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This post was updated at 8:16pm PST, July 25: New insight concerning Davis' disappearance is found in a February 27, 2008 Global Winnipeg news story (thanks to Beyond90Seconds.com reader "Tami" for forwarding the link):

His family told police he has never gone missing like this before and they are very worried about his safety.

Davis appears to have a troubled past: police say he is "known" to them, and court records show Davis has a number of outstanding charges for failing to comply with court orders and a drug related offense. He also has a prior conviction for assault. -Global Winnipeg

PODCAST

(July 25) In a phone interview with Beyond90Seconds.com Friday afternoon, Constable David Higgs of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police confirmed that the body found inside a barrel pulled from the Lee River Wednesday was that of 22-year-old Chad Randall Davis.

Davis as reported missing in Winnipeg on February 10, 2008.

Special thanks to Beyond90Seconds.com reader "Leo" for leaving a comment that the body had been identified as Chad Davis. That prompted a quick Google search which turned up nothing.  However, I called the home of George Knight (one of the men who found the body).  A person answering the phone at Knight's home explained that Channel 5 in Winnipeg had reported the identity of the body.

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NEW: Phone interview with George Knight; the man who first saw the body.
*PLEASED BE ADVISED THAT PODCAST IS UNEDITED & CONTAINS SOME PROFANITY

(July 24) While the Royal Canadian Mounted Police already have quite a mystery concerning the human feet that have emerged along the shores of British Columbia, another Canadian waterway has just served-up another grisly find:  The body of a man found stuffed inside a barrel that had been floating down the Lee River northeast of Winnipeg.

According to a breaking news story in this afternoon's Winnipeg Free Press, two neighbors noticed the barrel bobbing in the river Wednesday:

Two cottagers were horrified when they discovered the decomposing body of a man stuffed face-first inside a barrel floating in the Lee River on Wednesday morning.

George Knight, 69, was repairing his dock in Fisher's Grove along the Lee River, about 90 kilometres northeast from Winnipeg, when he and neighbour Richard Marcotte noticed a barrel bobbing in the water between their two properties.

Knight said he and Marcotte rolled the barrel near the river's edge and pried the lid off only to discover a man's "rear-end" wrapped in a thick plastic sheet.

"I'm pulling this plastic out and I sort or lift it up and I see this guy's rear-end," Knight said, noting he also saw jeans and a brown belt inside the barrel. "I just said to Richard, 'get out of the water!' He jumped out of the water, and I ran up to his place and called 911." (more)

Mr. Knight told the newspaper that the stench from the body was "terrible" and could be smelled 50-feet away.

The RCMP says it will not confirm the story, telling the Winnipeg Free Press that authorities are waiting for the result of an autopsy.

Stay tuned...

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Crude oil futures fell below $125 a barrel for the first time in seven weeks after a U.S. government report showed that fuel stockpiles increased as consumption tumbled to the lowest in more than a year.

Link to the original article: http://tinyurl.com/5hxfpc

technorati tags: oil, barrel, chanel, budweiser, business

Yes, finally western civilization is "planning" to break its dependency on oil, especially foreign oil.  We're years away from something tangible no doubt, but government + oil/gas are not the only ones working towards reducing petroleum consumption.

Car manufacturers are trying to get the "next best thing" out like hybrids but really it only re-enforces short-term solutions which have not been "eco-proofed".  How does one recycle a Prius battery?  That's a whole other debate by itself.

GM years ago touted an electric car which seemed to be a brilliant concept but I think they killed it themselves, the piece was in Wired (link).  Few parts, almost no lube, brilliant concept, you could change the body for another.  Now that's something I'd buy!  Why was it killed you ask - conventional business models needed to be sustained is my guess.  With no parts, little maintenance, the automaker's empire would crumble since it lives off service and parts.

And what about race car technology?  Incorporating the R&D at an aggressive pace and designing in the same lines would make much more efficient cars.  Just take weight reduction, I'm sure there are a few hundred pounds to be shaved off my Mazda6.

So the race is now on, and I'm sure that every car maker has a strategic alliance in its backpocket or more to deliver the next-gen thing.  Plus we need the re-fueling infrastructure like electric or hydrogen pumps.  My guess is that the first vendor to release a ride that will redifine the marketplace, distance itself from classical business models and deliver a true green car will win, there are so many of us willing to buy in that direction.

