ITR - Help Needed Now - Messages of Spirit from ~ Atlantis USA for InTouchRadio.net UK GLOBAL

Atlantis


Hi Michael

Here is Mark's blog if you could just do with it whatever you deem best. What he is really looking for is Sponsors for the unique opportunity of being part of his venture. He is paying for the whole trip out of his own pocket, so the sponsorship is really for the Prayer Flag/Certificate and helping The Childrens' Welfare System.

I sent a copy to Pip also as she was looking for it, and I appreciate both your efforts with this.

Many blessings for all you do. - Atlantis

InTouchRadio.net's main interest and founding belief is to bring our World's peoples together as One Family...

We support all in their endeavors to make that so.

I, Michael here in the UK ask that you in some way help Mark realise his dream and that you delve into your consciousness and support him - the deeper you dig the greater your support will take him - it's your World, your Family - We Are All One Family and as Politics and Power Religions fall by the wayside allowing the Truth to Flow then the True Faith of Humanity Will be Yours and Your Belief will be Untouched by Others.

Let me tell you how Messages of Spirit came about.

It is a Spiritual journey and story that is at present in motion!

As a Qigong teacher, I have been commited to trying to be as aware as I possibly can of where consciousness is leading me and showing me the opportunities that will give me the life experience I need to further my inner development.

I believe that this awareness lets us see the 'signs/omens that we have the choice to follow or not. I do not believe in what we call 'coincidence' , everything happens for a reason, and that is that consciousness is showing us constantly The Way, that we are asking for!

I was in that position only a short while ago, I was finding it difficult to be connected for any decent length of time and was becoming a little frustrated with myself. Aproaching 40 and was needing a little adventure/experience I think :)

This is how Messages of Spirit began.

My partner and I had just returned from England being at a family wedding of my uncle Terry and his new wife Nadia. The party after the service was in a Marquee in my mothers garden, which is the last house on the way up the hill. The reason I am telling you this is because it was on this weekend (my awareness has recently realised) that I was subconsciously being made aware of what was to come.
The monday after the wedding Terry and I took my mothers dog, 'Leo', (Tibetan Mountain Lion dog) for a walk up the hill. When we got there we saw that someone had left a Tibetan prayer flag wrapped round a bush, with a notice saying that this was put here on the 22nd of August 2008 (the day Terry and Nadia were married) and they had also left a waterproof container with little white flags with string on and marker pens for others to write their own message and hang to the bush and prayer flags.
Terry and I did this and while writing our messages Leo began to whine and moan like he was talking, now normally he is a quiet dog, so we both thought this strange that he was doing this, then I joked with Terry saying that he was from Tibet and these are Tibetan prayer flags. We laughed thinking maybe the dog was giving Terry a message as he had just got married. Now I realise that it was probably more for me to take notice of.

When Lorna and I got back to Holland after the wedding weekend I was feeling frustrated again and low on energy. My partner and best friend, (Lorna) urged me to just go for it, take some time out for myself for once!
The only thing at the time that I really wanted to do and had a growing passion for the last 6 months was to learn to paraglide. I had watched them on the hill behind my mothers house each time I had been over to visit and so started looking into courses in England.
Knowing that it would be difficult to get 10 good days weather to sit the course in one go during the winter months I searched online and found a paragliding team/club in India called the Temple Pilots. After pricing the airfares and cost of the course which was working out cheaper that doing it in England I gathered up every bit of savings I had and went ahead and booked the flights and the course with the Temple Pilots. They also arranged my lodgings for the duration of the course, in a cottage at a riding school. ( remember this)

My frustration diminished and was replaced with excitement and happiness that I had taken a step to gaining an experience that will further my own development. From the first time I saw paragliders in the sky I felt that it must be a thrilling yet very Spiritual experience to fly with only the element of Air, just like a bird I thought. And now I had taken a step to doing it for myself. This will also be my first time out of Europe.
This was only 3 weeks ago that I took this descision for myself, then within 24 hrs of having booked everything I was meditating again, the awareness of my connection with consciousness I felt was strong once more, and I started to see a path that I felt I was to follow.
I was going to be in India so why not expand the trip, take some time out for myself and go and visit the 4 main sites of Buddha after the paragliding course and spend some time meditating there.

It meant that I would be away from my partner, family and friends over Christmas and New Year, but again I felt that this was something I was meant to do for myself. Again my partner Lorna was 100% behind me and encouraged me to follow the feelings and thoughts that were making me feel alive!

I went to the local bookshop hoping that they had an english selection (remember I live in Holland) of Travel books for India and Nepal, and to my amazement, I kid you not, the only 2 english books for these area in the whole travel section were the lonely planet guide to India and Nepal. Another sign,, it was meant to be, and I felt so exhilirated that I was following my awareness and things were beginning to happen.

I meditated again that evening and again felt very much connected with consciousness/source.
This was when I believe that the beginning of Messages of Spirit had my ears and full mindful attention.
My Message from Spirit (consciousness) was to obtain 100 original Prayer Flags and take them to Nepal with 100 other Messages of Spirit and to have them blessed in each of the 4 main Buddha sites that I would be visiting, before hanging them up at The World Peace Pagoda in Nepal.

This was the first Message of Spirit!

My trip had now developed into a sort of 'mission' and much bigger responsibility, both of which I had felt very happy to have the honour of undertaking and accomplishing.

I now felt that the energy of this journey had a more significant factor to it than only learn to paraglide! This awareness was leading me somewhere, a journey that at this moment is yet to begin.

Within a couple of days the whole plan and reason for the journey was taking shape. My trip was already paid for and the flags were on there way to me, made and blessed by Refugee Tibetan Monks in Nepal.

Remember the lodging the temple Pilots had arranged? The Riding school?
Last week it flashed through me as another sign to be very aware of. The course that the plan had originated from,,remember this was all arranged before the first Message of Spirit I had in meditation of taking 100 Tibetan "Windhorse" Prayer flags.
Paragliding - (Wind)
with the ..Temple Pilots, (Buddha Temples)
Lodgings, they arrranged, - Riding school, - (Horses)
Not to mention Leo (The tibetan mountain Lion dog) and the prayer flags being hung up on a bush at the top of the hill behind my mothers house, that probaly started it all subconsciously.

I know that this journey will produce many more moments of awareness and experiences that will make this journey very special this december. Thats why, all along the journey I will be filming, writing and keeping up this blog so that you can keep up to date with your flag and the journey it is making with me.

The two most special reasons why you can be part of this journey, is that you will be contributing to the positive energy with your very own Message of Spirit for you, your loved ones and all of creation, connecting it with the Windhorse Prayer flag that you can sponsor. Its this energy that makes the difference and helps to balance out the negative energy that those not yet aware enough to understand the power of their thoughts/actions create.

(check out what Abraham says about this energy that we all have):
"Because others cannot vibrate in your experience, they cannot affect the outcome of your experience. They can hold their opinions, but unless their opinion affects your opinion, their opinion matters not at all. A million people could be pushing against you and it would not negatively affect you unless you push back. That million people pushing against you are affecting their millions of vibrations. They are affecting what happens in their experience. They are affecting their point of attraction, but it does not affect you unless you push against them. "

I believe that this is an opportunity for 100 of us to contribute in our positive and mindful sense to affect that point of attraction in the favour of well being for everything on our planet, not by pushing against it, but by offering and showing a gesture of peace and love for all, with a Message of Spirit Prayer flag this New Year 2009.

The second special reason for sponsoring a flag is that proceeds collected from the sponsoring of the 100 Messages of Spirit Prayer flags will also be given to the Child Welfare Scheme charity to help with the health and education of the less fortunate children of Nepal.
The CWS have given me their full support and well wishes of success in this journey and have arranged for me to visit one of their projects in Pokahara, where I will be offering what help I can and raising more awareness for their cause.

If you would like to be part of this journey and sponsor your own Messages of Spirit Prayer flag please visit:
www. messagesofspirit. com or if you would just like to donate what you are able to the CWS please visit :
www. cwsuk. org and click on the donate button at the top right of most pages.

I just want to round it off here by saying that, I look forward to bringing your Messages of Spirit with me on this journey, and together with your support and sponsorship, 100 of us with this positive gesture can make a difference in so many ways towards the energy of our own being, of our planet and the lives of the street children of Nepal.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read this, and I wish you great days full of Bright Qi in everything that you experience.

Spirit Qi
Mark.
www. spiritqi. com
www. messagesofspirit. com

Thank you.

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ITR - Tempelhof Airport Closes in Berlin - BBC World - InTouchRadio.net ITR - UK GLOBAL

BBC News - InTouchRadio.net UK ITR UK GLOBAL

Auf Wiedersehen, Tempelhof

Tristana Moore BBC News, Berlin

Some 500 protesters bade farewell to Tempelhof, fabled hub of the Berlin Airlift

Despite the cold, wet weather, up to 500 protesters gathered outside Tempelhof to vent their anger at the closure of the airport.

It was a last show of strength by campaigners who had fought a series of legal battles over the past decade to save Tempelhof.

Holding candles, they didn't seem too bothered by the cold or the police.

One man screamed, "If the Mayor of Berlin, Klaus Wowereit, has guts, then tell him to come out here."

The protesters say they won't give up.

"We still have a couple of legal challenges pending," said Rainer Classe, a campaigner. "We're also trying to get Tempelhof listed as a Unesco World Heritage site - the airport would finally get the recognition that it deserves."

Inside the massive terminal, the authorities had thrown a big party as a send-off for Tempelhof. The local TV channel RBB set up a large stage and the whole event was broadcast live.

But as hundreds of local VIPs, the mayor of Berlin and officials popped open the champagne bottles, it seemed odd that they were celebrating the closure of the airport.

'Really sad day'

All day long, curious Berliners came to Tempelhof to catch a glimpse of the airport. Many brought their cameras and they took pictures of the vast, echoing hall and the imposing architecture.

The last regular plane unloaded at Tempelhof on Thursday

A few businessmen rushed to catch the last flights. For many people, Tempelhof was always the ideal inner-city airport - it used to serve short-haul commercial flights.

One passenger, Joerg said: "It's a really sad day. Tempelhof is special, there's so much history here. It's a mistake to shut it down.

"It's not like other modern airports, there's no stress here, it's lovely and relaxing. I love the nostalgic atmosphere here."

Pilots and crew members were also feeling sad and nostalgic.

One stewardess said: "I just can't believe it, it's such a shame that they're shutting the Tempelhof. It's part of German history and the authorities are closing it, why on earth are they doing this?", she asked.

"We used to fly out of Tempelhof, it's a great airport. Everything is accessible. The ways are short from the check-in desks to the gates and from the gates to the planes," said Alexander Rodger, the ground operations manager at the airline Germania.

"It's an awful decision to close Tempelhof. They didn't encourage airlines to use the airport and it's hardly surprising that it was running up losses."

It's part of German history...why on earth are they doing this? German stewardess

Glorious past

It's a far cry from the past. Tempelhof played a crucial role during the Berlin Airlift.

From June 1948, hundreds of Allied aircraft landed at Tempelhof. The planes dropped coal, food, medicine and other supplies to the residents of West Berlin, which had been cut off by the Soviet Union.

At the height of the airlift, one Allied aircraft landed at Tempelhof every 90 seconds. The Airlift was an extraordinary humanitarian operation and it kept people alive in West Berlin for 11 months until the Soviet Union ended the blockade.

As a reminder of the airport's rich history, an old "candy bomber" DC-3 took off from Tempelhof on Thursday night ("Candy bomber" was the name given to the crews who dropped sweets attached to parachutes to German children during the Airlift).

Uncertain future

So why is Tempelhof closing?

The Berlin government has always argued that the airport has run up huge losses. They claim that they have to shut Tempelhof to make way for a new airport at the site of Schoenefeld airport, south of Berlin.

The new Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BBI), is due to open in 2011.

"Tempelhof has been losing so much money, it made losses of 150 million euros over the past few years. We have to close it and we're also building a new international airport for Berlin at Schoenefeld," said Ralf Kunkel, a Berlin airport spokesman.

An old "candy bomber" took off from Tempelhof on Thursday night

"It is a step towards the concentration of all air traffic at the new airport, BBI, and it's a step into the future," he said.

So what's going to happen to Tempelhof?

The sad truth is that no-one has a clue.

"It's up to the Berlin senate to find a solution for this old building and the airfield," Ralf Kunkel said.

But so far, the Berlin authorities haven't made any decision.

The building will be preserved because it's a listed property, yet there's no concrete plan.

Lots of ideas have been bandied about - there are plans to build a huge housing estate, a park, a museum, a film studio, a zoo or a football stadium.

For now, it's Auf Wiedersehen Tempelhof. It really is the end of an era.

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ITR - News - Iceland - UK - Global Situation from PR ITR California for InTouchRadio.net ITR UK GLOBAL

From Pip Reynolds - ITR California for InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL News

News from Yoko Ono Blogs via Pip Reynolds ITR California

Icelanders are not terrorists

Gordon Brown unjustifiably used the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act of 2001 against the people of Iceland for his own short-term political gain. This has turned a grave situation into a national disaster, affecting families in both Iceland and the United Kingdom. Help us avert greater damage by signing this petition now.

On Wednesday October 8th, the British Government invoked Anti-terrorist legislation, which was in effect aimed at the people of Iceland. This devastating attack on our society was received with disbelief here in Iceland. The people of Iceland have always considered themselves great friends of the United Kingdom. Our nations have a long history of mutually beneficial trade and have been close allies in NATO and Europe.

Hour by hour and day by day the actions of the British government are indiscriminately obliterating Icelandic interests all over the world and, in so doing, diminishing the assets that could be used to reimburse depositors with Icelandic banks in the United Kingdom and Iceland. The government's actions are also endangering the future of nearly all Icelandic companies and of the entire nation, in addition to over 100,000 employees of British companies with Icelandic connections. In this regard we would like to stress that the Icelandic authorities have always maintained their intention to honour their obligations in this matter, contrary to claims made by Chancellor Alistair Darling and Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

In these trying times, it is vital that we all work together to meet the troubles that lie ahead. We cannot let leaders, like Gordon Brown, destroy the long-term relations of our nations for their own short-term political gain. Mr. Brown would never have reacted to the collapse of a bank from a larger and more powerful nation by tarnishing its people as terrorists and criminals.

We, the people of Iceland, ask you, our friends from the United Kingdom and elsewhere, to join us in the common cause of ending diplomatic hostilities between the Icelandic and UK governments. It is our hope that this will stop the unnecessary economic damage on both sides, so that we can start to rebuild and make amends.

Sign the petition - Click here

Send a friend an invitation to sign the petition

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ITR - Cheech & Chong Chong it in Calif. Pip Reynolds ITR California for InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

News from Pip Reynolds ITR California for InTouchRadio.net ITR - UK - GLOBAL

Cheech and Chongin' It

Also, Eastside story, Billy Idol's Face and more

By Lina Lecaro

Published on September 25, 2008

DOPE DEALERS

• Lina Lecaro

  Cheech and Chong light up the Roxy.

• Lina Lecaro

  Booby Trap's Anna and Kim Ahn invade Temporary Spaces.

We waited 25 years, what’s another hour? The not-so-secret Cheech and Chong reunion show at The Roxy last Thursday night was set to start at 8 p.m. sharp — but of course nothing is ever sharp in stoner time, and thanks to the crazy-long line outside, it was more like 9 when the guys finally sparked up the preview performance of their new “Light Up America” tour.

Open to anyone who brought a print-out showing C&C in their top-friends list on MySpace (it was sponsored by the networking site), this show also had historic subtext, venue wise.

Not only is the Roxy stage an old haunt, its owner Lou Adler discovered the duo and produced many of their films.

Like many 30-somethings, we first heard the early work of the weed-loving funny men when we were kiddies, though it was forbidden by the folks.

We discovered them as we got older though, and huffing ’n’ puffing with the classics — Up In Smoke, Nice Dreams — became a ritual. Judging from the enthusiastic youths in the crowd Thursday, this obviously continues to be a rite of passage.

The crowd of people who filed in toting their DVDs and LPs were also about 80 percent Latino (Nightranger’s part of this percentile) and the barrio faves that blasted as we entered (War, Santana, Ritchie Valens, oldies) solidified the cultural significance of the pair’s success.

Though Tommy’s not Mexican, Cheech and Chong have always been a source of Chicano pride (some sober types might say detrimentally so). The duo’s vaudeville skit-style presentation definitely had its share of Mexi references, including renditions of rib-tickling ditties “Mexican-Americans (Beaners)” and “Born in East L.A.”

After a bubbly opening monologue from Tommy’s wife Shelby Chong — who described what it was like when the cops stormed her home and busted her spouse for selling bongs (“They never found the weed in the freezer!” Hah!) — the duo came onstage to hollering, screams and even front-row fans doing the wave.

They opened up with the classic car scene from Smoke and proceeded to cavort through bits like “Let’s Make a Dope Deal” and “The Big Sniff,” which saw the 62-year-old Marin and 70-year-old Chong play doggies, walking on all fours, smelling each other’s butts and, yes, humping.

The pair’s chemistry remains potent, as does the musical prowess of each. Both comics offered melodious instrumental moments to the hedonistic high jinks, and though smokin’ and sexin’ were the main themes, there was some political commentary too.

No shocker: The guys are pro-Obama, anti-McCain/Bush, and their experiences over the years seem to have made ’em anything but apathetic stoners. Still, sucking the hell out of another stereotype continues to be the crux of their comedy.

When explaining why they broke up in the first place, Chong told the crowd (of Cheech), “We got rich — and you can’t make a rich Mexican do anything.” Cheech and Chong (who, by the way, recently outed Arnold Schwarzenegger as a former pothead ... he in turn admitted to TMZ he did inhale!) will be back in L.A. for two shows at the Gibson Amphitheater on December 6. Wonder if the Governator will check out his old buds?

FOXES TAKE FOUNTAIN

After we caught a contact high at the Roxy show (the doobies were definitely on the down-low though), it was time for a nightcap. Anyone who lives on the Eastside of town knows the quickest trip to the Strip and back is down Fountain Avenue. (Bette Davis was so right — her famous words of advice to Hollywood hopefuls were “Take Fountain”!)

We find ourselves rolling down the avenue almost weekly, and Sean Patrick’s club Temporary Spaces is always a promising pit stop.

The gay-girls night called Booby Trap hosts on Thursdays, and the party has become so popular, even the straights (like moi) are wanting to invade. Booby’s babes (Anna, Jacqueline, Daisy O, Lola and Kim Ahn) are in fact much-in-demand DJs at clubs of all prefs; they just came back from a slew of N.Y. Fashion Week gigs, and we heard their recent guest appearance at Myles Hendrick’s Pash at The Room was a smash.

Ahn’s set Thursday was a jump-your-bones disco-trance fest that had the rockin’ foxes hoppin’ (and we mean foxes, both the femmes and the butchy types). The vibe here is actually really inclusive and (bosom-) buddy-like, but from what we saw as we left, it can be strict at the door. Make sure to R.S.V.P. — and take a gander at the host’s foxy pics — at www.clubboobytrap.com.

