From the Dept. of I Hate It When That Happens:
Rune Gjeldnes found out that as he heads into the tough finish of his 4400 kilometer (2734 mile) trek over Antarctica that he has lost one of his skis. As he prepared for the last leg of his solo trek across Antarctica, Rune Gjeldnes discovered he had lost one of his mountain skis. After nearly 80 days in Antarctica, Gjeldnes made the discovery at an altitude of over 2000 meters (6562 feet). Gjeldnes, 34, is trying to become the first man to make the long trek over the South Pole region without being resupplied. On Tuesday Gjeldnes noticed that one of his mountain skis had fallen off the sled, and he decided against the possible two-day retreat trip to look for it. "This isn't possible, I thought. On the world's longest ski trip, you should at least know where your skis are," Gjeldnes said by phone.
He is now left with one ski and a pair of kite skis, the latter fairly useless on the final leg across a glacier and down to Terra Nova Bay. Gjeldnes, who has crossed the North Pole alone without resupplies, paddled the Rio Merevari in Venezuela, crossed Baffin Island in northern Canada and scaled Mt. Aconcagua in Argentina, faces other problems as well. A spell of nasty weather has forced him to hold position for several days, and good visibility is essential in order to make the hazardous trip down the glacier.
"If I don't manage to come down the glacier, there is an alternative, going back and across the mountains and down to Terra Nova Bay. It is not an ideal route, but one way or another I'll make it," Gjeldnes said. He has a month left to reach the bay. If he arrives late for the scheduled boat departure the Norwegian will have to spend the spring and summer on Antarctica. "But I am still ahead of schedule, so I have some room to spare," Gjeldnes said.
UN peacekeepers killed four Congolese rebel soldiers yesterday as they drove the fighters out of a town that had been overrun during the dissident's four-day offensive, which has forced 50,000 people from their homes, said UN officials. Troops loyal to Laurent Nkunda, a renegade former army commander who rejected a peace process designed to end the Democratic Republic of Congo's five-year war, began an offensive in the east of the country on Thursday and have briefly occupied a number of towns and villages in cat-and-mouse fighting with the army.
Yesterday, the fighters attacked 80 Indian UN peacekeepers who were heading to the town of Rwindi, near the border with Rwanda, after government troops were overrun there on Saturday. "Four insurgents were killed and three others were captured during the fighting today. They will be questioned so we will know more later," said Lieutenant Colonel Mayank Awasthi, a UN military spokesman for the North Kivu brigade. UN peacekeepers were left in control of Rwindi after the battle with about 40 fighters, who used mortars and automatic weapons. Col Awasthi said there were no injuries on the UN side.
#2
These beasts from the Indian Air Force will teach them some lessons
Posted by: john ||
01/23/2006 20:54 Comments ||
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#3
There are Nepalese, Indian, Pakistani and Bangldeshi UN troops fighting the rebels.
First time since the days of the Raj that troops from the entire Indian subcontinent have been in action
Posted by: john ||
01/23/2006 20:56 Comments ||
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#4
There are Nepalese, Indian, Pakistani and Bangldeshi UN troops fighting the rebels.
First time since the days of the Raj that troops from the entire Indian subcontinent have been in action
Ahead of the Saudi king's visit to India, a court in Saudi Arabia has pardoned an Indian national for partially blinding a Saudi national and spared him from having his eye gouged out as punishment. "The victim has pardoned Naushad. This has been authenticated by a Saudi court," Minister of State for External Affairs E Ahamed told reporters in New Delhi on Monday. The decision to pardon Naushad, currently held in a Saudi jail, was officially conveyed to Ahamed by Saudi Ambassador Saleh Mohammed Al-Ghamdi on Monday evening. "We are very grateful to the Saudi government for this generous act," Ahamed said. "This is just the right gesture that will boost goodwill between the two countries."
All my very good friends are very grateful to me when I don't gouge their eyes out, too. I think of it as a gesture of our deep and abiding friendship.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/23/2006 17:16 ||
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#1
Somehow I don't think when an Indian is blinded, a Saudi has his eyes gouged out.
Posted by: ed ||
01/23/2006 17:49 Comments ||
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#2
What's an eye going for these days in "honour money"?
