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Nervous U.S. Navy Eyes on Bahrain

While the troubles in Egypt and Tunisia are important in Washington's geo-strategic calculations, they don't rank highly in its selfish concern over real estate. All that changes when it comes to the tiny Persian Gulf state of Bahrain, an island tucked between Saudi Arabia and Qatar on the gulf's western shore with fewer than 1 million residents. The home of the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet - and a recently-launched $580 million U.S. expansion effort slated to double the U.S. Navy's acreage there - could be in jeopardy if Bahrain's monarchy falls.

Thousands of Shiites protested in the capital of Manama on Tuesday. They were angry over the death of a man, in a clash between police and mourners, at a funeral for a demonstrator shot at an earlier anti-government rally, Reuters reports. The killing, a day after a "Day of Rage" of protests on Monday, suggested more unrest between Bahrain's majority Shiite Muslims and the Sunni security forces backed by the ruling Sunni Al Khalifa dynasty.

The (Iran-friendly) Shiite majority, which accounts for almost 70% of the population, wants the (Saudi-friendly) king, Sheik Hamid bin Isa al-Khalifa, to rewrite the constitution to give Shiites more power and opportunity, while also seeking investigations into allegations of torture and corruption (sound familiar?).

The downside to all this unpleasantness is that Bahrain is the U.S.'s most important post in the Persian Gulf. It's ground zero when it comes to monitoring the oil flow - nearly one gallon of every five used worldwide - down the gulf and through the narrow Strait of Hormuz. It's also a key base from which to eyeball Iran on the other side of the gulf.

The 5th Fleet and a base used by the U.S. Air Force both call Bahrain home. But the U.S. presence there has always been a sensitive topic. Following World War II, the U.S. had a large presence in Bahrain, but that shrunk in 1977 after Shiite efforts to end the monarchy there failed but succeeded in terminating a docking pact for U.S. warships. But the two sides kissed and made up following the 1991 Persian Gulf War, and the U.S. presence once again blossomed. There are up to 30 Navy vessels in the region at any one time, and they often dock in Bahrain for resupply and R&R.

And there's a welcome bonus for sailors in Bahrain. Unlike most other nations in the region, alcohol is available. In fact, it's so popular that the Navy has a "Tipsy Taxi" program so sailors who have had a bit too much to drink while out on the town can flash a special card at taxi drivers and get a free ride back to base.

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Matrixx Initiatives v. Siracusano: When must drug companies report adverse incidents to shareholders?

In , the Supreme Court will decide whether it's a violation of securities law for a drug company not to report adverse incidents to shareholders on the theory that the number of incidents didn't reach the threshold to be considered statistically significant.

How did this case arise?

Matrixx is a seller of cold remedies, including a product named Zicam Cold Remedy.

Between 1999 and 2004, Matrixx received 12 reports of Zicam users suffering anosmia, loss of the sense of smell. The shareholders contend that these reports and lawsuits are material information concerning Zicam that Matrixx was required to report. The shareholders did not claim that the number of incidents was statistically significant.

Because Matrixx did not report this information, the shareholders charged that the drug company violated a section of the Security and Exchange Act of 1934 and Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 10b-5.

How did this case come before the Supreme Court?

The stockholders filed suit against Matrixx in district court. The district court dismissed the claims on motion by Matrixx, relying on a decision from the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals setting forth the statisical significance standard for determining materiality. The court also noted that the petition had not provided any basis for concluding that the 12 user reports were reliable or accurate.

The appeals court reversed the district court. That court said materiality should be determined by the trier of fact without reliance on "bright-line" rules like whether the reports meet the threshold for statistical significance.

What will the Supreme Court decide?

The court heard this case in January, and in deciding it will resolve a . The 1st, 2nd and 3rd Circuits have ruled that 10(b) of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 and the SEC's implementing rule 10b-5 do not require drug companies to notify shareholders of adverse drug reactions until the reports of such incidents are sufficient in number to be statistically significant. The 9th Circuit rejected the statistical significance test used by those courts.

Who will be affected?

This case is important to drug manufacturers, their investors and consumers. If the court were to rule in favor of a statistical significance test, reporting would be limited and some potential investors and consumers might suffer from the lack of early alerts to adverse events. If the court requires every incident to be reported, drug companies face reporting burdens and risk unjustified loss of investors and customers.

Jersey Shore Embarrassment: N.J. tells N.Y. to 'Take Them Back'

While at a Lincoln Park, New Jersey, town hall meeting, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has said that he plans to ask New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to repossess the always rowdy and often drunken cast members of the MTV reality show, Jersey Shore.

Although the show, which follows the lives of several hard partying twenty-somethings, has been set at Seaside Heights, New Jersey, the cast members all hale from New York.reported that Christie, who has never disguised his disgust with the hard partying image that cast members like Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino and Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi portray, is particularly eager to dispel any connection between them and the Garden State now that Polizzi has landed herself in the headlines following an episode showing her arrest.

Polizzi was arrested for disorderly conduct while even more inebriated than normal while filming the third season of the show. Christie told thethat, "Remember, Snooki is from Poughkeepsie and the Situation is from State Island. That's not New Jersey."

