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A man opens fire on police officers in Pittsburgh, killing three of them.Friends say the man feared the Obama administration was poised to ban guns....
PS:Here is another tragedy related to guns...Now--all those that are for gun control--and really dont think much about the 2nd amendment--are going to push harder for GUN CONTROL in all 50 states...I dont know if I believe the comment by his "friends"...I dont believe the media much these days...Just watch and see what Eric Holder will say next week....
As in the days of Noah...
Saturday, April 4, 2009
SIGN of the TIMES:Kids Told to Shout Obscenities in "Swearing Lesson"
A SCHOOL was blasted yesterday after kids as young as 11 were told to shout obscenities during a lesson in SWEARING. Expletives like the f-word and c-word were written on a blackboard before a teacher explained their meaning to 30 Year 7 pupils.St Laurence School in Bradford on Avon, Wilts, claim it was part of a sex and relationship education programme to “dispel” the myths of swear words.But parents say they were not consulted by head James Colquhoun about the class and say kids were left “deeply upset”.One parent said: “This is a total disgrace. Our children go to school to gain an education, not qualifications in swear words. Most kids had no idea what the words meant and were forced to grow up faster than their parents want. Heads should roll for this.”Some pupils claim the teacher told them NOT to tell parents about the lesson.Deputy head Richard Clutterbuck said last night:“This lesson should not have focused on the slang terms. I must apologise for any distress caused.”Wilts County Council said it is the governors’ responsibility to decide specifics of sex education lessons.In February we told how ten-year-olds at a church PRIMARY school near Cambridge were told to write the crudest words they knew to “analyse bullying insults”. By John Coles
As in the days of Noah...
GAY AGENDA WATCH:Gay Marriages Set to Begin in Iowa April 24
Gay marriage, seemingly the province of the nation's two coasts, is just weeks away from becoming a reality in the heartland and apparently it will be years before social conservatives have a chance to stop it.The Iowa Supreme Court on Friday unanimously upheld a lower-court ruling that rejected a state law restricting marriage to a union between a man and woman. Now gays and lesbians may exchange vows as soon as April 24 following the landmark decision.The county attorney who defended the law said he would not seek a rehearing. The only recourse for opponents appeared to be a constitutional amendment, which couldn't get on the ballot until 2012 at the earliest."I would say the mood is one of mourning right now in a lot of ways," said a dejected Bryan English, spokesman for the Iowa Family Policy Center, a conservative group that opposes same-sex marriage.In the meantime, same-sex marriage opponents may try to enact residency requirements for marriage so that gays and lesbians from across the country could not travel to Iowa to wed.U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, urged the Legislature to do so, saying he feared without residency requirements Iowa would "become the gay marriage mecca."Only Massachusetts and Connecticut currently permit same-sex marriage. For six months last year, California's high court allowed gay marriage before voters banned it in November....To read more go to:
As in the days of Noah...
North Dakota Lawmakers Reject 'Personhood' Rights for Fertilized Eggs
BISMARCK, N.D.-North Dakota's Senate has rejected legislation to bestow human rights on fertilized human eggs, whether they be in the womb or in a laboratory.Senators voted 29-16 Friday to reject legislation that sought to define as a human being "any organism with the genome of homo sapiens."The "personhood" status would include a developing embryo from the moment of conception,whether inside or outside the womb.A handful of states are considering similar proposals, and the measure generated an intense lobbying campaign from abortion opponents and people who favor abortion rights.Sen. Curtis Olafson, a Republican, spoke out frequently against the bill, saying it would make it difficult for doctors to treat problem pregnancies that could threaten the woman's life because both she and her unborn child would have equal status under the law.At a Senate hearing on the legislation, two reproductive endocrinologists testified that the bill would complicate the practice of in vitro fertilization, which involves removing eggs from a woman's body, fertilizing them in a laboratory, and implanting a fertilized egg inside the womb.The bill's sponsor, Rep. Dan Ruby, a Republican, sent an e-mail message to Democratic senators before Friday's vote, offering to write letters to the editor to vouch for their anti-abortion credentials if they backed the legislation."I will demonstrate my belief that this issue is more important than partisan politics," Ruby wrote.As in the days of Noah...
High Winds May Be Cause of North Korea's Rocket Launch Delay
SEOUL, South Korea-High winds may have forced North Korea to delay its rocket launch, despite the country's insistence Saturday that preparations were complete for the liftoff that many suspect is intended to test the country's long-range missile capabilities.Regional powers deployed warships and trained their satellites on the communist country to monitor what they suspect will be a test for a missile capable of reaching Alaska.Preparations for sending "an experimental communications satellite" into space were complete, North Korea's state-run media said in a dispatch Saturday morning, adding, "The satellite will be launched soon." However, the day's stated 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. timeframe passed without any sign of a launch. North Korea had announced last month the launch would take place sometime between April 4 and 8 during those hours.Winds reported as "relatively strong" around the northeastern North Korean launch pad in Musudan-ri may have kept the North from launching the rocket Saturday, analyst Paik Hak-soon of the private Sejong Institute think tank said."North Korea cannot afford a technical failure," he said. "North Korea wouldn't fire the rocket if there's even a minor concern about the weather."Japan again urged North Korea to refrain from a launch that Washington, Seoul and Tokyo suspect is a guise for testing the regime's long-range missile technology-a worrying development because North Korea has acknowledged it has nuclear weapons and has repeatedly broken promises to shelve its nuclear program or halt rocket tests...To read more go to:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,512558,00.html
As in the days of Noah...
GAY WATCH:Gays killed in Baghdad as clerics urge clampdown...
BAGHDAD-Two gay men were killed in Baghdad's Sadr City slum, a local official said on Saturday, and police said they had found the bodies of four more after clerics urged a crackdown on a perceived spread of homosexuality.Homosexuality is prohibited almost everywhere in the Middle East, but conditions have become especially dangerous for gays and lesbians in Iraq since the rise of religious militias after U.S.-led forces toppled Saddam Hussein six years ago."Two young men were killed on Thursday. They were sexual deviants. Their tribes killed them to restore their family honor," a Sadr City official who declined to be named said.The police source who declined to be named said the bodies of four gay men were unearthed in Sadr City on March 25, each bearing a sign reading "pervert" in Arabic on their chests.Sermons condemning homosexuality were read at the last two Friday prayer gatherings in Sadr City, a sprawling Baghdad slum of some 2 million people. The slum is a bastion of support for fiery Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and his Mehdi Army militia.The Mehdi Army has frozen its activities over the last year and government forces have wrested control of the slum.Many young men who might have cut their hair short and grown beards when religious gangs controlled much of Iraq now dress in a more Western style as government forces take back control.Some are now accused of being gay, and residents of Sadr City say at least one coffee shop has become a gay hangout.A member of the slum's Sadrist office said the Mehdi Army was not involved in the killings, but said homosexuality was now more widespread since the Mehdi Army lost control of the slum."This (homosexuality) has spread because of the absence of the Mehdi Army, the spread of sexual films and satellite television and a lack of government surveillance," said the office's Sheikh Ibrahim al-Gharawi, a Shi'ite cleric.Homosexual acts are punishable by up to seven years in prison in Iraq. A gay Iraqi man said any alleged crimes should be left to the law to deal with."If they've committed a crime, then there is the law. Killing is a big sin," he said, giving his name as Laith.(Additional reporting by Ahmed Rasheed, Writing by Mohammed Abbas: editing by Tim Pearce) By Wisam Mohammed and Khalid al-Ansary
As in the days of Noah...
