/11 hijackers: Ramzi bin al-Shibh (see July 29, 2001-August 3, 2001 and June 13-September 25, 2000) and Yazid Sufaat (see September-October 2000 and January 5-8, 2000). At Moussaoui's trial, the prosecution will cite these parallel activities in its argument that Moussaoui was connected to 9/11, rather than some follow-up plot. There is also one reported meeting between Moussaoui and two of the lead hijackers before 9/11 (see August 1, 2001), but this will not be mentioned at the trial (see March 6-May 4, 2006). [US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, 3/9/2006]
Entity Tags: Zacarias Moussaoui
A Western Union money transfer between Ahad Sabet (Ramzi bin al-Shibh's alias) and Moussaoui in Norman, Oklahoma. [Source: FBI]According to the Justice Department indictment against Zacarias Moussaoui, Moussaoui and 9/11 hijacker associate Ramzi bin al-Shibh are in communication for several days. Moussaoui makes several calls from Norman, Oklahoma, to Dusseldorf, Germany. Then, around July 31 someone using the name "Hashim Abdulrahman" in the United Arab Emirates sends two wire transfers totaling about $15,000 to an "Ahad Sabet" in Hamburg, Germany. Sabet is claimed to be an alias for bin al-Shibh. Then bin al-Shibh, again using the Sabet name, wires about $14,000 to Moussaoui in Oklahoma. [MSNBC, 12/11/2001] Moussaoui immediately moves to Minnesota and begins studying at a flight school there (see August 10-11, 2001). The passport with the name Ahad Sabet that bin al-Shibh used appears to belong to an innocent US doctor who had his passport stolen in Spain several years earlier (see July 7, 1998). [CNN, 8/7/2002]
Entity Tags: Zacarias Moussaoui, Ramzi bin al-Shibh
FBI spokesman Rex Tomb says that it will take time for criminal proceedings to commence against the people thought to be responsible for 9/11: "There's going to be a considerable amount of time before anyone associated with the attacks is actually charged." He continues, "To be charged with a crime, this means we have found evidence to confirm our suspicions, and a prosecutor has said we will pursue this case in court." In mid-August 2007 Zacarias Moussaoui will be the only person charged in connection with 9/11 in the US, being sentenced to life in prison in spring 2006 (see May 3, 2006), but it is unclear if he was involved in the 9/11 plot or a planned follow up plot (see January 30, 2003). Osama bin Laden will not be charged in connection with his alleged participation (see June 6, 2006 and August 28, 2006). [Wired News, 9/27/2001]
Entity Tags: Rex Tomb, Federal Bureau of Investigation
A Washington Post article hints at the US government's use rendition and torture. It refers to four suspects out of the hundreds arrested in the US—Zacarias Moussaoui, Nabil al-Marabh, Ayub Ali Khan, and Mohammed Azmath—who may actually have links to al-Qaeda (see October 20, 2001). The article quotes an "experienced FBI agent involved in the investigation," who says: "We are known for humanitarian treatment, so basically we are stuck.… Usually there is some incentive, some angle to play, what you can do for them. But it could get to that spot where we could go to pressure… where we won't have a choice, and we are probably getting there." The article goes on to mention: "Among the alternative strategies under discussion are using drugs or pressure tactics, such as those employed occasionally by Israeli interrogators, to extract information. Another idea is extraditing the suspects to allied countries where security services sometimes employ threats to family members or resort to torture." [Washington Post, 10/21/2001] Although it is little known in the US at the time, the CIA has already been renditioning suspects to countries known for practicing torture (see September 23, 2001), and has made arrangements with NATO countries to increase the number of such renditions (see October 4, 2001). Azmath and Khan will later be cleared of al-Qaeda ties and released (see October 20, 2001). Al-Marabh will be deported to Syria under mysterious circumstances and rearrested by the Syrian government (see Spring 2004). Moussaoui will be sentenced to life in prison in the US (see May 3, 2006).
Entity Tags: Mohammed Azmath, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Nabil al-Marabh, Syed Gul Mohammad Shah, Zacarias Moussaoui
Timeline Tags: Torture of US Captives, Complete 911 Timeline
US officials claim that captured would-be hijacker Ramzi bin al-Shibh has said that Zacarias Moussaoui met 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed (KSM) in Afghanistan during the winter of 2000-01 and that KSM gave Moussaoui the names of US contacts. [Washington Post, 11/20/2002] Bin al-Shibh and KSM agreed Moussaoui should be nothing more than a back-up figure in the 9/11 plot because he could not keep a secret and was too volatile and untrustworthy. Supposedly, bin al-Shibh wired Moussaoui money intended for other terrorist activities, not 9/11. [USA Today, 11/20/2002] There have been suggestions that the US may move Moussaoui's case from a civilian court to a military tribunal, which would prevent bin al-Shibh from testifying, but the issue remains undecided. [USA Today, 11/20/2002]
Entity Tags: Ramzi bin al-Shibh, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, Zacarias Moussaoui
The government reveals in a closed-door court hearing that recent interrogations of top al-Qaeda prisoners indicate that Zacarias Moussaoui may have been part of a plot to hijack a fifth plane on the day of 9/11, perhaps with the White House as its target. This is in contrast to the government's original accusation that Moussaoui was to be the "20th hijacker" on Flight 93. Because Moussaoui does not have a security clearance, he cannot see the classified evidence against him, but he later learns of this "fifth-jet theory" while reading a transcript of the hearing that was not thoroughly redacted. [CNN, 8/8/2003; Time, 10/19/2003] At Moussaoui's 2006 trial (see March 6-May 4, 2006), the prosecution will support the fifth jet theory—which Moussaoui both admits (see March 27, 2006) and denies (see April 22, 2005)—arguing that he engaged in parallel conduct with the hijackers (see February 23-August 16, 2001) and was supported by the same people (see July 29, 2001-August 3, 2001 and June 13-September 25, 2000). The theory is also supported by the hearsay of what one of the hijackers reportedly told a relative. In February 2001, Khalid Almihdhar told a cousin that Osama bin Laden was planning to launch five attacks against the US (see Late October 2000-July 4, 2001). But during interrogations, some captured al-Qaeda leaders will reportedly insist that Moussaoui was only a back-up (see November 20, 2002), while others will claim that he was part of a follow-up operation (see Before 2008).
The first details of the interrogation of alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed (KSM) are leaked to the press and appear in the Washington Post. At least some of the information appears to come from a report on KSM's interrogation drafted four days ago. According to the Post article, KSM claims that Zacarias Moussaoui, an al-Qaeda operative arrested in the US in August 2001 (see August 16, 2001), was not part of the 9/11 plot and was scheduled for a follow-up attack. He also says that Moussaoui was helped by Jemaah Islamiyah leader Hambali and Yazid Sufaat, one of Hambali's associates. KSM reportedly says Sufaat attempted to develop biological weapons for al-Qaeda, but failed because he could not obtain a strain of anthrax that could be dispersed as a weapon. This information appears to be based on a CIA report of KSM's interrogation drafted on March 24, which discussed KSM's knowledge of Moussaoui's stay in Malaysia, where he met both Hambali and Sufaat (see March 24, 2003). The Post notes that if KSM's claim about Moussaoui were true, this could complicate the prosecution of Moussaoui. For example, it quotes former prosecutor Andrew McBride saying that "on the death penalty, it is quite helpful to Moussaoui." [Washington Post, 3/28/2003] During the Moussaoui trial, the statement about Moussaoui's non-involvement in the 9/11 operation will be submitted to the jury as a part of a substitution for testimony by KSM. [US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, 7/31/2006 ] Moussaoui will escape the death penalty by one vote (see May 3, 2006). During this month, KSM is in CIA custody and is waterboarded 183 times over five days (see After March 7, 2003 and April 18, 2009). The claim about Moussaoui is not the full truth, as a communications intercept between KSM and his associate Ramzi bin al-Shibh in July 2001 showed that KSM was considering Moussaoui for the 9/11 plot (see July 20, 2001).
