Read a little. Learn a lot. • Tightly-written news, views and stuff • Follow us on Twitter • Be a Facebook Fan • Tumble us!

13 Nov 2010 11:23

tags

World: Aung San Suu Kyi freed, but she’s really the tip of the iceberg

  • one Nobel Peace Prize-winning activist (Aung San Suu Kyi) freed after 15 straight years under house arrest
  • 2,000 other political activists imprisoned in Myanmar without quite the same pedigree source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Nov 2010 12:02

tags

World: Post-elections, Myanmar might set Aung San Suu Kyi (sorta) free

Now that the election’s over and the power is firmly in the military junta’s hands, long-house-arrested Nobel Peace Prize Aung San Suu Kyi may finally get (some) freedom. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 Nov 2010 10:53

tags

U.S., World: Obama fails to secure free trade deal with South Korea

“Hey man, Barack Obama, how are you. So, would you like to make a free trade deal today?” “No.” “Ah, crap. The auto industry’s gonna be pissed.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Nov 2010 20:30

tags

World: Finally? Maybe: Iraq appears to finally agree on its leadership

  • It’s been kinda like a soap opera with politics. Over the entire Spring and Summer and part of the Fall, Iraqi leaders have been in a huge debate over who the Prime Minister was going to be. And it appears that we’ve finally gotten to a point where Nouri al-Maliki will get his second term as Prime Minister. And second-place guy Ayad Allawi will get a little bit of power sharing but not much. Here’s how long it took to finally get everyone to get on the same page:
  • 248 number of days Iraq’s already-fragile leadership was in flux
  • eight number of months it took for Iraq to agree on its leadership
  • seven number of hours today’s meeting to decide Iraq’s leader lasted source
  • » Hurt feelings: In the time that Iraq’s leadership has remained contested, there were many points of contention. First off, Nouri al-Maliki’s party did not win the popular vote (Ayad Allawi’s party won two more seats in parliament), and both the prime minister and president are chosen by a parliamentary vote. Secondly, there were fraud allegations throughout the entire process. Thirdly, nearly 500 parliamentary candidates (mostly Sunnis) were banned from running for ties to the Ba’ath Party. Finally, it’s Iraq and there are terror attacks all over the place. Hopefully deciding on a leader will help encourage peace in the war-torn region. If we don’t get that, let’s hope the fight over Alaska’s Senate seat lasts nearly as long. (*Fingers crossed*)
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Nov 2010 10:01

tags

World: Car bombs explode outside Iraqi Christian homes, kill three

Here’s the scene, through the frame of a blown-out car in Baghdad. Should we be worried that Christians, specifically, in Iraq are getting attacked? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

09 Nov 2010 21:08

tags

World: Israel PM to Obama: You don’t own me! I do what I want!

  • Jerusalem is not a settlement. It is the capital of the state of Israel. Israel sees no connection between the diplomatic process and the planning and building policy in Jerusalem.
  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu • Explaining why Israel will continue to build settlements in disputed areas of Jerusalem and the West Bank despite rebukes from the U.S. for its latest settlement-building schemes. Just hours before, Obama criticized Israel for its actions like so: “This kind of activity is never helpful when it comes to peace negotiations, and I’m concerned that we’re not seeing each side make that extra effort involved to get a breakthrough. Each of these incremental steps end up breaking trust.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

09 Nov 2010 10:19

tags

World: Israel approves more West Bank settlements, plays with fire

  • 1,200 number of homes Israel approved for building in East Jerusalem
  • 800 more homes were then approved for building in the West Bank
  • yes both Palestinians and the U.S. are extremely angry about all this source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

09 Nov 2010 09:50

tags

World: In Myanmar/Burma, military’s stranglehold showed with election

  • 80% of all votes went to the military-aligned party source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Nov 2010 22:00

tags

World: In this post, we respond to Anwar al-Awlaki with “Big Lebowski” quotes

  • Don’t consult with anybody in killing the Americans. Fighting the devil doesn’t require consultation or prayers seeking divine guidance. They are the party of the devils.
  • U.S.-born radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki • Telling his followers to kill the American infidels. Anwar, what is the point? Look, we all know who is at fault here, what the fuck are you talking about? Yeah, well, you know, that’s just, like, your opinion, man. And, you know, he’s got emotional problems, man. I’ll tell you what I’m blathering about… I’ve got information man! New shit has come to light! Come on, man. I had a rough night and I hate the fuckin’ Eagles, man! Obviously you’re not a golfer.  source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Nov 2010 09:40

tags

World: Does Obama want India on the UN’s Security Council permanently?

  • YES he said the U.S. would offer its support to India source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
<< newer 
top tags
older >>