22.Jul.2006 Illegale Migranten: Fast 250 illegale Einwanderer auf Kanarischen Inseln gelandet
22.Jul.2006 Eskalation im Libanon: "Montag geht es los"
22.Jul.2006 Unfalltod von Lady Di: Zuständiger Richter gibt Fall ab
22.Jul.2006 Libanon- Offensive: USA forcieren Waffenlieferungen an Israel
22.Jul.2006 Islam: Zeichen für einen Wechsel
22.Jul.2006 Vogelgrippe: China und Bulgarien melden neue Fälle
22.Jul.2006 Heute in den Feuilletons: "An Wasser wurde gespart. An Menschen nicht."

22.Jul.2006 Israels Kriegsplanung: "Wir kämpfen bis zum Ende"
22.Jul.2006 Hilfsaktion: Äthiopische Truppen dringen auf somalisches Gebiet vor
22.Jul.2006 Arbeitsmarkt- Studie: Ältere am Arbeitsmarkt sehr gefragt
22.Jul.2006 Minister condemns Israeli action Foreign Office minister Kim Howells criticises Israel's bombardment of Lebanon, while on a visit to Beirut.
22.Jul.2006 128. Judd  Number of embryos that have been “adopted” out of 400,000 that are stored in fertility clinics, according to Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA).

President Bush vetoed a bill last week that would have expanded federal funding for stem cell research using embryos that would otherwise be discarded. (HT: Atrios)
22.Jul.2006 Bolton: My Support ‘Would Probably Be The Kiss of Death’ For Next U.N. Head Nico 

The White House released a fact sheet yesterday entitled, “Setting the Record Straight: President Bush’s Foreign Policy Is Succeeding.”

The sheet declares not once but four times that the administration “is rallying the world behind its policy,” and claims that “a consensus is building behind the President’s foreign policy approach.”

Actually, U.S. standing in the world has plummeted under the Bush administration, as John Bolton tacitly admitted yesterday.

Asked who he would choose as Kofi Annan’s successor at the UN, Bolton acknowledged, “If I told you who I thought we thought the best candidate would be, it would probably be the kiss of death for that person.” Watch it:

As Jeffrey Laurenti writes in a new piece for Mother Jones:

It is fair to say that no one has done more to isolate the USA in world councils than Mr. Bolton, who has virtually alone opposed, time + again, the path-breaking reform initiatives that have passed the U.N. since he arrived. Full transcript:
22.Jul.2006 NASA quietly had its mission statement changed Payson  last February by the White House, who deleted the phrase “to understand and protect our home planet.” NASA scientists were surprised to learn of the change. “Without it, these scientists say, there will be far less incentive to pursue projects to improve understanding of terrestrial problems like climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions.”
22.Jul.2006 The Bolton blitz begins. Admin  The Senate Foreign Relations Committee announced today it will hold fresh hearings on the nomination of U.N. Ambassador John Bolton, who failed to be confirmed by the Senate last year. The hearings are set for next Thursday + the White House has scheduled Bolton on multiple Sunday morning news shows this weekend.
22.Jul.2006 Fanatical Zionist On Display Atlas Shrugs: GILLERMAN ON O'REILLY
22.Jul.2006 Bush himself admitted to violating the law Who Will Prosecute Bush for a Double Felony? | BuzzFlash
22.Jul.2006 Newsmax Insanity Strikes Again 'Fire 9/11 Conspiracy Prof.': Wisc. Lawmakers
22.Jul.2006 Soldiers in Murder Case Claim They Were Ordered to 'Kill All Military Age ABC News: Soldiers Say Ordered to Kill Young Men
22.Jul.2006 Spanish intercept migrant boats Spain says it has intercepted boats taking almost 250 presumed African migrants to the Canary Islands.
22.Jul.2006 Tsunami death toll rises to 650 More bodies are found after Monday's tsunami on the Indonesian island of Java taking the death toll to 650.
22.Jul.2006 Indians arrive home from Lebanon Indians escaping an Israeli military offensive in Lebanon return home after being evacuated.
22.Jul.2006 Warming Pacific Hurts Food Chain A scarcity of krill in warmer waters near Pacific seabird breeding grounds means some species won't have enough food for chicks. Scientists expect severe population declines, which will mean other species up the food chain will go hungry.
22.Jul.2006 Anna Konda, the Robotic Firefighter ScuttleMonkey 68 Roland Piquepaille writes

"In fact, Anna Konda is a robotic fire hose moving like a snake. This robot, which has been developed in Norway by SINTEF, is 3 m long and weighs 70 kg.

The snake contains 20 water hydraulic motors that move the robotic joints. And the energy needed to power these motors comes from water pressurized to 100 bars and already available inside the fire hose.

This gives enough energy to this water-powered robot to climb up stairs, to lift a car up off the ground or even break through a wall. Very clever design!

The designers think that this robot could not only replace humans to fight fires when it's too dangerous for them, but could also be used for subsea operations or explosion prevention.

An additional overview contains more details and pictures of this snake robot."
22.Jul.2006 A Preview of Election 08 - Podcasting Politicians Zonk 121 Video Blogger writes

"The LA Times predicts that the 2008 election will feature the rise of Podcasting Politicians, as strategists from both parties try to ride the latest trends to secure a victory 00.000.2008.

'You'll not only be able to text people with messages, you'll be able to raise money, deliver video, audio, create viral organizing -- where one person sees something really interesting and it gets passed on and on,' says Donnie Fowler, a Democratic strategist."
22.Jul.2006 Überraschung bei den brasilianischen Präsidentschaftswahlen? sfux Karl Weiss -

Soeben ist die letzte Wählerumfrage des angesehenen brasilianischen Instituts ?DataFolha? zur Präsidentenwahl im Oktober herausgekommen.

Lula liegt demnach bei 44%, der Gegenkandidat der konservativen (noch konservativeren) Opposition Alckmin bei 28% und die Senatorin Heloísa Helena bei 10%.
Kein anderer Kandidat kommt auf mehr als 1%. Dazu kommen mit 7% jene, die nicht wählen bzw. einen ?weißen? oder ungültigen Wahlzettel abgeben wollen....
22.Jul.2006 Politisches Ziel: Sex mit Kindern sfux Harald Haack ?

Soziologisch gilt Sex mit Kindern als typisches Zeichen für den Verfall und bevorstehenden Tod einer Gesellschaft. Offenbar war sich ein niederländisches Gericht dessen nicht bewusst, denn es unterstützt mit seiner Entscheidung eine im Mai gegründete Partei, deren Ziel es ist, die Altersgrenze für straffreien Sex mit Minderjährigen von derzeit 16 auf 12 Jahren zu senken. Das...
22.Jul.2006 Israelis and Lebanese talking — on the net. Nico 

Sites like On the Face are bringing ordinary citizens together even as violence continues. “We have tons of things in common. We come from two of the most liberal, educated countries in the Middle East. Many of us received a western education. We have talked, wrote + dreamed about open borders between our countries.”
22.Jul.2006 Snow: ‘Nobody Has Been More Diplomatically Active Than We Have’ On The Middle East Peace Process Amanda 

This morning on the Today Show, White House Press Secretary Tony Snow argued that “nobody has been more diplomatically active than we have” in the Middle East, citing all the phone calls White House officials have made in recent days: Watch it:

Real diplomacy requires more than just phone calls. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger famously went to the region and used “shuttle diplomacy” — meeting repeatedly with each party — to negotiate “disengagement agreements between Israel, Syria + Egypt” following the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Similarly, 00.000.1996, Secretary of State Warren Christopher spent “seven days shuttling between Damascus and Jerusalem” and successfully negotiated a “truce between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas.” President Bill Clinton visited Israel in the midst of the 1996 terrorist attacks by Hamas to show U.S. support.

In contrast, the Bush administration has taken a “hands off approach,” and has derided diplomatic efforts as “naive and ineffectual.” Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will finally visit the region next week, but has rejected calls to press for a cease-fire.

Full transcript below:
22.Jul.2006 Afghanistan is “close to anarchy,” Amanda  warns Lieutenant General David Richards, head of Nato’s international security force in Afghanistan.
22.Jul.2006 Right-Wing Attacks American Evacuees: ‘Ingrates,’ ‘Whining,’ ‘Spoiled-Rotten Little Children’ Think Progress 

The Bush administration’s evacuation of Americans in Lebanon has been disorganized and lagged behind the efforts of other countries.

As of yesterday, only a few thousand had been able to evacuate + they departed “two days after the first Europeans left on ships.” Denmark, for example, “evacuated more than 4,000 of its citizens” by Thursday.

Conservatives have reacted to this incompetence by attacking the evacuees:

Rush Limbaugh, 7/19:

Even in the eyes of our ingrate, spoiled-rotten little children, brat-type ingrate citizens in Beirut , it’s our fault. (Crying.) “ It’s a war zone. It’s a war! How do I get out? (crying) We’re having to shield ourselves from the sun in cardboard.” (sobbing) That’s embarrassing.

Fox anchor Neil Cavuto, 7/20:

The media is playing up a lot of whining, complaining Americans in this country who said there’s been no warning, no communication.

TownHall.com columnist Mike Gallagher, 7/21:

Amazingly, we’re not even going to charge these ungrateful evacuees for the free trip home. … Their sense of outrage and entitlement is slowly but surely becoming the American way. And it’s positively disgusting .

Fox anchor Steve Doocy, 7/19:

Shockingly, after they’ve been plucked out of Beirut, a lot of them are whining and complaining that, you know what, I had to sleep on the concrete and they didn’t have any food for me to eat .

Watch Fox & Friends (a Fox correspondent in Cyprus disputes Doocy’s account, describing the evacuation conditions as “really chaotic”):
22.Jul.2006 Bush Refuses To Estimate Future Costs of Iraq War, Violating Federal Law Think Progress 
Congress passed a law requiring the Bush administration to estimate the future costs of the war in Iraq. Here’s an excerpt:

The President shall provide to the Congress a report detailing the estimated costs over the period from fiscal year 2006 to 2011 of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom , or any related military operations in + around Iraq + Afghanistan + the estimated costs of reconstruction, internal security + related economic support to Iraq and Afghanistan… the report referenced above shall be submitted no later than 01.Jan.2005.

There is an exemption if the administration certifies that estimates “cannot be provided for purposes of national security.” But the President hasn’t done that. From Bloomberg:

Instead of a presidential waiver, Joshua Bolton, director of the Office of Management and Budget, wrote congressional leaders in May 2005 that the Pentagon couldn’t compile the estimates because “ there are too many variables to predict accurately.'’

Rep. Chris Shays (R-CT) isn’t happy:

The Bush administration hasn’t followed a 2005 law requiring the Pentagon to estimate the cost of Iraq and Afghanistan military operations through 2011, a Republican lawmaker said today.

“ The administration does not appear to have compiled with a statutory requirement to provide Congress with a report ,” wrote Representative Christopher Shays in a letter to the chairmen of the House and Senate armed services and appropriations committees.

Shays has good reason to be concerned about mounting costs. Total appropriations for Iraq by Congress will soon exceed $400 billion.
22.Jul.2006 Fox News host Julie Banderas Nico rhetorically asked viewers yesterday “to ‘guess which television’ outlet Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had recently appeared on + then stated: ‘No, not The New York Times, but Al Jazeera television, broadcasting this terrorist on TV.’” Oh + also Fox:
22.Jul.2006 Sen. Inhofe: ‘Gore Is Full of Crap,’ ‘All Recent Science…Confirms This Thing Is A Hoax’ Judd 
Yesterday, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) attacked Al Gore and global warming science, claiming that Gore was “full of crap” on global warming.

Appearing on Glenn Beck’s radio show and CNN television program, Inhofe said that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which concluded that global warming was real and caused by humans, used “one scientist.” Inhofe added: “[A]ll of the recent science…it confirms that I was right on this thing. This thing is a hoax.” Watch it:
22.Jul.2006 Reid: ‘There is a civil war going on in Iraq.’ Nico 

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) said yesterday he has been “somewhat gingerly approaching this… No longer. There is a civil war going on in Iraq.

