7UP soft drink this week started "first free ticket to space" a contest to give away the first free space ride and have setup a website where you can enter 15-character codes that are printed on a variety of 7UP, Sunkist, A&W Root Beer and Canada Dry bottle caps and 12-packs to win.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A mother faces criminal charges after she hired a stripper to dance at her 16-year-old son's birthday party. Anette Pharris, 34, has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and involving a minor in obscene acts. The boy's father, the stripper and two others also face charges.
It's a family affair!
"I tried to do something special for my son," Pharris said. "It didn't harm him."
Next time just send him to Terpsboy, okay Mom?
About 10 people under the age of 18 were at the birthday party in September, including minors who were not related to the family, authorities said. Police spokesman Don Aaron said minors are not permitted in adult establishments. "A person shouldn't be allowed to circumvent that law by hiring a stripper, a lady who took all her clothes off and spent a good amount of time dancing around minors," he said.
"Dewd! Your Mom throws the best parties!"
"Yeah, I just wish she'd keep her clothes on."
"What's that dance she's doing on Billy's lap?"
Anette Pharris took photos at the party and tried to have them developed at a nearby drug store. Drug store employees notified authorities, police said.
Next time, dimwit, use a flippin' digital camera.
"Who are they to tell me what I can and can't show to my own children?" the mother said.
"And their guests, and our neighbors ..."
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/30/2005 01:19 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Where do they grow these idiots? I could/would NEVER imagine getting a stripper for a 16-year-old. I mean the bar would be set so high what would you do for the 17th birthday, hire a hooker? Dumb move getting a disposable camera, cripes digitals are almost as cheap.
#2
Sarge,thanks for starting Memorial Monday off just right!!!! :)
Posted by: R ||
05/30/2005 11:49 Comments ||
Top||
#3
They could have spared themselves the embarrassment by using a digital camera and picking up a $50 inkjet photo printer. I don't print my own photos because it's cheaper (and less of a hassle) to get them done at the drugstore or via mail order. But having something like this developed at the drugstore? How dumb can you get?
2b - If you had been offered a Chippendales dancer for your 16th, you're saying you would've declined? Lol, uh huh.
It's clear that this couple considers their 16 yr old a man. Good intentions + Zero thought = Class A Misdemeanor.
4 observations:
1) Arbitrary Age Laws are sometimes pretty silly. Magik does not happen at 18 or 21 or any other age. I left home within a month of my 16th birthday, attended HS, worked nights, and shared an apt with my 18yr old girlfriend - whose name was on the lease. We crossed state lines every time we went up to the north end of Bear Lake. Mann Act and about 6 or 7 other statutes broken every day, every trip. With ME the "victim", lol!Bullshit replaces common sense with such arbitrary laws. A little perspective can do wonders for making the system rational.
2) Were they a "prominent" family, or a wealthy family, or a politically connected / powerful family, this would've never seen the light of day. It would've been "worked out" quietly, privately. Since they are obviously not among the "social notables", they will be prosecuted. That the DA is pursuing this indicates to me th DA's just a prick. This is where the perspective and common sense should come in. They didn't. Prick.
3) Check the laws - only 2 of 8 states bordering Tennessee share it's 18 yrs old age of consent - 1 uses 17 and the other 4 use 16. Mapquest sez that 53 miles north of Nashville, in Russelville KY this would've been legal. No harm, no foul. Are the parents stupid? Yes. Are the patchwork laws insane? Yes.
4) When thinking about commenting, I Googled "tennessee" + "contributing to the delinquency of a minor", the FIRST site that comes up provided the ages I mentioned above. It isn't a state site. It isn't a site geared to the legal profession. It is a Gay information site - and its purpose is to make sure Gay adults know the law. Check out the open directory docs. I have to ask: who presents the real risk to these young men? Little Egypt shaking her titties? Or Gay adult predators? Yeah, that's a tangent I didn't expect to follow in my comments. And I didn't expect the first, of many, of the the links generated to be gay sites seeking not the protection of children, but the legal ass-coverage of predatory adults.
Had the parents not been Luddites, digital photos vs film, they might still have been bagged by someone bragging.
If they lived here, they could've dropped him off at The Pussy Ranch on Friday, picked him up on Monday, a changed man.
#6
Another state that thinks it has a good handle on legislating brains and morality. It won't work. These people are OK by me. The sure as heck don't belong in jail.
A team of scientists, led by researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, has discovered an active underwater volcano near the Samoan Island chain. During a research cruise to study the Samoan hot spot, scientists uncovered a submarine volcano growing in the summit crater of another larger underwater volcano, Vailulu'u. Researchers explored the unique biological community surrounding the eruption site, and were amazed to find an "Eel City," a community of hundreds of slithering eels.
This new volcano, dubbed Nafanua after the ferocious Samoan goddess of war, did not exist just fours years ago, according to co-chief scientists Hubert Staudigel, a geologist at Scripps's Cecil H. and Ida M. Green Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, and Stan Hart, a geochemist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. With a growth rate of at least eight inches per day, the volcanic cone has rapidly emerged since the scientists' last expedition to this area in May 2001. Nafanua now stands at 300 meters, or nearly 1,000 feet. "To actually have a documented case of an underwater volcano that has emerged within an accurate period of time is very rare-this is one of those cases," said Staudigel.
Scientists were tipped off to the volcano's existence when they profiled the seafloor of the Vailulu'u crater using multibeam mapping. Existing maps of the seafloor in the area gave little indication that this volcano existed. When sound beams were directed into the crater this time, they measured an unusually shallow depth. These interesting results prompted further investigation of the area using the manned submersible Pisces V-a seven-foot sphere that has the capability to dive to depths of more than 6,000 feet, operated by NOAA's Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory.
The water surrounding the volcanic cone is extremely turbid due to hydrothermal activity and the vigorous vents that produce this volcanic "fog" are obscured, according to Staudigel. Although visibility from the submersible was less than 10 feet, the researchers were able to observe the unique biological community surrounding the newly formed volcanic cone. Much of Nafanua is covered with yellow "fluff," microbial aggregations that are produced by microscopic life feeding on chemical energy from the volcano's hydrothermal system. As Staudigel and his international team explored the area, they discovered a number of large communities of eels inhabiting the fragile cavernous rock pillars surrounding the hydrothermal vent area. As the submarine landed near this area, scores of eels, each approximately one foot in length, emerged from the rock caves and crevices. The scientists named this novel marine hydrothermal community "Eel City." "At this point we do not know why we found such extensive eel communities surrounding this volcano-it's a mystery that we hope to learn more about on future cruises," said Staudigel.
Within decades, continued growth of Nafanua could bring the summit of this volcano from its current depth of 600 meters to a depth of approximately 200 meters-close enough to the sea surface that it could provide a potential hazard to ocean navigation and coastal communities. Such hazards may include the explosive reaction between red-hot lava and seawater, or tsunamis that may be caused by the collapse of the newly built volcano. "It is a good idea for us to keep our eyes on this area, but there is no real reason for concern about immediate danger," said Staudigel.
Three students from High Tech High in San Diego were aboard one of the two expeditions to Nafanua and assisted researchers in collecting and analyzing data. These students also created and maintained an in-depth web site related to the cruise where they posted reports, maps, photos and videos from submersible dives. Also, the students and scientists aboard the ship participated in the first ever student-to-student videoconference between a high school and a research vessel with the help of HiSeasNet, a satellite communications system that provides continuous Internet connectivity for oceanographic research vessels at sea.
