May 9, 2005. Plamer, Alaska. The tree line is not in the foreground of this picture. The foreground is a separate hill. The tree line of the mountain is seen to the right of the picture. There is still very sparse snow on those peaks.
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Morning Papers - concluding
The Boston Globe
2 bodies found in Hingham bunker
Identities said unknown; police seek public's help
By Donovan Slack and Maria Cramer, Globe Staff May 10, 2005
Authorities are investigating the suspicious deaths of two men whose bodies were discovered in Hingham yesterday at a disused military bunker, where items found near the men suggest they had been living or camping there, according to Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2005/05/10/2_bodies_found_in_hingham_bunker/
I THOUGHT the Senators were forming a committee to find a way to satisfy minority opinion to be upheld as per the speech Bush made in Latvia while voting rather than filibustering the judges already once defeated. I have a solution. Bush should submit a new slate of judges not already decided from previous administrations and find out what the minority Democratic Senators think of them. THAT is democracy at work and not the undermining of minority Constitutional clout. Sound like a reasonable idea? I think so.
Filibuster ban gets White House nudge
Bush, Gonzales call for Senate to vote on all judicial nominees
By Rick Klein, Globe Staff May 10, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Turning up the pressure on Republican leaders, President Bush and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales yesterday called on the Senate to allow yes-or-no votes on all judicial nominees, a request that could help force a move to outlaw filibusters of judges.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/05/10/filibuster_ban_gets_white_house_nudge/
Free speech at Faneuil Hall
May 10, 2005
GOOD SPEECH overpowered bad Sunday in Boston when hundreds of demonstrators verbally outmaneuvered a group of about 20 white supremacists seeking to mar a Faneuil Hall service marking the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the survivors of the Nazi Holocaust.
It was a good day for the First Amendment. The band of haters connected to White Revolution, an Arkansas-based neo-Nazi group, marched down Congress Street unobstructed -- even though they had no parade permit --while displaying anti-Semitic signs denying the Holocaust. Later, at their demonstration site, one waved slabs of ham. The neo-Nazis were denied the victory that censorship might have provided them. They also failed to intrude upon Faneuil Hall, where 900 people, including Holocaust survivors, honored the 6 million Jews who died in the Nazi death camps.
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2005/05/10/free_speech_at_faneuil_hall/
The Daily Star
OPEC president insists oil market oversupplied
Prices, demand growth to be considered
KUWAIT: OPEC's president said Monday the oil market is oversupplied and that any increase in output at the cartel's meeting next month must take into consideration prices and growth in demand. "The OPEC-10 real production now in the market based on our latest information from OPEC and other sources is 29.7 million barrels per day (bpd)," Sheikh Ahmad Fahd al-Sabah told reporters.
"We believe there is two million bpd of overproduction in the market ... In the third quarter the required demand from OPEC-10 will be 28.5 million bpd," he added.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=3&article_id=14927
South Americans and Arabs seek global voice
Leaders attend historic summit in bid to counter U.S. dominance
Compiled by Daily Star staff
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
In a bid to counter the United States' global dominance, ministers from 34 South American and Arab League states are meeting in Brazil for the first-ever summit of leaders from the two regions.
Ministers meeting Monday focused on how to boost economic ties. But the summit, which brings together leaders from countries resentful of America's hand in everything from regime changes to rampant globalization, is also expected to be a platform for forging new political alliances.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=14955
Egyptian judges reject Bush's call for international monitoring of elections
Judiciary wants local authorities to monitor poll
Compiled by Daily Star staff
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Hundreds of Egyptian judges have rejected U.S. President George W. Bush's weekend call for international monitoring of Egypt's September presidential elections, saying they will do the job themselves, a senior court official said Monday.
Separately, 90 percent of Egypt's 2,000 judges charged with running the elections want local, not foreign, authorities to monitor the poll, according to a recent vote taken by the Justice Ministry.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=14954
IS ANY TIME ever right or ripe for a USA pullout from Iraq?
Iraqi president says time not ripe for U.S. pullout
Talabani repeats pledge that he will not sign Saddam's death warrant
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
AMMAN: Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said in remarks published Monday that it was not yet possible to set a date for the withdrawal of U.S.-led forces from his country. He also reiterated that he would not sign a death warrant for ousted Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, who is in U.S. custody awaiting trial on charges of crimes against humanity.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=14937
Between Baghdad and Islamabad, North Korea chooses
By David Ignatius
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Here's a chilling scenario from the CIA's former top Asia hand: Within a year, North Korea is likely to test a nuclear weapon, probably in a cave or mineshaft somewhere in the barren northeast of the country.
A small amount of radioactive fallout will leak from the test site and drift toward Japan. Financial markets in Tokyo and Seoul will be rocked by the news. Foreign companies in South Korea will weigh whether to pull out dependents or reduce their operations. And Washington will debate whether to impose a blockade or other tough measures to contain the North Korean nuclear breakout.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=5&article_id=14934
The DeLay Times
DeLay's worst: a dirty drama of bondage
May 10, 2005
Nothing has had the sex appeal of the St. Andrews junket.
News of a lobbyist-paid junket to the fabled Scottish golf resort finally made Tom DeLay a household name synonymous with scandal. The story that DeLay, his wife and a retinue of aides were treated to a 10-day, $120,000 trip to London and the fabled St. Andrews course in Scotland - with many expenses charged to lobbyists' credit cards - turned an insiders' furor over congressional ethics into a media frenzy.
There's nothing so devastating to smarmy politicians as a story that appeals to the great American instinct for resentment. If we can't get someone to pay our way to posh hotels and picturesque links, then why should he?
Yes, the St. Andrews caper is what finally inspired the public to follow DeLay's tribulations. It forced the House Republican leadership to switch the rules for ethics investigations back to what they'd been before DeLay ordered outlandish changes to protect himself.
...But the question arises: Is the pond hop to historic links the worst thing the Texas Republican has ever done? Hardly. There are many qualified candidates, but one stands out for its squalor. That's DeLay's personal campaign to ensure that garment industry sweatshop workers and sex slaves in the Northern Mariana Islands - a U.S. territory - were exploited in a system that resembled indentured servitude.
The story dates to the 1990s, when the Clinton administration tried to crack down on the importation of cheap Chinese labor to the islands and to ameliorate conditions under which the guest workers - mostly women - toiled. Brokers - traffickers, really, in human beings - brought thousands to work in sweatshops for as many as 70 hours per week. They lived in crowded barracks; some were locked behind guarded fences. And because the territory is a U.S. possession, garments bore this seal of approval: "Made in the U.S.A."
http://www.newsday.com/news/columnists/ny-opcoc104252506may10,0,3716040.column?coll=ny-news-columnists
I THOUGHT the nation was looking at base closings and not openings?
Ellington's usefulness stressed by DeLay
He suggests a homeland security office for the base
By RUTH RENDON
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
Congressman Tom DeLay toured Ellington Field on Monday, promising to do everything he can to secure a military presence there, including recommending the field for a regional homeland security office.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/politics/3174333
Records Show Lobbyist Abramoff's Influence
Monday May 9, 2005 7:46 PM
By SHARON THEIMER
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - For lobbyist Jack Abramoff, no politician was too big to pursue and no detail too small to charge his clients for. Working to keep the Northern Marianas Islands free of new U.S. regulations, Abramoff sought help from Tom DeLay, other congressional leaders and high-level Bush administration officials.
