Kuwait Times
July 30, 2010
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Connected and yet disconnected PAGE 6
Saudi king in Syria amid regional tensions PAGE 10
VILLERS-AU-TERTRE: Reporters are seen in front of the house where French police found the corpses of eight newborn babies, in Villers-au-Tertre, northern France, yesterday. — AP
French mom slays 8 babies Bodies found wrapped in plastic bags; husband released by police
This girl with a gun loves to pull the trigger PAGE 57
Red Devils rout MLS All-Stars PAGE 63
LILLE: A 47-year-old woman has confessed to suffocating her eight new-born children and hiding their bodies in a village in northern France, the public prosecutor said yesterday. The woman and her husband, also in his forties, were detained on Tuesday when the bodies were found wrapped in plastic bags at two homes in Villers-au-Tertre, a sleepy village of about 650 people 200 kilometers north of Paris. Dominique Cottrez, an auxiliary nurse, confessed in custody to killing two children at birth about 10 years ago, before admitting to the murder of six others, public prosecutor Eric Vaillant told a news conference. Authorities have placed the woman under formal investigation a preliminary stage before criminal charges for “murder of minors under the age of 15”, he said. “The mother knew she was pregnant ... she didn’t want any more children and didn’t want any doctors involved,” Vaillant said, adding her first pregnancy had been a terrible experience. Vaillant said the woman testified she had not told her husband about the pregnancies or her decision to kill the babies. Her husband, a carpenter, has been released by police. The prosecutor had asked for him to be placed under judicial
DOUAI: A picture taken yesterday shows the Facebook page of Dominique Cottrez, aged 47, who was charged with the “deliberate homicides of minors under the age of 15”, which carries a life sentence. — AFP investigation for hiding the bodies and not informing police of the crime. Cottrez was remanded in custody. There was no immediate comment from lawyers representing the couple. Vaillant said police were still looking for
other bodies, but Cottrez had said there were no more. Psychological tests were being conducted to assess her criminal responsibility. “This is an out-of-theordinary case given the number of newborns,” said Vaillant. “We are trying to
understand what happened.” Neighbors in the village said the couple, who have two daughters in their twenties, had never acted suspiciously. The bodies came to light after the couple moved house recently. “They were always smiling and warm-hearted,” Madame Candelier, the current owner of the couple’s former house where some of the corpses were discovered, told local television. According to the mayor, the husband was a member of the local council. Experts on similar past cases say they often involve “denial of pregnancy”, when women refuse to accept they are pregnant, sometimes leading to the murder of their children at birth. Israel Nisand, professor of the University Hospital in Strasbourg, said there were about 500 cases of woman denying their pregnancies each year around the world. “It’s serious and dangerous, but not very well known about. It’s as if there is a denial of the denial,” he said. “The state of mind worries us all and, in the case of women who kill their children, it is shocking for everybody.” A 38-year-old Frenchwoman was sentenced in March to 15 years in prison for killing six babies at birth between 2000 and 2007. — Reuters
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Beating the summer heat By Nisreen Zahreddine
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ontrary to the normal seasonal body rhythm, summer in Kuwait does not provide fitness for the body but on the contrary, it encourages laziness and packing on extra pounds. Residents in Kuwait attribute this lazy lifestyle to the fatigue that results from the excessive heat. Summer is the time when outdoor activities are a big no-no. Seeking refuge in air-conditioned buildings
Residents in Kuwait attribute this lazy lifestyle to the fatigue that results from the excessive heat. drains energy and positivity, and helps to add extra weight. In such an atmosphere, people usually eat more and move around less, with females being even more prone to this lethargy. Although this is a common feature of winter in other parts of the world, Kuwait’s heat means that this is reversed, with summer being the worse season. Those eager to change this suggest numerous ways to maintain fitness levels during summer. Air-conditioned gyms and applying self-control when eating and snacking seem to be key solutions, and so is drinking tremendous amounts of water. A num-
ber of people, however, claim to have discovered several sports that can be played indoors in summer. Salwa, a housewife, said that she has her own sports equipment at home, which she uses regularly. For her, seasons don’t matter. She admits, however, that keeping fit in summer is a harder mission than it is in winter due to the fact that the extreme heat and the humid weather lead to exhaustion and sleepiness, and mean that people tend to eat more. Lena, a full-time employee at a local company, says that she is often unable to find time to go to the gym, and instead opts for a healthy diet and tries to go for regular long walks in the evening if it’s not too humid outdoors. She said that she also greatly enjoys using her exercise ball, which also helps her maintain her fitness during the hot summer season. Another interviewee, Farah, insisted that swimming is the solution. She goes for a daily swim in the early mornings and sometimes after returning from work in the evenings as well. Farah asserted that swimming is the best way to keep fit in summer, pointing out that it’s not necessary to swim outdoors, with indoor swimming pools offering a way to avoid the extreme heat and humidity. Maria, meanwhile, insisted that long walks along the beach is the key to keeping fit, saying that the extra sweat due to the searing summer heat helps to ensure faster weight loss.
‘Car’ma chameleons By Sunil Cherian
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his summer I heard two stories of people who’ve chosen to sleep in their cars. In one case, this choice was forced on a friend when the residents of Jleeb AlShuyoukh were hit by power cuts, with my friend taking his threemonth-old baby out to his car, turning the AC on and staying awake while the baby slept in the backseat. I took note of that young father’s plight and felt relieved at my own good fortune because Hawally, where I live, didn’t have the same problems and secondly, because I was heading for a vacation. After I returned, I called the ‘carsleeping-father’ who worked at a car sales showroom. He told me he didn’t do that any longer as the so-called power crisis had been resolved. ‘So, businesswise, cars with a better AC were in higher demand?’ I asked. “Nope”, he responded; “What sold more were the rechargeable fans.” Those little fans, he told me, would work continuously for two hours in the absence of electricity and could then be recharged for the next two hours once the electricity was back. I imagined how young mothers would treat the fans like their beloved babies, as they would find it bizarre, I think, to go to a car to take rest. The other story - one man’s plight
in the night-is a bit weird and rather eerie since it happens in the early hours. I have nightmares after listening to the story told to me by Benny, a forty-something Indian expatriate who lives in Hawally and works at a Kuwait City fast food chain outlet and who would certainly qualify as a survivor of any stress test. It goes as fol-
for nearly two hours until he was helped to wake up by his ‘apartmentmate’ who left for work daily at 5:30 am regularly. The delighted car-sleeper was then able to park his car in the newly vacated and neatly reserved space before going home and sleeping in a more traditional bed. In this situation, again, I consider
Parking problems and other issues drive some unlucky ones to use their steering wheels as pillows lows: Benny came home after a night shift at around 5:30 am and could find no parking space for his small car - no surprise so far. What he did was an example of the concept of turning a crisis into an opportunity. He parked his car on the road, blocking a car belonging to an acquaintance living in his apartment building. With all the car lights and the engine turned off and the windows half-open, he then went to sleep, in a sitting position, making the steering wheel his provisional pillow. He slept
myself fortunate as I can always find my parking space, two blocks away from my home, without difficulty. I asked my friend, “Isn’t that a problem for you to sleep in the car on the road all alone?” “No”, he said. “It’s become a habit. But now I have a new problem”. “What?” I asked nervously, imagining various terrible possibilities - burglary? Threats? Kidnap attempts? “The man from my apartment block has gone on holiday,” he answered. “Now I need to find another car to park behind!”
KUWAIT: A public water fountain perched in the heart of a residential area keeps passers-by hydrated at all times. Water is one of the most precious commodities in the summer in Kuwait. —Photo by Joseph Shagra
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Friday, July 30, 2010
CONSPIRACY THEORIES
SATIRE WIRE
Beware of technology snobs By Sawsan Kazak
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would like to warn you about a new cult that’s been taking shape for a while now. Watch out, because these people are everywhere; they could be among your co-workers, your friends and even your closest family members. I’m speaking, of course, of technology snobs. These are the people who walk around with an arrogant attitude because they own or are maybe a little bit more knowledgeable about the newest technology. They judge you for not having the latest telephone, computer or even software. Not being up to date with the latest everything is, for them, unacceptable. The technology snobs will say things like ‘You’re still using Hotmail?!’ or ‘What is your OS (Operating System)?’ According to the members of this very egotistical group, we should all be continuously moving to the next ‘new’ thing. Continuing to use one technology after
another one has come out is deplorable, and reason enough to be mocked. Around technology snobs you cannot have wires simply lying around; everything in your world needs to be wireless. Your email accounts need to be self-hosted or at least G-Mail and your chatting needs to be real-time. Your phone needs to be smart and Internet-connecting and if you didn’t opt for the biggest Internet plan, you’re not worthy of living and will be made fun of. Technology snobs have a language of their own and not speaking it will make you an outcast. You will be looked at weirdly if you do not know terms like: tweeps, RT (Re-Tweet) and hash-tags. You should strive to be a Beta tester, and if you don’t even know what that means, don’t attempt to seek their approval as it is a cardinal sin. To be accepted by technology snobs you must be on all social networking websites such as Facebook, twittter, myspace, FourSquare, LinkedIn even if you don’t actually use or enjoy them. You should always update all your software, even if you don’t need to or it won’t make any difference. Steve Jobs should be your messiah and what he says should be unquestioningly accepted as the ultimate truth. Your Holy
IN MY VIEW
‘Typical Kuwaiti’? By Abdullah Al-Qattan
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tereotypes have been projected onto every community by various media. However, more often than not, classifications and groupings that refer to a whole nation as being slackers, lazy or arrogant, as with any other quality or shortcoming, are untrue. If you happen to be a part of a ‘branded’ community you’ll have developed a certain fear or frustration with being called idle, over-confident, a serial slacker or in other words or, in short, a typical Kuwaiti. For quite some time now, this idea has been bouncing back and forth, permeating many levels of society. There is no single day that passes without me hearing, “Oh, he is such a Kuwaiti!’ Or ‘What do you expect him to do? He’s acting like a Kuwaiti!” My frustration isn’t caused by my being a Kuwaiti, but by my strong opposition to stereotyping a nation. Because of this, I decided to scratch under the surface and find out what this vague phrase ‘typical Kuwaiti’ means. In order for me to track the proverbial accusations of lack of honesty and ethics at work, the over-confidence label, the ubiquitous use of wasta, etc, I addressed a few questions to other Kuwaitis. This branding, which I discovered is used mostly by expats, appears to have originated with female Kuwaitis, since it was modern Kuwaiti women who used these terms to describe their husbands. The husbands in turn, still prefer their wives to be somewhat traditional women who don’t leave the home and only take care of the kids and house. Now Kuwaiti men who have been suffering from this stereotype are actually taking a stand to disprove these unjust caricatures. One Kuwaiti interviewee, Mohammed Al-Attar, admitted that it is true that many Kuwaitis rely on their parents and their connections. As he also pointed out, however, a large number of Kuwaitis have proved that they are capable of running their own business from a very young age. Hussain Arab said that Kuwaiti citizens have proved their abilities in the private sector, while some have taken on work responsibilities while attending college. He relates the lack of employment incentives to the cushy jobs that the government provides. “When the government offers an effortless job to any person, that person will eventually learn to slack off,” he said. Arab finally added that in recent times Kuwaiti youth have proven their worth and capability when given the opportunity. In the opinion of another interviewee, Rawan Mal-Allah, however, stereotypes are there for a reason. She added, however, that although such people do exist in this community, that doesn’t necessarily mean that all Kuwaitis are like that, adding, “In fact, more people have proven themselves if they are given the right job.” For Mal-Allah stereotyping can be tied to wasta, which she called “the main disease of the community,” adding, “it constantly holds us back, giving jobs to those who don’t deserve them.”
Grail should be Gizmodo (a website dedicated to technology snobbery). The worst situation you can be in is one where two or more technology snobs are together. The conversation will automatically turn tech-y and extremely snobbish. It will be a competition on who knows more about the newest technologies. Their speech will turn to code about the most recent open source apps, the pro and cons of the droid in comparison to the iPhone OS and the notorious battle between Flash and HTML5. You either know people like this, or if you understood all the above terms, you are probably a technology snob yourself. I am here to tell you that it’s okay if you still use Hotmail, if you didn’t update your iPhone software to the latest version or if you’re not tweeting your every move. Discriminating against or judging people on what types of technologies they use or how much they know about them is wrong and should not be tolerated. Who is to say the latest technology is the best one or the most suitable for everyone? Let’s unite to stop technology snobbery before it causes actual harm. sawsank@kuwaittimes.net
KUWAIT DIGEST
I’m disappointed, Dr Al-Sayer! By R ashid Al-R ad’an
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he biggest corruption issue we have witnessed in a long time is the matter of overseas medical treatment at the state’s expense. Millions have been wasted on this treatment that has, rather than providing humane medical assistance, turned into a political issue or a tool used by the government every now and then as a bargaining chip and a tool for buying off MPs. This corruption even went as far as one former health minister reportedly approving sending 150 people for medical treatment abroad in order to silence only one MP who had threatened to grill him. When Dr Helal Al-Sayer came to office, we thought that the whole issue would be properly and satisfactorily concluded and the numbers of people sent abroad for treatment would be reduced. We believed we’d stop hearing patients saying that they had been sent abroad thanks to some MP. Actually, what we saw in London leads us to believe that Dr Al-Sayer is no different than his predecessors and, just like them, has been making false statements and empty promises about ending the problem. One of those previously referred for treatment abroad told me that one of the ‘easygoing’ MPs asked him to prepare a medical report for his mother so that he could send her to London to make her lifetime’s wish to visit the city come true. Another said that after mentioning that he had pain in one knee, an MP had sent him to have it massaged for three days a week in London. Driven by my journalist’s curiosity, I went to our health office in London where an employee told us unbelievable tales about different cases referred there, revealing that the number of patients sent there so far this year has already exceeded the number sent in the whole of last year. We do realize that Dr Al-Sayer is under pressure to approve MPs’ transactions; we also realize that his argument with MP Dulaihi Al-Hajri was caused by the premier ordering him to approve a transaction which he refused. Despite these points, however, it seems that this health minister is in reality no different than his predecessors on the issue of medical treatment abroad. We thought that genuinely needy patients would see more justice following his appointment, but we are deeply disenchanted at finding out that he’s just one more minister joining the government-parliament mutual interest society, and has turned into just another power-chaser. He could, after all, have resigned from office, insisting on refusing transactions when ordered to by HH the Prime Minister, and thus making history and setting a true example of a man who refuses to yield to bargaining or political game-playing at the expense of public funds! — Al-Watan
Under the soaring heat By Badr ya Dar wish
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just came back from my three-week holiday. Mind you my holidays did not last till the end of September, October or God knows when because, unfortunately for me, I am not an MP. Nevertheless, I enjoyed my three-week vacation. Now back to Kuwait. Believe me, heat or no heat, dust or no dust, Kuwait is my country and I love to be back home. This afternoon I went with my son to a local diving store to venture for new and more modern diving gadgets. I love that my son has also picked up diving so we can venture together. I spotted a luxurious store near the diving store which I will not name to avoid a libel suit against the newspaper which could fall either on me or on the newspaper. To my amazement, an Asian security guard (harris) was sitting at 1pm outside of the store under the direct sunlight. For God’s sake! Imagine this luxurious company cannot afford to build a small kiosk with A/C for this poor soul! I wish the owner of the company could come out and stand in the heat for just five minutes. I would like to see how he feels. Believe me, I only managed to rush from the car parking, which was not far from the shop, to the shop and I hardly could bare the heat. I was sweating and was frustrated. What about the poor man? The worst part is that I could not do anything for the guard other than offering him water. I told my son if we should barge and ask the manager of that shop to come out and stand in the heat. My son said: “You must be kidding! They will call the police and will name you’ crazy’.” I hope that there are not many similar scenes like this in Kuwait. In all fairness, there are many companies who keep a small kiosk with an A/C for their security. If some people or organizations have no sense of humanity I think it is the duty of the government to step in and enforce some rules and regulations for similar situations. I do not think it will be that costly for a big company to build a small A/C kiosk for its security. Maybe, I could again suggest to one of the MPs to take up this issue once they return from their short ... holidays. I know it does not sound a lucrative issue to an MP but still it deserves to be pursued. I know it is not about writing-off the debts; it is not about the budget for the coming year or the 2035 vision; or about building refineries. It is not a topic which could canvas voters but still it is an important human rights’ issue. www.badr yadar wish.com
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By Abdullah Al-Qattan ome people usually seek a trainer’s help for health problems or ask for advice on matters that concern changing their physical appearance. Others need advice on how to battle the few extra kilos stored during winter. However, another albeit small number of people, seek ways to empower their minds and spirits to reach a better understanding of life and most importantly, to establish who they are. Paul Stewart who is a professional trainer, motivator, and a coach from New Zealand, currently residing in Kuwait, says that a human consists of three individual entities: the mind, the body and the spirit where each one of them needs different types of food and exercise to take complete control over their lives.
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The beginning Paul embarked on his profession in New Zealand at the age of 14. It was then that he learned the basics of physical training and the means of good health. “With time I found myself wanting more in life and wanting to know more about myself, so I decided to travel with nothing but a camera, clothes and a small amount of money that didn’t even come up to KD20,” he said in an interview with the Friday Times. After moving to Australia, Paul explains that he found his life to be exactly identical to the one he had in his home town. So, in his own words, he decided “to get lost in the world again” till he really found himself. Paul got an opportunity to work on a crystal seacruise ship as a professional trainer. It was that cruise that anchored him on the shores of Kuwait because, as he says, after visiting over 20 countries he found himself here. “In Kuwait I felt most settled, even more than I was back in New Zealand because this country has a lot to offer but you have to get what you want by reaching and grabbing it,” Paul says. He went on to explain that “life usually talks to us, and choosing to listen or not is totally up to the person but the more you listen, the better you get at it and the easier our decision-making gets”. Paul adds that people in Kuwait are open to the idea of well-being both - mentally and physically - on different levels. Nevertheless, people usually come to seek solutions on health or fitness training as a means to fix an emotional or a mental problem, “and as a facilitator, I let things take their natural course while applying some general knowledge that helps the client identify the problem on his own”. Paul further opined that the willingness to change comes from within but sometimes we are faced with bad days that slows the process of healing. And that’s when a person has to know when to take a mental break from things, he says. Another way of dealing with life is to understand that life re-creates itself, and if you keep finding the same problem wherever you go then change has to come from within you rather than from the world. Paul argues that in order to surpass mastering the art of being, one has to provide good nutrition and exercise for all three entities that make him who he is: the mind, body, and spirit. Paul further elucidated that good food for the mind is usually what involves high levels of thinking that gets the brain running. Good exercise for that would be to reflect on your life and understand what you want from it. After combining both tasks, a person will be able to attract good things towards himself, he said. According to him, the spiritual entity is a bit more different to deal with based on one’s beliefs and nature which may vary often from one person to another. As for the body, the verity of physical exercises ranging from light stretching to heavy work out, accommodated with good food makes it easy to be aware of what your body can do for you.
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‘My husband couldn’t take it.. We had several fights over this issue. I couldn’t ignore my friends’ messages.’
By Hussain Al-Qatari martphones have made a strong debut in Kuwait a few years ago, and over the past year everyone’s new phone toy became a BlackBerry, an iPhone, or some other smartphone. Not only do smartphones help you connect to your email and browse the Internet, but they also come packed with features that can literally keep you busy all day long. Social networking, chat clients, news aggregators, productivity tools, online games and Internet radio players are only a handful of the hundreds of applications you can use your smartphone for. Packed with many pros like the convenience of social networking and staying connected all day long, smartphones also come with many cons. I don’t mean all the hullabaloo about cellular signals and brain damage, but a rather most immediate issue: the interference of smartphones in our relations with humans. Before you go ahead and assume that I am calling smartphones the devil, allow me to illustrate with a few incidents in which smartphones are actually the cunning culprit. Laila, 24-year-old, married and blessed with a baby girl says that her addiction to her BlackBerry almost ruined her marriage. The story goes as follows: Laila’s husband is the jealous/possessive type. He demands a lot of attention — rightfully - and Laila was unable to give enough attention to her dear hubby since her phone would not stop beeping all day long. You see, BlackBerry users across the world are connected through a virtual network where they can chat, exchange videos, voice messages and photos for a monthly subscription. To enter this exclusive club of BlackBerry owners, you must own a BB (BlackBerry) and activate the BB service. By default, your BBM (BlackBerry Messenger) is activated, and you can start having five-day
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conversations with other fellow BB-ers. “My husband couldn’t take it,” admits Laila. “We had several fights over this issue. I couldn’t ignore my friends’ messages.” The BBM software notifies you when your friend sends you a message, when they are idle, and when they are busy. You can also see a specific message that lets you know when your friend is typing a message before they click the send button. With such real-time chatting, Laila felt like she was face to face with 50’somethings friends 24/7 and she couldn’t bring herself to
nowadays connect users to a GPS (Global Positioning System) network via Google Maps, allowing you to track down people on your phone’s buddy list. Imagine telling your boss that you’re stuck in traffic in Jahra, while they can see you on the map driving on the Gulf Road. Avoid this embarrassment; make sure you deactivate your maps application. With the maps application, you can track down people on your buddy list by seeing their location, the time since their last update, and even get directions
thinks it could be destructive. “I don’t like criticizing others so I’ll talk about myself. I find now that I am more comfortable holding conversations in writing rather than saying them over the phone. Something about the comfort of not having to talk, I guess,” he admits. Khaled says that the convenience of Internet made him turn into someone who doesn’t enjoy social gatherings or going out. “I feel awkward going to diwaniyas, but even at my friend’s diwaniya everyone sits with their smartphone or laptop and spends time online.
The BBM software notifies you when your friend sends you a message, when they are idle, and when they are busy. You can also see a specific message that lets you know when your friend is typing a message before they click the send button. ignore them. “Eventually, I had to give up the BlackBerry to save my marriage. It is very addictive and hard to give up,” she says.
to where they are. You can imagine quite a lot of scenarios where this could be used as proof of a spouse’s whereabouts or to track down that friend who has been trying to avoid you.
Liars’ trap Aside from the addictive real-time chatting, smartphones make it difficult to lie and make up excuse. Next time you decide to call in sick or inform your boss that you’re at the hospital, make sure that they are not on your smartphone buddy list. Most smartphones
Effortless existence Convenience also nourishes laziness. Khaled, 26, sees that with the help of technology people became more reluctant to make any effort. The more convenience, the less effort. It might sound like a normal equation, but Khaled
Even when we’re all in one room, it’s like we’re in totally different worlds,” he says. Khaled admits that his dependency on the Internet has made him much lazier than he thought is humanly possible: “I order most of my groceries online, and I also order food off the Internet. I don’t shop often except for clothes, but even that is reduced to a minimum. Lately I have been ordering Polos and t-shirts over the net, as well. So you can imagine the actual amount of actual social interaction I get,” he says.
