BREITBART.COM - Just The News: "SEOUL, South Korea
In a second day of bluster after its disarmament accord, North Korea accused the United States on Wednesday of planning a nuclear attack and warned it could retaliate.
North Korea 'is fully ready to decisively control a pre-emptive nuclear attack with a strong retaliatory blow,' the communist nation's Rodong Sinmun newspaper said in an English-language commentary carried by the state Korean Central News Agency.
At six-nation talks in Beijing on Monday, North Korea promised to give up its nuclear weapons program in return for economic aid and security assurances.
Since then, however, the North's rhetoric has underscored its unpredictability and cast doubt on its commitment to the accord hammered out with China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States after four rounds of contentious negotiations stretching over two years."
20.9.05
Oddly Enough News Article | Reuters.com
Oddly Enough News Article | Reuters.com: "VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Orthodontists have national conventions, as do lawyers and computer salespeople. So why not exorcists? At the end of his weekly general audience Wednesday Pope Benedict greeted Italian exorcists who, he disclosed, are currently holding their national convention.
The Pope encouraged them to 'carry on their important work in the service of the Church.'
Problem was that until the Pope spoke few people outside the inner circle knew that a convention of Beelzebub-busters was going on, presumably in Rome.
And where were they holding it? In a church, a hotel, a graveyard?
'They try to keep these things quiet,' said a Catholic professor who has dealings with exorcists.
The Roman Catholic Church has shown growing interest in exorcism in Italy.
In 1999, the Vatican issued its first updated ritual for exorcism since 1614 and warned that the devil is still at work."
The Pope encouraged them to 'carry on their important work in the service of the Church.'
Problem was that until the Pope spoke few people outside the inner circle knew that a convention of Beelzebub-busters was going on, presumably in Rome.
And where were they holding it? In a church, a hotel, a graveyard?
'They try to keep these things quiet,' said a Catholic professor who has dealings with exorcists.
The Roman Catholic Church has shown growing interest in exorcism in Italy.
In 1999, the Vatican issued its first updated ritual for exorcism since 1614 and warned that the devil is still at work."
local6.com - News - Couple 'Freakishly Lucky' To Survive 6 Hours In Shark-Infested Waters
local6.com - News - Couple 'Freakishly Lucky' To Survive 6 Hours In Shark-Infested Waters: "A British woman and man who found themselves floating in shark-infested Australian waters for six hours are 'freakishly lucky' to have survived, according to a Coast Guard captain.
Strong currents separated Louise Woodger, 29, and Gordon Pratley, 31, from their dive boat in Australia's northeast coast on Sunday.
They floated in the water for six hours among sharks.
'We just stayed really close, held hands, made sure we didn't get separated,' Pratley said. 'Just supported each other, kept each others spirits up. Bit of singing.'"
Strong currents separated Louise Woodger, 29, and Gordon Pratley, 31, from their dive boat in Australia's northeast coast on Sunday.
They floated in the water for six hours among sharks.
'We just stayed really close, held hands, made sure we didn't get separated,' Pratley said. 'Just supported each other, kept each others spirits up. Bit of singing.'"
Ananova - Artists erect giant pink bunny on mountain
Ananova - Artists erect giant pink bunny on mountain: "An enormous pink bunny has been erected on an Italian mountainside where it will stay for the next 20 years."
New twist on aid for Iraq: U.S. seeks donations - Yahoo! News
New twist on aid for Iraq: U.S. seeks donations - Yahoo! News: "Although more than $30 billion in taxpayer funds have been appropriated for Iraqi reconstruction, the administration earlier this month launched an Internet-based fundraising effort that it says is aimed at giving Americans 'a further stake in building a free and prosperous Iraq.'
Contributors have no way of knowing who's getting the money or precisely where it's headed because the government says it must keep the details secret for security reasons.
But taxpayers already finance the projects for which the administration is seeking charitable donations, such as providing water pumps for farmers. And officials say any contributions they receive will increase the scope of those efforts rather than relieve existing taxpayer burdens.
