4.9 Magnitude Earthquake EASTERN NEW GUINEA REG, PAPUA NEW GUINEA - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.9
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 20:24:37 UTC
Saturday, January 05, 2013 at 06:24:37 AM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
5.427°S, 146.071°E
Depth
36.3 km (22.6 miles)
Region
EASTERN NEW GUINEA REG, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Distances
37 km (22 miles) SE of Madang, Papua New Guinea

4.7 Magnitude Earthquake ECUADOR - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.7
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 19:46:24 UTC
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 02:46:24 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
1.586°S, 77.702°W
Depth
191.3 km (118.9 miles)
Region
ECUADOR
Distances
28 km (17 miles) ENE of Palora, Ecuador

Workers making $30,000 will take a bigger hit on their pay than those earning $500,000 under new fiscal deal

Middle-class workers will take a bigger hit to their income proportionately than those earning between $200,000 and $500,000 under the new fiscal cliff deal, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center.

Earners in the latter group will pay an average 1.3 percent more - or an additional $2,711 - in taxes this year, while workers making between $30,000 and $200,000 will see their paychecks shrink by as much as 1.7 percent - or up to $1,784 - the D.C.-based think tank reported.

Overall, nearly 80 percent of households will pay more money to the federal government as a result of the fiscal cliff deal.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2256972/Middle-earners-hit-hardest-revealed-workers-making-30-000-bigger-hit-earning-500-000-new-fiscal-deal.html

Cpl. Joshua Boston: 'I am not your servant. I am the person whom you serve. I am not your peasant. I am the flesh and blood of America.'

'YOU MA'AM HAVE OVERSTEPPED A LINE': JOSHUA BOSTON'S LETTER

Senator Dianne Feinstein,
I will not register my weapons should this bill be passed, as I do not believe it is the government’s right to know what I own. Nor do I think it prudent to tell you what I own so that it may be taken from me by a group of people who enjoy armed protection yet decry me having the same a crime.

You ma’am have overstepped a line that is not your domain. I am a Marine Corps Veteran of 8 years, and I will not have some woman who proclaims the evil of an inanimate object, yet carries one, tell me I may not have one.

I am not your subject. I am the man who keeps you free. I am not your servant. I am the person whom you serve. I am not your peasant. I am the flesh and blood of America.

I am the man who fought for my country. I am the man who learned. I am an American. You will not tell me that I must register my semi-automatic AR-15 because of the actions of some evil man.

I will not be disarmed to suit the fear that has been established by the media and your misinformation campaign against the American public.

We, the people, deserve better than you.
Respectfully Submitted,
Joshua Boston
Cpl, United States Marine Corps
2004-2012

Drunken plane passenger is TAPED to his seat during flight to New York after 'trying to choke one woman and ranting the plane was going to crash'

A drunken passenger on a New York-bound intercontinental flight was duct-taped to his seat by his fellow passengers after attacking one woman and screaming the plane was going to crash.

Passenger Andy Ellwood, who took a photo of the man restrained, wrote an account of the incident on his Tumblr page.

'(Passenger) drank all of his duty free liquor on the flight from Iceland to JFK yesterday,' Ellwood wrote.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2257281/The-moment-drunken-passenger-taped-seat-flight-New-York-trying-choke-woman-ranting-plane-going-crash.html

Nazis secretly developed plot to drop radioactive bomb on New York from supersonic space rocket

Nazi chief Hermann Goering plotted to attack New York in a bizarre plot involving a manned space rocket dropping a dirty bomb over the Manhattan skyline.

Vying for Hitler's attention, the head of the German air-force, Hermann Goering, set up a lab and a team of leading scientists to explore the possibility of the radioactive attack on American soil.

