BEIJING (Reuters) – China said on Thursday it will not use its dominance of supplies of rare earths as a bargaining tool with foreign economies, and the United States said it hoped trade in the high-tech ores would continue as normal.
China has slashed export quotas and reduced shipments to Japan, igniting international concern that it could use rare earth exports as an economic or political lever. Prices have spiked and mining firms are rushing to develop sources of the minerals outside China
The U.S. and European Union this week said they were pressing for solutions to fears that China was choking supply of the substances used in lasers, computers and superconductors, among other applications, and the issue is expected to figure at next month's G-20 summit
.
Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology spokesman Zhu Hongren said Beijing sought international cooperation.
"China will not use rare earths as an instrument for bargaining," he told a news conference on Thursday. "Instead, we hope to cooperate with other countries in the use of rare earths on the basis of win-win outcomes and jointly protecting this unrenewable resource."
The ministry is one of several in China that oversee rare earths.
Zhu was speaking on the same day a newspaper published by China's Ministry of Commerce urged China to resist pressure to allow foreign firms more access to its rare earths.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she was unaware of China's vow not to use them as a bargaining chip, and, speaking in Hawaii, said she would welcome any clarification of China's stance on the minerals.
"I ... hope that it means trade and commerce around these important materials will continue unabated and without any interference," Clinton told a news conference with Japan's foreign minister.
"At the same time, because of the importance of these rare earth minerals, I think both the minister and I are aware that our countries and others will have to look for additional sources of supply," she said.
One engineering firm, Japan's Nidec, has already said it will start making motors that do not use rare earths to lessen reliance on the minerals.
China supplies about 97 percent of the world's demand for rare earth metals, which possess magnetic, luminescent and other properties used in emerging clean energy technologies, computers and electronics.
Prices of some rare earths on world markets have increased tenfold this year, reversing a long-trend toward lower prices caused largely by greater Chinese production over the past two decades.
In response to higher prices and worries among major consumers such as Japanese hi-tech industries that they will be unable to rely on large scale deliveries from China, mining firms are scrambling to speed up mine development timetables.
Shares in potential producers of the minerals outside China, such as Molycorp and Lynas Corp have rocketed since July, when China said it was reducing exports by 72 percent in the second half of the year.
Australian firm Arafura Resources on Thursday raised A$90 million ($87.5 million) to develop a rare earths project, but some analysts have said the long-term investment case for the minerals may be weak, and the market has the makings of a bubble.
(Writing by Daniel Magnowski, editing by Miral Fahmy)
Saturday, November 06, 2010
Image via Wikipedia The rift betwwn Sir Edmund Hillary's children and his widow, their stepmother, grew yesterday...The rift between Sir Edmund Hillary's widow and his children grew yesterday, with claims his son Peter has been cut out of a trust the great mountaineer set up.
Sir Ed's daughter, Sarah Hillary, said her brother Peter had not been appointed to the Himalayan Trust, set up by her father to help the Sherpa people, because of personality conflicts.
"There's been a bit of a take-over of the trust by a group that probably don't want Peter there," she said.
Sarah Hillary was appointed to the trust on Friday but she said Peter would have been a better choice.
The comments come as Sarah and Peter battle Sir Ed's widow, Lady June Hillary, over her plans to auction in Switzerland next Saturday his collection of Rolex watches, including one given to him after he climbed Mt Everest in 1953 which is now valued at $25,000.
Sarah and Peter have threatened legal action if the auction house does not withdraw them from sale.
Mike Gill, a long time Himalayan Trust member and a close friend of Sir Ed, said he was expelled on Thursday in a letter couriered to him from Lady June.
Trust council member David Hayman, who is Lady June's son-in-law, said Friday's meeting was "very successful".
Sarah Hillary's appointment was a "very popular outcome".
Lady June said yesterday that the proceeds from the sale of the watches were earmarked for charity work supporting education and health services in Nepal.
A friend of Lady June, Jim Wilson told the Herald on Sunday they wanted to "clear up any possible misconception that we are selling these watches for personal gain
.
The sale of the watches was to raise funds for Ed Hillary's Himalayan Trust." At the end of last June the trust's assets were worth about $3.9 million.
But Lady June's intention to sell the watches to benefit the trust came as news to Sarah and Peter Hillary.
Sarah Hillary said: "We think it's a wonderful idea to do it to raise money for the Himalayan Trust but we should have been consulted about it. One of the watches is one that Peter had for quite some time."
Peter Hillary declined to comment but his wife, Yvonne, said: "Ed Hillary had a son, three grandsons - any one of whom would have loved those watches."
