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Powerful car bomb blast hits Kabul, Afghanistan

October 8, 2009

Afghan government officials have said that a powerful suicide car bomb hit near the Indian Embassy in Kabul on Thursday, killing at least 17 people and wounding more than 80 others. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the blast, saying their target was the embassy.

The Afghan Interior Ministry says the explosion killed mostly civilians on the heavily guarded road between its headquarters and the Indian Embassy.

Eyewitnesses reports said that the the blast was very powerful, shattering shop windows, filling the air with dust and scattering debris all along the road.

General Sayed Abdul Ghafar Sahibzada, the Kabul police chief, said the suicide bomber exploded his vehicle in the center of the capital. Some of the victims include police officers, he said.

Thursday's blast comes one day after the eighth anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion into Afghanistan to topple the Taliban government.

Last year, a similar attack by a Taliban suicide car bomber killed about 60 people near the Indian embassy. It was the deadliest assault in the capital since 2001.


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European Parliament committee backs visa-free travel for Balkan countries

October 9, 2009

The European Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee supported on Tuesday a proposal by the European Commission to scrap visa requirements for citizens of Serbia, Montenegro, and Macedonia, starting on January 1 of next year.

The committee also asked that Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania be included in the visa liberalisation process, although neither has met EU-determined benchmarks yet. European Parliament members also want to initiate visa liberalisation dialogues with Kosovo and establish a roadmap for visa-free travel.

Serbia, Macedonia, and Montenegro currently appear to have strong support within the Parliament for implementing the proposal.

“I am convinced that what we are trying to do now with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Albania will not slow down the other three countries. This was a political decision by all the member-states of the European community and that will not change,” said  Tanja Fajon, the European Parliament Rapporteur on Visa Liberalization.

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


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Bosnian football fan's suspected killer escapes police custody

October 10, 2009 Oliver Knezovic, who is suspected of killing a Bosnia and Herzegovinan football club fan in the southwest town of Siroki Brijeg, has escaped from the custody of judicial police, local media reported on Tuesday.

Police have launched an investigation and the officers responsible for Knezovic have been suspended. Media reports suggest he fled to Croatia.

The president of the Supreme Court of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Amir Jagnjac, said that Knezovic escaped at around midnight on Tuesday from the custody of police. He said that the officers who were on duty when Knezovic made his escape have been suspended.

Sarajevo resident Vedran Puljic, aged 24, was killed by a gunshot on Sunday in clashes that broke out as soon as fans of the Sarajevo team arrived in Siroki Brijeg to watch the game against the local football squad.


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Romanian trade unions threaten more protests

October 8, 2009 Thousands of Romanian public sector workers gathered outside government headquarters in Bucharest on Wednesday to rally against the planned downsizing of the public sector. They protested planned pay cuts and growing job insecurity, as well as the so-called single wage bill, which will in effect freeze pay in the sector for an indefinite period.

Threatening further protests, union leaders called on voters to boycott the November 22nd presidential elections. The government, meanwhile, faces a no-confidence vote next week.

Bogdan Hossu, leader of Cartel Alfa Union, recalled that President had told reporters he would not seek a second term if the number of unemployed reaches one million people.

As many as 15,000 people from all over Romania joined Wednesday's demonstration. It followed a one-day strike Monday, when up to 800,000 teachers, doctors, nurses, policemen, clerks and other public sector employees took to the streets in what has been described as Romania's largest protest in the last 80 years.

The catalyst was adoption of reform measures aimed at cutting the swollen budget deficit and meeting commitments spelled out in an IMF-led financial rescue package worth nearly 20 billion euros.

"We need these measures to be taken now. If not, it could lead to a prolonged recession," the AFP quoted Nicolae Chidesciuc, senior economist at ING Romania, as saying Wednesday.

But the government's recent move to reform the public pay scale — ending intricate bonus programmes and effectively reducing the wages of most employees in the public sector — caused an uproar.

Chanting "thieves! thieves!", the participants in Wednesday's rally demanded that the government to resign. "You promised us, then you forgot us," they shouted.

"The authorities forced us to the streets again; we did not want this to happen today, on the World Day for Decent Work, as we are now celebrating indecent work," said Aurel Cornea, vice-president of the Teachers' Union, one of the four trade unions that organised the rally.

The list of demands they submitted Wednesday called for the minimum wage to be increased from its current level of around 145 euros to 176 euros per month in 2010 and to 310 euros per month in 2014, and for an improvement of the salary scales under the unitary pay law for the public sector. They also urged authorities to scrap provisions introducing a mandatory unpaid leave of ten days a year.

According to Romanian media reports, the unions are also pressing the government to increase economic investment, support economic agencies, create jobs, protect workers and ensure decent pensions.

Romania has been hit badly by the global economic turmoil. According to IMF estimates for 2009, the country's budget deficit is expected to top 7.3% of GDP and the economy will shrink by 8.5% this year.

Prime Minister, whose government faces a no-confidence vote in parliament on Tuesday, has urged the unionists to halt their protests until after next month's presidential elections.


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User talk:86.15.153.179

Welcome
--Brian McNeil / talk 17:11, 8 October 2009 (UTC)

Contributions to 40 injured after attacks in Thailand
I've checked and sighted your contribution to this, thanks for that. We do have quite a bit on the insurgency, Category:South Thailand insurgency, but I've not actively looked for stories on that in a while. --Brian McNeil / talk 17:11, 8 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:86.15.153.179


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Macedonia says compromise with Greece over name dispute possible

October 9, 2009

Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov voiced expectations on Tuesday that the process of resolving the country's long-standing name dispute with Greece will receive a new impetus, given the new government in Athens. He said that a compromise is possible, if the process continues under the auspices of UN resolutions and talks focus only on the name, and not on the Macedonian identity and language.

Ivanov added that any compromise shouldn't "be offensive" to either Macedonia or Greece.

“A compromise is possible if the process is under the auspices of the UN resolution and only the name [of Macedonia] is discussed,” said Ivanov, as quoted by the MIA news agency. “A solution which is not insulting either for Macedonia or for Greece is a compromise.”

Greece and the Republic of Macedonia have been at odds over who has the right to the name of Macedonia — which is shared by a province in northern Greece — since 1991, when Macedonia declared independence from Yugoslavia.


text:
User talk:Mani~enwikinews

Welcome
– Juliancolton  | Talk 17:24, 8 October 2009 (UTC)

Your account will be renamed
Hello,

The developer team at Wikimedia is making some changes to how accounts work, as part of our on-going efforts to provide new and better tools for our users like cross-wiki notifications. These changes will mean you have the same account name everywhere. This will let us give you new features that will help you edit and discuss better, and allow more flexible user permissions for tools. One of the side-effects of this is that user accounts will now have to be unique across all 900 Wikimedia wikis. See the announcement for more information.

Unfortunately, your account clashes with another account also called Mani. To make sure that both of you can use all Wikimedia projects in future, we have reserved the name Mani~enwikinews that only you will have. If you like it, you don't have to do anything. If you do not like it, you can pick out a different name.

Your account will still work as before, and you will be credited for all your edits made so far, but you will have to use the new account name when you log in.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

Yours, Keegan Peterzell Community Liaison, Wikimedia Foundation 23:21, 17 March 2015 (UTC)

Renamed
 This account has been renamed as part of single-user login finalisation. If you own this account you can |log in using your previous username and password for more information. If you do not like this account's new name, you can choose your own using this form after logging in: . -- Keegan (WMF) (talk) 06:34, 21 April 2015 (UTC)

title: User talk:Mani~enwikinews


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Guinea to launch investigation into killing of protestors

October 8, 2009

Guinea's military government has said that it is launching what it calls an independent investigation into last week's killing of opposition demonstrators by security forces. Military ruler Captain Moussa Dadis Camara told state television that the commission of inquiry is his government's response to calls from the international community, political opponents, and local human rights groups to prosecute those responsible for last Monday's violence.

A Justice Ministry statement said that the commission will include members of the ruling military council, political parties, trade unions, civil society groups, human rights organizations, lawyers, judges, and university professors.

