OSLO, Norway - In a different kind of jail break, a very drunk young man surprised prison guards by breaking into their northern Norway jail. "You might say we were a bit perturbed to find this person on our turf," prison warden Geir Broen said on the state radio network NRK on Monday.
Broen said the district prison in the Arctic town of Bodoe is rebuilding its outer fence, and that the man broke through a section of temporary fencing. The weak fence is of no help to real prisoners seeking a way out, since they are confined within the walls of the jail compound. The Norwegian, identified only as being in his 20s, was apparently was trying to find his way home after a Friday night party.
KAMPALA (Reuters) - Two people were killed and seven seriously wounded in Uganda when an artillery round blew up as a man tried to melt it down for scrap metal, police said on Saturday.
Police cordoned off the area where the shell was found, searching for other munitions after the incident, which happened on Thursday in Amuria, a remote part of the once war-ravaged eastern Teso region.
"We understand this man picked up a shell and tried to melt it for scrap. He put it in the fire and it exploded," Francis Agwoka, acting police chief for the region, told Reuters by telephone. "Two people were killed and seven others rushed to hospital critically injured. We are sealing off the area to look for more bombs."
The Teso region was attacked by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels in 2003, spreading a war that had hitherto affected only northern Uganda. Hundreds of thousands of civilians fled to refugee camps.
Though they were repelled by the army and local government-backed militia, aid workers say parts of Teso remain littered with mines and abandoned ammunition. Police have warned people in Teso not to touch unfamiliar metal objects.
Muslim journalist Zaiba Malik had never worn the niqab. But with everyone from Jack Straw to Tessa Jowell weighing in with their views on the veil, she decided to put one on for the day. She was shocked by how it made her feel - and how strongly strangers reacted to it
'Idon't wear the niqab because I don't think it's necessary," says the woman behind the counter in the Islamic dress shop in east London. "We do sell quite a few of them, though." She shows me how to wear the full veil. I would have thought that one size fits all but it turns out I'm a size 54. I pay my £39 and leave with three pieces of black cloth folded inside a bag.
The next morning I put these three pieces on as I've been shown. First the black robe, or jilbab, which zips up at the front. Then the long rectangular hijab that wraps around my head and is secured with safety pins. Finally the niqab, which is a square of synthetic material with adjustable straps, a slit of about five inches for my eyes and a tiny heart-shaped bit of netting, which I assume is to let some air in.
I look at myself in my full-length mirror. I'm horrified. I have disappeared and somebody I don't recognise is looking back at me. I cannot tell how old she is, how much she weighs, whether she has a kind or a sad face, whether she has long or short hair, whether she has any distinctive facial features at all. I've seen this person in black on the television and in newspapers, in the mountains of Afghanistan and the cities of Saudi Arabia, but she doesn't look right here, in my bedroom in a terraced house in west London. I do what little I can to personalise my appearance. I put on my oversized man's watch and make sure the bottoms of my jeans are visible. I'm so taken aback by how dissociated I feel from my own reflection that it takes me over an hour to pluck up the courage to leave the house.
Posted by: john ||
10/17/2006 07:05 ||
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#1
You can see that most people in the UK hate Islam and it's colonists.
The more Islamic you are, the more likely you are to get insulted.
Very few people in the UK wanted the mass immigration of muslims that has been so damaging. Because the UK is no longer a democracy this is their only way of responding.
#4
Veils and niqab and so on are not pieces of cloth, they are flags.
This was true in lebanon and in algeria, where the advance of fundies and assorted scum was marked by their proliferation (for example, the modern hijab was invented by shiites, copied from nuns' headgear, to signify the paleos : "I'm not a christian girl, don't rape me, rape those without hijab"... gee, do we see a pattern with the muslim rapes epidemic in Europe, or what?), as a way to colonize public space and show their numbers.
Even now, iran pays HEFTY sums to their shiites clients, so the wimmen wear "proper islamic clothes".
Every algerian secularist who escaped the country during the 1992-2006 and counting civil war sez to his/her french islamophobic counterpart that the proliferation of such attire, both for wimmen( up to the absolutely not north-african niqab, totally alien to their culture, even more than the hijab) and for the men (who dress either with the fundie uniform, beard and skullcap, or as... you guess it, afghans) is very, very worrying... because the fundies are flexing their muscles that way, are "massing" the muslim community they now own (IE, no more westernisation), and are litterally colonizing public space.
Each niqab is an act of war, of cultural imperialism, against the host country.
#5
I wasn't clear with my last post (am I ever?) : the reason algerian free-thinkers are worried is because there is in France (and obviously elsewhere in Western Europe) the same "symptoms" than in algeria during the ramping up of the civil war, when the Moderate Muslims were on the verge of winning the elections.
#6
I don't understand the need to wear something as severe as the niqab, but I respect those who bear this endurance test
In addition to A5089's point, it is also an act of war against women. It clearly identifies who has submitted to her husband and is probably treated as property at home. Educated women, as the author clearly demonstrates, are not going to wear this get up voluntarily. So it is a means to keep women ignorant, barefoot, pregnant and in the kitchen. Women's libbers need to figure this out.
#8
Not gonna happen, NS. The leadership believes it's an expression of their "culture", and since we must respect all non-Euro cultures as part of "valuing diversity" (all the while implying they are just a bit more superior to our own), they aren't going to make a peep.
