Dr. Richard Holmes , age 48. Weapons expert. Dr. Holmes is believed to have worked on the production of chemical protection suits for troops. In 1991, he was the joint author of a scientific paper about an RAF chemical and biological protection system. Suicide riddle of weapons expert who worked with David Kelly: Scientist tells wife he is going for a walk, then takes his life in a field, just like his friend.
Body of Dr Richard Holmes discovered in a field four miles from the Porton Down defence establishment
Police said there were no suspicious circumstances in latest case but revealed scientist was ‘under a great deal of stress’
He resigned from Porton Down last month, but it is unclear why
A weapons expert who worked with Dr. David Kelly at the Government’s secret chemical warfare laboratory has been found dead in an apparent suicide. In circumstances strongly reminiscent of Dr. Kelly’s own mysterious death nine years ago, the body of Dr. Richard Holmes was discovered in a field four miles from the Porton Down defence establishment in Wiltshire. It is not yet known how he died.
The purpose of Project PM’s wiki is to provide a centralized, actionable data set regarding the intelligence contracting industry, the PR industry’s interface with totalitarian regimes, the mushrooming infosec/”cybersecurity” industry, and other issues constituting threats to human rights, civic transparency, individual privacy, and the health of democratic institutions.
This is a crowdsourced investigation focused on research and analysis. If you care that the surveillance state is expanding in capabilities and intent without being effectively opposed by the population of the West, you can assist in making this an actionable resource for journalists, activists, and other interested parties. Consider doing a bit of research on the companies and government agencies listed on this wiki, or even adding new topic for investigation by our participants. The best place to start is the Community Portal. We also need help adding much more to Media Reports.
Do not editorialize when contributing; simply add pertinent facts and link to source material. Employ the same writing style one finds at Wikipedia. If you’d like to contribute information to our data set without editing the wiki yourself, you may do so by sending the info to us at staff@project-pm.org (more secure means of communication can be arranged if you care to send an anonymous e-mail to that account). If you have personal knowledge about this topic for any reason, please consider letting us know via that e-mail address. Better yet, you can download an IRC client and join us at ircs://project-pm.org:6697 (If you’re not familiar with IRC, you can use this Mibbit, weblink to connect to our IRC chat server) Those interested in starting groups similar to Project PM should see our Guide to Pursuants.
Editing the Wiki
Public editing has returned to the wiki, feel free to contribute research to this project. Only registered accounts may edit, and you may need to recreate your account if you had one previously.
To browse through the complete list of pages on this site, click here. Some important pages are listed below. For a list of terms used in these articles, you can check the Glossary and Acronyms
Update January 2009: It seems that Svali is alive and safe. Please click here for more details.
In these unusual circumstances, however, we have decided to retain her tribute here, as her story is so extremely important and she has demonstrated such exceptional courage in speaing out as she did in previous years. Update February 2010: The archive of extremely important articles by Svali about Illuminati ritual abuse and other subjects, written in 2000-2002, is now back online here.
Of all the courageous warriors for truth to whom we pay tribute on these pages, Svali is an exception. Her name is a pseudonym, and it is not known whether she is dead or in hiding. But her testimony is so shocking, and of such critical importance, that in our view it is utterly clear that we must honor her here.
Svali is, or was, an American woman born into an Illuminati bloodline. When she was twelve years old, she was taken to the Vatican for a ceremony she was told would be very important. What she witnessed – an actual child sacrifice (the child was 3 or 4 years old, and appeared to be compliant) on an obsidian slab over a large pentagram in a basement catacomb – is told in her extraordinary interview with Greg Szymanski. Everyone visiting our site must hear this:
All Illuminati children are heavily conditioned to be obedient, patient, self-controlled, and totally loyal to the “family”. Some are groomed for the military or politics; others are prepared for business – or even ‘businesses’ such as prostitution. Marriages are arranged, one reason being to strengthen ties between different bloodlines. All the members of the families have respectable fronts as “normal” people to the degree that no-one who is not in the group would ever suspect the duality of their character and of their life. Meetings often occur at night. In these meetings children are “trained” using drugs, hypnosis, and shock-reward conditioning. They can, in Svali’s words, all handle and fire a weapon with deadly accuracy by the age of 8.
Higher levels of politics are heavily Illuminati occupied and controlled, in all western countries. In the United States, the population is about 1% Illuminati or Illuminati assets. Do the math: that’s about 3 million people. You may even know some of them, and have never suspected.
Svali is also an exception in that very few Illuminati members ever leave. The conditioning is just too great… and to leave means abandoning spouse, parents, children, house, money, everything. Very few people make the break. Svali reports that she was only able to leave after it dawned on her that, because she was telling lies to the Illuminati children as an Illuminati “trainer” (her role or job in the “family”), she must have been lied to herself when she was young. She converted to Christianity (‘real’ Christianity: she described various Christian churches as heavily Illuminati controlled) and this gave her the strength to leave. She gave one major radio interview, and had a website (suite101.com) which has now been taken down. She wrote prolifically for a while, but has not been heard from since 2006.
There is a lot of information on her on the internet: Google ‘Svali’ and start reading. Click here for one of the most important interviews you will ever hear, mentioned above.
Click here for the transcript, which was prepared by our friend David Wilcock, who corresponded with Svali before she disappeared, and appears briefly on Greg Szymanski’s interview.
The simplest summary of the entire Illuminati agenda and net of control is probably Henry Makow’s 2002 article here. It is reproduced below.
Illuminati Defector Details Pervasive Conspiracy
By Henry Makow Ph.D.
October 14, 2002
reprint
If you detect the devil’s hand in current events, you may be closer to the truth than you think.
A woman who was raised in the Illuminati cult describes a powerful secret organization comprising one per cent of the U.S. population that has infiltrated all social institutions and is covertly preparing a military takeover. Her revelations cast the “war on terror” and “homeland security” in their true light.
“Svali” is the pseudonym of the woman, age 45, who was a mind “programmer” for the cult until 1996. She was the sixth head trainer in the San Diego branch and had 30 trainers reporting to her. She has risked her life to warn humanity of the Illuminati’s covert power and agenda.
She describes a sadistic Satanic cult led by the richest and most powerful people in the world. It is largely homosexual and pedophile, practises animal sacrifice and ritual murder. It works “hand in glove” with the CIA and Freemasonry. It is Aryan supremacist (German is spoken at the top) but welcomes Jewish apostates. It controls the world traffic in drugs, guns, pornography and prostitution. It may be the hand behind political assassination, and “terrorism”, including Sept. 11, the Maryland sniper and the Bali bomb blast.
It has infiltrated government on a local, state and national level; education and financial institutions; religion and the media. Based in Europe, it plans a “world order” that will make its earlier attempts, Nazism and Communism, look like picnics. One other detail: these people are not happy.
Svali’s courageous testimony explains why our children are no longer taught civic values, why they are being habituated to homosexuality and violence, and why our “culture” is descending into nihilism and sexual depravity. It raises the possibility that George W. Bush and his Administration are Illuminists and much of the world “elite” is engaged in a mind-boggling criminal conspiracy.
In March 2000, Svali began writing a monthly column for survivors of Illuminati ritual abuse at Suite101.com. In December 2000, H.J. Springer, the editor of CentrExNews.com contacted Svali and conducted an extended 18-part interview with her by email, which is reproduced on line and is copyrighted.
[Project Camelot note: the suite101.com articles are here. 13 of the 18 parts of Springer’s interview are reproduced here.]
“I am convinced she is the real McCoy,” Springer wrote to me. “I have personally relayed numerous email messages to her from other members — ritually abused, brainwashed, raped, sexually abused people & you name it — some of them confirming to me her story. So I have absolutely no doubt that Svali has been part of the Illuminati since childhood.”
I also trust Svali’s testimony because it confirms my intuition and intensive research. Everything fits: from the dead hand that seems to suppress humanity to why Clinton gave secret technology to the Chinese, to persistent reports of concentration camps in the US. It explains why people I know behave in a conspiratorial way. I thank Svali for giving me a frightening but incredible key to understanding the world.
A friend urged me to beware of a hoax and offered to help confirm Svali’s personal story. I accepted. I invite you to read her entire testimony and make up your own mind. Read “Part 1” to “Part 18” first, starting at the middle of the list and working up.
With their permission, here are some highlights of Svali’s correspondence with CentrExnews.com’s H.J. Springer. I have also included material from her article Are the Illuminati Taking Over the World?
Pervasive Presence
Svali:
“The Illuminati are present in every major metropolitan center in the United States. The Illuminati believe in controlling an area through its: banks and financial institutions (guess how many sit on banking boards? You’d be surprised) Local government: guess how many get elected to local city councils? Law: children are encouraged to go to law school and medical school. Media: others are encouraged to go to journalism school, and members help fund local papers.
Beliefs
Svali:
“The Illuminati is a group that practices a form of faith known as “enlightenment”. It is Luciferian, and they teach their followers that their roots go back to the ancient mystery religions of Babylon, Egypt, and Celtic druidism. They have taken what they consider the “best” of each, the foundational practices, and joined them together into a strongly occult discipline. Many groups at the local level worship ancient deities such as “El”, “Baal”, and “Ashtarte”, as well as “Isis and Osiris” and “Set”…. I do know that these people teach and practice evil.”
Weishaupt
Svali:
“Weishaupt did not create the Illuminati, they chose him as a figurehead and told him what to write about. The financiers, dating back to the bankers during the times of the Templar Knights who financed the early kings in Europe, created the Illuminati. Weishaupt was their “go fer”, who did their bidding.”
Military Takeover
Svali:
“Briefly, each region of the United States has “nerve centres” or power bases for regional activity. The United States has been divided up into seven major geographical regions. Each region has localities within it that contain military compounds and bases that are hidden in remote, isolated areas or on large private estates.
These bases are used intermittently to teach and train generational Illuminati in military techniques, hand- to- hand combat, crowd control, use of arms, and all aspects of military warfare. Why? Because the Illuminists believe that our government, as we know it, as well as the governments of most nations around the world, are destined to collapse. These will be planned collapses, and they will occur in the following ways:
The Illuminati has planned first for a financial collapse that will make the great depression look like a picnic. This will occur through the manoeuvring of the great banks and financial institutions of the world, through stock manipulation, and interest rate changes. Most people will be indebted to the federal government through bank and credit card debt, etc. The governments will recall all debts immediately, but most people will be unable to pay and will be bankrupted. This will cause generalized financial panic, which will occur simultaneously worldwide, as the Illuminists firmly believe in controlling people through finances.
Doesn’t sound pleasant, does it? I don’t know the exact time frame for all of this, and wouldn’t want to even guess. The good news is that if a person is debt-free, owes nothing to the government or credit debt, and can live self sufficiently, they may do better than others. I would invest in gold, not stocks, if I had the income. Gold will once again be the world standard, and dollars will be pretty useless (remember after the Civil War? Our money will be worth about what confederate money was after the collapse).
Next there will be a military takeover, region by region, as the government declares a state of emergency and martial law. People will have panicked, there will be an anarchical state in most localities, and the government will justify its move as being necessary to control panicked citizens. The cult trained military leaders and people under their direction will use arms as well as crowd control techniques to implement this new state of affairs. …Military bases will be set up, in each locality (actually, they are already here, but are covert). In the next few years, they will go above ground and be revealed. Each locality will have regional bases and leaders to which they are accountable. The hierarchy will closely reflect the current covert hierarchy.
About five years ago, when I left the Illuminati, approximately 1% of the US population was either part of the Illuminati, sympathetic to it, or a victim of Mind Control (and therefore considered useable). While this may not sound like many, imagine 1% of the population highly trained in the use of armaments, crowd control, psychological and behavioral techniques, armed with weapons and linked to paramilitary groups.”
Leadership
Svali:
“The national council [consists of] influential bankers with OLD money such as: The Rockefellers, the Mellon family, the Carnegie family, the Rothschild family etc. I know I shouldn’t name names, but I will.
The “Supreme World Council” is already set up as a prototype of the one that will rule when the NWO comes into being. It meets on a regular basis to discuss finances, direction, policy, etc. and to problem-solve difficulties that come up. Once again, these leaders are heads in the financial world, OLD banking money. The Rothschild family in England, and in France, have ruling seats. A descendant of the Hapsburg dynasty has a generational seat. A descendant of the ruling families of England and France have a generational seat. The Rockefeller family in the US holds a seat.
This is one reason that the Illuminati have been pretty “untouchable” over the years. The ruling members are very, very, very wealthy and powerful. I hope this information is helpful. How do I know this? I was on a local leadership council (a head trainer), but I talked to those on regional. Also, every Illuminati child is taught who their “leaders” are, and told to take an oath of allegiance to them and the “New Order to come”.”
Royalty
Svali:
“The Illuminati leadership state that they are descended from royal bloodlines, as well as unbroken occult heritage.
See, there were two definitions of “royalty” used. Open royalty that is currently seen now, and “hidden royalty” of royal lineage and extreme occult power. Sometimes the two were concurrent, such as with the Prince of Wales.
I never thought of which country/line held the most power, since I was just a peon busily doing my job. But my understanding was: The Hanoverian / Hapsburg descendants rule in Germany over the Bruderheist. They are considered one of the strongest lines for occult as well. The British line is just under them, with the royal family. Definitely, they rule the UK branch under the Rothschilds in the occult realm, even though parliament rules the country openly.
In France, again, descendants of the royal families are also in power in the occult realm, but the French Rothschilds hold the reigns over all of them.”
Rank of the US
Svali:
“The U.S. is considered lower, and younger, than the European branches. …Germany, France, and the UK form a triumvirate that rules in the European cult. The USSR is considered important, and has the strongest military groups. The USSR has been promised fourth position in the New World Order, BEFORE the role the U.S. would have, because the USSR has been more helpful and cooperative over the years with furthering the agenda.
The descendants of the former ruling families there are also involved in the occult leadership, along with the newer ones. There is no Marxism in the cult. China will be ranked after the USSR, then the U.S. But a lot of the current U.S. leadership will be in Europe when the change occurs, and many have homes there. They will be “changing nationalities” overnight, as it were. This is the little that I do remember. Wish I had been a better student of this stuff, but I was too busy trying to stay alive when I was in it.
Russia will be the military base and powerhouse of the group, since their military commanders (Illuminist) are considered the best in the world, and very, very disciplined. China, because of its roots in oriental occultism, and its large population, will also be considered a higher power than the US. But again, the real power will reside in Europe, according to what I was taught when part of the group.
The United Nations
Svali:
“The UN was created early in this century in order to help overcome one of the biggest barriers to a one-world government …That barrier is the one of nationalism, or pride in one’s country. This is why it was NOT a popular concept when first introduced, it took years of country bashing in the media and the destruction of any sense of national pride by a (not so subtle) media campaign over the years.
The UN is a preparation, but it is not the real power in the world, and will be relatively unimportant when the NWO comes into being. The real councils will then step forward. But as a means of getting the general public to accept the idea of a “global community” and the “one world community” the UN is a stepping stone in their working towards the NWO.”
Israel
Svali:
“The conflict in the Middle East is only to the advantage of the Illuminists. They HATE Israel, and hope one day to see it destroyed, and are biding their time. One of the olive branches offered by the UN when it takes over is that they will prevent war in the Middle East, and this will be greeted with joy by many.
At the same time, the Illuminati covertly supply guns and funds to BOTH sides to keep the conflict fuelled. They are very duplicitous people. They used to funnel guns through the USSR to Palestine, for example, in the name of promoting “friendliness” between the USSR and this state and other Arab nations. Then, the US Illuminists would help funnel guns to Israel, for the same reason.
These people love the game of chess, and see warfare between nations as creating an order out of chaos. The USSR is going to get stronger again. It has too strong a military both openly, and covertly (ALL Illuminati military trainers have visited Russia to learn from them) to sit quietly and quiesciently to the side. In the NWO, they will be stronger than us.”
Is the Illuminati a Jewish conspiracy?
Svali:
“Absolutely not. In fact, Hitler and his people (especially Himmler and Goebbels) were top Illuminists. The Illuminati are racist in the extreme, and as a child, I was forced to play “concentration camp” both on my farm in Virginia, and also in Europe in isolated camps in Germany.
The Jews historically fought against the occult (see Deuteronomy and the Old Testament for how God through the Jewish people tried to cleanse the land of the occult groups that were operating there, such as those who worshipped Baal, Ashtarte, and other Canaanite and Babylonian gods.
[from an email to Henry Makow]
Yes, there are some very powerful Jewish people in this group. For instance, the Rothschild family literally runs the financial empire in Europe (and indirectly the States), and are a well-known Jewish family. I have also known people whose parents were Jewish diamond merchants in the group, and at every level. But to rise to power in the Illuminati, a Jewish person at night would be forced to renounce their faith, and to give their first allegiance to Lucifer and the beliefs of the Illuminati. In return for this betrayal, they believe that power (financial) and rewards come; and in one sense they do, but at too high a price (losing their eternal soul).
The Nazi/concentration camp mentality is very strong, though, and I was told that Hitler, Himmler, Goebbels, and others were high-ranking German members of the group (Himmler was higher than the other two), and Mengele their paid puppet as well, who later worked as a high trainer of the American branch between his periods of hiding in South America. They honestly believed that they were acting as agents of their ‘gods’ to exterminate the Jewish race, and I am so, so sorry that this group has enacted so many horrors on the earth (and so, so glad that I left it).
I hope this helps you. I have always wondered this, though, why some of the highest ranking financial families in the group (baron Rothschild of France is one of the 13 European lords, or “kings” that run the group in Europe, and sits on the World Council) are Jewish, yet the group espouses hatred of their own race.”
Are they racist?
Svali:
“Lots of Illuminists have Fourth Reich programming inside. The Illuminati are racist, and have a very “Aryan” outlook. They believe strongly in the rule of the “pure” and “intelligent” by their definitions, and in their ceremonies, there will occasionally be minorities killed in ceremonies.
They are trying to breed a “genetically superior” race to rule, with their children and descendants. They are also followers of Plato’s Republic, and believe that they will be the ones to usher in this “Utopian” rule with the NWO in their opinion. In their Utopia, the intelligentsia will rule, and the sheep like masses will follow their leaders (that is their view of the world; that the occult leaders are “enlightened’ and intelligent, while the average person is a “sheep” to be led by the nose).”
Freemasonry
Svali:
“The Freemasons and the Illuminati are hand in glove. I don’t care if this steps on any toes, it’s a fact. The Masonic temple at Alexandria, Virginia (the city itself was named after Alexandria, Egypt, and is a hotbed of Illuminati activity) is a centre in the Washington, DC area for Illuminati scholarship and teaching. I was taken there at intervals for testing, to step up a level, for scholarship, and high ceremonies. The leaders in this Masonic group were also Illuminists.
This has been true of every large city I have lived in. The top Freemasons were also top Illuminists. My maternal grandparents were both high ranking Masons in the city of Pittsburgh, Pa. (president of the Eastern Star and 33rd degree Mason) and they both were also leaders in the Illuminati in that area.
Are all Masons Illuminati? No, especially at the lower levels, I believe they know nothing of the practices that occur in the middle of the night in the larger temples. Many are probably fine businessmen and Christians. But I have never known a 32 degree or above who wasn’t Illuminati, and the group helped create Freemasonry as a “front” for their activities.”
CIA, FBI are all infiltrated. So are Mormons, etc.
Svali:
“Many of the administrators and directors at the FBI are also Illuminists. The CIA helped bring over German scientists after WWII. Many of these were also Illuminati leaders in their own country, and they were welcomed with open arms by the U.S. group. They also funnelled all information they were learning to the Illuminati.
The Mormons affiliated years ago in a meeting with Illuminati leadership in the 1950s. The same with the Jehovah’s Witnesses.”
The Cold War
Svali:
“Russia was never really a threat to us. Marxism was funded by the Illuminati, and espoused as a counterbalance to capitalism. The Illluminati believe strongly in balancing opposing forces, in the pull between opposites. They see history as a complex chess game, and they will fund one side, then another, while ultimately out of the chaos and division …, they are laughing because they are ultimately beyond political parties. A top western financier will secretly meet with an eastern or Russian “adversary” during those years, and have a good laugh at how the “sheep” were being deluded. I am sharing here what I was taught, and also observed.
They are truly an international group, and the group’s agenda supersedes any nationalistic feelings. There is also a lot of trading back and forth of members in these groups. A Russian trainer might come to the US for awhile, complete a job, then go back, or vice-versa.”
Assassin Training
Svali:
“Here is how it is done (how it was done to me):
[1] When the child is 2 years old, place them in a metal cage with electrodes attached. Shock the child severely.
[2] Take the child out, and place a kitten in its hands. Tell the child to wring the kitten’s neck. The child will cry and refuse.
[3] Put the child into the cage, and shock them until they are dazed and cannot scream any more.
[4] Take the child out, and tell them again to wring the kitten’s neck. This time the child will shake all over, cry, but do it, afraid of the torture. The child will then go into the corner and vomit afterwards, while the adult praises them for “doing such a good job”.
This is the first step. The animals get bigger over time, as the child gets older. They will be forced to kill an infant at some point, either a set up in VR (virtual reality), or in reality. They will be taught by age 9 to put together a gun, to aim, and fire on target and on command. They will then practice on realistic manikins. They will then practice on animals. They will then practice on “expendables” or in VR. They will be highly praised if they do well, and tortured if they don’t comply.
The older the child or teen, the more advanced the training. By age 15, most children will also be forced to do hand to hand combat in front of spectators (high people who come to watch the “games” much as the ancient gladiators performed). These matches are rarely done to the death, usually until one child goes down. They use every type of weapon imaginable, and learn to fight for their lives. If a child loses a fight, they are heavily punished by their trainer, who loses “face”. If they win, they are again praised for being “strong’ and adept with weapons. By the time they are 21, they are well trained combat/killing machines with command codes to kill and they have been tested over and over to prove that they WILL obey on command. This is how children in the German Illuminati are brought up, I went through it myself.”
Trust in Family
Svali:
“They tell their children as they are torturing them, “I am doing this because I love you.” To them, the greatest love is to make a child strong, and fit to lead or to move higher in the group, by whatever means it takes.
If a leader sees a child, and wants it as a prostitute, the loving parents will give it away, happy that their child will rise in status. Also, again, they view betrayal as the greatest good. They will do set up after set up to teach their children to never openly trust others.
I remember hundreds of agonizing set ups and betrayals, and hearing when I was betrayed or wounded, “And such is the heart of man.” Those doing this to me thought they were teaching me something of value, that would help me. And because of the vicious and political nature of the group, in one sense they were right; the naive get stepped on and wounded. I have known parents who tried to spare their children some of this out of love, but often they were overruled by other family members, who viewed these parents as “weak” and “unfit” to teach their child.”
