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Comments:Nepali goddess retires at age 11

I see someone's gotten bored with her arahitogami - ness.204.52.215.13 17:35, 3 March 2008 (UTC)

what a load of nonsense this is.... people actually believing they are gods and goddesses and then renouncing it and all that....pagan beliefs are so rampant today.. who knows what will be conjured up tomorrow! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.25.211.33 (talk) 16:44, 5 August 2008 (UTC)

If human rights activists have nothing better to do than to protest, they should organise girl who has honour to be living godess to attend private and public schooling after she has descended from the post. This is what human rights should fight for. We dont have enough female godessess in the world, so leave her be!

Anna Logan Riversby —Preceding unsigned comment added by 92.4.21.68 (talk) 20:07, 8 March 2009 (UTC)


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Comments:Medvedev becomes Russian president-elect

Heil Putin! Putin is a fascist, no wonder he's continuing to screw up Russia! 204.52.215.13 17:38, 3 March 2008 (UTC)

i think it is not good for russia.

gay pride
russian president admits to being gay. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 150.199.176.125 (talk) 14:26, 28 August 2008 (UTC)

Mr Vladimir Putin's legacy will continue for greater good for all.

Comments from feedback form - "good"
good —71.255.76.199 (talk) 18:19, 16 January 2012 (UTC)

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text: User talk:86.13.82.231

title: User talk:86.13.82.231


text:
Portal:Fire/Wikipedia

 category=Published category=Fires notcategory=Disputed count=5 addfirstcategorydate=true namespace=main

Note. This page is used by the Wikinews Importer Bot to update the w:Portal:Fire/Fire news.

title: Portal:Fire/Wikipedia


text:
Representative for ACLU tells Wikinews their opinion on lifting of Wikileaks court injunction

March 3, 2008 The website wikileaks.org has recently been brought back online following the lifting of a court injunction forcing the site to be taken down. A representative of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which supported Wikileaks, has told Wikinews their opinion of the court injunction. They have claimed that the lifting of the injunction was a "victory for the first amendment."

The representative stated that the ACLU hopes this injunction acts as an example to other judges who take part in similar cases. This opinion was shown when the representative said that the lifting of the injunction will "hopefully help show other courts that injunctions against speech, including speech on the Internet, are not appropriate."

The permanent injunction was granted in the California Northern District Court in San Francisco, California to Bank Julius Baer, a Swiss bank, which has caused the domain to be taken off line in the U.S..Wikileaks previously published several documents obtained from a whistleblower of the Swiss Bank, "purportedly showing offshore tax evasion and money laundering by extremely wealthy and in some cases, politically sensitive, clients from the United States, Europe, China and Peru."

"Blocking access to the entire site in response to a few documents posted there completely disregards the public's right to know," said Ann Brick a lawyer for the ACLU, in a statement made before the injunction was lifted. At least 18 other organizations have signed documents in defense of Wikileaks. Those documents have been forged into a joint amicus curiae ("friend of the court") brief; which will be submitted to the court and used as defense evidence in a hearing scheduled for Friday February 29.


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Talk:Representative for ACLU tells Wikinews their opinion on lifting of Wikileaks court injunction

OR Notes
I emailed the press department of the ACLU to ask them whether they would give me their opinion of the lifting of the injunction. This was on Saturday morning. On Sunday evening I received a response from the ACLU. This was over 24 hours after the article was published so I decided to include the information in a different article. I did not write it at that stage because I was trying to organize my Wikileaks interview. I asked the ACLU this "Sir/Madam, I am Jonathan Winterview from WikiNews (wikinews.org) and I writing an article on the 'censorship' of Wikileaks. I would like to include the opinion of ACLU on the lifting of the court injunction to quote in the article. It would be very helpful if you could respond with just one sentence with your organizations opinion on the removal of the court injunction along with permission for me to quote it in the article (as it would be received by email, I need your permission to quote it). It would be helpful if I received a response as soon as possible so I can add the opinion of your organization to the article on Wikinews.

Thanks for you time, Jonathan Winterview"

I also used information from our previous articles about Wikileaks --Anonymous101 Talk 19:37, 3 March 2008 (UTC)


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Talk:Nepali goddess retires at age 11

Why does the front page story for this have the addition to the title "marries fruit"? Yes, her family is arranging a symbolic marriage to a fruit but that isn't a main - or even important - part of the story.
 * My guess is because it gives a reason as to why she retired. Mouse among men 20:55, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Because it is not an important part. It seems that most Newa women go through this ceremony. They still marry men when they grow up ... it just protects them from the stigma (which must be strong there) of being a widow, should their husband die first. --SVTCobra 00:01, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

title: Talk:Nepali goddess retires at age 11


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Wikipedia founder embroiled in affair and financial allegations

March 5, 2008 The implosion of a relationship between Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales and journalist Rachel Marsden has resulted in controversy and international headlines. Associated Press and ABC News have also reported on questionable activity by Wales involving Wikimedia Foundation expenses. The Wikimedia Foundation is a donor-supported non-profit organization which runs Wikipedia. Marsden had contacted Wales two years ago about concerns she had over the article about her on Wikipedia, and Wales determined the article was not compliant with Wikipedia's standards. The tech blog Valleywag revealed Wales had a personal relationship with Marsden, and posted supposed transcripts of their instant message conversations on its site, www.valleywag.com. Wales and Marsden met in February, and The Times reported that "An apparent transcript of their conversations before that meeting suggests that, although Mr Wales had withdrawn from the editing process, he was still influencing the editors." The Times quoted Wales from the chat logs as having stated to Marsden "The truth is of course a much worse conflict of interest than that; but that will do." — in reference to his conflict of interest regarding Marsden's article on Wikipedia. Wales posted a public statement on Saturday on Wikipedia addressing the matter, and stated that his relationship with Marsden was over: "First, while I find it hard to imagine that anyone really cares about my sex life, the facts are: I am separated from my wife. I considered myself single at the time of my one meeting with Rachel Marsden on Feb. 9, 2008 ... I am no longer involved with Rachel Marsden. Gossipy stories suggesting that I have been in a relationship with her 'since last fall' are completely false ... I care deeply about the integrity of Wikipedia, and take very seriously my responsibilities as a member of the board and as a member of the Wikipedia community. I would never knowingly do anything to compromise that trust." With regard to the conflict of interest in Marsden's article, Wales had acknowledged to a team of Wikipedia editors in February 2008 that he and Marsden "became friends ... and that we would be meeting about that," and stated "I recused myself from any further official action with respect to her biography."

On Sunday, The Canadian Press reported that Marsden had posted photos of herself on Ebay, and was selling items that Wales had left at her New York City apartment. In her Ebay posting, Marsden stated: "Hi, my name is Rachel and my (now ex-) boyfriend, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, just broke up with me via an announcement on Wikipedia ... It was such a classy move that I was inspired to do something equally classy myself, so I'm selling a couple of items of clothing he left behind, here in my NYC apartment, on eBay. Jimbo was supposed to come visit me in a couple of weeks and pick up some of his stuff, but obviously that won't be happening now." Marsden told The Canadian Press "It didn't really help matters that Jimmy chose to announce the breakup to the entire world via Wikipedia (which apparently now is an online encyclopedia that doubles as a personal soapbox?) rather than to me directly (which he did much later, in an instant message discussion)."

Marsden placed a t-shirt and sweater which she said were left at her apartment by Wales up on Ebay, and started the bidding for each at ninety-nine cents, with the auctions set to end on March 12. By Monday, bidding on the t-shirt had reached US$300, and by Tuesday the highest bid had reached $12,200. In an email to The Globe and Mail, Marsden stated "My only focus right now, to be really honest, is on my career and finding a way to get back into print, TV, or radio here in NYC," she wrote. "All of this other personal stuff is just an unfortunate distraction."

Jay Walsh, the Wikimedia Foundation's head of communications, told the San Jose Mercury News that Wales' actions in relaying Marsden's concerns about her Wikipedia article to a team of trusted editors was within his "routine" role. When asked by the San Jose Mercury News if Wales' actions regarding the Marsden article could compromise his role with the Wikimedia Foundation and Wikipedia, Walsh responded "No, absolutely not."

On Tuesday, ABC News carried a story by Wired News reporter Megan McCarthy regarding allegations of "excessive spending" by Wales, and Associated Press also reported on questions involving Wikimedia Foundation expenses. McCarthy reported that former Wikimedia executive Danny Wool, who had left the foundation last year, criticized Wales' use of Wikimedia Foundation expenses in a blog post. Wool stated that Wales had tried to expense $300 bottles of wine, a $1,300 dinner for four at a Florida steakhouse, and visits to Moscow massage parlors to the foundation, and that the foundation rescinded Wales' corporate credit card in 2006. Wool also stated that Wales paid the foundation $7,000, after being short $30,000 on receipts for expenses.

Wool told EPICENTER that "There were occasions where he used [the Wikimedia Foundation] for personal advancement under the guide [sic] of the mission. And, as someone who was in there for the mission part of it, I found that rather distressful." Wool commented in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle: "Originally, it was carelessness ... But as things developed, it became more apparent and obvious that he was taking advantage of the foundation credit card. It was almost like his personal piggy bank."

