Thousands of earthquake survivors fled tent camps and villages across the ravaged landscape of southwestern China on Saturday after the government warned that several lakes and rivers were getting dangerously close to overflowing because landslides have blocked water flow.
Residents and rescue workers fled the county of Beichuan on Saturday amid warnings of possible flooding from a river. More Photos »
The new threats came as government officials said that more than three million homes had been destroyed by Mondays earthquake, and more than 12 million had been damaged. The government again raised the death toll, to nearly 29,000.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/18/2008 00:00 ||
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My company organized a dinner for charity for the earthquake on Friday, raising ¥450,000 for the Red Cross! A ton of people are trying to outdo each other on how much money they can raise. The Chinese are quite proud of their disaster response (this means the money raised, it doesn't mean the performance [or non-performance {which would never be reported}] of the rescuers) and this will only fuel nationalism in the run-up to the Olympics.
#2
The kind of behaviour gromky reports is new in that part of the world, I imagine. They should be proud of themselves for it. As Chinese society becomes more transparent, the follow-up will occur as people wonder what impact their donation made. Somebody will want a photograph of the group representative with the rescued in the beautiful shelters their money was to pay for.
#6
As argued long ago on the Net, POST-COLD WAR > CHINA + RADICAL ISLAM > gener are REAL-TIME, DIAMETRICALLY OPPOS NATIONAL-GLOBAL EXPERIMENTS IN FUTURE OWG-NOW AUTHORITY AND ABILITY TO GOVERN/MANAGE.
*CHINA [India?] - HOW TO ECONOMICALLY + ENVIRONMENTALLY SUPPOR A "CLOSED/ISOLATED" POPULATION IN HIGHLY-STRESSED CONFINED AREA?
*RADICAL ISLAM > HOW TO SATISFY THE POLITICAL = GEOPOL ASPIRATIONS OF HIGHLY FLUID + HETEROGENOUS POPULATION?
USA = JEAN LUC-PICARD = MODERATOR/NEUTRAL ARBITER.
#7
This is very close to the antithesis of Communist teachings where the State takes care of everything. This is the first time that Chinese have had the money and will to act to help anyone outside their own "tribe" and they are taking pride in it. To me it shows that the Chinese are becoming more independant from the Government. A good thing.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
05/18/2008 18:27 Comments ||
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#8
I feel pretty good when my nemesis is an illiterate idiot. Apparently, Life is turning my way!
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/18/2008 18:32 Comments ||
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#9
How much money did y'all raise for Myanmar Gromky?
China's state news agency says soldiers have dug out a 52-year-old man who was buried in ruins for 117 hours after a massive earthquake hit China. The official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday that the man had been buried under a collapsed building in Beichuan, not far from the epicenter of Monday's earthquake.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/18/2008 00:00 ||
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Posted by: Fred ||
05/18/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
There have been a couple of comments on these topics of natural disaster questioning the goodness of God or even whether there is a God in light of these disasters. I'd like to give a response to those now that I have some time:
God did indeed make the world and everything in it. He then gave the world over to Adam and Eve: "Fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over...every living thing that moves on the earth." (Gen. 1:28). Adam and Even, by disobeying God, forfeited the earth to the devil. When they sinned, the whole creation fell with them (Rom. 8:20-21). They turned earth over to the devil, who is the ruler of this world to this day. Jesus twice refers to Satan as the ruler of this world in John 12:31 and John 14:30. So we are under the (temporary) rulership of the devil, whose character is seen in events like these.
Why doesn't God just take over again? Well, that's a great question. I for one would be happy if He did. The answer, I think, is that we really don't want Him to. God would enforce His laws and His rules. We all sin (Rom. 3:23) and rebel against God. We don't seek Him (Rom. 3:10) nor do we want him. Sinful human nature prefers rule by the devil to rule by God.
