Global Pulse: Sidenotes Archives

Category: Sidenotes

In Secret, U.S. Aids Pakistan's Nuclear Security

The New York Times 18 Nov 2007 @ 17:33 GMT | Permalink | Comments

With Pakistan's political future in doubt, the safety of the country's nuclear weapons is again up for debate. Washington has spent nearly US$100 million for highly classified programs to help boost Pakistan's nuclear security, reports The New York Times. The newspaper had withheld details for three years.

The money went to personnel training and equipment, including fences and night-vision goggles. The U.S. thought about offering "permissive action links," or PALS, a system that protects a warhead from detonating without proper codes. That debate ended because of concerns over technology transfer and deep suspicion in Pakistan about Washington's true intentions.

Uruguay Tackles Women's Rights vs. Abortion

El Pais, Uruguay 09 Nov 2007 @ 23:01 GMT | Permalink | Comments

The Uruguayan Bishops Conference is gearing up for a fight against legalized abortion amid fears that this secular Catholic country might expand women's rights. The Senate this week passed a bill decriminalizing abortion with a narrow margin of 18-to-13. President Tabaré Vázquez, a physician by trade, has vowed to veto the legislation if the Chamber of Deputies approve it.

The bill allows "conscientious objection" by doctors and healthcare workers, but it considers a time limit on such objections to prevent them from simply refusing everybody. The country of 3.5 million people is predominantly Catholic (66 percent), but far fewer (perhaps less than half) attend mass regularly.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 23:01 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: Abortion | Catholic Church | Uruguay

Radical Islam Flourishing in Bosnia

Spiegel 09 Nov 2007 @ 18:48 GMT | Permalink | Comments

They were supposed to have gone home after the Balkan Wars. But the foreign mujahedeen who imported radical views of Islam stayed in Bosnia. Saudi financiers pumped half-billion euros into building mosques, and Wahhabism is spreading. Analysts fear the country could become another training ground for terrorists.

Benazir Bhutto Bad for Business, for Pakistan

Fortune via Sydney Morning Herald 09 Nov 2007 @ 17:43 GMT | Permalink | Comments

Sure Pakistan's military regime has enriched itself in the past eight years, but Gen. Musharraf has arrested the country from certain economic collapse and achieved an amazing growth rate. And the return of "feudal baroness twice ousted as prime minister for corruption," writes Eric Ellis, could ruin it all. Not only is she "a kleptocrat in Hermes scarf" in the words of Imran Khan, but she is utterly incompetent.

Hamaswood: A Hollywood for the Radical

AP via IHT 07 Nov 2007 @ 19:03 GMT | Permalink | Comments

Expect more propaganda as usual and not 'Hamas does Dallas.' The radical Palestinian group wants to add a Hollywood-style movie studio to its arsenal of media outlets. The production park, to be named Madinat Asda'a (City of Echoes), will occupy a former West Bank settlement abandoned by Israelis two years ago. The cost of building the media city, complete with amusement parks, is estimated at US$200 million, which the head of the project admits is hard to raise.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 19:03 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: Control | Hamas | Media

Berliners to Get First Hindu Temple

Die Welt (German) 06 Nov 2007 @ 01:22 GMT | Permalink | Comments

The 6,000 Hindus in Berlin will soon get their first temple. It will be the second-largest in Europe after the Venkateswara temple in the West Midlands. Heinz Buschkowsky, mayor of the Neukölln borough where the temple will go up, was excited about the temple which he hopes will attract visitors and cultural events to this part of Berlin. The temple is expected to cost about €850,000 (US$1.2 million) and take three years to complete. It is dedicated to Ganesha, the popular elephant-headed deity.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 01:22 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: Germany | Hindu | Religion

Death Channel to Go On Air in Germany

Focus 01 Nov 2007 @ 00:33 GMT | Permalink | Comments

Unlike the funeral industry, a cable television program about death and mourning may not be a sure thing. Etos TV is set to become the first cable network dedicated to the taboo subject in Germany with documentaries about cemeteries, morticians and other death-related topics.

