A very disturbing article was posted in Greek on the Clockwork Project site (kourdistoportocali). We felt it was necessary to translate this article for all of you because we became very alarmed when we read it. If this information proves to be true, then we are in for one hell of a ride this winter. All hell is going to break loose in Athens, which might result in bloody conflicts. In fact the key players mentioned in this article speak about "bloodshed" and people dying in Athens. They also want the government of Antonis Samaras to collapse. Keep an open mind when reading this article. As always, we have provided the links to the original article in Greek. THIS IS A MUST READ!
September 20, 2012 - For reference sake - Do not let the innocent teenage smile fool you, "Tim" is as tough as they get. When Lehman Brothers collapsed, Geithner was one of the first who jumped into the scene to help pick up the pieces of the US economy. Seated in the living room of a Greek parliamentary MP, Tim and and the Greek parliamentarian spoke quietly so that no one could hear them. For precautionary measures, they also removed their batteries from their mobile telephones and purposely left them on the table outdoors. In the entrance area, American and Greek security officials would jump every time they caught glimpse of a passing car and once they did, they would study every driver carefully.
Tim had flown into Athens from Washington in the late afternoon and the Greek MP was the first man, on a list of seven, that he visited.
He looks like Jack Palans -the actor- (which was also his nickname), but he is much shorter than the famous Hollywood actor, and has a robust belly that resembles that of a Greek tavern owner in Astoria. Tim is the complete opposite who is apparently very active and fit. Even when Lehman Brothers collapsed, Tim would wear his shorts and jog around the streets of Washington to stay in shape. "Jack" on the other hand, detested any activity that required physical fatigue. But .. Jack could stay awake for three days and three nights until the person he was interrogating would surrender to him completely.
Jack first came to Athens in the winter of 1975. He was still a teenager when the notorious "November 17" terrorist organization had executed Richard Welch. Jack's family and Richard Welch's family would vacation together on Long Island and "Jack" was friends with his daughter Molly.
In Athens, Jack had some really good friends, three corporate families who were shooting their wads in the 1970s. Since then, frightened by the sudden rise in nouveau riche they have kept a low profile, and some even closed down their companies.
In conversations with them, "Jack" would gain a pretty good idea of what was going on in domestic politics. He was after all the man with all the numbers. In previous trips "Jack" was part of a delegation from the legal branch of Debevoice & Plimpton and then on another trip he accompanied officials from BlackRock.
The numbers that "Jack" had were the bribes that were given to (many) Greek politicians from Siemens. They also involved capital that was transferred to foreign banks from politicians, businessmen and ordinary citizens (or about 70 billion Euros worth). Jack would also soon gain access to a list with offshore companies set up by these new groups of elites in well over 47 countries around the world.
Jack's know-how did not allow the person he was speaking to, to mutter words such as decency, nation and/or ideals.
"You are all a bunch of shit, you f**ckers, you would even sell your mothers. You arrived at this point by robbing and plundering the future of your children ..." "Jack" would shoot off his mouth incessantly with very graphical words, and expressions about the Greeks.
After the minister heard the whole prelude, the American official (Jack) cut to the chase right away
"Tim and Barack believe that the government of (Antonis) Samaras will not live to see the Spring. You will live three months of hell -November, December and January- with people on the streets and with victims. There will be much bloodshed in Athens.
The government will collapse and there will be such chaos that you will not dare to even hold elections. And even if you do, and after so much bloodshed, SYRIZA will win but it will only last two months. I'm here to "choose" a new national salvation government which will gain power in July 2013.
I want you to be part of the seven. Your role, and your position will be discussed on my next trip, which will be around February when Athens will be burying its dead from a bloody uprising.
That is when some of your "silent ones" will come out of their shells. Till then, and only after I talk with all of you, an informal "Mountain Government" should be formed such as those during the civil war and you should hold regular meetings taking all necessary precautions to avoid names and faces being detected or you will burn the project This is the only way to save (your country) from civil war and destabilization. The Turks are lurking like vultures to earn half of Thrace and half of the Aegean at the international courts. This time there will be no need for them to even fire one bullet. That is how pitiful you all are."
Greek MP - "Do you think the Samaras government is finished?"
Jack - "Sh**t. It's already dead ..."
Greek MP - "Jack, I'm in. ... I will do whatever you say ... "
Bank cyber attacks by Iran? Black Monday on October 1, 2012? Sounds like something from a sci-fi Spielberg movie but according to the American media, the financial and banking industries were on high alert on Sunday as a massive cyberattack apparently continued, with potentially millions of customers of Bank of America, PNC and Wells Fargo finding themselves blocked from banking online. Why did ABC and NBC News say that the attacks were caused by hackers in the Middle East? Is this all a false flag in order to begin war?
A report on investmentwatchblog quoted the vice president and senior adviser of the American Bankers Association Mr. Doug Johnson as saying that there is an elevated level of threat, and that this threat is now "high.”
“This is twice as large as any flood we have ever seen,” said Dick Clarke, an ABC News consultant and former cybersecurity czar. Sources told ABC News that the so-called denial of service attacks had been caused by hackers from the Middle East who had secretly transmitted signals commandeering thousands of computers worldwide. ABC NEWS - http://abcnews.go.com/US/hackers-block-us-banks-online-service-bank-america/story?id=17343055#.UGWYNkXyaCM
A group of purported hackers in the Middle East has claimed credit for problems at the websites of both banks, citing the online video mocking the founder of Islam. One security source called that statement “a cover” for the Iranian government’s operations. The attack is described by one source, a former U.S. official familiar with the attacks, as being “significant and ongoing” and looking to cause “functional and significant damage.” Also, one source suggested the attacks were in response to U.S. sanctions on Iranian banks.
Cyber attacks on JPMorgan, Wells Fargo expose serious vulnerabilities of U.S. banks
Cyber attacks on the biggest U.S. banks, including JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) and Wells Fargo (WFC) & Co., have breached some of the nation’s most advanced computer defenses and exposed the vulnerability of its infrastructure, said cybersecurity specialists tracking the assaults. The attack, which a U.S. official said was waged by a still-unidentified group outside the country, flooded bank websites with traffic, rendering them unavailable to consumers and disrupting transactions for hours at a time.
Such a sustained network attack ranks among the worst-case scenarios envisioned by the National Security Agency, according to the U.S. official, who asked not to be identified because he isn’t authorized to speak publicly. The extent of the damage may not be known for weeks or months, said the official, who has access to classified information. Bloomberg - http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-28/cyber-attacks-on-u-s-banks-expose-computer-vulnerability.html
Members of the Greek Orthodox Lebanese party, held a protest rally on Saturday in downtown Beirut in order to protest against the imminent promotion of Turkey's provocative film the "FALL 1453" (the Byzantinum Empire) which is scheduled to begin being played in various theaters in Lebanon. The party called on the Lebanese Ministry of Culture to intervene so that the film can be banned from being screened. The president of the party Mr. Dimitris Rodrigue Khoury was quoted by protothema as saying that it "is historically ignorant and offends the Orthodox population of Lebanon and beyond."
