Iran to send Obama toy spy drone

"We wanted Mr Obama himself to have these toys and know that Iranians don't leave anyone's requests unanswered.

 "We made the 'RQ' in pink as it is Mr Obama's favourite colour and we will send it to him via the Swiss embassy," the head of the cultural department, Seyyed Saeed Hassan-Pour, said.

"We decided to show that we can deal with this issue in a very friendly and peaceful manner and put it in the playful hands of the children of Iran to pursue a 'soft war' with Mr Obama and the US.

 "This was the aim of producing this aircraft," Mr Hassan-Pour said.

This all in response to Mr Obama's request for the return of the US RQ-170 spy drone that was downed in Iran at the end of last year. The toy, manufactured by Aaye Art Group, will hit stores February 1st.

Newt Gingrich campaign doomed

The writing is on the wall: Herman Cain comes out in support of him, Sarah Palin does the same. Where could Mr Gingrich find two more dubious public supporters than these? A tough question, indeed. Mitt Romney now has double-digit leads over Mr Gingrich in several polls.

Last week, Mr Gingrich made several gaffes in both the debates and in speeches. He came out to talk about setting up a moon base for Americans to live on. And it appears Mr Romney is having an easy time lampooning him with negative attack ads on national television and especially in Florida right now.

So what is Mr Gingrich really doing right now? Using this publicity to sell books? He knows he doesn't have a serious chance in Hell at winning the presidency. Naturally, he is aware of this since he has brought on an adulterer, a category he himself falls into, and a small-town simpleton (who more than likely sunk John McCain in 2008) to support him.

Mr Gingrich was paid $1.6 million by Freddie Mac and this is public knowledge. The presidency is unwinnable for Mr Gingrich. With his campaign for the GOP ticket, he's just having a laugh at the expense of his supporters (an ever dwindling lot) and his party as well. So one must ask, in all seriousness, is he secretly supporting Mr Obama with this personally- and party-damaging charade? This ruse?

Demi Moore used whip-its to inhale nitrous oxide

The LA City Attorney recommended that references to whip-its were taken out of the Demi Moore 911 tape. The City Attorney felt it would be a violation of Ms Moore's privacy to release this information to the public, along with specific drug references.

Paramedics dealing with Ms Moore on the night in question were told the actress had used whip-its to inhale nitrous oxide before she went semi-conscious and convulsed violently. While this news isn't likely to cause the sensation Charlie Sheen's drug admissions on the radio caused, the public is always interested in learning the sometimes lurid realities of the private lives of celebrities.

Mitt Romney is the 1%

According to www.journal.ie, take the wealth of the last eight presidents, add it together, double it and then you're in the arena of the wealth of Rich Romney, as we'll call him here. Ole Mitt would be in the top five richest presidents of all time. Historically, George Washington is considered the richest president what with 60,000 acres and 300 slaves. After that, it's a toss up between Thomas Jefferson's plantations, Herbert Hoover's mining millions and JFK's family wealth.

As for the Bushes and Roosevelts, they were no where near Mr Romney's wealth. Rich Romney. Mr Romney has disclosed a sort of outline of his wealth, leaving him in the range of $190-250 million. That puts him at 50 times Mr Obama's wealth. Insiders say Mr Romney made $50,000 a day last year on investments alone, no work required, Rich Romney. In times like these, this simple fact should put him at odds with the 99%. But, fortunately for Mr. Romney, the news media is not controlled by the 99% but the 1% of the wealthy which he himself is a part of, Rich Romney. Mr Romney is far above mere 1% status, he is in the 0.006% of US taxpayers. And next to the average American, Mr Romney is 1,800 times richer, Rich Romney.

Occupy Oakland protest turns violent

300 arrests made as Occupy Oakland protest turns violent over the weekend. The protesters threw stones and bottles and tore down the outside fence of a convention center. Protesters broke into City Hall and burned an American flag. This resulted in the police using tear gas and flash grenades in an attempt to disperse the crowds. The demonstrators, 2000 strong, also broke into a YMCA building.

Will Facebook IPO strengthen or damage the company?

