iBankCoin
Home / 2013 / February

Monthly Archives: February 2013

Israel’s Channel 10 News: Obama to Threaten Iran With Military Strike in June

“President Barack Obama says the United States could launch an attack on Iran as early as this June, Israeli media reports.

According to a report on Israel’s Channel 10 News that has since been picked up by the Times of Israel, Pres. Obama will use an upcoming meeting overseas to discuss a military strike on Iran. Pres. Obama is scheduled to visit Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu next month, and during the get-together the two leaders will reportedly work out the details for a possible assault.

 

Pres. Obama will tell Netanyahu that a “window of opportunity” for a military strike on Iran will open in June, Channel 10 claims.

 

Israel has long-urged the White House to use its military prowess to intervene in Iran’s rumored nuclear weapon procurement plan, demands which have by-and-large been rejected by the Obama administration. According to the latest reports, though, the United States might finally be willing to use its might to make a stand against Iran’s race for a nuke.

 

“I have conversations with Prime Minister Netanyahu all the time. And I understand and share Prime Minister Netanyahu’s insistence that Iran should not obtain a nuclear weapon, because it would threaten us, it would threaten Israel, and it would threaten the world and kick off a nuclear arms race,” Pres. Obama said during an interview on the television program 60 Minutes last year, but not before adding that he’ll continue to block “noise” from Netanyahu’s camp. “Now I feel an obligation, not pressure but obligation, to make sure that we’re in close consultation with the Israelis — on these issues. Because it affects them deeply. They’re one of our closest allies in the region. And we’ve got an Iranian regime that has said horrible things that directly threaten Israel’s existence,” he said.

 

But five months after those remarks, Iran is still inclined to become a nuclear power. Only days earlier, The Jerusalem Post reported that Netanyahu said the details of a confidential report by the International Atomic Energy Agency suggested that that Iran had begun installing advanced centrifuges at its main uranium enrichment facility, sparking “very grave” concerns that Israel could be hit with a nuke.

 

 

World powers and Iran's representatives sit at a table during talks on Iran's nuclear programme in the Kazakh city of Almaty on February 26, 2013. (AFP Photo / Stanislav Filippov))

World powers and Iran’s representatives sit at a table during talks on Iran’s nuclear programme in the Kazakh city of Almaty on February 26, 2013. (AFP Photo / Stanislav Filippov))

 

 

 

Right now, five members of the United Nations Security Council and Germany are holding talks with Iranian officials in Kazakhstan, with the goal of reaching a diplomatic answer to the nuclear crisis. However, domestic tensions within Iranian political elite do not make the prospect of a solution any more viable for now. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s second and final term in office is set to wrap up this June, and political fights within the country’s top contenders for the position has prompted possible presidents to take harsh stance on the issue and resist outside pressure….”

Full article

Comments »

Men at Work: The Brits Join the SEC in Porn Surfing

“A Freedom of Information request shows a smattering of sex sites were favored by members of Parliament and their staff from May 2011 to July 2012. Gay cruising sites were viewed more than 3,500 times. Earlier this month, a report found that a hook-up site for married people was clicked on more than 52,000 times during a seven-month period….”

Full article

[youtube://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeG-hNXXy6I 450 300]

Comments »

South Korean Exports Fall Less Than Expected

“South Korea’s February trade numbers are out.

Exports fell 8.6 percent year-over-year to $42.3 billion.  Economists were expecting exports to fall 9.2 percent.

Keep in mind that China’s New Year holiday was particularly late this year, which is causing volatility in the year-over-year numbers….”

Full article

Comments »

On the Matter of Cutting Spending and Entitlements

Salaries

Talk about the privileged…Why aren’t these ENTITLEMENTS on the table!

Regardless of your politics — whether it’s Nancy Pelosi OR John Boehnor — these people are hypocrites and disingenuous to rich, middle class & the poor…

Subject: SOME Salaries

Salary of retired US Presidents ………….$180,000 FOR LIFE!

Salary of House/Senate ……………………. $174,000 FOR LIFE! This is stupid

Salary of Speaker of the House ………….$223,500 FOR LIFE! This is really stupid

Salary of Majority/Minority Leaders ……. $193,400 FOR LIFE! This is really stupid

Average Salary of a teacher …………… $40,065

Average Salary of Soldier DEPLOYED IN AFGHANISTAN ……. $38,000

Think about this:

Nancy Pelosi will retire as a Congress Person at $174,000 Dollars a
year for LIFE.