The Greek Orthodox party of Lebanon, was recently established with the sole purpose of uniting Orthodox Christians who constitute 7% of the total population. The party chairman, said the party's objectives is a return to its true identity; "the Greek identity". Article and photos in Greek - protothema
The Fall of Constantinople was the capture of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, which occurred after a siege by the Ottoman Empire, under the command of 21-year-old Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II, against the defending army commanded by Byzantine Emperor Constantine XI Palaiologos. The siege lasted from Friday, 6 April 1453 until Tuesday, 29 May 1453 (according to the Julian calendar), when the city was conquered by the Ottomans. The capture of Constantinople (and two other Byzantine splinter territories soon thereafter) marked the end of the Roman Empire, an imperial state which had lasted for nearly 1,500 years. It was also a massive blow to Christendom, and the Ottomans thereafter were free to advance into Europe without an adversary to their rear. After the conquest, Mehmed made Constantinople the Ottoman Empire's new capital. Several Greek and non-Greek intellectuals fled the city before and after the siege, migrating particularly to Italy. It is argued that they helped fuel the Renaissance. Some mark the end of the Middle Ages by the fall of the city and empire. Wikipedia
EDITOR - We here at HellasFrappe call on all our Hellene brothers and sisters, of Christian faith, to mass together and organize rallies in their cities against the screening of this film in the same manner in which our Diaspora brothers and sisters did in Lebanon. This film is a slap in the face of Orthodox Christianity. Here is a glimpse of this very provocative film, which is titled "Fetih 1453".
The Human Body -- Cancer (Photo credit: n0cturbulous)
VIENNA, Austria, 30 September 2012 – New insights on the global fight to prevent cancers were presented during the ESMO 2012 Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology in Vienna. The studies highlight the challenges of overcoming misunderstandings about how important lifestyle factors are in reducing cancer risk.
"These studies highlight the fact that a large proportion of the European population does not particularly like the idea of 'self-responsibility' for personal cancer prevention --that is, changing their habits and lifestyle accordingly. Rather, they blame genetics and society for getting cancer," said Prof Hans-Jörg Senn, St. Gallen, Switzerland, Chair of the ESMO Cancer Prevention Faculty.
"Increasing awareness of the importance of primary cancer prevention is an enormous health-political issue for the future," Prof Senn said. "If we do not become more successful in truly and significantly lowering the incidence of major cancer types, such as gastrointestinal and breast cancer in our ageing society, we will wind up with drastically increasing financial burdens for ever-more active treatment and care, besides the projected losses in working capacity and the accompanying burdens of human suffering."
Study reveals confusion about cancer risk factors – tight underwear does not increase cancer risk... but obesity does!
Many people are highly misinformed about the important role lifestyle factors play in raising their risk of developing cancer, according to a new research released at the ESMO 2012 Congress in Vienna.
A large proportion of people overestimate the cancer risk attributable to genetics, said Dr Derek Power, medical oncologist at Mercy and Cork University Hospitals, Ireland. On the other hand, many underestimate the cancer risks associated with obesity, alcohol and sunlight exposure.
"Many myths surrounding cancer risk are also still popular," said Dr Power, who was the lead author of the study. "For example, many people wrongly think that a blow to the breast, stress, wearing tight underwear, the use of mobile phones, genetically modified foods and aerosols are major cancer risk factors."
Dr Power and colleagues used a 48-question survey to assess knowledge about cancer risks among the general population. Overall, 748 people took part, including 126 who said they were healthcare professionals. The survey was carried out at University College Cork (UCC) by Lisa Burns and Ursula Kenny, both undergraduates in BSc Nutritional Sciences degree, in conjunction with Breakthrough Cancer Research and the Irish Cancer Society.
"Overall, 90% people, including healthcare professionals, believed genetics 'strongly' increases risk," Dr Power said. "More than one in four of the public believed that more than 50% of cancers are genetic. Incredibly 15% of people we surveyed believed lifetime risk of cancer is non-modifiable."
These misunderstandings must be tackled if cancer rates are to be reduced, he said.
"This misinformation needs to be addressed in health promotion campaigns, emphasizing that diet and lifestyle including smoking account for 90-95% of cancers," he said. "Only about 5 to 8% of cancers, depending on cancer site, are due to an inherited gene."
When asked how to reduce risk, 27% of respondents said 'detox' diets could help and 64% would believe organic food is protective. Research has not shown either of these methods to be effective. Meanwhile, 28% were unaware that frozen vegetables and fruit are as good as fresh, and 41% were unaware of the link between red meat and cancer. Yet 86% knew that processed meat is a risk factor, and 46% were aware that too much salt also poses a risk.
Finding new ways to communicate how obesity and its precursors increase a person's risk of cancer could boost the efficacy of efforts to motivate weight loss and prevent weight gain, Dr Power noted. Awareness also needs to be raised about the effects of alcohol.
"We hope that by sharing these common misunderstandings and informing the public about proven cancer risks and prevention measures, we can help people to make lifestyle choices that will reduce their risk of developing the disease," he said.
Moderate alcohol intake and cancer: the role of under-reporting
A large US cohort study in 129,987 persons suggests that the apparent increased risk of cancer among light-moderate drinkers is substantially due to underreporting of intake.
Although experts agree that heavy consumption of alcohol is related to increased risk of several cancer types, the role of light-to-moderate drinking is less clear, said Dr Arthur Klatsky of Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program, Oakland, CA, USA. Some studies have suggested there is a connection, while others have found no link.
The results of the new analysis suggest that any apparent relationship between cancer risk and light-to-moderate drinking, meaning up to 2 standard sized drinks per day for men and one for women, may be largely an artifact of under-reporting—that is, lying about drinking amount.
"If some heavy drinkers answer surveys saying that they only drink lightly, the effects of heavy drinking then appear to be related to light-to-moderate intake," Dr Klatsky explained. "Our analysis inferentially supports this factor in our study population and it is probably applicable to most studies, as under-reporting of alcohol consumption is surely prevalent."
"There are plenty of reasons why people need to avoid heavy drinking, but these do not generally apply to light drinking," Dr Klatsky said. "All concerns about the risks of light drinking need to be balanced by the evidence that persons at risk of heart disease benefit from lighter alcohol drinking. This --with plenty of exceptions-- means most persons over 50."
Younger women at high risk of breast cancer, who will not see any cardiovascular benefits from alcohol for many decades, do not have this favorable balance of harm and benefit, Dr Klatsky noted.
Encouraging doctors to quit smoking is no easy task, Turkish researchers find
When doctors smoke, it makes it harder for them to encourage their patients to quit. That's one of the factors that encouraged Dr Fikri Icli and colleagues from Ankara University Medical School to try and reduce smoking rates among medical students at their institute.
In many parts of Europe, smoking is common among doctors, Dr Icli notes. "The highest prevalence rates among male medical students in Europe were reported from Greece (41%) and Spain (42%)."
In their study of 215 Ankara University medical students, Dr Icli's group found that 29.5% of male students and 22.6% of female students smoked. At the time of the initial survey, 60% said they only took up smoking once they entered medical school, and smoking rates tended to increase between the year of entry to medical school and the final year.
"Once they start smoking, it is difficult to quit. Therefore the best way to fight against smoking among physicians is the prevention of starting smoking," Dr Icli noted.
Between 2007 and 2012, the university implemented a series of programs aimed at stemming this increase. A Cigarette Fighting Group, composed of voluntary academic staff, nurses, students, psychologists and a social worker, was established including regular monthly meetings, "smoking or health" lectures and annual symposia.
By 2012, surveys showed that total smoking rates dropped 11%, and the smoking rate for 6th-grade students dropped from 35% in 2007 to 8.8%. On the other hand, although the university administration established a smoking cessation clinic for students, quitter rate didn't increase from 2007 to 2012.
That means that the success in cutting the smoking rate among medical students was mostly due to prevention of starting smoking after entry to medical school, Dr Icli said.
"Increasing awareness of medical students related to the threat of smoking on health in the community, recognition of their non-smoking physician role-models and their potential role in cessation programs probably helps to counteract the influences to start smoking."
Cancer screening in underserved, vulnerable population. Results from the EDIFICE survey French study supports "the dramatic impact of organized programs which reduce or even remove inequities in access to cancer screening."
