And consultants Lane, Clark & Peacock (LCP) estimate that companies listed on the FTSE 100 stock index in London have a pensions shortfall of about £15bn. That compares with surpluses of between £9bn and £12bn in July, the firms said. The worry for many analysts is that stock market declines will continue, wiping even more money off the value of pension funds and global stock markets.

However, Aon said that investors should not over-react to the decline in pension fund values. Marcus Hurd, a senior consultant and actuary at Aon, urged investors to take a longer-term view, pointing out that at the start of 2007 the pension funds had a deficit of £40bn, while a year earlier it was more than £80bn. "People shouldn't get too concerned about one week of falls," he said.

Even so, people who are close to retirement and not on a guaranteed benefit pension could feel the pinch as they do not have time to ride out the market volatility and make back losses, he explained. Bob Scott, a partner at LCP, said that while the shift from surplus to deficit was significant, it was not "a case of the world ending".

And if anything, the current problems could act as a reminder for pension fund managers and trustees about the dangers that are inherent in investing too heavily in equities, he said.

Nothing lasts forever. I'LL BE SURPRISED IF THE U.S. IS ABLE TO MAINTAIN ITS PRESENT GEOGRAPHIC BOUNDARIES FOR THIS CENTURY. The Mexicans talk of the Reconquista; the gringos stole the Southwest from them in the 1800s, and they're likely to take it back.

What do you think the odds are that a young Latino male in California, 20 years from now, is going to pay 20% of his wages in Social Security and Medicare to support some old white broad in Massachusetts? Especially since he knows he's never going to get an aluminum nickel back? Even today, polls show that more kids believe in aliens than believe they'll see any Social Security money.

WE'VE HAD REALLY GOOD TIMES FOR A WHOLE GENERATION. PEOPLE BECOME FAT AND SASSY, OR IN THE CASE OF AMERICANS, OBESE AND ARROGANT, DURING GOOD TIMES. THEY DON'T THINK OF HANGING THEIR LEADERS FROM LAMP POSTS UNTIL THINGS GET SERIOUSLY BAD.

I DON'T KNOW HOW BAD THINGS WILL GET. BUT WHEN I'M ASKED, I'M PRONE TO QUIP "WORSE THAN EVEN I THINK THEY WILL GET !"

(By Doug Casey, chairman of Casey Research is a renowned investor, best-selling author and editor of the monthly newsletter International Speculator)

The Forever War in the Middle East is greatly accelerating the process. THE WHOLE IDEA OF A RESERVE CURRENCY IS MEANINGLESS IF THE CURRENCY IS BACKED BY NOTHING BUT THE GOOD WILL OF THE ISSUING GOVERNMENT. That's why gold has always been used as money; you don't have to rely on anyone's full faith and credit, good will, competence, trade surpluses, self-restraint or anything else. And it's why gold will again be used, in everyday transactions, as money.

The dollar is a hot potato. There are trillions - nobody knows exactly how many - floating outside the U.S. But only Americans have to accept them, and only the U.S. Government can create them (although the North Koreans do their best). The Chinese have good reason to worry about all those dollars. When they tried to buy the Unocal oil company, they were turned away by the U.S. Government. So, obviously, their dollars weren't good for that. When Dubai wanted to buy companies that manage six U.S. seaports, they found their dollars had no value.

AT SOME POINT THERE'S GOING TO BE A PANIC OUT OF THE DOLLAR. When it happens, it's likely to be the biggest financial upset since the 1930s. Part of the question is what they'll panic into. The euro? As I have said many times, if the dollar is an "I owe you nothing," the euro is a "Who owes you nothing?" I THINK THE BIG BENEFICIARY WILL BE GOLD. The problem for the world's economy is that just a trillion dollars?which is only about 1/6 of the dollars outside the U.S. alone - can buy a billion ounces of gold, even at $1,000 an ounce. But only about four billion ounces have ever been mined.