Morale
Svali:
“Most of them are wounded, abused victims, who don’t realize that it is possible to leave the group. There is a lot of discontent in the ranks, and there would be a mass exodus if the members believed it were really possible to get out (and live). Many of the trainers I knew (I know, wicked, torturing pedophiles) were NOT happy with what they did. They would whisper quietly, or give a look, to show that they disagreed with what they had to do. They would resignedly do their jobs, in the hope of advancement.
Know what one of the biggest carrots offered to those who advance up in the group is? That you don’t have to hurt people anymore, and that you can’t be abused (it’s true: only those higher than you in the group can abuse you, so everyone wants to move up, where the pool of candidates becomes smaller). Of course, people can choose to abuse anyone beneath them, and that motivates.
The Illuminati are a very political and back stabbing group, a “dog eat dog” mentality; everyone wants to move up. These are NOT nice people and they use and manipulate others viciously. They cut their eyeteeth on status, power, and money.
They never openly disclose their agenda, or their cult activities, as often they are amnesic to them. These are well-respected, “Christian” appearing business leaders in the community. The image in the community is all-important to an Illuminist; they will do anything to maintain a normal, respected facade, and DESPISE exposure. ….
None of the Illuminists that I have known, had unkind, or evil appearing, persona in their daytime lives, although some were dysfunctional, such as being alcoholics. The dissociation that drives the Illuminists is their greatest cover … Many, if not most, of these people are completely unaware of the great evil that they are involved in, during the night.”
TV
Also, remember those studies that stated that “TV violence doesn’t affect children’s behaviour” years ago? Guess who funded them? They are a bunch of bullcrud. What a person watches DOES influence them, and this is well known by the behaviourists in the group. In fact, they know that TV is a tool that they purposely use to influence “the masses”. It cannot create a total personality change in the average citizen, but it can desensitize us increasingly to violence, pornography and the occult, and influence the perceptions of young children.
Rock Music
I believe that Britney Spears, Eminem, and others are being used by them to sing lyrics they like (ever notice that he wears a Neo-Nazi look and sings hate lyrics? This is NOT by chance). In fact, many of the top pop singers come from an internship with the “Mickey Mouse club” (yep, good old Walt the Illuminist’s Empire) and I believe they are offered stardom in exchange for allegiance or mind control.
How many lyrics advocate suicide, violence, despair, or New Age spirituality in pop/rock today? Or just get a copy of the words and read (but be aware that many are possibly triggering to survivors of mind control).
Illuminati Weaknesses
Svali:
“1. Their arrogance (I think I mentioned this before) is their weakness. These people think they are untouchable, and this could make them careless.
2. If by a miracle, enough people took this SERIOUSLY and started organizing in some way to stop the Illuminati take over, with prayer and God’s guidance, perhaps they could be stopped. I hope so, with all of my heart.
3. Stopping pornography and child prostitution and drug smuggling and gun running would take out a huge chunk of their profits. Maybe they would slow down. But honestly, stopping the above would be as difficult as stopping the group.”
Public’s Denial Mechanism
Svali:
“The evidence is there, but in my opinion, the average person does NOT want to know, and even when confronted with it, will look the other way.
The Franklin case is a point. How much evidence has come out? Or the MK-Ultra documents that have been declassified, shown as real, and people ignore it.
Okay, I’ll get off my soapbox. But I believe that the media that downplays ritual abuse is feeding into a deep need in the average person to NOT know the reality. In fact, how can a person face the fact of great evil in mankind, unless they have either a strong faith in God, or are faced with insurmountable evidence? We as human beings want to believe the BEST of our race, not the worst, IMHO.
I really don’t believe people will do anything about the Illuminati even if they know. Sorry for the cynicism, but it is based on a lifetime of experience.
The Illuminists don’t care who prints this stuff, or if they are “exposed” because they are counting on the majority not believing it, having done a pretty good job with a media blitz campaign (seen any articles in Newsweek or Time lately that addresses this other than as a laughable conspiracy theory? Guess who owns Time-Warner?).
I have heard them laughing about this very thing in leadership meetings five years ago, and I doubt their attitude has changed much since then. If people DID believe this, if action could be taken, then I would be very surprised and quite happy.”
Cop Block is a decentralized project supported by a diverse group of individuals united by their shared goal of police accountability.
We highlight the double standard that some grant to those with badges by pointing to and supporting those harmed. By documenting police actions whether they are illegal, immoral or just a waste of time and resources then putting direct pressure on the individuals responsible (ideally while recording and then later sharing), we can work together to bring about transparency and have a real impact.
CopBlock.org is a resource for the education of individual rights through the dissemination of different viewpoints and tactics that seek to curtail the all-too-common rights-violations and unaccountability that today exists.
For more, check out CopBlock.org: FAQs – a document that addresses some of the most commonly-asked questions about CopBlock.org. It was drafted by contributors Pete Eyre and Ademo Freeman and, as CopBlock.org is decentralized, does not speak for all those involved.
This video, An Open Message to Police & Military puts it succinctly:
When the extreme measures have run their course there will be nothing to fall back on and nothing can save the president of a collapsing empire from the revolt of its citizens and soldiers.
The March 11 Massacre of the 17 Afghan citizens, including at least nine children and four women, raises many fundamental issues about the nature of a colonial war, the practices of a colonial army engaged in a prolonged (eleven-year) occupation and the character of an imperial state as it commits war crimes and increasingly relies on arbitrary dictatorial measures to secure public compliance and suppress dissent.
After the cold-blooded murder of the 17 Afghan villagers in Kandahar Province the US military and the ever-complicit Obama regime constructed an elaborate cover-up, exposing the Administration up to charges of conspiracy to suppress the essential facts, falsify data and obstruct justice: All are grounds for criminal prosecution and impeachment.
This massacre is just one of several hundred committed by US armed forces according to the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai. It could ruin the Obama presidency, by putting him on trial for conspiracy to obstruct justice and arguably send him to jail for war crimes.
Obama’s deliberate lies about the events surrounding the massacre and the fundamental responsibility of the high military command for the crimes committed by its troops underscores the breakdown of the occupation of Afghanistan, the very centerpiece of Obama’s war policy. The President of the United States has personally played a major role in the cover-up. From a political vantage point, the executive conspiracy charge has wider and deeper implications than the massacre itself, as horrible as it is.
The Massacre, the ‘Official’ Story (1st version) and the Cover-Up
According to the US military command in Afghanistan and the Obama regime, at 3am on March 11, 2012 a deranged soldier walked off a Special Forces Base in rural Kandahar Province and without command authority entered two villages (two miles apart), shot and killed 17 unarmed civilians, mostly women and children and wounded an unspecified number of villagers; then he doused their bodies with gasoline, set them on fire and hiked back to base to surrender himself to his commanders.
This ‘surrender’, the Pentagon claims, was recorded on video and no less than the President of the United States, Barack Obama, vouched for its authenticity as conclusive proof for the story of a lone, unbalanced mass murderer.
The military command quickly whisked the initially unnamed murderer out of the Afghanistan to the maximum security federal prison in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas and only then identified the madman as a 38-year old, multi-decorated, 11-year army veteran, Staff Sgt. Robert Bales.
The US has rejected all attempts by the Afghan President, the Afghan Army Chief and members of the Afghan Parliament to interview Sgt Bales, gather testimony and bring the suspect to trial in Afghanistan.
According to an independent Afghan parliamentary investigation led by Sayed Ishaq Gillami, and initial investigations by General Sher Mohammed Karimi of the Afghan Army, who interviewed residents of the two villages, there are significant contradictions in the US military’s and President Obama’s “official story”. Eye witnesses have testified that up to 20 soldiers were involved, aided by a helicopter. What they described was typical of a US Special Forces’ night time raid, which involved the systematic breaking down of doors, rousing the sleeping families and shooting Afghan victims.
A US Special Forces night raid in an Afghan family home in September, 2011. “Study: US Night Raids Aimed at Afghan Civilians (Obama Death Squads)”
Gordon Duff, senior editor of Veterans Today, finds the villagers version of events quite plausible for the following reasons: The villages, where the murders occurred, were two miles apart, making it highly unlikely that a lone, fully armed solder could haul a multi-gallon jerry can of gasoline from his base to the first sleeping village, break down the doors of one or more homes, commit the murders, douse and burn his victims and then proceed on foot two miles further on to the second village, shoot, kill and burn the next set of unarmed villagers and then walk back to his base and surrender.
Shekiba Hashimi, a Member of Parliament who was reading the report of their investigations mentioned that the Governor of Kandahar and the NATO forces’ Chief Commander in Kandahar both lied to Afghan people. There was not only one soldier killing all those civilians. Our investigations shows that a team of U.S. soldiers were involved in that massacre, Mrs. Hashimi added. Mrs. Hashimi mentioned that two helicopters were supporting this operation and at least 15 U.S. soldiers were involved in this barbaric action. All female victims were naked, Mrs. Hashimi added.
Shekiba Hashimi, a Member of Parliament who was reading the report of their investigations mentioned that the Governor of Kandahar and the NATO forces’ Chief Commander in Kandahar both lied to Afghan people. There was not only one soldier killing all those civilians. Our investigations shows that a team of U.S. soldiers were involved in that massacre, Mrs. Hashimi added. Mrs. Hashimi mentioned that two helicopters were supporting this operation and at least 15 U.S. soldiers were involved in this barbaric action. All female victims were naked, Mrs. Hashimi added.
It makes far more sense that a heavily armed group of Special Forces troops, engaged in village ‘pacification’ operations, left their base in military vehicles, passed through the gate in the wee hours of the morning, on a routine official operation, authorized by the bases military command and something went wrong. What was supposed to have been a typical midnight assault on a “pacified” village in search of Taliban supporters, turned into the mass murder of children and their mothers in bed with virtually no adult males (husbands, fathers, uncles or brothers) present to protect them.
Typically, all Afghan farmers keep weapons in their homes, but these villages had been disarmed by the Special Forces and the adult men had either been detained in earlier sweeps or were in hiding from just such brutal operations in the expectation that their wives and children would not be attacked.
Whatever triggered the mass murder of mothers and children in their nightclothes in those villages in Kandahar, one thing is clear: the President of the United States conspired with the US military command to obstruct justice in the cover-up of a heinous war crime, a felony punishable with impeachment.
When the implausibility first ‘official’ story became embarrassingly evident to the most superficial observer, the Obama ‘cover-up’ crew released a new version on March 26: According to the revised version of events, the lone, deranged Sgt. Bales committed the first massacre in the early morning hours of March 11, walked back to base for breakfast and lunch and then walked out again to a second village for another round of mass murder – before returning and turning himself in to his commander posing for the video.
Why the Obama Cover-Up: Military Demoralization and the Iran War
Why would President Obama engage in such a clumsy cover-up further eroding US relations with the Afghan President Karzai, the Afghan military and especially the Afghan people? Why would he risk charges of conspiracy to protect war criminals by insisting on an easily refutable cover-up?
The story of the alleged assassin, Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, provides some leads about the larger crisis facing the imperial military. Bales is a ‘decorated’ soldier rewarded for his three tours of combat duty in Iraq and his more recent Afghan assignment where he would have participated in similar types of Special Pacification Operations among civilians in the countryside in Afghanistan. In the days after news of the massacre leaked out, a furious Afghan President Karzai claimed that “hundreds” of similar massacres had been perpetrated by US and NATO forces and had gone unreported in the Western media and unpunished. Karzai has repeatedly called for an end to US Special Forces’ night raids on sleeping villages. But, until now, there had been no need for a US Presidential cover-up up. With the approaching US withdrawal from Afghanistan and the growing expressions of militant Afghan nationalism, the Obama regime must hide the true nature of the occupation. Washington’s Afghan clients can no longer ignore US war crimes against innocent children and women and other non-combatants. This is especially true in the so-called ‘pacified’ villages where the adult Afghani men have already been arrested in sweeps or driven into hiding and with the few remaining, disarmed and ‘under the control’ of the US Special Forces.
Considering even the US official story, why would the Special Forces commanders in charge of the Sgt. Bales base ignore the loud bursts of gunfire and screams of women and children in a village within 100 meters of its perimeter at 3 am? According to their official version, the base command only became aware of the massacres when Sgt. Bales walked back to base, raised his hands high for a video-op and confessed to killing and desecrating the bodies of 17, mostly children and women.
Obama has tried to sell the ‘confession’ video as proof of the ‘official version’ of events to a skeptical Afghan President Karzai who contemptuously demanded the ‘alleged’ video be turned over for a detailed examination for authenticity. Obama’s refusal to release the video tends to confirm his role in the cover-up. Obama’s contention that a ‘lone unbalanced gunman’ committed the crime is completely self-serving and exposes serious and deep structural problems with the war in Afghanistan.
US combat troops in Afghanistan are demoralized and angry because their military commanders have marched them into a cul de sac – a dead end. They are engaged in a long, losing war where every dead US soldier is accompanied by scores who are maimed, blinded and mentally traumatized.
In Obama’s war, the wounded are patched up and recycled back into the same meat grinder in an increasingly hostile environment, where rape, torture, maiming and murder become their only ‘recreation’. Sgt. Bales was coerced into multiple tours of duty in Iraq and then shipped off to Afghanistan, contrary to his expectations of a promotion and an end to overseas combat assignments.
Staff Sgt. Robert Bales (L), one of the soldiers accused of involvement in the recent massacre of Afghan civilians, at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California, August 23, 2011
There is a huge gap between the world of the political warlords in Washington and their accomplices among the warmongering ‘lobbies’ and that of the soldiers who risk their lives in imperial wars of occupation.
These dispensable soldiers are repeatedly deployed to brutal colonial wars thousands of miles from their homes to confront an ‘enemy’ they cannot possibly understand. They end up brutalizing the families, friends, neighbors and compatriots of the elusive Afghan anti-colonial fighters – who are everywhere.
Back in the Washington none of the political war-mongers ever experience the pain and suffering of a prolonged war, which for any soldier on the battlefield, is ever present, everywhere. Soldiers, like Sgt. Bales, operate in a very hostile environment where, a roadside bomb or a grenade thrown from a motorcycle, or even a ‘trusted’ Afghan ally, who might turn his gun on his US ‘mentors,’ are omnipresent threats to their ever returning home in one piece.
Speaking January 5 alongside his Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, the president announced a shift in strategy for the American military, one that emphasizes aerial campaigns and proxy wars as opposed to “long-term nation-building with large military footprints.”
Obama has to conspire with the Pentagon in covering up this mass murder, defending the officers in charge of these ‘pacified’ villages, because there are no alternatives, no back-ups, no new recruits eager to engage in the 12th year of war in Afghanistan. There are only the re-cycled killers, willing to pursue their career in ‘Special Forces’ involving ‘kill and destroy’ operations. Furthermore, Obama cannot rely on the international allies who are rushing to withdraw their own troops from this quagmire. And Obama has a problem with his allied Afghan warlords and kleptocrats, who managed to run off with over $4.5 billion dollars in 2011 (half of the entire state budget) (Financial Times, 3/19/12, p. 1). President Obama cannot allow an entire garrison, including their commanding officer to be put on trial for the war crimes in this massacre.
Holding anyone, besides the hapless Sgt. Bales, accountable for the massacre would incite a general rebellion within the armed forces, or, at a minimum, further demoralize the elite Special Forces who are expected to man these long-term engagements after the regulars withdraw, which in the case of Afghanistan could last until 2024.
This issue has implications far beyond Afghanistan: Obama has developed his entire new counter-insurgency strategy centered on the easy entry and bloody exits of US Special Forces targeting over seventy-five countries. The Special Forces figure prominently in Obama’s military preparations for Syria and Iran, which have been developed at the behest of his Zionist overlords.
In the final analysis, the entire imperial military apparatus of the Obama regime, while formidable on paper, depends on the ‘Special Operations’ formations. As such, they are the centerpiece of the new imperial warfare, developed as a response to the demands for reduced ground forces, budgetary constraints and growing domestic discontent. Their ‘actions’ are designed to leave no witnesses and no embarrassments. They may be the butchers of children, women and unarmed civilians but they are the White House’s butchers.
Despite all their crimes and cover-ups, the Obama regime’s priority is to defend the empire with whatever personnel is available at his disposal. So while Sgt. Bales is in Leavenworth, the Afghan elite cry injustice, the families in Kandahar mourn their dead and the Taliban plan their revenge.
On the domestic front, Obama faces strong popular opposition to the costly unending wars, which have destroyed the US economy, and growing anger and demoralization in the armed forces. As a result of the massive popular discontent among the American people with politicians of both parties who have recklessly sent troops into anachronistic colonial wars, which serve the interest of foreign powers, the President has issued an executive decree, allowing him to assume dictatorial powers in order to militarize the entire economy, its resources and its work force. On March 16, 2012 Barak Obama issued an Executive Order-National Defense Resource Preparedness in order to sustain the global empire.
Clearly prolonged colonial wars cannot be sustained through the consent of the citizens and such wars cannot be prosecuted according to military manuals and the Geneva Conventions. At this point, only Presidential ‘rule by decree’ can secure compliance of the citizens at home and only massacres and cover-ups can sustain the colonial occupations abroad. But these are desperate and temporary: When the extreme measures have run their course there will be nothing to fall back on and nothing can save the president of a collapsing empire from the revolt of its citizens and soldiers.
The Department of Homeland security has just executed an order for enough rounds of 40 caliber ammunition to kill every man, woman and child in the United States.
The Intel Hub alerts us to a shocking new defense contract entered by the Department of Homeland Security to secure a massive amount of ammunition, with the option for infinite supply, infinite delivery.
ATK Awarded Contract to Supply 450 Million Rounds of .40 Caliber Ammunition to the Department of Homeland Security
ATK has secured a major Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity deal to supply up to 450 million rounds of .40 caliber ammunition to the Department of Homeland Security.
The 1 year contract with four option years comes at a time when many Americans believe that DHS, along with certain aspects of the military, will soon turn their sights on the American people during some sort of martial law scenario.
“We are proud to extend our track record as the prime supplier of .40 caliber duty ammunition for DHS, ICE,” said Ron Johnson, the president of ATK’s Security and Sporting group,” reported a PR Newswire release.
The Department of Homeland Security has been extremely busy in the last few months.
Whether it be mastering their surveillance of social media, planning to buildlevel 4 bio weapons labs in the middle of the country, defending Globalism,lying to Congress about their big brother policies, labeling people who believe in conspiracy theories as potential terrorists, or taking over cyber security, DHS seems to be actively working against the American people on every front.
Considering this, the fact that they are openly ordering millions more rounds of ammunition should at the very least give the American people pause.
As 2012 continues to move forward and the awakening of the sleeping giant that is the American people kicks into high gear, federal agencies seem hell bent to continue to gear up for a possible confrontation with the people of this once great country.
ATK ATK +0.25% announced that it is being awarded an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) agreement from the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (DHS, ICE) for .40 caliber ammunition. This contract features a base of 12 months, includes four option years, and will have a maximum volume of 450 million rounds.
ATK was the incumbent and won the contract with its HST bullet, which has proven itself in the field. The special hollow point effectively passes through a variety of barriers and holds its jacket in the toughest conditions. HST is engineered for 100-percent weight retention, limits collateral damage, and avoids over-penetration.
“We are proud to extend our track record as the prime supplier of .40 caliber duty ammunition for DHS, ICE,” said Ron Johnson, President of ATK’s Security and Sporting group. “The HST is a proven design that will continue to serve those who keep our borders safe.”
ATK will produce the ammunition at the Federal Cartridge Company facility in Anoka, Minn. Deliveries are expected to begin in June.
While just a “standard disclosure” the press release goes on to warn this is forward looking contract which may change based on a variety of factors, including economic conditions.
Among those factors are: changes in governmental spending, budgetary policies and product sourcing strategies; the company’s competitive environment; the terms and timing of awards and contracts; economic conditions; the supply, availability and costs of raw materials and components; or reliance on a key supplier.
Question: Who Needs .40 Caliber?
A newbie I know got a sudden hard-on for 40 cal. “It’s what the cops use,” he said. “It’s not as cheap as 9mm,” I pointed out, knowing that my ballistic buddy was going to be doing a LOT of shooting. “It’s also harder to manage the recoil, so you’ll probably going to be less accurate. And it doesn’t make as big a hole as a .45.” I didn’t get into the .40′s history: the whole post-1986 FBI shooting“we need a bigger caliber so how about we neck-down this 10mm cartridge” deal. I think I convinced him with this: “This isn’t Goldilocks and the Three Bears. There is no ‘just right’ caliber. Big holes (.45) or more filling (9mm); pick one.” Am I wrong?
The entire concept of a “Terrorism expert” is invalid, as it is an honorific title typically assigned due to ideology and interests served rather than actual expertise.
In U.S. political and media discourse, Terrorism means little more than: that which America’s Enemies du Jour (generally Muslim Enemies) do to it, but not what America and its allies do to anyone.
Terrorism is not a real concept in which one develops “expertise”; it is, and from its introduction into world affairs always has been, a term of propaganda designed to legitimize violence by some actors while de-legitimizing very similar violence by others.
US Military Drones targeting Rescue Workers and Funerals in Pakistan
The CIA’s drone campaign targeting suspected militants in Pakistan has killed dozens of civilians who had gone to rescue victims or were attending funerals. So concludes a new report by the London-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism. It found that since President Obama took office three years ago, as many as 535 civilians have been killed, including more than 60 children. The investigation also revealed that at least 50 civilians were killed in follow-up strikes when they had gone to help victims. More than 20 civilians have also been attacked in deliberate strikes on funerals and mourners. We speak to Chris Woods, award-winning reporter with the Bureau of Investigative Journalism. “We noted that there were repeated reports at the time, contemporaneous reports in publications like New York Times, news agencies like Reuters, by CNN, that there were these strikes on rescuers, that there were reports that there had been an initial strike and then, some minutes later, as people had come forward to help and pull out the dead and injured, that drones had returned to the scene and had attacked rescuers,” Woods says. “We’ve been able to name just over 50 civilians that we understand have been killed in those attacks. In total, we think that more than 75 civilians have been killed, specifically in these attacks on rescuers and on mourners, on funeral-goers.”
Two major investigations have provided fresh evidence that civilians are continuing to be killed in Pakistan’s tribal areas by CIA drones – despite aggressive Agency denials.
In a study of ten major drone strikes in Pakistan since 2010, global news agency Associated Press deployed a field reporter to Waziristan and questioned more than 80 local people about ten CIA attacks. The results generally confirm the accuracy of original credible media reports – and in two cases identify previously unrecorded civilian deaths.
In a further case, in which an anonymous US official had previously attacked the Bureau’s findings of six civilian deaths in a 2011 strike, AP’s report has confirmed the Bureau’s work.