Goering read the work of maverick Austrian engineer, Eugen Saenger and particularly his belief that a space plane could be built.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2256953/Nazis-secretly-developed-plot-drop-radioactive-bomb-New-York-supersonic-space-rocket.html

4.9 Magnitude Earthquake HALMAHERA, INDONESIA - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.9
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 17:59:14 UTC
Saturday, January 05, 2013 at 02:59:14 AM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
1.336°N, 127.095°E
Depth
129.3 km (80.3 miles)
Region
HALMAHERA, INDONESIA
Distances
68 km (42 miles) NNW of Kota Ternate, Indonesia

Radical American-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki booked flights for the 9/11 hijackers

Within days of the 9/11 terrorist attacks the FBI suspected American Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki had booked flights for the hijackers.

The reason for the flights remains unclear, but 9/11 Commission report later noted that the hijackers had used flights in the run-up to the attacks to test security and surveillance.

Awlaki, who was born in New Mexico, had become the lead figure for al-Qaeda and the offshoot al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula in the years after Osama bin Laden went into hiding.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2257223/Radical-American-born-cleric-Anwar-al-Awlaki-booked-flights-9-11-hijackers.html

Middle class families face paying 65% tax rate under Osborne's 'incoherent' clawback of child benefit, IFS warns

George Osborne tax raid on child benefit was today torn apart by the respected Institute for Fiscal Studies.

The think tank accused the Chancellor of ‘incoherence’ for linking state help with raising children to the salary of the highest earner in a family.

Affected families stand to lose an average of about £1,300 per year, it warned with families with three or more children paying marginal tax rates of more than 65 per cent.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2257083/Middle-class-families-face-paying-65-tax-rate-Osbornes-incoherent-clawback-child-benefit-IFS-warns.html

Argentinians Burn Sun In Row Over Falklands

Argentinian protesters have burned The Sun and Union Jack in Buenos Aires as Falkland Islanders wrote an open letter to the country's president.

Copies of the newspaper advert and the flag were torched at a cruise terminal in the capital after British Prime Minister David Cameron rejected calls for talks on the disputed territory.

http://news.sky.com/story/1033203/argentinians-burn-sun-in-row-over-falklands

Protester stabs himself in stomach in South Korea - WARNING GRAPHIC VIDEO

A Japanese special envoy arrived in South Korea on Friday to continue talks aimed at improving diplomatic relations between the two countries. Shortly before the envoy's arrival at Gimpo International Airport a demonstration was held in which one man, Lim Chang-geun, mimicked hari-kiri by stabbing himself in the stomach. Relations between South Korea and Japan have been strained by a territorial dispute over rocky outcroppings that Korea calls Dokdo and Japan calls Takeshima and which both claim. "Before sending us an envoy, Japan should have apologized before the international community and South Korean people," said protester Oh Chun-do. "Without an apology the envoy means nothing." Japan's envoy, Fukushiro Nukaga, will meet with South Korea's incoming President Park Geun Hye.

Fatah or Hamas? Mass rally for Abbas in Gaza a challenge for ruling party

Putin second to 'Nobody' on world's most powerful list

Portuguese green fingers dig deep for hungry citizens

2013 Solar storms

NASA scientists expect to see increased solar activity in 2013 as the sun reaches a stage of its cycle which makes it more prone to eruptions.

Pakistan resumes polio vaccines after attacks

Hong Kong seizes huge haul of smuggled ivory

Syria: Extremist Group Ansar Al Sharia in Yarmouk, Damascus (30/12/12)

Israeli forces evict 500 Palestinians from their homes in West Bank

'Black Beauty' Meteorite Holds Water From Mars

Scientists are hailing the discovery of a fist-sized meteorite from Mars, as a way to possibly unlock vital clues about the evolution of the planet.

Nasa says the rock, nicknamed Black Beauty, could tell them how Mars changed from the warm and wet place it once was to its current cold and dry state.

Discovered in Morocco's Sahara Desert in 2011, the 320g (11oz) space rock contains 10 times more water than other Martian meteorites and could be the first to have originated on the planet's surface or crust.

http://news.sky.com/story/1033365/mars-meteorite-is-water-rich-black-beauty

The Pinetrees Cattery Fire: Animals Killed As Fire Spreads Through Cattery

At least four cats have died and up to 18 others are missing after a fire broke out at a cattery.

Staffordshire Fire and Rescue service was called out in the early hours of the morning to Pinetrees Cattery in Huntington, near Cannock.

