Can the Web Really Be Unspun?
GLOBE AND MAIL: For the past few decades, a huge network infrastructure has provided billions of people with access to information and technology that was inconceivable to earlier generations.

But if the cybergelicals of the 1990s were right about how the Internet would transform everyday life, they were less prophetic about what exactly those transformations would look like. As the number of users and applications has expanded, so have the frustrations and risks of plugging in.

This week, the United States banned soldiers from websites such as YouTube and MySpace – concerned that downloads and social networking could overload military systems and lead to security breaches. Some banks have reverted to snail mail to help customers steer clear of phishers trying to bilk them out of their money.

“Over all, the situation is not getting better, it's getting worse,” says David Clark, a senior researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and one of the early creators of the Internet. Untangling the World Wide Web (more) By Christopher Dreher

GLOBE AND MAIL: Study finds 25 countries censor websites

GLOBE AND MAIL:
YouTube doubtful of Pentagon explanation for blocking sites By Scott Lindlaw

Mark Alexander

Sweeping Changes to US Immigration Proposed
LA TIMES: As the U.S. Senate prepares this week to debate the most sweeping proposed change to the nation's immigration system in more than four decades, Irvine technology executive Bruce Warren and Los Angeles homemaker Monsorat Jaldon symbolize the high stakes looming for millions of families, businesses and workers.

The proposal would shift the way the nation awards green cards from a heavy preference on applicants with family ties — a system adopted in 1965 — to those with advanced skills, college degrees and English-speaking ability. Businesses, families have a lot riding on immigration change (more) By Teresa Watanabe

CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR:
To immigrants, US reform bill is unrealistic

Mark Alexander

5% Fall in Value of US Dollar Against the Euro and Pound Sterling So Far This Year; Equivalent to a 20% Decline
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR: NEW YORK - It's like a summer movie: the incredible shrinking dollar.

Since the beginning of the year, the buck has shrunk 5 percent – the equivalent of a 20 percent annual decline – compared with the pound and the euro.

But the shriveling value of the dollar may eventually help solve one of the most intractable US economic problems: the enormous trade deficit, which hit $63.9 billion in March, the highest level since September of last year.

Already, giant European companies are taking advantage of their strong currency by announcing huge investments in the United States. And US exporters such as Boeing and Caterpillar are getting an order boost as the lower-valued dollar allows them to undercut their competition.

"The forces are in place now to slowly over time cause the trade deficit to shrink," says Jay Bryson, a senior international economist for Wachovia Securities Research in Charlotte, N.C.

The change in the dollar's value also comes with ramifications for US consumers. It's now more expensive for Americans to travel abroad. Italian leather, Belgian chocolates, and English cheddar will cost more. In addition, many Americans may find they have a new boss – one who is based overseas or relocating to the States. Dollar buying ever less of the world’s goods (more) By Ron Scherer

Mark Alexander

"Liban: les combats meurtriers se poursuivent"
LE FIGARO: Alors que les affrontements entre l'armée libanaise et des militants extrémistes ont repris ce matin au nord du pays, un attentat a frappé la capitale.

C'est le premier incident du genre à Beyrouth depuis plusieurs mois. Dimanche, peu avant minuit, une Libanaise de 63 ans a été tuée et dix autres personnes blessées par l’explosion d’un engin piégé dans le quartier chrétien d'Achrafié. "Il s'agit d'un attentat terroriste qui vise à faire peur à la population et à déstabiliser la sécurité au Liban", a déclaré un officier de police. "La charge explosive placée dans une voiture garée dans un parking jouxtant un centre commercial pesait environ 40 kg et a provoqué un cratère de 1,5 mètre de profondeur et de 3 mètres de diamètre", a ajouté ce policier. Après Tripoli, la violence gagne Beyrouth (encore)

THE AUSTRALIAN:
Australians urged to avoid Lebanese fighting

BBC:
Lebanon clashes’ kill civilians

WATCH BBC VIDEO:
Fresh fighting in Lebanon

Mark Alexander

Islam-Compliant Funds Defy the Odds
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR: The strategy is almost heresy on Wall Street: Find a top-performing investment by seeking out a mutual fund with some of the industry's strictest ethical screening requirements.

Yet that approach, if adopted, would work in at least one case. The Amana Income Fund, which avoids not only alcohol, tobacco, and gambling stocks but also pork producers and lenders who charge interest, received a Lipper award earlier this year for outperforming 180 equity income funds – screened and unscreened – over the past three years.

