CROCODILE MAN'S DEATH VERY SIMILAR TO THE 1939 DEATH OF 18 YEAR OLD NEW ZEALAND WOMAN
Its been a year since Aussie icon Steve Irwin's tragic death from stingray barb in his heart...
The tragic death 12 mths ago of Australian icon, crododile hunter, Steve Irwin, was very similar to that of an 18 year old New Zealand woman in 1939.
The records of a young New Zealand woman who was stabbed through the heart by a stingray barb, were discovered since the death of Australian icon, crocodile hunter, Steve Irwin.
An entry in the 1939 Medical Journal stated that the death of an 18 year old woman was "an unusual bathing fatality", and that she had collapsed while bathing in three feet of water in the Hauraki Gulf (Auckland).
An autopsy report found the cause of death was haemorrhage from a wound to the heart caused by a Stingray barb.
The article said the victim's body was found alone on the beach and police would no doubt have suspected a "murder of the sexual pervert character" as the wounds looked like those made by the sharpest of knives - an imaginative observation by the police of that era.
Pete's Life and World Events
Friday, September 07, 2007
Sunday, September 02, 2007
HE IS OUR PETER JACKSON - FILM MAKER EXTRORDINAIRE - ANOTHER KIWI SUCCESS STORY.
He is Peter Jackson from New Zealand - the world's highest paid director for King Kong.The Guiness world record for the biggest paid fee paid to a director. That's a lot of money for some great writing.It was also the biggest film budget too - US$207 million for King Kong.
If Peter Jackson doesn't like what studios offer him, which includes 20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures profit share offer for the yet unmade HALO - he backs off and looks elsewhere.He can afford to - THE LORD OF THE RINGS made US$2.7 billion at the box office alone -with 20 Oscars from his films he can do what he likes.There are more movies, a partnership with Microsoft for new kinds of video games, and even ideas for a television mini- series.
Don't get the idea that Peter Jackson is some sort of big- head - he isn't! He's lost a lot of weight and has replaced those horn rim glasses with contact lenses, but at heart he is still that big overweight young man who started his professional life making a low budget gory comic zombie movie BAD TASTE, on weekends around the Wellington region for three years or so.
He was self- taught and was involved in just about everything in that film - the $10,000 cost coming from his weekly wage as an engraver for the local paper.Twenty years ago this very month, the New Zealand Film Commission finally relented and agreed to financially back an unknown young film maker from Pukerua Bay just a few miles outside of Wellington City.
He said he used to save up and buy four or five rolls of film, shoot them all up in a day, store them in the fridge until his next pay cheque and get them processed.When he had to pay the lab bill he couldn't afford film until the following week.
He was living at home with his parents at the time, and when he got his first $5,000 from the film commission he resigned his job as an engraver the very next day.
Today Peter doesn't have to store film in his fridges in his homes, offices or jet. He can afford as many rolls of film he wants, whenever he wants, in a jiffy,and get the film processed in a multi- million dollar facility that he owns in Wellington. He no longer has to go cap in hand to anybody to get money for his films. Now the world's biggest studios come to him! He is Mr Peter Jackson, and the world is his oyster.
Peter's Life and World Events
He is Peter Jackson from New Zealand - the world's highest paid director for King Kong.The Guiness world record for the biggest paid fee paid to a director. That's a lot of money for some great writing.It was also the biggest film budget too - US$207 million for King Kong.
If Peter Jackson doesn't like what studios offer him, which includes 20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures profit share offer for the yet unmade HALO - he backs off and looks elsewhere.He can afford to - THE LORD OF THE RINGS made US$2.7 billion at the box office alone -with 20 Oscars from his films he can do what he likes.There are more movies, a partnership with Microsoft for new kinds of video games, and even ideas for a television mini- series.
Don't get the idea that Peter Jackson is some sort of big- head - he isn't! He's lost a lot of weight and has replaced those horn rim glasses with contact lenses, but at heart he is still that big overweight young man who started his professional life making a low budget gory comic zombie movie BAD TASTE, on weekends around the Wellington region for three years or so.
He was self- taught and was involved in just about everything in that film - the $10,000 cost coming from his weekly wage as an engraver for the local paper.Twenty years ago this very month, the New Zealand Film Commission finally relented and agreed to financially back an unknown young film maker from Pukerua Bay just a few miles outside of Wellington City.
He said he used to save up and buy four or five rolls of film, shoot them all up in a day, store them in the fridge until his next pay cheque and get them processed.When he had to pay the lab bill he couldn't afford film until the following week.
He was living at home with his parents at the time, and when he got his first $5,000 from the film commission he resigned his job as an engraver the very next day.
Today Peter doesn't have to store film in his fridges in his homes, offices or jet. He can afford as many rolls of film he wants, whenever he wants, in a jiffy,and get the film processed in a multi- million dollar facility that he owns in Wellington. He no longer has to go cap in hand to anybody to get money for his films. Now the world's biggest studios come to him! He is Mr Peter Jackson, and the world is his oyster.
Peter's Life and World Events
Thursday, August 30, 2007
ECHOES OF LIAM - THE SAD DEATH OF YOUNG NEW ZEALANDER, LIAM ASHLEY IN 2006. R.I.P.
The following story was written and posted on now defunct blogsites in 2006. It was one of the saddest stories I have ever written about.
________________________________________________
A most tragic case of parents tough love gone so sadly wrong - their youngest son loses his life!
A 17 yr old Auckland, New Zealand,youth was facing a charge of unlawfully converting his mother's car. His parents decided albeit wisely or unwisely, to try and teach their youngest son some responsibility for his actions. They persuaded the District Court judge to remand him in custody and enable him to gain some first hand knowledge of the justice system - a little time at the coalface, if you like!
The youth, named Liam Ashley, was transported from the court with 13 other remand prisoners in a private security company's van which was divided into four compartments - there has not yet any reason given to why the Corrections Department did not transport the prisoners to the remand prison - and Liam was put into one of the compartments with two other men, one of whom was a violent gang member with a string of 80 convictions behind him.
That man has now been arrested for Liam's death after allegedly beating and strangling the youth to death with his handcuffs on the way to the remand prison.
The 25 yr old man is understood to be a member of a notorious local gang with convictions for firearms offences, escaping from custody and aggravated robbery.
His last court appearance which resulted in him being in the same security van as young Liam, was for aggravated robbery and wounding with intent, and had to be accompanied to court by four armed guards because of his violent history and unpredictability.
How on earth was the youth, who has had no previous offences,placed with such a felon?
The devastated family find the situation that led to their son's death, untenable, intolerable and unacceptable under any circumstances, and obviously negligent. They, too,wonder just how their son could have been placed in the van with such a person.They do not need any reminding that it was their initial decision to have their son put into custody, when he could have been bailed.
When the van had arrived at the remand prison Liam had not been breathing. Ambulance officers managed to resuscitate him, but such was the severity of his subsequent brain damage the family later had his life support turned off.
A post mortem established the cause of death and an enquiry will be held to determine why Liam was put in the van with such a violent prisoner.
A devastated family continues to grieve for the death of their youngest son in such circumstances.
The prisoner has now been officially charged with the murder of the youth who had his own challenges; he was an at risk youth who had been assessed with ADHD earlier in his young life, something that undoubtably created its own difficulties.
Updates to the story:
The prisoner was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. An appeal aganst his sentence was denied in 2007.
Young Liam's sad death has resulted in a number of changes to the transportation of prisoners in New Zealand. The private company previously involved has not had its contract extended. The Corrections Department itself will assume this role in future, as was done back in the days of the old Prison Service.
Prisoners will be manacled while being transported in future.
Nothing will bring young Liam back,but let's hope his death was not all in vain. The changes that have been made by the NZ Corrections Department should ensure that the situation that led up to Liam's death will not be able to be repeated.
Even in retrospect,I don't blame Liam's mother for the decision she made; it was made out of love and concern for her at risk young son.
My Write Niche
The following story was written and posted on now defunct blogsites in 2006. It was one of the saddest stories I have ever written about.
________________________________________________
A most tragic case of parents tough love gone so sadly wrong - their youngest son loses his life!
A 17 yr old Auckland, New Zealand,youth was facing a charge of unlawfully converting his mother's car. His parents decided albeit wisely or unwisely, to try and teach their youngest son some responsibility for his actions. They persuaded the District Court judge to remand him in custody and enable him to gain some first hand knowledge of the justice system - a little time at the coalface, if you like!
The youth, named Liam Ashley, was transported from the court with 13 other remand prisoners in a private security company's van which was divided into four compartments - there has not yet any reason given to why the Corrections Department did not transport the prisoners to the remand prison - and Liam was put into one of the compartments with two other men, one of whom was a violent gang member with a string of 80 convictions behind him.
That man has now been arrested for Liam's death after allegedly beating and strangling the youth to death with his handcuffs on the way to the remand prison.
The 25 yr old man is understood to be a member of a notorious local gang with convictions for firearms offences, escaping from custody and aggravated robbery.
His last court appearance which resulted in him being in the same security van as young Liam, was for aggravated robbery and wounding with intent, and had to be accompanied to court by four armed guards because of his violent history and unpredictability.
How on earth was the youth, who has had no previous offences,placed with such a felon?
The devastated family find the situation that led to their son's death, untenable, intolerable and unacceptable under any circumstances, and obviously negligent. They, too,wonder just how their son could have been placed in the van with such a person.They do not need any reminding that it was their initial decision to have their son put into custody, when he could have been bailed.
When the van had arrived at the remand prison Liam had not been breathing. Ambulance officers managed to resuscitate him, but such was the severity of his subsequent brain damage the family later had his life support turned off.
A post mortem established the cause of death and an enquiry will be held to determine why Liam was put in the van with such a violent prisoner.
A devastated family continues to grieve for the death of their youngest son in such circumstances.
The prisoner has now been officially charged with the murder of the youth who had his own challenges; he was an at risk youth who had been assessed with ADHD earlier in his young life, something that undoubtably created its own difficulties.
Updates to the story:
The prisoner was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. An appeal aganst his sentence was denied in 2007.
Young Liam's sad death has resulted in a number of changes to the transportation of prisoners in New Zealand. The private company previously involved has not had its contract extended. The Corrections Department itself will assume this role in future, as was done back in the days of the old Prison Service.
Prisoners will be manacled while being transported in future.
Nothing will bring young Liam back,but let's hope his death was not all in vain. The changes that have been made by the NZ Corrections Department should ensure that the situation that led up to Liam's death will not be able to be repeated.
Even in retrospect,I don't blame Liam's mother for the decision she made; it was made out of love and concern for her at risk young son.
