The People's Daily
Lien Chan: Taiwan, mainland can enjoy prosperity
Visiting Kuomintang (KMT) Party of China Chairman Lien Chan said in Shanghai Sunday that Taiwan and the mainland can jointly create peace, promote development and enjoy prosperity.
In a meeting with Chen Liangyu, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and secretary of the CPC Shanghai municipal committee, Lien said, "The past cannot be changed. What can be changed is the future. To face up to the current days and jointly create the future is the most worthwhile direction that we strive for," he said.
http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200505/02/eng20050502_183489.html
Hu-Lien meeting evokes worldwide applause
The international community has made warm responses since General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Hu Jintao and visiting Chairman Lien Chan of the Kuomintang (KMT) party of China held their historic meeting in Beijing Friday.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said: "We believe cross-Straits dialogue is important to promoting peace and stability in the region" and the United States will "continue working with the parties in the region and continue to encourage them to engage in dialogue to promote peace and stability in the region."
http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200505/01/eng20050501_183419.html
KMT Chairman pays nostalgic visit to birthplace
Visiting Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party Chairman Lien Chan made a nostalgic visit Saturday to Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, as well as the city where Lien was born and spent his childhood.
Flocks of local people, waving flags and banners, lined the streets to welcome the KMT leader.
http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200505/01/eng20050501_183420.html
3,000 model workers honored
The Chinese government commended a total of 2,969 national labor heroes and advanced workers, including basketball player Yao Ming and track and field athlete Liu Xiang, at a grand rally held here Saturday on the eve of May 1,the International Labor Day.
President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao and other Chinese leaders attended the rally in Beijing and awarded the winners.
http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200504/30/eng20050430_183400.html
China not planning to revalue yuan
China does not plan to revalue its currency, the yuan, during next week's Labor Day holiday, a central bank spokesman said Friday, quashing rumors that such a change was imminent.
"As far as we know, there's no adjustment expected in the yuan exchange rate," Bai Li, spokesman for the People's Bank of China, told Dow Jones Newswires.
http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200504/30/eng20050430_183349.html
UN peacekeepers start deployment in Sudan: spokeswoman
The United Nations announced in Khartoum Sunday it has started deploying the first group of its peacekeeping force in Sudan, Sudan News Agency (SUNA) reported.
Radia Achouri, spokeswoman for the UN mission in Sudan, was quoted as saying that the first group of the UN force was 30-strong Nepalese out of total of 225, who arrived in Kassala town in eastern Sudan earlier in the day.
Achouri said that El-Obeid town in Kordofan region will be the center of deployment for the 10,000-strong UN forces.
Pasted from <http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200505/02/eng20050502_183505.html>
May Day rallies held across Europe, as protests mar celebrations
People cross Europe rallied on Sunday to mark May Day or Labor Day, as clashes among political rivals in a number of countries marred the celebrations.
In Sweden, Denmark and Norway, left-wing parties and labor unions held rallies and street parties to mark the traditional Labor holiday and government leaders delivered speeches vowing to improve employment and social welfare.
Meanwhile, street demonstrations across the continent largely marred the May Day celebrations.
http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200505/02/eng20050502_183522.html
Sandstorms, downpours for holiday
Northern China is likely to encounter more sandstorms during the forthcoming May Day holiday, forecasters in Beijing warned on Friday.
"Bad weather is forecast for parts of North, Northwest and Northeast China including Beijing around May 3 to 4," Xiao Ziniu, director of China central observatory, said at a press conference.
http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200504/30/eng20050430_183330.html
China to experience rain, wind in coming ten days
Most parts of China will experience rain and wind in the coming ten days, according to Friday's forecast from Chinese Central Meteorological Station.
Due to active warm and cold currents, north China, northeast China, southwest China and south China will receive several bouts of rain in the coming ten days. The rain will linger especially longer in south China, according to the forecast.
Gales will hit northwest China, north China and northeast China next Tuesday and Wednesday.
A cold current is expected to hit north China from Friday to Sunday and will cause more rain in south China, according to the forecast.
