USA Tank lost, in Najaf instead of Afghanistan.

A Father Transformed by Anguish

Scars Define the Man Who Burned Himself After Son's Death in Iraq

By David Finkel
Washington Post Staff WriterSunday, January 16, 2005; Page A01

BOSTON -- Another day of trying to recover.

Once again, Carlos Arredondo, whose reaction to the death of his son became one of the iconic images of the Iraq war, is reading the last e-mail he received from him. "I'm in najaf," the e-mail from Marine Lance Cpl. Alexander Scott Arredondo begins, and those three words are enough to make a 44-year-old father once again feel as though he is on fire.

Without Commercial Interruption

Laura in the Pink


Laura Bush Defends Gala in Time of War and Disaster
By ANNE E. KORNBLUT
Published: January 15, 2005

WASHINGTON, Jan. 14 - With less than a week to go until her husband's second inauguration, Laura Bush on Friday defended the decision to hold the $40 million celebration as planned despite a war abroad and the tsunami disaster in the Indian Ocean.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/15/politics/15laura.html

Bush inauguration comes with hefty price tag

Washington — It will take President George W. Bush less than a minute to take the oath of office next Thursday, but before the inaugural events are over some $40-million (U.S.) may be spent on parades, parties and pyrotechnics.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20050113.winaugcosts0113/BNStory/International/
Laura Bush insists the inauguration must go on

Though some call the event too extravagant for a troubled time, she upholds tradition
By JULIE MASON
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON - First lady Laura Bush on Friday defended next week's extravagant, $40 million presidential inauguration, saying even in times of war and devastation, the nation's symbols and ceremonies should be honored.

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/politics/2993189

Osama bin Laden. A Little Older. A Little Victorious. 

The World Trade Center

World Trade Towers

Photo, newly constructed World Trade Center towers at dusk, before Battery Park City.
by Minoru Yamasaki, at New York, New York, 1966 to 1977. Demolished by terrorist attack on September 11, 2001.

Dick Cheney


Analysis: Powell Lacked Clout With Bush

GEORGE GEDDA
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - The secretary of state often is described as the president's principal foreign policy adviser, but the definition does not always match reality. Certainly not in the case of Colin Powell.

Pasted from <http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/local/10652638.htm>

CHENEY MAY CHANGE THE FACE OF THE VICE PRESIDENCY
Sat Jan 15, 7:59 PM ET
By David M. Shribman
Dick Cheney (news - web sites) is the reason American politics is about to get more and more interesting.

Cheney is, of course, the vice president. He and President Bush (news - web sites) are about to begin their second terms. Since Richard M. Nixon won the Republican presidential nomination in 1960, the vice president has been expected to run for president. The principal exceptions have been Spiro T. Agnew and Nelson A. Rockefeller.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1316&ncid=742&e=13&u=/ucds/20050116/cm_ucds/cheneymaychangethefaceofthevicepresidency

UN told of US weaknesses in handling Iraqi oil

UNITED NATIONS: US handling of Iraq’s oil money after the defeat of Saddam Hussein was marked by weaknesses including problems tracking oil production and cash, a watchdog told the UN Security Council on Friday, diplomats said.
The criticisms follow accusations by US policymakers that the United Nations mismanaged a separate oil-for-food program for Iraq under Saddam. “These shortcomings (in the US management) have to be kept in mind when we judge the management of other programs such as oil-for-food,” said one council diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_16-1-2005_pg4_3

U.S. defends management of Iraq's oil revenue after war against charges of poor management
EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press Writer

(01-14) 17:09 PST UNITED NATIONS (AP) --
At a time when U.S. officials have strongly criticized the management of the U.N. oil-for-food program in Iraq, the United States on Friday had to defend its own management of Iraq's oil revenue against charges of poor administration.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2005/01/14/international2009EST0739.DTL

Death Without Honors
For the families of contractors working in the outsourced Iraq war, there are no presidential letters or 21-gun salutes -- only shock and grief.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-contractors15jan15,0,6512607.story?coll=la-home-headlines

Halliburton: Court Orders Access to Suspects' Account

January 13, 2005
Posted to the web January 13, 2005
Mike Oduniyi
Lagos

An Abuja High Court has ruled that the House of Representatives Committee on Public Petition, currently investigating the alleged payment of $180 million bribe by Halliburton and TSKJ consortium for LNG contracts, be allowed access to the accounts of some of the suspects in the bribe scandal.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200501130698.html

Halliburton set to begin work in Iran
By Lisa Sanders

DALLAS (CBS.MW) -- Halliburton, under investigation for its operations in Iran, is set to begin oilfield services work in that country as a subcontractor for Oriental Kish, a spokeswoman said Tuesday.

http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B9C0AE3B3-8A65-4883-97C1-0ADF2F78BBF3%7D&siteid=google&dist=google>

Halliburton Pays Dearly but Finally Escapes Cheney's Asbestos Mess

By Allan Sloan
Tuesday, January 11, 2005; Page E03

It's time for yet another Halliburton story -- but not the one you may be expecting. This isn't about the endlessly scrutinized Iraq contracting business of the big energy services company that Dick Cheney ran before he became vice president. And it's not about Halliburton's profit-boosting accounting change during Cheney's regime, or the scandals and problems currently affecting some of the firm's far-flung projects.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A64535-2005Jan10.html

Iran: Halliburton Involvement May Be Part Of Larger Diplomatic Effort

The involvement of the U.S. company Halliburton in a project to develop oil fields in Iran could be part of the larger effort to convince Iran to abandon any nuclear-weapons program it might have. That's the opinion of analysts looking at a new and controversial deal involving Halliburton and Iranian companies. U.S. law generally prohibits U.S. companies from operating in Iran, but exceptions are written into the law to allow such deals if they serve greater diplomatic ends. RFE/RL spoke to analysts to see what may be going on behind the scenes.

