Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Wednesday 09-22-10

FBI says it supplied fake bomb in Chicago plot
CHICAGO – A man arrested for allegedly placing a backpack he thought contained a bomb near Chicago's Wrigley Field got the fake explosive from an FBI undercover agent, authorities say — a tactic that has been used in other U.S. terrorism cases in recent years.

Sami Samir Hassoun, 22, a Lebanese citizen living in Chicago for about three years, was charged Monday with one count each of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and attempted use of an explosive device.

Hassoun was arrested early Sunday after planting the fake explosive device in a trash receptacle near Sluggers World Class Sports Bar, a popular bar steps from Wrigley Field, FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Grant said. The Cubs were not playing at their home field; the stadium hosted Dave Matthews Band concerts Friday and Saturday nights.

It wouldn't be the first time FBI agents have posed as terror operatives and supplied suspects with bogus explosives. Last year, authorities arrested a Jordanian national after he allegedly attempted to detonate what he thought was a bomb outside a Dallas skyscraper. In an unrelated case, authorities in Springfield, Ill., arrested another man after he allegedly tried to set off what he thought was explosives in a van outside a federal courthouse.

In a similar case in May 2009, four men were arrested after they allegedly tried to detonate fake explosives — also provided by the FBI — outside two synagogues in New York City.

In the Chicago case, the FBI said an informant tipped investigators about Hassoun nearly a year ago. Grant said Hassoun acted alone and that the undercover agents told him they were from California and unaffiliated with any group. He declined to offer specific details about Hassoun's motivations, but said he believed the agents were ready to give him money if he carried out the attack.

"He wanted to transform the city of Chicago, he wanted to make a statement and he wanted to replace the mayor of Chicago," Grant said. "He was unhappy with the way the city was running. He was also unhappy with things that were happening in other parts of world."

At a brief hearing Monday, Hassoun quietly told U.S. Judge Susan Cox that he understood the charges. Hassoun's federally appointed public defender, Dan McLaughlin, declined to comment on the case, as did several family members who attended the hearing. A message left on an answering machine at Hassoun's home telephone number wasn't returned.

Authorities say the informant befriended Hassoun over the course of a year, conducting conversations in Arabic, which were taped and shared with the FBI. Hassoun waffled greatly on his plans, authorities said.

Initially, he didn't want to cause violence, suggesting setting off smoking devices in downtown locations near City Hall, authorities said.

"No killing. There is no killing," he told the informant, according to the complaint.

But his plans became more grand, as he believed bigger acts would command public attention and embarrass the mayor, according to the complaint.

"Little by little, I'm building it up," he said, according to the complaint. "I will shake Chicago."

Prosecutors say Hassoun talked about various plots during the investigation, including plans to unleash a biological virus on Chicago and to bomb the Willis Tower, formerly known as the Sears Tower.

According to the complaint, Hassoun on one occasion told the informant he wanted to paralyze commerce in the city. Asked how he intended to carry out various suggested attacks, Hassoun responded, "You park the car, and let it go 'boom.'"

Grant said Hassoun wanted to start his own organization and planned to flee to California after the device went off in Wrigleyville.

"He was not highly skilled, but I think he was definitely desirous of obtaining the material needed to carry out his attack," Grant said.

Shortly before the alleged plot near Wrigley Field, the informant introduced Hassoun to the undercover agents who Hassoun believed were friends and would pay for the attack to be carried out.

Chicago authorities said Daley never was in any danger. Police said Daley — who has been in China for a business trip — was informed of the plot over the weekend.

"We were always in control of this investigation," said Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100921/ap_on_re_us/us_chicago_bomb_arrest;_ylt=AjmrACpVZl2hHqKRojvTdQtvzwcF;_ylu=X3oDMTJuYjhsM2VpBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAwOTIxL3VzX2NoaWNhZ29fYm9tYl9hcnJlc3QEY3BvcwMzBHBvcwM3BHNlYwN5bl90b3Bfc3RvcnkEc2xrA2ZiaXNheXNpdHN1cA--

I guess it is World wide, not just here
UN: Rich must not cut aid to poor to balance budget
21 Sep 2010 00:51:56 GMT Source: Reuters

By Lesley Wroughton and Helen Popper

UNITED NATIONS, Sept 20 (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pressed debt-ridden donor countries on Monday not to cut aid to the poor despite their budgetary woes.

