Signs of the Sensitivity of the Iranian Powderkeg
It doesn't take much to panic markets when it comes to Iran. Case in point: Crude futures just about 45 minutes ago:
13:39 ET: 5 UK Nationals Held In Iran After Yacht Seized In Gulf (Dow Jones) (YOWSERS!)
13:55 ET: UPDATE Five U.K. nationals are being held in Iran after the Iranian navy seized their yacht, which may have strayed into Iranian waters in the Gulf en route from Bahrain to Dubai, the Foreign Office said Monday. The incident happened Nov. 25, when "a racing yacht owned by Sail Bahrain and crewed by five British nationals, was stopped by Iranian naval vessels," the office said in a statement. (Dow Jones) (Oh.)
Can you imagine what this will look like if anyone actually shoots at something over there?
(8 votes)
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on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:31
#146501
Ughhh. Hopefully we'll go broke before we can invade another country that barely has electricity...
Or get out of the way so Israel take care of their own problems.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:42
#146510
?... Curious, I thought America is Israel... hmmm my mistake...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:46
#146647
For the amount of money we spend on Israel, we might as well give them their own county in Florida, and build them a copy of Jerusalem. Then we can let the Arabs have the dirt they covet and quit supporting our friends in the most hostile possible environment.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:52
#146652
That is the most creative and non-violent answer I've ever seen to this problem. My idea has always been to convert the area for use as a spent nuclear fuel repository (a la Hanford), then see if they still want to fight over it.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:57
#146666
We have a winner folks........
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:09
#146697
Trust and believe the war would be on with the Cubans if that ever happened.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:46
#146753
Thats right we can leave them the dirt but why not just move all the jewish historical and religious structures as well? The Temple Mount could be a little tricky however because extra dollars would be required to place scaffolding underneath the mosque...
Crazy you say? Check out London Bridge in... wait for it.... Arizona.
http://www.goodyearblimp.com/archive/img/c_londonbridge.jpg
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:02
#146771
I find it rather amazing that even among the fiscally educated and enlightened community like we have at ZeroHedge there is still quite a bit of ignorance and animosity. DOD's comment borders the kind of anti-semitic rhetoric one finds in the forums discussing Zeitgeist's contribution to humanity.
America gives almost as much money to Egypt and yet nowhere is that mentioned and while Israel's racist policies and questionable treatment of certain minorities leaves much to be desired they are head and shoulders above Egyptians whose scores on basic freedoms would cause Russia to blush. Yet why mention Egypt when you have the world's easiest scapegoats at your fingertips? I am certainly not deluded in thinking that humanity will ever shed it's hating capacity but if hate is a function of ignorance then the language here is dissapointing at best.
FWIW I would cut off aid to everyone, we have our own problems - but that is hardly the point.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:13
#146796
Anytime anyone questions Israel they are labled anti-semites, as if no one is allowed to disagree with the all powerful Israel and disagreeing with the policies of state somehow reflects one's opinions of it's people. That is the real joke, and why I say America has become the whore of Israel.
Tell me if I disagree with American policy, does that make me an anti-freedomer?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 19:51
#147003
Well, yeah.
Esp if you are busy ignoring other countries and not applying similar standards to their behavior.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 20:49
#147020
The context of the original comment was about Israel. I suppose I could write an op-ed here about what every country of every corner of the world is doing that is not only illegal, but outright unethical, regardless of religion, to at least one group of people residing in their borders; but my reference was to Israel and Americas constant cheek spreading attitude. I was pointing out one fact, no where did I say Israel, much less Israelites, are the only problem in the world.
Then, without knowing anything about me or my heritage, I am accosted with accusations of being an anti-semite. Pretty funny from my point of view, but those who would rather jump at any and all opportunities to call someone an anti-semite and change the subject from America's own prejudices towards Israel, are more concerned with calling names than facing facts.
