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Environmentalism 101: Global warming/Climate Change – Is there any difference?

2010-02-18T11:28:00.001-05:00

Written By Asnycnow Editor Vicki Nikolaidis

The best concise definition I found on the web of ‘global warming’ describes it to be a noun, with the meaning “An increase in the average temperature of the earth’s atmosphere, especially a sustained increase sufficient to cause climatic change.” (http://www.answers.com)

First note that the two words “global warming” used together are considered anoun. This is important because from this info we understand that “global warming” is some ‘thing’. A ‘something’ that is probably a phenomenon indicating an increased temperature of the earth’s air. Not of our hometown or region or country but the “globe” or the sphere that is our planet earth.

Next notice the phrase “An increase in the average temperature” and think about what that might mean in general. When your local weather forecaster says the ‘average temperature of this month’s daily winter temperatures recorded at noon,” we can understand that every daily temperature of the month which was recorded at twelve o’clock noon

(1) Has been added together and the (2) sum is divided by the number of days in the month.

Let's take the month of December, having 31 days, 31 recorded temperatures have been added together, and their sum divided by 31 to come up with one number: the average.

The average temperature is not the mean average temperature. The mean average temperature refers to the temperature taken at noon on December 16^th. The mean average temperature is important but it is not the data point described in the global warming definition. The two numbers (average temp and mean average temp) may vary significantly so the difference between the two can be quite important when trying to understand atmospheric temperatures.

When we come to “climatic change” in the definition it is preceded by the word “cause” so we can expect that if there is a cause there is an effect. Viola!

The phenomena termed global warming is the average of temperatures recorded around the earth (in the atmosphere above both land and sea) which under the right circumstances will cause a shift in climate (climate change).

Neither global warming nor climate change is easy to understand. But don’t despair! Step by step we will move on to greenhouse effect, carbon dioxide, chaos theory, ice cores and other important ingredients of the many faceted phenomena of Global Warming. And we'll take a peek at the variety of environmental organizations working for positive change.

For example, 350.org.

The two gorgeous photographs are from the organization 350,org. http://www.350.org

A portion of their mission statement reads "350.org is an international campaign dedicated to building a movement to unite the world around solutions to the climate crisis--the solutions that justice demands. . . . Our focus is on the number 350--as in parts per million, the level scientists have identified as the safe upper limit for CO2 in our atmosphere. But 350 is more than a number--it's a symbol of where we need to head as a planet."

this Blog will be Updated Soon…..

2009-12-29T18:21:00.001-05:00

Starting in 2010, this blog will be updated.

Stay tuned for more updates

ALERT| ‘Ferris Bueller’ Director Dies Of Heart Attack

2009-08-06T17:10:00.001-04:00

John Hughes, prolific director of such culturally significant films such as "The Breakfast Club," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," "Planes," "Trainsand Automobiles" and "Home Alone" has died suddenly of a heart attack while taking a morning walk during a trip to Manhattan to visit family.

  ABC News reports that John Hughes, director of "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and producer of "Home Alone" and others, has died aged 59.

Opposition boycotts Ahmadinejad’s swearing-in

2009-08-05T20:22:00.001-04:00

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been sworn-in for a second term of office as Iranian president. But, former presidents Ali Akhbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Ali Khatami were among the opposition leaders who boycotted the ceremony in Teheran. However, most western embassies sent representatives.

In his address to the parliament in Tehran, Ahmadinejad said Iran must continue to resist oppressor nations. He also told Western leaders who had not congratulated him on his re-election that “no-one in Iran was waiting for them.”

Outside the parliament building, riot police were out in force to prevent any opposition protests.
The trial of about a hundred reformists who led demonstrations in the wake of the contested election is set to resume on Thursday.

Ahmadinejad now has two weeks to present a cabinet for parliament’s approval. While he has the formal endorsement of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the President may have difficulty getting his team through the divided parliament, where he faces attacks from both the ultra-conservative and reformist flanks.

William Jefferson, Ex-Congressman, Convicted in Bribery Case

2009-08-05T20:20:00.001-04:00

A federal jury in Alexandria, Va., on Wednesday convicted
former Representative William Jefferson, a Louisiana
Democrat, on 11 of 16 counts, including bribery in a case in
which agents found $90,000 in his freezer.

He was accused of accepting more than $400,000 in bribes and
seeking millions more in exchange for brokering business
deals in Africa. The jury deliberated five days before
returning the verdict.

Outrage Over 'Wrong-Way' Crash Revelations

2009-08-05T14:39:00.001-04:00

How could she? That's what families of the victims want to know Wednesday morning as they prepare to meet with the Westchester County District Attorney after toxicology tests showed Diane Schuler was drunk and high as she drove the wrong-way on the Taconic State Parkway, leading to a crash that killed herself, four small children and three men. Toxicology reports released Tuesday painted a disturbing and dark picture of 36-year-old Schuler, a woman once perceived as a devoted mother and victim of a terrible tragedy.

Clinton, 2 Freed Reporters Return Home

2009-08-05T14:25:00.001-04:00

Two U.S. journalists held for 5 months in North Korea returned to the U.S. Wednesday as a plane carrying former President Bill Clinton and them landed in California. Clinton held rare talks with reclusive leader Kim Jong Il, who pardoned the women sentenced to hard labor for entering the country illegally.

ALERT|Missile Strike Near Us Embassy

2009-08-03T20:52:00.000-04:00

Missiles strike near US embassy in Afghan capital Kabul. More soon…
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ALERT

2009-08-01T17:07:00.001-04:00

BULLETIN -- Reports: At least 2 people killed, 8 others injured after gunman opens fire at gay bar in Tel Aviv.

Saudi TV sex boast man arrested

2009-08-01T15:58:00.001-04:00

A Saudi Arabian man who went on an Arabic television talk show to boast about his sex life has been arrested.

The man, named as Mazen Abdul Jawad, prompted more than 200 complaints from Saudi viewers.

He was arrested for "publicising vice", police said, after he spoke about his experiences and displayed sex toys and a sex guide at his home in Jeddah.

Mr Abdul Jawad had publicly apologised, saying producers at the TV station had tricked him into some of his accounts.

During the show on Lebanon's LBC, the father-of-four told how he first had sex with a neighbour when he was 14.

He also described how he used the Bluetooth function on his mobile phone to pick up women in the kingdom.

A police spokesman in Jeddah said Mr Abdul Jawad's appearance had violated Saudi Arabia's Islamic sharia law code and was against Saudi customs.

He was detained at his apartment at the Red Sea port city before being fingerprinted and turned over to criminal investigators, according to media reports.

Passenger 'Acting Crazy' Forced LaGuardia Evac

2009-08-01T15:53:00.001-04:00

People were being allowed back inside the main terminal at LaGuardia Airport that was evacuated Saturday morning over fears of a possible bomb. While the Central Concourse has been re-opened, Terminal C was still considered a crime scene and was to remain closed for hours after the incident.

Authorities: Device Found At LaGuardia 'Harmless'

2009-08-01T12:57:00.001-04:00

Terminal C in LaGuardia Airport is considered a crime scene and will remain closed for hours Saturday. John Kelly, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, said the airport's central terminal building was evacuated this morning. A man was taken into custody and an NYPD bomb squad searched his bag. They found a device, but deemed it to be harmless. The man was considered to be emotionally disturbed.

LaGuardia Terminal Evacuated In NYC, 1 In Custody

2009-08-01T12:56:00.001-04:00

Authorities said a main terminal of LaGuardia Airport in New York City was evacuated and a police bomb squad arrested a man and searched his bag. John Kelly, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, said the airport's central terminal building was evacuated Saturday morning. He didn't know how many passengers were there at the time or what airlines are served at the building.

‘Fake co.uk Sites’ Trick Consumers

2009-07-31T21:41:00.001-04:00

Trading standards officers say that consumers are being tricked into buying fake goods on the internet by companies pretending to be based in the UK.

The websites are often based in China, but use "co.uk" as part of their domain name, giving shoppers a false sense of security, they say.

It is thought that there could be as many as 480,000 websites which carry "co.uk", but which are not UK based.

The sites sell a range of goods from trainers to hair straighteners.

Al-Qaeda supporters 'joined MI5'

2009-07-31T21:06:00.001-04:00

A senior Tory MP has asked the home secretary whether al-Qaeda sympathisers were mistakenly recruited by MI5.

Patrick Mercer, chairman of the Home Affairs counter-terror sub-committee, said he was told six recruits were ejected after worries about their past.

Two allegedly attended al-Qaeda training camps while the others had unexplained gaps in their CVs, Mr Mercer told the Daily Telegraph.

A Home Office spokeswoman declined to comment on the claims.

'Took advantage'

Mr Mercer said he had learned that MI5 had dismissed the six recruits some time between 2005 and 2007.

The MP said he feared that, in the aftermath of the bombings on London's transport network in July 2005, the security services had rushed to try and take on Muslim recruits, and that had potentially allowed al-Qaeda sympathisers to infiltrate the security service.

He has written to the Home Secretary Alan Johnson asking for further details.

Mr Mercer said the Commons Home Affairs committee may investigate the issue next month.

He told the newspaper that the government should have been prompted to expand the security services following the attacks on New York on 11 September 2001.

"In fact it took an attack on this country for such measures to be started," he added.

"But at this point it was an unseemly rush of which our enemies, not unsurprisingly, took advantage."

NBC O&O sites clean up layout, mess up header

2009-07-29T23:53:00.001-04:00

The NBC O&O stations have rolled out a redesign for their sites.

For the most part, the new design is a significant improvement over the old layout and takes a big step in cleaning up the clutter. Also gone is the annoying iTunes-style showcase area that always seemed to be a bit slow to load and had so many items crammed into it that it become impractical.