Entity Tags: Andrew McBride, Central Intelligence Agency, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed
Timeline Tags: Complete 911 Timeline
Zacarias Moussaoui.
[Source: Sherburne County Sheriffs Office]In an unexpected move, Zacarias Moussaoui pleads guilty to all six terrorism conspiracy charges against him. Moussaoui had been arrested weeks before 9/11, and was formally charged in December 2001 for his role in the 9/11 plot. He says it is "absolutely correct" that he is guilty of the charges: conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries; to commit aircraft piracy; to destroy aircraft; to use weapons of mass destruction; to murder US government employees; and to destroy US government property. However, he says, "I was not part of 9/11," but rather claims he was part of a "broader conspiracy" aimed at post-9/11 attacks. He says he was personally directed by bin Laden to pilot a 747 and "strike the White House" with it, but as part of a "different conspiracy than 9/11." His plea means there will be no trial to determine guilt, but there will still be a trial to determine his sentencing, which could be as severe as the death penalty. He promises to fight in the sentencing phase, stating he doesn't deserve death because he was not directly connected to the 9/11 plot. [CNN, 4/23/2005; Washington Post, 4/23/2005] A CNN legal analyst notes that Moussaoui's guilty plea "makes little sense." Moussaoui may have actually had a chance to be proven not guilty because of the many thorny legal issues his case raises (two suspected members of the al-Qaeda Hamburg cell have been found not guilty in German courts because they have not been allowed access to testimony from al-Qaeda prisoners who might exonerate them, and Moussaoui so far has been denied access to those same prisoners (see March 22, 2005)). It is pointed out that Moussaoui gave a guilty plea without "any promise of leniency in exchange for his plea," and that he is unlikely to gain any sympathetic advantage from it in the death penalty trial. CNN's analyst notes that the statements in his plea "suggest that Moussaoui [mistakenly] thought he had tricked the prosecution." Doubts still remain whether Moussaoui is fully mentally sound and capable of legally defending himself. [CNN, 4/28/2005] A counterterrorism expert for RAND Corporation says of Moussaoui's rather confusing statements, "If we thought by the end of the day we would find the holy grail as to exactly what the genesis of 9/11 was and what Moussaoui's role in it was, we have been sorely disappointed. This contradiction in his behavior raises more questions than it answers." The Washington Post notes that, "It remains uncertain" whether the death penalty trial "will divulge much new information about the plot." [Washington Post, 4/23/2005]
Entity Tags: Zacarias Moussaoui, Osama bin Laden
By November 2005, when the CIA destroys videotapes of the interrogations of al-Qaeda leaders Abu Zubaida and Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri (see November 2005), there are numerous reasons to not destroy them, some of them possibly legal requirements. [New York Times, 12/8/2007] In February 2003, Porter Goss, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee in 2003, Congressperson Jane Harman, the top Democrat on the committee, requested that the videotapes be preserved (see February 2003). Beginning in 2003 and continuing through 2005, White House officials, including White House deputy chief of staff Harriet Miers, requested that the videotapes be preserved (see Between 2003-Late 2005). In 2003, Justice Department lawyers also advised the CIA to preserve the videotapes (see 2003). Beginning in 2003, lawyers in the Zacarias Moussaoui trial have requested access to evidence of interrogations of al-Qaeda leaders like Zubaida. The CIA twice misinformed the judge in the trial about the existence of the videotapes (see May 7-9, 2003 and November 3-14, 2005). The trial will not be concluded until mid-2006 (see May 3, 2006). In September 2004, a judge rules the CIA has to preserve all records about the treatment of detainees overseas, as part of a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union. The videotapes of Zubaida and al-Nashiri would clearly qualify, since both are held overseas (see September 15, 2004). Beginning in May 2005, Sen. Jay Rockefeller of the Senate Intelligence Committee asked the CIA to preserve over 100 documents about the CIA interrogation program. One of the documents requested is a report about the videotapes of interrogations and their possible illegality (see May-September 2005). In June and July 2005, two judges ordered the CIA to preserve all evidence relevant to detainees being held in Guantanamo prison. The interrogation videotapes are indirectly relevant because the cases of some detainees hinge on their alleged ties to Zubaida (see June-July 2005). In the summer of 2005, Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte met with CIA Director Porter Goss and "strongly advised" him not to allow the videotapes to be destroyed (see Summer 2005). The videotapes are also needed for a trial of Jose Padilla, who is indicted in November 2005 (see November 22, 2005). An unnamed official familiar with the case will comment, "Everybody from the top on down told them not to do it and still they went ahead and did it anyway." [Los Angeles Times, 12/9/2007] Despite this, many later reports will indicate that the National Clandestine Service (NCS), the CIA unit that takes the decision to destroy the tapes, believes the advice about their destruction is ambiguous. NCS head Jose Rodriguez will be said to feel he never gets a straight answer to the question of whether the tapes should be destroyed, despite extensive correspondence about the issue at the CIA. [Newsweek, 12/11/2007; Newsweek, 12/24/2007] A former intelligence official will say, "They never told us, 'Hell, no.' If somebody had said, 'You cannot destroy them,' we would not have destroyed them." [New York Times, 12/11/2007]
Entity Tags: Central Intelligence Agency, Jose Rodriguez, Jr., Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, Abu Zubaida, National Clandestine Service
Timeline Tags: Torture of US Captives, Complete 911 Timeline, Civil Liberties
Zacarias Moussaoui. [Source: WNBC / Jonathan Deinst]Zacarias Moussaoui becomes the first and only person charged in direct connection with the 9/11 attacks to stand trial in the US. [Associated Press, 3/17/2006] He was preparing to hijack an aircraft and fly it into a target when he was arrested 26 days before 9/11 (see August 16, 2001 and April 22, 2005). Although there has been disagreement whether Moussaoui was to take part in the actual attack of 9/11 or a follow-up plot (see January 30, 2003), the prosecution alleges that Moussaoui had information related to the attacks (see August 16, 2001) and facilitated them by lying and not disclosing everything he knew to the FBI. He is charged with six counts, including conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism and conspiracy to commit aircraft piracy. [US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alexandria Division, 12/11/2001 ] The trial receives much media coverage and the highlights include the playing of United 93's cockpit recorder (see April 12, 2006), a row over a government lawyer coaching witnesses (see March 13, 2006), and testimony by FBI agent Harry Samit (see March 9 and 20, 2006), former FBI assistant director Michael Rolince (see March 21, 2006), and Moussaoui himself (see March 27, 2006).
