yes both of these things have great meaning SC for the future but still have no idea what kind of artifacts are there in Iran..
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yes both of these things have great meaning SC for the future but still have no idea what kind of artifacts are there in Iran..
POVERTY IS EVERYWHERE
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Mom, daughter brawl at park
By Tracy Manzer and David Rogers, Staff writers
SIGNAL HILL — A fight between a mother and her daughter at a local park Sunday escalated into an hourlong brawl that left a police officer hurt and resulted in four arrests, including the mother on a warrant for alleged elder abuse.
Police were called to Signal Hill Park, near the rear of the police station, around 5:30 p.m. after an anonymous tipster told them a fight had broken out, said Sgt. Mike Reid, spokesman for the Signal Hill Police Department.
When police arrived they found that Susana Rosales, 45, of Wilmington and her daughter Evelyn Rosas, 31, of Torrance had been fighting. Some of their relatives were trying to restrain Rosales, who appeared to be drunk, the sergeant said.
As the officers walked up to the women and began to ask questions, three men intervened and began fighting with police, which touched off the hour-long struggle, Reid said.
Long Beach Police were called in to provide backup. One Signal Hill officer suffered minor injuries in the confrontation and was treated and released from a local hospital that same day, Reid said. Another officer received a minor injury when a probe from her Taser got caught on her hand, Reid said.
Arrested were Adrian Isreal Hernandez, 24, of Long Beach, Ruben Linares Jr., 18, of Wilmington and Juan Jose Perez, 24, of http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifAdvertisementGetAd('tile','box','/news_article','','www.presstelegram.com','','null' ,'null');http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifRiverside. All three face charges of interfering with and obstructing a police officer in the performance of his or her duty, while Hernandez faces a charge of assault on a police officer and Perez faces a charge of battery against a police officer, Reid said. Linares is a son of Rosales, Reid said.
Rosales was being held by Long Beach police because Signal Hill didn't have a matron available for her, Reid said. The charge was for physical elder abuse, but Reid said he didn't know whether Rosales was accused of inflicting abuse or of allowing abuse to take place. The warrant was from the Los Angeles Police Department Harbor Division, and attempts to reach a detective there were unsuccessful late Monday afternoon.
Reid said Rosales also faces a public intoxication and disturbing the peace charge. Reid said the argument between mother and daughter was triggered by the mother's drinking.
SACRAMENTO
Enterprise zones found to be failing
Report says tax breaks not going to areas that are most in need
Tom Chorneau, Chronicle Staff Writer
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
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Sacramento -- Tax breaks intended to spur growth in depressed parts of the state are instead going to wealthy companies located in some of the most prosperous parts of California -- including San Francisco and Oakland -- according to a new report on enterprise zones released today.
The incentive program was started more than 20 years ago with the goal of encouraging business owners to locate in blighted areas and to hire disadvantaged workers.
But a review from the California Budget Project found that the program has failed to target those areas most in need of the incentives and that the biggest tax breaks have gone to companies that don't create new jobs or hire disadvantaged workers.
The analysis found that 42 enterprise zones cost the state $300 million in tax income in 2003, the last year for which data are available. The program overall has cost more than $1.5 billion since it started in 1986.
"The program is just too large and isn't reaching the communities, businesses and workers it was created to target," said Jean Ross, executive director of the California Budget Project, a nonprofit group that evaluates the impact of state spending on low- and middle-income families.
The report comes as legislators consider whether to reauthorize the program or limit its scope. Ross and her organization are advocating for a much smaller program that would better target depressed areas.
She said the San Francisco zone, in particular, is one that should be dropped from the program. Ross pointed out that it encompasses some of the city's most economically robust districts including Union Square, Nob Hill, the Civic Center and Chinatown.
Supporters of the program dispute Ross' findings and argue that the state tax breaks have done exactly what they were intended to do -- spur growth.
Chris Micheli, spokesman for the Association of Enterprise Zone Employers, said San Francisco is a good example of a city where the tax breaks helped turn things around.
He pointed out that for a zone to be designated, it must meet certain guidelines for unemployment and poverty -- which the San Francisco zone did when it was established in 1992. Now that the city had rebounded, he said, some neighborhoods might be dropped from the zone if city officials sought reauthorization.
"If it was to be reauthorized now, it would still have to meet those standards so it probably would not look the same," he said. "I would argue that the program has been successful."
His group released its own evaluation of the program earlier this year, finding a net benefit to the state of $1.7 billion.
