ALP faces whale of a decision

Fighters … Aussies Carly McDermott and Stephen Bennett are crew members on the anti-whaling ship Robert Hunter.

Photo: Craig Sillitoe

Frank WalkerDecember 2, 2007
ONE of the first decisions of the new Labor Government when it meets tomorrow will be how to fulfil its election promise to send the Australian Navy south to monitor Japanese whale hunters.
Incoming environment minister Peter Garrett will raise the issue when cabinet holds its first meeting tomorrow after being sworn in by Governor-General Michael Jeffery.
During the election campaign Labor pledged to send the navy or long-range aircraft to gather evidence against Japanese whale hunters in the Southern Ocean whale sanctuary to use in court action.
"It will be one of the first things raised when cabinet meets," a spokesman for Mr Garrett said. "Using the navy is about heightening the pressure on Japan to stop killing whales."
Meanwhile two young Australians are prepared to risk their lives to stop the whale hunt when their anti-whaling ship leaves for the Southern Ocean on Wednesday....

Sydney Morning Herald

The 20th World Aids Day, and what's changed?
1:20PM Saturday December 01, 2007

A student hands out ribbons at Edwardes College in Peshawar, Pakistan. Photo / Reuters
Does the news that the United Nations overestimated the number of HIV infections mean the world has turned the tide on AIDS?
Not according to the most of the media coverage ahead of the 20th World Aids Day today.
The fact that the United Nations got it wrong about the number of people living with the virus is simply "a sampling error", writes Donald McNeil in the International Herald Tribune.
The UN and the World Health Organisation "have eaten a lot of crow" for the mistake of miscalculating the number of infected, comments Los Angeles Times.
But the good news is that the pandemic has peaked, the papers say, most likely in the late 1990s. But that doesn't mean the world can relax and get complacent about AIDS. Even if the estimate of 2.5 million new infections this year is 40 per cent lower than the estimate for 2006, that's "not a particularly happy plateau," McNeil quotes Dr. Robert Gallo, who discovered the AIDS virus.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=204&objectid=10479486



Iemma stands firm on Koperberg claims
John Kidman
December 2, 2007
Advertisement
NSW Premier Morris Iemma has vowed to stand by his Environment Minister Phil Koperberg, despite explosive new allegations that the former Rural Fire Service chief beat his wife and stepdaughter.
Details of the claims are reportedly contained in a 10-page affidavit authored by Mr Koperberg's ex-wife, Katherine, in 1987.
Katherine Koperberg is said to allege in the document that she was repeatedly struck across the face and pushed against a wall.
Her then-20-year-old daughter, Paula, who was Mr Koperberg's stepdaughter, was also repeatedly hit, one of the blows allegedly knocking a filling from one of her teeth to the floor.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/iemma-backs-koperberg/2007/12/01/1196394691712.html


Rejection for Islamic school
Heath Gilmore
December 2, 2007
A SYDNEY council is set to reject a proposed Islamic college as tension about religious educational facilities escalates across the city.
Bankstown City Council will determine the development application for the 1200-student Al Amanah Islamic College at Bass Hill on Tuesday night.
Nearly 2500 submissions were received from residents - 1829 against, 649 in support.
Council staff have recommended that the development - a primary and secondary school, a 30-place child-care centre with two residences for caretakers, a reception and convention hall, a sporting hall and an indoor pool - be refused.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/rejection-for-islamic-school/2007/12/01/1196394682295.html



Greenies pay less to park
Heath Gilmore
December 2, 2007
CAR owners committed to lowering the environmental impacts of their vehicles will pay less for parking permits under a new City of Sydney proposal.
The proposed incentive scheme goes before the council's finance committee tomorrow to encourage greater usage of vehicles with lower greenhouse gas emissions.
Existing fees for residents and businesses, which range from $43 to $85, could be halved if the vehicle has a four-star environmental rating. Four fee rates are proposed for the 22,000 available permits: very low impact (50 per cent of the standard fee), low impact (75 per cent); medium impact (100 per cent); and high impact (double the standard fee).

http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/greenies-pay-less-to-park/2007/12/01/1196394682292.html


Clinton office hostage drama
2007-12-01 08:15:51
A man claiming to have a bomb holds hostages at Hillary Clinton's campaign office in a small town in New Hampshire.(00:46)

http://media.smh.com.au/?category=Breaking%20News&rid=33702


No survivors in Turkish air crash
2007-12-01 08:41:21
A Turkish passenger plane has crashed near the town of Isparta killing all those on board.(01:13)

http://media.smh.com.au/?category=Breaking%20News&rid=33702


McDonald's ad made a meal of driving safety
Christine Sams
December 2, 2007
A McDONALD'S advertisement showing a carload of male teenagers ordering a drive-through meal is off the air after an investigation by an industry watchdog.
The advertisement, which shows a P-plater who drives his friends to the fast food restaurant after getting his licence, will not be screened again following claims it promoted unsafe driving.
After airing between November 4 and 12 it was investigated by the Advertising Standards Bureau.
"I think it was one of the most complained about for the month,"Advertising Standards Bureau chief executive officer Fiona Jolly said.
"The complaints made about this ad were that it depicted young boys driving in a manner that wasn't safe. The board noted that a carload of kids in the middle of the day isn't illegal but the board felt that the depiction of the kids really was contrary to all the public safety messages that are out there at the moment to young men on safe driving and safe behaviour in cars. They really felt that this was an ad that did breach the code."

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/mcdonalds-ad-made-a-meal-of-driving-safety/2007/12/01/1196394682307.html


Powers gather on Iran atomic plans but Tehran remains defiant
December 2, 2007
Advertisement
Iran said it would defend its right to nuclear technology as senior officials from the world's most powerful countries gathered yesterday to discuss imposing sanctions against it over its nuclear programme.
The five permanent United Nations Security Council members and Germany agreed in September to delay passing further UN sanctions against Iran until the end of November, pending reports on a probe by the UN nuclear watchdog and an European Union mediation effort.
But EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said he was disappointed after a Friday meeting in London with Iranian chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili, which had been seen as a last chance to avert United States pressure for more UN sanctions against Iran over its disputed atomic programme.
Senior officials from the six powers, Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States, were scheduled to begin morning talks in Paris .

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/powers-gather-on-iran-atomic-plans-but-tehran-remains-defiant/2007/12/01/1196394690258.html


Chavez warns US in bid for more power
December 2, 2007
VENEZUELAN President Hugo Chavez has threatened to cut off oil supplies to the US if the superpower interferes in a referendum this weekend over whether he can run for re-election indefinitely.
Mr Chavez also sought to fire up his backers for the tight vote by threatening to end diplomatic ties with Spain unless the former colonial power's King Juan Carlos apologised for telling him to shut up at a recent summit meeting.
The self-styled socialist revolutionary issued the warnings yesterday at a massive rally closing the campaign.
Mr Chavez has frequently issued threats about stopping crude sales to its top customer.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/chavez-warns-us-in-bid-for-more-power/2007/12/01/1196394682748.html


Water torture
December 2, 2007
Whether it's from the heavens above or sanitation below, water is a constant source of danger to the people of Bangladesh, writes Larry Elliott.
Advertisement
Charles Dickens would have felt at home in the streets of Dhaka. The barefoot children waiting for their mothers and sisters to come home from the textile mills, the chimneys of the brick factories vaguely visible in the smog. And the stench.
Like Victorian London, the shanty towns of Bangladesh's capital reek of excrement dropped from makeshift hanging toilets perched precariously on bamboo stilts a couple of metres above the mire. Bangladesh is the object of the world's pity as it deals with the cyclone that killed more than 3000 people. Yet when the television appeals are over, when attention has switched to another country stricken by flood, famine or earthquake, the stench of raw sewage will remain. And it will still be the second-biggest killer of children after respiratory illnesses. Two hundred perish every hour as a result of living conditions that would cause an outcry if they occurred in the West, and should cause an outcry for being allowed to happen anywhere.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/water-torture-for-people-of-bangladesh/2007/12/01/1196394682754.html


Support for Rio merger
December 1, 2007
The world's sixth largest steelmaker, Tata Steel Ltd of India, has backed BHP Billiton's proposed merger with Rio Tinto, saying it is a necessary outcome.
THE world's sixth largest steelmaker, Tata Steel Ltd of India, has backed BHP Billiton's proposed merger with Rio Tinto, saying it is time for the industry to consolidate.
Tata managing director B. Muthuraman said that while there was concern a combined entity could drive up market prices for iron ore, a merger was a necessary outcome.
"It is a natural thing to happen," said Mr Muthuraman.
"It is good for the commodity industry, which has had serious cycles over the last 25 to 50 years. It is time, I think, that both the steel industry as well as the commodity industry consolidate assets."

