The Peanut Gallery

Statements, comments and forecasts that have no substance, but just might turn out to be relevant.

1.Ibrahim Qashoush's lyrics moved thousands of protesters in Syria who sang his jaunty verses at rallies, telling President Bashar Assad, "Time to leave." So when his body was dumped in the river flowing through his hometown, his killers added an obvious message: His throat was carved out. Qashoush's slaying underlines how brutal Syria's turmoil has become as authorities try to crush a persistent uprising. The PG continues to insist that Syria is in the throes of a civil war. Expect more death and chaos as the Saudis attempt to break the Syria-Iran coalition.

2.An exclusive Newsweek/Daily Beast poll of Egyptian voters portends Muslim Brotherhood influence, and trouble for the West, with this fall’s elections approaching. PG: 30% of Egyptians are illiterate. Its clear that the brotherhood will make a mockery of CNN's arab spring. The Peanut Gallery continues to declare that the arab spring is a political farce created to place a positive spin on this administration's disasterous middle eastern policies.

3.Mobs of ordinary Egyptians joined with soldiers to drive pro-democracy protesters from their encampment in Tahrir Square here Monday, showing how far the uprising's early heroes have fallen in the eyes of the public. Six months after young, liberal activists helped lead the popular movement that ousted President Hosni Mubarak, the hard core of these protesters was forcibly dispersed by the troops. Egyptians ganged up on the activists as they retreated from the square that has come to symbolize the Arab Spring. Expect a confrontation between the army and The Muslim Brotherhood!

4.Anybody remember Libya? Remember the western press cheering as "the tough guys" rushed in to save the "the good guys"? John Wayne and the 7th Cavalry doing it Hollywood style. Well, folks, as it turns out, this movie will probably run out of financing. The debt ceiling crisis simply magnifies the stupidity of the Libya decision. It also deepens the perception that most decision makers in the US, from the president down to the senate and congress are disconnected from the realities of a new world order that is slowly evolving.

5.A European study involving nearly 1,000 participants has found no link between cellular-phone use and brain tumors in children and adolescents, a group that may be particularly sensitive to phone emissions. The study, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, was prompted by concerns that the brains of younger users may be more vulnerable to adverse health effects—such as cancer—from cellphones. Children have a developing nervous system, and cellphone emissions penetrate deeper into their brains.

6.WASHINGTON—The U.S. for the first time formally accused Iran of forging an agreement with al Qaeda, a pact in which Tehran helps move money, arms and fighters through Iranian territory to the terrorist group's bases in Pakistan and Afghanistan. "By exposing Iran's secret deal with al Qaeda allowing it to funnel funds and operatives through its territory, we are illuminating yet another aspect of Iran's unmatched support for terrorism," David Cohen, the Treasury Department's undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said on Thursday. PG: Are the Americans laying the initial groundwork for a strike against Iran?

7.The head of the Turkish armed forces General Isik Kosaner along with the heads of the ground, naval and air forces have resigned, broadcaster CNN Turk reported on Friday, apparently plunging NATO's second biggest military into disarray. The civilian government is trying to take control of the secular military for its own purposes. PG: This might takes years if not decades and emphasises the divide between secular and religious Turks.

8.Central banks are ramping up their gold buying as they seek to diversify their reserves away from the dollar and other beleaguered currencies. South Korea became the latest government to disclose a big bullion purchase, saying Tuesday that it recently bought 25 metric tons - more than doubling its holdings to 39 metric tons. Mexico, Russia and Thailand have also been major buyers in 2011.

9.George Soros sold all his gold holdings in the first quarter of this year, A year after calling it the "ultimate bubble". The price at the time of this inspired statement was below $1000 an ounce. On the other hand, John Paulson is still holding on tight to his gold. The peanut gallery maintains that gold, and the poor cousin, silver are in a primary bull market that is entering the blowoff stage. This is where phsycology takes over, so expect dramatic action in these markets. 

10. The US debt deal is done. Lets look at the numbers. Ten years from now, at the present interest rate the debt should be $24 trillion. The present cuts reduce this figure to $22 trillion. A drop in the ocean. The markets crashed on the news. Probably because the business world had a good look at who is running the show, and voted with their feet. Meanwhile while everybody points fingers, history will only point to one individual. The commander-in chief Barack Obama. Amazing how this politician immediately takes credit for the good news but distributes blame for the bad news.

Yesterday's answer has nothing to do with today's problem - Bill gates