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LMAO, pullen ahead are we? An oops post.
My 5's cant be shipped till tuesday when Ali gets them restocked.
Trav.
Oops, nlightn, this should have been to RICK C. My bad. Where's my MOD button? LMAO.
Trav.
Posted by: Zoinkers
In reply to: nlightn who wrote msg# 4977 Date:3/8/2007 5:57:51 PM
Post #of 4994
http://www.investorshub.com/boards/read_msg.asp?message_id=17722719
Were all off and running for more.
Get set.......GO!!!!
lol.
Trav.
Wells Fargo doesnt know what they sent me.
I just got back from the bank, asked the teller for assistance, she made a call to the currency department, .... and they do not know what ones they sent me. She said they have no way of knowing that.
Now that just sounds like BS to me, wouldnt they photo copy them someway? Some type of paper trail? There is no way they are going to send out money without tracking it or being able to track it, are they?
The teller then mentioned to me that I can go to a currency broker and have them checked. So, tommorow I will be off and running to go see them and see what they say.
I do have an order coming in from Ali in a couple days so I hope it doesnt take that long to figure out whats up with Wells Fargo's shipments. I did take a note with me so I can at least have something to judge them by.
Lost in a world of Dong. lol.
Trav.
LMAO, pullen ahead are we?
My 5's cant be shipped till tuesday when Ali gets them restocked.
Trav.
Might want to ask if the notes are the Paper notes, or the Pallimor<sp> notes, paper or plastic sort of speak.
Was just doing a order price check for purchaseing, called up Wells Fargo and it was 73.12 per Mill, called up Ali and he was 100 per Mill. I asked if he could beat there price, and he said those arent the plastic notes that they are selling, those are the paper notes they are selling, and they are going out of circulation, that is why they are so cheap.
Might want to call and confirm this on your own, as what I purchased through Well's Fargo, might not be the ones that anyone wants. Mine do have plastic on them, but they also have paper on them. Getting alittle lost here. lol. And my notes are all in a Safe Deposit box. The photo copies that I made of them dont tell me a whole lot.
Just a heads up.....
Trav.
The notes that I have look just like the ones that are posted on the board. With the 100,000 face on them.
I'll forward this on, Thanks Meatloaf. I should have gone way, way back there and started looking. Not at all fimilar with AOL.
Trav.
Posted by: BIGJOHN51
In reply to: None Date:3/6/2007 8:20:55 AM
Post #of 85880
Need help. Since the weekend change, I can't read posts. I click on a post and it goes to a "Gateway 504 " error screen. Can't even get to Ihub site most of the time. I try to go to my favorites,mailbox,etc. and I end up back at the Gateway error screen. Sometimes things work for a minute or so but it is as slow as a snail. I use AOL dial-up. I tried to PM Meatloaf but it didn't go through. Anyone know what's wrong and how to fix it?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
vincit omnia veritas
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Posted by: Meatloaf
In reply to: BIGJOHN51 who wrote msg# 85742 Date:3/6/2007 8:59:59 AM
Post #of 85880
AOL caches DNS too aggressively. Since you're an AOL user you're bounced around between any of their available proxies. Some of proxies apparently have the new DNS entry for Investorshub.com (which would be the times you get in) and some don't (which would be the times you get an error).
Until AOL finally catches up, about the best you can do is add this entry to your hosts file:
206.55.113.196 www.investorshub.com
That will override DNS.
For Windows XP, the hosts file is located at:
c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts
iHUB? Is iHUB 100% now with its new ISP?
At least one member is still haveing some issues with posting and viewing. Only asking as the only issue they are haveing is with iHUB's boards. No software or hardware has been changed on there systems since before the change over to the new ISP here. There Email is working just fine, and they can view all other web sites.
Trav.
PS, he is running on AOL for his ISP.
PSS. With this reply to a prior posting, it would not be the case, as he is still at the same location, home.
Posted by: Meatloaf
In reply to: sandvet who wrote msg# 85863 Date:3/6/2007 9:16:09 PM
Post #of 85880
IHub has moved to a new ISP, consequently our IP address has changed. Do you perhaps have IHub's address hard coded into your hosts file at work?
