Bush support is near lowest ever, poll saysWASHINGTON A summer of bad news from Iraq, high gas prices, economic unease and now the devastation of Hurricane Katrina has left President George W. Bush with overall approval ratings for his job performance and handling of Iraq, foreign policy and the economy at or near the lowest levels of his presidency, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.
For the first time, only half of Americans approved of Bush's handling of terrorism, which had been his consistent stren... (more)
|
|
Mice infected with plague missing from labNEWARK, N.J. -- Three mice infected with the bacteria responsible for bubonic plague apparently disappeared from a laboratory about two weeks ago, and authorities launched a search though health experts said there was scant public risk.
The mice were unaccounted-for at the Public Health Research Institute, which is on the campus of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and conducts bioterrorism research for the federal government.
Federal official s... (more)
|
|
LAPD Shut Down dead prez/KRS Katrina Benefit Show A Few Things to Ponder-LAPD Shut Down dead prez/KRS Benefit Show
By Davey D
Los Angeles, Sept 10th) It started out, as a beautiful thing…Not only was it beautiful, it was historic and on many levels political. To be honest it seemed almost too good to be true. We’re talking about this past Saturday’s sold out outdoor concert in South Central LA featuring Dead Prez, KRS-One, Self Scientific and Ras Kass. All these folks came together to perform a ... (more)
|
|
Swapping Scoops: Every Night the 'NY Times' and 'Wash Post' Exchange Front Pages for the Following DayNEW YORK When The New York Times on July 16 broke the story of a 2003 State Department memo that had become a key element in the Valerie Plame leak investigation, the paper scored a major exclusive. But when The Washington Post hit newsstands that very same Saturday, it had its own version of the same story. It even credited the Times for the same-day scoop.
Welcome to life under the Washington Post-New York Times swap. As part of a secret arrangement formed more than 10 years ago... (more)
|
|
55% of Americans Favor Bringing Troops HomeWASHINGTON -- Hurricane Katrina has accelerated the erosion in public support for the Iraq war as President Bush's core of supporters dwindles and economic pessimism turns Americans' attention inward.
A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News Poll shows that cutting spending on Iraq is Americans' top choice for financing the recovery from Katrina. Shaken by high gas prices and bracing for further jolts, Americans have turned negative about Mr. Bush across the board -- on handling the eco... (more)
|
|
Everybody Loves Martial LawAt some point the propaganda we're subjected to becomes so utterly ridiculous, you've just got to ask yourself: "Is this really being said?"
I'm apparently a glutton for punishment because every now and then I feel the need to turn on the "Mainstream Media" for a glimpse at the brainwashing de jour. My allergic reaction to "cable news poison" usually ranges somewhere between a mild rash and all-out frothing at the mouth. Today, I was in full froth; spitting, hissing and fantasiz... (more)
|
|
DynCorp International Awarded Up To $290M Contract To Train Afghanistan PoliceIRVING, TEXAS – September 7, 2005 – The United States Department of State has awarded DynCorp International a contract to train, equip, and build the capacity of the police forces in Afghanistan. The potential value of the award is $117,236,158 for the first year and $85,275,734 and $87,487,630, respectively, for two option years. This is a follow-on award for DynCorp International, which has been training police in Afghanistan since 2003.
The training is aimed at incr... (more)
|
|
9/11: Cold Case: A former Bush-appointed official is calling for a new, independent, scientific investigation into 9/11With the advancements in forensics, many crimes that would otherwise go unsolved are being cracked in laboratories across the country, bringing justice and closure to victims who have suffered great atrocities. DNA and other forensic evidence is the smoking gun that ties murderers and rapists to crimes they thought they'd gotten away with.
Mainstream television is making a killing off the recent breakthroughs in police work, with shows featuring this expertise bringing in high rat... (more)
|
|
Intravenous Vitamin C Kills Cancer CellsRecall how hydrogen peroxide is poured on wounds to kill germs. Well now researchers clearly show high-dose vitamin C, when administered intravenously, can increase hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) levels within cancer cells and kills them. I.V. vitamin C was also demonstrated to kill germs and may be an effective therapy for infectious disease.
With a growing body of evidence mounting, National Institutes of Health (NIH) researchers conceded today that intravenous vitamin C may be an e... (more)
|
|
If biometrics isn't foolproof, what is the point of using it?The government's ID card team this week made an important admission. They admitted that, much of the time, the new systems won't work. It de-fangs a common argument against the scheme - that it was conceived in an IT consultant's fantasy world, where citizens are obedient and technology always functions. (The opponents' next logical leap, from "It'll never work" to "It'll create a totalitarian state" is beyond the intellectual scope of this column.)
Katherine Courtney, the program... (more)
|
|
Companies urged to move beyond passwordsCompanies are "fiddling while Rome burns" by continuing to put their faith in passwords to guarantee user authentication, a Gartner analyst has warned.
Speaking at the Gartner IT Security Summit in London on Wednesday, Ant Allan said that "passwords are no longer adequate, as threats against them increase."
Those emerging threats are intimately linked to emerging technology such as Wi-Fi and Web services. As the usage of these services grows, more cybercriminals wi... (more)
|
|
Priest To Quit As Freemasons' LeaderTHE head of Scotland's freemasons is to stand down from the post after only a year, it emerged yesterday.
