Saviours' Day Gift 2013 Drive

Friday, September 4, 2009

Beijing's derivative default stance rattles banks Industries Financial Services & Real Estate Reuters

Beijing's derivative default stance rattles market
Monday, 31 Aug 2009 07:04am EDT

UPDATE 1-Beijing's derivative default stance rattles banks
Mon Aug 31, 2009 7:42am EDT
* State-owned firms may default on commodity hedges - report
* Bankers dismayed, confused by report; seek more details
* Lawyers question legality of the move
* Traders suspect lurking losses may have prompted warning (Adds analysts comments)
By Eadie Chen and Chen Aizhu
BEIJING, Aug 31 (Reuters) - A report that Chinese state-owned companies will be allowed to walk away from loss-making commodity derivative trades provoked anger and dismay among investment bankers on Monday as they feared it may set a damaging precedent.
The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the regulator and nominal shareholder for state-owned enterprises (SOEs), told six foreign banks that SOEs reserved the right to default on contracts, Caijing magazine quoted an unnamed industry source as saying in an article published on Saturday.
While the details of the report could not be confirmed, it was Monday's hot topic in financial circles from Shanghai to Singapore as commodity marketers feared that companies holding underwater price hedges could simply renege on the deals, costing banks millions of dollars in profit.
The warning from SASAC follows a series of measures from Beijing this year to crack down on the sale of derivative products by foreign banks to Chinese enterprises, principally big consumers, who bought protection against higher prices last year only to watch the market collapse -- leaving them with losses.
While many companies including top airlines have come clean on the losses, some analysts fear another wave may follow.
"I wouldn't be surprised if more state firms emerge with big derivatives trading losses, otherwise SASAC wouldn't come out with such a radical move," said a Hong Kong-based derivatives analyst, who like most other industry officials and bankers declined to be named due to the high sensitivity of the issue.
A SASAC media official said on Monday that he was waiting for the "relevant department's" official comment before he can clarify to media. A government official said that the Bureau of Financial Supervision and Evaluation under SASAC was handling the issue. The official declined to be named and did not elaborate.
Spokespersons at Goldman Sachs (GS.N) and UBS (UBSN.VX) declined comment, and media officials at Morgan Stanley (MS.N) and JPMorgan (JPM.N) were not immediately available for comment. All are major global providers of commodity risk management.
No bank were named in the Caijing report. The SASAC media officer also declined to identify any specific banks.
"It's a handful of companies who are being encouraged by regulators to re-negotiate," said a second banking source. "It's outrageous, but it's China, so everyone is treading very carefully."
DAMAGING PRECEDENT
For banks that are hoping to sell more derivatives hedges in China, the world's fastest-expanding major economy and top commodities consumer, the danger goes beyond the immediate risk to existing contracts to the longer-term precedent that suggests Chinese companies can simply renege on deals when they like.
The report follows an order from SASAC in July that required all central government-controlled state companies engaged in trading derivatives to make quarterly reports about their investments, including details of holdings and performance.
But the reported letter opened several important questions that could not immediately be answered.
"If we were among the banks receiving that letter, we would be very angry. But now the key is to find out more details on the letter: In whose name the letter was issued, the government or the corporate's? And under what was the reason for defaulting?" said a Singapore-based marketing executive with a foreign bank.
The source, whose bank did not receive a letter, said that Air China, China Eastern and shipping giant COSCO -- among the Chinese companies that have reported huge derivatives losses since last year -- had issued almost identical notices to banks.
"If it's in the name of the government, the impact will be very negative," said the source, who declined to be named.
Beijing-based derivatives lawyers said the so-called "legal letter" has no legal standing -- SASAC as a shareholder has no business relationship with international banks.
"It's like the father suddenly told the creditors of his debt-ridden son that his son won't pay any of his debt," said a lawyer from the derivatives risks committee of the Beijing Lawyers Association.
It's also unclear why Chinese state firms, which have complained that their foreign banks sometimes did not disclose full information of potential risks when selling them complicated products, did not seek redress through the courts.
"If that is the case, these firms should seek through legal measures to safeguard their rights, instead of turning to the authorities for political interference," said a different lawyer.
SASAC took over the job of overseeing SOEs' derivatives trading from the securities regulator in February after several Chinese firms reported huge losses from derivatives.
For a factbox of China's derivatives debacles:[ID:nPEK206094] (Reporting by Eadie Chen and Chen Aizhu in Beijing, Alfred Cang in Shanghai, George Chen and Michael Flaherty in Hong Kong; Editing by Jonathan Leff)
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Tuesday, September 1, 2009

China Tightening Control of Rare Earth Minerals

China Tightens Grip on Rare Minerals

By KEITH BRADSHER
Published: August 31, 2009
HONG KONG — China is set to tighten its hammerlock on the market for some of the world’s most obscure but valuable minerals.
Juergen Bauer/www.smart-elements.com

China is cutting exports of elements like terbium, pressuring manufacturers to open factories there.

