Greece: Molotovs Thrown at Thessaloniki University
(ANSAmed) — ATHENS, MAY 24 — Incidents this morning in front of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, where several dozens of young people have thrown Molotov cocktails and set fire to rubbish skips. According to media reports, the extremists set fire to several parked cars and dispersed before the police could intervene. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Difficult Time But Banks Stay Stable
(ANSAmed) — ROME, MAY 24 — The crisis has had negative effects on Italian banks in 2009 that will stretch into 2010. The traditional model of the banks, however, means that they are staying strong and stable in comparison with institutions in other European countries. This is the opinion of the Italian Banking Association (ABI), which today presented its 2009 report on the sector. Last year, Italian banks recorded a 22% drop in net profits and a 20 billion euros rise in adjustments, while in the first quarter of this year alone, profit fell by 27%. In spite of these figures, according to the director general, Giovanni Sabatini, the operating model of the Italian banking system “isolates it from the turbulence of the markets that has been seen in the last few weeks. The structure of the model means that the quantity and quality of endowment wealth are sufficient and able to guarantee the solidity of this wealth”. Italian banks remain concentrated on a model that sees the direct income from retail and lending account for over 70% of spending with a remaining share of financial activities. These same activities have led to a growth in profit in other countries in the first part of 2010, though the model obviously carries more significant risks. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: IMF Urges Tax Reform
Tremonti finalising 24-billion-euro budget
(ANSA) — Rome, May 24 — The International Monetary Fund on Monday urged Italy to reform its tax system to cut labour costs and boost employment.
In a report obtained by ANSA, the IMF said the Italian tax burden weighed disproportionately on payroll workers and pensioners while tax evasion was still too high.
It said a recent government tax amnesty on assets held abroad “might reduce the already low propensity to pay taxes”.
“Measures that act as a deterrent to tax evasion are yet to be seen,” it said.
In other remarks, the IMF reiterated calls to keep public debt under control, raise the retirement age and make the labour market more flexible.
It also praised the government for its response to the global economic crisis, saying the decision not to adopt a broad fiscal stimulus package was “appropriate” in the light of Italy’s debt, one of the highest in the world.
But while “the worst effects of the crisis on the Italian economy are past, key vulnerabilities remain,” it said.
The public debt and “disappointing” growth “may make Italy vulnerable to future external shocks,” it said.
The IMF confirmed forecasts that the Italian economy will grow by 0.8% this year and 1.2% in 2011.
GDP growth will be 1.5% in 2012, it said.
Public debt will be 118.6% of GDP this year, rising to 120.5% in 2011 and 121.6% in 2012.
Over the medium term, the IMF said, the debt “could rise to some 125% of GDP”. The deficit will be 5.2% of GDP this year, falling to 4.9% in both 2011 and 2012, it said.
GOVT TO MEET ON 24-BN-EURO BUDGET
Monday’s report came a day before the Italian government was set to meet to assess a proposed budget for 2011-2012 of some 24 billion euros, composed mostly of spending cuts plus a fresh bid to recoup dodged taxes.
On Monday evening, Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti is expected to illustrate the draft budget he is preparing for Tuesday’s cabinet meeting, political sources said.
Cabinet Undersecretary Paolo Bonaiuti denied press reports that the measure would include a pardon on undeclared real estate assets but did say that an effort would be made to get an estimated two million residences on the tax rolls.
Bonaiuti denied there would be any new taxes, confirmed that cuts would be made on ministry budgets on a case-by-case basis and said a freeze on executive salaries in public companies was under consideration.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Spain: Cajasur Bail-Out, Debts Incurred in Real Estate
(ANSAmed) — MADRID, MAY 24 — The Bank of Spain is set to auction off the Cajasur savings bank “relatively soon”, after putting it under the administration of an external commissioner on Saturday, given its lack of willingness to merge with Unicaja of Malaga. The news was confirmed today by the Vice Premier and Minister for the Economy, Elena Salgado. The future of bank will pass to the absorption of its assets or of the entire body by another financial body, a process which “must be competitive” to affect the taxpayers as little as possible, said the minister. With 1,124 employees, 596 million in losses in 2009 and 114 million of debts in the first quarter of the year, the savings bank founded in Cordoba and managed by the Catholic Church, despite being on the edge of bankruptcy, has rejected the option to merge with Unicaja. From here comes the decision of the central institute to intervene by putting it under the administration of an external commissioner, the activation of the Fund For Orderly Bank Restructuring (FROB) and the dismissal of the board members and director of the bank, which represents 0.6% of the Spanish banking system by assets. It is the second intervention with the administration of an external commissioner carried out by the Bank of Spain, after the intervention in March 2009 in Caja Castilla La Mancha, which had recorded losses for 740 million. The excess of employees in the bank, but above all, the direct link of the bank and the Church, managed directly by Archbishop of Cordoba, with credit linked to the property sector, with 22% of credit investments concentrated in the promotion and sale of property and land and stocks to 50% in several construction companies, have made Cajasur’s solvency impossible, after the property bubble burst. As well as the deficit of its own resources, the bank registered a default of around 11% in the first quarter, according to figures published today by El Pais, and it is involved in a concentration of risk that exceeds the level permitted by law. Cajasur’s investments in construction and real estate promotion with a determined group registered 30% of its resources, above the 25% allowed, according to legal sources of the financial body quoted by the daily. The results of auditing by Deloitte indicate that, there was already the need to “found and create a new banking institution” to save itself from bankruptcy in 2009. However, Cajasur continued alone, injecting tens of millions into the real estate business. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Spain: No Credit for Municipalities to Cut Deficit
(ANSAmed) — MADRID, MAY 24 — No Spanish municipality will be allowed to apply for public or private credit until the end of 2011, according to the special anti-deficit measures that were approved last Thursday by the government and published today on the State Gazette. “Local authorities and related bodies in public administration will not have access to public or private long-term credit until December 31 2011, to finance their investments” the text reads. By the end of 2009, Spanish municipalities had a total debt of 34.594 billion euros, 9% more than in 2008. This debt represents 3.3% of GDP, according to the on-line edition of El Mundo. To avoid the bankruptcy of municipalities, the government has included a mechanism in the 2010 Financial act, to expand the borrowing limit to 120% of revenues earned in the previous year. The applications for loans of local authorities to the central administration is based on this limit. The municipalities had asked to expand the limit to 130%. Many of them have found alternative ways for their financing, like debts issued directly by public companies, which in the past ten years increased from 10.631 to 29.080 billion euros. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Spain: IMF Asks for Urgent and Decisive Measures, Reforms
(ANSAmed) — MADRID, MAY 24 — The International Monetary Fund (IMF) today asked Spain to take “urgent and decisive” economic measures, including a “radical” reform of the labour market, a tax consolidation and a reform of the banking system. These are the initial conclusions of a group of IMF experts after a visit to Spain for the annual revision of its economy, published by the EFE press agency. The recommendation comes the day after the approval, by the government of José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, of a supplementary move to bring down the public deficit by 15 billion euros by 2011, in addition to the 50 billion euro cut of public expenditure in the financial stability programme approved by Brussels. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Spain: Government Says IMF Supports Reform Plan
(ANSAmed) — MADRID, MAY 24 — The Spanish government believes the International Monetary Fund report to coincide with the reform of public finances that the executive launched, because it supports the fiscal consolidation programme previously launched. In a statement today, the Economy and Finance Minister underlined that the Fund estimates that the Spanish economy has entered a period of stabilisation after the “severe crisis” of the last two years, even though recovery remains weak. In its report, the IMF asked Spain to adopt “urgent and decisive” economic measures, including a “radical” reform of the employment market. The government agrees with the organisation’s recommendations on the need to reshape the job market, in order to reduce the existing dualism that is caused by a fall in the cost of redundancies for workers with contracts of indeterminate length and by greater wage flexibility, through the decentralisation of contract negotiations. “We must make sure that no reform increases the system’s tax costs or makes short-term temporary negotiation difficult,” warned the IMF, which urged the government to take on the initiative if the unions fail to reach a quick agreement on employment reform. The government, businessmen and unions have planned to end talks on the reform of the job market this week. The majority unions UGT and CCOO have threatened a general strike if the government “carries out the reform” without their consent. In terms of pension reform, the government believes that the IMF supports its proposal to raise the pensionable age from the current age of 65 to 67, in the face of long-term spending pressure caused by aging and by the reduced increase in population. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
The Euro Crisis is a Judgment on the Great Lie of ‘Europe’
The EU is paying the price for its pursuit of ‘integration’ at any cost, says Christopher Booker
Easily the most telling statement by any politician last week was that from an anguished Angela Merkel, in pronouncing that “the current crisis facing the euro is the biggest test Europe has faced for decades, even since the Treaty of Rome was signed in 1957”. “If the euro fails,” she went on, “Europe fails,” warning that the consequences for the whole of Europe would be “incalculable”.
We have still scarcely begun to wake up to the gravity of the crisis now upon us, not just for the eurozone but also for us here in Britain and for the entire global economy. The measures so far taken to prop up the collapsing euro, such as that famous “$1 trillion package”, are no more than gestures.
[…]
What we are witnessing here is a judgment on the entire deceitful and self-deceiving way in which the “European project” has been assembled over the past 53 years. One of the most important things to understand about that project is that it has only ever had one real agenda. Everything it has done has been directed to one ultimate goal, full political and economic integration. The headline labels put on the various stages of that process may have changed over the years, such as building first a “common market”, then a “single market”, finally a “constitution”. But by far the most important project of all was locking the member states into a single currency.
