www.lincolncourier.com BY DORI MEINERT COPLEY NEWS SERVICE

WASHINGTON - Rep. Ray LaHood, R-Ill. (Peoria), Tuesday joined several other lawmakers in calling for a Federal Trade Commission inquiry into the recent spikes in gasoline and natural gas prices.

In a letter to FTC Chairman Timothy Muris, LaHood said the commission needs to assure the public that the price increases are not the result of collusion or profiteering.

Currently, the price of gas is more than $1.75 a gallon in his central Illinois district and more than $2 a gallon in some areas of California.

"I do not want to see a repeat of what happened in my congressional district in the days immediately following the events of Sept. 11, 2001, when gas prices at a few stations rose to a prohibitive level due, in my opinion, to a few bad apples profiteering on public fears," LaHood wrote.

After the terrorist attacks, Illinois' attorney general sued the Casey's General Stores chain accusing some of the company's stores of price gouging. The Iowa-based chain eventually agreed to a $30,000 fine and customer restitution.

In his letter, LaHood also noted that recent news reports implied a possible manipulation of natural gas prices. Natural gas is the primary source of energy for residential heating in Illinois, he said, noting that any manipulation of prices could harm his constituents, especially the elderly.

Sens. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., and Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., also have asked the FTC to investigate gas prices.

FTC spokeswoman Cathy MacFarlane said: "We are actively monitoring the situation all across the country and in Illinois and if and when we find an anomaly we will work with the attorney general's office."

The cutback in crude oil production in Venezuela and uncertainties over potential war against Iraq have driven the cost of crude oil up 80 percent above what it was last year, according to the American Petroleum Institute.

White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said last week that President Bush is concerned about the price increases and urged Congress to pass a national energy plan.

"There have been a confluence of factors involving both the cold weather and a shortage of supply that have led to an increase in the prices, which concerns the president greatly. There is a cyclical nature to some of this, and we have seen the prices go up and down before," Fleischer said.

"To avoid a repeatable, predictable pattern of the cyclical nature, which hurts consumers, the president believes that is why Congress must pass a comprehensive plan to deal with energy, to increase conservation and to create more supply," he said.

He added, "These become predictable debates in Washington, as prices go up in the winter, and then they come down, and they go back up in the summer. The president thinks that people came to Washington to think long term, and to act long term, and to get ahead of the cycle."

www.vheadline.com Posted: Thursday, March 06, 2003 By: Cecil Kirkman

Date: Thu, 06 Mar 2003 09:01:29 -0500 From: Cecil Kirkman cecilkir@cox.net To: Editor@VHeadline.com Subject: Educate us in the way of truth and freedom

Dear Editor: Reference Mr. John Kaminski's letter to VHeadline.com,  he has now told us and the world what is wrong with America and called our people liars and thieves, who are bent on dominating and enslaving the entire world. He said, "Americans don't tell the truth to anyone, least of all themselves. And I direct this at not just the government, but also at the American people." Reading his letter, one wonders how America could possibly have risen to be the world's only superpower.  Why did not the rest of the world stop us. They have had over 200 years to crush us infidels and they certainly outnumber us both with manpower and resources!

• One also wonders, why in the name of creation, he, knowing all these facts about the evil of America, he continues to live in such a God hating society that is only bent on death and destruction of innocent civilians, especially the helpless children of the world?

Why?  When there are so many good places to live in the world, so many righteous and honest, humanitarian, and loving societies, such as Iran, Iraq, and North Korea ... why does he continue to choose to live here?

Are we devil worshipping Americans holding him here?

Maybe because here is one of the very few places on this globe where he us free to write such a tirade against the government with impunity, that he continues to live in such a decadent society. Or does he continue to live here because he knows that thousands of Americans have given their lives so that he might say what he thinks?  No, it could not be this for these stupid Americans gave their lives so that we could dominate the world. Forgive me, I forgot the truth there for a moment.

Anyways, now that he has told us everything that we are doing wrong, please do me a favor.  Why not follow up his letter and tell us just exactly what it is that we Americans should be doing. Enlighten us with his wisdom, and show us the way we should live. Tell us what our government should be doing. He wrote, "It's time to do something about it. Although massive logistical problems and ad hoc legal procedures need to be developed, this would work, I think. And Thomas Jefferson would like it a lot." Remember, we Americans are so stupid, we need him to tell us what "massive logistical problems and ad hoc legal procedures need to be developed."

Just how do we go about doing this?

We would be forever in his debt ...and Thomas Jefferson would love him.

