Fukushima nuclear plant to be entombed in concrete as Japan admits it has lost battle with crippled reactors

• Radioactivity levels in the ocean 4,385 times above regulatory limit
• Fisherman warned not to operate within 12 miles of plant
• Compensation claims could top $12bn
• Power firm's shares lose 80% of value - may need government bailout
• President still recovering in hospital recovering from 'fatigue and stress'
• U.S. sends specialist Marine unit to assist in decontamination
• Traces of radioactive particles found in U.S. milk

Japan has finally conceded defeat in the battle to contain radiation at four of its crippled reactors and they will be closed down.

Details of how this will be done are yet to be revealed, but officials said it would mean switching off all power and abandoning attempts to keep the nuclear fuel rods cool.

The final move would involve pouring tonnes of concrete on the reactors to seal them in tombs and ensure radiation does not leak out.

• Read more: Fukushima nuclear plant to be entombed in concrete as Japan admits it has lost battle with crippled reactors

Government Spending Is Bad Economics

The debate about whether or not government spending is a useful countercyclical tool has been revived by the continuing economic crisis. Today, the discussion has been politicized and deals almost exclusively with the size of government debt, focusing on the tax burden this debt represents for future generations and whether or not further debt will help stimulate the economy. Politically, the result has been a middle-of-the-road fiscal policy that has left no economist satisfied. Academically, the debate is generally split between free-market and Keynesian schools of thought, with each side arguing for a policy very different from those already implemented.

• Read more: Government Spending Is Bad Economics 

"Fight of the Century" Keynes vs. Hayek Round 2 - Film Shoot

 Go to the film shoot!

• Find out more: "Fight of the Century" Keynes vs. Hayek Round 2 - Film Shoot

Fluoride spill at water facility literally burns holes in parking lot cement

'A recent chemical spill at a water treatment facility in Rock Island, Ill., required the assistance of an emergency relief crew decked in the very same type of hazmat suits being worn by workers at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant in Japan. Except instead of radiation, the leaked chemical at the water plant was actually hydrofluorosilicic acid, a chemical fluoride component commonly added to drinking supplies for the stated purpose of preventing cavities.

This fluoride chemical is so hazardous that it actually began to burn through parking lot cement in Rock Island before emergency crews arrived on the scene.'

• Read more: Fluoride spill at water facility literally burns holes in parking lot cement

Japan To Make Citizens Pay Bill For TEPCO’s Nuclear Radioactive Fallout

Crooked Japanese politicians are undertaking steps to let TEPCO off the hook for the measly $1.2 billion in liabilities it faces for the Japan nuclear fallout disaster and will instead make the citizens of Japan pay the bill. If a similar disaster happened in your own country, you’d be paying the bill as well.

It seems to be a recurring theme in modern capitalist society. Greedy corporations bend tax payers over the barrel at every possible corner raking in massive record-breaking profits. Then when the shit hits the fan and it’s time for greedy corporations to take a loss crooked politicians step up and say “Don’t worry about buddy. I am on your payroll, we’ll make the taxpayer foot the bill”.

• Read more: Japan To Make Citizens Pay Bill For TEPCO’s Nuclear Radioactive Fallout 

US To Purchase Oil From Libyan Rebels, Thereby Funding "Flickers" Of Al Qaeda

Following recent news that the supremely organized Libyan rebels have established their own central bank and oil company (does anyone recall when rebels merely rebelled instead of immediately setting up an oil export infrastructure and a fiat counterfeiting authority... those were the days), we now learn that this impressively "impromptu" development may have actually been intended all along. From Reuters: "The United States on Monday gave a green light to sales of Libyan crude oil from rebel-held territory, giving a potential boost to forces battling Muammar Gaddafi. A U.S. Treasury Department official said Libyan rebels would not be subject to U.S. sanctions if they avoid entities linked to Gaddafi's regime, which would allow them to sell oil under their control." And confirming just hos hypocritical any international embargo attempts are, here is the Un confirming that when it comes to determining international priorities, the only word that matters is the one that did not figure once in Obama's Libya speech yesterday: "There is no U.N. embargo on Libyan oil," a U.N. Security Council diplomat told Reuters on condition of anonymity. "The rebels can sell oil. But they can't do it through the Libyan National Oil Corporation."" And the kicker: according to the US NATO leader among those profiting from this latest move of US desperation is none other than Al Qaeda. 

• Read more: US To Purchase Oil From Libyan Rebels, Thereby Funding "Flickers" Of Al Qaeda 

MINING STOCKS: "The Bullion Bulls Basket"

There are practically two schools of thought right now in one camp you have guys like Pastor Lindsey Williams who practically say get out of paper assets you cannot trust you need to get into physical assets like bullion gold and silver , the mining shares also being paper assets cannot be trusted as they may turn to be worth the paper they were written on , the second school of thought with reknown investors like John Embry and Eric Sprott who are saying you should take advantage of the silver and gold price rally by taking advantage of the leverage only available only to mining companies and mining shares ...

• Part 2

TheTinyDot

Hayek's 'The Road to Serfdom' in Five Minutes on YouTube

• Watch: Hayek's 'The Road to Serfdom' in Five Minutes

Phase 1: collect silver, Phase 2: ?, Phase 3: profit

Keiser Armed: Pirates of Digital Age (E133)

Massive Raw Gold Shortage In China - Supply And Demand Crunch Looms

• Read more: Massive Raw Gold Shortage In China - Supply And Demand Crunch Looms

Inside Story: UK march for an alternative

Spending up/savings down, printing money, 60 minutes on corporate taxes

Pushing Buttons Like the Jetsons

In the classic and futuristic television series from 1962 to 1963 — I admit that I adore this show and could watch every episode 100 times — people work only a few hours a day, travel at 500 miles per hour in flying cars that go as fast as 2,500 miles per hour, and the main job is "pushing buttons."

The galaxy is their home. Healthcare is a complete free market with extreme customer care. Technology was the best (but of course it still malfunctions, same as today). Business is rivalrous, prosperity is everywhere, and the state largely irrelevant except for the friendly policeman who shows up only every once in a while to check things out.

The whole scene — which anticipated so much of the technology we have today but, strangely, not email or texting — reflected the ethos of time: a love of progress and a vision of a future that stayed on course. Appropriately, it was the first show shown on ABC television in color instead of black and white. It was neither utopian nor dystopian. It was the best of life as we know it projected far into the future. People did not dress in uniforms or obey some dictator on a monitor in their homes. The people in the show were as fashion conscious as any American. Their food was not embedded in pill food. They had the equivalent of fast-food delivery services in their homes.

