In These New Times

Of course, the report fails to point out that these same people were criminals and drug-traffickers when the EU decided to support them dismantle Serbia and enable them to establish their idyllic little narco-republic. When the EU becomes a serious organization they will have to move to deal with this haven of criminality, the monstrous issue of their illicit union with Atlanticist militarism.

Deutsche-Welle

15th December, 2010

The Council of Europe shone a bright light on the young republic of Kosovo this week, with a damning report accusing its leadership of having been at the helm of criminal acts after the country’s war of independence from Serbia in the late 1990s.

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Zero Hedge

13th December, 2010

Last night, the BIS released its latest quarterly review, as always chock full of useful information. The one major item that caught our eye was the updated exposure toward the PIIGS countries by various foreign banks. And specifically the brand new category that had never been disclosed before by the BIS, namely the “other exposures” category, which per a rather closeted footnote is defined as: “other exposures consist of the positive market value of derivative contracts, guarantees extended and credit commitments.” This is exposure that appears for the first time in an official BIS document. And it is sizable: while total foreign claims stood at $2,281 billion, the newly disclosed category accounts for a whopping two thirds of a trillion: $668 billion. How generous of the BIS to share this data which as recently as 2 years ago may have been considered as material, and these days is merely dismissed with a laugh. After all who cares unless the potential loss has at least 12 zeroes in it. Yet what is most significant for the US taxpayer, who is now dead set on proving that St Sebastian was an amateur when it comes to (in)voluntary martyrdom, is that US exposure to the P(I)IGS (Italy excluded, for the time being – give it a few months), has just tripled as a result of this revelation. While before it was “common knowledge” that US banks have nothing to lose should Europe go down the drain, it has now been revealed that US banks actually have $353 billion in exposure, of which $233 billion is of this newly revealed “other category.”

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The next stage of the attack on the euro has begun with the rating agencies as usual providing the cue to the media and the City hedge funds, with the IMF lurking in the wings. Spain’s interest rate jumped dramatically whilst Britain, with its traditional “good housekeeping”, its virtual economy and still intact AAA rating, still offers only 0.75%. (The road to success lies, it seems , in economic destruction.) The answer would seem to be to curb speculative inflows from outside the Eurozone, notably from the City of London; but is Europe read yet for this dramatic fissure in the unity of the West? For the moment, it remains wide open to continued attack.

This is Money

15th December, 2010

Spain and Belgium were dragged deeper into the European debt crisis on Tuesday as financial turmoil continued to rock the Continent.

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