-Caveat Lector- from: http://www.aci.net/kalliste/ <A HREF="http://www.aci.net/kalliste/">The Home Page of J. Orlin Grabbe</A> ----- US Stocks A Bookstore Bigger Than Norway by Bob Harris Priced any internet stocks lately? This isn't just a speculative bubble. If Richard Branson's balloon was this large, he'd be all the way to Morocco by now. What's more valuable? The bookseller Amazon.com, which has yet to show a dollar in profit and is dwarfed in several respects by several of its competitors, or the country of Norway? You guessed it. Do the math, folks, and according to the speculators now ruling the casino on Wall Street, the market capitalization of Amazon.com now exceeds that of the entire stock market of Norway. Does that sound reasonable to you? It gets better. Suppose for a second that Amazon.com had a complete monopoly on every book sold in the United States. According to Barron's, the stock is still priced at fifty times the hypothetical earnings. Which means Amazon.com is now worth five to ten times what it would be worth if it sold every single book in America. Are we getting close to a crash? Oh, possibly. That hissing sound you hear might just be the airbag getting ready to [deflate]. Calling the exact timing of market movements is considered almost impossible, but two of the most powerful indicators of an impending downturn are a) the opinions of investment newsletters, and b) the ratio of people buying call options, (a high-risk, high-reward way of betting the market's about to go up quickly) to those buying puts (a similar bet on an impending drop). Both of these groups are notoriously wrong, so when you see all the newsletters going positive, or you see twice as many calls being bought than puts, that's usually a good time to start looking for the exits. Last week, Barron's reported what they termed a "buying panic" in call options, and the investment newsletters were more bullish than they've been in seven years. Uh-oh. This is just one guy's opinion here, so take my advice at your own risk -- it could be weeks before a downturn, or even months -- but remember the last time I was this amused by stock overvaluations was literally days before last summer's big pullback (radio edition of The Scoop, broadcast on KNX 1070 AM in Los Angeles 7/11/98). So do your own thinking. Norway, Amazon. Amazon, Norway. Hmm... I don't want to alarm anyone out there, but... RUN!!!!!!! The Scoop, Jan. 11, 1999 Information SuperSpyWay India Issues Red Alert Against US Network Software Encryption is weak so the NSA can spy on India THE Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has issued a `red alert' against all network security software developed in the US. And the Central Vigilance Commissioner, N Vittal, is following up on the warning - he might make it mandatory for all Indian banks and financial institutions to buy only software developed in India. The DRDO's concern about US-developed software stems from one basic insecurity - the data traffic and network security software that comes from the US can be easily hacked into and could prove to be a security hazard. Currently US software vendors can export only those "encryption software products" that can be `broken' by the US National Security Agency. This makes the quality of the US software exported to India doubtful from a security point of view. In a letter to the CVC, the centre for artificial intelligence of the DRDO, Bangalore, has said that it has begun to develop secure communication tools and will have an indigenous prototype in place in three months. The CVC is expected to wait for the final product before deciding on the action to be taken. The centre has developed software tools that protect wide area networks from hostile attackers. It is also developing software tools for protecting traffic passing through the network. "The encryption part of the software is complete and only the communication protocols remain to be written," the DRDO unit's letter says. "Since the software has been written by ourselves, there is no upper limit on the security level provided by the encryption in the software exported from the USA," it added. Pointing out the defects in imported software, the letter says that the present `firewall' products on sale by commercial vendors incorporate only rudimentary packet level filtering. These can be compromised easily. It also points out that as per US law, ``no encryption software products can be exported from the US if they are too strong to be broken by the US National Security Agency''. The letter says: ``To put it bluntly, only insecure software can be exported. When various multinational companies go around peddling `secure communication software' products to gullible Indian customers, they conveniently neglect to mention this aspect of the US export law. "Another related point is that when we buy an imported software product that is a `black box' to us, we cannot be sure that the software package does not contain a time bomb of sorts, to cause havoc to the network when an external command is issued by a hostile nation.'' Mr Vittal is also believed to have agreed to this and said he was in favour of working towards developing the indigenous software within three to four months. However, banks are yet to receive any directive from the CVC on this issue. The Economic Times, India, Jan. 12, 1999 Fin-de-siecle High-Tech Executive Resigns to Study UFOs "remarkable being, clothed in white light" SAN JOSE -- A Silicon Valley executive who has propelled several high-tech companies to starry heights is quitting the business to pursue his own planetary passion: extraterrestrial beings. "There is a bigger picture out there than just tomorrow's stock price,'' said Joe Firmage on Monday. "I've had explicit confirmation that the UFO phenomenon is in fact occurring, and I'd like to be a part of this fundamental revolution in our society.'' Firmage, 28, said he decided to quit being the chief strategist at the Internet consulting firm USWeb/CKS Corp. to save the company from "public relations complications'' as he pursues his investigations. It's a big step for this Silicon Valley wonderboy, who began his high-tech life at 17 by founding Serius Corp. The company, selling object-based programming tools for personal computer developers, was acquired by Novell in 1993 for an estimated $24 million. Firmage was acquired as well, becoming Novell's vice president of strategic planning. He left Novell and co-founded USWeb in 1995 with several other Novell executives. Last month the company merged with CKS Group Inc. to form a company with $260 million in annual revenues. "I've done a lot in my life,'' Firmage said. "I have a lot to be thankful for and proud of. I also have shown that I'm rational and level headed.'' Firmage said his priorities shifted 15 months ago, after an encounter at his Los Gatos, Calif., home with a "remarkable being, clothed in brilliant white light ...'' "I don't call them aliens. I call them teachers,'' he said. Since that experience, Firmage has been investigating and publicizing what he says is the existence of UFO phenomena. So far, he says the pursuit -- which includes a book published on the Internet -- has cost him $3 million and quite possibly his reputation as a savvy high-tech businessman. Last November, concerned that his beliefs could drag his company down, Firmage stepped down as CEO to be replaced by Robert Shaw, a 51-year-old former Oracle Corp. executive. On Monday Firmage said he needed to break away from USWeb/CKS entirely, rather than potentially damage the company. USWeb/CKS officials said they will miss Firmage and regretted the loss. Fox News, Jan. 12, 1999 ----- Aloha, He'Ping, Om, Shalom, Salaam. Em Hotep, Peace Be, Omnia Bona Bonis, All My Relations. Adieu, Adios, Aloha. Amen. Roads End Kris DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