The message is a true one. Human nature and the structure of reality itself doesn't change. Only the gizmos we use change. We can become poorer or we can become richer. But the fundamental facts of how the world is built are immutable. Things are scarce but the possibilities for economic creation are infinite in a world of trade, boundaries, law, and private innovation.

• Read more: Pushing Buttons Like the Jetsons 

Wow That Was Fast! Libyan Rebels Have Already Established A New Central Bank Of Libya

'The rebels in Libya are in the middle of a life or death civil war and Moammar Gadhafi is still in power and yet somehow the Libyan rebels have had enough time to establish a new Central Bank of Libya and form a new national oil company.  Perhaps when this conflict is over those rebels can become time management consultants.  They sure do get a lot done.  What a skilled bunch of rebels - they can fight a war during the day and draw up a new central bank and a new national oil company at night without any outside help whatsoever.  If only the rest of us were so versatile!  But isn't forming a central bank something that could be done after the civil war is over?  According to Bloomberg, the Transitional National Council has "designated the Central Bank of Benghazi as a monetary authority competent in monetary policies in Libya and the appointment of a governor to the Central Bank of Libya, with a temporary headquarters in Benghazi."  Apparently someone felt that it was very important to get pesky matters such as control of the banks and control of the money supply out of the way even before a new government is formed.'

• Read more: Wow That Was Fast! Libyan Rebels Have Already Established A New Central Bank Of Libya 

Obama Defends Libya Fight

President Says Massacre Prevented; Republicans Want Plan to Remove Gadhafi

 'President Barack Obama made his case for military intervention in Libya in a speech to the nation on Monday, saying the action he directed was in U.S. interests and had already succeeded in preventing a massacre of "horrific scale.''

He said the U.S. would work to remove Col. Moammar Gadhafi from power, but made clear that he would rely on political, financial and other pressures—not military force—to drive him out. That left open the central question of how Col. Gadhafi's removal would be accomplished, and how the U.S. would deal with Libya should he remain.

More broadly, Mr. Obama set out the most detailed explanation to date of a new model for how the U.S. will approach international crises, laying out what may be seen as an Obama doctrine in which the U.S. acts as a coalition-builder, spreading the costs and burdens among nations' 

• Read more: Obama Defends Libya Fight  

Are You Prepared For Another 2008? Part 2

• Read more: Are You Prepared For Another 2008? Part 2

“My target for Silver: $45 – $48 in the next couple of weeks.”

Peter Schiff on Inflation and the inflation of making money because of inflation (read it slow, it meakes sence)

New Shocking Video Of The Japanese Tsunami

printing trillions of imaginary fiat yen can fix this destruction of real capital how?

New Shocking Video Of The Japanese Tsunami by timbarracuda

Economic Terrorists: That's You

One man, who is most assuredly not an SEIU member is finance pundit Max Keiser. Kesier has been leading a campaign named "Crash JP Morgan Buy Silver," which aims at encouraging people worldwide to buy physically delivered silver to put JP Morgan out of business. JP Morgan has been issuing paper certificates representing silver they do not own (counterfeiting). Should people around the world (and they are) heed Keiser's call and force firms like JP Morgan to deliver silver they do not hold, they will "crash."

Due to the amount of criminally procured wealth, power, and influence JP Morgan has accumulated over the decades (through activities like counterfeiting silver certificates), its "crashing" would undoubtedly threaten the stability of the global Ponzi-economy. However, JP Morgan is but a member of the global corporate-financier oligarchy whose unsustainable megalomaniacal pursuits have already threatened the stability of the real global economy.

Collapsing JP Morgan in this manner, while simultaneously collecting silver, sets a precedence of systematically dismantling and replacing all corporations accumulating and wielding unwarranted influence. Considering that these corporations literally wage war in countries like Iraq, Afghanistan, and now Libya to obtain and protect their interests, they undoubtedly have a plan to ward off men like Max Keiser, or Bernard von NotHaus who has already been labeled a domestic terrorist by the FBI and faces 15 years in prison.

• Read more: Economic Terrorists: That's You  

W.I.N.N.I.N.G

SBS Dateline's Documentary On China's "64 Million Empty Apartments"

 While Zero Hedge readers have long known about the eerie phenomenon known as China's ghost cities (and ghost malls), Australia's SBS' Dateline has done a terrific documentary on the topic of "64 million empty apartments in China." As each passing day brings more confirmation that not only is China's real estate market one massive bubble, but it is also, as expected, completely hollow, both literally and metaphorically. The full brief clip is a must watch for all those who wonder how central planning manages to hit its goal-seeked and manipulated GDP number each and every quarter .We are surprised that in keeping with the Japanese earthquake economic miracle, China has not destroyed the vacant city yet only to rebuild it immediately.

• China's Ghost Cities

The Bears Are Back - Presenting Part 5 Of The Silver "Thesis"

Tokyo citizens in panic to buy bottled water as tap faucets spew radiation

(NaturalNews) In the aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear power plant catastrophe, radiation levels are now rising in Tokyo's water supply, leading to near-panic among citizens there who have stripped the shelves bare of virtually all bottled water supplies. This was all set in motion by Tokyo officials finally admitting that radiation levels had risen in the water supply beyond the point of safe consumption by infants and toddlers

• Read more: Tokyo citizens in panic to buy bottled water as tap faucets spew radiation

Surf Warning: Tsunami to Lift Gold

GOLD & SILVER EFFECT

With all the newly created money from Japan in direct inflation, with all the USTBond sales to undermine the USDollar, with the coordinated central bank assistance in USDollar creation, with all the commodity demand in reconstruction, the overall effect on demand for Gold & Silver will be positive and powerful but a little delayed. A giant tsunami lift has begun in precious metals prices.

One can smell a monster midyear rally in Gold & Silver after some time to gather facts, assess the situation, and detect the positive winds. The rally might have started this week, as the evidence is just too plain and simple to the thinking man. A price breakout is seen in both monetary metals. The distractions from Wall Street and the lapdog US press must be ignored.

The entire Japan story is huge bullish for Gold and extremely bearish for all paper currencies certain to be debased further. The G-7 Yen Selling Pact is all about coordinated currency dilution. With Japan, the United States, and the EuroZone all printing money, global monetary hyper-inflation cannot be avoided. It will be endorsed and welcomed. Gold & Silver will react.

Attempts to deal with the economic breakdown and industrial disruptions will contribute to global systemic price inflation, which has already been initiated. Gold & Silver will react.

Holdouts on expecting the monetary system to recover, and fiat paper currencies to stabilize, and the banking sector to revive, and the housing market to bounce back, they will totally give up and surrender. They will enter into Gold and especially Silver. Better late than never.