Morning all, bigger blog about weekend activities to come, just thought I'd wake you up with this Monday Morning Screamer.

Imagine tucking in to this baby

Let's Help Oil Companies Set Record Profits

Why are the oil companies making huge profits? Let’s look at Exxon since they have set the new records on corporate profit. Let’s keep in mind that a barrel of oil is now over $125 and a gallon of regular-grade gasoline is over $4.20 at the pump.

Could it be that a portion of Exxon's 2007 $40 billion profit is made up of taxpayer subsidies of $17 billion? Could it be that with climbing oil prices, Exxon gets those inflated prices from their pumping wells? Could it be that the oil leases on public property and seabed are grossly underpriced? Could it be that although their product, oil, is a utility that we depend on to survive, and Congress allows that product to be treated as a commodity, subject to the greed and manipulation of the market?

Regardless of what reasons are chosen, they all lead to the same results: huge, bloated profits for the oil companies and a painful slowdown of our national economy. Businesses are forced into failure, prices for all delivered goods are forced upward, the dollar is forced downward in international trading and no one but oil executives and oil company stockholders are happy.

I don’t think that it is acceptable that every working American must pay more to get to work, whether by personal auto or mass transit. I don’t think we should accept that every company in America must pay an oil premium to stay in business, whether to have their salespersons on the road or for delivery of product. While I'm pleased that the Canadians are doing well, it is the first occasion in my lifetime that the Canadian dollar is on an equal footing with the US dollar. A 20% drop in the value of the US dollar against the Canadian dollar is nothing to trivialize. But oil executives and stockholders are smiling.

Oil executives respond to questions about their record-setting profits by pointing out that it costs a lot to search for oil. And there is the cyclical nature of their business. They might not make as much profit next year. Guess what? Those profits are after deducting the cost of oil exploration -- Exxon made $40 billion in profits in 2007 and over $11 billion in profit for the first quarter of 2008, a new profit record for any company in any industry. Not bad, beating the robber-barons and monopolies of our historical lore. And yes, there are no guarantees on a company’s future earnings, not in any business. Why should oil companies be exempt from basic economic laws?

Those same executives tell us that the price of gasoline at the pump can't be lowered due to conditions in the Mideast oil producing countries. Let's see, if it costs the oil company X to produce their product and they sell it at Y, the difference is Z (profit of $40 billion). That $40 billion is given to the company shareholders, including our $17 billion in tax credits.

What if that $17 billion, plus another $13 billion were credited to the pump price instead of to the shareholders? Two things would happen. Gas prices would be lower, and Exxon shareholders would make only $10 billion. Add to those figures the profits of the other oil companies and our economy would be much more robust and many lives and companies would not be permanently damaged.

Who could help with a plan like this? Congress? Perhaps, but rather than placing pressure on oil companies to save our economy, they are advocating opening up additional off-shore oil leases. It wouldn't lower gasoline prices but it would give low cost leases to the oil companies, enabling them to pump more oil at the new inflated prices -- making more profit for shareholders.

So let’s tell Congress that maybe we should support their suggestion. It is only them and us who can help the oil companies set higher profit records. Maybe the Guinness Book of World Records would issue a certificate to each of us for helping in this historic work. We would want to nicely frame the certificates since we will have plenty of time at home to admire them -- it will be too expensive to drive to work.

IndiscreetSage

I know it probably seems like I am hung up on peppers these days but honestly that is what I have the most of in the garden right now that I am able to pick.  My Tabasco peppers are now starting to ripen I am in a dilemma as to what to do with them.  I researched the recipes on how to make my own "Tabasco" sauce and have now decided to hold my peppers in apple cider vinegar until the season is over.  Basically from what I have read the recipe is simple, harvest the peppers and blend them with sugar and vinegar, ferment the combination in an oak barrel (though I am not sure how I will do that), and then blend the final product with salt and more sugar if needed. 

So I have decided that while I wait for all of the peppers to mature I will hold them in an organic apple cider vinegar, and once the season for peppers is complete I will embark on the construction of my own version of the ever so popular "Tabasco Sauce".

-- matt bolus

Yesterday, Iran decided to launch a few missiles to show us what they've got. We get it Iran, you're a powerful, scary nation that we shouldn't take lightly. Because of Iran wanting to be the big bully that they are gas prices rebounded to well over $133 a barrel (up more than $5 from the previous day). Monday and Tuesday of this week the price per barrel fell by nearly $10 (it's like watching a tennis match!).