HAARP has been operational since the early 1990s. Its system of antennas at Gakona, Alaska, was initially based on a technology patented by Advanced Power Technologies Inc. (APTI), a subsidiary of Atlantic Ritchfield Corporation (ARCO). The first phase of the HAARP Ionospheric Research Instrument (IRI) was completed by APTI. The IRI system of antennas was first installed in 1992 by a subsidiary of British Aerospace Systems (BAES) using the APTI patent. The antennas beam into the outer-atmosphere using a set of wireless high frequency transmitters.
In 1994, ARCO sold its APTI subsidiary, including the patents and the second phase construction contract to E-Systems, a secretive high tech military outfit with links to the CIA (http://www.crystalinks.com/haarp.html). E-Systems specializes in the production of electronic warfare equipment, navigation and reconnaissance machinery, including “highly sophisticated spying devices”:
“[E-Systems] is one of the biggest intelligence contractors in the world, doing work for the CIA, defense intelligence organizations, and others. US$1.8 billion of their annual sales are to these organizations, with $800 million for black projects-projects so secret that even the United States Congress isn’t told how the money is being spent.( http://www.earthpulse.com/haarp/vandalism.html )
With the purchase of APTI, E-Systems acquired the strategic weather warfare technology and patent rights, including Bernard J. Eastlund’s US Patent No: 4,686,605 entitled “Method and Apparatus for Altering a Region in the Earth’s Atmosphere, Ionosphere and/or Magnetosphere”.
It is worth mentioning that the Eastlund /APTI patents were based on the research of Yugoslav scientist Nicola Tesla (many of whose ideas were stolen by US corporations). (See Scott Gilbert, Environmental Warfare and US Foreign Policy: The Ultimate Weapon of Mass Destruction, http://www.globalresearch.ca/articles/GIL401A.html )
Eastlund described this deadly technology as capable of:
“causing…total disruption of communications over a very large portion of the Earth…missile or aircraft destruction, deflection or confusion… weather modification…” ( http://www.wealth4freedom.com/truth/12/HAARP.htm ),
Not surprisingly, the patent had previously been sealed under a government secrecy order.Barely a year following the E-Systems purchase of APTI’s weather warfare technology, E-Systems was bought out by Raytheon, the fourth largest US military contractor. Through this money-spinning acquisition, Raytheon became the largest “defense electronics” firm in the World.Meanwhile, ARCO which had sold APTI to E-Systems, had itself been acquired by the BP-AMOCO oil consortium, thereby integrating the largest oil company in the World (BP).
Raytheon through its E-Systems subsidiary now owns the patents used to develop the HAARP weather warfare facility at Gakona Alaska. Raytheon is also involved in other areas of weather research for military use, including the activities of its subsidiary in Antarctica, Raytheon Polar Services.
Read More of the article titled "The Ultimate Weapon of Mass Destruction: “Owning the Weather” for Military Use" by visiting globalresearch.ca
IN ENGLISH
IN GREEK
KEY PLAYERS
RAYTHEON - The Raytheon Company is a major American defense contractor and industrial corporation with core manufacturing concentrations in weapons and military and commercial electronics. It was previously involved in corporate and special-mission aircraft until early 2007. Raytheon is the world's largest producer of guided missiles - Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raytheon
ARAMCO - Saudi Aramco officially the Saudi Arabian Oil Company, is the national oil company of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Aramco was estimated to be worth $781 billion in 2005, making it the world's most valuable company. Saudi Aramco has both the largest proven crude oil reserves, at more than 260 billion barrels (4.1×1010 m3), and largest daily oil production. Headquartered in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Saudi Aramco operates the world's largest single hydrocarbon network, the Master Gas System. Its yearly production is 7.9 billion barrels (1.26×109 m3),[4] and it managed over 100 oil and gas fields in Saudi Arabia, including 279 trillion standard cubic feet (scf) of natural gas reserves. Saudi Aramco owns the Ghawar Field, the world's largest oil field, and the Shaybah Field, one of the world's largest oil fields. Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saudi_Aramco
BP - BP is a British multinational oil and gas company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest energy company and fourth-largest company in the world measured by 2011 revenues and is one of the six oil and gas "supermajors". It is vertically integrated and operates in all areas of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading. It also has renewable energy activities in biofuels and wind power. BP has been involved in several major environmental and safety incidents, including the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the world’s largest accidental release of oil into marine waters. In 1997 it became the first major oil company to publicly acknowledge the need to take steps against climate change. Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BP
This is a $5 Federal Reserve Note, Series of 1928. Note the numerical Federal Reserve Seal. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Georgios Gialtouridis
Dover, MA
Guest Author To HellasFrappe
On Dec. 7, 2010, in a joint press conference at the Maximos Mansion in Athens, Greece with former Prime Minister George Papandreou staring silently, former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn in authoritarian style offered the following advice to the Greek people: "So don't fight against the doctor. Sometimes the doctor gives you medicine you don't like; but even if you don't like the medicine, the doctor is there to try to help you." Strauss-Kahn was referring to the reforms being introduced in Greece in order to bring the economy back on "the good track," as he claimed.
The 'medicine' is the brutal pulverization of Greece's economic landscape where in the name of productivity and competitiveness a relentless series of fiscal austerity measures is being forced upon the Greek people. Through a combination of deep cuts in salaries and retirement benefits, longer workweeks and increased retirement ages an attempt is being made to 'depreciate' productivity costs so that Greece may become more competitive. This tactic is known as internal depreciation. To help ease the pain, a controlled default and credit event utilizing PSI (Private Sector Involvement) was carried out and now there's talk of yet another credit event targeting OSI (Official Sector Involvement).
Two years, one IMF chief and three Greek Prime Ministers later, the Greek economy having been subjected to fiscal atrophy now resembles, in Strauss-Kahn's terms, a malnourished patient in the intensive care unit on respiratory support, intravenous therapy and feeding tubes with German and other European politicians portraying family members standing over the unfortunate soul determined to pull the plug.
On November 1, 2011 I had proposed to the United States Federal Reserve a plan for Greece to exit the Eurozone and adopt the US Dollar as its de facto currency for a five-year transition period before the country officially returns to the drachma as a way out of this economic depression.
http://www.phantis.com/blogs/georgios-gialtouridis/proposal-greece-return-economic-stability
In case of a Grexit, such a move is not only fiscally and economically feasible but it is also necessary in order to prevent financial chaos and possible civil unrest within Greece. As a member state's exit from the currency union is not addressed in either the Maastricht or the Lisbon treaties, a disorderly default by Greece followed by the country's abrupt exit from the Eurozone and immediate return to the drachma will most certainly create issues in the country's financial sector not seen since WWII. As per various analyses, the immediate depreciation of the drachma would exceed 50 per cent followed by additional corrections. Speculators, hedge funds and credit rating agencies will prevent Greece from accessing the capital markets using its own currency as the country will be forced to meet any short- and/or long-term borrowing needs by tapping hard currency at unfavorable interest rates. For years the sellers of private property in Greece will demand that purchases be made in euros, dollars, pounds sterling, etc. due to the drachma's depreciation. As such sales will include significant hard currency cash payments 'on the side' or 'under the table' it will add to the country's already out-of-control and untaxed underground economy. For a while Greece's financial sector will go back to the 40's and 50's as such will be the effects of a disorderly Grexit.
A Grexit is also detrimental to the welfare of the Eurozone. Many analysts agree that in case a member state exits the currency union the Eurozone will collapse like a house of cards. No member state would exit the currency union under normal circumstances. Only under excruciating conditions would an exit be even considered as speculation of contagion will act as a catalyst to the turmoil.
