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Morning headlines brought to you by Carolyn Kay MakeThemAccountable.com Top StoryIraq to Seek Long-Term US Presence
Iraq's government, seeking protection against foreign threats and internal coups, will offer the U.S. a long-term troop presence in Iraq in return for U.S. security guarantees as part of a strategic partnership, two Iraqi officials said Monday. Preferential treatment for U.S. investors could provide a huge windfall if Iraq can achieve enough stability to exploit its vast oil resources.
And “oil” is the operative word, with “windfall” a close second. You don’t think Maliki coordinated this announcement with the White House, do you?—Caro
White House’s new benchmark: ‘enduring’ presence.
The New York Times recently reported that the Bush administration has “scaled back” its benchmarks for political progress in Iraq, instead “focusing their immediate efforts on several more limited but achievable goals.” (Monday), the administration announced one of its goals: an endless, unqualified, “enduring” presence in Iraq.
David Kurtz, at Talking Points Memo, says, “The White House has gone from moving the goalposts in Iraq to just quietly taking them down altogether.”—Caro Left Wing Conspiracy
The WorldUS roadblock shootings in Iraq kill 5
BAGHDAD - American troops fired on vehicles trying to drive through roadblocks, killing at least five people, including one child, in two separate incidents, the U.S. military said Tuesday.
American-backed killer militias strut across Iraq
Members of the Baghdad Brigade receive $300 a man each month from the Americans, who also provide vehicles, uniforms and flak jackets. In return the brigade 'keeps out' Al-Qaeda, dismantles roadside bombs and patrols the area, a task performed with considerable swagger by many of its 4,000 recruits.
Iran builds new longer-range missile: report
Iran has built a new longer-range missile named "Ashura" with a range of 2,000 kilometres, (1,240 miles), the defence minister announced on Tuesday, the Fars news agency reported.
Ahmadinejad offers to be an observer at US presidential election
He denounces it as the "Great Satan" and frequently dismisses its power, but the overtures of the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to the US seem to grow ever more extravagant. Having failed to win a response with an 18-page letter to President George Bush or to a request to visit the site of the September 11 2001 attack on New York, Ahmadinejad has offered himself as an observer in next year's presidential election.
Suicide blast in Kabul kills 2 civilians
KABUL, Afghanistan - A suicide car bomber triggered a huge blast Tuesday near two armored vehicles used by U.S.-led coalition troops in Kabul, killing at least two civilians and destroying the wall of a nearby house, witnesses and officials said.
Azerbaijan defense minister hints at war
ASTANA, Kazakhstan - The long-standing dispute over the Armenian-controlled territory of Nagorno-Karabakh could spark a new war if it remains unresolved, Azerbaijan's defense minister said Tuesday.
Putin accuses U.S. of meddling in Russia vote
President Vladimir Putin accused Washington on Monday of plotting to undermine December parliamentary elections seen widely as a demonstration of his enduring power in Russia. Putin, drawing on resurgent nationalist sentiment ahead of Sunday's poll, also said Russia must maintain its defences to discourage others from "poking their snotty noses" in its affairs.
Peace with Sri Lanka govt impossible: Tamil Tiger chief
COLOMBO (AFP) - The leader of Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels declared in an annual speech Tuesday that peace with the island's "genocidal" government was impossible.
Malaysia threatens crackdown on protests
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Malaysia's prime minister warned Tuesday he may invoke a law that allows for indefinite detentions without trial to curb street demonstrations after two violent protests stunned the normally peaceful country.
Ministers sneaked out missile plan, say MPs
(London) Ministers were accused by MPs yesterday of manipulating parliament to sneak out a decision to allow an RAF base to be used by the US for its ballistic missile defence system.
