The front that caused the death in North Carolina is easy to discern in this Water Vapor Satellite Image (click for 12 hour loop)

A damaged vehicle sits in the Mississippi Department of Transportation parking lot surrounded by twisted metal after a line of sever weather moved through the area Thursday, May 8, 2008, in Tupelo Miss. A number of northeast Mississippi counties and portions of northwest Alabama were under tornado watches or warnings until midafternoon Thursday. (AP Photo/Ryan Moore)


May 9, 2008

0930z

UNISYS Water Vapor Satellite of USA




Tornado knocks vehicles around in N. Carolina, kills 1 (click here)
1 hour ago
GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Authorities were waiting for daylight early Friday so they could begin assessing the damage from a reported tornado that killed one person and injured three others in central North Carolina.
What law enforcement officers said was a tornado touched down on the outskirts of Greensboro late Thursday as severe storms swept across the Southeast, damaging homes and businesses in at least three other states.
An apparent tornado also wrecked a shopping area in Mississippi and strong winds flipped a mobile home in Alabama. In south-central Tennessee, at least four homes and a few barns were damaged.
The person killed was in a small truck that overturned in a parking lot in a parking lot west of Greensboro, said Alan Perdue, emergency services director for Guilford County. He did not have other details.
The storm also knocked down a wall at a distributing business, sending one person to the hospital, Perdue said. Two others were hurt while in vehicles, but Perdue said he did not know what happened. None of the injuries were considered life threatening.
The Winston-Salem Journal quoted the North Carolina Highway Patrol as saying the storm blew three tractor-trailers off Interstate 40....


School systems in Alabama release students early because of storms (click here)
Associated Press - May 9, 2008 6:14 AM ET
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - A line of severe storms that swept aross the Southeast damaged homes and businesses in at least four states, including Alabama.
Authorities say one person was killed and three injured by a tornado in North Carolina.
An apparent tornado wrecked a shopping area in Mississippi and strong winds flipped a mobile home in Alabama yesterday. In south-central Tennessee, at least four homes and a few barns were damaged.
In Alabama, at least 15 school systems released students early, while others held students late as squalls passed. Winds blew a piece of metal roofing off Hamilton High School, about 90 miles northwest of Birmingham.
There were no confirmed reports of tornadoes in Alabama. But the emergency management director in Lauderdale County, George Grabryan, says winds gusting up to 60 miles an hour flipped a mobile home. A house and a building in the rural county also were damaged.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Olmert suspected of accepting illicit funds from U.S. businessman

Bush Calls Democracy Terror's Antidote (click here)
By Jim VandeHei
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 9, 2005; Page A16
President Bush said yesterday a fledgling democratic movement that he sees spreading through the Middle East is essential to defeating terrorism, and warned Syria and Iran against thwarting the "momentum of freedom" and fomenting instability in the region.
"The chances of democratic progress in the broader Middle East have seemed frozen in place for decades," Bush said at the National Defense University at Fort McNair. "Yet, at last, clearly and suddenly, the thaw has begun."...

So what is so different from Baghdad? Bush/Cheney policies are nothing but rhetorical.



Fighting between Hezbollah fighters and pro-government gunmen continued for a third day on Friday. (click here)

Fighting rocks Beirut; Hizbollah group defiant (click here)
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Fierce clashes raged in Beirut on Thursday after Hizbollah said the Lebanese government had declared war by targeting its communications network.
Fighters from Hizbollah and the allied Amal group exchanged assault rifle fire and rocket-propelled grenades with pro-government gunmen in several areas of the capital in the worst domestic fighting since the 1975-90 civil war.
Security sources said at least one person was killed and eight were wounded in the fighting that also set several shops and cars on fire.
Hizbollah launched a new street campaign on Wednesday, piling pressure on the government after it declared the network illegal and removed the head of airport security, a figure close to the group, from his post.
Supporters of Hizbollah and its allies have blocked roads leading to the airport-Lebanon's only air link to the outside world-and other main streets, paralysing much of the capital.
The airport was barely functioning with only a few flights arriving and taking off, airport officials said...

The reason the Junta in Myanmar is resisting any entrance by other countries is due to the instability to even its 'wealth' markets. Myanmar supplies to the world markets are based in the management of natural resources including it's rice fields and forests where exports serve millions around the world. The devastation to the landscape of Myanmar leaves its controlling government at a loss to know where its best to place its security forces to protect the nation's resources that are left. The world needs to facilitate the Myanmar's governments intelligence gathering to secure the country while allowing relief supplies to enter along with aide workers. I do believe Russia has a better rapport with the Myanmar than the West.

Obviously any intelligence supplied to The Middle East by The West, regarding groups involved with power struggles has been unable to stem any violence or overthrow. The world stability is in question and Russia is going to have to come front and center to improve the stability of regions globally. I don't know any other government can or will act to CAUSE stability rather than greater unrest. Russia must address the UN Security Council if not the General Assembly as an ally to Saudi Arabia in reaching conclusions about the region.

Saudi Arabia Backs Extraordinary Arab League Meeting on Lebanon (click here)

Arab News
JEDDAH, 9 May 2008 — Saudi Arabia yesterday supported the need for an extraordinary Arab League meeting on Lebanon in Cairo, an official source at the Foreign Ministry said. The Kingdom had earlier warned Lebanese groups that any escalation of violence in their country would only benefit external extremist forces, the Saudi Press Agency said quoting an official source.
“The Kingdom urges the groups behind the escalation to reconsider their position, and to realize that turmoil in Lebanon will not bring victory to any party except extremist external forces.”
These forces “are still hindering every sincere and honest effort to end the political crisis in Lebanon,” the Kingdom said, and urged Lebanese factions to listen to the voice of reason and give top priority to their country’s interests.
Meanwhile, the Gulf Cooperation Council yesterday expressed deep concern over the latest developments in Lebanon and urged warring Lebanese groups for restraint.
Abdul Rahman Al-Attiyah, secretary-general of the GCC, called upon the Lebanese groups to exert sincere efforts to forge unity in order to solve the present crisis. “You have to tackle the situation with wisdom, which is essential to solve problems.”