Moussaoui is forced to wear a stun belt, controlled by one of the marshalls, under his jumpsuit. The belt is to be used if Moussaoui lunges at a trial participant. [New York Times, 4/17/2006] He has already pleaded guilty (see April 22, 2005) and the trial is divided into two phases; in the first phase the jury decides that Moussaoui is eligible for the death penalty, but in the second phase it fails to achieve unanimity on whether Moussaoui should be executed (see May 3, 2006). [Associated Press, 4/3/2006; New York Times, 4/17/2006]
Zacarias Moussaoui claimed that Richard Reid (above) was to have helped him hijack a fifth plane on 9/11. [Source: Mirrorpix(.com)]Against the will of his defense attorneys, Zacarias Moussaoui takes the stand at his trial (see March 6-May 4, 2006) and claims that he was supposed to fly a fifth plane on 9/11. He says the plane would have targeted the White House and one of the muscle hijackers would have been shoe-bomber Richard Reid (see December 22, 2001). However, he claims not to have known the details of the other hijackings, only that the WTC would be hit. He does not mention any other collaborators aside from Reid, who has already been sentenced to a long prison term. When the prosecution asks him whether he lied to FBI investigators so the plan could go forward he replies, "That's correct." An Associated Press expert calls this, "a stunning revelation that would help prosecutors rather than him." [Associated Press, 3/27/2006] In what the New York Times calls a "bizarre moment," the defense team, aware of the damage this admission could do, subject Moussaoui to tough questioning and the chief prosecutor objects that one of the defense attorneys is badgering his own client. [New York Times, 4/17/2006] Uncertainty over Fifth Jet - There is some dispute over whether Moussaoui was indeed to have flown a fifth plane (see January 30, 2003 and Before 2008). Following the testimony, the defense reads statements made by al-Qaeda leaders who are in custody, but are not permitted to testify at the trial (see May 14, 2003 and March 22, 2005). The statements say that Moussaoui was not part of 9/11, but a follow-up operation. [Associated Press, 3/28/2006; US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, 7/31/2006 ] However, these statements were obtained using torture (see June 16, 2004). The government later concedes that there is no evidence linking Richard Reid to 9/11. [Associated Press, 4/20/2006] "Complete Fabrication" - Moussaoui had denied being part of 9/11 before the trial (see April 22, 2005). By the end of the trial he will do so again, calling the confession he makes on this day "a complete fabrication." [Associated Press, 5/8/2006]
Entity Tags: Zacarias Moussaoui, Richard C. Reid
Zacarias Moussaoui on his way to the Supermax prison. [Source: WNBC / Jonathan Deinst]Zacarias Moussaoui is sentenced to life in prison for his role in the 9/11 attacks. A jury sentences him to six consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole. A single juror votes against the death penalty for one of the three counts for which Moussaoui is eligible to receive the death sentence (see March 6-May 4, 2006). For the other two counts, the vote is 10-2. According to the foreman of the jury, the lone dissenter did not identify his or herself to the other jurors during deliberations and consequently they could not discuss the person's reasons for opposing the death penalty. "But there was no yelling. It was as if a heavy cloud of doom had fallen over the deliberation room, and many of us realized that all our beliefs and our conclusions were being vetoed by one person," the foreman explains to the Washington Post. "We tried to discuss the pros and cons. But I would have to say that most of the arguments we heard around the deliberation table were [in favor of the death penalty]… Our sense was this was a done deal for that person and whoever that person is, they were consistent from the first day and their point of view didn't change." [Washington Post, 5/12/2006] As a result of the vote, Moussaoui will not be executed and instead will serve six life sentences at the Supermax prison in Florence, Colorado. A day after the sentencing, on May 5, Moussaoui files a motion to withdraw his guilty plea. He says that his March 27 testimony that he was supposed to have hijacked a fifth plane on September 11 and fly it into the White House "was a complete fabrication." At sentencing the judge told him, "You do not have a right to appeal your convictions, as was explained to you when you plead guilty. You waived that right." [Associated Press, 5/8/2006]
Timeline Tags: Torture of US Captives, Complete 911 Timeline, 9/11 Timeline
A new 5-minute audiotape is released by a person said to be Osama bin Laden. The voice on the tape says that Zacarias Moussaoui and the vast majority of prisoners held in Guantanamo Bay had nothing to do with 9/11. The speaker says that Moussaoui "has no connection whatsoever with the events of September 11th" and "his confession that he was assigned to participate in those raids is a false confession which no intelligent person doubts is a result of the pressure put upon him for the past four and a half years." The voice also says that, as Moussaoui has not named a support team, he cannot have been slated to pilot a hijacked airliner, and that, as he was learning to fly, he cannot have been intended to be the 20th hijacker. Further, if Moussaoui had known the 9/11 group, he would have called lead hijacker Mohamed Atta and told him to flee the country (note: jail house calls can be recorded, so this may not have been wise (see August 17, 2001)). There are various theories about Moussaoui's closeness to the 9/11 plot, but he was supported by some of the people who supported the hijackers (see January 30, 2003). The speaker also says that the detainees in Guantanamo Bay "have no connection whatsoever to the events of September 11th, and even stranger is that many of them have no connection with al-Qaeda in the first place, and even more amazing is that some of them oppose al-Qaeda's methodology of calling for war with America." The apparent reason so many detainees are being held: "(I)t is necessary to create justifications for the massive spending of hundreds of billions on the Defense Department and other agencies in their war against the Mujaheddin." [MSNBC, 5/23/2006] One Guantanamo detainee, Mohamed al-Khatani, was allegedly supposed to meet lead hijacker Mohamed Atta in the US, but was refused entry to the country, indicating that he was scheduled to be involved in 9/11 (see August 4, 2001 and July 2002).
Entity Tags: Osama bin Laden, Zacarias Moussaoui
When asked why Osama bin Laden's wanted poster only mentions his alleged involvement in the East African embassy bombings, but not 9/11, Rex Tomb of the FBI's public affairs unit says, "The reason why 9/11 is not mentioned on Osama bin Laden's Most Wanted page is because the FBI has no hard evidence connecting bin Laden to 9/11." [Milli Gazette, 6/11/2006] The Washington Post will later pick up this story and say that bin Laden's alleged involvement in the 9/11 operation is not mentioned on the poster because he has not been indicted for it (see August 28, 2006).
