Kindly click on link at title to this entry.
Gail Norton left The Deparment of Interior accused of mismangement of the funds budgeted to The Department of the Interior. It is time to resume that investigation and see it through as well as start a new investigation of the complete disregard of the Endangered Species Act and the proposed destruction of The Northern Spotted Owl.
October 2, 2007
Secretary Dirk Kempthorne
1849 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20240
RE: Northern Spotted Owl Draft Recovery Plan
Dear Secretary Kempthorne:
The northern spotted owl is one of the most intensively studied endangered raptors in the
world. Decades of scientific research and the largest mark-recapture population studies
ever conducted on a threatened species have provided valuable insights into the owls’
habitat requirements, prey base, and demographic characteristics 1 . As scientists with
backgrounds in population ecology, wildlife and endangered species management,
natural resource management and forest ecosystems, we are greatly concerned that,
according to scientific peer review recently conducted by owl experts and three of the
nation’s leading scientific societies, much of this science was ignored in the published
draft recovery plan for the northern spotted owl 2 . Based on these reviews, and the
alleged political interference documented in a May 9 hearing on the Endangered Species
Act in the House Natural Resources Committee, 3 we respectfully request that you
withdraw the draft owl recovery plan and assemble a team of scientists to redraft a
recovery plan truly based on the best available science.
The spotted owl is an indicator species of the status of old-growth forests in the Pacific
Northwest, which historically included up to two-thirds of the forest age classes in the
region but now represent just under 20 percent 4 . In particular, the Northwest Forest Plan
(NWFP) is a landmark ecosystem management plan that put in place a reserve system for
the owl and hundreds of species associated with older forests throughout the region.
Recent scientific assessments have concluded that there is no reason to depart from a
conservation strategy rooted in fixed reserves and the spotted owl situation would be far
bleaker today if not for the protections afforded to it under the NWFP 5 . While there has ...
1 Anthony, R.G., E.D. Forsman, A.B. Franklin, D.R. Anderson, K.P. Burnham, G.C. White, C.J. Schwarz, J. Nichols, J.E. Hines, G.S. Olson, S.H. Ackers, S.L. Andrews, B.L. Biswell, P.C. Carlson, L.V. Diller, K.M. Dugger, K.E. Fehring, T.L. Fleming, R.P. Gerhardt, S.A. Gremel, R.J. Gutierrez, P.J. Happe, D.R. Herter, J.M. Higley, R.B. Horn, L.L. Irwin, P.J. Loschl, J.A. Reid, and S.G. Sovern. 2006. Status and trends in demography of northern spotted owls, 1985-2003. Wildlife Monographs No. 163:1-47.
2
www.conbio.org/Sections/NAmerica/SCBA%20Comments%20to%20FWS%20Northern%20Spotted%20
Owl.pdf; http://www.wildlife.org/policy/index.cfm;
http://www.fws.gov/pacific/ecoservices/endangered/recovery/peer.html
3
DellaSala, Dominick. Written testimony for the House Natural Resources Committee Hearing entitled
“Endangered Species Act Implementation: Science or Politics?”
http://www.nccsp.org/files/land/spottedowltestimonydds.pdf Additional information available at
http://www.nccsp.org/
4
Strittholt, J.R., D.A. DellaSala, and H. Jiang. 2006. Status of mature and old-growth forests in
the Pacific Northwest, USA. Conservation Biology 20:363-374.
5
Courtney, S.P., J.A. Blakesley, R.E. Bigley, M.L. Cody, J.P. Dumbacher, R.L. Fleischer, A.B. Franklin,
J.F., R.J. Gutierrez, J.M. Marzluff, and L. Sztukowski (eds). 2004. Scientific evaluation of the status of the
Page 2
been ground-breaking research on owl habitat relations 6 that has expanded our understanding of owl habitat use, there is no scientific basis for departing from the
reserve network of the NWFP or any reason to conclude that old-growth forests are no
longer essential to the owl’s survival. And though barred owls have emerged as a
growing threat to spotted owls, the science is far from conclusive regarding how this
biological invasion will affect the survival and recovery of the northern spotted owl.
Based on our understanding of the ecology of the spotted owl, we see no scientific basis
for either reducing habitat protections for the owl – as currently proposed under Option 1
of the recovery plan– or departing from a conservation strategy that is rooted in the fixed
reserves of the NWFP such as Option 2 7. Rather, increased threats from barred owls and
potential climate change effects justify protecting more habitat – not less – as a
precautionary principle in the conservation and recovery of listed species that is clearly
missing from the draft recovery plan.
In closing, we understand that you have recently commissioned a review of eight
Endangered Species Act decisions influenced by former Assistant Deputy Secretary Julie
MacDonald as part of reforms underway to improve the Fish & Wildlife Service’s track
record on Endangered Species Act decision making. We request that you include in these
department reviews the draft spotted owl recovery plan for three reasons: (1) the science
may have been tampered with by high ranking officials; (2) the plan is not based on
credible science as indicated by scientific peer review; and (3) the plan is a key decision
document that could determine the fate of millions of acres of old-growth forests in the
Pacific Northwest.
Fish & Wildlife Service policy requires recovery plans to be based on the best available
science in order to recover a species to the point where it no longer requires protections
afforded under the Endangered Species Act. We are concerned that because this recovery
plan would remove from protection old-growth forest habitat at a time when threats are
increasing and owl population declines are accelerating that it could lead to future up-
listing of the species to endangered status. For these reasons, we request that you
commission a team of scientists to redraft the recovery plan and place related forest
management policies on hold until a new draft is proposed.
Northern Spotted Owl. Sustainable Ecosystems Institute, Portland, OR. Lint, J. 2005. Status and trends of
Northern Spotted Owls populations and habitat. USDA PNW-GTR-648. DellaSala, D. A., and J. Williams.
2006. Northwest Forest Plan Ten Years Later – how far have we come and where are we going.
Conservation Biology 20:274-276. 6
Franklin, A.B., D.R. Anderson, R.J. Gutierrez, and K.P. Burnham. 2000. Climate, habitat quality, and fitness in Northern Spotted Owl populations in northwestern California. Ecological Monographs 70:539- 590. Dugger, K.M., F. Wagner, R.G. Anthony, and G.S. Olson. 2005. The relationship between habitat characteristics and demographic performance of Northern Spotted Owls in Southern Oregon. The Condor 107:863-878. Olson, G.S., and several others. 2004. Modeling demographic performance of Northern Spotted Owls relative to forest habitat in Oregon. J. Wildlife Management 68:1039-1063. 7 Carroll, C., and D.S. Johnson. In review. The importance of being spatial and reserved: assessing habitat relationships and conservation options for the northern spotted owl with Bayesian spatial autoregressive models.
Page 3
Sincerely,
*
Affiliation are provided for identification only
Dominick A. DellaSala, Ph.D.
Chief Scientist, Executive Director
National Center for Conservation Science & Policy, Ashland, OR
Carlos Carroll, Ph.D., Research Ecologist
Klamath Center for Conservation Research
Orleans, CA
Gordon H. Orians, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus of Biology
University of Washington, Seattle
Dave Perry, Ph.D. Forest Ecologist
Emeritus Oregon State University
Corvallis, OR
James R. Karr, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus
University of Washington, Seattle
David W. Inouye, Ph.D.
Ecologist and Conservation Biologist
University of Maryland, College Park
Dan Rosenberg, Ph.D., Wildlife Biologist
Oregon Wildlife Institute and Department of Fisheries and Wildlife
Oregon State University, Corvallis
Trina B. Bassoff, Ph.D.
Biological Anthropology
Steven Green, Ph.D.
Professor of Biology
University of Miami
Matthew I. Palmer, Ph.D.
Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology
Columbia University, New York, NY
Francis G. Howarth, Ph.D. Conservation Biology
L.A. Bishop Distinguished Chair of Zoology
Bishop Museum, Honolulu
Marc Meyer, Ph.D., Research Wildlife Ecologist and Postdoctoral Fellow
University of California Merced Wawona, CA
Saturday, October 13, 2007
This is about the lust for wealth by the Bush crony timber industry and the 'redirection' of scientists willing to be (please click here).
These are what the logging industry does. It doesn't care if Old Growth Forest is to be protected due to species endangerment, they want profits and they intend to get them at the cost of generational heritage of Americans.
..."The Bush administration's draft regulations gutting the Endangered Species Act haven't even been publicly proposed yet, but the timber industry is already trying to strip the nation's wildlife of protection." said Kristen Boyles, an attorney with Earthjustice. "Once again, the Bush administration is undermining protection of our nation's endangered species to benefit their friends and campaign contributors in the timber industry."...
The lawsuit the timber industry filed was drafted by a former Bush White House official that went to work for the timber industry. The lawsuit has not basis in status. There is no law to back it up. The lawsuit was followed by the demands of a Secretary of the Interior to declassify Endangered Species to allow exploitation of Old Growth Forest in the Northwest USA including Oregon, Washington State and California.
This link (click here) will take you to a video by The New York Times which appeared today whereby 'influenced' scientists are appearing to consent to assist timber companies to stay in business when in fact the scientists are so intimadated in fear of habitat destruction and species demise they are working as hard as they can to PREVENT species from disappearing through desperate management strategies.
If lands are endangered due to exploitation of development of any kind, there is no reason to turn out backs on these lands even outside the parks to insure the protections needed are extended to those required to protect species from demise. What the scientists in the USA are facing today is a choice between two chronic evils rather than the best of all worlds. If development has to be contained it should proceed but NOT at the expense of those lands already protected within the laws of the people of the USA, but, expanded to even further measures. This is what extraordinary personal wealth has brought the citizens of the USA and it's scientists, HEARTACHE !Page 4
Nancy E. Cowden, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biology, Lynchburg College
Lynchburg, VA
Johannes Foufopoulos, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Conservation Biology
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Carolyn Mollie Bigger, Ph.D. Forestry
El Cajon, CA
Elizabeth Wright Smith, M.S.
Cape Coral, FL
Gretchen North
Associate Professor, Biology
Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA
Craig R. Kuchel, M.S. Wildlife Biology
Florence-Carlton School
Florence, MT
Ronnie Schenkein, DVM
Member, Audubon Society, Sapsucker Woods Ornithology Laboratory and
Pennsylvania Breeding Bird Atlas, Coudersport, PA
Jo Anna Hebberger, Ph.D. Plant Ecologist
Manheim, PA
Martin Hilovsky, M.S.
Senior Scientist / President
EnviroScience, Inc., Stow, OH
Matthew Rubino, M.S. Zoology
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, NC
Stephen B. Hager, Ph.D.
Co-Chair Department of Biology
Augustana College, Rock Island, IL
Kefyn M. Catley Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC
Page 5
Sheila Ward, Ph.D. Ecology
University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras
Jack Lyon, Ph.D.
Scientist Emeritus, Rocky Mountain Research Station
Ft. Collins, CO
John O. Whitaker, Jr., Ph.D.
Professor of Ecology and Organismal Biology,
Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana
Melissa Lee, M.S. Plant Ecology
University of Memphis
Memphis, TN
Ronald M. Lanner, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus of Forestry
Utah State University, Logan, UT
David M. Armstrong, Ph.D.
Professor, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
University of Colorado-Boulder
Rachel Shelton, M.S.
Fisheries and Wildlife Management
Michigan State University, Lansing
Maria Laura Fernandez-Medina, M.S. Agricultural and Resource Economics
University of California, Davis
Nanci J. Ross, M.S. Tropical Ecology/Ethnobotany
Dept. of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of Connecticut, Storrs
Tina Rhea, M.S. Wildlife Biology
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
John Schoen, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist
Audubon Alaska, Anchorage
A. Christy Wyckoff, M.S. Wildlife Disease Biologist
Texas A&M University-Kingsville
Larry Kline, M.S. Range Management
Lakewood, CO
Page 6
Ray C. Telfair II, Ph.D.
Certified Wildlife Biologist (The Wildlife Society)
Whitehouse, TX
Edward J. Laurent, Ph.D. Wildlife Habitat Modeling
North Carolina State University, Raleigh
Stephen Zitzer, Ph.D. Ecologist
Desert Research Institute, Las Vegas, NV
Stephen B. Malcolm, Ph.D.
Professor, Dept. Biological Sciences
Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI
Bob Deacy, M.S.
Department of Environmental Resources Management
Palm Beach County, FL
Dan F. Ippolito, Prof. of Biology
AuSable Institute of Environmental Studies
Grand Rapids, MI
David S. Lee, Curator of Birds
North Carolina State Museum
Raleigh, NC
Melissa Child, M.A. Conservation Biology
Columbia University, NY
Laurie J. Vitt, Ph.D.
George Lynn Cross Research Professor and
Curator of Reptiles, Norman, OK
Tim Patton, Ph.D.
Ecology and Wildlife Science
Southeastern Oklahoma State University
Durant, OK
Marcel van Tuinen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor Department of Biology & Marine Biology
University of North Carolina at Wilmington
Stephen P. Ellner, Ph.D.
Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
This is about pre-mediated destruction of The Endangered Species Act and the annihilation of The Northern Spotted Owl and it's unique habitat(click on
Page 7
Fred C. Sibley, Ph.D. Retired Ornithologist
Smithsonian Institute and Fish and Wildlife Service
Alpine, NY
James Tyler Bell, M.S. Environmental Science
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center
Edgewater, MD
Lisa Rapaport, Ph.D. Behavioral Ecology
Department of Biological Sciences
Clemson University, Clemson, SC
Deborah Bidwell, M.S. Zoology
College of Charleston, Charleston, SC
Susan G. Letcher, Ph.D. candidate
University of Connecticut, Storrs
Robyn J. Burnham, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
and Curator of Paleontology
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Jennifer E. Price, Ph.D. Aquatic Ecologist
South Carolina Department of Natural Resources
Columbia, SC
Thomas J. Daniels, Ph.D.
