- Signs of the Times Archive for Thu, 10 May 2007 -



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SOTT Focus
No Conscience = No Shame

Joe Quinn
Signs of the Times
2007-05-09 18:13:00

Two stories, little more than 24 hours apart, that lay bare the mendacity and shameless, murderous nature of the Bush government, its military and their bogus war on terror.

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Best of the Web
Cindy Sheehan: Needless Carnage (And the Beat Goes On)

Cindy Sheehan
CommonDreams.org
2007-05-10 16:19:00

My son, Jon Michael, is the best son a dad can have. He will always be my pride and joy.

- George Tenet: Former Director of Central Intelligence,
'At the Center of the Storm' (Page 520)


I had difficulty making the purchase of George Tenet's new book. With a multi-million dollar advance already, I didn't want to contribute to someone who has already profited so obscenely from other people's dead children. This self-congratulatory, buck-passing book was even more difficult to read. But when I came to the last paragraph and read the above quote about Tenet's precious son, Jon Michael, I began to cry in my uncomfortable airplane seat.

I believe that Casey was the best son a mom and dad could have. He was our first: our immense pride and joy. Casey served his church in one capacity or other from the time he was eight years old to the day he died at the Palm Sunday Mass he attended the morning of his murder in an ambush. He was an Eagle Scout, an honor student, a trusted friend, a loving big brother and the best son a mom could have. The above paragraph reads like an obituary because Casey is dead, in part, because of Tenet's support of a president whom he has great "affection" for.

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Bertrand Russell writes most eloquently on the Dark Age of Isramerican tyranny

Greg Felton
Canadian Arab News
2007-05-10 14:25:00

Today, we are again in the midst of a Dark Age, where logic, reason and moral sense are being stamped out by religious tyranny and obscurantism. Like its Medieval predecessor, this new church, The Church of Zionist Rectitude, uses torture, murder, intimidation and blackmail to enforce obedience to its verities.

It may be argued that the great Welsh philosopher and mathematician Bertrand Russell could not possibly have anything relevant to say about modern U.S. politics since he died more than 37 years ago.

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Just Like The Nazis Treated the Jews: Highway to hell

B. Michael
Ynet News
2007-05-09 14:08:00

©n/a
Lineup at Kalandia checkpoint


Bir Naballah is a cage. It may be called "The Bir Naballah enclave" in the "occupier's" politically correct language, but this cannot change the facts. It is a cage. Perhaps a compound. Another atrocity that emerged from the winding route of the separation fence.


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U.S. News
Bush changes plan: White House would run emergency shadow government

Spencer S. Hsu
Washington Post
2007-05-10 16:42:00

President Bush issued a formal national security directive yesterday ordering agencies to prepare contingency plans for a surprise, "decapitating" attack on the federal government, and assigned responsibility for coordinating such plans to the White House.

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Naked neo-cons: Perjury and the Big, Bad Wolfowitz

Greg Palast
GregPalast.com
2007-05-09 16:01:00

George Bush is trying to save Paul Wolfowitz' job as President of the World Bank even after the vulpine neo-con was caught slipping a load of World Bank loot to his love interest, Shaha Ali Riza.

Big deal. Yes, Wolfowitz shouldn't have been greasing his cookie sheet with government funds, but there are bigger reasons to toss The Wolf out the door.

Like, say, perjury and homicide? I haven't forgotten, Mr. Wolfowitz, that on March 27, 2003 you testified before the US Congress that the occupation of Iraq wouldn't cost the American taxpayer a penny.

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Ten-year-old boy found guilty in homeless beating


KGAN News
2007-05-10 12:41:00

A ten-year-old boy has been convicted of aggravated battery in the beating of a homeless Army veteran in Daytona Beach, Florida.

A judge has set sentencing for May 24th. The boy could be held in the juvenile system until he's 21, depending on the sentencing decision.