Entity Tags: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Osama bin Laden, Rex Tomb
The Washington Post notes that Osama bin Laden has still not been indicted for his alleged role in 9/11 and that his entry in the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list only mentions his involvement in the 1998 African embassy bombings. The FBI says the reason bin Laden is not officially wanted for 9/11 or the bombing of the USS Cole is that he has not yet been charged with involvement in the operations by the US. Bin Laden's entry on a separate list, of the 25 most wanted terrorists, also fails to mention his alleged involvement in 9/11. According to the Post, "The curious omission underscores the Justice Department's decision, so far, to not seek formal criminal charges against bin Laden" for 9/11. [Washington Post, 8/28/2006]
Entity Tags: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Osama bin Laden
The FBI admits it is uncertain about who was responsible for the 9/11 attacks. In a book published in October 2006, investigative journalists Joseph Trento and Susan Trento will report that the US government's no-fly list, which comprises the names of people who are prohibited from boarding commercial aircraft that depart from or arrive in the United States, still includes the names of 14 of the 19 men accused of being responsible for the 9/11 hijackings in official accounts, even though these men supposedly died five years ago (see March 2006). They will suggest that a possible reason for this anomaly is that "the FBI has never been able to confirm the real identities of many of the 9/11 hijackers" and note that on September 21, 2001, CNN reported that FBI Director Robert Mueller "acknowledged that some of those behind [the 9/11 attacks] may have stolen the identification of other people." They will add that a "top FBI official" said there is uncertainty over who was responsible for 9/11. According to the unnamed official, "There is a real fear we have no assurances as to who really carried out the attacks." [CNN, 9/21/2001; Trento and Trento, 2006, pp. 189-190, 192] The FBI has also stated that it has found "no hard evidence connecting [Osama] bin Laden to 9/11" (see June 6, 2006). [Milli Gazette, 6/11/2006]
Entity Tags: Federal Bureau of Investigation
The CIA "erroneously" misled the court and the lawyers involved in the ongoing prosecution of 9/11 suspect Zacarias Moussaoui (see April 22, 2005), it admits in a letter released today. In court declarations on May 9, 2003 and on November 14, 2005, the CIA stated it had no recordings of interrogations of "enemy combatants." Now it admits it had two video tapes and one audio tape. Moussaoui's lawyers want the tapes as part of his defense. The federal prosecutors say they just recently learned of the tapes, but they have been assured by the CIA that the tapes have no bearing on Moussaoui's case, and no one on the tapes mentions either Moussaoui or the 9/11 plot. The prosecutors assert that, while the CIA errors are "unfortunate," no harm was done to Moussaoui, who pled guilty and is serving a life sentence for his complicity in the attacks (see May 3, 2006). The letter, which has been heavily censored for public consumption, reads in part, "We bring the errors to the court's attention… as part of our obligation of candor to the court.… The government will promptly apprise the court of any further developments." [Reuters, 11/13/2007]
Entity Tags: Central Intelligence Agency, Zacarias Moussaoui
The CIA rehires a former officer who previously threatened al-Qaeda leader Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri with a gun and drill during interrogations (see Between December 28, 2002 and January 1, 2003 and Late December 2002 or Early January 2003). The officer, a former FBI translator known as "Albert," is to train other CIA officers at a facility in northern Virginia to handle different scenarios they might face in the field. He continues with the training until 2008 at the latest. However, according to an anonymous US official, he will still be working as an intelligence contractor in 2010. Albert's rehiring will be revealed by the Associated Press in September 2010. According to the Associated Press, human rights critics say Albert's return as a contractor raises questions about how the intelligence community deals with those who used unauthorized interrogation methods. "The notion that an individual involved in one of the more notorious episodes of the CIA's interrogation program is still employed directly or indirectly by the US government is scandalous," Ben Wizner, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, will comment. [Associated Press, 9/7/2010]
Entity Tags: Central Intelligence Agency, American Civil Liberties Union, "Albert", Ben Wizner
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After much anticipation, Oliver Wyman released to the Department of Labor and the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday the data underlying its report stating that applying a fiduciary standard to individual retirement account (IRA) recommendations is costly.
As part of its economic analysis on the redraft of its rule amending the definition of fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), DOL's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) sent out two data requests: one issued on Dec. 16 for the data underlying the Oliver Wyman report, which was commissioned by 12 financial firms; and the second was a request from EBSA's Office of Policy Research on Dec. 15 that industry trade groups voluntarily assist EBSA in its expanded "regulatory impact analysis."
EBSA has complained about Oliver Wyman's reluctance to release the data, but Kent Mason, a partner at the law firm Davis & Harman, who represents the companies that participated in the study, told AdvisorOne that a confidentiality agreement kept Oliver Wyman from releasing the data sooner.
A DOL spokesman told AdvisorOne on Thursday that the department had received the Oliver Wyman data and was reviewing it. Phyllis Borzi, assistant secretary for EBSA, has remained steadfast in her determination to include IRAs in the fiduciary duty redraft.
As Mason explained to EBSA's Office of Policy Research in an April 5 letter, the data underlying the Oliver Wyman study includes information on over 19 million IRA holders who hold $1.79 trillion in assets through 25.3 million IRA accounts. This, he said, constitutes approximately 40% of IRAs in the United States and 40% of IRA assets.
In particular, Oliver Wyman was asked to evaluate the potential impact, if enacted, of the DOL's proposed rule change on smaller retail IRA investors with respect to access to investment help and services from a licensed investment professional, choice of investment professional, relationship model in terms of commission-based brokerage versus single-fee, "wrap" investment advisory accounts, as well as breadth of product choice, and cost impact to IRA holders.
"We believe [the data] is compelling," Mason told AdvisorOne. Brokers, he said, are "not opposed to being held accountable" under a fiduciary standard, but the concern they have, and the reason they want EBSA to revise its rule proposal, is "that under ERISA, unlike under securities laws, if the broker-dealer is a fiduciary then they would be prohibited from giving the investment services they give today" to IRA investors.
As stated in the original Oliver Wyman report released last April, under the EBSA's proposed fiduciary rule, "brokerage firms would likely only offer today's level of investment services and guidance to IRA investors through fee-based advisory accounts, which would also include additional services such as ongoing account surveillance required to satisfy a fiduciary duty relationship."
The report goes on to say that while it may be possible for firms to preserve a brokerage IRA option, "this model would likely involve very low support. Such a service model would likely need to involve strict limits on baseline services such as offering investment services. Even interactions which are a common part of many discount brokerage relationships today, such as discussions with call center and branch staff, could be curtailed (so as to avoid inadvertently establishing a fiduciary duty)."
Some firms without a registered investment advisor, the report says, "may choose to exit the IRA market completely rather than incur the expense involved in setting up an investment advisor and licensing its representatives."
For investors with existing IRA accounts within a brokerage relationship model, Oliver Wyman said three likely outcomes would occur if IRA recommendations were held to a fiduciary standard:
Move to an advisory relationship: this will not be feasible for all affected investors, as many may be too small to serve economically as part of an advisory relationship. Indeed, smaller IRA holders with low trading activity levels may experience higher fees in this model;
Move to a "low support" brokerage model: this option may not be suitable or even practical for many investors, given the time and expertise needed to understand tax-advantaged investing without outside support, thus significantly impacting current and future IRA holders; and
Move existing funds out of the tax-advantaged retirement account market: this could have significant impacts on ultimate savings available to support the retirement of affected investors.

subset: commoncrawl


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A Sandwich a Day: Buttermilk Fried Chicken Sandwich at Cutty's
A different sandwich profiled every single day.
In this great city of ours, one could eat a different sandwich every day of the year--so that's what we'll do. Here's A Sandwich a Day, our daily look at sandwiches around the country. Got a sandwich we should check out? Let us know. --The Mgmt.
On any given weekday, the line of customers waiting for Cutty's specialty sandwiches, soups, and salads snakes out of the door and spills onto the sidewalk. But on one "Super Cluckin' Sunday" a few weeks ago, an even larger crowd gathered, tempted by the return of a rarely offered but insanely popular menu item: the Buttermilk Fried Chicken Sandwich.
The plan was that Cutty's would open on a Sunday, when they're usually closed, and serve a four-item menu—potato salad, yellow cake, potato chips, and Buttermilk Fried Chicken Sandwiches ($10.95)—until they ran out. Leading up to the event, the shop released a detailed infographic of the sandwich, hyped it on Twitter and Facebook, and hired a chicken-costumed guitarist to serenade the crowd. Needless to say, there was a lot of pressure riding on one sandwich's shoulders.
But in true Cutty's fashion, it didn't disappoint, and by the end of the day, they had sold almost 500 of them. The wait was long, but the sandwich was worth it.