In an instant message exchange with Associated Press, Wales denied that the Wikimedia Foundation had taken away his corporate credit card, and asserted that he had made the decision to stop expensing business travel for the foundation. Wales highlighted a statement by the foundation's executive director Sue Gardner: "Jimmy has never used Wikimedia money to subsidize his personal expenditures. Indeed, he has consistently put the foundation's interests ahead of his own." In an email to Associated Press, Brad Patrick, a former attorney for the Wikimedia Foundation, stated "Danny seems interested in blogging his way straight to a lawsuit".

Florence Devouard, who chairs the Wikimedia Foundation, told Associated Press that Wales had been "slow in submitting receipts," and that the foundation had rejected Wales' expense at the Florida steakhouse. Devouard told fellow foundation board members in a private email that she had convinced Associated Press that "the money story was a no story," and told Wales "I find (it) tiring to see how you are constantly trying to rewrite the past. Get a grip!" Wales told Associated Press: "The board, the current executive director, the previous executive director, and independent auditors have reviewed our books and publicly agree that all of my expenses were appropriate and fully accounted for."

Media reports speculated on how the controversy would end up being represented in Wikipedia itself. On Wednesday, the St. Petersburg Times wrote: "Wales' Wikipedia page said only this about Marsden: 'Wales had a brief relationship with Canadian journalist Rachel Marsden.'" An article in The Australian surmised: "History will decide whether Mr Wales broke his own principles, but before that happens there may well be a Wikipedia page devoted to the controversy."


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Talk:Wikipedia founder embroiled in affair and financial allegations

Thread moved from Wikinews:Water cooler/miscellaneous
FYI. Will keep track of sources here for now. It's probable that there will be more coverage of this in other major news sources within a few hours. Cirt - (talk) 11:07, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Why here? Why not start an article? Or a page within your userspace? This seems highly irregular. --SVTCobra 18:33, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * My apologies - I wanted community input, and when this was breaking I did not yet feel comfortable/feel there were enough sources for an article. Other than my userspace or a new article, is there another type of place to post sources for a potential new article, in order to elicit community feedback first?  Cirt - (talk) 18:38, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Story preparation. --Steven Fruitsmaak (Reply) 19:31, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Thank you. Can someone give some input as to a potential title for the subpage off of Story preparation ?  Cirt - (talk) 20:01, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * How about "Wales-Marsden Affair, and the subsequent cover-up by Wikipedia"? - 68.87.42.110 20:06, 3 March 2008 (UTC)

See above link. Cirt - (talk) 20:14, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Story preparation/Wikipedia founder's involvement with Rachel Marsden article

The story
Before this gets close to anything published, I want to stress what kind of mes this can cause us. If Wikipedia covered something up, and we have proof, and intentions were to cover something up, then that IS a story and should be published. Regardless of who Jimbo dated for how long, why they broke up and the result of that break up is, it is not something that WN needs to report on. I admit that we have published some borderline tabloid stuff, but there is a line and this I think is crossing it. So please be careful. We don't need to slanderize or bash anyone. DragonFire1024 (Talk to the Dragon) 22:06, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Agreed. That is why I am working on sourcing first, before writing anything at all. I agree with what the story should focus on from the 2nd sentence you wrote, above.  Perhaps you could take a look at the listed sources to pull out that specific information?  Cirt - (talk) 22:12, 3 March 2008 (UTC)

 * I'm on ComCom, the title on this is utterly inappropriate. Based on information I cannot reveal there was no coverup, standard w:WP:BLP process which Yellow Journalist sites don't grok. --Brian McNeil / talk 22:17, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * I really did not know what title to go with at all. It is still in preparation subpage,, please feel free to immediately change the title yourself if you feel it is inappropriate.  Cirt - (talk) 22:20, 3 March 2008 (UTC)

Certainly the conflict of interest and financial issues alone are weighty/newsworthy, without needing to delve into any sort of depth about the personal issues involved, other than a very brief mention for context. Also, I think it is best to wait on this a bit longer as it develops and gets more news coverage - we can see if more information comes out in other secondary sources - and what tack major media newswires are taking. Cirt - (talk) 22:20, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Comment
 * According to the statement in Jimmy's userspace the work to make Marsden's article conform to w:WP:BLP was distinct from the relationship. Insinuating that the OTRS process for applying WP:BLP has been subverted is a serious allegation and - as far as I can tell from the sources - not supported by the facts. It should be noted that this is only present in the Yellow Press who have a reputation for gossip and scandal. --Brian McNeil / talk 09:47, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

Balanced reporting
As already stated, I have a conflict of interest when it comes to this article. I am a member of the Foundation's Communications Committee and privy to internal communications on the subject. When Jimmy states there is no overlap between applying WP:BLP with the help of the OTRS team and his liason with Marsden, I believe that due to a variety of reasons and confidential communications.

Moving on to how this must be balanced, it cannot go anywhere until efforts have been made to get feedback from involved parties. Jimmy Wales, Rachel Marsden, and staff in the Foundation office such as Jay Walsh or Sue Gardner must be allowed a right to comment on this. Yes, the project takes pride in being as independent and free from influence by WMF as possible, but the BBC would never run a story on an affair of their Director General without giving him a right to reply and others to confirm he had declared there was a potential conflict of interest to staff. --Brian McNeil / talk 10:11, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

Further progress on this article
I will defer to more experienced Wikinews contributors as to the article-writing itself if anyone wants to start writing this article now, but for the time being I am just going to contribute by compiling sources. I have heard from a few people that the story may hit a couple other major newswires. But at any rate especially in light of the comments above, I'd appreciate help/input from others on this article. Cirt - (talk) 19:32, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
 * After some discussion w/ experienced editors and after reading the piece on this incident in The Wikipedia Signpost, I think it would be fine to put something together, drawing from some quotes from that piece, and from some of the more major/reputable news pieces. Cirt - (talk) 21:28, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Okay, since this last above comment, more major newswires have reported on the story, and thanks to The Wikipedia Signpost we have some good comments/quotes to use as well. Cirt - (talk) 10:03, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

Notes on the article title
Input on a different title for this piece? See the title choice in The Wikipedia Signpost :

Suggest move to Story preparation/Wikipedia founder's involvement with journalist Rachel Marsden raises controversy

Thoughts? Cirt - (talk) 21:33, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

 * I like that - concise, neutral, informative. I say go for that one! Blood Red Sandman  (Talk)   (Contribs) 21:48, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Moved to Story preparation/Wikipedia founder embroiled in affair and financial allegations, after suggestion by User:TheCustomOfLife and agreement by User:Ral315. Cirt - (talk) 22:22, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

Note on sources
Note: All material in this article as of this timestamp is sourced to secondary news sources, and contains no OR. Cirt - (talk) 12:16, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

Publish
Article written by Cirt - (talk) and marked as ready, reviewed and changed to publish by. Cirt - (talk) 12:17, 5 March 2008 (UTC)

Semi-protect
As an article that you would like to see mirrored and more likely than most you write, as well as having already attracted a number of vandals, I suggest we semi-protect this text to registered users. Δημοσθένης - (talk) 02:55, 6 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Good idea, I agree with you and I have requested semi-protect be placed on this article, at WN:AAA. Cirt - (talk) 03:23, 6 March 2008 (UTC)

Content edits to the article post March 5
Let's try not to edit the content of the article itself too much save for copy-edits, post the article's date of publication, March 5, 2008. Further content could go into another follow-up article at some point. Cirt - (talk) 18:12, 6 March 2008 (UTC)

Dup info re: team of editors contacted
With regard to the conflict of interest in Marsden's article, Wales acknowledged to a team of Wikipedia editors that he and Marsden "became friends ... and that we would be meeting about that," and stated "I recused myself from any further official action with respect to her biography." This was present in the version of the article published March 5, 2008. In early February 2008 he asked OTRS volunteers to watch the article, noting that he was recusing himself from editing due to a conflict of interest. This part was added after the article was published, on March 6, 2008 - and it also happens to be dup info (see info quoted above and also in the following paragraph in the article itself). Cirt - (talk) 18:15, 6 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Sorry, I added a small bit to the prev version that wasn't actually dup info. Cirt - (talk) 18:26, 6 March 2008 (UTC)

Implosion?
"The implosion of a relationship between Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales and journalist Rachel Marsden..."

Anyone like to explain what it means for a relationship to implode? Were there casualties? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 129.67.19.252 (talk) 19:42, 6 March 2008 (UTC)
 * You'd have to ask, who initially started a brief intro, but I think the wording sounds fine, and as the article is way post publish date, no need to change it at this point. Cirt - (talk) 19:53, 6 March 2008 (UTC)

 * I believe it's a slightly dramatic way of saying "non-amicable break-up". Chris Mann (Say hi!|Stalk me!) 03:41, 7 March 2008 (UTC)

Sources post March 5, 2008
Subsection to keep track of new developments and new coverage in news/media sources post this article's date of publish, which was March 5, 2008. Cirt - (talk) 01:22, 7 March 2008 (UTC)

quote
The quote "I find (it) tiring to see how you are constantly trying to rewrite the past. Get a grip!". Are the brackets arround it because the editor added them, or were they in the original quote? If an editor added them for clarification they should be square [] brackets. Bawolff ☺☻ 05:31, 12 March 2008 (UTC)
 * This was initially the way it was quoted in a secondary source. Cirt - (talk) 05:33, 12 March 2008 (UTC)

Add to the latest stories
Why isn't this automatically added to the latest articles on Category:Jimmy Wales? Is something missing in the code? OptimistBen - (talk) 07:54, 12 March 2008 (UTC)
 * It appears to be showing up there now. Cirt - (talk) 08:27, 12 March 2008 (UTC)


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Talk:Wikinews interviews Frank Moore, independent candidate for US President

All (max 500 words): Why do you want to be President?

