A-O News Round Up 12-13-08
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The A-O Report's
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Weekly News Round Up
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For
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12-13-08
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Editor's Note: As we move into the holiday season and the end of the year, our news coverage shifts to "end of the year" review and analysis plus a look at the trends for the year ahead. As a result of this extra perspective and because news developments generally decline, there will likely be little or no news to report for the next two weekends. We may or may not have enough news developments to warrant a weekly news round up during this time period. The same applies to the weekly A-O Intelligence Digest on our A-O Insider Report. We will however have the special features articles for the end of the year coming, so even though it will seem like the website is on vacation, we'll be busy shifting coverage to longer term perspectives. Of course, should major developments emerge, we'll provide coverage as always.
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Al Qaeda Terror Plot Foiled
Planned To Bomb EU Summit
14 Arrested
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14 Al Qaeda terrorists were arrested on Thursday, 12/11/08 on charges that they were preparing to blow up the EU summit meeting in Brussels, Belgium. The plot included at least one suicide bomber who had already recorded a farewell video in preparation for the attack to be staged against the EU Summit this weekend in Brussels.
Authorities had been tracking the terrorist cells for about a year before initiating the round up. The reason for the last minute round up was to secure all members of the plot or at least most of them to ensure that the plot was never carried out. For more details, LINK HERE.
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India's Military On War Alert
The Indian military remains on "War Alert" after the Mumbai terror attacks. India's military is in the midst of a mobilization although there has not yet been an massing of troops on the border with Pakistan.
India's Air Force warplanes are armed and fueled for combat on short notice while the Navy has begun aggressive maneuivers in the Indian ocean within vital sea lanes that approach Pakistan. For more details on India's military activities, LINK HERE.
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Bird Flu Grips India
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Pakistan: Ready for War with India
Pakistan warned it is ready for war with India if it is attacked following the strike by the Mumbai terrorists. The warning came from Pakistan's foreign minister as he announced the Pakistani government's decision to refuse the demand made by India to hand over any suspects in the Mumbai terror attacks.
The Pakistani government's announcement only fuels rising tension between that nation and India. Various intelligence analysts and experts on the region warn that some sort of military confrontation appears inevitable if Pakistan refuses to cooperate and accede to India's demands or unless India backs down on its demands. Both nations appear to be entrenched in their positiions. The public outcry for retaliation from the Indian population leaves the current government with little choice but to launch military action.
What is most disconcerting to the rest of the world is that both nations are nuclear powers and any war could escalate into a nuclear conflict. The two nations have fought 3 wars since the end of World War 2 and nearly came to war in 2002 after a terror attack on the Indian parliament that was blamed on radical Islamists from Pakistan.
Our latest A-O Intelligence Digest edition for 12-8-8 provides additional intelligence reports and analysis on the situation. That information is available to A-O Report donors along with other intelligence analysis feature articles posted on "The A-O Insider Report."
For confirmation of the rising tensions mentioned in this article, LINK HERE.
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Pakistan Arrests 40 Terrorists
Pakistan intensified its crackdown on the terror outfit alleged to have orchestrated November's three-day siege of Mumbai, arresting about 40 people in raids on militant camps and offices across northwestern and central parts of the country but the Pakistani government made it clear that none of those arrested would be turned over to India More details, LINK HERE.
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Iran Prez Warns:
Israel At "End of the Road"
Thousands of Iranians held a protest rally in Teheran Friday against the blockade of the Gaza Strip, while Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Israel had "reached the end of the road." The protestors chanted "Death to Israel" and "Death to America" as they demonstrated on streets leading to the Teheran University compound where the weekly Friday prayer service is held.
Also attending the rally, Ahmadinejad told reporters that the Israelis "have reached the end of the road and their abnormal behavior is due to anger and even their supporters are shaky in backing them.
"By committing these atrocities they want to pressure the Palestinians to influence their elections." More details, LINK HERE.