#1
There are a lot of underwater volcanos - 30,000 by some estimates. Explosive eruptions by underwater and partially submerged volcanos are the other cause of tsunamis. A partially submerged volcano has just started erupting in the Andamans just north of the Boxing Day quake. I don't believe there has been an explosive eruption in a fully under water volcano in modern times. And yes I know that most oceanic volcanos are due to mid-ocean ridges and are not explosive, but many are submerged stratovolcanos.
Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez, who's never missed the opportunity to be star of the show in his entire life, raised eyebrows in Caracas for not showing up at a rally he called yesterday. The sclerotic Vice President Jose "Vissarionovich" Rangel (as he is known) turned up instead and told Chavez supporters to quit complaining and recognize that they can't "have" Chavez all the time. Rangel offered no explanation for Chavez's absence.
Compounding the mysterious absence, Chavez didn't make his Sunday 'Alo Presidente' television and radio show, either. Venezuelan officials, in the best Kim Il Sung tradition, announced that Chavez had decided he wanted Venezuelans to watch a volleyball match instead
Extremely strange.
Caracas is awash in rumors about the dictator's whereabouts. Some note that Chavez was extremely upset that the busloads of supporters his party had shipped in to Caracas Saturday took off for the shopping malls instead of attend the planned rally. And so Chavez had a heart attack or something like it the following morning. Maybe problems from a cocaine binge, I wonder?
Others say Chavez, ever the paranoid dictator, is reviewing military officer lists for promotions, because from his point of view, it's important to promote the right officers, given that he trusts none of them. It could be anything. The Venezuelan press is all over this, but officials are stonewalling.
Chavez's spokesman, Andres Izarra insists nothing is going on and Chavez 'esta bien,' merely preoccupied with the welfare of the Venezuelan people. Leonid Brezhnev's spokesman could not have said it better.
One thing is certain: something's going on with the tropical dictator and whatever it is, he doesn't want to say.
A.M. Mora y Leon 05 30 05
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
05/30/2005 19:56 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Sorry, meant for pg 2.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
05/30/2005 19:58 Comments ||
Top||
#2
A change would likely be for the better.
A bad reaction to an overindulgence of something sounds like hugo.
Castro would be upset.
#3
hopefully too many lead paint chips as a child catching up to him
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/30/2005 20:54 Comments ||
Top||
#4
Just a slug of lead catching up to him would suffice.
Posted by: Tom ||
05/30/2005 21:04 Comments ||
Top||
#5
Lol, Frank!
It's not possible to stop myself from hoping this throwback to Stupidity's Gold Age has some sort of mental or physical meltdown. Dead would be good, if the Military (likely to take over in the "interim" - which lasts decades in some places) aren't equally as power-mad and politically insane. I defer to TMH regards who or what would fill the vacuum.
He's prolly just too fucked-up to appear and - now believing his shit doesn't stink - he figures WTF - I'll do whatever the hell I want.
If we had an effective CIA doing the dirty work called for in dealing with the enemies of America, we'd take advantage of this.
#6
Unfortunately, it looks like someone found Waldo Hugo... gosh darn it, the next time I tell you the dictator you're looking for isn't under the seat cushions or behind the couch, please take it on faith?
Hmm. Let's see...
(waves hand)
This isn't the megalomaniacical dictator you're looking for.
Russia will build the world's first floating nuclear power plant, Russia's Atomic Energy Agency (RosAtom) has announced. A low-power plant with an electrical capacity of 70 MWt and heat capacity of 140 Gigacalories may be constructed in the Russian northwestern town of Severodvinsk within five years, a spokesman for RosAtom told Itar-Tass on Thursday. The project's estimated cost is $180 million, and $30 million has already been spent on the planning stage.
Calculations made by RosAtom experts suggest the floating power plant will pay for itself in eight years. The agency lacks funds, however, and is going to ask the government for help in obtaining loans in commercial banks or offer from other countries to join the project. China, Indonesia and a number of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean countries have reportedly voiced interest in the project, but they want the plant to be built first to show potential investors that it does not pose a threat to the environment.
RosAtom head Alexander Rumyantsev said earlier that floating power plants are absolutely safe. The reactors "will be the same as those that are used by our submarines and nuclear ice-breakers," he said, stressing that after the Kursk submarine that sank in August 2000 was lifted from the bottom of the Barents Sea, its reactors were still in an operational condition. However, many critics say the main objective of nuclear plants all over the world is enrichment for building nuclear weapons, and after RosAtom first announced the building of the floating plant in the early 2000s, foreign media immediately called it a "floating Chernobyl". The Russian side says that the plant will be able to provide a town of 50,000 people with heating and electrical energy or be used to desalinate sea-water.
#1
This idea comes around once every seven years or so. What's the advantage to a floating reactor? Mobility? Think it was GE that spent a fortune trying to build a factory/yard on the St. Johns river to turn these out. All that's left is a huge Krupp hammerhead crane.
#2
"RosAtom head Alexander Rumyantsev said earlier that floating power plants are absolutely safe. The reactors âwill be the same as those that are used by our submarines and nuclear ice-breakers...,â
Oh, that's reassuring. Why don't we all just order our lead-lined Speedos now and avoid the rush?
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
05/30/2005 9:03 Comments ||
Top||
#3
What's the advantage to a floating reactor? Mobility? Think it was GE that spent a fortune trying to build a factory/yard on the St. Johns river to turn these out. All that's left is a huge Krupp hammerhead crane.
Well, they might have thought there was some sort of regulatory advantage to these things.
Oh, that's reassuring. Why don't we all just order our lead-lined Speedos now and avoid the rush?
Well, I was under the impression that there were some reactor designs in Russian service that were reliable, and that the problems with their reactors came from other factors (skimping on the shielding, etc.) Hopefully that wouldn't be a factor here.
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
05/30/2005 9:47 Comments ||
Top||
#4
Ship,
I thought it was Westinghouse since they have PWR and GE is BWR (not the best idea for a floater)but then it could have been CE but their big yard was in Memphis. Anyhoo the last guys I would trust with any form of nuclear energy would be the russkies. They don't even have a word for QA despite the space legacy.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
05/30/2005 10:03 Comments ||
Top||
#5
I just keep thinking about a floating plant would be sooooo much easier for a SEAL team to sabotage.
#6
Aren't these called Nuclear Powered Warships? Building a floating one is just an engineering chore. The real trick is not screwing the thing up because the operators are sucking down cheap vodka while on duty.
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats ||
05/30/2005 12:17 Comments ||
Top||
#8
Mobility really is key, here. For places with very specific seasonal demand for energy, say California in summer and the northeast in winter, a nuclear ship plugged into the grid could give big help during surge demand, or when fuel prices have jumped. Also, if there is major power infrastructure damage, say to high-tension lines after a hurricane, then a nuclear ship could power a large chunk of the isolated, but otherwise undamaged grid, until the main lines had been fixed. The rest of the time, it could provide huge amounts of grid isolated energy to research projects. It is a situation of "if you come up with a good solution, we can think up plenty of problems for it to fix."
Seriously, they have a way to do it, I just don't know the technical names or methods. I have seen them do this after stringing along miles of new power towers and cables. I'm thinking the same time of technology would be used.
#11
Quick question...um exactly how would you plug this thing into the grid? (Not to mention unplug it, move it then plug it back in somewhere else).
I leave this as an exercise for the students. But think BuckyBallIum and SuperConductors. This material will be carried into the affected region by a fleet of high speed CaterMarans and the local Electrical Cooperatives will spin to suit.
Posted by: Dr. Science ||
05/30/2005 14:59 Comments ||
Top||
#12
If I recall correctly, the enrichment of ship-based reactors is so high, it's nearly bomb-grade already. Great.
