LITTLETON -- The City Council fired longtime Municipal Judge James Kimmel on Tuesday night after he issued an arrest warrant for a teenager who had an overdue $30 DVD from a local library. "Come out witcher hands up! We got the place surrounded!"
Council members had offered Kimmel a chance to resign and receive a severance package. But when he refused, they said they had little choice but to let him go. "Muldoon, show Hizzoner the door!"
"I'm disappointed and saddened the situation has reached this stage," Councilman Bruce Stahlman said.
Kimmel, a municipal judge for almost 30 years, was not at Tuesday's meeting. He refused a request for comment from The Denver Post on Monday about his possible removal. Prob'ly working on his wrongful dismissal lawsuit.
Aaron Henson, 19, checked out the DVD, "House of Flying Daggers," from the Bemis Public Library last year. He failed to return it in proper time after it got mixed in with boxes as he moved from Littleton to Lakewood.
On Dec. 23, Kimmel ordered that Henson appear in court Jan. 14 regarding the DVD. The summons was returned as undeliverable because Henson had moved, and he was never properly served. When he failed to show, Kimmel issued a bench warrant for Henson's arrest.
On Jan. 25, Henson was pulled over in Jefferson County for speeding, and when the outstanding warrant came up, he was hauled off to jail, where he spent almost eight hours before his dad bailed him out.
Turns out, he returned the DVD to the library Jan. 7 -- a week before Kimmel issued the warrant. The library sent a letter to the judge that same day notifying him that it had been returned.
That point concerned council members, as did the fact that Kimmel issued the warrant without Henson having been officially served with a summons to appear in court. When city officials looked into prior cases, they found 71 similar incidents in which a warrant had been issued but had not been properly served.
Earlier Tuesday, Henson took blame for not returning the DVD and hoped his actions would not cost Kimmel his job.
"He's a great judge," Henson said. "I heard a lot of good things about him. I honestly don't want them to fire him over this."
In a joint statement read at Tuesday's meeting, the council said Kimmel's "lack of good judgment" in the Henson case and the other cases caused it to lose confidence in his ability to serve as municipal judge.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Kimmel's "lack of good judgment" in the Henson case
The dripping red wax seal on a bottle of Maker's Mark is not only distinctive, it's now exclusive legal property of the bourbon company.
A federal judge on Friday issued an injunction preventing a rival liquor company from using a dripping wax seal on its tequilas sold in the United States, ending a seven year legal battle over the bottle topper.
The ruling by U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn II comes in a long-running lawsuit between Maker's Mark and competitors Diageo North America and Casa Cuervo over the Fortune Brands trademark on the wax seal. Deerfield, Ill.-based Fortune Brands owns Maker's Mark.
“The Court considers the red dripping wax seal inherently distinctive, because it is a unique mark used in an unusual way to draw in the consumer,' Heyburn wrote.
Posted by: Mike ||
04/08/2010 14:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
A note to those who enjoy fine tequila. Because of the ethanol rush, huge amounts of blue agave were torn up and replanted with other crops. Add to that the Mexican government cracking down on the multinational tequila industry, because it pollutes enormous amounts of water, and soon there is going to be a severe tequila shortage.
First to suffer will be the junk brands, which can have as little as 51% agave and still be called tequila. But when they have dried up, the prices of high quality tequila, just a fraction of their production volume, will go through the roof.
So get your 100% agave blanco, anejo, and reposado while you can. Blue agave takes at least five years to grow, so it is going to be a long time before the prices drop.
[Iran Press TV Latest] Parts of the city of Tanomah in southwestern Saudi Arabia have been blanketed in thick snow while other parts of the oil-rich kingdom baked under the scorching sun. I blame Global Warming.
According to Saudi Gazette newspaper, a thick blanket of snow fell Tuesday on Tanomah located north of Abha in the Asir province.
Meanwhile, the suburban areas of Namas, Souda, Shaaf, Turaib, Oqbat Dalae, Khaibar Al-Janoub, Madda, Tihama Balasmar and Balahmar received heavy rainfalls accompanied by hailstorms.
Tanomah is known for its milder climate compared to the rest of Saudi Arabia.