Station manager Dermot Hogan said: "Firefighters arrived and found the building well alight.

http://news.sky.com/story/1033401/animals-killed-as-fire-spreads-through-cattery

EU says Iran not responded to nuclear talks proposal

The European Union has proposed a time and place for further talks on Iran's nuclear program, but Iran has yet to respond, an EU spokesman said on Friday.

Iran said earlier on Friday it had agreed to resume talks in January with six major powers - represented by the EU - but the EU spokesman said Tehran had not yet replied to proposals made on December 31.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/04/us-iran-nuclear-eu-idUSBRE9030DA20130104

White House says Congress must raise debt limit

The White House said on Friday it is vital for Congress to quickly resolve future tax and spending feuds, and raise the U.S. borrowing authority to avoid economic uncertainty.

"It is quite clear that the economy will be better if Congress does its job and does what it routinely has done historically which is raise the debt limit without problem," Alan Krueger, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said in an interview on Bloomberg television.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/04/us-usa-economy-whitehouse-idUSBRE9030JM20130104

Europe Week Ahead: Old year worries remain unchanged

DHS Buys 200,000 More Rounds of Ammunition

While the Obama administration sets out to eviscerate the gun rights of American citizens in the aftermath of Sandy Hook, earlier this week it was announced that the Department of Homeland Security has awarded a company a contract worth over $45,000 dollars to provide the DHS with 200,000 more rounds of bullets.

This new purchase adds to the staggering figure of 1.6 billion rounds of ammunition already secured by the DHS over the last 9 months alone.

A solicitation originally posted on the FedBizOpps.gov website on December 17 on behalf of the DHS Federal Law Enforcement Training Center advertised the need for 200 cases of 13–40 Cal, 180 Grain, Jacketed Hollow Point bullets, with each case containing 1000 rounds, to be delivered almost immediately as soon as the contract is awarded.

http://www.infowars.com/dhs-buys-200000-more-rounds-of-ammunition/

Matt's thoughts:
Guns are bad, and people don't need them. But they sure do, despite there being no enemy to fight, no security threat present, and really nothing go on in the world that would warrant mass government arming. Obviously then, we know why they're purchasing so much ammunition: to use against Americans in some near-future event.

The State of America: Militias, Gird Yourselves

We don't want to end up like Norway, Cameron warns as he refuses to give up Britain's seat at the EU's table.... We don't want end up with low unemployment and growing Economy?

David Cameron today rejected the idea of Britain becoming a second class member of the European Union, insisting he would not give up his place at the Brussels ‘table’.

The Prime Minister gave his biggest hint yet that he will use his imminent speech on Europe to rebuff calls from many in the Tory party for a radical change in the UK’s membership of the EU.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2257047/We-dont-want-end-like-Norway-Cameron-warns-refuses-Britains-seat-EUs-table.html

Norway - Norway’s strong, oil-fueled economy looks set to stay that way in 2013, according to the country’s biggest bank, DNB. Its analysts and economists predict low interest rates, another rise in consumption and more economic growth throughout next year. The growth rate may be slower, at 2.4 percent instead of this year’s 3.5 percent

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.6
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 13:52:58 UTC
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 10:52:58 PM at epicenter
Location
36.910°N, 141.338°E
Depth
63.5 km (39.5 miles)
Region
NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
Distances
43 km (26 miles) ESE (114°) from Iwaki, Honshu, Japan

Prosecution Orders Investigation Against the Muslim brotherhood: Did America Pay them 10 Billion Egyptian Pounds?

Egypt's Chief Public Prosecutor Talaat Ibrahim has ordered an investigation in an accusation against the Muslim Brotherhood of receiving 10 billion Egyptian pounds from the United States, asking for the sources of the Brotherhood's money to be revealed.

The prosecutor referred the complaint to the state security prosecution to investigate it.

The two plaintiffs claimed that the United States granted the Brotherhood the money illegally to back its interests in the region.

