Thursday News Bucket

19 Comments

1. 

   ask on June 14, 2007 at 7:39 am

   Hard to pick a favorite in such a strong heat; 3 and 11 go hand in hand.

   Nicholas Burns forgot to synchronize his story with the Afghan allies in the battle against Taliba.

   Afghan minister dismisses U.S. claims

   BRUSSELS, Belgium –
   Afghanistan’s defense minister on Thursday dismissed claims by a top U.S. State Department official that there was “irrefutable evidence” that the Iranian government was providing arms to Taliban rebels.

   “Actually, throughout, we have had good relations with
   Iran and we believe that the security and stability of Afghanistan are also in the interests of Iran,” Abdul Rahim Wardak told The Associated Press.

   On Wednesday, U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said in Paris that Tehran was directly supplying weapons to the Taliban. He told CNN there was “irrefutable evidence” that arms shipments were coming from Iran’s government.

   The State Department later appeared to step back from Burns’ assertion, but stressed that the United States has proof that weapons from Iran were reaching Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.

2. 

   ask on June 14, 2007 at 7:43 am

   Vatican cardinal calls on Catholics to stop funding Amnesty

   A senior Vatican cardinal said yesterday that Catholics should stop donating to human rights group Amnesty International because of its new policy advocating abortion rights for women if they had been raped, were a victim of incest or faced health risks.

   Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, accused Amnesty of turning its back on its mission to defend human rights.

   “The inevitable consequence of this decision, according to the cardinal, will be the suspension of any financing to Amnesty on the part of Catholic organisations and also individual Catholics,” said a statement from Cardinal Martino’s office yesterday.

   …

   Amnesty changed its neutral stance on abortion in April, but its Italy chairman Paolo Pobbiati insisted its new position had been misinterpreted by the cardinal.

   “This has nothing to do with legitimising abortion as part of a campaign for human rights, it is to do with combating violence against women,” he said.

   • 

     CabinGirl on June 14, 2007 at 7:47 am

     think alike, don’t they?  😉

     • 

       ask on June 14, 2007 at 7:51 am

       That’s funny.
       The headline really stuck out and the substance is so shocking.  Vatican moving towards irrelevancy.

       • 

         CabinGirl on June 14, 2007 at 8:00 am

         what part of the Jesus thing they are thinking about when they go after human rights groups.

   • 

     cruz del sur on June 14, 2007 at 9:23 am

     Where were they when  they were violating Human Rights???

3. 

   CabinGirl on June 14, 2007 at 7:46 am

   apparently Amnesty International has made enemies at the Vatican: BBC

   The Vatican has urged all Catholics to stop donating money to Amnesty International, accusing the human rights group of promoting abortion.

   The Vatican, which regards life as sacred from the moment of conception, said it was an “inevitable consequence” of the group’s policy change.

   Amnesty said it was not promoting abortion as a universal right.

   But the group said that women had a right to choose, particularly in cases of rape or incest.

   “No more financing of Amnesty International after the organisation’s pro-abortion about-turn,” said a statement from the Roman Catholic Church’s Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.

   The Church’s request covers funding from Catholic groups, non-governmental organisations, parishes, schools and individuals.

   Kudos to Amnesty International’s stance on the rights of women everywhere.  If you feel like giving a donation in Ratzinger’s honor, here’s their website.

4. 

   CabinGirl on June 14, 2007 at 7:56 am

   HB 288, which guarantees information and access to emergency contraception for all rape victims in all Pennsylvania hospitals, is scheduled to come up for a vote in the state house next week.  

   Please contact your representative here’s a list by phone or email, asking that they support of the current version of House Bill 288, and for any amendments supported by the bill sponsor.  Also ask them to vote against any amendments that would allow some hospitals to withhold care.  

   EVERY woman, EVERY hospital — it’s as basic as that.

5. 

   CabinGirl on June 14, 2007 at 8:09 am

   get ready to go bananas: AP

   The sweet treat known for its golden spongy cake and its creamy vanilla center is returning to its roots with banana-creme filling — the flavor that first made the snack a hit with sweet-toothed people more than 70 years ago.