Air firm accused of rendition flights role
The US government is attempting to halt a lawsuit that could establish whether any of the Central Intelligence Agency's so-called rendition flights have been partly planned on British soil. Lawyers representing a number of men who have been held at Guantánamo are suing Jeppesen Dataplan, a subsidiary of the Boeing Corporation, accusing Jeppesen of involvement in the flights that took the men to secret prisons around the world. Once there, the men say, they were tortured.
New riots rock Paris suburbs
VILLIERS LE BEL, France (AFP) - A second night of riots by youths in a Paris suburb left more than 80 police injured, buildings gutted and France on Tuesday facing heightened tensions in towns ringing the capital. The NationBush to open Mideast conference, but won't stay for discussion
WASHINGTON — President Bush, who's largely ignored the risky business of Middle East peacemaking throughout his nearly seven years in office, will take center stage Tuesday at the international peace conference he's hosting in Annapolis, Md. He won't remain there for long, however. Bush plans to head back to the White House after delivering his opening speech to the diplomats and dignitaries at the U.S. Naval Academy, and while surprises are always possible, White House aides said he wasn't planning to offer new American proposals to resolve the conflict.
Blackwater weapons-smuggling probe stifled by conflicts
The State Department's acerbic top auditor wasn't happy when Justice Department officials told one of his aides to leave the room so they could discuss a criminal investigation of Blackwater Worldwide, the contractor protecting U.S. diplomats in Iraq. The episode reveals the badly strained relationship between Bush administration officials over the probe into whether Blackwater smuggled weapons into Iraq that could have gotten into insurgents' hands. As a result of the bureaucratic crosscurrents between State's top auditor and Justice, the investigation has been bogged down for months.
They wouldn’t be slowing down the process on purpose, or anything like that, would they?—Caro
Cheney's Heart Restored to Normal Rhythm
Doctors administered an electrical shock to Vice President Dick Cheney's heart and restored it to a normal rhythm during a 2 1/2 hour hospital visit Monday. Cheney, 66, went home from George Washington University Hospital and was expected back at work on Tuesday.
Levin Says Democrats Won't Block Iraq Troop Funding
Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin said Democrats won't cut funding for U.S. troops in Iraq even as attempts to set a goal for a withdrawal are blocked by Republicans. "We're going to fund the troops,'' Levin, a Michigan Democrat, said today on the "Fox News Sunday" program.
I’d like to play poker with you, Sen. Levin. Will you tell me what you have in your hand before I bet? Thank you so much. Meanwhile, let the Republicans do your job for you. See below.—Caro
Republicans threaten to cut aid to Iraq
Two Republican senators said Monday that unless Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki makes more political progress by January, the U.S. should consider pulling political or financial support for his government.
Court declines Mich. faith-based case
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court on Monday declined to get involved in a dispute between Michigan officials and a faith-based program for troubled youths.
Clinton slips against Republicans, Obama attacks
WASHINGTON (AFP) — A new poll Monday showed Hillary Clinton losing a general election to all potential Republican White House foes, in a new sign that fierce political attacks may be harming her 2008 campaign… Clinton's top Democratic challengers Obama and John Edwards however would still beat their hypothetical Republican rivals in potential 2008 contests, the poll showed.
Report: Black Friday Online Shopping Up 10 Percent
The numbers are in for Black Friday holiday shopping, and once again web sites specializing in consumer electronics showed the biggest surge. Overall, traffic to e-commerce sites was up 10 percent over last year to 21.2 million unique visitors.
Citigroup Plans New Round Of 'Massive' Job Cuts
Citigroup, Wall Street’s largest financial services firms, is planning its second round of large-scale layoffs in less than a year, CNBC has learned… (P)eople with knowledge of the matter have described the pending job reductions as "massive" and "large." The total number could reach as high as 45,000, these people estimate… In April, Citigroup cut nearly 5% of its workforce, or 17,000 employees.
Cheney on predatory lending: ‘the markets are working.’
In a new interview with Fortune magazine, Vice President Cheney says that the government shouldn’t intervene to curb predatory lending practices because it would interfere with the “working of the markets“: MediaPermanent link to MTA daily media news
The new key question: How happy are you?