Vector Ecology Lab, Louis Calder Center
Fordham University, Bronx, NY
Virginia N. Brown, M.S. Environmental Management
Vulcan Materials Center for Environmental Stewardship and Education
Samford University in Birmingham, AL
William D. Anderson, Jr., Ph.D. Ichthyology
Grice Marine Biological Laboratory
Charleston, SC
David F. Murray, Ph.D.
Professor of Botany and Curator Emeritus
University of Alaska Fairbanks
Dorothy Boorse, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biology
Gordon College, Wenham , MA
Page 8
Brian D. Linkhart, Associate Professor
Department of Biology, The Colorado College
Colorado Springs, CO
Donna Hart, Ph.D.
Primatology and Human Variation
University of Missouri – St. Louis
Kathleen Perillo, M.S. Environmental Science
Professor of Biology
Clark College, Vancouver, WA
Karen Goetz, M.S. Conservation Biology
SanFrancisco, CA
Lisa Brohl, M.S. Environmental Science
Chair Lake Erie Islands Chapter
Black Swamp Conservancy, Put-in-Bay, OH
David J. Berg, Ph.D.
Professor of Conservation Biology
Miami University, Oxford, OH
Renata Platenberg, Ph.D. Ecologist
St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands
Peter Chesson, Ph.D.
Dept. of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
University of Arizona Tucson
Robert C. Foehring, Ph.D.
Professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology
University of Tennessee Health Science Center Memphis, TN
Hartwell H. Welsh, Jr. Ph.D.
Research Wildlife Biologist
Arcata, CA
James J. Provenzano, Ph.D. Cellular Physiology
President, Clean Air Now
Los Angeles, CA
Alina M. Szmant, Ph.D.
UNCW-Center for Marine Science
Wilmington, NC
Page 9
Steve Jones, Ph.D.
Research Associate Professor of Natural Resources and Marine Science
University of NH-Durham
Rhonda Kranz, M.S. Ecologist
Takoma Park, MD
Marlijn Hoogendoorn, Ph.D. Ecology
Minneapolis, MN
Craig C. Downer, M.S. Wildlife Ecology
Minden, NV
Richard S. Feldman, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Environmental Science & Policy School of Science Marist College
Poughkeepsie, NY
Thomas F. Ihde, Ph.D. Fisheries Science
Solomons, MD
William A. Szelistowski, Ph.D.
Ecology, Department of Biology
Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, FL
Andrew J Tyre, Ph.D. Conservation Biology, Statistical Ecology, Decision Theory
School of Natural Resources
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Noreen E. Reist, Ph.D.
Assoc. Professor, Dept. of Biomedical Sciences
Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
D. Ann Pabst, Ph.D.
Biology and Marine Biology
University of North Carolina Wilmington
Wilmington, NC
Julie A. Reynolds, Ph.D.
Biology Department
Duke University, Durham, NC
Yoyi Steele, M.S.
Important Bird Areas Coordinator
Wisconsin Bird Conservation Initiative, Madison
This story started with a letter. But, it began with the corrupt and since resigned Gail Norton (click here please)
These are the precious forest lands of "The Old Growth Forests" of the Pacific Northwest. They are protected lands by the laws of the USA. They have been plotted against by the those at the Secretary to the Interior and The Bush White House.
Page 10
Steve K. Sherrod, Ph.D.
Executive Director George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center
Bartlesville, OK
Robert T. Magill, M.S. Certified Wildlife Biologist
Wildlife Specialties, L.L.C.
Palisade, CO
Scott Russell, Ph.D. Biology
University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK
Bob Krebs, Ph.D.
Dept. of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences
Cleveland State University, OH
Francesca T. Grifo, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist and Director, Scientific Integrity Program
Union of Concerned Scientists, Washington, D.C.
Jennifer P. Kross, M.S. Wildlife and Fisheries Science
Ducks Unlimited
Bismarck, ND
Aaron Kennedy, M.S. Biology
Miami University, FL
Howard Whiteman, Ph.D.
Professor Wildlife and Conservation Biology
Murray State University, Murray, KY
Vicki Tripoli. Ph.D. Environmental Science
Ashland, OR
Sylvia Halkin, Ph.D. Animal Behavior
Professor, Dept. of Biology
Central Connecticut State University, New Britain
Jonathan N. Baskin, Ph.D. Emeritus Professor
Biological Sciences Dept., California State Polytechnic University Pomona
Pomona, CA
Dylan Kesler, Ph.D.
Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
University of Missouri, Columbia, MO
Page 11
Sarah Spear Cooke, Ph.D. Restoration Ecologist
Seattle, WA
Robert J. DiStefano, M.S. Fisheries Science
Harrisburg, MO.
Laszlo J Szijj, Ph.D.
Emeritus Prof. of Biology
Calif. State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA
Carole Griffiths, Ph.D.
Associate Prof. Biology, Long Island University Research Associate, American Museum
of Natural History, NY
Doug Martin, Ph.D. Ecologist
WSRC/Savannah River National Laboratory
Aiken, SC
Jennifer Fox, M.S. Wildlife Ecology
International Falls, MN
John Rotenberry, Ph.D.
Professor Department of Biology
University of California, Riverside, CA
Curt Meine, Ph.D.
Conservation Biology
Center for Humans and Nature and the Aldo Leopold Foundation
Baraboo, WI
Laura Farrell, M.S Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
University of Vermont, Burlington
Richard J. Clark, Ph.D. Vertebrate Zoology
Emeritus Professor of Biology
York College of Pennsylvania, York, PA
David K. Mellinger, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Senior Research
Cooperative Institute for Marine Resources Studies
Oregon State University, Newport, OR
Hugh H. Iltis, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI
Kipp C. Kruse, Ph. D
.
Page 12
Emeritus Professor of Biological Sciences
Eastern Illinois University Charleston, IL
Karla I. Gustafson, Ph. D.
Ethics Professor at Husson and Unity Colleges
Bangor, ME
Gail Olson, Ph.D. Wildlife Biologist
Olympia, WA
Cc: P. Phifer, US Fish & Wildlife Service
PNW congressional delegation
Honorable Governors Christine Gregoire, Ted Kulongoski, Arnold Schwarzenegger
Page 10
Steve K. Sherrod, Ph.D.
Executive Director George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center
Bartlesville, OK
Robert T. Magill, M.S. Certified Wildlife Biologist
Wildlife Specialties, L.L.C.
Palisade, CO
Scott Russell, Ph.D. Biology
University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK
Bob Krebs, Ph.D.
Dept. of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences
Cleveland State University, OH
Francesca T. Grifo, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist and Director, Scientific Integrity Program
Union of Concerned Scientists, Washington, D.C.
Jennifer P. Kross, M.S. Wildlife and Fisheries Science
Ducks Unlimited
Bismarck, ND
Aaron Kennedy, M.S. Biology
Miami University, FL
Howard Whiteman, Ph.D.
Professor Wildlife and Conservation Biology
Murray State University, Murray, KY
Vicki Tripoli. Ph.D. Environmental Science
Ashland, OR
Sylvia Halkin, Ph.D. Animal Behavior
Professor, Dept. of Biology
Central Connecticut State University, New Britain
Jonathan N. Baskin, Ph.D. Emeritus Professor
Biological Sciences Dept., California State Polytechnic University Pomona
Pomona, CA
Dylan Kesler, Ph.D.
Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences
University of Missouri, Columbia, MO
Page 11
Sarah Spear Cooke, Ph.D. Restoration Ecologist
Seattle, WA
Robert J. DiStefano, M.S. Fisheries Science
Harrisburg, MO.
Laszlo J Szijj, Ph.D.
Emeritus Prof. of Biology
Calif. State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA
Carole Griffiths, Ph.D.
Associate Prof. Biology, Long Island University Research Associate, American Museum
of Natural History, NY
Doug Martin, Ph.D. Ecologist
WSRC/Savannah River National Laboratory
Aiken, SC
Jennifer Fox, M.S. Wildlife Ecology
International Falls, MN
John Rotenberry, Ph.D.
Professor Department of Biology
University of California, Riverside, CA
Curt Meine, Ph.D.
Conservation Biology
Center for Humans and Nature and the Aldo Leopold Foundation
Baraboo, WI
Laura Farrell, M.S Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
University of Vermont, Burlington
Richard J. Clark, Ph.D. Vertebrate Zoology
Emeritus Professor of Biology
York College of Pennsylvania, York, PA
David K. Mellinger, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Senior Research
Cooperative Institute for Marine Resources Studies
Oregon State University, Newport, OR
Hugh H. Iltis, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI
Kipp C. Kruse, Ph. D
.
Page 12
Emeritus Professor of Biological Sciences
Eastern Illinois University Charleston, IL
Karla I. Gustafson, Ph. D.
Ethics Professor at Husson and Unity Colleges
Bangor, ME
Gail Olson, Ph.D. Wildlife Biologist
Olympia, WA
Cc: P. Phifer, US Fish & Wildlife Service
PNW congressional delegation
Honorable Governors Christine Gregoire, Ted Kulongoski, Arnold Schwarzenegger
A quick review to set the tone for where I am going
At the title to this entry is a link to an LA Times article regarding the Former General Sanchez and his statement regarding Iraq, basically, "Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide." From a General's perspective I am sure he is correct, from a USA citizen standpoint there is plenty room to leave Iraq.
Generals have taken far to prominent a position in a government adrift in a sea of apathy. The USA that exists today is not the USA of seven years ago. It is a drift in a lagging economy and basically a ship without a rutter.
Generals don't dictate USA policy. There is no reason to believe we are in Iraq forever. No way. We are out of there and the countries in the region will find a way to peace with a change in leadership in DC and a return to diplomacy. Just that simple.
We are not holding the hands of the Middle East anymore. We are securing USA borders and shoring up USA national security and we are rebuilding OUR infrastructure. We have an entire young generation without satisfying personal achievement because the older generation is not retiring with 'greed' as a goal. The older American sees a country with a shrinking ability to support them in 'style' while younger Americans have no solid base of income or a career to springboard their own futures and family security.
The USA has become morally bankrupt under the current administration and the former Republican majority legislature. Besides a genocidal and illegal war, the 'Arms Race' has returned to the USA and Russia at a time when there should be mutual disarmament in nuclear weapons and expectations to uphold The Non-Proliferation Treaty. At a time when the USA should be rejoicing in China's success in providing an international venue for the 2008 Olympics, we are looking at nuclear ships and subs as a potential threat and an expanded edition of still another arms race.
The USA has a service economy that waits on foreign visitors while grateful for a devalued dollar so Europe now has a new playground and a city in New York to purchase the latest Gucci cheaper than Paris or Geneva.
The people of the USA have a Vice President with a Nobel Peace Prize. The very same one that left office with a world mostly at peace and a nation with a fiscal surplus. Yet all anyone can do is turn their noses up at the 'idea' of actually having to stop using fossil fuels without clear paths to victory of having a home powered by solar or wind.
The USA financial markets have overtaken the culture of those that are wealthy and the moral place for conservation, environmentalism, peace and wild land preservation and protection has become unfashionable. What I am going to present tonight will make many upset. It requires a call of the Senate and House to investigate the current trend by the Bureau of Fish and Wildlife, the Department of the Interior and the EPA. The public lands of the USA are being exploited and there is a cultural movement among 'The Wall Street' breed to allow it to happen.
What I am about to present tonight can easily lead to impeachment. It's abuse of government and negligence of the 'public trust' of the people of the USA. You won't hear this any place else, I already tried to enlist the assistance of The New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle and The Seattle Post Intelligencer. I was met with the same rhetorical shunning of the issue I have stipulated above. Wealth first, the American people NEVER.
Generals have taken far to prominent a position in a government adrift in a sea of apathy. The USA that exists today is not the USA of seven years ago. It is a drift in a lagging economy and basically a ship without a rutter.
Generals don't dictate USA policy. There is no reason to believe we are in Iraq forever. No way. We are out of there and the countries in the region will find a way to peace with a change in leadership in DC and a return to diplomacy. Just that simple.
We are not holding the hands of the Middle East anymore. We are securing USA borders and shoring up USA national security and we are rebuilding OUR infrastructure. We have an entire young generation without satisfying personal achievement because the older generation is not retiring with 'greed' as a goal. The older American sees a country with a shrinking ability to support them in 'style' while younger Americans have no solid base of income or a career to springboard their own futures and family security.
The USA has become morally bankrupt under the current administration and the former Republican majority legislature. Besides a genocidal and illegal war, the 'Arms Race' has returned to the USA and Russia at a time when there should be mutual disarmament in nuclear weapons and expectations to uphold The Non-Proliferation Treaty. At a time when the USA should be rejoicing in China's success in providing an international venue for the 2008 Olympics, we are looking at nuclear ships and subs as a potential threat and an expanded edition of still another arms race.
The USA has a service economy that waits on foreign visitors while grateful for a devalued dollar so Europe now has a new playground and a city in New York to purchase the latest Gucci cheaper than Paris or Geneva.
The people of the USA have a Vice President with a Nobel Peace Prize. The very same one that left office with a world mostly at peace and a nation with a fiscal surplus. Yet all anyone can do is turn their noses up at the 'idea' of actually having to stop using fossil fuels without clear paths to victory of having a home powered by solar or wind.