Afghan President Backtracks on Law Legalizing Rape in Marriage
KABUL-Responding to criticism from around the world, Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Saturday that a new law that critics say makes it legal for men to rape their wives will be studied and possibly sent back to parliament for review. Karzai said he ordered the Justice Ministry to review the law, and if anything in it contravenes the country's constitution or Shariah law, "measures will be taken."The law, signed by Karzai last month, is intended to regulate family life inside Afghanistan's Shiite community, which makes up 10 percent to 20 percent of the country's 30 million people.But the United Nations Development Fund for Women has said the law "legalizes the rape of a wife by her husband."The United States has urged Karzai to review the law, and Karzai said he has spoken with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton about it. Canadian officials have also criticized the legislation.One of the law's most controversial articles legislates the frequency of sexual relations between Shiite husbands and wives. Article 132 says the husband has a right to sex every fourth night unless the wife is ill.Karzai did not mention Article 132 during a news conference Saturday. But he said he had studied the law earlier in the day and that "I don't see any problems with it."He complained that Western media outlets had mistranslated it. He read an article of the law during the news conference that appears to restrict Shiite women's right to leave their homes, though Karzai underscored a provision that allows women to leave in emergencies.Still, he said the law should be reviewed in consultation with scholars and religious leaders."I ordered the justice minister to review the law, and if there is anything that would contravene the country's constitution or Shariah law or the freedom our constitution gives to Afghan women, without any doubt there will be changes in it, and again it will be sent to the parliament of Afghanistan,"he said."Measures will be taken."The issue of women's rights is a source of tension between the country's conservative establishment and more liberal members of society. The Taliban government that ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001 banned women from appearing in public without a body-covering burqa and a male escort from her family...To read more go to:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,512556,00.html
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,512556,00.html
As in the days of Noah...
Afghan Law That Legalizes Rape Poses Problem for Obama and Clinton
WASHINGTON-As first lady, senator and then Democratic candidate for president, Hillary Clinton was vocal in her fight for the rights of women in Afghanistan.But, as President Obama's secretary of state, Clinton now finds herself in the uncomfortable position of watching as the U.S.-backed Afghan president signs a law that critics say gives Shiite men the right to rape their wives.International criticism pressure forced President Hamid Karzai to say Saturday that the law is under review, and he has spoken to Clinton about it.The developments come as Obama seeks NATO support in Europe for his plan to ramp up the war against terrorists in Afghanistan.Back at home in Washington, administration officials have struggled this week with how to respond to Karzai's signing of the so-called Shia Family Law without debate in the Afghan parliament. The law's most controversial provisions address sexual intercourse in marriage."As long as the husband is not traveling, he has the right to have sexual intercourse with his wife every fourth night," Article 132 of the law says."Unless the wife is ill or has any kind of illness that intercourse could aggravate, the wife is bound to give a positive response to the sexual desires of her husband."Such a law runs contrary to the stated goals of the U.S. mission in Afghanistan-to pursue human rights and to help liberate women from religious oppression.It is a cause that has been championed by previous administrations, and particularly by previous first ladies.The details of the law surfaced this week, just days after one of those former first ladies, Clinton, told the International Conference on Afghanistan at The Hague, Netherlands: "Women's rights are a central part of American foreign policy in the Obama administration; they are not marginal; they are not an add-on or an afterthought."State Department spokesman Robert Wood said Thursday that officials were "reviewing the legislation." He suggested that its legality might be in question."We urge President Karzai to review the law's legal status to correct provisions of the law that...limit or restrict women's rights," Wood said. He added that "President Karzai is well aware of our views with regard to this legislation."Karzai said Saturday that "measures will be taken," though it is unclear what changes, if any, he has in mind. He said he hadn't seen "any problems" with the law when he previously studied it.Afghanistan's constitution, which was passed in 2004, calls for equal rights for all men and women.The Associated Press and State Department producer Nina Donaghy contributed to this report.
By Kelley Beaucar Vlahos
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As in the days of Noah...
NATO Protesters Set Fire to Buildings, Clash With Police
STRASBOURG, France-Black-clad protesters attacked police and set a hotel and a customs station ablaze Saturday near a bridge linking France and Germany that served hours earlier as the backdrop for a show of unity by NATO leaders.AP photographers saw other protesters storm a nearby Ibis hotel, setting fires and pilfering alcohol from its bar.An AP reporter saw intermittent scuffles between police and demonstrators in black as they gradually made their way back from the Europe Bridge and tried to enter the city center.Around 2:45 p.m., the protesters-throwing rocks-tried to storm a massive police blockade at the Pont d'Anvers bridge, and were driven back by water cannon, tear gas, flash bombs and rubber bullets. Across the canal, nearly 1,000 people gathered to watch the fracas.Some of the protesters were hurt, but none of the injuries appeared to be serious.Elsewhere, stacks of old tires were also set ablaze, unleashing thick plumes of black smoke that could be seen from across the river. Near the bonfire was a sign welcoming visitors to Strasbourg.First lady Michelle Obama and other spouses canceled a visit to a cancer hospital out of concern for security, the French president's office said.Some 1,000 protesters were staked out near the hospital they were to visit.Some of the protesters say they want an end to war and call NATO a tool of Western imperialism.Others simply appear bent on causing chaos.Saturday's protest began calmly but began turning violent around noon (1000 GMT) at the same Pont d'Anvers bridge. An AP reporter saw police in body armor and helmets hoisting shields as they were pelted by several hundred protesters with rocks, sticks and then Molotov cocktails.About 100 officers responded by lobbing flash bombs and volleys of tear gas into the crowds of demonstrators, many dressed in black and wearing masks or balaclavas.Members of the violence-prone "black bloc"-named for their black clothes and hoods-then headed toward the Europe Bridge and set fire to the customs station on the French side and sprayed graffiti on the walls of buildings.Later, German-run water cannon were driven across the Europe Bridge and used to help put out the fire. As the crowd dissipated, a convenience store was overrun and ransacked.There were no immediate reports of injuries.German Chancellor Angela Merkel and two dozen other NATO leaders walked across the bridge separating Germany and France before the 60th-anniversary summit began.Across the Rhine River in Kehl, Germany, an estimated 5,000 demonstrators gathered peacefully and hoped to cross into Strasbourg but were diverted by scores of police, backed by at least five trucks with water cannons."No nations, no border. Fight law and order," they chanted in unison as police clad in riot gear looked on, before the demonstration began to gradually subside around 3 p.m. (1300 GMT).Protesters have been frustrated by large police presence in both cities. Some 15,000 German police and 9,000 French police are on call for the summit. Helicopters have patrolled the skies and police in fast boats have crisscrossed the river, too.Earlier Saturday, some 1,800 protesters left their camp south of Strasbourg at about 4 a.m. (0200 GMT) and headed north through deserted streets to the summit site before being turned back.Elsewhere, a separate group of 200 French and German protesters-including dozens dressed as clowns and a team of dancing percussionists-occupied a central intersection in downtown Strasbourg after police launched flash bombs and tear gas at them.German authorities had estimated that up to 25,000 protesters would take part in several demonstrations in Kehl and the German spa town of Baden-Baden, about 35 miles (55 kilometers) away, where NATO leaders met and had supper in a lavish casino.France's interior minister has suggested 30,000 to 40,000 ultimately could show up in Strasbourg. The numbers have so far appeared much smaller.http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,512536,00.html
As in the days of Noah..
