Morning Papers - continued...

Dirty air ruins the views (click here)

5:00AM Sunday June 29, 2008By Nicola Shepheard
Smog hanging over the Auckland skyline
A town-known for its pristine mountain vistas is the most polluted in New Zealand - and its picturesque setting is partly to blame.
Alexandra, in Central Otago, tops a list of pollution hotspots supplied to the Herald on Sunday by the Ministry for the Environment.
The top five spots are all in the South Island, with Rotorua the North Island's worst offender at number six, followed by Tokoroa and Hastings at nine and 10.
The rankings are based on the number of times a year recorded pollution levels exceeded the national standard over the past three years.
Officials focused on key pollutant PM10 - essentially fine particles in the air. Alexandra exceeded the standard level 46 times in one year but Christchurch recorded the highest single concentration - 172 micrograms per cubic metre of air, more than three times the standard.
About 1000 New Zealanders die prematurely each year from air pollution, with a similar number of hospital admissions for respiratory and cardiac illnesses....

The New Zealand Herald

American lives become increasingly worth less
5:00AM Saturday July 12, 2008
It is not just the US dollar that is losing value. A government agency has decided that an American life is not worth what it used to be.
The "value of a statistical life" is US$6.9 million ($9 million), the US Environmental Protection Agency said in May - a drop of almost $1 million from just five years ago.
The Associated Press discovered the change after a review of cost-benefit analyses over more than a dozen years.
Though it may seem like a harmless bureaucratic recalculation, the devaluation has real consequences.
When drawing up regulations, government agencies put a value on human life, then weigh the costs versus the lifesaving benefits of a proposed rule. The less a life is worth to the government, the less the need for a regulation, such as tighter restrictions on pollution.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=281&objectid=10521092


Obama addresses 200,000 in Berlin
BERLIN - Barack Obama stood before more than 200,000 people in Berlin overnight and summoned Europeans and Americans to work together to bring the war in Iraq to an end, defeat terrorism and "dry up the well of extremism that supports it".
Obama said America and Europe must stand together in telling Iran to "abandon its nuclear ambitions" and insisted that "we must renew our resolve" to defeat the Taleban in Afghanistan.
Speaking in the Tiergarten, a park not far from where the Berlin Wall once stood, the presumptive Democratic nominee urged Americans, Berliners, and people of the world to work together for a better world.
"A new generation - our generation - must make our mark on history," he said.
Police spokesman Bernhard Schodrowski said the speech drew more than 200,000 people. No incidents were reported.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523409


CIA was told interrogations 'safe'
12:07PM Friday July 25, 2008
Attorney General Michael Mukasey. Photo / AP
WASHINGTON - The US Justice Department in 2002 told the CIA that its interrogators would be safe from prosecution for violations of anti-torture laws if they believed "in good faith" that harsh techniques used to break prisoners' will not cause "prolonged mental harm."
That heavily censored memo, released Thursday, approved the CIA's harsh interrogation techniques method by method, but warned that if the circumstances changed, interrogators could be running afoul of anti-torture laws.
The Aug. 1, 2002, legal opinion signed by then-Assistant Attorney General Jay Bybee was issued the day he wrote a memo for then-White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales that defined torture as only those "extreme acts" that cause pain similar in intensity to that caused by death or organ failure.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523487



Former military leader sentenced to life in prison
11:59AM Friday July 25, 2008
Luciano Benjamin Menendez, who was commander of the Third Army Corps in Cordoba for five years during Argentina's 1976-83 military dictatorship. Photo / AP
BUENOS AIRES - A court sentenced one of Argentina's most feared former military leaders to life in prison on Thursday for the 1977 kidnapping, torture and killing of four leftist activists.
Luciano Benjamin Menendez, 81, was commander of the Third Army Corps in Cordoba for five years during Argentina's 1976-83 military dictatorship and controlled one of the regime's most notorious torture centers.
Hours before the sentencing, an unrepentant Menendez read a statement in front of live television cameras saying the regime's repression had been justified in the face of a leftist militant threat.
"We had to take appropriate measures," he said.
Menendez, who was already under house arrest for previous "dirty war" convictions," will be transferred to a prison following Thursday's conviction and sentencing.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523485



Net-savvy before age 6
5:15AM Friday July 25, 2008
Children in one in five Australian households are surfing the net before their 6th birthday and 30 per cent of young people are never supervised online, says a report on internet use.
The Sensis e-Business Report interviewed 1500 people and 1800 small and medium businesses in May. It found children in 71 per cent of households with under-18s were using the internet, with most beginning between the ages of 6 and 10.
But in 18 per cent of households, internet use began when children were 5 years or younger. Two-thirds of parents reported supervising their children online and 67 per cent said computers were kept in a communal area.
Of those not providing supervision, half said they never had, and 42 per cent had stopped when their children were between 11 and 15.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523390



Drunken Wall St gets a dry Bush assessment
5:00AM Friday July 25, 2008
By Leonard Doyle
Photo / AP
Drying out is a subject on which President George W. Bush has personal insights. And when he used the metaphor of a drunk sobering up after a bender to describe America's economic travails, people sat up and listened.
"Wall Street got drunk," Bush told a private gathering in Texas as he sought to explain why the world's biggest and most complex economy was teetering on the brink of recession.
When speaking in public, the President, a Harvard MBA, usually prefers euphemisms to refer to the millions of people who are hurting and losing their homes. "Challenges in the housing and financial markets", is a favourite one. But speaking to a closed-door Republican fundraiser in Houston last week his explanation was much blunter.
"There's no question about it," Bush said. "Wall Street got drunk, that's one of the reasons I asked you to turn off the TV cameras. It got drunk and now it's got a hangover. The question is how long will it sober up and not try to do all these fancy financial instruments."

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523395



'Number 16 Bus Shelter', 'Violence' among kids registered names
6:44PM Thursday July 24, 2008
Your Views
Should parents be able to name their children anything they like?
New Zealand children have been given names such as Number 16 Bus Shelter, Violence and Benson and Hedges(twins).
But other names, including Fish and Chips, Yeah Detroit, Stallion, Twisty Poi, Keenan Got Lucy and Sex Fruit, have been blocked by registration officials.
The revelations came during written findings by Family Court Judge Murfitt, who ordered a girl be put in court guardianship so her name - Talula Does The Hula From Hawaii - could be changed.
The girl's lawyer told the judge she was so embarrassed by her name she refused to reveal it to friends.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/6/story.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=10523288



Looking good without the chemicals
5:00AM Monday July 21, 2008
By Brooke Donovan and Alice Neville
The natural beauty industry is booming worldwide and New Zealand, with its clean green image, is perfectly poised to capitalise.
But is natural beauty really a green proposition, or merely a marketing tool?
The answer can be found in an alarming statistic. It is thought that women ingest as much as 2kg of chemicals a year from the cosmetics and skincare they use - and there are no rules or regulations governing their ingredients.
Attention has particularly been drawn to the use of parabens as perservatives in beauty products, which some studies have linked to cancer, and phthalates, the industrial chemicals used in many cosmetic products and linked to birth defects.
As concern grows about the use of chemicals in beauty products, the natural beauty industry is becoming mainstream.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=10522545



Days numbered for plastic bags in LA
7:15AM Thursday July 24, 2008
The city of Los Angeles - the second-largest city in the US with four million inhabitants - has announced it will ban all plastic bags from stores as of July 1, 2010, following similar anti-pollution regulations already enforced in San Francisco.
After that date, all store customers must provide their own bags or purchase bags made of paper or other biodegradable material from the store for US25c.
The goal is to rid the city of around 2.3 billion non-biodegradable plastic bags that are distributed each year and end up polluting waste dumps. In 2007 San Francisco, 600km north of LA, became the first US city to ban plastic bags from its stores. Both city regulations are intended to pressure state politicians who are considering a bill to eliminate plastic bags across the state by 2012.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=281&objectid=10523201



NZ 'ally' and close friend of US - Rice
4:56PM Saturday July 26, 2008
By Edward Gay and NZPA
Condoleezza Rice shakes hands with Winston Peters this morning. Photo / NZPA
Related nzherald links:
The United States Secretary of State has described New Zealand as an "ally" and a close friend.
Prime Minister Helen Clark held discussions with Condoleezza Rice at Government House in Auckland this afternoon.
They discussed the political situation in Zimbabwe and the conflict in Afghanistan.
Helen Clark said the increase in the price of fuel and food was also discussed.
Dr Rice said it had been a full agenda.
"I want to agree and underscore the points that you have made about the state of relations between New Zealand and the United States. I believe that they are in very good shape," Dr Rice said

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10523625



Thousands without power, roads closed as storm batters NI (+photos)
7:00PM Saturday July 26, 2008
By James Ihaka and NZPA
A powerful storm cut a swathe across the North Island today, cutting power to tens of thousands of homes, trapping skiers and making driving hazardous.
Weather forecasters predicted gale force winds would continue across much of the North Island in the next 20 hours as the storm, tipped to be one of the worst in 10 years, moved over the country.
Northland was hit hard first, with wind gusts of up to 130km/h bringing down trees and power lines as the storm made landfall.
Thousands of homes were without power in the region, and when the storm moved down the country it took out power to 53,000 homes in Rodney, Waitakere and the North Shore.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10523616




US should end ban on war games says ex-envoy
5:00AM Saturday July 26, 2008
By Audrey Young
It is time the United States relaxed its blanket ban on exercises with New Zealand defence forces, former Defence Secretary and ambassador to the United States Denis McLean said last night.
He was speaking hours before US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was due to touch down in Auckland.
Dr Rice's visit is another milestone in the relationship between New Zealand and the United States, which has been rapidly improving since the US reviewed relations in 2006.
After a powhiri at Government House, Dr Rice will hold talks with Foreign Minister Winston Peters, then with Prime Minister Helen Clark before being hosted at a reception and a dinner.
Trade issues, including the elusive free trade agreement with the United States, are expected to be high on New Zealand's agenda.
But security issues in the Pacific and New Zealand's military co-operation in Afghanistan and to Operation Enduring Freedom in the Gulf are also likely to figure high.
Mr McLean said it was clear that New Zealand was "pulling itsweight".