KR: Such a sad story. I hope it can be resolved speedily; it could damage the memory of one of our country's greatest sons. Sir Ed's wishes should be granted.
Acknowledgements: Kathryn Powley/MSN News
Image via Wikipedia
A "rockstar" Hillary Clinton is winging her way to Australia now...She is on her private plane after being farewelled by the US ambassador and former World Trade Organisation head Mike Moore and Christchurch Mayor Bob Parker..
.
The skies opened up just as the US Secretary of State arrived at the steps of the US Air Force Boeing.
While she was protected by umbrellas, her farewell party wasn't, so there was no lingering
.
From the dry of the Antarctic Programme hangar, Moore said her visit to New Zealand had been a "triumph," particularly the Town Hall event yesterday where she answered any question put to her from an audience of 300
.
"New Zealand is highly admired by Americans who are intrigued by what you have built here, who are trying to understand rugby and the great attraction it holds, and who are very committed to learning more about New Zealand," she said.
"She's a rock star," said Moore. "Her presentation was superb in the Town Hall, wasn't it. This is the value of people who come from a democratic society where they have had to spend life convincing someone on the other side to agree with them
"Can you imagine foreign secretaries from some countries being able to pull that off?"
Moore said the Wellington Declaration - described as a strategic partnership - was an important document.
"Words mean something and the Wellington accord, these words are important. This allows us to rewrite the agenda in Washington."
But he also described some of the dramatic changes that had already taken place in the relationship.
"It is only a few ambassadors ago that an ambassador would go to the State Department, meet a person like [an assistant secretary of state] Kurt Campbell, say hello, and then a couple of years later go and say goodbye. Now we meet every two weeks."
Mrs Clinton has forged stronger ties between the two countries and signalled her government's willingness to raise the level of the relationship even further.
She Clinton had arrived in Wellington on Wednesday, going into talks with Prime Minister John Key and Foreign Minister Murray McCully before signing the Wellington Declaration.
It sets out a strategic partnership ensuring political and military co-operation, with regular high-level meetings that will be used to workout the next practical steps in areas ranging from joint training to climate change.
"I think we've always had a very close relationship on so many issues and it was important for me to demonstrate that very vividly," she said in a TVNZ interview
.
"We work together on everything from climate change to (nuclear) non-proliferation, our soldiers are working together in Afghanistan...but I think there was a lingering impression the last 25 years had served as an obstacle to our close partnership."
Both governments have said the relationship is better now than at any time since the Anzus rift caused by the introduction of New Zealand's nuclear-free legislation
.
Mr McCully has described the Wellington Declaration as "highly symbolic...the turning of a new page in the relationship."
Mrs Clinton is on a two-week Asia Pacific trip and today heads for Australia.
Acknowledgements: NZPA
http://huttriver.blog.co.uk
Friday, November 05, 2010
Thursday, November 04, 2010
Image via Wikipedia
sThere were fears for the safety of David Machin, 24, Ben Gavin-Young, 23, and Ryan Irissarri, 24, as they had not made contact with their families since the tsunami struck last week, reports the New Zealand Herald.
Ben's mother, Cheryl Gavin-Young has said that an Indonesian boat has seen her son and his friends sailing off the west Sumatran coastline, still on course.
Apparently the Indonesian sailors spoke with the trio and told them people were looking for them.
The Indonesian crew then contacted Ryan's mum, Joanie Irissarri, to tell her the good news. She had previously been in contact with boats in the area.
Mrs Irrissari also said another boat had been in touch with authorities in Malaysia, telling them they had also seen the Kiwi adventurers and they were fine
.
"It's awesome," said Mrs Gavin-Young. "The whole family feels very reassured.
.
Acknowledgements: MSN News
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Wednesday, November 03, 2010
Tuesday, November 02, 2010
Cover of L. Ron Hubbard Is the Church of Scientology a mind-controlling cult that destroys families and lives...Many people claim the Church of Scientology to be a mind-controlling cult. Is it? What are your experiences and knowledge about this so-called church? Please read the following and leave comments below if you wish.
"Operation Clambake" presents:
What is Scientology?