The main component is the chicken, a Bell & Evans breast that's been brined in buttermilk, dredged in seasoned flour, and fried until crisp and juicy, but not a bit greasy. Below the chicken is a smear of tangy honey-mustard, and layered on top is a slice of Cabot Sharp Cheddar Cheese, thinly sliced Vidalia onions, crunchy shredded iceberg lettuce, and some Hellmann's Mayonnaise, in that order. And it's all sandwiched between a sesame-studded brioche bun from Iggy's.
If you're in the Boston area this weekend and didn't make it to Cutty's inaugural poultry fest, they're holding another one this Sunday, February 24th, starting at 10 a.m. I think I speak for anyone who attended the first one when I say I hope they make it a monthly event.
284 Washington Street, Brookline, MA 02445 (map) 617-505-1844; cuttyfoods.com
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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Craig Hatkoff
New York
New York
United States of America
Craig Hatkoff "s mission as an author is to share remarkable stories of hope and friendship about real animals and real world issues, while at the same time empowering kids and their parents to help save our planet.
Along with his daughters Isabella and Juliana, Craig has written five nonfiction children"s picture books about remarkable animals overcoming adversity. He and Isabella coauthored several bestselling books about the world famous Owen and Mzee: the baby hippo orphaned by the Tsunami and the giant tortoise, who formed an extraordinary bond. Owen and Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship was a #1 New York Times bestseller and has been published in eighteen languages.
Other titles by the Hatkoffs include books about Knut (the famous baby polar bear in Germany) and Miza (a young orphaned mountain gorilla in the Congo). Looking for Miza was the centerpiece for a 2007 Clinton Global Initiative Action Commitment to protect the planet"s 720 remaining mountain gorillas. This initiative was sponsored by Craig in partnership with Dr. Richard Leakey"s WildlifeDirect, the Desmond Tutu Peace Foundation, and Scholastic. The book launch included the first-ever nationally webcast Kids Gorilla Summit, produced by Scholastic.
The Hatkoffs" latest title, Winter"s Tail: How One Little Dolphin Learned to Swim Again, is their first American-based subject. It is the inspiring true story of Winter, who as a two-month-old dolphin lost her tail after becoming entangled in a crab trap. Winter was rescued off the coast of Cape Canaveral and brought to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, where she was treated. CMA staff, engineers, and scientists helped Winter by fitting her with a breakthrough prosthetic tail, designed to be flexible enough for movement and durable enough for swimming. Winter now uses her prosthetic tail with great command, and her story is a testament to the power of love, friendship, and understanding for those who face incredible challenges.
In addition to being an author, Craig Hatkoff is cofounder of the Tribeca Film Festival, along with his wife Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro. He is the founder and Chairman of Turtle Pond Publications LLC, a private entertainment- and media-based company in New York and is also involved in a number of charitable and civic endeavors. Craig is on the Board of Directors of WildlifeDirect, the New York University"s Child Study Center, the Sesame Workshop, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the Borough of Manhattan Community College Foundation. In 2002, Mayor Bloomberg appointed him one of the three Trustees of the New York City School Construction Authority, a position he held for four years.
Craig Hatkoff graduated Magna Cum Laude from Colgate University. He later received his MBA from Columbia University, where he was an adjunct professor for five years.
Craig lives in New York City with his wife and their two daughters.


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It is a delicate situation when part of a family is in good standing in the church and part of the family has been excommunicated. How ought the church members treat their family members? Matt. 18 says, "And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector." How does this apply? Surely we should not shun family members. Should the church members refuse to attend family functions with their excommunicated family members?
You are right that this is a tricky, delicate matter! Let me sketch out some points which may apply.
For one, treating someone as a "Gentile and tax collector" doesn't mean that we have nothing to do with them. If that were the case then all Christians would have avoided any contact with Gentiles and how could they have evangelized them or even done business with them? So I think that the basic idea Christ has here is that we no longer treat the disciplined, excommunicated person as a Christian brother or sister. It does not mean avoiding family gatherings where that person might be, but instead of asking them to "pray" for something, make telling them of Christ the key object of conversation. They are "outside of Christ" having denied him (as demonstrated by the church's discipline) so they need to come to Christ. And though they may respond that they "know all about Jesus and don't want to hear about it anymore," in actuality they don't really know about Jesus or about their sin by the Holy Spirit's work or else the Spirit would be drawing them to Christ. If they evidence that they are sick of hearing about Jesus so "don't you dare bring him into the conversation," you can respond that Christ is so central, so important, to how you understand yourself and your life that they are asking you to be false to yourself, untrue to who you are as a child of God. You can certainly listen, ask questions, clarify any misunderstandings they have, and try, if you are able, to direct them back to the Savior. Make Christ and the gospel the "offense," not how the church handled the discipline.
Secondly, how you treat the excommunicated person is being observed by others as well. If you shun them or avoid them or treat them as pariahs, what does that communicate about the gospel? Jesus ate with tax collectors and sinners and he sought out the lost (read Luke 15), so we cannot and should not avoid those who are without Christ because some of those who watch us may be drawn to Christ when they see the love of Christ displayed in and through us.
Thirdly, church discipline always has a redemptive goal so that the disciplined one might be restored to Christ's and the church's fellowship. The OPC's Book of Discipline says "These censures shall always be accompanied by prayer to God that he may graciously use the discipline for the restoration of the offender, the edification of the church, and his own glory." Look at discipline, and help others to see it, as a mercy of God through the church, God calling sinners to be reconciled to himself and to his people. Very few people understand church discipline today and so there are many misconceptions about. Ask your pastor or your elders for books or articles on church discipline so you can explain it to others and see it as an opportunity to announce the gospel that Christ has come to reconcile rebels to a holy God at the cost of his own blood and we are now God's children through Christ's death on the Cross.
"Questions and Answers" is a weekly feature of the OPC website. The answers come from individual ministers in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church expressing their own convictions and do not necessarily represent an "official" position of the Church, especially in areas where the Standards of the Church (the Scriptures and the Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms) are silent.
The questions come from individuals like yourself. If you have questions about biblical and theological matters, you are invited to send them by e-mail by using the "Pose a Question" link on the OPC home page or by clicking here.
At least one new question is posted each week, so there should always be something new here for you to read. (For those people who would like to look at previous questions and answers, they will continue to be available as well.)
The purpose of the OPC website's "Questions and Answers" is to respond to biblical and theological questions. Matters of church discipline, disputes, or debates go beyond the scope of our work. We recommend that you present your concerns in these areas to the appropriate judicatory. In most cases this will be to a local pastor, elder, or session. We do not want the website to replace personal involvement in, or commitment to, the local, visible church.
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Chaplains and Military Personnel


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March 11, 2001
Nafta's Powerful Little Secret
ANTHONY DePALMA
Their meetings are secret. Their members are generally unknown. The decisions they reach need not be fully disclosed. Yet the way a small group of international tribunals handles disputes between investors and foreign governments has led to national laws being revoked, justice systems questioned and environmental regulations challenged. And it is all in the name of protecting the rights of foreign investors under the North American Free Trade Agreement.
The corporations — American, Canadian and Mexican alike — that directly invest in neighboring countries are thrilled that Nafta provides some protection. But foes of the trade pact say some of their worst fears about anonymous government have become reality. And as Western economies move toward more free trade and globalization, environmentalists, consumer groups and anti-trade organizations are increasingly worried about how the tribunals influence the enforcement of laws. The groups are gearing up for a fight at the Summit of the Americas next month in Quebec, where President Bush will be pushing a vast new Free Trade Area of the Americas, which would provide for similar tribunals.