From what I hear, these babies are a snap to start up and run for decades: I talked with a nuclear navy power operator once, and he played out the hand motions necessary to go from cold startup to full power. From memory. I counted 20 seconds. Apparently, when the skipper wants full power, they designed it to make sure he GETS full power ASAP.
Refueling is a bitch, though, because the lid's welded on to prevent leakage in the event the ship/sub sinks.
It's not a problem to connect to the grid: the cables on high voltage transmission lines are not that big to begin with...
YE GUOZHU used to own two restaurants in Beijing. Both were razed in 2001, as was his home in the Yongdingmen district of the city two years later, to make way for parks to beautify the Chinese capital for the 2008 Olympics.
Last year Mr Ye sought permission to protest against such forced evictions. He was arrested for "disturbing social order" and sentenced in December to four years in jail. His family have not seen him since and do not know where he is held.
His son, Ye Mingjun, said: "I filed an appeal just a few days ago against his sentence, but the court refused to accept the case because they said my father must sign the papers in person. But he can't do that because he is in jail and we have had no contact with him."
Mr Ye is not alone in his plight. Officials say that 300,000 city residents have been moved, some illegally, to make way for the £42 billion project to prepare Beijing for the Olympics. Those who complain encounter persecution, or even jail.
Amnesty International's annual report for 2004 highlights the practice, threatening to turn it into a human rights embarrassment for the Chinese authorities. "In the context of economic restucturing (in Beijing and elsewhere) large numbers of people were reportedly denied adequate reparation for forced evictions, land requisition and job layoffs," it says.
"Public and large peaceful protests against such practices increased, leading to numerous detentions and other abuses. Beijing was often the focus for such protests due, in part, to house demolitions during the city's preparations for the Olympics in 2008."
Beijing and its 12 million inhabitants are seeing one of the most dramatic transformations of the 14th-century city since Chairman Mao pulled down its soaring wall after sweeping the Communist Party to power in 1949. Building an Olympic Games infrastructure is the kind of ambitious project at which China's communist rulers, with the benefit of years of central planning behind them, are particularly adept.
The plans include an Olympic Green covering nearly 2,800 acres — 1,680 acres of park and 1,000 acres for the Olympic Centre. The National Stadium, a controversial project resembling a bird's nest that has been halted once for modifications, will seat 80,000 people. Not content with building 19 sports stadiums and refurbishing 13 others, city planners have seized the opportunity to reshape the landscape of Beijing.
"There is a master plan for a new Beijing centre that is linked to 2008," Nicholas Becquelin, of Human Rights in China, said. "All is being organised around this."
Those evicted who feel that they have not been compensated adequately may have little redress. M Becquelin said that last year the courts received instructions not to take up any case seeking compensation. And residents who lose homes or businesses face the combined might of city authorities and wealthy developers eager to profit.
"In a system so opaque there are huge avenues for corruption for anyone with a lead about an area to be developed," M Becquelin said.
The creation of a new cityscape has provoked unease even in China's usually tame press. "As a city with a wonderful architectural history, Beijing is struggling to find her way between preservation and reconstruction," the official Liaowang Weekly said this month. "The architects haven't provided us with an answer to this contradiction, but the bulldozers for 2008 can't wait any longer."
Developers have accelerated the destruction of old areas of the city, flattening hundreds of the winding alleys — hutongs — where people have lived for centuries.
"To pull down the old city is not the answer to Beijing's problems," Liaowang said. "The more old houses you pull down, the more social problems you face because the more hutongs disappear, the bigger the population thronging the city centre."
SYDNEY - Australia's prime minister on Monday ruled out making a personal appeal to Indonesia's president to intervene in the case of an Australian woman convicted of smuggling drugs into Bali.
The 20-year sentence for marijuana smuggling handed last Friday to Schapelle Corby by a court on the Indonesian island sparked outrage in Australia, where opinion polls show the vast majority of people believe the 27-year-old's tearful claims of innocence. "Emotional though people feel about this, we are dealing with the judicial system of another country," Prime Minister John Howard told Sydney radio station 2GB. "It would be an impossibly stupid, counterproductive thing, to ring up the president of Indonesia ... asking him to superimpose his judgment."
After saying last Friday they would appeal the conviction and sentence, Corby's legal team said Monday it is still considering its options. "We're having a lot of discussions about how we're going to proceed on that," Corby's lawyer Robin Tampoe told Australian television's Nine Network. "It's possible she could end up with life after an appeal and - worst case scenario - they could impose a death sentence. So we're being very careful," he added.
Prosecutors who had demanded a life sentence for Corby already have said they will appeal the sentence as too lenient.
Some Corby supporters have called for tourists to boycott Bali to protest her plight, but politicians who have worked hard in recent years to strengthen Australia's relationship with Indonesia are rejecting the criticism of its northern neighbor. "Continuing to berate and denigrate Indonesia isn't going to help anybody in this case," Foreign Minister Alexander Downer told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio.
Australian diplomats are soon to begin formal negotiations to set up a prisoner transfer agreement that would allow Corby and other Australians serving time in Indonesian prisons to finish their sentences in Australia.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/30/2005 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Schapelle Corby is innocent
She would NEVER have been convicted in an Australian court as there was reasonable doubt.
The judges IGNORED every bit of evidence that supported Corby's case.
The head judge said she had to prove her innocence - she was presumed guilty and had to prove her innocence which is completely opposite to our justice system where you are assumed innocent.
Nobody would take 4kg of pot from Australia where it is expensive to Bali where it is really really cheap.
These judges have heard 500 drug smuggling cases.
Guess how many they convicted?
500.
So even if innocent they don't care.
Corby asked for the drugs to be fingerprinted. They weren't. Corby asked for the bags to be weighed. They weren't.
Australian baggage handlers were involved in a drug smuggling ring, and had a shipment of cocaine coming in the very airport Corby left on the very day, in the very hour she left. Many think they put the pot in her bag as a diversion.
Schapelle went to Bali for a holiday. Somebody planted a big wad of pot in her bag. When she got to customs with her friend and they asked her if the bag was hers, she said yes, as anybody would.
Then they opened it and found drugs she didn't even know were there. She has spent months since in a crappy 3rd world prison where the life expectancy is 10 years. She is innocent.
There was enough reasonable doubt for her not to be convicted in an Australian court. The dirty Indonesian judges ignored it and convicted anyway.
Meanwhile Indonesian fishermen continue to invade our northern waters and steal our fish and the dirty Indos have the hide to ask US to look after them better.
Boycott Indonesia. Don't go to Bali. Cut off aid: why should my taxes pay those dirty bastards.
#2
I am sceptical of this young womans story, but I am with respect to drug crimes. I ave worked with DEA and all the criminals have the same story: "it weren't me." Now if the drugs had been found in an elderly couples bags or say a priests then I would tend to beleive their story. And of course nobody likes to see a beitiful girl go to jail for 20 years but have they found any baggage handlers planting stuff in other bags? Did Miss Corby volunteer for a drug screening? A quick check of her blood or urine would tell she was a user or clear her name. If she had a test and it came back negagtive I would beleive her story more and I bet the Indonisians would as well.
#3
CyberSarge, the equivalent would be an American trying to smuggle a couple of kilos of cocaine from LA to Colombia. It just doesn't make sense to smuggle from a place where something is worth a lot to where it is worth much less, perhaps only 10% of what it is worth in Australia. Corby was caught up in a system that doesn't give a defendant the benefit the doubt. The only way out for her was to produce someone who was prepared to say I did it. I am in favour of a boycott. Australia gives Indonesia a pass on too many things. Its time they learned actions have consequences.
