A self-proclaimed ”Muslim soldier” who bungled a plot to bomb Times Square promised Monday that others will succeed where he failed.

A remorseless Faisal Shahzad pleaded guilty to the frightening scheme to blow up the Crossroads of the World on a busy Saturday night, when it was packed with New Yorkers and tourists.

“It’s a war,” Shahzad, 30, said in a hateful screed to Manhattan Federal Judge Miriam Cedarbaum.

“I’m going to plead guilty a hundred times over because until the hour the U.S. pulls its forces from Iraq and Afghanistan and stops the drone strikes … we will be attacking the U.S.,” he said. “And I plead guilty to that.”

He never once said he was sorry, even when Cedarbaum pressed him on the human carnage – including the death of many children – he could have caused if his bomb-packed SUV exploded the night of May 1.

“Did you look around to see who they were?” Cedarbaum asked him of his potential victims.

“Well, the people select the government,” Shahzad said. “We consider them all the same. …”

“Including the children?” the judge demanded.

“Well, the drone hits in Afghanistan and Iraq, they don’t see children, they don’t see anybody,” Shahzad fired back.

“They kill women, children, they kill everybody. It’s a war, and in war, they kill people. They’re killing all Muslims.”

“One has to understand where I’m coming from,” Shahzad told the judge. “I consider myself … a Muslim soldier.”

“And it’s a war to kill people,” he coldly declared.

Wearing a white knit skullcap and a blue shirt and pants, the former Elizabeth Arden account analyst-turned-Jihad Joe calmly detailed how he learned to make bombs in the militant Waziristan stronghold in Pakistan last year.

He returned to the United States in early February, with $4,000 in Taliban cash. The terror group continued sending him money in two payments – $5,000 on Feb. 25 from a co-conspirator and $7,000 more on April 10.

He used the money to buy a Nissan Pathfinder off craigslist and parts to turn the vehicle into a crude rolling bomb. He parked the SUV near a packed theater in the Marriott Marquis hotel – and tried to ignite the bomb.

He says he still doesn’t know why the bomb didn’t explode – and waited up to five minutes for it to blow.

“I was waiting to hear a sound, but I didn’t hear a sound. So I walked to Grand Central and went home,” he said, adding that he carried a concealed 9-mm. rifle he had packed “for my self-defense” should he have to confront cops.

The gun was found in his car when he was caught two days later at Kennedy Airport trying to escape the U.S. aboard a Dubai-bound jetliner. MORE

Shahzad pleaded guilty yesterday to 10 federal crimes, including the attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and conspiracy to commit an act of terrorism.

He faces life in prison when he is sentenced Oct. 5. He is likely to end up in a federal penitentiary in either Florence, Colo., or Terre Haute, Ind. The worst of the worst are sent to Colorado’s “administrative maximum” prison – known as Supermax.

Ramzi Yousef, the 1993 World Trade Center bomber, renounced Islam there. Other inmates are Unabomber Ted Kaczynski and Al Qaeda thug Zacarias Moussaoui.

Attorney General Eric Holder said justice was served by the guilty plea. “Faisal Shahzad plotted and launched an attack that could have led to serious loss of life, and today the American criminal justice system ensured that he will pay the price for his actions,” Holder said.

Mayor Bloomberg warned the city is still in the cross hairs.

“The NYPD, FBI and federal prosecutors deserve enormous credit for cracking – and closing – the Faisal Shahzad case so quickly,” the mayor said, “but we know that our city remains a top target for terrorists, and we will continue doing everything possible to keep our city safe.”

NEW YORK – Brazil has recently generated positive headlines with its 2016 Olympic bid victory, as well as its increased economic and political visibility.

Based on current economic trends, it could be one of the world’s five biggest economies — along with China, the United States, India and Japan — by the middle of this century, according to The Economist.

Yet, the evidence of progress has been marred by the nation’s troubling crime statistics — and reports of unlawful methods employed by the security forces. Read the full story

Citigroup Said to Push for Bailout-Payback Agreement This Week

By Bradley Keoun Read the full story

10 states face financial peril

Dropping tax revenue, rising unemployment and yawning budget gaps are wreaking havoc in states from Arizona to Wisconsin, a new report shows.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The same economic pressures that pushed California to the brink of insolvency are wreaking havoc on other states, a new report has found.

And how state officials deal with their fiscal problems could reverberate across the United States, according to the Pew Center on the States’ analysis released Wednesday.

The 10 most troubled states are: Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island and Wisconsin.