HAUTE IN THE CITY

Still a little worse for wear after loads of laborious post-VMA party-hopping a couple of weeks ago, Nightranger’s “just said no” to red-carpet ragers the past few weeks.

But The Emmys on Sunday made it impossible to continue our fête fast. TV Guide’s party offered The Bravery and MGMT (busy boys, what with their Fonda, Bowl and HTDJs set last weekend) at The Kress, while People mag and Entertainment Tonight brought their annual shindig back to the Walt Disney Concert Hall with a performance by Billy Idol.

Continuing our week of nostalgia, we chose the latter, and were so glad we did ... not just because of the 25-pound swag bag we got at the end of the eve.

Patina’s spread was, as usual, mouthwatering (the hoofed-pig-leg display for the two-year-aged Serrano ham? Not so much).

A Warholesque cupcake area complete with a spiked-milk-shots bar was a sweet spot to sit and ogle guests like Valerie Bertinelli, Jaime Kennedy, America’s Next Top Model’s Ms. Jay, Kathy Griffin, Tori Spelling and, of course, all the couture gowns, Swarovski-studded bags and good/bad/ugly Botox and knife work.

One fella who seems to be aging quite gracefully (and naturally) is Mr. Idol, who has not only retained his trademark snarl, but his toned bod and, most importantly, his sly and seductive vocals.

Longtime guitarist Steve Stevens was equally vigorous with the ax, and the band’s exuberant set included all the hits — even the Generation X classic “Ready, Steady, Go” (which nobody seemed to know) and the apropos Doors anthem “L.A. Woman.”

If ya missed the still-vital idol’s trio of dates at the House of Blues last week, catch him (along with Blondie, DEVO, Twisted Sister, The Psychedelic Furs and REO Speedwagon) at Jack’s Third Show, the annual hodgepodge concert from Jack FM, at Verizon Amphitheater in Irvine this Saturday, September 27

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ITR - MSN News - New Electric Mini - InTouchRadio.net ITR - UK- GLOBAL

MSN News - InTouchRadio.net ITR - UK - GLOBAL

Revealed: new electric Mini

By Dan Trent

October 21 2008

With its BMW-developed EfficientDynamics and auto start-stop system the regular Mini is already greener than most.

But in a surprise move the Mini is set to get even greener, with a pilot scheme rolling out pre-production electric versions.

• GALLERY: new electric Mini

500 of the zero emissions Mini E will be delivered to specially selected customers in the US, following the car's debut at the LA Auto Show in November. The cars will be run for a year on a lease basis to put the electric Mini to the test in real-world driving conditions.

Honda is doing much the same with its fuel cell FCX Clarity, supplying them to a select group of Californian 'owners'. Real time R&D like this is obviously a huge help to the engineers but the marketing value of being seen as first to market with a new technology like fuel cells is also very valuable.

Ever PR savvy, you can be sure Mini will be milking the opportunity to steal the initiative on rivals too, the pre-production status of the cars side-stepping any potential glitches or problems owners may encounter. Win-win for all concerned in other words.

So much for the big picture - what about the car? Well, it doesn't look much different from a standard Mini from the outside, other than the unique paint scheme and stylised electric plug logos on every available surface. Interior space has been seriously compromised in the back though, with the lithium-ion batteries taking the place of the rear seats.

Weight soars to 1465kg as a result but performance is still respectable, thanks to a 380volt/201bhp/162lb ft electric motor sending the Mini E to 62mph from rest in 8.3 seconds (faster than the Mini Cooper D's 9.9 seconds) and onto a limited 95mph maximum. With upto 35 kilowatt hours (kWh) of on-board storage, range is around 150 miles.

Brake regeneration helps with this and charging a fully drained battery takes anything up to 24 hours, depending on the power output of the grid you're connected to. American Mini E owners will get a special high amp 'wall box' charging unit fitted to their garages, slashing this to just 2.5 hours.

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ITR - Jan England ITR Southern Australia News for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

Jan England ITR Australia for InTouchRadio.net ITR - UK - GLOBAL

Inflation Rise

'Won't Stop Rates Cut'

Inflation was pushed higher by increases in food and petrol prices. (ABC News: Giulio Saggin, file photo)

A leading economist is confident interest rates will still fall despite today's high inflation figure.

Inflation now stands at 5 per cent for the year, well outside the Reserve Bank's target figure of 2-3 per cent.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics says the rate was up by 1.2 per cent over the September quarter, pushed higher by water and power bills, rising rents and increases for petrol and food prices.

But Commonwealth Bank chief economist Michael Blythe says the inflation rate will not stop further interest rate cuts.

" Well, in our own forecast we've got about 50 points worth of rate cuts by the end of the year and I think today's numbers, a bit higher as they were, won't stop the Reserve Bank cutting rates again," he said.

"There's still a good chance we'll see lower rates after the November Reserve Bank meeting."

But Westpac chief economist Bill Evans says a high underlying inflation rate may mean the Reserve Bank will not cut rates as hard or fast as many expect.

Mr Evans is concerned that despite the economic slowdown this year, there has been no slowing down of inflation.

"My official view is that they will go by 50 [basis points] because I think that is by far the best policy option," he said.

"But I fear, reading the tea leaves over the last few weeks, there is a significant risk they'll only go by 25 [basis points]."

Inflation to fall

Analysts also believe that inflation will not stay at 5 per cent for long.

It is the highest rate since December 1995, but CommSec's chief economist, Craig James, says inflation will fall as the world economy contracts in the wake of the credit crisis.

"It will be coming down and perhaps coming down quite quickly," he said.

"The easing of the global financial crisis should see financial service charges fall quite significantly over 2009.

"We should be getting back to an inflation rate of around 3 per cent in about a year's time."

The Federal Treasurer, Wayne Swan, says the latest inflation figures are unwelcome, but he does not expect the inflation rate to go any higher.

He says the Reserve Bank is concerned with the level of economic growth rather than inflation.

"The Reserve Bank made this very clear when it cut the cash rate by 100 basis points only three weeks ago, and that is of course why we took decisive action by implementing an economic security strategy to strengthen the economy in these uncertain times," he said.

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ITR - The Corporates - UK Tax Clampdown - Hallelujah says one listener... BBC News & InTouchRadio.net ITR - UK - GLOBAL

BBC News - InTouchRadio.net ITR - UK - GLOBAL

Call For Corporate Tax Clampdown

'Hallelujah so why did this take so long? Who has benefited from this over all these years? Who are the unseen's who allowed this to continue at their benefit' ITR - Thoughts interjected (and I'm sure the thoughts of just about every other thinking person - remember every country is/was... still is a Corporate and who runs the Country)

Comment passed on by an anonymous listener.

BBC News

Economists say that tax yields are set to fall sharply

HM Revenue and Customs should more "robustly" pursue companies that avoid paying tax on their profits, a committee of MPs has urged.

The Commons public accounts select committee found that more than 25% of Britain's 700 largest businesses paid no corporation tax to HMRC in 2005-6.

Some cases were due to their use of tax relief and tax avoidance schemes.

An HMRC spokesman said it had "significantly improved" its targeting of corporation tax inquiries.

The select committee's report criticised the wide variation in the amount of tax paid by companies and called for a report to be produced each year explaining any discrepancies.

'Poor Targeting'

The group of MPs found that 181 of the biggest firms paid no corporation tax at all in 2005-6.

In contrast, 50 companies accounted for two-thirds of the £24bn collected in 2006-7.

Most of those were involved in oil, gas, banking and insurance.

BBC business correspondent Nils Blythe said problems in those sectors meant the outlook for corporate tax receipts in the coming years was weak and would contribute to the rapid deterioration of public finances.

It should robustly apply new penalties for those companies engaged in serious tax avoidance activities Edward Leigh Public Accounts Select Committee

The committee also said that investigations into the tax affairs of certain firms under scrutiny were taking too long and yielding too little.

"The fact nearly 60% of the department's inquiries into compliance turn out to produce less than 1% of the additional tax raised constitutes very poor targeting," its chairman Edward Leigh said.

"It is extraordinary that there is no correlation between the resources committed to each inquiry and the amount of tax in question."

Mr Leigh said HMRC must publicise plans for a new approach in which "high-risk businesses will be singled out for extensive investigation".

"It should also robustly apply new penalties for those companies engaged in serious tax avoidance activities," he added.

HMRC is currently calculating the amount of tax owed which has been "lost" to the economy, but an initial report last year suggested the figure could be as high as £8.5bn.

The Lib Dems have argued that the government could save millions by cracking down on corporate tax avoidance more effectively.

An HMRC spokesman said: "We have cut the number of open inquiries by over 50% since April 2007 and the number of cases focused purely on low-risk issues is down by nearly 90%."

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ITR - UK High Street Recession Affect - BBC News- InTouchRadio.net ITR - UK - GLOBAL

BBC News - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

What began as a credit crisis in banking now seems to have spread to other parts of the economy, with some experts saying the UK is already in recession.

But how is it affecting shopkeepers? We visited Shirley High Street in Southampton which has the kind of retailers found on shopping streets up and down the country.

We asked shop owners and customers whether the crisis was affecting them. And we'll return there in the weeks ahead.

Click on the shops above to find out what people had to say.

Words: Sarah Bell, Victoria Bone. Pictures: Emma Lynch. Video: Fiona Graham

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ITR - Aircraft Has Near Miss With UFO - BBC News - InTouchRadio.net ITR UK = GLOBAL

BBC World News - UK - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Airliner Had Near Miss with UFO

An Alitalia passenger jet had a close encounter with a UFO in 1991

A passenger jet bound for Heathrow Airport had a near miss with a UFO, Ministry of Defence files reveal.

The captain of the Alitalia airliner shouted "Look out" to his co-pilot at the sight of a brown missile-shaped object shooting past them overhead.

Civil Aviation Authority and military investigations could not explain the 1991 incident near Lydd in Kent.

The unsolved close encounter features in UFO-related military documents made available by the National Archives.

After ruling out the object flying past the Alitalia jet being a missile, weather balloon or space rocket, the MoD closed the inquiry.

Nineteen files covering sightings between 1986 and 1992 are being made available online.

Now you can look at the actual primary material - the stuff coming into the MoD every day - and make your own mind up Dr David Clarke, UFO expert

Almost 200 such files will be made available by the MoD over the next four years.

The current batch also include a US Air Force pilot's account of being ordered to shoot down a UFO that appeared on his radar while he flew over East Anglia.

There is also an MoD request that army and navy helicopters not take photographs of crop circles, because of concerns about undermining the official line that the military did not investigate unexplained phenomena.

And the files also contain a letter from a woman claiming to be from the Sirius system who said her spacecraft - also containing two "Spectrans" with "Mr Spock ears" - crashed in Britain during World War II.

UFO expert and journalism lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University, Dr David Clarke, said the documents would shed new light on relatively little-known sightings.

He said some conspiracy theorists would already have decided that the release of the papers was a "whitewash".

He added: "Because the subject is bedevilled by charlatans and lunatics, it is career suicide to have your name associated with UFOs, which is a real pity.

"The National Archives are doing a fantastic job here. Everyone brings their own interpretation.

"Now you can look at the actual primary material - the stuff coming into the MoD every day - and make your own mind up."

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ITR - News from Jan England ITR Australia for InTouchRadio.net ITR - UK - GLOBAL

Jan England ITR - Australia for InTouchRadio.net ITR-UK - GLOBAL

Economists Warn

200,000 Jobs May Go

Australia

AAP NEWS

October 19, 2008 12:25am

• 200,000 Aussie jobs may go within 12 months
• Outcome hinges on stimulus package
• A "lousy" Christmas 2008 forecast

ECONOMISTS are warning that 200,000 jobs in Australia may go by the end of next year as the global financial crisis takes hold.

National Australia Bank economists predicted growth would drop to 1.25 per cent by the middle of next year, with an interest rate cut to 4.5 per cent and unemployment at about 6 per cent by the end of the year, meaning the loss of 200,000 jobs, Fairfax newspapers report today.

The bank's chief economist, Alan Oster, said the uncertainty over jobs could also lead to a quiet Christmas for retailers.

He said he expected October into December to be "lousy'', despite the federal government's economic stimulus package designed to keep money flowing.

"I think Christmas is going to be a lot slower and weaker and then it will continue getting weaker into next year,'' Mr Oster told Fairfax.

Professor Guay Lim, from the Melbourne Institute for Applied Economics and Social Research, said problems would occur if people decided to save and not spend the $10.4 billion the government will grant to pensioners, eligible families with children and new home owners.

"We expect slow growth and an increase in unemployment,'' he told Fairfax.

"We think unemployment will go up a notch to 4.8 per cent or 5 per cent by the middle of next year.

"People need to maintain a level of spending and buying Christmas presents. We cannot save excessively because the economy will go into a tailspin.''

A spokesman for the NSW Business Chamber said consumers were resilient and businesses were hoping people would spend the extra cash from the government.

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ITR - Equestrian News from Angela Spray ITR Australia for InTouchRadio.net (UK-GLOBAL)

Angela Spray ITR Australia for InTouchRadio.net ITR-UK & GLOBAL

InTouchRadio.net
Equestrian News Section

Reflections of the Diva
by Angela

Makybe Diva needs no introduction. Makybe Diva won three successive Melbourne Cups from 2003 to 2005.

She is the only racehorse to have won the Melbourne Cup in three successive years.

I can certainly remember sitting watching the moment when she won her 3rd Melbourne Cup, with tears in my eyes!!





What a remarkable horse and one that should be recognized as such.


You won’t see something as special as her ever again.


Not for a long time anyway!

What is more remarkable about Makybe and her winning successes is that she is a female which, makes this horse rare in the world of racing.



She has been dedicated a website on the internet that I would with pleasure, add here for you to take a look at the Diva!!!




Makybe Diva's retirement from racing was announced after the running of the 2005 Melbourne Cup.



I am looking forward to this year’s Melbourne Cup held on the 4th of November at Flemington.

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ITR - News Australia from Jan England ITR - for InTouchRadio.net ITR-UK GLOBAL

Jan England ITR Southern Australia - The Australian Prime Minister has committed the package below to the Australian people – monies going mainly to pensioners; carers; and the low income families.

Retailers Optimistic in Christmas Lead-Up

By Gerard McManus and Stephen McMahon October 15, 2008 02:36am

RETAIL king Gerry Harvey says the Rudd Government's $10.4 billion stimulus package will help retailers and boost consumer confidence.

"Sure it will help. It's more money in the economy," he said. "It's about confidence, and I'm trying to tell people out there that the world is not good at the moment - but it's not Armageddon. It's not a disaster."

Mr Harvey, who owns Harvey Norman, said he was yet to see the impact of last week's interest rate cut on sales, but was optimistic about the next few months.

The Australian Retailers' Association said the package could boost the Christmas holiday shopping season.

"Prime Minister Rudd's plan for a Christmas bonus is great news for consumers . . . and even better news for retailers hard-hit by months of reduced consumer demand," executive director Richard Evans said.

Last week's interest rate cut and the Government's package had provided some relief to retailers, Mr Evans said.

Former Reserve Bank governor Bernie Fraser warned the $10 billion stimulus would be wasted if it ended up only providing a short-lived boost to consumer spending.

Mr Fraser said the Government should use the Budget surplus to fast-track major infrastructure developments around the country.

Deutsche Bank chief economist Tony Meer said the cash injection was well-pitched at pensioners and lower-income households.

"Give 'em a buck and they will spend a buck," Mr Meer said. "If the money is given to the wealthier part of the economy, then they will save it, and the Government wants to get the money into the economy quickly."

NAB chief economist Alan Oster expects the payment will boost GDP by about 1.5 per cent next year. He is forecasting a government surplus of $7 billion next year and a deficit of $10 billion in 2010.

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ITR - News - Another Airline Goes Bust - ITN News - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

ITN News - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Another Airline Goes Bust

© ITN 2008

Britons have been caught up in more airline delays after Spain's LTE announced it is suspending all flights.

The low-cost service, based in Las Palmas, flies to destinations including Majorca, Tenerife, Barcelona, Malaga and Alicante from UK airports.

Cosmos holidaymakers on flights between Tenerife and Birmingham will now be flown with Monarch, and Manchester will be the UK airport. Flight times have changed, coaches will be laid on between airports and delays are inevitable.

Cosmos passengers due to fly from Edinburgh to Tenerife on Saturday are being offered a full refund or the opportunity to fly from Manchester on Friday evening.

A spokeswoman added: "Passengers due to depart with LTE in the forthcoming weeks will be contacted in due course as soon as alternative flight arrangements have been made."

Thomas Cook has four flights today - two to Tenerife and two returning from Tenerife - they have been switched to Thomas Cook Airlines' services. Passengers can also expect different departure/arrival times and locations with coach transfers.

A Thomas Cook spokesman added: "We are currently working to re-protect the remaining flights affected by LTE's closure and will inform customers of any changes to their flights as soon as possible."

On its website, LTE said: "We wish to inform you that due to the financial situation of the company, that make it difficult to meet the operational expenses in the next days, we have had to suspend our charter and scheduled operations.

"LTE is doing everything to minimise the impact of this suspension of services on its clients and providers. After 20 years operating with maximum dedication to our clients it just was not possible to avoid this situation given world events lately.

"We apologise for the inconvenience this may cause to our passengers, clients and suppliers."

The airline's website said: "Airways SA wish to inform you that due to the financial situation of the company, that make it difficult to meet the operational expenses in the next days, we have had to suspend our charter and scheduled operations.

"LTE is doing everything to minimize the impact of this suspension of services on its clients and providers.

"After 20 years operating with maximum dedication to our clients it just was not possible to avoid this situation given world events lately.

"We apologise for the inconvenience this may cause to our passengers, clients and suppliers."

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ITR - NEWS - Oil Price Drops Again - BBC World News - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

BBC World News - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Oil Price Down

on

Recession Fears

ITR Question: When will be see price drop at the Petrol Stations? - A Week - A Month?

Oil prices have fallen amid continued fears that demand will sink if the global economy falls into recession.

US light, sweet crude fell $2.44 to $72.10 a barrel. London Brent crude fell $2.31 to $68.49 a barrel.

Oil prices are about half what they were in July this year, when they hit a record above $147 a barrel.

"The market is just very worried about a severe international economic downturn," said David Moore at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

"They're thinking that oil consumption will be weaker than expected."

On Wednesday, US economic data showed that retail sales fell 1.2% in September, a sign that consumers were tightening their belts.

Also the US central bank's Beige Book report, which reflects the economic conditions, said the economy had showed further signs of contraction, fanning fears that the US economy is already in a recession.

According to Mr Moore, oil cartel group Opec is tipped to cut production when it next meets in November.

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ITR - Mediterranean News - Heather Carter ITR - Morocco - for InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Heather Carter ITR - Mediterranean Region for ITR UK-GLOBAL

Morocco News:

Morocco: Remittances Burgeoning

Expatriate remittances to Morocco increased again in the first six months of this year, bolstering incomes in the kingdom and bringing welcome direct investment to a range of sectors.

