The Cheney Observer
Halliburton: House Summons NNPC, Chevron
This Day (Lagos)
April 28, 2005
Posted to the web April 28, 2005
Mike Oduniyi
Lagos
The House of Represent-atives has summoned the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), US oil firm ChevronTexaco and their partners involved in the award of contracts to embattled oil services company, Halliburton.
THISDAY checks revealed that Speaker Aminu Bello Masari issued the directive on Monday to summon the oil companies following a protest from House Committee on Public Petitions over the recent award of $1.7 billion contract to a consortium of foreign companies that included Halliburton subsidiary, KBR.
The House had late last year, passed a motion recommending the ban of Halliburton and its unit, KBR, until the conclusion of an investigation into alleged payment of $180 million bribe by KBR to some Nigerian government officials to win LNG contracts.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200504280116.html
Contracts for Halliburton Again?
This Day (Lagos)
EDITORIAL
May 4, 2005
Posted to the web May 4, 2005
Lagos
The ambivalence in certain actions of the Obasanjo Administration may undermine the current campaign against corruption. In one breadth, government officials talk of a new resolve to root out corruption, and in another, they take actions that only leave a huge question on their sincerity.
In our calculation, there is no greater proof of such ambiguity than the recent decision by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its joint venture partner, ChevronTexaco, to award a $1.7 billion contract to KBR, a subsidiary of Halliburton of the United States. The contract is for the engineering, procurement and construction of gas-to-liquid (GTL) plant in Escravos.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200505040647.html
Again, Halliburton
EDITORIAL
May 5, 2005
Posted to the web May 5, 2005
Lagos
Halliburton, the Houston, Texas, United States of America (USA) based oil firm, has again, through its subsidiary, Kellogg, Brown and Root (KBR) been awarded another mouth watering contract by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The new contract, which disclosure was made to a foreign news agency, Bloomberg News by spokeswoman of the group, Jennifer W. Dellinger, is worth $1.7 billion. It is for the construction of a gas-to-liquid plant in the country. The project has a completion date of 2008.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200505050106.html
Intrusion Inc. Retains Halliburton Investor Relations as Counsel; Company to Begin Enhanced Shareholder Communications and Outreach Program
RICHARDSON, Texas, April 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Intrusion Inc.(Nasdaq: INTZ), ("Intrusion") today announced it has retained HalliburtonInvestor Relations ("HIR") to assist the company in its efforts to communicatewith the investment community.Ward Paxton, Chief Executive Officer of Intrusion, commented, "We arepleased to enter into this partnership with Halliburton Investor Relations.The firm has a proven track record of implementing successful investorrelations programs for publicly traded companies, and we believe they willhelp us to broaden our visibility and communicate effectively with theinvestment community."
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/04-28-2005/0003491673&EDATE=
Halliburton Makes a Killing on Iraq War
Cheney's Former Company Profits from Supporting Troops
by Pratap Chatterjee, Special to CorpWatch
March 20th, 2003
As the first bombs rain down on Baghdad, CorpWatch has learned that thousands of employees of Halliburton, Vice President Dick Cheney's former company, are working alongside US troops in Kuwait and Turkey under a package deal worth close to a billion dollars. According to US Army sources, they are building tent cities and providing logistical support for the war in Iraq in addition to other hot spots in the "war on terrorism."
While recent news coverage has speculated on the post-war reconstruction gravy train that corporations like Halliburton stand to gain from, this latest information indicates that Halliburton is already profiting from war time contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=6008
IRAQ: Making a killing: the big business of war
Doug Lorimer
While nearly 100,000 Iraqis and 1600 US troops have died as a result of the Iraq war and tens of thousands have been severely wounded, the war has proven to be extremely lucrative for the Houston-based oil services company Halliburton and the San Francisco-based construction company Bechtel. These are the two largest private contractors to the US occupation forces in Iraq.
Iraq war and “reconstruction” contracts helped Halliburton to turn a profit in the first quarter of this year, after the company suffered a loss of US$65 million in the first quarter of last year after paying out $4.2 billion in asbestos lawsuit settlements.
http://www.greenleft.org.au/back/2005/625/625p20.htm
Shell Awards Halliburton Contract for Integrated Drilling Services in Gulf of Mexico
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 2, 2005--Halliburton's (NYSE:HAL) Energy Services Group has been awarded a two-year contract, with the option for an additional year, by Shell Exploration & Production Company to provide 40 percent of Shell's integrated drilling services for their Gulf of Mexico activities. The value of the contract is estimated at $24 million for the fixed two-year duration and includes the provision of directional drilling, measurement-while-drilling (MWD), and logging-while-drilling (LWD).
