Morning Papers -- concluding

The Cheney Observer

Halliburton: House Summons NNPC, Chevron

This Day (Lagos)
April 28, 2005
Posted to the web April 28, 2005
Mike Oduniyi
Lagos
The House of Represent-atives has summoned the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), US oil firm ChevronTexaco and their partners involved in the award of contracts to embattled oil services company, Halliburton.
THISDAY checks revealed that Speaker Aminu Bello Masari issued the directive on Monday to summon the oil companies following a protest from House Committee on Public Petitions over the recent award of $1.7 billion contract to a consortium of foreign companies that included Halliburton subsidiary, KBR.
The House had late last year, passed a motion recommending the ban of Halliburton and its unit, KBR, until the conclusion of an investigation into alleged payment of $180 million bribe by KBR to some Nigerian government officials to win LNG contracts.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200504280116.html

Contracts for Halliburton Again?
This Day (Lagos)
EDITORIAL
May 4, 2005
Posted to the web May 4, 2005
Lagos
The ambivalence in certain actions of the Obasanjo Administration may undermine the current campaign against corruption. In one breadth, government officials talk of a new resolve to root out corruption, and in another, they take actions that only leave a huge question on their sincerity.
In our calculation, there is no greater proof of such ambiguity than the recent decision by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its joint venture partner, ChevronTexaco, to award a $1.7 billion contract to KBR, a subsidiary of Halliburton of the United States. The contract is for the engineering, procurement and construction of gas-to-liquid (GTL) plant in Escravos.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200505040647.html

Again, Halliburton
EDITORIAL
May 5, 2005
Posted to the web May 5, 2005
Lagos
Halliburton, the Houston, Texas, United States of America (USA) based oil firm, has again, through its subsidiary, Kellogg, Brown and Root (KBR) been awarded another mouth watering contract by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The new contract, which disclosure was made to a foreign news agency, Bloomberg News by spokeswoman of the group, Jennifer W. Dellinger, is worth $1.7 billion. It is for the construction of a gas-to-liquid plant in the country. The project has a completion date of 2008.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200505050106.html

Intrusion Inc. Retains Halliburton Investor Relations as Counsel; Company to Begin Enhanced Shareholder Communications and Outreach Program
RICHARDSON, Texas, April 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Intrusion Inc.(Nasdaq: INTZ), ("Intrusion") today announced it has retained HalliburtonInvestor Relations ("HIR") to assist the company in its efforts to communicatewith the investment community.Ward Paxton, Chief Executive Officer of Intrusion, commented, "We arepleased to enter into this partnership with Halliburton Investor Relations.The firm has a proven track record of implementing successful investorrelations programs for publicly traded companies, and we believe they willhelp us to broaden our visibility and communicate effectively with theinvestment community."
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/04-28-2005/0003491673&EDATE=

Halliburton Makes a Killing on Iraq War
Cheney's Former Company Profits from Supporting Troops
by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch
March 20th, 2003
As the first bombs rain down on Baghdad, CorpWatch has learned that thousands of employees of Halliburton, Vice President Dick Cheney's former company, are working alongside US troops in Kuwait and Turkey under a package deal worth close to a billion dollars. According to US Army sources, they are building tent cities and providing logistical support for the war in Iraq in addition to other hot spots in the "war on terrorism."
While recent news coverage has speculated on the post-war reconstruction gravy train that corporations like Halliburton stand to gain from, this latest information indicates that Halliburton is already profiting from war time contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=6008

IRAQ: Making a killing: the big business of war
Doug Lorimer
While nearly 100,000 Iraqis and 1600 US troops have died as a result of the Iraq war and tens of thousands have been severely wounded, the war has proven to be extremely lucrative for the Houston-based oil services company Halliburton and the San Francisco-based construction company Bechtel. These are the two largest private contractors to the US occupation forces in Iraq.
Iraq war and “reconstruction” contracts helped Halliburton to turn a profit in the first quarter of this year, after the company suffered a loss of US$65 million in the first quarter of last year after paying out $4.2 billion in asbestos lawsuit settlements.

http://www.greenleft.org.au/back/2005/625/625p20.htm

Shell Awards Halliburton Contract for Integrated Drilling Services in Gulf of Mexico
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 2, 2005--Halliburton's (NYSE:HAL) Energy Services Group has been awarded a two-year contract, with the option for an additional year, by Shell Exploration & Production Company to provide 40 percent of Shell's integrated drilling services for their Gulf of Mexico activities. The value of the contract is estimated at $24 million for the fixed two-year duration and includes the provision of directional drilling, measurement-while-drilling (MWD), and logging-while-drilling (LWD).
"Halliburton is very pleased to have been awarded this significant contract, which expands our important relationship with Shell," said Tim Probert, senior vice president, Halliburton's Drilling and Formation Division. "We have invested people, time, and money to stay at the forefront of technology development and ensure a sustainable future, aimed at meeting the current and future needs of our customers."

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20050502006166&newsLang=en

After Year Of Freedom, Hamill Reflects On Life Changes
POSTED: 9:01 am CDT May 2, 2005
JACKSON, Miss. -- Thomas Hamill still drives the same 1995 white Dodge pickup truck, despite its lack of air conditioning.
Hamill said he will keep it until the wheels fall off.
Life has changed for the former truck driver in the year since his capture during a bloody April 9, 2004, ambush near Baghdad International Airport. The farmer-turned-truck driver has co-authored a book of his experiences and is on the speaking circuit.
Hamill, 44, of Macon, was employed by KBR, a subsidiary of Houston-based Halliburton, when the ambush occurred. Five others in the convoy died. Hamill was shot in the arm before his capture.
Monday marks the year anniversary of Hamill's escape after 24 days in captivity.
Hamill said he hopes to return to his life as a dairy farmer in the coming months. He has purchased a new tractor and a used hay baler to go along with his decades-old farm equipment. He hopes to buy cattle by the end of the year.
Hamill and co-author Paul Brown are currently touring the country in support of their book "Escape In Iraq: The Thomas Hamill Story."

http://www.thejacksonchannel.com/news/4438222/detail.html

Halliburton Successfully Installs New Sand Control System for Saudi Aramco
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 4, 2005--Halliburton's (NYSE:HAL) Production Optimization Division has successfully installed the first PoroFlex(R) expandable completion system on the Arabian Peninsula for Saudi Aramco. The sand control technique of expanding screen in an open hole provides a solution for slim-hole side track re-completions that maximize the reservoir exposure while maintaining a sufficiently large internal diameter to allow the desired production rates. In addition, maintaining full bore access facilitates remedial operation during the life of the well.

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20050504005496&newsLang=en

Halliburton and NSI Technologies sign software development and license agreement
by: OilOnline
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
Halliburton's Fluid Systems Division and NSI Technologies have signed an exclusive agreement to adapt NSI's fully 3D hydraulic fracture model, E STIM PLAN, for use in cuttings and drilling waste injection modeling.
"We are excited about working with Halliburton, especially since the world's largest pressure pumping company has chosen to participate in this growing field of cuttings and drilling waste injection," said Mike Smith, president of NSI Technologies Inc. "NSI's expertise in hydraulic fracture modeling and Halliburton's global capabilities and expertise will allow Halliburton to offer one of the most complete cuttings injection services in the industry."

http://www.oilonline.com/news/headlines/business/20050504.Hallibur.17878.asp

Shots disrupted officers' 3rd visit to home
By LEON ALLIGOOD
Staff Writer
Trousdale sheriff: Officers did everything they could to avoid a shootout
HARTSVILLE, Tenn. — Three times within 24 hours, from Wednesday night until Thursday afternoon, Trousdale County deputies traveled down the twisting rural road to the small farmhouse with a tin roof and vinyl siding.
Three times, Jerry Halliburton wouldn't come out when asked. A man with a history of mental illness, Halliburton on Thursday morning had called the Secret Service in Nashville and made a threat against the White House.

http://www.tennessean.com/local/archives/05/03/69230546.shtml?Element_ID=69230546

Halliburton-owned firm gets bonuses
The Washington Post
WASHINGTON — The Army said Tuesday that it had awarded an additional $72 million in bonuses to Halliburton Co. subsidiary Kellogg Brown & Root for logistics support of the Iraq war.
The Army said it graded the company's performance “very good” or “excellent.”
Halliburton's work in Iraq has been controversial because an early contract to rebuild oil fields was awarded without competition and because auditors had challenged its billings on some work. Vice President Dick Cheney was Halliburton's chief executive from 1995 to 2000.

