Tuesday, January 11, 2005

Morning Papers


Funding al Qaeda. The area where Relief Workers are attending to the Rehabilitation of the Indian Ocean Tsunami nations NEEDS "Homeland Security." Relief Workers need to credentialed while citizens trade in weapons for a commodity they can appreciate. Security in an insecure world is vital for the children, especially the orphans. Gunmen are NOT WELCOME !! Posted by Hello


Rooster "Cock-A-Doodle-Do"

Tsunami summit picks UN as leader and offers debt relief
The UN was picked by the nations that suffered from the tsunami in the Indian Ocean as the leader of the relief operations.

http://www.financegates.com/news/world_news/2005-01-06/tsunami_06012005.html

Security Issues Hinder Tsunami Relief
By Peter Dejong
The Associated Press
BANDA ACEH, Indonesia -- A U.S. helicopter on a tsunami relief mission crashed Monday in Indonesia, injuring two servicemen and briefly suspending operations, while strong aftershocks and security concerns provided more challenges for aid workers two weeks after the killer waves hit.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/01/11/253.html


In history,

January 11…

… 1952, born Ben Crenshaw, golfer (1952)

… 1964, United States Surgeon General Luther Terry issues the first report that cigarette smoking may be dangerous.

…1885, born Alice Paul, American feminist and social reformer, who was a militant supporter of women's rights and used her skills as a speaker and propagandist to fight for the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution. The amendment passed in 1920 and gave women the rights of citizens, including the right to vote. She also fought for an Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). The ERA, which would remove in one stroke all legal, economic, and social restrictions on women, was introduced into the U.S. Congress in 1923 but did not pass.

January 10…

...1628, born Jan Theunisz Blanckerhoff [Jan Maet], seascape painter)

...1635, born Willem à Brakel Frisian theologist (Reasonable religion)

...1738, Ethan Allen Revolutionary War fighter (led the Green Mountain Boys)

...1776: English political writer Thomas Paine publishes Common Sense. It denounces monarchy and proclaims that “the cause of America is in a great measure the cause of all mankind.

...1861: Florida Convention delegates in Tallahassee vote to secede from the United States.

...1863, London's Metropolitan, the world's first underground passenger railway, opened to the public.

...1864, born George Washington Carver agricultural scientist (estimate date - actual birthdate unknown)

…1904, born Ray Bolger, actor

...1920: The League of Nations is established as the Treaty of Versailles in fear of the possibility of the "war to end all wars." The United States is absent.

...1928, the Soviet Union ordered the exile of Leon Trotsky.

…1938, born Willie (Lee) McCovey, professional baseball player

…1939, born Sal Mineo, actor

...1946: The first meeting of the General Assembly of the United Nations convenes in London, England.

...1949: RCA announces the seven-inch, 45 rpm record.

…1949, born George Foreman, American professional boxer, who was the heavyweight
boxing champion from 1973 to 1974. He made one of the most remarkable comebacks in sports history when he regained the heavyweight title in 1994. Foreman was born in Marshall, Texas. Interested in sports from an early age, he played football and basketball as a youngster. He joined the Job Corps in 1965 and spent two years doing construction work and forestry in Oregon. During that time he also earned a high school equivalency diploma at Camp Parks, a California industrial training center. Foreman was soon noticed by boxing instructor Nick Broadus, who taught him to box and started him on a training program. He fought his first official amateur fight in 1967 in San Francisco and won with a knockout in the first round. Shortly after Foreman's graduation from the Job Corps, Broadus helped him obtain a job as a physical education teacher at Camp Parks. Foreman also continued his boxing career. After winning the national amateur heavyweight championship in 1968, he earned a position on the United States boxing team for the Olympic Games in Mexico City that year. At the games he won the heavyweight gold medal.


…1955, Marian Anderson, internationally acclaimed opera singer, became the first Black to perform at the Metropolitan Opera on this day. She made her operatic debut playing the fortune-teller Ulrica in Giuseppe Verdi’s Un Ballo in Maschera (Masked Ball). Her performance met with critical acclaim. Anderson was born on February 27, 1897, in Philadelphia. Her musical education and performing experience were the products of personal, family and community determination. Through the financial support of her church, the Union Baptist at Fitzwater, she took voice lessons in Philadelphia. On April 9, 1939, she performed a historic concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., before a crowd of 75,000 people. That event, which became a landmark in civil rights history, occurred after the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) refused to rent Constitution Hall to Anderson for a concert performance. First lady Eleanor Roosevelt, then a member of the DAR, condemned that racist act, resigned her membership and arranged for Anderson to sing at the Lincoln Memorial. Anderson died April 8, 1993, at the age of 96.

