industryterm:finance

Luxembourg affirme qu’il posera son véto à toute règlementation européenne destinée à s’opposer à l’évasion fiscale.

Et maintenant, que faire d’autre que sortir de l’Europe ?

http://euobserver.com/economic/120115

Marche contre l’austérité en Israël
10 000 personnes à Tel Aviv selon Charles Enderlin
1/2 million d’après TV5 monde

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/05/2013511201215743489.html

About 2,000 Israelis have marched in central Tel Aviv to protest against an expected austerity budget, police have said.

The protesters rallied on Saturday against proposed income tax and VAT rises and government spending cuts due for cabinet debate on Monday.

They directed their ire at Yair Lapid, who became finance minister after January’s election where his Yesh Atid party became the second-largest party in parliament and a partner in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government.

Egypte, remaniement : 9 ministères sont concernés, le PM Qandil garde comme prévu son poste (l’opposition demandait son départ pour lancer les négociations)

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/70853.aspx

Liste complète des ministres : http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/70864.aspx

Profils : http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/70884.aspx

Resignation of Hany Kadry, a veteran deputy finance minister, could deal a blow to Egypt’s aspirations of securing a loan from the International Monetary Fund

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/70339.aspx

#FMI

Interview du ministre égyptien du Pétrole Osama Kamal qui évoque plusieurs sujets, dont les risques de coupures d’électricité, les aides du FMI, Iran/Israël

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/70056.aspx

#énergie

Autour des mines mongoles, croissance, pollution et ninjas
►http://blog.mondediplo.net/2013-04-19-Autour-des-mines-mongoles-croissance-pollution-et

Comme dans de nombreux pays émergents, l’écosystème de la Mongolie subit de plein fouet les effets de ses progrès économiques, essentiellement dûs à l’exploitation « anarchique » des nombreux gisements de minerais dispersés sur un territoire équivalent à deux fois et demie celui de la France. L’essor de l’activité minière, depuis vingt ans, représente à la fois un remarquable potentiel économique et une grande menace environnementale. Cette métamorphose est porteuse d’autant de promesses que de dangers. La (...)

Palestine. Intéressant sujet quasiment jamais évoqué publiquement: les dettes contractées par l’Autorité palestinienne (PA) dont l’existence a été révélée à l’occasion du départ du ministre des Finances Nabil Qassis. L’auteur de l’article, Abdel Bari Atwan (Rédacteur en chef de Alquds Alarabi) s’insurge contre une situation qui non seulement hypothèque l’avenir des Palestiniens mais leur fait supporter aussi le coût de l’occupation israélienne (En général, on s’accorde à dire que c’est la communauté internationale qui, par ses aides, finance l’occupation israélienne des territoires palestiniens).

PA debt as repressive as Israel
Abdel Bari Atwan (Alquds Alarabi)
13 April 2013
http://www.bariatwan.com/english/?p=1572

“We are very shocked to learn that the Palestinian Authority (PA) in Ramallah has run up debts approaching $5bn and that $1bn is external debt. These debts are a heavy burden on the Palestinian people, and will extend to the coming generations. Most Palestinians thought that the PA’s funding came from the donor countries, not debts that would constrain the hands of the Palestinian people and break their will.

The Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his Prime Minister Salam Fayyad have been airing apparently logical comparisons between the prosperous conditions of the Palestinians in the West Bank and the deteriorating conditions of the residents of the Gaza Strip. However, these Palestinian officials have not mentioned that such prosperity came as a result of borrowing the billions of dollars from foreign banks and institutions, not as a result of the fiscal genius of the government and its prime minister, who was a World Bank economist from 1987 – 1995 and was dispatched to the West Bank by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

I am not biased towards Hamas in the Gaza Strip, as I reject the way it deals with its citizens with an iron fist, the spread of corruption, and the level of interference in their personal lives. However, I am biased towards the Palestinian people and their future. They will be under pressure of this debt for decades ahead.

(…) I thank God for the resignation of Dr Nabil Qasis, which freed him to open up this issue of debts, to expose the cover-up of the increasing financial quagmire. The Palestinian prime minister should resign from his position, as he has plunged his country, subject to Israeli occupation, into debt. Salam Fayyad and his President Mahmoud Abbas should bear the responsibility of this disaster. They should resign from their positions as they have exempted the Israeli occupation from bearing its responsibility for over 20 years since signing the Oslo Agreement. (…) The PA, that now supports the Israeli occupation by borrowing money that it knows it cannot pay back, must be dissolved.”

#Abbas #Fayyad #West_Bank #Gaza #Qasis #Oslo_Agreement #debt

La bataille pour le contrôle du Ministère des télécoms : une question de renseignement et de sécurité, pas d’argent.
http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/scramble-lebanon%E2%80%99s-most-valuable-ministries

Future MP Jean Ogassapian recently revealed the true value of the telecommunications ministry, noting that “Hezbollah is not going to make [forming a government] easy for Tammam Salam, for the party will not forgo the Ministry of Telecommunications, because it is a security ministry par excellance.”

The true allure of the ministry for the Future Party is not the finance aspect, but the security aspect.

For example, after the October 2012 assassination of Wissam al-Hassan, the head of the Information Branch in the Internal Security Forces (ISF), the country’s politicians fought for months over demands to release private mobile phone data to the security forces investigating the case.

More importantly, phone data is at the crux of the case built against Hezbollah members by the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL). The presence of FPM telecom ministers since 2008 has greatly restricted the ability of the Future Party and its security chiefs to access such critical information.

On top of that, the failure to extend ISF chief Ashraf Rifi’s term has made Future’s need for communications data more necessary than ever. The party is no longer in the mood for endless negotiations each time they want access to this information, particularly as Hezbollah’s trial in the Hague is about to begin.

C’est en toute connaissance du caractère parfaitement insoutenable des pratiques prédatrices des banques chypriotes que l’Europe a invité Chypre dans la zone Euro, et donc, en toute connaissance du caractère spéculatif de son économie et du bail-out à venir :

In a so-called convergence report dated 2007, one year before Cyprus joined the eurozone, the ECB mentioned the large influx of capital.