Confirmation has come that mining firms are bypassing the COMEX. They choose to sell Gold & Silver mining output to investment funds like the Sprott Fund. The COMEX will find itself in increasing isolation. Their artificially low price paid for metal has sparked a wide reaction. Unknown is the amount paid in premiums over spot prices by the funds in order to facilitate the purchases. The premium prices indicate the true price, not the nonsensical price discovery at the COMEX under suppression, cash settlement, and other crooked devices.

A quantum jump, threshold leap, and paradigm shift has taken place. The Japan incident with its staggering financial fallout represents in my opinion the most important and influential factor in global finance since the US banking system death in September 2008, complete with distraction, possibly even cover-up. 

• Read more: Surf Warning: Tsunami to Lift Gold 

IMF Prepares For "Threat To International Monetary System"

Back in April 2010, before Waddell and Reed sold a few shares of ES, effectively destroying the market on news that Europe was insolvent, we made the following observation: "The IMF has just announced that it is expanding its New Arrangement to Borrow (NAB) multilateral facility from its existing $50 billion by a whopping $500 billion (SDR333.5 billion), to $550 billion." Little did we know that our conclusion "something big must be coming" would prove spot on just a month later after Greece, then Ireland, then Portgual, and soon Spain, Italy, Belgium, and pretty much all other European countries would topple like dominoes tethered together by a flawed monetary regime. Well, based on news from Dow Jones we can now safely predict the following: "something bigger must be coming." As if the IMF's trillions in open lending facilities (many of which have recently been adjusted to uncapped) were not enough, we now learn that the world lender of last resort (which in theory is the Fed, but apparently Bernanke has been getting a little shy lately so is offsetting his direct lending directives to secondary organizations like the IMF, leaving the Fed with only USD liquidity swaps) is about to activate a "Special Funding Pool" - Dow Jones explains: "The International Monetary Fund is expected to soon activate a special funding pool that will boost the fund's ability to prevent or resolve economic crises, two people familiar with the situation said Thursday. One of the people said the activation of the funding--which can only be made by a special request from the IMF managing director to the board--was in anticipation of an expected wave of new IMF programs, including the possible expansion of the Greek bailout package." Wonderful. Global financial cataclysm rinse repeat all over again...

• Read more: IMF Prepares For "Threat To International Monetary System" 

Empire State Rebellion: House of Cards - A99

Little Guys Fight Back! » The Two Coming American Revolutions.

There are two kinds of Revolutions on the horizon for America. The first, is a get back-to-basics Constitutional Revolution. This kind of patriotic revolution is a non-violent, non-compliant movement that is centered on education and leaderless resistance. The Constitutional Revolution seeks to level the playing field by eliminating the core of our problems our debt based, fractional reserve, fiat money system and mercantilism and replace it with honest money and Free Market capitalism. It also seeks to have a level field of justice, campaign finance and decentralize political power away from the Elite. This Revolution would bring home the troops from our 777+ military bases and practice non-intervention. They would seek to level unfair taxes and regulations that benefit the Elite and hurt the rest of us. In short, they would legalize the Constitution with the right to bear arms, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, Habeas Corpus, and so on.
 
The second kind of Revolution is very different, even though they seem to have the same bad guys in their sights. I have always watched a lot of documentaries. Recently there have been a lot of very slick documentaries attacking Wall St, The Federal Reserve, Debt, Housing Bubble, Corporate Greed, Wars, Outsourced Jobs and Big Oil. All of these documentaries are stunning attacks at the very real problems our country is facing. For the most part there is nothing to argue against. We are going down the wrong road and there is a group of Elite that are absolutely gutting America and raping the world for their own personal profit and power.

The problem is, for the most part, these documentaries don’t offer a solution, only an attack on “Capitalism.” This Anti-Capitalism or Collectivism Revolution seeks to paint a broad brush and label all Capitalism as evil. In reality the kind of Capitalism we have today has nothing to do with the Free Market Capitalism that made America great. Our Capitalism today is a Collectivist monster that is better described as Crony Capitalism, Crisis Capitalism, State Capitalism, Corporate Capitalism, Gangster Capitalism or Mercantilism. These economic systems have much more in common with their Collectivist cousins Fascism, Socialism, and Communism than Free Market Capitalism. The underlying tone to all of these documentaries are hinted at with phrases like progressive politics, stronger worker’s rights, redistribution of wealth, health care is a right, higher taxes and regulation… you know Socialism. They won’t come out and flash the Lenin or Marx posters, but the influence is there.

“ALL SOCIETIES ARE CAPITALISTIC. The ONLY difference is who owns/controls the Capital. You don’t really think Communists are trying to get rid of Capital do you? Your either going to live under a Monopolistic Capitalistic Oligarchy, or a Competitive Capitalistic Republic. There aren’t any others.” Sui Juris
 
The defining power of Free Market Capitalism is failure. When you fail in a free market, you alone bear the burden of your loss. When you succeed, you alone are the beneficiary of your labor. Through your risk of failure, you seek to make the best decisions and take educated risks. Through failure, you seek to improve your product or process over and over, until you succeed. Thomas Edison failed 1,000 times before he created the light bulb.

In a Free Market, there are no Central Banks rigging the price of money. There are no “too big to fails.” There are no bailouts. There are no redistribution of wealth. There are no committee to set prices or regulations. There are no Government subsidies. Government would only act as a referee ensuring a good clean fight on a level playing field.
 
The problem we face now is that our “Capitalism” is corrupt and only serves the Elite. Those with the political connections get bailed out of their failure and spread the cost among those who were prudent or worse, those that succeeded. In reality we have a two tiered system in which most of America gets the failure of Capitalism and the Elite get the Socialism of being bailed out on our backs. In essence we privatize profits and socialize loses. This creates a moral hazard where those that are alleviated of the risk of failure, take more and more risk, in search of greater profits. This ultimately leads to a crisis which, is where we are today.

“I have had men watching you for a long time and I am convinced that you have used the funds of the bank to speculate in the breadstuffs of the country. When you won, you divided the profits amongst you, and when you lost, you charged it to the Bank. … You are a den of vipers and thieves.”

—Andrew Jackson, 1834, on closing the Second Bank of the United States;
 
The Constitutional Revolution seeks to create a level playing field with honest money at its core. They would eliminate the Fed and the ability for them to print money out of thin air that taxes us through inflation. They would let the “too big to fails” fail. They would put the criminal CEOs in jail for their schemes. They would allow the Free Market to find proper CEO compensation, because the tricks CEO’s use to pump up their wealth, would be eliminated. They would eliminate Corporate Welfare and anti-competition regulations. In a truly Free Market, we would not have this vampire squid sucking all of the wealth from the creation and profiting off of asset bubbles. The Constitutional Revolution would decentralize power. This would localize any crisis into their immediate area of influence and not this globalized crisis of the month. In short, this system would be a system of volunteerism and responsibility with no coercion or violence.