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10523612



We're living beyond our means
5:00AM Saturday July 26, 2008
By Brooke Donovan
As the economy boomed and the good times rolled, spending money was easy and credit was there for the taking.
But financial advisers are dismayed at the number of New Zealanders who have been living beyond their means, forgetting the basics of money management and now paying the price.
Even the well-off have proved to be vulnerable as finance companies - the latest Hanover Finance - hit the skids, potentially taking large chunks of investors' cash with them.
And the younger you are, the more you're likely to struggle with the new need for frugality.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10523591



Petrol cut again but diesel price lags
5:00AM Saturday July 26, 2008
By Mathew Dearnaley
Motorists have gained their third petrol price cut in eight days, but the Automobile Association believes there is room for a bigger drop for diesel users.
The oil companies yesterday cut both petrol and diesel prices by 4c a litre, earning praise from AA spokesman Mark Stockdale for acting promptly to pass on cost reductions.
But he saw no reason why, after a period in which petrol dropped by 12c a litre, diesel was just 8c cheaper than on Thursday last week.
Mr Stockdale said industry data obtained by the AA indicated that oil companies were making a big enough margin on diesel for them to have cut that fuel by 4c on Monday, a day when they dropped petrol prices only.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10523595




The Sarajevo legacy
8:10AM Saturday July 26, 2008
By Peter Popham
LONDON - The jubilation of the people of Sarajevo at the capture of Radovan Karadzic, the man they blame for the bloody siege which pinned their city down for 44 months and cost 10,000 lives, has slowly evaporated during an en extraordinary week of revelations.
What was left yesterday was a coming to terms with the bitter fact that much of what Mr Karadzic stood for has already come to pass.
"I didn't feel much jubilation," admitted Senad Slatina, a political analyst in the city.
"Some of the young people say it's a good thing but for me it's so overdue that it's almost irrelevant. Karadzic is no longer on the scene, but his ideas and his life work are almost on the verge of becoming reality."

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523619



Police kick, shove as 30,000 throng for Olympics tickets
8:41AM Saturday July 26, 2008
BEIJING - A crowd of 30,000 people, baking in the heat and waiting for up to two days, swarmed a ticketing centre Friday as the final batch of Olympic tickets went on sale. Police shoved and kicked them and used metal barricades to prevent a stampede.
The August 8-24 Beijing Games are the first Olympics expected to be sold out, and some fans spent the night on thin bamboo mats and newspapers for a chance to buy the 250,000 tickets that went on sale in different parts of the city.
At the main ticket office not far from the national stadium known as the Bird's Nest, tempers flared as sticky bodies pressed against each other in the surging crowd before sales began at 9am. Police yanked more than half a dozen unruly fans from the crowd, kicking one who fell as he was being led away and dragging another by his hair.
"It was very dangerous. I was afraid," said Wang Zhenqiang, who waited 28 hours with Ji Liqiang, a fellow businessman from eastern Shandong province, to buy tickets to the diving competition.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523621



Greek fires forces evacuation of 2000
10:27AM Saturday July 26, 2008
ATHENS, Greece - More than 2000 tourists were evacuated from hotels in the island of Rhodes as forest fires raged for a fourth day, the Fire Service and municipal officials said.
Authorities said the measure was taken as a precaution and affected hotels in the Asklipios area, near the southeast coast of the island. Rhodes is popular with British and other European vacationers.
"Three hotels were evacuated as a precaution, mainly because smoke from the fire had created an unpleasant atmosphere," said Haralambos Kokkinos, the South Aegean regional governor.
"The evacuation was orderly and there were no problems. The tourists were taken to the nearby coast and will remain there until the smoke clears. Conditions have already improved and it's likely that the tourists will return to their hotels by nightfall."
The fire has destroyed thousands of hectares of dense pine forest, helped by strong winds, and came within a few meters of village homes in the centre of the island, Fire Service officials said.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523629



Seven synchronised bombs in India
8:40AM Saturday July 26, 2008
BANGALORE, India - Seven synchronized small bombs shook India's high-tech hub overnight, killing two people and wounding at least five others, officials said.
Bangalore Police Commissioner Shankar Bidri said the seven blasts went off within several minutes of each other at different spots across the city. One woman was killed in an explosion at a bus stop in the city's Madiwala neighbourhood, he said.
Another person died later of his injuries, federal Home Minister Shivraj Patil said.
Bidri said each of the small bombs contained the amount of explosives equal to "one or two grenades" and appeared to have been set off by timers.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523620



Gunman shoots three at college in Phoenix
1:28PM Friday July 25, 2008
PHOENIX - Officials say three people have been shot at a community college in Phoenix.
Fire department division chief Mark Faulkner says a 25-year-old man and a 22-year-old woman wounded at South Mountain Community College are in critical condition, and a 17-year-old boy is in stable condition.
Faulkner says the three were taken by firefighters to a county hospital.
The shooting happened around 4 p.m. No information on the shooter was immediately available.
Officials reached at the college did not immediately have any information on the shootings.
- AP

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523503



Crew with missile launch codes fell asleep
10:15AM Friday July 25, 2008
WASHINGTON - Three ballistic missile crew members in fell asleep while holding classified launch code devices this month, triggering an investigation by military and National Security Agency experts, the US Air Force said Thursday.
The probe found that the missile launch codes were not compromised, but the incident comes on the heels of a series of missteps by the Air Force that had already put the service under intense scrutiny.
"This was just a procedural violation that we investigated," said Air Force Col. Dewey Ford, a spokesman at Patterson Air Force Base in Colorado. "We determined that there was no compromise."

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523447



Lesbian mothers lose IVF lawsuit
7:15AM Friday July 25, 2008
The lesbian mothers of IVF twin girls have lost a legal bid to sue their doctor for the cost of raising one of the toddlers.
The women, whose names are suppressed, sued Canberra obstetrician Dr Robert Armellin for more than A$400,000 ($520,000) for implanting two embryos instead of the requested one.
The ACT Supreme Court yesterday ruled in favour of Armellin, and ordered the couple to pay his legal costs. The women, who earn more than A$100,000 between them, sought A$398,000 to cover the costs of raising one of the girls, including fees for a private Steiner school.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10523393



Motorsport: Supercars embrace green movement
5:00AM Monday July 21, 2008
V8 Supercars will run on environmentally-friendly ethanol next year, and the 2009 championship will be shortened by a month.
V8 Supercars chairman Tony Cochrane confirmed cars in the championship would use 85 per cent ethanol-blended petrol from next year, hoping to take the lead in promoting the greener fuel's benefits to Australian motorists.
* The length of next year's championship will be shortened to 38 weeks from 42, with all 14 rounds and the Australian Grand Prix exhibition event shoehorned into a calendar with less breaks and more action.
* A final decision on whether a Sydney street race around the Olympic precinct will happen in 2009 is expected this week.
* V8 bosses are considering a night race.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=39&objectid=10522578



Sydney Morning Herald

Small gas power plants to make the city self-sufficient
July 26, 2008
DOZENS of miniature gas-fired power plants sprinkled around the inner city and the CBD are at the heart of plans to make Sydney almost self-sufficient in energy over the next two decades.
The scheme, radical by Australian standards but routine in the context of European developments, took shape this week when an energy expert, Allan Jones, visited to pass on lessons learnt from similar projects in Britain.
"Sydney does have huge potential for sustainability," said Mr Jones, chief development officer at London's Climate Change Agency. "My impression is that Australia has held itself back from this sort of technology over the last 10 years, maybe because it has built up a reliance on coal."
The Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, wants gas trigeneration plants through the city, including sites at Circular Quay, Darling Harbour and the Hungry Mile.
In gas trigeneration, small gas turbines use their own heat as an energy source to power surrounding buildings. A single plant in a basement can power a skyscraper and feed electricity back into the grid, with less than half the greenhouse gas emissions of coal-fired electricity.
The City of Sydney has provided the concept via its "Sustainable Sydney 2030" plan.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/small-gas-power-plants-to-make-the-city-selfsufficient/2008/07/25/1216492732917.html


Breakthrough hopes in WTO talks
Several emerging nations threatened to torpedo a deal as world trade powers strode towards a new global pact today.
There were real hopes of a breakthrough after seven years of deadlock.
Key negotiators said most of the 35 key trading nations meeting in Geneva have bridged their differences, sparking a mood of optimism unseen for years in World Trade Organisation gatherings.
"I think the situation looks strong. I think we can be very hopeful now," said European Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson as he left talks late today.
"What is emerging is a deal that is not perfect, not beautiful, but is good for the global economy and good for development."