Abha, situated 2,200 meters above sea level, is in a mountainous region close to the border with Yemen. Temperatures in Abha at this time of the year range between 12 degrees Celsius and 23 degrees, but have fallen as low as 4.5 degrees.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under:
Up until the 1940s or so many US weather stations recorded hail as snow. Even today, some stations report snowfall as having occurred in July and Aug in places where that didn't really happen.
Posted by: lord garth ||
04/08/2010 10:26 Comments ||
Top||
[Bangla Daily Star] The man who was severely beaten on Tuesday allegedly for stalking a girl in Mirpur upazila of the district succumbed to his injuries yesterday afternoon.
The deceased was Asadul Islam alias Asha, 30, son of Moslem Uddin of Atigram village of the upazila.
According to police, Asadul used to stalk a student of class-VII of the same village on her way to school. The girl informed her family of the matter.
On Tuesday, family members of the girl followed her and caught Asadul on the way around 9:30am. They beat Asadul causing serious injuries.
Asadul was rushed to Kushtia General Hospital.
Sources said the doctors there referred the victim to Dhaka Medical College Hospital but his family did not pay heed to it.
Asadul died yesterday at 2:30pm at Kushtia General Hospital.
Officer-in-Charge of Mirpur Police Station Ashfaqul Islam said victim's brother Mosharraf Hossain lodged a case in this connection.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
Tax Day is a dreaded deadline for millions, but for nearly half of U.S. households it's simply somebody else's problem. "The poor" are more noble in the abstract than they are up close.
About 47 percent will pay no federal income taxes at all for 2009. Either their incomes were too low, or they qualified for enough credits, deductions and exemptions to eliminate their liability. That's according to projections by the Tax Policy Center, a Washington research organization. That's really close to half the population. But if you suggest that only property owners should be allowed to vote the supporters of the Gracchi will tear you apart in the street.
Most people still are required to file returns by the April 15 deadline. The penalty for skipping it is limited to the amount of taxes owed, but it's still almost always better to file: That's the only way to get a refund of all the income taxes withheld by employers. And it's the only way to get your "earned" income credit, which is somebody who works sending the taxes he pays to somebody who doesn't.
In recent years, credits for low- and middle-income families have grown so much that a family of four making as much as $50,000 will owe no federal income tax for 2009, as long as there are two children younger than 17, according to a separate analysis by the consulting firm Deloitte Tax. The fact that an idea makes no sense doesn't matter, as long as it can be expressed in heart-tugging terms.
Tax cuts enacted in the past decade have been generous to wealthy taxpayers, too, making them a target for President Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress. Less noticed were tax cuts for low- and middle-income families, which were expanded when Obama signed the massive economic recovery package last year. The result is a tax system that exempts almost half the country from paying for programs that benefit everyone, including national defense, public safety, infrastructure and education. It is a system in which the top 10 percent of earners -- households making an average of $366,400 in 2006 -- paid about 73 percent of the income taxes collected by the federal government.
The bottom 40 percent, on average, make a profit from the federal income tax, meaning they get more money in tax credits than they would otherwise owe in taxes. For those people, the government sends them a payment.
"We have 50 percent of people who are getting something for nothing," said Curtis Dubay, senior tax policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
"We have 50 percent of people who are getting something for nothing," said Curtis Dubay, senior tax policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation.
This is precisely why 44 percent still agree with the Obama administration's policies. Obama's goal is to raise this number from 50 percent to 60 percent thus create a totally dependent, democratic voting majority. If it can work in Chicago it can work nationaly and with a runaway democractic congress, he's just the man to do it.
#3
Wanna guess who largely carries this mis-distribution of wealth and resource creation to pay for it all? Notice how the usual suspects never get around to calling wealth and resource creation an 'entitlement'.
#5
I stumbed over a pie-chart graphic from a 1985 newpaper showing the split of income and expenditure. Nearly half came from taxpayers and (almost the same)nearly half went to indiviuals.
We've been working up to this for a long time.
Posted by: Bobby ||
04/08/2010 12:25 Comments ||
Top||
#6
And the top 1% - the Gores, Soroses, Buffetts and other Obama symps - will more than make up for their tax hit with Obama's carbon credit trading scam.