WASHINGTON — Is it time to offer day care for ailing older parents to give their care-giving children a break? Time for much bigger incentives for carpooling? Time to extend maternity and paternity leave substantially? The answer's yes to all three if you accept the findings of a new kind of public attitude polling that's gaining influence with corporate leaders and in government policy circles worldwide… (I)ts pioneers intend that quantified self-assessments of satisfaction will someday be as powerful as the gross domestic product and other economic measures.
Part of the problem with the bill of goods that has been sold to Americans—greed is good, freedom means choosing what to buy, owning things will make you happy—is that significant human needs aren’t just ignored or given short shrift. We’re taught that we’re bad for having those needs. It’s all in the service of making us automaton cogs in the economic machine. I’d write a book about it, if I could ever find a publisher. Democrats could take advantage of this anomaly, if they hadn’t been as bamboozled by the same 35-year PR campaign as most of the rest of America.—Caro
FoxNews.com headline of the day: (Talking Points Memo)
"Bush to Act as Key Negotiator at Mideast Peace Talks in Annapolis"
But McClatchy says, “Bush to open Mideast conference, but won't stay for discussion”. I heard part of his welcoming speech this morning on the radio, and it sounded completely apathetic. He’s obviously just giving Condi her way, and doesn’t give a damn about it himself.—Caro
Perino: Bush wouldn’t lie to McClellan.
“(Monday) at the off-camera briefing, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said she has discussed Scott McClellan’s forthcoming book with the president, and Perino said President Bush ‘has not and would not knowingly pass false information.’”
But if he is a liar, he wouldn’t lie about this, now would he?—Caro
Good for the Jews (by Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo)
When I was thinking about Will Saletan's essay on the supposed innate mental inferiority of Africans, I thought about this comment from behavorial geneticist Eric Turkheimer over at Cato's blog ... “If I may address my fellow Jews for a moment, consider this. How would you feel about a line of research into the question of whether Jews have a genetic tendency to be more concerned with money than other groups? Nothing anti-semitic, mind you, just a rational investigation of the scientific evidence…” And as long as it's just free inquiry we're interested in, can we move ahead with that study into the Jewish propensity to dominate host nations and guile them into hopeless wars for their own enrichment? Or at least suss out the implications if the theory turns out to be true?
What Do Conservatives Spend Their Time Thinking About? (by Ian Welsh at The Agonist)
One answer is provided by Conservapedia's most viewed list:
1. Main Page (1,897,388)
2. Homosexuality (1,488,013)
3. Homosexuality and Hepatitis (516,193)
4. Homosexuality and Promiscuity (416,767)
5. Homosexuality and Parasites (387,438)
6. Homosexuality and Gonorrhea (328,045)
7. Homosexuality and Domestic Violence (325,547)
8. Gay Bowel Syndrome (314,076)
9. Homosexuality and Syphilis (262,015)
10. Homosexuality and Mental Health (249,14)
For Neocons Like Power Line, Lying is a Feature, Not a Bug (by Mona at Unqualified Offerings)
Power Line’s Paul Mirengoff comes right out and admits he figured candidate W lied, and is glad the lies turned out to be such. (No, Mirengoff doesn’t use the word “lie,” but that’s what his euphemistic BS reduces to.) The dumb schmucks who took Bush seriously about the “compassionate conservatism”* thing, well, they are no longer useful (idiots), and thus not worth Mirengoff’s time. For they don’t realize that the compassion blather was a necessary peddling of false fodder to the electorate. To, you know, get a warmongering, neocon-friendly Republican elected.
People Do What People See (by John C. Maxwell)
One of the concepts I included in the new edition (of The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership) is something I call "The Law of the Picture: People Do What People See." It deals with the importance of the examples leaders give to their people. You see, good leaders must communicate vision clearly, creatively, and continually. However, the vision doesn't come alive until the leader models it.