Remittances to the kingdom from Moroccans resident abroad (MREs, in the French acronym) totalled $3.5bn in the first half of 2008, up 5% on the same period last year, according to the Office des Changes (SADOC), Morocco's exchange rate monitoring body.

Morocco receives more remittances than any other country in the Middle g
Expatriate remittances to Morocco increased again in the first six months of this year, bolstering incomes in the kingdom and bringing welcome direct investment to a range of sectors.

Remittances to the kingdom from Moroccans resident abroad (MREs, in the French acronym) totalled $3.5bn in the first half of 2008, up 5% on the same period last year, according to the Office des Changes (SADOC), Morocco's exchange rate monitoring body.

Morocco receives more remittances than any other country in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region after Egypt. According to the World Bank, last year the country drew in $5.7bn in remittances, which have averaged $2.6bn annually since 2003.

Some 3.3m Moroccans live abroad, nearly three times as many as 15 years ago. While recent years have seen a geographical broadening of the Moroccan diaspora, 80% live in the EU, with an estimated 1.6m Moroccans in France and 700,000 in Spain, the two biggest sources of remittances.

Around half of the emigrants are female, reflecting the fact that increasing numbers of single women emigrate.

Remittances to Morocco from MREs take a variety of forms, and have therefore helped bolster growth in several areas of the economy. According to the Conseil Déontologique des Valeurs Mobilières (CDVM), the country's capital market authority, 58% of overseas investors in the Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) are Moroccan expatriates.

Meanwhile, Morocco's Organismes de placement collectif en valeurs mobilières (OPCVMs), or mutual funds, drew in $1.68bn from MREs in 2007 - representing 27.8% of total investments in the organisations.

The real estate and tourism sectors have also benefitted from expatriates, the former by direct investments in property in the country and the latter from both investments and income from those returning to take holidays in their homeland.

More broadly, remittances continue to play their traditional role of supplementing the income of expatriates' families in Morocco, and boosting foreign currency earnings.

According to the Moroccan Centre for Economics, quoted in the local press, "fund transfers made by Moroccan expatriates are a major consideration for the Moroccan economy, not just as a way of supporting household revenues, but also, and more importantly, as a source of extra savings and an essential source of foreign currency".

Such is the importance of remittances to the kingdom that the government is encouraging expatriates to invest more in the country.

In August, Morocco signed up to an accord to set up electronic money transfers though technology developed by the Universal Postal Union (UPU), the UN's postal agency. Other signatories included Jordan and Tunisia, which also draw in large amounts of remittances, and Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, to which increasing numbers of Moroccans have emigrated.

According to a UPU statement, the system should help "improve access for rural populations to secure reliable money transfer services through formal channels".

The facilitation and formalisation of remittance transfers is a key step in keeping inflows steady. Some MREs have voiced concerns about corruption and bureaucracy in Morocco, making them reluctant to transfer or invest large sums.

The Conseil de la Communauté Marocaine à l'Etranger (CCME), a government body representing MREs, is planning to carry out a study into expatriates' investments in Morocco, partly to investigate the difficulties that they face. The CCME hopes that this will lead to a new drive to encourage investment by MREs.

These developments are well-timed. With Spain's economy suffering, particularly from a struggling construction sector reeling from a burst real estate bubble, there are fears that remittances from across the Gibraltar Straits will fall.

According to the Moroccan Centre for Economics, the effects of Spain's downturn will be "slight", but with other European economies also experiencing tougher economic times, the authorities will be keen to ensure that any losses are offset by easier and better regulated processes of remittance transfer and expatriate investment in the country.

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ITR - Heather Carter ITR Is our girl in the Mediterraean Covering from the Canaries to Mainland Europe and all the islands for ITR - UK - GLOBAL

Heather Carter - InTouchRadio.net - Mallorca, Spain

Mediterranean Coverage for InTouchRadio.net

Here is our Heather Carter who is prepared to cover Ibiza, Menorca, Canary Islands, Tangiers, Morocco, Mainland (Peninsula) Portugal. Can get regional on mainland with Granada, Murcia and some closeby provinces - Catalunya, Valencia.

If you have any enquires - information - news and events from these areas please contact Heather through info@intouchradio.net I will pass on the messages to Heather - she is fluent in local area language and English language.

We are looking forward to hearing about the Mediteranean Area from the Canaries back to mainland Europe and all the islands - let's have that information to share around the world - this way we become a One World Family of Friends - There To Help Each Other.

This is Your Radio & Blog Station - There for You and Here for Us.

We are a Co-operative Collective - We Are Not - A Corporate Selective and We Are Networking The World As One Family.

If you would like to Advertise or Sponsor on InTouchRadio.net please contact info@intouchradio.net - if you would like to Donate to help us survive in our quest - please hit the Donate Button online at www.intouchradio.net - together we can make this happen.

Thank you Heather.

Michael Dixon and the ITR Global Team

InTouchRadio.net
UK & GLOBAL

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ITR - WHERE HAS THE MONEY ALL GONE THEN - BBC World - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

BBC World News - ITR - UK-GLOBAL

Where Has All the Money Gone?

Where Has All the Money Gone?

Where Has All the Money Gone?

WHO, WHAT, WHY? The Magazine answers...

Billions of pounds have been wiped off property values and share prices are massively down, while the debt-laden banks are being bailed out. But where has all this money gone? Economist John Sloman explains.

Money consists of two main elements.

The first is cash (notes and coins). The total amount of cash in the UK is just over £50bn, with about £43bn circulating outside the banks and £7bn in banks' safes, tills and cash machines.

But cash is a relatively small proportion of the total amount of money. So what is the rest?

The bulk of money is in the form of bank deposits not backed by cash. This totals around £1,800bn. The point is that the main purpose of money is for buying things. And for most large purchases - and many small ones too - we don't use cash.

THE ANSWER It was never there in the first place Houses and shares are not money, but assets whose values vary with market forces

Instead, we access the money in our accounts by using debit cards, direct debits, standing orders and cheques. When you pay for something with your debit card in Tesco, your account is debited and Tesco is credited. Money is transferred between the two accounts - but no cash has been used.

It is similar with credit cards. When you buy something with a credit card, the shop's account is credited. You get a monthly bill and when you pay it, your account is debited. The bulk of money, then, is simply a record of deposits - entries on balance sheets.

But isn't all this very worrying? The answer is: not in normal times. Of course, times have not been "normal" recently. So let's look first at what banks do in normal times and then we'll look at the abnormal times of recent days and weeks.

Worst case scenario

Banks are not giant safes. When you pay in £100 in cash, the bank does not just hold on to it, waiting for you to withdraw it. Banks know that in normal times, only a small fraction of money deposited in them will be withdrawn in cash.

When people withdraw cash, other people are paying in cash

The vast bulk of people's balances in their accounts will stay there. Even when people do spend some, most of it involves plastic or electronic transfer, not cash. Even when people do withdraw cash, other people are paying in cash.

So what do banks do with their deposits? The answer is that they lend to individuals and firms, and to each other. When people spend these loans - say in shops - the shops then deposit the money back into the banks.

These deposits are used as the basis of further loans to other people. These, in turn, generate more deposits.

And so the process goes on and on. More and more deposits get generated. And these deposits count as money. Thus money grows. But there is no more cash. Feeling worried? You shouldn't be for two reasons:

• 1. Banks are normally careful to keep enough cash to meet the demands of their customers
• 2. If they do start running short of cash, they can always borrow money from the Bank of England

But what about abnormal times? What happens if people start getting worried that their bank will not have enough cash, or worse still, if it could go out of business?

Central banks are backed by governments and can always print enough cash to meet all demands

The worst-case scenario is a "run on the bank". This is what happened with Northern Rock. People queued to take their money out. In the end, it's up to the government and central banks (the Bank of England in the case of the UK). They have to guarantee that deposits are safe.

And this is what's been happening these past few days.

Central banks have been lending vast sums of money to the banking system. Central banks are backed by governments and can always print enough cash to meet all demands.

Governments themselves have been pumping mind-boggling sums of money into banks by buying shares in them. In the UK, £37bn of new shares in banks have been purchased by the government - £20bn in the Royal Bank of Scotland alone.

In addition, the government has guaranteed that everyone's deposits in banks are guaranteed up to £50,000. In practice, as with Northern Rock and Bradford & Bingley, the government would almost certainly guarantee all deposits if a bank ran into difficulties. Even deposits in the failed Icelandic banks have been guaranteed by the UK government.

Disappearing wealth

So where has all the money gone? Your money is still there. So don't worry about that.

Nevertheless, money is being eroded in value by inflation. £100 today can buy only about 95% of what it could last year and only about half as much as it could 20 years ago. This is one reason why we need to be paid interest to save money..

WHO, WHAT, WHY? A regular feature in the BBC News Magazine - aiming to answer some of the questions behind the headlines

But what about so-called "sub-prime debt"? This was money lent to people unlikely to be able to pay it back. The problem is that the loans were mainly to buy houses and houses have fallen in value. Thus if people sold their house, they would not get their money back.

It's the same with stocks and shares. If you had bought £1,000 worth of shares a year ago, they would be worth only around £670 today.

But houses and shares are not money. They are assets whose value varies with market forces. If demand rises and/or supply falls, their price will rise. If demand falls and/or supply rises, their price will fall. Don't forget that warning in small print: "prices can go down as well as up".

Thus your money as bank deposits may not have disappeared. But some of your wealth may well have.

John Sloman is director, Economics Network, the Economics subject centre of the Higher Education Academy, based at the University of Bristol. He is author of Economics, Essentials of Economics and various other textbooks.


BBC World News - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

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ITR - Mediterranean News - Tangiers - Heather Carter ITR for ITR UK-GLOBAL

Heather Carter ITR Mediterranean for ITR - UK GLOBAL

Jazz Festival - Tanjazz 2008

Once again, now in its 9th year, TANJAzz will bring jazz-lovers, fans and the uninitiated, to the city of the Strait, to listen to all stripes of cosmopolitan, relaxed and upbeat jazz.

After a detour to the lawns of the Cricket Club in 2007 (because of the new public gardens in the Mendoubia), TANJAzz is returning to the city center. The festival is putting down roots in Moulay Hafid Palace des Institutions Italiennes, just steps away from the Grand Socco. The two main stages, which will host two concerts a day, will be located in this superbly restored building. The concerts will take place at 7:30pm on the Comarit Stage and 10:30pm on the BMCI Stage.

There will also be two locations for the after-party: Castel Palace, where the music will be more than just for listening; it will be for dancing, from 10pm to 3am, and the Glenfiddich Club, where we recommend you reserve your table to continue swinging until dawn.

Many emblematic sites in the city are affiliated with the festival. The Movenpick hotel, the Rif Hotel and Spa, and the Continental Hotel will host live-music brunches, dance lunches, piano lounges and more.

According to the festival’s tradition, the streets of Tangier will also be included in the party thanks to daily parades at the end of each afternoon and free outdoor concerts at Place des Nations, where the Veolia Stage will accomodate easy-listening jazz and Moroccan fusion.

For more information please visit
www.tanjazz.org

Heather Carter ITR - Mediterranean Region for InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

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ITR - MySpace Issue OnLine 14.10.2008 - 19.30hrs GMT UK + 1hr - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Problems with MySpace.com Connection tonight from UK link.

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Apologies if you can't get through on MySpace.com it is out of our control.

UK
19.30 hrs GMT +1hr

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ITR - Creepy Crawlies InVade UK - BBC World - ITR UK-GLOBAL

BBC WORLD NEWS - ITR - UK InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Alien Creepy Crawlies Arrive in UK

By Rebecca Morelle Science reporter, BBC News

On the trail of the tube web

Exotic species of spiders are making their homes in the UK, scientists say.

Researchers believe arachnids arriving in imports of food and plants are now able to survive and spread thanks to the UK's increasingly mild climate.

The new inhabitants include a species of false widow spider and some believe the deadly black widow could be next to invade.

Conservation group Buglife wants import rules to be strengthened to stem the tide of alien species invasion.

Matt Shardlow, director of Buglife, told BBC News: "Other countries in the world take great care about what biological material they allow in, because it can contain pests that can damage our goods, our livelihoods, our health and our biodiversity.

Our increasingly warm climate is starting to suit many more spiders Stuart Hine, Natural History Museum See other insects invading the UK

"Currently in the UK, we have a laissez-faire attitude - there is an open licence for people to bring in dangerous pests."

But a spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said that a new strategy was in place to "tackle the threat to the UK's native biodiversity from unwanted pest species which have 'hitchhiked' into the UK on plants".

All this week, BBC News will be taking a closer look at some of the alien invaders that are in the UK.

Aggressive arachnid

John Partridge from the British Arachnological Society said his organisation had had an increase in the number of enquiries about "strange spiders".

He added: "We are certainly getting more spiders coming into the UK - and it seems that more are spreading around the country once they are in."

False widow Steatoda paykulliana is a new resident in the UK

One new inhabitant is Steatoda paykulliana, a false widow spider that is native to Southern Europe, West Asia and North Africa.

It is about 0.7-1.5cm (0.3-0.6in) in size and can bite.

While this spider had been spotted in the UK in the past, it was thought that no colonies had established.

But Stuart Hine, who runs the Insect Identification Service at the Natural History Museum, said this was no longer the case.

He said: "Now we have found it in Plymouth. And it looks as if it is here to stay."

The arrival of exotic spiders and insects that had hitched a ride on various imports was not a new phenomenon, said Mr Hine.

"If there was a warm period they would be able to survive, but a cold snap would kill them off," he explained.

"But now, our increasingly warm climate is starting to suit many more spiders - and once they come in, they are able to stay put."

This has also meant that some invasive species that once only existed within a few small pockets in the UK have been able to spread.

Steatoda nobilis is one such spider.

UK's 'most venomous' spider

This false widow is thought to have first arrived in the UK from the Mediterranean in the late 1800s.

For many decades it remained in a small area within Devon, but about 15 years ago it began to spread and it can now be spotted all along the South Coast.

In spider terms, it has to be said that [the tube web] is an aggressive spider Stuart Hine, NHM

Mr Hine said: "It has a nasty bite - and some people can have a bad reaction to it."

The tube web spider (Segestria florentina), another non-native biting spider, has also been on the move, spreading from the South Coast much further north.

It is a large spider, measuring between 1.5cm and 2.2cm (0.6-0.9in), with green iridescence on its jaws.

Mr Hine said: "In spider terms, it has to be said that this is an aggressive spider.

"If you approach it, it raises its legs and bares its fangs.

"Most spiders will back away - this one will jump at you and bite."

Mr Hine believes that the black widow spider could be next on the list for the UK.

He said: "There is no great reason that they wouldn't survive here now - winters are now mild enough.

"It really is only a matter of time."

A balancing act

While experts stress that not all new species have a negative impact, they do warn that trade is a key factor in the number of new species that enter the country.

Defra is responsible for checking the products that enter the UK.

Could the deadly black widow be our next alien invader?

A spokesperson told the BBC: "The government and its agencies work with businesses, overseas authorities and the general public to minimise the risk of exotic animal and plant pests and diseases from entering the country and threatening public health, livestock, agriculture, horticulture and the environment.

"Disease can enter the country in many ways; that's why Defra undertakes international disease monitoring, while there are also strict controls on the movement of livestock and animals."

But Mr Shardlow from Buglife said: "We cannot just view moving biological material around like other trade products.

"You have to have a bit of environmental awareness, and I think we should be looking to import and export less biological material."

BBC World News - ITR - UK

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ITR - Wildfires Attack San Fernando Valley LA - BBC World News - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

BBC WORLD NEWS - ITR - UK - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

US Wildfires - San Fernando Valley

About 1,000 US firefighters are tackling wildfires near Los Angeles, which have caused two deaths, with 12,000 people driven from their homes.

The first major wildfires of the season threaten hundreds of houses north of the city, in the San Fernando Valley.

Southern California is vulnerable to wildfires between October and February when the warm, dry Santa Ana winds blow in, drying out vegetation.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in two counties.

The order covers Los Angles and Ventura.

"Winds are causing fire conditions to change by the hour, which is why it is so important that residents in the areas surrounding these wildfires heed warnings from public safety officials to evacuate," Mr Schwarzenegger said.

'Very dangerous'

In the San Fernando Valley, one fire in the Porter Ranch area has consumed more than 5,000 acres (2,000 hectares) while another in Lake View Terrace has burnt 5,300 acres, according to the LA Times newspaper.

A homeless man living in a wood and cardboard shelter beneath a motorway junction was found dead.

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A second person died when a car crashed on a stretch of motorway near one of the fires, which was reportedly shrouded in smoke.

"It's a very dangerous situation," said Los Angeles County Fire Chief P Michael Freeman as he urged residents to leave danger areas.

"You may not even be able to outrun the fire if you're that close to it."

ITR - BREAKING NEWS - Angel Island San Fransisco Fire USA Pip Reynolds ITR USA for InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Associated Press Published: October 13, 2008

Angel Island Fire - Bay of San Fransisco

USA Breaking News from Pip Reynolds ITR - California for ITR InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL





San Francisco, CA--A wildfire on San Francisco Bay’s Angel Island is burning out of control, but a local fire official says none of the buildings at the historic state park have been damaged.

The fire,which began last night, covers about 250 acres of vegetation near the top of Mount Livermore’s 788-foot peak.

Hundreds of firefighters are on the scene, with more joining them.

The official says all of the park workers and campers are safe.

The hilly, grass and forest-covered island is the largest island in San Francisco Bay.

The firefighting effort is expected to last several days.

Angel Island fire scorches 250 acres


By Terence Chea ASSOCIATED PRESS

9:29 a.m. October 13, 2008


TIBURON – Rugged terrain and difficulty transporting equipment across the San Francisco Bay complicated efforts Monday to corral a wildfire on Angel Island.

The blaze, which started around 9 p.m. Sunday, had grown to 250 acres by Monday morning, Marin County fire officials said. It was 20 percent contained.

Smoke spread across the bay and the smell of flames permeated surrounding communities.

About 30 or 40 campers were evacuated from the island, a state park. There have been no injuries.


The 740-acre island is the largest in San Francisco Bay and is home to many historic buildings, including an immigration station that was the first stop for many people coming to the U.S. in the early 1900s.

“This side of the island has some of the most historic buildings,” said James Dexter, a state parks employee who was stationed on the island. Dexter said the World War I-era Fort McDowell was also on that side of the island.

Fire crews from Marin County and San Francisco were dispatched to the island by boat, as well as firefighters from the U.S. Coast Guard. Two air tankers were also planned.

The fire was burning on the island's highest point, Mount Livermore, which is 781 feet above sea level.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.




This is Breaking news heard the sirens all night!


Stunning Angel Island fire seen for miles
Tanya Schevitz, Chronicle Staff Writer

Monday, October 13, 2008

(10-12) 23:50 PDT Angel Island -- A fast-moving brush fire atop Angel Island shot flames high in to the air and glowed so brightly Sunday night that it could be seen for miles around San Francisco Bay by residents in several counties.