My Write Niche
Sunday, August 12, 2007
The US Federal correctional facility in Florence, Colorado, is the ultimate in maximum security - it is known as Supermax! It is the legion of the damned!
The 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui faces the rest of his life there after the federal jury rejected the death penalty - he faces a fate worse than death.A prison expert looked straight at jurors during the trial and told them what punishment awaited Moussaoui at Supermax, " I have seen them rot," he said. " They rot!"
Perhaps a death sentence may prove preferable for the convicted terrorist.It will certainly send a message to others facing prosecution in future.
It was reported in the media recently that Moussaoui will spend every day of the rest of his life alone in a soundproof cell as small as 2 metres by 3.5 metres, with a concrete poured desk,bed,and stool, and a small shower with a timer. In the cell is a toilet that stops flushing if it becomes blocked. There is a small black and white television that offers religious and anger management programmes only.
There is a small triangular recreation area, known as "the dog run", where solitary Supermax prisoners can occasionally get a glimpse of the sky.
Life is harsh. Food is delivered through a slit in the cell door.Prisoners do not leave their cell to see a lawyer, doctor or prison official; those visitors must come to the cell.
There are 1400 remote controlled steel doors. Motion detectors and hidden cameras monitor every move. The prison walls and razor wired grounds are patrolled by laser beams and dogs.
Prisoners can earn extra privileges like a wider variety of television offerings, more exercise time and visitation rights,based on their behaviour.
The facility now houses 400 inmates,with further room for another 90 inmates.There is a veritable" bombers" row with a number of infamous convicts there.
There is obviously no pretence at preparing prisoners for a return to society - most won't be returning in any case - they are there not just for punishment but for total incapacitation!
Inmates are constantly monitored 24/7; it was described like being in a tomb.A convicted spy who was incarcerated there described his sentence with no regret," You're slowly hung,you're ground down.You can barely retain your sanity," he said.
It has been described by a defence lawyer as extraordinary draconian punishment.Moussaoui may be a household name today,but in twenty years from now,people will have forgotten him.He will sit there all alone,and all forgotten.He will become a veritable non-person!
Another defence lawyer described prisoners rotting inside the facility's walls, as being too kind,as rotting implies a slow, gradual disintigration.Supermax is worse, as it is designed to just grind you down and break you. The ultimate in society's revenge!
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The 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui faces the rest of his life there after the federal jury rejected the death penalty - he faces a fate worse than death.A prison expert looked straight at jurors during the trial and told them what punishment awaited Moussaoui at Supermax, " I have seen them rot," he said. " They rot!"
Perhaps a death sentence may prove preferable for the convicted terrorist.It will certainly send a message to others facing prosecution in future.
It was reported in the media recently that Moussaoui will spend every day of the rest of his life alone in a soundproof cell as small as 2 metres by 3.5 metres, with a concrete poured desk,bed,and stool, and a small shower with a timer. In the cell is a toilet that stops flushing if it becomes blocked. There is a small black and white television that offers religious and anger management programmes only.
There is a small triangular recreation area, known as "the dog run", where solitary Supermax prisoners can occasionally get a glimpse of the sky.
Life is harsh. Food is delivered through a slit in the cell door.Prisoners do not leave their cell to see a lawyer, doctor or prison official; those visitors must come to the cell.
There are 1400 remote controlled steel doors. Motion detectors and hidden cameras monitor every move. The prison walls and razor wired grounds are patrolled by laser beams and dogs.
Prisoners can earn extra privileges like a wider variety of television offerings, more exercise time and visitation rights,based on their behaviour.
The facility now houses 400 inmates,with further room for another 90 inmates.There is a veritable" bombers" row with a number of infamous convicts there.
There is obviously no pretence at preparing prisoners for a return to society - most won't be returning in any case - they are there not just for punishment but for total incapacitation!
Inmates are constantly monitored 24/7; it was described like being in a tomb.A convicted spy who was incarcerated there described his sentence with no regret," You're slowly hung,you're ground down.You can barely retain your sanity," he said.
It has been described by a defence lawyer as extraordinary draconian punishment.Moussaoui may be a household name today,but in twenty years from now,people will have forgotten him.He will sit there all alone,and all forgotten.He will become a veritable non-person!
Another defence lawyer described prisoners rotting inside the facility's walls, as being too kind,as rotting implies a slow, gradual disintigration.Supermax is worse, as it is designed to just grind you down and break you. The ultimate in society's revenge!
Visit My Site - Join Up
Visit Blogfeast
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
IS LORD LUCAN ALIVE AND WELL IN NEW ZEALAND - THE HUNT IS ON IN A SMALL NORTH ISLAND TOWN.
A former Scotland Yard detective is allegedly leading a new attempt to solve one of Britain's most enduring mysteries - the hunt is on for Lucan in a small North island town of Marton - population 6,000.
Lord Lucan vanished from the face of the earth after the 1974 killing of his children's nanny, Sandra Rivett, who was bludgeoned to death in London at the West End home of Lucan's estranged wife, multi-millionaire Lady Lucan; it is believed he mistook the nanny for his wife. His whereabouts has continued to intrigue British society ever since. Some believe he drowned in the English Channel, but there has been allegedly at least 70 supposed sightings in Australia, Holland, Ireland and South Africa.
There have now been new claims that the disgraced English peer is living it rough in the little New Zealand town of Marton in an old Landrover with a cat and a pet possum; this has been irrestible for former detective inspector, Sidney Ball, who reportedly solved 150 murders before retiring to New Zealand.
He has apparently been asked to check out claims that Lucan who would now be 72 years old, is living in the rural town. Mr Ball said he couldn't say more until he has completed his investigation there.
A television production company is taking him to Marton, where he will be filmed for a programme about neighbours being at war.
"This man's neighbours are convinced that the guy living rough in the old Landrover with a cat and a possum is actually Lucan," Mr Ball said.
Rangitikei district Mayor, Bob Buchanan thinks they may well be right,and he wouldn't be surprised at all because there is quite a resemblance. And though he lives only ten minutes out of town, his mail goes to a PO box in the nearby city of Palmerston North.
Neighbours also claim he has an upper class English accent and a military bearing like Lord Lucan , who was educated at Eton before serving in the elite Coldstream Guards.
He is claimed to have arrived in New Zealand about the time Lucan reportedly disappeared and is also claimed to be receiving money from property he owns in Britain.
The rumours have been simmering for ages and the Greenstone film company said they wanted an expert to settle the matter once and for all!
A former Scotland Yard detective is allegedly leading a new attempt to solve one of Britain's most enduring mysteries - the hunt is on for Lucan in a small North island town of Marton - population 6,000.
Lord Lucan vanished from the face of the earth after the 1974 killing of his children's nanny, Sandra Rivett, who was bludgeoned to death in London at the West End home of Lucan's estranged wife, multi-millionaire Lady Lucan; it is believed he mistook the nanny for his wife. His whereabouts has continued to intrigue British society ever since. Some believe he drowned in the English Channel, but there has been allegedly at least 70 supposed sightings in Australia, Holland, Ireland and South Africa.
There have now been new claims that the disgraced English peer is living it rough in the little New Zealand town of Marton in an old Landrover with a cat and a pet possum; this has been irrestible for former detective inspector, Sidney Ball, who reportedly solved 150 murders before retiring to New Zealand.
He has apparently been asked to check out claims that Lucan who would now be 72 years old, is living in the rural town. Mr Ball said he couldn't say more until he has completed his investigation there.
A television production company is taking him to Marton, where he will be filmed for a programme about neighbours being at war.
"This man's neighbours are convinced that the guy living rough in the old Landrover with a cat and a possum is actually Lucan," Mr Ball said.
Rangitikei district Mayor, Bob Buchanan thinks they may well be right,and he wouldn't be surprised at all because there is quite a resemblance. And though he lives only ten minutes out of town, his mail goes to a PO box in the nearby city of Palmerston North.
Neighbours also claim he has an upper class English accent and a military bearing like Lord Lucan , who was educated at Eton before serving in the elite Coldstream Guards.
He is claimed to have arrived in New Zealand about the time Lucan reportedly disappeared and is also claimed to be receiving money from property he owns in Britain.
The rumours have been simmering for ages and the Greenstone film company said they wanted an expert to settle the matter once and for all!
Saturday, August 04, 2007
MY VENTURES INTO NICHE BLOGGING - I DIDN'T REALLY KNOW WHAT IT WAS BEFORE!
I have always been a general sort of a blogger, just writing about what caught my fancy at the time. But that changed when I moved to Blogger weblogs. I now have a team of four, all with specific niches.
They are all New Zealand based niche blogs: NZ politics, general subjects, controversies and local affairs. I am also learning how to add some banners, and will also download a picture or two when I get the hang of it.
I am also wide open for advice and hope to attract some comments along the way. So if you feel inclined, please do so.
I am also going to link back to 'Blogging Fingers', an excellent source of advice for Blogger bloggers.
Niche Blogging
I have always been a general sort of a blogger, just writing about what caught my fancy at the time. But that changed when I moved to Blogger weblogs. I now have a team of four, all with specific niches.
They are all New Zealand based niche blogs: NZ politics, general subjects, controversies and local affairs. I am also learning how to add some banners, and will also download a picture or two when I get the hang of it.
I am also wide open for advice and hope to attract some comments along the way. So if you feel inclined, please do so.
I am also going to link back to 'Blogging Fingers', an excellent source of advice for Blogger bloggers.
Niche Blogging
Wednesday, August 01, 2007
EXPLOITATION OF MEXICAN YOUTH: WALMART KEEPS ITS WORLD IMAGE.
For research purposes only:
Web Exclusive
By Joseph Contreras
Newsweek
Updated: 3:33 p.m. ET July 31, 2007
July 31, 2007 - Wal-Mart prides itself on cutting costs at home and abroad, and its Mexican operations are no exception. That approach has helped the Arkansas-based retail giant set a track record of spectacular success in the 16 years since it entered Mexico as a partner of the country’s then-leading retail-store chain. But some of the company’s practices have aroused concern among some officials and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that Wal-Mart is taking advantage of local customs to pinch pennies at a time when its Mexican operations have never been more profitable.