Of course, their "solidarity" with their Islamic sisters falls a little bit short of actually wearing one themselves, no matter how much they might find their own appearances enhanced by a niqab or burqa.....
#9
Wild assed guess here; 54 is probably centimeters, which equates to about 21 inches. She used the figure when she was referring to the veil, so another assumption is that this is her hat size. Speaking strictly out of my hat, mind you.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
10/17/2006 9:57 Comments ||
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#10
I give this lady a lot of credit for 'test-driving' the niqab... and being honest with us and with herself regarding the dehumanizing aspects and personal indignities involved.
No doubt she will receive barely literate threats and abuse from the pious and perpetually aggrieved.
#11
Bright Pebbles Very few people in the UK wanted the mass immigration of muslims that has been so damaging. Because the UK is no longer a democracy this is their only way of responding.
Please explain, the UK not a democracy ?
#12
This article is the biggest crock I've read in a while. Let me get this straight. She wears the veil for ONE day and all of these things happen to her? Pluhease!
While I'm sure she got stared at and people didn't want to sit next to her, and if just one of these events had happened or if they had happened over a period of a week - maybe.
But come on, girl that was quite a day. I guess once she put the veil on, the compulsion to lie and overstate her case just became unbearable.
Not a democracy might be a stretch. They have elections every five years at worst. But in between the PM has a supreme power far less fettered by checks and balances than POTUS that many Brits consider dictatorial.
#17
On the street it takes just seconds for me to discover that there are different categories of stare. Elderly people stop dead in their tracks and glare; women tend to wait until you have passed and then turn round when they think you can't see; men just look out of the corners of their eyes. And young children - well, they just stare, point and laugh.
It is not everyday folks in the Western world come across a slave. The niqab is a sign of ownership and total submission in a country where suffergettes risked their lives nearly a century ago to gain equality and the wearing of such should create the same level of concern amung authorities that unexplained bruises often do.
#20
And young children - well, they just stare, point and laugh.
Out of the mouths of babes and fools ...
While I agree with anon that this article is most likely an aglomeration of more than just one day's excursion, it is still a worthwhile experiment and one that a lot more Western women should conduct. If they spent even a few hours in the shoes of Muslim women, they might see the immense peril that Islam portends for the last century of progress towards equal rights for women.
it is also an act of war against women. It clearly identifies who has submitted to her husband and is probably treated as property at home. Educated women, as the author clearly demonstrates, are not going to wear this get up voluntarily. So it is a means to keep women ignorant, barefoot, pregnant and in the kitchen. Women's libbers need to figure this out.
Too right, NS! And yet we have supposedly militant feminists like Germaine Greer coming out in favor of Islamic cultures retaining such abhorent practices as female circumcision genital mutilation. The left's fascination with moral relativism will and rightfully should be the death of them. Their inability to recognize Islam for the toxic meme that it is will be the death knell of liberalism as the Global War on Terrorism finally heats up.
The niqab is a sign of ownership and total submission in a country where suffergettes risked their lives nearly a century ago to gain equality and the wearing of such should create the same level of concern amung authorities that unexplained bruises often do.
Brilliant comparison, rjshwarz. Islam's institutionalized abuse of women is by itself sufficient reason to dismantle it. That they have managed to come up with the vastly more repellant practice of terrorism seals their fate. To quote Winston Churchill: (for the umpteenth time)
How dreadful are the curses which Mohammedanism lays on its votaries! Besides the fanatical frenzy, which is as dangerous in a man as hydrophobia in a dog, there is this fearful fatalistic apathy. The effects are apparent in many countries. Improvident habits, slovenly systems of agriculture, sluggish methods of commerce, and insecurity of property exist wherever the followers of the Prophet rule or live.
A degraded sensualism deprives this life of its grace and refinement; the next of its dignity and sanctity. The fact that in Mohammedan law every woman must belong to some man as his absolute property, either as a child, a wife, or a concubine, must delay the final extinction of slavery until the faith of Islam has ceased to be a great power among men.
Individual Moslems may show splendid qualities, but the influence of the religion paralyzes the social development of those who follow it.
No stronger retrograde force exists in the world. Far from being moribund, Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytizing faith. It has already spread throughout Central Africa, raising fearless warriors at every step; and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science, the science against which it had vainly struggled, the civilization of modern Europe might fall, as fell the civilization of ancient Rome.
His words take on an even more prescient and ominous tone in this modern world.
#22
good comments, Zen - but it's still fantasy. She took each incident one step too far. For the most part, I find it unlikely that other than the stares, scaring the children and a few under the breath comments - I seriously doubt any of it is true. Jason Blair would be proud.
#23
I'm guessing a lot of looks were because she acted different than your typical niqab wearer. I also think she probably read things into the looks that might not have been intended because she was looking for that kind of thing.
The Muslim Black like Me is more of a journalist Hack if you ask me.
#24
#1 "You can see that most people in the UK hate Islam " I don't know about that. From reading the UK media, even Melanie Phillips, I gather far more UKer's hate the US than hate Islam. However, antipathy towards Islam is growing in the UK due to recent events.