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/breakthrough-hopes-in-wto-talks/2008/07/26/1216492779202.html


Teen buried under hot asphalt
July 26, 2008 - 9:13AM
A 15-year-old working on a Canadian construction site just north of Winnipeg, Manitoba, has died after being buried in hot asphalt.
Wallace Drysdale, fire chief for the Stony Mountain area, said today the department received a call about an accident and found the teenager under the asphalt with only his hair visible.
Drysdale believes the load of asphalt may have been prematurely dumped from a truck onto the boy. He says it took crews and bystanders 14 minutes to uncover the boy.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police and workplace health and safety officials are investigating.
AP

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/teen-buried-under-hot-asphalt/2008/07/26/1216492778059.html



Italy puts soldiers on streets to fight crime
Nick Pisa in Rome
July 26, 2008
SOLDIERS will patrol Italian cities from next month under a controversial new law-and-order drive by Silvio Berlusconi's Government.
The soldiers, to be drawn from ranks who have served abroad, will patrol alongside regular state police and the carabinieri (paramilitary police).
They will be able to stop, search and identify suspects but will have no powers of arrest.
Mr Berlusconi, the Prime Minister, was returned to power two months ago after campaigning on a strong law-and-order manifesto. He assured worried Italians that he would deal with rising crime rates, which many blame on illegal immigrants.
The troops will patrol Rome, Milan, Naples, Florence, Genoa, Bologna, Turin, Palermo, Bari and Venice from 6pm to 2am.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/italy-puts-soldiers-on-streets-to-fight-crime/2008/07/25/1216492734180.html



Hackers get hold of critical internet flaw
July 25, 2008 - 10:14AM
Internet security researchers warned that hackers have caught on to a "critical" flaw that lets them control traffic on the internet.
An elite squad of computer industry engineers that labored in secret to solve the problem released a software "patch" two weeks ago and sought to keep details of the vulnerability hidden for at least a month to give people time to protect computers from attacks.
"We are in a lot of trouble," said IOActive security specialist Dan Kaminsky, who stumbled upon the Domain Name System (DNS) vulnerability about six months ago and reached out to industry giants to collaborate on a solution.
"This attack is very good. This attack is being weaponised out in the field. Everyone needs to patch, please. This is a big deal."
DNS is used by every computer that links to the internet and works similar to a telephone system routing calls to proper numbers, in this case the online numerical addresses of websites.
The vulnerability allows "cache poisoning" attacks that tinker with data stored in computer memory caches that relay internet traffic to destinations.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/security/hackers-get-hold-of-critical-internet-flaw/2008/07/25/1216492691922.html



Egyptian Facebook protesters jailed
July 25, 2008 - 10:25AM
Police have arrested 26 internet activists in the port of Alexandria, and 14 of them were jailed for more than two weeks for "threatening national security," a security official said today.
Around 30 young Egyptians who belong to the so-called "6 April" group on social networking site Facebook, a group which earlier this year called for a day of protests at rising prices, gathered in Alexandria on Wednesday.
"We were heading for Sidi Beshr beach but a policeman prevented us getting there because we had a large kite painted with the Egyptian flag and we were wearing T-shirts with 'April 6 Movement' on," said Mohammed Abdel Aziz.
He said that in the evening the group was walking along the seafront singing nationalist songs when police arrived and arrested 14 of them, he said.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/technology/egyptian-facebook-protesters-jailed/2008/07/25/1216492692657.html



Facebook: soon to be even more in your face
July 24, 2008 - 3:09PM
Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, delivers a keynote address at the company's annual conference in San Francisco.
The founder of Facebook has told of his plans to make deeper inroads into the web, even while apologising for past excesses.
Mark Zuckerberg, 24, told an audience of 1000 industry executives, software makers, media - and his mother and father - at Facebook's annual conference of how the company's features will run on affiliated sites outside its own.
"Facebook Connect" will transform the social network from a private site where activity occurs entirely within a "walled garden" to a Web-wide phenomenon where software makers, with user permission, can tap member data for use on their sites.
"Facebook Connect is our version of Facebook for the rest of the web," Zuckerberg told the second annual F8 conference.
Facebook, begun in 2004 as a socializing site for students at Harvard University, has seen its growth zoom to 90 million members from 24 million a little over a year ago, overtaking rival MySpace to become the world's largest social network.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/articles/facebook-even-more-in-your-face/2008/07/24/1216492618444.html



Scrabulous makers sued by Hasbro
July 25, 2008 - 10:12AM
T-R-O-U-B-L-E could loom for a Scrabble knockoff that has become one of the most popular activities on Facebook.
Hasbro, the company that owns the word game's North American rights, sued the creators of the Scrabulous program on Thursday, less than two weeks after the release of an authorised version of Scrabble for Facebook.
Hasbro said in its lawsuit that Scrabulous violates its copyright and trademarks. Separately, Hasbro asked Facebook to block the game.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/scrabulous-makers-sued/2008/07/25/1216492691802.html



Google launches Wikipedia clone
July 24, 2008 - 1:25PM
Google is taking the wraps off an internet encyclopedia designed to give people a chance to show off - and profit from - their expertise on any topic.
The service, dubbed "knol" in reference to a unit of knowledge, had been limited to an invitation-only audience of contributors and readers for the past seven months.
Now anyone with a Google login will be able to submit an article and, if they choose, have ads displayed through the Internet search leader's marketing system. The contributing author and Google will share any revenue generated from the ads, which are supposed to be related to the topic covered in the knol.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/biztech/google-launches-wikipedia-clone/2008/07/24/1216492611201.html



Travel world cashes in on iPhone mania
Kay O'Sullivan
July 26, 2008
Smart Traveller
Apple of their eye
The world of travel is tripping over itself to cash in on iPhone mania.
British Airways is claiming a first with an application that allows owners of the new 3G model to download BA's timetable, obtain real-time information about arrivals and departures, and book flights.
Meanwhile, Lonely Planet is trumpeting the fact it has released 10 audio phrasebooks for the iPhone and iPod Touch. More are expected to come online and each download contains more than 600 spoken and phonetically written phrases covering a wide range of needs (where can I find the pub?) and emergencies (where can I find the pub?) for travellers.
It's a natural fit. A recent Lonely Planet survey of 18,000 travellers found that 80 per cent always use their phone when travelling and 56 per cent won't leave home without their iPod.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/news/travel-world-cashes-in-on-iphone-mania/2008/07/23/1216492515085.html



Group threatens Olympic terror
A Uighur Islamic separatist group has taken credit for a deadly bus bombing in Shanghai in May and warned of new attacks in China during the Olympics, a group monitoring threats by extremists on the internet said today.
In a video statement, Commander Seyfullah of the Turkestan Islamic Party claimed credit for several attacks.
They include the May 5 Shanghai bus bombing which killed three; another Shanghai attack; an attack on police in Wenzhou on July 17 using an explosive-laden tractor; a bombing of a Guangzhou plastic factory on July 17; and bombings of three buses in Yunnan province on July 21.
Three people were killed by the explosion on the crowded bus in Shanghai on May 5, police and witnesses said.
The morning traffic rush hour attack in northwest Shanghai also left 12 people injured.
At the time, authorities attributed the blast to flammable materials carried by a passenger.
But Seyfullah said the blast was the work of his group and warned of more explosions to come.
"Through this blessed jihad in Yunnan this time, the Turkestan Islamic Party warns China one more time,'' Seyfullah says in the video dated July 23, according to a transcript from the Washington-based Intel Centre.
"Our aim is to target the most critical points related to the Olympics. We will try to attack Chinese central cities severely, using the tactics that have never been employed.''.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/beijing2008/group-threatens-olympic-terror/2008/07/26/1216492786185.html



AFP accused of secrecy over Haneef
July 26, 2008 - 2:53PM
The case against Mohamed Haneef collapsed for lack of evidence.
Photo: Namas Bhojani
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) has been accused of denying Gold Coast doctor Mohamed Haneef a lawyer and the chance to protest his innocence before a magistrate when he was arrested last year.
The Indian doctor's legal team, Maurice Blackburn lawyers, also say the AFP could have broken the law by failing to provide five records of interviews taken with him to his lawyers.
Partner Rod Hodgson said the transcripts were released to him about two weeks ago with a letter from AFP chief Counsel James Watson bringing the total number of transcripts to seven from the presumed two.
Dr Haneef was arrested at Brisbane International Airport as he boarded a plane for Bangalore on July 2, 2007, after police linked his mobile phone SIM card to botched terror attacks in Britain.
The Gold Coast-based doctor was returning to India to visit his wife and newborn baby girl, who was ill.
He was held for 12 days before he was charged with supporting a terrorist organisation.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/afp-accused-of-secrecy-over-haneef/2008/07/26/1216492781306.html



Iran planning mass execution
July 26, 2008 - 4:28PM
Iran is planning a mass execution of 30 people convicted of murder and drug trafficking, a press report said today.
"Thirty people convicted of murder, drug trafficking, illegal relationships... will be executed on Sunday at dawn," the Aftab newspaper quoted Tehran's prosecutor office as saying.
It would the largest mass execution in the Islamic republic in recent years.
Human rights groups have accused Iran of making excessive use of the death penalty, but Tehran insists it is an effective deterrent that is carried out only after an exhaustive judicial process.
Iran has hanged at least 126 people so far this year, according to an AFP count.
Amnesty International reported that in 2007 Iran applied the death penalty more often than any other country apart from China, executing 317 people during the year.
Capital offences in the Islamic republic include murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and adultery.
AFP

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/iran-planning-mass-execution/2008/07/26/1216492795418.html