http://business.smh.com.au/support-for-rio-merger/20071201-1eai.html


WHO WE ARE: A weekly column about Australia

by David Dale
Published in The Sun-Herald, 2/12/2007
At my primary school, a decade or three ago, we had to do this chant, with appropriate gestures, before the headmaster addressed the weekly assembly: "I love my Queen, I honour my God, and I salute the flag". On election night, a week ago, there was a fair bit of flag saluting, in the form of assertions about the greatness of our nation. But where was God and where was the Queen? And was their absence a sign that Australia has achieved political maturity?
Lets deal with the deity first. Both leaders were photographed going to church on Sunday, but in their speeches on Saturday, they gave God no credit or blame. This would have been unthinkable in the United States. If Kevin Rudd was a US politician, he'd have thanked the Lord for his success, while John Howard would have said the result was the Lord's will and he'd seek consolation through prayer. But they didn't, because we're not that kind of country. Our politicians can get by without divine intervention.
In last year's census, 70 per cent per cent of Australians nominated a religion (64 per cent a Christian variety). But only 19 per cent of Australians attend church at least once a month. And only 40 per cent of the people who get married do it in church.

http://blogs.smh.com.au/sit/


Look Left, look Right, look …
Alan Ramsey
December 1, 2007
The soaring influence of Julia Gillard. The rise and rise of John Faulkner and Penny Wong. The ascendancy of Anthony Albanese over Martin Ferguson. The depth of the Labor Left and the immense authority of a prime minister firmly of the Right. All are in play in the new Labor government to be sworn in on Monday. Plus, the national capital gives Kevin Rudd the biggest Labor vote in the country - and he dumps both its shadow ministers! Lots of strands in the new beginning.
In the old ending, too.
John Howard lost everything, except Janette: the election, his government, his leadership, even his own seat. Peter Costello has withdrawn into backbench obscurity for the next three years.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/opinion/look-left-look-right-look-/2007/11/30/1196394619997.html


Unions can rebuild and we'll all be better for it
Adele Horin
December 1, 2007
The Liberal Party's desperate attempt to demonise unions and vilify their leaders left most electors bemused rather than terrified, it appears.
Thuggish union power is ancient history and, as a result, the scare campaign failed to get the expected traction. Young people in ACTU focus groups were puzzled by the depiction of unionists as "fanatics" and "extremists" who stormed into dress shops and itched to control the levers of government. They hadn't seen a decent strike in years, thanks to Howard government laws that de-fanged the unions. In the workplaces where young people congregate, unions are more often absent than intimidating.
Nor did the fear tactics resonate with older people. They expected no resurgence in union militancy under stern Kevin Rudd. If some voters scurried back to the Liberal fold under the hammering of scary advertisements it was not nearly enough to keep that "70 per cent union-dominated" front bench from triumphing.
It was a do-or-die election for the unions. Three more years of Howard, and the bosses' free-for-all would have become entrenched in the culture. The Labor victory has dealt unions back into the game. It gives them a chance to rebuild. Yet it hardly signals the return of the salad days. The revival of the unions is in their owns hands.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/opinion/unions-can-rebuild-and-well-all-be-better-for-it/2007/11/30/1196394614560.html


Skeletons should come tumbling out of the closet
Mike Carlton
December 1, 2007
If the new Rudd government follows hallowed custom, one of its first tasks in power will be to rummage through the cupboards of its departed predecessor, looking for skeletons.
There should be plenty of them after almost 12 years. A good many of the more incriminating documents will have been shredded or carted away by frantic Coalition ministers in the panic that followed the election result, but a thorough forensic search will surely turn something up. It always does when governments change.
The departmental files on the fanciful Iraq war intelligence or the AWB scandal might be a fruitful field for study and I suspect there is much more we could learn about the Immigration Department's carefree practice of banging people away behind the razor wire of the detention centres if it didn't like the look of them.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/opinion/looking-for-skeletons/2007/11/30/1196394614566.html


Google to bid in wireless auction
December 1, 2007 - 9:24AM
Taking a bigger step into wireless, Google said on Friday it plans to bid in the government's auction of airwaves in January to acquire bandwith for mobile devices.
The Federal Communications Commission auction of spectrum in the 700 megahertz (MHz) band is part of the nationally mandated switch to digital television in 2009.
The internet search giant for months has signaled its interest in the auction, which begins January 24, which will free up spectrum airwaves for more efficient wireless Internet service for consumers.
"We believe it's important to put our money where our principles are," Eric Schmidt, Google chairman and chief executive, said in a statement.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/biztech/google-to-bid-in-wireless-auction/2007/12/01/1196394690436.html


How Lori Drew became America's most reviled mother
December 1, 2007
A 13-year-old's suicide highlights the risks to teens of predatory behaviour online, writes Ian Munro.
Vulnerable … Tina and Ron Meier's daughter, Megan, killed herself after being dumped by "Josh", in reality a female neighbour.
Photo: Peter Newcomb/The New York Times
Advertisement
It is an odd sensibility that gave Lori Drew comfort at the funeral of the 13-year-old girl to whose suicide she almost certainly contributed.
But there is much that is odd about Lori Drew. Drew, then 47, told police she felt better when she learned Megan Meier had previously considered suicide, before she hung herself in a wardrobe of her Missouri home a year ago.
That would suggest Drew considered it somehow less reprehensible to anonymously torment a mentally unsettled teenager than someone of sterner stuff.
In any case, Megan's mother, Tina Meier, said there was nothing to suggest her daughter would have taken her own life. But an internet "romance" with a boy called Josh Evans changed all that.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/frail-egos-caught-in-killer-net/2007/11/30/1196394672124.html


Australians unleash true selves online
Asher Moses
November 30, 2007
Online interaction has given rise to a generation of Australians who are more comfortable with their online personas then their true self.
Advertisement
Australians are facing an online identity crisis, using the web and social networking sites to unleash their alter egos, new research suggests.
Symantec's Identity Survey, conducted by Woolcott Research, found Australians typically had more than 10 virtual identities. They included profiles on sites like MySpace and YouTube, email accounts, game avatars and characters in virtual worlds.
"This is what we used to call multiple personality disorder," said Andrew Fuller, a clinical psychologist and fellow of the University of Melbourne's Department of Psychiatry.
Of the 596 respondents, one in five felt their online identities were closer to their "true self" than their real-world identity. When narrowing the results down to "power users" of social networking sites, dating sites, virtual worlds or gaming sites, the figure jumps to 40 per cent.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/australians-unleash-true-selves-online/2007/11/30/1196394603400.html


Kiwi teen named as cyber gang mastermind
November 30, 2007 - 4:48PM
Police questioned the suspected teenage kingpin of an international cyber crime network accused of infiltrating 1.3 million computers and skimming millions of US dollars from victims' bank accounts, officials said Friday.
Working with the FBI and police in the Netherlands, New Zealand police raided the home of the 18-year-old in the North Island city of Hamilton and took him into custody along with several computers, said Martin Kleintjes, head of the police electronic crime centre.
He was later released without charge after being questioned, though police said he was still part of their investigation.
The case is part of an international crackdown on hackers who allegedly assume control of thousands of computers and amass them into centrally controlled clusters known as botnets.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/security/kiwi-teen-named-as-cyber-gang-mastermind/2007/11/30/1196037116019.html


How Lori Drew became America's most reviled mother
December 1, 2007
A 13-year-old's suicide highlights the risks to teens of predatory behaviour online, writes Ian Munro.
Vulnerable … Tina and Ron Meier's daughter, Megan, killed herself after being dumped by "Josh", in reality a female neighbour.
Photo: Peter Newcomb/The New York Times
Advertisement
It is an odd sensibility that gave Lori Drew comfort at the funeral of the 13-year-old girl to whose suicide she almost certainly contributed.
But there is much that is odd about Lori Drew. Drew, then 47, told police she felt better when she learned Megan Meier had previously considered suicide, before she hung herself in a wardrobe of her Missouri home a year ago.
That would suggest Drew considered it somehow less reprehensible to anonymously torment a mentally unsettled teenager than someone of sterner stuff.
In any case, Megan's mother, Tina Meier, said there was nothing to suggest her daughter would have taken her own life. But an internet "romance" with a boy called Josh Evans changed all that.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/frail-egos-caught-in-killer-net/2007/11/30/1196394672124.html


The new orient express
December 1, 2007
Radical new routes from the Top End will improve links between Asia and Australia. Clive Dorman reports.
There used to be a novelty signpost on the Darwin beachfront that pointed out Darwin is roughly the same distance from some of Asia's big cities as it is from Melbourne and Sydney. It's unlikely Jetstar's strategic planners ever saw the sign but they've been working feverishly with modern distance-measuring programs to formulate a radically new way of linking Australia and Asia.
From 2009, using small jets and Darwin as a stopover, Jetstar will begin flying from Australia's east-coast cities to Asian cities where demand does not justify non-stop services with bigger planes.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/news/the-new-orient-express/2007/11/29/1196037053808.html



Woman tells of rape in a hospital toilet
Ben Cubby
December 1, 2007
"I THOUGHT the hospital was a safe place, but to be raped in hospital by another patient, it is terrible, the last thing I ever expected."
These are the chilling words of a young woman who was allegedly dragged into a toilet at Westmead Hospital and sexually assaulted by a male patient, the latest in a string of shocking incidents in hospitals to come to light.
The pain remains raw a year after the alleged assault took place because the woman, who asked not to be identified, is forced to keep returning to Westmead to receive treatment for her blood condition.