... In 1978, the Soviet Union launched two cosmonauts aboard a Soyuz capsule for a rendezvous with the Salyut 6 space laboratory.

… 1984, Robert N.C. Nix, Jr. was inaugurated as the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s 54th chief justice on this day, becoming the first Black elected to head a judicial branch of government in the U.S. Nix was first elected to the seven-member Court in 1971. Before that, he served as a Philadelphia Common Pleas Court judge from 1968 to 1971. Nix, a native of Philadelphia, graduated from Villanova University and the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Justice Nix was a prominent lawyer during the Civil Rights Movement as a partner in the law firm of Nix, Rhodes & Nix from 1958 to 1968. Nix retired from the bench in 1996 after more than two decades on the court. Nix died on August 23, 2003, in suburban Philadelphia at the age of 75.

...1984, the United States and the Vatican established full diplomatic relations for the first time in more than a century.

...2004, Michelle Kwan won her seventh straight title and eighth overall at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Atlanta; Johnny Weir skated to his first men's title.

Missing in Action

1967
GAULEY JAMES P. RINGWOOD OK

1967
STOVES MERRITT III BIRMINGHAM AL

1968
HOPPER EARL P. JR. GLENDALE AZ EJECTION PROBLEMS CRASH

1968
HALL KEITH N. GRAND FORKS ND 03/14/73 RELEASED BY DRV ALIVE AND WELL 98

1969
SPROTT ARTHUR R. JR. DELRAY BEACH FL

1970
ALLEN WAYNE C. TEWKSBURY MA REMAINS RETURNED 09/90 ID'D 04/91

1970
CROSBY HERBERT C. GA

1970
HOWES GEORGE A. KNOX IN

1973
CLARK ROBERT A. NORTH HOLLYWOOD CA

1973
MC CORMICK MICHAEL T. HONOLULU HI

Michael Moore Today

People's Choice

Best Picture of the Year

The American People have Spoken !

"Thank you! Thank you very much.
We live in a great country and we all love our country very much and I am so amazed that you did this — the people of America — that you voted for this film. I can't thank you enough.
I'm honored and gratified and I know that there are many people tonight — mothers and fathers across this country — with sons and daughters in Iraq. Our prayers are with them and I dedicate this award to them tonight.
I want to thank, most of all, the people out there who voted for this. I don't want you to give up. This country is still all of ours. Not just right or left, democrat or republican, it's all of our country.
I love making movies and I'll take this as an invitation to make more ‘Fahrenheit 9/11’s.
Thank you very much. Thank you very much."

Enter MichaelMoore.Com

http://www.michaelmoore.com/

Link of the Week Ending:

Veterans for Common Sense

Our Mission:
Veterans for Common Sense seeks to inject the element of Common Sense into debates over war and national security. In an age when the majority of public servants have never served in uniform, the perspective of war veterans must play a key role in the public debate over national security issues in order to preserve the liberty veterans have fought and died preserving.
Veterans for Common Sense (VCS) was formed in 2002 by war veterans who believe that we, the people of the United States of America, are most secure when our country is strong and responsibly engaged with the world. Two years later, our organization has over 12,000 members throughout the United States.
Based on the pragmatic ideals of the American patriot Thomas Paine, VCS advocates a series of common sense principles to accomplish this vision for America

Link of the Week Beginning January 10, 2005

Conscientious Objection and Alternative Service

A conscientious objector is one who is opposed to serving in the armed forces and/or bearing arms on the grounds of moral or religious principles.