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Egypt's President Warns:
"Iran Wants to Devour The Arab World"
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US Supreme Court Throws Out Suits
Challenging Obama's Citizenship/Birth
The US Supreme Court has refused to consider lawsuits alleging that President-elect Barack Obama is not a natural born citizne and thus ineligible to serve as President. Similar lawsuits are pending in courts across America, but it appears that the US Supreme Court will not intervene to halt the Electoral College vote slated for Monday, December 15. It is the Electoral College vote that legally and officially declares Obama the victor in the general election.
For A-O readers who think such court cases will succeed, think again. Obama is the choice of the New World Order and as such, the NWO controls the US government, including the Supreme Court. Unless the NWO wishes to rattle Obama's cage for some reason, the Supreme Court will not acknowledge nor rule against the NWO or Obama. For the latest details on the Supreme Court and Obama's eligibility, LINK HERE.
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Congress Rejects Auto Bail-Out
Big-3 May Vanish By Jan 1
Or Before Christmas
Congress fails to agree on a bail-out loan for America's Big-3 Automakers. Concerns mount that millions will be laid off. More details LINK HERE.
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GM To Close 20 USA Factories
General Motors announced on Friday (12/12) it will temporarily clsoe 20 factories in North America and make deep cuts in vehicle production as it attempts to avert a collapse. The announcment revealed that GM will cut production by a quarter of a million vehicles for the first quarter of 2009 if it lasts that long. Many of its plants will be shut down for the entire month of January. More details, LINK HERE.
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Senator Warns of Riots
If Big-3 Bailed Out
Senator Jim DeMint warns that if Congress were to bail out the Big-3 American automakers, US taxpayers would riot in the streets. DeMint is a Republican senator from South Carolina who made his remarks during a GOP news conference concerning the pending bail-out legislation.
Just before congressional action on Wednesday, DeMint stated: "We're going to have riots. There are already people rioting because they're losing their jobs when everybody else is being bailed out. The fairness of it becomes more and more evident as we go along. The auto companies may be hurting ... there are very few companies that aren't hurting and they're going to hurt. We don't have enough money to bail out everyone."
DeMint argues that the Auto unions are fearful of losing their power in the event of Bankruptcy which DeMint and others argue is the only way to save the auto makers because the courts would force major union concessions. It is believed that Union wages and benefits are at the heart of the Big-3's financial woes as they compete against foreign companies with far lower labor overhead. For more on DeMint's comments and a look at the auto situation, LINK HERE.
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GM, Chrysler Bankruptices Would
Damage US In Weeks
A bankruptcy filing by General Motors Corp. or Chrysler LLC might send the U.S. economy into chaos within weeks if it led to a shutdown at the companies.
Industry experts and economists say the automakers would close plants, fire tens of thousands of workers and cut production. That would cause many of their suppliers to collapse, triggering more job losses, straining the cities and states where the car and parts companies operate, as well as federal safety-net programs.
It would also deliver another psychological blow to consumers and a major shock to Main Street following the crises on Wall Street. Read the full story at Bloomberg News, LINK HERE.
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GM Retains Bankruptcy Counsel
In the wake of Congressional failure to bail-out General Motors, GM executives have retained outside legal counsel skilled in corporate bankruptcy proceedings. The move suggests that GM may be on the brink of filing for bankruptcy.
Chrysler had already retained bankruptcy lawyers with the prospect of filing for bankruptcy this month if Congress failed to bailout Chrysler.
Ford Motor Company is in a slightly stronger cash-flow position but also needs a government standby line of credit for protection in case auto sales worsen in the comping weeks or if GM and or Chrysler fold. More details on the situation, .
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President Bush May Save Big-3
Considering Reversing His Opinion
In the wake of Congressional failure to provide bail-out loans to America's Big-3 Automakers, President Bush has announced that he is considering reversing his opinion on bailing out the auto industry with government loans as the Big-3 face bankruptcy.
