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Monday, June 14, 2010
THE TELEGRAPH: Anti-racism activists have condemned plans to hold a "pork sausage and wine" party in a multi-ethnic Paris district to protest against what the organisers call the area's "Islamisation".
SOS Racisme called for the event scheduled for Friday in the Goutte d'Or area of north Paris to be banned because it sent out a "message of hate and of violence towards groups of people because of their real or supposed origins".
The opposition Communist Party said in a statement that "this disgusting joke seeks to exacerbate the differences that make for the richness of the 18th arrondissement (district)".
Sylvie Francois, a local resident, told French radio that she set up a Facebook page for the event to fight against what she saw as the increasing "Islamisation" of her area. >>> | Monday, June 14, 2010
Bloc Identitaire >>>
Apéro Goutte d’Or : Sylvie François livre la liste des soutiens officiels >>> | Lundi 14 Juin 2010
THE TELEGRAPH: Barbara Bush, one of George W Bush's daughters has admitted that she supported President Barack Obama's health care legislation.
In the latest example of a member of the former Republican president's family disagreeing with his key policies, Miss Bush, 28, said health care should be a right for everyone, not a privilege.
"Why do, basically, people with money have good health care and why do people who live on lower salaries not have good health care?" she said on Fox News.
"Obviously the health care reform bill was highly debated by a lot of people, and I'm glad the bill was passed," she said.
During the debate over the bill last year, her father, whose government made no effort to reform health care despite steeply rising costs, said he was worried that reform would encourage government to supersede the private sector in proving health insurance. The bill was opposed by every Republican in Congress. >>> Alex Spillius in Washington | Monday, June 14, 2010
FOX NEWS: Nearly nine years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the bi-state agency that operates the World Trade Center is looking for a private partner to help manage the 1,776-foot office tower that is being built at Ground Zero -- and one of two companies under consideration may have ties to the Middle East.
The bidding process for private partners for the "Freedom Tower" has been whittled down to two companies: Durst Organization and Related Companies, Fox News legal analyst Peter Johnson Jr. reports.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey will soon decide which partner will manage and help market the tower, which has been renamed One World Trade Center. The partner will invest at least $100 million into the office tower and memorial building.
Related Cos. is an international real estate group whose investors include Goldman Sachs; MSD Capital, LP; Mubadala Development Co.; Kuwait Investment Authority; and Olayan Group, according to the company’s website.
Mubadala Development Co. is owned by the Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, government.
Johnson reports that Related Cos. is involved in a joint project with the UAE-backed company, which is chaired by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi. Johnson said Related Cos. also has ties to the Saudi Arabian royal family and to financiers based in Dubai. (+ video) >>> FOXNews.com | Monday, June 14, 2010
Dr. Zuhdi Jasser: American Islamic Forum for Democracy >>>
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Barack Obama has sought to shore up the US economy with a request for $50 billion (£34 billion) in emergency funding from Congress to save the jobs of "hundreds of thousands" of teachers, firemen and policemen.
He said the aid, which also included measures to help small businesses, was essential to ensure that the country did not "slide backwards just as our recovery is taking hold".
"It is essential that we continue to explore additional measures to spur job creation and build momentum toward recovery, even as we establish a path to long-term fiscal discipline," Mr Obama wrote in a letter sent to party leaders in Congress.
Pointing out that 84,000 public sector jobs had been lost so far this year, he said keeping people employed in the short term would cost less than their unemployment.
The demand to inject further government spending into the economy puts America on the opposite course to its major trading partners in the developed world. Britain, Germany, Japan, France and Italy have all announced cuts after boosting spending to counter the recession in recent years.
Mr Obama is also likely to encounter stiff domestic opposition. Republicans immediately criticised the president for seeking to spend more money when the national debt has risen to £9.6 trillion.
John Boehner, the Republican leader in the House of Representatives, said spending more public money without offsetting the costs was irresponsible.