I think OPEC needs to stop toying with our emotions. Just a few days ago I smiled with glee when I saw that my local gas station had dropped their prices by nearly $.05 cents per gallon (making me almost able to afford that shiny new Wii I want). Now, the idea of a Wii is out the window and so is my smile.

More about the missle to gas ratio this way

If you've got a rant I'd love to hear it!

Gas stations that can't compete are going out of business. Lines of drivers wait to fill up at stations offering a few cents off the rate the guy a block away puts up.

One time we saw a bunch of cars making U-Turns into a station where the price was remarkably lower than the going rate. We followed because who doesn't want in on a good deal? It was a real life "too good to be true" scenario: The station was shut down but the owners hadn't covered the pumps or taken down the last posted price.

Visiting my parents in rural Cincinnati this summer, I am coming face to face with Liza's description. It's one thing to read about record high $145 per barrel oil prices and quite another to see the effects.

I could reason that my mother's precautionary strategizing - "You'll need to plan out what you do and where you go while you're here; gas is expensive" - is tied to her fixed budget status.

But she's been a retiree for several years. This is the first summer she has prodded for mindfulness over the odometer reading or fuel tank fill-ups.

And it's not just my mom. I asked my brother Josh for his Infiniti keys so I could make a dash to the local produce farm 10 miles down the road. He handed me the keys to his girlfriend's Honda Accord instead. "Take the other one," he offered. "Mine inhales gas."

My sister, prior to offering up her compact model SUV for an outing, queried: "How far away is your meeting?"

I filled the tank of my mother's Toyota yesterday. Kroger's post-July 4th basement bargain rate of $3.86 per gallon put me out by $50 for the tank, already a quarter full before I started pumping. Last summer's tank fill-up ran at about $35.

Prices are relative, of course. Where I come from, petrol rings in at an alarming three times the going rate in Ohio. Green-promoting, Jerusalem-based Benchmark Capital partner Michael Eisenberg takes Israel's government to task for not rising to the occasion.

I filled up my tank the other day on my Volvo S40. Over 400 NIS. With the weakening dollar that is about $120! Gasoline here is now $8.50 per gallon . . .and is showing no signs of stopping.

With that as a backdrop, Prime Minister Olmert's decision to stop building the high speed rail link between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv (link in Hebrew) is worse than bewildering. It is downright dangerous.

Given the neighborhood we live in, we should be doing everything possible to reduce oil dependency in Israel.

Maybe the PM's busy with Iran's testing. But hang on to your rail passes because if per-barrel prices really do end up rising from the current $137 to $170 by summer's end as forecast by OPEC president Chakib Khelil last week, it's going to get tighter still.

Israelis may be price-gouged but they haven't yet been hit with the doldrums of job slumping, property foreclosing recession.

Which is also in your face here in middle America.

"For Sale" signs rusty from over-exposure pepper front lawns, the local evening news routinely carries stories of families in despair and Oprah is hosting guests lamenting their loss of fortune during the current economic downturn.

Americans are all sticking closer to home these days - air travel's down and Amtrak Rails is setting records for the first time in years.

During chance meetings last week, three different people voiced deep concern over job safety and finances.

"Some days I want to scream at the salaried employees: 'FOR GOD'S SAKE YOU GET A PAYCHECK. SHUT UP AND SAY THANK YOU!'", Sales rep Barb** told me, worry lines furrowing her brow. It was evening but she had forgotten to remove the first financial bank pin from her blouse. "I didn't take a salary this month. And I don't know what's gonna happen next month. But I guess I should be thankful for not having a mortgage I can't pay. I'm scared."

And there was George, a middle management plastics industry professional who told me all he wants is to retire with his company. But recent cuts are rattling his nerves. There's no job security, even with twenty years' seniority.

Frightening stuff when viewed up close.

And if, after all the proof I still doubted America's tough times, the niggling was quelled last week when I heard NPR's report that Starbuck's is planning to shut down 600 stores.

Ach, who wants to waste the gas driving there anyhow?