Horace V. Kirkman Cecilkir@cox.net

www.businesswire.com BW5291 MAR 06,2003 6:41 PACIFIC 09:41 EASTERN Business Editors

    NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 6, 2003--It is generally difficult for banking systems to differentiate themselves from trends in the overall environment in which they operate, according to a recent report analyzing the performance of Latin American banking systems from Fitch Ratings. This dependence seems to matter more than size as there is no clear connection between the size of a banking system and its performance.     'Throughout Latin America, in 2002, banking systems in Argentina, Colombia, Peru, and throughout Central America generally reflected the state of their recessionary or stagnant economies, while the Chilean and Mexican systems reflected relatively better performing economies,' says Ricardo Chaves, Director, at Fitch Ratings. 'In Venezuela and Brazil, on the other hand, the banking systems have to date weathered economic volatility more successfully. While the Brazilian banks operate in a more adverse operating environment, a high level of income diversification, sophisticated management teams and proven operational flexibility have culminated in a system that is highly resilient to stressful economic scenarios.'     The Venezuelan banking system has been the most profitable in the region reporting annualized returns on assets in excess of 2% over the past few years. Comparatively, the Colombian banking system, returned to profitability in 2001, following three consecutive years of losses.     'In light of the recent political events in Venezuela, banking sector profitability will most likely weaken going forward as a result of a high level of exposure to the sovereign, government intervention in the form of exchange controls and the likelihood of loan quality deterioration following the damage to the country's economy in the wake of the two-month strike. In Colombia, system profitability continues to be negatively affected by high provisioning costs as banks strive to boost reserve coverage on problematic loans to more conservative levels; operating platforms that are too large for current business volumes also weigh on profitability,' said Chaves.     A full copy of the report, 'Fitch Ratings Comments on Latin American Banking Systems' Performance,' is available within FitchResearch, Fitch's subscription-based web site located at 'www.fitchratings.com,' or contact ratings desk at 1-800-853-4824.

www.polkonline.com Web posted Thursday, March 6, 2003

WINTER HAVEN -Cleveland Indians shortstop Omar Vizquel will autograph copies of his book, "Omar! My Life On and Off the Field," on Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. at the Cleveland Indians Team Shop in Chain of Lakes Park.

In the book, Vizquel tells about his life in baseball, from the sandlots of Caracas, Venezuela, to the seventh game of the World Series and beyond. The book covers his career through the 2001 Major League Baseball season.

"Omar!" includes the Indians star's thoughts about his success as a player. He writes about how he learned to play baseball and how he approaches the game today.

The author shares candid opinions about the game and humorous anecdotes about current and former teammates and opponents. "Omar!" also includes several chapters about Vizquell's personal life, including his childhood in Venezuela, coming to the United States as a non-English-speaking 17-year-old boy, adjusting to life in the minor leagues, lfe with his family and his many hobbies.

Vizquel is considered by many sportswriters and players to be one of the best defensive shortstops ever to play the game. He has won nine consecutive Rawlings Gold Glove Awards, which is an American League record. He has the highest fielding percentage of any shortstop ever to play at least 1,000 games in the major leagues.

An All-Star selection from the American League on three occasions, Vizquel has played in two World Series.

Outside of baseball, Vizquel is a painter, has designed his own house, and dabbles in music and stand-up comedy.

Working with Vizquel on "Omar! My Life On and Off the Field" was Bob Dyer, who has won 17 regional and national writing awards since joining the Akron Beacon Journal in 1984. He collaborated with Vizquel for more than a year, helping to research and write the book.

"Omar! My Life On and Off the Field" is $24.95 for the hardcover, 256-page edition that features 41 color photos. The publisher is Gray & Co., a Cleveland-based publishing house and is available at the Indians gift shop at Chain Of Lakes Park.

For more information about the book, call 1-800-915-3609, or visit the publisher's Web site at www.grayco.com.

www.theage.com.au March 7 2003 By Grace Nirang Jakarta

OPEC should keep its production quotas unchanged until the producer group knows the result of the confrontation between the United States and Iraq, says Purnomo Yusgiantoro, Indonesia's Energy Minister.

The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which meets on Tuesday to discuss production policy, should wait to see the effect on oil prices of US military action in the Middle East before deciding whether to change quotas, he said.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait wanted to increase quotas.

"We want OPEC not to make any decision, especially on quotas, because the situation is very uncertain at the moment," Mr Purnomo said.

Ten OPEC members, all except Iraq, are responsible for setting output quotas to control oil prices and supply. The group raised quotas twice this year in a bid to meet the shortfall from Venezuela and would probably leave them unchanged next week, OPEC secretary-general Alvaro Silva said.    advertisement       advertisement

Oil prices in New York have risen 18 per cent this year to $US36.80 a barrel after industrial action in Venezuela cut supplies, and on concerns that the US will attack Iraq.

Mr Purnomo said Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait had promised to make up any shortfall in case of a war.

"Those countries have stated that they are ready to fill the shortage from Iraq if war breaks out," he said. Mr Purnomo said OPEC should suspend its target range of $US22-$US28 a barrel, which has become unworkable because of the war threat.

OPEC has an informal agreement to raise production should its benchmark oil price remain above $US28 a barrel for 20 consecutive trading days, or lower it should the price stay below $US22 a barrel for the same period. The benchmark oil price has been at $US32.12 a barrel this week and has not gone below $US28 a barrel since December 13.