• Read more: Little Guys Fight Back! » The Two Coming American Revolutions. 

And Like Clockwork, CME Hikes Silver Margins Halting Surge... Thankyou, silver on sale!

In tried and true fashion, just as Silver was about to viciously destabilize the global capital markets as it surged to new 31 year highs, the CME stepped in and did its usual 3-6 half life intervention by hiking initial and maintenance margins on silver futures from $11,138 and $8,250 to $11,745 and $8,700 respectively. This is merely the latest margin hike in what appears to be a neverneding series designed to reduce speculative "fervor" courtesy of endless liquidity. What it will do is merely provide a better entry point for those who by now realize that silver's next stop in the fiat endgame is $40, then $50, and so forth. Naturally, the price drop in silver caused gold to sell off too. And now that the CME accepts gold as collateral, we can't even visualize the reflexive loops that develop once the metal that is also a collateral currency becomes more and less valuable at the same time.

• Read more: And Like Clockwork, CME Hikes Silver Margins Halting Surge 

Keiser Report: Freedom Fighters vs Corrupt Corps (E132)

win

Harvey Organ Gold and Silver report

Gold closed at comex closing time at $1437.90 up a cool $10.40.  Silver rose to $37.20 up a huge 93 cents.

Gold and silver were hit on the comex opening.  However for the umpteenth time, both of these metals rebounded and as of now, gold is trading at its all time high and silver is also at a 31 yr high.  Very soon, silver will reach its all time high.

• Read more: Silver advances past $37.00/Premium interday on Sprott silver surpasses 23%  

Chinese view gold as real money and demand is exploding

News that Chinese gold imports are at record levels suggests both the government and the people are purchasers and this is one of the current drivers of the global gold price.

Chinese demand is behaving as we predicted.   If you look at the recent history of Chinese gold demand, you start in 2003 when gold ownership was made acceptable, having been banned from 1945 until then.   This occurred at a time when the agency for the People's Bank of China began buying gold for their reserves.   Prior to that, HSBC tried to persuade China to buy gold, but the time was not quite right for them.   Now it is very right for China to buy gold.   What has happened since 2003 and during 2010?

• Read more: Chinese view gold as real money and demand is exploding 

James Turk - Silver Backwardation Near All-Time Record

“I think today was the breakout in gold, but it is one or two days behind silver.  The key here Eric is that silver remains in backwardation even though silver is at a new 31 year high in terms of price.  That shows that the demand for physical silver is not diminishing even though the price is rising.  What’s also important is that the length of time silver has been in backwardation is very close to a new record.”

• Read more: James Turk - Silver Backwardation Near All-Time Record  

Radionuclide Blankets United States; Authorities Insist Levels Are Harmless

Contradicting Barack Obama’s assertion last week that radiation from Japan’s stricken Fukushima nuclear plant would not even reach Hawaii, the mainland United States has been blanketed with radioactive Xenon 133 particles, while spent nuclear fuel pools at Fukushima have now reached boiling point and threaten to spew out more radioactive smoke.

Although health authorities insist that levels of the radionuclide Xenon 133 that have been measured are harmless, claims that such radiation would dissolve over the Pacific have been proven completely inaccurate. Indeed, the latest charts show that fallout from Fukushima will not just smother the United States, but most of the globe.

• Read more: Radionuclide Blankets United States; Authorities Insist Levels Are Harmless  

Nobel Committee asked to strip Obama of Peace Prize

'The Bolivian President and a Russian political leader have launched a campaign to revoke Obama's honour after the US attacked Libya.
Liberal Democratic Party of Russia leader and Vice-Chairman of the State Duma Vladimir Zhirinovsky released a statement today calling for the Nobel Prize Committee to take back the honour bestowed on US President Barack Obama in 2009.

Zhirinovsky said the attacks were "another outrageous act of aggression by NATO forces and, in particular, the United States," and that the attacks demonstrated a "colonial policy" with "one goal: to establish control over Libyan oil and the Libyan regime." He said the prize was now hypocritical as a result.'

• Read more: Nobel Committee asked to strip Obama of Peace Prize 

 

The Global Techno Revolution

Techno Revolution + Self-Government - Medium by dylaneleven

The TEPCO Bail Out Begins: Japanese Government To Foot "A Portion" Of Compensation Costs

As predicted when we outlined the imminent surge in TEPCO CDS nearly two weeks ago, when the utility was trading still in the double digits, we speculated that the Japanese government will have no choice but to step in and rescue the pre-collapse utility. Indeed, that is now reality, with Reuters reporting that "the Japanese government is looking at paying off a portion of the compensation Tokyo Electric Power Co will owe to evacuated residents, local farmers and others directly hit by the emergency at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant." The question we have is how much did Japan bulls such as Buffett purchase in TEPCO stock in advance of this latest pseudo-socialization in which taxpayers once again bail out private shareholders, and just how much of his decision to acquire said stock would have been predicated on the knowledge another taxpayer-to-right pocket transfer was imminent.

• Read more: The TEPCO Bail Out Begins: Japanese Government To Foot "A Portion" Of Compensation Costs 

The "Fukushima Fifty"

 

Whatever one thinks about the near-criminal strategy taking place behind the scenes as to how Japan is handling the bailout, one thing is certain: the 50 Tepco workers who are currently laboring at Fukushima, doing all they can to restore the plant back to life, even at the cost of their own lives, are doing a tremendous service to their fellow citizens (futile or otherwise), and deserve to be called heroes. The Mail has compiled what little information is available about these impromptu martyrs, of whom five are believed to have already died and 15 are injured while others have said they know the radiation will kill them, in a piece that everyone should read, especially those who are wondering just who it is that is doing everything in their power to offset Hitachi's criminal conduct in the construction of the power plant as disclosed earlier. "The darkness is broken only by the flashing torchlight of the heroes who stayed behind. These first images of inside the stricken Fukushima Dai-Ichi power plant reveal the terrifying conditions under which the brave men work to save their nation from full nuclear meltdown. The Fukushima Fifty - an anonymous band of lower and mid-level managers - have battled around the clock to cool overheating reactors and spent fuel rods since the disaster on March 11."

• Read more: The "Fukushima Fifty" 

Enjoy the ride!