Wolf Tilmann Schneider, the network's chief executive, believes he is filling a gap in the market of 830,000 annual deaths and serving the needs of grieving families. At least a part of the funding will come from paid obituaries (samples shown here) that start at €2,000 (US$2,881) plus tax.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 00:33 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: Death | Germany | Media

Singapore Airlines: No Sex in 'Inner Sanctum'

Singapore Straits Times 31 Oct 2007 @ 18:26 GMT | Permalink | Comments

The airline calls it the "inner sanctum," the exclusive first class suite aboard the new A380. It's supposed to "meet your every need" except one. No sex is allowed on the double bed because the walls are not soundproof and the suites are not completely private. A return trip for two between Singapore and Sydney in mid-November in the A380 suite costs US$15,000, which doesn't include departure tax.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 18:26 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: Airlines | Sex | Travel

U.S. Military Solidifying Presence in Africa

The Economist 31 Oct 2007 @ 17:58 GMT | Permalink | Comments

The expanding presence of the U.S. military in Africa brings the potential for development as well as serious risks, reports The Economist. The Africa Command (AfriCom), scheduled to be fully operational in 2008, could supersede and drown out aid agencies, strengthen armies of rights abusers, interfere with democratization and place security needs ahead of corruption and good governance.

First HIV Arrived in U.S. From Haiti in 1969

EurekAlert by AAAS 30 Oct 2007 @ 19:22 GMT | Permalink | Comments

A single immigrant from Haiti in 1969 is likely responsible for the arrival of the AIDS virus in the United States, a new study has found. Scientists analyzed blood samples from five Haitian immigrants who died of then-unknown diseases and 117 AIDS patients from around the world. They conclude that HIV migrated from Africa to Haiti around 1966 and from Haiti to the U.S. three years later, showing that HIV has been in the U.S. long before "Patient Zero." The strain that came out of Haiti was HIV-1 group M subtype B, the most prevalent one today. The study also mentions that the U.S. government had stored blood samples of Haitians who died under mysterious circumstances.

Human Species May Split Into Two

BBC News 29 Oct 2007 @ 17:36 GMT | Permalink | Comments

H.G. Wells was right about the future of our race. In 100,000 years, humans will have evolved into two subspecies: a class of attractive, intelligent elite and stupid, goblin-like creatures, says Dr. Oliver Curry, an evolutionary theorist at the London School of Economics. In 1,000 years, we will be between six and seven feet tall and live an average of 120 years. Our evolution will peak around the year 3,000, and by the year 10,000, we may suffer the consequences of relying too much on technology. In Time Machine, Wells calls the ugly creatures Morlocks.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 17:36 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: Evolution | Humanity

CIA Used Diego Garcia as 'Black Site,' for Rendition

The Guardian (U.K.) 19 Oct 2007 @ 06:45 GMT | Permalink | Comments

Nothing unites fractious British MPs like a good scandal involing U.S. intelligence mishaps. A parliamentary committee in Britain has launched a formal inquiry into the use of Diego Garcia, a sovereign British territory, for extrajudicial interrogation and detention, The Guardian reports this morning. The 37-mile atoll in the Indian Ocean is widely believed to have been one of the destinations in Europe, Middle East and elsewhere for holding terror suspects, according to retired U.S. Gen. Barry McCaffrey. British officials so far have escaped complicity by saying they went by assurances from their U.S. counterparts.

Extraordinary renditions have been used by the CIA and others shuttle so-called "high value" suspects from one location to another--often without any judicial process. European officials are believed to have known (Le Monde) about these flights, the use of European airspace, Spanish territories, and some destinations, like Poland, even before newspapers and human rights organizations jumped into the fray.