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/nation/11615344.htm

US Terrorism: Halliburton in Bed with Iran
by HalliburtonWatch.Org

In July 2004, Halliburton faced a criminal inquiry into its business ties with Iran.
Halliburton reported that it received a subpoena from a grand jury investigating its business ties with Iran, a nation President Bush says sponsors terrorism.
The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has been investigating Halliburton since 2001 to determine whether it violated the ban on U.S. companies doing business with Iran.

http://www.conspiracyplanet.com/channel.cfm?channelid=118&contentid=2175

HYDRAULIC FRACTURING DEREGULATION: HALLIBURTON PAYOFF?
The yield of every natural gas and oil well eventually declines. Once that happens, more significant measures are needed to keep the well producing. One of the more popular — and increasingly controversial— techniques is hydraulic fracturing, commonly called fracing (pronounced "fracking"). This is most commonly used to extend the life of coalbed methane wells.
Fracing involves pumping highly pressurized fluids deep underground. This cracks geologic formations and forces oil and natural gas to rise so they can be more easily extracted — thus extending the useful life of oil and gas wells. The problem is that fracing could pollute aquifers, permanently alter the patterns and integrity of local hydrogeology, and even destroy nearby private wells. The most common fluid used is made up of water and sand — but sometimes it contains methanol, oil, MTBE, diesel fuel, or other toxicants.

http://notes.sej.org/sej/tipsheet.nsf/0/c159f09b0fdbc5e386256ffe004f84b0?OpenDocument

Overwhelming Support for Lawsuit Against Cheney
by JUDICIAL WATCH
(Washington, DC) Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption and abuse, said today that the lawsuit it brought on behalf of Halliburton shareholders against Vice President Dick Cheney, the other involved directors of Halliburton, as well as Halliburton and the Arthur Andersen accounting firm, for alleged fraudulent accounting practices, enjoys overwhelming public support.
A CNN poll, featured on the Internet web site of Lou Dobbs, the anchor and managing editor of "Lou Dobb's Moneyline" ­ the prestigious and authoritative financial and business news program ­ revealed that 95% of the respondents answered "Yes" to the question, "Should Vice President Dick Cheney answer questions about accounting at Halliburton?"
A similar poll on the Judicial Watch web site (www.JudicialWatch.org) shows 83% of respondents answering "Yes" to the question, "Should Vice president Cheney be required to answer accounting questions about Halliburton?"
Interestingly, both the "Moneyline" and Judicial Watch web sites are likely frequented by large numbers of economic and social conservatives.

http://www.conspiracyplanet.com/channel.cfm?channelid=118&contentid=518

Michael Moore Today

http://www.michaelmoore.com/

Michael Isikoff is at it again...

Newsweek Says Koran Desecration Report is Wrong

Newsweek says Koran desecration report is wrong
By David Morgan / Reuters
WASHINGTON - Newsweek magazine said on Sunday it erred in a May 9 report that U.S. interrogators desecrated the Koran at Guantanamo Bay, and apologized to the victims of deadly Muslim protests sparked by the article.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=2652

How Many Mistakes Can Newsweek's Michael Isikoff Make?

Will Isikoff Finally Knock-It-Off?
Never mind that the New York Times has already asserted that all the facts in “Fahrenheit 9/11” check-out (see Philip Shenon’s “ Will Michael Moore’s Facts Check Out?”), Newsweek’s chief investigative reporter Michael Isikoff has made it his mission to discredit the film. After issuing a sharp response to Isikoff’s first swipe at the film (“Under the Hot Lights,” Newsweek, June 28th), Craig Unger, author of “House of Bush, House of Saud,” is back to expose Isikoff’s latest distortions. Here is Unger's point-by-point clarification (The following is also available on his website www.houseofbush.com):

http://www.michaelmoore.com/warroom/index.php?id=3

The Newsweek-Fahrenheit Wars, Part 3
July 3, 2004
How Many Mistakes Can Newsweek's Michael Isikoff Make?
by Craig Unger
How many mistakes can Michael Isikoff make? In his zealous campaign to discredit Fahrenheit 9/11, Newsweek's star investigative reporter has already made at least seven errors, distortions and selective omissions of crucial information.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/warroom/index.php?id=3

Islamic group declares Jihad over Koran incident

Islamic group declares Jihad against US, Afghan forces over Koran incident
KABUL (AFP) - An Islamic group reportedly linked to Afghanistan's ousted Taliban regime declared Jihad, or holy war, against US-led troops and the Afghan government over the alleged desecration of the Koran by US interrogators.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=2653

Police open fire on crowd in excess of 460 rounds of ammunition (FBI estimate) in less than a minute

Jackson State University Killings
Wikipedia
The Jackson State killings occurred on May 14-15, 1970, at Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi. A group of student protesters were confronted by the police and National Guardsmen. The police opened fire killing two students and injuring twelve.
The causes of the riots are believed to be the Vietnam War, the May 4 Kent State shootings, and racial tensions. A mob of around a hundred black students had gathered on (John R.) Lynch Street following rumours of the murder of Charles Evers. By around 2130 hours the students had started fires and overturned vehicles, including a large truck. Firefighters dispatched to the scene quickly requested police support.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=2648

The May 1970 Tragedy at Jackson State University
"Lest We Forget..."
In the Spring of 1970, campus communities across this country were characterized by a chorus of protests and demonstrations. The issues were the escalation of the war in Vietnam and the U.S. invasion of Cambodia; the ecology; racism and repression; and the inclusion of the experiences of women and minorities in the educational system. No institution of higher education was leftuntouched by confrontations and continuous calls for change.

http://ccaix.jsums.edu/%7Ewww/gg02a.htm

Democrats Move to Slow Action on Bolton
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate consideration of John R. Bolton to be ambassador to the United Nations is unlikely before the end of May because of Democratic objections to an earlier vote, Majority Leader Bill Frist's spokesman says.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=2646

The Boston Globe

The art of the interview, US style
By Diane E. Lewis, Globe Staff, 5/15/05
Brandeis University professor Andrew Molinsky will never forget the conversations he had with newly settled Russian refugees who wanted to find work with US employers.
Molinsky, a volunteer at the nonprofit Jewish Vocational Service in Boston, taught refugees about the fine art of the American interview. He told them to make direct eye contact, deliver a vigorous hand shake, make small talk and be honest - but not too honest.

http://bostonworks.boston.com/globe/articles/051505_interview.html

Malfunctioning sprinklers drench tunnel
Police close roads for 45 minutes
By Maria Cramer, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
For about 45 minutes yesterday, Ryan Maines felt like the star of an action movie, but the experience was anything but glamorous.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2005/05/16/malfunctioning_sprinklers_drench_tunnel/

Falling water
May 16, 2005
MOST HOMEOWNERS in Massachusetts view ground water as an occasional nuisance that seeps into their basements, soaks their box of stored holiday decorations, or rusts their tools. But for a small minority of owners, a certain level of ground water is crucial to the stability of their buildings. When ground water levels fall in Boston's Back Bay, South End, and other neighborhoods, the tops of the wooden piles supporting house foundations are exposed to air, speeding the growth of fungi and bacteria that weaken the wood.

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2005/05/16/falling_water/

Neb. university delays CDC probe into tularemia infections at BU lab
Scientist cites analysis concerns
By Stephen Smith, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
A federal investigation into how a supposedly harmless batch of tularemia bacteria at Boston University became contaminated with a lethal strain has been delayed by the reluctance of another university to provide samples needed in the probe.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/05/16/neb_university_delays_cdc_probe_into_tularemia_infections_at_bu_lab/

Passage of marriage amendment in doubt
By Raphael Lewis, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
Last of two parts
One year after same-sex marriage became legal in Massachusetts, the fate of a proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage and create civil unions is in serious doubt because several lawmakers who voted for the measure are openly rethinking their support.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/05/16/passage_of_marriage_amendment_in_doubt/

An unpopular stance alienates a gay male
May 16, 2005
Brian Brandt, 33, remembers where he was a year ago, when the first same-sex marriage licenses were issued in Massachusetts. ''I was at home," he said. ''I think I had the warshades down and I was listening to talk radio, and I was mourning the loss of an important part of our country's foundation."

http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/an_unpopular_stance_alienates_a_gay_male/

A ceremonial event evolves into wedding
May 16, 2005
For Judi Burgess, a single word changed everything.

