Useless Government Oversight

The Wall Street Journal reports that the government oversight of bailed-out banks has found bankers are getting questionably large bonuses, but the government isn't going to do anything about it.

Mr. Feinberg's four-page public discussion of banks' pay practices concluded that 17 banks had handed out $1.6 billion in "ill-advised" executive compensation before he was assigned in 2009 to oversee banks that accepted government money during the financial crisis.

All Your Cocoa Are Belong To Us

Like the 2000 meme all your base are belong to us, someone in Europe bought all of the cocoa beans (used in chocolate beans).

Mystery trader buys all Europe's cocoa

Even Willy Wonka might struggle to use this much chocolate. Yesterday, somebody bought 241,000 tonnes of cocoa beans.

The purchase was enough to move the entire global cocoa market, sending the price to the highest level since 1977

State-Sponsored Lying With Statistics

The website Number Watch contains a look at how government-funded scientists deceive us with statistics.

One section is devoted to global warming and how the "hockey stick" theory was broken.

Astute observers began to notice that the historical records of temperatures were changing and almost always in such a way as to increase the illusion of global warming. NASA, of all institutions, was involved in this dubious practice and it was all done without explanation.

School Lunches Threaten National Security

Obese America is making it difficult for the military to find physically qualified recruits.

"Mission: Readiness", the non-profit group of over 130 retired military leaders that is calling for healthier federal food for children, is expressing support for new legislation that would outlaw junk food from schools so that more children will qualify to enroll in the military.

According to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) statistics, the number of states with 40 percent or more of the young adult population being overweight or obese has jumped from one to 39 in just ten years. Currently in three states, more than half of the young adult population is overweight.

Mission: Readiness is calling on Congress to amend the Child Nutrition Act

Elected Kings & Queens

The elected officials have been caught taking wildly excessive pay. With just 38,0000 residents, some officials are taking $800,000 and part-time council members take $100,000.

Chief Administrative Officer Robert Rizzo earns $787,637 -- with annual 12 percent raises -- and that Bell pays its police chief $457,000, more than Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck makes in a city of 3.8 million people. Bell council members earn almost $100,000 for part-time work.

Troop Deaths

Afghanistan is the longest actively fought war in US history. The death toll is tragic and continues to climb.

Army reports record number of suicides for June

Soldiers killed themselves at the rate of one per day in June, making it the worst month on record for Army suicides, the service said Thursday.

England Steals To Give To Charity

England will use the power of government to steal people's funds and give the money to charity

The Prime Minister will detail plans to raid bank accounts that have been "dormant" for up to 15 years and redistribute the money to fund enterprises that would otherwise struggle to secure funding amid the Government's austerity programme.

Britain Exaggerated Iraq WMDs

A high ranking British whistle blower says that under Tony Blair, the British government lied about WMDs in Iraq

Carne Ross, who was First Secretary responsible for the Middle East at the United Nations, accused the former government of issuing “lies” to the public about the dictator’s capacity to launch weapons of mass destruction.

He said that it was a "disgrace" that ministers failed to exhaust all peaceful options before going to war against Iraq.

Federal Reserve Insider Theft

Greg Palm was legal counsel of Goldman Sachs and chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York during the financial crisis. Mr. Palm had inside knowledge of the planned bailouts, and he traded on that insider knowledge to make great profits for himself. Insider trading is theft and it is illegal.

When will Mr. Palm be prosecuted for theft and insider trading?

Friedman, 72, who is still a Goldman director, bought 37,300 shares at an average of $80.78 each on Dec. 17. Five weeks later, he picked up 15,300 more at an average of $66.61. By yesterday, the stock had doubled to $133.76, giving Friedman a paper profit of $3 million.

Now, the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is investigating Friedman’s stock purchases. It wants to know why he was permitted to buy stock in a bank he was regulating as chairman of the New York Fed.

Friedman held both that post and his Goldman board seat when the firm became a bank holding company in September 2008. The Federal Reserve Act forbids an official at the New York Fed in his position from also being a director of a bank or buying its stock.

Good News Foods

Foods can lead us to sustainable happiness.

Can you really eat your way to happiness? The mood food connection

High-quality omega-3s provide one of the most powerful and sustainable boosts to healthy moods of any commonly-available food.
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You can get omega-3 oils from fish, quality marine oil supplements like Moxxor, chia seeds, flax seeds and other quality nutritional supplements.

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Pecans are extremely beneficial to supporting not just healthy moods but healthy brain function as well. It's the oils in the nuts that do the trick.
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Almonds, pistachios, macadamia nuts and walnuts all have powerful health-supporting properties that affect brain function and therefore mood experiences

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Green tea seems to provide a subtle mood lift without all the problems of typical stimulants. ... check your source to make sure it doesn't suffer from fluoride contamination
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Adaptogenic herbs are also very, very good at helping your neurology better handle stress. ... Adaptogens include ginseng, ashwagandha, rhodiola, cordyceps mushroom and many others.

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St. John's Wort has been clinically shown to work as well as antidepressant drugs to ease symptoms of depression.

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focus on consuming large quantities of fresh fruits and vegetables.

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If you want to maintain healthy moods, it's crucial to avoid refined sugar and caffeine from all sources.