The Clusterfuck Nation Chronicle

Commentary on the Flux of Events

Developments worth paying attention to today:

-- Middle East moves closer to war. Shooting in central Jeruselum. Hamas organization declares "all-out war on Israel." Reports of 8,000 rockets under Syrian control in Lebanon, including 300 long-range weapons in the hands of Iranian Revolutionary Guards, some with bio-warheads. Will Israel conduct pre-emptive strikes?

-- Kmart tanks, declares bankruptcy (as predicted here). Last straw is Kmart's failure to pay $78million to food jobber, Fleming Industries, supplier of Cheez Doodles and other food-crap sold in Kmart stores. Creditors lining up are JP Morgan, into Kmart for 1.5 billion, bondholders who are owed $4.5 billion, and trade creditors, who are owed $2 billion to $3 billion. The bankruptcy gives Kmart the ability to break leases on hundreds of stores and close them up. Company flaks claim that Kmart will emerge from this clusterfuck "a stronger company." I say, they're dreaming. The blue light special will soon be on Kmart's remaining inventory and store fixtures.

-- New reports that Enron has continued a massive shredding operation as recently as last week.