This is in Spanish, but you don't need to know Spanish to understand it and laugh with it. Its actually very good video on how money works to transfer energy. If anyone wants to volunteer to translate the words and give me the time marks I'll create subtitles for it....
Monday, 1 July 2013
Thirty-Three MILLION People. Egypt Rises WITH UPDATES. Morsi Has 48 Hours
Posted on 20:37 by Unknown
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/07/01/1220236/-Thirty-Three-MILLION-People
MON JUL 01, 2013 AT 04:00 AM PDT
Thirty-Three MILLION People. Egypt Rises WITH UPDATES. Morsi Has 48 Hours
byzenbassoonFollow
You think they're upset?
This is what a pissed off country looks like:
As I've said, everything I've heard has been unofficial. But it has come from the ground. A friend living in Dallas met a refugee and they struck a friendship. She has met more refugees, from Egypt, and from Syria, through Facebook and other social media. Here is a picture of one of her friends marching with Mohammed ElBaredai:
Marching with ElBaredai
Also follow the following Twitter feeds: @CairoScene, @TahrirBodyguard, @Ghonim,@sandmonkey, and @USEmbassyCairo Follow the hashtag #June30
Here are some snippets of things that have been happening on the ground in Egypt:
First, here is video of the Muslim Brotherhood headquarters being attacked. Notice the sandbags on the windows. The citizens used what they had--rocks, fireworks, Molotov cocktails, what have you. Also notice the green lasers.
Next we have a picture of the crowd and a Military-style helicopter hovering above the crowd:
Folks--this is one of the biggest stories of the year. And it may not bode well for us, either. This crowd is pissed at Morsi. And they see Obama and the United States as the ones who put him in office. And they see the United States calling for calm and talk with the Muslim Brotherhood. Witness this banner seen at the protests. The woman is US Ambassador Anne Patterson:
The Conventional Wisdom is that Morsi is going to offer "concessions". But the protesters don't want that. We'll see. We may be seeing the overthrow of another Egyptian government.
And this time, no one's covering it in the media.
UPDATE: While the number of marchers has ranged from "millions" to 14 million, the opposition reports that their petition has received over 22,000,000 signatures (22 MILLION).
THIS JUST IN: Multiple news sources are reporting that the Egyptian Military is giving the Morsi government 48 hours to answer the demands of the protesters
It would offer its own "road map" for peace if the factions failed to reach a deal following deadly clashes, it said.
11:34 AM PT: Via Al-Arabiya: Ten Egyptian ministers have submitted their resignation after huge protests against Islamist President Mohammed Mursi, Al Arabiya correspondent reported Monday.
Earlier, Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Qandil has rejected the resignation request of five ministers, a senior government official told AFP.
Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou, Minister of State for Environmental Affairs Khaled Abdel-Aal, Communication and Information Technology Minister Atef Helmi, Minister of State for Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Hatem Bagato, and Water Minister Abdel Qawy Khalifa handed their resignation letters at the same time to Qandil, the official said.
ORIGINALLY POSTED TO ZENBASSOON ON MON JUL 01, 2013 AT 04:00 AM PDT.
ALSO REPUBLISHED BY INDIANAPOLIS KOSSACKS, FRIENDS OF KEITH OLBERMANN AND RACHEL MADDOW, AND MORE AND BETTER DEMOCRACIES.
Removing the Shackles: Are you Ready? Tonight on The One People's radio show.....
Posted on 14:41 by Unknown
Posted by D. at http://removingtheshackles.blogspot.com/2013/07/are-you-ready-tonight-on-one-peoples.html
Monday, 1 July 2013
Are you Ready? Tonight on The One People's radio show.....
Are you ready for it!?
The recording of the 1 hour and 26 minute interview that I did today with Lisa, Bob and Heather will be played tonight on the One Peoples Radio show!!! ........ regardless of the technical difficulties, lol.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thecollectiveimagination/2013/07/02/the-one-people
I have spent the past 7 hours trying to upload the video of the interview (that I created my self with only one small bit of help (lol)) to youtube- only to have it fail after 3 hours when my computer ran out of juice because I didn't' notice that the power cord wasn't plugged into the wall properly (don't even go there), then the remaining 4 hours attempting to send the audio file to several people via several different pieces of technology.... I am currently sitting in Heather's hallway, hardwired to her modem and we are about .......
