All posts by Hutchins AAron

Born in Deutschland 1965, hometown was Bütthart, parents were not U.S. government employees. However, when father was tricked into joining the U.S. Air Force Civil Service, in 1969, with the promise that we could remain in Germany, we were promptly shipped off to Iran. Due to one of my Iranian educators being disappeared, along with her husband, by the U.S. ally Shah of Iran's Israeli & U.S. created Savak (for the then official terrorist act of promoting the idea that women can vote), and due to my U.S. citizen mother being placed on Savak's Terrorist Arrest List (for supporting the idea that women should vote, at that time the U.S. ally Shah of Iran did not allow women to vote, now they can) we left Iran for the United States in 1973, literally in the middle of the night. At the U.S. Embassy airbase the CIA operated Gooney Bird (C-47) was so packed with other U.S. citizens fleeing our ally Iran (because the Shah gave the OK to arrest any U.S. citizen for such terrorist acts as promoting the concept of voting) that we were turned away by the Loadmaster and had to take a chance on a civilian flight out of Tehran's airport. My father told me he and my mother had three culture shocks; first when they arrived in Germany as civilians, then after being shipped off to Iran as U.S. government employees, then again returning to the United States as unemployed civilians (because so much had changed in the U.S. while they were gone, their only news source was the U.S. Armed Forces Radio & Television Service which heavily censored information about the home front). Since I graduated high school in 1982 I've worked for U.S. government contractors and state & local government agencies (in California), convenience store manager in California, retail/property management in Georgia, California and Idaho. Spent the 1990s in the TV news business producing number one rated local news programs in California, Arizona and Idaho. 14+ years with California and Idaho Army National Guard and the U.S. Air Force. Obtained a BA degree in International Studies from Idaho State University at the age of 42. Unemployed since 2015, so don't tell me the economy has recovered.
Business/Economics, Opinion, U.S.

Occupy America: Why are Diesel fuel prices so high? Diesel commodity futures trading less than Gas, even with low sulfur refining

Read my November 20, and November 5, 2011, postings about current diesel prices.  It’s bad news, it explains why prices are only going up, and how fracking of natural gas is really for fuel production.

May 3, Diesel fuel prices are higher than gas, at the pump.

In Idaho, as of May 3, most gas stations are selling Diesel for about $4.15 per gallon.  The highest is $4.50 near Mountain Home.  That’s way higher than gas.  Most gas stations are selling gasoline around $3.65 per gallon, with the highest at $4.00 near Hailey, Idaho.

Yet Diesel futures are selling for less than gas futures on the commodities market.   As of May 2, gas futures, for June delivery, were at $3.34 per gallon.  Compare that to Diesel NY at $3.29, and Diesel Gulf at $3.31 per gallon.

So why is Diesel so much higher at the pump?

Many websites say it’s because Diesel must be refined to low sulfur standards.  That doesn’t explain the higher price at the pump!  The commodity prices paid are for already refined Diesel, so the claim that low sulfur refining is the cause doesn’t work.

Some people say it’s because Diesel is actually in higher demand than gasoline, due to industry (like trucking & airlines, “jet” fuel is actually a form of Diesel/Kerosene) and the military (possibly the biggest user of Diesel, thank the War on Terror).  That might be, but normally the commodity price reflects anticipated demand.

Some journalists have asked oil executives about fuel costs, but oil executives can only talk about the price of refined fuels sold on the commodities market, not at the pump.

What about taxes?  It turns out that taxes for Diesel are more than taxes for gasoline.  In Idaho the average (January 2011) pump tax (combined state/federal) for Diesel is 49.4 cents per gallon.  For gas, in Idaho, it’s 43.4 cents.  That’s only a 6 cents per gallon difference, so that doesn’t explain the 50 cent per gallon difference in the pump price of Diesel vs gasoline ($4.15 for Diesel minus $3.65 for gas).

By the way, California has the highest tax rates in the country for Diesel at 76 cents per gallon, and gas at 66.1 cents.  That’s because California has higher local and state taxes on top of the federal taxes.