“Much of the financing of the deficits in the combined current and capital account over the past two years has also come from capital inflows in the form of ’other investment,’ comprising non-resident deposits and loans,” the report says.

“Other investment inflows amounted to a sizeable 11.3 percent of GDP in 2006. Since capital inflows exceeded the current and capital account deficit between 2004 and 2006, Cyprus experienced an accumulation of official reserve assets in this period,” it adds.

http://euobserver.com/institutional/119531

The Austrian finance minister, Maria Fekter, described Britain as “the island of the blessed for tax evasion and money laundering” in an interview with her country’s Kurier newspaper on Thursday (11 April).

Comparing the UK and its “protectorates” - micro-states subject to British law - to Cyprus in terms of hosting secretive foundations and trusts, she noted: “Just as we urged the abolition of sealed foundations in the Cyprus rescue to drain the money laundering swamp, we must demand the same of the United Kingdom.”

She added: “We want a trust registry for the Channel Islands, but also for countries where British law applies, such as the Cayman Islands, the [British] Virgin Islands or Gibraltar … These are all areas that are havens for tax evaders.”

http://euobserver.com/economic/119781

EU finance ministers demand more austerity at Dublin summit - World Socialist Web Site

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2013/04/15/euro-a15.html

EU finance ministers demand more austerity at Dublin summit
By Stefan Steinberg
15 April 2013

Despite new data indicating that Europe’s recession will continue into the second half of this year, European finance ministers meeting in Dublin at the end of last week agreed to intensify austerity measures which will deepen the social and economic crisis.
The WSWS needs your support!

#europe #eu #crise #austérité

Analysts warn: Fayyad resignation may slow Palestinian steps towards statehood

Middle East Online
By Hossam Ezzedine - RAMALLAH (Palestinian Territories

http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=58118

Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s resignation is likely to raise questions over donor support for the Palestinian Authority and may slow its steps towards statehood, experts warn. (…) However, in the past month, international donors have pledged fresh efforts to find the necessary funds and Washington quietly unblocked almost $500 million (382 million euros) in aid which had been held up by Congress. And Israel agreed to unblock revenues collected on behalf of the PA that were frozen last year in response to the Palestinians winning upgraded UN status. As a result, the PA on March 28 adopted a budget of some $3.9 billion, of which $1.4 billion would have to come from foreign financing.

Last month, the World Bank said the worsening fiscal situation could cause “lasting damage” to the competitiveness of the Palestinian economy, and a separate IMF report warned the crisis could “ultimately lead some to question the legitimacy of the PA and undermine its ability to govern effectively.” (…) But Imad Ghayatha, a political scientist at Bir Zeit University on the West Bank dismissed any suggestion that Fayyad’s departure would affect international aid. “This will not affect relations with donors,” he said. “Maintaining the PA is not only a Palestinian interest but also an Israeli and a regional one. The peace process relies on maintaining the PA and international powers know better than to tie up their interests with one individual,” he said (…)

Michael Hudson: Thatcher’s Legacy of Failed Privatizations « naked capitalism
http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2013/04/michael-hudson-thatchers-legacy-of-failed-privatizations.html

Be warned this piece is long but very much worth your time, since it demolishes the myth of the attractiveness of privatizations by looking at its record in England, where it was first undertaken on a widespread basis.

ISRAEL. Le nouveau ministre des Finances israélien, ex présentateur de télé Yair Lapid dans le collimateur des Israéliens : quand les riches (comme lui) essaient de se mettre à la place des pauvres (ceux qu’il prétend défendre), ils se prennent les pieds dans le tapis !

’Riki Cohen’ is still making trouble for Israel’s Finance Minister Yair Lapid on Facebook Israel News | Haaretz Daily Newspaper

After a passionate post in which the new finance minister used ’Riki Cohen’ of Hadera to illustrate the plight of the average middle class family, a member of the public informed Lapid that the average wage per couple is NIS 12,000, not NIS 20,000 as he had written.
By Jonathan Lis | Apr.05, 2013 | 2:12 PM

http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/riki-cohen-is-still-making-trouble-for-yair-lapid-on-facebook.premium-1.513

Finance Minister Yair Lapid has had another embarrassing confrontation on Facebook.

After he published a post on the social-networking site using “the Cohen family” as an example of a middle-class couple struggling to make ends meet on a combined average wage of NIS 20,000 a month, users have criticized him for citing figures higher than the actual national average.

On Thursday, Lapid tried to explain why he had stipulated a relatively high salary for a couple meant to represent the middle class.

“You’re a disgrace! You try living on NIS 4,500 a month,” wrote an angry Facebook user, Ella Voloshin in a comment to the original post. “Go back to where you came from, because there you did less damage to the country.”

In response, Lapid wrote, “The average salary is NIS 9,509. The average gross salary for a couple is around NIS 20,000. That leaves Rikki [Cohen] and her husband around NIS 14,000 [after taxes], and if they’re paying off a mortgage and raising three children it’s not going to be easy for them. I agree that there are people who are much worse off, but without a strong middle class that pays taxes, how will we help the weak? With what money?”

Another user, Oriel Borer, used the same online conversation thread to explain to Lapid that his calculation was far from realistic.

“The anger comes down to the fact that you still don’t understand,” he wrote. “The average salary for a man and the average salary for a woman are different. A woman earns 30 percent less than a man (on average). The Central Bureau of Statistics, which should be as accessible to you as it is to me, checked the average wage of a couple: NIS 12,345, not ’around NIS 20,000.’ If I managed to find this out on Google then so should you. Add to this the fact, which you know as well, that 70 percent earn *less* than the average wage.”

Borer added, with a mix of amusement and frustration that a citizen should have to give basic advice to the finance minister, “If you want any more explanations like these, feel free to contact me or anyone else here on your wall.”

