News -- May 29, 2006

The State in the Dock - "People tell me that Saddam Hussein is a very bad man. Probably he is. Ok, really he is. He is egregiously immoral and ghastly. Should he be put on trial? Can such a trial be fair? This is where it gets complicated. If all heads of state who commit violent acts were to be tried as criminals, we would live in a very different world. It would be a world without governments as we know them. Let's say that you like that idea. You might argue that lopping off Saddam's head is as good a place to start as any. But there's a problem: The trial is being administered and run and decided by the government of a conquering nation, one led by a man who clearly had a personal vendetta against Saddam, and who used the most duplicitous methods to drag his country into an imperial venture that has killed perhaps a hundred thousand and thrown the victim country into political and economic chaos."

Murtha: New Scandal Worse Than Abu Ghraib - "The fallout from the killing of as many as two dozen Iraqi civilians by Marines could undermine U.S. efforts in Iraq more than the Abu Ghraib prison scandal did, a lawmaker who is a prominent war critic said Sunday. The shootings last November at Haditha, a city in the Anbar province of western Iraq that has been plagued by insurgents, were covered up, said Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa."

U.S. is world leader in avoiding human rights accountability: Says Amnesty International report - "“The United States has become a world leader in avoiding human rights accountability; a case in point is the reliance of the United States government on private military contractors, which has helped create virtually rules-free zones sanctioned with the American flag and firepower,” said Larry Cox the executive director of Amnesty International’s US Chapter."

More than 60 children reportedly held at Guantanamo Bay - "Those detainees were under 18 when they were captured by US forces, and at least 10 of them still being held at Guantanamo were 14 or 15 when they were seized, held in solitary confinement, subject to repeated interrogation and allegedly tortured, the charity Reprieve was reported as saying."

Bush worshippers are the real un-Americans - "The yahoo Bush worshippers (YBWs) are the real un-Americans. Although they heavily lard their speech with the words “democracy,” “liberty,” and “freedom”; the YBWs do not understand the meaning of these words. After they utter them (usually accompanied, a la Sinclair Lewis, with the Stars and Stripes (or maybe the Stars and Bars) waving in one hand and a prominently displayed gilt Bible in the other), in the very next breath, they support the Bush administration’s domestic spying program, arguing -- if one can call such parrot-screed an argument -- that they have “nothing to hide” and so it’s quite all right with them if the government listens in on them. These people call themselves patriots. They need to do some historical research. At the time of the American Revolution, people with ideas like those of the YBWs were called Tories, not Patriots. The Patriots fought against King George, not for him."

Autopsy: No Arabs on Flight 77 - "A list of names on a piece of paper is not evidence, but an autopsy by a pathologist, is. I undertook by FOIA request, to obtain that autopsy list and you are invited to view it below. Guess what? Still no Arabs on the list."

Israel warns of World Cup terror - "Saudi newspaper says Israel warned US, European intelligence service of possible attempts by Hizbullah cells to carry out attacks during upcoming soccer tournament in Germany in bid to prove to international community that Tehran is capable of retaliation if attacked."

Gonzales pressures ISPs on data retention - "U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and FBI Director Robert Mueller on Friday urged telecommunications officials to record their customers' Internet activities, CNET News.com has learned."

Babies aborted for not being perfect - "The ethical storm over abortions has been renewed as it emerged that terminations are being carried out for minor, treatable birth defects."

US scientists back autism link to MMR - "American researchers have revealed that 85 per cent of samples taken from autistic children with bowel disorders contain the virus. The strain is the same as the one used in the measles, mumps and rubella triple vaccine."

English radio station bans James Blunt songs - " Chris Cotton, programme controller of local radio Essex FM in southern England, said: "We don't have anything against James Blunt and we're pleased he has been so successful, but we really need a break.""

Earth's Ozone Layer Appears To Be On The Road To Recovery - "While the ozone hole over Antarctica continues to open wide, the ozone layer around the rest of the planet seems to be on the mend. For the last 9 years, worldwide ozone has remained roughly constant, halting the decline first noticed in the 1980s. The question is why? Is the Montreal Protocol responsible? Or is some other process at work?"

Sweet success for pioneering hydrogen energy project - "In a feasibility study funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, bioscientists at the University of Birmingham have demonstrated that these bacteria give off hydrogen gas as they consume high-sugar waste produced by the confectionery industry."

The next big bang: Man meets machine - "Yet research on multiple fronts in digital technology, biotechnology and nanotechnology may, over the next half century, alter the way we think about computers and information, and our relationship to them. With these changes, bionic body parts won't seem so far-fetched as we increasingly develop ways to integrate high-tech materials into our mortal flesh."

The 25 Worst Tech Products of All Time - "The Complete List of Losers"

EU to tax e-mail, text messages? - "European Union lawmakers are investigating a proposed tax on e-mails and mobile phone text messages as a way to fund the 25-member bloc in the future."




Quote of the Day
"The most sensible way to avoid these threats, according to the instructor, is to remain alert, use common sense, be inconspicuous and avoid dangerous areas, such as planet Earth."
~ Dave Barry