I thought I felt the Earth wobble on its axis this morning...
YANBU, 23 January 2006 A 19-year-old daughter saved her father by driving more than 25 kilometers in the desert, the Al-Madinah daily reported. The father was camping in the desert when he began suffering from heart pain. He called home for help. His daughter took her father in the car and drove at high speed for emergency treatment, saving his life by breaking the law against women driving not to mention speeding.
Here we have another sterling example of the high regard for history and the origins of Islam evinced by its Wahhab overseers...
MADINAH, 23 January 2006 The cave where Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) took rest during the Battle of Uhud has become the subject of debate among scholars, some arguing for its destruction.
Madinah Governor Prince Abdul Aziz ibn Majed told Asharq Al-Awsat, the sister publication of Arab News, that he rejected the idea of destroying the site. A committee was formed recently to discuss the matter after years of complaints over visitors that come to the cave to worship.
Some scholars have suggested simply fencing off the two-meter-wide entrance to the cave located about a kilometer from the ridge where archers were positioned during battles between followers of Islam and pagans. During the Battle of Uhud, the Prophet, who was wounded in the skirmish, took rest in this cave. Pilgrims have been coming to this cave in increasing numbers, seeking blessings and taking photos.
Talal Al-Raddadi, a local resident, said that the question of what to do about the unsanctioned visits was raised more than six years ago. "They ask for blessings from that place and commit acts that are not related to Islam. Many people asked to destroy the site. I say to those that want to destroy it that destroying the site is not an option. We should raise awareness and tell visitors that this is not a true place of worship. We should place awareness boards. I wish that they would not create problems by destroying the mountain. I think destroying it will do more harm than leaving it alone," said Al-Raddadi.
"Turkish pilgrims do not miss visiting the site when visiting Madinah. It is the site where the Prophet lost one of his front teeth," said Muhammad Yelmaz from Turkey. He said that they come to visit the cave and ask for forgiveness. They kiss the rocks believing that the Prophet sat on them when he was inside the cave.
Anwar Bakri, professor at Tayba University in Madinah, warns against extremist movements that want to destroy all monuments in Madinah. He said that destroying the cave would only increase anger and not solve the problem and will damage the image of Islam. "Mistakes will happen whether intentionally or unintentionally," said Asem Hamdan, another professor. "Destroying the site is neither a logical nor a final solution. When Muslims entered other countries and found non-Islamic monuments, they did not destroy them. We can read history to prove that. I call on the tourism authority to step in and protect the site."
Al-Jarbu, a teacher at Madinah Islamic University, believes that destroying the site is the only solution. He said that there is no point in placing fences around the site because people will still go over the fence to the cave. "The only solution in my mind is to destroy it because there are some locals who are benefiting from it," Jarbu said. "Destroying it will solve the problem for good."
The governor of Madinah said that the cave would be fenced and not destroyed. He said that the main idea is to stop the non-Islamic behavior by protecting the site.
can you immagine going Sod-land and becoming a "Wahab scholar".
LOL... call dr. Kevorkian
have become passe
to destroy all their history as it will allow them a when they realize they too .
Posted by: Karl ||
01/23/2006 1:22 Comments ||
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#2
The Wahabbis are dead set to destroy every tangible bit of ancient Islam, and have destroyed much that is in Arabia already.
Whenever they move into an area and take over its mosque, the first thing they do is destroy all artwork, decoration and anything not plain. Then they whitewash the walls.
They reject it much like the Calvanists rejected the trappings of the Catholic Church. Except the Calvanists were never a large movement, nor took over and destroyed many Catholic churches.
#4
'Moose, I believe the very first thing the Salafists do is plow under all the gravestones in the cemeteries, and 'quarry' the rock to build new mosque buildings. *Then* they bring out the whitewash.
#5
Mohammed went to the mountain. So the mountain must be destroyed.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
01/23/2006 11:08 Comments ||
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#6
They destroy the ancient artifacts so other Muslims will not realize that the Wahabis are reinventing Islam much like Hitler reinvented German history.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
01/23/2006 17:18 Comments ||
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#7
For the record, Uhud was the only battlefield defeat suffered by Muhammed the fake prophet and real pedophile. After the setback, Muhammed concocted more fictitious after-life rewards for "martyrs." The tantalizing fictions drew the stupid into his gang of thieves, and he soon had the numbers to do real damage.
