ThxPORTAL - My OnlinE InvestmenT ProgresS

Here, in a chart, is why Britain can’t afford to be complacent about the plight of Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain. UK banks are exposed to these countries to the tune of 16 per cent of gross domestic product, according to this chart from Stephen Jen of BlueGold Capital Management (the figures themselves are Bank for International Settlement numbers).

By my reckoning that’s just under £250bn of exposure, so if these economies topple, we can’t afford to smirk and be smug about the fact that we avoided joining the euro. We would be engulfed in a nasty, nasty financial crisis of our own.

Look, too, at Switzerland: it faces a 21pc of GDP exposure to these struggling nations. It is an important point ahead of tomorrow’s crunch European Council meeting tomorrow, at which leaders are expected to agree on some sort of bail-out package. At the moment, it looks as if the eurozone members (mainly France and Germany) will provide cash for a “firewall” bail-out designed to prevent these countries from toppling, but there are some whispers that Britain may have to make a contribution. These figures might help explain why. But in that case, one would also expect Switzerland to get involved, no?

In fact, the more one considers it, the more barmy it is that the eurozone ministers have pretty much vowed not to allow the IMF in for a bail-out. This is what the UK has been advising behind the scenes, but the euro ministers realise that this would be seen as an admission of the project’s failure. I also like Stephanie Flanders’ point that, of course, Nicolas Sarkozy is also determined not to let his future presidential opponent IMF chief Dominique Strauss Kahn swoop in and “save the euro”.

Anyway, there’ll be much more of this in tomorrow’s paper, where Ambrose Evans-Pritchard will explain all, and I have a run-down of the issues in my 0p-ed. So stay tuned.

PS Yes, I know we’re not supposed to call them PIIGS but the acronym is just too irresistible. However, one decent alternative I heard today is Club O’Med. Kudos to whoever dreamt that one up.

source HERE

A source close to the British Labour Government has just given me reliable information about the most radical copyright proposal I've ever seen.
Secretary of State Peter Mandelson is planning to introduce changes to the Digital Economy Bill now under debate in Parliament. These changes will give the Secretary of State (Mandelson -- or his successor in the next government) the power to make "secondary legislation" (legislation that is passed without debate) to amend the provisions of Copyright, Designs and Patents Act (1988).

What that means is that an unelected official would have the power to do anything without Parliamentary oversight or debate, provided it was done in the name of protecting copyright. Mandelson elaborates on this, giving three reasons for his proposal:

1. The Secretary of State would get the power to create new remedies for online infringements (for example, he could create jail terms for file-sharing, or create a "three-strikes" plan that costs entire families their internet access if any member stands accused of infringement)

2. The Secretary of State would get the power to create procedures to "confer rights" for the purposes of protecting rightsholders from online infringement. (for example, record labels and movie studios can be given investigative and enforcement powers that allow them to compel ISPs, libraries, companies and schools to turn over personal information about Internet users, and to order those companies to disconnect users, remove websites, block URLs, etc)

3. The Secretary of State would get the power to "impose such duties, powers or functions on any person as may be specified in connection with facilitating online infringement" (for example, ISPs could be forced to spy on their users, or to have copyright lawyers examine every piece of user-generated content before it goes live; also, copyright "militias" can be formed with the power to police copyright on the web)

(snippet)
This proposal creates the office of Pirate-Finder General, with unlimited power to appoint militias who are above the law, who can pry into every corner of your life, who can disconnect you from your family, job, education and government, who can fine you or put you in jail.

source HERE