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Two suicide bombers blew them-selves up near a mosque in south-eastern Iran on Wednesday, killingat least 39 people and injuring morethan 50 people at a Shiite mourningceremony.

Among the dead in the blastsnear the Imam Husayn mosque inChabahar was a newborn baby.Irani authorities almost immedi-ately blamed “the West” and a forthe double bombings that threatento dangerously heighten the ten-sions between religious groups inIran. 

The deadly attack struck at Shi-ites, the ethnic group ruling Iran, onAshoura, one of the Shiites’ holiestreligious festivals.

A Sunni terror group, the Balou-shi separatist “Jundallah” (soldiersof God) reportedly claimed respon-sibility for the deadliest bombings in

Iran’s recent history. Since itsfounding in 2003, Jundallah hasperpetrated several terror attacksand daring kidnappings of Iranianofficials. Its last major attack, killing27 people, occurred in the sameIranian province in July this year.

The Sunni planners timed their

attack to coincide with Ashoura, afestival commemorating the deathof Imam Husayn in the epic battle ofKerbala. This battle split the Muslimcommunity into two hostile camps.Shiites view Husayn, the grandsonof the Muslim prophet Muhammad,and his offspring as his only rightfulheirs. Sunnis, who form the majorityof Muslims worldwide, back Husay-n’s adversaries in that fateful battleand view Shiites as heretics.

Iranian state media instinctivelyblamed Western intelligence agen-cies and a “Zionist cabal” for theattacks, and documents publishedby WikiLeaks may suggest why.

Meir Dagan, chief of Israel’s spyagency, Mossad, urged the Ameri-cans to topple the mullahs in Teh-ran in an August 2007 meeting withthen U.S. undersecretary of stateNicolas Burns. Ethnic strife was one

Iranian “weak spot” Dagan identi-fied.

“Dagan said that more should bedone to foment regime change inIran, possibly with the support ofstudent democracy movements,and ethnic groups (e.g., Azeris,Kurds, Baluchs) opposed to the

ruling regime,” the cable filed by theU.S. embassy in Tel Aviv reads.Encouraging ethnic unrest waspart of a strategy based on “fivepillars” to try and halt Iran’s men-acing nuclear program, whichincluded sanctions and diplomat-ic pressure at the UN.

However, Israel’s chief strategisturged more attention on regimechange, asserting that more couldbe done to develop the identities ofethnic minorities in Iran. He said hewas sure that Israel and the U.S.could “change the ruling regime inIran, and its attitude towards back-ing terror regimes.”

However, most think it is un-likely that the Mossad is behindthe terror attack in Iran’s largestand poorest province. 

“Only someone with a good work-ing relationship with Pakistan could

pull something like this off in Balu-chistan. It may even have been thePakistanis themselves. They areplaying a double game with Tehe-ran just as with the U.S.,” says oneIran expert.By Edgar Tenenbaum | Staff Writeredgar@laprofessionalexpress.com

39 PEOPLE KILLED AND 50 INJURED IN SUICIDEBOMBINGS AT SHIITE MOSQUE IN CHABAHAR, IRAN

Malaysia's ruling coalition won aparliamentary vote Thursday to banits archrival Anwar Ibrahim from thelegislature for six months.

The opposition leader was ac-cused of making false statements inParliament by claiming that thegovernment's program to promotemultiracial unity in this Muslim-majority country was inspired by a1999 Israeli election campaign.Lawmakers are expected to en-dorse another proposal later Thurs-day to suspend three of Anwar's topallies for six months because ofprotocol infractions.

The move would erode the oppo-sition's representation to less thanone-third of the 222-member Parlia-ment for the first time since March

2008 general elections. That couldallow Prime Minister Najib Razak'sNational Front coalition to makechanges to the constitution and

election constituency boundariesbefore the next polls, which someexpect next year.

Anwar and dozens of other oppo-sition legislators stormed out ofParliament's lower house duringThursday's vote. Some held postersdenouncing the lower house as "akangaroo court" because theyclaimed Anwar was unfairly target-ed.

