VFC's NEWS HOUSE

News & Notes: Penn State, Herman Cain, Jose Reyes And More...

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 17:55:00 +0000

You've got to laugh at the market hype created by the media, and the panic created by the fickle-minded investors who all contributed to last week's significant volatility that saw a near four hundred point drop by the DOW immediately followed by a gain of over two hundred points.

One day the headlines read that the failing economic hopes of Italy and Greece are going to lead us to doomsday, but the next day all is forgotten and the headlines read that stocks are rising because fears have been "allayed"?

Overnight? Don't think so.

Let's just face it, it's a volatile era. The news media is just pulling stories from, well you know where, in covering the volatility. There's still opportunities for some nice buy and holds - InVivo (OTC BB: NVIV) might be one of those, but the traders can make a payday out of playing the short term ups and downs in the market as a whole.

Speaking of Italy, confidence might be reinstalled in the global markets knowing that Silvio Berlusconi is finally giving it up after years of alleged sexual misconduct. The thought that more attention will now be paid to the country's finances than to weekend bung-bunga parties is sure to quell some investor nerves; and good ol' Silvio can now turn all of his attention to the bunga-bunga full time. Maybe even invite Kim Kardashian, since she's free for another sham weekend now.

In politics, Republican Presidential candidate Herman Cain has been facing a rash of attacks for alleged sexual misconduct during his tenure as the president of the National Restaurant Association. The women have been coming out of the woodworks, although only one named, to slander the presidential hopeful, and to no surprise the celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred is leading the charge.

That said, Allred is also responsible, in my opinion, for a large portion of the public not taking these allegations seriously. In a recent news conference, Allred stated that what Mr. Cain did to her client was "try to give her a stimulus package of his own."

Pretty funny and opportune joke, but how is anyone else going to take the allegation seriously if Ms. Allred herself is making jokes of it?

In sports, with Jose Reyes all but gone, and with the New York Post reporting that David Wright is on the trading block, there's no reason for Mets fans to stick to their team next year. It's quite a shame, and maybe with the spare time of not having a team to follow, we need to 'Occupy Citi' until the Wilpons get lost; of course we don't want to occupy the seats, because that puts our money in the Wilpons' pockets, but we can do like the 'Occupy Wall Street' folks when they were on the Brooklyn Bridge - we'll 'Occupy Citi' from Yankee Stadium - or we can head down 95 and watch Davey and the 'Nats.

And lastly, JoePa, say it ain't so.

After all the tough talk from the Penn State Board of Trustees last week, when they collectively fired the long time legendary coach Joe Paterno and the Penn State President, you have to wonder if the Board of Trustees needs to relieve themselves as duty as well - it looks to me like they're the ones with the real power around there; if it's a change of direction and image they want, then the board should step down, too.

The Search For A Cure For Paralysis

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 23:28:00 +0000

A couple of years ago shares of Geron Corporation (GERN) spiked to a near billion dollar market cap - an impressive feat for a company with nothing past Phase II trials at the time - on hype created by its embryonic stem cell treatment for spinal cord injuries (SCI) circulated the investing circuits. The trial was the first-ever approved by the FDA utilizing embryonic stem cells, and its initiation ushered in a new wave of hope for the millions around the globe suffering from the effects of severe spinal cord injuries, including hundreds of thousands in the United States alone.

Another wave of hope for SCI patients hit the wires in early October, when Doctors announced a new technology that could have just as easily been born in a scene in a Bruce Willis Sci-Fi movie. This technology allowed monkeys to use their brains to move the virtual hands of an avatar, a breakthrough that was hyped to become a huge benefit for those suffering with paralysis resulting from severe SCI. This technology also allowed subjects to 'virtually' feel the texture of the objects they were touching through an outside robotic exoskeleton.

While the above events created significant buzz, Geron's treatments are still many years away from market and the sci-fi adventures described with the robotic exoskeleton left lingering questions as to whether medicine will ever advance enough to allow the paralyzed to walk, touch and fell on their own again, never mind an avatar that does it for them.

A solution might not be as far away as we thought, judging by results from preclinical studies in monkeys by a small, emerging company with answers.

Preclinical studies of a technology developed by InVivo Therapeutics (OTCBB: NVIV) have allowed paralyzed rats and monkeys to walk again, within weeks of initial treatment, and the company is just awaiting the green light from the FDA to begin its first trial in humans.

The preclinical results, already published in the Journal of Neuroscience Methods in 2010, marked the first time that paralyzed monkeys were able to walk again following treatment for paralysis and were convincing enough to allow InVivo to land a high profile defection from Geron in early October when Edward Wirth, M.D., Ph.D. was named NVIV's new Chief Science Officer (CSO).

Dr. Wirth, a renowned leader in the field of regenerative medicine, led Geron's spinal treatment initiative and will join InVivo in early December and will lead the human trials that will be necessary for an eventual FDA approval. With the technology and data from the preclinical trials already before the FDA, and with the manufacturing, science and materials already in place, the company is just awaiting the regulatory green light to move forward with the human phase.

So what is this novel technology that has has invigorated hope in the SCI-treating community landed the company's co-founder, Robert Langer, ScD, on the short list of candidates for the Nobel Prize in medicine for 2011?

It all starts with InVivo's biopolymer scaffold device (BSD) that has, in early studies, demonstrated a therapeutic effect in healing the spinal cord. While most other companies relevant to the the field are developing treatments and methods with a pharmaceutical basis, InVivo's BSD is being developed as a medical device and addresses the serious threat of secondary injuries to the spinal cord that generally lead to the most severe cases of SCI and paralysis.

The scaffold, as described by company founder and former paralysis patient himself Frank Reynolds, can be customized to fit each spinal injury and can be administered right there in the operating room when an SCI patient first arrives into the ER.  Ninety percent of SCI patients are not initially paralyzed, rather they only suffer from spinal shock, only to become paralyzed by secondary injuries caused by inflammation, bleeding and scarring. Again, InVivo's BSD looks to heal the spinal cord in a timely manner before those secondary injuries take effect.  The BSD is convenient enough to be administered in conjunction with the current standard of care, which consists of installing rods and screws in and around the damaged area of the spine, and wards off those devastating secondary injuries by allowing the spine to heal itself quickly.

If the secondary injuries can be warded off, the theory holds, then so can paralysis.

In support of that theory, 100% of the monkeys treated with InVivo's scaffold in preclinical studies were up and running within 12 weeks. The mood is encouraging that move to human trials from non-human primates will prove successful, given the similarities in anatomy and bodily structure between the monkeys used in the preclinical studies and humans; it's the shift from rats to monkey that was the larger technological leap.

With that said, should the human trials turn out positive, then the path to approval could be fairly quick since the scaffold is being developed as a medical device and not as a new drug.  Medical devices are generally approved in a more expedient manner than new drugs by the FDA, so even with the human trials still yet to commence for InVivo, it's possible that the BSD can be on the market literally years before Geron's regenerative embryonic cell treatment.

This, however, brings up an interesting transitional point; the potential is there that treatments such as Geron's will be best administered utilizing InVivo's scaffolding technology. That makes InVivo's growing patent portfolio that much more valuable.

In addition to treatment with the scaffold alone, InVivo has already tested its device in combination with drugs and/or cells, although not yet in human trials. The company plans to continue that testing line and eventually file for approval of its scaffold in combination with the combination therapies. As outlined in this video clip, the company has thus far been very successful with the combination applications as well as with the scaffold alone, and an injectable, gel-based scaffold is also being pushed through the developmental phases. In fact, it's treatment with the said hydrogel that Mr. Reynolds says produced the best results in the completed monkey studies, according to the above-linked clip.

Once InVivo has secured FDA approval for the scaffold as a medical device, additional approvals for the combination therapies will also be sought after. Assuming the products or treatments that will be combined with the BSD are already FDA approved, then the path for the combination approvals should also come relatively quickly.

The vast treasure chest of worldwide patents compiled by InVivo is still growing, protecting its technology well into the future and opening the door for licensing and partnership revenue, as I alluded to previously in discussion with Geron's experimental treatment.

Additionally, the BSD is also being discussed to treat indications other than just SCI, opening the door to other highly-lucrative markets.

The possibilities presented by combining InVivo's scaffold with other drug and cell therapies has already led to a strategic partnership with the Miami Project, an organization that has to date raised nearly half a billion dollars in search of a cure for SCI-induced paralysis. This collaboration will study InVivo’s tissue engineering technology in conjunction with the Miami Project’s Schwann cells and was featured last month at the Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis 26^th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner fundraising event.

In commenting on the Miami Project collaboration, CEO Frank Reynolds noted, “We look forward to the results of our preclinical work with the Miami Project, and are hopeful that the combination of the scaffold and Schwann cells will improve the therapeutic effect of both technologies. Our scaffold has shown excellent results in non-human primates and in a rodent contusion model treating paralysis following acute spinal cord injury. We remain on target to begin a 10-patient pilot study in acute spinal cord injury in 2012.”

With human trials on slate, and with stellar preclinical results, the makings of a paradigm shift in the treatment of SCI could be underway.

Stay tuned.

Disclosure: Long NVIV.

News & Notes for the Week: Transformers 3, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Casey Anthony and more....

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 08:28:00 +0000

We can all finally be rid of the Casey Anthony madness - verdict should be out soon enough and the television news networks can get back to reporting news (tongue in cheek statement) instead of parading garbage in front of us every day.

Looks like Dominique Strauss-Kahn might be off the "hook". Reports out of New York indicate that the alleged victim in the rape case was actually hooking in her spare time for some extra cash.

Even before that bombshell development, her credibility was taking hit after hit, and ended up looking like a Mike Tyson opponent of the late eighties/early nineties.

It's about as certain as can be that all charges against Strauss-Kahn will be dropped, as he was undoubtedly duped - as was just about the entire nation - by a two bit hooker looking for some extra cash.

Twenty-eight hours after the alleged sexual assault, the woman talked to her boyfriend in an immigration jail in Arizona -- saying "words to the effect of, 'Don't worry, this guy has a lot of money. I know what I'm doing,' " The New York Times quoted an official saying.
The news is brilliant for the likes of Dominique, who will easily be able to rebuild any lost rep, and will look as invincible as ever, but what's up with wife being all smiles as they walk hand in hand out of the courthouse the other day?

Maybe he didn't just take what he wanted, as was originally alleged, but the fact is that he was still skanking around in that hotel room - that's nothing for wifey to be smiling about.

Not like you have the poster-child family man here.

Not sure what to make of 'Transformers 3: Dark Of The Moon' just yet. I can't help but feel like they tried to do too much this time. The first half of the movie was spent waiting for something to happen, then when it did, it was sensory overload.

Decepticon spaceships? Where'd they come from? Just a few days before the attack on Chicago the Decepticons were supposedly spread far and thin around the globe to hide from energon detectors, but they managed to build spaceships the size of Manhattan without anyone noticing?

The quirky characters and dialogue of the first two movies was just right, but in this go-round too much time was spent on building those quirky dialogues, and not enough time was spent on the Transformers that people went to the movie to see. You never even got to know who the new Autobots were, like you knew Bumble Bee, Iron Hide and Ratchet after the first.

Did anyone really go to the theaters to see Sam look for a job? Weak plotline that killed the pace of the movie.

This one was a bit darker, too. Kinda like 'Spider-Man 3' went dark for the the third installation.

Iron Hide getting whacked by Sentinel Prime?

Bumble Bee about to be executed without giving up so much as a fight?

Come on now.

On the flip side, the action was there in full (3-D) effect when it finally materialized. And Shock Wave was awsome - the epitome of Decepticon mayhem, what Megatron should have been if you saw him at all in the movie.

A little was lost with Megan Fox not being around. The Victoria Secret model that took her place was very easy on the eyes, but it's hard to ask the audience to buy into a new love interest in part three and have an emotional attachment. They might have been better off just leaving out the sappy stuff and sticking to the action.

I'll give this one another go before deciding what I think, but the pace was a bit too choppy (stagnant for long periods of the film) to call it epic - as this one should have been.

Mets fans are all holding their breath waiting to see the results of Jose Reyes' latest hamstring injury. It was about this time last year when the Mets fell completely off the map, and take Reyes out of that lineup, and this season is done. Finito. Kaput.

So is all that money that Jose had coming to him. If this injury - or anyone to his hamstrings - has him missing more than a few games, then he's taking about 30% less than what he would have made on the free agent market. That could bode well for the Mets in negotiations, but Jose might be wishing he started negotiating in-season.

A couple of weeks on the shelf will have Jose signing a one or two year deal so that teams can see him prove that he do it all again without getting hurt. Any longer and Jose will actually not get much interest outside of New York City. No team outside of the Mets, Yanks and BoSox will pay Jose Reyes-like money to a guy who is a perpetual injury risk.

Klitschkto on points? Weak. They could have fixed this one a little better than that.

The ladies final at Wimbledon was a much better watch.

And Muammar Khadaffi still out there sticking his thumb up at the world - you wonder what could have been if the international community didn't look like bumbling fools in the early stages of action against Khadaffi's forces. Give him time to hunker down and guess what - the guy hunkers down and you can't understand why he won't give up.