HOW TO APPLY

In general, once a man gets a notice that he has been found qualified for military service, he has the opportunity to make a claim for classification as a conscientious objector (CO). A registrant making a claim for Conscientious Objection is required to appear before his local board to explain his beliefs.

http://www.sss.gov/FSconsobj.htm

House GOP seen straying from pledges in 'Contract'
By Rick Klein /
The Boston Globe
WASHINGTON -- They stormed into Congress a decade ago, a fresh-faced band of Republican candidates brandishing a Contract with America that promised balanced budgets, ''citizen legislators" who would serve and return to the private sector, and a restored trust in the nation's elected leaders as the GOP took control of the House for the first time in 40 years.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=905

Palestine and Israel and George

I may very well be surprised, but, if Abbas is seen by his electorate as a 'puppet' to the USA there may very well be trouble. For that reason, George might not find a speedy acceptance of his invitation. I don't know what George is trying to say about Israel by 'inviting' Israel to help. Help with what? Israel has been deprived of loan guarantees and has substantial debt by Palestine. Israel has been very supportive to the effort of the elections. George again is making 'empty' gestures intended to create Isreal's response as if embarrassed into action.

Israel has REAL issues as well it needs to attend to:

"Meals for Israel"

http://www.meals4israel.com/

Brother, can you spare a meal?
Your donation will help feed the hungry in Israel. No matter the amount, you can help a brother.

http://www.meals4israel.com/lite/home.php

Palestine has a ways to go. In the article below one might note who Abbas is shaking hands with. It ain't George Bush. John Kerry has been in The Middle East during a historic time when the presence of an American President might make a difference in bring peace to the region. Before meeting with Mr. Abbas, John Kerry visited Syria to come to 'common terms' for a peaceful agreement with Israel. Coming to peaceful understandings with Syria is a very good initiative by John Kerry. It is most helpful.

Sharon to call to congratulate Abbas, set meeting

By Haaretz Staff
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was planning to telephone Palestinian president-elect Mahmoud Abbas today to congratulate him on Sunday's election victory. Government sources in Jerusalem said on Monday that arrangements were being made for a meeting between Abbas and Sharon in the coming days.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/525427.html

Bush Offers Talks with Abbas, Urges Israel to Help
By Adam Entous
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush on Monday promised newly elected Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas direct talks and proposed a White House meeting after years of shunning Yasser Arafat, and urged Abbas to quickly bolster Palestinian security forces to take on militants.

http://olympics.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=7283779

Poll brings Israel glimmer of hope

Mahmoud Abbas may be someone Israel can talk with
With a new Palestinian leader in place, all eyes are now on the kind of relationship Israel will form with him. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has said Mahmoud Abbas is a man Israel can do business with. But concessions will be necessary on both sides if the relationship between Israel and the Palestinians is to improve, says BBC Middle East reporter Lucy Williamson.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4163165.stm

Analysis / Revolt of no return
By Yossi Verter, Haaretz Correspondent
Smiling his closed smile, eyes half closed, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon gazed yesterday at the MKs of his own Likud Party, one-third of whom voted no-confidence in him, and at those of the left-wing Yahad-Meretz faction, who supported him almost unanimously, thereby giving him the majority he needed to establish his third government: the disengagement government.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/525772.html

Future of peace talks with Abbas
www.chinaview.cn 2005-01-11 13:57:08
BEIJING, Jan.11 -- Mahmoud Abbas won a landslide victory with almost two-thirds of the vote. The question is: is this large enough for a clear mandate to renew peace talks with Israel, to rein in militants and to unite the Palestinian Authority?

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-01/11/content_2444784.htm

I WOULD EXPECT BUSH'S APPROVAL RATING TO INCREASE. Bush took advice and focus from others outside his Neocon Cronies. One of the first to find 'purpose' in the disaster efforts was the new 'Chief' at CNN, and not as a political stunt either, but, a profoundly sincere effort to bring Relief Efforts to the countries of Banda Aceh, Sri Lanka, Thialand and India. As a focus in leadership, CNN launched a team of reporters to the area bringing a reality even Kofi Annan stated is unlike any devastation he has ever witnessed. Bush is finally becoming an instrument of LEGITIMATE peace and not one of illegitimate war. So noted his OLD agenda is stilll under fire, while thanks to Colin Powell the new agenda of peace and rescue with rehabilitation of The Indian Ocean region proves to be the initiative most agreeable with all Americans.

Poll: Bush's approval rating climbs
High marks given on tsunami, lower on Social Security and Iraq

http://www.cnn.com/2005/ALLPOLITICS/01/10/poll/index.html

BY CONTRAST, What the heck happened here? There is much to speculate about realizing the new sonar of these navy ships have been regarded as dangerous to the lives of Marine Mammals. Is this the new sonar that failed and if not was this an agenda or accident to attempt to prove a point regarding the old sonar. Either way a sailor is dead and others injured creating even more questions and concerns.