Anwar and his colleagues whoface suspension would be barredfrom parliamentary debates andvotes through June, but they cancontinue other political work, suchas addressing rallies. The opposi-tion has already launched efforts toconvince the public that the govern-ment is abusing its legislative ma-

  jority. The three opposition law-makers face suspension for leakinginformation about a parliamentaryinvestigation into Anwar's remarks

about Israel, which he made inMarch.

Political activity has intensifiedamid rampant rumors that Najib willcall for national polls next year,even though they are not due untilmid-2013. Najib might seek to capi-talize on internal bickering inAnwar's three-party alliance, whichmade spectacular gains in 2008elections but has since lost some ofits luster.

Anwar has also been distractedby an ongoing trial on charges thathe sodomized a male former aide in2008. He faces a 20-year prisonsentence if convicted of the accusa-tion, which he insists was fabricatedto stem his political ascent. Thegovernment denies any conspiracy.

By Yuri Isacov | Staff Writeryuri@laprofessionalexpress.com

Civilians pull dead bodies from a mourning procession after two suicide bombs detonate. Courtesy IRNA.

From our Dearest Sex Advisor

LA(id) Realationship Advice

This week Washington dis-played the kind of bipartisanshipthat will bankrupt our countryand wreck our currency. Comingat a time when both parties saythey want to address our long-termfiscal imbalances, the compromiseextension of the Bush era tax cutsshould be a wake-up call to anyonewho somehow expected the Ameri-can leadership to ever have an“adult conversation” about thecountry’s long term economichealth.

The administration and Congressare prepared to take the bold politi-cal move of not raising some taxeswhile significantly lowering othersand greatly expanding Federalbenefits. The entire cost of the$900 billion package will be fi-nanced entirely by adding to thenational debt. Talk about toughlove. While other countries considerways to live within their means,Washington is intent on devisingever more creative ways to delaythe day of reckoning.

While Democrats wanted moregovernment spending, they wereunwilling to vote for broad-basedmiddle class tax increases to payfor it. Instead they want what Dem-ocrats have always wanted: highertaxes on the “rich.” Republicanswant lower taxes, but as has be-come typical, they were unwilling tocut government spending to enableit. By running up the deficit bothsides get what they want withoutany political sacrifice. Sure, theybreak their campaign promise to cutthe deficit, but the political falloutthat results will be far less costlythan voting for the tax hikes orspending cuts.

In truth however, there are noreal tax cuts in this proposal. Thetrue burden of government is notmeasured by how much it taxes but

how much it spends. Since this dealensures that government will bemore expensive next year than itwas this year, American citizens willhave to shoulder the added cost.Just because Congress hasdecided to deliver the bill withdebt rather than current taxesdoes not mean that the spendingwill not be paid for. The only thingthe plan accomplishes is to alter themeans by which governmentspending is financed.

If we had a truly independentFederal Reserve (one that was notwilling to buy all the excess govern-ment debt) these larger deficitswould make much more of an im-mediate and discernable impact onthe financial markets and the econ-omy. A glut of government debtshould lead to much higher interestrates. Higher government bor-rowing also tends to divert sav-ings and investment capital thatwould otherwise flow into thejobs-creating private sector. However, with the Fed engaging inquantitative easing, Ben Bernan-ke’s “Sixty Minutes” denial notwith-standing, the money needed to buythe additional debt is simply printed.As such, the nasty side effectshave been avoided in the shortterm. Instead we are set up formore inflation and a weaker dol-lar down the road.

Those who understand the impli-cations of the “inflation tax” havealready moved savings and invest-ments out of U.S. dollars, expectingthat the value of their savings andinvestments would diminish as aresult of the inflation the Fed cre-ates. In addition, working Ameri-cans will see the real values of theirpaychecks fall, as consumer priceincreases outpace the gains in aftertax incomes.