Multimedia

Rare Wealth

Rare Wealth

Yuriko Nakao/Reuters

Toyota’s Prius hybrids use several pounds of neodymium, a rare earth, in their electric motors.

China currently accounts for 93 percent of production of so-called rare earth elements — and more than 99 percent of the output for two of these elements, dysprosium and terbium, vital for a wide range of green energy technologies and military applications like missiles.
Deng Xiaoping once observed that the Mideast had oil, but China had rare earth elements. As the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries has done with oil, China is now starting to flex its muscle.
Even tighter limits on production and exports, part of a plan from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, would ensure China has the supply for its own technological and economic needs, and force more manufacturers to make their wares here in order to have access to the minerals.
In each of the last three years, China has reduced the amount of rare earths that can be exported. This year’s export quotas are on track to be the smallest yet. But what is really starting to alarm Western governments and multinationals alike is the possibility that exports will be further restricted.
Chinese officials will almost certainly be pressed to address the issue at a conference Thursday in Beijing. What they say could influence whether Australian regulators next week approve a deal by a Chinese company to acquire a majority stake in Australia’s main rare-earth mine.
The detention of executives from the British-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto has already increased tensions.
They sell for up to $300 a kilogram, or up to about $150 a pound for material like terbium, which is in particularly short supply. Dysprosium is $110 a kilo, or about $50 a pound. Less scare rare earth like neodymium sells for only a fraction of that.
(They are considerably less expensive than precious metals because despite the names, they are found in much higher quantities and much greater concentrations than precious metal.)
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has drafted a six-year plan for rare earth production and submitted it to the State Council, the equivalent of the cabinet, according to four mining industry officials who have discussed the plan with Chinese officials. A few, often contradictory, details of the plan have leaked out, but it appears to suggest tighter restrictions on exports, and strict curbs on environmentally damaging mines.
Beijing officials are forcing global manufacturers to move factories to China by limiting the availability of rare earths outside China. “Rare earth usage in China will be increasingly greater than exports,” said Zhang Peichen, the deputy director of the government-linked Baotou Rare Earth Research Institute.
Some of the minerals crucial to green technologies are extracted in China using methods that inflict serious damage on the local environment. China dominates global rare earth production partly because of its willingness until now to tolerate highly polluting, low-cost mining.
The ministry did not respond to repeated requests for comment in the last eight days. Jia Yinsong, a director general at the ministry, is to speak about China’s intentions Thursday at the Minor Metals and Rare Earths 2009 conference in Beijing.
Until spring, it seemed that China’s stranglehold on production of rare earths might weaken in the next three years — two Australian mines are opening with combined production equal to a quarter of global output.
But both companies developing mines — Lynas Corporation and smaller rival, Arafura Resources — lost their financing last winter because of the global financial crisis. Buyers deserted Lynas’s planned bond issue and Arafura’s initial public offering.
Mining companies wholly owned by the Chinese government swooped in last spring with the cash needed to finish the construction of both companies’ mines and ore processing factories. The Chinese companies reached agreements to buy 51.7 percent of Lynas and 25 percent of Arafura.
(Page 2 of 2)
The Arafura deal has already been approved by Australian regulators and is subject to final approval by shareholders on Sept. 17. The regulators have postponed twice a decision on Lynas, and now face a deadline of next Monday to act.
Matthew James, an executive vice president of Lynas, said that the company’s would-be acquirer had agreed not to direct the day-to-day operations of the company, but would have four seats on an eight-member board.
Expectations of tightening Chinese restrictions have produced a surge in the last two weeks in the share prices of the few non-Chinese producers that are publicly traded. In addition to the two Australian mines, Avalon Rare Metals of Toronto is trying to open a mine in northwest Australia, and Molycorp Minerals is trying to reopen a mine in Mountain Pass, Calif.
Unocal used to own the Mountain Pass mine, which suspended mining in 2002 because of weak demand and a delay in an environmental review. State-owned Cnooc of China almost acquired the mine in 2005 with its unsuccessful bid for Unocal, which was bought instead by Chevron; Chinese buyers tried to persuade Chevron to sell the mine to them in 2007, but Chevron sold it to Molycorp Minerals, a private American group.
A single mine in Baotou, in China’s Inner Mongolia, produces half of the world’s rare earths. Much of the rest — particularly some of the rarest elements most needed for products from wind turbines to Prius cars — comes from small, often unlicensed mines in southern China.
China produces over 99 percent of dysprosium and terbium and 95 percent of neodymium. These are vital to many green energy technologies, including high-strength, lightweight magnets used in wind turbines, as well as military applications.
To get at the materials, powerful acid is pumped down bore holes. There it dissolves some of the rare earths, and the slurry is then pumped into leaky artificial ponds with earthen dams, according to mining specialists.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has cut the country’s target output from rare earth mines by 8.1 percent this year and is forcing mergers of mining companies in a bid to improve technical standards, according to the government-controlled China Mining Association, a government-led trade group.
General Motors and the United States Air Force played leading roles in the development of rare-earth magnets. The magnets are still used in the electric motors that control the guidance vanes on the sides of missiles, said Jack Lifton, a chemist who helped develop some of the early magnets.
But demand is surging now because of wind turbines and hybrid vehicles.
The electric motor in a Prius requires 2 to 4 pounds of neodymium, said Dudley Kingsnorth, a consultant in Perth, Australia, whose compilations of rare earth mining and trade are the industry’s benchmark.
Mr. Lifton said that Toyota officials had expressed strong worry to him on Sunday about the availability of rare earths.
Toyota and General Motors, which plans to introduce the Chevrolet Volt next year with an electric motor that uses rare earths, both declined on Monday to comment.
Rick A. Lowden, a senior materials analyst at the Defense Department, told a Congressional subcommittee in July that his office was reviewing a growing number of questions about the availability of rare earths.
China is increasingly manufacturing high-performance electric motors, not just the magnets.
“The people who are making these products outside China are at a huge disadvantage, and that is why more and more of that manufacturing is moving to China," Mr. Kingsnorth said.

