[Bangla Daily Star] Michael Jackson was killed by a band of greedy hangers-on, his sister La Toya alleged in interviews with British Sunday newspapers.
Greedy hangers on? Ooooh. Do tell, La Toya...
Functionally, sure. But another way to look at it is slow-motion suicide by proxy. One of his doctors said he had that rare, painful skin de-coloration condition that impacted lung function, another said he had the autioimmune disease lupus, plus ongoing pain from when his hair caught fire while filming that Pepsi commercial, and no doubt more pain from an overabundance of cosmetic surgeries...And the fact is, he'd never reclimb the peak he reached in the 1980s.
And LaToya was so concerned about her brother's health and financial issues that she shoo'ed all these hangers-on away, didn't she ...
The phrase "worth more dead than alive" comes to mind The Dead King of Pop's sister spoke about her younger brother's death and the aftermath with The Mail on Sunday and the News of the World weeklies.
"I believe Michael was murdered, I felt that from the start," the 53-year-old said.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
07/13/2009 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11127 views]
Top|| File under:
#2
HMMMMM, HMMMMMM, shade of death of 'Cuzin ANNA NICHOLE SMITH = impor of DNA Testing to LEGAL-PDENIABLE claims on $$$ = interests in wealthy estates???
#11
I would be that it was the accidental result of mixing incompatible drugs. He did look healthy in a rehearsal video, taken the day before his death. But he had reported an inability to fall asleep.
#14
does anyone really give a rip? It's not like it has been a slow new week, frustrating how the media covers this more than current issues. I caught up on old reruns of NCIS reruns.
Posted by: Jan from work ||
07/13/2009 19:42 Comments ||
Top||
[Mail and Globe] A proposed law aimed at sweeping reforms of Nigeria's oil sector is almost halfway through the legislative stages of approval but some of its provisions are sending jitters among giant oil operators.
Multinational oil companies, already buckling under incessant militant attacks which have cut production by about 30% in the past three years, back the Bill regarding the streamlining of the industry's governance and operational processes. But they are uncomfortable with the proposed taxation regime.
The petroleum industry Bill, which went through its second reading and debate in the senate last week, is intended to overhaul the regulatory and operational systems of the industry, the lifeline of the West African powerhouse. It plans to transform the existing joint ventures between the transnational oil firms and the state Nigeria's National Petroleum Company (NNPC), and turn NNPC into an autonomous and internationally profitable entity.
It also wants to improve on tax collection -- decoupling oil from gas taxes as well as develop a system responsive to fluctuations in oil prices so as to capture on any windfall profits.
According to leader of the Senate Teslim Folarin, the Bill is designed to "simplify the collection of oil revenue through shifting emphasis to easily collectible revenue as royalties and rents".
In a discussion document multinationals said they back the reforms, but fear that some of the provisions of the Bill could thwart growth in the sector.
They argue that many provisions in the Bill "are unclear and open to multiple interpretations which would substantially increase investment risk, comparatively placing Nigeria at a disadvantage for inflow of foreign investment".
Posted by: Fred ||
07/13/2009 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11129 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
They screw this up, they are headed to Chavez-land of declining production, lower efficiency and abandonment by the people that can actually run the wells..
The defense for Liberia's former President Charles Taylor, on trial for war crimes, is expected to argue he was trying to broker peace rather than foment violence during the 1991-2002 civil war in Sierra Leone.
Taylor, 61, will be the defense's first witness as it begins arguments on Monday and is expected to take the stand for several weeks beginning on Tuesday. He has pleaded not guilty to 11 counts at the Special Court for Sierra Leone.
He is charged with instigating murder, rape, mutilation, conscripting child soldiers and sexual slavery during the intertwined wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone in which more than 250,000 people were killed.
Courtenay Griffiths, Taylor's lawyer, has argued he was trying to broker peace and should be acquitted because there was no evidence he planned or instigated atrocities in Sierra Leone.
Prosecutors, who closed their case in February, say Taylor directed the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels in a campaign of terror against civilians, seeking to control Sierra Leone's diamond mines and destabilize its government to boost his regional influence.