Wal-Mart is Mexico’s largest private-sector employer in the nation today, with nearly 150,000 local residents on its payroll. An additional 19,000 youngsters between the ages of 14 and 16 work after school in hundreds of Wal-Mart stores, mostly as grocery baggers, throughout Mexico—and none of them receives a red cent in wages or fringe benefits. The company doesn’t try to conceal this practice: its 62 Superama supermarkets display blue signs with white letters that tell shoppers: OUR VOLUNTEER PACKERS COLLECT NO SALARY, ONLY THE GRATUITY THAT YOU GIVE THEM. SUPERAMA THANKS YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING. The use of unsalaried youths is legal in Mexico because the kids are said to be “volunteering” their services to Wal-Mart and are therefore not subject to the requirements and regulations that would otherwise apply under the country’s labor laws. But some officials south of the U.S. border nonetheless view the practice as regrettable, if not downright exploitative. “These kids should receive a salary,” says Labor Undersecretary Patricia Espinosa Torres. “If you ask me, I don’t think these kids should be working, but there are cultural and social circumstances [in Mexico] rooted in poverty and scarcity.”
In a country where nearly half of the population scrapes by on less than $4 a day, any income source is welcome in millions of households, even if it hinges on the goodwill of a tipping customer. And Wal-Mart did not invent the bagger program that, as a written statement from the company notes, pre-dates the firm’s arrival in Mexico, nor is it alone within the country’s retail sector in benefiting from the toil of unpaid adolescents. But in Mexico City, for example, the 4,300 teenagers who work in Wal-Mart’s retail stores free of charge dwarf similar numbers laboring unpaid for Mexican competitors like Comercial Mexicana (715) and Gigante (427). Although Wal-Mart’s worldwide code of ethics expressly forbids any “associate” from working without compensation, the company’s Mexican subsidiary asserts that the grocery baggers “cannot be considered workers.” The Mexico City government’s top labor official dismisses that contention as so much corporate hogwash. “To my mind, that is not an accurate description because the bagger is providing a service on the store’s premises that benefits the company by serving the customer better,” argues Federal District Labor Secretary Benito Mirón Lince. “In economic terms, Wal-Mart does have the capability to pay the minimum wage [of less than $5 a day], and this represents an injustice.”
Certainly, Wal-Mart’s bottom line is healthy. Wal-Mart de Mexico reported net earnings of $1.148 billion in 2006 and $280 million in profits in the second quarter of this year, a 7 percent increase in real terms over the same period last year. Buoyed by the handsome bottom-line results of the preceding 12 months, Wal-Mart de Mexico Chief Executive Eduardo Solórzano announced plans in February to add 125 new stores and restaurants to its existing network of 893 retail establishments during the course of 2007. That ambitious expansion plan will represent new investment totaling nearly a billion dollars, according to company spokesmen.
And in its defense, Wal-Mart says it fully complies with a 1999 agreement covering the teenaged baggers that the Mexico City municipal government negotiated with the Supermarkets and Department Stores Association of Mexico. The company also says it goes beyond the obligations of that accord, awarding bonuses twice a year to baggers who maintain high grades in school and also providing accident insurance that covers the kids not only when they are on duty, but also when they are en route between home and workplace. The company’s written statement cited a study conducted by the Mexican government and a U.N. agency that found that teenagers participating in the baggers’ program were less likely to use illegal drugs than peers who panhandled or hawked merchandise on city streets.
Wal-Mart says the bagger program was designed “in accordance with the International Labor Organization’s (ILO) guidelines.” That’s questionable: Article 2 of the ILO’s Convention 138 specifically prohibits the employment of 14-year-old children. (When asked by NEWSWEEK specifically about this clause, a Wal-Mart spokesman said in a written response: "With respect to your questions about the ILO, I repeat that we subscribe to an agreement signed between the Supermarkets and Department Stores Association of Mexico and Mexican labor officials. I suggest you share your doubts with Mexican authorities as to whether the [1999] accord [with the Mexico City municipal government] is in line with ILO guidelines.") A study conducted by three student researchers at the Autonomous University of Mexico documented violations of the 1999 agreement at a Wal-Mart Supercenter store in southern Mexico City. These included inadequate training and forcing youngsters to work a double shift, thereby exceeding the six-hour limit per day established by the accord. Then again, things could be a lot worse. In February 2005, Wal-Mart agreed to pay the U.S. Labor Department $135,540 in civil money penalties to settle charges of 24 child-labor violations. Some of the accusations involved minors who operated forklifts, chain saws and other potentially dangerous equipment. Stuffing groceries into plastic bags would seem considerably less hazardous.
For research purposes only:
Web Exclusive
By Joseph Contreras
Newsweek
Updated: 3:33 p.m. ET July 31, 2007
July 31, 2007 - Wal-Mart prides itself on cutting costs at home and abroad, and its Mexican operations are no exception. That approach has helped the Arkansas-based retail giant set a track record of spectacular success in the 16 years since it entered Mexico as a partner of the country’s then-leading retail-store chain. But some of the company’s practices have aroused concern among some officials and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that Wal-Mart is taking advantage of local customs to pinch pennies at a time when its Mexican operations have never been more profitable.
Wal-Mart is Mexico’s largest private-sector employer in the nation today, with nearly 150,000 local residents on its payroll. An additional 19,000 youngsters between the ages of 14 and 16 work after school in hundreds of Wal-Mart stores, mostly as grocery baggers, throughout Mexico—and none of them receives a red cent in wages or fringe benefits. The company doesn’t try to conceal this practice: its 62 Superama supermarkets display blue signs with white letters that tell shoppers: OUR VOLUNTEER PACKERS COLLECT NO SALARY, ONLY THE GRATUITY THAT YOU GIVE THEM. SUPERAMA THANKS YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING. The use of unsalaried youths is legal in Mexico because the kids are said to be “volunteering” their services to Wal-Mart and are therefore not subject to the requirements and regulations that would otherwise apply under the country’s labor laws. But some officials south of the U.S. border nonetheless view the practice as regrettable, if not downright exploitative. “These kids should receive a salary,” says Labor Undersecretary Patricia Espinosa Torres. “If you ask me, I don’t think these kids should be working, but there are cultural and social circumstances [in Mexico] rooted in poverty and scarcity.”
In a country where nearly half of the population scrapes by on less than $4 a day, any income source is welcome in millions of households, even if it hinges on the goodwill of a tipping customer. And Wal-Mart did not invent the bagger program that, as a written statement from the company notes, pre-dates the firm’s arrival in Mexico, nor is it alone within the country’s retail sector in benefiting from the toil of unpaid adolescents. But in Mexico City, for example, the 4,300 teenagers who work in Wal-Mart’s retail stores free of charge dwarf similar numbers laboring unpaid for Mexican competitors like Comercial Mexicana (715) and Gigante (427). Although Wal-Mart’s worldwide code of ethics expressly forbids any “associate” from working without compensation, the company’s Mexican subsidiary asserts that the grocery baggers “cannot be considered workers.” The Mexico City government’s top labor official dismisses that contention as so much corporate hogwash. “To my mind, that is not an accurate description because the bagger is providing a service on the store’s premises that benefits the company by serving the customer better,” argues Federal District Labor Secretary Benito Mirón Lince. “In economic terms, Wal-Mart does have the capability to pay the minimum wage [of less than $5 a day], and this represents an injustice.”
Certainly, Wal-Mart’s bottom line is healthy. Wal-Mart de Mexico reported net earnings of $1.148 billion in 2006 and $280 million in profits in the second quarter of this year, a 7 percent increase in real terms over the same period last year. Buoyed by the handsome bottom-line results of the preceding 12 months, Wal-Mart de Mexico Chief Executive Eduardo Solórzano announced plans in February to add 125 new stores and restaurants to its existing network of 893 retail establishments during the course of 2007. That ambitious expansion plan will represent new investment totaling nearly a billion dollars, according to company spokesmen.
And in its defense, Wal-Mart says it fully complies with a 1999 agreement covering the teenaged baggers that the Mexico City municipal government negotiated with the Supermarkets and Department Stores Association of Mexico. The company also says it goes beyond the obligations of that accord, awarding bonuses twice a year to baggers who maintain high grades in school and also providing accident insurance that covers the kids not only when they are on duty, but also when they are en route between home and workplace. The company’s written statement cited a study conducted by the Mexican government and a U.N. agency that found that teenagers participating in the baggers’ program were less likely to use illegal drugs than peers who panhandled or hawked merchandise on city streets.
Wal-Mart says the bagger program was designed “in accordance with the International Labor Organization’s (ILO) guidelines.” That’s questionable: Article 2 of the ILO’s Convention 138 specifically prohibits the employment of 14-year-old children. (When asked by NEWSWEEK specifically about this clause, a Wal-Mart spokesman said in a written response: "With respect to your questions about the ILO, I repeat that we subscribe to an agreement signed between the Supermarkets and Department Stores Association of Mexico and Mexican labor officials. I suggest you share your doubts with Mexican authorities as to whether the [1999] accord [with the Mexico City municipal government] is in line with ILO guidelines.") A study conducted by three student researchers at the Autonomous University of Mexico documented violations of the 1999 agreement at a Wal-Mart Supercenter store in southern Mexico City. These included inadequate training and forcing youngsters to work a double shift, thereby exceeding the six-hour limit per day established by the accord. Then again, things could be a lot worse. In February 2005, Wal-Mart agreed to pay the U.S. Labor Department $135,540 in civil money penalties to settle charges of 24 child-labor violations. Some of the accusations involved minors who operated forklifts, chain saws and other potentially dangerous equipment. Stuffing groceries into plastic bags would seem considerably less hazardous.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
UNCIRCUMCISED MEN HAVE SAME SENSITIVITY AS CIRCUMCISED MEN - CUTTING TO THE CHASE!
Uncircumcised men may not have more sexual sensation than circumcised men, a new research has determined.
Researchers from McGill University in Montreal, Canada,found that circumcised men felt the same amount of sensitivity of touch and pain in various stages of arousal as those with foreskins.
The study, published in the ’Journals of Sexual Medicine’, looked at 40 men, half of whom were circumcised.Using sensory testing, the men were monitored at two points on the penis and the forearm while viewing erotic films.Indeed!
One hope’s the right films were viewed?
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Sunday, July 22, 2007
Silver and Black equals Gold in New Zealand sports - what a weekend...
To understand us, you would have to be at least an Australian. They are probably greater sports nuts than we in New Zealand.
Most of our competitive sports are played against the Australians. They love to rub it in when their sides beat us. If I'm honest that is quite often, but...
Part one - The Men:
When the Men in Black, the All Blacks from New Zealand, the consistently most successful and historically greatest rugby team and rugby brand in world rugby, said by France to be the Brazil of rugby - and what a compliment that was, thank you very much, come calling things can get pretty difficult for opposing teams.
Because of a deliberate re-conditioning program for 22 selected All Blacks that kept them out of the Super 14 professional rugby competition for eight weeks, they have had a less than perfect start to test rugby for the year. However they have lost only one of the internationals this season, againt Australia in Melbourne three weeks ago. On Saturday the All Blacks struck back and beat the Aussies in the final game of the series which decided the Bledisloe Cup against Australia, and the Tri-Nations Cup between NZ, South Africa and Australia.