Weekly News & Notes: Why Politicians Do What They Do, Same-Sex Marriage, Legalizing Marijuana, Sean Penn, Weiner, and The Mets

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 10:46:00 +0000

Regardless of where you fall out on the issue, New York State's approval of same-sex marriage puts the issue on the map, big time.

This goes down right at the same time that Representative Barney Frank from Massachusetts is all over the place hyping the deregulation of marijuana.

Funny how the politicians finally start making these long-on-the-backburner decisions when their states are heading towards bankruptcy and new revenue streams are needed. The taxation on marijuana sales could significantly boost state coffers, as booze does, while New York could do very well with the granting of these marriages; the lack of a residency requirement for getting married in NY means that the place is destined to become a hot location for out-of-towners looking to officially seal the deal.

I know we like to believe that politicians make decisions for the right reasons, but let's face it - it's all about money and winning elections.

Take House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) and Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), for example, both of whom walked out of bipartisan budget negotiations because they weren't getting their way. With the national debt ceiling about to be breached in August if it's not lifted, this is a hot issue that needs resolution - but you can't get that resolution if these over-payed politicians are taking their balls and going home.

Like I said about the politicians who left Wisconsin rather than face the tough issues, if you're not going to work, then don't take the paycheck.

Rumor has it that this is all grandstanding to get Mr. President more directly involved so that he might say something that Republicans can use against him in the campaign season, which brings us back to my original point - the politicians don't do anything for the good of the people, it's all about winning elections.

The ironic thing is, if you made decisions based on the good of the people, the people might be more inclined to vote you in again, making all these headline-making shenanigans unnecessary.

One politician who's done worrying about getting voted in, the former New York representative Anthony Weiner, might have a job future sooner than you think. Although MTV is denying the reports, rumor has it that the 'Jersey Shore' is going be re-cast.

It's quite obvious that Weiner was auditioning for the part of The Situation, so maybe he'll get the call. If not, he's destined to a life of making YouTube videos.

On the international front, Sean Penn's good buddy Hugo Chavez made some headlines this weekend when - after two weeks of silence - sent out a few 'Tweets' to let his subjects know that he's still alive, kicking, and well in charge. I'm sure the people of Venezuela are glad to know that Chavez will be back to claiming all private enterprise as part of his own personal empire before too long.

Maybe Sean Penn has been his sit-in down there while Hugo convalesces in Cuba; haven't heard anything from him since his fling with Scarlett Johansson (what was she thinking?).

Haven't heard yet that Penn is willing to grant Muammar Khaddafi asylum and put him up in his own mansion since the mad dictator is now rumored to be looking to jet from Tripoli, but expect to hear something soon.

Some of Penn's other personal heroes - those in the Chinese government - have been making some noise in the headlines as well. As the citizenry grows increasingly malcontent about the inhuman working conditions in the country, the government is said to be taking a harder line (if that's possible) against anyone who falling 'out of line'. Bloggers, reporters, everyday Joes - they're all reportedly being thrown in the slammer over there these days.

Meanwhile, in the factories and the fields, the people are working 16 hour days for a couple of dimes to make sure you get your sneakers on time.

It's getting awfully hard for Washington to justify all that financial aid to Pakistan.

The New York tabloids have been speculating for some time now as to where Jose Reyes and K-Rod will end up, whether it be next season or at the trading deadline.

K-Rod is a sure-bet to be gone by the end of July, while Reyes might finish the season out before playing the field in the free agent market.

What kills Mets fans, however is that both of these guys are a great fit for the Yankees.

The Yanks are denying any interest in K-Rod, but with Soriano on the shelf, and Mariano not getting any younger, K-Rod would look pretty decent in the Yankee 'pen. The Mets wouldn't hesitate, in my opinion, to throw Fransisco across-town, but Reyes is another story.

It would be hard to recover from the PR hit the Mets would take by letting Reyes don the Yankee pinstripes, but it's a possibility that needs to be entertained. As much as Yankee fans won't admit it, it's time to start looking past Jeter at short. Reyes is a high-profile player, and would love to play in the Yankee spotlight, and might love even more to shove it to the Mets and Wilpon after the disrespect with which Wilpon showered his players earlier this year.

Wilpon said, at the time, that Reyes was looking for a big-monied contract that he's just not worth, or going to get. When Wilpon said that, it all but ensured that the only way Reyes comes back to Citi is for a big-monied contract, that he probably won't be worth.

The only ones who might show up in the same price range, is the Yankees, and that would be a coup that ensured the Mets remain second fiddle in NY baseball for probably another decade.

And while we're on the subject, Carlos Beltran is a nice fit at DH for the Yanks, as well.

Thanks Freddy Wilpon, for chasing your best player away and building a ballpark where careers like Jason Bay's go to die.

The way this guy has ran the ballclub and his personal wealth into the ground, he's worthy of a spot in Washington alongside the politicians. This way, at least he could run the country into the ground, but build his own personal wealth by playing the lobbies and expense accounts the right way.

At least we can vote the politicians out, Mets fans are stuck with Wilpon.

News, Notes & Stocks: Sean Penn, Al-Assad, Megan Fox. Stocks: GNBT, EPCT, ACTC

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 05:16:00 +0000

Isn't it about that time where Sean Penn tells us what a great guy that Muammar Khaddafi is, and that we've got him pegged wrong?

Or how about Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad? Have we got this guy pegged wrong as well, Sean Penn?

It was a shameful demonstration of arrogance and ignorance that the Syrian President displayed on Monday in an address to his nation. Maintaining the hard line while blaming everyone except for his security forces for slaughtering civilians, Mr. Al-Assad made it clear that his stance will remain firm and unchanged.

No matter how much this clown attempted to justify the actions he's taken against the citizens in which he's supposed to protect, he just looked like an out-of-his-leage buffoon up there on international TV.

Of course, with all the attention that Casey Anthony is receiving these days, I'm surprised the American news networks even aired the Syrian President's speech.

While Sean Penn might desire to pal around with the most popular dictators of the Middle East since his good buddy Saddam Hussein got whacked, it's Hugo Chavez of Venezuela that has seemingly become his new BFF.

In defending Chavez for labeled as a dictator, Chicago White Sox manager Jose Guillen - being a Venezuelan himself - took offense to Sean Penn's ode to Chavez.

“Sean Penn if you love Venezuela please move to Venezuela for a year. But rent a house in Guarenas or Guatire to see how long you last, clown,” responded Guillen, who even as zany as he is holds more credibility in his pinky toe than Penn.

Funny thing about some of these Hollywood types, is that they think the power of the big screen makes them experts about things they know nothing about. Penn, who I agree with Guillen is a clown, attempts to mix personal ideology with real-world geopolitics, and it just doesn't mix.

If Penn was half a man, he'd take Guillen up on his offer to go for a year. We'd be better off if that were the case, for not having to be exposed to his nonsense.

Don't you start getting the hint that you might be barking up the wrong tree when all of your best friends end up with cruise missiles sticking out of their asses?

How do you go from starring in Transformers and Transformers 2, where just about every warm-blooded male in America enjoyed watching you run in slow motion through the desert to save Optimus Prime, to donning a pair of CGI wings for the movie 'Passion Play'???

How the star of Megan Fox has fallen.

First the dreadful 'Jennifer's Body', now 'Passion Play'.

Talk about reaching new lows (how 'bout Amy Winehouse in Beograd?), Megan.

What makes this one even more confusing, is that Mickey Rourke and Bill Murray also signed on for this flick.

I want some of whatever the crew that made this film was taking when they thought this one up.

On to the stocks...
EPCT: Other issues were discussed at this year's edition of the Epicept meeting of the shareholders, according to an early-morning press release on Monday, but the pronounced theme for the near-term future of this company is 'Reverse Split'.

The meeting was adjourned until June 27, 2011, at 10:00 a.m. EDT, given that 49% of the shares had voted in favor of the RS, but the release also states that additional 'YES to RS!' votes have come in since.

EPCT effected a reverse split a couple of years ago, as well, but pipeline updates and progress on the Ceplene front were too few and far between to keep the share price propped up enough to make another RS unnecessary.

Since the last half of 2010, however, the company has made solid progress towards ensuring its future as a valid player in a few markets. By mid-2012, the company could even be drawing in enough revenue from Ceplene sales to become noticed.

Another potential driver for income would be a partnership for AmiKet (formerly NP-1). Any such deal could come with an up-front payment, plus royalties on the back end, should the product become approved.

The potential of Epicept is finally becoming unleashed, but still be wary of stock offerings and - as we see now - additional reverse splits.

Worth watching.

Disclosure: Long EPCT.
ACTC: The historic trials that launched Advanced Cell Technology (ACT) from a little-known, sub-dime OTCBB company into the main stream of embryonic stem cell treatment are underway. ACT announced on Thursday that the first patients were enrolled in the Stargardt's Macular Dystrophy (SMD) and Dry Age-Related Macular Degeneration (Dry AMD) Phase I/II trials that utilize the retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) line of ACT's stem cell technology. Each trial is expected to enroll 12 patients.

ACT is primed to become a big player in the field of embryonic stem cell medicine, in a sector where Geron (GERN) has dominated the headlines for years.

It's already been a fine go-of-it for ACTC, flying from the nickel range to over twenty cents when the FDA approved these trials, but over the long run there could be more to come from this company and its stock.

That said, the current market cap of roughly $300 million is a fair estimation, in my opinion, given the early stages of the pipeline while also recognizing its ground-breaking potential.

It's a possibility that ACT will, at some point, look to conduct a reverse stock split in order to begin trading on one of the big boards. It's a bit premature to expect this company to reach a buck in another scenario, since that would make this a billion-dollar company if that were to occur under the current share structure; and we're not quite there yet.

This is a is 'hold for the long term' play, in my opinion. Keep an eye on it.

Disclosure: No position.

GNBT: The heavy lifting is done for Generex management, having achieved the goal of receiving shareholder approval to conduct a reverse stock split. With the vote now down in the history books, it's about that time to start looking to the future.

A big part of that future revolves around the spin-off of Generex's subsidiary company, Antigen Express, that is moving forward with AE-37, a cancer vaccine currently being tested in Phase II trials for use against breast cancer. Given that this product has been labeled as the 'centerpiece of the future' for Generex, it's worth following closely any developments related to the advancement of the Antigen Express pipeline.

Investors were promised in a recent conference call that they would receive a dividend of shares from the Antigen Express (AE) spin-off, once that action was undertaken, and statements made by management in a press release issued on Wednesday foretell that Generex is planning on following through with that promise:

"On March 30, 2011, Generex announced its intention to spinout Antigen Express, Inc. as a stand-alone public company and to provide Antigen Express stock dividends to the Generex stockholders following a reverse split of the Generex stock. That reverse stock split was approved by the Generex stockholders on June 8, 2011. Generex will provide further details of the Antigen Express spinout in the coming weeks."

Keep an eye out for updates, shareholders, specifically the date that will be used as the snapshot to identify investors eligible to receive the dividend.

Additionally, the company announced that Jos van der Woert has been appointed to act as Chief Executive Officer of Antigen Express, a man with stature and a solid reputation in the community:

"From 2003 to 2010, Mr. van der Woert was an executive with Schering-Plough Corporation, concluding his tenure there as General Manager and Group Vice-President, Global Oncology and Virology. From 2001 to 2003, he was Vice-President, Global Brand Management, Oncology of Pharmacia Corporation (acquired by Pfizer Inc. in 2003). Mr. van der Woert spent 17 years as an executive with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. In 2010, Mr. van der Woert founded Oncologics LLC, a consulting firm providing strategic leadership and therapeutic experience to firms in the oncology field. During his tenure in the oncology field, Mr. van der Woert has been involved in, and led many successful global launches of oncology products and achieved successful partnerships and collaborations in the biopharmaceutical industry."

It looks like Antigen Express will be in solid hands with Mr. van der Woert, at a pivotal time for AE-37, which has been labeled with a current value of $300 million.

With the fiasco of 2010 and the failed vote for a reverse split in the rear view mirror, Generex CEO Mark Fletcher & Co. can proceed with the plans for the future.

The steps are being put in place and the new management team has, thus far, stood by their word.

Given the set backs with Oral-lyn advancement, the time frame for a commercial launch of any product has been pushed back a bit, but if GNBT can advance either of its products through successful Phase III, then the market potential is big.

Still worth keeping on the watch-list. Will look at possibly buying-in again on the back end of the RS.

Generex Provides Oral-lyn Update
Last week Generex Biotechnology Corp. issued an update on the status of its Oral-lyn program.

Previous estimations had investors believing that results from the Phase III trial would be due during the earlier parts of 2011, but those results never materialized. Investors, in turn, started to become anxious and impatient when a dramatic shift towards the development of AE-37 by subsidiary Antigen Express looked to take place, whereas Oral-lyn had previously been considered the path to the future for Generex.

According to comments made by the new Generex CEO Mark Fletcher, Oral-lyn is still very much in play as the primary driver for the future of Generex, while Antigen Express will be spun off to develop AE-37, but the time frame for O-L to come before the FDA has been pushed back as discussions with the FDA continue and new studies are conducted.