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Malik runs seven days a week for three hours or more each day. Why? Because he’s chasing his dream By Ben Garcia unning has become his passion. He runs three hours a day, seven days a week. Born in Kuwait, Abdullah Malik is a 21-year-old from Tampa, Florida, USA. Malik was earlier featured in the Friday Times regarding his successful Atkins diet story. At the age of 17, he used to weigh around 140 kilos but months after swore off carbohydrates, he shrank to 80 kg. After three years, however, Malik’s fight with the extra kilos has redirected him to a new hobby: daily running. This, as he says, is a new chapter in his life after he bid his wife a painful goodbye. Running has become a substitute for certain sadness in his life. Malik said his life has just begun and for him, both happy and sore memories will remain beautiful lessons in his life to cherish. He re-invented, reshaped, and re-focused on himself once again. The chain of events that lead to his new transformation was his fateful meeting with the world’s champion, Haile Gebrselassie from Ethiopia who competed in the Dubai Marathon. Malik was part of the event, too. He always dreamed of meeting whom he considers “the fastest runner in the world.” After meeting him, Malik admits he couldn’t stop running. He felt an enormous boost of renewed energy and an unstoppable enthusiasm which he felt transmitted to him right after he met his idol. The interest for him has taken him to another challenge: Malik is set to embark on an ambitious 261 kilometers sprint from Kuwait to Saudi Arabia which he plans to complete in just 24 hours. He intends to attempt the challenge in October and if lucky enough, he could get an approval from the Guinness Book of World Records, and perhaps even a representative to supervise his attempt. This shot, he says, could break the current record of a man from Sri Lanka who ran 260 kilometers without stopping.
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Abdullah Malik
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People like Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King and even Nelson Mandela are ordinary people who never quit in their lives. They faced challenges. They continued struggling for something they believed in even though they faced dangerous situations; they left an indelible imprint that people are looking up to till now and I want to become like them
Training and preparations As part of his rigid preparations, Malik would run seven days a week, three hours or even more daily. “That is part of my preparations which I carry out every day. For me, it’s never tiring; actually it is an exhilarating and fulfilling task. My motto is ‘even the word impossible says I’m possible.’ So there is no impossible indeed; I can compete and I can break running records,” he states. When people in Kuwait are fast asleep, Malik would wake up at 4 am to start his daily routine. He would run from his local street down to Gulf Road, up to Doha area then return. “I like the early morning run because the weather is best in Kuwait at that time. Besides early in the morning, roads are not crowded, so it’s easy to run even in the middle of the road,” he says. He admitted to having a habit of running in the middle of the road, facing the incoming traffic directly. When asked about the danger he could be facing and the wrong message he could be sending to children who see him running in the middle of the road, Malik explains, “By running in the middle of the road, I have a strong
message that I want to share with humankind,” he declares. “I want them to realize the importance of running. In the world, people will mind you if you are doing something different. It is a general rule, (that) being different catches people’s attention. It’s not being crazy or insane but doing it differently so that we could send a strong message that can be used by people,” he said. A student aiming high Malik is a student of Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in the US. He wants to become a businessman one day. But until that time comes, he wants to accomplish and gain something beautiful and best for humanity. “People like Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King and even Nelson Mandela are ordinary people who never quit in their lives. They faced challenges. They continued struggling for something they believed in even though they faced dangerous situations; they left an indelible imprint that people are looking up to till now and I want to become like them,” he said humbly. When he succeeds his running plan he wants to again embark on a much bigger attempt. He wants to become the only man to circle the world non-stop. “The next schedule will be to run from Kuwait to Dubai. It’s more ambitious because I think the distance is approximately 1,700 kilometers away from Kuwait. I want to run without rest as well,” he said. Marathon-ing for a cause When he attended Dubai Marathon, he never won. He was lagging far behind the world champion. But Malik’s goal was not to win. “I wanted to see my name in the list of Dubai Marathon challengers who happened to challenge the fastest runner in the world. Just to be included in the race is an achievement by itself, but my greatest honor lay in meeting my idol in person,” he reminisced. “My dream was to run and meet the fastest runner in the world. I achieved that and I happened to meet him casually,” he said. He explained that during the marathon he could never get through to him. “He was literally busy, meeting several media persons in Dubai, but I was lucky to talk to him casually at the entrance of a hotel in Dubai.” He spoke to me briefly, but I can never forget his smile, his poor but commanding English. “He said to me, ‘If you have a dream, don’t sleep on it, do a hard work and never give up!’ It’s a challenge that I am currently holding up to now. Really I have a dream, and I would never give up fulfilling that dream,” he said. Malik could be on his way indeed to achieving his next dream, but he acknowledges the media’s role in this undertaking and the support of his friends and family, in addition to companies that could fund his endeavor. For support or queries, Malik can be reached at: tavisoormandy@hotmail.com.
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BUENOS AIRES: His Highness the Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah (left) and Argentinean President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner are pictured signing few agreements during Sheikh Nasser’s visit to Argentina. —KUNA
Friday, July 30, 2010
BUENOS AIRES: His Highness the Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and Argentinean President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner during the banquet hosted on the occasion of Sheikh Nasser’s visit to Argentina. —KUNA
Kuwait, Argentina sign several agreements Argentinean prez holds banquet in honor of Kuwait’s PM BUENOS AIRES: His Highness the Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and Argentinean President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner held official talks at the presidential palace in Buenos Aires Wednesday afternoon. The talks took place in a cordial atmosphere, reflecting the depth of relations between the two countries. The two sides discussed bilateral relations and means to boost them in all areas, in the interest of their two countries and peoples, and also talked about regional and international matters of mutual concern. Following the talks, His Highness Sheikh Nasser and President de Kirchner attended a ceremony during which several agreements were signed between their countries. The first set of agreements were for cultural cooperation, as well as scientific and technical cooperation, and a memorandum of understanding for bilateral deliberation between the Kuwaiti
Foreign Ministry and the Argentina’s Ministry of Foreign Relations, International Trade and Worship. These were signed by Kuwait’s Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Dr. Mohammad Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah and Argentinean Minister of Foreign Relations, International Trade and Worship Jorge Enrique Taiana. A memorandum of understanding was also signed between the governments of the two countries in the environment and sustainable development area. This was signed by Kuwait’s Foreign Undersecretary Khalid Sulaiman AlJarallah and Argentina’s Secretary for Environment and Sustainable Development Homero Maximo Bibiloni. Earlier in the day, Sheikh Nasser and the accompanying delegation visited the San Martin memorial. Argentinean President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner welcomed Wednesday evening the invitation extended to her by His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh
Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to visit the Gulf state. In a speech at a dinner banquet she held in honor of Sheikh Nasser, she said that such a visit would open up new horizons for cooperation between the two sides. She noted that it would also be an important event in the history of relations between the two countries, which she said had witnessed great development in the past four years that surpassed that made in the previous 30. President de Kirchner said that Argentina welcomed the visit of the Kuwaiti Premier, which reflected the interest of Kuwait and the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Argentina and Latin American states and their keenness for expanding the scope of cooperation between them. Argentina will continue to support Kuwait and Arab issues at international conventions, she affirmed. Moreover, the Argentinean leader said that her country had an abundance of
natural resources and that there were great opportunities for investment in the fields of agriculture, mining and tourism, adding that these were open to the Kuwaiti government and the private sector. President de Kirchner noted that her country was open towards global investment, and that the government offered guarantees to foreign investments, thereby protecting their interests. On his part, Sheikh Nasser expressed his appreciation for the warm welcome and hospitality with which he and his accompanying delegation were received in Argentina, saying that this reflected the depth of the historic relations between Kuwait and Argentina. He recounted the honorable role of Argentina and its support for Kuwait when it was invaded by Iraqi forces in 1990, saying that Buenos Aires supported all international resolutions that led to the liberation of the Gulf state, and also took part in the naval force of the Coalition.
crimes
Baby abandoned
Law-keepers turn law-breakers KUWAIT: Three young bedoon men were brutally assaulted in Salmiya by an off-duty police officer and some of his colleagues, according to the father of one of the victims, who reported the incident at a local police station. The angry father told police that his son, Jarrah, was in his car in the area with his cousin and a friend when a car swerved towards their vehicle, almost hitting them. When his son sounded the car horn in protest at this dangerous driving, the other motorist blocked his son’s car, and prevented it from moving. Two police vehicles carrying six officers arrived at the scene shortly afterwards, carrying batons, sticks and other weapons, and proceeded along with the other driver to beat the young men, causing various fractures and other injuries. After this cowardly beating, the three youths were handcuffed and put in the back of one of the vehicles before being taken to Hawally police station. As soon as they arrived there, Jarrah’s father said they were brutally beaten again. When they asked why they were being treated in this way, an officer apparently told them, “We’ll teach you what happens when you attack traffic detectives.” Jarrah’s father said that the three traumatized youths were released after an hour-and-a-half without any charges being brought against them. Immediately
By Hanan Al-Saadoun
afterwards, he said, “We took my son to the doctor, while his cousin was taken to Al-Razi Hospital for treatment for fractures.” The enraged father said that a complaint has been filed against the officers responsible and that an investigation has been launched.
KUWAIT: A newborn baby boy was discovered abandoned near the Qadisiya Sports Club in Hawally. The baby, who thankfully appeared to be in good health, was taken to Mubarak Hospital.
Car crash
Jahra suicide
A 32-year-old Indian man was taken to Adan Hospital after suffering broken ribs in a car crash on King Fahad Road.
The body of an Asian expatriate worker was discovered by his horrified colleagues at the accommodation they shared in Jahra. Preliminary investigations suggest that the man hanged himself from the ceiling. The body was removed for autopsy.
Fire injury A 24-year-old Kuwaiti man was treated at the scene for burns to his left arm after a fire broke out at his home in Andalus.
Missing girl An expatriate man told police that his 17year-old daughter had gone missing from the family’s home in Jahra, having failed to return after going out as usual. A search is underway for the missing girl.
Drunk and stupid A drunken motorist pulled over by police who spotted him driving erratically on a street in Andalus refused to get into the police car when the officers attempted to arrest him and instead verbally and physically abused them. He was quickly restrained and taken into custody, and faces charges of public drunkenness, drunk driving and insulting police officers.
This stance of Argentina will remain in the minds and hearts of Kuwaitis, he said. Sheikh Nasser said that despite the geographic distance, technology was now helping to bring people closer together, adding that while Argentina was in South America and Kuwait was on the Arabian Gulf, this did not prevent the two countries from extending bridges of friendship. The Kuwaiti Premier said that Argentina was one of the largest Latin American countries and that it had long borders with its neighbors, explaining that his visit to Argentina was to further boost cooperation not only in the political, commercial and economic fields, but also in cultural affairs so that the two peoples would better understand each other. He said further that the delegation representing the Kuwaiti private sector would have an opportunity to meet with their counterparts here to discuss economic and commercial cooperation, and especially investment. —KUNA
Escape attempt
KUWAIT: The Ambassador of India, Ajai Malhotra, met with Mohammad Al-Roomi, Under secretary, Civil Service Commission, State of Kuwait, yesterday. They recalled the warm and friendly ties between India and Kuwait, and exchanged views on co-operation in development of human resources through training of civil servants and specialists, application of information technology and the promotion of e-governance, as well as other matters of mutual interest.
A 27-year-old Nepalese woman suffered a broken leg when she fell to the ground while attempting to escape from her sponsor’s home in Andalus by climbing out of a high window. She was taken to Sabah Hospital.
Shocking accident A 43-year-old Egyptian man suffered burns to one hand and bruises to his chest after receiving an electric shock at a home in Salwa. He was taken to Mubarak Hospital.
Friday, July 30, 2010
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INTERNATIONAL
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Two nations have long been on opposite sides
Saudi king in Syria amid regional tensions DAMASCUS: Sa udi King Abdulla h a rrived in Da ma scus yesterda y a s pa rt of a regiona l tour tha t comes a mid heightened tensions in the Middle Ea st, Syria ’s sta te-run new s a gency sa id. The tw o Ara b na tions ha ve long been on
opposite sides of a deep rift in the Ara b w orld, w ith Syria ba cking milita nt groups such a s the Leba nese Hezbolla h a nd Pa lestinia n Ha ma s. The kingdom is a US a lly, a long w ith J orda n a nd Egypt.
DAMASCUS: Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, shakes hands with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, left, upon his arrival in Damascus, Syria yesterday. — AP
Al-Qaeda-linked group claims TV bombing in Baghdad BAGHDAD: An Al-Qaeda-linked group claimed responsibility yesterday for a bombing earlier this week targeting the Baghdad offices of a panArab television station, describing the deadly attack that killed six people as a victory against a “corrupt channel.” A statement posted on the website of the Islamic State of Iraq said the operation was carried out by a “hero of Islam” and was intended to hit the “mouthpieces of the wicked and evil.” The Arabic-language news channel Al-Arabiya is one of the most popular in the Middle East but is perceived by insurgents as being pro-Western. A suicide bomber driving a minibus Monday drove through at least two checkpoints before pulling up to the front of the station’s Baghdad office and blowing himself and his vehicle up. “We take responsibility for targeting this corrupt channel, and we will not hesitate to hit any media office and chase its staffers if they insist on being a tool of war against almighty God and his prophet,” the announcement said. The massive blast blew out windows in the two-story Al-Arabiya building and left much of the interior in shambles, with doors hanging off their frames. None of the dead were employees of the network. While violence has dissipated in Iraq, attacks like Monday’s still happen with disturbing regularity. On Thursday, a suicide bomber drove a minibus into the main gate of an Iraqi army base near Saddam Hussein’s hometown, killing four soldiers and wounding 10, said police and hospital
officials. It was in the latest strike against the nation’s fragile security forces as the US military draws down its troops. The 7 a.m. attack took place in the town of Shurqat as soldiers were changing their shifts, according to one witness. Two of the four slain soldiers died after being rushed to a hospital for treatment, said Dr. Samir Issa. Ten others were also taken to the hospital in Shurqat, 155 miles (250 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad and just north of Saddam’s hometown of Tikrit. The area near Tikrit has long been a hotbed for insurgents who fought US troops after Saddam was ousted in 2003. Seven years later, insurgents are increasingly targeting Iraqi security forces, as all but 50,000 US troops prepare to leave the country by the end of August. As part of a security agreement between the United States and Iraq, all American troops must leave Iraq by the end of 2011. Also yesterday morning, two road side bombs, targeting Iraqi army patrols exploded in Fallujah, 40 miles (65 kilometers) west of Baghdad, killing two Iraqi soldiers and wounding eight others, police and hospital officials in the city said. And in the northern city of Mosul, a bomb attached to a police vehicle killed one policeman and injured two others, a police official in the city said. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. — AP
But relations begun to thaw in recent years, and yesterday visit is a sign the countries are trying to show a united front as tempers mount in the region, including those in Syria’s neighbor Lebanon over pending indictments in the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Many in Lebanon blame Syria for the assassination, a claim that Damascus denies. Hariri was a Sunni leader with strong Saudi links, and his killing exacerbated already-strained tensions between Riyadh and Damascus. Hariri’s death was followed by the rise of a USand Saudi-backed coalition known as March 14, named after the day of massive antiSyrian protests in 2005 dubbed the “Cedar Revolution.” The demonstrations eventually led to the withdrawal of Syrian troops, ending almost three decades of Syrian domination that was established during Lebanon’s civil war. An international tribunal investigating Hariri’s death has not announced who will be charged, but the leader of the Shiite Hezbollah said last week members of his group will be among those indicted. Hassan Nasrallah’s announcement appeared to be an attempt to undercut the effects of any indictment, and he dismissed the tribunal as an “Israeli plot.” Many in Lebanon worry that if the tribunal implicates Hezbollah in the Hariri’s assassination, it could lead to another round of clashes between Lebanon’s Shiite and Sunni communities, such as the bloody conflict that convulsed Beirut in 2008. Tensions in Lebanon have generated so much concern that Syrian President Bashar Assad was expected to travel to Beirut on Friday in his first trip there since his troops were forced out. Regional tensions also are high over recent reports that Syria sent Scud missiles to Hezbollah and suspicions that Hezbollah patron Iran wants to acquire nuclear weapons. Syria, which denied sending Scuds, is Iran’s strongest ally in the Arab world. As part of his tour, Abdullah has already visited Egypt and is also to travel to Lebanon and Jordan later this week. — AP
CAIRO: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, left, Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa, center and Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit arrive to attend an Arab foreign ministers meeting at the Arab league headquarters in Cairo, Egypt yesterday. — AP
Abbas resists push for direct talks with Israel CAIRO: The Palestinian president is refusing to move to direct peace negotiations with Israel, as the Arab League met yesterday to decide whether to add its weight to US and Israeli pressure for face-toface talks. Mahmoud Abbas is under strong US and European pressure to restart direct talks that were frozen in 2008. But the Palestinian leader said he would only do so if Israel agrees to a complete halt in settlement construction and accepts a Palestinian state in territories seized in the 1967 Middle East war _ the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem. “When I receive written assurances (about) accepting the 1967 border and halting the settlement (building), I will go immediately to the direct talks,” Abbas was quoted as saying in remarks reported by Egypt’s state-owned news agency yesterday. Abbas said he would take assurances either directly from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or indirectly from the United States or the leaders of Egypt and Jordan, two Arab nations that have also acted as mediators between the two sides. Egypt said Wednesday it has received US assurances that may help in restarting direct talks but refused to make the details public. “I am under a kind of pressure I haven’t been through all my life,” Abbas said. This week The Associated Press obtained a Palestinian document that revealed that US peace envoy George Mitchell warned Abbas that if he does not agree to direct talks, President Barack
Obama will not be able to help the Palestinians achieve a state of their own. But the Palestinian president said he first wants to see progress in indirect talks that have been taking place since May under US mediation. Specifically, he wants to see movement on the issue of borders for a future Palestinian state. The internal Palestinian document warned Abbas that to give up on those demands would be “political suicide.” Netanyahu, who has appealed for direct talks, has refused to be pinned down on a framework for negotiations. The Israeli prime minister has accepted the idea of Palestinian statehood with conditions but has ruled out giving up control of east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians want as their capital. On settlements, Israel has instituted a 10-month slowdown in construction in areas the Palestinians want for a future state. That is due to expire in September and Netanyahu this week strongly indicated it would not be extended. Asked what he would do if the indirect talks, which are also scheduled to end in September, bog down, Abbas said: “I will step down.” As a joke, he added, “I will work as a reporter then.” The Arab League was to set out its position on direct talks yesterday at a meeting of foreign ministers from 10 key League members in Cairo. A final decision would then be endorsed in September by all 22 foreign ministers from the bloc. That left open the possibility that strong objections from Abbas yesterday could delay any decision. — AP
UN-backed Lebanon tribunal rejects Hezbollah outcry BEIRUT: A UN-backed tribunal set up to try suspects in the 2005 assassination of Lebanese statesman Rafik Al-Hariri yesterday rejected charges by Lebanon’s Hezbollah armed group that its work is politically motivated. “Experience of other international tribunals has shown that the results of the work of such institutions speak for themselves and contradict the unsubstantiated allegations of hostile interference,” Fatima Issawi, spokeswoman for the tribunal, told Reuters in written answers to emailed questions. “We are convinced that this will also happen in the case of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).” Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are due to pay an unprecedented joint visit to Beirut today to try to calm a political storm over the tribunal. This month Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah assailed the court, which is based in The Hague, as an “Israeli project” after saying he had received word that it planned to indict members of his group in connection with Hariri’s killing. He denied that any Hezbollah members were involved. Early reports by UN investigators implicated Syrian and Lebanese security agencies. Syria says it had no hand in the Feb. 14 seafront bombing in Beirut that killed Hariri and 22 others. The assassination provoked an international furore led by the United States, France and Saudi Arabia that prompted Syria to end its 29-year military presence in Lebanon in April 2005 and led to the establishment of the special tribunal. —Reuters
INTERNATIONAL
Friday, July 30, 2010
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Arab League backs Palestinians on restarting talks CAIRO: Arab nations yesterday backed the Palestinian president's refusal to immediately restart direct talks with Israel despite heavy US pressure. The US and the Europeans have been pushing a reluctant Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to dive back into face-to-face negotiations with Israel, which broke off in 2008.While the Arab foreign ministers endorsed the idea of direct talks, Qatari Prime Minister Sheik Hamad bin Jassem Al Thani said they had left the timing up to Abbas, who has laid down several conditions. "We haven't discussed when and
how the direct negotiations will start _ this is a matter for the Palestinian side to decide," Al Thani said. The Arab foreign ministers also sent a letter to President Barack Obama explaining the Arab position on direct negotiations and their requirements for talks. Al Thani said that the ministers had originally been against endorsing direct talks, but due to the serious situation in the region they were willing give it a try. "We have confidence in America and in President Obama to reach peace, but the question is can that be achieved?" he said, expressing doubt that it would
be possible under the administration of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This week, The Associated Press obtained a Palestinian document that revealed that US peace envoy George Mitchell warned Abbas that if he does not agree to direct talks, Obama will not be able to help the Palestinians achieve a state of their own. But the Palestinian president said he first wants to see progress in indirect talks that have been taking place since May under US mediation, specifically movement on the issue of borders for a future Palestinian state.
He has also called for a halt to settlement building. Netanyahu, who has appealed for direct talks, has refused to be pinned down on a framework for negotiations. The Israeli prime minister has accepted the idea of Palestinian statehood with conditions but has ruled out giving up control of east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians want as their capital. "In response to the Arab League's decision, the prime minister said he is willing to begin direct, honest talks with the Palestinian Authority already in the next few days," said a statement from his office.