"The spending spree in Washington continues unabated, though the American people are screaming at the top of their lungs: 'Stop'." >>> Alex Spillius in Washington | Sunday, June 13, 2010
Obamonomics©: A Definition >>>
NZZ ONLINE: Aussenministerin Micheline Calmy-Rey hat sich am Montag vor den Medien bei allen bedankt, die zur Freilassung von Max Göldi beigetragen haben. Besonderer Dank ging an die EU und an Bundesrat Hans-Rudolf Merz.
Göldis Rückkehr in die Schweiz sei weder ein Zufall noch eine Laune des Schicksals, sagte Calmy-Rey. Viel mehr handle es sich um die Frucht unermüdlicher Bemühungen und monatelanger Anstrengungen. «Wir sind alle erleichtert und zufrieden», sagte Calmy-Rey.
Dank gehe an die Mitarbeitenden des Departements, aber auch an die EU, insbesondere an ihre Amtskollegen von Spanien und Deutschland, an den König Spaniens und den italienischen Ministerpräsidenten Silvio Berlusconi. >>> sda | Montag, 14. Juni 2010
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LE TEMPS: L’épilogue de l’affaire des otages suisses en Libye est en grande partie redevable à nos partenaires de l’UE, estime la presse au lendemain du retour de Max Göldi
Max Göldi, le responsable du groupe d’ingénierie ABB en Libye où il était retenu depuis juillet 2008, est arrivé dans la nuit de dimanche à lundi à Zurich, accompagné de la cheffe de la diplomatie helvétique, Micheline Calmy-Rey. Pour 24 Heures, c’est «la fin d’un long cauchemar». «Mais il semble bien difficile, nuance le quotidien vaudois, de faire des pénibles tractations avec la Libye une quelconque victoire pour la Suisse. Pour signer le billet de sortie de Max Göldi, Micheline Calmy-Rey aura courbé le front jusqu’à terre. Des excuses – de doubles excuses! – un tribunal arbitral et, peut-être, une rançon.» «Pour le régime libyen, la victoire est totale», «la Suisse aura consenti à des humiliations terribles. Celle d’un petit pays qui achète la paix d’un tyran plus puissant que lui. Le prix de la raison d’Etat.» Même si Euronews interprète les choses ainsi: «Les relations se réchauffent entre Berne et Tripoli.»
Et maintenant? Les yeux se tournent vers Genève, «où l’arrestation d’Hannibal Kadhafi va être à nouveau passée au crible», enchaîne la Tribune de Genève, qui n’évoque pas les fameuses photographies d’Hannibal Kadhafi qu’elle avait publiées, ce dont Micheline Calmy-Rey s’est excusée dimanche à Tripoli. Alors, «nécessaire, inopportune, illégale», cette arrestation? «La police, la justice et le Conseil d’Etat, après avoir tenu bon face aux pressions insensées de Kadhafi, devront-ils plier encore? Genève pourrait bien être appelé à payer le solde de la facture.» >>> Olivier Perrin | Lundi 14 Juin 2010
WORLD RADIO SWITZERLAND (WRS): Max Göldi returned to Zurich in the early morning hours Monday after nearly two years in Libya. The ABB employee arrived in the company of Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey, and her Spanish counterpart Miguel Angel Moratinos, and was greeted by family.
Göldi’s liberation was the fruit of 36 hours of intense diplomatic efforts on the ground in Tripoli, culminating in a visit by Calmy-Rey, Moratinos and Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi with Libyan leader Moammar Kadhafi in his famed tent.
Earlier on Sunday, Calmy-Rey concluded a ”plan of action” with Libya, paving the way for normalized relations. The accord unblocks the process of international arbitration to assess responsibilities for the arrest of Moammar Kadhafi’s son and daughter-in-law in Geneva in July of 2008—the origin of the diplomatic row.