While no safety concerns raised by the FDA from the data already compiled, the regulatory agency did have questions about "preclinical, clinical, toxicology, manufacturing, and regulatory and product labeling issues related to the wide variety of formulations and prior protocol changes that were made historically," according to the company's press release last week.

Generex has already responded to the FDA in regards to those questions.

Additional studies are expected to be completed at some point in 2013, and Generex plans to meet with the FDA this year to finalize the clinical and regulatory plan.

With the Generex timeline now pushed back, it looks like the see-saw battle to bring their respective products to market first between Mannkind (MNKD) and Generex is a neck-and-neck race again.

Mannkind's inhaled insulin product Afrezza has also been met with delays.

Although Oral-lyn may have a better safety profile than Afrezza, since the insulin is absorbed through the inner lining of the cheek, where Afrezza is inhaled through the lungs, it could be assumed that whichever product hits the market first has the better chance to run and establish market share; of course, that's assuming either product makes it that far.

Partnership discussions for both companies are assumed to be in the works, but nothing has materialized as of yet.

Generex has started to branch out while looking to maximize the potential of its technology, although no game-changing scenarios have been announced by either company.

GNBT and MNKD have both been hammered over the last half of last year, and although the time frames for each is a little further away than previously expected, both can be looked at as potential long term - but still highly risky and speculative - winners.

I'll still wait to see what GNBT does post-split before jumpin in again.

Disclosure: Long MNKD.

News & Notes

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 17:09:00 +0000

Anthony Weiner's stock is in a freefall, but is he going to end up making out that bad after all?

According to the New York Post, the defamed congressman could end up pulling in over a million dollars of taxpayer money to support his Twitter-perving habit, thanks to a taxpayer-funded government pension plan that he can start drawing on as early as his 56th birthday.

Should be a nice treat for him on that big birthday...maybe the taxpayers will be paying for 'Holly Cupcakes' to jump out of his birthday cake, right next to a wall-size poster of The Weiner taking a picture of himself in the mirror.

I'll say it again - I think this was all one big audition for the next season of 'The Jersey Shore'. When The Situation is old news, let's bring in The Weiner.

The short and potentially long-term fate of the United States economy could hinge on the outcome of the political debates surrounding the raising of the US debt ceiling.

The crisis in Syria, that has seen that country's military and leadership figures turn to shooting-up crowds of their own men, women and children, is not getting any better.

Muammar Khaddafi remains defiant and at large.

The re-shaping of the Middle East could change the face of the planet as we know it, at least geo-politically.

But you wouldn't know any of this by watching the news broadcasts in the United States of America, where you're getting wall-to-wall coverage of the Casey Anthony trial and that's about it.

Do the American people have their priorities in the wrong places? If they're giving all these rating to this trial, maybe so.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there.

News & Notes - Maddow's Taking Politics A Little Too Personal, Weiner Blacklisted From The Dem Ranks...

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 06:48:00 +0000

MSNBC has laid down the gauntlet - it's open season on Republicans; and you can tell that Mitt Romney is the Republican front-runner and biggest target. Rachel Maddow, who has a habit of taking forever to get to her point, opened one of her shows this week by telling us all about Romney's expensive houses that he's lived in, and questioned the legality behind his running for Governor of Massachusetts some years ago.

What makes it funny is that Maddow and all her pals at MSNBC were slamming Trump and the likes for raising questions about President Obama's birth certificate.

Come on guys, it's expected that the attacks on anyone opposite Obama are ready to commence, but let's stick to the issues.  Fifteen minutes of my life that I can't get back learning about Romney's various mansions - similar to the ones that just about every politician in office owns.

Then, the kicker is that Maddow's 'prime' guest on that program was some guy from California that nobody knows, whose campaign is simply, "I don't like Romney."

Think Maddow is taking these politics a little personal? She's acting like she's been personally wronged by Romney. Politics is just business, Rachel, and you're taking it a bit personal.

Lose the 'bitter'.

This guy, Anthony Weiner. The more his pictures are leaking out, the ones he takes of himself in the mirror, the more I realize that this guy thinks he's 'Broski', from the 'My New Haircut' YouTube video (Disclaimer:  Bad language and innuendo is included in the video if you go watch it).

The Weiner undoubtedly believes that the 'Jersey Shore' is based on his life, or he's doing a pretty good job at playing wanna-be.

But he won't step down.

All the king's horses and all the king's men want him gone, but he's playing hard balls, and he's opting to "get help" rather than give up his seat.

I can see it now: The Weiner sitting in front of his web cam in his Batman underoos chatting up some seventeen-year-old, and gets the "Honey, Dinner!" call from his wife.

His reply? "Not now, Chief, I'm in the f$#@%$# zone."

Only in New York.

They couldn't get Charlie Rangel to go, and his ethics violations amounted to Mount Vesuvius compared to a couple of pics of Weiner in his underwear going across the 'net, so I'd be surprised if Weiner goes.

He'll be the butt of some jokes for a while, but that's about it.

Meanwhile, just about every other member of Congress is sweeping their hard drives for evidence - let's face, they're all up to theirr own shenanigans, it's just a matter of who gets caught.

Another day, another 24 hours of WAY too much Casey Anthony coverage.

You'd think that there was nothing else going on in the world.

Ex NY Met Lenny Dykstra is in a world of legal trouble.  Talk about falling stars, this guy has hit bottom like a meteorite.

Hasn't been much said about the new e-cigarette business that he teamed-up with Charlie Sheen to launch last month, according to press reports, but both SFIO and HPNN ran pretty heavy after the announcement came out.

Sounds like something Lenny would do - use a 1000% penny stock run to pay bills created by, well, trading penny stocks.

How 'bout them Mets?

CYTR: Positive Phase II Preliminaries Demonstrate Growing Potential Of Company

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 17:00:00 +0000

Already a stock to watch due to a solid pipeline of cancer treating products, CytRx Corporation (CYTR) issued a Monday morning press release announcing positive preliminary results from its ongoing ENABLE Phase 2 proof-of-concept trial for bafetinib in the treatment of relapsed or refractory B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL).

According to Monday's PR, bafetinib has so far proven to be "clinically active" in patients who have failed to respond to previous treatments, an encouraging indicator that only strengthens the future potential of this company and its treatments.

Eleven of the sixteen patients enrolled were eligible for preliminary evaluation, with a total of thirty patients expected to be enrolled in in the trial.

Due to the positive preliminary results and low instances of adverse effects, future patients enrolled in the trial will receive a higher dosage, which effectively increases the chances of even greater results as the trial progresses.

CytRx CEO Steven A. Kriegsman, commenting on this important milestone for the company, stated that “These favorable initial Phase 2 clinical trial results of bafetinib’s activity and safety mark an important step in our goal to become a leading oncology therapeutics company. Further, we were able to obtain these results quickly after initiating enrollment in this clinical trial, validating our strategy to rapidly and cost-effectively conduct proof-of-concept trials in patients with advanced-stage cancers prior to moving into larger clinical trials.”

In addition to the positive developments on the pipeline front, it's also encouraging for investors that management has, thus far, followed through on its plans and promises. While marching forward with the aforementioned strategy of conducting cost-effective proof-of-concept trials before moving into more widespread trials, the company has also been very successful at finding non-dilutive conditions of financing.

CYTR issued a press release last month announcing the sale of the worldwide rights for its molecular chaperone assets to the privately-held Orphazyme ApS, based in Copenhagen, Denmark. This deal, should all milestones be met, could be worth up to $120 million to the company, in addition to the royalties on sales that CytRx would receive should Orphazyme bring any products utilizing the technology to market.

Management also banked $17 million for the company through the sale of RXII stock and
CytRx also received 163,000 shares of ANX in exchange for its 19.1% stake in SynthRx.

Bafetinib, in addition to the ongoing ENCORE trial, is also being investigated for use in treating prostate and brain cancers. Should these encouraging results continue as the products move into Phase III, then CYTR shares would have some room to appreciate in value fairly significantly.

Given the positive developments from the pipeline and pattern of non-dilutive financing, it's well worth keeping an eye on this company.

Disclosure: No position and no plans to initiate a position in the next 72 hours.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are purely those of VFC's Stock House and are not intended to constitute a buy or sell recommendation. See full disclaimer at vfcsstockhouse.blogspot.com.

Weekly News & Notes: Weiner, Pelosi, and More...

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 06:51:00 +0000

You knew that time was short for Anthony Weiner after his 'Tweeting Weiner' case hit the wires last week, and leaders of the Democrat Party have finally come out in support of Mr. Weiner's resignation.

It's about time, not so much because America is appalled at The Weiner's actions - after all, this behaviour is accepted as the norm by our politicians (it becomes just a matter of who gets caught) - but because this one guy was taking up way too much press time when there's more important stuff for Washington to concentrate on.

Like out-of-control spending and record deficits.

In a similar scenario to what we saw in the Tiger Woods affair(s), the multiple 'sexting' partners of Weiner are starting to come out of the wood-works - including one who is seventeen.

That doesn't look good for Weiner, but to be fair, it doesn't look like he sent any pics to the 17-year-old. But what's he doing chatting up a young girl like that anyway?

No wonder nothing gets done in government.

"Let's have that vote on raising the debt ceiling, please."

Meanwhile, the congressman from New York has his iPhone down his pants and who knows what his cohorts are getting up to.

Even the soft-on-Dems Nancy Pelosi gushed from her plastic surgeon's office that Mr. Weiner "needs help", and that he should get that help "without the pressures of being a member of Congress."

Actually, Nancy, it looks like Mr. Weiner was doing just fine relieving his pressures - while he was a member of Congress.

This story brings something else to light. You can't watch TV with the kids in the room anymore.

If you're not hearing about a congressman sending pictures of his junk across the Internet, you're watching hour after hour of coverage about some whacked-out mom that killed her little girl so she can get in some uninterrupted partying.

It used to be that the young ones could learn a little something about the world by watching the evening news with mom and dad, but these days the news is all about the parts of the world you never want your kids to know about.

With all that is going on in Syria, Libya, Yemenand quite a few other places that can literally reshape the world that we know today, the American media gives us non-stop coverage of Casey Anthony and Mr. Weiner's weiner.

It's a joke.

In more serious news, a couple of turning points hit the wires on Saturday. It looks like another Al-Qaeda top-man was eliminated, this one being the top guy in Somalia.

News originating from Syria is also encouraging. Refugees who have reached the Turkish border by the thousands have indicated that the Syrian armed forces may be defecting and taking up arms with the protestors.

If that's the case, then that could be a huge milestone for the Syrian people.

It's an historic time for the world today, one of those times where the people are being heard and the governments have no choice but to listen.

It's just too bad that some governments will slaughter their own to hang on to power and ego.

Speaking of power and ego, have we ousted Fred Wilpon as owner of the New York Mets yet?

News Notes From The Week

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Fri, 20 May 2011 07:26:00 +0000

Hey, Mr. Strauss-Kahn, "Welcome to New York. Here's a pair of cuffs for ya and a nice visit to Rikers Island."

French politicians and allies of the IMF boss have come out with a public outcry at the treatment that Mr. Strauss-Kahn is receiving while in the hands of the NYPD. You see, in France, this guy would receive preferential treatment, being a rich big-wig and all, and he'd be tucked away from the cameras and public view, shielded from public humiliation, and would be coddled in a hush-hush trial that may, or may not, turn out his way. But as Will Smith learned last week, New Yorkers are not easily impressed. Strauss-Kahn doesn't get the preferential treatment that he feels he is entitled to, treatment reserved for the likes of Silvio Berlusconi. J

ust another guy accused of a pretty serious crime, doesn't matter who you are, NY that entitles you to a trip to Rikers.

So take the defense of "She wanted it," and contemplate whether it was all worth it at a room provided courtesy of the NYPD.

For Newt Gingrich, it looks like his presidential campaign might be short lived. It didn't take long for the salvos to be fired from all directions at the former Speaker of the House. Being the only real Republican candidate out there, since Trump and Huckabee are nowhere to be seen, the wolves were given the opportunity to pounce and all but discredit the candidate in short time.

After the attacks that Gingrich has just experienced, all's that's left is his right arm and a pair of scivvies.

That's more than can be said for Arnold; if it hasn't been done already, Shriver's got his cajones in a jar on the fireplace mantle. Rumor has it, Arnold is on his way to crash one of Silvio Berlusconi's Bunga-Bunga parties.

You've got to admit, the prospective Republican primary race misses Donald Trump right about now, at least nothing was ever too dull when he was around.

His campaign was a little too short lived, in my opinion, because when he wasn't chatting about birth certificates, he actually called a pretty good game - which centered on holding people accountable. That's something that Washington has failed to master in over two hundred years.

At the end of the day, Trump got what he wanted - time in the spotlight, good promotion for his show, and a money deal from NBC to keep it going.

- Looks like Mr. Strauss-Kahn has finally given in to the inevitable and put in his resignation as head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Took a little time to settle in that the NYPD and the justice system of New York wasn't going to roll over and ignore charges of alleged sexual assault just because he's some powerful rich guy, but the IMF can officially move on without him.