Mitt Romney, who lost to Obama in November, had made similar accusations during his campaign.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201301040263.html

Lebanon asks for $180 million to aid Syrian refugees

Lebanon, now a haven for 170,000 Syrians fleeing civil war, has asked foreign donors for $180 million to help care for them and said it will register and recognize refugees after a year-long hiatus.

The Beirut government has officially sought to "dissociate" itself from the 21-month-old struggle in Syria, nervous about the destabilizing impact of the increasingly sectarian conflict in its bigger neighbor on its own delicate communal balance.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/04/us-syria-crisis-lebanon-refugees-idUSBRE9030GO20130104

Bad news: We're going extinct!

Israel-Syria wall: Safeguard or 'apartheid'?

RT correspondent injured in Syria: 'Firing was intense'

Kucinich on NDAA: Indefinite detention part of push to shred Constitution

Zero Dark Thirty: CIA Questioned Over Bin Laden Film Torture Scenes

US senators have demanded to know what the CIA told the makers of a controversial film about the hunt for Osama Bin Laden about the use of torture.

Zero Dark Thirty shows an al Qaeda figure undergoing waterboarding, which simulates near-drowning, and other similar interrogation techniques before eventually providing information that helps ultimately track down Bin Laden.

However, a Senate Intelligence Committee investigation into the CIA's detainee programme has previously concluded that such methods produced no useful intelligence.

http://news.sky.com/story/1033244/zero-dark-thirty-cia-questioned-over-torture

Tax Evaders Named In Crackdown

The names and photographs of last year’s top tax cheats have been made public as part of the Government’s efforts to crack down on evasion.

The 32 criminals have been sentenced to a combined 155 years and 10 months behind bars, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said.

The move to publish their details is designed to shame tax cheats.

http://news.sky.com/story/1033239/tax-cheats-hmrc-publishes-names-and-photos

Obama GUN CONFISCATION Starts Jan 1, 2013

5.1 Magnitude Earthquake TONGA - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
5.1
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 13:13:41 UTC
Saturday, January 05, 2013 at 03:13:41 AM at epicenter
Location
16.437°S, 173.375°W
Depth
10 km (6.2 miles)
Region
TONGA
Distances
254 km (158 miles) NNE (15°) from Neiafu, Tonga

Gunman kills 9 in house-to-house rampage in Philippine town

A gunman went door-to-door near the Philippine capital of Manila on Friday, opening fire and killing at least nine people in his neighborhood, authorities said.

The attacker, Ronald Bae, injured several others in Kawit, said Joseph Camaret, a local police officer. The town is about 20 kilometers south of central Manila.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/04/world/asia/philippines-shooting/?hpt=ias_c2

Venezuelan government announces Chávez has 'severe' respiratory infection

Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez is still suffering a "severe" respiratory infection that has hindered his breathing as he struggles to recover from cancer surgery in Cuba, the government said on Thursday.

The 58-year-old socialist leader has not been seen in public nor heard from in more than three weeks. Officials say he is in delicate condition after his fourth operation in just 18 months for an undisclosed form of cancer in his pelvic area.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jan/04/hugo-chavez-severe-lung-infection

'One in five' struck by norovirus in Scotland say experts

One in five people in Scotland may have been hit by norovirus in the past year, according to new figures.

The high number of cases has led to hospitals across the country having to close wards to new admissions.

A total of 2,824 cases of norovirus - also known as the winter vomiting bug - were confirmed by laboratories in Scotland in the past 12 months.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-20903489

4.5 Magnitude Earthquake VOLCANO ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.5
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 12:42:51 UTC
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 10:42:51 PM at epicenter
Location
22.221°N, 143.504°E
Depth
146 km (90.7 miles)
Region
VOLCANO ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION
Distances
236 km (146 miles) NW of Farallon de Pajaros, Northern Mariana Islands

China shuts website of leading reformist magazine

China shut the website of a leading pro-reform magazine on Friday, apparently because it ran an article calling for political reform and constitutional government, sensitive topics for the ruling Communist Party which brooks no dissent.