Anglo-American legal charity Reprieve has also filed a case with the United Nations Human Rights Council, based on sworn affidavits by 18 family members of civilians killed in CIA attacks – many of them children. Reprieve is calling on the UNHRC ‘to condemn the attacks as illegal human rights violations.’
Alex talks with a young woman going by the moniker of “Syrian Girl” who recently posted a video breaking down the role of the U.S. and Israel in provoking unrest in Syria. She also eloquently dismantles the myth of al-Qaeda, the CIA created terror group.
Since the drug war has become so unpopular with the electorate, instead of politicians actually changing the drug laws, the Department of Defense seeks to reduce and conceal the real costs by transferring the “dirty work” to private contractors to do what “U.S. military forces are not allowed or not encouraged to do.”
The BBC (in Spanish) is reporting that the U.S. Department of Defense is delegating the war on drugs to private mercenary companies. Of those companies, the increasingly infamous organization previously known as Blackwater is said to have received several multimillion-dollar government contracts for “providing advice, training and conducting operations in drug producing countries and those with links to so-called “narco-terrorism” including Latin America.”
The “no bid”contracts, issued under the Counter-Narcoterrorism Technology Program Office’s $15 billion dollar budget, are described as “non-specific” and are said to be “juicy” for the private contractors. The Pentagon says “the details of each cost in very general contracts do not go through bidding processes.”
An unnamed analyst says “the responsibility of the public and national security changing from a state’s duty to be a private business…has become the trend of the future.”
Although parts of the drug war have been privatized for years, the BBC reports this “transfer” of responsibilities is an attempt to placate those looking for Pentagon budget cuts in an election year.
According to Larry Birns, director of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs (COHA), “the drug war is unpopular and has no political weight except in an election year like this, so the Department of Defense wants to remove that spending from their accounts.”
“They surreptitiously want to reduce anti-drug budget by transferring it to private agencies,” said Birns.
Bruce Bagley, head of International Studies at the University of Miami, agrees with Birns that the main reason for privatizing the drug war is to sidestep “the high political cost.”
But this move is not without risk, as private mercenaries have known to operate outside of national and international laws. ”Here we go into a vague area where the rules of engagement are not clear and there is almost zero accountability to the public or the electorate,” said Bagley.
The Pentagon maintains that it’s perfectly legal, and mercenaries must follow strict parameters. However, Bagley points out that “few members of the Oversight Committees of the Senate and the House are aware, but they are required to keep secret, so all this flies under the radar.”
There are concerns that contractors acting independently will threaten the sovereignty of the “key countries” in which they will operate. The Pentagon says the largest efforts will occur in Latin America including Mexico, Central America, Caribbean, Columbia and other Andean countries.
Professor Bagley says these private armies could “generate a nationalist backlash if the public came to realize the situation” of operations in their countries.
Once again, the war on drugs creates the opportunity to place troops in countries where having American soldiers would be politically disadvantageous, or simply impossible.
Ultimately, the Pentagon claims they will save money because private contractors don’t have the bureaucracy and hierarchy involved in operations and because “if any of its employees dies, they are responsible.”
Apparently, humanity is the last concern for the Pentagon budget, which always seems to have plenty of money for advanced weapons systems (also privatized), but is consistently lacking in benefits for its veterans. By privatizing the drug war, they no longer have to concern themselves with paying for benefits for warriors who pledge allegiance to the United States and take an oath to defend its Constitution.
As the war on drugs is increasingly viewed as a money-draining failure, it’s unlikely that this move to privatize it will succeed in anything but creating demand for more profit, thus fueling its continuance through corporate lobbying to prevent a political end to such lunacy.
Quotes are translated from Google translator, and Eric Blair speaks adequate Spanish as a second language.
Excerpts from the Arab League observers’ report on Syria make it clear that the establishment media is only telling part of the story and exaggerating violence by the al-Assad government and its police and military.
The report mentions an “armed entity’ that is killing civilians and police and conducting terrorist attacks targeting innocent civilians. Casualties from these attacks are attributed to the al-Assad government and used to build a case against Syria in the United Nations.
Rebels in Idlib, Syria. Evidence reveals they are supported by the CIA, MI6, and Mossad.
According to the Arab League report, the “Free Syria Army” and “armed opposition groups” are responsible for many of the killings.
The report lends credence to reports filed in November of last year by journalist Webster Tarpley, who visited the Middle Eastern nation.
“What average Syrians of all ethnic groups say about this is that they are being shot at by snipers. People complained that there are terrorist snipers who are shooting at civilians, blind terrorism simply for the purpose of destabilizing the country. I would not call this civil war – it is a very misleading term. What you are dealing with here are death squads, you are dealing with terror commandos; this is a typical CIA method. In this case it’s a joint production of CIA, MI6, Mossad, it’s got money coming from Saudi Arabia, The United Arab Emirates and Qatar,” Tarpley told RT.
Tarpley said the United States is pushing a “bankrupt model of the color revolution, backed up by terrorist troops – people from Al-Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood” and the objective is “to smash the Middle East according to ethnic lines.”
Excerpts from the Arab League observers’ report make it clear “that there is widespread violence on both sides, but that the opposition and the Western media have exaggerated the violence and casualties inflicted by government forces,” writes Nicolas Davies for War Is A Crime blog, formerly After Downing Street.
“The UN has stopped accepting casualty figures claimed by the opposition, and has frozen its “official” estimate of civilian deaths at 5,400, without acknowledging that this may already be highly exaggerated,” Davies explains. “This is not yet a bloodbath on the scale of Libya, where even the new government admits that at least 25,000 people died in the NATO-led war. Syria could follow the Libya model though, if NATO and the GCC keep providing weapons and military training to the Free Syrian Army and are prepared to beef it up with special forces on the ground, and as long as the UN approves a no-fly zone to provide cover for another 9,700 air strikes.”
The establishment media put the number of dead between 1,000 and 5,000. The International Criminal Court, Hisham Abu Hajer (of the Libyan “rebels,” in other words al-Qaeda), Pravda and other sources put the number at between 50,000 and 100,000. Tarpley estimated the number at 150,000, a staggering number for a population of just under six and half million people.
“The Mission determined that there is an armed entity that is not mentioned in the protocol. This development on the ground can undoubtedly be attributed to the excessive use of force by Syrian Government forces in response to protests that occurred before the deployment of the Mission demanding the fall of the regime. In some zones, this armed entity reacted by attacking Syrian security forces and citizens, causing the Government to respond with further violence. In the end, innocent citizens pay the price for those actions with life and limb.
In Homs, Idlib and Hama, the Observer Mission witnessed acts of violence being committed against Government forces and civilians that resulted in several deaths and injuries. Examples of those acts include the bombing of a civilian bus, killing eight persons and injuring others, including women and children, and the bombing of a train carrying diesel oil. In another incident in Homs, a police bus was blown up, killing two police officers. A fuel pipeline and some small bridges were also bombed.
28. The Mission noted that many parties falsely reported that explosions or violence had occurred in several locations. When the observers went to those locations, they found that those reports were unfounded.
29. The Mission also noted that, according to its teams in the field, the media exaggerated the nature of the incidents and the number of persons killed in incidents and protests in certain towns.
According to their latest reports and their briefings to the Head of the Mission on 17 January 2012 in preparation for this report, group team leaders witnessed peaceful demonstrations by both Government supporters and the opposition in several places. None of those demonstrations were disrupted, except for some minor clashes with the Mission and between loyalists and opposition. These have not resulted in fatalities since the last presentation before the Arab Ministerial Committee on the Situation in Syria at its meeting of 8 January 2012.
Some observers reneged on their duties and broke the oath they had taken. They made contact with officials from their countries and gave them exaggerated accounts of events. Those officials consequently developed a bleak and unfounded picture of the situation.
Arab and foreign audiences of certain media organizations have questioned the Mission’s credibility because those organizations use the media to distort the facts. It will be difficult to overcome this problem unless there is political and media support for the Mission and its mandate. It is only natural that some negative incidents should occur as it conducts its activities because such incidents occur as a matter of course in similar missions.
75. Recently, there have been incidents that could widen the gap and increase bitterness between the parties. These incidents can have grave consequences and lead to the loss of life and property. Such incidents include the bombing of buildings, trains carrying fuel, vehicles carrying diesel oil and explosions targeting the police, members of the media and fuel pipelines. Some of those attacks have been carried out by the Free Syrian Army and some by other armed opposition groups.
Since its establishment, attitudes towards the Mission have been characterized by insincerity or, more broadly speaking, a lack of seriousness. Before it began carrying out its mandate and even before its members had arrived, the Mission was the target of a vicious campaign directed against the League of Arab States and the Head of the Mission, a campaign that increased in intensity after the observers’ deployment. The Mission still lack the political and media support it needs in order to fulfill its mandate. Should its mandate be extended, the goals set out in the Protocol will not be achieved unless such support is provided and the Mission receives the backing it needs to ensure the success of the Arab solution.”
Exclusive: Personal Statement from Kurt Haskell, Delta 253 Passenger
Every victim of a crime in Michigan is entitled to make a statement in open court regarding the impact of the crime on their life. The statement is limited to the victim’s physical, emotional and financial well being as it relates to the crime. Keep that in mind as you read my statement. Below is a copy of the victim impact statement I gave today at the Underwear Bomber sentencing hearing. When reading my statement, keep in mind that I am a practicing attorney in the State of Michigan. In addition, I regularly practice in the Court the hearings are taking place at and therefore, I am somewhat limited as to what I can say. We were limited to 5 minutes each.
I wish to thank the Court for allowing me these 5 minutes to make my statement. My references to the government in this statement refer to the Federal Government excluding this Court and the prosecution. On Christmas Day 2009, my wife and I were returning from an African safari and had a connecting flight through Amsterdam. As we waited for our flight, we sat on the floor next to the boarding gate. What I witnessed while sitting there and subsequent events have changed my life forever. While I sat there, I witnessed Umar dressed in jeans and a white t-shirt, being escorted around security by a man in a tan suit who spoke perfect American English and who aided Umar in boarding without a passport. The airline gate worker initially refused Umar boarding until the man in the tan suit intervened. The event meant nothing to me at the time. Little did I know that Umar would try to kill me a few hours later as our flight approached Detroit. The final 10 minutes of our flight after the attack were the worst minutes of my life. During those 10 minutes I sat paralyzed in fear. Unfortunately, what happened next has had an even greater impact on my life and has saddened me further.
When we landed, I was shocked that our plane taxied up to the gate. I was further shocked that we were forced to sit on the plane for 20 minutes with powder from the so called bomb all over the cabin. The officers that boarded the plane did nothing to ensure our safety and did not check for accomplices or other explosive devices. Several passengers trampled through parts of the bomb as they exited the plane. We were then taken into the terminal with our unchecked carry on bags. Again, there was no concern for our safety even though Umar told the officers that there was another bomb on board as he exited the plane. I wondered why nobody was concerned about our safety, accomplices or other bombs and the lack of concern worried me greatly. I immediately told the FBI my story in order to help catch the accomplice I had seen in Amsterdam. It soon became obvious that the FBI wasn’t interested in what I had to say, which upset me further. For one month the government refused to admit the existence of the man in the tan suit before changing course and admitting his existence in an ABC News article on January 22, 2010. That was the last time the government talked about this man. The video that would prove the truth of my account has never been released. I continue to be emotionally upset that the video has not been released. The Dutch police, meanwhile, in this article (show article), also confirmed that Umar did not show his passport in Amsterdam which also meant that he didn’t go through security as both are in the same line in Amsterdam. It upsets me that the government refuses to admit this fact.
I became further saddened from this case, when Patrick Kennedy of the State Department during Congressional hearings, admitted that Umar was a known terrorist, was being followed, and the U.S. allowed him into the U.S. so that it could catch Umar’s accomplices. I was once again shocked and saddened when Michael Leiter of the National Counter terrorism Center admitted during these same hearings that intentionally letting terrorists into the U.S. was a frequent practice of the U.S. Government. I cannot fully explain my sadness, disappointment and fear when I realized that my government allowed an attack on me intentionally.
During this time, I questioned if my country intentionally put a known terrorist onto my flight with a live bomb. I had many sleepless nights over this issue. My answer came shortly thereafter. In late 2010, the FBI admitted to giving out intentionally defective bombs to the Portland Christmas Tree Bomber,the Wrigley Field Bomber and several others. Further, Mr. Chambers was quoted in the Free Press on January 11, 2011 when he indicated that the government’s own explosives experts had indicated that Umar’s bomb was impossibly defective. I wondered how that could be. Certainly, I thought, Al Qaeda wouldn’t go through all of the trouble to plan such an attack only to provide the terrorist with an impossibly defective bomb.
I attended nearly all of the pretrial hearings. At the hearing on January 28, 2011, I was greatly disappointed by the prosecution’s request to block evidence from Mr. Chambers “as it could then be able to be obtained by third parties, who could use it in a civil suit against the government”. It really bothered me that the government apparently was admitting to wrongdoing of some kind as it admitted that it was concerned it would be sued. It further upset me to know that the government was putting its own interests ahead of those of the passengers.
When I attended the jury selection hearings, I questioned why versions of the same two questions kept coming up, those being:
1. Do you think you’ll be able to tell whether something is actually a bomb? and
2. Do you realize that sometimes the media doesn’t always tell the truth?
I continued to be greatly saddened at this point as I felt the truth continued to be hidden.
When Umar listed me as his only witness, I was happy to testify, not on his behalf, but on behalf of the truth. I never expected to testify, as my eyewitness account would have been too damaging to the myth that the government and media are putting forward. A mere 5 days after I was announced as a witness, there was an inexplicable guilty plea which exasperated me as I no longer would be testifying.
In closing I will just say that regardless of how the media and government try to shape the public perception of this case, I am convinced that Umar was given an intentionally defective bomb by a U.S. Government agent and placed on our flight without showing a passport or going through security, to stage a false terrorist attack to be used to implement various government policies.
The effect this matter has had on my life has been astounding and due to this case, I will never trust the government in any matter, ever.
In regards to sentencing, nothing I’ve said excuses the fact that Umar tried to kill me. He has waived his valid claim to the entrapment defense. Umar, you are not a great Muslim martyr, you are merely a “Patsy”. I ask the court to impose the mandatory sentence.
When you buy Microsoft products, you are now promoting the pharmaceutical industry and its global vaccine agenda. That’s the new reality in which we live, where the world’s largest software company is “in bed” with the world’s largest vaccine pusher.
How so? In 2009, Microsoft purchased a key piece of technology from the drug company Merck, the world’s largest maker of vaccines (which Bill Gates says can help “reduce the global population” by 10 to 15 percent). That technology, as you’ll see below, can conceivably be used to develop eugenics vaccines that target specific races and nationalities with infertility-inducing pharmaceuticals — something that is entirely consistent with Bill Gates’ openly-admitted goal of reducing world population through the use of vaccines (see link to video below).
This gene-targeting vaccine research technology purchased by Microsoft was developed by the company known as Rosetta Biosciences, formerly owned by Merck. Their software is described as a way to “figure out how genes interact with each other, analyze peptides and metabolites, and determine how they relate to gene expression.” (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/microsoft/2009288622_rosetta020…)
An announcement on the Rosetta Biosoftware web site explains, “The deal allows Microsoft to incorporate genetic, genomic, metabolomic and proteomics data management software into the Microsoft Amalga Life Sciences platform for enhanced translational research capabilities.” (http://www.rosettabio.com/company/news/rosetta_microsoft)
This same announcement goes on to say that vaccine maker Merck will “provide strategic input to Microsoft” as a part of the deal. Merck’s strategy, of course, is to make money by pimping vaccines and pharmaceuticals, including the now-infamous Gardasil vaccine.
Rupert Vessey, the vice president of Merck Research Laboratories, openly admits this deal puts Microsoft in the role of being a drug developer. He says, “We look forward to collaborating with Microsoft to develop new bioinformatic solutions to enable and expedite drug discovery and development…”
This is a key statement to understand, because the term “bioinformatic” can only mean one thing. What stores information in biology? These is only one digital storage system in human biology, and that system is, of course, DNA. Therefore, the idea of developing “bioinformatic solutions” really means to develop “gene-targeting drugs and vaccines.”
This is fully consistent with Bill Gates’ admitted agenda of reducing world population with the help of drug company technologies. At a TED conference, he announced in front of a live audience:“…if we do a really great job on new vaccines, health care, reproductive health services, we could lower [global population] by perhaps 10 or 15 percent.”(http://www.naturalnews.com/029911_vaccines_Bill_Gates.html)
What’s clear from all this is that Bill Gates is pursuing an agenda of human depopulation. This is a similar agenda of those who pursueeugenicsefforts around the globe, including Adolf Hitler and a long list of former FDA Commissioners in the United States. One of the most common ambitions of those in the highest positions of power, it seems, is to cull the human population and eliminate “the little people,” leaving only a “master race” of supreme beings.
Even major universities around the globe are now teaching students that human beings are evil for merely being alive and exhaling carbon dioxide, and that killing off humans is “green” for the planet.
In order to kill off large swaths of human beings, the most efficient mechanism to use is a self-replicating, gene-targeted bioweapon. Microsoft’s Amalga Life Sciences technology, purchased from vaccine developer March, theoretically provides a viable platform to develop precisely such bioweapons. It is interesting that no announcements from the company appear to have been made since being acquired by Microsoft in 2009, indicating that their work is now being conducted in total secrecy, behind closed doors.
U.S. government admits developing weaponized, deadly flu strains
Recent headlines reveal that the United States government has also secretly funded bioweapons research that resulted in the development of super-deadly flu strains that could wipe out far more than just 15 percent of the human population. As revealed in recent news headlines:
“Scientists agreed Friday to a 60-day moratorium on research into a modified avian flu virus that has been demonstrated to be more transmissible among mammals. Although the investigators believe their research has a public health benefit, they acknowledge the fear of some governments and others that the genetically altered virus could escape from labs and infect people.”(http://www.philly.com/philly/health/news/HealthDay660965_20120120_Res…)
That may be precisely the point, it turns out. There is no better way to promote the vaccine profits of the pharmaceutical industry than to actually release an engineered bioweapon virus into the wild. And there is no faster way to reduce the world population than to engineer either a vaccine or a weaponized flu virus that burns through the human population, targeting those of an “undesirable” genetic profile who need to be “cleansed” from the human gene pool.
This about this the next time you think about purchasing Microsoft Office, Windows or some other Microsoft product. By doing so, you are funding what could very well be a global eugenics agenda with the ultimate goal of wiping out a significant proportion of the human race.
Mike Adams Natural News
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Loose Change documents the true purpose of the “False Flag” 9-11 attack on America, perhaps the greatest treasonous crime in modern history. Turns out is was also likely the biggest gold heist in history… crimes which are all quite familiar to the Bush Crime/CIA Family. Including bank & S&L bailout scams…
A federal investigation of an Iranian dissident group that has targeted a number of former government officials seems to have bypassed K Street.
Lobby firms and clients who have been working to remove the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK) — otherwise known as the People’s Mujahedin of Iran — from the State Department’s list of terrorist organizations told The Hill they have not been subpoenaed by federal authorities.
Former government officials such as Ed Rendell, the Democratic ex-governor of Pennsylvania, and Gen. Hugh Shelton, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have come under scrutiny from federal investigators over the speaking fees they were paid to deliver speeches supporting MEK, according to press reports.
Subpoenas have reportedly been issued for Rendell, Shelton and others.
But lobby firms that have worked to legitimize MEK in the United States said the investigation hasn’t reached them.
Victoria Toensing, a founding partner of diGenova & Toensing, said her firm has not received a subpoena and doesn’t expect to.
“Why would I receive a subpoena?” Toensing said. “I was paid by individuals who are Americans and live in Texas. They are not on the terrorist list.”
Toensing’s firm was paid $110,000 by the Iranian-American Community of North Texas before the lobbying registration was terminated last year, according to lobbying disclosure records.
Toensing said she was “furious” about the reports that former government officials who have spoken in favor of MEK have been subpoenaed.
“They have used government authority to subvert the First Amendment,” Toensing said. “When a government violates a court order, are we not allowed to speak out against them?”
Toensing was referring to a federal court ruling from July of 2010 that required the State Department to review its designation of the MEK as a terrorist group.
Supporters argue MEK was placed on the list in 1997 by the Clinton administration to help improve relations between the United States and Iran.
Homeira Hesami, president of the Iranian-American Community of North Texas, also said her group has not been subpoenaed. She called the investigation “a smokescreen” by the State Department, which she believes is stalling on reviewing the group’s designation as a terrorist organization.
“I am reminded of an adage: ‘If you don’t like the message, shoot the messenger.’ This is a smokescreen and an obvious attempt by the State Department to sidestep the principal issue,” Hesami said. “This is a clear case of abuse of power.”
According to the State Department, MEK was founded in the 1960s by college-educated Iranian Marxists who opposed the shah of Iran. In 1981, the group attempted to overthrow the new Islamic regime. State says the group was also behind several terrorist attacks in the 1970s that killed Americans in Iran.
MEK supporters say the organization today is pursing freedom and democracy and is not engaged in terrorism. They also deny it was ever Marxist or had a role in the attacks that killed Americans. U.S. backers of MEK say the group’s opposition to the Iranian regime could help the United States as tensions grow over Iran’s nuclear program.
Over the past year, the push to remove MEK from the terrorist list has become an attention-grabbing public campaign, involving legal action, lobbying, TV ads and speeches by big names in politics.
It has also reportedly triggered a federal investigation due to suspicion over who is paying for the ex-officials’ speeches. Receiving payments from a terrorist group, or providing services to one, can be against the law.
On March 9, the Washington Times reported that Rendell had received a subpoena for MEK payment records from the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. This past Friday, MSNBC reported that speaking agencies representing former FBI Director Louis Freeh and Shelton had also been subpoenaed.
Others have lobbied to remove MEK from the terrorist-group list.
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld earned $290,000 in lobbying fees in 2011 from the Iranian-American Community of Northern California, according to lobbying disclosure records. Last quarter, former Reps. Vic Fazio (D-Calif.) and Bill Paxon (R-N.Y.) were among the lobbyists working to remove MEK from the list.
An Akin Gump spokesman said the firm has not received a subpoena from Treasury regarding its work on behalf of the client.
Ahmad Moein, executive director of the Iranian-American Community of Northern California, said his group has not received a subpoena.
Others have worked to draw attention to Camp Ashraf in Iraq, where more than 3,000 MEK members live. The Iraqi military has attacked the camp in the past, leaving several MEK members dead.
PR firm Brown Lloyd James signed a $40,000, two-month contract last year to bring attention to the camp. Ali Taslimi, an individual living in Germany, paid for the contract, which included distributing press releases, hosting a dinner for reporters and inviting media to a Paris conference on Camp Ashraf, according to Justice records.