This isn't an answer I like. I'd rather have the perfect world of Eden--or so I delude myself. But I disobey God every day and turn my back on Him constantly. Like everyone else on earth, I prefer the rule of the devil to Gode's rule. "Wretched man that I am? Who will deliver me from the body of this death?" (Rom. 7:24).
Hope this is helpful. Sorry to be so long on a first post.
Posted by: Tom ||
05/18/2008 13:53 Comments ||
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At least five people have been burnt or beaten to death in the South African city of Johannesburg as violence against immigrants spreads.
More than 50 other people were taken to hospital in the suburb of Cleveland with stab or bullet wounds.
The trouble began a week ago in the sprawling township of Alexandra.
Immigrants from neighbouring African countries were set upon by men with guns and iron bars chanting "kick the foreigners out".
Terrified Zimbabweans, Mozambicans and Malawians fled to the safety of the local police station and to another township, Diepsloot.
They were then attacked there as well - shacks were burnt down and shops looted. The violence has since spread to another three areas.
The attacks have prompted soul searching among South Africans.
Last week Nelson Mandela expressed his concern, saying the country must not descend into what he called "destructive divisiveness".
Since the end of apartheid, millions of African immigrants have poured into South Africa seeking jobs and sanctuary. But they have become scapegoats for many of the country's social problems - its high rate of unemployment, a shortage of housing and one of the worst levels of crime in the world.
The South African Red Cross is now providing food and blankets to hundreds of frightened immigrants forced from their homes.
One Zimbabwean immigrant told the BBC he now intended to flee back into his country because, he said, it was better to die at home where at least his family could visit his grave.
Posted by: john frum ||
05/18/2008 14:07 ||
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Bangladesh, with the help of China, test-launched its first C-802A anti-ship missile from a frigate in the Bay of Bengal on May 12. Commissioned in 1989, the 1,500-ton F-18 Osman is a Chinese-built Jianghu-class frigate. This is Dhaka's first C-802 missile test launch.
The navy acquired the improved C-802A variant and FM-90N SAM and the air force procured Chinese PL- air-to-air missiles in 2006. The number of units is unknown.
China has an intimate relationship with Bangladesh's military. Much of its army, navy and air force consists of Chinese hardware. In August 2007, Chinese Gen. Chen Bingde visited Bangladesh to discuss military sales and cooperation. Chen, a member of China's Central Military Commission, was also chief of the General Armament Department of the People's Liberation Army.
Bangladesh's navy inventory includes the Jianghu-class 1,500-ton F-18 Osman frigate, four 175-ton Huangfeng-class guided-missile patrol boats (PTG), five 68-ton Houku-class PTGs and other Chinese vessels, including a torpedo boat, patrol boat, submarine hunter, minesweeper, landing craft, tugs and survey craft.
The air force is equipped with two squadrons of Chengdu F-7Ms and Guizhou FT-7s, one squadron of Nanchang A-5Cs and Shenyang FT-6s, and one trainer squadron of Nanchang PT-6s.
Army equipment includes Chinese W-531 Type 85 armored personnel carriers, T-62 light tanks and T-59 main battle tanks. According to its declaration to the United Nations in 2007, covering 2006, China has sold 65 large-caliber artillery systems, including 18 122mm howitzers and 16 rocket launchers.
Posted by: john frum ||
05/18/2008 14:30 ||
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#1
I'm sure the Indians are quaking in their boots.
#5
Good point, RWV - though a Coast Guard would make even more sense....
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
05/18/2008 22:30 Comments ||
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Bengalis exported 20,000,000 of their countrymen to India; others elsewhere. They have other priorities than purchasing anti ship missiles. Jihad obligations again.
A madrasa student in Dhaka filed a case against former lawmaker and chairman of a faction of Islami Oikya Jote Mufti Fazlul Haque Amini, his two family members and eight other people on assault charges Friday night.
The complainant, Sharif Hossain, stated in his first information report (FIR) that Amini's son Abul Hasnat, son-in-law Saiful Islam and others beat him up throughout Thursday night on Amini's orders as he did not attend the former lawmaker's rallies.
