Archive for November, 2012

Susan Rice’s Conflict of Interest – Major Holdings in Tar Sands Oil, Keystone XL Pipeline, and Canadian Financiers

By Michael Collins
Photobucket(Washington, DC 11/29) United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice will face serious and blatant conflicts of interest if nominated and confirmed as United States Secretary of State.  Rice has major financial interests in the company extracting oil from Canada’s tar sands, the company building the pipeline that will carry the oil across the U.S., and the Canadian banks financing this deadly project. (Image)

As Secretary of State, Rice would be responsible for the key recommendation to President Barack Obama on lifting the president’s ban on construction of the Keystone XL pipeline imposed in January.  She would make the decision knowing that there would be major impact on nearly one third of her (and her husband’s) investments.

According to her 2011 financial disclosures, “Rice and her husband own at least $1.25 million worth of stock in four of Canada’s eight leading oil producers.” These include Enbridge,  the oil company extracting the highly toxic tar sands oil from Alberta, Canada’s boreal forest, which are being destroyed to access the oil (boreal forests sequester carbon). Read the rest of this entry »

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Fake Pharaoh’s Feet of Clay – Morsy Reign Imperiled

Michael Collins
Photobucket
(Washington, DC 11/24) It takes a real pharaoh to build a pyramid, especially one that lasts five thousand years. It took President Mohamed Morsy of Egypt one speech for the Egyptian public to see him for what he aspires to be – a new pharaoh, with powers beyond those of his predecessor Hosni Mubarak.  On Thursday, November 24, Morsy stood in front of a government building and announced a de facto dictatorship. (Image: llee wu)

The two key provisions of his decree concern a new constitution for Egypt and his absolute powers.  There can be no challenge whatsoever to “all constitutional declarations, laws and decrees” made by Morsy until the new constitution is ratified and a new parliament has been elected.  Then, he gave himself this blanket guarantee of absolute power until the next election: “The president is authorized to take any measures he sees fit in order to preserve and safeguard the revolution, national unity or national security.” Egypt Independent, November 22 Read the rest of this entry »

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Nothing Lasts Forever – Do the Math!

By Michael Collins
Photobucket
(Washington, DC 11/18)  Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org. had some tough words for the oil giants at the organization’s events in the nation’s capital.   He announced to a packed house at the Warner Theater, “We’re going after the fossil fuel industry” for trying to wreck the future.  It’s that simple.  He argued that we have a choice.  Either we take on the oil giants and end their rapacious behavior or we find a way to change the laws of physics to accommodate the insanity of ongoing pollution in the face of calamitous outcomes.

Shell, Exxon, BP, and the others in the fossil fuel industry were portrayed as world killers, rogue corporations whose relentless pursuit of profits threatens the lives and culture of every human being on earth.

The 350.org Do the Math Tour started in Seattle on November 7.   The nationwide tour visits 21 cities across the country and culminates in Salt Lake City on December 3.   Yesterday’s presentation at the Warner Theater was followed by demonstration during which participants encircled the White House to remind President Barack Obama to hold fast on suspending work on the Keystone XL oil pipeline.

The math is simple and painful in its implications: Read the rest of this entry »

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What Did Petraeus Know and When Did He Know It?

Michael Collins
Creative Commons

(Washington, DC, 11/15) The bitterness of the neocons knows no limit.  They’re still having tantrums after being denied the unchallenged ability to pillage and plunder at will (and at our expense).  Never mind that the public doesn’t want to hear it.  The Congressional Republicans are jumping up and down over their big question:  When did President Obama know about the affair between General Petraeus and Mrs. Broadwell? Talk about a misguided salvage operation.  Their inquiries will spark some questions that they won’t want asked. (Image)

The real questions concern the behavior and motivation of General Petraeus in the aftermath of the murder of the United States ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, on September 11, 2012.

When did General Petraeus know the sequence of events that preceded the murder of United States Ambassador Stevens, indicating the likely motivation for the murder?

The Petraeus CIA provided inaccurate information about events on the ground to the Obama Administration, particularly to President Obama and United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice. Did they know it was inaccurate?

If the Petraeus CIA mislead or withheld information from the White House or allowed that to happen, was it in the service of the Romney campaign or those clamoring for an attack on Iran? Read the rest of this entry »

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Election Fraud, November 6 – Watch for Vote Flipping and Fixed Exit Polls

Michael Collins

Bloody Sunday

(Washington, DC) Our elections are officially privatized.  They are hidden from our view by design.

On November 6, your votes will be cast and tallied on voting machines manufactured and serviced by private companies.  The computerized voting machines run on software that is closely held as a trade secret by these companies.  Our elections officials are barred from examining the most important aspects of the software.  Why?  Because those same officials signed away our right to open access and inspection of the voting systems that tell us who won and who lost each and every election.  (Image: WikiCommons)

This is the most profound election fraud imaginable.  It affects every citizen, all 311 million of us. Read the rest of this entry »

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