Bay Area News

Angel Island Fire is 20 Percent Contained 10.13.08

ANGEL ISLAND / Firefighters battle hilltop blaze 10.13.08
Columbus Day openings and closings 10.13.08


Residents in San Francisco, Marin, Contra Costa and Alameda counties - from the hills in San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland and El Cerrito to the shorelines along Richmond, Tiburon, Sausalito and San Francisco described the fire as spectacular and massive.

"We are seeing a silhouette of the island in flames," said Jacqueline McCrath, who was watching the fire from Telegraph Hill in San Francisco. "It's been spreading really fast - we saw a vigorous blaze at the top of the hill at first, and now it has spread across a lot of the island. It appeared very suddenly - the first thing we saw was a blazing hilltop."

The fire, reported about 9 p.m. Sunday, grew quickly and had consumed up to 100 acres on the east side of the island by 11:15 p.m., fire officials said. At 740 acres, Angel Island is the largest island in San Francisco Bay.

"We are dealing with some real heavy vegetation and some very active flames kicking up," said Marin County Fire Battalion Chief Mike Giannini. "It is challenging not only because of the heavy vegetation but in getting crews up there. First they have to be brought in by boat. And once they get over there, they have to get up to the top of the island."

There were about 30 firefighters on the island by about 11:30 p.m. and another 70 were expected to arrive by midnight, he said.

While no structures were immediately threatened, Giannini said, there are a lot of historic buildings on the island, he said.

About 40 campers were evacuated, he said.

"It is a pretty big fire," Giannini said. "It is going to be a long night."

The U.S. Coast Guard was transporting firefighters to the island. One fire engine is stationed on the island, and another was transported there by barge. Another two were on their way late Sunday night.

The engines have water, and there is some water on the island to fight the fire, Giannini said.

He said the cause of the fire was not yet known.

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Amy Marrs said the wind appeared to be driving the fire.

At the Paradise Bay Restaurant in Sausalito, manager Eliza Grassy described what she saw: "Flames have come over the side of the island. It is quite an amazing sight, seeing the flames consuming the island that quickly."

The island's highest point is Mount Livermore at 781 feet, and it appeared to be involved in the blaze. The fire was facing the city, burning on the east side of the island, near the reservoir.

"It is just massive. You can see the orange flames from the bridge," Mark Crawford, an Orinda resident, said after driving across the Bay Bridge and seeing the fire.

A woman on a Hornblower Cruise right next to the island described the fire as "a shocking sight."

"The fire is on the city side of the island. It is really high up on two ridges. The flames are 25 feet to 30 feet high," said the woman whose cell phone cut off before she could provide her name.

McCrath said the yellow, orange, and red flames were rising high into the sky.

"We've been watching the fire for about half an hour and for the first time we are seeing red lights that look like firefighting equipment," he said at 10:30 p.m.

Angel Island, a state park that was once a fort and later an immigration station, is reachable by ferry from San Francisco and Tiburon, and is a popular picnicking and camping spot

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ITR - Equestrian News from Heather Carter ITR Spain for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

Heather Carter ITR Mallorca, Spain for InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Equestrian News - Mallorca, Spain

The Confraria dels Cavallers de Sant Juan

The Confraria dels Cavallers de Sant Juan gave an impressive presentation of the beauty of the pure Mallorcan horse last Saturday in Llucmajor, at the occasion of the Fires de Llucmajor.

The Fires apparently have been held in Llucmajor annually since 1546, a quite astonishing feat.

The Fires de Llucmajor take place over three weekends; the final Fira will happen next Sunday, October 12th.

As Monday, October 13th, will be a public holiday in Spain this year, Llucmajor will extend its Fires into a Firó on that day, with lots of activities going on.

Lunchtime will see the public sharing in a gigantic paella, a dog show is planned as well, and in the evening a concert will be staged at the recently restored Claustre de Sant Bonaventura under the title “Les Illes Balears amb Argentina, Veneçuela, Cuba i Puerto Rico“, and organized by the Fundació La Caixa. I believe that entry fees will be gratis.

am not sure how ancient the Cavall de Pura Raça Mallorquina is, but the pure breed has obviously been around quite a few years as well. I’ll tell you more about this beautiful horse and the splendid combination of qualities the cavall presents, sometime soon, after having done a bit more research.

The photo was taken in Llucmajor, Mallorca, Spain.
The date: October 4th, 2008

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ITR - Alex Blake Quartet Gig - Not One To Miss - Michael Dixon InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Michael Dixon - InTouchRadio.net Recommends You Don't Miss this Gig - will truly blow your mind. Interview coming shortly.
How about we get him and Billy Cobham together for a chat...MD ITR UK

Alex Blake Quartet

"Extraordinary Bass Player - Extraordinary Man - Extraordinary Band'

Michael Dixon - InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Rhythmically and vocally Alex Blake is his own music section!

Backed up by his very qualified band, whose innovative solo performances round out this worldly jazz experience.

Be prepared to go musically where you have never gone before ...No tricks ...Just treats!

Join Us...

Alex Blake - Bass, Ted Cruz - Keyboards, Chris Hunter - Sax, Victor Jones - Drums

Set Times: 9:00pm,10:30pm and 12:00am

Cover Charge -$20.00 - www.lenoxlounge.com

http://www.myspace.com/alexblakequartet

Contact:

LeTang Jazz Blues Promotion

Shar LeTang

www.myspace.com/letangjazzblues

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ITR - News from the Mediterranean from Heather Carter ITR for InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

News from Heather Carter ITR - Mediterranean Region for InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Police To Hand Out More Fines To Beat Cash Crisis

MADRID

MAINLAND traffic police issuing extra fines and young people returning to live with parents are two methods of making cash go further during the credit crunch in Spain.

Authorities have admitted that traffic officers are getting tougher on relatively minor offences so they can make ends meet.

Faced with falling revenues from vehicle licence fees as new car sales plummet, Traffic Police head Pere Navarro told Congress that he expected fines to rise by 15 per cent this year because of increased use of speed radars and better processing of offenses. “That should balance our budget,” claimed officer Navarro.

Meanwhile, reports claim that many young people are moving back to their parents’ homes for financial reasons.

Government To Fight Corruption With New Measures

THE Balearic government is drawing up new legislation in an effort to combat corruption in government departments. It follows at least three cases of alleged corruption involving high level officials from the previous administration.

The local minister for the Treasury Carles Manera said yesterday that the legislation should be in place in three months´ times. “It will place more controls on public officials and departments,” he said.

Also, the local government intends to place independent auditors in government departments.

But Manera said that the three cases of alleged corruption which had come to light involved people and not whole departments.

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ITR - Mr. Brown Who Bought Our Gold - Who Has It Now? InTouchRadio.net UK GLOBAL Distribution Network ITR-UK

InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

"So Mr. Brown Who Bought Our United Kingdom Gold?

Who Owns It Now?

Who Benefited From That Sale?

What is Paper & Tin Money Worth?

Who Guarantees the Money in Our Currency Against the Gold Standard?

I Promise to Pay The Bearer...!"


I T R

UK

Questions We Think But Don't Ask

"The Pre-Empt to World Currency & The Final Corporation"

InTouchRadio.net Poses the Questions.

You sent them in - you supply the answers.

We will Post Them for You.

Telegraph

Brown to Sell Half UK Gold Reserves
By George Trefgarne and Robert Shrimsley

Saturday 8 May 1999

GORDON BROWN was accused last night of trying to take Britain into the European single currency by stealth after surprising the City with an announcement that he was selling more than half of the country's gold reserves, leaving Britain the lowest bullion holdings of any major country.

The £4 billion of gold reserves - 415 tonnes - will be converted into euros, dollars and yen over the next few years. The sale will see the proportion of reserves held in gold falling from 17 per cent to 7 per cent. The Chancellor's announcement triggered a fall in the price of gold and provoked Tories and Euro-sceptic businessmen to claim the decision was politically motivated to prepare Britain's entry into the euro.

Their suspicions were fuelled by the timing of the announcement on a Friday afternoon when most MPs were away from Westminster and news coverage was dominated by the outcome of the elections for the Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly and English local councils.

The Treasury issued a bland, three-paragraph statement, saying the sale was intended to achieve "better balance" in Britain's reserve portfolio by increasing the percentage held in currency rather than gold but gave no suggestion that the move was linked to preparations for the single currency. Sources in the gold market claimed that Mr Brown had acted against the advice of Eddie George, the governor of the Bank of England, but this was denied.

The City greeted the news with dismay. Haruko Fukuda, chief executive of the World Gold Council, said: "This is a political decision, in preparation for joining the euro. This move appears to be pre-empting the promised referendum. Gold has special characteristics. It has been held as a reserve for thousands of years. Its value does not rely on anybody else's promise to pay, unlike cash, and it builds public confidence."

Francis Maude, the shadow chancellor, said: "Gordon Brown is trying to drag Britain into the single currency by stealth by making it appear inevitable. This could be another step along that road. It is time Gordon Brown started running the British economy in the interests of Britain and not in the interests of Europe."

After the sale, Britain will hold just 300 tonnes of bullion - a minimal amount when compared with other major economies. Around 40 per cent of the gold will be converted into euros; the same amount into dollars and the remaining 20 per cent into yen.

The sale of the reserves was seen at Westminster as a further attempt by the Treasury to bring Britain's economy into line with those states already signed up to the single currency. The Chancellor has made no secret of his desire to get Britain into a position where it can join the single currency early in the next Parliament - probably by 2002 - with the minimum of financial upheaval.

The European Central Bank, which adminsters the euro, has been encouraging those countries in the single currency to sell some of their huge gold reserves. It believes gold is a bad investment. The price peaked at $835 an ounce in 1980, but it has been struggling along at around $300 for the last 10 years. Yesterday, the price dropped sharply from $289.25 an ounce to $282.40 (£178.70).

However, a spokesman for the Treasury said: "This has nothing whatever to do with joining the euro. It is about efficient asset allocation within the foreign exchange reserves." The sale, to start next year, will bring to an end the Bank of England's 300-year-old practice of holding gold as a significant part of Britain's foreign exchange reserves.

A spokesman for the anti-euro group Business for Sterling said: "Since we know it is a political decision and we know that the European Central Bank has said that countries that want to join the euro have to sell off their gold reserves, it looks like another part of the Government's stealth policy."

Times

April 15, 2007

Brown Lost £2bn Selling UK's Gold

Robert Winnett and Holly Watt

GORDON BROWN is to face questions in parliament after revelations that he disregarded advice from the Bank of England before he sold off more than half the country’s gold reserves at the bottom of the market.

Insiders involved in the decision have broken ranks after an 18-month battle in which the Treasury has blocked attempts by The Sunday Times to make public the official advice received by Brown before he sold the gold.

They have revealed that Bank of England officials had serious misgivings over the chancellor’s determination to sell 400 tons of bullion in a series of auctions between 1999 and 2002, when the price was at a 20-year low. Since then the price has almost trebled, meaning the decision cost the taxpayer an estimated £2 billion.

This Tuesday the chancellor will face a Commons grilling over the affair as the Tories seek to undermine his reputation for economic competence.

BBC World News

13.06.2008

Potential Cost of Gordon Brown's Gold Sale was £3bn, Reveals The Money Programme

As the price of gold reached its peak value in March 2008, former Chancellor Gordon Brown's decision to sell over half of the UK's gold reserves in 1999 has now potentially cost tax payers around £3billion, reveals The Money Programme today on BBC Two at 7.00pm.

The cash invested from the gold sales doubled, but gold turned to be an even better investment as its price has quadrupled over the last ten years.

In March this year gold reached a $1,000 an ounce for the first time in history.

Had the gold been sold at its highest price in March, the UK would have been around £3billion better off – that's almost £50 for every man, woman and child.

Philip Shaw, Chief Economist, Investec, tells the programme: "The Bank of England decided to invest the proceeds of the gold auctions in safe instruments, mainly government bonds from the rest of the European Union, the United States and Japan."

Looking at how Gordon Brown's strategy fared, Shaw continues: "The 17 gold auctions netted the Exchequer around three-and-half billion dollars".

"Now the proceeds were well invested in Government Bonds. The value approximately doubled to around seven billion dollars.

"Had Gordon Brown decided not to sell the gold and sold at the peak earlier this year, the Exchequer would be better off to the tune of around three billion pounds."

In 1999 the Chancellor Gordon Brown told the Bank of England to sell off some of the country's gold and over the next few years it sold 395 tonnes, over half of the UK's reserves at a time when gold value had been falling in price.

After Brown's announcement its value fell to its lowest for 20 years.

Pierre Lassonde, Chairman of Franco Nevada Mining, says: "Well, Gordon Brown came and said 'Well, yep, I'm going to be selling gold' so the market just caved in and the market went down to $250. And it could not have been worse handled at that point in time. And, but did he pick a bad time to sell gold? He picked the right bottom."

Following sales by the UK and other central banks, the Central Bank Gold Agreement was created in 1999, limiting the amount of gold a country could sell in any one year.

Shaw explains: "There are a number of reasons why central banks decided to sell large proportions of their gold reserves.

"I think firstly we're not in a gold exchange standard, therefore, some of the traditional resources for holding gold have disappeared. Also gold is a volatile instrument in terms of its price."

Shaw adds: "The way the central banks make money with gold is simply if the gold price appreciates. There is no dividend on gold as there would be with a stock nor is there a coupon on gold as there would be with a government or a corporate bond."

The Treasury told The Money Programme: "The programme was part of a restructuring of the foreign currency and gold reserves, aimed at achieving at better-balanced portfolio.

"A reduction in risk of approximately 30 per cent was achieved."

The National Audit Office concluded that the Treasury had met its objectives selling in a "transparent and fair manner while achieving value for money".

They also added that: "Other central banks around the world have adopted similar policies."

Notes to Editors

Any use of the above should be credited to The Money Programme: Gold Fever!, 7.00pm, BBC Two, Friday 13 June 2008.

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ITR - ALDERVALLEY & THAMES VALLEY TRACTION COMPANY 1972 - 76 Pics & Stories Needed for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL Search

MEMORIES OF THAMES VALLEY AND ALDER VALLEY TRACTION COMPANY BUSES - PICTURES AND STORIES FROM EX EMPLOYEES WANTED

I'm looking for memories from former employees of Thames Valley Traction Company and the amalgamated Alder Valley Traction Company for the period 1972 to 1976 especially those working out of the Maidenhead, Berkshire Depot for a program about buses in the 1970's but am happy to have earlier memories - so please chase up those relatives of yours who may have worked there or any of the other branches throughout the Thames Valley/AlderValley Company.


I am especially interested in pictures of the buses, the crews and the routes.


Please contact michael@intouchradio.net - another of the networking possibilities we can offer bringing people together around the world.

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ITR - BUSH PROMISES AMERICA - BBC World News for InTouchRadio.net ITR-UK GLOBAL

BBC - World News & InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

Bush Promises America

President George W Bush has promised the American people the US government is working "aggressively" to restore stability to the economy.

Speaking from the White House, Mr Bush said recent market turmoil was being driven by "uncertainty and fear".

He spoke as world markets tumbled amid rising fears of a global recession, despite interest rate cuts and huge cash injections by central banks.

He also defended the recent $700bn (£409bn) rescue plan for Wall Street.

Mr Bush said the bail-out package was big enough but would take time to work.

Bush Promises America

He said: "We are a prosperous nation with immense resources and a wide range of tools at our disposal. We are using these tools aggressively."

Acknowledging mounting worry among people about their retirement and investment accounts, he pledg

ed: "We can solve this crisis, and we will."

He said the US was working "closely with our partners from around the world" to steady the panicking markets.

"Through these efforts, the world is sending an unmistakable signal. We're in this together and we'll come through this together," he said.

His statement came as finance ministers from the Group of Seven most industrialised nations - the US, Japan, Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Canada - gathered in Washington.

Talks will also be held at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the US capital.

Bush Promises America

Wall Street has lost more than a fifth of its value in the past 10 trading days and is heading for one of its biggest weekly falls since the Dow Jones index was created 112 years ago.

Some European markets regained ground after Wall Street opened on Friday, having registered big drops earlier in the day.

Shares in Asia closed down sharply, with Japan's main Nikkei index suffering its biggest fall in more than 20 years.

MARKET DATA - 16:58 UK

FTSE 100	3947.78down	-366.02	-8.48%
Dax	4544.31down	-342.69	-7.01%
Cac 40	3176.49down	-266.21	-7.73%
Dow Jones	8249.92down	-329.27	-3.84%
Nasdaq	1592.71down	-52.41	-3.19%
BBC Global 30	4365.77down	-219.91	-4.80%

There have been suspensions in trading in at least seven countries: Russia, Austria, Iceland, Romania, Ukraine, Brazil and Indonesia.

The volatile trading continued despite moves on Wednesday by six of the main central banks to cut interest rates by half a percentage point.

BBC World News in conjunction with InTouchRadio.net ITR-UK/GLOBAL

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ITR - News from Jan England ITR Australia - BLACK FRIDAY for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

From Jan England ITR Australia for InTouchRadio.net UK-LOCAL

Black Friday

• Chris Zappone
• October 10, 2008 - 2:51PM

Australian shares cratered, recording the steepest fall in what is already a dismal year, dragging the value of the main share index below $1 trillion as the market headed for its worst week since the 1987 collapse.

- Market loses about 8%
- Stocks dive about 15% for the week, worst since 1987
- Value of ASX200 falls below $1 trillion
- $600 billion wiped out in past year
- Calls for the government to buy shares

The S&P/ASX200 index fell as much as 8% in mid-afternoon trading, losing 344.8 points to plunge to 3976.1. That's the lowest point since May 17, 2005. The dive eclipses the 7.1% slump on January 22 this year.

In mid-afternoon trading, the index struggled to remain above 4000, declining even further to 3.981points.

"No one who is alive has seen anything like this before," said James McGlew of Argonaut Securities. "There is nowhere to hide."

''This is the greatest economic shock that has happened to capitalism," he said.

Dow Jones index futures are pointing to more falls in New York when markets open there tonight, with the index pointing to a fall of about 2.8%.

Today's plunge means about 15% of the market's value has been obliterated this week alone, about thrice the scale of the losses in the week after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US.

Even with the dramatic size of this week's plunge, the drop is about half that of the week ending October 23, 1987 when the All Ordinaries Index lost 29% of its value.

Australia's falls were sparked by a late collapse of investor confidence on Wall Street, which left the main US indexes down more than 7%.

That decline cascaded across Asian markets, with Japan's Nikkei 225 down as much as 11%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng down 8%, and Korea's Kospi down 9%. Singapore's Straits Times index was off 7% while New Zealand's top 50 companies were down 3.7%.

Government 'should consider buying shares'

Investors are showing few signs of confidence that the slew of rate cuts by central banks this week, including Australia's, and bank rescues will be enough to stem the rout.

G20 finance ministers are gathering in Washington to prepare for a weekend of talks to strengthen coordination between governments in their efforts to restore calm for investors. A key challenge is finding a way to revive confidence among banks so that clogged credit markets are re-opened.

''Overall, what we face is a broader problem of a lack of a demonstration of global and coordinated political will to deal with some of the big regulatory challenges that we now face,'' Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said.