She and her partner, Rebecca Rehm, had been planning a commitment ceremony for months before the Supreme Judicial Court decision legalizing gay marriage.

http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/a_ceremonial_event_evolves_into_wedding/

Expansive coverage fuels his indifference
May 16, 2005
John Horne has had enough of this whole gay marriage thing.

''It's kind of like 'Desperate Housewives,' " he said. ''I'm not interested in it, so I really don't care."

http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/expansive_coverage_fuels_his_indifference/

For new father, issue begins to resonate
May 16, 2005
Before the first gay marriages, Tom Balish said, he was like a lot of people who opposed same-sex marriage: ''Asleep at the switch."
ADVERTISEMENT
But seeing images of women marrying women and men marrying men -- first in San Francisco, then in Massachusetts -- transformed the issue for him. Suddenly, it was no longer an abstract concept.

http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/for_new_father_issue_begins_to_resonate/

Exiting a closet, entering a newfound life of happiness
May 16, 2005
It was an outdoor wedding, Memorial Day weekend. One bride wore a flowing gown in pale pink. The other -- Erika Scibelli's mother -- wore white linen pants, a long linen duster, and a smile like her daughter had never seen.

http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/exiting_a_closet_entering_a_newfound_life_of_happiness/

Gays' supporters denied Eucharist
Over 100 wore rainbow sashes at Minn. service
By Joshua Freed, Associated Press May 16, 2005
ST. PAUL -- A Roman Catholic priest denied Communion to more than 100 people yesterday, saying they could not receive the sacrament because they wore rainbow-colored sashes to church to show support for gay Catholics.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/16/gays_supporters_denied_eucharist/

Governors target employee benefits
Cite fairness, cost in seeking change
By Charles Stein, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
PROVIDENCE -- A number of governors around the nation are taking aim at the benefits paid to public employees -- which, in many cases, are far richer than those offered to workers in private industry.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/16/states_target_benefits_for/

Saudis lobby to limit liability on additive
Gas agent found in N.E. water
By Susan Milligan, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
WASHINGTON -- A company largely owned by the Saudi government has spent more than $1.5 million since 1998 lobbying Congress to shield the chemical industry from liability for damages caused by MTBE, a potentially cancer-causing gasoline additive that has seeped into water supplies across New England, according to federal documents.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/16/saudis_lobby_to_limit_liability_on_additive/

11 killed as tension persists over Uzbek uprising
More than 500 said to flee to Kyrgyzstan
By Bagila Bukharbayeva, Associated Press May 16, 2005
FERGANA, Uzbekistan -- Eight Uzbek soldiers and three Islamic militants died in a clash near the Kyrgyz border yesterday, and more than 500 Uzbeks fled to safety across the frontier, witnesses said, regarding the spreading violence that further threatened stability in this Central Asia country, a key American ally and host to an important US military outpost.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/articles/2005/05/16/11_killed_as_tension_persists_over_uzbek_uprising/

Russians reportedly rewarded with oil
Ex-Hussein aides are cited in probe into food program
By Ken Guggenheim, Associated Press May 16, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Former top representatives in Saddam Hussein's government have told congressional investigators they provided millions of dollars worth of oil allocations to Russian leaders in hopes of ending UN penalties against Iraq.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2005/05/16/russians_reportedly_rewarded_with_oil/

The Australian

Millions sought for deportee
Cath Hart and Simon Kearney
May 16, 2005
ONE of Australia's most eminent lawyers is flying to Manila today to initiate an unprecedented multi-million-dollar compensation claim against the Howard Government for the wrongful deportation of an Australian citizen.
Former Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission president Marcus Einfeld said yesterday he believed compensation to Vivian Young should be at least $1500 a day for false imprisonment.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15300137%255E601,00.html

Dust bowl was once a brimming lake
Natasha Robinson
May 16, 2005
RETIRED farmer Lindsay Leidh kicks the saltbush in the dried-up lake he calls his backyard and remembers when it held water.
"It was beautiful to see the big shiny lake out there, lovely fishermen and everything. It was their favourite fishing spot years ago," he says.
But it's eight years since Lake Natimuk in central-western Victoria held water.
Once a recreational hub for the nearby towns of the Victorian wheatbelt, now its crackly bed could fit more than 100 Olympic swimming pools.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15300143%255E601,00.html

Abu Ghraib villain's saga of love and betrayal
Sarah Baxter, New York
May 16, 2005
IF a television movie of the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal is ever made, the grotesque pictures of naked Iraqi detainees stacked in a human pyramid may be merely the backdrop to a saga of obsession, infidelity and betrayal.
Charles Graner, a former corporal who is serving a 10-year sentence for his role as the ringleader of a sadistic group of army reservists, recently married a fellow guard but is not allowed to see his bride because of her complicity in the abuse of inmates at Abu Ghraib.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15299833%255E601,00.html

Uzbek uprising toll 'near 500'
Reuters, AFP
May 16, 2005
THE families of some of the estimated 500 people killed by Uzbek troops in Andizhan buried their dead yesterday to the sound of continued sniper fire in the eastern town.
Two days after an uprising in the mostly Muslim Central Asian state's Ferghana Valley, wet blood and body parts hastily covered in soil coat the pavements, streets and gutters in the centre of this leafy city of 300,000 people.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15300001%255E2703,00.html

Zimbabwe frees suspected mercenaries
AFP
May 15, 2005
JOHANNESBURG: A group of 62 suspected mercenaries jailed in Zimbabwe has been freed and arrived back in South Africa, a relative of one of the men and their lawyer said Sunday.
"The guys are here in South Africa and officials are busy processing their papers," said Marge Pain, whose husband Ken was one of 70 men arrested in March last year when their plane stopped at Harare airport to pick up weapons.
Zimbabwean authorities alleged the guns were to be used to unseat President Teodoro Obiang Nguema, leader of oil-rich Equatorial Guinea.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15300681%255E31477,00.html

100 feared dead in ferry accident
From correspondents in Dhaka
May 16, 2005
BANGLADESH authorities fear at least 100 people have drowned after a ferry capsized in a remote area of the country's south.
Six people were confirmed dead yesterday but it is feared many more bodies were washed away in stormy weather or are trapped in the upturned vessel.
The ferry, carrying villagers to a local weekly market, had a capacity of 80 but probably had at least double that number on board.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15302877%255E1702,00.html

Storm destruction hits state
By Tim Clarke
May 16, 2005
A FEROCIOUS storm has ripped through the south-west of Western Australia, with severe winds and torrential rain closing roads, damaging buildings, felling trees, bringing down power lines and closing schools.
Although no injuries have been reported, hundreds of State Emergency Service (SES) volunteers have been called out to incidents across Perth and further south, with thousands of residents waking up to severe damage.
The town of Bunbury, 180km south of Perth, appears to have been the

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15302874%255E1702,00.html

PM challenged on whale slaughter
May 16, 2005
FEDERAL Labor today demanded to know how much the Government knew about the slaughter of 400 whales in Australian waters by Japanese whalers.
The numbers raised serious questions as to why the Government failed to stop the activity, Opposition environment spokesman Anthony Albanese said.
Japan is expected to go to a meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in June asking to extend its scientific whaling program to include humpback whales – an endangered species which underpins a whale-watching industry in Australia.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15302816%255E1702,00.html

Mini-tornado batters WA
May 16, 2005
THERE are reports of a "mini tornado" in Western Australia, with thousands of homes blacked out by heavy rain and fierce winds.
An ABC report said winds in excess of 140km/h had battered the coast today.
Reporters in the broadcaster's Bunbury newsroom fled with only moments to spare when a 38m crane fell and crushed much of their building.
"It's absolute chaos," rural reporter Babs McHugh was quoted as saying.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15302391%255E1702,00.html