Protesters will attack the sweeping powers and broad impact of the tribunals, along with their very nature — ad hoc panels drawn from lists of academics and international lawyers almost unknown outside their highly specialized fields.
"What we're talking about here is secret government," said Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen, a consumer watchdog group in Washington that has been critical of Nafta and other trade agreements. Ms. Claybrook said the 16 Nafta cases that have been filed so far in the United States, Canada and Mexico showed how corporations were using Nafta not to defend trade but to challenge the functioning of government. "This is not the way to do the public's business," she said.
The tribunals have been used in Nafta disputes for only a few years, but the complaints they have handled have already had many repercussions, including these:
• The Canadian government lifted restrictions on manufacturing an ethanol-based gasoline additive that it considered hazardous after an American manufacturer said that the ban hurt its business.
• A tribunal ordered Mexico to pay an American company $16.7 million after finding that local environmental laws prohibiting a toxic- waste-processing plant that the company was building were tantamount to expropriation.
• A Canadian-based funeral company is asking the United States government for $725 million in compensation after a Mississippi jury found the company guilty in 1995 of trying to put a local funeral home out of business, and levied $500 million in damages. The company contends that the jury sought to punish it because it is foreign. If the tribunal awards compensation, critics say, all jury awards involving foreign investors may be challenged.
• United Parcel Service, the package-delivery company, has filed a complaint contending that the very existence of the publicly financed Canadian postal system represents unfair competition that conflicts with Canada's obligations under Nafta. Critics worry that if the tribunal upholds the U.P.S. claim, government participation in any service that competes with the private sector will be threatened.
IT is clear that investors have gained a shield far more powerful than almost anyone had imagined when Nafta was written in the early 1990's. "There is no doubt that these measures represent an expansion of the rights of private enterprises vis- à-vis government," said Prof. Andreas F. Lowenfeld, an international trade expert at the New York University School of Law. "The question is: Is that a good thing?"
The international tribunals are authorized under a Nafta clause called Chapter 11, dealing with investments. Investors who believe they have suffered a loss because of a breach in Nafta rules can bring a claim against the government of the country where they made their investment. They can have the complaint heard under one of two existing sets of rules — one from the United Nations, the other from an independent office of the World Bank.
These off-the-shelf mechanisms adopted by Nafta have commonly been used to resolve private disputes between corporations, and are thus intended to provide a great degree of confidentiality. Both critics and proponents agree that the provisions run headlong into demands for openness and accountability when public issues are involved.
"The fact that the drafters of Nafta chose this secretive process to resolve these disputes is further evidence that they weren't foreseeing matters of broad social concern coming before these panels," said Martin Wagner, director of international programs for the Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund, an environmental group in San Francisco.
Critics say the corporate victories have spawned even bolder and broader challenges, each one further undermining public policy. In a recent case that critics consider one of the most worrisome, the Methanex Corporation of Vancouver, British Columbia, is challenging California's decision to phase out the use of a gasoline additive containing methanol, which Methanex makes. The state considers the additive, MTBE, which was originally intended to reduce air pollution from motor vehicle emissions, to be a health hazard when it enters the water supply. Santa Monica, Calif., with 93,000 residents, had to shut down most of its municipal wells when gasoline containing MTBE leached into the drinking water a few years ago.
METHANEX contends that MTBE poses absolutely no health hazard and that the state's action would effectively destroy its market. "The work that was done to make the decision to move forward with the ban wasn't extensive enough to draw the conclusion that MTBE is hazardous," said Bradley W. Boyd, director of investor relations at Methanex.
The company recently amended the claim to include accusations that a decision by Gov. Gray Davis of California to ban the additive might have been politically motivated and linked to more than $200,000 in campaign contributions by the Archer Daniels Midland Company, which makes a competing product. A spokesman for the governor, Gabriel Sanchez, called the accusations "ludicrous."
Mr. Boyd said Methanex was not asking for the ban to be lifted, but rather for Methanex to be compensated if it was prevented from doing business in California because of the ban. The company wants $970 million in compensation, which rankles many Californians.
"It's the height of corporate moxie," said Michael Feinstein, an environmental activist who is the mayor of Santa Monica. He said he was worried that a precedent would be set if the MTBE phase-out was undermined. Even if the tribunals have no power to overturn laws, he said, a decision in Methanex's favor "would have a devastatingly chilling effect on all such future laws and standards because of the belief that they would not stand up to challenge."
The United States government, named as a defendant in the Methanex complaint, is also concerned that the case stretches Nafta beyond recognition. In a statement to the tribunal, the government contends that "Methanex's claim does not remotely resemble the type of grievance for which the states parties to the Nafta created the investor-state dispute mechanism."
Mr. Wagner has asked the tribunal to consider breaking with tradition and accepting written statements from third-party groups like the Bluewater Network, a citizens' environmental organization. The three- person tribunal hearing the complaint is unusual in that its members include former Secretary of State Warren Christopher. The tribunal determined in January that it had the right to accept written arguments, and said it would decide later whether to do so in this case.
Mr. Wagner said he was able to keep abreast of the proceedings by filing periodic Freedom of Information requests that force the United States government, when named as a defendant, to release the documents. Other advocates who obtain the filings this way post some on a Web site — www.naftaclaims.com. Canada also has a public access information law, but Mexico does not.
Officials who oversee the tribunals say that they understand concerns about the less-than-public aspects of the panels' work but that anything that opens the proceedings would undermine the promise of confidentiality that corporate investors consider essential. That, they say, would undermine the primary purpose of the arbitration mechanisms — to help foster commercial development.
"The whole thing here was to have a mechanism to give a base level of comfort to foreign investors," said Ko-Yung Tung, vice president and general consul of the World Bank and secretary general of its International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes, which handles Nafta claims. He said that forcing more disclosure could drive corporations away from the established dispute-resolution process.
"If increased foreign investment is the prime goal in this, then making public these proceedings may be less important" than protecting investors, Mr. Tung said.
The center occupies a small suite of offices inside the World Bank's modern headquarters in Washington. With seven lawyers and four members of its support staff, it now oversees eight Nafta cases. There are also 29 other disputes on the center's docket that arise from some of the more than 1,400 bilateral treaties involving more than 130 nations that have signed an international convention to abide by the World Bank's investment rules.
For 20 years after the center was created in 1966, it established panels that heard on average no more than one case a year. Now, officials said, about one case is filed every month.
THE center's primary responsibility is to appoint the arbitrators to the panels, choosing from a list of internationally recognized experts who are paid $1,500 a day for their work. The center is bound by strict confidentiality rules, and only investors can say whether documents should be made public.
"It's unfair to call this a closed or secret process," said Antonio R. Parra, deputy secretary general of the International Center. "While it's clearly not on all fours with a court proceeding, I don't think it is something that is shrouded in secrecy."
Under the center's rules, proceedings can be made public if both the investor and the involved government agree. But the Nafta proceedings are never opened to the public, nor have third parties until now been allowed to submit briefs. Corporations want the proceedings to remain closed.
"The majority of claimants in these cases are not large multinational corporations but small- to medium-sized companies," said Clyde C. Pearce, a California lawyer who represented one such company, the Metalclad Corporation, in a complaint against Mexico over the construction of a toxic-waste-processing site. Mr. Pearce said the obligation of responding to briefs submitted by third parties could overwhelm corporate lawyers, who are already outmatched by the governments they are bringing the claims against.