From the cult's unscrupulous founder to the clerical parasites who lead the army of imbeciles, Muslims have proven that you can trust them as far as you can spit against a hurricane. The West needs to occupy their pig-pens, and crush the jihad pork out of those animals.
#8
CZ, you're right up against the redaction / deletion line again. There are ways to make your point without deliberately being quite that hateful in your language.
#9
"When Muslims entered other countries and found non-Islamic monuments, they did not destroy them. We can read history to prove that."
Well, not exactly. Remember those giant Bhudda statues in Afghanistan? I don't know what history he's reading. In the cases they did not destroy them, it's because they were already in ruins. They just built on top of them. On top of cemeteries, on top of Jewish temples, on top of Hindu temples, on top of Christian churches... Not that Islam has a monopoly on this sort of behavior, but they've certainly done their share of damage.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announced Sunday that a smugglers' boat carrying some 120 Ethiopians and Somalis capsized off the coast of Yemen, leaving at least 22 people dead and 28 others missing, according to survivors, Yemeni authorities and the UN refugee agency. According to the refugee agency this is the second tragic incident in the Gulf of Aden in a week. The boat capsized about 15:00 hrs local time Saturday off the Yemeni coast between Bir Ali and Mayfa'a Hajar. According to survivors, the boat had sailed from the northeastern Somalia village of Shimbirale, near the town of Bossaso, carrying approximately 110 Ethiopians, 10 Somalis and five crew members. Bossaso is a major port of departure for smugglers crossing the Gulf of Aden. Yemeni authorities detained 43 Ethiopians -- who do not get automatic refuggee status -- from the vessel. But survivors said another 22 Ethiopians had managed to escape. Two of the boat's crew members were arrested by police, while three escaped.
While reports came in today of the arrival of yet another group of desperate boat people who said they had been forced overboard off the coast of Yemen. Initial reports indicated more casualties were likely.
Thousands of Somalis, Ethiopians and others arrive in Yemen every year after making the perilous voyage in smugglers' boats across the Gulf of Aden from Somalia.
It's like getting on a rickety boat from Haiti to .. Cuba.
On January 16, a boat carrying 65 people reached Yemen after drifting for six days in the gulf with little food or water. Survivors said 20 people died, 16 Somalis and four Ethiopians. Smugglers frequently beat their passengers or force them overboard while still far from shore. According to the refugee agency there are currently more than 80,000 registered refugees in Yemen, including 75,000 Somalis.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is hosting one of the world's largest anti-globalization, anti-war events starting Tuesday - and the timing couldn't be better. Leftist leaders are increasingly popular across Latin America, while Chavez's own "revolution" for the poor has become an inspiration for like-minded activists everywhere from Canada to Chile. Organizers predict as many as 100,000 people will attend the World Social Forum this week in Caracas, including campaigners against US-style free trade, environmentalists, Indian leaders and human rights activists. Their views span a wide spectrum, but most participants appear united by strong opposition to the US government and the war in Iraq. The forum will begin with an "anti-imperialist" march Tuesday through the streets of Caracas, with protesters likely to aim their chants against US President George W. Bush.
"Venezuela has become an epicenter of change on the world level," Chavez said Friday, mentioning the event in a speech. "That's why (US) imperialism wants to sweep us away, of course ... because they say we are a bad example, but they haven't swept us away and they won't."
The World Social Forum was first held in Brazil in 2001 and coincides each year with the market-friendly World Economic Forum of national leaders in Davos, Switzerland. Those at the social forum, in contrast, traditionally criticize free trade and the evils of capitalism - stances that closely mirror Chavez's socialist views.
"The US government, especially under the Bush administration, has been trying to force its own economic polices on developing countries, and I think all of us here agree that must stop," said Jeff Monahan, a 32-year-old organic farmer from Battle Creek, Michigan. "I'm sure there will be plenty of Bush-bashing when this gets underway," said Monahan, who arrived early and was helping put up canopies in a city park where thousands will camp out in tents.