As a result, this plan will do noth-ing to help our economy. The bene-fits of holding taxes low will bemore than mitigated by damagedone by larger deficits. In fact,despite the Fed’s efforts to artifi-cially suppress interest rates, thefear of larger deficits is alreadydriving rates up. Many on WallStreet have jumped to the errone-ous conclusion that rates are risingbecause this new fiscal stimulus willspur economic growth, which inturn will make further quantitativeeasing unnecessary. In truth, theonly thing this plan will stimulate islarger deficits, meaning the Fed willbe forced to do more, not less QEin an effort to restrain rates.

It is the fear of additional QE thathas really spooked the bond mar-ket. Sure, Fed buying might initiallyboost treasury prices, but as theadditional dollars created to buy thebonds work their way into the econ-omy, rising consumer prices erodethe present value of the bonds.

Unfortunately, nothing in theplan addresses the fundamentaleconomic imbalances that under-lie our economy and that broughtus to the brink of ruin in the firstplace. What we really need aremassive cuts i n government spend-ing so we can have true tax re-lief. In addition, we need to removethe government-imposed barrierswhich make our economy uncom-petitive, and which are preventingmarket forces from correcting theimbalances. By expanding govern-ment and increasing debt, the planputs us farther than we have everbeen from a real recovery.

By Peter Schiff | President andchief global strategist of Euro Pacif-ic Capital Inc. Schiff is an Ameri-can businessman, author, andfinancial commentator.

WASHINGTON ORDERSANOTHER FREE LUNCH

MALAYSIAN PARLIAMENT BANS

OPPOSITION PARTY CANDIDATES 

Dearest Dear Sex Advisor,

When should I start feeling badabout being “The Other Wom-an?” This has happened to me onmore than one occasion, and I amnot sure what to do about it.

Consternatedly,

Mistress in Distress

Dear Mistress in Distress,

You should always feel bad aboutbeing the other woman, especially ifyou are a man. You deserve betterthan that.

My doppelganger invites me to agang bang and my synapses fire asthe light hits my rods and cones, Ifeel the trouble in my bones. I pred-ickt and aneurgasm.

I look into the mirror and all I seeis cobwebs I look into the mirror andall I see are fragments

"Honey, what is your credit sore?"I inquire. "I've only had one out-break," was her proud response. Ihave thin ethicks, and talk sickwords, arguing about all we've lostand profound.

WE MUST RECTIFY THIS DEFE-CATION DEFICIT BEFORE THEREIS A RESOUNDING SCATASTRO-PHE!

We sat around for hours as shebemoaned the terrible rear-entrylevel jobs that were available for arescent college vaguate. Then weanalyzed the stars.

There is a leak in my pipe dreamand I suddenly feel like I've beensquirted back into reality like the

frantic, desperate conclusion tosomeone's laborious arm pumping,flailing around like a sperm cell witha dizzy spell. Oh well.

Flaccidly,

Vitus Hearn

In Technocolor:

A MULTIWAVE PUBLICATION

Issue No. 1—15   Thursday, December 16, 2010 

COMPLIMENTARY 

THE LOS ANGELES PROfESSIONAL ExPRESS LAProfessionalExpress.com 

IRAN BLAMES WEST FOR SUICIDE BOMBINGS

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Question and Answer

A MULTIWAVE PUBLICATION

Issue No. 1—15   Thursday, December 16, 2010 

COMPLIMENTARY 

THE LOS ANGELES PROfESSIONAL ExPRESS LAProfessionalExpress.com 

OBAMACARE STRICKIN: MINIMUM ESSENTIAL COVERAGE 

RICHMOND, VA— On December13, 2010, United States District

Court Judge Henry E. Hudson laidout the crux of the contest; whetherthe Minimum Essential CoverageProvision of the Patient Protectionand Affordable Care Act, requiring allU.S. citizens except persons meet-ing certain criteria to “maintain aminimum level of health insurancecoverage for each month beginningin 2014” or else pay a penalty ontheir ensuing tax return, is a validfederal legislative enactment underthe United States Constitution.

Early in his opinion the judge tipshis hat, “No reported case from anyfederal appellate court has extendedthe Commerce Clause or TaxClause to include the regulation of aperson’s decision not to purchase aproduct.”