Eight out of ten people who suffer the onset of serious mental illness are heavy cannabis users, claims a scathing report on the effects of the drug. The report found that the huge majority of those undergoing a first episode of psychiatric disorder, schizophrenia or similar mental breakdowns are habitual users of the drug. The overwhelming evidence of a connection between cannabis and schizophrenia was confirmed in a report delivered to Tory chiefs as part of leader David Cameron's review of party policies. It listed no fewer than 400 different scientific studies that point to links between use of cannabis, illness and destructive behaviour. The findings will pile pressure on Mr Cameron to tie his party to a pledge to reclassify cannabis as a seriously dangerous drug. The report was prepared for the Tories' social justice policy review in the wake of growing criticism of the Government's decision to downgrade the criminal seriousness of cannabis from Class B to Class C in 2004.
This means that police officers no longer regularly arrest adults found with the drug, and critics say it has encouraged young people to believe that cannabis is no longer officially regarded as dangerous. But the new study said that the risks 'demand that cannabis now receives the level of health attention that has been devoted to Britain's other two most favourite drugs, tobacco and alcohol.' Among authorities cited by the report is Professor Peter Jones of Cambridge University, who found that 80 per cent of first episode pyschiatric disorders occurred in those who were heavy users of cannabis. It quoted Professor Jones: 'Cannabis is a huge issue for psychiatric services at the moment. I work in a first-contact schizophrenia service and it might as well be a cannabis dependency unit.' Professor Jones estimated that children who start smoking cannabis at the ages of 10 or 11 may have treble the risk of developing schizophrenia of other children. He added: 'I think this is an iceberg effect. If you were able to measure the toll on GCSE results, A level results, training and social development, we were have a much bigger number of deleterious effects.' Professor Robin Murray of the Institute of Psychiatry told the inquiry: 'Five years ago, 95 per cent of psychiatrists whould have said that cannabis does not cause psychosis. Now, I would estimate that 95 per cent say it does. It is a quiet epidemic.' The report said that 1.75 million people are thought to use cannabis in Britain each month, that more than a quarter of 14- and 15-year-olds have used it, and that it ranks behind only alcohol and tobacco as the country's most popular drug. It listed research which identified links between cannabis and damage to the cardiovascular system; cannabis and damage to the immune system; and smoking cannabis and cancer. The report also explored scientific literature linking cannabis to depression and aggression; to driving risks; to impaired educational performance and ability to reason; and the likelihood that heavy users will become dependent on the drug. It pointed to the 'gateway effect' under which users of the most harmful and addictive drugs like heroin began their illegal drug habits smoking cannabis. Using cannabis is also associated with problems for pregnant women including lower birth weights and increased likelihood of premature birth, the report said. Mary Brett, the researcher who prepared the study, said she was angered to hear Tony Blair's remark last year that downgrading cannabis was justifiable because 'it was worth seeing what happened.' She said: 'Was this just some huge experiment conducted primarily on our vulnerable young people? How many of them would, prior to down-classification, ever have been tempted to try the drug? And how many now find themselves with a psychiatric problem, perhaps for life?'
#2
Who ever said kids should smoke pot? Everyone is against that. They shouldn't drink martinis either. It's medicinal.
The rest of the article sounds more like political hype than anything else. People with depression might smoke pot to ease the symptoms. So the cause and effect may be reversed.
Posted by: R Crumb ||
10/17/2006 5:20 Comments ||
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#7
Causative agent, effect of mental illness or self-medication? Of course, the Daily Mail isn't quite The Lancet, but I'll bet if the police were to pick up pot heads and take them directly to the psychiatrist's office, soon enough the police would have time to track down the watched terrorists they keep losing track of.
#12
I'm betting a lot of both. Many stoners I know suffer from depression and other mental problems. Self medication leads them too it, the drug keeps them there and/or makes them worse.
Many years ago I had to learn about drugs and there was a lot of PCP being pushed as THC.
PCP use can definitely cause mental illness and 30 years ago was a common follow on drug for pot heads. How do we know that these stoners haven't been using other stuff as well?
(2006-10-06) A new study shows that the active ingredient in marijuana may preserve a crucial neurotransmitter, and so stave off the effects of Alzheimers disease, according to scientists at the VW Microbus Institute for Herbal Research.
Those afflicted with Alzheimers suffer from memory loss, impaired decision-making, and diminished language and movement skills.
The study showed that when an Alzheimers patient smokes pot, the active ingredient preserves the neurotransmitter and blocks clumps of protein that can inhibit memory and cognition.
The dope smoking Alzheimers patient still suffers from memory loss, impaired decision-making, and diminished language and movement skills, according to one unnamed scientist, but its no longer a terrible disease thats causing the symptoms, so you dont have that stigma of being a victim.
#19
snease, not all potheads are dumbasses.Also, may be 8 out of 10 ppl are just menatlly ill. Look at the muslims who aren't supposed too use drugs or alcohol hell they blow themselves up. But i guess i'm mentally ill right
#20
I vote for "a little of both". I know too many people who were bright and happy and then after too much pot use became slow and basically what we think of when we think of a pot head.
Let's face it, people who smoke lots of pot have similar traits which causes me to believe that it is the pot.
For those of you pot smokers - everything in moderation - as they say.
#23
how many of you bitching about pot heads drink?
If pot and drinking were the same, which is your unstated assumption, then why can't all the pot users just get their fix buying beer at the local grocery? Why do they smoke pot instead, in fact running various legal risks (growing it or buying it from a dealer) and professional risks (many employers test for drugs) in order to do so?
#25
DarthVader: I'm betting a lot of both. Many stoners I know suffer from depression and other mental problems. Self medication leads them too it, the drug keeps them there and/or makes them worse.