In a statement, the firm said it had not been subpoenaed regarding its work on behalf of Taslimi, which has since ended.
“We understood that ‘delisting’ was one of the many issues tied to the broader humanitarian situation. We have not been contacted by any authorities concerning this work, which was brief, duly reported and ended nearly one year ago,” said Brown Lloyd James.
John Sullivan, a Treasury spokesman, declined to say whether any of the firms were under federal investigation.
“The Department of the Treasury does not comment on potential investigations,” Sullivan said. He also said that the MEK is a terrorist group and enforcement of sanctions are taken “seriously.”
“The MEK is a designated terrorist group; therefore, U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with or providing services to this group. The Treasury Department takes sanctions enforcement seriously and routinely investigates potential violations of sanctions laws,” Sullivan said.
On March 6, 2012, I wrote an article entitled “Mass Banking Resignations Signal A Purging Has Begun?” where I included a list of banking directors, CEOs, and board members of both national and international financial institutions standing who have resigned from their post since September 2011. The data was collected and compiled by independent blog American Kabuki and posted online complete with a description of the individual, location, and link to the resignation announcement where it was covered in the mainstream media.
At the time my article was posted, the list had already topped 122. This prompted many, including myself, to question whether or not 122 was actually such a large number, given that there are many national and international institutions across the globe, as well as the fact that these resignations took place within a span of a period of about five months.
Certainly, the number seemed enormous.
Apparently American Kabuki had the same questions. Only a few weeks after the initial posting, the blogger posted a chart that included the number of resignations filed with the SEC, as required by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, going back to 2008 and in to the fourth quarter of 2011. Tracing the resignations back to 2008 would, obviously, provide something close to a representative sample of the normal rate of resignation over a period of three years.
What these statistics revealed was a staggering increase in the number of resignations announced around the second and third quarters of 2011.
However, chart or no chart, the recently revised number regarding resignations from financial firms, banks, etc. seems to put many of the questions to rest.
Indeed, a recent post by American Kabuki now shows that the number of resignations stand at 358, almost triple the number originally posted.
The revised list of resignations will be included at the end of this article along with the links to the announcements.
With all of this in mind, and, if the research provided by American Kabuki is correct, then the only question really left for us to ask is “Why?”
Why are so many bankers, CEOs, fund managers, and investors resigning all at once? Why now?
One might be tempted to ask whether or not there is a coming investigation that these individuals are trying to avoid but, given the track record of the regulatory system, this is not our most likely option. Considering the current state of the economy, it might seem more logical to ask if these individuals are not trying to abandon ship before the collapse of the world financial system finally takes place.
Or it could be something entirely different. At this point, we simply do not know. Regardless, something big is obviously happening in the financial world and the forces behind it are acting on information that the general public is unaware of.
List of resignations as compiled by American Kabuki:
9/01/11 (USA NY) Bank of New York Mellon Chief Robert P. Kelly Resigns in a Shake-UP http://goo.gl/NdW7q
9/06/11 (BELGIUM) Dexia confirmed that its CEO Stefaan Decraene had left the company. Its exposures to sovereign debt in the PIIGS nations are larger than its core Tier 1 capital. http://goo.gl/vuhvd
9/09/11 (GERMANY) European Central Bank (ECB) governing board member Jürgen Stark, who has resigned http://goo.gl/t83S4
9/12/11 (HONG KONG) HSBC Group Hang Seng Bank Non-Executive Director Mark McCombe resigns http://goo.gl/mCTgi
9/14/11 (USA NJ) Columbia Bank CEO Raymond G. Hallock Announces Retirement http://goo.gl/UjUZY
9/14/11 (NEW ZELAND) AMP NZ Office Limited (ANZO), Mark Verbiest has resigned as a director. His resignation arises due to his desire to devote the necessary time and energy to his prospective new role as Chairman of Telecom, assuming the Telecom demerger is sanctioned by Telecom shareholders. http://goo.gl/LjSI0
9/15/11 (USA NY) Morgan Stanley, Chairman John Mack resigns http://goo.gl/jWWv7
9/18/11 (JORDAN) Central Bank governor Faris Sharaf resigns over policy http://goo.gl/8yU5N
9/20/11 (SCOTLAND) SCOTTISH WIDOWS (RETIREMENT INVESTMENT SAVINGS FUND) There could be no Scottish representative on the board of Lloyds Banking Group, owner of Bank of Scotland, in future after it announced the departure of Lord Sandy Leitch, the chairman of Scottish Widows and group deputy chairman. http://goo.gl/Dx8qs
9/21/11 (AUSTRALIA & NZ) JP Morgan Australia and New Zealand Worldwide Securities Services CEO Jane Perry resigned http://goo.gl/Qx0Va
9/25/11 (SWITZERLAND) UBS CEO Oswald Gruebel quits over £1.5bn rogue trader crisis http://goo.gl/WCeqB
9/25/11 (USA CA)Douglas E. Tow, Executive Vice President and Chief Credit Officer, will retire from the Company http://goo.gl/24aAU
9/28/11 (SWITZERLAND) SNB Bank Council: Fritz Studer resigns as per end-April 2012 http://goo.gl/7dNiD
9/29/11 (UK) Barclays, Head of UK & European Retail Banking Deanna Oppenheimer resigned. http://goo.gl/o63jO
9/29/11 (USA NM) New Mexico Pension Fund Director Terry Slattery Resigns http://goo.gl/BzLn4
9/30/11 (SINGAPORE) AIMS AMP CAP INDUSTRIAL REIT, Ms Tang Buck Kiau resigned. http://goo.gl/VGxjv
10/01/11 (USA MO) Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Thomas M. Hoenig retired on Oct. 1, 2011 http://goo.gl/B8WK7
10/03/11 (INDIA) The of Euram Bank Asia, president Arun Panchariya, has resigned after being implicated in a stock trading scandal in India. http://goo.gl/yh2bF
10/03/11 (GHANA) Intercontinental Bank Ghana Limited, Managing Director and CEO Albert Mmegwa resigned. http://goo.gl/Vc252
10/03/11 (USA FL) Quantek Opportunity Fund, portfolio manager Javier Guerra. Arbitration awarded $1 million damages to Aris Multi-Strategy Fund. Quantek Asset Management made false statements to Aris. http://goo.gl/udpBA
10/05/11 (UK) UBS co-chief François Gouws of global equities had resigned after last month’s revelation of a $2.3 billion loss from unauthorized trading. http://goo.gl/OuUjr
10/05/11 (UK) UBS co-chief Yassine Bouhara of global equities had resigned after last month’s revelation of a $2.3 billion loss from unauthorized trading. http://goo.gl/OuUjr
10/10/11 (BELGIUM) Dexia (Franco-Belgian bank) its chairman Jean-Luc Dehaene will give up his role on the board of Dexia’s Belgian division, which is being sold to the Belgian state as part of a rescue deal, the group said on Monday. http://goo.gl/vyldE
10/11/11 (UK) BlackRock, head of sterling portfolios and manager of the Corporate Bond fund, Paul Shuttleworth, has resigned after 11 years at the firm. http://goo.gl/FMBjw
10/11/11 (UK) Dynamic Funds, portfolio manager David Taylor has resigned. http://goo.gl/GZCt5
10/11/11 (CHINA) China Construction Bank Non-Executive Direct Sue Yang resigns for personal reasons. http://goo.gl/ip8Un
10/13/11 (UK) Cogent Partners co-head research department Katita Palamar resigned. http://goo.gl/TVLWO
10/13/11 (UK) Cogent Partners co-head research department Bill Farrell resigned. http://goo.gl/TVLWO
10/14/11 (USA TX) Deutsche Bank Investment Advisor Griffin Perry resigns, SEC regulations prevented him from campaigning for his father Rick Perry’s Presidential campaign. http://goo.gl/R0PgH
10/23/11 (USA) Fairholme Capital Management LLC, Director Charles Fernandez stepped down for personal reasons. Fairholme Fund has lost 26 percent of its net asset value due to bets that have backfired on AIG Inc, Bank of America Corp and Florida-based landowner and developer St Joe Co. http://goo.gl/vzTbY
10/24/11 (ICELAND) Icelandic State Financial Investments board members of Icelandic State Financial Investments have resigned following “outside interference” with their Sept. 30 decision to hire Pall Magnusson, the former political adviser to the island’s industry minister, as chief executive officer. [names and positions have been requested from the reporter on 3/9/12] http://goo.gl/lEpz2
10/24/11 (SINGAPORE) Keppel Corporation Limited, Teo Soon Hoe will resign from his role as group finance director Jan 1. http://goo.gl/l90be
10/26/11 (INDIA) Beed District Bank (Coop Bank) CEO B S Deshmukh arrested for embezzling Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd payment deposits. http://goo.gl/CXL7Z
10/26/11 (INDIA) Beed District Bank (Coop Bank) former CEO A N Kulkarni arrested for embezzling Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd payment deposits. http://goo.gl/CXL7Z
10/27/11 (USA NY) Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Inc (KBW) CEO John Duffy stepped aside. Duffy has prostate cancer. http://goo.gl/i1s3E
10/29/11 (CHINA) China Construction Bank Corp Chairman Guo Shuqing resigns http://goo.gl/fdd9v
10/29/11 (CHINA) Agricultural Bank of China Ltd Chairman Xiang Junbo resigns http://goo.gl/yWX9R
10/31/11 (EUROPEAN COMMUNITY) European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet, resigns. http://goo.gl/ygG59
11/01/11 (INDIA) Beed District Bank (Coop Bank More directors resign [research still being conducted on the names] http://goo.gl/HD8BQ
11/02/11 (UK) Lloyds Banking Group chief executive, António Horta-Osório, is to take leave of absence on health grounds for six to eight weeks, the BBC has reported. (STILL OUT AS OF 2/24/12 – DEFACTO RESIGNATION) http://goo.gl/3L9gE
11/03/11 (POLAND) Nordea Bank Poland, Wlodzimierz Kicinski resigned from as President of the Management Board of Nordea Bank Poland as of the 10th of November. http://goo.gl/oKUVZ
11/04/11 (USA NY) MF Global, Jon Corzine, stepped down as chairman and CEO, hired criminal attorney to represent him. http://goo.gl/tUaVY
11/10/11 (EUROPEAN COMMUNITY) European Central Bank Lorenzo Bini Smaghi resigned from the European Central Bank’s Executive Board. http://goo.gl/Invjc
11/11/11 (HONG KONG) Goldman Sachs’ Asia Pacific co-head Yusuf Alireza is retiring from the investment bank after 19 years http://goo.gl/pejs3
11/10/11 (INDIA) UBS The head of India operations at UBS AG , Manisha Girotra, has resigned http://goo.gl/3aTh2
11/15/11 (USA NY) Icahn Enterprises LP, senior managing director of health-care investing, Alex Denner, has resigned. http://goo.gl/X1A4i
11/16/11 (EUROPEAN COMMUNITY) International Monetary Fund Europe, director Antonio Borges resigns for personal reasons. http://goo.gl/55CqZ
11/17/11 (NETHERLANDS) Syntrus Achmea (pensions manager), CIO Marjolein Sol is resigning. http://goo.gl/Xqxsr
11/18/11 (SCOTLAND) Scottish Widows Investment Partnership Limited (SWIP) Private Equity Fund, wish to announce the resignation of John Brett from the Board of Directors of the Company, for business reasons. http://goo.gl/MLsp8
11/21/11 (JAPAN) UBS’s Japan Investment Banking Chairman Matsui to Resign http://goo.gl/OiDiq
11/23/12 (USA SC & NC) Bank of the Carolinas, CFO Eric Rhodes resigns for personal reasons. Bank of the Carolinas was delisted from the NASDAQ on 3/9/12 http://goo.gl/oytcD
11/24/12 (IRELAND) AXA Rosenberg Management Ireland Limited, director Simon Vanstone resigns. http://goo.gl/x5Fl6
11/28/11 (LATVIA) Latvia’s chief banking regulator, Irena Krumane, said she resigned today, a week after the state took over Latvijas Krajbanka AS (LKB1R), the Baltic News Service reported. The bank regulator suspended operations at Krajbanka, a subsidiary of Lithuania’s Bankas Snoras AB, on Nov. 21 and said around 100 million lati ($191.8 million) was missing. The Lithuanian government seized Snoras on Nov. 16 saying assets reported on the lender’s balance sheet were missing. http://goo.gl/mUvLF
11/29/11 (USA)R. David Land Submits Resignation from the Boards of Directors of Peoples Bancorp. and Seneca National Bank http://goo.gl/XncOc
11/29/11 (NORWAY) Carnegie ASA’s co-head of investment banking in Norway, Cato Holmsen, has resigned http://goo.gl/utIfy
11/29/11 (FRANCE) AXA Real Estate Investment Managers, Global head of business development, strategy and research for Kiran Patel, has handed in his resignation. Patel was with the firm for 11 years. http://goo.gl/iGjB6
11/30/11 (LITHUANIA) Lithuania Central Bank, Governor Vitas Vasiliauskas fired Kazimieras Ramonas, head of the banking supervision department, after seizing Bankas Snoras AB, the country’s third-biggest deposit bank. http://goo.gl/EiqUC
12/01/11 (SRI LANKA) Sri Lanka’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) head Indrani Sugathadasa resigned. http://goo.gl/6qzny
12/02/11 (PAKISTAN) NIB Bank, Singapore forced resignation of CEO Khawaja Iqbal Hassan, for mismanagement http://goo.gl/ojDcu
12/03/11 (USA SC) South Carolina’s $25 billion pension fund chief investor Robert Borden resigned. Borden’s resignation comes as the SC Retirement System faces a $13 billion deficit, prompting state lawmakers to call for a massive overhaul of the system. http://goo.gl/ypK2G
12/05/11 (BERMUDA) HSBC Bermuda Ltd, chairman of the board and director John Campbell resigns http://goo.gl/peFGD
12/05/11 (BERMUDA) HSBC Bermuda Ltd, CEO Philip Butterfield retires http://goo.gl/peFGD
12/06/11 (USA ) Western Liberty Bancorp CFO George Rosenbaum has resigned. http://goo.gl/ozuwB
12/08/11 (USA) Fidelity Global Special Situations Fund, manager Jorma Korhonen resigned. http://goo.gl/a7Rhw
12/19/11 (CANADA) Holloway Lodging Real Estate Investment Trust (a REIT) CEO Glenn Squires has resigned http://goo.gl/8rAKb
12/19/11 (JAPAN) Citibank Japan CEO, Darren Buckley, resigns after Citibank was punished by regulators for the third time in seven years. http://goo.gl/ScT47
12/19/11 (DENMARK) Danske Bank Peter Straarup, who will retire February 15 http://goo.gl/06c2b
12/19/11 (DENMARK) Danske Bank Eivind Kolding has resigned as Chairman of the Board of Directors and from the three board committees on which he served, He continues as member of Danske Bank’s Board of Directors until he assumes the position of Chairman of the Executive Board on 15 February 2012. On the same day, at the latest, Eivind Kolding will resign from the A.P. Moller-Maersk Group. http://goo.gl/06c2b
12/20/11 (UK) Prudential (UK) Chairman Harvey McGrath has informed the Board of his intention to retire from the Board in 2012 once a successor has been found. http://goo.gl/IPOzf
12/20/11 (USA MA) Century Bancorp, Inc., Director Roger S. Berkowitz resigned. http://goo.gl/bbdeT
12/21/11 (USA MN) Voyager Bank, fired CEO trade accusations, New details have emerged in Voyager Bank’s firing of its CEO in a court filing that accuses him of defrauding the bank of $15 million. The former CEO, Timothy Owens, has sued the bank for wrongful termination and accused the bank of defaming him. http://goo.gl/3Q1Vg
12/23/11 (USA VA) Virginia National Bank (VNB) Chairman Mark Giles quits http://goo.gl/dFDpH
12/23/11 (USA VA) Virginia National Bank (VNB) Board Member Claire Gargalli quits http://goo.gl/kowkW
12/23/11 (USA VA) Virginia National Bank (VNB) Board Member Leslie Disharoon quits http://goo.gl/kstLp
12/23/11 (USA VA) Virginia National Bank (VNB) Board Member Neal Kassell quits http://goo.gl/NrrPZ
12/23/11 (USA) Third Avenue Value Fund, co-manager Marty Whitman is leaving. http://goo.gl/iMe99
1/01/12 (NIGERIA) United Bank for Africa Plc Victor Osadolor resigns http://goo.gl/b6AoA
1/01/12 (ISRAEL) Israel’s Bank Leumi CEO Galia Maor steps down after 16 years http://goo.gl/xwlFt
1/03/12 (GREECE) Marfin Popular Bank Public Co Ltd, Mr Eleftherios Hiliadakis has resigned from the Board of Directors. http://goo.gl/MuFa0
1/03/12 (USA VA) Suffolk Bancorp president and CEO J. Gordon Huszagh steps down http://goo.gl/joExI
1/03/12 (USA WI)Michael Falbo, president and CEO of Southport Bank, has resigned just six months after accepting the position. http://goo.gl/DP1uK
1/03/12 (UK) Arbuthnot Banking Group: Neil Kirton resigned from the Board http://goo.gl/SKE7j
1/03/12 (UK) Arbuthnot Banking Group: Atholl Turrell left the Board. http://goo.gl/bzZtQ
1/05/12 (UK) Saunderson House [Private Bank] CEO Nick Fletcher steps down http://goo.gl/zvo1L
1/05/12 (USA NY) Blackstone/GSO Senior Floating Rate Term Fund and Blackstone/GSO Long-Short Credit Income Fund announced that John R. O’Neill has resigned. http://goo.gl/ZiWGL
1/07/12 (UK) Arab Banking Corporation Intl. Bank (ABCIB) Manama, Bahrain: ABCIB announced retirement of CEO Nofal Barbar from its London office. http://goo.gl/yF0Mm
1/09/12 (SWITZERLAND) SNB Chairman Philipp Hildebrand resigns http://goo.gl/5qsUu
1/09/12 (USA WASHINGTON DC) Whitehouse former banker and Chief of Staff William M. Daley resigned http://goo.gl/34F0B
1/09/12 (USA NY) Morgan Stanley Chief Legal Officer Frank Barron retires. http://goo.gl/XYCwJ
1/09/12 (SWITZERLAND) Temenos Group AG, provider of core banking software announced the resignation of Mark Austen as a member of the Board of Directors. http://goo.gl/l6QzM
1/10/12 (USA IN) Security Bank of Springfield, president and CEO Steve Cour has announced plans to retire at the end of June. http://goo.gl/jFbYA
1/11/12 (KAZAKHSTAN) BTA Bank, CEO Marat Zairov resigns for health reasons. http://goo.gl/yAHgr
1/11/12 (SWITZERLAND)La Banque Privée Edmond de Rothschild, CEO Claude Messulam resigns, replaced by Christophe de Backer, Claude Messulam to become a director of the bank holding company. http://goo.gl/vWr3i
1/12/12 (USA) Goldman Sachs, Co-Head Securities Trading Edward K. Eisler retires http://goo.gl/i2TVk
1/12/12 (USA) Goldman Sachs, Co-Head Securities Trading David B. Heller retires http://goo.gl/i2TVk
1/13/12 (IRELAND) National Asset Management Agency, head of lending Graham Emmett is resigning http://goo.gl/GN3h3
1/13/12 (USA DC) World Bank, Vice President for Africa, Oby Ezekwesili will retire from her position at the World Bank in May. http://goo.gl/fiUsU
1/17/12 (CANADA) Cumberland Private Wealth Management CIO John Wilson quit to join another money manager. http://goo.gl/3JuNJ
1/17/12 (HONG KONG) Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited (OCBC Bank) CEO David Conner retires. http://goo.gl/83Z1i
1/17/12 (UK) Morgan Stanley Intl, chairman Walid Chammah is retiring. An inside source speculated that it could mean that the company had suffered exposure to European sovereign debt woes under Chammah’s purview. http://goo.gl/e7vS7
1/17/12 (KUWAIT) Commercial Bank of Kuwait S.A.K. Board Member Ali Yousef Al Awwadhy resigned. http://goo.gl/0PoIM
1/17/12 (KUWAIT) Commercial Bank of Kuwait S.A.K. Board Member Miss Anoud Fadhel Al Hathran resigned. http://goo.gl/0PoIM
1/17/12 (KUWAIT) Commercial Bank of Kuwait S.A.K. Board Member Mr. Tarek Farid Al Othman resigned. http://goo.gl/0PoIM
1/17/12 (KUWAIT) Commercial Bank of Kuwait S.A.K. Board Member Mr. Salem Ali Hassan Al Ali resigned. http://goo.gl/0PoIM
1/17/12 (KUWAIT) Commercial Bank of Kuwait S.A.K. Board Member Mr. Majed Ali Oweid Awadh resigned. http://goo.gl/0PoIM
1/17/12 (KUWAIT) Commercial Bank of Kuwait S.A.K. Board Member Mr. Badr Suliman Al Ahmed resigned. http://goo.gl/0PoIM
1/18/12 (USA) Goldman Sachs co-heads of Goldman’s securities business David Heller resigns. http://goo.gl/TMHvx
1/18/12 (USA) Goldman Sachs co-heads of Goldman’s securities business Edward Eisler resigns. http://goo.gl/TMHvx
1/18/12 (USA) Goldman Sachs co-head of its investment management division Ed Forst resigns. http://goo.gl/TMHvx
1/19/12 (UK) Santander, senior director Americas division Francisco Luzón is retiring with a pension pot of about €56m, a package whose generous size is expected to reignite controversy over bankers’ remuneration. http://goo.gl/XMRvP
1/19/12 (EGYPT) Beltone Financial Holding (BTFH) Alaa’ Sabaa resigned from board of directors. http://goo.gl/5Eze1
1/19/12 (EGYPT) Beltone Financial Holding (BTFH) Wael EL Mahgary resigned from board of directors. http://goo.gl/5Eze1
1/20/12 (USA NY) JPMorgan Chase, Mortgage Banking Default organization head Scott Powell has decided to leave the bank. http://goo.gl/TCYpT
1/20/12 (JAPAN) Normura’s head of wholesale banking Jasjit Bhattai quits http://goo.gl/6FuWe
1/20/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) First National Bank’s sharia banking division is in a state of flux after it was hit by a corporate governance scandal in which its chief executive, Ebi Patel, was put on “special leave” for almost a month while an internal probe was conducted. Patel has been reinstated, but is facing disciplinary action. Islamic finance forbids the payment and receipt of interest (riba), and investment in some industries. Sharia law states that interest-bearing transactions result in economic ills such as unemployment and high inflation. Trading in derivatives and speculative investment are also forbidden. Sharia law requires all transactions to be backed by tangible assets. http://goo.gl/NmGJP
1/20/12 (USA) TIAA-CREF executive vice president and president of Asset Management, Scott C. Evans resigned http://goo.gl/f6qLs
1/20/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) South African deputy economic development minister Enoch Godongwana quit his post this week in the face of growing outrage in government circles about his involvement in a company that allegedly defrauded clothing factory workers of R100-million of their pension fund money. http://goo.gl/ZADvn
1/21/12 (UK) Butterfield Private Bank head Danny Dixon Steps Down http://goo.gl/sdY1p
1/21/12 (SINGAPORE) ANZ Asia’s private banking head Nina Aguas resigns as managing director of Asia-Pacific private banking. http://goo.gl/hlHvG
1/21/12 (USA CA) Nara Bancorp (Now called BBCN) President and CEO Min Kim Resigns http://goo.gl/rcfJ3
1/22/12 (KENYA) National Bank of Kenya’s (NBK) managing director, Mr Reuben Marambii, will resign before year end. http://goo.gl/c2n7r
1/24/12 (IRELAND) Deutsche International Corporate Services Limited fund, Paul Shevlin resigned as a director http://goo.gl/OjZFF
1/24/12 (SWITZERLAND) Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Dr. Michel Kazatchkine, a French clinical immunologist and head of the $22.6 billion fund has abruptly resigned, since revelations about corruption and misspending severely rattled some of its biggest donors. The resignation came on the eve of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, which played a role in its creation a decade ago. A dinner for the public-private fund is planned Thursday with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and major backers Bill Gates and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The shakeup resulted from an internal review to address problems highlighted in Associated Press stories last year about the loss of tens of millions of dollars in grant money because of mismanagement and alleged fraud. Its biggest private donor is the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which has pledged $1.15 billion and provided it with $650 million so far. http://goo.gl/bqXs8
1/25/12 (UK) SOFIA PROPERTY FUND LIMITED, Gerry Williams has resigned as a Director, following his resignation from Ardel Holdings Limited (“Ardel”) where he was CEO. Ardel is the holding company of Ardel Fund Services Limited which provides administration services in Guernsey to the Company. http://goo.gl/kDfVv
1/25/12 (USA NY) Fortress Private Equity, CEO Daniel Madrid (aka Daniel Mudd) has resigned. Madrid was forced to leave in order to deal with SEC allegations. Prior to joining Fortress, Madrid served as Fannie Mae CEO and was forced to resign. SEC sued Madrid and former Freddie Mac CEO Richard West Long (aka Richard Syron) for hiding hundreds of billions of dollars in subprime loans. Madrid denied the SEC allegations saying the US govt. and investors were informed of Fannie Mae’s loan data. http://goo.gl/u9IdB and http://goo.gl/v94ik and http://goo.gl/tXQwP
1/27/12 (SINGAPORE) AIMS AMP CAP INDUSTRIAL REIT, Mr Graham Sugden resigned. http://goo.gl/VZYHY
1/27/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) ABSA Group COO Alfie Naidoo would be leaving to pursue personal interests http://goo.gl/cVWnA
1/27/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) ABSA Group chief marketing and communication officer Happy Ntshingila, will be taking up an “exciting position” outside banking http://goo.gl/cVWnA
1/27/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) ABSA Group CEO Daphne Motsepe retires at the end of April after a 10-year career at the bank. http://goo.gl/cVWnA
1/29/12 (PORTUGAL) Banco Santander Totta SA executive chairman Nuno Manuel da Silva Amado has resigned http://goo.gl/Glvdn
1/29/12 (NEW ZEALAND) New Zealand Reserve Bank Gov Alan Bollard to Step Down http://goo.gl/BwUgv
1/29/12 (UAE) NBD, Emirates ‘s investment banking division CEO Suresh Kumar is leaving the bank http://goo.gl/S1x0F
1/30/12 (UK) British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (BVCA) COO Andrew Graham steps down http://goo.gl/4SDW8
1/31/12 (SCOTLAND) Royal Bank of Scotland former CEO Fred Goodwin Stripped of Knighthood http://goo.gl/CoLVS
2/01/12 (SYRIA) Arab Bank Syria Board member Basma Talal Zein resigns. http://goo.gl/WXxzw
2/01/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) ABSA [Barclay’s Bank] deputy CEO Louis von Zeuner resigns http://goo.gl/IP8nH
2/01/12 (UK) Lloyds Bankging Group head of wholesaleTruett Tate quits http://goo.gl/OqRVo
2/01/12 (UK) Llyods Banking Group Tim Tookey leaving end of February http://goo.gl/vjO5M
2/02/12 (VENEZUELA) Banking Crisis Arne Chacon arrested for Banking Corruption http://goo.gl/bb5sh
2/02/12 (USA) American Perspective Bank, President and CEO Thomas J. Beene resigned. http://goo.gl/K66eb
2/02/12 (USA) NIR Group hedge funds, Corey Ribotsky was forced out of NIR by Pricewaterhouse-Coopers, the court-appointed liquidator, following allegations of fraud by the Securities and Exchange Commission. In September, the SEC sued Ribotsky and NIR for taking more than $1 million of investors’ money to buy cars and watches.