Despite the rhetoric emanating from Australia and South Africa, the All Blacks talked the talk and walked the walk - and put their money where their mouths were! They have been decisive in victory. The AB's machine will be rolling forward towards the Rugby World Cup in just over a month in France.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Part Two - The Women:
The men battle away at rugby, rugby league and soccer, while the women battle away at netball. Australia and the New Zealand Silver Ferns have been doing just that in the last week. A few days ago the Aussies 'kicked butt' and proclaimed themselves as the top dogs(no I'm not going there) and played again on Saturday night. Hey, Netball is not supposed to be a contact sport, you know? There were women flying around landing on their backsides as if they were playing indoor rugby. The Silver Ferns came back and took out the game in exra time after it was all tied up after regular time. Well done girls! They have their World Championships at Auckland later in the year. The Championships were taken off Fiji after their inane military coup a few months ago. That is a subject for another post at another time.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Part Three - The Rest:
All eyes were on the rugby and netball and the results of other sports were overshadowed.
The NZ Women's cricket team beat the Australian women.
The Phoenix men's soccer team beat the Sydney team 3-0 in a pre-season game.
The NZ Warriors had a good win against the West Tigers in the NRL - the National Rugby League Competion.
The New Zealand 'Tall Blacks' basketball team beat Venezuela in a series in NZ. NZ actually ranks number 12 in the world. Not the Aussies, but a team ranked well above them never the less.
Scott Dixon won his third consecutive race on the Indy Car circuit, on his 27th birthday, in the US - still running second in the competition
So that was our sporting weekend - Silver and Black equalled Gold.
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To understand us, you would have to be at least an Australian. They are probably greater sports nuts than we in New Zealand.
Most of our competitive sports are played against the Australians. They love to rub it in when their sides beat us. If I'm honest that is quite often, but...
Part one - The Men:
When the Men in Black, the All Blacks from New Zealand, the consistently most successful and historically greatest rugby team and rugby brand in world rugby, said by France to be the Brazil of rugby - and what a compliment that was, thank you very much, come calling things can get pretty difficult for opposing teams.
Because of a deliberate re-conditioning program for 22 selected All Blacks that kept them out of the Super 14 professional rugby competition for eight weeks, they have had a less than perfect start to test rugby for the year. However they have lost only one of the internationals this season, againt Australia in Melbourne three weeks ago. On Saturday the All Blacks struck back and beat the Aussies in the final game of the series which decided the Bledisloe Cup against Australia, and the Tri-Nations Cup between NZ, South Africa and Australia.
Despite the rhetoric emanating from Australia and South Africa, the All Blacks talked the talk and walked the walk - and put their money where their mouths were! They have been decisive in victory. The AB's machine will be rolling forward towards the Rugby World Cup in just over a month in France.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Part Two - The Women:
The men battle away at rugby, rugby league and soccer, while the women battle away at netball. Australia and the New Zealand Silver Ferns have been doing just that in the last week. A few days ago the Aussies 'kicked butt' and proclaimed themselves as the top dogs(no I'm not going there) and played again on Saturday night. Hey, Netball is not supposed to be a contact sport, you know? There were women flying around landing on their backsides as if they were playing indoor rugby. The Silver Ferns came back and took out the game in exra time after it was all tied up after regular time. Well done girls! They have their World Championships at Auckland later in the year. The Championships were taken off Fiji after their inane military coup a few months ago. That is a subject for another post at another time.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Part Three - The Rest:
All eyes were on the rugby and netball and the results of other sports were overshadowed.
The NZ Women's cricket team beat the Australian women.
The Phoenix men's soccer team beat the Sydney team 3-0 in a pre-season game.
The NZ Warriors had a good win against the West Tigers in the NRL - the National Rugby League Competion.
The New Zealand 'Tall Blacks' basketball team beat Venezuela in a series in NZ. NZ actually ranks number 12 in the world. Not the Aussies, but a team ranked well above them never the less.
Scott Dixon won his third consecutive race on the Indy Car circuit, on his 27th birthday, in the US - still running second in the competition
So that was our sporting weekend - Silver and Black equalled Gold.
Welcome kiwipete2 | Account | Help | Log Out
Search for Posts Search for Feeds Search for Citations Search the Web Subscribe to URL More Options
Forums
Search
Home > About Bloglines > Subscription Links Wizard
Insert the following HTML code into your blog template.
Home | About | Help | Languages | Services | Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Contact Us | We're Hiring!
Copyright © 2007 IAC Search & Media. All rights reserved.
Partner Sites: Citysearch | CollegeHumor | Pronto | LiveDaily | Ballard Designs | Alsto's | Sally Foster | Expedia | Hotels | Hotwire
See you at the Rugby World Cup!
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?
kiwi blogs
#
>
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
"THE WORLD'S FIRST 'ZERO CARBON' CITY"
World's First 'Zero-Carbon' City
IPS, 15 June 2007 - A city free of cars, pedestrian-friendly, powered by renewable energy and surrounded by wind and photovoltaic farms -- all in the middle of a petroleum-rich desert.
This five billion US dollar plan, which might do credit to a sci-fi film set, is envisaged for Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). When complete, in 2009, it will be the nearest thing yet to a zero-carbon, zero-waste city.
Using the traditional planning principles of a walled city, together with existing technologies to achieve sustainable development, this six sq km expanse will house an energy, science and technology community.
Called the Masdar (meaning ‘source' in Arabic) Initiative, this ambitious plan for a 'Green City' is being driven by the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, a private, joint stock company established and wholly-owned by Mubadala Development Company.
‘‘As the first major hydrocarbon-producing nation to take such a step, Abu Dhabi has established its leadership position by launching Masdar, a global cooperative platform for open engagement in the search for solutions to some of mankind's most pressing issues -- energy security, environment and truly sustainable human development,'' Masdar chief executive Sultan Al Jaber said.
Abu Dhabi accounts for more than 90 percent of the UAE's oil resources, and the country's reserves, exceeding 100 billion barrels, ranked third largest in the world.
The ‘Green City' will house the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, a graduate science and research institute that will be established in cooperation with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; world-class laboratories; commercial space for related-sector companies; light manufacturing facilities and a selected pool of international tenants who will invest, develop, and commercialise advanced energy technologies.
It will also host Masdar's offices, residences for its staff, as well as a science museum and edutainment facilities. It is expected to house at least 50,000 people initially and as many as 100,000 eventually.
‘‘We are creating a synergetic environment; it is a true alternative energy cluster with researchers, students, scientists, business investment professionals, and policy makers in the same community. It will combine the talent, expertise and resources to enable the required technological breakthroughs,'' Jaber explained to IPS.
To encourage people to be a part of this setup amid harsh weather conditions that witness temperatures soaring up to nearly 50 degrees Celsius during July and August, a pedestrian-friendly environment has been planned with narrow streets and shaded walkways. The maximum distance to the nearest transport link and amenities is likely to be no more than 200 m and will be complemented by a rapid personal transport system.
This self-sustaining city is expected to provide up to 1,500 companies with an attractive incentives package, including a one-stop shop programme for government services, transparent laws, 100 percent foreign ownership, tax-free environment, intellectual property protection and proximity to nearby manufactures, suppliers and markets.
Mohammed Raouf of the Gulf Research Centre, said the Abu Dhabi plan could be replicated and improved upon. ‘‘We need more than just ideas, thoughts and studies; we need ways to implement them effectively. Hopefully this initiative will trigger others in the region to follow suit.''
Though the Dubai-based environmentalist was sceptical about achieving ‘zero levels of carbon emissions', he said, ‘‘There is no doubt this project will cut emissions drastically.''
According to a recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the greenhouse effect on climate change in the Middle East region will increase the region's temperatures by 1-2 degrees Celsius during the next 25 years. The ‘Green City' plan is a part of Abu Dhabi's decision in April 2006 to embrace renewable and sustainable energy technologies.
In another responsive initiative in March, the UAE signalled the commencement of a major national carbon dioxide emission reduction programme by announcing an initiative aimed at delivering a national carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) network.
It is estimated that the CCS network could reduce UAE's carbon dioxide emissions by almost 40 percent, increase oil production by up to 10 percent and liberate large quantities of natural gas. This could be achieved through the separation of the gas from industrial and energy related sources and its transportation to oil reservoirs for enhanced oil recovery.
Announcing the plan, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, told the media, ‘‘We are a leading provider of energy for the world. As such we must, and do, recognise the responsibility to constantly seek out and incorporate technologies to make that provision more environmentally efficient.''
Abu Dhabi also plans to invest 350 million US dollars in a 100 Mw solar power plant and hopes to tap into a growing global trend among environment-conscious investors. The plant will be expandable to 500 Mw with a target to generate enough power for 500,000 households.
‘‘As an environmentalist I am ready to pay more to live in a place where the quality of life is better. But, ordinary citizens, especially those in the low income group, do not care or understand this. Hence, it is important to keep the price of ‘green' development affordable,'' Raouf told IPS.
‘‘By attempting the first carbon neutral city in the world, Masdar is demonstrating its commitment to change the way the world understands energy and sustainable resource utilisation. One day all cities will be built like this,'' Jaber added.
This article is reproduced with the kind permission of the
Inter Press Service News Agency (IPS).
Visit IPS News for more news and articles and to subscribe to free newsletters.
Please note:
This article is for information purposes only. The WBCSD does not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of ny information.
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SHOULD THIS DIRTY SWINE HAVE BEEN PUBLICLY CASTERATED?
Man charged over sex with girls, boys, animals. A Napier(NZ) man has appeared in court charged with sex offences involving children of both genders, as well as a dog, a cow, a pig and a horse.
The man entered no pleas in Napier District Court yesterday to 17 charges, alleging offences as long ago as 1954, when he was a young teenager, and continuing until as recently as 1990.
The charges allege rape and other indecencies with young girls, a cow, a pig, an indecent act with a mare, and an indecent assault on a boy.
The offences are alleged to have happened in Napier.
The historic nature of the charges is highlighted by one allegation that the man attempted to "carnally know" a girl under the age of 12 in the mid-1950s.
The former offence of carnal knowledge is now known as unlawful sexual intercourse or rape, depending on a complainant's age.
The man was granted interim name suppression and remanded on bail to appear in court again on August 15.
A police investigation sparked by complaints at the end of 2005 saw inquiries
extended overseas before the man was arrested and charged earlier this month.