Amana Funds dominate the relatively small niche of socially responsible investing (SRI) that aims to reflect Islamic law, or sharia. The idea is for an entire portfolio to reflect moral values from the Koran, which deems pork products unclean and regards the charging and paying of interest as immoral endeavors that foster exploitative relationships.

"If Islam forbids it, then we're not going to buy it," says Monem Salam, deputy portfolio manager at Amana Funds. That principle generally "keeps us out of trouble," he says, by requiring the funds to avoid such ticking time bombs as Enron and WorldCom, which imploded in accounting scandals a few years back. Both were too heavily leveraged to pass muster at Amana. A market edge for Muslims (more) By G Jeffrey MacDonald

Mark Alexander

Dubai Ruler Shows the Arab World the Way Forward
GLOBE AND MAIL: AMMAN — The Middle Eastern version of the World Economic Forum held each year in Jordan is known as a talking shop, one that produces little action. But simply talking has never been Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum's style.
The ruler of Dubai and prime minister of the United Arab Emirates left the other delegates at the forum almost speechless when he announced on the weekend that he would spend $10-billion (U.S.) of his own money to improve the level of education in the Arab world.

The announcement was greeted by thunderous applause at the forum being held on the shores of the Dead Sea, and was immediately hailed as the largest charitable donation ever given in the Muslim world.

"Without exaggeration I think this is the greatest thing anyone has done for Arab youth. This money will be well spent to improve human beings," said Abdulaziz al-Namalah, a Jordanian businessman and a participant at the forum. "I think the Arab world would look much different today if this was done many years ago." Dubai ruler donates $10-billion to boost education in Arab world (more) By Mark MacKinnon

Mark Alexander

”Ginger Beer” No ‘Small Beer’ for Clarkson

Photo of Jeremy Clarkson courtesy of Google Images (UK)

YAHOO NEWS: LONDON (Reuters) - "Top Gear" presenter Jeremy Clarkson was criticised by the media watchdog on Monday for describing a car as "very ginger beer", rhyming slang for "queer".

In a written ruling, Ofcom said the phrase could offend homosexuals and should not have been used. Clarkson rapped for “ginger beer” rhyming slang (more)

Mark Alexander

Kuwaiti Dinar No Longer Pegged to the Sliding US Dollar
FINANCIAL TIMES: Kuwait on Sunday removed its currency peg to the US dollar, throwing plans for a Gulf currency union by 2010 into doubt and raising the prospect that other oil-producing states might abandon long-held dollar pegs.
Sheikh Salem Abdelaziz Al Sabah, governor of the Central Bank of Kuwait, told the official Kuwait news agency that the decision had been made owing to the “detrimental effects of the pegging system to the national economy”.

Since late last year, Kuwaiti officials have hinted that the country would revert to a basket of currencies to prevent the sliding dollar increasing the cost of imports, which has stoked inflation to more than 4 per cent, double the historic average. This has encouraged speculators to plough billions of dollars into the dinar over the past few months, betting that the central bank would allow the dinar to appreciate. Kuwait abandons US dollar peg (more) By Simeon Kerr

KUWAIT TIMES:
Kuwait drops dollar peg

Mark Alexander

Negroponte Warning Over Al-Qaeda Expansion
FINANCIAL TIMES: A top US official has warned of the increasing risks of terrorism and violence in Africa and the Middle East, in a sobering account of the current state of the Bush administration’s “war against terror”.
John Negroponte, deputy US secretary of state, highlighted increased al-Qaeda activity in northern parts of Africa as well as the risk of Iraq violence spreading further across the Middle East.

“I think there’s a concern that al-Qaeda might expand its efforts into the Sahel region [immediately south of the Sahara in Africa]”, he said, citing Chad, Mali and Niger. His comments, in an interview with the Financial Times and other European newspapers, follow a warning from countries such as Morocco that a growing number of terrorist training camps across the Sahel region are drawing in north Africans. Negroponte fears al-Qaeda expansion (more) By Daniel Dombay

Mark Alexander

How Much Is Too Much?

Image courtesy of Google Images (Germany)

SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL: A debate is raging in Istanbul about just how much skin advertising billboards should be allowed to show. The dispute highlights the deep divisions between Muslims and secularists in the country. And it may become an election issue.