The USA financial markets have overtaken the culture of those that are wealthy and the moral place for conservation, environmentalism, peace and wild land preservation and protection has become unfashionable. What I am going to present tonight will make many upset. It requires a call of the Senate and House to investigate the current trend by the Bureau of Fish and Wildlife, the Department of the Interior and the EPA. The public lands of the USA are being exploited and there is a cultural movement among 'The Wall Street' breed to allow it to happen.
What I am about to present tonight can easily lead to impeachment. It's abuse of government and negligence of the 'public trust' of the people of the USA. You won't hear this any place else, I already tried to enlist the assistance of The New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle and The Seattle Post Intelligencer. I was met with the same rhetorical shunning of the issue I have stipulated above. Wealth first, the American people NEVER.
"Apethetic Way to Be" by Reliant K
Yeah, I'm not angry
And no, I'm not upset
It's taken me awhile
But this is what I've learned
Emotional attachment is really not a threat
When I'm simply not concerned
The things that I take on
I soon shrug off
'cause I know no one
Will ever be content
With the way things are
Or with what they've got
So I've given up and now I'm just indifferent
You all laugh at me
Like I'm not happy
With anything, any time, anywhere
And the half of me's all about apathy
And the other half just doesn't care
I must admit;
All the words you spoke, I hated
Cause I don't see just how I can be motivated
Enough to break a sweat over a dying race
It seems our fate is something we've already embraced
Yeah, I'm not angry,
And no, I'm not upset
It's taken me awhile
But this is what I've learned
Emotional attachment is really not a threat
When I'm simply not concerned
You all laugh at me
Like I'm not happy
With anything, any time, anywhere
And the half of me's all about apathy
And the other half just doesn't care
Yeah, bein' apathetic's a pathetic way to be
(I don't care)
What matters to you does not matter to me
('cause I don't care)
So take a wild guess
It's like I just couldn't care less
If all the things you find impressive
Just blew up and made those messes
That you'll frantically repair
Like it's a life or death affair
And all the while you're unaware
For this, you really shouldn't care
But it's so hard to see the reality
That the end will be the end of things
And our hearts are all we get to bring
So let's go ahead and make them worth something
You all laugh at me
Like I'm not happy
With anything, any time, anywhere
And the half of me's all about apathy
And the other half just doesn't care
You all laugh at me
Like I'm not happy
With anything, any time, anywhere
And the half of me's all about apathy
And the other half just doesn't care
I'm well aware that everything
Is a far cry from all right
I'm well aware that all of us
Can at times, be too uptight
And possibly, the remedy
Is a dose of apathy
You point your finger at you
I'll point mine right back at me
And no, I'm not upset
It's taken me awhile
But this is what I've learned
Emotional attachment is really not a threat
When I'm simply not concerned
The things that I take on
I soon shrug off
'cause I know no one
Will ever be content
With the way things are
Or with what they've got
So I've given up and now I'm just indifferent
You all laugh at me
Like I'm not happy
With anything, any time, anywhere
And the half of me's all about apathy
And the other half just doesn't care
I must admit;
All the words you spoke, I hated
Cause I don't see just how I can be motivated
Enough to break a sweat over a dying race
It seems our fate is something we've already embraced
Yeah, I'm not angry,
And no, I'm not upset
It's taken me awhile
But this is what I've learned
Emotional attachment is really not a threat
When I'm simply not concerned
You all laugh at me
Like I'm not happy
With anything, any time, anywhere
And the half of me's all about apathy
And the other half just doesn't care
Yeah, bein' apathetic's a pathetic way to be
(I don't care)
What matters to you does not matter to me
('cause I don't care)
So take a wild guess
It's like I just couldn't care less
If all the things you find impressive
Just blew up and made those messes
That you'll frantically repair
Like it's a life or death affair
And all the while you're unaware
For this, you really shouldn't care
But it's so hard to see the reality
That the end will be the end of things
And our hearts are all we get to bring
So let's go ahead and make them worth something
You all laugh at me
Like I'm not happy
With anything, any time, anywhere
And the half of me's all about apathy
And the other half just doesn't care
You all laugh at me
Like I'm not happy
With anything, any time, anywhere
And the half of me's all about apathy
And the other half just doesn't care
I'm well aware that everything
Is a far cry from all right
I'm well aware that all of us
Can at times, be too uptight
And possibly, the remedy
Is a dose of apathy
You point your finger at you
I'll point mine right back at me
Summertime Lake Michigan level expected to drop further
Lake Michigan basin as viewed from the Space Shuttle
Draining the Great Lakes will do nothing to solve the water problems of the USA, it will only increase the problems currently at issue.
By DAN EGANdegan@journalsentinel.com
Posted: March 17, 2007
Winter might have seemed like it returned to normal this year, but Lake Michigan hasn't.
Posted: March 17, 2007
Winter might have seemed like it returned to normal this year, but Lake Michigan hasn't.
Despite the cold and snow of the past few months, the water level of Lake Michigan continue to drop; as of Friday, Lake Michigan was about an inch lower than it was at this time last year, and about 17 inches below its long-term average. The long-range forecast for water levels isn't calling for things to get much better this summer.
"All indications are the lake is going to be lower than it was last year," said Cynthia Sellinger of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The reason: Lake Superior is within about 2 inches of its all-time low, and that means less water is tumbling down the St. Marys River and into Lakes Michigan and Huron. It also might not have been as snowy this winter as some people think. Sellinger points out, for example, that 1.3 inches of precipitation fell over Lakes Michigan and Huron in February, compared with a long-term average of 1.72 inches for the month....
"All indications are the lake is going to be lower than it was last year," said Cynthia Sellinger of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The reason: Lake Superior is within about 2 inches of its all-time low, and that means less water is tumbling down the St. Marys River and into Lakes Michigan and Huron. It also might not have been as snowy this winter as some people think. Sellinger points out, for example, that 1.3 inches of precipitation fell over Lakes Michigan and Huron in February, compared with a long-term average of 1.72 inches for the month....
The new official licensed products of the commemorative insignia of Fuwa mascots are seen in this photo issued by the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG), October 12, 2007. In celebration of the 300-day countdown to the Beijing Olympic Games,BOCOG issued 11 kinds of limited edition products in three categories, namely, insignias, badges and gold-made or silver-made souvenirs. [BOCOG]
Morning Papers - continued...
RIA Novosti
Russia concerned by Japan-U.S. missile shield - FM Lavrov
TOKYO, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - Russia is concerned by plans by the U.S. and Japan to deploy a joint missile defense system, the foreign minister told Tokyo's Kyodo news agency.
"Japanese-U.S. cooperation in missile defense is cause of concern for us. We are against the creation of a missile defense system as a means of achieving military superiority. The deployment of such a system will spur an arms race both regionally and globally," Sergei Lavrov said in an interview published on Saturday.
He said the system is part of the U.S. global missile defense shield and could be used against Russia and China.
Tokyo and Washington have intensified joint missile defense programs since North Korea's nuclear bomb and long-range missile tests last year.
Around 50,000 U.S. troops are stationed across Japan under a bilateral security arrangement.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071013/83758834.html
Russian PM Zubkov hosts talks with Rice, Gate
MOSCOW, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - Russian Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov hosted talks in Moscow on Saturday with the United States state and defense secretaries.
The government press office said the meeting with Condoleezza Rice and Robert Gates, on the second day of their visit to the Russia, focused on trade and economic relations.
The Russian side stressed the need to conclude the negotiating process on Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization and the importance of abolishing the Jackson-Vanik amendment, which denies normal U.S. trade relations to countries with non-market economies that restrict their citizens' right to emigrate.
The controversial amendment is still applied to Russia, and has proved a key barrier for the country's entry to the WTO.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071013/83749591.html
Russia, U.S. fail to agree on key issues at defense talks
MOSCOW, October 12 (RIA Novosti) - The U.S. and Russia failed to resolve a missile defense dispute at Friday's talks in Moscow between the countries' foreign and defense ministers, but agreed to resume negotiations in Washington next April.
U.S. State Secretary Condoleezza Rice said talks in the "two-plus-two" format had failed to overcome differences on U.S. plans to deploy missile defense elements in Central Europe and Russian proposals to extend the START-1 arms reduction treaty, but a decision was made to continue discussions at the level of experts.
Rice said that at the talks, she and Defense Secretary Robert Gates had tried to respond to Russia's concerns on the missile shield, and were willing to continue efforts to allay its concerns.
Earlier in the day, Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted tense talks with Rice and Gates at his country residence near Moscow on defense issues.
Moscow strongly opposes U.S. plans to deploy elements of its missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic, considering them a threat to its national security. Washington has insisted the European missile shield is intended to stave off the threat of missile attack from "rogue states" such as Iran or North Korea.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the U.S. side offered an alternative to its missile defense plans in a bid to allay Russia's concerns, and said Moscow would study it. "Today our American counterparts presented their return proposal, aimed at finding a solution to the dispute," he said.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071012/83677780.html
Rice meets rights activists during tense Moscow visit
MOSCOW, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with Russian human rights activists in Moscow on Saturday, a day after unsuccessful defense talks with the country's leaders.
The United States has repeatedly voiced concerns over the alleged erosion of democracy and human rights in Russia under President Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin, in turn, has warned against outside interference, and condemns the use of NGOs by foreign states to influence domestic policy.
Rice's meeting in the U.S. Embassy, attended by several heads of NGOs, appeared likely to further strain tensions with Moscow. However, according to one of the officials present at the talks, she avoided making judgments on the rights situation in Russia.
Alexander Brod, head of the Moscow Human Rights Bureau, told RIA Novosti: "She did not give an assessment. Those present gave their evaluation of the situation as a whole, and discussed particular areas of human rights violations."
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071013/83746795.html
Sarkozy signals rapprochement with Russia over Iran nuclear program
MOSCOW, October 10 (RIA Novosti) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Wednesday that Russian and French positions had become closer with regard to Iran's nuclear program.
Sarkozy was speaking after discussing the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. The Iranian nuclear program is seen by some Western countries as a bid to develop nuclear weapons, despite repeated Iranian statements to the contrary.
"We have had a profound discussion on the matter and I listened to President Putin's analysis. I think our positions have become closer," Sarkozy said.
Sarkozy said that, despite slightly different approaches to analyzing the uranium enrichment program resumed by Iran in January 2006, Russia and France were unanimous that Iran was willing to cooperate on the issue.
"The most important thing is that they [Iran] are willing to cooperate," Sarkozy said.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071010/83318593.html
Iran's Khamenei calls for boycott of Mideast conference
TEHRAN, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - Iranian spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has urged Islamic countries to boycott November's U.S.-sponsored international conference on the Middle East.
The conference was first proposed by U.S. President George Bush and subsequently approved by the Middle East Quartet, comprising the United States, United Nations, the European Union, and Russia.
"How can Islamic countries possibly participate in this event when the Palestinians describe this conference as a sham and do not intend to attend it?" he said at a religious meeting in Tehran.
He said all Islamic countries should treat the conference as a deception, and a stratagem by the Americans.
Iran's supreme leader said the Americans are attempting to "impose their will on the Palestinian people" and "save the Zionist regime [Israel]."
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071013/83751286.html
Gas blast kills at least nine in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine -1
(updates death toll, adds presidential press office statement in para 3)
KIEV, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - At least nine people are confirmed dead following a household gas explosion that caused a section of a building to collapse in Dnepropetrovsk, south-central Ukraine, rescuers said on Saturday.
So far three people have been pulled out of the rubble alive, and a further 21 are injured, the head of the regional emergency services said. The blast occurred in a nine-storey building in Ukraine's third-largest city, located to the south of Kiev.
Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko called on his Cabinet to do everything possible to help relatives of the victims, and those injured in the accident, the presidential press office said. He also offered his condolences to the victims' families, and urged Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych to urgently ascertain the cause of the disaster.
The governor of the Dnepropetrovsk Region is keeping the president updated on developments at the site of the blast, the statement said.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071013/83757853.html
President Putin signs degree on federal border agency
MOSCOW, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on setting up a federal agency dedicated to securing Russia's borders, the Kremlin press office announced on Saturday.
At a news conference three days ago, the president said Russia was investing heavily in border infrastructure, particularly in the turbulent North Caucasus region.
He said that in order to prepare itself for a visa-free regime with the European Union, Russia must ensure the security of its external borders, and guarantee European partners that the country is secure from outside terrorist and criminal elements.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071013/83736351.html
Russia intercepted over 300 foreign spies in past 4 years - FS
MOSCOW, October 10 (RIA Novosti) - The head of Russia's Federal Security Service told a popular weekly that the FSB had identified over 300 foreign spies over the past four years.
"More than 270 actively operating agents and 70 foreign intelligence recruits, including 35 Russians, have been exposed since 2003," Argumenty i Fakty quoted Nikolai Patrushev as saying. He said that 14 agents and 33 recruits have been caught this year alone.
Patrushev said six Russians were caught in an attempt to transfer state secrets to foreign countries, and have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms.
Retired Colonel Valentin Shabaturov was given a 12-year sentence this year for treason and espionage. The court proved he had actively cooperated with foreign intelligence for seven years, from 1999 to 2006, and revealed state secrets to them.
Igor Arsentyev, a lieutenant colonel in the reserves, was sentenced to nine years in prison on the same charges in September.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071010/83308532.html
Russia successfully tests short-range missile intercept
MOSCOW, October 11 (RIA Novosti) - Russia has successfully test-fired a short-range anti-ballistic missile at a test site in Kazakhstan, a Space Forces spokesman said Thursday.
"A combined team of the Space Forces, the Sary Shagan testing site and industry officials fired a short-range interceptor missile at a target missile," Lieutenant Colonel Alexei Zolotukhin said.
He said the launch had been conducted to assess the possibility of extending of the service life of interceptor missiles on combat duty around Moscow.