#9
All right folks, back off and cool down a minute. What this doesn't say is that a lot of those people are like me - retired, living off Social security (and in my case, an Air Force retirement). I usually don't owe any income tax. My personal deductions, standard deduction, and additional deductions (my wife is over 65, and I'm totally disabled), usually cover what I bring in in taxable income. BTW, I don't qualify for "earned income credit" because I don't have any "earned" income. There are a large number of people in the same boat, and that number will grow as more and more baby boomers start to retire.
Yeah, there are a lot of people that don't pay any taxes. Some of them, like 50% of those living on welfare, tick ME off, too. So do all the so-called "fat cats" that use (and abuse) the tax laws to evade taxes. But not all of us are "getting something for nothing". A lot of us earned our current retirement the hard way, and are paying the price for it now. Don't paint with too broad a brush, or consider all of us that don't pay taxes as "cheats".
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
04/08/2010 17:56 Comments ||
Top||
#10
What OP said, and some of us work our butts off but a 1 income family don't make enough to qualify but don't want others' money.
Besides, the title is BS - anyone who draws a paycheck pays into SS and MC.
#11
@OldPatriot: So you think half the taxpayers are like you?
I'll bet that when you mark your ballot, you have your wallet in mind, like any good Democrat. I think Franklin said something like, "When the people find they can vote themselves money, that will be the end of the Republic." It's up to our legislators to resist such tendencies. Yeah, right.
@swksvolFF: SS and Medicare are not "Fed Income Tax".
The Internal Revenue Service has launched a new global program to target what it calls "high wealth individuals," IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman said Monday.
"Through our new global high wealth operating unit we are taking a unified look at the entire web of business and economic entities controlled by high wealth individuals so we can better assess the risk such arrangements pose to tax compliance," Shulman said at the National Press Club on Monday.
Shulman said the IRS is using "our robust and evolving enforcement program that ensures that everyone pays what they owe."
The IRS initiated its Global High Wealth Industry group in the fall. Schulman told an October 26 meeting of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants that it would be part of "the globalization of tax administration," which he called a "game changing trend" in tax enforcement.
"This brings me to another important development--a game-changing trend--the globalization of tax administration," said Shulman.
"While we are in the early stages of this work, this new unit will centralize and focus IRS compliance expertise involving high-wealth individuals and their related entities -- which can often have an international component," Shulman said. "Tax agencies around the world, including those in Japan, Germany, the UK, Canada and Australia, have also formed high wealth groups.
"Now, high wealth individuals are not your typical Form 1040 filers with a W-2, some 1099 income, and maybe a Schedule C enclosed with their return," Shulman said. "And you cannot assess compliance among the nation's wealthiest individuals by looking only at their 1040s. Their tax picture is much more complicated than this.
"For a variety of reasons -- including valid business reasons -- many high wealth individuals make use of sophisticated financial, business, and investment arrangements with complicated legal structures and tax consequences," Shulman said. "Many of these arrangements are entirely above board. Others mask aggressive tax strategies."
Shulman also mentioned the program at the George Washington University International Tax Conference in December.
"So what's our game plan here?" Shulman said. "At least initially, we will be looking at individuals with tens of millions of dollars of assets or income. Going forward, we will take a unified look at the entire web of business entities controlled by a high wealth individual, which will enable us to better assess the risk such arrangements pose to tax compliance and the integrity of our tax system.
"We want to better understand the entire economic picture of the enterprise controlled by the wealthy individual and to assess the tax compliance of that overall enterprise," he said. "We cannot do this by continuing to approach each tax return in the enterprise as a single and separate entity. We must understand and analyze the entire picture.
"Over the past few months, we have begun hiring some agents and specialists, such as flow-through specialists and international examiners, to conduct examinations of high wealth individuals and their related enterprises," Shulman said.
"In due course, we will grow the new unit by adding examination agents and individuals with specialized skills and expertise, such as economists to identify economic trends, appraisal experts to advise on valuation issues, and technical advisors to provide industry or specialized tax expertise," Shulman said. "We will also build new risk assessment techniques to identify high income and high wealth individuals and their related enterprises that should be reviewed holistically."