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Tuesday, July 17, 2007
From AlterNet.org:
Rep. Ellison: Bush is Like Hitler, 9/11 Like the Reichstag Fire
Adam Howard
This post, written by Pam Spaulding, originally appeared on Pam's House Blend
Watch out folks, he wants to go out with a bang. From The Guardian: Cheney pushes Bush to act on Iran.
The balance in the internal White House debate over Iran has shifted back in favour of military action before President George Bush leaves office in 18 months, the Guardian has learned.
The shift follows an internal review involving the White House, the Pentagon and the state department over the last month. Although the Bush administration is in deep trouble over Iraq, it remains focused on Iran. A well-placed source in Washington said: "Bush is not going to leave office with Iran still in limbo."
...The vice-president, Dick Cheney, has long favoured upping the threat of military action against Iran. He is being resisted by the secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, and the defence secretary, Robert Gates.
Last year Mr Bush came down in favour of Ms Rice, who along with Britain, France and Germany has been putting a diplomatic squeeze on Iran. But at a meeting of the White House, Pentagon and state department last month, Mr Cheney expressed frustration at the lack of progress and Mr Bush sided with him. "The balance has tilted. There is cause for concern," the source said this week.
Add Sam Brownback and Holy Joe to the war drumbeat.
On Wednesday, the Senate voted 97-0 to pass a resolution sponsored by Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) to censure Iran "for what it said was complicity in the killing of U.S. soldiers in Iraq." The resolution required the Bush administration to regularly report to Congress on Iran's role in Iraq.
...Sen. Sam Brownback appeared on Fox News shortly after the vote and declared he was ready to preemptively strike Iran. Host Sean Hannity asked Brownback, "There's probably going to come a point for the next president that they?re going to have to determine whether to go out and have that preemptive strike. And you?re ready and would be ready to do that?...
Yes, I am, and I think we have to be," Brownback answered.
Is the whole purpose of this administration and its unhinged supporters to destroy the military and bankrupt the country, never mind leaving it more vulnerable to terrorism? Oh, never mind. Let's just worry about whether Nicole Richie is going to jail for her latest DUI...
Meanwhile...
* L.A. Times: Most foreign insurgents in Iraq are Saudis. Is there a plan to to bomb Bush's pals yet?
Most foreign fighters and suicide bombers in Iraq come from Saudi Arabia, despite attempts by US officials to portray Syria and Iran as the main culprits of violence, a US newspaper reported Sunday.
Citing an unnamed senior US military officer and Iraqi lawmakers, the Los Angeles Times newspaper said about 45 percent of all foreign militants targeting US troops and Iraqi security forces were from Saudi Arabia, 15 percent from Syria and Lebanon, and 10 percent from North Africa.
* Marine: unit told to "crank up the violence level" on Iraqis. Manhood in question when matters are out of control in Iraq? Just beat and kill anyone for "progress."
A Marine corporal, testifying Saturday at the murder trial of a buddy, said that Marines in his unit began routinely beating Iraqis after being ordered by officers to "crank up the violence level."
Cpl. Saul H. Lopezromo said Marines in his platoon, including the defendant, Cpl. Trent D. Thomas, were angry when officers criticized them as not being as tough as other Marine platoons.
...Within weeks of allegedly being scolded, seven Marines and a Navy corpsman went out late one night to find and kill a suspected insurgent in the village of Hamandiya near the Abu Ghraib prison. The Marines and corpsman were from 2nd Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Regiment.
Lopezromo said their target was known to his neighbors as the "prince of jihad" and had been arrested several times, only to be released by the Iraqi legal system.
Unable to find their target, the Marines and corpsman dragged another man from his house, fatally shot him, and then planted an AK-47 assault rifle near the body to make it look like he had been killed in a shootout, according to court testimony.
Tagged as: iran, iraq war, bush, brownback, lieberman, cheney
Pam Spaulding is the editor and publisher of Pam's House Blend, honored as "Best LGBT Blog" in the 2005 and 2006 Weblog Awards.
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http://peteskiwiforum.blogspot.com
Rep. Ellison: Bush is Like Hitler, 9/11 Like the Reichstag Fire
Adam Howard
This post, written by Pam Spaulding, originally appeared on Pam's House Blend
Watch out folks, he wants to go out with a bang. From The Guardian: Cheney pushes Bush to act on Iran.
The balance in the internal White House debate over Iran has shifted back in favour of military action before President George Bush leaves office in 18 months, the Guardian has learned.
The shift follows an internal review involving the White House, the Pentagon and the state department over the last month. Although the Bush administration is in deep trouble over Iraq, it remains focused on Iran. A well-placed source in Washington said: "Bush is not going to leave office with Iran still in limbo."
...The vice-president, Dick Cheney, has long favoured upping the threat of military action against Iran. He is being resisted by the secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, and the defence secretary, Robert Gates.
Last year Mr Bush came down in favour of Ms Rice, who along with Britain, France and Germany has been putting a diplomatic squeeze on Iran. But at a meeting of the White House, Pentagon and state department last month, Mr Cheney expressed frustration at the lack of progress and Mr Bush sided with him. "The balance has tilted. There is cause for concern," the source said this week.
Add Sam Brownback and Holy Joe to the war drumbeat.
On Wednesday, the Senate voted 97-0 to pass a resolution sponsored by Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) to censure Iran "for what it said was complicity in the killing of U.S. soldiers in Iraq." The resolution required the Bush administration to regularly report to Congress on Iran's role in Iraq.
...Sen. Sam Brownback appeared on Fox News shortly after the vote and declared he was ready to preemptively strike Iran. Host Sean Hannity asked Brownback, "There's probably going to come a point for the next president that they?re going to have to determine whether to go out and have that preemptive strike. And you?re ready and would be ready to do that?...
Yes, I am, and I think we have to be," Brownback answered.
Is the whole purpose of this administration and its unhinged supporters to destroy the military and bankrupt the country, never mind leaving it more vulnerable to terrorism? Oh, never mind. Let's just worry about whether Nicole Richie is going to jail for her latest DUI...
Meanwhile...
* L.A. Times: Most foreign insurgents in Iraq are Saudis. Is there a plan to to bomb Bush's pals yet?
Most foreign fighters and suicide bombers in Iraq come from Saudi Arabia, despite attempts by US officials to portray Syria and Iran as the main culprits of violence, a US newspaper reported Sunday.
Citing an unnamed senior US military officer and Iraqi lawmakers, the Los Angeles Times newspaper said about 45 percent of all foreign militants targeting US troops and Iraqi security forces were from Saudi Arabia, 15 percent from Syria and Lebanon, and 10 percent from North Africa.
* Marine: unit told to "crank up the violence level" on Iraqis. Manhood in question when matters are out of control in Iraq? Just beat and kill anyone for "progress."
A Marine corporal, testifying Saturday at the murder trial of a buddy, said that Marines in his unit began routinely beating Iraqis after being ordered by officers to "crank up the violence level."
Cpl. Saul H. Lopezromo said Marines in his platoon, including the defendant, Cpl. Trent D. Thomas, were angry when officers criticized them as not being as tough as other Marine platoons.
...Within weeks of allegedly being scolded, seven Marines and a Navy corpsman went out late one night to find and kill a suspected insurgent in the village of Hamandiya near the Abu Ghraib prison. The Marines and corpsman were from 2nd Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Regiment.
Lopezromo said their target was known to his neighbors as the "prince of jihad" and had been arrested several times, only to be released by the Iraqi legal system.
Unable to find their target, the Marines and corpsman dragged another man from his house, fatally shot him, and then planted an AK-47 assault rifle near the body to make it look like he had been killed in a shootout, according to court testimony.
Tagged as: iran, iraq war, bush, brownback, lieberman, cheney
Pam Spaulding is the editor and publisher of Pam's House Blend, honored as "Best LGBT Blog" in the 2005 and 2006 Weblog Awards.
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Saturday, July 14, 2007
Just picked up this story you may or may not have read. Thought you might be interested:
'White House 'gagged' Surgeon General'
For generations of Americans, the Surgeon General has been the "nation's doctor," the person they turned to for unbiased advice on everything from smoking to obesity and the HIV Aids pandemic. And United States presidents have generally defended the Surgeon General's right to speak out on public health matters. But under President George W. Bush, the independence of the Surgeon General has been placed below industry lobbying and the demands of the religious right. Damning testimony by Dr Richard Carmona, the Surgeon General from 2002 until 2006, has revealed that the Bush Administration frequently censored him and tried to mould his public statements to fit political goals. He was even ordered to mention Bush three times on every page of his speeches. The Bush White House banned Carmona from speaking or issuing reports on stem cells, emergency contraception, sex education, prison, mental health and international health issues. For years the White House tried to "water down" a report on the dangers of secondhand smoke. When he tried to address the subject of embryonic stem cell research: "I was told to stand down and not speak about it. It was removed from my speeches. Much of the discussion was being driven by theology, ideology, [and] preconceived beliefs that were scientifically incorrect." Even the Special Olympics were deemed politically suspect, because they receive support from the Kennedy family. "I was specifically told by a senior person: 'Why would you want to help those people?"' Just as it seemed that you couldn’t get angrier at the sick joke of democracy that George W Bush has become, suddenly we find out that he gagged the Surgeon General of all people, and he seems to have done so based on his redundant ‘the Earth is only 6500 years old’ bullshit theology. The man is a mentally insane clown and the sooner America gets a new President, the better for the planet.
Will be interested in your comments?
'White House 'gagged' Surgeon General'
For generations of Americans, the Surgeon General has been the "nation's doctor," the person they turned to for unbiased advice on everything from smoking to obesity and the HIV Aids pandemic. And United States presidents have generally defended the Surgeon General's right to speak out on public health matters. But under President George W. Bush, the independence of the Surgeon General has been placed below industry lobbying and the demands of the religious right. Damning testimony by Dr Richard Carmona, the Surgeon General from 2002 until 2006, has revealed that the Bush Administration frequently censored him and tried to mould his public statements to fit political goals. He was even ordered to mention Bush three times on every page of his speeches. The Bush White House banned Carmona from speaking or issuing reports on stem cells, emergency contraception, sex education, prison, mental health and international health issues. For years the White House tried to "water down" a report on the dangers of secondhand smoke. When he tried to address the subject of embryonic stem cell research: "I was told to stand down and not speak about it. It was removed from my speeches. Much of the discussion was being driven by theology, ideology, [and] preconceived beliefs that were scientifically incorrect." Even the Special Olympics were deemed politically suspect, because they receive support from the Kennedy family. "I was specifically told by a senior person: 'Why would you want to help those people?"' Just as it seemed that you couldn’t get angrier at the sick joke of democracy that George W Bush has become, suddenly we find out that he gagged the Surgeon General of all people, and he seems to have done so based on his redundant ‘the Earth is only 6500 years old’ bullshit theology. The man is a mentally insane clown and the sooner America gets a new President, the better for the planet.