I have been running for president for about a year now. I started running basically because none of the prominent candidates are talking honestly and directly about the state of things, are committed to fundamental change, and have a clear plan to create a humane, sustainable, and just plain enjoyable society. So I took on that role. When everyday people in the “real world” hear about my candidacy, they become extremely excited. They don’t see a performance artist in a wheelchair. They don’t check the odds of my winning. Instead they see someone who they could excitedly vote for… somebody who shares their dreams, talks deeply about what really affects their lives. And then they read my platform. Then they got more excited at how possible it is to bring our dreams for our society into reality… to remove fear and isolation; to get the boot of big corporations off our neck; to provide everyone health care, life-long education, a minimum income, and a livable wage; to restore our rights and freedoms; and to bring our troops home now! We everyday people know the real state of the union! But more importantly, we have the sense of what is possible! We need leaders who share our dreams and who do not sell us short. Or sell us out!

I am running to raise the bar, to raise expectations, to expand the possibilities, to replace fear with hope and joy. I am running because what we want is within our grasp. I am running to get results. Things can work. Truth is political power is based on things not working. This is why things do not work. I am not running for political power, but to get things to work. That simple!

Third party (max 500 words): Have you ever run for political office before? (President, senate, congress, city councillor, school trustee... etc.) Have you ever been a member of a political party, other than the one you're currently in? Have you ever campaigned for another political candidate?

Independent (max 500 words): Have you ever run for political office before? (President, senate, congress, city councillor, school trustee... etc.) Have you ever been a member of a political party? Have you ever campaigned for another political candidate?

Well, the only thing I ran for before was president of the student government in college. I almost won…which freaked the other candidate out because he had spent $900, while I spent $25! This is the same story in this campaign. The only public office I have held is when I was appointed to the rent board in Santa Fe after a successful rent strike in the early 70’s. I helped to found the San Bernardino chapter of the Peace and Freedom Party in the late 60’s.

I have always been dumb to what is impossible. So I just figure how to do the “impossible.” I have been doing this all my life! I am 61. I was born with cerebral palsy. I communicate using a laser-pointer and a board of letters, numbers and commonly-used words. But I am the host of a popular public access TALK show. Go figure it! So now I am setting my sights, as president, on eliminating poverty, hunger, war, etc. Impossible, eh?

When I was born, doctors told my parents that I had no intelligence, that I had no future, that I would be best put into an institution and be forgotten. So the struggle for freedom, and against the powers-that-be has been my life. And it has been a continuous struggle, struggling with schools to let me in, etc. I have always been a radical. But that became obvious when I was 18 and invented my head pointer with which I type and communicate…I started writing political columns for the high school paper…as well as putting out an underground paper. I was in the first special class placed on a regular high school campus so that the disabled students could be in regular classes and be a part of campus life. I was involved in the civil rights and anti-war movements. This was 1965…before it was popular to be against the Vietnam War. In the school paper I got into a debate with a GI in Vietnam. I was sat down and told that, because of my political philosophy and activities, I was hurting the chances of the disabled students who would come after me. I replied that the goal was to get the rights for the disabled [and for all people] to be complete and equal…and that included the right to be political. I would not surrender that, or any other, right.

So I started doing political columns for underground newspapers, joined Students for Democratic Society. Did political pranks…such as rolling in my wheelchair into the Marines Recruiting Office to join, offering to push the BUTTON with my head pointer. But after the Kent State killings, I switched from straight politics to art, performance, and community building as my tools for effecting social change. In the early 90s I and five other performance artists were targeted by Sen. Jesse Helms in what is commonly seen as the first battle of the cultural wars. This placed me in a great position to fight for our freedoms!

All (max 500 words): What is your current job? What skills or ideas do you bring from this position, or previous positions, that will benefit the Oval Office?

“Artist” covers a lot of different “jobs”…and “performance artist” is even vaguer! I am a performance artist. I work outside boxes, using improvisation to draw people into the state of community where they can reach their potential. This is what I will do as President.

Because I came from a suppressed group…the so-called “disabled”…I know how to struggle successfully for equality, freedom, justice, etc. I do have this disability of not knowing what is “impossible.” So, I just figure out how to do it. When I was born, the doctors told my parents I had no IQ. Obviously the doctors were wrong. So I don’t pay any intention to the supposed limitations. I just do what is needed. When I was growing up, I struggled to get educated, struggled against discrimination and prejudices. I really enjoy the righteous struggle. This enjoyment of struggle gives me an advantage when struggle is needed. When Senator Jesse Helms tried to blacklist me, when the Berkeley City Council tried to ban my public access cable show… there have been so many struggles! My enjoying righteous struggle has been a winning element. I also enjoy when struggle is successful. I’m looking forward to the huge struggle of taking away controlling power from the big corporations, of reclaiming the rights and freedoms that have been stolen from the people of this country, of creating a new post-oil social order in which we will eliminate fear of getting sick, of getting old, of the future, of the Other.

I know how to get things done. In the 70s, I developed an extremely successful relationship counseling practice. This created a community with both many thriving businesses and artistic projects…one of which was my caberet show, the outrageous beauty review, which ran for years. The 80’s found me publishing the zine the cherotic ®evolutionary, giving artists, writers, and photographers a home. I also started d.u.d.e., a free distribution service for the small press and indie musicians. When the internet arrived, I used it to further this community building on www.eroplay.com. But when I started our web station http://www.luver.com over 9 years ago, a genii was released. Not only did we pioneer streaming media, but luver quickly became a powerful uncensored channel for dangerous ideas, voices, dreams!

We need to stop listening to people who keep telling us our dreams are impossible!

All (max 1000 words): Obviously, the next American President and his or her administration will face many diverse issues. But if you were to narrow identify the three most important issues, what would they be? How will you address these issues?

We need to kick the military addiction and the greedy addiction of huge corporate profits and invest the savings into the real welfare of people, thereby creating a new sustainable society for the coming post-oil era.

We invaded Iraq on lies or blunders…take your pick. Almost everyone…with a few notable and impeachable exceptions…now agree that we should not have invaded Iraq. I would bring our troops home now. If someone tells you that s/he will stay in a failed marriage to avoid admitting mistakes, hoping things will somehow improve…you would rightfully question that person’s judgment.

I will change this country’s self-image from that of THE SUPER POWER/ WORLD LEADER to that of a member of the global community. I will cut our military budget by at least half.

We need to stop supporting dictators. On the nuclear issue, we need to get rid of double standards. We need to treat all nations with the same expectations, be it Pakistan, Israel, France, the U.S., Iran, etc. In other words, my policies would be even-handed. I will join the rest of the world in pressuring Israel to live up to treaties, and to dismantle its nuclear arms. I will use the “special relationship” between Israel and the U.S. to motivate Israel to do this.

I will work for the global shutting down of all nuclear reactors and dismantling of all nuclear [and biological and chemical] weapons. I will start this in the U.S. All countries should be expected to live under the same rules….not one set for the “super powers” and another for the “developing” nations like Iran. I will push for a global development of clean, safe energy sources as alternatives to nuclear power.

We have been robbed during the recent years of many of our rights and freedoms. I will have repealing parties in the White House, scrapping all the rules and policies in every department and agency that infringe on our rights, freedoms, privacy, health and welfare. We will have similar parties in both houses of Congress to repeal bad laws such as the so-called Patriot Act. We will return to the common English language in which “torture” means torture. I will declassify documents that were classified to hide questionable actions rather than to protect the real national interests. I will push the Justice Department to investigate the war on The Left by the F.B.I. since the 60’s. Terrorism is a criminal matter. It should be dealt with as such, not as a war. We shouldn’t abandon our principles, freedoms, rights, The Constitution and The Bills of Rights to live in fear. Whenever there is an attempt to fudge the limits of power for convenience of “safety,” we the people get screwed.

I’ll do away with welfare, medicare and social security. Instead, every American will receive a minimum income of $1,000 a month. This amount will be tied to the cost of living and will not be taxable.

We will have universal prenatal-to-the-grave health care and universal free education with equal access.

The universal health care would include all medicine, medical equipment and supplies, long-term care, personal attendants, etc. There will be no pre-authorization ritual. So your doctor will be free to prescribe whatever you need. There may be a review of treatment afterward if there are any questions. Everybody will have the same care as the President now has. Preventative medicine will be stressed and the so-called alternative medicine will be included. You will notice that health insurance companies are not in this picture!

I’ll do away with all tax deductions for over $12,000 income. Instead, there will be a flat tax of 10% on annual income of less than one million dollars for an individual and less than five million dollars for a corporation. But the flat tax will jump to 75% on annual income exceeding these limits.