Other states — including Colorado, Georgia, Kentucky, New York and Hawaii — were not far behind.

The list is based on several factors, including the loss of state revenue, size of budget gaps, unemployment and foreclosure rates, poor money management practices, and state laws governing the passage of budgets.

These troubles have forced these states — as well as many others — to raise taxes, lay off or furlough state workers and slash services. These actions can slow down the nation’s recovery, especially since these 10 states account for one-third of the country’s population and economic output.

“Decisions these states make as they try to navigate the recession will play a role in how quickly the entire nation recovers,” said Susan Urahn, managing director of Pew Center on the States.

In a separate study released Wednesday, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found that states will likely have to make steep cuts in their fiscal 2011 budgets, which start next July 1 in most states. That’s because the critical federal stimulus dollars will run out by the end of 2010.

These cuts could take nearly a percentage point off the national gross domestic product and cost the nation 900,000 jobs, the study found.

Here’s a summary of what Pew found is plaguing each of the states:

California: The Golden State’s housing collapse — and resulting unemployment surge — has plagued the state’s economy. The weakening economy prompted revenue to fall by nearly a sixth between the first quarters of 2008 and 2009. State lawmakers have limited ability to deal with California’s massive budget gap due to several voter-imposed restrictions, including requirements that all budgets and tax increases pass the legislature by a two-thirds majority.

Arizona: The state depends heavily on a growing economy to bring in tax revenue, and lawmakers don’t have a lot of leeway to address budget deficits thanks to voter-imposed spending constraints. Lawmakers relied on one-time fixes to balance its budget instead of making long-term changes.

Rhode Island: The Ocean State has among the highest unemployment rates in the nation and among the highest foreclosure rates in New England. High tax rates, big budget deficits and a lack of high tech jobs are hurting its chances to pull out of the doldrums. State government has a poor record of managing its finances

Michigan: The state never climbed out of the recession that started in 2001, and matters only became worse during the Great Recession. Two of the Big Three Detroit-based automakers went bankrupt in 2009, sending shockwaves through a state on track to lose a quarter of its jobs this decade. The recession accelerated drops in state revenue, and has left Michigan’s government trying to deal with today’s problems on a 1960s-sized budget.

Nevada: Nevada is one of the recession’s big losers as its gaming-based economy suffered. Year-over-year revenue has fallen for two consecutive years, a record. But changing tax laws is tough because some are written into the state constitution.

Oregon: Oregon’s leading industries, such as timber and computer-chip manufacturing, have been hit hard in the recession. Lawmakers have approved more than $1 billion in new taxes to keep it afloat. But voters in January will have the final say on another $733 million in new income taxes.

Florida: For the first time since World War II, Florida’s population is shrinking — bad news for an budget built on new residents flocking to the Sunshine State. Lawmakers raised $2 billion in new revenue this year, but could face a similar shortfall next year.

New Jersey: The Garden State, which has been plagued by years of fiscal mismanagement, spends more than it collects in revenue. The collapse of Wall Street, which supports about one-third of New Jersey’s economy, has only made matters worse.

Illinois: Since the last recession earlier this decade, the state piled up huge backlogs of Medicaid bills and borrowed money to pay its pension obligations. The state’s current budget still relies heavily on borrowing and paying bills late.

Wisconsin: Wisconsin has a long history of budget shortfalls. It also borrows frequently to cover operating expenses, among other measures. Unemployment is climbing as manufacturing, the state’s largest sector, sputters.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal research group, says the states need additional federal fiscal relief to avoid budget cuts that will hurt both the economy and people. State and local spending accounts for about one-eighth of the GDP.

Already, less than five months into fiscal 2010, several states are looking at additional budget cuts. Rhode Island announced Tuesday it is facing a revenue shortfall for the current fiscal year of $130.5 million. Gov. Donald Carcieri said the state must examine its aid to local governments, since it has already cut personnel and social service programs.

And in California, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday that his state is facing a budget gap of up to $7 billion. The state will likely announce across-the-board spending cuts in January.

“So we just have to hang in there, tighten our belts and live within our means,” he said.

The center would like to see the federal government allocate another $50 billion, while economist Mark Zandi said about half of that would be needed. Congress should pass the additional aid now since states are currently crafting their fiscal 2011 budgets.

States received billions of dollars in funding from the Obama administration’s $787 billion stimulus package, including $87 billion for Medicaid and $48.3 billion for maintaining education and other key services.