Roped together family plunge to deaths
July 25, 2008 - 11:17AM
A Dutch woman watched her husband and three children fall to their deaths today while climbing near Mont Blanc, Europe's highest peak, Italian rescuers said.
The 56-year-old man, who was roped to his son and two daughters, plunged 500 metres down a slope of rock, ice and snow as their mother watched from below, said Oscar Tajola, head of the mountain rescue corps in the nearby town of Courmayeur.
"We had to take her to hospital because she was in shock," Tajola said by telephone. "We think one of them slipped and pulled the others down."
The woman, 50, was later released from hospital and identified the bodies of her husband and her children, aged 17 to 23, police in the ski-resort town said.
The family was climbing 3,800-metre Mont Dolent, which is part of the Mont Blanc massif. The 4,810-metre Mont Blanc straddles Italy and France and attracts hundreds of climbers a year. Dozens of them die on the massif each year.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/roped-together-family-fall-to-deaths/2008/07/25/1216492696502.html



Retailers told: pass on full petrol price fall
Jonathan Dart
July 26, 2008
PETROL should be almost four cents cheaper this weekend but motorists are still being ripped off, the federal petrol commissioner has warned.
Regional oil prices have fallen by almost 12 per cent since they exceeded $US150 a barrel a fortnight ago.
Average prices at the terminal gate, where retailers pay for petrol, have dropped by 11.1 cents a litre since July 14 in Sydney, but consumers only saw an average drop of 3.7 cents.
There has been little joy for the petrol commissioner, Patrick Walker, since he was appointed to his role on February 16. The average price of unleaded petrol in Sydney has risen by 24 per cent in that time, settling at about 161 cents a litre yesterday.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/petrol-savings-not-passed-on/2008/07/25/1216492732896.html



X marks the dud
2008-07-23 21:52:16
Mulder and Scully make sad return, kung fu is king & marriage kills you.(04:18)

http://media.smh.com.au/?rid=39846


A long dark knight of Batman
2008-07-15 13:52:50
Batman's deep Dark Knight is bigger, and longer than even an Olympic Salute.(04:00)

http://media.smh.com.au/?rid=39846

continued...

Things are getting very rough in the South Seas

July 25, 2008
0600 gmt
Antarctica Vortex (Jet Stream) - 24 hour loop click here

The top ice air mass is disturbed by arriving high tropospheric heat transfers that can be noted in the South Pole Infrared Satellite Image below from 26, July, 2007 at 0722 gmt. What a shame. We're losing both ice masses. Antarctica will take longer to demise simply because it is a continent and not directly 'in contact' with the oceans. At issue and I have written about this before; the stability of a ice mass that is 3 miles high when the supporting terrances are gone.


July 26, 2008
0900 am
Antarctica Surface Winds (click here for 24 hour loop)

The 'onshore winds' are significant and dominate the continent. The 'onshore' winds are probably far warmer than any air over the Blue Ice. Therefore, while the air mixes, the ice is probably subliming while causing a great deal of air turbulence in the entire region. The climate conditions are far from stable. It is safe to say with the loss of the north polar cap proceeding at a phenominal rate, the 'rapid' climate change every scientist worth their salt warned about is well underway.


Google Maps of the current high tropospheric vortex over Tamaki Yacht Club, Auckland, New Zealand.


Tamaki Yacht Club


July 26, 2008
0722 gmt
Antarctica Satellite

Quantas Jet Hobbles Home after nearly losing a wing. Basically, the plane was flying apart. It was cruising at 29,000 feet when its fuselage started to disintegrate and the cabin depressurized. I believe it was the depressurization with the outside that stopped the delicate aircraft 'skin' from completely losing its integrity.

Quantas is a very reliable airline. Its been around forever and has been the flagship carrier in Australia. This entire episode is very odd.


A gash is seen where the Qantas plane's wing intersects the fusellage. Photo: Jeff Courtney


A reader's photo of the damaged Qantas plane. Photo: Tom Coverdale


Qantas pilot Captain John Francis Bartels (R) looks at the hole of Melbourne bound Qantas Airways Boeing 747. Photo: AFP

Sydney Morning Herald

Corrosion 'didn't cause hole in jumbo'
Questions loom over what caused a hole to open in the fuselage of a Qantas jumbo jet midflight en route to Melbourne but company executives and aviation experts say corrosion was not likely to be the culprit.
Air safety experts are investigating whether something exploded inside some luggage, a panel simply tore away, or something else caused a gaping hole in front of the right wing of the Boeing 747-400, causing rapid depressurisation in the cabin.
The pilots quickly descended 29,000 feet (9,000 metres) before making an emergency landing in Manila.
QF30 was on its way from London via Hong Kong, and was due to arrive in Melbourne at 9.45pm (AEST) Friday.
The passengers arrived this morning instead on board a replacement flight to be greeted with hugs and kisses from anxious loved ones.
They described hearing a loud bang, oxygen masks falling, debris flying and the plane making a rapid descent before landing safely in the Philippines capital.

http://news.smh.com.au/national/corrosion-didnt-cause-hole-in-jumbo-20080726-3l4y.html


Qantas probe underway
Air safety experts were investigating whether an explosion inside some luggage or a broken panel punched a hole in a Qantas airliner, forced to make an emergency landing in Manila.
Experts were focusing on the two theories as they investigated the dramatic rupture on the Boeing 747's fuselage as it flew from Hong Kong to Melbourne yesterday with more than 300 passengers and crew on board, said a source close to the investigation.
"They were very lucky.
"While it is too early to say what actually caused the hole, we will be looking at two possibilities ... something exploded in one of the bags or a panel came loose on the fuselage," the source told AFP.
The source said the explosion might have been caused by a pressurised container inside a piece of luggage, saying a bomb was unlikely.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/travel/qantas-probe-underway/2008/07/26/1216492796394.html

1 dead in N.H. storms that levels several homes; door-to-door search under way

July 23, 2008
Dunkirk, NY
Photographer states (sounds like an ad for Verizon) :: Waterspout moving eastward on Lake Erie near Dunkirk, NY
This message was sent using the Picture and Video Messaging service from Verizon Wireless!
To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.
To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime 6.5 or higher is required. Visit www.apple.com/quicktime/download to download the free player or upgrade your existing QuickTime Player.
Note: During the download process when asked to choose an installation type (Minimum, Recommended or Custom), select Minimum for faster download.


July 23, 2008

Dunkirk, New York




July 24, 2008
Deerfield, New Hampshire
Photographer states :: storm damage


Families in Epsom, N.H., clean up Friday, July 25, 2008 after a severe storm hit the area Thursday. The National Weather Service on Friday confirmed that a tornado struck Deerfield. Officials said the violent storm left an intermittent path of destruction stretching about 20 miles from Epsom to New Durham.(AP Photo/Jim Cole)(AP Photo/Jim Cole)


Violent storms on Thursday in a 25-mile-long swath of central New Hampshire destroyed several homes, damaged dozens of others and left at least one person dead, authorities said as police and firefighters went door-to-door searching for more possible victims.
Other people were hurt, including the husband and baby grandson of the woman killed....

A baby's impulse to cry saves him after NH tornado (click here)
By DAVID TIRRELL-WYSOCKI – 9 hours ago
EPSOM, N.H. (AP) — The cries of a baby led rescuers to him in the wreckage of a home flattened by a tornado that killed his grandmother and blew his grandfather into the yard, officials said Friday.
Brenda Stevens, 57, and her 3-month-old grandson were both trapped between the collapsed home's first and second stories, authorities said.
The woman's husband, Harley, had headed downstairs before noon Thursday because he was worried by the heavy black clouds rolling in, Deerfield Fire Chief Mark Tibbetts said.
"No more than he got downstairs and it started throwing him from side to side and rotating him around the house," Tibbetts said.
Stevens "was blown out the side of the building and found in the side yard," state Fire Marshal William Degnan said....

Tornado touched down in N.H. storm; 200 houses damaged (click here)

July 25, 2008 05:00 PM
By Globe Staff
A tornado was to blame for some of the damage inflicted yesterday when powerful storms struck New Hampshire, state and federal officials said today, confirming reports from residents who saw a funnel cloud descend from the sky.
The tornado struck two of the hardest-hit towns, Epsom and Deerfield, killing 57-year-old Brenda J. Stevens when it destroyed her log cabin, said James C. Van Dongen, spokesman for the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency.
Van Dongen said the storm damaged a total of 200 houses and completely destroyed six. Damage on the 200 ranged from roofs that had ripped off to shingles that went missing. Nine towns suffered heavy damage, such as downed power lines and blocked roads, and six suffered minor damage, such as broken windows, he said.
Officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency scoured the region, examining the damage to see if residents might be eligible for federal disaster aid. Van Dongen said the state plans to apply for aid to homeowners and assistance for debris removal. He said officials had not yet estimated a dollar figure for the damage....

Let's get it done ! Cindy needs 1400 more signatures. She wants the chance to succeed. She deserves that chance. For Casey !!!!

Headline:
URGENT: Help Cindy Sheehan Get Her Name on the Ballot:

Page:
http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/index.php?id=1020

http://www.michaelmoore.com/mustread/send_tellsf.php?id=1020


Slaying suspect once found sanctuary in S.F. (click here)
The man charged with killing a father and two sons on a San Francisco street last month was one of the youths who benefited from the city's long-standing practice of shielding illegal immigrant juveniles who committed felonies from possible deportation, The Chronicle has learned.
Edwin Ramos, now 21, is being held on three counts of murder in the June 22 deaths of Tony Bologna, 48, and his sons Michael, 20, and Matthew, 16. They were shot near their home in the Excelsior district when Tony Bologna, driving home from a family picnic, briefly blocked the gunman's car from completing a left turn down a narrow street, police say.
Ramos, a native of El Salvador whom prosecutors say is a member of a violent street gang, was found guilty of two felonies as a juvenile - a gang-related assault on a Muni passenger and the attempted robbery of a pregnant woman - according to authorities familiar with his background....

