MÁLAGA, Spain: Oscar Agudo, a successful architect who has designed everything from apartment blocks to soccer camps along the Mediterranean coast of Spain, is now keeping busy mostly by valuing repossessed houses and analyzing real estate disputes for the courts.

In less than a year, Spain has gone from brisk growth to acute distress as a global housing bust, high energy prices and the world financial crisis have drained its lifeblood - an epic building boom built on constantly rising property values - at a frightening speed.

"The longer the crisis goes," Agudo said, "the harder it will be to live off the past."

It may be time for Spain to look to a different future. The country's love affair with building made construction a signature Spanish industry in Europe, even larger as a share of the economy than it was in Germany in the early 1990s, when the large-scale rebuilding of the former East Germany was under way.

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The French EU presidency is expected to endorse the Russia-Georgia ceasefire, offer humanitarian aid and urge EU unity in a statement after an EU foreign ministers meeting on Wednesday (13 August), with Paris keen to avoid controversy on who to blame for the crisis.

Preparatory discussions by EU diplomats on Tuesday saw a group of former communist states speak in "sharp language" about Russia, but the tone was "less radical than they used for their domestic press," one diplomat who attended the debates told EUobserver.

The foreign ministers meeting room in Brussels

"The presidency thinks, right now, it's better to focus on problem-solving, rather than trying to go into characterisation of the war, who started what, who reacted, and the EU is united behind the idea," he added. "The presidency wants to preserve as much room for manoeuvre for future mediation as possible."

Wednesday's EU statement will probably be a French declaration rather than a formal joint position by all 27 countries, an EU official said.

EU foreign ministers meeting Wednesday debated sending international peacekeeping monitors to Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia to uphold an EU-brokered truce between Russia and Georgia.

At an emergency meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Wednesday, Aug 13, France led calls to send in international peacekeepers to Georgia's breakaway province of South Ossetia to replace Russian troops there.

"The idea of having monitors -- what you call peacekeeping troops, I wouldn't call them like that -- but European controllers, monitors, facilitators, yes, yes and yes. That is how Europe should be on the ground," French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner told reporters in Brussels.

While it looks as though the fighting between Georgia and Russia has abated in the strategically important Caucasus region, the conflict still sent waves of concern through already jittery international energy markets.

Despite the fact that Georgia itself does not produce oil, the country is a key transit point for crude and gas exports from Azerbaijan to markets in the West and disputed reports of Russian warplanes staging raids near the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, the world's second longest, has put Europe, in particular, on alert.

 

Inaugurated in 2006, the BTC pipeline carries oil from Azerbaijan on the shores of the Caspian to Western markets via the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan. It is capable of transporting 1.2 million barrels a day.

 

The US is to send troops to embattled Georgia in the form of a humanitarian aid exercise, President George Bush announced today.

Mr Bush said military planes would deliver supplies in a move which would put American forces in the heart of the region.

The president said he was concerned that Russia might be violating the cease-fire in Georgia and he expected all Russian forces to withdraw.

He is also sending Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Paris for talks with EU peacemakers and then to Georgia to express solidarity with the democratically elected government there.

Mr Bush spoke after meeting his national security team over the crisis in Russia.

Bank of England governor Mervyn King today warned of a period of economic stagnation as the UK goes "through a difficult and painful adjustment".

Projections from the Bank show output broadly flat during the next year, but City economists said with inflation set to remain above target for some time it was unlikely that interest rates would come down in the near future.

The Bank's assessment of the UK economy is much gloomier than in May's quarterly report, amid weaker prospects for consumer spending and investment.

Mr King did not rule out the possibility that the UK could enter a period of recession, as defined by two successive quarters of negative growth.

Serbia's Labor Minister Rasim Ljajic chairs his country's National Council for Cooperation with The Hague Tribunal. In an interview with SPIEGEL, he speaks about the arrest of Radovan Karadzic and the prospects of finding General Ratko Mladic.

 Bosnian Serb General Ratko Mladic is still on the run. SPIEGEL: Mr. Minister, you -- as well as President Boris Tadic -- have been the target of death threats since the extradition of Radovan Karadzic to the War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague. You haven't been able to leave your house in two weeks. Where are the threats coming from?

Rasim Ljajic: From Germany, Holland, Belgium, Austria and Bosnia.

SPIEGEL: Presumably from Serb exiles.

Ljajic: Our police, working in close cooperation with officials in those countries, are now trying to analyze all the calls I have received. It seems to me that these are very serious threats from organized groups.

The number of people claiming unemployment benefit rose in July at the fastest rate for almost 16 years as the UK jobs market came under increasing strain.