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Public urged to return dangerous items found at Salt Plains

Tim Talley
AP
2007-05-10 11:44:00

Federal officials warned tourists Thursday to beware of dangerous chemicals or explosives they may have taken home as souvenirs from a popular crystal-hunting area.



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Drug dealers' gimmicks target kids

Jason Trahan
The Dallas Morning News
2007-05-10 01:05:00

Pot Tarts. Strawberry Quick. Cheese.

The names are cute and hip, but the products drug dealers are peddling with them are deadly nonetheless, according to police who are struggling to keep up with the latest gimmicks aimed at getting young kids hooked on narcotics.
©AP
Crystals of methamphetamine, colored with a strawberry-flavored drink mix, are an example of the new line of drugs.



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Deputies arrest second suspect in bizarre murder case

Willoughby Mariano
Orlando Sentinel
2007-05-09 11:40:00

Orange County sheriff's detectives made a second arrest Thursday in the bizarre murders of a mother and father who vanished 15 years to the day apart from each other, deputies said.

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UK & Euro-Asian News
Putin likens U.S. foreign policy to that of Third Reich

Andrew E. Kramer
International Herald Tribune
2007-05-09 13:37:00

President Vladimir Putin of Russia obliquely compared the foreign policy of the United States to the Third Reich in a speech Wednesday commemorating the 62nd anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany, in an apparent escalation of anti-American rhetoric within the Russian government.


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Blair To Step Down On June 27


CBS/AP
2007-05-10 12:25:00

British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced Thursday that he will resign from his job leading the government of the United States' most important ally.

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Sources: Sarkozy purging French intelligence services

Wayne Madsen
Wayne Madsen Report
2007-05-10 10:24:00

May 10, 2007 -- Neo-con purge of French intelligence services begins. Only days after the election of neo-con Nicolas Sarkozy as President of France, the expected neo-con purge of anti-Sarkozy members of the French intelligence and security services has begun. Captain Thierry Tintoni of the Renseignements generaux (RG) (General Intelligence service) has been questioned by a secret tribunal for violating secrecy laws. Tintoni is accused of providing defeated Socialist Party candidate Segolene Royal with damaging information on Sarkozy's conduct while Interior Minister. The French intelligence services will now face the same purges that befell similar neo-con purges of the U.S., British, Australian, Danish, and Italian intelligence services.


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China military ties with ASEAN no threat, U.S. says

Darren Schuettler
Reuters
2007-05-10 08:40:00

China's bid for closer military ties with Southeast Asia is a "positive overture" and does not pose a threat to U.S. interests in the region, a top U.S. military commander said on Thursday.
©Reuters



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Around the World
Girls 'felt right' killing friend


CNN/Reuters
2007-05-10 11:58:00

CANBERRA, Australia (Reuters) -- Two Australian schoolgirls who garroted a friend as an experiment to see what it was like to kill someone were on Thursday sentenced to life in jail for a murder a judge said was "gruesome and merciless in the extreme".

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Big Brother
G8 protests in Germany


ITV News
2007-05-10 05:29:00

Riot police have clashed with demonstrators in Hamburg after the offices and apartments of left-wing activists were raided.
©ITV News
Two thousand demonstrators hit the streets in Hamburg with some firing flares and throwing bottles at riot police

Some 900 federal and local police officers searched about 40 premises used by several anti-globalist groups, who police believed were planning to disrupt next month's Group of Eight (G8) summit.


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Axis of Evil
Israeli Demolition of Special Needs Children's Home "Shockingly Callous"


AMIN
2007-05-10 16:51:00

Yesterday, Israeli forces demolished a home for special needs children in the Palestinian East Jerusalem neighborhood of Wadi Joz. Today, the Jerusalem Construction and Planning Committee endorsed plans to establish three new ultra-orthodox settlements on the outskirts of occupied East Jerusalem.

Chief Palestinian Negotiator Saeb Erekat called the demolition "shockingly callous" and the Committee's decision a "clear [Israeli] rejection of the Arab Peace Initiative."

