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To: Jimsy who wrote (29299)	3/2/1999 8:05:00 PM
From: goldsnow	Respond to of 116764

Y2K May Spark Civil Unrest, Economic Pain-US Senate 06:19 p.m Mar 02, 1999 Eastern By Adam Entous WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The year 2000 computer bug may set off civil unrest in poor countries, undermine economic growth in Asia, Latin America and Africa, and disrupt global trade in oil and other commodities, a U.S. Senate panel warned Tuesday. It added that while there was a low probability of an accidental nuclear weapons launch, missile systems in other countries could malfunction and terrorists, taking advantage of weakened security, could strike next Jan. 1. But Utah Republican Sen. Robert Bennett, chairman of the Senate's Special Committee on the computer problem, said U.S. intelligence services would be ready. ''The U.S. military may experience some minor disruptions, but its mission-critical, war-fighting capability will not be compromised,'' he told a news conference after releasing the panel's report. The problem is that many computers as now configured cannot recognize the year 2000. If not fixed, many computers will read ''00'' as 1900. That could cause many computers to crash or malfunction come Jan. 1, 2000. Within the United States, Y2K disruptions could be minimized, Bennett said. The committee said the most serious computer problems would likely strike other countries next Jan. 1. ''There is a low to medium probability of terrorist exploitation of Y2K. However, we must remain vigilant in case some of our security systems malfunction,'' Bennett said he told senators at a closed-door briefing Tuesday on Y2K problems. ''There is a medium probability of economic disruptions that will lead to civil unrest in certain sectors of the world, particularly where their economies are already fragile or there is political uncertainty.'' There was a ''high probability'' of economic disruptions in Latin America, Africa and Asia, Bennett added. The report singled out Japan, Mexico, China, Germany and Taiwan for falling nine months to two years behind schedule in preparing for the year 2000 bug. The committee also said that major oil producers Venezuela and Saudi Arabia were 12 to 18 months behind schedule. ''Disruption of flights and global trade between some areas and countries may occur,'' the report added. The report said that ''the committee has no data to suggest that the United States will experience nationwide social or economic collapse, but the committee believes that some disruptions will occur, and that in some cases Y2K disruptions may be significant.'' It said the U.S. health care system may be least prepared because rural and inner-city hospitals were at high risk of computer failures. The nation's Medicare system was in ''serious trouble,'' it said. The committee said that U.S. airports started preparations too late and that shipments of goods by sea could be disrupted because the maritime industry was running behind. A prolonged nationwide blackout was unlikely, although local and regional outages were possible, it said. In case vital services were temporarily cut off, the committee said Americans should consider stocking up on bottled water, canned goods and other essentials, as they might to prepare for a winter storm lasting two to three days. The report said people should also keep copies of their financial records in case banks run into unforeseen problems. Copyright 1999 Reuters Limited

To: Jimsy who wrote (29299)	11/10/2002 11:45:45 AM
From: long-gone	Respond to of 116764

Newsmax.com UPI Another Resignation at US Securities Board NewsMax Wires Monday, Nov. 11, 2002 WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has been hit with its second resignation in a week, this time by its chief accountant, Robert K. Herdman, who left after just 15 months at the agency. The Washington Post reported Saturday that Herdman submitted a letter of resignation on Friday to outgoing SEC head Harvey Pitt, who himself quit on Election Night. The newspaper said Herdman was "the second top official in the agency to depart because of his role in the selection of former FBI and CIA director William H. Webster" to head up the agency's Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. "Pitt issued a statement praising his longtime associate, but some sources at the agency said Pitt blames Herdman for his (Pitt's) not getting all the facts surrounding Webster's tenure as head of the audit committee of U.S. Technologies, Inc." The accounting practices of U.S. Technologies, based in Washington, have been under investigation. Pitt was aware of Webster's involvement with the company but didn't share that information with the four other SEC commissioners before they voted on Webster's nomination in late October. The controversy over Webster's appointment ultimately led to Pitt's resignation. Sources told the Post Pitt and Herdman "worked closely on the SEC's strategy for the new accounting board." And, it said, Pitt had asked Herdman to determine whether Webster's involvement with U.S. Technologies "should be an issue in the selection process." According to these sources, Herdman told Pitt that the connection wouldn't pose a problem, but neither of them raised the issue with the other four commissioners. Meanwhile, Pitt, speaking to a securities industry gathering in Florida, has said that he was undermined in his efforts at the SEC by a "climate of attacks and partisanship." Pitt, spoke Friday at the annual meeting of the Securities Industry Association, a financial services trade organization, in Boca Raton, Fla. No Mention of Webster In his remarks, carried in Saturday's Miami Herald, the outgoing SEC head didn't mention Webster. But he defended his tenure at the agency. Among his achievements at the commission, he said, were reforms forcing U.S. executives to swear to the truth of their companies' financial statements and reopening the markets six days after the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington. He also said that "too many Americans ... piled into the stock market at the worst possible time, lured by false expectations of sustained double-digit increases" in their portfolios. He said such investors "feel fundamentally betrayed" by the investment industry, which he said needed to demonstrate "far greater concern for the well-being of its customers than about profits and take-home pay." Also speaking Friday -- although at a separate Florida conference -- was a previous SEC chief, Arthur Levitt. He told a conference of Business for Social Responsibility members in Miami that "the absence of true leaders" in business was behind the plunge in investor confidence, the Herald reported. BSR is a group that promotes ethical investment. "I can't think of a time when the markets and systems were viewed with such disdain by the public," he said. His comments, and those of his successor, Pitt, appear to be borne out by the SIA's own annual survey of investment sentiment, released on Nov. 7. The poll found that investors' opinions of the industry were the lowest since the polls began (cont) newsmax.com