According to some reports, at least 68 short-range A-135 interceptors (NATO reporting name Gazelle) are currently deployed in the Moscow missile defense system to protect radars and strategically important infrastructure.
The Gazelle, with an effective range of up to 80 kilometers (about 50 miles) is similar in design and mission to the U.S. Sprint missile of the U.S. Safeguard system.
The Sary Shagan testing site on the west bank of Lake Balkhash has been operational since October 1958. In recent years, the Russian Strategic Missile Forces conducted tests of six anti-missile systems, 12 air defense systems, seven types of missile interceptors, 12 types of ground-to-air missiles and 18 radars at the site.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071011/83439840.html
Odessa-Gdansk pipeline to be extended
MOSCOW. (Vladimir Saprykin for RIA Novosti) - The success of the informal energy summit held by Azerbaijan, Georgia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Wednesday will be judged later, when the agreements reached there become reality.
But it was certainly an achievement, because it offered more cooperation possibilities for participants, who endorsed the extension of the Ukrainian-Polish Odessa-Brody pipeline to Poland's port Gdansk and refinery in Plock. The pipeline is designed to pump oil from the Caspian to Europe, bypassing Russia.
The sides' oil producing and transporting companies signed a corporate agreement, which became the first practical step to preparing a feasibility study for the pipeline project.
The president of Kazakhstan did not come to Vilnius, but his energy and mineral resources minister, Sauat Mynbayev, said Kazakhstan viewed the project as a practical possibility and could take part in it.
http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20071012/83636003.html
Will Sarkozy become Sarko?
MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti political commentator Yelena Shesternina) - On October 9-10, French President Nicholas Sarkozy will pay a visit to Moscow to have talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
This will be their second meeting since Sarkozy was elected president. For the first time, the two presidents met at the G8 summit in Heiligendamm and intrigued the journalists on the eve of the usually boring official talks. While they were talking before a regular meeting, the French president's phone rang. Having spoken for a minute, Sarkozy gave the receiver to Putin. It later transpired that they were not dealing with global problems. Their wives - Cecilia and Lyudmila - simply decided to check what their husbands were doing. The first ladies had their own program and found a common language rather quickly. Judging by all, their husbands also got on quite well.
At any rate, when French journalists asked him about his opinion of Putin, Sarkozy said that the Russian president seemed a calm and very clever man one could easily talk to. This admission perplexed political analysts who predicted almost return to the Cold War times for Moscow and Paris after Sarkozy became president.
During the election campaign the then presidential nominee was not very complimentary to Russia, and tried to distance himself as much as he could from the policy of Jacques Chirac, who had been Moscow's number one defender in Europe for many years.
http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20071008/83005256.html
China Daily
CPC ready for national congress
By Wu Jiao (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-10-13 08:20
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on Friday completed preparations for the Party's national congress by approving two key documents - amendments to the Party Constitution and a report by the 16th Central Committee of the CPC.
The 7th Plenary Session of the CPC's 16th Central Committee discussed and agreed to submit the documents to the 17th National Congress of the CPC, scheduled to start on Monday.
The CPC Central Committee's Political Bureau presided over the plenum, which was addressed by Hu Jintao, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, according to a communiqu released after the plenum.
Hu explained the draft work report to be presented by the CPC Central Committee to the national congress, which outlines the Party's priorities for the next five years.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/13/content_6171831.htm
Chen Liangyu expelled from CPC
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-10-12 18:31
BEIJING -- The Seventh Plenary Session of the 16th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on Friday endorsed the decision made by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee of expelling former Shanghai party chief Chen Liangyu from the CPC.
The meeting reviewed and approved the investigation report on the case of Chen, former secretary of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, handed over by the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI).
The Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee decided to expelling Chen, 61, from the party on July 26 after the CCDI's investigation into a social security fund scandal.
The meeting also endorsed the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee's decision of expelling Du Shicheng, former deputy secretary of the Shandong Provincial Committee of the (CPC), from the party.
Du, 57, also former secretary of the Qingdao Municipal CPC Committee in Shandong, was expelled for taking huge bribes and leading a dissolute life.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/12/content_6170911.htm
China's longest tunnel under lake opens to traffic
(newsphoto)
Updated: 2007-10-11 17:06
Vehicles move along a 3.46 km-long tunnel under the Dushuhu Lake in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province on October 10, 2007. The tunnel is part of the 7.37 km-long Dushuhu bridge and tunnel project, which opened to traffic Wednesday after more than one year of construction. The tunnel is the longest of its kind in China. [newsphoto]
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/photo/2007-10/11/content_6166789.htm
China hikes bank reserve rate to 13%
(chinadaily.com.cn/Agencies)
Updated: 2007-10-13 16:22
China ordered banks to set aside more money as reserves for the eighth time this year to cool speculation in stocks and real estate and curb the fastest inflation in 10 years.
Lenders must park 13 percent of deposits as reserves from October 25, up from 12.5 percent, the People's Bank of China said Saturday on its Web site. The required ratio is the highest in almost a decade.
The move is aimed at "strengthening liquidity management in the banking system and checking excessive credit growth", the central bank said in a statement. Excess liquidity could lead to price hikes and pour more fuel into the sizzling economy.
China's consumer prices surged 6.5 percent in August from a year earlier, the biggest jump since December 1996. The rate breached the government's annual 3 percent target for a fourth consecutive month, as food costs soared.
China's trade surplus jumped 56 percent in September, the customs authorities said Friday, taking it to US$185.65 billion for the first nine months of the year, more than the US$177.5 billion for all of last year.
Money supply is surging as the central bank sold the yuan to buy into the foreign currency brought into the country by the trade surplus. Some of that money is finding its way into stocks, pushing the benchmark CSI 300 Index up 181 percent this year. Money supply rose 18.5 percent in September.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/13/content_6172368.htm
Health service for all by 2010 - minister
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-10-13 18:43
SHANGHAI -- Chinese Health Minister Chen Zhu has vowed to establish a medical service system which covers all urban and rural Chinese by 2010.
The Ministry of Health will deepen the ongoing medical reform to attain the objective, the minister said at a Sino-American medical forum opened in Shanghai, China's leading metropolis, on Friday.
The reform of China's public health sector is in a crucial period. It covers a wide range of subjects including medical insurance, drug manufacturing and distributing and supervision and legislation of medical management.
Increasing public criticism on high medical expense burden and endless hospital sandals have compelled the ministry to launch the reform which involved 16 ministries and commissions to brainstorm the reform.
"Public medical service should not be a burden to the society, but an important aspect of sustainable social development," the minister said.
Eight think tanks including World Health Organization, Mckinsey, World Bank, Development Research Center of the State Council and four Chinese universities have submitted their proposals on the reform to the ministry.
"The final plan of the reform will be a mixture of the proposals," he said.
China started a medical service reform in 1992 to abolish a system in which governments cover more than 90 percent of Chinese medical expenses.
Medical insurance has been introduced and promoted in urban areas in Guangdong and some other provinces since 1992 and cooperative medical care has been experimented in some rural counties to find a way to provide all Chinese with affordable medical service.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/13/content_6172454.htm
US-Russia missile defense talks fail
(AP)
Updated: 2007-10-13 17:41
MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin warned President Bush's top two Cabinet officials on Friday to back off US missile defense plans for eastern Europe as high-level talks yielded little more than a pledge to meet again.
Despite presenting new cooperation proposals intended to bring Moscow on board, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates failed in a series of tough meetings to turn around Moscow's opposition to the system and other strategic issues.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-10/13/content_6172427.htm
Forbes: Woman, 26, mainland's richest
(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-10-09 07:31
A 26-year-old woman worth $16.2 billion is the Chinese mainland's richest person, topping a list of tycoons whose wealth has soared amid a boom in stock and property prices, the business magazine Forbes said Monday.
The fortune of Yang Huiyan - also Asia's richest woman - is based on shares in Country Garden Holdings Ltd, a real estate developer founded by her father, Forbes said. It said the company's Hong Kong stock market debut this year made billionaires of Yang and four other people.
In second place was another developer, Hui Wing Mau, with a net worth of $7.3 billion. No 3 was Guo Guangchang, chairman of a manufacturing, retailing and real estate conglomerate, Fosun Group, with a fortune of $4.85 billion.
Their rise reflects a sharp rise in Chinese real estate prices over the past year.
Yang also represents an unusual case of second-generation wealth in China, most of whose richest people are self-made entrepreneurs still in their 30s and 40s.
Her net worth was more than seven times that of last year's richest mainland person, appliance retailer Gome's Huang Guangyu, who was worth $2.3 billion. Huang, also known as Wong Kwong-yu, dropped to No 10 on this year's list, even though his net worth rose by more than 50 percent to $3.6 billion.
Forbes said it compiled its list by looking at shareholdings in public companies and estimating what holdings in private entities would be worth if public.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/09/content_6158746.htm
China to allocate 80b yuan for high-tech development
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-10-13 15:25
The China Development Bank (CDB) will provide 80 billion yuan (US$10.7 billion) to support the development and innovation of high-tech enterprises in upcoming five years.
According to a memorandums of understanding recently signed by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and CDB, the fund will be used in high-tech innovation, key projects, small-and medium-sized high-tech firm development and etc.
It is an effort initiated by NDRC to formulate efficient finance channels for the high-tech industry at China Hi-tech Fair being held in Shenzhen.
Apart from government supportive policies, the industry still needs other effective financing methods such as venture capital investment, bank loans and public listing.
The NDRC will work with the CDB and Shenzhen Stock Exchange to promote cooperation between high-tech enterprises and the capital market in a bid to solve financial difficulties of high-tech enterprises.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2007-10/13/content_6172333.htm
Foreign exchange reserves swell to US$1.43 trillion
By Xin Zhiming (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-10-13 09:23
The country's foreign exchange reserves expanded to US$1.43 trillion at the end of September, a year-on-year increase of 45.1 percent, the central bank said on Friday.
That's 3.5 percentage points higher than in the first six months.
"The increasing trade surplus has been the main driver of the reserve expansion," said Hu Shaowei, a senior economist with the State Information Center.
China's trade surplus was US$185.7 billion in the first nine months - more than for the whole of last year - according to Customs.
It may also be a result of incoming "hot money" as the domestic stock and property markets surge, said Chen Xingdong, chief economist of BNP Paribas Peregrine Securities in Beijing.
Some analysts said the reserves could have been higher if not for the transfer of funds to the newly launched China Investment Corp, but the central bank did not reveal whether this is the case.
Hu said the expanding trade surplus is difficult to control and contributes to the country's ballooning reserves.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' latest macroeconomic forecast said the surplus could reach a record high of about US$260 billion this year.
Meanwhile, the central bank said, the annual growth in broad money supply or M2 accelerated to 18.45 percent in September, up by 1.39 percentage points from the end of June.
Yuan-denominated lending rose to 25.9 trillion yuan (US$3.44 trillion) at the end of September, a year-on-year increase of 17.13 percent.
Banks extended 3.36 trillion yuan in new loans in the first nine months of the year, 607.3 billion more than last year, which, analysts said, could add pressure to fixed-assets investment.
The central bank said in a statement that the financial situation was, on the whole, "stable".
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2007-10/13/content_6171927.htm
One of "Jena Six" teens jailed in Louisiana
(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-10-13 09:25
New Orleans - A Louisiana teen-ager who spent more than nine months behind bars in connection with the "Jena Six" case is back in jail to complete his sentence in an earlier juvenile case, an official said on Friday.
Mychal Bell, 17, was taken into custody on Thursday night, said LaSalle Parish District Attorney J. Reed Walters.
He was given an 18-month sentence in a juvenile detention facility, according to the Alexandria, Louisiana, Town Talk newspaper.
Walters said Bell's sentence in juvenile court was postponed after he and five other black teen-agers were charged with attacking a white Jena, Louisiana, high school classmate in December 2006 after months of racially charged incidents in the central Louisiana town of 3,000.
"As I earlier pointed out, Mychal Bell had four dispositions, as they are known in Louisiana juvenile court, before the so-called Jena Six case occurred," Walters said in a statement.
Walters declined further comment on Bell's incarceration because juvenile cases are not public record under Louisiana law, as in most US states.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-10/13/content_6171943.htm
3 scientists win Nobel Prize in medicine
(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-10-09 10:07
New York -- As a child in Italy during World War II, he lived for years on the streets and in orphanages. Six decades later, as a scientist in the United States, Mario Capecchi joined two other researchers in winning the Nobel Prize in medicine.
Their work led to a powerful and widely used technique to manipulate genes in mice, which has helped scientists study heart disease, diabetes, cancer, cystic fibrosis and other diseases.
The $1.54 million prize was awarded Monday to Capecchi, 70, of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City; Oliver Smithies, 82, a native of Britain now at University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, and Sir Martin J. Evans, 66, of Cardiff University in Wales.
Their "gene-targeting" technique lets scientists deactivate or modifying individual genes in mice and observe how those changes affect the animals. That in turn gives clues about what those genes do in human health and disease.
The work has had "a revolutionary effect on the ability to understand how genes work," said Richard Woychik, director of The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine, a center for mouse genetics.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-10/09/content_6159959.htm
85-year-old Nobel laureate Yang: 'Young wife makes me younger'
(chinaview.cn)
Updated: 2007-09-25 17:37
BEIJING - Chinese-American Nobel laureate of physics Yang Zhenning said to Xinhua his wife Weng Fan, 54 years his junior, has made him younger and more energetic.
Yang and his wife visited China's Sun Yat-Sen University on Saturday in Guangzhou. Holding his wife's hand tightly, he said: "She really makes me feel the energy of youth."
He added: "I am now 10 times more famous than before since the current marriage."
