News – A True Flip Flopper
Middle East
Marwan Barghouthi, Palestinian militant leader currently serving mucho time in an Israeli prison, has once again dropped out of the race for the leadership of Palestine and backed Abbas. He needs to keep his ass out this time. Enough of his bullshit. Seriously, enough is enough.
The United Arab Emirates publicly urge fellow Arabs to implement reform from within, saying history and their people would not forgive them if they fail to do so. Their Defense Minister and Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum also noted that change couldn’t be imposed from abroad, referring to US proposals for reform in the Middle East. As long as we’re seen as meddlers and interlopers by enough of the people, any changes will be minimal, slow and inefficient.
An entrance to the Green Zone in Iraq is hit, killing seven Iraqis and wounding nineteen(Guardian says at least 13 killed as well as noting the Intirim president of Iraq saying the decision to disband Saddam’s army and key ministries was a contributing factor to the violence we see now). The action claimed by a group led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Added to that are seven US Marines killed Sunday.
There is curious note of the US supposedly listening in on the calls IAEA chief, Dr Mohammad ElBaradei has held with Iran, with the suggestion that they’re looking for something to knock him down with. The sad thing is, yet again I don’t feel surprised, nor do I consider it a stretch for such allegations to be true. But it seems that phone tapping is taken for granted in the UN overall. A sad state if affairs for a world body made to be a focus of cooperation between nations.
Australia will be sending logistics trainers to Iraq to add their teachings to the new Iraqi defense force.
Violence rises to rear it’s ugly head again between Israeli military and Palestinian militants. Inevitable, I suppose, but hopefully the leadership of Israel and Palestine won’t let that be a block to their dialogue.
Baghdad appears to be in the midst of a fuel crisis, with lines for gas forcing some to wait for in excess of a day.
The high profile prisoners in Iraq have started a hunger strike. Saddam isn’t included in the protest. To protest what? Bad treatment and enforced solitary confinement says Iraqi lawyer Badie Arief Izzat. They’re also opposed to being handed over to the Iraqi people rather than having international trials. I’d ust like to see them have some due process rather than being locked in a hole for X number of years until someone finally decides to try them.
Staff Sergeant Johnny M Horne Jr has pled guilty to killing a severely wounded 16-year-old Iraqi boy during fighting in Baghdad’s Sadr City. This being the case of the severely wounded Iraqi who was ‘put out of his misery’.
Asia
China is preparing to host the finals of their first ‘Miss Plastic Surgery’ in a somewhat curious beauty contest.
Africa
US Tax restrictions on doing business with Libya have been lifted, citing the country’s decision to give up ‘WMDs’ as the reason.
Eastern Europe
In London, a protestor has attacked the waxwork dubbed the ‘celebrity nativity’, which centers around England soccer captain David Beckham as Joseph and his pop star wife “Posh Spice” Victoria as the Virgin Mary. “He pushed Posh and Becks over. It caused some damage but we don’t know how much. The baby Jesus is fine,” said a spokeswoman for Madame Tussaud’s waxwork museum in London. Anglicans, Catholics and Presbyterians have united in calling the exhibit a new low in the cult of celebrity worship. Personally, I find it, along with the furor over it, amusing. I doubt things like this would catch on as much if there wasn’t as much outrage over it. Like most playful fads, they’d come and go. Also in the nativity are Australian pop star Kylie Minogue as an angel, Tony Blair, George W. Bush and the Duke of Edinburgh as the three wise men, Hollywood star Samuel L. Jackson, British actor Hugh Grant and camp Irish comedian Graham Norton as the shepherds and a nondescript baby Jesus.
US
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham warns Bush on relying too much on extensive government borrowing to fix Social Security. “What I’m asking of the president, when it comes to the transition costs, be flexible.. I think it’s irresponsible to borrow the whole trillion dollars,” he told Fox News Sunday. Graham, has proposed a temporary rise in payroll tax contributions to finance Social Security’s shift to partial privatization.
Bernard Kerik has withdrawn from seeking a position as head of the Department of Homeland Security. The official reasons are cited by him as immigration and tax discrepancy issues. How the vetting process overlooked these things is a curious question.. perhaps because any vetting was minimal? I think so, which seemsa little off to me. I suppose that’s what happens when you hire on pals and take their word when it comes to id they have any closet skeletons. Listening to some of the discussion on this, it seems there were other possible skeletons that would have leapt out to dance had he continued the confirmation process.
As noted in The Wisdom of Crowds, collectively people can be smarter than they are individually, unless the group is of a like mind on broad subjects. I would think the case in point is the Bush administration and it will only get worse as Bush stacks his deck with even more like minded people. The people in the cabinet may well be quite smart, but collectively they make decisions well below their cited intelligence.
Hopes for an end to the ban on using cell phones while in flight will likely remain unanswered for the time being.
The weather has been stalling attempts to clean an oil spill up near Alaska. But a recent break in the weather has allowed the cleanup to start.
Slate’s Fray dissects the government’s proposed reforms on intelligence.
General
Ocean’s Twelve is a hit at the box office. I want to see Blade: Trinity this weekend. It was good, though not the same precise feel of the first two. It’s a little lighter, with one of the main characters cracking wise with groan inducing alacrity(good groans though). The end was a bit too vague for my tastes, though the climax was the sort of good fun action that I do so enjoy, pulled off only though teamwork and that wild heroic dumb luck. Ocean’s Twelve next weekend, likely. Then the Phantom of the Opera movie, which I hope will be a good, if not fully faithful rendition.
Could advances in neuroscience change how we think about free will and personal responsibility? What could these sort of advances mean for things like the insanity plea and punishment for crimes committed?
A review of one of the more ‘original’ games for the DS, in so much as we have not often seen it’s like on professional consoles in the US. Sprung is a dating sim, largely text based and very linear. I’ll likely be hitting it up later, along with a lengthy review of Super Mario 64 DS.
New research shows that the brains of methamphetamine abusers’ brains have damage similar to dementia as well as considerable brain inflammation.
A physics model predicts book sales. Curious indeed.
Today’s Papers has note that National Guard and Reserve troops are a third more likely to be killed than active-duty military and often do have worse equipment and training, listing the Pakistan government as an impediment to finding Bin Laden(remember that guy?), a look at the lack of funding to keep the Army’s 29-square mile repair depot in Texas fixing up damaged Humvees at max efficiency and more in the one page news.
Amusements
Christmas grotto features a beheaded Santa and impaled elves. Scrooge unavailable for comment
Teen dance club posts freaky dance pics to Internet; learns that parents have access to Internet. too
Review of dangerous toys, complete with story about the infamous hair-munching “Snacktime Cabbage Patch doll”
Eleven-year-old boy sets up “lump of coal” stand in front of his home
Pile of horse manure the size of football field on fire in Montana. Now we know where all the political ads end up after elections
Neighbors still trying to figure out why “nice” man suddenly freaked out last night, running up and down the halls naked, before jumping out his third-floor window
Fark Photoshop Challenge: Photoshop this cold sunrise
Fark Photoshop Challenge: Theme: Who is “Some Guy”?
Fark Photoshop Challenge: Theme: Unlikely Playboy covers. (Difficulty: SFW)
PS: I’m not at all opposed to readers leaving links in my notes. I think something like this should be an interactive endeavor, with respondents leaving either rebuttals or other misc news they find that they think should be known. I’ve never said I get all of the news, I mainly stick to the few sources I cover in my two or so hour a day foray into the world’s happenings. So do drop tidbits in your notes if you like. For me and for others who might happen by to see.