As a former chronic Chronic user, I'll attest to that. There's definitely a feedback mechanism in play - worse if you add in other hallucinogens.
#28
Interesting that there was no mention of what caused England to give up trying to stop marijuana.
A woman correspondent for The Times travelled to Amsterdam for a Cannibus Cup event. She suffered from Retinitis Pigmentosa, a cruel disease which had already left her mostly blind on a progression to full blindness.
However, when she sampled some "skunk weed", a variety of marijuana, suddenly she was able to clearly see in some detail again. In almost a panic, she made inquiries and discovered that that particular variety of marijuana was smoked by fishermen where it was grown, to greatly improve their night vision.
After testing it several more times to similar effect, she published her story in The Times, which was greeted with an almost hysterical response from the tens of thousands of Britains who suffered from RP.
This was the final straw to the anti-marijuana efforts in England. These RP sufferers are so desperate they were willing to emigrate to the Netherlands to preserve their vision as long as they could.
#29
I don't care much for pot, cannabis, and so on, in good or bad, though my indulgence in it was one aggravating factor in screwing up my abortive college days (spent in an unending drunken/stoned stupor), but the criminal networks behind it are what bugs me, a lot. I mean, whenever someone light a joint in France, he's funding morocco, with all the Youths dealers in between him and the royal family/army brass.
#30
sinse - whose bitching about pot users? I simply pointed out effects I noticed of those whom I have known who smoke large quantities? It's not like I'm the only one. Why do you think the parody of Cheech and Chong was so funny? If you smoke pot and are still a brain surgeon - good for you. Like I care.
I've also noticed that people who drink too much get big noses, cirhossis of the liver and shakey hands. Happy now?
Side stepping here a bit; knowing that the terrorists in Afghanistan are making money with the crap that's coming out of that country just kills me.
I'd like to think that alone would curtail any and all drug use of any kind.
I don't see them legalizing pot until they are able to test someone and know if they have used in the last few hours, rather than used in the last month. Also being a cash crop and taxed.
Posted by: Jan ||
10/17/2006 16:58 Comments ||
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#32
anon i wasn't actually hitting on just you bitching about pot but alot of ppl act like it is the worst thing ever too smoke a joint. IMO drinking is alot worse than smoking weed any day, although i have never noticed the big noses you speak of in alcoholics.Just because something is legal does not make it right ,hell prostitution is legal in nevada. I think the gov puts alot of emphasis on marijuana because it cannot be regulated and taxed as easily as alcohol can. i also think someone else made the point of buying their weed from a local grower that way you are not supporting terror or organized crime either.
#35
FYI RP and marijuana linkage is bogus. You'd do more with vitam B complex and moving out to the country.
From somone who has a close relative who bgan losing their vision to RP 3 decades ago and thanks to blood pressure and other experimental treatments has manage to retain some small measure of it over the dacdes in spite of that pernicious disease.
Titties and such are okay, but... Amateur 'video bloggers' under threat from EU broadcast rules THE [left in all caps intentionally, lol] Government is seeking to prevent an EU directive that could extend broadcasting regulations to the internet, hitting popular video-sharing websites such as YouTube.
The European Commission proposal would require websites and mobile phone services that feature video images to conform to standards laid down in Brussels.
Ministers fear that the directive would hit not only successful sites such as YouTube but also amateur video bloggers who post material on their own sites. Personal websites would have to be licensed as a television-like service.
Viviane Reding, the Media Commissioner, argues that the purpose is simply to set minimum standards on areas such as advertising, hate speech and the protection of children.
But Shaun Woodward, the Broadcasting Minister, described the draft proposal as catastrophic. He said: Supposing you set up a website for your amateur rugby club, uploaded some images and added a link advertising your local sports shop. You would then be a supplier of moving images and need to be licensed and comply with the regulations.
The draft rules, known as the Television Without Frontiers directive, extend the definition of broadcasting to cover services such as video-on-demand or mobile phone clips.
Ministers argue that while television programmes should be subject to minimum standards, the content of websites should not be subject to EU regulation.
Mr Woodward is proposing a compromise that requires EU states to agree a new definition of what constitutes television. He said: Its common sense. If it looks like a TV programme and sounds like one then it probably is. A programme transmitted by a broadcaster over the net could be covered by extending existing legislation. But video clips uploaded by someone is not television. YouTube and MySpace should not be regulated.
British criminal law already covers material that might incite hate or cause harm to children, Mr Woodward added. The Governments definition of online broadcasting covers feature films, sports events, situation comedy, documentary, childrens programmes and original drama. It excludes personal websites and sites where people upload and exchange video images.
The real risk is we drive out the next MySpace because of the cost of complying with unnecessary regulations, Mr Woodward said. These businesses can easily operate outside the EU.
Ofcom, the media regulator, is also opposing the proposed directive, which it believes could discourage new multimedia business in Europe.
Mr Woodward is seeking EU member state support for the British compromise. So far only Slovakia has pledged support, but Mr Woodward believes that other nations will come onboard before a key EU Council meeting on November 13.
The influence of user-generated websites was demonstrated last week when Google bought YouTube for $1.65 billion (£883 million). Launched in February 2005, it has grown into one of the most popular websites. YouTube has 100 million videos viewed every day.
The House of Lords European Union Committee began an inquiry yesterday into the directive, which could also introduce paid-for product placement on UK television for the first time.
