USA - As we previously noted, only the highest income earners have seen any gains in compensation since the crisis began around 2007 to the current 'recovery' tops. It is perhaps not entirely surprising then that, the total income controlled by the Top 1% is drastically above that of the slave-included times of Ancient Rome.
USA - US military efforts against Islamic State have cost nearly $1 billion so far and are likely to run between $2.4 billion and $3.8 billion per year if air and ground operations continue at the current pace, according to a think tank analysis. But a ramp-up, including more air strikes and a significant boost in ground forces, could send costs soaring to between $13 billion and $22 billion annually, said the analysis released on Monday by the nonpartisan Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. "Future costs depend, to a great extent, on how long operations continue, the steady-state level of air operations, and whether additional ground forces are deployed beyond what is already planned," said the report by Todd Harrison and other analysts.
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - The Muslim claim on the Temple Mount is the biggest fraud in history. No one dares say it, but unless someone does, another world war will erupt. Right now, even as we speak, frum (pious) Jews are trying to gain access to pray on the Temple Mount. These Jews were forbidden by Israeli courts to pray on the Temple Mount. In the last year, they have started defying those courts and asserting a right to their patrimony.
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - The Temple Institute’s crowdfunding campaign to raise funds for the modern architectural plans for the Third Holy Temple in Jerusalem came to a close on Rosh Hashanah after surpassing its $100,000 goal in 60 days. The initiative began on the first day of the month of Av, when Jews commemorate the destruction of the ancient Holy Temples. Almost 900 pledges have come in from more than 30 countries worldwide. Jews have prayed to rebuild the Temple, three times daily since its destruction by Roman Legions in 70 CE. The Temple Institute's project to draw up architectural plans began three years ago with the Chamber of Hewn Stone.
USA - It’s harvest time in much of California, and the signs of drought are almost as abundant as the fruits and nuts and vegetables. One commodity after another is feeling the impact of the state’s epic water shortage. The great Sacramento Valley rice crop, served in sushi restaurants nationwide and exported to Asia, will be smaller than usual. Fewer grapes will be available to produce California’s world-class wines, and the citrus groves of the San Joaquin Valley are producing fewer oranges. There is less hay and corn for the state’s dairy cows, and the pistachio harvest is expected to shrink.
USA - You probably know your Social Security number, your driver’s license number and perhaps the latest wrinkle in mattress marketing, your sleep number. But do you know your drought number? The latter represents the amount of water you are allowed to use per day. If you don’t know it, you probably should. Not knowing could cost you money. As California’s severe drought moves into a fourth year, state and local water agencies are working on something called “allocation-based rate structures,” a kind of precursor to water rationing that’s all the rage in Sacramento and in some areas such as Santa Cruz, Irvine and Santa Monica. Making water hogs pay a top-tier rate is another trend gaining popularity among water agencies.
RUSSIA - Russia used its annual appearance at the UN General Assembly on Saturday to accuse the United States and its Western allies of bossing the world around, complaining they were attempting to dictate to everyone "what is good and evil." The speech by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to the 193-nation assembly was the latest example of the deteriorating relations between Moscow and Western powers, which have imposed sanctions on Russia over the conflict in neighboring Ukraine.
SWITZERLAND - A “poisonous combination” of record debt and slowing growth suggest the global economy could be heading for another crisis, a hard-hitting report will warn on Monday. The 16th annual Geneva Report, commissioned by the International Centre for Monetary and Banking Studies and written by a panel of senior economists including three former senior central bankers, predicts interest rates across the world will have to stay low for a “very, very long” time to enable households, companies and governments to service their debts and avoid another crash.
CHINA - More than 130 companies are involved in producing or trading the equipment, typically marketed to law enforcement agencies, up from about 28 companies a decade ago, Amnesty said. The equipment fuels human rights abuses by law enforcement authorities in African and Southeast Asian states, the group said in a report. One company, China Xining Import/Export Corporation, which advertises thumb cuffs, restraint chairs and electric stun guns, said in 2012 it had ties to more than 40 African countries, according to Amnesty. The firm could not be reached for comment. The rights group worked with the British-based Omega Research Foundation, which researches the trade and the use of military, security and police equipment. China's Foreign Ministry could not be immediately reached for comment.
JORDAN - Dialogue between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches is showing no signs of progress. The latest plenary session of the mixed Commission [was] created to deal with the theological obstacles that stand in the way of full communion between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.
USA - When is the US banking system going to crash? I can sum it up in three words. Watch the derivatives. It used to be only four, but now there are five "too big to fail" banks in the United States that each have more than 40 trillion dollars in exposure to derivatives. Today, the US national debt is sitting at a grand total of about 17.7 trillion dollars, so when we are talking about 40 trillion dollars we are talking about an amount of money that is almost unimaginable.
UK - Six major banks including Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays face huge fines for rigging the ‘Wild West’ foreign currency market. The lenders held secret talks with the City watchdog this week to try to thrash out a deal. Those also involved in the negotiations are understood to include HSBC, US banks Citigroup and JPMorgan and Swiss lender UBS. The fines are expected to be confirmed simultaneously, with the total bill set to be as high as £2 billion and one bank facing a fine of between £300 million and £400 million.
EUROPE - The next 10 days could make or break a plan to reshape the European Union under new management in an attempt to revive the economy and regain trust among its half-billion people. From Monday, members of a European Parliament elected on a wave of anti-Brussels protest will subject nominees for posts on executive European Commission to hearings that could wreck the line-up and a complex new structure proposed by its incoming president, Jean-Claude Juncker.
UK - The European Court of Human Rights will no longer be able to overrule British courts, under Conservative plans to be unveiled within days. Chris Grayling, the Justice Secretary, told The Telegraph that the Tories are ready to change the law to ensure that Britain is no longer “powerless” before the European court. After extensive deliberations, the Conservatives are ready to unveil their plans to scrap the Human Rights Act and ensure that the final decision on controversial legal cases is taken by Britain’s Supreme Court and not judges in Strasbourg, he said. The Tories have a long-standing commitment to check the power of the Strasbourg court, which they have accused of forcing unacceptable decisions on Britain.
VATICAN - Scandal has rocked the Vatican for the second time in a week. On Thursday (September 25), officials confirmed Pope Francis had sacked Bishop Livieres, head of the Paraguayan diocese of Ciudad del Este. Livieres is suspected of protecting a priest believed to have sexually abused young people. His dismissal followed the arrest two days earlier of former archbishop Josef Wesolowski, who is accused of paying for sex with children during his time as papal ambassador in the Dominican Republic. Pope Francis, has vowed to take a zero-tolerance policy on clerics who abuse minors. The pontiff approved Wesolowski’s arrest and earlier this year compared child abuse to a “satanic mass”.