In all, the military government said 31 people will investigate what happened when security forces opened fire on opposition demonstrators at Conakry's main sports stadium. Human rights groups say at least 157 people were killed in the clashes. The military says 57 people were killed, most in the crush of protesters fleeing the stadium.

Captain Camara has blamed both "uncontrollable elements" of the military and political opponents who he said should not have staged an illegal protest.

Opposition leaders say they will not join proposed regional efforts to mediate the crisis unless Captain Camara resigns and his military council is dissolved.

There was no immediate word on whether opposition groups would take part in the military government's probe into the killings last week.

The Economic Community of West African States says it is organizing a regional investigation involving both the United Nations and the African Union.

Human Rights Watch says that is an "excellent move." But it also supports Guinea's own inquiry into the events of September 28.

"You could have up to 150 or even more murders of mostly peaceful demonstrators. Not to mention the horrific sexual abuse that happened against an unknown number of women and other abuses that were happening including theft and looting and so on," said Corinne Dufka, head of the Human Rights Watch operations in West Africa. "This was done by all accounts by members of the security forces. They need to be held accountable."

Dufka said the volume of photographic evidence of sexual assaults against women at the protest should be front and center in any investigation. "You see security forces from a number of different corps," said Dufka. "You have members of the presidential guard. You have what appear to be members of the military, the police, and the gendarmerie. So right there you have a number of people who are responsible."

The demonstrators were protesting Captain Camara's expected run for the presidency. He has not yet formally announced his candidacy, but has told supporters that he will not insult them by ignoring their demands that he run.

The African Union suspended Guinea following Captain Camara's December coup. The AU said it will sanction him later this month unless he makes clear that he will not be a candidate in elections scheduled for January.


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No-confidence vote initiated against Romanian cabinet

October 8, 2009 The Romanian main opposition National Liberal Party (PNL) and the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians (UDMR) both filed a vote of no-confidence against the cabinet on Tuesday.

The opposition has said that the cabinet is illegal and lacks parliamentary support, now that members from the Social Democratic Party (PSD) have quit their posts, over the sacking last week of Interior Minister Dan Nica. Their duties were assumed by other ministers from Prime Minister Emil Boc's Liberal Democrats (PDL).

If the motion passes, the cabinet may continue working, but will be unable to make any key decisions until a new cabinet is selected. Earlier in the day, Boc announced that his cabinet will seek a vote of confidence on the pension bill, which envisions gradually increasing the retirement age for women. A similar process will be applied to men, in a bid to keep them in the workforce longer to boost the economy.


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Two people killed after Typhoon Melor hits Japan

October 8, 2009

Two people have been killed and tens more wounded after the powerful Typhoon Melor struck the Japanese island of Honshu on Thursday. Melor is the first tropical cyclone to strike Japan in two years.

The typhoon, with winds of up to 200 kilometres per hour (120 mph) made landfall early on Tuesday. Some train services and airplane flights had to be cancelled due to inclement weather.

Electricity was cut off to 40,000 or so homes and 11,000 people were evacuated to emergency shelters, the national Fire and Disaster Management Agency reported. Both confirmed casualties from the storm were hit by debris by trees uprooted by heavy winds.

Melor weakened somewhat as it continued northward up Japan's central island. It is expected to move off the country's eastern coast by nightfall on Thursday.


text: Talk:Two people killed after Typhoon Melor hits Japan


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User talk:Terminatorv-t28

Welcome
Tempodivalse [talk]  18:34, 8 October 2009 (UTC)

Tempodivalse [talk]  18:41, 8 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:Terminatorv-t28


text:
Comments:Greenland assumes self rule Sunday

This makes me happy that Greenland finally received self rule from Denmark. Ever since Hans Egad first stood on Greenland's soil in 1728 humans have been on Greenland ever since.

Comments from feedback form - "i love you"
i love you —205.119.112.54 (talk) 15:41, 5 April 2011 (UTC)


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Comments:Death toll from tsunami in Southeast Asia increases

i know that alot of people dying is because of their own fault, because when i saw them watching the big waves they just watched, but the thing is they should know already what is going to happened on that day, because i heard that the Pime Minister of Samoa said when a earthquake is more stronger and more powerful like on that day they should know what is going to happened which is the Tsunami...... but anyways its Gods plan, may god bless all the people of Samoa.

Death toll from tsunami in Southeast Asia
Oh i feel sorry for the people of tsunami oh Lord why have u let things happen like this --Florence Ikechukwu (talk) 19:37, 3 April 2020 (UTC)


text: Talk:Guinea to launch investigation into killing of protestors


text: Talk:Powerful car bomb blast hits Kabul, Afghanistan


text: Talk:Romanian trade unions threaten more protests


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Iran court sentences opposition activist to death

October 9, 2009

Iran's Revolutionary Court has sentenced an opposition activist to death, in the first such verdict since trials of opposition supporters began in August. Monarchist Mohammad Reza Ali Zamani is to be hanged for participating in unrest last June, according to opposition websites.

Several top Iranian opposition websites reported that Iran's Revolutionary Court has handed down a death sentence to an opposition activist for the first time since August, when it began trying those involved in post-election unrest.

Iran's Committee on Human Rights Reporters says that monarchist Mohammad Reza Ali Zamani was "sentenced to death by hanging" for participating in demonstrations in the wake of June's disputed presidential election.

Zamani, who belongs to the Association of Monarchists, was not allowed access to a defense attorney, according to the report. The opposition Green Wave website notes that Zamani "made a series of confessions" during his August trial.

Iran's Mehr news agency reported, during the trial, that Zamani was an active member of a "terrorist" monarchist group and had fought against the country's Islamic regime.

The head of Iran's Revolutionary Guard organization, Mohammad Ali Jaafari, also repeated a government complaint Thursday that the Iranian opposition was "trying to overthrow the Islamic Republic and replace it with a bogus regime."

Iranian monarchists have long attracted the ire of the government, which has accused them of responsibility for a number of bloody mosque bombings in recent years.

Iran analyst Dr. Mehrdad Khonsari of the London-based Center for Arab and Iranian Studies said that the stiff nature of the sentence handed down by the Revolutionary Court comes as a surprise, given its recent pattern of behavior:

"This particular case is really an odd-one out, in the sense that this is not the trait that the regime has indicated," said Khonsari. "I think a deal has been struck, or was struck that most of the people who have been detained would be tried and then released. The common trait in the Islamic government is to sentence people hand out a fairly sturdy sentence, but release, while at the same time warning them if they were to misbehave, they would have to return to prison to serve the rest of their sentence."

Dr. Khonsari added that he did not find it surprising, however, that the Iranian regime would deal sternly with a monarchist, since "[they] are people who are outside the ruling constituency, and are faced with a different set of [rules] if they run afoul of the regime."

A number of prominent Iranian clerics have ruled that the Revolutionary Court's trials of opposition activists "have no legal value," since "involuntary confessions made by defendants are void according to Shi'ite jurisprudence."

Iranian law states that convicts may appeal their sentences which have to be upheld by both the appeals court and the supreme court before they are carried out.


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US deficit reaches record $1.4 trillion

October 9, 2009

According to the US Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the US budget deficit reached a record $1.4 trillion in the fiscal year to September 30.

The deficit was about 9.9% of the country's GDP, over three times the level in 2008 and the highest since the Second World War ended. Economical analysts had initially predicted a deficit of $1.6 trillion.

The deficit was blamed on decreased tax revenues and higher government spending. The CBO also said on Wednesday that tax revenue dropped by 17%, or $420 billion, to its lowest level for over half a century.

The previous record deficit was in 2008, at $459 billion.

title: US deficit reaches record $1.4 trillion


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Comments:U.S. Senate releases version of Healthcare Bill

This is an interesting new bill that they are proposing because on the one hand, it requires too much funding, which at a time of high debt, the government cannot - or should not - afford. However, on the other hand, if the government really wants to mandate health insurance, then they should spend more money to make it more affordable to families in the US. When people have to pay between 1000-3000 dollars for a health plan which they didn't originally anticipate using, the government will definitely experience some resistance from the public.