Leaks reveal secrets of the rich who hide cash offshore | UK news | The Guardian
►http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2013/apr/03/offshore-secrets-offshore-tax-haven

Millions of internal records have leaked from Britain’s offshore financial industry, exposing for the first time the identities of thousands of holders of anonymous wealth from around the world, from presidents to plutocrats, the daughter of a notorious dictator and a British millionaire accused of concealing assets from his ex-wife.

The leak of 2m emails and other documents, mainly from the offshore haven of the British Virgin Islands (BVI), has the potential to cause a seismic shock worldwide to the booming offshore trade, with a former chief economist at McKinsey estimating that wealthy individuals may have as much as $32tn (£21tn) stashed in overseas havens.

#leak #paradis_fiscaux #évasion_fiscale #technocratie #ploutocratie - à suivre
http://seenthis.net/messages/127470

The names have been unearthed in a novel project by the Washington-based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists [ICIJ], in collaboration with the Guardian and other international media, who are jointly publishing their research results this week.

HEAR EXPLOSIVE AUDIO: Bill Lockyer, Thomas Girardi and Walter Lack Secretly Own Indian Gaming Outfits in California - Clients of Howard Dickstein

BELOW MODIFIED VERSION OF COMMUNICATION FROM YR TO THIRD PARTY. AUDIO MODIFIED TO PROTECT IDENTITY OF SOURCE

AUDIO @:

http://lesliebrodie.blog.co.uk/2013/03/19/explosive-audio-bill-lockyer-thomas-girardi-and-walter-lack-sec

PART I:

1. ETHICS COMPLAINT / IN RE GIRARDI — In 2010, the United States Federal Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit issued its final ruling in the disciplinary matter of In Re Girardi by imposing close to $500,000 in sanctions on Walter Lack of Engstrom Lispcomb & Lack and Thomas Girardi of Girardi & Keese stemming from an attempt to defraud the court and cause injury to Dole Food Company in the underlying litigation. You may have heard of Walter Lack and Thomas Girardi as they are the lawyers who were featured in the movie “Erin Brokovich” involving utility company PG&E.

The court ruled that Walter Lack (who stipulated to Special Prosecutor Rory Little that his prolonged acts of misconduct were intentional) and Thomas Girardi intentionally and recklessly resorted to the use of known falsehoods for years. The Ninth Circuit ordered Girardi and Lack to report their misconduct to the State Bar of California.

The State Bar of California disqualified itself from handling the matter since Howard Miller (of Girardi & Keese) served at that time as its president, and had also made the decision to hire then-chief prosecutor, James Towery.

Mr. Towery, in turn, appointed Jerome Falk of Howard Rice (now Arnold & Porter) as outside “special prosecutor” to determine whether or not to bring charges against Girardi and Lack. (Mr. Falk is a colleague of Douglas Winthrop, and both represented PG&E in its massive bankruptcy proceedings.)

Mr. Falk, in turn, exercised prosecutorial discretion and concluded that he did not believe Lack acted intentionally and that no charges will be brought against the two attorneys.

Within days of Mr. Falk’s decision, I filed an ethics complaint with the State Bar of California against Jerome Falk, James Towery, Howard Miller, and Douglas Winthrop (managing partner of Howard Rice and then-elected president of the Foundation), alleging that it was improper for Mr. Towery to appoint Mr. Falk given the close personal relationship between Howard Miller and Douglas Winthrop. Specifically, Howard Miller — in his capacity as president of the State Bar — had appointed Douglas Winthrop as president of the California Bar Foundation, a foundation maintained and controlled by the State Bar. (Much later I also discovered that Jerome Falk is actually the personal attorney of Thomas Girardi, and that Howard Rice and Jerome Falk represented Walter Lack, Thomas Girardi, Engstrom Lispcomb & Lack, and Girardi & Keese in approximately 2007, and for a period of 2 years, in a malpractice action.)

2. FOGEL V. FARMERS — In the matter of In Re Girardi, Mr. Girardi and his law firm were represented by the firm of Skadden Arps. In reviewing the file of In Re Girardi, I discovered that, beginning in 2003, Girardi & Keese and Engstrom Lispcomb & Lack were prosecuting a class action case against Farmers Insurance Company, which was represented by Skadden Arps. This was a nationwide class action with estimated damages of close to $15 billion that had originally been filed by Texas Governor Rick Perry.

I thereafter informed the Los Angeles County Superior Court (Judge William Highberger) of this information, and filed a State Bar ethics complaint against attorneys Thomas Girardi of Girardi & Keese and Thomas Nolan and Raoul Kennedy of Skadden Arps because neither the class of plaintiffs (consisting of 14 million Americans), nor the courts (the Ninth Circuit in the matter of In Re Girardi and the Los Angeles County Superior Court in the matter of Fogel vs. Farmers) had been informed of the concurrent representation by which Skadden Arps represented Girardi & Keese (in the Ninth Circuit matter), while at the same time defending Farmers.

Shortly after I filed this ethics complaint, Skadden Arps and Dewey Lebeuf (representing Farmers’ parent company, Zurich Financial) moved ex parte (which was unopposed) to amend the settlement agreement in the Fogel matter and the notice to the class of 14 million Americans throughout the country to include a proviso by which members of the class would be prohibited from suing anyone due to the concurrent representation described above. Nevertheless, the State Bar of California decided not to take any action on this ethics complaint.

3. CaliforniaALL — When researching the relationship of Girardi & Keese and Howard Rice and the appointment of Douglas Winthrop as president of the California Bar Foundation by Howard Miller of Girardi & Keese, I reviewed the California Bar Foundation’s annual reports to familiarize myself with the names of the Foundation’s board of directors. I stumbled upon the fact that the Foundation ended 2008 close to $500,000 in the negative. Specifically, the Foundation reported to the IRS that REVENUE LESS EXPENSES in 2007 equaled plus +$373.842.00. However, in 2008, the Foundation reported to the IRS that REVENUE LESS EXPENSES equaled minus -$537,712.