Will be interested in your comments?
Friday, July 13, 2007
How to Change the World"
Ten Questions with Jeffrey Pfeffer
Jeffrey Pfeffer is the Thomas D. Dee II Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University. He is the author or co-author of twelve books.Dr. Pfeffer received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Carnegie-Mellon University and his Ph.D. from Stanford.
He began his career at the business school at the University of Illinois and then taught at the University of California, Berkeley, and he has been a visiting professor at the Harvard Business School, Singapore Management University, London Business School, and IESE in Barcelona.
Pfeffer currently serves on the board of directors of Audible Magic and SonoSite (SONO) and writes a monthly column on management issues entitled “The Human Factor” for the 650,000 circulation Time-Warner business magazine, Business 2.0
This interview is based on his latest book:What Were They Thinking?: Unconventional Wisdom About Management.
Question: What do companies do stupid things?
Answer: First, they ignore feedback effects. There has recently been a lot of interest, and apparent surprise, that programmers in India now cost a lot and their wages have been rising rapidly. Did people forget supply and demand? If everyone moves work to India, what did companies think would happen? Or, to take another example, when companies cut their retirement benefits, and people can not afford to retire, guess what, they won’t.
Second, companies often ignore the interdependence or connections between actions in one part and those in another. So, even as some departments are trying to cut the costs of benefits, others are worried about recruiting and retaining enough qualified people. Maybe the parts should work together.
Third, many companies presume that incentives are the answer to everything, and have a very mechanistic model of human behavior. That is also incorrect.
Question: What can companies do to get smarter?
Answer: Companies learn just like people learn—by trying new things and seeing what happens. That requires, first, a tolerance for failure, since by definition, learning means doing things you aren’t very good at.
Second, it requires structured self-reflection—after-action or after-event reviews so that instead of having one year of experience repeated 20 times, people and companies actually accumulate learning over time.
Question: How do you stop the misdeeds (for example, Enron) in organizations?
Answer: What is interesting is that there are few social sanctions—as contrasted with legal or financial ones—for bad behavior. Executives who have served jail time are back on TV and are still celebreties. More to the point, they aren’t shunned by their colleagues.
The prevailing mood seems to be, as long as people retain enough wealth, they can buy their way back by donating time and money. If we are serious about enforcing norms, then there have to be real sanctions. In the military academies, violations of important norms are met with expulsion or social ostracism—eating alone, for instance. Not so, not yet, for the most part in the corporate world.
Question: How do you get a company to behave in a truthful manner?
Answer: You start by having leaders tell the truth—which includes admitting what they don’t know and what they have done wrong. It is impossible to manage successfully if you don’t know what is actually going on. But a lie takes two people: the person who tells the lie and the individual who signals that s/he wants to hear it. So, you don’t want to punish people for surfacing problems or telling you bad news. You don’t want to “shoot the messenger,” but thank them for bringing issues and concerns to light.
Question: What’s the best way to improve customer relations?
Answer: This is almost too simple—actually take care of customers! I am sure we have all heard the recorded message, “you’re call is very important to us.” Well, if the call were important to the company who has recorded the message, maybe they would answer it in some reasonable time instead of either playing music or bombarding the caller with advertising messages. When you make a mistake, fix it and admit responsibility. Tell the truth. By the way, the airlines seem to be the worst at all of this, with a few exceptions.
Question: I think I know what you will say, but what’s more important: CRM software or recruiting and training?
Answer: Before you can manage customer relationships through some software product, you first need to build those relationships. And relationships are still largely built through people. That’s why the most important three feet of real estate in retail—or in many industries—is the distance between the customer and the sales associate or individual who is serving that customer. Hiring the best people who are likely to stay, and investing in their training, will build relationships that CRM can manage. Without taking the first steps, there is nothing there.
Question: What is the key to global competitiveness?
Answer: The data on this are clear—companies choose to locate their R & D facilities on the basis of the availability of talent. This is more important than tax abatements and certainly much more important than rates of pay. If location was determined by cost, Silicon Valley would be empty. The best way to build human capital is through education—both elementary and secondary as well as higher education that is truly world class. This costs money, but it is worth it.
Question: What is the proper role for a CEO?
Answer: To develop others and their talents and to create an environment in which people can do their best and want to. It is not to make all the decisions or, like some kind of “sun king,” absorb all the light and the attention.
In fact, sometimes, as the Grammy-award winning Orpheus Chamber orchestra shows, the best leadership is less leadership. No seed can grow if it is dug up and examined every week, and for people to innovate and get things done, sometimes they need some time and space and resources.
Question: How do you turnaround a company?
Answer: As the late Peter Drucker said, there is no business without a customer. Turning around a company is mostly about providing people a great value proposition—giving them more than they expect. Better products, services, more attention, than the competition. It is hard to do any of this if you lay people off. People—the best people—will head for the exits. And you can’t cut your way to success, because it’s a strategy that’s too easily duplicated. Look at Singapore Airlines—they are able to charge more for the same flights because they provide such a superior product and experience. I wish more companies would figure this out.
Question: But what if it’s no fault of the company and people just aren’t buy, flying, etc…then what do you do?
If you are going to lay people off, do it once, tell the specific people who will be let go, do it with compassion and generosity, and get on with it. But often organizations can find ways of avoiding layoffs, such as reducing everyone’s work hours a little, reducing variable components of pay, or finding ways to capture market share from competitors.
If Southwest Airlines could come out of 9/11 without doing layoffs in an industry, airlines, that was devastated, then I am not sure they are ever necessary. But the typical way they are done—announcement of a number so that everyone is worried and distracted, and often doing the layoffs by escorting people out the door so they can’t say good-by, leaves “survivor guilt” and demotivated people.
Question: What are the characteristics of a good work week and vacation policy?
Answer: We live in a world where ideas and innovation are paramount. But people can’t be creative if they are exhausted. And when people work when they are tired, they make mistakes. If we have learned anything from the quality movement, it is that the cost of finding and fixing mistakes is greater than the cost of preventing them. So, give people time off. And, by the way, the younger generations want a life as well as work. Work-life balance is a great way to attract—and retain—great people.
Question: What are the characteristics of a good incentive plan?
Answer: Incentives should be large enough to provide an occasion for celebrating success but not so large as to distort behavior. And incentives can include recognition and things other than money. Companies get themselves into trouble all the time by being too clever with their incentives.
Stock options did reward leaders for getting the price of the stock up—it’s just that it was often for a short period, and was accomplished by distorting earnings. Be careful what you pay for—you might just get it.
Question: What does it say about a company if it asks a candidate with twenty years of experience to submit school transcripts?
Answer: To tell you the truth, neither hiring on the basis of a resume—the positions people have held and the credentials they have acquired—nor hiring on the basis of a transcript makes much sense. In the first case of the 20 years of experience, you need to ascertain not just what the person has done but also how well s/he has done it—something that is difficult to do in a world in which lawyers will tell previous employers not to say much—and more importantly, what they are capable of doing in the future.
Every CEO was CEO for the first time, which meant that some company had to decide that “previous experience”—in this instance, in the CEO role—was not a requirement, and similarly for every other position. In the second case, transcripts mostly reveal whether people can succeed in school. There is little evidence in the one area I know best, business schools and MBAs, that grades in school predict subsequent career success, and to the extent there are positive correlations found in some studies, they are incredibly small.
The answer, in terms of hiring, is to first of all be clear about the relevant behaviors and then test for those behaviors, either using work samples or else interview questions that probe how people have handled or would handle relevant situations.
Question: What role should budgets play in the management of an organization?
Answer: Budgets should be general guidelines. As hard and fast rules, they become subject to “gaming.” People delay doing sensible things, push expenses around, hide sales, etc. And also, budgets often just reward the best forecasters and negotiators. It is possible to make “budget” as you lose market share and go broke, as long as the targets are set low enough.
Question: How should people judge a company’s results?
Answer: By comparison to its peers and by comparison to what its own aspirations are. Companies, as the balanced scorecard notes, depend on customers, employees, investors, suppliers, and others in the ecosystem. It is wrong to give one of those groups priority over the others. Brand loyalty and employee loyalty are both real assets, even if not reflected on balance sheets and income statements.
Just look at Apple Computer with respect to products and DaVita, the kidney dialysis company, which has few open nursing positions because it is a great place to work. As Herb Kelleher of Southwest Airlines recognized long ago, if you take care of your people, they will take care of the customers, who will keep coming back, which will make the shareholders happy. It is all interrelated.
Question: What role should strategic planning play in the management of an organization?
Answer: Doing the right thing is important, which is where strategy comes in. But doing that thing well—execution—is what sets companies apart. After all, every football play is designed to go for a huge gain. The reason it doesn’t is because of execution—people drop balls, miss blocks, go to the wrong place, and so forth. So, success depends on execution—on the ability to get things done.
Ten Questions with Jeffrey Pfeffer
Jeffrey Pfeffer is the Thomas D. Dee II Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University. He is the author or co-author of twelve books.Dr. Pfeffer received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Carnegie-Mellon University and his Ph.D. from Stanford.
He began his career at the business school at the University of Illinois and then taught at the University of California, Berkeley, and he has been a visiting professor at the Harvard Business School, Singapore Management University, London Business School, and IESE in Barcelona.
Pfeffer currently serves on the board of directors of Audible Magic and SonoSite (SONO) and writes a monthly column on management issues entitled “The Human Factor” for the 650,000 circulation Time-Warner business magazine, Business 2.0
This interview is based on his latest book:What Were They Thinking?: Unconventional Wisdom About Management.
Question: What do companies do stupid things?
Answer: First, they ignore feedback effects. There has recently been a lot of interest, and apparent surprise, that programmers in India now cost a lot and their wages have been rising rapidly. Did people forget supply and demand? If everyone moves work to India, what did companies think would happen? Or, to take another example, when companies cut their retirement benefits, and people can not afford to retire, guess what, they won’t.
Second, companies often ignore the interdependence or connections between actions in one part and those in another. So, even as some departments are trying to cut the costs of benefits, others are worried about recruiting and retaining enough qualified people. Maybe the parts should work together.
Third, many companies presume that incentives are the answer to everything, and have a very mechanistic model of human behavior. That is also incorrect.
Question: What can companies do to get smarter?
Answer: Companies learn just like people learn—by trying new things and seeing what happens. That requires, first, a tolerance for failure, since by definition, learning means doing things you aren’t very good at.
Second, it requires structured self-reflection—after-action or after-event reviews so that instead of having one year of experience repeated 20 times, people and companies actually accumulate learning over time.