Source: Xinhua
http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200504/30/eng20050430_183309.html
Russia confers medals to Chinese veteran sold
A total of 27 Chinese veteran soldiers were conferred National Medals by Russia in memory of the 60th anniversary of victory of the war of defending the Soviet Union in Beijing April 29. Among the veteran soldiers are Mao Zedong's son Mao Anqing, Liu Shaoqi's daughter Liu Aiqin and Zhu De's daughter Zhumin.
http://english1.peopledaily.com.cn/200504/30/eng20050430_183367.html
The Gulf News
Police arrest 200 people from Cairo bomber's village
Agencies
Cairo: Police have arrested around 200 people for questioning over the two attacks targeting Cairo tourist sites yesterday.
The detainees are from the villages of the three people responsible for the suicide bombing and tour bus shooting.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=163100>
Terrorists target Cairo tourists
By Ramadan Al Sherbini, Special to Gulf News
Cairo:
A suicide bomber wounded four foreigners in Cairo yesterday shortly before his sister and fiance died in an abortive attack on a tourist bus.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=163050
Violence threatens Egypt tourism
Agencies
Cairo: A group calling itself the Brigades of the Martyr Abdullah Azzam said it carried out twin attacks on tourist targets in the Egyptian capital yesterday in a statement posted on the internet.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=163009
Fossilised skeleton of primitive whale found
Reuters
Cairo: Eyad Zalmout, a Jordanian palaeontologist with a US excavation team from the University of Michigan, examines the teeth of a 40-million-year-old whale in the natural reserve area of Wadi Hitan, valley of the whales, about 200km west of Cairo.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=162996
Iraqi mass grave found
EPA
A forensic specialist brushes dirt away from a human skull at a mass grave discovered in Al Samawa desert in Muthanna province, 270km south of Baghdad.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/RegionNF.asp?ArticleID=163002
Muslims hit out against discrimination
By Chris Sands, Staff Reporter
London: Thousands of Muslims marched through central London yesterday in protest at the treatment they are receiving across the world.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/WorldNF.asp?ArticleID=163085
Poll indicates Quebec wants sovereignty
AP
Montreal:
A decade after Quebec's failed referendum on defection from the rest of Canada, people in the French-speaking province are once again fired up about the possibility of going their own way.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/WorldNF.asp?ArticleID=163069
Arnold criticisedfor praising border patrols
Reuters
San Francisco: California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has added Hispanic politicians to a growing list of political enemies by praising attempts to curb immigration across the US-Mexico border.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/WorldNF.asp?ArticleID=163065
Murdered son turns up to free mother serving life term
AP
Dhaka:
A Bangladeshi woman, who spent nearly eight years in prison for murdering her son, has been freed after the boy turned up alive, a newspaper reported yesterday.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/WorldNF.asp?ArticleID=163052
Five killed in separate clashes in Kashmir
AP
Srinagar: Three suspected militants and two civilians were killed yesterday in separate clashes in Jammu and Kashmir, an army spokesman said.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/WorldNF.asp?ArticleID=163080
Massacre 'has no role in EU talks'
AP
Istanbul, Turkey: German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has sought to assure Turkey that a German opposition push for Turkey to examine its role in the massacre of Armenians at the time of the First World War will not become a condition to the start of EU membership talks.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/WorldNF.asp?ArticleID=163068
International Blairism will simply fade away
By John O'Sullivan, Special to Gulf News
Don't mention the war!" is the rule of the hotelier-from-hell, Basil Fawlty, in the old British sitcom, Fawlty Towers, when he is trying to control his temper and to treat German visitors with discreet sympathy.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/WorldNF.asp?ArticleID=162982
Bush has little to celebrate
By Holly Yeager
This has not been the kind of week President George W. Bush hoped for when he was sworn in for his second term just 100 days ago.