Dissident Comes In To the Cold

Globe and Mail 18 Oct 2007 @ 20:11 GMT | Permalink | Comments

Decrying a bleak, oppressive Russia, Vladimir Bukovsky announced his candidacy for president. He has no chance of running against a Kremlin-backed candidate, let alone being elected. The ailing 65-year-old was in and out of jail since he was 16 for speaking out against the Soviet Union, and he left for Britain in 1976. He lashed out at President Putin for suppressing independent media and amassing authoritarian powers. He also urged Russians to wake up and look around the country where many parts resemble the "medieval" era. Mr. Bukovsky returned home at the urging of Kremlin detractors and some journalists to "inspire" the opposition, which includes chess champion Garry Kasparov.

Taikonaut Leads Communist Party Into Space

Xinhua News Agency 18 Oct 2007 @ 18:51 GMT | Permalink | Comments

China is preparing to establish a Communist Party branch in space. On the sidelines of the 17th Congress of the Communist Party of China, Yang Liwei, the country's first taikonaut, as the astronauts are called there, is leading the way to fulfill requirements set forth by the CPC Constitution. The party requires a grassroots branch whenever there are three or more card-carrying CPC members. All 14 taikonauts are CPC members.

If established, the CPC branch in space would be the "highest" in the world, says Mr. Yang. Shades of Helen Caldicott's "Missile Envy." The 17th Congress is most notable for how frequently the words "democracy" and "democratic" appear in the official press. Even the conservative People's Daily had to feature President Hu Jintao's speech on the necessities of democracy.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 18:51 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: China | Communism | Space

New Zealand Rocked by "Anti-Terror" Raids

New Zealand Herald 15 Oct 2007 @ 09:09 GMT | Permalink | Comments

It's hard to imagine the otherwise peaceful country to be a hot bed of weapons and military training for anarchist, extreme environmentalists and other activists. But that's what the local and Australian press are splashing their front-pages with today. Among those arrested was the self-proclaimed Maori rights activist, Tame Iti, who shares his place in history with misguided, pro-China/Soviet "terrorists" of the 1970s and 1980s.

Regardless, New Zealand arrested these "terror" suspects under the 2002 Suppression of Terrorism Act, which like in neighboring Australia and the allied United States was born of political expediency. To the government, however, which apparently did not have laws to deal with armed training camps before, the post-9/11 law was useful and the easiest to use to make the sweeping arrests.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 09:09 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: Arms | New Zealand | Terrorism

Doughnut Thief May Get 30 Years to Life

St. Louis Post-Dispatch 08 Oct 2007 @ 08:21 GMT | Permalink | Comments

A 41-year-old man in Farmington, Missouri, has been charged with stealing a 52-cent doughnut and allegedly pushing a woman, which he denies, and could receive 30 years to life in prison. The man has been in and out of jail on minor charges and has never been convicted of any violent crime. The district attorney (prosecutor) is expected to ask for the toughest sentence possible though the media attention may change her mind.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 08:21 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: Crime | Punishment

Monet Damaged at Musée d’Orsay

Le Figaro 08 Oct 2007 @ 07:33 GMT | Permalink | Comments

It's easier than thought to break into the Orsay Museum in Paris and punch a whole into Monet's "Le Pont d'Argenteuil." The 1874 impressionist piece has a hole of about 10 cm (4 inches) wide. The vandals, out during Nuit Blanche, were caught on camera, but no arrests have been made. Embarrassed Culture Minister Christine Albanel said she was exploring the possibility of tougher penalties for damaging art.

Indonesia: Marginal Support for Political Islam

Jakarta Post 06 Oct 2007 @ 08:23 GMT | Permalink | Comments

Support for political Islam in Indonesia has steadily decreased, hinting at the rising strength of secular political values, a survey by Lembaga Survei Indonesia has shown. Disapproval of a woman president has fallen to 30 percent in 2007 from 41 percent in 2005. More importantly active involvement in hard-line Islamic political parties in the world's largest Muslim country remains marginal at best.

Posted by Dayhawk Kim at 08:23 | Permalink | Comments (0)
TAGGED: Indonesia | Political Islam | Secularism

Recent Entries

Search

Categories