We Have Moved the Blog

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In order to enhance our readers news experience, we have moved the current “nakedempire” to a different address (listed below) we call it nakedempire2.

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And now without further adieu we bring you nakedempire2

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Thank you for your cooperation and for reading nakedempire.

-The nakedempire team

‘Japanese earthquake stirred South Florida waters’

“The earthquake and tsunami in Japan was felt thousands of miles away in South Florida’s water table.”

Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/03/19/2123485/japanese-earthquake-stirred-south.html#ixzz1H5WZ0uwf

Is Mt. Fuji at Risk?

“The 1707-1708 eruption is the one that has some people concerned about what Fuji might have in store. On October 26, 1707, Honshu was struck by a M8.4 earthquake and less than 2 months later, on December 16, 1707, Fuji began eruptin. The initial eruption was explosive ash and puma, but within hours of starting the eruption became basaltic fountaining from a flank vent. Over the next few weeks, Fuji erupted ~0.68 km3 of material before the eruption ended at the start of 1708. The magma erupted during this eruption was decidedly mixed – from basalt to dacite – suggesting that it was fed by multiple magma sources. Ash from this eruption reached as far as Tokyo. If you look at the eruptive history of Fuji and the record of major earthquakes in Japan, you can see there isn’t any real correlation between the two, so trying to connect the October 26, 1707 earthquake with the December 1707 eruption at Fuji is likely tenuous at best.”

a must read with many links, maps and photos:

http://bigthink.com/ideas/31631

a short video of the beautiful but dangerous mountain

‘Mega-Banks and the Next Financial Crisis’

the country cant and wont heal until these bankers are put in jail…..

“At the height of the housing bubble, hedge-fund manager Paul Singer was shorting subprime mortgages. By the spring of 2007, he was warning regulators on both sides of the Atlantic that the world was facing a major financial crisis.

They ignored him. Now the founder of Elliott Management says the biggest banks are headed for another credit meltdown. Among the likely triggers for the next crisis, Mr. Singer sees one leading candidate: Monetary policy “is extremely risky,” he says, “the risk being massive inflation.”

a must read from the WSJ:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703899704576204594093772576.html

‘Military assets in play in Libya crisis’

a list of what each country would contribute including Libya……

read it here:

http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE72I0BY20110319

More Satellite Images of the Tsunami

from space.com:

http://www.space.com/11140-japan-tsunami.html

Where are the Worlds Nuclear Reactors?

“As Japan struggles to bring the stricken Fukushima Daiichi site under control, and politicians worldwide debate the future of nuclear energy, it’s a good time to take stock of the current inventory of reactors. Roll over the circles to find out more about each site, and use the controls on the right to home in on what interests you.”

read it here:

http://www.newscientist.com/embedded/nuclear-reactor-map

‘Chinese Leadership Fears Its Own People’

what are the chinese so afraid of?

“Beijing is making sure Chinese pro-democracy activists, who have called for their own “Jasmine Revolution,” do not succeed in emulating their North African counterparts. The leadership’s crackdown borders on paranoia, but the Communist Party knows that the economic miracle that maintains social stability is at risk.”

read it here:

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,751467,00.html

BOOK REVIEW: ‘Merchant Kings’

a book review from the washington times……….

“For three centuries commencing about 1600, much of the world’s commerce was controlled by what one could call “privatized imperialism” in the form of six privately owned trading companies granted state monopolies and operating beyond any independent control.”

read it here:

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/mar/18/book-review-merchant-kings/?page=1

Update Libya…………….

update on events in libya

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8390035/Libya-Live.html

‘The megaquake connection: Are huge earthquakes linked?’

another earthquake rattles japan overnite……….