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/11/30/1196394622513.html



Luhrmann's company in dispute over hired boats
On a mission ... Darren Foster protests outside Fox Studios.
Photo: Jacky Ghossein
Eammon Duff
December 2, 2007
BAZ LUHRMANN'S production company has been accused of being "un-Australian" after refusing to pay $16,000 to a contractor for supplying props and equipment for the director's epic new movie.
While filming Australia in north Queensland, Bazmark Films asked Darren Foster to provide a historic sailing boat. The hire charge was paid but the boat was returned minus its rare hand-carved wooden figurehead made in the 1930s.
Mr Foster, a marine salvage operator, is also still waiting to be paid for the hire and upgrade of a barge that was due to store props and equipment during location shooting in Bowen.
Mr Foster has threatened to take the company to court. The boat was used as a backdrop in a scene shot on the Bowen waterfront. Mr Foster says the production company asked him to supply the barge to store equipment during filming but, at the last minute, said it was not required.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/film/luhrmanns-company-in-dispute/2007/12/01/1196394681137.html


Sexperts: When sex gets boring
2007-10-30 00:05:00
Halle Berry's partner is said to have become bored of sex when the couple were trying to get pregnant. This week Brooke Hemphill investigates the drama of fertility.(04:15)

http://media.smh.com.au/?category=Sexperts&rid=33364


Sexual Education 101
2007-11-20 00:05:00
From church, the web and to porn, adults are getting their sex education from many different sources. Brooke Hemphill looks into what's available.(03:46)

http://media.smh.com.au/?category=Sexperts&rid=33364

continued...

Rosemary DePaolo, unfortunately the current Chancellor of UNCW, has a long history of stealing ideas for advancement in a destructive career.

Should UNCW begin Phase III construction? (click here)
Yes - 26%
"No" - 71%
"I don't know" - 3%

Wildlife to be bulldozed to make room for parking deck (click here)
Ginny Tyson : Assistant News Editor
Now don't get me wrong, I'm normally the last person to complain about grass being crushed, and I'm the first one to swat at mosquitoes, but this idea is a little ridiculous and students should be more than upset....

Sparky (click here)
posted 11/14/07 @ 10:44 PM EST
I just read the article in the Seahawk about the development of Phase III housing across from Watson Ed. building. I am very disappointed in my university. I do not understand how they can teach about saving our planet and protecting our environment and in the next breathe approve the deforestation of a living lab! From the article it would seem that the board is only interested in saving the students from having to walk a little further to class. I have severe arthritis in both my knees, I park however far it takes from class just to have the opportunity to complete my education. And the board is worried about 18-21 year olds walking an extra 100 yards instead of saving an educational forest! And they call themselves educators?!
I would say that the phrase,"not in my backyard", just landed in our backyard! Students, are you going to let it stay there? We are the future alumni and the university will someday call for a donation. How will you respond to a university that ignored the needs of many for the needs of the few?


UNCW goes green (click here)
a political cartoon
Justin Smyre


The link to an article above is one of the few moments in her career when she actually backed the priorities of her students. When Rosie came to UNCW we were estatic to have a female Chancellor. She has proved herself lacking strong leadership skills, inventiveness and a commitment of 'being green' to the majority environmental students and faculty. All the projects she has engaged in since her hire in 2003 are OLD projects that were shelved years ago. Not one autonomously new idea. All these projects were deemed 'bad ideas' years ago and they still are !


She is the worst Chancellor UNCW could ever have and she needs to resign. I believe even Lawrence Summers discovered the advantages to that !


Go home, Rosie, maybe they still want you in Georgia where you've already done your damage !


SR 785 - Dr. Rosemary DePaolo, GA College & St. Univ. - commend as president (click here)

A RESOLUTION 1- 1 Recognizing and commending Dr. Rosemary DePaolo on becoming
1- 2 President of Georgia College & State University; and for
1- 3 other purposes.
1- 4 WHEREAS, Dr. Rosemary DePaolo became President of Georgia
1- 5 College & State University on August 1, 1997, and she
1- 6 assumed this position with great pride as the first woman
1- 7 president of the state institution that was the Georgia
1- 8 State College for Women at one point in its history; and
1- 9 WHEREAS, the return to Georgia of this very accomplished
1-10 professor of English and highly regarded college
1-11 administrator brings a dynamic leadership to Georgia College
1-12 & State University as it renews its commitment to the
1-13 mission of teaching in the liberal arts tradition; and
1-14 WHEREAS, Dr. DePaolo was Dean of the College of Arts and
1-15 Sciences at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North
1-16 Carolina, where she was instrumental in advancing the
1-17 college's endowments for music, business, and technology;
1-18 and
1-19 WHEREAS, prior to that position, she was the assistant dean
1-20 of curriculum and student services of the College of Arts
1-21 and Sciences and a professor of humanities at Georgia
1-22 Southern during its period of phenomenal growth; and
1-23 WHEREAS, from 1979-1990, Dr. DePaolo held faculty and
1-24 administrative posts at Augusta State University where she
1-25 is acknowledged as having created an award-winning
1-26 humanities program and promoted a strong relationship
1-27 between the university and the medical and business
1-28 community; and
1-29 WHEREAS, new beginnings offer new opportunities,
1-30 relationships, and vision; and it is with great appreciation
1-31 and anticipation that Dr. DePaolo is recognized and welcomed
1-32 back to Georgia to this premier position as President of
1-33 Georgia College & State University.
1-34 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the
1-35 members of this body recognize and commend Dr. Rosemary
1-36 DePaolo as the new President of Georgia College & State

Hanging in the balance
Posted on August 23, 2007 by Steven W Brewer

A leaf may represent an entire ecosystem. Conservation must consider multiple spatial and temporal scales.

Habitat for trees or students?

UNCW seniors Ashley Cedzo (left) and Lindsay Staszak are part of a save-the-forest group that opposes UNCW's planned development of the wooded area off Reynolds Drive. Here, they pose for a portrait in that area on Wednesday, November 28, 2007, with a group of students that support their effort. The as-yet unnamed group will be holding an organizational meeting next Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2007, in room 202 of Dobo Hall at UNCW at 7:30 p.m. For more information on the group and its cause, e-mail saveuncwpines@gmail.com.

PHOTO BY MICHAEL HENNINGER/WILMINGTON STAR-NEWS

By Vicky Eckenrode
Staff Writer
vicky.eckenrode@starnewsonline.com
Nearly 50 University of North Carolina Wilmington students sat in a lecture room Tuesday night trading Web sites and organizing an opposition.
They, as well as some upset faculty members, are hoping petitions, letter-writing campaigns and outside community pressure can stop a construction project on campus that would require tearing down 15 acres of woods.
"We're not opposed to the construction and the additions, we're just opposed to the location," said Ashley Cedzo, a senior marine biology major. "This university is one of the few remaining campuses with a lot of green space. That was a big draw for me applying here."
But university officials say they have looked at other sites, and the property at the rear of the campus is the only spot that makes sense to expand on-campus housing.
"The decision has been made," said Ed Shuford, director of UNCW's Project Management Department. "At this point, we don't have any plan B. We've already analyzed plan A, B, C, D and E."
The university hopes to start construction in April and be ready for students to start moving in August 2009.
The plan calls for four privatized apartment buildings as well as a 1,000-space parking deck, which would be the first built on UNCW's campus.
A master plan for the campus approved in 2005 marked the 15 acres for development as well as another 15 acres at the site for more recreation fields or business development based on university research and work.
Shuford said another 140 acres of woods behind the buildings is slated for conservation in the master plan, and students can continue to use that area.
But those hoping to stop the project want the school to build on existing parking lot areas for student housing, moving those parking spaces to off-campus property the university already owns.
UNCW assistant plant ecology professor Steven Brewer said university administrators should be concerned about protecting the habitat that provides students with areas to perform lab work and learn about rapidly declining plant life.
"The educational value of it far exceeds the development," he said.
Brewer said the campus is home to the only patch in North Carolina of a tree known as minimal oak. The woods also contain longleaf pines, which used to cover much of the southeastern coastal plain, but now there is only 2 percent left of that original forest.
"Any ecologist can tell you that system is unique and endangered," Brewer said about the campus property, which he wants to see turned into a permanent nature preserve.
The building plan must still go through several local and state permitting processes and clear an environmental assessment, which will determine if any threatened or endangered plants or animals are affected by the construction.
A 30-day public comment period will take place once the state's part of the environmental assessment review starts.
Shuford said he does not expect problems since the woods are in the same area that was approved for the first two phases of the privatized student apartments at Seahawk Village and Seahawk Landing.
The university has made it a goal to provide on-campus housing for 40 percent of its undergraduates, or about 4,000 students, which would be met once the third apartment building opens to accommodate 660 more students.
"We're trying to provide an alternative to living off campus," Shuford said.
Vicky Eckenrode: 343-2075
vicky.eckenrode@starnewsonline.com