http://www.gulf-news.com/Articles/WorldNF.asp?ArticleID=162983
The Boston Globe
Protesters carried signs as they walked up Sixth Avenue (left) and 42nd Street (right) during a rally Sunday in New York City. Several thousand demonstrators marched past the United Nations and onto Central Park for a rally calling for nuclear disarmament and the end of the US presence in Iraq. (Stephen Chernin / Getty Images Photos)
Activists rally at U.N., Central Park
By Karen Matthews, Associated Press Writer May 1, 2005
NEW YORK -- Thousands of activists marched past the United Nations on Sunday, urging diplomats reviewing the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty to remember the horrors of the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki six decades ago and not allow them to be repeated.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/01/anti_nuclear_activists_rally_in_new_york/
Group pushes restricting of cold medicine
By Lou Kesten, Associated Press Writer May 1, 2005
WASHINGTON -- An association representing more than 36,000 pharmacies is issuing guidelines for possible federal legislation to restrict sales of cold medications containing a substance often used in the illegal manufacture of methamphetamine -- or "speed."
http://www.boston.com/yourlife/health/other/articles/2005/05/01/group_pushes_restricting_of_cold_medicine/
A woman's place in the lab
Harvard studies efforts to boost female faculty at U-Wisconsin
By Marcella Bombardieri, Globe Staff May 1, 2005
MADISON, Wisconsin -- The electrical and computer engineering department at the University of Wisconsin at Madison had a lackluster record on gender equality for many years.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/05/01/campus_strives_to_boost_female_faculty/
Group marks anniversary of early gay rights demonstration
By Janice Podsada, Associated Press Writer May 1, 2005
PHILADELPHIA -- Hundreds of gay rights supporters crowded into a historic church near Independence Hall to hear gay minister Irene "Beth" Stroud and the Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop call for an end to discrimination against gays and lesbians.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2005/05/01/group_marks_anniversary_of_early_gay_rights_demonstration/
Minister speaks at Pa. gay rights rally
By Janice Podsada, Associated Press Writer May 1, 2005
PHILADELPHIA -- A Methodist minister who had been defrocked for being in a lesbian relationship, then was reinstated, called for an end to discrimination against gays in a speech to hundreds of supporters Sunday.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/05/01/minister_speaks_at_pa_gay_rights_rally/
Thousands brave rain, raise $3 million to fight hunger
May 1, 2005
BOSTON -- A steady rain on Sunday couldn't dampen the enthusiasm of about 35,000 people who raised an estimated $3 million to help fight hunger across the state.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2005/05/01/thousands_brave_rain_raise_3_million_to_fight_hunger/
Obama praises U.S. civil rights pioneers
By Adrienne Schwisow, Associated Press Writer May 1, 2005
DETROIT -- Sen. Barack Obama praised the courage of America's civil rights pioneers Sunday and urged younger generations to find the same boldness in addressing the future of education.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/05/01/obama_praises_us_civil_rights_pioneers/
Locals offer insight into Egypt terrorist
By Maamoun Youssef, Associated Press Writer May 1, 2005
SHUBRA EL-KHEIMA, Egypt -- Once the cheerful leader of a school singing group, Ehab Yousri Yassin underwent a drastic change a few years ago, mingling with Islamic extremists, talking only about religion and forcing his sisters to wear head-to-toe veils.
http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2005/05/01/locals_offer_insight_into_egypt_terrorist/
Karzai urges caution in militant search
By Stephen Graham, Associated Press Writer May 1, 2005
KABUL, Afghanistan -- Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai on Sunday urged U.S.-led forces to use "extreme caution" in their pursuit of Taliban and al-Qaida militants after at least two civilians were killed in an airstrike.
http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2005/05/01/karzai_urges_caution_in_militant_search/
The Guardian
Battle for the middle classes
Patrick Wintour and Tania Branigan
Monday May 2, 2005
Labour was last night locked in an unprecedented eve of poll dogfight with Charles Kennedy, as the Liberal Democrats angrily rejected "mendacious" Labour claims that a big Iraq protest vote would end in an unintended back door victory for Michael Howard in four days' time.
With the battle for the progressive middle class now vital to the eventual outcome, the Lib Dems insisted that, at most, a big shift by disillusioned Labour voters would end in a hung parliament - but even this was unlikely.
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/election/story/0,15803,1474692,00.html
GIs return to end 30 years of pain for Vietnam's children of the dust
Plight of the war babies pricks consciences of ageing veterans
Jonathan Watts in Ho Chi Minh City
Monday May 2, 2005
The Guardian
'I remember the last night I was with you. I put my hand on your stomach and felt our son kicking and moving. I did not write you as I should have done. I was young and immature in 1968 and I am sorry I was not there to take care of you both."
