Life in Canada

People seem to be completely unaware that this is not just a US problem. Every country on the planet will be economically devastated if the US government does not start getting their act together. People living in China especially, Japan, UK, Canada, Germany and every other major economy better wake up to the fact that your governments (maybe not so much Canada) hold enormous amounts of US bonds and Treasuries, your economies run and function on it and a country like China is able to use US holding as a way to help in its GDP growth and to help in its massively growing debt burden. The US in for a world of hurt, think again dude everyone is in for a world of hurt yourself included.

Apple iPhones and 3G iPads are secretly recording and storing details of all their owners' movements, researchers claim.

Location data is kept in a hidden, unencrypted file according to security experts Alasdair Allan and Pete Warden.

With the right software, it can be used to map exactly where a person has been.

Apple has yet to comment on the revelation, however there is no suggestion that it has been uploading or using the information.

The findings, first reported by the Guardian newspaper, will come as a surprise to most iPhone users, as their devices do not give any visual indication that such data is being recorded.

However, although the practice is not explicitly flagged-up, it appears to be covered in the company's terms of use.

"We may collect information such as occupation, language, zip code, area code, unique device identifier, location, and the time zone where an Apple product is used so that we can better understand customer behaviour and improve our products, services, and advertising"
Clearly intentional

Writing on the technology website O'Reilly Radar, Mr Allan and Mr Warden said they did not know why iPhones and iPads were collecting location information but it was "clearly intentional".

The men claim that the facility to record users' positions was added with the iOS4 software update, released in June 2010.

The data is also transferred to the owner's computer and stored in a file there each time the two devices are connected to carry-out a backup or synchronisation.

Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at security firm Sophos, told BBC News that it was unlikely Apple planned to use the information for commercial purposes.

"I think there are some legitimate privacy concerns and people will probably look for a way of obscuring that data," he said.

"But it is an object lesson about reading the terms and conditions," he added.

Big brother is getting closer...to the young

Canada's boreal forest holds half of the world's lakes larger than a square kilometre in size, and its wetlands encompass 1.2 million square kilometres. (Chad Delany/Pew Environment Group)

An American research centre says Canada’s boreal forest provides hundreds of billions of dollars of value every year, mostly by sucking up greenhouse gas emissions, and its preservation must become a global priority.

The Pew Environment Group released a report Wednesday called Canada’s Boreal Forest, The World’s Waterkeeper, which relies on the calculations of a major environmental lobby group to suggest the forest provides about $700-billion in “services” to the world every year.

While the authors say Canada is doing much to protect the vast boreal wilderness that contains 25 per cent of the world’s wetlands, they argue that greater controls should be slapped on development in the forested region – specifically oil and gas extraction, logging, mining and hydroelectric projects.

The area remains largely pristine, a fact that is attributable to its relative inaccessibility. But, as resources elsewhere grow scarce, the footprint of those industries will expand. The Pew Group argues that the importance of the forest to the world’s ecosystem justifies greater restrictions on that expansion.

How big is Canada’s boreal forest?

The boreal forest of Canada stretches across the top of Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba and Northern Canada and covers 60 per cent of the land mass of the country.

It holds half of the world’s lakes larger than a square kilometre in size, five of the world’s 50 largest rivers, 81 million hectares of surface water and the world’s biggest remaining unpolluted body of fresh water – Great Bear Lake.

Canada’s boreal forest also contains what may be the world’s largest total area of wetland habitats, extending over 1.2 million square kilometres.

How does the boreal forest provide about $700-billion in services?

The Pembina Institute, an environmental policy organization, conducted an analysis in 2009 that arrived at this figure, which has been adopted by the Pew Environment Group in its report released Wednesday.

Some of that value is provided by the forests themselves – including, among many other things, nearly $180-billion for the annual amortized value of carbon storage, $5.4-billion for natural pest-control provided by birds, $575-million in subsistence value for aboriginal peoples and $18.3-million in watershed services such as municipal water use.

Some of that value is provided by the wetlands and peatlands, including $401-billion for the annual amortized value of stored carbon and more than $110-billion for flood control, water filtering and biodiversity promotion.