Question: How do you stop the misdeeds (for example, Enron) in organizations?
Answer: What is interesting is that there are few social sanctions—as contrasted with legal or financial ones—for bad behavior. Executives who have served jail time are back on TV and are still celebreties. More to the point, they aren’t shunned by their colleagues.
The prevailing mood seems to be, as long as people retain enough wealth, they can buy their way back by donating time and money. If we are serious about enforcing norms, then there have to be real sanctions. In the military academies, violations of important norms are met with expulsion or social ostracism—eating alone, for instance. Not so, not yet, for the most part in the corporate world.
Question: How do you get a company to behave in a truthful manner?
Answer: You start by having leaders tell the truth—which includes admitting what they don’t know and what they have done wrong. It is impossible to manage successfully if you don’t know what is actually going on. But a lie takes two people: the person who tells the lie and the individual who signals that s/he wants to hear it. So, you don’t want to punish people for surfacing problems or telling you bad news. You don’t want to “shoot the messenger,” but thank them for bringing issues and concerns to light.
Question: What’s the best way to improve customer relations?
Answer: This is almost too simple—actually take care of customers! I am sure we have all heard the recorded message, “you’re call is very important to us.” Well, if the call were important to the company who has recorded the message, maybe they would answer it in some reasonable time instead of either playing music or bombarding the caller with advertising messages. When you make a mistake, fix it and admit responsibility. Tell the truth. By the way, the airlines seem to be the worst at all of this, with a few exceptions.
Question: I think I know what you will say, but what’s more important: CRM software or recruiting and training?
Answer: Before you can manage customer relationships through some software product, you first need to build those relationships. And relationships are still largely built through people. That’s why the most important three feet of real estate in retail—or in many industries—is the distance between the customer and the sales associate or individual who is serving that customer. Hiring the best people who are likely to stay, and investing in their training, will build relationships that CRM can manage. Without taking the first steps, there is nothing there.
Question: What is the key to global competitiveness?
Answer: The data on this are clear—companies choose to locate their R & D facilities on the basis of the availability of talent. This is more important than tax abatements and certainly much more important than rates of pay. If location was determined by cost, Silicon Valley would be empty. The best way to build human capital is through education—both elementary and secondary as well as higher education that is truly world class. This costs money, but it is worth it.
Question: What is the proper role for a CEO?
Answer: To develop others and their talents and to create an environment in which people can do their best and want to. It is not to make all the decisions or, like some kind of “sun king,” absorb all the light and the attention.
In fact, sometimes, as the Grammy-award winning Orpheus Chamber orchestra shows, the best leadership is less leadership. No seed can grow if it is dug up and examined every week, and for people to innovate and get things done, sometimes they need some time and space and resources.
Question: How do you turnaround a company?
Answer: As the late Peter Drucker said, there is no business without a customer. Turning around a company is mostly about providing people a great value proposition—giving them more than they expect. Better products, services, more attention, than the competition. It is hard to do any of this if you lay people off. People—the best people—will head for the exits. And you can’t cut your way to success, because it’s a strategy that’s too easily duplicated. Look at Singapore Airlines—they are able to charge more for the same flights because they provide such a superior product and experience. I wish more companies would figure this out.
Question: But what if it’s no fault of the company and people just aren’t buy, flying, etc…then what do you do?
If you are going to lay people off, do it once, tell the specific people who will be let go, do it with compassion and generosity, and get on with it. But often organizations can find ways of avoiding layoffs, such as reducing everyone’s work hours a little, reducing variable components of pay, or finding ways to capture market share from competitors.
If Southwest Airlines could come out of 9/11 without doing layoffs in an industry, airlines, that was devastated, then I am not sure they are ever necessary. But the typical way they are done—announcement of a number so that everyone is worried and distracted, and often doing the layoffs by escorting people out the door so they can’t say good-by, leaves “survivor guilt” and demotivated people.
Question: What are the characteristics of a good work week and vacation policy?
Answer: We live in a world where ideas and innovation are paramount. But people can’t be creative if they are exhausted. And when people work when they are tired, they make mistakes. If we have learned anything from the quality movement, it is that the cost of finding and fixing mistakes is greater than the cost of preventing them. So, give people time off. And, by the way, the younger generations want a life as well as work. Work-life balance is a great way to attract—and retain—great people.
Question: What are the characteristics of a good incentive plan?
Answer: Incentives should be large enough to provide an occasion for celebrating success but not so large as to distort behavior. And incentives can include recognition and things other than money. Companies get themselves into trouble all the time by being too clever with their incentives.
Stock options did reward leaders for getting the price of the stock up—it’s just that it was often for a short period, and was accomplished by distorting earnings. Be careful what you pay for—you might just get it.
Question: What does it say about a company if it asks a candidate with twenty years of experience to submit school transcripts?
Answer: To tell you the truth, neither hiring on the basis of a resume—the positions people have held and the credentials they have acquired—nor hiring on the basis of a transcript makes much sense. In the first case of the 20 years of experience, you need to ascertain not just what the person has done but also how well s/he has done it—something that is difficult to do in a world in which lawyers will tell previous employers not to say much—and more importantly, what they are capable of doing in the future.
Every CEO was CEO for the first time, which meant that some company had to decide that “previous experience”—in this instance, in the CEO role—was not a requirement, and similarly for every other position. In the second case, transcripts mostly reveal whether people can succeed in school. There is little evidence in the one area I know best, business schools and MBAs, that grades in school predict subsequent career success, and to the extent there are positive correlations found in some studies, they are incredibly small.
The answer, in terms of hiring, is to first of all be clear about the relevant behaviors and then test for those behaviors, either using work samples or else interview questions that probe how people have handled or would handle relevant situations.
Question: What role should budgets play in the management of an organization?
Answer: Budgets should be general guidelines. As hard and fast rules, they become subject to “gaming.” People delay doing sensible things, push expenses around, hide sales, etc. And also, budgets often just reward the best forecasters and negotiators. It is possible to make “budget” as you lose market share and go broke, as long as the targets are set low enough.
Question: How should people judge a company’s results?
Answer: By comparison to its peers and by comparison to what its own aspirations are. Companies, as the balanced scorecard notes, depend on customers, employees, investors, suppliers, and others in the ecosystem. It is wrong to give one of those groups priority over the others. Brand loyalty and employee loyalty are both real assets, even if not reflected on balance sheets and income statements.
Just look at Apple Computer with respect to products and DaVita, the kidney dialysis company, which has few open nursing positions because it is a great place to work. As Herb Kelleher of Southwest Airlines recognized long ago, if you take care of your people, they will take care of the customers, who will keep coming back, which will make the shareholders happy. It is all interrelated.
Question: What role should strategic planning play in the management of an organization?
Answer: Doing the right thing is important, which is where strategy comes in. But doing that thing well—execution—is what sets companies apart. After all, every football play is designed to go for a huge gain. The reason it doesn’t is because of execution—people drop balls, miss blocks, go to the wrong place, and so forth. So, success depends on execution—on the ability to get things done.
Thursday, July 05, 2007
A SPECIAL GIFT TO THE ALL BLACKS FROM THEIR MAIN SPONSORS - ADIDAS
A special gift from Adidas and the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) will make sure the All Blacks stay connected to their homeland at a purely grass roots level for the World Cup in France this year.
The NZRU and Adidas are in the process of cutting a piece of turf from dozens of grounds around the country.
Soil from the turf will help to make up the gift that the team will take to France in August.
Adidas NZ marketing manager Craig Waugh said the idea behind the campaign was that the 1072 All Blacks to date were "Of This Earth".
"The turf we are collecting from clubs around the country will cover the rugby grounds on which every All Black has played," Craig said.
"We'll then be creating a very special gift to send along to France with the All Blacks when they contest the World Cup."
NZRU marketing manager Fraser Holland said turf would be collected from major stadiums like Eden Park, Waikato Stadium and Carisbrook, as well as small provincial grounds like Southbridge, the home ground to first five-eighths Dan Carter, and Opunake Beach, home to prop Carl Hayman.
A special gift from Adidas and the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) will make sure the All Blacks stay connected to their homeland at a purely grass roots level for the World Cup in France this year.
The NZRU and Adidas are in the process of cutting a piece of turf from dozens of grounds around the country.
Soil from the turf will help to make up the gift that the team will take to France in August.
Adidas NZ marketing manager Craig Waugh said the idea behind the campaign was that the 1072 All Blacks to date were "Of This Earth".
"The turf we are collecting from clubs around the country will cover the rugby grounds on which every All Black has played," Craig said.
"We'll then be creating a very special gift to send along to France with the All Blacks when they contest the World Cup."
NZRU marketing manager Fraser Holland said turf would be collected from major stadiums like Eden Park, Waikato Stadium and Carisbrook, as well as small provincial grounds like Southbridge, the home ground to first five-eighths Dan Carter, and Opunake Beach, home to prop Carl Hayman.
WELL THE AMERICA'S CUP IS OVER FOR ANOTHER FEW YEARS.
Alinghi has beaten Emirates Team New Zealand by 5-2. NZ had a good boat compared to four years ago - the last one literally fell to pieces.
It was a mixture of a slight speed advantage, greater experience and superior sailing skills from the Alinghi syndicate; some bad luck, a few vital errors at the wrong times and some gear failure from Team NZ. Dean Barker continues to grow as a skipper and will improve even more by the next challenge, whenever it might be.
The New Zealand public continues to support Team New Zealand as a national icon, albeit a few levels below the All Blacks. The current New Zealand Government is prepared to financially support them once again, with an advance of $10 milion to get the next challenge under way. The team managemet can then retain those members it wishes to or needs.
There was a lot of emotional out-pouring at Valencia, not all of it was positive, but as they say - thats all history now!
Congratulations on a great team effort, not a success, but not something to be ashamed of either. Come on the All Blacks and the Silver Ferns!!
Alinghi has beaten Emirates Team New Zealand by 5-2. NZ had a good boat compared to four years ago - the last one literally fell to pieces.
It was a mixture of a slight speed advantage, greater experience and superior sailing skills from the Alinghi syndicate; some bad luck, a few vital errors at the wrong times and some gear failure from Team NZ. Dean Barker continues to grow as a skipper and will improve even more by the next challenge, whenever it might be.
The New Zealand public continues to support Team New Zealand as a national icon, albeit a few levels below the All Blacks. The current New Zealand Government is prepared to financially support them once again, with an advance of $10 milion to get the next challenge under way. The team managemet can then retain those members it wishes to or needs.
There was a lot of emotional out-pouring at Valencia, not all of it was positive, but as they say - thats all history now!