So, the only conclusion I can come up with is that Diesel fuel prices, at the pump, are higher than gasoline due to higher taxes for Diesel, and maybe  higher demand for Diesel (again that’s usually what drives commodity prices, before it gets to the pump).  Maybe gas stations are trying to make up for their extremely slim profit margins on gas prices by jacking up the more stable Diesel prices?



Business/Economics, U.S.

U.S. Gas prices will be about $4.50 average by end of May

The price of May reformulated unleaded blendstock gasoline futures prices hit $3.37 per gallon, on April 29.  That means the average price of gas at the pump could be $4.50 by the end of May.

For some parts of the country, like California, prices could hit $5.50 or more, per gallon.  For a little explainer on gasoline futures see my post “Think gas is high now…”

International, Opinion, U.S.

Don’t blame Pakistan. U.S. knew for years where Osama bin Laden was, because “he was your operator”

“Look everybody knew that Osama bin Laden was hiding out in Pakistan. Al-Qaeda and Taliban have officers with practically, publicly known addresses and that was no secret that the ISI and other factions of the Pakistani military were backing this and this was not secret. That enormous amount of Saudi money was supporting these operations including al-Qaeda.”-Jeff Steinberg, Executive Intelligence Review

There’s growing calls for action against Pakistan for “hiding” Osama bin Laden. But the truth is that the U.S. government knew bin Laden was in Pakistan, or at least being protected by Pakistan, for years, if not decades.

In October 2010, The Guardian published an article in which an unnamed NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) officer said bin Laden was in Pakistan and that “Nobody in al-Qaida is living in a cave.”

An NBC interview of current Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari (husband of assassinated Benazir Bhutto), aired in May, 2009, in which President Zardari said the U.S. government always knew where bin Laden was in the past, saying “…he was your operator.” He believed bin Laden was now dead because: “I’ve asked my counterparts in the American intelligence agencies and they haven’t heard of him in seven years.”

David Frost interviewed Benazir Bhutto in November 2007, and she said bin Laden was dead.  She was explaining that a failed October 2007 assassination attempt on her life could have been carried out by “…Omar Sheikh, the man who murdered Osama bin Laden.”

ABC news aired a story in February 2007, in which they say the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) said bin Laden was in Pakistan: “…to the best of our knowledge that the senior leadership, No. 1 and No. 2, are there, and they are attempting to re-establish and rebuild and to establish training camps.”-Mike McConnell, Director of National Intelligence

CBS news, in a January 2002 report, not only said bin Laden was in Pakistan, but was near death because of failing kidneys.  According to the reporter, even the President of Pakistan knew: “But it was Pakistan`s President Musharraf who said in public what many suspected, that bin Laden suffers from kidney disease, saying he thinks bin Laden may be near death. His evidence, watching this most recent video, showing a pale and haggard bin Laden, his left hand never moving.”-Barry Petersen, CBS correspondent

On August 22, 2001 (weeks before September 11, 2001) The Asia Times published an article that said the United States, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan were in negotiations for the capture of bin Laden, in order to avoid “…the secret deployment of US special forces in northern areas, for an operation inside Afghanistan to apprehend bin Laden ‘dead or alive any time soon’.”

You can go back all the way to the 1980s, when the United States, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan worked together to bring Osama bin Laden to Afghanistan to create what would become the Taliban, and al-Qaeda.  Ahmed Rashid, respected expert on Afghan issues, quotes bin Laden in his book “Taliban” (first published in 2000): “I settled in Pakistan in the Afghan border region. There I received volunteers who came from the Saudi Kingdom and from all over the Arab and Muslim countries.  I set up my first camp where these volunteers were trained by Pakistani and American officers.”-Osama bin Laden

So from the beginning, all the way back to 1980, Osama bin Laden was in Pakistan, by his own words.  The fact that he was supported by not only the Saudis and Pakistanis, but the United States, should cause concern, and doubt about what any of the governments of those countries now say about bin Laden.  There are many more statements by public officials from the U.S. and Pakistan that show, if anything, the public has been lied to from day one. 