Structured on the Maastricht and Lisbon treaties, an attempt was made to create a currency union by violating the fundamental principles of fiscal integration. There is no political union or fiscal union in place. Missing these foundations which are necessary for any successful monetary integration, countries with trade surpluses and robust industrial output were joined in a currency union with consumer economies lagging in industrial prowess relying heavily on tourism and public expenditures.
An attempt at economic synergy is now being made by having Greece increase its competitiveness within the Eurozone by slashing wages to levels seen only in some former Soviet-bloc economies and most third-world countries. This is an ill-fated attempt to mold the Greek economy according to Germany's specifications through wage cuts, extended workweeks and increased retirement ages. A Eurozone is taking shape where the North will solidify its dominant capital-intensive industrial base but in order for this synergy to be effective and successfully compete with the emerging BRICs the labor-intensive South must align with labor market conditions.
The dynamics of this internal depreciation are trapping Greece in a vicious economic cycle with spiraling unemployment. There is also collateral damage in the form of migration of the local element seeking safer and greener pastures in the diaspora. Most of these Greeks who are able to migrate are young and educated and whose participation is critical for Greece's economic recovery. Hopes for such a recovery are now pushed further into the distance as this 'brain drain' helps prolong the vicious cycle which is eclipsing the economic landscape. Not only are most of these young inhabitants displaced forever from their roots but they are now being replaced by an uncontrolled influx of impoverished illegal immigrants, most of whom are confined to the untaxed underground economy while benefiting from the taxpayer-funded welfare programs thus further burdening the state.
The next few months are crucial for Greece's future as a developed economy. The Oct. 18-19 EU Summit will decide whether Greece's financial sector gets the liquidity boost it needs to survive. Whether or not Greece meets the conditions set in the upcoming quarterly review, there is no more room for any additional cuts. As nationwide unemployment approaches 25 percent, the well has run dry. In addition, any privatizations under current market conditions will liquidate prime assets at fire-sale prices. The latest planned austerity package of 11,5 billion euros is not possible unless Greece gives away the family silver. Also, as per Article 28 par. 2 of Greece's Constitution, 180 votes are needed to pass such measures. The current government coalition holds only 179 seats.
A second Greek debt restructuring is being discussed with the Official Sector being set as the primary target. This drastic haircut on the external debt held by the Official Sector, i.e., ECB, IMF and EU must be executed. This will follow the 70 percent haircut on Greece's internal debt when March's debt restructuring was implemented on the Private Sector and excluded the ECB-held Greek bonds previously bought in the secondary market. This debt restructuring strategy should be the last step before Greece exits the Eurozone. Without major foreign investments on the horizon to spur growth any time extension on the austerity program targets, which is also under discussion, will prove counterproductive as the government will simply be sweeping the issue under the rug and prolong the vicious cycle.
On Sept. 12, Germany's Federal Constitutional Court would rule on the legality of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), the planned successor to the Eurozone's current emergency lender, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF). The ECB plans to use the ESM as a liquidity mechanism, or in other words, as a permanent bailout fund. The German court's decision will most probably include demands for certain amendments to be put in place in order for Germany's President to sign the ESM Treaty, a measure which will most certainly tailor the ESM to Germany's specifications.
Incidentally, less than a week ahead of the Sept. 12 court ruling the ECB announced a plan to make unlimited purchases of government bonds in the secondary market as needs arise, without any impact on the Eurozone money supply. ECB President Mario Draghi claimed that such measures will provide "a fully effective backstop" against market volatility. This plan echoes my proposal in May 2010 for Greece to enter the secondary market at the time and purchase Greek debt in order to control bond prices and yields.
http://kassios.wordpress.com/2010/05/12/
This ECB program called "Outright Monetary Transactions" will target government bonds of remaining maturities between one and three years from countries which sign-up to the ESM for aid, provided that a country meets the conditions it agrees to when it signs up for the aid. This tug-o-war with hints of nationalistic fervor between the ECB's Mario Draghi and Germany's Bundesbank which opposes such bond purchases will become more tense over time as the two sides will not be able to reach common ground, proving once again that fiscal integration has unlimited obstacles.
German economist Hans-Werner Sinn has appeared in the aforementioned court proceedings and made his case doubting the ESM's legality. In his reply to my US Dollar proposal, the outspoken critic of Eurozone bailouts wrote: By contrast, if Greece stays in (the Eurozone) and depreciates in real terms by cutting its wages and prices, its firms will largely go bankrupt, as their bank debt will remain while their asset values will decline. Moreover, the unions will be all in the street. To carry out the necessary real depreciation in the Eurozone is simply impossible. We calculate that Greek's [sic] prices have to come down by 44% to be in par with Turkey. This is twice the real depreciation of Germany from 1929 to 1933. You know what happened. Greece would be driven to the brink of a civil war, at best.
If Dr. Sinn's projections are correct, the impact of the current economic policies in the troika's relentless attempts to make Greece more competitive will most certainly polarize Greek society.
In November's proposal I detailed some of the benefits to Greece in case of a Grexit and adoption of the US Dollar for a five-year transition period before the country officially returns to the drachma. Using the Dollar Liquidity Swap Lines in coordination with the United States Federal Reserve, Greece's economy will immediately obtain the liquidity and confidence necessary to entice growth. Agreements on trade and tourism along with exclusivity on military contracts will enhance the two countries' strategic alliance. But the main concern I have encountered regarding my proposal is: How does it benefit the United States?
A disorderly default by Greece followed by the country's abrupt exit from the Eurozone and immediate return to the drachma will most definitely create shockwaves across the Atlantic. Preventive measures such as the US Dollar proposal will contain the damage while the US Dollar will enhance its position as the world's safe haven currency.
At the end of 2011 the share of US dollar-denominated assets in global foreign exchange reserves remained almost stable at 62.1%, down from 62.2% at end-2010 (at constant end-2011 exchange rates). The euro's share in global foreign exchange reserves decreased slightly to stand at 25.0% at the end of 2011 when adjusted for exchange rate effects (down from 25.4% at end-2010, at constant end-2011 exchange rates).
With the prospects of additional Quantitative Easing (QE III) having been discussed at the recent economic conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the Federal Reserve needs the US Dollar to maintain its position in global foreign exchange reserves in order to help neutralize inflationary pressures. The US Dollar also needs to hold this position as the world's leading currency for reasons of global financial stability. The US Dollar proposal for Greece will reinforce the confidence placed on the American currency.
There is also the geopolitical perspective. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea gives Greece the opportunity to exploit its offshore natural resources as much-needed revenues from the sales of its mineral wealth can help offset the country's debt burden. The hydrocarbon exploration within Greece's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) can be used as a platform to boost Greece's strategic alliance with the United States by licensing offshore exploration blocks to US interests which will in turn solidify the United States' footing in the turbulent region in order to protect those interests. At a time when major infrastructure projects are being planned in the eastern Mediterranean region and the Caucasus in order to meet the world's growing energy needs Greece has the opportunity to define its Exclusive Economic Zone and join Cyprus, Israel and the United States in a mutually beneficial long-term energy alliance and at the same time silence any hostile neighbors.
After two and a half years under continued tutelage from the IMF, the ECB and the EC there is no end in sight as the Greeks' hopes and dreams disappear, all for the sake of a flawed fiscal integration vision. Greece now has the opportunity to unbind itself from the seemingly endless constraints and sacrifices planned not for Greece's own salvation but for the Eurozone's itself.
The first ever Athens Plaython Festival is being held this weekend in Greece, bringing a marathon of games to the city’s streets. Athens Plaython is an international street games festival that includes big games, as well as design and technology workshops, and aspires to bring city-wide fun to the streets of Athens.
