Wednesday, January 30 in the news....
- The Australian Government is set to say sorry to Aboriginal people when parliament reconvenes on Wednesday, February 13, in Canberra. Meanwhile, Australian wine cask makers are set to say thank you to the Aboriginal people.
Tuesday, January 29 in the news.....
- President George W. Bush sought to calm Americans' fears about the troubled economy in his State of the Union address Monday. The President had been practicing the speech all weekend, a spokesman said, an intern later noting to a reporter in the press corps how the President ducked his head out the Oval Office to ask her where he was supposed to calm the fears.
- President Vladimir Putin's chosen successor, Dmitry Medvedev, has refused to meet his rivals for the presidency in live television debates ahead of the March 2 election. His opponents denounced his decision as unfair, which confused Medvedev, reportedly telling a confidant that remaining alive is very fair.
- A missile destroyed a suspected militant hideout in volatile northwestern Pakistan on Tuesday, killing 12 people, officials said. In Pakistan, suspected militant hideout is another term for local mosque.
- Some of the worst winter weather to hit southern China in decades took 25 more lives Tuesday when a bus plunged off an icy road. This was in line with China's 'one bus off an icy road in winter' population control policy.
- US Senator Edward Kennedy, a Democratic icon and a leading liberal voice, endorsed Barack Obama on Monday for the party's presidential nomination, he also endorsed a few brands of cream whip and a bakery in his home town.
Friday, January 25 in the news.....
- Pakistan on Friday successfully test-fired a medium-range, nuclear-capable missile, an event witnessed by the nation's new army chief, the military said. The test involved a road between two local towns, a vest, a tracksuit, jogging shoes and a man with a long beard.
- Egyptian border guards appeared to be taking steps to close the border with the Gaza Strip on Friday, forming a human chain and blocking movement of Palestinians into Egypt with their riot shields, witnesses said. Gaza's Hamas rulers successfully broke through the internationally supported Israeli closure and see it as a victory for the Palestinians. Israel's government was not happy but mocked the move, saying Israelis don't break through walls to get to Egypt, they part the Red Sea to get out.
- US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday the challenges facing Colombia will only get harder if a trade deal with Washington doesn't pass, as she met with union members during a visit to try to revive the pact. The union members want regulations and restrictions in the USA removed from some of their goods, specifically, cocaine.
- After a prominent bank lost $7 billion on the back of a single rogue trader, France stepped up efforts to restore confidence in the banking system as the bank, Societe Generale, faced tough questions on Friday over why it failed to prevent the biggest financial dealing scandal in history. It opened up a spat between the bank and the French government, with the government accusing the bank of failing to maintain the confidence of the French people with its defences against this sort of situation, and the bank accusing the French government of causing a similar scandal in 1940.
- The White House and the Democratic-led Congress on Thursday reached a tentative deal on an economic stimulus package, President Bush wanted it to go through as quick as possible on the back of market uncertainty about the US economic direction. The President said there was no time to salt the clouds in the hope of rain, when asked to explain what he meant the President responded, "Rainbows? Leprechauns?"
- Russia's Central Election Commission said on Thursday it had grounds to disqualify former prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov from running as an independent in a March presidential election, news agencies reported. Kasyanov was Putin's first prime minister but became a Kremlin critic after losing his job in 2004. It is not known if the former prime minister will fight the disqualification and go on campaigning or accept the terms of it and live past March.
Thursday, January 24 in the news....
- Tens of thousands of Gazans flooded into Egypt on Wednesday through a border fence blown up by militants - puncturing a gaping hole in Israel's airtight closure of the Gaza Strip and giving a boost to Hamas. In a shopping spree that was both festive and frenzied, Gazans cleared out stores in an Egyptian border town, buying up everything from TV sets to soft drinks to cigarettes. The shopping spree saw men with four wives being dragged around and may encourage the Israelis to blockade shopping sprees next to stop Hamas recruiting these men for suicide operations.
Monday, January 21 in the news....
- US Presidential candidate Barack Obama called Sunday for unity to overcome the country's problems, Bill Clinton agreed, saying, "It's a good idea from Barack Hussein Obama the middle name being Arabic and of Muslim origin, so yes I support that idea."
- The Pakistani military pounded an extremist stronghold Sunday near the Afghan border where a rebel leader blamed for the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto is believed to be hiding, officials and witnesses said. It is believed the rebel leader was stuffed with hay had a pumpkin head and was sitting on a chair dressed in pants and a shirt with 'rebel leader' written on the front. Musharraf vowed to get him.
Wednesday, January 16 in the news.....
- Fidel Castro has appeared in a series of official photographs, the first released in three months. Castro wore a tracksuit and tennis shoes which has become a trademark since he fell ill, observers note that the fashion choice is not meant to convey a perception of fitness, but that Cuba's pop culture has now moved into the 1970s.
- The Taliban said Tuesday that its suicide bombers would attack restaurants where Westerners eat in Kabul. As a result security has been propped up at the restaurants and the previously non-descript eateries are showing more visible signs of it, with Hamburglar and Grimace revealing themselves after being given the authority to fire on suspect vehicles and customers.
- Japanese whalers say they will continue to hold hostage two environmental activists aboard their vessel until the protesters meet their demands. The two men - Australian Benjamin Potts and Briton Giles Lane - have been held on the whaling ship since yesterday. It is believed they have already been subjected to karaoke and forced to read statements which are actually lines from Jim Carrey films that the crew finds funny.
Saturday, January 12 in the news....
- One of the largest bombing campaigns of the war destroyed extremists' "defensive belts" south of Baghdad, allowing American soldiers to push into areas where they have not been in years, a top commander said Friday. He denied these areas were 'back home'.
- About a dozen senior campaign staffers for Rudy Giuliani are forgoing their January paychecks, aides said Friday, a sign of possible money trouble for the Republican presidential candidate. When questioned on the state of the donours Giuliani would only say that he hopes they haven't forgot about 9/11.
- The U.S. trade deficit in November surged to the highest level in 14 months, reflecting record foreign crude oil prices. The deficit with China declined slightly, but was later found to be an issue with warehouses running out of storage room for American paper dollars.
Thursday, January 10 News with Views...
- 'Just leave it for next week.' A street cleaner in Baghdad tries to stop further litter on his streets.
- 'I got some good ones on this you might not have seen.' Prime Minister Olmert of Israel presents US President George W Bush with a digital camera slideshow of all the high profile Islamists he's knocked off.
Thursday, January 10 in the news.....
- Tata Motors Ltd , India's top vehicle maker, on Thursday unveiled its low-cost small car and said it would roll out the new vehicle. When asked about the low cost car a spokesman for the company said, "Oh it's not low cost, no no, it's still very expensive for Indians."
- Israel and the Palestinians face a "historic moment, historic opportunity" to achieve peace in 2008 based on a two-state solution, US President George W. Bush said Wednesday. He went on, "At breakfast this morning we all ate Cheerios, I let mine get soggy in the milk, they waited, they didn't argue, I was encouraged."
Tuesday, January 1 News with Views.....
- 'He knows if you've been naughty or nice.' Santa is ushered in by the Marines to raid some houses in Iraq.
- 'That's a lot of sex toys.' Airport worker contemplates moving Paris Hilton's luggage during the festive season.
- 'I have to protect the American people.' A librarian shows the aftermath after Laura Bush took George W to the local library and told him he had to read more often.