Cindy, while compassion is important when accepting those that cross our borders illegally, there are profound issues with sovereignty that cannot go ignored.

The fiscal burden placed on states by these immigrants cause challenges to the 'idea' of sancutary when it causes undo hardship upon the citizens of those states. The citizens of the USA should not be slaves to the lack of good economy in other countries. To insure that all people involved in illegal immigration, both sides of the issue are protected, the focus has to shift to what causes illegals to seek movement and how to stop it.

Families from South America expose themselves to great dangers to achieve movement toward the borders of the USA, sometimes at the encouragement of the countries in which they are citizens. Exporting the poor to the USA by these countries enslaves American citizens within their own borders to economic strife and job loss. If people make it to the USA they automatically receive aid. That is a disincentive for other countries to solve their problems so much as encourage negligence and violence.

Currently, Wall Street has become comfortable with 'complaining' when the going gets tough while they export their businesses and deny the USA a viable and vibrant economy. At the same time, the countries that receive these 'exported jobs' are not the ones that cause the burden of illegal immigration to the USA. The private industry of the USA have the best of all worlds; they export to 'cheap labor' in Asia for their 'service jobs' while receiving 'cheap labor force' from Mexico, Latin and South America. This is a hideous set of circumstances for the USA while the taxes on private industry don't contribute to the very social programs these illegals receive.

There is a lot to be done, Cindy. We need changes in the way private industry in the USA treat the American people and the USA Treasury. These crimes by illegal immigrants are only a 'superficial symptom' of the greater problem. Can you return our country to us? We need people that can.


Three men shot and killed in Oakland - one by police (click here)
(07-25) 06:44 PDT OAKLAND -- Two men were shot and killed overnight in Oakland, while a third man was fatally shot by police during a confrontation, authorities said.
The names of the three men slain were not immediately released. The slayings brought to 77 the number of killings in the city so far this year.
The first homicide was reported at about 11:50 p.m. Thursday, when a 37-year-old man was shot and killed at East 17th Street and Seminary Avenue in East Oakland. The victim was shot near a makeshift memorial for a homicide victim earlier this year, authorities said.
At about 2 a.m., a 24-year-old man was shot and killed near 81st Avenue and Plymouth Street in East Oakland.
The officer-involved shooting happened at about 3:50 a.m. near Fruitvale Avenue and East 17th Street in the city's Fruitvale District. A suspect was shot during a traffic stop and taken to Highland Hospital in Oakland, where he was pronounced dead....



Controller says he won't cut workers' wages (click here)
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's bombshell plan to slash the pay of state workers and lay off thousands of other employees to ease a looming cash shortage brought on by the state's budget impasse faces the same obstacle that arose five years ago during a state fiscal crisis: a state controller unwilling to cooperate.
While the governor is poised to order the cuts on Monday, state Controller John Chiang, who is responsible for disbursing state workers' paychecks, said Thursday that he will refuse to go along with the governor, setting up a political standoff and a possible legal fight.
"The authority to issue people's paychecks is mine. I have both constitutional and statutory authority," said Chiang, a Democrat. "Frankly, (the governor) is just trying to make me do something that's improper and illegal."...

Cindy, stop this silliness. Stop UC Berkley from cutting down a long beloved grove of trees. This is hideous. Those trees are sacred. There have been all kinds of ceremony and dedication that has occurred there. A Congressional Dedication to the site would stop the coveted building plans of administrators that are out of touch with the University Community!

Berkeley council debates appeal of UC ruling (click here)
(07-24) 21:51 PDT Berkeley -- Angry shouts of "Shame! Shame!" erupted in the Berkeley City Chambers Thursday night after the council declined to appeal a court ruling against the city allowing UC Berkeley to build an athletic training center next to Memorial Stadium.
The conflict has drawn wide attention because of a 20-month protest by tree-sitters at the project site who have demanded that UC preserve the grove of more than 80 oaks, redwoods and other trees next to the stadium.
The city had sued - along with stadium neighbors and a tree preservation group - to block the project. The other two plaintiffs plan to appeal the case.
The council decided in closed session, and the boos came after Mayor Tom Bates announced the panel lacked the necessary five votes to authorize an appeal. He said the council has 58 days to change its mind....


Cindy, what are you going to do to faciliate sovereignty protections of Silicon Valley while companies battle for profits in places outside the country? There have been record number of mergers and take overs in recent years within the USA. An example is !nBev (click here). The soveriegnty of the USA is challenged by the fact that American Companies are dwindling to the purchasing power of companies on other continents.

This election is huge that encompass the practices of this administration and the 'carte blanc' enabling by primarily Republican legislators. Can you take them on in a 'real way?' I believe you can.



Microsoft defends costly quest to tap into rich Web media vein (click here)
Joseph Menn, Los Angeles Times
Friday, July 25, 2008
(07-25) 04:00 PDT Redmond, Wash. --
Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer on Thursday defended his company's large and so far unrewarded investment in online search and advertising, arguing that Microsoft is the only real threat to Google and that a major "ante" in search is the best shot at a $1 trillion market for Internet media.
Speaking during Microsoft's annual presentation to investors and Wall Street analysts, Ballmer said the company wasn't currently talking about a deal with Yahoo to combine forces against Google.
"Does that mean that nobody will ever talk to anybody again? I suspect the answer is no," Ballmer said in remarks at the company's headquarters in Redmond.
Ballmer was in the awkward position of explaining both why Microsoft wanted Yahoo so much that it offered $47.5 billion for the company and why it later walked away from a deal at the same price....

There is no such thing as 'benign' offshore oil drilling. It doesn't exist and anyone that states same is a liar.

Oil Spill Cleanup Along 100-Mile Section Of Mississippi River (click here)
Reported by: (Copyright 2008 by Newsroom Solutions)
Friday, Jul 25, 2008 @09:04am CST
(New Orleans) -- In a major blow to Mississippi River commerce, at least 100-miles of the waterway between New Orleans and the Gulf of Mexico remain closed to commercial traffic while crews work to cleanup and assess the damage from the spill of nearly a half-million gallons of heavy fuel oil.The spill occurred early Wednesday morning at New Orleans when a freighter struck and sunk a barge transporting the oil.Coast Guard Captain Lincoln Stroh still predicts it will be a matter of days before the river is reopened to traffic and weeks before the spill can be cleaned up.Officials with the Port of New Orleans say more than 60 vessels are waiting for clearance to resume their travels.The impact of the spill on the environment and fish and wildlife is still being assessed.

Why are penguins washing up dead?

July 19, 2008
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil - Hundreds of baby penguins swept from the icy shores of Antarctica and Patagonia are washing up dead on Rio de Janeiro's tropical beaches. Niteroi, the state's biggest zoo, is treating about 100 penguins, many of them soaked in petroleum after passing through an offshore oil field.
While it is common to find some penguins swept by strong ocean currents from the Strait of Magellan, there have been more this year than at any time in recent memory, an environmental official said Friday.
Rescuers and those who treat penguins are divided over the possible causes.
Among the theories:
Overfishing may be forcing the birds to swim farther for food, weakening them and leaving them vulnerable to the strong currents.
Pollution may be weakening animals' immunity, leaving them susceptible to funguses and bacteria.
Changing ocean currents, caused by global warming, may be creating rougher seas.
The Associated Press

Zoos

Honolulu Zoo: The Happiest Place in Hawaii

http://kamfamily.wordpress.com/2008/07/20/honolulu-zoo-the-happiest-place-in-hawaii/






American flamingos hatch at Denver Zoo
By Liv Gold
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 07/23/2008 02:22:15 PM MDT
Nearly five weeks ago, incubated coolers full of pearly flamingo eggs arrived at the Denver Zoo from the Miami Metro Zoo. Today, the Denver Zoo announced the addition of 19 flamingo chicks to its avian collection.
The flamingos, which pecked through their shells between June 22 and July 1, have downy grey and white feathers and orange beaks, according to a zoo news release. They are part of the American flamingo species, which makes its home in the coastal lagoons around the Caribbean and northern South America.
The chicks are still stumbling through their very first steps, but eventually they will grow to be five feet tall and take on vibrant pink coloring. Their diet, consisting of carotene-rich crustaceans, will support and
intensify the dazzling color.

http://www.denverpost.com/entertainment/ci_9972158



New residents at Denver Zoo descendents of famous flock
DENVER - Their connection to a hit 80s television show could make 19 new residents at the Denver Zoo a little more popular.
The flamingo chicks come from the same famous flock seen in the opening credits of "Miami Vice."
Denver zookeepers flew them here from the Miami Metro Zoo while they were still just eggs on June 19.
The hatchlings began pecking their way out of their shells just days after arriving in Denver.
The first emerged fully on June 22, and the last on July 1.
Newborn chicks are gray and white. They will eventually grow to a very vibrant hot pink.
As full-grown adults, they will be about 5 feet tall.

http://www.9news.com/seenon9news/article.aspx?storyid=96329&catid=509



Cincinnati Zoo cat facility step closer to Warren County after state awards $1.5M
By Justin McClelland
Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
The awarding of $1.5 million to the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden's large cat program has major implications for property owned by the zoo in Turtlecreek Twp.
The zoo received a $1.5 million allocation from the state of Ohio Capital Bill to assist in development of the Zoo's Cat Canyon/Small Cat Reproduction Center (SCaRCe) project as part of its current capital campaign.
The zoo plans to build the reproduction facility on land willed to it by Dallas Bowyer, who died in 1994. The 528-acre parcel of land is located north of Brewer Road and west of Ohio 741.

