ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast - Ivory Coasts electoral commission on Thursday declared opposition leader Alassane Ouattara the winner of the West African countrys first presidential election in a decade after missing a deadline to release the results.
Election commission chief Youssouf Bakayoko said that Ouattara won with 54.1 percent of the vote, compared to 45.9 percent for Gbagbo. The results, released one day later than constitutionally mandated, still must be certified by the nations constitutional council.
Supporters of the incumbent had prevented the commission from announcing the outcome from Sundays runoff vote, saying tallies from at least four of the countrys 19 regions should be canceled. Ouattaras party accused the incumbent president of trying to steal the long-awaited ballot. It remained unclear whether President Laurent Gbagbos supporters would accept Thursdays announcement.
In a sign of tensions over the vote, officials backing the ruling party physically prevented the commissions spokesman from announcing a large share of results as he sat in front of a microphone late Tuesday. The ruling party loyalists stood in front of the TV cameras as the spokesman attempted to speak, shouting over him. And then they yanked the results from his hand and tore them up as the cameras rolled.
So it's perfectly clear whether Gbagbo's supporters will accept the announcement ...
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/03/2010 00:00 ||
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[The Nation (Nairobi)] Gunmen rubbed out at least eight people in an attack on Cote d'Ivoire presidential candidate Alassane Ouattara's followers as the wait for delayed results descended into bloodshed, witnesses said on Thursday.
Violence erupted as Mr Ouattara and President Laurent Gbagbo were locked in a stand-off over results of the hotly contested presidential vote, following pre-election violence that left at least another seven people dead.
Witnesses in the western Yopougon district of Abidjan, a stronghold of support for Gbagbo, said gunnies attacked on Wednesday night at the office, a local base for Ouattara's RDR party.
"People inside started yelling and the gunnies started shooting," one witness said, without indicating the identity of the attackers.
AFP photographers saw blood, bullet holes and gun cartridges at the RDR base and several people with bullet wounds being treated at a nearby hospital. A hospital source said about 15 people were maimed in the attack.
The military confirmed there was shooting in Yopougon on Wednesday night, but said an army patrol came under fire itself before shooting back, and gave a lower toll.
The patrol "was targeted by automatic gun fire... The patrol's response killed four people and injured 14," the army said in a statement released today afternoon. "Nine other people were jugged," it added.
A police source and an RDR official confirmed to AFP that at least eight people were killed. The RDR official said about 50 people were on the premises at the time, waiting for election results.
An official of Gbagbo's FPI party, Lazare Zaba Zadi, told AFP meanwhile that two people were maimed and a vehicle set alight in an attack on one of its offices nearby in Yopougon early on Thursday.
The election, aimed at ending a decade of instability in the world's top cocoa producer, stood in limbo after the deadline for results passed with no winner despite mounting international pressure for a resolution.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/03/2010 00:00 ||
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[The Nation (Nairobi)] Nigerian authorities plan to charge ex-US vice president Dick Cheney in connection with a bribery scandal allegedly involving energy firm Halliburton, a front man for the anti-graft agency said on Thursday.
Asked whether Mr Cheney would be charged over the investigation into construction of a liquefied natural gas plant in southern Nigeria, Femi Babafemi said, "it's true ... definitely."
The front man could not give details on the charges that he says are likely to be filed next week, but said "they are not unconnected to his role as the chief executive of Halliburton."
A prosecutor on the case said Cheney would be charged jointly along with the former and current leadership of Halliburton and others.
Officials from companies in a consortium involved in the LNG plant would also be included in the charges to be "placed before the court at the latest by Tuesday of next week," said Mr Godwin Obla.
Mr Cheney would face conspiracy charges and a Nigerian judge would be asked to issue an arrest warrant for him that would be transmitted to Interpol, said Mr Obla.
"As the CEO of Halliburton, he has the responsibility for acts that occurred during that period," Mr Obla told AFP.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/03/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
I'M SURE THEY WROTE THE CHARGES IN CAPITAL LETTERS, STARTING WITH "DEAR SIR"
Posted by: European Conservative ||
12/03/2010 8:14 Comments ||
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#2
I take it, he didn't respond to the email about the family members funds that needed to get out of country and by sending a small sum, receive a munificent reward?
#1
Sounds like it's time to start awarding the Ignoble Prize not just to scientists, but to scoundrels like Al Gore, Obama, etc. who are given Nobel Prizes for no particular reason.
Posted by: Water Modem ||
12/03/2010 12:01 ||
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#1
Also, note the following story at the link:
Russian associates of alleged arms dealer Viktor Bout tried to block his extradition to America by bribing a key witness in the case,
Posted by: Water Modem ||
12/03/2010 12:04 Comments ||
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#2
IOW, the RUSSIA-FOR-RUSSIA RUSSIANS ARE BEING RUSSIAN, i.e. "normal".
The UW published this report about Hagopian's research, done with Kathy Barker, PhD. It is presented as a commentary in the January 2011 edition of the American Journal of Public Health, under the title "Should We End Military Recruiting in High Schools as a Matter of Child Protection and Public Health?" Sounds like another example of conclusions in search of supporting data.