Some 2,000 events - including seminars, speeches, concerts and craft fairs - will be held across Caracas during this week's forum.
Others expected to attend include Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano, Argentine Nobel Peace Prize winner Adolfo Perez Esquivel and American anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan, whose son was killed in Iraq in 2004 and who set up a protest camp near Bush's ranch in Texas last year. It remained unclear whether other leftist leaders from Latin America would come. Some activists said they hoped to see Presidents Evo Morales of Bolivia or Fidel Castro of Cuba. Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva initially was expected, but then said he would not come.
Posted by: Karl ||
01/23/2006 0:55 Comments ||
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#2
Redacted by moderator. Comments may be redacted for trolling, violation of standards of good manners, or plain stupidity. Please correct the condition that applies and try again. Contents may be viewed in the sinktrap. Further violations may result in banning.
#3
Don;t the Dems send someone to this whackofest? If so, Karl should play it up during the next year. Also does howling Howard have a speaking time at this forum?
#5
If the US "forces" economic policies on developing countries it's because it has, through the UN, been FINANCiNG those developing countries for years, only to see the dollars disappear down the corruption void.
If developing countries want economic independence then that comes with being self-sufficient. So cut off the aid, the donations and the interest-free loans. And the IMF and World Bank loans that then become the target of protests and are never repaid anyway.
If they hate the US and free trade, simple: cut them off!
hasta la vista baybee enjoy your begging. Come back when you *want* to change into a prosperous society.
#6
Great, a bunch of hippies bitching about Bush.
At least they are doing it in Caracas instead of san diego. As usual they will all stand around and pontificate about how wrong our policies are. And at the end of their pedantic diatribe, not a single suggestion will have been given as to how to correct these horrible imperialistic doctrines. Have fun boys! Don't drink the water.
#7
I never understood how these people could without fail find their way back to the capitalistic, exploitive, blood sucking AMerikkka. You would think that a least a few would find Shangri-La in Venezuela, Cuba, and Zimbabwe.
Posted by: ed ||
01/23/2006 10:59 Comments ||
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#8
Chavez hosts World Social Forum as leftist movements unite against Bush
#9
I think Ed is onto something here. Instead of poo-pooing this socialists wankfest, why not promote it? Tell all the Mexicans and Central/South Americans that it seems that Venezuela has it right and we have it wrong. Also we want to help all the illegals here move to that socialist parasite paradise.
If you're taking a list of who hates the USA, you can't do better than this conference. By "[forcing US] economic polices on developing countries" I imagine that guy is referring to our discouraging drug traffiking.
#14
Fall editions of the prestigious publications, Foreign Affairs and National Affairs, both focused on the legitimation of terrorism, through US facilitation of the cynically, strategic participation of Islamofascist groups in sham elections.
Ask Fred to affirm or deny this: Islamic doctrine prohibits real democracy and facilitates Shura-dictatorship, because popular sovereignty is said to usurp the sovereignty of the Arab tribal deity "allah." Unless the US subsidized creation of a Hizbollah Corridor from Teheran to Tel Aviv in the name of some Orwellian peversity of "freedom" is halted, the reach of the genocidal Islamofascist juggernaut will be further extended. The enemy must have partied when Bush aligned with hitherto boycotted Pakistan, and the inherently aggressive Saud terrorist entity? The Leftists took cause to join in the bloodletting of the power-retracted' "wounded American animal," as Rafsanjani described Bush's turkey-shoot proffer of America's finest troops.
I don't want Islamofascists to vote; I want them to die by the tens of millions. Democraticization worked with Communist Atheists, Hindus, Buddhists, African tribal faiths, but cannot work with mortal enemy Muslims. Let the slaughter begin with the Khomenazis:
http://static.flickr.com/36/89610889_1f49967fe2.jpg
France is refusing to pay a 100 million pound (EUR 145 million) bill which the British government is demanding in return for access to design work for its future aircaft-carrier programme, according to a report in the international journal Defense News to appear Monday.
The two countries are supposed to be cooperating on the development of three new aircraft-carriers two for Britain and one for France but Paris has balked at the price it is being asked to pay in order to see the British designs, the report said.
"Non, non! Certainement pas!"