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Cheney says Iraqi leaders must shoulder responsibilities. Iraqi leaders say US should leave


AFP
2007-05-10 12:38:00

US Vice President Dick Cheney wrapped up a two-day visit to Iraq on Thursday warning that the country's own leaders were the only ones able to bring their conflict to an end.

"Success in that effort depends on Iraq's leaders themselves, and the ultimate solution in this country will be a political solution," Cheney told around 2,000 US soldiers at Camp Speicher, a sprawling US base.

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Israeli may join Sarkozy's cabinet

Yaniv Salama-Scheer
Jersusalem Post
2007-05-10 12:21:00

©AP
French Ministerial Candidate Arno Klarsfeld.


Arno Klarsfeld, the son of renowned Nazi-hunters Serge and Beate Klarsfeld, is rumored to be the top candidate to become minister of immigration and national identity when French President-elect Nicholas Sarkozy chooses his cabinet in the coming weeks.

Arno Klarsfeld, a 41-year-old lawyer, undertook several missions for Sarkozy when he was interior minister, dealing with France's illegal immigration problem.

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Middle East Madness
Army kills a Palestinian unborn baby in Nablus

Ameen Abu Wardeh
IMEMC
2007-05-10 14:40:00

A massive Israeli army force invaded the northern West Bank city of Nablus and nearby refugee camps. During the invasion army opened fire randomly at residents' homes and killed an unborn baby after shooting and injuring the mother on Thursday morning.


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Israeli forces demolish centre for disabled children in east Jerusalem


Ma'an News Agency
2007-05-08 13:41:00

©Desert Peace


The Israeli forces demolished a centre for disabled children in east Jerusalem early on Tuesday morning.


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World Bank criticises Israel over Palestinian economy

Mark Tran
Guardian Unlimited
2007-05-09 10:18:00

The World Bank today called on Israel to ease its extensive restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza to fuel a Palestinian economic revival.

In a harsh report (pdf), the bank criticised Israel for extending legitimate security measures to expand and protect settlement activity and the relatively unhindered movement of settlers and other Israelis in and out of the West Bank.

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Resistance Being Rebuilt Too

Dahr Jamail
Electronic Lebanon
2007-05-07 18:09:00

BEIRUT, May 7 (IPS) - As reconstruction resumes in the heavily bombed southern Beirut district Dahiyeh, the signs are evident of a rebuilding of resistance against Israel and the U.S.-backed government, largely by way of increased support for Hezbollah.
©Manoocher Deghati/IRIN
A general view of the ruins caused by Israeli bombing in the southern suburb of Beirut, a stronghold of Hezbollah, Lebanon, 6 October 2006


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The Loan Gunmen
Wal-Mart Sales Are Worst in 27 Years

Kris Hudson
Wall Street Journal
2007-05-10 09:45:00

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. posted its worst monthly same-store sales results in at least 27 years, tallying a 3.5% decline in April due to this year's early Easter as well as generally challenging economic conditions for consumers.

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US Trade deficit swells 10.4 percent in March


Reuters
2007-05-10 08:33:00

The U.S. trade deficit widened more than expected in March to $63.9 billion, as higher oil prices helped push total imports to the second highest on record, a U.S. government report showed on Thursday.

The trade gap swelled 10.4 percent from February, the Commerce Department said, surprising Wall Street economists who had expected a more modest expansion. The midpoint estimate of analysts surveyed before the report pegged the March trade gap at $60 billion.

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Nymex Plans to Offer Trading in Carbon Dioxide Emission Contracts


Associated Press
2007-05-09 16:46:00

The New York Mercantile Exchange plans to offer contracts for trading carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas blamed for global warming, and other heat-trapping emissions.

The entry by Nymex Holdings Inc. into the sector may herald the start of fierce competition among energy exchanges to serve a multibillion-dollar trading market for carbon emission allowances.