The Office for National Statistics' monthly labour data published on Wednesday showed that the claimant count rose by just over 20,000 to 864,700. It was the sixth month in succession that the number rose. The rise however was still below levels prevailing in the early 1990s, when monthly increases in the claimant count of 50,000 were common.

Total unemployment - including those jobless not on benefit - rose by 60,000 during the three months to the end of June to 1.67m. The unemployment rate, the best measure of joblessness, also increased by 0.2 percentage point to 5.4 per cent, compared with the previous three monthly period.

The number of job vacancies also dipped by 47,400 to 634,900. Unemployment is expected to continue to rise as the economy slows and redundancies announced by building companies and financial institutions in particular start to take effect.

Royal Bank of Scotland's efforts to offload businesses suffered a setback on Wednesday when the UK banking group scrapped the sale of its operations in Australia and New Zealand after the last remaining bidder dropped out.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the country's biggest mortgage lender, blamed uncertainty in world financial markets as it withdrew from talks to buy the business.

RBS, which acquired the businesses through its role in the break-up bid for ABN Amro, the Dutch lender, had earmarked them for disposal as part of a programme designed to boost its capital reserves by £4bn ($7.5bn).

Nevertheless, the scrapped sale underlines the difficulties facing banks that are seeking to raise capital by selling subsidiaries. RBS is already facing questions about the sale of its UK insurance operations after several bidders dropped out

The Great Resource War is already underway, mainly in the Middle East, but also in smaller skirmishes scattered areas around the world, disguised to many as the Global War on Terror, says Jim Miles.

 
I - Introduction and Overview

This is one of the more difficult articles/reviews I have worked on. I have been well aware of Peak Oil for a while, but never did I gather so much information in one sitting that simply spelled out doom and gloom.

I live alternately surrounded by the incredible amazing flexibility and beauty of nature contrasted with the ever-present artefacts and contrived superficialities of humanity crafted on the basis of ample and cheap fossil fuels (as well as its benefits of agricultural wealth and medical advancements). Since the 1960s environmentalists have been sending out warnings about the future of our environment if we do not care for it. They have been mostly ignored until now, when global warming concerns have proved a direct threat to individual lives as well as possible future lifestyles. At the same time, the industrial era based on cheap fossil fuels that created the climate change is rapidly drawing to a close - in what form humanity survives that closure is open to debate, but debate is not what is needed.

What is needed is action, not the action of the Washington consensus and the free marketers who have chosen to act through their global war on terror as a pretext to harvest and protect the last remaining years of oil production thereby maintaining their position under the mantra that "the American way of life is not negotiable." What is needed is action that moves us towards new energy sources as quickly as possible, away from oil, towards an economy based on renewable energy and - choke on this all you industrialists and corporatists - an economy that does not grow. This world is finite.

The end of cheap oil is happening now. The economy is already suffering for it, and unlike the Great Depression, recovery will not be a simple matter of putting people back to work. The Great Resource War is already underway, mainly in the Middle East, but also in smaller skirmishes scattered areas around the world, disguised to many as the Global War on Terror (or drugs as in the case of Colombia).

George W. Bush ordered US military forces on Wednesday to lead a "vigorous" humanitarian mission to Georgia as Washington sharply increased pressure on Russia over its military action in the former Soviet state.

A US air force cargo plane carrying aid landed in Tbilisi on Wednesday and Mr Bush said more air and naval forces would arrive in the next few days.

Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili claimed initially that the humanitarian mission meant US forces would take control of Georgia's ports and airfields, but the US defence department later strongly denied that.

While Mr Bush insisted that US forces were headed to Georgia for solely humanitarian purposes, however, the prospect of US military involvement represented a significant sharpening in Washington's response to the crisis.

Mr Bush said he expected Russia to ensure that "all lines of communication and transport" were open to delivery of humanitarian supplies.

The US intervention came as the European Union endorsed a peace deal brokered by France this week. During an emergency meeting in Brussels, foreign ministers from the 27 EU member states expressed broad support for the idea of sending peacekeepers to South Ossetia but insisted the move had to be approved by the United Nations first.

Britain's Royal Navy on Tuesday also pulled out of a joint military exercise involving Russia, after the UK said it would be "highly inappropriate to do so in the current circumstances".

Mr Bush made a veiled threat that Russia could be expelled from the Group of Eight industralised nations and other international institutions, warning that its actions in Georgia were "inconsistent with the principles" of such groups.