*sigh*
I was about to type that we are about 95% done uploading in my final attempt to send it to BZ to get it onto You Tube, and then I glanced at the page and it's now saying:
"Sorry there was a problem with your file transfer. Please try again"
*sigh*
Well I was just ranting to Heather about my horrific day so far and she just smiled and winked and said "Everything happens exactly as it should for a reason"
... apparently the reason is that this video/audio is NOT to be heard before the show tonight.
Normally I'd be seriously pulling my hair out right now, but ... BUT... Lisa ALSO recorded the interview and is uploading it to the radio show right this very moment, SOOOOOoooooooo, tune into blog talk radio show tonight to hear the the WHOLE story, and the archives will be available after the show tonight- and to download. Tomorrow we will get the You Tube video up so that it can be shared everywhere.
Heather is currently working on the final pieces of the Template for I UV INchange -we both have had serious technical issues today, including her laptop refusing to boot up! It's all good though and we are pounding away to get this tipping point moment ready to go.... 90% sure we can get it done by the end of tonight..... another all nighter for us again.
The article I wrote this past Saturday "The Tidal Wave is Coming!" has gone viral across the internet, facebook, and many websites in multiple languages across the globe. Because of this, many many people have only just discovered the OPPT UCC filings, and many of them have no previous exposure to the true corruption of the system, and the theft of their value. During the interview with Heather, we went back and gave a brief synopsis of the Who, What, Where, Why, When and How of the OPPT filings, and I UV INchange and What is happening today. Heather fully explains HOW the Value system works, did work and how it will work now.
This interview is not to be missed!
The Fat Lady's Song
Posted on 13:16 by Unknown
Love is a force. It is the power that created the universe. Power and force are not in opposition; all is One. Only this reality holds the perception of separate. As that perception is held, so is its matching vibratory rate. Do you understand what this means? As you view the world, the lens you use determines what the world looks like. You’ve been told things that color your opinions and in turn formulate your life.
If you believe love is something beyond your control, you will become passive when you feel it. Love is the fuel of the creative force, the source of all life, the unifying field. It is anything but passive.
In contrast, fear is a reaction to a lie – the lie of loss. You cannot lose what is eternal. Fear does not create or permanently change a thing. Love does.
What is being played out right now is the end of the Illusion. We are the directors and the actors – it will only end when we write and perform and believe it is truly over. You are not waiting to hear the “fat lady sing”. You are waiting to pick up your pen and write her song into the script. Then you’ll sing it yourself. You are the only one who can.
What does this look like? It takes a world view of oneness to see clearly. It takes courage to look at every being and know that they are another part of you. It takes raw, fearless sight. It takes constant consciousness. Armed with truth, your actions will be straight and unbiased. Love and unity are not wimpy, mushy or apathetic. They are the essence of your Godhood.
Know that all is One. The One that we are has chosen balance now and you are a part of this current course correction. All actions taken with full awareness will serve their intent. It can be no other way.
You are not a victim. You are not a villain. You are One – the creator of your world. “What would Love do now?” This is the only question of consciousness. In each moment, with every being or all alone, allow the answer to this question determine your next move. The answer reaches beyond the individual to the One. Love’s action serves always the One. For love will cherish life above all else, and the evolution of our species demands balance.
Things have been skewed in the direction of self-destruction; therefore what looks to be drastic action is necessary for the good of the whole. Full consciousness is not for the lazy or weak of heart. Agape has an assertive and active agenda.
It starts with you. As self love permeates your being, anxiety and indecision diminish. Love makes no demands. Love carries no expectations. Love flows from our core and is felt in the very same place. It is a knowing. It is a drive. When ignored, it can feel like an irritation. Love does not go away. Love is not passive; listen. It whispers. It tells you what your heart would do.
We are ending some things, changing others and introducing the new. We are becoming all possibilities. Any judgment based solely on sight or sound is inherently flawed. For truth is found only in the heart. Love serves itself every time.