Mark Zuckerberg has been reluctant to go public with Facebook. Insiders say he is fearful of the potential harm an IPO could do to what he perceives as the social network's culture. Apparently, he wants the company to focus on product quality rather than stock price. But under pressure from other factors, Mr Zuckerberg has decided that going public is the answer.

Facebook executives realized in 2010 that the company would have more than 500 shareholders by 2012 and would therefore be legally required to make financial information public. Due to this, Mr Zuckerberg decided that it would make more sense to go public and reap some of the financial rewards of an IPO, than it would to stay private and have to report financial information.

While Facebook's revenue is drawn from its advertising business, it isn't even known if the company is actually profitable. Nonetheless, Facebook could file documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission as early as Wednesday of next week. Others say the company is considering filing in April or June. With a $10 billion Facebook offering, it would rank as the biggest US internet company offering ever with Google's $1.9 billion offering in 2004 coming in second.

Demi Moore overdoses smoking something like "incense"

Earlier today, Demi Moore overdosed, smoking "not marijuana" but something "similar to incense." 911 was called and Mrs Moore ushered to the ER. At least one of her daughters was with her. Reportedly, the actress has been having a difficult time recently personally. Ashton Kutcher, who is divorcing Mrs Moore, returned to Los Angeles from South America to check on Mrs Moore.

Actually, she used whip-its to inhale nitrous oxide. More on this: http://unusualnewsanalysis.blogspot.com/2012/01/demi-moore-used-whip-its-to-inhale.html

Bill Gates' thoughts on Steve Jobs

“Steve was an incredible genius who contributed immensely to the field I was in. We had periods, like the early Macintosh, when we had more people working on it than they did. And then we were competitors. The personal computers I worked on had a vastly higher [market] share than Apple until really the last five or six years, where Steve’s very good work on the Mac and on iPhones and iPads did extremely well. It’s quite an achievement, and we enjoyed each [other’s work].”

“He spent a lot of his time competing with me. There are lots of times when Steve said [critical] things about me. If you took the more harsh examples, you could get quite a litany.”

Seal Team 6 rescues 2 in Somali pirate lair

Dane Paul Hagen Thisted and American Jessica Buchanan were rescued in a nighttime raid by US Navy Seal Team 6 which killed nine pirates. Three pirates were captured. Usually pirates raid ships at sea, but this time they had taken the bizarre step of kidnapping their victims on dry land.

When President Obama entered the US Capitol Chamber before the State of the Union address, he called out to Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, "Good job, tonight." The operation required close cooperation between the FBI and the Pentagon. Mr Panetta made a statement in which he said, “The successful hostage rescue, undertaken in a hostile environment, is a testament to the superb skills of courageous service members who risked their lives to save others...The mission demonstrates our military’s commitment to the safety of our fellow citizens wherever they may be around the world.”

Oliver Stone would vote for Ron Paul

Oscar-winning film director Oliver Stone says he would vote for Ron Paul if he was to receive the GOP nomination. Rock Cellar Magazine asked Mr Stone if the American Empire would collapse if the economy crumbled. “I think it’s a given,” Stone said. “There’s no way that we can continue this spending spree. In fact, I think in many ways the most interesting candidate — I’d even vote for him if he was running against Obama — is Ron Paul. Because he’s the only one of anybody who’s saying anything intelligent about the future of the world.”

Mr Stone voted for Barack Obama in 2008 and contributed to his campaign but now he has decided Mr Paul would make a better president, being the only candidate with intelligent things to say.

Image from 1982 Russian Venus 13 probe

This is an image from the Venus 13 probe series in which Russian scientist Leonid Ksanfomaliti suggested surface life was in evidence.

Life on Venus, says Russian scientist

From Times of India (January 21, 2012):

"MOSCOW: Several objects resembling living beings were detected on photographs taken by a Russian landing probe in 1982 during a Venus mission, says an article published in the Solar System Research magazine.

"Leonid Ksanfomaliti of the Space Research Institute of Russia's Academy of Sciences published a research that analysed the photographs from the Venus mission made by a Soviet landing probe, Venus-13, in 1982.