The campaign is raising eyebrows in the international development and not-for-profit communities, where there are questions about its timing--given needs at home--and whether it will set the government in competition with international not-for-profits.
On a more basic level, experts wonder whether Americans will make charitable donations to a government foreign aid program and whether the contentious environment surrounding Iraq will make a tough pitch even tougher.
'I'm a little skeptical, and the timing certainly isn't the best,' said James Ferris, director of the Center on Philanthropy and Public Policy at the University of Southern California. 'It's going to be a hard sell.'
Cost of rebuilding skyrockets
The U.S. Agency for International Development, the federal government's primary distributor of foreign aid, said Friday, 'Charitable contributions play an important role in enriching and extending U.S. government efforts.'
The effort is just the newest twist in the administration's struggle to rebuild Iraq. Andrew Natsios, head of USAID, first predicted it would cost taxpayers no more than $1.7 billion. The tab has since risen to more than $30 billion, with congressional Republicans and Democrats sharply critical of the high cost and slow pace of progress.
In addition, the new campaign comes amid increasing concerns that some of the administration's major projects in Iraq will be scrapped or only partially completed because of rising costs, especially for security. Some officials fear money may run out before key projects are completed."
Contributors have no way of knowing who's getting the money or precisely where it's headed because the government says it must keep the details secret for security reasons.
But taxpayers already finance the projects for which the administration is seeking charitable donations, such as providing water pumps for farmers. And officials say any contributions they receive will increase the scope of those efforts rather than relieve existing taxpayer burdens.
The campaign is raising eyebrows in the international development and not-for-profit communities, where there are questions about its timing--given needs at home--and whether it will set the government in competition with international not-for-profits.
On a more basic level, experts wonder whether Americans will make charitable donations to a government foreign aid program and whether the contentious environment surrounding Iraq will make a tough pitch even tougher.
'I'm a little skeptical, and the timing certainly isn't the best,' said James Ferris, director of the Center on Philanthropy and Public Policy at the University of Southern California. 'It's going to be a hard sell.'
Cost of rebuilding skyrockets
The U.S. Agency for International Development, the federal government's primary distributor of foreign aid, said Friday, 'Charitable contributions play an important role in enriching and extending U.S. government efforts.'
The effort is just the newest twist in the administration's struggle to rebuild Iraq. Andrew Natsios, head of USAID, first predicted it would cost taxpayers no more than $1.7 billion. The tab has since risen to more than $30 billion, with congressional Republicans and Democrats sharply critical of the high cost and slow pace of progress.
In addition, the new campaign comes amid increasing concerns that some of the administration's major projects in Iraq will be scrapped or only partially completed because of rising costs, especially for security. Some officials fear money may run out before key projects are completed."
19.9.05
Hurricanes Are Getting Stronger, Study Says
Hurricanes Are Getting Stronger, Study Says: "BOULDER -- The number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes worldwide has nearly doubled over the past 35 years, even though the total number of hurricanes has dropped since the 1990s, according to a study by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology and the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). The shift occurred as global sea surface temperatures have increased over the same period. The research appears in the September 16 issue of Science.
Peter Webster, professor at Georgia Tech's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, along with NCAR's Greg Holland and Georgia Tech's Judith Curry and Hai-Ru Chang, studied the number, duration, and intensity of hurricanes (also known as typhoons or tropical cyclones) that have occurred worldwide from 1970 to 2004. The study was supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), NCAR's primary sponsor."
Peter Webster, professor at Georgia Tech's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, along with NCAR's Greg Holland and Georgia Tech's Judith Curry and Hai-Ru Chang, studied the number, duration, and intensity of hurricanes (also known as typhoons or tropical cyclones) that have occurred worldwide from 1970 to 2004. The study was supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), NCAR's primary sponsor."