Washington, 11 January 2005 (RFE/RL) -- Details of the agreement are sketchy, but it likely involves a Halliburton subsidiary based outside of the United States and the Iranian companies Oriental Kish and Pars Oil and Gas.

Halliburton spokeswoman Wendy Hall yesterday appeared to distance the company from the deal. She was quoted as saying Oriental, not Halliburton, signed the main contract. Halliburton, in turn, would likely provide subcontracting services.

http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/01/e0a0a332-1150-42d1-b235-9e7198c82059.html

Osama bin Laden 

Georgie with "My Pet Goat" 

Georgie's Daddy 

Georgie and Laura with Barney 

The Civil Rights Movement Took Shape during "The Kennedy Era" even before John was president.

Bayard Rustin and Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Morning Papers - It's Origins

Rooster "Cock-A-Doodle-Do"

"Oak-He-Doe-$he. Of course one couldn't be one without the other. Amazing."

In history, January 17…

… 1706, born Benjamin Franklin, American printer, author, diplomat, and scientist.

Benjamin Franklin was the most famous American in his day. Wherever he went, crowds formed. People worldwide pictured Franklin when anyone said, "American."

http://www.ushistory.org/franklin/index.htm

… 1893, Hawaii's monarchy was overthrown as a group of businessmen and sugar planters forced Queen Liliuokalani to abdicate.

… 1899, born Al Capone, Gangster.

… 1931, born James Earl Jones, American stage and motion-picture actor, noted for his particularly deep voice. His distinctive voice has become well known through his character of Darth Vader in the films Star Wars (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Return of the Jedi (1983); as Mufasa in The Lion King (1994); and through many television commercials. He was born in Arkabutla, Mississippi. Raised in Michigan by his maternal grandparents, Jones overcame a stutter while in high school and won a scholarship at the University of Michigan, where he eventually studied drama. He moved to New York City in 1955 to pursue a stage career, and was united with his father, actor Robert Earl Jones, who had left the family before his birth. After years of playing bit parts, Jones won recognition for his performance in Jean Genet's The Blacks (1961) and in 1962 won an Obie Award (given for off-Broadway theater work) as best actor. In 1964 he appeared in Othello, by English writer William Shakespeare, for the first time, a role he repeated several times.

… 1942, born Muhammad Ali, Boxer.

… 1945, Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, credited with saving tens of thousands of Jews, disappeared in Hungary while in Soviet custody.

… 1955, the submarine USS Nautilus made its first nuclear-powered test run from its berth in Groton, Conn.

… 1961, in his farewell address, President Eisenhower warned against the rise of "the military-industrial complex."

… 1977, convicted murderer Gary Gilmore, 36, was shot by a firing squad at Utah State Prison when the ban on the capital punishment is lifted.

… 1991, Iraq launches seven SCUD missiles into Israel and Saudi Arabia after coalition forces began massive air strikes.

… 1994, a 6.7 magnitude earthquake struck Southern California, killing at least 61 people and causing $20 billion worth of damage.

… 1999, United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan recommends that the UN pull its peacekeeping forces out of Angola as civil.

… 2000, decrying the Confederate flag as a symbol of slavery and racism, nearly 50,000 people marched to South Carolina's Statehouse on Martin Luther King Day to demand the banner be taken down.

Michael Moore Today

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. addresses marchers during his "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. Aug. 28, 1963.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/

Martin Luther King Day 2005: A Day On, Not a Day Off; Americans nationwide honor Dr. King's legacy by serving others

WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 /U.S. Newswire/ -- For hundreds of thousands of Americans across the country, January 17 will be a day "on" for service-not just a day off from work-as they honor Martin Luther King Jr. by engaging in service activities for their communities and neighbors.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=982

National memorial to Martin Luther King still short of funds

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States marks the birthday of Martin Luther King, as a private group struggles to gather funds to raise a monument to the slain civil rights leader among Washington's landmark memorials.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=985

Beyond Elections; Dr. King's Teachings on Strategy and Tactics

By Paul Rockwell / Common Dreams
According to Arundhati Roy, "There is no discussion taking place in the world today that is more crucial than the debate about strategies of resistance."

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=983

From The Seattle Post Intelligencer

Russia protests summary box

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WHO: Thousands of Russian retirees and military veterans.

WHY: On Jan. 1 the government replaced welfare benefits like free public transportation and medicine with monthly stipends.

WHERE: The demonstrations have focused lately on St. Petersburg, but have occurred nationwide and spread Sunday to Samara and Sevastopol.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apeurope_story.asp?category=1103&slug=Russia%20Protests%20Summary%20Box

The Moscow Times

Benefit Protests Bring Concessions

By Oksana Yablokova
Staff Writer
Alexander Demianchuk / Reuters
A woman gesturing at a rally Sunday in St. Petersburg, where thousands of pensioners blocked the city center to protest the swap from Soviet-era benefits to cash payments.
As the biggest protests yet against the ending of Soviet-era benefits hit President Vladimir Putin's hometown of St. Petersburg, Health and Social Development Minister Mikhail Zurabov on Sunday promised nationwide help for pensioners with transport fares.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/01/17/001.html

Government Makes Mess of Reforms

With the protests against the monetarization of benefits showing no sign of fizzling out, the federal government seems slowly to be getting the message that something needs to be done.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/01/17/005.html

Goodbye to Benefits, Even for the President

One day, Vladimir Vladimirovich™ Putin was headed to work at the Kremlin. His long limousine flew swiftly over the icy asphalt. Around the presidential limo ran the jeeps of his bodyguards, the jeeps' blue sirens flashing. Right in the middle of the road stood a bunch of pensioners.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/01/17/009.html

The Washington Post

Seamounts Offer Marine Life Peaks of Viands

By Cheryl Lyn Dybas
Special to The Washington Post
Monday, January 17, 2005; Page A06