Methinks they doth protest to much...perhaps Israel has as much to hide as the Federal Reserve...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:16
#146802
FYI on foreign aid
http://www.parade.com/news/intelligence-report/archive/who-gets-us-foreign-aid.html
1. Israel $2.4 billion Virtually all of this money is used to buy weapons (up to 75% made in the U.S.). Beginning in 2009, the U.S. plans to give $30 billion over 10 years.
2. Egypt $1.7 billion $1.3 billion to buy weapons; $103 million for education; $74 million for health care; $45 million to promote civic participation and human rights.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 20:24
#147030
The money given to Egypt is given out of obligation on behalf of Israel as part of 1974 Egypt/Israel Peace accords...so techinically this money is a debt we are paying on befalf of Israel in addition to the Billions each year we give them directly....
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 20:29
#147032
arkady,
America gives money to Egypt, Jordan and a few other Arab countries so they will stay on friendly terms with Israel. Mearsheimer and Walt pointed this out in their book as well.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 22:46
#147184
Hey guys, here he is! Heres the guy who cried antisemite!
Usually takes at least 50 posts in a thread for this to come up, but this moron came quick.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:28
#146822
Actually, the best thing to do would be to tell both sides, "We have too much to worry about right now at home and it appears noether of you wish to really solve your differences. We are going to completely withdraw from the region militarily and financially as we are broke. Let us know when you are ready to really pursue peace but in the meantime, we simply cannot help."
We should say the same thing to the rest of the planet, save trillions and bring everyone home. Line up the military on the borders and simply protect.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:51
#146541
Loved the "before we can invade another country that barely has electricity"... such a simple way to put what is so true.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:09
#146575
Yea, let's just do nothing and let another 3,000 New Yorkers get blown up unsuspectingly. And while we are at it let's not believe somebody when they tell us they are at war with us and chant death to the infidels.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:18
#146594
I agree. Who needs NY or Israel?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:20
#146596
With all due respect, and sincerity, you need to hit the books..
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:30
#146614
When you deal in facts, I'll hit the books. Here are just a few attacks from these "no electricity" countries:
World trade center 1993
Khobar towers
USS Cole
2nd World Trade Center
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:36
#146629
Exactly Pedro, I mean it's not like the American Gov't went in and assasinated Iran's elected leader or anything...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:05
#146686
Seriously? That was 50 years ago; and we backed someone in an internal coup, not direct assassination. You must carry a big chip on your shoulder because history is full or war, conquest, assasination, etc. etc. Are you still mad at Germans for WWII, or Russians for what they did to eastern Europe?
Or are you just an anti-semite? Because I think the answer is pretty clear from your posts.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:11
#146691
"are you just an anti-semite?"
HAHAHA... classic knee jerk response, ignore the facts and start with ad hominem attacks... very clever...for a zealot moron...
"history is full or war"
Very deep, did you get help to come up with that?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:13
#146705
I notice you didn't answer my questions, so I stand by my statement. You can whitewash the mad mullahs all you want, but I doubt Israel will wait for them to get a nuke.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:16
#146711
right, I have to answer your question to prove someting. I actually know I don't have to answer it, and by asking you have proven yourself to be a racist.
racist : a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human races determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to rule others.
If my beliefs are in question, all I need say is I believe in equality. If you don't understand what that means, perhaps you need to look it up.
"...we backed someone in an internal coup, not direct assassination..."
Would you like some kool-aide to wash down your bullshit?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:24
#146718
I know better than to argue with someone like you but just out of morbid curiousity, who was assassinated? You do know that Mohammed Masaddeq was deposed but not killed, don't you?
I await your tortured reasoning with baited breath.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:31
#146728
D.O.D. won already, give it up. For an Internet Tough Guy you're not that tough...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:20
#146804
DITTO
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:39
#146737
Is a name what is important to you. You are really moving the subject far away from topic. I understand why; You have no leg to stand on. The CIA, whether with finger on the trigger, or vis sa vie a stand in, assassinated the elected leader. If you want his name go to wiki, a smart guy like you can find it, I'm sure. The reason for the assassination is the same reason it has been with America for the past century, oil. Plain and simple. Try and stay on topic, if you want to ramble and insult, feel free, but rest assured, it won't make you any less wrong, or less racist.
p.s.