"Yanhuang Chunqiu" (China Through the Ages) is an influential Beijing magazine that features essays from reformist retired officials.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/04/us-china-media-idUSBRE90308K20130104

FIRES RAGE ACROSS TASMANIA

There are unconfirmed reports that one person has died as out of control bushfires rage across parts of Tasmania destroying homes and businesses.

Extreme fires are burning at Forcett, Bicheno and Lake Repulse and a number of communities are being affected.

Police have received reports that one man has died while defending his home during the Forcett blaze, and at least 65 homes and businesses have been lost.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/local/tas/a/-/local/15763148/live-blog-fires-rage-across-tasmania/

Jeffery Delice: Naked Intruder Shot After Attacking Dog, Homeowner

In a singularly bizarre attack, a naked 20-year-old man was shot in the foot early Wednesday after he broke into a Miami backyard and began choking the owner’s Rottweiler, the Miami Herald reported.

Jeffery Delice hopped a fence into the Miami backyard and began choking the dog, whose yelps alerted the owner. The owner grabbed a gun and rushed into the backyard.

Delice than began attacking and biting the dog’s owner, who shot him once in the foot — which didn’t compel Delice to stop the attack, according to the Herald. The homeowner reportedly had to pin down the wounded Jeffery Delice until police arrived.

http://www.voxxi.com/jeffery-delice-attacks-dog-and-owner/#ixzz2H0gOrzgY

Explosion Near Iran’s Nuclear Plant Reported!! Nuclear Disaster In The Making – Iran To Citizens: Flee Isfahan!!

Iranian officials have instructed residents of Isfahan to leave the city, renewing concerns that a nearby nuclear site could be leaking radioactive material.

An edict issued Wednesday by Iranian authorities orders Isfahan’s one-and-a-half million people to leave the city “because pollution has now reached emergency levels,” the BBC reported.

However, outside observers suspect that the evacuation order may corroborate previous reports indicating that a uranium enrichment facility near Isfahan had been leaking radioactive material.

http://freebeacon.com/iran-to-citizens-flee-isfahan/

Top 10 Events that Prove Obama Planned Gun Control Long Before Newtown Tragedy

Numerous Events Throughout President Obama’s First Term Have Been Patently Exploited to Destroy the Second Amendment “Under the Radar”

It should be painfully obvious that the gun grabbers — including the likes of President Obama, Senator Dianne Feinstein and Vice President Joe Biden, among many others — are not responding to the Newtown, Connecticut school shooting alone, but are using that terrible tragedy to implement a gun control agenda they have long ago planned, waiting for the right timing to achieve their aims.

Rahm Emanuel, Obama’s first Chief of Staff, famously said “You never want to a serious crisis go to waste. What I mean by that, is it’s an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.”

http://www.infowars.com/top-ten-events-that-prove-obama-planned-gun-control-long-before-newtown-tragedy/

Catastrophic Drought Looms ~ Mighty Mississippi River Drops Ten Feet In 6 Months

CA Homeowner Shoots And Kills Armed Home Invader, Wounds 2 Others As Children Have Sleepover

A homeowner in Sacramento is being treated for non life threatening wounds after successfully fighting off 3 armed home invaders who tried to attack his home last night.

The homeowner grabbed a weapon after 3 armed men tried to break into the home, and opened fire.

The homeowner was shot by one of the suspects, but he managed to shoot all 3 suspects. One of the shot suspects died at the scene and the other 2 are being detained by police as they try to figure out exactly what happened.

http://beforeitsnews.com/alternative/2013/01/ca-homeowner-shoots-and-kills-armed-home-invader-wounds-2-others-as-children-have-sleepover-2527704.html

4.8 Magnitude Earthquake KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.8
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 10:10:53 UTC
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 10:10:53 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
29.833°S, 176.381°W
Depth
52.7 km (32.7 miles)
Region
KERMADEC ISLANDS REGION
Distances
159 km (98 miles) ESE of Raoul Island, New Zealand

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake FALCON, VENEZUELA - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.6
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 07:56:01 UTC
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 07:56:01 AM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
10.771°N, 69.368°W
Depth
20.6 km (12.8 miles)
Region
FALCON, VENEZUELA
Distances
11 km (6 miles) WSW of Santa Cruz de Bucaral, Venezuela