I decided to back mask this speech which is regularly done with music. This is the speech which was given in BUTT MT at the picnic. There are no alterations as this audio is clean cut and raw it is not spliced added to or taken away.
My hubby and I decipher many things in this backwards conversation being said such as :
I sat in a field with Saddam Hussein
We had gay love and much much more!
The timing may be off in the text per audio but I did my best with what I have. If you hear anything else which we did not pick p feel free to add what you hear or corrections per the comment section below.
Is Barack Hussein Obama the devils son?
Is he the anti-christ?
DO you her the words which we do in this speech backwards?
Do you feel he is satanic?
Do you think that he is the beast?
Do you believe in 666 as the mark of the beast?
What is your interpretation?
One thing I know from all this is that Barack Obama can not never ever be trusted.
There is one point where you will even hear him say that he killed a man te man begged for mercy! I am wondering if it has anything to do with his gay lover from the Trinity place I can not call it a church of God since my bible and the crazy crap they preach in that place is NOT a house of the Lord.
Anyways enjoy and if any of you die hard satanic worshipers can put your two cents in to what some of the weird things which are stated that make no sense to me I would appreciate it from one Christian to a devil worshiper. I know some of you have the power of evilness that you use and can figure out what I can not so
please do.

saddam husseins in love with me  he states clearly I am sure the media will never cover this as it is

the truth and against Barack Obama and they are all paid off to report GOOD THINGS about him from their bosses so we all must rely on the world wide web to get this information out since the rest are all liars with the exception of some folks at FOX & CNN news.

Caliber: 7.62mm NATO (.308 win)
Action: Roller-delayed blowback
Weight: 4.5kg
Overall length: 1023 mm
Barrel length: 450 mm (315 mm on G3KA4 model)
Magazine capacity: 20 rounds

G3A4 - retractable butt version of the G3

During the early- to mid-1950s West Germany, like the other NATO countries, faced the need for rearming its army for the newest common 7.62x51mm NATO caliber small arms. Initially Germans preferred the Belgian FN FAL rifle, and adopted it circa 1956 under the designation of G1. Due to obvious reasons Germany wanted to manufacture its military rifles, and attempted to buy a manufacturing license for FAL, but Belgium rejected the deal. So, Germany turned to the another design, available from Spanish company CETME, and known as the CETME mod. A rifle. Germany bought the manufacturing license for CETME rifle and transferred it to the Heckler und Koch (HK) company, located in Oberndorf. HK slightly modified the CETME design, and in 1959 the Bundeswehr (W.Germany Army) finally adopted the CETME / Heckler - Koch rifle as G3 (Gewehr 3 - Rifle, [model] 3). Since that time and until the 1995 the G3 in various modifications served as a general issue shoulder weapon not only for German Armed forces, but also for many other countries. Those include Greece, Iran, Mexico, Norway, Pakistan, Portugal, Sweden, Turkey and many other countries. Total of more than 50 countries during the last 40 years issued the G3 to its forces. The G3 was or still is manufactured in countries like the Greece, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Portugal and others. The key reason of high popularity of the G3 is that it is much simpler and cheaper to manufacture, than its major contemporary rivals - Belgian FN FAL and US M14. To the best of my knowledge, the HK itself continued to produce and offer the G3 until the year 2000 or 2001, when it finally disappeared from HK catalogs and web-sites. However, the HK still manufactures a wide variety of firearms, based on the G3 design but of different purposes and calibers, like 9mm MP-5 submachine guns, 5.56mm HK 33 assault rifles, 5.56mm and 7.62mm HK 23 and HK 21 machine guns, PSG1 sniper rifles etc. In general, the HK G3 rifle can be described as one of the best 7.62mm NATO battle / assault rifles - reliable, versatile, controllable, non-expensive and, finally, very popular. For the civilian markets, HK produced the semi-automatic only versions of the G3, initially known as HK 41 and later - as HK 91.