http://www.oxfordpress.com/hp/content/oh/story/news/local/2008/07/23/ws072308zoo.html



John Cleese Is Appearing At The Bristol Zoo
Television and film star John Cleese returned to familiar territory today when he took a trip down memory lane at Bristol Zoo Gardens.
The Fawlty Towers star regularly visited the Zoo as a boy while he was a pupil at Clifton College next door.
He returned to the Zoo today ahead of his appearance on stage for three evening performances at The Clifton Pavilion Theatre with broadcaster Chris Serle, in aid of Bristol Zoo Gardens’ conservation projects.
Whilst at the Zoo, the actor, who was born in Weston-super-Mare but who now lives in Los Angeles, met Bristol Zoo Gardens’ red ruffed lemur, Colin. Colin will be appearing on stage alongside Chris Serle and the Monty Python star as lemurs are John’s favourite animals.

http://www.zandavisitor.com/newsarticle-256-John_Cleese_Is_Appearing_At_The_Bristol_Zoo



Zoo to release turtles to the wild
Last Updated Jul 23, 2008 6:37 AM
Some Oregon Zoo animals are headed back to the wild.
The zoo is releasing about 55 endangered Western pond turtles that have spent the past 11 months under lights to simulate perpetual summer.
Zoo officials say the lights trick the turtles into avoiding hibernation, so they experience about three years of growth in less than a year.
The extra growth gives them a better chance against larger predators such as nonnative bullfrogs and largemouth bass.
The turtle conservation program is part of a collaborative effort by the Oregon Zoo and the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, along with state and federal agencies.

http://www.kxl.com/tabid/72/itemid/16165/Zoo-to-release-turtles-to-the-wild.aspx



Come to the Abilene Zoo for a howlin’ good time
By Bill Baker
Special to the Abilenian
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Many people may not realize that Texas and South America share something in common, but they soon will. South America is home to a wild dog unlike any other on earth, the Maned wolf. This unique animal that resembles a “fox on stilts” is colored a bright rust-red with a long pointed muzzle and dark shoulder hairs, and travels through the native grasses of its grassland habitat on tall, thin, black legs. The Maned wolves are known and named for their “wolf” size and black shoulder mane that bristles when they are alarmed. These spectacular animals are not only found in South America but will soon be found at the Abilene Zoo as well.
Even though they stand three feet tall and weigh around 50 pounds, making them South America’s largest wild dog, they are rarely seen in the wild. The Maned wolf has been shaped by two million years of life on the Brazilian plains and is perfectly adapted to their life in a tropical, tall grass environment. Maned wolves may travel up to 20 miles a day in search of food in a territory that may encompass up to 10 square miles.

http://reporternews.com/news/2008/jul/23/come-abilene-zoo-howlin-good-time/



Chimp in daring zoo break-out [+video]
Reuters Thursday, 24 July 2008
Dodging tranquilliser darts and yelping at his captors, a brazen chimp staged his own version of The Great Escape in Japan.
At Ishikawa Zoo, western Japan a 42-year-old chimpanzee named Ichiro led the audacious break-out from his pen and refused to come down from the roof.
At one point the chimp even grabbed the zoo worker's tranquilliser gun, but luckily it fell to the floor. Eventually the chimp was lured with a banana and then sedated.
It is thought the chimp was trying to find shelter from the sweltering heat that Japan has been experiencing.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4629403a4560.html



Tautphaus Park Zoo Will Get Asian Sloth Bears
Posted: July 23, 2008 06:10 PM EDT
After years planning, it's finally going to happen. Bears are coming back to Tautphaus Park Zoo.
Wednesday morning, the zoo superintendent broke the news that a big anonymous donation given the day before and it secured two Asian Sloth Bears to be moved to Idaho Falls.
Zoo Superintendent Bill Gersonde says he can hardly believe that he is now able to say that "Yes, the bears are coming." He's dreamed of having bears at the zoo as long as 15 years ago.
On Tuesday, an anonymous donor gave $25,000 to the zoo for the "Bring Back the bears campaign. That now brings the total of the fundraising effort to $227,000 with a goal of $250,000.

http://www.kpvi.com/Global/story.asp?S=8724920



More to the zoo than meets the eye
Perkins senior guides visually impaired at Franklin Park
Conventional wisdom might say that one goes to Franklin Park Zoo to see the animals. But a world waits there for those largely limited to touch, smell and simple curiosity.
“Keep your minds open and you will learn a lot,” said Mike Pedone, 20, a senior at the Perkins School for the Blind who is working as a guide at the zoo through its summer intern program.
Yesterday, Pedone and 19-year-old Josh Hallee, who is also visually impaired, led eight 7- and 8-year-old summer students from Perkins through the animal kingdom with the skill a sighted zoologist could envy.
The two have been trained through audio and braille materials over the past five weeks. While sharing what they have learned has been special, it means so much more to enlighten youngsters facing some of the same issues they did at a young age.

http://www.metrobostonnews.com/us/article/2008/07/24/02/0033-72/index.xml



County voters asked to authorize zoo levy
Andrew Sawmiller
July 23, 2008 - Oakland County voters will have the chance to decide whether they support public funding for the Detroit Zoo when they enter the polls during the Tuesday, Aug. 5 primary election to vote for or against a proposed property tax for zoo operations.
In May, Oakland County commissioners voted 18-5 to create the Oakland County Zoological Authority and appointed the authority's members, who successfully put a 0.1-mill, 10-year tax question on the primary ballot.
A mill is equal to $1 for every $1,000 of a property's taxable value, which is generally equal to half a property's market value. The owner of a property with a taxable value of $100,000 ($200,000 market value) would pay $10 a year if voters approve the 0.1-mill levy for zoo operations.

http://www.spinalcolumnonline.com/Articles-i-2008-07-23-55762.113117_County_voters_asked_to_authorize_zoo_levy.html



Stone Zoo's new jaguar cub to debut in the spotlight
July 24, 2008
STONEHAM - The Stone Zoo says it has a new jaguar cub and it will make its public debut early next month.
The cub was born on May 31 to Kanga and her mate, Pacal. Kanga previously gave birth at the zoo to two cubs in 2004 and three in 2006.
The jaguar is native to Central and South America.
"These animals serve as ambassadors for their species and educate people about the importance of habitat protection and species preservation around the world," said John Linehan, president and CEO of Zoo New England, which manages the Stone Zoo and the Franklin Park Zoo.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/07/24/stone_zoos_new_jaguar_cub_to_debut_in_the_spotlight/



A rainy day in Dhaka Zoo
July 24, 2008
It was really a nice pleasure to visit the lovely zone of Dhaka zoo on a rainy season. Due to three or four day’s long heavy rainfall, the dhaka zoo was quite empty. I went to the zoo at the end of continuous rainfall and enjoyed the best ever visit to the common (for us) visiting place, Dhaka Zoo — which is the national zoo here in Bangladesh
On the daily star we got a news story saying that after some years, Dhaka Zoo has imported some Giraffes along with Kangaroos and Zebra. We were curious to see a Giraffe not on the TV but by our own eyes. My classmates and I fixed few dates to go to the Zoo but we couldn’t just for heavy rainfall. But finally we went separately. Unfortunately, I had to go there alone.

http://aisajib.wordpress.com/2008/07/24/a-rainy-day-in-dhaka-zoo/



Editorial: Tough sell on zoo support
News Journal editorial • July 24, 2008
No one wants to see The Zoo Northwest Florida close its gates. It is a surprisingly sophisticated operation to be found outside a large metropolitan area, a valuable tourism draw and a unique opportunity for area school children.
But it's a tough time for it to be asking for support from area governments.
If there is an argument for it, at least in Santa Rosa County, it would be for the zoo to get a share of bed-tax dollars used to promote tourism. But those dollars could easily be more valuable in helping promote the overall area.
Santa Rosa officials are tying any subsidy to the zoo also getting help from Escambia and Okaloosa counties. In Escambia, tourism officials are increasingly vocal about needing additional bed-tax dollars to market the area more aggressively. They are pressing that argument against the use of bed-tax revenue to support the Pensacola Civic Center, and are unlikely to see a higher priority in supporting the zoo.

http://www.pnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080724/OPINION/807240312




Tips To Follow While Clicking Images In Zoo!