Sydney Morning Herald

Severe storms batter Western Australia
May 16, 2005 - 12:06PM
Perth's main roads are jammed with traffic following a wild storm that left a crane in danger of toppling onto a highway, covered roads in debris, blacked out traffic lights and flooded suburban thoroughfares.
Bureau of Meteorology WA duty forecaster Noel Puzey said a cold front embedded with a line of severe thunderstorms swept across the state's south-western coast about 6am (WST) today.
Wind gusts peaked at 140 kmh at Rottnest Island, just off the coast of Perth, and reached 100 kmh in Perth suburbs, leaving tens of thousands of residents without power.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Severe-storms-batter-Western-Australia/2005/05/16/1116095890547.html

Storm rips through corner of WA
May 16, 2005 - 1:54PM
A ferocious storm has ripped through the south-west of Western Australia, with severe winds and torrential rain closing roads, damaging buildings, felling trees, bringing down power lines and closing schools.
Although no injuries have been reported, hundreds of State Emergency Service (SES) volunteers have been called out to incidents across Perth and further south, with thousands of residents waking up to severe damage.
The town of Bunbury, 180km south of Perth, appears to have been the worst affected by the line of severe thunderstorms, which swept across the state's south-western coastline about 6am (WST) on Monday.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Storm-rips-through-corner-of-WA/2005/05/16/1116095894463.html

600 abducted students rescued in Nepal
May 16, 2005 - 6:09AM
Soldiers rescued about 600 students after they were abducted by communist rebels in western Nepal, army officials said.
The students were rescued during an operation in the mountainous Niskot village, said a statement issued by the Royal Nepalese Army headquarters in the capital, Katmandu.
No other details were immediately available.
Communist rebels had abducted the students from their classrooms in recent days in a series of bold kidnappings in the neighbouring Tahanu and Palpa districts, about 300 km west of Katmandu.
The rebels - who claim to be inspired by Chinese revolutionary Mao Zedong - have fought since 1996 to overthrow Nepal's constitutional monarchy and replace it with a communist state.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/600-abducted-students-rescued-in-Nepal/2005/05/16/1116095880193.html

The New Zealand Herald

Website to identify sex offenders
16.05.05 1.00pm

Known sex offenders and their addresses are about to be included on a website being set up by a judicial lobby group.
The Sensible Sentencing Trust said the site would be running within two or three weeks. It would "push the boundaries" on naming people, said spokesman Garth McVicar.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=1&ObjectID=10125772

US mayors pledge action against global warming
16.05.05 1.00pm
By Andrew Buncombe

WASHINGTON - Frustrated by the Bush administration's refusal to ratify the Kyoto Treaty, 132 US mayors have pledged to enforce the regulations in their own cities.
In a rejection of the government's position which claimed it would be too damaging to the US economy to enforce tougher environmental restrictions, the group of bipartisan city leaders has vowed to try and meet Kyoto's central target - a reduction in greenhouse gases to less than seven per cent of where they stood in 1990 in under 10 years.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125765

Ethiopia bans demonstrations after election
16.05.05 1.00pm

ADDIS ABABA - The Ethiopian government imposed a month-long ban on demonstrations after millions staged a huge turnout at elections on Sunday, saying it would take tough action to head off any trouble over the results.
"Security forces have been instructed to take severe actions against those who violate the new regulation," Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said in a televised address, adding he had put himself in charge of all security forces in the capital.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125750

NZ to fight Japanese whale slaughter
16.05.05

New Zealand is looking at all its options, including a possible legal fight, to thwart Japan's attempt to slaughter endangered humpback whales.
Japan plans to go to the meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in Korea next month asking to double its kill of about 440 minke whales a year for so-called scientific purposes and also add humpback and fin whales to the list.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125717

America's drug war in Colombia in tatters
The arrest of former Colombian drug cartel boss Miguel Rodriguez Orejuela in March has not been enough to stamp out the illegal trade. Picture / Reuters
15.05.05 5.00pm
By Hugh O'Shaughnessy

Washington's "war on drugs" in Colombia is collapsing in chaos and corruption, and the drug producers are winning, the Independent newspaper reports.
The so-called Plan Colombia, which has cost the US more than US$3 billion ($4.2 billion) in the past five years, is being abandoned, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has announced.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125611

Son of slain Lebanon PM unveils election list
16.05.05 7.45am

By Lin Noueihed

BEIRUT - Assassinated former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri's son unveiled his ticket for this month's elections on Sunday and promised to heal sectarian splits threatening to unravel the anti-Syrian opposition.
To the dismay of Lebanese who hoped for a fresh start after the Syrians pulled out last month, the opposition movement that pressured them to quit is splintering along the sectarian lines that traditionally rule at the ballot box.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125721

Nine US troops, 100 rebels killed in Iraq assault
15.05.05

BAGHDAD - Nine American troops have been killed in an offensive against insurgents and militants in Iraq's most rebellious province, the US military said yesterday.
Four of those were killed on Wednesday when their assault amphibian vehicle hit an explosive device, the military said.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125592

The weather conditions at Scott Base not known today

Scott Base
--
--
Updated Monday 16 May 2:59PM

The weather at Glacier Bay National Park (Crystal Wind Chime) is:

54 °F / 12 °C
Mostly Cloudy

Humidity:
67%

Dew Point:
43 °F / 6 °C

Wind:
Calm

Pressure:
29.56 in / 1001 hPa

Visibility:
-

UV:
0 out of 16

Clouds (AGL):
Mostly Cloudy 7000 ft / 2133 m

end

May 13, 2005. The richest soil in the USA is in Illinois and Indiana. This is a picture of Indiana. High producivity of corn that grows fifteen feet tall. To the right in this picture is a mobile irrigation system that travels across the soil on wheels. The wheels are not easily seen as after three days of high wind it's taking 'Dust Bowl' characteristics. The soil drys with the wind removing it's moisture and carrying it away with the wind. Kindly remember this soil has become productive after generations of tender loving care. It's productivity is due to longevity and care. The depth in feet of it's nature is perhaps three feet but the highest productivity is only 'crop root' depth of 12 to 18 inches. Inches of 'top soil' are important and is currently being carried away with the wind.

May 14, 2005. 00:25 gmt. May 13, 2005. 8:25 PM edt. The pattern is mostly equatorial at this point. It is NEW to the pattern of Global Warming. This is taking on the characteristic of the patterns seen in the Southern Hemisphere on February 4, 2005. The movement is off the equator to the Arctic Circle. The Southern Hemisphere in other satellites is still holding all the same patterns but grossly diminished with the highest heat distribution of Earth in this location following the migrating solar radiation. The vortex patterns remain polar and sustained with noted exceptions in the Northern Hemisphere at middle latitudes. 

May 13, 2005. The Cooney Dam Spillway. This is the first time the spillway has flooded since 1984. 

May 13, 2005. Battle Creek, Michigan. The lightning to the right seems to have struck 'an object' on the ground.  

May 13, 2005. Woodslee, Canada. The best 'reference point' is the fence post in the lower right hand corner. This lightning strike is a magnitude rarely that reaches the ground. It's gigantic. I can only wonder what the ground was like after this hit. 

May 13, 2005. Israel. 

May 13, 2005. Portugal. 

Land of the Midnight Sun. April 19, 2005. Cambell, Alaska. The frame of a boat in progress.  

March 19, 2005. Boulder, Colorado. 

April 24, 2005. Brunstad, Norway. 

Moraine & Lake Baniff.

April 28, 2005. Del Mar, California. 

The star performer, the Clown Fish starred as Nemo, at Florida's aquarium.  

Morning Papers - It's Origins

Rooster "Cock-A-Doodle-When-Due"

"Oak-He-Doe-$he"

History…

1607, the English colony at Jamestown, Va., was founded; it is the first permanent English settlement in America.

1842, composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, who collaborated with Sir William Gilbert in writing 14 comic operas, was born in London.

1918: The first U.S. airmail stamps, with a picture of an airplane and costing 24 cents, are introduced.

1954, President Eisenhower signed into law the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Act.

1958, Vice President Nixon's limousine was battered by rocks thrown by anti-U.S. demonstrators in Caracas, Venezuela.