More commentary and a poll after the jump.

However, the new look uses, quite unexplainedly, a bizzare, geometric font for the header. Not only does the font seem completely out of place among the clean typography found elsewhere, it’s not a very well rendered typeface and seems like something that came from a free font site (we couldn’t identify the font using MyFont’s What the Font? tool).

That said, the new site has a Facebook-style status line directly under the logo that seems to be fed by a poll on an individual story. For example, this morning it read “New York is furious about letting kids drive trains.” It seems the feature is meant to reflect the overall feeling of the entire city.

It’s a nice human touch with a social networking flair, but it will be interesting to see how much opinion and attitude finds its way into the feature.

China Protests to Japan Over Uighur Tour

2009-07-29T23:44:00.001-04:00

China has protested over claims that nearly ten thousand people are missing after ethnic rioting earlier this month.

It has called in Japan’s ambassador in Beijing to complain about the Tokyo visit of exiled leader of the Uighur community Rebiya Kadeer.

Violence broke out between native Uighurs
and Han Chinese on July 5. Rebiya Kadeer is demanding an international team looks into the trouble and claims close to 10,000 people disappeared in one night in the city of Urumqi.

Beijing has accused Ms Kadeer, who now lives in the US, of inciting the vioelnce, an allegation she denies.

The trouble began after police tried to break up a protest against fatal attacks on Uighur factory workers in south China. Ethnic tension remains high in Xinjiang province after the violence.

Shining some light on sunbed risks

2009-07-29T23:40:00.001-04:00

Many of us want to look bronzed and healthy all year round, but the latest warnings should give pause for thought. Experts now believe that the risks of sunbeds may be as high as those of asbestos and smoking. The World Health Organisation has ranked sunbeds at Level Two risk since 1992, but has now raised that to Level One – a danger to human health.

“UV rays are radiation which penetrate the skin, and can cause lesions within the skin,” said cancer researcher Beatrice Secretan. “These lesions can cause the development of cancer.”

According to the research, exposure to artificial UV rays by people under the age of 30 raises the risk of melanoma, or skin cancer, by about 75 percent.
With UV rays being acknowledged as posing a risk, it is perhaps surprising that so many people still want to get brown no matter what.

“I can’t stop myself!” said one woman. “It is like sweets: you can tell people they are going to get fat, but they keep on eating. For me, it is not sweets, it is getting a tan.”

Sun-lovers defend artificial tanning by pointing out that the sun itself has been classed as a cause of cancer since 1992.

“The dangers of the sun are everywhere, on the beach, anywhere where we expose ourselves to the rays without taking precautions like suncreams,” said Dominique Baumier, from the French sunbed association. “Natural sunshine is far more harmful than the rays we find in sunbeds.”

For the time being there is no question of banning sunbeds. It is more important to find out about the risks, and to train people better in sunbed operation to warn their clients of possible dangers.

“Banning sunbeds outright would not work,” said
Georges Reuter, from the French association of dermatologists. “There are ways of getting around such a thing. It is more important to have proper information and training for sunbed operators, which is not always the case at the moment.”

Skin experts say ten sunbed sessions a year should be the maximum. But they prefer the use of bronzing lotions, in cream or shower form.
However, as always, the advice must be: “Everything in moderation!”

ETA aimed to kill with barracks bomb, says minister

2009-07-29T23:22:00.001-04:00

Seeing the devastation of the Burgos barracks bombing for himself, Spain’s Interior Minister said ETA undoubtedly intended to kill.

Alfredo Perez Rubalcaba stressed that the car bomb had been left to go off next to family quarters. He told reporters that 120 people had been sleeping in the barracks and 41 children could have died.

“We, Spanish democrats, know that when we are dealing with ETA, we are faced with a gang of murderers,” said Rubalcaba. “We have always known that. As we have always known that they are murderers and savages. From the beginning. But from today onwards we know that they are crazed murderers and savages, which does not make them stronger but which, nevertheless, makes them more dangerous.”

Dozens hurt in Spanish barracks bomb blast

2009-07-29T22:58:00.001-04:00

An amateur cameraman captured the moment that a powerful car bomb blamed on ETA exploded outside a paramilitary police force barracks in Spain.

More than 60 people were hurt, not only Civil Guards but also their partners and children.

The bomb, 200kg according to reports, miraculously caused only slight injuries, with glass flying from broken windows. And all those needing medical treatment have now been released from hospital.

There was no warning but for Spanish authorities there is no doubt. Armed Basque separatists ETA were behind the early-morning attack in the historic city of Burgos.

The Civil Guard is a favourite target of the group which is blamed for killing more than 800 people in a long-running campaign to carve out an independent Basque homeland.

ETA is seen as under pressure to show it can still strike despite its ranks being decimated by arrests.
The Burgos bombing comes just ahead of the 50th anniversary of ETA’s creation.

Indian queen Gayatri Devi dies

2009-07-29T22:01:00.001-04:00

One of the last queens of India, Gayatri Devi, once described as one of the most beautiful women in the world, has died at the age of 90.

She was hospitalised about 10 days ago with stomach and respiratory problems in Jaipur before dying on Wednesday.

Born in to a royal family, she became the third wife of Sawai Man Singh, the Maharajah of Jaipur, in 1939.

The fashion icon broke with tradition by winning election to parliament in 1962. She was re-elected twice.

Dad, 23, Leaves Baby Unattended In Hot Car

2009-07-29T21:56:00.001-04:00

(HARTFORD,CT |WPIX-TV) A Connecticut man was arrested Tuesday after leaving a baby alone in a car with the engine off and the windows rolled up for almost an hour.

Clayton Green, 23, was arrested after leaving the baby unattended in a parked car outside an apartment complex in Hartford, police said.

The air temperature was 88 degrees outside of the vehicle, when Hartford

Police arrived to the scene. Shortly afterwards the child was removed from the hot car and taken to the hospital.

Police took Green into custody when he returned to vehicle 30 minutes after the baby was removed. He was charged with risk of injury to a minor and reckless endangerment.

Police say the baby was taken to Connecticut Children's Medical Center where the child is listed in good condition.

Reports: North Korea seizes South Korean vessel

2009-07-29T21:53:00.001-04:00

SEOUL (BNO NEWS) -- A South Korean fishing vessel was towed into North Korea on Thursday morning after accidentally crossing the border, a defense official told the Yonhap news agency.

The incident took place around 6 a.m. local time in the East Sea, the official said. He said four people were on board the ship when it was taken by North Korean authorities.

YTN-TV broadcasted a similar report but had no additional information.

Further details were not immediately available.

Severe T-Storm Warning Issued For Most Of NYC

2009-07-29T19:57:00.001-04:00

The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for all of New York City except Staten Island, and Hudson and Bergen counties in New Jersey until 7:30 p.m. A Flash Flood Watch continues for portions of northeast New Jersey and southeast New York until 6 a.m. Thursday.

Flash Flood Warnings Issued In NJ

2009-07-29T19:56:00.001-04:00

Flash flood warnings are in effect for Hunterdon, Mercer, Sussex, and Warren County until 8:00 p.m. This alert signifies a dangerous situation where rapid flooding of small rivers, streams, creaks, or urban areas are imminent or already occurring.

Poll Shows Obama's Clout on Health Care Is Eroding

2009-07-29T19:55:00.001-04:00

President Obama's ability to shape the debate on health care
appears to be eroding as opponents aggressively portray the
effort as a government-takeover that could limit Americans'
ability to chose their doctor and course of treatment,
according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.

Americans are concerned that overhauling the health care
system would reduce the quality of their care, increase their
out-of-pocket health costs and tax bills and limit their
options in choosing doctors, treatment and tests, the poll
found.

Boston police officer used racial slur when referring to Harvard professor

2009-07-29T19:45:00.001-04:00

A Boston police officer has been put on administrative leave after using racist slurs when referring to Harvard professor Henry Gates, who has been at the center of a controversial arrest last week and even drew president Obama to comment on the event.

The officer is 36-year-old Justin Barrett. He was stripped of his gun and badge on Tuesday afternoon when Boston Police Commissioner Edward David learned that Barrett was the author of an e-mail which included racist remarks towards Henry Gates.

"Commissioner Edward Davis has placed Officer Justin Barrett on administrative leave pending outcome of a termination hearing," said Elaine Driscoll, who is a spokeswoman for the Boston Police Department. "Commissioner Davis was made aware that this officer admitted to being the author of correspondence which included racist remarks," she added. Driscoll did not know how many people received the e-mail or at what date it was sent.

According to BNO News sources with direct knowledge to the contents of the e-mail, Barrett called Gates, among other racists remarks, a "jungle monkey." The e-mail was described as a "mass e-mail."

Boston Mayor Tom Menino called Barrett a "cancer in the department" and said he should be fired immediately, his office said.

Barrett was assigned to Boston's Mattapan district and has been on the job for about two years and has no prior history. An investigation has been launched.

Severe T-Storm Warning Issued For N.J. Counties

2009-07-29T19:44:00.001-04:00

Source: CBS

The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Middlesex and Monmouth counties in New Jersey until 8:30 p.m. A flash flood watch continues for portions of northeast New Jersey and southeast New York until 6 a.m. Thursday.

FOX Pundit : Obama Is A Racist

2009-07-29T09:56:00.002-04:00

Fox News Channel commentator Glenn Beck said he believes President Barack Obama is a racist.

Beck made the statement during a guest appearance Tuesday on the "Fox & Friends" morning show. He said Obama has exposed himself as a person with "a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture."

Youtube Channel Asnycnow15 | 28 July

His remarks came during a discussion of Obama's reaction to the arrest of Harvard University scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. Gates is black and was arrested for disorderly conduct by a white policeman over a misunderstanding about a break-in at Gates' home.

