LEGAL ACTIONS PENDING AGAINST POWERS THAT BE

From paradoxman316

October surprises! Have you noticed? Last week CNBC reported on the $43 trillion lawsuit filed against banksters and key politicians. The next day two children of the senior vice president and general manager of CNBC were killed, supposedly by the nanny that had been caring for them for two years. Conveniently, she also cut her own throat and slashed her wrists, according to the report.

Then there is the story, carried by Reuters, that Obama and Biden were criminally indicted by a Citizen's Grand Jury right here in Florida for willfully releasing classified information.

There are other similar stories of pending legal action against high officials in the corporate world, including the Vatican Corporation. What does this mean? Links:

The $43 Trillion Bankster Lawsuit and the Mysterious Murder of Two NY Toddlers
http://occupycorporatism.com/the-43-trillion-bankster-lawsuit-and-the-mysterious-murder-of-two-ny-toddlers/

Citizens' Grand Jury Indicts Obama and Biden
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/30/idUS138172+30-Oct-2012+PRN20121030

Bernie Sanders Exposes 18 CEOs who took Trillions in Bailouts, Evaded Taxes and Outsourced Jobs
http://www.politicususa.com/bernie-sanders-exposes-18-ceos-trillions-bailouts-evaded-taxes-outsourced-jobs.html

Tibetan monk is world's happiest man, says group of neuroscientists from the University of Wisconsin

Tibetan Monk Matthieu Ricard world's happiest man, says neuroscientists

Credits: Cindy Ord via Getty Images

Happiness has long been considered immeasurable and believed to be a subjective interpretation of a person's sense of peace and well-being. A group of neuroscientists at the University of Wisconsin claim that happiness can be measured, and have proclaimed Matthieu Ricard, a 66-year old Tibetan monk "the happiest man in the world", reports Smithsonian on Nov. 1.

The group of neuroscientists measured the brain activity of Matthieu Ricard by attaching 256 sensors to his skull and asked him to meditate on compassion. The results were shocking.

Ricard's brain produced gamma waves, linked to consciousness, attention, learning and memory, that were "off the charts". It also showed excessive activity in the left prefrontal cortex. This demonstrated Ricard's massive capacity for happiness and low levels of negativity.

According to the NY Daily News, Ricard says that anyone can be happy if they train their mind to it.

"It's a wonderful area of research because it shows that meditation is not just blissing out under a mango tree but it completely changes your brain and therefore changes what you are," Ricard told AFP.

The study also found significant changes in the brains of those who practiced meditation more than 50,000 times. Some changes were observed in the brains of those who meditated for 20-minutes a day for three weeks, suggesting that the effects of meditation build over time.

"Try sincerely to check, to investigate," Ricard says. "That's what Buddhism has been trying to unravel -- the mechanism of happiness and suffering. It is a science of the mind."

It appears that Matthieu Ricard has made great strides in understanding the science of the mind, and may have found the secret to true happiness.

Source: http://www.examiner.com/article/tibetan-monk-is-world-s-happiest-man-say-neuroscientists

Alien Sub-Terrestrials: What Could Be Hiding Beneath Our Feet

Recently, the world of UFOlogy was rocked with shocking allegations about the possible existence of descendants of alien sub-terrestrial’s dinosaurs. These allegations came by the way of Lacreta Files, written by one ‘Ole K’, who interviewed and documented information garnered from a self-described dinosaur descendant.

One of the allegations made in these Files involved an intergalactic war between humans and inter-dimensional ‘reptilian’ aliens that caused a massive extinction of dinosaurs on the earth. According to this self-described dinosaur descendant, the remaining population evolved and still lives on the earth to this day. In addition, this evolved entity still ‘operates some UFOs.’

Some of the UFOs described seem to be consistent with sightings made of cylindrical UFOs spotted in various parts of the world. They were described as, ‘a metalish bright-grey cigar-shaped cylindrical object with a length of—there are different types—let me say between 20 and 260 of your metres.’ The alleged regressive alien descending from dinosaurs also goes on to state that should anyone else have seen some of these UFOs then ‘this means that it was either partly defective, or that one of us was not careful enough.’

Such a sighting was recently posted as video footage on Scott C. Waring’s website, UFO Sightings Daily, which is a popular forum for UFOlogists to show the world some of the things they have witnessed. Scott, an avid UFOlogist who is also a writer and an ESL school owner in Taiwan, posted the video on his website of a sighting made on 26 October 2012 in Hawaii, USA.

An anonymous girl who then gave it to an eyewitness to post filmed the video footage. It shows a moving cylindrical object moving across the sky past the plane carrying the witnesses. It does appear metallic and bright grey as well as cigar shaped thus lending credence to some of the allegations on the Lacerta Files. Anyone can also view the video via YouTube by following the link provided on UFO Sightings Daily.