"Halliburton is very pleased to have been awarded this significant contract, which expands our important relationship with Shell," said Tim Probert, senior vice president, Halliburton's Drilling and Formation Division. "We have invested people, time, and money to stay at the forefront of technology development and ensure a sustainable future, aimed at meeting the current and future needs of our customers."
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20050502006166&newsLang=en
After Year Of Freedom, Hamill Reflects On Life Changes
POSTED: 9:01 am CDT May 2, 2005
JACKSON, Miss. -- Thomas Hamill still drives the same 1995 white Dodge pickup truck, despite its lack of air conditioning.
Hamill said he will keep it until the wheels fall off.
Life has changed for the former truck driver in the year since his capture during a bloody April 9, 2004, ambush near Baghdad International Airport. The farmer-turned-truck driver has co-authored a book of his experiences and is on the speaking circuit.
Hamill, 44, of Macon, was employed by KBR, a subsidiary of Houston-based Halliburton, when the ambush occurred. Five others in the convoy died. Hamill was shot in the arm before his capture.
Monday marks the year anniversary of Hamill's escape after 24 days in captivity.
Hamill said he hopes to return to his life as a dairy farmer in the coming months. He has purchased a new tractor and a used hay baler to go along with his decades-old farm equipment. He hopes to buy cattle by the end of the year.
Hamill and co-author Paul Brown are currently touring the country in support of their book "Escape In Iraq: The Thomas Hamill Story."
http://www.thejacksonchannel.com/news/4438222/detail.html
Halliburton Successfully Installs New Sand Control System for Saudi Aramco
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 4, 2005--Halliburton's (NYSE:HAL) Production Optimization Division has successfully installed the first PoroFlex(R) expandable completion system on the Arabian Peninsula for Saudi Aramco. The sand control technique of expanding screen in an open hole provides a solution for slim-hole side track re-completions that maximize the reservoir exposure while maintaining a sufficiently large internal diameter to allow the desired production rates. In addition, maintaining full bore access facilitates remedial operation during the life of the well.
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20050504005496&newsLang=en
Halliburton and NSI Technologies sign software development and license agreement
by: OilOnline
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
Halliburton's Fluid Systems Division and NSI Technologies have signed an exclusive agreement to adapt NSI's fully 3D hydraulic fracture model, E STIM PLAN, for use in cuttings and drilling waste injection modeling.
"We are excited about working with Halliburton, especially since the world's largest pressure pumping company has chosen to participate in this growing field of cuttings and drilling waste injection," said Mike Smith, president of NSI Technologies Inc. "NSI's expertise in hydraulic fracture modeling and Halliburton's global capabilities and expertise will allow Halliburton to offer one of the most complete cuttings injection services in the industry."
http://www.oilonline.com/news/headlines/business/20050504.Hallibur.17878.asp
Shots disrupted officers' 3rd visit to home
By LEON ALLIGOOD
Staff Writer
Trousdale sheriff: Officers did everything they could to avoid a shootout
HARTSVILLE, Tenn. — Three times within 24 hours, from Wednesday night until Thursday afternoon, Trousdale County deputies traveled down the twisting rural road to the small farmhouse with a tin roof and vinyl siding.
Three times, Jerry Halliburton wouldn't come out when asked. A man with a history of mental illness, Halliburton on Thursday morning had called the Secret Service in Nashville and made a threat against the White House.
http://www.tennessean.com/local/archives/05/03/69230546.shtml?Element_ID=69230546
Halliburton-owned firm gets bonuses
The Washington Post
WASHINGTON — The Army said Tuesday that it had awarded an additional $72 million in bonuses to Halliburton Co. subsidiary Kellogg Brown & Root for logistics support of the Iraq war.
The Army said it graded the company's performance “very good” or “excellent.”
Halliburton's work in Iraq has been controversial because an early contract to rebuild oil fields was awarded without competition and because auditors had challenged its billings on some work. Vice President Dick Cheney was Halliburton's chief executive from 1995 to 2000.
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/nation/11615344.htm
US Terrorism: Halliburton in Bed with Iran
by HalliburtonWatch.Org
In July 2004, Halliburton faced a criminal inquiry into its business ties with Iran.