The guaranteed minimum income of $1,000 a month adjusted to the cost of living is meant to be a safety net rather than a replacement for work. I think most want to work…in an expanded concept of work. But to get a true feeling of what it would be like if you had to live on your minimum income, you have to crank in that you wouldn’t pay for health care, education, mass transit, etc. It all adds up. The combined minimum income couple…or a single parent with a child…would be $2,000 a month. This should provide a realistic basic living. This allows the single parent the option of being home doing the important work of raising a child. But free childcare provided by the universal free education system would open a whole host of new possibilities to the single parent.

The minimum income would encourage people to form the cooperative communal family [of all kinds] groupings who pool their incomes together…using their minimum incomes as a base to create more nourishing homes, to start and maintain small businesses. These communal groupings will be much more financially stable, emotionally nourishing, and environmentally friendly than today’s common isolating model of living.

It is all about caring and choice. If a senior wants to stay in her own home, the $1,000 a month will make that possible as will the home attendants provided by the healthcare system. This is also true if she wants to live with her family or in communal housing. This will actually be much cheaper than the scary mess we have now. The warehouse nursing home will be a thing of the past. Seniors will be an important, active element of every part of our society. We need everyone actively involved. We simply cannot afford on any level to warehouse portions of our population. It is a waste of potential! If we are to survive, we need to end hunger, poverty, and fear.

Basically the problem is not a lack of money, but what we have spent our money on…war, pork, waste, etc. It has been a standard trick to distract us with supposed waste, fraud, etc. in the social programs while milking us out of billions in military waste, corporate welfare, etc.

Again, the minimum income of $1,000 a month for every citizen will give people money to spend, save, invest, or pool with others to create more effective financial communities which will open up a wide range of opportunities for the average person…to start small businesses, to stay on the family farm, to do art, to raise kids, etc. Free health care [which will include long-term care, home attendants, medicine, etc.], free life time education [including child care], free mass transit, etc. will in effect put more real money in the pocket of the average person. But more importantly the fear of the future will fade, releasing what is now horded away for old age, for when your health fails you, for your kid’s education…releasing the knot in your belly of knowing that no matter how much you manage to save [if any] it will not be enough.

All (max 200 words): Campaigning for the American presidency is one of the most expensive exercises in the world. How do you deal with the cost and fundraising?

Well, it doesn’t have to be. I probably will have spent around $1,000-$3,000 for the 2 years of the campaign. I’m use to doing things without much money. Is it effective? You asked me to do this interview! And I have a waiting line! This kind of campaign is made easier by the internet, the indie media, public access cable tv, etc. And it will probably get easier to do this kind of campaign in the next few years. European mainstream press has covered our campaign quite a lot. I expect that the mainstream press here will discover our campaign via Europe after the conventions.

So our campaign has no paid ads, no paid staff, no travel expenses [I tie my campaign appearances to my performance tours], etc. Our biggest expenses are things like buttons, bumper stickers, and booths at street festivals.

Historically the goal of independent and third-party candidates is not to “win.” Realistically the process is rigged to prevent us from “winning.” The function of such a candidate as I is to introduce ideas, to induce change, to raise the bar. Within this context, my campaign is extremey effective. But on the other hand, I JUST MAY WIN THIS SUCKER!

All (max 300 words): Do you have a running mate yet? Who are they? What are you/were you looking for in a running mate?

My vice president is Susan Marilyn Block, Ph.D.

Part philosopher, part therapist, part humorist and part-time horny housewife, Dr. Susan M Block is a world-renowned sex educator, best-selling author, award-winning documentary filmmaker, art dealer, cable TV host and political activist. A familiar face on HBO's late-night programming through her #1 Nielsen-rated show, Radio Sex TV and her episodes on Real Sex, she also hosts The Dr. Susan Block Show, rated by The LA Weekly as “The Best of LA Phone-In Shows,” airing weekly on cable TV stations around the world, from Hollywood to the Holy Land.

A magna cum laude graduate of Yale University (BA, Theater Studies, With Distinction), Block went on to study at UC Berkeley and San Francisco State, receiving her masters and doctorate in philosophy with an emphasis in psychology from Pacific Western. Her first book, Advertising for Love, forecast the current online dating explosion. Her second book, Being A Woman, a popularization of her doctoral thesis on Dr. Toni Wolfe’s theory of feminine psychology, became a NY Times bestseller. Her third book, The 10 Commandments of Pleasure has been published in 15 countries (coming soon to Israel, where her cable TV show is a big hit). Creator of the award-winning documentary series, Encyclopedia of Sex, Block is an active member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. She has been featured in numerous documentaries and appeared on multiple radio and TV shows, from Oprah to Today.

Chosen as one of "America's Greatest Thinkers" (twice) by the Great American Think-Off, and dubbed "the Erin Brockovitch of the Bonobo" by Salon, Block is an active advocate of the extremely endangered bonobos, using their highly sexual, non-violent and gender-egalitarian "lifestyle" as a prototype for her philosophy of Peace through Pleasure. She is a visiting lecturer in the Human Sexuality Department at University of Southern California (USC), and at her alma mater Yale University, as well as a founder, coordinator and regular lecturer at “Sex Week at Yale” (now in its fourth season). Also a consultant to the LA Public Defenders' Office (Sex Crimes Division), her columns on sex, health, politics and culture are published in various print and online magazines, from Counterpunch to Perfect 10.

All (max 300 words): Can you win the 2008 Presidential election? Can any third party or independent candidate ever win? Realistically it is impossible for any of us independent/third-party candidates to win…and for that matter candidates such as Edwards whom the mainstream media labels hopeless. It is not really about a lack of money.

First of all a large number of states either out-right ban write-in candidates or make it virtually impossible to qualify to be a write-in candidate. These states throw out the entire ballot with a write-in on it. This disenfranchises the voters in those states from the full choices. It freezes in place not only the 2-party system…which is a product of evolution, not of the Constitution…but the two parties that happen to be the major parties at the present moment. This has to change before we will have a chance of winning. One effect of my campaign has been forcing several states to clean up their write-in processes.

The mainstream media wants to simplify the story down to as few candidates as possible as fast as possible…focusing on the candidates the closest to the corporate interest and painting the rest as fringe….and hence not worth coverage or be included in debates.

But the indie media has developed as a meaningful alternative to the mainstream media. And it will get much more powerful in the coming years as a hammer breaking down the monopolistic control of the corporate media. Both Wikinews and http://www.luver.com are part of this movement. This in-depth interview is an example of what is excluded in the corporate media. Moreover, when I received your email asking us independent/third-party candidates for this interview…with all the addresses of the candidates…I switched my candidate hat for my luver hat and offered my fellow candidates luver as a platform to get their messages out. We have created a weekly show, from the margins, for that purpose. It is politics of inclusion rather than of exclusion.

All (max 100 words): If you can't make it into the Oval Office, who would you prefer seeing taking the presidency?

Ralph Nader. I have always used my vote as a way to inch society to what I know is a better place. I always vote for the candidate who represents our dreams.

All (max 200 words): What should the American people keep in mind, when heading to the polls this November?

It will be an exciting, fun four years! Just imagine a world in which somebody like you or me could really become president. Now keep imagining it and we just may win! Do not throw your vote away on a candidate who does not share your dreams, who is not committed to bring your dreams into reality! Go for it! It is the only practical thing to do because if we don’t go for it, we will never get what we need, what we want, what we are dreaming. Hey, it just makes sense… right? So go to http://www.frankmooreforpresident08.com/ and read my platform. If you like what read, get involved! Print out the platform and give it everybody! Become an elector for me! Do whatever you can think of to get the message out.

And then write Frank Moore in on Election Day!


text:
Wikinews interviews Frank Moore, independent candidate for US President

March 1, 2008

While nearly all coverage of the 2008 Presidential election has focused on the Democratic and Republican candidates, the race for the White House also includes independents and third party candidates. These parties represent a variety of views that may not be acknowledged by the major party platforms.

Wikinews has impartially reached out to these candidates, throughout the campaign. We now interview independent Presidential candidate Frank Moore, a performance artist.

Interview
Why do you want to be President?
 * I have been running for president for about a year now. I started running basically because none of the prominent candidates are talking honestly and directly about the state of things, are committed to fundamental change, and have a clear plan to create a humane, sustainable, and just plain enjoyable society. So I took on that role. When everyday people in the “real world” hear about my candidacy, they become extremely excited. They don’t see a performance artist in a wheelchair. They don’t check the odds of my winning. Instead they see someone who they could excitedly vote for… somebody who shares their dreams, talks deeply about what really affects their lives. And then they read my platform. Then they got more excited at how possible it is to bring our dreams for our society into reality… to remove fear and isolation; to get the boot of big corporations off our neck; to provide everyone health care, life-long education, a minimum income, and a livable wage; to restore our rights and freedoms; and to bring our troops home now! We everyday people know the real state of the union! But more importantly, we have the sense of what is possible! We need leaders who share our dreams and who do not sell us short. Or sell us out!

 * I am running to raise the bar, to raise expectations, to expand the possibilities, to replace fear with hope and joy. I am running because what we want is within our grasp. I am running to get results. Things can work. Truth is political power is based on things not working. This is why things do not work. I am not running for political power, but to get things to work. That simple!

'''Have you ever run for political office before? Have you ever been a member of a political party? Have you ever campaigned for another political candidate?'''
 * Well, the only thing I ran for before was president of the student government in college. I almost won…which freaked the other candidate out because he had spent $900, while I spent $25! This is the same story in this campaign. The only public office I have held is when I was appointed to the rent board in Santa Fe after a successful rent strike in the early 70’s. I helped to found the San Bernardino chapter of the Peace and Freedom Party in the late 60’s.