So what could the object be? Skeptics and scientists may have their own plausible explanation on what the horizontally moving object could be. For Scott C. Waring and other UFOlogists however, this is evidence that there are life forms that are alien out there and we have yet to see them all.

The eyewitness who provided UFO Sightings Daily on the other hand, seems very excited to share the excitement with the world. This witness states a big, ‘thank you to this anonymous girl who gave me this stunning video to share with the world.’ For the rest of the unbelieving world though, maybe more evidence posted on the UFO Sightings Daily will help change their mind in order to help them join Scott and other UFOlogists in their quest to prove that alien life forms exist.

Source: http://www.agoracosmopolitan.com/news/ufo_extraterrestrials/2012/11/01/4716.html

The Dhamma Brothers - Meditation In Prison, 100 Hours Of Silence

By Jenny Phillips

In the fall of 1999, I packed my tape recorder and traveled from my home outside Boston to visit Donaldson Correctional Facility, a maximum-security prison outside Birmingham, Alabama. I was hoping to interview prisoners about their lives in prison and their experiences with meditation. I had heard that many of the prisoners at Donaldson were learning how to meditate and then teaching one another by reading a book written for prisoners titled Houses of Healing. Because I was also using this book in my volunteer work with prisoners in Massachusetts, I became interested in comparing my work with that of the prisoners at Donaldson.

Donaldson is known as the "House of Pain," the end of the line in Alabama's prison system. It is deep in the countryside, surrounded on three sides by the Black Warrior River. The prison is chronically understaffed because no one wants to work there. There is a heavy atmosphere of misery, hopelessness and violence.

On that first visit, the prison psychologist, Dr. Ron Cavanaugh, lent me his office and put the word out that I wanted to talk with the men who were learning to meditate. I don't know what I expected would emerge from those interviews with the meditating inmates at Donaldson. I now realize that listening to their stories changed my life in ways that I could not have anticipated.

After that first visit to Donaldson, I could not shake off the memories of what I had seen and heard. I wanted to learn more, to find out if there were solutions or alternatives to the aggressive culture of prison manhood. I wondered if it were possible for men in prison to live with a sense of inner peace and the freedom to experience and express a full range of emotions. In my conversations with the inmates at Donaldson, they seemed to be seeking opportunities and skills to establish lives that were more productive and peaceful, even if there was no possibility of their release from prison.

Prison treatment programs typically offer guidelines for changing prisoners' behavior and thinking, but stop well short of providing them the safety, support and skills to reflect upon their emotions, their addictions, childhood histories, and crimes. Away from the distractions and physical trappings of the outside world, prisoners are in a setting that is potentially conducive to deep reflection and the development of self-awareness, self-understanding and compassion. After many years of working with prisoners, I have found that they often have a yearning to face the realities of their lives and crimes, and to construct a more meaningful existence.

Soon after my visit to Donaldson, I heard about Vipassana, an ancient and intense meditation program that is taught in centers around the world and contains the elements that I felt were most needed in an effective prison program: the opportunity and techniques for significant introspection in a safe and supported environment. With collaboration among Ron Cavanaugh, the Alabama Department of Corrections and a Vipassana center in Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts, a Vipassana program, based on the 2600-year-old teachings of the Buddha, was brought to Donaldson.


The documentary film The Dhamma Brothers tells the story of the coming together of a maximum-security prison in Alabama and an ancient, intense meditation program requiring 100 hours of silent meditation. Bringing these two distinctly different cultures together required many adjustments and adaptations. For example, the prison had to allow the Vipassana teachers to live inside the prison walls in close proximity with the prisoners. It is amazing that this was allowed!

The Dhamma Brothers is a story of courage and hope. There are many heroes in this story, but the prisoners themselves are the central characters in the film as they teach all of us about the possibility of personal transformation under the most dire and difficult conditions. They have been my teachers for many years. I often read and reread their letters and listen to their audiotaped and videotaped interviews, always finding more meaning. I am now beginning another film with my film crew from Northern Light Productions in Boston. We are focusing on the stories of young men re-entering society after incarceration. Like The Dhamma Brothers the central characters are living on the rough underbelly of life and drawing wisdom from the journey.



Watch The Dhamma Brothers at: http://www.dhammabrothers.com/WatchNow/index.htm

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jenny-phillips/meditation-in-prision_b_1469180.html

Iran Offers to Send Emergency Aid Crew to New York After Hurricane Sandy

By JG Vibes
theintelhub.com

In the wake of the destruction caused by hurricane Sandy the people of Iran are reaching out in a variety of ways, by offering help and emergency aid relief.