Halliburton reported that it received a subpoena from a grand jury investigating its business ties with Iran, a nation President Bush says sponsors terrorism.
The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has been investigating Halliburton since 2001 to determine whether it violated the ban on U.S. companies doing business with Iran.
http://www.conspiracyplanet.com/channel.cfm?channelid=118&contentid=2175
HYDRAULIC FRACTURING DEREGULATION: HALLIBURTON PAYOFF?
The yield of every natural gas and oil well eventually declines. Once that happens, more significant measures are needed to keep the well producing. One of the more popular — and increasingly controversial— techniques is hydraulic fracturing, commonly called fracing (pronounced "fracking"). This is most commonly used to extend the life of coalbed methane wells.
Fracing involves pumping highly pressurized fluids deep underground. This cracks geologic formations and forces oil and natural gas to rise so they can be more easily extracted — thus extending the useful life of oil and gas wells. The problem is that fracing could pollute aquifers, permanently alter the patterns and integrity of local hydrogeology, and even destroy nearby private wells. The most common fluid used is made up of water and sand — but sometimes it contains methanol, oil, MTBE, diesel fuel, or other toxicants.
http://notes.sej.org/sej/tipsheet.nsf/0/c159f09b0fdbc5e386256ffe004f84b0?OpenDocument
Overwhelming Support for Lawsuit Against Cheney
by JUDICIAL WATCH
(Washington, DC) Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption and abuse, said today that the lawsuit it brought on behalf of Halliburton shareholders against Vice President Dick Cheney, the other involved directors of Halliburton, as well as Halliburton and the Arthur Andersen accounting firm, for alleged fraudulent accounting practices, enjoys overwhelming public support.
A CNN poll, featured on the Internet web site of Lou Dobbs, the anchor and managing editor of "Lou Dobb's Moneyline" the prestigious and authoritative financial and business news program revealed that 95% of the respondents answered "Yes" to the question, "Should Vice President Dick Cheney answer questions about accounting at Halliburton?"
A similar poll on the Judicial Watch web site (www.JudicialWatch.org) shows 83% of respondents answering "Yes" to the question, "Should Vice president Cheney be required to answer accounting questions about Halliburton?"
Interestingly, both the "Moneyline" and Judicial Watch web sites are likely frequented by large numbers of economic and social conservatives.
http://www.conspiracyplanet.com/channel.cfm?channelid=118&contentid=518
Michael Moore Today
http://www.michaelmoore.com/
Michael Isikoff is at it again...
Newsweek Says Koran Desecration Report is Wrong
Newsweek says Koran desecration report is wrong
By David Morgan / Reuters
WASHINGTON - Newsweek magazine said on Sunday it erred in a May 9 report that U.S. interrogators desecrated the Koran at Guantanamo Bay, and apologized to the victims of deadly Muslim protests sparked by the article.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=2652
How Many Mistakes Can Newsweek's Michael Isikoff Make?
Will Isikoff Finally Knock-It-Off?
Never mind that the New York Times has already asserted that all the facts in “Fahrenheit 9/11” check-out (see Philip Shenon’s “ Will Michael Moore’s Facts Check Out?”), Newsweek’s chief investigative reporter Michael Isikoff has made it his mission to discredit the film. After issuing a sharp response to Isikoff’s first swipe at the film (“Under the Hot Lights,” Newsweek, June 28th), Craig Unger, author of “House of Bush, House of Saud,” is back to expose Isikoff’s latest distortions. Here is Unger's point-by-point clarification (The following is also available on his website www.houseofbush.com):
http://www.michaelmoore.com/warroom/index.php?id=3
The Newsweek-Fahrenheit Wars, Part 3
July 3, 2004
How Many Mistakes Can Newsweek's Michael Isikoff Make?
by Craig Unger
How many mistakes can Michael Isikoff make? In his zealous campaign to discredit Fahrenheit 9/11, Newsweek's star investigative reporter has already made at least seven errors, distortions and selective omissions of crucial information.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/warroom/index.php?id=3
Islamic group declares Jihad over Koran incident
Islamic group declares Jihad against US, Afghan forces over Koran incident
KABUL (AFP) - An Islamic group reportedly linked to Afghanistan's ousted Taliban regime declared Jihad, or holy war, against US-led troops and the Afghan government over the alleged desecration of the Koran by US interrogators.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=2653
Police open fire on crowd in excess of 460 rounds of ammunition (FBI estimate) in less than a minute
Jackson State University Killings
Wikipedia
The Jackson State killings occurred on May 14-15, 1970, at Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi. A group of student protesters were confronted by the police and National Guardsmen. The police opened fire killing two students and injuring twelve.