Officials: U.S. submarine hit undersea mountain
From Mike Mount
CNN Washington Bureau
Monday, January 10, 2005 Posted: 3:24 PM EST (2024 GMT)

The USS San Francisco, pictured in this file photo, ran aground south of Guam

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Navy submarine accident that killed one sailor and injured 24 others occurred when the vessel -- traveling at high speed -- hit an undersea mountain head-on, Pentagon officials said Monday.

Saturday's accident caused part of the sonar dome, which is part of the submarine's nose, to flood, officials said.

The commander of the USS San Francisco, Kevin Mooney, has not been relieved of duty while the investigation of the accident continues.
Mooney could be relieved of duty if officials determine there is enough evidence that the accident could have been averted.

The investigation will look at the sub's speed, its location and whether the undersea formation was on navigational charts, officials said.
The submarine was traveling in excess of 30 knots -- about 35 mph -- when its nose hit the undersea formation head-on, officials said.
The nuclear submarine docked Monday at a U.S. naval base in Guam, a spokesman with the U.S. Pacific Fleet said.

The San Francisco was escorted to port by U.S. Navy and Coast Guard vessels, according to Lt. j.g. Adam Clampitt. The submarine suffered "some external damage," he said.

"The injured sailors are being treated at a U.S. military medical facility on Guam and will be transferred to other facilities -- possibly Pearl Harbor in Hawaii or Okinawa in Japan -- as necessary," Clampitt said.

According to a military statement, the injuries included "broken bones, lacerations, bruises and a back injury."

The accident occurred about 350 miles (560 kilometers) south of Guam, the U.S. Navy said. There were 137 crew on board at the time of the accident.
Machinist Mate 2nd Class Joseph Allen Ashley, 24, of Akron, Ohio, died Sunday from injuries suffered in the accident, Clampitt said. "The Navy continues to offer its sincerest condolences and prayers to the family and friends of Petty Officer Ashley," he said.

Navy sources said the submarine was en route to Brisbane, Australia, for a port visit at the time of the accident. There was no damage to the sub's nuclear reactor, according to Clampitt.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/01/10/nuclear.submarine.update/

THEN there is this. "Influence Peddling" which is illegal under Racketerring Laws of this country. I think Bush forgot to dismantle the Racketerring Laws when he came into office. Oops, another reason to 'can' Johnny Ashcroft.

Bush administration paid columnist to push its agenda
Last Updated Mon, 10 Jan 2005 15:22:03 EST
CBC Arts
WASHINGTON - The Bush administration paid Armstrong Williams, a prominent Washington columnist, to promote its education policy, possibly violating U.S. law.
Williams has admitted taking money in return for spotlighting the so-called No Child Left Behind education initiative.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/01/10/Arts/armstrong050110.html

Climate Change is a 'Bitch' isn't it? Sorta makes everyone wish they 'listened' to the experts before they got into this mess. But, I thought Bush's technology could handle all this? Huh? Well, so far Bush is 'ZERO' for 100's of thousands, including a tsunami. Does everything Bush does have to get to Bibilical proportions BEFORE he finds science to be correct? That's leadership? I don't call that leadership? You know, at least Gore went to Antarctica.



12 Missing After Calif. Mudslide

By JEFF WILSON
Associated Press Writer
LA CONCHITA, Calif.
A huge mudslide crashed down on homes in a coastal hamlet with terrifying force Monday, killing at least one person and leaving up to 12 missing as a Pacific storm hammered Southern California for a fourth straight day.

Los Angeles utility workers Doug Quintal, left, and Eric Lawrence pass a two-story house that collapsed after a mudslide Monday Jan 10, 2005, in the Coldwater Canyon section of Los Angeles. Authorities said a father and his two children were pulled from the rubble of the home. The father had minor injuries. Nine deaths have been linked to a series of storms pounding Southern California that have unleashed flash floods and mudslides, forced evacuations and closed roads and schools. (AP Photo/Nick Ut) Height (pixels): 342 Width (pixels): 512

http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050110/APA/501101014

The 'Exclusive' footage obtained by CNN was not be believed. That was a wall of earth that became literally a slippery slope promising to be even more than it was.