This was always above all a political not an economic project, to be driven through at any cost, which was why all those “Maastricht criteria” laid down to bring it about were repeatedly breached. But as expert voices were warning as long ago as the 1970s, when it was first put on the agenda, there was no way economic and monetary union could work unless it was run by a single all-powerful economic government, with the power to raise taxes.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
ABC News Video — Whistleblowers Expose Massive Government Violations of Privacy
When the Conservative Examiner presented proof in a 7-part series that the Obama government is engaging in covert activities to rob citizens of their liberties, naysayers dismissed the information as ‘inconclusive,’ despite the reliability of the unnamed sources for that information.
(AP Photo/U.S. Department of Defense, Cherie Cullen). Defense Secretary Robert Gates meets with army majors.
However, ABC News interviewed a whistleblower who exposes a massive government intrusion into the privacy of all citizens by reading their emails and Instant Messages, listening to their phone calls, monitoring their movements on the Internet, and tracking the ‘Patriot movement’ as a ‘violent threat’ to national security, although no one in the Patriot movement has engaged in such violence.
Not only that, but the government is working with a corporation—AT&T—in order to accomplish this privacy violation:…
| — Hat tip: heroyalwhyness | [Return to headlines] |
Cindy Simpson: War of Wordcraft
The newest tactical weapon of this administration against our terrorist enemies appears to be one constructed of language. Its deployment began when the term “War on Terror” was replaced by “Overseas Contingency Operations,” and terrorist attacks were renamed “man-caused disasters.” More recently, as witnessed in the exchange with Attorney General Eric Holder and Rep. Lamar Smith, it consists of a complete absence or rejection of particular words to describe the threat if such descriptions include the term “Islam,” even when combined with the modifying adjectives “radical” or “extremist.” While these overtures may appease the politically correct tastes of the liberal American mainstream, one wonders how these messages translate to our enemies, as well as how these enemies view the messenger.
Rick Moran found that “at least some people are happy that our president has banished the words ‘Islam’ and ‘Islamic extremist,’ and ‘Muslim terrorist’ from the government lexicon” when he reported that a “leading international Arab newspaper has hailed U.S.. President Barack Obama for officially removing the description ‘Muslim terrorist’ as part of his campaign ‘to reach out to the Muslim world.’“
Another Arab newspaper, the Gaza-based Watan Voice, recently determined to examine the messenger rather than the message, as reported by Robert Spencer of Jihad Watch, although it must not have received the memo about allowable combinations of words to be used in a politically correct sentence, as it published an article entitled: “Is President Obama a Muslim or an Apostate?” When Spencer addressed the same question back in 2007, he found his topic labeled a “smear” campaign against Obama. The Watan Voice author, Mu’ammar Ahmad ‘Abd-al-Latif Rajeh, didn’t mince words when he concluded:
Islamic law stipulates that if a child is born with either one or both of his parents being Muslim, then the child’s religion will also be Muslim. This applies if the father is Muslim and the mother is non-Muslim, such as in President Obama’s case. … Through these Islamic judgments, in comparison with the autobiography of President Barack Hussein Obama, we find that this president is either a Muslim or an apostate from Islam according to the strongest viewpoints of Islamic jurisprudence.
And if there are any questions that such strict interpretations of Islamic law are only extremist, Spencer’s summary of results from this recent Pew research poll are quite revealing:
One of the ironies in the survey is the extent to which Pakistanis embrace some of the severe laws associated with the Taliban and al Qaeda, even as they reject Islamic extremism and these extremist groups. The new poll finds broad support for harsh punishments: 78% favor death for those who leave Islam[.]
Walid Shoebat, described as an “Ex-PLO Terrorist” who converted from Islam to Christianity, when recently interviewed on the Steve Malzberg show, asserted that “Obama is culturally a Muslim.” Shoebat contends that if Americans properly understood the term “zakat” in Obama’s promise to Muslim Americans in his 2009 Cairo speech, they would agree with his assessment.
The overtures of this administration have been not only in word, but in deed, such as President Obama’s recent entrepreneurship summit for Muslim-majority countries.
Jennifer Rubin in Commentary Magazine noted that “[a]t a signing ceremony for the Freedom of Press Act, it is ironic and shameful that Obama could not bring himself to identify the killers who beheaded the man who fearlessly reported on the jihadist terrorists … If you didn’t know already, you’d never figure out that he was talking about the Islamic fundamentalists who butchered Pearl.”
For our president and liberal mainstream, in the name of political correctness, to deny these terrorists the right to label their own religion as their motivation is actually quite “illiberal,” as pointed out by Patrick Sookhdeo in his essay “The Myth of Moderate Islam”:
But surely we should give enough respect to those who voluntarily lay down their lives to accept what they themselves say about their motives. If they say they do it in the name of Islam, we must believe them. Is it not the height of illiberalism and arrogance to deny them the right to define themselves?
To add further to the confusion of definitions and nuances in meaning, people such as Nonie Darwish contend:
I have always maintained that “moderate Muslim” is an oxymoron. We have two kinds of Muslims: Terrorist Muslims and ignorant Muslims. The former are those who know Islam well and live by its dictums. The latter have no clue about their religion and have an idealized image of Islam that has no bases in facts.
Surely no one, no matter what they label groups of people or their motivations, can describe the manifestation of Islamic terrorism as anything but evil.
In his famous “Evil Empire” speech, when Reagan labeled the communist ideology as “evil,” he was not concerned with political correctness or tolerance of its adherents and had no qualms in naming the Communist regime as our enemy. He further warned:
So, I urge you to speak out against those who would place the United States in a position of military and moral inferiority…
| — Hat tip: heroyalwhyness | [Return to headlines] |
Frank Gaffney: Are We Serious About Deterrence?
An interesting— and potentially nationally transformative— debate has started in Utah. The two candidates in the run-off for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate seat now occupied by Robert Bennett, Mike Lee and Tim Bridgewater, have both endorsed the “Peace through Strength Platform” first unveiled on these pages two weeks ago. This platform includes a commitment to maintain “a safe, reliable effective nuclear deterrent, which requires its modernization and testing.”
By so doing, the candidates have precipitated a firestorm of criticism from national and local anti-nuclear activists and Utah Democrats in a state which, while solidly conservative and pro-defense, has residents who claim to have been sickened by radiation from atmospheric nuclear testing upwind in Nevada decades ago. The controversy comes against the backdrop of President Obama’s determination to pursue “a world without nuclear weapons”— and to have the United States lead toward that goal by exemplary restraint and disarmament…
| — Hat tip: CSP | [Return to headlines] |
Kagan Has Donated Exclusively to Democrats, Including Radical Bonifaz; MSM Pretends Not to Notice
In the aftermath of President Obama’s nomination of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court, ABC and Politico, among others, have reported on Kagan’s history of political contributions. Not surprisingly, she has donated exclusively to Democrats, with Obama receiving more than half ($6300) of the $12,300 in total she contributed to national level campaigns in the preceding 10 years. (Hillary Clinton, Al Gore, and John Kerry were also recipients.)
The Boston Herald ran a story which also highlighted some of her contributions to state-level candidates, including Deval Patrick’s gubernatorial campaign and Tim Murray for lieutenant governor. However, every media outlet has either failed to report, or missed, a campaign contribution of Kagan’s which seems pretty notable given how little is known about her political beliefs and preferences.
In 2006, Kagan made a maximum ($500) campaign contribution to John Bonifaz who was running in the Democratic primary campaign for Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. I suspect like me most of you have probably never heard of John Bonifaz, but it turns out he is about as far left as you can get before joining the Bernie Sanders fan club. His opponent in the 2006 race actually accused him of being a closet Green Party supporter, which of course is just a polite way of calling someone a socialist. But putting aside labels, here are a few facts about Bonifaz which demonstrate his extreme left credentials:…
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Small Businesses Threatened With 1099 Tax Form Tyranny Provision in Health Care Bill
(NaturalNews) According to a recent report from CNNMoney.com, the massive U.S. health care system overhaul includes more than just a transition to government-run medicine. A small section hidden away in the 2,409-page bill requires all businesses to send 1099 tax forms to every company or individual from which they purchased more than $600 in services and goods throughout the tax year, beginning on January 1, 2012.
As you’ll see below, this new law threatens to cause a wave of paperwork chaos across the entire U.S. economy, stifling the operations of small businesses and driving more jobs overseas.
Here’s why…
1099s required for virtually any expenditure For those of you who aren’t familiar with a 1099, this tax document is typically issued to independent contract workers who receive payments for work they’ve done. “Employees” of businesses are issued W-2 forms at the end of the tax year while independent contractors and other freelancers making money outside of the wage structure receive 1099 forms.
But the new change (conveniently slipped into the health care bill that nobody actually read prior to voting on it) drastically expands the scope of 1099s. Not only will contract workers be receiving them, but so will millions of individuals and companies that receive more than $600 in payments for services and products they provide throughout the tax year.
And if you’re a small business owner, you will be required to issue a 1099 to every business from which you purchased more than $600 worth of goods or services.
If you buy a laptop at Best Buy, for example, you will be required by law to issue a 1099 form to Best Buy. If you purchase over $600 in internet services, you need to issue a 1099 to your broadband provider. If you get a car repair over $600, you have to issue a 1099 form for that, too.
This law might as well be called the “Accountant employment act of 2010” because it will drastically expand the mountain of tax paperwork needed to be filed by all U.S. small businesses and corporations.
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Sorry, Mr. President: Socialism’s Not in the Bible
Having placed 50 percent of America’s economy under government control, the Obama administration is now angling for a tighter grip on the financial sector.
The operative word is “fairness,” which is shorthand for Obama’s famous campaign promise to “spread the wealth around.”
When critics said that this remark to “Joe the Plumber” displayed Obama’s socialist leanings, Obama justified it by citing Scripture:
“My Bible tells me there is nothing wrong with helping other people,” said then-Sen. Obama. “That we want to treat others like we want to be treated. That I am my brother’s keeper, and I am my sister’s keeper. I believe that.”