"We should not balance budgets on the backs of the poor," Ban told 140 leaders at the start of a three-day summit to review progress in meeting U.N. poverty goals by 2015.

During their speeches, leaders pledged to step up efforts to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) -- agreed 10 years ago. But, as expected, they offered little in the way of new resources to help the world's poorest countries.

The United Nations agrees the world will meet the goals to halve global poverty and hunger by 2015 but is behind on other goals which cover improving child education, child mortality and maternal health; combating diseases including AIDS, and promoting gender equality and environmental sustainability.

Rising incomes in emerging economic powers like China is the main reason for progress in tackling poverty there, while population growth has set back efforts in Africa and India.

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Highlights from the U.N. summit: [nN20260490]

Factbox on the Millennium Development Goals[nN20260425]

Also see Reuters Alertnet blog: http:/blogs.reuters.com/global/2010/09/20/live-blog/

Clinton Global Initiative meetings [nN20544973]

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The World Bank said it would increase spending on education by $750 million over the next five years. [nN20274673]

Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, whose government cut development aid in the face of a fiscal crisis and high unemployment, said countries were grappling with difficult decisions as they try to revive economic growth.

He urged the world to consider other ways to fund programs that tackle poverty, hunger and climate changes.

"We need to make more effort to look for alternative financing sources ... that aren't as vulnerable as the budgets of developed countries when faced with crises like the one we're seeing today," he said.

Both he and French President Nicolas Sarkozy called for some form of financial tax to raise money to combat poverty, an idea already rejected by the International Monetary Fund and many Group of 20 major developed and developing nations.

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said Greece's severe fiscal crisis, which prompted an IMF bailout, showed no country was immune to job losses, pandemics or the "vagaries of the financial markets."

"Our recent experience has given us real insight into how one small country's problems can ricochet around the world," he said, urging donors to explore other ways to raise development funds, including through a financial tax or green bonds.

ACTIONS TO MAKE AID EFFECTIVE

Amid the high-minded talk about poverty and budgets, Bhutan's Prime Minister Jigme Thinley proposed the addition of happiness as the ninth MDG goal.

"Since happiness is the ultimate desire of every citizen it must be the purpose of development to create enabling conditions for happiness," he said.

Donors demanded more work to ensure aid is not wasted on programs that do not help the poor. Anti-poverty campaigners said donors should be held accountable for the aid they have promised and failed to deliver.

British International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell called for a plan to track progress in meeting the poverty goals over the remaining five years of the MDGs.

He argued for more transparency, better donor coordination and a special focus on helping women and infants.

"We want a proper agenda for action over each of the next five years, not a load of blah-blah and big sums of money being thrown about, although big sums of money are important," he told reporters.

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) chief Rajiv Shah told Reuters the United States would press for a new development approach that highlighted economic growth, accountability and tackling corruption.

With U.S. congressional elections on Nov. 2 focusing on the economy and job losses, Washington is pressed to show Americans that their tax dollars are being put to good use. [nN19239202]

Vietnam and Bolivia said poverty could not be beaten as long as some countries continued to benefit from skewed international economic and trading systems.

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili said aid would not work unless countries were allowed to design their own anti-poverty programs tailored to local conditions.

"Of course we need more money. More money matters. But aid money will not deliver concrete results unless we pay more attention to the essential idea of local ownership."
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N20266544.htm

They will continue to fight and blame each other over it to the point that nothing gets done to make them permanent or extend them. Then they will blame each other for why it did not happen. Business as usual, in DC
You Have 6 Months to Prepare. Here’s What You Should do NOW…

In fewer than six months, Americans will face their biggest tax hikes in history.