At the same time, he charged the islands for such mundane tasks as securing tee times at the right golf courses for Washington visitors and obtaining an autographed copy of a book by then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4993563,00.html
What happens next with Tom DeLay and the ethics committee?
The House ethics committee was able to open for business in the past few days after lawmakers resolved a dispute over its rules. Here are questions and answers about the committee's next steps regarding Majority Leader Tom DeLay and other ethics matters.
Q: Questions have been raised about whether a lobbyist _ Jack Abramoff _ or his firm paid for travel expenses of DeLay and his aides. What happens now?
http://www.mywesttexas.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=14484267&BRD=2288&PAG=461&dept_id=547111&rfi=6
Feeling Heat, DeLay Speaks of Humility
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG
Published: May 6, 2005
WASHINGTON, May 5 - Representative Tom DeLay of Texas, whose travel and ties to lobbyists have been under scrutiny, delivered a talk on the importance of humility on Thursday at the annual National Day of Prayer service, telling worshipers that God makes all things possible - "even greatness from lowly sinners like you and me - especially me."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/06/politics/06ethics.html
The Los Angeles Times
I really think this could be anyone of us. More outrageous law enforcement.
2 Hurt in Deputies' Crossfire
At least five Compton homes are left with bullet holes as officers fire 120 rounds at SUV.
By Tonya Alanez and Monte Morin, Times Staff Writers
Ten Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies opened fire early Monday on an SUV they were chasing, discharging 120 rounds in a frenzied crossfire that injured a deputy and the unarmed suspect while sending bullets into nearby homes.
The shooting on a narrow residential street in Compton sent residents diving for cover as bullets zipped over their heads and through their windows. In the aftermath, bullet holes pocked the walls of at least five homes.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-chase10may10,0,2324774.story?coll=la-home-headlines
For 3 GOP Senators, Vote Isn't Just About U.N. Pick
WASHINGTON — For the three Republican senators who have expressed reservations about John R. Bolton's nomination as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, the committee vote set for Thursday is about much more than whether he is the best man for the job.
When they gather with their colleagues on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for their final consideration of Bolton, Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island and George V. Voinovich of Ohio will carry vastly different political calculations and ambitions that may factor as much in their decisions as anything revealed about the nominee by dozens of witnesses and hundreds of documents.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-bolton10may10,0,2563178.story?coll=la-home-headlines
More public endangerment by this administration. Of children with complete disregard for their vulnerability. Children have no clout. They don't vote. Few have substantial money. Bush/Cheney forget children will be future voters.
EPA Puts Mandated Lead-Paint Rules on Hold
The agency is looking at voluntary standards to limit exposure instead. The revelation angers public health advocates and some lawmakers.
WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency has quietly delayed work on completing required rules to protect children and construction workers from exposure to lead-based paint, exploring instead the possibility of using voluntary standards to govern building renovations and remodeling.
The EPA move, first disclosed in documents provided by an agency whistle-blower, has prompted angry questions from Democrats in Congress, the attorneys general of New York and Illinois, and public health advocates around the country.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-paint10may10,1,956868.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
THE REASON Bush wants International monitors in Egypt for elections. Also known as 'Is there an International Solution Bush can use for regime change rather than sending in the USA military?'
He May Lack Votes, but Not Ambition
Egypt's Ayman Nour has little chance to unseat Hosni Mubarak -- he might not even be allowed to run -- but he's laying a foundation.
CAIRO — The bespectacled lawmaker marched into his plush office and settled before the television cameras. He grimaced shyly, almost whispering as he tested the microphones. And then, without a pause, Ayman Nour ripped into Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's ruling party.
The night before, one of Nour's supporters had been killed and about a dozen more wounded when an armed mob ambushed their buses in the Nile Delta countryside, he said. According to Nour, ruling party officials paid thugs $10 each to block his party from opening a new office there.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-nour10may10,0,1013244.story?coll=la-home-world
Let me get this right. This is Osama's Omar? This is the one eyed wonder? This is the Mullah of all Mullahs? This is the guy with a $25 million price tag on his head? We have Trade Towers fallen to the ground because of Omar and Osama. We launched a war retaliating against al Qaeda for this guy? Now, we are affording him amnesty so he can go right back to do what he has always done? I don't think so. See, Omar is Norsani. I knew he would be in Afghanistan. It is where his tribe is. Where the heck is Osama? He and Omar were joined at the hip.
Olive Branch Extended to Taliban Leader
A veteran Afghan official said Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar might be ready to make peace and that the government should welcome him.
Sibghatullah Mojaddidi, the head of a peace commission, said he would negotiate with any Afghans ready to lay down their arms and recognize the new government. Mojaddidi said Omar and warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, both wanted as terrorists by the U.S., should be eligible for reconciliation.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-briefs10.1may10,0,3459898.story?coll=la-home-world
The Sydney Morning Herald
Microsoft hops off the fence to back gay rights legislation
May 10, 2005
New York: Microsoft has said it will support efforts to pass gay rights legislation in Washington State after changing its mind for the second time in two weeks.
Chief executive Steve Ballmer said the company would also support efforts to pass nationwide legislation after earlier being criticised for taking a neutral stance.
Supporters of the state legislation, which include other local corporations Nike, Boeing and brewer Molson Coors, were outraged last month when it became known that Microsoft had switched from being supportive to neutral.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/Technology/Microsoft-hops-off-the-fence-to-back-gay-rights-legislation/2005/05/09/1115584909579.html
Global Warming/Climate Change
"The issue of climate change respects no border. Its effects cannot be reined in by an army or advanced by any ideology. Climate change, with its potential to impact every corner of the world, is an issue that must be addressed by the world." - President George W Bush, June 11, 2001.
A Cloudy Forecast For Clear Skies
WASHINGTON, D.C. - President George W. Bush's Clear Skies initiative faces a big test in the Senate today. The outlook? Cloudy.
The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works could even deadlock nine-to-nine on whether to recommend the bill and its possible amendments to the full Senate. A vote on the Clear Skies Act, or a healthy debate that welcomes a compromise would "breathe life into the establishment of a comprehensive air emissions policy," notes Robert LaCount of Cambridge Energy Research Associates.
http://www.forbes.com/2005/02/16/cz_ms_0216beltway.html?partner=commentary_newsletter
Australians More Concerned With Global Warming Than Terrorism
By Drog (Canada), Section Australia
Posted on Tue Mar 29, 2005 at 09:27:43 AM PST
According to Wikinews, a report released by Allan Gyngell of the Lowy Institute on Monday, has revealed that Australians view US foreign policy to be as dangerous as Islamic fundamentalism. It also found that only 58 percent of the population had a positive view of the United States.
http://www.theworldforum.org/story/2005/3/29/92746/1199
Al Jazeera
Former UN chief arms inspector proposes compromise on Iranian enrichment
Hans Blix, the former UN chief arms inspector called on Iran and Israel to support a ban on nuclear enrichment across the Middle East as a possible compromise on curbing Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Speaking at a news conference on the sidelines of the meeting of the 188 signatories of the 1970 nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, Blix, now chairman of the Stockholm-based Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission, said that having the Middle East as an enrichment-free zone is in the interests of both Iran and Israel.
http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_ID=8508
The New Zealand Herald
Iran to resume uranium enrichment work 'within days'
10.05.05 1.00pm
TEHRAN - Iran said on Monday it would resume uranium enrichment-related activities within days, a move the United States and the European Union have warned would see its nuclear case escalated to the UN Security Council.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124752
Brothers face Belgian trial over Rwandan genocide
10.05.05 1.00pm
BRUSSELS - Belgium has begun prosecuting two Rwandan half-brothers charged under a controversial war crimes law with helping Hutu militias kill some 50,000 people in 1994 and rewarding them with beer after the slaughter.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124744
Cuba calls United States the 'Fourth Reich'
10.05.05 1.00pm
HAVANA - As world leaders celebrated the defeat of Nazi Germany in Moscow’s Red Square on Monday, Communist Cuba held its own parade and accused the United States of using "fascist" policies to dominate the world.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124742
Race for top WTO job enters last lap
Contender for the top job at the WTO, Pascal Lamy.