Are you differentiating an assassination attempt from a success, as if one is ok, and the other not?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:39
#146740
His name was Mohammed Mosaddeq. He was deposed in 1953 and died on his estate in 1967. Here is the link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammed_Mosaddeq
Like your avatar you talk a lot of crap, but don't have anything to back it up, least of all facts.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:47
#146746
well let's see, the CIA didn't kill him, merely went in and armed those who would... big difference...If he wasn't killed I remembered incorrect, it still doesn't mean the the American gov't played no role in the course of events in another countries gov't/society. You want to focus on one piece of information, and then say everything else is wrong. It's a common tactic for those with little skills. If it makes you feel better then Mohammed lived...feel better?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_ajax
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oi-JiM0Ox_8
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:45
#146749
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:55
#146765
Once again pulling the newspapers from the shelves.
Silence! You cannot speak anymore.
--Dicktator
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:59
#146867
Speak all you want... somewhere else.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 21:19
#147088
this is not a nypost message board
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:13
#146704
The Tough guys comes out with the straw man attack.
You win the idiot of the day prize.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:40
#146636
And Iran had what to do with that exactly? Hit the books...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:02
#146675
How about we just agree to disagree and get back to ripping Bernanke and the other market manipulators.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:05
#146680
Yeah, it's better to ignore the facts, that way the illusion you call reality is safe, no need to get all the truth at once... baby steps...
Remember; if the truth is scary, it must be a lie...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:25
#146719
D.O.D., You appear very shallow, and typical. Make anti-semitic statements, and then, when someone asks about that, accuse them of racism. Good move. You are degrading the quality of this site.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:37
#146840
Anytime anyone questions Israel they are labled anti-semites, as if no one is allowed to disagree with the all powerful Israel and disagreeing with the policies of state somehow reflects one's opinions of it's people. That is the real joke, and why I say America has become the whore of Israel.
Tell me if I disagree with American policy, does that make me an anti-freedomer?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 18:29
#146911
Without a doubt, 9,999 times out of 10,000 when someone makes an accusation of "anti-Semitism", they are anti-Arab racists/bigots who talk out of their ass with a kneejerk reaction.
I am Chumbawamba.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:43
#146723
Yeah, everyone still ignores the fact that the terrorists were Saudis. Better to bomb cavemen who pose no threat than to go after the real killers.
Greenspan probably told the truth here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-T5ToDjZnTU
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:02
#146777
Hey, this is called Fight Club for a reason. Take it outside already.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:53
#146762
Agreed, but think this through. Israel attacks Iran(with US help, bc they can't do it otherwise... logistically), Iran responds by turning the Straits of Hormuz into one big landmine. 70% of the worlds oil passes through there daily. Goodbye Fake Recovery, hello $300 oil! For what? A country that never threatened the US, or attacked any of its neighbors? Terrible risk/reward.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 19:36
#146987
I am sorry, who has never threatened the US? Iran? Or Israel? I know the Iranians regularly threaten us but I am not sure about the Isrealis? Any video of mad jews screaming death to america, or calling the US the Great Satan?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 22:24
#147168
Please cite any source that shows an Iranian official threatening the US. As for Israel... we dont live in the United States Of Israel last I checked.(Or do we?) Israel should deal with its own mess... not my problem. If you want to go fight the fight for Israel, go ahead... just please take Lloyd with you.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:03
#146676
Pedro please first and foremost understand the bias of the source of your `facts`.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:30
#146682
This may help you break through the CD...
Daniele Ganser, Nato's Secret Armies
http://www.voltairenet.org/article144748.html
Architects and Engineers 9/11
Physical Evidence
http://www.ae911truth.org/
Political Geopolitical insight
9/11 Synthetic Terror Made in U.S.A. Webster G. Tarpley.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaog8QV68CI&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ih5WescPYuo
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:11
#146793
Look, though we disagree, this is not the forum for this political discourse. I would delete my post if I had the option so that we can get back to our free manipulated market discussions.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:15
#146797
Let that be a lesson to you Pedro... think before you type...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:16
#146801
Pedro,
I just go where the conversation takes me... Hope the above will shed some light..