Trust each other. We all know what to do. This moment could not happen without us. We are the One; the waiting is just about over. We are here.
The Guardian: The cyber-intelligence complex and its useful idiots
Posted on 10:19 by Unknown
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| J Edgar Hoover (right, with President Richard Nixon) ran the FBI's illegal Cointelpro domestic political surveillance scheme. Photograph: Bettmann/Corbis |
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jul/01/cyber-intelligence-complex-useful-idiots
The cyber-intelligence complex and its useful idiots
Those who tell us to trust the US's secret, privatised surveillance schemes should recall the criminality of J Edgar Hoover's FBI
Barrett Brown
guardian.co.uk, Monday 1 July 2013 11.21 EDT
It's a fine thing to see mainstream American media outlets finally sparing some of their attention toward the cyber-industrial complex – that unprecedented conglomeration of state, military and corporate interests that together exercise growing power over the flow of information. It would be even more heartening if so many of the nation's most influential voices, from senator to pundits, were not clearly intent on killing off even this belated scrutiny into the invisible empire that so thoroughly scrutinizes us – at our own expense and to unknown ends.
Summing up the position of those who worry less over secret government powers than they do over the whistleblowers who reveal such things, we have New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, who argues that we can trust small cadres of unaccountable spies with broad powers over our communications. We must all wish Friedman luck with this prediction. Other proclamations of his – including that Vladimir Putin would bring transparency and liberal democracy to Russia, and that the Chinese regime would not seek to limit its citizens' free access to the internet – have not aged especially well.
An unkind person might dismiss Friedman as the incompetent harbinger of a dying republic. Being polite, I will merely suggest that Friedman's faith in government is as misplaced as faith in the just and benevolent God that we know not to exist – Friedman having been the winner of several of the world's most-coveted Pulitzer Prizes.
If Friedman is, indeed, too quick to trust the powerful, it's a trait he shares with the just over half of Americans, who tell pollsters they're fine with the NSA programs that were until recently hidden from their view. Why, our countrymen wonder, ought we to be disturbed by our state's desire to know everything that everyone does? Given the possibility that this surveillance could perhaps prevent deaths in the form of terrorist attacks, most Americans are willing to forgo some abstract notion of privacy in favor of the more concrete benefits of security.
Besides, the government to which we're ceding these broad new powers is a democracy, overseen by real, live Americans. And it's hard to imagine American government officials abusing their powers – or at least, it would be, had such officials not already abused similar but more limited powers through repeated campaigns of disinformation, intimidation and airtight crimes directed at the American public over the last five decades. Cointelpro, Operation Mockingbird, Ultra and Chaos are among the now-acknowledged CIA, FBI and NSA programs by which those agencies managed to subvert American democracy with impunity. Supporters of mass surveillance conducted under the very same agencies have yet to address how such abuses can be insured against in the context of powers far greater than anything J Edgar Hoover could command.
Many have never heard of these programs; the sort of people who trust states with secret authority tend not to know what such things have led to in the recent past. Those who do know of such things may perhaps contend that these practices would never be repeated today. But it was just two years ago that the late Michael Hastings revealed that US army officials in Afghanistan were conducting psy-ops against visiting US senators in order to sway them towards continued funding for that unsuccessful war. If military and intelligence officials have so little respect for the civilian leadership, one can guess how they feel about mere civilians.
Not that anyone need merely guess. Discussing the desirability of such "information operations" in his 2001 book, retired USAF Lt Col George Crawford noted that voters tend to view these sorts of programs with suspicion. "Consequently," he concludes, "these efforts must take place away from public eyes."
And so they do. If we want to learn a thing or two about the latest round of such programs – that is, if we are willing to disregard the Thomas Friedmans of this world – we must look not just towards the three letter agencies that have routinely betrayed us in the past, but also to the untold number of private intelligence contracting firms that have sprung up lately in order to betray us in a more efficient and market-oriented manner. Our lieutenant colonel, scourge of "public eyes", is among the many ex-military and intelligence officials who have left public service, or public obfuscation – or whatever we're calling it now – to work in the expanding sphere of private spookery, to which is outsourced information operations by the Pentagon, spy agencies, and even other corporations who need an edge over some enemy (in Crawford's case, the mysterious Archimedes Global).