The state has authorized 42 enterprise zones across California, including Oakland, San Jose and Richmond. In 2003, businesses located inside the San Francisco zone took the highest amount of tax credits, costing the state almost $14 million. Oakland cost $9.2 million and San Jose $6.9 million.
Ross argues that the tax breaks were not necessary to improve conditions in San Francisco. She said that a scarcity of real estate and regional economic conditions set off by the high tech boom would have transformed the area anyway.
But Wes Dixon, president of the Private Industry Council of San Francisco, which helps manage the San Francisco enterprise zone, said the city still needs the tax credits. He pointed out that some of the tax breaks are given to companies that hire disadvantaged workers -- such as the homeless, the disabled or the non-English-speaking.
But Ross said employers are not required to keep good hiring records. She noted a 2003 audit done on the enterprise zone in Oakland that criticized the city's process for evaluating employers' hiring of the disabled and awarding of tax credits.
There are 18 zones set to expire at the end of this year and 13 more -- including San Francisco's -- that will expire next year. Legislators are contemplating different bills that could extend the program five years or longer.
E-mail Tom Chorneau at [email protected].
Bombing won't halt aid to Palestinians
19.04.06
By Audrey Young
New Zealand will continue to give $500,000 in humanitarian aid to the Hamas-governed Palestinian territories despite a suicide bomb attack against Israel the Palestinian Authority described as "self-defence".
Prime Minister Helen Clark said yesterday that New Zealand would be guided by the attitude of such bodies as Unicef and the UN Relief and Work Agency and New Zealand's friends in them.
She was questioned about it in light of the bombings by Islamic Jihad in Tel Aviv at the weekend that killed nine people. Hamas has largely stuck to a year-long ceasefire but spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri described the bombing as "a natural result of the continued Israeli crimes against our people".
"Our people are in a state of self-defence and they have every right to use all means to defend themselves," he was reported as saying.
The moderate Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, condemned the bombings.
Hamas swept to power in January but has disregarded international calls, including from this country, to renounce violence and recognise Israel's right to exist.
The European Union and the United States have cut direct bilateral aid totalling more than $1.6 billion to the Palestinian Authority.
New Zealand does not give aid directly to the territories. But soon after Hamas was elected to power, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said New Zealand aid - most recently through a World Bank-managed fund - would continue and that the Hamas-led Government should be judged on its actions.
Helen Clark said yesterday: "There will be a dialogue that's going on but I am not aware of any large-scale withdrawal of support for basic relief-type work.
"And it has to be remembered that even with a regime as repugnant to us as the one in North Korea we have continued to put in relief aid through international agencies so as not to see families literally starve."
She condemned the suicide bombings saying "You cannot justify suicide bombings at all in any way."
Pitcairn looks to break out of its isolation
30.03.06
By Angela Gregory
Hit by sex scandals, the loss of its regular shipping service and slumping stamp profits, the embattled community of Pitcairn Island is slowly beginning to fight back for its long-term survival.
Under the guidance of Pitcairn's Auckland-based commissioner, Leslie Jaques, a number of projects are under way on the remote island group to try to improve its sustainability.
British-born Mr Jaques, who has lived in New Zealand for the past 25 years, was appointed to the operational role of commissioner by the Governor of Pitcairn (the British High Commissioner to New Zealand) in 2003, just months after sex charges were laid against Pitcairn island men that would divide the community.
In 2004, six of those men were found guilty of serious charges against minors, and a final appeal against the legal process is to be heard in July at the Privy Council in London.
But for Mr Jaques, whose background is in finance and banking, the focus is on the long-term future and moving the island towards a more secure and self-reliant economic footing.
He admits his first public meeting on Pitcairn was a "riot" as the islanders had not realised how badly they were losing money. But he has revisited about half a dozen times since and says the locals' feelings towards him have warmed.
He acknowledges that Pitcairn had previously been badly run, and the islanders are now starting to accept they need to respond to change.
Mr Jaques told a recent breakfast business meeting in Auckland how he would never forget his first sight of Pitcairn Island - "its intimidating beauty, its volcanic cliffs rising from the South Pacific. A sense of history, a sense of apprehension".
He said it would not be an exaggeration to say that Pitcairn, one of the world's most isolated islands, was at a major crossroads. It has a population of about 55, most of whom are descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian consorts who arrived in 1790.
By the start of this century Pitcairn had faced major problems, including the serious charges of rape and sexual abuse against children, the drying up of its main income streams and accumulated reserves, and the loss of its only regular shipping route, Mr Jaques said.
