Michael Krieger On The Rebirth Of Barter

From small Black Markets to organized governments, barter as exchange is here, and gaining momentum.  Zero Hedge.  Excerpts:

One of the most important articles I have read this week comes from Forbes contributor Gordon Chang. In it he states that China is preparing to avoid U.S. sanctions on Iran by paying for oil with gold. Not only that but he also mentions that China has already been bartering with Iran to get a hold of petroleum. He states:

So how can Beijing keep both Iran’s ayatollahs and President Obama happy at the same time? Simple, the Chinese can avoid the U.S. sanctions through barter. China has already been trading its produce for Iran’s petroleum, but there is only so much gai lan and bok choy the Iranians can eat. That’s why Iran is also accepting, among other goods, Chinese washing machines, refrigerators, toys, clothes, cosmetics, and toiletries.
The barter trade works, but Iran needs cash too. As it is being cut off from the global financial system, the next best thing is gold. So we should not be surprised that in late February the Iranian central bank said it would accept that metal as payment for oil. Last year, China imported $21.7 billion in Iranian oil and exported $14.8 billion in goods and services. As the NDAA goes into effect, look for Beijing to ship gold to Iran to make up the difference.

Thus, the leadership in America in its infinite stupidity has actually accelerated the demise of the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency. (Author's emphasis)

Seems about right, doesn't it, considering the caliber of those exercising political control over economic matters..  And again, we return to the consideration of Unintended Consequences..  Seriously; doesn't this seem like the machinations of Universe "B," the "Murphy's Law" Universe?  Well, events are in motion;  Since we can't stop them, we might as well track 'em..

Rupert Murdoch Blames his Journalists for Conspiring to Cover up a Culture of Phone-Hacking at Media Empire

Blaming the minions, eh, Rupert?  Things seem to be reaching Critical Mass.  Al Jazeera.  Excerpts:

Rupert Murdoch blamed News of the World journalists for conspiring to cover up a culture of phone-hacking at the tabloid, saying they hid their activities from his son James and protegee Rebekah Brooks and that he personally was not paying attention.



In a second day of testimony in Britain’s High Court on Thursday, Murdoch painted a picture of a rogue culture at the best-selling Sunday tabloid, in an echo of his company’s now abandoned defence that a single “rogue reporter” was to blame.


“I think in newspapers, the reporters do act very much on their own, they do protect their sources, they don’t disclose to their colleagues what they are doing,” Murdoch told a judicial inquiry into press ethics.


Showing frequent flashes of annoyance as the questioning became more pointed, the media mogul admitted he had not paid enough attention to the News of the World but did not accept that he had allowed a culture of illegality to flourish.


Asked where the culture of cover-up had originated, Murdoch answered: “I think from within the News of the World. There were one or two very strong characters there who I think had been there many, many years and were friends of the journalists.”


“The person I’m thinking of was a friend of the journalists and a drinking pal and clever lawyer and forbade them... to report to Mrs Brooks or to James,” said Murdoch, in a thinly veiled reference to the News of the World’s former top lawyer Tom Crone, who has accused James Murdoch of lying.


“That’s not to excuse on our behalf at all. I take it extremely seriously that that situation had arisen.”


The appearance at the inquiry of a man who has courted prime ministers and presidents for the last 40 years is a defining moment in a scandal that has laid bare collusion between British politicians, police and Murdoch’s News Corp.


On Wednesday, Murdoch had appeared calm and considered, but Thursday’s tone was more hostile as the inquiry’s top counsel Robert Jay ratcheted up the pressure and described the culture of phone-hacking as a “cancer”.


When Jay suggested that the response of News International, the British newspaper arm of News Corp, was a “desire to cover up, not expose”, Murdoch snapped back: “Well, to people with minds like yours,” before quickly adding “I take that back.”


Jay, keeping his cool, assured him: “I’m very thick-skinned Mr Murdoch. Do not worry one moment.”
The comment caused consternation among Murdoch’s legal team in the courtroom, forcing Judge Brian Leveson to ask one of the party to sit down before resuming proceedings.

I do believe there will be several, if not many, individuals who will gleefully tear his testimony apart.  And they'll do so in part with videotape of Rupert himself talking about how hands on he is regarding all facets of his news empire.  The twin Cultures of Influence and Corruption are too big to be repudiated.  Blamed minions will be out for revenge.  The politicians and police are in damage mode.  The Leveson Inquiry, in hindsight, will be looked at as the acceleration of the demise of the Murdoch Empire
More shoes will be dropping shortly..