When leaders are corrupt, corruption reigns. And the only way the leaders will stop being corrupt is to Make Them Accountable.—Caro
Banks Gone Wild (by Paul Krugman)
How did things go so wrong (with subprime lending)? Part of the answer is that people who should have been alert to the dangers, and taken precautionary measures, instead blithely assured Americans that everything was fine, and even encouraged them to take out risky mortgages. Yes, Alan Greenspan, that means you. But another part of the answer lies in what hasn’t happened to the men on (the recent) Fortune cover — namely, they haven’t been forced to give back any of the huge paychecks they received before the folly of their decisions became apparent.
Marriott reportedly blocking AMERICAblog because of word "lesbian" (by John Aravosis at AMERICAblog)
Other than gay issues, what political issue do we write about that could be perceived as "porn"?... It's also an issue that could adversely affect the discussion of Democratic politics online, to the extent that these companies have any political allegiances. Democrats, are you listening?
Al Qaeda media wing says it will soon air new message from bin Laden
CAIRO, Egypt: Al-Qaida's media wing announced Monday that it would soon release a new message from the terror network's leader Osama bin Laden. As-Sahab said bin Laden would address European countries in the message. It did not elaborate.
Gunmen slaughter 11 relatives of Iraqi journalist
An Iraqi journalist said on Monday gunmen went on a killing spree in his Baghdad home, murdering seven children and four adult relatives in the latest assault on media staff in the war-scarred country. Dia al-Kawwaz, editor of Internet website Shabeqat Akhbar al-Iraq (Network of Iraqi News), said (Shiite) militiamen sprayed his relatives with bullets after storming into his house on Sunday.
Probe finds other DHS fake briefings
The fake October news conference held by the Federal Emergency Management Agency was not the first time a Homeland Security public affairs official has acted like a reporter by asking questions during a briefing. In January 2006, an official with Immigration and Customs Enforcement asked a question during a news conference in San Antonio, Texas, according to an investigation by the Homeland Security Department — the parent agency of both FEMA and ICE.
News Corp’s Expanding Ad Network (by Kristen Nicole at Mashable)
Weeks after announcing the FIM ad network for MySpace and other sites included in the News Corp. umbrella, the ad network is being extended even further into Murdoch’s empire… What started out as an ad network for News Corp, being specific to MySpace, it will be expanded to incorporate more of the company’s media sites, and perhaps even further beyond that. The ad network is not expected to conflict at all with MySpace’s existing relationship with Google.
Google and Other People's Content
The eternal story line in media is "Google is moving into (fill in the blank)." In recent weeks, Google announced its Android operating system for mobile phones and its OpenSocial standard, which will link applications across major social-networking sites, so long as (for now, at least) they're not named Facebook. As several blogs discovered, in November the company filed a patent application for a Google magazine of sorts, which would allow users to collate Web content around which Google would wrap targeted ads. It's also launching a job ads initiative.
News Corp goes after ads and Google goes after content. What kind of battle of Titans is this going to be?—Caro Technology & ScienceGoogle plans service to store users' data: report
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Google Inc is preparing a service that would enable users to store data from their personal hard drives on its computers, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday in its online edition.
Auto Grocery Shopping On Amazon (by Kristen Nicole at Mashable)
Subscribe & Save is a new option being offered by Amazon… (I)nstead of waiting until (you’re) halfway through that last roll of toilet paper, Amazon can send it out to you and you don’t have to give it a second thought. Convenient, right?... Many have tried this method for offering Internet-savvy consumers an alternative to the laborious chore of trekking to the grocery store and doing their own shopping. But with Amazon’s track record and widespread appeal, this new program really could draw a lot of supporters from users out there.
In-Store Wi-Fi Is Free, but Not Commercial-Free
AnchorFree, a company in Sunnyvale, Calif., has introduced a service that lets merchants offer free advertising-supported Wi-Fi to customers on store premises.