Zoos

Nina Katchadourian, Enrichment
Sara Meltzer Gallery
Chelsea
Sara Meltzer Gallery is pleased to present Enrichment, an exhibition of new works by Nina Katchadourian. Her second show at the gallery continues her longstanding exploration of the human relationship to the natural world. Consisting of two multi-channel video installations and a photographic work, Enrichment contemplates animal behavior as well as our behavior towards animals.
In the lingo of animal caretakers, "enrichment" refers to the process of providing a stimulating environment for zoo animals in order to demonstrate their typical behavior and enhance their well-being. This may include the replication of natural habitats through exhibition design, the introduction of scents and sounds from their natural environment, feeding that encourages natural foraging behavior and the introduction of objects, including "toys," that mentally challenge animals. The existence of the term is also a tacit acknowledgement of the psychological difficulties animals face in captivity.

http://www.artcal.net/event/view/1/6013



More lion kittens found
Associated Press - November 27, 2007 9:25 AM ET
RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) - Three more mountain lion kittens that were orphaned during the hunting season have been caught so they can get the care they need, and officials are looking for 1 more.
So far, 6 orphaned kittens have been captured.
The orphans will be raised at South Dakota State University until they can be placed with zoos.
The mountain lion season in South Dakota ended Friday when the quota of 15 females was reached.
State officials retrieve orphaned kittens if it's determined that they're not able to survive on their own.
Information from: Rapid City Journal, http://www.rapidcityjournal.com
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

http://www.kmeg14.com/Global/story.asp?S=7413955&nav=menu609_2_4



Breeding elephants doesn't protect them
Zoos like those in Pittsburgh should help preserve the animals' native habitat instead
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
By Marianne Bessey
During this month's ground-breaking ceremony at the Pittsburgh zoo's proposed elephant breeding facility in Somerset Country, lots of lip service was paid to "conservation." It is without question that elephants, endangered in Asia and threatened in Africa, desperately need help. But will spending millions of dollars on breeding a handful of elephants actually help elephants -- or just the zoo's bottom line?
Marianne Bessey is a spokesperson for Friends of Philly Zoo Elephants (marianne. bessey@dechert.com).
The elephant exhibit at the Philadelphia Zoo is closing and the three remaining wild-caught African elephants -- Kallie, Bette and Petal -- are supposed to move to Somerset County in April. The zoo's Asian elephant, Dulary, was fortunate enough to leave Philadelphia in May for The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee, where she enjoys the closest thing to an elephant's life possible in captivity.
Kallie, Bette and Petal could have a similar life at the Performing Animal Welfare Society sanctuary in California, but instead the Philadelphia Zoo has decided to ship them to the "International Conservation Center" breeding facility in Somerset County.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07304/829727-109.stm



Sympathy for the devil
Extra insurance for the Tasmanian devil announced as scientists fear for its future.
Kate McDonald 29/11/2007 11:34:05
Up to 100 Tasmanian devils will be captured and quarantined as part of an ongoing insurance population strategy designed to ensure the survival of the species.
Save the Tasmanian Devil program manager Dr Steven Smith said the first stage will begin in late January, following months of surveys in the state's west and north-west to identify animals with no evidence of Tasmanian Devil Facial Tumour disease.
The uninfected devils will be put in quarantine and then sent to zoos on the mainland.
At present, 48 Tasmanian devils have been sent to wildlife parks to establish an 'insurance' population, to ensure the species' survival should the disease continue to decimate the wild population.

http://www.biotechnews.com.au/index.php/id;426950786;fp;2;fpid;1



Pinnawela to Yerevan:
A cruel change
Sagarica Rajakarunanayake
The Constitution of India states it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and to have compassion for living creatures.
The national and political leaders of India have not failed to ensure that nature and all living creatures of the land are embraced by the Constitution of India and brought under its protection.
It is the Fundamental Duty of every citizen, and also of all state functionaries, to act with compassion for all living creatures under Article 51A(g) of the Indian Constitution.
In fact Maneka Gandhi, India’s formidable Animal Rights Activist has on several occasions successfully sought the intervention of the courts against State departments for meting out cruel and inhumane treatment to animals and contravening the provisions of the Constitution of India and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.

http://www.dailynews.lk/2007/11/29/fea01.asp



Brazilian Ocelot Born
El Conquistador garnered his name when at 2 days old he wandered from his mother’s side and squeezed through fencing into a hallway for keeper staff on the back side of the exhibit.
“And he did all this when he was unable to see,” McMahan laughed. “He was so young, his eyes were still closed. So, we named him El Conquistador because he is definitely an explorer and conqueror.”
The kitten’s birth is significant because his father Itirapua is one of the very few “founder stock” ocelots, whose genes are critical for survival of the species. Link -via Fark

http://www.neatorama.com/2007/11/30/brazilian-ocelot-born/



Lake Superior Zoo euthanizes lion
Patrick Garmoe Duluth News Tribune
Published Thursday, November 29, 2007
The Lake Superior Zoo lost its only lion this week after 19-year-old Nemo had to be euthanized.
Blood tests taken Monday showed liver and kidney failure, which is common in elderly cats, Lake Superior Zoo veterinarian Louise Beyea said.
Though easier to replace than Bubba the polar bear, who died in July, Nemo also was an especially popular attraction at the zoo, said Sam Maida, the Lake Superior Zoo Society’s executive director. The society helps run portions of the zoo.

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/articles/index.cfm?id=55161&freebie_check&CFID=71014282&CFTOKEN=32087633&jsessionid=883059bd0cc0234a72c4




Zoo President to Challenge Report on Polar Bear Deaths
Updated: Nov 24, 2007 12:33 PM EST
(Buffalo, NY, November 24, 2007) - - The head of The Buffalo Zoo is reportedly ready to challenge a federal report on the deaths of three polar bears.
Zoo President Dr. Donna Fernandes tells The Buffalo News she does not believe the condition of the polar bear exhibit caused the deaths of three polar bears in a six-month period.
A recently-revealed Department of Agriculture report cites care and conditions among the factors.
Earlier this week, the animal rights group PETA called for the removal of the Zoo's accreditation.

http://www.wivb.com/Global/story.asp?S=7402904



Lahore Zoo gets three giraffes in pakistan
Sunday, 25 November 2007
"Today is the memorable day in the history of Lahore Zoo because the Lahore Zoo have giraffes after 13 years. Lahore Zoo have bought three giraffes two females and one male from South Africa of worth Rs 7.4 million.
The coming of giraffes has increased the interest of children as well as the tourists. Children are waiting for this gift and the administration of Lahore Zoo have full fill their long awaited wish. There are no giraffes in the other Zoo's of Pakistan except Lahore Zoo," said Zoo Maintenance Committee Chairman and Wild Life Director General Muhammad Asif.
In his speech in a colourful ceremony of giraffes at the Lahore Zoo arranged by International School Garden Town children, he talked of the benefits of such educational and animal friendly activities and told the children about the different features of giraffes, such as that their weigh ranging from 550 kilogrames to 1,800 kilogrammes and height from 15 feet to 18 feet. He also told them that they live between 26 and 30 years. Zoo Director, maintenance committee members and staff were also present.

http://www.uniquepakistan.com/news/general/lahore-zoo-gets-three-giraffes-in-pakistan-20071125.html



Tigers, other animals, to sleep through zoo's big tech upgrade
A North Carolina wildlife sanctuary is getting a half-million-dollar upgrade
Matt Hamblen Today’s Top Stories
November 26, 2007 (Computerworld) -- The 85 tigers and other big cats at the Carnivore Preservation Trust (CPT) in Pittsboro, N.C., may scarcely notice the hubbub, but a $500,000 communications and computing upgrade is under way to help tell their story to the world.
IBM and Cisco Systems Inc. are donating the technology to the wildlife sanctuary and began installing the new gear about three weeks ago. In the first phase of the project, servers and voice-over-IP phones have been installed to give the full-time staff of 10 an alternative to a patchwork of donated PCs, printers and an old phone system that relied on answering machines, said Pam Fulk, the CPT's executive director.
Web browsing and word processing functions have been so slow "that I can press a 'Next' key and have time to do my nails while I'm waiting for the page to come up," Fulk joked during an interview.