Cheers
BTW What do you think about manipulated markets?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:24
#146811
LOL +10. I also want to hear Pedro's opinion on manipulated markets... I have faith it will be a better effort than his Iran tangent.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:28
#146823
Difficult to trade and make money.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:45
#146849
TA-DA! We have Pedro. +1
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:14
#146708
You forgot the Lusitania.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:21
#146599
Do nothing about the WTC is what's been done for 7 years.
Last I remember a guy named Osama bin Ladin claimed he orchestrated the attack.
And we captured, by accident, and hung ol' what's his name.
And spent a trillion dollars to, ahem, defense contractors and plan getting another 3,000 of our volunteers killed, and another who knows how many maimed.
Doing nothing might have been preferable to what's been done, but how about a compromise instead? Stop allowing international bankers to run our defense department. It looks highly suspicious. And to many, downright corrupt and rotten to the core.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:04
#146782
...without even mentioning that what America is doing now is creating generations upon generations terrorists.
Why didn't NORAD do their job?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 23:07
#147211
I hate misinformation so I must correct you, OBL did not claim he orchestrated the attack - in fact check your local post office for the FBI's list of the most wanted, this is not listed among his list of crimes although other foreign events are. At one point, Rice had stated they would prosecute and build a case against the terrorists responsible but then promptly never provided any further information.
Six of ten commissioners (the majority for those democracy loving freedom lovers) on the 9/11 investigation stated they wanted a new investigation and felt the facts were being covered up - why? There are statements that it was state sponsored but that the details were now classified information - why? I did read a report that OBL stated there is a government within the government of the United States and that he used to be a CIA agent used to fight against the Russians in Afghanistan - The Bush family also has business ties with the Bin Laden family. I am objective and am not pro-arab, pro-persian, or pro-israel - why should americans die for any of them?
I agree with the rest of your post.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 23:10
#147212
I hate misinformation so I must correct you, OBL did not claim he orchestrated the attack - in fact check your local post office for the FBI's list of the most wanted, this is not listed among his list of crimes although other foreign events are. At one point, Rice had stated they would prosecute and build a case against the terrorists responsible but then promptly never provided any further information.
Six of ten commissioners (the majority for those democracy loving freedom lovers) on the 9/11 investigation stated they wanted a new investigation and felt the facts were being covered up - why? There are statements that it was state sponsored but that the details were now classified information - why? I did read a report that OBL stated there is a government within the government of the United States and that he used to be a CIA agent used to fight against the Russians in Afghanistan - The Bush family also has business ties with the Bin Laden family. I am objective and am not pro-arab, pro-persian, or pro-israel - why should americans die for any of them? Are their mothers better than our mothers?
I agree with the rest of your post.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:27
#146601
Or better yet, why don't we ignore the injustices perpetrated by Americans, because everyone knows America is God's real favorite and can do no wrong...ohhh wait we already do that...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:07
#146694
And everyone knows only America commits injustice. The mullahs are innocent babes in the woods; why just look how well they treat their own people...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:28
#146603
actually i dont feel like starting an argument
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:33
#146623
Too late, I clicked the link, and I think 9/11 was an inside job...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:41
#146620
First of all if you lost someone in the World Trade Center bombing... then my sympathies... it was a tragic day.
But was Iran or another Middle Eastern country involved in blowing up the World Trade Center? I know I have heard some people believe Israel was involved... and I have heard other less than mainstream theories... but this is the first time I have heard of Iran or another Middle Eastern country being significantly involved. And if they were involved then perhaps we should have put them up a little higher on the 'Bush/Cheney Invasion List' rather than going first with Afghanistan or Iraq... just sayin'.
And BTW... there are a lot of 'rednecks' (among others) in our country who have a strong dislike for Middle Easterners and 'chant' a lot of craziness about Middle Easterners... however I don't see anyone coming over to the United States to invade us because of our intolerant brethren.
