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Wednesday, December 16, 2009

In a continuing crackdown on tax evasion, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has alleged that brokers with a branch of RBC Dominion Securities, Canada’s largest brokerage company, helped clients set up accounts in the small European principality of Liechtenstein in order to avoid taxation on their wealth.

In affadavits submitted by the CRA, brokers with an RBC Dominion Securities office in Victoria, British Columbia, allegedly helped clients set up 16 offshore entities with a division of the LGT Group in Liechtenstein. While that is not a crime under Canadian law, auditors allege that the entities were used to help Canadians hide worldwide income. Thirteen individuals are either being audited or have made voluntary disclosures, admitting to tax evasion. The agency is presently investigating to see if there are any other individuals participating in this scheme. Regarding the inquiry, dubbed “Project Jade”, the CRA will only say that it was launched on information from a “confidential informant”.

RBC issued a written statement, saying “As a firm, we have never encouraged Canadians — not 25 years ago and not today — to set up entities in Liechtenstein, and we have never instructed our investment advisers to recommend that practice,” and “we comply with all CRA requirements. This means that we provide all our clients with the forms they need to meet their personal tax obligations, and also file reports with CRA that form the basis for reviews such as this.”

Three RBC employees are presently being investigated, with one remaining unidentified.

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

The province of Alberta, Canada is considering legal action against Canadian National Railway for failing to warn that a derailment last week contaminated Wabamun Lake with a hazardous chemical.

The 700,000 litres of heavy Bunker C fuel oil that spilled into the lake asphyxiated birds and killed fish.

In addition, one of the ruptured tanker cars sent 70,000 liters of Imperial Pole Treating Oil into the lake. This oil is a yellow mixture of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and aliphatic hydrocarbons. Naphthalene, a component of this “very toxic material” is suspected of causing skin cancer if touched and lung or other cancers if inhaled.^[1] Inhalation is promoted by actions that cause splashing or foaming. The mineral oil is used in connection with pentachlorophenol for preserving wooden utility poles.

Wabamun Lake is a popular summertime recreational area about 65 kilometers (40 miles) west of Edmonton, Alberta.

The 766-megawatt Keephills power generating plant, one of 3 in Wabamun, was shut down because the coal-fired plant uses water from the lake. Edmonton’s health authority ordered people not to swim, boat or rescue animals in the lake and to stop using its water or any water from nearby wells for cooking, drinking, showering or brushing teeth. These warnings came 3 days after many residents, including children, had been wading into the oil slick without protective clothing to save wildlife injured by the spill and others had been routinely depending on the lakewater for home use. Why the alert was not issued sooner remains under investigation and may result in criminal charges. Canadian National Railway had been informed of the nature of the oil when it was loaded by Imperial Oil Ltd., Canada’s largest petroleum company. Imperial Oil is posting informational updates on a special website [2]. In addition The Wabamun Residents Committee has established an information website [3].

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Today, the official ceremony ushering in Barack H. Obama II as the new president of the United States took place at the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.. A 21-gun salute, as well as the playing of four ruffles and flourishes and “Hail to the Chief”, marked the moment he assumed power from his predecessor, George W. Bush.

Bush’s second term as President of the United States, which began on January 20, 2005, expired with the swearing-in of the 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama, at noon EST (UTC-5), under the provisions of the Twentieth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Bush performed his final official act this morning, welcoming Barack Obama and Michelle to the White House for coffee before the swearing-in, shortly before 10am EST, and then accompanied them there by motorcade to attend the ceremony. Last week, Bush had made his farewells to the nation in a televised address, saying that the inauguration turns a page in race relations. “Obama’s story — his black father was from Kenya, his white mother from Kansas — represents “the enduring promise of our land,” said Bush.

Pope Benedict XVI on Tuesday called on Obama to seek “understanding, co-operation and peace” among nations. “I offer cordial good wishes, together with the assurance of my prayers that Almighty God will grant you unfailing wisdom and strength in the exercise of your high responsibilities,” the Pontiff said.

The National Mall gates at the inaugural ceremony opened early, with official introductions beginning around 11:30am EST. On the west front lawn of the U.S. Capitol, Senator Dianne Feinstein provided the call to order and welcoming remarks, shortly after followed by invocation by the Rev. Rick Warren and a musical performance by Aretha Franklin.

Vice President-elect Joseph R. Biden, Jr., a Democrat, who was elected Vice President in the 2008 presidential election, took his oath of office, succeeding Dick Cheney. Biden took his oath at 11:57am EST from Associate Justice John Paul Stevens.

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Glover Roberts, Jr. then administered the oath of office to Obama, under Article II, Section 1, Clause 8. “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. So help me God,” Obama swore, using the 1861 President Lincoln Inaugural Bible.

First Lady Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama and daughters Malia Ann and Sasha, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi were among the record-setting crowd of over 2 million people, including more than a million people that filled the National Mall. Vice President Dick Cheney arrived in a wheelchair, having pulled a muscle in his back while moving, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.

Obama has decided to follow tradition and use his full name, including his middle name Hussein, regardless of its past and present use by detractors as an effort to slander his image. The advanced scheduled program stated that the inaugural address was to be delivered by “the President of the United States, The Honorable Barack H. Obama.”

The President delivered his inaugural address in front of Capitol Hill with the theme “A New Birth of Freedom,” commemorating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln, said Feinstein.

Obama focused on the restoration of public confidence and personal “responsibility,” reassuring recession-weary Americans they can rebound from hard times. He conveyed to the world his desire to fix a battered U.S. image overseas. He asked the nation to reject the “culture of anything goes” and to restore a national value system that honors responsibility and accountability. Elizabeth Alexander recited a poem, followed by the benediction by Rev. Joseph E. Lowery. The National Anthem was thereafter played by The United States Navy Band “Sea Chanters.”