2/02/12 (IRELAND) AXA Rosenberg Management Ireland Limited, director Nathalie Savey resigned. http://goo.gl/cXB8u
2/03/12 (UK) VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd, Non-Executive Director Horst Geicke has resigned. http://goo.gl/r955T
2/03/12 (UK) UBS London trader, Kweku M. Adoboli, was arrested and charged with fraud and false accounting, forcing UBS to announce a $2.3 billion trading loss. http://goo.gl/ClTaq
2/05/12 (USA – NY) Morgan Stanley investment banking Tarek Abdel-Meguid quit http://goo.gl/bRv9K
2/06/12 (INDIA) Dhanlaxmi Bank CEO Amitabh Chaturvedi quits: http://goo.gl/OhCEb
2/06/12 (USA NY) TD Ameritrade, head of retail distribution John Bunch resigns. Bunch is leaving to take the top job at a small investment advisory firmin Kansas City. http://goo.gl/kgS7M
2/07/12 (USA) Bank Of America’s Mortgage Business Chief Barbara Desoer Retires http://goo.gl/i7AUY
2/07/12 (IRAN) Iran denies central bank resignation rumor (don’t believe until its denied?) http://goo.gl/PiQSy
2/08/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) Standard Bank Group Ltd – Resignation of Group Secretary Loren Wulfsohn http://goo.gl/K1pfn
2/08/12 (USA OH) Cleveland International Fund (CIF) private equity fund, A.Eddy Zai launched and led the Cleveland International Fund, an investment outfit that pairs wealthy foreign investors hoping for U.S. residency with job-creating projects. Zai resigned from his job this week, before being indicted in a bank-fraud scheme that, according to investigators, contributed to the collapse of a credit union in Eastlake. http://goo.gl/tgamf
2/08/12 (UAE) Emirates NBD makes top-level changes Bank’s deputy chief executive officer Abdul Wahed Al Fahim has resigned. http://goo.gl/JUdNd
2/09/12 (VATICAN) Institute for Religious Works (IOR aka “Vatican Bank”), 62 year old Monsignor Emilio Messina, the Archdiocese of Camerino-San Severino Marche investigated on money laundering by Italian officials. http://goo.gl/uztVU
2/09/12 (VATICAN) Institute for Religious Works (IOR aka “Vatican Bank”), 49 year old Father Don Salvatore Palumbo of the socially popular parish of San Gaetano http://goo.gl/uztVU
2/09/12 (VATICAN) Institute for Religious Works (IOR aka “Vatican Bank”), 37 year old Father Horace Bonaccorsi of Catania, already tried and acquitted in Sicily for money laundering offenses recycling money through accounts at IOR http://goo.gl/uztVU
2/09/12 (VATICAN) Institute for Religious Works (IOR aka “Vatican Bank”), 85 year old Father Don Evaldo Biasini of Rome. Father Don Evaldo Biasini is known as the “Don of Cash”. http://goo.gl/uztVU
2/09/12 (UKRAINE) National Bank of Ukraine deputy governor Volodymyr Krotiuk quits http://goo.gl/8BuXy
2/09/12 (UK) JP Morgan Chinese Investment Trust PLC, non-executive Director Madam Yujiang Zhao resigned http://goo.gl/CPO23
2/09/12 (UK) Alliance Trust Savings (ATS), Robert Burgess is stepping down as CEO. http://goo.gl/ohHG3
2/10/12 (KOREA) Korea Exchange Bank chief Larry Klane steps down http://goo.gl/DBKdc
2/10/12 (INDIA) Tamilnad Mercantile Bank CEO A K Jagannathan resigns http://goo.gl/wMl5g
2/13/12 (KUWAIT) Kuwait Central Bank CEO Sheikh Salem Abdulaziz Al Sabbah resigns http://goo.gl/GFvIy
2/13/12 (UK) Goldman Sachs confirmed on Monday that George N. Mattson, one of the firm’s top deal makers in the industrial sector, will retire. He was a senior relationship banker with a client list that included General Motors, General Electric and Caterpillar. http://goo.gl/vgnq2
2/13/12 (HONDURAS) Honduras finance minister William Chong Wong, resigned on Monday after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said the country did not reach its deficit and monetary targets for 2011. http://goo.gl/drgHY
2/14/12 (NICARAQUA) Nicaraqua Central Bank President Antenor Rosales resigns http://goo.gl/iQ0n8
2/14/12 (UK) Social finance pioneer Malcolm Hayday quits Charity Bank http://goo.gl/uHp6C
2/14/12 (PAKISTAN) National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) chairman Syed Ali Raza resigned http://goo.gl/scexo
2/14/12 (USA NY) Goldman Sachs Jeffrey Moslow resigns, an investment banker to companies such as Tyco International Ltd, Nstar, the Boston-based utility, and defense contractor Dyncorp International Inc. http://goo.gl/7h4O7
2/15/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) HPA – Hospitality Property Fund Limited, chairman Frank Berkeley resigned. http://goo.gl/wJmpR
2/15/12 (USA) Boston Properties (REIT), Executive VP and COO E. Mitchell Norvilleto resigned http://goo.gl/AW7X7
2/15/12 (WORLD) World Bank CEO Zoellick resigns http://goo.gl/dHDSm
Did the White House tell the World Bank president that he’s out? http://goo.gl/wUOgb
2/15/12 (CHINA) Morgan non-executive chairman Stanley Stephen Roach will be retiring. http://goo.gl/MQeGW
2/15/12 (SLOVENIA) Nova Kreditna Banka Maribor CEO Andrej Plos resigns http://goo.gl/SNsVI
2/15/12 (SLOVENIA) Nova Ljubljanska Banka d.d. CEO Bozo Jasovic resigns http://goo.gl/TyYiJ
2/16/12 (USA IL) Deerfield Capital Management LLC, CEO Daniel Hattori and CEO of CIFC Corp resigned. http://goo.gl/LLNnD
2/16/12 (USA IL) Deerfield Capital Management LLC, COO Luke Knecht and CEO of CIFC Corp, resigned both positions. http://goo.gl/LLNnD
2/16/12 (UK) The Financial Services Authority Margaret Cole is to step down http://goo.gl/yT6rS
2/16/12 (GHANA) Databank Group Executive Chair Ken Ofori-Atta steps down http://goo.gl/c7PtU
2/16/12 (SAUDI ARABIA) Saudi Hollandi Banks Managing Director Geoffrey Calvert Quits http://goo.gl/CtmOU
2/16/12 (AUSTRALIA) ANZ Bank Australia CFO Peter Marriott resigns http://goo.gl/I7Alo
2/16/12 (UK) Royal Bank of Scotland Sr Equities Trader Jason Edinburgh Arrested http://goo.gl/WczHh
2/16/12 (UK) Royal Bank of Scotland director equities bus. Vincent Walsh director Arrested http://goo.gl/I7Alo
2/16/12 (UK) Marex Spectron senior trader Michael Elsom Arrested http://goo.gl/I7Alo
2/16/12 (AUSTRALIA) Royal Bank of Scotland Austraila CEO Stephen Williams resigns http://goo.gl/4r16D
2/17/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) Coronation Fund Managers CEO Hugo Nelson is stepping down at age of 40. http://goo.gl/I3NY8
2/17/12 (PAKISTAN) PICIC Asset Management Company Limited CFO Ahmed Raza resigns http://goo.gl/K8A2I
2/17/12 (USA NY) Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein out as by summer http://goo.gl/UjpzD
2/17/12 (SWITZERLAND) SNB Council President Hansueli Raggenbass resigns http://goo.gl/1n1Nr
2/17/12 (UK) Insight Investment, asset manager Mike Pinggera has resigned.. http://goo.gl/uDplK
2/17/12 (USA NY) Harbinger Group Inc. CFO Francis T. McCarron has advised the Company of his resignation effective April 30 http://goo.gl/6il4F
2/17/12 (BULGARIA) Bulgaria National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), The managing director Neli Nesheva, resigned after a two-day row about end-of-year bonuses paid by NHIF to its employees. http://goo.gl/7UQxv
2/18/12 (PAKISTAN) The Bank of Azad Jammu and Kashmir executive Zulfiqar Abbasi resigns
http://goo.gl/G0woP
2/19/12 (MALTA) Bank of Valletta, director of the Multi-Manager Fund John C. Ripard, has resigned being reprimanded by the MFSA for disposing of his holdings in the Fund whilst in possession of sensitive information which was not available to the public. http://goo.gl/1li3r
2/20/12 (RUSSIA) Head of Russian Bank Regulator Gennady Melikyan Steps Down http://goo.gl/Unuez
2/20/12 (SWITZERLAND) Credit Suisse Chief Joseph Tan resigns http://goo.gl/F5twL
2/20/12 (ISRAEL) Bank Leumi le-Israel Ltd: Zvi Itskovitch resigns http://goo.gl/aA0RW
2/20/12 (USA WA) First Financial Northwest Director Spencer Schneider Quits http://goo.gl/6Dj0i
2/21/12 (ARGENTINA) Central Bank of Argentina (BCRA) Gen Mgr Benigno Velez, resigns http://goo.gl/DuMrm
2/21/12 (BANGLADESH) Nitol Insurance Co. Ltd director Abdul Matlub resigns
conflict of interest with director seat on unknown bank http://goo.gl/aEmwB
2/21/12 (BANGLADESH) Nitol Insurance Co. Ltd director Selima Ahmad resigns
conflict of interest with director seat on unknown bank http://goo.gl/aEmwB
2/21/12 (BANGLADESH) Nitol Insurance Co. Ltd director Abdul Musabbir Ahmad resigns
conflict of interest with director seat on unknown bank http://goo.gl/aEmwB
2/21/12 (BANGLADESH) City General Insurance Co. Ltd director Geasuddin Ahmad resigns
conflict of interest with director seat on unknown bank http://goo.gl/aEmwB
2/21/12 (BANGLADESH) Social Islami Bank Limited director Taslima Akter resigns
conflict of interest with director seat on Eastland Insurance Company Limited http://goo.gl/aEmwB
2/21/12 (JAPAN) CITIBANK JAPAN: Bakhshi is taking over duties from Brian Mccappin, who the bank said in December would resign after the unit was banned for two weeks from trading tied to the London and Tokyo interbank offered rates. http://goo.gl/Z1rnw
2/22/12 (HONG KONG) DZ BANK project finance head Tim Meaney quits http://goo.gl/ppKno
2/22/12 (SINGAPORE) Macquarie International Infrastructure Fund’s CEO John Stuart to resign http://goo.gl/ji7Q4
2/22/12 (USA NY) Goldman Sachs Hedge Fund Group Chief Howard Wietschner to Retire http://goo.gl/x4Zsr
2/22/12 (UK) UBS AG’s (UBSN) Doug McCutcheon, head of Healthcare Banking in Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific region, has left Switzerland’s biggest bank after 25 years at the firm. http://goo.gl/Dnxqh
2/23/12 (UK) Goldman Sachs Nordic M&A banker Luca Ferrari has decided to retire from the firm, clients included the largest telecommunications operator in Spain the Spanish telecommunications. http://goo.gl/qmCh3
2/23/12 (SOUTH AFRICA)Richard Gush resigns from Standard Bank http://goo.gl/DTL5S
2/23/12 (SCOTLAND) Royal Bank of Scotland Group director John McFarlane resigns. http://goo.gl/KoEUI
2/24/12 (GUERNSEY) Spearpoint Limited (SPL) Investment Funds, director Mike Kirby resigns for business reasons. http://goo.gl/9stPB
2/24/12 (INDIA) Breaking: ICICI Bank GC Pramod Rao resigns http://goo.gl/5eUqU
2/24/12 (HONG KONG) Citigroup Pvt Bank Global Real Estate Kwang Meng Quek Resigns http://goo.gl/JIC9A
2/24/12 (NEW ZEALAND) FSF Executive Director Kirk Hope resigns http://goo.gl/6UJau
2/24/12 (USA NY) Evercore Partners Head Eduardo Mestre steps down http://goo.gl/n5RLY
2/25/12 (AUSTRALIA AND NZ) Goldman Sachs Chairman Stephen Fitzgerald quits http://goo.gl/nMTLW
2/25/12 (DENMARK) European Investment Bank (EIB), Mr Sigmund Lubanski, of the Kingdom of Denmark tendered his resignation. http://goo.gl/y4XXF
2/27/12 (GERMANY) Deutsche Bank Americas chief Seth Waugh steps down http://goo.gl/8lxSw
2/27/12 (BAHRAIN) Khaleeji Commercial Bank CEO Ebrahim Ebrahim quits http://goo.gl/yKjzL
2/27/12 (BAHRAIN) – Mumtalakat Holding [Sovereign Wealth Fund] CEO Al Zain resigns http://goo.gl/hhHSm
2/27/12 (FRANCE) Societe Generale’s Investment Banking Chief Michel Péretié Steps Down http://goo.gl/IJ5Lw
2/27/12 (GERMANY) Equiduct chairman Artur Fischer steps down http://goo.gl/Q0dWR
2/27/12 (IRAN) Bank Melli CEO MahmoudReza Khaavari Resigns – Flees to Canada! http://goo.gl/DDEUk
2/27/12 (IRAN) Bank Saderat CEO Mohammad Jahromi resigns http://goo.gl/ZD0mc
2/27/12 (UK) Lloyds Banking Group Glen Moreno steps down http://goo.gl/dsXcE
2/27/12 (SINGAPORE) Standard Chartered Bank, global head of repo and collateralised financing Tanweer Khan resigned. http://goo.gl/hgbuc
2/28/12 (HONG KONG) Hang Seng Bank CEO Margaret Leung Ko May-yee quits http://goo.gl/Uo800
2/28/12 (CHINA) Bank of China International ECM global head Marshall Nicholson quits http://goo.gl/26MYq
2/28/12 (SINGAPORE) DBS security head Jim Pasqurell quits, cites health reasons http://goo.gl/NDJze
2/28/12 (HONG KONG) Bank of America’s Asia-Pac. mrkts Brian Canniffe quits http://goo.gl/cRkCP
2/28/12 (BELGIUM) KBC’s CEO Jan Vanhevel is to retire after a career spanning 41 years. http://goo.gl/1rCWd
2/28/12 (CANADA) Ontario Securities Commission chairwoman Peggy-Anne Brown quits http://goo.gl/HIYXv
2/28/12 (AUSTRALIA) Bank manager Colin John Carleton jailed nine years for $3m theft http://goo.gl/ggPvq
2/28/12 (SRI LANKA) Sri Lanka Com Bank CEO Amitha Gooneratne retires http://goo.gl/YxvNA
2/28/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) REDEFINE INCOME FUND director Gerald Leissner resigns http://goo.gl/F0UgN
2/28/12 (ITALY) UNICREDIT: Chairman Dieter Rampl not available for a new mandate http://goo.gl/7aLRU
2/28/12 (UK) Bank of England Sir David Lees re-appointed Chair of Bank of England and gives notice of resignation at end of 2013 http://goo.gl/LkJhV
2/28/12 (IRELAND) State Street Global Advisors Cash Funds plc Director Keith Walsh resigns http://goo.gl/n6uoM
2/29/12 (AUSTRALIA) Perpetual portfolio manager Matt Williams steps down http://goo.gl/Jh9jd
2/29/12 (UK) Honister Capital CEO Richard Pearson steps down http://goo.gl/014or
2/29/12 (GUYANA) National Investment and Commercial Investments Ltd. (NICIL), Executive Director Winston Brassington resigns, “We feel that (Winston) Brassington knows everything…A to Z about all the transactions,” said Chairman of the Alliance for Change (AFC), Khemraj Ramjattan, as he sounded a warning that controversial figure could be subpoenaed to appear before the Parliamentary Economic Sector Committee. http:// goo.gl/L7I35
3/01/12 (MALAYSIA) RHB Bank Bhd deputy managing director Renzo Viegas quits http://goo.gl/wACrI
3/01/12 (ITALY) Italian Banking Association Chairman Giuseppe Mussari talks to reporters in Rome after he and seven other executives offered to resign in protest over new banking-fee rules included in the government’s legislation on boosting competition. http://goo.gl/3llyT
3/01/12 (USA FL) Florida Venture Forum [Venture Capital] Exec Dir Robin Lester quits http://goo.gl/nA8g9
3/01/12 (USA NY) PineBridge Investments said Win Neuger has resigned as chief executive. Neuger helped build AIG’s third party asset management business, PineBridge still manages AIG assets
http://goo.gl/SI7kT
3/01/12 (SINGAPORE) UBS Singapore – James Tulley is leaving Switzerland’s largest bank, it is not clear where he is going. http://goo.gl/BGugF
3/01/12 (USA NH) Piscataqua Savings Bank CEO Jay Gibson retires http://goo.gl/uEqDV
3/01/12 (ICELAND) Iceland’s Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) fired its director Gunnar Andersen http://goo.gl/VG9q5
3/01/12 (USA OR) Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund (OPERF) senior RE officer Brad Child will retire http://goo.gl/vcERz
3/02/12 (CHINA) China Construction Bank Corp, assistant general manager and head of corporate banking Mickey Mehta quits http://goo.gl/B9dR0
3/02/12 (USA NY) Deutsche Bank Student Loan CEOJohn Hupalo quits to start student loan counseling firm. http://goo.gl/8kZuc
3/02/12 (UK) Bank of England Sir Mervin King resigns in June, Lord Sassoon tipped as replacement. http://goo.gl/ZEUwf
3/02/12(BOTSWANA) Barclays Bank Botswana managing director Wilfred Mpai forced to resign http://goo.gl/npBe2
3/02/12 (HONG KONG) New Century Group Hong Kong Ltd [investment house and leisure group] Wilson Ng resigns http://goo.gl/wFSV8
3/02/12 (USA NY) Citigroup Richard Parsons to step down as chairman http://goo.gl/BhZ0F
3/03/12 (AUSTRIA) Volksbank AG (VBAG) The contract of CEO Gerald Wenzel will not be extended http://goo.gl/w99tD
3/03/12 (ETHIOPIA) Dashen Bank’s board dismisses president Leulseged Teferi http://goo.gl/Y801M
3/04/12 (KOREA) Hana Financial Group Inc, prominent figure in the history of South Korean finance Kim Seung-yu , resigns http://goo.gl/fmNxY
3/04/12 (USA NY) JP Morgan prop trading chief Mike Stewart quits http://goo.gl/gubPj
3/05/12 (SAUDI ARABIA) Al Rajhi Bank CEO Abdullah bin Sulaiman Al Rajhi has resigned http://goo.gl/pNx0l
3/5/12 (UK) Jupiter fund co-manager Tony Nutt steps down http://goo.gl/RPqOp
3/05/12 (UK) Jupiter fund co-manager John Hamilton steps down http://goo.gl/RPqOp
3/05/12 (NEW ZEALAND) Insured Group Bill Jeffries has resigned as chairman and director http://goo.gl/gX7wu
3/05/12 (USA) Reliance Bancshares chairman Patrick Gideon resigned http://goo.gl/u6BT4
3/05/12 (UK) Charterhouse partner Gordon Bonnyman is stepping down. http://goo.gl/iAEYB
3/05/12 (UK) HgCapital, partner Lindsay Dibden is leaving after 20 years. http://goo.gl/iAEYB
3/06/12 (FRANCE) Blackstone Group’s Paris office leader Jean-Michel Steg will step down http://goo.gl/w3Ca5
3/06/12 (JAMAICA) Jamaica Money Market Brokers Limited, Patricia Sutherland has resigned as Executive Director http://goo.gl/oMwv6
3/06/12 (JAMAICA) Jamaica’s Financial Services Commission (FSC), Executive director Rohan Barnett, has resigned the position, the Ministry of Finance, Planning and the Public Service announced this afternoon. http://goo.gl/FBwFo
3/06/12 USA CT) Wells Fargo & Co. said that Mackey McDonald, one of the last remaining directors from Wachovia is retiring. http://goo.gl/F1O4v
3/06/12 (USA PA) USA Technologies Inc Bradley M. Tirpak,a nominee of Shareholder Advocates for Value Enhancement,has resigned from its board subsequent to a settlement agreement with the investing group, according to an SEC filing. Provides a network of wireless non-cash transactions, associated financial/network services and energy management. It provides networked credit card and other non-cash systems in the vending, commercial laundry, hospitality and digital imaging industries. http://goo.gl/8oi7C
3/06/12 (UK) Sterling Green Group has announced that Philip Kanas, a non-executive director, has decided to resign
Sterling Green Group PLC became a cash shell following the disposal of their subsidiaries Taxdebts Ltd, Sterling Green (Mortgages) Ltd and the back books of the clients of Sterling Green Ltd. during December 2011. http://goo.gl/qc3jB
3/06/12 (UK) Aberdeen Asset Management, non-executive director Gerhard Fusenig has resigned from the board. http://goo.gl/ZIkvQ
3/07/12 (GERMANY) Deutsche Bank AG’s (DB) Chief Risk Officer Hugo Baenzigeri to resign http://goo.gl/MWqsH
3/07/12 (GERMANY) Deutsche Bank AG’s (DB) Chief Operating Officer Hermann-Josef Lamberti to resign http://goo.gl/MWqsH
3/07/12 (UNITED ARAB EMIRATES) Dubai Mercantile Exchange announced Thomas Leaver will step down as CEO http://goo.gl/rfhWN
3/07/12 (SCOTLAND) Macfarlane Group Chairman Archie Hunter to step down after 8 years of service http://goo.gl/RHllr
3/07/12 (USA) BlackRock Emerging Markets Fund co-head Daniel Tubbs, has left the group to pursue other opportunities. http://goo.gl/CpEzZ
3/07/12 (UK) Goldman Sachs (GSI) Christopher French resigns from board http://goo.gl/3yQDS
3/07/12 (UK) Goldman Sachs (GSI) David Wildermuth resigns from board http://goo.gl/3yQDS
3/07/12 (UK) Goldman Sachs (GSI) Matthew Westerman resigns from board http://goo.gl/3yQDS
3/07/12 (UK) Goldman Sachs (GSI) co-head of global mergers and acquisitions Yoel Zaoui resigns http://goo.gl/3yQDS
3/07/12 (UK) Goldman Sachs (GSI) Phil Beatty resigned as head of European power and natural-gas trading http://goo.gl/jqbYY
3/07/12 (SINGAPORE) Nikko Asset Management Timothy McCarthy is retiring as chairman and CEO at the end of the month http://goo.gl/v8tcT
3/07/12 (HONG KONG) UBS Senior Asia Economist Jonathan Anderson Departs http://goo.gl/09VqT
3/07/12 (HAITI) FORMER DIRECTOR HAITI CENTRAL BANK SLAIN! ⑆44541444⑈ http://goo.gl/UtVz3
3/07/12 (FRANCE) Société Générale Private Banking, Daniel Truchi is to step down as head of Société Générale Private Banking http://goo.gl/XhgJ9
3/07/12 (AUSTRALIA) Customers Ltd, Tim Wildash has cashed himself out as chief executive of Australia’s largest ATM operator http://goo.gl/eZJMb
3/07/12 (USA CA) CALSTRS, Pascal Villiger, senior private equity portfolio manager at the $145 billion California State Teachers’ Retirement System resigns http://goo.gl/ub0ke