I discovered that the money had been transferred to a newly-created Section 501(c)(3) non-profit entity (headed by Ruthe Catolico Ashley — a friend of Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakayue) known as CaliforniaALL, which obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars from utility companies PG&E, SCE, AT&T, and Verizon. In turn, CaliforniaALL funneled a large portion of the money to the UCI Foundation, where a friend and former partner of Mark Robinson (of the Judicial Council), State Bar of California Executive Director Joe Dunn, served as trustee in 2008-9 to launch a new entity known as Saturday Law Academy.

Various factors and evidence caused me to suspect that a significant portion of the funds transferred from the California Bar Foundation ended up financing a newly-created online publication which Joe Dunn had launched with the help of Thomas Girardi and James Brosnahan of Morrison & Foerster; this online publication is known as “Voice of OC.”

Those factors include, but are not limited to, the fact that some individuals and entities involved in the creation of CaliforniaALL and the subsequent transfer of $780,000 from the Cal Bar Foundation to CaliforniaALL were also involved in assisting Joe Dunn with the creation of “Voice of OC” to wit – Morrison & Foerster’s Susan Mac Cormac as legal counsel for CaliforniaALL; Girardi & Keese’s Howard Miller in his capacity as BOD member of Cal Bar Foundation; and BOG members who voted to endorse CaliforniaALL and consider it to have been a partner of the State Bar of California. Also relevant was that Morrison & Foerster’s James Brosnahan and Girardi & Keese’s Thomas Girardi also assisted Joe Dunn in establishing Voice of OC, the fact that Saturday Law Academy was established many years earlier, and the fact that Ruthe Ashley exited CaliforniaALL in the same month and year Joe Dunn established Voice of OC (September 2009).

Based on my concerns, I requested that Voice of OC provide me with copies of its IRS 990 forms. Voice of OC did not comply with applicable IRS regulations in that it failed to reply to my request for copies of its 990 forms submitted to the IRS, whereupon I filed a complaint against Voice of OC and Joe Dunn with the IRS.

Later, after thorough research, I discovered that events surrounding CaliforniaALL, OBAMA FOR AMERICA, and those responsible for the financing of OBAMA FOR AMERICA are highly related, to wit, Ambassador Jeffrey Bleich, Ron Olson, Brad Phillips (of Munger Tolles & Olson) Ambassador John Roos and Mark Parnes (of Wilson Sonsini) James Brosnahan, DOJ’s Tony West, Chris Young, Annette Carnegie (of Morrison & Foerster) Steven Churchwell (of DLA Piper in Sacramento — where CaliforniaALL resided free of charge) Kamala Harris, as well as Freada Kapor - a California Democratic Party operative who served as a director of CaliforniaALL, and that The Kapor Center generally used to fund-raise on behalf of the many foundations located there, were additionally used to contact potential voters and encourage them to vote for then candidate Barack Obama. Her husband, Mitchell Kapor, was part of a tech team working for the campaigns of Barack Obama and Kamala Harris of CaliforniaALL.

I invite you to visit the below link for more details:

http://la.indymedia.org/news/2012/09/255420.php

4. UC DAVIS QUADRAPLEGIC LAW STUDENT SARA GRANDA / JUDGE MORRISON ENGALND /RACHEL GRUNBERG / LARRY YEE — Also in connection with CaliforniaALL, I advanced a judicial misconduct complaint against Judge Morrison England since State Bar of California Executive Director Judy Johnson, Judge England, his wife (Torie Flournoy-England), and State Bar of California employee Patricia Lee were all members of CaliforniaALL’s board of directors and/or advisory council. The basis for that complaint was these individuals’ failure to inform plaintiff Sara Granda — who had filed an action in federal court naming the State Bar of California as a sole defendant that was heard by Judge Morrison England — of these facts.

Specifically, without informing plaintiff Granda of his relationship with Judy Johnson (the State Bar’s Executive Director) vis-a-vis CaliforniaALL and either obtaining a waiver from this plaintiff or independently recusing himself, Judge England summarily dismissed Ms. Granda’s complaint against the California State Bar. Fortunately for Ms. Granda, several days later then-Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger championed her cause and pressured the California Bar to accommodate her needs.

I invite you to visit the below link to CaliforniaALL’s own publication which shows the relationship I described.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/48722718/9-CaliforniaALL-Newsletter-announcing-change-of-address-and-DLA-Piper-Pro-Bo

http://www.scribd.com/doc/100876445/CalALL-Mar2009Newsletter

In connection with the failure to disclose the relationship to plaintiff Sarah Granda, I also filed an ethics complaint with the State Bar of California against its own employees/attorneys which represented the State Bar in the litigation — Rachel Grunberg, Mark Torres Gil, and Larry Yee.

5. JUSTICE MING CHIN / DEPARTURE FROM CAUSE — While researching CaliforniaALL, I stumbled upon a separate non-profit entity in Southern California which was also absorbing money from utility companies known as CAUSE.

Since Justice Ming Chin was part of the entity’s board/council, I filed a complaint with the Office of Judicial Performance, and very shortly thereafter I was informed by CAUSE’s legal counsel that Justice Chin quit the entity.

6. JEANNINE ENGLISH / HOWARD DICKSTEIN — Upon further familiarizing myself with the members of the State Bar Board of Governors, I also filed a complaint with the Board of Governors against Public Member Jeannine English — the wife of Howard Dickstein, an Indian gambling attorney. Weeks later, US Senator John McCain (Arizona) filed a complaint against Howard Dickstein for various acts of misconduct and asked that he be investigated.

–-------------------------------------------------------------------------

6/12/2011

Dear President Hebert, Senator Dunn, Members of the Board of Governors, and to whom it may concern:

While examining circumstances concerning the California Consumer Protection Foundation (“CCPF”), which was secretly controlled by State Bar Executive Director Emeritus Judy Johnson (and which will be the subject of an upcoming request for investigation), I fortuitously stumbled upon troubling facts and events relating to Board of Governors (“BOG”) member Jeannine English.