   Hostess, owned by Kansas City, Mo.-based Interstate Bakeries Corp., began selling the banana-creme snack cakes last week at retail stores nationwide. The filling tastes just as sweet as the standard vanilla but with a subtle hint and smell of banana.

   Just more hard-hitting journalism courtesy of the AP.  🙂

6. 

   CabinGirl on June 14, 2007 at 8:14 am

   that surge thing isn’t working out so well: WashPo

   Three months into the new U.S. military strategy that has sent tens of thousands of additional troops into Iraq, overall levels of violence in the country have not decreased, as attacks have shifted away from Baghdad and Anbar, where American forces are concentrated, only to rise in most other provinces, according to a Pentagon report released yesterday.

   The report — the first comprehensive statistical overview of the new U.S. military strategy in Iraq — coincided with renewed fears of sectarian violence after the bombing yesterday of the same Shiite shrine north of Baghdad that was attacked in February 2006, unleashing a spiral of retaliatory bloodshed. Iraq’s government imposed an immediate curfew in Baghdad yesterday to prevent an outbreak of revenge killings.

   Of course, BushCo will take this as a sign that they should just keep doing exactly what they’re doing, only harder and faster, while Iraq wishes they would either pass out or go home…

7. 

   boran2 on June 14, 2007 at 1:43 pm

   ENS link

   Plants Can Recognize and Prefer Their Kin

   HAMILTON, Ontario, Canada, June 13, 2007 (ENS) – The apparently passive garden plant is not as easy-going as people assume, at least not with strangers. Researchers at McMaster University have found that plants become competitive when forced to share a pot with strangers of the same species, but they are more friendly when potted with their siblings.

   “The ability to recognize and favor kin is common in animals, but this is the first time it has been shown in plants,” said Dr. Susan Dudley, associate professor of biology at McMaster University in Hamilton.

   • 

     CabinGirl on June 14, 2007 at 1:53 pm

     Are they suggesting that plants lack sibling rivalry?  🙂

8. 

   on June 14, 2007 at 2:29 pm

   Last Summer Before Armageddon, Enjoy

   http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=5964

9. 

   Man Eegee on June 14, 2007 at 3:33 pm

   Unconscionable

   A federal judge Wednesday declined to order the U.S. government to help in the search for a developmentally disabled man whose family alleged that he was improperly deported earlier this year to Tijuana, Mexico.

   U.S. District Judge Dean Pregerson said he was not convinced that he had the authority to order the government to help in the search for Pedro Guzman, a U.S. citizen, but said it would be the “right” and “moral” thing to do.

   • 

     ask on June 14, 2007 at 3:46 pm

     What a cop-out!
     What’s so hard to understand; a government agency fucked up – now they need to fix it!

10. 

    on June 14, 2007 at 7:28 pm

    Why?  Because they refused to allow a vote on gay marriage.  Now I was perfectly willing to embrace the concept of diversity but that was before the left started shoving shit down my throat.  Embrace “diversity” which actually meant

    1.  My daughter lost a job at the bank because of a decision made by here boss(the bank’s “token” nigga)
    2.  My wife is on prescription motrin from lifting too many patients at the nursing home because another “non-english” speaking woman hides all night and refuses to answer the lights.  The company is so gun-shy at the prospect of a discrimination suit they don’t fire these people.
    3.  I’m going to have even crappier health insurance because now more payouts have been added.

    June 14,2007, it’s my birthday but I will remember it as gay bashing day.
    I used to resonate well and in harmony with progressive principles but with the destructive paths some of these major platforms are taking the left is proving itself just as bad as the right.

    • 

      BooMan on June 14, 2007 at 7:39 pm

      well, I usually have no idea what your comments mean, but this one is offensive.  

      • 

        Man Eegee on June 14, 2007 at 7:50 pm

        perhaps because he’s a self-professed “equal opportunity bigot“

      • 

        on June 15, 2007 at 7:30 am

        It’s just my story of how “diversity” has had a negative impact on my family’s life.  I am the first one to live and let live  but these sacred principles of the left need more thought to them.  It is a learned response, a hatred which is taught when minorities get a free ride at my expense.

        Also we rail on about how Bush disregards the law but what they did in Mass yesterday was the very same thing.  They will not allow a vote, and that is subverting the democratic process.