But Obama, who once dismissed the Bible’s relevance to politics, saying, “People haven’t been reading their Bibles lately,” may need to go reread his Engels. Co-author with Karl Marx of The Communist Manifesto, Friedrich Engels knew better than Obama about collectivism’s clash with Christianity, stating, “…if some few passages of the Bible may be favourable to Communism, the general spirit of its doctrines is, nevertheless, totally opposed to it …”
Despite Engels and Marx (who dismissed religion as the “opium of the people”), Obama and many others still manage to see socialism in the Bible. They point to the early church which, at first glance, seems like a model socialist community. The New Testament reports that these first believers “had all things in common” (Acts 4:32) and “all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need” (Acts 4:34-35).
But unlike socialism, the sharing was voluntary, not coerced, and the money was given not to the state, but the church. As Southern Baptist leader Richard Land puts it on the new Coral Ridge Ministries documentary, Socialism: A Clear and Present Danger, “It’s one thing for you to give out of compassion to someone who’s less fortunate. It’s an entirely different thing for the government to confiscate your property and give it to someone else.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Banning the Burqa to Protect Women
France and Switzerland are proposing a ban on the Burqa, a garment especially for women that covers the head, the body and even the face, leaving its wearer looking like a klansman who forgot to do his laundry. Belgium and the Netherlands are close to banning the Burqa. Lefty movements have responded typically enough by accusing those in favor of the ban of being bigots, arguing that the ban is counterproductive and that all women who wear Burqas do it by choice—because all historical and global evidence to the contrary, “Muslims wouldn’t dream of forcing the Burqa on anyone”.
But what is really behind the Burqa? Islamists have carefully positioned this as a civil rights issue and their lefty allies are trotting along gamely trying to make the case for them. Meanwhile the Islamists have staged confrontations over women with Burqas going to the bank or trying to vote or getting driver’s licenses. All of this is empty theater, when you consider that the promoters of the Burqa are using it as a tool to prevent women from doing any of these things. If you doubt that, overlay the countries where Burqas are worn most frequently with their approach to women’s rights. Those are countries where women are heavily dependent on male guardians for even basic legal and civil transactions. And that is the real point of the Burqa.
A Burqa is a tool for dehumanizing the wearer. For making it difficult for them to have any individual interaction outside the home. This is not a bug, this is a feature. It depersonalizes women who wear it. It makes it difficult for them to work outside the home, to have a conversation with a stranger or to even be seen as an individual. And again, that is the entire point. Burqas are the product of a culture and religion in which women are not supposed to have any function outside the home. In which they are supposed to remain in Purdah, walled off inside the home.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Sky to Appeal Against Phone-Tap Law
Protests grow at government-sponsored measure. People of Freedom: most severe sanctions to go
The backlash broke out on Sky. Rupert Murdoch’s satellite television station is indignant at the bill to curb phone-tapping. Sky has announced it will appeal “in all competent international fora, including the European court of human rights”, against regulations that “represent a grave attack on the freedom of the press and freedom of expression, but above all appear to constitute a huge anomaly in Europe.”
The broadcaster, headed in Italy by Tom Mockridge, is mounting a legal battle on all fronts to defend the “inalienable right to complete information”. “There is total agreement between journalists and management on this point”, said the director of SkyTG24, Emilio Carelli. “We’ve been giving the story plenty of space for the past few days and will continue to follow it very closely in the hope of a change of heart”. There is no hint for the time being of any on-screen guerrilla tactics in the pipeline. “Our sole aim is to provide Italians with the most objective and complete news possible”. A Sky poll found that 78% of interviewees thought the Alfano bill would prevent crimes from coming to the public’s attention.
Milan-based assistant public prosecutor Alfredo Robledo is adamant: “It’s a subversive law. There is an objective need to safeguard genuine requirements but the solutions are yet again skewed towards defending other interests of Italy’s ruling ‘caste’. This law is censorship, in clear violation of articles 21 and 117 of the Italian constitution”.
The federation of Italian newspaper publishers (FIEG) reiterated its “opposition to and concern regarding” the gagging measure. According to FIEG’s president, Carlo Malinconico, the bill “hamstrings the rights to report legal news and to freedom of information by including all investigation documents, even if they are no longer confidential and protecting investigations is no longer an issue”. The Italian press federation (FNSI) has called for “permanent, territorially widespread” action to culminate in a national strike, should significant, positive amendments not be forthcoming. The Articolo 21 association’s spokesman Giuseppe Giulietti said that “radical initiatives are required: a complaint to the European court in Strasbourg, an appeal to the constitutional court and another to the president of Italy because this law keeps puts opinion in the dark”. There will be a demonstration at 2 pm today outside Palazzo Montecitorio. Protesters wearing gags and holding torn newspapers will also gather in Naples in Piazza del Plebiscito.
English translation by Giles Watson
www.watson.it
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Trouser-Lowering Teacher Rapped
Prof’s bid to keep out ‘low-rise’ gear backfires
(ANSA) — Como, May 24 — An Italian teacher is in hot water after lowering his trousers in a bid to stop students coming to school with their underwear showing.
The head of the middle school in Como said he agreed kids should leave their low-slung undie-baring gear at home but thought his staff member had “gone too far” in an “over-zealous” attempt to show students the so-called ‘low-rise’ fad wasn’t as cool as they thought.
“If I see kids coming into school dressed inappropriately I say something but I certainly don’t drop my trousers,” said Fogazzaro Middle School Headmaster Luigi Zecca.
“A teacher must’t lower himself to the same level as the students,” Zecca told local daily La Provincia di Como.
The head has put the case to the school board and the teacher could face disciplinary action.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Cutting Spending the Password in Europe
(ANSAmed) — ROME — The critical economic situation, which has worsened in the last few weeks after the heavy losses suffered on the stock markets, is at the centre of delicate decisions to be taken by European governments. On the one hand, they are tackling the need to cut public debt, while on the other they face the apparent impatience of citizens asked to make further sacrifices, which, as is the case in Greece, have not been tolerated, but rather opposed and even fought against on the streets. So the process continues with one eye on the budget and the other on surveys, which, in Spain for example, are seriously punishing the socialist government of Jose’ Luis Zapatero. Publico, a daily newspaper close to the majority, today published its latest survey, which carries a ruthless assessment of the fall from grace of the PSOE and its leader. If voting took place today, the PSOE would be 6.3 percentage points down on Mariano Rajoy’s People’s Party. But the important aspect is not so much the difference in votes, but rather the fact that the PP would already have reached a consensus of over 40%. With a significant chunk of the parliamentary term still remaining (and therefore, with the prospect of engendering even greater rancor from electors, in the grip of anti-crisis measures), this figure suggests that, within a few months, the People’s Party could be on the verge of a spectacular triumph, both in numbers and in substance. This is because the further steps taken by the government — as per the explicit request of international partners — are widening the gap that exists between the PSOE and its traditional supporters. First among whom are the left-wing unions, who are drawing ever closer to dramatic protest measures. Although the country is in better condition, France is preparing itself not to fall into “Greek contagion” or even into the Spanish equivalent, and has announced a series of important and productive cuts between now and for 2013. This means that, although they cannot be defined austerity measures, they will have an effect on spending, in order to reach the ambitious target of a 100 billion euros increase in income in the next three and a half years. The objective, therefore, is ambitious, and must necessarily include an end to public spending, with the exception of interest on debt (non “cancellable” or “freezable”) and pensions spending. The French mechanism directly drags Ministers into the debate, and they will be asked to drastically scale down spending. To a degree, this is also what the Italian government is preparing to do, after today ruling out raising taxes or duty and denying that it would act directly to contain outlay. For now, there is no hair-splitting between Ministers and Departments. But Chamber officials today reached a significant agreement on sacrifices (or the lack of earnings for revaluation or pay indexation), and as long as this is their request, savings should actually contribute “to the reduction of public debt”. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Fashion World Names Appear on Swiss Bank Account List
Rome, 24 May (AKI) — People in the fashion industry are among the 7,000 possible Italian tax evaders whose names appear on a list of Swiss offshore bank account holders that French prosecutors gave to Italian police.
Additionally, lawyers and accountants, as well as diplomats and 400 Italian companies, are on the list stolen last year by a former employee of the HSBC’s Swiss private banking business and given French police.
HSBC, the London-based banking giant, in March announced that Herve Falciani, a computer systems worker with duel French-Italian citizenship, had stolen the information from the bank. The entire list reportedly contains information pertaining to 120,000 accounts.
Falciani fled to France while under investigation in Switzerland. French authorities subsequently seized the data and then passed it to the Swiss federal prosecutor.
Italy’s government has promised to crackdown on tax evasion, last year recovering 9.1 billion euros evaded tax receipts.
Total tax revenues collected for 2009 were 32 percent higher than the previous year when a record 7 billion euros were recovered, the Italian tax-collection agency said in March.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Government Won’t Grant ‘Construction Amnesty’
Rome, 24 May (AKI) — The Italian government has no intention to lower its budget deficit by raising money through a programme that would let property owners pay fees for illegal construction, Paolo Bonaiuti, the spokesman for prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, said on Monday.
“There won’t be any any amnesty for illegal construction,” Bonaiuti said in an interview with Berlusconi-owned Canale 5, denying Italian news reports of a possible amnesty.
Italians commonly avoid bureaucracy and fees by building additions and even entire houses without government permission. Berlusconi (photo) has used amnesties to encourage people to report clandestine construction and collect fees for the country’s treasury.
The Italian government this week could send a draft bill to to parliament that includes as much as 28 billion euros in deficit cuts by 2012, according to Italian news reports.
Berlusconi is accelerating the passage of the government spending cuts to send a signal to the markets about its ability to manage Italy’s public accounts.