Mudslide crashes onto coastal hamlet
One dead, 15 injured and up to 12 missing
Monday, January 10, 2005 Posted: 9:05 PM EST (0205 GMT)

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/01/10/storm.rdp.ap/index.html


One person killed after mudslide
1/10/2005 6:25 PM
By: Capital News 9 web staff

A mudslide in Southern California has killed at least one person and damaged at least 15 homes.

http://www.capitalnews9.com/content/headlines/?ArID=112818&SecID=33

I GUESS this was all necessary but in reality Bush does not have an admirable record and literally was AWOL. So who is kidding who here. If CBS felt a responsibility to bring this issue to light to count act the Propaganda of the Bush Swift Boat crew then they did the right thing. In fact the issue was refocused, it was just that the partisanship of the electorate didn't care that Bush was actually a coward !

Panel Finds CBS News Rushed Report on Bush's Guard Record
By JACQUES STEINBERG
and BILL CARTER
Published: January 10, 2005
Mary Mapes, the producer involved in the flawed CBS report.

Andrew Heyward, was kept on as president of CBS News. In November, Dan Rather announced that he was stepping down.

Betsy West, a senior vice president at CBS News, and Josh Howard, an executive producer, were urged to resign.

An independent panel convened by CBS to investigate a discredited broadcast about President Bush's Vietnam-era National Guard service has concluded that the network's news division rushed the report onto the air in September in a frenetic dash to beat its competitors. The report also says the network failed to seriously consider contradictory information raised not only before the segment was aired but for nearly two weeks afterward.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/10/business/media/10cnd-cbs.html?hp&ex=1105419600&en=a249147866098207&ei=5094&partner=homepage

CAPE TRAFALGAR JOURNAL
Where Nelson Triumphed, a Battle Rages Over Windmills
By MARLISE SIMONS

APE TRAFALGAR, Spain - Near this blustery headland where Admiral Nelson won his great naval victory over the French two centuries ago, a new battle of Trafalgar is brewing.
Power-generating turbines, like these in Tarifa, Spain, are aided by state subsidies. Now, two companies want to build windmills in the sea nearby.

http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2005/01/10/international/10trafalgar.ready.html


Survey: Mass attendance steady amid crisis
January 10, 2005
NEW YORK -- The clergy sex abuse crisis that has battered the U.S. Roman Catholic Church for three years has had little impact on Mass attendance, according a study released Monday.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/01/10/survey_mass_attendance_steady_amid_crisis/

Gov't targets atheist's inauguration suit
January 10, 2005
WASHINGTON -- The government is asking a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit by an atheist who wants to bar the saying of a prayer at President Bush's inauguration, calling the practice widely accepted and more than 200 years old, according to a court filing released Monday.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/01/10/govt_targets_atheists_inauguration_suit/

DISCRIMINATION??

Companies turn to personality profiles for hiring
Companies embrace personality profiles for prospective employees
By Diane E. Lewis, Globe Staff, 1/9/05
Getting a job isn't just about your business sense. It's also about your sense of humor, cynicism, or persistence.

http://bostonworks.boston.com/globe/articles/010905_personality.html


Will you try to get a new job in 2005?
Yes, I need a job, period
48.0%
Yes, I plan to switch
41.5%
No, I'm happy where I am
6.4%
No current plans to
4.2%
Total votes: 1001

http://bostonworks.boston.com/globe/articles/010905_personality.html

At 910 PM a mixture of light rain...freezing rain...sleet and snow was over north central Illinois and northwest Indiana. The precipitation is moving northeast around 20 mph. Ice accumulations between a tenth and two tenths are possible overnight into Tuesday morning. A mixture of snow and ice will cause roads and walkways to become slippery travel with caution.

http://weather.chicagotribune.com/US/IL/Chicago/KORD.html?main=1

Watchdog group says Peoples Gas overcharged customers
By The Associated Press
Published January 10, 2005, 5:57 PM CST
The Citizens Utility Board has increased to $149 million the amount of money it believes Peoples Gas overcharged customers due to secret deals with Enron Corp.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-050110peoples,1,7802132.story?coll=chi-business-hed&ctrack=1&cset=true

2 Dead in La Conchita Landslide
Deaths bring to 11 the number of people killed in Southern California during the recent wave of storms.