 * I have always been dumb to what is impossible. So I just figure how to do the “impossible.” I have been doing this all my life! I am 61. I was born with cerebral palsy. I communicate using a laser-pointer and a board of letters, numbers and commonly-used words. But I am the host of a popular public access TALK show. Go figure it! So now I am setting my sights, as president, on eliminating poverty, hunger, war, etc.  Impossible, eh?

 * When I was born, doctors told my parents that I had no intelligence, that I had no future, that I would be best put into an institution and be forgotten. So the struggle for freedom, and against the powers-that-be has been my life. And it has been a continuous struggle, struggling with schools to let me in, etc. I have always been a radical. But that became obvious when I was 18 and invented my head pointer with which I type and communicate…I started writing political columns for the high school paper…as well as putting out an underground paper. I was in the first special class placed on a regular high school campus so that the disabled students could be in regular classes and be a part of campus life. I was involved in the civil rights and anti-war movements. This was 1965…before it was popular to be against the Vietnam War. In the school paper I got into a debate with a GI in Vietnam. I was sat down and told that, because of my political philosophy and activities, I was hurting the chances of the disabled students who would come after me. I replied that the goal was to get the rights for the disabled [and for all people] to be complete and equal…and that included the right to be political. I would not surrender that, or any other, right.

 * So I started doing political columns for underground newspapers, joined Students for Democratic Society. Did political pranks…such as rolling in my wheelchair into the Marines Recruiting Office to join, offering to push the BUTTON with my head pointer. But after the Kent State killings, I switched from straight politics to art, performance, and community building as my tools for effecting social change. In the early 90s I and five other performance artists were targeted by Sen. Jesse Helms in what is commonly seen as the first battle of the cultural wars. This placed me in a great position to fight for our freedoms!

'''What is your current job? What skills or ideas do you bring from this position, or previous positions, that will benefit the Oval Office?'''
 * “Artist” covers a lot of different “jobs”…and “performance artist” is even vaguer! I am a performance artist. I work outside boxes, using improvisation to draw people into the state of community where they can reach their potential. This is what I will do as President.

 * Because I came from a suppressed group…the so-called “disabled”…I know how to struggle successfully for equality, freedom, justice, etc. I do have this disability of not knowing what is “impossible.” So, I just figure out how to do it. When I was born, the doctors told my parents I had no IQ. Obviously the doctors were wrong. So I don’t pay any intention to the supposed limitations. I just do what is needed. When I was growing up, I struggled to get educated, struggled against discrimination and prejudices. I really enjoy the righteous struggle. This enjoyment of struggle gives me an advantage when struggle is needed. When Senator Jesse Helms tried to blacklist me, when the Berkeley City Council tried to ban my public access cable show… there have been so many struggles! My enjoying righteous struggle has been a winning element. I also enjoy when struggle is successful. I’m looking forward to the huge struggle of taking away controlling power from the big corporations, of reclaiming the rights and freedoms that have been stolen from the people of this country, of creating a new post-oil social order in which we will eliminate fear of getting sick, of getting old, of the future, of the Other.

 * I know how to get things done. In the 70s, I developed an extremely successful relationship counseling practice. This created a community with both many thriving businesses and artistic projects…one of which was my caberet show, the outrageous beauty review, which ran for years. The 80’s found me publishing the zine the cherotic ®evolutionary, giving artists, writers, and photographers a home. I also started d.u.d.e., a free distribution service for the small press and indie musicians. When the internet arrived, I used it to further this community building on www.eroplay.com. But when I started our web station www.luver.com over 9 years ago, a genii was released. Not only did we pioneer streaming media, but luver quickly became a powerful uncensored channel for dangerous ideas, voices, dreams!

 * We need to stop listening to people who keep telling us our dreams are impossible!

'''Obviously, the next American President and his or her administration will face many diverse issues. But if you were to narrow identify the three most important issues, what would they be? How will you address these issues?'''

 * We need to kick the military addiction and the greedy addiction of huge corporate profits and invest the savings into the real welfare of people, thereby creating a new sustainable society for the coming post-oil era.

 * We invaded Iraq on lies or blunders…take your pick. Almost everyone…with a few notable and impeachable exceptions…now agree that we should not have invaded Iraq. I would bring our troops home now. If someone tells you that s/he will stay in a failed marriage to avoid admitting mistakes, hoping things will somehow improve…you would rightfully question that person’s judgment.

 * I will change this country’s self-image from that of THE SUPER POWER/ WORLD LEADER to that of a member of the global community. I will cut our military budget by at least half.

 * We need to stop supporting dictators. On the nuclear issue, we need to get rid of double standards. We need to treat all nations with the same expectations, be it Pakistan, Israel, France, the U.S., Iran, etc. In other words, my policies would be even-handed. I will join the rest of the world in pressuring Israel to live up to treaties, and to dismantle its nuclear arms. I will use the “special relationship” between Israel and the U.S. to motivate Israel to do this.

 * I will work for the global shutting down of all nuclear reactors and dismantling of all nuclear [and biological and chemical] weapons. I will start this in the U.S. All countries should be expected to live under the same rules….not one set for the “super powers” and another for the “developing” nations like Iran. I will push for a global development of clean, safe energy sources as alternatives to nuclear power.

 * We have been robbed during the recent years of many of our rights and freedoms. I will have repealing parties in the White House, scrapping all the rules and policies in every department and agency that infringe on our rights, freedoms, privacy, health and welfare. We will have similar parties in both houses of Congress to repeal bad laws such as the so-called Patriot Act. We will return to the common English language in which “torture” means torture. I will declassify documents that were classified to hide questionable actions rather than to protect the real national interests. I will push the Justice Department to investigate the war on The Left by the F.B.I. since the 60’s. Terrorism is a criminal matter. It should be dealt with as such, not as a war. We shouldn’t abandon our principles, freedoms, rights, The Constitution and The Bills of Rights to live in fear. Whenever there is an attempt to fudge the limits of power for convenience of “safety,” we the people get screwed.

 * I’ll do away with welfare, medicare and social security. Instead, every American will receive a minimum income of $1,000 a month. This amount will be tied to the cost of living and will not be taxable.

 * We will have universal prenatal-to-the-grave health care and universal free education with equal access.

 * The universal health care would include all medicine, medical equipment and supplies, long-term care, personal attendants, etc. There will be no pre-authorization ritual. So your doctor will be free to prescribe whatever you need. There may be a review of treatment afterward if there are any questions. Everybody will have the same care as the President now has. Preventative medicine will be stressed and the so-called alternative medicine will be included. You will notice that health insurance companies are not in this picture!

 * I’ll do away with all tax deductions for over $12,000 income. Instead, there will be a flat tax of 10% on annual income of less than one million dollars for an individual and less than five million dollars for a corporation.  But the flat tax will jump to 75% on annual income exceeding these limits.

 * The guaranteed minimum income of $1,000 a month adjusted to the cost of living is meant to be a safety net rather than a replacement for work. I think most want to work…in an expanded concept of work. But to get a true feeling of what it would be like if you had to live on your minimum income, you have to crank in that you wouldn’t pay for health care, education, mass transit, etc. It all adds up. The combined minimum income couple…or a single parent with a child…would be $2,000 a month. This should provide a realistic basic living. This allows the single parent the option of being home doing the important work of raising a child. But free childcare provided by the universal free education system would open a whole host of new possibilities to the single parent.

 * The minimum income would encourage people to form the cooperative communal family [of all kinds] groupings who pool their incomes together…using their minimum incomes as a base to create more nourishing homes, to start and maintain small businesses. These communal groupings will be much more financially stable, emotionally nourishing, and environmentally friendly than today’s common isolating model of living.

 * It is all about caring and choice. If a senior wants to stay in her own home, the $1,000 a month will make that possible as will the home attendants provided by the healthcare system. This is also true if she wants to live with her family or in communal housing. This will actually be much cheaper than the scary mess we have now. The warehouse nursing home will be a thing of the past. Seniors will be an important, active element of every part of our society. We need everyone actively involved. We simply cannot afford on any level to warehouse portions of our population. It is a waste of potential! If we are to survive, we need to end hunger, poverty, and fear.

 * Basically the problem is not a lack of money, but what we have spent our money on…war, pork, waste, etc. It has been a standard trick to distract us with supposed waste, fraud, etc. in the social programs while milking us out of billions in military waste, corporate welfare, etc.

 * Again, the minimum income of $1,000 a month for every citizen will give people money to spend, save, invest, or pool with others to create more effective financial communities which will open up a wide range of opportunities for the average person…to start small businesses, to stay on the family farm, to do art, to raise kids, etc. Free health care [which will include long-term care, home attendants, medicine, etc.], free life time education [including child care], free mass transit, etc. will in effect put more real money in the pocket of the average person. But more importantly the fear of the future will fade, releasing what is now horded away for old age, for when your health fails you, for your kid’s education…releasing the knot in your belly of knowing that no matter how much  you manage to save [if any] it will not be enough.