3/07/12 (USA) Astaire quits Bank of America Merrill to dance to Barclays Capital’s tune http://goo.gl/Zv6Ny
3/08/12 (USA NY) Schroders, CIO Alan Brown is steps down http://goo.gl/ZTtYo
3/08/12 (USA IL) CBOE Executive Patrick Fay Put on Leave Amid SEC Probe http://goo.gl/x5snO
3/08/12 (USA NH & RI) Bristol County Savings Bank president E. Dennis Kelly retires after 35 years http://goo.gl/8KVKn
3/08/12 (GERMANY) Clearstream Banking AG – Katja Rosenkranz To Leave Deutsche Börse Group [stockmarket] http://goo.gl/RiVNi
3/08/12 (UK) B&CE CEO Brian Griffiths is to retire later this year http://goo.gl/AV7Sk
3/08/12 (UK) Invesco Trimark Ltd, portfolio manager Dana Love has resigned. http://goo.gl/MyQ90
3/08/12 (ISRAEL) Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer will hand in his shock resignation in the coming days and take up a new position as head of the Bank of Zambia. Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz is believed to be furious with Fischer’s decision. Treasury officials said he even canceled his participation in the office’s annual Purim party in order to convince Fischer to reverse his decision. http://goo.gl/0DlSA
3/08/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) Standard Bank Group Limited (SBK), board member Sir Paul Judge retires. http://goo.gl/SjSPg
3/08/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) Standard Bank Groupl Limited (SBK), board member Sir Sam Jonah retires. http://goo.gl/SjSPg
3/09/12 (MONGOLIA) Mongol Bank President Alag Batsukh submitted his resignation letter to Speaker of Parliament D. Demberel at the end of last month. He described his reason for resigning as a lack of support by Parliament. http://goo.gl/RDmNx
3/09/12 (MONGOLIA) Asia Pacific Securities, General Manager Narantuguldur Saijrakh recently resigned, to focus on his role as Director of Khan Investment Management, investment advisor to the Khan Mongolia Equity Fund – the first open-ended investment vehicle with monthly dealing that invests in Mongolia related equities listed both domestically and internationally. http://goo.gl/2T4R6
3/09/12 (Côte d’Ivoire) Banque Central des Etats d’Afrique de l’Ouest (BCEAO) The Ivorian governor of the multi-billion dollar West Africa Francophone bank, Philippe-Henry Dacoury-Tabley, resigned his post. http://goo.gl/CevLn
3/09/12 (UK) Lazard , co-head of investment banking Alexis de Rosnay quits. De Rosnay specialises in the healthcare sector, he has advised Teva Pharmaceutical and Novartis. http://goo.gl/3gzbi
3/09/12 (UK) Deutsche Bank PWM, UK head of portfolio management Martyn Surguy resigned. http://goo.gl/5Ti2p
3/09/12 (UK) Deutsche Bank PWM, head of discretionary management, Kypros Charalambous, having also stepped down. http://goo.gl/5Ti2p
3/09/12 (HONG KONG) Bank of America Merrill Lynch, K.J. Kim, responsible for Southeast Asia, resigned http://goo.gl/sE7xh
3/09/12 (HONG KONG) Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Jimmy Choi, who was in charge of high-yield debt, resigned. http://goo.gl/sE7xh
3/09/12 (HONG KONG) Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Leonard Ng, a vice-president in Hong Kong resigned. http://goo.gl/sE7xh
3/09/12 (AUSTRALIA) Bank of Queensland CFO Ram Kangatharan plans to leave the bank. http://goo.gl/ieNea
3/09/12 (USA) Cerberus Capital Management LP, CEO Robert Nardelli resigns. http://goo.gl/9uKVx
3/10/12 (AUSTRALIA) WESTPAC, Rob Chapman opted to quit running its regional subsidiary St George Bank. http://goo.gl/G6MD
3/10/12 (TURKEY) Garanti Bank, The deputy CEO of Turkish lender Tolga Egemen, has decided to quit. http://goo.gl/vAMzV
3/10/12 (CHINA) Korea Development Bank, Shanghai unit senior manager Stella Wen resigned. http://goo.gl/55CqZ
3/10/12 (HONG KONG) Deutsche Bank, Johan Sudiman resigns as director. http://goo.gl/6CYGP
3/12/12 (USA) John Lewis Partnership Pension Trust, head of investments Andrew Chapman, resigns http://goo.gl/hevqh
3/12/12 (USA CA) California’s Department of Financial Institutions, commissioner William Haraf resigned. The DFI did not say why he is leaving. http://goo.gl/zquTc
3/12/12 (KUWAIT) Gulf Bank, Chairman Ali Rashaid Al Bader quits http://goo.gl/LDz9b
3/12/12 (UK and IRELAND) Allfunds Bank, head of UK and Ireland Alan Gadd is stepping down from his role at the end of April. http://goo.gl/4DF6i
3/12/12 (USA) ICAP, CEO of the electronic broking business David Rutter step down following a restructuring of the business. http://goo.gl/SUHqW
3/12/12 (UK) SVG Capital, chairman Nicholas Ferguson resigns. His departure left him well placed to succeed James Murdoch as chairman of BSkyB should the latter bow to investor pressure and step down. Other investors in the satellite broadcaster suggested Ferguson might be seen as too close to Murdoch to win the support of institutional shareholders. http://goo.gl/z19wH
3/12/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), CEO Paul Baloyi resigns. http://goo.gl/yX4xo
3/12/12 (USA) Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc, CEO Bryan Marsal Resigns Title, Remains on as Adviser http://goo.gl/1K9zV
3/12/12 (USA IL) CME Group Inc, CEO Craig Donohues will step down at year end. http://goo.gl/lvzgC
3/13/12 (USA) Eaton Vance Corp, Treasurer and CFO Robert J. Whelan has stepped down. http://goo.gl/oxmbL
3/12/12 (USA IL) CBOE Holdings Inc. (CBOE), senior compliance executive Patrick Fay has resigned. The options exchange being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission, Fay had been placed on leave after the SEC began investigating the options-market operator’s oversight of traders. http://goo.gl/gj4W6
3/13/12 (USA) Mithras Investment Trust, chairman Mike Wooderson will step down http://goo.gl/UjO2e
3/13/12 (USA) PHH Mortgage, President Luke Hayden resigned from to pursue what the company calls “other interests.” http://goo.gl/iaqQf
3/13/12 (USA) PHH Mortgage, Treasurer Mark Johnson.resigned http://goo.gl/iaqQf
3/13/12 (AUSTRALIA) WESTPAC, head of corporate affairs after David Bell decided to step down from the role. Bell is the latest top executive to leave the bank. http://goo.gl/FntUz
3/13/12 (UK) Capula’s Systemic Trading Head Qiang Dai to Leave Fund http://goo.gl/zkrN2
3/13/12 (UAE) National Bank of Abu Dhabi, CEO Michael Tomalin, will retire from the post in a few months. http://goo.gl/dzBW8
3/13/12 (ISRAEL) Osem Investments Ltd, CEO Gazi Kaplan has tendered his resignation, effective April 2, citing heath reasons. Nestlé SA owns 58.8% of Osem. http://goo.gl/t032l
3/13/12 (USA) Paulson & Co.’s, partner and head of the global bank team Robert Lacoursiere has quit to form his own hedge fund http://goo.gl/I8UNd
3/13/12 (AUSTRALIA) ASX Ltd, Chairman David Gonski will step down from his role at Australia’s main stock market operator after being appointed to oversee almost A$90 billion ($95 billion) in the nation’s sovereign-wealth funds. http://goo.gl/gJN33
3/13/12 (UK) JP Morgan, Asset Management European chief Jamie Broderick is to step down more than 20 years at the firm. http://goo.gl/MV65V
3/14/12 (SOUTH AFRICA) ABSA chairman Garth Griffin to retire http://goo.gl/Mhjb5
Brandon Turbeville is an author out of Mullins, South Carolina. He has a Bachelor’s Degree from Francis Marion University and is the author of three books, Codex Alimentarius — The End of Health Freedom, 7 Real Conspiracies, and Five Sense Solutions. Turbeville has published over one hundred articles dealing with a wide variety of subjects including health, economics, government corruption, and civil liberties. Brandon Turbeville is available for podcast, radio, and TV interviews. Please contact us at activistpost (at) gmail.com.
A new bill in Connecticut has advanced the idea of embedded RFID chips in license plates. (PDF)
The admitted revenue-generating scheme, which would enable real-time tracking from points throughout the state, was first proposed to lawmakers by former astronaut, Paul Scully-Power.
Perhaps even more disturbing than Scully-Power’s connection to the companies that would profit from the implementation of the technology, is when he openly states that, “An RFID program would be phased in gradually and then expanded to accomplish other policing tasks without having to change equipment … the second phase would be to implement speeding violations.” (Source)
As we steamroll headlong toward being tracked, traced and databased both on real highways, as well as the information highway of the Internet, this license plate tracking scheme is merely an echo of the much larger framework of surveillance and control already under development, which ultimately includes a cashless society and microchipped population. The following 2-hour video offers a synopsis of where we currently stand, and where we are heading:
(NaturalNews) NaturalNews exclusive report, please credit with link. NaturalNews can now report that 65-year-old senior citizen James Stewart, a raw milk farmer with no criminal history, was nearly tortured to death in the LA County jail this past week. He survived a “week of torturous Hell” at the hands of LA County jail keepers who subjected him to starvation, sleep deprivation, hypothermia, loss of blood circulation to extremities, verbal intimidation, involuntary medical testing and even subjected him to over 30 hours of raw biological sewage filth containing dangerous pathogens.
This is from a county that has targeted and terrorized James Stewart for the supposed crime of selling fresh milk containing “dangerous pathogens.” That’s right – the only “crime” James has ever committed is being the milk man and distributing milk that is openly and honestly kept fresh and raw instead of pasteurized. So as part of his punishment of advocating raw cow’s milk, he was tortured with raw human sewage at the LA County jail.
This true story of jaw-dropping dehumanization and torture — conducted in total violation of state law as well as the Geneva Convention for prisoners of war — is told in an exclusive audio interview recorded today between Mike Adams and James Stewart.
That audio recording, which has been released by Adams into the public domain for the purpose of widespread copying and sharing, is available for download at the following links:
128kbps MP3 file (47MB, Hi-Fi, suitable for posting online):
Adams openly encourages members of the public to post these files on YouTube, Vimeo, bittorrent sites and anywhere else where they may reach the public.
“I thought I was gonna die in there…”
In this exclusive interview, you can hear James Stewart describe, in his own words, the shocking details of prisoner abuse right here in America. Among the highlights from his interview with Mike Adams:
• How James was subjected to severe food deprivation.
• How he was interrogated by deputies and accused of being a “sovereign,” then branded with a red arm band (Nazi-style) to falsely indicate that he was a danger to the general population.
• How James was shackled in long chains wrapped around his waist multiple times, then had his hands cuffed behind his back which was bound to the heavy waist chain to restrict his movement. His handcuffs were so tight he thought his wrists would break.
• James was then handcuffed to a cold bench, restricting his movement to just six inches, then left on the bench for 4-5 hours.
• James was then forcibly subjected to various medical tests, including forced chest X-rays even while he was handcuffed.
• He was placed in a cold cell wearing only a T-shirt and pants, where he soon began to suffer from hypothermia and found himself violently shivering just to stay alive.
• How he was made to suffer through total sleep deprivation all night long as other prisoners were screaming and banging on the walls.
• His cell was then flooded with raw human sewage, which flowed into his jail cell 2-3 inches deep, covering his shoes and shirt. LA County jail guards then ordered James to clean up all the raw sewage in his cell by handing him a small hand-held squeegee and demanding that he squeegee out all the raw sewage himself (which he reluctantly did).
• He was then forced to stay in the putrid raw sewage cell for over 30 hours, fighting off nausea and living in bacteriological filth that threatened his health.
• All along, the LA County prison guards gloated over their treatment of prisoners while laughing and joking about their power to subject prisoners to such abuse. This behavior openly mimics that of Gitmo guards who took pictures gloating over their torture and murder of prisoners of war.
• During this entire process, James was not allowed a single phone call nor any visit from an attorney. His right to speak to an attorney was repeatedly denied.
• At no point was James notified of what he was being charged with. He was never presented with an arrest warrant nor were any charges explained to him.
• James was mysteriously “lost” in the system and LA County officials claimed they did not know where he was. This was apparently a deliberate attempt to subject an individual to drawn-out torture without legal representation and make sure no one could locate them to check on their health or arrest status.
“Worse than torture… They’re actually torturing you mentally and physically to break you down…”
These are the actual words of James Stewart that you will hear in this interview:
• “I thought I was gonna die in there.”
• “It was worse than torture. They’re actually torturing you mentally and physically to break you down.”
• “I wrote the ‘torture’ on a piece of toilet paper to try to tell everybody what I had gone through, because I was worried they were going to mentally break me and put me in a psych ward.”
• “What I experienced in downtown LA was brutality.”
• “It’s trauma. And they create this thing where you’re not even sure what’s coming next. What has this country come to? I don’t sleep well at night right now, and I don’t think anyone would if they had been what I’ve been through.”
• “I’m shocked that this is America. Because it seems like you’re in some third world country, in a gulag, like in the movie Midnight Express, where you’re absolutely just tortured. That was the experience I had. Your mind goes, how can this be? This is America?”
NaturalNews calls on Amnesty International, ACLU to intervene
What we are witnessing here is a gross violation of civil rights and human rights, not to mention fundamental due process. The treatment unleashed upon James was not merely against the law in California, it was also a violation of federal law and a violation of the Geneva Convention and its ban on torturing prisoners of war.
“What happened to Stewart is horrendous,” health freedom attorney Jonathan Emord told NaturalNews. He’s the author of the new book “Restore the Republic” which lays out a plan to overthrow tyranny and restore a government that works on behalf of the people instead of declaring the People to be the enemy.
The bail amount set for James ($1 million) and the torture to which he was subjected clearly indicate that James Stewart is a political prisoner of the State of California, which has decided to spend millions of dollars in taxpayer money to target and incarcerate a senior citizen farmer. (By comparison, bail for alleged child rapist and sex pimp Jerry Sandusky, former Penn State sports coach, was only set at $100,000 and was unsecured!)
NaturalNews calls upon Amnesty International and the American Civil Liberties Union to intervene in this extraordinary violation of basic human rights. For the record, James Stewart has no criminal record and is a permaculture farmer and fresh food advocate. His “crime” consists entirely of arranging for the distribution of raw milk to customers who actually line up to access this nourishing food (people love it!).
NaturalNews has no financial ties to James Stewart nor Rawesome Foods and has been the leading source of free press information covering this story. The mainstream media so far refuses to cover this story, most likely out of financial loyalty to the conventional (processed) dairy industry which stands to lose tens of millions of dollars if raw milk is allowed to be openly and legally sold.
Assistance efforts for James Stewart and Sharon Palmer, the other person arrested in this case, can be emailed to:
In addition, NaturalNews has forwarded details to producers of the Alex Jones Show with the hope that Alex Jones will want to cover this for his own audience (www.InfoWars.com).
Information is also being forwarded to the Ron Paul campaign, as Ron Paul has openly spoken out against the absurdity of laws targeting raw milk producers. As Paul is extremely busy running for President, however, he is unlikely to be able to comment on this particular issue.
Tips have been forwarded to Matt Drudge for his consideration of the issue.
NaturalNews.com continues to be the breaking news source on this story with a voice of liberty and food freedom. Check NaturalNews.com for more details this weekend and all next week.
Action items:
• SHARE this story on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other social networks. You also have permission to download and share the audio files and video files of the interview. Post it on every bittorrent in the known universe…
• Contact your local newspaper editors with letters and opinion pieces to express your outrage at this vindictive arrest and torture of a California farmer.
• Write the officer of Governor Jerry Brown, who has done absolutely nothing to stop this outrageous abuse of California’s by rogue DA operatives in both LA and Ventura counties:
TODAY is my last day at Goldman Sachs. After almost 12 years at the firm — first as a summer intern while at Stanford, then in New York for 10 years, and now in London — I believe I have worked here long enough to understand the trajectory of its culture, its people and its identity. And I can honestly say that the environment now is as toxic and destructive as I have ever seen it.
To put the problem in the simplest terms, the interests of the client continue to be sidelined in the way the firm operates and thinks about making money. Goldman Sachs is one of the world’s largest and most important investment banks and it is too integral to global finance to continue to act this way. The firm has veered so far from the place I joined right out of college that I can no longer in good conscience say that I identify with what it stands for.
It might sound surprising to a skeptical public, but culture was always a vital part of Goldman Sachs’s success. It revolved around teamwork, integrity, a spirit of humility, and always doing right by our clients. The culture was the secret sauce that made this place great and allowed us to earn our clients’ trust for 143 years. It wasn’t just about making money; this alone will not sustain a firm for so long. It had something to do with pride and belief in the organization. I am sad to say that I look around today and see virtually no trace of the culture that made me love working for this firm for many years. I no longer have the pride, or the belief.
But this was not always the case. For more than a decade I recruited and mentored candidates through our grueling interview process. I was selected as one of 10 people (out of a firm of more than 30,000) to appear on our recruiting video, which is played on every college campus we visit around the world. In 2006 I managed the summer intern program in sales and trading in New York for the 80 college students who made the cut, out of the thousands who applied.
I knew it was time to leave when I realized I could no longer look students in the eye and tell them what a great place this was to work.