G3A3 with drum type rear sight, plastic ventilated handguards and fixed stock

The G3 rifle is a selective fire, magazine fed rifle, built using delayed blowback action, developed by German engineers at Mauser Werke late in the 2nd World War and refined in Spain, at the CETME company. Initial models of the G3 rifle were quite similar to CETME rifles, and even had "CETME" markings on the receivers (until 1961 or so). The roller-delayed blowback action is described under the CETME Rifles, so I will not repeat it here. The G3 is built using as many stamped parts as possible. The receiver is stamped from sheet steel. The trigger unit housing along with pistol handle frame, also are stamped from steel and hinged to the receiver using the cross-pin in the front of the trigger unit, just behind the magazine housing. Earliest G3 rifles also featured stamped handguards and CETME-type flip-up rear diopter sights. In the mid-1960s the initial design was upgraded to the G3A3 and G3A4 configurations. These rifles had ventilated plastic handguards and a drum-type rear diopter sights, marked from 100 to 400 meters. The G3A3 was a fixed butt version, with buttstock made from plastic, and the G3A4 was a telescope butt version, with retractable metallic buttstock with rubber buttplate. Late German production G3A3 and G3A4 models were built using new trigger units, integral with restyled pistol grip and triggerguard, made from plastic. The shortest version of the G3 was the G3KA4, similar to G3A4 but with shortened barrel. Every G3 rifle can be equipped with detachable bipods, claw-type detachable scope mounts. Long-barreled versions can be fitted with bayonet or used to launch rifle grenades from the barrel. Folding cocking handle is located on the special tube above the barrel, at the left side, and does not reciprocate when gun is fired. The safety / fire selector is located above the triggerguard on the left side of the trigger group housing and usually is marked "S - E - F" (Safe - Single shots - Full auto). Latest models could have selectors marked with colored icons.

My garden is no where near my hose, so I thought something like this Rain Barrel from Smith and Hawken would be perfect to set down by the garden and also save on water at the same time. Crafted from high-density polypropylene, this barrel catches and keeps 60 gallons of rain water close at hand for watering chores.

Rain Barrel

It is no surprise then that last week, discount stores Aldi and Lidl announced substantial growth in like for like sales. The weekend saw a "price war" between Tesco and Asda as they tried to lend a helping hand and attract consumers already struggling with rising fuel prices and energy bills by slashing prices of everyday items by as much as 50 percent in some cases. Consumers are increasingly beginning to shop around with some using price comparison sites like mySupermarket.co.uk looking for better deals rather than just relying on one retailer. Other retailers like Sainsbury and Morrisons are also reducing prices and might also be forced to join the war by reducing prices in order to retain their customers.

DISCLAIMER: If you have a weak heart, do not read this article. Any damage, loss or temporary dizzyness caused by reading this post will be the sole responsibility of the blog surfer.

In the recent past, we have all seen Oil and gas prices soar to dizzying heights. I remember some months back, oil was around $50 a barrel....then it rose to $60....$70....$100.....and now it is almost touching $150. To add to our woes, some financial guys who keep popping up on TV have suggested that oil may even breach the $200 mark !!!

Just imagine that if oil prices keep rising at this rate, a day would come when oil will breach the $1000 mark!!

Let us envision how the world would be like when oil reaches this four figure mark !

Family-owned cars will bite the dust. People will stop buying cars, and only the super rich will be able to afford cars that run on oil ! Bicycle sales will shoot up, with companies introducing 4-seater cycles for the typical middle-class family !

When oil will no longer be affordable, the auto industry will find newer innovative ways to replace existing fuel-guzzling automobiles.

Small cars will be replaced by donkey driven 2-seater carts. Mid sized cars will be replaced by horse-driven 4 seaters. Luxury cars will be replaced by chariots and SUV/multi-purpose vehicles will be replaced by elephants. And most importantly, the traditional "fuel" for cars will be replaced by fodder ! The "fodder-efficiency" for these "cars" will be calculated with respect to the number of miles per kilograms carried ! The biggest advantage though will be that these cars will park themselves automatically.

An even bigger advantage will be that there will be almost nil road accidents and the cases of drunk driving will no longer be seen !

The traffic police will have to employ a special task force consisting of zoo trainers to manage parking problems and scuffles. The traffic cops will need to bring about drastic changes in road signs and rules. As for example, some of the common road signs would read like:

"Entry only for lightweight donkeys and horses."

" No grazing on red light"

"Race horses not allowed"

"Speed limit 15 mph"

"No tethering(parking)"

FMCG companies will soon see a great business opportunity in such a scenario. They will come up with new consumer products to enhance performance of such vehicles. Punch-lines of some catchy and frequently aired advertisements will be something of this nature:

"Feed your horse with turbo fodder...improve mileage. Proven mileage satistics of 50 miles per kilograms"

"Speeeeeeed...enhanced multi-vitamin supplement for donkeys."

