5 Big Stories Missed in 2007

There are 5 BIG STORIES that were either buried or skipped entirely by mainstream media in 2007 that might have tremendous impact on 2008. As we head into the New Year, I thought it prudent to highlight them here. In no specific order, they are:

1. In World Events - Ms. Bhutto's Taped Interview Provides Shocking Revelations

Former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto, loved by many in her country, was brutally assassinated at the end of 2008 throwing the country into turmoil. But the big story that was either buried (or skipped?) goes back to a previous attempt on her life.

When she first returned to Pakistan in October of 2007, her convoy was hit by a deadly bombing attack in which 158 of her loyal followers lost their lives.

In early November, following the attack, she was interviewed by Sir David Frost -- a taped interview (linked here) -- when she revealed astonishing news about Osama Bin Laden that, if true, should have rocked the headlines throughout the USA.

But our media never said a word about it.

It was just a tiny segment, one second about one third of the way into the interview, a small part of just one sentence... in which she describes one of three people she believes is behind much of the terroristic activities in their region. She says, and I quote:

"...he also had dealings with Omar Sheikh, the man who murdered Osama Bin Laden..."

After listening to the entire interview several times, the first set of questions that come to mind are:

Was it just a slip of the tongue and she meant "the man who murdered David Pearl" ...? Or did she really mean OBL? What is the truth? Why didn't David Frost follow up on the statement with her? Why did he accept the statement so easily? What do they know over there that we do not know over here?

The next set of questions are even more uncomfortable:

Was it missed by our media? Was the information about OBL that she referred to withheld? Is our media still trying to be corroborated the story? Or have our media been instructed not to dig too deeply here?

Before the mention of "the murder" she clearly mentions OBL's son as the leader of one of several groups that General Musharrif wrote to her about and told her she might be under threat from.

But she responded to him in a letter naming three names that she felt should be investigated -- three people she believed strongly are out to stop democracy in Pakistan through the funding and supporting of activities by those groups.

Interestingly, OBL was NOT one of the names on the list for those groups. No.

But in the interview she CLEARLY and PRECISELY named the son -- not the father -- as the leader of one of the groups she was told might be out to attack her; almost as though it's common knowledge over there that the father is no longer alive?

If the information she said is true (hard to doubt based on how it was said and in the context in which it was delivered), then it's sure to have a profound impact going into 2008 on how some will view the so-named "war" in which our country is embroiled.

She was VERY SPECIFIC in naming names. I find it difficult to believe she meant someone other than OBL. But, will we ever know the truth?

You can watch the interview here and draw your own conclusions.

2. North American Monetary Events - The Dawn of a Different Dollar?

Everyone in financial sectors is hopping up and down, talking about the sub-prime mess, but few have highlighted one important story that blipped on the screen as early as 2006 and continued "blipping" in 2007 which could drastically change how we view the dollar in 2008 and beyond.

By now, you've probably seen (maybe even closely watched) what happened in Europe when the monetary system was changed over to the Euro, right?

Think something like that can't happen on our shores?

Think again...

In certain circles it's been said the Amero dollar is coming. The ability to make it happen (and acceptable) however, is fraught with a few obstacles that need to be addressed.

Starting out in 2007, the first hurdle was that the American dollar was too high, the Mexican far too low, and everything needed to be leveled out to somewhere near the middle where the Canadian dollar fit nicely... or so the story goes.

So, the sub-prime mess -- was it an instrument (pure conjecture on my part) to make certain conditions come about (?) -- or was it, as reported, just really poor, and I mean really really really really shoddily poor, judgement and incompetance throughout the entire credit and financial chain.

Hard to believe so many so-called financial wizards could be so culpable as a whole, isn't it?

Beyond the value of currencies in North America, there is another hurdle that must be overcome. The second hurdle is to get all three countries on board with the plan with some form of an agreement. Make sense?

Well, well, well... lookey here. Watch this blip on mainstream media: "NORTH AMERICAN UNION"

So, now we have this here little agreement in place since 2006 plus a massive drop in the American dollar value on world markets. What next?

The third hurdle would be getting the people to believe in a new form of currency that would encompass all of North America. High inflation coupled with high unemployment is a recipe for recession (actually bordering depression) which some say would definitely accomplish the goal.

I'm guessing that would spur people to accept a new currency.

You know, on December 23, 1913, the Federal Reserve Act was signed by President Woodrow Wilson. He seems to have had some regret afterward as this quote attributed to him would seem to suggest:

"A great industrial nation is controlled by its system of credit. Our system of credit is privately concentrated. The growth of the nation, therefore, all our activities are in the hands of a few men... (W)e have come to be one of the worst ruled, one of the most completely controlled and dominated, governments in the civilized world; no longer a government by conviction and the vote of the majority, but a government by the opinion and the duress of small groups of dominant men." -- Woodrow Wilson

By events of this past year, one can't help but think along the same lines as Mr. Wilson.