10.05.05 1.00pm
GENEVA - The race for the world's top trade job entered its last lap today, with former European Union trade chief Pascal Lamy's backers confident he can hold his lead over Uruguayan challenger Carlos Perez del Castillo.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124732
Blair ally takes over thankless Northern Ireland task
10.05.05
By Paul Majendie
LONDON - The man handed the most thankless task in British politics flew to Belfast on Monday with the goal of bringing a lasting peace to Northern Ireland seemingly further from reach than ever before.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124692
Heart team to operate in Samoa
10.05.05
by Angela Gregory
A New Zealand medical team is gearing up to perform the first heart operations in Samoa.
The historic surgery is planned for July if a visit next month assures the medical staff they can safely carry out the procedures in the public hospital in Apia, the capital.
Pasted from <http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124666>
The weather in Antarctica with Winter approaching (Crystal Ice Chime) is:
Scott Base
Overcast
-12.0°
Updated Tuesday 10 May 8:59PM
The weather at Glacier Bay National Park (Crystal Wind Chime) is:
43 °F / 6 °C
Clear
Humidity:
61%
Dew Point:
30 °F / -1 °C
Wind:
Calm
Pressure:
29.88 in / 1012 hPa
Visibility:
-
UV:
0 out of 16
Clouds (AGL):
Clear -
end
2 bodies found in Hingham bunker
Identities said unknown; police seek public's help
By Donovan Slack and Maria Cramer, Globe Staff May 10, 2005
Authorities are investigating the suspicious deaths of two men whose bodies were discovered in Hingham yesterday at a disused military bunker, where items found near the men suggest they had been living or camping there, according to Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2005/05/10/2_bodies_found_in_hingham_bunker/
I THOUGHT the Senators were forming a committee to find a way to satisfy minority opinion to be upheld as per the speech Bush made in Latvia while voting rather than filibustering the judges already once defeated. I have a solution. Bush should submit a new slate of judges not already decided from previous administrations and find out what the minority Democratic Senators think of them. THAT is democracy at work and not the undermining of minority Constitutional clout. Sound like a reasonable idea? I think so.
Filibuster ban gets White House nudge
Bush, Gonzales call for Senate to vote on all judicial nominees
By Rick Klein, Globe Staff May 10, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Turning up the pressure on Republican leaders, President Bush and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales yesterday called on the Senate to allow yes-or-no votes on all judicial nominees, a request that could help force a move to outlaw filibusters of judges.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/05/10/filibuster_ban_gets_white_house_nudge/
Free speech at Faneuil Hall
May 10, 2005
GOOD SPEECH overpowered bad Sunday in Boston when hundreds of demonstrators verbally outmaneuvered a group of about 20 white supremacists seeking to mar a Faneuil Hall service marking the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the survivors of the Nazi Holocaust.
It was a good day for the First Amendment. The band of haters connected to White Revolution, an Arkansas-based neo-Nazi group, marched down Congress Street unobstructed -- even though they had no parade permit --while displaying anti-Semitic signs denying the Holocaust. Later, at their demonstration site, one waved slabs of ham. The neo-Nazis were denied the victory that censorship might have provided them. They also failed to intrude upon Faneuil Hall, where 900 people, including Holocaust survivors, honored the 6 million Jews who died in the Nazi death camps.
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2005/05/10/free_speech_at_faneuil_hall/
The Daily Star
OPEC president insists oil market oversupplied
Prices, demand growth to be considered
KUWAIT: OPEC's president said Monday the oil market is oversupplied and that any increase in output at the cartel's meeting next month must take into consideration prices and growth in demand. "The OPEC-10 real production now in the market based on our latest information from OPEC and other sources is 29.7 million barrels per day (bpd)," Sheikh Ahmad Fahd al-Sabah told reporters.
"We believe there is two million bpd of overproduction in the market ... In the third quarter the required demand from OPEC-10 will be 28.5 million bpd," he added.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=3&article_id=14927
South Americans and Arabs seek global voice
Leaders attend historic summit in bid to counter U.S. dominance
Compiled by Daily Star staff
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
In a bid to counter the United States' global dominance, ministers from 34 South American and Arab League states are meeting in Brazil for the first-ever summit of leaders from the two regions.
Ministers meeting Monday focused on how to boost economic ties. But the summit, which brings together leaders from countries resentful of America's hand in everything from regime changes to rampant globalization, is also expected to be a platform for forging new political alliances.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=14955
Egyptian judges reject Bush's call for international monitoring of elections
Judiciary wants local authorities to monitor poll
Compiled by Daily Star staff
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Hundreds of Egyptian judges have rejected U.S. President George W. Bush's weekend call for international monitoring of Egypt's September presidential elections, saying they will do the job themselves, a senior court official said Monday.
Separately, 90 percent of Egypt's 2,000 judges charged with running the elections want local, not foreign, authorities to monitor the poll, according to a recent vote taken by the Justice Ministry.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=14954
IS ANY TIME ever right or ripe for a USA pullout from Iraq?
Iraqi president says time not ripe for U.S. pullout
Talabani repeats pledge that he will not sign Saddam's death warrant
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
AMMAN: Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said in remarks published Monday that it was not yet possible to set a date for the withdrawal of U.S.-led forces from his country. He also reiterated that he would not sign a death warrant for ousted Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, who is in U.S. custody awaiting trial on charges of crimes against humanity.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=14937
Between Baghdad and Islamabad, North Korea chooses
By David Ignatius
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Here's a chilling scenario from the CIA's former top Asia hand: Within a year, North Korea is likely to test a nuclear weapon, probably in a cave or mineshaft somewhere in the barren northeast of the country.
A small amount of radioactive fallout will leak from the test site and drift toward Japan. Financial markets in Tokyo and Seoul will be rocked by the news. Foreign companies in South Korea will weigh whether to pull out dependents or reduce their operations. And Washington will debate whether to impose a blockade or other tough measures to contain the North Korean nuclear breakout.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=5&article_id=14934
The DeLay Times
DeLay's worst: a dirty drama of bondage
May 10, 2005
Nothing has had the sex appeal of the St. Andrews junket.
News of a lobbyist-paid junket to the fabled Scottish golf resort finally made Tom DeLay a household name synonymous with scandal. The story that DeLay, his wife and a retinue of aides were treated to a 10-day, $120,000 trip to London and the fabled St. Andrews course in Scotland - with many expenses charged to lobbyists' credit cards - turned an insiders' furor over congressional ethics into a media frenzy.
There's nothing so devastating to smarmy politicians as a story that appeals to the great American instinct for resentment. If we can't get someone to pay our way to posh hotels and picturesque links, then why should he?
Yes, the St. Andrews caper is what finally inspired the public to follow DeLay's tribulations. It forced the House Republican leadership to switch the rules for ethics investigations back to what they'd been before DeLay ordered outlandish changes to protect himself.