“We are in a cluster right now and it’s centred on Japan,” says Stein. “Japan could be in for other big quakes in the wake of this one. That part we should agree on.”

read it here:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20928043.000-the-megaquake-connection-are-huge-earthquakes-linked.html

read about the earthquake here:

http://en.rian.ru/world/20110319/163094252.html

‘The Small Tunisian Town that Sparked the Arab Revolution’

“On Dec. 17, 2010, a fruit seller named Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire after a dispute with a government official. His act triggered the Arab Revolution. Why did it begin in a small Tunisian city? And how have local residents reacted to their new freedoms?”

a must read:

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,751278,00.html

‘The Other Global Toxic Cloud: China’s Pollution’

“Mercury, sulfates, ozone, black carbon, flu-laced desert dust. Even as America 
tightens emission standards, the 
fast-growing economies of Asia 
are filling the air with hazardous components that 
circumnavigate the globe.”

read it here:

http://discovermagazine.com/2011/apr/18-made-in-china-our-toxic-imported-air-pollution

must see photo essay: “China’s big dam problem”:

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/03/08/chinas_big_dam_problem

 

‘Japan’s quake: Why California is next’

oh boy……..

“There was a horrifically destructive Pacific earthquake in New Zealand on Feb. 22, and an even more violent magnitude-8.8 event in Chile almost exactly a year before. All three phenomena involved more or less the same family of circum-Pacific fault lines and plate boundaries…. Now there have been catastrophic events at three corners of the Pacific Plate — one in the Northwest, on Friday; one in the Southwest, last month; one in the Southeast, last year.”

read it here:

http://theweek.com/article/index/213125/japans-quake-why-california-is-next

ring of fire map from USGS:

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/

‘Japan Tsunami, Before & After: Zoomable Satellite Images’

WOW…………….must see

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/03/110316-zoom-satellite-pictures-japan-tsunami-earthquake-world-before-after/

‘France is collapsing,’ Le Pen says

sounds familiar………so is Ireland, Britain, America, Spain, Portugal and all the other western colonial powers………..

“France is collapsing because of a French president who is no longer running anything, who is governing on impulse or emotion, depending on the circumstances. And France’s interests and image have suffered for it.”

read it here:

http://www.france24.com/en/20110317-there-are-still-lot-french-people-who-have-totally-caricatured-vision-national-front

‘King boosts handouts and security’

here is $91 billion…..dont protest

“Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah has unveiled social benefits worth 91 billion dollars and plans to boost his security forces in the latest effort to stave off the type of unrest that has rattled neighbouring countries in the Arab world.”

read it here:

http://www.france24.com/en/20110318-king-abdullah-unveils-social-benefit-package-boosts-security-saudi-arabia

‘Obama urged to support Guarani Indians during trip to Brazi’

interesting website:

http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/7098

Brazil sends troops to Jirau Dam after protests:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704608504576208640384691826.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

http://www.dams-info.org/en/dams/view/jirau/

‘Yemen declares ‘state of emergency’

as the world burns…………..

video and text here:

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/03/2011318115434957754.html

on Inflation and Hyperinflation

the word inflation seems to be everywhere, for those wanting more information on this topic we bring you the following articles from around the web

“Inflation hits diaper market”

Huggies maker Kimberly-Clark (KMB 63.83, +0.57, +0.90%)  said Thursday it is hiking average selling prices by 3% to 7% in the U.S. and Canada on its Huggies diapers and baby wipes, Pull-Ups training pants and GoodNites youth pants. The price increase goes into effect June 19.
Dallas-based Kimberly-Clark said it’s raising prices to “offset inflationary pressure from higher raw materials and energy costs.”

from market watch:

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/inflation-hits-diaper-market-2011-03-17

………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Inflation and doom-mongering

“And this collapse in the dollar stuff ignores the fact that other currencies have lots of problems; the yen (clearly); the euro (wiith peripheral countries); and sterling (Britain has as big a debt problem as the US). So why should the dollar lose reserve currency status imminently? (I agree in the long term, there is a threat, but this could take decades as the Chinese renminbi becomes convertible.)”

from the economist:

http://www.economist.com/blogs/buttonwood/2011/03/inflation_and_doom-mongering

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

U.S. Dollar Collapse Could Occur at Any Time

“So few Americans are presently preparing for hyperinflation that if hyperinflation broke out today, approximately 90% of Americans won’t have the means to put food on the table or put fuel in their automobiles. During the upcoming hyperinflationary crisis, food stamps will no longer have any value at all and all U.S. entitlement programs will come to a complete halt. Americans will take to the streets like the world has never seen before.”