Nguyen Thi Hien, a middle-aged woman who lives in one of Ho Chi Minh City's poorest neighbourhoods, had been waiting more than 30 years for the letter that contained these words.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1474578,00.html
Hassan murder suspects held in Iraq raid
· Breakthrough in hunt for aid worker's killers
· At least 116 killed in weekend of bombings, and Australian is abducted
Rory Carroll in Baghdad
Monday May 2, 2005
The Guardian
American and Iraqi forces yesterday detained a group of men suspected of abducting and murdering the British aid worker Margaret Hassan last year.
The arrests followed three days of bombings and shootings by insurgents, which claimed at least 116 lives and wounded dozens more in a bloody first few days for the new government
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1474669,00.html
'His authority was extraordinary. He was charming' - Hitler's nurse on his final hours
Survivor of bunker tells of admiration for Goebbels' wife and hatred for Eva Braun
Read a transcript of the interview with Erna Flegel
Luke Harding in Berlin
Monday May 2, 2005
The Guardian
She is the last witness. For 60 years, Erna Flegal said nothing about her starring role in the Third Reich. Her family knew that in the last, desperate weeks of the second world war she had lived in Berlin. But she never spoke of her job as Hitler's nurse and of her time in the Führer's Berlin bunker.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/secondworldwar/story/0,14058,1474601,00.html
THE MORE CONTROVERSY Bush/Cheney can create, the more turmoil over ANY issue. The dialogue must go forward without the USA.
Deadlock looms over spread of nuclear arms
Rift between America and Iran threatens to stymie attempts to update non-proliferation treaty
Julian Borger in Washington
Monday May 2, 2005
The Guardian
The global spread of nuclear weapons is at stake today as delegates from 190 countries convene in an attempt to salvage the 1970 non-proliferation treaty, but the chances of success look dim.
The rift between nuclear and non-nuclear states, and between the US and Iran in particular, is so serious that a final agenda had still not been agreed on the eve of the month-long conference in New York, despite frantic shuttle diplomacy by its Brazilian chairman, Sergio de Queiroz Duarte.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,12858,1474609,00.html
Russian moguls eye up Rover ruins
The owner of Volga cars and the 'baby oligarch' behind TVR could be interested in Longbridge assets
Mark Milner, industrial editor
Monday May 2, 2005
The Guardian
The future of MG Rover could be decided in Russia following reports that administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers have received approaches from metals mogul Oleg Deripaska and Nikolai Smolenski, owner of sports carmaker TVR.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/cars/story/0,15383,1474757,00.html
Children's diet link to disorders
Study shows dramatic effect of fish oil supplement
Felicity Lawrence
Monday May 2, 2005
The Guardian
British children are suffering behavioural and learning disorders because their diets are deficient in vital nutrients needed for their brains to function normally, a study reveals today.
http://society.guardian.co.uk/children/story/0,1074,1474691,00.html
Negative campaign a turn-off for voters
Research highlights lack of tabloid coverage of election
Owen Gibson, media correspondent
Monday May 2, 2005
The Guardian
The tone of campaigning during this election has been the most "personalised and negative" to date, according to new analysis of television and newspaper coverage.
Even the Liberal Democrats, whose leader, Charles Kennedy, repeatedly claimed he would rise above the negative sparring, have been predominantly featured attacking their rivals.
http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,14173,1474748,00.html
Meditation 'leads to longer life'
David Adam, science correspondent
Monday May 2, 2005
The Guardian
The Beatles were right: researchers have found that hanging out with the Maharishi may make you live longer.
A new study shows that transcendental meditation, a relaxation technique developed by the Indian guru and made famous when the fab four dabbled with it in the late 60s, can reduce death rates by nearly a quarter.
