artappraiser | dagblog

Contraception’s Con Men

By artappraiser on Sat, 02/18/2012 - 1:39am |

http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2012/feb/15/contraception-con-men/

By Garry Wills, New York Review of Books Blog, Feb. 15, 2012

Was wondering how long it was going to take the good professor to speak up on this; as Wikipedia says in its first line on him: Garry Wills (born May 22, 1934)[2] is a Pulitzer Prize-winning and prolific author, journalist, and historian, specializing in American politics and political history and the Roman Catholic Church.

Read more about Contraception’s Con Men
328 reads

US, Iran inching toward talks

By artappraiser on Sat, 02/18/2012 - 1:00am |

http://atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/NB18Ak02.html

By M. K. Bhadrakumar, Asia Times Online, Feb. 18, 2012

The foreplay is nearing completion on the Iran situation. The surest sign is that there were no serious takers in Western capitals for the Israeli smear campaign this week that Tehran's agents had been going about placing bombs in New Delhi, Tbilisi and Bangkok. Simply put, there is growing impatience that it is way past the time for histrionics.

Read more about US, Iran inching toward talks
16 comments
2739 reads

Pulitzer-winning reporter Anthony Shadid dies at work in Syria

By artappraiser on Thu, 02/16/2012 - 9:46pm |

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/17/world/middleeast/anthony-shadid-a-new-york-times-reporter-dies-in-syria.html?hp

By Rick Gladstone, New York Times, Feb 16/17, 2012

Anthony Shadid, a prize-winning newspaper correspondent whose graceful dispatches for both The New York Times and The Washington Post covered nearly two decades of Middle East conflict and turmoil, died, apparently of an asthma attack, on Thursday while on a reporting assignment in eastern Syria. Tyler Hicks, a Times photographer who was with Mr. Shadid, carried his body across the border to Turkey.

U.N.: How countries voted on human rights in Syria

By artappraiser on Thu, 02/16/2012 - 8:32pm |

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/world_now/2012/02/united-nations-syria-human-rights-vote-resolution.html

Los Angeles Times, Feb. 16, 2012

Trying to find out how different countries voted Thursday on the United Nations resolution condemning human rights violations in Syria? You can see the complete list of countries and how they voted here.

The resolution passed overwhelmingly, 137 to 12, with 17 abstentions.

Jean-Marie Le Pen convicted of contesting crimes against humanity

By artappraiser on Thu, 02/16/2012 - 3:42pm |

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/feb/16/jean-marie-le-pen-convicted

By Angelique Chrisafis in Paris, guardian.co.uk, 16 Feb., 2012

Jean-Marie Le Pen, the founder of France's far right Front National, has been convicted of contesting crimes against humanity for saying the Nazi occupation was not "particularly inhumane". A Paris appeals court upheld the three-month suspended prison sentence and €10,000 (£8,283) fine handed to Le Pen in 2009.

Thailand: Iranians in blast suspected of plot

By artappraiser on Wed, 02/15/2012 - 8:27pm |

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/02/14/MNNG1N7DUE.DTL#ixzz1mUMdp71r

Associated Press, Feb. 15, 2012

Bangkok --Two Iranian suspects arrested in Bangkok after three explosions hit the city were probably planning to attack individuals but did not have the capacity to hit large crowds or buildings [....]

Read more about Thailand: Iranians in blast suspected of plot
3 comments
808 reads

Poor, White, and Republican

By artappraiser on Wed, 02/15/2012 - 5:02am |

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/comment/2012/02/poor-white-and-republican.html

By George Packer, Daily Comment @ newyorker.com, Feb. 14, 2012

Read more about Poor, White, and Republican
30 comments
2689 reads

U.S. Watches Closely As Oil Drilling Begins Off Cuba

By artappraiser on Mon, 02/13/2012 - 11:51pm |

http://www.npr.org/2012/02/13/146635957/u-s-watches-closely-as-oil-drilling-begins-off-cuba

By Greg Allen, "All Things Considered" @ NPR.org, Feb. 13, 2012

There are big plans for oil exploration in the Caribbean, not far off the coast of Florida. A Spanish company recently began drilling in Cuban waters — just 55 miles from Key West.

The well is the first of several exploratory wells planned in Cuba and the Bahamas. The drilling has officials and researchers in Florida scrambling to make plans for how they'll respond in case of a spill.

The struggle for the hearts of Kurds in Syria: Barzani vs. Öcalan

By artappraiser on Mon, 02/13/2012 - 11:32pm |

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-271327-the-struggle-for-the-hearts-of-kurds-in-syria-barzani-vs-ocalan-by-othman-ali*.html

Op-ed by Dr. Othman Ali, Ph.D. (head of the Turkish-Kurdish Studies Center in Arbil, Iraq, ) Today's Zaman (Turkish newspaper,) Feb. 13, 2012

Interactive Feature: Obama's Budget Proposal

By artappraiser on Mon, 02/13/2012 - 8:43pm |

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/02/13/us/politics/2013-budget-proposal-graphic.html?hp

New York Times, Feb 13. 2012

Explore every nook and cranny of the budget proposal.