It just gets better and better.
1219.00
NICE!!!!!!!!!!!!
My pleasure. The cool and not so cool thing about Wells Fargo is that it's about as close to one stop shopping as you can get. You can buy/order your DONG there, pick it up there, store it in a Safe Deposit box there, and sell it back to them there. Bad part about all that, is that the tellers know what you have. lol.
Wells Fargo is expanding, so Im sure where every you are there could be one there soon. You can have one of the branches here, theres 3 of them within 5 minutes of me.
I wish I had a Chase bank by me, DOOHHHH.
Trav.
www.nammoney.com
1-877-770-7660
(661)472-8510
Email: Sales@nammoney.com
Trav.
Global bond funds finding Vietnam attractive
Vietnam, Asia's second-best performing debt market this year, is attracting global bond funds anticipating faster economic growth and higher credit ratings.
Fortis Investments, a unit of Belgium's biggest financial-services company, is adding to its holdings of bonds denominated in the local currency, the dong.
Oppenheim KAG, part of Europe's largest privately owned bank, plans to buy debt when Vietnam sells dollar bonds for a second time.
Investors are encouraged by the government's forecast of a sixth consecutive year of economic growth in excess of 7 percent and its acceptance this year into the World Trade Organization.
The nation is attracting so much money it needs to curb "excessive exuberance" in its bond and stock markets, analysts at Credit Suisse Group said in a report last week.
"We expect a rating upgrade in the second half of this year," said Carmen Daub, who helps oversee the equivalent of $4.63 billion of debt at Oppenheim in Cologne, Germany. "Vietnam will profit from China and growth in the region."
The extra yield investors demand to own Vietnam's 6.875 percent dollar bonds due in 2016 compared with similar-maturity Treasuries has narrowed to 1.32 percentage points from 2.56 when the government sold them in October 2005, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
The spread widened about 17 basis points last week amid a decline in emerging markets from China to Brazil. Investors said they are sticking to forecasts for gains in the nation's debt. A basis point is 0.01 percentage point.
The dollar-denominated bonds returned 9.6 percent in the past year, according to data compiled by JPMorgan Chase. The yield on the securities was quoted at 5.86 percent Friday.
The yield on the country's 10-year local bonds has fallen 45 basis points this year to 8.35 percent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Only Thailand had a bigger drop in yields among Asia's 11 most-active markets.
Gains in dong-denominated debt have been helped by a 0.25 percent rally in the currency in December, the biggest monthly increase in more than 11 years.
The State Bank of Vietnam's governor, Le Duc Thuy, may allow the dong to strengthen, said Ashish Agrawal, a strategist at Merrill Lynch in Hong Kong.
The yield premium on the dollar bonds compared with Treasuries may narrow 20 basis points this year, said Didier Lambert, who helps oversee the equivalent of $4.5 billion in emerging-market bonds for Fortis in London.
Assuming Treasury yields hold unchanged, that would translate into a gain of 6.2 percent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Vietnam's dollar bonds now yield about 25 basis points less than similarly rated bonds from Indonesia, 87 basis points less than Pakistan's bonds and 91 basis points less than Turkey's, Bloomberg data show.
Government officials voiced optimism that the country will win a higher rating as trade expands. Standard & Poor's in September raised the nation's long-term foreign-currency debt rating by one step to BB, two rungs below investment grade.
Vietnam's entry into the WTO in January followed a year in which foreign-investment pledges rose 49 percent to $10.2 billion and currency reserves swelled to $11.5 billion. Vietnam's benchmark stock index is up 52 percent so far in 2007, the most in the world.
"We are hopeful that we will receive an upgrade this year," said Nguyen Thanh Do, head of external financing at the Ministry of Finance in Hanoi. The government has not set the size for its next dollar bond sale, he said.
The country may sell as much as $1 billion this month, Vietnam Investment Review newspaper reported on Feb. 5.
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung oversaw 8.2 percent growth in 2006 as Vietnam won pledges from companies including the Santa Clara, California-based Intel, the world's biggest semiconductor maker, and Posco, the world's third- biggest steelmaker based in Pohang, South Korea, to build factories. The government is predicting the economy will grow 8.5 percent this year.