As such, and despite its anticipated futility, this correspondence is intended to advise the BOG of these events and officially request an investigation into irregularities, conflicts of interest, self-dealing, breach of fiduciary duties, and lack of disclosures by BOG member Jeannine English. Those irregularities relate to circumstances surrounding the following:

1. Keker & Van Nest’s representation of Jeannine English’s spouse, Mr. Howard Dickstein, in an action for, among others, fraud, advanced by the Rumsey Tribe and related lack of disclosure on the part of Ms. English and Jon Streeter concerning the existence of a past business relationship.

2. Misconduct by Howard Dickstein against the tribes, and related involvement by Jeannine English, who was also concurrently representing the tribe in her role as “Lobbyist.” Subsequently, when the tribe advanced a suit against Dickstein claiming he had taken advantage of them by defrauding the tribe of millions of dollars over more than a decade, Dickstein referred to the suit as a “pack of lies,” whereupon Keker & Van Nest was summoned to defend the action.

3. An unusually large cy pres award of $900,000 to the AARP in a class action suit in which Girardi & Keese (specifically, Thomas Girardi and Graham Lippsmith) represented the plaintiff. Jeannine English has strong ties to the AARP and, in fact serves as the president of its California branch.

4. Lack of disclosures on the part of Girardi & Keese’s Howard Miller and Jeannine English of the existence of the transaction. Aggravating the lack of disclosures are circumstances surrounding misconduct by Girardi & Keese and Howard Miller in the Dole Litigation, the subsequent handing of the matter by the State Bar which assigned the matter to the firm of State Bar of California Foundation president Doug Winthrop, my own involvement, and the involvement Alec Chang.

THE RUMSEY MATTER

The Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians (“Rumsey”) consists of 40 adult members who reside in Brooks, California, which is situated in Capay Valley — 50 miles northwest of Sacramento and 90 miles northeast of the Bay Area. From a fledgling bingo business to what is now a thriving establishment known as “Cache Creek Casino,” attorney Howard Dickstein, a pioneer in tribal gambling law and the spouse of Jeannine English, helped dig the tribe out of poverty.

In and about 2007, and in addition to the services offered by Mr. Dickstein, Ms. Jeannine English and her company — Jeannine English & Associates — were also conducting business with Rumsey, by which lobbying and consulting services were purveyed by Ms. English.

Toward the end of 2007, Rumsey — represented by Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal and Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy — filed a suit in Yolo County Superior Court against Howard Dickstein and Jane Zerbi of Dickstein & Zerbi and Arlen Opper, a financial consultant, accusing them of unjustly enriching themselves with tribal money by defrauding the tribe of millions of dollars over more than a decade.

In statements to the media, Howard Dickstein referred to the allegations in the suit as a “pack of lies,” while disparaging his client. Dickstein also stated that he plans to fight the suit and “fight hard.” Appearing on behalf of defendant Dickstein was Elliot Peters of Keker & Van Nest.

The undersigned submits that because of the attorney-client relationship between Rumsey and Dickstein, it was questionable for Ms. English to enter into a business relationship with Rumsey and reckless for Jon Streeter and Jeannine English to conceal the past relationship from the public. If in fact a disclosure was made by any of them in a conspicuous place available for public viewing, please forward it to the undersigned in order for this portion of the complaint to be withdrawn.

These events lead one to wonder whether, hypothetically speaking, in the upcoming election for State Bar president Jeannine English would vote for Jon Streeter and not Michael Tenanbaum or Linda Davis as consideration for the representation Keker & Van Nest provided to her spouse. At least in part, it also explains to the undersigned the zeal and desire of Ms. English to be a member of the BOG. Clearly it was not to protect and serve the public; rather, it was to protect the interests of her husband (and, by extension, herself) who was accused of defrauding the Rumsey tribe of millions of dollars. In addition, it leads one to question whether the State Bar of California was not as vigorous as it should have been in protecting Rumsey from Dickstein.

THE AARP MATTER

In addition to serving on the State Bar’s BOG, Jeannine English also serves as the President of the AARP’s California branch, and is also involved with the AARP on a national level. Assuming no shenanigans, financial improprieties, or self-dealing with the AARP (which by the way, also operates a for-profit insurance brokerage), Ms. English deserves great credit for her outstanding contribution to the community. However, due to the overall set of circumstances surrounding English as described above, and as it is obvious that she serves on the BOG to serve the interests of her husband (and, by extension, herself), the undersigned is far from impressed.

Specifically, within the past few years, a plan has been devised by which a cy pres amount of $900,000 will be funneled to the AARP from a class action in which the law offices of Girardi & Keese serves as counsel. (Attridge v. Visa Case No. CGC-04-436920)

While the sums will not go directly to Ms. English, they will indirectly benefit her vis-a-vis the associated prestige resulting from successful fund raising efforts. The lack of disclosure regarding the proposed cy pres is alarming, especially considering events relating to the State Bar’s handling of attorney misconduct in the Dole matter, my ethics complaint and request for an inquiry of 5 months ago as to James Towery, Jerome Falk, Douglas Winthrop, and Howard Miller as well as the overall circumstances surrounding the State Bar/BOG disinclination to deal with the matter. To date, only myself and, later, David Cameron Carr (a former State Bar prosecutor) have spoken about this grave injustice. Of those who had a moral, legal, and ethical obligation to disclose conflicts, and to otherwise speak, now you know why at least one more such person — namely, Jeannine English — has failed to do so.

Thank you for time.

–-----------------------------------------------------------------------

7. On June 17, 2011, shortly after I filed the complaint against Jeannine English, a special meeting of the Board of Governors of the State Bar of California took place to introduce amendments to proposed legislation. The proposed amendments , among others, called for a change to the conflict of interest policies. Specifically, public members should not be permitted to serve if they are involved in the legal profession or are the spouses of lawyers.

8. After I asked the BOG to investigate Ms. English, a confidential source from Southern California informed me that Howard Dickstein and Thomas Girardi are business partners. Out of an abundance of caution, this information was forwarded on June 22, 2011 by me to the Deputy Executive Director of the State Bar of California, Robert Hawley, as follows:

Mr. Hawley:

This is to inform the State Bar about information I recently received
concerning Jeannine English, Howard Dickstein, and Thomas Girardi.