Italy’s 2009 budget deficit was 5.3 percent of GDP, a ratio lower than France, the UK and Greece’s but which exceeded eurozone rules.
Italy’s public debt is forecast to rise from 115 percent of GDP in 2009 to around 118 percent by the end of 2010.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Spain: Poll: PSOE Falls 6.3 Points Behind PP
(ANSAmed) — MADRID, MAY 24 — The crisis and doubts over the solidity of the Spanish economy have undercut the credibility of the Socialist executive which, according to an opinion poll published today by pro-Government newspaper Publico, has recorded a slump in its vote prospects. If a general election were to be held today, the PSOE would gain only 34.1% of the vote, 6.3 points behind the Partido Popular, which moves up to 40.4% in voters’ preferences. The difference between the two parties, which was 2.6 points in January, now stands at 6.3 points. This is the worst figure recorded by the Socialists since 2008. On the increase amongst minor parties are the radical left with IU, which has 6.5% of preferences, one and a half points more than in the previous survey. Unione Progreso y Democrazia (UPyD) reached 6.4% in voting intentions in May, equal to 1.3 points more than in January’s opinion poll. Support for the Demo-Christian nationalists of the CiU continues to increase, with 3.2% of preferences, compared to the 2.8% recorded in January. Amongst political leaders, the best judgement on a scale of 0 to 10 was for Rosa Diez, leader of the UPyD (4.5), followed by CiU spokesman Artur Mas (4.3),leader of the PP, Mariano Rajoy (4.00), who overtook Socialist leader José Luis Zapatero (3.8), but the latter did not reach sufficiency. The opinion poll was carried out on the basis of 4,000 interviews conducted between April 20 and May 19. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Borough Where It’s Always Closing Time for Pubs
Half the pubs in a London borough have closed in the past 20 years — more than anywhere else in Britain.
Campaigners blame rising beer prices and demand from developers for the demise of the “traditional back-street boozer”.
Southwark and Tower Hamlets have been worst hit with twice as many pubs forced to close in the two boroughs over the past decade than in the whole of Birmingham.
Neil Pettigrew, of the Campaign for Real Ale, said: “Peckham used to be packed with little Victorian boozers down the back streets but now we’re just left with bland high street pubs. South-east and east London are some of the poorest parts of London so there’s no point in creating gastropubs charging £10 for sausage and mash, whereas people in Putney and Sheen would be happier to pay that.”
Mr Pettigrew has spent four years researching the pubs of south-east London.. In the 1988 CAMRA guide there were 386 pubs listed, but by two years ago 167 of them had been demolished or turned into flats. Mr Pettigrew said: “These back-street boozers were Victorian buildings oozing with character and they were essential social hubs. Now almost all have gone. We are heading for a situation where, in a few years’ time, all we will have left are the big high street chain pubs. The pubs that this country was once famous for will have gone.”
>From the comments section:
Tower Hamlets is a muslim enclave for good now. They don’t want pubs so that’s that. I think Mr Pettigrew was flogging a dead horse looking for a pub round there. He should probably not bother looking in Watford, Hemel, High Wycombe or most of the midlands either.
- Squiz, Islington, 21/05/2010 17:50
Yes I am with Robert on this one. Hardly any English people left there. And saying that, I was out in a pub near Tower Bridge recently and can honestly tell you it’s not an experience I am keen to have any time again. Ever.
- Comeron, London, 21/05/2010 14:46
[JP note: A good example of Islamic cultural trimming in action: steady, inexorable, irreversible]
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Driver Who ‘Giggled’ After Mowing Down and Killing Dog Walker Jailed for Four Years
Robert Allen was chasing his dog who had run into the road when Zaffer Kurshid, 21, roared into him at 70mph, catapulting him 40 yards into the air.
A road menace was seen laughing and giggling just moments after he killed a doting father while showing off in a high performance car.
Zaffer Kurshid, 21, had just passed his driving test and was in his brother’s powerful Volvo S60 car when he ploughed into Robert Allen at 70mph in a 30mph zone.
The 36-year-old was chasing his dog who had run into a road when Kurshid roared into him at 70mph, catapulting the father-of-one 40 yards into the air.
As the victim lay dying, Kurshid, of Bolton, Greater Manchester, sped off with rap music blaring from the stereo and dumped the 155mph car.
A witness who saw Kurshid and his girlfriend, who was in the car at the time of the accident, leaving the vehicle claimed they were ‘laughing and giggling and looked like they had been drinking’.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: How Town Hall Snoopers Are Watching You: Councils Use Anti-Terror Laws to Spy on Charity Shops and Dog-Walkers
Council snoopers have used a controversial Big Brother anti-terror law to spy on people making unwanted donations to charity shops.
Covert cameras were placed inside shop windows to film anyone who left bags of books, clothes or CDs outside a branch with a view to prosecuting them for ‘fly-tipping’.
The extraordinary operation was among 8,575 instances of town halls using covert surveillance rights granted under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act against the public in the past two years.
It is the equivalent of 11 secret missions being carried out by bureaucrats every day.
They range from undercover patrols for dog walkers whose animals are suspected of breaking dog-fouling rules to spying on their own staff and on smokers believed to be flouting the nationwide ban. CCTV: Big brother is watching
But replies to Freedom of Information Act requests show that, according to council records, fewer than 5 per cent — or 399 investigations — ended in a prosecution — let alone a conviction.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Survey Shows Young Britons Don’t Know Cromwell That Well
An alarming number of young people do not know the difference between Oliver Cromwell from Horatio Nelson, a survey shows.
The poll of 18- to 24-year-olds found that 45 per cent of young Britons did not know Nelson led the British to victory at the Battle Of Trafalgar, and 28 per cent thought that Trafalgar was part of the English Civil War.
Indeed, 15 per cent thought that Oliver Cromwell led the British forces against the French and Spanish navies during the Napoleonic Wars.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Alexandria: Forum Tackles Origins of Islam Heritage
(ANSAmed) — BRUSSELS, MAY 24 — The sources and origins of arabic-muslim civilisation will be the focus of the seventh annual conference of the Centre for Manuscripts at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, ‘Heritage continuity’, to be held in the framework of the EU-funded Manumed project, from 25 to 27 May 2010 in Alexandria, Egypt. The conference — according to the Enpi website (www.enpi-info.eu) — seeks to examine the nature and the vitality in heritage continuity from one civilisation to another and from one culture to another. Among the tools to be discussed will be comparisons, analysis of sources, examination of translations made in the first centuries of Islam. These will serve as the entry point to the discussions and debates around the themes of the conference, including philosophy and the natural sciences, general knowledge and history, languages, ideas and religious concepts, arts and literature. Participants in the conference include researchers and experts from several European countries and Mediterranean partner countries of the European Union. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Cooperation Accord Between Rome and Alexandria
(ANSAmed) — ROME, MAY 24 — To develop cooperation in the fields of culture, science, archaeology, technology and the preservation of cultural heritage between Rome and Alexandria (Egypt). This is the aim that the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the Alexandria Museum of Antiquities, and the Italian cultural association World Wide Artists Gallery intend to pursue by signing a protocol of cultural and scientific cooperation this morning at the Rome Chamber of Commerce. There are several lines of action in the agreement with which the three bodies intend to strengthen ties not only between the two cities and their cultural institutions, but also between cultural and private bodies: from the promotion of the Italian language and Italian culture in Egypt and vice versa for Arabic language and culture in Italy, to the production of shows, events, film showings and cultural events; from the strengthening of cooperation between universities (also through the organisation of internships — in particular in the sectors of conservation and restoration), to the extension of collaboration between their respective archives, libraries, academies and cultural institutions, to the relaunching of the role of the Museum of Antiquities of Alexandria and of the Italian — Egyptian Centre for Restoration and Archaeology (CIERA) in Cairo. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Egypt Denies Arrest of ‘Spy’ In Gaza
(ANSAmed) — CAIRO, MAY 24 — Egypt has denied the arrest in Gaza of an Egyptian official by Hamas security forces, a source in the Egyptian services in Sinai told ANSA. “Egypt is not spying in the Gaza Strip, with which it fully cooperates, and Hamas knows that well”, added the source which prefers to remain anonymous, underlining that the issues is a “lie”. Egypt, the source continued, rejects any attempts to limit its legitimacy or to undermine its national security. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
ENI Sells 25% of Greenstream Pipeline to Libya
(ANSAmed) — ROME, MAY 24 — Eni’s stake in the company that manages the Italy-Libya gas pipeline, GreenStream Bv, has changed from 75% to 50%. Eni has sold 25% of its stock to Libya state company NOC. The news was announced by GreenStream Bv on its website. “The Shareholders of GreenStream BV defined, starting from 27th April 2010, a new Shareholders’ Agreement, establishing joint shares between Eni North Africa BV (50%) and NOC — National Oil Corporation (50%),” reads the statement. “The agreement,” it continues, “foresees also an updating of the Articles of Associations and a reorganisation of the Board of Directors as well as of the management of GreenStream BV.” Eni had already announced its intention to sell a share of the stock in its annual budget.(ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Tunisia: New Penal Code to Help Juveniles Reintegrate
(ANSAmed) — TUNIS, MAY 24 — The goal of the draft law that is being discussed by the council of Ministers chaired by President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, is to institute a regime of punishment for juveniles between the age of 18-21 that favours their return to the community. Press agency TAP writes that the Tunisian penal system should be equipped with “instruments that will guarantee better possibilities for the reintegration of the young”. The draft law includes the institution of a sociological test “to outline the young defendant’s personality and his social situation” and to “make no mention of certain sentences in his criminal records”. This will “allow these young people in the age between 18 and 21 a progressive shift from boyhood to adulthood”. In Tunisian law the level of responsibility varies with age: children below the age of 13 can’t be prosecuted; those between the age of 13 and 18 fall under the child protection code, and the criminal regime for adults applies above the age of 18. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Tunisia: Djerba, Project to Safeguard Mosques
(ANSAmed) — TUNIS, MAY 24 — The almost 300 mosques on the island of Djerba are an essential part of its architectural heritage. These mosques include the Grand Mosque in “Hchan”, built between the end of the third and the beginning of the 4th century of the Hegira, which is one of the oldest monuments in existence To enhance them and preserve them, the Association for the Protection of Djerba, in collaboration with the Agency for the enhancement of cultural heritage and promotion, has launched the initiative: ‘Safeguarding the mosques: ideas and projects’. In its intention to set up a cultural and tourist circuit, among other things, it provides for turning the El Bass Oualeq mosque into a museum that houses paintings, models, miniatures, documents and support documents, and also open to cultural activities linked to the nature of the place. As well as being sites for prayer, the mosques of Djerba have taken on, in line with their situation, different social and educational roles. And, in times of conflict, they were also transformed into forts and watchtowers. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
‘Extremists’ Burn Gaza UN Summer Camp
Gaza City, 24 May (AKI) — A United Nations-sponsored summer camp in Gaza was torched Sunday before it was due to open, according to witnesses, laying the blame on Muslim extremists they say object to boys and girls attending camp together.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) had planned to open summer camps for children across Gaza this week, following the end of the school year.