"Hic sunt dracones," warned the black "X" on many an ancient mariner's map, marking spots in the unknown depths where dragons or serpents were thought to lurk. Since Plato's long-ago tale of the sunken island of Atlantis, humans have wondered whether lost worlds, teeming with life, might lie hidden in the ocean deeps.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A14272-2005Jan16?language=printer

Rice Goes From the Inside to The Front
State Nominee May Face Tough Transition

By Glenn Kessler
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, January 17, 2005; Page A01

National security adviser Condoleezza Rice flew into Jerusalem on June 28, 2003, and immediately rushed to a meeting on the West Bank with Palestinian officials. During the session at a Jericho hotel, a rapt Rice watched a flashy PowerPoint presentation on a security fence being built by the Israelis that had begun to encroach on Palestinian lands.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A14268-2005Jan16?language=printer

The Long Road Out of Lake Charles
Wilbert Rideau, Convicted Three Times for a 1961 Killing, Goes Free

By Wil Haygood
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, January 17, 2005; Page A01

LAKE CHARLES, La. -- It ended in the night, much as it had begun nearly 44 years ago.
In 1961, a young black man named Wilbert Rideau kidnapped three whites and shot and stabbed one of them to death after a bank robbery in this town with the sweet-sounding name.
Late Saturday night, a mixed-race jury found Rideau -- who had been convicted of murder three times by all-white juries -- guilty of manslaughter. That allowed him to walk out of prison a free man because he had already served nearly twice the maximum sentence for that crime. The verdict ended a decades-long ordeal for a man who had gained fame as a prison journalist, winning the prestigious George Polk and Robert F. Kennedy awards and sharing an Academy Award nomination for a documentary film.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A14560-2005Jan16?language=printer

For One Contractor, A Road Too Hard Peril Eclipsed Pay On Iraq Supply Job

By Jackie Spinner
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, January 17, 2005; Page A01

BURNET, Tex. -- At night, after their work was finished and the desert moon had risen over their camp, some of the civilian truckers who hauled military supplies across Iraq would gather at their base in Kuwait and watch videos.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A14325-2005Jan16?language=printer

Gay Rights Groups Map Common Agenda

Priorities Include Right to Marry, Ending Restrictions on Military Service
By Evelyn Nieves
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, January 17, 2005; Page A03
The November elections seemed to spell trouble for the gay equal rights movement, what with 11 new state laws banning same-sex marriages and wins for social conservatives in Congress.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A14261-2005Jan16?language=printer

The Sydney Morning Herald

Toll tops 175,000 as Lanka adds thousands
January 17, 2005

Asia's tsunami death toll topped 175,000 on Monday as officials in Sri Lanka said the more they cleared up, the more bodies they found.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Asia-Tsunami/Toll-tops-175000-as-Lanka-adds-thousands/2005/01/17/1105810837214.html

Denmark warns of imminent attack in Aceh
January 17, 2005 - 10:19PM

Denmark's Foreign Ministry issued a warning to Danes in Indonesia's Aceh province to be on the alert for what it feared could be an "imminent terror attack on foreign relief workers".
"Several countries had received this warning and we in Denmark have decided that the source and the content of the warning were sufficient to go out with it," Niels-Erik Andersen, of the Foreign Ministry's security section, said.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Breaking-News/Denmark-warns-of-imminent-attack-in-Aceh/2005/01/17/1105810845630.html

Hill commits troops to Aceh
January 17, 2005 - 8:44PM

Defence Minister Robert Hill committed Australian troops to staying in tsunami-hit Aceh as long as Indonesia wanted them and as long as there was work to do.
Indonesia's top general in the devastated region praised the Australian relief contribution.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Breaking-News/Hill-commits-troops-to-Aceh/2005/01/17/1105810841612.html

Super fertility - it's very European
January 18, 2005

A region in the human genome that appears to promote fertility among Europeans has been discovered by researchers in Iceland.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Health/Super-fertility--its-very-European/2005/01/17/1105810845681.html

Maternity unit fails to deliver
By Ruth Pollard, Health Reporter
January 18, 2005

A dramatic decrease in births at Camden Hospital has prompted another government-commissioned review of the troubled maternity unit, nine months after it was given a clean bill of health to continue delivering babies.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Health/Maternity-unit-fails-to-deliver/2005/01/17/1105810845506.html

PM's wife taken to hospital
January 17, 2005 - 9:44PM

The Prime Minister's wife, Janette Howard, was taken to hospital but it is unclear exactly what was wrong with Australia's first lady.
A spokesman for Prime Minister John Howard, who is on annual leave, confirmed Mrs Howard, 60, had been taken to Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney on Monday for some routine tests.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Breaking-News/PMs-wife-taken-to-hospital/2005/01/17/1105810844442.html

Korean deaf team bashed at their hotel
By Selma Milovanovic
January 18, 2005

The South Korean Deaflympic team won seven gold medals in Melbourne, but its athletes and officials are leaving Australia shocked after a violent attack left their team leader in hospital.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Korean-deaf-team-bashed-at-their-hotel/2005/01/17/1105810848170.html


Ukraine election appeal hearing starts
January 17, 2005 - 9:19PM

The Ukraine Supreme Court began hearings on Monday on what appeared to be the last appeal by former prime minister Viktor Yanukovich over alleged fraud in the presidential election he lost to Ukrainian opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/Breaking-News/Ukraine-election-appeal-hearing-starts/2005/01/17/1105810842866.html

Mandela supports anti-poverty plan
By Patrick Wintour
January 18, 2005

A grieving Nelson Mandela threw his weight behind a proposed "Marshall plan" for tackling poverty and debt in Africa, saying he would travel to London next month to lobby a meeting of G7 finance ministers.
Mr Mandela formally retired from public life last year, but held a press conference last week to reveal that his son had died of AIDS.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Mandela-supports-antipoverty-plan/2005/01/17/1105810846412.html

Water rise imperils pharaohs' temples
January 18, 2005

Cairo: Egypt has launched a rescue plan to drain off water from the Nile threatening two pharaonic temples in the Luxor region in the south of the country.
The river's water table had risen due to extensive irrigation of nearby fields, placing the Karnak and Luxor temples in imminent danger, said the Supreme Council of Antiquities, which is responsible for Egypt's historical monuments.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Water-rise-imperils-pharaohs-temples/2005/01/17/1105810846415.html

continued...