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9048519&intsrc=news_ts_head



Brno zoo polar bear gives birth to two cubs
By ČTK / Published 26 November 2007
Brno, Nov 24 (CTK) - Cora, a female polar bear in the Brno zoo, gave birth to two cubs Friday and Saturday, and she seems to be caring for both assiduously, the zoo spokesman Pavel Hrazdira told CTK.
All of Cora's previous offspring died as she failed to care for them. If such danger emerged now, the keepers say they would place the cubs in an incubator.
Vets are closely monitoring the young bears.
They say artificial raising of the cubs is not necessary for the time being. The older cub, born on Friday afternoon, does not suffer from hunger, otherwise it would be heard whimpering.
If the cubs are successfully raised, the visitors could see them in several months.
The breed of polar bears in captivity is extremely difficult, experts say.

http://www.praguemonitor.com/en/220/czech_national_news/15102/



New Giraffe Born in Zoo Prague
Nov 26, 2007 12:02 PM Filed under
In the ‘African house’ a new baby giraffe was born, which makes the total number of giraffes born in Prague Zoo: sixty!. The youngster is a girl, was born on 17th November, is very active and can be seen since this weekend together with the rest of her pack.
Zoo celebrated the respectable number by a baptism ceremony of a giraffe boy Faust. The name was given by Milan Steindler, the dean of the 1st medical faculty of Tomas Zima. Faust truly is a hellish name, in spite of the blond baby giraffe doesn’t really show a link to hell.

http://www.abcprague.com/2007/11/26/new-giraffe-born-in-zoo-prague



Octopus Zoo Release Date
Just got back from Ohio. and I am exhausted from all the driving.
I thought a lot about the album, of course. And took a break from listening to it and let the music work itself out in my head. Ends up I'm going to be putting a time signature change in "Anchor Light", there wll be a little 3/4 section in the middle. A break, even.. from the 4/4 of the whole album. With the time away, I had time to consider how much was left to do, not just with Vacant Sky Parlor, but also with school.
So... The release date has changed again.. and this should be the last change, considering how close I am to getting everything done. With the holiday and school.. I haven't had the time to get any vocals recorded, and I am still finishing the music for three of the songs.
So, forget the January 8 date and know the release date is February 12, 2008.
Here is the track list. Though the order may change, the songs themselves are all decided.

http://rockstar.livejournal.com/186667.html



Bear Bites Student at a Private Zoo
By Julia Bonelli
10:54, November 26th 2007
While taking part in a program for budding zookeepers, a student from the Frostburg State University has been bitten by a bear at a private zoo in Farmington, Pa., and also scratched the person that tried to help the student.
The victim of the Maryland college was taking part in a behind-the-scenes tour, on Saturday, as part of a program called "zookeeper for a day." The program addresses adults which are interested of the zoo life, as it gives participants in it the opportunity of getting access to an area of the bear's den that was created to allow zookeepers to feed the animals.
Sonny Herring, owner of the Woodland Zoo and More, has declared that the student that was bitten by the bear required eight stitches, while the second person only had minor injuries, adding that they both went home soon.
Herring showed his disapprovement regarding the overemphasis of the incident, since he said that there are frequent dog bites inside the zoo, but nobody talks so much about them, the only thing that brought this case in the public being only the fact that it was a bear.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission has already started an investigation, declaring that the incident was minor, concerning the injuries, but they will continue the inquiry.

http://www.enews20.com/news_Bear_Bites_Student_at_a_Private_Zoo_03965.html



Zoo to monitor wind in energy-feasibility test
The Toledo Zoo hopes to harvest the breeze.
In conjunction with the non-profit Green Energy Ohio, the zoo will monitor wind in three directions from atop the Lucas County EMS tower at South Detroit and Glendale avenues, near the zoo.
Data from this test should reveal whether wind power is worth the investment for the zoo, a news release said.
Green consciousness at the zoo has risen considerably since Executive Director Anne Baker arrived almost two years ago. Construction plans for zoo projects, such as the all-season Children's Zone, include a green component.
"The steps we take now to find renewable energy will be extremely beneficial in the long run," Ms. Baker said. "If wind power turns out to be a cost-effective way to generate energy for the zoo, then we feel that it is imperative to pursue it."
Bill Spratley, executive director of Green Energy Ohio, said that regardless of the outcome of these tests, "we hope this will further raise consciousness about wind power as a sustainable energy source."

http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071126/NEWS38/71126002



Toledo Zoo to perform study on wind power
News Herald reports
TOLEDO -- To help reduce its dependence on oil, the Toledo Zoo recently received approval from the Lucas County Commissioners to install wind-monitoring equipment on a Lucas County EMS tower near the zoo. In doing so, the zoo will determine the feasibility of using wind in its ongoing efforts to provide greener and more-cost-effective power to the zoo's facilities.
Working in conjunction with Green Energy Ohio, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting environmentally and economically sustainable energy policies and practices in Ohio, the zoo will monitor wind at three different elevations on the EMS tower located on South Detroit Avenue. Through these studies, the zoo officials will gain a clearer understanding of the wind patterns throughout the year. From that data, the zoo officials will be able to determine whether there would be a favorable return on an investment in wind turbines to power the zoo.

http://www.portclintonnewsherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071126/NEWS01/711260316/1002




Toledo Zoo joins call to protect world's polar bears
Endangered species listing urged
Anne Baker, the zoo's executive director, and other zoo and environmental officials called for federal action to safeguard polar bears and preserve the animals' natural habitat.
By TOM HENRY
BLADE STAFF WRITER
The Toledo Zoo yesterday joined a national movement to get the polar bear listed as an endangered species because of global warming.
At the Arctic Encounter exhibit, as the zoo's bouncy, year-old trio of polar bear cubs delighted visitors by feeding on fish and frolicking in icy water, Anne Baker said the campaign exists because "polar bears are in trouble."
"We want our government to be concerned about it and we want them to start taking action," Ms. Baker, the zoo's executive director, said.
Joining Ms. Baker at the podium were Randi Meyerson, the zoo's curator of mammals; Andrew Wetzler, deputy director of the Natural Resources Defense Council, and Devan Willemsen, air and energy program associate for the Ohio Environmental Council.

http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071130/NEWS38/711300359



Rare lizards bred in Taipei Zoo
11/26/2007 (CNA)
Taipei, Nov. 26 (CNA) The Taipei Zoo has succeeded in breeding its first two young lizards of a rare species, the Gila monster, after trying for three years, a zoo official said Monday.
The two young lizards -- one 45.64 grams in weight and 17 centimeters in length and the other 31.75 grams in weight and 19 centimeters in length -- have been put on display at the zoo's reptile hall, Chiu Ruo-chun, the keeper of the lizards said.
The Gila monster, originating from southwestern America, is one of two kinds of venomous lizards in the world. Taiwan brought in two pairs of the lizards three years ago and tried to stimulate them into producing young lizards in captivity by putting them in a cabinet with constant moisture and temperature adjustment, Chiu said.

http://www.taiwanheadlines.gov.tw/ct.asp?xItem=96140&CtNode=39



Berlin Zoo Preparing Birthday Feast for Knut
As the countdown continues towards Knut's first birthday on December 5, Berlin Zoo's management remains tight-lipped about its plans for a celebration. But his faithful keeper Thomas Dörflein knows what the polar bear celebrity will be getting to eat that day.
Knut can look forward to a birthday feast on December 5.
Polar bear star Knut turns one on December 5 (more...)and media speculation about Berlin Zoo's plans for a party is heating up. His keeper Thomas Dörflein has already been thinking about the menu though.
"He'll get what he likes most: grapes, fish, boiled potatoes," Dörflein told
Bild am Sonntag newspaper. As for musical accompaniment to the festivities, Knut enjoyed listening to Dörflein playing Elvis Presley songs on the guitar in his first few months but is unlikely to get a repeat performance.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,519742,00.html



Panel recommends zoo tax
BY JESSICA BROWN JLBROWN@ENQUIRER.COM
A committee that reviews tax levies this morning recommended that the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden put a 5-year levy on the March ballot to raise a total of $36.3 million, or about $7.2 million annually.
That’s more than the $6.1 million the current levy raises a year. The zoo is seeking $38 million over the five-year period. The county commissioners will vote on the issue by Dec. 5.
“We run a tight ship,” said Thane Maynard, the zoo’s executive director. “But expenses go up."
He noted that the levy amount was actually rolled back in 2003, resulting in the zoo collecting less now than it did in 1998.
It is unclear how much more the March levy would cost the owner of a $100,000 home, but Maynard said the difference for that hypothetical homeowner between the recommended amount and the zoo’s request would be 52 cents.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071126/NEWS01/311260039



Zoo News Conference Today On Polar Bears Death
Updated: Nov 26, 2007 10:37 AM EST
(Buffalo, NY, November 26, 2007) -- A press conference will be held today at the Buffalo Zoo to shed more light on the recent deaths of three Polar bears.
Zoo president Donna Fernandez will hold a news conference at 1 this afternoon.
Last week, Fernandez told News 4 she does not believe the bears died because of substandard conditions, but a federal inspection report indicated care and conditions contributed to the deaths.

