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NEWS SATURDAY,
JULY 4, 2009 NEWS
Growing
National Debt May Be Next Economic Crisis
The Founding Fathers left one legacy not celebrated on Independence
Day but which affects us all. It's the national debt. The country first
got into debt to help pay for the Revolutionary War. Growing ever since,
the debt stands today at a staggering $11.5 trillion -- equivalent to over
$37,000 for each and every American. And it's expanding by over $1 trillion
a year. Fox
News
BURN
NOTICE ON HOT NEW IPHONE
Apple's iPhone is a hot seller -- in more ways than one. Users report
that the 3GS model is too hot to hold to their ears on routine phone calls,
that its video recorder makes it too hot to hold at all, that overheating
warps the plastic case, and even that the white 32GB model turns pink because
of the heat. Apple insists the summer heat is to blame. NY
Post
Honduras
Refuses To Restore President
Honduras' refusal to restore ousted President Manuel Zelaya despite
an appeal by the top envoy for the Americas has put the impoverished nation
on a collision course with the world community that could lead to its isolation.
Honduras said it would no longer recognize the Organization of American
States charter, claiming the diplomatic body attempted to impose "unilateral
and indignant resolutions" on the new government, which took power a week
ago in a military-backed coup and forced Zelaya into exile. Detroit
News
Calif.
Regulators Warn Of Pot's Cancer Capability
It might take Californians a puff or two to get their heads around
an apparent contradiction recently enshrined in state law. The same marijuana
smoke that doctors can recommend to ease cancer patients' suffering must
soon come with a warning saying it causes the disease. State environmental
regulators last month voted to place marijuana smoke on its list of hundreds
of substances known to cause cancer. The decision could lead to warning
signs in medical marijuana dispensaries and labels on packaged pot within
a year. Philadelphia
Inquirer
Many
Cities Celebrating July Fourth Without A Bang
What's a July Fourth celebration without fireworks? Many cities across
the United States will find out today. As municipalities grope for ways
to shore up budgets, expensive pyrotechnics displays are becoming the latest
victims of the economic downturn. CNN
Seven
Banks Fail, Pushing 2009 Tally To 52
Seven banks were shut down by authorities Thursday, pushing the tally
of failed banks for 2009 to 52, more than doubling the failures in 2008.
Six regional banks in Illinois and one in Texas closed their doors, according
to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The rash of Illinois failures
are interlinked: All six banks were controlled by one family and followed
a similar business model that "created concentrated exposure in each institution,"
according to the FDIC. CNN
Medici
Lawyer Says Kohn Didn't Get Madoff Payments
Austrian fund manager Sonja Kohn did not receive any kickbacks from
Bernard Madoff to steer Bank Medici customer funds to the swindler's investment
business, a Medici lawyer said on Friday. "There were no Madoff payments
to Kohn. There were no kickbacks," lawyer Andreas Theiss told Reuters.
Theiss reiterated prior statements that Kohn, whose Bank Medici ran several
funds that funneled at least $3.3 billion to Madoff, was one of Madoff's
biggest victims. Reuters
North
Korea Launches 7 Missiles Off Its East Coast
Defying the United States on Independence Day, North Korea fired seven
missiles on Saturday into the sea off its east coast. The test-firings
came two days after North Korea, which is being squeezed by the U.S. government
and other countries for its recent nuclear test, fired four short-range
missiles into the sea. North Korea had warned ships to avoid waters near
its east coast through July 10 because of military exercises, and the test-firing
were widely predicted. Washington
Post
Mrs.
Obama Bringing Glamor To Moscow This Weekend
Michelle Obama brings her superstar glamor to Moscow this weekend as
she accompanies her husband on his summit with the Russian president. But
the American first lady, who has wowed publics in the U.S. and Europe with
her easy elegance and charm, will perhaps face a bigger challenge in winning
over a Russian public that has scant respect for women who grab the limelight
from their powerful husbands. Russia still has trouble with the concept
of an empowered woman behind the throne.
Atlanta
Journal
Drug
Raids Reveal ‘Sobering’ Mass Of Weapons
Federal agents busted a drug-trafficking ring that distributed methamphetamine
and cocaine from Mexico in Washington state and carried unusually powerful
weaponry, injecting a dangerous new factor into drug crime in the region.