"The photographs feature several objects, which Ksanfomaliti said, resembled a 'disk', a 'black flap' and a 'scorpion'." 

He went on to say that all the objects "emerge, fluctuate and disappear," referring to the changes in position of the objects on the ground in different images.

"What if we forget about the current theories about the non-existence of life on Venus, let's boldly suggest that the objects' morphological features would allow us to say that they are living," Mr Ksanfomaliti said.

The air temperature on the ground is 464 Celcius, but of course this does not mean that some form of life is not possible. Considering the international conspiracy to cover up evidence of UFOs and extra-terrestrial life, as admitted by the US, UK and Australia among others last year (when they declassified several files pertaining to the subject), it is not impossible or even unlikely for much more substantial evidence of extra-terrestrial life to exist. Though it would be nice if Mr Ksanfomaliti could produce some of the photographs he mentioned.

Actual Golshifteh Farahani nude photo

After several complaints about our prior post on actress Golshifteh Farahani posing nude (we did not display images of her but instead of Lady Anais who looks like her) we have decided to show the actual picture that got her banned from her native Iran. Here it is. Enjoy.

US, Britain, France close in on Iran

The West sent warships into the Strait of Hormuz today as the sanctions on the rogue state went into effect. Iran has backed down on its threat to block the Strait of Hormuz in response to the sanctions. The action by US, Britain and France is seen by many as reinforcement to ensure that Iran will not attempt any blocking of the strait now that they've said they won't.

Best case scenario (and most likely): Iran will not attempt to block the Strait of Hormuz. Worst case scenario: a military conflict between Iran and the West. The US has said the USS Abraham Lincoln has merely completed "regular and routine" passage through the strait. The Telegraph of London however has called this action "a warning to Iran with warship fleet" from the West. Whether or not this means war, we have yet to see. But tensions between Iran and West have never been higher.

Iran goes to war on Barbie dolls

From the Washington Times (January 21, 2012):

"Iran is under siege and it’s not going to take it anymore. First, it was Stuxnet, the computer virus worm, then the assassination of its top scientists, and then it was sanctions. And now it’s Barbie, that spawn of the Great Satan."

Iran's morality police are now going to shut down any shop that carries Barbie dolls. And now Iran's little girls (plus parents) are afoot in a revolt against the state, declaring their right to own Barbie dolls and demanding more. As a result the Iranian government approved the release of the dolls Sara and her twin Dara, their answer to Barbie and Ken. These replacement dolls wear the traditional Muslim garb, their faces are covered and et cetera.

One doll seller said she believed Barbie dolls would lead Iranian children astray causing them to reject Iranian culture and values. She even went on to say, “I think every Barbie doll is more harmful than an American missile.”

All this silliness as American, British and French ships pass into the Strait of Hormuz as sanctions are imposed on the rogue state. One might think the Iranian government has a little more to worry about than "wanton" Barbie dolls at the moment.

Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis split over alleged infidelity?

"He would chat with girls and was very friendly and flirty," said a source to the Daily Mail. According to Star Magazine in a December 2010 article, then 19-year-old Kristen Stephenson-Pino said Johnny Depp told her "you're by far the most beautiful girl I've ever seen," before he took her back to his trailer. Ms Stephenson-Pino also said, "It was one-on-one. I was in there for a few hours, and that's, like, everyone's ideal lover boy. He's just the whole package!" She said she would joke with Mr Depp about being intimate: "I was like, 'I'll take you and Orlando Bloom! That's the only way you can get me. He starts laughing and goes, 'Honey, no, no, no, no. I don't share with anybody. You either get me or me, and that's it.'"

Those close to the couple say the relationship between Mr Depp and Vanessa Paradis is badly fractured and damaged. And now it is reported throughout the media that the pair have split after 14 years. They have two children together.

Death to PIPA and SOPA!

Senators Marco Rubio and John Cornyn came out strong for PIPA and SOPA, but the backlash by web heavy hitters from Facebook and Twitter to Youtube, Google and Wikipedia scared them into hiding and the bills were indefinitely shelved in reaction to the public outcry. After the public came out so strong against the bills, President Obama said he would not support them either and would veto them if they came across his desk.