The causes of the riots are believed to be the Vietnam War, the May 4 Kent State shootings, and racial tensions. A mob of around a hundred black students had gathered on (John R.) Lynch Street following rumours of the murder of Charles Evers. By around 2130 hours the students had started fires and overturned vehicles, including a large truck. Firefighters dispatched to the scene quickly requested police support.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=2648
The May 1970 Tragedy at Jackson State University
"Lest We Forget..."
In the Spring of 1970, campus communities across this country were characterized by a chorus of protests and demonstrations. The issues were the escalation of the war in Vietnam and the U.S. invasion of Cambodia; the ecology; racism and repression; and the inclusion of the experiences of women and minorities in the educational system. No institution of higher education was leftuntouched by confrontations and continuous calls for change.
http://ccaix.jsums.edu/%7Ewww/gg02a.htm
Democrats Move to Slow Action on Bolton
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate consideration of John R. Bolton to be ambassador to the United Nations is unlikely before the end of May because of Democratic objections to an earlier vote, Majority Leader Bill Frist's spokesman says.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=2646
The Boston Globe
The art of the interview, US style
By Diane E. Lewis, Globe Staff, 5/15/05
Brandeis University professor Andrew Molinsky will never forget the conversations he had with newly settled Russian refugees who wanted to find work with US employers.
Molinsky, a volunteer at the nonprofit Jewish Vocational Service in Boston, taught refugees about the fine art of the American interview. He told them to make direct eye contact, deliver a vigorous hand shake, make small talk and be honest - but not too honest.
http://bostonworks.boston.com/globe/articles/051505_interview.html
Malfunctioning sprinklers drench tunnel
Police close roads for 45 minutes
By Maria Cramer, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
For about 45 minutes yesterday, Ryan Maines felt like the star of an action movie, but the experience was anything but glamorous.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2005/05/16/malfunctioning_sprinklers_drench_tunnel/
Falling water
May 16, 2005
MOST HOMEOWNERS in Massachusetts view ground water as an occasional nuisance that seeps into their basements, soaks their box of stored holiday decorations, or rusts their tools. But for a small minority of owners, a certain level of ground water is crucial to the stability of their buildings. When ground water levels fall in Boston's Back Bay, South End, and other neighborhoods, the tops of the wooden piles supporting house foundations are exposed to air, speeding the growth of fungi and bacteria that weaken the wood.
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2005/05/16/falling_water/
Neb. university delays CDC probe into tularemia infections at BU lab
Scientist cites analysis concerns
By Stephen Smith, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
A federal investigation into how a supposedly harmless batch of tularemia bacteria at Boston University became contaminated with a lethal strain has been delayed by the reluctance of another university to provide samples needed in the probe.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/05/16/neb_university_delays_cdc_probe_into_tularemia_infections_at_bu_lab/
Passage of marriage amendment in doubt
By Raphael Lewis, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
Last of two parts
One year after same-sex marriage became legal in Massachusetts, the fate of a proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage and create civil unions is in serious doubt because several lawmakers who voted for the measure are openly rethinking their support.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/05/16/passage_of_marriage_amendment_in_doubt/
An unpopular stance alienates a gay male
May 16, 2005
Brian Brandt, 33, remembers where he was a year ago, when the first same-sex marriage licenses were issued in Massachusetts. ''I was at home," he said. ''I think I had the warshades down and I was listening to talk radio, and I was mourning the loss of an important part of our country's foundation."
http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/an_unpopular_stance_alienates_a_gay_male/
A ceremonial event evolves into wedding
May 16, 2005
For Judi Burgess, a single word changed everything.
She and her partner, Rebecca Rehm, had been planning a commitment ceremony for months before the Supreme Judicial Court decision legalizing gay marriage.
http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/a_ceremonial_event_evolves_into_wedding/
Expansive coverage fuels his indifference
May 16, 2005
John Horne has had enough of this whole gay marriage thing.