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User talk:Thinkroshni

Welcome
Tempodivalse [talk]  23:05, 8 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:Thinkroshni


text: Talk:No-confidence vote initiated against Romanian cabinet


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US Senate finance committee to vote on health care bill

October 9, 2009 🇺🇸US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has said that the Senate Finance Committee will vote on a sweeping health care reform bill next Tuesday. US President Barack Obama has made clear that extending health insurance coverage to as many Americans as possible is his top domestic priority.

Republican lawmakers, however, are still overwhelmingly opposed to the bill, saying it is too expensive and would expand the role of government in people's health care.

Obama and his fellow Democrats in the Senate received some good news late Wednesday from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, which put the total cost of the Senate Finance Committee's health care bill at $829 billion over the next decade, below Obama's stated goal of $900 billion. The budget watchdog organization also said the health care bill would help reduce the federal budget deficit over the next ten years.

Harry Reid said he believed health care reform was moving forward. "And so today we stand closer than ever to fulfilling that fundamental promise, one for which we have fought for more than 60 years," he said.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, however said that the cost estimate was "irrelevant", because the final bill that will actually emerge from both houses of Congress is likely to look very different and cost a lot more. "What matters is that the final bill will cost about a trillion dollars, vastly expand the role of government in people's health care decisions, increase premiums and limit choice," McConnell said.

McConnell said Republicans favor a step by step approach to health care reform, focusing on prevention and wellness programs and dealing with the high costs of malpractice insurance doctors have to pay due to fears of excessive lawsuits.

Under the Finance Committee's bill, US residents would be required to get health insurance or face a penalty, and insurance companies would face tough new regulations. For example, insurance companies could no longer reject coverage for people due to pre-existing conditions.

The Senate Finance Committee is likely to pass the bill, which will then have to be merged with one passed by the Senate health committee before it goes to the full Senate floor for debate.


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26 killed after mine accident in China

October 9, 2009

At least 26 workers were killed and five were injured in China after an accident at a tin mine in the Hunan province, national media reported.

The official Chinese news agency Xinhua quoted a rescue team as saying that nineteen of the miners were killed instantly after two lifts fell due to a brake failure on Thursday. Another seven died later due to their injuries.

An investigation into the accident has been launched, Xinhua reported.

China has some of the most deadly mines in the world. Official statistics indicate that over 3,200 miners died in mine accidents in last year alone, although independent groups suggest the actual number might be higher, as not all incidents are reported.

title: 26 killed after mine accident in China


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Former UN head Annan warns Kenya over future poll violence

October 10, 2009 In parting remarks made after a three-day visit to Kenya late on Wednesday, former UN chief Kofi Annan warned that the country risks returning to ethnic clashes if reforms are not implemented.

"My conversations with Kenyans during the last three days have underscored that there is a crisis of confidence in Kenya's political leadership," Annan said. "Only Kenya's politicians can solve that crisis. I urge them to listen to the voices of Kenyans."

Annan said that he had noted some progress on the reform agenda but warned that time was running out.

Politically-fueled ethnic tensions flared up in early 2008 following a disputed presidential election, plunging Kenya into weeks of deadly turmoil.

Flown in to mediate the crisis, Annan led the two sides to a power-sharing agreement that made incumbent candidate Mwai Kibaki president and his rival,, prime minister. The deal brought an end to the clashes, but has resulted in a bloated coalition government unchallenged by a real political opposition.

As part of the agreement between the two principle rivals, the new government agreed to undergo a far-reaching reform agenda to prevent the tensions from boiling over in the next election. Critics claim that the government has not followed through on its commitments, an accusation the government strongly denies.

“Kenya is already at — or past — the halfway mark between the formation of the Coalition Government and the next electoral cycle. Kenya cannot afford a recurrence of the crisis and violence that engulfed it after the 2007 election. But that is a serious risk if tangible reform is not achieved,” Annan said, warning that the government's term is already halfway expired and the 2012 elections are quickly approaching.

Overshadowing the former UN chief's remarks was a BBC report released on Wednesday that claimed that ethnic groups in the regions most hit by the 2008 violence are now stockpiling guns to prepare for 2012.

The 2008 conflict, the nation's worst since its independence more than 45 years ago, was carried out chiefly by machete-wielding gangs in the slums and in the affected rural areas by tribal militias armed primarily with spears and bows and arrows.

Hassan Omar, vice chairman of the Kenyan National Commission on Human Rights, said that his group has also received reports about groups purchasing firearms but has as yet been unable to independently verify the claims.

"The allegations are becoming more and more credible," Omar said. "The Kenya National Commission [on Human Rights] did have these allegations, and we had not necessarily undertaken the time of investigation or documentation towards proving their existence."

According to the private fears expressed by a senior parliamentary official, another flare-up similar to the 2008 turmoil has the potential to fragment the nation into regional power-centers run by tribal warlords, given the country's current political climate and simmering ethnic tensions.

However, Kenyan cabinet minister William Ruto, a political leader of one of the ethnic groups named by the BBC report for buying the guns, dismissed the claims as rumors. "The people making these allegations should either come forward with substance to their claims, or they should shut up," said Ruto; "I don't think rumor mongering is going to take this country anywhere."

The United States has threatened fifteen senior Kenyan officials with travel bans if the reform process is perceived as continuing to stall.


text:
User talk:68.98.155.211

Tempodivalse [talk]  00:33, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:68.98.155.211


text:
Talk:US Senate finance committee to vote on health care bill

Concern over non-critical acceptance of imported PD material

 * 1) this diff came up for review. 1. It is unsourced 2. What was originally there is unsourced 3. The original source uses the word "Americans" 4. The second source does not specify this detail
 * 2) VOA is fully-funded by the US Government, there should always be a critical assumption of a pro-US, pro-US administration POV; it is not intended for dissemination within the US, this may mean terms are simplified for potential non-native speakers
 * 3) Known source bias should always be considered

In this case, the ideal solution is to investigate the definition attached to the word "American" as used by VOA. If available, that should be as-specified in the reported-on legislation. --Brian McNeil / talk 00:29, 10 October 2009 (UTC)


text: Talk:US deficit reaches record $1.4 trillion


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Comments:Romanian trade unions threaten more protests

I am of the opinion that Unions amoungst common men is Evil, and that only unity amoung Corporate Bodies and Royal Linages are decient. - Huffy
 * You can't spell. You've nothing to actually justify such a stupid opinion. Can you walk and chew gum at the same time? --Brian McNeil / talk 10:06, 9 October 2009 (UTC)


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Comments:US deficit reaches record $1.4 trillion

Good. All according to the Grand Plan! -Kalista el Magnifico

Somebody deleted my comment, and I will repost it: (Sarcasm) This is clearly Obama's fault (Sarcasm off)
 * (no Sarcasm) This is clearly Obama's fault (no Sarcasm off)  128.211.161.206 (talk) 12:23, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

 * Who else's fault could it be? Oh sure, President Bush spent his fair share, but Obama spent more in his first eight months than Bush did in eight years. 206.74.5.136 (talk) 15:31, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

 * That is a lie or at best a repeated pseudo-quote from an uninformed source. Here is an overview of the impact on the deficit of Bush's spending: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_policy_of_the_George_W._Bush_administration#Effect_of_policies_on_federal_budget_deficit_and_national_debt . Summary: Bush's 8 year expenditures increased the national debt by $4.08 trillion, more then 40% of its TOTAL. Here is an overview of the spending completed and prospective spending by Obama: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_United_States_federal_budget#Overview . Key point: "...total annual increase in federal debt will be $2.72 trillion in 2009, declining to $1.37 trillion in 2010 and $925 billion by 2013." So, temporarily more for a project but ultimately on par with Bush's budget in his last year. 66.157.100.245 (talk) 16:43, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

Decrease the deficit
Don't increase the deficit. Decrease the deficit by decreasing govt spending. Higher taxes just impoverish everyone. Because, higher taxes destroy private sector investment. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.235.123.8 (talk) 12:45, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

Who else's fault could it be?? Are you stupid? - The money that we owe right now, the money that's dragging us down... was spent primarily during the Bush administration on the freaking WAR. Some people... I tell you... learn to read and comprehend! Public school didn't do much for me, but at least I learned how to obtain information from words and numbers at an early enough age. 71.117.168.218 (talk) 20:15, 9 October 2009 (UTC)


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BBC receives 487 complaints after 'Dancing' race row

October 9, 2009 The BBC has received 487 complaints after Strictly Come Dancing professional dancer Anton du Beke used a racist remark for his dance partner. Actress contestant Laila Rouass, who is of Morrocan descent, was called a "paki" by her dance partner during rehearsals for the show. British tabloid News of the World revealed the information from the BBC One programme in their newspaper on Sunday.