from the national inflation association:

http://www.inflation.us/

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Ron Paul Predicts Hyper-Inflation, Says “Dollar Will Be Rejected As Reserve Currency Of The World”

“The outspoken Congressman offers a simple antidote to hyperinflation. “Stop printing money.” He continues, “I remember in the seventies when we got off the gold standard and immediately had oil embargos. We said the Arabs caused our inflation. They contributed to the chaos, but they didn’t cause the inflation. Oil never went back to $5 a barrel once it broke out because thevalue of the dollar went down. So if anybody is concerned about high prices they need to understand monetary policy.”

from the street:

http://www.thestreet.com/story/11041675/1/ron-paul-predicts-hyper-inflation-says-dollar-will-be-rejected-as-reserve-currency-of-the-world.html

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

QE: Hyper-Inflation to Oblivion

“Prepare for QE to infinity, endless hyper-inflation, a process that cannot be stopped, as the urgent needs grows. Any attempt to halt the process results in almost immediate total annihilation. So continuation of QE rounds serves to manage the deterioration process and guide the financial structures gradually and orderly into oblivion.”

from goldseek:

http://news.goldseek.com/GoldenJackass/1299704400.php

………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Inflation and the fall of The Roman Empire (Joseph R Peden)

from mises.org

Some Links to Japan

for those wanting more information and a perspective from japan, we bring you the following links, just enough to get you started……..

a map showing the prefecture’s and their proximity to Tokyo:

http://www.wa.commufa.jp/~eigo4all/maps/japan.html

some blogs from japan with pictures and stories of the quake and its aftermath, some of the pictures i have seen, some i have not (some blogs contain adult content):

http://suiseisekisuisui.blog107.fc2.com/blog-entry-1679.html

http://www.wordpress.tokyotimes.org/

http://www.dannychoo.com/ (thousands of pics of Japan and its culture)

http://www.japanprobe.com/

http://www.ofriceandzen.org/

http://www.japandemic.com/

a major on-line paper from the Sendai area, Google chrome had no problems translating:……..http://www.kahoku.co.jp/

‘Pakistan outraged over civilian deaths in US drone strike’

“We will definitely take revenge for this carnage. We are the people who do not forgive their enemy even after one hundred years. We will definitely take revenge for the blood of our brothers,’ he said.”

“The attack came as Islamist and conservative political parties held rallies to protest the release of a US citizen previously charged with murder for shooting two people in Lahore in January.”

read it here:

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/southasia/news/article_1627098.php/Pakistan-outraged-over-civilian-deaths-in-US-drone-strike

‘The Politics Of China’s Military Spending And Its Long Term Consequences’

“The international community no longer believes what China says or claims. They want proof and transparency in China’s defence policy, and this is not forthcoming at all. This should answer China’s question why other countries are critical about China’s military modernization.”

read it here:

http://www.eurasiareview.com/analysis/the-politics-of-china%E2%80%99s-military-spending-and-its-long-term-consequences-17032011/

The View from Russia: ‘American unrest descends on Washington’

“Unrest that began in Wisconsin has arrived in Washington. Workers and activists took to the streets and expressed their frustration over the economy, the US government inaction and the widening wealth gap.”

video and text here:

http://rt.com/usa/news/american-unrest-descends-washington/

Link to news on Japan

read it here:

http://www.newsonjapan.com/

Japanese Driver captures moment Tsunami hit

‘Canada to send six CF-18s for Libya ‘no-fly’ mission’

“The Canadian government has made the decision late today that Canada will send six CF-18 fighter jets to join the Americans, the British and the French and other countries that will participate in imposing a no-fly zone,” CTV’s Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife reported Thursday.”

read it here:

http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/TopStories/20110317/cf-libya-canada/

‘France sends iodine tablets to Pacific in wake of Japanese Crisis’

“The French government is sending a stock of iodine tablets to its overseas territories of the Pacific – as a “preventive measure” in response to the Japanese nuclear power plant crisis.”