#1
Hagopian says, "A review of the medical literature suggests military service is associated with disproportionately poor health for young people."
-you mean like obesity, binge drinking and anti-social behavior? That would be pretty much American youth in general you f*cking moron...or half the chicks and dudes I knew in frats/sororities. (full disclosure: I was in a frat way back when and know of what I speak)
"The youngest recruits have the greatest number of mental disorders in the U.S. military, including alcohol abuse, anxiety syndromes, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder."
-don't know where to begin w/this one. You say "recruit" which means to me they haven't completed an elistment term yet - meaning they probably either came in that way or your study is horseshit. I'll choose the latter but for sake of argument, I guess by your analysis or pedo-recruiters prey on these quasi-fuckups? Then how do you account that the vast majority end up as generally excellent citizens 4yrs later after a hitch? Other then the divorce rate in the mil I'll put up my 18-24 yr olds against any of yours at UW you myopic twit.
#2
One saved round: I wouldn't doubt if Hagopian once dated a military guy (or gal - never can tell) and had her little heart broke. Get over it lady - Heart Breaker, Life Taker as Pvt Joker once said...
#5
I am sure that most of the enlightened 'ethical elite' in academia have no problem with NAMBLA recruiting in schools.
Posted by: abu do you love ||
12/03/2010 7:10 Comments ||
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#6
With the "civilian leadership" and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs now endorsing sodomy in the military, one would thing accademia would have recognized some progress. [sarc off]
#7
"A review of the medical literature suggests military service is associated with disproportionately poor health for young people."
I'll have to access the journal at work (can't do it at home), but I'm going to check the references for that statement. She'll have references, of course, an academic article is supposed to when it makes a statement of claim or fact. This could become entertaining.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/03/2010 8:18 Comments ||
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...make sure the data reflects from the mid-80s on. The Army, the largest of the services, went through one of the most extensive reforms that any bureaucratic institution has ever done. The Army by 1990, while having the toys and suits similar to that what had gone before, hardly resembled the one from the 70s from the inside. The current version is even further displaced from those old numbers. The selectivity its been able to apply to recruits and the levels of education and training constantly imposed with professional development, not just of officers but the non-commissioned officers beginning with the first steps into leadership, requirements are leagues beyond the older days.
May I suggest that the author could have dealt with something much closer to home - "Should We End College Athletic Recruiting in High Schools as a Matter of Child Protection and Public Health?"
#9
Academia are the most provincial people I know. Their lives and experiences are the norm as far as they're concerned.
"An unexamined life is a waste."
#14
This is almost certainly factually false. Recruits get medical care, dental work, wholesome food and sanitary living conditions when not in the field. The life may be spartan but outside the combat role for which they have trained and for which they bargained the health realm is better inside than outside for the vast majority of enlistees.
#15
"The youngest recruits have the greatest number of mental disorders in the U.S. military, including alcohol abuse, anxiety syndromes, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder."
I am going to take an intuitive guess here: Many disorders cannot be properly diagnosed before age 18. Furthermore- the military screens recruits (unlike colleges.) They may very well be the first professionals to take a look at these young adults. Then there is the fact (and I do believe it is a fact) that if you have a poor soul with lurking schizophrenia (for example), one of the BEST ways to 'activate' the disorder (cause a psyche breakdown) is Basic. That is almost by design.
#16
Actually, I think she's probably right, but for the wrong reasons. Most kids today are so over-protected they've never experienced any greater trauma than getting turned down for a date - or not asked. They suddenly find themselves in the real world of basic training, and have no experience to how to adjust. Today, college is just high school with more books. There is little or no reality. I witnessed some of this in the military before I retired - a LOT of young kids that came in were shocked, shocked, to learn they'd have to keep their room clean, be on time, keep their uniforms in good order, and adhere to basic hygiene. Throw them into a combat situation and you have instant mental disorders, as they have no base in reality to relate all the demands of combat to life. The MILITARY doesn't "cause" these problems - they're caused by a totally unrealistic childhood lifestyle. You'll note that the kids from "flyover country" - children of ranchers and farmers, small business owners, and "reality-based" jobs have much fewer problems than the blue-state city kids. Amy's got part of the equation right, but the "answer" she came up with isn't based on reality.
Lots of little quips someone will be embarrased by. Yawn. Another argument for the privacy of thought.
Posted by: Bobby ||
12/03/2010 06:46 ||
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...imagine what the cables from other countries foreign offices and embassies are saying about Obama [or for that matter the Tea Party]. That would be entertaining.
The US-based provider, EveryDNS.net, took the controversial site offline earlier today, claiming that the constant hacking attacks were so powerful that they were damaging its other customers. It said it had become the "target of multiple distributed denial of service attacks" which threatened the stability of its structure.
While still accessible by typing in the domain number, people trying to access the site by typing WikiLeaks into a search engine or their browser will not be successful. Bush-Cheney-Halliburton? Mysterious Conspiracy Division?