''It's kind of like 'Desperate Housewives,' " he said. ''I'm not interested in it, so I really don't care."
http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/expansive_coverage_fuels_his_indifference/
For new father, issue begins to resonate
May 16, 2005
Before the first gay marriages, Tom Balish said, he was like a lot of people who opposed same-sex marriage: ''Asleep at the switch."
ADVERTISEMENT
But seeing images of women marrying women and men marrying men -- first in San Francisco, then in Massachusetts -- transformed the issue for him. Suddenly, it was no longer an abstract concept.
http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/for_new_father_issue_begins_to_resonate/
Exiting a closet, entering a newfound life of happiness
May 16, 2005
It was an outdoor wedding, Memorial Day weekend. One bride wore a flowing gown in pale pink. The other -- Erika Scibelli's mother -- wore white linen pants, a long linen duster, and a smile like her daughter had never seen.
http://www.boston.com/news/specials/gay_marriage/articles/2005/05/16/exiting_a_closet_entering_a_newfound_life_of_happiness/
Gays' supporters denied Eucharist
Over 100 wore rainbow sashes at Minn. service
By Joshua Freed, Associated Press May 16, 2005
ST. PAUL -- A Roman Catholic priest denied Communion to more than 100 people yesterday, saying they could not receive the sacrament because they wore rainbow-colored sashes to church to show support for gay Catholics.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/16/gays_supporters_denied_eucharist/
Governors target employee benefits
Cite fairness, cost in seeking change
By Charles Stein, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
PROVIDENCE -- A number of governors around the nation are taking aim at the benefits paid to public employees -- which, in many cases, are far richer than those offered to workers in private industry.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/16/states_target_benefits_for/
Saudis lobby to limit liability on additive
Gas agent found in N.E. water
By Susan Milligan, Globe Staff May 16, 2005
WASHINGTON -- A company largely owned by the Saudi government has spent more than $1.5 million since 1998 lobbying Congress to shield the chemical industry from liability for damages caused by MTBE, a potentially cancer-causing gasoline additive that has seeped into water supplies across New England, according to federal documents.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/16/saudis_lobby_to_limit_liability_on_additive/
11 killed as tension persists over Uzbek uprising
More than 500 said to flee to Kyrgyzstan
By Bagila Bukharbayeva, Associated Press May 16, 2005
FERGANA, Uzbekistan -- Eight Uzbek soldiers and three Islamic militants died in a clash near the Kyrgyz border yesterday, and more than 500 Uzbeks fled to safety across the frontier, witnesses said, regarding the spreading violence that further threatened stability in this Central Asia country, a key American ally and host to an important US military outpost.
http://www.boston.com/news/world/articles/2005/05/16/11_killed_as_tension_persists_over_uzbek_uprising/
Russians reportedly rewarded with oil
Ex-Hussein aides are cited in probe into food program
By Ken Guggenheim, Associated Press May 16, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Former top representatives in Saddam Hussein's government have told congressional investigators they provided millions of dollars worth of oil allocations to Russian leaders in hopes of ending UN penalties against Iraq.
http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2005/05/16/russians_reportedly_rewarded_with_oil/
The Australian
Millions sought for deportee
Cath Hart and Simon Kearney
May 16, 2005
ONE of Australia's most eminent lawyers is flying to Manila today to initiate an unprecedented multi-million-dollar compensation claim against the Howard Government for the wrongful deportation of an Australian citizen.
Former Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission president Marcus Einfeld said yesterday he believed compensation to Vivian Young should be at least $1500 a day for false imprisonment.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15300137%255E601,00.html
Dust bowl was once a brimming lake
Natasha Robinson
May 16, 2005
RETIRED farmer Lindsay Leidh kicks the saltbush in the dried-up lake he calls his backyard and remembers when it held water.
"It was beautiful to see the big shiny lake out there, lovely fishermen and everything. It was their favourite fishing spot years ago," he says.
But it's eight years since Lake Natimuk in central-western Victoria held water.
Once a recreational hub for the nearby towns of the Victorian wheatbelt, now its crackly bed could fit more than 100 Olympic swimming pools.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15300143%255E601,00.html
Abu Ghraib villain's saga of love and betrayal
Sarah Baxter, New York
May 16, 2005
IF a television movie of the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal is ever made, the grotesque pictures of naked Iraqi detainees stacked in a human pyramid may be merely the backdrop to a saga of obsession, infidelity and betrayal.