The Pembina Institute added those “non-market” values to “market values,” including the values of the forest, mining, fossil fuel and hydroelectric industries, subtracted the “regrettable costs,” including pollution, carbon emissions and government subsidies, and arrived at $703.2-billion.

What does the Pew Environment Group report recommend?

Primarily, it says all public land-use policies and management plans should protect at least 50 per cent of Canada’s boreal forest from industrial activity and require “state-of-the-art sustainability practices” on the remaining areas. In addition, it says:

» Mining legislation must be reformed to require aboriginal consultation and improve habitat protection and water quality.

» New hydroelectric facilities should not be approved unless it can be proved there will be minimal impact on ecosystems and there has been a comprehensive environmental review.

» Canada should follow Manitoba’s lead and develop a national peatlands stewardship strategy.

» The Mackenzie Basin Agreement, which links land-use policies in several provinces and territories aimed at preserving the watershed, should be fully implemented.

Why is an American research group telling Canadians what to do with their forests?

The Pew Research Group says it is actually applauding Canadian efforts to protect the boreal forest in this country. But it argues that more must be done.

Peter Raven, the chair of earth and life science at the U.S. National Research Council, said the world must be seen as an interconnected ecosystem that is managed globally, much like world economies are connected and managed globally.

“It’s estimated that human beings are currently using 55 per cent of the world’s supplies of fresh water,” Dr. Raven said, “and, therefore, what there is in Canada shows up as a precious resource and one that’s been little commented on.”

Dear Friend:
Your name has been provided to us, because we have discovered that, in spite of Canada's economic problems, you may still have a few dollars tucked away that you are saving for a future financial emergency. Well, that emergency is here. We ‘re hoping you will be sympathetic to our effort and express it with your generosity.

Stated quite simply, we’re raising money to help the rich and powerful. These hard-driving people continue to require large amounts of money, and most of them are far too busy to attend to this sort of direct appeal for themselves. We are here to help.

The rich and powerful need your financial support in order to increase their wealth and power, so they can exercise even greater influence over national events, and, of course, over your lives. Remember, these people are small in number and, therefore, inadequately represented in our system of proportional government. They consequently lack influence and suffer the fate of many minorities, i.e., being ignored by the very government they have helped elect. It is for these reasons they have decided to band together to better present their ideas and especially to expand their influence with elected officials. But first they need your help. They need money.

In the first stage, your money is needed for basics: stationery, office supplies, postage, phones and rent (first month, last month, security deposit). The rich and powerful need to set up a headquarters so they can start really raising money in order to live properly. But once they reach that level that doesn ‘t mean your job is done. Not at all.

In fact, once things are running smoothly there’ll be a continuing and even greater need for more and more of your money in order to provide all of the expensive clothing, imported cars, fine jewelry, gourmet foods and exotic pets that these people require. That’s when your dollars will really count, helping provide the lifestyle to which the rich and powerful are not only accustomed but entitled.

In addition to these considerable personal expenses, there will, of course, be a need for large amounts of money to persuade and influence the many politicians and government officials who, after all, have financial obligations of their own. Most of these dedicated public servants are underpaid and must find ways of supplementing their income without taking time off from work. Your money, funneled through the rich and powerful, can go a long way toward solving their financial problems. And you will have the satisfaction of knowing you have helped advance the selfless agenda the rich and powerful have laid out in their effort to improve our country.

Can we count on you? Will you help? Will you give yourself the opportunity to say you helped the rich and powerful when they really needed it? Do it now. Do it for yourself and for your children. Sit down and write out a check for a substantial amount, maybe even more than you can afford. Make it payable to The Fund for the Rich and Powerful. You’ll take satisfaction knowing you have done your part. And you ‘II be secure in the knowledge that whenever you have a problem, the rich and powerful will always be there to help.
Sincerely,

Mr. Harper's Puppet Show

$2tn debt crisis threatens to bring down 100 US cities

Overdrawn American cities could face financial collapse in 2011, defaulting on hundreds of billions of dollars of borrowings and derailing the US economic recovery. Nor are European cities safe – Florence, Barcelona, Madrid, Venice: all are in trouble

More than 100 American cities could go bust next year as the debt crisis that has taken down banks and countries threatens next to spark a municipal meltdown, a leading analyst has warned.