Based on what was communicated to me, Howard Dickstein and Thomas
Girardi are involved in some sort of a joint venture; or otherwise are
business partners in areas relating to Indian gambling.

Please note that I do not personally vouch for the credibility of the
source nor the accuracy of the information.

However, based on the totality of the circumstances, it is a lead
worth following.

Thanks

Egypt parliament approves Islamic bond law

http://www.alarabiya.net/en/business/2013/03/19/Egypt-parliament-approves-Islamic-bond-law.html

Egypt’s parliament approved on Tuesday a law allowing the issuance of Islamic bonds which could provide the heavily-indebted government with a new form of finance.
(...)
Finance Minister Al-Mursi Al-Sayed Hegazy said last month that Egypt could raise around $10 billion a year from the sukuk market - much more than some analysts expect - but added that it would take at least three months to push through the necessary regulations.

Egypt has never issued a sovereign sukuk. An international issue would help the government replenish its dangerously low foreign currency reserves which dropped to the critical level$13.5 billion in February.

The upper house voted against a demand from the Nour Party, Egypt’s main hardline Islamist group, that the law should be approved by scholars at Al-Azhar, a religious institution which should be consulted on matters related to Islamic law according to a new constitution.
(...)
Food supply is a politically-sensitive issue in Egypt, where rising prices are being passed on to struggling consumers and shortages have provoked unrest in the past. Curbs on bread subsidies triggered bread riots in 1977.

#Egypt #economy #sukuk

Cyprus banks close as bailout terms spark Europe-wide crisis - World Socialist Web Site

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2013/03/19/cypr-m19.html

Cyprus banks close as bailout terms spark Europe-wide crisis
By Jordan Shilton and Chris Marsden
19 March 2013

The terms attached to the European Union (EU) finance ministers’ bailout for Cypriot banks triggered heavy losses on financial markets that were lessened only on the basis of an expected climb-down.

A vote in Cyprus’s parliament was first postponed from Sunday until Monday, and then until today, as it remained uncertain if President Nikos Anastasiades could win majority backing for the plan. In a statement on national television Saturday, he declared that Nicosia had no other alternative but to accept the terms of the programme if the country was to avert a full financial collapse. He compared the current crisis to the Turkish invasion of the island in 1974, which led to partition.

Chypre #crise-bancaire

#banksters Hold up du siècle : un upgrade imposé pour la zone #euro

Le Figaro - Conjoncture : Chypre : un sauvetage inédit à 10 milliards d’euros
http://www.lefigaro.fr/conjoncture/2013/03/16/20002-20130316ARTFIG00293-chypre-un-sauvetage-inedit-a-10-milliards-d-euros

La zone euro et le FMI ont trouvé dans la nuit de vendredi à samedi un accord sur un plan d’aide. En échange, Nicosie va instaurer une taxe exceptionnelle sur les dépôts bancaires, qui rapportera près de 6 milliards d’euros.

George Osborne politicien conservateur britannique se pose en donneur de leçons mais les citoyens du Royaume Uni expatriés à Chypre risquent bien de « manger » #je_me_marre

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2294388/Cyprus-bailout-Osborne-vows-protect-Britains-armed-forces-Cyprus-cash-m

George Osborne vowed today that those serving in Britain’s military or government in Cyprus will be protected after European finance chiefs ordered an unprecedented raid on personal bank accounts.

Up to 60,000 British savers are to lose thousands of pounds each as expats in Cyprus have their savings decimated in part of a painful bid to bail out the bankrupt island.

The Chancellor said the financial situation in Cyprus was ‘an example of what happens if you don’t show the world that you can pay your way’, adding: ‘We are not part of the bailout.’

#la_grande_perdition

William Hauck (of California State University Board of Trustees / Goddard Claussen / Golden Pacific Bank / California Forward / Blue Shield of California Foundation ) Asked to Disclose Reason / Motive California State University Board of Trustees Spent Tax-Payers Money to File an Amicus Brief in Matter of BERKELEY HILLSIDE PRESERVATION v. CITY OF BERKELEY Involving Personal Residence of Freada Klein Kapor of CaliforniaALL Financial Scheme / The Kapor Center

See story @:

http://lesliebrodie.wordpress.com/tag/william-hauck-aka-bill-hauck-of-california-state-university-

California Supreme Court Docket for BERKELEY HILLSIDE PRESERVATION v. CITY OF BERKELEY [ TLR Note: 1. real parties are Mitchell Kapor and Freada Klein Kapor ( of CaliforniaALL financial scheme / The Kapor Center ) seek to build 10,000 square-foot house, adjacent 10 parking spots for fundraising volunteers , certified “Green” in Berkeley, CA — objecting neighbors commenced action 2- YR Asks – Why / What interests THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA – THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY – CALIFORNIA SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATIONS’S EDUCATION LEGAL ALLIANCE have in filing Amicus Briefs ?

Parties and Attorneys
BERKELEY HILLSIDE PRESERVATION v. CITY OF BERKELEY (LOGAN)
Case Number S201116

Party Attorney
Berkeley Hillside Preservation : Plaintiff and Appellant

Susan Brandt-Hawley
Brandt-Hawley Law Group
P.O. Box 1659
Glen Ellen, CA

Fadley, Susan Nunes : Plaintiff and Appellant

Susan Brandt-Hawley
Brandt-Hawley Law Group
P.O. Box 1659
Glen Ellen, CA

City of Berkeley : Defendant and Respondent

Laura Nicole McKinney
Office of the City Attorney
2180 Milvia Street, Fourth Floor
Berkeley, CA

City Council of the City of Berkeley : Defendant and Respondent

Laura Nicole McKinney
Office of the City Attorney
2180 Milvia Street, Fourth Floor
Berkeley, CA

Logan, Donn : Real Party in Interest and Respondent

Amrit Satish Kulkarni
Meyers, Nave, Riback, Silver & Wilson
555 12th Street, Suite 1500
Oakland, CA