You know I have to tell you Pedro... that in my years of travel... people from the Middle East... including Iran are some of the nicest, most gracious people I have had the pleasure of meeting. Their customs may be different... but overall not necessary better or worse than what we do to our own citizens of the United States (take for instance life imprisonment of juveniles or execution of the mentally retarded).
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:02
#146674
Well said MN. Those you talk about follow the Koran as it should be read, not the Wahabbi/Brotherhood version.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:33
#146730
"people from the Middle East... including Iran are some of the nicest, most gracious people I have had the pleasure of meeting."
That can be said for most people everywhere. Too bad Government actions get confused with the people it is supposed to represent, but rarely does.
--
+1 to Switzerland for maintaining a functional direct democracy.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:50
#146758
You just don't get it, do you? There are millions of Americans who look at war like some kind of football game and they are *astounded* and more than a put off by those of us who would prefer peace because it gets in the way of their enjoyment! Also, I have encountered plenty of military folks who sincerely want there to be ongoing wars because it is exciting and it allows them to win medals and promotions. There are actually guys who prefer the hardship of combat because it gives meaning to an otherwise dull, plain southern/midwestern lifestyle in which they would have to answer their wife's constant nagging about their unemployment situation. Losers like that can't make us beholden to them and have "I'm a veteran" license plates if there is no war, now can they? But throw a war in there and they can all be heroes now (even if it is only in their own minds) and do things like garner disability pay and sympathy and have charity rides in their honor, preferred employment (by law) and all the other horseshit.
I have also encountered the same tone while visiting veterans groups. One would think, given the hardships and loss experienced, that the membership of the VFW would be a staunch anti-war (or at least disfavorable about current foreign policy) organization, but eh, not so much.
You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. And that's a serious problem with the US today.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 20:12
#146972
Anon... actually I do get it... and I am one also one who would prefer peace to war... and believe it was misguided to go into both Afghanistan and Iraq. I was speaking tongue-in-cheek about pushing up Iran on 'the list'.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:33
#146621
Pedro, I assume you dont know about the >100,000 civilian deaths the US has handed out in Iraq in a war designed to avert future attacks (ala Minority Report).
Great thinking. Lets repeat.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:34
#146733
As of August 2007
1,033,000 violent deaths as a result of the conflict. Minor revision...
6 Million displaced..
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:44
#146748
~3% of the population died?
~20% displaced?
Impressive numbers, but hard to believe. It is always best to give numbers quoted by both sides and figure it is somewhere in between. One sided numbers are ideological propaganda.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:01
#146775
It came from Opinion Business Research,,,
Can't vouch, but have observed these numbers in other pubs
As you can see the numbers wiggle quite a bit.
Iraq War Facts, Results & Statistics at Nov 20, 20094,366 US Soldiers Killed, 31,571 Seriously WoundedPhoto taken at Arlington National Cemetery on Oct 3, 2007 (Alex Wong/Getty Images) Nov 22 2009
For your quick reading, I've listed key statistics about the Iraq War, taken primarily from data analyzed by various think tanks, including The Brookings Institution's Iraq Index1, and from mainstream media sources. Data is presented as of November 20, 2009, except as indicated.
U.S. SPENDING IN IRAQ
Spent & Approved War-Spending - About $800 billion of US taxpayers' funds spent or approved for spending through mid-2009, including $76 billion requested by President Obama and approved by Congress.
U.S. 2009 Monthly Spending in Iraq - $7.3 billion as of Oct 2009
U.S. 2008 Monthly Spending in Iraq - $12 billion
U.S. Spending per Second - $5,000 in 2008 (per Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on May 5, 2008)
Cost of deploying one U.S. soldier for one year in Iraq - $390,000 (Congressional Research Service2)
Lost & Unaccounted for in Iraq - $9 billion of US taxpayers' money and $549.7 milion in spare parts shipped in 2004 to US contractors. Also, per ABC News3, 190,000 guns, including 110,000 AK-47 rifles.