If you really want to understand a bit more about fiat currencies and would like some light reading on the history of money, here's an interesting piece you might enjoy.

It's old news already, and yet the full story hasn't been written yet; but keeping a careful eye on the evolution of our dollar would be well-advised in light of the preceding.

Is the Amero Dollar on the way? Here's another little "blip" on the mainstream media screen. Check this short 2006 video out: "The Amero - North American Currency"

It's no wonder the entrepreneurial establishment of the Liberty Dollar had to be swiftly -- and most thoroughly -- shut down so close to the end of 2007. It would be a terrible thing if another form of "currency" were to appear in the middle of all of this, wouldn't it? Gotta stop that nonsense from happening... I say tongue-in-cheek.

3. Health in our Future - Salmonella Microbes and More

What happens to salmonella microbes when they are exposed to space travel? Answer -- "The returning microbes are now three times as nasty as their primitive Earth-bound cousins." (link)

That little-reported experiment probably means nothing to people residing on our planet, but it could mean a whole lot with respect to any foods sent to the space station or beyond.

You see, the nasty little microbe problem here on earth is worse than most people are probably even aware... and new "morphs" are emerging all the time.

If these pesky little salmonella microbes could triple in size, what could happen to things like e. coli, listeria, etc., etc.?

The MRSA superbug story hit mainstream media, but missing in most coverage was the animal connection. Just like the e. coli contaminated water investigation in the California produce growing regions, again the animal connection was treated lightly at best.

Add up all the recalls (and recalls that might have been missed?) and you might start thinking these pesky bugs are being churned out on our planet at factory-level speeds.

The year 2008 is shaping up to be a challenging one for bio-tech scientists to wrestle with, possibly taking their attention off of fabricating new proteins and manipulating genes, and instead seriously studying the nasty spread of microbes that are quickly turning into unstoppable killers.

It's not too late ....is it?

In other health news, there are experiments underway regarding how we (humans) age that are producing mind-blowing theories. For one example, it's believed among some scientists involved that humans are actually capable of living to be 1,000 years old. But, as with anything so radical that could have the potential to wipe out trillion dollar industries like the health industry, there are people who want to stop the research. (Go figure.)

For a bizarre look at the experimentation underway that has, in my opinion, completely fallen off the mass media screen, check this blog out.

Imagine if we actually did live up to 1,000 years in age. That's a very very long time to get to the truth of some unanswered (even forgotten) questions. Picture the huge body of knowledge and experiences we could then pass on to future generations. Hmmmmm....

4. That's Entertainment - the Move to Digital TV

Okay, this is a short one. I just find it odd that not more about it appears in mainstream media, but maybe I'm not watching the right stations. And for those who don't already have a digital viewing capable television set, they most likely won't be watching any television beginning on February 18, 2009. Why? That's when the big switch goes through and television stations will stop broadcasting analog signals.

Those with cable or satellite services won't need to bother with getting a converter.

But for the rest...

You can read more about it and learn how you can get your digital tv converter coupons (2 per family) free from the Government in this article.

5. Asteroid Collision - The Answer to My Last Riddle

In my last post, I posed the following riddle:

QUESTION: What are scientists watching closely as we near January 30/2008 that is: big (about 50 meters in diameter), flies at a speed of 1.2 km per second (8 miles/second) and carries the potential to unleash energy equivalent to a 15-megaton nuclear bomb?

The answer was supposed to be posted the following day, but you simply wouldn't believe how busy things have been here for me.

So, number five on the list of BIG STORIES MISSED is actually the ANSWER to the riddle.

You see, there is this asteroid hurtling its way through space, that a couple weeks ago was said to have a one in 75 chance of hitting Mars on Jan. 30, 2008. Hey -- that's this month!

And it looks like the asteroid now has an even higher probability of slamming into Mars, at least according to this Reuters article on the subject.

The JPL website notes that, in the unlikely event of an impact, the head-on collision would take place on January 30th at 2:55 a.m. Pacific Standard Time, with an uncertainty of a few minutes.

The odds are now about 1 in 25 ...which by any calculation is positively HUGE when it comes to space. You can bet star watchers all over the world will be waiting and watching with baited breath to see what happens later this month.

And if it hits?

Scientists will have a field day! Just imagine how much data can be retrieved by our little robots on Mars... that is, if the dust fallout doesn't totally destroy their solar energy collecting capabilities.

This is one collision the scientific community is actually hoping will take place.

It's shaping up to be a very interesting year ahead.

Happy New Year to all of you... and thank you for reading. I appreciate you.


PS: And the next riddle is.

QUESTION: How big is the biggest diamond now known to man?

Gotta run. See 'ya soon!