Julia Lynch Bond
Meyers Nave Riback Silver & Wilson
555 12th Street, Suite 1500
Oakland, CA

Kapor, Mitchell D. : Real Party in Interest and Respondent

Amrit Satish Kulkarni
Meyers Nave Riback Silver & Wilson
555 12th Street, Suite 1500
Oakland, CA

Julia Lynch Bond
Meyers Nave Riback Silver & Wilson
555 12th Street, Suite 1500
Oakland, CA

Kapor-Klein, Freada : Defendant and Respondent

Amrit Satish Kulkarni
Meyers Nave Riback Silver & Wilson
555 Twelfth Street, Suite 1500
Oakland, CA

Julia Lynch Bond
Meyers Nave Riback Silver & Wilson
555 12th Street, Suite 1500
Oakland, CA

Laguna Beach Architectural Guild : Pub/Depublication Requestor

Sherman L. Stacey
Gaines & Stacey LLP
1111 Bayside Drive, Suite 280
Corona Del Mar, CA

California Building Industry Association : Pub/Depublication Requestor

Andrew B. Sabey
Cox Castle & Nicholson LLP
555 California Street, 10th Floor
San Francisco, CA

California League of Cities : Pub/Depublication Requestor

Melanie Sengupta
Holland & Knight
50 California Street, Suite 2800
San Francisco, CA

California State Association of Counties : Pub/Depublication Requestor

Melanie Sengupta
Holland & Knight
50 California Street, Suite 2800
San Francisco, CA

California Infill Builders Association : Pub/Depublication Requestor
Meea Kang, President
2012 “K” Street
Sacramento, CA 95811

Bay Area Council : Pub/Depublication Requestor
Matt Regan, Vice President
201 California Street, Suite 1450
San Francisco, CA 94111

Save Our Carmel River : Amicus curiae

Michael W. Stamp
Attorney at Law
479 Pacific Street, Suite 1
Monterey, CA

Molly E Erickson
Law Offices of Michael W Stamp
479 Pacific Street, Suite 1
Monterey, CA

The Open Monterey Project : Amicus curiae

Michael W. Stamp
Attorney at Law
479 Pacific Street, Suite 1
Monterey, CA

Molly E Erickson
Law Offices of Michael W. Stamp
479 Pacific Street, Suite 1
Monterey, CA

Bernardi, Patricia : Other

Michael W. Stamp
Attorney at Law
479 Pacific Street, Suite 1
Monterey, CA

Coastal Defender : Other

Beverly Suzanne GrossmanPalmer
Strumwasser & Woocher LLP
10940 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 2000
Los Angeles, CA

Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association : Amicus curiae

Leila H. Moncharsh
Veneruso & Moncharsh
5707 Redwood Road, Suite #10
Oakland, CA

Attorney General Kamala D. Harris : Amicus curiae

Catherine Mitchell Wieman
Office of the Attorney General
300 South Spring Street, Suite 1702
Los Angeles, CA

The Building Industry Association of the Bay Area : Amicus curiae

Stephen L. Kostka
Perkins Coie, LLP
4 Embarcadero Center, Suite 2400
San Francisco, CA

Planning and Conservation League : Amicus curiae

Jan Chatten-Brown
Chatten-Brown & Carstens LLP
2200 Pacific Coast Highway, Suite 318
Hermosa Beach, CA

Endangered Habitat League : Amicus curiae

Jan Chatten-Brown
Chatten-Brown & Carstens LLP
2200 Pacific Coast Highway, Suite 318
Hermosa Beach, CA

California Preservation Foundation : Amicus curiae

Jan Chatten-Brown
Chatten-Brown & Carstens LLP
2200 Pacific Coast Highway, Suite 318
Hermosa Beach, CA

Save Our Heritage Organization : Amicus curiae

Jan Chatten-Brown
Chatten-Brown & Carstens LLP
2200 Pacific Coast Highway, Suite 318
Hermosa Beach, CA

The California Building Industry Association : Amicus curiae

Michael Zischke
Cox, Castle & Nicholson, LLP
555 California Street, 10th Floor
San Francisco, CA

Andrew B. Sabey
Cox Castle & Nicholson LLP
555 California Street, 10th Floor
San Francisco, CA

California Business Properties Association : Amicus curiae

Michael Zischke
Cox, Castle & Nicholson, LLP
555 California Street, 10th Floor
San Francisco, CA

Andrew B. Sabey
Cox Castle & Nicholson LLP
555 California Street, 10th Floor
San Francisco, CA

Building Industry Legal Defense Foundation : Amicus curiae

Michael Zischke
Cox, Castle & Nicholson, LLP
555 California Street, 10th Floor
San Francisco, CA

Andrew B. Sabey
Cox Castle & Nicholson LLP
555 California Street, 10th Floor
San Francisco, CA

Pacific Legal Foundation : Amicus curiae

Malcolm Reed Hopper
Pacific Legal Foundation
930 G Street
Sacramento, CA

California School Boards Associations’s Education Legal Alliance : Amicus curiae

Harold M. Freiman
Lozano Smith
2001 North Main Street, Suite 650
Walnut Creek, CA

Kelly Marie Rem
Lozano Smith
2001 North Main Street, Suite 650
Walnut Creek, CA

The Regents of the University of California : Amicus curiae

Charles Furlonge Robinson
University of California/Office of General Counsel
1111 Franklin Street, 8th Floor
Oakland, CA

Kelly L. Drumm
Office of the General Counsel
1111 Franklin Street, 8th Floor
Oakland, CA

The Board of Trustees of the California State University : Amicus curiae

Andrea Marie Gunn
Office of General Counsel
401 Golden Shore, 4th Floor
Long Beach, CA

Christine Helwick
Office of the General Counsel
401 Golden Shore, 4th Floor
Long Beach, CA

League of California Cities : Amicus curiae

Amanda Jean Monchamp
Holland & Knight LLP
50 California Street, 28th Floor
San Francisco, CA

