Free Republic

As the Islamic invasion advances, mosques are proliferating across the United States at breakneck speed. And there appears to be no end in sight. Since 9/11, the number of mosques in America has grown by 75%. The timing of this is no coincidence. Mosques are a symbol of Islamic supremacism. Islam attacks. Then it plants a triumphal mosque on the battlefield. And another. And another. And another. The proliferation of mosques is also a sign of our incomprehensible response (or lack thereof) to the threat of Islam. War has been waged against the United States and what have we done?...

...the oil-service stocks started to slide. I called the analysts and nobody had a good explanation why. Oil demand was still growing, driven by Asian economies that were expanding at a 7% annual rate. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries still seemed to have a stranglehold on oil prices, as U.S. crude production, which peaked at around 10 million barrels a day, was down to below 6.5 million barrels a day and falling steadily. By 1998 Asia’s demand had shrunk by 350,000 barrels a day amid a growing financial crisis that should sound familiar to anybody today. Economies stumbled...

Looks like the diplomatic efforts of Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi may have paid off. Khaled Mashaal, who ran the recent Hamas war on Israel from the safety of Doha where he has long kept his organization’s worldwide headquarters, got kicked out of Qatar altogether — along with the Muslim Brotherhood. CNN reports that the expelled officials will likely end up in Turkey: Hamas political leader Khaled Meshaal and members of the Muslim Brotherhood have been expelled from Qatar, a Hamas-run news agency reported Tuesday. The officials are most likely headed to Turkey, the report said.The move comes after...

As a test of wills between OPEC nations and U.S. shale drillers fuels a global oil market slump, a brewing battle between Canadian and Saudi Arabia heavy crudes for America's Gulf Coast refinery market threatens to drive prices even lower. While the stand-off between the oil cartel and U.S. producers of light, sweet shale oil has captured the limelight in recent months, the clash over heavier grades - playing out in the shadowy, opaque physical market - may put even more pressure on global prices that have halved since mid-2014. Two factors will come into play over the next few...

In the midst of the Russian government's tightening control on Internet use, Intel has shut down all of its Russian-language developer forums, blaming the country's new 'Blogger Law' that became effective on 01 January 2015. Users of the Russian developer forums are now being redirected to post on Intel pages hosted on third-party sites including Habrhabr, or to its own English developer forums outside of Russia. As part of the latest crack down, blog post contributions will be disabled; forum contributions will be disabled; in addition to turning off all commenting for Russian content.

Oil traders are well aware of the supply glut but oil producers seem largely oblivious. With West Texas Intermediate crude breaching the $50 US a barrel threshold for the first time since April 2009 on Monday, the collapse in the price of oil that began last June resumed after the Christmas holiday and set the stage for continued volatility in 2015. Despite forecasts for lower drilling activity and oilsands investment in the year ahead after a 50 per cent decline in oil prices in six months, Canada is one of a number of the worldÂ’s largest producers pumping record volumes...

The number of rigs drilling for oil in the United States fell by 17 this week, as energy companies facing lower crude prices reduced the rig count for the fourth straight week, data from oil services firm Baker Hughes showed on Monday. The oil rig count dropped to 1,482 in the week to Jan. 2, its lowest level since March, the data showed. The number of oil rigs has declined in nine of the last 12 weeks since hitting a record high of 1,609 in mid-October. The number of rigs remains up more than 100 from the same time last...

Myles Udland January 5, 2015The first full week of 2015 got off to a terrible start, with the major stock indexes getting crushed and the price of oil crashing to new lows. First, the scoreboard: • Dow: 17,501.6, -331.3, (-1.86%) • S&P 500: 2,020.6, -37.6, (-1.83%) • Nasdaq: 4,652.6, -74.2, (-1.57%) And now, the top stories on Monday: 1. As was the case for the last few months of 2014, 2015 started with just one thing at the top of investors' minds: the price of oil. On Monday, West Texas Intermediate crude oil broke below $50 for the first time...

It's quite the sobering Monday on Wall Street as many traders and investors return from their holiday hiatus. The Dow plunged over 300 points in mid-day trading as stock markets around the world fell sharply. What's going on? The main culprits of market jitters these days are falling oil prices and the souring global economy. Crude oil now trades at about $50 and even dipped briefly below that level on Monday -- another psychological threshold for the market. Experts now predict oil could go as low as $40 or even $30 a barrel. While that's great for U.S. consumers, who...

Gasoline prices are on the verge of crashing down to below $2 a gallon nationally. The price of oil may dip below $50 a barrel. Even with renewed demand from a global economic resurgence, energy prices continue to fall. The U.S. has suddenly become the world’s largest combined producer of oil and natural gas. That fact – along with a desire to weaken hostile Iran and Russia – has prompted the oil-rich Gulf sheikdoms to keep pumping oil even as the price falls. In their game of petro-chicken, the desperate sheiks hope that either their poorer enemies will run out...