#4
"It just doesn't make sense to smuggle from a place where something is worth a lot to where it is worth much less"
I agree. But while a newby ditz might try something like that, an organized band of professional narcotrafficers... say baggage handlers...is much less likely to.
Posted by: Dave ||
05/30/2005 4:36 Comments ||
Top||
#5
You get caught at an airport in any country in the world with a large quantity of drugs in your bags and you're going to jail (or the gallows depending on the country).
I've read that she resisted attempts to search her bag. Traffickers do use sacrificial drug mules as diversions (setup a few to take the fall while the bulk of the drugs get through). The caught drug mules are still guilty though.
Posted by: john ||
05/30/2005 12:43 Comments ||
Top||
#6
Bali is full of undercover cops so tourist as scared to buy drugs from the locals. As well as that the local marijuana is a very poor grade.
Whereas Australian marijuana is considered to being of very high quailty.
In Australian dollars, you can buy it for around $8000 a kilogram in Australia and sell it in Bali for $20,000 a kilogram if its split in deals.
Read more on the economics of it
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2005/05/25/1116950758434.html?from=top5
French President Jacques Chirac has vowed to launch a new "counter-offensive" against American cultural domination, enlisting the support of the British, German and Spanish governments in a multi-million euro bid to put the whole of European literature online. The president was reacting this month to news that the American search-engine provider Google is to offer access to some 15 million books and documents currently housed in five of the most prestigious libraries in the English-speaking world.
The realisation that the "Anglo-Saxons" were on the verge of a major breakthrough towards the dream of a universal library seriously rattled the cultural establishment in Paris, raising again the fear that French language and ideas will one day be reduced to a quaint regional peculiarity. Chirac has met with Culture Minister Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres and National Library president Jean-Noel Jeanneney and asked them "to analyse the conditions under which the collections of the great libraries in France and Europe could be put more widely and more rapidly on the Internet".
"In the weeks to come, the president will launch initiatives in the direction of his European partners in order to propose ways of coordinating and amplifying efforts in this field," a statement said. "A vast movement of digitalisation of knowledge is underway across the world. With the wealth of their exceptional cultural heritage, France and Europe must play a decisive part. It is a fundamental challenge for the spread of knowledge and the development of cultural diversity."
It was Jeanneney who alerted Chirac to the new challenge. In an article in the French daily Le Monde, France's chief librarian conceded that the Google-Print project, with its 4.5 billion pages of text, will be a boon to researchers and a long-awaited chance for poor nations to get access to global learning. But he went on: "The real issue is elsewhere. And it is immense. It is confirmation of the risk of a crushing American domination in the definition of how future generations conceive the world. "The libraries that are taking part in this enterprise are of course themselves generously open to the civilisations and works of other countries .... but still, their criteria for selection will be profoundly marked by the Anglo-Saxon outlook," he said.
#1
I swear I checked twice for a Merkel post before I submitted this newslink.
In any case, the CNN link has a goofy picture of Angela Merkel (which is a CNN tradition whenever a conservative is the subject of an article), so Fred, feel free to chuck this link into whatever hole useless links go to die.
Angela Merkel's quiet but determined rise to the top of German politics shows that it's not necessarily a disadvantage to be underestimated by political opponents or inner-party rivals.
Merkel's bio, for those like me who don't know anything about her...
Posted by: Fred ||
05/30/2005 12:51 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Another "misunderestimated" pol. Let's see if she does as well as ours.
#2
PhD in Physics? Works for me. Misunderestimated, indeed, Jackal, lol! Her other "defining" attributes sound solid and sensible and rational. Good for her - and Germany.
There is something about this woman I like. I just can't put my finger on what it is...
Angela Merkel, the leader of Germany's opposition Christian Democrats, has officially been chosen as the conservative challenger to Chancellor Gerhard Schröder in early elections in the fall. Members of Merkel's CDU party and its Bavarian sister organization, the Christian Social Union (CSU) nominated the 50-year-old to run for Germany's head of government.
The last possible obstacle to her nomination fell when CSU leader Edmund Stoiber backed her at a meeting of the parties' top officials. Stoiber had beaten off a challenge from Merkel to be the opposition candidate at the 2002 general election, but lost that vote to Schröder who was re-elected for a second term as chancellor. Standing alongside Merkel, Stoiber told a gathering of party workers and the media that her nomination had been unanimous and she had "the full mandate and the full support of the CSU and CDU." "I am going to do everything I can to help you become Germany's first woman chancellor," Stoiber said. A leading CSU official, Michael Glos, said on Monday that Stoiber would take up a "leading role alongside Merkel."
To the sound of rapturous applause, Merkel said her priority would be to reduce German unemployment, which is hovering around the five million mark. "Germany no longer needs an Agenda 2010, it needs an Agenda for Work," she said, referring to Schröder's largely unpopular program of economic reforms. She said the CDU would adopt its election program at a party conference in Dortmund on August 28, while the CSU would do the same in early September, possibly just two weeks before the election.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/30/2005 10:29 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
I guess now Ms. Ali is going to get some competition in the "European politician" postergirl department.
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
05/30/2005 21:02 Comments ||
Top||
#2
more than a postergirl. A leader?
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/30/2005 21:07 Comments ||
Top||
France's voters last night decisively rejected the new European constitution, plunging the country into political upheaval and the EU into the deepest crisis in its 50-year history. The outcome also prompted immediate speculation in London that Britain's planned referendum on the treaty was now pointless.
Duh.
With all of the votes counted last night, France's interior ministry put the no vote at 54.87%. Overall turnout was forecast to be around 70%.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/30/2005 00:07 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
a good idea implemented in a bad manner is not a good idea.
The people of Europe are not stupid. They know that a commonwealth is a good idea. This consitution did not even come close to achieving the goals and set them back to the days of Rome when bureaucrats and favored sons ruled their fate.
Score one for the people. As Washington, Jefferson and a few others said, they really arent as stupid as you'd think.
I'm just sorry we don't get to see Chirac's head in the basket.
#3
Hmmm. The EU has a 50 year history? There's been an EU since 1955? Al-Guardian says so in the very first sentence.
Bullshit.
The EU website says: European integration is based on four founding treaties:
1) The Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), which was signed on 18 April 1951 in Paris, entered into force on 23 July 1952 and expired on 23 July 2002;
2) The Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (EEC);
3) The Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom), which was signed (along with the EEC Treaty) in Rome on 25 March 1957, and entered into force on 1 January 1958. These Treaties are often referred to as the "Treaties of Rome". When the term "Treaty of Rome" is used, only the EEC Treaty is meant;
4) The Treaty on European Union, which was signed in Maastricht on 7 February 1992, entered into force on 1 November 1993. 'The Maastricht Treaty changed the name of the European Economic Community to simply "the European Community". It also introduced new forms of co-operation between the Member State governments - for example on defence, and in the area of "justice and home affairs". By adding this inter-governmental co-operation to the existing "Community" system, the Maastricht Treaty created a new structure with three "pillars" which is political as well economic. This is the European Union (EU).
Maastricht is where the "EU" was born. Spinpricks. AlG is beyond hopeless - they're liars and Tranzi whores.
#4
"...they're liars and Tranzi whores.." and those are their good points. I can't telly you I am sad about this because I am not. Stick a fork in it because it's done.