JPMorgan Chase and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group both published reports last month saying Vietnam could seek to curb the amount of money that overseas investors funnel into the country to ease pressure on its currency to appreciate.
The Vietnamese government will probably stop short of imposing similar penalties that prompted funds to boycott Thai debt in December, said Fortis's Lambert.
Source: Bloomberg News
http://www.thanhniennews.com/features/?catid=10&newsid=25739
Spoke with Wells Fargo just now, 03/05/2007
They are not excepting DONG into accounts "yet". They do not as of "yet" have a branch in Vietnam. Any Vietnam currencies would have to be exchanged to US funds prior to any type of deposit into an account.
You can purchase the DONG through Wells Fargo, and in turn you can exchange it for US funds, but cant deposit Vietnam currentcies. "yet"
No time frame as to when you may be able to do so. The customer service personal did mention a few times that Vietnam is growing, and that Wells Fargo is not dissmissing the issue of haveing a branch in Vietnam some time in the future.
He said do check back at a later time.
Hope this helps.
Trav.
wahahn,
Ali @ www.dinartrade.com is posted at the top of the page and gives professional service, he has posted himself that he will beat any price out there with the Dinars.
One member that I know of has posted that he received a better deal going through Chase Bank, but he bought a large order through them.
Some members have posted that they are receiving coupons for $40 off there orders at www.GIDAssociates.com but Ali beat there price even with there coupon.
Hope it helps, GLTY.
Trav.
Yeah, I'm still thinking it over though.
LOL.
Still buying, just dont know how much. Or what face value on those little Demons.
Couple pots of coffee, a few bags of M&Ms and I'll have my answer by morning.
Have a great night Bro,
Trav.
U.S. Envoy to Iraq Applauds Passage of National Hydrocarbon Law
03 March 2007
U.S. Envoy to Iraq Applauds Passage of National Hydrocarbon Law
Op-ed by Ambassador Khalilzad links management of Iraqi oil, unification
The following op-ed by U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad appeared March 3 in the Washington Post and is in the public domain. There are no reproduction restrictions.
(begin byliner)
A Shared Stake in Iraq's Future
How the Oil Agreement Points the Way Forward
By Zalmay Khalilzad
March 3, 2007
Under the national hydrocarbon law approved this week by Iraq's Council of Ministers, oil will serve as a vehicle to unify Iraq and will give all Iraqis a shared stake in their country's future. This is a significant achievement for Iraqis' national reconciliation. It demonstrates that the leaders of Iraq's principal communities can pull together to peacefully resolve difficult issues of national importance.
Resolving concerns about control of oil is central to overcoming internal divisions in Iraq. The country has the third-largest oil reserves in the world, and more than 90 percent of federal income comes from oil revenue. The effective and equitable management of these resources is critical to economic growth as well as to developing a greater sense of shared purpose among Iraqi communities.
The goal of Iraq's leaders was to draft a law that ensured that all Iraqis could be confident they would receive their fair share of the benefits of developing the country's resources, that the revenue from oil and gas would enable a decentralization of power while maintaining national unity, and that Iraq would adopt the best international practices for the development and management of its mineral wealth. By these standards, the hydrocarbon law is a great success. It:
• Reaffirms that oil and gas resources are owned by all the people of Iraq and contains a firm commitment to revenue-sharing among regions and provinces on the basis of population.
• Establishes a predictable framework and processes for federal-regional cooperation that demonstrate the government's commitment to democracy and federalism.
• Creates a principal policymaking body for energy -- the Federal Council on Oil and Gas -- that will have representatives from all of Iraq's regions and oil-producing provinces.
• Ensures that all revenue from oil sales will go into a single national account and that provinces will receive direct shares of revenue, thereby significantly increasing local control of financial resources.
• Establishes international standards for transparency and mandates public disclosure of contracts and associated revenue and payments. This is essential to build confidence in the new political order and to counter corruption.
The law defines a role for the Oil Ministry that is primarily regulatory, which is the modern standard and which will also harness the market to achieve the optimal development of Iraq's resources. It provides the legal framework to enable international investment in Iraq's oil and gas sectors, a break from the statist and overcentralized practices of the past. It also requires best practices in environmental protection and field management and development, ensuring that the environment is not damaged and that hydrocarbon assets are not wasted by poor practices of the past.