As of Jan. 1, 2011, no matter what your tax bracket, you can expect a hike. The lowest, 10% bracket will rise to 15%. On the high end 35% will rise to 39.6%. And everything in between…
The 25% bracket will rise to 28%.
The 28% bracket will rise to 31%.
The 33% bracket will rise to 36%.

If you’re married, expect to pay more.

That’s right — the “marriage penalty” is back.

Kids? The child tax credit is slashed from $1,000 to $500 per child. (Not that you could raise a kid on $1,000 a year anyway.)

I know that you’re not thinking about dying soon. But you may want to adjust your assets accordingly in the next six months…

… Because the Death Tax returns in 2011!

That’s right — if you die this year, no death tax. But 6 months from now, expect a whopping 55% (on estates over $1 million).

There has simply never been a more pressing time than right now to start planning for the future (the future that’s less than 6 months away!).

Where the Millionaires Are…
Not surprisingly, the U.S. is slipping wealth-wise. (Gee, Uncle Sam, what did you expect?)

A new listing shows that global private wealth made a comeback in 2009, increasing by 11.5% to US$111.5 trillion. This comes from The Boston Consulting Group’s Global Wealth 2010 Report.

The largest gain occurred in Asia-Pacific where wealth rose by 22%, or $3.1 trillion, nearly double the global rate.

Latin American household asset growth rose by 16% to $3.4 billion, and Europe, despite its debt problems, was the wealthiest region with more than $37 trillion in private assets under management, an increase of 8.8% from 2008.

Where the World’s Millionaires Are
1) Singapore: Population: 4.7 million; Percentage: 11.4%
2) Hong Kong: Population: 7.1 million; Percentage: 8.8%
3) Switzerland: Population: 7.6 million; Percentage: 8.4%
4) Kuwait: Population: 2.8 million; Percentage: 8.2%
5) Qatar: Population: 841,000; Percentage: 7.4%
6) United Arab Emirates: Pop. 4.9 million; Percentage: 6.2%
7) United States: Population: 310.2 million; Percentage: 4.1%
8) Belgium: Population: 10.4 million; Percentage: 3.5%
9) Israel: Population: 7.4 million; Percentage: 3.3%
10) Taiwan: Population: 23 million; Percentage: 3%

The Sovereign Society has always promoted “going offshore” financially when done right (legally). It is far better than keeping all your assets at home.

The fact is, offshore banking and investing provides investment diversification, often higher returns, much more currency diversification, solid asset protection and, yes, much greater financial privacy.

Tax Havens Alive and Well
Well dear readers, I am here to tell you that despite attacks, tax havens are alive and well. I have firsthand knowledge from personal travels.

And tax havens are just as busy as ever. They are offering lower or no taxes to smart foreigners who want to bank, invest and make a good profit.

Yes, there are all sorts of new reporting requirements. Especially for U.S. persons. And yes, financial privacy has been weakened in many places – Switzerland, Austria and Liechtenstein included.

But all the right reasons for going offshore still exist – now more than ever. Far better asset protection, lower taxes, better investment returns and much more financial privacy remain important reasons to go offshore.

I realize that keeping track of tax havens is not the most important item on most peoples’ lists. But now you have a 6-month incentive. No matter what your financial situation, you will be affected by these tax hikes. And income taxes are only the tip of the iceberg! For more on what taxes to expect, see http://www.atr.org/files/files/070110pr-jan2011taxes.pdf.

And here at The Sovereign Society we have built a good reputation for educating people on where to bank, locate their trusts or private foundations, and find maximum privacy and less government interference.

So, dear reader, what can you do today to prepare over the next 6 months?

Well, I’ve put together a special package of all of my books and reports – everything from The Passport Book to Where to Stash Your Cash Legally, detailing all the ways you can still assert your right to go offshore.

And for a limited time, I’m offering the entire collection to my A-Letter readers at a 62% discount. Plus, I’ve just added a couple of bonuses I think you’ll like.

http://sovereignsociety.com/2010/07/07/the-biggest-tax-hikes-in-americas-history-are-coming/

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