The issue is expected to dominate a meeting Tuesday between defence ministers Michele Alliot-Marie and John Reid, where the French are expected to say they will agree to only half the sum, Defence News reported. According to the journal, Britain expects to spend about 450 million pounds on design and development before reaching a decision, probably early next year, on production of the two 65,000-metric-ton carriers.
French industry needs access to the British design data and the new studies to assess potential savings in a cooperative program, and the costs to adapt the British architecture to French navy needs.
Oui, certainment, we only wish to assess savings .....
President Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister Tony Blair are both politically committed to the cooperation programme and in the past have overridden difficulties arising from the two countries' rival naval traditions and industrial interests.
#1
Argh!
I fat fingered this!
It's a month old but we all missed it.
The French Department of Culture (SNEP and SCPP) has told Free Software authors: "You will be required to change your licenses." SACEM add: "You shall stop publishing free software," and warn they are ready "to sue free software authors who will keep on publishing source code"
It appears that publishing Free Software giving access to culture is about to become a counterfeiting criminal offence.
In which the Pope fondly remembers the Church Muscular:
VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI thanked the Swiss Guards on Sunday for their 500 years of service protecting the popes, as the Vatican opened its official commemorations of the anniversary of the first mercenaries' arrival from Switzerland.
An honor corps of Swiss Guards, in their full blue- and-yellow bloomered dress uniforms and red-plumed helmets, stood at attention in St. Peter's Square as Benedict addressed them from his studio window. He recalled how Pope Julius II had summoned the mercenaries to protect him and the Vatican. They arrived Jan. 22, 1506.
"Thank you for your service of 500 years!" Benedict told the guards in a special blessing, to applause from tourists and the faithful also gathered for his traditional Sunday greeting. Earlier in the day, Benedict's No. 2, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, celebrated an intimate Mass in the Sistine Chapel for members of the current corps and their families â the official start of the Vatican's commemorations for the half-millennium the Swiss have been protecting popes.
The Swiss Guards, known for their traditional halberds, have since protected 42 popes. Some are armed with guns. Over the next six months, Vatican and Swiss authorities will host ceremonies, concerts, exhibits and commemorations that will culminate with a symbolic re-enactment of the march from Switzerland to Rome of the first 150 Swiss mercenaries.
#3
These are all young men of above average size, who have completed their Swiss Army service. They also have received training from various "friendly" services, to include the US Secret Service and one of the Brit's MI numbers. It would not surprise me to learn that members had been through Bragg or Quantico or the Brit equivalent.
OTTAWA - Canada’s opposition Conservatives are still leading the ruling Liberals ahead of Monday’s federal election but the gap is shrinking, according to a new poll released late on Sunday. The SES Research daily tracking poll for the CPAC television network showed the Conservatives at 36 percent, down one point from the previous day. The Liberals were at 30 percent, up two points.
The poll suggest the Conservatives will win the election, ending 12 years of Liberal rule, but will not gain a majority of the 308 seats in Parliament. The left-leaning New Democrats, who backed the Liberal government for much of 2005, were down a point at 17 percent.
The poll of 1,200 people was carried out between Jan. 19-21 and is considered to be accurate to within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
As I said yesterday, if the Tories aren't ahead by 10 points Election morning, they're going to lose. Grits will make sure of that.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/23/2006 00:26 ||
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This is allegedly a straight news story but there's so much spin I nearly had to move it to the Opinion page...
Canadians voting Monday for a new leader and House of Commons will choose between 13 years of Liberal Party rule or a new government that could shift the country toward a conservative right seeking to cut social programs funded by high taxes.
Run for your lives! But not south! You might end up in George Bush's gulag!
It's a tough call for the nation's 22.7 million registered voters. Many support the social and economic policies of the Liberals and worry that Conservative leader Stephen Harper may be too extreme in his views on abortion and gay marriage, but Canadians also have grown weary of the broken promises and corruption scandals that have plagued the ruling party.
"Change is an issue for a lot of people," said Nelson Wiseman, a political scientist at the University of Toronto. "This is the Liberals seeking their fifth consecutive term, so a lot of people believe that it's healthy to have a periodic alteration of parties, like the Americans, so that dynamic is out there."