For years Pitcairn's primary source of revenue was from philately (stamp collecting) which enabled substantial surpluses to be built up. But that has declined progressively in the last decade partly because the internet has significantly reduced the number of letters being written and stamp collectors are a dying breed.
"Pitcairn didn't see this coming, didn't adapt, didn't prepare, and its income was reduced by over 80 per cent in 10 years," Mr Jaques said.
The former administration responded by cutting essential repairs, maintenance and essential services, which proved costly to rectify. Accumulated surpluses had absorbed the losses until they too ran out in December 2004 and Pitcairn went into budgetary aid.
Mr Jaques said Pitcairn's overheads were significantly greater than its income. The British could either keep putting money into a bucket with a hole in the bottom or invest to create a more sustainable economy and the opportunity for self-sufficiency in the future.
Mr Jaques' role as a commissioner is to administer Pitcairn in conjunction with its elected island council and in tandem with the Governor's office in Wellington as the Queen's representative.
In restructuring Pitcairn's economy they had divided what needed to be done into three key areas - wealth creation, infrastructure and services.
The aim was to invest in Pitcairn's future and create a sustainable economy with full employment, higher standards of living, greater discretionary dollars, improved communications, both transport and technology, with improved access and affordable regular transport for Pitcairners.
"What will hopefully be achieved by all of this will be repopulation."
Mr Jaques said the initial aim was for a population of 120 people. Given it peaked in 1939 at 233 inhabitants, there should be sustainable resources to accommodate that growth.
Already significant steps had been undertaken to increase the island's income. The revamped stamp operation was outsourced to experts in Wellington, the website upgraded into an interactive shopping trolley, complimentary lines were introduced and the initiatives were starting to bear fruit.
Mr Jaques has been keen to see Pitcairn better milk the profits of its honey, one of the purest in the world and one of only two allowed into New Zealand.
"We have reformed a revamped co-operative, split hives and are looking to increase production from 6000 250gm units to 24,000 250gm units per annum."
The first commercial shipment to Japan was made last year.Mr Jaques, awarded an OBE for services to British-New Zealand trade in 1998, was also planning to meet Fortnum and Masons in London in late April to explore options for selling the honey in superior outlets.
A comprehensive report on tourism had also shown potential.
There were currently 40 cruise ships that travel the Easter Island to Tahiti route but only about 10 currently call at Pitcairn.
"Most say they would call if they were able to lower their own tenders and transport their passengers into a safe harbour."
Funding was being sought for a $13.5 million breakwater to allow the tenders to come in. Mr Jaques hoped the project could be put out to international tender by mid-year, with construction beginning in early 2007 and completed by early 2008.
The breakwater project will also provide opportunities for Pitcairners based in New Zealand, where most go, to return to work on the island.
Mr Jaques said more able bodied men were needed and he was pleased some families were already committed to returning to help with various projects.
He said eco-tourism was another avenue to be developed. An eco-trail was due to open this year capitalising on Pitcairn's unique flora and fauna. Pitcairn has 11 endemic plant species, some so rare they have not yet been named.
Henderson Island, one of the four islands comprising the Pitcairn group, was already a world heritage site with its own endemic plants and three of the world's rarest birds.
He also saw potential in whale watching as they come in close to the islands at certain times of the year to feed.
"So we have history, heritage, culture, eco-adventure to attract cruise ship day-trippers and much more to attract longer-stay, higher-value, high-intelligence visitors like archaeologists, anthropologists, botanists and ornithologists."
Mr Jaques was also investigating fishing opportunities within Pitcairn's 800,000 sq km exclusive economic zone and was considering short-term leasing of the marine-rich waters.
Meanwhile, infrastructure is being developed, like the rebuilding of the slipway and jetty and the building of a cement road up the aptly named Hill of Difficulty. The $5 million projects, paid for by Britain, were completed on time and inside budget in September.
Recommendations from a comprehensive communications review were due to be implemented in the coming financial year. They included video conferencing facilities which would be used for medical consultations and education. For the first time each home would have a private telephone linked to the New Zealand system. Previously communications were made through shipping radio frequencies where everyone could listen in.
There would be increased internet bandwidth and, in another first, television broadcasts via satellite have been approved by the island council.
In the 2006/07 budget, wind generators were planned to provide 24-hour power. They would supplement two diesel generators which currently provide power for 10 hours a day from 8am to 1pm and from 5pm to 10pm.
A memorandum of understanding between Pitcairn and its closest neighbour, French Polynesia, was signed in February this year, the first that Pitcairn had negotiated in its own right. It is intended to open up trade, tourism and immigration routes, and provides the ability to source supplies from French Polynesia as well as New Zealand. It also allows for six regular shipping services to Pitcairn each year, carrying passengers and freight.