His counterpart, Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull has called for action including the delay of a proprosed emissions trading scheme set for a 2010 start date.

Governments should consider buying stock on sharemarkets to stop the rot and restore some confidence, CommSec chief equities economist Craig James, told AAP.

Mr James said investors were standing back, not wanting to buy in the belief that stocks would become even cheaper. As a result, desperate measures are needed to stabilise share markets.

''To get stabilisation, you need some buying,'' Mr James said. ''Governments have got to be looking to buy shares now,'' he said. ''If individuals saw that governments were confident enough to buy the stocks, then clearly they would have confidence to return to the market as well.''

Recession worries mount

"This is a downturn that is potentially quite long-lasting with the impact to the real economy only starting to be felt," said ANZ economist Katie Dean.

"At this stage investors aren't confident that what central banks and governments are doing will be enough to avert what will be a fairly big global recession."

Among stocks to fall were BHP Billiton, which was down as much as $2.79, or 9.4%, to $27.05. Rio Tinto was off another $6.90, or 8.9%, to $71.11. Fortescue Metals is down as much as 60 cents, or 18.2%, to $2.70.

The Commonwealth Bank was down as much as $3.26, or 7.7%, at $39.14. while ANZ lost $1.15, or 6.9%, to $15.50.

Westpac was down as much as $1.65, or 7.7%, to $19.85 and NAB lost as much as $2.03, or 8.55%, to $21.70.

Macquarie Group sank $3.80, or 12.1%, to $27.70. Babcock & Brown lost as much as 13 cents, or 12%, to 94 cents.

Ford and GM woes

Argonaut's Mr McGlew said that yesterday in the US there had been a glimmer of hope in the markets but once Ford and GM were placed on negative credit watch towards the end of the US trading session, sending the Dow into a tailspin.

"It was well known for a while both companies would be struggling for the coming year but it was another excuse for the market to be sold off."

"We must surely be getting close to the bottom," Mr McGlew said, adding that when you look at several companies there is still good value in the share market "if people can get over the fear factor."

"What we're seeing here is complete investor fright," said ANZ's Ms Dean.

"There is a growing recognition that the financial and economic landscapes have changed significantly."

Energy slumps

The energy sub-index fell the most, losing 8.1%, materials shed 6%, while financials were down 5.3%.

Woodside Petroleum fell as much as $4.65, or 11%, to $37.27, while Santos fell $2.20, or 15.6%, to $11.90.

Spot gold is at $US915.02, up 3% overnight, but not enough to prevent gold miners from falling. Lihir Gold fell as much as 15 cents, or 5.7%, to $2.49 and Newcrest gave up $1.26, or 4.7%, to $25.44.

In the retail sector, Harvey Norman was down as much as 16 cents, ot 5.9%, to $2.57, Woolworths lost as much as $2.28, or 8.1%, to $25.72 and Wesfarmers lost $1.80, or 7.2%, to $23.30.

Dollar struggles

The Aussie dollar lost about 4 US cents in morning trade, and recently traded at 66.55 US cents. It fell even more against the yen, trading recently at 65.82 yen.

"We're seeing the Australian dollar a lot weaker this morning on the back of equities market and rising risk aversion," said TD Securities senior strategist Joshua Williamson.

Japanese investors are moving money back into yen today, after having "tested the waters" with the Australian dollar yesterday.

"That's really hit the Aussie hard."

Mr Williamson said hedge funds had also been selling out of the Australian dollar, which is seen as a riskier currency because of the local economy's links to commodities prices.

czappone@fairfax.com.au

BusinessDay

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ITR - Quantas Aircraft in Emergency Landing from Jan England ITR Australia for InTouchRadio.net ITR-UK & GLOBAL

News from Jan England ITR Southern Australia for InTouchRadio.net ITR-UK & GLOBAL

Hi Michael,

This is another one of Qantus disasters.

The plane rose and dropped so suddenly and severely just over northern Western Australia, that many passengers were thrown about and the plane had to land at Laverton Air force base airstrip and the Royal Flying Doctor planes had to be flown in to remove injured passengers. Jan xx

Qantas Aircraft in Emergency Landing in Western Australia's North...

October 10, 2008 - 3:06PM

Source: ABC

'Quite extensive damage'...More than 70 people were injured in a sudden drop in altitude. Photo: ABC

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau says extensive damage to the Qantas aircraft involved in Tuesday's emergency landing reveals passengers and objects were violently thrown around the plane.

More than 70 people on board Qantas flight 72 were injured in a sudden drop in altitude, the pilot was forced to make an emergency landing in Western Australia's north.

Preliminary data has failed to determine an exact cause for the drop in altitude.

Reports had suggested a laptop or portable electronic device may have caused the aircraft's computer problems.

But director of aviation safety investigations Julian Walsh says so far there is no evidence to suggest a portable electronic device caused the event but says all circumstances are being investigated .

He said the flight data recorders have revealed the aircraft pitched down twice during the emergency.

"The damage was quite extensive inside, in terms of cracked roof panels where people's heads were and I guess they have hit the cabin roof and perhaps objects as well," she said.

"Some of the lining panels ... have fallen down and there's obviously a lot of rubbish and that sort of stuff around the aircraft as well.

"But [that is] probably what you'd expect if people are flying around the cabin."

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ITR - NEWS from BBC World - Central Banks Cut Interest Rates - InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

BBC World News - InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

Central Banks Cut Interest Rates

Six central banks, including the Bank of England, have cut interest rates by half a percentage point in an effort to steady the faltering global economy.

No decision on UK rates had been expected until Thursday - and the move puts the interest rate at 4.5% from 5%.

The US Federal Reserve has cut rates from 2% to 1.5% and the European Central Bank (ECB) trimmed its rate from 4.25% to 3.75%.

The unprecedented, co-ordinated step came amid slumping world stock markets.

The central banks of Canada and Sweden and Switzerland all took similar action in the co-ordinated move.

China also cut its rate, but by 0.27 percentage points.

European financial markets reacted well, pulling back some of the losses seen earlier on Wednesday.

The last time the Bank of England cut rates in a special meeting was on 18 September 2001 - when rates came down from 5% to 4.75%.

In the UK, some mortgage lenders also immediately passed on the rate cut to borrowers - trimming their variable rates.

In other major developments:

• The UK government unveiled a package of measures aimed at rescuing the banking system which could add up to £500bn ($880bn)
• European stock markets - which had been heavily down - clawed back some of their losses after the rate cut move
• All UK savers with accounts in the closed Icelandic internet bank Icesave were told they would get all their money back.
• The Treasury arranged for more than £3bn of UK savers' money held with Icelandic banks Kaupthing Edge and Heritable Bank to be transferred to ING Direct UK.

'Arrest The Slide'

Responding to the interest rate cut, UK manufacturers' group the EEF welcomed the " bold and decisive move" it hoped would "arrest the current crisis and collapse in confidence".

"Coupled with the plan to shore up the financial system today's co-ordinated moves should help arrest the potential slide into depression," said the EEF's chief economist Steve Radley.

Chief international economist at Capital Economics, Julian Jessop, said that the rate cut would "provide at least a temporary boost to confidence".

But he added: "We fear that there is still a lot more work to do.

"The fact that the central banks have had to take such extreme measures underlines how bad market conditions have become."

He also warned that rate cuts were not a complete solution, pointing out the Fed had already cut rates from 5.25% in September last year to 2% before the latest move - action which happened "without rescuing either the financial system or the real economy."

'Taken too long'

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee said that getting inflation down to the government's 2% target remained its goal.

The latest data puts inflation at 4.7%, and it is likely to rise above 5% in coming months before falling, the MPC said.

But analyst Peter Warburton of Economic Perspectives said the rate cut and government intervention should have come earlier.

"It has taken far too long for the government and the Bank of England to recognise the scale of threat posed by the seizing up of the credit system," he said.

'Strong support'

The Federal Reserve said that it had acted "in light of evidence pointing to a weakening of economic activity and a reduction in inflationary pressures".

And the ECB said it had felt able to act because "inflationary pressures have started to moderate in a number of countries, partly reflecting a marked decline in energy and other commodity prices".

Although it did not cut its own rate - which is just 0.5% - the Bank of Japan expressed its "strong support" of the policy.

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ITR - Ilya Lehrman 18th Birthday - California - InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

Ilya Lehrman

Happy 18th Birthday Ilya Lehrman - California - USA 8th October

Happy 18th Birthday Ilya Lehrman - California - USA 8th October

Happy 18th Birthday Ilya Lehrman - California - USA 8th October

Happy 18th Birthday Ilya Lehrman - California - USA 8th October

From you Mum Pip and the InTouchRadio.net Family Around the World

Michael x
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UK

ITR - 50 Billioin Injected into UK Banks - Read All About It...BBC News-InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

BBC World News - InTouchRadio.net (UK-GLOBAL)

Rescue Plan For UK Banks Unveiled

Chancellor Alistair Darling outlines a £50bn rescue plan to tackle "extraordinary turbulence" in the banking system.

Gordon Brown has outlined how the government is to help the beleaguered UK banking sector.

Chancellor Alistair Darling has announced the rescue plan to restore confidence to the British banking industry. Business editor Robert Peston looks through the finer points of what has been proposed and says the scale of the rescue is "huge".

Why bank shares are falling

• Robert Peston
• 8 Oct 08, 10:23 AM

The government announces massive, unprecedented financial support for our banks, and their share prices fall - well all of them but that of HBOS.

Shome mishtake shurely.

Well no, that's completely predictable on the basis of a decision by the Treasury and the Financial Services Authority - as part of the rescue package - to pressurise eight banks into agreeing to raise at least £25bn in new capital.

This capital can come from commercial sources. But even if, for example, Barclays was able to raise new capital from regular private sector investors, that capital would be expensive - which is why its share price has fallen (by 15%, as I write).

And since the Treasury is actually making available at least £50bn of new capital to recapitalise the banks, it's pretty clear that the FSA - the City watchdog - thinks they'll need that much.

So it may be good news that the Treasury is prepared to shore up their balance sheets, but it's pretty bad news that there's such a big hole to fill.

Also the £50bn from government comes with expensive strings attached - such as reductions in dividends payable to other shareholders, and commitments to start lending again to small business and home buyers.

In other words, shareholders in the banks are being punished for the sins of executives who will need to go cap in hand to taxpayers.

Why has HBOS's share price risen?

Well, the big danger for HBOS was that it wouldn't be able to refinance its medium-term borrowings from the money markets as they fall due in the coming couple of years.

It faced possible insolvency due to the drying-up of these wholesale sources of finance.

HBOS has in effect been taken back from the brink by the Treasury's decision to provide a guarantee for new short-term and medium-term issues of debt securities by banks.

This may sound like gobbledegook. But what it means is that when banks raise money from other financial institutions, those loans will be guaranteed by the state.

Which means that when a bank or money manager lends to HBOS from now on, it is in effect lending to the Treasury or to all of us as taxpayers - and we're a pretty good credit.

So HBOS - and other banks that take advantage of the guarantee - should be able to start raising funds again from commercial sources.

Now here's the resonant conclusion.

If HBOS is no longer in imminent danger of going bust, there's no longer quite the same imperative for it to be rescued and taken over by Lloyds TSB.

That deal now looks like a fantastic one for Lloyds TSB, because it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a retail super-bank.

But HBOS shareholders might wonder whether they're selling out too cheaply.

And the competition authorities may bristle too. They may nag the government about whether ministers were right to rule that the deal should go through, irrespective of whether consumers could be hurt by the birth of this monster bank.

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A very big rescue

• Robert Peston
• 8 Oct 08, 07:30 AM

The Treasury's rescue package for the banks is substantial, as big an economic initiative as it has probably ever taken.

But then the problem it's trying to fix is huge.

First, the government will make available at least £50bn of taxpayers' money to invest in banks.

The cash will be there if banks need it, if they are being damaged by a perception that their balance sheets are too weak.

If any bank didn't need the additional capital - which will be classified as Tier One under the rules that determine the strength of banks, and will probably be in the form of preference shares - it would not have to take our money.

But if a bank does want it, there will be strings attached - such as restrictions on executive pay and limitations on what it pays out in dividends to other shareholders.

Taking taxpayers' money will not be a licence to trade as normal.

Second, the government will try to fill the almost lethal funding gap created by the collapse of wholesale money markets.

For a fee, it will guarantee the money they borrow from other banks and financial institutions for periods of up to three years.

This is crucial. Because one of the great fears at the moment is that they will be unable to refinance their asset-backed bonds and other wholesale borrowings as they mature over the coming two or three years.

This will be seen as particularly helpful to HBOS - and should facilitate its takeover by Lloyds TSB - since there has been uncertainty about how it was going to pay back holders of its mortgage-backed bonds,

Third, there will be a doubling from £100bn to £200bn in the Bank of England's Special Liquidity Scheme - which allows banks to swap their mortgages for Treasury bills, which are the equivalent of cash. It's a way of providing them with greater certainty about their funding for the next two and a bit years.

Pulling this together, what the government is doing, on behalf of taxpayers is providing hundreds of billions of loans and risk capital to fix banks and a banking system that's perilously close to the brink.

At a time when financial markets across the world have seized up, only taxpayers have the resources to fix this problem.

But three questions follow.

Will it be enough?

Well, unless the economy spirals into total freefall, it should be sufficient to keep our banks functioning in these challenging times.

Can it prevent the economy sliding into recession?

Most economists think we're already there. But the package should help to prevent the downturn becoming vicious.

Will taxpayers be poorer for the rescue?

There are a number of ways of looking at this.

Plainly it would be better for most of us if a deep recession - which would create misery for perhaps millions thrown out of work - can be avoided.

But there is no guarantee that we'll make a profit on the £50bn that's being invested on our behalf (although we might).

And given the sheer scale of how much we're lending to banks, many many hundreds of billions of pounds, there has to be a question mark over whether we'll get every single penny back.

This represents the semi-nationalisation of the banking system.

And what can't be predicted with any scientific precision is how many years it will take for the system to be privatised again, for there to be a reversion to almost business-as-normal for our banks.

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Tuesday's Picks

Rescue plan due in hours

• Robert Peston
• 7 Oct 08, 06:47 PM

The Government is poised to announce details of a comprehensive rescue package for the banking system.

It will include a proposal to inject capital into banks and to provide a standby facility to ensure our big banks have enough cash to fund their day-to-day operations.

In a UK context, this is a very big moment.

It is the government's attempt to stabilise our banking system.

I'll file more as and when I have more detail.

UPDATE: 20:03

As I said this morning, the amount of capital to be invested in our banks by the Government on behalf of taxpayers will be up to £50bn - which is what most analysts estimate is needed by the British banking system.

And there will also be a promise that if any bank has difficulty raising funds from wholesale markets - which remain chronically seized up - the authorities will fill the gap.

I presume that will require the Treasury to provide additional financial help to the Bank of England (that's more taxpayers' wonga), since the Bank of England's balance sheet is probably not big enough to fill our banks' wholesale funding gap on its own.

These are big sums of our money being put at risk to stabilise the financial system. It matters to all of us that the ambitious works - not least because the reluctance of our banks to lend to companies and households is sending the economy into recession.

For what it's worth, one banker - who runs one of our biggest banks - tells me that he is optimistic that it will bring a bit of calm to the extroardinarily turbulent banking market.

It's also a big moment for the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown. This is the first genuine, full-scale economic crisis he has had to face since he entered government, as chancellor of the exchequer, in 1997.

His place in history will depend on whether taxpayers' cash is being used to slow or stem the downward spiral in the economy or whether this is good money disappearing down a deep black hole.

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Banks' most pressing problem

• Robert Peston
• 7 Oct 08, 10:02 AM

A shortage of capital is a big issue for banks, as I've been blathering on about for days (and see my note of this morning on our banks' meeting with the chancellor and request for a capital injection from taxpayers).

But the really urgent issue is the breakdown of wholesale markets, and the increasing difficulty that almost all banks are having in funding themselves on a day-to-day basis.

The basic problem is that the collapses of Lehman and Washington Mutual have made all financial institutions wary of lending to any bank where there is even a scintilla of risk.

It turns out, therefore, that Hank Paulson and the US Treasury were probably wrong in allowing them to fail.

But that's spilt milk.

The more important point is that, across the globe, there are very few banks that are finding it easy to raise money from wholesale sources.

In other words, all this fuss about insuring retail deposits is beside the point.

We all know that governments won't allow retail depositors to lose money - so that's not something to worry about.

A far bigger concern is that most banks are suffering a progressive erosion of the money they receive from other financial institutions.

To date, that's been replaced by colossal loans from the authorities.

In the case of the UK, the Bank of England and the Treasury have collectively provided well over £200bn of incremental lending to our banks over the past year.

It's what I've described as nationalisation by stealth.

But all governments will probably need to do more.

What the Irish government did, in guaranteeing both retail and wholesale deposits in their banks, may turn out to be something of a model for Europe-wide action.

What we may need is a cast-iron pledge from all European governments that they will fill whatever funding gaps emerge at their respective banks from the seizing up of money markets.

It's probably the best outcome that can emerge from today's meeting of European finance ministers.

Bankers all across Europe are watching this meeting, and keeping their fingers and toes crossed, that the finance ministers understand how fragile they are - and that the finance ministers will pledge to keep them afloat, whatever the apparent strain on public-sector balance sheets.

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Banks ask chancellor for capital

• Robert Peston
• 7 Oct 08, 07:00 AM

When Treasury officials started working overtime last week on an emergency plan to inject new capital provided by taxpayers into our banks, the chancellor wasn't sure how our banks would react.

Would they proudly tell him to hop off?

Or would they put out the begging bowl?

Well last night a trio of the UK's biggest banks - Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays, and Lloyds TSB - signalled to Alistair Darling that they'd like to see the colour of taxpayers' money rather quicker than he might have expected.

According to bankers, these three were disappointed that at a private meeting last night with Darling, held at his request, he didn't present to them a fully elaborated banking rescue plan.

One banker told me that what he called the Gang of Three of Barclays, RBS and Lloyds TSB told Darling to pull his finger out and finalise whatever it is he's eventually prepared to offer on taxpayers' behalf.

On paper, Lloyds TSB, RBS and Barclays don't have a pressing need for additional capital.

But they have become concerned that they are being weakened significantly by investors' perception that they are short of capital and their balance sheets need to be strengthened.

Also at the meeting were Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, and Adair Turner, chairman of the Financial Services Authority.

And although the other big banks were represented, it was the chief executives of Lloyds TSB, Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays - respectively Eric Daniels, Sir Fred Goodwin and John Varley - who formed a tightly-knit caucus and gave urgent focus to the discussion.

The three banks estimate that they may need around £15bn of new capital each, with £7.5bn paid up front and a further £7.5bn guaranteed by the Treasury that would be delivered if it became necessary.

Current rough estimates are that the capital injection could be as much as £50bn in total for all British banks.

As yet however, there has not been any detailed negotiation with the Treasury on the amount of taxpayers' money that may be invested in them.

There is no precedent in the UK for taxpayers to take such significant stakes in banks.

The Treasury has been working on a rescue plan along those lines, as I disclosed in my note on Saturday.