IT'S AN EXPLOSIVE SITUATION. The one thing you can count on when there's a crisis is that the government will "do something," which means controlling its subjects - not, God forbid, itself. And that something is likely to be foreign exchange controls. A small straw in the wind is the new regulation making it illegal to export more than $5 worth of pennies and nickels, because their metal is worth more than their face value - even though there's no longer much copper in the pennies or nickel in the nickels.

IF AN AMERICAN DOESN'T GET SIGNIFICANT ASSETS OUTSIDE THE U.S. NOW, IT MAY BE IMPOSSIBLE IN THE FUTURE. The best thing to do is buy real estate abroad, since it's currently not reportable, like bank and brokerage accounts, and they can't very well make you repatriate it. I expect, however, very few people will take my advice, even though they may agree with it.

But everybody gets what he deserves, so it's not a problem..

(By Doug Casey, chairman of Casey Research is a renowned investor, best-selling author and editor of the monthly newsletter International Speculator)

NHS Direct has seen a large rise in the number of people seeking advice about mosquito bites following a combination of rain and a warm climate that has encouraged them to thrive.

The death toll in eastern India alone rose by over 100 in the past week with thousands more marooned or made homeless as bloated rivers burst mud embankments.Authorities across South Asia -- where around 850 people have drowned, been crushed by landslides or died from snakebite and waterborne infections since mid-July -- said they were struggling to help millions of victims.

For some in the impoverished Indian state of Bihar, it is a struggle for survival as jackals and monkeys have attacked dozens of villagers over the past few days. "Wild animals like jackals and monkeys are biting our wives and children and snatching bread from their hands," said Lalan Raut from the flood-hit Madhubani district.
"They are on a looting spree and are killing our goats and small rabbits." Residents said the wild animals faced a shortage of prey since huge areas of the state were under water.

More immediately in the path of the 2007 Atlantic storm season's first hurricane were the Lesser Antilles, in particular the islands of Dominica and St. Lucia and the French territories of Martinique and Guadeloupe, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. The hurricane's top sustained winds had reached 100 miles per hour (160 km per hour) by 8 p.m. EDT, making it a Category 2 storm on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale of hurricane intensity, the Miami-based hurricane center said.

Computer models showed the hurricane could become an extremely dangerous Category 4 storm as it passed south of Jamaica early next week. Category 3 to 5 hurricanes, such as Katrina, Rita and Wilma in the devastating 2005 Atlantic storm season, are potentially the most destructive storms but a Category 2 hurricane can still damage buildings and create a 6- to 8-foot (1.8 meter to 2.4 meter) storm surge.

"Preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion," the hurricane center said in an echo of warnings that rang out repeatedly in 2004 and 2005, when a series of hurricanes struck the United States, the Caribbean and Central America. Energy markets in particular have been on edge since 2004 and 2005, when hurricanes Ivan, Katrina and Rita toppled oil rigs and flooded refineries on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The Gulf of Mexico accounts for roughly a third of domestic U.S. oil production and more than 15 percent of its natural gas.

In addition, almost half of U.S. refining capacity is located in Gulf Coast states and can be vulnerable to flooding or wind damage from storms. If Dean crosses the Yucatan and enters the southern Gulf of Mexico, it could disrupt operations in the Cantarell Complex of Mexican oil fields, which is one of the world's most productive and supplies two-thirds of Mexico's crude oil output.

JERUSALEM -- Palestinian negotiators drafting an agreement behind the scenes with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office have made clear they will not accept any final peace deal with Israel unless the Jewish state forfeits the Temple Mount, Judaism's holiest site, WND has learned.

According to a report in Israel's Yediot Aharonot daily yesterday, Olmert is willing to discuss joint Israeli-Palestinian control over the Temple Mount complex. The report didn't state the positions of the Palestinian side on the issue.

A chief Palestinian negotiator, speaking to WND on condition his name be withheld, said yesterday, "there can be no agreement with Israel unless we get complete sovereignty of the Mount. Once Palestinian control over the [Temple Mount] is fixed, then we will make assurances for Jewish visits to the site."