...But the question arises: Is the pond hop to historic links the worst thing the Texas Republican has ever done? Hardly. There are many qualified candidates, but one stands out for its squalor. That's DeLay's personal campaign to ensure that garment industry sweatshop workers and sex slaves in the Northern Mariana Islands - a U.S. territory - were exploited in a system that resembled indentured servitude.
The story dates to the 1990s, when the Clinton administration tried to crack down on the importation of cheap Chinese labor to the islands and to ameliorate conditions under which the guest workers - mostly women - toiled. Brokers - traffickers, really, in human beings - brought thousands to work in sweatshops for as many as 70 hours per week. They lived in crowded barracks; some were locked behind guarded fences. And because the territory is a U.S. possession, garments bore this seal of approval: "Made in the U.S.A."
http://www.newsday.com/news/columnists/ny-opcoc104252506may10,0,3716040.column?coll=ny-news-columnists
I THOUGHT the nation was looking at base closings and not openings?
Ellington's usefulness stressed by DeLay
He suggests a homeland security office for the base
By RUTH RENDON
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
Congressman Tom DeLay toured Ellington Field on Monday, promising to do everything he can to secure a military presence there, including recommending the field for a regional homeland security office.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/politics/3174333
Records Show Lobbyist Abramoff's Influence
Monday May 9, 2005 7:46 PM
By SHARON THEIMER
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - For lobbyist Jack Abramoff, no politician was too big to pursue and no detail too small to charge his clients for. Working to keep the Northern Marianas Islands free of new U.S. regulations, Abramoff sought help from Tom DeLay, other congressional leaders and high-level Bush administration officials.
At the same time, he charged the islands for such mundane tasks as securing tee times at the right golf courses for Washington visitors and obtaining an autographed copy of a book by then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4993563,00.html
What happens next with Tom DeLay and the ethics committee?
The House ethics committee was able to open for business in the past few days after lawmakers resolved a dispute over its rules. Here are questions and answers about the committee's next steps regarding Majority Leader Tom DeLay and other ethics matters.
Q: Questions have been raised about whether a lobbyist _ Jack Abramoff _ or his firm paid for travel expenses of DeLay and his aides. What happens now?
http://www.mywesttexas.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=14484267&BRD=2288&amp;PAG=461&dept_id=547111&rfi=6
Feeling Heat, DeLay Speaks of Humility
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG
Published: May 6, 2005
WASHINGTON, May 5 - Representative Tom DeLay of Texas, whose travel and ties to lobbyists have been under scrutiny, delivered a talk on the importance of humility on Thursday at the annual National Day of Prayer service, telling worshipers that God makes all things possible - "even greatness from lowly sinners like you and me - especially me."
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/06/politics/06ethics.html
The Los Angeles Times
I really think this could be anyone of us. More outrageous law enforcement.
2 Hurt in Deputies' Crossfire
At least five Compton homes are left with bullet holes as officers fire 120 rounds at SUV.
By Tonya Alanez and Monte Morin, Times Staff Writers
Ten Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies opened fire early Monday on an SUV they were chasing, discharging 120 rounds in a frenzied crossfire that injured a deputy and the unarmed suspect while sending bullets into nearby homes.
The shooting on a narrow residential street in Compton sent residents diving for cover as bullets zipped over their heads and through their windows. In the aftermath, bullet holes pocked the walls of at least five homes.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-chase10may10,0,2324774.story?coll=la-home-headlines
For 3 GOP Senators, Vote Isn't Just About U.N. Pick
WASHINGTON — For the three Republican senators who have expressed reservations about John R. Bolton's nomination as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, the committee vote set for Thursday is about much more than whether he is the best man for the job.
When they gather with their colleagues on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for their final consideration of Bolton, Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island and George V. Voinovich of Ohio will carry vastly different political calculations and ambitions that may factor as much in their decisions as anything revealed about the nominee by dozens of witnesses and hundreds of documents.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-bolton10may10,0,2563178.story?coll=la-home-headlines
More public endangerment by this administration. Of children with complete disregard for their vulnerability. Children have no clout. They don't vote. Few have substantial money. Bush/Cheney forget children will be future voters.
EPA Puts Mandated Lead-Paint Rules on Hold
The agency is looking at voluntary standards to limit exposure instead. The revelation angers public health advocates and some lawmakers.
WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency has quietly delayed work on completing required rules to protect children and construction workers from exposure to lead-based paint, exploring instead the possibility of using voluntary standards to govern building renovations and remodeling.
The EPA move, first disclosed in documents provided by an agency whistle-blower, has prompted angry questions from Democrats in Congress, the attorneys general of New York and Illinois, and public health advocates around the country.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-paint10may10,1,956868.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
THE REASON Bush wants International monitors in Egypt for elections. Also known as 'Is there an International Solution Bush can use for regime change rather than sending in the USA military?'
He May Lack Votes, but Not Ambition
Egypt's Ayman Nour has little chance to unseat Hosni Mubarak -- he might not even be allowed to run -- but he's laying a foundation.
CAIRO — The bespectacled lawmaker marched into his plush office and settled before the television cameras. He grimaced shyly, almost whispering as he tested the microphones. And then, without a pause, Ayman Nour ripped into Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's ruling party.
The night before, one of Nour's supporters had been killed and about a dozen more wounded when an armed mob ambushed their buses in the Nile Delta countryside, he said. According to Nour, ruling party officials paid thugs $10 each to block his party from opening a new office there.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-nour10may10,0,1013244.story?coll=la-home-world
Let me get this right. This is Osama's Omar? This is the one eyed wonder? This is the Mullah of all Mullahs? This is the guy with a $25 million price tag on his head? We have Trade Towers fallen to the ground because of Omar and Osama. We launched a war retaliating against al Qaeda for this guy? Now, we are affording him amnesty so he can go right back to do what he has always done? I don't think so. See, Omar is Norsani. I knew he would be in Afghanistan. It is where his tribe is. Where the heck is Osama? He and Omar were joined at the hip.
Olive Branch Extended to Taliban Leader
A veteran Afghan official said Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar might be ready to make peace and that the government should welcome him.
Sibghatullah Mojaddidi, the head of a peace commission, said he would negotiate with any Afghans ready to lay down their arms and recognize the new government. Mojaddidi said Omar and warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, both wanted as terrorists by the U.S., should be eligible for reconciliation.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-briefs10.1may10,0,3459898.story?coll=la-home-world
The Sydney Morning Herald
Microsoft hops off the fence to back gay rights legislation
May 10, 2005
New York: Microsoft has said it will support efforts to pass gay rights legislation in Washington State after changing its mind for the second time in two weeks.
Chief executive Steve Ballmer said the company would also support efforts to pass nationwide legislation after earlier being criticised for taking a neutral stance.
Supporters of the state legislation, which include other local corporations Nike, Boeing and brewer Molson Coors, were outraged last month when it became known that Microsoft had switched from being supportive to neutral.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/Technology/Microsoft-hops-off-the-fence-to-back-gay-rights-legislation/2005/05/09/1115584909579.html
Global Warming/Climate Change
"The issue of climate change respects no border. Its effects cannot be reined in by an army or advanced by any ideology. Climate change, with its potential to impact every corner of the world, is an issue that must be addressed by the world." - President George W Bush, June 11, 2001.
A Cloudy Forecast For Clear Skies
WASHINGTON, D.C. - President George W. Bush's Clear Skies initiative faces a big test in the Senate today. The outlook? Cloudy.