At the press club event, Shulman also touted the IRS amnesty program that has allowed U.S. citizens with untaxed assets abroad to come forward, pay back taxes and fines, but not face jail time. He said some 15,000 people have come forward to admit they have not paid taxes on accounts and other assets in other countries. This sounds ominous enough to warrant its own theme music.
#2
Going forward, we will take a unified look at the entire web of business entities controlled by a high wealth individual, which will enable us to better assess the risk such arrangements pose to tax compliance and the integrity of our tax system.
No thought given to the fact that "high wealth individuals" may have actually created these evil 'businesses' (which by the way) employ millions of tax paying yea, yea, yea, little people. "Integrity of our tax system" ....ohfirphuechsakeMartha! Willyouturnthatdamnthingoff!
#4
For credibility and to keep travel expenses low the IRS could start with the locals: Congress, Czars, and other GIvernment types who know all the rules and IRS flags.
Rangle, Timmy Geitner, the Kennedy Estate.... would be a great start but I am sure they will be up some Iowa farmers financial a$$ for investing in a Chinese bond fund thru his Edward Jones account.
#5
If they are actually going to go after high wealth tax evaders, then good. But why do I have a feeling that this is just a smoke screen for political warfare?
Tax evasion is a crime, whether it's $1,000 or $100,000,000.
Malda, April 7: Two of a three-member armed gang who had robbed a businessman outside a bank in Gajole were beaten up and thrown into the fire to be burnt alive till police rescued them and took them to hospital where they died.
The third member of the gang is fighting for life at Malda District Hospital, 35km from Gajole where an attempt was made to rob Pradip Karmakar a little after noon today.
The police alleged the gang was waiting outside the State Bank of India's Gajole branch. When Karmakar, a rice merchant who lives in Nayapara, withdrew Rs 8 lakh and came out of the bank on the Gajole-Balurghat state highway around 12.30pm, the trio hit him with the butt of a pistol, snatched the bag containing the cash and tried to escape in a motorcycle. Karmakar, with his head bleeding, screamed for help.
“The bank is located on the first floor of a two-storied building with the electricity office on the ground floor. Hearing his screams for help a number of people rushed out of the building and gave chase to the three who were on motorcycle,' said a police officer.
Soon people of the locality joined them and the motorcycle was stopped before it had covered a few metres. Nearly 1,000 people pounced on the three.
The bag with the cash was recovered and the mob started beating up the three. As the news spread, more people joined. A section of them also set fire to the motorcycle.
With the three almost unconscious by then, the residents tied them up and threw them into the burning motorcycle.
The mob also assaulted a local journalist who tried to stop them.
The police first arrived at 1pm, half an hour after the robbery. But seeing the mob, they called for reinforcements which arrived in 20 minutes. The cops baton charged the crowd and took the three to hospital, where 28-year-old Hafizul Sheikh and 30-year-old Pintu Sheikh, both residents of Jadupur in Kaliachak, died.
Miraj Sheikh, the third member of the gang from Jalapur, told the police in hospital that he had no inkling of the other two's intentions. “Hafizul and Pintu had told Miraj to meet them in front of the bank where he would be given money,' said a police officer.
The police officer also said according to Miraj, it was a six-member gang that was operating in front of the bank and that sensing trouble the other three had melted into the crowd.
Bhuban Mondal, the superintendent of police of Malda, said Karmakar is under treatment at Gajole hospital. “He was given five stitches on the head,' Mondal said.
According to the district police chief, a 9mm pistol loaded with cartridges was recovered from the spot.
The police have filed two cases, one of attempt to rob and the other of mass assault and attempt to murder.
Posted by: john frum ||
04/08/2010 16:04 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under:
Finland, Germany, and the United States have launched a joint research project in the design of surface battle vessels, reported Finnish daily newspaper Helsingin Sanomat Wednesday.
According to the report, this is the first time the Finnish Navy is working together with the US Navy on naval research in addition to exchange of information. The aim of the study is to develop a new generation of military vessels, which are capable of responding to traditional threats and terror attacks at open sea and near coasts. In addition, it should be applicable to crisis management operations.