#5
It ain't over just because of this vote and the expected rejection by the Dutch and Danes. There is a mulligan that can be played and it is more like a Clinton (you can use it several times from different improved lies). In fact, the best thing for American interests is if the constitution goes through. You think this is skewed logic? Nope, having a 25 member country Europe under this type of constitution (own foreign affairs policy) could work to our advantage since the EU would be more balanced with the ascent of the big Eastern European countries like Poland. Now you have independent minded, socialistic, ankle biters unrestrained. Remember in France it was the leftist-leaning and farmers, cheese makers, etc. that voted no - not the business, industrial, professional combines. But there will be other votes and they have time to straighten this out. The good news is that Chirac is toast as is Schroeder since using anti-Americanism as a reason to vote for a "multi-polar" counter weight failed and failed miserably. People voted with their pocket books or rather their security blankets.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
05/30/2005 10:15 Comments ||
Top||
#6
The major problems of France and German are that they have too much socialism, too much welfarism and too many muslims (this last problem is related to the first two).
These problems aren't cured in a day but the vote at leasts gives them another chance to begin the long process of curing the problems.
#7
Spot on mwh. Sweden has the same problem. Belgium and the Netherlands probably fall in the same bucket. Spain is on its way.
Not sure where or how this ends. Can't see events developing peacefully towards freedom, especially as law-abiding citizens are denied the right to keep and bear arms and thus the right to self-defense. I'm glad I no longer live in Europe.
French voters massively rejected the EU's first-ever constitution, dealing a rude slap in the face to President Jacques Chirac and a potentially fatal setback to the continent's ambitious plans for deeper political union. In a national referendum they voted by about 55 percent to 45 to turn down the constitution, according to three exit counts released as polls closed at 10 pm. The "no" win had been predicted, but the huge margin of the victory deepened a sense of crisis across the European Union.
Turn-out was high, at between 70 and 80 percent, reflecting the intensity of the national debate. "This is an ordeal, a real disappointment," said Foreign Minister Michel Barnier, while Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie called it "a defeat for France and a defeat for Europe." Chirac appeared on national television to "take note" of the constitution's rejection. He said he would continue to speak out for France in the EU, but said the decision "inevitably creates a difficult context for defending our interests in Europe." Confirming predictions that he would reshuffle his cabinet, he said an announcement would be made in the coming days.
The result was a crushing blow to the 72-year-old president, who put his authority on the line with three televised appeals for a "yes" vote -- warning that rejection would marginalise France's voice in Europe and do nothing to safeguard its generous social model. Instead the public was swayed by fears that the treaty would destroy the country's welfare system, leach new powers to Brussels and shift jobs to low-cost economies of eastern Europe. The result opened a period of deep uncertainty inside the EU because the constitution needs to be ratified by all 25 members. By creating the posts of EU president and foreign minister and streamlining the process of decision-making in an enlarged bloc, the treaty's 448 articles are intended to build European muscle at a time of intensifying global competition.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/30/2005 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Now, if Britain will go ahead and reject the constitution from it's end...we'll be back to square one and normal for everybody...fend for yourselves!!
#4
Do yourself a favour: watch "Casablanca". It is a wonderful movie, it has Ingrid Bergman at the height of her beauty, the cynical and bitter Bogart we love, an outstanding Claude Rains making a study in chutzpah, superb dialogs, superb music. Everything. But it has also the most moving Marseillaise I ever heard: I still have tears in my eyes whenever I watch the movie.
Funny that the best Marseilise ever sung is in an American movie. :-)
For the unitiated here it is my own translation
Forward sons of the fatherland
The day of glory has come
Against us, tiranny has raised its blood-stained standard
raised its blood-stained standard
Do you hear in our countrylands roar (1) those ferocious soldiers?
They come until our very our own arms to slit the throats of our sons and consorts"
To arms, citizens, form your batallions
Let's march, Let's march.
Let impure blood water our furroughs"
(1) In fact the proper translation would be the howl of a bull (in french it is also used for the sound of very strong winds or torrents). Since I don't know the proper word I changed it into roar
(2) And don't forget about the following verses extracted from parts who are no longer sung:
What! These foreign cohorts!
They would make laws in our courts
and those two
The vile despots would have themselves be
The masters of our destiny
#6
WWI was a crisis. WWII was a crisis. The only people for whom this could be a crisis is those who [like the previously cited crisis] consider themselves to be the ruling elite. Non!
For everyone else there's Mastercard. Priceless.
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/30/2005 9:49 Comments ||
Top||
#10
Note also that French overseas territories were at the extremes of the Oui voting areas. Seems the French Government's efforts in that respect paid off.
Any ideas on Brittany?
I'm just guessing, but I'd assume that it's a celtic thing. The EU is more popular in those parts of the UK that regard themselves celtic as opposed to anglo-saxon for a couple of reasons: i) more high-profile EU investment (actually it's entirely British money - the EU re-invests a fraction of what we pay in back here - but that's not the point: the EU puts it logo where it can) on infrastructure in such areas, but mainly ii) they tend to regard anything which weakens the national Governemnt to be a good thing. In Britain the celtic Scottish and Welsh tend to regard themselves as put-upon (simply because they're minorities and in marvellous disregard for the reality - higher public spending per capita and (scandalously, to a principled democrat) much higher representation in the Parliamentary system) and would happily subsume themselves to an even more democratically deficient system just because it means their more numerous neighbours will also suffer. I suspect the Bretons think the same way. The Bretons may also think they have benfitted from the EU's fisheries policies (I do not know, and, notably, their British brethren have been repeatedly hammered by the EU in that respect).
It's interesting to note though that the Basques seem to have voted more according to the national norm.
#11
As I said in my other post - this is not over and won't be for awhile. But bye, bye, Jacques and Hello, Nick! Other good news? Euro falls, imports cheaper, less travel expense to those going over the pond this year. Also, probably less anti-americanism in the press for a while since they need print space to sauvage le president.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
05/30/2005 10:21 Comments ||
Top||
#12
Bulldog
You are infering too much.
There are three regions who voted for the YES: "Ile de France" aka the parisian region. Brittany and Alsace
Alsace is home of the Strasbourg parliament, so it is normal that they are for the YES since this means jobs and the name of Strasbourg being known through thge world (BTW: the Haut-Rhin captal Colamr was far less pro-Yes than the Bas-Rhin captal Strasbourg.
Brittany voted YES because it has ever been more to the right (but with a weaker far right) than most of France and the right is massively pro-YES specially after Chirac "converting" to europeism and forcing the previously patriotic gaullist party into a pro-Europe one in order to get the support of the centrists.
And then there is the Parisian region. Well this is the home of this arrogant French aristocracy who think of itself as the natural ruler of the world and look to other French with contempt and to foreigners as untermenschen. It was natural they would be for what they see as an instrument of power projaction (the EU). It is also the home turf of "Le Monde" and similar pillars of pro-europeism and anti-americanism (for them Americans are usurpers of the throne who belongs legitimally to the French elite). Now when we look district by district a thing who immediately apparent is that the ones who voted massively for the YES were the blue blood districts folowed closely by the districts of the "Bourgeois Bohemes" (roughly equivalent to the Tranzis in San Francisco's bay area) while the blue collar districts voted for the NO (less strongly than in equivalent parts in other regions France because the "parisians are the best" spirit has permeated them.
What about the overseas dependencies? What exactly were they promised in return for helping the Yes to win? (Besides enough copies of the constitution to keep tapir meat protected from flies for years to come...)
#14
The slights are going out all over Europe. I doubt they'll sneeze again in our lifetime.
Posted by: Wilson Shipman ||
05/30/2005 13:03 Comments ||
Top||
#15
The arrogance of the Eurocrats is incredible.