The three chief executives will talk again today, so that they can establish a common position, in advance of any further negotiations with the Treasury on a rescue package.

The Treasury's current thinking is that it would acquire preferred stock in the banks, that wouldn't carry voting rights. But it would also take warrants over the ordinary shares, which is a device for ensuring that taxpayers would benefit if the banks' share prices were to rise.

However, the chief executives also told Darling that a capital injection of this sort would not be enough to stabilise the banking system.

The steady withdrawal of funds by other financial institutions, the collapse of the wholesale funding market, remains a serious problem - which probably can't be solved by the Bank of England continuing to provide ever greater loans against an ever wider range of collateral.

In the next couple of years, many tens of billions of pounds of asset-backed securities have to be paid off or redeemed by British banks. So the banks want a commitment from the government that it will lend to them, whether or not they have collateral of the sort demanded by the Bank of England, to allow them to redeem these bonds.

The banks are not looking for a formal guarantee from the Treasury that it will protect wholesale depositors, which is what the Irish government gave to Irish banks, but they would like a formal pledge that it will fill any funding gap created by the steady ebbing away of wholesale funding

If such a commitment were not forthcoming, confidence in one or more British banks may continue to ebb away, to a potentially lethal extent - or so the banks fear.

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Monday's Picks

How close to capitulation?

• Robert Peston
• 6 Oct 08, 03:47 PM

Blimey it must be serious.

Every European Union leader has signed up to the following statement:

"All the leaders of the European Union make clear that each of them will take whatever measures are necessary to maintain the stability of the financial system - whether through liquidity support through central banks, action to deal with individual banks or enhanced depositor protection schemes.

"While no depositors in our countries' banks have lost any money, we will continue to take the necessary measures to protect both the system and individual depositors. In taking these measures, European leaders acknowledge the need for close coordination and cooperation."

So the mayhem of uncoordinated statements and actions over the past few days by the governments of Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland and Greece was simply an accident.

They're all back on the same hymn-sheet today.

Investors seem underwhelmed: the FTSE 100 index is tumbling and shares are currently almost 8% lower.

If sustained this would make it the third worst fall in the history of the FTSE 100 index.

Does this mean we're close to that fabled moment in stock markets - the point of capitulation - when investors lose all hope and dump their stock at any price?

According to the theory, there can be no sustained recovery until the markets are in the clutches of utter despair.

Not everyone subscribes to the pseudo-economic psycho-babble.

But it certainly looks hairy out there.

UPDATE 17:35PM:

Today was when no one could be under any illusion that the global banking crisis is primarily a North American phenomenon.

There's a mess in Europe too, because European banks were also seduced over the preceding few years into lending too much to cheaply to consumers and businesses.

In the past 24 hours, we've seen bank rescues in Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany, and an attempted rescue of an entire economy, that of Iceland.

We've also had the worrying spectacle of apparent disunity among the governments of Europe, with Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Spain all taking unilateral steps to reassure their savers - which risked destabilising banks in other countries.

And when EU government heads then issued an emergency joint statement promising to collaborate more closely, curiously that served to spook investors even more - presumably because it underlined the fragility of the banking system.

What's also prompted high anxiety among investors and bankers is the mounting evidence that the crisis in financial markets is causing a severe economic slowdown.

And when there's a collision of a financial and economic downturn, well the consequence can be painful - because rising unemployment leads to more loans going bad which further weakens our banks.

So the chancellor's plan to strengthen our banks by injecting taxpayers money in the form of new capital is also an economic recovery plan.

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What the Germans did

• Robert Peston
• 6 Oct 08, 10:27 AM

It gets weirder.

My official sources tell me that the German government is not legislating to formally increase protection for savers.

What Angela Merkel did, they say, was give a "political" commitment that no German savers would lose a penny - which is more-or-less identical to the commitment given by our Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling

But the horse has already bolted - in that this morning the Danes have given an unlimited guarantee to their savers and the Swedes have massively increased the level of protection they offer.

Whether the German or British governments like it, there does appear to be a clear trend towards almost total protection for European retail depositors.

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Monday morning feeling

• Robert Peston
• 6 Oct 08, 07:20 AM

Welcome to another anxious Monday morning.

Money markets are deeply stressed again, with the Asian rates for lending between banks for three months remaining at their highest level since last December.

Asian stock markets are falling, with Japan down 5%.

And it's the troubles of Europe's banks, and the messy response of the authorities, that's to blame.

First, let's accentuate the positive.

Fortis's Belgian and Luxembourg operations have been bought - and effectively rescued - by the mighty BNP Paribas of France for just under £12bn in shares and cash.

The troubled German property lender, Hypo Real Estate, has been rescued for the second time in a week, with a package of loans provided by the government in partnership with a consortium of banks and insurers.

And the UK seems to have moved a step closer to announcing the details of a contingency plan being worked on in the Treasury (which I described in my note on Saturday) to inject billions of precious new capital into British banks.

So far, so reassuring.

But.

We still don't know how and what the Icelandic government will do to restore confidence in its banking system.

There's talk of a great national effort, or the use of its citizens' £8bn of pension savings to provide financial support to banks that may need it.

But as of now, it's unclear what Iceland will attempt to do to stem the flight out of its currency and shore up banks that have borrowed £80bn in foreign currencies (and see my other Saturday note, "Markets call time on Iceland").

Finally, there's the residual uncertainty about the extent of Germany's guarantee to holders of private accounts.

It certainly looks as though it's providing 100% insurance to £450bn of deposits. Which seems fairly ambitious, and will put pressure on the UK government to do something similar.

But here's the thing: retail deposits in the UK are much greater than that, some £950bn, according to an analysis by the City watchdog, the Financial Services Authority.

In other words, we in the UK appear to hold more of our savings in authorised banks than seems to be the case in Germany.

So for the UK to offer 100% protection would put a proportionately great strain on the public sector's balance sheet.

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Sunday's Picks

German guarantee lost in translation

• Robert Peston
• 5 Oct 08, 08:35 PM

I don't now expect an immediate decision by the Chancellor of the Exchequer to follow the example of the Germans and offer a full 100% guarantee to protect the savings of ordinary retail savers.

Why not?

Well Alistair Darling and the Treasury can't get any sense out of the German government about what it is precisely that they are doing.

So there's no point in responding to something that's still a touch ephemeral.

There are two possibilities.

The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, may be saying that the full financial might of the German state is guaranteeing or underwiting the retail liabilities of German banks - and thus bringing hundreds of billions of additional debt on to the public sector balance sheet.

That's certainly what's implied in briefings by the German finance ministry. And if that's what's happening, it will reverberate all over Europe.

It is the kind of commitment that would at a stroke strengten German banks in the eyes of their creditors.

And if there weren't to be an ebbing away of deposits from British banks, our chancellor and prime minister would have to respond in kind - at the cost of a massive increment to our national debt.

But it is theoretically possible that Angela Merkel thinks she is simply saying what Alistair Darling said at the height of the Northern Rock crisis a year ago, and repeated last week - which is that she's prepared to do whatever it takes to protect the savings of German retail depositors.

That's a rather softer promise, which wouldn't lead to a swelling of the German national debt.

One thing, and one thing alone is crystal clear: European governments are as dazed and confused by the mayhem in the global banking system as most of the rest of us.

So they shouldn't be surprised if money markets open tomorrow even more stressed than they have been of late.

After all it's been another weekend of attempted rescues of banks from Iceland, to Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium and Italy.

Fingers crossed all the relevant battered banks - or in the case of Iceland, a battered economy - have had the salve and plasters attached by dawn.

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Full deposit protection is nigh

• Robert Peston
• 5 Oct 08, 05:04 PM

The decision by the German federal government to guarantee all private savings in German banks is momentous.

In a globalised banking market, in which money can leak across borders like a sieve, it will be almost impossible for the UK not to follow Germany's lead.

I would be immensely surprised if Alistair Darling, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, didn't announce a similar commitment within the next 24 hours.

The formalisation of full protection for depositors throughout the European Union became almost inevitable after similar decisions were taken over the past few days by the Irish and Greek governments.

But Germany is the biggest economy in Europe, a global powerhouse, with a banking sector that for years prided itself on its conservativism.

That Germany is the first of the major European economies to provide 100 per cent insurance to private savers shows just how fragile its banks have become.

The trigger for the announcement seems to have been the desperate straits of Hypo Real Estate, the commercial property lender whose rescue in jeopardy.

But that's only the trigger.

The underlying cause is a near-total collapse of confidence by creditors to banks and by bankers themselves.

Update 19:16

What an unfortunate mess. Just hours after leaders of the UK, Germany, France and Italy promised to co-ordinate their responses to the global banking crisis, Germany seems to have struck out on its own - by offering 100 per cent state-backed insurance to the country's private savers.

The German initiative - which is long on resonance and worryingly short on detail - caught the British Government off guard. The UK Treasury wasn't expecting any such drastic attempt to shore up confidence in Germany's banks.

And although official statements from the German government are unambiguous that savers money will be fully protected by the state, there's a disturbing lack of detail about precisely how this guarantee would work.

For example, it's not clear whether this is a formal, unambiguous commitment to take the retail liabilities of the German banks on to the public sector's balance sheet - a commitment would add many hundreds of billions of euros to Germany's national debt.

Also, to add an almost comic element to Germany's evasive action, almost simultaneously there's been a statement by the EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes that blanket guarantees on bank deposits by individual members states are "discriminatory".

Kroes added that she was hopeful that Ireland's controversial 100 per cent guarantee - launched last week - would be modifiedn in "a form for which we can together state that it is line with the treaty".

At a time when there's profound unease across Europe about the safety and security of our banks, the spectacle of governments seemingly at odds with each other and with the Commission is unsettling, to put it mildly.

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ITR - A Message from Joey - a Message for you - For InTouchRadio.net UK - GLOBAL

Hello ... I'm Joey - it doesn't matter who I am but I am Joey.

I hope this message finds you well!

I have a message to pass on, please peacefully allow yourself to know that I am not telling you what to do...

Last night I watched a film... And I imagine, like many others around the world, Today, I am writing a similar message, not knowing what to say but knowing that it is time to say it...

Through-out the world I have known, I have come across the word Freedom many times... What does it mean???? Why is it so hard to achieve????? How can I live in the miracle of life with-out the shackles of the world?????

Co-operation is the first step, with ourselves and the people around us... Community

This system that we live in is old and broken but clever. It pits our wits against each other with the illusion that 'there is not enough good to go around'... and so we fight for it, subtly sometimes but still fighting...

The message is simple...

There is enough good to go around!!!! :)
There is hope and it lives in your heart!!! :)
and if you can feel it! it is possible... It is possible that others feel it also


So here is the reach-out :)


The trailer is 2 minutes long, doesn't touch on many of the most interesting features how-ever the link is here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5r6-o1lpJHU

The main film is 2 hours long free to watch on-line, they are selling nothing other than the possibility
http://video.google.co.uk/videosearch?q=Zeitgeist+Addendum+-+released+free+online+Oct.+3%2C+2008&hl=en&emb=0&aq=f#q=Zeitgeist%20Addendum%20-%20&hl=en&emb=0

Some of the greatest movers of our time have worked on this film... The film they don't want you to see
Please let it be your decision on whether to watch it. The world and the world of mind may now be fighting for it-self...

Well... ..... I've written this, I hope I will have the courage to pass it on...

I wish for us all that is rightly ours, starting with 'Real Freedom'

In love
Joey

X

Peace

Disclaimer:
For InTouchRadio.net (Glastonbury, UK/GLOBAL) ~ InTouchRadio.net or InTouchRadio.net Friends do not necessarily agree with any content sent in for the Blogs Page ~ InTouchRadio.net provides a service for you to respond to.

ITR - News from Heather Carter ITR - Ibera for InTouchRadio.net (UK - GLOBAL)

From Heather Carter ITR for InTouchRadio.net (UK-GLOBAL)

One Year On and Sister of Missing Briton Has Not Given Up Hope....

PALMA

THIS Wednesday will mark the first anniversary of the disappearance of British resort representative Jacqueline Tennant who went missing while hiking in the north east of the island on October 8 last year. Jacqueline, 45, from Reading had spent the summer working in the holiday resort of Can Picafort and the member of the Royal Airforce Women’s reserve spent all of her days off hiking round Mallorca.

During the course of last summer she had visited most part of the island and was using her remaining days off to cover what remained. Just before mid-day on the day she went missing, she took a mobile phone call from her resort manager. She said that she was “nearing the top and the view was fantastic.” When she failed to turn up for work the following day she was reported missing but reaction from the security services was slow and her sister Monique flew down to Palma within days to lead the search for her sister and yesterday Monique said that she still has not given up hope of finding her sister one day.

If you have any News or Information that needs sharing Globally please contact Michael - blogs@intouchradio.net

ITR - Michael Dixon Breakfast's at Glastonbury's New Cafe/Restuarant - Arcos - Not To Be Missed When in Glastonbury UK

Michael Dixon - InTouchRadio.net Glastonbury - UK/GLOBAL

Almerico & Colquhoun Open ~Arcos~
Glastonbury's newest Cafe - Restaurant -
Not To Be Missed...

It was a wet rainy and rather windy day today when we left to get some bird seed in Glastonbury, Somerset, which is our closest town to where we live.

I don't know why but when it's windy people go a little crazy and combined with a strong South Westerly it heightended the drive into town.

Where we live in the small remote hamlet of Godney (God-en-ay - in old language, which I believe means Island of Monks or God's Island) there are no local shops, no Post Office after they closed ours recently and the roads into Glastonbury are not the best, bless Mendip Council and Highways but their sense of reality is somewhat different to the people who have to travel the roads and live here.

Narrow roads with passing places always full of treacherous holes today filled with water for the unsuspecting... I digress...

We managed to park after some frustrating incidences on the way in with impolite people and wind-challenged attitudes. A quick chat to our seed man and the bags in the boot off for a coffee - maybe a quick breakfast if the finances stretched that bit further.

Early morning in Glastonbury out of season and few are open before the magiking hour of 10am - where to get that coffee - we needed a paper too and some other bits.

We remembered about the new cafe in what was until recently called The Monarch which backs onto St.John's Car Park. Friends had said "you must visit Al and Colquhoun (pronounced Colhoon).

We turn into the alley almost opposite that famous bread maker Burns The Bread and rose the steps watching out for the anciently worn paving slabs, which can be very slippery in the rain. Walked past our friend Mel who has his little jewellry business (closed at this time of day) and entered the bright and light ~ Arcos.

A couple with a newly born, it appeared, baby were happily munching and brunching and smiling as we entered - the baby - one of those totally aware babies looked up behind the bluest eyes and if I didn't know better winked. Sometimes I can see the ancient Soul shining through almost like saying ~hey ho we're back again...

Al (Almerico) was behind the counter - he smiled a smile of recognition as we realized we had known him from his time at the other famous cafe/restuarant - The Hundred Monkeys.

Shame, I thought, if only lunch time I'd have asked for one of his famous Pasta Ala Herb (pronounced 'Erb) - if he get's those on the menu it won't be long before he's full.

We asked for the menu and said the opening greetings ~ how are you?

Things this last week had been quiet but with the weather - the out-of-season aspect it was understandable.

We looked into the menu - searched for something to break the fast of the night before and decided on Scrambled Egg on Toast - although I was a veggie for about 15 years, I will on occasion have a little meat - my body asks for it and I listen now more than ever to my own internal calling.

This was a special but Al was happy to make me a Scrambled Egg and Bacon on Brown.

Don't expect quick service at Arcos - you won't get it - the food is cooked while you wait and the difference - well worth the wait.

Coffee - Black - came first - his is some of the best coffee around, got to say it - never looked to see what it was called will ask next time in but perfect - it must be his Italian background, Al hails from Naples and the Italians are very choosy when it comes to coffee.

Well into reading the daily paper ~ a polite excuse me ~ and there was our Scrambled Eggs and Bacon and Scrambled Eggs both on four slices of brown bread.

Oh, I can't begin to tell you just how it melted in the mouth - Al is known to many as The Italian Gordon Ramsey (famous English - very expressive - Chef). It is the best I've tasted in a very long time. The four slices of bread are arranged with the scrambled egg in the middle - the only way to eat by cutting the bread and taking the egg or egg and bacon on top in mouthfuls. I did'nt think I'd cove all the slices but I did and there was some left over - but not for long. Washed down with that wonderful black coffee... I can still savour it now.


We started to talk and that's when the soft Scottish accent of Colquhoun caused me to ask here where she came from - the answer - quiet and tempered - Glasgow - enough said - she explained they'd only started in September and I commented on how well they had decorated what was a very dark and enclosing and often full of heavy cooking odours. They had, she said, spent a lot of money and with the situation being quiet were a little worried about the future coming up to Christmas.

I asked for the bill and was shocked at how little it was - I asked her if she would mind me making a little blog for InTouchRadio.net and she said they would welcome anything to get their name around - to which I said they would have my full commendation.


If you come into Glastonbury you'll find Arcos - it's easily seen - it's one of the passage ways into the High Street- if you're in the High Street then it's almost opposite Burns the Bread - I thoroghly recommend you visit - you won't be disappointed - say that you heard about this on InTouchRadio's Blog Page and hopefully soon I'll pop down and do an interview and you can learn more from the man himself and his charming lady.


A little info for you:

Al has been a Chef for 20 years - 18 of those in Somerset specializing in Mediterranean Food.

At Arcos they try to source all their supplies locally to be as fresh as possible and to leave less of a carbon footprint.

They bake their own Scones and Cakes (they look delicious) on the premises - they're not brought in frozen.

Arcos also cater for Functions and supply a Take-Away Coffee Service.

You can call them on 01458-835 033 if you're visiting from overseas you can add the UK (44) to the number to speak directly and make your booking.


Hope you enjoy your meal - we did.

Michael Dixon

InTouchRadio.net Online All The Time
(www.intouchradio.net)


If you have any News or Information that needs sharing Globally please contact Michael - blogs@intouchradio.net

ITR - Newsflash EBAY to Shed 1000 jobs...BBC World News for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

BBC World News -> InTouchRadio.net

eBay to Slash Workforce by 1,000

eBay says it is cutting jobs to streamline its operations

Online auction website eBay has said it is to lay off 1,000 employees, which is 10% of its workforce, as part of a move to streamline the business.

Many hundreds of temporary workers are also at risk of losing their jobs in the cutbacks.

As it announced the job cuts, eBay also said it had gone on the acquisition trail, buying online payments site Bill Me Later.

EBay also said it had bought two Danish classified advertising websites.

It is paying $390m for dba.dk and vehicles site bilbasen.dk.

EBay - which already owns online payment firm Paypal - has signed an agreement to buy Bill Me Later for $820m in cash and $125m in options.

"PayPal and Bill Me Later belong together," said eBay president and chief executive John Donahoe in a statement.

"We now have a powerful combination of the two leading, complementary online payment products, each with proven benefits for consumers and online merchants."

BBC World News/InTouchRadio.net - UK-GLOBAL

If you have information from around the world for distribution by ITR - InTouchRadio.net please email Michael.