The US president said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice would visit Tbilisi this week to convey America's "unwavering support" for Georgia's democratically elected government. She was expected to first visit Paris on Thursday to consult with President Nicolas Sarkozy over French-led diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.

The US government spent $85bn (£45bn) between 2003 and 2007 on contractors for services in support of the Iraq war and reconstruction, a report says.

And by the end of 2008, spending is likely to top $100bn, a review by the Congressional Budget Office found.

Supporters say their use is cost-effective but there have also been documented cases of overcharging.

Concern over security contractors also grew following the shooting deaths of 17 Iraqis in September 2007.

Japan's economy contracted at an annualised 2.4 per cent in real terms in the second quarter, confirming fears that the world's second largest economy could be facing a recession for the first time in six years.

The Japanese government said gross domestic product fell in the April to June period after growing a revised 3.2 per cent in the first quarter.

The biggest factor behind the drop in domestic demand was a 15.6 per cent year-on-year decline in private residential investment, which reflects the continuing impact of tighter construction standards the government introduced in July last year.

Given the downturn in the global economy and rising input prices, the slowdown of the Japanese economy is expected to continue until the first quarter of next year, analysts say.

India's economic growth will slow to 7.7 per cent this fiscal year from 9 per cent in 2007 as high oil and food prices and tightening credit markets take their toll, a government panel forecast on Wednesday.

In its outlook for the year through March 2009, the Economic Advisory Council to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said inflation would slow to 8 to 9 per cent, but said that the central bank would have to maintain a "tight monetary stance" to tame rising prices.

The council also warned of mounting fiscal stress due to rising government subsidy bills for items as petroleum products and fertiliser, forecasting that off-budget liabilities would reach around 5 per cent of GDP.

"Despite appreciable fiscal consolidation, large and growing off-budget liabilities are a matter of concern," the report said. "When these are included, the fiscal situation no longer looks stable and sustainable."

India's economy has grown an average of 8.8 per cent a year for the last four years, attracting the attention of global investors. But the council said India is being hit by international economic turbulence.

Oil prices rebounded on Wednesday, leading grains and base metals higher, after US weekly inventories data showed unexpectedly large declines in crude oil and product stocks.

Nymex September West Texas Intermediate rose $4.13 to $117.14 a barrel after touching a session high of $117.43 while ICE September Brent added $3.54 at $114.69 a barrel.

US crude stocks fell 400,000 barrels, above the consensus forecast for a drop of 200,000 barrels, after tropical storm Edouard disrupted imports, which dropped 538,000 barrels a day to 9.66m b/d.

The main boost to oil prices came from a massive drop of 6.4m barrels in gasoline stocks, much greater than the consensus forecast of a 2.1m barrel decline.

However, the stock drop was offset by ongoing weakness in US petrol demand, averaging 9.44m barrels a day during the past four weeks, down 1.9 per cent compared with the same period last year.

When Murphy the garden gnome disappeared from Eve Stuart-Kelso's garden in Gloucester, she feared she might never see him again.

But seven months later he was back, complete with a photo album detailing his extraordinary global odyssey. Steve Knibbs reports.

A 40-foot-long humpback whale took a detour on his way to summer feeding grounds in the Arctic and ended up near one of Germany's favorite beach destinations, the idyllic island of Rügen. The whale's jaunt is turning into an extended vacation.

This summer it's not just tourists and fishermen enjoying the warm water of the Baltic Sea. For two weeks, a humpback whale has been cavorting near Rügen, an island off the northern German coast better known for its nude beaches and natural beauty.

 First spotted (more...) on July 25 near Cape Arkona, on the island's northern tip, the whale is way off course: humpbacks usually migrate north to the Arctic at this time of year. The last time a humpback was spotted in the Baltic was 1978.

This week it was revealed that a German woman has spent a decade living in Palma's main terminal. But what would it be like to live in an airport? Is it a des-res with multiple bathrooms and ample parking? Or hell on earth? Tom Mitchelson spent three days (and nights) at Gatwick - and wonders how she does it

I'm huddled on a hard plastic bench. Harsh fluorescent lights beat down on me. Armed police patrol nearby. I haven't slept for three days and I'm so bored I'm having hallucinations. This is not life on the street. This is life in a big, centrally-heated, windowless cube. I am living in the South Terminal of London's Gatwick Airport.

I'm following in the footsteps of a homeless and unemployed 48-year-old German woman known simply as "Bettina". She's been living in Mallorca's Palma airport for 10 years, pushing around three suitcases, a blanket, a pile of books and her white cat Mumu. Bettina told a local newspaper she'd arrived in Mallorca over a decade ago looking for a new start after a relationship ended and she lost her office job. After a short spell waiting tables, Bettina's work dried up and she found herself with no job, no home and no money. Her only choice, she says, was to live in the airport.