Even the Red Crescent Organization of Iran has offered to send an emergency response team to help with the rescue and clean up effort.

Mahmud Mozaffar, the leader of the Red Crescent Organization told the Fars News Agency that:

“We are ready to help the flood-stricken people of America.  Given its preparedness and ample experience in rescuing storms and floods victims, Iran’s Red Crescent can provide relief assistance for those affected in New York.

If American authorities agree, we can send our rescuers with equipment and tools to American cities in the shortest period of time.”

It is very possible that American authorities will not accept this offer because the Red Crescent Organization is known to have deep connections with the Iranian government.

Another organization close with the Iranian government made a similar request a few years ago in offering to help clean up the Deep Horizon BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, this offer was quickly turned down by the US government.

Iran is a much more complicated situation than the half dozen other countries that have already been invaded in this conquest, it’s far more delicate.

Iran’s population and military capabilities far surpass that of Iraq and Afghanistan, it is one of the most powerful countries in the Middle East and has been for a very long time.

Despite their immense power and influence in the region they have not waged a foreign conflict in over a century, and they don’t pose much of a threat today either.

However, they are still being demonized because they don’t comply with Anglo-American business interests like the extremely brutal and fascist dictatorship in Saudi Arabia does.

That is not to say that the government of Iran is totally harmless, all governments are inherently criminal and corrupt because they operate on a basis of force, fraud and coercion.  However, it does mean that at least historically the aggression of the Iranian government has been focused inside its own borders.

All of that aside, this is still a commendable offer of peace on the part of this government connected group in Iran, and believe it or not, this is an offer which reflects the sentiments of the average Iranian person.

For well over a year now peace activists in Iran have been teaming up with other peace activists in Israel and the United States to spread a message of love and unity among people of all geographical locations…..regardless of what all the crazy politicians say.

One of the most popular of these efforts is the Iran loves Israel and Israel loves Iran campaign, which started out as a viral Facebook phenomena where Iranians and Israelis would send messages of love to one another and reassure each other that the hateful rhetoric put forward by governments and media outlets are totally out of line with the true feelings of the average person.

Wars belong to the politicians, the weapons manufactures and the bankers, it is their hate and their propaganda that drives the violence in these conflicts.  The people at home just want to live long, happy and peaceful lives.

The following is the front page quote on the Iran Loves Israel web page:

“Nothing about war is healing. It doesn’t plant seeds of change – only of discord and pain. The people of Iran, like our counterparts in Israel, are vibrant, creative, and forward-thinking.

We need a transparent arena where ideas can be exchanged, thoughts developed, and discourse inspired by our similarly ancient cultures. Although many countries in the Middle East suffer from debilitating international stereotypes, we can unite to transform the media’s image of us as violent and intolerant aggressors to loving and cooperative partners.

As we go through the crucible of our inherited animosities, we can burn away our superficial differences and together emerge with a greater understanding of humanity.”

The Israel Loves Iran web site has an equally positive quote on their front page:

“Once you see your enemy as a human being similar to yourself, being expressing his love and understand he doesn’t hate you as years of propaganda succeed to make you believe, you can never go back to blind hate, then you can start to know each other and you will be ready for peace.”

Last month we reported on the insanity of trade sanctions, and how they are literally killing millions of people, simply because they are under the oppression of a government that is not in favor with the west.

The activism that is truly needed to stop this sort of madness is going to be situations where the average people of waring nations extend love and support to one another.

This will totally undermine the propaganda of war, by helping others to understand that individuals should not be punished for the actions of the governments that oppress them.

Barclays faces record £290m penalty

British bank suffers another hit to its battered reputation as it confronts huge costs for alleged US energy market manipulation

Barclays bank has endured a torrid year having been caught up in a
number of financial scandals.Photograph: Carl Court/AFP/Getty Images

Jill Treanor, city editor
The Guardian

Barclays took another major hit to its already bruised reputation last night when a US regulator threatened the bank with a record $470m (£290m) penalty for allegations that it attempted to manipulate the US electricity market.

After the London market had closed, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission announced the scale of the fine – $435m, plus a $35m order to disgorge alleged profits made by the bank – for the alleged offences which are supposed to have taken place between 2006 and 2008.

Barclays had warned earlier in the day that it faced a potential penalty for the alleged movement of Californian electricity prices when it reported that it had made a loss in the third quarter of 2008.
The bank's new chief executive, Antony Jenkins, said the bank would defend any proposed penalty by the regulator, which has given the bank 30 days to respond and prove why it should not be fined.