Inside NYTimes.com


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/business/global/01minerals.html?_r=1

Information Researched By: Sister Anonymous
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The reawakening of Afro-Argentine culture GlobalPost

Reviving Afro-Argentine culture

Anil Mundra August 21, 2009 10:00 ET

The reawakening of Afro-Argentine culture

Descendants of slaves are starting to assert their identity but it's not easy in South America's whitest country.

By Anil Mundra
Published: August 30, 2009 09:15 ET
Updated: August 31, 2009 11:45 ET
BUENOS AIRES — "Liberty has no color" read the signs held outside a Buenos Aires city courthouse. "Arrested for having the wrong face," and "Suspected of an excess of pigment," said others. And more to the point: "Enough racism."
A black street vendor was allegedly arrested without cause or proper procedure earlier this year, prompting this August hearing of a habeas corpus appeal. But leaders of the Afro-Argentine community say this moment goes beyond any particular man or incident, calling it a watershed case that brings to trial the treatment of blacks in Argentina.
“It's not about this prosecutor or that police officer, but rather an institutionally racist system," said Malena Derdoy, the defendant's lawyer.
Argentina is generally considered the whitest country in South America — 97 percent, by some counts — possibly more ethnically European than immigrant-saturated Europe. There was once a large Afro-Argentine presence but it has faded over the epochs. Now, for the first time in a century and a half, Argentine descendants of African slaves are organizing and going public to assert their identity.
They're winning eyes and ears outside their community, and there's a burgeoning corpus of films and books exploring the obscured questions of their history and current status. But after many generations of Argentine society's often willful denial of their very existence, even apparently simple demands like inclusion in the national census prove complicated.
“We've been exiled from the collective memory of Argentina,” said Juan Suaque, a seventh-generation descendant of Argentine slaves. “It's as if you pass someone in the street and you have to explain your whole life, what and who you are.”
It's past midnight at the jubilant one-year anniversary party of Associacion Misibamba, the leading Afro-Argentine cultural organization of which Suaque is president. The gathered crowd practices Afro-Argentine “candombe” music and dance as they have for centuries. Women and girls of all ages gyrate the classic gesture — hand to hip, hand to forehead — encircled by the frenetic syncopation of conga drums.
This classic art form has been gaining in popularity in recent years, among white Argentines at least as much as black ones. Associacion Misibamba recently performed their candombe in a major feature film, a period piece set in 19th-century Buenos Aires. That period was a time — a distant memory just now being reawakened — when African expressions were an everyday part of Argentine life.
At the beginning of the 1800s, black slaves were 30 percent of the population of Buenos Aires, and an absolute majority in some other provinces. The first president of Argentina had African ancestry, and so did the composer of the first tango. Even the word “tango,” like many other words common in the Argentine vocabulary, has an African root; so do many beloved foods, including the national vices of the asado barbecue and dulce de leche.
The abolition of slavery was a slow process that spanned the better part of the 19th century. At the same time, under the government's explicit and aggressive policy of whitening the race — to replace “barbary” with “civilization,” in the famous phrase of the celebrated president Sarmiento — Afro-Argentines were inundated by European immigration, the largest such influx in the Americas outside of the United States. Blacks had dwindled to only 1.8 percent of Buenos Aires by the 1887 census, after which their category was replaced with more vague terms like “trigueno” — “wheaty.”