ITR - Light Relief Southern Australia - Jan England ITR for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

Information from Jan England ITR Southern Australia for ITR - InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

I for one would like to be able to attend so if you're in Southern Australia - drag yourself over and let the trains, and boats and planes do the rest - Wine Heaven - send a few cases over by fast plane- pretty please...! Hope you enjoy your stay Down Under in Aussie Land - say hello to Jan if you get there... Michael Dixon ITR- UK

RETROSPECTIVE BARREL SERIES TASTING

Take yourself back to 1996 and 1998…and compare!

That’s what we’re doing for this inaugural event. We are diving into the Coonawarra Vignerons Association’s cellar and bringing out wines from Barrel Series 1 (1996 vintage) and Barrel Series 3 (1998 vintage).

Taste and compare these wines and see how beautifully they have matured over time.

This is the only event where you will be able to savour these exclusive wines!

Date: Friday, 17th October
Time: 4pm – 6pm
Location: Zema Estate, Riddoch Highway, Coonawarra
Cost: $25 per person
Coona wara Cabernet Master Class
‘The Best of Both Worlds’

Celebrating the Sensational 2005 Cabernet Vintage from Coonawarra and Bordeaux

The 2005 Vintage has been described as a “Modern Classic” in Bordeaux and the strength
of the Coonawarra wines have been displayed by their extensive array of wine show awards
and accolades.

To gain an insight into a great vintage in the two oldest Cabernet regions in both hemispheres,
come along to Wynns Coonawarra Estate on Saturday 18th October.

We have selected six outstanding 2005 wines from various communes of Bordeaux which will
be tasted alongside six of the best 2005 Cabernet based wines Coonawarra has to offer.

The panel consists of the internationally acknowledged, Bordeaux-trained wine writer, taster,
and educator, Michael Schuster, who also runs his own wine school, WineWise, in North
London. Joining him is the 2007 Dux of the Len Evans Tutorial, Sue Bell, senior winemaker
for Stonehaven wines. Sue’s recent winemaking experience in Bordeaux compliments her
formidable knowledge of Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon. Wynns Coonawarra Estate
winemaker, Greg Tilbrook, will be your Panel Host for the 2008 Master Class.

Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 10am – 12pm
Location: Wynns Coonawarra Estate, Memorial Drive, Coonawarra
Cost: $200 per person
Limited to 50 people

COONAWARRA TUTORIAL

Different Faces of Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon.

The famous red strip of Coonawarra is host to a mosaic of different styles and expressions of
Cabernet Sauvignon, the reigning grape in the terra rossa kingdom.

French winemaker Sandrine Gimon (Rymill Coonawarra) and Australian Paul Kernich
(Stonehaven) infuse elements of the old world and the new into their wines, but are united in
their passion for the unique Cabernet of the Coonawarra region.

Join Sandrine and Paul in an informative tutorial tasting of their wines, and others in the
region. Ideal for beginners, the session will reveal the different faces of Coonawarra Cabernet
Sauvignon with informed opinions, divided preferences, and enthusiastic wine discussion.

Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 2pm – 3pm
Location: The Poplars, Riddoch Highway, Coonawarra
Cost: $45 per person

COONAWARRA CABERNET BRUNCH & AUCTION

Our famous Sparkling Brunch and Barrel Series Auction have a new twist this year! Our
Barrel Series 12 Auction is being deferred until 2009 so we have put in its place a “Uniquely
Coonawarra Auction”. These items are exclusive to Coonawarra and will go under the
hammer on Sunday, October 19. As well, we’re offering a silent auction throughout the day.
Don’t miss this one time only auction!

Date: Sunday, 19th October
Time: 10.30am – 3.30pm
Location: DiGiorgio Family Wines, Riddoch Highway, Coonawarra
Cost: $100 per person

Frida y 17th October
12pm – 2.30pm UPSTAIRS AT HOLLICK
(Lunch) Bordeaux Inspiration
6.30pm UPSTAIRS AT HOLLICK
(Dinner) Bordeaux Inspiration
6.30pm COONAWARRA HALL
Traditional Club Tea Night
7pm COONAWARRA WINE GALLERY
Lindemans Triple the Tipple
7.30pm KATNOOK ESTATE
Katnook Kurry Klub

Saturda y 18th October
9am BALNAVES OF COONAWARRA
Breakfast & Sparkling Cabernet #12
9am – 6pm THE POPLARS WINERY
Fun @ The Poplars
9am – 5pm ZEMA ESTATE
Zema Estate ‘Hot Shots Challenge’
10am – 4pm PENLEY ESTATE
Cabernet Treats & Emu Eats
10am – 4pm REDMAN WINES
Redman Centenary
10am – 4pm PARKER COONAWARRA ESTATE
Cabernet, Chunky Beef Pie & Live Music
10am – 4.30pm YALUMBA COONAWARRA ESTATE “THE MENZIES”
“The Menzies” Sensory Eco-Trail
10am – 5pm BLOK ESTATE
Jelly in your Belly!
10am – 5pm MAJELLA WINES
Wine & Dogs
11am BOWEN ESTATE
Bowen Estate classic coonawarra 5 plus 5
11am – 4.30pm BANKS THARGO WINES
Coonawarra Reds
11am – 4pm PUNTERS CORNER WINES
Heather’s Heavenly Pies
11am and 3 pm ZEMA ESTATE
Zema Estate ‘Family Selection Tasting’
11.30am KOONARA WINES
Paddock to Plate – Vine to Wine
11.30am LECONFIELD COONAWARRA
Sax, Fish & Cabernet
12pm - 5pm WY NNS COONAWARRA ESTATE
Jazz at the Gables
12pm – 2.30pm UPSTAIRS AT HOLLICK
(Lunch) Bordeaux Inspiration
12pm – 3pm S. KIDMAN WINES
Wine & Lamb
12.30pm DIGIORGIO FAMILY WINES
Taste of Italy 2
1pm – 5pm HOLLICK WINES
A Cabernet Perspective
2pm RYMILL COONAWARRA
Come and Play with us!
2pm BRAND’S LAIRA COONAWARRA
Sensual Symphony
2.30pm BALNAVES OF COONAWARRA
Bubbles, Doug and a Bus Tour
6pm PATRICK T WINES
Red, Roast & Rhythm
6.30pm UPSTAIRS AT HOLLICK
(Dinner) Bordeaux Inspiration
6.30pm BOWEN ESTATE
Bowen Estate & Pipers of Penola –
A Family Fusion Dégustation Dinner
7pm THE POPLARS WINERY
1984, A Dinner
8pm STONEHAVEN
Stonehaven Supper Club
Sunda y 19th October
9am – 5pm ZEMA ESTATE
Zema Estate ‘Hot Shots Challenge’
10am – 4pm PENLEY ESTATE
Back Vintage Bonanza
10am – 4pm REDMAN WINES
Redman Centenary
11am – 4.30pm BANKS THARGO WINES
Coonawarra Reds
11.30am KOONARA WINES
Paddock to Plate – Vine to Wine
12pm – 2.30pm UPSTAIRS AT HOLLICK
(Lunch) Bordeaux Inspiration

Coonawara Vignerons Association Events Weekend Events Guide.

Coonawarra Cabernet Celebrations 17th - 19th October, 2008 www. coonawarra. org
Bookings are essential for the Coonawarra Masterclass, Tutorial and the Brunch. Tickets for the Retrospective Barrel Series Tasting are available to be prepurchased
or tickets can be paid by cash at the door. Bookings open 9am Monday, September 15, 2008 and can be purchased by phoning 08 8737 2392.

COONAWARRA MAP

Getting Around & WHERE TO STAY

The Coonawarra Vignerons encourage safe driving and recommend contacting one of
the local transportation companies to ensure you enjoy a safe Coonawarra Cabernet
Celebrations weekend.

Penola/Coonawarra Taxi Service: 0438 350 076

Penola/Coonawarra Tour Service: 0428 847 921

Limestone Coast Discovery Tours: 0407 350 076

Coonawarra Wine Tours: 08 8737 2449 or 0417 373 458

BUSES
A scheduled shuttle bus service will operate between Penola and Coonawarra on Saturday,
18th and Sunday, 19th October to assist patrons in getting to and from events. Cost will
be $2.00 per person per pick up. Enquiries can be made by phoning 0428 847 921 or 08
8733 2422.

The schedule is as follows:

Saturday, October 18 Sunday, October 19
8.45am – Heyward’s Royal Oak Hotel 8.45am – Heyward’s Royal Oak Hotel.

Where to stay:

For a full list of accommodation, please visit www. penola. org or
www. thelimestonecoast. com. Also contact by phone the Penola Coonawarra Visitor
Information Centre on 08 8737 2855 or the Lady Nelson Visitor & Discovery Centre
on 08 8724 9750.

HEYWARD’s
ROYAl OAK HOTEL
PIPER’S OF PENOLA

PROUD SPONSORS

CELLAr DOOR EVENTS AT A GLANCE
COONAWARRA CABERNET CELEBRATIONS OCTOBER 17~19, 2008
CHARDONNAy LODGE
STONEHAVEN SUPPER CLUB
COONAWARRA HALL
CELLAR DOOR events
weekend
events guide

Coonawarra Cabernet Celebrations 17th - 19th October, 2008 www. coonawarra. org

BALNAVES OF COONAWARRA

Breakfast & Sparkling Cabernet #12

Join the Balnaves crew and family in the winery for breakfast on Saturday the 18th of
October. Enjoy a glass of our latest release Sparkling Cabernet over a gourmet breakfast of
fresh local produce.
Phone: 08 8737 2946
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 9am
Cost: $20 per person for breakfast
Bookings: Required

BALNAVES OF COONAWARRA
Bubbles, Doug and a Bus Tour
Join our “local lad” Doug Balnaves for an hour of anecdotal and historical tour of
Coonawarra and the township of Penola, finishing with a glass of Sparkling Cabernet.
Phone: 08 8737 2946
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 2.30pm
Cost: No charge
Bookings: Required

BANKS THARGO WINES
Coonawarra Reds
Tastings of Banks Thargo 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot along with our 2005
Racecourse Red and Sparkling Merlot. Also get a sneak preview of our 2006 Cabernet
Sauvignon.
Phone: 08 8737 2338
Date: Saturday, 18th & Sunday, 19th October
Time: 11am – 4.30pm
Cost: No charge
Bookings: Not required
Location: Heywards Royal Oak Hotel, 31 Church Street, Penola

BLOK ESTATE
Jelly in your Belly!
A true taste sensation! Cleanse the palate during a busy weekend with Blok Estate
Wine Jellies. Other Homemade foods will be available including Ann’s famous Scones
with Cabernet Jam and Cream. Don’t forget our exciting range of unique and boutique
Coonawarra wines!
Phone: 08 8737 2734
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 10am – 5pm
Cost: Prices vary per item
Bookings: Not required

BOWEN ESTATE
Bowen Estate & Pipers of Penola – A Family Fusion Dégustation Dinner
The Bowen Family teams up to present a Dégustation Dinner featuring Bowen Estate
museum and recently released wines, matched with local ingredients prepared in the ‘slow
food’ style. Bon appétit! – Doug, Joy, Emma, Simon and Erika Bowen
Phone: 08 8737 3999
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: From 6.30pm
Cost: $80 per person, food and wine inclusive
Bookings: Required
Location: Pipers of Penola, 54 Riddoch Street, Penola

BOWEN ESTATE
Bowen Estate classic coonawarra 5 plus 5
A tasting with winemakers Doug and Emma Bowen featuring 5 vintages of Bowen Estate
Cabernet Sauvignon and 5 vintages of Bowen Estate Shiraz.
Phone: 08 8737 2229
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 11am
Cost: $5 donation to Stand Like Stone Foundation
Bookings: Required

BRAND’S LAIRA COONAWARRA
Sensual Symphony
The allure of matching fine wine and cheese lies in the bringing together of a multitude of
different characters, flavours and textures. Join winemaker, Peter Weinberg for a unique
tour and tasting experience sampling our range of premium wine paired with a selection
of international cheese sourced from the renowned Bottega Rotolo, Adelaide finishing in a
perfect sensual symphony.
Phone: 08 8736 3260
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 2pm
Cost: $20
Bookings: Required

Coona warra Hall
Traditional Club Tea Night
A Coonawarra tradition ‘Club Tea Night’. Enjoy a relaxing two course dinner in the informal
surroundings of Coonawarra’s historic hall. Music and raffles and maybe a fireworks display
– be surprised!
Phone: 0438 363 307
Date: Friday, 17th October
Cost: $30 per person
Time: 6.30pm onwards
Bookings: Required

COONAWARRA WINE GALLERY
Lindemans Triple the Tipple
Indulge yourself in a memorable evening hosted by Lindemans Coonawarra winemaker
Brett Sharpe. Relax and enjoy a fabulous three course dinner accompanied by three unique
vintages of the Lindemans Trio wines including the newly released 2005.
Phone: 08 8737 3250
Date: Friday, 17th October
Time: 7pm
Cost: $95 per person
Bookings: Required, limited numbers

DIGIORGIO FAMILY WINES
Taste of Italy 2
Back by popular demand, join our National Sales and Marketing Manager, Richard van
Ruth, for a tutored tasting of selected Italian varietal wines alongside those of the DiGiorgio
Family. Homemade Italian antipasti will accompany the wines. Complimentary tastings of
Italian cheese available in Cellar Door all day.
Phone: 08 8736 3222
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 12.30pm – 2.30pm
Cost: $50 for Taste of Italy 2
Bookings: Required for Taste of Italy, limited numbers

HOLLICK WINES
A Cabernet Perspective
Visit Hollick Wines’ Cellar Door to learn about Cabernet and its origins in Bordeaux. We will
feature our own classic Bordeaux-style wines and there will also be the opportunity to taste
some Bordeaux classics. You be the judge ‘To blend or not to blend?’
Visit www. hollick. com for more details.
Phone: 08 8737 2318
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 1pm – 5pm
Cost: $15
Bookings: Required for groups of 8 people or more

UPSTAIRS AT HOLLICK
Bordeaux Inspiration
The Upstairs team will be presenting classic dishes inspired by the Bordeaux region such as
goats cheese soufflé and duck confit cassoulet. Current release and back vintage wines will
be available by the glass or bottle and will be complemented by some Bordeaux highlights
over the weekend.
Lunch
Phone: 08 8737 2752
Date: Friday - Sunday, 17th – 19th Oct
Time: 12pm – 2.30pm for lunch
Cost: å la carte
Bookings: Required

KATNOOK ESTATE
Katnook Kurry Klub
The famous Katnook Kurry Klub comes to life again in The Stables at Katnook Estate – 1
night only! Jodie returns to perform her Kulinary Kapers with Kurry including the Kustomary
Wagyu Beef Vindaloo. Numbers limited. $55 per person includes 3 courses and a bottle of
Katnook Founders Block wine.
Phone: 08 8737 2394
Date: Friday, 17th October
Time: 7.30pm
Cost: $55, Cellar Club Members $50
Bookings: Required

KOONARA WINES
Paddock to Plate – Vine to Wine
Koonara Wines along with Penola celebrated Meek’s Butcher, invites you to enjoy tender
Kanawinka steak straight off the BBQ flames while being one of the first to try our brand
new sparkling wines. Browse through our extensive range of homewares, cookwares and
giftwares.
Phone: 08 8737 3222
Date: Saturday, 18th – Sunday, 19th October
Time: 10am – 6pm, BBQ 11.30am – 3pm
Cost: From $8 per serve of Barbeque Kanawinka Beef, $5 wine by the glass
Bookings: Not required

LECONFIELD COONAWARRA
Sax, Fish & Cabernet
Enhance your Cabernet Celebrations with scrumptious cones of fresh Limestone Coast
trout & crunchy chips and a glass or two of Leconfield’s finest wines. Linger awhile to the
smooth sounds of saxophone by young Tenison prodigy, Matthew Oulton, then taste the
components of our fabulous 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon with winemaker, Paul Gordon.
Phone: 08 8737 2326
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: From 11.30am
Cost: Free Entry, From $8 Fish & Chip Cones, $6 wine by the glass
Bookings: Not required

MAJELLA WINES
Wine & Dogs
Majella Wines presents our ever popular; Vertical tasting of Majella Cabernet Sauvignon.
Compare all the great vintages from 1996 – 2008. Come and savour one of our fantastic
“New York Style” Hot Dogs, relax with a glass of wine and listen to some smooth tunes in
the ambience of our winery.
Phone: 08 8736 3055
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 10am – 5pm
Cost: $3 Hot Dogs, tastings free of charge
Bookings: Not required

PATRICK T WINES
Red, Roast & Rhythm
Once again join Patrick for a good hearted night of casual sing along, glorious food and a
night to remember with generous reds and talented musicians. Come and dance the night
away…it’s a tradition!
Phone: 08 8737 3687
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 6pm - late
Cost: $50 per person
Bookings: Required

PARKER COONAWARRA ESTATE
Cabernet, Chunky Beef Pie & Live Music
Please join us and enjoy a delicious chunky beef pie with fresh green salad at Parker Estate.
Relax, have a glass of Cabernet and enjoy the ambience of Cellar Door with live music and
art on display.
Phone: 08 8737 3525
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 10am – 4pm
Cost: $6 Chunky Beef Pie & Salad, $6 Cabernet by the glass
Bookings: Not required

PENLEY ESTATE
Cabernet Treats & Emu Eats
‘Back by popular demand’ a gourmet treat awaits you at Penley Estate.
Avenue Emu are back to serve up their triple platinum, delectable Emu
Steak rolls, made with meat so tender it will melt in your mouth. Paired
with our 2006 award winning Phoenix Cabernet, an absolute treat, don’t
miss out. Current release wines for tasting and sales all weekend.
Phone: 08 8736 3211
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 10am – 4pm
Cost: $7.50 Emu steak roll or Emu and salami salad. Emu nibble platters also
available. Current release wines by the glass - from $6
Bookings: Not required

PENLEY ESTATE
Back Vintage Bonanza
Pop into Penley Estate on Sunday as we have a selected range of back vintage wines
available for tasting and purchase. Enjoy your tasting with a sample of
local cheeses. Current release wines also available for tasting and sales
all weekend.
Phone: 08 8736 3211
Date: Sunday, 19th October
Time: 10am – 4pm
Cost: Tastings are complimentary
Bookings: Not required

THE POPLARS WINERY
Fun @ The Poplars
It’s a weekend for fun, relaxation, play and the mutual appreciation of Coonawarra Cabernet.
Have a hearty brekkie, sip wine, play giant snakes and ladders, taste cheese, enjoy lunch,
challenge a friend to a game of checkers...Kitchen cafe will be serving food all day, wine
available by the glass plus there’s a special kids menu. Great family friendly environment.
Phone: 08 8736 3065 or 08 8736 3309 (after hours)
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 9am – 6pm
Cost: Free games, a la carte cafe menu
Bookings: Not required but appreciated for large groups