By Monday, it had emerged that there had been 63 complaints to the corporation. Since Thursday, the racist comment by du Beke has caused a total of 487 complaints to the BBC. Du Beke has since apologised to Rouass for the comment.

Bruce Forsyth, who presents the show alongside Tess Daly, had an unscheduled interview with radio show TalkSport on Wednesday. During the interview he said that, in days gone by, the remark would not have been treated so seriously. He said: "You go back 25, 30, 40 years and there has always been a bit of humour about the whole thing.

"Americans used to call us 'limeys' which doesn't sound very nice, but we used to laugh about it. Everybody has a nickname," Forsyth stated to the BBC Radio 5 Live show. "I'm sure there was nothing vindictive about what he [ Anton du Beke ] said...the page should be closed on it. It's a damn shame and I feel for him and Laila, she's a lovely girl. He is a lovely, sensitive guy. OK, he can be a bit mouthy and can say quick things off-the-cuff like I do. But when you're like that you can slip up every now and again. You can say something that you don't mean."

As a result of the comments made by Bruce Forsyth, the Victoria Derbyshire show received a record 600 complaints from listeners. Afterwards, Forsyth apologised for the comments he made on the show, and released a statement on Thursday saying: "To be absolutely clear, the use of racially offensive language is never either funny or acceptable." A spokesperson for the BBC has also said: "The BBC does not condone offensive language in the workplace. Anton du Beke has apologised to Laila, who has accepted his apology."

Kulvinder Ghir, an actor from Asia, showed his dissatisfaction for what was said on the radio show, stating: "Claiming the word paki is harmless is just ignorance."

There has been calls made from viewers to the BBC over the last few days to dismiss Anton du Beke from Strictly Come Dancing. Earlier this year, former The One Show presenter Carol Thatcher was dismissed from ITV1 reality TV show I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! due to racist remarks she made while on the programme. Despite this incident, the BBC have decided not to sack Anton du Beke from the BBC One dancing show.

The BBC has now had 686 complaints since Friday, an increase of 199 complaints from Thursday.


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Talk:BBC receives 487 complaints after 'Dancing' race row

I haven't finished writing up the article yet but I need to know is it OK for review? --Rayboy8 (talk) 08:42, 9 October 2009 (UTC)
 * Not with a title that spans nearly 2 lines. --Brian McNeil / talk 10:02, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

OK, I think I've finished except for one thing. How do I change the article title? --Rayboy8 (talk) 10:17, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

NPOV
This article has major NPOV concerns. 'It was racist, it was racist, it was racist, actually this really respected guy says its all overblown and she isn't in the least concerned but that doesn't matter BECAUSE WE SAY IT'S RACIST' was the impression I got from this article. Describing the previous comment as racist shows even less NPOV. It was highly controversial that it was treated as such. A golliwogg is a children's toy for fuck's sake. That people choose to make an insult of the word does not change the fact that it's primary meaning is a doll. Blood Red Sandman (Talk)   (Contribs) 18:26, 9 October 2009 (UTC)


text: Talk:26 killed after mine accident in China


text: Talk:Macedonia says compromise with Greece over name dispute possible


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18 hospitalized after gas attack in school in Valga, Estonia

October 9, 2009 At least 18 people have been hospitalized after two students released pepper spray into a high school in Valga, Estonia. Two of the hospitalized were allowed home after a health check. 25 other students were treated by the school doctor.

Emergency services received the first distress call at 10:02 local time (7:02 GMT). Students were evacuated from the building and the rest of the school day was canceled at 10:45 local time (7:45 GMT). According to latest information, the gas was released by the students in the changing room on the ground floor and in the toilet on the second floor. From there it spread into a ventilation system. It was later determined that it was pepper spray that was used in the attack, not "gas" as was originally reported.

Police have started an investigation and found two suspects in the case, both students at the affected school.


text: Talk:European Parliament committee backs visa-free travel for Balkan countries


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Barack Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize

October 9, 2009

U.S. President Barack Obama has won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. The Norwegian Nobel Committee stated the award was "for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and co-operation between peoples."

The award is widely viewed as surprising given that Obama has only been in office for nine months, having been inaugurated in January this year. He is also only the third U.S. President to receive the prize whilst still in office, after Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson.

Head of the awarding committee, Thorbjørn Jagland, stated the prize was awarded so early "because we would like to support what he is trying to achieve." He particularly praised Obama's work on nuclear disarmament.

Obama was said to be "humbled" by the award.

The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded since 1901 by a committee elected by the Norwegian parliament. It was established by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, to be given to "the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between the nations and the abolition or reduction of standing armies and the formation and spreading of peace congresses."

title: Barack Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize


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User talk:Rodnani

Welcome
– Juliancolton  | Talk 11:55, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:Rodnani


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Comments:Two people killed after Typhoon Melor hits Japan

Holy crap, Japan is hardcore.

They live on a tiny rock with no natural resources in the middle of the ocean on a fault line with typhoons battering them. How are they not in poverty like Africa? 128.211.161.206 (talk) 12:24, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

Comments from feedback form - "it is farly good but isnt grea..."
it is farly good but isnt great as some information is missing —203.10.121.83 (talk) 04:26, 8 September 2010 (UTC)


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Listening to you at last: EU plans to tap cell phones

October 19, 2009

A report accidentally published on the Internet provides insight into a secretive European Union surveillance project designed to monitor its citizens, as reported by Wikileaks earlier this month. Project INDECT aims to mine data from television, internet traffic, cellphone conversations,  and a range of other sources for crime prevention and threat prediction. The €14.68 million project began in January, 2009, and is scheduled to continue for five years under its current mandate. INDECT produced the accidentally published report as part of their "Extraction of Information for Crime Prevention by Combining Web Derived Knowledge and Unstructured Data" project, but do not enumerate all potential applications of the search and surveillance technology. Police are discussed as a prime example of users, with and  forces detailed as active project participants. INDECT is funded under the European Commission's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), and includes participation from Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

Testing Project INDECT's potential usefulness, and the leaked 'sales-pitch'
Indicated in the initial trial's report, the scope of data collected is particularly broad; days of television news, radio, newspapers, and recorded telephone conversations are included. Several weeks of content from online sources were agglomerated, including mining Wikipedia for users' and article subjects' relations with others, organisations, and in-project movements. of published digital works such as film, audio, or other documents is discussed in the Project INDECT remit; its purpose is to integrate and track this information, its movement within the system and across the Internet. An unreleased promotional video for INDECT located on YouTube is shown to the right. The simplified example of the system in operation shows a file of documents with a visible INDECT-titled cover taken from an office and exchanged in a car park. How the police are alerted to the document theft is unclear in the video; as a "threat", it would be the INDECT system's job to predict it.

Throughout the video use of equipment,, , and aerial surveillance give  information with an overlaid map to authorities. The police proactively use this information to coordinate locating, pursuing, and capturing the document recipient. The file of documents is retrieved, and the recipient roughly detained.

Conclusions, implications, potential investigative journalism impact
Technology research performed as part of Project INDECT has clear use in countering industrial and international espionage, although the potential use in maintaining any security and predicting leaks is much broader. Quoted in the UK's, 's director, Shami Chakrabarti, described a possible future implementation of INDECT as a "sinister step" with "positively chilling" repercussions Europe-wide.

"It is inevitable that the project has a sensitive dimension due to the security focussed goals of the project," Suresh Manandhar, leader of the researchers involved in the "Work Package 4" INDECT component, responded to Wikinews. "However, it is important to bear in mind that the scientific methods are much more general and has wider applications. The project will most likely have lot of commercial potential. The project has an Ethics board to oversee the project activities. As a responsible scientists [sic] it is of utmost importance to us that we conform to ethical guidelines."