"Ride like a king..introducing new leatherite seat covers for chariots"

"The new car wash soap...takes care of ticks and bugs..makes your car shine like a star"

Anyway, lets imagine we never get to face such a situation ever ! Lets hope the oil prices dont go over $200, or else i will have to buy a donkey myself !  :)

Oil near $143 on view dollar will keep falling

By JOHN WILEN – 21 hours ago

NEW YORK (AP) — Oil futures climbed to a new record near $143 a barrel Friday as the dollar weakened against the euro, confirming expectations that the falling greenback, a major factor in crude's stratospheric rise, will extend its decline and add to oil's appeal.

Retail gas prices inched lower overnight, but are likely to resume their own trek into record territory now that oil futures have broken out of the trading range where they had been for nearly 3 weeks.

Light, sweet crude for August delivery rose as high as $142.99 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange before pulling back sharply in a spate of late-day profit-taking to settle up 57 cents at a record $140.21. On Thursday, the contract shot past $140 and rose more than $5 to a new settlement record.

The latest record came as the dollar fell against the euro in afternoon trading, having traded roughly unchanged for much of the day.

"The dollar was slightly stronger, and when it gave up its gains, that gave oil the green light," said James Cordier, president of Tampa, Fla.-based trading firms Liberty Trading Group and OptionSellers.com.

The market now believes the Federal Reserve is unlikely to raise interest rates in the near future; since higher rates tend to strengthen the dollar, traders are anticipating that it will continue to fall and, consequently, that investors will keep turning to commodities including oil as a hedge against inflation.

"Oil's back in favor, especially with people bailing out of the stock market," said Jim Ritterbusch, president of energy consultancy Ritterbusch and Associates in Galena, Ill.

The stock market's recent swoon is also sending investors in search of higher-yielding investments. On Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell nearly 360 points, and in afternoon trading Friday was down more than 100 points.

"When money has nowhere to go, it is parked in commodities as it is one of the few investment instruments that actually rises the more money you pour into it," said Oliver Jakob, an analyst at Petromatrix Gmbh, in Switzerland in a note.

With oil over $140 a barrel, traders are now expecting to see $145 and even $150, analysts say.

At the pump, meanwhile, gas prices slipped 0.1 cent overnight to a national average of $4.066 a gallon, according to a survey of stations by AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express. Gas prices have fallen slightly from their June 16 record of $4.08 a gallon, but will likely resume their record breaking rise if oil futures keep trending higher.

That seems likely. Oil has more than doubled in the past year due to the dollar's decline, but also because of rising global demand, particularly in fast-growing economies such as China and India. Supply outages in the Middle East and Nigeria have also contributed, as has falling production in Mexico.

The sharp increase in oil prices has driven a similar rise in fuel prices. Gas prices are $1.09 higher than a year ago, and diesel prices were up $1.85 over the past year at a national average of $4.763 a gallon on Friday. Diesel is used to fuel most industrial vehicles, trucks, trains and ships, and its increase is a large part of the reason food and consumer goods prices are rising, putting additional pressure on consumers already paying $4 and more for gas. Diesel prices peaked at $4.797, also on June 16, but are likely to push past that record if oil futures keep rising.

In other Nymex trading Friday, July gasoline futures fell 1.01 cents to settle at $3.5012 a gallon after earlier rising to a trading record of $3.585. July heating oil futures rose 2.32 cents to settle at $3.9066 a gallon. August natural gas futures fell 5 cents to settle at $13.198 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, Brent crude futures rose 48 cents to settle at $140.31 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

AP Business Writer David McHugh in London contributed to this report.

U.S. Stocks Slump, Pushing Dow Average to Brink of Bear Market

By Michael Patterson

June 27 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks fell a second day, pushing the Dow Jones Industrial Average to the brink of a bear market, on concern subprime-related writedowns at banks will worsen and record oil and a slowing economy will prolong the worst profit decline since 2002.

The Dow extended its retreat from an all-time high in October to almost 20 percent, the threshold for a so-called bear market. American International Group Inc. and Merrill Lynch & Co. sent the Standard & Poor's 500 Financials Index to a five-year low on speculation of mounting losses. Hasbro Inc. and KB Home helped lead consumer stocks in the S&P 500 to the lowest level since 2003 as oil topped $142 a barrel.

The Dow average lost 106.91 points, or 0.9 percent, to 11,346.51, leaving it within 0.1 percent of a bear market. The 30-stock measure fell 10 percent this month for the worst June since 1930. The S&P 500 slid 4.77, or 0.4 percent, to 1,278.38 today. The Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 5.74, or 0.3 percent, to 2,315.63. Eight stocks declined for every five that rose on the New York Stock Exchange.

