Weekly News Wrap-Up 11.25.11
By Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com
Happy Black Friday! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! The Occupy Wall Street protesters are trying to derail the busiest shopping day of the year by telling people not to shop. I do not understand why they would try to hurt struggling retailers. I think this is well within their rights under the first Amendment but a public relations disaster. Meanwhile, the Tea Party is telling folks to “buycott” and go out and shop to help the economy.
The Super Committee proved it was a super scam by both parties to push off important budget deficit decisions until after the November elections. Long term unemployed will be cut off in January if Congress does not act in December. It still comes down to a cut and tax log jam. Don’t think all the ratings agencies will give the U.S. a free pass. Look for the Chinese and S&P to cut U.S. credit ratings in the next few weeks. The Middle East is hot and getting hotter. Iran says it has arrested 12 CIA agents. Iran says the agents were working with the Israelis to disrupt Iran’s nuclear program. The agents might be put to death according to published reports.
Syria is on the verge of a civil war. It is between the Shiite minority and the Sunni majority, but it is really much more than that. Syria is an ally to Iran, and with the U.S. leaving Iraq, it is reported that many want a change of government to contain Iran. All these stories and more from Greg Hunter in the Weekly News Wrap-Up.
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Greg Hunter
Greg is the producer and creator of USAWatchdog.com. The site’s slogan is “analyzing the news to give you a clear picture of what’s really going on.” The site will keep an eye on the government, your financial interests and cut through the media spin. USAWatchdog.com is neither Democrat nor Republican, Liberal or Conservative. Before creating and producing the site, Greg spent nearly 9 years as a network and investigative correspondent. He worked for ABC News and Good Morning America for nearly 6 years. Most recently, Greg worked for CNN for shows such as Paula Zahn Now, American Morning and various CNN business shows.
greg, are you sure the ows is asking people not to shop? or is this just another example of msm focusing on a small inconsequential fringe element in order to paint another “alarming” false picture?
G Johnson,
Multiple sources say boycott major retailers on Black Friday. I don’t think they will be successful.
Greg
Greg, it’s bigger than that.
There is a world-wide movement to boycot work AND shopping from
Fri 25 Nov thru Sun 27 Nov. Sorry, no more details from me at this
time. Too busy following two other movements: miners keeping their
profits in metals in their own vaults instead of in paper on banksters
books AND international companies getting ready to float company
bonds in renminbi and SDRs, not FRNs.
Major retailers should be boycotted. Major retailers are the gateway drug to more and more product coming from China as more and more jobs are cut in the U.S.
http://www.occupynews.net
i fear your seeing the small picture.
where one is stopped there are two takeing the place.
Iran…
The CIA needs to be bulldozed and started over. Its management is either inept or the stupidest spy masters we have ever had. They continue to put folk into positions that they are not necessarily well trained for. Though this bit of news is old news. Iran broke the ring back in May 2011. Why we are reporting this now is also beyond me. But its a disaster in the making. This is what happens when we go on a hiring binge (Post 911) and mix the politically correct unskilled with the skilled spy masters.
In my humble opinion, its time to put up at For Sale sign at Langley and start over.
Boycott Wal-mart is what I read some were. Boycotts are a good weapon,I started one against the Seattle Times some years back. It only took a couple days and we got what we wanted. It was a labor deal and a just one. You don’t want to use a boycott unless the local people would be on your side. OWS did right with pulling your money out of the big banks, the same as a boycott. peace
Syria next to help contain Iran from a vacuum left when U.S. troops pull out of Iraq, I believe that is where we are and that is the State Department’s covert policy. The administration will not attack Iran but crank up the sanctions. With Iran only having a few small military friendly neighbors, all of which are small potatoes economically and militarily like the Gaza Strip, parts of Lebanon, etc., they are isolated. Frankly, not a bad move if that is play and policy. They only have Russia for help, which will stand by if nothing but sanctions takes place. At that point the leadership of Iran probably will overplay their hand and do something stupid and force a military strike. One thing Iran can’t do is trust that Russia will actually help because, frankly, Russia won’t help if Europe and the West are united and Iran made the strike happen due to some type of unjustifiable provocation such as shooting a missile into Israel. Russia has been known to talk and posture for an ally but their talk is generally cheap, so Iran better be careful or else they will find themselves without the help of Russia or without some guy coming out of a well to help either.
Greg, a sober Thanksgiving and a somber Black Friday. Not much good news in the world these days.
Spot on about the Super Committee, what a fart! All they did was blow hot air and did nothing, well expect to raise (from the hot air) the debt of the US of A. If the voters are not angry this election cycle, I don’t know what will get them motivated. Of course they will be angry at the other side, just wish they would look in the mirror … all that anger and blame gets nowhere. And if I have any grandchildren, I shake my head, are they in trouble.
Oh, and about the Middle-East, yes, what a hot bed…. and its just getting warmed up.
Thanks Greg!
Thank you Steve.
Greg
Greg,
As a retailer, I will give the Tea Party 1 and OWS 0. Our shop is across the street from some major big box stores, their parking lots were jammed non stop.
I do not believe the Super Committee was anything but a cannon ball manufacturing effort to rally the big contributions. The D’s & R’s have enough cannon balls to lob at each other to keep the political theater going through out the election. Now if Congress does not extend unemployment benefits and the Bush tax cuts then those will be additional cannon balls to lob at the other party too.