Robert Schneider, who led the research, said: "The study found that in older people with mild high blood pressure, those practising transcendental meditation had a 23% lower risk of death from all causes."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/science/story/0,12996,1474549,00.html
The Cheney Observer - some are 'dated' but an odd look back about 100 days ago
Jeb Bush Hires Writer Who Left Paper After Sex-Harassment, Plagiary Charge
By E&P Staff
Published: January 07, 2005 2:15 PM ET
NEW YORK Just days after Florida Gov. Jeb Bush fired a top official over sexual-harassment allegations, Bush's office confirmed it has hired Lloyd Brown, former editorial-page editor of the Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville, who resigned from the paper in November following public allegations of sexual harassment and plagiarism.
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000748621
Jeb Bush and election 2008
JIMMY HALL Contributing Columnist
January 10, 2005
Many editorialists and columnists, myself included, have already begun speculating about the 2008 Presidential Election. To read what we've written, it would appear to be a slam dunk that either former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani or Arizona Sen. John McCain will square-off against New York Senator Hillary R. Clinton in the general election. Are we really so sure? No, we aren't.
Amid the 'what ifs,' one scenario is receiving surprisingly little attention. What about another Bush versus Clinton contest? It could happen, and it would be interesting.
http://www.gsusignal.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/01/10/41e1ef9d8ebaa
Governor Jeb Bush outlines Medicaid reform proposal
By MICHAEL PELTIER, mpeltier1234@comcast.net
January 12, 2005
TALLAHASSEE — Calling Florida's Medicaid system an expensive yet "inflexible maze," Gov. Jeb Bush on Tuesday proposed allowing private insurers to manage much of the $15 billion health-care program.
Flanked by health-care officials, Bush unveiled a package of reforms that make fundamental changes to the state/federal safety net now serving about 2.2 million of the state's elderly and low-income residents.
http://www.naplesnews.com/npdn/news/article/0,2071,NPDN_14940_3463779,00.html
TennCare Cuts Benefits for 700,000+
Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen has announced he will be slashing TennCare coverage for adults, according to Anita Wadhwani in “The Tennessean.” The cuts will drop the expected increase in TennCare spending from an additional $650 million to just $75 million. Altogether, the program will drop 323,000 adults, and nearly 400,000 other enrollees will have their benefits limited. The article quotes the governor as saying, “When this is all done and over, we should still end up with one of the broadest, most generous [Medicaid] programs in the country.” Enrollees being dropped from the program will have only 30 days to find other coverage. Tennessee has been paying only one-third of the cost with the rest picked up by the federal government.
SOURCE: www.tennessean.com
Clinton Thinks TennCare is Just Swell
TennCare has been a nightmare, not only from a fiscal point of view, but for enrollees as well. The people of Tennessee would have been better off had it never been adopted because they would have continued their private coverage.
Now they have only 30 days to find private coverage, and many of them are likely now to be uninsurable. But former President Bill Clinton is undeterred. “The Tennessean” reported just before Christmas that Mr. Clinton thinks the program is just swell and only needs to be federalized. And former Vice-President and Tennessee Senator Al Gore blames TennCare’s problems on President Bush. “TennCare was sandbagged by failure at the national level to deal with health care,” he maintains.
SOURCE: www.tennessean.com
Jeb Bush Proposes Health Accounts in Medicaid
In Florida, Governor Jeb Bush is also tackling the problem of Medicaid costs, which are expected to consume one-third of the state budget by 2009. An article in "The News-Press” quotes him as saying, “We want to empower the people in the Medicaid program to control their own health care, to choose their coverage, their doctors and their treatments.”
He would privatize the system by providing a risk-adjusted premium to each recipient who would then shop for coverage from private vendors. The article says that “Bush’s plan would let some patients set up their own health care accounts, and is designed to persuade more specialty providers to take Medicaid patients.” The program covers 2.2 million individuals and costs the state $14 billion.
SOURCE: www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2005501120454
New Hampshire HHS Commissioner Wants HSAs in Medicaid
Florida is not the only state looking at health accounts for Medicaid recipients. The Commissioner of Health and Human Services in New Hampshire has an “ambitious plan to reform Medicaid that would … give low-income families a health savings account for their children’s care,” according to the "Nashua Telegraph." Commissioner John Stephen estimates that his plan, combined with restrictions on nursing home admissions, would save the state $13 million over two years, but the savings would grow to $142 million by 2010. The concept was supported by out-going Governor Craig Benson, but attacked by Governor-elect John Lynch during the campaign. More recently, the governor-elect has said he would consider the idea.