A .50-caliber Desert Eagle pistol, AK-47-type semiautomatic assault rifle
and 14 other weapons shown to reporters Thursday were among 23 guns seized
in Operation Arctic Chill when 35 search warrants were served in the past
two weeks. Also seized were 19 pounds of methamphetamine, a quarter-pound
of cocaine, 22 vehicles and $60,000 in cash, and 31 people were arrested.
MSNBC
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Palin
Quits As Alaska Governor
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin shocked the political word Friday afternoon
by announcing that she will step down at the end of the month and transfer
power to Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell. Palin made the surprise announcement from
her home in Wasilla, flanked by her husband, Todd, and family and state
commissioners. "I never believed that I nor anyone else needs a title to
do this, to make a difference," she said. "I'm determined to take the right
path for Alaska, even though it is unconventional and it's not so comfortable."
Fox
News
Arctic
Oil, Gas On Hold From Lawsuits
The global recession and lawsuits from environmental groups have slowed
the scramble for previously unattainable oil and gas reserves and shipping
routes in the Arctic caused by climate change, and have provided a window
to resolve complicated ecological and security concerns, specialists say.
Many major international oil and gas companies have put large-scale projects
on hold, said Alexander Braun, a specialist on Arctic change and sea dynamics
at the Arctic Institute of North America at Canada's University of Calgary
in Alberta. Washington
Times
Biden
Warns Iraq Not To Resume Ethnic Violence
Vice President Joe Biden told Iraqi leaders Friday that he and President
Obama were committed to helping them resolve their political differences,
but he warned that the United States would be unlikely to remain engaged
in Iraq if the country reverted to sectarian violence, U.S. officials said.
Biden spent the day in closed-door meetings to assess Iraq's political
and security situation as part of his new role as an unofficial envoy for
the Obama administration. SF
Gate
Number
Of Black Male Teachers Belies Their Influence
Tynita Johnson had attended predominantly black schools in Prince George's
County for 10 years when she walked into Will Thomas's AP government class
last August and found something she had never seen. "I was kind of shocked,"
said Tynita, 15, of Upper Marlboro. "I have never had a black male teacher
before, except for P.E." Tynita's experience is remarkably common. Only
2 percent of the nation's 4.8 million teachers are black men, according
to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In fact, Thomas, a social studies
teacher at Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School, never had a black teacher
himself. Washington
Post
Healthcare
Overhaul Could Limit Tax Breaks On Benefits
For the secretaries and environmental engineers, game wardens and van
drivers who work for the state of New Hampshire, surgery is free, even
at Boston’s top teaching hospitals if it’s necessary. So are MRIs, CT scans,
and X-rays. Pregnant women pay nothing for prenatal care; alcoholics aren’t
billed for short stints in rehab. Seeing a therapist costs just $10, as
many as 20 visits a year, and prescription drugs top out at $30 for a three-month
mail-order supply. New Hampshire state employees get $450 annually toward
gym memberships, if they go regularly, or $200 toward their own treadmill
- and there’s a $150 annual reimbursement for yoga classes, diabetes clinics,
and nutritional counseling. Boston
Globe
Oil
Brokerage Loses $10 Million On Rogue Trades
LONDON - PVM Oil Associates, the world's biggest over-the-counter oil
brokerage, says it lost nearly $10 million this week because of unauthorized
trades that caused a temporary spike in Brent crude markets. The firm said
in a statement late Thursday that it was investigating the trades, which
drove up the price of Brent futures by more than $2 in one hour early Tuesday
London time. It did not identify the trader involved in the transactions.
MSNBC
Tech
May Have Exposed Thousands To Hep C
A former surgery technician may have exposed thousands of Colorado
patients to hepatitis C when she swapped her own dirty syringes for ones
filled with a powerful narcotic, federal authorities said Thursday. Kristen
Diane Parker faces criminal charges for allegedly making the swaps while
working at Audubon Ambulatory Surgery Center in Colorado Springs and Rose
Medical Center in Denver. Authorities say Parker admitted to changing out
syringes containing a saline solution with ones filled with the painkiller
Fentanyl. CBS
Iran
Supreme Leader Adviser Calls Mousavi A U.S. Agent
A top aide to Iran's supreme leader called the country's main opposition
figure a U.S. agent and accused him in an editorial Saturday of committing
crimes against the nation . While hard-line figures had previously demanded
Mir Hossein Mousavi to be prosecuted for describing Iran's June 12 elections
fraudulent and leading demonstrations afterward, the editorial was the
first public declaration that the opposition leader was a foreign agent.