The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works could even deadlock nine-to-nine on whether to recommend the bill and its possible amendments to the full Senate. A vote on the Clear Skies Act, or a healthy debate that welcomes a compromise would "breathe life into the establishment of a comprehensive air emissions policy," notes Robert LaCount of Cambridge Energy Research Associates.
http://www.forbes.com/2005/02/16/cz_ms_0216beltway.html?partner=commentary_newsletter
Australians More Concerned With Global Warming Than Terrorism
By Drog (Canada), Section Australia
Posted on Tue Mar 29, 2005 at 09:27:43 AM PST
According to Wikinews, a report released by Allan Gyngell of the Lowy Institute on Monday, has revealed that Australians view US foreign policy to be as dangerous as Islamic fundamentalism. It also found that only 58 percent of the population had a positive view of the United States.
http://www.theworldforum.org/story/2005/3/29/92746/1199
Al Jazeera
Former UN chief arms inspector proposes compromise on Iranian enrichment
Hans Blix, the former UN chief arms inspector called on Iran and Israel to support a ban on nuclear enrichment across the Middle East as a possible compromise on curbing Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Speaking at a news conference on the sidelines of the meeting of the 188 signatories of the 1970 nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, Blix, now chairman of the Stockholm-based Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission, said that having the Middle East as an enrichment-free zone is in the interests of both Iran and Israel.
http://www.aljazeera.com/me.asp?service_ID=8508
The New Zealand Herald
Iran to resume uranium enrichment work 'within days'
10.05.05 1.00pm
TEHRAN - Iran said on Monday it would resume uranium enrichment-related activities within days, a move the United States and the European Union have warned would see its nuclear case escalated to the UN Security Council.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124752
Brothers face Belgian trial over Rwandan genocide
10.05.05 1.00pm
BRUSSELS - Belgium has begun prosecuting two Rwandan half-brothers charged under a controversial war crimes law with helping Hutu militias kill some 50,000 people in 1994 and rewarding them with beer after the slaughter.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124744
Cuba calls United States the 'Fourth Reich'
10.05.05 1.00pm
HAVANA - As world leaders celebrated the defeat of Nazi Germany in Moscow’s Red Square on Monday, Communist Cuba held its own parade and accused the United States of using "fascist" policies to dominate the world.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124742
Race for top WTO job enters last lap
Contender for the top job at the WTO, Pascal Lamy.
10.05.05 1.00pm
GENEVA - The race for the world's top trade job entered its last lap today, with former European Union trade chief Pascal Lamy's backers confident he can hold his lead over Uruguayan challenger Carlos Perez del Castillo.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124732
Blair ally takes over thankless Northern Ireland task
10.05.05
By Paul Majendie
LONDON - The man handed the most thankless task in British politics flew to Belfast on Monday with the goal of bringing a lasting peace to Northern Ireland seemingly further from reach than ever before.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124692
Heart team to operate in Samoa
10.05.05
by Angela Gregory
A New Zealand medical team is gearing up to perform the first heart operations in Samoa.
The historic surgery is planned for July if a visit next month assures the medical staff they can safely carry out the procedures in the public hospital in Apia, the capital.
Pasted from <http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10124666>
The weather in Antarctica with Winter approaching (Crystal Ice Chime) is:
Scott Base
Overcast
-12.0°
Updated Tuesday 10 May 8:59PM
The weather at Glacier Bay National Park (Crystal Wind Chime) is:
43 °F / 6 °C
Clear
Humidity:
61%
Dew Point:
30 °F / -1 °C
Wind:
Calm
Pressure:
29.88 in / 1012 hPa
Visibility:
-
UV:
0 out of 16
Clouds (AGL):
Clear -
end
Monday, May 09, 2005
Morning Papers - It's Origins
Rooster "Crowing"
"Okeydoke"
Born…
1800, John Brown, abolitionist
1883, José Ortega y Gasset, writer and philosopher
1860, Sir James Barrie, dramatist and novelist
1949, Billy Joel, singer and songwriter
1502, Christopher Columbus left Cadiz, Spain, on his fourth and final trip to the Western Hemisphere.
1671, Irish adventurer Thomas Blood, known as Colonel Blood, is caught after stealing the crown jewels from the Tower of London; he is ultimately pardoned by King Charles II.
In 1754, a cartoon in Benjamin Franklin's Pennsylvania Gazette showed a snake cut into sections, each part representing an American colony; the caption read, "Join or die."
In 1913, the 17th amendment to the Constitution, providing for the election of U.S. senators by popular vote rather than selection by state legislatures, was ratified.
In 1926, Americans Richard Byrd and Floyd Bennett became the first men to fly over the North Pole.
In 1945, U.S. officials announced that a midnight entertainment curfew was lifted.
In 1960, the Food and Drug Administration approved a pill as safe for birth control use.
In 1961, Federal Communications Commission chairman Newton N. Minow condemned television programming as a "vast wasteland" in a speech to the National Association of Broadcasters.
In 1974, the House Judiciary Committee opened hearings on whether to recommend the impeachment of President Nixon.
In 1980, 35 motorists were killed when a Liberian freighter rammed the Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay in Florida, causing a 1,400-foot section to collapse.
Missing in Action
1965 KARDELL DAVID A. SONOMA CA NO PARA/BEEPER " REMAINS RETURNED 7/31/89, ID 11/08/89"
1965 WISTRAND ROBERT C. NEW YORK NY CRASH NO PARA BEEPER SEARCH NEG
1966 DEXTER BENNIE L. BEND OR CAPTURE WITNESSED JEEP FOUND
1967 TODD ROBERT JACY NORTH EASTON MA
1968 LEOPOLD STEPHEN R. OKLAHOMA CITY OK 03/05/73 RELEASED BY PRG INJURED ALIVE IN 98
1968 VAN ARTSDALEN CLIFFORD V. PLUMSTEADVILLE PA
1970 HAIGHT STEPHEN H. CAZENOVIA NY
1972 REEDER WILLIAM S. LAKE ARROWHEAD CA 03/27/73 RELEASED BY PRG ALIVE IN 98
MY HEADLINE TODAY
Russia does not have to have a democracy and neither does any other country. Human Rights violations are a crime in this world.
The Ukraine is an example of how Democracies are established.
The world's focus needs to be on struggles by people in a country to achiever higher levels of participation in their government.
The NAME of that process can take many forms including Socialism. If Russian sovereignty is threatened by a chaotic democratic process whereby potential exploitation of the people of Russia will ensue then it's leadership has an obligation to protect the populous of that country.
George Walker Bush is using 'the word' Democracy to victimize countries like Russia for the purpose of creating a 'character' as unsavory and "War Bait." Where there is oil in Bush's priority is a ruthless determination including war at any cost in the FALSE NAME of Democracy. Democracy in definition of Bush's vernacular is void of definition of human rights and safety as exhibited by Iraq and is better defined by CAPITALISM.
President Putin has been a Gentleman-Diplomat beyond any reason in most of the scenarios he has hosted including a recent visit to the Middle East. He has literally said in a news conference yesterday he accepts the difference between the USA and Russia and recognizes the ability to conduct international affairs with respect for that difference.
Bush on the other hand is intolerant of those differences and seeks to exploit them while reeking havoc with DEMOCRATIC principles in the USA that is currently undermining our Constitution and Bill of Rights.
"Okeydoke"
Born…
1800, John Brown, abolitionist
1883, José Ortega y Gasset, writer and philosopher
1860, Sir James Barrie, dramatist and novelist
1949, Billy Joel, singer and songwriter
1502, Christopher Columbus left Cadiz, Spain, on his fourth and final trip to the Western Hemisphere.