The model, wearing a scanty bathing suit, leans back against sun-baked stones, her hip jutting playfully to the side. In one photo she even spreads her legs slightly -- suggestively. In a Europe where photos of half naked models staring alluringly out at passers by are simply part of the cityscape, such a billboard would hardly rate a second glance. But in Turkey, the swimwear ads are far from mainstream, and they have triggered a dispute that offers a taste of just what the upcoming general election campaign might be like. Too much skin on Istanbul boards (more) By Annette Grossbongardt

Mark Alexander

When it Comes to Allocating Council Houses, British Families Should Be Given Priority, Says Margaret Hodge
DAILY MAIL: British families should be given council housing ahead of immigrants, a Labour minister has claimed.
Margaret Hodge risked a race row by warning that it was "unfair" when new arrivals jumped to the top of the queue - leaving no homes for families in Britain for generations.

She said a points system giving weight to length of residence, citizenship and National Insurance contributions would be a better way of allocating homes. Don’t let migrants jump the housing queue, says minister (more) By Ian Drury

Mark Alexander

Österreichische Staatsbürgerschaft immer seltener verliehen
DIE PRESSE: Nach der Verschärfung des Staatsbürgerschafts-Rechts durch die alte Koalition wird die österreichische Staatsbürgerschaft immer seltener verliehen. Im ersten Quartal 2007 wurden um zwei Drittel weniger Personen eingebürgert, als im ersten Quartal 2006. Zahl der Einbürgerungen sinkt weiter stark (mehr)

Mark Alexander

Jalal Talabani: Too Well-Fed By Half
KUWAIT TIMES: BAGHDAD: Tired and battling obesity, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani flew to the United States yesterday for rest and help in tackling his weight problem. Talabani, in his early 70s, left from the Kurdish city of Sulaimaniya in northeastern Iraq for a trip that could take several weeks. His office denied local media reports that Talabani was suffering from any specific illness and said he was in general good health apart from his weight.

It issued a statement quoting the president from a news conference on May 15. "I don't have any health problems except my obesity and I will treat it, God willing," the statement quoted Talabani as saying. "I will go ... to the United States of America to undergo general medical checks to reduce my weight." The former Kurdish rebel leader returned to his office in mid-March after two weeks in a Jordanian hospital, vowing that he was with Iraqis "until the final breath". Overweight Iraqi president heads to US to lose weight(more)

Mark Alexander

Everyone, Regardless of Faith, Will Soon Have to Eat Halal in the UK as Multinationals Target the Untapped Muslim Market
TIMESONLINE: McDonald’s has been testing halal chicken burgers at its diner in Southall, West London. Boots is running a trial of halal baby food in 30 stores. Tesco, which, like other supermarkets, sells meat certified by Islamic organisations at some stores, is looking to include new products, such as ready meals. All are chasing what could be, according to the advertising agency JWT, Britain’s biggest untapped niche market.

A survey commissioned by JWT, believed to be the first of its kind to focus on the needs of two million Muslim consumers in the UK, says that businesses should strive to understand Islam and how the religion influences its followers’ spending habits.

The agency argues that the Muslim market in the UK is certain to grow: it comprises 3 per cent of the population, is Britain’s second-largest faith group and has the youngest age profile. Although Muslims are among the most deprived groups in Britain, collectively they have an estimated spending power of £20.5 billion. There are also more than 5,000 Muslim millionaires holding assets worth at least £3.6 billion. Business is urged to see opportunity in Muslim community (more)

Mark Alexander

Carter “increasingly irrelevant”, says White House

Photo of Jimmy Carter courtesy of Google Images

BBC: The White House has dismissed former US President Jimmy Carter as "increasingly irrelevant", following his sharp criticism of President George W Bush.

Mr Carter on Saturday said the administration's impact on the world had made it "the worst in history".

A White House spokesman responded by saying that Mr Carter had engaged in "reckless personal criticism". White House hits back at Carter (more)

Mark Alexander

Demonstrations for Secularism in Turkey Again
BBC: Tens of thousands of Turks have massed in the city of Samsun in the latest demonstration in support of secularism.

The crowds waved national flags and chanted slogans opposing any change to Turkey's secular political model.

The protest in Samsun, a port on the Black Sea, followed huge rallies in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir. New rally for Turkish secularism (more)

NZZ:
Erneut Grossdemonstration in der Türkei: Kundgebung gegen Islamisierung

Mark Alexander

Italian University Closes Because of Holocaust Denial
BBC: An Italian university has closed down one of its campuses to prevent a planned lecture by a controversial French professor and Holocaust denier.