Coming to a stock market near YOU! Egypt Stock Market Opens, Plunges, Triggers Circuit Breakers, Closes

So much for that $25 million EGPT ETF as being a leading indicator. AP dscribes what can only be summarized as the funniest plunge-protection free market reopening in history: "Shares on Egypt’s stock exchange plunged Wednesday as the market reopened after being shut for nearly two months because of the mass protests that toppled former President Hosni Mubarak. Egypt’s finance minister was on hand as men dumped confetti on the trading floor to mark the resumption of trading. But within seconds of the opening, trading was once again halted as an intense sell-off drove shares below pre-set limits put in place to slow any sharp declines. The market reopened half an hour later. The benchmark EGX 30 index was trading down 9 percent at 5,137 points by early afternoon, recovering slightly from a drop of nearly 10 percent earlier. Finance Minister Samir Radwan called on investors not to panic." Of course, where some see panic, others may see responsible selling of liquid assets as the clusterflock of black swans is now flying high in the troposphere and following the Gulfstream.

• Read more: Egypt Stock Market Opens, Plunges, Triggers Circuit Breakers, Closes 

Central Banking is a blight on humanity

The financial commentator and GATA consultant Rob Kirby talks in the following exclusive interview about “the rotten state“ of the precious metal markets, the highly questionable activities of central banks, why gold/silver are in no bubble at all, and his thoughts on a One World Currency.

"Silver historically should be 1/10th to 1/15th the price of gold.  This means that silver should NOW be priced at $140+ per oz.  Silver is likely the most mispriced asset on the planet today."

• Read more: Central Banking is a blight on humanity 

Ron Paul: We Tried Last Week To Bring Our Troops Home From Afghanistan & Now We're In Another War!

U.S. rescue chopper shoots six Libyan villagers as they welcome pilots of downed Air Force jet

'Six Libyan villagers are recovering in hospital after being shot by American soldiers coming in to rescue the U.S. pilots whose plane crash-landed in a field.

The helicopter strafed the ground as it landed in a field outside Benghazi beside the downed U.S. Air Force F-15E Eagle which ran into trouble during bombing raid last night. And a handful of locals who had come to greet the pilots were hit - among them a young boy who may have to have a leg amputated because of injuries caused by a bullet wound.'

• Read more: U.S. rescue chopper shoots six Libyan villagers as they welcome pilots of downed Air Force jet 

Russia urges immediate Libya ceasefire

'
"Russia wants to see an immediate ceasefire in Libya and the start of political negotiations," Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov told visiting US Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Tuesday.

"We are convinced that the shortest path to the safety of peaceful civilians is through an immediate ceasefire and the start of dialogue," Serdyukov added. The call comes after Russia's prime minister denounced a UN Security Council resolution authorizing a military offensive against Libya.'

• Read more: Russia urges immediate Libya ceasefire 

Rap News 7: #Revolution

Keiser Report: Build More Reactors, Not! (E131)

“The Ultimate Recipe For Revolution.”

Prepare for… “The Ultimate Recipe For Revolution.”

Let’s just go over some statistics here:

· 59 Million people without health care
· 52 Million in poverty
· 44 Million on food stamps
· 30 Million in need of work
· 7 Million foreclosed on
· 5 Million homes over 60 days late on mortgage payments
· $1 Trillion in student debt

• Read more: UPDATED WITH TRANSCRIPT – Empire State Rebellion: An Idea Whose Time Has Come (A99 Video) 

Apple Inc. Vs. Physical Silver

Fukushima Smoking Gun Emerges: Founding Engineer Says Reactor 4 Has Always Been A "Time Bomb", Exposes Criminal Cover Up

It was only a matter of time before someone grew a conscience, and disclosed to the world that in addition to the massive cover up currently going on with respect to the true extent of the Fukushima catastrophe, the actual plant itself, in borrowing from the BP playbook, was built in a hurried way, using cost and labor-cutting shortcuts, and the end result was a true "time bomb." Bloomberg has just released a report that if and when confirmed should lead to the prompt engagement of harakiri by the Hitachi executives responsible for this unprecedented act of treason against Japan's citizens. Quote Bloomberg: "One of the reactors in the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant may have been relying on flawed steel to hold the radiation in its core, according to an engineer who helped build its containment vessel four decades ago. Mitsuhiko Tanaka says he helped conceal a manufacturing defect in the $250 million steel vessel installed at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi No. 4 reactor while working for a unit of Hitachi Ltd. in 1974. The reactor, which Tanaka has called a “time bomb,” was shut for maintenance when the March 11 earthquake triggered a 7-meter (23-foot) tsunami that disabled cooling systems at the plant, leading to explosions and radiation leaks....“Who knows what would have happened if that reactor had been running?” Tanaka, who turned his back on the nuclear industry after the Chernobyl disaster, said in an interview last week. “I have no idea if it could withstand an earthquake like this. It’s got a faulty reactor inside.” What follows is the harrowing tale of a criminal cover up at the only reactor that luckily was empty when the catastrophe occurred. We can only imagine what comparable horror stories will emerge in the next several days as other whistleblowers emerge and disclose that Reactors 1 through 3 (which unfortunately do have radioactive fuel in their reactors) passed the same "rigorous" quality control process that makes them the same time bombs just waiting or the signal to go off (and probably already have... but since the truth is the last thing the public will uncover one can only speculate).

• Read more: Fukushima Smoking Gun Emerges: Founding Engineer Says Reactor 4 Has Always Been A "Time Bomb", Exposes Criminal Cover Up 

US Inflation On Track To Hit 8.3% In 2011

Chasing all the fluttering glow in the dark swans over the past month has put some of the key issues facing the US economy on the backburner. But just like today's surging inflation update in the UK confirmed, there is only so long that any given crisis can be used a distraction from the real problems at hand. And here is where we stand: per a quick check with the recently released and constantly updated MIT billion price project, which just happens to correlate 93% with the CPI, 2011 inflation in the US is trending at an 8.3% annual rate of increase. This is only comparable to China, which just happens to have a growth rate (presumably that is double that of the US), and is almost three times higher than the latest inflation data released by... Zimbabwe. Below is the most recent inverse disinflationary data confirmation from MIT (and plotted by John Lohman). By now we hope readers are honing their iPad eating skills.

• Read more: US Inflation On Track To Hit 8.3% In 2011 

The Silver Bears

:)

Supreme Court Rules Fed Must Release All Bailout Data

'The Federal Reserve will disclose details of emergency loans it made to banks in 2008, after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected an industry appeal that aimed to shield the records from public view.

The justices today left intact a court order that gives the Fed five days to release the records, sought by Bloomberg News’s parent company, Bloomberg LP. The Clearing House Association LLC, a group of the nation’s largest commercial banks, had asked the Supreme Court to intervene.'