1671, Irish adventurer Thomas Blood, known as Colonel Blood, is caught after stealing the crown jewels from the Tower of London; he is ultimately pardoned by King Charles II.
In 1754, a cartoon in Benjamin Franklin's Pennsylvania Gazette showed a snake cut into sections, each part representing an American colony; the caption read, "Join or die."
In 1913, the 17th amendment to the Constitution, providing for the election of U.S. senators by popular vote rather than selection by state legislatures, was ratified.
In 1926, Americans Richard Byrd and Floyd Bennett became the first men to fly over the North Pole.
In 1945, U.S. officials announced that a midnight entertainment curfew was lifted.
In 1960, the Food and Drug Administration approved a pill as safe for birth control use.
In 1961, Federal Communications Commission chairman Newton N. Minow condemned television programming as a "vast wasteland" in a speech to the National Association of Broadcasters.
In 1974, the House Judiciary Committee opened hearings on whether to recommend the impeachment of President Nixon.
In 1980, 35 motorists were killed when a Liberian freighter rammed the Sunshine Skyway Bridge over Tampa Bay in Florida, causing a 1,400-foot section to collapse.
Missing in Action
1965 KARDELL DAVID A. SONOMA CA NO PARA/BEEPER " REMAINS RETURNED 7/31/89, ID 11/08/89"
1965 WISTRAND ROBERT C. NEW YORK NY CRASH NO PARA BEEPER SEARCH NEG
1966 DEXTER BENNIE L. BEND OR CAPTURE WITNESSED JEEP FOUND
1967 TODD ROBERT JACY NORTH EASTON MA
1968 LEOPOLD STEPHEN R. OKLAHOMA CITY OK 03/05/73 RELEASED BY PRG INJURED ALIVE IN 98
1968 VAN ARTSDALEN CLIFFORD V. PLUMSTEADVILLE PA
1970 HAIGHT STEPHEN H. CAZENOVIA NY
1972 REEDER WILLIAM S. LAKE ARROWHEAD CA 03/27/73 RELEASED BY PRG ALIVE IN 98
MY HEADLINE TODAY
Russia does not have to have a democracy and neither does any other country. Human Rights violations are a crime in this world.
The Ukraine is an example of how Democracies are established.
The world's focus needs to be on struggles by people in a country to achiever higher levels of participation in their government.
The NAME of that process can take many forms including Socialism. If Russian sovereignty is threatened by a chaotic democratic process whereby potential exploitation of the people of Russia will ensue then it's leadership has an obligation to protect the populous of that country.
George Walker Bush is using 'the word' Democracy to victimize countries like Russia for the purpose of creating a 'character' as unsavory and "War Bait." Where there is oil in Bush's priority is a ruthless determination including war at any cost in the FALSE NAME of Democracy. Democracy in definition of Bush's vernacular is void of definition of human rights and safety as exhibited by Iraq and is better defined by CAPITALISM.
President Putin has been a Gentleman-Diplomat beyond any reason in most of the scenarios he has hosted including a recent visit to the Middle East. He has literally said in a news conference yesterday he accepts the difference between the USA and Russia and recognizes the ability to conduct international affairs with respect for that difference.
Bush on the other hand is intolerant of those differences and seeks to exploit them while reeking havoc with DEMOCRATIC principles in the USA that is currently undermining our Constitution and Bill of Rights.
In actuality, the tight control of Russia by President Putin is understandable and reasonable when one considers the greatest strength of terrorists (As there is not such thing as 'terror' as an enemy. Terror is a descriptor and not a noun. Terror alone cannot attack World Trade Towers.) is the use of a country's infrastructure against itself. President Putin has literally taken control of the Russian infrastructure which is grossly different than that of the USA. The USA has a democracy aged by over 225 years whereas the Russian government change is far younger than that with destabilizing influence in their oligarches. President Putin is correct and Bush is completely wrong to compare apples to oranges. Bush's ONLY intention is war without any plans what-so-ever of peace.
I continue to wish the best for Russia and an outcome for it's representative government that will protect it from further issues as occurred in Beslan before the new initiations of national security as exhibited by recent changes by the Russian government. President Putin does have a Dumas to answer to and seek support from. Russia is not a dictatorship. Not even close.
The Los Angeles Times
High-Speed Train Plan May Move Forward
Vegas-to-border leg may get funding. But it's still a long way from there to its Anaheim goal.
By Dan Weikel, Times Staff Writer
A partnership of government and industry in southern Nevada plans to spend $1.3 billion to build the nation's first super-fast train.
Where do they want to put it after more than two decades of effort? From Las Vegas to Primm, a three-hotel sideshow on the Nevada-California border. It's best known for an outlet mall, the giant Desperado roller coaster and a bullet-riddled 1934 Ford that carried the infamous Bonnie and Clyde to their deaths.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-maglev9may09,1,5462507.story?coll=la-headlines-california
Bush, Putin Set Aside Feuds at Talks in Russia
Leaders focus on areas of agreement, such as backing Israel's Gaza pullout. Rapport is on display as they ready to mark victory over Nazis.
By Peter Wallsten and David Holley, Times Staff Writers
MOSCOW — After months of feuding, President Bush and Russian President Vladimir V. Putin met Sunday and emphasized harmony and personal chemistry, a reflection of common policy goals as they prepared to mark the 60th anniversary of the defeat of the Nazis.
The focus on good feelings underscored the belief of both governments that their recent bickering might be a distraction from far more pressing matters such as the nuclear ambitions of North Korea and Iran.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-bushputin9may09,0,1990627.story?coll=la-home-headlines
AND WHAT ABOUT THE PRODUCTS OF THAT DRILLING? Do I want to be exposed to the OIL and ultimately GASOLINE laced with nuclear exposure? This is again the complete disregard to the public this administration carries with it all the time. This is the VIOXX of drilling opportunity. The USA is quickly becoming a society that cares little about itself due to economic hard times and is wiling to trade income of any kind for longevity of life bringing along with it danger to us all when we never consented to it. This is Bush's idea of profit behind deregulation. Even Regan wasn't that stupid.
Drilling Near Nuclear Blast Cavity Called Risky Business
Residue of '69 Colorado test is best left alone, say many in the area who benefit from oil and gas.
BATTLEMENT MESA, Colo. — On a bright fall afternoon 36 years ago, the Atomic Energy Commission and a Texas oil company detonated a 40-kiloton nuclear device inside an 8,000-foot shaft on a high meadow, an effort to crack into a bounty of natural gas trapped in a dense subterranean rock formation.
Here on Colorado's energy-rich Western Slope, the nuclear experiment yielded mixed results. A rich lode of gas was indeed shaken out of its rock casing, but the gas that rushed to the surface was too radioactive to be commercially useful.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-blast9may09,0,3712937.story?coll=la-home-headlines
Bills Seek State Tax Breaks for a Select Few
Wealthy taxpayers push narrowly targeted changes in law that can save them millions.
By Evan Halper, Times Staff Writer
SACRAMENTO — A Wall Street tycoon accused in the 1980s of cheating thousands of investors out of their savings in one of the biggest financial scandals in history now says the state of California cheated him.
So he has launched a campaign to change the state tax code — retroactive to 1992 — in hopes of getting $5 million back.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-taxcode9may09,0,7911472.story?coll=la-home-headlines
The Moscow Times
Victory Day Promises Pride and Pomp
By Simon Saradzhyan and Anatoly Medetsky
Staff Writers
Igor Tabakov / MT
Two war veterans who will participate in the Victory Day parade on Red Square raising a toast Thursday at a city-sponsored event at Yekaterininsky Park.