Missing - $1 billion in tractor trailers, tank recovery vehicles, machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and other equipment and services provided to the Iraqi security forces. (Per CBS News on Dec 6, 20074.)
Mismanaged & Wasted in Iraq - $10 billion, per Feb 2007 Congressional hearings
Halliburton Overcharges Classified by the Pentagon as Unreasonable and Unsupported - $1.4 billion
Amount paid to KBR, a former Halliburton division, to supply U.S. military in Iraq with food, fuel, housing and other items - $20 billion
Portion of the $20 billion paid to KBR that Pentagon auditors deem "questionable or supportable" - $3.2 billion
Number of major U.S. bases in Iraq - 75 (The Nation/New York Times5)
TROOPS IN IRAQ
Troops in Iraq - Total 124,000 U.S. troops as of September 30, 2009. All other nations have withdrawn their troops.
U.S. Troop Casualties - 4,366 US troops; 98% male. 91% non-officers; 82% active duty, 11% National Guard; 74% Caucasian, 9% African-American, 11% Latino. 19% killed by non-hostile causes. 54% of US casualties were under 25 years old. 72% were from the US Army
Non-U.S. Troop Casualties - Total 316, with 179 from the UK
US Troops Wounded - 31,571 through September 30, 2009, 20% of which are serious brain or spinal injuries. (Total excludes psychological injuries.)
US Troops with Serious Mental Health Problems - 30% of US troops develop serious mental health problems within 3 to 4 months of returning home
US Military Helicopters Downed in Iraq - 73 total, at least 36 by enemy fire
IRAQI TROOPS, CIVILIANS & OTHERS IN IRAQ
Private Contractors in Iraq, Working in Support of US Army Troops - More than 180,000 in August 2007, per The Nation/LA Times6.
Journalists killed - 140, 93 by murder and 47 by acts of war
Journalists killed by US Forces - 14
Iraqi Police and Soldiers Killed - 9,315
Iraqi Civilians Killed, Estimated - A UN issued report dated Sept 20, 2006 stating that Iraqi civilian casualties have been significantly under-reported. Casualties are reported at 50,000 to over 100,000, but may be much higher. Some informed estimates place Iraqi civilian casualities at over 600,000.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:36
#146630
Secret muslim training ground footage.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cnr-6Acgwjg
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 18:12
#146884
Exactly, they cant do any harm to the U.S. from their caves can they?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:51
#146760
Yes Minnie... but "barely has electricity" means they now have electrical technology...
This has become a major national security threat... according to Cheney... "We can't wait for the sparks to fly... we must act now!"
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 21:46
#147119
lol :-)
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:25
#146606
Let's invade this place.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sealand.jpg
Park the navy all around it. Scare away the fish. Blanket it in jamming signals so it can't get internet. We could totally bend that place to our mighty will.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:43
#146640
Do they have any oil?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:52
#146654
They got freedom. Intolerable freedom from us imposing limitations and restrictions on them. That's more precious than oil. Who knows what they could be doing in such a place. Nobody can be free without abusing it in some way. I bet they are cheating at solitaire right now as we speak!!!!
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:01
#146776
No Oil, but their crops are still not genetically modified.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:18
#146714
Put some of RobotTrader's hotties up there too!
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:41
#146523
haha... fail...
Oil prices spike after Iran seizes yacht
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i5TtajgUpSm7KY5jf-lCJGHBB-tAD9CA1PCO0
Geez why is everyone so jumpy , it's just the straight of hormuz not the gulf of tonkin. ;) Another round of thorazine for the centcom policy wogs!
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:42
#146526
It's an elite yatch club attack force!!!
Get your body armor on they are going to keel us all!!!!
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:54
#146546
That's keel-haul, ye landlubber! Yarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggggh!!
This should have happened on Talk Like A Pirate Day.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:00
#146559
MIS-TAH CHRIS-TAIN !!!
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:55
#146660
I think ol' Hep... wanted us to pronouce "keel" as "kill" (maybe with a southern accent?)