If you want to know what's important to the jailed Frenchman, take a look at these quotes from his statement:

Mr Strauss-Kahn said in his statement: “It is with infinite sadness that I feel compelled today to present to the Executive Board my resignation from my post of Managing Director of the IMF.

“I think at this time first of my wife - whom I love more than anything - of my children, of my family, of my friends.

“I think also of my colleagues at the Fund; together we have accomplished such great things over the last three years and more.

“To all, I want to say that I deny with the greatest possible firmness all of the allegations that have been made against me.

“I want to protect this institution which I have served with honour and devotion, and especially - especially - I want to devote all my strength, all my time, and all my energy to proving my innocence.”

In four sentences, this guy managed to fit in "I" NINE TIMES.

Don't think that Mr. Strauss-Kahn thinks 'it's all about him'? Think again.

He might throw some nifty words in there to make it look like he cares about anyone or anything other than himself, but all those "I"s tell us all we need to know.

He doesn't give a damn about anything other than "I".

- Drama, friendship, betrayal and suspense - everything a political campaign season needs.

This time, however, we're not talking about Gingrichand the (lack of) potential candidates in the United States from the Republican side, we're talking about someone who was appointed as a "puppet" who may now have intentions to step outside of his box and challenge the puppet-master.

The Russian Presidential election of 2012 could shape up to return some real drama. When Dmitry Medvedev was 'appointed' President back in 2008, it was nearly a given that he was just keeping the seat warm for Vladimir Putin, who would sit a term as Prime Minister before reclaiming his crown as President in the next elections.

It was assumed throughout the world that Medvedev was just a puppet, with Putin really pulling the strings.

Now there are rumblings that Medvedev might not be ready to give up the reins.

Reports have it that Medvedev may run against Putin, which could turn into quite the ugly political battle in Mother Russia.

On the other hand, this could also be a ploy by the mighty Russian PR machine to give off the impression that, "See? Putin really isn't the puppet master. Medvedev has a mind of his own!"

If there really is a battle brewing, my bet's on Putin coming out on top.

Definitely a situation worth watching, as Russia is still very relevant on the international scene, and is the world's largest oil producer, and second to Saudi Arabia in terms of oil exporters.

- What do Strauss-Kahn and Elliot Spitzer have in common? According to reports in 'The Times' of the UK and other outlets, he used the same 'madam' to book high class hookers.

- Another case of 'Too little, too late?'

Just as the international community is suffering the repercussions of not taking in action in Libya sooner, the US has finally - after weeks and weeks of watching Syrian civilians getting mowed down by government entities - enacted sanctions on President Assad.

Kaddafi is still mulling around Tripoli because he was given so much time to mobilize his forces before the international community stepped in, and it's likely that Assad is highly unimpressed by sanctions. It's not like he didn't have over a month of warning to take care of business so that any effect on his personal dealings would be minimal.

Each and every day, we're enlightened to just how futile an agency is the United Nations.

Thought we would've learned by how much they screwed away Bosnia.

- The Wall Street Journal is reporting that 550 health professionals are teaming up and putting pressure on McDonald's to cease marketing junk food to kids, even going so far as to have the company 'fire' the long-standing mascot, Ronald McDonald.

Can't blame them for trying, but let's be realistic, the Mets have more of a chance of winning the World Series this year than McDonald's canning 'The Ronald'.

It's all about $$$$$, and McDonald's won't give that up.

- Speaking of the Mets, the 'Curse of the Wilpons' continues as both Ike Davis and David Wrighthave been relegated to the DL. It's going to take a whole lot more performances like Jonathan Niese's seven-innings of shutout ball to keep this team relevant anywhere outside the minds of the die-hardest of New York Met fans.

With the players dropping like flies, and with Jason Bayonly a shadow of his pre-Wilpon-Curse days, Reyes is more and more looking like a goner.

In reality, it should be the Wilpons who go.

News, Notes & Weekly Stock Watch: Only in New York, Will Smith, Sheen & Kutcher, Politics, Bin Laden and Pippa

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 15 May 2011 19:04:00 +0000

Only in New York.

Will Smith's Hollywood flair didn't go over so well in SoHo last week. Residents were outraged when Smith, who is in town for the filming of 'Men In Black III', rolled in a specially-designed production trailer - one that's bigger than most SoHo studio apartments and comes with such luxuries as granite and marble floors and offices for his staff - and parked right in the middle of a residential SoHo neighborhood.

Business owners and residents were not impressed and the studio ended up having the in-your-face flair removed and relocated far enough away to where Smith, reportedly unhappy about the outcome, now has to use his two legs and feet to get down to the production site.

We think the politicians in Washington are out of touch, how about Hollywood?

The economy is still in the dumps, the average guy is struggling to pay for $4/gallon gas and Will Smith rolls into town and plants his ride right where the whole neighborhood is going to suffocate on the fumes of his ego?

Maybe that flies in Phillie, or in Hollywood, but not in New York.

AND Smith rented a luxury apartment just a half mile away from where he parked the trailer. Think this guy can relate to the little guy? Talk about a demonstration of excessive living.

Another "Only in New York" moment came when Robert Fitzpatrick, a 60-year-old Staten Island resident, spent his life saving to buy thousands of ads on subway and bus stop placards to inform everyone that the world is going to end on May 21st, 2011.

This guy's screwed if May 21st comes and goes without the catastrophic earthquake that he believes is coming, but it brings up another question - if you think you've got two weeks to go before the end of the world, is buying up all that ad space a wise way to blow through your life savings?

How about a couple of trips to Scores?

Looks like Scores would have been a choice destination for the late Bin Laden, as reports have surfaced that the guy had a stash of porn amid all the ranting and raving contained on his hard drives. He lives in a million dollar mansion in the suburbs, with three wives and his kids, with servants, errand-boys and a porn stash. Doesn't look like he was living too bad while he was sending the poor and desolute out to do his dirty work.

Last week I mentioned how dull the Republican field looks for the upcoming presidential campaign season, and nothing changes with the announcement that Newt Gingrich is throwing himself into the ring. Newt had his heyday with the 'Republican Revolution' of the mid-1990s and his 'Contract With America', but that's long forgotten, and he doesn't have the charisma to ward off attacks from the media about his philandering past. Nor does he have the intensity or perceived drive that an American President needs to be voted in.

Good to see some names coming in, but the American people will say, "Next, please" to this one.

In news that's important to America, Ashton Kutcher has been named to replace Charlie Sheen on CBS's 'Two And A Half Men'.

Meanwhile, as mentioned last week, Sheen and his new business partner Lenny Dykstra have embarked on a new E-cigarette business venture - and the venture is sure to be a success if Dykstra's past business acumen is to be a reference. Regardless, I noted that any publicity for the E-cig sector could result in a spike in E-cig stocks. SmokeFree Inotech (SFIO) has jumped from well under a penny to as high as nine cents last week, and Hop-On (HPNN) was up 300% on Friday.

No indication if those runs were related to the Sheen news, but they're well worth watching. These pinkies are very risky, so I wouldn't suggest sticking around too long, but SFIO is an example of how a good pink sheet penny play can lead to some serious returns. HPNN could just be gearing up.

So Sheen is good for something besides jokes, and if Dykstra was in on the SFIO run, then maybe he can afford his bail now. It was reported last week that he couldn't afford to pay his bail after he was locked-up for bankruptcy fraud.

Is it just me or does Rachel Maddow take an inordinate amount of time to make a point?

Glen Beck is leaving the Fox News Channel, as he's also been known to labor towards a point. Probably not a bad idea, seeing as how there was never any balance on his program - on the network that claims to be 'Fair and Balanced'.

At least MSNBC would roll in the very-washed-up Pat Buchanan once in a while to claim to show 'the other side'.

Don't expect the real Italians in Italy to be impressed by the arrival of the cast of 'The Jersey Shore'. MTV is almost asking for trouble by sending that crowd to Italia, where the only thing they have in common with the host country is that there is an "I" in 'Snooki' and in 'Italia'.

Pippa Middleton, although now married to royalty, is not immune to the trials and tribulations of being thrust into the international spotlight. Just like anyone else, those fun-time pictures that were taken when she was 22 have surfaced in the media, and while the royal family of England might not be impressed, eligible bachelors all over the globe sure are.

And maybe Prince Harry, too.

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 15 May 2011 09:15:00 +0000

Weekly News & Notes - The President Riding High

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 08 May 2011 11:03:00 +0000

The news of the week was easily dominated by the demise of Osama Bin Laden.

Credit goes to US President Barak Obama for making the tough decision of sending in the SEALs, rather than counting on metal dropped from the sky to get the job done.

The President is unsurprisingly flying high right now, as no one can claim that he's soft on terror, and no one can say that he's unwilling to make the tough decisions that may contradict his previous campaign ideals. The fact that he can make these decisions strengthens his resolve, in my opinion, as there is information that he is privy to now that he wasn't when he was a candidate.

It shows he can adapt to reality, and to the situation at hand.

The likes of Glenn Beck, who would go so low as to question why it took the President 16 hours to make this decision, should stand down.

This was the culmination of a ten year operation, and Beck looks childish for slamming the President in that regard, as this is almost inarguably his biggest success to date.

If you ask me, Beck looked a fool by politicizing this event.
You know who we haven't heard much from, though? Donald Trump.

Probably because he knows the score right now: President Obama 2, Trump 0.

I like Trump; he's a New Yorker with attitude and he loves the spotlight. He likes having fun with any attention thrown his way and he's a highly successful businessman, regardless of what the naysayers will say.

But you've got to admit, Obama's chuckle during his comments at The White House Correspondents' Dinner that poked fun at the decisions that would keep him up at night (regarding Trump's decisions being who to fire on 'The Celebrity Apprentice') mean a whole lot more now knowing that the plan to get the world's most wanted terrorist were in place at that very time.

Much of life is timing, and the timing of Trump's tirades failed him. This guy was worried about birth certificates while the President was worried about getting the bad guy.

As a result, the President looks pretty invincible right now, with his campaign for President in 2012 in full swing, but remember that Daddy Bush was at 92% after Gulf War I, and then lost the election two years later.

Like Daddy Bush learned, it's all about 'what have you done for me lately'.

And the American memory can be about as short-lived as a Lenny Dykstra business venture, especially when the economy is in the dumps and unemployment is high.

Regarding the Bush clan, I've claimed before that history would be kind to W Bush, and I think that a lot of vindication is materializing for the former President as the details surrounding the Bin Laden capture become known. Credit part of that to the sitting President, because he's shown class by throwing some much-deserved credit in the direction of his predecessor.
One subject garnering reignited debate is water boarding. Since it's been revealed that some information that ultimately led to the discovery of Bin Laden's hiding place (if you can call it a hiding place) came as a result of "enhanced interrogation". There's a whole bunch out there that are downplaying that fact, and will continue to refuse to admit it, but the debate is back, regardless.

One highlight on this issue came last week on an episode of 'Piers Morgan Tonight'. The guest was New York Republican Pete King, and the subject - of course - was enhanced interrogation.

Piers obviously was against the water boarding and tried to play a game of 'stump the Republican from New York' and asked Mr. King what he would have thought had the US Navy SEALs been caught during the Bin Laden mission and been water boarded. Without missing a beat, King replied "It's part of their training," and then - in seconds - dismissed any case that Morgan had on the issue.

It was funny stuff - Morgan got schooled on his own program, and he knew it. Someone needs to do that to Glenn Beck.

Another debate - that's not much of a debate anymore since Al Qaeda and the Taliban have confirmed the death of Bin Laden - is the photographs that the President would not delete.

Again - good call by the President. The pundits will say that the bad guys are going to be inflamed regardless of whether the pictures are released or not, so why not just release them?

To that I would use the example of the moron in Florida who burned all those copies of the Koran. That action got fifty people people killed in Afghanistan because the bad guys set out to avenge that one act. So, yes, it is possible to inflame the bad guys more than usual.

Life is also about playing the risk/reward game. The risks of releasing the photos far outweigh the rewards - especially when America's media is crying that the biggest reward is "closure".

That's the most ridiculous comment I've ever heard on a news broadcast (although the media surprises me every day with their inefficiency at sticking to the relevant). What are we in a shrink's office? Is the President now to play psychiatrist?

Screw closure. If you're in a state where you need a picture of a dead guy to receive "closure", then go see a shrink and stay off CNN.

Gimme a break, America.

On to some other topics...

The Phillies look unstoppable. The Mets have NO chance in the NL East. A fire sale is looming, but it's a bad move if Reyes or Wright goes. Those two are THE foundation of the future for the New York Mets, with honorable mention going to Ike Davis.

Two no-hitters in one week? Props go to both Liriano (who was terrible all season before that no-no) and Verlander. Liriano was so terrible, in fact, that he was sitting on my fantasy team's bench for the big game, along with a bunch of points that I could use this week while I'm still waiting on Adam Dunn coming around.

The business mogul Lenny Dykstra, who just recently partnered with Charlie Sheen to promote their own brand of E-Cigs, has been indicted for bankruptcy fraud. Has this guy hit rock bottom yet? It's a shame, as his life right now is a far cry from that '86 NLCS home run, I tell ya.