An Obama spokesman, William Burton, said the White House had no comment on Beck.

Beck's statement was challenged on the air by Fox host Brian Kilmeade, who noted that most of the people who work for the nation's first black president are white.

"I'm not saying he doesn't like white people," Beck said. "He has a problem. This guy is, I believe, a racist."

Beck wondered, during the discussion, what other president would immediately jump on the police for their actions in the case. Obama said in a news conference that he believed the police acted stupidly in the case, but later backtracked from the statement and invited Gates and the police officer, Sgt. James Crowley, to the White House for a conciliatory meeting later this week.

Bill Shine, Fox News senior vice president of programming, told the TVNewswer Web site that Beck had "expressed a personal opinion which represented his own views, not those of the Fox News Channel. And as with all commentators in the cable news arena, he is given the freedom to express his opinions."

Racial controversies are hardly new to presidents. In 2005, entertainer Kanye West said during a telethon after Hurricane Katrina that President George W. Bush "doesn't care about black people."

Beck, also a radio host and best-selling author, was an immediate hit with Fox News Channel viewers, starting in January when he made the jump from HLN (formerly CNN Headline News).

Beck didn't speak about the racial comments on his own Tuesday Fox show

Microsoft, Yahoo Agree On Long-Sought Search Deal

2009-07-29T09:55:00.001-04:00

Microsoft has reached a deal with Yahoo for an Internet search partnership, ending years of back and forth negotiations. The agreement announced Wednesday gives Microsoft access to the Internet's second-largest search engine audience. It adds a potentially potent weapon to Microsoft's Internet arsenal as the software maker girds for an online assault against Google.

ALERT|Bush Administration Debated Using Military in Terrorism Arrests

2009-07-24T21:59:00.001-04:00

Top Bush administration officials in 2002 debated testing the
Constitution by sending American troops into the suburbs of
Buffalo to arrest a group of men suspected of plotting with
Al Qaeda, according to former administration officials.

Some of the advisers to President George W. Bush, including
Vice President Dick Cheney, argued that a president had the
power to use the military on domestic soil to sweep up the
terrorism suspects, who came to be known as the Lackawanna
Six, and declare them enemy combatants. Mr. Bush ultimately
decided against the proposal to use military force.

Jersey City Mayor 'Official 4' In Corruption Case

2009-07-24T21:03:00.001-04:00

Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy issued a statement acknowledging that he, too, is a target of the investigation that saw 44 people, including three other New Jersey mayors, arrested by federal agents in a decade-long corruption investigation. Healy said he was identified in official court documents as "Official 4," a public official also being targeted by feds.

E. Lynn Harris Died At Age 54

2009-07-24T15:40:00.001-04:00

E. Lynn Harris, a pioneer of gay black fiction and a literary entrepreneur who rose from self-publishing to best-selling status, has died, his publicist said Friday. He was 54.

Publicist Laura Gilmore said Harris died Thursday night after being stricken at the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills, and a cause of death had not been determined. She said Harris, who lived in Atlanta, fell ill on a train to Los Angeles a few days ago and blacked out for a few minutes, but seemed fine after that.

Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter said only that a man matching Harris' name and date of birth had died Thursday night at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, which was confirmed by hospital spokeswoman Simi Singer. Gilmore said an autopsy would be performed Monday or Tuesday.

An improbable and inspirational success story, Harris worked for a decade as an IBM executive before taking up writing, selling the novel "Invisible Life" from his car as he visited salons and beauty parlors around Atlanta. He had unprecedented success for an openly gay black author and his strength as a romance writer led some to call him the "male Terry McMillan."

He went on to mainstream success with works such as the novel "Love of My Own" and the memoir "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted."

His writing fell into several genres, including gay and lesbian fiction, African American fiction and urban fiction. But he found success in showing readers a new side of African American life: the secret world of professional, bisexual black men living as heterosexuals.

"He was a pioneering voice within the black LGBT community but also resonated with mainstream communities, regardless of race and sexual orientation," said Herndon Davis, a gay advocate and a diversity media consultant in Los Angeles. "Harris painted with eloquent prose and revealing accuracy the lives of African American men and the many complicated struggles they faced reconciling their sexuality and spirituality while rising above societal taboos within the black community."

Harris published 11 novels, 10 of which were on The New York Times best-seller list. There are over 4 million copies of his books in print, according to his publisher, Doubleday.

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"We at Doubleday are deeply shocked and saddened to learn of E. Lynn Harris' death at too young an age," said Doubleday spokeswoman Alison Rich, his longtime publicist. "His pioneering novels and powerful memoir about the black gay experience touched and inspired millions of lives, and he was a gifted storyteller whose books brought delight and encouragement to readers everywhere."

In an interview last year, Harris recalled the first time he realized he was poor, when as a young boy his family was invited to the housewarming of a well-to-do family in his hometown of Fayetteville, Ark. Fresh from an afternoon of playing outside, he tried desperately to tuck his bare, dusty feet underneath the sofa after another guest remarked on his appearance.

"I didn't grow up in the kind of environment that my characters grew up in, or the kind of environment that I live in now," he said. "It was one of the things that I always aspired to."

His 1994 debut, "Invisible Life," was a coming-of-age story that dealt with the then-taboo topic.

"If you were African American and you were gay, you kept your mouth shut and you went on and did what everybody else did," he said. "You had girlfriends, you lived a life that your parents had dreamed for you."

Harris was not living as an openly gay man when "Invisible Life" was published, and could not acknowledge the parallels between himself and the book.

"People would often ask, 'Is this book about you?' I didn't want to talk about that," he said. "I wasn't comfortable talking about it. I would say that this is a work of fiction."

Harris said that the courage readers got from the book empowered him to be honest about himself. He continued to tell stories dealing with similar issues, to tell black middle class readers about people they knew, but who were living secret lives.

For years, he was alone in exposing the "down low," but the phenomenon exploded into mainstream culture in 2004, a decade after "Invisible Life." That year, J.L. King's "On the Down Low: A Journey Into the Lives of 'Straight' Black Men Who Sleep With Men" hit bookstores and the author appeared on Oprah Winfrey's TV show.

His 10th novel, "Just Too Good to Be True," focused for the first time on a straight relationship, telling the story of a 21-year-old football star, his mother, and his cheerleader love interest. Harris taught writing classes at his alma mater, the University of Arkansas, and leaned on his students there to gather material for the book.

The last book Harris published, "Basketball Jones," focused on a hidden relationship between a successful business professional in New Orleans and an NBA star.

Janis F. Kearney met Harris when the two were among a handful of black journalism students at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. The two became fast friends and their relationship deepened as they both evolved into authors. Kearney, who now lives in Little Rock, Ark., recalled Harris' huge heart.

"I've seen him help so many people," Kearney said. "He was very open, very giving, very caring, someone you felt so fortunate to have in your life. He's just one of those people I'll never stop missing."

N Korea 'tests weapons on children'

2009-07-24T15:30:00.001-04:00

Analysts believe North Korea has one of the most aggressive biochemical weapons programmes

[By Steve Chao in Seoul, South Korea]

When Im Chun-yong made his daring escape from North Korea, with a handful of his special forces men, there were many reasons why the North Korean government was intent on stopping them.

They were, after all, part of Kim Jong-il's elite commandos - privy to a wealth of military secrets and insights into the workings of the reclusive regime.

In video

Interview: North Korea weapons threat

But among the accounts they carried with them is one of the most shocking yet to emerge – namely the use of humans, specifically mentally or physically handicapped children, to test North Korea's biological and chemical weapons.

"If you are born mentally or physically deficient, says Im, the government says your best contribution to society… is as a guinea pig for biological and chemical weapons testing."

Even after settling into the relative safety of South Korea, for 10 years Im held on to this secret, saying it was too horrific to recount.

But with Kim's health reportedly failing, and the country appearing increasingly unpredictable, Im felt it was time he spoke out.

Daughter given up

The former military captain says it was in the early 1990s, that he watched his then commander wrestle with giving up his 12-year-old daughter who was mentally ill.

The commander, he says, initially resisted, but after mounting pressure from his military superiors, he gave in.

Im watched as the girl was taken away. She was never seen again.

One of Im's own men later gave him an eyewitness account of human-testing.

Asked to guard a secret facility on an island off North Korea's west coast, Im says the soldier saw a number of people forced into a glass chamber.

"Poisonous gas was injected in," Im says. "He watched doctors time how long it took for them to die."

Other North Korean defectors have long alleged that the secretive nation has been using political prisoners as experimental test subjects.

Some have detailed how inmates were shipped from various concentration camps to so-called chemical "factories".

'Widespread practice'

But Im's is the first account of mentally-ill or physically challenged children being used.

Kim Sang-hun believes there are at least three to five experimental weapons sites

Security analysts believe Kim oversees one of the most aggressive and robust biochemical weapons programmes in the world.

A member of the special forces' Brigade No.19, Im says he was trained on how to use biochemical weapons against the "enemy" – including how to fire them from short-range "bazooka-style" weapons.

He says such training was normal practice for all elite units.

Today it is estimated the country has accumulated a stockpile of more than 5,000 tonnes of biochemical weaponry; from mustard gas, to nerve agents such as sarin, to anthrax and cholera.

The extent of the stockpile is a concern to Kim Sang-hun, a retired UN official who has spent years investigating the North's chemical and biological weapons programme.

He believes over the past 20 years, the programme has advanced at a startling pace, specifically because the country’s rulers approve and support the use of human test subjects.

[In Their Own Words]

"If you are born mentally or physically deficient, the government says your best contribution to society… is as a guinea pig for biological and chemical weapons testing"

[Im Chun-Yong, former North Korean commando]

"Human experimentation is a widespread practice," Kim says.