"We were very pleased by the testimony that was presented and the breadth and strength of it," said Stephen Rapp, prosecutor at the United Nations-backed court for Sierra Leone, ahead of the defense trial.
Taylor has been on trial in The Hague since June 2007 at facilities provided by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The court is headquartered in Freetown, but the trial is taking place in the Netherlands due to concerns it may trigger violence in Sierra Leone.
In May, judges at the Special Court for Sierra Leone ruled against a defense request to acquit Taylor of war crimes charges, saying the prosecution had produced enough evidence supporting a conviction.
Judge Richard Lussick has stressed, however, that the ruling does not mean Taylor would be convicted.
"Charles Taylor's trial gives victims of heinous abuses in Sierra Leone an important opportunity to see justice done," Elise Keppler, senior counsel with Human Rights, said in a statement.
"A vigorous defense is key to ensuring a fair, credible trial."
Posted by: Fred ||
07/13/2009 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11128 views]
Top|| File under:
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) Honduran authorities on Sunday lifted a curfew imposed since the ousting of President Manuel Zelaya two weeks ago a sign the interim government is trying to restore normality to life in the crisis-gripped country. In a nationally broadcast announcement, the interim government said the curfew had reached its objective to "restore calm" and curb crime.
The de facto administration of Roberto Micheletti imposed the curfew after soldiers escorted Zelaya out of the country at gunpoint on June 28, plunging Honduras into political turmoil. Hondurans were ordered to stay in their homes from 11 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. nightly. The government briefly extended it from sunset to sunrise when Zelaya attempted to return to Honduras and the military blocked his plane from landing by parking vehicles on the runway July 5.
Daily demonstrations for and against the forcibly exiled leader have disrupted transit and prompted many businesses to close. Many governments have withdrawn their ambassadors to protest the coup.
The interim government said Hondurans nationwide can go out at night starting Sunday.
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/13/2009 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11127 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
The lie that won't die COUP
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
07/13/2009 3:59 Comments ||
Top||
#2
Associated [with terrorists and dictators] Press.
#3
It is a coup if Zelaya was the government. It is not a coup if the government is the Supreme Court, legislature, army and other components who followed the constitution to depose a president who was flagrantly violating that constitution. I favor the second, myself. Looks like AP favors the other way, that Zelaya was the government not the constitution.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon ||
07/13/2009 11:05 Comments ||
Top||
#4
Hey, our student and his expedition made it out of the Honduran swamps. 5 days late but they made it with all the members, all the equipment and all the 3D data. That's good enough for me.
#5
BP gets it. Lots of folks are qualified for office, but it only takes a few nincompoops and nepotism to bring down the republic. Lately we've more than our share. Not only should there be term limits, it should be illegal for spouses/children to hold the same office.
Posted by: ed ||
07/13/2009 20:12 Comments ||
Top||
#6
I'd vote for Lynn Cheney not because of her name or her husband but because she's smart, well-educated (but not like the lefties are "educated"), and fiscally conservative, and she believes that service to the country is an honor, not an opportunity for further graft and destroying one's enemies.
Anyway, doesn't a dynasty have to be parent/grandparent to offspring? I've not heard anything about their daughter wanting to run for office (which proves she's smart, too).
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
07/13/2009 21:07 Comments ||
Top||
#7
She just put a big target on her back. Expect the media / Hollywood / lefty blogs to start attacking viciously.
July 8, but hadn't seen this posted anywhere.
The lead Democrat steering an immigration overhaul through the Senate said Wednesday that he expects to have a bill ready by Labor Day that is more generous to highly skilled immigrant workers than those who are lower skilled and is tough on future waves of illegal immigration.
During an interview with The Associated Press, Sen. Chuck Schumer said an immigration bill can be done by the end of the year or early next year that works out disagreements between labor and business interests on the flow of legal foreign workers.
"I think we'll have a good bill by Labor Day," said Schumer, D-N.Y. "I think the fundamental building blocks are in place to do comprehensive immigration reform."
The way to get the bill done is to be very tough on future waves of illegal immigration, Schumer said. He declared himself pro-immigration and said the United States should encourage legal immigration and find some kind of path for people now here to find a way to legal citizenship.