Robert Faurisson has been convicted five times in France for denying crimes against humanity.

He was due to speak at the University of Teramo in central Italy as part of a Masters course in Middle East studies.

But the university decided to close part of the campus to prevent him addressing students.

It said the "climate of tension" might endanger the safety of its students. University shut in Holocaust row (more)

Mark Alexander

The Rôle of Saudi Women: A Non-Committal Response from a Non-Committal Saudi Princess

Mark Alexander

Wafa Sultan dit la verité sur l’islam


TIME:
Wafa Sultan By Asra Q Nomani

NYT:
For Muslim Who Says Violence Destroys Islam, Violent Threats

WAFA SULTAN.ORG:
Wafa Sultan

MEMRI.ORG:
Arab-American Psychiatrist Wafa Sultan: There is No Clash of Civilizations but a Clash between the Mentality of the Middle Ages and That of the 21st Century

Mark Alexander

Identität zu definieren: Ist es die Rolle des Staates?
DIE PRESSE: Es sei nicht die Rolle des Staates, die Identität zu definieren. Außenminister Kouchner wurde aus der PS ausgeschlossen.

Einen Tag nach der Bekanntgabe der neuen französischen Regierung ist bereits ein Streit um das neue Ministerium für Immigration und nationale Identität entbrannt. Menschenrechtsvereinigungen warnten am Samstag vor einer "Ausländerfeindlichkeit per Gesetz". Aus Protest gegen das neue Ministerium traten acht der zwölf Historiker zurück, die im Komitee des Museums für Immigration saßen.

"Es ist nicht die Rolle eines demokratischen Staates, die Identität zu definieren", erklärten die Historiker. "Die Nennung der beiden Begriffe Immigration und nationale Identität in einem Atemzug ist nicht zu akzeptieren." Frankreich: Streit um Ministerium für Immigration (mehr)

Mark Alexander

Saudi Arabien: Gnade von den Richtern
SPIEGELONLINE: Rettung in buchstäblich letzter Minute wurde einem Todeskandidaten in Saudi-Arabien zuteil. Der Mann sollte enthauptet werden. Als der Henker schon das Schwert zückte, fand der Verurteilte Gnade vor den Richtern. Enthauptung in letzter Minute gestoppt (mehr)

Mark Alexander

Asmaa Stokes Controversy in Denmark with Her Hijab Demands
KUWAIT TIMES: COPENHAGEN: With a headscarf elegantly draped over her hair, Asmaa Abdol-Hamid, a Palestinian-born Dane, has sparked a heated debate in Denmark by declaring that she would wear her veil in parliament if elected in 2009. A member of the ex-communist Unity List, Abdol-Hamid has a good chance of becoming what could be the first veiled Muslim in Europe to be voted into parliament. The 25-year-old social worker and former television host from the Danish city of Odense is known for her commitment to politics and equal rights, as well as her headscarf and her refusal to shake hands with men. But the prospect of a woman in parliament wearing the traditional headscarf, or hijab, has further disrupted sensitibilities in Denmark, a country still shaken by last year's Mohammed cartoons row that swelled from a domestic Danish affair into a worldwide crisis pitting Muslim values against Western ideals. Headscarf controversy rocks Denmark’s election Campaign (more)

Mark Alexander

Enge Beziehung zwischen London und Washington wird unter Druck kommen
SUEDDEUTSCHE ZEITUNG: Großbritanniens designierter Premierminister Gordon Brown will Zeitungsangaben zufolge eine Kehrtwende in der Irak-Politik vollziehen und die britischen Soldaten rasch abziehen. Die Position der USA dürfte damit stark geschwächt werden.