'''Campaigning for the American presidency is one of the most expensive exercises in the world. How do you deal with the cost and fundraising?'''
 * Well, it doesn’t have to be. I probably will have spent around $1,000-$3,000 for the 2 years of the campaign. I’m use to doing things without much money. Is it effective? You asked me to do this interview! And I have a waiting line! This kind of campaign is made easier by the internet, the indie media, public access cable tv, etc. And it will probably get easier to do this kind of campaign  in the next few years. European mainstream press has covered our campaign quite a lot. I expect that the mainstream press here will discover our campaign via Europe after the conventions.

 * So our campaign has no paid ads, no paid staff, no travel expenses [I tie my campaign appearances to my performance tours], etc. Our biggest expenses are things like buttons, bumper stickers, and booths at street festivals.

 * Historically the goal of independent and third-party candidates is not to “win.” Realistically the process is rigged to prevent us from “winning.” The function of such a candidate as I is to introduce ideas, to induce change, to raise the bar. Within this context, my campaign is extremey effective. But on the other hand, I JUST MAY WIN THIS SUCKER!

'''Do you have a running mate yet? Who are they? What are you/were you looking for in a running mate?'''
 * My vice president is Susan Marilyn Block, Ph.D.

 * Part philosopher, part therapist, part humorist and part-time horny housewife, Dr. Susan M Block is a world-renowned sex educator, best-selling author, award-winning documentary filmmaker, art dealer, cable TV host and political activist. A familiar face on HBO's late-night programming through her #1 Nielsen-rated show, Radio Sex TV and her episodes on Real Sex, she also hosts The Dr. Susan Block Show, rated by The LA Weekly as “The Best of LA Phone-In Shows,” airing weekly on cable TV stations around the world, from Hollywood to the Holy Land.

 * A magna cum laude graduate of Yale University (BA, Theater Studies, With Distinction), Block went on to study at UC Berkeley and San Francisco State, receiving her masters and doctorate in philosophy with an emphasis in psychology from Pacific Western. Her first book, Advertising for Love, forecast the current online dating explosion.  Her second book, Being A Woman, a popularization of her doctoral thesis on Dr. Toni Wolfe’s theory of feminine psychology, became a NY Times bestseller. Her third book, The 10 Commandments of Pleasure has been published in 15 countries (coming soon to Israel, where her cable TV show is a big hit). Creator of the award-winning documentary series, Encyclopedia of Sex, Block is an active member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. She has been featured in numerous documentaries and appeared on multiple radio and TV shows, from Oprah to Today.

 * Chosen as one of "America's Greatest Thinkers" (twice) by the Great American Think-Off, and dubbed "the Erin Brockovitch of the Bonobo" by Salon, Block is an active advocate of the extremely endangered bonobos, using their highly sexual, non-violent and gender-egalitarian "lifestyle" as a prototype for her philosophy of Peace through Pleasure. She is a visiting lecturer in the Human Sexuality Department at University of Southern California (USC), and at her alma mater Yale University, as well as a founder, coordinator and regular lecturer at “Sex Week at Yale” (now in its fourth season). Also a consultant to the LA Public Defenders' Office (Sex Crimes Division), her columns on sex, health, politics and culture are published in various print and online magazines, from Counterpunch to Perfect 10.

'''Can you win the 2008 Presidential election? Can any third party or independent candidate ever win?'''
 * Realistically it is impossible for any of us independent/third-party candidates to win…and for that matter candidates such as Edwards whom the mainstream media labels hopeless. It is not really about a lack of money.

 * First of all a large number of states either out-right ban write-in candidates or make it virtually impossible to qualify to be a write-in candidate. These states throw out the entire ballot with a write-in on it. This disenfranchises the voters in those states from the full choices. It freezes in place not only the 2-party system…which is a product of evolution, not of the Constitution…but the two parties that happen to be the major parties at the present moment. This has to change before we will have a chance of winning. One effect of my campaign has been forcing several states to clean up their write-in processes.

 * The mainstream media wants to simplify the story down to as few candidates as possible as fast as possible…focusing on the candidates the closest to the corporate interest and painting the rest as fringe….and hence not worth coverage or be included in debates.

 * But the indie media has developed as a meaningful alternative to the mainstream media. And it will get much more powerful in the coming years as a hammer breaking down the monopolistic control of the corporate media. Both Wikinews and www.luver.com are part of this movement. This in-depth interview is an example of what is excluded in the corporate media. Moreover, when I received your email asking us independent/third-party candidates for this interview…with all the addresses of the candidates…I switched my candidate hat for my luver hat and offered my fellow candidates luver as a platform to get their messages out. We have created a weekly show, from the margins, for that purpose. It is politics of inclusion rather than of exclusion.

If you can't make it into the Oval Office, who would you prefer seeing taking the presidency?
 * Ralph Nader. I have always used my vote as a way to inch society to what I know is a better place. I always vote for the candidate who represents our dreams.

What should the American people keep in mind, when heading to the polls this November?
 * It will be an exciting, fun four years! Just imagine a world in which somebody like you or me could really become president. Now keep imagining it and we just may win! Do not throw your vote away on a candidate who does not share your dreams, who is not committed to bring your dreams into reality! Go for it! It is the only practical thing to do because if we don’t go for it, we will never get what we need, what we want, what we are dreaming. Hey, it just makes sense… right? So go to www.frankmooreforpresident08.com and read my platform. If you like what read, get involved! Print out the platform and give it everybody! Become an elector for me! Do whatever you can think of to get the message out.

 * And then write Frank Moore in on Election Day!


text:
Interview with recent Wikimedia Foundation board appointee Domas Mituzas

March 6, 2008

Domas Mituzas is a Lithuanian software developer recently given a temporary position on the Wikimedia Foundation's board. The position lasts until June this year, after which he has stated he will decide whether he will run for a full term of two years. As well as working for the Wikimedia Foundation, he is employed by MySQL AB.

In light of his recent appointment to the board, Wikinews conducted the following interview with Domas Mituzas.

Interview
'''Congratulations on your new board position! Can you tell us a bit about your background - previous work with the Foundation, what you do with MySQL AB etc?

Domas Mituzas: Thanks! Though my first edits to Wikipedia were in 2003, I became actively involved in site technology back in 2004. Then I was working for a major IT company in the Baltic States, and was leading the systems group there. Back then I could apply quite a bit of practice I had from my job to maintain Wikipedia in its technology infancy. It became increasingly involving, and eventually the things we started doing became far more complex, especially when the exploding growth hit us. Managing the growth and sustaining the site up was quite stressful at that time, and we started both lots of optimization and resource expansion work. Eventually I got involved in the MySQL community, and was suggested to apply for a job in MySQL AB. There I work in services division, assisting our customers with their problems, helping to grow their operations. Now as part of company acquisition I'm joining Sun Microsystems, and I'm eager to see what possibilities can that provide.

Back in my childhood I was deep into encyclopedias, first dead tree ones, later CDs and online version of Britannica. I had a dream, that once I get my own home, I'll get full dead-tree version of Britannica on my bookshelves. It didn't happen, as I got into Wikipedia the same year I bought my apartment. Life is full of irony :-)

Actually, back in 2000 I approached university professor and tried to explain him a concept of dynamically edited news repository, where every concept could be explained deeper and deeper into elemental knowledge particles, and later that can be assembled in many dynamic ways. His first question was "Is that some kind of website?", and I was angry at him for not getting the generic concept of knowledge at all. Year or two afterwards I was discussing same concepts with a colleague, and he provided with far more practical visions of all that. Seeing Wikipedia for the very first time was a dejavu, so it was easy to get into the project. That is different from what I imagined, but far more useful.

'''Why do you think you were chosen for this position, and what do you think you can contribute?

DM: One of reasons was both my long-term presence in site operations and communicating about our work, spreading our ideology, providing opinions. I try to be able to explain difficult topics in human language, and that is quite well appreciated. Additionally, I was being a bit of outsider - more of a reader than writer, so I feel that my views are slightly less community centric, more of value centric. My experience in a technology team is quite similar to what I expect to see in the board - wide array of issues to work on, and maintaining consensus is incredibly important to keep the productivity high. So even though I have deep roots in the project, I feel that I can bring in lots of fresh ways to the board. Of course, I will try to provide best possible technology advise, if the board needs it.

'''Will you continue doing your previous technical work at the same time? If you do, how will you find a balance?

DM: I would really avoid to do all previous work - but it is not needed any more. Years ago we were monitoring the site 24/7, shortage of resources was causing all sorts of difficult problems. Now everything is way more steady and reliable, so I have way much more free time. I used to do lots of other activities too, so I think I can scale my time just fine. And still, of course, I'll provide as much work to technical part as needed, it just isn't as demanding as it used to be, and we're really happy about that.

'''What major actions do you expect to come your way during your term in office?

DM: Though my term is quite short for now (until June elections), the biggest work will be done in understanding how the foundation should function to establish a really long-term presence, to support the projects far into the future. It may need changes in how we get external experience, how we interact with other organizations, how we do interact with office staff and each other. Foundation did lots of work to get to stable and reliable state, now it is time to think more about the future sustainability and expansion.

I have operations experience, so of course I will want to maintain high efficiency of overall operation, but on the other hand I want to work on scaling other parts of the foundation - especially reach out, evangelism, and of course - fundraising.

'''Do you expect any major upgrades to be needed to hardware or software anytime soon, and if so what?