Charles Graner, a former corporal who is serving a 10-year sentence for his role as the ringleader of a sadistic group of army reservists, recently married a fellow guard but is not allowed to see his bride because of her complicity in the abuse of inmates at Abu Ghraib.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15299833%255E601,00.html
Uzbek uprising toll 'near 500'
Reuters, AFP
May 16, 2005
THE families of some of the estimated 500 people killed by Uzbek troops in Andizhan buried their dead yesterday to the sound of continued sniper fire in the eastern town.
Two days after an uprising in the mostly Muslim Central Asian state's Ferghana Valley, wet blood and body parts hastily covered in soil coat the pavements, streets and gutters in the centre of this leafy city of 300,000 people.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15300001%255E2703,00.html
Zimbabwe frees suspected mercenaries
AFP
May 15, 2005
JOHANNESBURG: A group of 62 suspected mercenaries jailed in Zimbabwe has been freed and arrived back in South Africa, a relative of one of the men and their lawyer said Sunday.
"The guys are here in South Africa and officials are busy processing their papers," said Marge Pain, whose husband Ken was one of 70 men arrested in March last year when their plane stopped at Harare airport to pick up weapons.
Zimbabwean authorities alleged the guns were to be used to unseat President Teodoro Obiang Nguema, leader of oil-rich Equatorial Guinea.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15300681%255E31477,00.html
100 feared dead in ferry accident
From correspondents in Dhaka
May 16, 2005
BANGLADESH authorities fear at least 100 people have drowned after a ferry capsized in a remote area of the country's south.
Six people were confirmed dead yesterday but it is feared many more bodies were washed away in stormy weather or are trapped in the upturned vessel.
The ferry, carrying villagers to a local weekly market, had a capacity of 80 but probably had at least double that number on board.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15302877%255E1702,00.html
Storm destruction hits state
By Tim Clarke
May 16, 2005
A FEROCIOUS storm has ripped through the south-west of Western Australia, with severe winds and torrential rain closing roads, damaging buildings, felling trees, bringing down power lines and closing schools.
Although no injuries have been reported, hundreds of State Emergency Service (SES) volunteers have been called out to incidents across Perth and further south, with thousands of residents waking up to severe damage.
The town of Bunbury, 180km south of Perth, appears to have been the
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15302874%255E1702,00.html
PM challenged on whale slaughter
May 16, 2005
FEDERAL Labor today demanded to know how much the Government knew about the slaughter of 400 whales in Australian waters by Japanese whalers.
The numbers raised serious questions as to why the Government failed to stop the activity, Opposition environment spokesman Anthony Albanese said.
Japan is expected to go to a meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in June asking to extend its scientific whaling program to include humpback whales – an endangered species which underpins a whale-watching industry in Australia.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15302816%255E1702,00.html
Mini-tornado batters WA
May 16, 2005
THERE are reports of a "mini tornado" in Western Australia, with thousands of homes blacked out by heavy rain and fierce winds.
An ABC report said winds in excess of 140km/h had battered the coast today.
Reporters in the broadcaster's Bunbury newsroom fled with only moments to spare when a 38m crane fell and crushed much of their building.
"It's absolute chaos," rural reporter Babs McHugh was quoted as saying.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15302391%255E1702,00.html
Sydney Morning Herald
Severe storms batter Western Australia
May 16, 2005 - 12:06PM
Perth's main roads are jammed with traffic following a wild storm that left a crane in danger of toppling onto a highway, covered roads in debris, blacked out traffic lights and flooded suburban thoroughfares.
Bureau of Meteorology WA duty forecaster Noel Puzey said a cold front embedded with a line of severe thunderstorms swept across the state's south-western coast about 6am (WST) today.
Wind gusts peaked at 140 kmh at Rottnest Island, just off the coast of Perth, and reached 100 kmh in Perth suburbs, leaving tens of thousands of residents without power.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Severe-storms-batter-Western-Australia/2005/05/16/1116095890547.html
Storm rips through corner of WA
May 16, 2005 - 1:54PM
A ferocious storm has ripped through the south-west of Western Australia, with severe winds and torrential rain closing roads, damaging buildings, felling trees, bringing down power lines and closing schools.
Although no injuries have been reported, hundreds of State Emergency Service (SES) volunteers have been called out to incidents across Perth and further south, with thousands of residents waking up to severe damage.