By Steve Chawkins and Daryl Kelley, Times Staff Writers
Super-saturated land tumbled down a mountain today, picking up speed and deadly power before it hit a neighborhood in the coastal community of La Conchita in Ventura County, killing at least two people, injuring nine and leaving at least six missing, fire officials said.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-011005rain_lat,0,5031234.story?coll=la-home-headlines

4 Jailed Iranians Awaiting Release
A judge has given the U.S. until Feb. 20 to free the Mirmehdi brothers, held since 2001 in an immigration case.
By H.G. Reza, Times Staff Writer
Confined to the Terminal Island immigration jail for more than three years, the Mirmehdi brothers cannot help wondering whether they are somehow beyond the law.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-brothers10jan10,0,4948583.story?coll=la-home-local>

3 Dead in Ohio River Tugboat Accident
From Associated Press
INDUSTRY, Pa. — A tugboat and three barges sank Sunday after being swept over a dam spillway on the Ohio River by currents made stronger by heavy rains, killing three crew members. One person was missing and believed to be aboard the sunken boat

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-tug10jan10,0,3578319.story?coll=la-home-nation

I FIND THIS UNFORTUNATE. Don't quite understand why. This is clearly an issue of Civil Rights and not State's Rights. Are we becoming a nation of regressive Civil Rights and conformity?

U.S. Supreme Court declines to hear Florida gay-adoption case
BY JENNIFER BABSON
jbabson@herald.com
keys flnews
Silently sidestepping a thorny social issue, the U.S. Supreme Court declined today to hear an appeal by four gay Florida men who unsuccessfully challenged the state's ban on adoptions by gay couples -- the only blanket law of its kind in the nation.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/10610775.htm?1c

Two Dead After Calif. Mudslide
JEFF WILSON
Associated Press
LA CONCHITA, Calif. - A huge mudslide crashed down on homes in a coastal hamlet with terrifying force Monday, killing at two people and leaving up to 12 missing as a Pacific storm hammered Southern California for a fourth straight day.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/10612544.htm

Firm ordered to stop toxin distribution
By ASHLEY FANTZ AND SARA OLKON
solkon@herald.com
A federal judge on Monday essentially shut down an Arizona company that distributed an anti-wrinkle product that is far less potent than the one allegedly responsible for paralyzing four South Floridians.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/breaking_news/10612052.htm

Troubled waters for manatee plan
Broward hopes to enact a manatee protection plan this year, but boating advocates have reservations about proposed restrictions on new docks, ramps and marinas.
BY SAMUEL P. NITZE
snitze@herald.com
As Broward County officials craft the last piece of a state-mandated manatee protection plan, their work has drawn sharp criticism from another group that considers itself endangered: the marine industry.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/weather/environment/10609911.htm

Denying rape victims
OUR OPINION: RESTORE CONTRACEPTION OPTION TO GUIDELINES
The same Justice Department that draped cloth over a nude statue at its Washington, D.C., headquarters has issued new rape-treatment guidelines that omit offering information about emergency contraception to victims of sexual attacks. The policy is wrongheaded and foolish. It could cause women to carry to full term unwanted pregnancies perpetrated by criminals.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/10606789.htm

The New Zealand Herald

Sunday to be memorial day for tsunami dead
11.01.05 12.00pm

A memorial day for the thousands killed in last month's Asian tsunami will be held on January 16, Prime Minister Helen Clark announced today.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=1&ObjectID=9006213

Abbas win and new Sharon coalition boost peace hopes

11.01.05 1.00pm
By Mohammed Assadi

RAMALLAH, WEST BANK - Middle East peace hopes were boosted on Monday local time when Mahmoud Abbas was elected Palestinian president and the Israeli parliament endorsed Ariel Sharon's new coalition to implement his planned Gaza pull-out.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=9006205

Yushchenko confirmed as Ukraine's president

11.01.05 10.45am

KIEV - Ukraine's Central Election Commission formally declared today that liberal Viktor Yushchenko won last month's presidential election with 51.99 per cent of the vote, paving the way for him to take power.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=9006200

Milosevic lawyers renew bid to withdraw from case

11.01.05 1.00pm

AMSTERDAM - Lawyers appointed to defend former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic have renewed their bid to withdraw from his war crimes trial, according to papers released on Monday by the court.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=9006207

The weather in Antarctica (Crystal Wind Chime) is:

Scott Base

Some cloud

1.0° - That's above zero. This is Antarctica, okay?

Updated Tuesday 11 Jan 9:59PM

end