While the draft law will need to be enacted by the Iraqi Council of Representatives when it returns from recess, the prospects for passage are excellent because all the major parliamentary blocs are represented in the cabinet. Companion legislation will be required in several areas, and Iraqi leaders hope to complete the entire package of hydrocarbon legislation by the end of May.
Arriving at this agreement was not easy. It has taken other countries years to complete such legislation. While negotiating this law presented special challenges for the federal government, the Kurdistan regional government and the leaders of key political blocs, the approval of the draft by the Council of Ministers sets a precedent for problem-solving and cooperation that is critical to the stabilization and development of Iraq.
This is the first time since 2003 that all major Iraqi communities have come together on a defining piece of legislation. A national reconciliation that stabilizes Iraq can be achieved if similar compromises are made on the future of de-Baathification and on amending the constitution. The agreement on the oil law should give us confidence that Iraqis are willing and able to take the steps needed for Iraq's success.
(The writer is the U.S. ambassador to Iraq.)
(end byliner)
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2007&m=March&x=20070...
My pleasure.
Trav.
Nearest we could find. If they are on a 30 day holiday, then it should be over by the 19th, give or take.
Trav.
Posted by: Zoinkers
In reply to: strongtower who wrote msg# 4425 Date:2/21/2007 12:10:09 PM
Post #of 4824
Might have just started.
Ashura
Ashura is one of the major holidays of Islam. It is usually celebrated on the 10th day of Muharram, the first month in the Islamic Calendar. In fact, the word ashura means "ten." (In 2005, it takes place on February 19th in the Western Calendar.)
http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/holidays/ashura.htm
Thats the 2005 date, but the 2007 date cant be to far off from that start date.
Edit to add another link. The holidays.
http://www.investorshub.com/boards/read_msg.asp?message_id=17238058
I called Well's Fargo on this.
But got the run around, no definite answer yet.
The last number that they gave me was 800-786-5593 Open 8-5 Monday/Friday Pacific time. I'm interested in this as well as I did purchase my DONG through them.
Trav.
Friday, March 02, 2007 USD / VND
1000000 Vietnamese Dong(s) = 62.4922 US Dollar(s)
1 USD = 16002 VND
1 VND = 6.24922e-05 USD
It's spelled....Zoinkers.
Thanks.
Trav.
PS; Slow news day Bro. Have a great weekend.
I'm buying more, dont care what you post. lol.
Been in it a few months now. And its doing better than some of those Pinkie's out there are.
:P
Trav.
Chase Bank buy/sell Dinars.
Conflicking reports on Bank of America.
From RICK C on BOA (Bank of America)
http://www.investorshub.com/boards/read_msg.asp?message_id=17361573
Not just yet. LOL.
Good Grief, I thought I was on a CMKX board for a minute.
.31,.40.,1.47, 40.00. LMAO.
Trav.
But your a MOD on a board, No free PM since your a MOD on an IHUB Board?
Z.
A little Pre Celebration?
LMAO, That 15 minutes to edit gets me all the time.
Trav.
Iraqi government to hike fuel prices by 15%
REUTERS
1:10 a.m. February 23, 2007
BAGHDAD – Consumer fuel prices will be hiked by around 15 percent in March as Iraq implements an agreement with the International Monetary Fund to cut subsidies, Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani said.
Iraq has the world's third largest known oil reserves but decades of war, sanctions, under-investment and now widespread violence and sabotage have left it critically short of fuel. It has to import much of its gasoline.
The government continues to control prices, fostering a thriving black market in fuel for those unwilling to queue for hours, sometimes days, to fill their vehicles.
Shahristani told Arabiya television in an interview broadcast on Friday the price of benzene would rise from 350 dinars (about 27 U.S. cents) to 400 dinar and the price of gasoline would rise from 300 dinar to 350 dinar by mid-March.
Iraq won a loan accord with the IMF in December 2005 and a $14 billion debt swap with private lenders. Since then, the price of a litre of ordinary gasoline has risen from 20 dinars.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/iraq/20070223-0110-iraq-fuel-.html
Good to see you Ali,
Thanks for eveything.