Born...
1950 Stevie Wonder, singer and songwriter

1857, Sir Ronald Ross, entomologist

1914, Joe Louis, American boxer. He was born Joseph Louis Barrow near Lafayette, Alabama. Louis won his first professional contest by a knockout in 1934. He won the professional heavyweight championship of the world in June 1937, defeating the American boxer James Jack Braddock by a knockout. During his professional boxing career, Louis compiled 68 victories and three defeats. His 68 victories included 54 by knockout and 14 by decision, while his three losses included two by knockout and one by decision. Louis's first loss came in 1936, to the former world champion, the German boxer Max Schmeling. The Nazis equated Schmeling's victory over Louis to a validation of Nazi superiority over democracy. The two boxers fought again in a 1938 rematch. Louis won the bout in one round, and Americans celebrated the victory of democracy. After the second Schmeling fight, Louis became a hero for the World War II war effort, gave inspirational speeches, and helped with recruiting.

Missing in Action

1968 SMITH DONALD G. AKRON PA 01/01/69 RELEASED
1969 AIKEN LARRY JAMAICA NY 07/10/69 RECOVERED FROM VC HOSPITAL DECEASED
1969 BESSOR BRUCE C. FAIRFAX VA
1969 BROOKS JOHN H. BRYANT POND ME
1969 MASUDA ROBERT S. SAN JOSE CA POSS THROWN INTO WELL
1969 MUNOZ DAVID L. LOS ANGELES CA POSS THROWN INTO WELL
1969 SCOTT MIKE J. NEWARK NJ
1970 HUBERTH ERIC J. THOUSAND OAKS CA SURVIVAL UNLIKELY-SAR
1970 TRENT ALAN R. WADSWORTH OH SURVIVAL UNLIKELY-SAR

Journalism at Risk

The Freeman - Cebu, Phillipines

Our advice to journalists: Watch your backs!

That the profession of Journalism is now considered the most dangerous in this country is no longer a joke that we used to crack; more so that this time, the 69th victim to be murdered is no longer a plain journalist or reporter, but a publisher-editor of Starline Times Recorder, Mr. Philip "Ape" Agustin of Dingalan, Aurora Province. As we've already reported in this corner, the average rate of journalists that are murdered in this country is more than one a month and climbing. The big question every journalist is asking in his mind is, who is going to be the 70th murder victim?
What is of grave concern to all of us in the media is, to date of the 69 killings of journalists, no one has been jailed as a result of any investigation by the Philippine National Police (PNP) as if the police doesn't give a hoot whether the perpetrators of these crimes are arrested and prosecuted. At this point, we can only advice our fellow journalists to watch their backs!

The Miami Herald

FLORIDA MARINE AQUARIUM SOCIETY
Tanks for the menageries
The Florida Marine Aquarium Society will hold its 49th annual show this weekend at Fort Lauderdale's War Memorial Auditorium.
BY JERRY BERRIOS
jberrios@herald.com
Miniature fish, domino damsels and a giant hermit crab are on display in Fort Lauderdale this weekend, at the Florida Marine Aquarium Society's 49th annual show.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/11633932.htm

Police shooting brings outcry
The fatal shooting of an unarmed Homestead man by a Homestead police officer during a struggle raised questions from witnesses and relatives.
BY BROOKE PRESCOTT AND LUISA YANEZ
bprescott@herald.com
Miami-Dade police and prosecutors are investigating the fatal shooting of an unarmed man by a Homestead police officer who was responding to a disturbance call at a small grocery.
Some witnesses said the officer didn't have to shoot. Homestead police said the man, identified as Jason Williams, 28, refused an order to leave the front of the grocery and then resisted arrest.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/11634123.htm

Send a clear signal: Torture not tolerated
OUR OPINION: HOLD PENTAGON TOP BRASS ACCOUNTABLE FOR PRISONER ABUSES
U.S. military leadership is ultimately responsible for the failures that led to abuses of wartime captives in places as far flung as Afghanistan, Iraq and Guantánamo.
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said as much after the graphic Abu Ghraib photos surfaced. ''These events occurred on my watch,'' he said. ``I am responsible.''

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/11635074.htm

BROWARD FARMLAND
'Tax cows' still grazing in shade of huge exemptions
A couple of cows can buy huge savings for developers through tax breaks meant to protect farmland in western Broward County.
BY SAMUEL P. NITZE AND BETH REINHARD
snitze@herald.com
Part of Ronald Bergeron's estate on the quiet fringes of western Broward County encompasses a 3,900-square-foot home, tennis court, decorative waterfall and manicured lawn.
His 2004 tax bill on those seven acres: $3,775.99.
The wealthy builder and rancher pays less than the average Broward homeowner by claiming most of the land as cow pasture. Maybe not for long.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/11635058.htm

Man breaks into bedroom, attempts assault on woman
By MARIA HERRERA
mherrera@herald.com
Miami-Dade Police detectives are investigating an attempted sexual assault on a 26-year-old woman in the area of Southwest 142nd Avenue and 96th Street around 3 a.m. Wednesday.
The victim told police she was awakened by a man who had broken into her bedroom and tried to sexually assault her before fleeing the home.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/11639115.htm

Free-trade effort gets Bush support
President Bush joined the leaders of six Latin American countries and promised to aggressively push for the passage of a free-trade bill.
BY PABLO BACHELET
pbachelet@herald.com
WASHINGTON - Bringing the full weight of the presidency to bear on efforts to approve a contentious free trade bill with six small Latin American countries, President Bush Thursday promised for the first time to personally lobby in favor of the pact before Congress.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/11635061.htm

HURRICANE CLAIMS
State probes storm payouts
Insurance regulators are investigating 42 cases of suspected fraud in hurricane-related damage claims filed with Florida's insurer of last resort.
BY JACK DOLAN
jdolan@herald.com
State officials are investigating 42 cases of suspected fraud in hurricane-related damage claims filed last year with Citizens Property Insurance, the state-run insurer of last resort.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/11634122.htm

Florida gained jobs. Texas benefited. North Carolina doesn’t know anything about base closings. The decisions are strongly political with few exceptions. Alabama is practically closed down. Alabama is really going to suffer.

Southcom secure, Homestead gets more warplanes under base realignment plan
BY CAROL ROSENBERG
crosenberg@herald.com
Southcom remains secure, Homestead gets nine new warplanes and Eglin Air Force Base and Jacksonville naval facilities expand under Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's plan to realign military installations worldwide.
Overall, Florida gains 2,757 jobs but the Pensacola Naval Air Station stands to be the big loser -- with a training program, three-star admiral and other functions moving to other states.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/11639233.htm

List of proposed military base closings
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - A list of military facilities the Defense Department recommended for closure Friday:

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/11638919.htm

List of U.S. bases recommended for gains
Associated Press
A list of military facilities the Defense Department recommended for gains on Friday:

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/11639167.htm

The Jordan Times

Insurgents unleash more deadly bombings in Iraq despite US offensive

BAGHDAD (AP) — Six car bombs exploded and two senior military and police officials were gunned down Thursday in a string of attacks that killed at least 21 Iraqis and wounded 90. The violence came despite a major US offensive in western Iraq, where fierce clashes were reported with insurgents on the outskirts of the Syrian border town of Qaim.
Associated Press Television News (APTN) footage showed plumes of smoke rising from the town, about 320 kilometres northwest of Baghdad, from which families were fleeing in trucks packed with luggage.

http://www.jordantimes.com/fri/news/news1.htm

Europeans warn Iran not to resume 'sensitive' work

Agencies
France, Britain and Germany have warned Iran they will break off talks and join Washington in seeking UN Security Council action if Tehran makes good on its threats to resume atomic work, EU officials said on Thursday.
The foreign ministers of the European Union's three biggest powers sent a strongly-worded letter to Hassan Rohani, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, warning that resuming potentially arms-related nuclear work "would bring the negotiating process to an end," an EU diplomat quoted the letter as saying. "The consequences

http://www.jordantimes.com/fri/news/news2.htm

The Cheney Observer

Charles Cutter
Impeachment Level Event
By Charles Cutter (www.cuttersway.com)
May 13, 2005, 07:10
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A secret document from the British government, reported May 1 by the Times of London, tells us what we’ve known all along. George W. Bush was determined to invade Iraq long before seeking any congressional approval; he manipulated intelligence to justify his desire for war; and he was lying - to the American people, to the United Nations, to the entire world - when he proclaimed that his goal was Iraqi disarmament and that war could be avoided.
The document is the record of a meeting held on July 23, 2002 - eight months before the invasion of Iraq - involving Prime Minister Tony Blair and his key advisors. Reporting on his meeting with CIA director George Tenet, one advisor explained: "Military action was now seen as inevitable…Bush wanted to remove Saddam Hussein, through military action…the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy."