So, how trustworthy is this privatized segment of the invisible empire? We would know almost nothing of their operations were it not for a chance turn of events that prompted Anonymous-affiliated hackers to seize 70,000 emails from one typical firm back in early 2011. From this more-or-less random sampling of contractor activity, we find a consortium of these firms plotting to intimidate, attack and discredit WikiLeaks and those identified as its key supporters, including the (then Salon, now Guardian) journalist Glenn Greenwald – a potentially illegal conspiracy concocted on behalf of corporate giant Bank of America, which feared exposure by WikiLeaks, and organized under the auspices of the Department of Justice itself.
We find several of the same firms – which collectively referred to themselves as Team Themis – involved in another scheme to deploy sophisticated software-based fake people across social networks in order to infiltrate and mislead. For instance, Themis proposes sending two of these "personas" to pose online as members of an organization opposed to the US Chamber of Commerce, another prospective Themis client, in order to discredit the group from within. Yet another revelation involves a massive cross-platform military program of disinformation and surveillance directed at the Arab world; still another relates how one NSA-inked firm can monitor and attack online infrastructure throughout the world, including western Europe, and will rent these capabilities out to those with a few million dollars to spend on such things.
And Booz Allen Hamilton, which has received some belated scrutiny as the eminently powerful employer of NSA leaker Edward Snowden, was apparently in talks with Themis participant HBGary Federal regarding its own still-secret "project" involving, again, WikiLeaks. These are simply a few of the revelations stemming from a portion of the email correspondence among a handful of major contracting firms – a tiny, serendipitous sampling of what such firms are doing for their government and corporate clients as they compete for contracts.
Hundred of these sorts of companies have come about in the last few years, operating in close partnerships with the state, yet existing beyond the view of Congress, the media and "public eyes". Even in the unlikely instance when their activities come to light, potentially illegal behavior goes unpunished; even calls by congressmen to investigate the sordid Themis conspiracy were ignored by the Department of Justice, which, of course, set the whole thing in motion to begin with through its recommendation.
This, then, is the environment in which public officials and Beltway insiders like Friedman are asking us to trust the intelligence community and its private partner firms with increasing power over information. It's an age in which even the limited rules in place can be broken with impunity by the powerful – even as journalists and activists who cross them are targeted for destruction by state-corporate alliances armed with increasingly sophisticated cyber weapons, propaganda techniques and surveillance authority.
This is the world we accept if we continue to avert our eyes. And it promises to get much worse.
The Trade In Passports to the Wealthy
Posted on 09:57 by Unknown
If you had any doubt of the corporate nature of the world's countries, the trade in passports to the wealthy should be a clue.... I read a book in the late 1980s about getting extra passports and was surprised to learn that at that time foreigners could buy themselves a USA passport. I don't know if that is still true regarding the US but you can buy a US Work Visa. -AK
http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/28/business/world-overlooked-countries-second-citizenship/index.html
World's overlooked countries to buy second citizenship, residency
By Ramy Inocencio, for CNN
updated 4:01 AM EDT, Fri June 28, 2013
Hong Kong (CNN) -- Are you jaded with your home country, want to pay lower taxes, enjoy the freedom to travel and strive for a higher quality of life?
Well, if you have as little as $100,000 then you could buy citizenship to a tiny, tropical Caribbean nation that ticks all of those boxes. Bump an investment up to $5 million and your quality of life could rocket as you go Down Under; double that and Viennese coffee could start your morning routine -- with prized access through nearly all of Europe.
Aside from obvious countries like the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, who have investor programs and pathways to citizenship, here's a list of countries you might have overlooked. They will welcome you -- if you show them the money.
1. St. Kitts and Nevis
Cash for citizenship is an easy concept to understand. It best applies to just two countries in the world -- both of which happen to be in the Caribbean -- and is 100% legal and can happen in as little as a few months.