Page 2 of 2
“It's part of Argentine common sense that there are no blacks, that their entire culture had disappeared toward the end of the 1800s,” said anthropologist Pablo Cirio. “That's all a lie.”
A 2005 pilot census estimated that about 5 percent of the national population has African ancestry — about 2 million people. The study found that population to be worse-off by health and socioeconomic indicators than the rest of Argentina, as has presumably been the case since slavery.
Unlike the census of 1887, performed in a political atmosphere that was eager to efface the African presence in Argentina, this survey tried to detect any African ancestry in a household, whether or not its members appeared black. For that reason, the survey's architect and community activists have preferred the term "Afro-descendant" to the narrower "black."
The survey was performed with help from the national census bureau and World Bank funding, at the urging of local Afro-Argentine activists who hoped to have the “Afro-descendant” category re-inserted into the Argentine census in 2010 and count themselves as a distinct segment of the populace after a century missing.
Soon afterward, DNA tests of blood samples in several Buenos Aires hospitals bolstered the pilot census' result with a very similar percentage of genes traceable to Africa. Moreover, a much higher number — about 10 percent — was obtained by testing mitochondrial DNA, which traces maternal ancestry. This is consistent with the historical conjecture that many black men were lost after being sent to the frontlines of 19th-century wars, and Afro-Argentines assimilated into the white population when the remaining women mixed with the hordes of European males who had come to Argentina to work.
But now the census initiative seems to have stalled. There are fatal questions about its potential validity and value as a measurement tool in a society where African roots have been so long hidden. Many Argentines aren't aware of black ancestors they may have, and the survey's researchers noted the difficulty in getting people to self-identify as Afro-descendants when the label has always carried such a strong stigma.
The pilot census had to be preceded by aggressive public information campaigns in the sample areas, in order to sensitize households to the concept of African ancestry and give them time to research their family trees. But most agree that without such a campaign and trained researchers giving face-to-face interviews, the usual government census wouldn't accurately reflect the Afro-descendant population in Argentina.
Anthropologist Cirio notes that, faced with the hostility of their surrounding society, “the party most interested in making blacks invisible have been blacks themselves.” Those who maintained African cultural traditions decided, since the end of the 19th century, to conceal these traditions from the public eye. “They did this not to forget their past, but to preserve it,” he said, adding that Associacion Misibamba is one of the first organizations to “break the
silence.”
In some cases the cultural insulation has worked and enabled the reflorescence happening today. But more commonly, the effect has been a large-scale amnesia in Argentine society. “Any of us could be Afro-descendants, perhaps without knowing it,” said Cirio with an ironic smile.
Posted by Anil Mundra on September 1, 2009 10:15 ET
Hello Mandela, thank you for your comment.
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Sunday, August 30, 2009

18 Common Phrases to Avoid in Conversation

What Not to Say During a Job Interview

Don’t say: “My current boss is horrendous.”
Why: It’s unprofessional. Your interviewer might wonder when you’d start bad-mouthing her. For all you know, she and your current boss are old pals.
Instead say: “I’m ready for a new challenge” or a similarly positive remark.