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake SICILY, ITALY - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.6
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 07:50:06 UTC
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 08:50:06 AM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
37.929°N, 14.795°E
Depth
9.2 km (5.7 miles)
Region
SICILY, ITALY
Distances
5 km (3 miles) N of Maniace, Italy

4.8 Magnitude Earthquake TONGA - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.8
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 07:32:36 UTC
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 09:32:36 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
15.193°S, 173.948°W
Depth
83.3 km (51.8 miles)
Region
TONGA
Distances
86 km (53 miles) NNW of Hihifo, Tonga

Australia Heatwave Leads To Bushfire Alert

Australians are sweltering through one of the worst heatwaves for years, with temperatures well above 40C in some places.

Much of the country will be on alert for bushfires this weekend as temperatures reach record levels.

Adelaide in southern Australia registered a top temperature of 45C (113 Fahrenheit) on Friday, its fourth-hottest day on record.

http://news.sky.com/story/1033251/australia-heatwave-leads-to-bushfire-alert

4.4 Magnitude Earthquake FIJI REGION - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.4
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 06:27:32 UTC
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 06:27:32 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
17.226°S, 177.251°W
Depth
419.9 km (260.9 miles)
Region
FIJI REGION
Distances
338 km (210 miles) SSE of Sigave, Wallis and Futuna

China: Fire At Orphans' Refuge Kills at least Seven

A fire at a shelter for orphans and abandoned youngsters in central China has killed at least seven children.

http://news.sky.com/story/1033212/fire-at-orphans-refuge-kills-seven

Three GRENADES found at Disney World parking lot by cleaner

Three hand grenades were found in a bin at Walt Disney World in Florida last night.

A cleaner made the discovery when he was emptying trash containers at the Downtown Disney area around 7.30pm on Wednesday.

The area where the grenades were found was reported to be a staff-only parking lot at the shopping and entertainment district.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2256753/Three-GRENADES-Disney-World-parking-lot-janitor.html

Police hunt cashpoint gang who prey on the elderly by spying on their PIN numbers before stealing their bankcards

Detectives hunting a cashpoint con gang have released CCTV stills of suspects after they struck again.

The group has been seeking out elderly victims in Manchester city centre, hovering around them to watch the PIN number being typed in before claiming there is a problem with the machine.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2256674/Pictured-Cashpoint-gang-preying-elderly-spying-PIN-numbers-stealing-cards.html

£80bn lifeline is STILL not helping our small firms as they are frozen out of attempt to kick start economy

Small firms are being frozen out of the £80billion attempt to kick-start lending, the Bank of England warned yesterday.

Despite being the backbone of the economy and a major employer, they are not benefiting from the scheme the Bank is running with the Government.

The first major analysis into the ‘Funding for Lending’ initiative does show, however, that it has ‘significantly’ increased funding for large firms and homeowners wanting a mortgage.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2256923/80bn-lifeline-STILL-helping-small-firms-frozen-attempt-kick-start-economy.html

Libyan police captain abducted in Benghazi

A police investigator was missing after being abducted in the militia-ridden Libyan city of Benghazi, police said on Thursday, but tests on a charred body showed it was not his.

The corpse charred with hydrochloric acid and found in the Buhmeida district was not that of the missing Captain Abdel-Salam al-Mahdawi, head of the city's criminal investigation unit, Prime Minister Ali Zeidan said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/03/us-libya-police-idUSBRE9020N820130103

Severe flooding leaves hundreds homeless in Brazil

New Jersey: U.S. town gets armed school guards

Colorado shooting cinema invitations

Nine dead in Damascus car bomb amid rebel push

At least nine people were killed when a car bomb exploded in the Syrian capital, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Friday amid reports of furious combat raging around a major airport and a military airbase in the north of the country.