When the history books are written about Goldman Sachs, they may reflect that the current chief executive officer, Lloyd C. Blankfein, and the president, Gary D. Cohn, lost hold of the firm’s culture on their watch. I truly believe that this decline in the firm’s moral fiber represents the single most serious threat to its long-run survival.
Over the course of my career I have had the privilege of advising two of the largest hedge funds on the planet, five of the largest asset managers in the United States, and three of the most prominent sovereign wealth funds in the Middle East and Asia. My clients have a total asset base of more than a trillion dollars. I have always taken a lot of pride in advising my clients to do what I believe is right for them, even if it means less money for the firm. This view is becoming increasingly unpopular at Goldman Sachs. Another sign that it was time to leave.
How did we get here? The firm changed the way it thought about leadership. Leadership used to be about ideas, setting an example and doing the right thing. Today, if you make enough money for the firm (and are not currently an ax murderer) you will be promoted into a position of influence.
What are three quick ways to become a leader? a) Execute on the firm’s “axes,” which is Goldman-speak for persuading your clients to invest in the stocks or other products that we are trying to get rid of because they are not seen as having a lot of potential profit. b) “Hunt Elephants.” In English: get your clients — some of whom are sophisticated, and some of whom aren’t — to trade whatever will bring the biggest profit to Goldman. Call me old-fashioned, but I don’t like selling my clients a product that is wrong for them. c) Find yourself sitting in a seat where your job is to trade any illiquid, opaque product with a three-letter acronym.
Today, many of these leaders display a Goldman Sachs culture quotient of exactly zero percent. I attend derivatives sales meetings where not one single minute is spent asking questions about how we can help clients. It’s purely about how we can make the most possible money off of them. If you were an alien from Mars and sat in on one of these meetings, you would believe that a client’s success or progress was not part of the thought process at all.
It makes me ill how callously people talk about ripping their clients off. Over the last 12 months I have seen five different managing directors refer to their own clients as “muppets,” sometimes over internal e-mail. Even after the S.E.C., Fabulous Fab, Abacus, God’s work, Carl Levin, Vampire Squids? No humility? I mean, come on. Integrity? It is eroding. I don’t know of any illegal behavior, but will people push the envelope and pitch lucrative and complicated products to clients even if they are not the simplest investments or the ones most directly aligned with the client’s goals? Absolutely. Every day, in fact.
It astounds me how little senior management gets a basic truth: If clients don’t trust you they will eventually stop doing business with you. It doesn’t matter how smart you are.
These days, the most common question I get from junior analysts about derivatives is, “How much money did we make off the client?” It bothers me every time I hear it, because it is a clear reflection of what they are observing from their leaders about the way they should behave. Now project 10 years into the future: You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that the junior analyst sitting quietly in the corner of the room hearing about “muppets,” “ripping eyeballs out” and “getting paid” doesn’t exactly turn into a model citizen.
When I was a first-year analyst I didn’t know where the bathroom was, or how to tie my shoelaces. I was taught to be concerned with learning the ropes, finding out what a derivative was, understanding finance, getting to know our clients and what motivated them, learning how they defined success and what we could do to help them get there.
My proudest moments in life — getting a full scholarship to go from South Africa to Stanford University, being selected as a Rhodes Scholar national finalist, winning a bronze medal for table tennis at the Maccabiah Games in Israel, known as the Jewish Olympics — have all come through hard work, with no shortcuts. Goldman Sachs today has become too much about shortcuts and not enough about achievement. It just doesn’t feel right to me anymore.
I hope this can be a wake-up call to the board of directors. Make the client the focal point of your business again. Without clients you will not make money. In fact, you will not exist. Weed out the morally bankrupt people, no matter how much money they make for the firm. And get the culture right again, so people want to work here for the right reasons. People who care only about making money will not sustain this firm — or the trust of its clients — for very much longer.
Greg Smith is resigning today as a Goldman Sachs executive director and head of the firm’s United States equity derivatives business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
“Doubly-even self-dual linear binary error-correcting block code,” first invented by Claude Shannon in the 1940’s, has been discovered embedded WITHIN the equations of superstring theory!
Why does nature have this? What errors does it need to correct? What is an ‘error’ for nature? More importantly what is the explanation for this freakish discovery? Your guess is as good as mine.
This paper argues that at least one of the following propositions is true: (1) the human species is very likely to go extinct before reaching a “posthuman” stage; (2) any posthuman civilization is extremely unlikely to run a significant number of simulations of their evolutionary history (or variations thereof); (3) we are almost certainly living in a computer simulation. It follows that the belief that there is a significant chance that we will one day become posthumans who run ancestor-simulations is false, unless we are currently living in a simulation. A number of other consequences of this result are also discussed.
I. INTRODUCTION
Many works of science fiction as well as some forecasts by serious technologists and futurologists predict that enormous amounts of computing power will be available in the future. Let us suppose for a moment that these predictions are correct. One thing that later generations might do with their super-powerful computers is run detailed simulations of their forebears or of people like their forebears. Because their computers would be so powerful, they could run a great many such simulations. Suppose that these simulated people are conscious (as they would be if the simulations were sufficiently fine-grained and if a certain quite widely accepted position in the philosophy of mind is correct). Then it could be the case that the vast majority of minds like ours do not belong to the original race but rather to people simulated by the advanced descendants of an original race. It is then possible to argue that, if this were the case, we would be rational to think that we are likely among the simulated minds rather than among the original biological ones. Therefore, if we don’t think that we are currently living in a computer simulation, we are not entitled to believe that we will have descendants who will run lots of such simulations of their forebears. That is the basic idea. The rest of this paper will spell it out more carefully.
Apart form the interest this thesis may hold for those who are engaged in futuristic speculation, there are also more purely theoretical rewards. The argument provides a stimulus for formulating some methodological and metaphysical questions, and it suggests naturalistic analogies to certain traditional religious conceptions, which some may find amusing or thought-provoking.
The structure of the paper is as follows. First, we formulate an assumption that we need to import from the philosophy of mind in order to get the argument started. Second, we consider some empirical reasons for thinking that running vastly many simulations of human minds would be within the capability of a future civilization that has developed many of those technologies that can already be shown to be compatible with known physical laws and engineering constraints. This part is not philosophically necessary but it provides an incentive for paying attention to the rest. Then follows the core of the argument, which makes use of some simple probability theory, and a section providing support for a weak indifference principle that the argument employs. Lastly, we discuss some interpretations of the disjunction, mentioned in the abstract, that forms the conclusion of the simulation argument.
II. THE ASSUMPTION OF SUBSTRATE-INDEPENDENCE
A common assumption in the philosophy of mind is that of substrate-independence. The idea is that mental states can supervene on any of a broad class of physical substrates. Provided a system implements the right sort of computational structures and processes, it can be associated with conscious experiences. It is not an essential property of consciousness that it is implemented on carbon-based biological neural networks inside a cranium: silicon-based processors inside a computer could in principle do the trick as well.
Arguments for this thesis have been given in the literature, and although it is not entirely uncontroversial, we shall here take it as a given.
The argument we shall present does not, however, depend on any very strong version of functionalism or computationalism. For example, we need not assume that the thesis of substrate-independence is necessarily true (either analytically or metaphysically) – just that, in fact, a computer running a suitable program would be conscious. Moreover, we need not assume that in order to create a mind on a computer it would be sufficient to program it in such a way that it behaves like a human in all situations, including passing the Turing test etc. We need only the weaker assumption that it would suffice for the generation of subjective experiences that the computational processes of a human brain are structurally replicated in suitably fine-grained detail, such as on the level of individual synapses. This attenuated version of substrate-independence is quite widely accepted.
Neurotransmitters, nerve growth factors, and other chemicals that are smaller than a synapse clearly play a role in human cognition and learning. The substrate-independence thesis is not that the effects of these chemicals are small or irrelevant, but rather that they affect subjective experience only via their direct or indirect influence on computational activities. For example, if there can be no difference in subjective experience without there also being a difference in synaptic discharges, then the requisite detail of simulation is at the synaptic level (or higher).
III. THE TECHNOLOGICAL LIMITS OF COMPUTATION
At our current stage of technological development, we have neither sufficiently powerful hardware nor the requisite software to create conscious minds in computers. But persuasive arguments have been given to the effect that if technological progress continues unabated then these shortcomings will eventually be overcome. Some authors argue that this stage may be only a few decades away.[1] Yet present purposes require no assumptions about the time-scale. The simulation argument works equally well for those who think that it will take hundreds of thousands of years to reach a “posthuman” stage of civilization, where humankind has acquired most of the technological capabilities that one can currently show to be consistent with physical laws and with material and energy constraints.
Such a mature stage of technological development will make it possible to convert planets and other astronomical resources into enormously powerful computers. It is currently hard to be confident in any upper bound on the computing power that may be available to posthuman civilizations. As we are still lacking a “theory of everything”, we cannot rule out the possibility that novel physical phenomena, not allowed for in current physical theories, may be utilized to transcend those constraints[2] that in our current understanding impose theoretical limits on the information processing attainable in a given lump of matter. We can with much greater confidence establish lower bounds on posthuman computation, by assuming only mechanisms that are already understood. For example, Eric Drexler has outlined a design for a system the size of a sugar cube (excluding cooling and power supply) that would perform 1021 instructions per second.[3] Another author gives a rough estimate of 1042 operations per second for a computer with a mass on order of a large planet.[4] (If we could create quantum computers, or learn to build computers out of nuclear matter or plasma, we could push closer to the theoretical limits. Seth Lloyd calculates an upper bound for a 1 kg computer of 5*1050 logical operations per second carried out on ~1031 bits.[5] However, it suffices for our purposes to use the more conservative estimate that presupposes only currently known design-principles.)
The amount of computing power needed to emulate a human mind can likewise be roughly estimated. One estimate, based on how computationally expensive it is to replicate the functionality of a piece of nervous tissue that we have already understood and whose functionality has been replicated in silico, contrast enhancement in the retina, yields a figure of ~1014 operations per second for the entire human brain.[6] An alternative estimate, based the number of synapses in the brain and their firing frequency, gives a figure of ~1016-1017 operations per second.[7] Conceivably, even more could be required if we want to simulate in detail the internal workings of synapses and dendritic trees. However, it is likely that the human central nervous system has a high degree of redundancy on the mircoscale to compensate for the unreliability and noisiness of its neuronal components. One would therefore expect a substantial efficiency gain when using more reliable and versatile non-biological processors.
Memory seems to be a no more stringent constraint than processing power.[8] Moreover, since the maximum human sensory bandwidth is ~108 bits per second, simulating all sensory events incurs a negligible cost compared to simulating the cortical activity. We can therefore use the processing power required to simulate the central nervous system as an estimate of the total computational cost of simulating a human mind.
If the environment is included in the simulation, this will require additional computing power – how much depends on the scope and granularity of the simulation. Simulating the entire universe down to the quantum level is obviously infeasible, unless radically new physics is discovered. But in order to get a realistic simulation of human experience, much less is needed – only whatever is required to ensure that the simulated humans, interacting in normal human ways with their simulated environment, don’t notice any irregularities. The microscopic structure of the inside of the Earth can be safely omitted. Distant astronomical objects can have highly compressed representations: verisimilitude need extend to the narrow band of properties that we can observe from our planet or solar system spacecraft. On the surface of Earth, macroscopic objects in inhabited areas may need to be continuously simulated, but microscopic phenomena could likely be filled in ad hoc. What you see through an electron microscope needs to look unsuspicious, but you usually have no way of confirming its coherence with unobserved parts of the microscopic world. Exceptions arise when we deliberately design systems to harness unobserved microscopic phenomena that operate in accordance with known principles to get results that we are able to independently verify. The paradigmatic case of this is a computer. The simulation may therefore need to include a continuous representation of computers down to the level of individual logic elements. This presents no problem, since our current computing power is negligible by posthuman standards.
Moreover, a posthuman simulator would have enough computing power to keep track of the detailed belief-states in all human brains at all times. Therefore, when it saw that a human was about to make an observation of the microscopic world, it could fill in sufficient detail in the simulation in the appropriate domain on an as-needed basis. Should any error occur, the director could easily edit the states of any brains that have become aware of an anomaly before it spoils the simulation. Alternatively, the director could skip back a few seconds and rerun the simulation in a way that avoids the problem.
It thus seems plausible that the main computational cost in creating simulations that are indistinguishable from physical reality for human minds in the simulation resides in simulating organic brains down to the neuronal or sub-neuronal level.[9] While it is not possible to get a very exact estimate of the cost of a realistic simulation of human history, we can use ~1033 – 1036 operations as a rough estimate[10]. As we gain more experience with virtual reality, we will get a better grasp of the computational requirements for making such worlds appear realistic to their visitors. But in any case, even if our estimate is off by several orders of magnitude, this does not matter much for our argument. We noted that a rough approximation of the computational power of a planetary-mass computer is 1042 operations per second, and that assumes only already known nanotechnological designs, which are probably far from optimal. A single such a computer could simulate the entire mental history of humankind (call this an ancestor-simulation) by using less than one millionth of its processing power for one second. A posthuman civilization may eventually build an astronomical number of such computers. We can conclude that the computing power available to a posthuman civilization is sufficient to run a huge number of ancestor-simulations even it allocates only a minute fraction of its resources to that purpose. We can draw this conclusion even while leaving a substantial margin of error in all our estimates.
Posthuman civilizations would have enough computing power to run hugely many ancestor-simulations even while using only a tiny fraction of their resources for that purpose.
IV. THE CORE OF THE SIMULATION ARGUMENT
The basic idea of this paper can be expressed roughly as follows: If there were a substantial chance that our civilization will ever get to the posthuman stage and run many ancestor-simulations, then how come you are not living in such a simulation?
We shall develop this idea into a rigorous argument. Let us introduce the following notation:
: Fraction of all human-level technological civilizations that survive to reach a posthuman stage
: Average number of ancestor-simulations run by a posthuman civilization
: Average number of individuals that have lived in a civilization before it reaches a posthuman stage
The actual fraction of all observers with human-type experiences that live in simulations is then
Writing for the fraction of posthuman civilizations that are interested in running ancestor-simulations (or that contain at least some individuals who are interested in that and have sufficient resources to run a significant number of such simulations), and for the average number of ancestor-simulations run by such interested civilizations, we have
and thus:
(*)
Because of the immense computing power of posthuman civilizations, is extremely large, as we saw in the previous section. By inspecting (*) we can then see that at least one of the following three propositions must be true:
(1)
(2)
(3)
V. A BLAND INDIFFERENCE PRINCIPLE
We can take a further step and conclude that conditional on the truth of (3), one’s credence in the hypothesis that one is in a simulation should be close to unity. More generally, if we knew that a fraction x of all observers with human-type experiences live in simulations, and we don’t have any information that indicate that our own particular experiences are any more or less likely than other human-type experiences to have been implemented in vivo rather than in machina, then our credence that we are in a simulation should equal x:
(#)
This step is sanctioned by a very weak indifference principle. Let us distinguish two cases. The first case, which is the easiest, is where all the minds in question are like your own in the sense that they are exactly qualitatively identical to yours: they have exactly the same information and the same experiences that you have. The second case is where the minds are “like” each other only in the loose sense of being the sort of minds that are typical of human creatures, but they are qualitatively distinct from one another and each has a distinct set of experiences. I maintain that even in the latter case, where the minds are qualitatively different, the simulation argument still works, provided that you have no information that bears on the question of which of the various minds are simulated and which are implemented biologically.
A detailed defense of a stronger principle, which implies the above stance for both cases as trivial special instances, has been given in the literature.[11] Space does not permit a recapitulation of that defense here, but we can bring out one of the underlying intuitions by bringing to our attention to an analogous situation of a more familiar kind. Suppose that x% of the population has a certain genetic sequence S within the part of their DNA commonly designated as “junk DNA”. Suppose, further, that there are no manifestations of S (short of what would turn up in a gene assay) and that there are no known correlations between having S and any observable characteristic. Then, quite clearly, unless you have had your DNA sequenced, it is rational to assign a credence of x% to the hypothesis that you have S. And this is so quite irrespective of the fact that the people who have S have qualitatively different minds and experiences from the people who don’t have S. (They are different simply because all humans have different experiences from one another, not because of any known link between S and what kind of experiences one has.)
The same reasoning holds if S is not the property of having a certain genetic sequence but instead the property of being in a simulation, assuming only that we have no information that enables us to predict any differences between the experiences of simulated minds and those of the original biological minds.
It should be stressed that the bland indifference principle expressed by (#) prescribes indifference only between hypotheses about which observer you are, when you have no information about which of these observers you are. It does not in general prescribe indifference between hypotheses when you lack specific information about which of the hypotheses is true. In contrast to Laplacean and other more ambitious principles of indifference, it is therefore immune to Bertrand’s paradox and similar predicaments that tend to plague indifference principles of unrestricted scope.
Readers familiar with the Doomsday argument[12] may worry that the bland principle of indifference invoked here is the same assumption that is responsible for getting the Doomsday argument off the ground, and that the counterintuitiveness of some of the implications of the latter incriminates or casts doubt on the validity of the former. This is not so. The Doomsday argument rests on a much stronger and more controversial premiss, namely that one should reason as if one were a random sample from the set of all people who will ever have lived (past, present, and future) even though we know that we are living in the early twenty-first century rather than at some point in the distant past or the future. The bland indifference principle, by contrast, applies only to cases where we have no information about which group of people we belong to.
If betting odds provide some guidance to rational belief, it may also be worth to ponder that if everybody were to place a bet on whether they are in a simulation or not, then if people use the bland principle of indifference, and consequently place their money on being in a simulation if they know that that’s where almost all people are, then almost everyone will win their bets. If they bet on not being in a simulation, then almost everyone will lose. It seems better that the bland indifference principle be heeded.
Further, one can consider a sequence of possible situations in which an increasing fraction of all people live in simulations: 98%, 99%, 99.9%, 99.9999%, and so on. As one approaches the limiting case in which everybody is in a simulation (from which one can deductively infer that one is in a simulation oneself), it is plausible to require that the credence one assigns to being in a simulation gradually approach the limiting case of complete certainty in a matching manner.
VI. INTERPRETATION
The possibility represented by proposition (1) is fairly straightforward. If (1) is true, then humankind will almost certainly fail to reach a posthuman level; for virtually no species at our level of development become posthuman, and it is hard to see any justification for thinking that our own species will be especially privileged or protected from future disasters. Conditional on (1), therefore, we must give a high credence to DOOM, the hypothesis that humankind will go extinct before reaching a posthuman level:
One can imagine hypothetical situations were we have such evidence as would trump knowledge of . For example, if we discovered that we were about to be hit by a giant meteor, this might suggest that we had been exceptionally unlucky. We could then assign a credence to DOOM larger than our expectation of the fraction of human-level civilizations that fail to reach posthumanity. In the actual case, however, we seem to lack evidence for thinking that we are special in this regard, for better or worse.
Proposition (1) doesn’t by itself imply that we are likely to go extinct soon, only that we are unlikely to reach a posthuman stage. This possibility is compatible with us remaining at, or somewhat above, our current level of technological development for a long time before going extinct. Another way for (1) to be true is if it is likely that technological civilization will collapse. Primitive human societies might then remain on Earth indefinitely.
There are many ways in which humanity could become extinct before reaching posthumanity. Perhaps the most natural interpretation of (1) is that we are likely to go extinct as a result of the development of some powerful but dangerous technology.[13] One candidate is molecular nanotechnology, which in its mature stage would enable the construction of self-replicating nanobots capable of feeding on dirt and organic matter – a kind of mechanical bacteria. Such nanobots, designed for malicious ends, could cause the extinction of all life on our planet.[14]
The second alternative in the simulation argument’s conclusion is that the fraction of posthuman civilizations that are interested in running ancestor-simulation is negligibly small. In order for (2) to be true, there must be a strong convergence among the courses of advanced civilizations. If the number of ancestor-simulations created by the interested civilizations is extremely large, the rarity of such civilizations must be correspondingly extreme. Virtually no posthuman civilizations decide to use their resources to run large numbers of ancestor-simulations. Furthermore, virtually all posthuman civilizations lack individuals who have sufficient resources and interest to run ancestor-simulations; or else they have reliably enforced laws that prevent such individuals from acting on their desires.
What force could bring about such convergence? One can speculate that advanced civilizations all develop along a trajectory that leads to the recognition of an ethical prohibition against running ancestor-simulations because of the suffering that is inflicted on the inhabitants of the simulation. However, from our present point of view, it is not clear that creating a human race is immoral. On the contrary, we tend to view the existence of our race as constituting a great ethical value. Moreover, convergence on an ethical view of the immorality of running ancestor-simulations is not enough: it must be combined with convergence on a civilization-wide social structure that enables activities considered immoral to be effectively banned.
Another possible convergence point is that almost all individual posthumans in virtually all posthuman civilizations develop in a direction where they lose their desires to run ancestor-simulations. This would require significant changes to the motivations driving their human predecessors, for there are certainly many humans who would like to run ancestor-simulations if they could afford to do so. But perhaps many of our human desires will be regarded as silly by anyone who becomes a posthuman. Maybe the scientific value of ancestor-simulations to a posthuman civilization is negligible (which is not too implausible given its unfathomable intellectual superiority), and maybe posthumans regard recreational activities as merely a very inefficient way of getting pleasure – which can be obtained much more cheaply by direct stimulation of the brain’s reward centers. One conclusion that follows from (2) is that posthuman societies will be very different from human societies: they will not contain relatively wealthy independent agents who have the full gamut of human-like desires and are free to act on them.
The possibility expressed by alternative (3) is the conceptually most intriguing one. If we are living in a simulation, then the cosmos that we are observing is just a tiny piece of the totality of physical existence. The physics in the universe where the computer is situated that is running the simulation may or may not resemble the physics of the world that we observe. While the world we see is in some sense “real”, it is not located at the fundamental level of reality.
It may be possible for simulated civilizations to become posthuman. They may then run their own ancestor-simulations on powerful computers they build in their simulated universe. Such computers would be “virtual machines”, a familiar concept in computer science. (Java script web-applets, for instance, run on a virtual machine – a simulated computer – inside your desktop.) Virtual machines can be stacked: it’s possible to simulate a machine simulating another machine, and so on, in arbitrarily many steps of iteration. If we do go on to create our own ancestor-simulations, this would be strong evidence against (1) and (2), and we would therefore have to conclude that we live in a simulation. Moreover, we would have to suspect that the posthumans running our simulation are themselves simulated beings; and their creators, in turn, may also be simulated beings.
Reality may thus contain many levels. Even if it is necessary for the hierarchy to bottom out at some stage – the metaphysical status of this claim is somewhat obscure – there may be room for a large number of levels of reality, and the number could be increasing over time. (One consideration that counts against the multi-level hypothesis is that the computational cost for the basement-level simulators would be very great. Simulating even a single posthuman civilization might be prohibitively expensive. If so, then we should expect our simulation to be terminated when we are about to become posthuman.)
