D Day Commemorated

Sixty-six years ago, the beaches at Normandy were the site of one of the largest invasions in history, as the Allied Forces began the slow recovery of Europe from Germany and the Axis.  Interviews with veterans from last year's celebrations, such as the one in the Telegraph with SGT Ken Scott (UK: 50th Div, Durham Light Infantry), say it all:

'"There's no hatred left, none at all," he says. "We have to move on and forget, but I felt it was my duty to come back and be reverent. There are no stains on the beach now, no bodies being washed up. The tide has cleaned this beach but it is the same beach we came up on. ... What was it like? If you were not there you will never know. Go to a cemetery and look at every cross and think of each one as a son or a husband or a father of children and count them, and then you might know a little."'

By Fox News with Jewish Veteran, Arthur Seltzer (4th Sig BN):

'Not that Arthur was alone in his endeavors. He was one of tens of thousands of young Americans who on June 6, 1944, took part in the D-Day landings, an unprecedented invasion that took so many lives, but ultimately saved the world from being crushed under the Nazi jackboot. ... Arthur did stay alive, and later on that fateful day he saw the sergeant whose idea it had been to sign the dollar bill, a dollar bill Arthur has kept to this day. "He says, 'You and I are the only two survived from that landing craft,' and I said to him. 'You mean you lost your whole squad?' and he says, "Yes I lost my whole squad." ... Arthur Seltzer's war did not end on D-Day. He went on to fight in the Battle of the Bulge, forever known as the greatest battle of the war, and on April 29, 1945, Arthur, who is Jewish, was with the American troops who discovered the Dachau concentration camp. Arthur describes the scene as, "Dead bodies all around, naked skeletons, people dressed in these uniforms with black stripes, they were half starved, the odor was so bad you could hardly take it. The odor of death."'

May we never forget.

China Restricts the Export of Rare-Earth Metals

China has the largest known deposits of rare-earth metals, particularly in Mongolia and Himalayas, and as such, is in the enviable position of controlling the world market for minerals that are used in high-end technology applications. These applications include green energy production (solar panels, hybrid cars, etc.), guidance systems for 'smart' missile systems, and superconductors. While China has typically maintained tight controls over the market, and in fact, deliberately set out to create a monopoly on the market in the 1990s, the Chinese government is now looking at banning or restricting export of certain of these metals all together.

The Telegraph reports:

'A draft report by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has called for a total ban on foreign shipments of terbium, dysprosium, yttrium, thulium, and lutetium. Other metals such as neodymium, europium, cerium, and lanthanum will be restricted to a combined export quota of 35,000 tonnes a year, far below global needs.'

These restrictions could prove devastating to the high-technology industries that are dependent on these specialized minerals.

'New technologies have since increased the value and strategic importance of these metals, but it will take years for fresh supply to come on stream from deposits in Australia, North America, and South Africa. The rare earth family are hard to find, and harder to extract.

Mr Stephens said Arafura’s project in Western Australia produces terbium, which sells for $800,000 a tonne. It is a key ingredient in low-energy light-bulbs. China needs all the terbium it produces as the country switches wholesale from tungsten bulbs to the latest low-wattage bulbs that cut power costs by 40pc.

No replacement has been found for neodymium that enhances the power of magnets at high heat and is crucial for hard-disk drives, wind turbines, and the electric motors of hybrid cars. Each Toyota Prius uses 25 pounds of rare earth elements. Cerium and lanthanum are used in catalytic converters for diesel engines. Europium is used in lasers.

Blackberries, iPods, mobile phones, plams TVs, navigation systems, and air defence missiles all use a sprinkling of rare earth metals. They are used to filter viruses and bacteria from water, and cleaning up Sarin gas and VX nerve agents.'

Countries with known or possible deposits are in the middle of drawing up emergency plans to respond to a sudden halt to exports from China, including Australia, the USA and Japan. Commercial users (such as Toyota) and developers of technologies reliant on the rare minerals are striking their own agreements with suppliers, and mining and resource corporations are ramping-up to take up the slack in supply in the USA, Australia, Kazakhstan, and elsewhere.

There is a possible silver lining in all of this. With China both hoarding for its own use, and trying to simultaneously beat out competitors, resource companies that were shut out in the 1990s and early 2000s, will have a chance to move back into supplying rare metals.

The New Dear Leader?

The BBC and several other media sources are reporting that Kim Jong-Il has chosen his successor. And the winner is ... Kim Jong-un. This is his youngest son, and reportedly the one who most resembles his father. Kim Jong-un is relatively young, and speculation revolves around the possibility that the nuclear and subsequent missile tests of the last two weeks stems from Jong-Il's attempt to secure power and homage for his son in a culture that traditionally respects age and seniority. Reported changes in senior positions may provide evidence for that hypothesis.

Time Magazine published this fascinating little interview with Kim Jong-Il's former sister-in-law, Sung Hae Rang, who fled North Korea, and lives in an undisclosed location fearful of reprisals. The interview provides a glimpse of the total insularity and sense of divinity with which Kim Jong-un has been raised. The Telegraph has a short profile comprised of short tidbits about the 'Prince,' but in truth very little is known about the new 'Dear Leader-in-waiting.'