It also offers apologies for the leaked mugshot of Moammar Kadhafi’s son, Hannibal and promises monetary compensation if the canton of Geneva authorities come up empty handed in their investigation into who was responsible. (with radio link) >>> | Monday, June 14, 2010
THE GUARDIAN: At least 117 killed as thousands flee burning homes and Kyrgyz rioters armed with axes, while Uzbek leader claims higher toll
Thousands of Uzbeks fleeing southern Kyrgyzstan massed at the border today, as the deadliest ethnic violence in decades left entire city blocks razed to the ground and scores of people dead.
The official death toll from the clashes that began last week reached 117, with 1,500 injured, the health ministry of the beleaguered former Soviet country, which hosts US and Russian military bases, announced.
However, an Uzbek leader claimed that 200 Uzbeks have already been buried, and the International Committee of the Red Cross has said its delegates witnessed about 100 bodies being buried in just one cemetery.
Jallahitdin Jalilatdinov, who heads the Uzbek National Centre, said that at least 100,000 had fled for the border and were awaiting entry into Uzbekistan. An Associated Press reporter saw at least hundreds of Uzbek refugees stuck at a border crossing near Jalal-Abad in a no-man's land between the boundaries.
The interim government, which took over after Kurmanbek Bakiyev was ousted by a public revolt in April, has been unable to stop the violence and accused Bakiyev's family of instigating it. Uzbeks have backed the interim government, while many Kyrgyz in the south have supported the toppled president. (+ video) >>> Luke Harding and agencies | Monday, June 14, 2010
THE TIMES: Amid the pomp of the Bastille Day celebrations in Paris next month, Alex Rowe, Newcastle-born and Gloucestershire-raised, will be invested as a Chevalier of the Légion d’Honneur for his service in the French Foreign Legion.
It is an honour unheard of for an English legionnaire, but Adjudant-chef Rowe is frank: he would much rather have joined the British Army. While his twin brother, Mark, was accepted into the Royal Engineers, Adjudant-chef Rowe was rejected because of a childhood detached retina.
The decision still rankles. While he speaks matter-of-factly about quelling African rebellions and escaping death in a Taleban ambush, mention the British army and he suddenly becomes animated. “I became a sniper, this is the point,” he said, his accent veering between Geordie and French. “You can’t get into the British army because you’ve got a f***ed eye, and you become a sniper in the French Foreign Legion. Something’s gone wrong there.”
Not just a sniper, but one of the most highly decorated of all legionnaires. He has seen action in Bosnia, Kosovo, central Africa, the Ivory Coast and Afghanistan, winning an astonishing five citations for bravery. In his first interview, he told The Times: “Most guys will have one citation, some will have two. Three is very rare. Five is . . .” here he tailed off into a very Gallic shrug. “But I haven’t done anything more than my job.”
At a Legion training camp near Toulouse, Adjudant-chef Rowe, 43, explained how he went from running a pub in Stroud to being a hero of France’s elite and mythologised unit. Furious at his medical rejection by the Army, despite acceptance by Sandhurst, Adjudant-chef Rowe tried to run away to the Legion at 18. His mother talked him out of it, but just before his 21st birthday he flew to Marseilles, walked into a recruiting office and “basically disappeared” from the outside world. Continue reading and comment >>> Chris Smyth | Monday, June 14, 2010
THE TIMES: David Cameron is preparing for his first confrontation with the European Union later this week by rejecting demands that he should submit Budget proposals for the approval of Brussels.
Herman Van Rompuy, the EU President, wants all 27 member states to share financial plans with the European Commission to prevent another crisis similar to the one in Greece.
“A government presenting a Budget plan with a high deficit would have to justify itself in front of its peers, among finance ministers,” Mr Van Rompuy said. “There would still be time to adjust plans before the final Budget plans are presented.”