TheStreet.com is still trailing in the Internet rankings to SeekingAlpha.com, according to the Alexa rankings...a worthy note given that TheStreet's biotech blogger was patting himself on the back pretty good last week. We can call this one the 'Battle of the Bloggers', since both sites are a compilation of news and notes from a wide variety of bloggers.

Only one, however, was founded by a famous hedge fund manager who is plastered all over the Internet admitting to how easy it is to manipulate the markets. That's the one that is losing its reputation as a go-to source for unbiased stock coverage.

Speaking of stocks, good news for Apricus Biosciences - looks like there's a market for Vitaros in the Middle East. According to some reporting in the Emirates, a wife is suing her husband for millions after he failed to "consumate" their marraige for four months. His defense is erectile dysfunction.

If there was any doubt that American culture was expanding world wide, lawsuits such as this one should dispel those doubts.

Speaking of limp, the Republican group of Presidential candidates looks about as exciting as this woman's sex life. Something's got to give, and a real candidate needs to step forward otherwise it'll be easy pickings for the smooth-running operation of the Obama campaign. The GOP is in need of a spitfire jump-start, one that can dance on his or her feet with Katie Couric without missing a beat.

Took the kid to see 'Thor' this weekend, well worth it, regardless of the New York Post's razing review of the film. The reviewer absolutely destroyed the plotline, but failed to acknowledge that it's a movie made from a comic book script. Get an imagination, reviewer guy, and enjoy the entertainment.

While Thor was definitely entertaining, dads have 'Wonder Woman' to look forward to. We'll just have to wait until the kids ask to go to that one, so wifey doesn't catch on.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there - good mothering is a hero's work, and although for 364 days a year, the guys will act like a mom's work is easy and unappreciated, for one day we'll admit, it is not easy and it is appreciated.

Enjoy the day, ladies.

News & Notes: Royalty, Birth Certificates, Politics and Sheen

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 01 May 2011 06:26:00 +0000

Looks like something might finally give in Syria, where the government and its armed forces have been mowing down demonstrators with brute force for weeks.

Significant chunks of the armed forces are reported to have been dropping arms and taking up sides with the protesters.

Aside from all of the innocents lost in Libya, add his own son and three grandchildren to list of those lost as a result of the narcissistic and sick actions of Muammar Qaddafi.

NATO has not yet confirmed, but Libyan sources report those facts.

On to a more uplifting topic - The Royal Wedding.

Class. Elegance. History. Tradition.

Congratulations to William & Kate, the British royal couple who recited their vows in front of billions on Friday, in a demonstration of class that was fitting for royalty.

William's decision to wed the "commoner" Kate Middleton is predicted to reinvigorate life into the British monarchy after some bad press that followed the death of Princess Diana.

Judging from the worldwide audience and huge crowds gathered outside the palace on Friday to observe the first kiss - those predictions might be right.

With an economy in near shambles, and with the government looking to slash the defense budget, England could use a symbol to rally around right now, and the sight of William & Kate just might be that symbol.

And let's not forget Pippa.

As stunning as the now-royal bride was on her wedding day, her sister Pippa stole some of the show for herself.

She is right now undoubtedly the most sought-after bachelorette in the world.

Can you say Harry and Pippa?

Ya never know.

Maybe the best success of Kate and Pippa on that day was rendering Victoria Beckham obsolete. She received notice for gripped her football-star hubby away from anyone he tried to chat with, and not for her fashion - which compared to the stars of the day - was quite ordinary.

I couldn't help but notice that many in America weren't bothered about the wedding, with hosts of some popular media outlets (Today show for one) even going so far as to mock the event.

Opinions are fine, but no need to get better. After all, England only has William & Kate, The US has John & Kate Plus Eight and Real Housewives!

Now how's that for class?

Anyone else notice that SeekingAlpha.com has been consistently ranked higher on the Alexa website ranking than the publicly-traded website/blogsite TheStreet.com of late?

The world can breathe a sigh of relief now - THE birth certificate has been released.

Let's be honest about one thing, though. The President claims he released it because it was becoming a distraction. Last time I checked, this was an issue for two years.

The only "distraction" the birth certificate would have been is to a campaign - and guess what? Campaign season is right around the corner!

Leave it to Trump to take the credit for the birth certificate finally being released.

Let's be honest, Trump gets a reaction from people - and he loves it. It's publicity and it's grandstanding. But the release of the certificate has more to do with the campaign timing than it does with Trump.

The President got in a few digs at The Donald in his speech at The White House Correspondents' Dinner this weekend, including showing a video of his birth - which turned out to be a scene from Disney's 'The Lion King'.

Now that was funny.

Another one I like was The President's suggestion that Trump would bring "change" to the White House - by turning it into a casino.

Good stuff, but is that really a bad an idea?

Lord knows that Washington needs revenue to support the free-spending ways of our politicians.

And isn't all of the free-spending really gambling with the future of our country anyway?

Since all the politicians like buying hot blondes and expensive hookers on the taxpayer dime - where better to find that them than a casino?

The President might be on to something, especially since our fiscal policy over the past half-decade is like a roll of the dice.

The big fight between Republicans and Democrats right now - and it will play a huge role in the upcoming campaign season - is how much, and what items, to cut from the ballooning federal budget.

Dems want to raise taxes on the rich (a constant Dem theme), while Republicans want to make the W tax cuts permanent.

Here's the real issue - cut out the waste and corruption before asking for another dime from the taxpayer.

How much taxpayer money is wasted on travel, per diem and living costs for not just the politicians, but the hundreds that are employed on all their staffs?

It all adds up.

How many pork barrel projects are assigned millions of dollars in order to secure a vote?

It all adds up.

Don't be fooled, America, these guys will all feed you a line - to make it Republicans vs Democrats, when really the battle is Washington versus the little guy.

England is finally cleaning up the waste and corruption in their government, it's time we do the same.

Of course England is about tapped out at what taxpayers will pay without a revolt, with taxes reaching 50% quick.

In America, our politicians don't believe that the taxpayer has had enough just yet.

It's time for Washington to clean up its own act before they come looking for more of the working man's money - and yes, the rich work, too. Most work a lot harder than those that want to get paid for doing nothing.

Everyone's getting mad at the extravagant lives that the CEOs are living in the midst of the economic crisis - because Washington is telling you to be mad at them - but it's also then fair to pay attention to the extravagant lifestyles and benefits that those in Washington receive.

In fact, since those guys are using your money to support those lifestyles, it might be worth paying a little more attention to them.

Just when the Mets are looking like there might be some life in that Blue and Orange, they run into a roadblock with Philadelphia pitching.

Or should I say, Philadelphia hits Mike Pelfrey pitching.

Niese was solid on Saturday, but not solid enough - as the Mets let a few too many scoring opportunities go to the wayside against Roy Halladay.

Can NY Mets fans say - firesale or bust?

Better keep Wright, though, or it might just be the grounds crew that shows up at Citi next year.

Looks like Charlie Sheen is getting into the eCig business - he's calling his brand 'The Wining E-Cig'.

Think he's hurtin' for cash right now?

Even better, former Met Lenny Dykstra is his business partner.

There's a 'winning' combination if I've ever seen one.

That said, maybe there's a good E-Cig stock or two out there to take a look at?

Any publicity for that 'industry' might lead to a mini-run or two in some of those stocks.

England has William & Kate.

We've got Sheen & Dykstra.

News & Notes -

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 12:41:00 +0000

Sunday's football match between Liverpool Football Club and Arsenal is a testament to the excitement of the game that is only now penetrating the US market on a big stage - and a testament to the lack of class of the Frenchman that manages Aresenal, Arsene Wenger.

Wenger, whose team was denied the opportunity to catch #1 Manchester United in the Premiership, kicked off because he felt that the penalty called on his team in the 102nd minute of the match should not have been called. Truth be known, the penalty called on Liverpool in the 98th minute was actually the one that shouldn't have been called.

When approached by the livid Frenchman on the sidelines, Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish waved the whining Wenger away, with a Scouse "F&$% Off" to boot.

What a game, and what a finish. Hopefully the US can field some competition to the scale of the European football leagues sometime soon.

The Mets finally broke a seven game slide, on the back of a solid season debut by Dillon Gee. A highlight it was, but barring a significant turnaround - and quick - the peak of the 2011 Mets season will be the day the team beat Phillie on the first matchup of the year.

It's been all downhill from there.

On the bright side, it looks like Jason Bay and his six dongs from last year will be back in the lineup this week.

The newspapers and media outlets are making a whole lot out of the fact that Muammar Qaddafi still remains in power, after weeks of US and NATO air strikes.

Don't know why the 'analysts' at these news organizations are shocked, because once the international community decided to sit on their thumbs as Qaddafi's forces regrouped and gained momentum after the intial opposition gains, it was all but done and sealed that he was going nowhere.

Hand it to French President Sarkozy. Although stumbling in the polls in his home country, he's imprinting France's name on the international map - a place it hasn't been in a long time - with his foreign policy moves.

Not only is Sarkozy taking the lead in Libya, ever since the US eased out, but he's also been taking the lead in reacting to the slaughter in the Ivory Coast - a place almost forgotten by the western world, but one scarred with wounds inflicted by a guy who refused to relinquish power, but also scarred by the forces of the guy who is now backed by the United Nations to accept power.

France is primed to play a key role in the future of world political and military discussions, in my opinion, if Sarkozy's will has its way.

What's somewhat shocking, however, is that the US media is concentrated on the inadequacy of Washington right now - which is NOT news - while the likes of the dictatorial governments in Syria and Iran could be on the ropes.

Tell you what - politicians in Washington are always going to ask to raise taxes so that they can have a few more bucks in their 'ditty fund' to pay for a stripper or two on the taxpayer dime (because they refuse to cut wasteful spending in their own districts instead), but the goins-on in some of these dictatorial countries right now is a whole lot more important than the likes of what CNN and Fox are throwing on the wires.

Wonder if Hugo Chavez and his joke of a government are sitting easy right about now. Then again, no one's really paying attentiona to South America at the moment.

News & Notes

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 07:03:00 +0000

There's something wrong with the system (yes, we all know it) when the US government comes to a standstill, on the verge of a complete shutdown, and the only ones who would keep all their pay and benefits during such a shutdown are be the politicians - the very ones who don't deserve their pay because they can't get done what needs to be done.

I just can't get that one through this head of mine - the Senate and the House create a government shutdown, and these guys still get full pay? But the rest of the government doesn't? How do the young troops on the front lines with two kids to support back home feel about that? I've said it before, and I'm saying it again - Washington needs an enema. These people are beyond out of touch and they say only what they need to say to try and get re-elected. It's not about representing the people anymore (if it ever was), it's all about staying in office. Clean house.

Or how about term limits? And I don't mean a limit set at two, three or four terms. VFC's term limit is ONE TERM. You get one six year term to make your mark, without the distraction of having to campaign during your time in office.

Case in point, with all going on in the world right now, the sitting US President announced his candidacy for the next election. It's probably an ill-timed announcement since the US is still dealing with Qaddafi in Libya since the coalition acted too late, still fighting wars on two fronts, the government is about the shut down and oil prices are still rising; but the announcement had to be made because campaign season is just around the corner.

Washington is a joke right now, with each party just touting the company line, and no one making a difference.

Laurent Gbagbo's rein of terror in the Ivory Coast may be coming to an end as French and UN forces shelled his compound after weeks of civil war that left too may civilians dead.

News from those parts, accompanied by news of continuing unrest in the likes of Syria, on top of the devastation that Japan is still feeling, it all makes Washington's pettiness look pretty trivial about now.

Man, does that city need an enema.

News & Notes: Philles Just Got a Dose of the Mets' Bad Karma, A Landmark Legal Action Against the Media,

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 19:58:00 +0000

Here's what the Philadelphia Phillies said by signing Luis Castillo last week: "We will not win the National League East."

Why? Karma.
Castillo was a cancer in New York, and his release - along with that of Ollie Perez - was akin to bringing new blood to the Mets; but for the Phillies, they picked up more than just a washed-up second baseman; they also picked up all of his bad karma.

And it didn't take long for karma to strike. Roy Oswalt took a baseball to the head, it was announced that closer Brad Lidge would open the season on the DL as would All-Star second baseman Chase Utley - who Castillo is now likely to replace.

Luis had to drop a popup against the Yankees to take down the Mets and spread the karma throughout the franchise for years to come, but to take down the Phillies, it looks like all he had to do was show up.

In what could be a landmark lawsuit, the Kingdom of Bahrain will commence legal action against BBC reporter Caroline Hawley for allegedly "trying to tarnish the Kingdom's reputation."

The media has been completely off base and outright wrong when reporting on the situation in Bahrain over the past month, with over-embellishment and misrepresented facts only inflaming the situation out there.

So it's about time tgat the media is held accountable for this embellished and/or false reporting. For too long reporters have acted with impunity and "reported" in a manner that has a career-breaking moment more in mind than actually sticking to the facts.

Holding the title of "reporter" does not give one the rights to turn the facts, embellish the facts or change the facts, but that's what is going on these days.The sense of entitlement that those in today's media hold for themselves is dangerous, as recent events have shown, with Bahrain being at the forefront of the discussion.