Sharif, a student of Hossainia Ashraful Ulum Madrasa at Barakatara in Lalbagh neighbourhood, said the attackers, armed with hockey sticks, iron rods and blades, threatened him with life.
He said he later got admitted to Mitford Hospital from where doctors referred him to Orthopaedic Hospital, adding that goons hired by Amini also tried to kidnap him from the hospital.
Amini, however, brushed aside the charges, alleging that the plaintiff suffered injuries while making off with a madrasa teacher's cellphone. He said a theft case has already been laid against Sharif with Lalbagh Police Station.
He said his opponents are using Sharif following disputes over the ownership of the madrasa land.
Officer-in-charge of Lalbagh Police Station said investigations into the two cases are underway.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/18/2008 00:00 ||
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If he ever leaves office, I expect that he will be able to parley his personality into a reality show.
Then again maybe that's what he is doing already. He does need some skenks for rating purposes. Bridgette is probably available. Demonstrably, she'll kiss anything.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
05/18/2008 13:22 Comments ||
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If he ever leaves office, I expect that he will be able to parley his personality into a reality show
Posted by: George Smiley ||
05/18/2008 13:55 Comments ||
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My 3 year old daughter liked his berry turtlekneck and overshirt combo - she asked if I would let her watch Barney.
On the whole his ensemble lacked bling - chains needed possibly grill work. Also the lack of skeeve ho's is a horrible mistake. Anybody who has flipped through Univision knows that plenty of skeeve ho's are avaiable and necessary for success in the Latino television medium.
On the whole I rate his performance a 3 - his clips won't even make The Soup, and Suzanne Sommers and some old camping dude on te show Dutch Oven make The Soup on alternating weeks. I feel confident in saying that if Che were alive today, his show would have plenty of gold, adequate sluts and would have been picked up by the E network at a mimimum. More likely MTV in prime-time.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
05/18/2008 14:11 Comments ||
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TWO US military planes carrying aid flew today into southwestern China, the first time Beijing has accepted help from foreign troops since the earthquake struck, officials said.
The C-17 aircraft carrying food, electricity generators, blankets and other goods flew into Chengdu, the capital of worst-hit Sichuan province. This is a huge thing for the Chinese, to allow military aircraft into their airspace. They're usually incredibly touchy about these things. The last USAF aircraft to land was the EP-3 that they got to take apart back in 2000.
One arrived in the morning and a second was expected to arrive in the early afternoon, said Susan Stevenson, a spokeswoman for the US embassy in Beijing. The planes came from Hawaii and the US Pacific territory of Guam.
Admiral Timothy Keating, commander of the US Pacific Command, said the US troops offer our sincere condolences to the Chinese people. Keating, he's the comsymp bastard, isn't he?
We will continue to provide any assistance we can to minimise their suffering and loss of life, he said.
China's official Xinhua news agency said that the US military aid totalled $US1.6 million ($1.7 million).
This is first humanitarian aid donated by foreign military forces, Xinhua said, quoting the nation's Cabinet. By foreign military forces! Wow...
It said as of midday yesterday, domestic and international donations in cash or goods had topped 6 billion yuan ($916.16 million), with foreign donations exceeding 1 billion yuan ($152.7 million). I used my influence organizing locally to raise ¥450,000 among the expat community in my city if I do say so myself. :)
China agreed to let in foreign rescue workers three days after the May 12 earthquake, which killed an estimated 50,000 people. Another huge step
President Hu Jintao yesterday offered thanks to foreign governments and organisations that had provided help after the worst natural disaster in China in a generation.
Teams of rescue experts from Japan, Russia, Singapore and South Korea, as well as Taiwan and Hong Kong, have been allowed in to help the effort, although other offers to send personnel from elsewhere have been declined. Yeah and then the Chinese assigned the Japanese team with their high-tech rescue tools to buildings with no sign of life, the Japs have just been pulling out dead bodies so far. Typical.
