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20 Aug 2010 11:14

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World: Odds that Israel and the Palestinians build peace in D.C.? 1000:1

  • They have to give it the old college try once a decade, right? The Israelis and Palestinians reportedly plan to hold some peace talks in the U.S. under the Obama administration’s watchful eye in a couple of weeks. It’d be the first time the sides met for peace talks in over two years. You know what would really help Obama’s poll numbers and validate his Nobel Peace Prize at the same time? If he could create peace in the Middle East. Just sayin’. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Aug 2010 09:30

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World: Was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad an assassination target today?

Despite claims that it was actually a grenade that exploded here, the Iranian government is standing firm that it was just fireworks. No Ahmadinejads were harmed. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Aug 2010 09:20

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World: Border battle: Tensions between Israel and Lebanon bubble over

  • cause Israeli officials reportedly attempted to uproot a tree on the Lebanese side of the border.
  • effect Gunfire broke out between the sides, and three Lebanese soldiers and a journalist died. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Jul 2010 19:23

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Politics: Protip: If you’re a CNN reporter, don’t praise Hezbollah leaders

Sad to hear of the passing of Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah.. One of Hezbollah’s giants I respect a lot.. #LebanonSun Jul 04 08:24:22 via Twitter for BlackBerry®Octavia Nasr
octavianasrCNN

  • What was Octavia Nasr thinking? The death of Sayyed Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah, a controversial cleric whose life and views are way more complex than this tweet gives them credit for, require more context than 140 characters. Considering her status as CNN’s Senior Editor of Mideast Affairs, it was perhaps too much of an oversight. And as a result, she was fired. “At this point,” said Parisa Khosravi, CNN’s Vice President of international newsgathering, “we believe that her credibility in her position as senior editor for Middle Eastern affairs has been compromised going forward.” Oops. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Jun 2010 11:15

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U.S., World: Obama itching for another bailout, this time for the Gaza Strip

  • $400 million for schools, housing and businesses source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink

31 May 2010 21:30

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Politics: For some reason, Obama not ready to throw Israel under the bus

  • The President expressed deep regret at the loss of life in today’s incident, and concern for the wounded, many of whom are being treated in Israeli hospitals. The President also expressed the importance of learning all the facts and circumstances around this morning’s tragic events as soon as possible.
  • A statement from the White House • Regarding today’s insane flotilla situation in Israel. Obama has to respect the diplomatically-important relationship with Israel, but it’s kinda tough because they keep doing stupid crap like killing humanitarians. There are a lot of sides to this story, so it’s good to take them all in, but it’s clear that Israel had to get on that boat somehow. They weren’t there for tea and strumpets. They weren’t there to show off their new iPads. They weren’t there to give high-fives to the hundreds of people on board that boat. Even if the ship had weapons and the humanitarians were ready for a fight, it wasn’t like they were about to invade Gaza, either. Why not scold Israel, Obama, and tell them they screwed up? Because they clearly screwed up. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink

19 Apr 2010 12:06

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World: Iran’s getting a new nuclear site all gussied up today

  • That’s what state-run Press TV is saying. Because Iran loves annoying the U.S. and doing what they want, the country has a new nuclear site ready for construction. The country previously announced they would build two sites starting in 2011, but now one’s in the hopper as soon as Ahmadinejad gives the go-ahead. This comes in the wake of a nuclear summit the country put on to compete with the one the U.S. had last week. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

23 Mar 2010 11:06

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World: Israeli West Bank settlement drama partly an economic thang

  • Real estate prices on the west side of the fence are the lowest, security arrangements are better than on the east side and (offer) better access to the major cities allows settlers to work in Israel.
  • A analysis piece by the Tel Aviv Macro Centre for Political Economics • Regarding why settlement-building in the West Bank is still an ongoing thing, with 6,657 new structures since 2004 alone. While the U.S. and EU say that the buildings get in the way of peace talks (and have caused the country’s latest blow-up), it’s notable that the structures often have significant economic benefits (that have nothing to do with a land debate), too. “Israelis do not want to live beyond the separation barrier” splitting the east and west sides of the West Bank, the report also notes. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Mar 2010 11:23

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World: Iraq’s election over, despite the terror attacks that peppered it

  • 19M number of people who were eligible to vote in Iraq’s second parliamentary election since 2003
  • 10 number of hours the polls were open in Iraq today; 6,200 candidates ran for 325 parliamentary seats up for grabs
  • 38+ number of people
    who died terrorist in attacks today designed to scare people away from voting source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Feb 2010 10:01

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World: Iran’s space program has officially caught up to 1957

  • They launched a rocket with live animals into space. Not content to be 70 years behind the U.S. when it comes to nuclear technology, the Middle Eastern country has gladly chosen to be 50 years behind the U.S. (and Russia!) when it comes to space exploration. Rats, turtles and worms were the lucky guinea pigs for the Kavoshgar-3 endeavor, which could lead to a newfound bolstering of its ballistic missile program. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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