"If others want to weigh in on these cases, they have access to their governments and should use that route to get their views across, not the tribunals," he said.
The other set of rules governing Nafta tribunals was devised by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law, based in Vienna. "Arbitration is really private justice," said Jernej Sekolec, its secretary. Mr. Sekolec says the commission's rules for handling disputes are routinely written into commercial contracts between investors and, increasingly, agreements that let private investors bring complaints against a foreign government.
But he said the commission itself never became involved in a dispute in any way, not even to select the arbitrators. "Our overall mission is to streamline and facilitate negotiations and conclusions of contracts," he said.
Typically, the parties in a dispute each name one tribunal member and agree jointly to a third. Each panel is unique, and critics say this lack of continuity makes it hard to establish clear legal precedent.
That is especially important because a tribunal decision technically cannot be appealed. It can be submitted to a local court for review, to ensure that there was no corruption or gross misinterpretation of the rules. Mexico has recently filed such a review in the case won by Metalclad. Another appeal was filed recently by the Canadian government in a case won by S. D. Myers Inc., an Ohio waste-disposal company that said it was hurt by a Canadian law banning the export of PCB's.
Barry Appleton, a Canadian trade lawyer involved in several claims before Nafta tribunals, said critics were so driven by their opposition to globalization that they were overstating the power of the tribunals, which he contends are nothing more than dispute-resolution panels with no power to overturn any laws. "What they're doing," he said of the critics, "is scaremongering."
Mr. Appleton said the arbitration panels were meant to provide a nonpolitical alternative to resolving disputes in court. But he said controversy had arisen because the drafters of Nafta appeared to assume that the investor-protection provisions would be used by Canadian and American investors to protect their investments in Mexico from outright expropriation.
"The Canadian and American governments thought this was not going to apply to them," Mr. Appleton said, "and now they're disappointed."
THE lack of a traditional appeal process, transparency and legally binding precedent, along with the wide scope of what can be challenged under the free-trade investment rules, have made many people wary in all three nations, including government officials. Pierre Pettigrew, Canada's minister of international trade, has written to his counterparts in the United States and Mexico to begin a process of what he calls "clarifying" the limits of Nafta's investment protections and perhaps amending the agreement before negotiations begin in earnest on the Free Trade Area of the Americas.
Activists planning to go to the Summit of the Americas in Quebec said they would protest the idea of adopting similar tribunals in a hemispheric free-trade pact. "This is an example of the excessive powers enjoyed by corporations under Nafta that should not be expanded," said the Alliance for Responsible Trade, in a critique of the United States position on the proposed trade pact.
Critics also object to President Bush's campaign to gain approval of a so-called "fast-track authority," which expired after Nafta was passed in 1993. Mr. Bush has said he needs it to present the hemispheric trade pact to Congress for a vote without possibility of amendment. The critics contend that the scope of Nafta's investment-protection chapter was not well understood because the fast-track process denied Congress the chance to evaluate the agreement thoroughly.
The clash between investor rights and public policy is expected to grow more intense, even within the agencies entrusted with keeping aspects of the cases secret.
"The demand for a more transparent process will cause tension with the more traditional concept of confidentiality — it's inevitable," said Margrete L. Stevens, senior counsel of the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes. She said she believed that there was room to adjust, to open the process in keeping with such expectations throughout the world today — but only, she said, if "the parties have come under pressure in their own countries to do this."
Copyright 2001 The New York Times Company


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This time two weeks ago I was in Anaheim, California, at the National Association of Realtors' Annual Conference, themed "Seize the Day".
I am still struck by the bigness of it all. Not just the sheer numbers (over 20,000 of us!), but by the strength of the passion and the vision. Yet I am still wondering, are we delivering what future generations of home owners need from us today?
Plenty of the sessions addressed NAR's vision – and especially the increased emphasis on the Public Advocacy Campaign. The Realtor brand and our Code of Ethics has always been about protecting home ownership, and never has the organization been more focused on that than this coming year. One key element of the campaign is the "Future Generations" commercial you've probably seen on TV. A grandson dreams about owning his own home one day, while the grandpa wistfully wonders if he'll ever have that opportunity.
My own "future generations" moment came in a session called Energy: New Approaches and Challenges for the Future. A Realtor in the audience came to the mic to mention a 20% increase in energy costs in her Vermont market. Here we were discussing energy as a land use topic. But without intending to, she hit the nail on the head: energy is an affordability topic. And if we continue to mislabel it, each Realtor's business will suffer.
I caught up with her later (literally passing on the escalators!) and learned more. It's an example that should put all of us on notice:
It got me thinking. Now my smart $180,000 client is a $160,000 client. Can I still find them the right home at the lower price point? Are they going to be satisfied with my work? What if there's just not enough house to make them jump in, or what if the new numbers have them too nervous to move?
And what about my not-so-smart client? What if they proceed at $180,000 but energy costs rise again? Have I done good work for them? Or are they up at night wondering how they are going to pay the mortgage?
I run my business 100% on referrals, and foreclosure resales – even the just the shadow of one – is simply not acceptable in my plan.
So when it comes to protecting home ownership and future generations we need to step up and acknowledge that empowering clients with energy efficiency should be part of what we do – both to enable our own livelihoods, and to strengthen our own communities.
Printed with permission from Not Yet Green. Original article available here.
-Laura Stukel can be reached at email@example.com.
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M2 is burning up CPU time on the build servers right now!
The M-Series is our monthly release series. The devices we build M for are essentially stable, and ready to be your daily driver.
We are building M2 for these devices:
Galaxy Nexus GSM (maguro)
Galaxy Nexus VZW (toro)
Galaxy Nexus Sprint (toroplus)
Galaxy S2 GT-I9100G (i9100g)
Galaxy S2 AT&T LTE (skyrocket)
Galaxy S2 T-Mobile (hercules)
Galaxy S (galaxysmtd)
Galaxy S B (galaxysbmtd)
Captivate (captivatemtd)
Galaxy S3 Sprint (d2spr)
Galaxy S3 VZW (d2vzw)
Galaxy S3 AT&T (d2att)
Galaxy S3 TMO (d2tmo)
Galaxy S3 US Cellular (d2usc)
Motorola Xoom (wingray/stingray)
Nexus S (crespo)
Nexus S 4G (crespo4g)
Galaxy Note AT&T (quincyatt)
Galaxy Note T-Mobile (quincytmo)
Google Nexus 7 (grouper)
LG Nitro HD (p930)
LG Optimus Black (p970)
LG Optimus LTE SKT (su640)
Sony Xperia Acro S (hikari)
Sony Xperia S (nozomi)
More devices are on the way! Many other supported devices are available as nightly builds, but may have a glitch or two that we are still working out.
The latest builds are available via the new CM Updater, as well as ROM Manager. Or, you can download manually from Get.CM. With any M release, we are zooming in on a stable version so we need your feedback and bug reports to make it as good as it can be!
If you like what we're doing, please consider dropping a couple of bucks at our donation link below. It helps us outfit the teams with new devices as well as keep our infrastructure running.
Enjoy M2!