Posted by: Bobby ||
12/03/2010 06:28 ||
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[Geo News] The US diplomat reported to Washington that the Soddy Arabian Ambassador to the US Adel Al-Jubeir maintained that Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Müslim League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... first promised the Saudis not to engage in political activity or return to Pakistain, but he then flew to Pakistain from London in a direct violation of his commitment. Good lord! Nawaz broke a promise? That's never happened before, has it?
According to a leaked US cable, Saudia Arabian authorities backed Pervez Perv Musharraf ... former dictator of Pakistain, who was less dictatorial and corrupt than any Pak civilian government to date ... to have Nawaz Sharif jugged if he returned from exile.
"We can either support Musharraf and stability, or we can allow bin Laden to get the bomb,", Soddy Arabian Ambassador to the US Adel Al-Jubeir told Charge d'Affaires Michael Gfoeller at a lunch in November 2007.
The then Pak President visited Soddy Arabia in 2007 and meet King Abdullah after completing Umra in Mecca. Al-Jubeir told the US diplomats that Musharraf had not come to the Kingdom to meet exiled former Pak Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif but carefully avoided ruling out such meeting.
The US diplomats claimed that during the meeting the Saudi Ambassador boldly asserted that, "We in Soddy Arabia are not observers in Pakistain, we are participants." Al-Jubeir is a senior royal advisor who has worked for King Abdullah almost a decade.
"He (Al-Jubeir) asserted that the Saudi government had offered Sharif a pledge of protection and asylum in the Kingdom after his ouster by Musharraf in return for a promise that he would refrain from political activity for ten years," Gfoeller said in the cable.
The US diplomat also reported to Washington that the Saudi ambassador maintained that Sharif instead of sticking to his promise began attempting to test the limits of this promise five or six years in his exile.
"Sharif broke his promise by conducting political activity while in the Kingdom," al-Jubeir reportedly charged.
Jubeir also supposedly told the the US officials that when the Saudi Government had permitted Sharif to travel to London, he first promised the Saudis not to engage in political activity or return to Pakistain, but he then flew to Pakistain from London in a direct violation of his commitment.
Expressing 'disappointment' with Sharif, the Saudi Government 'worked directly with Musharraf to have Sharif jugged on his return to Pakistain and immediately deported to the Kingdom, according to the ambassador.
In the document, US officials claimed that Al-Jubeir stated the terms of Sharif's asylum agreement that the Kingdom would seek to control Sharif's movements in the future, even suggesting that he would be kept in a state only a little less severe than house arrest.
"Al-Jubeir added that he sees neither Sharif nor former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto as a viable replacement for Musharraf. 'With all his flaws,' he said of Musharraf, 'he is the only person that you or we have to work with now,'" Gfoeller reported back to Washington.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/03/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Everything that's happened in Pakistain in the last 30 years just emphasizes the need to bomb it back to the early neolithic, and not let them out of their cages ever again. I used to think India was shortchanged by having Pakistain carved out of its flanks - now I see it as a matter of sanity in an insane part of the world. They really do need to absorb Bangladesh and export all the muzzies to Pakistain, though.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
12/03/2010 16:43 Comments ||
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Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
12/03/2010 11:05 Comments ||
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#4
How long do y'all think it will take for the New York Times to tie logic to a chair, beat it with a hose and taser it to "prove" that this is...wait for it, wait for it...BUSH'S FAULT? After all, if a Senate resolution passed in 1997 could somehow be laid at G-Dub's door, why can't this?
Posted by: Ricky bin Ricardo (Abu Babaloo) ||
12/03/2010 17:32 Comments ||
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#5
The brief statement, made by Jun Arima, an official in the governments economics trade and industry department, in an open session, was the strongest yet made against the protocol by one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases.
He said: Japan will not inscribe its target under the Kyoto protocol on any conditions or under any circumstances.
Who's the only man tough enough to take down "Walker, Texas Ranger"?
Chuck Norris, Texas Ranger.
The actor and martial-arts expert became a real-life honorary Texas Ranger on Thursday after playing one on television for years.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry presented the 70-year-old star and executive director of "Walker, Texas Ranger" with a designation as an honorary member of the famed law enforcement group.
Norris' younger brother, 59-year-old stunt coordinator and producer Aaron Norris, also became an honorary Ranger.
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.
[The Nation (Nairobi)] Gunmen 
[The Nation (Nairobi)] Nigerian authorities plan to charge ex-US vice president Dick Cheney in connection with a bribery scandal allegedly involving energy firm Halliburton, a 
The US-based provider, EveryDNS.net, took the controversial site offline earlier today, claiming that the constant hacking attacks were so powerful that they were damaging its other customers. It said it had become the "target of multiple distributed denial of service attacks" which threatened the stability of its structure. 
[Geo News] The US diplomat reported to Washington that the 
Jubeir also supposedly told the the US officials that when the Saudi Government had permitted Sharif to travel to London, he first promised the Saudis not to engage in political activity or return to Pakistain, but he then flew to Pakistain from London in a direct violation of his commitment.
