Volcano erupts in a tiny island off Yemen

A volcano erupted today on a tiny island off Yemen - according to a report by Canadian Navy.
Ken Allan,a Navy spokesman, said a NATO fleet just outside the territorial waters of the tiny Yemeni island reported seeing a "catastrophic volcanic eruption" at 7 p.m. local time. The 2-mile-long island is about 70 miles off the coast of Yemen.
"At this time, the entire island is aglow with lava and magma as it pours down into the sea. We do not have confirmation of how many people were on this island at the time of the eruption," Allan said in an e-mail.

"The lava is spewing hundreds of feet into the air, with the volcanic ash also (rising) a thousand feet in the air," Allan said.

The Canadian Armed Forces said they are trying to locate nine people believed to be at sea after the Yemen coast guard requested help.

The NATO fleet was sailing toward the Suez Canal when it spotted the eruption. The government of Yemen asked NATO to assist in the search for survivors and the closet ship, the HMCS Toronto, is heading toward the island.

Mynamar: Video of place minutes before Japanese journalist Kenji Nagai was shot by soldiers

This video clip was taken by a civilian journalist on September 27, 2007 north of Sule Pagoda in Rangoon where Japanese journalist Kenji Nagai was shot in the chest by Burmese soldiers. It was filmed minutes before he was killed nearby.

Myanmar: The crisis is likely to get worse

The crisis in Burma (or Myanmar as renamed by the military junta) is getting worse by the hour.
The military junta has cut off internet links to the outside world as amateur videos and pictures flooded the internet showing brutal repression by the military authorities since the crackdown started.
What are the chances of military regime giving up power?
The answer in my opinion is: no chance at all
unles..
yes, unless the UN security council passes a resolution that it will bomb the military installations of the junta unless it leaves the people of Burma alone.
But that is not likely to happen as China, Russia,India and many other smaller players have an eye on Burma's energy resources - oil and off-shore gas fields. These countries will not take any steps that will jeopardize their economic relations with the regime. And the regime knows this very well.

So this will probably be another business as usual crackdown on the monks and populace of Burma.

Bush administration has set up team to perfect plan for Iran strike

TimesOnline is reporting that Bush administration has set up a team to pefect plans to attack Iran:

THE United States Air Force has set up a highly confidential strategic planning group tasked with “fighting the next war” as tensions rise with Iran.

Project Checkmate, a successor to the group that planned the 1991 Gulf War’s air campaign, was quietly reestablished at the Pentagon in June.

It reports directly to General Michael Moseley, the US Air Force chief, and consists of 20-30 top air force officers and defence and cyberspace experts with ready access to the White House, the CIA and other intelligence agencies.

Warnings of a massive and prolonged recession

If you have wondered about what is going on in the financial markets and World economy in general recently, you will probably find this interesting.
Satayajit Das is one of the leading credit derivatives analysts in the world. His analysis and predictions for the future is dire: The world is heading into a prolonged recession.