Masters Of Shoegaze, Volume One - The Birth Of The Drone..

Because Shoegaze is good for your soul, that's why..

In 1995, I wouldn't have included Jesus and Mary Chain or The Cure in a pure shoegazer playlist, but it's easy to see both groups' influence on the movement:  The droning guitars of Jesus and Mary Chain, and The Cure's wall of sound trance-inducing atmospherics.  For optimal enjoyment, please utilize headphones.  Play loud.  Enjoy.

Intergalactic Hooligans Vandalize Saturn's Weirdest Ring. Yes. That.

Well, kind of..Mysterious Objects Punching Holes In Weird Saturn Ring Space.  Excerpts:

Mysterious objects appear to be doing some damage to Saturn's "weirdest ring," scientists say.

The discovery comes from detailed photos taken of the Saturn system by NASA's Cassini orbiter. In these images, researchers spotted strange objects about a half-mile (kilometer) wide tearing through Saturn's F ring, the thin outermost discrete ring around the planet.


As they pass through the ring, these interlopers drag glittering ice particles out with them, creating visible trails of debris scientists are calling "mini jets."

"I think the F ring is Saturn's weirdest ring, and these latest Cassini results go to show how the F ring is even more dynamic than we ever thought," Carl Murray, a Cassini imaging team member based at London's Queen Mary University, said in a statement. "These findings show us that the F ring region is like a bustling zoo of objects from a half mile in size to moons like Prometheus a hundred miles in size, creating a spectacular show."

The F ring is held in check by two tiny moons, Prometheus and Pandora, which weave inside and outside the outer ring. Sometimes these moons perturb the ring, creating channels and snowballs. Now scientists think that some of these snowballs survive to become the weird objects punching new holes in the ring. [Video: Saturn's F Ring Bashed by Weird Objects]



The objects appear to collide with the ring at mild speeds of about 4 mph (6.4 kph), but can leave relatively long trails extending between 20 to 110 miles long (40 to 180 kilometers).

There's a video at the link that's worth watching.  At the end of said video, the view of Saturn from one of its poles looks very much like a human eyeball.  I like similar images at different scales of magnification.  It reminds me of the Synchronicity already at work effecting us all, all of us mostly unaware.  And still, the pieces continue to lock together.

There Goes Greek GDP: Nazional Lampoons Greek Vacation Just Got Cancelled

What we have here is some of them "Unintended Consequences" mixing with "Negative Death Sprial."  Greece is boned, and that's good news for no one, including Germany.  The entire post from Zero Hedge.  Wow(Emphasis theirs)..

As if the Greeks haven't suffered enough from Northern European actions (admittedly in response to their own actions), it seems the anti-German sentiment is keeping the wealthy tourists away from the beaches. As Reuters notes today, 'German tourists are in short supply in Greece these days, frightened away by reports of visceral anti-German sentiment in some places'. Data for the main summer holiday season shows pre-bookings from Germany down by some 30 percent. We guess the pictures of Molotov cocktails being thrown, city-wide strikes, and cardboard cities full of unemployed youths was too much but as one Greek tourist-shop-owner clarified "They're not coming because of the problems. But we don't have a problem with German people, only their government." Tourism - the one remaining possibility for Greece to drag themselves out of the quagmire (aside from olive oil and yoghurt) - is now under pressure as The Germans ("That's just the way Germans are: if there's trouble in some country, then Germans just don't go there on their holidays.") wage "an economic war against Greece". Sadly the xenophobic and nationalist tensions are indeed rising (as we warned many times in the past - and suggest will be the ultimate undoing of the political compact in Europe) as the crisis had revived anti-German sentiment from World War Two that most thought had long since disappeared. "The Greeks moved on and tried to forget, then this. If you ask me, Germany owes Greece billions for all the murders and war crimes. Germany should pay Greece what it owes."

I think German economic reparations as a theme could have legs, especially in countries Germany destroyed just 77 to 83 years ago, especially in countries like Greece that faces yet another type of destruction, again by German hands..  This situation could hop, skip, and jump from old wounds, to bad blood, to visceral hatred much faster than the Germans can understand or quantify.  Greece's economic crisis is just beginning to bloom.  Germany, and the rest of the E.U. will all be impacted.  After that, how much longer will it be before diplomacy, decorum, and civility are fully abandoned?