Morning Papers - continued...

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Morning Papers - concluding

One Last Scene of the Asian Tsunami. Let's hope it is exactly that.


Japan Today

Japan to host 'good neighbor' orientation for U.S. military officers

Monday, January 17, 2005 at 05:56 JST
TOKYO — The Japanese Foreign Ministry will host a three-day orientation program this week for about 20 U.S. military officers who have recently begun their stints in Japan to help deepen "good neighbor" ties between U.S. forces in Japan and Japanese citizens.
The annual orientation program, which will start Tuesday, began in December 1995 in the wake of a public outcry over a rape on Sept 4 that year of a 12-year-old schoolgirl by three U.S. servicemen in Okinawa.

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=1&id=324879

Photojournalist, peace activist Matsushige dies at 92
Monday, January 17, 2005 at 09:59 JST
TOKYO — Yoshito Matsushige, photojournalist and peace activist, famous for his photos of Hiroshima taken shortly after the U.S. atomic bombing at the end of World War II, died of acute kidney failure at a hospital in the city Sunday, his family said Monday. He was 92.

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=1&id=324910

Thousands observe 10th anniversary of Great Hanshin Earthquake
Monday, January 17, 2005 at 16:29 JST

Kobe citizens pray before candles in a park Monday morning.
KOBE — Numerous events were held in Kobe and its vicinity Monday morning to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Great Hanshin Earthquake which took the lives of 6,433 people.

Under a cold drizzle, thousands of participants in a memorial service at Higashi Park in central Kobe lit about 6,433 candles, forming the shape of "1-17," before observing a moment of silence at 5:46 a.m., the time the temblor struck the southern Hyogo Prefecture region on Jan 17, 1995.

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=1&id=324900

62% of Kobe quake victims seek more support
Monday, January 17, 2005 at 07:24 JST
KOBE — Sixty-two percent of the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake survivors want continued or expanded support to rebuild their lives despite the planned end of the Hyogo prefectural goverment's reconstruction program, according to a Kyodo News survey conducted on the occasion of the quake's 10th anniversary.

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=1&id=324899

Japan drafts remote island defense plan out of China concern
Monday, January 17, 2005 at 07:56 JST
TOKYO — Japan has prepared a plan to defend the southern remote islands off Kyushu and Okinawa from possible invasion amid rising security concerns about China, according to papers obtained Sunday by Kyodo News.

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=1&id=324859

SDF peacekeeping mission at Golan Heights extended
Monday, January 17, 2005 at 16:25 JST
TOKYO — The government decided Monday to extend the participation of Japanese troops in a U.N. peacekeeping mission at the Golan Heights another six months.
The decision follows a U.N. Security Council resolution in December to extend the mission of the U.N. Disengagement Observer Force at the Golan Heights, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said. As a result, 43 Self-Defense Forces troops will continue their mission until Sept 30, Hosoda said. (Kyodo News)

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=1&id=324960

Japan backs Abbas with $60 mil aid package to Palestinians

Monday, January 17, 2005 at 07:56 JST
RAMALLAH, West Bank — Japan on Sunday threw its full support behind the new Palestinian leadership under President Mahmoud Abbas and announced a new $60 million aid package to the Palestinian Authority. Visiting Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura revealed the aid plan in a meeting with Abbas, who won the Jan. 9 presidential election.

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=9&id=324880

U.S. forces key to containing China

Writing in this month's issue of Voice magazine, Kyoto University Professor Terumasa Nakanishi says the redistribution of U.S. forces is an opportunity to contain China.

Nakanishi says that the United States is calling its redistribution of forces a "transformation" and has set out on a historic realignment of forces that goes beyond the movement of troops and bases.

While one result of this undertaking will be that U.S. forces are withdrawn from Europe and Asia, this does not signal a return to isolationism, Nakanishi notes.

He explores three factors he says make possible a strategic shift: (1) The overall development of information technology allows global strategic management to be conducted from inside the United States. (2) Referring to the reorganization as a "shift in line with the fight against terrorism" provides political cover. (3) The United States is developing new allies in both Europe and Asia.

Pointing to the fact that the headquarters of the U.S. Army's I Corps will be moved from Fort Lewis, Washington, to Camp Zama, Japan, and that portions of the U.S. military command center in Germany will be transferred to Britain, Nakanishi asserts that the United States is placing priority not on multilateral alliances but on the U.S.-Britain and Japan-US bilateral alliances.

He argues that for Japan, taking this opportunity to strengthen the Japan-U.S. alliance is the only way to prevent China from becoming a superpower and establishing hegemony. (Foreign Press Center)

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=kuchikomi&id=327

The New York Times

I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THIS. It is a MORE common phenomina that the corals evacuate their algae and that is what coral bleaching is all about. There has been discoveries of algae more resistant to heat but not THAT much more resistant. This is a far cry from being a 'cure' to Global Warming.