"I hoped I was wrong, but it is the reality and it is taking place in North Korea and it is taking place at a number of locations."

There are some who question claims that the North conducts human trials. But Kim says he has interviewed hundred of defectors who, more times than not, volunteer personal vivid accounts.

"The programme is now a commonly known fact in the North Korean public," he says.

As a former member of the elite special forces, Im agrees.

While the government may be secretive about a lot of things, he says "when it comes to human experimentation, most know it happens".

Investigating what he says are serious UN violations regarding the rights of children and prisoners, Kim Sang-hun has amassed a vast amount of evidence.

Compiled in folders at his home in Seoul are reams of testimonies and documents.

Some bear what appear to be official government stamps approving the transfer of prisoners from camps to chemical "factories".

He says he believes these are, in reality, experimental weapons sites.

He has pinpointed at least three to five labs that he believes are situated in different parts of the country, including one just a few kilometres north of the capital, Pyongyang.

Security analysts suspect there are as many as 20 such plants across the country.

Biochemical threat

As the world's attention focuses on the North's nuclear programme, Im is worried the international community will miss what he believes is the more imminent threat posed by the country's biochemical arsenal.

Defectors have told of prisoners being shipped to chemical 'factories'

Arms experts say at least 30 per cent of North Korea's missile and artillery systems are capable of delivering such weapons. With each successive test, they warn the North's accuracy improves, and so too its range.

The UN Security Council now says it believes three of the seven missiles tested by the North on July 4 were Scud-ER missiles, which are known to be more accurate and have a range of 1,000km.

Tokyo is roughly 1,160km from the base on North Korea's east coast from where the missiles were fired, while other parts of Japan are closer.

Im believes the government would not hesitate to use such arms, saying he has seen the "ruthlessness" of the country’s leaders.

During his escape from North Korea in December 1999, Im says he and his men battled their way out, chased by dozens of members of other commando units.

"I myself killed three men," he says. "Then after swimming across the half frozen Tumen river into China, we sold our guns, and left that life behind."

Im now devotes his time to gathering intelligence about the North's military capabilities.

Even a decade after his escape, the threat he still poses to the North Korean government means that he now lives under the constant protection of South Korea's National Intelligence Service.

Videos By Aljazeera English
101 East looks at the future of North Korea
A rare look at life inside North Korea
Hans Blix on North Korea's nuclear fallout
Double standards on nuclear weapons
South Korea's nuclear fears
China's troublesome ally
N Korea test sparks alarm
UN 'should expel N Korea'
N Korea's 'nuclear gamble'

In depth

N Korea 'tests series of missiles'
North Korea's nervous neighbours
N Korea's nuclear trump card
Timeline: N Korea's bomb
Timeline: Missile launches

Written By Steve Chao For Aljazeera English

This Article is Property of Aljazeera English

Protesters shot dead in Yemen

2009-07-24T15:20:00.001-04:00

Up to 12 people have been killed in clashes between government security forces and opposition groups in southern Yemen.

Witnesses said hundreds of security forces opened fire on about 7,000 protesters in the city of Zinjibar in Abyan province on Thursday in an effort to disperse them.

Yemen's north and south were separate countries until they united in 1990, only to dissolve into civil war four years later when the south tried unsuccessfully to secede.

Secessionist sentiment has since been on the rise in the south and regular demonstrations by former army members demanding political reforms have heightened tensions between the two sides.

A doctor at al-Razi government hospital in Zinjibar said ambulances rushed to the scene and brought back 10 dead civilians and at least 12 injured police.

Another doctor at Aden's May 28th hospital said he received eight critically injured civilians, two of whom later died.

Violence

Ali Dehmes, an opposition member in the south, said that government forces "fired live bullets" and "have committed a massacre against unarmed civilians".

But Ahmed al-Maysari, the governor of Abyan province, denied that security forces had fired on the protesters and said that only eight civilians were killed when the demonstrators started shooting.

The Yemeni government issued a statement expressing regret about "the killing, sabotaging, and hostilities perpetrated by outlawed" individuals in Abyan.

Witnesses said armed men from two cities to the north and east of Zinjibar clashed with security forces who prevented them from participating in Thursday's protest by cutting off roads heading to the provincial capital.

Some people participating the demonstration in Zinjibar called for a revolution in the south, while others complained about deteriorating services, including scarce water and frequent power outages.

One witness said that plainclothes security agents used batons to beat up protesters and drag them across the ground into waiting police trucks.

Soldiers killed

At least seven Yemeni soldiers were killed and several wounded in attacks launched by Shia rebels in northern Yemen over the past two days, a military source said on Friday.

"Clashes broke out after Huthi rebels attacked army bases in the Saada province, during which seven soldiers were killed, while a number of others were wounded or captured," the source told the AFP news agency on Friday.

Thousands of people have died since 2004 in clashes between government forces and rebels led by Abdel Malek al-Huthi.

They reject the current government and want the Zaidi clerical regime overthrown in a military coup in 1962 restored.

Hoboken Mayor Proclaims Innocence, Won't Step Down

2009-07-24T15:15:00.001-04:00

Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano III is proclaiming his innocence and says he will not step down from office despite being one of the 44 suspects arrested in a major federal corruption investigation on Thursday. "The charges that are leveled against me in a federal court are completely baseless, and I deny any wrongdoing in connection with the allegations that are contained in that complaint," he said Friday.

ALERT| Obama Says He Regrets His Language on Gates Arrest

2009-07-24T15:11:00.001-04:00

President Obama said Friday that he "could have calibrated"
his words more carefully in the racially-charged controversy
over the arrest of a Harvard professor, making a surprise
appearance at the daily White House briefing to try and cool
the tensions surrounding the case.

Mr. Obama said he had talked to the arresting officer and
hoped the case could become "a teachable moment" to be used
to improve relations between minorities and police officers.

Karzai 'to review foreign forces'

2009-07-24T14:54:00.001-04:00

Afghan president Hamid Karzai has said that he will review agreements with foreign forces operating in Afghanistan if he is re-elected.

He said he would make international forces sign an agreement governing how they operate, in an effort to limit civilian casualties.

President Karzai is seeking re-election in next month's presidential poll.

The Afghan government has long been concerned about the civilian death toll as foreign troops battle insurgents.

New lizard species found in India

2009-07-24T14:53:00.001-04:00

Scientists have discovered a new species of lizard in the lush Western Ghats mountain range in the Indian state of Maharashtra.

The small reptile is a form of gecko and was found by taxonomist Varad Giri in the Kolhapur district. It has been named Cnemasspis kolhapurensis.

Mr Giri and his co-workers published their findings in this month's edition of the Zootaxa journal.

It is the third new species of lizard recently discovered in the area.

NY Senate, Bloomberg Reach Deal On Mayoral Control

2009-07-24T13:26:00.001-04:00

State Senate Democrats say there's a deal to resolve how New York City schools are governed, reauthorizing Mayor Michael Bloomberg's authority over the school system, the Associated Press reports. Three Senate officials familiar with negotiations, including a Democratic senator, say the deal Bloomberg's camp helped negotiate will create a $1.7 million training center for parents to give them support and a method for participating in the school system.

Hoboken Mayor Proclaims Innocence, Won't Step Down

2009-07-24T12:27:00.001-04:00

Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano III is proclaiming his innocence and says he will not step down from office despite being one of the 44 suspects arrested in a major federal corruption investigation on Thursday. "The charges that are leveled against me in a federal court are completely baseless, and I deny any wrongdoing in connection with the allegations taht are contained in that complaint," he said Friday.

Judge Blocks Appointment Of Ravitch As Lt. Gov.

2009-07-21T21:07:00.001-04:00

A judge has issued a restraining order blocking Richard Ravitch from serving as New York Gov. David Paterson's lieutenant governor. State Supreme Court Justice William LaMarca in Nassau County issued his ruling late Tuesday afternoon. Paterson appointed Ravitch, a former head of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, earlier this month as a way of breaking a monthlong leadership deadlock in the state Senate.

Swine flu worsens; schools may close

2009-07-21T15:54:00.001-04:00

The latest swine flu figures show the virus increasing its march around the world, with the global number of deaths almost doubling in a fortnight. The World Health Organisation says more than 700 people have now died, up from 429 two weeks ago. But the WHO said it is still up to national health authorities to decide their own ways of slowing the spread of H1N1. That may include keeping schools closed when the new term starts in September.

The flu was branded a pandemic on June 11th, and is now the fastest-moving virus ever recorded, rendering pointless attempts to count every case.
Even so, more than 125,000 sufferers have been confirmed worldwide, although the true figure may be many times higher. Work continues on a vaccine, and it’s hoped supplies may be available by the autumn, with healthcare workers givene priority, so they can treat everyone else.

NYC Prosecutors Say Chase Employee Looted $110K

2009-07-21T15:53:00.001-04:00

Law enforcement officials say a Chase bank financial planner looted $110,000 from a Manhattan client's private account to pay off personal bills. Twenty-five-year-old Robin Katz has been charged with grand larceny and identity theft. Her attorney did not return a call seeking comment on Tuesday. Katz has been accused of creating a second ATM card for a customer's account, then slowly siphoning off money from June 2008 through June 2009, when the client discovered the missing funds.

Jersey City Police Officer Taken Off Life Support

2009-07-21T13:21:00.001-04:00

[By WCBS-TV]

A Jersey City police officer wounded while storming an apartment in an intense gun battle with two armed suspects has died, CBS 2 HD has learned. Mayor Jerramiah Healy says Officer Marc DiNardo, who had been on life support, was pronounced dead around 9:35 a.m. Tuesday. The 37-year-old was shot in the face with a shotgun blast as he and other officers tried to storm an apartment during a shootout with two robbery suspects July 16.