The tragedy struck amid tensions between China and some Western countries ahead of the Beijing Olympics, which China wants to showcase the country's rise on the global stage.
The worldwide relay of the Olympic torch was beset by protests over China's human rights record and its handling of recent unrest in Tibet.
Burma, a close ally of China, came under strong international criticism for refusing foreign aid after a May 2-3 cyclone, which the military government says left 134,000 people dead or missing.
#7
NOSI.org > OPERATIONS OTHER THAN WAR [OOTH]: BURMA/MYANMAR [Various]. USS Essex, other USN Ships standing offshore waiting on the word from Myanmar's Govt. to ASSIST = INVADE IN THE NAME OF HUMANITARIANSM???
Again, a test for GUAM-WESTPAC + FUTURE US OWG-NWO ala ASIA-PACIFIC "EARTH CHANGES" due to SUN = GLOBAL WARMING. YEAR 2010 and beyond > NOT JUST FOR "US VERSUS RADICAL ISLAM" for OWG-NWO!?
*GUAM > Coming KAMALEN = ONLY THE BEGINNING/ LITE STUFF!
(Xinhua) -- France is scheduled to close some of its military bases in Africa when it starts the implementation of the new 15-year defense and national security strategy, the French daily Le Figaro reported Saturday.
A new white paper touching on defense and national security policies has been issued to parliamentarians who are directly concerned with defense issues, according to the newspaper. The document, which was prepared by a special commission established by French President Nicolas Sarkozy to specifically review the issue and come up with concrete proposals, is expected to be debated and adopted at a cabinet meeting in June, according to defense ministry sources.
While adapting its defense policy to the new international context, France must take into account the imperative of budgetary constraints in order to make well-informed choices, according to defense analysts.
A number of equipment are expected to pay the price of the economic saving measures, said one source, adding that military bases in Africa would be one of the first casualties of the draft defense and security policy.
However, according to observers, France is going to have to grapple with a daunting task as the closure of military bases in Africa is going to be resisted by many both within and outside the continent.
Speaking on the issue recently, Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade said that Sarkozy should not implement the plan hurriedly as it would lead to disastrous consequences and even embolden rebellions. "Some regimes would simply not be able to survive such a move. They would be overrun overnight by rebel groups," said Wade, urging caution over the matter.
"The number of men that the army should be able to deploy abroad should also be decreased from a high of 50,000 to a low of 30,000," military sources were quoted as saying by the newspaper. To meet emerging dangers, the new white paper appears to belaying much emphasis on intelligence, according to the newspaper. National defense must adopt a new function consisting of "gathering intelligence and anticipating" in line with the new policy that will lead to the reorganization of various departments, the appointment of a coordinator of intelligence to work under the direct supervision of President of the Republic. The policy also calls for the acquisition of new observation satellites while at the same time assuring that the existing nuclear deterrence will be maintained, said the daily, adding that particular attention should be given to the protection of the territory and the population.
France's current defense policies have in recent days become the subject of critics, who notably have accused the government of ignoring security issues, according to the newspaper.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/18/2008 00:00 ||
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Sacre Bleu! This actually sounds as if he French know what they're doing, and have thought about it as well!
#2
National defense must adopt a new function consisting of "gathering intelligence and anticipating" in line with the new policy that will lead to the reorganization of various departments...The policy also calls for the acquisition of new observation satellites while at the same time assuring that the existing nuclear deterrence will be maintained
#3
WAFF.com > BRITAIN has finally decided to proceed wid the future CVF, while issue is still being debated by France and other Euros despite project committals???
Top fundraisers for Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama have begun private talks aimed at merging the two candidates' teams, not waiting for the Democratic nominating process to end before they start preparations for a hard-fought fall campaign. Rats! Somebody over there has a brain.
Despite Obama's apparently insurmountable lead in delegates needed to claim the nomination, aides to both candidates are resigned to the idea that the Democratic contest will continue at least through June 3, when Montana and South Dakota will cast the final votes of the primary season.