The three countries will share equally the cost of about 6.6 million euros (about 8.8 million US dollars). In the project, the United States and Germany will supply the testing equipment, while Finland will provide the maritime testing range.
Germany and Finland began the studies and the tests last year. Two missile boats that have been taken out of commission are to be used in the experiments. In practice, the researchers will measure what kind of effect depth charges and other explosives will have on the vessel's hull.
For Finland, the project is part of a research project for the next-generation warship, which was launched last year. The goal is to design a cost-effective multipurpose fighting vessel for the 2020s. The research is aimed at ascertaining the optimum size, structure, and durability in battle of such a vessel.
According to the report, development of multipurpose fighting vessel has become a global trend. Finland will work on developing anti-mine and anti-submarine surface battle vessels for the 2020s.
#7
The Finns, unlike the Swedes, are hard core about security policy. Two wars with Russia will do that.
I think this is a good thing. They never joined NATO because it would have a provocation to the USSR, but Finnish engineering and tough-mindedness is first rate.
I think bilateral arrangements are the wave of the future. NATO is dead.
#9
I figure these will be a return to the light destroyers of yore, with a primary asub mission and a secondary anti-ship missile weaponry, against some of the newer high speed ones. Originally they were built to counter torpedo boats, then their mission changed to asub.
The big question is will they be small and cheap enough for a group of them to need their own destroyer tender?
Testing hulls against naval mines is standard practice.
[Straits Times] MILITARY helicopters airlifted government ministers from Thailand's parliament on Wednesday after angry protesters stormed the building in a dramatic escalation of their bid to topple the government.
Two Blackhawk helicopters landed under the guard of armed soldiers to rescue the deputy prime minister and other senior government figures after other lawmakers fled.
Red-shirted protesters, many of whom support fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, had forced their way into Thailand's parliamentary compound, smashing through the gates with a truck. 'Our mission is completed,' Mr Korkaew Pikulthong, one of the Red Shirt leaders, told the crowd after the politicians fled and the parliament session was cancelled.
When he learnt that the Reds were approaching, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva left a cabinet meeting there for a military barracks in the city's northern outskirts, where he has been based for most of the weeks-long protest.
The cabinet extended a tough security law on Wednesday as protesters refused to leave Bangkok's main commercial district, where they have been since Saturday.
Government spokesman Supachai Jaisamut said the authorities were ready to use emergency law if needed. 'If the situation deteriorates, it's necessary for the government to invoke emergency rule,' he said.
Mr Abhisit cancelled a planned trip to the United States for a nuclear security summit next week due to the unrest.
The Reds have been emboldened after the police and army backed down on Tuesday following a tense standoff in the capital's tourist heartland.
The authorities have threatened the protesters with a year in jail but so far no arrests have been made. Security forces have refrained from using force to disperse the tens of thousands of protesters, who have been roaming the capital, disrupting traffic and causing major shopping centres to shut.
The government said it would act if needed to end the protests, but reiterated that it wanted a peaceful resolution to the standoff.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under:
[Straits Times] THAILAND'S embattled premier declared a state of emergency in Bangkok on Wednesday after protesters stormed parliament in a dramatic escalation of their bid to topple the government. Another would-be dictator trying to edge back into power. Given his way, Thailand will become Burma...
Lawmakers fled and several senior government figures were airlifted by military helicopter after red-shirted supporters of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra forced their way into the country's parliamentary compound.
In an effort to contain the crisis, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva invoked emergency rule, which bans public gatherings of more than five people and gives broad powers to the police and military. 'The state of emergency aims to resolve the situation and bring a return to normal,' Abhisit told a nationally televised press conference.
He said the mass rallies were unconstitutional and had tarnished the country's image, eroding investor confidence.
It is the fourth time since 2008 that emergency law has been declared in the capital because of political turmoil. Mr Abhisit left a cabinet meeting at parliament when he learnt that the Reds were approaching, moving to a military barracks in the city's northern outskirts, where he has mostly been based since the protests began mid-March.
Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters have refused to leave Bangkok's main commercial district, where they have been since Saturday, disrupting traffic and causing major shopping centres to shut. The red-clad movement remained defiant, vowing to keep up their action.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/08/2010 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Another opera of the minority urban elites choosing to ignore the wishes of the non-urban majority of its citizenry. They're only running things for your own good you ungrateful scum. It's called "Democracy" [/sarc off]. Where have we seen this before.
"Mr. Obama, you are a newcomer (to politics). Wait until your sweat dries and get some experience. Be careful not to read just any paper put in front of you or repeat any statement recommended," Ahmadinejad said in the speech, aired live on state TV. You go get him, girl!
#2
LOL. Cowboy wore well on George W. Bush or Ronald Reagan but on BO, it is silly. No offense to the women here, but our President pitches baseballs like a girl. O.k. a wuz.
#5
Now it's really getting dangerous. They're openly mocking him, in a way that shows they no longer have any fear of the US. This is a direct consequence of his nuclear idiocy and his bashing of Israel in recent weeks.
Beginning at 9 a.m. Wednesday morning, and for the following 24 hours, the Jewish Funds for Justice plans to tweet the heck out of Glenn Beck.
The social justice group plans to unleash a "Twitterstorm" on the Fox News host to protest his recent remarks mocking the faith-based idea of "social justice." JFSJ has collected more than 1,500 haikus (Haik U Beck, they call it) mocking Beck. Haiku! This is serious!
The group plans to start tweeting the verses to Beck's personal Twitter account, one every minute, "to confront Glenn Beck about his bizarre and incongruous opinion that there is no place for social and economic justice in religion." "And if that don't get his attention, we've got common meter . . . Iambic pentameter . . . a whole arsenal of poetic devices loaded and ready to fire. Do yourself a favor, Mr. Beck. Yield now, before we have to go full nuclear and roll out the Sanskrit prosody!"
Posted by: Mike ||
04/08/2010 13:01 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Roses are red, violets are blue,
Glenn Beck is a wimp if he buckles under Haiku:)
#3
Beck made it perfectly clear he was not talking about Jesus inspired 'social justice' but rather state controlled and administrated 'social justice'
A big difference.
the Christian churches have become infiltrated with socialists nuns & priests that don't seem to understand the difference.
Posted by: Mike Hunt ||
04/08/2010 14:08 Comments ||
Top||
#4
Whatever happened to "Behead those who offend against Judaism"?
#5
it's not charity if it's mandated by the gubmint.
I've had so-called religious folks w/a socialist slant (on the greatness of giving taxes for the good of your fellow man) tell me how Jesus wants us to be charitable - my reply is that I don't think Jesus meant at the tip of a Roman Spear.
Posted by: ed ||
04/08/2010 17:08 Comments ||
Top||
#10
Be careful what you wish hope for, ed.
You might get a Code-Pink "quality" of idiots at that die-in. :-(
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
04/08/2010 19:05 Comments ||
Top||
#11
#7: If it doesn't wirk, and it won't, they'll use the nuclear option...mime videos on You Tube.
Posted by: tu3031
coming soon: Mime protests on radio and loudspeakers
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/08/2010 19:35 Comments ||
Top||
#12
Years ago, someone wrote an haiku bad horror movie epic. It involved negligee clad co-eds trapped in their dorm while being attacked by radioactive mutant land lampreys.
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.
[Iran Press TV Latest] Parts of the city of Tanomah in southwestern Saudi Arabia have been blanketed in thick snow while other parts of the oil-rich kingdom baked under the scorching sun. 
[Bangla Daily Star] The man who was severely beaten on Tuesday allegedly for stalking a girl in Mirpur upazila of the district succumbed to his injuries yesterday afternoon.
Tax Day is a dreaded deadline for millions, but for nearly half of U.S. households it's simply somebody else's problem.
[Straits Times] THAILAND'S embattled premier declared a state of emergency in Bangkok on Wednesday after protesters stormed parliament in a dramatic escalation of their bid to topple the government.
"Mr. Obama, you are a newcomer (to politics). Wait until your sweat dries and get some experience. Be careful not to read just any paper put in front of you or repeat any statement recommended," Ahmadinejad said in the speech, aired live on state TV.