In the last two months, more than 6,000 Iraqis have been killed…and we need to make sure there is a debate on this.” Senate conservatives “questioned why Reid wants to go over old ground.”
22.Jul.2006 Bush and Merkel, united against stem cell research. Nico 
Germany’s conservative Chancellor Angela Merkel may not have appreciated President Bush’s awkward “massage” last week, but she does agree with his stance on stem cells.

Germany yesterday “pressed its EU partners to ban European funding for embryonic stem-cell research, a day after President George W. Bush vetoed a bill that would have expanded such work in the USA.”
21.Jul.2006 July 21, 2006 Think Progress 
A short exchange between President Bush and NAACP Chairman Julian Bond that referenced some individuals in the crowd yesterday who were heckling the president was removed from the official White House transcript . The White House described the disruption as “applause.”

Top NASA scientist James Hansen explained why he did not attend a recent House committee hearing on global warming .

“I would get out of my sickbed to testify to Congress on global warming, if they were ready to deal responsibly with the matter,” Hansen wrote.

“But obviously they are still in denial, inviting contrarians to ‘balance’ the science of global warming.”

A federal judge did not buy the administration’s argument that a lawsuit challenging the NSA domestic wiretapping program would endanger national security.

The ruling yesterday marked “the first time a judge has ruled on the government’s claim of a ‘state secrets privilege.’”

Scientists say earth is losing species “faster than at any time since 65 million years ago” as a result of human activity .

Senior CIA officials pushing to produce a new National Intelligence Estimate for Iraq, in part to answer questions over whether a civil war has begun , “have been stonewalled” by intel czar John Negroponte, “who knows that any honest take on the situation would produce an NIE even more pessimistic than the 2004 version.”

Redefining “quiet.” “Thursday was one of the quietest days in one of the year’s bloodiest weeks, with no single reported attack in Iraq claiming more than 13 lives.”

Police squads “looking for the corpses that are found most mornings on the city’s streets” did locate 38 bodies, most shot in the head.

$591 million: Halliburton’s second-quarter profit, a 51 % increase over the same period last year.

Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt and his relatives have claimed millions of dollars in tax deductions through a type of charitable foundation they created.

The foundation has, until recently, paid out very little in actual charity but instead invested or lent to the family’s business interests and real estate holdings.

Colorado State Rep. Jim Welker (R), criticized for forwarding around an article titled “‘Black Culture’ Blamed For Hurricane Katrina Woes,” defended himself by claiming, “ Some of my good friends are different colors .” Welker also recently had to apologize for forwarding a racially charged essay that said Hurricane Katrina victims were “welfare pampered” and “immoral.”

And finally: House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) reveals all to Capitol Hills interns. “Boehner explained to the young ’uns that he thought he’d never get elected because people couldn’t pronounce his name.

They thought of everything, he said, except the way it’s really pronounced, which is BAY-ner, including… ‘Boner.’”
22.Jul.2006 Katrina victims “not allowed” to talk to media, reporter told FEMA a Disaster for Freedom of the Press
22.Jul.2006 America’s War on Terrorism, ‘Al-Qaeda is a U.S.-sponsored Intelligence Asset used to Justify War in the Middle East: Interview with Michel Chossudovsky The Use of 9/11 as a Pretext to Wage War :: from www.uruknet.info :: news from occupied Iraq - ch
22.Jul.2006 Alex Jones panel on C-SPAN By reprehensor DHS sent us this note;
"Apparently, according to Alex Jones today, the roundtable discussion from the LA Conference will be shown on "American Perspectives" on Wednesday at 8PM, on CSPAN.
That would be 26.Jul.2006 "
Please bear in mind that C-SPAN is notorious for moving things around at the last minute! As current events crop up, they adjust programming to accomodate live feeds.

Last year they moved McKinney's Congressional Hearing to C-SPAN2 at the last minute due to Hurricane Katrina, (but they did play the entire session), so watch the schedule + let us know if anything changes.
22.Jul.2006 Views on torture and the Geneva Conventions Top-Secret World Loses Blogger
22.Jul.2006 Man Dies After Fall From London Citigroup Building, Police Say Bloomberg.com: U.K.
22.Jul.2006 Samuel Danner, Pentagon eyewitness, speaks out By Total

Samuel Danner saw an aircraft apparently crash into the Pentagon on 9/11 and went to the scene to offer his help as a trained emergency medical technician.

Five years later, with his children now grown and himself facing a life-or-death battle with lymphoma, he has decided to speak out.

Sam Danner (red arrow), was one of the people who helped pick up scraps. The white arrow points to a
22.Jul.2006 Israel's military targets "have no conceivable relationship to Hizbullah."
22.Jul.2006 Cadbury's 'linked' to salmonella Cadbury's confectionary is the most likely source of an outbreak of salmonella poisoning, says the Health Protection Agency.
22.Jul.2006 Blogging From the Belly of Beirut As the Israeli-Lebanese conflict boils over, moderates on both sides seek understanding and reconciliation -- and they're finding each other online. By Cyrus Farivar.
22.Jul.2006 Judge: NSA Case Can Proceed In a landmark ruling, a judge rejects the Bush administration's argument that a suit against AT&T must be blocked on national security grounds. Now the EFF can press its lawsuit, accusing the telecom of helping the NSA illegally spy on internet customers. By Ryan Singel.
22.Jul.2006 Möglicherweise Kriegsverbrechen sfux SDA -

Bei den Auseinandersetzungen im Nahen Osten sind nach Auffassung der Uno möglicherweise Kriegsverbrechen verübt worden.

Menschenrechtskommissarin Louise Arbour verurteilte die Tötung von Zivilisten in Libanon, Israel und den palästinensischen Gebieten.
Besonders durch das Ausmass und die Vorhersagbarkeit der Tötung und Verletzung von Zivilisten im Libanon, Israel + den Palästinensergebieten könnte der Tatbestand der Kriegsverbrechen erfüllt sein,...
22.Jul.2006 Können die USA bankrott gehen? sfux Karl Weiss - ?

Die USA könnten bankrott gehen?: Diese klare Aussage, wenn auch im Konjunktiv, hat laut einer Meldung des britischen ?Telegraph?, der keinerlei Panikmache verdächtig ist, ein Professor Kotlikoff von der

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis gemacht, eine der führenden Institutionen der US Federal Reserve, der US-Zentralbank.
Der Professor bezieht sich dabei auf eine Reihe von Fakten:
22.Jul.2006 Sanktionen für Nord-Korea: Nichts als Show sfux Karl Weiss -

Von allen Medien wurde unkommentiert die Meldung gebracht, daß der Sicherheitsrat der UN wegen der Raketen-Tests Sanktionen gegen Nord-Korea beschlossen hätte.

In einer Kolumne der Herausgeber der ?New York Times? wird dies als ?Show? bezeichnet.
Es wird betont, daß die genannten Sanktionen überhaupt keine Wirkung haben, da entsprechendes auf Betreiben der USA sowieso bereits seit einiger Zeit praktiziert wird. Nord-Korea wird...
22.Jul.2006 An Inconvenient Truth and An Intolerable Summer Payson 
Greenhouse gas emissions have not only heated the earth to its hottest temperature in millennia; they have also made heat waves more intense.

The journal Nature said 00.000.2004 that “severe heat waves are now four times as likely to occur because of increased carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere.”

A roundup of news coverage from this week’s heat wave in the U.S. and Europe gives a sense of what we can expect in the future:

Nevada: “Reno set a record for heat Sunday, breaking an 81-year-old record, according to the National Weather Service.”

Czech Republic: “The temperature in Prague climbed up to 34.3 degrees centigrade today and beat the 141 year old record of the day by 0.6 degrees.”

South Dakota: “Saturday’s statewide high temperature that unofficially tied a South Dakota record set 70 years earlier is likely to stand, a National Weather Service employee says.”

Britain: “Britain sweltered on the hottest July day for nearly a century as the current heatwave reached its peak.”

California: “Indio (122 degrees), Palm Springs (118), Riverside (108), Sun City-Perris (108), San Bernardino (107), Temecula (106) + Moreno Valley (104) all set record highs Saturday, according to the National Weather Service and records kept by The Press-Enterprise.”

Arkansas: “Another scorcher today after record temperatures were set in some Arkansas cities yesterday. Monticello reached 109 degrees Wednesday + in Little Rock a record of 104 degrees for the date was set.”

New Hampshire: “It reached 95 degrees in Manchester. That beats the previous high for the date of 93 degrees. The old record was set 00.000.1968.”

New York and Connecticut:

“Dangerous heat settled over the Central Plains + Northeast for another day Tuesday, producing record high temperatures in New York and Connecticut, said Dennis Feltgen, a spokesman for the National Weather Service.”

North Dakota: “In Bismarck, the temperature broke a record and Dickinson tied a record.”

Kansas: “…a day that saw a record high temperature of 109 for Wichita, topping by 2 degrees the mark set during the legendary heat wave of 1980.”

Germany: “Germany’s national meteorological service said July was on the way to being the hottest since records began in many parts of the country.”
22.Jul.2006 Tony Snow on Minorities In The White House: ‘Every Group Raise Your Hand, We Want You’ Judd 
The National Journal reports that, among the top 20 White House staffers, “there are no African-Americans or Asians…and only one Hispanic.”

Today, following President Bush’s speech to the NAACP, a reporter asked Press Secretary Tony Snow about the lack of diversity in the White House.

Snow reponded “You can come aboard and do personnel. You want it?.” Then Snow snapped saracstically, “Let me leave no one behind. Just, every group, raise your hand, we want you.”

Full transcript:

QUESTION: If he is proud of the diversity in his Cabinet, wouldn’t you expect him to improve diversity amongst the White House staff?

SNOW: What the president does is he looks for the best available people.

QUESTION: And they’re all white?

SNOW: I don’t know. Why don’t you tell me?

You can come aboard and do personnel. You want it?

QUESTION: I’m asking a question.

SNOW: I know you are, but it’s an argumentative question that also applied to other previous administrations. Would we like more blacks and Hispanics on? Yes, sure.

QUESTION: And Asians?

SNOW: Asians, too, yes, thank you. Let me leave no one behind. Just, every group, raise your hand, we want you.
22.Jul.2006 Snow Falsely Claims Racial Income Gap Is ‘Not Widening Anymore’ Amanda 
Today White House Press Secretary Tony Snow claimed President Bush had closed the income gap between races:

QUESTION: After the speech, people said that the president said what he needed to say about the Voting Rights Act + they were very appreciative of that, but that the speech fell flat when he spoke about education, jobs and other issues.

And they felt very passionately that on jobs, housing, education, affirmative action, the administration has not put forth policies that have improved their lives.

How do you respond to that?

SNOW: Well, two things.

First, you take a look at the economic data. And you have seen growing — I guess I could put it this way — income equality has a better record in this administration than in previous.

There was this widening gap. It’s not widening anymore.

But a look at U.S. Census data (Table 647) shows that not only is the income gap still widening, but African-Americans are faring worse under Bush than they were under President Clinton.

The chart below shows that, under Clinton, the racial income gap was closing because the average median household income of African-Americans grew faster than that of whites.

Under Bush, the opposite has been true:
22.Jul.2006 White House’s doctoring of climate reports Faiz will be investigated by the House Government Reform Committee.

Chairman Tom Davis (R-VA) + Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) announced today that that they will launch a bipartisan inquiry into allegations that White House officials, including former adviser Philip Cooney, edited climate reports to play down the potential threat of global warming.
22.Jul.2006 Charles Barkley Abandons Conservatism: ‘The Word Conservative Means Discriminatory’ Nico 
Former Vice President Dan Quayle walked out of a John Mellencamp concert this weekend after the singer dedicated a song to “all the poor people who’ve been ignored by the current administration.”