But in small gatherings around Washington and in planning sessions for party unity events in New York and Boston in coming weeks, fundraisers and surrogates from both camps are discussing how they can put aside the vitriol of the past 18 months and move forward to ensure that the eventual nominee has the resources to defeat Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in November.
Mark Aronchick, a Philadelphia lawyer who has raised more than $1 million for Clinton's bid, said that while her supporters have not given up on their candidate, they recognize the need to start preparing for the general election. "Only if we do this right, and see this through in the right way, will there be a chance for a full, rapid and largely complete unification of the party," Aronchick said.
Aronchick was one of about 35 Clinton and Obama insiders who attended a dinner last week in Washington aimed at what he characterized as helping the two sides "grope towards unity." Did Slick Willie develop that theme?
The gathering, held at the Ritz-Carlton residence of Jim Johnson and Maxine Isaacs, was a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee at which former Treasury secretary Robert Rubin was honored. But the guests were well aware of the symbolism as they sipped cocktails and admired the views of the Potomac River and the Washington Monument. The event honoring a prominent Clinton supporter was held at the home of an Obama backer and co-hosted by another, former senator Thomas A. Daschle (S.D.) And why is Tommy-Boy a former Senator? Like John Edwards?
"The people there had all picked sides," one attendee said. "There was a sense that there is an obligation to lead by example." While there was little outright talk of how the primary campaign would end, guests confirmed that DNC Chairman Howard Dean set the tone with a speech in which he emphasized that despite the protracted nomination fight, he is already instituting a plan to combat McCain. Wow. What brainpower, what foresight. Isn't that Dean's job?
The message was clear, according to one attendee, who said, "You don't go anywhere anymore where there isn't a sense that this is over and this is about how people behave over the next month." That certainly trumps Dean's thought process! Even with the work in top levels of the party to broker a detente between Obama and Clinton donors, both sides acknowledge there is much still to be done.
Top fundraisers have invested not only their time and money but also their emotions in the primary battle. Major financial backers say the tensions have been particularly acute in recent weeks as frustrations have mounted in both camps.
Aronchick said that in his own discussions, he emphasized the need for the senator from Illinois to stop describing Clinton and her backers as representing the politics of the past. "They need to understand how corrosive that has been among her supporters," Aronchick said. "For this to work, they need to correct any impression that he thinks we represent the old ways of doing things or Washington Beltway ways of doing things."
One top fundraiser for Obama, a veteran of several presidential campaigns who spoke about the private discussions on the condition of anonymity, said there are sensitivities among many of Obama's supporters, as well. The fundraiser said there is a high level of resentment that Clinton has continued to campaign, even though her chances of securing the nomination are remote. Many are unhappy about the idea of having to make room for members of Clinton's finance team, who had "picked the wrong candidate." But their egos aren't too big; no, no, not at all.
"There are people who are thinking, 'Hey, my guy won. Now I have to share the trophy?' " the Obama fundraiser said. "That's something we have to overcome."
Kirk Dornbush, a member of the Obama national finance team in Georgia, said that while there is no formal effort by the Obama campaign to recruit Clinton counterparts, "many of us have friendships with Clinton donors that predate the 2008 campaign and will last long after this race is over. Given this reality, it should not be surprising that we have received phone calls in the last few weeks" from individuals interested in crossing over. Both ways?
Another major Obama fundraiser, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said that while no organized recruitment campaign was underway, "we have picked off some local people and are reaching out to the Clinton people we know individually."
That outreach has been complicated by leading voices in the Clinton campaign having made clear that any defection at this point would be regarded as a betrayal of the former first couple. "Some [Clinton] people have said, 'If you publicly defect, that's the end of our relationship,' " said the Obama fundraiser. "Like, if we live to be 170, we're never going to speak to each other again."