On settlements, Israel has instituted a 10-month slowdown in construction in the West Bank, but not east Jerusalem. That is due to expire in September and Netanyahu this week strongly indicated it would not be extended. In an interview yesterday, Abbas said he would require written assurances either from Netanyahu or the Americans on borders and settlements to start the direct talks. Egypt said a day earlier it has received US assurances that may help in restarting direct talks but refused to make the details public.—AP
Assailants set ablaze bodies of 3 soldiers
16 dead, 14 wounded in Baghdad attacks BAGHDAD: Sixteen people, including nine security force members, were killed and 14 wounded yesterday in a string of attacks in the Iraqi capital's Sunni district of Al-Adhamiyah, the interior ministry said. Assailants set ablaze the bodies of three soldiers in Al-Adhamiyah after shooting them dead, the ministry said. Three
ARIZONA: Vice President Joe Biden speaks about stimulus-funded projects at the Grand Canyon in Arizona Tuesday. —AP
Biden bets on no explosion of violence in Iraq WASHINGTON: Vice President Joe Biden said in an interview aired yesterday he would bet "everything" that there would be no explosion of sectarian violence when US combat troops leave Iraq next month. Biden, in an interview recorded Wednesday as he welcomed home one of America's most combattested brigades from Baghdad, said he could not "guarantee" anything but believed that serious violence was unlikely. "I'm willing to bet everything that there will be no such explosion," Biden said in an interview with the NBC "Today" show. "We'll still have 50,000 battle-tested combat troops in Iraq... going from leading in combat to supporting the Iraqi combat capability. I think neither I nor (US commander) General (Ray) Odierno nor the Pentagon nor the people who have been on the ground so many times think that is likely to happen." The Obama administration is on track to fulfill a
campaign promise to withdraw all US combat troops from Iraq by the end of August. All US troops must be out of the country by the end of 2011 under an agreement with the Iraq government. Biden has repeatedly called on Iraq's divided factions to unite and form a government following months of tortuous political negotiations. This week however, Iraq's political crisis deepened, as parliament indefinitely postponed only its second session since March elections, extending the deadlock that has prevented the formation of a new government. Earlier yesterday, four Iraqi soldiers and two civilians were killed and 34 people wounded in bomb attacks in northern and central Iraq. The country has been much more stable in recent months than was the case during the height of insurgent violence. But there are fears extremists could use the current political vacuum to foment violence and unrest.—AFP
Also yesterday, three soldiers were killed and 12 wounded when an insurgent detonated a car bomb near an army base in Al-Sharqat, 300 kilometres (190 miles) north of Baghdad in Salaheddin province, a police officer said. And in the former rebel bastion of Fallujah, west of the capital, one soldier was killed and five people were wounded, including three soldiers, by a bomb on a parked motorcycle near an army checkpoint, an army officer said. He said five people were wounded, including three policemen, by a roadside bomb targeting another checkpoint in Fallujah. And a sticky bomb targeted the convoy of a police chief from Al-Qayara, 50 kilometres from the northern city of Mosul, killing a policeman and wounding two others, Mosul police said. US and Iraqi officials have warned of the dangers of an upsurge in violence as negotiations on forming a new governing coalition drag on, more than four months after the country held a parliamentary election. Meanwhile, Al-Qaeda's front group in Iraq said it carried out this week's car bomb attack on Saudi-funded Al-Arabiya television's offices in Baghdad that killed four people. The Islamic State of Iraq "claimed responsibility for the July 26th suicide bombing that struck the offices of AlArabiya Television in Baghdad," the SITE monitoring group said, citing a statement on jihadist web forums. —AFP
homemade bomb attacks on different routes to the scene of the shooting killed 13 more people, including three soldiers and three policemen, and wounded 14, among them seven police and two civil defense members, it said. The ministry said the attacks all took place within a 15-minute timeframe.
BAGHDAD: Iraqi security forces inspect the scene of an attack on their checkpoint in Baghdad, Iraq yesterday. Militants killed a number of Iraq's security forces with a combination of shootings and roadside bombs that was a bitter demonstration of the dangers Iraqi forces still face.—AP
Iran says to stop high grade enrichment if import deal holds TEHRAN: Iran will suspend uranium enrichment to 20 percent if it acquires nuclear fuel for a research reactor, the country's atomic chief said on an Iranian television channel yesterday. "We will not need to enrich to 20 percent if our needs are met" for fuel to power the Tehran reactor, Ali Akbar Salehi said, quoted by Al-Alam Arabic-language channel. "We started enriching to 20 percent to meet our needs. We have no wish to draw on our reserves" of 3.5-percent enriched uranium (lowenriched uranium, or LEU) to produce 20percent enriched uranium, he added. In February, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran has already produced highly enriched nuclear material in defiance of
the West to power the reactor amid deadlock over a stalled nuclear swap deal. The UN Security Council has imposed four rounds of sanctions against the Islamic republic, demanding it stop enriching uranium in a program which Western powers fear conceals efforts to make a nuclear weapon. Tehran insists that its atomic program is peaceful. In May, Turkey and Brazil brokered a deal under which Iran agreed to send 1,200 kilograms of LEU to Turkey, in return for highenriched uranium to be supplied later by Russia and France for the Tehran reactor. However, the fuel swap deal was cold-shouldered by world powers, which backed a fourth round of UN sanctions against Iran in June. —AFP
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INTERNATIONAL
Friday, July 30, 2010
Somali group warns more troops will be annihilated African leaders, US officials call for stepped-up efforts
BELZEC: Polish soldiers holding eternal flames stand in front of a wall during the inauguration at the vast new memorial for the victims of the Belzec Nazi death camp in Belzec, Poland on June 3, 2004. Samuel Kunz, a former Nazi death camp guard has been charged with participating in the murder of 430,000 Jews and other crimes at Belzec, German prosecutors said Wednesday. — AP
Gruesome charges detailed against suspected Nazi BERLIN: The world’s third most wanted Nazi suspect, who allegedly participated in the murder of more than 430,000 Jews at the Belzec death camp, was involved in the entire killing process: From taking victims from trains to pushing them into gas chambers to throwing their corpses into mass graves, according to court documents. A state court in the western city of Bonn released new details yesterday of last week’s indictment against Samuel Kunz, an 88-year-old former ministry employee who has lived undisturbed in the village of Wachtberg outside Bonn for many years. “The accused was deployed in all areas of the camp,” court spokesman Matthias Nordmeyer told The Associated Press. The court’s statement describes in gruesome detail some of the crimes the suspected former death camp guard allegedly committed in occupied Poland from January 1942 to July 1943. The court also announced yesterday that Kunz has been charged in a German youth court because he was a minor at the time , meaning he could be brought to trial as an adolescent and face a more lenient sentence. Kunz was 20 years old when he allegedly started working as a guard at Belzec in January 1942. According to German law, people between 18 and 21 can be brought to trial either as minors or adults. “It will be up to the judge to decide whether he will be sentenced as an adolescent or an adult,” Nordmeyer said. In its statement, the court described the deadly routine at Belzec, claiming that Kunz supposedly participated as a camp guard in all areas of the Nazis’ organized mass murder of Poland’s Jewry. After the victims arrived by train at the death camp, they were told that before they could start working they had to be deloused and take a shower, the statement said, describing the terrifying killing process that by now is well known. “Threatening them with pistols, whips and wooden clubs, the victims were told to hurry up. ... They had to undress ... the women had their hair cut off, and then first the men, then women and children were pushed into the gas chambers,”
the statement said. After the victims were killed, “the corpses were searched for gold and valuables and then thrown into prepared graves.” In addition to being charged with participating in the execution of the Holocaust, Kunz , who is the No. 3 on the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s list of most-wanted Nazi suspects , is also accused of “personal excesses” in the alleged shooting of 10 Jews. “In July 1943, the defendant is accused of having shot two persons who had escaped from a train going to the death camp and had been captured by guards,” the statement said. Between May and June 1943, he reportedly killed eight others who had been wounded but not killed by another guard at Belzec. “The defendant then took the weapon from the other guard to shoot the wounded victims to death,” according to the statement. Kunz had long been ignored by the German justice system, where former officials were not that interested in going after relatively lowranking camp guards. But in the past 10 years, a younger generation of German prosecutors has emerged that wants to bring all surviving Nazi suspects to justice. While Kunz ranked fairly low in the Nazi hierarchy, he is among the top most wanted due to the large number of Jews he is accused of having been involved in killing , which the prosecutor’s office in Dortmund puts at 430,000. The highestprofile guard on trial now is John Demjanjuk, the 90-year-old retired autoworker being tried in Munich for being an accessory to the murder of 28,060 Jews as a guard at the Sobibor death camp in occupied Poland. He denies he was ever a camp guard. Kunz’s case came to light because of Demjanjuk. Authorities recently stumbled over Kunz’s case when they studied old documents from German postwar trials about the SS training camp Trawniki. Prosecutors allege that both Kunz and the Ukrainian-born Demjanjuk, who was deported to Germany from the US last year, trained as guards at the Trawniki SS camp. —AP
NAIROBI: Somalia’s AlQaeda-linked group has warned African countries against plans to send additional troops to the warravaged country, saying they would be “annihilated.” African leaders and US officials have called for stepped-up efforts in Somalia after the country’s most feared militant group, al-Shabab, claimed responsibility for twin bombings during the World Cup final in Uganda on July 11. Earlier this week at an African Union summit in Uganda, Africa’s leaders pledged 4,000 more troops to aid the 6,000 Ugandan and Burundian soldiers now stationed in Mogadishu. Sheik Ali Mohamud Rage, alShabab’s spokesman, said late Wednesday that those 6,000 troops are already “suffering” from al-Shabab attacks, and that “whoever they bring in will end up in the same fate as his predecessor.” “We are telling the African populations not to get duped by the mirage peddled by your leaders. Let your sons not be annihilated in Mogadishu,” Rage said. “Those who are pushing your leaders such as the US and Europe and the like are in agony in areas they invaded. All the want is for you to share with their people the loss, mourning and cries.” AlShabab said it targeted Uganda on July 11 because Ugandan troops have killed Somali civilians in Mogadishu. Shelling is a near-daily occurrence in Somalia’s capital, and international rights groups have decried the deadly impact on civilians. Al-Shabab is stirring up emotions against African troops, whose mandate includes protecting top Somalia officials and manning key installations in the capital. Islamic insurgents including al-Shabab have been trying for three years to overthrow the fragile, UN-backed government, which is holed up in a small section of the capital. Civilians have suffered through nearly two decades of violent chaos in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, since the country’s government was overthrown in 1991. The AU force, known as AMISOM, has long been criticized by human rights groups for civilian deaths in Somalia, and internal reports obtained by The Associated Press show the mission itself is aware of the problem. “The meaning of their claim that they are helping the Somali people is , to explain it to you , your leaders and sons massacring innocent populations through daily and nightly shelling,” Rage said. — AP
ANDORRA: French President Nicolas Sarkozy shakes hands with wellwishers in the streets of Andorra la Vieille in the principality of Andorra yesterday. French Presidents also carry the title of Co-Prince of Andorra, during their term of office. — AP
Torture inquiry chief won’t be replaced: UK LONDON: Britain’s government said yesterday it has dismissed a call to replace the head of an inquiry into allegations the UK colluded in the torture of terrorism suspects overseas. Human rights group Reprieve has complained that the inquiry chairman, exappeals court judge Peter Gibson, won’t be impartial in the investigation because he has served as Intelligence Services Commissioner, Britain’s spy watchdog, since April 2006 — developing close links to the intelligence community. The government’s legal wing said in a letter to Reprieve yesterday that attacks on Gibson were “unwarranted and baseless.” The Treasury solicitors department pointed to Gibson’s 12-year record at the Court of Appeal as evidence of his ability to remain impartial. “He will therefore bring to the inquiry all his undoubted judicial
experience, expertise and integrity,” the letter from government lawyers’ office said. The advocacy group also claimed Gibson had conducted a private, internal inquiry into the claims that Britain colluded in the mistreatment by the US and other allies of suspects held overseas. Government lawyers said no secret review has been carried out, but acknowledged Gibson had overseen work by spy agencies to prepare files to answer a series of lawsuits. About 12 ex-detainees who allege they were mistreated are suing Britain’s government. In the most notorious case, exGuantanamo Bay detainee Binyam Mohamed alleges Britain was aware he was beaten, subjected to sleep deprivation and had his genitals sliced with a scalpel while he was held in Pakistan in 2002. —AP
Russia grants more powers to KGB successor agency MOSCOW: Russians may now face jail time for crimes they have not yet committed under a new security law signed yesterday by President Dmitry Medvedev. The law restores Soviet-era powers to the Federal Security Service, the KGB’s main successor agency, a move that rights advocates fear could be used to stifle protests and intimidate the Kremlin’s political opponents. They also say the law’s obscure wording leaves it too open to local interpretation. The agency, known by its initials FSB, can now issue warnings or detain people suspected of preparing to commit crimes against Russia’s security. Perpetrators face fines or up to 15 days of detention. “It’s an ugly law with obscure formulas,” independent political analyst Yulia Latynina told The Associated Press. “In case a drunken FSB officer is shooting at you-and there have been many such cases, you might end up getting jailed for 15 days for merely trying to escape.” The new law was described as part of an effort to combat extremism and thwart terrorist attacks. It was submitted to Russian lawmakers in April after twin subway bombings in Moscow killed 40 people and the Kremlin faced critical media coverage of its anti-terrorism efforts. A senior lawmaker said the new powers will protect people from abuse by law enforcement officers-a significant problem in Russia. —AP
INTERNATIONAL
Friday, July 30, 2010
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Colombia dispute helps Chavez distract CARACAS: Venezuela's diplomatic fight with Colombia comes at an opportune time for Hugo Chavez, who could benefit politically if he manages to shift voters' attention away from a recession, Latin America's highest inflation and rampant crime. Venezuela's socialist president is playing up his dispute with US-allied Colombia in an apparent attempt to rally nationalist sentiment against foreign enemies ahead of legislative elections in September. He severed relations with Colombia last week in response to allegations that Venezuela has become a haven for Colombian rebels --and without missing a beat he sought to
portray those accusations as a plot against him by Bogota and Washington. It's a theme likely to be repeated yesterday at a meeting of South American foreign ministers in Ecuador. The narrative helps Chavez play on supporters' patriotism and redirect attention away from potentially damaging accusations. But even for a leader accustomed to making claims of conspiracies, his rhetoric has been particular strong. "The possibility of an armed attack from Colombian territory on Venezuela's territory has a probability that it's never had before in many years. I'd say 100 years," Chavez told a rally of
supporters over the weekend. "I'm obliged to tell the people the truth: We are threatened by the Yankee empire." Chavez has long accused the US of trying to oust him since he survived a 2002 coup, and he insists his concerns about a possible armed conflict are genuine. Yet Chavez's forceful verbal counterattack -- from threatening to cut off US oil shipments to talking of a threat of war -- also seem politically expedient. He has plenty to be concerned about at home: 31 percent inflation, a recession that saw the economy contract 3.3 percent last year, unchecked crime and a scandal
involving thousands of tons of food found rotting or beyond expiration dates in government storage. Chavez often says that in politics, the best attack is the counterattack. He had already stepped up his televised speeches at state-run stores to counter the food scandal before the latest escalation of tensions with Colombia. Chavez is a savvy political strategist and is adept at deflecting attention from potentially damaging issues. He has also found ways to defuse situations that might otherwise turn against him. In December, he quickly corked up a banking scandal involving a Cabinet minister's brother and several wealthy
businessmen with ties to his administration by firing a close aide, vowing to bring other suspects to justice and labeling them "revolting rats that wear ties." Now Chavez is focused on holding on to majority control of the National Assembly in the Sept. 26 elections. The legislature has been dominated by Chavez allies since the last congressional vote in 2005, when major opposition parties boycotted the elections. Pro-Chavez lawmakers have done their leader's bidding ever since, approving laws reducing the power of opposition mayors and governors while stonewalling calls for investigations into alleged official corruption. — AP
An estimated 460,000 undocumented migrants live in Arizona
Mexico anticipates for mass deportations under new law HAVANA: Former political prisoner Ariel Sigler, in wheelchair, waits as airport security workers check his documents as he departs for Miami from Jose Marti airport in Havana, Cuba on Wednesday. Sigler, 44 and paralyzed from the waist down, was released in June as part of a deal between Cuba's government and the island's Roman Catholic Church. —AP
Cuba complains about US treatment of jailed spy HAVANA: A Cuban who has been in prison in the United States since 1998 on espionage charges is in poor health, a top Cuban official has said, warning that Washington would be held responsible for his condition. "The health of Gerardo (Hernandez) is in danger and that situation is entirely the responsibility of the government of the United States," Ricardo Alarcon, the president of Cuba's National Assembly, said Wednesday. Hernandez, 45, was one of five Cubans arrested in 1998 on charges of spying in the United States in a case that has long been a sore point between Havana and Washington. Employed at a US naval air station in Florida, they were accused of passing information to Havana that led to the shoot-down by Cuba of a private plane used by Miamibased exiles to scout the waters off Cuba for boat people. Hernandez, who was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences plus 15 years, suffers from high blood pressure and has a bacterial infection and is currently in solitary confinement at a prison in Victorville, California, Cuban television said. Alarcon said the US
government has been aware since April that Hernandez was ailing but had only permitted him to be examined by doctors on July 20. He said Hernandez's situation is serious because he was being held "under punishment conditions" in a small, unventilated cell with only a small opening high up on a wall. "We have complained to the State Department and have had no response," Alarcon said, adding that Hernandez had been deprived of contact with his lawyers just as they are engaged in appealing his case. Hernandez and the other prisoners-Rene Gonzalez, Ramon Labanino, Antonio Guerrero and Fernando Gonzalez-are considered "antiterrorist heroes" in Cuba. The Cuban government has acknowledged they were agents but said their mission was to spy on anti-Castro Cubans in Miami, not on the United States. On Monday, at a meeting with intellectuals and artists, former president Fidel Castro predicted the five would be freed "long before the end of the year," but gave no details. A US appeals court last year confirmed Hernandez's sentence but reduced those given to three others in the group. —AFP
NOGALES: Mexico braced for mass deportations as a new Arizona immigration law was due to take effect, though a US federal judge on Wednesday blocked the most controversial parts of the legislation. An estimated 460,000
undocumented migrants, most of them Mexican, live in the US state of Arizona, where the law proposed by Governor Jan Brewer aims to make illegal immigration a crime and penalize anyone helping undocumented workers.
Hours after federal judge Susan Bolton blocked parts of the law, which is opposed by the Barack Obama administration, Brewer vowed to appeal and take the case to the US Supreme Court if necessary. Inhabitants of Arizona's neighboring Mexican state of Sonora have prepared for a mass return of Mexicans, who traditionally travel northwards for work, when the law is due to take effect on July 29. State governor Guillermo Padres this week visited hostels along the border. In Nogales, Mexico, across from the US border city of the same name, Padres said schools had also made extra room. "No one knows how many people will come. There's a good chance there'll be lots of Mexicans. We'll all going to be prepared," Padres said. Workers in hostels in the city of more than 200,000 inhabitants said they had already planned for a wave of returning compatriots. "We're prepared to receive 350 people and we've contacted transport companies to cheaply take people to their home towns," Francisco Luvreiro, director of the Juan Bosco hostel, told AFP. Luvreiro said the number of deportees had dropped in the past month from almost 300 to some 50 per day, which made locals predict that people were being held for a mass deportation once the law was in place. There was also a recent drop in the number of migrants, including many from Central America as well as Mexicans, who usually stop off in Nogales before attempting to cross the scorching desert into the United States, he added. The law has raised concern it will lead to ethnic profiling by state police, and the US government filed a suit against
required everyone to carry proof of their residency status and made it a crime for illegal immigrants to seek work. Mexico cautiously welcomed Bolton's move. "It's a first step in the right direction," said Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa. The Mexican Congress welcomed the decision and said it would carefully follow the process to definitively suspend the law. The law "promotes intolerance and sows resentment between people and neighboring countries that are friends and business partners," said a joint statement signed by lawmakers from all parties. Around a hundred protesters
SONORA: Jose Luis, right, an illegal immigrant who was deported to Mexico early Wednesday morning, gets dressed as he and other deportees gather near the Nogales Port of Entry in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico Wednesday. Arizona's new immigration law SB1070 took effect yesterday. —AP Arizona in a bid to block it. "The law is no good. We won't be able to calmly visit our family or go shopping," said 32year-old businesswoman Jazmin Figueroa as she crossed the border on Wednesday. US judge Bolton, who is hearing seven lawsuits challenging the law, wrote in her ruling Wednesday that the Obama administration was likely to succeed in its argument that responsibility for immigration policy lies with the federal government. But Brewer vowed to appeal Bolton's blocking of parts of the law which would have given police the power to check the immigration status of suspected criminals,
gathered outside the US embassy in Mexico City ahead of larger demonstrations expected in Arizona when the law comes into force Thursday. Mexican authorities have multiplied resources in consulates across the US state to help Mexicans affected by the law. The National Human Rights Commission said it would send inspectors to crossings along the 2,000-mile (3,200-kilometer) border where deportations might take place. It deplored the fact that the US states of Florida, Michigan, Alabama, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia and Texas also supported the Arizona law.— AFP
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Public criticism over lack of transparency
Ex-Malaysian minister charged in port scandal KUALA LUMPUR: A former Cabinet minister was charged yesterday with "cheating" in a billion-dollar port scandal that embarrassed the government and sparked public criticism of a lack of transparency in state-linked initiatives. Former Transport Minister Ling Liong Sik
pleaded innocent at the Sessions Court to misleading the Cabinet in 2002 into agreeing to purchase land at a price higher than market value for the Port Klang Free Zone , a 1,000-acre (400-hectare) industrial and trading hub that opened in November 2006.
