Warren Buffett Warns of Financial 'Chaos' The Sage of Omaha has real worries about the U.S. dollar.
It is no surprise that billionaire stock investor Warren Buffett continues to flee the U.S. dollar as he pours billions into foreign currencies.
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Last year Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett’s holding company, reported it had placed some $12 billion in foreign currencies.
Now Forbes reports that Buffett continues to exit dollar investments, and Berkshire Hathaway holds some $20 billion in foreign currencies.
Buffett has used foreign currencies as a hedge against his weakly performing U.S. portfolio.
According to the New York Times, the firm reversed a second quarter loss and gained $412 million between July and September, after increasing its share of foreign currency contracts from $12 billion at the close of 2003 to $20 billion now.
Buffett managed to do that by betting the dollar would decline, and it has.
In fact, it has recently hit record lows against the euro, and experts who spoke to the Times believe the decline will continue, possibly for years.
"In 2002, we entered the foreign currency market for the first time in my life, and in 2003 we enlarged our position as I became increasingly bearish on the dollar," Buffett told investors in a letter in last year's annual report.
He remains bearish on the dollar even now.
30.12.04
CNN.com - Fly-eating robot powers itself - Dec 29, 2004
CNN.com - Fly-eating robot powers itself - Dec 29, 2004: "(CNN) -- Scientists at the University of the West of England (UWE) have designed a robot that does not require batteries or electricity to power itself.
Instead, it generates energy by catching and eating houseflies.
Dr Chris Melhuish and his Bristol-based team hope the robot, called EcoBot II, will one day be sent into zones too dangerous for humans, potentially proving invaluable in military, security and industrial areas."
Instead, it generates energy by catching and eating houseflies.
Dr Chris Melhuish and his Bristol-based team hope the robot, called EcoBot II, will one day be sent into zones too dangerous for humans, potentially proving invaluable in military, security and industrial areas."
Yahoo! News - FBI Probes Laser Beam Directed at Cockpit
Yahoo! News - FBI Probes Laser Beam Directed at Cockpit: "The beam appeared Monday when the plane was about 15 miles from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, the FBI (news - web sites) said.
'It was in there for several seconds like (the plane) was being tracked,' FBI agent Robert Hawk said."
'It was in there for several seconds like (the plane) was being tracked,' FBI agent Robert Hawk said."
cooltech.iafrica.com | coolscience Quake rattled Earth orbit - geophysicist
cooltech.iafrica.com | coolscience Quake rattled Earth orbit - geophysicist: "An earthquake that unleashed deadly tidal waves on Asia was so powerful it made the Earth wobble on its axis and permanently altered the regional map, US geophysicists said on Monday.
The 9.0-magnitude temblor that struck 250km southeast of Sumatra island on Sunday may have moved small islands as much as 20m, according to one expert."
The 9.0-magnitude temblor that struck 250km southeast of Sumatra island on Sunday may have moved small islands as much as 20m, according to one expert."
29.12.04
Forbes.com: The Paper Standard
Forbes.com: The Paper Standard: " "a deputy governor of the People's Bank of China, Li Ruogu, can upbraid the U.S. for financial mismanagement and lay fair claim to some of the facts. 'The savings rate in China is more than 40%,' Li told the Financial Times in November. 'In the U.S. it is less than 2%. So the problem is that they spend too much and save too little.'"
WorldNetDaily: Death count up to 68,000
WorldNetDaily: Death count up to 68,000: "African nation of Somalia, 3,000 miles from the quake's epicenter, reported at least 110 deaths in coastal villages hit by waves."
WorldNetDaily: Arab astrologer predicts Bush assassination
WorldNetDaily: Arab astrologer predicts Bush assassination: "A Tunisian astrologer who reportedly predicted the deaths of Princess Diana, Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and Yasser Arafat says President Bush will be killed by an assassin's bullet in 2005.
So seriously are Hassan al-Sharibi's predictions taken in the Arab world that a similar prophecy about Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Mahmoud Abbas has resulted in increased security around the candidate to replace Arafat as president of the Palestinian Authority."
So seriously are Hassan al-Sharibi's predictions taken in the Arab world that a similar prophecy about Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Mahmoud Abbas has resulted in increased security around the candidate to replace Arafat as president of the Palestinian Authority."
Ananova - Top doc backs picking your nose and eating it
Ananova - Top doc backs picking your nose and eating it: "Picking your nose and eating it is one of the best ways to stay healthy, according to a top Austrian doctor.
Innsbruck-based lung specialist Prof Dr Friedrich Bischinger said people who pick their noses with their fingers were healthy, happier and probably better in tune with their bodies.
He says society should adopt a new approach to nose-picking and encourage children to take it up.
Dr Bischinger said: 'With the finger you can get to places you just can't reach with a handkerchief, keeping your nose far cleaner.
'And eating the dry remains of what you pull out is a great way of strengthening the body's immune system."
Innsbruck-based lung specialist Prof Dr Friedrich Bischinger said people who pick their noses with their fingers were healthy, happier and probably better in tune with their bodies.
He says society should adopt a new approach to nose-picking and encourage children to take it up.
Dr Bischinger said: 'With the finger you can get to places you just can't reach with a handkerchief, keeping your nose far cleaner.
'And eating the dry remains of what you pull out is a great way of strengthening the body's immune system."
WorldNetDaily: Rumsfeld says 9-11 plane 'shot down' in Pennsylvania
WorldNetDaily: Rumsfeld says 9-11 plane 'shot down' in Pennsylvania Rumsfeld says 9-11 plane 'shot down' in Pennsylvania. During surprise Christmas Eve trip, defense secretary contradicts official story
The End of Warfare
The End of Warfare: "'Against the most heavily armed opponent in the history of War, Fallujah has still not let itself be 'taken' to date. The mightiest military machine in history has met its match. A turning point in military affairs? The end of warfare, as practiced by the Americans - the application of overwhelming force to obtain a victory?'"