Joe Morrow took up the job of Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Scotland last November, but instead of serving a normal five-year stint in the role, the 50-year-old will stand down next month due to "a change in personal circumstances and for health reasons".
Earlier in the month, a Sunday newspaper reported how the Labour councillor, advocate and Episcopalian... (more)
|
|
Speaker to detail Masonic mystery: What happened to William Morgan in Canandaigua in 1826?(September 12, 2005) — CANANDAIGUA — The mysterious disappearance of mob-linked union leader Jimmy Hoffa in 1975 continues to baffle authorities and inspire conspiracy theories.
But Hoffa's disappearance 30 years ago is a relatively recent event compared with the strange case of William Morgan, who vanished — like Hoffa, without a trace — after being bailed out of jail in Canandaigua by members of a local Masonic lodge 179 years ago today, Sept. 12, 1826.... (more)
|
|
Faith news* A fifth of Church of England clergy believe they can be priests and members of Masonic lodges, according to new research. However half of the clergy said they knew of colleagues who had found problems with freemasonry, the report in Freemasonry and the Ministry said.
|
|
It's funny how high prices stickQuestion: What do banks and gas stations have in common?
Answer: They both pass along increases in wholesale prices with great haste.
The Federal Reserve started raising interest rates in June 2004. That has increased banks' cost of borrowing, and they have been lightning-quick to push up credit card rates in response.
But when the subject rose of what they paid on deposits, it was as if the Fed had never made a move.
(Thank heavens for... (more)
|
|
Ashcroft defends Patriot ActBENTON HARBOR -- Former Attorney General John Ashcroft is well aware his name is nearly synonymous with the 2001 Patriot Act that gave the FBI and Justice Department broad powers.
As its chief enforcer and defender, Ashcroft has been a target of librarians and civil rights activists who say the Patriot Act brings Big Brother into the private lives of ordinary citizens by allowing investigators to detain terrorism suspects.
"I'm probably a poster boy for the ACLU (Am... (more)
|
|
Patriot Act's reach may be as much myth as reality: Some powers associated with law existed or were in motion previouslyPoet Amir Sulaiman was on a professional high after his taped performance aired across the country on HBO's Def Poetry Jam in February 2004.
He had performed a piece titled "Dangerous," a poem he describes as passionate and intense.
But just six days after his performance first aired, the 26-year-old African-American father of three had FBI agents waiting to question him at his mother-in-law's house in San Francisco.
"I'm not sure," he said about the ... (more)
|
|
Bush says he may need more power in disasters: He wants Congress to look into whether presidential authority should be expanded in times of catastrophes like KatrinaWASHINGTON — President Bush on Monday urged Congress to examine whether the White House needs stronger powers to deal with catastrophes like Hurricane Katrina.
Bush’s backing for the congressional inquiry raised the possibility that lawmakers might expand presidential authority to:
• Order mandatory civilian evacuations
• Dispatch U.S.-based armed forces for emergency search-and-rescue operations
• Grant wider... (more)
|
|
Mystery surrounds floodwall breachesOne of the central mysteries emerging in the Hurricane Katrina disaster is why concrete floodwalls in three canals breached during the storm, causing much of the catastrophic flooding, while earthen hurricane levees surrounding the city remained intact.
It probably will take months to investigate and make a conclusive determination about what happened, according to the Army Corps of Engineers. But two Louisiana State University scientists who have examined the breaches suggest tha... (more)
|
|
Security gridlock as New York prepares for UN World SummitNew York has gone into security gridlock with 170 world leaders descending on the city for this week's UN World Summit and general assembly which marks the 60th anniversary of the founding of the world body.
"This is a general assembly like no other," said New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, who is deploying 4,000 officers for what will be the city's largest security operation since last year's Republican National Convention.
The massive police contingent will c... (more)
|
|
UN investigating use of Shannon by CIA ‘torture plane’The United Nations is reportedly planning to investigate the use of Shannon Airport by the US military as part of the Bush administration's "war on terrorism".
Reports this morning said the Government's decision to allow the US to use the airport would be scrutinised as part of an inquiry into the alleged torture of suspected Islamic militants.
The inquiry centres on an aircraft allegedly used by the CIA to transport detainees to countries where they can be tortured... (more)
|
|
County in Shandong forcibly sterilizes at least 7,000 peopleAt least 7,000 people in eastern China were forcibly sterilized earlier this year by officials under pressure to limit the growth of the country's massive population, Time magazine reported in an edition published yesterday.
Quoting lawyers who spoke to local family-planning officials, the magazine said that between March and July, 7,000 people underwent forced abortions and sterilizations in Yinan County, Shandong Province.
"They told me they were doing this for my... (more)
|
|
San Francisco Gun Ban A Losing PropositionIf there's anything Americans have learned from the tragic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, it's that there are times when the government is simply unable to protect its citizens. The looting of nonessential items, robberies, carjackings, murders and rapes that overtook New Orleans as chaos gripped the city demonstrated what can happen when the government loses control.
Countless stories were told about unarmed citizens who were defenseless against the criminals who preyed upon the... (more)
|
|
| 