After the lavish May 9 celebrations are over and police barriers in central Moscow come down, President Vladimir Putin may be left with nothing more tangible than a sense of pride in having hosted dozens of the world's leaders.
While big on ceremony, the Victory Day celebrations will offer little of substance for Russia, as the key meeting of the occasion -- between Putin and U.S. President George W. Bush -- is not expected to produce any new agreements or policy breakthroughs. By comparison, the European Union-Russia summit on Tuesday could well see the signing of a roadmap agreement to advance economic, educational and security cooperation between Moscow and the 25-member bloc.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/002.html
Residents Advised to Stay at Home
By Francesca Mereu
Staff Writer
With official Victory Day celebrations off-limits for all but invited guests, police are advising those who decide to remain in Moscow over the long holiday weekend to stay at home.
Still, people who do not mind huge traffic delays, frequent document checks and other unprecedented security measures will have the opportunity to attend numerous concerts, firework displays and other entertainment in parks away from the city center.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/001.html
Uncensored Memories
In a searing new book, Soviet veterans challenge the official mythology of World War II.
By Kevin O'Flynn
Published: May 6, 2005
It was in the 1980s when the first letters arrived at the Izvestia office, bubbling up from the openness that had just started under perestroika, as the country began to re-examine its past.
The letters came from soldiers who felt betrayed by their country when they were left to fight without weapons at the start of the war, from relatives who were stigmatized for decades because their sons were labeled "missing in action," from prisoners scorned and punished for having been in concentration camps.
http://context.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/101.html
Internet Helps Bring the War Home
By Stephen Boykewich
Staff Writer
With the city center facing a virtual lockdown for Victory Day celebrations, most people will not get near the memorials that are bringing world leaders to town. But some of the more ambitious World War II memorial projects are not only open to all, they can be visited at home -- thanks to the Internet.
First among the online projects in terms of scale and sophistication is a web site called "The Victors: Soldiers of the Great War" (www.pobediteli.ru), which has a searchable database of all living Russian veterans of World War II -- 1,009,600 by the site's current count -- and a multimedia history of the war from the Soviet point of view that puts some Hollywood films to shame.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/015.html
THE MEDIA will unilaterally criticise Putin for this type of tactic but Bush has The Patriot Act doing basically the same thing to American citizens with the exception of oil barrons who support his campaigns.
The Moscow Times no different from The New York Times will USE a context to ridicule to an end they choose but Bush is no savior for their cause. Bush in the USA panders to oil barrons where Putin seeks sovereignty over Russian assets by limiting them and jailing them where they won't pay taxes. This article as well as the NY Times USE of this issue chronically ignores, for convenience of finding local saviors, the fact Bush is worse than Putin could ever be by invoking The Patriot Act and prosecutor buddies like Gonzalez.
Sterile Journalism is the "Nero Fiddle" of journalism whereby arguements are made that should be for sake of lack of credible validity in modern day leadership.
If journalism wants to make example of invasion of privacy and/or abuse of power by government then do so but don't look for lame examples in other leadership. In the year 2005 it certainly does not exist in the government of The Bush Regime.
Khodorkovsky a Cloud Putin Can't Scare Away
Even as the Air Force prepares to prevent the clouds from raining on the Victory Day parade, there is one cloud that is likely to hang conspicuously over the head of President Vladimir Putin.
While the president plays host to world leaders on Monday, his country's most high-profile prisoner, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, will be awaiting a verdict a week later in a case seen as a turning point toward greater Kremlin dominance over political and economic
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/010.html
Violence in Iraq Rages On Unabated
Reuters
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Insurgents killed at least 24 people in a wave of ambushes and bomb blasts in Baghdad on Thursday, the latest attacks in a surge of violence that has overshadowed the formation of a new Cabinet for Iraq.
In the deadliest attack, a suicide bomber blew himself up at an army recruitment center at a former airfield in western Baghdad, killing at least 13 people and wounding 15.
Gunmen also ambushed a police convoy, shooting dead 10 policemen and then setting their vehicles ablaze, police said. And a car bomb was detonated as the deputy interior minister's convoy drove past, killing one of his bodyguards and wounding six people, police said. The official was unhurt.
Over the past week guerrillas have stepped up their campaign of violence, defying predictions that the insurgency would crumble following Jan. 30 parliamentary elections and the formation of a new Cabinet.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/253.html
Bush Will Raise Baltic Occupation
The Associated Press
VILNIUS, Lithuania -- U.S. President George W. Bush said he would remind President Vladimir Putin about the Soviet occupation of the Baltic states when they met in Moscow for the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe.
In excerpts of an interview that was broadcast Thursday, Bush told Lithuanian state television that he would stress to Putin that the end of the war did not bring freedom for Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/018.html
UN Urges Action on Afghan Slayings
Reuters
KABUL, Afghanistan -- The United Nations urged Afghanistan on Thursday to spare no effort in the hunt for the killers of three women who were raped, strangled and dumped with a note warning women not to work for aid groups.
Aid workers in Afghanistan have been targeted by Taliban rebels, especially in the insurgency-plagued south and east of the country, but the three Afghan women were found this week in the northern province of Baghlan, where Taliban are not active.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/251.html
A Whole Lot of Fluffiness
Поперёк себя шире: wider than he is tall (said of an obese person)
Although today almost all the world's top models -- those tall, leggy beauties without an ounce of cellulite -- are Russians, historically in Russia, plump was beautiful and healthy. In fact, the verb поправиться can mean either "to become well" after an illness, or "to gain weight." There are dozens of verbs and adjectives in Russian for gaining weight and being overweight, and, bless their food-loving, indulgent souls, Russians use many of them in a positive sense.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/007.html
Gas Pipelines Need Investors: Sharonov
Russia should end Gazprom's monopoly on natural gas shipments and allow private investors to help finance new pipelines, which would increase supplies and lower prices, Deputy Economic Development and Trade Minister Andrei Sharonov said in an interview published Thursday.
"The problem is that Gazprom owns the pipelines," Sharonov said in Rossiiskaya Gazeta. "Gazprom doesn't need to develop the pipelines because it's not interested in the gas transport business and there is enough capacity for shipping its own gas."
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/042.html
Fish Out of Water
There's no bridging the divide between Westerners and Central Asians in Rob Ferguson's memoir of his crusade to save the shrinking Aral Sea.
By Kim Iskyan
Published: May 6, 2005
If you've spent much time in the former Soviet Union -- particularly as an aid worker in Central Asia -- you'll likely recognize elements of your own experience in Rob Ferguson's tale of his travails as a developmental consultant in Central Asia, in "The Devil and the Disappearing Sea."
http://context.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/106.html
Caucasus Legend
The exploits of the 19th-century warrior Shamil have already gained mythical status. A new encyclopedia tries to distinguish fact from fiction.
By Nabi Abdullaev
Published: May 6, 2005
A folk hero in the North Caucasus for more than 150 years, the rebel leader Imam Shamil is admired equally by anti-Russian insurgents and those seeking integration with Russia. The Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev is said to take pride in bearing his name, while President Vladimir Putin has publicly cited Shamil's appeal for the people of the Caucasus to live in peace with Russia.
http://context.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/102.html
Global Eye
Ring Them Bells
By Chris Floyd
Published: May 6, 2005
An occupational hazard of dissidence in the Age of Bush is the unavoidable necessity of belaboring the obvious. Again and again, you must ring the same bell; over and over, you must repeat the same blatant fact: that George W. Bush and his minions are lying hypocrites with blood on their hands.