Don’t say: “Do you think I’d fit in here?”
Why: You’re the interviewee, not the interviewer.
Instead say: “What do you enjoy about working here?” By all means ask questions, but prepare ones that demonstrate your genuine interest in the company.

Don’t say: “What are the hours like?” or “What’s the vacation policy?”
Why: You want to be seen as someone who focuses on getting the job done.
Instead say: “What’s the day-to-day like here?” Then, if you’ve really jumped through every hoop and time off still hasn’t been mentioned, say, “Can you tell me about the compensation and benefits package?”

Expert: Mary Mitchell, president of the Mitchell Organization, a corporate-etiquette training firm in Seattle, and author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Etiquette (Alpha, $19, amazon.com).

By Kristyn Kusek Lewis

http://www.realsimple.com/work-life/etiquette/sticky-situations/common-phrases-avoid-conversation-10000001698308/page3.html?xid=yshin-rs--conversation4
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What not to say: Avoid these common conversational pitfalls

What Not to Say About Someone's Appearance

Don’t say: “You look tired.”
Why: It implies she doesn’t look good.
Instead say: “Is everything OK?” We often blurt the “tired” comment when we get the sense that the other person feels out of sorts. So just ask.

Don’t say: “Wow, you’ve lost a ton of weight!”
Why: To a newly trim person, it might give the impression that she used to look unattractive.
Instead say: “You look fantastic.” And leave it at that. If you’re curious about how she got so svelte, add, “What’s your secret?”

Don’t say: “You look good for your age.”
Why: Anything with a caveat like this is rude. It's saying, "You look great―compared with other old people. It's amazing you have all your own teeth."
Instead say: “You look great.”

Don’t say: “I could never wear that.”
Why: It can be misunderstood as a criticism. (“I could never wear that because it’s so ugly.”)
Instead say: “You look so good in skinny jeans.” If you slip, say something like “I could never wear that…because I wasn’t blessed with your long legs.” Follow these tips to shop smart for your own body type.


Expert advice from Clinton Kelly, cohost of the TLC show, What Not to Wear.


What Not to Say in the Workplace

Don’t say: “That’s not my job.”
Why: If your superior asks you to do something, it is your job.
Instead say: “I’m not sure that should be my priority right now.” Then have a conversation with your boss about your responsibilities. In the past year, the rules of the workplace have changed. Learn how to shine at work in the new economy.

Don’t say: “This might sound stupid, but…”
Why: Never undermine your ideas by prefacing your remarks with wishy-washy language.
Instead say: What’s on your mind. It reinforces your credibility to present your ideas with confidence.

Don’t say: “I don’t have time to talk to you.”
Why: It’s plain rude, in person or on the phone.
Instead say: “I’m just finishing something up right now. Can I come by when I’m done?” Graciously explain why you can’t talk now, and suggest catching up at an appointed time later. Let phone calls go to voice mail until you can give callers your undivided attention.

Expert advice from Suzanne Bates, president and chief executive officer of Bates Communications, an executive-training firm in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and author of Speak Like a CEO.

partner

http://shine.yahoo.com/event/tastefulliving/what-not-to-say-avoid-these-common-conversational-pitfalls-504817/
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Thursday, August 27, 2009

Outcry in South America over US military base pact

Outcry in South America over US military base pact

Deal to increase access to Colombia bases angers neighbours and damages Obama's attempts to mend relations with region

Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, claims US aggression is 'blowing winds of war'. Photograph: Howard Yanes/AP