USA
Today
Budget
Situations Dire In Several States
Several states are facing the prospect of government shutdowns and
program cuts as they enter the first weekend of the fiscal year and the
Fourth of July holiday without budgets in place. "This downturn, even more
so than previous downturns, really is affecting every state right now,"
said Brian Sigritz, a staff associate with the National Association of
State Budget Officers. Washington
Times
GOP,
White House At Odds On Sotomayor Documents
The top Republican on the Senate committee that will consider Sonia
Sotomayor's Supreme Court nomination says a Puerto Rican civil rights group's
papers could shed light on her judicial approach, particularly her view
of racial preferences in hiring. White House Counsel Greg Craig, however,
told Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., in a letter that board meeting minutes
and other papers detailing the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education
Fund's activities while Sotomayor was an outside adviser shouldn't impact
her nomination because she had no role in writing or approving them. Newsday
SC
Residents Mixed Over Fate Of Cheating Gov
After a week that offered the world a glimpse into the conflicted mind
of philandering South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, his constituents differed
Friday on whether he should leave office. Some said the decision should
be up to his wife, Jenny. And it's a safe bet that his political future
is a topic of conversation as the Sanford family spends the holiday weekend
in Florida, where her parents live. But others, including influential lawmakers,
said Sanford must resign after misleading the public about his loyalty
to family and trips to see his mistress. Las
Vegas Sun
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Alleged
Nazi Guard Demjanjuk To Stand Trial
Alleged Nazi death camp guard John Demjanjuk has been declared fit
to stand trial on charges that he was an accessory to the murder of 29,000
Jews during World War II, German prosecutors announced today. The 89-year-old
Demjanjuk, from Cleveland, was deported to Germany almost two months ago
by U.S. immigration authorities. "The medical tests have been concluded,
and we have been given the green light to put John Demjanjuk on trial,
Munich state prosecutor Anton Winkler told ABC News. ABC
Syrian
Leader Invites Obama To Visit
Syria’s president sent a Fourth of July message full of praise to President
Obama on Friday and invited him to visit Syria. These were the latest signs
that Syria is hedging its bets in the politics of the Middle East, warming
up to the United States at a time when Syria’s longtime ally Iran is in
turmoil. The United States and its Arab allies have been hoping to pull
Syria away from its alliances with Iran and Islamic militant groups in
the region. NY
Times
Group
Sotomayor Advised Fought Job Tests
A civil rights group on whose board Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor
served filed racial bias lawsuits over employment examinations that resemble
a Connecticut case in which she ruled against white firefighters, documents
released by the Senate show. The Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education
Fund represented Hispanic sanitation workers in New York City who wanted
to stop white employees from getting promotions because, they argued, the
qualifying exam unfairly disadvantaged minorities. San
Diego Union
Sunday
Liquor Sales Advocates Regrouping For 2010
Lawmakers focused on passing a state budget pushed off efforts to change
Indiana's alcohol-sales laws this year, but they will explore the issue
this summer and might take it up in the next legislative session. Proponents
of allowing Sunday liquor sales hope consumers who share their feeling
on the question will join a petition drive to urge legislators to change
the state's laws. Hoosiers for Beverage Choices launched its mostly online
petition drive last fall in hopes of spurring legislation in the spring,
but legislative leaders decided alcohol issues wouldn't be taken up this
year. Indy
Star
Obama
Tells Putin Cold War Is Over
President Barack Obama said former Russian President Vladimir Putin
and his hand-picked successor should expect an in-person reminder the Cold
War is over when the U.S. leader makes his first trip to a Moscow summit.
Days before he departs for Russia, Obama said Thursday that Putin "still
has a lot of sway" in his nation as its nominal prime minister. Newsday
Communities
Bug Out Over Cuts To Mosquito Control
Millions of mosquito eggs laid across southern Texas after Hurricane
Ike hit the coast last summer are waiting for the little bit of rain and
hot summer days they need to hatch. That's got the man whose job it is
to fight the bugs worried _ he's already running out of money. Lee Chastant
and fellow bug battlers across the Gulf of Mexico in Florida, up the East
Coast in Connecticut and on the Great Plains of South Dakota are predicting
a bumper crop of the always annoying and sometimes deadly pests.