• Read more: Fed Will Release Bank Loan Data as Top Court Rejects Appeal 

Incredibly, the dollar has lost 7.5% of its value in less than 3 months (since January 7th 2011) and more than 17% in just 8 months since August 2010

The U.S. dollar and yen are under pressure again today while gold and silver have taken breathers after yesterday’s gains (see table). Rather than gold and silver rising in price, we are seeing the continual devaluation of the U.S. dollar, the yen and all fiat currencies and thus their prices falling against the precious metals.

Incredibly, the dollar has lost 7.5% of its value in less than 3 months (since January 7th 2011) and more than 17% in just 8 months since August 2010. Hence the nominal record highs in gold and silver. The volatility and sharp falls in the dollar are leading to deepening inflation throughout the world (as seen in the UK inflation rate of 4.4% today). 

Thus, the dollar’s safe haven status is being increasingly questioned. Many market participants are worried because the dollar continues to fall despite the real risks of a recurrence of the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis, a wider military conflict in North Africa and the Middle East and a nuclear catastrophe in Japan.

As the world gradually rejects the dollar as the reserve currency of the world there is the real risk of a dollar crisis. Should the dollar fall to below 71 on the US Dollar Index (see charts), there could be a wholesale liquidation of the dollar. This could feed on itself and lead to a currency crash as was seen with the British pound in 1992.

The monetary and fiscal position of the U.S. today is many times worse than that of the UK in 1992 which makes this risk very real.

• Read more: With Gold Just 1% From Record Nominal High of $1,444/oz The Risk Of A Dollar Crisis Increases By Day

Religion may become extinct in nine nations, study says

A study using census data from nine countries shows that religion there is set for extinction, say researchers.

The study found a steady rise in those claiming no religious affiliation.

The team's mathematical model attempts to account for the interplay between the number of religious respondents and the social motives behind being one.

The result, reported at the American Physical Society meeting in Dallas, US, indicates that religion will all but die out altogether in those countries.

The team took census data stretching back as far as a century from countries in which the census queried religious affiliation: Australia, Austria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland.

• Read more: Religion may become extinct in nine nations, study says 

Here’s why major increases in the spot silver price is inevitable and unstoppable

• Silver Shortages (Again!)

As BOJ Injects Fresh ¥2 Trillion, Radiation Measured 20 km Away From Fukushima Is 1,600 Times Normal

While Japanese futures briefly flirted with another advance, they subsequently dropped by 1% to 9,450, even despite the BOJ's latest injection of 2 trillion yen, which if it continues at this rate will surpass 100 trillion yen in injections within two weeks: an unprecedented feat, even by the Federal Reserve's standards. Of particular note weighing on the markets has been the news from Kyodo that, in confirmation of our fears that zones "Under Survey" are nothing but hotbeds of unprecedented radiation, reported radiation levels are 1,600 times higher than normal 20 kilometers from the power plant. Recall that the first evacuation radius was just 10 km. Assuming a power rate of declining fall out strength, means that the radiation within the 20 km diameter circle centered on Fukushina is currently hundreds of thousands to millions of time higher than normal.
From Kyodo:

Radiation 1,600 times higher than normal levels has been detected in an area about 20 kilometers from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, International Atomic Energy Agency officials said Monday.

Data collected by an IAEA team show that radiation levels of 161 microsievert per hour have been detected in the town of Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, the officials said.

The government has set an exclusion zone covering areas within a 20-km radius of the plant and has urged people within 20 to 30 km to stay indoors.

We are eagerly awaiting the announcement from the Japanese government that the "new normal" is 1,601 greater than the old one. And that Hydrogen bonds between purines and pyrimidines, contrary to conventional wisdom, are really made of adamantium, and no amount of incremental high energy electromagnetism can possibly break them apart.

• Read more: As BOJ Injects Fresh ¥2 Trillion, Radiation Measured 20 km Away From Fukushima Is 1,600 Times Normal 

'Repugnant': U.S. army apologises for graphic photos of soldiers with civilian corpses as violence is feared in Afghanistan

 

 

• U.S. army forced to issue an apology over 'trophy' photos of soldiers grinning over bloodied Afghan corpses.
• Commanders in Afghanistan bracing themselves for public fury and possible riots
• German newspaper Der Spiegel, who obtained the photographs, said there are thousands more showing other victims

The U.S. Army has been forced to apologise over what they have deemed as 'repugnant' photographs of grinning American soldiers standing over bloodied and partially-naked Afghan bodies they had allegedly killed.

The pictures were published by German news organisation Der Spiegel and were among 4,000 they have obtained.

Meanwhile, commanders in Afghanistan are bracing themselves for a public backlash and possible riots over the 'trophy' photographs, especially since it has been alleged that the Afghan civilians were unarmed and innocent.

• Read more: 'Repugnant': U.S. army apologises for graphic photos of soldiers with civilian corpses as violence is feared in Afghanistan 

The 'coalition' says that it deployed 112 Cruise missiles against Libya on the first day of the attacks

According to official sources each missile costs nearly $600,000. Total cost on day one for Cruise missiles alone: $67 million.

At the same time, tent cities have appeared across America because the country 'does not have enough money'. 

T'was always so: Never enough money to keep people alive and in decent, dignified conditions - always enough to wage war

China Imports 245 Tonnes Of Silver In February And Qatar SWF “Interested” In Buying Silver

Gold and silver rose on the open in Asia and have continued those gains so far in European trading with the Libyan military conflict leading to a safe haven bid and falls in the dollar and yen. The all time and multiyear nominal dollar highs set on March 7th ($1,444.95/oz and $36.75/oz) look set to be challenged as gold is less than 1% from its record high and silver less than 2% from its nominal recent high.



Safe haven demand continues especially in Asia and macroeconomic and geopolitical risk remains elevated. The tragedy in Japan and possibility of an ecological catastrophe has clouded the economic picture and created even more uncertainty which will lead to continuing physical demand.

In Japan, many ATMs have not been working for days now and this is leading to safe haven demand for gold. Should efforts to sort out the ATM problem not be resolved this week it could out pressure on the already strained Japanese financial system.

• Read more: China Imports 245 Tonnes Of Silver In February And Qatar SWF “Interested” In Buying Silver 

More volunteers 'prepared for death' at Fukushima

In the scramble to avert catastrophe at the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant, selfless workers are volunteering to repeatedly endure high doses of radiation for the sake of millions of people. Even if the engineers succeed in restoring power to the plant, crippled by a giant earthquake and tsunami, they have risked permanent health damage. On Friday, Prime Minister Naoto Kan said the workers were "prepared for death".

But they have nevertheless raised their hands to return into a hellish, toxic environment to hook up power cables, inspect machinery and identify where firefighters should aim powerful hoses to cool reactors.
Self-Defense Forces and firemen have repeatedly driven trucks up to overheating reactors spewing radiation to douse them with water.