Suprisingly, long-time conservative and NBA star Charles Barkley, who for years has suggested he may run for Alabama governor as a Republican, took Mellencamp’s side:

“He’s right,” Charles Barkley said of Mellencamp. “ The word conservative means discriminatory practically.

It’s a form of political discrimination. [Conservatives are] against gay marriage and for a war that makes no sense.

A war that was based on faulty intelligence. That’s all they ever talk about. That and immigration. Another discriminatory argument for political gain. “

Barkley’s shift against conservatism may also have something to do with his interest in poverty. “My No. 1 priority is to help poor people,” Barkley has said.

“In this country, 90% of the money is controlled by 10% of the people + that’s not right.”

Tony Snow is quoted in today’s Washington Post: “Does [President Bush] often talk about poverty? No.”
22.Jul.2006 Israel hints at ‘full-scale invasion.’ Nico 
Israel today “hinted at a full-scale invasion” of Lebanon, warning residents “to flee a nearly 20-mile swath of south Lebanon along the border.

Its warplanes also launched new airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold.”

Meanwhile, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the Security Council that “hostilities must stop” between Israel and Hezbollah + condemned Israel’s “excessive use of force” in Lebanon.
22.Jul.2006 U.S. military reports 40 % spike in Baghdad attacks. Nico 
“U.S. spokesman Maj. Gen. William Caldwell said there has been an average of 34 attacks a day against U.S. and Iraqi forces in the capital over the past five days. The daily average for the period June 14 until July 13 was 24 a day, he said.
22.Jul.2006 Linda Ellman This looks like great 9/11 Untruth......9/11 documentary director wants truth to prevail - Yahoo! News
22.Jul.2006 "No More Infrastructure to Destroy" Informed Comment
22.Jul.2006 'My Personal 9/11 "Smoking Guns"' Humint Events Online: My Personal 9/11 "Smoking Guns"
22.Jul.2006 BOB HERBERT still doesn't have a clue about what happened on 9/11 Fountainhead: Leading to Low Ground
22.Jul.2006 In Israel's actions today we can detect many of the elements of hubris A protracted colonial war Fountainhead: A protracted colonial war
22.Jul.2006 Joe Lieberman’s appropriation of the Rovian politics Firedoglake - Firedoglake weblog » Joe Lieberman: Running Against Himself

Now it turns out that Lieberman was playing Mark Davis for a fool + he himself holds Halliburton stock. It is the third largest holding, in fact, in his "Victory Fund" mutual fund (PDF of Lieberman’s 2005 Personal Finance Disclosure Statement, p. 7, line 7). technorati tags:Lieberman, Scum, Halliburton
22.Jul.2006 “I’m just sick in the stomach, to put it mildly,” The American Thinker technorati tags:AIPAC, Israeli_Lobby
22.Jul.2006 WTC Forensic Opportunity Engineers seek what's left of WTC facade - Yahoo! News

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owned the trade center and carted thousands of tons of trade center steel to an airport hangar for storage + cataloguing, recently hired a structural engineering firm to determine what's left of the widely photographed facade. technorati tags:WTC, 9/11, Truth
22.Jul.2006 The Coca-Cola company has severely polluted the groundwater. OneWorld South Asia Home / News / News:Today's Headlines - Indian report confirms water pollution by Coca-Cola
22.Jul.2006 Leo Strauss, Authoritarian (Leiter)

The letter by Strauss translated here is certainly revealing, though the comments section is, alas, quickly overun by zombies from the Strauss Cult reciting their mantras against the real scholars and philosophers.

From the latter group, Tad Brennan (Northwestern) gets the prize for the single, best comment, which captures both Strauss and the cult rather well:
22.Jul.2006 RadioActive sanDiego (9/11 Persuasion Psychology) 9/11 Truth Persuasion Psychology : Indymedia Radio
22.Jul.2006 Media Targeted by Israel? Al-Jazeera technician 'shot in West Bank'Ben Dowell

19.Jul.2006 MediaGuardian.co.uk An al-Jazeera technican was shot by the Israeli military today during the filming of a live report, the Arabic satellite broadcaster has claimed.Al-Jaz... _{Media targetted by Israeli military in Gaza | Newfoundnews}
22.Jul.2006 FOX COMMENTATOR THREATENS 9/11 ACTIVIST

Press Release technorati tags:Scholars_for_9/11_Truth, Fetzer, Foxnews, O'Reilly, Death
22.Jul.2006 ISRAEL'S DELUSIONS By TPR

YITZHAK LAOR, LONDON REVIEW OF BOOKS, 2004 - The real struggle in Israeli society today is not between doves and hawks, but between the majority who take for granted the IDF's image as the defender of our nation, with or without biblical quotes + the minority who no longer buy it. If the army does something bad it is always an exception (harig, in Hebrew). Those who believe that we are fighting for our lives also believe that we do our best to be humane + more or less succeed. This fragile complex of axioms depends either on foolish optimism ("soon everything will be resolved") or on images. Arguments don't work anymore. . .
Atrocities are always perpetrated against us + the more brutal Israel becomes, the more it depends on our image as the eternal victim. Hence the importance of the Holocaust since the end of the 1980s (the first intifada) + its return into Hebrew literature. The Holocaust is part of the victim imagery, hence the madness of state-subsidized school trips to Auschwitz. This has less to do with understanding the past than with reproducing an environment in which we exist in the present tense as victims. Together with that comes the imagery of the healthy, beautiful + sensitive soldiers. . .
Every once in a while opposition arises from within the monster. Hence the Courage to Refuse movement, the letter last September signed by 27 pilots who refused to attack civilian populations in the Occupied Territories, the letter in December from an elite commando unit that refused to fight + so on. A society living in the past as if it were the present is vulnerable: the past/present becomes a double-edged sword. You may be sued if you call anybody here a "Nazi," but one hears it a lot. It would be more appropriate to compare Israeli brutality with the French in Algeria, or the British in Sudan or Malaysia, but we are taken up with the notion of "our past turning into our present." . . . Link
22.Jul.2006 Vetoing Science… By demosthenes on Republicans

Hypocrisy is a fashionable vice + all fashionable vices pass for virtue –Moliere

It should come as little surprise that this administration’s first veto is used to stymie science. The administration has had a bone to pick with any science that brushes up against its own notions of morality and sense of manifest destiny from climate change to evolution to biology in the classroom.

What is most disturbing to me about this is the opportunist nature of his posing with the ‘snowflake children.’ This hits pretty close to home for me, being the father of one of those adopted embryos he prattles on about with no understanding. I spoke about this first and at length a year ago here.
22.Jul.2006 Irony Alert Part Deux By BlondeSense Liz

"It crosses a moral boundary that our decent society needs to respect, so I vetoed it," Bush said. Today the president vetoed his first bill. There was no ceremony, no ball, just idiocy. I agree that there are moral boundaries our decent society needs to respect, however this is not one of the boundaries I was thinking about. I was thinking about already living human beings. Silly me.
22.Jul.2006 Anti Bertelsmann Kongress kanalB Unter dem Titel "Du bist Bertelsmann: Wie ein globaler Drahtzieher Medien, Bildung und Politik steuert" fand vom 14.-17. Juli 2006 in Hamburg ein Kongress statt, der Bertelsmann-Kritikerinnen und Intersssierte zusammenführte.
22.Jul.2006 Man Clicks on EULA, Now May Get 55-years in Jail John C Dvorak Screwball story if ever there was.
22.Jul.2006 Net ignorance of the Christian Coalition Perspective Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey says there's a contradiction in coalition's position on Net neutrality.
22.Jul.2006 Dare Violate a Copyright in Hong Kong? A Boy Scout May Be Watching Online In Hong Kong and China, the newest Internet copyright police may brandish a different kind of identification — a merit badge.
22.Jul.2006 House Wants To Prohibit Judiciary Ruling On Constitutionality of Pledge’s ‘Under God’ Uncle Dave Religion is taking over our secular government.
22.Jul.2006 Goodbye YouTube Ianiv YouTube has changed their terms and conditions to include the following: "…you hereby grant YouTube a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicenseable and transferable license to use, reproduce, distribute, prepare derivative works of, display + perform the User Submissions in ...
22.Jul.2006 Visualization Dave Via Information Aesthetics, here are a couple of incredible web-based visualizations: Population: One 6.5 billion pixels, one per person on the planet. Hydrogen Atom Scale Model One proton, one electron + a whole lotta nothing. What I love about these pages is how they take advantage of the ...
22.Jul.2006 NYC Pagan Resource Statistics Welcome to NYC Pagans - a site for pagans, wiccans and those interested metaphysics to discuss every day topics ranging from divination, the tarot and the meanings of dreams; to politics and poetry. We also have a growing pagan art gallery and a list of nyc pagan resources that includes a ...
22.Jul.2006 Google-Earthing the North Korean Military Poking around Google Earth at a moment of geopolitical drama, I took a look at North Korea. Turns out that military installations are not only indicated by the Google Earth community, they’re described in some detail. There are areas in several countries that have been left at low resolution ...

22.Jul.2006 US Airways to place ads on barf bags The Tempe, Arizona-based airline plans to sell advertisements on its air-sickness bags -- those pint-sized expandable envelopes tucked between the in-flight magazines and safety cards. "They're in every back seat pocket," said spokesman Phil Gee. "We figure while it's there, why don' ...
22.Jul.2006 The Wisdom of Robots Artificial intelligence makes it possible for robots to play cards, drive cars and spend all day browsing the web. David Cohn reports from the big AI conference in Boston.
22.Jul.2006 Gallery: Robots Get Smart Crafty automatons storm the American Association for Artificial Intelligence conference in Boston.
22.Jul.2006 3-D Imaging Goes Ballistic Government-funded research produces new gun-fingerprinting technology that can analyze and compare 3-D images of spent rounds. Luke O'Brien reports from Washington, D.C.
22.Jul.2006 Congress' Top 10 Stem-Cell Flubs Sometimes legislators make stuff up when they're not sure about the facts -- especially when it comes to complicated science like stem-cell research.

Here are the worst offenses heard in Congress this week. Commentary by Steven Edwards.
22.Jul.2006 Judge: NSA Case Can Proceed

A San Francisco judge rejects the Bush administration's argument that a class-action suit against AT&T must be blocked on national security grounds. Now the EFF can push its claim forward. In 27B Stroke 6.
22.Jul.2006 Amnesty Charges Web Companies