Trav.
Committed to IMF's instructions
Dr. Amirah Al-Baldawi, member of the Economic and investment Committee in the Parliament, prepared a study on the Iraqi budget for this year, presented the basis and principles on which it was based.
She said in the study: “The paragraphs of the budget have not concealed its abidance to the terms of the IMF to write off Iraqi debt after canceling the subsidy of oil derivatives and foodstuffs (the ration card)”. She added: “The national strategy aimed, as stated in the federal budget, to reduce the subsidy, and then gradually withdraw from this policy that has a negative impact on the overall economy. Implementation has started in the 2006 budget when the allocations to support the ration card were reduced by 25% of the budget in 2005 and the policy continues for the 2007 budget. The subsidy was actually lifted all at once in time of oil crises and repeated jams in the distribution of oil derivatives in all Iraqi governorates, as well as the absence of a clear environment for investment in the oil sector, that may help to alleviate the crisis; this means Iraq will witness a high rise in the prices of derivatives in the coming months, if the decision of lifting the subsidy is not accompanied by intensive negotiations and bold”.
She explained: “The strategy of the 2007 budget contained the program of supporting the ration card adopting the necessary allocations, but it might be appropriate to decrease some items in the ration card or reduce them to the basic ones such as flour, baby milk, rice and tea leading to the reduction of no less than 15% of the allocations, in addition to not including citizens like traders, industrialists, contractors and other segments whose incomes are not below a certain level”.
She Stated: “The social benefits included in the budget such as the allocations of the ration card, the social protection network, allowances for military employees of the dissolved Ministry of Defense and the expenses of aid to those displaced have fell by 2.4% this year, less than what they were in 2006”. She pointed out: “allocations to the ration card also decreased from 45 00 billion dinars to 3928 billion dinars by 12.7%. The gradual withdrawal from the subsidy could be in favor of the Iraqi economy, but the needy segments would not benefit from it since it is accompanied by financial corruption mechanisms that serve the interest of only specific segments, like those involved in contracts of supplying the ration card materials, transferring and distributing them. Many areas, displaced families and needy families are still demanding their share of the ration card materials”.
She stressed: “the need for the State to establish a policy for protecting the needy and not to keep such procedures, like the non-including of rich merchants, contractors and others, as mere proposals”.
She wondered: “What are the mechanisms taken by the State to write off the names of these rich segments? How were they counted? How can we make sure that they would not penetrate the regulations put by the State to write off their names?” Adding: “in this area, the Ministry of Planning should play a role. It should organize a form for each family’s income, and then isolate the high-income families without any exceptions in order to treat the situation of poverty and need; also, the amount allocated for the ration card should go to those who really need the card’s materials which should be of fine qualities and quantities filling the need of the Iraqi citizen without needing to demand it”.
She continued: “As for social insurance and the social protection network which include limitted-income families, their allocations rose to 84% from last year to become 920 billion dinars in order to included the largest number possible of needy families who were about one million families last year; however, these allocations will not be able to include more than one million and five hundred thousand families with minimum salaries that has not even risen to an average level”.
She said: “As for the displaced families and victims of the deteriorating security situation, their allocations has been decreased by 5.6%, in addition to a modest budget to the Ministry of the Displaced and Migration, that does not match with the increasing numbers of the displaced and their exacerbating problems especially in winter, schools season and others. As for the victims’ compensations which are given to victims of terrorist attacks, whether they were civil or military, it is regrettable that these allocations were reduced by 50% from last year at a time when terrorist attacks increased and large numbers of Iraqis are becoming victims to them, leaving greater numbers of orphans, widows, the poor and damaged”. explaining: 'If the State does not take the increasing numbers of damaged Iraqi people into consideration and guarantee them what fills their needs without being compelled to resort to voluntary contributions, as happened in the incident of Imams Bridge, if they do not withdraw from the specialties of some of the huge bodies and add for the benefit of the victims and needy or at the very least, the social benefits allocations of the presidential bodies should be classified in a way that the largest part of them should go to the damaged people, and instead of opening the door for disaster donations, the Presidency of the Republic and the ministers should make those donations on behalf of all the sons of the Iraqi people in respond to any disaster or emergencies. Other than that, it is totally unacceptable to reduce the allocations of the needy and increase those of the luxurious without clear information of how will they be spent”.