Virginia v. Sebelius , the subject

case decided by Judge Hudson isone of many filed by Republicanstate attorney generals or governorsseeking to invalidate certain of theAct’s provisions. The defendant’sname, Sebelius, refers to Secretaryof the Dept. of Health and HumanServices Kathleen Sebelius, who isthe named in the lawsuit becausethe United States possesses sover-eign immunity.

Later today in Pensacola, Florida,twenty states will be represented byattorney generals and governors in acase similar to Virginia seeking todecree parts of the Act to be uncon-stitutional.

Congress’s authority to legislateis largely captured in the Tax Clause

and the frequently famous Com-merce Clause (both, U.S. Constitu-tion, Art. I, Sect. 8). The formersimply states that Congress “shallhave the power to lay and collectTaxes.” The latter grants Congressthe power “to regulate Commercewith foreign Nations, and among theseveral States, and with the IndianTribes.” These grants of authorityalso limit Congress’s authority; allpowers not granted to the federalgovernment by the Constitution areexpressly reserved by the statesunder the 10th Amendment, lest suchpowers abridge a right guaranteed toindividuals (freedom of speech,association and religion, due pro-cess, freedom from cruel and unusu-al punishment, etc.).

To some, Judge Hudson’s deci-

sion, invalidating the Minimum Es-sential Coverage Provision, broughtno surprises—The Huffington Post noted that in his 2007 memoir Quest for Justice , His Honor credits hisspot on the federal bench to twentyyears of service to the RepublicanParty. Former President George W.Bush appointed Judge Hudson tothe bench in 2002 for a life term.Standing in apposite to state court

 judges who largely reach the benchthrough election, a life term for feder-al district court judges purportedlyinsulates the same from politicalinfluence.

Not so, argues Bloomberg  col-

umnist Ann Woolner. Two otherfederal judges who reviewed the Act

before Judge Hudson validated itsconstitutionality; perhaps not surpris-ingly, their honors were both ap-pointed by Democratic presidents.

Still others think that Judge Hud-son’s decision went beyond the paleof partisanship, into impropriety.Judge Hudson’s annual financialdisclosures since 2003 reveal thatthe judge received dividends totalingbetween $32,000.00 and $108,000from Campaign Solutions, Inc., aRepublican consulting firm. (Perfederal rules, Judges need onlyreport ranges of income).

Worse yet, Ken Cuccinelli, theattorney general who brought thesuit before Judge Hudson on behalfof the Commonwealth of Virginia,retained Campaign Solutions justthis year for his own race and paid

$9,000 to the company for servicesrendered. In His Honors defense,perhaps Judge Hudson did not knowthat Cuccinelli retained the firm inwhich he solely possessed stockespecially when the AG did so forseemingly nominal services.After all, Judge Hudson’s opinion inVirginia expressly states, “This casedoes not turn on the wisdom of Con-gress or the public policy implica-tions of [the Act]. The Court’s atten-tion is focused solely on the constitu-tionality of the enactment.” TheCourt errs on the side of safety andinvalidates the Minimum EssentialCoverage Provision because the

Provision is not substantially similarto laws that the Supreme Court has

historically deemed to be constitu-tional:

Neither the Supreme Court nor any federal circuit court of appeals has extended the Commerce Clause powers to compel an individual to involuntarily enter the stream of commerce by purchasing a com- modity in the private market. . . .Because an individual’s personal decision to purchase—or decline to purchase—health insurance from aprivate provider is beyond the histor- ic reach of the Commerce Clause . .. [t]he Minimum Essential Coverage Provision is neither within the letter nor the spirit of the Constitution. Analyzed at greater depth, however,the Judge’s opinion seems to stopshort of the more robust analyseslikely to take place at the 4th Circuit

Court and the Supreme Court, wheredifferent results may be yielded.University of Southern CaliforniaGould School of Law constitutionalscholar and Dorothy W. NelsonProfessor of Law Michael Shapiroassures The Los Angeles Profes- sional Express  that omitting to pur-chase health insurance is in fact aneconomic activity which affects inter-state commerce. For a mind-expanding interview with the profes-sor that may make Judge Hudson’sopinion seem purblind, tune into thenext issue of the Pro Express.