Promoting the web as a free-speech zone, Amnesty International accuses Yahoo + Microsoft + Google of violating human rights principles by cooperating with China's web censorship.
22.Jul.2006 State Loan Boosts Stem Research California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger pushes a $150 million package so the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine can move forward with stem cell studies.
22.Jul.2006 Search, the Next Generation The move toward a more social, collaborative web is set to revolutionize the search industry. In Monkey Bites.
22.Jul.2006 Punish Spying? I Must be Abroad South Korea's high-tech eavesdropping scandal offers proof that democratic countries aren't immune to government-surveillance abuses. But the Koreans are actually holding the perpetrators accountable. Commentary by Jennifer Granick.
22.Jul.2006 NatWest Three cannot return to UK Three British bank employees accused of fraud surrounding energy giant Enron lose a court bid to return to the UK.
22.Jul.2006 Mass rescue for Lebanon Britons The mass evacuation of Britons from Lebanon hits top gear as thousands are rescued by land and sea.
22.Jul.2006 MPs get 'veto' over new Trident MPs will get a vote on replacing Trident nuclear weapons, says Commons leader Jack Straw.
22.Jul.2006 Proposals for GM crops launched The UK government announces a consultation on the cultivation of genetically modified crops in England.
22.Jul.2006 Bombing 'killed Afghan civilians' A US-led bombing raid in southern Afghanistan killed 10 civilians, an Afghan government inquiry finds.
22.Jul.2006 Lebanon: Key facts Lebanon: Key facts
22.Jul.2006 Japanese PM defends shrine visits Japan's PM says he will continue visiting a Tokyo war shrine despite evidence the former emperor opposed it.
22.Jul.2006 US 'worst' for online child abuse More than half of all images of child abuse found on the web can be traced back to the US, a report reveals.
22.Jul.2006 Annan demands Lebanon ceasefire The UN chief urges a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, amid fears of a humanitarian catastrophe.
22.Jul.2006 Men face higher cancer death risk Men in Northern Ireland are 40% more likely than women to die of cancer, according to figures released on Thursday.
22.Jul.2006 Minister urged to condemn Israel Margaret Beckett repeatedly rejects calls by MPs on all sides to condemn Israel's actions in the Lebanon.
22.Jul.2006 Tigers struggle with tiny lands Habitat for tigers has shrunk to a tiny fraction of its original size, says a new report which urges better protection.
22.Jul.2006 Libel trial hears of sex admission The leader of the Scottish Socialist Party tells a court Tommy Sheridan admitted visiting a swingers club.
22.Jul.2006 World Cup boosts UK retail sales UK retail sales grow in June, driven by food and drink during the football World Cup, official data shows.
22.Jul.2006 Bed sharing 'drains men's brains' Sharing a bed with someone could temporarily reduce your brain power - at least if you are a man - scientists suggest.
22.Jul.2006 Q&A: Mid-East war crimes Paul Reynolds examines the issues of international law and the Middle East conflict.
22.Jul.2006 Japan's Iraq troops arrive home Japanese troops who served in Iraq return home, ending Japan's most significant deployment since WWII.
22.Jul.2006 Fighting inside Lebanese border Israeli soldiers and Hezbollah militants clash inside Lebanon as aid agencies warn of an impending catastrophe.
22.Jul.2006 Human rights laws will not change Ministers rule out repealing or amending the UK's human rights laws as part of reforms of the justice system.
22.Jul.2006 Music therapy 'can aid healing' Listening to music makes us feel better - but many doctors are now beginning to believe that it does much more.
22.Jul.2006 US marines aid mass evacuation US marines land in Beirut to help Americans citizens as a mass evacuation from Lebanon gathers pace.
22.Jul.2006 Israel bombs three Gaza tunnels Israeli jets bomb three tunnels it says were used to smuggle weapons as it continues its Gaza offensive.
22.Jul.2006 Storms cut power to 18,000 homes Overnight lightning storms cause power cuts in more than 18,000 homes in Northern Ireland.
22.Jul.2006 June sees record mortgage lending Gross mortgage lending reaches £32.2bn in June, the highest monthly figure on record, say lenders.
22.Jul.2006 World 'needs new wildlife body' A new global organisation is needed to slow the loss of plant and animal species, scientists argue.
22.Jul.2006 Rise in child abuse images on net Reports of child abuse pictures on the internet rise sharply, prompting calls for greater global action.
22.Jul.2006 Antibiotic runny nose 'warning' Doctors should avoid prescribing antibiotics to patients with runny noses, a study says.
22.Jul.2006 Ageing 'linked to social status' People in lower social classes are biologically older than those in higher classes, according to research.
22.Jul.2006 Worm 'could screen medicines' A primitive worm could help to screen new medicines, according to research.
22.Jul.2006 Hi-tech boost for plastic surgery A 3D facial imaging system is developed in East Sussex which predicts the accuracy of different surgical techniques.
22.Jul.2006 Bush 'out of touch' on stem cells Scientists react with anger to President Bush's veto on a bill allowing federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.
22.Jul.2006 Indonesia bird flu deaths hit 42 Indonesia confirms its 42nd human bird flu death, bringing it level with Vietnam as the nation worst hit by the virus.
22.Jul.2006 USA to Israel: you have one more week to blast Hizbullah Bush 'gave green light' for limited attack, say Israeli and UK sources
22.Jul.2006 Beirut Evacuations Israel has opened “windows” for the foreign powers to evacuate their terrified nationals from Lebanon. Obligingly, the foreign media have turned these “windows” into an opportunity to avert their gaze further from the death and destruction in Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank.
22.Jul.2006 Robert Fisk: Paradise Lost We leave the Lebanese to their fate like a diseased people and spend our time evacuating our precious foreigners while tut-tutting about Israel's "disproportionate" response to the capture of its soldiers by Hizbollah .
22.Jul.2006 Lebanon’s Expendable People Lebanon was the last straw. It proves that everything Bin Laden said was true: “They have come to take your land and your resources; they have come to shame your women and disgrace your culture; they have come to humiliate you in front of your children and heap ignominy on your religion.” Where was he wrong?
22.Jul.2006 If Israel has the right to use force in self defence, so do its neighbours
Israel is staking a claim to the exclusive use of force as an instrument of policy and punishment + is seeking to deny any opposing state or non-state actor a similar right. It is also largely succeeding in portraying its own "right to self-defence" as beyond question, while denying anyone else the same. And the international community is effectively endorsing Israel's stance on both counts.
22.Jul.2006 Uri Avnery: "Stop that shit!"
The most disgusting sight: George Bush in a playful mood sitting on his chair in St Petersburg, with his loyal servant, Tony Blair, leaning over him + solving the problem: "See? What they need to do is get Syria to get Hizbullah to stop doing that shit + it's over." Thus spoke the leader of the world + the seven dwarfs - "the great of the world" - say Amen.
22.Jul.2006 Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land How Israel manipulates and distorts American public perceptions
22.Jul.2006 U.S. Occupation Death Toll Rises Above 100 Per Day, U.N. Says: An average of more than 100 civilians per day were killed in Iraq last month, the United Nations reported Tuesday, registering what appears to be the highest official monthly tally of violent deaths since the fall of Baghdad.
22.Jul.2006 Iraq: Killing reaches new heights: 696 Iraqis were killed in sectarian or occupation-related violence in the first 18 days of July. That's a sharp rise over the same period last year, when an AP count showed more than 450 Iraqis were killed.
22.Jul.2006 Turkey Announces Readiness To Invade Iraq: Turkish officials announced today that their country is now fully prepared to go into Iraq, if American, as well as Iraqi, forces do not combat Turkish Kurdish guerilla troops
22.Jul.2006 300 civilians killed in Israel's week-old bombardment: Lebanon's prime minister said Wednesday that 300 people have been killed, 1,000 have been wounded and a half-million displaced in Israel's week-old onslaught on Lebanon.
22.Jul.2006 Pigs at the trough: Bush Supports Israel's Attack On Lebanon In blunt language, President Bush yesterday endorsed Israel's campaign to cripple or eliminate Hezbollah, charged that Syria is trying to reassert control of Lebanon + called for the isolation of Iran.
22.Jul.2006 Pigs at the trough: Congress Is Giving Israel Vote of Confidence: Both Parties Back Ally, Court Jewish Support
22.Jul.2006 Rice will back demands for ceasefire - after a few more days of carnage : "It is clear at the UN, at the G8 + at the EU foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels that the US has used its influence to block calls for a ceasefire," a senior European official said yesterday.
22.Jul.2006 Juan Cole: Call Congress!: Ask them why we had to evacuate 25,000 Americans if civilian non-combatants are not being put in extreme danger by indiscriminate Israeli bombing?
22.Jul.2006 Abid Ullah Jan: Greater Israel: Does it make sense now?: The blame for the current Israeli war falls entirely on Israel's friends, who approve occupation, racism, repression and deployment of inhuman methods in the service Zionists hegemonic designs.
22.Jul.2006 Israeli Assault on Lebanon Inflicting "Mass Punishment on a Whole People": I think the massacre of the innocents must obviously apply to both sides. The Israeli dead have an equal right to that claim. But the scale -- I mean, “disproportionate” is not the word for it -- the scale of the response is obscene.
22.Jul.2006 Politicos push to update Cold War-era alert system In age of omnipresent cell phone, Net and BlackBerry users, why does government rely on TV and radio to beam national emergency alerts?
22.Jul.2006 Video: Technology lets you manipulate three dimensional images

Video: Technology lets you manipulate three dimensional images. The future is here: TouchLight technology, slated to be released by the end of the year, lets users move and manipulate three dimensional images with their hands. CNET News.com's Neha Tiwari talks with David Harnett, Microsoft's senior director of IP ventures, about how the technology works and what practical uses it will have.
22.Jul.2006 DMCA dismissed from tape backup lawsuit Court rules a consulting firm did not violate the DMCA when performing maintenance on StorageTek tape backup systems.
22.Jul.2006 British banks to cancel cards used for Net child porn Under new legislation, police to notify credit card issuers about transactions used to access illegal content online.
22.Jul.2006 A pixel for each person on Earth Blog: We're not sure exactly what this is for, but it seems appropriate amid today's headlines involving oil consumption, global warming...
22.Jul.2006 Human-rights group targets China cooperation Google, Microsoft and Yahoo accused of hypocrisy for touting the free flow of information and then cooperating with China.
22.Jul.2006 PC shipments kicked by World Cup While all of Europe was busy chanting for their favorite soccer teams, PC shipments slowed down.
22.Jul.2006 Could That Be The Wireless Police Knocking? Zonk 303 netbuzz writes

"Should private-property owners be required to practice safe wireless? Are the wireless police about to come a-knockin' on the front door of your castle? Network World reports on a condo complex in Arizona that will monitor your wireless signal for security. Is this the way all condos and apartment complexes should go?" From the article: "'We just kind of kicked it around the table and everybody said that's a helluva good idea, (mandatory encryption) ought to go in the declarations,' says Welch. However, a lawyer warned that wireless technology could quickly overrun any specific covenants they put to paper, 'so we decided that instead of recording (declarations) at the county that we would leave it up to the hotel manager to put it in their rules and regulations.' Why bother at all? 'We just don't want to see anybody hurt with their wireless system,' says Welch. 'If someone (unauthorized) were accessing it and an owner's information, there could be damage and a potential lawsuit.'"
22.Jul.2006 The History of Hacking DRM Zonk 43+ phaedo00 writes

"Ars Technica writer Nate Anderson has penned an in-depth look into past DRM-crackings and what the future looks like for people who are vehemently anti-DRM: 'Like a creeping fog, DRM smothers more and more media in its clammy embrace, but the sun still shines down on isolated patches of the landscape. This isn't always due to the decisions of corporate executives; often it's the work of hackers who devote considerable skill to cracking the digital locks that guard everything from DVDs to e-books. Their reasons are complicated and range from the philosophical to the criminal, but their goals are the same: no more DRM.'"
22.Jul.2006 Indian Government Lifts Ban on Blogs Zonk 95+ iDope writes

"The Department of Telecommunications of the Government of India has lifted the ban on blogs (reported previously on Slashdot) following pressure from the Indian blogger community and the media. Even with the lifting of the ban several bloggers from BloggersCollective are getting ready to file a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) (similar to a Class Action Lawsuit in US) in the Supreme Court of India against the Government censorship of the Internet."
22.Jul.2006 Linux-powered Robots From France? Oui! Timothy 176+ An anonymous reader writes

"A French start-up created to build autonomous, easily programmable, affordable humanoid robots expects to ship its first product — a humanoid household service robot running Linux — in early 2007. The walking, talking, WiFi-enabled Nao household robot will stand 21.6 inches tall + will feature 23 "degrees of freedom" of motion — three more than the 14-inch tall Choromet android announced earlier this week by four Japanese companies. Nao's extra degrees of freedom appear to come in the form of gripping hands."
22.Jul.2006 Pharaoh's Gem Brighter Than a Thousand Suns timothy 151+ Tamas Feher from Hungary writes

"An Italian archaeologist accidentally found that the central gem in Tutankhamun's regal necklace is not amber, but a mere piece of yellow glass. Kinda cheap for the famous Egyptian pharaoh, best known for his splendid golden mask. Except that piece of glass is much older than civilization. Where did it come from, StarGate? Kind of. Scientists now think a meteorite much larger than the Tunguska event fell from the sky and exploded over the Sahara in prehistoric times. The tremendous heat of the 1000 A-bomb sized fireball melted large chunks of desert sand into perfect glass. The memory of such an apocalyptic event may have made sand-glass gems a desirable symbol, meant to emphasize the pharaoh's heavenly powers."
22.Jul.2006 Search 2.0 vs. Traditional Search timothy 171+ ReadWriteWeb writes