ALERT| Jersey City Cop's 'Demise Is Imminent'

2009-07-20T16:10:00.001-04:00

[By WCBS-TV]

The Jersey City police officer who was shot in the face during a shootout with two armed suspects Thursday morning has succumbed to his wounds, CBS 2 has learned. Officials announced during a Monday afternoon news conference that Ofc. Marc DiNardo will not survive after spending the last four days in critical condition at the Jersey City Medical Center.

ALERT|1 Woman Dead In Newark Quadruple Shooting

2009-07-20T16:08:00.001-04:00

[By WCBS-TV New York]

Police say a quadruple shooting in Newark has left one woman dead and another in grave condition. Two women and two men were shot shortly after 1:30 Monday afternoon in the 400 block of Elizabeth Avenue. The condition of the male victims is unknown.

Local NYC Weather| July 20th

2009-07-20T10:08:00.002-04:00

> NYC Weather Key :

AM: Morning	H: Highs
PM: Afternoon,Evening	L : Lows

>7 Day Forecast | Week Of July 20th

7/20	7/21	7/22	7/23	7/24	7/25	7/26
Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun

80°F	72°F	82°F	84°F	82°F	86°F	85°F	H
66°F	65°F	70°F	70°F	70°F	70°F	72°F	L

>NYC Weather Agenda | July 20th-24th

7/20

Today:

Partly sunny. Highs around 80. Northeast winds around 5 mph...becoming southeast with gusts up to 20 mph this afternoon.

Tonight:

Mostly cloudy with a 50 percent chance of rain. Patchy fog after midnight. Lows in the mid 60s. Southeast winds around 10 mph...becoming northeast after midnight.

7/21

AM:

A chance of thunderstorms. Rain. Patchy fog. Rain may be heavy at times. Highs in the mid 70s. East winds 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph. Chance of rain 80 percent.

PM:

Cloudy. Rain likely with a chance of thunderstorms in the evening...then a chance of showers after midnight. Patchy fog. Rain may be heavy at times in the evening. Lows in the upper 60s. Southeast winds around 10 mph with gusts up to 20 mph... Becoming south after midnight. Chance of rain 70 percent.

7/22

AM:

Mostly cloudy in the morning...then becoming mostly sunny. Patchy fog in the morning. A slight chance of showers in the morning...then a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the lower 80s. South winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 20 percent.

PM:

Mostly cloudy. Lows in the upper 60s.

7/23

AM:

Partly sunny. A chance of showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 80s. Chance of rain 30 percent.

PM:

Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the upper 60s. Chance of rain 40 percent.

7/24

AM:

Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the lower 80s. Chance of rain 40 percent.

PM:

Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the upper 60s. Chance of rain 30 percent.

7/25

AM:

Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 80s. Chance of rain 40 percent.

PM:

Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows around 70. Chance of rain 40 percent.

7/26

AM:

Mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 80s. Chance of rain 40 percent.

Weather Information Compiled At 10:07 Am On July 20th,2009 And is Subject to Change throughout the Day

The Information Was provided By Weatherbug And New York City Station WABC-TV

© MMIX Asnycnow15 News |English

Police Search For Driver In Fatal NYC Hit-And-Run

2009-07-20T09:28:00.001-04:00

[By WCBS-TV CBS 2 New York, NY]

A woman struck in a hit-and-run accident Monday morning on Manhattan's Amsterdam Avenue has died, CBS 2 HD has learned. Police are searching for the driver of a gray or silver SUV, described by a witness at the sight of the incident. Police say the victim was struck around 3:15 a.m. Monday morning on the south-bound side of Amsterdam Avenue, near 145th Street.

More At http://wcbstv.com

ALERT| CBS Legend Walter Cronkite Dies At 92

2009-07-17T21:05:00.001-04:00

Walter Cronkite, the iconic broadcast journalist who was dubbed the "most trusted man in America" during his time as the face of "The CBS Evening News," has passed away. He was 92. Cronkite anchored the CBS News flagship broadcast from 1962 to 1981, signing off each broadcast with his trademark, "And that's the way it is..."

ALERT|4 Officers Shot, 2 Suspects Dead In Shootout

2009-07-16T09:47:00.001-04:00

A city official says an early-morning shootout has left one police officer in critical condition and three others wounded in Jersey City. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because she was not authoritied to release the information. The official says two suspects, who initially fired upon officers while having a dispute, were killed.

Tupolev flight recorders found

2009-07-16T09:19:00.001-04:00

Salvage teams at the site of Iran’s worst plane crash in six years have recovered the Caspian Airlines Tupolev TU 154’s two flight recorders. But the force of the impact and the subsequent fireball from a near-full load of fuel badly-damaged the ‘black boxes’, which had spewed out their recording tape. A third flight recorder is still missing. Recovering any vital data as to the causes of the crash could prove difficult.

Eye witnesses say the plane’s tail was on fire before it went down, and the last messages from the cockpit were that the plane had suffered a technical failure and the pilot was attempting a crash landing.

This is the third Russian-made TU 154 to crash in Iran since 2002. The Iranians have been under sanctions for nearly 30 years from the USA, stopping purchase of Boeings, spare parts, or any other aircraft using American engines.

ALERT|Hepatits C Scare Rocks Westchester Via Colorado

2009-07-15T20:19:00.001-04:00

A major health scare in Colorado has created shockwaves here in New York. Surgical technician Kristen Parker was arrested for allegedly swapping needles tainted with hepatitis C for ones filled with a painkiller at two Colorado hospitals. She told police before moving to Colorado she worked at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco between Oct. 8, 2007 and Feb. 28, 2008, and may have engaged in similar conduct while employed at Northern Westchester, although it is not known whether she was infected with hepatitis C at that time.

ALERT|Teen Arrested In May Starbucks Bombing

2009-07-15T12:14:00.001-04:00

Police have arrested a teenager for the bombing of an Upper East Side Starbucks in May, a blast that shattered windows and left employees and residents shaken. The suspect's identity has not yet been released. The May 25 explosion, which shattered multiple windows at the coffee shop, was caused by a makeshift device constructed out of a small plastic bottle and low-explosive type of powder.

WHO warns of H1N1 vaccine delay

2009-07-15T10:31:00.001-04:00

The WHO has said it could be the end of the year before a vaccine for the H1N1 influenza is properly licensed.

However, countries are being allowed to use emergency provisions to get the medication out faster if they decide the need is there.

Experts say the vaccine will be marketable in the next couple of months, but will need to undergo tests.

“The regulatory authority will certainly want to have a better handle on safety in the clinical trials, the dosing in clinical trials, and these clinical trials will take some time.” said aWHO vaccine expert in Geneva.

Meanwhile, more than 400 schools will be closed for five days in the Thai capital Bangkok, to allow for thorough disinfection.

There have been more than 4000 reported cases of H1N1 in the country, and 24 confirmed deaths.

The Thai government has also placed an order for two million doses of a vaccine, with delivery expected in December.

Israeli soldiers: ‘Shoot first, question later’

2009-07-15T10:30:00.001-04:00

The Israeli military has rejected outright claims that the assault on Gaza last winter was conducted on a ‘shoot first, ask questions later’ basis.

Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and UN agencies said the destruction of Gaza and its human cost was unjustified. And some Israeli soldiers, from a group called Breaking the Silence, say they were told to shoot first and to worry about separating fighters and civilians afterwards.

“At any obstacle, any problem, we opened fire and didn’t ask questions, said a soldier known as Sergeant Amir. “Even if it was firing in the dark, firing at unknown targets, firing at things we couldn’t see, there was no problem.”

The Israeli military rejected the claims as unsubstantiated, and said they were based on hearsay.

“Yet another human rights organisation is presenting to Israel and the world a report based on anonymous and general testimony, without fully investigating the details or credibility,” said Israeli Defence Force spokesman Avital Leibovitch.

Israel’s armed forces are banned from speaking to the media. Even so, the report from Breaking the Silence includes testimony from 30 soldiers who fought in Gaza and who are said to be deeply distressed at the morality of the operation.

US Navy arrives in Georgia for exercises

2009-07-15T10:29:00.003-04:00

The American guided missile destroyer USS Stout has dropped anchor off the Georgian Black Sea port of Batumi to take part naval training exercises with Georgian coastguards and Turkish ships.

It is being seen as a show of solidarity with the ex-Soviet state after its short war with Russia last year.

The exercises begin today, which is also when the final UN ceasefire observers leave the country.

For 16 years they have patrolled the border with Abkazia, a region that broke away from Georgia in 1993, and whose independence, along with South Ossetia’s Russia recognised after the 5-day war.

On Tuesday the Russian president visited South Ossetia for the first time since then. Dmitry Medvedev hinted that if Georgia tried to use force in the region again so would Moscow, adding “I hope this lesson will be deeply engrained in the memory of those trying to reshape the currrent order”.

Second night of clashes in N.Ireland

2009-07-15T10:29:00.001-04:00

Northern Ireland has been hit by a second night of violence in Belfast and other towns. The first clashes, on Monday, were sparked by the annual Orange Order marches, which commemorate the 17th century victory of Protestant forces over Catholics. But police said the continuing unrest appeared to be stage-managed, with rioters bussed-in to attack officers.

Northern Ireland has been relatively peaceful since a deal in 1998 ended years of the IRA’s violent campaign against British rule. But Republican splinter groups are blamed for killing two British soldiers and a policeman in March and other isolated attacks. Sinn Fein said dissident Republican criminal gangs had orchestrated the latest trouble.

Swedish EU presidency targets finance and climate

2009-07-15T10:21:00.003-04:00

The Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt has set out Sweden’s plans for the next six months as holder of the rotating presidency of the EU. Addressing the first session of the new Parliament in Strasbourg Reinfeldt put the financial crisis and climate change at the top the list of priorities. He said they can, and must, be tackled together.