US-Präsident George W. Bush sei von Beratern gewarnt worden, dass der Nachfolger von Tony Blair bereit sei, die traditionell besonders engen Beziehungen zwischen London und Washington durch einen baldigen Abzug der bislang noch 7100 britischen Soldaten zu gefährden, berichtete die konservative Zeitung The Sunday Telegraph. Panik im Weißen Haus (mehr)

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH:
Bush gets ready for Iraq U-turn by Brown

Mark Alexander

Tout n’est pas rose pour les gays: “Les gays ont des difficultés à progresser dans une structure hiérarchique traditionnelle…”, souligne Ben Summerskill de Stonewall
LE MONDE: Peu regardante sur l'origine des richesses qu'elle gère à bon escient, la City a toujours été une "vieille dame permissive". En revanche, la première place financière européenne se montre stricte en matière de moeurs, en particulier sur l'homosexualité. Dans la haute finance, le gay n'est pas toujours rose. La mésaventure survenue à Lord Browne, contraint de quitter le 1er mai la direction générale du géant des hydrocarbures BP après la révélation par la presse tabloïde d'une liaison avec un prostitué, souligne la persistance de l'homophobie ordinaire dans la vie britannique des affaires.

Les penchants de M. Browne étaient certes connus du microcosme industriel. La presse présentait le patron de la troisième compagnie pétrolière au monde comme "un célibataire endurci", façon de dire sans le dire qu'il était gay. Mais l'intéressé avait choisi de ne jamais parler de sa vie privée aux médias. S'il avait avoué son homosexualité, Lord Browne n'aurait jamais pu gagner l'ultime marche du piédestal de la multinationale. En effet, rares sont les patrons britanniques à avoir franchi le pas en avouant leur orientation sexuelle. Ceux qui en ont eu le courage étaient en fin de carrière, comme le président fondateur de la compagnie aérienne BMI, Michael Bishop, ou étaient des entrepreneurs, à l'instar de Lord Alli, le magnat de l'audiovisuel. Homophobie ordinaire à la City, par Marc Roche (encore)

Mark Alexander

Iran’s Global Ambitions
THE BOSTON GLOBE: Iran, in its effort to become a regional and global power, is reaching out across the Sunni-Shi'ite divide, exhorting Muslims worldwide to tolerate their differences -- and march under one Islamic banner.

TEHRAN -- Hamid Almolhoda, deputy director of the Center for Rapprochement of Islamic Schools of Thought, wears the white turban of a Shi'ite Muslim cleric. His budget comes from the world's only Shi'ite theocracy, the Iranian government, better known for bristling revolutionary rhetoric than for sunny public outreach. But Almolhoda's message of brotherhood wouldn't sound out of place at an ecumenical church breakfast.

His mission, approved at the highest levels of the Iranian government, is to convince the world's Muslims that the increasingly violent divide between Sunnis and Shi'ites -- on lurid display in Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East -- is no big deal, just a matter of minor theological differences.

"Let's cooperate on what we have in common," he says. "Regarding our differences of opinion, we can tolerate each other."

In a campaign that is little-noticed in the West, Iran is trying to convince Sunni Muslims that Shi'ism, the form of Islam practiced by 90 percent of Iranians but only 20 percent of Muslims worldwide, is not the heresy that many Sunni hard-liners have branded it, nor a dangerous subversion of their faith, but just another legitimate school of thought within a unified Islam. Across the divide (more)

Mark Alexander

Hans Küng: The Dreamer
Hans Küng is the Catholic who wants to unite all religions
THE SUNDAY TIMES: Tony Blair will “declare himself Roman Catholic” once he leaves Downing Street. That’s the reported view of Father Michael Seed, who is without peer in luring high-profile figures into the church. But another Catholic priest, hundred of miles away in the German town of Tübingen, may yet have a far more influential role in Blair’s future.

Professor Hans Küng is widely regarded as the most influential living Christian theologian. Although, where the Vatican is concerned, for influential read dangerous: after his 1971 book questioning the doctrine of papal infallibility Küng was stripped of his licence to teach as a Roman Catholic theologian. The turbulent high priest who has Blair’s ear (more) By Martin Wroe

Mark Alexander

The French Prime Minister’s Wife
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: “I'm just a country peasant, this is not my natural habitat," laughs Penelope Fillon. It seems a somewhat unlikely claim from a woman who is this weekend moving into the Hotel Matignon, the 18th-century official residence of the French prime minister.

And yet there is no denying that Mrs Fillon, whose husband François has been elevated to the office by France's new president, Nicolas Sarkozy, has come a long way. She was raised Penelope Kathryn Clarke, in a large and close-knit family in Abergavenny. She’ll always have Paris… (more)

Hôtel Matignon: The residence of the Prime Minister of France >>>

An inside view of the salon >>>

Wikipedia: Hôtel Matignon >>>

Presidentielles : François Fillon soutien Nicolas Sarkozy

Photo of St Bartholemew's Church at Llanover where the Fillons were marriedMark Alexander

Bloomberg Ruffles Some Feathers Over Guns
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Michael Bloomberg, the multi-billionaire mayor of New York who is considering a self-financed run for president as an independent, is lauded in his home city for the crackdown on guns that has helped slash crime there.