HWACHEON: South Korean conservative activists prepare to launch huge balloons carrying leaflets denouncing North Korean leader Kim Jong Il during a rally in Hwacheon, located close to the demilitarized zone that separates two Koreas, South Korea yesterday. —AP
South Korea's prime minister offers to resign SEOUL: South Korea's prime minister offered to resign yesterday after parliament shot down his efforts to scrap a plan that would relocate several government ministries out of the capital. Chung Un-chan, an academic appointed in September, has led the charge to abandon the project, thought up by the previous liberal administration. President Lee Myung-bak has said the plan to move more than half of the 15 government ministries from Seoul and a nearby city would waste taxpayer money and create inefficiencies. The National Assembly, however, voted down Lee's push late last month, forcing him to start work on implementing the original plan that proponents say would help foster regional development and resolve Seoul's worsening traffic and housing problems. Chung's resignation came as a surprise since the ruling Grand National Party won Wednesday's parliamentary by-elections, which were seen as a referendum on public support for Lee. The post of prime minister is largely ceremonial with little decision-
making power, but the person holding the position leads the country if the president becomes incapacitated. Under the relocation plan, Seoul will remain the capital city and retain the presidential Blue House, the Defense Ministry and the Foreign Ministry, among others. But other ministries, including some located in Gwacheon, a city near Seoul, would move to a site about 100 miles (160 kilometers) to the south. Chung told a nationally televised news conference he had "a guilty conscience for failing to prevent a waste of national strength and national confusion" that the relocation would cause. President Lee is likely to accept Chung's resignation, a presidential official said. He asked not to be identified because no official announcement has been made. But Chung said he would continue his duties as the prime minister until Lee appoints his successor. Lee has said he would reshuffle his Cabinet after the parliamentary byelections, but didn't say if he would replace Chung, too.—AP
The charge of cheating in Malaysia refers to fraudulent actions carried out during business transactions. The port project, proposed during Ling's tenure as transport minister, was initially estimated to cost less than 2 billion ringgit ($625 million), but ballooned to 4.6 billion ringgit ($1.4 billion) in 2007, and is likely to swell further because of interest costs. The scandal first erupted when the government approved a loan in 2007 to rescue the Port Klang Authority, the main port authority, from debts exceeding $1 billion after it incurred massive cost overruns to develop the hub. Ling is the highest-ranking official to be hauled to court in one of Malaysia's biggest financial scandals in recent years. In October three others, including a former top port executive, were charged with alleged mishandling of funds in the project. Ling stepped down as transport minister and as head of the Malaysian Chinese Association, the secondlargest party in the ruling coalition, in 2003. He is still influential in the party and the charges against him could undermine the party's struggle to win back support from ethnic minority Chinese. Opposition leaders, who have long criticized the government for failing to take action against senior officials, welcomed Ling's prosecution but called for others also to be investigated. "It cannot be Ling alone, there must be other ministers involved. We hope this is the first of many steps in the right direction," said Lim Guan Eng, secretary-general of the Democratic Action Party. Ling faces up to seven years in jail if found guilty. The court has set bail at 1 million ringgit ($312,500) and fixed Sept. 3 to hear the case. Complaints about corruption were among key public grievances that caused the National Front ruling coalition to suffer its worst results ever in general elections last year following five decades in power. Prime Minister Najib Razak has since pledged to take tougher steps to combat graft. —AP
HWACHEON: In this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency taken on Wednesday, a Chinese soldier jumps through a fire obstacle during psychological training at an army training field before the upcoming 83rd anniversary of the founding of the People's Liberation Army. —AP
Philippines to get US precision missiles MANILA: Washington has pledged to provide the Philippines with $18.4 million worth of precision-guided missiles this year to use in its fight against Islamist militants in the south, according to a military document seen by Reuters. The missiles are being funded under a US Congress Act that allows the Defense Department to train and equip foreign armies allied with Washington to fight Islamist militants across the world since 2006. Philippine defense and military officials could not say what type of guided missile equipment would be provided. Troops in the south have said they need unmanned drones to help hunt down Islamist militants on small remote islands. "Fiscal year 2010 assistance for the Philippines provides a precision guided missile capability to assist Philippine armed forces' counterterrorism efforts in southern regions to combat the activities of the Jemaah Islamiah and Abu Sayyaf Group," said the document, which was shown to Reuters by a defense department official on condition of anonymity. A US embassy spokeswoman confirmed there were funds available to the Philippines under the program,
but did not comment on what they would be used for. The Philippines has no missile capability. Most of its ships and aircraft are Vietnam War vintage. It spends about 1 percent of GDP for defense and security, but 70 percent of the budget goes to paying salaries and allowances of 130,000member army. Since 2006, the US has allocated about $1.2 billion under the National Defense Authorization Act to help boost counter-terrorism capability of about 35 allies across the world. Including the funds for the missiles, the Philippines has received more than $73 million under the program. Indonesia and Malaysia have received smaller amounts to improve maritime border control. Remote southern islands in the Philippines have become training bases and a sanctuary for Southeast Asian Islamist militants. Intelligence reports say about 50 Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean militants have been hiding on mainland Mindanao and nearby islands of Basilan and Jolo since early 2000. Since 2000, Washington, through the State Department, has also provided about $500 million for military and development aid to help win over the Muslim minority in the mainly Roman Catholic Philippines. —Reuters
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Sailor went missing last Friday
2nd US Navy sailor's body recovered in Afghanistan SRINAGAR: Peoples Democratic Party activists display portraits of Kashmiris allegedly abused by security personnel, in Srinagar, India yesterday. —AP
Indian forces, protesters clash in Kashmir towns SRINAGAR: Government forces fired warning shots and tear gas to quell protests against Indian rule that erupted yesterday in several towns in restive Kashmir, police said. Protests broke out in several neighborhoods in Anantnag, a town south of Kashmir's main city Srinagar, after police detained at least eight people for participating in recent anti-India street protests, said a police officer on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to reporters. Police fired tear gas and used batons to disperse the protests, the officer said. The mostly Muslim region, where resistance to rule by predominantly Hindu India is strong, has been under curfew for most part of the last six weeks as anti-India street protests and clashes surged. Residents say government forces have killed at least 17 people in that period, and local authorities have asked two retired judges to investigate the deaths. The recent tension in the Himalayan region , divided between India and Pakistan and claimed by both, is reminiscent of the late
1980s, when protests against New Delhi's rule sparked an armed conflict. More than 68,000 people have been killed, mostly civilians, in the conflict. Also yesterday, clashes erupted between rock-throwing protesters and troops in the northern towns of Sopore and Baramulla. The police official said troops in those towns also fired warning shots and tear gas to chase away demonstrators who chanted "Go India, go back" and "We want freedom." At least nine protesters were hurt in the clashes, he said. There were also reports of protests and sit-ins in several other places across the region. Shops, businesses and schools remained shut in Kashmir, and thousands of armed police and paramilitary soldiers patrolled largely deserted streets. In Srinagar, government troops asked people to stay indoors to prevent protests against Indian rule. Separatist politicians and militants reject Indian sovereignty over Kashmir and want to carve out a separate homeland or merge with predominantly Muslim Pakistan.—AP
Bangladesh raises garment workers' pay by 80 percent DHAKA: Bangladesh has raised minimum monthly wages for its millions of garment workers by about 80 percent after months of violent protests over poor pay and conditions, a government minister said. The official minimum wage has been set at 3,000 takas ($45) a month, up from 1662 takas ($25) in the first raise since 2006, Labor Minister Khandaker Mosharaff Hossain said. "We have tried our best to meet the demands of the workers," Hossain told reporters in announcing the new wages after months of negotiations with garment factory owners. The new pay structure starts in November and has seven grades , the highest pay fixed at 9,300 takas ($140). Factory owners or trade union leaders were not immediately available for comment yesterday. Workers and labor rights groups have pressed for a monthly wage of 5,000 takas ($73). The raise came about a week after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina criticized the garment industry for paying low wages to workers. Bangladesh's garment exports mainly to the United States and Europe earn more than $12 billion a year, nearly 80 percent of the country's export income. The country has 4,000 factories employing more than 2 million workers, most of them women. Garment workers in Bangladesh are paid the least in the world and are unable to buy food and arrange shelter on their monthly earnings, according to the International Trade Union Confederation, a Vienna-based labor rights group. In recent months, thousands of garment demanding higher wages have protested on the streets, attacked factories and blockaded highways in and outside the capital, Dhaka. In June, about 700 garment factories in a major industrial hub near Dhaka were shut for two days after days of violent protests by tens of thousands of workers demanding better wages. — AP
KABUL: A second US Navy sailor who went missing in a dangerous part of eastern Afghanistan was found dead and his body recovered, a senior US military official and Afghan officials said yesterday. The family of Petty Officer 3rd
Class Jarod Newlove, a 25-year-old from the Seattle area, had been notified of his death, the US military official said on condition of anonymity, because he was not authorized to disclose the information.
Newlove and Petty Officer 2nd Class Justin McNeley went missing last Friday in Logar province. NATO recovered the body of McNeley , a 30-yearold father of two from Wheatridge, Colorado , in the area Sunday. Taleban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid told The Associated Press in Kabul yesterday that two days ago the Taleban left the "body of a dead American soldier for the US forces" to recover. The Taleban said McNeley was killed in a firefight and insurgents had captured Newlove. Mujahid offered no explanation for Newlove's death. NATO officials have not offered an explanation as to why the two service members were in such a dangerous part of eastern Afghanistan. The sailors were instructors at a counterinsurgency school for Afghan security forces, according to senior military officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case. The school was headquartered in Kabul and had classrooms outside the capital, but they were never assigned anywhere near where McNeley's body was recovered, officials said. The chief of police of Logar province, Gen. Mustafa Mosseini, said coalition troops removed Newlove's body about 5:30 pm Wednesday. An anti-
days, the Taleban were being pressured by coalition forces in the area. "The security was being tightened," Mosseini said. "Searches continued from both air and the ground. Militants were moving into Pakistan." Mohammad Rahim Amin, the local government chief in Baraki Barak district, also said
ARIZONA: May 3, 2009 photo released by the Patriot Guard Riders via the Kingman Daily Miner shows US Navy HT 2 Petty Officer 2nd Class Justin McNeley at a deployment party in Kingman, Ariz. McNeley was killed after he and another Navy sailor went missing in the eastern province of Logar, Afghanistan on Friday. —AP terrorism official in Logar province, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak about the case, also said coalition forces had recovered a body. Mosseini said he believed the body washed downstream after rains Tuesday night. He noted in the past several
coalition forces recovered a body about 5:30 p.m. and flew it by helicopter to a coalition base in Logar province, about 40 miles (60 kilometers) away. "The coalition told our criminal police director of the district that the body belonged to the foreign soldier they were looking for," Amin said. —AP
Relatives search for bodies of plane crash in Pakistan ISLAMABAD: Relatives desperate to find the bodies of loved ones joined emergency teams yesterday at the scene of Pakistan's worst-ever plane crash, but recovery work was badly hampered by thick mud, rain and slippery hillsides. The Airbus A321 operated by local carrier Airblue crashed into hills overlooking the country's capital, Islamabad, during stormy, monsoon weather, killing all 152 people on board. Wreckage was strewn over about a third of a square mile (one-square kilometer) section of the forested slopes. The Civil Aviation Authority said the plane had been ordered to take an alternative approach to the runway, but had veered off course. Finding out why will be a key task of the investigation team, said Riazul Haq, director general of the agency. "The fact remains it flew where it should not have done," he said. Army troops and civilian rescue workers searched a large stretch of the hills scorched by the crash, but the tough conditions slowed the pace of operations. Helicopters could not fly in the heavy rain and low clouds, said a spokesman for the
Capital Development Authority, which helps deal with emergencies. An Associated Press Television News cameraman in the hills saw relatives of passengers working with soldiers and other rescuers at one crash site, where the undercarriage of the jet had come to rest. They collected several body parts in small bags. Dozens of relatives and friends of those killed slept outside Islamabad's largest hospital overnight, hoping to receive bodies. They were still there yesterday morning, hugging one another as their tears mixed with the heavy rain, but few corpses were released. The plane's "black box" flight data recorders have yet to be recovered. Information extracted from them is needed to determine the cause of the crash. Defense Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar and other officials have said the government does not suspect terrorism. The plane was flying from Karachi, the country's commercial capital. Even when the search is completed, it could take days to identify all the victims with DNA testing since most of the bodies
were torn apart and burned in the crash, a grim scene described by rescue workers scouring the twisted metal wreckage. "There is nothing left, just piles and bundles of flesh. There are just some belongings, like two or three traveling bags, some checkbooks, and I saw a picture of a young boy. Otherwise everything is burned," rescue worker Murtaza Khan said. The crash was the latest tragedy to jolt a country that has seen thousands of deaths in recent years from al-Qaida and Taliban attacks. The US Embassy said at least two American citizens were on the plane, an Airbus A321, which was carrying 146 passengers and six crew members. In the US, Paulette Kirksey said her godmother, Rosie Ahmed of Gadsden, Alabama, and her husband, Saleem Ahmed, were among those on the plane. Rosie Ahmed was in Pakistan to arrange for her husband to move to the United States, Kirksey said. She said Rosie Ahmed was in her late 50s. The Pakistani government declared yesterday a day of mourning for those lost in the crash. —AP
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Abu Dhabi developer Aldar Q2 loss jumps ABU DHABI: Aldar Properties, Abu Dhabi’s largest developer by market value, missed forecasts with a second-quarter net loss of 475.3 million dirhams ($129.4 million) hit by lower property sales and investment valuations. That was far worse than a loss of 130 million dirhams forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll and reversed a profit 251.4 million a year earlier.
It was also worse than a firstquarter loss of 314.2 million. “The stock has fallen over the past few weeks, so it looks like the market was expecting this sort of results,” said Zahed Chowdhury of Al Mal Capital. “Property companies are at the mercy of how many units they sell and how much land they sell and for Aldar this was as per expected compared to last year.”
The results, based on Reuters calculations using half-year data from the firm, were released after trading on the Abu Dhabi bourse where Aldar ended 0.4 percent higher. Aldar shares have shed half their value this year. “With the ongoing impact of the difficult global economic situation, this has been a very challenging first half of the year for the entire
sector,” Chairman Ahmed Ali al Sayegh said in the statement. First-half revenues fell to 427.0 million dirhams from 1.06 billion a year earlier. Revenues from deliveries at Al Raha and Al Gurm are expected to help in the second half, the statement said. “The second half is expected to be better due to the deliveries and opening of the Ferrari Theme Park
that could be a catalyst,” said Angad Rajpal, senior analyst at Prime Emirates. The developer raised 1.56 billion dirhams of new financing in the first half, it said. In April, Nomura upgraded Aldar to “neutral” from “reduce” saying it prefers the largest, most liquid realestate stocks with strong balance sheets and good corporate governance. — Reuters
Americana’s management says unaware of buyer KUWAIT: The Kuwait Food Co (Americana) said yesterday its managers did not know of any offers to buy half of its shares. The Kharafi Group company said in a statement to the bourse its “executive management is not informed about this”. It did not elaborate, but it said it was reacting to media reports about the topic. Americana’s shares are up 16 percent this week. Independent analyst Ali al-Nimesh said the announcement did not tell the whole story. “It is the owners who negotiate. They are the ones that
buy and sell. The executive management doesn’t get offers to buy or sell,” he told Reuters. Kharafi owns 67 percent of Americana, acoording to bourse data. The firm could not be reached for comment. Nimesh said the family conglomerate needs liquidity and could make around 900 million dinars ($3.13 billion) from selling 50 percent of Americana’s shares. He said Kharafi, a major stakeholder in Kuwait’s Zain, supported the telecom firm’s $9 billion sale of most of its African assets and was likely open to sell more. —Reuters
Kuwait property sales more than double in Q2 LONDON: New customers and employees gather in a newly opened branch of the Metro Bank in central London, yesterday. (Inset), Vernon Hill, US billionaire businessman and Vice Chairman of Metro Bank, poses for pictures outside the Metro Bank. — AFP
Britain gets first new bank in over 100 years Branches providing water bowls, free doggy biscuits for dog-owning customers LONDON: Metro Bank, Britain’s first new high street lender for over 100 years, opened its first branch to the public-and dogs-yesterday in a move aimed at shaking up the retail The first branch opened in central London-offering dog biscuits to poodles accompanying their owners signing up for new accounts. Metro Bank aims to have up to 250 branches in and around the city within 10 years. “Everything you hate about your existing bank is what we are going to change,” Metro Bank chairman Anthony Thomson told AFP. “Since the banking crisis, everybody’s come to realise (that) the kind of banking we’re doing-which is taking in deposits, making a proportion of those available as loans to customers-is the way forward,” said Thomson, who set up the bank with Hill. But analysts have questioned the competitiveness of the financial products being offered. Metro’s instant-access savings account offers a return of 0.5 percent compared with the industry’s best rate of 2.8 percent. Its three-year fixed rate savings bond, meanwhile, pays three percent compared with the market-leading rate of 4.3
KUWAIT: Kuwaiti real estate sales soared 113 percent in the second-quarter compared to the year earlier period signaling a recovery in the sector, official data showed yesterday. Property sales in the Gulf Arab state rose to 596.87 million dinars ($2.07 billion) from 280.8 million dinars in the second quarter last year, the data showed. “Activity through most of 2009 was unusually weak. But at their current levels, sales volumes are well above the average of 608 (transactions) per month seen during the pre-crisis era between 2003 and 2008,” National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) said in a research note this week. Residential property deals, which represent the biggest proportion of total real estate transactions, went up 144.5 percent in the quarter to 349.2 million dinars. Property sales, especially for residential units, have been falling since state-restricted private firms were barred by the government from residential real estate deals last year. Investment property sales rose 127 percent to 229.8 million dinars, while commercial property sales were down 41 percent in the second quarter of 2010 to 18 million, compared to the year earlier period. Commercial property in Kuwait typically refers to apartment buildings meant for leasing, mainly to foreigners. — Reuters
banking sector. Co-founded by billionaire US businessman Vernon Hill, Metro Bank hopes to tap into public dissatisfaction with traditional banks following the global financial crisis.
percent. “It has been open in stating that it won’t be chasing customers through the use of ‘best buy’ products; instead it will focus on service and doing things differently,” said Kevin Mountford, head of banking at pricecomparison website Moneysupermarket.com. Tens of people lined up outside the first branch, in London’s Holborn district, ahead of its opening early yesterday. Twenty-year-old student Dikepa Ranawake said he was attracted by the bank’s openness. “I was excited by the prospect of a new bank that was hassle-free, that wasn’t confusing ... I think all banks have the tendency to try and take your money and I think the transparency that’s been suggested by this new bank, the ease of opening accounts, that kind of thing attracts me.” Tola Akorede, a 44-year-old computer scientist was opening an account before heading to work.
“It seems a lot of promising ideas are there ... So many ideas like removal of unnecessary charges to customers and making banking more friendly.” Metro Bank is focusing on customer service, with branches open long hours seven days a week, with a fast account opening procedure that issues debit and credit cards within 15 minutes. And for dog-owning customers, branches are providing water bowls and free doggy biscuits. It is based on the model used for Commerce Bank in the US, which Hill founded in 1973. Britain’s previous government had called for greater competition in retail banking in the wake of the global financial crisis which led to huge multi-billion-pound (dollar) bailouts of some lenders. After the nearcollapse of household names like Lloyds Banking Group, Northern Rock and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), other groups are also waiting in the wings. — AFP
ROME: Italy’s lower house speaker Gianfranco Fini (C) sits during a Parliament session in Rome yesterday. Italy’s lower house of parliament approved an unpopular austerity package totalling 25 billion euros (32 billion dollars) aimed at bringing the public deficit under control and reassuring markets. — AFP
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Panasonic to take full control of Sanyo TOKYO: Panasonic said yesterday it will spend up to 9.36 billion dollars to buy out the remaining shares of subsidiaries Sanyo and Panasonic Electric Works, converting them into wholly owned units. Electronics maker Sanyo surged 26 percent on the Tokyo stock exchange yesterday following reports of Panasonic's 818.4 billion yen (9.36 billion dollar) plan which was later confirmed by the company. In December Panasonic secured a controlling stake in its smaller rival in a deal that revamped Japan's troubled electronics industry. By doing so, Panasonic gained access to Sanyo's coveted environmental technologies such as rechargeable
batteries-seen as a promising sector given growing concerns about global warming. The company now aims to shift its focus from home electronics-which faces increasing competition and shrinking margins-to the fast-growing and lucrative renewable energy and energy conservation business. Panasonic plans to complete the transaction by April 2011, it said. Sanyo surged by 26.27 percent to 149 yen in yesterday trade. Panasonic Corp fell 7.71 percent to 90 yen on worries that it would have to raise capital for the move. Analysts noted that while the move may make it easier for Panasonic to make decisions quickly, investors could initially react to the decision's negative aspects, as
the plan to issue new shares triggers dilution concerns. "If Panasonic were to challenge Samsung in any way, its investment decisions would have to be very swift and effective," Mizuho Investors Securities analyst Nobuo Kurahashi told Dow Jones Newswires. Panasonic Corp. said it swung to net profit in the April-June quarter on year as brisk sales and cost-cutting efforts offset the negative impact of a strong yen and a rise in prices of raw materials. The company posted a net profit of 43.7 billion yen for the three months, reversing a net loss of 53.0 billion yen a year earlier. Sales jumped 35.5 percent to 2.16 trillion yen and it upgraded its full year forecast. – AFP
Britain to increase military trade TOKYO: In a file picture taken on June 30, 2010 Japanese electronics company Panasonic displays a solar panel, produced by Sanyo, at the solar power exhibition in Yokohama, suburban Tokyo. — AFP
Nissan returns to profit, Mitsubishi reduces loss TOKYO: Nissan Motor Co. veered back into the black in its latest quarter as global car sales rebounded while its smaller rival Mitsubishi Motors Corp. narrowed its quarterly loss. Yokohama-based Nissan, maker of the Leaf electric vehicle and the March compact, said yesterday its profit was 106.6 billion yen ($1.2 billion) for the AprilJune quarter, the first of its fiscal year. It lost 16.5 billion yen the same period the previous year. Quarterly sales surged 35.3 percent to 2.050 trillion yen ($23.6 billion). "First quarter results for Nissan are good, and our recovery is vigorous and ahead of schedule," said Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn, who also serves as chief executive of alliance partner Renault SA of France. Other Japanese automakers are also expected to report rosier results as global sales recover, especially in new markets such as China and India. Strong China sales helped Mitsubishi narrow its loss for the April-June quarter to 11.8 billion yen ($135.6 million). Japan's fifth-biggest automaker, which makes the iMiEV electric car, had posted a 26.4 billion yen ($303.4 million) loss for the same period a year earlier amid a strong yen, which erodes overseas profits, and an economic slump. Quarterly sales totaled 403.7 billion yen ($4.6 billion), marking a 56 percent increase from the previous year. But Nissan's Ghosn said
challenges remained because of uncertainty about the recovery, soaring materials costs and volatile exchange rates, although demand for Nissan's cars remained strong. Nissan, neck and neck with Honda Motor Co. for the status of Japan's No. 2 automaker after Toyota Motor Corp., sold 954,000 vehicles during the quarter around the world, up 32 percent from the same period in fiscal 2009. Tokyo-based Mitsubishi sold 257,000 vehicles during the quarter, up 21 percent from the previous year. Sales improved in Japan, with demand healthy for the Colt compact and Outlander sport utility vehicle. Sales were also strong in the rest of Asia, including China and Thailand. Mitsubishi stuck to its forecast for a net profit of 15 billion yen ($172 million) for the fiscal year through March 2011. During this fiscal year, Nissan plans to introduce 10 models, including the zeroemission Leaf. The Juke compact sports crossover went on sale in June and has been recording healthy sales, according to Nissan. Nissan is expecting net profit of 150 billion yen ($1.7 billion) for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2011. "We are confident to achieve our fiscal year 2010 forecast," said Ghosn. Honda reports earnings Friday, Toyota next Wednesday. Nissan shares rose 1.8 percent to 669 yen, while Mitsubishi Motors added 1.8 percent to 116 yen in Tokyo trading. — AP
Cameron works to deepen Indian economic ties NEW DELHI: British Prime Minister David Cameron worked to deepen his nation's ties with India yesterday, using his trip to the former colony turned rising regional power to rake in millions of dollars in new business for the struggling British economy. Cameron was expected to cap his three-day visit to India in talks with Indian Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh on how to strengthen political, security and cultural ties between the two nations. The men also were expected to discuss British efforts to stem Indian immigration, the future of the conflict in nearby Afghanistan, and reducing trade barriers for British companies seeking to do business with India.