SOHO Lasco C2 – Giant UFO flying close to the Sun

The Truth Behind The Scenes.  Excerpts:

An unusually shaped, gigantic UFO was spotted on the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) – April 24, 2012.



The strange object flying close to the sun looks unnervingly like a huge, metallic Alien Craft with jointed metallic arms.


Just say it!  It's a fucking Transformer!  SAY IT!  For the love of God; somebody call Shia Le Bouf!

Mystery boom and shaking in Georgia identified as an earthquake

The Extinction Protocol.  Excerpts:

A mysterious boom that shook portions of Appling late Monday was confirmed Tuesday as a minor earthquake, according to Columbia County authorities. The event, which registered a 2.1 magnitude on the Richter scale, occurred at 9:26 p.m. and was located near Columbia and Appling-Harlem roads, Emergency Services Director Pam Tucker said. The temblor was not listed on national earthquake monitors, but was confirmed by a seismologist at Savannah River Site, she said. “This would explain the loud boom and shaking that many residents felt,” she said. Earthquakes occur periodically in the area, which lies along the fall line, where the Coastal Plains and Piedmont regions meet.

Will this be an one-off event, or the beginning of a new cycle of booms?  As one commenter pointed out, "Why all the sudden are these earthquakes being accompanied by booming sounds?"  She's right:  It's weird, and rather recent.  Rumbles and cracks, yes.  The booms, and those weird skyquakes and apocalypse trumpets are new.  And disconcerting, as Core-De-stabilization-or-Magnetic-Pole-Shift-as-possibility should be considered.

Time-bomb? Residents too afraid to sleep, ‘It’s making sounds we never heard before’

Popocatepetl follow up, File Under:  Uh-Oh..  The Extinction Protocol.  Excerpts:

Residents at the foot of Mexico’s Popocatepetl volcano no longer sleep soundly since the towering mountain roared back into action over a week ago, spewing out a hail of rocks, steam and ash. “We close our eyes, but we don’t sleep much. In the past, there was only smoke but this time it’s stronger,” said Francisco Jimenez, who lives in the nearby town of Xalitzintla in central Mexico, 55km from Mexico City. The volcano, Mexico’s second highest peak at 5 452m, started rumbling and spurting high clouds of ash and steam on 13 April, provoking the authorities to raise the alert to level five on a seven-point scale. The alert extended a security cordon around the volcano but stopped short of starting evacuations of about 685 000 residents from nearby communities. Over the weekend, residents watched as Popocatepetl, which means “smoking mountain” in the indigenous Nahuatl language, lived up to its name, spouting glowing rocks and shaking the ground beneath their feet.
And:
Popocatepetl is an explosive volcano that can suddenly erupt at tremendous force, thrusting out rocks and ashes at large distances. That kind of volcano can be more dangerous than those releasing only flowing lava. Residents say they are used to the permanent threat of the volcano but many say the new activity makes them nervous again. “We’ve been watching out for many nights, waiting to see what happens,” said Gabino Santibanez, mayor of San Pedro Benito Juarez, a small town only 9km from the glowing crater. Locals said that most frightening was the unusual rumbling coming from the volcano, which many compared to an aircraft turbine. “We’ve never heard a noise like it,” said Maximiliano Grajales. About 4.5 million people live on the outskirts of the volcano, which lies at the crossroads of the states of Puebla, Morelos and Mexico.

Tsuruga Nuke Plant Reactor 2 May Have Been Sitting on Top of Active Fault All These Years

Like Fukushima and that new petrochemical fire, today's discovery is not terribly surprising; Just terrible.  EX-SKF.  Excerpts:

As the mayor of Tsuruga City was strongly promoting nuclear power generation in the county in China that has a nuclear power plant with 6 operating reactors and 4 under construction, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency warned the operator of Tsuruga Nuclear Power Plant that Reactor 2 of the plant may be sitting on an active fault.



Even in Japan, the national guideline is not expecting a reactor to be built on top of an active fault.
And:
On April 24, an expert in active faults and officials from the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) studied the area where the strata are exposed at JAPC's Tsuruga Nuclear Power Plant in Tsuruga City in Fukui Prefecture. They particularly looked at the crack called "fracture zone".