"Ebrahim Ezzy reviews 5 new third-generation search technologies — and how they compare to the big guns of Google, Yahoo and MSN. These so-called "search 2.0" companies are combining the scalability of existing internet search engines with new and improved relevancy models; they bring into the equation user preferences, collaboration, collective intelligence, a rich user experience + many other specialized capabilities. The new search engines profiled are Swicki, Rollyo, Clusty, Wink and Lexxe." Note, as the article points out, that the author has developed yet another search engine, called Qube.
22.Jul.2006 UK Street Crime Rise Blamed on iPods timothy 639+ CNET reports that

the British Government today attributed the country's 22% rise in street crime to iPod robberies. This has hit CNET close to home. Guy Cocker, a CNET (Gamespot) journalist based in London, was mugged last week. The muggers held 'a semi-automatic weapon to the back of Cocker's head and told him, "we're taking all your stuff"'. CNET's solution to the problem is suggestions on how to conceal your iPod from attackers. These include 'The gaffer tape method,' 'The Coke can method,' and 'The Christopher Walken method.'
22.Jul.2006 Growing Insulin samzenpus 213+ McLuhanesque writes

"The Globe and Mail reports that a Calgary biotech firm has developed a process to turn genetically modified safflower oil into human insulin in commercial quantities. The process reduces capital costs by 70% and product cost by 40%. 'SemBioSys says it can make more than one kilogram of human insulin per acre of safflower production. That amount could treat 2,500 diabetic patients for one year and, in turn, meet the world's total projected insulin demand 00.000.2010 with less than 16,000 acres of safflower production.'"
22.Jul.2006 Test Driving the Tesla Roadster samzenpus 555+ stacybro writes

"Wired has an article about the Tesla Roadster. It is similar to other electric cars that we have seen in that the electric engine's serious torque will allow it to do 0-60mph in about 3 seconds. Part of what is different about this is that they are using over 6,831 laptop-type lithium-ion batteries. They are claiming the range is about 250 miles. As the battery tech for laptops improves, so will the range of these cars. The car will run about $80,000, which is about par for an exotic two-seater. So who is doing the poll on which tech CEO will be seen driving one first? My guess is one of the Google or E-Bay guys, since they are investors. It is nice to see more companies serious about helping to getting rid of our oil dependency. It is odd that the big car companies aren't more on this track!"
22.Jul.2006 Bush Uses NAACP Speech To Promote Estate Tax Repeal, Doesn’t Utter The Word ‘Poverty’ Nico ( UPDATE: Alternet has the video)

President Bush addressed the NAACP today for the first time in his presidency. Speaking on behalf of his friend, multi-millionaire conservative BET founder Bob Johnson, Bush used the opportunity to promote the repeal of the estate tax on the ultra-rich:

One of my friends is Bob Johnson, founder of BET. He’s an interesting man. He believes strongly in ownership. He has been a successful owner. He believes strongly, for example, that the death tax will prevent future African-American entrepreneurs from being able to pass their assets from one generation to the next. He and I also understand that the investor class shouldn’t be just confined to the old definition of the investor class.

President Bush’s “death tax” pitch demonstrates his stunning disconnect from the African-American community. According to an American Progress analysis, just 59 African-Americans will pay the estate tax this year + that number will drop to 33 00.000.2009.

Meanwhile, as of 2004, 24.7 % of African-Americans lived under the poverty line (up from 22.7 00.000.2001) — that’s more than 9 million people. The number of times Bush mentioned “poverty” in his speech: 0.
22.Jul.2006 Noonan: If Global Warming Is Real, Blame The Scientists Judd 
In today’s Wall Street Journal, Peggy Noonan asks why all the top scientists can’t get together and decide if global warming is real:

During the past week’s heat wave–it hit 100 degrees in New York City Monday–I got thinking, again, of how sad and frustrating it is that the world’s greatest scientists cannot gather, discuss the question of global warming, pore over all the data from every angle, study meteorological patterns and temperature histories + come to a believable conclusion on these questions: Is global warming real or not? If it is real, is it necessarily dangerous?

Actually, Ms. Noonan, that’s already happened. It’s called the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which involves thousands of scientists from over 120 countries who develop detailed reports on climate change. Their most recent report (from 2001) was reviewed by more than 1,000 top experts, including so-called “climate skeptics” and representatives from industry. Here’s what they concluded:

There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming observed over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities.

The IPCC predicts that global warming will increase temperatures worldwide between 2.5 and 10.4 degrees Fahrenheit between 1990 and 2100 if no action is taken to reduce greenhouse gases. This amount of warming, according to the IPCC, could raise sea levels by as much as three feet. That’s extraordinarily dangerous.

Noonan also laments that, if global warming is real, scientists won’t tell us what we need to do in response. Actually, they’ve done that too. Here’s Noonan’s big finish:

If global warming is real + if it is new + if it is caused not by nature and her cycles but man and his rapacity + if it in fact endangers mankind, scientists will probably one day blame The People for doing nothing.

But I think The People will have a greater claim to blame the scientists, for refusing to be honest, for operating in cliques and holding to ideologies. For failing to be trustworthy.

Actually, the blame should go to people like Peggy Noonan who give our leaders the political cover to do nothing in the face of overwhelming scientific evidence.
22.Jul.2006 “Dogs aren’t born mooing + people aren’t born gay.” Nico Some scientific insight from James Dobson’s Focus on the Family, in response to a new campaign called BornDifferent.

Dobson has launched a counter-campaign.
22.Jul.2006 July 20, 2006 Think Progress 
“Today, al-Qaida has not only regrouped, but it is on the march ,” Bruce Hoffman, a terrorism expert at the Rand Corp, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

“Al-Qaida is now functioning exactly as its founder and leader, Osama bin Laden, envisioned it.”

Sen. John Thune (R-SD) said if he were running for reelection this year, “you obviously don’t embrace the president and his agenda .” “

The first thing I’d do is acknowledge that there have been mistakes made,” Thune said.

Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH), who refused to back John Bolton to be U.N. Ambassador when he was first nominated last year, has caved.

In an op-ed titled, “ Why I’ll Vote for Bolton ,” Voinovich said questioning Bolton’s renomination “would jeopardize our influence in the United Nations” and “undermin[e] our policies and agenda.”

Yesterday was the “deadliest day yet in the deepening two-front Middle East crisis .”

“Israeli weaponry rained down on Lebanon throughout the day and into the night, killing 63 people by nightfall,” virtually all civilians, while two Israeli Arab brothers, ages 3 + 9, were killed by Hezbollah rockets “as they played outside in Nazareth.”

After promising to make its unconstitutional military commissions comply with the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the White House yesterday took a “harder line” and announced it would propose “only minor changes” to the tribunals.

Sen. Mike DeWine (R-OH) “has pulled an image of a burning World Trade Center from a campaign commercial attacking Rep. Sherrod Brown’s (D-OH) record on national security because the image was a fake.”

The spot was produced by the firm responsible for the “Swift Boat Veterans for Truth” ads.

Yesterday the House voted to “bar federal courts from ruling on the constitutional validity” of the Pledge of Allegiance.

“We are making an all-out assault on the Constitution of the USA which, thank God, will fail,” said Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).

The New England Journal of Medicine reports that many hospital patients who have a limited ability to speak English + who need a translator often don’t get one, which puts them at risk for poor and sometimes life-threatening medical care. One study showed that no interpreter was used in 46 % of emergency department cases involving such patients.

“A federal Department of Homeland Security agent passed along information about student protests against military recruiters at UC Berkeley + UC Santa Cruz, landing the demonstrations on a database tracking foreign terrorism.”
22.Jul.2006 First half of 2006 is hottest on record. Judd “The first six months of 2006 were the warmest, on average, since the USA started keeping records

00.000.1895 + global warming is a contributing factor, a U.S. climate expert said on Wednesday.”
22.Jul.2006 House vote to overturn stem cell veto fails. Nico The House voted 235-193 today to overturn Bush’s veto, 51 short of the required two-thirds majority.

Rep. James Langevin (D-RI), who is wheelchair bound, spoke out about the veto in a emotional speech.
22.Jul.2006 Ralph Reed returns to corporation humping. Nico 

Former Christian Coalition head and Abramoff associate Ralph Reed may have lost his bid for state office in Georgia, but he’s “still the owner of the consulting + lobbying firm Century Strategies.

‘He’s working it. He’s working it harder now,’ said a campaign staffer.” Apparently Reed knows some corporations in need of a little humping.
22.Jul.2006 VIDEO: House Conservatives Reveal What God Thinks About Gay Marriage Amendment Think Progress 
The constitutional ban on gay marriage was defeated yesterday in the House. During the debate, several right-wing congressmen revealed what God thinks about the gay marriage amendment:

Rep. John Carter (R-TX): “It’s part of God’s plan for the future of mankind.”

Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN): “It wasn’t our idea, it was God’s.”

Rep. Bob Beauprez (R-CO): “We best not be messing with His plan.”

Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-GA): “I think God has spoken very clearly on this issue.”

Watch the video compilation: Not everyone believes that writing discrimination into the U.S. Constitution reflects biblical principles. The Clergy for Fairness has organized clergy members and religious leaders around the country who strongly oppose the Federal Marriage Amendment. Full transcript
22.Jul.2006 “The condition there is worse than I expected,” Faiz 
according to Rep. Gil Gutknecht (R-MN), who just returned from a visit to Iraq. “Baghdad is worse today than it was three years ago,” he said. Gutknecht was critical of some of the “spin” from Bush administration officials. “We learned it’s not safe to go anywhere outside of the Green Zone any part of the day.” He added, “What I think we need to do more is withdraw more Americans.” (via The Swamp)
22.Jul.2006 Energy Secretary in Baghdad: ‘Far More Stable’ Than 00.000.2003, ‘People Are More Relaxed’ Nico 
Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman was in Baghdad yesterday to meet with Iraq’s oil and electricity ministers. The New York Times reports, Bodman “had a rosy view of progress here since his last visit 00.000.2003?:

“ The situation seems far more stable than when I was here two or three years ago ,” he said in an interview in the fortified Green Zone. “The security seems better, people are more relaxed. There is an optimism, at least among the people I talked to. ”

Iraq is not more stable. The same day of Bodman’s visit, a U.N. report showed that 3,149 civilians had died violently in Iraq last month. Baghdad’s central morgue alone received 1,595 bodies in June.

As for Bodman’s sense that Iraqis seem optimistic and “more relaxed,” recall what one private contractor wrote in an intelligence brief to the U.S. military earlier this month:

Baghdad looks so exhausted these days and so do her people; the relentless violence, the lack of basic services and the scorching heat abolishes human desire to do anything or to even think of anything. Sure sounds relaxing. 22.Jul.2006 Bush on Stem Cell Veto: ‘These Boys and Girls Are Not Spare Parts’ Judd 
Moments ago, Bush made a statement at the White House discussing why he vetoed a bill expanding funding for embryonic stem cell research.

(The media was barred from covering the veto itself.) Bush explained, “these boys and girls are not spare parts.” Watch it:

An embryo is not a boy or a girl. It’s a cluster of about 150 cells smaller than the period at the end of this sentence.

The embryos funded by the bill Bush vetoed were “created for the purposes of in vitro fertilization…which are spare or in excess of clinical need and in every single case are slated for medical waste.”

Only about 10 % of embryos are adopted — the rest are disposed of. Had Bush signed the bill into law, they could instead be used to develop potentially live-saving cures for millions of people. Transcript:

PRESIDENT BUSH: Yet we must also remember that embryonic stem cells come from human embryos that are destroyed themselves.

