MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

By Patrick Cockburn – “Greece is expecting to agree the terms of European leaders for a rescue package this evening as the country seeks to avoid a default on its international debts. But Greeks fear that the cuts, imposed on them in return for a €130bn bailout, is sending the country spiralling into a catastrophic depression.

The deal was to be considered by eurozone Finance Ministers in a conference call tonight, but final agreement has been once more postponed until next week while European leaders review the credibility of Greek party leaders’ promises that there will be no back-sliding on the terms.

‘The country is on a knife’s edge,’ said Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos as party leaders signed a pledge to implement the agreement that will inevitably deepen Greece’s depression. The conservative leader Antonis Samaras, who is likely to be the next prime minister of Greece after an election, today reluctantly signed a letter committing him to cuts in wages, pensions, jobs and state expenditure…

The mood in Athens is a mixture of fatalism and gloom.” Read more.

Greek economy spirals down as EU forces final catharsis that may plunge country towards anarchy – “The escalating brinkmanship came as fresh data showed that Greece’s economy contracted by 6.8pc last year and at an accelerating 7pc rate in the last quarter, far worse than expected by the European Union (EU), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) “troika”. The country appears to be in a self-feeding downward spiral that is playing havoc with budget targets, leaving Greece with a Sisyphean task of ever deeper cuts… Blackened buildings set alight by protesters on Sunday were cordoned off on streets around parliament in Syntagma Square, a vivid reminder to Greece’s politicians that any misjudgment could push the country towards anarchy.” Read more.

Flashback: ‘Perfect Storm’: In Case You Still Don’t Get It, Here’s Why A Greek Default Should Put ‘Fear In Your Heart’ – “Economists and investors see a Greek default as the biggest test of the world financial system since the crisis that followed the collapse of Lehman Brothers investment house in 2008… A breakdown in talks could trigger steep losses in stock markets in Europe and the U.S. Just as in 2008, banks could stop lending to each other, and the credit freeze could cause a market panic. More importantly overseas, it could cause borrowing rates for Portugal and Italy to jump, pushing those much larger countries closer to defaults of their own. That’s only the beginning…” Read more.

CNN – “Moody’s cut the credit ratings of six European countries on Monday amid continued anxiety over the continent’s debt crisis and its sluggish economy.

Italy, Malta, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain were all downgraded, while three other countries — Austria, France and the United Kingdom — had the outlook on their current Aaa ratings changed to ‘negative.’

Ratings for Italy and Spain now sit at A2 and A1, respectively, while Portugal is rated Ba2, all with negative outlooks.

Moody’s said in a statement that the main drivers of the ratings changes included ‘the euro area’s prospects for institutional reform of its fiscal and economic framework’ and ‘the resources that will be made available to deal with the crisis.’ The agency also cited fragile market confidence and Europe’s ‘increasingly weak macroeconomic prospects.'” Read more.

Fitch cuts ratings on 4 Spanish banks, citing previous downgrade of country’s sovereign debt – “Fitch Ratings downgraded four banks in Spain Monday as a result of its downgrade of that nation’s credit rating. The downgrade of Spain’s debt last month will weaken the government’s ability to support its largest banks, Fitch said in a statement. That makes those banks’ debt more risky. At the same time, a weak real estate market and economy will also depress the values of assets held by the banks, Fitch said.” Read more.

S&P Downgrades 34 Italian Banks After Reducing Nation’s Rating – “UniCredit SpA, Intesa Sanpaolo SpA and Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA were among 34 Italian financial firms downgraded by Standard & Poor’s, after the credit-ratings company reduced the nation’s grade last month. UniCredit, Italy’s biggest bank, and No. 2 Intesa had their long-term ratings lowered to BBB+ from A, S&P said yesterday in a statement. Monte dei Paschi, the No. 3 bank, was reduced to BBB from BBB+. All three have a negative outlook, S&P said. Italy’s credit rating was cut two levels to BBB+ from A on Jan. 13 as S&P said European leaders’ struggle to contain the region’s debt crisis would complicate the country’s efforts to finance borrowings.” Read more.