“More than half of the measures which are needed to avoid exceeding the two-degree target can be achieved and adopted on the basis of technology we already have at our disposal,” Reinfeldt said. “Above and beyond that, we are seeing many positive spin-off effects when we combat climate-change which stimulate measures by themselves. When we consume less energy we save money and we improve public finances at the same time as making more resources available to households.”

Reinfeldt said Sweden’s presidency comes during ‘an era of change.’ He described the Stockholm Programme, intended to beef up justice and security in the EU, but at the same time protect the rights of individual citizens. And he stressed the need for the European Union to become a stronger voice on the global stage.

On Asnycnow15’s Radio Show Today

2009-07-15T10:21:00.001-04:00

‘Live at One’ Today, July 15th 1:00 PM Eastern Time on Asnycnow15’s Blogtalkradio Show, Call-in Live (347) 857-3796

On Today’s Blogtalkradio Show :

A report by homeless advocates says one reason the Bloomberg administration has been unable to reduce homelessness is because its rental subsidies are not working. WNYC's Cindy Rodriguez reports.
WNYC Aquires Classical Station in Three-Way Deal.
No Survivors In Iranian plane Crash
10 Years of Spongebob Squarepants
Second night of Clashes in Northern Ireland
Swedish EU Presidency targets finance And Climate

All That Plus The National Weather, The Tech Report And A Lot More on Today’s ‘Live At One’

Call in Live (347) 857-3796

Listen Live At http://blogtalkradio.com/Asnycnow15

No survivors in Iranian plane crash

2009-07-15T08:52:00.001-04:00

An Iranian passenger aircraft has crashed killing everyone on board. The plane, a Tupolev operating between Tehran and the Armenian capital Yerevan, is believed to have been carrying 168 passengers and crew. It came down in northwestern Iran and local fire brigade officials were unable to find anyone alive at the crash site. According to the chief of police in the province of Qazvin the plane has been completely destroyed and is scattered in pieces in the surrounding countryside.

Iran has a large Armenian community, and a representative from the airline, Caspian Airlines says most of the passengers on board were Armenian.

A local official said the plane had reported technical problems and was attempting an emergency landing when it caught fire in mid-air.

In the last decade Iran has suffered a number of plane crashes as both its civil and military fleets struggle to maintain, upgrade, and renew planes faced with international sanctions.

In the most recent of those crashes a Boeing 737 belonging to a private Kyrgyz company Itek-Air, chartered by an Iranian company and bound for Iran, crashed at Bishkek airport, killing around 70 people, including members of a local teenage basketball team.

WNYC Acquires WQXR, Plans to Keep Classical

2009-07-15T08:37:00.001-04:00

Major changes are coming to New Yorkers' radio dials. In a three-party deal announced July 14th, the city's only full-time classical radio station -- WQXR -- will be acquired by WNYC, and the New York Times will get out of the radio business.

The deal is between WNYC, The Times and Univision Radio, the Radio Division of Spanish-language broadcaster Univision, and executives from the three companies say the transaction will preserve classical music on New York airwaves, and better serve the area's Spanish-speaking community.

When all is said and done -- pending FCC approval which is expected in the fall -- WQXR will move to 105.9 and be run by WNYC as a classical station. Univision's Spanish-language music station WCAA-FM ’'La Kalle’ will move from 105.9 to 96.3 FM. Univision will pay the Times 33.5 million dollars, and WNYC will pay Univision 11.5 million.

WNYC intends to continue two of WQXR’s most listened-to live programs – Saturday Afternoon at the Opera and The Philharmonic This Week – on WQXR.

WQXR will become the third station operated in New York by WNYC Radio.

WNYC Operates WNYC-AM 820 And WNYC-FM 93.9 FM

On The Move: Madoff Held In Ga. En Route To N.C.

2009-07-14T09:30:00.001-04:00

By WCBS-TV CBS 2 New York

Disgraced financier Bernard Madoff was being held in a federal prison in Atlanta Tuesday after his transfer from a New York lockup. It's not clear how long he'll be there, but the Atlanta lockup isn't Madoff's final destination, according to a law enforcement official on Monday. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to the Associated Press because the person wasn't authorized to discuss prisoner transfers, said Madoff was headed to a federal prison in Butner, N.C., to begin serving his 150-year sentence. But first for Madoff: Atlanta.

BBC’s 10 Executives Lose Their Bonuses: BBC Trust

2009-07-14T09:22:00.001-04:00

Bonuses for the 10 most senior BBC executives are to be suspended indefinitely, the chairman of the BBC Trust has announced.

Sir Michael Lyons said their pay was still regarded as "generous" despite a 7% fall, and a review was under way.

As the BBC's annual report was unveiled, Sir Michael also responded to criticism from culture secretary Ben Bradshaw about sharing the licence fee.

Sir Michael maintained plans were "a threat to the independence of the BBC".

'Taliban die' in Pakistan clashes

2009-07-14T09:21:00.001-04:00

At least 23 militants have been killed in fighting between pro-government tribesmen and Taliban insurgents in north-west Pakistan, officials say.

The clashes took place in Ambar village in the lawless Mohmand tribal region, bordering Afghanistan's Kunar province.

Mohmand in North-West Frontier Province is said to be a hub for Taliban.

In the neighbouring Khyber tribal area, militants attacked a tanker carrying fuel for Nato forces in Afghanistan. Two people died in the attack.

Canada to Revise Visa Requirements

2009-07-14T09:20:00.001-04:00

Canada has imposed visa requirements on travellers from Mexico and the Czech Republic after a big jump in refugee claims from these two countries.

Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said a significant number of such claims were rejected or abandoned, raising doubts about their legitimacy.

Since 2007, some 3,000 Czech nationals have requested asylum, while 9,400 Mexicans applied last year.

The Czech government says the move is wrong and is recalling its ambassador.

Throgs Neck Bridge Delays

2009-07-14T09:17:00.001-04:00

Throgs Neck Bridge:
Two Lanes Open Entering Bronx-bound, No Trucks;
Cross Island Parkway Bronx-bound Ramp Closed

Two Bronx-bound lanes leading onto the Throgs Neck Bridge are currently open to cars only as a result of a construction fire incident on 7/10/09. One Bronx-bound lane remains closed leading onto the bridge. In addition, the Bronx-bound Cross Island Parkway ramp has been closed for safety reasons to avoid a hazardous merge around the closed lane. Trucks are not allowed on the Bronx-bound lanes at this time and are being diverted to the RFK. Queens-bound lanes are all open; there are no new restrictions on trucks traveling Queens-bound.

ALERT| Q, R Service Delays (NYCTA)

2009-07-14T09:16:00.001-04:00

Due to mechanical problems at the DeKalb Avenue Station, Coney Island-bound trains are running on the line from the Canal Street Station to the DeKalb Avenue Station.

In addition, due to ongoing signal problems at the Myrtle Avenue-Wyckoff Avenue Station, please expect delays in service on 8th Avenue-bound trains.

Please expect delays in service on and trains at this time.

ALERT | Goldman Sachs Earns $3.44 Billion in Quarter

2009-07-14T08:46:00.001-04:00

Goldman Sachs on Tuesday said it earned $3.44 billion in the second quarter, a much higher-than-expected figure that underscores how quickly the Wall Street firm has bounced back from last fall's financial crisis.

On Asnycnow15’s Radio Show Today

2009-07-14T08:41:00.001-04:00

On Blogtalkradio today At 6PM, on ‘Asnycnow15 Brief’ All the International Stories, Plus YouTube’s Changes That Were Scheduled for the 15th July Were Pushed Backed For Another 2 Weeks But The Damage is Done.

Should YouTube Drop This Idea And What Would Be Your Ideas For Youtube?

Call Us Live At 6pm at (347) 857-3796

and Listen Live At http://blogtalkradio.com/Asnycnow15

Afghan helicopter crash kills six

2009-07-14T08:31:00.001-04:00

At least six people have been killed in a helicopter crash in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, Nato says.

The passengers were all civilians on board a private aircraft, a spokesman for Nato-led forces said. It is not clear what caused the incident.

The helicopter crashed near Sangin military base in Helmand. The district governor, quoting locals, told the BBC it had been shot down by insurgents.

Meanwhile, an Italian soldier has been killed in western Afghanistan.

Heavy fighting rocks Mogadishu

2009-07-12T21:21:00.001-04:00

Clashes between Islamist insurgents and government forces in the Somali capital Mogadishu have killed at least forty people.

African Union peacekeepers are said to have directly intervened to help beleagured Somali troops for the first time.

The 4,300 strong AU force generally tries to avoid being drawn into battles with the insurgents. But it’s believed the peacekeepers responded when their positions came under threat.

Since Ethiopian troops ousted an Islamist regime in Somalia in late 2006, at least 18,000 people have died in violence.

Hundreds of thousands more have had to flee from their homes.

The Somali transition government is begging for more help, saying more money and weapons are needed to turn the tide against the rebels.

But, as is often the case, civilians are bearing the brunt of the latest fighting.

Swiss hostage freed in Sahara

2009-07-12T20:28:00.001-04:00

A Swiss man kidnapped by al Qaeda’s North African wing has been freed. Werner Greiner was captured in the Sahara in late January. Three other Westerners were with him: two women were later freed, but a Briton, Edwin Dyer, was murdered in May. The four were picked up near the town of Gao, in northeastern Mali, near the border with Niger.
They had been attending a music festival. Greiner is said to be tired, but well. Negotiations to free him had been going on since the killing of Dyer, but were hampered by clashes between Malian security forces and Islamist rebels.

Defiant England cling on for draw

2009-07-12T20:24:00.001-04:00

Paul Collingwood hit a valiant 74 and England's last-wicket pair defied Australia for 40 minutes to clinch a draw in the first Ashes Test.