Paul Martin, 67, has trumpeted the eight consecutive budget surpluses under Liberal Party rule and sought to paint Harper as a right-winger posing as a moderate to woo mainstream voters. He claims Harper supported the U.S.-led war in Iraq, which was opposed by many but not all Canadians, and would try to outlaw abortions and overturn Canada's marriage rights for gays and lesbians â all of which Harper denies. "People will have to choose between the ultraconservative, extreme right-wing agenda of Stephen Harper and the progressive, ambitious plan we're offering Canadians," Martin told a campaign rally Saturday.Martin accused the Tories of muzzling their candidates in recent weeks to avoid alienating voters with contentious remarks about gay marriage and abortion, as they had during the last election.
"Just a heartbeat away from Jesusland..."
The Liberal campaign appears to have worked with Joanna Lundy, a mental health worker in Vancouver, British Columbia. She will reluctantly vote Liberal in an effort to block Harper from becoming prime minister. "He's not open to diversity," she said. "I think he'll put us in the dark ages on women's issues, abortion issues, gay issues."
Harper, the youngest candidate at 46, has toned down the rightist rhetoric that cost him the last election in June 2004 and has painted the Liberals as a party that takes taxpayers for granted and is top-heavy on scandal. He has pledged to establish a federal accountability commission to review government spending, to contribute $1,041 to Canadians with young children for day care and to cut the widely unpopular national sales tax from 7 percent to 5 percent within five years. "If you want your taxes to go down, you have to vote for it. If you want a government that actually does something about crime, you have to vote for it. If you want to fix health care, you have to vote for it. If you want choice in child care, you have to vote for it. And the only way to get that is to vote for a new Conservative government," Harper said Sunday at a campaign rally.
Martin's government and the 308-member House of Commons were dissolved in November after New Democrats defected from the governing coalition to support the Conservatives in a no-confidence vote.
Thanks, Captain Ed!
The opposition said the Liberals no longer had the moral authority to govern, pointing to a party debacle in which several members were accused of misspending millions of dollars from a national unity fund, prompting a federal inquiry and several indictments. Even after losing the vote and being forced to dissolve Parliament, Martin remained ahead in the polls and relatively popular with Canadians, who applauded his moves to legalize gay marriage nationwide, push through a national child-care program and stand up to Washington on security and trade issues.
But the Liberals' numbers began slipping after a teenage girl was killed by a stray bullet in downtown Toronto while shopping on Boxing Day, the day after Christmas. Harper quickly responded with a platform that was tough on crime and promised stricter measures to keep illegal guns from being smuggled across the U.S. border. The Liberals' popularity slipped even more in early January when it was revealed that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were investigating a possible leak by Liberal government officials that appeared to have influenced the stock market. Though no one has been implicated of wrongdoing, Conservatives seized on the report to add to their campaign momentum. At one point last week, the Conservatives led in one poll by double digits, although their edge had dropped to 7-8 percentage points by Friday.
Postal worker Tim Armstrong is among the many Canadians tired of the scandals plaguing the Liberal government. "I think they lack credibility and integrity," he said. "Every time you turn around, there's another scandal. It just goes on and on and on."
#3
Dunno about the stats - seems a little top heavy of the Conservative outcome. TO land seems to have been sliding back Liberal in the last 3-4 days.
We'll see tonight. Can only hope.
And seafrious, there is no American translation. Nothing as stupid as re-electing criminals who overtax, dump that into their freinds pockets, and call it "balanced buget" defies translation.
I can give it to ya in Quebecois - "Foutes-moi, il y a de la change dans l'air, Marcel? Tu sens ca?"
Bolton at the UN, Wolfowitz at the World Bank ....
Paul Wolfowitz, president of the World Bank, has triggered a bitter conflict with the bankâs senior career staff by empowering a group of close political advisers to pursue aggressively what he sees as widespread corruption surrounding bank projects.
The dispute has come to a head with the appointment last week of Suzanne Rich Folsom, a counsellor to Mr Wolfowitz with close ties to the Republican party, as the new director of the Department of Institutional Integrity, the internal bank watchdog that investigates suspected fraud and staff misconduct.