Clinton supporters interviewed for this article all said they think that the senator from New York remains a viable candidate. But several also said they see the wisdom of beginning the conversation about fundraising for the general election. "We're all thinking about November," said Robert Zimmerman, a New York public relations expert who is a top Clinton fundraiser. "We are starting a dialogue together. I've made it clear [Obama backers] will be welcome to come on board. They've said the same to me."
Zimmerman, who is also a Democratic National Committeeman, said Dean has been a central figure in starting to bring the two camps together. Dean is organizing a May 31 fundraiser in Manhattan honoring Al Gore. The event is being chaired by Orin Kramer, one of Obama's top fundraisers, and by Maureen White, a longtime party fundraiser who has been assisting Clinton.
Last week, the Democratic National Committee announced that both campaigns had signed a "joint fundraising agreement" creating a fund in which donations to each candidate could be pooled with contributions to the party and then used during the general election. From each according to her ability; to each according to his need.
Clinton's New England finance chairman, Steve Grossman, is also co-chairing an event with two top New England fundraisers for Obama, Alan Solomont and Barry White. The June 12 event in Boston is in honor of Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kerry's brother, Cameron Kerry, and will raise money for the National Jewish Democratic Council, but the invitation list includes top bundlers for both Clinton and Obama.
In addition to the fledgling attempts to merge the fundraising operations of Obama and Clinton, there is growing talk that the best -- and perhaps only -- way to truly mend the rift is for Obama to pick a top Clinton surrogate as his vice presidential nominee. "There's gale-force pressure for Obama to choose a Clinton loyalist as a running mate to heal the party but avoid putting her and her formidable baggage on the ticket," said one Obama ally in Washington. "You hear the names [Ohio Gov. Ted] Strickland, [Indiana Sen. Evan] Bayh, and [retired general] Wes Clark almost constantly, and it's no secret that Jim Johnson and Tom Daschle are purveyors of that wisdom."
Posted by: Bobby ||
05/18/2008 05:37 ||
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The Plan
In the beginning there was the Plan.
And then came the Assumptions.
And the Plan was without Substance.
And darkness was upon the face of the Workers.
And they spoke amongst themselves, saying,
"This is a crock of shit and it stinketh!"
And the Workers went unto their Supervisors and said, "It is a pail of dung, and none may abide the odor thereof!"
And the Supervisors went unto their Managers, saying, "It is a container of excrement, and it is very strong, such that none may abide it!"
And the Managers went unto their Directors, saying, "It is a vessel of fertilizer, and none may abide its strength!"
And the Directors spoke amongst themselves, saying to one another, "It contains that which aids plant growth, and it is very strong."
And the Directors went unto the Vice Presidents, saying unto them, "It promotes growth, and it is very powerful!"
And the Vice Presidents went unto the President, saying unto him, "This new Plan will actively promote the growth and vigor in the company, with powerful effect!"
And the President looked upon the Plan, and saw that it was good...
And the Plan became Policy.
And that is how shit happens.
Posted by: Alaska Paul in Fairbanks, AK ||
05/18/2008 12:22 Comments ||
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#2
A peek into the Democratic strategy/thought process. That will keep a bunch of shrinks busy for a long time.
Like most explosively-angry passive-aggressive folks, John has no trouble laughing at himself. [Note to KOS kiddies lurkers: That was sarcasm. Please include that when you report back to your harebrained paranoid masters whose ideas you have traded away your own independent thinking processes for.]
John McCain is 71 years old, and his age has provided late-night comics with some easy punch lines. On "Saturday Night Live," he joined in.
"I ask you, what should we be looking for in our next president?" McCain said. "Certainly, someone who is very, very, very old."
The certain Republican presidential nominee appeared in a phony campaign ad in which he promised to put an end to runaway government spending, claiming he had never sought money for his home state, Arizona.
"Controlling government spending isn't just about Republicans or Democrats," he said. "It's about being able to look your children in the eye. Or in my case, my children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren and great-great-great-grandchildren, the youngest of whom are nearing retirement."