read it here:

http://pacific.scoop.co.nz/2011/03/france-sends-iodine-tablets-to-pacific-in-wake-of-japanese-nuclear-crisis/

‘Everyone at the power plant is battling on, without running away’

“The daughter of one of the workers wrote on Twitter in a message translated by US television network ABC: “My dad went to the Nuclear Plant. I never heard my mother cry so hard. People at the plant are struggling, sacrificing themselves to protect you. Please dad come back alive.”

hero’s indeed…….read more here:

http://www.smh.com.au/environment/energy-smart/everyone-at-the-power-plant-is-battling-on-without-running-away-20110318-1bztj.html

Repost: Maps of War 5000 Years of History in 90 Seconds

as war with libya is now certain, we bring to you again “Maps of War”, 5000 years of history in 90 seconds

view it here:

http://www.mapsofwar.com/ind/imperial-history.html

Washington State: ‘State revenue projection just got $698 million worse’

“State officials now estimate the two-year budget shortfall at around $5.1 billion and say it could reach $6 billion. Gov. Chris Gregoire’s budget office previously estimated a shortfall of around $4.6 billion when she released her plan to cut spending back in December.”

$6 billion?………….thats a lot of potatoes……..read it here:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2014523589_forecast18m.html

‘Forecast: Almost half the USA at risk for spring flooding’

“The Upper Midwest isn’t the only region expected to see potentially catastrophic flooding over the next few weeks. Almost half the USA, including much of the Midwest, Northeast and all the way down the Mississippi River Valley to New Orleans, has an above-average risk for spring flooding, according to a forecast issued by the National Weather Service on Thursday.”

read more here:

http://www.usatoday.com/weather/floods/2011-03-17-usa-spring-flooding-forecast_N.htm

‘Japan nuclear crisis could last for weeks, U.S. nuclear official says’

“The nuclear crisis in Japan could last for weeks, the chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Thursday.”

“Still, officials are not concerned about harmful radiation levels coming to the United States.”

read it here:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fgw-japan-quake-nrc-20110318,0,2353640.story

‘Cable reaches Japan nuclear plant’

“Engineers at Japan’s stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant have successfully connected a power line to reactor 2, the UN’s nuclear watchdog reports.”

lets hope it works……..read it here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12779512

Russia: ‘India and China to be invited to the Arctic’

“According to the US Geological Service, the regions that already belong to Russia or that Russia lays claims on contain hydrocarbons equivalent to over 250 billion barrels of oil. This is 60.1% of the total Arctic deposits. Experts are convinced that the near future will see increasing interest in getting involved in the development of the Russian Arctic shelf on the part of foreign companies. In this connection, China’s interest is quite understandable if we take the rate of its industrial growth into consideration, Gennady Shmal believes.”

read it here:

http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/03/17/47566122.html

‘China Challenges US Predominance in Asia-Pacific’

“China already has an innate geographical advantage in any conflict in the west Pacific. One expert posits that with its military buildup, China could conquer Taiwan by the end of the decade even if the US military intervened.”

read it here:

http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=20892

‘Bahrain in epicenter of a cold war between Saudi Arabia and Iran’

“Interview with Guido Steinberg , expert with the German Institute for International and Security Affairs.”

text and video here:

http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/03/17/47573970.html

Middle East/North Africa Tensions…..

Llbya

The Obama administration pressed Thursday for greater United Nations authority to confront Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi’s forces by land, air and sea, while insisting that Arab governments play a central role in any possible military action.

land, air and sea?…………….sounds like more than a “no fly zone”….read it here:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/as-gaddafi-gains-wests-window-closes/2011/03/16/ABlGYNh_story.html

Bahrain

Checkpoints remained common throughout the city. Saudi troops in armored personnel carriers were positioned outside the country’s embassy in Manama’s diplomatic area. Saudi Arabia sent hundreds of soldiers into Bahrain on Monday at the government’s request, but the Saudi forces have remained largely out of sight.

from the latimes:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-bahrain-aftermath-20110318,0,3560918.story

‘Riots in Pakistan after double murder-accused Davis ‘buys’ freedom’

“The police also badly tortured a reporting crew of a news channel while they were covering the protests live from the site.”