The smallest nation in all of the Americas, the island federation of St. Kitts and Nevis, tempts would-be citizens with more than just tropical breezes, swaying palm trees and white sand beaches. It also touts no personal income tax, the allowance for multiple citizenship and visa-free access to nearly 130 countries and territories.
"Overall, St. Kitts and Nevis clearly offers the most attractive citizenship-by-investment program available today," said Henley and Partners, a Zurich-based consultancy specializing in global residence and citizenship planning for the past fifteen years.
Established in 1984, St. Kitts and Nevis' citizenship-by-investment scheme is the longest-running program in the world and offers two avenues to a new passport.
The cheaper option requires a $250,000 contribution to the country's Sugar Industry Diversification Foundation. Started in 2006, it aims to shift the country from a sugar-dependent to a service-oriented economy.
Real estate investment -- and a higher $400,000 investment -- is the second route to citizenship. A government website conveniently lists nearly 60 approved developments -- with alluring names like Sundance Ridge, Calypso Bay and Windswept Residence.
Anyone in the world can apply for citizenship, save one country: Iran. Iranian nationals had been eligible until late 2011 when the Prime Minister's Office suspended the program after Iranians stormed the British embassy in Tehran.
When contacted by CNN, a St. Kitts and Nevis spokeswoman said the number of applicants accepted under the citizenship-by-investment program "is confidential information that the CIU does not provide to the public."
Henley and Partners noted that "few passports have been issued."
2. Dominica
If you have less money to invest, Dominica is another tropical Caribbean destination to consider.
In all of Asia, in terms of freedom to move capital, taxation and residency requirements, Hong Kong would be the best choice.
Denny Ko, Henley and Partners
Not to be confused with the Dominican Republic, this island of just around 73,000 people has offered a citizenship-by-investment scheme since 1993. Among four package options, a single applicant investment requires just a $100,000 deposit to the National Bank of Dominica, the country's largest financial institution. The investment amount doubles for a family of four.
Applicants must be of "outstanding character," must wait "at least eight weeks" for approval and must have a "basic level" of English, according to Dominica's website detailing the citizenship path.
An added bonus: investors can stay in their home country for the mandatory interview provided they foot the bill for three members of the interview panel to fly to them -- the full cost of hotel, airfare, an unspecified per diem and an additional $3,000.
However, the lower investment hurdle, relative to St. Kitts and Nevis, only gives visa-free access to 85 countries.
More than 2,000 families have gained citizenship through the scheme, according to Henley and Partners.
3. Antigua and Barbuda
While not yet official, this third Caribbean island nation may allow economic citizenship as soon as this summer.
After years of back and forth, the country's parliament finally passed their controversial Citizenship-by-Investment Program (CIP) Bill in March, according to local reports.
Similar to St. Kitts and Nevis, a $250,000 contribution to the country's National Development Fund or a $400,000 real estate investment in approved developments is required. A third option is a $1.5 million "business investment" that allows an applicant to put money in government-approved businesses.
An additional $50,000 application fee and a so-called $7,500 "due diligence fee" exist on top of the investment amount.
If approved, new citizens will enjoy visa-free access to nearly 120 countries, which include the United Kingdom, France and Canada.
4. Austria
In Europe, Austria stands as the lone country where citizenship by investment is possible, according to Henley and Partners.
The route, taken by few and accomplished by even fewer, can happen for "rendering exceptional services in the interest of the Republic," according to an Austrian government website. One such service that has cleared prior clients, added Henley & Partners, is a direct investment of $10 million -- a claim reportedly refuted by an Austrian government spokeswoman based in Washington, D.C.
Still, successful applicants for Austrian citizenship can live in a country whose capital, Vienna, ranked as the world's best city for quality of life in a 2012 Mercer survey.
Applicants must be of 'outstanding character,' must wait at least eight weeks for approval.
But you get what you pay for: Austria, with its 50% personal income tax rate, ranks among one of the highest in the world. A workaround, according to Henley & Partners, is simply to live elsewhere in Europe. Only Austrian citizens who actually reside in the country are subject to taxes.