As the Seas Warm, Algae Help Some Coral Stand Up to the Heat
By CORNELIA DEAN
Published: December 21, 2004

KEY LARGO, Fla. - For some time, scientists have predicted that the world's coral reefs will be among the first ecosystems to suffer devastating damage from global warming. Some reefs, however, are proving surprisingly resilient, researchers say, not because of qualities of the corals themselves, but because of heat-tolerant algae that live with them.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/21/science/21cora.html?ex=1106110800&en=fddba400605f351f&ei=5070

Big Arctic Perils Seen in Warming, Survey Finds
By ANDREW C. REVKIN
Published: October 30, 2004

A comprehensive four-year study of warming in the Arctic shows that heat-trapping gases from tailpipes and smokestacks around the world are contributing to profound environmental changes, including sharp retreats of glaciers and sea ice, thawing of permafrost and shifts in the weather, the oceans and the atmosphere.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/30/science/earth/30arctic.html?ex=1106110800&en=10cd55e76caa62e3&ei=5070

Sharon Orders New Crackdown on Gaza Factions
By GREG MYRE
Published: January 17, 2005

GAZA, Monday, Jan. 17 - In a blunt warning to the new Palestinian leader, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel said Sunday that he had given the military orders to act "without restrictions" against Palestinian factions that have stepped up attacks in the roiling Gaza Strip.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/17/international/middleeast/17mideast.html?hp&ex=1106024400&en=a9a9c8868815f52a&ei=5094&partner=homepage

How Top Spies in Ukraine Changed the Nation's Path
By C. J. CHIVERS
Published: January 17, 2005

KIEV, Ukraine, Jan. 16 - As protests here against a rigged presidential election overwhelmed the capital last fall, an alarm sounded at Interior Ministry bases outside the city. It was just after 10 p.m. on Nov. 28.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/17/international/europe/17ukraine.html?hp&ex=1106024400&en=2e1aa5aa4131bb4d&ei=5094&partner=homepage

Rebels Express Thanks for Aid to Indonesians
By IAN FISHER
Published: January 17, 2005

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia, Jan. 16 - The rebel, dressed in military fatigues and carrying a cellphone and an old Kalashnikov, had a message for the scores of foreigners who have come here to help after the tsunami: You are welcome, and we will not hurt you.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/17/international/worldspecial4/17rebels.html?hp&ex=1106024400&en=2fd8aff24865d691&ei=5094&partner=homepage

Unmarried Fathers Gain Tax Incentive in Pataki Proposal
By LESLIE KAUFMAN
Published: January 17, 2005

Gov. George E. Pataki will unveil a program this week that would make New York the first state in the nation to use tax credits, along with other incentives, intended to motivate low-income fathers to work and pay child support, according to state officials.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/17/nyregion/17dads.html

New Jersey Faces Tough Competition for Stem Cell Scientists
By LAURA MANSNERUS
Published: January 17, 2005

TRENTON, Jan. 14 - While the federal government has sharply limited research on embryonic stem cells, casting it as a moral issue, governors around the country are moving aggressively to push the research forward, spending millions, seeking to lure top scientists to their states and planning state-of-the-art research facilities.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/17/nyregion/17cell.html

If YOU WANT to read about Zhao Ziyang's passing do it here at The New York Times because you won't find it in The China Daily.

Purged Chinese Party Chief Zhao Ziyang Dies
By REUTERS
Published: January 17, 2005
Filed at 7:01 a.m. ET
BEIJING (Reuters) - Zhao Ziyang, a Chinese reformist toppled as Communist Party chief in 1989 for opposing an army crackdown on the Tiananmen Square democracy protests, died in hospital Monday, his family said. He was 85.

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/international/international-china-zhao.html

The China Daily

UK, China unite in hi-tech research
By Cui Ning (China Daily)
Updated: 2005-01-17 22:14
Energy, electronics, stem cell studies and space and aviation sciences are major fields for scientific co-operation between China and the United Kingdom.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-01/17/content_409784.htm

Fall of POW camp wall leads to outcry
(China Daily)
Updated: 2005-01-17 22:51
Destruction of parts of a World War II-era concentration camp in Shenyang, built by Japanese invaders to house allied prisoners of war, has raised an outcry from angered local residents and historical researchers.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-01/17/content_409788.htm

China Eastern unveils uniforms for direct flight attendants

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-01/17/content_409767.htm

YOU FIND MEMORIAL TO HIM in The Taiwan Edition either.

Mainland, Taiwan clinch deal on direct flights
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-01-15 23:05
The Chinese mainland and Taiwan reached a landmark deal on Saturday to allow non-stop charter flights over the Chinese New Year holidays, a move which could ease tensions and improve cross-Straits ties.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-01/15/content_409347.htm

Taiwan urged to agree to festival flights
By Xing Zhigang (China Daily)
Updated: 2005-01-03 22:42
Beijing's latest push for direct charter flights across the Taiwan Straits has raised high hopes for immediate talks with Taipei in time for the upcoming travel season.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2005-01/03/content_405512.htm

SO PERHAPS it is safe to say both parts of China mutually hated Ziyang.

The Star

Finally, some good news from the Arab world
FAREED ZAKARIA
Since Sept. 11, 2001, I've written a column once a year pointing out the good news, which is that Islamic extremism is losing. The movement, in all of its variations, has been unable to garner mass support in any Muslim country.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1104521199350&call_page=TS_EditorialOpinion&call_pageid=968256290204&call_pagepath=Editorial/Opinion&pubid=968163964505&StarSource=email

An update on the `war on terror'
In order to counter groups such as Al Qaeda, the West must make better use of the `soft' power of diplomacy to accommodate Islam, and not just rely on coercive, `hard' power
JONATHAN STEVENSON
Despite U.S. government rhetoric that often suggests the West is winning the "war" on terrorism, Al Qaeda remains a highly viable and dangerous transnational terrorist network.
The U.S.-led military intervention in Iraq appears to have inspired more young Muslims to take up Osama bin Laden's cause. Perhaps the most pressing counterterrorism challenge for the U.S. and the West, then, is salvaging some positive political dividend from the fraught occupation of Iraq.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1104521199347&call_page=TS_EditorialOpinion&call_pageid=968256290204&call_pagepath=Editorial/Opinion&pubid=968163964505&StarSource=email