Each of these human embryos is a unique human life, with inherent dignity + matchless value. We see that value in the children who are with us today.

Each of these children began his or her life as a frozen embryo that was created for in vitro fertilization, but remained unused after fertility treatments were complete.

Each of these children was adopted while still an embryo + has been blessed with the chance to grow up in a loving family.

These boys and girls are not spare parts.
22.Jul.2006 A high-level Interior Dept. official has stepped down Nico  after the Inspector General accused him of violating gift rules in the shooting of an American buffalo, U.S. News reports.
22.Jul.2006 Bush Bars Media From Stem Cell Veto Judd 
Today, President Bush will veto his first piece of legislation – a stem cell research bill that “could lead to treatments that save millions of lives and improve the quality-of-life for millions more.”

Apparently, he’s not too proud of it. Moments ago at the White House press conference, Tony Snow announced that no press would be allowed at the signing:

SNOW: The president will, however, before he delivers remarks this afternoon, veto the Castle bill.

Here’s how it works, because I know a lot of you have had questions. There will be no photographers, no ceremony.

What the president will do is, in his office, he will sign a veto message, he will hand it to a clerk, who will convey it to a clerk of the House + then you go through the formalities of announcing a message from the president + at some point the House will vote on the veto.

QUESTION: Is there a reason why he’s not having photographers in, at least?

SNOW: Because he doesn’t feel it’s appropriate. He’s signing a veto.

67 % of Americans support embryonic stem cell research. The same %age believes “It would be terrible if cures were delayed because of policies that make embryonic stem cell research difficult.”
22.Jul.2006 Kristol Suggests People of Iran Would Embrace U.S. Attack, Triggering Regime Change Faiz 
This morning on Fox, Bill Kristol continued to escalate his calls for war against Iran, stating, “We can try diplomacy. I’m not very hopeful about that. We have to be ready to use force.” Kristol claimed the people of Iran would embrace “the right use of targeted military force.” He added that military force could “trigger changes in Iran,” causing them to embrace regime change. Watch it.

Kristol’s argument is a regurgitation of what he argued would result from the Iraq war. This is what wrote on the pages of the Weekly Standard in the days leading up to the Iraq war:
22.Jul.2006 Alabama elects first openly gay legislator. Nico Patricia Todd, 50, associate director of AIDS Alabama, “is poised to become the first openly gay member” of the Alabama Legislature.
22.Jul.2006 Defending Bush’s Veto, Rove Grossly Distorts Stem Cell Science Judd 
Today, Bush is expected to veto a bill that would expand federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. It will be the first veto of his presidency. Last week, Karl Rove –- explaining why Bush planned on vetoing the bill — told the Denver Post that “recent studies” show researchers “have far more promise from adult stem cells than from embryonic stem cells.”

The Chicago Tribune contacted a dozen top stem cell experts about Rove’s claim. They all said it was inaccurate. So who wrote the “studies” that Rove was referring to?

White House spokesman Ken Lisaius on Tuesday could not provide the name of a stem cell researcher who shares Rove’s views on the superior promise of adult stem cells.

In a letter to President Bush last year, a group of 80 Nobel laureates wrote that “current evidence suggests that adult stem cells have markedly restricted differentiation potential.”

Question: Does President Bush believe that adult stem cell research has “far more promise” than embryonic stem cells? Is that a contributing factor in his decision to veto the bill?
22.Jul.2006 “Hezbollian” attacks. Amanda  President Bush’s new made-up word to describe the rocket launches against Israel.
22.Jul.2006 White House Website Violates Federal Law Amanda 
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act “require[s] federal agencies to ensure that EIT [electronic information technology] they procure is accessible to people with disabilities.” That includes websites.

The White House website does not comply with Section 508. A review (located here, here + here) of three pages on https://www.whitehouse.gov found 49 instances of Section 508 violations.

Most notably, these White House pages don’t provide alternative text for all images. A blind person surfing the Internet uses a program that searches for text that identifies images. Many images on the White House site have no associated text in the web code and leave a person with disabilities unable to tell what the image is.

Contact Linda Sites and <>Linda Tolkan in the Executive Office of the President and ask why the White House site isn’t in compliance and what steps, if any, are being taken to fix the problem. (Check out American Progress’s letter to the EOP here.)
19.Jul.2006 July 19, 2006 Think Progress 
The Bush administration has reportedly “giv[en] Israel a window of a week to inflict maximum damage on Hezbollah before weighing in behind international calls for a ceasefire in Lebanon ,” the Guardian reports.

Fighting has intensified , as Israeli ground forces undertook a cross-border raid into southern Lebanon and Hezbollah fired hundreds of rockets into northern Israel. Meanwhile, an “emerging humanitarian crisis in southern Lebanon” was exacerbated when a food processing plant and a milk factory were bombed.

Former Christian Coalition head Ralph Reed , who later worked as a lobbyist on gambling issues with “close associate” Jack Abramoff, suffered an “embarrassing defeat in his effort to win the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor in Georgia on Tuesday.”

“More than 14,000 civilians have been killed in Iraq in the first half of this year,” a U.N. report says. Civilian deaths are on “an upward trend,” reflecting the fact that “killings, kidnappings and torture remain widespread” in the war-torn country.

President Bush’s faith-based initiative “lacks adequate safeguards against religious discrimination and has yet to measure the performance of the groups, a new Congressional report says.”

“ 2050: The last gorilla. ” The great ape “is threatened with extinction by the mid-21st century if poaching and destruction of its habitat continue at the current rate, the United Nations has warned.”

“Former Time Inc. Editor-in-Chief Norman Pearlstine is to join elite private equity firm the Carlyle Group as a senior advisor,” indicating “greater involvement by Carlyle in deals involving publishing and media.”

A new Government Accountability Office report found that because of “poor training, lax oversight and rampant confusion,” the “ Homeland Security Department wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars last year on iPods, dog booties, beer-making equipment and designer jackets.”

The World Bank website contains many pictures of Paul Wolfowitz in markets, schools and clinics, nearly always surrounded by smiling children. “Isn’t it amazing how these opportunities just seem to present themselves wherever he goes? Not really. It turns out they’re planned well in advance and tightly scripted.”

And finally: Rep. Richard Pombo (R-CA) “abruptly called off” his planned Casino Night fundraiser “amid much grumbling over the fact that the fundraiser coincided with a markup of his off-reservation gaming bill ,” and concerns about Pombo’s close ties to disgraced former gaming lobbyist Jack Abramoff. According to a Pombo spokesman, the event will be put off “indefinitely.”
22.Jul.2006 American evacuees from Lebanon won’t have to pay. Nico 
Earlier today, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) criticized the Bush adminstration for telling American evacuees from Lebanon they would have to repay their transportation costs. “A nation that can provide more than $300 billion for a war in Iraq can provide the money to get its people out of Lebanon.” CNN reports that the White House has reversed its position and will be waiving the costs.
22.Jul.2006 Kick the Oil Habit road trip visits Exxon HQ. Nico Watch the video, then sign the letter to Exxon yourself.
22.Jul.2006 New York Times Finally Retracts Clinton Story Think Progress The New York Times has finally retracted its flagrantly false story about Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY):

An article published on the Web site of The New York Times on Sunday reported on a speech by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in Rogers, Ark. The headline and article said that Mrs. Clinton had criticized Democrats on Saturday for “wasting time” by dealing with issues that helped Republicans turn out voters rather than finding consensus on mainstream subjects. The opening sentence of the article and the headline were based on a misinterpretation of a passage in her speech in which she first referred to the Democrats’ agenda in the Senate and then went on to criticize the actions of the Republican majority in Congress.

She was referring to the Republican-led Congress — not Democrats …

This is a victory for the progressive blogosphere, particularly Atrios, who first discovered the error + Media Matters, which kept the story going. Some questions to consider:

– Why did it take the New York Times more than 48 hours to correct the record? – Will right-wing news sites that picked up the story, including Drudge Report and Newsmax, inform their readers?
22.Jul.2006 Mandated Health Funding from Walmart Measure Overruled Judge overturns Maryland law affecting Wal-Mart - Jul. 19, 2006
22.Jul.2006 Past Peak Cause for Alarm
Reality Begs To Differ By Jonathan on 9/11, "War On Terror"

Regarding Condi's recent comment that "the notion that policies that finally confront extremism are actually causing extremism, I find grotesque", you might want to revisit these two posts.

She can have her opinion, but the facts refute her completely. Stubborn thing, reality.
22.Jul.2006 Please tell me the public doesn't fall for Bush's rhetoric. Bush Stem Cell Remarks
22.Jul.2006 Bainbridge Surprises with Finding Israel's Actions Unjust TCS Daily - Just War for the Sake of Argument
22.Jul.2006 Feinstein hammers Gonzales on FISA, NSA + the declaration of war By John Amato on NSA wiretapping

Dianne came prepared Tuesday and Alberto seemed confused in this clip. She left him speechless and in stunned silence… Video-WMP Video-QT very rough transcript:

FEINSTEIN: Now, Congress did not leave the question opened. FISA explicitly says that warrantless surveillance can continue for only fifteen days after a declaration of war. Now that you’ve had an opportunity to examine Hamdan, is it still DOJ’s opinion that it does not affect the legality of the TSP?

GONZALES: Of course, there’s been no declaration of war here, so we can’t take advantage of that particular provision. Uh, our judgment is…is that, um, it does not affect the legality, uh, of…of the, uh TSP program. But let me explain why…

FEINSTEIN: Whoa. But if I might, just a (unintelligible). Then you’re saying, clearly, that the AUMF does not carry the full constitutional weight of a declaration of war.

GONZALES: Yes. That…that is correct. When you…when you declare war…well, when you declare war…

FEINSTEIN: I understand that.

GONZALES: …that triggers diplomatic relations. That trig…that…that maybe nullify treaties of…there’s a big differ…there’s a reason why Congress has not declared war in sixty years. But they’ve…they’ve…they’ve…they&rs quo;ve authorized the use of force several times. Clearly, there’s a difference, yes.

FEINSTEIN: But you’re creating a caveat now + saying that the fifteen days does not extend to the AUMF.

GONZALES: No, what I said was we…we can’t take advantage of that provision under FISA because there’s been no declaration of war. Maybe I misunderstood your question. I’m sorry, Senator.

FEINSTEIN: Yeah, well, see I…I think that Congress did, um, prepare for that eventuality by providing the fifteen days. And, you’re saying, well, it really doesn’t apply. Well, in a…in essence you’re restricting the AUMF, which I think should be restricted. So you are, in essence, agreeing with my point.

GONZALES: Well, I agree with your point that the Authorization of Military Force is not a declaration of war. That…that is certainly true.

FEINSTEIN: All right. So, we’re in open session, but I really don’t accept that, because of past actions with respect to the FISA court.

GONZALES: Senator, I beg your pardon. I’m…I’m gonna go back and look at the transcript of your question. And I’m…I’m…I…I…I probably want…want to modify it. I want to make sure that I’m being as accurate as I can about…about what we’re doing, because there may be some things here that may affect my…my response.

FEINSTEIN: I…I would appreciate that because, the way I view it, a very conscious…(unintelligible) effort has been made not to submit…certainly content collection to the FISA court.

GONZALES: Senator, this is something that you and I should have a…a conversation about.
22.Jul.2006 It’s different in Europe Group Paul Thacker has an interesting interview with a European and a US journalist on the media coverage of climate science in Europe. The standard contrarian line does not get as much attention there as it does in the US (which is good), but whether that means that the journalism there is actually ...
22.Jul.2006 Western Digital pays up in class action lawsuit Daniel Fleshbourne 

Following the July 17, 2006, Settlement of the class action lawsuit accusing Western Digital of misrepresenting the capacity of its hard drives, Western Digital has Sent out emails giving free backup and recovery software to roughly a million of its customers. Anyone who purchased a Western ...
22.Jul.2006 Web users urged on China policy Amnesty International asks users of Yahoo!, Microsoft and Google to complain about their China policy.
22.Jul.2006 Who stands where The BBC's Paul Reynolds looks at the positions of the various parties in the Middle East conflict.
22.Jul.2006 WTO investigates US betting row A new panel is to investigate whether US restrictions on internet gambling breach world trade rules.
22.Jul.2006 EU plans emergency border squads A plan to create rapid reaction border guard teams is put forward by the European Commission.
22.Jul.2006 https://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5196646.stm

Leading microbiologist Professor Hugh Pennington described the outbreak as "big".