Christie said that his message to Cuomo was, "Take them back. We don't want them." Christie says that Jersey Shore "parachutes out of control New Yorkers into Seaside Heights." New Jersey natives familiar with the area can agree that day long or even week long benders like those gleefully portrayed by MTV are hardly de rigueur for the resort town.

More laughable than MTV's portrayal of New Jersey, however, was Christie's arrogant assertion that he was actively improving New Jersey's reputation among the rest of the country's citizens by turning it into a model of "fiscal discipline."

In the past few weeks alone, Christie's political blunders and financial missteps have been well documents.a bill that would have allocated $1 million of state money in order to access $15 million of federal Medicare and Medicaid funding to provide women's health services to low income New Jersey women.

Yahoo! News also reported a few days ago that New Jersey's bond rating was cut as the direct result of Christie's decision to not make any payment during 2010 into New Jersey's pension and employee benefit funds. According to the state's actuarial calculation's a payment of more than $3 billion should have been made in order to pay out the money that is or will be due to New Jersey's state workers. New Jersey's poor bond rating means that it will have to pay even higher interest rates the next time it issues bonds to finance its activities, and thanks to Christie's financial mismanagement, that is sure to be soon.

US exchange BATS to buy Chi-X Europe: report

NEW YORK (AFP) – BATS Global Markets, a leading US stock exchange operator, has struck a deal to buy Chi-X Europe, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday amid rumors of a Nasdaq-ICE tie-up.

With merger mania sweeping the exchange operator industry, the Journal said that Kansas-based BATS had agreed to buy pan-European trading platform Chi-X Europe in a deal valued at up to $360 million (264.7 million euros).

The newspaper cited three unidentified sources familiar with the situation.

The transaction will likely be announced by the middle of next week at the latest, following further discussions with stakeholders and employees, according to two of the people, the Journal said. The deal could be announced as soon as Friday.

An initial $300 million price would be boosted by $30 million each in 2012 and 2013 if Chi-X Europe meets its performance targets. The deal price is based on an estimated $1.2 billion valuation for BATS, the newspaper said.

BATS, the number-three US markets operator, and Chi-X Europe, Europe's second-largest trading platform, announced Friday that they would extend exclusive takeover talks begun in December.

A fast-moving surge of merger and acquisition activity in the global securities and derivatives exchange sector has spurred speculation that other tie-ups are in the works.

Last week the London Stock Exchange Group said it would merge with its Toronto counterpart, TMX Group, to create the world's biggest trading platform and dominate raw materials and energy.

Deutsche Boerse and NYSE Euronext unveiled Tuesday their merger deal that would forge the world's biggest exchange by revenues and a powerhouse in derivatives trading.

On Thursday, Fox Business Network reported of a "possible partnership" between the tech-rich Nasdaq and the IntercontinentalExchange (ICE), specialised in raw materials and derivatives.

Fox said the discussions had reached "a critical stage" and that Nasdaq had hired Bank of America "to look at possible deals."

Spokespersons for ICE and Nasdaq, contacted by AFP, refused to comment on the report.

Contract Employee Still Missing After Mont Belvieu, Texas, Plant Explosion

An isooctane plant in Mont Belvieu in Chambers County in Texas exploded at around 12:15 p.m. Central Standard Time. Isooctane is a motor gasoline octane enhancement additive.

, as of 10:18 p.m., one contract employee was still unaccounted for. Company spokesman Rick Rainey said that they need to confirm whether anyone saw the contract employee leave or if anyone saw him not leave. He also stated that the company is in contact with the family of the missing worker as well as with the contractor.

The family of the missing contract employee identifies him as Ricky Shaw. According to his sister-in-law, co-workers saw him running away from the flames; he has not been heard from since.

Mark Shaw, the missing contract employee's brother, stated that his truck is still parked outside the facility. He additionally said that a worker working with him said Ricky was in the middle of a gas cloud when the explosion occurred, and as such does not look good for the outcome. Mark additionally stated that Ricky is divorced with two daughters, 13 and 9, who were his world. Mark said that Ricky worked double time and overtime shifts so he could take his kids places.

Before the explosion, a control room operator detected something abnormal and then began shutting down lines. After the explosion, the company closed the remainder of the valves.

Facebook users stated that the explosion was felt as far as Anahuac and Crosby, Texas.

Chambers County Judge Jimmy Sylvia advised residents to avoid the area of the plant until the fire was extinguished. Mont Belvieu City Council ordered no evacuations. Barbers Hills ISD schools were placed on a modified shelter in place.

After the explosion, the stock () lost about 3.72 percent of its value. The volume was very heavy. As of Feb. 9, the company has not released any further information on its .

The plant is owned by . Enterprise is a company that owns more than 49,000 miles of natural gas pipeline, crude and petrochemical pipelines. The company has 27 billion cubic feet of natural gas storage capacity and 195 million barrels of storage capacity for NGLs, among many other petrochemical based assets. One of the founders of Enterprise is the late Houston philanthropist, who died last year, Dan Duncan.

Citations:

KTRK-TV/DT, , ABC13

Michelle Homer, , KHOU

Mike Morris, , Houston Chronicle