Brussels pushes for radical shift in budget powers away from parliaments
The European Commission has proposed perhaps the most radical shift in decision-making away from parliaments and toward unelected bodies in the history of the European Union.
Under proposals unveiled by the EU executive on Wednesday (23 November), while formal domestic lawmaking procedures are to remain in place, almost all fiscal policy decisions would be taken out of the hands of national assemblies and delivered up to European civil servants.
The far-reaching proposals instantly provoked accusations of a hollowing out of democracy in Europe - allegations that the commission has angrily dismissed, saying the moves are necessary if the euro is to survive.
Would we expect anything different from the Roman Empire of our age?
In a stunning power move by the EU, we see even more loss of national sovereignty:
Under pressure from markets to deliver tighter economic integration in the eurozone, the EU executive has proposed that governments in member states that use the single currency be forced to submit their budgets to both the commission and the eurogroup of states for vetting - before they are submitted to their own national parliaments.
Those countries that have exceeded EU rules on the size of their debt and deficit would also be subject to tighter monitoring by Brussels and would have to submit regular reports on how they are progressing in trying to correct the situation.
The unprecedented proposals come at a time when commentators, trade unions and even editorial cartoonists have made much of the EU's imposition of technocratic administrations on Greece and Italy.
"The EU is doing what it does best: creating new rules and layers of governance that undermine national sovereignty," said MEP Jan Zahradil, the Czech chairman of the ECR.
Meanwhile, back to the Middle East as tensions continue to mount at an alarming rate:
Iran says arrests 12 CIA agents amid reports of compromised U.S. ring
An Iranian official disclosed new details Thursday concerning the reporting exposure of a U.S. spy ring in the Islamic Republic, saying that Tehran arrested 12 CIA agents.
Parliamentarian Parviz Sorouri, who sits on the powerful committee of foreign policy and national security, claimed that the arrested agents planned to strike at Iranian interests with the aid of Israel.
U.S. Warship Moves To Syrian Coast as Tensions Mount
The aircraft carrier George H.W. Bush has moved to the Syrian coast amidst reports that a no fly zone is about to be imposed over the country as the U.S. Embassy in Damascus orders its citizens to leave “immediately,” while France has proposed a formal NATO military intervention.
“Probably the most damning evidence that the “western world” is about to do the unthinkable and invade Syria, and in the process force Iran to retaliate, is the weekly naval update from Stratfor
According to a report in the Virginian-Pilot, the aircraft carrier will “conduct a range of operations and help maintain maritime security,” before it heads home.
As we reported yesterday, European sources quoted in Kuwait’s al Rai daily suggest that Arab states are set to impose a no fly zone over the country with the aid of Turkish jet fighters and U.S. logistical support. In modern parlence the term “no fly zone” is a euphemism for a bombing campaign, as we saw with Libya.
Although France has expressed its opposition to a no fly zone, foreign minister Alain Juppe met with Syrian National Council leader Burhan Ghalioun in Paris yesterday to assure him that NATO powers are looking at using “international troops” to “create a secure zone for civilians” by means of “humanitarian corridors, or humanitarian zones”.
Israel expects 'a grave erosion' of peace treaty with Egypt
Israelis are nervously watching Egypt’s revolution reignite with protests in Tahrir Square raising fears a decades-old military dictatorship may soon be replaced by Islamist radicals who will pose a new security threat.
When Israel’s inner security Cabinet met for eight hours Tuesday to discuss annual intelligence assessments compiled by Shin Bet, the Mossad, Military Intelligence and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, its discussions apparently were dominated by concerns about Egypt, Syria and Iran.
The newspaper Maariv also reported that Israel’s army chief, Benny Gantz, “presented the security Cabinet with a scenario involving the cancellation of the peace treaty” between Egypt and Israel.
“The picture is quite clear,” he said. “We’ve been saying it for months. What we call the Muslim Brotherhood will ultimately be the majority in all the [Egyptian] institutions and once the regime stabilizes, as we expect it to do, we expect that there will be a grave erosion of this agreement. We have to prepare for such a situation.”
“It looks like it is going to be a long Arab Winter,” said Moshe Arens, a former Israeli defence and foreign minister.
“The Islamists are going to inherit the mantle of the dictators. A wave of Islamic rule, with all it entails, is sweeping across the Arab world. It will replace secular dictatorships with Islamic ones. We should have expected nothing else.”
'All of Israel within Iran missile reach'
A senior Iranian military official describes missile shields deployed in the region to protect Tel Aviv as “inadequate”, saying all of Israel is within the Iran's missiles reach.
“These missile shields which they have deployed in Turkey, occupied Palestine, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates cannot hit all our missiles,” Brigadier General Yahya Rahim-Safavi, who is also senior military adviser to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, said on Wednesday.