He told BBC Scotland: "It's a big number, it's a big outbreak. It's not the first outbreak we've seen in this particular kind of circumstance.

"The first outbreak was in Australia 00.000.1935, which was associated with a meat plant. But 11 cases is a big outbreak."

However, Prof Pennington said the risk to the general public was small.

He said: "The organism can spread in the air but usually you need pretty close contact with an infected source.

"For example, the bedding on which a sick animal has been resting. If you breathe in the dry dust from that you can get infected. So, I don't think people living in the immediate vicinity should be too worried."
22.Jul.2006 https://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5196646.stm

The infection is usually passed to humans through the faeces, urine or milk of goats, sheep, or cows.

It can also spread if people inhale dust that contains particles of infected animal tissue.

Within a few weeks of becoming infected a person will experience a high fever, severe cough, headaches and muscle pains. However, many will fight off the infection without needing treatment.

When this is the case the symptoms disappear after one or two weeks. However, some people can develop more severe problems.
22.Jul.2006 https://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5196646.stm
Q fever is caused by a bacterium called Coxiella burnetti carried by farm animals
22.Jul.2006 Meat staff contract 'farm fever' Eleven people at a meat processing plant are suffering from a rare infection known as Q fever.
22.Jul.2006 Indonesia death toll passes 500 The death toll in the Java tsunami rises to at least 520, as questions grow over why no warning was given.
22.Jul.2006 Israeli strikes claim more lives The latest Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip and a raid on the West Bank leave at least nine Palestinians dead.
22.Jul.2006 O'Loan concerned by MI5 move The switch of responsibility for gathering intelligence on NI security to MI5 concerns the Police Ombudsman.
22.Jul.2006 Remand prisoner freed by mistake An investigation is launched after a privately-run prison releases an alleged mugger two weeks before he was due to be tried.
22.Jul.2006 Secrets of ocean birth laid bare The largest tear in the Earth's crust seen for centuries may create a new ocean in Eastern Africa, say geologists.
22.Jul.2006 India bloggers angry at net ban India's burgeoning blogging community is up in arms against a move to block their web logs.
22.Jul.2006 Heatwave breaks record for July Britain has sweltered on its hottest recorded July day as temperatures hit 36.5C (97.7F) in Wisley, Surrey.
22.Jul.2006 Lebanon Britons speak of relief The first Britons to be evacuated from Lebanon by sea speak of their relief at leaving the conflict zone.
22.Jul.2006 Fleeing homes in line of fire Beirut's residents flee homes in the firing line for the dubious safety of classrooms in Christian suburbs.
22.Jul.2006 Briton held on US terror charge A British man is arrested in London at the request of US authorities who allege he ran websites raising money for terrorism.
22.Jul.2006 England's heatwave continues The heatwave continues, with Wednesday the hottest day ever recorded in England during July.
22.Jul.2006 Ofwat planning Thames Water fine UK water regulator Ofwat is planning to fine Thames Water for failing to meet adequate levels of customer service.
22.Jul.2006 Israel claims Iran link to crisis Iran co-ordinated the capture of two Israeli soldiers to divert attention from its nuclear programme, Israel says.
22.Jul.2006 Migrants stuck in Malta stand-off Malta is refusing to allow African migrants aboard a Spanish trawler to dock, drawing criticism from the UN.
22.Jul.2006 Concern at Black Watch deployment The SNP plans to raise the deployment of Black Watch soldiers to Iraq in the Commons.
22.Jul.2006 'Secret' Euro meetings under fire Peers criticise UK and EU ministers for holding meetings on issues about terrorism and immigration "in secret".
22.Jul.2006 Britain 'had apartheid society' An apartheid-like society existed in 5th Century Britain, an analysis of genetic origins suggests.
22.Jul.2006 Breastfeeding 'kills baby's pain' Researchers find breastfeeding reduces the pain babies feel during a needle prick test.
22.Jul.2006 Severe migraine heart risk link Middle-aged women who get migraines are at an increased risk of heart conditions, US researchers find.
22.Jul.2006 https://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5193352.stm

The consumer group's researchers surveyed 275 different types of cereals from leading brands and the UK's four largest supermarket chains.

They looked at the amounts of sugar, salt and fat per 100g and compared these to Food Standards Agency guidelines to work out high, medium and low content.

The Association of Cereal Food Manufacturers said breakfast cereals contribute a "nutritionally insignificant" amount of fat to the average diet.

A spokesman told the Daily Telegraph: "On average, cereals also contribute less than six per cent of the average daily sugar intake in children.

"There is no evidence to show that breakfast cereals make a significant contribution to energy, fat or sugar in the diet of the UK population."
22.Jul.2006 https://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5193352.stm

Researchers said there was little improvement since their 2004 study. Figures showed 88% of the 52 products specifically targeted at children were high in sugar.
22.Jul.2006 https://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5193352.stm
Five of the worst offenders Jordan's Crispy Nut Four Combo Nestle Cinnamon Grahams Quaker Oatso Simple Kids Nestle Cocoa Shreddies Kellogg's Fruit and Fibre Source: Which?
22.Jul.2006 https://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5193352.stm
Five of the healthiest cereals Nestle Shredded Wheat Quaker Puffed Wheat Tesco Value Wheat Biscuits Sainsbury's Basic Muesli Asda Good for You Apple, Blackberry and Raspberry Flakes Source: Which?
22.Jul.2006 Many cereals are 'high in sugar' Many cereals have high sugar levels and others have as much fat as a bacon roll, research suggests.
22.Jul.2006 Music therapy 'can aid healing' Listening to music makes us feel better - but many doctors are now beginning to believe that it does much more.
22.Jul.2006 Smart Car Goes Electric DaimlerChrysler unveils an electric version of its tiny two-seater. In Autopia.
22.Jul.2006 A Wiretapping Revolution News accounts misdescribe the White House-Specter bill as a "compromise." It's actually a White House power grab + Sen. Arlen Specter is folding like an umbrella. In 27B Stroke 6.
22.Jul.2006 Senate passes bill expanding stem cell research. Judd 63-37. Not enough to override a veto, which President Bush has promised.
22.Jul.2006 Washington Times Encourages Israel to Attack Iran Payson Today, the Washington Times reports Israel is in a good position right now to take out Iran’s nuclear sites:

Israel is in the best position militarily in its history to mount air strikes against Iran , after a decade of buying U.S.-produced long-range aircraft, penetrating bombs and aerial refueling tankers. […] “They have the capability to strike Iran,” said retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas G. McInerney , a former fighter pilot who has trained with Israelis. […] “I’m not worried about them hitting the targets. They will suffer losses, but they are capable of doing it.”

It doesn’t matter how much advanced weaponry they have. As Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) and others have pointed out, conducting air strikes against Iran is “not a viable, feasible, responsible option.” Newsweek pointed out the dangers of such a strike earlier this year:

The Israelis admit they can only disable the Iranian program, not destroy it. “The real question is what you achieve if the best you can do is to delay the project for a few years,” says a senior U.S. administration official, speaking anonymously because it’s a sensitive topic. The cost to the region’s stability could be devastating.

American Progress nonproliferation expert Joe Cirincione has even warned that such a strike “would not, as is often said, delay the Iranian program. It would almost certainly speed it up. That is what happened when the Israelis struck at the Iraq program 00.000.1981.”

(Read more from other experts who think there are no good military options in Iran HERE.)
22.Jul.2006 Snow on Bush Stem Cell Veto: ‘The Simple Answer Is He Thinks Murder Is Wrong’ Judd 
The Senate is expected to vote overwhelming this afternoon to expand embryonic stem cell research. The bill would allow federal funding for research that “could lead to treatments that save millions of lives and improve the quality-of-life for millions more.” President Bush has vowed to veto the bill.

Today, a reporter asked Press Secretary Tony Snow why Bush opposed the bill. Snow responded, “The simple answer is he thinks murder is wrong.” Watch it:

An embryo is not a baby or even a fetus; it’s a cluster of about 150 cells, also known as a blastocyst, which forms a few days after the joining of a sperm and egg + is no larger than the period at the end of this sentence. Stem cells are derived from the center of this cluster + are like biological blank slates. They have the potential to become any of the 200 kinds of cells that make up the human body. In any event, the embryos at issue are currently being discarded. Transcript:
22.Jul.2006 House defeats gay marriage ban. Nico “The House on Tuesday rejected a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. … The 236-187 vote for the proposal to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman was 47 short of the two-thirds majority needed.”
22.Jul.2006 Snow To Helen Thomas: ‘Thank You For the Hezbollah View’ Faiz 
In a contentious exchange at this afternoon’s White House press briefing, Tony Snow attempted to discredit reporter Helen Thomas by characterizing her comments as “the Hezbollah view.” Watch it.

Thomas asked Snow why the U.S. recently vetoed an Arab-backed U.N. resolution calling for Israel to halt its military offensive in Lebanon . Snow claimed, “We didn’t even veto — please get your facts right.” Thomas followed up by specifically asking, “There was no veto at the U.N.?” Snow maintained: “No. There hasn’t been a resolution at the V.N. — the U.N., whatever it is.”

Snow’s the one who may need to check his facts. The AP reports:

The USA blocked an Arab-backed resolution Thursday that would have demanded Israel halt its military offensive in the Gaza Strip, the first U.N. Security Council veto in nearly two years.

The draft, sponsored by Qatar on behalf of other Arab nations, accused Israel of a “disproportionate use of force” that endangered Palestinian civilians + demanded Israel withdraw its troops from Gaza. The USA was alone in voting against the resolution. Ten of the 15 Security Council nations voted in favor, while Britain, Denmark, Peru and Slovakia abstained.

UPDATE: Commenter John points out that the U.N. veto dealt with Gaza operations, not Lebanon. It’s unclear from the transcript whether Thomas was referring to that vote or not.

Full transcript:
22.Jul.2006 Congressman: We Should ‘Prevent Those Who Commit Adultery or Get a Divorce From Running for Office’ Judd 
Today, the House of Representative is spending the day debating a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. (It has no chance of becoming law, since the Senate rejected it last month.)

On the House floor, Rep. Lincoln Davis (D-TN) said he was opposed the amendment but only because it didn’t go far enough. Davis said Congress should “outlaw divorce in this country” and “outlaw adultery and make it a felony.” In addition, Davis said, “we should also prevent those who commit adultery, or get a divorce, from running for office.”

Davis said it was important to “go after the other threats to the institution” not just the threat from homosexuals. Watch it:

There are currently at least 29 divorced members of Congress. There is no official data on how many members have committed adultery.
22.Jul.2006 Brownback Holds Up Drawing Of Embryo, Asks ‘Are You Going To Kill Me?’ Think Progress 
Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) is leading the opposition to the H.R. 810, the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act. Yesterday, during debate on the bill, he held up a picture of an embryo drawn by a 7-year-old girl. Relaying a conversation with the girl’s mother, Brownback said the embryo was asking the Senate, “Are you going to kill me?” Watch it:

Brownback is misleading. The embryos funded by H.R. 810 were “created for the purposes of in vitro fertilization…which are spare or in excess of clinical need and in every single case are slated for medical waste.” Only about 10 % of embryos are adopted — the rest are disposed of. If H.R. 810 passes, they will instead be used to develop potentially live-saving cures for millions of people. Full transcript:

We’re talking about destroying the youngest of human lives for research purposes. I want to show a quick picture of that so people get the idea + I know people do, but it’s just, it’s important to remember we all started out looking like this. Even the presiding officer, as handsome as he is, he looked like this at one point in time, just a little clump of cells, that was him.