Meredith Whitney, the US research analyst who correctly predicted the global credit crunch, described local and state debt as the biggest problem facing the US economy, and one that could derail its recovery. "Next to housing this is the single most important issue in the US and certainly the biggest threat to the US economy," Whitney told the CBS 60 Minutes programme on Sunday night. "There's not a doubt on my mind that you will see a spate of municipal bond defaults. You can see fifty to a hundred sizeable defaults – more. This will amount to hundreds of billions of dollars' worth of defaults."

New Jersey governor Chris Christie summarised the problem succinctly: "We spent too much on everything. We spent money we didn't have. We borrowed money just crazily. The credit card's maxed out, and it's over. We now have to get to the business of climbing out of the hole. We've been digging it for a decade or more. We've got to climb now, and a climb is harder."

American cities and states have debts in total of as much as $2tn. In Europe, local and regional government borrowing is expected to reach a historical peak of nearly €1.3tn (£1.1tn) this year.

Cities from Detroit to Madrid are struggling to pay creditors, including providers of basic services such as street cleaning. Last week, Moody's ratings agency warned about a possible downgrade for the cities of Florence and Barcelona and cut the rating of the Basque country in northern Spain. Lisbon was downgraded by rival agency Standard & Poor's earlier this year, while the borrowings of Naples and Budapest are on the brink of junk status. Istanbul's debt has already been downgraded to junk.

Whitney's intervention is likely to raise the profile of the issue of municipal debt. While she was an analyst at Oppenheimer, the New York investment bank, in October 2007 she wrote a damning report on Citigroup, then the world's largest bank, predicting it would cut its dividend. She was criticised for being too pessimistic but was vindicated when the bank was forced to seek government support a year later. She has since set up her own advisory firm and is rated one of the most influential women in American business.

US states have spent nearly half a trillion dollars more than they have collected in taxes, and face a $1tn hole in their pension funds, said the CBS programme, apocalyptically titled The Day of Reckoning.

Detroit is cutting police, lighting, road repairs and cleaning services affecting as much as 20% of the population. The city, which has been on the skids for almost two decades with the decline of the US auto industry, does not generate enough wealth to maintain services for its 900,000 inhabitants.

The nearby state of Illinois has spent twice as much money as it has collected and is about six months behind on creditor payments. The University of Illinois alone is owed $400m, the CBS programme said. The state has a 21% chances of default, more than any other, according to CMA Datavision, a derivatives information provider.

California has raised state university tuition fees by 32%. Arizona has sold its state capitol and supreme court buildings to investors, and leases them back.

Potential defaults could also hit Florida, whose booming real estate industry burst two years ago, said Guy J. Benstead, a partner at Cedar Ridge Partners in San Francisco. "We are not out of the woods by any stretch yet," he said.

"It's all part of the same parcel: public sector indebtedness needs to be cut, it needs a lot of austerity, and it hit the central governments first, and now is hitting local bodies," said Philip Brown, managing director at Citigroup in London.

In Europe, where cities have traditionally relied more on bank loans and state transfers than bonds, financing habits are changing. The Spanish regions of Catalonia and Valencia have issued debt to their own citizens after financial markets shut their doors because of the regions' high deficits. Moody's cut to the rating of the Basque country on Friday left it still within investment grade but noted "the rapid deterioration in the region's budgetary performance in recent years". It said it expected it to continue over the medium term.

In Italy, Moody's and S&P have threatened to downgrade Florence, while Venice has been forced over the past few months to put some of the palazzi on its canals up for sale to fund the deficit.

"Cities are on their own. Governments won't come to their rescue as they have problems of their own," said Andres Rodriguez-Pose, professor of economic geography at the London School of Economics. "Cities will have to pay for their debts, and in some cases they will have to carry out dramatic cuts, such as Detroit's."