Cameron, who was holding a hectic day of meetings with top political and business leaders, has made it clear the main reason he came to India, along with a vast delegation of Cabinet ministers and business leaders, was to harness India's burgeoning economy to aid Britain's sluggish recovery from recession. Britain is desperate to make up lost economic ground in the country. Britain was the 5th largest exporter to India in 2005, but has since fallen to 18th. Exports to India dropped from 4.12 billion pounds ($6.4 billion) in 2008 to 2.9 billion ($4.5 billion) in 2009. Yesterday, the British government announced a series of deals between India and British architectural, high-tech and defense firms. That followed an announcement in Bangalore on Wednesday that India would buy 57 Hawk advanced trainer jets from Britain in a deal worth nearly $1.1 billion. Britain is trying to increase its military trade with India, which traditionally buys most of its weaponry from Israel, the United States and Russia. In Mumbai, Treasury chief George Osborne encouraged Indian regulators to allow British banks to open more branches. Also Wednesday, Business Secretary Vince Cable announced Britain would allow the export of its civil nuclear technology to India, mirroring an earlier agreement the United States made with India. The decision was expected to help British firms compete for business in India's civilian nuclear industry. In addition to business ties, Cameron also was focusing on climate change and increased
India, whether to Afghanistan or to anywhere else in the world." Pakistan insisted it has done more than any other country to combat terrorism and its ambassador to Britain said the comments were hurtful. "I hope he will make amends and he will pacify the people of Pakistan as well as the government of Pakistan because it has been taken here very adversely, people are really hurt," Wajid Shamsul Hasan told the BBC. While Cameron's trip to India may have appeared laden with irony, as a former colonial power sought deeper ties with its one-time colony, few here saw it that way. Powerful Indians now take it as a given that their country is a major player in the global economy. India is "the obvious stopping place for a British prime minister whose economy is in a slack position at the moment, to
NEW DELHI: Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma, Indian Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal, Indian Deputy Planning Commissioner Montek Singh and British Prime Minister David Cameron address the UK-India Business meeting in New Delhi yesterday. — AFP security cooperation between the nations, both of which have been targeted by terrorist attacks. He also expressed support for India having a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. Cameron also tried to move past a row he created when he appeared to accuse Pakistan of aiding terrorist groups. He said yesterday he was only speaking his mind and did not intend to damage relations with Islamabad. "I think it's important to speak frankly and clearly about these issues. I have always done that in the past and will do so in the future," he said. On Wednesday, Cameron said Britain wanted a strong, democratic Pakistan, "but we cannot tolerate, in any sense, the idea that this country is allowed to look both ways and is able, in any way, to promote the export of terror, whether to
try and cash in on whatever business opportunities he can get," said Kamal Mitra Chenoy, a professor of international studies at New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University. While Cameron took pains to show deference to India, there was a limit. He appeared taken aback when he was asked in an interview Wednesday evening whether Britain would return the 106-carat Koh-i-noor diamond, which had been mined in India and was passed among Indian and central Asian rulers for centuries before being given to Queen Victoria in 1849. It is now part of the Crown Jewels in London. "If you say yes to one (request) you suddenly find the British Museum would be empty," Cameron told NDTV. "I think I'm afraid to say, to disappoint all your viewers, I'm afraid it's going to have to stay put." —AP
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Chinese policies are in line with relevant WTO rules
China denies forcing foreign firms to transfer technology BEIJING: Beijing yesterday denied charges by a US business group that its technology transfer rules for foreign firms constitute "theft" on a massive scale, and defended its policies as meeting global rules. "Countries around the
world have taken a lot of measures to encourage technology innovation," a commerce ministry official, who declined to be named, told AFP. "The Chinese policies are in line with relevant WTO rules."
JAKARTA: In this picture taken on July 25, 2010, visitors look at the latest model of Japanese car, Honda, during the 18th Indonesia International Motor Show in Jakarta. Indonesia has hit the fast lane in terms of auto sales and has overtaken Southeast Asian pace-setter Thailand for the first time, according to a Nikkei survey from the first six months of the year. — AFP
Asia stocks mixed on slowdown signs SINGAPORE: Asian stock markets were mixed yesterday after fresh evidence of slower US growth blunted appetite for riskier assets like stocks. European shares were higher. The latest sign of sluggishness in the world's No. 1 economy came from the Federal Reserve's regional survey, a report known as the "beige book." The Fed said economic growth in the US has been steady during the summer in some cities, but was slowing in others like Atlanta and Chicago. The survey followed a US Commerce Department report that showed durable goods orders fell 1 percent in June. Economists expected a 1 percent gain. But some analysts believe it is overly pessimistic to predict that the US will slip back into recession. "We don't believe in a double-dip recession in the US," said Stephen Corry, Asia Pacific chief investment officer for Merrill Lynch Wealth Management. "The global economy will continue to muddle though and that's not a bad backdrop for global equities." In early trading in Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.7 percent, Germany's DAX index
gained 0.6 percent, and France's CAC-40 rose 0.5 percent. Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average fell 0.6 percent to 9,6996.02 as investors locked in profits following a 2.7 percent jump the previous day. South Korea's Kospi eased 0.2 percent to 1,770.88 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was steady at 21,093.82. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.1 percent to 4,524.1 on weakness in banks. Benchmarks in China, Taiwan, Indonesia, India and Singapore rose. Asian equities are trading at a 10 percent premium to global stocks on a price-to-book value basis, according to Corry. "We're long-term bullish on Asian equities, but valuations probably don't justify purchasing them right now," he said. In New York Wednesday, the Dow Jones industrial average finished down 0.4 percent at 10,497.88.The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 0.7 percent to 1,106.13, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 1 percent to 2,264.56. In currencies, the dollar fell to 87.20 yen from 87.44 yen late Wednesday in New York. The euro rose to $1.3070 from $1.2996.—AP
HCL quarterly profit up 6.9% MUMBAI: Indian outsourcer HCL Technologies Ltd. said quarterly profit grew 6.9 percent in dollar terms, beating expectations on strong global demand for software services despite weaker European currencies and rising staff costs. A war for talent among India's outsourcers is pinching margins as companies offer raises and other perks. Austerity in Europe -- the second-largest market after the US for Indian software services -has cast a shadow over the sector, and declines in European currencies hit revenues during the quarter ending in June. HCL's profit for the April-June quarter was 3.42 billion rupees ($74 million), the company said yesterday. Revenue was 34.25 billion rupees ($738 million), up 21.5 percent in dollar terms. "On one side you are seeing revenue growth," said chief executive Vineet Nayar in a conference call. "On
the other side you are seeing increasing relevance to customers, so even during recessions we continue growing." India's outsourcing companies perform functions for local and overseas customers including call center management, software development and business consulting. Analysts surveyed by India's CNBC-TV18 had expected profit of 3 billion rupees on revenues of 32.6 billion rupees. "Results are above expectations," said Kotak Securities analyst Dipen Shah. The 10.7 percent growth in constant currency terms in the IT services business was higher than growth reported by HCL's larger peers, he said. But profit margins declined more than expected due to increased staff numbers. HCL said margins shrank due to declines in the euro and British pound plus record hiring. — AP
A US Chamber of Commerce report this week accused China of abusing the allure of its vast market to push foreign companies to transfer their latest technologies to Chinese competitors. This was a "blueprint for technology theft on a scale the world has never seen before", the report said. The chamber's report is the latest in a chorus of complaints by foreign businesses and governments over perceived unfair policies and market restrictions in the world's third-largest economy. US Trade Representative Ron Kirk joined the fray on Wednesday, responding to the chamber's complaints by saying Washington planned to push Beijing on the issue. "That is going to be one of the top items that we continue to engage China on," Kirk told reporters in Washington. China committed at highlevel Sino-US talks in May that its innovation policies would be non-discriminatory, protect foreign intellectual property rights (IPR), and ensure open markets and trade, according to Washington. Beijing also pledged to leave the terms and conditions of technology transfer and other proprietary information to individual enterprises, Kirk's deputy Demetrios Marantis said earlier this month. China launched its "indigenous innovation" campaign in 2006, officially to encourage the development of domestic technology and reduce its reliance on foreign know-how. The commerce ministry official said the push did not discriminate against foreign companies and pledged China would protest IPR. "China will further strengthen IPR protection, including that of foreign companies, exactly because we encourage homegrown innovation," he said. Tensions flared after Beijing issued rules late last year under the innovation campaign that were widely seen by foreign businesses as squeezing them out of the government's multi-billiondollar procurement market. Concerns over indigenous innovation extended to security encryption rules, domestic patent laws and preferential policies for domestic companies, the US Chamber of Commerce report said.—AFP
TOKYO: A salesclerk adjusts one of the 3-D models of Sony's Bravia liquid crystal display TVs on display at Yamada Denki LABI electric shop in Tokyo, yesterday. Sony bounced back to profit last quarter and raised its full-year earnings forecast. — AP
Playstation, TVs boost Sony to $294m profit TOKYO: Sony bounced back to profit last quarter and raised its full-year earnings forecast, fueled by stronger demand for its PlayStation 3 gaming consoles, personal computers and televisions. The Tokyo-based electronics and entertainment giant said Thursday it booked a net profit of 25.7 billion yen -- or $294 million at current exchange rates -- for the April-June quarter. That was a sharp turnaround from a 37.1 billion yen loss a year earlier. Revenue grew 3.8 percent to 1.66 trillion yen. Healthier performance by its mainstay electronics business stemmed mainly from consumers in emerging markets such as Asia and South America, which offset weakness in Japan and the United States. Sony's business was strong enough to weather a stronger yen -which can make its products less competitive in overseas markets -- and weakness in its financial services division. Sony's entertainment arm posted solid results despite lower movie revenue. Sony blamed the decline on the absence of megahits like last year's "Angels & Demons" and "Terminator Salvation." Music sales rose, however, thanks to popular titles such as AC/DC's soundtrack to "Iron Man 2" and music from the hit TV show "Glee." Since taking over in 2005, Chief Executive Howard Stringer has been trying to unite the company's sprawling businesses, improve efficiency and rein in costs. Sony cut costs by more than 330 billion yen last year, while procurement costs declined by almost one-fifth. The company is now rolling
out new products. The maker of Bravia liquid crystal display TVs launched sales of its 3-D models last month. In May, the company partnered with Google Inc., Intel Corp. and Logitech International to offer Internet TVs. Although Sony needs to continue restructuring, the seeds of growth planted last year are beginning to sprout, said Masaru Kato, Sony's new chief financial officer. "We do have good products and good momentum, and we want to build on this so that our business keeps improving," Kato said at a briefing for analysts. It sold 5.1 million LCD TVs during the quarter, up 59 percent from last year. PlayStation 3 sales more than doubled to 2.4 million units. Sony upgraded its forecast for the full year through March 2011 even as it expects the yen to keep appreciating. It now expects a net profit of 60 billion yen, up from its previous estimate of 50 billion yen. It kept its revenue projection unchanged at 7.6 trillion yen. During the three months through June 30, the Japanese currency averaged 91 yen to the dollar and 115.5 yen to the euro, higher than the previous year, Sony said. Operating profit took a 13.8 billion yen hit as a result. Operating profit _ seen as an indicator of actual business performance -- for the quarter was 67 billion yen compared with an operating loss of 25.7 billion yen in the same period last year. In trading yesterday, Sony shares inched up 0.1 percent to 2,611 yen on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. It released earnings after the market closed. — AP
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Cash-hungry Russia rediscovers privatization MOSCOW: Eyeing a zero budget deficit but also an ambitious modernization program, Russia is set to embark on a 30 billion dollars privatization drive a decade after turning its back on state sell-offs. A total of 11 state-owned companies have been earmarked for sale, including blue-chips like Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank, and biggest oil firm Rosneft, in a dramatic reversal of government policy. Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin says that sales planned for 20112013 will bring in 883 billion rubles (29.18 billion dollars) for state coffers depleted by the global economic crisis. “In the past decade, the Russian government has been consolidating assets under its control, rather than privatizing
them,” said analyst Lilit Gevorgyan at IHS Global Insight. “So news of the government’s plans for largescale privatization is certainly a Uturn,” she said. The chaotic post-Soviet privatizations of the 1990s under late president Boris Yeltsin were blamed for selling off Russia’s assets to a clique of oligarchs at knock-down prices and were deeply unloved by the public. The mastermind of the sell-off plan, former deputy prime minister Anatoly Chubais, remains a hate figure for many Russians. The jailing of one of its main beneficiaries, oil magnate Mikhail Khodorkovsky, stirred no public outcry. Under strongman Vladimir
Putin’s rule, Russia dropped privatization as the state reasserted its influence over the economy. But with Russia forecast to run a budget deficit of 3.6 percent of Gross Domestic Product in 2011, followed by 3.1 percent in 2012 and 2.9 percent in 2013, priorities appear to have changed. Putin has said Russia should work to bring its budget deficit back to zero, a goal that Kudrin, the champion of fiscal prudence in Russia for a decade, has said is realizable no earlier than 2015. The government has little desire to risk social instability in Russia by cutting social security benefits or raising taxes. Meanwhile, President Dmitry Medvedev wants ambitious
modernization that will not come for free. Russian daily Vedomosti cited yesterday a government official as saying that the proceeds would be one of the main sources for bringing down the budget deficit. Under the plan, the state would sell 24.16 percent of Rosneft, 9.3 percent in Sberbank, 9.38 percent in hydroelectric power operator Roshydro and 24.5 percent in state bank VTB. The government would keep a controlling stake in all the firms. The sale of state railways operator RZhD, included in an original plan, has been shelved for the moment. For all the clear ambition of the plan, numerous questions have to be answered before it is launched — it is not clear who the investors will
be and to what extent foreign participation will be welcome. The government has already reduced the stake to be sold in state pipelines operator Transneft, a strategic asset, to just three percent from an original 27.11 percent and the whole package requires final approval. “Importantly, this proposal has not been discussed by the government yet and the official decision will be made in November 2010,” said Alexander Burgansky, an analyst at Renaissance Capital. Vladimir Kuznetsov, an analyst at Unicredit, said the government could collect more than 30 billion dollars but it would in current circumstances have a hard time selling Transneft and Rosneft above market prices. —AFP
Euro hits 11-wk high vs dlr, sterling scales 5-mth peak
Earnings boost stocks, dollar slips to 3-mth low WOLFSBURG: In this Nov 14, 2008 file photo the VW logos of German car maker Volkswagen are ready to be assembled in a production line of the “Golf VI” at the Volkswagen headquarter in Wolfsburg, Germany. —AP
VW’s Q2 profit up strongly at $1.6bn BERLIN: Sales at Volkswagen AG motored ahead in the second quarter, thanks in part to strong demand from China and helping to push earnings sharply higher to 1.25 billion ($1.6 billion), the company said yesterday. The carmaker, based in Wolfsburg, Germany, had net earnings of 283 million in last year’s April-June period. Revenue was up 21.9 percent, to 33.16 billion from 27.2 billion, as the Volkswagen group—which also includes brands such as Audi, Skoda and Seat—delivered 8.8 percent more cars. Deliveries to customers rose to 1.87 million vehicles from 1.72 million. Pretax profit, at more than 1.9 billion, easily beat analysts’ forecast of 1.2 billion. High demand in western Europe, China and the Americas “was a key reason for our strong result, along with the boost provided by lower product costs and positive exchange rate effects,” chief financial officer Hans Dieter Poetsch said in a statement. “This has allowed us to improve our financial strength even further,” he added. “Our goal is now to systematically
continue this profitable growth path.” The euro sank against the dollar in the year’s first half amid fears about the European debt crisis, though it recently has staged something of a recovery. CEO Martin Winterkorn said that “first-half earnings were clearly in excess of our expectations.” Volkswagen’s net earnings for the January-June period totaled euro 1.67 billion, up from euro 547 million a year earlier. First-half revenue was up 20.7 percent to euro 61.81 billion from last year’s euro 51.2 billion. The company cautioned that “the dynamic growth in ... revenue and earnings in the first half of 2010 will not continue undiminished in the second half.” However, it said it still expects revenue and operating profit to be “significantly higher” this year than in 2009. Over the first six months, VW’s global deliveries were up 15.8 percent on last year at 3.61 million vehicles. Deliveries were up 45.7 percent to 950,729 cars in China, where the company’s share of the passenger car market remained steady at 17.9 percent, Volkswagen said. —AP
LONDON: Robust quarterly earnings from Europe drove world stocks higher yesterday, while the dollar hit a three-month low on the back of weak US data and a downbeat assessment of the economy from the Federal Reserve. Investors took heart from results for companies including Royal Dutch Shell, Rolls Royce and BAE Systems, while there were gains for French service group Capgemini and France Telecom, Europe’s third-largest telecom operator by market cap. Global equities measured by MSCI All-Country World Index added 0.3 percent, and the Thomson Reuters global stock index put on 0.4 percent. “Second-quarter results are better than expected and it supports the market, but the rise is capped by the rather poor macro data,” said Emmanuel Morano, head of equity management at fund management firm UFG-LFP in Paris. “The big question is: Is this a pause in the economic recovery or are we heading for a brutal landing? The bond market seems to be pricing in the pessimistic scenario, while equities send a more optimistic signal. Who’s wrong? Tomorrow’s U.S. GDP figure should shed light on this.” The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 advanced 0.5 percent, also helped by improving euro zone economic sentiment, which rose to a 28month high. Tokyo’s Nikkei HANOVER: In this Sept 23, 2008 file photo a man stands in front of a row average, however, fell 0.6 of orange MAN trucks at the 62st IAA International Motor Show percent after hitting a two- Commercial Vehicles in Hanover, northern Germany. —AP week closing high the previous session. unequivocally weak, yet UBS raised European 11.92, and 10.5 for MSCI steam in recent weeks. California’s declaration of a concern over Europe’s ability shares to “neutral” from emerging market index and state of emergency over its to execute necessary fiscal “underweight”, citing 13.87 for MSCI Japan. US stock index futures rose finances also hurt the dollar, austerity together with its “compelling valuations” as one 0.4 to 0.5 percent, indicating a which fell 0.7 percent against a associated negative economic of the reasons. basket of currencies and hit a impact can combine to see the MSCI Europe carried a firmer start for Wall Street. euro again emerge as an Wednesday’s weak US three-month low. one-year forward price-toChris The euro rose 0.7 percent underperformer,” goods figures, earningsa gauge of durable valuations-of 10.27, cheaper however, added to concerns to $1.3072, reaching an 11- Turner, head of FX strategy at than the S&P 500, MSCI about the outlook for the week high, and sterling ING in London, said in a note. Yields on 10-year touched a five-month peak in emerging benchmark and world’s largest economy. The Fed’s Beige Book, a European trade at $1.5656. By benchmark Bunds rose 1 basis MSCI Japan, according to Thomson Reuters summary of national economic midday in London it stood at point to 2.737 percent, while conditions, also showed $1.5632, still up 0.3 percent on those on 10-year U.S. DataStream. Treasuries steadied at 2.9993 The one-year forward P/E activity was not as robust in a the day. “US economic data is percent. —Reuters for the S&P 500 stood at few districts and had lost
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Soft UK mortgage data point to housing market weakness LONDON: British mortgage approvals fell more than expected in June and lending came in weaker than forecast, Bank of England figures showed yesterday, suggesting the housing market will continue to soften. The central bank said mortgage approvals-a gauge of house prices in the future-numbered 47,643 in June, falling from a downwardly revised 49,461 in May and below forecasts for a reading of 49,000.