This is a particular person, young girl named Hannah that I just met with a few hours ago. This was when she was adopted as a frozen embryo. This shows her kind of development taking place. You destroy her here, you don’t get her here. That’s key. She was called a snowflake, adopted frozen embryos. I hope some people that are maybe watching or hear about this, if they have frozen embryos, human embryos, that they consider putting them up for adoption, because a number of people want to adopt them. The couple that adopted Hannah had infertility problems themselves, could not conceive, IVF, otherwise + so adopted her as a snowflake, as a frozen embryo, implanted + now we’ve got Hannah. Hannah is quite, I guess you would say out of the mouths of babes, children comes great wisdom.

This is a chart she did last year when she was in Washington, talking, when the House was considering legislation, the same legislation, she did this chart, this letter that kids write — my kids write — I love them. She said, this is Hannah, snowflake, “We’re kids. I love you.” And then she draws three pictures down here below. This is her smiling because she got adopted and she’s here. Here is another frozen embryo — these are embryos — that’s sad because he’s still sitting in a frozen state and then here’s one that as she explains is saying “What, are you going to kill me?” This was her explanation to her mother that just gave this chart to me. I hope people really would think about that. This is not just a clump of tissue. This is not just a group of a few cells. This is not a hair follicle. This is not fingernail. You know, this is Hannah. And if nurtured, grows to be just this beautiful child + we got a lot of them, of frozen embryos. And I hope people will consider put putting them up for adoption, because there’s a lot of people that want to adopt them.
22.Jul.2006 H. Clinton Update
Hil, Rupert sly as Fox at fund-raiser
BY HELEN KENNEDYDAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERTwo of the most public people in the world had a chummy breakfast yesterday, but media mogul Rupert Murdoch and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) tried to keep their political get-together as secret as possible. New York Daily News - Home - Hil, Rupert sly as Fox at fund-raiser
22.Jul.2006 ‘Al-Qaeda Is a U.S.-sponsored Intelligence Asset’ Bulatlat - The Philippines's alternative weekly magazine

Michel Chossudovsky, author of the international bestseller America’s War on Terrorism , personally graced the jam-packed local launch of his latest book held at the Asian Center at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City last June 24. During the launch, he gave a lecture about the imminent danger of a U.S.-made nuclear catastrophe amid the Bush administration’s preparations for war with Iran.
22.Jul.2006 "One of the most malignant aspects of the new chapter in the Arab-Israeli conflict is the myth of Israel as the assaulted party,..." Asia Times Online :: Middle East News - Israel's path to total war
22.Jul.2006 HuffPo has a problem with their headline writer; he or she often produces headlines that read like the National Enquirer 33% Say Syria/Iran to Blame? Not True, Arianna | TPMCafe
22.Jul.2006 By KATHLEEN CHRISTISON, former CIA analyst Kathleen Christison: Atrocities in the Promised Land
22.Jul.2006 "US policy has turned to dust and ashes." Asia Times Online :: Middle East News - The Gumps of August
22.Jul.2006 This could never happen.... yeah right... Hezbollah website hosted by a US defense subcontractor (Hejailan Projects / United Defense Industries, Inc. / BAE Systems Land and Armaments)
22.Jul.2006 POLITICS: As Long As The Bridges Aren?t Mexican Help 
President Eisenhower created the interstate highway system to move troops and tanks and evacuate civilians. But, sadly, we never experienced the joy on war on our home soil. Instead the highways have mostly been used for boring cars and trucks to drive around on. But now the US is selling roads ...
22.Jul.2006 U.S. Rescue Bogs Down in Lebanon
BEIRUT — Thousands of Americans whose vacations and business trips to Lebanon have degenerated with sickening speed into stints in a battle zone remained stranded here under Israeli bombardment Monday, their frustration and anger mounting because the U.S. government hasn't gotten them out ...
22.Jul.2006 Festivals too dear for older fans 25% of people aged 55 to 64 would like to go to music festivals but cannot afford tickets, a survey suggests.
22.Jul.2006 Asylum backlog 'under-estimated' Ministers are to admit they may have under-estimated the number of failed asylum seekers in Britain.
22.Jul.2006 Judiciary 'in touch with reality' Judges are more in touch with the real world than most people, the Lord Chief Justice says.
22.Jul.2006 Argentina marks 1994 bombing Argentina remembers the 1994 bombing of a Jewish centre that killed 85 amid calls for justice for the victims.
22.Jul.2006 Indonesia tsunami system 'not ready' The many deaths in Java raise questions about the ability of a promised Indian Ocean tsunami early warning system to sound an adequate alert.
22.Jul.2006 Medics face Katrina death charges A doctor and two nurses are charged with murdering New Orleans hospital patients in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
22.Jul.2006 Lebanon civilian deaths morally not same as terror victims -- Bolton US Ambassador John Bolton said there was no moral equivalence between the civilian casualties from the Israeli raids in Lebanon and those killed in Israel from "malicious terrorist acts".
22.Jul.2006 "The Insane Brutality of the State of Israel"
It needs to be said now, loudly: those who devise and carry out Israeli policies have made Israel into a monster + it has come time for all of us -- all Israelis, all Jews who allow Israel to speak for them, all Americans who do nothing to end U.S. support for Israel and its murderous policies -- to recognize that we stain ourselves morally by continuing to sit by while Israel carries out its atrocities against the Palestinians.
22.Jul.2006 Fmr. Director of the CIA calls for U.S. attack on Syria "I think the last thing we want to do now is to start talking about ceasefires" Click here to watch Windows Media
22.Jul.2006 One Giant Gaza Strip from the Caspian to the Red Sea Israel’s rationale is merely an apology for state terrorism and it’s utterly meaningless in respect to the enormous damage they’ve caused.
22.Jul.2006 Patrick J. Buchanan: Where are the Christians?:
Israel's rampage against a defenseless Lebanon – smashing airport runways, fuel tanks, power plants, gas stations, lighthouses, bridges, roads and the occasional refugee convoy – has exposed Bush's folly in subcontracting U.S. policy out to Tel Aviv, thus making Israel the custodian of our reputation and interests in the Middle East.
22.Jul.2006 Interview: Syrian President Bashar Al-Asad on U.S. Foreign Policy, the Resistance in Iraq, Syrian-Lebanese Relations: An interview with Syrian President Bashar Al-Asad. Audio and transcript
22.Jul.2006 A telling insight into the one-sided relationship with Bush : The live microphone exchanges captured yesterday between George Bush and Tony Blair offer a snapshot between an articulate but ultimately subordinate Prime Minister and the verbally stumbling President.
22.Jul.2006 Terror survey has frightening outlook: Some 84 % of the analysts disagreed with President George W. Bush's assessment that the USA was winning the war on terror.
22.Jul.2006 The Ugly Truth: Our President is an Imbecile: You don't have to be an intellectual to see how painfully stupid our president is.
22.Jul.2006 U.S. is called unhelpful in probe of abduction: Germany said Sunday that the U.S. has refused to help probe the alleged CIA abduction of a German citizen.
22.Jul.2006 Gonzales: Bush blocked eavesdropping probe: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said Tuesday that President Bush personally blocked Justice Department lawyers from pursuing an internal probe of the warrantless eavesdropping program that monitors Americans' international calls and e-mails when terrorism is suspected.
22.Jul.2006 Bob Herbert: The Definition of Tyranny : Congress is dithering and the American public doesn't even seem particularly concerned as the administration of George W. Bush systematically trashes such fundamental American values as justice, due process, respect for human rights and submission to the rule of law.
22.Jul.2006 Israeli strikes on Lebanon kill 42 Israeli air strikes killed 42 people across Lebanon on Monday, raising the death toll since Israel's offensive to 204, all but 14 of them civilian.
22.Jul.2006 Nothing but anti-Arab racism can fully explain the behaviour of the Israelis As we witness the bombardment by Israel of Lebanon and Gaza - a grotesque over-reaction - and, as the death toll of Arab civilians mounts, you have to ask how the Israelis can do what they do. My only answer now is to conclude that it is racism. No political or territorial struggles can convincingly explain or excuse the maddened onslaught by the Israeli state
22.Jul.2006 We're Being Set Up for Wider War in the Middle East The old adage, "fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me" does not apply to Americans, who have shown that they can be endlessly fooled.
22.Jul.2006 Hezbollah, the USA and the Context Behind Israel's Offensive on Lebanon As Israeli warplanes continue to bomb Lebanon and Hezbollah fires rockets into northern Israel we get context on the crisis with two analysts: As'ad AbuKhalil, a Lebanese professor of political science at California State University and Chris Hedges, a senior fellow at The Nation Institute and the former Middle East bureau chief for The New York Times
22.Jul.2006 Israelis are dying: it must be an escalation Here we go again -- more than 130 Lebanese dead after five days of savage aerial bombardment from at least 2,000 sorties by Israeli war planes that are making the country’s south a disaster zone and turning Beirut into a crumbling ghost town. Those dead, most civilians and many of them women and children, hardly get a mention, their lives apparently empty of meaning or significance in this confrontation.
22.Jul.2006 Robert Fisk: 'If our Prime Minister is crying, what are we to do?' The few who were not lying in their basements ran shrieking through the streets - not gunmen, but women with screaming children, families holding suitcases, desperate to leave the heaps of broken buildings, entire apartment blocks smashed to bits, the roadways covered in smashed balconies and torn electrical wires.
22.Jul.2006 Where is the rage? Where is the outrage? A large segment of this society is currently in a state of conditioned silence. It watches as America is undergoing radical changes that are transforming this nation into an instrument of world domination with the objective of controlling this planet's energy resources.
22.Jul.2006 Gods among Ordinary Men Bush and his cadre of neo-conservatives may think that they are above the law and that they can act with impunity and without consequences. They may think of themselves as Gods who operate above the strata of ordinary mortals, as the result of their socioeconomic privilege. That is because other people have always born the cost of their wrong doing.
22.Jul.2006 The Caped Crusaders in a Comic Book War When we last left off, our gallant crusaders, Bush Wayne and his trusted confidant, Dick Grayson-Cheney—oil executives by day, freedom fighters by night—had earned yet another significant victory in their divinely inspired war on terror
22.Jul.2006 Bush Vetoes Stem-Cell Bill In the first veto of his presidency, President Bush bars a bill to allow government funding for limited research on embryos destined for the trash. In Bodyhack.
22.Jul.2006 India: Militant E-Mail Is Hoax E-mails purportedly from an Islamic "army of terror" claiming responsibility for the July 11 Bombay train bombings are actually from a boy posing as a spokesman for the militant group Lashkar-e-Qahar, according to Indian police.
22.Jul.2006 Alzheimer's Skin Patch on Horizon Delivering a drug that helps ward off the onset of Alzheimer's through the skin instead of orally may have fewer side effects.
22.Jul.2006 Toyota Plugs In The automaker wants to cut the gas-electric vehicle premium by half -- it says it will build a plug-in hybrid. In Autopia.
22.Jul.2006 Senate Says Yes to Stem Cells Lawmakers approve a bill that would expand federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research, but President Bush has promised to veto it.
22.Jul.2006 Spy law changes divide House panel Democrats, Republicans can't agree on whether to rewrite a 1978 law governing foreign surveillance to address NSA program.
22.Jul.2006 Podcast: Bush's wiretapping policy and the Internet Bush's wiretapping policy and the Internet, Google crosses swords with Tim Berners-Lee + Pam Anderson tells a cyber-secret.
22.Jul.2006 Big tests for fuel cells coming 00.000.2007 The technology is really around the corner this time, according to a CEO of one of the leading manufacturers of fuel cells.
22.Jul.2006 Ancient Reptile Had Wings Like a Fighter Jet ScuttleMonkey 146+ anthemaniac writes