Although Wikinews attempted to contact Professor Helen Petrie of York University, the local member of Project INDECT's Ethics board, no response was forthcoming. The professor's area of expertise is universal access, and she has authored a variety of papers on web-accessibility for blind and disabled users. A full list of the Ethics board members is unavailable, making their suitability unassessable and distancing them from public accountability.

One potential application of Project INDECT would be implementation and enforcement of the U.K.'s "MoD Manual of Security". The 2,389-page 2001 version passed to Wikileaks this month — commonly known as JSP-440, and marked "RESTRICTED" — goes into considerable detail on how, as a serious threat, investigative journalists should be monitored, and effectively thwarted; just the scenario the Project INDECT video could be portraying.

When approached by Wikinews about the implications of using INDECT, a representative of the U.K.'s declined to comment on legal checks and balances such a system might require. Further U.K. enquiries were eventually referred to the Police Service of Northern Ireland, who have not yet responded.

E.F.F. Europe reacts
Wikinews' Brian McNeil contacted Eddan Katz, the International Affairs Director for the (E.F.F.). Katz last spoke to Wikinews in early 2008 on copyright, not long after taking his current position with the E.F.F. He was back in to speak to EU officials, Project INDECT was on his agenda too — having learned of it only two weeks earlier. Katz linked Project INDECT with a September report, NeoConopticon — The EU Security-Industrial Complex, authored by Ben Hayes for the. The report raises serious questions about the heavy involvement of defence and IT companies in "security research".

On the record, Katz answered a few questions for Wikinews.

'''Is this illegal? Is this an invasion of privacy? Spying on citizens?'''

 * Eddan Katz When the European Parliament issued the September 5, 2001 report on the American ECHELON system they knew such an infrastructure is in violation of data protection law, undermines the values of privacy and is the first step towards a totalitarian surveillance information society.

Who is making the decisions based on this information, about what?

 * E.K. What's concerning to such a large extent is the fact that the projects seem to be agnostic to that question. These are the searching systems and those people that are working on it in these research labs do search technology anyway. [...] but its inclusion in a database and its availability to law enforcement and its simultaneity of application that's so concerning, [...] because the people who built it aren't thinking about those questions, and the social questions, and the political questions, and all this kind of stuff. [... It] seems like it's intransparent, unaccountable.

The E.U. report Katz refers to was ratified just six days before the that brought down the twin towers of the. In their analysis of the never-officially-recognised U.S. spy system it states, "[i]n principle, activities and measures undertaken for the purposes of state security or law enforcement do not fall within the scope of the EC Treaty." On privacy and data-protection legislation enacted at E.U. level it comments, "[such does] not apply to 'the processing of data/activities concerning public security, defence, state security (including the economic well-being of the state when the activities relate to state security matters) and the activities of the state in areas of criminal law'".

Part of the remit in their analysis of Echelon was rumours of 'commercial abuse' of intelligence; "[i]f a Member State were to promote the use of an interception system, which was also used for industrial espionage, by allowing its own intelligence service to operate such a system or by giving foreign intelligence services access to its territory for this purpose, it would undoubtedly constitute a breach of EC law [...] activities of this kind would be fundamentally at odds with the concept of a common market underpinning the EC Treaty, as it would amount to a distortion of competition".

Ben Hayes' NeoConoptiocon report, in a concluding section, "Following the money", states, "[w]hat is happening in practice is that multinational corporations are using the ESRP [European Seventh Research Programme] to promote their own profit-driven agendas, while the EU is using the programme to further its own security and defence policy objectives. As suggested from the outset of this report, the kind of security described above represents a marriage of unchecked police powers and unbridled capitalism, at the expense of the democratic system."


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Comments:US Senate finance committee to vote on health care bill

What is your opinion on the health care bill?
Though I am Canadian, I think that its about damn time someone has stepped up to the plate to get the health care issues resolved. Barack Obama is a good man and deserves that nobel peace prize. -R. McLean

What health care legislation?
How can anyone vote on a Senate Healthcare legislation that no one can lok at to review, no one can obeject to, & has had 75 amendments made to without being released for vetting? The Democrats have become masters of ramming through legislation which amounts to forcing Americans to buy a pig in a poke. This is not Democracy. Please, stop calling yourselves Democrats if you support this dictatorial behavior. Why can't people know what they are being forced to pay for & forced to join? Freedom of choice is dead.

What is your opinion on the health care bill?
I supported health care bill! I think the congress should passed the health bill set by Kennedy! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.6.246.137 (talk) 21:51, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

What is your opinion on the health care bill?
I am loosing my Dr. and I'm sure others are or will as well, I cannot pay ((($350.00 )if the bill passes for insurance (medicaid) if the bill goes through ))), I may I will loose my prescriptions and will be right back where I strated years ago, I can finnally function and now it is going to cost me a fortune just to change records to get, another Dr. who will not treat without records, I know I am not the only one , and I no longer have a case worker anyone in the office can change my case at anytime without my knowledge, My hmo is moving out of the area and my Dr. will not take my insurance I will have at the first of the month. even my own son will not be able to get insurance if it goes through requiring people to have it is not right if they don't have the money to get it. It's bad enough I have to go to the food pantry and several people I know do as well just to survive the month, my own kids cannot even begin their lives because it has allready ended it for them , with all the jobs disapearing and I have had several freinds who have lost jobs, etc.. and builings closeing buisnesses all over my area and more so. stores etc.. I have to go miles just to get to a store ,,,,, dollar store is my food and and 2 gas stations. most of the time. My family is having just as many problems as well and my father worked his ass off for all of america and deserves his lifelong, savings and he is having problems. I am apalled by what the white house is doing, I have some solutions to some of their problems, let the other countries make their own money so they can learn to take care of them selves , as well as stop spending all that money on war ,and stupid haircuts etc.. that cost losts of money, I cut my own hair , fortunately I know how, stop spending so much money to travel to other planets and deal with the planet we allready have , stop lying to the american public and let them help with solutions. let countries learn how to take care of themselves, I have seen many homless people and tones of empty houses and apartments , lower the rent so they can re-establish themselves , Programs are being cancelled for woman who live in abusive situations and they are stuck living on streets or in shelters , living out of bags and loosing all they have worked for all their lives. an old lady living in a car for nine months is discusting, people living on the streets , and stsrving for food , and yet they have worked their ass off for america I am sickened by the way americans are treated , yet people from other cuontries get better housing health care and food than we who have lived here our entire lives. You want to do something about it, bring back all troops who are not needed and set up a good forces area around the countries government and make sure they can take care of themselves and stop making excusses as to why you cannot win the war and do it right. you want more of my opinion you will get it.


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User:Brian McNeil/Project INDECT/Libraries