Net mortgage lending growth eased to 665 million pounds ($1.04 billion) in June from 838 million pounds in May, below forecasts for 1.0 billion pounds. And consumers unexpectedly repaid 98 million pounds of unsecured credit. The figures support recent evidence suggesting the housing market is running out of steam after strong rises last year. Mortgage lender Nationwide reported a 0.5 percent drop in
house prices this month and said worries about the government’s austerity measures were putting off buyers. “With fiscal tightening and thousands of public sector workers likely to lose their jobs, I don’t see this picture changing any time soon,” said Alan Clarke, economist at BNP Paribas. Bank of England Governor Mervyn King on Wednesday pointed to continued weak credit flows as a major risk to Britain’s
economic recovery and said the upturn was not assured, despite stronger-than expected growth in the second quarter. The figures elicited little response from financial markets, as investors reckon the central bank will keep interest rates low until there is more proof that the recovery is well established. Separate figures showed the BoE’s preferred money supply gauge-M4 excluding intermediate other
financial corporations — slowed markedly in June, rising by just 0.2 percent on the month, the lowest since January. On a three-month annualized basis, lending on this measure eased to 6.0 percent in June from 8.9 percent in May. These figures are looked at to gauge how effective the BoE’s asset purchase program has been in boosting cash-flows in the wider economy. —Reuters
Govt to release today an estimate of GDP
HAMPSHIRE: Signage is pictured outside a Shell petrol station in Fleet, Hampshire in southern England yesterday. British energy giant Royal Dutch Shell said yesterday that net profits jumped 15 percent to 4.393 billion dollars (3.377 billion euros) in the second quarter as it slashed costs and rose oil output. —AFP
Oil steady around $77 SINGAPORE: Oil was steady around $77 yesterday after falling in the past two sessions on weak durable good data and the biggest weekly increase in crude inventories for nearly two years in the United States. US crude stocks surged 7.31 million barrels last week as imports jumped, government statistics showed on Wednesday, while the nation’s gasoline and distillate stocks including diesel gained for the fifth and ninth consecutive weeks respectively. Wall Street slipped on Wednesday and Asian shares slid yesterday after new orders for long-lasting manufactured goods posted their largest decline since August, a fresh sign the US economy slowed in he second quarter. “The crude market has shown the economy is not absorbing the supply, nor is the motivation there for refiners to process those supplies,” said Jonathan Barratt, managing director at Commodity Broking Services in Sydney. “The numbers in America are not that good.” US crude for September advanced 7 cents to $77.06 a barrel at 0306 GMT, after dropping close to 0.7 percent on Wednesday, having touched $79.69 a day earlier, the highest price in almost 12 weeks. ICE Brent gained 2 cents to $76.08. “We have tested $80 twice and failed. Now we are going to
test lower into the range again,” Barratt said, referring to the $70-$80 range within which oil has traded for nearly two months. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has for the past year and a half expressed a preference for oil to remain stable around $75 a barrel, saying that price encourages investment to sustain and increase production capacity and does not threaten the economic recovery. “In a crisis situation you need stability,” Barratt said. “Crude is very stable. This suggests to me that the forces of supply and demand are at ease with each other.” Oil analysts including Michael Wittner from Societe Generale pointed out that total US product demand growth was robust at 3.4 percent over the past four weeks from a year earlier, according to EIA figures. But supply accumulation is outpacing consumption at a time when the US economy is recovering from the most severe recession of the postwar era. The US economy kept growing overall in recent weeks, but unevenly and it actually slowed in a few regions as housing markets softened after the end of a popular tax break, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday. —Reuters
US jobless claims fall unexpectedly WASHINGTON: New jobless claims fell last week for the third time in four weeks but remain elevated. The decline is a sign that the US economy likely added jobs in July, although not enough to lower the nation’s high unemployment rate. First-time claims for unemployment insurance dropped by 11,000 to a seasonally adjusted 457,000, the Labor Department said yesterday. Claims have fluctuated this month because of temporary seasonal factors. General Motors and other manufacturers skipped their traditional summer shutdowns, which led to fewer layoffs and unemployment claims. But the impact of that distortion has largely faded from the data, a Labor Department analyst said. The four-week average of claims, which smooths fluctuations, dropped to 452,500, the lowest level since May. That suggests layoffs may be easing. And the four-week average is slightly below its level in June, which indicates that private employers likely added about the same number SEOUL: A South Korea woman walks past an SK Telecom signboard in of jobs in July as they did last Seoul yesterday. South Korea’s top mobile carrier SK Telecom said its month. The Labor Department second-quarter net profit rose 17 percent from a year earlier, helped by a will issue its July employment rapid increase in subscribers for smartphones. —AFP report next week. “The rate of jobless claims is consistent with some growth in total employment,” said Zach Pandl, an economist at Nomura Securities. Pandl forecasts that businesses But payments were frozen when Ukraine WASHINGTON: The International added about 85,000 jobs in July Monetary Fund announced it would give passed a law raising minimum wages and — about the same as in June Ukraine loans worth 15.15 billion dollars pensions despite IMF opposition. but not enough to reduce the President Viktor Yanukovych had made over the next two and a half years, in a bid unemployment rate, currently restoring relations with the IMF a major to help the country recover from crisis. at 9.5 percent. “Ukraine is emerging from a difficult priority on taking office. Many large companies such It is a policy that appears to have paid off. period during which the economy was as Caterpillar Inc., Dupont Co. “The authorities are committed to severely hit by external shocks and and Microsoft Corp. have addressing existing imbalances and putting exacerbated by domestic vulnerabilities,” reported strong secondsaid John Lipksy, the fund’s second in the economy on a path of durable growth, quarter earnings in the past charge announcing the approval by the IMF through important fiscal, energy, and two weeks. While some of financial sector reforms,” said Lipsky. executive board. those companies have added a But the country now faces tough reforms Around 1.9 billion dollars will be made few jobs, their growth hasn’t available immediately, the Washington- of the pension system, taxes and public pay. translated into widespread “Fiscal adjustment will start in 2010 and based IMF said, “with subsequent hiring. disbursements subject to quarterly deepen in 2011-12 backed by robust Requests for structural reforms of the pension system, reviews.” unemployment insurance fell Ukraine is recovering from one of the public administration, and the tax system,” steadily last year from their world’s worst recessions which saw the the IMF said. Ukraine’s economy is peak of 651,000, reached in expected to grow around 4.5 percent this economy shrink by 15 percent last year. March 2009. But they have year and 4.7 percent in 2011, helped by In 2008, the IMF extended a 16.4-billionremained stuck above 450,000 increased exports. —AFP dollar credit to Kiev. for most of this year. —AP
IMF agrees $15bn loan for Ukraine
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Retailers upbeat on back-to-school sales s summer winds down, and with the economy showing signs of stabilizing, retailers are optimistic about back-to-school sales. The International Council of Shopping Centers is forecasting this season’s sales will be up 5.4 percent from last year, potentially the strongest showing since 2005, when they rose 6.4 percent. The National Retail Federation is also predicting better sales, with combined K12 and college spending expected to reach $55.12 billion nationwide, serving as the second biggest consumer spending event for retailers behind the winter holidays. Before his alarm clock rocks him out of bed for his first day at Rio del Valle Middle School in Oxnard, Adam Carrillo, 12, will shop for basic school necessities-paper, pens, erasers and notebooks-and he’s also looking for a backpack. “Last year’s ripped,” he said. The back-to-school shopping season typically runs from mid-July through midSeptember. Adam’s going to try to get his shopping done soon, “to avoid the lines.” Nearly half of the back-toschool shoppers surveyed by the NRF said they will hit the stores about a month before school starts. The NRF also found the average American family will spend $606.40 on clothes, shoes, supplies and electronics, compared to $548.72 last year and $594.24 in 2008. While the numbers are expected to be better than last year’s, federation CEO Matt Shay said, “The industry still remains cautiously optimistic about recovery.” Mark Stephenson, a retail consultant with The Parker Avery Group in Atlanta, expects K-12 shoppers to move from discount stores to online purchasing this year. The reasons for the shift are twofold: convenience and a shift in marketing. “There’s more target marketing occurring than ever before,” he said. Retailers are “e-marketing,” he said, because it’s a lot cheaper and more effective for retailers who have shifted their advertising dollars from standard print media to online. They also are sending e-mails and using pop-up ads to draw traffic to sites. Unlike grade-school kids, college students are still expected to hit the discount stores, but Parker Avery anticipates their online purchases will be flat compared with last year. “They’ve already been making the online purchases,” Stephenson said. “That market is pretty much saturated.” Jaclyn Lovato, 19, will go online to do some comparison shopping for the computer she intends to buy for school, but
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US economy shows signs of stabilizing
Layaway customer Wanda Pantoja (right) of Prospect Park, New Jersey, picks up $295 worth of back-to-school supplies for her daughters. —MCT
The International Council of Shopping Centers in the US is forecasting this season’s sales will be up 5.4 percent from last year, potentially the strongest showing since 2005, when they rose 6.4 percent. first she wanted to check out Best Buy’s inventory in Oxnard. “This is my first computer,” she said, perusing the aisles Monday afternoon. Lovato’s classes at Ventura College begin Aug. 16. Except for the computer, she doesn’t need much in the way of school supplies, having already invested in a value pack of
pencils and other items. “I’m pretty much going to use everything from last year,” she said. At Pepperdine University, bookstore sales declined over the past year. Pepperdine Bookstores Manager Chris Renbarger said the recession slowed sales and shoppers purchased fewer high-priced items with the
Pepperdine logo, replacing them with lower-priced, generic notebooks, three-ring binders and pens. But the decline in sales is expected to stop this year. “I expect them to either flatten or increase this fiscal year,” he said. College students will spend the most on electronics this year, the NRF
says, with the average family shelling out $236.94 on computers, cell phones, MP3 players, cameras and other electronics. When people think of backto-school shopping they don’t always think about social networking. But Chris Yee, a home automation designer at the Best Buy store in Oxnard,
said college kids who attend schools long distances from home are looking for webcams, PDAs and other devices to help them stay in touch. “Social networking is a very big deal these days,” he said. “It’s the whole element of feeling (your family’s and friends’) presence without them being there.” — MCT
Experts offer advice for job seekers F rom older workers feeling job discrimination to younger employees wanting to switch careers, job seekers want advice. Career counseling expert Terri Carpenter of the Sacramento Employment and Training Agency offers some guidance. Here’s a sampling of Carpenter’s recent advice for job seekers: Question: I have been out of work for some time now, except for several seasonal jobs. My background is in customer service (taking phone orders, resolving customer complaints), but I’m interested in getting into the administrative assistant field. Is there any type of training I can take to sharpen my software skills? I understand there are grants for people like me to go back to school. Whom do I talk to about these programs? Answ er: Yes, there are financial assistance programs available through the community
college system, such as Pell grants. If you sit down with a career coach, he or she can help you identify the skills/training that an administrative assistant would need, such as software training in Word, Excel or other programs. Q: I have been to resume critique and jobsearch seminars and found them very valuable. But when I visit a prospective employer, there seems to be a huge elephant in the room: my age. While my cover letter and professional qualifications open the door for interviews, I cannot hide the fact that I am a 62-year-old white male. I recently attended a job orientation with a national company that received 450 resumes for five positions; nine of us were invited to the orientation. I thought this time would be different because my personality, affable nature and experience would garner an interview: It did not. It seems the 30-something
(interviewer) ... could not see hiring someone who reminded her of her dad. Why do I not hear the outcry of older workers about an issue that is epidemic? A: Complaints about discrimination against older workers are on the rise and have been covered by the media, both nationally and locally, in recent months. I have received quite a few e-mails from older workers expressing your same concerns. I recently came across an article, “Positive Attitude Is Key When Fighting Prejudice Against Older Workers,” by Katharine Hansen, a careers author and blogger at Quintessential Careers. Her summation: “Face the fact that some unenlightened organizations simply won’t hire you if you’re ‘of a certain age,’ and you’re better off not fighting them. Instead, put your energy into seeking out the companies who welcome your work ethic and maturity.” —MCT
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CAREERS
Friday, July 30, 2010 ou feel you deserve a higher salary but should you ask for a raise? Let’s look at the facts: You’re long overdue for a raise. Your boss hasn’t exactly been forthcoming with one. Clearly, sitting around and waiting for your boss to give you a raise hasn’t worked so far. What are you waiting for? It’s time to ask for a raise. Here are some tips to help you do that.
Ask and you shall receive
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Find out how m uch others w ork ing in your field a re ea rning The first thing you should do before you ask for a raise is learn about typical salaries in your field. If you belong to a professional association, check with it to see if it has salary information available. Begin by looking at the organization’s Web Site. Figure out how m uch you ca n ea rn Salary calculators and surveys generally present you with a range of salaries. You must determine where you should fit into this range. To do this, consider the number of years you’ve been working in the field and the length of time you’ve worked for your current employer. Eva lua te the fina ncia l hea lth of your em ployer If your employer is having financial problems, this is not the right time to ask for a raise. As an employee, you are probably aware of your company’s financial health, but don’t rely on the office grapevine alone. Do some company research, which includes looking at financial reports and following business news. Prepa re your a rgum ent You really shouldn’t approach asking your boss for a raise as an argument, but you may have to make your case. Think of it as selling yourself just as you would do if you were trying to get a prospective employer to hire you. Make a list of all the things you’ve
accomplished for the employer. Start with the most recent accomplishments and work your way backwards. Also make a list of your relevant skills - the things that make you successful at doing your job. Decide w ha t to do if you get turned dow n Before you walk into your boss’s office to ask for a raise think about what you will do if she says “no” or agrees to give you a raise that is much smaller than the one you want. Will you quit your job or will you wait a while and then ask for a raise at a later date? Your answer may depend on what your boss says. For example, has she turned you down because of your performance? If so, ask yourself if her criticisms are valid. If they are, think about what changes you can make. If they aren’t, you may want to go where you are appreciated. If there is some other reason you were turned down, talk to your boss to find out if she expects the situation to change. If she does, find out when you can talk about this again. Set up a n a ppointm ent to ta lk to your boss Show your boss how serious you are about asking for a raise. Treat this as a business meeting. Set up a time to meet with your boss. Don’t discuss your raise with him by email, at the water cooler, or by telephone (unless you and your boss don’t work at the same location). Present your ca se Your boss may agree to give you a raise immediately. You may have to do nothing more than ask her for one. Wouldn’t that be nice? If that doesn’t happen you may have to do more to convince your boss you should get a raise. Present the material you gathered earlier, including the typical salaries in your field and your accomplishments. www.careerplanning.about.com
Do’s and Don’ts of negotiation Don’t compare Don’t look at how much money your friends in other fields are making. You may be envious of your friends who are earning more money than you are. If they aren’t working in the same field you shouldn’t make those comparisons. Do some research Look at recent salary surveys, talk to others working in your field, and contact your trade or professional association to find out what other people are paid for doing the same work. Remember that salaries differ by geographic region. Consider how much experience you have Those with more experience can hope to earn more money. Remember to talk about the amount of experience you have if it will help you negotiate a higher salary. If you don’t have a lot of experience, be realistic about the salary for which you can ask. Don’t talk about how much money you need When you are going through salary negotiations, don’t tell your boss (or future boss) that you need to make more money because your bills are high, your house was expensive, or your child is starting college. Do talk about the salary you deserve When presenting your case during a salary negotiation, talk about how you will earn the salary you are requesting. Highlight what you have done, or will do, for the company. Also discuss the salaries in your field (based on your research). Do be flexible When going through a salary negotiation you aren’t likely to get the exact amount of money you want. You will probably have to compromise. The trick is to figure out how much you are willing to compromise and what you will do if your boss doesn’t offer you a salary you find acceptable.
TECHNOLOGY
Friday, July 30, 2010
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Like a teenager struggling to adapt to his changing body, Facebook has grappled with its meteoric rise as the online vault of our relationships, surfing habits, photographs, thoughts, experiences and every other facet of both our virtual and real-world lives.
t’s as ubiquitous as aspirin, and if you believe its adherents, just as important. Just six years after its founding, social-networking site Facebook will lure its 500 millionth user this week, cementing its status as the most popular site in the history of the Internet and - along with Google - probably the most influential. The company started as a programming pet project for Harvard undergraduate Mark Zuckerberg, who modeled the site on the “facebooks” used by schools and colleges to enable students to get to know their classmates. His first project landed him in hot water with authorities at his Ivy League university after he hacked into the college website to get pictures of students. But they wisely dropped charges against Zuckerberg when it became clear that the young man was on course to change the world. Launched in February 2004, Facebook was initially limited to Harvard students. Then it expanded to Stanford, Columbia and Yale, then to other Boston colleges and gradually to colleges all over the US. The next step was to open it to all high school students in September 2005 and a year later anyone age 13 and up with a valid email address could register. The site’s explosion has been the ultimate exposition of viral growth. It took more than three years to amass its first 100 million users and just 225 days to attract its second 100 million users. Facebook passed the 300 million mark in another 160 days and achieved its fastest
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rate of growth when it reached 400 million users in just another 143 days, when it was registering almost 700,000 new members daily. Now the rate seems to be slowing a little - as it took 170 days to add enough users to reach the 500 million mark. Like a teenager struggling to adapt to his changing body, Facebook has grappled with its meteoric rise as the online vault of our relationships, surfing habits, photographs, thoughts, experiences and every other facet of both our virtual and real-world lives. “A big part of the challenge that we’ve had is that we’ve grown from tens of thousands of users to hundreds of millions,” Zuckerberg said at a news conference he called in May following a storm of protest about the site’s privacy policy changes. “It’s been a big shift along the way, and it hasn’t always been smooth.” As people spend more and more time online, and spend more and more of their online time on Facebook, Zuckerberg has become a poster boy for the young tech billionaire set. But he claims not to care about money and has consistently refused to yield control of the site to the money men. He is reluctant to cash in his stake with a multi- billion dollar initial public offering, which according to some estimates would value the company at more than 20 billion dollars. Even Zuckerberg’s recent privacy missteps were motivated not by a rapacious hunt for lucrative data, but
rather to further his vision of radical transparency, according to David Kirkpatrick, whose book The Facebook Effect is one of the most perceptive examinations to date of the site. According to Kirkpatrick, Zuckerberg sees Facebook as a social movement dedicated to the idea of radical transparency. He believes that by sharing our data and our public lives we become better people, less able to manipulate, connive and indulge in hypocrisy. Some may see these ideals as noble, others as downright creepy. But most users will ignore the ideological implications as long as the site remains useful - or, more specifically, as long as their friends keep using the addictive site. Facebook’s hegemony faces other threats. Just as one can become sick of eating too many cream cakes, there’s also a growing sense of Facebook overload, when the endless updates, pokes and suggestions from hundreds of “friends” all become too much to bear, says internet analyst Carmi Levy. “Facebook is very clearly no longer a fad but its own landscape and a major force on the global internet,” Levy says. The company declared it was making a profit on advertising last year and “has nowhere to go but up” in terms of making money, Levy believes. Levy predicts a drop in time that users spend on the site but has little idea if any company will ever be strong enough to lure away Facebook’s massive user base. — dpa
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BEAUTY
Friday, July 30, 2010
akeup trends change over the years, but the key to always looking your best lies in possessing knowledge of the winning combination of the correct make-up products, tools and professional techniques. Once you have gained this knowledge and mastered the various techniques, you will always be able to adapt your makeup look to being fashionable, whilst at the same time enhancing your particular features and making the most of your unique looks.
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Sequence of makeup. Cleansing. Apply cleansing cream or milk dots on the forehead, cheeks, eyes, nose, chin and neck. It should be spread over the face in upward circular strokes, so that all the facial features are cleansed thoroughly. Wipe off the cleanser lotion with moist cotton pad dipped in water. To ensure proper cleaning of the face, the cleansing routine can be repeated a second time. 2. Eye shaping. Once the face is cleansed check the eyebrow arch. Any 1.
growth of stray hair should be removed to give a clean look to the face. 3. Freshen the skin. Skin should be cleansed once again with an astringent or a skin freshener. If the face is very dry, moisturizer should be applied with a cotton pad. 4. Application of foundation. Foundation is selected according to skin’s color and texture. 5. Powder application. Apply translucent powder after foundation evenly on the face. Excess powder should be dusted off with a soft brush or cosmetics puff. 6. Application of cheek color and blushers. Cream and stick cheek colors and check glimmers are to applied just after foundation to allow them to settle down before powdering the face. Cake powder blush-on is used after the powder. Cheek color is applied on the smiles. It should be blended towards the temples in smooth flowing strokes to give natural shading. The following guidelines can help to achieve best results: Blusher or rouge color should be in harmony with lipstick color. It would be better if cheek colors are lighter than the color of the lipstick to enhance facial features. Bright and dark cheek colors should be avoided because these give an artificial look to the face. Use pale and light cheek colors during day time. For venings, weave in additional cheek colors to accentuate the features because artificial light drains cosmetic colors. Younger people may apply cheek color to highlight the
7. 8.
angular contour of the face. For mature women, upper cheeks towards the temples can be developed with cheek colors to give prominence to the eyes. Application of eye shadow. Tips on applying eye shadow. Apply brow pencil. Brush eyebrows according to the face structure. Any , gaps in the eyebrows should be filled in by light feathery strokes of black and brown eyebrow pencils to achieve a natural look. Colored eyebrow pencil can also be used for a more glamorous appearance. A fine-tipped eyebrow pencil is a must to emphasis the shape of eyebrows. 9. Application of eyeliner. Tips on applying eyeliner. 10. Mascara application. Basic rules of applying mascara. 11. Application of lipsticks. Applying lipstick gives a finishing touch to a look by defining the mouth and adding color to the face. No cosmetics has to power to transform like long lasting lipsticks. You can transform your look in any way you like simple by changing your lipstick color. — www.bestincosmetics.com
BEAUTY
Friday, July 30, 2010
The goal is not to rub your face raw and don’t forget to wash into the hairline and jawline, especially if you use foundation. Here are some answers to your biggest burning questions. o properly remove makeup, all you need is a proper cleanser for face and eye makeup remover. The goal is not to rub your face raw and don’t forget to wash into the hairline and jawline, especially if you use foundation. Here are some answers to your biggest burning questions.
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Must I wash my face before I go to bed? Yes , especially if you have makeup on your face. If you want to wake up with dewy, glowing skin, then you must remove your makeup and sunscreen. Do I need toner? Many women use toner because they feel it removes all traces of dirt, oil and makeup, however, most beauty experts agree that toners are unnecessary. Most cleansers these days do a great job of removing all the muck from even the heaviest of your makeup days. While toner will strip your skin of any makeup, it also removes natural oils, which can be drying. Unless you have super oily skin or just happen to love a product, skip the toner. Can I Use Baby Wipes? No, no, no, says beauty expert Laura Mercier in the January 2008 issue of Allure Magazine. “I cringe when I see women using baby wipes to remove their makeup. Those do not get the job done.” Women think baby wipes are formulated to be gentle on baby’s skin, so therefore it will be gentle on facial skin, Mercier says. Her response to women who think baby wipes are gentle? “Well, a baby’s butt isn’t covered in makeup that requires special ingredients for proper removal.” ‘Nuff said. I have super dry skin, how do I remove makeup without drying it out more? Choose your cleanser based on your skin type. If you have super dry skin, consider a cleansing oil. Mercier suggests swiping the oil across lids, lips, face and brows, then massaging it in. This
loosens dirt and makeup. Take a square cotton pad with oil on it and wipe over skin, being careful not to tug and pull. Wash skin with a foaming or gel cleanser, and rinse off the cleanser with a warm washcloth, which works to exfoliate skin. Follow with a moisturizer applied to still damp skin. If you have oily skin, consider a foaming cleanser instead of the oil. What’s the best way to remove waterproof mascara? Use a special eye makeup remover on your eyes if you use waterproof mascara (my hands down favorite: Clinique). Apply remover to a square cotton pad, then press down on eyelids and lashes to let it soak in. Gently wipe the pad across eyes to pick up mascara. Go over the eye area with a clean pad until it’s makeupfree. (This keeps your towels from getting makeup on them). Extra tip: Eye makeup remover works great on lips to remove long-lasting lip color, as well. Should I wash my face again in the morning? Your face doesn’t get dirty from sleeping on a clean pillowcase, so there’s really no need to wash again in the morning. In fact, too much cleansing can dry out skin. If you wake up with an oily sheen, however, splash a bit of warm water on your face to dissolve the oils. (www.beauty.about.com)
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HEALTH
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Friday, July 30, 2010
What is the difference between whole grain and whole wheat? W
hen it comes to the differences between whole grain products and whole wheat products, there may be some confusion among consumers. While there are many similarities between whole grain products and whole wheat products, there are a few differences that could be very important. Here are some examples. One of the main differences between whole wheat and whole grain is the process that is used to prepare the grain flour. With wholewheat flour, the grain has gone through a refining process that has removed some of the nutritional value from the end product. By contrast, whole-grain flour does not go through this refining process, and thus maintains the natural level of nutrients. In appearance, whole wheat and whole grain products may look very similar. For example, it is very difficult to tell the difference between a whole grain cereal product and a similar product made from whole wheat. The difference is sometimes easier to taste. Whole grain will have a slightly richer flavor than whole wheat, although both are very pleasing, and more tasty and nutritious than bleached flour products. Whole grain breads are also different from their whole wheat counterparts. Generally, whole wheat loaves will be lighter in texture, almost as light as a loaf of bread made with bleached flour. Whole grain loaves of bread will have a denser texture, and often are considered more filling. The additional nutrients and fiber content often make it possible to consume less bread and still feel satisfied at the end of the meal. Whole grain bread may have health benefits that are particularly important to persons who struggle with blood glucose levels. For people who are in a
Whole grain will have a slightly richer flavor than whole wheat, although both are very pleasing, and more tasty and nutritious than bleached flour products
prediabetic state or are managing Type 2 diabetes with diet, whole grain products may be a sensible source of complex
carbohydrates. While containing as many carbohydrates as whole wheat or bleached bread, whole grain products tend
to create less of a spike in blood glucose levels, and absorb into the system with greater ease. While this is not universally true
for all persons dealing with blood glucose issues, choosing a slice of whole grain bread over other bread options has proven
helpful in managing a balanced diet while still watching blood sugar levels. (www.wisegeek.com)
HEALTH
Friday, July 30, 2010
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Why diets don’t work A
visitor from a far-off planet observing the way we behave could easily assume that dieting is a very good idea. We do it all the time. Dieting is so popular that in the past 10 years it’s estimated that around 70 per cent of the adult female population and 30 per cent of all adult males have been on one. It doesn’t seem to matter whether it’s the Atkins diet or liquid diets, people will try almost anything in their frantic desire to shed a few pounds. Unfortunately, the results are usually the same. Although diets do produce results in the short term, very few dieters maintain their weight loss, no matter which diet they try. Worse than this, most dieters end up bigger than they were before they started dieting. So, why don’t diets work? Diets are hard to do Most diets involve a significant change in a person’s normal eating habits over an extended period of time. But habits die hard; we cling to them because they fit in with our lifestyle and the people around us. And changing something that is second nature to us very often results in stress - especially if that change is at odds with the habits of those in our social and family world. Dieting is also hard because it relies on our willpower to keep us on the right track. Willpower is often very strong at the start of a diet when we are desperate to change, but it can ebb and flow with the state of our health and the pressures and triggers of day-to-day life. Dieters rarely think of rehearsing how they will manage in difficult situations such as going out to dinner with friends; they just hope their willpower will hold up and punish themselves if it doesn’t. Willpower is hard to maintain for extended periods of time, especially if our dietary rules are too strict. There’s also the danger that when we feel like we’ve made some progress in our diet, we become less inclined to put ourselves through the struggle of restricting our food. So dieting is hard because people haven’t learned the difference between willpower and commitment to long-term behaviour change.
Diets make you feel hungry and deprived Research shows that no matter what your size, diets make you hungry and create powerful cravings for the very foods you are trying to avoid, eg sugar and fat. On top of these cravings, dieters also have to manage feelings of deprivation: ‘Everybody is eating what I’m not allowed to. They can have it - why cant I?’ This kind of thinking is likely to lead to rebellious overeating.