Las
Vegas Sun
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Stanford
Antigua Liquidators Win Fight Over Assets
R. Allen Stanford’s liquidators from Antigua were awarded control of
120 million pounds ($196 million) in U.K. assets seized in a fraud probe
in a London court battle with U.S. receivers. Liquidators appointed in
the U.S. and Antigua failed to agree on who should control the funds held
by Antigua-based Stanford International Bank Ltd. in the U.K. Stanford
was indicted last month on U.S. charges he swindled investors out of more
than $7 billion. Bloomberg
Powell
Warns Obama Of Ambitious Agenda
Colin Powell, who broke ranks with the Republican Party to support
Barack Obama, tells CNN the U.S. president's agenda may be too ambitious
and too expensive. "I think one of the cautions that has to be given to
the president -- and I've talked to some of his people about this -- is
that you can't have so many things on the table that you can't absorb it
all," he said. "And we can't pay for it all." UPI
Memos
Show Chaos Of Gitmo's Early Months
Newly-released Defense Department documents and memos about the first
years of operation of the jail at the U.S. base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba,
portray a chaotic and sometimes violent operation that its own commanders
described as dysfunctional. President Barack Obama has ordered the detention
facility closed next year. It holds more than 200 terror suspects whose
cases are undergoing review for their potential release, prosecution or
continued confinement. CBS
US
Marines Push Deeper Into Southern Afghan Towns
U.S. Marines pushed deeper into Taliban areas of southern Afghanistan
on Friday, seeking to cut insurgent supply lines and win over local elders
on the second day of the biggest U.S. military operation here since the
American-led invasion of 2001. On the other side of the border, U.S. missiles
struck a Pakistani Taliban militant training center and communications
center, killing 17 people and wounding nearly 30, Pakistani intelligence
officials said. ABC
EU
Nations Summon Iranian Envoys
The European Union decided Friday to summon Iranian ambassadors across
the 27-nation bloc in a joint protest against the detentions of staff at
the British Embassy in Teheran. The EU called Iran's decision to put detained
British Embassy staff on trial "not acceptable." Britain had proposed recalling
all EU ambassadors from Teheran as a powerful signal of unity, but the
27-nation bloc settled for a gradual escalation of pressure, Swedish Foreign
Minister Carl Bildt said. Jerusalem
Post
'PM
Must Endorse Road Map Plan'
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is making a mistake in not explicitly
endorsing the road map, with its monitored sequence of phases toward Palestinian
statehood, and risks placing Israel in a situation where the Obama administration
instead seeks to impose a permanent accord that would be immensely problematic
for Israel, Dov Weissglas, former prime minister Ariel Sharon's bureau
chief, has warned The Jerusalem Post. Jerusalem
Post
Russia
'Agrees US Troop Transit'
The deal, which opens up an important new corridor for the US military,
is to be officially announced when President Barack Obama visits Moscow
next week. Speaking separately, a Kremlin official confirmed a deal was
on the table but suggested it referred to weapons only. The reported agreement
marks a major development in US-Russian relations. Until now Russia has
restricted use of its territory for the Afghan conflict, only allowing
the US to transport non-lethal supplies to Afghanistan by train, the BBC's
Jon Donnison reports from Washington. BBC
Top Envoy
In Honduras For Talks
A top Latin American diplomat has arrived in Honduras to demand the
restoration of the ousted president. Miguel Insulza, secretary general
of the Organization of American States, says he will do all he can to end
the impasse in the Central American state. But he earlier acknowledged
that it would be difficult to persuade the interim government to take back
ousted President Manuel Zelaya. Mr Zelaya was removed from office on Sunday
over constitutional reform. BBC
British
Embassy Staff To Stand Trial Over Protests
A leading Iranian cleric sharply and unexpectedly raised the temperature
in the crisis over the detention of British embassy staff yesterday by
announcing that the two employees still being held would be forced to stand
trial for inciting post-election violence against the Islamic regime. The
threat prompted a coordinated European Union protest to Iran and a warning
that all EU member states may recall their ambassadors in retaliation.