Outline

 * 1) There is an expectation - if not outright assumption - that real-world libraries and privately owned 'semi-public' places like bars and coffee shops are not actively monitored
 * 2) Prior to affordable, readily-available computer technology, all library records were on-paper and manually maintained. I have no idea if historical records were maintained such as a list of people who borrowed a specific book. The visible system I experienced as a child in the 1970s was physical cards in each book, and each library member having a set of small folders into which the book cards were placed. The pair, forming a record of a book that has been borrowed, are filed under the due return date which is stamped into a card glued into the book. The clear aim of such a system is to have manually maintained system to ensure it is possible to try and get books returned.
 * 3) Visible computerisation began in 80s-90s.
 * 4) Current state of computerisation: All records are computerised and on-line. The public may browse a set of these records, search books &c. For any specific book they can see if it is available or out, and when due returned. They may file a request to have the book next.
 * 5) *Library staff (as related to me by an ex-employee of a college library) Can: perform all checks as available to the public. In addition, they may review the lending history of any book and see the list of library members who have taken this book out of the library; they may review the borrowing history of any library member.
 * 6) Bars and coffee shops are defined here as 'semi-public' spaces; the responsibility of the private owners is to keep customers returning and spending money. For bars, this frequently means employing bouncers who may liaise with police.
 * 7) Any speech or discussion in such a place is not readily available to anyone not present at that specific point in time.
 * 8) Current security services action/monitoring of such places generally relates to investigation of clearly identified suspects.
 * 9) Uninvolved patrons could actively report something they considered a danger, a threat, or plotting to commit a crime.
 * 10) CCTV is becoming more common. There may be historical records of who visited a place, and who they spoke with. Audio monitoring is less likely - additional cost to owner of premises, frequently likely to be useless data due to noise levels, use of directional microphones requires active control [Aside: In true iPhone style, you can probably say "there's an app for that" within Project INDECT].
 * 11) Online is considerably different: Many parties collect records, this may include records kept by the user's ISP - it is not limited to the site you use as an online substitute for a library or coffee shop.
 * 12) Wikipedia is - for many - the most useful online substitute for a library. The Wikimedia Foundation have a robust privacy policy, and work from a philosophical viewpoint of the least-detailed records required to identify abuse and eliminate or reduce it's threat to the website.. Publicly-visible article histories are available; this is a requirement to fairly attribute copyright to the article authors, those who have registered a pseudonym cannot publicly be linked to any IP address; if they provide an email address, then only the WMF has that data.
 * 13) Facebook and other social networking sites are the online coffee shops and bars. As for-profit private entities they have additional uses for user browsing habit data - the most obvious being targeted marketing. Such sites frequently include convenient equivalents to more established methods of sending email, eg: Facebook allowing you to send private messages to friends.
 * 14) Data retention of such sites is governed by commercial concerns, and any legislation on duration of data retention, plus the level of detail retained.
 * 15) Use of encryption is the exception, not the rule. This means the ISP has access to every single byte of data you exchange with these sites.
 * 16) ISP data retention is - again - governed by commercial concerns, and any legislation on duration of data retention, and level of detail retained.
 * 17) The UK has either implemented, or plans to implement, legislation requiring various records be retained by ISPs. Due to vocal resistance by ISPs, the level of detail retained is likely to be: For email: Who you emailed when, who emailed you when. For browsing: What sites you visited (possibly what pages you looked at), most convenient and efficient would be retention of all requests for a web page (the http request history). The opposition to more detailed records is based on the cost of a storage and archiving system that has no real commercial benefit.

Encrypted versus Unencrypted

 * 1) Email encryption is well-established, although not widely used.
 * 2) PGP was released in 1991. With it, the content of any email may be encrypted such that only the intended recipients can read it. While who talks to who is available and in the clear, what they say is a secret. There is a backdrop of considerable research into secure communications over an insecure network.
 * 3) Encrypted web traffic is less-common; the option is very frequently not even available to a site's users.
 * 4) Addresses starting http:// are unencrypted, those starting https:// are encrypted.
 * 5) The public at large have a limited understanding of this. They know this should be mandatory for online banking and e-commerce.
 * 6) Earlier US restrictions on strong encryption export (it was classed as a 'munition') had to be relaxed. This was a prerequisite for widespread adoption of e-commerce.
 * 7) The publicly-known state-of-the-art is that https://, with the strongest supported key strength, is unbreakable. This may exclude extremely well-funded adversaries such as the NSA. However, 'convenient' cracking of message content would require an extremely difficult mathematical breakthrough. (P = NP/P != NP - See here). This same problem is what is assumed to make PGP secure
 * 8) Unencrypted web traffic - http://
 * 9) Your ISP has access to all of it.
 * 10) Any eavesdropper between you and a site you visit has access to all of it.
 * 11) The site you visit has access to all of it.
 * 12) Encrypted web traffic - https://
 * 13) Your ISP has access to what sites you visit, when you visit them, but knows nothing of the content exchanged with the site. This includes the specific pages you visit.
 * 14) Any eavesdropper between you and a site you visit has the same as the ISP, but lacks subscriber records to match an IP address to a name, address, credit card &c.
 * 15) The site you visit - and only the site you visit - has access to the same quantity and quality of data as when using an unencrypted connection.
 * 16) Encryption has a cost, it is computationally expensive. A web server providing a fully encrypted service can either support less users, or be upgraded with expensive dedicated crypto hardware.

The influence of Project INDECT

 * 1) Project INDECT is - in general - building tools that are extremely useful in analysing the above data.
 * 2) The private sector and Universities are involved - many research papers are available.
 * 3) Users of our aforementioned online libraries and coffee shops will find advances in search technology very useful.
 * 4) Implementation of Project INDECT would, per the EU report on ECHELON, only be legal in a national security or criminal investigation context
 * 5) There is a strong indication that an implementation of Project INDECT would be subject to usage-creep, and an ever-wider set of data records fed into it. [From a security service perspective: We can add suspects to such a system at-will, each suspect needs their web of contacts analysed and possibly added, legal checks-and-balances (such as requiring a warrant) will significantly slow investigations. Conclusion: We want everything].

Encryption's impact on INDECT or ECHELON

 * 1) Detailed data must be retrieved from the online library or coffee-shop.
 * 2) This is a clear point where checks-and-balances can be enforced.
 * 3) 'Fishing expeditions', such as who read or contributed to an article on Marxism, cannot readily be carried out.
 * 4) Data retention requirements legislatively applied to ISPs result in significantly less-valuable data being kept
 * 5) *"Ideal" access by security services would require global legislation on data retention, disclosure, and sharing.
 * 6) *Moves to legislatively provide "ideal" access and monitoring would be extremely difficult to get past public scrutiny.
 * 7) Interception and eavesdropping between citizen and website is significantly less useful, and provides no communication content
 * 8) Selective content filtering is extremely difficult, and has a high risk of being discovered (See IWF attempt to block Virgin Killer on Wikipedia; even if the IWF had added the appropriate page on the secure Wikipedia site to their blacklist, the filtering technology cannot see a request for that page. The entire site must be blocked to censor one page.)

Alternatives

 * Invariably involve encryption - Tor likely best example, based on U.S. Navy research

 * Tor - advantages
 * Data is encrypted multiple times - layers, like an onion
 * Requests pass through three randomly chosen Tor nodes
 * Each Tor node only knows the source and destination of the encrypted data
 * Each Tor node decrypts the 'onion layer' meant for it, and forwards it to the next Tor node
 * When the now-unencrypted data leaves the last Tor node - the end-point - It, or an observer, cannot tell the origin of the data.
 * When the website responds, it responds to the Tor end-point/exit node
 * The end point has data from the user specifying how to encrypt the response, and encrypted instructions for the return route; it only knows the first tor node after it on the data's return journey
 * Breaking Tor would require compromising all three computers making up the circuit through the Tor network
 * A user may reset Tor at any point, thus forcing use of a different set of Tor nodes
 * The response goes back through the Tor network to the user, fully encrypted
 * Your ISP only knows you use it, they no longer know what sites you are visiting
 * Any in-the-clear data is from a Tor exit-node. The node, and observers between it and the visited site, can only tell the actual user's identify if the unencrypted content contains it, or links the communication with others that contain it
 * The Tor exit-node may be outside the jurisdiction of a user's potential adversaries

 * Tor - disadvantages
 * Data still travels in-the-clear for part of the journey
 * Overhead per-user running encryption software, and data-scrubbing software to remove identifying information from data travelling over Tor
 * Slow, very slow - completely unacceptable for most javascipt-heavy Web 2.0 sites or streaming video
 * The route taken across the Internet when using Tor will in most cases be at least four times longer than the average direct route
 * Many sites block Tor in some way - usually for abuse prevention (Eg Wikipedia blocks editing via Tor, but not reading)

WinNY

 * WinMX/WinNY
 * WinMX was, at one time, the most popular file-sharing program in Japan - also well-known outside .jp.
 * In response to a rash of reports on WinMX users being prosecuted, the developer created WinNY
 * WinNY anonymises the traffic - monitoring will no longer net individuals to prosecutions
 * WinNY developer prosecuted, found guilty - not clear law/charges
 * guilty judgement overturned by higher court - with a bit of a 'slap' to the lower court

 * Who developed these programs? What was he charged with? How did the prosecution argue he was guilty? --Brian McNeil / talk 11:37, 10 October 2009 (UTC)
 * English-language page for WinNY
 * English-language page for WinNY
 * English-language page for WinNY

Bittorrent

 * BitTorrent - most widespread/commonly used p2p software.
 * Developed for speed, not anonymity
 * Relied upon by TPB