California crunch

Vallejo, a former US navy town near San Francisco, is still trying to emerge from the Chapter Nine bankruptcy protection it entered in 2008.
The city, now a symbol of distressed local finances, is still negotiating with the unions, which refused to accept a salary cut plan two years ago. Paul Dyson, an analyst with the Standard & Poor's credit agency, said Vallejo, which is mostly a dormitory town for Oakland or San Francisco employees, did not have enough local industry to sustain its finances and property tax – a major source of local income – plunged with the collapse of the real estate market. The S&P credit-rating agency has a C rating on the town – the lowest level.

With a population of about 120,000, Vallejo has $195m (£125m) of unfunded pension obligations and has to present a bankruptcy-exit plan to a Sacramento court by 18 January. Since 1937, 619 local US government bodies, mostly small utilities or districts, have filed for bankruptcy, Bloomberg News recently reported. US cities tend to default more than European municipalities as they usually rely on bonds issued to investors, which enter into a default if the creditor misses payments. European towns, by contrast, traditionally depend on bank loans and government bailouts.

Final Agreement Paves Way for More Competition in Canada's Real Estate Market

OTTAWA, October 24, 2010 — As a result of an agreement ratified today by members of the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), Canadians will have the ability to choose which services they want from a real estate agent when selling their home, and to pay only for those selected services. At the same time, the consent agreement between the Competition Bureau and CREA will ensure that real estate agents have the flexibility to provide innovative service and pricing options to customers. The agreement will be filed with the Competition Tribunal and effective immediately.

"I am pleased that CREA members have voted in favour of this agreement," said Melanie Aitken, Commissioner of Competition. "This resolution is welcome news for both consumers and real estate agents in Canada. For Canadian homeowners, it ensures that they will have the freedom to choose which services they want from a real estate agent and to pay for only those services. For real estate agents, it ensures that they will be able to offer the variety of services and prices that meet the needs of consumers."

In February 2010, the Commissioner of Competition challenged, before the Competition Tribunal, anti-competitive rules imposed by CREA on real estate agents who list residential properties using the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system. The Bureau launched its challenge following three years of discussions and several months of intensive negotiations. After being approached by CREA to resume negotiations, the Bureau announced on September 30, 2010, that it had reached an agreement in principle that fully resolved the Commissioner’s concerns.

Under the agreement, CREA must eliminate its ability to adopt anti-competitive rules, including those that discriminate against real estate agents who are hired by consumers to offer a "mere posting" service. In the case of mere postings, a home seller hires a real estate agent only to list his or her property on the MLS system and agrees to handle all other details of the transaction directly.

A copy of the legally binding consent agreement will be available on the Competition Tribunal Web site once it has been registered. The agreement will remain in force for 10 years.

The Competition Bureau ensures that Canadians prosper from the benefits of a competitive marketplace, driving innovative products and services at competitive prices.

Michigan oil spill caused by 5-foot tear in pipeline
'Largest pipeline leaks in recent U.S. history'

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Oil that fouled a Michigan river system spewed from a rip less than five feet long in an Enbridge Inc pipeline, a company executive said on Saturday after crews extracted the ruptured piece.
The pipeline, part of Enbridge's system that carries most of Canada's crude oil exports into the United States, ruptured nearly two weeks ago near Marshall, Michigan, and there is still no estimate when it might be restarted.

Looking at the length-wise tear does not provide enough information to determine what caused 800,000 gallons of heavy crude oil to spill into the Kalamazoo River system, said Steve Wuori, president of Enbridge's liquids pipelines division.

Under the watch of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, crews extracted a 50 foot (15 meter) section on Friday and it is being shipped to Washington for analysis, officials said.

"I would think it will be late tomorrow before the replacement section is welded into place," Wuori told reporters in conference call to discuss the incident.

Authorities must approve Enbridge's restart plan before it can resume shipping crude on the 190,000 barrel a day pipeline, called Line 6B. Even then it will likely run at reduced rates.

The Environmental Protection Agency had enforcement officials at the excavation as they investigate whether Enbridge was negligent in the period leading up to the July 26 spill, EPA administrator Susan Hedman said.

The pipeline serves refineries in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Ontario that produce more than 700,000 barrels a day. At least three plants have cut output and others have been forced to seek supplies on alternate pipelines.

The spill represents one of the largest pipeline leaks in recent U.S. history. It arguably gained increased profile against the backdrop of the much bigger BP disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.