http://magic-city-news.com/article_3854.shtml

Don't demand answers; demand resignation
by Jim Smith
The Daily Barometer
Tony Blair has been taking quite a beating lately in the United Kingdom. Despite having just won a third term as prime minister, his party has been dealt a severe blow, resulting in the loss of nearly 100 seats in Parliament. Responsible for this setback is the recent leak of a top-secret U.K. internal government memo, which recorded the minutes of a meeting between British Prime Minister Blair and other key figures in British intelligence and military outfits, and the very embarrassing content therein.
The text of the memo is available online, as it appeared in full in the London Times edition of May 1, and it sounds awfully exciting ... very cloak and dagger. It begins with the warning "secret and strictly personal -- U.K. eyes only."

http://barometer.orst.edu/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/05/12/4283853a7655f

U.S., U.K. Voters Don't Care About Credibility
Times Change, So Do Values
Helen Thomas, Hearst White House columnist
POSTED: 12:03 pm EDT May 12, 2005
Funny thing about America and Great Britain. I once thought their people cared about the credibility and accountability of their leaders, especially when it comes to war and peace. But now I note with regret that the voters in both nations have other priorities.
I'm talking about the fact that the leaders of both nations chose to invade Iraq for flimsy reasons that were deliberately drummed up to convince their people that a third-world country was a threat to them. Didn't the Brits say Saddam Hussein could attack in 45 minutes?
The historic election of Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair for a third term is a stunning

http://www.channelcincinnati.com/helenthomas/4481363/detail.html

Bush nomination of Pryor advances
Carl Hulse and Neil A. Lewis, New York Times
May 13, 2005 CONG0513
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a fourth contested federal appeals court nominee Thursday as Senate leaders engaged in tense maneuvering over judicial candidates.
The panel voted 10-8 along party lines to approve William Pryor's nomination to a seat on the federal appeals court in Atlanta.
In an exchange on the Senate floor that lasted more than an hour, Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada offered to allow uncontested votes on three appellate court nominees from Michigan, raising to four the number that Democrats said this week they would not block by filibuster. "I say to my Republican colleagues, do you want to confirm judges or do you just want to provoke a fight?" he said.

http://www.startribune.com/stories/587/5401195.html

Bush Urges Central American Trade Pact
By NEDRA PICKLER
The Associated Press
Thursday, May 12, 2005; 4:08 PM
WASHINGTON -- President Bush tried Thursday to break congressional resistance to a free-trade agreement with Central American nations by arguing that open markets will help improve security and promote freedom in the Western hemisphere.
Bush welcomed the presidents of the Dominican Republic and the five Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua to the White House for a private Oval Office meeting and a public show of unity in the Rose Garden.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/12/AR2005051200706.html

Crony Capitalists
by Ken Sanders
www.dissidentvoice.org
May 12, 2005
On Tuesday, May 10, 2005, and without a hint of shame, the Bush administration awarded Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown and Root (KBR) $72 million in bonuses for its "very good" and "excellent" work in Iraq.
Excuse me?
Just two months ago, the Justice Department indicted a KBR manager for "major fraud against the United States" under the same LOGCAP contract for which KBR is now being awarded bonuses. According to the indictment, former KBR manager Jeff Mazon billed the U.S. more than $5.5 million for $680,000 worth of work. In other words, Mazon inflated KBR's bill by over 700 percent.

http://www.dissidentvoice.org/May05/Sanders0512.htm

I TOLD YOU SO !!!

More money down the drain: War cost bleeds states, cities
Author: Susan Webb
People's Weekly World Newspaper, 05/12/05 11:15

As U.S. casualties in Iraq topped 1,600, the U.S. Congress approved another $82 billion for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and related spending, with the bulk going to the Iraq occupation.
This additional “supplementary” funding brings total U.S. spending for the Iraq war to nearly $210 billion.
Two years after George W. Bush declared “mission accomplished,” the ever-ballooning cost of the Iraq war is hitting home for U.S. states and cities.
Recent studies by the National Priorities Project show the $210 billion war is sucking $3.2 billion in tax dollars from Tennessee, where the governor recently cut over 320,000 people from the state’s low-income health program, TennCare. John Zirker Sr., a co-founder of the Homeless Power Project in Nashville, said those cuts didn’t have to happen. The “billions and billions going to Iraq are taking away from our communities,” he told the World.

http://www.pww.org/article/articleview/6996/1/269

THE DECISION STREAM
The Cheney Observer Revisited

Suit rips way colleges are run
BY MARC CAPUTO
mcaputo@herald.com
TALLAHASSEE - A group of former political heavyweights sued the state's higher education system Tuesday, saying public universities are being governed in an unconstitutional ''pork barrel'' fashion like a ``banana republic.''

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/10470913.htm

Cheney hunts ducks in Lowcountry
Associated Press
WALTERBORO, S.C. - Vice President Dick Cheney made a special trip to South Carolina to hunt ducks in the ACE Basin with a group of elected officials from the state, Colleton County authorities say.

http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/news/local/10472769.htm

Letter: Think peace, and bring troops home from Iraq
In this spiritual time of the year, and after the religious showing in the November election, it would seem appropriate to actively seek peace in the horrible war against Iraq.

http://www.pressconnects.com/today/opinion/stories/op122204s137490.shtml

Bush Administration Urges Supreme Court to Uphold Ten Commandments Displays

Gina Holland, The Associated Press
12-10-2004

The Bush administration has urged the U.S. Supreme Court to allow religious Ten Commandments displays on government property, adding a federal view on a major church-state case that justices will deal with early next year.

The government has weighed in before in religion cases at the high court, including one earlier this year that challenged the words "under God" in the classroom recitation of the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance.

The government supported a California school district in that case. Now, it is backing two Kentucky counties that had framed copies of the Ten Commandments in their courthouses.

The American Civil Liberties Union sued McCreary and Pulaski counties, claiming the displays were an unconstitutional promotion of religion. The group won.

Justices will hear arguments, probably in February, in the counties' appeal and in a second case involving a Texas homeless man who wants a 6-foot granite monument removed from the state Capitol grounds.

The Bush administration's top Supreme Court lawyer, Paul Clement, told justices in Wednesday's filing that Ten Commandments displays are common around the nation -- and in the Court's own building, the Capitol and national monuments.

"Reproductions and representations of the Ten Commandments have been commonly employed across the country to symbolize both the rule of law itself, as well as the role of religion in the development of American law," Clement wrote.

Clement said the displays are important in educating people "about the nation's history and celebrating its heritage."

The Supreme Court banned the posting of Ten Commandments in public schools in 1980.

Clement argued that courthouses are different from schools and often have "historic symbols of law."

Douglas Kmiec, a Pepperdine University law professor and former legal counsel to President Reagan and the first President George H.W. Bush, said that the government had been expected to file arguments in the case. "It would have been politically untenable and legally timid if the government's chief court litigator had not done so," he said.

…………………………………………………………...

Scalia in shul: State must back religion
The Jerusalem Post

Uriel Heilman
Nov. 23, 2004

US Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia used an appearance at an Orthodox synagogue in New York to assail the notion that the US government should maintain a neutral stance toward religion, saying it has always supported religion and the courts should not try to change that.

Speaking at a conference on religious freedom in America on Monday hosted by Manhattan's Congregation Shearith Israel, the oldest Jewish congregation in North America, Scalia said that the founding fathers never advocated the separation of church and state and that America has prospered because of its religiousness.

"There is something wrong with the principle of neutrality," said Scalia, considered among the court's staunchest conservatives. Neutrality as envisioned by the founding fathers, Scalia said, "is not neutrality between religiousness and nonreligiousness; it is between denominations of religion."