As the result, the expert pointed out that the crack that runs underground at about 150 meters west of Reactor 2 "may be an active fault, and it may move together with the active fault called Urazoko Fault that runs through the compound, making the shaking from an earthquake bigger than anticipated".


There is another crack that runs right beneath Reactor 2. It needs to be studied to determine if it is also an active fault. NISA has instructed JAPC to do the survey again.

When it comes to Japan's nuclear capabilities, this doesn't feel like the last colossal fuck up we'll  hear about, now does it?  Unsafe and unstable safety policies applied to substances that require the highest standards of safety and stability is a terrible path to follow, and the country of Japan probably has several more examples..  The question then being:  Can Earth handle it?
 
Related:  What shoe drops next?

North Korea's nuclear test ready 'soon'

Kim Jong Un is working overtime to test global boundaries and push American buttons.  Inter Aksyon.  Excerpts:

 North Korea has almost completed preparations for a third nuclear test, a senior source with close ties to Pyongyang and Beijing told Reuters, which will draw further international condemnation following a failed rocket launch if it goes ahead.

The isolated and impoverished state sacrificed the chance of closer ties with the United States when it launched the long-range rocket on April 13 and was censured by the UN Security Council, including the North's sole major ally, China.


Critics say the rocket launch was aimed at honing the North's ability to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of hitting the United States, a move that would dramatically increase its military and diplomatic heft. (Which did not work, by the way..)


Now the North appears to be about to carry out a third nuclear test after two in 2006 and 2009.


"Soon. Preparations are almost complete," the source said when asked whether North Korea was planning to conduct a nuclear test.


This is the first time a senior official has confirmed the planned test and the source has correctly predicted events in the past, telling Reuters about the 2006 test days before it happened.


The rocket launch and nuclear test come as Kim Jong-un, the third of his line to rule North Korea, seeks to cement his grip on power.


Kim took office in December and has lauded the country's military might, reaffirming his father's "military first" policies that have stunted economic development and appearing to dash slim hopes of an opening to the outside world.


Washington, Seoul and Tokyo, which have most to fear from any North Korean nuclear threat, are watching events anxiously and many observers say that Pyongyang may have the capacity to conduct a test using highly enriched uranium for the first time.
And:
South Korean defense sources have been quoted in domestic media as saying a launch could come within two weeks and one North Korea analyst has suggested that it could come as early as the North's "Army Day" on Wednesday.



Other observers say that any date is pure speculation.
And:
Pyongyang desperately wants recognition from the United States, the guarantor of the South's security. It claims sovereignty over the entire Korean peninsula, as does South Korea.



"North Korea may consider abandoning (the test) if the United States agrees to a peace treaty," the source said, reiterating a long-standing demand by Pyongyang for recognition by Washington and a treaty to end the 1950-1953 Korean War, which ended in a truce


What I'd like to know, with finality, about North Korea's actions is this:  Are these random, angry, attention-seeking events the whim of Kim Jong Il's, and now Kim Jong Un's impulse and temper?  Or, is there Motive and Rationale behind each action?  Does the U.S. know this, thererfore diplomatically treating the country like a permissive parent does a petulant child?
 
Also, will Obama really view a nuclear test as an Act of War?  No matter what it is, Our (American) response will be interesting.  Personally, I think the failed rocket launch will factor in American assessment, even if the nuclear test proceeds.  They can build bombs, but they can't fly rockets.  They're still several years out from being a serious threat, and by then, America's diplomatic relationship with North Korea might be in a very different place..  
 
North Korea as political system cannot continue sustaining itself.  It's also a potentially HUUUUUUUGE untapped market for Capitalists world wide(after the peace treaty or collapse, whatever.).  Provided we can make it to that day, I can see a time where North Korea will be a peaceful, successful member of the global community, the beneficiary of both the world's goodwill and cutting-edge technology.  Without the threat of war, North Korea is a blank slate.  
 
(Me staying Positive and Optimistic)Think of the potential! 

Super Secret Hypersonic Aircraft Flew Out of Its Skin

Rather surprising admission from DARPA.  Yahoo News.  Excerpts:

It turns out that tearing through the atmosphere at 20 times the speed of sound is bad for the skin, even if you're a super high-tech aircraft developed by the government's best engineers at its far-out research agency.



DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, has made public its best guess about what might have caused its unmanned arrowhead-shaped Hypersonic Technology Vehicle (HTV-2) to suddenly lose contact and crash in the Pacific just a few minutes after slicing through the sky at Mach 20 last August: it was going so fast its skin peeled off.


After an eight-month investigation, DARPA concluded that even though the HTV-2 was expected to lose some of its skin mid-flight, "larger than anticipated portions of the vehicle's skin peeled from the aerostructure," the agency said in a statement Friday.


The agency said it expected the HTV-2, which goes so fast it can make the commute from New York to Los Angeles in 12 minutes, to experience "impulsive shock waves" at such speeds, but shocks it experienced last August were "more than 100 times what the vehicle was designed to withstand."

While the test was very public, the details of the HTV-2's design, stability system and potential purpose remain highly classified.

Two months after DARPA's test, the Army tested its own hypersonic aircraft - this one a long-range weapon system called the Advanced Hypersonic Weapon (AHW) designed to strike any target in the world in just a couple hours.

Any further guesses to purpose?  In 15 or 20 years, the HTV-2 will make a great pizza delivery vehicle!

NASA Viking Found Alien Life on Mars Back in 1976 Says, Scientist

Nice.  UFO Blogger.  Excerpts:

..  A new study exposed the fact that NASA had discovered the alien life on Mars — several decades ago. A team of scientists claim one of the early Mars lander missions actually found life, but the data was misinterpreted at the time.



"They say they found bacteria when searching data collected 30 years ago by NASA's Viking mars robot. Researchers say that what scientists thought was simple geology is actual bacterial activity." (Therefore, evidently, easily dismissed..)


The Viking mission was the first to show conclusive evidence of water on Mars, but they also looked for evidence of life in soil samples.

More background on the video at the link..  It took NASA 36 years to either "re-interpret" data or tell us about it?  NASA kind-of admitted weakness regarding their data analysis, didn't they? Still, this wouldn't be NASA's most ridiculous moment, so, maybe.. 

Also:  Did Humans Come From Mars?

This Week's Volcano To Watch? Mexico City's Popocatapetl

Mexico City on alert as Popocatepetl volcano spews rock and ash  The Telegraph/UK.  Excerpts:

Eruptions from the Popocatepetl volcano began to grow larger a week ago as columns of ash began pouring from more than 60 openings in the 17,886 foot high cone.



On Friday a low pitched roar and rolling towers of ash and steam were spewed out as some of the pressure built up inside the magma chamber escaped.


Glowing rock fragments have also been sighted more than 3,000 feet down the slopes of the volcano.


Mexico's National Disaster Prevention Centre have now raised the volcano alert level to "yellow stage three" – the third highest level.


Incandescent materials, ash and smoke are spewed from the Popocatepetl Volcano (AFP)

Tens of thousands of people live in the farming villages on the volcano's flanks while roughly 25 million people live within a 60 mile radius.


It is feared the airborne ash could cause havoc with Mexico City's busy airport and a large eruption of Popo, as it is commonly known, could see ash falling on Mexico City itself, around 50 miles away. 43 miles southeast, actually.

25 million people within 60 miles.  That's quite a lot of people to evacuate safely and efficiently, provided Popo really pops.  Yes, there have been many false alarms, and right now there's still no reason to expect the worst.  Still, this seems to be the year where everything breaks loose.  When it comes to Everyday Life and Earth Events, past context doesn't really apply anymore.

Meanwhile, worried countenances cast wary glances southeast, many breathing silent prayers, hoping the monster calms down, one more time..  Popocatepetl continues belching smoke, and its intermittent rumbling comforts no one.

Even More Nuclear Hotness, Or: Thanks Again, Japan! Again!

C'mon Japan;  pull it together.  You've already had your share of radioactive shenanigans.  Course correct, please..  Maybe you could try affirmations on your mirror..  Something about not killing the world with negligent nuclear use and storage practices might be a big help..  "I'm Japan!  People like me!  I can and will  handle nuclear substances safely!"

Update on Petrochemical Complex Fire: 2nd Explosion in the Morning of April 22, Depleted Uranium Containers Safe  In the nuclear fashion world, Depleted Uranium is the new Plutonium!  EX-SKF.  Excerpts:

FNN News says there are about 3,400 containers of depleted uranium at the plant, but according to Mitsui Chemical there is no damage to the containers.

From the original report..