Yang, 85, married 31-year-old Weng Fan on December 24, 2004.
It was the second marriage for both of them. Yang's first wife Du Zhili died in 2003 and Weng wed her first husband shortly after graduation from college and got divorced soon afterwards.
In 1957, Yang won and shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with Lee Tsung-dao "for their penetrating investigation of the so-called parity laws, which has led to important discoveries regarding the elementary particles."
Since late 2003, Yang has been giving regular lectures exclusive for freshman in China's elite Tsinghua University.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-09/25/content_6133691.htm
Gore and UN climate panel share Nobel Peace Prize
(China Daily)
Updated: 2007-10-13 08:45
OSLO -- Former US vice-president Al Gore and the UN climate panel won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for their part in galvanizing international action against global warming before it "moves beyond man's control".
The award appeared to be a snub to President George W. Bush, who has doubted the science of global warming and rejected caps on emissions of gases believed to cause it, but the White House said it was happy for the winners and praised their work.
Gore, who lost narrowly to Bush in the 2000 presidential election, and the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) were chosen to share the $1.5 million prize from a near record field of 181 candidates.
The Nobel Committee said the award was made because of their efforts to draw attention to mankind's impact on the climate and measures needed to address it before rising temperatures bring droughts, floods and rising seas.
"Action is necessary now, before climate change moves beyond man's control," the committee said.
Gore has lectured extensively on the threat of global warming and last year starred in his own Oscar-winning documentary film An Inconvenient Truth to warn of the dangers and urge action against it.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-10/13/content_6171850.htm
continued...
Russia concerned by Japan-U.S. missile shield - FM Lavrov
TOKYO, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - Russia is concerned by plans by the U.S. and Japan to deploy a joint missile defense system, the foreign minister told Tokyo's Kyodo news agency.
"Japanese-U.S. cooperation in missile defense is cause of concern for us. We are against the creation of a missile defense system as a means of achieving military superiority. The deployment of such a system will spur an arms race both regionally and globally," Sergei Lavrov said in an interview published on Saturday.
He said the system is part of the U.S. global missile defense shield and could be used against Russia and China.
Tokyo and Washington have intensified joint missile defense programs since North Korea's nuclear bomb and long-range missile tests last year.
Around 50,000 U.S. troops are stationed across Japan under a bilateral security arrangement.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071013/83758834.html
Russian PM Zubkov hosts talks with Rice, Gate
MOSCOW, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - Russian Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov hosted talks in Moscow on Saturday with the United States state and defense secretaries.
The government press office said the meeting with Condoleezza Rice and Robert Gates, on the second day of their visit to the Russia, focused on trade and economic relations.
The Russian side stressed the need to conclude the negotiating process on Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization and the importance of abolishing the Jackson-Vanik amendment, which denies normal U.S. trade relations to countries with non-market economies that restrict their citizens' right to emigrate.
The controversial amendment is still applied to Russia, and has proved a key barrier for the country's entry to the WTO.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071013/83749591.html
Russia, U.S. fail to agree on key issues at defense talks
MOSCOW, October 12 (RIA Novosti) - The U.S. and Russia failed to resolve a missile defense dispute at Friday's talks in Moscow between the countries' foreign and defense ministers, but agreed to resume negotiations in Washington next April.
U.S. State Secretary Condoleezza Rice said talks in the "two-plus-two" format had failed to overcome differences on U.S. plans to deploy missile defense elements in Central Europe and Russian proposals to extend the START-1 arms reduction treaty, but a decision was made to continue discussions at the level of experts.
Rice said that at the talks, she and Defense Secretary Robert Gates had tried to respond to Russia's concerns on the missile shield, and were willing to continue efforts to allay its concerns.
Earlier in the day, Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted tense talks with Rice and Gates at his country residence near Moscow on defense issues.
Moscow strongly opposes U.S. plans to deploy elements of its missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic, considering them a threat to its national security. Washington has insisted the European missile shield is intended to stave off the threat of missile attack from "rogue states" such as Iran or North Korea.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the U.S. side offered an alternative to its missile defense plans in a bid to allay Russia's concerns, and said Moscow would study it. "Today our American counterparts presented their return proposal, aimed at finding a solution to the dispute," he said.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071012/83677780.html
Rice meets rights activists during tense Moscow visit
MOSCOW, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with Russian human rights activists in Moscow on Saturday, a day after unsuccessful defense talks with the country's leaders.
The United States has repeatedly voiced concerns over the alleged erosion of democracy and human rights in Russia under President Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin, in turn, has warned against outside interference, and condemns the use of NGOs by foreign states to influence domestic policy.
Rice's meeting in the U.S. Embassy, attended by several heads of NGOs, appeared likely to further strain tensions with Moscow. However, according to one of the officials present at the talks, she avoided making judgments on the rights situation in Russia.
Alexander Brod, head of the Moscow Human Rights Bureau, told RIA Novosti: "She did not give an assessment. Those present gave their evaluation of the situation as a whole, and discussed particular areas of human rights violations."
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071013/83746795.html
Sarkozy signals rapprochement with Russia over Iran nuclear program
MOSCOW, October 10 (RIA Novosti) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Wednesday that Russian and French positions had become closer with regard to Iran's nuclear program.
Sarkozy was speaking after discussing the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. The Iranian nuclear program is seen by some Western countries as a bid to develop nuclear weapons, despite repeated Iranian statements to the contrary.
"We have had a profound discussion on the matter and I listened to President Putin's analysis. I think our positions have become closer," Sarkozy said.
Sarkozy said that, despite slightly different approaches to analyzing the uranium enrichment program resumed by Iran in January 2006, Russia and France were unanimous that Iran was willing to cooperate on the issue.
"The most important thing is that they [Iran] are willing to cooperate," Sarkozy said.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071010/83318593.html
Iran's Khamenei calls for boycott of Mideast conference
TEHRAN, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - Iranian spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has urged Islamic countries to boycott November's U.S.-sponsored international conference on the Middle East.
The conference was first proposed by U.S. President George Bush and subsequently approved by the Middle East Quartet, comprising the United States, United Nations, the European Union, and Russia.
"How can Islamic countries possibly participate in this event when the Palestinians describe this conference as a sham and do not intend to attend it?" he said at a religious meeting in Tehran.
He said all Islamic countries should treat the conference as a deception, and a stratagem by the Americans.
Iran's supreme leader said the Americans are attempting to "impose their will on the Palestinian people" and "save the Zionist regime [Israel]."
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071013/83751286.html
Gas blast kills at least nine in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine -1
(updates death toll, adds presidential press office statement in para 3)
KIEV, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - At least nine people are confirmed dead following a household gas explosion that caused a section of a building to collapse in Dnepropetrovsk, south-central Ukraine, rescuers said on Saturday.
So far three people have been pulled out of the rubble alive, and a further 21 are injured, the head of the regional emergency services said. The blast occurred in a nine-storey building in Ukraine's third-largest city, located to the south of Kiev.
Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko called on his Cabinet to do everything possible to help relatives of the victims, and those injured in the accident, the presidential press office said. He also offered his condolences to the victims' families, and urged Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych to urgently ascertain the cause of the disaster.
The governor of the Dnepropetrovsk Region is keeping the president updated on developments at the site of the blast, the statement said.
http://en.rian.ru/world/20071013/83757853.html
President Putin signs degree on federal border agency
MOSCOW, October 13 (RIA Novosti) - President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on setting up a federal agency dedicated to securing Russia's borders, the Kremlin press office announced on Saturday.
At a news conference three days ago, the president said Russia was investing heavily in border infrastructure, particularly in the turbulent North Caucasus region.
He said that in order to prepare itself for a visa-free regime with the European Union, Russia must ensure the security of its external borders, and guarantee European partners that the country is secure from outside terrorist and criminal elements.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071013/83736351.html
Russia intercepted over 300 foreign spies in past 4 years - FS
MOSCOW, October 10 (RIA Novosti) - The head of Russia's Federal Security Service told a popular weekly that the FSB had identified over 300 foreign spies over the past four years.
"More than 270 actively operating agents and 70 foreign intelligence recruits, including 35 Russians, have been exposed since 2003," Argumenty i Fakty quoted Nikolai Patrushev as saying. He said that 14 agents and 33 recruits have been caught this year alone.
Patrushev said six Russians were caught in an attempt to transfer state secrets to foreign countries, and have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms.
Retired Colonel Valentin Shabaturov was given a 12-year sentence this year for treason and espionage. The court proved he had actively cooperated with foreign intelligence for seven years, from 1999 to 2006, and revealed state secrets to them.
Igor Arsentyev, a lieutenant colonel in the reserves, was sentenced to nine years in prison on the same charges in September.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071010/83308532.html
Russia successfully tests short-range missile intercept
MOSCOW, October 11 (RIA Novosti) - Russia has successfully test-fired a short-range anti-ballistic missile at a test site in Kazakhstan, a Space Forces spokesman said Thursday.
"A combined team of the Space Forces, the Sary Shagan testing site and industry officials fired a short-range interceptor missile at a target missile," Lieutenant Colonel Alexei Zolotukhin said.
He said the launch had been conducted to assess the possibility of extending of the service life of interceptor missiles on combat duty around Moscow.
According to some reports, at least 68 short-range A-135 interceptors (NATO reporting name Gazelle) are currently deployed in the Moscow missile defense system to protect radars and strategically important infrastructure.
The Gazelle, with an effective range of up to 80 kilometers (about 50 miles) is similar in design and mission to the U.S. Sprint missile of the U.S. Safeguard system.
The Sary Shagan testing site on the west bank of Lake Balkhash has been operational since October 1958. In recent years, the Russian Strategic Missile Forces conducted tests of six anti-missile systems, 12 air defense systems, seven types of missile interceptors, 12 types of ground-to-air missiles and 18 radars at the site.
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071011/83439840.html
Odessa-Gdansk pipeline to be extended
MOSCOW. (Vladimir Saprykin for RIA Novosti) - The success of the informal energy summit held by Azerbaijan, Georgia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Wednesday will be judged later, when the agreements reached there become reality.
But it was certainly an achievement, because it offered more cooperation possibilities for participants, who endorsed the extension of the Ukrainian-Polish Odessa-Brody pipeline to Poland's port Gdansk and refinery in Plock. The pipeline is designed to pump oil from the Caspian to Europe, bypassing Russia.
The sides' oil producing and transporting companies signed a corporate agreement, which became the first practical step to preparing a feasibility study for the pipeline project.
The president of Kazakhstan did not come to Vilnius, but his energy and mineral resources minister, Sauat Mynbayev, said Kazakhstan viewed the project as a practical possibility and could take part in it.
http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20071012/83636003.html
Will Sarkozy become Sarko?
MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti political commentator Yelena Shesternina) - On October 9-10, French President Nicholas Sarkozy will pay a visit to Moscow to have talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
This will be their second meeting since Sarkozy was elected president. For the first time, the two presidents met at the G8 summit in Heiligendamm and intrigued the journalists on the eve of the usually boring official talks. While they were talking before a regular meeting, the French president's phone rang. Having spoken for a minute, Sarkozy gave the receiver to Putin. It later transpired that they were not dealing with global problems. Their wives - Cecilia and Lyudmila - simply decided to check what their husbands were doing. The first ladies had their own program and found a common language rather quickly. Judging by all, their husbands also got on quite well.
At any rate, when French journalists asked him about his opinion of Putin, Sarkozy said that the Russian president seemed a calm and very clever man one could easily talk to. This admission perplexed political analysts who predicted almost return to the Cold War times for Moscow and Paris after Sarkozy became president.
During the election campaign the then presidential nominee was not very complimentary to Russia, and tried to distance himself as much as he could from the policy of Jacques Chirac, who had been Moscow's number one defender in Europe for many years.
http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20071008/83005256.html
China Daily
CPC ready for national congress
By Wu Jiao (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-10-13 08:20
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on Friday completed preparations for the Party's national congress by approving two key documents - amendments to the Party Constitution and a report by the 16th Central Committee of the CPC.
The 7th Plenary Session of the CPC's 16th Central Committee discussed and agreed to submit the documents to the 17th National Congress of the CPC, scheduled to start on Monday.
The CPC Central Committee's Political Bureau presided over the plenum, which was addressed by Hu Jintao, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, according to a communiqu released after the plenum.
Hu explained the draft work report to be presented by the CPC Central Committee to the national congress, which outlines the Party's priorities for the next five years.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/13/content_6171831.htm
Chen Liangyu expelled from CPC
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-10-12 18:31
BEIJING -- The Seventh Plenary Session of the 16th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on Friday endorsed the decision made by the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee of expelling former Shanghai party chief Chen Liangyu from the CPC.
The meeting reviewed and approved the investigation report on the case of Chen, former secretary of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, handed over by the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI).
The Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee decided to expelling Chen, 61, from the party on July 26 after the CCDI's investigation into a social security fund scandal.
The meeting also endorsed the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee's decision of expelling Du Shicheng, former deputy secretary of the Shandong Provincial Committee of the (CPC), from the party.
Du, 57, also former secretary of the Qingdao Municipal CPC Committee in Shandong, was expelled for taking huge bribes and leading a dissolute life.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/12/content_6170911.htm
China's longest tunnel under lake opens to traffic
(newsphoto)
Updated: 2007-10-11 17:06
Vehicles move along a 3.46 km-long tunnel under the Dushuhu Lake in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province on October 10, 2007. The tunnel is part of the 7.37 km-long Dushuhu bridge and tunnel project, which opened to traffic Wednesday after more than one year of construction. The tunnel is the longest of its kind in China. [newsphoto]
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/photo/2007-10/11/content_6166789.htm
China hikes bank reserve rate to 13%
(chinadaily.com.cn/Agencies)
Updated: 2007-10-13 16:22
China ordered banks to set aside more money as reserves for the eighth time this year to cool speculation in stocks and real estate and curb the fastest inflation in 10 years.