NO WE CAN'T:Obama fails to win Nato troops for Afghanistan
Barack Obama made an impassioned plea to America’s allies to send more troops to Afghanistan, warning that failure to do so would leave Europe vulnerable to more terrorist atrocities.But though he continued to dazzle Europeans on his debut international tour, the Continent’s leaders turned their backs on the US President.Gordon Brown was the only one to offer substantial help. He offered to send several hundred extra British soldiers to provide security during the August election, but even that fell short of the thousands of combat troops that the US was hoping to prise from the Prime Minister.Just two other allies made firm offers of troops. Belgium offered to send 35 military trainers and Spain offered 12. Mr Obama’s host, Nicolas Sarkozy, refused his request.The derisory response threatened to tarnish Mr Obama’s European tour, which yesterday included a spellbinding performance in Strasbourg in which he offered the world a vision of a future free of nuclear weapons.Mr Obama-who has pledged 21,000 more troops to combat the growing insurgency and is under pressure from generals to supply up to 10,000 more-used the eve of Nato’s 60th anniversary summit to declare bluntly that it was time for allies to do their share.“Europe should not simply expect the United States to shoulder that burden alone,” he said.“This is a joint problem it requires a joint effort.”He said that failing to support the US surge would leave Europe open to a fresh terrorist offensive. “It is probably more likely that al-Qaeda would be able to launch a serious terrorist attack on Europe than on the United States because of proximity,” he said.The presidential charm offensive failed to move fellow Nato countries. President Sarkozy told Mr Obama that France would not be sending reinforcements to bolster its existing force northeast of Kabul.Germany, Italy, Poland, Canada and Denmark said that they were considering their positions. After a meeting with Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, Mr Obama tried to apply further moral pressure.“I am sure that Germany, as one of the most important leaders in Europe, will be stepping up to the plate and helping us to get the job done.”Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, the Nato Secretary-General, warned that new laws proposed by President Karzai in Afghanistan sanctioning child marriage and marital rape had made it harder to raise more soldiers.“We are there to defend universal values and when I see, at the moment,a law threatening to come into effect which fundamentally violates women’s rights and human rights, that worries me,” he said.“I have a problem to explain to a critical public audience in Europe, be it the UK or elsewhere, why I’m sending the guys to the Hindu Kush.”The temporary British deployment falls short of the 2,000 soldiers that the Army had planned to deploy long-term to Afghanistan and appeared to catch defence chiefs by surprise.Mr Brown announced the commitment as he flew into Strasbourg for the two-day summit, but hopes that it would spur other allies to follow suit were soon dashed. British officials said that the extra troops, expected to number between 500 and 700-increasing Britain’s military strength there to about 9,000-would be dispatched to southern Afghanistan for a four-month period leading up to and beyond the election, due to take place on August 20.The plan is to withdraw them once the election is over. Mr Brown said that the extra troops were only supposed to provide a “temporary uplift”.Military contingency plans remain on the table to send up to 2,000 more troops long-term, taking the total to 10,000, but that will depend on the political will to approve the deployment.Although the Prime Minister discussed Afghanistan with President Obama when they held bilateral talks before the G20 summit in London, it is understood that no formal offer of extra troops was made.PICTURE:Leaders of Nato countries take their seats for a working dinner at Baden-Baden
By Michael Evans and David Charter in Strasbourg
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article6032342.ece
As in the days of Noah...
Friday, April 3, 2009
Obama to Lift Family Travel Ban to Cuba
WASHINGTON-President Barack Obama plans to lift longstanding U.S. restrictions on Cuba, a senior administration official said, allowing Cuban-Americans to visit families there as often as they like and to send them unlimited funds. The gesture, which could herald more openness with the Castro regime, will fulfill a campaign promise and follows more modest action in Congress this year to loosen travel rules.The president has authority to loosen the restrictions on travel and remittances to Cuba on his own. The new rules will affect an estimated 1.5 million Americans who have family members in Cuba. Other Americans are allowed to travel to Cuba but only if they qualify through certain cultural, educational and other programs.President Obama doesn't intend to call for lifting of the trade embargo against Cuba, which would require congressional action, nor is any specific diplomatic outreach contemplated, the official said. Advocates for greater openness with Cuba said the move is significant in itself, signaling the Obama administration's willingness to take a fresh look at Cuba policy early in the presidency. However, others argue that overtures to Cuba as long as the Castros are in charge are not likely to foster democracy on the island.The timing of the announcement is unclear, but several Cuba experts have speculated that it could come ahead of this month's Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago.It will come amid a series of international gestures by President Obama recently. This week, he moved to improve relations with Russia and told an audience in France on Friday that he was there to listen. Previously, he made an outreach to the people of Iran, sending a video message calling for a "new day" of relations between Washington and Tehran. Last May in a campaign speech in Miami, Mr. Obama said, "It's time to let Cuban-Americans see their mothers and their fathers, their sisters and their brothers. It's time to let Cuban-American money make their families less dependent on the Castro regime."The travel and remittance restrictions stem from the embargo, put in place in 1962 after Fidel Castro came to power in Cuba. President Jimmy Carter allowed the travel ban to lapse.Jose de Cordoba and John Lyons contributed to this article.
By Laura Meckler
To read more go to:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123879435046687885.html
As in the days of Noah...
ISLAMIC CRAZE WATCH:Woman Publicly Flogged in Pakistan
Pakistani authorities have ordered an investigation into a video showing the public flogging of a woman.WARNING: some viewers may find this video disturbing....!!!!
Gay Marriage Legalized in Iowa
Gay rights activists are celebrating after Iowa's Supreme Court struck down the state's ban on same-sex marriage...
GAY AGENDA WATCH:Unanimous ruling: Iowa marriage no longer limited to one man, one woman
The Iowa Supreme Court this morning upheld a Polk County judge’s 2007 ruling that marriage should not be limited to one man and one woman.The ruling, viewed nationally and at home as a victory for the gay rights movement and a setback for social conservatives, means Iowa’s 5,800 gay couples can legally marry in Iowa beginning April 24.There are no residency rules for marriage in Iowa, so the rule would apply to any couple who wanted to travel to Iowa.Shelly Wolfe and Melisa Keeton, who waited for word of the ruling outside the Polk County Recorder’s Office, immediately called their pastor anyway to make plans.“We’re going to make it legal,” said Keeton, 31, of Des Moines.Wolfe, 38, and Keeton, who is 21 weeks pregnant, went through a commitment ceremony two years ago. Their marriage certificate was among the 26 that were put on hold when Polk County Judge Robert Hanson’s decision to open the door for gay marriage was delayed until the high court could weigh in.Third state to allow same-sex marriages
Today’s decision makes Iowa the first Midwestern state, and the third in the country, to allow same-sex marriages. Lambda Legal, a gay rights group, financed the court battle and represented six couples who challenged Iowa’s 10-year-old ban on gay marriage.Supreme Court Justice Mark Cady, who wrote the unanimous decision, at one point invoked the court’s first-ever decision, in 1839, which struck down slavery laws 17 years before the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the right of a slave owner to treat a person as property.Iowa’s gay marriage ban “is unconstitutional, because the county has been unable to identify a constitutionally adequate justification for excluding plaintiffs from the institution of civil marriage,” Cady wrote in the 69-page opinion that seemed to dismiss the concept of civil unions as an option for gay couples.“A new distinction based on sexual orientation would be equally suspect and difficult to square with the fundamental principles of equal protection embodied in our constitution,” Cady wrote.The ruling also addressed what it called the “religious undercurrent propelling the same-sex marriage debate,” and said judges must remain outside the fray. Some Iowa religions are strongly opposed to same-sex marriages, the justices noted, while some support the notion.“Our constitution does not permit any branch of government to resolve these types of religious debates and entrusts to courts the task of ensuring that government avoids them,” the opinion says.The ruling explicitly does not affect “the freedom of a religious organization to define marriage it solemnizes as unions between a man and a woman,” the justices stressed. The case, Varnum vs. Brien, involved couples who sued Polk County Recorder Timothy Brien in 2005 after his office denied them marriage licenses. Hanson sided with the couples last year but then suspended his decision pending a high court ruling.