Many people were seriously wounded in the car-bomb attack in a northern Damascus neighbourhood, and the death toll may climb, the group's director Rami Abdel Rahmane told AFP.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/RestOfAsia/Nine-dead-in-Damascus-car-bomb-amid-rebel-push/Article1-984729.aspx

Norovirus outbreak spreading in Portland area, Oregon

Bird flu wipes out hundreds of ducks in Bali

Hundreds of ducks in Takmung village, Klungkung regency, Bali, have died suddenly, with avian flu suspected as the cause.

I Wayan Sudia, a duck breeder in Takmung village, said he had lost hundreds of his ducks.

“Laboratory reports show my ducks were infected by bird flu,” I Wayan Sudia told reporters on Thursday as reported by Antara news agency. “The symptoms included cloudy eyes and seizures,” he added.

http://www2.thejakartapost.com/news/2013/01/04/bird-flu-wipes-out-hundreds-ducks-bali.html

7 vehicles buried by landslide in Subang Jaya, Malaysia

Seven vehicles were buried under a landslide at Persiaran Putra Bahagia, 500 metres from the Putra Heights Police Station, Subang Jaya, this evening.

Nevertheless, the eight people in the vehicles, five cars, a van and a motorcycle, were reported safe. Selangor Fire and Rescue Department, assistant director (Operations) Mohd Sani Harul said, the route experienced mud flood from the landslide in Bukit Cermin, where a project to build semi-detached houses was taking place.

http://www.nst.com.my/latest/7-vehicles-buried-by-landslide-in-subang-jaya-1.195962

Michigan: Manhole Overflows, Gallons Of Sewage Flood Streets

A manhole in Kalamazoo has overflowed, causing the streets to flood with gallons of raw sewage.

An estimated 3,000 to 4,000 gallons of sewage overflowed from the manhole located on Maple Street.

The Kalamazoo Department of Public Services was contacted regarding the situation at about 1:00 p.m. on Thursday.

http://fox17online.com/2013/01/03/manhole-overflows-gallons-of-sewage-flood-streets/

Two rescued after bridge collapses in North Yorkshire

TWO air ambulances were scrambled to a village in North Yorkshire this afternoon after reports of a bridge collapsing leaving two people in flood waters.

The Yorkshire Air Ambulance and the Great North Air Ambulance were called to High Askew near the village of Cropton on the North York Moors.

The two people rescued, believed to be members of a shooting party, were flown to James Cook University Hospital.

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/at-a-glance/main-section/two-rescued-after-bridge-collapses-in-north-yorkshire-1-5274921

Canada: restrictions in effect at three Southwest care centres following unidentified illness outbreaks

The list of Cypress Health Region long term care facilities where visiting restrictions are in place has grown to three, with the Palliser Regional Care Centre, the Swift Current Care Centre and the Gull Lake Care Centre all under 'outbreak' situations.

An outbreak was declared at the Palliser Regional Care Centre on Wednesday after 13 residents of the long-term care facility became ill with what has been identified as Influenza A.

The outbreak status at the Gull Lake Special Care Centre was issued early Thursday following the outbreak of an unidentified enteric illness. Two residents and three staff members were experiencing symptoms of the illness.

http://www.swbooster.com/News/Local/2013-01-03/article-3149789/Visiting-restrictions-in-effect-at-two-Southwest-care-centres/1

Rescuers evacuate 1200 skiers in Spain

RESCUERS have evacuated the last of 1200 skiers trapped by strong winds a day earlier on the slopes of a resort in the Spanish Pyrenees.

Winds gusting up to 110km/h forced the Panticosa ski resort to stop the ski-lifts on Wednesday afternoon, stranding holidaymakers on the mountain.

http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/world/rescuers-evacuate-1200-skiers-in-spain/story-e6frfkui-1226547412137

Coastal landslide safety warning after Tynemouth cliff collapses

PEOPLE are being urged to take extra care at cliff edges after a landslide along the coast.

A slab of grass and earth, measuring around 15ft by 15ft, tumbled down a cliff on the north side of Tynemouth Priory and landed below on the south side of King Edward’s Bay.

http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/communities/tynemouth/2013/01/02/coastal-landslide-safety-warning-after-tynemouth-cliff-collapses-72703-32534360/

Bird flu detected in Nuwkot, Doctors team in infected area, Nepal

Bird flu has been detected in Chaughada VDC in Nuwakot district.