``The news on earnings is that the second quarter is probably going to be worse than we thought,'' said Ron Sweet, vice president of equity investments at USAA Investment Management Co., which oversees $100 billion in San Antonio. ``The old news keeps sticking around: it's energy prices, it's writeoffs at banks, it's the slow economy.''

The S&P 500 slumped 3 percent this week, the Dow slid 4.2 percent and the Nasdaq tumbled 3.8 percent. The S&P 500's 8.7 percent decline in June is the worst monthly performance since the 11 percent plunge in September 2002.

Earnings Slump

Analysts forecast earnings for companies in the S&P 500 will slump 11 percent on average, according to a Bloomberg survey today, compared with a projected decline of 8.9 percent a week ago. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. strategist David Kostin said in a report today that expectations for 2008 and 2009 profits are ``too optimistic'' and are likely to be reduced.

AIG decreased 34 cents to an 11-year low of $27.75. The world's biggest insurer plans to absorb losses for a dozen insurance units after their securities-lending accounts suffered $13 billion of writedowns tied to the subprime-mortgage collapse.

Merrill fell 35 cents to $32.70, the lowest price since March 2003. Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. analyst Roger Freeman increased his second-quarter loss estimate on expectations subprime-related writedowns will be more than twice as big as previously projected.

`Tenuous Situation'

MBIA Inc. lost 22 cents to a 20-year low of $4.17. The world's largest bond insurer faces a ``tenuous situation'' as it seeks to cover payments and collateral calls on $7.4 billion of securities triggered by a credit-rating downgrade, Fitch Ratings analyst Thomas Abruzzo said.

MBIA may need to tap assets pledged to back other commitments as it comes up with the money, potentially opening the company up for further downgrades, said Abruzzo, who yesterday withdrew his rating on MBIA and Ambac Financial Group Inc. after the companies refused to give him information.

Ambac slid 19 cents to $1.61, a record low.

The S&P 500 Consumer Discretionary Index lost 0.7 percent, falling to the lowest since October 2003, after crude oil gained as much as 2.4 percent to $142.99 a barrel. Hasbro, the world's second-largest toymaker, lost $1.60 to $35.14.

KB Home, the homebuilder founded by Eli Broad, slumped 41 cents to $17.72. The company reported its fifth straight quarterly loss as rising mortgage rates and falling prices reduced demand for homes.

Worst Ahead?

Homebuilders in S&P indexes lost 1 percent as a group. Lennar Corp. fell 72 cents to $12.62, the lowest price since September 2000. The second-largest builder said yesterday that the housing market has yet to see the worst of the slump.

Micron Technology Inc. retreated the most since October 2006, falling 89 cents, or 13 percent, to $6.10. The largest U.S. producer of memory chips reported a wider third-quarter loss on weaker pricing for semiconductors used to store pictures and music in portable devices.

``June has been difficult,'' Matthieu Bordeaux-Groult, who helps oversee about $6.2 billion as fund manager at Richelieu Finance in Paris, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. ``There are a lot of negative elements in the market such as high raw materials prices, but valuations are low and offer buying opportunities.''

The S&P 500 gained as much as 0.5 percent earlier after U.S. consumer spending rose 0.8 percent in May, exceeding forecasts. Tax rebates drove the biggest gain in incomes in almost three years, enabling households to at least temporarily overcome soaring fuel bills.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. climbed the most since May 1, rising 63 cents, or 3.2 percent, to $20.30. The drugmaker selling a unit for $4.1 billion to finance acquisitions may itself be a takeover target, Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. analyst Timothy Anderson said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Michael Patterson in New York at mpatterson10@bloomberg.net.

Crude prices rise as the dollar hovers near record low and supply concerns persist. Analysts see $150 a barrel looming.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Oil prices touched a record high above $142 a barrel Friday, before easing a bit, as traders expect the dollar to remain weak and tense geopolitical situations continue to raise concerns about supply disruptions.

At 12:09 p.m. ET, light, sweet crude was up 70 cents to $140.34 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The front-month contract had hit an all-time high of $142.26 in electronic trading earlier.

Currency issues Many analysts say the dollar's decline has been a major driver of oil prices, which have more than doubled in the last year.