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:59
#146670
Incidents like this one will have U.S. warplanners trebling their requests for littoral warships:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Littoral_combat_ship
...er, I mean "they're 'eaded for the shallows, matey! Mind yer 'elm"
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 21:35
#147105
Yep I watchd that jewish lady Joe Leiberman. Turn that Fort shooting from what it really was.... One pissed off person losing it, into a multinational plot involving powerful muslim clerics and other various insurmountable obstacles. You know you are really pushing things when you try to turn a nearly impenetrable fortress of doom into wide open free society fraught with peril.
And they call US consipiracy theorists?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:35
#146628
great irony in the luxury UK yacht. Is the UK officially a failed state?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:43
#146529
But, but, where's the demand for oil? The price is being driven up irrationally by evil speculators...
Somehow this analysis is never used by those same people on stock fundamentals.
(you can multiply that spike by over a hundo if any real action finally throws down)
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:55
#146549
"The first mate and his skipper too said that their tiny ship, the S.S. Minnow, was lost. The five nationals set sail today for a three hour tour."
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:58
#146555
...a three hour tour...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:38
#146633
Best post of the day!
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 18:53
#146932
I thought someone like you would like that....
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:48
#146649
Hahahahah Gilligan just never learns...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 14:59
#146556
These militant persians should have been rolled in a rug and dropped to 9 fathoms a long time ago.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:01
#146561
So true... this world is only big enough for one militant fascist quasi-govt. theocracy...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:50
#146650
Surely you are not referring to the land of "freedom of . . and freedom from religion."
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:02
#146566
This whole friggin planet has a hair trigger right now. When the first domino falls the resounding effect will be unmeasurable.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:07
#146571
Funny, is there a spike when the Somalis grab a super tanker?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:18
#146592
Nope, but then the Somalis can't sink a couple of dozen supertankers in a day.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:16
#146588
100% oil and gold now .... I just need someone to light the first match !!!!!!!!!!
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:22
#146600
Do any of the 5 have IPods?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:24
#146604
That is a funny picture! Hope is was meant that way . . . all that volume in 15 minutes. Aren't the markets wonderfully efficient in their response to hard information.
Makes you wonder who might be financing the Somali "pirates," BTW, say, GS/JPM/et al or OPEC?
Just sayin'.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:26
#146608
Can you imagine what this will look like if anyone actually shoots at something over there?
It will look like s&p limit down at the open, which means volatility and a very profitable trading day for those that are prepared.
on Tue, 12/01/2009 - 11:01
#147668
...well, the U.S. does have precedent with that..
Iran Air Flight 655
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Air_Flight_655
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:33
#146624
steak's thesis is oil touched below $75 now its time for it to break out above $80. The reason why don't much matter. Iran today, some other boogeyman tomorrow. Booya
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 15:34
#146625
You sure this isn't a chart for the SPY?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 16:26
#146722
nuke it all
turn the sand into glass and the people into dust.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:03
#146780
It is wrong to kill innocent people but let us put morality aside for a moment and consider this as a serious proposition, from the viewpoint of evolutionary biology.
This would be an evolutionarily advantageous act for those with the nukes (the USA). Adios terroristas. Hola oil. Unpalatable but evolutionarily advantageous strategies stand waiting for those with the opportunity to take them. Those that do so have the advantage. Their offspring will benefit and their genes will be over-represented in the future of humanity.
Happy anniversary Mr Darwin.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:06
#146787
Great solution,,,
Nuke a whale for Jesus,,,,,,,,Stars and Stripes forever..
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:02
#146769
Trading CL is hard. Especially when there are mad head-fakes like this. Margins gets blown out and it reminds me of the Dr. Evil trades from a while back.
Or it could be the Dubai/Abu Dhabi trying to pump the crude up, before they have to sell some to pay the bills.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:08
#146790
The Yachts
contend in a sea which the land partly encloses
shielding them from the too-heavy blows
of an ungoverned ocean which when it chooses
tortures the biggest hulls, the best man knows
to pit against its beatings, and sinks them pitilessly.