Update 2/13/2012: At least 45 buildings set ablaze, over 70 injured so far, at least 67 arrested. Read more …

By DEREK GATOPOULOS – The Associated Press – “ATHENS, Greece — Greek lawmakers on Monday approved harsh new austerity measures demanded by bailout creditors to save the debt-crippled nation from bankruptcy, after riots in Athens and other cities left stores looted and burned and more than 120 people hurt.

The historic vote paves the way for Greece’s European partners and the International Monetary Fund to release $170 billion (euro130 billion) in new rescue loans, without which Greece would default on its mountain of debt next month and likely leave the eurozone — a scenario that would further roil global markets.

Lawmakers voted 199-74 in favor of the cutbacks, despite strong dissent among the two main coalition members.

In response, the Socialists and conservatives expelled 22 and 21 lawmakers, respectively, reducing their majority in the 300-seat parliament from 236 to 193.

Violence was also reported in six other cities, the worst in central Volos where the town hall and a tax office were damaged by fire, police said.

Sunday’s clashes erupted after more than 100,000 protesters marched to the parliament to rally against the drastic cuts, which will ax one in five civil service jobs and slash the minimum wage by more than a fifth.

At least 45 businesses were damaged by fire, including several historic buildings, movie theaters, banks and a cafeteria, in the worst riot damage in Athens in years. Fifty police officers were injured and at least 70 protesters were hospitalized. Sixth-seven suspected rioters were arrested and a further 70 detained.” Read more.

By David McNeill – “Researchers working around Japan’s disabled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant say bird populations there have begun to dwindle, in what may be a chilling harbinger of the impact of radioactive fallout on local life.

In the first major study of the impact of the world’s worst nuclear crisis in 25 years, the researchers, from Japan, the US and Denmark, said their analysis of 14 species of bird common to Fukushima and Chernobyl, the Ukrainian city which suffered a similar nuclear meltdown, showed the effect on abundance is worse in the Japanese disaster zone.

The study, published next week in the journal Environmental Pollution, suggests that its findings demonstrate ‘an immediate negative consequence of radiation for birds during the main breeding season [of] March [to] July’.

Two of the study’s authors have spent years working in the irradiated 2,850 sq metre zone around the Chernobyl single-reactor plant, which exploded in 1986 and showered much of Europe with caesium, strontium, plutonium and other radioactive toxins. A quarter of a century later, the region is almost devoid of people.

Timothy Mousseau and Anders Pape Moller say their research uncovered major negative effects among the bird population, including reductions in longevity and in male fertility, and birds with smaller brains.

Many species show ‘dramatically’ elevated DNA mutation rates, developmental abnormalities and extinctions, they add, while insect life has been significantly reduced.” Source – The Independent.

Radioactive cesium in San Francisco-area milk now at 150% of EPA’s maximum limit – “The EPA Maximum Contaminant Level for radioactive cesium in milk is 3 picocuries/L: ‘EPA lumps these gamma and beta emitters together under one collective MCL [Maximum Contaminant Level], so if you’re seeing cesium-137 in your milk or water, the MCL is 3.0 picocuries per liter; if you’re seeing iodine-131, the MCL is 3.0; if you’re seeing cesium-137 and iodine-131, the MCL is still 3.0.’ … These are the highest cesium levels detected by UCB since at least August 2011 (As the MDA was higher over the summer, it’s hard to be sure of the exact levels at that time):” Read more.

By John Hutchinson – “Less than two months ago the crippled Japanese nuclear power plant at Fukushima was declared stable.

Yet now it has emerged that radioactive water is continuing to leak at the stricken site. These were spotted by workers at the reprocessing areas and were found to release enough beta rays that can lead to radiation sickness.

A series of nuclear meltdowns at the power plant were triggered by the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011.

The organisation charged with keeping the site under control is the Tokyo Electric Power Company, and their spokesman Junichi Matsumoto said that no one was injured and the leak stopped after bolts were tightened on a tank.