http://www.wivb.com/Global/story.asp?S=7408472



Many Seattle zoo animals nearing end of life span
Published Monday, November 26th, 2007
The Associated Press
SEATTLE (AP) - A number of animals at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle are getting up in years.
A hippo named Gertrude is the oldest animal at 44. She gets glucosamine to help with her aging joints.
The zoo has a number of animals nearing the end of their life expectancy: a pair of 40-year-old orangutans named Towan and Chinta, a 39-year-old gorilla named Pete, a 32-year-old zebra named Amy, a 25-year-old penguin named Pez, and a 16-year-old lion named Jake.
---
Information from: The Seattle Times, http://www.seattletimes.com

http://www.tri-cityherald.com/tch/local/state/story/9480247p-9391450c.html



Nature Playing With Light & Color; SF Zoo
We went to the San Francisco Zoo for the first time yesterday. Quite the nice zoo; the animals all seem fairly content and the grounds were beautifully designed. The paths were all windy and it is quite easy to get pleasantly lost, only to find yourself in the midst of some random part of the world’s animals.
The zoo also hosts quite the population of wild birds. Lots of ducks and seagulls, of course. We also saw a couple of great blue herons wandering and flying about. Magestic birds!

http://www.friday.com/bbum/2007/11/26/nature-playing-with-light-sf-zoo/



Animals Up For Adoption At North Carolina Zoo
Posted by: Bekki Kanter, Producer 3 days ago (11/26/2007 3:48:33 PM)
Zoo leaders say the adoption is a unique gift idea for children this holiday, and proceeds benefit the animals living at the Zoo.
Asheboro, NC -- The North Carolina zoo has more than a dozen animals up for adoption this holiday.
One program, called "Ten Tons of Fun" benefits the Zoo's new Elephant and Rhino exhibit, opening in the spring. The 37-acre exhibit will house about a dozen of each animal.
The adoption costs $59.99. It includes two 12-inch plush animals, a button commemorating the opening, an adoption certificate and a photograph of the the Zoo elephant and rhinoceros being adopted.
A $500 adoption also includes an original painting, created by one of the animals.
Other animals up for adoption include the Red Wolf, Lion, Grizzly Bear, Chimpanzee, African Elephant, Giraffe, Polar Bear, River Otter, Chilean Flamingo, Green Tree Frog, Ball Python, Alligator Snapping Turtle and Puffin. Christmas Orders are mailed on December 7th.
Click herefor more information or to adopt an animal.
Source: WFMY News 2
Copyright: 2007 digtriad.com

http://www.digtriad.com/news/local_state/article.aspx?storyid=93743



Zoo shows off its pride and joy
One of the Oklahoma City Zoo's four lion cubs gets fed Tuesday. The four were born earlier this month through emergency Caesarian section. BY JOHN CLANTON, THE OKLAHOMAN
What's ahead for the cubs?
The new cubs at the Oklahoma City Zoo are weighed at 8 a.m. daily, and they're fed twice a day. Keepers will stop bottle feeding after four or five months.
In about six months, the cubs will be introduced to the pride, which is composed of their three parents, said Jonathan Reding, supervisor of the zoo's Cat Forest and Lion Overlook. In the zoo world, this is called a "howdy.” The cubs will be able to see and hear their parents but won't immediately be allowed into the same area.
The lions were bred as part of the national species survival plan, which dictates which animals reproduce and when. The idea is to keep the gene pool diverse.
As part of the plan, the cubs may leave Oklahoma City. In a year or so, zoo experts will analyze the African lion population in the U.S. and see which animals should move to new locations because of breeding, space needs or other factors, said the zoo's Brian Aucone. The cubs may stay or go.
"For the moment,” he said, "they'll be here for a while.”
By Carrie Coppernoll
Staff Writer
It all started with a toothache.
For months, the lion at the Oklahoma City Zoo ignored the two lionesses conservationists hoped he'd mate with, zoo spokeswoman Tara Henson said. Keepers discovered the mood killer: a 2-inch bone stuck in his teeth, like a piece of a popcorn kernel. A dentist treated the 400-pound cat one day in July, and the next day, as Henson said, "was a lovefest.”
Four months later, the zoo is home to four new lion cubs. If the two pregnancies weren't odd enough, both mothers needed emergency Caesarean sections because of complications.
The scenario, Henson said, is uncommon, to say the least.

http://newsok.com/article/3171673/1195624821




Zoo will sell land to house-builders for regeneration funds
BRIAN FERGUSON
BOSSES at Edinburgh Zoo are to press ahead with plans to sell off part of the site for housing to help fund a multi-million pound redevelopment of the attraction.
The zoo had expected to secure the go-ahead last month to allow up to 100 new homes to be built on the land.
But plans to plough cash raised from the land sale into a £72 million revamp of its historic site on Corstorphine Hill were thrown into chaos when the city's planning committee voted to retain it as green belt land - against the advice of the authority's own officials.

http://news.scotsman.com/edinburgh.cfm?id=1859022007




Sierra Safari Zoo relies on winter donations
GUY CLIFTON
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Posted: 11/26/2007
HOW TO HELP
Tax-deductible donations can be mailed to Sierra Safari Zoo at 10200 N. Virginia St., Reno, 89506; on the Web at www.sierrasafarizoo.org; or by phone at (775) 677-1104.
The gates have closed for the winter at Sierra Safari Zoo, but the work and the needs continue through the winter months.
“The thing is, we’re open April to November and our gate pretty much keeps us alive,” said zoo spokesman Dale McDaniel. “When we’re closed, we count on the generosity of the community. The most pressing need is just for donations to help us with our winter food and power bills.”
It costs at least $12,000 a month to feed and care for the zoo’s 200 animals, said general manager Lori Acordagoitia, and this year is challenging with the rising costs of everything from hay to grain to meat used to feed the animals.

http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071126/NEWS18/71126026/1321/NEWS



Buffalo Zoo Defends Animal Care
Mark Leitner
BUFFALO (2007-11-26) Speaking to members of the press, with the Chair of the Zoo Board and top Zoo personnel at her side or in the audience, Doctor Fernandes accused the U-S-D-A and the animal rights group, PETA,
of ambushing her facility without knowledge of all the facts that
contributed to the death of the four polar bears and a hyena.
"You can image our shock when we were suddenly confronted with, and frankly ambushed by a radical group who's basic message is all zoos are always bad," Fernandes said.
Fernandes pointed to autopsies that concluded that all of the polar
bears died of natural causes; none, she said, died because they ate or swallowed garbage.
"The preliminary report is in-complete. It is factually incorrect, as were PETA's conclusions," Fernandes said.
The Zoo President told reporters that
to her knowledge, no "PETA" official has ever visited the Buffalo Zoo. No "PETA" official, Fernandes said, ever contacted her to discuss the polar bear deaths.
The Zoo has just one remaining polar bear among its collection.

http://publicbroadcasting.net/wned/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1188932&sectionID=1




Buffalo Zoo Says USDA Report Misleading
Story Published: Nov 26, 2007 at 7:11 PM EST
Story Updated: Nov 26, 2007 at 7:11 PM EST
By Steve Barber
Anana the polar bear is alone in her exhibit. In the last 16 months Danny, Becky, Kelly, and another polar bear all died, the Buffalo Zoo officials claim, of natural causes not neglect or consumption of plastic in their exhibits. "The Bears did not consume garbage. No plastic was ever found in the intestines of these bears. None died of anything other than natural causes." said Zoo President Donna Fernandes.
Still a US Department of Agriculture report, one the zoo claims is misleading, says those bears may have consumed plastic, and that plastic was found in the stool of one of the polar bears. The allegations outrage the animal rights group PETA. "Are these types of incidents and lack of care that we typically see from an unaccredited roadside zoos? This is not a first rate facility." said Lisa Wathne of PETA.
The zoo is also under fire because a hyena also died after a piece of its exhibit fell on the animal. "On this one particular occasion an animal dug with-in a 24 hour so far underneath one of the boulders in the exhibit that the boulder fell on top of it." said Fernandes.

http://www.wkbw.com/news/local/11839866.html



Zoo guests get unique after-dark experience
By Heidi Atkin
Close-Up Correspondent
Article Last Updated: 11/08/2007 02:42:49 PM MST
Those willing to brave the dark got a unique experience this Halloween at Hogle Zoo.
"Night at the Living Zoo" has become a yearly Halloween tradition. At this year's event, guests were fed a spaghetti dinner, introduced to small animals they were allowed to touch and then were led in small groups on an after-dark tour.
"You may not like the animals, but somebody else may. It's a great way for kids to learn about conservation and existing in the same areas as animals and to have that respect while having a lot of fun," explained Holly Braithwaite, spokeswoman for the Hogle Zoo.
Caitlin Bullock, a zoo aide, explained that guests get an interactive experience with some of the most popular animals. Rather than view the Madagascar hissing cockroach through glass like on a normal visit, guests were invited by "Spiderella" to touch the creepy crawlies. Excited kids and some adults scrambled for the rare chance to interact with the animals.

http://www.sltrib.com/slc/ci_7406651



State auditor says zoo needs to improve financial practices
Associated Press - November 9, 2007 7:04 AM ET
ST. PAUL (AP) - Minnnesota Zoo officials say they're working to improve the zoo's financial practices, following a report by the legislative auditor.
The audit made 19 recommendations but found that zoo officials generally used adequate safeguards in their accounting practices.
Legislative Auditor James Nobles did find that the zoo in Apple Valley overpaid a food service vendor by nearly $30,000. He also says the zoo didn't sufficiently verify that vendors were paying the proper commissions and sometimes had the same employee handling receipts and deposits.