(UPDATED) Explosion at Petrochemical Complex in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Radioactive Waste Stored at the Complex

Mitsui Chemical's petroleum complex in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture had an explosion and a fire at about 2:20 AM on April 22, 2012, according to Yomiuri Shinbun (4/22/2012). Several people were injured, and window glass broken in wide areas.


Someone on Twitter has dug up information from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) that lists companies that have radioactive waste on the premise. Mitsui Chemical's complex in Yamaguchi Prefecture is one of them. According to the MEXT data from 2009, the complex has 3,379 containers of nuclear waste.

Mitsui Chemical:  Your new choice for nuclear slapstick.

7 million bats die from WNS: ‘We can’t stop this thing and its marching across the country’

Disturbing.  Bad things will happen if the bats go away..  PR Web via The Extinction Protocol.  Excerpts:

Over 7 million bats have been wiped out by a disease (WNS) that is rapidly spreading across the country. It’s an extinction of animals by disease that has no precedent in recorded history. First identified in the northeastern United States, WNS has wiped out an estimated 95% of Pennsylvania’s bat population and is quickly spreading across the country. It was most recently discovered in Missouri, Delaware and Alabama. “This is like bringing small pox to the New World. It is surely an unprecedented wildlife disaster for North America,” said Bucknell University professor Dr. DeeAnn Reeder. Reeder is one of the country’s leading experts on WNS, and one of the researchers responsible for identifying the cause of the disease in 2011. “We can’t stop this thing. It’s marching across the country and we’re going to see some extinction.”

Does it absolutely blow your mind that so many horrible catastrophes are all happening simultaneously?  Now; bats?  Good luck in your extinction-level battle for survival, my flying friends.  At the moment, the odds are not in your favor.  Here's hoping your science-friends can unlock the mystery to your demise before that demise happens, forever changing the entire Web of Life.

Israel's Key Energy Provider, Egypt, Cuts Off All Natural Gas Supplies

Twist:  Major.  Zero Hedge.  Excerpts:

Two months ago, we warned that while the world had decided to blissfully move on from last year's topic #1, the MENA revolutions, and specifically the massive power vacuum left in their wake, things in the region were far from fixed. Quite the contrary, and as we added back then "it is very likely that the Mediterranean region, flanked on one side by the broke European countries of Greece, Italy, Spain (and implicitly Portugal), and on the other by the unstable powder keg of post-revolutionary Libya and Egypt, will likely become quite active yet again. Only this time, in addition to social and economic upheavals, a religious flavor may also be added to the mix". Yet nobody cared as after a year of daily videos showing Molotov Cocktails dropping like flies, people had simply gotten habituated and needed some other source of excitement. Nobody cared also when a week ago Art Cashin warned that the hidden geopolitical risk is not Spain but Egypt. Today, Egypt just reminded at least one country why perhaps caution about the instability caused by having a military in charge of the most populous Arabic country and the one boasting "the Canal", should have been heeded after Egypt just announced that it is cutting off its natural gas supplies to Israel, which just so happens relies on Egypt for 40% of its energy needs.

..
Furthermore, if the Egyptian move is indeed an escalation in strategic alliance shifts in the region, it could have truly huge implications:

The Egyptian decision is a potential blow to the country's ties with Israel, already tested by the toppling of Israeli ally President Hosni Mubarak a year ago.



Egypt was the first of two Arab countries to sign a peace treaty with Israel, in 1979, followed by Jordan in 1994.a

This is a big deal.  Coal, Petroleum and Gas make up over 99 percent of Israel's energy consumption.  Close to One Half of One Third of their resources are now gone.  Imagine the impact in your own country, say three weeks in..  Imagine you and yours dealing with a much larger disruption than this one:  What do you think?  What if an energy crisis occurs world-wide?  Humanity Freaks the Geek OUT.  Unless the situation is corrected, there will probably be a lot of repercussions, both intended and not. 

If this supply disruption lasts for any length of time, tensions in the region will increase..  Very, very quickly.

Blues beat Sharks 3-1 to win series

Hell to the yeah.  Century Link.  Excerpts:

St. Louis, the Number 2 seed in the Western Conference, won a playoff series for the first time in a decade against a franchise that reached the conference finals the previous two years.  Before this series, St. Louis hadn't won a playoff game in eight years.

The Mayans were right!  The Prophecy..  Something something..  Fulfilled!