Melanie Sengupta
Holland & Knight
50 California Street, 28th Floor
San Francisco, CA

California State Association of Counties : Amicus curiae

Amanda Jean Monchamp
Holland & Knight LLP
50 California Street, 28th Floor
San Francisco, CA

Melanie Sengupta
Holland & Knight
50 California Street, Suite 2800
San Francisco, CA

Center for Biological Diversity : Amicus curiae

Michael Ward Graf
Law Offices of Michael W. Graf
227 Behrens Street
El Cerrito, CA

High Sierra Rural Alliance : Amicus curiae

Michael Ward Graf
Law Offices of Michael W. Graf
227 Behrens Street
El Cerrito, CA

Association of California Water Agencies : Amicus curiae

Christian Lucier Marsh
Downey Brand LLP
333 Bush Street, Suite 1400
San Francisco, CA

Andrea Pelton Clark
Downey Brand LLP
333 Bush Street, Suite 1400
San Francisco, CA

Graham Cole St. Michel
Downey Brand LLP
333 Bush Street, Suite 1400
San Francisco, CA

HBS study reveals that Harvard’s MBA alumni perceive management as high-quality if it succeeds in meeting quarterly numbers and getting stock prices up, even if it fails wider and longer term competitive goals - http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2013/03/10/the-surprising-reasons-why-america-lost-its-ability-to-compete #finance #management

De la “Data Science” à l’infovisualisation (1/2) : qu’est-ce qu’un data scientist ?
http://www.internetactu.net/2013/03/06/de-la-data-science-a-linfovisualisation-12-quest-ce-quun-data-scientis

Comment articuler “Science des données” et visualisation ? C’est à cette question que se sont attaqués une multitude d’experts lors de la journée d’étude PraTIC du 25 février (conçue et organisée par Etienne-Armand Amato, Etienne Perény et Jean-Christophe Plantin pour Gobelins, l’Ecole de l’Image, en partenariat avec le laboratoire Paragraphe de l’Université Paris 8 et l’Observatoire des mondes numériques (...)

#algorithmie #analyse_des_réseaux #big_data #datajournalisme

Is This Really the End of Neoliberalism? (2009)
by DAVID HARVEY

►http://www.counterpunch.org/2009/03/13/is-this-really-the-end-of-neoliberalism

Does this crisis signal the end of neo-liberalism? My answer is that it depends what you mean by neo-liberalism. My interpretation is that it’s a class project, masked by a lot of neo-liberal rhetoric about individual freedom, liberty, personal responsibility, privatisation and the free market. These were means, however, towards the restoration and consolidation of class power, and that neo-liberal project has been fairly successful.

One of the basic principles that was set up in the 1970s was that state power should protect financial institutions at all costs. This is the principle that was worked out in New York City crisis in the mid-1970s, and was first defined internationally when Mexico threatened to go bankrupt in 1982. This would have destroyed the New York investment banks, so the US Treasury and the IMF combined to bail Mexico out. But in so doing they mandated austerity for the Mexican population. In other words they protected the banks and destroyed the people, and this has been the standard practice in the IMF ever since. The current bailout is the same old story, one more time, except bigger.

What happened in the US was that 8 men gave us a 3 page document which pointed a gun at everybody and said ‘give us $700 billion or else’. This to me was like a financial coup, against the government and the population of the US. Which means you’re not going to come out of this crisis with a crisis of the capitalist class; you’re going to come out of this with a far greater consolidation of the capitalist class than there has been in the past. We’re going to end up with four or five major banking institutions in the United States and nothing else. Many on Wall Street are thriving right now. Lazard’s, because it specialises in mergers and acquisitions, is making megabucks. Some people are going to be burned, but overall it’s a massive consolidation of financial power. There’s a great line from Andrew Mellon (US banker, Secretary of the Treasury 1921-32), who said that in a crisis, assets return to their rightful owners. A financial crisis is a way of rationalising what is irrational – for example the immense crash in Asia in 1997-8 resulted in a new model of capitalist development. Disruptions lead to a reconfiguration, a new form of class power. It could go wrong, politically. The bank bailout has been fought over in the US Senate and elsewhere, so the political class may not easily go along – they can put up roadblocks but so far they have caved in and not nationalised the banks.

But this can lead to a deeper political struggle: there is a strong sense of questioning why are we empowering all the people who got us into this mess. Questions are being asked about Obama’s choice of economic advisers – for example Larry Summers who was Secretary of the Treasury at the key moment when a lot of things started to go really wrong, at the end of the Clinton administration. Why would you now bring in so many of the characters who are pro-Wall Street, pro-finance capital, who did the bidding of finance capital back then? Which is not to say that they aren’t going to redesign the financial architecture because I think they know it’s got to be redesigned, but who are they going to redesign it for? People are really discontented about Obama’s economic team, even in the mainstream press.

A new state financial architecture is required. I don’t think that all existing institutions like the Bank of International Settlements and even the IMF should be abolished; I think we will need them but they have to be revolutionarily transformed. The big question is who will control them and what their architecture will be. We will need people, experts with some sort of understanding of how those institutions do work and can work. And this is very dangerous because, as we can see right now, when the state looks to see who can understand what is going on in Wall Street, they think only insiders can.

#néolibéralisme
#Harvey

Likud sources: Netanyahu offered Yacimovich finance portfolio Israel News | Haaretz Daily Newspaper
http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/likud-sources-netanyahu-offered-yacimovich-finance-portfolio.premium-1.5038

La guerre des monnaies plane sur le G 20

World Socialist Web Site

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2013/02/15/pers-f15.html

Currency wars hang over G20 meeting
15 February 2013

The meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bankers in Moscow over the next two days is being held amid a deep contradiction in the global capitalist economy.

On the one hand a certain stability has returned to financial markets, at least temporarily, with stock markets on the rise, while, on the other hand, economic growth continues to stagnate. Large sections of the world are at or near recession and the developed countries are now fighting over what the Financial Times described as “slivers of economic growth”.