The festival will host a series of innovative group games for all age-groups designed by local and international artists.
The program also features workshops that invite participants to become game creators themselves, including the PlayOlympics at Technopolis, a massive games workshop that will transform the city’s iconic cultural centre into a games stadium.
The following article is a follow-up to the article HellasFrappe posted several days ago titled: "GAME OVER - The REAL Greek Deficit of 2009 Was Only 3.9% of GDP!" with detailed information about the actual deficit of 2009. (Click here to read oart 1 if this story)
Professor of Applied Econometrics and Productivity at the University of Macedonia –Economic and Social Sciences, as well as Ex-Member of the Hellenic Statistics Authority (ELSTAT) Approved by the Greek Parliament Mrs. Zoe Georganta has already publicly accused former Economy and Finance minister George Papakonstantinou of purposely “falsifying” Greece’s deficit in 2009.
Over the past year, she has maintained that the revision that was made on the deficit specifically included expenditures from public utility companies and general government spending, and she has stressed that some of these public utilities companies are now included in the personnel redundancy programme applied via the labour reserve measure. She notes that this method is in total CONFLICT with the Eurostat practices.
Georganta has also emphasized that the Greek deficit for 2009 was deliberately estimated at 15.4% from Eurostat (with the help of Papakonstantinou) because they wanted it to be larger than that of Ireland's debt which was estimated at 14%. "The deficit was artificially inflated in 2009 to show that the country had the largest across Europe, including that of Ireland which was 14% in order to justify the severe austerity measures that the government wanted to impose on the country. And (that is why) Eurostat presented it at 15,4%“. (Click here to read that story)
On March 6 of this year, a mega bomb exploded in parliament which in normal circumstances would sent the head of the Greek Statistics Authority (ELSTAT) Andreas Georgiou, straight to jail. Officials who were probing the scandal that Georganta is referring to surfaced an email showing that Georgiou asked IMF officials to intervene and pressure the Greek government to change the law on ELSTAT’s operating methods because he was having difficulty getting board members to cooperate.
The ELSTAT chief, who was hand selected by George Papakonstantinou was called to give evidence to financial prosecutor Grigoris Peponis (otherwise known as one of the dynamic duo) in connection to the claims made by Georganta and another senior ELSTAT official that he purposely falsified and inflated the 2009 deficit figure to justify the austerity measures that were adopted for Greece as part of the bailout packages.
Georgiou, who took over at ELSTAT in the summer of 2010, denies any wrongdoing and told Peponis that Eurostat had been expressing concern about the accuracy of Greek statistics for some time before he assumed the position, while he also said that Eurostat officials visited Greece 10 times between 2009 and 2010 to check on the procedures being practised.
As you will see in the document below, Mr. Georgiou does not sound that "innocent" The only thing that is troubling is that the Greek media spoke about a possible judicial criminal court prosecution in July and we are at the end of September and nothing has happened yet... Nonetheless, and for the record, here is Zoe Georgantas' pdf file on Georgiou.
The Chairman of ELSTAT, Mr. A. Georgiou, under imminent prosecution for possible fraud with the Greek Statistics
The chairman of ELSTAT (The Hellenic Statistics Authority), Mr. A. Georgiou, is shortly expected to receive a judicial criminal court prosecution, according to a wide circulation newspaper, “TO VIMA” in Greek “TO BHMA”, which last Sunday (1st of July 2012 ), wrote the following:
The Public Prosecutors in charge “have detected official-duty liability of Mr. Georgiou for unlawful decision making and despotic-autocratic predisposition in the way he functioned as he ignored systematically and practically abolishing the (7-member) administrative Body of the Authority during the period of the contentious issue of preparing the official figures of the public deficit for the year 2009 with the aim of reporting to Eurostat.
Mr. Georgiou is also reviewed as criminally under a required investigation for violating the legal incompatibility which is attached to the position of chairmanship in ELSTAT when he assumed his duty on the 2nd of August 2010, in view of the fact that he did not resign – as he should have done – from his post in IMF, where he served for 21 continuous years. He preferred to remain at his post at the IMF on leave without a salary”
The newspaper is also saying the following: “Strong arguments have taken place in the immediate past between Mr. Georgiou and the Board of ELSTAT members, like the vice- chairman Mr. Nicolas Logothetis and the members of the Board Mrs. Zoe Georganta and Mr. Konstantine Skordas (the newspaper has put his Christian name wrong as Athanasios), who have argued that there was no objective measurement before reclassifying the public enterprises (the so called DEKO in Greek) from the institutional sector of Nonfinancial Corporations to the institutional sector of General Government, thus leading to a hastened and improvised figure for the public deficit.”
The newspaper goes on as “The Hellenic Statistics Authority was constituted in order to replace the sinful National Statistical Service of Greece (NSSG). However, its initial form was gradually mutated to become – according to official prosecutors in charge – “one man’s authority”. Within only two years, its initial statistical law was four times modified so that the role of the chairman could be more and more strengthened. These changes in the initial law were related to a “suspicious” atmosphere, as Mr. Georgiou was a fellow-pupil/student, with one year difference, of the ex Minister of Finance Mr. George Papakonstantinou. This fact was corroborated by the methodical handling of third parties who seem to have found a line of communication with Mr. Georgiou. So much the ex colleague of Mr. Georgiou at IMF and one of the troika representatives, Mr. Poul Thomsen, as well as officials of the EU, like the General Director of Eurostat Mr. Walter Rademacher and the Resident Representative of Eurostat at ELSTAT Mr. Halgrimur Snorrason, seem intervening to Mr. Papakonstantinou asking for the modification of the initial statistical law in order to strengthen Mr. Georgiou’s position.
Indicative of the marginalization of the rest of the members of the Board are the following: The Board members were getting informed about the official reports to Eurostat through the TV; the abolishment of the obligatory by law minimum number of meetings of the Board once a month; the order of Mr. Georgiou to the ELSTAT personnel to keep the members of the Board to quarantine even for very narrowly defined duties; the move and replacement of the Director of National Accounts, Mr. Nicolas Stroblos, who was at that post for 21 years.”
I must note that the journalist, Mrs. Eleutheria Kollia, who wrote the above report, has added certain misleading or ironical (I cannot say) – by my opinion – features in her writing: For example, she put as the title of her article the following:
Well, for the information of those who will read this announcement, I would like to report the following:
In his speech while presenting Mr. Georgiou to the ELSTAT personnel, on the 2nd of August 2010, the ex-Minister of Finance, Mr. George Papakonstantinou, said the following, which has been officially recorded:
Well, as it is now known,
Mr. Georgiou did not resign from the IMF (as he should have done by law)
Both Mr. Georgiou and Mr. Papakonstantinou have lied
Mr. Georgiou is now getting his pension from the IMF plus a salary of 7500 euros per month from the ELSTAT budget, plus he has illegally a public servant as driver for his expensive car which has been paid by the Greek state (again illegally), plus an expensive cellular phone charged to the Greek state, who knows by how much.
CHICAGO, IL - OCTOBER 28: Halloween masks of Muammar Gaddafi, Osama bin Laden, and Saddam Hussein are offered for sale at Fantasy Costumes on October 28, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois. The store, which had long lines at the registers at 4 AM this morning, is open around the clock through Halloween to help keep up with customer demand. Retailers nationwide are expecting record sales for Halloween merchandise this year with shoppers spending close to $7 billion dollars to celebrate the holiday. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)
"US Ambassador to Libya Christopher Steven is thought to have been killed in an attack on the US Embassy Compound in Benghazi”. That was an early newswire flash on September 11th this year. It is bald, calm and professional – and thus gives no real hint at all of how Chris Steven died.