Lord Woolmer, the committee chairman, said: The proposals bring within the regulatory framework areas of the media previously untouched by broadcasting legislation.
Britain is at the cutting edge of new media and alternative broadcasters in Europe, and we are keen to ensure that the proposals will not damage this growing industry in seeking to incorporate them into EU regulation.
#3
Well Brits, you're the ones who thought it was a good idea to lay your sovereignty down and join the EU in the first place. This just goes with the territory. Sympathy meter reading: still zero.
#6
We joined the EEC (europeon economic cooperation) not the EU.
After that the "coup" process started.
Slippery slope, BPIB. Slippery slope. Where will Britain's sovereignty be in 20 years? I hope there are a helluva lot more peolpe like you who can reverse the trend. To hell with the EU, to hell with the euro. Once great Britain can be again.
#7
There must be lead in the water in Brussels - the EU bureaucrats always over-react to everything. Someone needs to tell Brussels where to go, and I don't expect polite phrases. The rest of Europe is being destroyed by over-regulation and inept bureaucracies.
In the States, I think(hope) we'd have a revolution. I don't know if Europe knows how to do that any more.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
10/17/2006 21:55 Comments ||
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#8
I knew the EUroeux were going down the tubes when they decided they could regulate the curvature of a banana.
They're freakin' insane.
Pay attention, people - this crap is where we're headed if the Dems get power.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/17/2006 22:49 Comments ||
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Posted by: ed ||
10/17/2006 14:43 Comments ||
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#4
Sounds good to me, the sooner the system goes bankrupt the less the disaster when it does.
Send more for the dole, millions of more freeloaders a year if that's what's necessary to crash it.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
10/17/2006 19:58 Comments ||
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(Bloomberg) -- The business chief of Russian news agency Itar-Tass, Anatoly Voronin, was killed last night in his apartment in central Moscow, the agency reported. Death was the result of multiple knife wounds, according to police, Itar-Tass reported. Several theories are being investigated, the agency said. The body of 55-year-old Voronin was found at his home by his driver, the news agency said. He had worked at the agency for 23 years. His death is the latest in a spate of high-profile killings in Russia in little over a month.
Deputy Central Bank governor Andrei Kozlov was shot dead with his driver on Sept. 13 as he left a football match in Moscow. Russian officials arrested an unspecified number of people involved in the killing, the Prosecutor General's office said today.
Journalist Anna Politkovskaya, a critic of President Vladimir Putin, was shot at the entrance to her apartment block on Oct. 7. Leaders from around the world including U.S. President George W. Bush called on the Russian government to carry out a thorough investigation to find her killers. No arrests have yet been made.
Another banker, Alexander Plokhin, was killed by a gunshot wound to the head on Oct. 10. He was a branch head at VTB-24, the retail unit of Russia's second largest bank, Vneshtorgbank.
A day later Furtanbek Akhidov, from the Chechen capital Grozny, was shot dead in the courtyard of the Moscow building where he lived, Interfax reported. Outside Moscow, Enver Ziganshin, chief engineer of BP Plc's Russian gas unit, OAO Rusia Petroleum, was gunned down in Irkutsk in Siberia on Sept. 30.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/17/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Putie is getting awfully blatant in exterminating the news media, isn't he ?
I wonder if Pootie has a little cubby above the courtroom where he will watch the tirals. Nah. Probably has CCTV to a hidden camera and mike. That's so modern.
FOREIGN Minister Alexander Downer has condemned the suicide bombing in Sri Lanka that killed more than 100 people. The attack, the worst of its kind seen in the country, saw Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) fighters detonate a truck packed with explosives next to a convoy of buses packed with sailors. At least 103 people were killed and 150 wounded in yesterday's attack.
Mr Downer tonight said Australia strongly condemns the bombing and was worried about the escalating violence in the country. Australia is gravely concerned at the trend towards increasing violence in Sri Lanka, he said. This latest tragedy underlines the imperative for the parties to return to the negotiating table without further delay.
It is only through the cessation of violence and a negotiated settlement that a lasting solution is possible.
One person was killed and about 60 were injured when two metro trains collided during the morning rush hour in Rome, officials say. The crash took place at Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II station in the centre of the Italian capital. The trains were travelling on metro line A. The square above has been cordoned off. Police and firemen are at the scene.
Passengers said the crash happened when one train arriving at the station crashed into the back of another. It has been confirmed so far that one passenger has died, a 30-year-old woman. It was earlier reported that the driver of the second train had also been killed, but the metro company denied this, saying he was seriously injured and in hospital.
All of the estimated 250 injured or trapped have been extracted from the wreckage and taken to hospitals around Rome, reports say. Around 30 people are said to have suffered serious injuries. Lights at the station had gone out, and there was a lot of dust and smoke, which hampered rescue efforts.
'Train was getting closer'
The crash happened at 0937 (0737 GMT), one stop away from the mainline train terminus in Rome, reports say.
One train was stopped at the station platform to let passengers get off when the second train crashed into it from the back, leaving its front carriage concertinaed, passengers said. "I saw the train in front and it seemed as though it was getting closer and closer to us and nothing was happening," Fabbiano De Santis, a lawyer, told Italian television. "I realised there was going to be an impact and so I managed to move forward in the carriage and I saw the train came towards me. It was a very strong impact."