“No doubt in my mind that it is vandalism linked to a certain degree of extremism. It is an attack on the happiness of children,” John Ging, UNRWA’s director of operations in Gaza, told reporters at the damaged camp. “We condemn this attack on our camp and we ask the authorities to investigate. All our other camps will go ahead as planned.”
Fundamentalist Muslims, or Salafis, whose agenda of global or holy war against the West is against Hamas’s nationalist goals, have stepped up attacks in the Gaza Strip over the past several months, targeting Hamas security men and offices. Restaurants in Gaza have also come under attack recently, according to human rights activists there.
Taher al-Nono, spokesman for Gaza’s Hamas government, condemned the attack “by a group of gunmen” and said authorities “will track down the perpetrators.”
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Gaza: Hamas: Egyptian Spy Discovered and Expelled
(ANSAmed) — GAZA, MAY 24 — Tension between Hamas Executive, in Gaza, and Egypt is growing after Interior Minister, Fathi Hammad, revealed that Hamas secret services have discovered “a high-ranking official” of Egypt’s security services in the Gaza Strip, who secretly entered to collect information on the Palestinian population and top officials. The man has been expelled, stated Hammad. In statements to the press, Hammad therefore blamed the Government in Cairo who would do better, in his opinion, “to send its agents on missions to Israel” rather than to Gaza. Lastly, Hammad assured that, despite the incident, Hamas is still willing to set up a joint “Security Commission”, together with the Egyptian authorities. Meanwhile, today the head of Egyptian security services, Omar Suleiman, is expected to arrive in Israel. (ANSAmed)
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Hamas to Boycott Local Elections in West Bank
(ANSAmed) — JERUSALEM, MAY 24 — Hamas, the Islamic movement which has de facto power in the Gaza Strip, today announced that it will boycott the local elections called by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) for July 17 in the West Bank. In a statement, Hamas said that it “will not take part in elections called by an unconstitutional government”. The Islamic movement no longer recognises the authority of the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, maintaining that his presidential mandate expired in January 2009. Hamas won the 2006 legislative elections resoundingly and won the 2004-5 local elections in a number of important areas. Since Hamas took power in Gaza by force in June 2007, the PNA has considered the Islamic movement coupist and secessionist. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Lawyer Charged With Moving Funds for Hamas
Jerusalem, 24 May (AKI) — An Arab lawyer from East Jerusalem was charged with transferring funds from Hamas and Islamic Jihad to Palestinian prisoners, Israeli newspaper Haaretz said on Monday. The newspaper published details of the case after a gag order was lifted.
The Israeli Arab director of an East Jerusalem post office, a resident of the Gaza Strip and another resident of the primarily Arab section of Jerusalem have also been charged with conspiracy, the report said.
Lawyer Shirin Isawi is suspected of orchestrating thousands of dollars in transfers while her brother, Madehet Isawi, is suspected of depositing the money into prisoners’ bank accounts.
The director of the East Jerusalem post office is suspected of aiding the transfer, Haaretz said.
The two central suspects allegedly bypassed legal procedures which stipulate that only a limited amount of money can be deposited into prisoners’ accounts and only by family members.
According to the indictment, the funds were passed from Hamas and Islamic Jihad operatives in the Gaza Strip to prisoners from the East Jerusalem postal branch.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Defence: Turkey and Saudi Arabia Sign Cooperation Agreement
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, MAY 24 — Turkey and Saudi Arabia signed a military agreement for scientific and technical cooperation Monday in Ankara, as Anatolia news agency reports. Turkish Chief of Staff Gen. Ilker Basbug, and Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Defense Minister and Prince Khalid bin Sultan signed the agreement at the honour hall in General Staff HQs in Ankara. Gen. Basbug said the signing of the agreement would contribute to peace and stability in Middle East where problems continued to prevail. He said the agreement would also contribute to promotion of bilateral relations based on brotherhood and cooperation. In his part Prince Khalid bin Sultan said the deep rooted ties of brother hood between the two countries was a driving force behind the cooperation between the two countries. He said they wanted to carry the cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries further and created a frame work that would boost this cooperation. Bin Sultan said he hoped the agreement would lead to concrete steps to enhance the facilities and capabilities of the armed forces of the two countries. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Egypt is Stalwart of Middle East, Barak Says
(ANSAmed) — TEL AVIV, MAY 24 — “Egypt is the stalwart of the situation in the Middle East and North Africa,” Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said, welcoming today General Omar Suleiman, head of the Egyptian security services, to his office in Tel Aviv. Barak praised Egypt for the regional guiding role that it maintains and pointed out that it was the first Arab country to sign the peace treaty with Israel. Suleiman, for his part, said that he was confident of being able to boost Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks, the success of which, he said, is linked to the maintenance of regional stability: a reference to the recent tensions between Israel on one side and Lebanon and Syria on the other. According to Jerusalem radio, Barak and Suleiman also dealt with other issues linked to regional security, such as the Iranian nuclear programme. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
First Review of Sex and the City 2 Claims Frothy Summer Movie Conjures Up a ‘Scathing Portrayal of Muslim Society’
Writer and director Michael Patrick King admitted: ‘Abu Dhabi was like: ‘You know, the UAE is not really ready to have four sexually liberated American girls filmed here’.’
The review, by industry bible, the Hollywood Reporter, reveals that Carrie and her friends ‘run up against the puritanical and misogynistic culture of the Middle East.’
It says: ‘The rather scathing portrayal of Muslim society no doubt will stir controversy, especially in a frothy summer entertainment, but there’s something bracing about the film’s saucy political incorrectness. Or is it politically correct?
‘SATC 2 is at once proudly feminist and blatantly anti-Muslim, which means that it might confound liberal viewers.
‘These endearingly loopy scenes exhibit the tasteless humour that enlivened the TV series on its best nights.’
| [Return to headlines] |
Kidnapped German Sisters Speak Arabic to Each Other
The freed children of German aid workers kidnapped in Yemen a year ago speak only Arabic to each other, have given each other new names, and have asked their relatives if they can cook over an open fire.
Lydia Hentschel, five, calls herself Sarah and sister Anna, four, is known as Fatima.
Experts believe their abductors may have named them as they moved them around to secret hideouts during their ordeal. They had their hair dyed with henna, play with clay pots.
Their total immersion in Arab culture makes family members caring for them since they arrived back in Germany last week fear they have been separated from their parents for some time, although they have not yet asked the children when they last saw their mother and father, fearing such a question could trigger post traumatic stress disorder.
The children were reunited with their uncle and other family members late on Wednesday after being flown back to Germany aboard a Bundeswehr aircraft.
The tiny village of Meschwitz in Saxony where, in the words of mayor Norbert Wolf “practically everyone knows everyone else,” has promised to collectively pull together to provide the sisters with the care they need after their ordeal.
Anna and Lydia were abducted along with their parents and brother Simon, two, in June 2009. A British engineer, Anthony Saunders, two German care workers and a South Korean teacher were also taken.
Both care workers and the teacher were found dead a few days later in the Saada province while the fate of the others remains unknown. Kidnapping in the area is said to be co-ordinated between Shiite rebels and terrorist network al-Qaeda.
The girls were freed on Monday in an operation conducted by Saudi Arabian special forces in a village near to the Saudi border with Yemen. There was no sign of their parents Johannes and Sabine. He worked as an engineer at a hospital where his wife was employed as a nurse.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey: New Legislation to Curb Shipping Through Straits
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, MAY 24 — Turkey is preparing to draft new legislation to decrease the growing traffic through the Turkish straits, diplomatic sources said Friday, as reported by daily Hurriyet. Officials from Turkey’s foreign, energy and environment ministries, as well as the Maritime Secretariat have been working for a month on a new draft that seeks to encourage the transport of high-quality fuels in delicate waters and promote alternative routes for the shipping of oil through the country. The draft envisages severe punishments and restrictions for companies whose tankers passing through the straits, which include both the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, violate the proposed legislation, the sources said. Turkish officials are now in constant contact with oil companies and are also analyzing the oil spill act introduced in the United States in the 1990s to see if it could act as a model for the Turkish law. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey: Bartholomew I Demands Redress for Wrongs Suffered in Istanbul, Imvros and Tenedos
Meeting a commission for minority rights, the Ecumenical Patriarch stresses that it is time to move from words to action, restoring the rights of minorities and in particular their schools. The pogrom against Christians in Imvros and Tenedos, now reduced to only 300 people. Perhaps Turkey’s European dream is fading while the desire for neo-ottomanism grows.