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The Living Planet
Update: Atlantic's first named storm forms early

Jessica Gresko
AP
2007-05-09 11:25:00

The first named storm of the year formed Wednesday off the southeastern U.S. coast, more than three weeks before the official start of the Atlantic hurricane season, forecasters said.

©NASA
Subtropical storm Andrea, the first named storm of the year, off Florida and Georgia at 11 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, May 8, 2007.


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Health & Wellness
Toxoplasmosis infection trick revealed by scientists


Physorg.com / Imperial College London
2007-05-10 16:03:00

Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease, primarily carried by cats. It is transmitted to humans by eating undercooked meat or through contact with cat faeces. It is particularly dangerous for pregnant women, whose foetuses can be infected via the placenta, and those with a weakened immune system, such as people infected with HIV. In severe cases, toxoplasmosis can cause damage to the brain and eyes, and even death.

Now researchers from London and Geneva have determined, for the first time, the atomic structure of a key protein which is released onto the surface of the parasite just before it invades host cells in the human body. They found that the protein known as TgMIC1 binds to certain sugars on the surface of the host cell, assisting the parasite to stick to, and then enter the human cell.

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Study casts new doubts on HPV vaccine

Thomas H. Maugh II and Jia-Rui Chong
Los Angeles times
2007-05-10 12:49:00

New data on the controversial HPV vaccine designed to prevent cervical cancer have raised serious questions about its efficacy, researchers reported today, potentially undercutting the efforts in many states to make vaccination mandatory.


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Study suggests cancer risk from depleted uranium

James Randerson
The Guardian
2007-05-08 11:12:00

Depleted uranium, which is used in armour-piercing ammunition, causes widespread damage to DNA which could lead to lung cancer, according to a study of the metal's effects on human lung cells. The study adds to growing evidence that DU causes health problems on battlefields long after hostilities have ceased.

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Help Wanted: Human Guinea Pigs

Betsy Model
The Internationalist
2007-05-09 18:25:00

If you've ever wondered why we so rarely hear of drug trials going awry in the United States, Sonia Shah, author of The Body Hunters: Testing New Drugs on the World's Poorest Patients (The New Press, 2006), has the unattractive answer: we "offshore" the drug trials to developing nations and to those who simply can't afford to say "anywhere but here."

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Science & Technology
NASA: Widespread 'Twilight Zone' Detected Around Clouds


NASA
2007-05-03 12:13:00

There seems to be something new under the sun -- in the sky, specifically -- that could complicate scientists' efforts to get a fix on how much the world will warm in the future. Greenhouse gases are not the only things in the air that influence the temperature of our atmosphere. Clouds and small airborne particles called aerosols also play an important and complicated role. And now a new ingredient has been discovered: an extensive and previously unseen "twilight zone" of particles that represents a gradual transition from cloud droplets to dry particles.

©Koren et al., Geophysical Research Letters
What appears as clear sky around a cloud as seen from the ground through a digital camera (left) actually has a twilight zone of light-reflecting particles around it (right). To see this, the blue light from the atmosphere in the original image is first subtracted (middle). The twilight zone is revealed after the darker parts of the image are enhanced (right).


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NASA study suggests extreme summer warming in the future


NASA
2007-05-09 09:07:00

A new study by NASA scientists suggests that greenhouse-gas warming may raise average summer temperatures in the eastern United States nearly 10 degrees Fahrenheit by the 2080s.

"There is the potential for extremely hot summertime temperatures in the future, especially during summers with less-than-average frequent rainfall," said lead author Barry Lynn of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Columbia University, New York.

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Our Haunted Planet

No new articles.


Don't Panic! Lighten Up!
Wallet reunited with owner after five decades in a 1946 Hudson


Associated Press
2007-05-08 18:37:00

Glenn Goodlove said he was likely smooching with a girl in the expansive back seat of a 1946 Hudson when his wallet slipped from his pants pocket more than five decades ago. The year was 1952.

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