“They may hit some of our missiles, but the number of our missiles is so large that they will not be able to target our missiles,” ISNA quoted Rahim-Safavi as saying.
The Iranian commander added that all of Israel is within Iran's missile reach.
Referring to Israel's recent threats against Iran, Rahim-Safavi said Israelis are well-aware that if they begin a war, they will be attacked from Iran, southern Lebanon and by Hamas.
In past weeks the Israel has renewed its aggressive rhetoric against Iran. On Monday, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak threatened that "time has come" to deal with Iran.
“People understand now that Iran is determined to reach nuclear weapons… And that should be stopped,” Barak claimed.
Israeli President Shimon Peres threatened on Nov. 6 that an attack against Iran is becoming "more and more likely."
Iranian officials have promised a crushing response to any military strike against the country, warning that any such measure could result in a war that would spread beyond the Middle East.
The Russian Bear Is Back, The Soviet Union Is Being Revived And The Cold War Is Not Over
If you believe that the United States is the "sole superpower" in the world, then you really need to read the rest of this article.
Most Americans have very little idea what is actually going on in the rest of the world and how the global balance of power is shifting. For example, can you name the country that is the number one oil producer in the world, the number one oil exporter in the world, the number one exporter of natural gas in the world and that also has the second most powerful military in the entire world? In case you need a hint, it is not Saudi Arabia, it is not China and it is not the United States. The correct answer is Russia.
And if you believe that Russia is now our "friend", then you have been seriously deceived.
The Cold War is not over. In fact, activity by Russian intelligence agents inside the United States and other western nations is now at least at Cold War levels.
And tensions between the United States and Russia are rising on multiple fronts.
For instance, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has announced that Russia is going to deploy new nuclear missiles that will be specifically targeted at U.S. missile defense installations if the United States proceeds with plans for a missile defense shield in Europe.
Medvedev threatens U.S. over planned missile defense shield
Dmitry Medvedev, the Russian president embraced the fiery rhetoric of the Cold War threatening to target and if necessary destroy America's planned European missile defence shield once it is built.
In what may be the most serious blow to US-Russia relations since President Barack Obama came to power, Mr Medvedev raised the prospect of Russia launching missile attacks on European Union member states such as Poland, Romania and Spain as well as Nato member Turkey.
"I have given the armed forces the task of drawing up plans to destroy the information and command and control systems of the (US/Nato) anti-missile shield," he said.
Israeli security forces: Turkey nearing military intervention in Syria
Israeli security forces officials said Wednesday that they believe Turkey is nearing a military intervention in Syria, in order to create a secure buffer zone for opposition activists.
Thus far, Ankara has given shelter to some 20,000 refugees who escaped the deadly crackdown by Syrian President Bashar Assad's security forces, and also housed Syrian opposition groups.
In recent days, however, Israeli officials said that according to an updated assessment of the situation, Turkey is expected to set up secure buffer zones on its border with Syria that would allow armed opposition groups to organize against the Syrian regime from bases that would be protected by the Turkish army.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has recently hardened his stance against Assad and suggested for the first time the possibility of foreign intervention in Syria.
Meanwhile, lets not forget the OWS movement. While both sad and pathetic, it is hard not to chuckle a bit at these pictures:
This Is What Democracy Looks Like...in Hell
Occupy protesters these days are fond of chanting “This is what democracy looks like!” — a slogan they borrowed from other far-left protests in recent decades.
But at Occupy Los Angeles, fellow photojournalist Ringo captured what democracy really looks like in the OWS milieu. Yeah, Occupations have their “General Assemblies” and their up-twinkles and so forth, but that only works when everyone is already in essential agreement after the real dissenters have already been expelled, leaving the “democratic assembly” to at most bicker over minor details.
But what happens when there is deep fundamental disagreement on some point — in this case the key point of who is allowed permission to speak in the first place? Do the Occupiers have their own version of the First Amendment, or perhaps something even better?
In a word: No.
The entire Occupy movement summarized in one sign
And this:
The Occupation of Los Angeles: One Hundred Minutes at Occupy L.A.
Unlike many of the other "Occupations" around the country, the encampment that surrounds Los Angeles City Hall, known as Occupy L.A. has been largely left alone by the authorities. The City Council has even gone so far as to give its blessing to the occupation by unanimously passing a resolution in support of OLA. Most of the time there are no police to be seen in, or even around, the park, leaving the 300 plus revolutionaries living in the camp, not to mention the hundreds and sometimes thousands that visit during the day, especially on the weekends, to do essentially as they please. And when you also consider the mild Southern California weather, Occupy L.A. should represent an ideal microcosm of what the Occupation Movement is and aspires to become.
Take a look at the pictures. Really. Amazing.
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