The chief negotiator said aides from Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah organization have been hammering out the parameters of a final status agreement for presentation in November at a U.S.-backed international summit regarding the Middle East.

Asked by WND whether Olmert is willing to forfeit the Temple Mount in an agreement with the Palestinians, David Baker, a spokesman for the prime minister, had no comment. The Temple Mount is the holiest site in Judaism. Muslims say it is their third holiest site

The blaze forced hundreds of residents in the city's affluent northern suburbs to flee and triggered a series of power cuts that lasted for hours. At least 10 people were taken to hospital with breathing problems while one firefighter was also injured.

Gale force winds prevented airplanes joining the fire fighting operations earlier in the day, allowing it to get out of control, the fire brigade said. Fire brigade officer Nikolaos Diamantis told a news conference: "From 11:00 to 12:30 the airplanes could not operate due to strong winds and thick smoke."

Greece has seen some of the worst fires of the past ten years this summer, caused by record-high temperatures, drought and arsonists. In late June, the biggest national park near the city, on Mount Parnitha, burned for three days leaving more than a third of the nature reserve charred.

Approximately 4,000 children have participated in the camps, which operate under the slogan "Jerusalem and Al-Aksa, the symbol of our unity, strength, and honor."

Khaled Mahamid, who runs the camps, explained that his goal was to educate Muslim children "to be connected to the Al Aksa Mosque and to protect it with their bodies." The camps "are the most important thing in dealing with the schemes against Al Aksa," he said.

Tens of thousands of people fled their homes and thronged the streets to avoid crashing masonry as the magnitude 8 earthquake rocked the towns of Pisco, Ica and Chincha. In Ica a church collapsed during a service, killing at least four worshippers and injuring dozens, while many people were killed in their homes as roofs collapsed in the nearby town of Pisco.

Buildings collapsed, roads were ripped apart and electricity lines were brought down. The death toll was expected to rise as many families were believed to have been buried in the rubble of their homes.

Royal Dutch Shell said it was shutting down a well that produces 5m cubic feet of gas a day, and evacuating non-essential personnel from facilities on the Texas coast. Other energy companies operating in the Gulf, which accounts for around a third of US domestic oil and gas production, said they were monitoring the situation.

TROPICAL STORM ERIN WAS NAMED IN THE CARIBBEAN AND IS EXPECTED TO HIT THE COAST OF TEXAS LATER THIS WEEK. It is not expected to grow to hurricane strength and damage is likely to be minimal. However, OIL TRADERS WERE PAYING MORE ATTENTION TO TROPICAL STORM DEAN, WHICH HAS FORMED IN THE MID-ATLANTIC AND COULD ENTER THE GULF AS A CATEGORY THREE HURRICANE OVER THE WEEKEND.

The potential threat, coupled with a fall in US oil and gas inventories, sent US crude $1.35 higher to $73.63 a barrel in early trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange with similar gains seen for Brent crude in London.

Oil prices had been on the way down in recent days as oil cartel Opec warned that the reduced growth forecasts for the world economy as a result of the sub-prime lending crisis and ongoing credit crunch could hit oil consumption.

While US shares were falling still further in early Wall Street trading, London's FTSE 100 ended the day down 4.1% or 250 points at 5,859. This is the FTSE's biggest one-day percentage fall since March 2003. The falls came despite the Federal Reserve pumping an extra $17bn ($8.6bn) into the US banking system. CENTRAL BANKS HAVE BEEN TAKING SUCH ACTION TO TRY TO RESTORE CONFIDENCE AND AVOID A CREDIT SQUEEZE.

Over the past week, the Fed has now injected $88bn (£44.3bn), while the European Central Bank has put up 211bn euros ($283.2bn; £142.6bn). However, investors appear to remain unconvinced that the action of the central banks will be enough, and MORE THAN £100BN HAS NOW BEEN WIPED OFF THE VALUE OF THE UK'S LEADING SHARES ALONE SINCE LAST WEDNESDAY.