http://wkbt.com/Global/story.asp?S=7335207



2 meerkat kits draw curious crowds at San Jose zoo
4-WEEK-OLD BABIES STAYING CLOSE TO MOM
By Lisa Fernandez
Two meerkat babies are the newest buzz at San Jose's Happy Hollow Park and Zoo, where visitors are doing whatever they can to catch a glimpse of the nearly 4-week-old kits.
Born Oct. 13, the two meerkats (think Timon in the "Lion King" movies) are so young that no one's even gotten close enough to learn their sex, said zoo spokeswoman Vanessa Rogier. They'll be named only after a veterinarian checks them out.
She said the kits have been spending their days nursing from their mother, Kubaza, and snuggled up in a nest, especially since it's been so cold.
Zoo employees suspect a meerkat named Mdudu is "probably the dad," Rogier said, though no one is sure because there are three meerkat males at the zoo.
The African names are a nod to the meerkats' place of origin, and the kits' birth brings the meerkat population at the zoo to seven.
Meerkats are "very playful, very busy animals," Rogier said. "They're always on guard, looking out for danger, grooming, basking in the sun."
It's a good time to be a meerkat.
The television network Animal Planet has been following a group of African meerkats on its popular show "Meerkat Manor," which Rogier notes that viewers around the globe watch "like a soap opera."
When that meerkat matriarch, Flower, died in September during a bloody struggle with a cobra, news outlets including the New York Times and the Mercury News noted the public's grief, and the thousands of
Advertisement
condolences on chatboards and dozens of video tributes to her.

http://www.mercurynews.com/valley/ci_7414023?nclick_check=1



A wild experience
City kids these days are more familiar with animated animals than live ones. Perhaps a trip to the Sunway Wildlife Interactive Zoo will change that.
By JOLEEN LUNJEW
When I asked my six-year-old son, Eugene, to draw me a chicken, he drew me a drumstick,” says Aaron Soo, CEO of Sunway Wildlife Interactive Zoo.
“It saddens me that my son doesn’t even know what a live chicken looks like,” he sighs.
The children of our city have come to that. Many are ignorant of wildlife, and most have never gone into a jungle. Bearing this in mind, Sunway Lagoon Theme Park’s latest attraction, the Sunway Wildlife Interactive Zoo, allows the public, especially the young kids, to touch, feel, feed and play with animals.

http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2007/11/10/lifetravel/19328699&sec=lifetravel



Aurora zoo reveals plan to get paws on new bears
Popular exhibit: Phillips Park budget seeks money to bring back its most requested attraction
November 10, 2007
By Dan Campana STAFF WRITER
AURORA -- It's been a few years since the city's last bear sighting.
Eight years, to be exact. That's when Judy, the Phillips Park Zoo bear, died of cancer. Since then, the question of a bear return to Aurora has been a constant.
"It's always been a hot topic," Zoo Coordinator Randy Johnson said.
That could change by decade's end if the city approves a budget request from the zoo to begin the planning for a new, larger bear exhibit at the historic park on the southeast side.
The zoo, which Johnson said draws an average of 200,000 visitors annually, has asked for $50,000 to begin the engineering and design process that could ultimately bring a pair of bears back to the city.

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/644002,2_1_AU10_ZOO_S1.article

continued...

Looks like we finally need to address mental health care in the USA.

Leeland Eisenberg

Hostage-taker at Clinton office surrenders
8 hours ago
ROCHESTER, New Hampshire (AFP) — A man claiming to be armed with a bomb took over one of US presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton's campaign offices for more than five hours Friday before surrendering to police.
The man, believed to have a history of mental illness, walked into the New Hampshire office at around 1:00 pm (1800 GMT), taking three women, a man and a baby hostage and reportedly demanding to speak to the former first lady.
Clinton, who was near Washington at the time of the incident, said after the drama ended that the tense standoff had been hard on her and her campaign.
"It's been a very difficult day, personally and emotionally," Clinton told reporters, adding that she had been in touch with the families of those being held hostage throughout the day.
"I'm so grateful this day has ended well," said the former first lady, who was due to travel to New Hampshire to thank law enforcement officers....

Every obituary, there is not just the name Roger Smith, but, also Michael Moore. Amazing.

Roger Smith, General Motors Corp.'s chairman during a decade when its U.S. market-share losses to Japanese rivals accelerated, poses in an undated company photo released to the media on Nov. 30, 2007. Smith died yesterday in Detroit after a brief illness. He was 82. Source: General Motors via Bloomberg News

Michael, the man can't even rest in peace ! That is astounding. Every obts out there has a reference to Michael's film. Carved in stone, now, Mike. Forever !

The turbulent times that Roger Smith presided over at GM were the subject of a controversial 1989 Michael Moore documentary centred on the impact of the closure of GM facilities in Flint, Michigan

Roger Smith
July 12, 1925 - November 29, 2007
The family asks that donations be made to the Roger B. Smith Memorial Fund to Benefit the Fight Against Cancer: William Beaumont Hospital, c/o of the Beaumont Fund, P.O. Box 5802, Troy, MI 48007-9620
Roger Smith, GM Chief From 1981 to 1990, Dies at 82 (Update3)
By Jeff Green and Alex Ortolani
Nov. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Roger Smith, General Motors Corp.'s chairman during a decade when its U.S. market-share losses to Japanese rivals accelerated, died yesterday in Detroit after a brief illness. He was 82.
Smith was widely known as the foil of filmmaker Michael Moore's 1989 documentary ``Roger & Me'' on the decline of the U.S. auto industry. Smith served as GM chairman and chief executive officer from Jan. 1, 1981, until July 31, 1990, the Detroit-based company said in a statement today.
``He was a leader who knew that we have to accept change, understand change and learn to make it work for us,'' Rick Wagoner, the automaker's current CEO, said in the statement. ``Roger was truly a pioneer in the fast-moving global industry that we now take for granted.''

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=atDkHC6CKlR4&refer=us



Ex-GM Chief Roger Smith Dies At 82
Smith Retired As General Motors CEO In 1990
Roger B. Smith, who led General Motors in the 1980s through a period of significant change, died Thursday after a brief illness at the age of 82.
Smith also unwillingly loaned his name to Michigan filmmaker Michael Moore's documentary "Roger & Me," which chronicled Moore's attempts to interview the GM CEO.
Smith was appointed chairman and CEO on January 1, 1981, and led the worlds largest automaker until his retirement on July 31, 1990.

http://www.clickondetroit.com/automotive/14737752/detail.html



Ex-GM Chief Roger Smith Dies At 82
POSTED: 11:09 am EST November 30, 2007
UPDATED: 1:59 pm EST November 30, 2007
Roger B. Smith, who led General Motors in the 1980s through a period of significant change, died Thursday after a brief illness at the age of 82.
ClickOn Soundoff: What do you think of Smith's legacy?
Smith also unwillingly loaned his name to Michigan filmmaker Michael Moore's documentary "Roger & Me," which chronicled Moore's attempts to interview the GM CEO.

http://www.clickondetroit.com/money/14736624/detail.html?rss=det&psp=money



Former GM CEO Roger Smith dies at 82
Posted Nov 30th 2007 11:08AM by John Neff
Roger Smith, former chairman and CEO of General Motors from 1981 to 1990, has died at the age of 82. I was still drawing cars with crayons when Smith lead the General, so I first became aware of him after watching the film Roger and Me by Michael Moore. While that documentary does not paint a rosy picture of Smith, he was at the helm of GM during a time when NUMMI, GM's joint-venture manufacturing facility with Toyota, was formed, and the creation of the Saturn brand. Regardless of how you view Smith's tenure at the top of GM, he is still a significant figure in the history of the world's largest automaker.
GM has detailed the life and accomplishments of Roger Smith in its press release posted after the jump.

http://www.autoblog.com/2007/11/30/former-gm-ceo-roger-smith-dies-at-82/



Former General Motors CEO Roger B. Smith Dead at 82
Written By: Seyth Miersma
Filed Under: Automotive News
November 30th, 2007 12:25 PM
Former chairman and chief executive office of General Motors, Roger B. Smith, died Thursday after a short illness at the age of 82.
A veteran of the U.S. Navy, and graduate of the University of Michigan Business School, Smith started at GM in the capacity of general accounting clerk in 1949. He worked his way up through GM’s financial management team, becoming vice president of finance in 1971.
Smith went on to lead the company as CEO during the tumultuous years of 1981 through 1990, achieving during his tenure; the creation of the Saturn brand, the introduction of front-wheel-drive mid-size cars, and the acquisition of tech company Electronic Data Systems. It was during his time as CEO that Smith was famously the target of Michael Moore’s documentary Roger & Me, which detailed the closing of GM facilities in and around Flint, MI.
In a statement released by GM, Chairman Rick Wagoner said of Smith, “He was a leader who knew that we have to accept change, understand change, and learn to make it work for us.”