Darwin beats God in Red America
Schools told to remove stickers
Setback for Georgia board
TIM HARPER
WASHINGTON BUREAU
MARIETTA, Ga.—The increasingly powerful evangelical movement in the United States has been dealt a legal setback in its own backyard, in the heart of one of the most conservative counties in the American south.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1105656611315&call_page=TS_News&call_pageid=968332188492&call_pagepath=News/News&pubid=968163964505&StarSource=email&DPL=IvsNDS%2f7ChAX&tacodalogin=yes

'Bumpy' new world foreseen by CIA group
America to face more competition
China, India to be global players in 2020
KATHERINE PFLEGER SHRADER
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LANGLEY, Va.—And now, a look into the future: Al Qaeda, out; murky and scattered new terror cells, in. Hollywood, out; India's "Bollywood" in. America as sole superpower, out; China and India as world players, in.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1105656611223&call_page=TS_News&call_pageid=968332188492&call_pagepath=News/News&pubid=968163964505&StarSource=email

A safer haven, by design
Officers, volunteers unveil renovation
Space caters to victims of sex assault
TRACY HUFFMAN
CRIME REPORTER
On the third floor of police headquarters yesterday in a room where victims of sexual crimes try to recall every awful detail of their attack, Toronto police revealed a major development.
It was measured in brush strokes, soft lighting and glass sidetables.
For the past four months, Det. Const. Pamela Bruce, an experienced investigator with the sex crimes unit, has been working with other officers, volunteers and a design firm to renovate the space, which for years has looked more like an interrogation room.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1105656611118&call_page=TS_GTA&call_pageid=968350130169&call_pagepath=GTA/News&pubid=968163964505&StarSource=email

Ontario set to boost fuel cell development
Initial investment to be $3 million a year, source says Minister expected to announce
program today
TYLER HAMILTON
TECHNOLOGY REPORTER
The McGuinty government is investing in the creation of a fuel-cell innovation program that will help businesses and universities turn discoveries into commercial products.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1105656610692&call_page=TS_Ontario&call_pageid=968256289824&call_pagepath=News/Ontario&pubid=968163964505&StarSource=email

U.S. missile system operating
WASHINGTON—The Pentagon may never publicly declare its new missile-defence system is fully ready to defend against long-range missiles aimed at the United States but it already has a limited capability against a small-scale attack, a U.S. official said yesterday.

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1105656611322&call_page=TS_World&call_pageid=968332188854&call_pagepath=News/World&pubid=968163964505&StarSource=email


The Cheney Observer

Jeb Bush's personal journal from trip to tsunami-shattered Southeast Asia
By Special to The News-Press
Published by news-press.com on January 16, 2005

Florida Gov. Jeb Bush traveled with Colin Powell and other U.S. representatives to South Asia after the area was stricken by a powerful earthquake and tsunamis. During his trip he kept this personal journal.

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050116/NEWS01/50116001/1075

Oil prices rise on supply worries
Oil prices hovered close to six-week highs on Friday amid renewed worries over US winter fuel reserves, the prospect of OPEC production cuts and supply problems in the North Sea.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200501/s1282397.htm

Calif. storms leave hundreds of oil-covered birds
15 Jan 2005 00:20:51 GMT
Source: Reuters
LOS ANGELES, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Hundreds of seabirds covered with oil have washed ashore along the Southern California coast following a series of punishing winter storms, puzzling wildlife officials who say they can find no oil spill.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N14220392.htm

Govt pushing oil firms to meet clean fuel deadline

Posted online: Saturday, January 15, 2005 at 0012 hours IST
NEW DELHI, JANUARY 14: The ministry of petroleum and natural gas has put oil companies on notice, asking them to ensure that the April 1 deadline for introduction of ultra low sulphur auto fuels, is met at all cost.

http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=62722

Businesses pick up tab for Bush bash
Next week's inaugural costs expected to top $40 million
By Corbett B. Daly, CBS MarketWatch

WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) -- Gearing up for President Bush's inauguration next Thursday, thousands of business leaders from around the country are descending on the capital for four days of eating, drinking, dancing and pressing flesh with politicos and pundits.

http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B2A7EA68A-0361-4533-BC34-EA1BEBDCA8EB%7D&siteid=google&dist=google

UN Told of Weaknesses in U.S. Handling of Iraqi Oil
Fri Jan 14, 2005 06:19 PM EST

By Irwin Arieff
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.S. handling of Iraq's oil money after the defeat of Saddam Hussein was marked by weaknesses including problems tracking oil production and cash, a watchdog told the U.N. Security Council on Friday, diplomats said.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=7334302

President Bush is lobbied in Jacksonville on fate of aircraft carrier
BY LESLEY CLARK
lclark@herald.com
JACKSONVILLE - Visiting Florida for the first time since the presidential election, President Bush vowed today to consider the state's attempt to save a fabled aircraft carrier that Navy budget cutters have targeted for retirement.
In town to tout his administration's education record -- at a community college just miles from the base the U.S.S. John F. Kennedy calls home -- Bush was pressed by a full contingent of Florida politicos, including Jacksonville Republican U.S. Rep. Ander Crenshaw, who flew aboard Air Force One from Washington to plead the carrier's case. Bush's brother, Gov. Jeb Bush, and former Housing Secretary-turned U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, along with Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton, joined the lobby on the motorcade from the airport to the Florida Community College campus.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/10647961.htm

Bush Is Told of Carrier's Value
Idling USS Kennedy Would Be Blow to Economy of Jacksonville, Fla.
By Ron Word
Associated Press
Monday, January 17, 2005; Page A15
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- President Bush said Friday he has gotten the message about the strategic importance of Mayport Naval Station and the USS John F. Kennedy to this area's economy, but he made no commitment about the future of the aircraft carrier.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14270-2005Jan16.html