• Read the summary: Iowa Supreme Court's decision on same-sex marriage.
• Read the summary: Iowa Supreme Court's decision on same-sex marriage.
• Read the full opinion: Iowa Supreme Court's decision on same-sex marriage.
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As in the days of Noah...
Japan Robots on Moon by 2020
TOKYO-Japan hopes to have a two-legged robot walk on the moon by around 2020, with a joint mission involving astronauts and robots to follow, according to a plan laid out Friday by a government group.Specifics of the plan, including what new technologies will be required and the size of the project's budget, are to be decided within the next two years, according to Japan's Strategic Headquarters for Space Development, a Cabinet-level working group.Development of a lunar robot is part of a broad framework outlined by the group, which is charged with plotting a new course for Japan's space strategy. As a next step, joint exploration of the moon involving robots and astronauts will be considered.The framework is to be finalized late next month, after the public has a chance to comment on the proposals.The group also recommended promoting research into military satellites, such as an early warning system for detecting ballistic missile launches and systems to detect and analyze radio waves sent in space.Other recommendations by the group include using space research as a tool to foster diplomacy with other countries and developing an advanced satellite to predict and monitor natural disasters.The Strategic Headquarters was established last year by a law passed to advance Japan's space technology and exploration. It allows the country, which has a largely peaceful constitution, to use space for military defense.Friday's proposal was released as North Korea was completing preparations to launch a multistage rocket over Japan.The communist country says it will send a communications satellite into orbit, but Tokyo suspects the North, which has acknowledged it has nuclear weapons, is actually testing long-range missile technology.Japan launched its first satellite in 1970 and has long been among the world leaders in space technology. But in recent years, it has been overshadowed by China, which is aggressively pushing its own space program.In January, Japan used one of its rockets to launch the first satellite to monitor greenhouse gases worldwide, a tool to help monitor global warming.By JAY ALABASTER
As in the days of Noah...
Chavez:"Capitalism needs to go down"
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, left, presents a carpet to his visiting Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez, right, woven with their images, during an inauguration of a joint commercial bank, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, April 3, 2009. (AP Photo/ISNA, Mona Hoobehfekr)TEHRAN, Iran-Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Friday ridiculed the G-20 summit's attempts to deal with the global financial meltdown, saying that capitalism is in crisis and must end.Chavez criticized the G-20 nations' pledges of more than a trillion dollars for lending to struggling countries at Thursday's summit in London, calling it "the same medicine that's killing the patient—a trillion dollars...more money for a bottomless pit."Speaking during a visit to Iran, the Venezuelan leader said the plans by the Group of 20 industrial and developing countries would strengthen "one of the great guilty ones behind the crisis: the International Monetary Fund."The IMF and the World Bank are "tools of imperialism" and must be eliminated, Chavez said.In earlier remarks, he also blamed the United States and Britain, calling them "the most guilty" for the financial crisis sweeping the globe because of the financial model "they've been imposing for years.""It's impossible that capitalism can regulate the monster that is the world financial system, it's impossible," Chavez told Venezuela's state TV late Thursday."Capitalism needs to go down. It has to end. And we must take a transitional road to a new model that we call socialism."Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, shared that critique, saying "some decisions by the world leaders cannot restore dead imperialism."The two leaders, appearing Friday at the inauguration of joint commercial bank, referred to their nations as the "G-2." In recent years, Chavez and Ahmadinejad—both well-known for their anti-U.S. rhetoric-have boosted economic and political ties.The G-20 leaders on Thursday promised $1.1 trillion for lending to struggling countries. They also vowed major efforts to clean up banks' tattered balance sheets, get credit flowing again, shut down global tax havens and tighten regulation over hedge funds and other financial high-flyers in the U.S. and elsewhere.Chavez said the summit's efforts were not what the world needs "in the face of the great crisis of global capitalism." Chavez's own economic program to institute socialism in Venezuela could slow as his country's oil-dependent economy suffers from falling crude prices. Inflation there has soared above 30 percent, eroding Venezuelans' salaries.In his decade in power, Chavez has boosted state control over the economy and spent heavily on social programs meant to increase his popularity.
By NASSER KARIMI--Associated Press Writer
As in the days of Noah...
Bruni backs off from Obama kiss
FRANCE'S first lady broke with protocol today as she held out a frosty hand to welcome Barack Obama.Stunning Carla Bruni was business-like in her greeting-while her hubby treated the US President's wife to a hug and Continental double kiss.The former model gave customary pecks on both cheeks to Michelle Obama and other dignitaries when the couple arrived in France.But when it came to the dashing US President the beauty kept a noticeable distance. Mr and Mrs Obama flew in to Strasbourg's majestic 18th-century Rohan Palace this morning to meet with President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.The meeting was being held before the formal start of the NATO alliance’s 60th anniversary summit.Sarkozy rolled out all the pomp possible for the visit, with a red carpet arrival and full military honours from a company of soldiers dressed in camouflage. The two couples lined up to listen to their respective national anthems played by a French military band but even in his trademark stacked heels Mr Sarkozy was a sight for smaller eyes. The French supremo at 5ft 6ins was no match for his ex supermodel wife and even taller Mrs Obama, who both donned flat shoes for the occasion.Mr Obama later gave a speech, telling told those gathered that he is setting a dramatic goal of “a world without nuclear weapons”.The President opened a town-hall style gathering with the declaration, saying he would outline details in Prague in the coming days.He said: “Even with the Cold War now over, the spread of nuclear weapons or the theft of nuclear material could lead to the extermination of any city on the planet.”Mr Obama said that the US shares blame for the crisis, but that “every nation bears responsibility for what lies ahead-especially now".He added: “I’ve come to Europe this week to renew our partnership.America is changing but it cannot be America alone that changes.” President Obama jetted out of Britain at 8.50am after flying in on Tuesday for the G20 summit. He had been expected to travel to Stansted airport,Essex, in presidential helicopter Marine One, but fog forced him into his armoured limousine in London’s rush hour.By JENNIFER BRAIN and LEON WATSON
As in the days of Noah...
President holds town hall in France; Questions from Americans, not French!
President Obama held a much ballyhooed town hall in Strasbourg, France, on Friday, touted by the White House as an outreach to Europeans on the second leg of the president's "listening" tour.But the first person he called on was an American-and the third, too. By the end of the hourlong session, not a single French citizen got to ask the U.S. president a question.In all, Obama took just five questions from the thousands of people packed into a sports arena after delivering a lengthy speech read from a teleprompter. And the query topics were on the light side; one asked about the expected acquisition of a family dog, another about whether "you regret to have run for presidency."The president had opened his remarks by saying he had come to "take some questions. You know, oftentimes during these foreign trips, you see everything from behind a window. And what we thought was important was for me to have an opportunity to not only speak with you, but also to hear from you, because that's ultimately how we can learn about each other."But Obama seemed surprised when his first questioner turned out to be an American."Oh, I called-now, I just want to say I did not call on the American on purpose," he said with a smile before delivering a long answer to the American's question about his legacy as president.After his answer, Obama chastised his fellow countrymen."Now, I know there are some other Americans in the crowd, but do me a favor, Americans: Wait till we get back home, and I'll do a town hall there, because I I want to hear from my French and German and European friends."While his second question came from a student from Heidelberg, Germany, his third questioner also turned out to be an American. "Well, hello, Mr. President. I'm sorry. I'm from Chicago," said a young woman, who said she was attending an international high school in Strasbourg.When disgruntled moans broke out in the crowd, the girl declared defensively: "I'm French. I'm also French.""Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Hold on," he said, addressing the crowd. "She says she also French....What do you think? Should we let her ask the question?" he asked. There were light cheers from the polite crowd. "OK, go ahead.""I was wondering if the dog was already in the White House or not," the young woman asked in English, with no trace of a French accent."This is a very important question in the United States, what kind of dog and when we're getting it," he told the audience made up mostly of French and German students.He then called on a young man for the fourth question, and while he did not identify where he was from, the man had a heavy German accent. His final question went to "that young woman in the red," another student from Heidelberg who identified herself as "totally European"-but maybe hailed from Hungary."I wanted to tell you that your name in Hungarian means peach," she said."Peach? Oh, OK. Well, how about that. I did not know that," Obama said."Yes, now you know it," the woman said....By Joseph Curl--POLITICAL THEATER
As in the days of Noah...