Lenders must park 13 percent of deposits as reserves from October 25, up from 12.5 percent, the People's Bank of China said Saturday on its Web site. The required ratio is the highest in almost a decade.
The move is aimed at "strengthening liquidity management in the banking system and checking excessive credit growth", the central bank said in a statement. Excess liquidity could lead to price hikes and pour more fuel into the sizzling economy.
China's consumer prices surged 6.5 percent in August from a year earlier, the biggest jump since December 1996. The rate breached the government's annual 3 percent target for a fourth consecutive month, as food costs soared.
China's trade surplus jumped 56 percent in September, the customs authorities said Friday, taking it to US$185.65 billion for the first nine months of the year, more than the US$177.5 billion for all of last year.
Money supply is surging as the central bank sold the yuan to buy into the foreign currency brought into the country by the trade surplus. Some of that money is finding its way into stocks, pushing the benchmark CSI 300 Index up 181 percent this year. Money supply rose 18.5 percent in September.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/13/content_6172368.htm
Health service for all by 2010 - minister
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-10-13 18:43
SHANGHAI -- Chinese Health Minister Chen Zhu has vowed to establish a medical service system which covers all urban and rural Chinese by 2010.
The Ministry of Health will deepen the ongoing medical reform to attain the objective, the minister said at a Sino-American medical forum opened in Shanghai, China's leading metropolis, on Friday.
The reform of China's public health sector is in a crucial period. It covers a wide range of subjects including medical insurance, drug manufacturing and distributing and supervision and legislation of medical management.
Increasing public criticism on high medical expense burden and endless hospital sandals have compelled the ministry to launch the reform which involved 16 ministries and commissions to brainstorm the reform.
"Public medical service should not be a burden to the society, but an important aspect of sustainable social development," the minister said.
Eight think tanks including World Health Organization, Mckinsey, World Bank, Development Research Center of the State Council and four Chinese universities have submitted their proposals on the reform to the ministry.
"The final plan of the reform will be a mixture of the proposals," he said.
China started a medical service reform in 1992 to abolish a system in which governments cover more than 90 percent of Chinese medical expenses.
Medical insurance has been introduced and promoted in urban areas in Guangdong and some other provinces since 1992 and cooperative medical care has been experimented in some rural counties to find a way to provide all Chinese with affordable medical service.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/13/content_6172454.htm
US-Russia missile defense talks fail
(AP)
Updated: 2007-10-13 17:41
MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin warned President Bush's top two Cabinet officials on Friday to back off US missile defense plans for eastern Europe as high-level talks yielded little more than a pledge to meet again.
Despite presenting new cooperation proposals intended to bring Moscow on board, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates failed in a series of tough meetings to turn around Moscow's opposition to the system and other strategic issues.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-10/13/content_6172427.htm
Forbes: Woman, 26, mainland's richest
(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-10-09 07:31
A 26-year-old woman worth $16.2 billion is the Chinese mainland's richest person, topping a list of tycoons whose wealth has soared amid a boom in stock and property prices, the business magazine Forbes said Monday.
The fortune of Yang Huiyan - also Asia's richest woman - is based on shares in Country Garden Holdings Ltd, a real estate developer founded by her father, Forbes said. It said the company's Hong Kong stock market debut this year made billionaires of Yang and four other people.
In second place was another developer, Hui Wing Mau, with a net worth of $7.3 billion. No 3 was Guo Guangchang, chairman of a manufacturing, retailing and real estate conglomerate, Fosun Group, with a fortune of $4.85 billion.
Their rise reflects a sharp rise in Chinese real estate prices over the past year.
Yang also represents an unusual case of second-generation wealth in China, most of whose richest people are self-made entrepreneurs still in their 30s and 40s.
Her net worth was more than seven times that of last year's richest mainland person, appliance retailer Gome's Huang Guangyu, who was worth $2.3 billion. Huang, also known as Wong Kwong-yu, dropped to No 10 on this year's list, even though his net worth rose by more than 50 percent to $3.6 billion.
Forbes said it compiled its list by looking at shareholdings in public companies and estimating what holdings in private entities would be worth if public.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-10/09/content_6158746.htm
China to allocate 80b yuan for high-tech development
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-10-13 15:25
The China Development Bank (CDB) will provide 80 billion yuan (US$10.7 billion) to support the development and innovation of high-tech enterprises in upcoming five years.
According to a memorandums of understanding recently signed by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and CDB, the fund will be used in high-tech innovation, key projects, small-and medium-sized high-tech firm development and etc.
It is an effort initiated by NDRC to formulate efficient finance channels for the high-tech industry at China Hi-tech Fair being held in Shenzhen.
Apart from government supportive policies, the industry still needs other effective financing methods such as venture capital investment, bank loans and public listing.
The NDRC will work with the CDB and Shenzhen Stock Exchange to promote cooperation between high-tech enterprises and the capital market in a bid to solve financial difficulties of high-tech enterprises.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2007-10/13/content_6172333.htm
Foreign exchange reserves swell to US$1.43 trillion
By Xin Zhiming (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-10-13 09:23
The country's foreign exchange reserves expanded to US$1.43 trillion at the end of September, a year-on-year increase of 45.1 percent, the central bank said on Friday.
That's 3.5 percentage points higher than in the first six months.
"The increasing trade surplus has been the main driver of the reserve expansion," said Hu Shaowei, a senior economist with the State Information Center.
China's trade surplus was US$185.7 billion in the first nine months - more than for the whole of last year - according to Customs.
It may also be a result of incoming "hot money" as the domestic stock and property markets surge, said Chen Xingdong, chief economist of BNP Paribas Peregrine Securities in Beijing.
Some analysts said the reserves could have been higher if not for the transfer of funds to the newly launched China Investment Corp, but the central bank did not reveal whether this is the case.
Hu said the expanding trade surplus is difficult to control and contributes to the country's ballooning reserves.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' latest macroeconomic forecast said the surplus could reach a record high of about US$260 billion this year.
Meanwhile, the central bank said, the annual growth in broad money supply or M2 accelerated to 18.45 percent in September, up by 1.39 percentage points from the end of June.
Yuan-denominated lending rose to 25.9 trillion yuan (US$3.44 trillion) at the end of September, a year-on-year increase of 17.13 percent.
Banks extended 3.36 trillion yuan in new loans in the first nine months of the year, 607.3 billion more than last year, which, analysts said, could add pressure to fixed-assets investment.
The central bank said in a statement that the financial situation was, on the whole, "stable".
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2007-10/13/content_6171927.htm
One of "Jena Six" teens jailed in Louisiana
(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-10-13 09:25
New Orleans - A Louisiana teen-ager who spent more than nine months behind bars in connection with the "Jena Six" case is back in jail to complete his sentence in an earlier juvenile case, an official said on Friday.
Mychal Bell, 17, was taken into custody on Thursday night, said LaSalle Parish District Attorney J. Reed Walters.
He was given an 18-month sentence in a juvenile detention facility, according to the Alexandria, Louisiana, Town Talk newspaper.
Walters said Bell's sentence in juvenile court was postponed after he and five other black teen-agers were charged with attacking a white Jena, Louisiana, high school classmate in December 2006 after months of racially charged incidents in the central Louisiana town of 3,000.
"As I earlier pointed out, Mychal Bell had four dispositions, as they are known in Louisiana juvenile court, before the so-called Jena Six case occurred," Walters said in a statement.
Walters declined further comment on Bell's incarceration because juvenile cases are not public record under Louisiana law, as in most US states.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-10/13/content_6171943.htm
3 scientists win Nobel Prize in medicine
(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-10-09 10:07
New York -- As a child in Italy during World War II, he lived for years on the streets and in orphanages. Six decades later, as a scientist in the United States, Mario Capecchi joined two other researchers in winning the Nobel Prize in medicine.
Their work led to a powerful and widely used technique to manipulate genes in mice, which has helped scientists study heart disease, diabetes, cancer, cystic fibrosis and other diseases.
The $1.54 million prize was awarded Monday to Capecchi, 70, of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City; Oliver Smithies, 82, a native of Britain now at University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, and Sir Martin J. Evans, 66, of Cardiff University in Wales.
Their "gene-targeting" technique lets scientists deactivate or modifying individual genes in mice and observe how those changes affect the animals. That in turn gives clues about what those genes do in human health and disease.
The work has had "a revolutionary effect on the ability to understand how genes work," said Richard Woychik, director of The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine, a center for mouse genetics.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-10/09/content_6159959.htm
85-year-old Nobel laureate Yang: 'Young wife makes me younger'
(chinaview.cn)
Updated: 2007-09-25 17:37
BEIJING - Chinese-American Nobel laureate of physics Yang Zhenning said to Xinhua his wife Weng Fan, 54 years his junior, has made him younger and more energetic.
Yang and his wife visited China's Sun Yat-Sen University on Saturday in Guangzhou. Holding his wife's hand tightly, he said: "She really makes me feel the energy of youth."
He added: "I am now 10 times more famous than before since the current marriage."
Yang, 85, married 31-year-old Weng Fan on December 24, 2004.
It was the second marriage for both of them. Yang's first wife Du Zhili died in 2003 and Weng wed her first husband shortly after graduation from college and got divorced soon afterwards.
In 1957, Yang won and shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with Lee Tsung-dao "for their penetrating investigation of the so-called parity laws, which has led to important discoveries regarding the elementary particles."
Since late 2003, Yang has been giving regular lectures exclusive for freshman in China's elite Tsinghua University.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-09/25/content_6133691.htm
Gore and UN climate panel share Nobel Peace Prize
(China Daily)
Updated: 2007-10-13 08:45
OSLO -- Former US vice-president Al Gore and the UN climate panel won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for their part in galvanizing international action against global warming before it "moves beyond man's control".
The award appeared to be a snub to President George W. Bush, who has doubted the science of global warming and rejected caps on emissions of gases believed to cause it, but the White House said it was happy for the winners and praised their work.
Gore, who lost narrowly to Bush in the 2000 presidential election, and the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) were chosen to share the $1.5 million prize from a near record field of 181 candidates.
The Nobel Committee said the award was made because of their efforts to draw attention to mankind's impact on the climate and measures needed to address it before rising temperatures bring droughts, floods and rising seas.
"Action is necessary now, before climate change moves beyond man's control," the committee said.
Gore has lectured extensively on the threat of global warming and last year starred in his own Oscar-winning documentary film An Inconvenient Truth to warn of the dangers and urge action against it.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-10/13/content_6171850.htm
continued...
This is a desalination plant in Saudi Arabia. The southern USA needs to start to build one if it's going to survive Human Induced Global Warming.
The Jubail desalination plant in Saudi Arabia is the largest in the world.
The water supply for the small town of Jefferson, Georgia is only weeks away from drying up.The city’s reservoir is more than four feet below normal right now. It’s so low that silt and chemicals from the bottom are being processed through the water treatment facility.The city is now getting its water from Jackson County and the city of Commerce. Without that water, Jefferson’s reservoir would be completely dry."The water here, if we had no other source of water, that would last us two, maybe three weeks at best. If we had nothing coming in," said Jeff Killip with Jefferson’s Public Works department.The city is pushing conservation and has had a good response from its customers. They say the citizens of Jefferson have reduced water use by 25 percent.
The USA desalination plants can be powered by solar power as there won't be many days without it anymore. The states along The Great Lakes are absolutely correct, the 'water shed' to The Great Lakes must stay intact in order for the lakes to replenish themselves year after year. The southern USA should have built salination plants a long time ago rather than shunting water from northern California. The aqueducts of Southern California ADD to the drought as the exposed water evaporates along it's movement from northern sources to southern sources. I have no sympathy for southern states that never planned for this, everyone knew it was coming, where were they? Waiting for federal money from Bush to solve their problems? Ha !
Editorial: Hands off our H2O (click here)
Pass the Great Lakes compact now, before more people start thinking like New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.From the Journal Sentinel
Posted: Oct. 11, 2007
"States like Wisconsin are awash in water."
Pass the Great Lakes compact now, before more people start thinking like New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.From the Journal Sentinel
Posted: Oct. 11, 2007
"States like Wisconsin are awash in water."
Those words from Democratic presidential hopeful and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson should send a shiver up the spine of every Wisconsin resident - and spur new urgency in state legislators to approve enabling legislation for the Great Lakes compact.
While not perfect, the compact is designed to provide some protection for the Great Lakes from those who would like to take water out of the lakes' natural basin without returning it. The compact has been agreed to by the governors of the eight Great Lakes states but still has to be approved by the legislatures of those states and then by Congress.
A legislative task force under the leadership of state Sen. Neal Kedzie (R-Elkhorn) worked on enabling legislation for a year but was unable to reach consensus and foundered last month over several issues, mainly involving certain standards and diversion questions. A new task force was formed by the governor, but that committee has barely started to wrestle with the issues and there is no guarantee that it will reach consensus.
The first order of business of any enabling legislation should be to protect the Great Lakes. Any diversion of water outside the natural basin should be returned to the lakes, and communities that ask for water should have in place conservation policies that minimize their demand for water.
But enabling legislation should also allow for reasonable growth in communities such as New Berlin and Waukesha that are wholly or partially outside the basin, running into water supply problems in underground aquifers and willing and able to return the water and enact conservation measures. Enabling legislation should not be so restrictive that it stifles economic growth in the region, and it needs to deal with the groundwater issues raised by the compact.
