It might be scary to speculate about Greece's economy, but, it can stand alone.

It's greatest strength has always been found in the Mediterranean Sea. Shipping.


It is ranked as the 15th largest economy in the European Union, so it isn't as though the Euro won't be effected if Greece decides on a difference currency. It may be also Greece can remain a member of the European Union for security reasons and reclaim the Drachma.


They have an economy valued about $310 billion. It is ranked 35th largest economy globally with per capita income ranking of 33rd. Per capita is estimated at $27,000. Not bad. About 3,000,000 at rick for poverty. Sorry, that works out to be nearly 28% of the population which is ahead of the USA's 15% currently.


It may be Greece needs to take a look at 'the ease of doing business' in Greece. It is ranked 100th in the global economy which may mean it is even easier in Russia, which is notorious for its red tape. Sorry, for the pun, unintended. Russia is actually ranked at 120th. So, they live in about the same neighborhood.


The problem right now is there economy is shrinking, falling a little over 6 percent in the first quarter of 2012, with inflation at 1.9%. The inflation is not terrible, so they are doing something right.


If Greece decides to revert to the Drahma it won't destroy the country, it will remain sovereign and life will go on. What will happen is more external than internal. Those financing the debt of Greece will have a contracted value as they absorb the debt. On a global scale that is a pinch, but, not completely devastating. No one wants to see that happen and I am sure the Greek people hate this most of all, but, they need to uphold their country's strengths without destroying more of its economic viability. 


The more people falling into poverty due to austerity the less viable the economy. The economies of 2012 rely on disposable income of people to purchase. China made its dramatic entrance into the global economy by offering goods to the world in a far less costly manner than any other country. In time, China's people will have generated their own per capita incomes to a much higher level and China will have internal economies no different than any other country in the world. But, a billion people are a lot of people to educate, train and bring up to speed for the economies of the world today. Greece doesn't have that problem and it is why the people are considering other measures.


The economies of Greece won't disappear. The tourism will still go on and the shipping will still be involved in nearly 20 percent of the global shipping capacity, but, what will change is a reverting of the country's wealth to maintain their educational systems and sustainable social structure rather than paying debt. Greece may have to move in that direction because the lending by the European Banks haven't even proven to be a stop gap measure. As soon as Greece finds its footing after making austerity real, the economy contracts again. It is caught in a vicious circle into a black hole and regardless of all the loans and austerity it may end up with this dilemma anyway.


Greece is a magnificent country on a beautiful sea. It has been the center of culture and refinement dating back millennium and not simply centuries. That will never disappear and neither the people. It may be Greece is most correct, just as a Ron Paul supporter.

"They took it all"

Within the ad by the Obama Campaign regarding the destruction of American steel by Romney, there appeared the words "They took it all." They did. They took the cash, sold every aspect of the plant that was at all salvageable and moved on, leaving lives in ruins in his wake.

When I heard those words, "They took it all," I didn't immediately think of Romney, but, I did think of Bush. During the Bush years the USA government was drained of every cash reserve it had. Every place there was residual monies they were drained into the private sector for some reason or another. They then turned on institutions such as the US Postal Service to drain their reserves by imposing impossible standards of financing pensions. Of course, if the US Postal Service was to go bankrupt those monies in the pensions would be up for grabs.

But, most citizens don't realize what Bush did. They were busy avoiding terrorist attacks and hanging plastic with duct tape. 

When all was said and done then Paulson pulled the plug on the last insult to the USA Federal Government in October 2008 even though the real estate market was imploding more than a year before and financial markets were being destroyed along with it even before that.

I remember Rep. Marcy Kaptur stating, "It was like an intelligence operation." I believe that is true. But, I also believe it was not just the final blow to the USA 'reserves/residuals' that was included in their plans. Included was the literal removal of any and all cash reserves the USA would have to easily recover from 'the crash.' 