Talk about out of touch.

You've got Christiane Amanpour dining with Muammar Qadaffi while he's ordered the death and "cleansing" of his own population, and we're to believe that there's nothing wrong with that? Especially when she's giddy like a school girl that this mad man remembered an interview she gave him in the 1990s?

And you've got a New York Times reporter providing readers with lies and misinformation (big surprise from the once-mighty NYT) about the situation in Bahrain.

It's no wonder that with the Mickey Mouse reporting we've seen the media as a whole degenerate into, someone finally decided to hold the media accountable.

Keep an eye on this story about the BBC reporter being sued - because it could become an historic milestone in the way the media is held accountable for its actions.

And it's about time.

On the topic of piss-poor reporting, how about piss-poor Tweeting? TheStreet.com has long been losing credibility for being a bastion for Jim Cramer's agenda (remember it's Cramer who is all over the Net talking about how easy it is to manipulate the markets), but the website's biotech blogger, Adam Feuerstein, gave us all some insight into just how much of an amateur operation TheStreet really is.

In a Tweet on Twitter, the biotech blogger referenced investors of Radient Pharmaceuticals as "Radient Retards."

Weak.

And there's no doubt left that the guy who procaims to be a "journalist" has absolutely no class.

But then again, considering the reputation that the media is making for itself by misreporting everything lately, it's no wonder this clown wants to be a journalist.

You still can't help but wonder why the International Community (IC) dithered and dathered for so long before taking action against Qadaffi. The crazy guy was on his heels, and had the IC acted decicively early on, he'd certainly be out of power by now.

Another danger by waiting so long to act, is a new breed of toughness is being created; those who originally took to the streets with the intent to just overthrow Qadaffi are now being exposed to a whole new level of violence that might not have seen had the mad man been ousted quickly. The day to day grind of fighting a brutal opposition war will play on the minds of the opposition soldiers, who are being immunized against the cruelties of war each and every day that they're on the street watching their friends and relatives die.
Allowing Qadaffi to regroup and reclaim too much territory all but ensured that this battle will be prolonged.

The air strikes may have kept him from retaking the entire country, but the whole ordeal is just another failure of the UN and the IC for dilly-dallying around while people are dying.

Meanwhile, at the top, you wonder if President Obama realizes now why America has - and needs to - take the lead in these situations; because NATO and the inconsistent international community can't, as they are proving now.

When you're the leader of the free world, it's ok to lead, and leading doesn't necessarily mean traveling to South America and the new oil giant Brazil when there's a civil war breaking out in Libya and the international community needs America to do what it does best - make a decision and lead the way.

Acting "swiftly," as the US President put it, does not mean swiftly enacting sanctions. It was the slow response that ensured Qadaffi had the opportunity to slaughter his people.

On a related note, a lot of question has been raised about why the United States, NATO and the UN are reacting to the humanitarian situation in Libya, but are not reacting to similar humanitarian situations in other countries, with Yemen, Syria, Bahrain and the Congo being the most-mentioned comparisons.

Fox News' Glenn Beck was just one of many voices crying foul last week over this issue, and the biggest culprit that these voices blame for international action is Libya's oil.

While there may be some truth to the fact that it benefits the global oil market - and especially the European market - to prevent utter chaos in Libya; and it's also true that Western response is more likely in areas that surround Western interests (The Balkans), but there are other factors involved should not be ignored, because these other factors actually describe the situation best.

The biggest difference between Libya and the rest of the 'crisis spots' is that there is a determined enemy, and that would be the Libyan tanks, armor and airplanes that are raining bombs and death on the Libyan people. Those guys are pretty easy to spot, and just like they were when the Yugoslav Army was when going village to village in Bosnia and Kosovo, they make easy targets for an international force looking to use air strikes to quell the violence.

On the other hand, the situations in Yemen, Syria, Egypt or any other country that the likes of Beck bring up do not have military units moving from city to city where they make for easy targets. Air strikes don't work on snipers located in city centers, and so let's apply some common sense before calling foul. The situations are not the same.

As for Bahrain, the situation there was never even remotely similar to what was being portrayed on the Western news; it's almost as if the media wished chaos on Bahrain only to have something else to cover.

Hugh Tomlinson of England's The Times might just take the trophy for the most ridiculous print reporting on the subject, because his 'facts' and 'reporting' have gone unchecked. This guy is a propagandists' dream, taking purported facts from an obviously biased source and does no fact-checking to see if the facts match up.

It's no wonder why those in the UK believe that the situation in Bahrain is a lot less worse than it is, and why jets chartered by the English government to evacuate citizens from Bahrain are leaving empty - because what's going on in the press is nothing like what's going on on the ground.

The Congo is another humanitarian nightmare that many are wondering why its being ignored when action is taken on Libya. The answer is quite simple - again - once you apply some common sense; The Congo is jungle. To get in there and make a difference would take a coordinated ground effort, air strikes alone couldn't do it. It's too easy for the bad guys to hide in all the jungle trees, if it could be done, the FARC would well have been eradicated out of the jungles of Colombia.

You do what you can feasibly do, not all humanitarian crisis are created alike, but it would be my advice for all these big mouths jumping on the airwaves and crying foul, to apply some common sense first.

>

News & Notes

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 07:43:00 +0000

The news world this past week far overshadowed the previous week's news, and even added an exclamation point as the international community finally made a decision and opened fire on the Gaddafi regime that had been slaughtering the Libyan people.

Gaddafi's threat of "cleansing" the opposition rang as a reminder of the ethnic cleansing of the Bosnian and Kosovo wars, both of which resulted in coalition air strikes, similar to those being imposed now on the Gadaffi forces.

The question remains, however, is did the strikes come to late?

Had the strikes been imposed weeks ago when the momentum was on the side of the anti-Gadaffi forces, the world could almost certainly count on a Gadaffi-less Libya, but since he was given so much time to organize and arm those that remained loyal to him, it's a distinct possibility that Gadaffi is going to retain power in some form.

It's possible that an East/West Libya could be in order, just like there was an East and West Germany during the Cold War.

If that does happen, then only the dithering of the international community to act can be blamed.

Only one week ago, the harshest rhetoric from Washington was aimed at Bahrain, while Gadaffi's forces were making huge military and strategic gains in taking back the country.

Bahrain, to its credit, ignored the tough talk and then went on to prove, according to complaints filed with the United Nations and Arab League, that there was outside influence supporting the civil unrest in its territory.

The tough talk from Washington quickly reversed, as Bahrain received the support of Washington and finally the international community decided to act on Libya - at the time when Libyan forces looked to retake Benghazi.

US President Barak Obama, in announcing the decision to launch air strikes, insisted that the international community acted "swiftly" by imposing sanctions. It's hard to consider imposing sanctions as an effective measure of trying to control a mad man, and that's probably why the President left out the word "effectively" in his speech.

The only "effective" action to be untertaken are the air strikes. The rest is just fancy words. And they didn't come swiftly, they came too late - especially for those who have already needlessly perished at the hands of Gadaffi.

Sure, there's a political victory to be had by mustering up international support from the Arab and European communities, but at what point do you make a moral decision that this support just might not be worth the amount of lives lost while lobbying the United Nations?

Especially when it means that Gadaffi might stay in power.

Each country now experiencing civil unrest has its own unique characteristics, so they cannot be compared to each other. And on that note, we've learned that regardless of those unique characteristics, the media is going to portray the situation to whatever suits their needs for ratings.

During the past few months, the media got some it right, most of it wrong, and completely missed the boat in Egypt. And now the media is ignoring Iran and Syria - which just empowers those government to ban journalists in the first place.

You don't need pictures to report on events - but the problem is that pictures sell, stories don't. That's why you'll hear little about the government actions in Iran and Syria right now, but a lot about Libya.

Meanwhile, Michael Moore slammed President Obama for his decision to act alongside the international community in Libya. Don't know why it's newsworthy, but you have to wonder how he would go about bringing a halt to the mad man that is slaughtering his own people with bombs from the sky.

Just like sanctions don't work on guys like Gadaffi, throwing hamburgers at him won't help either.

Give credit where credit is due; late or not, President Obama gathered together a truly international coalition, including the Arab League (although that entity is swiftly changing its tune) to act against pro-Gadaffi forces, and this political action will undoubtedly become the framework of dealing with crisis for years to come.

For that, he should be commended.

If only the Libyan people lost over the past few weeks didn't have to be the guinea pigs for a new political framework.

Japan, Libya, Mets, Liverpool, Sheen and More...

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 13 Mar 2011 18:43:00 +0000

With all the self-inflicted death and destruction that the human race puts upon itself, it's refreshing to see the united humanitarian effort fromthe international community (IC) in response to the earthquake and tsunami that has struck Japan.

With all the bickering and BS that people and nations put each other true, events like this one remind us all just how fragile life is - and how valuable each moment with family and friends should be.

Because it can all change in a second.

The the same international community that stands united behind the Japanese people right now still cannot come to a consensus on what to do with Libya.

While the world is paying attention to the natural disaster in the Far East - and it's sad to say, but Gaddafi will be thrilled that the spotlight is off him for a moment - the Libyan people are getting bombarded by air power as the civil war in their country intensifies.

The opposition has been getting shell-shocked over the weekend, with Gaddafi forces retaking key positions as the international community bickers like a couple of old men on the porch in rocking chairs.

Great Britain is certain how it wants to react, however, by insisting on immediate air strikes, but unfortunately that country is in no financial position to take on such a task after rounds of huge cuts to military spending.

To make matters even worse, there's internal strife within the UK over the amount of that money slashed from the budget, leaving many to wonder - both domestically and internationally - how England will remain a leader in diplomacy and military superiority if they can't afford to react to situations such as the one in Libya.

It's a sobering state of reality when the former empire on which the sun never set is relegated to the sidelines because it can't get its own house in order. The amount of taxes squandered by English politicians is even more shocking than that of the Wisconsin and Californian governments; well ok, maybe not California.

Meanwhile, the actions of US President Barak Obama also leave many to wonder just how much of a role the United States intends to play in global diplomacy.

The President's strategy is clear and understandable - the United States will no longer act alone on loosely tied coalitions. The United Nations and entities such as the Arab League will hold accountability in this new age.

It makes sense, and might not be too bad an idea as the US has had to endure the burden of acting decicively while the US taxpayer got the bill because the international community couldn't make a decision; but is now the time to test that theory?

Are the long negotiations and discussions of international cooperation worth the cost being paid by the victims of the ongoing Libyan civil war?

The outcome of this crisis will most likely set the framework for international diplomacy for years to come (of course they said the same thing about the United Nations after WWI, and the UN has done little, aside from being proven one of the most corrupt organizations on earth) but would the Libyan people appreciate being known as guinea pigs for a new wave of international diplomacy?

While bombs continue to fall on their heads from the Gaddafi-loyal air force?

At some point morality has to trump diplomacy, but how many people will be dead in order for someone to say, "I told you so."

The Arab League coming on board to support air strikes in Libya is an encouraging development, but it might be too little, too late as Gaddafi gains ground.

What happened in Japan is terrible, but as we asses the destruction that Mother Nature can inflict, let's not forget the destruction being levied at the hands of Muammar Gaddafi.

In sports, any confidence built by the New York Mets fan hoping for a Young/Capuano comeback and a solid lineup was just as diminished as the Wilpon's bank account when injuries to Beltran surfaced and Johan's recovery slowed.

It's going to be a long year in Flushing, especially if the Wilpons refuse to go.

The Liverpool Reds scored a nice 3-1 victory of Manchester United last week, putting the Scousers in the six slot after having been near the bottom early on in the season when the only life in Anfield came from the Scouse birds kicking off.

In what can only be an orchestrated attempt at saving face, China arrested hundreds in a "fake goods" sting. Insert your own joke here, I've got too many in mind, but unfortunately they don't all end funny, especially not when this country's lead-based exports end up killing kids.

Ever buy anything made of Chinese stainless steel? It's stainless for about a day, until the rust spots cover it up.

But who's worse? Them for making it or us for buying the crap?

Then again, America has to claim Charlie Sheen. Don't know whether to feel sorry for the guy or not, because in his head he's having a blast and it's all of us that are screwed up.

That guy is proof that you don't mix sex, drugs, Gaddafi news bites and Rocky movies.

Or maybe it's proof that you do - depends on what you call a good time.

If Alec Baldwin is the guy telling you to sober up, however, you know you've got problems.

This guy is making Lohan look like Mother Theresa.

News & Notes, The 'Can't Make a Decision' Edition - Libya Spirals Further Into Chaos, Iran and the Ivory Coast Kick It Up a Notch and UN Again Sits Idly By

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 22:07:00 +0000

Evidence has emerged from the civil war in Libya that confirms what many already expected, that forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi have been arming children and sending them out to fight - and die for - the dictator's failing regime.

Amid the chaos and controversy, Gaddafi's forces have regrouped and are taking back territory controlled by the opposition, and then embarking on campaigns of terror to ensure that the broken lines of resistence remain incapacitated.

People - whether it be combatants or normal citizens - are dying by the hundreds, and the international community continues to sit idly by with half-hearted threats and ill-notioned actions.