Italian television showed images of victims being carried out on stretchers while other passengers emerged looking dazed. Some were spattered with blood. "We saw people streaming out of the entrance to the tube station," Francesco Quirinis, a porter with the Hotel Napoleon, opposite the metro entrance, told the BBC News website. "They looked shocked, disorientated, they were supporting each other. The police, ambulances - everyone was on the scene within 10 minutes and they immediately blocked off the piazza. There was a continuous coming and going of ambulances for about an hour after the crash. "We gave them bottles of water, a place to sit down. We did all we could to help them - as anyone would."
THE Airbus A350 may be delayed until 2014, senior figures in the aviation industry have predicted. The aircraft, which will compete with Boeings 787 Dreamliner, has already been sent back for a redesign and was due to come into service in 2012.
Airbus is expected to announce the industrial launch the formal commitment to build of the A350 in the next few weeks, but the delivery date appears to be sliding backwards. At 2014 it would be a full six years behind the delivery of the first Boeing 787. Airbus said that any talk of a slip in the launch date was just speculation.
"Speculation! All speculation!"
In order to regain the initiative, Airbus is looking at producing an all-composite A350, which would, in fact, be 70 per cent plastic, as some parts have to remain metal. According to Airbuss suppliers, the company wants to go all-composite and is talking about the equipment needed to do this. It is thought to be looking at making the aircraft from black aluminium; panels of carbon fibre that would be riveted together in the same way as existing aluminium panels.
Aviation sources say it is now accepted within Airbus that the A350 will not be delivered in 2012 but in late 2013 or 2014. If the A350 is delayed until 2014, it will effectively hand the mid-size market to Boeing as the American company will have a five to six-year headstart.
Pushing delivery back to 2014 also starts to run into the proposed development window for the next generation of single-aisle aircraft that will replace the Boeing 737 and Airbus 320. Boeing is thought to be aiming to introduce a new version of the 737, commonly known as the workhorse of the skies, in 2015 or 2016.
#4
...I think this is one of those patented EU "Surrender-that's-not-really-a surrender" speeches. Airbus is, IMHO, admitting that the plane is so far out of whack that it will never be ready in any kind of time frame that its potential customers would ever tolerate.
I'm actually looking for Airbus to quietly come unglued after this mess. The only new bird they have to look forward to now is their C-130 'replacement'. which will probably never even come close to the performance of that grand old lady, and will serve in EU air forces only when it is shoved down their throats.
Mike
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
10/17/2006 9:14 Comments ||
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#5
Black ALuminum / riveted carbon fiber panels: Making a composite aircraft like you do a metal one was tried here in the US and it failed ( A-12) the only way to take advantage of the advantages of carbon fiber is to completely rethink the manufacturing process; cocure all the detail parts and hold the use of mechanical fasteners to an absolute minimum. This is, IMHO, just Airbus' way of turning the spotlight away from the debacle known as the A350 so it can quietly slide into the morass that is Airbus and never see the light of day. This really makes sense (sarcasm engaged) when you cannot get known parts to cooperate ( A380 wiring) it make perfect sense to embark in a completely new area, if only to confirm to the world that you are completely and utterly phuqued up! (sarcasm disengaged)
In other news, Boeing today has announced that they have sold at least 1 787-8 as a VIP aircraft, and the -8 isn't even the first one off the line!
For more than a decade, one piece of Senator Hillary Rodham Clintons informal biography has been that she was named for Sir Edmund Hillary, the conqueror of Mount Everest. The story was even recounted in Bill Clintons autobiography. "autohagiography". more accurately
But yesterday, Mrs. Clintons campaign said she was not named for Sir Edmund after all. It was a sweet family story her mother shared to inspire greatness in her daughter, to great results I might add, said Jennifer Hanley, a spokeswoman for the campaign. Spokeshole for the Clintons has to be a fabulous job. There's so many "truths" that you can pick and choose from. It's the Hometown Buffet of realities
In May 1953, Sir Edmund and his Sherpa guide, Tenzing Norgay, became the first men to reach the summit of Mount Everest. In 1995, shortly after meeting Sir Edmund, Mrs. Clinton said that her mother, Dorothy Rodham, had long told her she was named for the famous mountaineer.
It had two ls, which is how she thought she was supposed to spell Hillary, Mrs. Clinton said at the time, after meeting Sir Edmund. So when I was born, she called me Hillary, and she always told me its because of Sir Edmund Hillary. plus, "Conniving Bitch" was not in style yet
Even though Bill Clinton repeated the story in his 2004 autobiography, My Life, Hillary Clinton did not mention it in her own autobiography, Living History, which was published in 2003. But one big hole has been poked in the story over the years, both in cyberspace and elsewhere: Sir Edmund became famous only after climbing Everest in 1953. Mrs. Clinton, as it happens, was born in 1947.
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/17/2006 08:08 ||
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#1
Okay, so they called her Ugly Little Frogface until she was six. Picky, picky.
#4
It was a sweet family story her mother shared to inspire greatness in her daughter"
One should never criticize what moms tell their kids.
Posted by: Sen. George (yes I AM goyish, thank you very much) Allen ||
10/17/2006 14:40 Comments ||
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#5
Radioblogger (Hugh Hewitt's producer) has a short audio clip of Hillary reaching a crescendo in a speech in Ohio, if you want to hear it.
What do you mean, no way?
#7
Sounds like somebody is doing a little house cleaning, maybe find a few FBI files, maybe find a heart, ohh what about wearing this cross thingy that ought to soften the image up......
Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid announced Monday he is amending his ethics reports to Congress to more fully account for a land deal that allowed him to collect $1.1 million for property he hadn't personally owned for three years.
Reid acted several days after The Associated Press reported the senator didn't disclose to Congress that he first sold the land to a friend's company back in 2001 and took an ownership stake in the company.
Reid acted several days after The Associated Press reported the senator didn't disclose to Congress that he first sold the land to a friend's company back in 2001 and took an ownership stake in the company. He didn't collect the seven-figure payout until the company sold the land again in 2004 to others.
Reid said his amended ethics reports will list the 2001 sale. "I directed my staff to file amended financial disclosure forms noting that in 2001, I transferred title to the land to a Limited Liability Corporation," Reid said in a statement issued by his office. Reid said he believed the 2001 sale did not alter his ownership of the land but that he agreed to file the amended reports because "I believe in ensuring all facts come to light."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/17/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Hey, I was just about to amend those reports when that @$$hole from the AP outed me! It was purely coincidence! An honest mistake! Just like the other one. And what are all those violins about, anyway?
Posted by: Harry Reid ||
10/17/2006 0:46 Comments ||
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#2
DhimmiDonks are always forgiven, by their own. Pubs are never forgiven, by anyone. Political Fact of Life.
Now if he were to suddenly announce he's entering some sort of rehab clinic, he'd be lionized... Until 2010 (IIRC) when his seat comes up, anyway
Harry Reid has been using campaign donations instead of his personal money to pay Christmas bonuses for the support staff at the Ritz-Carlton where he lives in an upscale condominium.
Harry Reid has been using campaign donations instead of his personal money to pay Christmas bonuses for the support staff at the Ritz-Carlton where he lives in an upscale condominium. Federal election law bars candidates from converting political donations for personal use. Questioned about the campaign expenditures by The Associated Press, Reid's office said Monday he was personally reimbursing his campaign for $3,300 in donations he had directed to the staff holiday fund at his residence.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/17/2006 00:00 ||
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He's really on a roll, lol, though he's small fry in the Sin State.
Now I'd love to see the same sort of attention turned on Pelosi. She smells far worse, IMHO.
A real estate project is on track to create one of Nevadas biggest cities, partly due to the intercession of U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, who has close ties to the developer.
Even now, as heavy equipment peels back the cactus and creosote bush to carve out roads and building sites, it's hard to believe that this 67-square-mile tract of empty desert will blossom into one of the biggest cities in the fastest-growing state in the country and the projected home to more than 200,000 people.
One of the most inhospitable places in the country, Coyote Springs Valley is so barren that, until recently, its best use was thought to be as a weapons test range.
Yet the valley an hour northeast of Las Vegas is on its way to becoming a real estate development of historic proportions, with as many as 159,000 homes, 16 golf courses and a full complement of stores and service facilities. At nearly 43,000 acres, Coyote Springs covers almost twice as much space as the next-largest development in a state famous for outsized building projects.
By comparison, Irvine Co., one of Southern California's largest developers, controls about 44,000 acres in Orange County.
Helping make Coyote Springs come alive was an alliance between a multimillionaire developer and one of the highest-ranking members of Congress: Nevada Democrat Harry Reid, the Senate minority leader and a member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee.
The relationship between developers such as Harvey Whittemore and politicians such as Reid is especially close in Nevada, home to a small fraternity of movers and shakers, powerful demands of rapid population growth and a huge amount of federally owned land.
Over the last four years, Reid has used his influence in Washington to help the developer, Nevada super-lobbyist Whittemore, clear obstacles from Coyote Springs' path.
At one point, Reid proposed opening the way for Whittemore to develop part of the site for free something for which the developer later agreed to pay the government $10 million.
As the project advanced, Reid received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Whittemore. The contributions not only went to Reid's Senate campaigns, but also to his leadership fund, which he used to help bankroll the campaigns of Democratic colleagues. [...]
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid wrote at least four letters helpful to Indian tribes represented by Jack Abramoff, and the senator's staff regularly had contact with the disgraced lobbyist's team about legislation affecting other clients.
The activities _ detailed in billing records and correspondence obtained by The Associated Press _ are far more extensive than previously disclosed. They occurred over three years as Reid collected nearly $68,000 in donations from Abramoff's firm, lobbying partners and clients [..]
#6
Now, go after Pelosi, RD. Her laundry needs airing out, too. ;-)
certainly PD, She is a veritable siphon for money.. Caliphornia Korp money, Caliphornia Lib money, China money, Sorros money, Union money, teacher's money, lawyer money etc.
as soon as my green felt slime suit and hip waders to get back from the cleaners and I've had my flu shot then I'll attack.
#9
The Culture of Corruption cliché is a great Democrat sound byte. But so is When push comes to shove. Republican crooks should get the hook but the demagogues on the left might want to watch their hypocritical arses.
For instance, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) PAC funneling illegal money around or Sen. Hillary Clinton's (D-NY.) Campaign Finance Director being indicted.
What about Sen. Chuck Schumers (D-NY.) Campaign finance problems and the huge fines he paid? In addition, Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) paid her son, a lawyer, $130,000 over four years to run her political action committee with a number of shady deals as a result. Or how about when how the Congressional Black Caucus cried racism over allegations Rep. William J. Jefferson (D-La) demanded cash and other favors for himself and relatives in return for public influence? And in case you forgot, there is Rep. Corrine Browns (D-Fla) misdeeds.