But firearms enthusiasts who gathered at a "Bloomberg Gun Giveaway" near Washington last week had a very different view. In a show of defiance, the Virginia Citizens Defence Group, a gun rights lobby, was raffling tickets for weapons to support two local gun dealers who are being sued for alleged illegal arms sales. Gun lobby takes aim at ‘Yankee’ Bloomberg (more) By Philip Sherwell

Mark Alexander

The Neocons Sail Into the Night
Paul Wolfowitz’s departure from the World Bank signals the end of an ideological era in Washington

THE SUNDAY TIMES: As Tony Blair was bidding farewell to President George W Bush in the Rose Garden on Thursday, the World Bank was preparing to kick out Paul Wolfowitz as president. Allies to the left and right in the Iraq war were falling by the wayside that day.

Was he responsible for Blair’s departure from office, Bush was asked. There had to be a reason why a prime minister who had never lost an election was being dumped. “Could be . . . I don’t know,” the president mused above the distant chant of war protesters outside the White House gates.

And what did he make of Wolfowitz’s likely resignation? “I respect him a lot and I’m sorry it has come to this,” Bush said, leaving the World Bank head to his fate. Decline and fall off the neocons (more) By Sarah Baxter

Mark Alexander

Evil Behind the Veil

Photo courtesy of the GLOBE AND MAIL

This is the sinister ‘face’ of Islam: Women have to hide their faces and their identity in Islam; and this allows them to perpetrate all kinds of evil deeds in the name of Islam. How much easier it is to do bad things, to commit evil deeds, when we can hide our faces!

©Mark Alexander

Manouchehr Mottaki, Iran’s Foreign Minister: Removing a Country From the Map is Not Possible

Photo of Manouchehr Mottaki courtesy of Google Images

HAARETZ: Iran's foreign minister said on Saturday that no country could be removed from the map, contradicting a previous statement made by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad calling for Israel to be "wiped off the map."

"Every primary school student knows that it is not possible to remove a country from the map and that is very clear," Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told a conference in Jordan when asked about Ahmadinejad's controversial remarks. Iranian FM: It isn’t possible to remove a country from the map (more)

Mark Alexander

The King of Saudi Arabia and the Peace Initiative
YNET NEWS: As it turns out, Saudi king apparently doesn’t back peace initiative

It may well be assumed that the Olmert government, which is currently under great pressure at home, will seek a way to revive the diplomatic process so as, among other reasons, to also create a political agenda. It will seek a legitimate political initiative as long as it is premised on accurately reading regional reality.

Prior to the publication of the Winograd Report, senior Israeli officials praised the Saudi initiative despite reservations regarding its content. The Saudi initiative was backed by the Bush Administration, a fact which influenced Israeli considerations.

Yet something strange happened during the last visit to the Middle East by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice: When Rice praised the Saudi initiative, which calls for full Israeli withdrawal in exchange for "normalization" of ties between Israel and the Arab world, the Saudi king cancelled his participation at a festive dinner with President Bush at the White House and condemned the American invasion of Iraq, calling it an "illegal foreign occupation." Don’t count on Saudi plan (more) By Dore Gold

Mark Alexander

Al Gore has fallen out of love with politics; but the greens haven’t fallen out of love with him

Photo of Al Gore courtesy of Google Images

TIME: Let's say you were dreaming up the perfect stealth candidate for 2008, a Democrat who could step into the presidential race when the party confronts its inevitable doubts about the front-runners. You would want a candidate with the grassroots appeal of Barack Obama—someone with a message that transcends politics, someone who spoke out loud and clear and early against the war in Iraq. But you would also want a candidate with the operational toughness of Hillary Clinton—someone with experience and credibility on the world stage. The Last Temptation of Al Gore (more)