"We have a shortage maybe of engineers here or Ph.D's in physics, but we probably don't have a shortage of people who can do construction work," Schumer said.
The AFL-CIO and the Change to Win labor unions earlier this year announced their support for immigration reform, which they have opposed in the past.
But the unions' continued opposition to increases in visas for foreign workers is at odds with the demand by business for legal foreign workers in industries ranging from high-technology to agriculture.
"I think one of the ways to bridge it is to look at the different areas of labor and where there are shortages and where there are not and where just workers are being brought in for exploitive purposes _ broadly put meaning just get lower wages _ rather than having a shortage," Schumer said. "I think if you look at each broad field you can see that one size does not fit all."
Schumer's office has met to discuss his bill with Compete America, a coalition pushing for more visas for foreign workers. Members of the group are skeptical of a labor proposal for an appointed commission to set limits on visas and green cards given to legal residents, said Robert Hoffman, an in-house lobbyist for Oracle, a software company and member of Compete America.
Ana Avendano, AFL-CIO's immigration policy director, said labor shares Schumer's "one size doesn't fit all" view. "We want employers to have workers they need, but the key is determining when there is a real need, not one employers make up when they import temporary workers."
Earlier Wednesday, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said businesses wanting federal contracts would have to use E-Verify, a Web-based system, beginning Sept. 8to check whether their employees are working in the United States legally. The Bush and Obama administrations had delayed implementing the rule.
The Senate voted for a proposal to make the E-Verify system permanent as it debated a spending bill for the Homeland Security Department.
The department also said it is abandoning a Bush administration plan to force employers to fire workers who can't resolve a mismatch between their Social Security numbers and their names. The administration said it would come up with a new rule.
The Bush administration had tried to root out undocumented workers through so-called "no-match" letters the Social Security Administration sends employers. But an American Civil Liberties Union lawsuit has prevented the rule from taking effect.
Texas Rep. Lamar Smith, ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, said the two announcements send mixed signals.
"The administration is saying illegal immigrants shouldn't have jobs by supporting the federal contracting rule, but making it harder for companies to follow the law by doing away with the Bush 'no-match rule'," Smith said.
Posted by: ed ||
07/13/2009 09:55 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11128 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Oh yes, because we have _such_ a shortage of unskilled labor right now.
#2
We don't need illegals for this. Just use the now unemployed auto workers for labor. They will appriciate the check and we will have less people on unemployment!
#4
"We have a shortage maybe of engineers here or Ph.D's in physics, but we probably don't have a shortage of people who can do construction work," Schumer said.
Schumer is clueless. His bill is just a scheme to obtain the Hispanic vote.
#5
This story cries out for the "Aw geez, not this sh*t again" graphic.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
07/13/2009 18:55 Comments ||
Top||
#6
Illegal alien amnesties:
1986 - 2.8 million
1994 - 575,000
1997 - 1 million Central Americans
1998 Haitian amnesty - 125,000
2000 Elect Al Gore amnesty - 1.3 million
After each amnesty, even more illegal aliens violated US borders hoping to get the next batch of Green Cards.
Posted by: ed ||
07/13/2009 20:44 Comments ||
Top||
[Geo News] The speaker Punjab assembly Rana Muhammad Iqbal has said no permission from speaker is needed to arrest those members assembly who are involved in crimes as such theft. He said if MPA Shumaila Rana is found guilty, she would be dealt according to law. This speaker Punjab assembly said during an inaugural gathering of FM radio station here on Sunday. Government will no longer tolerate criminal elements amongst its ranks and our country can progress by leaps and bounds depending upon the sincerity of our people, he concluded.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/13/2009 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11126 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[Geo News] Member of Punjab Assembly Shumaila Rana, involved in case regarding credit cards theft, has not clarified her position by appearing before media. Meantime, her relatives said Shumaila is innocent and she is not making appearance on the directives from the party. Talking to Geo News, the uncle and brother-in-law present at Shumaila's house, said a conspiracy has been hatched against her, adding the party has constituted a disciplinary committee and Shumaila has given her statement before it. They said Shumaila neither stole any card nor purchased anything from the cards and the investigations will soon reveal the real facts. Party leadership has forbidden Shumaila to appear before media, they added.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/13/2009 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11125 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
Hey, Mahmoud. Check this one out.