China Aviation Needed More Time on Singapore Petroleum Deal
Jan. 15 (Bloomberg) -- China Aviation Oil (Singapore) Corp., which is being sued by Satya Capital Ltd. over a contract to buy a stake in Singapore Petroleum Co., wasn't given enough time to enforce a clause in the agreement, the company said in a court document.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000080&sid=aRWUHTHD2fBQ&refer=asia

North Korea ready to resume talks if Bush offers olive branch
01-14-2005, 14h06

Jung Yeon-Je - (AFP)
SEOUL (AFP) - North Korea said it would resume talks on its nuclear weapons drive if US President George W. Bush toned down his rhetoric and formulated a more friendly policy towards Pyongyang.

http://www.turkishpress.com/world/news.asp?id=050114140637.fjuzdsgl.xml

Bush Proposes $500 Boost for Student Aid
President Vows to Restructure Loan System
By Michael A. Fletcher
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, January 15, 2005; Page A02
JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Jan.14 -- President Bush proposed Friday increasing the maximum federal grant for low-income college students by $100 a year for five years, a change that he said would make higher education more accessible to thousands of Americans.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10576-2005Jan14.html

Bush expresses `misgivings' over notable phrases
AP , WASHINGTON
Saturday, Jan 15, 2005,Page 7
Advertising

US President George W. Bush expressed misgivings for two of his most famous expressions: "Bring 'em on," in reference to Iraqis attacking US troops, and his vow to get Osama bin Laden "dead or alive."

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2005/01/15/2003219498

FCC Orders Probe of Williams-Bush Deal

FCC Chair Orders Investigation Into Williams' Deal With Bush Administration

WASHINGTON Jan 14, 2005 — The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission ordered an investigation Friday into whether conservative commentator Armstrong Williams broke the law by failing to disclose he was paid by the Bush administration to plug the president's education agenda.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=413704

THE PEOPLE IN NIGERIA are not happy about oil wells. AT ALL !!!

Oil majors fight Nigerian moves to stop licences
IAIN DEY CITY EDITOR
idey@scotlandonsunday.com
SHELL and ChevronTexaco are in dispute with the Nigerian government over an unexpected decision to revoke 24 oil development licences.
Nigeria’s Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) claims the majors have failed to submit proper plans on how they will develop the fields. A clutch of smaller firms have also been affected by the decision.

http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/business.cfm?id=54712005

TOO BAD. The West needs to develop alternative energy sources. The West is the biggest polluter on Earth. Get over it !!

Russia’s Asian overtures may hit Western oil firms
LONDON: Kremlin invitations to Chinese and Indian state oil companies to boost their presence in Russia have prompted fears among some Western oil companies that they will find it harder to seal Russian oil deals in future.
The Kremlin campaign against domestic oil firm YUKOS has made the country a riskier place to do business. If Russia shifts its focus away from the Western international oil companies (IOCs) as favoured partners, it will become an even tougher place for them to operate.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_16-1-2005_pg5_28

15-year energy plan to help boost growth
ISLAMABAD: Amanullah Khan Jadoon, the federal minister for petroleum and natural resources, said on Saturday that the 15-year energy plan would help to achieve the growth rate set by the government in agriculture, industrial and socio-economic sector.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_16-1-2005_pg5_9

Oil prices jump 6% in course of week
Possible supply problems, epectations of colder weather listed among the concerns.
By Brad Foss
Associated Press
January 15, 2005

Crude oil futures prices rose for the fourth day in a row Friday, reaching a level not seen since late November as traders pinned a 6 percent rise in the past week on supply snags and expectations of colder weather.

http://www.indystar.com/articles/1/209533-9341-223.html

Fascinated Horror: Watching It
Month after month, year after year, we've watched with fascinated horror as George W. Bush revives the ancient tools of tyranny. Aggressive war, torture, secret prisons, arbitrary detention, death squads, mass surveillance, contempt for law, elitist corruption, deification of the leader, co-option of religion to serve state power, rule by executive fiat: It's like watching a ghastly pantomime of imperial Rome or some feudal state, rigged up in modern dress.
Global Eye
Green Acres
By Chris Floyd
Published: January 14, 2005
Thus it was no surprise when Bush trotted out another weapon from the oppressor's hoard last month: tax-farming, the practice of turning over government revenue collection to private profiteers. Yes, that scourge of honest yeomen from time immemorial will soon be stalking the streets of 21st-century America, shaking down the populace for personal gain.

http://www.pej.org/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=1508&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0

OF COURSE there is no politics. Good Neocon women grow up to have babies and ornament the poolside.

Politics not in twins' plans
09:27 PM CST on Friday, January 14, 2005
By G. ROBERT HILLMAN / The Dallas Morning News
WASHINGTON – They crossed the country for votes for their father last year. But neither of President Bush's 23-year-old twin daughters seems to have caught the political bug.
"I don't think so, although who knows," first lady Laura Bush said Friday.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/nation/stories/011505dnnattwins.42fe0.html

Petroleum Minister plans to bring Caspian, Russian oils
20.07 IST 15th Jan 2005
By IndiaExpress Bureau
After negotiating India's biggest ever energy deal with Iran for import of LNG worth 40 billion dollars and getting Bangladesh to agree on allowing its territory for importing gas from Myanmar, Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar today mooted the idea of a pipeline corridor for supply of Caspian Sea crude oil to Asia.

http://www.indiaexpress.com/news/regional/delhi/20050115-1.html

Woman doctor’s gang-rape: PPL tried to twist facts
KARACHI: Pakistan Petroleum Ltd, the organization for which the lady doctor was working at Sui and where she was allegedly raped, had tried to sweep the matter under the carpet by shifting her to a Karachi psychiatry hospital immediately from Sui, it has been reliably learnt.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_16-1-2005_pg7_40

Bush vows to cap 'compensation culture' payouts
By Philip Sherwell in Washington
(Filed: 16/01/2005)
President George W Bush has approved a radical assault on America's burgeoning "compensation culture" as part of an ambitious programme of domestic reform to be unveiled in his inaugural address this week.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/01/16/wcomp16.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/01/16/ixworld.html

ENTITLEMENT. When does an election turn into a nightmare? When a Bush is elected.