SOURCE: http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050106/NEWS01/101060090/-1/news
South Carolina Proposes HSAs in Medicaid
South Carolina predates Florida and New Hampshire in looking at HSAs and Medicaid. Writing in "The Post and Courier"
on November 20, Jonathan Maze reports that “South Carolina’s Medicaid agency is proposing a major overhaul of the government health care program by giving recipients a limited number of dollars each year over which they would have direct control.” The article says that Commissioner Robert Kerr “would give most of the state’s 850,000 Medicaid recipients a debit card good to use for doctor visits and prescription drugs.” He said the program could save money by “turning Medicaid recipients into smarter health care consumers,” and lowering administrative costs. Mr. Kerr says that Governor Mark Sanford would like to see the changes “tomorrow.” But he acknowledges there are “lots of things we don’t know. What we do know is that if we don’t talk about it, we won’t move anywhere.”
SOURCE: archives.postandcourier.com
Maine’s DirigoChoice Enrollment Only One-Third of Expected
Meanwhile, Maine’s DirigoChoice plan “is confusing for both employers and employees,” according to The Maine Heritage Policy Center. In the Winter, 2005 issue of DirigoWatch, the Center reports only 2,700 people have enrolled as of January, as compared to a projection of 8,267 by the state. Why so few? Well, for one thing the coverage is expensive, costing from $4,666 for a $250 deductible to $3,718 for a $1250 deductible. That is for a single employee.
The employer is required to pay $2,231 of that with either taxpayers or the worker making up the difference. The program is bafflingly complex with income-based benefit structures (the higher the income, the lower the benefits).
So each person at a work site could have a different set of benefits as determined, not by the consumer, but by the state. The tax subsidies are based on total household income and assets, requiring workers to reveal to a state agency great detail about their financial condition. There are also drastic marriage penalties, fertility inducements and leaps in cost as income rises. It is the kind of program only a very well-educated bureaucrat could design.
SOURCE: The newsletter is available at the Center’s web site http://www.mainepolicy.org
Maryland Legislature Overrides Malpractice Veto
In Maryland, the Democratic-controlled legislature overrode Republican Governor Bob Ehrlich’s veto of a malpractice bill that essentially taxes consumers to pay for physician malpractice premiums without doing anything significant about the underlying problem. The trial lawyers, hospitals and medical association all thought it was just swell to have taxpayers subsidize their gravy train. Watch for this model to roll out in a state near you. Other than the governor and a few out-gunned legislators, about the only voice objecting to this fleecing of taxpayers was the Maryland Public Policy Institute that released a report on malpractice reform and has written a number of op-eds as the issue progressed.
SOURCE: For a "Baltimore Sun" article on the veto override -- http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/politics/bal-te.md.assembly12jan12,1,2804538.story?coll=bal-home-headlines
For a copy of the MPPI report, go to their web site at http://www.mdpolicy.org
For an example of an op-ed on the issue, go to -- http://www.herald-mail.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=101186&format=print
State Policy Network – Essential Resource
In the two stories above, the role of the local free-market think tank has been essential. They are able to stay on top of these important and potentially nationally significant developments far better than any national group can, and they can provide a detailed analysis of the issue that can help people in other states deal with it when it rears its ugly head. Both of these groups are members of the State Policy Network, which helps launch similar organizations and provides essential expertise on fundraising, management, networking, and issues resources. Be sure to check out the SPN website to locate the think tank nearest you. These organizations are always eager to work with people who can bring experience, expertise and contacts to the group. Many have advisory committees, boards of directors, or visiting scholars programs you might be able to tap into.
SOURCE: http://www.spn.org
AHIP Finds Half-Million in HSAs
Finally, AHIP has become one of the biggest boosters of HSAs. It has launched a web site that is terrific, and just today released a survey of its members on HSA enrollment. The number it released was 438,000 people covered by September, 2004. There are a few things to keep in mind about this number. First, it goes only to September.