BIG BROTHER WATCH:English villagers send Google snapper packing
LONDON-You're never far from a camera in Britain, a country that has accepted the presence of millions of surveillance cameras in its streets, shopping centers and public spaces.But for the villagers of Broughton in southern England, the roving eye of Google was one camera too far.A gaggle of residents in the affluent hamlet formed a human chain to turn away a car shooting images for Google Street View, the popular service that allows Internet users to see high-quality photos of houses and streets around the world.Broughton's tiny victory for people power is the latest sign of concern about the U.S. Internet juggernaut's collection of vast amounts of data, from satellite photos on Google Earth to the searches performed by Internet users and the shopping habits of e-mail users."I was upstairs when I spotted the camera car driving down the lane," villager Paul Jacobs told The Times of London newspaper."My immediate reaction was anger: How dare anyone take a photograph of my home without my consent?"Jacobs quickly rounded up his neighbors, who blocked the road and forced the car to retreat.The local police force confirmed it had been called to the village Wednesday by "reports of a dispute between a crowd of people and a Google Street View contractor.""They felt his presence was an intrusion of their privacy," Thames Valley Police said in a statement sent Friday to The Associated Press. "When police arrived at the scene, the car had moved on."Street View debuted in the United States in 2007 and has since spread to countries including France, Italy, Spain, Australia and Japan. It launched in Britain last month, sparking a debate about freedom of information and the right to privacy.Street View has sparked concern elsewhere as well. In the United States, Google removed images of shelters for battered women.In the Netherlands, concerns have been raised about the safety of anyone trying to photograph Amsterdam's notorious Red Light district. So far, Google's images stop just outside the district.In Italy, consumer groups have raised a variety of concerns and asked Google to put visual and sound warnings on the cars that take its Street View pictures."People feel sensitive about their local area, about their home, and digitization in great detail of those images threatens a great many people," said Simon Davies of London-based watchdog Privacy International.For months, Google's Street View vehicle—a car with a pole-mounted revolving camera protruding from the top—has been roaming the streets of Britain, capturing 360-degree images of streets, and the people on them...PICTURE:An undated file photo made available by Google Friday April 3, 2009 of one of their street mapping cars. You're never far from a camera in Britain, a country that has accepted the presence of millions of surveillance cameras in its streets, shopping centers and public spaces. But for the villagers of Broughton in southern England, the roving eye of Google was a camera too far. A gaggle of residents of the affluent hamlet formed a human chain to turn away a car shooting images for Google Street View, the popular service that allows Internet users to see high-quality photos of houses and streets around the world (AP Photo/Google)
By JILL LAWLESS--Associated Press Writer
To read more go to:
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D97B46P80&show_article=1
As in the days of Noah....
Fed "extremely uncomfortable" about bailouts
CHARLOTTE, N.C.-While acknowledging that the Federal Reserve was "extremely uncomfortable" about last year's bailouts of big financial companies, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said Friday the central bank's strategy to ease the financial crisis is working. Bernanke was referring to the Fed's unprecedented decisions last year to step in and financially back JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s takeover of then-troubled investment house Bear Stearns and throw its first of four financial lifelines to insurance giant American International Group Inc.In remarks during a Fed conference in Charlotte, N.C., Bernanke said the central bank was forced to take action because the collapse of those companies would have dealt a serious blow to the financial system and the national economy.The situation underscores the need for new powers to allow the government to safely wind down such huge firms, he said. Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner recently asked Congress for such powers.Since the financial crisis erupted in 2007, the Fed's balance sheet—its assets and liabilities—has more than doubled to $2 trillion from $870 billion. Credit provided under those company bailouts accounts for only 5 percent of the Fed's current balance sheet, Bernanke said.Still, "these operations have been extremely uncomfortable for the Federal Reserve to undertake and were carried out only because no reasonable alternative was available," he said.Bernanke also signaled that the central bank is keeping a close eye on the size of commercial banks' reserve balances held at the Fed. If those balances aren't managed right, they could complicate the Fed's task of "raising short-term interest rates when the economy begins to recover or if inflation expectations were to begin to move higher," Bernanke said.The Fed's radical programs to bust through the financial crisis and spur bank lending to consumers and businesses are helping. Its program to provide financial companies with loans, buy mounds of debt that companies rely on for short-terming financing of payrolls and supplies, and efforts to bolster consumer lending and the mutual funds have eased some credit stresses, he said.Such efforts by the Fed, along with central banks in other countries, have "significantly reduced funding pressures for financial institutions, helped to reduce rates in bank funding markets and increase overall financial stability," Bernanke said.Getting banks to boost lending to customers is a key ingredient to any economic turnaround. The Fed chief said he expects to see a "gradual resumption of sustainable economic growth." However, he didn't say when.Those attending the conference, a two-day event that focused on credit markets and put on by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, had their own predictions."My personal feeling is that we've hit bottom, and we're going to be at the bottom for a while," said Wesley Sturges, president of the Bank of Commerce in Charlotte. "We may be able to see positive things late fourth quarter, early part of next year."During his speech, Bernanke also defended the Fed's decisions to revive the economy by plowing trillions of dollars into efforts to stabilize the banking system and to lower interest rates. Its program to buy mortgage-backed securities of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has helped drive down the rate on 30-year mortgages to record lows."These are extraordinary challenging times for our financial system and our economy,"Bernanke said. "I am confident that we can meet these challenges, not least because I have great confidence in the underlying strengths of the American economy."To brace the economy, the Fed has slashed a key interest rate to an all-time low of near zero. The central bank has turned to unconventional tools—such as its recent decision to start buying government debt—to pull down interest rates on a range of consumer loans.The goal: entice Americans to go out and spend again, which would help lift the economy out of recession.
By IEVA M. AUGSTUMS and JEANNINE AVERSA--AP Business Writers
As in the days of Noah....
Obama to Bank CEOs:"My Administration is the Only Thing between You and the Pitchforks"...