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User talk:Rleebond

Welcome
Tempodivalse [talk]  13:01, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:Rleebond


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User talk:Liuxiaoyu10

Welcome
Tempodivalse [talk]  13:01, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:Liuxiaoyu10


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Talk:Barack Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize

Interlanguage link
Editprotected Please add 2009年ノーベル平和賞、米大統領オバマ氏へ .--Game-M (talk) 04:22, 1 November 2009 (UTC) ✅ Bawolff ☺☻ 04:29, 1 November 2009 (UTC)


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Talk:18 hospitalized after gas attack in school in Valga, Estonia

Language note
Pepper spray translates to Estonian as pipragaas(literal: pepper gas). So the local media is still talking about gas attack. Tarmo Tanilsoo (talk) 06:14, 10 October 2009 (UTC)


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User talk:Cs1qtestaccount

Welcome
Tempodivalse [talk]  13:47, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:Cs1qtestaccount


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User talk:Aqwis

Welcome
Tempodivalse [talk]  13:47, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:Aqwis


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Bomb explosion in Pakistani market kills 49

October 9, 2009 Pakistani officials have said that a suspected suicide bomber exploded a car near the provincial legislative assembly that was in session in Peshawar, killing at least 49 people and wounding more than 100 others.

The blast scattered debris and destroyed vehicles in Peshawar's crowded area, located in the center of the city.

"A suicide bomber blew himself up as the car was next to a passenger bus passing through the market," said senior police officer Shafqat Malik. He said that the bomb consisted of fifty of explosives, and contained shells and bearings to maximise damage.

One eyewitness told the Voice of America news agency he was sitting in his shop when a big explosion shook the area Friday morning, sending dust in the air and causing objects to fall from the walls. A teacher working in a nearby school also said that when he went outside after the blast, he saw bodies lying all around the area.

Pakistani Interior Minister indicated that such acts of terrorism might force the government to launch a much anticipated anti-[[Pakistani Taliban|Taliban] operation in.

He said that Friday's blast, along with a number of other deadly attacks in Peshawar, shows the government has in his words "no option" but to go on the offensive.

While the military has not publicly set a date for any major operation in the area, UN officials say some 80,000 civilians have fled the region in anticipation of a new offensive.


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User talk:Charry1111

Welcome
Tempodivalse [talk]  14:54, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:Charry1111


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Comments:Barack Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize

applaudsive news! The acknowledgement of President Obama receiving this prize is letting the idiots know that, even though they are too dumb to see the positive changes that he has made within his nine months of office, there are more educated, qualified individuals that are able to distinguish the positive changes that are coming in the near future for our already faultered economy! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.29.14.70 (talk) 19:08, 12 October 2009 (UTC)

Well, if you're going to give it to people like Yassir Arafat and Henry Kissinger, might as well give it to somebody who isn't likely to ever embarass you by committing great evil later on, because he is too incompetent to do evil. 206.74.5.136 (talk) 15:22, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

 * Bush proved there's no such thing as "too incompetent to do evil". --192.249.47.163 (talk) 15:31, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

He's right. He doesn't deserve the award. What a joke. I feel sorry for America these days. It's being run by idiots. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.71.92.4 (talk) 15:50, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

In 11 days time, I intend to give up my job, set up an organisation that will travel the world, diarming everyone in a peaceful manner, and get everyone sitting down and having a jolly nice cup of tea. There, my intentions are stated. Can I have an award please?

Signed - Very puzzled from NW UK.

WTF?
Even if we assume he is capable of producing the ideals he talks of... He hasn't done it yet. He's talked a lot, and it may well be good, helpful talk, but it hasn't achived anything. What happened to Tsvangirai?! Blood Red Sandman (Talk)   (Contribs) 17:16, 9 October 2009 (UTC)
 * Even as a registered Democrat here in the USA and supporter of Barack Obama is trying accomplish, I have to say I was quite surprised by the announcement and I hope the award signals that the eight years of the George W. Bush presidency aren't symbolic of America. Calebrw (talk) 17:19, 9 October 2009 (UTC)
 * I'm a big Obama supporter, but giving him a Nobel Prize right now is just silly. Now Hu Jia! He is someone truly deserving. BowToChris (talk) 19:19, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

Obama has already changed the political climate of the world - and the respective country he's fighting for (the USA primarily) HAS already changed because of him... if you read the intent of the award and look at some of the past winners... you will have no problem with this. The strategy here is to help his efforts as well. The respective leaders of Israel and Palestine have won the award multiple times... but look at how much they've accomplished...nothing. Get real, this is just more fuel for the "I hate Obama because I listen and watch instead of read and comprehend" fire. 71.117.168.218 (talk) 20:13, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

 * Actually, I am outside of the US media hype and formed my opinion fairly easily from the simple fact that he won it. The lies and spin are such that I remain to make a judgement on wether I like him or not, but I'm happy to say a) he's the best option America has right now b) good man or not, he's been doing some good work. And yet, I still don't see why he got the prize. Neither does Obama, from what I can gather. Blood Red Sandman  (Talk)   (Contribs) 20:43, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

Do you think Obama deserves the prize? What is your opinion?
Absolutly Not! Maybe some day, but not now. What has he really done ? No genuine efforts have come of his "talks" - not a mess either, but very little progress on foreign policy as acutally been made? Could the Nobel people be more vague and prostituted ?

He's hardly unique in getting a Peace Prize for apparent effort and not success. We expect that success would be part of the criteria for a president of all people, but even dissidents in jail have been awarded. It's clearly the human interest story of Nobel Prizes, so I don't see how this is noteworthy. —174.92.105.7 (talk) 20:43, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

Obama has done nothing to earn such a prize. He didn't do anything for his entire term in Congress except vote "present" instead of standing "for" or "against" the issues before the floor. Additionally, he was nominated less than two weeks into his term as president due to the deadline for nomination submissions. At which point it would be impossible for him to have accomplished anything even close to warranting such recognition. I'm sick of the media's Obama worship. I'm sick of the Obamanation that this country is quickly becoming...

I think he totally deserved it.

Meh.
Who cares? The Nobel Peace Prize is just symbolism anyway, and symbolism's completely worthless. His having won a prize has no impact on my decidedly neutral opinion of him. I don't think he's a terrible president, he could do a bit better, but it's difficult to achieve everything you promise within such a comparatively short time period, especially under the pressure of so many different sides. Nobody "deserves" a 'prize.' Only stupid people judge people based on what prizes they won. This won't change anything. Relax, everyone: Your world isn't ending because somebody you don't like was given a shiny award. Your world's ending because nobody's doing anything to stop it from stagnating, Obama, unfortunately, included. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.94.180.240 (talk) 00:54, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

He deserves it.
Mr. Obama walks the talk no doubt. At this present juncture when the nations are at odds and are on the verge of falling over Obama is trying against great odds. He must be encouraged and this recognition is only a miniscule if given the co-operation. I honestly feel that if peace is to be attained anywhere including the Middle East it is going to be on Obama/Clinton initiative or never. Michael Krishna Prasad, Trinidad, W.I

And I would like to add that the author of this post has NO IDEA what they're talking about! Obama mixing with terrorist, great! that's exactly what we need.

Do you think Obama deserves the prize? What is your opinion?
completely undeserved...wat a peaceful guy..hecut down from 10,000 rockets to 9,000 genius...i personally have lost a lot of respect for the nobel committee

No. He doesn't deserve it any more than I do. He wants to escelate Afghanistan, he has no plausable, peaceful exit strategy for Iraq, he has not caused prisoners at Guantanamo to be treated any better. He hasn't done anything but talk a good game. To nominate him for, let alone award him, the Nobel Peace Prize is unthinkable! I do support him however, and he's better than the alternative. -Eric 04:11, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

In my opinion, Barack Obama absolutely deserves the Nobel Peace Prize. Because of his extraordinary efforts to introduce a new diplomatic tone in the world politics, getting involved in the peace process in the Middle East, starting talks to Iran and North Korea and reaching out to the Muslim world as a leader of a Western country he has already made a great contribution to a more stable and relaxed situation in the world and all of this in the first 9 month of his presidency! If this is not a good example to follow than tell me which! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 77.131.155.81 (talk) 12:18, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

i didn't know he was to recieve the reward. i'm happy he recieved the award,but i one indiveual did not know anything until i read it on front paper.