The stimulus funds plugged about 30% to 40% of the budget gaps states were facing, and created or saved more than 300,000 jobs, said Iris Lav, the center’s senior adviser.

But the economic downturn is greater than administration officials expected when the Recovery Act was passed in February, Lav said. That’s why more assistance is needed now.

Budget projections show that states could face deficits as large as $260 billion in 2011 and 2012 after stimulus funding is exhausted. State economies usually take up to two years longer to recover after the nation’s fiscal health begins to improve.

New budget cuts and tax increases “will be a serious drag on the economy at just the wrong time,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Economy.com.

Without assistance, the economy could slide back into a recession, he said.

At the height of the Cold War, the Central Intelligence Agency paid $3,000 to renowned magician John Mulholland to write a manual on misdirection, concealment, and stagecraft. All known copies of the document — and a related paper, on conveying hidden signals — were believed to be destroyed in 1973. But recently, the manuals resurfaced, and have now been published as “The Official CIA Manual of Trickery and Deception.” Topics include working a clandestine partner, slipping a pill into the drink of the unsuspecting, and “surreptitious removal of objects by women.” Read the full story

From 3AM on Wednesday November 25, 2009, until 3AM the following day (US east coast time), WikiLeaks released half a million US national text pager intercepts. The intercepts cover a 24 hour period surrounding the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington.

The messages were broadcasted “live” to the global community — sychronized to the time of day they were sent. The first message was from 3AM September 11, 2001, five hours before the first attack, and the last, 24 hours later.

Read the full story

Patient trapped in a 23-year ‘coma’ was conscious all along

A man thought by doctors to be in a vegetative state for 23 years was actually conscious the whole time, it was revealed last night.

Student Rom Houben was misdiagnosed after a car crash left him totally paralysed.

He had no way of letting experts, family or friends know he could hear every word they said. Read the full story

Suicides among soldiers this year have topped last year’s record-breaking numbers, but Army officials maintain a recent trend downward could mean the service is making headway on its programs designed to reduce the problem, Army officials said Tuesday.

Since January, 140 active-duty soldiers have killed themselves while another 71 Army Reserve and National Guard soldiers killed themselves in the same time period, totaling 211 as of Tuesday, Gen. Peter Chiarelli, U.S. Army vice chief of staff, told reporters at a briefing Tuesday. But he said the monthly numbers are starting to slow down as the year nears its end. Read the full story

Though journalists, international affairs professionals, travel lovers, and international businessmen are already well aware that Brazil is the country to watch, there are still many gringos who aren’t tuned in to Brazil’s ascent or don’t quite understand the country’s importance. This list is for those gringos.

10. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil’s cultural capital (but not the national capital – that’s Brasília) is an excellent urban case study when learning about the developing world. It shares certain characteristics with other developing cities that provides many important lessons and a useful perspective on urban conflicts, like inequality, violent crime, and drug trafficking, as well as positive changes like a growing middle class, increased purchasing power of the average consumer and social movements. Read the full story

(CNN) — A gunman was holding a school principal hostage Tuesday at a school in Pine Plains, New York, about 90 miles north of New York City, police and the town supervisor told CNN.

Police have the gunman contained to a room at Stissing Mountain High School and are negotiating, said Pine Plains Town Supervisor Gregg Pulver.

Pulver said he believed the gunman is a parent. Read the full story

Dow Pops Past 10,000 On JPMorgan, Intel Results

Camilla Webster, 10.14.09, 02:20 PM EDT
This is a transcript of the Market Update: Midday video report.

The Dow Jones industrial average crossed the 10,000 mark Wednesday for the first time since October 2008. Read the full story

Read the full story

BofA to select emergency CEO this week: report

(Reuters) – Bank of America Corp plans to select an emergency chief executive officer this week if legal issues force Ken Lewis to leave before year-end, the Wall Street Journal said, citing a person familiar with the situation. Read the full story

Arrest Puts Focus on Protesters’ Texting

By COLIN MOYNIHAN

Published: October 5, 2009

As demonstrations have evolved with the help of text messages and online social networks, so too has the response of law enforcement.

On Thursday, F.B.I. agents descended on a house in Jackson Heights, Queens, and spent 16 hours searching it. The most likely reason for the raid: a man who lived there had helped coordinate communications among protesters at the Group of 20 summit in Pittsburgh. Read the full story

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Ken Lewis, the beleaguered CEO of Bank of America, announced Wednesday that he will retire at year’s end.

Lewis, who was stripped of his chairman title in April, will also step down from the board. No successor was named. Read the full story