Her appointment has raised objections that a person close to Mr Wolfowitz, and with a political background, has been put into a senior position at a unit that was seen as independent of the presidentâs office since it was set up in 2001.
Robert Hindle, previously the senior manager of the unit and a long-time World Bank employee, resigned in November largely as a result of what four current and former bank sources said was concern at the targeting of employees who had worked on projects that developed corruption problems, and pressure on two occasions from Ms Rich Folsom to bypass internal rules on investigating the e-mail records of a number of employees.
Ms Rich Folsom, who was brought into the bank by James Wolfensohn, Mr Wolfowitzâs predecessor, denies strongly any breach of internal rules. She insisted that in every case she followed proper procedures that require the bankâs general counsel and another senior manager to approve any investigation of staff e-mails. âI have never asked Robert Hindle to circumvent any procedures,â she told the Financial Times.
Mr Wolfowitz said those alleging violations of e-mail procedure âare trying to get me not to be tough on these issues. I just would like to say I donât intend to be intimidated. We are in a transition, but I think itâs extremely important that we be moving from talking about corruption to dealing with corruption,â he said in an interview.
The World Bank Staff Association has raised concerns over the process that led to Ms Rich Folsomâs appointment and has heard complaints about e-mail checks from a number of parties. Alison Cave, chair of the association, said: âTo clear up any questions, it would be a good idea to have an independent investigation or audit of the department.â
A number of senior bank staff and executive directors representing member countries, who asked not to be quoted, complain of a lack of consultation by Mr Wolfowitzâs advisers, and an atmosphere of suspicion.
Roberto Dañino, the bankâs general counsel and a former prime minister of Peru, this month also announced his resignation because, friends said, he was unhappy at the way the bank was being run by Mr Wolfowitz. Mr Hindle and Mr Dañino both declined comment.
Mr Wolfowitzâs appointment last year was greeted with apprehension by some long-time staff. Many Republicans believe the bank is plagued by corruption. Ms Rich Folsom was hired by Mr Wolfensohn with the task of improving the bankâs relations with Congressional Republicans.
#3
had the duty to work with Wolf on a few trips. He is arrogant, self-righteous, and generally an ass. That said he is the perfect guy to fix the inbred corruption at the work bank.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
01/23/2006 12:00 Comments ||
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#4
There is no sight quite like an honest cop raiding a whorehouse. The bitter protestations from the whores and the madam that they have already paid their bribes, and are thus being unfairly persecuted is just music to the ears.
A little noticed UN press release January 19th announced a decision by the Al Qaeda and Taliban Sanctions Committee to remove Mohamed Mansour and his wife Zeinab Mansour-Fattouh from its consolidated list of designated al Qaeda members and associates. Mohamed and Zeinab Mansour had originally been designated by the US Treasury Department in November 2001, along with Youssef Nada and Ahmed Idris Nasreddin as key members of the al Taqwa banking network. Their UN designation followed shortly thereafter. According to the Treasury Department, âThe al Taqwa group⊠long acted as financial advisers to al Qaida, with offices in Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Italy and the CaribbeanâŠ.{and} provide(d) investment advice and cash transfer mechanisms for al Qaida and other radical Islamic groups.â (Full US Treasury Designation Fact Sheet here)
Mohamed and Zeinab were key shareholders and memberâs of Al Taqwaâs board of directors, along with Youssef Nada, Ahmed Idris Nasreddin, Albert Friedrich Armand Huber, and Ali Ghaleb Himmat. There removal from UN designation now comes with no explanation from the UN or the US Treasury Department. There is no indication that the couple have yet been removed from the Treasury (OFAC) designated list. The effect of their removal from the UN list means that their assets can be unfrozen by any jurisdiction and apparently that has already been done in the United Kingdom, Liechtenstein and Switzerland, where they are believed to have held accounts. The other al Taqwa board directors, Nada, Nasreddin, Huber and Himmat remain on the UN Consolidated List.
According to UN Guidelines the government of residence or citizenship and/or the government that originally requested the designation can apply to the UN Al Qaeda and Taliban Committee to have the designation removed. Committee consensus is required to grant removal. If consensus cannot be reached the matter may still be referred to the Security Council for resolution. Apparently, the United States concurred in lifting the UN designation on Mohamed and Zeinab Mansour. One must wonder whether and when they might take similar action to remove from the US OFAC list.