If the bills passed, Google said it would have to blackout Youtube overnight and perhaps the largest search engine in the world would also be temporarily shutdown as it scanned the sites it ranks for copyright infringement. Wikipedia, a massively popular site would also have to shutdown for the fact that so much of its material potentially violates copyright infringement laws. What does all this commotion indicate? Perhaps the world is changing in its attitude toward copyright laws and perhaps one day intellectual property laws will even be a thing of the past.

Another death in China from H5N1 virus

Another Chinese man, 39, fell ill with the H5N1 avian flu on January 6 in Guiyang, Guizhou province. His is the second death from the flu in under a month. The Chinese health department said, "So far, 71 people who had close contact with the victim have not developed abnormal symptoms." This brings the number to die of the bird flu in China to 28.

The World Health Organization reported that it never saw a "sustained human-to-human spread" of the virus since it reemerged in 2003. The Telegraph said, "Chen, the Guangdong victim, had not had any direct contact with poultry either in the month before he was taken ill, nor had he left the bustling metropolis of Shenzhen where he lived."

Congress considers censoring the internet

Wikipedia has been blacked out along with many other major websites. If the bill passes much of Wikipedia may have to be taken down. Youtube will definitely go. Regarding the proposed legislation, Wikipedia posted this:

Call your elected officials. 

Tell them you are their constituent, and you oppose SOPA and PIPA. 

Why? 

SOPA and PIPA would put the burden on website owners to police user-contributed material and call for the unnecessary blocking of entire sites. Small sites won't have sufficient resources to defend themselves. Big media companies may seek to cut off funding sources for their foreign competitors, even if copyright isn't being infringed. Foreign sites will be blacklisted, which means they won't show up in major search engines. SOPA and PIPA would build a framework for future restrictions and suppression.

In a world in which politicians regulate the Internet based on the influence of big money, Wikipedia — and sites like it — cannot survive.

Congress says it's trying to protect the rights of copyright owners, but the "cure" that SOPA and PIPA represent is worse than the disease. SOPA and PIPA are not the answer: they would fatally damage the free and open Internet.

Make the greatest impact by calling your Congressional Representative today. Hundreds of thousands of people are reaching out — email forms for your Representative may be broken.

These bills were originally put forward by Hollywood lobbyists working on behalf of major film and television studios. Basically all the passage of SOPA and PIPA (Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect IP Act) would do is benefit the robber barons of the media industry and hurt a multitude of small online businesses across the US and worldwide.

Previously, many believed this sort of censorship was only possible in China. Depending on the outcome of the consideration of these bills, the US may plunge headlong into internet censorship just like the country it is now embroiled in a cold war against. The American people's liberties are more curtailed the more the US government can get away with it. This has happened in leaps and bounds since 9/11. Now their internet freedom may be cut short as well.

Ortega-Hernandez indicted for White House drive-by

According to the Washington Post, Tuesday a federal grand jury indicted Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez, 21, on 17 counts including the attempted assassination of President Obama. Mr Ortega-Hernandez allegedly fired 12 shots at the White House while Mr Obama was in California. Two shots hit the outside of the White House. He fired the shots with a Romanian-made assault rifle on November 11 of last year.

Prior to the shooting, Mr Ortega-Hernandez made a video with a school friend in which he declared himself the second coming of Jesus and called Mr Obama the “devil.” The charge of attempted assassination is punishable by up to life in prison. No word on whether Mr Ortega-Hernandez’s legal representation put in an insanity plea. One would think that a youth, believing himself to be Jesus and believing Mr Obama to be the devil, might validly be let off on mental health grounds and that due to his state of mind he did not possess mens rea.

Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani banned from Iran after nude photo shoot

Golshifteh Farahani, an Iranian actress living in Paris, was banned from Iran after appearing nude in France's Madame Le Figaro magazine. "I was told by a Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guide official that Iran does not need any actors or artists. You may offer your artistic services somewhere else," Ms Farahani said. (Note: the woman in these photographs is not Ms Farahani.)