THE US population hit the historic milestone of 300 million at 9.46pm (AEST) today, the Census Bureau announced.
The date and time for the arrival of the 300th million resident was based on a calculation by the US Census Bureau that takes into account birth rates, death rates and rates of international migration.
With that in mind, it was determined that the 300th million resident was either a newborn, an immigrant coming across the border or someone flying into the United States.
Unlike the pomp and circumstance that greeted the 200 million mark in 1967, federal officials did not organise any major celebrations for today's landmark, which comes amid a raging debate in the United States on immigration and concerns over the potential environmental impact.
#18
at least you guys in the us still outnumber your immigrants unlike us in the UK
Posted by: A ||
10/17/2006 12:23 Comments ||
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#19
and Barbara Skolaut gets a mention - pic #4! Hoorah Barb!
She's not the only one. #17 -- my mom and two nieces. A bit of a third niece's head is visible at the bottom of the shot.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
10/17/2006 12:35 Comments ||
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#20
Most of us in the U.S. are here by immigration of our ancestors if not of our immediate families. Immigration is not the problem; lack of assimilation is the problem. As long as Mexican Americans and Korean Americans and Polish Americans recognize that Mexican, Korean, and Polish are adjectives here, then there's no problem. The question is what is the adjective. For example, are your neighbors Muslim Americans or American Muslims? So "A", it's a question of primary allegiance. The UK has imported a lot of Muslims and devout Muslims will always be Muslims first.
Spike the formula with a small amount of Pablum / Rice cereal, like 1-2 tbsp per half bottle. He'll sleep longer - should get a solid 3.5-4 hrs of peace. Heh.
Enjoy him while he's little and cute - it'll keep ya' from strangling him when he's a teen. ;-p
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
10/17/2006 14:00 Comments ||
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#26
Hard to do when breastfeeding, .com. ;-) But information I would've killed for 15 years ago... the small amount of rice cereal could as easily be added to a bottle of pumped breastmilk.
Heartiest congratulations on your handsome young Tsarevich, Swamp Blondie! Sleep when he does, eat carryout, and let the housework go to hell until he settles down a bit. Ten pounds? Wow! If it's any comfort, our pediatrician promised the trailing daughters would sleep through the night when they reached 11 lbs -- which for both was about the third month, but it looks like you've got a headstart there.
#27
Just curious if anyone read the comedy book THE POPULATION BOMB. Didn't that book say we'd hit 300 million some time in the early 70s or something.
#36
We had our first in 1967, and adopted our last one (of 3) in 1988. We have one 17-YO granddaughter, and my youngest got married in July. What little hair I have left is gray, but I'm going to enjoy being a Grandpa every chance I have...
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
10/17/2006 22:06 Comments ||
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#37
but I'm going to enjoy being a Grandpa every chance I have...
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.
KAMPALA (Reuters) - Two people were killed and seven seriously wounded in Uganda when an artillery round blew up as a man tried to melt it down for scrap metal, police said on Saturday.
Muslim journalist Zaiba Malik had never worn the niqab. But with everyone from Jack Straw to Tessa Jowell weighing in with their views on the veil, she decided to put one on for the day. She was shocked by how it made her feel - and how strongly strangers reacted to it 
Eight out of ten people who suffer the onset of serious mental illness are heavy cannabis users, claims a scathing report on the effects of the drug. The report found that the huge majority of those undergoing a first episode of psychiatric disorder, schizophrenia or similar mental breakdowns are habitual users of the drug. The overwhelming evidence of a connection between cannabis and schizophrenia was confirmed in a report delivered to Tory chiefs as part of leader David Cameron's review of party policies. It listed no fewer than 400 different scientific studies that point to links between use of cannabis, illness and destructive behaviour. The findings will pile pressure on Mr Cameron to tie his party to a pledge to reclassify cannabis as a seriously dangerous drug. The report was prepared for the Tories' social justice policy review in the wake of growing criticism of the Government's decision to downgrade the criminal seriousness of cannabis from Class B to Class C in 2004.
THE 
(Bloomberg) -- The business chief of Russian news agency Itar-Tass, Anatoly Voronin, was killed last night in his apartment in central Moscow, the agency reported. Death was the result of multiple knife wounds, according to police, Itar-Tass reported. Several theories are being investigated, the agency said. The body of 55-year-old Voronin was found at his home by his driver, the news agency said. He had worked at the agency for 23 years. His death is the latest in a spate of high-profile killings in Russia in little over a month. 
One person was killed and about 60 were injured when two metro trains collided during the morning rush hour in Rome, officials say. The crash took place at Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II station in the centre of the Italian capital. The trains were travelling on metro line A. The square above has been cordoned off. Police and firemen are at the scene. 
THE Airbus A350 may be delayed until 2014, senior figures in the aviation industry have predicted. The aircraft, which will compete with Boeings 787 Dreamliner, has already been sent back for a redesign and was due to come into service in 2012. 
For more than a decade, one piece of Senator Hillary Rodham Clintons informal biography has been that she was named for Sir Edmund Hillary, the conqueror of Mount Everest. The story was even recounted in Bill Clintons autobiography.
Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid announced Monday he is amending his ethics reports to Congress to more fully account for a land deal that allowed him to collect $1.1 million for property he hadn't personally owned for three years. 
Senate Democratic leader 