Matsumoto said TEPCO also found that 8.5 tons of radioactive water had leaked earlier in the week after a pipe became detached at Unit 4, one of the plant’s six reactors.

The company earlier had estimated that only a few gallons had leaked.

He said officials are investigating the cause of that leak, but that it was unlikely the pipe had been loosened by the many aftershocks that have hit the plant.

The structural integrity of the damaged Unit 4 reactor building has long been a major concern among experts because a collapse of its spent fuel cooling pool could cause a disaster worse than the three reactor meltdowns.” Read more.

Fukushima worker: Reactor 4 full of nuclear fuel, collapse would destroy Pacific Ocean – “Reactor 4 had nuclear fuel in it. The Fukushima blogger leaked information on her blog… ‘Yesterday I heard this story. I wasn’t sure if I should post it on the blog. It proved all the announcement of Tepco was wrong… Tepco was planning to start reactor 4 in the AM of 311. (The nuclear fuel was in reactor.) Nuclear workers were told not to get close to reactor 4. They found a crack on the pipe of reactor 4, so they cancelled to start it as scheduled. It was hit by the earthquake on the same day. Soon after the earthquake hit it, meltdown started. Because reactor 4 was stand-by, cooling system could not be started either… In the container vessel of reactor4, melted fuel is stocked, but there is no technology developed to pick it up, It’s only the matter of time for it to have melt-out. If another earthquake hits it, it’s over… if it goes melt-out, it would flow to the sea. Pacific ocean side of Japan and west side of America won’t be [habitable] anymore.'” Read more.

Nikkei: Two sieverts/hr of beta radiation emitted from a single liter of leaked water – “TEPCO announced on February 3 that the water leaked from one of the contaminated water storage tanks at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant. 2,000 millisieverts/hour beta radiation was detected… The bolt may have gotten loose at the joint of a storage tank that stores the contaminated water that was condensed by the desalination apparatus (Reverse Osmosis), letting the water leak. TEPCO said a large amount of radioactive strontium might be in the water. On the concrete where the leaked water was, 22 millisieverts/hour gamma ray was also detected” Read more.

“NEW YORK (AP) — Remember Greece?

It’s been two years since a financial crisis erupted in the birthplace of drama, and the final act is still unfinished. A second week of talks in Athens ended Friday with no deal between the country, the European Union and private holders of Greek bonds.

Remarkably, even after the crisis became such an international worry last year that the leaders of France and Germany were actually referred to as “Merkozy,” the European debt bomb could still explode, with Greece as the fuse.

Economists and investors see a Greek default as the biggest test of the world financial system since the crisis that followed the collapse of Lehman Brothers investment house in 2008.

It is also the biggest threat to what has been a successful start to the year in the U.S. stock market. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index has gained 4.7 percent, roughly half its average for a full year, in just four weeks.

‘If talks break down next week and it looks like they can’t reach a deal, it raises all sorts of risks,’ says Jeffrey Kleintop, chief market strategist at LPL Financial. ‘The stock market could probably lose half its gains for the year.’…

A breakdown in talks could trigger steep losses in stock markets in Europe and the U.S. Just as in 2008, banks could stop lending to each other, and the credit freeze could cause a market panic.

More importantly overseas, it could cause borrowing rates for Portugal and Italy to jump, pushing those much larger countries closer to defaults of their own.

That’s only the beginning…” Read more.

Eurozone crisis: angry Greeks condemn EU plot to control its finances – “Greece has reacted furiously to a German proposal that an EU budget commissioner with oversight of its economy be installed in Athens after mounting speculation that international lenders will have to stump up yet more money for the country. The escalating row threatened to eclipse Monday’s summit after Greece’s finance minister, Evangelos Venizelos, issued a tart response to the suggestion, saying his compatriots were themselves capable of fulfilling the ‘historical obligation’ to take the country out of crisis. The proposal, in a leaked document, argued for the creation of a commissioner with veto powers over the Greek budget, saying Athens’ inability to meet fiscal targets had made the post a precondition of further rescue funds from its ‘troika’ of creditors: the EU, IMF and ECB.” Read more.