Luckily for Bettina, Spanish authorities tend to turn a blind eye to people living in the terminal, as long as they don't bother passengers. Other airport dwellers aren't so lucky. Briton Anthony Delaney made headlines in February when he defied an ASBO banning him from living in Gatwick airport - his home for three years.

Two Italian senators want to make the Italian moonshine known as grappa legal. The step would keep homemade booze drinkers safe and protect commercial grappa outfits, they say.

AFP

Chaff from these vineyards could add up to some tasty, legal moonshine if two Italian senators have their way. It may soon be legal for Italians to brew their own highly alcoholic grappa at home -- at least if two of the country's senators have their way. On Tuesday Enrico Montani and Sergio Divina began their campaign to legalize the homemade production of the clear grape-based spirit.

The senators presented a bill which would allow Italians to brew the liquor at home in quantities up to 30 liters so long as they comply with hygiene requirements and do not sell it, the Italian news agency ANSA reports.

"The tradition has hardly disappeared," the senators said. Many Italians secretly distill grappa at home. The drink is made using the grape skins, pits, and stalks remaining in the wine press after grape juice has been carted away to make wine. Grappa originated in Northeast Italy, and is usually served in coffee or as a digestive after large meals.

The human brain could become a battlefield in future wars, a new report predicts, including 'pharmacological land mines' and drones directed by mind control

Rapid advances in neuroscience could have a dramatic impact on national security and the way in which future wars are fought, US intelligence officials have been told.

In a report commissioned by the Defense Intelligence Agency, leading scientists were asked to examine how a greater understanding of the brain over the next 20 years is likely to drive the development of new medicines and technologies.

They found several areas in which progress could have a profound impact, including behaviour-altering drugs, scanners that can interpret a person's state of mind and devices capable of boosting senses such as hearing and vision.

On the battlefield, bullets may be replaced with "pharmacological land mines" that release drugs to incapacitate soldiers on contact, while scanners and other electronic devices could be developed to identify suspects from their brain activity and even disrupt their ability to tell lies when questioned, the report says.

Roundup: Host China suffers first loss, favorites Brazil, Cuba undefeated_English_Xinhua

Three-time Olympic champion Cuba staged an inspiring comeback from two sets down to give the host China its first loss in women's volleyball preliminaries on Tuesday.

It took the South Americans more than two hours to claim their third consecutive victory 18-25, 14-25, 25-23, 32-30 and 15-13 despite the overwhelming cheers of more than 15,000 home fans for the Chinese.

Hats off in particular to Rosir Calderon whose unbelievable and fearless spiking helped Cuba fight through five (maybe six) match points to win the fourth set and set up the final show-down in the fifth set.

Cynicism is intellectual treason.

Breakfast

Phelps kick starts his day and his metabolism with three fried-egg sandwiches, but with a few customised additions: cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, fried onions and, of course, mayonnaise.

Amuse-bouche out of the way, he throws back two cups of coffee and sits down to an omelette - containing five eggs - and a bowl of grits, a porridge of coarsely ground corn. He's not finished yet. Bring on the three slices of French toast, with powdered sugar on top to make sure there's no skimping on the calories. And to finish: three chocolate chip pancakes.

Lunch

With breakfast wearing off and the hunger pangs biting, Phelps downs half a kilogram - ie a whole packet - of enriched pasta and two large ham and cheese sandwiches. On white bread with loads of mayo on top. To remove any chance that his body will run out of fuel, he washes this down with about 1,000 calories of energy drink.

Dinner

Time to load up on carbs for the next day's training. Another half kilo of enriched pasta goes down the hatch with a chaser of an entire pizza and another 1,000 calories of energy drinks. And so to bed. As Phelps told US television channel NBC yesterday: "Eat sleep and swim, that's all I can do."

For Mr. McCain, the conflict came after months of warnings about the situation in Georgia. Mr. McCain befriended Georgia's president, Mikheil Saakashvili, over the course of several trips there, and even nominated him for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2005 (in a letter that was co-signed by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, Democrat of New York).

I saw this and it made me laugh.

A police dog carries a cat when ordered to, in a display of skill, during a show at the Russian OMON riot special police training base outside Moscow, May 10, 2007.

Of course the media show their anti-Russian sentiment by leaving out the pictures showing what the cat was doing before than got him in trouble.

Really, what do you expect in a country that pays its teachers in vodka?

And I'll give my consent to any government that does not deny a man a living wage-Billy Bragg