Zoo is a very good location for apprentice photographers to learn different techniques in photography.
Zoo gives you a range of subjects (from animals to people who are observing the animals) and makes you learn the different techniques with some challenging work.
This article helps you in learning about different things and tips which are necessary for clicking great zoo pictures.
Things to remember while clicking images in zoo:
What is the distance? This is very important point to remember while clicking any image. Is the distance too long that you cannot get the right shot of the subject you are shooting? The distance between you and your subject should be in a respective position.

http://www.digitalpicturezone.com/digital-photography-tips-and-tricks/tips-to-follow-while-clicking-images-in-zoo/




Snow in Oklahoma?
Well, snow leopards actually. Two snow leopard cubs born May 19 at the Oklahoma City Zoo are almost as rare as snow would be on an August day in Oklahoma. Beginning August 1st, visitors to the zoo will be able to see these magnificent animals.
Snow leopards are an endangered species, with numbers in the wild estimated at 3,500 to 7,000 throughout Central Asia. Habitat loss and poaching for their pelts and body parts for medicinal purposes are contributing to their rapid decline.
The as-yet-unnamed male and female cub snow leopards were born at the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden’s Cat Forest exhibit to first-time, 6-year-old mother Kiara and 8-year-old father Tankh (pronounced Tawnk). They are the first litter born at the zoo in 16 years.

http://susanszoo.blogspot.com/2008/07/snow-in-oklahoma.html



Growing up in a zoo

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/7523726.stm



July 24, 2008
Houston Zoo welcomes birth of rare parrot
On April 25, 1972 the Houston Zoo made history, recording the first hatching in captivity of an endangered St. Vincent Amazon parrot. That first birth was followed by a second hatching in 1999. Today, the Houston Zoo is proud to report that history has repeated itself again and Zoo bird keepers are caring for a St. Vincent Amazon that hatched on May 28, 2008. The chick has been named Vincent after the father of the first St. Vincent born at the Houston Zoo.

http://www.naturescornermagazine.com/NaturesBlog/archives/2008/07/houston_zoo_wel.html



Oregon Zoo helping build up Western Pond Turtle population
Will be released into the wild in the Gorge
By Felicia Heaton
Thursday, July 24, 2008
At one time there was only about 150 of the western pond turtles in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest but that number is increasing thanks to the Oregon Zoo. They keep the turtles under heat lamps to help them grow before they are released. " This year we have 58 and we believe 56 of those will go out, every year there are some that don't make weight." says Amy Cutter at the Zoo who says the hatchlings are kept there until they're about the size of a three year old turtle.

http://www.1190kex.com/cc-common/news/sections/newsarticle.html?feed=123543&article=3999547



Fisher kits making their Minnesota Zoo public debut
The weasel-like species almost disappeared because of trapping and logging.
By PAUL WALSH, Star Tribune
Last update: July 24, 2008 - 12:01 PM
I believe hippiemom42 was making a facetious comment about being pregnant for 352 days, not trying to state the article was wrong. May I … read more suggest decaf? You seem a little tense.
Three fisher kits born at the Minnesota Zoo are now on exhibit. The species, which resembles weasels and are found in Alaska, Canada and the northern lower 48 states, was almost extinct for a time.
The zoo in Apple Valley is one of only four nationally accredited zoos to exhibit fishers and the only one to produce offspring in the past three years.
Born March 23, the three kits - two males and one female - are doing well and have started exploring their exhibit. Since their birth, they had been kept in an off-exhibit holding area with their mother as a health precaution.
Fishers are known for their tree-climbing, hunting and agility. Solitary creatures, they are constantly on the move.
Fishers almost disappeared because of trapping and logging practices, but now they are doing well in mixed wooded and heavily forested areas.
They are dark brown in color, good swimmers and like to travel close to the water. Fishers primarily eat small mammals and are one of the few animals that eat porcupine.
A litter of kits, usually one to five in number, are usually born in March or April after a gestation period of 352 days.
Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482

http://www.startribune.com/local/25849949.html?location_refer=Local%20+%20Metro



Toxicology tests yield no clues in Calgary Zoo stingray deaths
Last Updated: Wednesday, July 23, 2008 5:03 PM ET
The Canadian Press
The mass death of stingrays in an expensive exhibit in May is likely to remain a mystery, the Calgary Zoo says.
The zoo had hoped that extensive toxicology tests would provide an explanation as to why all but two of the 43 animals died, but the zoo said the samples yielded no clues.
Zoo conservation director Cathy Gaviller admitted Wednesday that it's frustrating that there will never be a definite answer as to what killed the cow-nosed rays.
An investigation has ruled out disease, bacteria or water quality as potential causes.
Gaviller says the possibility that someone knowingly poisoned the tank will lead to greater security measures in the future.
The zoo is trying to decide what to do with its almost-new, $250,000 exhibit and whether to restock the tank with rays or another species.

http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2008/07/23/stingray-update.html


A Review of the Huachipa Zoo in Lima, Peru and a Methodology for Grading Zoos
Several days ago my family visited one of Lima, Peru’s zoos. On the day before our visit, I wrote about some of my general thoughts and feelings about zoos, in an article titled “Why Zoos Stimulate Our Minds.”
Writing out my thoughts was a sort of preparative exercise, mostly to try to articulate the main dilemma I have with zoos: do the potential education benefits of zoos outweigh the cruelty of caging animals in small spaces that I personally believe typically don’t provide them with fulfilling lives? I still am not sure of the answer, but my trip to the Huachipa Zoo did answer another intriguing question for me. When zoos are bad, would I personally prefer that a bad zoo exist rather than have no zoo at all?
Before I reveal the answer to the aforementioned question, I should explain that my wife and I came up with some criteria for rating zoos. For the purpose of reviewing more zoos in the future, I wanted to have some reasonable means to compare them.

http://ecoworldly.com/2008/07/20/a-review-of-the-huachipa-zoo-in-lima-peru-and-a-methodology-for-grading-zoos/



Ice Cream Safari Brings Record Crowd to Zoo
It may have been hot around the state Saturday, but the Jackson Zoological Park was the cool spot!
The wildly popular Ice Cream Safari brought in a record-breaking crowd to taste Schwan's Ice Cream scooped up by their favorite local media celebrities.
Saturday's turnout was the largest ever for the 14-year event.
Television, radio, and newspaper personalities worked their arms for the crowds, scooping out flavors like Gibbon Maple Cream, Rhinoberry Rumple, and Chocolate Chimp.
"Pygmy Hippo Ripple. We have fresh squeezed Pygmy Hippo. This is what a scoop is all about, this is fine Pygmy Hippo Ripple," WLBT's Howard Ballou said as he served up the cold treat.
Howard has won the scooping contest every year he has participated. But some were hoping to change that.
"Our goal is to unseat Howard and Wilson," said Lance Fuller of "Hallelujah 95.5" radio station. "Howard's the long-time champion. Wilson won last year. He sat in for Howard."
The winner will be announced on Monday.

http://www.wlbt.com/Global/story.asp?S=8703239&nav=1L7t4viX



OpenCarry.org members visited Zoo Boise to make a point
Edition Date: 07/20/08
When you go to the zoo, you expect to see monkeys, ducks in a pond. You don't usually expect to see visitors with handguns.
But you would have, had you visited Zoo Boise Saturday morning.
About 10 members of the local chapter of OpenCarry.org, a national group that advocates for citizens' rights to openly carry handguns, met there.
After a little confusion at the front desk about whether it's legal to bring an unconcealed handgun into the zoo - it is - the group bought tickets and sauntered through the front gates like all the other visitors.
That they were no different from all the other visitors was the point the group members were trying to make.
"Coming to the zoo was something we could do together, like any family would," said Carol Schultz of Nampa. She is never without her handgun and holds her holster in place with a heart-studded belt.

http://www.idahostatesman.com/102/story/447064.html



Olivia to Perform at Australia Zoo
Olivia will perform at Steve Irwin Day and the world-famous Australia Zoo on November 15.
Steve Irwin Day on November 15 will be a day for remembering the one and only Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin. The day will represent the many things Steve was passionate about; family, wildlife and FUN. You can get involved in a number of ways including visiting Australia Zoo for an action packed day, having a Backyard Campout or donning your khakis for Khaki Day.
All proceeds raised from these activities will go to Australia Zoo Wildlife Warriors Worldwide.

http://www.steveirwinday.org

http://0daysound.blogspot.com/2008/07/olivia-to-perform-at-australia-zoo.html



Steve Irwin Day
Steve Irwin Day on November 15 will be a day for remembering the one and only Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin. The day will represent the many things Steve was passionate about; family, wildlife and FUN. You can get involved in a number of ways including visiting Australia Zoo for an action packed day, having a Backyard Campout or donning your khakis for Khaki Day.
All proceeds raised from these activities will go to Australia Zoo Wildlife Warriors Worldwide.

http://www.steveirwinday.org/



Petting Zoo Goat Slams Kid
This kid was having a good time playing with the animals at a petting zoo when suddenly this old goat decides to slam him from behind.

http://www.break.com/index/petting-zoo-goat-slams-kid.html



Baby panda adopted by house cat dies: zoo
The Hague (AFP) July 18, 2008
A baby panda adopted by a domestic cat at Amsterdam's Artis zoo has died after choking on the milk of its foster mother, the zoo said Friday.
"The little one was discovered lifeless on Thursday morning," it said in a statement.
"A post-mortem revealed that its windpipe was filled with milk. It had choked to death."
The red panda cub was born on June 30, but was rejected by its own mother along with a sibling who died soon thereafter.
It was adopted by a zoo employee's pet cat who suckled the newborn with its own four kittens.
"The cat had just had kittens and accepted the baby panda as a foster child," said the zoo statement.
"As far as we know, this was the first time that a cat has adopted a baby panda."
Red pandas, which are only slightly larger than domestic cats, are an endangered species found mostly in the eastern Himalayas. Many zoos worldwide have breeding programmes as only about 2,500 red pandas remain in the wild today.

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Baby_panda_adopted_by_house_cat_dies_zoo_999.html



Gun advocacy group tours Idaho zoo while armed
3 days ago
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho members of a group that advocates for the right to openly carry handguns in public are turning heads by touring Zoo Boise while packing guns on their hips.
Ten members of OpenCarry.org were allowed into the zoo Saturday after some initial confusion at the entrance about whether it was legal to bring an unconcealed handgun inside.
Group member Carol Schultz of Nampa says: "Coming to the zoo was something we could do together, like any family would."
Schultz says she's never without her handgun that she keeps in a holster attached to a heart-studded belt.
Zoo visitor Alex Lundgren of Boise questioned the group's decision to bring firearms.
He says: "Legal and appropriate are two different things."