Jeddah -- A family in Mahd Al Dahab, near the holy city of Madinah, has filed a suit in the Shariah court there alleging that an unnamed genie has been stealing things from the house and harassing family members by pelting them with stones when they go out at night. Ummmmmmmmmm...so whaddya want us to do about it?
According to a report in the Arabic daily Al Watan on Wednesday, the family has been living in the same house for 15 years, but claims that only recently it began to feel the presence of genie. Should've gone to the mosque and got some Genie Be Gone right then. Have the imam whip you up a batch.
The lawsuit accuses the genie of stealing mobile phones, and sending threatening voice messages through cell-phones to vacate the house. GET OUT...INFIDEL!
"We began to hear strange sounds. At first we did not take it seriously, but then stranger things started to happen and the children got particularly scared when the genie started throwing stones," the head of the family, who requested anonymity, told the Saudi daily. No three wishes? The bastid...
"A woman spoke to me first, and then a man. They said we should get out of the house," the man added. So...there's two genies?
Sheikh Amr Al Salmi, head of the local Shariah court, said, "We have to look into this case and verify its truthfulness despite the difficulty of its consideration. Cuz it's in the Koran. Someplace.
"What is interesting is that the complaint has come from every member of the family, and not just one." Ha! There you have it, you sheikhyness! The defense rests!
He said that a local charity had provided the family with alternative accommodation near to their village until the issue was resolved. Oh. Hi. You must be the genie people? You didn't bring him along, did ya?
[Al Arabiya Latest] Bearded men and veiled women should live it up and go to the beach, a top Muslim preacher said Sunday, urging Muslims to instill fun and joy in their lives besides being religious.
Brilliant idea, seriously. People having fun are less likely to suddenly blow up.
Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi said beach walks and enjoying outdoor activities are not only for the non-religious and urged Muslims to make recreational activities part of their lifestyles.
For Muslims, modesty is the best policy and that makes many faithful shy away from going for a swim or getting a suntan. But Qaradawi refuted the common held belief that beach-going is forbidden, stressing instead that "it is their [Muslims] right to enjoy the fresh air of the beach." In an interview with the Egyptian oppositional paper al-Shuruq, Qaradawi said leisure outdoor activities were part of the Sunna, habits and actions, of the Prophet who always spent time with his wives outdoors in the desert and by the oasis.
But besides the psychological benefits of outdoor recreational activities, Qaradawi said going to the beach and praying the daily prayers allows Muslims to prove to the world that being religious does not conflict with leading a fun life.
Qaradawi did not specify whether swimsuits were forbidden yet in their efforts to align the Islamic principle of modesty with the urge to swim, Muslims have come up with various swimsuit such as the burkini, which covers the whole body.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/13/2009 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11132 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Demands to have their favorite beach cleared of unbelievers in 5..4..3
WASHINGTON -- The new H1N1 influenza virus bears a disturbing resemblance to the virus strain that caused the 1918 flu pandemic, with a greater ability to infect the lungs than common seasonal flu viruses, researchers reported on Monday. Thanks, I was running out of things to worry about.
Tests in several animals confirmed other studies that have shown the new swine flu strain can spread beyond the upper respiratory tract to go deep into the lungs -- making it more likely to cause pneumonia, the international team said. In addition, they found that people who survived the 1918 pandemic seem to have extra immune protection against the virus, again confirming the work of other researchers.
"When we conducted the experiments in ferrets and monkeys, the seasonal virus did not replicate in the lungs," said Yoshihiro Kawaoka of the University of Wisconsin, who led the study. "The H1N1 virus replicates significantly better in the lungs."
The new swine flu virus has caused the first pandemic of the 21st century, infecting more than a million people, according to estimates, and killing at least 500. The World Health Organization says it is causing mostly moderate disease but Kawaoka said that does not mean it is like seasonal flu.
"There is a misunderstanding about this virus," he said in a statement. "There is clear evidence the virus is different than seasonal influenza." Writing in the journal Nature, Kawaoka and colleagues noted that the ability to infect the lungs is a characteristic of other pandemic viruses, especially the 1918 virus, which is estimated to have killed between 40 million and 100 million people.