http://news.windingroad.com/automotive-news/former-general-motors-ceo-roger-b-smith-dead-at-82/

Michael Moore Today

November 28th, 2007 12:00 am
Sean Penn film takes top honor at NY indie awards
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Sean Penn's film "Into the Wild," which tells the true story of a 24-year-old adventurer's ill-fated trek to Alaska, won for best feature on Tuesday at the Gotham Awards, one of the highly coveted U.S. independent film awards.
Among other films that took out prizes at the top U.S East Coast awards focusing on low-budget and art-house films was Michael Moore's "Sicko" for best documentary. "Before The Devil Knows You're Dead," starring Ethan Hawke and Philip Seymour Hoffman, and "Talk to Me," starring Don Cheadle, tied for best ensemble cast.
The Gotham Awards are held annually by the Independent Feature Project, an nonprofit organization founded in 1979 that supports independent filmmaking. The awards give film fans an indication of the top independent movies of the year heading into Hollywood's film award season.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/mikeinthenews/index.php?id=10533



Vote 'SiCKO' in this year's People's Choice Awards

People's Choice Awards

http://www.pcavote.com/pca/showvoting.jsp;jsessionid=O1LN1SMWE1TYACQM4SFCFFA?showCaptcha=true&category=movies&_requestid=4421284



November 29th, 2007 1:44 pm
Albany nurse to host ‘SiCKO’ screening
Moultrie Observer
ALBANY, GA — Susie Smith, an Albany nurse, will host a house party to screen “SiCKO,” the film Michael Moore directed about the U.S. health care system.
Smith, a member of the National Nurses Organizing Committee/California Nurses Association, will hold the event at her home at 2101 Princeton Drive in Albany at 6:30 p.m. today.
U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-Albany, was invited to join the screening and discussion to follow, according to a press release from The National Nurses Organizing Committee/California Nurses Association.
The association is sponsoring similar house parties in 150 cities across the nation as part of a campaign to push the National U.S. Health Insurance Act (House Resolution 676), which would guarantee universal publicly financed, privately provided health care.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/news/article.php?id=10536



November 29th, 2007 1:46 pm
'SiCKO' PARTY
Modesto Bee
MANTECA, CA -- Registered nurse Erin Loberg and other local nurses will host a house party and screening-discussion of the Michael Moore documentary "Sicko" today at 7 p.m. at 1068 Snowgoose Lane as part of a national effort to organize for health care reform. Local members of the National Nurses Organizing Committee/California Nurses Association will attend the event, which will be followed by a discussion of health care reform.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/news/article.php?id=10537



SiCKO DVD Nationwide Home Movie Night
Come celebrate the DVD release of the movie SiCKO at the home of an RN colleague in your area. Nurses are getting together to watch the movie, eat popcorn and discuss what RNs can do to solve the nation's health care crisis.

http://www.calnurses.org/sicko/dvd_house_parties.html



Nurses Host Nationwide "SiCKO" DVD House Parties

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKcP08ekMqY



Thanksgiving weekend is the most heavily traveled time of the year. This year Southern California celebrated with a patriotic theme: Free Speech.

http://www.freewayblogger.com/thanksgiving07.htm



Artist on Artist: Tom Morello & Michael Moore

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=8272191



Hotel Café Shows!

The Nightwatchman will be performing at Hotel Café in Hollywood, CA
Nov 29th, Dec 6th and Dec 13th!

www.hotelcafe.com

One Man Revolution - Tracklisting

THE NIGHTWATCHMAN - ONE MAN REVOLUTION
1. California's Dark
2. One Man Revolution
3. Let Freedom Ring
4. The Road I Must Travel
5. The Garden of Gethsemane
6. House Gone Up In Flames
7. Flesh Shapes The Day
8. Battle Hymns
9. Maximum Firepower
10. Union Song
11. No One Left
12. The Dark Clouds Above
13. Until The End
All songs Written and Performed by Tom Morello
Publisher credit: The Nightwatchman Music (BMI)
Produced by Brendan O'Brien
Recorded by Nick Didia
Recorded at Buds Garage, Atlanta, GA, Southern Tracks Recording, Atlanta, GA
Assisted by Tom Tapley
And at Henson Recording Studio, LA, CA - Assistant Tom Syrowski

http://www.nightwatchmanmusic.com/



Protesters Arrested at UF Alberto Gonzales Speech

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNY67Ztw7hY&eurl=http://www.michaelmoore.com/



November 21st, 2007 7:24 pm
Group urges Cramer to sponsor health bill
Demonstrators push for national insurance act
By Steve Doyle / Huntsville Times
HUNTSVILLE, AL -- Sign-waving demonstrators who want Congress to pass a universal health insurance bill rallied Tuesday outside U.S. Rep. Bud Cramer's Huntsville office.
Reese Danley-Kilgo, one of the organizers, said the group is asking Cramer, a Democrat, to co-sponsor the "United States National Health Insurance Act." It would create a publicly financed, privately delivered health care system to cover necessary medical care for every American, without co-payments or deductibles.
"It would leave out insurance companies and pharmaceutical corporations and just be an arrangement between the people who need health care and all the rest of us in the country," said Danley-Kilgo, a retired University of Alabama in Huntsville professor.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10525



November 21st, 2007 1:26 am
Former aide blames Bush for leak deceit
By Matt Apuzzo / Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan blames President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney for efforts to mislead the public about the role of White House aides in leaking the identity of a CIA operative.
In an excerpt from his forthcoming book, McClellan recounts the 2003 news conference in which he told reporters that aides Karl Rove and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby were "not involved" in the leak involving operative Valerie Plame.
"There was one problem. It was not true," McClellan writes, according to a brief excerpt released Tuesday. "I had unknowingly passed along false information. And five of the highest-ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the vice president, the president's chief of staff and the president himself."
Bush's chief of staff at the time was Andrew Card.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10523



November 16th, 2007 2:35 am
Anti-Bush Sign Has Bridge World in an Uproar
By Stephanie Strom / New York Times
In the genteel world of bridge, disputes are usually handled quietly and rarely involve issues of national policy. But in a fight reminiscent of the brouhaha over an anti-Bush statement by Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks in 2003, a team of women who represented the United States at the world bridge championships in Shanghai last month is facing sanctions, including a yearlong ban from competition, for a spur-of-the-moment protest.
At issue is a crudely lettered sign, scribbled on the back of a menu, that was held up at an awards dinner and read, “We did not vote for Bush.”
By e-mail, angry bridge players have accused the women of “treason” and “sedition.”

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10522



FOX ATTACKS IRAN
Sign the Open Letter
Tell the networks not to follow FOX down the road to war
58,199 signers
Dear ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, and CNN,
"My station was intimidated by the administration and its foot soldiers at FOX News."
That is CNN's Christiane Amanpour explaining why the major television networks failed to accurately inform the public in the lead-up to the Iraq war, choosing instead to follow FOX's lead.
Now, FOX is beating the drums for war with Iran. Robert Greenwald's short film, "FOX Attacks: Iran", outlines the evidence from the station's own broadcasts, comparing their reporting before the Iraq war with what they are saying now about Iran.

http://foxattacks.com/iran



SiCKO-Cure National Road Show

http://www.healthcare-now.org/healthcare_road_show.html



Thursday, July 26th, 2007
See the Movie, Start the Revolution ...a letter from Michael Moore
Friends,
I am overwhelmed by the response to "Sicko." And I'm not just talking about all the wonderful, heart-felt letters you've sent me and the stories you've shared with me about the abuse you've suffered from our health care system.
No, I'm talking about how thousands of you are taking matters into your own hands and using the movie to do something. From Seattle to New England, each day I learn of numerous groups holding meetings or dinners after the movie to discuss it and to plot a course for action. A church in Plano, TX took its weekly bible study group to see "Sicko." 70 people crammed into a Wisconsin coffee shop's back room. Groups are plotting over pancakes in Illinois and microbrew in Missouri. E-mail addresses are being exchanged in theater lobbies. A Connecticut group is inviting legislators to see "Sicko" and keeping a tally on their website. Local groups have been buying out theaters to have special screenings for their members. Information tables are set up, literature is distributed, action groups are formed.
It's all an amazing sight. I can't tell you how thrilled I am to see the impact a movie can have. For all of you who have written me to ask, "What can I do," well, read more about what others have done, and then try these simple steps:

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/message/index.php?id=219



November 30th, 2007 12:41 pm
Sicko Cure Road Show Puts Health Care in the Spotlight
By Roman Lillie / WCTV
The Sicko Cure Road show was in Tallahassee on Wednesday, telling people about what they say are the benefits of guaranteed health care.
The Road Show is traveling across the country to try and pass a bill that would provide free health care for every American. With more than forty-six million Americans without health insurance many people are hoping for a change.
And some who have insurance worry that premiums are getting higher.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10538

continued...