South American leaders are due to square off tomorrow over a plan to increase US access to military bases in Colombia, a deal that has damaged Barack Obama's attempt to mend relations with the region.
A diplomatic firestorm has been ignited, with a summit in Argentina pitting Colombia – which has sought closer co-operation with Washington – against its neighbours who fear the US presence will threaten leftist governments.
Venezuela's president, Hugo Chávez, has led the denunciations, claiming US imperialist aggression was blowing "winds of war". He has vowed to buy extra Russian tanks to defend his socialist revolution and told his cabinet to prepare for ruptured relations with Bogotá.
Chávez's socialist allies in Bolivia and Ecuador echoed the alarm. The more centrist governments of Argentina, Brazil and Chile expressed unease, isolating the US and its Colombian ally.
Washington and Bogotá have scrambled to defend the pact, which is close to being finalised, as a mere administrative tweaking of their decade-long military co-operation to combat drug traffickers and leftist guerrillas. The proposed 10-year lease will give the US access to at least seven Colombian bases – three air force, two naval and two army – stretching from the Pacific to the Caribbean.
The US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, said there was no intention to expand the number of permanent personnel beyond the maximum permitted by Congress: 800 military and 600 civilian contractors.
"Any US activity will have to be mutually agreed upon in advance. The United States does not have, and does not seek, bases inside Colombia. Second, there will be no significant permanent increase in the US military presence in Colombia."
America turned to Colombia after Ecuador refused to renew an agreement giving access to its Manta airbase. Officials said the pact with Colombia stemmed from a proposed $46m (£28m) upgrade of Palanquero base north of Bogota. Washington did not want to spend that kind of money without a formal deal.
But a region scarred by memories of CIA-backed dictatorships in the 70s and 80s has balked at the prospect of "gringo" boots and aircraft stationed on their continent, notwithstanding goodwill for the new occupant of the White House.
"Washington should not have been surprised by the controversy it generated," said Michael Shifter, of the Inter-American Dialogue thinktank. "Obama may be appealing and popular, but there is still a lot of historical baggage and real suspicions about US motives in the region.
"The costs could have been easily avoided with more skillful and sustained diplomatic work by senior US officials."
Privately, US officials concede Chávez has outmanoeuvred them with hype calculated to tap continental grievances. Although he has not mobilised troops and his talk of war is widely seen as bombast, some analysts say Colombia's neighbours have legitimate cause for concern.
Washington has not fully explained its mandate nor the scope and nature of its operations, wrote Adam Isacson, of the Centre for International Policy, which monitors US initiatives in Colombia. "The United States is creating a new capability in South America, and capabilities often get used."
Colombia's US-supported military has won plaudits at home for pushing back Farc guerrillas but has also provoked dismay over its human rights abuses and a cross-border raid into Ecuador last year.
Colombia's conservative president, Alvaro Uribe, spent last week touring the region trying to soothe neighbours in advance of tomorrow's Union of South American Nations (Unasur) summit.
Brazil and Chile, which have stable relations with Washington, were partly mollified – but Chávez's Andean bloc remained steadfast in its opposition.
Bolivia's president, Evo Morales, called for continent-wide referendum on the plan. "If the Colombian president wants his bases to be used, I say I want a referendum in South America so the people of Bolivia, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina all 12 countries can decide," he said.
The feuding will test Brazil's hopes of moulding Unasur, which was founded last year, into a vehicle for regional integration along the lines of the EU.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/aug/27/anger-america-colombia-bases-deal

Information Researched By: Sister Anonymous
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Monday, August 24, 2009

Brother Hannibal Blogging (Promotional Offer)



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Friday, August 21, 2009

Poetry Under The Stars


Come support a night of enjoyment.


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Monday, August 17, 2009

Pioneers Moving Right Down to the Modern Times (Workshop)

This past Saturday, August 15, 2009 the Ministry of Technology and the Ministry of Information from Muhammad Mosque No. 32 joined forces.

This workshop was to bring the believing body up to date on the modern technology at hand. The believers were shown how to put together a computer, how to operate the computer, setting up email addresses, getting their pictures on the Nation's Program, and much much more.

Check out some of the pictures and testimonies.




As instructions came down from our National Secretary (Brother Bervie Muhammad) to upload a profile picture to the Nation's Program, I realized one meeting after the body of our Mosque were asked if we had uploaded our profile pictures and a high percentage of us said No I knew there was a problem. We the ministries came together to put something together that would benefit us. As we were planning it came to us to that there should be a full workshop on operating a computer, getting online, and learning how to fish and brand yourself through free internet sites likes: Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, blogging, and etc. am just excited to be apart of this great opportunity.
Brother Hannibal S. Muhammad




The value of this workshop was priceless. To see the need to help us to the modern time was very appreciative. You are the future and to help us to the modern times, so that we will not be a burden on the future or the present time.
Sister Vincie Muhammad








The importance of having this workshop was good for our unity in the Nation of Islam as a family. The value of taking your pictures is that the Minister wants to know who the believers are. Like Brother Bervie said, when the Minister asks for something he does not want it in thirty or forty days we response quickly. It is like having a job how quick do you respond, it shows our dedication to the work. When we respond it show who the Minister can count on.
Sister Ntosake Muhammad