The proposal is likely to be discussed on Thursday when Mr Cameron attends his first European Council meeting as Prime Minister. William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, described the Government’s opposition as “trenchant” yesterday. “It is not a proposal that we can support,” he said. “The Prime Minister, the Chancellor and I have all made that very clear. The British Budget must be presented to the British Parliament. That is a position we will argue for and we will maintain. The discussions on this have some way to go but our position is pretty categorical.” Continue reading and comment >>> David Charter, Francis Elliott | Monday, June 14, 2010
Sunday, June 13, 2010
THE OLIVE PRESS: A chance encounter in the Alhambra leads Jason Webster to believe Christian Spain’s obsession with sex and sensuality stretches back to when the country was ruled by the Moors
THEY used to say Spain was the only country where power was more important than sex. But that was in the dark days of Franco, when Catholicism and fascism combined to ensure that even those who escaped the firing squads were not allowed to have any fun.
The Caudillo himself was said to be a passionless creature – at least according to a confidential remark by his wife that quickly spread across the whole of Spain – but follar (f*cking) particularly within the confines of family life, was officially at least, a strictly joyless affair.
All this, as everyone knows, has now changed. With the death of Franco, Spain went loco por el sexo, a trend which, 30 years on, I can report is still pulsing vibrantly through the veins down here.
But the current overflowing of physical vitality is not simply a reaction to the repressive years of the dictatorship. Anarchists in the Civil War spread the word of free love and open marriages, while ‘liberating’ prostitutes from sexual slavery – some of these later fought in the trenches of Aragon.
Promiscuity on the Left in the 1930s became the norm, and even the rather austere-looking widow at the head of the Spanish Communist Party, La Pasionaria, was said to keep a young party member as a lover back home while she emboldened the troops at the front with cries of ¡No pasarán!
Erotic history
Yet the deep eroticism of the Spanish is older than this, and to find its roots you have to go back much further, as I have discovered, to the times of the Moors.
Muslims ruled parts of Spain for 800 years, creating a rich, vibrant culture way ahead of their Christian rivals. When London was a mere group of huts in a marsh by the Thames, as the dusky Arab reminds the blond lieutenant in Lawrence of Arabia, Moorish Cordoba had street lighting, a thousand bath houses and more than 300 libraries.
Moorish Spain was hippest place to be in Medieval Europe, whether you were looking for knowledge, a wash, or the best looking girls, most of them following the latest fashions and trends from Baghdad – even today las co[r]dobesas are renowned as being the prettiest women in Spain.
Cosmopolitan culture and vast wealth combined in this southwestern corner of Europe to create a powerhouse of sophistication and sensuality.
Stroll through the pleasure palace that is the Alhambra in Granada today and you will see what I mean. Rivalled only in beauty by the Taj Mahal, it is a dream-scape made of stone, where fresh mountain water trickles from white marble fountains, forests of fine needle columns reach up to snowflake ceilings, where Arabesques and geometric patterns draw you into other worlds while you shade yourself by a myrtle bush from the relentless Andalusian sun.
This was once the Sultan’s harem, perhaps the most erotic place in the Medieval world. Who could not be stirred by such a place? Read on and comment >>> Jason Webster* | Friday, July 06, 2007
*Jason Webster has written three books about Spain. Duende, Al-Andalus and Guerra are published by Black Swan and are available at all good bookshops. Visit his website here.
TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE: Le texte a été approuvé à l'unanimité.
L'Islande, seul pays au monde dont le chef de gouvernement soit ouvertement homosexuel, a adopté vendredi une loi autorisant les personnes de même sexe à se marier. Le texte a été approuvé à l'unanimité.
Les 49 membres de l'Althing (parlement) se sont prononcés en faveur d'un texte de loi qui étend le champ d'application du mariage aux unions entre «homme et homme, femme et femme». Pays insulaire de 320.000 habitants où prévaut une grande tolérance sociale, l'Islande a élu Premier ministre en 2009 la social-démocrate Johanna Sigurdadottir, homosexuelle déclarée. >>> ATS | Vendredi 11 Juin 2010
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