Scalia cited early examples of support of religion in the public sphere by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin, the last of whom went so far as to argue at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 for the institution of daily prayers.

Today, Scalia noted, the government exempts houses of worship from real-estate tax, pays for chaplains in Congress, state legislatures, and the military, and sanctions the opening of every Supreme Court session with the cry, "God save the United States!"


"To say that the Constitution allows the court to sweep away that long-standing attitude toward religion seems to me just wrong," he said. "I do think we're forgetting our roots."

Scalia's speech, at a conference marking the 350th anniversary both of Jews in America and of Shearith Israel, elicited a standing ovation.

Scalia was nominated to the nine-member Supreme Court in 1986 by president Ronald Reagan to fill the seat vacated by William Rehnquist, who became the chief justice after Warren Berger retired. Now, with speculation that Rehnquist is on the verge of retirement after a recent diagnosis of thyroid cancer, Scalia may be the leading candidate to take his place.

It is widely believed that President George W. Bush will appoint a staunch conservative as chief justice if he gets the chance, and the only other Supreme Court justice considered sufficiently conservative is Clarence Thomas, appointed by president George H.W. Bush.

Originally from New York, Scalia wore a black skull cap as he addressed the congregation with his back to the ark.

"The founding fathers never used the phrase 'separation of church and state,'" he said, arguing that rigid separation of religion and state -- as in Europe, for example -- would be bad for America and bad for the Jews.

"Do you think it's going to make Jews safer? It didn't prove that way in Europe," he said.

"You will not hear the word 'God' cross the lips of a French premier or an Italian head of state," Scalia said. "But that has never been the American way."

Most establishment Jewish groups, however, are staunch supporters of church-state separation. Earlier this month, for example, the American Jewish Committee was part of a coalition that won a lawsuit to block a Florida program allowing state aid to go to parochial schools. In 2000, the Anti-Defamation League led several Jewish groups in criticizing vice presidential candidate Sen. Joseph Lieberman for talking too much about God on the campaign trail.

Scalia said expunging religion from public life would be bad for America, and that the courts, instead, should come around to most Americans' way of thinking and to the founding fathers' vision for the US. He noted that after a San Francisco court last year barred the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools because it includes the phrase "under God," Congress voted nearly unanimously to condemn the decision and uphold use of the phrase.

"I suggest that our jurisprudence should comport with our actions," he said.

If America's approach toward religion does change, it should be through democratic process, not "judicial fiat." America believes in "a personal God who takes an interest in the affairs of man," Scalia said. Quoting a line from Psalms that says the faithful will surely prosper, he added, "I think it is no accident that America has prospered."

……………………………………………...

GOP Activist Calls for Halt To Federation Donations
By E.J. KESSLER
December 10, 2004
A Jewish GOP leader is calling on his fellow Republicans to withdraw their financial support from Jewish charitable institutions — especially federations — that express "hostility toward Republicans" or pursue "a differing political agenda."

http://www.forward.com/main/article.php?ref=kessler200412081113

Tempest Tossed
For Utah naturalist and author Terry Tempest Williams, 2004 was another year of speaking dangerously.

Few students taking literary journalism at the University of Utah missed question No. 7 on a mid-October current events quiz.
Terry Tempest Williams—one of the state’s most celebrated authors—is a beloved U alumna. When news broke that the president of Florida Gulf Coast University had led the charge to postpone a speech by Williams until after the Nov. 2 election, astute observers couldn’t resist drawing parallels to a similar incident unfolding in their own back yard.

Beehive state conservatives cried foul when student body officers at Utah Valley State College invited Fahrenheit 9/11 director Michael Moore to speak as part of his 30-day, 60-city “Slacker Uprising” tour. But the desert soil kicked up by Moore’s visit did little but add street credibility to his already questionable hygiene. Moore came, spoke and left. He threw underwear and ramen noodles at the mostly student audience, but that was it.

http://www.slweekly.com/editorial/2004/feat_2004-12-23.cfm

2004 The Year In Review
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff

Then there was the Mary Cheney issue. After Vice President Dick Cheney suggested in a campaign stop that as the father of a lesbian he did not think a constitutional amendment was necessary. When Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry brought up Mary Cheney's name in the third Presidential Debate Republicans railed. Mary's mother, Lynn Cheney, accused Kerry of pulling a "cheap and tawdry political trick."

http://www.365gay.com/newscon04/specialcoverage/2004.htm

WHICH WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE????

Rokkasho reprocessor begins tests with depleted uranium
AOMORI (Kyodo) Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. on Tuesday began tests using depleted uranium at its nuclear-fuel reprocessing plant in Aomori Prefecture, taking a step toward introducing a key component of the nation's nuclear fuel cycle program.

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20041222a1.htm

Suit rips way colleges are run
BY MARC CAPUTO
mcaputo@herald.com
TALLAHASSEE - A group of former political heavyweights sued the state's higher education system Tuesday, saying public universities are being governed in an unconstitutional ''pork barrel'' fashion like a ``banana republic.''

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/10470913.htm

Bush publicly backs Rumsfeld despite mounting opposition
GOING TO BAT: The US president lauded his defense secretary as a `caring fellow' as polls showed most Americans think Rummy should go

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2004/12/22/2003216243

December 22nd, 2004 1:19 pm
Michigan Congressman Seeks Exit Poll Data
By Seth Sutel / Associated Press
NEW YORK - The top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee has asked The Associated Press and five broadcast networks to turn over raw exit poll data collected on Election Day so that any discrepancies between the data and the certified election results can be investigated.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=677

FBI files implicate Bush in Iraqi jail abuses
From Tim Reid in Washington
VIOLENT abuse of prisoners by US forces in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay was widespread as recently as four months ago, according to documents released yesterday.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,11069-1411944,00.html

The Boston Globe

Disbarment urged for 3 in scheme
Lawyers said to conspire to discredit judge
By Jonathan Saltzman and Ralph Ranalli, Globe Staff May 13, 2005
Three well-known lawyers accused of orchestrating an elaborate scheme to discredit a former Superior Court judge ''brought shame and disrepute" to the legal community and should be disbarred, a hearing officer for the state recommended yesterday, in one of Massachusetts' most closely watched attorney discipline cases ever.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/05/13/disbarment_urged_for_3_in_scheme/

Mandela challenges selective colleges to widen opportunity for needy students
Gets honorary degree from Amherst College
By Tatsha Robertson, Globe Staff May 13, 2005
NEW YORK -- Looking fragile but dignified, Nelson Mandela, the former imprisoned nationalist who rose to become South Africa's president, yesterday challenged selective colleges in the United States to open their doors to more students of modest means.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/13/mandela_challenges_selective_colleges_to_widen_opportunity_for_needy_students/

Study affirms aggressive treatment for breast cancer
By Rob Stein, Washington Post May 13, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Chemotherapy and hormone treatment have dramatically reduced the death rate from early-stage breast cancer, according to a major international analysis that indicates the often-arduous regimes do cure many women.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/13/study_affirms_aggressive_treatment_for_breast_cancer/
Antitax activist says he got $1.5m from tribes
Set up policy talks with president
By Michael Kranish, Globe Staff May 13, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Antitax activist Grover Norquist said yesterday that his organization has received nearly $1.5 million from Indian tribes in the past five years and that he arranged for tribal leaders to attend meetings to discuss tax policy with President Bush every year for the past four years.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/13/antitax_activist_says_he_got_15m_from_tribes/
Losing hearts and minds
By Derrick Z. Jackson May 13, 2005
WHEN THE Abu Ghraib prison scandal exploded a year ago, President Bush said it was ''an insult to the Iraqi people and an affront to the most basic standards of morality and decency." He said, ''These humiliating acts do not reflect our character." He also said, ''American soldiers and civilians on the ground have come to know and respect the citizens of Iraq."