28.12.04
Walmart.com - How Walmart Is Destroying America And The World: And What You Can Do About It
Walmart.com - How Walmart Is Destroying America And The World: And What You Can Do About It Ils vendent le livre en question chez Wal Mart!
entertainment.iafrica.com | news Stars show more skin than ever
entertainment.iafrica.com | news Stars show more skin than ever Stars are showing 59 percent of their naked bodies, more skin than ever, as they step out at premieres, according to Ananova.com.
Researchers from an Odeon survey have scanned through the years to see how much nudity has been on show over the decades. In 1994 — the year that Liz Hurley famously upped the ante in a safety pin Versace creation at the opening of 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' — the average bare skin quota was just 39 percent. Hurley's flesh flash amounted to about triple that.
Since the 1950s, the most prudish decade was, interestingly, the 70s when stars like Carrie Fisher and Goldie Hawn showed just 7 percent of their bods.
Researchers say that if trends continue, stars with be showing off three-quarters of their bods by 2010.
Researchers from an Odeon survey have scanned through the years to see how much nudity has been on show over the decades. In 1994 — the year that Liz Hurley famously upped the ante in a safety pin Versace creation at the opening of 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' — the average bare skin quota was just 39 percent. Hurley's flesh flash amounted to about triple that.
Since the 1950s, the most prudish decade was, interestingly, the 70s when stars like Carrie Fisher and Goldie Hawn showed just 7 percent of their bods.
Researchers say that if trends continue, stars with be showing off three-quarters of their bods by 2010.
Rumsfeld says Flight 93 was ’shot down’
By John Byrne | RAW STORY Editor
In either a gargantuan slip of the tongue or a momentous gaffe departing from the Bush Administration-approved timeline, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld told troops in Iraq that the Sept. 11 flight over Pennsylvania was “shot down,” RAW STORY has discovered.
The quote was found in CNN’s transcript of a video of the Secretary’s visit to Camp Victory in Baghdad. The audio is available from National Public Radio (skip to 3:30) here.
Rumsfeld appears to suggest that terrorists shot down Flight 93, the flight immortalized with the possibly inaccurate “let’s roll” tale in which passengers struggled to retake the plane, driving it into the ground.
Others, however, who have long taken issue with the events as reported, believe the United States shot down the airliner. No doubt Rumsfeld’s remarks will fuel a new controversy among those who find serious flaws in the historical timeline.
By John Byrne | RAW STORY Editor
In either a gargantuan slip of the tongue or a momentous gaffe departing from the Bush Administration-approved timeline, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld told troops in Iraq that the Sept. 11 flight over Pennsylvania was “shot down,” RAW STORY has discovered.
The quote was found in CNN’s transcript of a video of the Secretary’s visit to Camp Victory in Baghdad. The audio is available from National Public Radio (skip to 3:30) here.
Rumsfeld appears to suggest that terrorists shot down Flight 93, the flight immortalized with the possibly inaccurate “let’s roll” tale in which passengers struggled to retake the plane, driving it into the ground.
Others, however, who have long taken issue with the events as reported, believe the United States shot down the airliner. No doubt Rumsfeld’s remarks will fuel a new controversy among those who find serious flaws in the historical timeline.
26.12.04
Jerusalem Post | Breaking News from Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World
Jerusalem Post | Breaking News from Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World: "Some 600 prominent Palestinians, including top officials, cabinet ministers, legislators, intellectuals and poets, have called for an end to armed attacks on Israel and urged the Palestinian Authority to push for democratic reforms."
Bush aims high, faces more foes | csmonitor.com
Bush aims high, faces more foes | csmonitor.comWASHINGTON – Lest there was any doubt, events of the past week have reinforced the image of a president heading into a new term with all the markings of a high-wire act.
President Bush has carved out a second-term domestic agenda as ambitious as any - beginning with fundamental change to the $500 billion-a-year Social Security program - while acknowledging that the deep challenges in Iraq will continue long after the Jan. 30 elections there. Even before an insurgent attack on US forces in Mosul Dec. 21 killed at least 24 people, Bush had adopted a more sober tone in assessing mixed progress toward a stable, democratic Iraq.
A majority of the American public - 56 percent - now says the Iraq war was not worth fighting, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll, and Bush's overall job-approval rating hangs just below 50 percent in several polls, right where it was on the eve of his reelection. The president is now playing for the history books, not a third term, while the Congress he needs to carry through his reforms has, as always, reelection in mind. In growing numbers, congressional Republicans are raising questions, if not outright dissent, about Bush's plans at home and abroad.
President Bush has carved out a second-term domestic agenda as ambitious as any - beginning with fundamental change to the $500 billion-a-year Social Security program - while acknowledging that the deep challenges in Iraq will continue long after the Jan. 30 elections there. Even before an insurgent attack on US forces in Mosul Dec. 21 killed at least 24 people, Bush had adopted a more sober tone in assessing mixed progress toward a stable, democratic Iraq.
A majority of the American public - 56 percent - now says the Iraq war was not worth fighting, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll, and Bush's overall job-approval rating hangs just below 50 percent in several polls, right where it was on the eve of his reelection. The president is now playing for the history books, not a third term, while the Congress he needs to carry through his reforms has, as always, reelection in mind. In growing numbers, congressional Republicans are raising questions, if not outright dissent, about Bush's plans at home and abroad.
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