By Zein Obagi, Esq.

 ARTS— “For Sale” | Photo by Kristina Sorensen | © 2010

 www.kristinasorensen.com 

Downtrodden President Obama gains boost in polls following extension of un-employment benefits and Bush tax cuts under compromise with GOP-led House.

Below, United States Circuit Court Map segregated by circuits. A circuit courtis the court to which a district or federal trial court decision is appealed. It is thefinal appeal guaranteed as of right in the federal judiciary. Next, a challengermust apply to the Supreme Court of the United States for a grant of certiorari .Four justices must vote in favor of granting a case cert before it will be heard bythe highest court, a rule also known as the “rule of four.”

  APPEALS TO CIRCUIT, SUPREME COURTS CERTAIN AFTER FEDERAL  JUDGE HOLDS FED’S MANDATED HEALTH INSURANCE UNLAWFUL 

   A :   S t  a t  e  s t  y  p i  c  a l l  y  r  e  q  u i  r  e t  h  e i  r  d  r i  v  -  e  r  s t  o  c  a  r  r  y  a  u t  o i  n  s  u  r  a  n  c  e ;  u  n  d  e  r t  h  e   P  a t i  e  n t   P  r  o t  e  c t i  o  n  a  n  d   A f f  o  r  d  a  b l  e

   C  a  r  e   A  c t , t  h  e f  e  d  e  r  a l  g  o  v  e  r  n   m  e  n t  s  e  e  k  s t  o i   m  p  o  s  e  a  h  e  a l t  h i  n  s  u  r  a  n  c  e  r  e  q  u i  r  e   m  e  n t  u  n  d  e  r  c  o  n  g  r  e  s  s ’  s  c  o  n  -  s t i t  u t i  o  n  a l l  y l i   m i t  e  d  p  o   w  e  r  s .

Q: How does mandatory health insur-ance differ from mandatory auto in-

surance?

Rep. Ron Paul (R), before the U.S.

House of Representatives on Dec. 9,2009. Reports state that Paul will be the next Chairman of the Domestic Monetary Policy Subcommittee in the House of Representatives.

Madame Speaker, I rise to introducethe Free Competition in Currency Act.Currency, or money, is what allowscivilization to flourish. In the absence ofmoney, barter is the name of the game; ifthe farmer needs shoes, he must tradehis eggs and milk to the cobbler andhope that the cobbler needs eggs andmilk. Money makes the transaction pro-cess far easier. Rather than having tosearch for someone with reciprocalwants, the farmer can exchange his milkand eggs for an agreed-upon medium ofexchange with which he can then pur-chase shoes.

Gold and silver are anathema togovernments. This medium of exchangeshould satisfy certain properties: it shouldbe durable, that is to say, it does not

wear out easily; it should be portable,that is, easily carried; it should be divisi-ble into units usable for every-day trans-actions; it should be recognizable and

uniform, so that one unit of money has

the same properties as every other unit; itshould be scarce, in the economic sense,so that the extant supply does not satisfythe wants of everyone demanding it; itshould be stable, so that the value of itspurchasing power does not fluctuatewildly; and it should be reproducible, sothat enough units of money can be creat-ed to satisfy the needs of exchange.

Over millennia of human history, goldand silver have been the two metals thathave most often satisfied these condi-tions, survived the market process, andgained the trust of billions of people. . . .

On the desk in my office I have asign that says: “Don’t steal – thegovernment hates competition.” In-deed, any power a government arrogatesto itself, it is loathe to give back to thepeople. Just as we have gone from aconstitutionally-instituted national de-fense consisting of a limited army andnavy bolstered by militias and letters ofmarque and reprisal, we have moved

from a system of competing currencies toa government-instituted banking cartelthat monopolizes the issuance of curren-cy. In order to reintroduce a system of

competing currencies, there are three

steps that must be taken to produce alegal climate favorable to competition.