"I will work until the limit," one technician in his 30s told his employer, plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co., an official revealed in a press conference late Sunday.

• Read more: More volunteers 'prepared for death' at Fukushima 

The mayan calender is not going to end in 2012. neither will the world. But, we know the mayan calender ends THIS YEAR on the 28th of October 2011.

 

• http://nunki.nl/

• The Mayan Calendar - Carl Calleman 

2012 (its actually in October 2011)

Yemen video where a shot protester is carried along the street every 10 seconds

Total information blackout on Fukushima Unit 4 reactor raises serious questions about truth of situation

'The status of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant's Unit 4 reactor is one of the most critical aspects in determining the severity of the impending nuclear meltdown. After all, the most recent temperature readings available showed that the rods there were three times hotter than they should be, which was far worse than the other reactors at the time. And yet for several days, basic information like whether or not there is actually water left in Unit 4's cooling pool, or what the current temperature is of the spent fuel rods there, is no longer being supplied and reported, at least not accurately.'

• Read more: Total information blackout on Fukushima Unit 4 reactor raises serious questions about truth of situation 

Maddow Explains How Spent Nuclear Rods Could Be More Dangerous Than The Exploded Reactors pt.1 

 

What Can The Japanese Tsunami Teach Us About Prepping For Disasters And Emergencies?

The Japanese tsunami is a crystal clear example of just how unpredictable disasters and emergencies can be.  Nobody ever dreamed that a tsunami in Japan could wash cars, homes and people up to 6 miles inland.  But that is exactly what happened.  So while it is great to make elaborate preparations for potential disasters and emergencies, it is also absolutely essential to have backup plans.  After all, what good is all of that emergency food that you have stored up going to do if a massive tsunami comes along and rips your house off the foundation and deposits it into the sea?  Not that all of us shouldn't be busy prepping.  Of course we should be.  All over Japan right now the supermarkets are being stripped bare.  Don't you think that many of those people are wishing that they had stored up some food?  It is those that prepare that have the best chance of surviving disasters and emergencies.  No plan is foolproof, but having a plan is much better than not having a plan.

• Read more: What Can The Japanese Tsunami Teach Us About Prepping For Disasters And Emergencies? 

monday - silver rises in asian trading

Libya attack – live updates

• American and European military commanders are assessing the effect of the bombardment of Libyan targets. Overnight 110 cruise missiles were launched, and one large airbase alone is reported to have been hit with 40 bombs. "Effectively a no-fly zone has been put in place," said Mike Mullen, US chairman of the joint chiefs of staff.
• Libyan state TV has said there are 48 dead and 150 wounded from the attacks. Speaking from his Bab al-Azizia military compound on the southern outskirts of Tripoli, which was bombed in 1986, Muammar Gaddafi vowed to fight the onslaught "inch by inch". He spoke of the "glorious hours we are living" in a 15 minute speech. Thousands of his supporters have joined him at the barracks.
• China and Russia have condemned the attacks Both had abstained from the UN security council vote approving military action against Libya. The Arab League also called for a ceasefire, and the Venezuelan president, Hugo Chávez, led a chorus of protest by Libya's Latin American allies.
• Aircraft continue to arrive at Mediterranean bases from allied countries including Canada, Denmark and Spain. 

• Read more: Libya attack – live updates 

FBI Busts Mastermind Criminal For Issuing Silver Currency, Demanding Repeal Of Fed And IRS; Faces 15 Years In Prison

The FBI, which apparently has no major criminals to pursue, is now busting those who are preparing for the dollar's imminent destruction. Bernard von NotHaus, head of the National Organization for the Repeal of the Federal Reserve and Internal Revenue Code, commonly known as NORFED and also known as Liberty Services (his website can, or rather could, be seen here), which since 1998 has been issuing silver coins as a replacement for the relentlessly devaluating US currency, was convicted today by a federal jury of making, possessing, and selling his own coins. " Following an eight-day trial and less than two hours of deliberation, von NotHaus, the founder and monetary architect of a currency known as the Liberty Dollar, was found guilty by a jury in Statesville, North Carolina, of making coins resembling and similar to United States coins; of issuing, passing, selling, and possessing Liberty Dollar coins; of issuing and passing Liberty Dollar coins intended for use as current money; and of conspiracy against the United States." The devious scheme for which von NotHaus faces up to 15 years jail time: "NORFED’s purpose was to mix Liberty Dollars into the current money of the United States. NORFED intended for the Liberty Dollar to be used as current money in order to limit reliance on, and to compete with, United States currency." In other words make the US currency less credible. We are confident the Chairsatan will take this shining example of what happens to "counterfeiters" of US currency to heart, and promply proceed to release another cool trillion in green 75% cotton/25% linen products, forcing US jails to promptly fill up with millions of subversive elements who no longer wish to interact with the former reserve currency.

• Read more: FBI Busts Mastermind Criminal For Issuing Silver Currency, Demanding Repeal Of Fed And IRS; Faces 15 Years In Prison 

U.S. House Floor: Ron Paul on Afghanistan 03/17/11

ZeroHedge Guest Post: The Return Of Precious Metals And Sound Money

Well, those devious gold bugs and sound money advocates are at it again! They had the audacity to produce economic analysis that consistently outshines and embarrasses mainstream Keynesian pundits. They had the nerve to expose the seedy underpinnings of the private Federal Reserve. They even had the gall to bring the long established short manipulations of metals markets by global banks like JP Morgan and HSBC into the light of day, where anyone whose head was not buried in the dark recesses of their own colon could see and say “My god! There really is an organized cabal against gold and silver!” But if you thought all that was outrageous, these people, who promote the insane notion that our currency should actually be backed by tangible wealth and should be under the control of the voting public instead of some unaccountable parasitic corporate central bank, have now brought state legislators into the mix! The return to sound money has begun…

• Read more: Guest Post: The Return Of Precious Metals And Sound Money 

Free Money Friday – Yentervention – G7 Style!

What a manipulated joke the markets are!
Of course, that’s why we love them, right?  But, sometimes, even when we’re playing along – the manipulation we see is so sickening, we still feel the need to declare SHENANIGANS!  On Wednesday evening, against all possible logic and on no volume at all – the Yen future ROSE (up is down), blowing past the 79.75 record high against the Dollar that had held since 1995, all the way to 76.65 DESPITE the FACT that it had already been signaled that the BOJ was ready to step in to support the Yen at around 80.