Old Protection
They tested the virus in blood samples taken from nursing home residents and workers in 1999 in California, Wisconsin, the Netherlands and Japan.
People born before 1920 had a strong antibody response to the new H1N1 virus, meaning their body "remembered" it from infection early in life. This finding supports a study published in Nature in August that also found people who survived the 1918 pandemic still had immune protection against that virus.
Flu viruses change constantly, which is why people can be re-infected and why the vaccine must be changed regularly. Current seasonal strains of H1N1 are distant cousins of both the 1918 pandemic strain and the new H1N1 strain.
"Our findings are a reminder that swine-origin influenza viruses have not yet garnered a place in history, but may still do so, as the pandemic caused by these viruses has the potential to produce a significant impact on human health and the global economy," the researchers wrote.
Other tests showed the virus could be controlled by the antiviral drugs Relenza, made by GlaxoSmithKline, and Tamiflu, made by Roche AG, the researchers said.
The World Health Organization said on Monday that vaccine makers should start making immunizations against H1N1 and that healthcare workers should be first in line to get them. Companies working on an H1N1 vaccine include Sanofi-Aventis, Novartis AG, Baxter International Inc, GlaxoSmithKline, Solvay and nasal spray maker MedImmune, now part of AstraZeneca.
Five young people with swine flu are on life support in a Sydney hospital as health experts try to work out why the disease is striking some young, healthy people so severely.
This is how the 1918 pandemic started. Initially mild then got more severe as the first wave spread. Then killed millions in the second and third wave.
It won't be a fun winter flu season for you folks in the NH.
[Straits Times] AN INCREASING number of Malaysian couples are seeking fertility treatment as the country's birthrate declines, a newspaper reported on Sunday. A recent United Nations report showed the country's fertility rate dropped from 3.6 babies per couple in 1990 to 2.6 babies currently, the New Sunday Times said.
A key reason for the decline is an increasing fertility problem among Malaysian women, with as many as half of those who visit gynaecological specialists asking for treatment to help them conceive, Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai said. 'Many of the couples will remain childless unless they are helped using the 'assisted reproductive technology' technique,' Mr Liow told the paper. Mr Liow said between 10 and 15 per cent of childless couples in the country, aged between 30 and 40, had fertility problem.
So 85% of childless Indonesians are so by choice? That sounds like it might be a key cause of the drop in the birth rate...
A 2004 government study predicted that Malaysia's fertility rate would decline 0.1 per cent every five years, as women postpone marriage and having children.
The study also revealed the number of children being born varied widely according to the educational level of the mother. Women with no formal education had almost twice as many children as those with a tertiary education.
Officials have voiced concerns that the low fertility rate could bring about changes in the country's demographic structure, including a gradual ageing of the population. Malaysia's population is currently estimated to be almost 27 million. Government policy sets a target of 70 million by the year 2100.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/13/2009 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11125 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
an increasing fertility problem among Malaysian women
#1
A placard explained that Sgt. Major Bass had earned the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, Bronze Star and Purple Hearts for bravery and gallantry.
Bass apologized for his dishonesty not only about the snake, but also the rank of sergeant major, Special Forces status, and all the medals at the museum. He'd bought them in military surplus stores, he said, and forged certificates from forms he found online.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Bangla Daily Star] Michael Jackson was killed by a band of greedy hangers-on, his sister La Toya alleged in interviews with British Sunday newspapers.
[Mail and Globe] A proposed law aimed at sweeping reforms of Nigeria's oil sector is almost halfway through the legislative stages of approval but some of its provisions are sending jitters among giant oil operators. 
[Al Arabiya Latest] Bearded men and veiled women should live it up and go to the beach, a top Muslim preacher said Sunday, urging Muslims to instill fun and joy in their lives besides being religious.
WASHINGTON -- The new H1N1 influenza virus bears a disturbing resemblance to the virus strain that caused the 1918 flu pandemic, with a greater ability to infect the lungs than common seasonal flu viruses, researchers reported on Monday.
They tested the virus in blood samples taken from nursing home residents and workers in 1999 in California, Wisconsin, the Netherlands and Japan.