“Davis’ release sparked countrywide angry protests, and a large number of protesters – mostly belonging to religious and opposition political parties – converged outside the Lahore Press Club soon after the local media flashed the news.”

read more here:

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Riots-in-Pak-after-double-murder-accused-Davis-buys-freedom/H1-Article1-674403.aspx

for more background on this story please read here:

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/features/2011/03/2011317131348571552.html

‘Secret Fears of the Super-Rich’

“Does great wealth bring fulfillment? An ambitious study by Boston College suggests not. For the first time, researchers prompted the very rich—people with fortunes in excess of $25 million—to speak candidly about their lives. The result is a suprising litany of anxieties: their sense of isolation, their worries about work and love, and most of all, their fears for their children.”

from the atlantic:

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/04/secret-fears-of-the-super-rich/8419/

‘Panoramic image shows the damage in Kesennuma, Japan’

tips to zerohedge for the link…….. as readers will notice, zerohedge is the only economic news blog featured on nakedempire.

see the panoramic here:

http://photoblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/03/16/6284477-panoramic-image-shows-the-damage-in-kesennuma-japan

‘West should ‘go beyond’ no-fly zone, US says’

oh boy……….another 10 yr war?………
“The US has signalled that the international community should “go beyond” a no-fly zone in Libya, suggesting military intervention for the first time.”

read it here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8388075/West-should-go-beyond-no-fly-zone-US-says.html

Revealed: ‘US spy operation that manipulates social media’

“The US military is developing software that will let it secretly manipulate social media using fake online personas designed to influence internet conversations and spread pro-American propaganda.”

read it here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/mar/17/us-spy-operation-social-networks

News Link Japan

direct print news from japan:

http://www.newsonjapan.com/

‘The Chinese Cozy Up to the Pakistanis’

“Beijing is understandably challenging a century of U.S. dominance in the Pacific and the South China Sea immediately adjacent to its shores. But the aggressive effort to block Indian hegemony in South Asia, reflected in its growing ties with Pakistan and its territorial claim to the adjacent northeast state of Arunachal Pradesh (for which there is no historical basis) is more ominous.”

read it here:

http://nationalinterest.org/commentary/chinese-cozy-up-pakistanis-5027

‘5,000 rally at Michigan Capitol’

more and more people are protesting in lansing………

read it here:

http://www.freep.com/article/20110317/NEWS15/103170557/5-000-rally-Michigan-Capitol?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

‘States and cities face more rating cuts’: Moody’s

oh boy……….

“U.S. states, cities, towns and other issuers of municipal debt likely will suffer more credit downgrades than upgrades in 2011, with the overall outlook negative for the third straight year, Moody’s Investors Service said on Thursday.”

read it here:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/17/us-municipals-moodys-idUSTRE72G0QT20110317

‘White House appears reluctant to take hard line with Arab monarchies’

“As Persian Gulf monarchs forcibly suppress street protests in the kingdom of Bahrain, the Obama administration has responded mostly with mild or muted objections — a sharp contrast from its demands for new governments in the republics of Egypt and Libya.”

read it here:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/white-house-appears-reluctant-to-take-hard-line-with-arab-monarchies/2011/03/16/ABpbVMh_story.html?hpid=z3

‘India’s Quiet Counter-China Strategy’

“The devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck north-eastern Japan last week may well delay a proposed naval exercise between India, the United States and Japan scheduled for early April. But irrespective of when it takes place, Exercise Malabar will see the Japanese Navy involved for the second year running in this joint India-US exercise.”

read it here:

http://the-diplomat.com/2011/03/16/india%E2%80%99s-quiet-counter-china-strategy-2/

‘In Admiration of the Japanese’

“The Japanese during this difficult time not only deserve our sympathy and support but also have something to teach us.” AMEN….read it here:

http://nationalinterest.org/blog/civil-society/admiration-the-japanese-5028