 

International, Opinion, U.S.

U.S. officials admit they “dumped” Osama bin Laden’s body, more bullsh*t!

“You wouldn’t want to leave him so that his body could become a shrine.”-unnamed official

According to a Reuters report, bin Laden’s dead body was dumped so it would not become a symbol, or inspiration for would-be militants.  This is more bullsh*t!  Muslims do not keep bodies on display!  ALL Muslims are to be buried in the ground, if possible.   Somebody give me an example where a Muslim was dug up and used as symbol of inspiration, or a “shrine”!  That is another violation of Islam!

It’s starting to sound like Obama officials, who are obviously ignorant of the ways of Islam, are scrambling to come up with explanations as to what happened to the body.   This also proves that Barack Obama is NOT a Muslim!

International, U.S.

Iraqis say Israeli warplanes seen on U.S. base in Iraq

A source close to prominent Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sader, say they have seen Israeli aircraft on the al-Asad air base in Iraq.

The aircraft have been taking part in night time training exercises.  The unnamed source says the exercises are part of preparations to attack Iran.

This is not the first time that Israeli aircraft have operated in Iraq.  In 2008 Iraqi government officials reported that the U.S. was allowing Israeli planes to land and take off form bases in Iraq.

International, U.S.

From the grave: Benazir Bhutto says Osama bin Laden assassinated years ago

“Yes but one of them is a very key figure in security, he is a former military officer … and had dealings with Omar Sheikh, the man who murdered Osama Bin Laden.“-Pakistani Premier Benazir Bhutto, 2007 interview by David Frost

More questions about President Obama’s claims that Osama bin Laden was killed on May 1, 2011.

In an old 2007 interview, former U.S. ally, and former Pakistani Premier Benazir Bhutto, said Osama bin Laden was assassinated by a man named Omar Sheikh.  She was explaining that a failed October 2007 assassination attempt on her life could have been carried out by “…Omar Sheikh, the man who murdered Osama bin Laden.”

She also mentioned that bin Laden’s son could have been behind the attempt on her life.  Bhutto was assassinated in December 2007.

Business/Economics, International

German economy doing well at the expense of German people

“We don’t even have minimum wage!”-German protester

“Fair wages, decent work and social security is the minimum that workers in this country expect, need and have to fight for again and again.”-Michael Sommer, head of Confederation of German Trade Unions

Germany is one of the few European countries that has a good economy.  It turns out Germany’s good economy is coming at the expense of German workers.

Germans have been protesting, because they are not benefiting from the so called good economy, and now they will be competing against eastern European migrant workers.

For the first time since the creation of the European Union, Germany and Austria will open their borders to eastern European migrant workers.  This has German workers upset, especially since they’ve seen a decline in wages while German corporations enjoy increased profits.

At least 8,000 workers protested in Berlin alone.  According to the Confederation of German Trade Unions, approximately 423,000 people demonstrated across Germany on May Day.

 

International

Saudi Arabia annexing Bahrain, build base alongside U.S. naval base, preparation for war with Iran

“There are no Saudi forces, there are GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council: Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates ] forces and they will leave when they are done with any external threat. The external threat is a regional one. The external threat is a complete misunderstanding between the GCC and Iran.”-Sheikh Khaled Ben Ahmed Al Khalifa, Bahrain Foreign Minister

Saudi led forces will stay in Bahrain until further notice.  There is also rumors that they will build a base alongside the U.S. Navy base, military sources report that some of the U.S. Fifth Fleet piers and facilities will be made available to the Saudi navy.  The Bahraini government admitted that Saudi led forces will remain until there is no more “threat” from Iran.  No details were given.

Oppression of the Shia majority in Bahrain is escalating, with reports of Saudi and Bahraini forces going into hospitals and dragging off patients.  Saudi forces have also destroyed dozens of Shia Mosques.  70% of Bahrainis are Shia.  The ruling family of Bahrain are not Shia.

On April 30, President Obama asked King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa of Bahrain   to respect for the universal rights of the people of Bahrain.