Over 200 million viewers worldwide had watched inauguration videos and live streams provided online by a number of news organizations and online video broadcasting companies over the internet. The event was also available live to select iPhone users.

Following his speech, President Obama escorted former President George W. Bush at 12:53pm EST as they left for a departure ceremony. Bush lifted off, ending his 8 years as president, with Obama waving goodbye from the courtyard of the US Capitol.

At 2:35pm EST in the Capitol’s Statuary Hall, at the inaugural luncheon attended by Obama, it is reported that Ted Kennedy had a stroke. Paramedics arrived and took the senator to a hospital.

A parade extended for over two hours in the afternoon. It included 15,000 people, 240 horses, dozens of marching bands, two drum and bugle corps, and one mariachi band from Espanola, New Mexico.

Just after 4pm EST, Obama and his wife joined the celebrating crowds on Pennsylvania Avenue. After a short time waving to the masses, they returned to the Presidential Limousine, a 2009 Cadillac, which transported them to the White House. The First Limo has replaced President Bush’s Cadillac DTS Presidential Limousine that rolled out in 2004.

Mr and Mrs Obama plan to attend a total of ten official inaugural balls, including the Neighbourhood Ball, the Obama Home States (Illinois and Hawaii) Ball, the Biden Home States (Pennsylvania and Delaware) Ball and the Youth Ball. American R&B singer-songwriter Beyoncé has been planned to perform the first dance song. The Obamas will return to the White House, their new home, following the last ball.

Tuesday, April 19, 2005

Denunciations of corruption, bribe, collection of bribes from refugees [1] and of sexual scandal involving the peacekeepers [2], [3] threaten the Organization of the United Nations (UN).

The gravest denunciations involve the aid project to Iraq, called Oil-for-Food. Grave denunciations of bribe exist, superfluous accounting and collaboration with the ex-dictator Saddam Hussein, against staff of the UN, companies and politicians of several countries. Even the secretary of the UN, Kofi Annan was suspicious of participation in the plan of corruption. And also grave doubts still hover about his son, Kojo Annan.

The gravity of the denunciations threatens not only the credibility of the UN, but its existence.

Secretary Kofi Annan said that he is going to promote reforms in the organization. [4]

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Wednesday, May 21, 2008

At least two men in Sweden were arrested after security officials at the Oskarshamn Nuclear Power Plant discovered traces of an explosive material on a plastic bag. Oskarshamnsverkets Kraftgrupp OKG operates the plant, which is one of three nuclear power plants in Sweden.

Reports say that on the outside of a bag was Acetone peroxide, or TATP, primarily used as a high yield explosive, but is also an organic peroxide used in making chemicals for cleaning.

The unidentified men in their 40’s to 50’s, who were contractors and welders hired for doing work at the plant, were stopped as they entered the plant. Authorities were called to the scene along with the bomb squad, who sealed off parts of the plant when they detected the explosive material on a bag’s handle. Security detected the material in what is described by CNN as a “routine” security check. Police believe it was on one of the man’s hands when it rubbed off onto the bag, but no bomb was found after an extensive search. Both men have been charged with attempted sabotage and are still undergoing interrogation. Both face sentences of up to two years in prison.

Plant officials state that the plant has never received a threat “not in the past, not now, and we have no threat for the future,” said President of OKG, Lars Thuring. “The only thing that we have found is this trace of explosives in the bag.”

TATP is “very unstable, very sensitive to both friction and shocks,” said Swedish Defense Research Agency expert, Svante Karlsson. A small amount could cause serious damage to someone handling the material which is described as ‘Mother of Satan’. Would-be ‘shoe bomber’ Richard Reid used the substance in an attempt to blow up American Airlines flight 63 from Paris, France to Miami, Florida in 2001. The same substance was also used in the July 2005 bombings in London, England.

The plant’s reactors, where the men were scheduled to work, were turned off on May 11 for routine maintenance. The rest of the plant’s operations were not interrupted.

Thursday, March 1, 2007

Today, the Pittsburgh Penguins took on the New York Rangers in Madison Square Garden, New York.

Jaromir Jagr struck first for New York, with Michael Nylander following suit in the final 2:30 to give the Rangers a comfortable 2-0 lead at the end of the second period. Staal’s shorthanded goal came 76 seconds into the final period, with Staal beating Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist with a soft forehand shot. Penguins winger Colby Armstrong continued the shorthanded show, scoring less than 2:00 later with a bad angle shot, which would ricochet off of Lundqvist’s pad.

When all momentum had seemingly crossed to the Penguins, Blair Betts fired a goal to restore New York’s lead at 3-2. Sergei Gonchar tied it up again late in the 3rd, with a blistering shot on a Penguins power play to level the score at 3-3. In the shootout, not a single score occurred until NHL scoring leader Sidney Crosby took the ice. With the shootout tied 0-0, and a point on the line, Crosby beat Lundqvist, lifting Pittsburgh to victory. The game was not a total loss for the Rangers, though, as they picked up a precious point by forcing overtime.

Penguins rookie Jordan Staal wasn’t supposed to make the team, and once he did make it, he wasn’t expected to contribute more than assisting on the penalty kill and filling in on the fourth line. Not much could be expected of an 18 year old rookie not named Sidney Crosby. That was the premise before the season started, at least. Now, heading into the stretch run toward the NHL Playoffs, Staal leads not just rookies, but the entire National Hockey League in shorthanded goals, after notching his 6th of the season, his 26th total goal.