Mr Jaques said there was full employment on Pitcairn. Job descriptions have been written and performance appraisals introduced for government jobs
"A CV has been written for every islander and we are moving towards a more egalitarian society."
Pensions for senior citizens were increased by 14 per cent this financial year and islanders had taken advantage of a scheme to upgrade their properties to accommodate home-stay tourists.
Mr Jaques said education was a key to strengthening and sustaining the community.
"In May, we rebuild the school, sending a powerful message about the future."
It would have a sixth form common room for adult education to encourage adults to prepare for new industries and take a more responsible role within the community.
A museum to house a collection of Polynesian pre-history and Bounty and post-Bounty artefacts including the Bounty Bible was opened in August 2005.
"We are actively seeking the return of Pitcairn artefacts from museums and collections around the world."
Mr Jaques said if a remote community like Pitcairn was to survive, it must change its mindset and be attractive to new generations.
Access, communication, full employment, a fairer society and the rule of law would encourage Pitcairners to return home and new people to settle.
"We are looking at ways to help with financial packages to encourage repopulation of those with particular skills."
The British Government, working with the European Union, still had a firm commitment to Pitcairn. Its white paper, Partnership to Peace and Prosperity, recognised Pitcairners' rights to self-determination and for them to remain with Britain as long as they wanted.
But Mr Jaques said they wanted to remain with Britain but they also needed to be empowered to take control of their destiny and that was a challenge.
"They need to take leading roles and express themselves, have confidence ... we are all working together to build a better tomorrow."
Isle of history
* Pitcairn is a United Kingdom overseas territory, of which there are 14 scattered around the world including Bermuda, Gibraltar, the Falkland Islands, Anguilla, Montserrat, Cayman Islands and St Helena.
* It is 4.7 sq km and situated about 5500km northeast of New Zealand, roughly halfway between New Zealand and Peru.
* Its nearest landfall is 550km away in Mangareva, one of the Gambier Islands in French Polynesia.
* Pitcairn was originally occupied by Polynesians from about AD800 to AD1400 but was uninhabited when the Bounty mutineers arrived in 1790 seeking a refuge.
* Pitcairn was the name of the midshipman who was the first European to sight the Island, in July, 1767 aboard HMS Swallow.
One-stop shop idea for victims of violence
19.04.06
By Jarrod Booker
Visiting experts say "one-stop shops" for victims of domestic violence would save lives and get more abuse sufferers to come forward.
Most New Zealand murders are domestic-related, and Gisborne, Nelson and Christchurch have been suggested as potential sites for the country's first such centre.
It would be modelled on the highly successful San Diego Family Justice Centre, which brings police, social workers, counsellors, doctors, lawyers and prosecutors together under one roof.
Prosecutor Gael Strack and Dr George McClane, both from the San Diego centre, told a Christchurch audience yesterday that the idea was to save distressed victims from having to front up to various government and non-profit agencies scattered across a city.
At the centre victims could get food, shelter, medical help, legal advice, protection orders and - if they wished - make a complaint with police.
Cases were also investigated and prepared for prosecution at the centre.
The Americans' call comes a month after Principal Family Court Judge Peter Boshier told a hui domestic violence was a scourge which must be addressed by the whole of society.
Judge Boshier said over half the murders in New Zealand were the result of domestic violence.
Police statistics show a growing rate of callouts to domestic disputes. In 2002-03 there were 24,700 callouts. In 2004-05 it was 30,692.
Mrs Strack said: "We are making it much easier for victims of domestic violence and their children to seek services, and because they are seeking services, we are seeing our homicide rate drop dramatically."
In 1985, San Diego averaged 30 domestic violence homicides a year. So far this year there had been one.
"It is probably the biggest initiative San Diego has done in the past 20 years. I didn't realise how empowering it was going to be for all of us until we had this army of people all working together," Mrs Strack said.
Centres had since sprang up across the United States, and in Canada, Mexico and Australia.
Mrs Strack urged New Zealand to follow. "All we can do is hope we can impact on the next generation, and the next."
She said Christchurch could be a good spot for the country's first family justice centre.
Inspector Rob Veale, head of the police Violence Reduction Unit, said it was not for police to decide where a centre could be set up.
He told the Herald it would be up to energetic communities to get centres running in their own cities and towns.
Police in Nelson had been trying for two years to set up a centre similar to the one in San Diego, but had met widespread resistance.
Mrs Strack said it had not been easy bringing the various organisations together in San Diego. The idea was born in 1989, and it took 13 years.