England, 20-2 overnight, lost three further wickets inside 90 minutes but somehow clung on in the final stages.

Collingwood's innings lasted 245 balls - five hours and 43 minutes in all.

Then, amid scenes of high tension, with every dot ball roared by a capacity crowd, James Anderson and Monty Panesar kept Australia's spinners at bay.

Lithuania’s “Iron Lady” sworn in as president

2009-07-12T20:23:00.001-04:00

At an historic ceremony in parliament, Lithuania’s so-called “Iron Lady” has been sworn into office as the Baltic state’s first female president. Dalia Grybauskaite takes over from veteran Valdas Adamkus, who at 82 is retiring after serving two five year terms.

His successor’s straight-talking style and conservative reformist stance are behind comparisons with Britain’s former leader Margaret Thatcher. An ex-finance minister, Grybauskaite has also spent time in Brussels. Her efforts in helping reform the EU’s budget earned her the title European Commissioner of the Year in 2005.

She will be hoping to use her economics experience to help turn things round in Lithuania which has been hit hard by the global downturn. After rapid growth following EU entry in 2004, the country’s economy is expected to shrink by more than 10 percent this year. Lithuania’s new leader certainly has the confidence of her fellow citizens, having won a landslide victory in May’s elections.

Cheney 'ordered CIA to hide plan'

2009-07-12T20:01:00.003-04:00

The head of the CIA has accused former US Vice-President Dick Cheney of concealing an intelligence programme from Congress, a top US senator says.

The existence of the programme, set up after 9/11, was hidden for eight years and even now its nature is not known.

Democrat Senator Dianne Feinstein confirmed CIA chief Leon Panetta told Congressional committees he had abandoned the project on hearing of it.

He said that Mr Cheney was behind the secrecy, Sen Feinstein said.

BNP 'does not want all-white UK'

2009-07-12T20:01:00.001-04:00

British National Party leader Nick Griffin has said he no longer wants to see an all-white United Kingdom.

Mr Griffin, who is due to take up his seat as an MEP for the North West, said the idea of a UK without ethnic minorities was "simply not do-able".

Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, Mr Griffin said: "Nobody out there wants it or would pay for it."

He said claims that he was a fascist were "smears" but said the European Union was "very close to fascism".

Greek police raid illegal immigrant camp

2009-07-12T19:56:00.001-04:00

Hundreds of illegal immigrants have been forced from their camp in the Greek port city of Patras.
Police bulldozers and around 80 officers took part in the operation. Those living here were mostly Afghans. But the squalid conditions of the camp prompted complaints from local residents.

Those detained have been moved to hotels in the area, the children to a special centre in the north of Greece. It is not clear if they will be deported.

“This has been a successful and effective, even if late, demolition,” said Patras police chief Thanassis Davlouros. “All legal procedures and measures concerning the future of these people have been taken.”

Greece has often been criticised by international organisations and rights groups for the conditions of its dentention centres. But the conservative government said this month it would get tougher on illegal immigration.

Those who arrive here are mainly from Asia and use the Petras port to move on to other European countries. The Greek Prime Minister will meet with his Italian and Spanish counterparts next week to discuss the problem.

Police say nobody was injured during the operation, although a fire did break out. Two immigrants were arrested for arson.

Cheney Is Linked to C.I.A. Concealment of Terror Program

2009-07-11T22:20:00.004-04:00

(  By New York Times, Asnycnow15)

 The Central Intelligence Agency withheld information about a

secret counterterrorism program from Congress for eight years
on direct orders from former Vice President Dick Cheney, the
agency's director, Leon E. Panetta, has told the Senate and
House intelligence committees, two people with direct
knowledge of the matter said Saturday.

The report that Mr. Cheney was behind the decision to conceal
the still-unidentified program from Congress deepened the
mystery surrounding it, suggesting that the Bush
administration had put a high priority on the program and its
secrecy.

Mr. Panetta, who ended the program when he first learned of
its existence from subordinates on June 23, briefed the two
intelligence committees about it in separate closed sessions
the next day.

Tags ; CIA Cheney Panetta

Afghan strategy 'right', PM says

2009-07-11T22:12:00.001-04:00

Gordon Brown has defended the government's Afghanistan strategy, saying it is the right one despite a "dangerous battle" ahead.

By BBC News |UK

The prime minister said it was aimed at preventing terrorism in the UK. Fifteen British soldiers have died in 10 days.

Two men killed on Thursday have been named. The first was Rifleman Daniel Hume, 22, of 4th Battalion The Rifles.

The second was Private John Brackpool, 27, Prince of Wales' Company, 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.

Pakistan to try Mumbai suspects

2009-07-11T22:11:00.001-04:00

Pakistan says the trial of five men suspected of involvement in the attack on the Taj Hotel in Mumbai last November is likely to start next week.

Interior Minister Rehman Malik said investigations were complete for these suspects and named another 12 men still wanted in connection with the case.

The charges show Pakistan is serious in pursuing suspects in the case despite Indian claims to the contrary, he said.

More than 170 people died in the attacks, including nine gunmen.

© BBC MMIX

Obama: Africa must accept responsibility

2009-07-11T22:09:00.001-04:00

President Obama has wound up his whirlwind visit to Ghana, with a high-profile trip to a former slave trading post. Thousands of people flocked to Cape Coast to see him, but few were able to get close.

The President has roots in Kenya, while his wife Michelle’s ancestors were shipped to America as slaves. The tour of Cape Coast will have been deeply emotional for them, and he said his family had experienced the triumphs and tragedies of Africa’s history.

Earlier, he addressed parliament, warning Africa to take more responsibility for its future. The President congratulated Ghana as a model of democracy in Africa, but said every nation on the continent must accept its obligations.

“History is on the move,” the President said. “But these things can only be done if all of you take responsibility for your future. And it will not be easy, it will take time and effort. There will be suffering and setbacks, but I can promise you this, America will be with you every step of the way, as a partner, as a friend.”

It was Obama’s first trip to sub-Saharan Africa as President, and he said Ghana is an example of what can be achieved. Last week’s G8 summit promised to support development, but Obama said real change must begin with Africans themselves.

Short but sweet: Obama’s historic trip to Ghana

2009-07-11T13:58:00.001-04:00

On his first trip to sub-Saharan Africa since entering the White House, President Obama has been formally welcomed to Ghana. Amid pomp and ceremony, the United States’ first African American leader was received by his Ghanaian counterpart John Atta Mills. After inspecting a military guard, Obama was to address parliament in a message promoting democracy on the continent.

Obama’s father came from Kenya. But, with a strong democratic track record, Ghana was chosen for the visit because it symbolises an Africa different to the old images of war, misery and corruption.

Another highlight of Obama’s trip to the West African nation will be his visit to a fort used in the transatlantic slave trade.

His wife Michelle, who flew in with the president and their daughters yesterday, is herself descended from Africans shipped to the US as slaves.

The enthusiasiam of their airport welcome, with traditional drumming and dancing, is reflected throughout Ghana. The president’s stay may be brief – barely 24 hours – but Obama-mania is all around.

Source: Missing Manhattan Mother Presumed Dead

2009-07-09T10:55:00.001-04:00

Police are questioning a person of interest in the case of a Manhattan mother of three who went missing Tuesday, and they're now treating the case as a homicide, sources tell WCBSTV.com. Eridania Rodriguez, 46, of 107 Ellwood Street, was last seen around 7 p.m. Tuesday at an office building on Rector Street where she works as a custodian. Sources say that police are now focusing their investigation on the office building. It's not clear who is currently being questioned.

Karadzic immunity claim rejected

2009-07-08T08:04:00.001-04:00

The Hague tribunal has rejected the argument by former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic that he should not be prosecuted because of an immunity deal.

Mr Karadzic said the former US peace envoy Richard Holbrooke had promised him immunity from prosecution if he relinquished power.

Mr Holbrooke has repeatedly denied there was any such deal.

The court said even if there was, it did not have legal standing, and that Mr Karadzic's trial should continue.

New layout for YouTube to be launched next week

2009-07-08T07:57:00.001-04:00

By Getting Updated Blog[marketing.getupdated.co.uk]

In spite of the numerous requests from YouTube users to keep the previous layout, the company plans to transfer all its members to a remodel of its channel pages next week which has been in testing for many months now. Google, who is the owner of the video sharing website, thinks that the new design will give both YouTube members and visitors a better user experience.

The launch of the new layout for the video sharing site comes with the revelation of the number of videos online that are being viewed in the UK by comScore’s Video Metrix service. The figure states the number is up by 47 percent as compared to the figure last year and is quickly reaching 5 billion.

Google emerged victorious out of the increased online viewing habits as YouTube’s display advertising reached about 18 million people in that particular month. 99 % of all the videos viewed on Google are from YouTube. The video sharing site is also first when it comes to multimedia display advertising reach. In April it accounted for 18.5 million viewers who viewed 621 million display ads in total.

The news of the switch over to the newly designed channel pages on the 15th July has resulted in YouTube members leaving 316 pages with thousands of comments, the majority of which are negative.

Google Plans to Introduce a PC Operating System

2009-07-08T07:41:00.001-04:00

 In a direct challenge to Microsoft, Google is expected to
announce on Wednesday that it is developing an operating
system for a personal computer based on its Chrome browser,
according to two people briefed on Google's plans.

The move would sharpen the already intense competition
between Google and Microsoft, whose Windows operating system
controls the basic functions of the vast majority of personal
computers.

Asnycnow LIVE : Micheal Jackson 1958 - 2009

2009-07-07T13:35:00.002-04:00

Michael Jackson Memorial And NewsOnline TV Shows by Ustream

Obama wants Russia to respect human rights

2009-07-07T12:28:00.001-04:00

Barack Obama has called on Russia to help forge a new global partnership to overcome Cold War mistrust.