According to chairman of the Bird Flu Control District Technical Committee and Chief District Officer, Jeevan Prasad Oli, the sample taken from a dead chicken at local Dhruba Rai´s house in Chaughala VDC Ward No. 1 confirmed the presence of the H5N1 virus that causes bird flu.

A team of doctors from the capital has reached Chaughada to kill the fowls and other birds infected by bird flu. Similarly, a team including the veterinary doctors and other technicians reached the villages for preventing the spread of the disease in the area.

http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=47590

New submarine volcanic eruption off Turkey's coast suspected

A new submarine volcanic eruption might have recently started off Turkey's west coast in the Marmaris Sea between the mainland and the Greek Island of Simi near Rhodes.

Scientists from Istanbul's Technical University announced that they have found evidence of 2 active vents at about 200 m water depth along a north-south trending fissure of 2.5-3 km length. According to local newspapers, a rise in sea temperature was detected which suggests that lava might be erupting from the vents. According to Prof. Ahmet Ercan, it might take 1-3, or 20 years for the volcano to surface if at all.

http://beforeitsnews.com/alternative/2013/01/new-submarine-volcanic-eruption-off-turkeys-coast-suspected-2527556.html

Over 300 Vehicles Stranded in Rainy Singida, Tanzania

THE heavy rains that are currently pounding Singida Region have already caused costly damage.

They have brought down a bridge that is a key link on the Mwanza Highway, rendering the road impassable. A Chinese national who made a bold attempt to cross the river after the bridge had gone down was swept away by flood waters to his death.

Motor vehicles travelling northward to Mwanza and those heading for Dodoma, Morogoro and Dar es Salaam are stranded. The incessant rains, most of which came down on New Year's Day, damaged Mnung'una Bridge at Msisi about 25 kilometres away from the municipality of Singida on Singida-Mwanza Highway.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201301030368.html

Tornado hits Mayfield Golf Course near Ashburton, New Zealand

Twisters are nothing new despite a recent spate of funnel clouds extending to the ground, a weather expert says.

A small twister uprooted trees and scattered debris across fairways at an Ashburton golf course at about 6pm yesterday.

Several silver birch trees were destroyed but the clubhouse escaped damage.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10857210

Pennsylvania sewage plant evacuated after chlorine leak

The sewage treatment plant along Harrison Street in Glassport was evacuated on Wednesday afternoon after a chlorine leak was detected, according to a borough official.

Allegheny County officials announced the leak at about 2:30 p.m. and a county hazardous materials response team and emergency medical services units were dispatched to the scene along with fire departments from Glassport, Dravosburg and Jefferson.

http://triblive.com/news/adminpage/3227652-74/leak-glassport-chlorine#axzz2Gysiy4gn

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN - 4th January 2013

Magnitude
4.6
Date-Time
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 04:42:48 UTC
Friday, January 04, 2013 at 01:42:48 PM at epicenter
Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location
35.641°N, 140.703°E
Depth
39 km (24.2 miles)
Region
NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN
Distances
9 km (5 miles) SSE of Asahi, Japan

UK Warned Over 'Extreme Rain' Flood Risk

The UK is suffering more "extreme rainfall", which could have a serious impact on flooding problems, the Met Office has warned.

The torrential downpours that have hit the UK this year are of a similar magnitude to those being experienced by China and India, according to the scientists.

http://news.sky.com/story/1033015/extreme-rain-uk-warned-over-flood-risk

Benjamin Sebena Charged with first-degree intentional homicide

The husband of a Milwaukee police officer who was shot dead while on duty over Christmas has appeared in court charged with her murder.

Benjamin Sebena, 30, waived his right to a preliminary hearing after being brought into court in a wheelchair wearing a suicide-prevention vest.

The Iraq war veteran is accused of ambushing his 30-year-old wife, Jennifer Sebena, while she conducted a solo patrol in the early hours of Christmas Eve.

http://news.sky.com/story/1032941/war-veteran-shot-wife-in-face-five-times