When she originally asked the city's police what it would take to get some of their staff to shift into the centre "you would have thought that the room was set on fire".
The national manager of the National Collective of Independent Women's Refuges, Heather Henare, welcomed any move to increase resources for combating domestic violence, but had doubts about the "one-stop shop" idea.
"For New Zealand, I think it is slightly unrealistic in the current environment since the Government can't adequately fund the services we have got now. Ideally, what we probably need to be concentrating on is what services we have and how we fund them.
The Government had already spent $15 million establishing family safety teams that brought agencies together.
Bubonic plague case in L.A.
By Alicia Chang, Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — A woman was hospitalized earlier this month with bubonic plague, the first confirmed human case in Los Angeles County in more than two decades, health officials said Tuesday.
The woman, who was not identified, was admitted April 13 with a fever, swollen lymph nodes and other symptoms. A blood test confirmed she had contracted the bacterial disease. The woman was placed on antibiotics and is in stable condition, officials said.
Bubonic plague is not contagious, but if left untreated it can morph into pneumonic plague, which can be spread from person to person. Bubonic plague is usually transmitted to humans from the bites of fleas infected by dead rodents.
Health officials suspect the woman was exposed to fleas in her central Los Angeles home, said Dr. Jonathan Fielding, the county's director of public health. The woman's family was also placed on antibiotics as a precaution, but there's no evidence they were infected.
The case is unusual because it occurred in an urban area, Fielding said. Most bubonic plague outbreaks happen in rural communities.
Health officials said there was no cause for panic because the disease is not easily transmissible.
"There's no cause for alarm in the community," Fielding said.
Health officials went to the woman's home Monday to trap squirrels and other wild animals. Blood samples from the animals will be sent to a lab to determine if any are infected.
An estimated 10 to 20 Americans contract http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifAdvertisementGetAd('tile','box','/news_article','','www.presstelegram.com','','null' ,'null'); http://oascentral.zwire.com/RealMedi...250.html/@Topx http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifhttp://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/std/clear.gifplague each year, mostly in rural communities. About one in seven cases is fatal, according to federal statistics.
The last human cases of plague in Los Angeles County occurred in 1984 when three people contracted the disease. Two of those cases were travel-related and the third involved a person exposed to a sick animal. All three survived.
Bubonic plague, also known as the Black Death, killed an estimated 25 million people in Europe between 1346 and 1351. The last major urban outbreak in the United States occurred in Los Angeles in 1924-25, when at least 30 people died.
In California, bubonic plague is prevalent among squirrels in the Angeles National Forest and other parks. Health officials regularly warn campers and hikers to take precaution against the disease by avoiding infected animals. The plague is considered a bioterrorism agent, and state law requires that doctors report suspected cases to local health departments.
Kindy arsenic eight times over limit
21.04.06
By David Eames
Soil tests taken in an Auckland kindergarten garden area have revealed lead contamination more than seven times the acceptable standard and arsenic contamination eight times over the limit.
Papers released to the Herald yesterday by Auckland City Council show four tests for lead, arsenic and benzo-a-pyrene taken at Ferndale Kindergarten in Mt Albert returned too-high readings on every occasion.
The surface samples at one area found lead contamination at 2160milligrams per kilogram of soil. The acceptable limit is 300mg/kg.
The worst-case reading for arsenic was 384mg/kg. The maximum acceptable reading is 30mg/kg.
The lowest benzo-a-pyrene reading was 20 times above the level high enough to prompt a council investigation of a site.
The tests were carried out this month after a study showed an area near the kindergarten was previously used for "horticultural purposes".
The report says: "The risk is likely to be low for most children who do not regularly eat soil."
Children with "a tendency to eat large amounts of dirt", could be exposed to higher levels of lead, arsenic and benzo-a-pyrene, the report says.
Some of the contaminated soil had been laid only this year.
A Ferndale Kindergarten parent contacted the Herald yesterday worried that Auckland City Council has no record of when lead-contaminated soil was placed at the kindergarten, or its origin.
"Of interest was the fact that this soil had only been in place for about three months but the council was unable to disclose where the soil has been sourced from. It goes without saying the soil was not tested at its source," the man said in an email to the Herald yesterday.
The man - who did not wish to be named - wants to know why the soil was not tested for contaminants at source, and whether the same fill had been used on other Auckland sites.
Those who attended a council-organised meeting at the Mt Albert kindergarten on Wednesday night to discuss toxic soil were told of "a high level of lead contamination in a small garden area".