An Austrian passport easily gives that option by opening many borders. The country is a member of the Schengen Area with its 26 countries spanning most of western Europe sharing common borders without immigration control -- not to mention more than 160 countries in total around the world -- on par with Australia and Canada.
5. Hong Kong
While citizenship-by-investment in Hong Kong is not a possibility, residency-by-investment is. And this Chinese territory's tax rate of just 15% stands as one of this city's biggest draws.
"In all of Asia, in terms of freedom to move capital, taxation and residency requirements, Hong Kong would be the best choice," said Denny Ko, Managing Partner at Henley and Partners in Hong Kong.
Under Hong Kong's Capital Investment Entrant Scheme, or CIES, an investment of about $1.3 million gives applicants residency rights. You can buy stocks in companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, debt securities in airport or railway companies or certificates of deposits that mature after just one year.
In addition to enjoying one of the lowest tax rates in the world, residents can use the city's well-regarded public health care system -- just $13 to see an outpatient specialist versus about $150 for non-residents.
Permanent residents have also gotten money back from the government. Under Hong Kong's "Scheme $6,000" whose aim is "to leave wealth with the people," more than 6 million people successfully registered to receive roughly US$770 each. Doing the math, that's potentially $4.6 billion back to the people since the program began in the summer of 2011. Hong Kong is waiting on word of the program's continuance.
Hong Kong also tempts with a rare nexus of natural and man-made architecture. Lush mountains with 300 kilometers of hiking trails crisscross the Chinese Special Administrative Region (SAR); a Star Ferry ride traversing Asia's largest harbor, Victoria Harbor, presents passengers with one of the world's most iconic skylines. In fact, Hong Kong boasts the most skyscrapers in the world -- more than 1,300 at current count -- besting New York's 700 and Tokyo's nearly 400, according to global building data provider Emporis.
Nearly 18,000 people have gained residency by investment in Hong Kong. To maintain permanent residency status, just one visit every three years is required.
In 2012, human resources consultancy ECA International ranked Hong Kong as Asia's third most livable city, with Sydney coming in second.
6. Singapore
However Singapore ranked as Asia's number one livable city in 2012, according to ECA International.
Similar to Hong Kong, the Lion City's personal income tax rates are among the lowest in Asia -- ranging from 15% to 20% depending on income bracket, according to auditing firm KPMG.
But "for Singapore, it would not be so easy" to become a permanent resident, said Jacqueline Low, COO at immigration services firm Janus. "The criteria are quite high."
Potential applicants must have a three-year track record of business and entrepreneurial experience, Low adds. They must also prove past profitability -- annual revenues of some $160 million in real estate and construction-related industries or revenues of about $40 million for all other industries, including pharmaceuticals and manufacturing.
With such foundations, candidates can then apply to Singapore's sole track to permanent residency, the Global Investor Program. This scheme requires an investment of nearly $2 million. The funds can go towards starting a new business or expand one already in operation. Money can also be routed to an approved list of funds that help grow targeted industries ranging from nanotechnology, healthcare and clean energy.
Coupled with low tax rates, applicants who successfully gain permanent resident status can then access healthcare subsidies ranging from 15% to 75%, education subsidies for their children, child-care subsidies and tax deferrals.
Cons for permanent residency include mandatory military service for second-generation males who are also permanent residents, well-known censorship of press freedoms and seasonal smog blankets from Indonesian forest fires.
The Singaporean government does not release information on the numbers of candidates or successful GIP applicants, says Janus' Low. However, since the middle of 2012 she notes "Singapore's immigration policies have been tightened across the board because of the sentiments on the ground" -- a reference to growing public unease over the number of migrants to the city.
The number of applicants have "fallen by at least half over the past year," she added.
For applicants who are successful, however, permanent residency is a pathway to Singaporean citizenship after just two years. A Singaporean passport gives access to more than 160 countries around the world -- just five less than the United States, according to Henley and Partners.
7. Australia
If you have money to burn and want to go down under for permanent residency and potential citizenship, then Australia's Significant Investor Visa is the way to start.