But what can you do? Each week -- each day -- brings fresh confirmation of this damning truth. And until the American people redeem their lost national honor by rising up in their millions -- taking to the streets with the patriotic cry, "These murderous jackals no longer represent us!" -- the Bush crimes will go on, and must be documented. So grab the bell-rope: Here we go again.
http://context.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2005/05/06/120.html
The Washington Times
U.S. Officers In Iraq Put Priority on Extremists
Hussein Loyalists Not Seen as Greatest Threat
By Bradley Graham
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 9, 2005; A01
BAGHDAD, May 8 -- Senior U.S. commanders say their view of the Iraqi insurgency has begun to shift, with higher priority being given to combating foreign fighters and Iraqi jihadists.
This shift comes in response to the recent upsurge in suicide attacks and other developments that indicate a more prominent role in the insurgency by these radical groups, the commanders say.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/08/AR2005050800838_pf.html
Bush, Putin Put Sniping Aside for VE Day
By JENNIFER LOVEN
The Associated Press
Monday, May 9, 2005; 5:13 AM
MOSCOW -- It was awkward theater for President Bush, given a seat of honor Monday in a reviewing stand next to Lenin's tomb to watch goose-stepping soldiers and flags adorned with the Soviet hammer-and-sickle that recalled days of communist might.
Russia's 60th anniversary celebration of its World War II victory with other Allied forces over Nazi Germany offered only a one-sided, rosy picture of the U.S.S.R.'s war legacy, and has been accompanied by increased nostalgia for the Soviet Union's wartime tyrant, Josef Stalin.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/09/AR2005050900053_pf.html
Increasingly Embattled, DeLay Scales Back Usual Power Plays
By John F. Harris and Mike Allen
Washington Post Staff Writers
Monday, May 9, 2005; A01
In the euphemism favored on Capitol Hill, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is "not staff driven." Translation: He is used to doing what he wants.
It happens all the time, DeLay friends and advisers say. An aide will suggest that the leader soften his tone, or back off just a bit from some inflammatory position. As often as not, the Texas Republican will respond with a snort, suggesting that the adviser is more worried about how a decision will play inside the Beltway than how it will be perceived -- if it is noticed at all -- by the rest of the country.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/08/AR2005050800835_pf.html
GE Ecomagination
http://www.ge.com/ecomagination/
http://www.ge.com/en/
World Press Freedom Day
http://www.ge.com/stories/en/20353.html?category=Product_Business
Volcano Experts Seek Emergency Alert System
By Rick Weiss
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 9, 2005; A07
Imagine living in a country where three volcanoes are erupting at the same time, two others could blow in the very near future and 169 others are capable of awakening -- including scores deemed worthy of constant monitoring.
Imagine living in a place where, in the past 25 years alone, communities have been wiped out by lava flows; eruptions have flattened huge expanses of land and killed people miles away; and avalanches of volcanic debris have swept people to their deaths.
If you live in America, you live in such a country.
The United States is among the most volcano-rich nations on Earth -- home to 45 eruptions and 15 cases of notable unrest at 33 volcanoes since 1980. But while a handful of hazardous mountains are relatively well-laden with monitoring equipment, many dozing giants are beyond scientists' electronic eyes and ears, posing a significant threat to thousands of people, according to the first comprehensive assessment of U.S. volcano risks.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/08/AR2005050800635_pf.html
Along Potomac, an Ecological Mystery Surfaces
Md., River Groups Try To Determine Origins of Abundant Plastic Barrels
By David A. Fahrenthold
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 9, 2005; B01
Olmsted Island, a forested median that splits the Potomac River upstream from the District, is a spot where the fast-moving current coughs up debris as it crashes through Great Falls.
For those interested in one of the river's oddest ecological mysteries, it is a great place to find clues.
"There are six right here," said Mac Thornton, a kayaker who paddled out to the island in Montgomery County one recent afternoon. He swiveled to count more, pointing his finger at each new sighting. "Seven, eight, nine, 10, 11, 12, so far."
Thornton was counting barrels: waist-high plastic drums in shades of blue, black and white. They were jumbled at his feet and hidden in the woods behind him-- obvious aliens in the landscape.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/08/AR2005050800760_pf.html
The Pessivist
AIDS Activist Larry Kramer, Hoarse From Speaking Truth to Power
By Jose Antonio Vargas
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 9, 2005; C01
Who will be the next Larry Kramer?
The man himself -- AIDS activist, writer, provocateur -- doesn't know. Right now, Kramer is fighting all this noise: the cell phones going off, the cash register ringing, the 2-year-old who keeps crying whenever she drops her pink pacifier. Then there's the front door that won't shut, people trickling in and out.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/08/AR2005050800988_pf.html
Aid to Christian School In Alaska Spurs Lawsuit
By Brian Faler
Special to The Washington Post
Monday, May 9, 2005; A21
There are those who complain that Congress does not care about the concerns of the little guy. But those people do not attend Alaska Christian College.
The school, founded five years ago and affiliated with the Evangelical Covenant Church, has 37 students. It is not accredited and does not grant degrees. It offers, instead, certificates in biblical studies at the end of a student's first year and certificates in biblical and general studies to those who complete a second. Over the past two years, Congress has given the school more than $1 million.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/08/AR2005050800780_pf.html
Roadless Rules
Monday, May 9, 2005; Page A22
ON ITS OWN, the Bush administration's rationale for radically amending the "roadless rule" sounds reasonable. The rule, a Clinton administration regulation designed to prevent logging, mineral extraction or road construction of any kind within some 56.5 million acres of pristine national forestland, has been contested by several states and has been overturned by two federal judges. Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey, who is responsible for the Forest Service, says he wants to eliminate the one-size-fits-all federal rule in favor of a "state by state process." Mr. Rey says that this would give governors more say in how the rule is applied and therefore reduce the amount of "ill will" that the rule created.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/08/AR2005050800731.html
N.C. Church Kicks Out Members Who Do Not Support Bush
Associated Press
Sunday, May 8, 2005; A12
WAYNESVILLE, N.C., May 7 -- Some in Pastor Chan Chandler's flock wish he had a little less zeal for the GOP.
Members of the small East Waynesville Baptist Church say Chandler led an effort to kick out congregants who did not support President Bush. Nine members were voted out at a Monday church meeting in this mountain town about 120 miles west of Charlotte. Forty others in the 400-member congregation resigned in protest.
"He's the kind of pastor who says 'Do it my way or get out,' " said Selma Morris, the former church treasurer. "He's real negative all the time."
Chandler told WLOS-TV in Asheville on Friday that the actions were not politically motivated, but on Saturday he refused to comment, citing the advice of his attorney.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/07/AR2005050700972_pf.html
Filibuster Fray Lifts Profile of Minister
Scarborough Has Network and Allies
By Shailagh Murray
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, May 8, 2005; A01
In his home town of Pearland, Tex., Baptist minister Rick Scarborough was tireless in promoting his conservative Christian way of thinking.
He attacked high school sex education courses, experimental medical treatments and transsexuals trying to change their gender identification. He recruited like-minded candidates to run for the local school board and city council. He crisscrossed the country to protest the ousting of Roy S. Moore, former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, for installing a Ten Commandments tablet at his courthouse. And Scarborough created a network of "Patriot Pastors" to lead evangelicals to the polls in 2004.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/07/AR2005050701266_pf.html
continued...
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