Istanbul (AsiaNews) — At a recent meeting with the authorities in Ankara, Patriarch Bartholomew I reiterated the need to “right the wrongs suffered by the Christian minority in Istanbul, Imvros and Tenedos, over the years.”
It is the first time that a such a large committee — 20 members — has visited the Phanar to review the progress of the Turkish administration on respect for minority rights.
The Ankara delegation to the May 20th meeting was headed by Ambassador Volkan Bozkir (from Kemalist circles), Secretary General of the President’s Council for European Affairs.
The meeting was also attended by representatives of Orthodox Christian minorities, thus starting a cycle of meetings that the Committee will also hold with other minorities in the future.
The intervention of the Ecumenical Patriarch has shown once again that he has in fact become a reference point for all those citizens who fight for civil liberties.
Some criticize his courageous stance, accusing the Phanar of becoming a source of intrigue against the integrity of the Turkish Republic. Bartholomew responded by noting that “the presence of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in this land dates back 17 centuries and is the oldest institution in this historic city. Like it or not, the patriarchal seat is the centre of orthodoxy and contributes to the city’s appeal”.
The patriarch called for the return of three historic churches of the Galata district, confiscated by the state in the twenties and delivered to the so-called “ Patriarch of Turkish Orthodox, Pope Eftim, a patriarchy invented by Kemal Ataturk in order to attract Turkish Orthodox. This patriarchate was practically reduced to a pantomime, and finally to an Erenerol family matter, direct heirs of Pope Eftim, whose last descent, daughter Sevgi Erenerol was arrested for involvement in the Egenekon affair.
Bartholomew underscored the issue of confiscated properties of religious foundations (mazbut), whose total return — according to recent information — is not encouraging, the upgrading of closed school buildings, now without pupils (the Orthodox minority has been reduced to 3,000 individuals), the reopening of the Halki Theological School.
Finally, the patriarch suggested the possibility of reopening an elementary school for the needs of the tiny minority on the islands of Imvros and Tenedos (300 people). These islands were inhabited exclusively by Christian populations (12,000) and according to the Lausanne Treaty were to enjoy full autonomy, which was never respected by the Turkish authorities.
The two islands were also the scene of several pogroms for ethnic cleansing, with the consequent confiscation of property. These historical facts were also recently reported by a group from the Turkish civil minority deeply involved in the review and historical reconstruction of this country, outside of institutional cliches. These pogroms led to the total alteration of the population of both islands. Current figures talk about 8,000 Muslims of Kurdish origin and 300 Christians.
Bartholomew’s statements have shaken diplomatic circles in Istanbul. During a meeting with Alkyol Taha, a journalist for Milliyet, the Patriarch said he believed in the government’s good will, but now expects their words to be followed by action.
Among the shaken diplomatic circles, there is a growing “infatuation” with Turkey’s intense activism. European enthusiasm is slowly withering — spurred on by the crisis currently rocking the Eurozone — and it is being replaced by the belief that Turkey can become a hub not only for energy sources but also for regional politics, dusting off a modern form of economic neo-ottomanesim, ideologically based on a “light” form of Islam, which in truth has always characterized the Turkish society.
According to some diplomats, this explains the lack of magnanimity of Turkish politics in the ability to give something away without abandoning its fatal concept of reciprocity, behind which hides a lack of civil growth. In short, in Turkey, there is only a paternalistic conception of civil rights.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Turkish Iskender Kebab to Open to Europe
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, MAY 24 — Turkey’s ‘Iskender kebab’ will be promoted in Europe, Anatolia new agency reports quoting Yavuz Iskenderoglu, a businessman who registered the ‘Iskender kebab’ as ‘Kebabci Iskender-Yavuz Iskenderoglu’ trademark, as saying. “Therefore, I am planning to set up a doner making facility in Latvia,” Iskenderoglu, the chairman of the Executive Board of the “Kebabci Iskender-Yavuz Iskenderoglu” firm, said. Iskenderoglu said Bulgaria was another option for a doner making facility as he thought his products could freely move among European Union (EU) member states this way. “Doner to be made at those facilities will be sent to entire Europe,” he said. Iskenderoglu said the only reason he wanted to set up a facility in a European country was that meat and meat products could not go out of Turkey. “We are planning to establish doner facilities in a way acceptable for EU member states,” he said. Iskenderoglu was among the Turkish businessmen who accompanied Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan during his two-day visit to Greece on May 14-15. Iskenderoglu said he would open their first restaurant near the parliament building in Athens. This will be the first time the 150-year brand will open abroad. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Turkiye Finans Named Best Islamic Bank in Turkey
(ANSAmed) — ANKARA, MAY 24 — The US-based Global Finance magazine has named Turkiye Finans Turkey’s best Islamic financial institution, daily Today’s Zaman reports. In a statement released on Saturday, Turkiye Finans said the bank was awarded the title after an examination jointly carried out by shares analysts, banking counselors and sector analysts based on certain criteria such as growth, profitability, geographical access, strategic relations, business development and innovation in products. The bank also won the award last year. Founded in 2005, Turkiye Finans was a merger of Anadolu Finans and Family Finans, companies owned by two leading groups in Turkey, Boydak and Ulker, respectively. The bank currently serves over 1 million customers at 182 branches with over 3,350 employees. A 60% share in the bank was handed over to the Saudi Arabia-based National Commercial Bank (NCB) in March 2008. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Why This Summer Could Change the World
There is always Middle East conflict and war is frequently breaking out in that region. Why could a forthcoming war change the world? A little too sensational, you say? When the “epicenter” is involved, always pay attention. While the situation in the Middle East is generally unstable, it could move to the disaster zone this summer or fall.
Major Paul Vallely is a wise military man. He has been a guest on my radio program, “Understanding the Times.” He is now making a media circuit warning anyone who will listen that dark storm clouds are on the horizon in the Middle East. He has gotten information, it would seem, from Israel because what he is sharing is detailed. He surely hasn’t gotten it from the Obama administration who is a part of the legions of nations deceived that if only Israel would go away, there would be world peace.
We’re back to the term an “axis of evil.” This axis is scheming to wipe out Israel and the nations include Iran, Syria, Russia, and the biggest player, Hezbollah which operates in south Lebanon. Israel went to war with Hezbollah in 2006. It was half-hearted even though the destruction on both sides was major. According to Vallely’s sources, the Iranians are working with Syria and Hezbollah and are planning a pre-emptive strike soon to stop Israel’s expected pre-emptive move against Iran. What a chess board! This operation is coming down to the wire. Sources say the chaos will begin in a few weeks to a few months. It is all based on the fact that Iran is now set to go with her nukes and most of them are pointed at Israel.
Here is the startling news: Just weeks ago a Soviet sub docked in Beirut, Lebanon. It was flying the Iranian flag. Workers on the sub were seen to be wearing masks suggesting that they were unloading something chemical. And it was likely a weapon or weapons of mass destruction.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Yemen: US Couple Kidnapped Near Sanaa
Sanaa, 24 May (AKI) — Armed Yemeni tribesmen on Monday kidnapped an American couple, near the Yemeni capital Sanaa, a local security source said. According to media reports, the man and woman were taken captive with their Yemeni driver and translator by a group of armed men from a local tribe.
According to the Arab network, Al-Arabiya, the couple have been taken to a house in Bani Mansur, 70 kilometres from the capital.
The kidnappers are reportedly demanding the release of clan member, Hamoud Shaghna, who was arrested by police in the past few days and taken to a prison in the capital.
Kidnappings are common in Yemen where captives are traditionally well treated and used to negotiate, money or influence. But Al-Qaeda has recently begun kidnapping foreigners who are facing greater violence.
Two German children kidnapped in Yemen nearly a year ago were released last week but the fate of their parents, their younger brother, and a British man remains unknown.
Two German nurses and a South Korean teacher travelling with them were found stabbed and battered to death soon after their kidnapping last June.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Indonesia: West Java: Islamic Authorities Shut Down Church, Christians Celebrate in the Street
Bogor mayor closes the church of an important local Christian group, banning all its activities. The faithful protest and take their faith to the streets. Rights groups issue official protest.
Jakarta (AsiaNews) — Bogor authorities (West Java province) ordered the closure of a local church building that belongs to Gereja Kristen Indonesia (GKI), a Christian group also known as Gereja Kristen Yasmin Bogor. This has outraged hundreds of faithful and induced the Indonesian Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) to file an official protest.
In an official statement, GKI followers called the decision to ban their religious and social meetings unlawful. They note, “The mayor of Bogor granted the IMB (building permit) back on 13 May 2006.”
The closure had initially been ordered by Bogor’s City and Gardening authority in February 2008, but was overturned because the matter falls under the mayor’s jurisdiction.
After a series of protests by local extremist Islamic groups, the city decided to close the church and suspend the GKI despite the fact that the Christian group had all the necessary permits to build its church and practice its faith.
For some time, local Islamic groups had been protesting publicly and violently against Christians, accusing them of “proselytising”. They are certainly opposed to Christians having any building, even if the latter did not have a religious purpose.
At the end of April, extremists attacked and set fire to a Christian centre in Bogor on the ground that Christians wanted to build a house of prayer disguised as an educational facility. Instead of stopping the rioters, the authorities banned Christians from engaging in any activities.
Komnas HAM Commissioner Johny Nelson Simanjutak said in a statement, “GKI leaders met all the necessary administrative requirements to obtain a permit to build a place of worship,”
In the meantime, “closure order has not been executed yet,” Simanjutak said, and “Bogor authorities have not yet responded favourably to their request”.
The human rights organisation is still examining the situation to determinate the best course of action.
Simanjutak warned the faithful against taking any unlawful action.
Rev Gomar Gultom said that Bogor authorities would not stop the faithful, who are ready to show their faith in the streets despite a 2008 court ban.