US President snapped requesting 'bathroom break'. 16/09/2005. ABC News Online
US President snapped requesting 'bathroom break'. 16/09/2005. ABC News Online: "A photographer has snapped United States President George W Bush apparently writing a note to ask whether a toilet break is possible during a United Nations meeting.
Mr Bush is said to have written the note to his Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice.
'I think I may need a bathroom break? Is this possible?' a Reuters news agency photographer caught him writing during a UN summit.
The photo has since been doing the rounds of the Internet. It has become the most-emailed picture on the Yahoo portal's news site."
Mr Bush is said to have written the note to his Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice.
'I think I may need a bathroom break? Is this possible?' a Reuters news agency photographer caught him writing during a UN summit.
The photo has since been doing the rounds of the Internet. It has become the most-emailed picture on the Yahoo portal's news site."
Desire and DNA: Is Promiscuity Innate? (washingtonpost.com)
Desire and DNA: Is Promiscuity Innate? (washingtonpost.com): "A fierce debate about whether jealousy, lust and sexual attraction are hardwired in the brain or are the products of culture and upbringing has recently been ignited by the growing influence of a school of psychology that sees the hidden hand of evolution in everyday life.
Fresh sparks flew last month when a study of more than 16,000 people from every inhabited continent found that men everywhere -- whether single, married or gay -- want more sexual partners than women do."
Fresh sparks flew last month when a study of more than 16,000 people from every inhabited continent found that men everywhere -- whether single, married or gay -- want more sexual partners than women do."
TheDenverChannel.com - News - 'Don't Let Me Die,' Lightning Victim Pleads
TheDenverChannel.com - News - 'Don't Let Me Die,' Lightning Victim Pleads: "A gold chain and crucifix melted around his neck when a lightning bolt struck Jason Crawford in the head while he and his brother were riding dirt bikes in Gunnison County.
The bolt melted part of his helmet, fractured his skull and left burn scars on his chest and left arm.
Still, Crawford knows it could have been worse. Doctors told him if he hadn't had his helmet on, he would have died. Even with the helmet, it took 30 stitches to close a wound in his head caused by the freak lighting strike."
The bolt melted part of his helmet, fractured his skull and left burn scars on his chest and left arm.
Still, Crawford knows it could have been worse. Doctors told him if he hadn't had his helmet on, he would have died. Even with the helmet, it took 30 stitches to close a wound in his head caused by the freak lighting strike."
The Globe and Mail: Ex-Wal-Mart workers win battle
The Globe and Mail: Ex-Wal-Mart workers win battle: "Quebec — The Quebec Labour Board has ruled that the closing of a Wal-Mart store this year amounted to a reprisal against unionized workers and has ordered the company to compensate former employees."
ABC News: Doctor Pushes for First Face Transplant
ABC News: Doctor Pushes for First Face Transplant: "CLEVELAND Sep 17, 2005 — In the next few weeks, five men and seven women will secretly visit the Cleveland Clinic to interview for the chance to have a radical operation that's never been tried anywhere in the world.
They will smile, raise their eyebrows, close their eyes, open their mouths. Dr. Maria Siemionow will study their cheekbones, lips and noses. She will ask what they hope to gain and what they most fear.
Then she will ask, 'Are you afraid that you will look like another person?'
Because whoever she chooses will endure the ultimate identity crisis.
Siemionow wants to attempt a face transplant."
They will smile, raise their eyebrows, close their eyes, open their mouths. Dr. Maria Siemionow will study their cheekbones, lips and noses. She will ask what they hope to gain and what they most fear.
Then she will ask, 'Are you afraid that you will look like another person?'
Because whoever she chooses will endure the ultimate identity crisis.
Siemionow wants to attempt a face transplant."
CNN.com - N. Korea agrees to give up nuclear program - Sep 19, 2005
BEIJING, China (CNN) -- Nearly three years after ordering U.N. nuclear inspectors out of the country, North Korea Monday agreed to give up its entire nuclear program, including weapons, a joint statement from six-party nuclear arms talks in Beijing said.
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