Bush Says Election Ratified Iraq Policy
No U.S. Troop Withdrawal Date Is Set
By Jim VandeHei and Michael A. Fletcher
Washington Post Staff Writers
Sunday, January 16, 2005; Page A01
President Bush said the public's decision to reelect him was a ratification of his approach toward Iraq and that there was no reason to hold any administration officials accountable for mistakes or misjudgments in prewar planning or managing the violent aftermath.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A12450-2005Jan15.html

Bush hit for linking Iraq to vote
Monday, January 17, 2005 Posted: 0707 GMT (1507 HKT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. President George W. Bush has been criticized for claiming that his re-election in 2004 was a ratification of his policy on Iraq.
In an interview with the Washington Post on Sunday, Bush was asked why no one in his administration had been held accountable for perceived missteps on Iraq policy, including being wrong about weapons of mass destruction.

http://edition.cnn.com/2005/ALLPOLITICS/01/16/bush.iraq/

The voters stood by me on Iraq, says Bush
By Alec Russell in Washington
(Filed: 17/01/2005)
President George W Bush said yesterday the mission in Iraq had been vindicated by his re-election and he did not need to hold to account any of the officials responsible for the miscalculations before or after the toppling of Saddam Hussein.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/01/17/wus17.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/01/17/ixworld.html

India looking to restructure state-run energy behemoths
01-16-2005, 22h43

Prakash Singh - (AFP/File)
NEW DELHI (AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said he backed ongoing moves to revamp and merge state-run energy companies in order to make them globally competitive.

http://www.turkishpress.com/business/news.asp?id=050116224350.2pxian2w.xml

Indian State Oil Companies May Combine to Tackle Chinese Rivals
Jan. 17 (Bloomberg) -- India's state oil companies may combine resources in overseas bids after China beat Oil & Natural Gas Corp., India's biggest explorer, to fields in countries such as Sudan and Indonesia.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=aP94zRWZAKDg&refer=top_world_news

MAJOR FLORIDA DONORS
Here is a list of major Florida contributors to the presidential inauguration. Donors are not bound by campaign finance laws, which restrict contributions to parties and candidates.
Depending on the size of the gift, donors are given special tickets to different events, special invitations to private dinners and receptions with President Bush and/ or Vice President Dick Cheney.
• Al Hoffman Jr., Fort Myers developer, longtime Bush fundraiser $100,000
• BlueCross BlueShield of Florida, Jacksonville
$100,000

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/10656594.htm

The New Zealand Herald

Eastwood takes aim at Moore

17.01.05

Clint Eastwood squinted like Dirty Harry when he took aim at Michael Moore, the New York Daily News reported.
"Michael Moore and I actually have a lot in common - we both appreciate living in a country where there's free expression," Eastwood told a star-studded crowd attending the National Board of Review awards dinner, where the veteran actor and director picked up a Special Film-making Achievement prize for his latest film, Million Dollar Baby.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=6&ObjectID=10006782

Movie-inspired CPR saves girl
Jade (left) and Brooke Gude gave mother Natasha the fright of her life. Picture / Hawke's Bay Today

18.01.05
By BRIDGET CARTER

Two men copied a life-saving method they had seen in the movies to save a little girl they had pulled unconscious from a swimming spot.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=1&ObjectID=10007001

Whaling embargo hopes on Kiribati

18.01.05
By ANGELA GREGORY

Kiribati is being urged to support whale conservation after joining the International Whaling Commission (IWC).
The small Pacific nation is the second in the Pacific to have joined the IWC in the past year, following its neighbour, Tuvalu, which joined last June.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10006927

Ford's hybrid cars coming

10.01.05

Car maker Ford plans to expand its fleet of petrol-electric hybrid vehicles as part of stepping up efforts to make cleaner vehicles.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=9&ObjectID=9006036

FBI's $243m security program doomed

18.01.05

The FBI may have to scrap a new US$170 million ($243 million) computer program designed to allow its agents to share information instantly and fix a main problem identified after the September 11 attacks.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10006943


Extremist London cleric calls on young

18.01.05

An extremist London cleric is appealing to young British Muslims to join al Qaeda in live broadcasts on the internet, the Times reported.
The Times said cleric Omar Bakri Mohammed, who is banned from many British mosques, says a "covenant of security" allowing Muslims to live peacefully in Britain had been "violated" by anti-terrorist legislation enacted after the September 11, 2001, attacks.
"I believe the whole of Britain has become Dar ul Harb [land of war]," he says in one of daily two-hour internet broadcasts, which the Times said it had monitored three days in a row from January 10 to 12.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10006984


6.6 magnitude quake registered off Micronesia

18.01.05

An earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale has been detected off the Pacific island group of Micronesia, the Hong Kong observatory said.
The quake was classified as "severe".
There were no immediate reports of tsunamis or damage on nearby islands.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10006985

The weather in Antarctica (Crystal Ice Chime) is:

Scott Base
Fog
0.0°
Updated Tuesday 18 Jan 3:59AM

The weather at Glacier Bay National Park (Crystal Ice Chime) is:

30 °F / -1 °C
Overcast

...HEAVY SNOW WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE NORTH-CENTRAL ANDPART OF THE NORTH INNER CHANNELS THROUGH TUESDAY......HIGH WIND WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR NORTHERN GLACIER BAYTODAY...

Humidity:
80%

Dew Point:
25 °F / -4 °C

Wind:
Calm

Pressure:
29.29 in / 992 hPa

Visibility:
10.0 miles / 16.1 kilometers

UV:
0 out of 12

Clouds (AGL):
Overcast 4800 ft / 1463 m

Satellite and Global Warming/Climate Change to follow.