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jjjAJ_MpHfq4BdalJb3lG07cMswgD921S3880



Off the Agenda
County Council's plot twist on zoo issue worthy of Hollywood
Notebook nuggest from local governments and campaigns
The Salt Lake Tribune
Article Last Updated: 07/21/2008 12:13:18 AM MDT
As far as political reversals go, this one was brilliant.
Utah's Hogle Zoo had counted its votes and felt confident Tuesday that the Salt Lake County Council would put a $65 million bond - pegged for one of the largest renovations in park history - on November's ballot.
The council's four Democrats hadn't wavered in their support. And GOP Councilman Marv Hendrickson, the key swing vote, told reporters three times that Hogle had his nod.
If only politics were that predictable.
One hour into Tuesday's Hogle Zoo debate, Democrats called an impromptu recess to resolve questions about whether the council should require the east-side animal park to raise private donations before receiving public funds.

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_9944781



Baby giraffe dies at Zoo
By Gagani Weerakoon
A three month old baby giraffe at Dehiwala Zoo has died allegedly after falling into a pit yesterday.
Sources allege employees at the National Zoo were seen filling all pits in the area after finding the dead baby giraffe, to prevent further mishaps.
However, Director General National Zoological Gardens, Duminda Jayaratne, denying the allegation, said the baby giraffe had been suffering from diarrhea for about a week and died early last morning. "He was born at the Zoo and was apparently too weak to survive. There is no truth to the allegation that it died by falling into a pit as the zoo is on a flat land," he said.

http://www.dailymirror.lk/DM_BLOG/Sections/frmNewsDetailView.aspx?ARTID=20988

continued...

Perkins senior guides visually impaired at Franklin Park (click here for article)

Perkins School for the Blind student, Kelly Cusack, 7, pets Sage during a tour given by Zoo Teens who are also students at the Perkins school in Franklin Zoo yesterday.

BUSH BRINKMANSHIP !! What did the Iranian missile launch prove? According to Russia that the American Defense Shield in Europe is inappropriate.

The United States and Russia continue sparring over a Central European missile defense system, as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says America is committed to protecting its allies from a possible Iranian missile attack, and her Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, claiming Tehran's missiles do not have sufficient range to justify the controversial system. VOA Correspondent Peter Fedynsky has this report from the Russian capital.

KNOCK IT OFF !!! The USA and Russia need to take their difference to the UN Security Council and NOW ! Bunch of jerks in Washington backed by power leverage at The New York Times. I swear they are idiots. Playing with fire to start an international conflict.

The American Capitalists that brought you the 'Housing Bubba-Bubble' are hacking away at Russia for some kind of fiscal foothold. They're idiots and now they are attempting to start an international war with Russia. They are counting on China being to busy with saving itself from the Bush Ravages of Human Induced Global Warming and the 'Good Will Olympic Games' to 'get one over on Moscow.' Bunch of Bush Jerks. China has been 'capitalized' to the point of building along 'fault lines' while erecting substandard buildings for schools and yet Bush blames a country for high carbon dioxide emissions while still unable to have the quality of life for all its citizens that The New York Times likes to ridicule as Communist oppression.

The article below lends sympathy to a former Russian Oligarch 'with a twist.' He went to Russia to spawn capitalism and is losing his shirt. Gee, what a shame. Russia can keep Gazprom, I don't give a damn ! I am sure he and Boris are good friends.

Kremlin Rules
An Investment Gets Trapped in Kremlin’s Vise (click here)

By CLIFFORD J. LEVY
Published: July 24, 2008
MOSCOW — William F. Browder was one of the most prominent foreign investors here, a corporate provocateur who brought the tactics of Wall Street shareholder activists to the free-for-all of post-Soviet capitalism. Until, that is, the Kremlin expelled him in 2005....

Here is the big consumer 'draw' at The New York Times today, need I say more?

Everyone's got a little Texas in them. (click here)

Show us what's Texas about you, and you could win a vacation for 4.

Every entry is also a chance to win a Texas BBQ gift pack,so get your video cameras rolling!

Don't let them give you reservations in the Hurricane Zone.

And get this, they are soliciting Russians to make their case. It is sort of like Bush yelling half way around the world when he solicited Iraqis to rise against their government. These boys are so desperate for money, they'll do anything. It's a live journal to spark some kind of retaliation against Putin's Russia. I think the NY Times whats to call it 'Freedom of Speech.' You know, the "Iron Curtain" and all that Cold War mess. Ah, if Bush could only recapture 'The Good Ole Days.'

ИНВЕСТИЦИИ БЕЗ ИНВЕСТОРА: УДИВИТЕЛЬНЫЕ ЗЛОКЛЮЧЕНИЯ БРИТАНЦА В РОССИИ (click here)

So, Russia sees an opportunity in all this mess as well. They are putting Russian long range bombers back in Cuba.

Moscow must answer U.S. shield with Cuban 'spy' site - analyst
18:20
23/ 07/ 2008
MOSCOW, July 23 (RIA Novosti) - Russia should respond to U.S. missile defense plans for Central Europe by reopening a 'spy' facility in Cuba to gather intelligence on the United States, a Russian analyst said on Wednesday.
The electronic monitoring and surveillance facility near Havana at Torrens, also known as the Lourdes facility, the largest Russian Sigint site abroad, was shut down in October 2001 by then- president Vladimir Putin.
"Cuba is a unique place to gather intelligence on the United States. I believe that the reopening of this station is both possible and necessary amid the threat that the Americans are creating for Russia," Alexander Pikayev, head of the disarmament and conflict resolution department at the Russian Academy of Sciences' World Economics and International Relations Institute, told a news conference at RIA Novosti.
"Russia has every right to respond," he added.

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20080723/114761709.html

Needless to say, all that Russian Experience that Condi Rice touts as her claim to Secretary of State is completely worthless. The USA's relationship with Russia has never been worse in recent decades. Remember, they were in Afghanistan after September 11th in support of our position before the USA was, right up to the point where the USA exploited their national defense efforts to start an illegal war in Iraq. Remember that? So, what does Russia get in return? Missiles at their borders. Nice. Real, nice.

I doubt this will be the last time this will manifest as an issue before the elections in the USA, but, Russia has been 'recapturing' its sovereignty since the demise of the USSR. This is just more of the same. If the Capitalists of Europe and the USA don't like it, that is too bad.

They took a 'risk.' Everyone, even American homeowners understands 'risk' these days. And they lost their shirts. Not only that, but, the Russian citizens that were caught in the middle of the Russia 'Resource/Land Grab' are in prison now. Gee, I hope The New York Times is proud of their counterparts and the lack of freedom they now enjoy.

Analysis: Anxious investors in RussiaWill Stewart, Evening Standard (click here)

21 July 2008, 12:12pm
Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the oligarch jailed under the then Russian President Vladimir Putin, has launched an official plea for parole. In what will be seen as a test of new President Dmitry Medvedev's bid to make Russia more attractive to outside investors, Khodorkovsky's defence formally asked that he be released on parole from his eight-year sentence....

All this belongs in 'competent' hands at a NEW State Department with people that understand the importance of 'good relations' rather than 'just brinkmanship to war.' These 'human beings' need to be included in 'Summits' with Russia rather than used as 'propaganda icons' in a subliminal war against Putin's Russia. Competent American diplomats engaged under a new President can actually bring relief to these issues.

Why?

Because Russia doesn't want the controvery either and so long as Bush continues his brinkmanship with Russia, both countries will be deadlocked to stop this hideous gamesmanship on an international stage.

The New York Times needs to go back to being Americans engaged in 'the news business' rather than a Neocon Tool. That includes Maureen Dowd that has become the latest in Neocon Gossip Columnists. Go ahead, continue to shot yourselves in the foot. Be my guest. I thought female journalists, especially editors with columns were supposed to prove the worthiness of women and their abilities to 'take on'real issues rather than pandering to 'idiot issues' of fashionable gossip. I wonder what the gossip is among the women of Darfur?

Did I tell you? Did I tell you "Dolly" had more potential than any weather service predicted? Yes, I told you.

Reporting Number 13

Latitude 26.00

Longitude -97.00

Date and Time 07/23/2008 @ 1500Z

Winds 85

Millibars 964

HURRICANE-2

That dark spot encompassing the Atlantic is a high pressure system. There are two low pressure systems (hurricane like) coming off Africa. They are in the lower latitudes because that is where the water vapor resides. I would continue to pay attention to the Yucatan Peninsula. Have a better day.

Appropriate use of the USA Army National Guard. Back to sanity with Barak. No more deployments of National Guard into war zones. No more. No way.

'Operation Lilly Pad' aims to save lives in hurricanes

http://www.army.mil/-news/2008/07/22/11098-operation-lily-pad-aims-to-save-lives-in-hurricanes/

Climate Change, Tropical Storms Affect Public Health (click here)

Posted July 21st, 2008

by admin_huliq
Tropical storm Dolly is moving over the Gulf of Mexico and it has already affected the oil prices as the major refineries are located in the Gulf of Mexico. However, what about the public health. In what ways tropical storms affect the public health?
Climate change, global warming seriously affect public health and may lead to an increased number of deaths.
A new report by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) doesn't mention how many deaths will occur because of climate change and the report doesn't aim at counting possible death cases, but it aims at explaining that these deaths are preventable....