Like a lot of other dramatic bluster coming south out of Canada this winter, the Keystone XL pipeline stands poised for its big approval fight this month. Advocates claim it will put Montana in the mix for North American energy independence. Opponents say it will allow the most polluting oil on the planet to contribute to global warming while putting water supplies at risk. The U.S. Senate fell one vote short of approving Keystone during its lame-duck session last month, even though President Barack Obama threatened to veto the measure. But what if it doesn’t matter? While the Keystone project...

Despite the recent plunge in oil prices, Vladimir Putin is on his way to becoming one of the most successful authoritarian leaders of the modern era. His sham democracy leaves just enough freedom for dissidents and the media so that he can take on the appearance of legitimacy. In parliament, most members of the political opposition are handpicked by him and seldom oppose him on any serious matter. But it is in his Orwellian propaganda methods where he has really excelled. Whether it’s inventing atrocities by the “fascist” pro-Western government of Ukraine or denying responsibility for the downing of a...

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — The Dow plunged almost 200 points during early morning trading Monday as concerns about a surging dollar and crude oil — which was hitting five-year lows — weighed heavily on investor sentiment. A dearth of data early in the week, puts the spotlight on oil, which has fallen more than 3% Monday and the euro, as the shared European currency dropped to a nearly nine-year low against the dollar. The U.S. jobs report, due Friday, will be among the market’s key drivers this week as economic data will be scant.

Oil futures continued to tumble Monday, knocked to fresh 5 1/2 year lows as investors remain focused on a surging dollar and growing supplies of crude oil. Meanwhile, news reports last week said Russian oil production continued to rise in December. “The reason behind what could be the next leg lower? The economic conditions the oil markets face have not changed, which is eliminating buyers from even considering entering [long] positions,” said Jameel Ahmad, chief market analyst at FXTM. A rising U.S. currency makes dollar-denominated crude more expensive to users of euros, yen and other units.

MOSCOW — A year ago, most Ukrainians didn’t want to join NATO. US tanks weren’t doing training exercises near the Russian border. And a dollar bought 33 rubles. But after the most tumultuous stretch of President Vladimir Putin’s 15 years in power, Russia is facing a new reality. Ukraine — the part not held by rebels — has turned firmly toward Europe. NATO troops are on alert in the Baltics, near the Russian frontier. And the ruble has lost nearly half its value against the dollar, wiping away years of gains for Russia’s middle class. Putin has also won major...

Frankfurt (AFP) - Tougher sanctions may destabilise the situation further in Russia and plunge the country into chaos, German deputy chancellor Sigmar Gabriel warned in a newspaper interview on Sunday. "The goal was never to push Russia politically and economically into chaos," Gabriel told the Bild am Sonntag. "Whoever wants that will provoke a much more dangerous situation for all of us in Europe," he said, pointing out that Russia was a nuclear power. The aim of the sanctions imposed against Russia so far was to steer the country back to the negotiating table. "Those who want to destabilise Russia...

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is prepared to let Greece leave the eurozone if Greeks elect a government that jettisons the country’s current austerity course, according to German media reports. The report in the Der Spiegel daily, which cited sources close to the German government, comes as polls show a radical leftist party leading the field three weeks ahead of a snap election in Greece. The Syriza party of Alexis Tsipras has pledged to reverse reforms imposed by Greece’s international creditors and renegotiate its bailout deal. …

Retired Southwest Airlines co-founder Herb Kelleher remembers a Texas bumper sticker from the late 1980s, when falling energy prices triggered an ugly regional downturn: “Dear Lord, give me another boom and I promise I won’t screw it up.” Texas got its wish with another energy-driven boom, and now plunging oil prices are testing whether the state has held up its end of the bargain. The Lone Star State’s economy has been a national growth engine since the recession ended, expanding at a rate of 4.4% annually between 2009 and 2013, twice the pace of the U.S. as a whole. The...

Tumbling oil prices could prove to be a boon for the many Asian economies that depend on crude imports. With oil at its lowest price in more than five years, governments in countries such as India and Indonesia can spend money on much-needed infrastructure and other growth projects without stoking inflation. Falling crude prices also give China’s flagging economy a boost, allowing its central bank—and others in the region—to ease rates even as a recovering U.S. looks to do the reverse, economists say. Combined with loose monetary policy and a gradual recovery in global demand for goods and services, falling...

Stefano Pozzebon and Reuters January 5, 2015 U.S. crude and Brent futures dropped to fresh 5-1/2-year lows on Monday as worries about a surplus of global supplies amid weak demand continued to drag on oil markets. At 11.30am GMT (6.30am ET) Brent was trading at $55.35 a barrel, losing 2%. Previously, it temporally slipped as low as $55.16, its the lowest values since May 2009. Here is a chart of how it looked at 11.30am GMT (6.30am ET): Brent 5.1.15 11.30am Investing.com U.S. crude slid as low as $51.40 a barrel, also its lowest since May 2009, and at 11.35am...