Launched in November 2012, the program targets high net-worth individuals and requires a roughly $4.7 million investment. Applicants can invest in government bonds, infrastructure projects or private companies.
In return -- and in as little as three months -- a significant investor visa can be issued. After four years, holders can apply for permanent residency.
From the program's launch through May, more than 170 applications have been filed. If all are given the green light, Australia will receive $850 million in new foreign investment.
Benefits to Australian residency include free health care, some of the world's best beaches and visa-free access to more than 160 countries -- on par with passport holders from the United States and United Kingdom.
And Australian cities have received many high accolades. In 2012, the Economist Intelligence Unit chose Melbourne as the world's most livable city. And in 2011, Conde Nast travelers voted Sydney as the world's best.
But for all the roses, there are also thorns -- and Australians pay for what they get. The country has a 45% personal income tax rate, according to KPMG, besting the U.S.' 39.5% rate.
And with Australia's chronically strong dollar, Sydney and Melbourne ranked as two of the world's five most expensive cities to live in 2012, according to the 2013 Worldwide Cost of Living Survey from the Economist Intelligence Unit.
EU Furious at NSA Spying
Posted on 08:41 by Unknown
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| Edward Snowden (image by AK) |
http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/01/world/europe/eu-nsa/index.html?hpt=wo_c2
By Josh Levs and Catherine E. Shoichet, CNN
updated 10:34 AM EDT, Mon July 1, 2013
(CNN) -- The European Commission will sweep its offices for electronic listening devices and other security breaches following revelations of alleged U.S. surveillance programs targeting European leaders, a commission spokeswoman said Monday.
The allegations, reported Sunday by the German news magazine Der Spiegel, threaten to derail negotiations on a variety of issues with the United States, French President Francois Hollande said Monday. U.S. and EU officials are scheduled to begin talks on a proposed trans-Atlantic free trade agreement next month.
Hollande said any such surveillance must stop immediately before negotiations can go forward.
"We know that there are systems which have to control notably for the threat against terrorism, but I do not think that this is in our embassies or in the EU that this risks exist," he said.
Hollande's comments and the planned security sweep come amid building outrage in Europe over allegations that the National Security Agency had bugged EU offices in Washington and New York and conducted an "electronic eavesdropping operation" that tapped into an EU building in Brussels, Belgium.
Der Spiegel reported the allegations Sunday, citing information from secret documents obtained by self-avowed NSA leaker Edward Snowden and "in part seen" by the news magazine.
In Brussels, Der Spiegel says, the agency targeted the Justus Lipsius Building, which houses the European Council and the EU Council of Ministers, the union's main decision-making and legislative body.
And in Washington, the magazine report claims, the NSA installed bugs in the European Union's building and infiltrated its computer network.
The reports elicited particular outrage in Germany, where Der Spiegel reported that NSA spying had targeted telephone and Internet connection data in Germany more than any other European nation.
Citing the Snowden documents, the news magazine reported that an average of up to 20 million phone connections and 10 million Internet data connections are surveyed daily. Der Spiegel noted that the intensity of surveillance puts the U.S. ally on par with China, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
Reactions abroad
German President Angela Merkel's spokesman Steffan Seibert cautioned Monday against taking the report as fact without further confirmation.
"If it is, though, confirmed that diplomatic representations of the EU and some European countries were spied upon, we have to say clearly: The bugging of friends is unacceptable. That cannot happen at all. We are no longer in the Cold War."
The German and French foreign ministries planned to meet with the U.S. ambassadors to those countries to talk about the allegations.
The Italian Foreign Ministry called the reports "a very thorny affair."
On Sunday, European Parliament President Martin Schulz said he was "deeply worried and shocked" by the claims.
"If the allegations prove to be true, it would be an extremely serious matter which will have a severe impact on EU-U.S. relations," he said. "On behalf of the European Parliament, I demand full clarification and require further information speedily from the U.S. authorities with regard to these allegations."
Obama covers his bases on Snowden
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius called for a swift explanation from American authorities.
"These acts, if they are confirmed, would be absolutely unacceptable," he said in a statement.
Another report Sunday claimed that surveillance extended beyond European offices.