In the late 1940s, pulp writer L. Ron Hubbard declared: "Writing for a penny a word is ridiculous. If a man really wants to make a million dollars, the best way would be to start his own religion"Hubbard later created the Church of Scientology... |
| Based on a text by ex-Scientologist Roland Rashleigh-Berry. Roland wrote: "This is my personal opinion. I grant permission to anyone to reproduce this material. This description has been tailored to people who have never been Scientologists and seek a simple and short explanation as to what it is and why it is surrounded by controversy." |
In a Nutshell
The Church of Scientology is a vicious and dangerous cult that masquerades as a religion. Its purpose is to make money. It practices a variety of mind-control techniques on people lured into its midst to gain control over their money and their lives. Its aim is to take from them every penny that they have and can ever borrow and to also enslave them to further its wicked ends. It was started in the 1950s by a science fiction writer named L. Ron Hubbard in fulfilment to his declared aim to start a religion to make money. It is an offshoot to a method of psychotherapy he concocted from various sources which he named "Dianetics". Dianetics is a form of regression therapy. It was then further expanded to appear more like a religion in order to enjoy tax benefits. He called it "Scientology".
Scientology is a confused concoction of crackpot, dangerously applied psychotherapy, oversimplified, idiotic and inapplicable rules and ideas and science-fiction drivel that is presented to its members (at the "advanced" levels) as profound spiritual truth.
The Harm it Does to a Person
The results of applying their crackpot psychotherapy (called "auditing") is to weaken the mind. The mind goes from a rational state to an irrational one as the delusional contents of the subconscious mind are brought to the surface and are assumed to be valid. It also makes a person more susceptible to suggestion since it submerges the critical thinking faculties of the mind into a partial subconscious state. It results in a permanent light hypnotic trance and so from thenceforth that person can be more easily controlled. The person will, to a much greater extent, believe and do whatever they are told. And of course this is used to the full in persuading them to hand over further money and dedicating themselves further to the cult. The results of applying their oversimplified and inapplicable rules in life is to lose the ability to think rationally and logically. A person loses the ability to think for themselves and so they lose the ability to challenge incorrect ideas. This makes them easier to control. It also isolates and alienates the person from society so that they withdraw from normal society and into their "Scientology" society. This further increases their susceptibility to the influence of their group. They end up being afraid of society, believing all society to be controlled by a group of drug companies, psychiatrists and financiers all of whom report to more remote masters. In other words they are in a state of mass paranoia. They therefore avoid reading newspapers and the like since they fear it will disturb their safe Scientology world. It is a downward spiral into madness.
The science fiction content of Scientology is revealed to them after they have reached the state they call "Clear", meaning freed from the aberrations of the mind. However, perhaps "brainwashed" would be a more applicable word to describe the mental state of someone who has survived the near entire delusional contents of their subconscious mind brought to the surface and presented to them as "truth". On the "advanced" levels (called OT levels) above the state of "Clear" they encounter the story of Xenu. Xenu was supposed to have gathered up all the overpopulation in this sector of the galaxy, brought them to Earth and then exterminated them using hydrogen bombs. The souls of these murdered people are then supposed to infest the body of everyone. They are called "body thetans". On the advanced levels of Scientology a person "audits out" these body thetans telepathically by getting them to re-experience their being exterminated by hydrogen bombs. So people on these levels assume all their bad thoughts and faulty memories are due to these body thetans infesting every part of their body and influencing them mentally. Many Scientologists go raving mad at this point if they have not done so already.
The "Ethics" Trap
On the surface the Church of Scientology seems reasonable. The insane content of it is only revealed to a person when the early stuff has done its work and made them more susceptible. After a short while a person "believes" that Scientology is doing them good. They are then persuaded to help their new-found group further by donating money and/or working for the organisation for almost no money. Many people do exactly that. "Ethics" is used to good effect to trap a person. A person�s natural tendency to do good is worked upon. Yes - they want to be more ethical, but what is ethical? This is where a clever trick is pulled! "Ethics" is redefined by Scientology in such a way that to be ethical is to be a better Scientologist and obey the "church". Young people, not yet made cynical through the machinations of life and politics, are very keen to contribute to the world and to be ethical. So the "ethics" trick works easily into persuading them to join the "church". Many of them join an elite group called the "Sea Org" where they become brainwashed slaves. There they work a hundred hour week for almost no pay. There they are subject to every cruel whim of their masters. It is a living hell that they endure because of the conditioning they have received and this now perverted sense of ethics that they have accepted. The "Sea Org" is the ultimate in brainwashed slavery. They are expected to work harder and harder to achieve ever higher targets of production. If they fail to meet their targets there are various penalties. One of them is to be put onto a diet of beans and rice and to miss sleep. Another is to be sentenced to a period on the RPF (Rehabilitation Project Force). This is the equivalent to "hard labour". Such is the extent of their brainwashing that they actually write "success stories" when they complete their sentences.http://www.xenu.net/roland-intro.html
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