The Washington-based regulator is also proposing fines on four individuals who worked for Barclays at the time. In April the Ferc had warned it was investigating the bank and the four individuals for allegedly buying and selling electricity in big enough quantities to affect the price of complex derivative positions.

The four traders – Daniel Brin, Scott Connelly, Karen Levine and Ryan Smith – also have 30 days to prove why they should not face civil penalties after the regulator said the actions had led to losses of around $140m for California and other US states.

The regulator, given extra powers after the Enron trading scandal, alleged that traders had "propped up" the market.

The fresh embarrassment for Barclays comes barely three months after Bob Diamond resigned as chief executive in the wake of another record fine, this time for manipulation of the key benchmark interest rate, Libor.

The allegations from the Ferc, which shed some light on the complexities of energy trading, single out four locations – Columbia, Palo Verde, South Path 15 and North Path 15 – that were said to have seen transactions that benefited the bank's positions on the IntercontinentalExchange.

Unlike the Libor case where Barclays agreed to settle the allegations, the bank now appears to be preparing to put a case in the show-cause order issued late last night. If the fine is imposed by the regulator, it would be the largest it has ever levied, and be regarded as evidence that the Ferc is attempting to get tough on attempts to manipulate energy prices. Other banks facing penalties include JP Morgan and Deutsche Bank.

The order does not put Barclays side of the argument but accuses the bank of a "coordinated scheme" to manipulate prices in electricity prices and comes as the bank's new chairman Sir David Walker takes over the key boardroom role today.

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/nov/01/barclay-banking

It Begins: Ecuador Demands Repatriation Of One Third Of Its Gold Holdings

Submitted by Tyler Durden  
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-31/it-begins-ecuador-demands-repatriation-one-third-its-gold-holdings

One week ago, when we reported the news that the Bundesbank had secretly pulled two thirds of its gold from London years ago, we said the following:

... Germany has done nothing wrong! It simply demanded a reclamation of what is rightfully Germany's to demand.

And here is the crux of the issue: in a globalized system, in which every sovereign is increasingly subjugated to the credit-creating power of the globalized "whole", one must leave all thoughts of sovereign independence at the door and embrace the "new world order." After all this is the only way that the globalized system can create the shadow cloud of infinite repoable liabilities, in which we currently all float light as a binary feather, which permits instantaeous capital flows and monetary fungibility, and which guarantees that there will be no sovereign bond issue failure as long as nobody dares to defect from the system in which all collateral is cross pledge and ultra-rehypothecated... for the greater good. Until the Buba secretly defected that is.

And this is the whole story. Because by doing what it has every right to do, the German Central Bank implicitly broke the cardinal rule of true modern monetary system (never to be confused with that socialist acronym fad MMT, MMR or some such comparable mumbo-jumbo). And the rule is that a sovereign can never put its own people above the global corporatist-cum-banking oligarchy, which needs to have access to all hard (and otherwise) assets at any given moment, on a moment's notice, as the system's explicit leverage at last check inclusive of the nearly $1 quadrillion in derivatives, is about 20 times greater than global GDP. This also happens to be the reason why the entire world is always at most a few keystrokes away from a complete monetary (and trade) paralysis, as the Lehman aftermath and the Reserve Fund breaking the buck so aptly showed.

We are confident that little if anything will be made of the Buba's action, because dwelling on it too much may expose just who the first country will be (or  already has been) when the tide finally breaks, and when it will be every sovereign for themselves. Because at that point, which will come eventually, not only Buba, but every other bank, corporation, and individual will scramble to recover their own gold located in some vault in London, New York, or Paris, or at your friendly bank vault down the street, and instead will merely find a recently emptied storage room with humorously written I.O.U. letters in the place of 1 kilo gold bricks.

It appears that the story, which has refused to go away, was not covered sufficiently fast, and precisely the worst case scenario - at least for the "asset-lite" status quo - is slowly but surely starting to materialize. From Bloomberg:

Ecuador’s government wants the nation’s banks to repatriate about one third of their foreign holdings to support national growth, the head of the country’s tax agency said.

Carlos Carrasco, director of the tax agency known as the SRI, said today that Ecuador’s lenders could repatriate about $1.7 billion and still fulfill obligations to international clients. Carrasco spoke at a congressional hearing in Quito on a government proposal to raise taxes on banks to finance cash subsidies to the South American nation’s poor.

So yesterday: Germany... today: Ecuador...
tomorrow: the World?

Because while Ecuador, with its 26.3 tonnes of gold, may be small in the grand scheme of gold things, all it takes is for more and more banks to join the bandwagon and demand delivery in kind from official repositories (i.e., New York and London), and the myth that is the overcollateralization of hard money by central banks will promptly come to an abrupt, bitter and, likely, quite violent end.