Although all the elements of such a system can be naturalistic, even physical, it is possible to draw some loose analogies with religious conceptions of the world. In some ways, the posthumans running a simulation are like gods in relation to the people inhabiting the simulation: the posthumans created the world we see; they are of superior intelligence; they are “omnipotent” in the sense that they can interfere in the workings of our world even in ways that violate its physical laws; and they are “omniscient” in the sense that they can monitor everything that happens. However, all the demigods except those at the fundamental level of reality are subject to sanctions by the more powerful gods living at lower levels.
Further rumination on these themes could climax in a naturalistic theogony that would study the structure of this hierarchy, and the constraints imposed on its inhabitants by the possibility that their actions on their own level may affect the treatment they receive from dwellers of deeper levels. For example, if nobody can be sure that they are at the basement-level, then everybody would have to consider the possibility that their actions will be rewarded or punished, based perhaps on moral criteria, by their simulators. An afterlife would be a real possibility. Because of this fundamental uncertainty, even the basement civilization may have a reason to behave ethically. The fact that it has such a reason for moral behavior would of course add to everybody else’s reason for behaving morally, and so on, in truly virtuous circle. One might get a kind of universal ethical imperative, which it would be in everybody’s self-interest to obey, as it were “from nowhere”.
In addition to ancestor-simulations, one may also consider the possibility of more selective simulations that include only a small group of humans or a single individual. The rest of humanity would then be zombies or “shadow-people” – humans simulated only at a level sufficient for the fully simulated people not to notice anything suspicious. It is not clear how much cheaper shadow-people would be to simulate than real people. It is not even obvious that it is possible for an entity to behave indistinguishably from a real human and yet lack conscious experience. Even if there are such selective simulations, you should not think that you are in one of them unless you think they are much more numerous than complete simulations. There would have to be about 100 billion times as many “me-simulations” (simulations of the life of only a single mind) as there are ancestor-simulations in order for most simulated persons to be in me-simulations.
There is also the possibility of simulators abridging certain parts of the mental lives of simulated beings and giving them false memories of the sort of experiences that they would typically have had during the omitted interval. If so, one can consider the following (farfetched) solution to the problem of evil: that there is no suffering in the world and all memories of suffering are illusions. Of course, this hypothesis can be seriously entertained only at those times when you are not currently suffering.
Supposing we live in a simulation, what are the implications for us humans? The foregoing remarks notwithstanding, the implications are not all that radical. Our best guide to how our posthuman creators have chosen to set up our world is the standard empirical study of the universe we see. The revisions to most parts of our belief networks would be rather slight and subtle – in proportion to our lack of confidence in our ability to understand the ways of posthumans. Properly understood, therefore, the truth of (3) should have no tendency to make us “go crazy” or to prevent us from going about our business and making plans and predictions for tomorrow. The chief empirical importance of (3) at the current time seems to lie in its role in the tripartite conclusion established above.[15] We may hope that (3) is true since that would decrease the probability of (1), although if computational constraints make it likely that simulators would terminate a simulation before it reaches a posthuman level, then out best hope would be that (2) is true.
If we learn more about posthuman motivations and resource constraints, maybe as a result of developing towards becoming posthumans ourselves, then the hypothesis that we are simulated will come to have a much richer set of empirical implications.
VII. CONCLUSION
A technologically mature “posthuman” civilization would have enormous computing power. Based on this empirical fact, the simulation argument shows that at least one of the following propositions is true: (1) The fraction of human-level civilizations that reach a posthuman stage is very close to zero; (2) The fraction of posthuman civilizations that are interested in running ancestor-simulations is very close to zero; (3) The fraction of all people with our kind of experiences that are living in a simulation is very close to one.
If (1) is true, then we will almost certainly go extinct before reaching posthumanity. If (2) is true, then there must be a strong convergence among the courses of advanced civilizations so that virtually none contains any relatively wealthy individuals who desire to run ancestor-simulations and are free to do so. If (3) is true, then we almost certainly live in a simulation. In the dark forest of our current ignorance, it seems sensible to apportion one’s credence roughly evenly between (1), (2), and (3).
Unless we are now living in a simulation, our descendants will almost certainly never run an ancestor-simulation.
Acknowledgements
I’m grateful to many people for comments, and especially to Amara Angelica, Robert Bradbury, Milan Cirkovic, Robin Hanson, Hal Finney, Robert A. Freitas Jr., John Leslie, Mitch Porter, Keith DeRose, Mike Treder, Mark Walker, Eliezer Yudkowsky, and several anonymous referees.
[1] See e.g. K. E. Drexler, Engines of Creation: The Coming Era of Nanotechnology, London, Forth Estate, 1985; N. Bostrom, “How Long Before Superintelligence?” International Journal of Futures Studies, vol. 2, (1998); R. Kurzweil, The Age of Spiritual Machines: When computers exceed human intelligence, New York, Viking Press, 1999; H. Moravec, Robot: Mere Machine to Transcendent Mind, Oxford University Press, 1999.
[2] Such as the Bremermann-Bekenstein bound and the black hole limit (H. J. Bremermann, “Minimum energy requirements of information transfer and computing.” International Journal of Theoretical Physics 21: 203-217 (1982); J. D. Bekenstein, “Entropy content and information flow in systems with limited energy.” Physical Review D 30: 1669-1679 (1984); A. Sandberg, “The Physics of Information Processing Superobjects: The Daily Life among the Jupiter Brains.” Journal of Evolution and Technology, vol. 5 (1999)).
[3] K. E. Drexler, Nanosystems: Molecular Machinery, Manufacturing, and Computation, New York, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1992.
[4] R. J. Bradbury, “Matrioshka Brains.” Working manuscript (2002), http://www.aeiveos.com/~bradbury/MatrioshkaBrains/MatrioshkaBrains.html.
[5] S. Lloyd, “Ultimate physical limits to computation.” Nature 406 (31 August): 1047-1054 (2000).
[6] H. Moravec, Mind Children, Harvard University Press (1989).
[9] As we build more and faster computers, the cost of simulating our machines might eventually come to dominate the cost of simulating nervous systems.
[10] 100 billion humans50 years/human30 million secs/year[1014, 1017] operations in each human brain per second [1033, 1036] operations.
[11] In e.g. N. Bostrom, “The Doomsday argument, Adam & Eve, UN++, and Quantum Joe.” Synthese 127(3): 359-387 (2001); and most fully in my book Anthropic Bias: Observation Selection Effects in Science and Philosophy, Routledge, New York, 2002.
[12] See e.g. J. Leslie, “Is the End of the World Nigh? ” Philosophical Quarterly 40, 158: 65-72 (1990).
[13] See my paper “Existential Risks: Analyzing Human Extinction Scenarios and Related Hazards.” Journal of Evolution and Technology, vol. 9 (2001) for a survey and analysis of the present and anticipated future threats to human survival.
[14] See e.g. Drexler (1985) op cit., and R. A. Freitas Jr., “Some Limits to Global Ecophagy by Biovorous Nanoreplicators, with Public Policy Recommendations.” Zyvex preprint April (2000), http://www.foresight.org/NanoRev/Ecophagy.html.
[15] For some reflections by another author on the consequences of (3), which were sparked by a privately circulated earlier version of this paper, see R. Hanson, “How to Live in a Simulation.” Journal of Evolution and Technology, vol. 7 (2001).
Punch-drunk Belgium is reeling from a new shock after a senior police officer confirmed last week what has long been rumoured: that some of the country’s leaders indulge in sex parties, known ironically as “ballets roses”.
Amusing and appalling in turn, the testimony of Georges Marnette, a senior Brussels policemen, might appear to make a welcome change from the horrors of recent months. But this is not mere entertainment: the stories may provide an important insight into the mores of a ruling class that has outraged ordinary people.
At times, Belgium has been in the throes of a near-revolution, with hundreds of thousands on the streets demanding an end to the political patronage that, they believed, had helped – by omission if not commission – a paedophile ring to murder children and escape arrest. It has not been a time of many laughs for anyone.
All the same, it was with a mixture of knowing winks and barely suppressed laughter that a parliamentary commission investigating another of the country’s most mysterious scandals heard the evidence of M Marnette. Belgian newspapers usually refer to the portly M Marnette as “un superflic”, and mean it. In fact, his evidence was more reminiscent of Inspector Clouseau.
“Yes, we used to go the bars, the gay and lesbian clubs and the sex parties,” he said, his bushy moustaches bristling at the memory of his past achievements. Infiltrating such establishments was no easy matter; it was not a job to be done wearing “jeans and a leather jacket”.
As for M Marnette, he was clearly a master of disguise. “I wasn’t going to hang round wearing my holster while everyone else was either naked or in dressing-gowns. But if I was in a dressing gown, that didn’t mean that I was doing any sexual acrobatics myself.”
The vision of leading politicians, judges and policemen indulging in orgies may tickle the Belgian taste for the absurd. But the light relief provided by tales of lax morals in high places is wearing off. For the “ballet rose” is also the perfect metaphor for the corruption, freemasonry and the vulnerability to blackmail of the country’s political élite.
The public will be learning more about the “ballets roses”, and the identities of dignitaries who attended them, from the evidence of other policemen who “infiltrated” this exotic demi-monde. It is a world of outwardly respectable private clubs in discreet suburbs of Brussels, Antwerp and Liège, but where, on arrival, members remove not just their coats, but their tops, bottoms and underwear as well.
For the moment, it looks increasingly unlikely that the two inquiries obsessing Belgians will yield new insights into how those in power exploit their positions, let alone name the guilty men or bring improvements. But M Marnette’s testimony, and his naming in camera of two senior establishment figures who performed at the “ballets roses”, caused a minor sensation.
Georges Marnette
Many had dismissed the “ballets roses” as Belgium’s Loch Ness monster – much talked about, rarely seen and its existence never proved. But now it emerges that they were not the only exotic entertainment enjoyed by the ruling classes.
The “ballet rose” itself implies the presence of young, but not necessarily under-age, girls. To cater for other tastes, there are also “ballets bleus” (young men), “partouzes” (run-of-the-mill orgies) and even “ballets de confiture” (apparently extreme Right-wingers like to strip and smear themselves with jam).
The parliamentary inquiry truly gripping the nation is the one examining the case of Marc Dutroux, who has confessed to murdering four young girls, and the way it was handled by the authorities.
The second inquiry has caused less of a furore, but the crimes it is reviewing, dating back 10 years, were even bloodier and more traumatic than the paedophile murders. These were the spectacular series of hold-ups, known as the Brabant killings, that terrorised Belgium in the early 1980s and claimed the lives of 28 people. They remain unsolved.
The usual explanation is that the killings were an attempt by the far Right, in league with the security services, to destabilise the country. But the suspicion has long persisted that some of the victims were not gunned down at random, but targeted because of their links to “ballets roses”.
Hugo Coveliers, a Belgian senator, argues that the “ballets roses” are not independent of one another, but part of a system “which operates to this day and is used to blackmail the highly placed people who take part”.
To many who hoped that rage at last year’s paedophile scandal could be channelled into political reform, the “ballets roses” are at best a digression, at worst an attempt by the authorities to throw the two inquiries off the scent of the real villains. The very existence of the two commissions of inquiry has signalled a desire for change. The public may take further encouragement from the fact that, for the first time since the armed robberies began in 1982, police last month released identikit photos of possible suspects.
Why are some states simply ignoring the latest studies, and passing new laws that will hurt your teeth and harm your health?
Water fluoridation was introduced to the United States in the 1940s as a way to use waste product from the manufacture of aluminum, a waste product that was expensive to dispose of and which was harming cattle and farmland. Since then, the federal government has taken the stance that the fluoridation of drinking water, which conveniently disposed of the waste, is vitally important to help prevent tooth decay; the CDC called it one of the ten great public health achievements of the 20th century. But the the latest scientific studies have finally made the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) change their tune on how much fluoride is safe.
The data indicates that dental fluorosi – damage to the teeth from fluoride, ranging from lacy white markings or spots on the enamel to staining and pitting of the tooth surface – happens when fluoride levels are too high. Water is only one of several sources of fluoride. Other common sources include dental products such as toothpaste and mouth rinses, prescription fluoride supplements, fluoride applied by dental professionals, and exposure through our food, which is often sprayed with fluoride-based pesticides.
Today the fluoride in your water mostly comes from the phosphate fertilizer industry – but it’s still toxic waste, containing other byproducts such as arsenic, lead, cadmium, and mercury. And two studies show that fluoride increases the accumulation of lead in bone, teeth, and other calcium-rich tissues, transporting heavy metals into areas of your body they normally would not be able to go – like your brain.
Another study revealed that prolonged, high intake of fluoride can increase the risk of brittle bones, fractures, and crippling bone abnormalities. Longtime readers may recall our 2008 article on the effects of fluoride on teeth and bones (harming kidney patients worst of all); we also noted that fluoride is a known neurotoxin, and can have detrimental effects on the thyroid, which could affect intelligence.
EPA and HHS now recommend the level of fluoride in drinking water to be set “at the lowest end of the current optimal range” – that is, no more than 0.7 milligrams of fluoride per liter of water instead of the current recommended range which goes as high as 1.2 milligrams.
Despite studies so compelling that the federal government has started back-pedaling, the states of New Jersey and Vermont are attempting to mandate the fluoridation of water supply. Unfortunately, the New Jersey bill is very close to being passed. By contrast, Illinois and New Hampshire have introduced bills to prohibit fluoride in drinking water.
In New Jersey, both S959 in the Senate and A1811 in the Assembly are on red alert – they have been reported out of committee and are already on the floor, so they can be voted upon at any time. These bills mandate the fluoridation of water. At minimum, this is a freedom of choice issue – citizens should be able to choose whether they want to ingest fluoride or not. Write your legislators and ask them to oppose these bills – take action now!
In Vermont, H615 (currently in the Health Care Committee) contains many provisions to do with oral care – so we are specifically opposing section 108a, which mandates fluoridation of water. It requires that any municipality, government agency, or other entity that owns or controls a water system shall maintain fluoride in the water supply. Write your representative and request an amendment to strike out that part of the bill – take action now!
In New Hampshire: HB1529 would amend current law to say, “No fluoride, nor any chemical containing fluoride, shall be introduced into the public water supply,” as well as other specific provisions against the the use of herbicides within ten miles upgradient (that is, uphill) from a water intake of a domestic water supply. Write your representative and express your strong support for this bill – take action now!
For most of us, our experience on Facebook is a benign – even banal – one. A status update about a colleague’s commute. A “friend” request from someone we haven’t seen for years (and hoped to avoid for several more). A picture of another friend’s baby, barely distinguishable from the dozen posted the day before.
Some four billion pieces of content are shared every day by 845 million users. And while most are harmless, it has recently come to light that the site is brimming with paedophilia, pornography, racism and violence – all moderated by outsourced, poorly vetted workers in third world countries paid just $1 an hour.
In addition to the questionable morality of a company that is about to create 1,000 millionaires when it floats paying such paltry sums, there are significant privacy concerns for the rest of us. Although this invisible army of moderators receive basic training, they work from home, do not appear to undergo criminal checks, and have worrying access to users’ personal details. In a week in which there has been an outcry over Google’s privacy policies, can we expect a wider backlash over the extent to which we trust companies with our intimate information?
Last month, 21-year-old Amine Derkaoui gave an interview to Gawker, an American media outlet. Derkaoui had spent three weeks working in Morocco for oDesk, one of the outsourcing companies used by Facebook. His job, for which he claimed he was paid around $1 an hour, involved moderating photos and posts flagged as unsuitable by other users.
“It must be the worst salary paid by Facebook,” he told The Daily Telegraph this week. “And the job itself was very upsetting – no one likes to see a human cut into pieces every day.”
Derkaoui is not exaggerating. An articulate man, he described images of animal abuse, butchered bodies and videos of fights. Other moderators, mainly young, well-educated people working in Asia, Africa and Central America, have similar stories. “Paedophilia, necrophilia, beheadings, suicides, etc,” said one. “I left [because] I value my sanity.” Another compared it to working in a sewer. “All the —- of the world flows towards you and you have to clean it up,” he said.
Who, one wonders, apart from the desperate, the unstable and the unsavoury, would be attracted to doing such an awful job in the first place?
Of course, not all of the unsuitable material on the site is so graphic. Facebook operates a fascinatingly strict set of guidelines determining what should be deleted. Pictures of naked private parts, drugs (apart from marijuana) and sexual activity (apart from foreplay) are all banned. Male nipples are OK, but naked breastfeeding is not. Photographs of bodily fluids (except semen) are allowed, but not if a human being is also shown. Photoshopped images are fine, but not if they show someone in a negative light.
Once something is reported by a user, the moderator sitting at his computer in Morocco or Mexico has three options: delete it; ignore it; or escalate it, which refers it back to a Facebook employee in California (who will, if necessary, report it to the authorities). Moderators are told always to escalate specific threats – “I’m going to stab Lisa H at the frat party” is given as the charming example – but not generic, unlikely ones, such as “I’m going to blow up the planet on New Year’s Eve.”
It is, of course, to Facebook’s credit that they are attempting to balance their mission “to make the world more open and connected” with a willingness to remove traces of the darker side of human nature. The company founded by Mark Zuckerberg in his Harvard bedroom is richer and more populated than many countries. These moderators are their police.
Neither is Facebook alone in outsourcing unpleasant work. Adam Levin, the US-based chief executive of Criterion Capital Partners and the owner of British social network Bebo, says that the process is “rampant” across Silicon Valley.
“We do it at Bebo,” he says. “Facebook has so much content flowing into its system every day that it needs hundreds of people moderating all the images and posts which are flagged. That type of workforce is best outsourced for speed, scale and cost.”
A spokesman for Twitter said that they have an internal moderation team, but refused to answer a question about outsourcing. Similarly, a Google spokesperson would not say how Google+, the search giant’s new social network, will be moderated. Neither Facebook nor oDesk were willing to comment on anything to do with outsourcing or moderation.
Levin, however, estimates that Facebook indirectly employs between 800 to 1,000 moderators via oDesk and others – nearly a third of its more handsomely remunerated full-time staff. Graham Cluley, of the internet security firm Sophos, calls Silicon Valley’s outsourcing culture its “poorly kept dirty secret”.
The biggest worry for the rest of us, however, is that the moderation process isn’t nearly secretive enough. According to Derkaoui, there are no security measures on a moderator’s computer to stop them uploading obscene material themselves. Despite coming into daily contact with such material, he was never subjected to a criminal record check. Where, then, is the oversight body for these underpaid global police? Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
Facebook itself is guarding them, according to a previous statement to which the Telegraph was referred. “These contractors are subject to rigorous quality controls and we have implemented several layers of safeguards to protect the data of those using our service,” it read. “No user information beyond the content in question and the source of the report is shared. All decisions made by contractors are subject to extensive audits.”
And yet in the images due for moderation seen by the Telegraph, the name of anyone “tagged” in an offending post – as well as the user who uploaded it – could be clearly discerned. A Facebook spokesman said that these names are shared with the moderators to put the content in context – a context sufficient for Derkaoui to claim that he had as much information as “looking at a friend’s Facebook page”. He admits to having subsequently looked up more information online about the people he had been moderating. Cluley is worried that Facebook users could be blackmailed by disgruntled moderators – or even see pictures originally intended for a small circle of friends pasted all over the web.
Shamoon Siddiqui, chief executive of Develop.io, an American app-building firm that employs people in the developing world for a more generous $7 to $10 an hour, agrees that better security measures are needed. “It isn’t wrong for Facebook to have an Indian office,” he says. “But it is wrong for it to use an arbitrary marketplace with random people it doesn’t know in that country. This will have to change.”
In Britain, for example, all web moderators have to undergo an enhanced CRB check. eModeration, whose clients range from HSBC to The X-Factor, pays £10 an hour and never lets its staff spend too long on the gritty stuff. They wouldn’t go near the Facebook account. The job, says Tamara Littleton, its chief executive, is too big, the moderating too reactive, and they couldn’t compete on cost with the likes of oDesk.
So, if no one can undercut the likes of oDesk, could they not be undermined instead? If Mr Zuckerberg will not dig deeper into his $17.5 billion pockets to pay the street-sweepers of Facebook properly, maybe he could be persuaded by a little moral outrage?
Levin disagrees. “Perhaps a minute percentage of users will stop using Facebook when they hear about this,” he says. “But the more digital our society becomes, the less people value their privacy.”
Perhaps. But maybe disgruntled commuters, old schoolfriends and new mothers will think twice before sharing intimate information with their “friends” – only to find that two minutes later it’s being viewed by an under-vetted, unfulfilled person on a dollar an hour in an internet café in Marrakech.
A CIA secret weapon used for assassination shoots a small poison dart to cause a heart attack, as explained in Congressional testimony in the short video below. By educating ourselves and others on vitally important matters like this, we can build a brighter future for us all.
The dart from this secret CIA weapon can penetrate clothing and leave nothing but a tiny red dot on the skin. On penetration of the deadly dart, the individual targeted for assassination may feel as if bitten by a mosquito, or they may not feel anything at all. The poisonous dart completely disintegrates upon entering the target.
The lethal poison then rapidly enters the bloodstream causing a heart attack. Once the damage is done, the poison denatures quickly, so that an autopsy is very unlikely to detect that the heart attack resulted from anything other than natural causes. Sounds like the perfect James Bond weapon, doesn’t it? Yet this is all verifiable in Congressional testimony.
The astonishing information about this secret weapon of the CIA comes from U.S. Senate testimony in 1975 on rogue activities of the CIA. This weapon is only one of many James Bond-like discoveries of the Church Committee hearings, officially known as the United States Senate Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities.
Could this or a similar secret weapon have been used, for instance, in the recent death of 52-year-old Mark Pittman, a reporter who predicted the financial crisis and exposed Federal Reserve misdoings? Pittman, whose fight to open the Federal Reserve to more scrutiny led Bloomberg News to sue the central bank and win, died of a heart attack on Nov. 25th
Dr. Richard Holmes , age 48. Weapons expert. Dr. Holmes is believed to have worked on the production of chemical protection suits for troops. In 1991, he was the joint author of a scientific paper about an RAF chemical and biological protection system. Suicide riddle of weapons expert who worked with David Kelly: Scientist tells wife he is going for a walk, then takes his life in a field, just like his friend.
The BBC (in Spanish)
Former government officials such as Ed Rendell, the Democratic ex-governor of Pennsylvania, and Gen. Hugh Shelton, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have come under scrutiny from federal investigators over the speaking fees they were paid to deliver speeches supporting MEK, according to press reports.
On March 6, 2012, I wrote an article entitled “