In New York, the Dow Jones index of top US shares was down 1.3% to 12,700 in morning trading, while the Nasdaq had lost 1.2% to 2,430. Back in Europe, Germany's Dax ended down 2.4% to 7,270 and France's Cac lost 3.3% to 5,265.

The recent financial market volatility has been triggered by the US sub-prime mortgage sector, which offers higher-risk loans to people with a poor credit history. WHILE SOME ESTIMATES SAY $300BN IN LOANS COULD BE AT RISK, ONE OF THE BIGGEST WORRIES FOR INVESTORS IS NOT KNOWING THE EVENTUAL SCALE OF THE PROBLEM.

"The problems in the sub-prime mortgage market will linger on for a while," said Bart Ingels, an analyst at Fortis Bank, in Brussels. "SOME DAYS IT WAS A LITTLE BIT BETTER BUT THEN NEGATIVE NEWS CAME TO THE FORE, AND IT WILL GO ON LIKE THAT FOR A WHILE."

Open Europe today publishes the first comparative text of the new Constitutional Treaty, and a new guide to what it means. THE OFFICIAL VERSION OF THE TREATY IS ALMOST UNREADABLE as it takes the form of a series of amendments to the existing treaties, without reproducing the existing text which they will alter. IN OTHER WORDS, THE NEW VERSION CONTAINS ONLY THE 'ACTIVE INGREDIENTS' - THE CHANGES WHICH WERE PROPOSED BY THE ORIGINAL CONSTITUTION. THIS IS INTENDED TO MAKE IT UNREADABLE.

Open Europe is now publishing a consolidated text which shows how it would change the treaties. We also reproduce the text of the original version of the Constitution alongside this. AS THE COMPARATIVE TEXT SHOWS, THE NEW TREATY ALTERS THE EXISTING TREATIES TO BRING THEM INTO LINE WITH THE REJECTED EUROPEAN CONSTITUTION. It also reveals that the revised Constitution is the exact same length as the original Constitution.

Open Europe's guide argues that the Government's claims that the UK has signed up to a 'different' version of the treaty are misleading, as the present British 'red lines' are the same as those for the original Constitution. THE GUIDE GIVES AN OVERVIEW OF THE MAIN CHANGES BROUGHT ABOUT BY THE REVISED CONSTITUTION, IN AREAS RANGING FROM FOREIGN POLICY TO JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS.

To read the text, go to:- www.openeurope.org.uk

He pointed towards the passage in the revised Constitution which says, "Those Member States which sit on the Security Council shall request that the High Representative be asked to present the Union's position."

He said, "It's become increasingly clear that everything that was said about the new constitution has turned out to be a lie. The new treaty makes clear that Britain will have to give up its seat on the Security Council on issues where the EU has taken a common position. This is an extraordinary surrender of national sovereignty."

SNP leader Alex Salmond tabled a paper in Edinburgh on what he called a "new chapter in Scottish politics."
He called for a "national conversation" towards a referendum that would offer either the political status quo, more powers for Scottish parliament or complete independence. However, UK media report that the final outcome is likely to be a compromise allowing more powers to the Scottish parliament.

Mr Salmond has power as he is the first minister in the Scottish parliament but his party does not have a majority. Most of the other MPs in the parliament are not in favour of full independence while support among the public for the idea is around 30 percent. The topic is a hot issue in Scotland however, which has been in union with England for 300 years but which continues to have a separate legal system.

At the moment, Scottish parliament has some say on education and health but defence and foreign policy are dealt with by Westminster. If the Scots were ever to vote in favour of independence, it would raise certain legal questions for the EU such as whether it would have to formally apply for membership and whether it would be legally obliged to join the euro - an obligation for all new EU entrants.

Other questions like its voting weight for taking decisions and the issue of a possible Scottish commissioner would also have to be worked out. Such a scenario would likely also fuel other regions in Europe such as Spain's Catalonia.