Sanctions? It sounds, on the surface, like a great international triumph that the United Nations even received support from the likes of Russia to impose sanctions on the Libyan government, but that's just on the surface. Dig a little deeper into thought and we realize that Gaddafi probably isn't worrying about international sanctions right about now, he's pretty caught up in putting rifles in the hands of children to go carry out his cause, while he dines with the likes of Christiane Amanpour in Tripoli's restaraunts.

And then the President of the United States finally speaks up, stating to the world that Gaddafi is "unfit to lead," and that "he must go."

Hardly tough words from THE faceplate for freedom in the world, and I doubt those words are hardly noticable to Gaddafi and his forces, who know there's no meat behind them right now because no one in the international community can get on the same page about anything - except sanctions that mean nothing to those embedded in a war zone anyway.

You thought we'd learned from Bosnia. The international community bumbled that situation for years before decisive action quelled the unrest.

A large reason why why the Kosovo campaign was such a huge success in 1999 was because there was a clear definition of right and wrong, and NATO acted swiftly with an air war - no ground troops needed - to put a stop to the attrocities committed by the late Slobodan Milosevic and his goons.

Mr. Obama declares that we want to be "on the right side of history," that the reason why the Egyptian revolution was so successful was because the people "owned it," that the United States didn't get involved.

Eloquent words, but the Egyptian people did not have Mubarak forces taking to the skies in military aircraft and bombing Egyptian cities; nor did the Egyptian people get torn apart by anti-aircraft artillery turned on them.

The "right side of history" doesn't mean stay out of the way, especially when you're the leader of the free world.

It's safe to say that the US and its allies were on the right side of history in Kosovo, when an air campaign - similar to the one proposed by some Western leaders as action for the Libyan ordeal - was all it took to win.

It's also safe to say that the Allies were on the right side of history is Gulf War I, and it's becoming apparently clear - with the actions of Gaddafi, who may be tame next to Saddam Hussein - that the coalition was on the right side of history in Gulf War II, as well.

A little help on the side of those seaking freedom, and seeking to overthrow tyranny, doesn't mean that the people don't own their revolution. After all, without the uprising, and calls for Democracy, there would be no events - and no sides - with which to help.

Just because NATO got involved in Kosovo, doesn't mean that it wasn't the Kosovo people did not own their quest for independance.

The alternative could also be quite grim. It's safe to say that the United States is the recognized leader for freedom and democracy, and because of that, when people of the world seek freedom and get viciously suppressed by their own government when they call for it, there's going to be some pressure on the West to act.

By leaving the Libyan freedom-fighters on their own, with no support from the leaders of the free world, a new breed of resentment may be building in Libya. Should the opposition win, they may look at the mass casualtied which they endured and wonder why the West - who talks a big game of freedom - left them out in the cold when the gunk hit the fan.

And then it's possible, that the resentment of being left on their own would linger; and then our would-be friends who formed a new government based on increased liberties and freedoms for the people, might not be so friendly towards us.

An even worse case, should the Gaddafi forces win, then the freedom seekers in Libya will forever wonder what could have been.

When Senator Obama was still a Senator, he called for a no-fly zone in Sudan, to keep the Sudanese government from launching aircraft and killing the population.

You can't sit by and watch the innocents gets slaughtered.

If you're not going to act - and act decicively - then say nothing at all. The half-measures like sanctions have no effect on a mad man like Gaddafi, and he knows that the international community is fractured; and he knows that a fractured international community means he has free reign to keep on killing.

You'd have thought we learned a thing or two over the years, especially from the Bosnian and Kosovar wars - similar because it was the governments that turned on the people - but nothing ever really changes, does it?

As John Rambo said, "you can't change what is."

And "what is" right now - is no one can make a decision.

So until your ready to stand up, Western World, it's probably best to say nothing at all.

A few times before I've mentioned that China - with human rights issues of its own - might be one of the first non-Middle Eastern countries to face an uprising of its people looking to topple the government, and it looks like Beijing has the samethought in mind.

According to recent reporting, the Chinese government plans to launch a mobile phone tracking system that will be able to monitor the whereabouts of every citizen in possession of a mobile phone that is powered on.

The government, of course, claims that the tracking system will be used to smooth rough patches of road and pedestrian traffic, but you've got to believe that there's a more efficient way to monitor road traffic than the "Information Platform of Realtime Citizen Movement," as the project has been dubbed.

They've got these nifty little things called cameras that monitor traffic, without having to know exactly where each citizen is at any given time.

Either someone in the Beijing government has a spouse that they're wanting to keep an eye on, or there's ulterior motives at work.

My bet is that Beijing is just as tuned in as the next guy at the fact that their government could be next.

If the global theme right now is "Power to the People," then I bet the people don't want Big Brother knowing exactly where they are at all times.

With the world's attention concentrated on Libya right now, little attention is being paid to some other developing or continuing stories.

As already noted, China has discovered a new way to keep their people in check, Iran is stepping up the crackdown on its own people while the world isn't watching and we cannot forget about the Ivory Coast, where the voted-out President Laurent Gbagbo still refuses to cede power to his opponent, who was declared the victor in UN-sanctioned elections last year.

With Gbagbo's men taking to the weapons and firing off shots at women and children now, the crisis in the Ivory Coast provides another reminder of the futility of the United Nations; it's all fine and dandy to sanction elections, but what's the point if there's no consequence when the losing party says, "I'm not leaving?"

Again, in the normal tough-talk fashion of the international community, the UN Security Council in New York probably sent shockwaves of fear through the bones of Laurent Gbagbo when the council stated that it was "deeply concerned" with the increase of violence in the Ivory Coast.

Not just concerned, but "deeply" concerned.

Again, if you're not going to commit, sometimes it's best to just to say nothing at all, this way you don't become a laughing stock when you talk tough and then do nothing.

When dealing with these megalomaniac nutcases, you've got to step up your game or get off the court and go home. There's no half-assing allowed.

If rising oil prices scare you, then the situation in Saudi Arabia should be of interest. Reports have it that the Saudi government is prepared to start cracking down on protestors who are gathering in the streets in increasing numbers.

Any escalation there and be prepared to see oil prices set new records in very quick time.

News & Notes, Amanpour and Gadaffi, Sheen, Aguilera, Wisconsin, the Unions and the UN

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 08:51:00 +0000

The highly regarded Christiane Amanpour had a chat with her good buddy Piers Morgan on national television the other day about her recent interview with Muammar Gaddafi, but highly regarded quickly became sad-to-watch as she practically drooled all over herself because Gaddafi had remembered that she'd interviewed him once before in the mid 1990s.

Good for you, Christiane, for even entertaining the words of a mad man when the rest of the world would just as well have his head on a stake, or on a platter; good for you for entertaining this guy and giggling like a little school girl that he remembered you while his servants are out there committing genocide on their own people.

That's the question - why are we entertaining this guy?

Any ratings boost generated for the networks by Amanpour's pathetic satisfaction of sitting in the presence of one of the maddest of mad men should go straight to the hundreds of thousands of refugees flocking from the war zones; and maybe some of that money should also go directly to the families that are still left, after their loved ones were ripped apart by anti-aircraft artillery shells aimed at their hearts, right about the time that Amanpour was sitting down for afternoon tea with the mastermind of this mayhem.

The media puts themselves on quite the high horse, and makes the need for a scoop more important than the need to make an ethical statement.

We won't put Randy Moss on TV for showboating after a touchdown anymore, but we'll put a mass murderer on the air for the sake of a few ratings?

Actions speak loader than words, and the actions of Muammar Gadaffi are telling us the truth about the man, not any story provided by Christiane Amanpour.

Actions speak louder than words, and the actions of Christiane Amanpour are telling us the truth about the woman, that for all her pomp and circumstance, she's no more than a little girl, who giggles when flattered even by a psychopath.

It's a changed world now, no longer are the likes of well known news anchors bringing us the news - it's the people with the cell phone cameras and a twitter accounts that are showing us the truth behind the blood in their streets.

Bring us their story, Christiane, no one gives a *(#$ about what Gadaffi has to say for himself - he's said it through his actions.

And certainly no one gives a *(#$ that Gadaffi remembers you from an interview that he granted you in the 1990s. But through your giggles and drool, and selfish satisfaction of sitting with the man who is murdering by the thousands, we know the truth about you; that you're far removed from the threshold of reality.

Speaking of mad men and human train wrecks, Charlie Sheen is proving again that he's not all together there - not even close. This guy doesn't flinch that his children are taken from him and can't keep his act together enough to keep a job that is paying three million dollars per episode to appear on TV. If that's not nuts, I don't know what is. And again, this guy's getting way too much air time.

The only comparable recent waste of air time was the Lindsay Lohan court coverage. Who cares what she wore to court? It's only a matter of time before she bares it all for Playboy anyway.

Christina Aguilera looks to be slipping as well. She bungled the Star Spangled Banner at the Super Bowl, slipped at the Grammys and was now arrested for public intoxication. Let's just hope that the rumors of her pregnancy are false, if she's going to be out partying and carrying on drunk like she was before she got thrown in the slammer.

In politics, the Democrats from the Wisconsin State Senate are still AWOL from duty - I really hope that these government employees are not being paid right now. That state, which is trying to close a nearly four billion dollar two year deficit (yes, I said FOUR BILLION DOLLARS for a state with less than SIX million people), certainly cannot afford to pay government officials that won't even show up to work.

You've got to feel for the unions, because the history of the union is one of the reasons why our country is great - but here's a case of taking a mile when you only needed to take an inch. All the benefits, all the collective bargaining and all the sky high pensions have run multiple states to the verge of bankruptcy and almost killed the auto industry altogether, although a lack of innovation is also to blame there.

Sanctions, no-fly zones, and tough talk? Is this Libya situation for real? We're waiting on a UN resolution before taking action? If we're waiting on a UN resolution, we might be waiting a long time, as it's obvious that nothing has been learned from the mishaps of the UN during the collapse of Yugoslavia and just about every other campaign since.

People are dying in the streets of Libya, being slaughtered by their own government, and we think - at this point - that Gaddafi is going to give a dam that the UN told him not to launch airplanes? Or that they've sanctioned his government?

And I bet he's just gutted that they kicked him off the UN human rights council. That must be the straw that broke the camel's back and now he's ready to give up.

The guy's sick, lay the threats all you want, international community, and meanwhile there's bloodshed in the streets. Either do something or do nothing, but don't make half-hearted, idle threats for the hope of saving face in the eyes of the public. Not one politician that has been put on TV has looked anything but indifferent about what's going on in Libya (there's more passion from these guys when they're talking about raising taxes), and if I can see that - then you can sure bet that Gadaffi can see that, too.

"Send out more tanks!" he's saying, while he lunches with Christiane Amanpour, and while the western world waits on the UN.

What Happens When You Realize That The Global Economy Is Built On A Deck Of Cards?

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 17:22:00 +0000

As the Libyan anti-aircraft artillery rounds - aimed not at the air, but towards Tripoli's main square - ripped through the flesh of Muammar Gaddafi's freedom-seeking populace, and as that same Muammar Gaddafi hired foreign thugs to commit atrocities akin to genocide on his own people, it became convincingly apparent that not only is the basis of power for many of the world's dictators founded on a deck of cards and some guns, but the global economy as a whole may also be an aberration.

If a few twentysomethings with a hedge fund can go out there and destroy individual companies and their stock prices in the flash of an eye, and then incite a global economic meltdown by packaging high risk mortgages together that seemed to contradict the most basic of common sense, then what damage could a few dictators and monarchies inflict on the world markets when their people start asking for the most basic of human rights?

It looks like we're about to find out.

Oil prices have again breached the $100/barrel mark with the unrest in Libya growing to the point of all-out civil war, which threatens to derail an economic recovery in the Western world.

It may be Italy, whose beleaguered Prime Minister has established the closest ties to the mad man of North Africa than anyone else, who takes the biggest economic hit as Libya spirals into chaos, it looks like everyone is going to absorb some of the blow, with the constant threat of rising oil prices.

To counteract the chaos in Libya, Saudi Arabia has promised to increase oil output to keep the global market in check.

Sounds great, doesn't it?

But, in Saudi Arabia, the recently-returned King has just handed out $36 billion dollars worth of social spending in an effort to keep his own people - of whom a large percentage are dirt poor - from rebelling and protesting like everyone else in search of their own path to freedom.

The Saudi promise to increase oil output works for now, but before everyone gets too comfortable, we must recognize the possibility that this great oil-producer (number one in the world) could be one in a long line of dominoes to fall to the calls of work stoppages and protests, and the world cannot afford to see Saudi fall into a phase of unrest right now, not even for a short time.

Such is our reliance on oil.

Of note, the number two oil producer - Russia - is maybe run by the same methods of crime and corruption that governed Libya, although Putin's track record, outside of Chechnya at least, wouldn't have one to believe that he would turn his tanks on his own.

That said, when the powerful are threatened, who knows how far they will go to protect what they have.

When Europe, and Berlusconi especially, were kowtowing to Gaddafi for his oil over this past decade, there was little thought given to his treacherous record on human rights, and now it's more apparent than ever that even the leaders of the free world would sacrifice what's right to line their pockets with the same blood money as Gaddafi does.