The Guardian newspaper reported that one NSA document leaked by Snowden describes 38 embassies and missions as "targets" and details surveillance methods that include planting bugs in communications equipment and collecting transmissions with specialized antennae.
Targets included France, Italy, Greece, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, India and Turkey, according to The Guardian.
CNN has not independently confirmed the allegations in the reports from Der Spiegel and The Guardian.
What the U.S. has to say
U.S. officials did not immediately respond to The Guardian's report. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined to comment Sunday on specific allegations published in Der Spiegel.
"The United States government will respond appropriately to the European Union through our diplomatic channels, and through the EU/U.S. experts' dialogue on intelligence that the U.S. proposed several weeks ago," the office said in a statement. "We will also discuss these issues bilaterally with EU member states. While we are not going to comment publicly on specific alleged intelligence activities, as a matter of policy, we have made clear that the United States gathers foreign intelligence of the type gathered by all nations."
U.S. asks Ecuador to reject any asylum request from Snowden
Ben Rhodes, White House deputy national security adviser for strategic communications, said he had not seen the report and "would not comment on unauthorized disclosures of intelligence programs. The intelligence community would be the most appropriate to do that."
Rhodes added that "those are some of our closest intelligence partners, so it's worth noting that the Europeans work very closely with us. We have very close intelligence relationships with them."
The reports come as negotiations for a trans-Atlantic trade agreement between the United States and the European Union are set to start next month in Washington.
Father proposes deal for Snowden's voluntary return
Michael Hayden, a former director of the NSA and CIA, told "Face the Nation" on CBS on Sunday morning that he didn't know whether the report was true.
"I've been out of government for about five years, so I really don't know, and even if I did, I wouldn't confirm or deny it," he said. "But I think I can confirm a few things for you here this morning.
Number one, the United States does conduct espionage. Number two, our Fourth Amendment, which protects Americans' privacy, is not an international treaty. And number three, any European who wants to go out and rend their garments with regard to international espionage should look first and find out what their governments are doing."
Obama: Pay no attention to that man we can't capture
Snowden and his asylum bid
Snowden has revealed himself as the source of documents outlining a massive effort by the NSA to track cell phone calls and monitor the e-mail and Internet traffic of virtually all Americans.
Now Snowden, who faces espionage charges in the United States, is in Russia and seeking asylum from Ecuador.
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden asked Ecuador "to please reject" the request for asylum, according to Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, whose organization facilitates the release of classified documents and is assisting Snowden's asylum bid, said he couldn't reveal details about the former NSA contractor's specific location or the status of his case. He criticized U.S. officials for pressuring Ecuador on the matter.
"Asylum is a right that we all have. It's an international right. The United States has been founded largely on accepting political refugees from other countries and has prospered by it. Mr. Snowden has that right," said Assange. "Ideally, he should be able to return to the United States.
Unfortunately, that's not the world that we live in, and hopefully another country will give him the justice that he deserves."
Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro weighed in Sunday. In a letter to Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega published in Cuban state media, Castro praised Ecuador's president for standing up to U.S. threats over Snowden.
On Saturday night, Correa said the ball was in Russia's court.
"We didn't ask to be in this situation. Mr. Snowden has been in touch with Mr. Assange, who recommended he ask for asylum in Ecuador. In order to process this request, he needs to be in Ecuadorian territory," Correa said in an interview with Ecuador's Oromar TV on Saturday night. "At this point, the solution for Snowden's final destination is in the hands of the Russian authorities."
While Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Snowden is a free man and urged him to decide where he is going, quickly, a top Russian lawmaker said Sunday that Russia must not hand Snowden over to the United States.
"It's not a matter of Snowden's usefulness to Russia, it's a matter of principle," Alexei Pushkov -- who heads the international affairs committee at the Duma, the lower house of parliament -- said on Twitter.
"He is a political refugee, and handing him over is morally unacceptable," he said.
CNN's Barbara Starr, Miriam Falco, Kathryn Tancos, Alexander Hunter, Claudia Rebaza, Patrick Oppmann and Susanna Palk contributed to this report.
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