But that was all the council representative, Deputy Mayor Bruce Hucker, could tell the parents, the man said. "Council were not exactly keen to be asked questions about where that dirt came from. They didn't have an answer."
The media was banned from the meeting and earlier meetings.
A council spokeswoman said yesterday it was working with the Auckland Kindergarten Association to determine how much soil had been dumped on the site, and when.
"That's obviously something we need to look into."
Council and kindergartens had a landlord-tenant relationship, and council staff would have had no part in the installation of the potentially toxic fill, she said.
Council testing of the Ferndale site had revealed "elevated levels" of arsenic, lead and benzo-a-pyrene that were "outside of the thresholds that we use", the spokeswoman said.
Auckland Kindergarten Association boss Tanya Harvey said there could have been some confusion over whether the topsoil was contaminated before it was placed at Ferndale. An investigation was under way to see if tests were taken specifically from the area covered with the topsoil.
She said she had been assured by the council that topsoil was tested for contamination before being placed on a new site.
Auckland City Council also announced yesterday that blood samples from children at another contaminated site, Auckland Central Playcentre in Freemans Bay, have showed no elevated levels of lead in their systems.
Public health service staff usually investigate when the levels are above 15mcg per decilitre of blood, but all children tested at Auckland Central Playcentre came in at below 10mcg, the council said.
Mr Hucker said: "It is tangible proof that the risk of exposure to contaminants at this site has been low for these children and that's something we can all be grateful for."
The Freemans Bay playcentre was one of nine preschools tested for contamination from the cancer-causing chemical benzo-a-pyrene following a council desktop study which suggested the land they were on may have contaminants from previous uses.
A kindergarten in Point Chevalier and the Mt Wellington Playcentre have been tested and cleaned up after chemicals were found about half a metre under the surface, and clean-up at Auckland Central Playcentre has just finished.
Work has begun to clean up the Barnardos Early Learning Centre, also in Freemans Bay, and at the Community Hall play area in Ellerslie.
Testing has also found contaminants at Onehunga Playcentre. The results from a second Mt Albert playcentre are not available yet.
http://media.apn.co.nz/webcontent/im...21PhilGoff.jpgPhil Goff (left) and Donald Rumsfeld at the Pentagon. Picture / Reuters
Goff talks nukes with embattled Rumsfeld
21.04.06
By Fran O'Sullivan
WASHINGTON - It was show-time at the Pentagon yesterday when United States Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld broke from strenuously defending his Iraq record to meet Phil Goff.
Six former US generals are calling for Mr Rumsfeld's head as opinion polls turn against the Bush Administration's handling of the Iraq invasion.
But Mr Rumsfeld still turned on a guard of honour for New Zealand's Defence and Trade Minister on the Pentagon steps, even though New Zealand did not join the American-led invasion.
Mr Goff, who arrived in Washington in the midst of President George W. Bush's surprise White House reshuffle, found Mr Rumsfeld fairly chirpy under the circumstances.
But this was also a business meeting and an "engaging and constructive one" at that, said the NZ minister.
Mr Goff has met a stellar line-up of powerful figures during his first visit to Washington as Trade and Defence Minister after relinquishing foreign affairs to NZ First's Winston Peters.
Mr Goff also met the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace, and officers at the National Security Council.
On the agenda at yesterday's meeting were the riots in the Solomons, the long-standing nuclear ships issue and Afghanistan.
New Zealand's foreign policy-makers have made a deliberate point of underlining to Washington the extent of New Zealand's engagement in maintaining security in the increasingly unstable South Pacific.
They want to move the bilateral debate on to New Zealand's real contribution in the region and away from the nuclear policy issues which have been a sticking point in the relationship for two decades.
"I was able to background him [General Pace] on the Solomon riots and the need for stronger intervention by our military and police," said Mr Goff.
NZ's disproportionate effort in Afghanistan, where it contributes far more troops on a per capita basis than other countries, was noted, he said.
So, too, was the recent commitment to extend the term of the provincial reconstruction teams. But there was no US request this time for New Zealand to extend military support elsewhere.
Mr Goff said he also tabled the nuclear issue "because we don't pretend it doesn't exist".
"Both sides hold their opinions. But we want to move to common understanding based on our shared obligations and values."
He said New Zealand's nuclear ships ban was still cited by some in Washington as a negative factor in the relationship. Some observers believed it had prevented New Zealand from getting a place in the US free trade negotiating queue.
The minister's high-level meetings come on the eve of the inaugural Partnership Forum, a non-governmental leadership dialogue organised by the New Zealand-United States Council and its Washington counterpart, to look at the relationship between the two countries.