It doesn’t seem to matter whether it’s the Atkins diet or liquid diets, people will try almost anything in their frantic desire to shed a few pounds.
Dieters lapse and collapse A diet only works for as long as you are on it. Most people get bored with rigid eating plans and go off the rails from time to time. The trouble is that for many people a lapse is a sign of failure. They tell themselves they’ve ‘blown it’ and experience feelings of inadequacy. The lapse becomes a slippery slope and they end up eating anything that’s not nailed to the floorboards because ‘it’s fine, I’ll start again tomorrow’. Such people go from diet to diet, hoping to find the one that will stop them from failing. But such a diet doesn’t exist, and they may end up bigger each time they try.
Diets fail to address the emotional aspect of overeating People often eat to help deal with emotional problems, rather than because they’re hungry. This is normal, but some people gain weight because they turn to food for emotional comfort or to cope with negative feelings like anger or loss - for example, after a bad day at work, after a row with a loved one or as an end to a long week. Dieting doesn’t solve the problem of emotional eating. If anything, it makes people more depressed because it becomes one of the issues that causes overeating.
And losing weight can make things worse, because people have to cope with the pressures and expectations of their new body shape. Dieters usually fail to change their core habits The only people who lose weight and keep it off are those who make permanent changes to their own eating and exercise habits, and to those of their families. Dieters too often say or think things like: ‘When I’m slim I’ll never overeat again’ or ‘When I’ve lost this weight I’ll go out and celebrate with a cream cake’, or
‘Why should I make my family change their eating habits because I’m on a diet?’ Too often those old eating habits will creep back in, no matter how much weight has been lost, and in time you’ll find yourself back at square one. Lifestyle, not diets In a world full of temptations, it’s laudable to want to be a healthy weight and to manage your eating. However, dieting as we know it is not the way to do it. For long-term weight loss, many things - not just your nutritional habits - will have to change. (www.netdoctor.co.uk)
PETS
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Margaret Trujillo, of Palo Alto, holds Lulu, a Chihuahua mix, at Macy's at Stanford Mall in Palo Alto, California. Pets In Need, a Redwood City based non-profit rescues animals. — MCT
Reptile owners showed off their pets and competed for prizes at the Miami Science Museum in Coconut Grove, Florida. Here, Erin Byrne, of Miami Beach, and Biggie, her 10-year-old female green iguana, share a kiss. — MCT
Purrr-sonal finance: Owning a pet is like running a business It's not just an emotional investment, but a financial one too
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he devotion and companionship provided by a beloved pet is priceless. That said, properly caring for a pet carries a price, a price that people need to be aware before bringing a new dog, cat or other animal into the home. "It's like running a business. You are going to have start-up costs and ongoing costs," said Adam Wiener, executive editor of www.filife.com, a personal finance Web site. So much for the warmand-fuzzy approach to providing for a companion animal. Still, thinking in terms of start-up and ongoing costs can go a long way in making sure you know what you are getting into financially before becoming a responsible pet owner. Think of start-up costs as what would typically be spent during the first year of pet ownership. These are separate from the cost of actually acquiring the pet and ongoing annual expenses that include food, toys and treats and routine visits to the veterinarian. A medium-size dog would have $695 in ongoing annual expenses ($470 if pet insurance premiums were not included) while a cat would incur $670 in annual expenses ($495
without pet insurance), according to an estimate provided by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Keep in mind that the yearly cost estimates are based on a diet of premium dry food. Food costs can be higher if a diet of canned food or premium canned food is included. (To see the complete chart of both ongoing and first-year cost estimates for various pets, go to www.aspca.org/adoption/pet-carecosts.html) Shelter officials say when people are looking for a pet, most are aware that expenses will be involved. "When they come to adopt a pet, we find they are very aware that they are going to have to provide for a pet. They have questions - what about food and litter? They have clearly thought through the idea," said Gail Buchwald, senior vice president of the ASPCA's Adoption Center in New York. But that's not always the case. "Getting a pet is an emotional purchase and what happens is that you can be overcome by emotion and don't think about ongoing costs," Wiener said. "Speak to friends and ask how much they
spend on their pets." Many pet owners wonder about potential medical costs and whether it's worthwhile to have pet insurance which can cost anywhere from about $100 a year to several hundred dollars a year - depending on the pet's age, policy coverage and other factors. Pet insurance policies are typically sold as stand-alone products, which means they are not available as an add-on to a homeowners or renters insurance policy. Type in the words 'pet insurance" in an Internet search engine to find some providers. You might also ask a vet's office for recommendations. There really is not a yes-or-no answer on pet insurance, a product that most pet owners do not have. People who are considering pet insurance should shop around and compare coverage options, including any restrictions related to a pet's age and pre-existing conditions, along with deductible amounts before buying a policy. If you don't have pet insurance, consider having an emergency medical fund set aside to pay for unexpected vet expenses. "We let them know (pet
insurance) is available and that they should ask a lot of questions, what is covered and what is not," said Scott Delucchi, vice president, Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA in San Mateo, Calif. "It's such a personal decision. There are ongoing costs for vet care but there is also the unexpected. We do tell them to plan for the unexpected," he said. "The biggest concern (regarding pet ownership costs) is how much is a vet visit," Buchwald said. "I have never, in all my years here, had heard concerns about food - 'I can't afford the food.'" People who opt to have an emergency fund for a pet's unexpected medical expenses instead of pet insurance should consider putting what they would have paid in monthly premiums into the fund, Buchwald advised. Typically, that works out to about $200 a year. Pet owners might want to consider taking a course in basic first-aid care for pets, said Eliza Fried, director of development and marketing for the East Bay SPCA. While lay knowledge in pet firstaid is not meant to be a replacement for a vet's professional expertise, it can be useful to the owner, she said.
"If you've got children, you would take a CPR class. It's the same idea," Fried said. "You get the skills to treat the emergency right away before going to the vet. It gives you confidence to have that in your back pocket." Boarding and grooming costs also have to be considered, especially if you have a long-haired dog or cat that has special grooming needs. The potential costs of pet care can also have nothing to do with the price of kibbles, vet visits, or paying a dog walker. If you are a renter and your apartment building allows pets, you may have to pay an extra security deposit, said Wiener. Of if you are a home owner and have a rambunctious dog who likes to jump, you may have to pay to put up a special fence to keep him in the yard. To make sure a pet isn't going to create a dent in your budget, pencil in the estimated costs of having a pet into your monthly budget, he said. Beyond the ongoing costs associated with pet care, people who have an emergency savings fund for themselves should not overlook putting ongoing pet costs into monthly living expenses, Wiener said. — MCT
relationships
Friday, July 30, 2010
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Read my fingers: Toddlers learn new lingo oward the end of lunch, Phoenix Ferragame, 17 months old, raised both hands in front of his chest and tapped his fingertips together. His mother smiled. “You want more? More chips?” Gina Ferragame asked, mimicking the hand movement and then passing the bowl to her son. For parents, hardly anything is as satisfying as being able to communicate with their children. But speech requires development of three muscle groups. Toddlers typically have motor control of their hands and fingers months sooner. Teaching a short vocabulary of American Sign Language - milk, more, please, and a handful of other words - is so simple that parents are networking, classes are spreading, and how-to sites are booming. Ferragame and her husband began working on basic signs with their older son, Theo, when he was 5 months old. “I saw a response immediately,” she said. “I was inspired by the fact that I could acknowledge him.” Theo, now 3 years old, verbalizes well. The other day, however, he touched his chin with his fingertips and extended the hand out and down, palm up - thank you. “It’s nice, as a mom, to hear - or see, really - please and thank you through the day,” said Ferragame, 35. Using signs both before and after the boys started to talk resulted in fewer tears and tantrums in their Mount Airy, home, she said. Children often can communicate faster with gestures or sign language than with speech, reducing their frustration at not getting what they want. And experts say that signing early can help with language development of all kinds later. There is no consensus that early signing can bring improvement in IQ scores, as some advocates suggest. But almost everyone says that the positive parent-child interaction involved in teaching and using sign language is beneficial. “What you are really doing is interacting with your child,” said Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, a professor of psychology at Temple University who specializes in language development. “The more you interact with your children, the better their language skills are going to be, so whatever gets parents to do that, it is a positive thing.”
particular direction about language. They were followed for eight years.
T
Gimme more The process is straightforward and time-consuming - lots of repetition of both words and signs like milk and eat and more when your child is thirsty, hungry, or wants more of anything. Often it takes months of consistent effort before the child begins to sign. Hirsh-Pasek and other experts say there is no evidence that learning sign language will limit speech development, especially since the process involves both verbal and nonverbal communication. If children were taught sign language as a true second language, it would be the equivalent of growing up in a bilingual household, said Gary Emmett, director of hospital pediatrics at Thomas Jefferson University, who often lectures on child development. “We know that if you grow up in a truly bilingual home ... children will start to speak about one month later, but they will speak
In this photo combination, Theo Ferragame, 3, demonstrates the two motion sign for “thank you” in the family’s dining room in the Mount Airy neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.— MCT
Teacher M Davi Chandrasekaran (background) looks on as Gina Ferragame (far left) reacts as her 17-month-old son Phoenix Ferragame (center) signs “please” and his brother Theo, 3, finishes up sign for “more” as they have post lunch snack in the family’s dining room. — MCT both languages fine,” he said. “It is a language-rich environment that really helps children develop.” For example, Emmett said, students who do the best in school have heard about 10 times the number of words at home as the poorest students. Linda P Acredolo, an emeritus professor of psychology at the University of California-Davis, is a
leading proponent of teaching hearing children to sign, and her federally funded research found clear benefits. “These kids had a jump start in language and were able to ask questions earlier and engaged with adults earlier,” Acredolo said. “Of course it would benefit their intellectual development.” To study the impact of sign
language on child development, Acredolo and Susan W Goodwyn, of California State University at Stanislaus, randomly divided 103 infants into three groups. In one, parents taught them sign or gestural language; in a second, parents were encouraged to work on verbal language development; and in a control group, parents were given no
Baby Signs Inc “In a significant proportion of the comparisons ... infants who augmented their fledgling vocal vocabularies with symbolic gestures outperformed those who did not,” the study concluded. No such differences were found in the group that focused on verbal skills. The findings, published in the journal Child Development in 1993 and subsequently elsewhere, also found that the children who learned signs as infants and toddlers scored higher, on average, on IQ tests administered at age 8. “We try to not make a big deal about that because we don’t want our signing to go into the pile of betterbaby gimmicks,” Acredolo said in a phone interview. Acredolo and Goodwyn first recognized in 1982 that babies were using gestures to communicate things they could not verbalize. Their research ultimately led to “Baby Signs: How to Talk to Your Baby Before Your Baby Can Talk” in 1996, the first of several books. They later founded Baby Signs Inc, a company that was at the vanguard of a growing global industry offering tools for parents. “It is not necessarily new, but it certainly has exploded in the marketplace,” said Jennifer Burstein, manager of speech-language pathology at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Parents are drawn to the movement “not because it speeds up language, not because it makes kids smarter,” Acredolo said. “It is because of the positive emotional bonds that it creates, the lower frustration levels, the ability to engage older siblings. ... It is all these rich cultural and emotional things that are the core of the benefit.” Bridge effect None of that was on the mind of M Davi Chandrasekaran when she moved from Boston to Philadelphia with a newborn in 2005. A specialeducation teacher in Massachusetts, Chandrasekaran saw the benefits of using sign language to communicate with children who had autism. In Queen Village, her new mom friends asked her to show them some signs they could use with their children. Soon she was holding classes and workshops. Then it developed into a small business, www.signwithmephilly.com. She also has been teaching sign language at Theo Ferragame’s preschool, where she met the family. “Most parents do see the immediate benefit of this bridge effect ... ‘my little one does have a lot to say’ before they can verbalize,” Chandrasekaran said. “Little ones who sign milk all day long are signing it because they can and understanding what they have to communicate is of value and will be heard.” It works the other way around, too. In Mount Airy last week, Gina Ferragame made the sign for sweet, and then opened and closed her right fist, for milk. Theo jumped up and ran to the kitchen, with Phoenix toddling behind. Yeah! Time for an extra-special treat: chocolate milk. — MCT
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FOOD
Friday, July 30, 2010
By Sawsan Kazak
W
ith temperatures reaching into the 50’s, no one really wants to sit down for a hot plate of pasta and sauce. But just because its summer, doesn’t mean you need to deprive yourself of the wonderful flavors of pastas. With a few fresh ingredients and a dressing, you can turn a boring bowl of pasta into a refreshing and fulfilling pasta salad. Please send your suggestions to: sawsank@kuwaittimes.net
How to boil pasta Step 1: Fill a large pot with cold water. Step 2: Place the pot on the stove and turn the burner to High. Step 3: Wait for the water to boil, then add 1 to 2 tsp. salt, depending on how much pasta you’re making. Step 4: Add the desired amount of pasta and stir it around. Step 5: Return the water to a boil. Step 6: Cook for as long as the package instructs. Stir occasionally so the pasta doesn’t stick to itself. Step 7: To test when the pasta is done, taste it at the earliest time indicated on the package. It should be tender but still firm to the bite (“al dente,” which means “to the tooth” in Italian). If you can still see a little ring of uncooked pasta in the center of the noodle, it needs another minute or so. But it will continue to cook a little after you remove it from the stove, so keep that in mind. Step 8: When the pasta is done, remove the pot from the burner immediately and carefully pour the contents into a colander in the sink. Step 9: Shake any excess water free over the sink. Step 10: If you want, use a couple of drops of olive oil to prevent the pasta from sticking; but if you’re saucing the pasta, you really don’t need to. —Ehow
FOOD
Friday, July 30, 2010
Sesame noodle salad 1 (16 ounce) package angel hair pasta 1/2 cup sesame oil 1/2 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 1 tablespoon hot chili oil 1/4 cup white sugar 1 teaspoon sesame seeds 1 green onion, chopped 1 red bell pepper, diced
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Creamy lemon chicken & pasta salad Dressing:
Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, stir in the angel hair pasta, and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain well in a colander set in the sink. Whisk together the sesame oil, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, chili oil, and sugar in a large bowl. Toss the pasta in the dressing, then sprinkle with sesame seeds, green onion, and bell pepper. Serve warm, or cover and refrigerate for a cold salad.
1 cup lemon low-fat yogurt 1/3 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing 2 teaspoons lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/4 teaspoon poppy seeds Pasta Salad: 2 to 21/2 cups (4 ounces) uncooked bow-tie pasta 1 can (10 ounces) premium chunk breast of chicken, drained and flaked 1 can (8 ounces) mandarin oranges, drained 1/2 cup sliced green onion 1/2 cup sliced celery For the Dressing: Combine the yogurt, mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and poppy seeds in a small mixing bowl; mix well. For the Pasta Salad: Cook the pasta according to the package directions; drain and rinse under cold water. Combine the pasta, chicken, mandarin oranges, green onion, and celery in a large bowl. Add the dressing; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate until
Tuna noodle salad 1 lb pasta 10 oz tuna, drained 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon onion powder 1 tbsp. sugar 14 oz. mayonnaise 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar Cook pasta. In a separate bowl, mash the tuna. Sprinkle garlic and onion powder (use quantities given, or adjust to taste). Sprinkle with sugar. Add mayonnaise and vinegar. Mix together well. Mixture should be soup like. Add mixture to the cooked pasta. Mix well so that all pasta is completely covered. Refrigerate for at least 3-5 hours. Mix again before serving.
Pasta shrimp salad 3 c. water 1 lb. unpeeled fresh shrimp 16 oz. your favorite pasta 1/2 cup diced celery 1/2 cup ripe olives 1/2 cup fresh mushrooms 1/2 cup sliced water chestnuts 3/4 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing 2 tbsp sugar (optional) 1 tbsp vinegar 1/2 tsp salt 1/8 tsp pepper
Bring water to boil; add shrimp and return to boil. Reduce heat; simmer 3 to 5 minutes. Drain well; rinse with cold water. Chill. Peel and devein shrimp. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Rinse with cold water; drain. Combine shrimp, pasta and next 4 ingredients. Combine mayonnaise, sugar, vinegar, salt and pepper; pour over pasta mixture and toss until coated. Cover salad and chill.
THEY ARE THE 99! 99 Mystical Noor Stones carry all that is left of the wisdom and knowledge of the lost civilization of Baghdad. But the Noor Stones lie scattered across the globe - now little more than a legend. One man has made it his life’s mission to seek out what was lost. His name is Dr. Ramzi Razem and he has searched fruitlessly for the Noor Stones all his life. Now, his luck is about to change - the first of the stones have been rediscovered and with them a special type of human who can unlock the gem’s mystical power. Ramzi brings these gem - bearers together to form a new force for good in the world. A force known as ... the 99!
THE STORY SO FAR : At the International Physical Disability Games, Batina and Raheema discover a man “fixing” the wheelchair basketball event -- and chase him right out onto the game, where Darr is competing!
The 99 ® and all related characters ® and © 2010, Teshkeel Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
www.the99.org
TRAVEL
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Foreign correspondence: Climate is king in Cabo
Los Cabos, Mexico - a five-hour direct flight from Charlotte - is known for its climate, fishing, snorkeling, even whale watching. —MCT rnesto de la Parra, 29, is a native of Ensenada, Mexico. He’s lived in Los Cabos , the resort area on the tip of the Baja California peninsula , for 6 1/2 years. At the One & Only Palmilla Resort at San Jose del Cabo (www.oneandonlyresorts.com), he is the butler at the resort’s new four-bedroom Villa Cortez. Q. People go to Ca bo for climate, sea and its proximity to the United States. Which is the main draw ? A. First would be the climate. It’s a fantastic destination for weather. Then it would be that it’s very close to the States, a two-hour flight from LA Cabo is also a fishing place, and is famous for that. It’s always sunny and warm; in August it could get a little over 100 but you always have a little bit of breeze and the air is dry. In other seasons it’s still warm. In winter, you just need a sweater or light jacket at night. People can sunbathe on their terrace or around one of our pools throughout the year. It only rains seven days a year. Q. What does the land look like? A. It’s a bit different from up the coast. It’s not like a real desert; there’s a little green. You have a lot of cactus.
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The highways in Baja are always close to the ocean, with the sea on one side and cactus on the other. The middle of Baja is mountainous, and when you drive over them you get the altitude. It takes a 20-hour drive to get from where we are, at the tip, to San Diego. My family does the drive every year. It’s my passion. We stop and take our time to enjoy the view. The driving is relaxed. You can stop at the various mission churches along the way; each is unique and has a lot of stories. There are also beautifully landscaped beaches around Loreto that are fantastic. I take my snorkeling gear. Cabo itself has a great beach. Q. Ca bo is a lso a m a jor hangout for Hollyw ood stars. Do you see many? A. I see most, not all. There was a great party for Jennifer Aniston’s 41st birthday at the resort in February. She stays at Villa Cortez with her friends, including Sheryl Crow and Courtney Cox. Jason Bateman and Gerard Butler were also there. A famous celebrity hangout is Cabo Wabo (the tequila bar and restaurant founded by rock singer Sammy Hagar). Hagar has a band there that plays live music from all
What’s it like to live in a far-off place most of us see only on a vacation? Foreign Correspondence is an interview with someone who lives in a spot you may want to visit. over the world. Q. Whale-w atching is a big draw ; how close can you get to them? A. The whale season is January through April. If you have breakfast around 10, you can see whales maybe 100 meters (about 109 yards) out from your terrace, the mothers and babies jumping in the water or passing through. Sometimes they pass through at lunch or sunset. The resort makes a sound at the pool that means there are whales around, and all the
guests go to look. So we can see them very close. Every year is different, but it’s always worth it to see the mothers teaching the babies how to jump. There are whale-watching tours here in Cabo. It’s not common, but sometimes you can touch them. You see people in kayaks being approached by whales. Q. What do they look like? A. Gray, sometimes with a little white. Where we are is about eight hours from the bay in the Sea of Cortez where they breed. When
they pass, they’re going to or leaving that area; when they leave, they turn at the end of the peninsula and head up to Alaska. They have two protected areas in their bay. The saltiness is high in the water there, so baby whales have an easier time floating. It’s not common for people to go there to see them, but there’s a company we work with that can arrange a scouting trip. Q. What else is there to do? A. Snorkeling, fishing. The fishing tours are very famous. We have a catch-and-release policy here with marlin. You can catch and keep tuna and mahi mahi, and then we prepare it for guests. On their return, the butler calls the fishing captain to find out what they’ve caught. We’ll take the fish to our restaurant and can have it prepared for lunch or dinner in different ways. Q. W here’s the best spot there for snorkeling? A. It’s a fantastic place called Santa Maria Chileno, about 10 minutes from the hotel. There are great schools of fish around there and the water is calm. Families can go there and relax among the rocks , the places the fish love. You can find yourself surrounded by fish. —MCT
TRAVEL
Friday, July 30, 2010
Page 35
Summer holidays - a survivor's guide How to pack...what book to take...giving that couple shadowing you the slip - enjoy a stress-free break. The passport The first hurdle here is working out where you left it last time. Classic passport hiding places include last year's suitcase, a folder full of bank statements, and the drawer in the kitchen with all the screwdrivers and bits of string in it. Check these first. Once you've found it, keep it on you at all times. If you're holidaying with friends they will ask to see your passport photo. This request is to be refused at all costs. The aeroplane question Strictly speaking of course as a Guardian reader - and a global citizen - you shouldn't be flying. However, like the rest of us, you are. Welcome aboard the hypocrite plane. Be sure to prepare a suitably moralistic explanation. "I read that high-speed rail actually produces twice as much carbon," is a good one, if completely false. "Ultimately I felt we were doing more for the world's poor by spending money there," also works wonders. Any sentence beginning with "ultimately" in fact will do at a pinch. "Ultimately, do we really want another Titanic?" The armrest conundrum Conventional wisdom has it that the first person to stake a claim to the armrest is its owner. There are, however, two ways to combat armrest loss; by force or by stealth. Force requires you to be comfortable with a simultaneous armrest sharing situation, and to withstand the awkwardness of arm-to-arm contact for longer than your neighbour. Stealth requires patience of a different sort. You must wait until the armrest is vacated, even just momentarily, and then, in one motion, rest your arm, slump your head and pretend to be asleep. Both are high-risk strategies. But worth it. The holiday book No matter how guilty you feel about not having read Wolf Hall, do not take it with you on holiday. This is not the time to catch up on culture, particularly not culture that weighs more than your own head. Holiday reading is all about the gripping thriller and the tragic or sensual romance. One of the best things about being abroad is that almost no one will know just how trashy the novel you're reading is. The schedule There are two schools of thought here. The first takes the guidebook as a comprehensive to-do list and so fills the day with cursory visits to every landmark, museum, restaurant, theatre and amusingly shaped tree in a five-mile radius. The effect here is to create a holiday so exhausting that another holiday is needed at the end just to recover. The alternative is to pick a single destination for each day's explorations and then spend the rest of the day either sleeping, sunbathing or walking around in a circle. This is hugely preferable. The language barrier Any serious attempt to learn the language of your host nation will invariably end in tears. Even if you master the basic greetings, to the point where locals are mistaking you for a fellow countryman, you are
never more than a single unknown word away from the collapse into "I'm sorry, do you speak English?" Why get people's hopes up? Better to open with the apology, conduct the conversation in English and then surprise them at the end by attempting to say their versions of thanks and goodbye. Like in The Great Escape. The souvenirs The first rule of souvenir-buying is never ever buy the thimble. You do not sew, and you wouldn't use a thimble even if you did. You would certainly never find yourself midsewing wishing you'd bought a small china finger helmet with a picture of a pastoral scene on it. Other souvenirs to steer clear of include shot glasses, baseball caps, key rings, bizarrely over-sized pencils and hourglasses. Mugs, tea towels and even socks are acceptable at a stretch. The talking No matter who you travel with, conversation will eventually become a struggle. This is especially true if you travel with someone who feels a meaningful discussion can only really begin when the lights are off and everyone else is trying to sleep. If all else fails conversationally, a single extended game of "Would you rather . . . ?" can paper over even the most gaping holes in a friendship. The mysteriously friendly couple No matter how remote your
destination you will always arrive to find a suspiciously friendly couple of fellow British holiday-makers effectively shadowing you. Their names are Ben and Sue. Every day, by the power of some dark voodoo known only to over-eager compatriots, their itinerary will have morphed to match your own. Nip their chumminess in the bud before it blossoms into a full-grown friendship or you'll soon find yourself eating dinner with them, or worse, exchanging phone numbers. This is a disaster. The hats The laws surrounding hats become far more lenient abroad. The panama, boater and trilby are all perfectly acceptable and even that weird Australian one with corks on it is usually allowed to pass without comment. Anything big and made of straw is to be encouraged and celebrated, with the exception of the pointy sombrero, which is frowned upon everywhere, and deeply offensive in Mexico. Bald dads are permitted no more than a single day of the knotted handkerchief yarmulke, after which the purchase of a real hat becomes a legal necessity. The sun-cream dilemma The sun-cream dilemma is twofold; first how, or who to get, to apply sun- cream to your back and neck? Second, how to politely refuse to do the same for sweaty, hairy and
occasionally scaly friends and relatives? In the first case, the situation can be avoided with sufficient practice beforehand. Applying fake tan is, ironically, good experience for evenly applying suncream. The second dilemma is, however, insoluble. Your best bet is to avoid the issue by running off into the sea. The clothes and shoes If you've spent the rest of the year longing to punish the area between your big toe and your second toe you'll be glad to have bought a pair of flip-flops. Otherwise sandals or a light gym shoe is the way to go. Wear without socks in either case. When it comes to shirts, shorts and skirts just about anything goes, although the Hawaiian shirt continues to be frowned upon, especially in Hawaii. The Internet Switch off the BlackBerry, leave the phone in your hotel room and do not, under any circumstances, check Facebook on the computer in reception. Nothing ruins a week in the sun like photos of someone else's even better week in the sun and a holiday just is not a holiday if you're still reading your boss's tweets. Check your emails no more than once every third day at most. And do not, no matter the temptation, tweet about your holiday or upload photos of it while you're still abroad. Everyone hates that person.