The first step consists of eliminatinglegal tender laws. Article I Section 10 ofthe Constitution forbids the States frommaking anything but gold and silver alegal tender in payment of debts. Statesare not required to enact legal tenderlaws, but should they choose to, the onlyacceptable legal tender is gold and silver,the two precious metals that individualsthroughout history and across cultureshave used as currency. However, there isnothing in the Constitution that grants theCongress the power to enact legal tenderlaws. We, the Congress, have the powerto coin money, regulate the value thereof,and of foreign coin, but not to declare alegal tender. Yet, there is a section of USCode, 31 USC 5103, that purports toestablish US coins and currency, includ-ing Federal Reserve notes, as legaltender. . . . .

The second step to reestablishing

competing currencies is to eliminate lawsthat prohibit the operation of privatemints. One private enterprise whichattempted to popularize the use of pre-

cious metal coins was Liberty Services,

the creators of the Liberty Dollar. Evi-dently the government felt threatened, asLiberty Dollars had all their preciousmetal coins seized by the FBI and SecretService in November of 2007. Of course,not all of these coins were owned byLiberty Services, as many were held intrust as backing for silver and gold certifi-cates which Liberty Services issued.None of this matters, of course, to thegovernment, which hates competition.The responsibility to protect contracts isof no interest to the government.

The sections of US Code which Liber-ty Services is accused of violating areerroneously considered to be anti-counterfeiting statutes, when in fact theirpurpose was to shut down private mintsthat had been operating in California.California was awash in gold in the after-math of the 1849 gold rush, yet had noUS Mint to mint coinage. There was notenough foreign coinage circulating inCalifornia either, so private mints stepped

into the breech to provide their owncoins. As was to become the case inother industries during the Progressiveera, the private mints were eventually

accused of circulating debased(substandard) coinage, and with thesupposed aim of providing government-sanctioned regulation and a governmentguarantee of purity, the 1864 Coinage

Act was passed, which banned privatemints from producing their own coins forcirculation as currency.

The final step to ensuring competingcurrencies is to eliminate capital gainsand sales taxes on gold and silver coins.Under current federal law, coins areconsidered collectibles, and are liable forcapital gains taxes. Short-term capitalgains rates are at income tax levels, upto 35 percent, while long-term capitalgains taxes are assessed at the collecti-bles rate of 28 percent. Furthermore,these taxes actually tax monetary de-basement. As the dollar weakens, thenominal dollar value of gold increases.The purchasing power of gold may re-main relatively constant, but as the nomi-nal dollar value increases, the federalgovernment considers this an increase inwealth, and taxes accordingly. Thus, themore the dollar is debased, the morecapital gains taxes must be paid onholdings of gold and other precious

metals.Just as pernicious are the sales and

use taxes which are assessed on goldand silver at the state level in many

states. Imagine having to pay sales tax atthe bank every time you change a $10bill for a roll of quarters to do laundry.Inflation is a pernicious tax on the valueof money, but even the official numbers,

which are massaged downwards, areonly on the order of 4% per year. Salestaxes in many states can take away 8%or more on every single transaction inwhich consumers wish to convert theirFederal Reserve Notes into gold or silver.

In conclusion, Madame Speaker,allowing for competing currencies willallow market participants to choose acurrency that suits their needs, ratherthan the needs of the government. Theprospect of American citizens turningaway from the dollar towards alternatecurrencies will provide the necessaryimpetus to the US government to regaincontrol of the dollar and halt its down-ward spiral. Restoring soundness to thedollar will remove the government’sability and incentive to inflate the curren-cy, and keep us from launching unconsti-tutional wars that burden our economy toexcess. With a sound currency, everyoneis better off, not just those who controlthe monetary system. I urge my col-

leagues to consider the redevelopment ofa system of competing currencies andcosponsor the Free Competition in Cur-rency Act.

RON PAUL TO CHAIR MONETARY SUBCOMMITTEE IN HOUSE?