THE POPLARS WINERY
1984, A Dinner
In 1984 the $1 coin was introduced, Prince Harry was born, Torvill & Dean won an Olympic
gold medal for Bolero, green and gold were proclaimed Australia’s national colours and
Chardonnay Lodge opened its doors for the first time.
Join us for a 1984 inspired dinner by Chef Tim Foster at Chardonnay Lodge; 5 course
dégustation featuring our best regional produce, some rare 1984 Coonawarra reds and a
few surprises.
Phone: 08 8736 3309
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 7pm
Cost: $99 all inclusive
Bookings: Required
Location: Chardonnay Lodge, across the road from The Poplars Winery

PUNTERS CORNER WINES
Heather’s Heavenly Pies
Punters Corner will be celebrating the Cabernet weekend with tastings of back vintages of
their Sovereign Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. To keep out the winter chill for $5 a plate you
can purchase some of Heather’s Heavenly Pies on Saturday between 11am – 4pm. Come
and see us to try these fabulous offerings on the day.
Phone: 08 8737 2007
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 11am – 4pm
Cost: $5 per serve
Bookings: Not required

REDMAN WINES
Redman Centenary
A rare opportunity to taste wines from 5 decades of production and view some historical
wines that the Redman family have made over their past 100 years of winemaking in
Coonawarra.
Phone: 08 8736 3331
Date: Saturday, 18th – Sunday, 19th October
Time: 10am – 4pm
Cost: $10 per person includes a Centenary glass
Bookings: Not required

RYMILL COONAWARRA
Come and Play with us!
Join in the fun by entering the inaugural Rymill Coonawarra Petanque Cup.
A selection of delicious morsels created by our in-house food legend, Melissa Innes, and a
glass of Rymill Coonawarra wine will enhance your performance.
Boules can be provided. Players with no experience preferred. Come on your own or form
a team of three.
Phone: 08 8736 5001
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: From 2pm
Cost: $15 per person, exceptional value of $45 for teams of three!
Bookings: Required

S. KIDMAN WINES
Wine & Lamb
Join us in our historic cellar door and enjoy a baguette with warm sliced leg of lamb, which
has been roasted in Sid’s grandmothers’ 60 year old AGA stove.
Phone: 08 8736 5071
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 12pm – 3pm
Cost: $15 all inclusive
Bookings: Appreciated but not required

STONEHAVEN
Stonehaven Supper Club
Stonehaven presents “The Blackeyed Susans” from Melbourne for one night only at the
transformed Coonawarra Hall (you won’t recognise it!). After a day of touring, tasting and
education come and relax to the mellifluent tones, enjoy award winning wines and fine food.
(Mellifluent: (me lif loo ent) pure, dulcet, smooth, sweet, soft and mellow)
Phone: 08 8765 6166
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: From 8pm
Cost: $30 door entry, food and wine available to purchase
Bookings: Be sure to secure a table for a group or try your luck at the door
Location: Coonawarra Soldier’s Memorial Hall, Memorial Drive, Coonawarra

WY NNS COONAWARRA ESTATE
Jazz at the Gables
Sip back and relax on the lawns of our historic winery to the sounds of Gentlemen Prefer
Blondes. Enjoy our premium Wynns wines with a range of foods including Salt and Pepper
Squid, Fish’n Chips and Satay Chicken Skewers.
Phone: 08 8736 2225
Date: Saturday, 18th October
Time: 12pm – 5pm
Cost: Food at various prices, kids food also available. $6 wine by the glass, other
beverages available
Bookings: Not required

YALUMBA COONAWARRA ESTATE “THE MENZIES”
“The Menzies” Sensory Eco-Trail
Discover the natural aromas and flavours in our wines inspired by nature with a stroll along
the winding path through our native re-vegetation. Enjoy a tasty cheese matched with a
wine at the end of your journey.
Phone: 08 8737 3603
Date: Saturday 18th October
Time: 10am – 4.30pm
Cost: $10 includes wine, ‘eco-trail’ and cheese

ZEMA ESTATE
Zema Estate ‘Family Selection Tasting’
Taste our top 10 ‘Family Selection’ wines (Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon) from
Coonawarra’s finest vintages, selected and presented by Winemaker Greg Clayfield and
Nick Zema.
Phone: 08 8736 3219
Date: Saturday 18th October
Time: 11am and 3pm (approx 1 hour duration)
Cost: $25 redeemable
Bookings: Required as places are limited

ZEMA ESTATE
Zema Estate ‘Hot Shots Challenge’
Test your tasting skills in our ‘Wine Hot Shots Challenge’. Over the weekend we will have
two ‘mystery’ Zema wines on tasting. Guess the correct variety and vintage of both for a
chance to win 1 dozen Family Selection wines.
Phone: 08 8736 3219
Date: Saturday,18th - Sunday, 19th October
Time: 9am – 5pm
Cost: No charge
Bookings: Not required
Dinner
Phone: 08 8737 2752
Date: Friday - Sat, 17th – 18th Oct
Time: From 6.30pm for dinner
Cost: å la carte
Bookings: Required

COONAWARRA CABERNET CELEBRATIONS OCTOBER 17~19, 2008

From Jan England InTouchRadio.net - Australia for InTouchRadio.net (Glastonbury, UK & GLOBAL)

If you have information from around the world for distribution by ITR - InTouchRadio.net please email Michael.

ITR - Jan England ITR Southern Australia News for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

News from Jan England ITR - Southern Australia for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

Banks Are 'Hiding Behind' Treasurer

October 05, 2008

FEDERAL Treasurer Wayne Swan has been accused by the Opposition of acting like the head of one of the big four banks by telling Australians they should not expect the full benefit of an interest rate cut.

The Government has refused to place pressure on the banks to pass an anticipated cut in the official cash rate onto customers in full, saying the country was in a "more complicated environment" than when rates were cut last month. It is widely expected that the Reserve Bank will cut the official rate of 7 per cent by as much as half a percentage point on Tuesday.

Deputy Opposition Leader and treasury spokeswoman Julie Bishop said the banks were "hiding behind" Mr Swan and that he had to explain why they should not pass on the full benefit of the expected interest rate cut. "The banks have not given an answer and we're only hearing from the treasurer," Ms Bishop said today.

"In the Reserve Bank's latest financial stability review it is pointed out that our banks are strong, they are well capitalized, and they are making record profits.

"Yet on the other hand, Mr Swan is telling the Australian people that banks cannot afford to pass on an interest rate cut should the Reserve Bank cut interest rates next week.

"Mr Swan should stop acting like the CEO of one of the big banks and act like the treasurer of Australia."

Ms Bishop said Mr Swan should explain how much he believed the banks should be able to retain of the profits they received through an interest rate cut. The banks increased their margin by half a percentage point above the official cash rate earlier this year, saying they were facing increased costs, Ms Bishop said.

"That's when interest rates were going up and yet they still recorded record profits," Ms Bishop said.

"And so Australians are effectively paying half a percent more in an increased margin that they were previously.

"We need the banks to step out from behind Mr Swan and tell the Australian people why they should get the benefit of an interest rate cut and not the small businesses, the home owners, the families who need relief at this time."

She said that amid record profitability and decreasing interest rates, Australians should be told what level of profitability the banks needed to maintain "in these difficult financial times".
Ms Bishop said she believed the US bailout package was "a solid start" in dealing with that country's credit crisis, but that the extent of the global financial crisis was yet to be seen.

"I don't believe we have yet seen the full extent of the fallout, most certainly not yet in the UK or Europe, and course there will be a flow-on effect through Asia and into Australia," she said.
"I think we have some months of difficult times ahead."

From Jan England InTouchRadio.net - Australia for InTouchRadio.net (Glastonbury, UK & GLOBAL)

If you have information from around the world for distribution by ITR - InTouchRadio.net please email Michael.

ITR - News from Heather Carter ITR - Iberia for InTouchRadio.net (UK-GLOBAL)

From Heather Carter ITR - Iberia for InTouchRadio.net (UK-GLOBAL)

Former Balearic President's Top Aide and Partner on Remand in Prison

THE ex-head of the former Balearic government's Consortium for Balearic Economic Development, Antonia Ordinas and her partner, the Soprano Isabel Rossello were last night being held on remand in Palma prison.

The couple were arrested earlier this week as part of a National Police fraud squad investigation into the misappropriation of public funds by the Consortium, a department of the Balearic Ministry for Commerce, during the former Presidency of the conservative Partido Popular leader Jaume Matas and the direction of Antonia Ordinas.

The two prime suspects in the alleged fraud investigation, which is also looking into claims of alleged bribery and money laundering, yesterday appeared before a remand hearing but decided to use their right to remain silent as a precautionary measure because, according to their lawyer, Ordinas and Rossello do not know what version of events the other suspects have given the court.

If you have news from around the world to share on InTouchRadio.net (www.intouchradio.net) - please send to blogs@intouchradio.net and we will do our best to put them up on line for you here and on our web sites on MySpace.

ITR - Equestrian News from Angela Spray ITR Australia for InTouchRadio.net (UK-GLOBAL)

Gymkhana Day, Dressage test and Last Ride at Pioneer Country

Angela Spray for InTouchRadio.net (UK & GLOBAL)
Report 2008 Date: 4th Oct

Hi fellow horse lovers,

Pioneer Country recently had their gymkhana day (27th Sept 08) with us and it was a really welcoming day with the sun shining and the horses in good spirits. I was looking forward to it as it is always an event of excitement and pleasure.

I have been to quite a few gymkhanas now and this one is to be my last at Pioneer Country. I was really happy with the results as Casy (the horse) and I came 3rd in the riding class.

We all had barrel races and trotting over polls and collecting brushes at the barrels which I missed out on as you have to pick up a brush at the barrel and then race home!! It is timed and three people get 1st 2nd and 3rd in all the exercises!

The horses have plenty of fun too and sometimes it can be amusing watching them as one horse for example, went up one side and back down the other side missing the polls on the ground which you are meant to trot over – not around to win the race!!!
That was quite funny to watch!!


Yesterday was my dressage test and a very good one too!! Ever rider had to perform with their horse that they had through the term, a prescribed dressage test. It wasn’t anything too difficult – figure of 8 and 20m circles which you had to canter. Always remembering your diagonals and being on the correct canter lead. That went well and my instructor told me it looked very fluent and correct with the directions and balanced.

One thing that all riders know and which is vital to your horse riding is your balance. If your balance it not correct, you can throw your horse out of sync. It is something that takes time but when you get the hang of it, riding improves by 100%.

I was please about how Casy (my horse) was so responsive and the day was accompanied by a lot of wind which I thought would make it tough to ride a test in being so blowy and can chuck the sand all over the arena!

So it was a job well done. My instructor said they will finalise the results for everyone and send them out in the near future.

We don’t get our mark on the day but our instructor can advice and tell us if it was successful and that is what she said. I have attached a few photos of the gymkhana day and the dressage test from yesterday.

I thought close ups would be better so my Pop took them while I was warming up with the horse!!

Enjoy and please send me your experiences or events too as I would love to hear from some of you!

Angela

Website - www.myspace.com/allthingsequestrian and of course here on InTouchRadio.net (www.intouchradio.net) and on InTouchRadio's other sites on MySpace.

ITR- News from Denmark - One Nation Under A Groove for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

Hi Michael :-)InTouchRadio.net - Glastonbury, UK & GLOBAL

One Nation Under A Groove / Info

Hope you're fine

Here some great news from One Nation Under A Groove (who have been played at Desihits(and is still being played) and have appeared in Henna Magazine) and BBC, by the way.

Frontman, composer and singer Henrik Andersen is moving to india 13 OCTOBER.

Their album "Guardian Angel" is played at radiostations almost all over the world - from Brazil to USA to Britain and Canada.

The album is getting great reviews all over!

And they made a new fun video:

Here’s the direct link to our new video at YOUTUBE:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwxDct9qYuU

All info, photos, reveiws from all over the world etc at:

www.onenation.dk

Michael Dixon at InTouchRadio.net - Glastonbury, UK & GLOBAL Response:

Hi Morten and Andersen - I am so glad you have had the response from all around the world - you know my feelings towards your music and album - the review is coming I promise but we have had quite a lot going on here in the UK etc.

I love your music, can't say I'm happy with you because you have the Sitar and you know I've always wanted one lol but truthfully I wish you much success and hope your move to India is productive and you know whenever you're in the UK you are welcome.

Love to the other guys and make sure - you Keep InTouch.

Michael x

Bon Voyage...

ITR - News from Iberia from Heather Carter ITR - for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

From Heather Carter ITR - Iberia
2. October 2008

421 MILLION EUROS FOR THE BALEARICS

THE Balearics will receive 421 million euros of government funding next year and a total of 2'800 million over the next seven years.
Central government’s budget for the Balearics was unveiled by the Balearic Minister for Finance, Carles Manera and the general Budget for 2009 will be officially presented by Spanish Minister for Finance, Pedro Solbes, this morning.
Per capita, the funding continues to be below the national average but Manera said yesterday that state funding in the Balearics has risen by 80 percent over the past two years and that Madrid is committed to continuing to increase the amount of state financial aid the region receives.

Eleventh arrest in investigation into public funding scam

THE Serious Fraud Squad of the National Police made an eleventh arrest yesterday as it continues with its investigation into the alleged misappropriation of public funds by the former head of the previous government’s Consortium for Balearic Economic Development, Antonia Ordinas, who was taken in to police custody for questioning on Monday morning.
Ordinas’s partner, the Soprano Isabel Rossello was also arrested on Monday along with eight other suspects all connected to the world of public relations. Yesterday a 60-year-old woman identified only as Daniela B.B. was arrested in Palma on alleged charges of bribery and the misappropriation of public funds.

According to fraud squad sources yesterday, they are investigating the misappropriation of around five million euros during a three-year period under Jaume Matas Presidency of the Balearic government and further arrests may still be made over the coming days as the police continue with their investigation.

Yesterday, the spokesperson for the parliamentary Socialist group, Antoni Dieguez, told the house that during the last legislature, that of the former conservative Partido Popular leader Jaume Matas, his party warned parliament about “favours” being made by the Consortium for Balearic Economic Development

From Heather Carter ITR News from Iberia for InTouchRadio.net UK-GLOBAL

ITR - Pip Reynolds ITR Girl in California - Latest on Current USA Situation for InTouchRadio.net (UK & GLOBAL)

From Pip Reynolds ITR California just prior to her surgery today/tomorrow 1st October 2008 for InTouchRadio.net (Glastonbury, UK & GLOBAL) send her a message.

Stocks Surge Higher;
Credit Worries Persist

By JOE BEL BRUNO and TIM PARADIS, AP Business Writers

NEW YORK - Wall Street snapped back Tuesday after its biggest sell-off in years amid growing expectations that lawmakers will salvage a $700 billion rescue plan for the financial sector. But the seized-up credit markets where businesses turn to raise money showed no sign of relief.

The recovery in stocks wasn't unexpected as carnage on Wall Street often attracts bargain hunters, though questions remain about how investors will proceed. Without a bailout plan in place to absorb soured mortgage debt and other bad loans from battered banks, investors are left wondering what might restore confidence in lending.

Major stock indexes were almost a sideshow during the session, with the credit markets as the main event. A key rate that banks charge to lend to one another shot higher, a tightening of the availability of credit that could cascade through the economy.

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, still stunned from Monday's 778-point rout in the Dow Jones industrial average, warned that the government needs to approve a plan that will sweep away the fears that hobbled the credit markets. While U.S. political leaders have vowed to revisit the issue, the House isn't slated to meet again until Thursday.

"If it doesn't pass, then look out below," said Jason Weisberg, an NYSE trader for Seaport Securities. "It could get ugly."

Though the blue-chip index rose nearly 500 points by late afternoon, the main worry for traders is that a lack of a plan will make it nearly impossible for some companies to fund basic operations like making payroll. Participants in the credit market buy and sell debt that companies use to finance operations.

The benchmark London Interbank Offered Rate, or LIBOR, that banks charge to lend to one another, rose sharply Tuesday, making it more expensive and difficult for consumers and businesses to borrow money. In addition, credit card debt and more than half of adjustable-rate mortgages are tied to LIBOR, so an increase isn't welcome for many consumers.

LIBOR for 3-month dollar loans rose to 4.05 percent from 3.88 percent on Monday. LIBOR for 3-month euro loans, meanwhile, rose to 5.27 percent, from 5.22 percent Monday.

Critics of the bailout package believe that it was too costly and wouldn't have done enough to jump-start lending. To maintain pressure ahead of Thursday's likely vote, President Bush said in a statement from the White House early Tuesday that the damage to the economy will be "painful and lasting" unless Congress passes the bailout measure.

On Wall Street, many traders likely will proceed cautiously while they gauge prospects for resurrecting the bailout effort, which was backed by leaders of both parties.

"I'm not getting the sense that investors are going to be jumping in with both feet until there is some kind of resolution on the plan," said James Maguire, an NYSE floor trader with Christopher J. Forbes. "If there's a no vote, we're going to see a lower overall drift in stocks. It will be a slow bleed."

Traders also will likely focus on how the bloodshed will look on paper. Tuesday marks the final session of the third quarter — and what is typically the worst month for the stock market — so some portfolio managers might try to do what they can to dress up their performance. Others might simply wish to dump holdings in an unpopular corners of the market like the financial sector.

The Dow rose 485.21, or 4.68 percent, to 10,850.66 after falling nearly 7 percent on Monday to its lowest close in nearly three years. It was the largest point drop and 17th largest percentage drop in the blue chip index. The percentage decline was far less severe than the 20-plus-percent drops seen in the stock market crash of October 1987 and before the Great Depression.

Broader stock indicators also bounced higher. The Standard & Poor's 500 index recovered 58.35, or 5.27 percent, to 1,164.74, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 98.60, or 4.97 percent, to 2,082.33.

The S&P fell 8.79 percent Monday, while the Nasdaq lost 9.14 percent.

The yield on the 3-month Treasury bill rose Tuesday to 0.89 percent from 0.14 percent late Monday. The yield fell Monday as investors clamored for the safety of government debt. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.83 percent from 3.58 percent late Monday. The dollar rose against other major currencies and gold prices advanced.

While investors focused on what might come from Washington this week, Wall Street was cheered by several economic readings.

A private research group reported that consumer confidence rose unexpectedly in September. The Conference Board said Tuesday its Consumer Confidence Index rose to 59.8 from a revised 58.5 in August; Wall Street had expected a reading of 55.5, according to Thomson/IFR. The reading, which doesn't reflect attitudes following Monday's steep stock market sell-off, remains near a 16-year low.

The Chicago Purchasing Managers' index, which measures business conditions across Illinois, Michigan and Indiana, came in at 56.7 compared with 57.9 in August — a second straight month of a strong reading.

Light, sweet crude rose $4.27 to settle at $100.64 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil fell more than $10 a barrel Monday as investors worried that a weaker economy would curtail demand.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by about 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to a light 1.02 billion shares.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 21.86, or 3.32 percent, to 679.58.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 4.12 percent. But Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.76. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 1.74 percent, Germany's DAX index added 0.41 percent, and France's CAC-40 rose 1.99 percent.

From Pip Reynolds - InTouchRadio.net - California West Coast Team Co-ordinator for InTouchRadio.net - Glastonbury, UK & GLOBAL.