Two weeks ago, more than 60 church members did celebrate in a street, despite police attempts to stop them.
Many of them, like Thomas Wadu Dara, believe that such demonstrations must continue so that they can defend their rights.
Last week-end, Calvin Labe, president of the Synod of the Church of West Java, attended the Mass. He criticised the decision of Mayor Diani Budiarto, arguing that “the law must be applied impartially, towards minority groups as well. Bogor authorities must respect the fundamental right to practice one’s faith.”
Now, the faithful are more concerned because “Akhmat Ruyat, Bogor’s second in command, chairs the Interfaith Communication Forum”, an institution in each Indonesian district that plays a fundamental role in determining whether places of worship can be built or not.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
‘Men Behind Kabul Attacks Caught’
Italian intelligence officer Colazzo one of victims
(ANSA) — Kabul, May 24 — Afghan security services said on Monday they had arrested seven people suspected of organising a string of recent attacks in Kabul including one in which an Italian intelligence officer was among 16 slain on February 26.
Pietro Antonio Colazzo, 47, an Italian embassy aide, was shot as he was phoning police about one of three coordinated suicide-bombing and shooting attacks on two guesthouses used by Indians and a hotel housing other foreigners that day.
Afghan National Security Department Spokesman Sayed Ansari said the seven suspects were also responsible for a suicide-bomb attack that killed 18 people including six American troops and one Canadian soldier last week.
Ansari said the seven had been acting on the orders of the Taliban’s so-called ‘shadow governor’ of Kabul, Daoud Shurkha, believed to be hiding in Pakistan.
The seven, who included a teacher, had been trained in Pakistan, Ansari said, accusing Pakistan intelligence services of “having a role in the training and support of terrorist groups”. Colazzo was the 23rd Italian to die since Italy joined the NATO-led mission against the Taliban in 2004.
A week ago two Italian soldiers were blown up in their armoured car by a roadside bomb, taking the death toll to 25.
The seven have not been linked to that attack.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Phyllis Chesler: An Honor Killing by Proxy: Another Kind of Tragedy in Gujrat
At the end of last week, a British-Pakistani father, mother, and daughter were murdered in cold blood by their Pakistani relatives while the victims prayed in a cemetery at the end of a funeral. “Mohammad Yousaf, 51, his wife Parviaz, 49, and their daughter, Tania, 23, from Nelson, in Lancashire, were killed in the eastern city of Gujrat when tensions over the breakdown of the marriage between their eldest son and their niece ended in tragedy.”…
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China: Beijing Admits Widespread Corruption, 3,000 Officials Punished
After China adopted its stimulus package, party officials jumped on the opportunity to embezzle money or get bribes on construction projects. “If we don’t take tough measures, it will be hard to suppress this,” government official says.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) — The Chinese government has disclosed widespread corruption linked to its 4 trillion yuan (US$ 575 billion) stimulus package, announcing that more than 3,000 officials have been punished for taking bribes, embezzlement and other abuses.
Deputy Supervision Minister Hao Mingjin made the announcement yesterday during a press conference. He said that 3,058 officials, including several mayors, had received penalties ranging up to life in prison for offences related to the stimulus spending or to construction projects.
The declaration has confirmed what many in the population and among top government officials knew intuitively, namely that widespread graft within the Communist Party is the main threat to the survival of the one-party dictatorship.
Fu Kui, head of the ministry’s enforcement department, said, “We will tackle corruption with a heavy fist. Today, with many corruption cases likely to happen, if we don’t take tough measures, it will be hard to suppress this.”
The stimulus was adopted to maintain a higher level of growth, which jumped to 11.9 per cent in the first quarter of this year. It pumped money into the economy through public works and credit to consumers in order to sustain the market, which might otherwise have suffered from the financial crisis.
However, many economists have called on the authorities to reduce credit to cool prices before inflation gets out of hand.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: Russia, China Engaging in Industrial Espionage
Germany is full of Russian and Chinese spies working to get information about top business and technology developments, according to the country’s domestic intelligence service.
Studies show that the German economy loses around €50 billion a year as a consequence, Burkhard Even, head of the counterintelligence section of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, told the audience at a recent security forum in Bonn.
The spying is a mix of official, intelligence service agents, and unofficial business spooks, he said.
Even estimated that of the 500 registered staff of the Russian embassy in Berlin, at least 150 were working as intelligence agents, disguised as diplomats or journalists.
He said that more than four million Russians live in the country as a whole, leaving him unable to guess at how many agents might be hidden amongst them.
Russian intelligence services have been instructed by the government to supply their industry with the most modern know-how to save money developing Russian products, one German official told the forum.
Russian firms doing deals with foreign companies have to contact intelligence services before making firm agreements, the forum heard, giving the government agencies control over investments and businesses deals.
Both Russian and Chinese intelligence services are particularly focussing on German companies experiencing financial difficulties, sending agents posing as businessmen to offer sweet deals to firms operating in high-tech areas.
There are around 80,000 Chinese people living in Germany, Even said, many of whom are commercial spies. China is also buying into, or taking over companies completely, in order to get access to new technological developments.
He also described more underhand methods which he said were often employed by agents posing as visiting business delegations or even trainees who might use mini cameras to take pictures in factories, or secretly copy data.
He said the Chinese were mostly active in the electronic sector. Some reports suggest the Chinese intelligence services have up to a million agents across the world collecting technical and business data to support their industries.
Small and medium-sized companies in Germany are the worst protected against such efforts, particularly when they come via the internet, said Even. But the weakest link is always the innocence of staff, he stressed, calling for companies who suspect a spy attack to contact his office.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Genocides Dating Back to 1970 Can be Prosecuted in Netherlands
THE HAGUE, 22/05/10 — The Netherlands can in the future prosecute and try suspects of genocides with retrospective effect from 1970. It will also become possible for suspects of genocide and war crimes in an unarmed conflict to be extradited and prosecution taken over from an international court, according to a proposed bill from Justice Minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin approved by the cabinet Friday.
Under the present law, international crimes by aliens resident in the Netherlands can be prosecuted for international crimes, including genocide, which were committed after 1 October 2003. This means that in the case of the genocide in Rwanda in 1994 that the Public Prosecutor (OM) cannot prosecute aliens resident in the Netherlands for genocide, but can only try to charge them for war crimes or torture.
The cabinet however wants to amend the law in such a way that it makes prosecution possible for genocide committed after 24 October 1970. This is the date on which the international genocide treaty was endorsed by the Netherlands.
“In general, caution is appropriate in allowing retrospective effect, but it is unacceptable that an alien who has been guilty of genocide elsewhere should remain free from prosecution here,” according to the cabinet.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Libya: Accused Were Tortured, Traffickers’ Lawyers
(ANSAmed) — TRIPOLI, MAY 24 — The lawyers of suspected human traffickers on trial in Libya have accused the police, today during the third hearing, of having “used physical and psychological torture” against people accused and have asked for the “immediate release of our clients due to a lack of proof”. So reports Libyan daily newspaper Oea, the only newspaper that is following the maxi trial, which sees almost 500 people accused of “facilitating illegal immigration and the trading of human beings in the country.” Out of the 490 people on trial, there are civilians as well as “servicemen, policemen and members of the Navy.” A special court, the Court for National Security, is passing judgement on the accused. At the end of the hearing, which several of the victims’ families attended, the Prosecutor said that all the accused would remain in prison until the next hearing. (ANSAmed).
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Swedes More Positive to Report
Swedish attitudes to immigration and refugee centres have become more positive, with urbanites, women and young people among the most favourable, a new report from the SOM institute in Gothenburg shows.
The SOM survey, conducted in the autumn of 2009, shows that 36 percent of Swedes consider that there are too many foreigners living in Sweden. In 1993 the figure was 52 percent.
“Never before have Swedish attitudes been so accepting as their are now,” Professor Marie Demker wrote in an opinion article in the Dagens Nyheter daily on Monday.
In 1993, 25 percent replied that they would not like an immigrant from another continent marrying into the family, this figure had dropped to 12 percent in the autumn.
“Despite the attempts to mobilize, groups which oppose immigration remain a peripheral sub-culture,” Demker wrote.
Among the parliamentary parties, supporters for the Moderates are most sceptical while those who back the Green Party are the most enthusiastic supporters of immigration.
Support for the right of immigrants to freely practice their religion has not changed since 1993, and remains at around 40 percent among Swedes. Supporters of the Liberal Party (Folkpartiet) have, however, become less tolerant of immigrants’ religious practices today than 17 years ago, although it remains above average at 41 percent.
Supporters of the far-right Sweden Democrats (SD), who strive to make immigration an election issue, show the lowest levels of tolerance towards both immigrants and refugee centres, representing a clear exception in the SOM institute survey.
Among SD supporters, 95 percent agreed with the statement that Sweden “should accept fewer refugees” compared to 46 percent of the population as a whole. Eighty-eight percent agreed with the statement that there “are too many foreigners in Sweden” as compared to 36 percent of the population as a whole.
Since 1993, SOM has monitored Swedish attitudes to immigration and refugee centres on six occasions. The surveys are based on a series of standardized so-called tolerance claims.
| — Hat tip: TB | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Labour ‘Tried to Stifle Debate on Immigration’
Andy Burnham yesterday became the latest candidate in the Labour leadership battle to admit that his party had ignored voters’ concerns about immigration.
The former health secretary said their worries over the influx of migrants had, for him, been the biggest issue at the General Election.
During the campaign, Labour ministers tried to silence the immigration debate.
The party made little mention of it in its manifesto and Gordon Brown denounced Labour supporting grandmother Gillian Duffy as a ‘bigot’ when she mentioned her concerns.
Former home secretary David Blunkett yesterday endorsed Mr Burnham in the race to succeed Mr Brown.