Fake photos can alter real memories
Some researchers are worried that digitally altered photos could alter our perceptions and memories of public events — and they have the pictures to prove it.
Yes, but the ability to change memories can be a good thing, too. It can help reduce the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder, for example.—Caro
Bad Behavior in Youth Linked to Career Problems Later
Young children who behave badly in school can do just fine academically, new research suggests. But if the bad behavior persists until age eight, education can be compromised, and professional success later in life is less likely.
Not only that, kindergarten teachers can tell which kids are the most likely to be so compromised. Why can’t we develop family intervention programs for those kids?—Caro
Special MRI Shows Secondhand Smoke Damages Lungs
Researchers say their study is the first to prove a connection
Low Levels of 'Good' Cholesterol May Slow Stroke Recovery
A meat-linked compound may also hinder progress, study finds
The Dance of Evolution, or How Art Got Its Start
What is the evolutionary value of art and why do we humans spend so much time at it?
Evolutionary 'Big Bang' Created Florist's Paradise
From the ubiquitous daisy to the fantastical orchid, flowering plant species are as diverse as they are numerous. Turns out, these bloomers went through an evolutionary "Big Bang" of sorts some 130 million years ago, a brief era of explosive floral diversification at a time when dinosaurs walked the Earth.
Has first evidence of another universe been seen?
Astronomers announced in August 2007 the discovery of a large hole at the edge of our universe. Since then, theoretical physicist and cosmologist Laura Mersini-Houghton and colleagues have claimed it is an “unmistakable imprint of another universe beyond the edge of our own.”
So much for those scientists who have said for years that the universe is the same in all directions. Which I always thought had to be wrong. (Thanks to AMERICAblog)—Caro EnvironmentWinter forecast a mild one as temperatures get toastier
The Northern Hemisphere is the warmest this year since record-keeping started 127 years ago, according to the National Climatic Data Center.
World must fix climate in less than 10 years: UNDP
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Unless the international community agrees to cut carbon emissions by half over the next generation, climate change is likely to cause large-scale human and economic setbacks and irreversible ecological catastrophes, a United Nations report says on Tuesday.
Rising sea disrupts flights in Indonesia
JAKARTA, Indonesia - Indonesia's environment minister said Tuesday that global warming was to blame after the capital of Jakarta was partially flooded, forcing thousands of people to flee homes and cutting off a highway to the international airport.
EU says on track for Kyoto if more measures taken
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The 15 European Union countries that committed to cut greenhouse gas emissions collectively by 8 percent in 2008-2012 are on track to reach that goal provided they implement extra measures, the EU executive said on Tuesday.
Canadian PM under fire for not fighting climate change
Ottawa, Nov 27 (Xinhua) Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's stance on climate change at the Commonwealth meeting came under fire with opposition accusing the government of 'sabotaging' world environmental efforts.
Chicago Puts Plans in Motion to Green 1,900 Miles of Alleys
CHICAGO, Nov. 27, 2007 -- The city, which says it has the most alleys of any city in the world, will have refurbished 46 of its back streets to conserve water and reduce summer heat by the end of this year, and will gradually improve the rest of the city's alleys.
Air Pollution on Google Earth. Erin Brockovich Would’ve Loved This. (by Kristen Nicole at Mashable)
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has created a Google Earth map mashup that shows air quality across the nation… There’s even a 3-D map overlay that lets you view the level of air pollutants that are coming from specific businesses. You can see this if you tilt your map, and it’s most useful when used with 3D map renderings, complete with business buildings and all.
British business chiefs demand 'greener' companies
LONDON (AFP) - Britain's leading employers' body, the CBI, on Tuesday urged the business sector to tackle climate change, but its ideas drew a lukewarm response from environmental pressure groups. For more headlines, visit MakeThemAccountable.com.
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