DM: Projects are always growing - pages, pageviews, revisions, users, media, archives - to facilitate that there will always be major upgrades. We still have some of the solutions that allowed us to survive for years, but are not suitable for a whole millennium. There will always be new features, that will need more resources, so we definitely won't stop improving our hardware or software platform. I have to take off the board member hat to answer these questions, as they should be really directed to technology team, instead of board. I won't mention exact projects, but we have a trail of features that have to be implemented, and will be, soon. But indeed, that is very much operational issue, that the technology team and foundation staff is known to handle well.

'''What do you expect lies ahead for the Foundation in the long run - say, the next ten years?

DM: My generation is already forming the 'Wikimedia Alumni' - the readers, consumers of our content love us. It is amazing to realize what powers they may have in the next ten years, and how they will be able to assist us.

The biggest work to be done - maintaining the loyalty of our community, continue being the good guys of the Internet. Next ten years will be years of continued Internet penetration, and us being the major beneficial part of that process is especially exciting.

I really want to believe, that our offline activities will be just an intermediate step, and we will have whole world using our online resources, and of course - contributing to them.

Also, I'm not sure if we will be capable to achieve in next ten years, but besides digital divide, we will have to break information isolationism that certain countries or communities maintain - and the best way to achieve it is by providing the best knowledge resource possible. Opening up communities and having them work together may really become the next great wonder of the world. Who doesn't want to be part of that? :)


text: File:American Civil Liberties Union logo.png


text:
User talk:66.177.220.149

Welcome
Thanks for experimenting with Wikinews. Your test worked, and has now been reverted or removed. Please use Sandbox for any other tests you want to do, since testing in articles may disrupt the site's working and will be reverted quickly. , welcome to Wikinews! Please refrain from using content pages for testing. Here are a few good links for newcomers on how to edit Wikinews:

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title: User talk:66.177.220.149


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Comments:Netscape Navigator support ceases today

Smell you later forever, Netscape
'The decision was said to be due to "AOL's current business focus and the success of the Mozilla Foundation".' ...and the fact that it sucked after AOL took it over. Netscape was toast before Firefox even came out. -161.88.255.240 22:21, 3 March 2008 (UTC)


text:
File talk:Evacuation.jpg

I've contacted the photographer who created this image. If no progress can be made towards getting it released under a permitted free licence then this will have to be deleted. Adambro - (talk) 22:25, 3 March 2008 (UTC)
 * This image is from one of if not ur best article. I am more than certain a fair use rational can be written. This was uploaded at a time that the license was acceptable. DragonFire1024 (Talk to the Dragon) 22:42, 3 March 2008 (UTC)

title: File talk:Evacuation.jpg


text:
User talk:Lkrinke

Welcome
, welcome to Wikinews! I hope you like the place and decide to stay. Here are a few good links for newcomers:

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text:
Demonstrations planned to protest internet censorship in Finland

March 4, 2008 On March 4, 2008 a demonstration against censorship is planned to be held at the Finnish Parliament, part of the continuing controversy over the Finnish Internet child porn filter. The organizers of the demonstration expect at least two-hundred participants, with representatives of the digital rights organization Electronic Frontier Finland (Effi) and several political parties will also present.

The controversy arose after the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) blacklisted censorship critic Matti Nikki's site. Matti Nikki himself is now under criminal investigation for aiding in the distribution of child pornography, as he published a large portion of the filtering blacklist on his still-censored website. MP Jyrki Kasvi has made an official inquiry in the Finnish Parliament on the matter, and Effi has filed an official complaint to the parliamentary ombudsman.

The Finnish Minister of Communication, Suvi Lindén, and the NBI have been severely criticized over the filtering system, which has been under heavy scrutiny by the media. After stating that she will not tolerate discussion criticizing the filtering system, as the situation is not a matter of freedom of speech, a petition was signed by over 12,000 people demanding her resignation. This was accompanied by a Thai civil rights group questioning the blocking as child porn of a memorial site dedicated to a member of the Thai royal family. Eventually the NBI removed the memorial site from the blacklist, explaining that the DNS based system blocks only whole sites, and that there was child pornography site under the same domain; this raised questions about the efficiency of the filtering system. Lindén later admitted that she did not know the details of the filtering system, as it had been established by her predecessors, before the change of government in early 2007. She has nevertheless defended the system, citing the protection of children, but admitted that there are problems with the Finnish system, and in other countries with similar systems.

The NBI have published a statement explaining their actions, at the request of Lindén. In it the NBI stated that there are filtered sites that do not contain any child pornography, but claimed that it was not their fault, rather a side effect of the system. They also noted that they are planning to address this issue by switching from a DNS based filter to a URL based system.

According to a prominent Finnish expert of filtering technology, the planned URL filtering would cost least two million euros. This estimate comes at the same time that the government cut back funds for work against child abuse, causing further uproar.

The NBI's official position is that they block pornographic sites where the actors look too young, and sites which link to these sites. The argument for the filtering is that there is a large amount of child pornography on the Internet, most of it based on servers in countries where the authorities are indifferent to the issue. The general opinion after analysis by multiple people is that the list of at least 1,700 sites contains a handful of actual child pornographic sites, most of which are not located in Western countries. However, some sites in the list are located in countries like the United States, the Netherlands, United Kingdom and Germany, and very few of those contain even questionable or borderline material. Dutch journalist Karin Spaink reviewed 40 sites on the list which were physically located in the Netherlands. She concluded that some of the sites have illegal child pornography, and that four of those are also blocked in the Netherlands by their equivalent filtering system. She estimated that about half of the 40 did not contain any illegal material.

Effi's response to the NBI's statement was that the issue with censorship is not technical but that it has no place in an open, democratic society.


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Colombian police claim that Venezuelan government paid FARC rebels $300 million

March 3, 2008 Speaking at a press conference Monday, Colombia's national police chief Gen. Oscar Naranjo said evidence from the computers of slain members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) suggests the Venezuelan government recently paid the militant guerrilla group US$300 million. He suggested that this may have been part of a deal to release several hostages held by the FARC.

"This unmasks the relations of the FARC with a series of governments, with a series of personalities, some public, some more sinister," Naranjo said. A representative of the Ecuadorian government may have been involved with the organization as well, he says, though Ecuadorian president Rafael Correa has already denied these charges.

"They said we had a pact with terrorists, and that is completely false," Correa said during a Cabinet meeting. "We are dealing with an extremely cynical government." The police chief also said there was evidence of the Venezuelan government offering to help supply rifles and of 50 kilograms of uranium to FARC. To verify the evidence, the police chief said he will send the documents to the Organization of American States, who will meet in Washington on Tuesday to discuss the South American situation.

In addition, he says there is evidence that FARC had given U$150,000 to Hugo Chávez in 1992 when he was a jailed rebel leader. "A note recovered from Raúl Reyes speaks of how grateful Chávez was for the 100 million pesos that the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, delivered to Chávez when he was in prison," Naranjo said.

Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador are involved in a conflict over the killing on Saturday of FARC spokesman Luis Edgar Devia Silva, also known as Raúl Reyes. Colombian security forces conducted a raid that extended into Ecuadorian territory.

Venezuela and Ecuador have ordered troops to the border with Colombia and have pulled their diplomats from the capital Bogota.

"We will not permit this outrage," said Rafael Correa. "The situation is extremely grave, and the Ecuadoran government is disposed to go to the ultimate consequences." President of Venezuela Hugo Chávez said the act was a "cowardly murder" and insulted Colombian President Alvaro Uribe as a liar, criminal and gangster.

Colombia says it has decided not to send extra troops to its borders or sever diplomatic ties with either of the two countries, Uribe said that his fight was against FARC and not any of these countries.


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Talk:Demonstrations planned to protest internet censorship in Finland

This page needs a better title, but I do not have the rights to move it, so I'm kindly asking someone else to do it. Suggestions for a headline: "Finnish Internet filtering controversy continues", "Demonstration to be held against Finnish Internet filtering", something like that maybe. Ansaheli - (talk) 00:12, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

 * Is that better? I know I flagged the article for a POV title too. Chris Mann (Say hi!|Stalk me!) 00:28, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

NPOV
This article seems to be written from the point-of-view of the protesters and does little to provide the gov't pov. Secondary notes: Why is the Computer World article in "external links" and not in sources? Why are Finnish sources separated into their own section? --SVTCobra 01:53, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
 * About NPOV; yes and no. Situation is kind of that the supporters of censorship tried to silence discussion to death, so there isn't that much another point of views than protesters which are provoking the discussion. Only people who are being defending the filtering are NBI representative and Suvi Linden and both points are covered in article. Actually other ministers (like interrior minister and minister of law declined to comment anything to press) In couple last days the Finlands mainstream media covered pretty widely the protesters point of view so Gov representative have to respond to critic but it doesn't have happened yet. I expect that it will be on the press today, tomorrow or something like that. IT-media which are covering what is happened is generally sided with the protesters because they wants answers from goverment too.

 * About the links, i was just so sleepy when i wrote first version so i generally sucked with them. So no reason. --Zache - (talk) 03:48, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

Quote?
Quote from the article...
 * After stating that she will not tolerate discussion criticizing the filtering system, as the situation is not a matter of freedom of speech, a petition was signed by over 12,000 people demanding her resignation.