Stifling growth won't help the environment; poor communities can't clean up brownfields or develop green energy solutions.
Waukesha County is not the enemy. The enemy is people who would open the taps on the Great Lakes without regard for the health of those lakes and their communities.
Approving compact legislation would provide a necessary measure of protection. And it needs to be approved before more people start talking like Richardson.
How important is it for Wisconsin to approve enabling legislation for the Great Lakes compact? Send a letter to: Journal Sentinel editorial
While not perfect, the compact is designed to provide some protection for the Great Lakes from those who would like to take water out of the lakes' natural basin without returning it. The compact has been agreed to by the governors of the eight Great Lakes states but still has to be approved by the legislatures of those states and then by Congress.
A legislative task force under the leadership of state Sen. Neal Kedzie (R-Elkhorn) worked on enabling legislation for a year but was unable to reach consensus and foundered last month over several issues, mainly involving certain standards and diversion questions. A new task force was formed by the governor, but that committee has barely started to wrestle with the issues and there is no guarantee that it will reach consensus.
The first order of business of any enabling legislation should be to protect the Great Lakes. Any diversion of water outside the natural basin should be returned to the lakes, and communities that ask for water should have in place conservation policies that minimize their demand for water.
But enabling legislation should also allow for reasonable growth in communities such as New Berlin and Waukesha that are wholly or partially outside the basin, running into water supply problems in underground aquifers and willing and able to return the water and enact conservation measures. Enabling legislation should not be so restrictive that it stifles economic growth in the region, and it needs to deal with the groundwater issues raised by the compact.
Stifling growth won't help the environment; poor communities can't clean up brownfields or develop green energy solutions.
Waukesha County is not the enemy. The enemy is people who would open the taps on the Great Lakes without regard for the health of those lakes and their communities.
Approving compact legislation would provide a necessary measure of protection. And it needs to be approved before more people start talking like Richardson.
How important is it for Wisconsin to approve enabling legislation for the Great Lakes compact? Send a letter to: Journal Sentinel editorial
Florida Today
Cities take the lead on climate change
By KARL RITTER
Associated Press Writer
VAXJO, Sweden (AP) -- When this quiet city in southern Sweden decided in 1996 to wean itself off fossil fuels, most people doubted the ambitious goal would have any impact beyond the town limits.
A few melting glaciers later, Vaxjo is attracting a green pilgrimage of politicians, scientists and business leaders from as far afield as the U.S. and North Korea seeking inspiration from a city program that has allowed it to cut CO2 emissions 30 percent since 1993.
Vaxjo is a pioneer in a growing movement in dozens of European cities, large and small, that aren't waiting for national or international measures to curb global warming.
From London's congestion charge to Paris' city bike program and Barcelona's solar power campaign, initiatives taken at the local level are being introduced across the continent - often influencing national policies instead of the other way around.
"People used to ask: Isn't it better to do this at a national or international level?" said Henrik Johansson, environmental controller in Vaxjo, a city of 78,000 on the shores of Lake Helga, surrounded by thick pine forest in the heart of Smaland province. "We want to show everyone else that you can accomplish a lot at the local level."
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EUROPE_CLEAN_CITIES?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-16-48-46
Fiery Calif. pileup kills at least 2
By NOAKI SCHWARTZ
Associated Press Writer
SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (AP) -- A crash in a Southern California freeway tunnel quickly turned into a fiery, chain-reaction pileup that mangled several trucks, killed at least two people and shut down the key north-south route as the wreckage burned for hours.
Firefighters began hauling the mangled, blackened debris of more than a dozen big-rig trucks out of the tunnel Saturday afternoon. The crash late Friday involved at least 15 trucks and possibly one or more passenger cars, and sent people fleeing for their lives. At least 10 people were injured.
"It looked like a bomb went off," said Los Angeles County firefighter Scott Clark, one of about 300 firefighters who battled the blaze throughout the night.
California Highway Patrol Officer David Porter confirmed Saturday that the bodies of two crash victims had been found in the tunnel. He couldn't immediately say whether one was a trucker who had been listed as unaccounted for.
Firefighters were just starting to enter the tunnel Saturday afternoon and might find more bodies, said Ron Haralson, Los Angeles County Fire Department inspector.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/T/TRUCK_PILEUP?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-18-10-36
Myanmar arrests 4 prominent activists
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) -- Myanmar's junta arrested four prominent political activists Saturday, Amnesty International said, including one who went into hiding after leading some of the first major marches against the government several weeks ago.
The United Nations has called on the military government to halt its crackdown on the protesters, and a U.N. special envoy was expected in the region on Sunday to help coordinate a response among key Asian governments.
Among those detained Saturday was Htay Kywe, who led some of the first marches several weeks ago before going into hiding to escape a government manhunt, Amnesty said. Others arrested were Aung Htoo and Thin Thin Aye, also known as Mie Mie.
The three were believed to be the last remaining activists at large from the 88 Generation Students' Group - the country's boldest dissident group - which was at the forefront of a 1988 democracy uprising and one of the main forces behind the protests that started in August.
A fourth activist, Ko Ko, was also arrested, the London-based rights group said. All four were believed to have been rounded up in Yangon, the country's main city.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MYANMAR?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-53-46
Shiite leader backs Iraqi regional plan
By HAMZA HENDAWI
Associated Press Writer
BAGHDAD (AP) -- The son and heir apparent of Iraq's top Shiite politician came out strongly Saturday in favor of autonomy for Iraq's religiously and ethnically divided regions, a potentially explosive issue on Iraq's already highly polarized political landscape.
Ammar al-Hakim, who is being groomed to take over the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, the country's largest Shiite party, has been a firm supporter of federalism from the outset. But his unusually strident language appeared to signal growing impatience with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's inaction on key issues and his failure to bring fractured groups together.
Addressing hundreds of supporters at the party's Baghdad headquarters, al-Hakim called on Iraqis to press ahead with the creation of self-rule regions, but cautioned that the country's unity must be safeguarded.
"Federalism is one way to accomplish this goal," he said.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAQ?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-18-03-38
Federal review looms in boot camp death
By MELISSA NELSON
Associated Press Writer
PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) -- Seven former juvenile boot camp guards and a nurse had barely processed an all-white jury's decision to acquit them in a black teenager's death before federal authorities announced they would review the case.
Since jurors on Friday acquitted them of manslaughter charges, federal prosecutors likely would have to try another tactic, such as seeking an indictment alleging obstruction of justice, legal experts said.
"It's too early to say that the final chapter has been written with respect to the criminal justice system in this case," said Kendall Coffey, a former U.S. attorney in Miami.
Florida civil rights leaders called for federal charges hours after a jury took 90 minutes to exonerate the eight in state court in the death of Martin Lee Anderson, 14.
By Friday evening, officials from the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Tallahassee announced they were reviewing the state's prosecution.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BOOT_CAMP_DEATH?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-25-57
Report ranks jobs by rates of depression
By KEVIN FREKING
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) -- People who tend to the elderly, change diapers and serve up food and drinks have the highest rates of depression among U.S. workers.
Overall, 7 percent of full-time workers battled depression in the past year, according to a government report available Saturday.
Women were more likely than men to have had a major bout of depression, and younger workers had higher rates of depression than their older colleagues.
Almost 11 percent of personal care workers - which includes child care and helping the elderly and severely disabled with their daily needs - reported depression lasting two weeks or longer.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DEPRESSING_JOBS?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-19-14
Maria von Trapp's stepson dead at 91
By WILSON RING
Associated Press Writer
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) -- Werner von Trapp, a member of the musical family made famous by the 1965 movie "The Sound of Music," has died, his family said. He was 91.
Von Trapp died Thursday at his home in Waitsfield. The cause of death was not announced. The family confirmed his death, but declined to comment further.
"The Sound of Music" was based loosely on a 1949 book by his stepmother, Maria von Trapp, who died in 1987. It tells the story of an Austrian woman who married a widower with seven children and teaches them music.
Born in 1915 in Zell am See, Austria, von Trapp was the fourth child and second son of Captain Georg von Trapp and his first wife, Agathe Whitehead. In the movie "The Sound of Music," Werner von Trapp was depicted by the character named Kurt.
During the 1930s, von Trapp studied cello and became proficient on several other instruments. He sang tenor with his family's choir, The Trapp Family Singers, who won great acclaim throughout Europe after their debut in 1935.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OBIT_VON_TRAPP?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-22-03
Federal review looms in boot camp death
By MELISSA NELSON
Associated Press Writer
PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) -- Seven former juvenile boot camp guards and a nurse had barely processed an all-white jury's decision to acquit them in a black teenager's death before federal authorities announced they would review the case.
Since jurors on Friday acquitted them of manslaughter charges, federal prosecutors likely would have to try another tactic, such as seeking an indictment alleging obstruction of justice, legal experts said.
"It's too early to say that the final chapter has been written with respect to the criminal justice system in this case," said Kendall Coffey, a former U.S. attorney in Miami.
Florida civil rights leaders called for federal charges hours after a jury took 90 minutes to exonerate the eight in state court in the death of Martin Lee Anderson, 14.
By Friday evening, officials from the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Tallahassee announced they were reviewing the state's prosecution.
Anderson died Jan. 6, 2006, a day after being hit and kicked by the guards as the nurse watched after he collapsed while running laps. The 30-minute confrontation was videotaped.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BOOT_CAMP_DEATH?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-25-57
Simpson case co-defendant to enter plea
By KEN RITTER
Associated Press Writer
LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Accused of being one of five men who joined O.J. Simpson in a hotel-room confrontation with two sports memorabilia dealers, Charles Cashmore will plead guilty to a reduced charge and testify that guns were involved in the theft of sports collectibles.
Cashmore will testify that two of the other men who entered the room with the former football star were armed, his lawyer, Edward Miley, said Friday. Miley said Cashmore will plead guilty to being an accessory to robbery, a felony that could get him up to five years in prison.
A court hearing is set for Monday, a court clerk confirmed.
"He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time," Miley said of Cashmore, a 40-year-old laborer, bartender and disc jockey who lives in Las Vegas.
Clark County District Attorney David Roger declined to comment.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OJ_SIMPSON?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-11-49-13
Bridge collapse survivors seek more help
By JOSHUA FREED
Associated Press Writer
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- As the estimated cost of recovering from an interstate bridge collapse surges past $400 million, survivors of the deadly disaster just wish they could get a few thousand dollars here and there to make ends meet.
About 30 of the more than 100 people injured in the Aug. 1 collapse, which killed 13 people, meet weekly to talk about the troubles it's caused them. This past week, one man spoke of his struggles with a $41,000 medical bill. Others mentioned missed paychecks.
That they've all had such problems getting aid irritated fellow survivor Kimberly J. Brown enough that she fired off an e-mail to Minnesota's state and U.S. senators.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BRIDGE_COLLAPSE_SURVIVORS?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-13-07-14
Gay groups reach out to straight allies
By LISA LEFF
Associated Press Writer
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) -- The setting was intimate, the hors d'oeuvres simple and the hostess barefoot, but the house party Gabby Seagrave and LaDonna Silva held for a dozen friends and co-workers was hardly a spontaneous affair.
Over wine and cheese last week, guests signed a form signaling their support for same-sex marriage.
In the couple's family room, they took a quiz on marriage laws and watched a television commercial that could have been for diamond rings, but asked, "What if you couldn't marry the person you loved?"
Such house parties and ad campaigns are just two ways in which gay rights activists are courting sympathetic heterosexuals. They hope these "straight allies" can help persuade a majority of Americans to back their causes.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/STRAIGHT_SYMPATHY?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-13-22-14
Lawsuits possible from Va. Tech shooting
By SUE LINDSEY
Associated Press Writer
ROANOKE, Va. (AP) -- As the sixth-month anniversary of the Virginia Tech massacre approaches, a lawyer representing 20 people killed or injured in the April shootings has began notifying the town and the state about possible lawsuits.
Blacksburg Town Attorney Larry Spencer said he received notices Friday from Peter Grenier, a personal injury lawyer in Washington, D.C., of possible lawsuits claiming negligence by the town and its employees.
A spokesman for the state attorney general's office said it received notice Friday from Grenier's law firm of a possible lawsuit on behalf of injured student Kevin Sterne. Tucker Martin said he could not say whether it was a possible lawsuit against Virginia Tech or the state itself.
No lawsuits have yet been filed stemming from the shootings on the university's Blacksburg campus, where mentally disturbed student Seung-Hui Cho killed two people in a dormitory and 30 in a classroom building before taking his own life.
The notice does not necessarily mean lawsuits will be filed, but such notification is needed by Tuesday, six months after the shootings, if lawsuits against a locality are to be filed in state court. A notice of a claim against Virginia Tech or the state must be filed within a year.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/V/VIRGINIA_TECH_LAWSUITS?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-10-53-57
U.S. asks Turkey for restraint on Iraq
By C. ONUR ANT
Associated Press Writer
ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) -- Two senior U.S. officials promised Saturday that they would convey to Iraq Turkey's unease over Kurdish rebels in the north but they also expressed concern over the possibility of a Turkish military offensive in the region.
In Moscow, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice acknowledged "a difficult time" in relations with Turkey. She appealed for restraint against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq and in Turkey's angry response to a genocide resolution in Congress.
Dan Fried, assistant secretary of state for European affairs, and Eric Edelman, undersecretary of defense for policy, met with Turkish officials in a bid to assuage anger over the resolution, which would label the World War I-era killing of Armenians by Turks a genocide.
Turkey has recalled its ambassador to Washington for consultations after a House committee's approval of the resolution last week and warned of serious repercussions if Congress passes the resolution.