Retirement Law
Dr. Amirah Al-Baldawi said: “The unified retirement law which was voted for by the previous National Assembly ensures that the retired will get 80% of his actual salary. Large numbers of citizens awaited the implementation of this law to retire from their jobs with a pension that guarantees them a decent life; however, implementing this law was stopped following the advice of the International Bank which sees that there is no country in the world spends all these enormous amounts to subsidize people who do not provide the State with any benefit in return”.
She continued: “The International Bank has presented a project included in the 2007budget; it proposed the establishment of a retirement fund financed through the discount of 12% of each governmental institution for the purpose of its employees’ retirement; also, discounting 7% of the government employees’ salaries to be deposited in this fund to be invested in order to increase them and provide the State with profit, as well as being deposited for the benefit of the retirees”.
She explained: “The wages of health and laboratory services had risen to 94% while the allocations of medicines were reduced by 16% this year compared to the year 2006, at a time when the numbers of the injured and those in need for treatment is increasing ; also, the health sector needs to be rehabilitated and supplied with modern medical devices and laboratory services, as well as provide opportunities for training and improving the performance of the medical cadre, the intermediate and advanced, since this sector is witnessing a great development in the neighboring countries and in the world. In addition, the State should start working by the health insurance card which will be of great benefit for the needy and the poor as well as improve the health service; it is very natural in a rich country such as Iraq that the needy are treated for free”. She added: “A quick look at the preparations of the 2007 budget for the deprived, in all their kinds, we find that the State has prepared itself to get rid of its obligations in the subsidy area without any clear plans or alternative solutions”.
http://dinartrade.com/latestnews.htm
Yeah, sure ya were. LOL.
I cant send PM's.
The feature you tried to use is only available with a Premium Subscription!
I have not bucked up yet to the Premium Subscription. I'm still new here and still checking things out in free mode.
Maybe one of the staff can set up a Email account at Yahoo, Hotmail or anywhere else that is free, and post it here so we that cant send PM's can send them an Email. If one of them does this we can just put in the subject line of the Email to them, something along the lines of "Zoinkers From iHub,Dinar Bank Info".
Just thinking out loud again. lol.
Z.
WOW, Ali just had the 5's yesterday. He must have had allot of orders go in after mine.
Trav.
PS, 24 hours after order placed they were at my door. Now, they are safely tucket away in a Safe Deposit Box. 35 bucks for the 5x3 a year, and a 20 dollar deposit on the keys.
I found it odd as well, but was just posted at DinarTrade.
I failed to provide the link in time. Dated the 21st.
http://dinartrade.com/latestnews.htm
United Press International is just a couple years behind. lol.
Trav.
McPherson to lead financial repair of Iraq
By MELISSA SANCHEZ
The State News
MSU President M. Peter McPherson will join coalition efforts to restore the Iraqi government.
McPherson met with the Bush administration in Washington on Thursday to discuss the financial reconstruction of Iraq.
The university president obtained financial experience while working second in command for the U.S. Department of Treasury under former President Ronald Reagan.
"It is true that the White House has been talking to Peter about some sort of borrowing of him for work in Iraq for the next couple months," MSU Trustee Colleen McNamara said, adding McPherson "may be back by the beginning of fall term."
It is unknown when McPherson will leave for Iraq and MSU spokesman Terry Denbow said the president has no plans to permanently leave MSU.
In January 1999, the MSU Board of Trustees offered McPherson a position as a senior consultant, making him eligible for retirement status. He has to remain president until 2003 under the deal, which will pay half the average of the five highest deans or directors.
Provost Lou Anna Simon will act as MSU's interim president during McPherson's absence. Simon did not return repeated phone calls and McPherson declined comment Thursday night.
Thursday morning, McPherson told Peter Magrath, president of the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges, he plans to leave MSU for at least two months to take part in the rebuilding of Iraq.