Americans have to be careful about wishing the national debt away in any election. It is a wedge issue that will be dangled in front of them by the GOP. But, they need to demand a plan of resolution of the debt in away that continues to build our new economy and not destroy it along with entitlements that provide security to our seniors and most vulnerable. I sincerely don't see how a man such as Mitt Romney with a proven track record of unfeeling priorities resulting in the destruction of jobs, including those in American manufacturing, can be trusted. I don't believe he can do the job. Sincerely.

The Obama campaign ads aren't just ads, they are a sincere outreach for Americans to reflect on their experience in the recent decade and defend their country from a corporate CEO once again. I always can reflect on the FACT President Obama worries about the Middle Class and Poor and puts us first at every turn. I can't dismiss that and I won't. That has been his priority during the entire of his career. Comparing the two men in their CHOSEN career paths, there is no doubt to me President Obama is the best man for the job.

Unethical practices within NewsCorp brings charges to Cameron's Media Darling.

By ALAN COWELL and JOHN F. BURNS

Published: May 15, 2012

LONDON — Once (click here) among the most powerful figures in the British media, with close contacts stretching from her boss, Rupert Murdoch, to her friend, David Cameron, Rebekah Brooks, the former head of Mr. Murdoch’s British newspaper empire, was told by prosecutors on Tuesday that she, her husband and four others will face charges of conspiring to pervert the course of justice in the hacking scandal that has burrowed into public life here.

No #Occupy Moscow! Boooo, on Mr. Putin. He should be there talking to them.

MOSCOW, May 15 (RIA Novosti)

A Moscow district court (click here) ordered on Tuesday the closure of an opposition camp in downtown Moscow, accusing activists of littering and destroying the greenery in the area.

Police and the district prefecture were ordered to “end” the opposition activities by the monument to Kazakh poet Abai Qunanbaiuli, also known as Abai Kunanbaev, on Chistoprudny Boulevard.

The court acted on a complaint from 12 residents of the neighborhood who accused the opposition of disrupting public order in the area.

Damage to lawns and shrubs in the area is estimated at 20 million rubles ($650,000), said Anton Kulbachevsky, the head of the City Hall’s environmental department.

Opposition activists pitched a camp at Abai’s feet on May 9 after two days of police crackdowns on protesters gathering on various squares in Moscow. The camp adopted the ironic slogan OccupyAbai, also a popular Twitter hash tag.

Organizers attempted to maintain discipline in the camp, cleaning litter and prohibiting alcohol. The camp was intended to stay in place until June 12, the Russia Day holiday when the opposition plans a new mass rally in Moscow....

Iran's nuclear talks preceded by execution.

Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Ali Asghar Soltanieh (left) and Yukiya Amano, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Photo: AP/AFP/Getty Images


7:33AM BST 14 May 2012

Iran is set to meet UN nuclear agency officials on Monday for the first time in three months, with world powers watching closely for clues on Tehran's stance ahead of their forthcoming Baghdad talks.

The last time Iran's envoy (click here) to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, and chief inspector Hermann Nackaerts met officially was in early February during the second of two fruitless IAEA visits to Tehran.

The IAEA had said after those trips – branded a "failure" by Washington – that "major differences" existed with Tehran on how to ease suspicions that Iran's nuclear programme is not, as it claims, purely peaceful.

The watchdog said Iran brushed aside extensive claims made in a November IAEA report that at least until 2003, and possibly since, activities took place which the agency said could only conceivably be aimed at developing nuclear weapons.

Iran also denied Nackaerts access to the Parchin military site near Tehran where the November report alleged Iran had conducted suspicious explosives tests in a large metal container, the IAEA said....

Where were we during this trial? Was it so classified the world did not know? This trial should have been a global event. One of the complaints Iran has regarding inspections is the fact a nuclear scientist is executed within Iran after a visit has taken place. Iran will use this execution as a leverage with the inspectors as if they were spies and I would not be surprised if any inspector will be treated as an enemy of the state. Iran has never come forward with evidence of any other nation's involvement in these killings and yet they will make accusations to that effect. It is best if Iran does not make an international incident out of their own internal problems.