"The ratification process must go on."
The rules say if one country refuses the Constitution, it's dead.
This is like continuing a penalty shootout in soccer because all players should have a chance to score.
#16
Well they never heard of that in Brussels, football is for the uneducated and unwashed. The new regals intend to ram this down every europeans throat no matter what. At some point it may become necessary to march on Brussels and toss them all out.
The plain fact is the people got it right, for all the wrong reasons, but right never the less.
#18
Readign the quotes from various nations leaders it appear they will not accept Non for an answer. Pretty sick. According to the "constitution" it's dead yet these "leaders" will not admit it.
#19
Not entirely good news for US interests. OTOH, it's pretty clear that the EU eilte will finally heed the concerns of the EU public and focus more on internal problems. Which means less attention and resources for grands projets in the international sphere, not only but especially the attempt to challenge the US in areas and regions that have no impact on the EU's growth rate or its ability to protect jobs.
OTOH, where EU foreign policy can indeed protect jobs by bashing the US, we can expect more Gaullism, more German hyperbole about US "bloodsucker" capitalists and the like. So all in all, I think this means less EU meddling in the middle east and less pretentious rhetoric and posturing as the "moral superpower" (Kyoto, debt relief, bashing Israel etc) but also a distinct turn toward both protectionism, esp in the service sectors, and toward much more aggressive trade promotion of big ticket items sold to third world governments like Airbus planes, construction projects by Bouygues, telecom and auto plants etc.
In short, whereas the EU foreign policy used to be a mix of short-term opportunism and more fundamental idealism, the balance now will be very sharply tilted toward opportunism. Less irritating, but not necessarily less harmful to US policy, esp re Iran and China.
This is very, very bad news for cooperation with the EU vs the mullahs. The pressure on France and Germany to get a quick boost to exports by caving in to the mullahs will now be intense. Ditto for EU military exports to China.
#20
Of course NOBODY in German would dare to utter these words but...
Germany may be the biggest winner of the NON. The unholy alliance with France has been seriously jeopardized and Germany will look for other, more reliable partners to build Europe, but now as the only big shot left. German exports to Eastern Europe have been booming and many smaller European states do want a more united Europe to affirm themselves. In a few months we'll have a chancellor who is much more in touch with "New Europe"... and will build closer alliances with those countries... plus strengthen the transatlantic ties.
Europe will not die, but it will change. It will be more free market, more pro American, less pro Muslim.
France will sink into relative irrelevance.. only a real strong new president can bring it back.
Chirac will go down in history as worst president ever... and take Schroeder with him.
We can have a new start.
#21
Good to hear TGA. Europe needs a strong, stable and productive Germany. Kinda like a bridge between the east and west. France really isn't needed anymore as a powerful country in europe. With England and Germany taking those spots, nothing much remains for the Phrench.
This document defined what one could do, what the states could do, what the EU could do and EVERYTHING ELSE WAS ILLEGAL. That is a document of failure.
Its better to define the rules of engagement and what's illegal. Assume all else is legal or OK unless laws are written to specificly proscribe something.
Look at it this way. Imagine a constitution such has the US one. Paint it as a black tree and insert it in a 4D landscape of all possible activities and situations. The constitution is an artifact in this 4-space. Now consider what the EU constitution attempted to do. It attempted to make a mold around the tree. To define the 4D landscape not to define the tree. That is an exercise designed to fail. Its too hard to do!
#25
TGA, I'm hopeful on your end, but won't that require a more public split with France? (That is, for thibaud/lex to be wrong at least in whether Germany follows along with French opportunism.)
Posted by: Edward Yee ||
05/30/2005 22:44 Comments ||
Top||
#26
I hope TGA is right but let's consider the reality of France and Germany's economic situation: growth is weak in France, and almost nonexistent in Germany. Unemployment is at crisis levels, with no end in sight. Above all, the EU's own "stability pact" foolishly obliges these two nations to adhere, or at least make a semblance of adhering, to root canal monetary policies. Add to this a strong euro and you have a situation that no one short of a ruthless ballbuster like Thatcher can turn around.
Imagine you're in Merkel's shoes this autumn. How will you grow the GErman economy? You can't stimulate domestic demand because there's no flexibility, either of labor ie supply or of retail and other consumer demand. You can't sell more to the greatest market of all, the US, because the strong euro prices you out of many markets and declining German manufacturing quality is eroding your competitive position in other markets.
The only, and I mean only, near term fix is in sales to third world government customers of the high-ticket items where government lobbying can close the sale. I'll bet any sum that Germany will very aggressively push for an easy line with Iran, and that both France and Germany will seek to scrap the ban on military exports to China. Their leaders' political survival depends on winning those contracts.
The U.N. conference on the nuclear non-proliferation treaty failed to reach substantive agreement among participants Friday, with the United States singled out for most of the blame.
That was me. Sorry. Wasn't paying attention...
Washington was faulted for using procedural challenges to smokescreen its own nuclear policies and to avoid discussion of them and Beijing for apparently wanting to shield North Korea from criticism. At the final day of the Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, chairmen of the three main committees said their panels and their subsidiary bodies, said they were unable to reach consensus and their reports were largely of a technical nature.
"Okay. Close enough for government work. What's for lunch?"
The panels deliberated on nuclear disarmament and security assurances, safeguards and regional issues, including establishment of a nuclear weapon-free zone in the Middle East, and implementation of the treaty's provisions related to the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said the participants "missed a vital opportunity to strengthen our collective security against the many nuclear threats to which all states and all peoples are vulnerable."
"This is the most acute failure in the history of the NPT," Thomas Graham, a negotiator for the United States at the 1995 NPT review, said Thursday, anticipating Friday's outcome.
"By refusing even to discuss the commitments it made at past meetings, the United States has turned the world of nuclear proliferation into the Wild West, with a complete disrespect for the rule of law," said Alice Slater, founder of Abolition 2000 a non-governmental organization seeking the elimination of nuclear weapons at the session's windup.
Alice is one of the Usual Suspects™, of coourse. She describes herself as an "expert in the field of nuclear disarmament," though I can't recall ever having seen that she's disarmed anyone...
The Drafting Committee held just one meeting, Wednesday, in which it considered and agreed to recommend to the conference for adoption a draft final document which carried no conclusions or recommendations. It was approved by consensus. Perhaps its most substantive information was a list of the 150 states parties to the NPT participating, and that 119 research institutes and non-governmental organizations also attended.
Right. Making lists has lotsa intrinsic value. I'm still having difficulty wrapping my teeny-tiny little mind around the idea of treating with NGOs on the same level as governments. Obviously I missed something somewhere along the way.
Obviously missing from the list of 150 nations were India, Israel, North Korea and Pakistan.
Oh, really? I had no idea they weren't on the list. It comes as such a surprise...
Israel has long been believed to have developed nuclear weapons as India and Pakistan have boasted, while North Korea withdrew from the pact. Iran remains a member of the NPT, although insisting its nuclear research is for peaceful use. Conference President Sergio de Queiroz Duarte of Brazil, said he regretted the meeting had been unable to achieve consensus in either the main committees or their subsidiary bodies and, therefore unable to deliver any recommendations.
"I deeply regret the fact that we've accomplished nothing more than devouring a series of very tasty and well-prepared lunches."
Ambassador Paul Meyer of Canada said the conference had let the pursuit of short-term, parochial interests override the collective long-term interest in sustaining the treaty's authority and integrity. It had seen precious time that might have been devoted to exchanges on substance and the development of common ground "squandered by procedural brinkmanship," he said, without referring directly to the United States. Meyer said the conclave had witnessed intransigency from more than one state on the pressing issues of the day, coupled with "the hubris that demanded the priorities of the many be subordinated to the preferences of the few."