The primary motivation for a change of heart by the President is mounting concern that bankruptcy for any of the Big-3 automakers would cascade to the other two automakers and the proceed to wreck havoc on the entire US economy in which 10% of Americans might be negatively impacted by the loss of all 3 automakers and their suppliers.
Economists project that as many as 2.5 million jobs could be permanently lost in America's Big-3 automakers went out of business. The loss of GM, Chrysler and Ford could simply shatter the US economy and in turn shatter the global economy, plunging the world into a great depression which some say could be far worse and more devastating than the Great Depression of the 1930s.
In the wake of such calamitous events, President Bush is reportedly now considering the idea of using a portion of the $700 billion dollar bailout fund for Wall Street and applying such funds to bail out the Big-3 automakers. A White Hosue spokesman stated on Friday morning (12/12) that the President and his advisors are looking at various options including the $700 billion dollar bailout fund, in the wake of Congressional rejection of a bailout bill for the Big-3.
For more details on the White House activities on the auto industry crisis, LINK HERE.
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Russian Economy Teeters On Brink
Russian Economy Teeters On Brink
As Russian Ruble Collapses
Russians are shifting their cash into foreign currencies and buying things they don’t need as the economy stalls and the central bank weakens its defense of the ruble, signaling a larger devaluation may be on the way. The currency has fallen 16 percent against the dollar since August, when Russia’s invasion of neighboring Georgia helped spur investors to pull almost $200 billion out of the country, according to BNP Paribas SA. More details, LINK HERE.
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Oil Demand To Reverse
OPEC Panicked
There could be less oil used in 2009 than in 2008. That would be the first actual decline in oil consumption in 25 years. Such a reversal spells catastrophe for many oil producing nations and for OPEC.
As a result, OPEC's annual summit meeting next week will likely see a steep round of production cuts in an attempt to bolster oil prices at higher levels and keep the price from collapsing into the $20-$25 range as many analysists now predict will happen in 2009.
For more details on the panic within the oil producing nations, LINK HERE.
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"And Now for a World Government"
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Riots Rock Greece
Fueled by Falling Economy & Corruption
7 Days of Riots
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More Foreclosure Problems in 2009
A Tsunami of Mortgage Woes?
U.S. foreclosure filings climbed 28 percent in November from a year earlier and a brewing “storm” of new defaults and job losses may force 1 million homeowners from their properties next year, RealtyTrac Inc. said.
“We’re going to see a pretty significant storm next year,” Rick Sharga, executive vice president of marketing for Irvine, California-based RealtyTrac, said in an interview. “There are two or three clouds that suggest a pretty heavy downpour.”
Rising unemployment, expiring foreclosure moratoriums and state efforts that “run out of steam” will push monthly filings toward the record of more than 303,000 set in August, Sharga said. The number of homes that revert to lenders, the last stage of foreclosure and known as “real estate owned” or REO properties, will increase to 1 million from as many as 880,000 this year, he said. Read the full story, LINK HERE.
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Move To Revamp US Constitution
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Global Cooling?
Snow in Houston
Snow in New Orleans
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Ice Storm Slams NE USA
Power Outages Widespread
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Bush Doubts Bible as Literal
President Bush expressed his doubts that the Bible is literally true. In an interview on ABC-TV's "Nightline" program, the President voiced his doubts about the innerrancy of the Bible. He rejected the idea that he is a literalist when it comes to interpreting the Bible but he said that an individual can learn a great deal from from the Bible. For more details, LINK HERE.
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More Newspapers On Verge of Bankruptcy
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Chicago Tribune Near Bankruptcy
Others Also Near Collapse
The more news outlets that go out of existence, the easier it is for government to control the news. More details LINK HERE.
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Detroit Newspaperps To Cut Back
On Home Deliveries to 3 Day a Week
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Newsweek Magazine Cuts Back
Magazine To Shrink
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