PREMATRUE PRIZE
It is premature to award the prestigius Nobel Peace Prize to the US President Mr Barak Obama. Even before going into the merits and the demerits of the choice, one has to evaluate the quantum of peace work he has made towards maikng the world a place truly peaceful woth living wiht dinity and self-respect. May be some of his works were aimed at eliminating frictions existed in some parts of the world - handi work of of some of his predecessors. We cannot wholly blame for or absolve Mr George Bush of the atrocities happened in some parts of the world. In fact, the impact of what Mr Obama has done or undoen needs to be experienced. Therefore,the Peace Prize is undoubtedly premature and avoidable at this stage. Bichu Muttathara, Pune email: vijayanbee@gmail.com —Preceding unsigned comment added by 125.99.15.164 (talk) 18:39, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

Serious?
I'm still waiting for someone to come out and say, "just kidding!" This is a joke and the Nobel Peace Prize is a worthless award from this point on. Way to ruin something great!

Do you think Obama deserves the prize? What is your opinion?
This is not at all deserved in my opinion. The only reason that he won this award is because of the the overall hatred of the previous administration. He was nominated February 1st after he had spent less than two weeks in office. There are many more brilliant people who have made actual achievements rather than just "extraordinary efforts" who deserved this award. I believe that this award was given in order to put the final nail in the coffin of the Bush Administration.

-Chris
 * With regards to the Bush Administration and coffins - justice would have been best-served had the last nails of the coffins of every single individual involved were hammered in before they left office, and while they were still kicking and screaming inside said coffins. --Brian McNeil / talk 20:45, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

Trying
"...because we would like to support what he is trying to achieve" Hey, yes, I would like to try and grant all of humanity infinite youth. Since thats someone you cant help but want to support, you can just go ahead and mail me my nobel peace prize.

...what? I did at least as much work towards my goal as Obama is doing to his via that statement.--96.225.143.212 (talk) 21:39, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

Too Early
It is too early to give a award, we cannot judge with the effort, we have to judge by end results...have we seen any results.... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.243.14.194 (talk) 06:02, 12 October 2009 (UTC)

Do you think Obama deserves the prize? What is your opinion?
Wow - so now Nobel prizes will be given by determining INTENTIONS? That is interesting, especially since the nomination period ended on February 1 - that was 11 days in the office for the President - come on! -

Do you think Obama deserves the prize? What is your opinion?
Yes I believe he deserves this. The man always takes the high road and is so willing to listen to both sides. It was very early in his administration, but he sets the bar for tolerance and understanding.

What Has Obama Done?
Obama has done nothing in these months. He is not accomplishing his promises and not giving healthcare. He does not deserve the Nobel Peace Prize. It is fair that he is rewarded with it in about 1 year, but now? —Preceding unsigned comment added by WorldTradeCenter911 (talk • contribs) 01:53, 13 October 2009 (UTC)

Bullshit
Obama hasn't accomplished anything to deserve that Nobel prize. Why not also give the Nobel to Dick Cheney? 71.104.91.18 (talk) 05:33, 13 October 2009 (UTC)

Wow
This is just completely ridiculous. Obama has not done SHIT, I can tell that the Peace prizes winners of past years are rolling in their grave. Obama is completely useless. The most he had ever done in office before he was president was too be present, but never be for or against something. And all of those people who are mocking Bush. He had een to Africa many times to help out many poor nations. Under Bush, huge donations and aid were sent to help fight disease, create homes, and bring food. This is the most ridiculous decision they have ever made. They gave this complete DUMBASS who has done absolutely NOTHING a NOBEL PEACE PRIZE for speaking about what he may want to do. And yet they DON'T give it to Gandhi. Screw the rules! Just because he is dead does not mean the award should not be given to him. Or how about when Al Gore was given the prize for his little slideshow, when Bono was in Africa aiding the needy. Obama, if you have any type of honor, then you will refuse the award. Nobel council, you're fired. And since there's little chance either of you will do this the Nobel Peace Prize officially means nothing.

Do you think Obama deserves the prize? What is your opinion?
Congratulations, President Barack Obama with your Nobel Peace Prize, certainly deserved, don't be so modest, jump for joy with us at 'Six Nations Grand River Territory', Ontario Canada. Six Nations: Mohawk, Onieda, Cayuga, Seneca, Onondaga and the Tuscaroras. And yes it was the latter that joined us later because they were saving themselves from the attacks and the squatting of their territory in North Carolina, right there in the bay on the north-east shore, at one time one of the most beautiful places on earth, or so I was told. We send you and your family our love and appreciation for all your hard work, it was said it could not be done, and here we all are, healing. I'm getting a tears in my eyes, Nya wa ( nee ow wah ) thank you.

Do you think Obama deserves the prize? What is your opinion?
No. He doesn't deserve the Peace prize because he hasn't "done" anything for our world yet. He is alot of talk with little to no action. I mean he hasn't even been "famous" for very long. They should have given it to someone who actually had done something for our world rather than talk about it. He just sent 100,00 troops to war. Where is the peace in that?

Comments from feedback form - "nice mann"
nice mann —170.235.245.50 (talk) 19:29, 3 January 2013 (UTC)


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At least 160 killed by landslides in the Philippines

October 9, 2009 At least 160 people were killed on Thursday after torrential rains caused mudslides in the Philippines.

This is the latest in a series of storms that have hit the country, beginning on September 26, causing the worst flooding seen in the Philippines for four decades. Over 450 people in total have been killed due to the storms.

Most of the casualties from the mudslides were in the Benguet and Mountain provinces, located on the Cordillera mountain range around two hundred kilometres north of the capital Manila.

The rains also caused flooding in several dozen towns in the province of Pangasinan, and caused some dams to overflow with water.

Rescue efforts were hampered because roads were blocked off by mud. Helicopters could not fly in the area due to inclement weather, and rescue teams had to travel by foot to reach affected areas.

"We are focused on rescue at this time. It is raining nonstop in the Cordilleras," said the spokesman for the government's disaster-relief agency, Lieutenant-Colonel Ernesto Torres.


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Comments:18 hospitalized after gas attack in school in Valga, Estonia

'''Jeepers! What were they thinking?'''

Andrew O. (usa)


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Aid agencies warn of food shortages in flood-hit India

October 9, 2009 Aid agencies and Indian government officials have warned that there may be food shortages in the country, following severe floods that affected southern states.

They said that agricultural production is likely to drop dramatically due to flooding of farmland and crops. Officials have predicted that food production in Andra Pradesh, one of the southern states most affected by flooding, will go down by over 900,000 tonnes.

The waters are said to have ruined large quantities of grain stocks as well.

"Rice and other crops in an area of 260,000 hectares [642,000 acres] have been destroyed," said Andra Pradesh agricultural minister N. Raghuveera Rao.

Jayakumar Christiandirector of World Vision India, an aid agency working in the region, said that "floods and drought have set back India's fight against poverty by years."

Heavy flooding last week, mainly in Andhra Pradesh and neighbouring Karnataka, has killed about three hundred people and forced the evacuation of over a milion. The rains came after a prolonged period of drought.


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User talk:Ladie suspekt

Welcome
Tempodivalse [talk]  15:35, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

title: User talk:Ladie suspekt


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Greece’s newly elected Prime Minister pays first foreign visit to Turkey

October 12, 2009 George Papandreou, the new Greek Prime Minister, paid his first foreign visit to neighbouring Turkey on Friday. Papandreou arrived in Istanbul to attend an informal Balkan countries' ministerial meeting.

He first visited the, where he said both countries must work together to unify Cyprus. Bartholomew said Papandreou's arrival in Turkey for his first foreign visit is very important for, which are tense due to Cyprus and Aegean Sea disputes.

Later, he met with the Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and. The two prime ministers appreciated the ongoing reunification talks between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots. He also visited his then-counterpart and friend 's tomb at the Zincirlikuyu Cemetery.


text: Talk:At least 160 killed by landslides in the Philippines