I found the seminar enlightening, informative and productive. I learn the familiarities and difference of how the different social sites operates like myspace to facebook, the difference between twitter, text messaging, and emailing. There were not a lot of technical language that was used, that made things easier for me to comperhend. Also being able to utilized them all and they are all free. And to even be able to just come and just put your picture on the Nation's Program. I really enjoyed this workshop.
Sister Edith Muhammad






The workshop was so needed because you have so many other organizations that are doing these kind of thing with their members which brings them together and members of the Nation see there progress and want the same for our Nation/Mosque, so it answers a need in our own house. Keep up the good work and may Allah continue to bless you to help the believers to grow in this area.
Sister Naina Muhammad













Brother Darvis X













Brother Adbul Wahid Muhammad



First I would like to give all praises and honor to Allah for allowing the MOI/MOT workshop to transpire and be a success and benefit to those who attended. This workshop was first a blessing, humbling experience and gave me a greater sense of self - worth, confidence and purpose. I know that am blessed when I am allowed to teach another, but it is an honor to offer something back to my pioneers in my Nation. It was a humbling experience, because I was unaware what Allah was showing me at that time through our presentations. We were inspired to have this workshop and those how came were inspired to learn about what was being taught. No one came and asked us to put this together. Inspiration from Allah did this is and this is where the New Educational Paradigm is shifting us toward. I have been noticing the natural ability of so many of the youth to lead, teach and uplift ourselves and others. Allah made it apparent in that workshop. The Honorable Minister Farrakhan has already made it known publicly, “It’s all about YOU-th!” We are to lead the Nation with the help of Allah and the guidance of our pioneers and those who came before us. I would like make a statement to all youth that are present and soon to be present. We are the ones that will conquer the giants that reside in the Promise Land, so stand up!

Fight for your Nation, Fight for your Own! As Salaam Alaikum!!

Brother Bernard X






Be on the lookout for the next workshop.

Brothers: If you have not taken your picture for the Nation's Program there will be pictures taken on Monday, August 17, 2009 right before F.O.I. class.

Sisters: We are working on planning a day sometime this week to complete the rest of your pictures.

A special thanks to Brother Jabril Muhammad and Brother Hakeem Muhammad for their assistance in this workshop.
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Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Newsflash: Subscribe to the Best Paper in the World 'The Final Call Newspaper'

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Thursday, July 23, 2009

Police: 8 shot in Texas Southern drive-by attack

AP – Police tape marks the spot where at least 5 people were shot Wednesday, July 22, 2009 none fatally, at …
Thu Jul 23, 6:52 pm ET
HOUSTON – Houston police on Thursday increased to eight the injury toll from a drive-by shooting at a community rally on the Texas Southern University campus.
University officials initially said six people were wounded when gunfire broke out as the "family block party" event was ending about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Houston Police spokesman Kese Smith said Thursday that eight people ranging in age from 14 to 21 were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries after the shooting. At least one of the victims was a student at the Houston school, university officials said.
Smith said Houston police are looking for several suspects, but downplayed a possible gang connection, saying investigators did not know a motive. Campus police had raised the possibility of a gang rivalry shortly after the shooting.
The rally featured a voter registration drive, HIV testing and appearances by Houston rapper Trae the Truth, Houston City Councilman Peter Brown and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.
Witnesses said people dropped to the pavement as shots rang out in the parking lot where the rally was being held.
A statement on Texas Southern's Web site called the shooting "a bad ending to a successful family-oriented event. The TSU campus remains safe and is open for normal business and classes."
Texas Southern is a historically black university with an enrollment of around 10,000 students.
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Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Obama Middle East Policy will Fail Unless Congress Sides with US President Instead of Israeli Lobby, Louis Farrakhan