After the initial shock of the event, the Slog began to half-distractedly piece together some disturbing elements of the attack. A Washington contact told the site that the Compound troops had been issued – as a sign of the new rapport between the US and the Muslim Brotherhood – with blank ammunition. The diplomat’s mind is both oddly cynical and gullible at the same time, but my source was clear about the fact that Steven’s minders were overwhelmed by “a screaming mob” while moving him out to a safe house. Whether his bodyguards were armed or not, is not clear, but the Ambassador could’ve been adequately defended within the compound had the State Department not quite consciously put his life at risk with a futile gesture.
Another bizarre thing seems the almost total MSM silence about the date of the attack: September 11th. The assumption seemed to have been that this was pure coincidence given that (as one FCO official told me last week) “this was a reaction to the anti-Islam film”. In short, it wasn’t planned.
US President Barack Obama concurred in this view when he spoke to the media. He accepted that the outrage had been milked by terrorist cells, still insisting however that the riots were the response to a clear insult aimed at the Prophet.
But a diplomat in Paris with a long history of dealings in Arabist affairs disagrees.
“We are quite clear here that the entire action was coordinated, the film had been around for months apparently. The Shi’ite organisers needed an an excuse to make a point, and this was it. I am sure that the average, ignorant fundamentalist was genuinely angry about the film, but it is nonsense to suggest that this was spontaneous. It was concerted, and it was a spectacular propaganda coup from almost every angle.”
Up until Friday morning, the Slog felt this was a story whose main potential lay in the Obama White House and its controlling penchant for censorship. A New York contact agreed, and had been supplying the Slog with odd tidbits about preparations in the Romney Camp to blow the lid off why Chris Steven had died: "Obama soft on Islam and leaving Americans to die" would be dynamite in the Presidential election campaign.
But as so often with the GOP candidate, his staff seemed to be fumbling the opportunity. And just when the Slog was going to drop the project in favour of a developing Westminster story an email (from someone of whom I’m aware as an occasional Slog threader, but have never used as a source) arrived at jawslog@gmail.com.
It concerned the death of Chris Stephen, and it attached a photograph taken during the last minutes of Ambassador Steven’s life. The Slog then had the validity of it checked out: The source remains a mystery, but the content is not photoshopped in any way, and the individual featured is – I’m 99% certain – Chris Steven.
The shot isn’t any kind of "scoop": it has been doing the internet rounds for some days now, and is being used pretty overtly by the US Superpatriot tendency to suggest that the American Ambassador’s death was both cruel and depraved. That said, there are some things in the photo that would appall anyone considering themselves civilised.
Because the Slog is not in the business of hate-blogging, and because the pc cadres would say that it was if it had showed it – Catch 22 – the news site has no intention of reproducing the image. But if rubber-necking someone else’s death-throes does it for you, then the Slog can send it to anyone who writes to the blog at the above mail address.
Nonetheless, the Slog reveals what it finds repulsive in the photograph, and then state the opinion of the site about its ramifications.
Dragging Chris Steven along by his armpits in the shot is some psycho with a mobile phone in his mouth, recording Mr Steven’s terror in extreme close-up. Clearly visible on the assailant’s teeshirt is a Manchester United logo in the official away-strip colours. Ambassador Steven is barely conscious: his shirt has been pulled almost entirely off, and he’s obviously already been beaten half to death. You can’t see any further faces in this tableau, just several hands also eager to grab this symbol of their hatred and mania.
One thing is for certain as you regard the image: this man is not going to be allowed to have a dignified death. Even the Nazis – when purging the SA in 1934, for example – shot people against a wall in some kind of military attempt at rough "justice". But Christopher Steven died horribly, brutally, and at the hands of a cowardly mob hell-bent on mindless vengeance.
It is alleged by some media in the US that Christopher Steven was multiply sodomised before his death. There is no suggestion at all of that in the picture, but ritual humilation (by the supposed removal of masculine anal virginity) is not uncommon in Arab thinking: as TE Lawrence found out to his cost in 1916. However, it remains a potentially inflammatory rumour, and – in the absence of any more grotesque evidence – should remain just that. Perhaps Mr Psycho’s phone video could establish the truth one way or another.
When describing what the Slog found disturbing about this picture the author stated the following:
"I’ve seen it many times before.
Not this specific one, obviously. I mean, I’ve seen this sort of thing a hundred times over the last half-century of Arab turbulence in the context of the West’s mania for energy security. From Iraqi leader Colonel Kassem’s body in a pool of blood in 1963, via Sadam Hussein’s utterly undiginified execution (while being taunted) at the hands of his jailers in the newly ‘democratic’ Iraq of 2006, right the way through to Muammar Gadaffi being dragged through the streets of his regime’s last redoubt Sirte.
I have three things to say about this, and predictably they will annoy the knee-jerk Left , Right, and Left again respectively. So I must be getting pretty close to the truth here.
First, the Arabs in the Middle East are not like us. Their culture is, like the past, a foreign country where most Westerners have never been. It is Hobbesian, deriving as it does from the harsh dictates of life in the desert: vicious, vengeful, unforgiving, hugely misogynist, strict and proud. No deviation is allowed. In the mindset of Arabia, the leadership doesn’t practice political correctness, it demands cultural rigidity. It executes thousands, hacks off limbs, cuts out tongues, censors all media, stones women who commit adultery, and – above all – despises the West.
The Arabs despise us for two reasons: because we keep on interfering in their affairs, preaching to them about democracy, and organising covert operations on their territory; and because we are seen as weak, decadent, effeminate, inglorious and generally untrustworthy. Until more influential people in the foreign offices and State departments of our culture study the Arab (male) mind, take an objective view of history, and wake up to the harsh reality outside their fluffy world of fanciful pc, then the violence will continue and radical Islam will make more gains in terms of both converts and political takeovers.
Second, I think somebody – and very soon, before we’re all blown up – needs to cut the American commerce-to-geopolitics axis of delusion down to size.
Many historians, for example, now accept that Kassem was removed because he told the Americans where to stick it as he embarked on a series of reforms in the 1962/3 period. We know the Americans got rid of Saddam, because we all had a ringside seat for Dubya’s Shokkanorr Festival. We know they propped up the Shah for decades in Iran. And we can trace how, since Autumn 2011, they have used their financial transmission clout to destroy the Iranian currency’s value.
Their latest ploy is to back the Sunni schism of Islam in general, and the Muslim Brotherhood in particular, as “less extremist” than the Shi-ites who dominate in Iran and who back Bashar Assad’s minority Alawhite regime in Syria. Before the year is out – probably – Assad will be dragged along a thoroughfare somewhere for the mediaeval execution performance.
That too will be down to the Americans.
In 2010 they took out the washed-up and half-dead Al Q’eida guru Osama Bin Laden on Pakistan’s sovereign territory – without consultation.
From Hillary Clinton’s point of view, US foreign policy has thus been a massive success: Saddam, Bin Laden, and Gadaffi are history, Assad is on the way out, and Ahmadinnejhad’s empty rhetoric has pushed him away from the centre of power in Tehran.
From the extremist Arab viewpoint however, things look diametrically different: from Lahore to Benghazi, Islamists are in power, and fundamentalist recruits are being attracted in ever growing numbers.
Want to know why? Because It’s very easy to demonise the US: the US elite is pretty damn demonic, and displays this side of its nature non-stop.
Further, Islamists have been able to show their (largely thick chav) following that Obama may look and sound different to George W Bush, but he’s just the same old same old messenger from Satan really: gutless, devious, pulling the strings – and ready to dump on any Arab regime unwilling to play things The American Way.
The truth is that, when it comes to US influence in the Middle East, the overwhelming proportion of Arabs have got the measure of American agents, can see them coming – and know they are hopelessly wedded to oil as a form of industrial energy plus citizen propulsion.