Right. Hubris. The pride that goeth before the fall. I feel a chilling effect coming on. Or maybe that's just my cold...
He added "the community had been weakened by the refusal of the delinquent to be held to account by its peers," an apparent reference to Iran, and "by the defection from that community of a state, without suffering any sanction," an obvious reference to the Democratic Republic of Korea.
And I just know we did something terrible, too...
The Ottawa envoy said that, if there was a silver lining in the otherwise dark cloud, it lay in the hope that leaders and citizens would be so concerned by its failure that they mobilized behind prompt remedial action.
Anarchists in the streets in 5-4-3-...
Yoshiki Mine, the envoy from Japan, the only state to have suffered a nuclear attack, said states should take the undesirable result seriously and renew their determination to explore ways to maintain and strengthen the credibility and authority of the NPT regime. He called on North Korea to completely dismantle all of its nuclear programs including its uranium enrichment endeavors. Japan, Mine said, would continue to work with other partners to peacefully resolve the issue through the six-party talks.
And North Korea will continue being a truculent schoolyard bully of a state, outwardly puffed up with its own importance, inwardly cringing at being regarded as an inconsequential economic and social backwater with a tiresome little man as Supreme Leader...
Iran's nuclear issue was no doubt a matter of concern for the international community, he said, adding that Japan considered it extremely important that Iran, through its negotiations with European Union members to provide sufficient "objective guarantees" that its nuclear program was exclusively for peaceful purposes. As the final speaker Friday, Iran's Ambassador Javad Zarif let loose on Washington with both barrels delivering a withering attack of U.S. nuclear policies and its behavior at the conference. "Serious is the intention and actions rigorously pursued by the world's remaining superpower without the slightest concerns of the rest of the international community," he said. He said the United States adopted its nuclear posture by stressing the essential role of nuclear weapons as an effective tool for achieving security and in foreign policy objectives; developing new nuclear weapons system and constructing new facilities for producing new nuclear weapons, resuming efforts to develop and deploy tactical nuclear weapons despite commitments to reverse this process and effectively reduce them, targeting non-nuclear weapons states party to the treaty "and planning to attack these states."
Zarif, who took part in the recent EU-Iran talks was critical of the United States for abrogating the anti-ballistic missile treaty, rejecting the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, continuing deployment of nuclear forces in other territories, providing a nuclear umbrella for non-nuclear weapon states and signing an agreement of cooperation with Israel to provide scientists access to its nuclear facilities. "The extremist attitude," he said, "seems to indicate that no lessons have been learned from the nightmares of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (in Japan). If history is any guide nuclear arms, ladies and gentlemen, are in the most dangerous hands."
SAN FRANCISCO, May 28 - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has indicated she will not attend. So has former President George H. W. Bush. The controversial nominee for United Nations ambassador, John R. Bolton, has not been heard from, nor has President Bush, who was sent an invitation in February.
Getting big-name administration officials to attend events outside Washington is always a long shot because of their busy schedules. But in the case of the 60th anniversary celebration of the founding of the United Nations, which will take place in San Francisco late next month, some organizers are wondering if something beyond scheduling conflicts is at play.
Nancy L. Peterson, president of the United Nations Association of San Francisco, a nonprofit group that has been planning the celebration, said no explanation had been offered by the White House. But she said some members were worried that President Bush's seeming disdain for the world organization might be behind the silence and no-shows. "We are a month out, and that's cutting it close," Ms. Peterson said. When asked if San Franciscans felt slighted, she said, "I think the administration is slighting about 45% of the American people by not stepping forward on behalf of the United Nations at this turning point."
Sounds like a hostess afraid that the frig won't be able to hold all the leftovers.
At the last big anniversary celebration, 10 years ago in San Francisco, where the United Nations charter was signed in 1945, President Clinton played a prominent role. Sherri Ferris, who is organizing the 60th anniversary invitations, said Mr. Clinton's office had indicated that an appearance next month "is still under consideration." She expects many invitees will fix their June calendars next week.
As of this week, invitations had been accepted by several international figures, including Shashi Tharoor, an under secretary general at the United Nations; Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland who was the United Nations' high commissioner for human rights; and Ernesto Zedillo, the former president of Mexico.
Real A-list there.
But no member of the Bush administration was among them, organizing officials said. "It doesn't mean they aren't coming, and it doesn't mean they are," said Peter Ragone, a spokesman for Mayor Gavin Newsom. Mr. Ragone added, "We've become accustomed to not expecting the Bush administration to attend official events in San Francisco."
Ever wonder why?
As president, Mr. Bush has visited California numerous times but has avoided the overwhelmingly Democratic San Francisco, where he garnered just 15 percent of the vote last year. Ms. Rice, who taught for many years at nearby Stanford University, was interrupted by antiwar protesters when she spoke at the Commonwealth Club here on Friday.
A spokesman for the National Security Council, where a call to the White House about the president's invitation was referred, said he did not know the invitation's status. A spokesman for the State Department, Noel Clay, said that "the delegation has not been determined," and that Ms. Rice remained a possible attendee. But Ms. Ferris said the secretary of state had indicated to "someone of stature" on the organizing committee that she would not be attending.
For now, the 16-page official program to the celebration is vague on the subject of dignitaries. The entry for the opening event on June 25 says "speakers will be announced."
Mary Robinson might be as good as they get. She'll be rude and nasty to her hosts, of course.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/30/2005 00:41 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Well, the good news is that Squeaky Fromme is still in prison. The bad news is that asshats like Ward Cleaver Churchill have been cranking out new Squeakys regularly since she took a shot at President Ford.
Fuck San Francisco. This is like that crap about Bush going to Pyongyang. If he does, then he certainly has reasons that elude me.
#2
I can think of no logical reason that Bush would be safe or welcomed in San Francisco. San Francisco and the Bay area pretty much stand for everything at least 51% of the country is against. Screw it, they all should stay home.
#5
2b, reread the article, the did call the Clintons. Even they are still considering wether to attend or not. And has anybody heard about Bill becoming the new UN Secretary General as of late? That seemed to die REAL quick.
Posted by: Charles ||
05/30/2005 10:03 Comments ||
Top||
#6
If Hillary went, Zombie of LGF would get pictures of her with every wacko-nut job and the golden gate bridge in the background so they could be used in 2008.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
05/30/2005 10:25 Comments ||
Top||
#7
Actually, Squeaky never got off a shot. She had problems getting the safety off, and supposedly there wasn't a round in the chamber.
Then again, there's likely enough Squeakys in the Bay area now that one of 'em might get lucky.
The straining of relationships between Asia's two economic powerhouses - China and Japan - will be beneficial to India with Japanese firms "withdrawing from China" and intending to make India its manufacturing base, according to a report by a global information-techonology research agency.
This would result in many Japanese firms "ultimately withdrawing completely" from the Chinese market, it said. However, as India is actively supported currently by the Japanese government, the country would become Japan's new base for low-cost manufacturing, it said.
Posted by: john ||
05/30/2005 20:30 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
This threat might be a moderating influence on Chinese behavior.
Then again...
Posted by: john ||
05/30/2005 20:52 Comments ||
Top||
Children in white polo shirts and navy jumpers or slacks gathered around their teacher and chimed in gleefully as they listened to a story. On the wall hung pictures, letters and lesson plans along with a list of virtues: wisdom, perseverance, friendship, honesty, love, generosity and cooperation. The classroom scene could have been mistaken for any private or parochial school, a tight-knit school environment where academics and moral values carry equal weight.