Congratulations on a great team effort, not a success, but not something to be ashamed of either. Come on the All Blacks and the Silver Ferns!!
Sunday, July 01, 2007
NZ soldier Willy Apiata to be awarded Victoria Cross for bravery in Afghanistan where he carried wounded colleague to safety
"I was just doing my job boss"
Those were the words of SAS Corporal Willy Apiata when told by his commanding officer he was in line to receive New Zealand's highest military honour for his service in Afghanistan, the Victoria Cross. The last time the nation's highest military decoration was awarded in New Zealand was in 1946.
Corporal Apiata, 35, carried a wounded colleague for 70 metres under heavy fire in 2004. The soldier would have died from the loss of blood.
Prime Minister Helen Clark says awarding a Victoria Cross for the first time since the Second World War, was not taken lightly. "A huge amount of work has been done, to document what happened and to research the precedence for the award of the Victoria Cross, before taking the decision to proceed."
Corporal Apiata becomes one of only 13 living recipients of the VC worldwide. A member of the British Army received the VC for gallantry in Iraq in 2004 and is the only other VC recipient still serving in the military. He will be invested with the Victoria Cross for New Zealand by the Governor-General at a special ceremony to be held at Government House later this month.
Waikato born, Corporal Apiata joined the territorials in 1989 and served in East Timor before making the SAS is 2002. He is father to a four-year-old son.
Three of Corporal Apiata's colleagues are also receiving gallantry awards, but because of the secrecy surrounding the SAS they are not being named.
Defence Minister Phil Goff says New Zealanders can be proud of the extraordinary heroism and outstanding performance of their duties by members of the NZSAS.
"The VC honours a man who put his own life at risk to save the life of a comrade. All of the honours reflect exceptional courage and leadership, and the commitment members of the NZSAS have to each other and to the tasks they are sent to do on behalf of New Zealand.
"They are modest about their achievements but they have contributed to an already proud tradition of military service by the NZSAS and a reputation for being ordinary people doing extraordinary jobs."
"I was just doing my job boss"
Those were the words of SAS Corporal Willy Apiata when told by his commanding officer he was in line to receive New Zealand's highest military honour for his service in Afghanistan, the Victoria Cross. The last time the nation's highest military decoration was awarded in New Zealand was in 1946.
Corporal Apiata, 35, carried a wounded colleague for 70 metres under heavy fire in 2004. The soldier would have died from the loss of blood.
Prime Minister Helen Clark says awarding a Victoria Cross for the first time since the Second World War, was not taken lightly. "A huge amount of work has been done, to document what happened and to research the precedence for the award of the Victoria Cross, before taking the decision to proceed."
Corporal Apiata becomes one of only 13 living recipients of the VC worldwide. A member of the British Army received the VC for gallantry in Iraq in 2004 and is the only other VC recipient still serving in the military. He will be invested with the Victoria Cross for New Zealand by the Governor-General at a special ceremony to be held at Government House later this month.
Waikato born, Corporal Apiata joined the territorials in 1989 and served in East Timor before making the SAS is 2002. He is father to a four-year-old son.
Three of Corporal Apiata's colleagues are also receiving gallantry awards, but because of the secrecy surrounding the SAS they are not being named.
Defence Minister Phil Goff says New Zealanders can be proud of the extraordinary heroism and outstanding performance of their duties by members of the NZSAS.
"The VC honours a man who put his own life at risk to save the life of a comrade. All of the honours reflect exceptional courage and leadership, and the commitment members of the NZSAS have to each other and to the tasks they are sent to do on behalf of New Zealand.
"They are modest about their achievements but they have contributed to an already proud tradition of military service by the NZSAS and a reputation for being ordinary people doing extraordinary jobs."
A DISGUSTING PRACTICE THAT HAS TO BE CONDEMNED BY ANY HUMANE PERSON. THIS IS BARBARIC AND HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ISLAM...
The reported death of a 12 year old Egyptian girl at the hands of a doctor performing that revolting practice of female circumcision has apparently sparked a public outcry there, and so it should, and has prompted health and religious authorities to ban the practice. It is, after all, a cultural practice that has nothing to do with Islam.
The poor little girl who was named Badour Shaker, died last month while undergoing the procedure in an illegal clinic in the southern town of Maghagh. Her mother, Zeniab Abdel Ghani, said she paid about 50 Egyptian pounds($NZ11.85) to a female physician to perform the disgusting procedure.
The mother also said the doctor tried to bribe her to withdraw a lawsuit accusing the physician of murdering her daughter, in return for 15,000 ponds, but she refused.
A forensic inquiry into the case indicated the girl’s death was caused by an anaethesia overdose.
The reported death of a 12 year old Egyptian girl at the hands of a doctor performing that revolting practice of female circumcision has apparently sparked a public outcry there, and so it should, and has prompted health and religious authorities to ban the practice. It is, after all, a cultural practice that has nothing to do with Islam.
The poor little girl who was named Badour Shaker, died last month while undergoing the procedure in an illegal clinic in the southern town of Maghagh. Her mother, Zeniab Abdel Ghani, said she paid about 50 Egyptian pounds($NZ11.85) to a female physician to perform the disgusting procedure.
The mother also said the doctor tried to bribe her to withdraw a lawsuit accusing the physician of murdering her daughter, in return for 15,000 ponds, but she refused.
A forensic inquiry into the case indicated the girl’s death was caused by an anaethesia overdose.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Claims made that Party Pills are as addictive as P and magnify the effect of methamphetamine.
Those are the shock early findings of university and Environmental Science and Research studies into the health effects of BZP, the active ingredient in most party pills.
Last Thursday,the New Zealand Government announced it would ban the pills within six months.
BZP will be classified as a Class 1 drug, the same as cannabis / marijuana. The NZ Associate Health Minister, Jim Anderton, said before these new revelations, "Once you are told by clinical experts that what is being sold virtually at the corner dairy or convenience store could kill people...if you don't take action,and a 14 year old or a 16 year year old or an 18 year old dies in hospital from BZP, what do you think the headlines will be about government inaction?"
And just last night, top New Zealand scientist Dr Paul Fitzmaurice told the NZ Sunday Times how BZP had frightenly similar qualities to the highly addictive methamphetamine drug P.
The leading Environmental Science and Research(ESR) neurotoxologist said a series of tests at the University of Auckland, ESR and Victoria University have produced alarming results.
The tests showed BZP party pills:
1/ Get users hooked through the same brainwave patterns as highly addictive drugs including speed(P) and cocaine.
2/ Enhance the euphoric effect of P.
3/ Carry an overdose risk.
Scientists conducted a series of tests on lab rats - administering controlled doses of BZP and studying the effect on the brain. These animal tests showed these drugs mimic other drugs that are known to be addictive.
The rats were also given dose of methamphetamine. The tests showed that if you were given methamphetamine after being on BZP for several hours, you'd end up with a much greater effect from the methamphetamine, the researcher claimed.
Scientists are followng up their preliminary animal tests by studying the effects on humans.
Dr Paul Fitzmaurice said another study had shown a severe risk of overdose." What our preliminary data says it is taking two or three hours for an average dose of 200 milligrams to reach its maximum concentation in the body," he said. "The more you take, the longer it takes to react. People who think they can take four or five tablets to get a much quicker response actually don't. It actualy takes longer for the drug to reach its maximum effect and once it does they find they've taken too many tablets.'' he said.
Those are the shock early findings of university and Environmental Science and Research studies into the health effects of BZP, the active ingredient in most party pills.
Last Thursday,the New Zealand Government announced it would ban the pills within six months.
BZP will be classified as a Class 1 drug, the same as cannabis / marijuana. The NZ Associate Health Minister, Jim Anderton, said before these new revelations, "Once you are told by clinical experts that what is being sold virtually at the corner dairy or convenience store could kill people...if you don't take action,and a 14 year old or a 16 year year old or an 18 year old dies in hospital from BZP, what do you think the headlines will be about government inaction?"
And just last night, top New Zealand scientist Dr Paul Fitzmaurice told the NZ Sunday Times how BZP had frightenly similar qualities to the highly addictive methamphetamine drug P.
The leading Environmental Science and Research(ESR) neurotoxologist said a series of tests at the University of Auckland, ESR and Victoria University have produced alarming results.
The tests showed BZP party pills:
1/ Get users hooked through the same brainwave patterns as highly addictive drugs including speed(P) and cocaine.
2/ Enhance the euphoric effect of P.
3/ Carry an overdose risk.
Scientists conducted a series of tests on lab rats - administering controlled doses of BZP and studying the effect on the brain. These animal tests showed these drugs mimic other drugs that are known to be addictive.
The rats were also given dose of methamphetamine. The tests showed that if you were given methamphetamine after being on BZP for several hours, you'd end up with a much greater effect from the methamphetamine, the researcher claimed.
Scientists are followng up their preliminary animal tests by studying the effects on humans.
Dr Paul Fitzmaurice said another study had shown a severe risk of overdose." What our preliminary data says it is taking two or three hours for an average dose of 200 milligrams to reach its maximum concentation in the body," he said. "The more you take, the longer it takes to react. People who think they can take four or five tablets to get a much quicker response actually don't. It actualy takes longer for the drug to reach its maximum effect and once it does they find they've taken too many tablets.'' he said.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
International Muslim protest at Salman Rushdie knighthood award:
As some British Muslims protested at the awarding of writer Salmam Rushdie’s coming knighthood, reports are coming through about concerted mass strikes and demonstrations in India, Iran and Pakistan; others distanced themselves from the effigy burning and reprisals.
There was about 20 demonstrations at Regents Park mosque in London after prayers, with men with covered faces waving placards, one of which allegedly read “God save the Queen”, and shouting slogans.
Mosque staff distanced themselves from the demonstration. A woman from the director- general’s office stating ” We do not sanction this protest or the views they are expressing.”
Why is it many Muslims cover their faces when protesting? Haven’t they the courage of their convictions, or is they just lack old fashioned intestinal fortitude?
As some British Muslims protested at the awarding of writer Salmam Rushdie’s coming knighthood, reports are coming through about concerted mass strikes and demonstrations in India, Iran and Pakistan; others distanced themselves from the effigy burning and reprisals.
There was about 20 demonstrations at Regents Park mosque in London after prayers, with men with covered faces waving placards, one of which allegedly read “God save the Queen”, and shouting slogans.
Mosque staff distanced themselves from the demonstration. A woman from the director- general’s office stating ” We do not sanction this protest or the views they are expressing.”
Why is it many Muslims cover their faces when protesting? Haven’t they the courage of their convictions, or is they just lack old fashioned intestinal fortitude?
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