While the al Taqwa banking network was shut down shortly after 9/11, the US and its international partners have been singularly unsuccessful in putting those who ran al Taqwa out of business (see my series of earlier blogs on this topic. Action was taken to freeze some bank accounts associated with Youssef Nada, Ahmed Nasreddin, and the other al Taqwa board members. But, many of their business assets remain unfrozen. Nada, Nasreddin and the other al Taqwa board members also escaped any criminal prosecution for their involvement in financing al Qaeda and related groups. In fact the Government of Switzerlandâs Prosecutors office was ordered to re-imburse Youssef Nada for some of the expenses he entailed due to their criminal investigation against him. The failure to effectively sanction al Taqwaâs management can only send the wrong message when it comes to dissuading other terrorist financiers.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
01/23/2006 03:47 ||
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Shouldn't these people stand trial, or is there no evidence against them ? It looks like UN politics as usual. Pay as you go.
Scientists have for many years debated the cause of the Plague of Athens. Analysis carried out by Manolis Papagrigorakis and colleagues using DNA collected from teeth from an ancient Greek burial pit points to typhoid fever as the disease responsible for this devastating epidemic. The study appears on the online version of The International Journal of Infectious Diseases (IJID) published by Elsevier on behalf of the International Society for Infectious Diseases.
The plague that began in Ethiopia and passed through Egypt and Libya to Greece in 430-426 B.C. changed the balance of power between Athens and Sparta, ending the Golden Age of Pericles and Athenian dominance in the ancient world. It is thought that up to one third of the Athenians, including their charismatic leader, Pericles, perished in the epidemic.
Until now our understanding of this outbreak was based on the account by the fifth century B.C. Greek historian Thucydides, who himself was taken ill with the plague but recovered. Despite Thucydides detailed description, researchers have not managed to agree on the identity of the plague and several diseases, including bubonic plague, smallpox, anthrax and measles have been implicated in the emergence and spread of this epidemic.
A mass burial pit unearthed in the Kerameikos ancient cemetery of Athens and dated back to the time of the historical outbreak, provided the required skeletal material for the investigation of ancient microbial DNA. Aided by modern DNA recovery and amplification techniques, Papagigorakis et al used dental pulp to identify DNA sequences similar to those of the modern day Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi, the organism that causes typhoid fever. The results of this study point to typhoid fever as the probable cause of the Plague of Athens.
Typhoid fever is transmitted by contaminated food or water, and nowadays the disease is most common in developing countries and in travellers returning from these countries.
Corresponding author Dr Manolis J Papagrigorakis of the University of Athens says: "Studying the historical aspects of infectious diseases can be a powerful tool for several disciplines to learn from. We believe this report to be of outstanding importance for many scientific fields, since it sheds light to one of the most debated enigmas in medical history." Plagues can bring down empires. An important lesson even today.
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.
UN peacekeepers killed four Congolese rebel soldiers yesterday as they drove the fighters out of a town that had been overrun during the dissident's four-day offensive, which has forced 50,000 people from their homes, said UN officials. Troops loyal to Laurent Nkunda, a renegade former army commander who rejected a peace process designed to end the Democratic Republic of Congo's five-year war, began an offensive in the east of the country on Thursday and have briefly occupied a number of towns and villages in cat-and-mouse fighting with the army. 
MADINAH, 23 January 2006 The cave where Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) took rest during the Battle of Uhud has become the subject of debate among scholars, some arguing for its destruction.
OTTAWA - Canada’s opposition Conservatives are still leading the ruling Liberals ahead of Monday’s federal election but the gap is shrinking, according to a new poll released late on Sunday. The SES Research daily tracking poll for the CPAC television network showed the Conservatives at 36 percent, down one point from the previous day. The Liberals were at 30 percent, up two points.
Paul Martin, 67, has trumpeted the eight consecutive budget surpluses under Liberal Party rule and sought to paint Harper as a right-winger posing as a moderate to woo mainstream voters. He claims Harper supported the U.S.-led war in Iraq, which was opposed by many 