She has retired as SPEAKER at $223,500 a year.

PLUS she will receive an additional $193,400 a year as Minority Leader.

That’s $803,700 Dollars a year for LIFE including FREE medical which is
not available to US…the taxpayers?

She is just one of the hundreds of Senators and Congress that float in
and out every year!

I think we found where the cuts should be made!

Government Blue

Taxpayer Red

!cid_AA130FB2E8044A52A2A1AA3B9100DDD3@JohnPC

Comments »

Walter Zimmerman Raises The Red Flag Stating Every Indicator Says Get in the Vice as a New Crisis Develops

“…….”Every reliable technical tool is warning of major peaking action,” said Walter Zimmerman, the senior technical analyst at United-ICAP. “This includes sentiment, momentum, classical chart patterns, and Elliott wave analysis.

“Most of the rally in the stock market since 2009 can be chalked up to the Federal Reserve’s attempt to create a ‘wealth effect’ through higher stock market prices. This only exacerbates the downside risk. Why? The stock market no is longer a lead indicator for the economy. It is instead reflecting  Fed manipulation. Pushing the stock market higher while the real economy languishes has resulted in another bubble.

“The next leg down will not be a partial correction of the advance since the 2009 lows. It will be another major financial crisis. The worst is yet to come.”

Zimmerman sent us a brief presentation laying out his thesis.

Read more

Comments »

$CRM Crushes Earnings, This Company Can Do No Wrong

“Wow what a run this company is experiencing!

Salesforce reported fourth-quarter earnings that blew past analysts’ expectations on Thursday, backed by strong sales of its cloud-based services.

The business-software maker’s shares jumped after the announcement. (Click here for the latest after-hours quote.)

The company posted a net loss for the quarter, which widened to $20.8 million, or 14 cents a share, during the quarter from widening from a loss of $4.08 million, or 3 cents, a share a year earlier.

Excluding items such as a one-time tax charge, the company posted a profit of 51 cents a share, up from 43 cents a share a year ago.

Revenue increased 32 percent to $835 million from $632 million a year ago.

Analysts had expected earnings ex-items of 40 cents a share on revenue of $831 million, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters….”

Full report

Comments »

$GRPN’s CEO Given the Old Heave-Ho

Groupon CEO Andrew Mason was handed a pink slip Thursday, fired after the company reported disappointing fourth-quarter results along with a dim outlook.

“After four and a half intense and wonderful years as CEO of Groupon, I’ve decided that I’d like to spend more time with my family. Just kidding – I was fired today,” Mason said in an email to employees announcing his departure.

“If you’re wondering why… you haven’t been paying attention,” he added. (Read the full text of the email below.)

Groupon shares shot up more than 10 percent following the news. What’s the stock doing now? Click here for the latest after-hours quote.

The stock has fallen more than 75 percent since its November 2011 IPO. In regular trading Thursday, the stock fell 25 percent after the disappointing fourth-quarter results came out late Wednesday.

The results revealed that the company has had to slash its fees from merchants to grow its business and that its new Groupon Goods business would decline in the first quarter. Mason was so confident on the earnings call, he drew criticism of being entirely out of touch. Twenty-four hours later the guillotine fell….”

Full article

Comments »

A Frightening Look at Student Debt

“US student loan debt has soared to $966 billion, nearly tripling from 2004 to 2012, according to new data from the New York Federal Reserve.

The Fed offers five reasons to explain this trend:

  • More people attend college and graduate school
  • Parents take out student loans for their children
  • Students stay longer in college and more often attend graduate school
  • Lower repayment rates as borrowers delay payments through deferments and forbearances
  • Discharging student debt is very difficult and the balance stays with the borrower

Meanwhile, 17 percent of borrowers are now late on their debt payments.  This is up from 10 percent in 2004.

What follows is the Fed’s presentation showing the incredible rise of student debt and how it is quickly becoming a big problem.

Comments »

S&P Cuts $JCP to Triple C+

“In the wake of JC Penney’s horrific earnings announcement, S&P has downgraded the department store chain’s credit rating to CCC+ from B-.

S&P’s outlook is negative….”