The bankers struggled to make themselves clear to the president of the United States. Arrayed around a long mahogany table in the White House state dining room last week, the CEOs of the most powerful financial institutions in the world offered several explanations for paying high salaries to their employees-and, by extension, to themselves.“These are complicated companies,” one CEO said. Offered another: “We’re competing for talent on an international market.”But President Barack Obama wasn’t in a mood to hear them out. He stopped the conversation and offered a blunt reminder of the public’s reaction to such explanations.“Be careful how you make those statements, gentlemen.The public isn’t buying that.”“My administration,” the president added,“is the only thing between you and the pitchforks.” The fresh details of the meeting-some never before revealed-come from an account provided to POLITICO by one of the participants.A second source inside the meeting confirmed the details, and two other sources familiar with the meeting offered additional information.The accounts demonstrate that despite the public comments on both sides that the meeting was cordial, the tone in the room was in fact one of mutual wariness.The titans of finance-men used to being the most powerful man in almost any room-sized up a new president who made clear in ways big and small that he expected them to change their ways. There were signs from the outset that this was a business event, not a social gathering. At each place around the table sat a single glass of water. No ice. For those who finished their glass, no refills were offered. There was no group photograph taken of the CEOs with the president, which typically happens at ceremonial White House gatherings but not at serious strategy sessions. “The only way they could have sent a more Spartan message is if they had served bread along with the water,” says a person who attended the meeting.“The signal from Obama’s body language and demeanor was, ‘I’m the president, and you’re not.’” According to the accounts of sources inside the room, President Obama told the CEOs exactly what he expects from them, and pushed back forcefully when they attempted to defend Wall Street’s legendarily high-paying ways. Watch the bank CEOs' news conference after last week's meeting:PICTURE:Freddie Mac CEO John Koskinen, Northern Trust CEO Rick Waddell and Banker's Association CEO Ed Yingling leave the White House March 27.
Photo: AP
Photo: AP
By EAMON JAVERS
As in the days of Noah...
Wall Street protesters ask US to "bail out the people"
A protester stands in the rain during a rally against government bailouts for corporations on Broadway near Wall Street Friday, April 3, 2009 in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)
Protesters fly an American flag with corporate logos instead of stars during a rally against government bailouts for corporations on Broadway near Wall Street Friday, April 3, 2009 in New York. The protesters, who plan to march through the Financial District, are demanding that the government "bail out the people" and not big business. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow) NEW YORK-Hundreds of people are marching on Wall Street in New York City to protest the billions of dollars in bailout money to big business.Four people were arrested Friday on disorderly conduct charges after they tried to walk in the middle of Broadway in downtown Manhattan. Marchers plan to walk past AIG headquarters and several banks on their way to the iconic bull statue on Wall Street.The protesters plans to repeat the march on Saturday.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D97B5NF81&show_article=1
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D97B5NF81&show_article=1
As in the days of Noah...
Thursday, April 2, 2009
IAEA split over new chief,Iran,Syria
VIENNA-An ideological split at International Atomic Energy Agency is slowing the search for a new chief at a time the organization tasked with keeping nuclear arms away from rogue states needs a firm hand at the rudder.The longer the delay, the greater the fear that Iran, and possibly Syria, could forge ahead with allegedly illicit nuclear activities with more impunity.For months, the IAEA's hands have been tied in its probes of the two nations' nuclear programs as internal bickering and the agency's weak mandate prevent it from taking effective action. The hunt is on for a leader who can help unite the fractious 35-nation board for joint decisions on crucial nonproliferation issues.But the same North-South divisions that have hobbled the IAEA's investigation of Iran and Syria are encumbering the search for a successor to Mohamed ElBaradei, who steps down as director general in November. The developed world believes tough action is needed to block rogue nations from acquiring nuclear weapons; emerging economies argue that countries like Iran and Syria have a right to develop nuclear programs to help them catch up with the West.That debate has clouded the process of picking a new leader: Six rounds over two days last week left the ballot split between Japan's Yukiya Amano, a low-key administrator favored by the U.S. and other rich nations, and Abdul Samad Minty, a South African backed by developing countries.The agency on Monday formally relaunched the leadership race, throwing it open to a new round of nominations from the 35 IAEA board member nations. But any new balloting is at least weeks away, with no guarantee of ending the impasse—and ElBaradei will increasingly be viewed as a lame-duck leader as he nears the end of his term.The impression of a rudderless IAEA could further embolden both Iran and Syria.Most experts agree that Iran recently amassed enough enriched uranium to build a bomb. That adds urgency to efforts to persuade Tehran to give up enrichment. U.S. President Barack Obama is reaching out to Iran and Syria in an effort to break the nuclear impasse: it's a crucial time calling for strong IAEA leadership to support American diplomatic efforts with Tehran and Damascus.Even before IAEA leadership became an issue, probes of both countries ground to a standstill. With no enforcing powers, the agency was left to ask for cooperation—refused in both cases. Iran last year declared an investigation of allegations that it tried to make nuclear weapons closed and continues to expand its enrichment activities despite U.N. Security Council sanctions. George Jahn has covered nuclear and related security and tactical issues since 2002....By GEORGE JAHN--Associated Press Writer
To read more go to:
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D97AQQAO1&show_article=1&catnum=0
As in the days of Noah...
New Video May Help FBI Solve Somali-American Terror Case
A video posted on a jihadist Web site could help the FBI determine how a group of Somali-Americans was recruited to join an Al Qaeda-linked terrorist group in Somalia.For several months the FBI has been investigating at least 20 Somali-American men from the Minneapolis area and elsewhere in the United States who traveled to war-torn Somalia to join an Al Qaeda-linked terrorist group known as al-Shabaab, which has been warring with the moderate Somali government since 2006. At a Senate hearing on the issue last month, one top-ranking official said it's "clear" the Internet played a role in radizalizing and recruiting the young men.VIDEO: Click here to watch Catherine Herridge's report.The 30-minute video posted this week is a highly polished production, featuring anti-American hip-hop and sporadic images of Usama bin Laden. In much of the video, a man dubbed "The American" purportedly leads a group of al-Shabaab militants in an ambush of Ethiopian forces, which oppose an Islamic state and have backed the new Somali government."The only reason we are staying here, away from our families, away from the cities, away from candy bars [and] all these other things is because we are waiting to meet with the enemy," he tells them in the video, first provided to FOX News by the Washington-based Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI). "They're supposed to be coming anytime. We're going to set up the ambush, and by the will of [God] we're going to kill all of them."FBI spokesman Rich Kolko said the FBI is "reviewing" the video.MEMRI identified "The American" as Abu Mansur al-Amriki, and a law enforcement official said he is originally from the United States, but has been in Somalia "for some time." The official said al-Amriki is in his late 20s or early 30s. The official wouldn't offer any other identifying features, including whether he had converted to Islam.MEMRI described the video as a "clear appeal to foreign youth, especially in English-speaking countries, to join the jihad in Somalia."In the video, "The American" praises a man killed in the fight, saying, "We want to inform his family that he was one of the best brothers here...We need more like him, so if you can encourage more of your children and more of your neighbors, anyone around, to send people like him to this jihad it would be a great asset for us."Another man, with an accent and a wrap covering his face, says at the end of the video,"We're calling all the brothers overseas, all the Shabaab, wherever they are, to come and live the life of a fighter, and they will...love it."The FBI investigation into how young American men were recruited to join al-Shabaab in Somalia is active in Columbus, Ohio; Cincinnati, Ohio; Boston; Seattle; and San Diego, according to testimony from counterterrorism officials and others at the Senate hearing last month.But reports from around the world suggest young Muslims from other Western countries, namely Canada, Australia and England, are also being recruited to join the fight in Somalia.U.S. officials declined to comment specifically on whether officials from those countries have been working with the FBI.But at a State Department briefing today, State Department spokesman Robert Wood said, "Somalia would be one of those areas that we're concerned about with regard to Al Qaeda recruitment. This requires broad cooperation, the United States with other countries-not only in the Horn of Africa but outside of that region-to try to do what we can to prevent Al Qaeda from being successful in recruiting young people to their cause."
PICTURE:Screenshot of the "American," a man law enforcement officials identify as Abu Mansur al-Amriki.(FNC/Provided by memrijttm.org)
By Mike Levine and Catherine Herridge
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,512253,00.html
As in the days of Noah...