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2005/05/13/losing_hearts_and_minds/

Rumsfeld reduces scope of military base closings
Sees $48.8b savings over next 20 years
By Robert Burns, Associated Press May 13, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Military base closings will be less severe than expected, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld indicated yesterday, saying that he had scaled down his recommendations because the military had less surplus space than once estimated.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/05/13/rumsfeld_reduces_scope_of_military_base_closings/

Deadly risks lurk for Marines in western offensive
Troops aid comrades after blast hits vehicle
By Solomon Moore, Los Angeles Times May 13, 2005
ABU HARDAN, Iraq -- The Marines of Kilo Company were on the fourth day of an offensive to rid western Iraq of insurgents, but they had not seen much action Wednesday until a loud boom rocked this Euphrates River village, followed by the frantic screams of young troops.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2005/05/13/deadly_risks_lurk_for_marines_in_western_offensive/

Bombings, other violence kill 21 in Iraq
Baghdad crowd vents fury over bloodshed
By Antonio Castaneda, Associated Press May 13, 2005
BAGHDAD -- A car bomb exploded in a crowded commercial district yesterday, turning the sky gray as shops and restaurants caught fire in the deadliest in a string of attacks that killed 21 people and included the assassinations of a general and a colonel on their way to work.

http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2005/05/13/bombings_other_violence_kill_21_in_iraq/

There has been an entire USA military unit destroyed in the last campaign by the USA military. From this link it looks like the 3rd Battalion which has at least ten recent deaths listed here. The tragedy is that many if not all these members come from one town in the USA. National Guard Units tend to be that way. It is what makes this conflict so tragic. Different form any other USA operation the deaths that take place can frequently be from one town.

There have been 1,792 coalition troop deaths, 1,613 Americans, 88 Britons, 10 Bulgarians, one Dane, two Dutch, two Estonians, one Hungarian, 21 Italians, one Kazakh, one Latvian, 17 Poles, one Salvadoran, three Slovaks, 11 Spaniards, two Thai and 18 Ukrainians in the war in Iraq as of May 12, 2005.

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2003/iraq/forces/casualties/2005.05.html

continued...

The scene where a car bomb exploded near a market in eastern Baghdad on Thursday (AP photo by Hadi Mizban) This picture is from "The Jordan Times." What is a total bizarre reality to Baghdad is to realize people are actually milling around where bombs just went off. One would think they would run never to return until emergency crews were finished with the area. It's odd behavior to say the least as if this is common place and it's just time to 'get on' with living and rebuilding after rebuilding after rebuilding. My any chance does this remind anyone of Old Beirut? There is no police. No military. There is questionably a fireperson in the right lower corner of the picture. I just feel like people nod their heads and proceed to walk down the road to their next stop of the day. Could anyone in any big in this country actually think of strolling past this scene as if walking in New York City from Seventh Avenue to Fifth Avenue. There are spectators but there is more interaction with the violence by the Iraqi public than any place else I can remember. People literally are walking upto those vehicles to examine the complete destruction. I don't believe this isn't going to end anytime soon. Add to this the reality an entire American Military Unit has been annihilated in the latest campaign of the USA in Iraq in An Albar Province and realize there comes a time when people have to realize the Coalition Military is not making progress to say the least and more likely losing this initiative in Iraq. The opposition has the 380 tonnes of high explosives Don Rumsfeld neglected to secure after the invasion in the Iraqi Desert.
 

Michael Moore Scholarship Awards

Congratulations. I am happy for the Award Winners and for Mike. He's a great guy. Very happy he had such overwhelming participation. Go, Michael, Go.

MICHAEL MOORE ANNOUNCES THE RECIPIENTS OF THE FIRST ANNUAL "MICHAEL MOORE FREEDOM OF SPEECH SCHOLARSHIP AT CAL STATE SAN MARCOS"
MOORE TRIPLES THE AMOUNT OF SCHOLARSHIPS FOR FIRST YEAR DUE TO LARGE NUMBER OF OUTSTANDING APPLICANTS
May 13th, 2005 -- Oscar-winning filmmaker and best-selling author Michael Moore announced today the first annual recipients of "The Michael Moore Freedom of Speech Scholarship at Cal State San Marcos."

Michael Moore has chosen six students to receive a total award of $15,000, with $2,500 going to each student. Moore's original plan for the first year of the scholarship was to give out $5,000 or two $2,500 scholarships. Mr. Moore tripled the number of recipients in response to the large number of impressive applications from outstanding Cal State San Marcos students who have stood up to their administration and fought for students' rights.

On September 13th, 2004 Cal State San Marcos President Karen Haynes announced her decision to rescind a speaking invitation Michael Moore had received from the student body on the grounds that the speaker was too "political." Students responded to the administration's attempt to repress free speech by independently raising money themselves and organizing the 10,000 person rally at the Del Mar Fairgrounds held on October 12, 2004, as part of Moore's 62-city "Slacker Uprising Tour."

In honor of those courageous students, "The Michael Moore Freedom of Speech Scholarship at Cal State San Marcos" was established. The scholarship's first annual recipients are as follows:

Cheyenne Barr

... she has given workshops on clean money election reform, organized peer based student advising, lobbied against student budget cuts and fee increases in Sacramento as part of the ASI Lobby Corps.

Cheyenne also helped organize the Academic Freedom Rally, a collaborative program on the right-wing attempts to curtail freedom of expression on California campuses.

"My personal goals have always led me to broader human issues. My interest in gender roles, empowerment and access to academic counseling have all gone from the personal to the community stage…."

Julie D. Bennington

Ms. Bennington, a junior now pursuing her degree in Women's Studies and Literature and a minor in Ethnic Studies,…

...Julie is no longer the apathetic student she once was, just recently organizing a campus-wide forum on policing practices. Another event, the first annual PAN Peace Picnic, pitted Julie and her PAN cohorts against the school's administration.

The picnic eventually went ahead, but only after an armed police officer was assigned to watch over their celebration of peace. Julie hopes to put her education to good use and someday teach.

"Activism has changed my life. I feel as though I have finally found what I was meant to do in life."

Heather Frost

Ms. Frost, a graduating senior with a degree in Women's Studies, has repeatedly rallied students on campus and in the classroom. Heather does not give people in positions of power a free pass and has directly confronted CSUSM President Karen Haynes on issues of academic freedom, the fostering of critical thinking and the upholding of the University Mission Statement and its stated educational values.

...a Student Discussion Leader for two of the schools' courses, "Introduction to Women's Studies" and "Beauty and Body Image" which deals with the social pressures women face in our commercialized society….

Tasha Iglesias

Ms. Iglesias, a graduating senior with a double major in Liberal Studies and Women's studies, has been a leader in the Women's Studies department, serving as Vice President of the Women's Studies Student Association where she, along with co-scholarship winner Cheyenne Bar, recently finished teaching a course on Women's Sexuality that she helped design.

Tasha has helped coordinate trips to Washington D.C to demonstrate on behalf of women's right to choose, and has even represented CSUSM on multiple women's rights panels….

Sarah Leonard

Ms. Leonard, a junior with a double major in Criminology & Justice Studies and Women's Studies (with a focus on communities and inequalities), has been a tireless on-campus activist at CSUSM, working to increase student awareness of issues ranging from racial profiling of minority students by campus police, to HIV/AIDS education to genocide in Sudan.

...Sarah has helped organize many events that challenge the prevailing, conservative climate in North San Diego County.

...Working with Veterans for Peace, Sarah helped to create "Arlington West", a temporary memorial of over 1,400 crosses to symbolize the American military death toll in Iraq.

...Would-be saboteurs of the Republican persuasion carved a giant "W" in the lawn where these crosses were to be placed -- as if correlating these deaths with George W. Bush would somehow nullify the memorial. Sarah continues to organize, …

Jason E. Williams

Mr. Williams is a senior Communications major,…

... Mr. Williams has spoken out - at campus forums, rallies and marches, to the media and to school administration. He has tirelessly pursued justice and spoken out against racial profiling by campus authorities. In speaking about that fateful evening, Jason recalls the campus police who stopped him saying, "You don't belong here." Wrong. Jason E. Williams is exactly the type of student who belongs at CSUSM and that is why he is a deserving recipient of "The Michael Moore Freedom of Speech Scholarship At Cal State San Marcos."

Upon announcing the winners, Michael Moore said the following: "Congratulations to all the scholarship recipients. I hope this award further inspires students to hit the books, study hard, fight for what they believe in, and raise some hell when there's hell to be raised."
Moore added: "Congratulations to the entire Class of '05."