Mark Alexander

Al Mansour: Once the Upscale Part of Town
TIME: The streets of Mansour have no names anymore. They are identifiable not by what is there now but by what used to be. In the center of the neighborhood, our armored humvee circles around the crater that once held a 20-ft.-tall statue of Abu Jaffar al-Mansour, the 8th century founder of Baghdad; it was pulverized by a homemade bomb in 2005. To keep their bearings, the troops have taken to identifying routes by the names of 1980s heavy-metal bands. We drive down Bon Jovi, where the barbershop used to be, and pass Skid Row, which had the best falafel in town. At the end of the block is Poison, which four years ago was Mansour's commercial hub, lined with restaurants, shops, a gym and even a liquor store. Now every storefront is shuttered, and there isn't a car on the road. The mostly Sunni residents who live in Mansour have their own name for this spot. They call it "the edge of civilization." Saving Iraq’s Glitziest Neighborhood (more)

Mark Alexander

End of US Domination at the World Bank?
FT: The World Bank’s board reconvened on Friday to ensure responsibility for operations was effectively transferred prior to the formal departure of Paul Wolfowitz on June 30.

Mr Wolfowitz’s decision to quit as president late on Thursday ended a turbulent two-year tenure as chief of the world’s leading development institution.

His departure in good health is unprecedented at the World Bank and marks what may be an enduring shift in the balance of power at the institution, hitherto dominated by the US and the president it nominates. Post-Wolfowitz planning begins (more) By Krishna Guha, Eoin Callan, Hugh Williamson and Dan Dombey

Mark Alexander

Web Faces Increasing Censorship Throughout the World
KUWAIT TIMES: LONDON: Internet censorship is growing worldwide, with 26 out of 40 countries blocking or filtering political or social content, a study reported yesterday. The survey carried out by experts at four leading universities found that people in Asia, the Middle East and North Africa were often denied access to information about politics, sexuality, culture or religion. Conducting the first of what is planned to become an annual survey, the experts at the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard and Toronto found that the approach varied according to the country. Internet censorship growing worldwide (more)

Mark Alexander

Carter “disappointed” by Blair’s Failure to Use His Influence with Bush More Wisely
BBC: Former US President Jimmy Carter has criticised outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair for his "blind" support of the war in Iraq. Carter attacks Blair’s Iraq role (more)

BBC:
Blair makes surprise Iraq visit

Mark Alexander

Kasparov Calls on EU to Recognise Russia as an Authoritarian Régime

Photo of Kasparov courtesy of THE TELEGRAPH

TELEGRAPH: Garry Kasparov yesterday called on Europe to face up to the fact that Russia is an authoritarian regime, not a democracy.

The chess champion turned activist was prevented from staging a protest as EU leaders met with President Vladimir Putin.

"They should be honest," he told The Daily Telegraph at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport. "Russia is not a democratic regime, it is an authoritarian regime. Putin is not a democrat, they should recognise this. EU must see Putin is not a democrat (more)

Mark Alexander

Human Rights Lawyer Faces Gaol
BBC: A US Navy lawyer faces six months in prison and dismissal from service for sending a human rights lawyer the names of 550 Guantanamo Bay detainees. Guantanamo lawyer faces jail term (more)

Mark Alexander

Marokkanische Monarchie gibt Impuls zur Modernisierung
NZZ: Eine Monarchie alten Zuschnitts gibt die wesentlichen Impulse zur Modernisierung

Weil die traditionellen Parteien schwach sind, hat in Marokko die mit grosser Macht und religiöser Führungsrolle ausgestattete Monarchie die Initiative bei der Modernisierung des Landes übernommen. Wie weit in dieser paradoxen Lage Demokratisierung, Reform der Gesellschaft und Öffnung der Wirtschaft gehen können, ist allerdings offen. König Mohammed VI. – das marokkanische Paradox (mehr)

Mark Alexander

Le gouvernement de Nicolas Sarkozy
LE FIGARO: La composition du gouvernement Fillon a été dévoilée hier. Le premier Conseil des ministres de la présidence Sarkozy s'est tenu dans l'après-midi. Le chef de l'État entend "mener toutes les réformes en même temps".

IMPATIENT d'entrer dans le vif du sujet, Claude Guéant, le nouveau secrétaire général de l'Élysée, s'est présenté avec cinq minutes d'avance sur le perron du palais présidentiel pour lire la liste des membres du premier gouvernement de Nicolas Sarkozy. Trois quarts d'heure plus tôt, François Fillon avait rejoint le président, non pas pour faire du footing, comme la veille, mais pour valider le casting gouvernemental. Sarkozy invite le nouveau gouvernement à agir vite et fort (encore) Par Charles Jaigu et Bruno Jeudy

Mark Alexander