In a wide ranging keynote speech to Moscow’s New Economic School, the US President also said that freedom of speech and assembly are among universal rights that must be protected and encouraged.

“Freedom of speech and assembly has allowed women, minorities, and workers to protest for full and equal rights at a time when we were denied the rule of law and equal administration of justice has busted monopolies, shut down political machines, and ended abuses of power,” he said.

“If our democracy did not advance those rights, than I, as a person of African ancestry, wouldn’t be able to address you as an American citizen, much less a President,” he added.

Obama was careful not to criticise the Kremlin directly but his comments are likely to be welcomed by Russia’s pro-Western opposition

China moves to quell Uighur protests

2009-07-07T12:09:00.001-04:00

China has now imposed a curfew in the mainly Muslim region of Xinjiang.

The announcement was made by the city’s communist boss Li Zhi in a televised speech.

In a sign of government alarm over the outpouring of anger, Li Zhi rode through the streets on the top of a police vehicle, using a bullhorn to beg protesters to calm down and go home.

Xinjiang has long been a hotbed of ethnic tensions, fostered by a yawning economic gap between Uighurs and Han Chinese, government policies on religion and culture, and an influx of Han Chinese migrants, who now are in the majority in most key cities.

Han Chinese seek revenge

2009-07-07T12:03:00.001-04:00

Thousands of Han Chinese have taken to the streets to counter protests by Uighurs as ethnic tensions increase in northwestern China.

Armed with rocks, axes or wooden clubs, crowds stopped to smash Uighur businesses as they marched through the capital, Urumqi.

The vastly outnumbered police fired tear gas to curb the violence but their efforts had little if any impact.

It follows Sunday’s riots that left more than 150 people dead and a thousand others injured.

US and Russia agree on arms and Afghanistan

2009-07-06T22:37:00.001-04:00

Russia and the United States have agreed sweeping cuts in nuclear weapons, and to allow American planes to use Russian airspace to resupply NATO forces in Afghanistan. Those are the two headline announcements from President Obama’s first day in Moscow.

He and President Medvedev also agreed to try to resolve Washington’s planned missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic. The Kremlin said deep differences still remain, but the two sides are to set up a special commission to work on a solution.

This was the second time the two men have met: they said they had a good personal relations, and wanted to improve ties after years of distrust.

“Obviously our two countries have their own understanding of their role, but at the same time we accept our wider responsibilities at a time when globalisation means that the world depends on our decisions,” said the Russian leader.

“The President and I agreed that the relationship between Russia and the United States has suffered from a sense of drift,” said Obama. “We resolved to reset US-Russian relations so that we can cooperate more effectively in areas of common interest.”

Back in the Cold War, Russia and America boasted many thousands of missiles and nuclear warheads. If the two sides can make any progress on a new arms reduction treaty, those arsenals will be reduced to about 1500 weapons on each side.

Afghanistan is also important to both countries. Obama has said it is a war the West cannot afford to lose, while Russia has a vested interest in defeating the Taliban as it fears a Muslim insurgency on its southern borders.

Franco-British relations ‘never been better’ – Brown

2009-07-06T22:33:00.001-04:00

The French and British governments have re-affirmed a closeness between the two countries after a summit at Evian in south-eastern France.
The UK premier Gordon Brown said relations have never been better. Ministers tackled issues ranging from Iran to immigration and, inevitably the financial crisis. And they targetted tax-havens.

Gordon Brown said: “The world should be in no doubt that the writing is on the wall for tax havens, wherever they may be. So we are calling today for a March 2010 deadline for the introduction of sanctions against tax havens.”

On climate-change President Sarkozy said both Britain and France would press hard to make sure this week’s G8 meeting is truly committed to the fight against global-warming.

“We will not be satisfied with long-term objectives, very long-term. We want objectives in the medium term to ensure their credibility,” he said.

Britain and France, along with Germany and Italy want to see global warming limited to 2 degrees celsius. With preparations for the G8 summit underway at L’Aquila the European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso has said he will press the US, Japan, Russia and Canada to fall into line with that figure.

ALERT|NYC Freezes Hiring Because Of Senate Gridlock

2009-07-06T18:23:00.001-04:00

By WCBS-TV Channel 2 New York City,NY…

Mayor Michael Bloomberg is ordering an immediate hiring freeze because he says the state Senate gridlock is holding up new tax revenue for the city. The freeze delays indefinitely a class of 250 police recruits who were to be sworn in on Wednesday. The city is also putting off planned hires of firefighters, traffic agents, school crossing guards and EMTs.

Army rewards volunteers with US citizenship

2009-07-04T20:52:00.001-04:00

US Vice President Joe Biden is in Iraq for some special independence day events, notably the taking the oath of allegiance for over 200 members of the armed forces at a Naturalisation ceremony.

The newly-minted Americans were mostly Mexican, Phillipino, and Iraqi, although 59 nations in all were represented.

“You know as corny as it sounds, damn I’m proud to be an American. It’s a wonderful thing. Thanks for choosing us. You are the reason why America is strong. We’re all immigrants,” said Biden.

The ceremony took place in one of Saddam Hussein’s grandest former palaces, the Aw Faw, which is now part of Camp Victory in Baghdad, and later Biden was able to have lunch with his son Beau’s Tactical Signal brigade.

Taliban hit back in Afghanistan

2009-07-04T20:43:00.001-04:00

The Taliban have struck back against a US-led offensive against insurgent forces in Afghanistan. Two American soldiers died in an attack on an army base which military sources described as ‘complex.’ Two Afghan policemen and 10 militants also died.

The attack came after thousands of US and British troops launched Operation Khanjar to drive the Taliban out of southern Helmand province.

The attack on Zirok base in Paktika province sparked a two-hour battle. Violence in next-door Kandahar saw a Canadian soldier and seven Afghan policemen killed.

The attacks prove the Taliban’s continuing ability to strike. And, in another worry for the Americans, a US soldier is believed to have been kidnapped after walking unarmed out of his base in Paktika province.

“The only information I have is that a US soldier did go missing from his unit on June 30th. We’re exhausting all available resources to determine his whereabouts and bring him back safely,” said a liason officer.

The deteriorating situation has forced President Obama to order 21,000 more troops to Afghanistan. By the end of the year, there will be 68,000 American soldiers in Afghanistan, double the figure of a year ago.

Bulgaria voters’ day of reflection

2009-07-04T20:42:00.001-04:00

The right-wing GERB party is set for victory in Bulgaria tomorrow, frustration with the recession and widespread corruption expected to harm the ruling Socialists. Led by the charismatic mayor of Sofia, Boiko Borisov, GERB’s lead rose to double figures as campaigning ended on Friday.

Three opinion polls this week all point to the same result, with GERB expected to win more than 30 per cent of the vote, and the Socialists around 20 per cent. The global financial crisis has hit Bulgaria hard, and the Socialists have appeared unable to react. Public anger has grown over low living standards and continuing corruption. One poll said four out of five voters want change.

Over the past four years the Socialists raised pensions and salaries, but also earned Bulgaria the tag of being the poorest and most corrupt state in the European Union.

Chechen police killed in Ingushetia

2009-07-04T20:40:00.001-04:00

In the worst attack of its kind in months nine Chechen police officers have been killed and another 10 wounded by assault rifle and grenade fire in Ingushetia.

The Chechen forces have been helping the Ingush police since late June when an attack seriously injured the Ingush president. He came out of a two-week-long coma yesterday.

Both Caucasian republics suffer from low-level insurgencies blamed on Islamic radicals, who have also claimed responsibility for the recent murder of neighbouring Dagestan’s Interior minister.

In all 55 policemen were traveling in a six-vehicle convoy on a side road when it was ambushed in the early hours of the morning. According to witnessess the ambush was well-prepared, with fire from three directions.

Anti US base protest turns violent

2009-07-04T20:39:00.001-04:00

There have been violent clashes between riot police and demonstrators protesting against the planned extension of a US military base in Italy.

The latest protest over the Dal Molin project was planned to coincide with American Independence festivities and comes just days before a G8 summit opens in Italy.

Some 300 out of several thousand demonstrators hurled stones and bottles at police who replied with tear gas.

The extension plan was drawn up under the Bush administration. Its opponents say the arrival of Barack Obama has not changed anything.

A referendem showed locals did not want the deal which they fear will damage the environment and threaten the nearby renaissance town of Vicenza.

But authorities say it will create jobs and boost the economy.

Ban fails to meet Aung San Suu Kyi

2009-07-04T12:50:00.001-04:00

The head of the United Nations has admitted his deep disappointment at his failure to meet Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon was made to wait overnight for a decision, but eventually the military junta refused permission.

“I urged them to stop the prosecution of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political leaders,” said Ban. “It is a setback to the international community’s efforts to provide a helping hand to Myanmar at this time.”

Ban spent 30 minutes in talks with Myanmar’s senior leader Than Shwe which ultimately proved fruitless. Aung San is on trial for breaching the terms of her house arrest by allowing an American intruder to spend the night at her home. The Generals refused Ban’s request to meet her, saying it could affect the judicial process.

Asnycnow15 News| English

Environmentalism 101: Global warming/Climate Change – Is there any difference?

this Blog will be Updated Soon…..

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The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for all of New York City except Staten Island, and Hudson and Bergen counties in New Jersey until 7:30 p.m. A Flash Flood Watch continues for portions of northeast New Jersey and southeast New York until 6 a.m. Thursday.

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72°F

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On Asnycnow15’s Radio Show Today

Afghan helicopter crash kills six

Heavy fighting rocks Mogadishu

Swiss hostage freed in Sahara

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Lithuania’s “Iron Lady” sworn in as president

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