The sound bites will convince the sheeple to dig deep and donate more and more of their hard-earned dollars to save the country. Keep Obama, elect Romney and get more TARP, more bank bail outs and more corporatization of the country. I truly believe only Ron Paul would/could change this mess for the better.
Jan,
I thought the attack on retailers was a big mistake by OWS. They are not the villains here.
Greg
OWS wasn’t telling people NOT to shop. They were telling people to buy locally and yes, they were protesting huge corporate stores that would make their employees come in on Thanksgiving eve, with little to no health insurance, barely a working wage. By the looks of some of the videos of violence, pepper spraying of other consumers and shootings that occurred in this country today because of our addiction to Mass Consumerism, I think their point was well taken. Let’s face it, reality is, this economy needs to tank because it is based on greed and corruption so throwing more money at it, in the long run, will do little, guaranteed. We are in the slide and we need to face that reality harsh as it may be.
I think that the MSM has intentionally misled the public so as to portray the Occupy Wall Street movement as a bunch of losers who do not want to work, are lazy and unwashed.
The truth is that the majority of these people have either lost their homes in foreclosure or lost their jobs due to no fault of their owm, or both. It’s the economy, stupid!
Now, when they finally try to peacefully protest, they are not given the compassion or understanding that a “Christian Nation” would be expected to provide, but just the opposite, they are treated with scorn, or make the butt of jokes by the MSM, and are “peppersprayed” by the same people who are pledged to “Protect and Serve” the community, namly the people, some of which are the “OWS” participants.
It really hit home here yesterday when my 31 year old daughter finally got it. She works for a Private School teaching Autistic children. She gets paid once a month now. She used to get paid every two weeks. Her entire October pay check bounced on Friday and, in addition, she is now owed for the entire month November. She felt hurt, not just financially, but emotionally. I’m 61 years old now and when she looked at the bounced check, she asked me “How can they do this?” I am still lost for words. 40 Private school teachers here in Southern CA had their paychecks bounce on “Black Friday”.
Some of these people were shopping and spending the money and will awake today to find that they have now bounced checks to the retailers. The banks will charge them “bad check fees and penalties”.
It goes on and on. This is one message that the “OWS” crowd is trying to say to the public. They are trying to say that they are being treated unfairly and actually defrauded and then, insult after injury, being forced to pay penalties to the banks-through no fault of their own. Greg, please get this message out there. Maybe these teachers will now join the “OWS”. Who knows. Maybe they won’t for fear of losing their jobs that pay them will bounced checks. Where will this end?
Sincerely,
Ron O’Donnell
In my community, people are not out so much on Black Friday (for the biggie retailers like walmart and target, etc.) but are waiting until today (Saturday) to shop the local main street merchant shops. THAT is what the OWS is trying to encourage, IMO. Stop supporting the corporations like walmart who ship everything in from china and shop the local stores where you can buy a LOT of homemade stuff (quilts, jellies, soaps – all made by local artisans). Also, my area boasts several very talented artists and their work will be featured, as well as for sale, during the day on Saturday. Biggest problem here? The weather. It’s terribly windy so a lot of the older folks and handicapped, etc., will not be as likely to be out and about.
Even if people only come to look and not buy – at least they know what’s being offered downtown. A lot of the small merchants on main street are overlooked and that’s not fair. They offer much more than walmart ever could. I’d rather keep my money local.
Greg, here it is again,http://www.fame.org/pdf/buffet3.pdf. I think I will put this link up each day next week so all the readers get a chance to view it. This is the sort of content that should be presented to every member of congress & all seeking the office of president or any other office. If the OWS’ers & Tea Party folks could come together over something this should be it, but don’t count on it. If the groups can’t understand the importance of what old man Buffet was saying and carry this message main steam then we are truely lost as a nation. I know Ron Paul would embrace this & explain the importance of a congress that serves the people & point out how congress lost its way as they put special interest ahead of the good of the nation.
Armstong has a new piece about gold,MF Global, JP Morgan & much more at http://armstrongeconomics.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/armstrongeconomics-confiscate-gold-112211.pdf. This is a must read.
Thank you M Smith.
Greg
WRT the super-committee’s failure:
Extreme circumstances call for extreme measures –
They should have been sequestered just like cardinals are when electing a new pope. Then fed nothing but fried cheese and cabbage. There would have been a decision with a week.
This is what I knew was coming, this piece from Zerohedge.com shows just how far the power elites will go to retain power against all Americans who try to express their feelings of what gov is doing. http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/congress-vote-next-week-explicity-creating-police-state. Americans should be going nuts to stop this vote.
How’d that “boycott” work out? Retailers claim sales are up 8% on Black Friday. OWS is really having an impact, aren’t they? It’s all about “free” speech–gimme something for “free”!
Be Proud, Donks: These are your people!
OWS Releases Official Goal on Website:
“Stomp Out Capitalism”
http://www.punditpress.com/2011/11/ows-website-releases-official-goal.html
“Free” Speech–gimme something for “free!”
Occupy LA leaves behind 30 Tons of Debris; Sanitation Workers Wear Hazmat Suits
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/11/occupy-la-30-tons-of-debris-left-behind-at-city-hall-tent-city.html
Mountainaires,
On USAWatchdog.com you too get free speech. Thanks for your spirit and links!!!
Greg