Read more

Comments »

Michigan To Take Control of Bankrupt Detroit

[youtube://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9etBGZMMqo 450 300]

Link for iPhone users: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9etBGZMMqo

Comments »

Fuck the DHS

[youtube://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4Ku17CqdZg 450 300]

Link for iPhone users: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4Ku17CqdZg

Comments »

Lawmakers Make a Push for Interweb Tax

“The Marketplace Fairness Act grants states the authority to compel online and catalog retailers (“remote sellers”), no matter where they are located, to collect sales tax at the time of a transaction – exactly like local retailers are already required to do. However, there is a caveat: States are only granted this authority after they have simplified their sales tax laws.

Simplification is required because of two Supreme Court rulings (Bellas Hess and Quill, described below) cite concern that collecting sales tax for multiple states would be too difficult.

The Marketplace Fairness Act requires that states must simplify their sales tax laws in order to ease those concerns and make multistate sales tax collection easy. Specifically, states seeking collection authority have two options for simplifying their sales tax laws.

Option 1: A state can join the twenty-four states that have already voluntarily adopted the simplification measures of the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement (SSUTA), which has been developed over the last eleven years by forty-four states and more than eighty-five businesses with the goal of making sales tax collection easy. Any state which is in compliance with the SSUTA and has achieved Full Member status as a SSUTA implementing state will have collection authority on the first day of the calendar quarter that is at least 90 days after enactment.

Option 2: Alternatively, states can meet essentially five simplification mandates listed in the bill. States that choose this option must agree to:

  1. Notify retailers in advance of any rate changes within the state
  2. Designate a single state organization to handle sales tax registrations, filings, and audits
  3. Establish a uniform sales tax base for use throughout the state
  4. Use destination sourcing to determine sales tax rates for out-of-state purchases (a purchase made by a consumer in California from a retailer in Ohio is taxed at the California rate, and the sales tax collected is remitted to California to fund projects and services there)
  5. Provide free software for managing sales tax compliance, and hold retailers harmless for any errors that result from relying on state-provided systems and data

 

With states adhering to these provisions or the similar measures in SSUTA, retailers across the country will find collecting sales tax for multiple states much easier than it has ever been in the past.

 

How did we get here?….”

Full article

Comments »

Blackwater Executives Get Slap on Wrist in 6-Year Criminal Case

“Former leaders of the security firm once known as Blackwater have avoided serious punishment following a plea deal with the U.S. Department of Justice.

 

In 2010, federal prosecutors charged five ex-Blackwater executives with violating U.S. firearms laws, filing false statements and obstructing justice. The case grew out of the 2008 conviction of two former Blackwater employees who helped the Justice Department build its case.

 

But last week the government gave up on the case, and dropped all charges against three of the defendants. The two remaining defendants, Gary Jackson and William Mathews Jr., pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor weapons recordkeeping charge.

 

They were sentenced to three years probation, four months of house arrest, and a $5,000 fine….”

Full article

Comments »

Dennis Rodman, AKA The Worm, Chills With Kim Jung Un Telling Him “You Have a Friend For Life”

“SEOUL, South Korea – Flamboyant former NBA star Dennis Rodman, known as “the Worm” during his pro career, sat with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang watching an exhibition basketball game today becoming the first American to meet the leader of the nuclear state.

“You have a friend for life,” Rodman told Kim while chatting without any translators as three visiting Harlem Globetrotters  competed together with 12 North Korean players. Rodman, wearing dark glasses and a black baseball cap with USA on it, sat to the left of Kim. Both were in large red chairs that were topped with white covers, not a typical courtside seat.

The North Korean leader later dined and drank with the Americans.

Kim, 30, is known to have been a Rodman fan since his teenage years at a Swiss boarding school before assuming power after his father Kim Jong-Il’s death in December 2011…”

Full article

Comments »

Cantor Warns of Civil War Within the Republican Party

“House majority leader Eric Cantor is increasingly frustrated with a group of House Republicans who are working against the leadership, and he’s not afraid of voicing his dismay.

In a closed-door conference meeting on Wednesday, Cantor told one GOP member that if they blocked the Senate-passed Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) from coming to the floor, they’d cause “civil war” in the ranks.

Cantor’s comment irked some Republican aides, who told National Review Online that such strong language is inappropriate. In recent days, some conservatives have been upset about the Senate’s version of VAWA, saying that parts of the bill are unconstitutional.

Nevertheless, Cantor’s warning may have had an effect. When the bill came to the floor on Wednesday, only nine Republicans voted against the rule to take up the bill….”

Full article

Comments »