Mr Goff and US Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill will address the gathering. Mr Goff will also give a speech at the National Defence University in Washington.
Peace,
this isnt news but a pretty sick website, scroll down on the 1st page,
the website is pretty sick, dark humour
facts backed with links.
enjoy.
http://www.collectmyflock.com/
HANDWASH KILLS BIRD FLU BUG IN 30 SECONDS
Hope over £2.99 spray
By Greig Box
AN ORDINARY handwash costing just £2.99 can kill the bird flu virus in 30 seconds, tests have found.
No-Germs, a simple hand spray, has been on sale over the counter for two years. But when the H5N1 avian flu outbreak gathered pace among birds, No-Germs owners decided to test it against the virus.
The results, revealed yesterday, were remarkable - the handwash was more tha 99.8 per cent efficient in killing H5N1. The discovery has been heralded as a "major breakthrough" - particularly if the virus ever mutates into a human form.
Sean Campbell, managing director of the British company behind the product, said: "We are very excited.
"We tested the product against H5N1 on the off-chance. We were confident it would work as it kills most viruses, including hospital superbug MRSA.
"The tests are incredibly thorough and took a few months
We put the virus into kidney cells, then the product. The test was whether the product protected the kidney cells from the virus, which it did.
Spread
"Eighty per cent of all common illnesses are spread by hand to mouth, nose and eye contact. Killing the H5N1 virus before it has a chance to enter the body is the key.
"On average, people touch their faces every five minutes and that is how germs spread.
"We can say with total confidence No-Germs will protect against H5N1. We will now work hard to get the product included in any H5N1 emergency pack."
No-Germs is already widely available in the UK.
Stores including Tesco, Boots, WH Smith, Londis, Moto and Superdrug have stocked it.
The product was developed two years ago in an effort to tackle MRSA.
No-Germs was tested against a strain of H5N1 at a lab at Queen Mary's School of Medicine and Dentistry in the University of London.
H5N1 has killed more than 100 people worldwide - but almost all were in direct contact with diseased birds.
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/tm...name_page.html
bird flu is a hoax,
u will get the disease once u r injected with the immunisation
peace.
Save The Net - Congress
Sells Out The American Public
From Dahr Jamail
By Robert W. McChesney
President - Free Press
4-21-6 Congress is about to sell out the Internet by letting big phone and cable companies set up toll booths along the information superhighway. Companies like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast are spending tens of millions in Washington to kill "network neutrality" -- a principle that keeps the Internet open to all. A bill moving quickly through Congress would let these companies become Internet gatekeepers, deciding which Web sites go fast or slow -- and which won't load at all -- based on who pays them more. The rest of us will be detoured to the "slow lane," clicking furiously and waiting for our favorite sites to download. Don't let Congress ruin the Internet: Rep. Joe Barton http://www.savetheinternet.com Congress Sells Out After accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in contributions from big telecom firms, Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) is sponsoring a bill to hand over the Internet to these same companies. He's not alone. Where Does Your Representative Stand? http://www.savetheinternet.com/=map Act Now: Save the Internet http://action.freepress.net/campaign...3nxku49jnx8jd? *Tell Congress to Save Net Neutrality Now* http://action.freepress.net/campaign...3nxku49jnx8jd? Our elected representatives are trading favors for campaign donations from phone and cable companies. They're being wooed by people like AT&T's CEO, who says "the Internet can't be free" and wants to decide what you do, where you go and what you watch online. The best ideas never come from those with the deepest pockets. If the phone and cable companies get their way, the free and open Internet could soon be fenced in by large corporations. If Congress turns the Internet over to giants like AT&T, everyone who uses the Internet will suffer: * *Google users* -- Another search engine could pay AT&T to guarantee that it opens faster than Google on your computer. * *iPod listeners* -- Comcast could slow access to iTunes, steering you to a higher-priced music service that paid for the privilege. * *Work-at-home parents* -- Connecting to your office could take longer if you don't purchase your carrier's preferred applications. Sending family photos and videos could slow to a crawl. * *Retirees* -- Web pages you always use for online banking, access to health care information, planning a trip or communicating with friends and family could fall victim to Verizon's pay-for-speed schemes. * *Bloggers* -- Costs will skyrocket to post and share video and audio clips -- silencing citizen journalists and amplifying the mainstream media. * *Online activists* -- Political organizing could be slowed by the handful of dominant Internet providers who ask advocacy groups to pay a fee to join the "fast lane." * *Small businesses* -- When AT&T favors their own services, you won't be able to choose more affordable providers for online video, teleconferencing, and Internet phone calls. * *Innovators with the "next big idea"* -- Startups and entrepreneurs will be muscled out of the marketplace by big corporations that pay for a top spot on the Web. We can't let Congress ruin the free and open Internet. *Let Congress Know that