They will use the Clinton Plan – and then spit in her face once the time is right.
Third and finally, Europeans (and here I mean the culture, not the directionless political entity run from Berlin-am-Brussels) need to divest themselves of denial about the true nature of Arab culture and fundamentalist Islam. While the two things are, much of the time, mutually exclusive – real Islam has acted as a sensible social brake on the worst elements of the Arab nature – in the Middle East they are increasingly interdependent.
I say again: we cannot negotiate with these people, and we cannot patronise them any more. Apparent acceptance of negotiation and nefarious strategy are ploys, nothing more. When a half-baked twerp like David Cameron shouts the odds in favour of Recep Erdogan one minute – and then bombs Benghazi the next – the Libyan victors and Islamist Turkish elite will make purring sounds. But they both follow a religious creed dedicated to the destruction of Christian culture: and along that road, there are no U-turns – only occasional delays before moving the tank divisions forward once more.
The only State likely to be a reliable ally for Britain in the Middle East is Israel. There are simple reasons for this: a sizeable proportion of Israelis originated in Europe and America, they have a decent democracy and the Rule of Law, they don’t behead their leaders and then roger them up the backside in public, they’re highly intelligent, very industrious – and the obvious link between the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East. They feel this too, and are forging ahead with Greek and Cypriot alliances.
Islamists would like Israel wiped from the surface of the planet, and Israeli Jews either sent somewhere else, or slaughtered in their own backyard. The location of The Promised Land was a mistake from the moment it was envisaged, and grossly unfair to the Palestinians. But the idea propogated by Islamism (and its ragbag of fellow-travellers) that Israel’s existence is the thin end of a global Zionist wedge is deranged.
The barabarians are close to a complete takeover of Islam now. The very antithesis of ecumenical belief, they are trouble wherever they spread this vile spray of anti-Infidel bigotry.
Get real: this problem is our generation’s Nazism.
It isn’t going to go away. Christopher Steven paid with his life for the illusions of Clintonite grandeur. The rest of us should learn from that, and honour the ordeal of this likeable man. The Slog
A shocking two-part documentary was broadcasted this past Wednesday and Thursday on BlazeTV. Ahead of the broadcast, reporter Glenn Beck explained (in the video above) how the "Muslim Brotherhood" has a grand strategy to bring down the West, and how our the world's safety is at stake. According to him, an inconspicuous manifesto now known as "The Project" was recovered during a raid in Switzerland: A manifesto that turned out to be a Muslim roadmap for infiltrating and defeating the West, including the US and Canada. Today, files containing evidence from the largest terror financing trial in US history, which include details about "The Project", are being withheld by the Department of Justice. In an explosive two-part mini-series, TheBlaze documentary unit investigates how the Muslim Brotherhood has infiltrated the American government and exposes how the world's safety is apparently in jeopardy as a result of this dangerous government cover up. (Source - youtube)
The Project apparently also outlines the Muslim Brotherhood's 25 strategies to subjugate the world under Islam:
Network and coordinate actions between like-minded Islamists organizations;
Avoid open alliances with known terrorist organizations and individuals to maintain the appearance of "moderation";
Infiltrate and take over existing Muslim organizations to realign them towards the Muslim Brotherhood's collective goals;
Use deception to mask the intended goals of Islamist actions, as long as it doesn't conflict with Shari'a law;
Avoid social conflicts with Westerners locally, nationally or globally, that might damage the long-term ability to expand the Islamist powerbase in the West, including the support of full-time administrators and workers;
Conduct surveillance, obtain data, and establish collection and data storage capabilities;
Muslim Brotherhood Project7. Put into place a watchdog system for monitoring Western media to warn Muslims of international plots fomented against them";
Cultivate an Islamist intellectual community, including the establishment of think-tanks and advocacy groups, and publishing "academic" studies, to legitimize Islamist positions and to chronicle the history of Islamist movements;
Develop a comprehensive 100-year plan to advance Islamist ideology throughout the world;
Balance international objectives with local flexibility;
Build extensive social networks of schools, hospitals and charitable organizations dedicated to Islamist ideals so that contact with the movement for Muslims in the West is constant;
Involve ideologically committed Muslims in democratically-elected institutions on all levels in the West, including government, NGOs, private organizations and labor unions;
Instrumentally use existing Western institutions until they can be converted and put into service of Islam;
Draft Islamic constitutions, laws and policies for eventual implementation;
Avoid conflict within the Islamist movements on all levels, including the development of processes for conflict resolution;
Institute alliances with Western "progressive" organizations that share similar goals;
Create autonomous "security forces" to protect Muslims in the West;
Inflame violence and keep Muslims living in the West "in a Jihad frame of mind";
Support Jihad movements across the Muslim world through preaching, propaganda, personnel, funding, and technical and operational support;
Make the Palestinian cause a global wedge issue for Muslims;
Adopt the total liberation of Palestine from Israel and the creation of an Islamic state as a keystone in the plan for global Islamic domination;
Instigate a constant campaign to incite hatred by Muslims against Jews and reject any discussions of conciliation or coexistence with them;
Actively create Jihad terror cells within Palestine;
Link the terrorist activities in Palestine with the global terror movement;
Collect sufficient funds to indefinitely perpetuate and support Jihad around the world.
Are all the 25 elements of The Project currently being implemented by the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe, the UK, the US, Canada, Australia and all around the world?
Or is this just the work of war mongers who want to have a reason to strike on Muslim nations?
We do not know, we are still undecided, what about you?
united states currency seal - IMG_7366_web (Photo credit: kevindean)
The Democrats Abroad Greece organisation is urging all US citizens living in Greece to request from election clerks, in their home district in the United States, to send them absentee ballots. "To cast your vote in the Nov. 6 US presidential and Congressional elections, you need to make a signed request to your voting clerk to send your ballot to your Greek address. You cannot assume your ballot will be sent to you automatically as it might have been in the past. The deadline for most states (practically if not legally) is the first week in October, if you sign your form and send it in by fax or email. If you send via the Greek post office, you have only a couple of days left," a press release by the organisation reads.
Eligible US citizens can get their federal absentee ballot request form (FPCA) from the US embassy or consulate general, or, in an much easier manner, download it from http://subscriber.amna.gr/anaweb/Users/Brady/Documents/DA Secretary 2010/ www.votefromabroad.org (www.votefromabroad.org). This secure web site will help you fill out the form with all the information your state requires, and tell you exactly where to email, fax, or mail it. You download the form, print out the form on page 4, sign and date it, and scan/email, fax, or snail mail (with a 78 cent Greek stamp) to your home county or township in America. The addresses for your local election official are listed on page 1 of your form.
Additionally, the group will host an event to watch the upcoming US presidential debate on Thursday, October 4. At 7 p.m. at the Hard Rock Caf? in downtown Athens. The price per person is ? 15. For more information send inquiries to demsabroadgreece@gmail.com or call 210 3227463.
Democrats Abroad is considered a state-level party committee by the Democratic National Committee.
English: Alexis Tsipras in a press conference in Komotini. Ελληνικά: Συνέντευξη Τύπου του Αλέξη Τσίπρα στο ξενοδοχείο Ξενία στα πλαίσια της επίσκεψης του στην Κομοτηνή 13.11.2008 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Main opposition SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras called for the establishment of an inter-party parliamentary committee to pursue WWII war reparations from Germany, in a letter addressed to the parliament president tabled on Thursday, noting that "we must all invest faith and confidence" in such a committee's work.
Tsipras' motion was tabled in the 300-member parliament just days after a German foreign ministry statement said that "there is no issue" of reparations to Greece after the passing of so many years.