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Pre-Black Friday sales:
- Up to 25% off furniture from Target's best-selling brands (online only)
- Up to 25% off home decor (online only)
- Save $50 on Ninja Foodi 9-in-1 6.5qt Pressure Cooker and Air Fryer with High Gloss Finish - OP301 ($179.99, reg. $229.99)
- Save $29.6 on Set of 2 Cedric Counter Height Barstool Vintage Brown - Christopher Knight Home ($118.39, reg. $147.99)
UPDATE: Sept. 29, 2020: Target has officially announced several deals and savings, including an extended Black Friday throughout November as well as Deal Days directly competing with Amazon's Prime Day event in October. Read more.--
UPDATE: Sept. 17, 2020: Target's Black Friday 2020 ad will likely drop in early November. Expect tons of deals on phones, laptops, tablets, gaming consoles, toys and fashion.---
Target's Black Friday ad has officially arrived! Of the major retailers, Target is the first to release their Black Friday ad this year. The ad is packed with savings and discounts on tons of clothing, electronics, video games, and toys.
Target will open this year on Thanksgiving Day at 5 p.m. and will stay open until 1 a.m. They will re-open for Black Friday at 7 a.m.
Compared to other Black Friday ads released so far, the Target Black Friday ad feels like a breath of fresh air. It's loaded with tons of great savings on a wide variety of products. So far this year we had seen most retailers have approximately the same pricing across the board on high-end electronics and Target is the first Black Friday ad that shatters those prices, often by 10% or more. Target is also offering a Sneak Preview sale for some of the items listed in their Black Friday ad (though which items will be a part of the Sneak Preview is unlisted).
Target is also offering several bundles on electronics that no other retailer has offered yet, including big discounts on the Xbox One and the Playstation 4. It remains to be seen if other retailers will match, or beat, these exceptionally low prices. Of particular note is the Nintendo Switch and the Nintendo Switch Lite. As we predicted, Target did not discount the Nintendo Switch Lite, nor did they offer any game bundled with the purchase. The original model Nintendo Switch has received the same exact bundle from last year, which includes the Nintendo Switch and Mario Kart 8 for the regular retail price of the Switch at $299. However, Target is offering three games (Mario Odyssey, Mario Aces, and Zelda: Breath of the Wild) for $30, which is the cheapest price we've seen on these titles.
Some of the best deals and bundles we saw were:
- Google Home Mini - $20
- Activation of iPhone 11 line on AT&T or Verizon – comes with $200 Target Gift Card
- Activation of Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus, S10, and Note 10 at AT&T or Verizon – comes with $400 Target Gift Card
- Activation of Samsung Galaxy S10e at AT&T or Verizon – comes with $200 Target Gift Card
- Amazon Echo Dot - $22
- Nintendo Switch Games: Mario Aces, Mario Odyssey, and Zelda: Breath of the Wild - $30 ($30 off)
- Xbox One X Bundle (includes Gears of War 5 and $40 Gift Card) - $349 ($150 off)
- Playstation 4 Bundle (includes The Last of Us, God of War, and Horizon Zero Dawn) - $200
- Mix and Match Toy Discount (includes brands like Leap Frog, Vtech, Star Wars, Nerf, Fisher Price Little People, and Jurassic World) – Buy 1 Get 1 50% off
- 65-inch 4K Element Roku TV (in-store only) - $279
Google Home - Smart Speaker with Google Assistant
You save 50.51%
Westinghouse 50" 4K Ultra HD Roku Smart TV with HDR
You save 51.61%
iRobot Roomba 675 Wi-Fi Connected Robot Vacuum
You save 33.33%
Fitbit Versa Lite Smartwatch
You save 37.51%
Apple Watch Series 3 (GPS) 38mm Aluminum Case
You save 15%
Roku Streaming Stick
You save 40.01%
Apple iPad 10.2-inch Wi-Fi Only (7th Generation)
You save 24.24%
iPhoneXS Max or iPhone XS Activation
Xbox One S 1 TB Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order Bundle
PlayStation 4 1TB Console
You save 33.33%
Jetson Strike Hoverboard
You save 36.66%
Poopsie Pooey Puitton
You save 42.86%
L.O.L. Surprise! Big Surprise
You save 42.86%
FIFA 20 - PlayStation 4
You save 50.01%


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At this week's Freescale Technology Forum, Freescale Semiconductor literally rolled the world's first "intelligent basketball," the latest in a growing array of everyday products incorporating electronic smarts.
The basketball, demonstrated in a keynote speech at the forum here, provides information to prospective basketball players about the nature of their shooting - specifically, the velocity and angle of each shot.
"According to a study by the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, there are two factors that determine the probability of making a free throw: the player's height, and the player's control over the ball's release angle and velocity," said Michelle Kelsey, a Freescale engineer who worked with sporting good manufacturer Spalding on development of the ball. "By understanding how (an) accelerometer is oriented inside the basketball, we can determine the initial release angle. Using software to extract the acceleration due to motion, we can integrate the acceleration values to approximate velocity."
Kelsey said that the ball achieves that by incorporating three Freescale components: a three-axis accelerometer, a Zigbee transceiver and an eight-bit microcontroller. During operation, the ball's accelerometer senses acceleration and then uses the microcontroller to integrate the area under the acceleration curve. It therefore calculates velocity and then employs the transceiver to send the output to a nearby laptop computer to display the results.
Kelsey said that the project was launched by some engineering students and a professor at Indiana University, who originally called Freescale to obtain the necessary electronic components. As the project evolved, Freescale engineers worked with engineers at Spalding to seamlessly incorporate the technology in a production-grade basketball. Freescale engineers said they did not know yet whether Spalding plans to market the smart ball and manufacture it in production volumes.
At the conference's keynote speech, Freescale CEO Michel Mayer called upon an engineer from the keynote audience of 2,000 to come on stage and shoot a free throw, with the added incentive of a free trip and pit pass to the Monterey Sports Car Championship later this year if he connected on the shot. The engineer, who was chosen arbitrarily from the audience, hit the shot on his first try.
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Middle College High School
Applications for Middle College (Fall 2020 are now closed.
Cañada Middle College is a nontraditional high school collaboration between Cañada College and the Sequoia Union High School District Through this unique alternative high school program, students have the opportunity to explore new challenges that are not available in a traditional high school. Students complete the requirements for high school graduation while enrolled in college courses. All courses are held at Cañada College. Students in Cañada's Middle College program quickly discover the joy and benefits of self-directed learning in a stimulating and diverse college atmosphere.
- An exciting alternative to the traditional high school environment
- A head start on your college degree while earning your high school diploma
- Transition to college in a flexible, supportive and academically enriched environment
- A refreshing challenge
- FREE Tuition
The Potential Middle College Student
- Will be a Junior or Senior in good standing with a GPA of 2.0 or above.
- Is on track for graduation: Minimum 90 credits for a junior, Minimum 145 credits for a senior
- Has the ability to thrive in an alternative environment
- Desires to complete high school and begin college courses
- Demonstrates the maturity to cope with the challenges and relative freedom of a college environment
- May show a discrepancy between standardized test scores and actual grades, indicating that she/he is not working up to potential
- Has demonstrated appropriate, responsible and respectful behavior on the high school campus
- Is a resident of Sequoia Union High School District
- Eligible for English 836 or above per Cañada's placement test
Complete College Services
All of the services and facilities of the College are available to Middle College students, including:
- Quick link to all student services
- The College library which is part of the Peninsula Library System
- College counseling and advising which includes Educational Counseling, Career Services and Transfer Services
- The Learning Center offers free tutoring and mentoring in math and reading, self-paced courses and computer and language labs.
- Student Government, Student Clubs and Activities
- Personal Counseling Services and Health Services
Guidance Counselor Recommendation Form