You Want Net Neutrality Now* http://action.freepress.net/campaign...3nxku49jnx8jd? We must act now or lose the Internet as we know it. Onward, Robert W. McChesney President Free Press www.freepress.net P.S. Visit www.SavetheInternet.com <http://www.savetheinternet.com> to contact your representative, learn more about this issue, and discuss this campaign with other activists. P.P.S. Tell your friends about this campaign http://action.freepress.net/campaign/savethenet/forward. If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for the Free Press at: http://action.freepress.net/freepres...77MST6F1mj1kE& (c)2004, 2005 Dahr Jamail. All images, photos, photography and text are protected by United States and international copyright law. If you would like to reprint Dahr's Dispatches on the web, you need to include this copyright notice and a prominent link to the http://DahrJamailIraq.com website. Website by photographer Jeff Pflueger's Photography Media http://jeffpflueger.com . Any other use of images, photography, photos and text including, but not limited to, reproduction, use on another website, copying and printing requires the permission of Dahr Jamail. Of course, feel free to forward Dahr's dispatches via email. More writing, commentary, photography, pictures and images at http://dahrjamailiraq.com
Interesting articles soul controller
AFRICAN Union Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) ministers are pushing strongly for governments across the continent to abolish duplicate ICT focal ministries, as that stalled ICT advancement.
This also creates unnecessary bureaucracy in government systems, contended the officials, whose ICT conference was held last week. African ICT ministers were meeting for the first time under the auspices of the AU to consider strategies of improving ICT development in the region. The ministers meeting observed that the implementation of ICT in particular and World Summit on Information Society resolutions in general in African countries is being hampered by the fact that more than one ministry was championing the ICT agenda. This, they said, was militating against initiative, responsibility and accountability in the field. Ministers, however, noted that the structures of governments were a sovereign right of countries but encouraged rationalisation of the structures to promote efficiency in the co-ordination and implementation of projects. The meeting, instead, proposed ICT should be housed within the information, broadcasting and related ministries key to dissemination of major government data. "Africa’s various ministries, which carry the same functions are hampering ICT growth," commented an official from Kenya. "I think it’s important for African governments to split these ministries, if we are to break the region’s digital divide and enhance Africa’s ICT sector development." In Africa, a substantial number of countries have stand-alone ministries such as Transportation; Communication and Publicity; Information and Publicity; Science and Information Communication Technology, etc. But the problem emanates when ministries fall head-on for an ICT base, which should be a grid for networking all key sectors of an economy such as financial and manufacturing, as well as connecting other government departments. In Zimbabwe, there is the Information and Publicity, Transport and Communication, and the Science and Technology ministries. The functions of these ministries are more or less interrelated, but the major platform for information dissemination lies in the Information and Publicity ministry, which links all Government departments. The Minister of Information and Publicity, Ambassador Tichaona Jokonya, yesterday said Zimbabwe was raring to go, and was in the race for the development of ICT. He suggested that African countries establish independent parastatals falling rightly under management of the information ministry from which ICT development would spring to other sectors of the economy. Effective ICT in Africa, as agreed by ministers and other experts in Cairo, should target to connect villages and establish community access points, as well to connect all universities, colleges, secondary and primary schools with ICT. Africa should also aim to ensure the continent’s populace has access to TV and radio services while at the same time ensuring member countries adopt ICTs in their primary and secondary curricula to meet the challenges of the information society taking into account national circumstances. Rtd Major Anywhere Mutambudzi, Principal Press Secretary (Security) in the Ministry of Information and Publicity, said: "Recognising the important role of ICT in promoting development, including achievement of the MDGs, it is now time for the African continent to start the implementation of the agreed decisions and action plan in order to realise these set goals. We are excited about the commitment being shown by Africa in advancing ICT." As ICTs are becoming more widely used and benefiting more people, the majority of African population either does not reap these benefits or are effectively cut off from them. As a result, in the digital society, Africa’s economic and social performance will greatly depend on the extent the continent can use the potential of ICTs in incorporating them in Africa’s different economies and building up a knowledge-based society. Already, the AU has identified the widening digital divide between Africa and the rest of the world as a key challenge. In fact, the body takes note that ICTs are key ingredients for speeding up development in Africa, particularly in trade and business promotion, providing universal access to education and health and promoting good governance.