Ramen Review

All this is severely shocking for das deutsche Volk of course, given that it has been less than one week since the dead of not-at-all-Good Friday were buried. But that’s life in Afghanistan for you, and it is not like the locals would be given much of a respite by any party in this disgusting war splendid little thing that colloquially might be called “war” by some either. And if you think: “at least it has been going for a … read more

Back to Part 1

And then the topic turned to a plane that was flying in a no-fly zone near to Camp David and heading towards Site R. I had no idea what Site R was. And to me Camp David was a place where George Bush went on vacation. I didn’t know any more than that.

And now the topic is getting really interesting. As will become clear, this plane is most likely Flight United 93.

BR: And this was information … read more

since, oh IONO… mid-September 2001 perhaps?
Maybe. Maybe not. We shall see.
Until then, thanks to the 9/11 conspi folks for their continuous asinine lobbying; had they chosen to fight that what the shruBskis were in fact perpetrating, the world might very very well habe been spared 4 more years that were mostly like gang raping for virginity. Oh, and also many “thanks” for making the pretty flowers grow (and the corals — as well as others — die).
You guys suck. Some … read more

The Con supreme-mayoral candidate of Cologne announced today that he’ll quit the race for re-election (elections due August).
He had been a staunch supporter of the subway project that came to almost topple a church belltower[de:], killed two, destroyed much of the documental archive of Cologne, sunk millions of euros; he had been investigated by the police more than once, had been entangled in networks of bribery, kickbackry, ill-spent funds, construction scandals and the likes. His time of office benefitted … read more

Starting March 9th, indices have adopted a new pattern, one not seen since long. The N225 bottomed out at 7k, and since has risen to above 8.5k-ish, rising again not quite 23% from the lowstand.
The DAX dropped to 3k 666, to rise again 16%ish to above 4.2k. And the DJIA stopped its decline at just below 6.6k, rising some 21% to just below 8k.
Today, DAX and DJIA recorded solid drops for the first time (IIRC) since the bear rally … read more

…not really. But the difference is about as much as fluctuation, with Citi stock dropping to about a buck a hit.
And yet[de:]: all the humans in the world legally entitled to conduct business could not own it yet, if each gave this one buck.
Indices bouncyballed, with the dax very tenderly raising Tue but strongly Wed - only to lose all and more today. Dow got a huge load of flak. It looks like the Dax is gonna take cover … read more

aig kaput. read all about it in the mass media.
they will feature it aplenty and in lurid detail. “march is the new october”, or what?
dow needs to hold 6k this week, or all bets are off.
in other news:

(background: the eu head-of-states’ decision[de:] that there will be no eur160-190mrd blanket bailout for non-eurozone eu eastern europe.
i assume that if they would have had the bucks, they would have shelled them out with kisses, smiles and flowers. eastern europe’s economies are … read more

Now, here we have a document titled
NATO IN AFGHANISTAN
MASTER NARRATIVE AS AT 6 October 2008
A bit obsolete, but nonetheless… It is part of a batch of documents liberated by the good people at Wikileaks. As they dryly remark,

The encryption password is progress, which perhaps reflects the Pentagon’s desire to stay on-message, even to itself.

Said “password” also “encrypted” the three other documents. Note that Wikileaks is intelligent enough not to submit the password of one Chris Riley, to whom the … read more

Indices cavorted all over the place, settling in for a solidly red week, though today — as did the DJIA a few days ago — the N225 manages to make a near spot landing with plusminus zeroish change. The last 3 weeks’ bumpy bounce, tumbling down a broken and rough slope, shaved some 12.5% off the DJIA, while the N225’s losses could well (for a while at least) be limited to just below another 10%. The DAX, in spite of … read more

Bank runs! And I was almost missing them…
On Antigua and in Caracas, to be precise. Which has a delicious irony — one of the world’s top laundromats for smelly credit, and a bunch of coupist lovers. The latter find something in the realm of US$ 2.5mrd[de:] melting away like South American mountain snow in the 21st century climate.
Now tell me guys:
Ain’t Capitalism Grand?