Why did this happen then?  This is what we call a flush and it’s what the manipulators do ahead of reversals to flush out as many stops as they can.  By triggering the stops of other bullish betters, they force them to sell – lowering their entry price and by triggering new, lower levels, they also entice short player to take up new positions.

•  Read more: Free Money Friday – Yentervention – G7 Style!

Secret Iran Gold Holdings Leaked: Tehran Holds Same Amount Of Gold As United Kingdom, And Is Buying More

While it will not come as a major surprise to most, according to senior BOE individuals and Wikileaks, Iran, as well as Qatar and Jordan have been actively purchasing gold well over the amount reported to and by the IMF, in an accelerated attempt to diversify their holdings away from the US dollar. "Iran has bought large amounts of gold in the international market, according to a senior Bank of England official, in a sign of how growing political pressure has driven Tehran to reduce its exposure to the US dollar. Andrew Bailey, head of banking at the Bank of England, told an American official that the central bank had observed “significant moves by Iran to purchase gold”, according to a US diplomatic cable obtained by WikiLeaks and seen by the Financial Times." The reason for Tehran's scramble into gold: "an attempt by Iran to protect its reserves from risk of seizure”. The misrepresentation of Iran's holdings could be so vast that Iran could possibly be one of the largest holders of goldin the world. "Market observers believe Tehran has been one of the biggest buyers of bullion over the past decade after China, Russia and India, and is among the 20 largest holders of gold reserves... with an alleged 300 tons, big enough to challenge the UK at 310 tons, and more than Spain! " As a reminder according to the WGC, Iran is not even disclosed as an official holder of gold. Also, Iran is not the only one: "Cables obtained by WikiLeaks cite Jordan’s prime minister as saying the central bank was “instructed to increase its holdings” of gold, and a Qatar Investment Authority official as saying the QIA was interested in buying gold and silver." Which means that there is far more marginal demand by countries supposedly friendly to the dollar, as many more than previously expected are actively dumping linen and buying bullion. What all this means for the future price of gold, especially with geopolitical tension in the region,  and QE3 imminent, is rather self-evident.

• Read more: Secret Iran Gold Holdings Leaked: Tehran Holds Same Amount Of Gold As United Kingdom, And Is Buying More 

Note each cruise missile contains approx. 15kg of silver in wiring, contacts, solder and batteries. The more silver the SLA talkes off the market, the less bombs and missiles can be fired. BUY! BUY! BUY! so they can’t bomb! bomb! bomb!

•  1650kg of Silver fired at Libya to enable No-Fly Zone

MaxKeiser: Isn’t peace worth $200 an Oz.?





MK: $500 silver transfers all the wealth the banks stole – back to you guys. It takes silver off the market that can be used to build bombs. It drops JPM’s stock price to zero. And it gets rid of fiat paper and the Fed. And we have the power to make this happen. There are only 1/2 billion Oz.’s of Silver available. That’s less than $17 bn., about the same as the amount of junk and crap sold on an average day.

Ultimate Loyalty: Japanese Dog Refuses to Leave Injured Friend Behind

Peter Schiff - Japan Is Doing Everything Wrong

Peter Schiff : Japan continues to do Everything Wrong .This will not be a boom to the Japanese economy. Japan lost 30% of its energy resources. Many parts of Japan now face controlled blackouts. Japan's supply chain is also in disarray. With all of this happening, please explain how the Japanese Yen can rise against the dollar since the horrific events that have stricken Japan.
Gold and silver are being taken down. Just get ready to buy, and wait it out. In a few years, sell your commodities, and invest in the stockmarket. It's a simple and easy to follow no fail formula. Stop trying to save morons from themselves, and start taking advantage of them instead.

TEPCO Director Weeps After Disclosing Truth About Fukushima Disaster

The Daily Mail has released a dramatic picture showing the emotional exhaustion of TEPCO managing director Akio Komori who is openly weeping as he leaves a conference to brief journalists on the true situation at Fukushima, following his acknowledgment that the radiation spewing from the over-heating reactors and fuel rods was enough to kill some citizens. "A senior Japanese minister also admitted that the country was overwhelmed by the scale of the tsunami and nuclear crisis. He said officials should have admitted earlier how serious the radiation leaks were. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said: 'The unprecedented scale of the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan, frankly speaking, were among many things that happened that had not been anticipated under our disaster management contingency plans." This is precisely as Zero Hedge had expected would happen all along, following our recurring allegations of a massive cover up by the Japanese government. And furthermore as we predicted a week ago when we said that continued government lies and subversions would make the situation untenable once the population loses faith in the government, this is precisely what has happened.

A contrite Komiri crying after he discloses the truth:

• Read more: TEPCO Director Weeps After Disclosing Truth About Fukushima Disaster

Catchya Later USD

Japan earthquake: the exodus of Tokyo

"We are evacuating Tokyo," she said. "We are going to Hiroshima because it will be much safer there." She and husband Toshi, 40, had packed a huge suitcase full of clothes for their daughters Kathy, seven, Karen, two, and Noa, one, and didn't plan to return for at least 10 days.

"The government is hiding what's really happened," Mrs Nakayama said angrily. "It is windy today, and if the wind comes south the fallout will reach Tokyo. We have to get out. My friends are all worried too and many of them are also leaving."

As she spoke an exodus of women clutching small children and large bags was taking shape around her. "We are adults, and maybe we would be OK, but for the children the nuclear effects will be terrible," Mrs Nakayama said.

At the city's Narita Airport a queue for departures snaked for 200 yards with people lining up three abreast.

• Read more: Japan earthquake: the exodus of Tokyo 

Obama tells Americans: Do NOT prepare for radioactive fallout, just listen to your government

'In a truly incredible example of the complete disregard for the health and safety of the American people, President Obama today told Americans that they should NOT prepare for radiation from the possible meltdown of the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan. His exact quote: "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and public health experts do not recommend people in the U.S. take precautionary measures beyond staying informed."

In other words, Americans should do nothing other than listen to their government. Don't buy potassium iodide pills (even though the U.S. Surgeon General has already urged people to do so), don't fuel up your automobiles in case you need to evacuate California, don't store some extra food and water... basically, don't worry! There's no problem! Obama says so!'

• Read more: Obama tells Americans: Do NOT prepare for radioactive fallout, just listen to your government 

Everybody Knows The Bernank Is a Joke

As YouTube and other digital media move beyond computer-savvy young people into the ranks of even stodgy businessmen, these subversive outlets become serious problems for the ruling elite. This trend is epitomized by the radical change in the Federal Reserve's image. In just a few short years, the Fed has transformed in public opinion from a mysterious, wise, and boring institution into a fascinating engine of corruption and comedy.

• Read more: Everybody Knows Bernanke Is a Joke 

Quantitative Easing Explained