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Carolyn Kay
MakeThemAccountable.com

Top Story

Final War Funding Bill in Works
A Washington Post-ABC News poll of 1,141 adults, conducted April 12-15, found that 58 percent trusted the Democrats in Congress to do a better job handling the situation in Iraq, compared with 33 percent who trusted Bush.

The Radical Fringe

The World

85 killed or found dead across Iraq
Police in Ramadi uncovered 17 decomposing corpses buried beneath two schoolyards in a district that until recently was under the control of al-Qaida fighters. At least 85 people were killed or found dead across the country Tuesday.

Sunni groups in Iraq try to mend rift
The leader of al-Qaida’s umbrella group in Iraq tried to patch up rifts with other Sunni insurgent groups, urging militants in an audiotape released Tuesday to stop spilling each other’s blood and unite against the Americans and the Iraqi government.

Leader: Iran's military self-sufficient
TEHRAN, Iran - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that U.N. sanctions slapped on his nation over its nuclear program had no effect on Iran's armed forces, claiming that his military was self-sufficient.

NKorea may be preparing to shut reactor: report
SEOUL (AFP) - US spy satellite photos indicate that North Korea may be preparing to shut down a nuclear reactor, days after the communist state missed an agreed disarmament deadline, news reports said Tuesday.

Korea fears prejudice with shooting link
SEOUL, South Korea - South Korea's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday the government hoped the Virginia Tech shootings, allegedly carried out by a 23-year-old South Korean native, would not "stir up racial prejudice or confrontation."

France Knew Of Hijack Plot Before 9/11
Former intelligence officials confirm a newspaper report that France learned as early as January 2001 that al Qaeda was preparing a hijacking plot likely to involve a U.S. airplane, and passed the information along to the CIA.

The Nation

Unions want extra billions for social program spending
A broad coalition of labor groups and liberal organizations are lobbying lawmakers to embrace the House budget blueprint over the Senate measure, hoping to win passage of extra billions of dollars for social programs.

White House to RNC: Don't You Give Those Emails to Dems
The White House and Democrats in Congress are both pushing for emails kept by the Republican National Committee, and the RNC is caught in the middle.

White House threatens veto of drug price bill
The White House threatened Tuesday to veto a Senate bill proposing to allow the U.S. government to negotiate prices for prescription drugs under the Medicare program.

FDA: Irradiated Food Won't Be Labeled as Such
How to ease concerns about food irradiation? Just don't tell anyone it's being done.

New FEMA Hurricane Plan Won't Be Ready
Congress ordered the agency to have a new plan ready for the start of hurricane season, June 1. FEMA says it still hopes to come up with it sometime in June, but meanwhile, it will use a modified version of the plan in place during Katrina.

Contractor says was told to hire Wolfowitz friend
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Defense Department ordered a contractor to hire a World Bank employee and girlfriend of then-Pentagon No. 2 Paul Wolfowitz in 2003 for work related to Iraq, the contractor said on Tuesday.

Media

Professor's Webcam May Have Saved Lives
As a deadly gunman was firing at students and professors at Virginia Tech, one quick-thinking professor used a Webcam to give trapped students a view of the outside world.

Technology becomes a coping mechanism
From blogging to cell phone video, technology has forever changed the way we process and communicate about tragedy — in good ways, and perhaps bad. Almost immediately after Monday's deadly shootings, Virginia Tech students created an "I'm OK" page on Facebook to let one another and their loved ones know that they survived. Other students posted photos and cell phone video on their own sites, or shared it just hours after the shootings with news organizations.

Debbie Schlussel suspected VA Tech shooter might be a "Paki," part of "terrorist attack"
Responding to the April 16 mass shooting at Virginia Tech, right-wing pundit Debbie Schlussel "speculat(ed)" in an April 16 weblog post that the shooter, who had been identified at that point only as a man of Asian descent, might be a "Paki" Muslim and part of "a coordinated terrorist attack." "Paki" is a disparaging term for a person of Pakistani descent.

Don Imus Was the Tip of the Iceberg
If Don Imus’ Rutgers smear marks the boundary for what is considered indecent on radio, conservative pundits beware. Here is a sampling of the racism, sexism, homophobia and hate pumped out by talk radio every day.

Pelosi’s trip is seen as a step toward diplomacy
The overseas press: House Speaker wins points widely; Israeli online publication says she produced results in Syria

Participation on Web 2.0 sites remains weak
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Web 2.0, a catchphrase for the latest generation of Web sites where users contribute their own text, pictures and video content, is far less participatory than commonly assumed, a study showed on Tuesday.

Technology & Science

Internet Phone Service: Another Option
When it comes to Voice over Internet (VoIP) phones, there's more to consider than just the equipment. There are also services to be had - from phones that find you, to custom rings announcing your favorite callers.

Survey Reveals Most Satisfying Jobs
Firefighters, the clergy and others with professional jobs that involve helping or serving people are more satisfied with their work and overall are happier than those in other professions, according to results from a national survey. “The most satisfying jobs are mostly professions, especially those involving caring for, teaching and protecting others and creative pursuits,” said Tom Smith, director of the General Social Survey (GSS) at the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago.

Chimps More Evolved Than Humans
Since the human-chimp split about 6 million years ago, chimpanzee genes can be said to have evolved more than human genes, a new study suggests.

Argentine cow clones to produce insulin in milk
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Argentine scientists said on Tuesday they had created four cloned and genetically modified calves capable of producing human insulin in their milk, a step they said could cut the cost of treating diabetes.

Environment

Study: Climate Change Risks Nat'l Security
A new report issued by some of the nation's top retired military leaders warns that global warming poses a "serious threat to America's national security."

Air Force embraces solar power
The largest solar power plant in North America will soon be providing electricity to an Air Force base in the Nevada desert. The military says the plant, scheduled to power up at Nellis Air Force Base by the end of the year, shows that solar energy can effectively meet part of the country's energy needs.

For more headlines, visit MakeThemAccountable.com.

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Carolyn Kay
MakeThemAccountable.com