Independent
Prison
Guards Intercept Carrier Pigeon With A Cellphone
Prison guards foiled a new attempt to smuggle a cellphone into a Brazilian
prison by carrier pigeon — this one wearing a tiny backpack — and said
Friday that the practice is becoming familiar. An exhausted pigeon wearing
a small makeshift backpack was intercepted just outside walls at the Danilo
Pinheiro prison near Sorocaba, said a spokesman for the São Paulo
State Prison Affairs Department. The representative spoke on condition
of anonymity. Inside the backpack was a cellphone and a piece of paper
with the name of the inmate who was waiting for the phone, the spokesman
said. Seattle
Times
'100,000
Fresh Swine Flu Cases A Day By August'
Swine flu is spreading so rapidly that the Government cannot contain
it any more. The number of new cases could reach 100,000 a day by the end
of August, the Health Secretary Andy Burnham warned yesterday. Firms are
being warned to prepare to have up to one-fifth of their staff calling
in sick over the autumn. It is also inevitable that the number of deaths
from the virus will rise. So far, there have been 7,447 confirmed cases
of swine flu in the UK, but only three patients have died and all of those
had underlying health problems. Independent
Obama
To Seek Climate Deal In Moscow
Barack Obama will move to seal a deal with Russia for joint action
on climate change during his summit in Moscow next week, the Guardian has
learned. Obama arrives in Moscow on Monday at the start of a trip to Russia,
Italy and Ghana that will focus heavily on energy and climate change. From
Moscow, Obama travels on to Italy for a meeting of the G8 and a gathering
of the major polluting countries. Guardian
Burma
Leader Rejects UN Chief's Plea To Visit Aung San Suu Kyi
The UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, said today the leader of the
Burmese junta had rejected his initial request to meet jailed opposition
leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Ban says he told Senior General Than Shwe during
two hours of talks todaythat he wants to meet directly with Suu Kyi. Ban
told reporters after the talks that Than's initial response was that Suu
Kyi is currently on trial. Ban said he told Than the issue is important
and he is "waiting for their reply". Guardian
China
Punishes Officials After Babies Whose Parents Were Still Alive Were Sent
To Orphanages
Chinese authorities have punished six government officials after three
baby girls whose parents were still alive were sent to an orphanage in
southern China that subsequently put them up for adoption overseas, state
media and an official said. Family planning officials in impoverished Guizhou
province's Zhenyuan County sent the babies to a state-run orphanage during
2003 and 2004 without properly investigating their backgrounds, the county
government said on its Web site. All the parents were still alive but had
given up their children to avoid harsh fines under the country's controversial
one-child policy. Sun
Sentinel
Pope Urges
G8 Leaders To Act On Crisis
Pope Benedict XVI has urged G-8 leaders meeting next week in central
Italy to rewrite global financial rules and defend the world's poor from
the effects of the economic downturn. In a letter to Italian Premier Silvio
Berlusconi, who will chair the summit, Benedict appealed to leaders to
"listen to the voice of Africa" and other developing areas. He also called
on them to "reform the international financial architecture" to ensure
credit is made available for economic development and job creation. Kansas
City Star
Pakistani
Airstrikes Kill At Least 12 Militants
Pakistani fighter jets pounded Taliban positions in the country's volatile
northwest on Saturday, killing at least 12 suspected insurgents, security
officials said, as the government kept up pressure on Islamist militants
along the Afghan border. Elsewhere in the northwest, clashes between tribesmen
and Taliban fighters left 16 people dead in the latest violence between
pro-government tribal militias and insurgents. Houston
Chronicle
BT
Offers Thousands Of Workers 'Holiday Of Lifetime' On Quarter Pay
The former state telecoms company - one of Britain's biggest private
employers with 106,000 staff - is trying to save money as it struggles
to cope with the impact of the recession. BT has proposed that employees
take up to a year off, in return for taking a 75 per cent pay cut. To encourage
as many workers to take up of the offer, the company will pay their reduced
salary as an upfront cash payment.
Telegraph
UNESCO
Chief Backs G8 Call On Iran To Respect Human Rights
The head of the United Nations agency tasked with upholding freedom
of expression and press freedom today voiced his strong support for the
recent call issued by the foreign ministers of the Group of Eight (G8)
nations on Iran to respect fundamental human rights. Protesters have taken
to the streets following the 12 June presidential poll, which opposition
candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi has said was fixed in favour of President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. UN
News
Financing
Tops Discussion Among Administrative Heads Of UN-Backed Tribunals
The Registrars, or top administrative officials, of the International
Criminal Court (ICC), United Nations tribunals and courts backed by the
world body wrapped up a meeting today focusing on funding and resources.
Silvana Arbia of the ICC, John Hocking of the International Criminal Tribunal
for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), Adama Deng of the International Criminal
Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), Binta Mansara of the Special Court for Sierra
Leone (SCSL), and Herman von Hebel of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
attended the two-day gathering in Venice, Italy. UN
News
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