Should the not a matter of freedom of speech actually be in quotes rather that italics? If it's not a direct quote, I'm assuming it's a paraphrase of what the lady being written about said, and this should be more clear. If it is a direct quote, then it should be put in quotes. Wikidsoup - (talk) 19:59, 4 March 2008 (UTC)


text:
User talk:67.85.143.80

Welcome
Thanks for experimenting with Wikinews. Your test worked, and has now been reverted or removed. Please use Sandbox for any other tests you want to do, since testing in articles may disrupt the site's working and will be reverted quickly. , welcome to Wikinews! Please refrain from using content pages for testing. Here are a few good links for newcomers on how to edit Wikinews:

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User talk:76.116.60.228

Welcome
Thanks for experimenting with Wikinews. Your test worked, and has now been reverted or removed. Please use Sandbox for any other tests you want to do, since testing in articles may disrupt the site's working and will be reverted quickly. , welcome to Wikinews! Please refrain from using content pages for testing. Here are a few good links for newcomers on how to edit Wikinews:

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title: User talk:76.116.60.228


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User talk:79.72.31.56

Vandalism warning
Your edits to Talk:Main Page and Wikinews talk:World News Quiz have been reverted as vandalism. Please make any future test edits at Sandbox. Thank you, Chris Mann (Say hi!|Stalk me!) 00:20, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

title: User talk:79.72.31.56


text:
Wikinews:Briefs/March 04, 2008

Wikinews News Brief, March 04 2008

 * Revision: Publication
 * Script by: User:NicholasTurnbull
 * Read by: User:NicholasTurnbull
 * Link to recording: Image:Audio_Wikinews_Brief_2008-03-04.ogg

Please note: this script may differ slightly from the content of the spoken recording.

Introduction
[Jingle] This is Wikinews News Brief, summarising the current news on Tuesday the 4th of March 2008 at 05:00 hours UTC. I’m Nicholas Turnbull. [Jingle]

Computer documents suggest link between Chavez and FARC
The national police chief of Columbia, Oscar Naranjo [pr: na-ran-HO], stated at a press conference yesterday that documentary evidence has been obtained that links Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez [pr: oo-go cha-vez] with the far-left Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, commonly referred to as the FARC [pr: f-a-r-c]. The documents were apparently found on computers belonging to FARC rebels who were killed in recent Columbian military attacks on the Marxist-Leninist guerrilla organisation. Naranjo told press sources that the evidence suggests that Chávez had recently paid $300 million US dollars to the rebels, and declared a suspicion that the money may have been part of an arrangement to secure the release of several hostages held by the organisation. The evidence also allegedly suggests that the Venezuelan government has offered to supply the organisation with uranium and firearms and that a member of the Ecuadorian government had ties with them. The Ecuadorean government has denied allegations by Columbia of complicity in the activities of the FARC.

Medvedev becomes Russian president-elect
Dmitry Medvedev [pr:der-mee-der-ree mid-vay-dev] has won the presidency of the Russian Federation in Sunday's election, winning 70.21% of the overall vote, in which turnout amongst registered voters was 69.65%. Medvedev replaces current president Vladimir Putin, who has served two 4-year presidential terms since his election in 2000. Medvedev is Putin's chosen successor, and has made promises to continue the strategies employed by the current Russian government. Medvedev is considered as more pro-democratic and less nationalistic in his political stance as compared to Putin, and is currently Putin's chief of staff. The fairness of the election has been called into question, with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe refusing to monitor the election on the basis that restrictions imposed by the Russian government would have made the assessment meaningless. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe considered the elections to be neither free nor fair. It is thought that Vladimir Putin will assume the role of Prime Minister.

At least 40 killed by bombing in Pakistan
In north-west Pakistan, over 40 people were killed and several were injured on Sunday, in a bomb attack on the outskirts of Dara Adamkel. The town is near to the country's border with Afghanistan and is approximately 40 kilometres away from the provincial capital of Peshawar. The explosion occurred during a tribal meeting on the subject of security. A spokesman for the Pakistan Interior Ministry stated that the Ministry was currently trying to gather information on the incident and added that initial reports suggested a suicide attack, which remain unconfirmed by official sources.

United Nations condemns Palestinian rocket attacks and Israel's 'disproportionate' response
The Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon, expressed consternation at Israel's use of excessive force against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, whilst also calling for the immediate cessation of rocket attacks by Palestine, in an address to the United Nations Security Council on Sunday. Israeli troops killed 61 people on Saturday, including eight children, in an offensive attack carried out in response to a spate of Palestinian rocket attacks on locations within Israel. Libya has requested agreement to a draft to condemn Israel's killing of Palestinian civilians, although diplomatic sources believe that it will not be passed unless a similar condemnation is made of Palestinian rocket fire on Israel.

Canadian musician Jeff Healey dies of cancer
Canadian Musician Jeff Healey, aged 41, died in Toronto on Sunday following a long battle with cancer. Healey became internationally known for his 1988 album entitled See the Light and for his appearance the following year in the movie Road House with Patrick Swayze. His hits included "Angel Eyes". Blind from the age of 1, Healey learned how to play the guitar by positioning it on his lap. He is survived by his wife and two children.

Nepali goddess retires at age 11
The controversial "living goddess" of Nepal, 11-year-old Sajani Shakya, has retired from her status as the Kumari of Bhaktapur at the request of her family, according to Dipak Pandey, a senior official of the state-run Trust Corporation of Nepal's cultural affairs. According to Pandey, Shakya's family desires to carry out a religious ritual involving a symbolic wedding with a bael fruit, that is intended to ensure the girl will not be treated as a widow if their husband dies before she does. Nepal, a deeply religious nation, believes that Kumari are living incarnations of the goddess Kali, and they must be chosen by the indigenous Newa people by passing ritual tests and having certain physical attributes.

National Hockey League news: March 3, 2008
And now for the sports news. Seven games were played in the National Hockey League on Sunday the 2nd of March. The scores are as follows:
 * 1st match: Philadelphia Flyers 4, New York Rangers 5, in a shootout.
 * 2nd match: Vancouver Canucks 1, Chicago Blackhawks 4.
 * 3rd match: Florida Panthers 1, New York Islanders nil.
 * 4th match: Atlanta Thrashers 2, Pittsburg Penguins 3, in a shootout.
 * 5th match: Detroit Red Wings 4, Buffalo Sabres 2.
 * 6th match: Los Angeles Kings 1, Minnesota Wild 2, in overtime.
 * 7th match: Columbus Blue Jackets 3, Edmonton Oilers 4, in a shootout.

Footer
Thank you very much for joining me, Nicholas Turnbull, for this Wikinews News Brief. [Intro music] Wikinews is a project of the Wikimedia Foundation, and can be accessed at the following URL: http://en.wikinews.org. This recording is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 Generic License, available at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/. Goodbye. [Outro music] [END]

title: Wikinews:Briefs/March 04, 2008


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Talk:Canadian musician Jeff Healey dies of cancer

VERY SAD
It's a very sad shame to see him go. Just like Dan Fogelberg and Luciano Pavarotti did. UnknownMan - (talk) 01:52, 4 March 2008 (UTC)


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Conservatives in Alberta, Canada re-elected 11th consecutive time

March 4, 2008 Ed Stelmach was celebrating victory on Monday as he was expected to be re-elected Premier in the Canadian province of Alberta. Vote results indicate a solid majority of legislative seats for Stelmach's Progressive Conservatives, an 11th consecutive election victory for his party.

Stelmach, who succeeded Ralph Klein as party leader and Premier in 2006, defeated Kevin Taft's opposition Liberals by winning a substantial majority of the provincial legislature seats. New Democrat Brian Mason was leading in his Edmonton riding, although his party is expected to win few seats.

The Wildrose Alliance Party was only formed in January, the result of a merger of the Wildrose and Alliance parties.

The Alberta Greens and the Progressive Conservatives were the only parties to gain in popular support, rising 1.8% and 5.8% respectively.

Results
Results as of Tuesday 08:18 UTC - 6107 of 6107 polls reporting.

Source: Elections Alberta


text:
Comments:Colombian police claim that Venezuelan government paid FARC rebels $300 million

What a joke, Iraq has WMD and rainbows come out my...—64.251.65.161 04:31, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

Well, better a link with FARC than the U.S.G. (U.S. Government)Taboo Tongue - (talk) 07:08, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

This is a surprise? --Kitch - (talk) 13:06, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

Dont buy the uranium
While I understand a link between Venezuela (extreme socialist) & FARC ( communist ), I can not understand the need for either party to play with uranium. FARC cant kill civilians as it would be counter productive, and Venezuela would probably be affected by the fall out of a dirty bomb / nuke. So while I do believe the link I think the uranium claims are planted bull, to give the US another excuse to attack.--144.82.106.23 14:06, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

Miracously Saved Computers
An 84 people campament was bombed during the night by the Colombian army. Now they claim that 3 computers miracously were saved from the bomb attack, they have the complete hard drives and they found significant documents... So significant that they are now the prove why they should enter into another country and break the international law that could lead to war.... Mmm... This story sounds to me like the: "there are WMD in Iraq, we should go in for the good of the World"... Oh, and by the way, the Bush government doesn't ask Colombia why did they invade another country, they say that they back president Uribe... Strange situation this one.

wow
Liberals are fucking retarded.

Communist rebels are totally not supported by A dictator that his knee deep in the drug world.