Senate Follows House, Passes $3 Trillion Budget
The Democatic-controlled Senate has passed a budget drafted to President Barack Obama's specifications, voting a few hours after the House approved a similar plan. The Senate vote was 55-43, along party lines...
Robot achieves scientific first:"Machine makes discovery independently of creators"
A laboratory robot called Adam has been hailed as the first machine in history to have discovered new scientific knowledge independently of its human creators.Adam formed a hypothesis on the genetics of bakers’ yeast and carried out experiments to test its predictions, without intervention from its makers at Aberystwyth University.The result was a series of “simple but useful”discoveries,confirmed by human scientists,about the gene coding for yeast enzymes.The research is published in the journal Science.Professor Ross King, the chief creator of Adam, said robots would not supplant human researchers but make their work more productive and interesting.“Ultimately we hope to have teams of human and robot scientists working together in laboratories,” he said.Adam is the result of a five-year collaboration between computer scientists and biologists at Aberystwyth and Cambridge universities.The researchers endowed Adam with a huge database of yeast biology, automated hardware to carry out experiments, supplies of yeast cells and lab chemicals, and powerful artificial intelligence software.Although they did not intervene directly in Adam’s experiments, they did stand by to fix technical glitches, add chemicals and remove waste.The team has just completed a successor robot called Eve, which is about to work with Adam on a series of experiments designed to find new drugs to treat tropical diseases such as malaria and schistosomiasis.“Adam is a prototype,”says Prof King.“Eve is better designed and more elegant.” In the new experiments, Adam and Eve will work together to devise and carry out tests on thousands of chemical compounds to discover antimalarial drugs.By Clive Cookson, Science Editor
As in the days of Noah...
OBAMA STIMULUS WATCH:"Detroit man traps raccoons for food,fashion..."
Detroit-When selecting the best raccoon carcass for the special holiday roast, both the connoisseur and the curious should remember this simple guideline: Look for the paw."The paw is old school," says Glemie Dean Beasley, a Detroit raccoon hunter and meat salesman. "It lets the customers know it's not a cat or dog."Beasley, a 69-year-old retired truck driver who modestly refers to himself as the Coon Man, supplements his Social Security check with the sale of raccoon carcasses that go for as much $12 and can serve up to four. The pelts, too, are good for coats and hats and fetch up to $10 a hide.While economic times are tough across Michigan as its people slog through a difficult and protracted deindustrialization, Beasley remains upbeat.Where one man sees a vacant lot, Beasley sees a buffet."Starvation is cheap," he says as he prepares an afternoon lunch of barbecue coon and red pop at his west side home.His little Cape Cod is an urban Appalachia of coon dogs and funny smells. The interior paint has the faded sepia tones of an old man's teeth; the wallpaper is as flaky and dry as an old woman's hand.Beasley peers out his living room window. A sushi cooking show plays on the television.The neighborhood outside is a wreck of ruined houses and weedy lots."Today people got no skill and things is getting worse," he laments."What people gonna do? They gonna eat each other up is what they gonna do."A licensed hunter and furrier, Beasley says he hunts coons and rabbit and squirrel for a clientele who hail mainly from the South, where the wild critters are considered something of a delicacy.Though the flesh is not USDA inspected, if it is thoroughly cooked, there is small chance of contracting rabies from the meat, and distemper and Parvo cannot be passed onto humans, experts say.Doing for yourself, eating what's natural, that was Creation's intention, Beasley believes. He says he learned that growing up in Three Creeks, Ark."Coon or rabbit. God put them there to eat. When men get hold of animals he blows them up and then he blows up.Fill 'em so full of chemicals and steroids it ruins the people. It makes them sick. Like the pigs on the farm. They's 3 months old and weighing 400 pounds. They's all blowed up. And the chil'ren who eat it, they's all blowed up. Don't make no sense."Hunting is prohibited within Detroit city limits and Beasley insists he does not do so. Still, he says that life in the city has gone so retrograde that he could easily feed himself with the wildlife in his backyard, which abuts an old cement factory.He procures the coons with the help of the hound dogs who chase the animal up a tree, where Beasley harvests them with a .22 caliber rifle. A true outdoorsman, Beasley refuses to disclose his hunting grounds."This city is going back to the wild,"he says."That's bad for people but that's good for me. I can catch wild rabbit and pheasant and coon in my backyard."Detroit was once home to nearly 2 million people but has shrunk to a population of perhaps less than 900,000. It is estimated that a city the size of San Francisco could fit neatly within its empty lots. As nature abhors a vacuum, wildlife has moved in.A beaver was spotted recently in the Detroit River. Wild fox skulk the 15th hole at the Palmer Park golf course. There is bald eagle, hawk and falcon that roam the city skies. Wild Turkeys roam the grasses. A coyote was snared two years ago roaming the Federal Court House downtown. And Beasley keeps a gaze of skinned coon in the freezer.With the beast fresh from the oven, Beasley invites a guest to lunch.He believes coon meat tastes something like mutton or pork, but to the uneducated pallet, it has the aroma and texture of opossum.While Beasley preps his coon with simple vinegar brine and spices, there are 100 ways to cook a coon.There is roast coon with sweet potato, sausage and corn bread stuffing; raccoon cobbler and roast marinated raccoon with liver and onion. It is this reporter's opinion that the best sauce for coon may very well be hunger.The story of Glemie Dean Beasley plays like a country song. The son of a sharecropper, Beasley left school at 13 to pick cotton. He came to Detroit in 1958. His woman left him in 1970 for a man he calls Slick Willy.Someone stole his pickup truck and then someone killed his best dog."I knowed some hard times," Beasley says. "But a man's got to know how to get hisself through them hard times. Part of that is eating right."
Travels with Charlie
http://www.detnews.com/article/20090402/METRO08/904020395/To+urban+hunter++next+meal+is+scampering+by
As in the days of Noah...
ISRAELISTINE WATCH:State Dept. will push hard for "Palestinian Statehood"
The United States will push hard for Palestinian statehood despite a new rightist government in Israel but anticipates a rough road ahead, a U.S. official said on Thursday."We're going to be working hard to see what we can do to move the process forward. But we're under no illusions. It's not going to be easy," said State Department spokesman Robert Wood. "We have to engage constantly and remind the parties of their obligations and to try to set up a framework, a process for getting us toward that goal of a two-state solution,"Wood added,referring to the goal of separate Israeli and Palestinian states, living side by side in peace.Israel's new foreign minister angered Palestinians and raised the prospect of tension with Washington on Wednesday by saying Israel was not bound by a deal to start negotiations on establishing a Palestinian state.On his first day at the Foreign Ministry, ultranationalist Avigdor Lieberman said the U.S.-backed Annapolis declaration of 2007 "has no validity," confirming a shift in stance under new Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made her first contact with Lieberman on Wednesday, telephoning him from London where she is with President Barack Obama."It was primarily to congratulate him on coming into his new position, but no dates have been set for any type of meeting," said Wood.Wood said U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, former Sen. George Mitchell, is set go to the region soon.He did not comment on whether Clinton had raised U.S. concerns over Lieberman's comments, but said the new Israeli foreign minister was "well aware" of the U.S. position."We're going to pursue that two-state solution, because we believe it's in the best interests of all the parties in the region," said Wood.Lieberman's anti-Arab rhetoric has particularly alarmed Palestinians as well as Arab leaders in the region. Lieberman says land where many of Israel's 1.5 million Arabs live should be "swapped" for West Bank Jewish settlements in a peace deal with the Palestinians.Netanyahu was prime minister from 1997 to 1999 and clashed constantly with the administration of Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton.Netanyahu is expected to visit Washington soon, possibly as early as next month, an Israeli official told Reuters. However, he said no date had been set yet for that visit.Sue Pleming
http://in.news.yahoo.com/137/20090403/760/twl-u-s-says-will-push-hard-for-palestin.html
As in the days of Noah...