"I have the courage, the wisdom, the experience and, most importantly, the oldness necessary," McCain said. "The oldness it takes to protect America, to honor her, love her and tell her about what cute things the cat did."
Later, during the program's "Weekend Update" segment, McCain urged Democrats not to rush to choose between Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama.
When McCain hosted "SNL" in 2002, he performed a medley of Barbra Streisand songs. In an interview earlier Saturday, Glamour magazine asked if he would be singing again.
"I think once is enough," McCain responded.
Here's the link to him singing for SNL. He rips Babs a new one with his comments between his thankfully short renditions of a few of her well-known songs. :-)
Senator Edward M. Kennedy, 76, leader of the nations most storied political dynasty, was hospitalized in Boston on Saturday after popping a vein apparently suffering a seizure.
Mr. Kennedy, 76, has been in the Senate since the Miocene 1962. Family members and hangers on friends gathered in Boston. One person close to the family said that after an initial scare, Kennedy intimates were reasonably optimistic Mr. Kennedy would recover quickly and fully. Another family friend described his medical condition as serious but not life-threatening.
The senators office issued a statement on Saturday afternoon saying that Mr. Kennedy went to Cape Cod Hospital after feeling ill at his Hyannis Port home shortly after 8 a.m. Saturday. He was then sent by medical helicopter to Massachusetts General Hospital for further examination, the statement said.
A later statement from the office said: It appears that Senator Kennedy experienced a seizure this morning. He is undergoing a battery of tests at Massachusetts General Hospital to determine the cause of the seizure. Senator Kennedy is resting comfortably, and it is unlikely we will know anything more for the next 48 hours.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/18/2008 00:00 ||
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NEW DELHI: Veteran Marxist leader Harkishan Singh Surjeet, who was admitted to a hospital in Noida with an acute respiratory problem, has slipped into coma on Saturday. His condition remains critical.
He is in coma and is not responding, Dr. Purushottam Lal, who is monitoring his condition at the Metro Hospital, said.
The 92-year-old CPI(M) leader was admitted to the hospital on May 6.
Though his vital organs are stable, his condition is neither better nor worse. He had seizures and was medicated for it and his brain is still functioning, Dr. Lal said.
CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat and Polit Bureau member S. Ramachandran Pillai were at the hospital for more than two hours on Saturday evening to enquire about the condition of Mr. Surjeet. They also had consultations with the team of doctors who are attending on the leader.
Posted by: john frum ||
05/18/2008 09:27 ||
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Former Punjab chief minister Mian Manzoor Wattoo on Saturday was appointed as adviser to prime minister, with the status of a federal minister. Express News reported that Wattoo had been given the Industries and Production department. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani confirmed Wattoos appointment as adviser in a plane en route to Cairo from Islamabad and said Wattoo would be considered a PPP minister.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/18/2008 00:00 ||
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Six Baha'i leaders in Iran were seized and imprisoned this week, the religious group said. The act prompted condemnation and concern from the movement and a top American religious freedom panel. A U.S. panel says attacks on Iran's Baha'is have increased since Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became president.
Iranian intelligence agents searched the homes of the six on Wednesday and then whisked them away, according to the Baha'i's World News Service. The report said the six are in Evin prison and that the arrests follow the detention in March of another Baha'i leader.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry could not immediately be reached for comment, and the incident has not been mentioned in Iran's state-run media. "Their only crime is their practice of the Baha'i faith," said Bani Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha'i international community to the United Nations.
The U.S. State Department issued a statement Friday "strongly" condeming the arrests, which it said were "a clear violation of the Iranian regime's international commitments and obligations to respect international religious freedom norms. "We urge the authorities to release all Baha'is currently in detention and cease their ongoing harassment of the Iranian Baha'i community," the U.S. statement said.