Flying man Jeb Corliss breaks both legs

Jeb Corliss, 35, famous for "flying" over famous landmarks worldwide broke both his legs crash-landing on Table Mountain in South Africa this morning. He is recovering in intensive care. Mr Corliss regularly free-falls at speeds exceeding 90 mph in his jumps. Previously, he has jumped from the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Christ Redeemer statue on Rio de Janeiro. In 2006, he was arrested for trying to jump off the Empire State Building in New York.

Tony Blair, Inc. worth £30 million to £40 million

This is the 6,000-square-foot house on Grosvenor Square where former Prime Minister Tony Blair cashes in on his celebrity status under the guise of running myriad companies and charities. For this reason it has earned the name (not official) Blair, Inc. For all his efforts from this location and more so around the globe (he spends as little as two months in Britain in any given year) and at a cost of over £8 million a year in travel expenses, he has earned up to £40 million. But, according to analysts, it is hard to say really how much he is worth. He does not disclose such information to the public.

Mr Blair is said not to fly commercial and to have private staff waiting for him wherever he goes. This must account for the £8 million in travel expenses. One source told the Telegraph: “They spent an incredible amount of expenses on travel. It was absolutely ridiculous.” In the past, Mr Blair has flown on private planes owned by Col Muammar Gaddafi and Rwanda's president Paul Kagame. Both colorful or formerly colorful characters to say the least.

Mr Blair denies being motivated by money claiming that two thirds of his time is devoted to charity. If you're not devoted to the accumulation of money, Mr Blair, why do you take in so much of it and often from such dubious sources? 

A Kuwati source has claimed that TBA (Tony Blair Associates) stands to gain £27 million over the course of a contract in which he is to advise the Kuwati government on how to govern. Interesting since he was an abysmal failure in the governance of his own country. Sounds like old boy network kickbacks to me.

His companies Windrush and Firerush consist of complicated webs of companies, comprised of LLPs and LLCs, which hide the intricacies of Mr Blair's businesses from public scrutiny. One may ask, when he devises Airrush and Waterrush will things be any different? Yes, the Masonic symbols in the names of his companies as well as in his operations abound. And so does the stench.

Obama space arms control initiative is restrictive

The Obama administration is launching a new space-arms control initiative the could possibly put the country at a disadvantage militarily because of its restrictions. The plan could be announced as soon as tomorrow. It has been a long time coming following negotiation with the EU concerning their earlier proposal for what has been called an "international code of conduct." Earlier codes introduced by Russia and China were rejected as too restrictive by the US. The US considered them covert attempts to put the country at a disadvantage strategically.

LSE students play "Nazi drinking game"

A group of students from London's prestigious (to some) London School of Economics played a "Nazi drinking game" called "Nazi Ring of Fire" on a ski trip to Val d’Isère. Apparently, a Jewish man complained and they subsequently broke his nose. According to the Telegraph of London this has all been filmed and the college will take disciplinary action against the students involved if the allegations prove to be true. The game involves dealing cards in the shape of a swastika and "saluting the Führer." Perhaps, the LSE should pay slightly less attention to the fact that this is an attack on a community (though this is not insignificant in itself) and more attention to rising anti-Semitic behavior among certain neo-Nazi (or National Socialist) members of the student body.

Michelle Obama angry over "angry black woman stereotype"

Michelle Obama is angry about “angry black woman stereotype.” So just why is she playing the race card now? The woman who has everything, who probably thinks she has significant power in the US as well, what is she thinking–fuming about “angry black woman stereotype”? Perhaps with the upcoming election she is afraid of losing that power. With her multi-million dollar mansions, her jet set lifestyle and her secret parties with Johnny Depp does she really have all that much to complain about?

So she works hard a creating an image in the ever misinterpreting media, an image which she apparently takes quite seriously. One of her always smiling, always affable, always sweet and kind ways. Of course she gets angry sometimes. Everyone does. But why is she so hung up on maintaining this deceptive media image? I suppose she is very much like her husband in this.