The dollar rose slightly against the euro early Friday, but it is still near an all-time low versus the euro zone currency.

The 15-nation euro bought $1.5748 in afternoon trading, down from $1.5760 late Thursday. The euro hit a record high of $1.6018 in April.

A weaker dollar can push the price of oil higher as many investors buy oil to hedge against inflation. Also, the currency imbalance forces producers and traders to demand more in dollars for their oil in order to reflect its current value.

The dollar came under additional pressure earlier this week after the Federal Reserve decided to keep interest rates steady.

The Fed's decision "means that the slow-growth, high-inflation environment is going to continue," said Tom Pawlicki, an analyst with MF Global in Chicago.

The economy's slow growth was highlighted Thursday when the government reported that the nation's gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the nation's economic health, grew at a sluggish 1% pace during the first quarter.

"In general, the dollar has a lot to do with it," said Ray Carbone, president of Paramount Options, in reference to oil's protracted rise. "But we also have the usual geopolitical problems," he said.

Global politics "Nigeria's production is down 1 million barrels a day, we had statements from the president of OPEC that spooked the market and there's tension between Israel and Iran," Carbone said.

Oil traders have been closely watching an ongoing situation in Nigeria - Africa's largest oil producer - where militant attacks and labor disputes have caused, or threatened to cause, supply disruptions.

On Thursday, Chakib Khelil, president of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, said he believes oil prices could rise to between $150 and $170 a barrel this summer. But he added that prices will come down later in the year, and aren't likely to reach $200 a barrel.

Heightened tensions between Israel and Iran are also supporting oil prices. Pentagon officials said last week that a large-scale Israeli military exercise in the eastern Mediterranean early this month could have been a demonstration of Jerusalem's ability to attack Iranian nuclear facilities.

Iran is OPEC's second largest producer and traders worry that a military conflict there could disrupt shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a key corridor for oil exporters in the Persian Gulf, and further restrict supply in the global oil market.

Also on Thursday, the head of Libya's national oil company said the country may cut crude production because the oil market is well supplied, according to published reports.

Upward trend Friday's jump to $142 a barrel prompted several analysts to predict that the market is headed for an even greater milestone: $150.

"We are of the opinion that if the bears cannot stem the bleeding now, then who is going to prevent this market from going to $150... and beyond," oil industry analyst Stephen Schork wrote in his daily newsletter, The Schork Report.

"We could go to $150 in the blink of an eye," said Carbone.

"I think the up trend is going to continue," said Pawlicki. "We could move up toward $150 over the next few weeks."

Gas prices Meanwhile, retail gas and diesel prices eased overnight. The national average price for a gallon of regular gas fell 0.1 cent to $4.066, according to AAA. Diesel prices shed 0.4 cent to a national average price of $4.763 a gallon.

AAA also reported that it expects the number of Americans taking to the road during the July 4 holiday to decrease 1.3% versus last year.

"Clearly gas prices are continuing to take a toll on the traveler's budget," AAA President and CEO Robert Darbelnet said in a statement.

I don't think this necessarily looks the most comfortable, but I like look and the fact that it folds.

Reminiscent of a steamer deck chair, our folding barrel stave chair is made from salvaged 70-gallon oak wine barrels. When folded, the slats nest alongside one another, making the chair as flat as a comma. Individually numbered with the name of the winery branded under the seat. For those who don’t like to be alone, there’s also a bench variety.

Folding Wine Barrel Chair

With the price of oil now over $140 a barrel, it's no wonder that the world's brightest minds are looking to make energy dependency obsolete.  Hybrid cars, hydrogen fuel, solar energy -- all are candidates to solving the issue, but here's an idea that you probably didn't see coming:

Bugs that excrete oil.

Yeah, I know. Weird.  The company LS9 in Silicon Valley is at work on the genetic alteration of very small bugs (E. coli) so that when they feed on agricultural waste such as woodchips, they excrete crude oil.

Because crude oil (which can be refined into other products, such as petroleum or jet fuel) is only a few molecular stages removed from the fatty acids normally excreted by yeast or E. coli during fermentation, it does not take much fiddling to get the desired result.

At this point LS9 can produce its bug fuel in laboratory beakers, but it is unclear whether it will be able produce the same results on a mass scale. America consumes 143 million barrels of oil every week. That's going to take a lot of bugs. And a whole lot of crap...

Read more at The Times