Pundits fear ‘perfect storm’ despite official optimism – “Despite attempts by political and business leaders to suggest the eurozone has turned a corner, the prevailing view of pundits is things can only get worse and a “perfect storm” is brewing… Some of the players most closely involved with the crisis since the 2008 financial meltdown insisted there was now light at end the tunnel with European Central Bank president Mario Draghi hailing ‘outstanding progress’… But, in an end of forum debate, experts predicted the break-up of the eurozone, economic malaise in the United States and a rise of militancy — and then there are the consequences of a conflict over Iran’s nuclear programme.” Read more.

“Tokyo, Jan. 23 (Jiji Press)–Tokyo Electric Power Co. <9501> on Monday reported an increase in radioactive materials leaking from damaged nuclear reactors at the Fukushima No. 1 power plant.

The total amount of radioactive cesium that leaked from the containment vessels of the No. 1 to No. 3 reactors reached 70 million becquerels per hour, up 12 million becquerels from the December level, the power firm said.

It seems that radioactive dusts were stirred up because plant workers went inside reactor buildings and removed rubble, TEPCO officials said.

The outcome was reported to the second meeting on medium- to long-term measures toward decommissioning of the damaged reactors held between the firm and the government on Monday.

Last month, the leaked amount was put at 10 million becquerels each for the No. 1 and No. 2 reactors and 40 million becquerels for the No. 3 reactor.” Source – Jiji Press.

Report: Concern raised that Reactor 2 disintegration means it will not last long enough to begin removing melted fuel – “Actual Fukushima worker Happy20790 concerns reactor can not last until they manage to take out the fuel debris. He tweeted about it on 1/20/2012. Happy20790 ‘From the video of endoscope, SUS pipes were not so corroded but carbon pipes have gone so corroded. We are supposed to start taking out the fuel debris in 10 years from now but I bet it does not last so long… The coating of the PCV wall is also being ripped off and the wall itself is very corroded though it’s better spec than system7. It must have been such a heat. Hatch of the operation control or airlock are even thinner so I’m worried about that too. I suppose rubber packing is also damaged.” Read more.

Worker: Radiation so high at Reactor 2 it broke endoscope camera – “The coating inside of the reactor was damaged and ripped off like squama. From the gap of the pressure between inside of the reactor and suppression chamber, Tepco assumed the water level could be above the grating cover, but they could not see the water at least above the cover… Actual Fukushima worker analyzes the main problem is the extremely high level of radiation… ‘The camera we used today can resist for 1000Sv, but even the camera got so much noise (the white spots), the radiation level is really high. At usual reactor test, we put water-resistant camera into the reactor but it gets too much noise when the camera goes close to the highly radioactive place called top guide… If you put the camera at too radioactive place for too long, the camera gets broken. Today the endoscope became like that. To get more detailed image, we would need a more protective camera.” Read more.

Full Video of Inside the Reactor 2 Containment Vessel

By Mac King – “The aftermath of the tsunami that ransacked the Japanese coast led to one of the worst nuclear meltdowns in the history of the world. Now, two researchers believe it may also have played some role in killing tens of thousands of Americans.

‘[It’s] 155,000 deaths,’ Joseph Mangano said, ‘so we’re not talking about an increase from three to five deaths. We’re talking about quite a few.’

Mangano works at the Radiation and Public Health Project. The report he co-authored for a medical journal suggesting a link between Fukushima fallout and an increase in deaths in the United States has stirred up some controversy.

‘The authors appeared to start at a conclusion,’ Scientific American’s Michael Moyer wrote, ‘ – babies are dying because of Fukushima radiation – and work backwards, torturing their data to fit their claims.’

But Mangano said his critics miss the point.

‘We have not stated conclusively that Fukushima fallout killed 22,000 Americans,’ he said.

Instead, he and co-author Dr. Jannette Sherman cite numbers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s weekly morbidity report. That data showed a large spike in deaths – particularly infant deaths – in the 14 weeks following the Fukushima meltdown.

‘And the highest ones,’ Mangano said, ‘were in Boise, Idaho.'” Read more.