Leith Community portal, edinburgh, eh16, Leith, Persevere

The debt markets in the US and Europe have begun to flash warning signals yet again, raising fears that the global credit crisis could be entering another turbulent phase.

The cost of insuring against default on the bonds of Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch and other big banks and brokerages has surged over the last two weeks, threatening to reach the stress levels seen before the Bear Stearns debacle. Spreads on inter-bank Libor and Euribor rates in Europe are back near record levels. for more click here

Slaughter in Sudan’s Darfur region, violent repression in Zimbabwe, attacks on opponents of Burma’s military rulers – all continue unchecked 60 years after the United Nations adopted a Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

And, says Amnesty International, world leaders should apologize for six decades of failure to protect millions of vulnerable people. for more click here

Some may view ex-White House press secretary Scott McClellan’s new book as vindication for those who took grief – accused of “derangement,” “treason” and a bunch of less-printable things – for calling George W. Bush a liar over the past eight years. for more click here

May. 24, 2008 | As a former federal defender, I’ve been to countless court hearings, but Wednesday was the first time I had to take a speedboat, equipped with two M2 50-caliber machine guns, to get to court. That’s because Wednesday was also my first experience with the military commissions at the Guantánamo Bay Naval Base, where the U.S. government is putting 15 terror suspects on trial. for more click here

(New York, May 28, 2008) – The Egyptian government’s abrupt extension by two years of the country’s decades-old state of emergency shows contempt for the rule of law, Human Rights Watch said today. Parliament rushed through the extension on May 26 with little debate and despite vociferous objections from the opposition and rights groups. for more click here

A one billion dollar lawsuit against YouTube threatens internet freedom, according to its owner Google.

Google’s claim follows Viacom’s move to sue the video sharing service for its inability to keep copyrighted material off its site. for more click here

More than 100 nations have reached an agreement on a treaty which would ban current designs of cluster bombs.

Diplomats meeting in Dublin agreed to back an international ban on the use of the controversial weapons following 10 days of talks. for more click here

The families of five British men being held hostage in Iraq are marking a year without their loved ones.

The civilian contractors were kidnapped by armed militants at the Iraqi Ministry of Finance in Baghdad. for more click here

House prices have recorded their largest monthly fall since 1991, says the Nationwide building society.

Prices have fallen by 2.5% during May, according to its latest monthly survey. for more click here

Thank goodness for MoneyWeek, that’s all I can say. Because, aside from a couple of noble souls at the Daily Telegraph, nobody else in the mainstream media gets it.

I listened to various experts talk for over thirty minutes on Radio 5’s afternoon show last week about the high oil price. Not one mentioned Peak Oil. Not one mentioned out-of-control money supply. Not one mentioned increasing Asian demand…

Yes, oil is overbought. Yes, oil is going to correct at some stage. But let’s get this clear – it’s not a bubble.
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