The group -- regarded as the largest non-Muslim religious minority in Iran -- says the arrests are reminiscent of roundups and killings of Baha'is that took place in Iran two decades ago. "Especially disturbing is how this latest sweep recalls the wholesale arrest or abduction of the members of two national Iranian Baha'i governing councils in the early 1980s -- which led to the disappearance or execution of 17 individuals," Dugal said. "The early morning raids on the homes of these prominent Baha'is were well-coordinated, and it is clear they represent a high-level effort to strike again at the Baha'is and to intimidate the Iranian Baha'i community at large," she added.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom -- a government panel that advises the president and Congress -- condemned the Wednesday arrests, as well as another in March. The commission chairman called the acts the "latest sign of the rapidly deteriorating status of religious freedom and other human rights in Iran."
The commission said the seven were members of an informal Baha'i group that tended to the needs of the community after the Iranian government banned all formal Baha'i activity in 1983.
The commission chairman, Michael Cromartie, echoed the fears that the "development signals a return to the darkest days of repression in Iran in the 1980s when Baha'is were routinely arrested, imprisoned, and executed."
The Baha'is are regarded as "apostates" in Iran and have been persecuted there for years. "Since 1979, Iranian authorities have killed more than 200 Baha'i leaders, thousands have been arrested and imprisoned, and more than 10,000 have been dismissed from government and university jobs," the commission said.
The commission said that since President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came to power a few years ago, Baha'is "have been harassed, physically attacked, arrested, and imprisoned."
"During the past year, young Baha'i schoolchildren in primary and secondary schools increasingly have been attacked, vilified, pressured to convert to Islam, and in some cases, expelled on account of their religion."
The commission said other groups in the predominantly Shiite Muslim country of Iran, such Sufis and Christians, are subject to intimidation and harassment. Ahmadinejad's inflammatory statements about Israel have "created a climate of fear" among the country's Jews.
The Baha'is say they have 5 million members across the globe, and about 300,000 in Iran. The Baha'is say their faith "is the youngest of the world's independent religions" and that its basic theme is that "humanity is one single race and that the day has come for its unification in one global society."
They say their founder, Baha'u'llah (1817-1892), is regarded by Baha'is as "the most recent in the line of Messengers of God that stretches back beyond recorded time and that includes Abraham, Moses, Buddha, Krishna, Zoroaster, Christ and Muhammad."
Posted by: Fred ||
05/18/2008 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
If the Baha'i would fight back, they would probably win, because Iran has a shortage of thugs to force the governments will on its citizens. Every one of them that is killed handicaps them against harming others.
If nothing else, just killing a dozen would encourage them to leave the Baha'i alone and fuss with somebody else who wouldn't fight back.
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.
Thousands of earthquake survivors fled tent camps and villages across the ravaged landscape of southwestern China on Saturday after the government warned that several lakes and rivers were getting dangerously close to overflowing because landslides have blocked water flow.
(Xinhua) -- France is scheduled to close some of its military bases in Africa when it starts the implementation of the new 15-year defense and national security strategy, the French daily Le Figaro reported Saturday. 
Top fundraisers for Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama have begun private talks aimed at merging the two candidates' teams, not waiting for the Democratic nominating process to end before they start preparations for a hard-fought fall campaign.
Even with the work in top levels of the party to broker a detente between Obama and Clinton donors, both sides acknowledge there is much still to be done.
Senator Edward M. Kennedy, 76, leader of the nations most storied political dynasty, was hospitalized in Boston on Saturday after 
NEW DELHI: Veteran Marxist leader Harkishan Singh Surjeet, who was admitted to a hospital in Noida with an acute respiratory problem, has slipped into coma on Saturday. His condition remains critical.
Former Punjab chief minister Mian Manzoor Wattoo on Saturday was appointed as adviser to prime minister, with the status of a federal minister. Express News reported that Wattoo had been given the Industries and Production department. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani confirmed Wattoos appointment as adviser in a plane en route to Cairo from Islamabad and said Wattoo would be considered a PPP minister.