Mr Burnham said: ‘I think our problem on immigration — and it was for me anyway clearly the biggest issue at the election — was the sense that we weren’t talking about it, so that some people felt we were either in denial or just didn’t want to talk about it.’
He told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show that there were some parts of the country that had changed very rapidly. Labour should have been addressing those concerns ‘other-wise we leave a vacuum and those with more sinister intentions come in and whip up fear and hatred’.
Fellow contenders Ed Balls and Ed Miliband have both raised immigration during their opening salvoes of the leadership battle.
But they were rebuked for their comments by another contender, Diane Abbott.
The veteran Left-winger said she did not like the way that the other candidates were discussing immigration, adding that it did not lose Labour the election.
‘The black and white working class are moaning about Eastern European immigrants,’ she told Sky News Sunday Live.
‘It’s a proxy for a lack of security on jobs and housing… It’s very dangerous to scapegoat immigrants in a recession.’
She suggested reviving the Lib Dems’ plans to give an amnesty to illegal immigrants who had lived in Britain for a decade or more.
Miss Abbott played down speculation that she had no chance of winning, pointing to a YouGov poll which had her as the second most popular leadership candidate.
The survey for The Sunday Times showed David Miliband has 23 per cent support among voters, Miss Abbott 9 per cent, Ed Miliband 8 per cent, Mr Balls 6 per cent, Mr Burnham 4 per cent, and John McDonnell 2 per cent.
Labour’s new leader will be announced at the party’s conference in the autumn.
| — Hat tip: Gaia | [Return to headlines] |
Texas Board Adopts New Social Studies Curriculum
Texas schoolchildren will be required to learn that the words “separation of church and state” aren’t in the Constitution and evaluate whether the United Nations undermines U.S. sovereignty under new social studies curriculum.
In final votes late Friday, conservatives on the State Board of Education strengthened requirements on teaching the Judeo-Christian influences of the nation’s Founding Fathers and required that the U.S. government be referred to as a “constitutional republic” rather than “democratic.”
[…]
U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan said after the votes Friday that such decisions should be made at the local level and school officials “should keep politics out” of curriculum debates.
“Parents should be very wary of politicians designing curriculum,” Duncan said in a statement.
But Republican board member David Bradley said the curriculum revision process has always been political but the ruling faction had changed since the last time social studies standards were adopted.
“We took our licks, we got outvoted,” he said referring to the debate 10 years earlier. “Now it’s 10-5 in the other direction … we’re an elected body, this is a political process. Outside that, go find yourself a benevolent dictator.”
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Climate Change Agenda Exploits Incorrect Assumptions
In 1963 while chasing Soviet submarines around the North Atlantic with the Canadian Air Force, I was privileged to see the new volcanic island of Surtsey emerge off the coast of Iceland. By the mid-1980s scientists knew how quickly life appeared. Despite this, they were surprised by how quickly life returned after Mount St Helens erupted. We can allow it takes time for a paradigm shift, a fundamental change in approach or underlying assumption, to occur. However, the idea that catastrophic human impacts on the environment, such as climate change, would take decades to recover or push them beyond recovery was exploited to exaggerate fear and push an agenda. The phrase “tipping point” became synonymous with this fear.
Environmentalists, politicians, and politically biased scientists exploited uniformitarianism. This is the false assumption that change is slow over long periods, which underpins the western scientific view of the world. One example, still believed by most, is that the Earth’s orbit round the Sun is a fixed, small ellipse. Science has known for over 150 years it is constantly changing because of gravitational pull of Jupiter from almost circular to double the current amount. Most believe our Sun is unchanging and meteorology texts talk about the solar constant, however, astronomers label it a small variable star.
This explains why climate change, which is normally and naturally significant, was easily sold as new, unnatural and human induced. Unfortunately, too many scientists were unaware of how much change occurs or how this created false assumptions. This led to claims that when catastrophic events occurred recovery takes a very long time.
| — Hat tip: JD | [Return to headlines] |
Experts Agree Painting is Likely Self-Portrait by Da Vinci
CALGARY — The portrait of a middle-aged man — an oil-on-wood painting once used as a serving tray — is likely the image of Leonardo da Vinci done by the master himself, says a panel of experts that includes a Calgary art historian.
A dozen of scientists and David Bershad, an art history professor at St. Mary’s University College, agree. The image of a man with blue eyes, long greying hair and a moustache appears to be a self-portrait of the renowned Renaissance artist, inventor and thinker.
Coming to that conclusion brought together da Vinci’s own passions for art and science as experts used fingerprint analysis, carbon dating and even facial reconstruction software to answer three key questions:
- Does the painting date from the right time period?
- Is it a portrait of da Vinci?
- And, was it painted by the master himself?
“I believe it’s a Leonardo,” Bershad said Tuesday, the day after returning from Italy, where he was able to look at the portrait in person. “It’s exciting to come to that conclusion.”
Bershad was the lone art historian — and sole North American — asked to help assess the authenticity of the portrait, which was discovered in 2009 by a medieval historian studying the art collection of a family in Acerenza, a town in southern Italy.
The scientific findings of numerous other experts asked to examine the portrait were presented earlier this month at a conference in Chieti, Italy.
A fingerprint whorl, an inscription on the back of the portrait, the pigments in the paint and even the way the eyes of the man are portrayed all lead experts to believe it is a self-portrait of da Vinci.
“Every one of the experts thought from the beginning there was no way it is a Leonardo. None of us started with that assumption,” Bershad said. But as the experts began to look past the grime that has gathered on the portrait over the centuries, clues began to reveal themselves.
Carbon dating established the painting was from the late 15th or early 16th centuries. A forensic anthropologist then concluded the ridges and whorls of a thumbprint found in the painting is the same as one found on da Vinci’s Lady with an Ermine.
Bershad said some may argue the print could belong to anyone who touched the painting, but he asserts it is da Vinci’s.
“Only the artist himself would use his thumb to pick up that drip of paint,” he said.
Adding to the mounting evidence is the inscription on the back of the painting. The handwritten “pinxit mea” — Latin for “I painted” — reads upside down and right to left in writing identical to da Vinci’s.
“Leonardo had no reason to identify himself as the artist of the self-portrait,” Bershad said. “He knows who he was.”
Bershad is continuing to work on tracing the roots of the priceless painting that was once so dirty people were thinking of throwing it out.
The art professor has made a pitch to the Italian museum in charge of the portrait to consider allowing an exhibition come here.
The request, Bershad said, received a favourable response.
“The Italians want to share this with others and they’re excited about the opportunity to have something like this in Western Canada. With good luck, we’ll probably be able to have the painting come to Calgary.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Matter’s Victory Over Antimatter Leaves Puzzling Aftermath
By Jeremy Hsu
This week’s announcement that just a smidge more matter than antimatter was created during eight years of atom-smashing by a particle accelerator in Illinois is an encouraging step for scientists trying to figure out the universe around us. But researchers still have a tough job ahead to determine if what they saw is enough to explain the cold, hard fact that today’s universe actually exists.
The balance between certain matter and antimatter particles tipped toward normal matter by just 1 percent during the particle-smashing run at the 4-mile Tevatron collider at the Department of Energy’s Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) in Batavia, Ill. It’s highly unlikely that the 1 percent came about due to chance, according to statistical analysis, researchers said.
“We know that what we measured is more than what was previously known,” said Stefan Soldner-Rembold, a physicist at the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom. “Whether this is now sufficient to explain cosmological models, well, that’s something theorists have to calculate.”
Physicists have long suspected that something tilted the balance in favor of matter over antimatter, despite the original universe starting with equal amounts of both in theory. Yet the Standard Model of particle physics barely allows for any matter-antimatter asymmetry or imbalance — certainly not enough to give rise to today’s universe.
“We know there’s this asymmetry in the Standard Model, but for the quantity measured it’s really negligibly small,” Stefan Soldner-Rembold explained.
By the same token, any bigger imbalance discovered between matter and antimatter “would be due to some new effect,” Soldner-Rembold told SPACE.com.
The research team working on Fermilab’s DZero experiment hopes that their new finding might be enough to explain how matter won out.
A collection of clues
The idea that antimatter acts as the mirror image of matter is known as charge-parity (CP) symmetry. But scientists had already found a few instances in the past where slight behavioral differences lead to changes in the overall balance of matter and antimatter particles.
A first clue about the possibility of breaking the rules of CP symmetry came during an experiment in 1964, when physicists found differences in the decay of particles called kaons and their anti-kaon counterparts. Past experiments have also measured B mesons, but not in the same way as the latest study at the Tevatron collider.
For now, scientists can draw encouragement from having taken a step closer to finding definitive proof of how matter won the battle against antimatter.
“It gives more credence [to a theory] if you have more than one hint pointing in the same direction,” Soldner-Rembold noted.
Watching the smash-up
Finding even the 1 percent difference represented a tricky task.
First, it required the Tevatron collider, which can create antiparticles that might otherwise only arise from rare events such as nuclear reactions or cosmic rays from dying stars. That allows physicists to study high-energy collisions between matter and antimatter particles, such as protons and antiprotons.
A collision between protons and antiprotons creates the B meson particle and its antimatter twin. Those heavy, short-lived particles then decay almost immediately into pairs of particles known as muons, as well as their antimatter counterparts known as antimuons.
The scientists gauged the numbers of positively-charged muons and negatively-charged antimuons by watching which way the particle paths curved as they zoomed between a pair of magnetic fields. The research team also reversed the magnetic fields every two weeks, to make sure that no slight differences among the detector parts skewed their calculations.
“When you perform an experiment, you have to be really sure these background differences are small,” Soldner-Rembold said.
By ruling out the background differences, physicists showed that the chance of their finding being consistent with a known effect is below 0.1 percent. That represents perhaps the strongest evidence yet of how differences in the behavior of matter versus antimatter can tip the scales.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
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