On Antigua, PM Spencer calls upon the populace to maintain calm. Most of his native citizenry … read more

Whatever.
As it seems, Arnie is having a bit of a hard time. The Handelsblatt at least says so[de:], and they are usually pretty nonpartisan for the exuberant mouthpiece of Capitalism that they are. But I think we had this coming, with the State practically bankrupt for the last 4-6 months or so.

“The Terminator is an end-of-line model, little more fit for reality than Detroit’s Big Three.”
(Rüdiger Scheidges, loc. cit., 17th February 2009)

If you understand German, the article gives you … read more

Some mixed odds’n’ends…
“No police officers will be prosecuted over the death of Jean Charles de Menezes, Crown prosecutors Service say.”(BBC, February 13th 2009)
Those were strange days, back in 2005. For a conspi take that is at the same time kooky and rather interesting in an unJonesian way, try 7/7: The Ripple Effect. It seems certain from the weight of evidence that some MetPol honchos were investigating rumours of an upcoming attack on some Israeli interest, although the question of whether … read more

Al-Arabiya.
Who’d have thunk? Nice.

See also this Onion spoof act of clairvoyance.

“… the biggest regret of all the presidency has to have been the intelligence failure in Iraq.”
(George W. Bush, December 1st, 2008)

No.
The biggest regret — the only regret — is that Barbara Pierce Bush did not, shortly after V-J Day, speak the magic words:

“George Herbert Walker, pull out before you cum.”

“I know the [pResident] will want to convey to President-elect Obama his sense of how to deal with some of the most important issues of the day. …”
(emphasis added)

wat

“… But exactly how he does that, I don’t know, and I don’t think anybody will know.”
(Joshua “Yosh” Brewster Bolten, White House Chief of Staff, Class of ‘80, and a Darned Good Bowler to Boot. Washington D.C., November 10th 2008)

“the fine print
In the course of the last week, one new term has come into play …”
(moi, October 28th 2008)

So there we go[de:]. I still have no idea what this means, but so has everybody.
Big… fnord….

As regards this country, they presume -0.8% “growth” (whatever that is). Given the speed of recent developments, I’d rather want to assume -1.2% in my internal calculations, no matter what I tell the yokels. Possibly -1.5%; and if things really start to roll, up up … read more

Not much going on. So I can just mention this Wikipedia pick that may be interesting.
It illustrates the value of marketing, and the importance of picking the right name. Quoth Wikipedia:

Also a great orator, he is considered by some historians as one of the greatest political rulers and military strategists of all times, in the same vein as Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Genghis Khan, Napoleon Bonaparte, or Shaka, all proportion respected.

Sadly, Andrianampoinimerina ny Ombalahibemaso’s name was not as easy … read more

People are much speaking of the upcoming interest slashing of the Federal Reserve Bank of the United States of America, or just “Fed”.
Regarding the Fed, it is perhaps more interesting to note the following figures from their official October 22, 2008, H.3 Release (”Aggregate Reserves of Depository Institutions and the Monetary Base”), wherein MRD is “milliard” (U.S. “billion”):

October 31, 2008 — Nonborrowed: US$42MRD. Required: US$41MRD.
October 22nd, 2008 — Nonborrowed: US$-363MRD. Required: US$47MRD (both estimated).

No, the “minus” sign before “363″ is … read more

Alan Greenspan admitted today yesterday that he

“found a flaw [...] in the model that I perceived is the critical functioning structure that defines how the world works”.

Found a Flaw: Alan G. (82)
Ayn R. and her buddy the Cancer Stick: Taught economy to Mr. G. when he was little.Friend of Mr. von Mises.Suspected to have been a Very Naughy Bitch.
A few days ago I met with a friend of mine, a rather bright girl aged 23. She had been travelling a … read more

This is not about Oliver L. North, convicted Reaganite criminal, drug pusher, and for reasons ill-explained still a VIP and so-called “pundit”.
Rather,
Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr. briefs soldiers at CCMRF exercise. Fort Stewart, Sept. 14, 2008.
it is about the new job of the Raiders, the US Army’s 3rd ID 1st BCT. A standard “heavy” USArmy brigade combat team in transition, it consists of one battalion each of APC infantry, APC cavalry, and main battle … read more