Media manipulates Romney Iowa "win"

So the media created the "Santorum surge." Designed by those who control the media and support Mitt Romney to steer anti-Romney votes away from Mr Paul (who would have easily won without this "surge") in the last week in Iowa. The voters in Iowa got hours and hours of strictly positive media buzz on Mr Santorum leading up to the vote. If you look at the Iowa results on a county map weeks before the caucus you would see that Ron Paul was clearly poised for victory. But the central bank supported banks and corporations who control the media couldn't have that so what did they do? Create an absolutely fake media blitz in the final days before the vote.

If Mr Paul was left alone to face off with Mr Romney he would have won by a landslide. The blitz was staged like this: first there was the news of a "Santorum surge" when he went from 7% to 9%. Hardly a surge, but then as this news was jammed, crammed and wedged in edgewise by the media, the message took effect. The media reported it over and over and before long Mr Santorum was polling at 16% and then 20%. And now that Iowa is over, this so-called surge has petered out. Is it any wonder how easily the American people are manipulated by the media?

Shenzhen man dies of H5N1 bird flu

In the Chinese city of Shenzhen a 39-year-old male bus driver died of H5N1 bird flu. "Though it is highly pathogenic to human beings, the virus can not spread among people," said the Shenzhen Center for Disease Control and Prevention. "There is no need for Shenzhen citizens to panic."

The man was hospitalized Dec. 25, four days after contracting a fever, and died a week after two dead birds were identified in nearby Hong Kong. The disease is not contagious once contracted but is typically caught by someone who comes into close contact with the diseased birds.

According to the World Health Organization there were 59 deaths out of 88 cases of H5N1 bird flu worldwide. None have been reported in the United States.

The murk around Stieg Larsson's death

A self-described feminist, anti-white supremacist, anti-neo-Nazi--he died on November 9, 2004 which is the anniversary of Kristallnacht. Is it believable the Sweden's most public anti-Nazi would die of natural causes on such a date? He was 50. Larsson ran the magazine Expo which to say the least was a bother to the extreme right. A fact which he parodies is his Millennium trilogy (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest). He was set to publish ten books in the series, a series that was a sort of exposé on various murky elements of Swedish society.

Sweden is no land of green, meditative vegetarians as is often thought by those not familiar with the country. A former Prime Minister was murdered in the '90s (still unsolved) and a Foreign Minister was murdered in 2003 (the verdict of which does not rest easy with many). The first of Larsson's books focus on corporate corruption, the second on the sex trade, the third on the trilogy's compelling protagonist Lisbeth Salander's liberation from dependence on the state. Christopher Hitchens wrote in a 2009 article for Vanity Fair (The Author Who Played With Fire) of a source who had "excellent contacts" in the Swedish police and security world who assured him that everything that took place in the "Millennium" novels actually took place. So, as Hitchens himself said, you can see how many people believe he may not have actually died of naturally causes but was "stopped."

Officially, Larsson died of coronary thrombosis, so any murder that could have taken place would have to have been done in-house, so to speak, or at the hospital.

Obama covered up Johnny Depp-Alice in Wonderland Halloween party

Deceptive? Yes. Economical? No. Funded by taxpayer money? Absolutely. Necessary? Absolutely not. Johnny Depp greeted the guests to the Halloween party styled after the Tim Burton film. Mr Burton was given carte blanche to create the party. So what sort of excesses is Mr Obama up to that haven't been leaked to the press? We may never know. But the message from this event is clear: he doesn't care about the Recession, he doesn't care about American people, only about preserving an imagined image that is nothing like the reality. How does this reflect on Mr Obama's leadership skills? Clearly, they are nonexistent.

"White House officials were so nervous about how a splashy, Hollywood-esque party would look to jobless Americans or their representatives in Congress, who would soon vote on health care that the event was not discussed publicly and Burton's and Depp's contributions went unacknowledged," wrote New York Times reporter Jodi Kantor in her new book The Obamas.

So, there you have it. Mr Obama may be among the weakest of US Presidents ever in office, as well as one of the shallowest.

US vs China, the looming war (World War III?)

As far back as June of 2005, Robert D Kaplan wrote in the Atlantic ("How We Would Fight China") , "The Middle East is just a blip. The American military contest with China in the Pacific will define the twenty-first century. And China will be a more formidable adversary than Russia ever was"

For whom some might consider a mouthpiece for the Washington establishment (the Atlantic monthly has close ties to Foreign Affairs magazine, the publication of the Council on Foreign Relations), these are warring words.