The SYRIZA leader said in his letter that in the approximately 70 years since the end of WWII, the Greek governments have never organised or pursued systematically the demand for the fulfillment of occupation Germany's obligations to the Greek people.
He pointed out that the inter-state agreement for the forced loan to Germany during the occupation, the stolen treasures and the reparations for the destruction of infrastructures and human capital have been dealt with by the various Greek governments in a piecemeal fashion and with an attitude that was almost offensive to the historical memory of the Greek people.
Tsipras also said that the joint meeting of parliament's standing Economic Affairs and Defence and External Affairs committees on March 28 on the German reparations, at the initiative of MPs of all the parties, had been an initiative of outstanding importance, and recalled that "the demand and decision of this meeting was the establishment of an inter-party parliamentary committee, from the parliament plenary, responsible for the collection and organisation of the undisputable historic documents that will render the Greek argumentation capable of demanding that which is owed and to rally other European forces in this effort".
Tsipras assured the parliament president that the SYRIZA parliamentary group, true to its commitments, "wants to give continuity to this common effort, with a motion for the establishment of this committee".
In May, then Finance Minister Filippos Sahinidis told Parliament that he had ordered the archives of the General Accounting Office to be searched for evidence to support Greece's claims against Germany for war reparations that have been outstanding since the period of the Nazi occupation in WWII.
Sahinidis said that finance ministry officials had already found dossiers with the details of Greeks who had received compensation from Germany in the 1960s, while the search of the archives would continue and any documents found would be utilised and converted to digital form in order to ensure that it would not be lost. (AMNA)
The incomprehensible happened. The greatest gas pipeline project in history, South Stream, which would have benefited Greece gep-strategically, and which was one of the greatest accomplishments of the former conservative Costas Karamanlis government, has been pushed to the side -actually it was shelved- by Foreign Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos. On Thursday the governments of Italy, Greece and Albania confirmed their political support for the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The signing was held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York, and in the presence of representatives from the US government
Is this decision in favor of Greece, or is it just another blow against Russia, via Greece, in their ongoing US-Russian pipeline war? Well here is the latest on this story... And you can judge for yourselves.
According to defencenet sources, last week when Avramopoulos chaired a defense and foreign affairs committee meeting, in order to brief members about the government's policy on the issue of oil and natural gas pipelines, conservative MP Militiadis Varvitiotis asked what the fate of South Stream was, and almost instantly Avramopoulos answered that it wasn't one of the government's priorities and that the the TAP pipeline would now be endorsed. (In other words... The South Stream project has been shelved).
The Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) is a natural gas pipeline project that will transport gas from the Caspian region via Greece and Albania and across the Adriatic Sea to Southern Italy and further into Western Europe. The project is aimed at enhancing security of supply as well as diversification of gas supplies for the European markets. TAP will open a new so-called Southern Gas Corridor in Europe and establish a new market outlet for natural gas from the Caspian Sea and beyond. The project is designed to expand transportation capacity from 10 to 20 cm per year. TAP also envisages physical reverse flow of up to 80 per cent and the option to develop natural gas storage facilities in Albania to further ensure security of supply.
TAP’s transportation solution will be approximately 800 kilometers in length (Approx.: Greece 478 km; Albania 204 km; offshore Adriatic Sea 105 km; Italy 5 km). Transport will begin near the Greek-Turkish border (Komotini), cross Albania and the Adriatic Sea, and connect with the Italian natural gas distribution system near San Foca in Italy.
TAP’s shareholders are EGL of Switzerland (42.5%), Norway’s Statoil (42.5%) and E.ON Ruhrgas of Germany (15%).
(Editor - The countries backing this project do not surprise us one bit... And we know they helped to topple Mr. Karamanlis... Especially Germany)
The committee members were stunned, and asked the Foreign Ministry to clarify what he just said, but he refrained from commenting.
Following the committee meeting some of the members decided to discuss it with other conservative MPs including the late premier, Mr. Karamanlis. According to the same article in defencenet, Karamanlis was very disappointed when he learned that the government he has supported decided to withdraw from participation in this project. And for good reason, the South Stream project was by far a better choice for Greece. Apart from the fact that the project was one of his government's greatest accomplishments, it would have given enormous benefits to Greece, as well as would have generated thousands of jobs for our people. Most importantly it would have unhooked us from having to rely on Turkey (or succumbing to Ankara's wishes in fear that they would cut off our supply and re-route it elsewhere if we did not do their bidding). Unfortunately now, and after the signing of the TAP pipeline project, we will totally depend on Turkey, on all levels, commercially and Geo-strategically.
(Editor - Think about it... Will Ankara force us to compromise on issues that involve the Aegean, the East. Med., Thrace, etc...)
Until today, Karamanlis -and anyone with common sense- believes that participation in the South Stream project should have been given top priority and continued at all costs. Besides, there is no evidence that the famous Shah Deniz II deposit (which is to supply the TAP pipeline) can deliver efficient needs both in the medium and long-term. One more thing that we should keep in mind is that we are talking about Azerbaijan here, which is basically another Turkey, but with a different name. Also, we should take into consideration that deep Greek-Armenian ties are not respected by these two nations.
Also, the South Stream project is greater and with more diverse possibilities. So much so that even Turkey wanted a share in this project and had even given its permission so that the pipeline can pass through the Turkish EEZ in the Black Sea.
In fact the offshore part of the South Stream pipeline is planned to carry 63 billion cubic metres (2.2 trillion cubic feet) of natural gas per year. Pipeline sections in Serbia, Hungary, and Slovenia will have capacity at least 10 billion cubic metres (350 billion cubic feet) per year. At least two gas storage facilities would be constructed of which one would be an underground storage facility in Hungary with capacity of minimum 1 billion cubic metres (35 billion cubic feet) and another one in Banatski Dvor, Serbia with capacity of 3.2 billion cubic metres (110 billion cubic feet).
Compare the numbers for yourselves...
Unfortunately in Greece, the political and business elite do not bother -or care- to look at the possibilities mentioned in the above paragraph, nor do they care about what benefits this can have for Greece's economy. In fact they have never supported the interests of the nation and its people who are literally starving. The only thing they care about is how fatten their own personal wallets and step up the ladder of fame in their own elite circles.
The TAP pipeline would have been the second or the third pipeline that was planned to cross through Greece, as part of the diversification of Greece's energy market but let's not kid ourselves, this particular pipeline is going to first cross in Turkey (which is not one of our greatest alleys and in fact is a very hostile country to Greece). What we are trying to make you understand is that if Ankara -who will now become the policeman in the region for the West- deems it necessary then it can easily cancel the supply of gas to Greece, and re-route it to other countries such as Albania for example. And this is the main reason why South Stream was by far a better choice.
We are not criticizing the project itself, for any type of development only benefits our country, but let's not kid ourselves, the TAP project mostly benefits its Northern European stakeholders and is a direct success for the US State Department, the US Department of Energy as well as US Geo-strategic interests in the region in its ongoing pipeline war against Russia.
Much can be said about Karamanlis from his competitors, but one thing is certain, he wanted to change the course of this nation and give it the right to develop and stand on its own without being shackled to foreign interests. Even the Secretary of Golden Dawn, Mr. Nick Michaloliakos told his colleagues that he may have immense political ideological differences with Karamanlis, but he recognizes that the former Prime Minister had the courage to alter the fate of this poor nation with simple pipeline diplomacy. He wasn't the only one, even radical left MPs have said the same to the media, adding that Karamanlis worked for the nation, and never for his own personal glory.
We agree.
And that is why we will continue to support men like him who work towards the benefit of this poor country and its future and not for their own personal gain.
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