The town of Bunbury, 180km south of Perth, appears to have been the worst affected by the line of severe thunderstorms, which swept across the state's south-western coastline about 6am (WST) on Monday.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Storm-rips-through-corner-of-WA/2005/05/16/1116095894463.html
600 abducted students rescued in Nepal
May 16, 2005 - 6:09AM
Soldiers rescued about 600 students after they were abducted by communist rebels in western Nepal, army officials said.
The students were rescued during an operation in the mountainous Niskot village, said a statement issued by the Royal Nepalese Army headquarters in the capital, Katmandu.
No other details were immediately available.
Communist rebels had abducted the students from their classrooms in recent days in a series of bold kidnappings in the neighbouring Tahanu and Palpa districts, about 300 km west of Katmandu.
The rebels - who claim to be inspired by Chinese revolutionary Mao Zedong - have fought since 1996 to overthrow Nepal's constitutional monarchy and replace it with a communist state.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/600-abducted-students-rescued-in-Nepal/2005/05/16/1116095880193.html
The New Zealand Herald
Website to identify sex offenders
16.05.05 1.00pm
Known sex offenders and their addresses are about to be included on a website being set up by a judicial lobby group.
The Sensible Sentencing Trust said the site would be running within two or three weeks. It would "push the boundaries" on naming people, said spokesman Garth McVicar.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=1&ObjectID=10125772
US mayors pledge action against global warming
16.05.05 1.00pm
By Andrew Buncombe
WASHINGTON - Frustrated by the Bush administration's refusal to ratify the Kyoto Treaty, 132 US mayors have pledged to enforce the regulations in their own cities.
In a rejection of the government's position which claimed it would be too damaging to the US economy to enforce tougher environmental restrictions, the group of bipartisan city leaders has vowed to try and meet Kyoto's central target - a reduction in greenhouse gases to less than seven per cent of where they stood in 1990 in under 10 years.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125765
Ethiopia bans demonstrations after election
16.05.05 1.00pm
ADDIS ABABA - The Ethiopian government imposed a month-long ban on demonstrations after millions staged a huge turnout at elections on Sunday, saying it would take tough action to head off any trouble over the results.
"Security forces have been instructed to take severe actions against those who violate the new regulation," Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said in a televised address, adding he had put himself in charge of all security forces in the capital.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125750
NZ to fight Japanese whale slaughter
16.05.05
New Zealand is looking at all its options, including a possible legal fight, to thwart Japan's attempt to slaughter endangered humpback whales.
Japan plans to go to the meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in Korea next month asking to double its kill of about 440 minke whales a year for so-called scientific purposes and also add humpback and fin whales to the list.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125717
America's drug war in Colombia in tatters
The arrest of former Colombian drug cartel boss Miguel Rodriguez Orejuela in March has not been enough to stamp out the illegal trade. Picture / Reuters
15.05.05 5.00pm
By Hugh O'Shaughnessy
Washington's "war on drugs" in Colombia is collapsing in chaos and corruption, and the drug producers are winning, the Independent newspaper reports.
The so-called Plan Colombia, which has cost the US more than US$3 billion ($4.2 billion) in the past five years, is being abandoned, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has announced.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125611
Son of slain Lebanon PM unveils election list
16.05.05 7.45am
By Lin Noueihed
BEIRUT - Assassinated former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri's son unveiled his ticket for this month's elections on Sunday and promised to heal sectarian splits threatening to unravel the anti-Syrian opposition.
To the dismay of Lebanese who hoped for a fresh start after the Syrians pulled out last month, the opposition movement that pressured them to quit is splintering along the sectarian lines that traditionally rule at the ballot box.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125721
Nine US troops, 100 rebels killed in Iraq assault
15.05.05
BAGHDAD - Nine American troops have been killed in an offensive against insurgents and militants in Iraq's most rebellious province, the US military said yesterday.
Four of those were killed on Wednesday when their assault amphibian vehicle hit an explosive device, the military said.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10125592
The weather conditions at Scott Base not known today
Scott Base
--
--
Updated Monday 16 May 2:59PM
The weather at Glacier Bay National Park (Crystal Wind Chime) is:
54 °F / 12 °C
Mostly Cloudy
Humidity:
67%
Dew Point:
43 °F / 6 °C
Wind:
Calm
Pressure:
29.56 in / 1001 hPa
Visibility:
-
UV:
0 out of 16
Clouds (AGL):
Mostly Cloudy 7000 ft / 2133 m
end