Man executed for attack on Iranian nuclear scientist (click here)

By the CNN Wire Staff

updated 6:21 AM EDT, Tue May 15, 2012

(CNN) -- Iran has executed a man who was convicted of killing one of its nuclear scientists, state-run Press TV reported Tuesday.

Majid Jamali Fashi was convicted of the January 2010 killing of Massoud Ali Mohammadi, an Iranian university professor and a nuclear scientist. Prosecutors also accused Fashi of working for Israel's spy agency Mossad and said he was paid $120,000 by Israel to carry out the hit.

Israel does not comment on such claims.

The killing was among a series of attacks against Iranian nuclear scientists in recent years.

In January, Iran sent a letter to the United Nations secretary general alleging that the killings of the scientists were terrorist attacks that followed a clear pattern.

"There is firm evidence that certain foreign quarters are behind such assassinations," the letter said, "It is highly expected from the Secretary-General of the United Nations, and President of the Security Council of the United Nations, as well as all other relevant organs and bodies, to condemn, in the strongest terms, these inhumane terrorist acts."

Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, another nuclear scientist, was killed in a blast in Tehran in January of this year after a motorcyclist placed a magnetic bomb under his Peugeot 405 automobile. Mohammadi and one other scientist were killed in a similar fashion in the last two years.

With no one claiming responsibility, the killings remain shrouded in mystery....


Fashi was hanged. The world should have been able to witness the trial. Iran insists he wasa Mossad spy. They need to provide proof of their claims.

MOSCOW, May 15 (RIA Novosti)

Iranian authorities executed on Tuesday a young man (click here) convicted of killing an Iranian nuclear scientist in 2010, IRNA news agency reported.

“Majid Jamali Fashi, the Mossad spy and the person who assassinated Masoud Ali Mohammadi, our nation's nuclear scientist, was hanged on Tuesday morning,” Irna reported.

Fashi was accused of receiving $120,000 for passing information on to Israel's intelligence agency Mossad.

The Iranian scientist, described as “a staunch supporter” of the Islamic revolution was killed on January 12, 2010, when a remote-controlled explosive device attached to a motorbike was detonated near his home in northern Tehran.Iran blamed Israel and the United States for the murder.

Shortly after the incident, Al Jazeera said Mohammadi, a lecturer at Tehran University, might have had links to Iran’s disputed nuclear program.

Western powers suspect Iran of seeking to build nuclear weapons under the guise of its nuclear program, which Tehran says is aimed at the peaceful generation of civilian energy….

Russia Against New Iran Sanctions (click here)

MOSCOW, May 14 (RIA Novosti)

Russia remains opposed to new sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program and is not considering them at present, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said on Monday.

"UN Security Council sanctions over Iran would be contradictory," he said.

Western nations suspect Iran of pursuing a secret nuclear weapons program but Tehran insists it needs nuclear power solely for civilian purposes.

Iran is currently subject to a series of EU and U.S. sanctions, including measures targeting the country's lucrative oil industry.

The International War Crimes Court is their destination.

...NZARA, South Sudan: (click here) Ugandan troops have captured a senior member of the Lord's Resistance Army in a significant development that could signal they are closing in on the notorious rebel leader Joseph Kony.

Caesar Acellam, considered the LRA's fourth-highest ranking member, was arrested by Ugandan forces in the Central African Republic and was flown on Sunday to the South Sudanese headquarters of the regional armies hunting the LRA.

''My coming out will have a big impact for the people still in the bush to come out and end this war soon,'' Mr Acellam told reporters, who were taken to the Central African Republic to see the rebel in custody....

Ina Drew ... $32 million payout. 
Photo: JPMorgan Chase & Co, via Bloombe

...Ina Drew, the executive who ran (click here) the department behind JP Morgan's $US2 billion trading loss, has left the bank and...

...will walk away with about $US32 million.

The 55-year-old chief investment officer oversaw the division that made bets that JP Morgan has warned could rack up a further $US1 billion in losses.

She will be replaced by Matt Zames, head of fixed income at JP Morgan's investment bank and a former proprietary trader....