The committee's approval raised concerns that Turkey may be less restrained about defying the United States.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_TURKEY?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-18-21-14
Israel talks peace, draws lines
By KARIN LAUB
Associated Press Writer
KEDAR SETTLEMENT, West Bank (AP) -- First a sprawling police headquarters went up, now bulldozers are leveling ground for a highway, and by year's end Israel will have laid claim to another strategic West Bank hill, taking one more chunk out of a future Palestine even as Israel says it wants to negotiate its borders.
Israel has been tightening its hold on parts of the West Bank for years, with mushrooming settlements and more recently, a separation barrier. The barrier would eventually slice off 8.6 percent of the territory and, according to U.N. data, incorporate 380,000 of 450,000 Israelis living on war-won land the Palestinians demand for their state-to-be.
Israel's moves raise questions about whether there will be enough left to negotiate if, as a result of a U.S.-hosted Mideast conference next month, Israelis and Palestinians finally return to the table after seven years of bloodshed and diplomatic paralysis.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MIDEAST_PEACE_AND_LAND?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-14-07-24
continued...
Cities take the lead on climate change
By KARL RITTER
Associated Press Writer
VAXJO, Sweden (AP) -- When this quiet city in southern Sweden decided in 1996 to wean itself off fossil fuels, most people doubted the ambitious goal would have any impact beyond the town limits.
A few melting glaciers later, Vaxjo is attracting a green pilgrimage of politicians, scientists and business leaders from as far afield as the U.S. and North Korea seeking inspiration from a city program that has allowed it to cut CO2 emissions 30 percent since 1993.
Vaxjo is a pioneer in a growing movement in dozens of European cities, large and small, that aren't waiting for national or international measures to curb global warming.
From London's congestion charge to Paris' city bike program and Barcelona's solar power campaign, initiatives taken at the local level are being introduced across the continent - often influencing national policies instead of the other way around.
"People used to ask: Isn't it better to do this at a national or international level?" said Henrik Johansson, environmental controller in Vaxjo, a city of 78,000 on the shores of Lake Helga, surrounded by thick pine forest in the heart of Smaland province. "We want to show everyone else that you can accomplish a lot at the local level."
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EUROPE_CLEAN_CITIES?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-16-48-46
Fiery Calif. pileup kills at least 2
By NOAKI SCHWARTZ
Associated Press Writer
SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (AP) -- A crash in a Southern California freeway tunnel quickly turned into a fiery, chain-reaction pileup that mangled several trucks, killed at least two people and shut down the key north-south route as the wreckage burned for hours.
Firefighters began hauling the mangled, blackened debris of more than a dozen big-rig trucks out of the tunnel Saturday afternoon. The crash late Friday involved at least 15 trucks and possibly one or more passenger cars, and sent people fleeing for their lives. At least 10 people were injured.
"It looked like a bomb went off," said Los Angeles County firefighter Scott Clark, one of about 300 firefighters who battled the blaze throughout the night.
California Highway Patrol Officer David Porter confirmed Saturday that the bodies of two crash victims had been found in the tunnel. He couldn't immediately say whether one was a trucker who had been listed as unaccounted for.
Firefighters were just starting to enter the tunnel Saturday afternoon and might find more bodies, said Ron Haralson, Los Angeles County Fire Department inspector.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/T/TRUCK_PILEUP?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-18-10-36
Myanmar arrests 4 prominent activists
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) -- Myanmar's junta arrested four prominent political activists Saturday, Amnesty International said, including one who went into hiding after leading some of the first major marches against the government several weeks ago.
The United Nations has called on the military government to halt its crackdown on the protesters, and a U.N. special envoy was expected in the region on Sunday to help coordinate a response among key Asian governments.
Among those detained Saturday was Htay Kywe, who led some of the first marches several weeks ago before going into hiding to escape a government manhunt, Amnesty said. Others arrested were Aung Htoo and Thin Thin Aye, also known as Mie Mie.
The three were believed to be the last remaining activists at large from the 88 Generation Students' Group - the country's boldest dissident group - which was at the forefront of a 1988 democracy uprising and one of the main forces behind the protests that started in August.
A fourth activist, Ko Ko, was also arrested, the London-based rights group said. All four were believed to have been rounded up in Yangon, the country's main city.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MYANMAR?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-53-46
Shiite leader backs Iraqi regional plan
By HAMZA HENDAWI
Associated Press Writer
BAGHDAD (AP) -- The son and heir apparent of Iraq's top Shiite politician came out strongly Saturday in favor of autonomy for Iraq's religiously and ethnically divided regions, a potentially explosive issue on Iraq's already highly polarized political landscape.
Ammar al-Hakim, who is being groomed to take over the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, the country's largest Shiite party, has been a firm supporter of federalism from the outset. But his unusually strident language appeared to signal growing impatience with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's inaction on key issues and his failure to bring fractured groups together.
Addressing hundreds of supporters at the party's Baghdad headquarters, al-Hakim called on Iraqis to press ahead with the creation of self-rule regions, but cautioned that the country's unity must be safeguarded.
"Federalism is one way to accomplish this goal," he said.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAQ?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-18-03-38
Federal review looms in boot camp death
By MELISSA NELSON
Associated Press Writer
PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) -- Seven former juvenile boot camp guards and a nurse had barely processed an all-white jury's decision to acquit them in a black teenager's death before federal authorities announced they would review the case.
Since jurors on Friday acquitted them of manslaughter charges, federal prosecutors likely would have to try another tactic, such as seeking an indictment alleging obstruction of justice, legal experts said.
"It's too early to say that the final chapter has been written with respect to the criminal justice system in this case," said Kendall Coffey, a former U.S. attorney in Miami.
Florida civil rights leaders called for federal charges hours after a jury took 90 minutes to exonerate the eight in state court in the death of Martin Lee Anderson, 14.
By Friday evening, officials from the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Tallahassee announced they were reviewing the state's prosecution.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BOOT_CAMP_DEATH?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-25-57
Report ranks jobs by rates of depression
By KEVIN FREKING
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) -- People who tend to the elderly, change diapers and serve up food and drinks have the highest rates of depression among U.S. workers.
Overall, 7 percent of full-time workers battled depression in the past year, according to a government report available Saturday.
Women were more likely than men to have had a major bout of depression, and younger workers had higher rates of depression than their older colleagues.
Almost 11 percent of personal care workers - which includes child care and helping the elderly and severely disabled with their daily needs - reported depression lasting two weeks or longer.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DEPRESSING_JOBS?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-19-14
Maria von Trapp's stepson dead at 91
By WILSON RING
Associated Press Writer
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) -- Werner von Trapp, a member of the musical family made famous by the 1965 movie "The Sound of Music," has died, his family said. He was 91.
Von Trapp died Thursday at his home in Waitsfield. The cause of death was not announced. The family confirmed his death, but declined to comment further.
"The Sound of Music" was based loosely on a 1949 book by his stepmother, Maria von Trapp, who died in 1987. It tells the story of an Austrian woman who married a widower with seven children and teaches them music.
Born in 1915 in Zell am See, Austria, von Trapp was the fourth child and second son of Captain Georg von Trapp and his first wife, Agathe Whitehead. In the movie "The Sound of Music," Werner von Trapp was depicted by the character named Kurt.
During the 1930s, von Trapp studied cello and became proficient on several other instruments. He sang tenor with his family's choir, The Trapp Family Singers, who won great acclaim throughout Europe after their debut in 1935.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OBIT_VON_TRAPP?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-22-03
Federal review looms in boot camp death
By MELISSA NELSON
Associated Press Writer
PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) -- Seven former juvenile boot camp guards and a nurse had barely processed an all-white jury's decision to acquit them in a black teenager's death before federal authorities announced they would review the case.
Since jurors on Friday acquitted them of manslaughter charges, federal prosecutors likely would have to try another tactic, such as seeking an indictment alleging obstruction of justice, legal experts said.
"It's too early to say that the final chapter has been written with respect to the criminal justice system in this case," said Kendall Coffey, a former U.S. attorney in Miami.
Florida civil rights leaders called for federal charges hours after a jury took 90 minutes to exonerate the eight in state court in the death of Martin Lee Anderson, 14.
By Friday evening, officials from the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Tallahassee announced they were reviewing the state's prosecution.
Anderson died Jan. 6, 2006, a day after being hit and kicked by the guards as the nurse watched after he collapsed while running laps. The 30-minute confrontation was videotaped.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BOOT_CAMP_DEATH?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-17-25-57
Simpson case co-defendant to enter plea
By KEN RITTER
Associated Press Writer
LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Accused of being one of five men who joined O.J. Simpson in a hotel-room confrontation with two sports memorabilia dealers, Charles Cashmore will plead guilty to a reduced charge and testify that guns were involved in the theft of sports collectibles.
Cashmore will testify that two of the other men who entered the room with the former football star were armed, his lawyer, Edward Miley, said Friday. Miley said Cashmore will plead guilty to being an accessory to robbery, a felony that could get him up to five years in prison.
A court hearing is set for Monday, a court clerk confirmed.
"He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time," Miley said of Cashmore, a 40-year-old laborer, bartender and disc jockey who lives in Las Vegas.
Clark County District Attorney David Roger declined to comment.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OJ_SIMPSON?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-11-49-13
Bridge collapse survivors seek more help
By JOSHUA FREED
Associated Press Writer
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- As the estimated cost of recovering from an interstate bridge collapse surges past $400 million, survivors of the deadly disaster just wish they could get a few thousand dollars here and there to make ends meet.
About 30 of the more than 100 people injured in the Aug. 1 collapse, which killed 13 people, meet weekly to talk about the troubles it's caused them. This past week, one man spoke of his struggles with a $41,000 medical bill. Others mentioned missed paychecks.
That they've all had such problems getting aid irritated fellow survivor Kimberly J. Brown enough that she fired off an e-mail to Minnesota's state and U.S. senators.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BRIDGE_COLLAPSE_SURVIVORS?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-13-07-14
Gay groups reach out to straight allies
By LISA LEFF
Associated Press Writer
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) -- The setting was intimate, the hors d'oeuvres simple and the hostess barefoot, but the house party Gabby Seagrave and LaDonna Silva held for a dozen friends and co-workers was hardly a spontaneous affair.
Over wine and cheese last week, guests signed a form signaling their support for same-sex marriage.
In the couple's family room, they took a quiz on marriage laws and watched a television commercial that could have been for diamond rings, but asked, "What if you couldn't marry the person you loved?"
Such house parties and ad campaigns are just two ways in which gay rights activists are courting sympathetic heterosexuals. They hope these "straight allies" can help persuade a majority of Americans to back their causes.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/STRAIGHT_SYMPATHY?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-13-22-14
Lawsuits possible from Va. Tech shooting
By SUE LINDSEY
Associated Press Writer
ROANOKE, Va. (AP) -- As the sixth-month anniversary of the Virginia Tech massacre approaches, a lawyer representing 20 people killed or injured in the April shootings has began notifying the town and the state about possible lawsuits.
Blacksburg Town Attorney Larry Spencer said he received notices Friday from Peter Grenier, a personal injury lawyer in Washington, D.C., of possible lawsuits claiming negligence by the town and its employees.
A spokesman for the state attorney general's office said it received notice Friday from Grenier's law firm of a possible lawsuit on behalf of injured student Kevin Sterne. Tucker Martin said he could not say whether it was a possible lawsuit against Virginia Tech or the state itself.
No lawsuits have yet been filed stemming from the shootings on the university's Blacksburg campus, where mentally disturbed student Seung-Hui Cho killed two people in a dormitory and 30 in a classroom building before taking his own life.
The notice does not necessarily mean lawsuits will be filed, but such notification is needed by Tuesday, six months after the shootings, if lawsuits against a locality are to be filed in state court. A notice of a claim against Virginia Tech or the state must be filed within a year.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/V/VIRGINIA_TECH_LAWSUITS?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-10-53-57
U.S. asks Turkey for restraint on Iraq
By C. ONUR ANT
Associated Press Writer
ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) -- Two senior U.S. officials promised Saturday that they would convey to Iraq Turkey's unease over Kurdish rebels in the north but they also expressed concern over the possibility of a Turkish military offensive in the region.
In Moscow, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice acknowledged "a difficult time" in relations with Turkey. She appealed for restraint against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq and in Turkey's angry response to a genocide resolution in Congress.
Dan Fried, assistant secretary of state for European affairs, and Eric Edelman, undersecretary of defense for policy, met with Turkish officials in a bid to assuage anger over the resolution, which would label the World War I-era killing of Armenians by Turks a genocide.
Turkey has recalled its ambassador to Washington for consultations after a House committee's approval of the resolution last week and warned of serious repercussions if Congress passes the resolution.
The committee's approval raised concerns that Turkey may be less restrained about defying the United States.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_TURKEY?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-18-21-14
Israel talks peace, draws lines
By KARIN LAUB
Associated Press Writer
KEDAR SETTLEMENT, West Bank (AP) -- First a sprawling police headquarters went up, now bulldozers are leveling ground for a highway, and by year's end Israel will have laid claim to another strategic West Bank hill, taking one more chunk out of a future Palestine even as Israel says it wants to negotiate its borders.
Israel has been tightening its hold on parts of the West Bank for years, with mushrooming settlements and more recently, a separation barrier. The barrier would eventually slice off 8.6 percent of the territory and, according to U.N. data, incorporate 380,000 of 450,000 Israelis living on war-won land the Palestinians demand for their state-to-be.
Israel's moves raise questions about whether there will be enough left to negotiate if, as a result of a U.S.-hosted Mideast conference next month, Israelis and Palestinians finally return to the table after seven years of bloodshed and diplomatic paralysis.
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MIDEAST_PEACE_AND_LAND?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-10-13-14-07-24
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