More recently, on November 8, 2010, China apparently launched a missile 30 miles off the coast of California. The fire and smoke from the missile were captured by Los Angeles news cameras. US military spokesman at the time said there had been no US launches, and Pentagon officials said whatever it was it was not a direct threat. Unofficial sources said it may have been an airline contrail, but that is highly suspect. All in all, the event was swept under the carpet--as have many of the more recent issues surrounding what is now being called a "Cold War" with China.

Understandably, neither side wants to inflame the population of the other with sentiments of war. Henry Kissinger wrote an article of the Washington Post dated January 14, 2011 "Avoiding a U.S.-China cold war" in which he states all the reasons China and the US have to cooperate with one another. He wrote of his experience with Chinese citizens not in government who want no war at all and a few within the government who don't want it either. He said, quite rightly, that the only reason the Chinese government is on a war footing of late is that they see the US adopting a containment policy toward their growth and ambitions for the future. The US is seen in China as trying to stifle China's rivalry for the top spot as global superpower.

And once again we are thrust into the so-called "Great Game" of international power politics that, quite frankly, should have ended in the 19th century or with WWII at the latest. Now President Obama is moving PACOM (the US military's Pacific Command) into setting up a permanent military base in Australia. A move the Chinese government has not tolerated quietly.

Published just today on UPI.com, China has warned the US against "flexing its muscles" in the Asia-Pacific region. In an editorial Friday, China's official news agency Xinhua said: ""While boosting its military presence in the Asia-Pacific, the United States should abstain from flexing its muscles, as this won't help solve regional disputes...the U.S. role, if fulfilled with a positive attitude and free from a Cold War-style zero-sum mentality, will not only be conducive to regional stability and prosperity, but be good for China, which needs a peaceful environment to continue its economic development."

The US is also concerned about the transparency of China's new military developments. New and inexplicable military structures have been found within China such as the one seen in the Google Earth image below:

And the Chinese military has stated quite openly their readiness for war with the US. More recently, Major General Zhang Zhaozhong commented that, “China will not hesitate to protect Iran even with a third world war," in the event of some sort of US-Israeli military assault on Iran.

More in the coming days on this looming conflict....

Stegobot steals banking info through Facebook images

Hackers can now steal information from your computer (including bank logins and passwords) through the use of a "stegobot" that use a technique called steganography, which is hiding information in image, sound or video files. The Stegobot can enter your computer at the time you upload photographs onto Facebook and it can then steal vital keystroke information which would contain websites you visited and information you entered into those websites. You can imagine the rest from here.

Researchers at the University of Illinois and the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology in New Delhi, India came up with the Stegobot to illustrate how easy it was for hackers to enter your computer by these means.

"The botnet incorporates the information into any image you are uploading on Facebook. And then it waits for one of your friends to see your profile. Stegobot can then infect your computer even if your friend has not clicked on the corrupted image. In case your friend is also infected with the botnet, then any photo they upload will also pass on the stolen data. And the relaying of the data can eventually land into the hands of a botmaster, who will be then able to access your identity," according to Mr Thiyaku.

“If one of your friends is a friend of a friend of the botmaster, the information transfers hop by hop within the social network, finally reaching the botmasters,” said Amir Houmansadr, one of the engineers of the Stegobot at the University of Illinois.

The damage potential of this botnet is staggering. And so far, no remedies to it have been designed. Recently, we have witnessed an escalating spate of cyber attacks against American companies and the American  government emanating from China and elsewhere across the globe. As the Stegobot is virtually undetectable by conventional methods it is clear that much more needs to be done to secure the internet as everything online has been shown to be highly vulnerable.

Thousands of blackbirds fall to death in Arkansas town second New Year in a row

In Beebe, Arkansas, thousands of blackbirds fell to their deaths for the second New Year in a row. The Mayor was up at 4 a.m. calling the street department supervisor who said he thought the Mayor was messing with him. The police received several calls regarding the incident. And the jury is out as far as why this bizarre event even occurred. These are not birds that can see at night.