It is characteristic of HSAs that enrollment will be very low in the third quarter of a year because the individual is subject to 100% of the deductible even though only a fraction can be contributed to the HSA. It is very likely that the number doubled or tripled in November and December as people got ready for the 2005 calendar year. Second, the survey is of AHIP members only and is based on responses from only 29 companies. Many (most?) Blue Cross Blue Shield companies are not AHIP members, for instance, so would not have been captured by this information. Also, many self-insured employers would not be captured here. I believe the number at year’s end is much higher than this number, possibly three times as much (1.5 million).
SOURCE: http://www.hsadecisions.org
Bush family has helped reshape GOP
By DAVE MONTGOMERY
Fort Worth (Texas) Star-Telegram
WASHINGTON - The man of the hour, of course, is George W. Bush. But, to a larger extent, his second-term inauguration today is also a family affair, another passage in a decades-long journey by one of America's most enduring political dynasties.
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/politics/10690852.htm
Jeb Bush loses appeal in right-to-die case
By James Vicini
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court has dealt a setback on Monday to Florida Governor Jeb Bush's
efforts to keep a severely brain-damaged woman on life support despite the wishes of her husband.
Without comment, the justices rejected Bush's appeal of a Florida Supreme Court ruling that struck down a state law
which had allowed him to intervene in the case of Terri Schiavo, who has been on a feeding tube since a 1990 heart
attack. Doctors have testified she is in a "persistent vegetative state."
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=143&sid=5489944
Jeb Bush talks up Florida military bases in Washington
Associated Press
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Gov. Jeb Bush led a delegation of business and retired military leaders in meetings Wednesday with top Pentagon officials and members of Florida's congressional delegation as part of a mission to save the state's military bases from possible closure or downsizing.
Protecting the 21 installations and three unified commands during the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure, or BRAC, round is a one of Bush's core priorities.
http://www.bradenton.com/mld/bradenton/news/local/10858599.htm
Bush the Latino lover splits his party
Tony Allen-Mills, Homestead, Florida
BERNARDO VILLELA tells a story about a fellow Guatemalan immigrant who found a job in New York and prospered for more than a decade until he was recently involved in a car accident. When the police discovered that he had no driver’s licence and had entered the country illegally, deportation proceedings began.
...Just as Bill Clinton liked to be called America’s first black president — on account of his support among African-Americans — so Bush has launched a bid to be remembered as a friend to Hispanics. But a series of measures aimed at America’s 37m Hispanics has divided the Republican party, upset immigrant activists and added a new word to Washington’s political lexicon — “hispandering”, or sucking up to Latinos.
At a recent White House lunch, Bush was introduced to a Mexican businesswoman who has just become engaged to one of his old friends from Texas — Antonio Garza, the US ambassador to Mexico.
Bush stumbled over the future Mrs Garza’s name — which was excusable, given that her name is Maria Asuncion Aramburuzabala. Perhaps less excusable was that Bush did not know that she is the billionaire owner of Mexico’s Corona beer empire and the country’s richest woman.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2089-1481765,00.html
Jordan fears loss of US favour
By Jon Leyne
BBC News, Amman
Jordan has not always been talking Washington's language recently
Of all America's allies in the Arab world, Jordan must surely be one of the closest and most trusted - or so it seemed until recently.
But all that has changed, and King Abdullah's government does not seem to know what to do about it.
Things came to a head after an incident in Salt - a small town just outside the capital with a reputation for sending its sons to take part in the Iraqi insurgency.
Last month the family of one of them, Raed al-Banna, held three days of mourning following his death as a suicide bomber in Iraq.
It was thought, probably wrongly, that he carried out the massacre in Hilla in which 125 people died.
The event caused a rupture in Jordan's relations with Iraq and led the US to question if Jordan really was such a reliable ally.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4472833.stm
I love this one. Foreign governments need to worry about fossil fuel consumption but the USA doesn't. Real good.
Bush calls for efficient use of fossil fuels
Sridhar Krishnaswami
WASHINGTON: Driving home the importance of reducing dependence on imported oil, the U.S. President, George W. Bush, said that one of the ways this could be achieved was by helping growing energy consumers overseas like China and India to use energy more efficiently.