G20 pledge $1 trillion to boost world economy
Despite a number of earlier disagreements, G20 leaders seem to have finally reached a consensus and pledged over one trillion dollars to the IMF and the World Bank to stimulate the global economy....
Obama presents himself as "Bridge-Builder"
LONDON-Where President George W. Bush was known for his "cowboy diplomacy,"U.S.President Barack Obama wants to be known as a listener and a builder of bridges.Taking his first turn on the world stage since taking office in January, Obama arrived in London two days ago for crisis talks on the global economy where he hoped to persuade other countries to spend more to revive global growth.Obama won no new promises of spending when the summit of the Group of 20 major economic powers wrapped up on Thursday, but put a positive spin on the outcome, calling it a "turning point" as he welcomed agreements on financial regulation and new cash for the International Monetary Fund.As financial markets rose on relief that the G20 summit had not ended in argument, Obama played up his role as a consensus-builder-an image he emphasized during his political rise in the United States."Each country has its own quirks and own particular issues that a leader may decide is really, really important, something that is non-negotiable for them," Obama told a news conference."And what we tried to do as much as possible was to accommodate those issues in a way that did not hamper the effectiveness of the overall document," he told the jam-packed room of both foreign and American journalists.Describing his approach to world affairs, Obama said America was a "critical actor and leader on the world stage," but that it exercises its clout best when it listens to other countries' concerns.Obama declined to make explicit comparisons between himself and President Bush, but the comments were intended to mark a contrast from what critics of Obama's predecessor said was a tendency towards a "go-it-alone" approach.By Caren Bohan and Matt Spetalnick
To read more go to:
http://uk.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUKTRE53183Q20090402?sp=true
As in the days of Noah...
British PM: G-20 Nations Reach Consensus
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown says the G-20 has reached a consensus on global action to solve the economic crisis. That includes the largest economic stimulus in history...
Medvedev hails Obama as "My New Comrade"
LONDON-Russia's Dmitry Medvedev hailed Barack Obama as "my new comrade" Thursday after their first face-to-face talks, saying the US president "can listen"-even if little progress was made on substance.The Russian president contrasted Obama as "totally different" to his predecessor George W. Bush, whom he blamed for the "mistake" of US missile shield plans fiercely opposed by Moscow. Obama agreed to visit Moscow in July after his talks with Medvedev on Wednesday on the sidelines of a G20 summit in London aimed at fixing the battered world economy."I believe that we managed to establish contact. But Moscow lies ahead. I cannot say that we made much progress on the most serious issues," he told reporters, adding: "Let's wait and see.""I liked the talks. It is easy to talk to him. He can listen. The start of this relationship is good," he said, adding: "Today it's a totally different situation (compared to Bush)...This suits me quite well."In their London talks, Obama and Medvedev launched a milestone quest to slash their nuclear arsenals, hoping to reverse the worst slump in the former foes' ties since the end of the Cold War.The pair also discussed thorny issues including NATO's eastwards expansion, long opposed by Moscow which sees it as a power-grab by the West's former Cold War-era military bloc into former Soviet territory."Yesterday I spoke about this with my new comrade President Barack Obama," Medvedev told reporters travelling with him to the London summit.They also discussed US plans for a missile defence shield, based in former communist-bloc countries which are now members of NATO and the European Union, like the Czech Republic.Again, Medvedev was complimentary."Today from the United States there is at least a desire to listen to our arguments," he said, adding that:"Such defence measures should be carried out jointly" between Washington and Moscow.The missile defence plan was "a mistake that the previous US administration is responsible for. Many of my European colleagues also believe this," the Russian leader added, without specifying who.Obama, speaking on Wednesday, admitted US-Russian ties had cooled, saying: "What we've seen over the last several years is drift in the US-Russian relationship."There are very real differences between the United States and Russia, and I have no interest in papering those over.But there are also a broad set of common interests that we can pursue," he said.One area of difference is Georgia-Russia sent troops and tanks deep into the ex-Soviet republic last August in response to a Georgian military attempt to retake the breakaway region of South Ossetia.Medvedev made clear later Thursday that Moscow's views have not changed-in particular about Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili-however he feels about Obama."Everything that has happened, I will tell you frankly, that the leader of Georgia is responsible for everything. That is my direct and honest and open opinion."A lot of people had to pay for the mistakes of one man. We love and appreciate the Georgian people. But I do not want to have any relations with President Saakashvili."http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20090403/twl-russia-us-g20-diplomacy-missile-7e07afd.html
As in the days of Noah...
NWO WATCH:"G20 Leaders Hail Crisis Fightback"
World leaders on Thursday heralded the G20 summit as the day the world “fought back against the recession” as they put on a show of unity that lifted global markets and mapped out a new future for financial regulation.Gordon Brown, UK prime minister, host of the summit, said the meeting marked the emergence of a “new world order”, as he unveiled what leaders claimed was a $1,100bn package of measures to tackle the global downturn, including support for lower income countries and a $250bn plan to boost the international money supply.Close inspection showed that some of the $1,100bn pledged included reannouncements and half-done deals. However, even before the summit ended, equity markets rose sharply around the world amid hopes that the global economy was stabilising.In London, the FTSE 100 rose 4.3 per cent to pass 4,000 points for the first time in six weeks, while in New York, the S&P 500 closed 2.9 per cent higher. Early Asian trade on Friday showed investors extending the strong gains made on Thursday.The benchmark Nikkei was up 0.6 per cent after hitting a three-month intraday high.The leaders papered over divisions between the US and Europe about whether the world could afford a new fiscal stimulus.President Barack Obama described the summit’s measures as “bolder and more rapid than any international response that we’ve seen to a financial crisis in memory” and predicted that they would mark “a turning point in our pursuit of global economic recovery”.Nicolas Sarkozy, France’s president, said that agreement on a new regulatory regime and crackdown on tax havens showed that “a page has been turned” on an era of post-war “Anglo- Saxon” capitalism.The summit ended with smiles as a dispute between China and France over the blacklisting of tax havens-including possibly Hong Kong and Macao-continued behind the scenes.US officials say that Mr Obama helped broker a compromise between Hu Jintao of China and Mr Sarkozy, who had threatened to walk away from the summit.Mr Sarkozy had objected to the absence of agreement to publish a list of offshore tax centres that were not in compliance with existing standards on transparency. In the end they agreed the G20 would only “take note” of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development list, rather than endorse it.Mr Brown claimed that China had agreed a $40bn contribution to IMF funds. Chinese authorities could not confirm that last night. The IMF declined to comment.The summit text included commitments to curb “risky” bank pay and bonuses, but offered little new on monetary policy action or efforts to clean up bank balance sheets.Of the $500bn of money pledged to the IMF to bolster struggling economies, some had already been announced and $250bn was a pledge of future funds.The G20 agreed to allow the IMF to create $250bn of Special Drawing Rights, its own currency, comprising dollars, euros, yen and sterling, boosting the foreign exchange reserves of every country. Most of this will go to the big economies, but poorer countries facing budgetary strains will gain new cash.World leaders also agreed to boost trade finance in a package that Mr Brown said over two years could facilitate an additional $250bn of trade.
Additional reporting by David Oakley
By George Parker, Chris Giles and Edward Luce in London http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/082652de-1fb0-11de-a1df-00144feabdc0.html
As in the days of Noah...
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