But a few things set Universal School in Amherst apart.
The classroom's character words were written in both English and Arabic. And the female teacher wore a head scarf, just as all female pupils in fourth grade and above do.
Universal School is a Muslim elementary school, the only one of its kind in Western New York. In the past five years, it has nearly doubled in size and now serves 55 children from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. "It seems to look like a different school, but it isn't," said Khalid Bibi, a Canisius College professor, founding member and parent who served as the school's first executive board president. "This is an American school, first and foremost."
The school adheres to state education standards. Pupils take the same standardized tests as their peers in the Williamsville School District and have shown higher literacy levels overall, said Vice Principal Kathy Ahmed.
Though all the pupils share a common religious heritage, their ethnic heritage is remarkably diverse. In this place, children from Somalian, Yemeni, Pakistani, Indian, African-American, Lebanese and Syrian backgrounds are friends.
More at the link.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/30/2005 01:11 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Amherst is where I was born and grew up. It is the community in the Buffalo area where many university professors live, hence the traditional strong emphasis on education, both public and private, and the very international character of the denizens. I'll ask around, and see if I can find out more -- is this a classic parochial school (Muslim flavour) or a terror breeding ground like the Saudi Arabian sponsored school near Washington, D.C. that's had so many students in the news recently.
#2
Suspicious of the 100% sweetness and light flows outward from here write-up? Good on ya, tw. Regards Islam, especially where children are concerned, I'd say caution is deserved.
#3
http://www.islamicfinder.org/getitWorld.php?id=34312&lang=
Universal School of Buffalo
Last Updated: 2004-08-16
Address: Universal School of Buffalo
745 Heim Rd,
Getzville, NY 14068, USA
Phone: 716-689-6050
Fax: 716-689-4690 URL: www.universalschoolatbuffalo.org
Directions: Approximately three miles north of State University of NY at Buffalo - North Campus
General Information: Full-time Islamic School, serving Pre-K (3) through 4th grades in 2003.
Founder Dr. Prof. Khalid Bibi http://www2.canisius.edu/~bibi/
Director of the Health and Human Performance Dept at Canisius College, Buffalo, NY (Sports Med. & Exer. Sciences). Canisius college is a small Catholic college in Buffalo.
A row has erupted over the seizure of a copy of the Qur'an from a prisoner serving time in a Calcutta jail even as authorities try to defuse a potentially-explosive situation. The Islamic holy book was seized from a notorious underworld don, Rashid Alam, alias Gabbar, lodged in Presidency jail. Gabbar, prime accused in several murder and extortion cases, is on a hunger strike since Saturday demanding that his copy of the Qur'an be handed back to him.
The prisoner's lawyer, Syed Shahi Imam, described the seizure as "an illegal act by prison authorities" and has threatened to move the West Bengal Human Rights Commission. Prison officials say the Qur'an copy was seized because it was procured illegally in violation of the jail code. Apparently, Gabbar was produced in court last week. On his return, he was frisked by wardens, as per standing instructions. During the search, a copy of the Qur'an and several pan masala and gutka (chewing tobacco) pouches were found and seized. Gabbar demanded that the seized items, particularly the Qur'an, be returned to him. But his pleas fell on deaf ears.
Inspector-General of prisons, Joydeb Chakraborty, said: "There is no problem with a convict or undertrial reading or possessing any holy book inside the jail. But in Gabbar's case, he procured it on the sly without the knowledge of prison authorities. He smuggled in the Qur'an. That's why it was seized." Chakraborty said holy books are supplied on demand to prisoners. Visitors too are free to give them to inmates. "But nothing is permitted without permission of the jailer", he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/30/2005 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Quick! Take to the streets and kill people!! Anyone will do.
The honor of The Book of the Religion Of Peace must be defended.
LAGOS — Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo accused Switzerland of blackmail yesterday for linking the return of $500 million in looted funds to the repatriation of suspected Nigerian criminals. Switzerland agreed last August to return money traced to the late dictator Sani Abacha, who died in 1998, and the Swiss Supreme Court ruled in Nigeria's favour in February, but Switzerland has yet to make the transfer. The Swiss Justice Ministry said earlier this month that the delay was caused by the sale of securities and the time required to set up a system by which the World Bank could monitor how the funds are used.
I didn't realize the Swiss had a right to monitor how stolen money was used. Must be one of those Euro ideas.
"We have done everything the Swiss authorities have asked us to do," Obasanjo said in a speech broadcast on national television and radio. "They have even resorted to blackmail, to the ridiculous extent of giving conditions for us to repatriate Nigerians alleged to have run foul of their laws before releasing our money." Abacha is believed to have stolen at least $3 billion during his five-year rule over the world's eighth largest oil exporter. Swiss banks originally held $700 million, but $200 million has been returned to Nigeria already. The Opec member nation returned to democratic rule in 1999, and Obasanjo has launched an ambitious economic reform programme aimed at cleaning up corruption and reducing poverty. Nigeria, which is still ranked the third most corrupt country in the world by graft watchdog Transparency International, argues that the funds will be used for development projects.
And they shouldn't have to argue anything.
The $500 million was included in Nigeria's 2004 budget, but the government was forced to issue treasury bills to cover the shortfall in January when the funds failed to arrive. Abacha's family had tried to stop repatriation of the money,
I've received a number of emails from them on the subject...
but the Swiss Supreme Court ruled that $458 million was "of clearly criminal origin."
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/30/2005 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Under Abacha, the kleptocracy didn't even bother with traditional bribes. They actually had trucks from the central bank deliver US currency to their homes. They directly looted the vaults of the central bank. This was theft unprecedented in Nigerian history.
And the Swiss bankers were rubbing their hands in glee.
Posted by: john ||
05/30/2005 20:49 Comments ||
Top||
#2
so we can expect Nigerian/Swiss email offers?
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/30/2005 21:04 Comments ||
Top||
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.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A mother faces criminal charges after she hired a stripper to dance at her 16-year-old son's birthday party. Anette Pharris, 34, has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and involving a minor in obscene acts. The boy's father, the stripper and two others also face charges.
A team of scientists, led by researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, has discovered an active underwater volcano near the Samoan Island chain. During a research cruise to study the Samoan hot spot, scientists uncovered a submarine volcano growing in the summit crater of another larger underwater volcano, Vailulu'u. Researchers explored the unique biological community surrounding the eruption site, and were amazed to find an "Eel City," a community of hundreds of slithering eels.
French President Jacques Chirac has vowed to launch a new "counter-offensive" against American cultural domination, enlisting the support of the British, German and Spanish governments in a multi-million euro bid to put the whole of European literature online. The president was reacting this month to news that the American search-engine provider Google is to offer access to some 15 million books and documents currently housed in five of the most prestigious libraries in the English-speaking world. 
French voters massively rejected the EU's first-ever constitution, dealing a rude slap in the face to President 
The U.N. conference on the nuclear non-proliferation treaty failed to reach substantive agreement among participants Friday, with the United States singled out for most of the blame.
LAGOS — Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo accused Switzerland of blackmail yesterday for linking the return of $500 million in looted funds to the repatriation of suspected Nigerian criminals. Switzerland agreed last August to return money traced to the late dictator Sani Abacha, who died in 1998, and the Swiss Supreme Court ruled in Nigeria's favour in February, but Switzerland has yet to make the transfer. The Swiss Justice Ministry said earlier this month that the delay was caused by the sale of securities and the time required to set up a system by which the World Bank could monitor how the funds are used. 