There's something inherently wrong with the system when people wanting to fight for their freedom conflicts with the stability of the global economy.

A citizen of Egypt, Libya, Russia, Iran or Saudi Arabia (and let's not forget Venezuela, whose people may be next to join the anti-dictator crowd) should be able to take to the streets in a quest for increased human rights without having the guy sitting on a freeway in the United States wondering how much his gas prices are going to rise as a result.

Then there's China, whose economy may be the falsest of them all.

China, who allegedly manipulates its own currency to stay ahead of the game, has put a good deal of foreign investment into African nations governed by vicious dictators such as Gaddafi, and may be re-thinking that policy as Chinese citizens are evacuated from the thresholds of hell now known as Libya.

Seeing that while knowing that Iran, and potentially Venezuela, are not the most stable of regimes, might make Beijing think twice about investing too much into these questionable ties.

When the people decide to speak, the world is listening now, thanks to the advent of social media, and there's no saying what the repercussions will be on the world economy if the Chinese people decide that they've had enough - and storm Tiananmen Square with a little bit more force this time.

When Egypt fell, the worry was the Suez Canal, and how a crisis there would thwart a good percentage of the world's economy from flowing through that choke point.

The ante is raised now. We can no longer sit by and watch inattentively.

This is real, for the people who want their freedom and for those (which is just about everyone else) who are relying on the sanity of the insane to keep our oil supplies flowing.

Maybe all those years of political talk about switching to alternative energy wasn't just talk after all.

At least then, if there was already a good move to that direction in place, today's talk could be dominated by the emancipation of suppressed peoples, without having to watch the spiking oil prices on the split screen.

People are the foundation of power, and the foundation of any economy; and right now, too much of the global economy is built on a deck of cards.

Hijacking a Revolution, Greed in Wisconsin

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 16:40:00 +0000

Talk about "hijacking a revolution".

That's been the fear as countries throughout the Middle East revolt and overthrow long standing dictatorships; that a far more radical form of government will move in setting those countries back another fifteen or twenty years, instead of move them forward towards freedom and democracy.

The true hijacking, however, is being conducted by the media. You see, since the Egypt story arrived so quickly, and came to a conclusion just nearly as quick, the media is looking to take full advantage of the internal strife of other countries since they missed the boat in Cairo.

The television reporters are constantly on the air almost begging for some other country to fall further into chaos so that they can report on it - and hope to make names for themselves, and what is being sacrificed is honesty, objectiveness and the truth.

Actually, what's really missing, is news reporting.

Which brings us to the larger question, do reporters really report the news anymore, or do they tell you what to think about subjects that it's all too painfully obvious they know little about themselves?

The over-embellishment of events is evident by multiple global media outlets (especially in the US) of some of the most recently "reported" news events from overseas.  Truth, fairness and accuracy has been replaced by flair and drama.  Sadly enough, it's actually the reporters themselves who look to be flaming the bloodshed on, waiting for people to die so that the situation falls into pure chaos, and they just might get their big break as a result.

It's disgusting.

As usual, the European broadcasts are winning the war of accuracy-in-reporting, although a few of them are also letting their standards slip.   The good ones give you the facts, show you pictures - real pictures - not the same thirty second clip in loop-play for a three minute segment, and report it like it is - and it's few and far between that you see that anymore.

With declining sales of newspapers and the disappearance of legitimate media outlets, broadcasters are relying on the tricks of dramatic production to get people to watch - and as a result, it's only by coincidence will you get an accurate account of what's really going on.

Embellish a little here, exagerate, there, and lie just a tad here, and what do you get? The perfect news report for the 21st century.

Again, The New York Times set the standard for sub-standard journalism, thanks to Nicolas Kristof, who seems to know as much about Bahrain, for instance, as a two year old kid who hasn't yet learned how to use Google.

This guy ought to call Inspector Gadget and stay off the Twitter, because he hasn't a clue.

Today's newsman has become yesterday's lawyer - a piranha, or a vulture, circling its prey, waiting to swoop in and strike at just the opportune time - and then make a name for himself at the behest of someone else's suffering, with little regard to the consequences of his actions.

They would have you believe, this generation of reporters would, that it's their voices that are bringing these current events to fruition, that it's the freedom of the press that the people of the Arab nations are rallying behind, but let's not kid ourselves - there's been free press in the world for decades.

What's making the difference today is advancement of social media. It has nothing to do with CNN.

Time to take a back seat, news guy, you've been rendered irrelevant, and proven ignorant. You missed out on Egypt, and you'd love nothing more than to do all that you can do to make another situation worse, even if it means lowering the ethical standards just a tad bit.

How about you sit back, do some research about what's really going on and then REPORT. Every segment doesn't need to be OpEd.

Each Arab country is unique unto itself and is dealing with its own issue. Egypt is not Libya, which is not Tunisia, which is not Bahrain - you get the picture. But the media hasn't figured that out yet - and that's why they've all been so desperately wrong when telling the viewer what to think these past few weeks.

Across the pond now, where in the United States, citizens are jumping on the wave of protest as well.  Thousands in Wisconsin are kicking off over budget cuts and the proposed weakening of the unions - the same unions whose tactics are bankrupting state after state, and who won't be touched by a politician (until now) because of their political lobbying power.

These protests are a far cry from the Middle East, however.

On one side of the world people are protesting over wages of two dollars A DAY, while on the other side of the world people (making a hundred thousand a year in favorable cost-of-living conditions) are protesting having to pay a 12% health care premium instead of six percent.

Let's put this straight - Wisconsin is broke. That state has a budget gap approaching four BILLION dollars over the next two years, not an insignificant number considering Wisconsin's modest size.

It's been said that greed blinds those who are greedy.

Remember that thing a couple of years ago that they called the worst recession since the Great Depression?

It started just like this - people spending more than they should and thinking that just adding more credit would solve their budget deficits. You're broke, Wisconsonites. You can't afford anything and everyone's feeling the pain.

Go home and come up with a reasonable budget and get your state in order before you become California.

And then cry me a river, if you're not willing to do what it takes to head towards a balanced budget.

Speaking of quality of reporting, it's debatable whether AOL's recent alignment with the Huffington Post will pay off in the long run. "Reporting" like THIS reminds us that news in America these days has been transformed into basic blog reporting and childish bickering.

Hey, if that's where you want to go, AOL.

Funny enough, in some discussions I had as a result of the AOL purchase of the Huffington Post, I found out that there was actually someone still paying for email services from AOL.

I still get a chuckle out of that one - with all the free services, someone's still paying sixteen bucks a month for email?

Last one out, shut the door and turn off the lights. I think that guy saw the light and quit just the other day.

Welcome to the modern age of email.

I've got the perfect solution for the Mets this year, on how to compete in the NL East with the Phillies in possession of maybe history's best rotation - I'll just put Halladay, Oswalt, Hamels and Lee all on my fantasy team. That way it can be assured that one will have an off year, two will spend significant time on the DL and the other will give up about 50 home runs for the first time in his career.

On the subject of sports, with Fanball.com going out of business, anyone have any suggestions for an alternative to the Diamond Challenge?

News & Notes - Arnie is Back, Continued Unrest in the Middle East, California Bankrupt, Italy's PM and Business as Usual in Washington

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 06:51:00 +0000

He's Back.

Reports have it that Arnold Schwarzenegger will return to action movie acting, fresh off two tours as the Governor of California.

No doubt that he'll find dodging the bad guys' bullets on the big screen will come easier than dodging the political barbs and demands of the left leaning Californian state that wants everything in terms of social support - but wants someone else to pay for it.

Judgement on his reign is arguable, as California is still on the brink of bankruptcy.

But how much of that is his fault, and how much is it the fault of the likes of politicians like Nancy Pelosi, who promise and implement expensive 'feel good' social programs to keep the voters in their pockets, but end up bankrupting the state?

In Iran, protestors continue to push for regime change, and the government still pushes back with brutal - and sometimes deadly - force. Hardliners in the government are calling for the heads - literally - of the opposition who are leading the call for change.

Again, these are the same guys that 'supported' the revolution in Egypt.

Silvio Berlusconi, who himself is the target of protesters calling for regime change, has been informed that he will stand trial for allegedly consorting a 17 year old prostitute and hosting numerous 'sex parties.'

Yes, this is the guy heading the country that houses the Vatican.

In Washington, the Democrats and Republicans bicker over policy, spending and budget cuts - as usual - spurring President Obama to defend both his diplomatic and fiscal actions over the airwaves.

The real news playing out, however is still the situation in the Middle East, where a growing number of countries are joining the anti-regime revolution.

it's looking more or and more like 2011 will be remembered as THE year of change.

News & Notes: Continued Uprising in the Middle East, Pots and Pans in Italy

noreply@blogger.com (VFC) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 20:13:00 +0000

If the Egyptian military thought that the hard part was over when then-President Hosni Mubarak resigned from power over the weekend after weeks of popular uprising, then Monday's continued labor strikes and general unrest may have the temporary governing body believing that driving tanks and dodging bullets is a lot easier than navigating the bureaucracies of power to give the people what they want.

Demonstrations continued throughout the country on Monday as the newly-empowered people now seek to reap the benefits of their successful revolution, namely better pay, social services and working conditions.

For much of the nation, whose daily wages reached the low levels of two bucks a day, the realized revolution of 2011 has spawned new hope, and you can't blame them for wanted to see changes implemented now.

It looks like the Egyptian people are in safe hands with the military at the helm until elections take place, but the region - if not the world - still sits uneasy at the prospects that a government could be formed that may not have the same agenda as those who led the revolution.

With the Suez Canal and the peace treaty with Egypt at risk, this is a pivotal moment in world history.

Meanwhile, on the coast of the Red Sea, former Egyptian President Osni Mubarak enjoys his vacation resort as his Swiss bank accounts are frozen while investigators track the source of the billions accumulated by the fallen leader.

Not that Mubarak could use any more bad press, but if it's found that any portion of his wealth came from embezzling funds from the billions of dollars of US aid over the years, as suspected, then any dignity that he still may have held in the eyes of the world will most certainly be lost; and it would only be right to see that money returned to the Egyptian people.

The only thing worse than seeing you government tax you into poverty, is seeing your government keep you so poor that you have no income on which to pay taxes. It looks like that was Mubarak's strategy as he kept it all for himself and his cronies.

Now let's hop across the Arabian Peninsula to the Arabian Gulf where we can see renewed signs of a popular uprising in Iran. Protests and demonstrations planned for Monday were quickly countered by the same brutality and force by the Iranian government that we saw last year when the Iranian people attempted their version of revolution.

Reports have it that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard beat, shot and tear gassed the protesters into submission, and filled the local hospitals with victims.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but this is the same Iran that congratulated the Egyptian people for their victory over an oppressive government, yes?

As a good friend of mine commented recently, the Iranian government is almost that funny bad guy in the cartoons, only this bad guy is all too real and brutal to find humor in.

The Egyptian military set the standard for professionalism during revolution, their Iranian counterparts are far behind the curve. The job is to protect the population, not put them in the hospital, or worse yet, their graves.

In another popular uprising, although one not relevant to the scale as those in the Middle East, hundreds of thousands of women took to the streets in Italy in protest of the sexual scandals that have plagued the country's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

Pots and pans were heard banging together in streets around the country, but something tells me that the only way Berlusconi leaves his office in Rome is if he's chasing a 17 year old hooker out of town.

It's safe to say that Italy, too, could use a change at the top.

With revolution sprouting up everywhere these days, let's not forget China - whose billion-plus people could cause quite the stir if they put their minds to it. A few tanks in Tiananmen Square might not be enough to quell a popular uprising this time, because the world is aware that conditions in that country - built on the false economy of manipulated currency and slave-like labor - aren't much better than what the people described in Egypt.

And let's not forget Russia, where Vladimir Putin has reinvigorated the Soviet Bear, implanted himself in power and jailed the political opposition, according to media reports.

It could be that his tenure is not so safe as well, a worthy note considering that he'll need to announce his intentions of running for "re-election" as President this winter, where he'd replace his current puppet Dmitry Medvedev.

Speaking of Presidents, Donald Trump for POTUS is an intruguing thought. Can't help but pencil him is an early front runner on the list to garner my vote. Not sure where he stands on some key issues, but I like what he had to say about pulling billions of dollars back to the US that aren't working for us in terms of diplomatic or monetary return-on-investment overseas.

I also like his idea of repealing Obamacare, starting over and doing it right - in a way that doesn't bankrupt the nation, and puts some personal responsibility behind the plan.

He'll need some work in diplomacy, for sure. When sitting at the big table with world leaders, he'll have to come up with something better than, "You're Fired!"

From the Grammies, the two biggest notes I've seen are rampant speculation about Christina Aguilera being pregnant and Lady Gaga still being good - crazy, but good. Either that or Christina will do anything to distract attention away from her flubbing of the National Anthem during the Super Bowl.

In a somewhat disappointing note for men everywhere, reports have it that Cinemax is revamping its 'Skinemax' image.

Sorry, fellas, looks like no more late night reruns of 'Spider Babe' or 'Batbabe: The Dark Nightie'.