News – Why They Don’t Fight

North America

US military deserters talk about why they turned away from the war in Iraq. It’s interesting to note the calls for info on conscientious objector status have lifted from about one a month to more than one a day. A pretty big increase. The number who file remains small, but has risen as well. Of course, there is also this: There are at least 50 ways to leave your regiment. Many simply go absent without leave and hope they are never found, others flee to Canada or apply for release as a conscientious objector. Some pursue less confrontational avenues. “People try for medical discharges, or discharge on grounds of hardship,” says McNeil. “They take drugs and hope they get caught. They come out as gay.” I wonder how all those might factor in to how many are looking to get out of the military without simply going AWOL.

Two US citizens are refused entry back to the US, from a visit to Pakistan, because they’re related to a man who was charged with supporting terrorism. They won’t be allowed back into the country unless they submit themselves to an interrogation by the FBI in Pakistan. The man’s wife and daughter and young son were allowed to continue home, but he and his elder son had to fly back to Islamabad on their own dime. Neither is charged with a crime and they don’t hold dual citizenship. So.. if these two don’t submit to interrogation and they can’t return, what happens? Nothing good, I’m sure.

Tropical Storm Ernesto moves over the Caribbean. IT should reach Florida on Thursday and may regain a hurricane status, which it held briefly not too long ago.

With the one-year anniversary of Katrina coming tomorrow, Bush heads down to make an appearance. It will be the typical jaunt here and there and meals with government officials, then back to DC to forget about it until the next time a reporter brings it up in a press conference. He promises they’ll learn from their mistakes, but they never do. They just find new ways to make them.

Al Gore says something I can agree with. American politics is too focused on bullshit ads. All that matters in politics is who can make the most money so he or she can run the most ads sowing the seeds of doubt amongst the populace. We need fact about these people and their records, not one-sided mudslinging.

Middle East

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan visits Beruit, there to meet with Lebanese leaders to discus the deployment of 15,000 UN Peacekeepers. While the forces are agreed upon and plans are underway, there remain snags that both sides of the argument want addressed. Israel wants assurances that Hezbollah will back off and they want their man back, while Lebanon wants the sea blockade of it’s coast ended.

The investigation starts into Israel’s use of cluster bombs. More precisely, if they were used in civilian areas. Israel maintains they’ve used them according to international standards. Given their past actions, government and military, I’m not inclined to believe that without evidence. However, for a similar reason, I don’t believe that Israel will see any true punishment for this, even if they have done something wrong. Their authorities are skillful at wriggling out of trouble and the US has never been one to give more than a comparative slap on the wrist.

Among the air strikes recently sent against Gaza by Israel, one hits the car of a Reuters news agency cameraman and local journalist. Israel claims the car was not identified as a press car and was driving ‘suspiciously’. There are notes it was clearly marked on the sides and top. According to the Associated Press, the white sports utility vehicle was emblazoned with the Reuters logo and had “TV” and “Press” written on it in English, Arabic and Hebrew. I think Israel just needs to stop. They continue to net more terrorism despite their attempts to quash it and in the meantime, their ineffectual flailing kills the innocent. There has to be a point at which one deiced that the costs aren’t worth the marginal gains.

Israeli Colonel Amnon Eshel, commander of the 7th tank division, says that his division commander was insensitive towards the plight of reservists who were called up at a moment’s notice and ill-prepared. Pretty much, Israel pulled a US and rushed to war unprepared.

Hezbollah’s leader claims that they regret that the kidnappings of two Israeli solders caused a small war. And that, had they known this would have resulted, they wouldn’t have done it. I can’t say I believe it.

Russia’s defense minister dismisses Israeli claims that Hezbollah has modern Russian weapons.

Iran continues to toy with nuclear research, while assuring us there is no danger. Of course, those not inclined to believe Iran don’t.

Citing the poor security situation and political pressures, well known Iraqi archeologist Donny George has left the country. He claims that pressure to follow a radical Islamic agenda in the preservation of Iraqi antiquities has made his position impossible. Iraq’s minister of state for antiquities, Liwa Sumaysim, denies this. Interestingly, Liwa is member of Moqtada al Sadr’s party, the same group from which George feels this pressure.

The two Fox journalists freed from capture in Gaza say they were forced to convert to Islam at gunpoint after repeated questioning and were forced to write about their lives and previous reporting assignments in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq.

Europe

Fighting in Russia’s south claims seven lives.

Turkey continues to harbor the practice of ‘honor killings’, often with young boys int eh family directed to carry them out. If Turkey can’t deal with getting rid of this practice, I don’t think they have any place within the EU.

Africa

Paul Salopek, a Pulitzer Prize winner from the Chicago Tribune, is being held in Sudan, charged by the government with spying on Sudanese authorities, reporting false information and entering Sudan without a visa. National Geographic, whom he was on assignment for, denies these charges and appeals for his immediate release and the release of the two Chadians who were with him.

Asia

<A HREF="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/5291910.stm”>China enacts a new bankruptcy law that will give creditors greater protection, which brings them into line with other market-based countries.

General

All cells have a process by which they self-destruct if something inside them goes wrong. Except for cancer cells. But now a team at the University of Illinois has something that can turn that self-destruct switch back on, only in cancer cells. As time passes, we get closer and closer to that much needed cure for cancer. It won’t be too long now, I think.

Scientists find that obese women have more aggressive ovarian cancer than others and are more likely to die from it. They believe that fat cells excrete a hormone or protein that makes ovarian cancer cells grow more aggressively.

Explainer points out which sub types can carry nukes.

The Blogs look at the latest evidence in the Duke University rape case, comment on the Pluto’s demotion to dwarf planet and on the latest, racially tinged iteration of the CBS reality show Survivor.

Today’s Papers has a first-person account of a reporter’s attempt to track down a child he met a year ago while covering the Hurricane Katrina aftermath at the Louisiana Superdome, that many Iranians are enthusiastic about the idea of building nuclear weapons, that the median hourly wage for American workers has fallen 2 percent in the last three years once inflation is factored in and more in the one page news.

Amusements

Proving that it’s never too early to panic, high-rise buildings in Queensland now being outfitted with lifeboats

Ebay prohibits the sale of textbooks designed for homeschoolers, claims it falls under the category of “illegal, dangerous, offensive, or potentially infringing”

Man leads police on high-speed chase; explains to police he was going to pull over but wanted to finish his cocaine and beer

Catholic Church removes all fun from dying

New Mexico school shut down due to student bringing burrito to school. Principal is apparently unaware that burritos cannot cause explosions until after they are eaten

Retailers start putting cigarette packs upside down so customers can’t see the health warnings. What could possibly go wrong?

“Hey, look at me! I am wearing over one hundred t-shirts”

New Orleans residents continue to leave, this time due to the $10,000/yr homeowners insurance

Britain bans sale of “fresh sperm” on Internet. Better come up with a new way of making your Friday beer money, guys

Latest farkup in airline security is one in which screeners allowed a cat to be flown 2,800 miles around the world after being allowed on plane as carry-on luggage (pic)

Fark Photoshop Challenge: Photoshop Drew trying to out-drink this guy from Milwaukee

Fark Photoshop Challenge: Theme: “Organic” products gone too far

Fark Photoshop Challenge: Theme: Drawing a blank