Obama Middle East Policy will Fail Unless Congress Sides with US President Instead of Israeli Lobby, Louis Farrakhan 20/07/2009 16:37:00
Despite the sincerity of his heart, the United States President Barack Obama’s ambitious Middle East Policy will fail unless the American Congress sides with the American President instead of siding with Israel, says the most influential African-American leader the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan.Minister Farrakhan also warns that the strong bonds of friendship between the United States and Israel can be strained by Israeli policies that can drag America and its soldiers, sailors and marines into another war.He suggests that US President Barack Obama does not have much power and influence with the US Congress which is largely controlled by the Israeli lobby.When asked whether Obama’s deeds with regard to solving the Middle East conflict would match his words in the famous Cairo speech in 4 June, Minister Farrakhan told The Tripoli Post “when Barack Obama spoke, he spoke from the sincerity of his heart. The question for the world is, how much power and influence he has with the Congress of the United States to bring his policies to fruition.” The interview will soon be published in full.Mr. Farrakhan is sending a signal to the people of the Middle East and the Palestinians that given such political situation in Washington they should not hold high expectations for a just peace in the region, and they should always expect the worst. “I respectfully suggest to you and your wonderful readers that this is like climbing Mt. Everest,” he told The Tripoli Post.Farrakhan’s remarks come at a time when the credibility of the United States and its national interest in the Middle East and in the World at large are at stake. In such difficult times, Farrakhan sees the stand by the Congress, whether in support of the US President or the Israeli lobby in the US, will eventually make the real difference.On Sunday, Israel rejected a US demand to suspend a planned housing project in east Jerusalem, a Palestinian part of the city that was occupied by Israel in 1967 and it is prohibited by international law to introduce any physical changes in it. Israeli officials said their ambassador to Washington, Michael Oren, was summoned to the State Department over the weekend and told that a project made up of 20 apartments developed by an American millionaire should not go ahead.Minister Farrakhan highlighted the close links between Washington and Tel Aviv saying that “America has tremendous leverage with Israel because Israel gets more assistance from the taxpayers’ dollars than any nation on earth. She gets approximately 6-7 billion dollars a year, which is a huge amount of money, and whatever she gets on a yearly basis, she gets it even before the government of America gets it, she gets hers of the top.”Farrakhan says instead of the US using such leverage to get its national interest served, it is Israel which is blocking the American foreign policy from achieving its objectives.He attributes such tremendous Israeli influence to the fact that “the American-Israel Public Affairs Committeehe (AIPAC) has so much leverage in the House of Representatives and the Senate and, therefore, whatever Israel wants, Israel gets, because most of the Congressmen and Senators are absolutely afraid to do anything that would upset Israel, or the Zionists for fear that they would lose their positions in the Congress.”Minister Farrakhan sounds rather worried about the very essence of America’s greatness and its independent decision which seems to be imminently threatened by the influence of the Israeli lobby in his country. “If the Congress of the United States is afraid to back the words that came out from president Obama’s mouth, if the Congress is afraid to use the tremendous leverage that they have with Israel, to force Israel to do something that may be Israel doesn’t really want to do, …then whatever [President] Barack says the Israelis will counter him with their strength in the Senate and the House of Representatives,” Farrakhan explains.“I believe that the Congress will side with Israel before they side with the president of the United States. And therefore, his [President Obama’s] words, though good and reflect his sincere desire, may never come to fruition,” he added.Mr. Farrakhan told The Tripoli Post “If America threatens to take some of that leverage and of that money and refuse to give it to Israel, and if America is as strong to sanction Israel as she is to sanction Korea or Cuba or Libya or other nations, then you might see a change in Israel’s behavior.”But he also sounded rather skeptical in the interview. He said: “to put foot to the paddle, I learned the other day that Netanyahu has ordered fourteen hundred and fifty new homes to be built in the West Bank. That was defiance of what Barack Obama stated as American Policy. The question is, what will president Obama do? How will the Democrats who now control both Houses act in backing the president and forcing Israel to take a different course…”“I’m sorry, I believe that the Congress will side with Israel before they side with the president of the United States. And therefore, his words, though good, though they reflect his sincere desire, may never come to fruition. Thus the condition of the Palestinians might improve slightly, but they may never have a state that they can be proud of and secure as long as that shock on American Congress remains as it is,” Farrakhan concluded. In the remaining of the interview which will be published soon, Minister Farrakhan spoke about the state of African-Americans and other minorities in America after the arrival of Barack Obama to the White House. He also dealt with the death of Michael Jackson and the role of black leadership from now on, and why he won’t organize another Million-man March. He said since the success of the first Million-man March, Christian leaders in America have had taken the airwaves calling him ‘anti-Christ’. He also spoke of his relationship with the Jews and of the role that black Americans can play in the development of the African continent and the African Union. Farrakhan says America has no future if it insists to stay in the state and with the mind set it is in. “She is going down like the ancient Rome,” he said.

http://tripolipost.com/articledetail.asp?c=1&i=3379

Information Researched By: Sister Anonymous
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