Wait... have I just slipped into a parallel universe? Is this some sort of early April's fools joke? Doesn't this defeat the entire point of a single currency and the ECB? Were the rules changed on the quiet without anyone noticing?

Thursday, January 20, 2011
Is Ireland Printing Own Money due to "End of Euro"?
What's Going On? FAA warns of GPS issues in southeastern US due to Defense Department 'tests'
Article Origin
FAA Source (PDF)
Major French Bank Planning for China Economic Collapse
In a report entitled The Dragon which played with fire, the bank's global team said China had carried out its own version of "quantitative easing", cranking up credit by 20 trillion (£1.9 trillion) or 50pc of GDP over the past two years. It has waited too long to drain excess stimulus.
"Policy makers are already behind the curve. According to our Taylor Rule analysis, the tightening needed is about 250 basis points," said the report, by Alain Bokobza, Glenn Maguire and Wei Yao.
The Politiburo may be tempted to put off hard decisions until the leadership transition in 2012 is safe. "The skew of risks is very much for an extended period of overheating, and therefore uncontained inflation," it said.
Under the bank's "risk scenario" - a 30pc probability - inflation will hit 10pc by the summer. "This would cause tremendous pain and fuel widespread social discontent," and risks a "pernicious wage-price spiral".
Taxman faces £6bn Vodafone 'let-off' probe
The National Audit Office yesterday confirmed it was in the 'early stages' of the probe and will look into how tax inspectors reach settlements with large firms.
The investigation is the latest in a series of embarrassments for HMRC. Last year it had to admit charging six million people the wrong tax, including 1.4m who had underpaid by a total of £2bn. Read More...
Why Tunisia is in Revolt: The Suicide that Sparked a Revolution
Which prompted this:
Swiss Banker Arrested for Helping Wikileaks, Exposing Tax Cheats Among Rich and Politicians
Rudolf Elmer was arrested late Wednesday shortly after a Zurich court found him guilty of coercion and breaking Switzerland's strict bank secrecy laws in an earlier case.
"He is in police detention and will be questioned today," Zurich chief prosecutor Peter Pellegrini told The Associated Press.
Green light reported across Chicago and Indiana, possible meteor
The reports come a week after the meteor sighting across the Southern United States. This event was likely another one of the meteors. It is interesting that these sightings are becoming more and more numerous.
Astronomers have no word on the recent uproar in meteors, however have said it is not too uncommon, possibly a dense meteor shower field that may not have been detected yet.
Skywatchers across the world should keep their eyes on the night sky if observing, you never know what you'll find. Source..
Thousands of fish and animals die in floods
FLOODS have killed thousands of fish, birds and other animals at Geelong's Reedy Lake.
Recent heavy rains have filled the normally shallow freshwater lake at Moolap, dumping dead animals from other nearby waterways into it and sucking away the water's oxygen.Thousands of dead creatures are now floating on the lake's surface after having drowned or suffocated in the water, which has turned black.
Geelong Field and Game member Ray Agg discovered the grisly scene yesterday morning while monitoring his group's bird conservation work at the lake.
"We've got a lot of bird nesting boxes set up at Reedy Lake, and a lot of those went underwater with the floods, so lots of eggs and young duck and ibis chicks have been lost," Mr Agg said. "There are thousands of dead fish and eels all over the place too."
"It's amazing, I've been here since the '70s and I've not seen this before, it's really a shame." Read More...
Interesting Note: One of the most fascinating set of prophecies comes out of the Hopi nation located in the Southwestern United States. Many prophecies foretold by the Hopi appear to have come true.
Here is just one of the prophecies foretold by the Hopi Indians
"This is the Seventh Sign: You will hear of the sea turning black, and many living things dying because of it."