Mothlike in mists, scintillant in the minute
brilliance of cloudless days, with broad bellying sails
they glide to the wind tossing green water
from their sharp prows while over them the crew crawls
ant-like, solicitously grooming them, releasing,
making fast as they turn, lean far over and having
caught the wind again, side by side, head for the mark.
In a well guarded arena of open water surrounded by
lesser and greater crafts which, sycophant, lumbering
and flittering follow them, they appear youthful, rare
as the light of a happy eye, live with the grace
of all that in the mind is fleckless, free and
naturally to be desired. Now the sea whoch holds them
is moody, lapping their glossy sides, as of feeling
for some slightest flaw but fails completely.
Today no race. Then the wind comes again. The yachts
move, jockeying for a start, the signal is set and they
are off. Now the waves strike at them but they are too
well made, the slip through, though they take in canvas.
Arms with hands grasping seek to clutch at the prows
Bodies thrown recklessly in the way are cut aside.
It is a sea of faces about them in agony, in despair
until the horror of the race dawns staggering the mind;
the whole sea become an entanglement of watery bodies
lost to the world bearing what they can not hold. Broken,
beaten, desolate, reaching from the dead to be taken up
they cry out, failing, failing! their cries rising
in waves skill as the skillful yachts pass over. - wcw
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:40
#146843
Wow.
At first i was sneering, searching for the flaws
but as the passage revealed itself,
the windings natural and traversable,
the foliage green and lush,
dew moistened mulch smooshing underfoot
releasing earthy bouquet
I realized the author a poet of great skill
and was going to gush my admiration
in some smitten youthful way
when I noticed the wcw
William Carlos Williams
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
William Carlos Williams
Born September 17, 1883(1883-09-17)
Rutherford, New Jersey, USA
Died March 4, 1963 (aged 79)
Rutherford, New Jersey, USA
Occupation Writer, Doctor
Nationality United States
Literary movement Modernism, imagism
William Carlos Williams (September 17, 1883 – March 4, 1963), also known as WCW, was an American poet closely associated with modernism and Imagism. He was also a pediatrician and general practitioner of medicine. Williams "worked harder at being a writer than he did at being a physician," wrote biographer Linda Wagner-Martin; but during his long lifetime, Williams excelled at both.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Carlos_Williams
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:23
#146810
Signs of the Sensitivity of the Iranian -- correction, ZH -- Powderkeg
WOW! Tyler, Marla's playing with matches again ...
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:34
#146833
I have a question?
What's going to happen when the Semitic types go 'You're being anti-semitic' and they're all 'Yeah' with no apologies.
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 17:44
#146847
once again
its killing time
lol
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 18:00
#146868
There was a similar incident sometime about march of '07 iirc, when Iran 'captured' a half dozen or so royal navy sailors for 'spying' in their waters. The rn types were eventually released unharmed after a short stay with their hosts. What i can't recall is what happened to the price of oil back then, and wonder if that could have been the start of the ultimate run-up to $147 seen last year? Any thoughts?
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 18:16
#146892
My feeling is the Iranians are signalling a willingness to close the Straits. The poop hits the blender if they lay mines or string a blockade. With all the posturing on "10 more U enrichment plants or die" and the expectation that Israel is going to bomb their uranium assets to ratshit... this is to be expected. 30% of oil exports from the region pass thru the Straits. The threat of choking that off during a significant economic downturn in the West might be enough to get the diplomats running around and issuing statements about the importance of defending Iranian sovereignty, regional peace, etc etc.
As Black Swans go, this was (ironicially enough) anticipated.
cougar
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 19:31
#146980
make no mistake Iran's levearge is their ability to shut down/disrupt the Strait, therefore unless they act first, job one for Israel/US will be to eliminate that ability
on Tue, 12/01/2009 - 12:06
#147793
Iran has some of these anti-carrier babies:
on Mon, 11/30/2009 - 18:57
#146939
The rhetoric is heading to conclusion. Have to invade subtly this time.