At a prime time press conference at the White House, the President argued that the "root causes" of the current oil price rise would have to be addressed.
http://www.hindu.com/2005/05/02/stories/2005050201121500.htm
Federal salaries go up in US
AGENCIES
[ FRIDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2004 09:50:45 AM]
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TEXAS: President George W Bush has spelled out in greater detail the pay raise that takes effect January 1 for federal workers, members of Congress, judges _ even Vice President Dick Cheney.
Congress passed the pay raises earlier this year, but Bush was required to sign an executive order detailing the pay hikes before the end of the year. He did so Thursday. The president's annual salary of $400,000 is not affected by the legislation.
The cost-of-living raise lifts salaries for members of the House and Senate from $158,000 this year to $162,100 in 2005. The measure provides civil servants with 3.5 per cent raises _ the same that military personnel will receive next year.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/976783.cms
JON CARROLL
So many stories in the newspaper right now are looking back on the dreadful and yet terrible year 2004, with critical appraisals and timelines and the usual hoorah. I decided to step it up a notch and look back on the year 2005, so that we can all experience pre-need nostalgia.
The Iraq elections: The January "Depressed Voter Turnout Due to Carnage" election was swiftly followed by the February "Give the Sunnis an Even Break" election, followed by the April "Hey, the Shiites Are the Majority; Is This a Democracy or What?" election, followed by the June "The Kurds Are Really Mad Now" elections, followed by the August "Everyone Is Resigning; Why Not Vote for Yourself?" elections, followed by the November "The Hell With It; Let's Elect an American" elections, which finally installed Colin Powell as the new president of Iraq. Powell pledged to "continue the policies of my predecessors. "
...This drastic step had last been taken more than 30 years ago, when all announcements from the Pentagon about the war in Vietnam were also declared "beyond parody." Then, the triggering mechanism had been the statement "We are destroying this village in order to save it."
He lives, he lives!: In October, doctors announced the transplanting of an entirely different man into the body of Cheney. The man, whose name was not revealed, was said to be healthy and in his mid-30s. The White House press office said that the "newish" vice president would continue to vigorously support the president's policies.
"Cheney" was said to enjoy racquetball, scuba diving and sexual contact with multiple partners.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/12/31/DDGAB9AEE21.DTL
Tasers pose potentially lethal danger to heart, doctor warns
By SABIN RUSSELL
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
When 50,000 volts of electricity from a Taser surge across the body, it can instantly incapacitate a person -- more safely than a blow from a police baton or a blast of pepper spray, its manufacturer contends.
But cardiologists are concerned that, in certain cases, the device might also interrupt the rhythm of the human heart, throwing it into a potentially fatal chaotic state known as ventricular fibrillation.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/health/207168_tasers10.html
Commentary: Iraq war forum needed some different perspectives
2005-01-10
By Terry Smith
Athens NEWS Editor
It's too bad planners of Thursday's forum on Iraq -- "whether we should stay or go" -- couldn't have rounded up some diversity of opinion. Whether for the organizers' want of effort or just bad luck, the event unwound like an argument between shades of the same color. None of the other colors showed up.
The discussion featured well-meaning, intelligent people -- some of Athens' best and brightest. But nobody arrived to represent the Bush/Cheney end of things, much less the fickle mainstream that throws around so much weight.
http://www.athensnews.com/issue/article.php3?story_id=19357
Reno lawyer attempting to sue President Bush over Iraq war
A retired Reno attorney is attempting to sue President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney over the war in Iraq.
Attorney Doug Wallace says he filed the suit in US District Court last Friday. His suit alleges that the president and vice president have acted outside the scope of their jobs in waging a war against Iraq.
Wallace claims the two entered into a private treaty without the approval of Congress.
http://www.krnv.com/Global/story.asp?S=2819947&nav=8faOVHlL
Nevada couple among top donors to Bush inauguration
(01-19) 15:19 PST WASHINGTON (AP) --
Sheldon Adelson, who owns The Venetian hotel-casino in Las Vegas, and his wife, Dr. Miriam Ochshorn Adelson, are among the major donors to the committee organizing President Bush's inauguration.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2005/01/19/state1819EST0118.DTL
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