In the past month, Iraq has seen major warfare followed by civilian looting and mayhem. Coalition forces have set up a temporary government run by the U.S. military.
McPherson's future duties in Iraq aren't clear, but economics Professor Charles Ballard said the task of rebuilding Iraq's economy won't be easy. Iraq owes hundreds of billions of dollars in unsettled debts and claims to several countries.
Ballard added McPherson's experience at the Bank of America dealing with indebted Latin American countries such as Peru will help in negotiating Iraq's finances.
Ballard said expecting McPherson back at MSU by the fall is optimistic.
"If the job of restoring Iraq's financing could be completed in that time that would be quite an accomplishment," he said.
The White House has not made an official announcement of the appointment and many MSU officials have deferred comment until that happens.
The board will hold a public meeting at 9 a.m. today in the Administration Building's fourth floor boardroom to examine how to proceed without McPherson, McNamara said.
Despite McPherson's absence, the board still will need to handle upcoming budget cuts, maintain a $1.5-billion fund-raising campaign and continue to compete for a federally funded Rare Isotope Accelerator this summer.
Michael Perez, co-founder of Students for Peace and Justice, said he was concerned about what kind of statement McPherson's new role would make for the university.
"By doing this he's taking a stance on the war by approving it indirectly or tacitly," the anthropology graduate student said. "It's a smack in the face to the student body who took a stance against the war."
The university can expect student opposition and demonstrations as a result of McPherson's decision, Perez said.
McPherson's background in international financial relations makes him a top pick for running the new Iraqi government's treasury department.
"I, over a number of years, had a broad range of financial management experiences that clearly are helpful in thinking of (university) issues," McPherson said in an interview last month.
From 1989 to 1993, McPherson served as group vice president of the San Francisco-based Bank of America.
He was responsible for the bank's work in Canada and South America and for managing the "bad debt portfolio" - an international portfolio of debts totaling $8 billion.
Previous to McPherson's work in the Bank of America, he was deputy secretary of the U.S. Treasury Department under Reagan, serving as one of three negotiators for the Canadian Free Trade Agreement.
Six years previously, McPherson was an administrator with the Agency for International Development and led a year-long delivery of more than 2 million tons of food to Africa during a famine in the mid-1980s.
He also was a special assistant to President Gerald Ford and director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office from 1975 to January 1977.
Staff writer Amy Bartner contributed to this report.
Melissa Sanchez can be reached at sanche96@msu.edu
http://www.statenews.com/article.phtml?pk=17278
Iraq economy growing despite conflict
Iraq's economy continues to grow despite continued civil unrest, the Conference Board reported Tuesday.
In its report on productivity in the Middle East, the New York-based economic research group said that Iraq's gross domestic product growth rate increased by 7.3 percent in 2005, compared to a 14.2 percent decrease posted in 1995.
Iraq's growth reflected the overall expansion seen in the region, the board said. Nevertheless, it warned that stagnant productivity levels continue to hold back economic growth in the Middle East and there was still a lack of a middle class that could push economic expansion forward.
Overall, productivity had actually fallen over the past decade in the region compared to U.S. levels to 40 percent in 2005 from 54 percent posted in 1987.
Source: United Press International
Might have just started.
Ashura
Ashura is one of the major holidays of Islam. It is usually celebrated on the 10th day of Muharram, the first month in the Islamic Calendar. In fact, the word ashura means "ten." (In 2005, it takes place on February 19th in the Western Calendar.)
http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/holidays/ashura.htm
Thats the 2005 date, but the 2007 date cant be to far off from that start date.
That why I thought it might be over now.
If they were in Holiday for Hijrah and it was 30 day of Holiday, then it would have been up yesterday. ??? *scratching head* lol.
Hijrah New Year (20 January 2007)
Thanks Strongtower.
Trav.
This might have something to do with that.
Posted by waterfowler.
http://www.investorshub.com/boards/read_msg.asp?message_id=17233875
"Japan, Britain, Germany and Sweden have recently downgraded their official travel warnings for the region, but Andrew Wylegala says he has not heard of any plans for a similar change in the U.S. advisory."
Nice graph of the USD vs IQD.
From Investors Iraq
http://www.investorsiraq.com/?page=Graphs