Related articles:

Read more about Interactive Feature: Obama's Budget Proposal
1 comment
652 reads

Lin’s Appeal: Faith, Pride and Points [article not just for basketball fans]

By artappraiser on Mon, 02/13/2012 - 6:03pm |

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/12/sports/basketball/the-knicks-jeremy-lin-faith-pride-and-points.html

By Michael Luo, New York Times, Feb. 11/12, 2012

[...] Some have predicted that Lin, because of his faith, will become the Taiwanese Tebow [...] From talking to people who knew him through the Harvard-Radcliffe Asian American Christian Fellowship, and watching his interviews, I have the sense that his is a quieter, potentially less polarizing but no less devout style of faith.

Russia Convicts Engineer of Passing Secrets to U.S.

By artappraiser on Mon, 02/13/2012 - 5:55pm |

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/11/world/europe/russia-convicts-engineer-of-passing-secrets-to-us.html

By Michael Schwirtz, New York Times, Feb. 10/11, 2012

Baltasar Garzón, judge who pursued dictators, brought down by wiretapping

By artappraiser on Thu, 02/09/2012 - 9:08pm |

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/feb/09/spain-judge-baltasar-garzon-suspended?intcmp=239

Supporters protest in Madrid after Spanish human rights champion barred for 11 years over illegal recordings of lawyer

By Giles Tremblett in Madrid, Guardian.co.uk, Feb. 9, 2012

Pakistan's spy agency ISI faces court over disappearances

By artappraiser on Thu, 02/09/2012 - 7:44pm |

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/feb/09/pakistan-spy-agency-isi-court

By Saeed Shah in Islamabad, Guardian.co.uk, Feb. 9, 2012

Pakistan's all-powerful military will this week face a rare challenge by the courts over the case of 11 men who were allegedly abducted and tortured by the Inter-Services Intelligence spy agency .

The case, due to be heard on Friday, will offer a window into the workings of the ISI and its sister agency, Military Intelligence, and charges that they have made hundreds of Pakistanis disappear.

Police Go on Strike in Brazil, Mayhem Ensues

By artappraiser on Thu, 02/09/2012 - 7:41pm |

http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=dh8BjDVSW4BRQzMKcudFyo3GXuHEM&topic=w

By Dom Phillips, Bloomberg News, Feb. 9, 2012

"WAR IN BAHIA," screamed the Feb. 7 front page of the Sao Pablo tabloid Mais. "Army enters conflict, fires gas bombs and rubber bullets, deaths reach nearly 100."

In little more than a week since it began Jan. 31, a strike by thousands of police in the northeast Brazilian state of Bahia has led to a soaring murder rate -- and raised fears that chaos will engulf this year's Carnival holiday [.....]

Also see:

Read more about Police Go on Strike in Brazil, Mayhem Ensues
301 reads

Ron Paul’s strange claim about bases and troops overseas

By artappraiser on Thu, 02/09/2012 - 3:48pm |

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/ron-pauls-strange-claim-about-bases-and-troops-overseas/2012/02/08/gIQApZpqzQ_blog.html?tid=pm_politics_pop

By Glen Kessler, The Fact Checker @ washingtonpost.com, Feb. 9, 2012

“We don't need to pay all this money to keep troops all over the country, 130 countries, 900 bases. But also, just think, bringing all the troops home rather rapidly, they would be spending their money here at home and not in Germany and Japan and South Korea, tremendous boost to the economy.”

— Rep. Ron Paul (R-Tex.), Feb. 7, 2012

[....]

The Facts

John Edwards 2008 presidential campaign still spending, despite $2.1 million debt to taxpayers

By artappraiser on Thu, 02/09/2012 - 5:13am |

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/john-edwards-2008-presidential-campaign-still-spending-despite-21-million-debt-to-taxpayers/2012/02/08/gIQABElZzQ_story.html

Associated Press, Feb. 8, 2012

RALEIGH, N.C. — Federal election officials say John Edwards owes taxpayers more than $2.1 million in public matching funds improperly received after he dropped his 2008 run for the White House, yet disclosure reports show his failed campaign is still spending freely.

China's anti-gang police chief placed on 'stress leave'

By artappraiser on Thu, 02/09/2012 - 4:55am |

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/feb/08/china-police-chief-wang-lijun-stress-leave

News came hours after police surrounded the US consulate in Chengdu prompting rumours of an attempted defection
By Tania Branigan in Beijing, guardian.co.uk, 8 Feb., 2012, 07.30 EST

A high-profile Chinese official is receiving "vacation-style treatment" for stress, officials have announced – hours after police surrounded a US consulate, prompting widespread speculation of an attempted defection.

Ecuador newspaper columnist seeks U.S. asylum

By artappraiser on Wed, 02/08/2012 - 5:18pm |

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/story/2012-02-08/ecuador-newspaper-columnist-asylum/53012608/1