The gifts If souvenir-buying is a minefield then gift-buying is an active theatre of warfare. There is only one safe option, and that is consumables: in particular wines, chocolates and spirits. Souvenir gifts are strictly forbidden. No one, but no one, wants to wear, drink out of or decorate their homes with a souvenir from somebody else's holiday. The impossible science of repacking a suitcase If packing is a game of Tetris, then re-packing is a game of Theme Hospital, which is to say, maddeningly impossible to complete without cheating. Begin by leaving some gifts out for the hotel to find; the thriller you've now read; a broken pair of sandals; that hat you bought with the corks on it. While these are no longer any good to you they're sure to brighten the cleaning staff's day considerably. That done, cram everything left into the suitcase, give up, go out, buy another travel bag and cram the rest into that. The aftermath As well as having several bags of dirty clothes, souvenirs and rubbish to sift through, you'll arrive home to find a pile of bills and letters, and an answering phone message from Ben and Sue making plans for you all to holiday together next year. Dealing with all of this after a week of sun and sandals can be overwhelming. So call work. Take a few days off. It's not like you haven't earned it.—Guardian
BOOKS
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Compiled by Hussain Al-Qatari following is a list of newly released books that can surely make your summer entertaining. Including hilarious mysteries, tear-jerking dramas and horrifying crime novels, you will find something for you here. Enjoy reading, and send your suggestions to hussain@kuwaittimes.net Thehopefully
abriel Allon, master art restorer and assassin, returns in a spellbinding new novel from the #1 New York Timesbestselling author. Over the course of a brilliant career, Daniel Silva has established himself as “the gold standard” of thriller writers (Dallas Morning News) who “has hit upon the perfect formula to keep espionage-friendly fans’ fingers glued to his books, turning pages in nearly breathless anticipation” (BookPage). But now, having reached “the pinnacle of world-class spy thriller writing” (The Denver Post), Silva has produced his most extraordinary novel to date-a tale of greed, passion, and murder spanning more than half a century, centered on an object of haunting beauty. Two families, one terrible secret, and a painting to die for ... Determined to sever his ties with the Office, Gabriel Allon has retreated to the windswept cliffs of Cornwall with his beautiful Venetian-born wife Chiara. But once again his seclusion is interrupted by a visitor from his tangled past: the endearingly eccentric London art dealer, Julian Isherwood. As usual, Isherwood has a problem. And it is one only Gabriel can solve. In the ancient English city of Glastonbury, an art restorer has been brutally murdered and a long-lost portrait by Rembrandt mysteriously stolen. Despite his reluctance, Gabriel is persuaded to use his unique skills to search for the painting and those responsible for the crime. But as he painstakingly follows a trail of clues leading from Amsterdam to Buenos Aires and, finally, to a villa on the graceful shores of Lake Geneva, Gabriel discovers there are deadly secrets connected to the painting. And evil men behind them. Before he is done, Gabriel will once again be drawn into a world he thought he had left behind forever, and will come face to face with a remarkable cast of characters: a glamorous London journalist who is determined to undo the worst mistake of her career, an elusive master art thief who is
burdened by a conscience, and a powerful Swiss billionaire who is known for his good deeds but may just be behind one of the greatest threats facing the world. Filled with remarkable twists and turns of plot, and told with seductive prose, The Rembrandt Affair is more than just summer entertainment of the highest order. It is a timely reminder that there are men in the world who will do anything for money.
ome from Iraq, a lieutenant kills his commanding officer-was it self-defense or premeditated murder? An enthralling novel of suspense about the high cost of war and secrets The McCarrans and the Gallaghers, two military families, have been close for decades, ever since Anthony McCarran-now one of the army’s most distinguished generals-became best friends with Jack Gallagher, a fellow West Pointer who was later killed in Vietnam. Now a new generation of soldiers faces combat, and Lt. Brian McCarran, the general’s son, has returned from a harrowing tour in Iraq. Traumatized by wartime experiences he will not reveal, Brian depends on his lifelong friendship with Kate Gallagher, Jack’s daughter, who is married to Brian’s commanding officer in Iraq, Capt. Joe D’Abruzzo. But since coming home, D’Abruzzo also seems changed by the experiences he and Brian shared-he’s become secretive and remote. Tragedy strikes when Brian shoots and kills D’Abruzzo on their army post in Virginia. Brian pleads self-defense, claiming that D’Abruzzo, a black-belt martial artist, came to his quarters, accused him of interfering with his marriage, and attacked him. Kate supports Brian and says that her husband had become violent and abusive. But Brian and Kate have secrets of their own, and now Capt. Paul Terry, one of the army’s most accomplished young lawyers, will defend Brian in a high-profile court-martial. Terry’s co-counsel is Meg McCarran, Brian’s sister, a brilliant and beautiful
attorney who insists on leaving her practice in San Francisco to help save her brother. Before the case is over, Terry will become deeply entwined with Meg and the McCarrans-and learnthat families, like war, can break the sturdiest of souls.
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By Gary Shteyngart he author of two critically acclaimed novels, The Russian Debutante’s Handbook and Absurdistan, Gary Shteyngart has risen to the top of the fiction world. Now, in his hilarious and heartfelt new novel, he envisions a deliciously dark tale of America’s dysfunctional coming years-and the timeless and tender feelings that just might bring us back from the brink. In a very near future-oh, let’s say next Tuesday-a functionally illiterate America is about to collapse. But don’t tell that to poor Lenny Abramov, the thirty-nine-year-old son of an angry Russian immigrant janitor, proud author of what may well be the world’s last diary, and less-proud owner of a bald spot shaped like the great state of Ohio. Despite his job at an outfit called Post-Human Services, which attempts to provide immortality for its super-rich clientele, death is clearly stalking this cholesterol-rich morsel of a man. And why shouldn’t it? Lenny’s from a different century-he totally loves books (or “printed, bound media artifacts,” as they’re now known), even though most of his peers find them smelly and annoying. But even more than books, Lenny loves Eunice Park, an impossibly cute and impossibly cruel twenty-four-year-old Korean American woman who just graduated from Elderbird College with a major in Images and a minor in Assertiveness. After meeting Lenny on an extended Roman holiday, blistering Eunice puts that Assertiveness minor to work, teaching our “ancient dork” effective new ways to brush his teeth and making him buy a cottony nonflammable wardrobe. But America proves less flame-resistant than Lenny’s new threads. The country is crushed by a credit crisis, riots break out in New York’s Central Park, the city’s streets are lined with National Guard tanks on every corner, the dollar is so over, and our patient Chinese creditors may just be ready to foreclose on the whole mess. Undeterred, Lenny vows to love both Eunice and his homeland. He’s going to convince his fickle new love that in a time without standards or stability, in a world where single people can determine a dating prospect’s “hotness” and “sustainability” with the click of a button, in a society where the privileged may live forever but the unfortunate will die all too soon, there is still value in being a real human being. Wildly funny, rich, and humane, Super Sad True Love Story is a knockout novel by a young master, a book in which falling in love just may redeem a planet falling apart.
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BOOKS
Friday, July 30, 2010
Page 37
By Carl Hiaasen
M
very dress has a history. And so does every woman. In Isabel Wolff’s captivating A Vintage Affair, a treasured child’s coat becomes a thread of hope connecting two very different women. Her friends are stunned when Phoebe Swift abruptly leaves a plum job at the prestigious Sotheby’s auction house to open her own vintage clothing shop in London-but to Phoebe, it’s the fulfillment of a dream. In the sunlight-flooded interior of Village Vintage, surrounded by Yves Saint Laurent silk scarves, Vivienne Westwood bustle skirts, cupcake dresses, and satin gowns, Phoebe hopes to make her store the hot new place to shop, even as she deals with two ardent suitors, her increasingly difficult mother, and a secret from her past that casts a shadow over her new venture. For Phoebe, each vintage garment carries its own precious history. Digging for finds in attics and wardrobes, Phoebe is rewarded whenever she finds something truly unique, for she knows that when you buy a piece of vintage clothing, you’re not just buying fabric and thread-you’re buying a piece of someone’s past. But one particular article of clothing will soon unexpectedly change her life. Therese Bell, an elderly Frenchwoman, has an impressive clothing collection. But among the array of smart suits and couture gowns, Phoebe finds a child’s sky-blue coatan item with which Bell is stubbornly
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Skink-the unhinged former governor of Florida living wild in a mangrove swamp-and now he’s heading for Miami to find her . . . Will Bang Abbott achieve his fantasy of a lucrative private photo session with Cherry Pye? Will Cherry sober up in time to lip-synch her way through her concert tour? Will Skink track down Ann DeLusia before Cherry’s motley posse does? All will be revealed in this hilarious spin on life in the celebrity fast lane.
kidnapped from a South Beach hotel by obsessed paparazzo Bang Abbott. Now the challenge for Cherry’s handlers (uberstage mother; horndog record producer; nipped, tucked, and Botoxed twin publicists; weed whacker-wielding bodyguard) is to rescue Ann while keeping her existence a secret from Cherry’s public-and from Cherry herself. The situation is more complicated than they know. Ann has had a bewitching encounter with
eet twenty-two-year-old Cherry Pye (née Cheryl Bunterman), a pop star since she was fourteen-and about to attempt a comeback from her latest drug-and-alcohol disaster. Now meet Cherry again: in the person of her “undercover stunt double,” Ann DeLusia. Ann portrays Cherry whenever the singer is too “indisposed”-meaning wasted-to go out in public. And it is Ann-mistaken-for-Cherry who is
reluctant to part. As the two women become friends, Phoebe will learn the tale of that little blue coat. And she will discover an astonishing connection between herself and Therese Bell-one that will help her heal the pain of her own past and allow her to love again.
ack in 1985, Frank Mackey was nineteen, growing up poor in Dublin’s inner city, and living crammed into a small flat with his family on Faithful Place. But he had his sights set on a lot more. He and Rosie Daly were all ready to run away to London together, get married, get good jobs, break away from factory work and poverty and their old lives. But on the winter night when they were supposed to leave, Rosie didn’t show. Frank took it for granted that she’d dumped himprobably because of his alcoholic father, nutcase mother, and generally dysfunctional family. He never went home again. Neither did Rosie. Everyone thought she had gone to England on her own and was over there living a shiny new life. Then, twentytwo years later, Rosie’s suitcase shows up behind a fireplace in a derelict house on Faithful Place, and Frank is going home whether he likes it or not. Getting sucked in is a lot easier than getting out again. Frank finds himself straight back in the dark tangle of relationships he left behind. The cops working the case want him out of the way, in case loyalty to his family and community makes him a liability. Faithful
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Place wants him out because he’s a detective now, and the Place has never liked cops. Frank just wants to find out what happened to Rosie Daly-and he’s willing to do whatever it takes, to himself or anyone else, to get the job done.
By Ayelet Waldman he course of grieving an irreparable loss is as curving and full of unexpected turns as the winding Maine byway that gives Ayelet Waldman’s new novel its title. It begins as tragedy often does, with the previously unimaginable suddenly, brutally made real. The road’s sharp turn in the direction of blazing afternoon sunlight is responsible for taking the lives of John Tetherly and his radiant bride, Becca Copaken, not one hour after they are wed in an idyllic country church. It is Red Hook Road’s muscular bend — with expansive views of a rocky tidal cove — that delivers Jane Tetherly and Iris Copaken the mute wreckage that bears the remains of their children. And the many short journeys along Red Hook Road thereafter mirror the Tetherlys’ and Copakens’ tentative steps across the emotional minefield that exists in the aftermath of the couple’s death. As the narrative moves the families through three consecutive summers after the tragedy, this stretch of coastal highway also serves to bridge the considerable divide between class and culture. Becca’s intellectual sister Ruthie is compelled to take circuitous routes away from the scene of the disaster to spend more time with Matt, the youngest of John’s siblings and also the first to go to college. But music is directly transported down the road through the efforts of violin virtuoso Emil Kimmelbrod,
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Becca’s ailing grandfather, as he instructs John’s preternaturally talented niece. Battered by a series of emotional storms and ravaged by wind, rain, and waves, Red Hook Road comes to embody the very lives of its denizens. As Waldman unfurls her story with a pace befitting grief’s peculiar one-step-forward-two-steps-back progress, narrative and road merge to form a complex conduit for healing and an elegiac meditation on what within us remains after the tempest has undone an orderly life.
By Lily King n her most ambitious novel to date, Lily King sets her sharply insightful family drama in an upper-middle-class suburb where she traces a complex and explosive father-daughter relationship from the 1970s to the present day. When eleven-year-old Daley’s parents separate, she is thrust into a chaotic adult world of competition, indulgence, and manipulation. Unable to place her allegiance, she gently toes the thickening line between her parents’ worlds: the liberal, socially committed realm of her mother, and the conservative, liquor-soaked life of her father. But without her mother there to keep him in line, Daley’s father’s basest impulses are unleashed, and Daley has to choose her own survival over the father she still loves. As she grows into adulthood, Daley retreats from the New England country-club culture that nourished her father’s fears and addictions, attempting to live outside his influence. Until he hits rock bottom. Faced with the chance to free her father from sixty years of dependency, Daley must decide whether repairing their broken relationship is worth losing not only her professional dreams, but the love of her life, Jonathan, who represents so much of what Daley’s father claims to hate, and who has given her so much of what he could never provide.
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CHILDREN
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Sudoku for Kids
Friday, July 30, 2010
Solution
CHILDREN
Friday, July 30, 2010
Princesses O
nce upon a time there were three beautiful princesses their names were Kimmy, Katie, and Kristen. Kimmy was 3, Katie was 5, and Kristen was 8. They all lived in a manor. With butlers, maids, cooks, and lots of people. But the princesses did not treat them like slaves they treated them with respect and kindness. Their mother’s name was Krystal. She was very kind, and taught her three girls how to treat all people with respect and kindness. The mother had long flowing black hair. The princess's fathers name was Kevin. He taught his three girls to be lady like. He had man like blond hair. He was very nice man. They also had a tutor named Ken. He had light brown hair. He was very handsome. One sunny morning a messenger came with very sad news their granmother was very ill. The mother and father had to leave. They left the princesses with the uncle. The uncle was very mean to every one. His mood made everyone in the manor miserable except the princesses. One time he told the cook to make steak and spaghetti. The uncle changed his mind but didn't tell the cook. The cook could not read minds so he still made what the uncle said to cook. When the uncle saw this he stormed off. The cook was not happy. But Kristen told him it was ok. So that made the cook feel better. Everyone else ate what he made and it tasted delicious. Another time the butler made the beds as usual, but when the uncle inspected them, he did not like what he saw and he blew up at the butler making him feel awful. Kristen saw this scene too. After the uncle left she told the butler it was fine. She made the butler feel better. He did this to maids and lots of other people too. One day after dinner Kristen told her two little sisters about these scenes. The girls agreed to have a meeting in their tree house and discuss how to make there uncle learn a lesson to be respectful and kind to others just as they had been taught.The girls made a plan to be very kind to their uncle hoping to teach him a valuable lesson. First, while eating their breakfast they said to the cook, "Thank you for our breakfast, this is a very nice meal." As the uncle watches his nieces’ polite behavior, he feels awkward that he has never said anything nice or polite to the cook. Later on that day, the girls offered to help their very special butler with his chores. The uncle sees this behavior and reacts with anger telling the girls to stay in their rooms for the rest of the day. He does not want the girls to do the butlers job. The angry uncle goes into the library to think about how he has behaved towards the butler’s, the maids, the cooks and also his three sweet nieces who he made very sad. As the uncle was thinking about them, the girls were thinking about their uncle hoping that he had learned a lesson. After the uncle had time to think, he let the girls out of their rooms to have a talk with them. "I have been acting silly these past few weeks. I have been yelling at cooks, maids and butlers. I have not been respectful to anyone in the manor. Watching the three of you be kind and polite to everyone, has taught me to be kind and caring to others as well. Thank you for teaching me this valuable lesson and I am very sorry I have not been so nice to you". The girls thank their uncle and are happy that they taught him the lesson of respect, kindness, and love. The next day a messenger came and reported that the mother and father would be arriving home within the next few days and that their grandmother was feeling much better. The uncle was on his best behavior for the rest of his stay with the girls. The mother and father never found out about the uncle’s bad behavior. The girls kept this a secret. A secret they only told to their children, and their grand children. And this lesson was passed down to many, many more. www.bedtime.com
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OPINION
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Fanning jihad flames By Scott Stewart
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n July 11, 2010, Al-Malahim Media, the media arm of AlQaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), published the first edition of its new English-language online magazine "Inspire." The group had tried to release the magazine in late June, but for some reason - whether a technical glitch, virus (as rumored on some of the jihadist message boards) or cyberattack - most of the initial file released was unreadable. The magazine was produced by someone who has a moderate amount of technological savvy, who speaks English well and who uses a lot of American idioms and phraseology. We did not note any hint of British or South Asian influence in the writing. A government source has suggested to us (and we have seen the claim repeated in the media) that Inspire was produced by a US citizen who was born in Saudi Arabia named Samir Khan. Khan is a well-known cyberjihadist - indeed, The New York Times did an excellent story on Khan in October 2007. Given Khan's background, history of publishing English-language jihadist material and the fact that he reportedly left the United States for Yemen in 2009 and has not returned, it does seem plausible that he is the driving force behind Inspire. The magazine contains previously published material from Osama bin Laden, Ayman Al-Zawahiri, Abu Musab Al-Suri and Anwar Al-Awlaki. While it also contains new material, this material, especially from Al-Awlaki and AQAP leader Nasir Al-Wahayshi (aka Abu Bashir), is consistent with their previously published statements. One of the messages by Al-Awlaki featured in Inspire, "A Message to the American People," was previously released to CNN and reissued by Al-Malahim on the Internet July 19, almost as if to validate Inspire. Even though the way in which some of the material in Inspire is presented is quite elementary, and could lead some to believe the magazine might be a spoof, we have found no analytical reason to doubt its authenticity. Presentation aside, the material is quite consistent with what we have seen released by Al-Malahim Media in its Arabic-language materials over many months. When closely examined, the inaugural issue of Inspire provides a good gauge of AQAP's thought and suggests the general direction of the broader jihadist movement. Inspiration In a letter from the editor appearing at the beginning of the magazine, the purpose of Inspire is clearly laid out: "This magazine is geared towards making the Muslim a mujahid." The editor also clearly states that Inspire is an effort by AlMalahim Media to reach out to, radicalize and train the millions of English-speaking Muslims in the West, Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia. Inspire does not represent any sort of major breakthrough in jihadist communication. English-language jihadist material has been available on the Internet since the early 1990s on sites such as Azzam.com, and jihadists have released other magazines directly targeting English-speaking audiences. What is remarkable about Inspire is that it was released by Al-Malahim and AQAP. Within the jihadist movement, AQAP has assumed the vanguard position on the physical battlefield over the past year with links to several attacks or attempted attacks in the West. AQAP has also been frequently mentioned in Western media over the past several months, and it appears that Al-Malahim is trying to exploit that notoriety in order to get the
attention of English-speaking Muslims. Regarding AQAP's links to recent attacks, Inspire follows the trend of AQAP publications and leaders in recent months in praising Fort Hood shooter Maj. Nidal Hasan and failed Christmas Day bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab and lifting them up as examples for all jihadists to follow. "We call on every Muslim who feels any jealousy for their religious beliefs to expel the polytheists from the Arabian Peninsula, by killing all of the crusaders working in embassies or otherwise, and to declare war against the crusaders in the land of the Prophet Muhammad - peace be upon him - on the ground, sea and air. And we call on every soldier working in the crusader armies
when discussing AQAP and its innovative IED designs, there are many ways to smuggle IED components on board an aircraft if a person has a little imagination and access to explosives. As we wrote in Sept 2009, three months before the Christmas Day bomber's attempted attack, efforts to improve technical methods to locate IED components must not be abandoned, but the existing vulnerabilities in airport screening systems demonstrate that an emphasis needs to be placed not only on finding the bomb but also on finding the bomber. Throughout the magazine, articles criticize the US operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and Yemen; Saudi operations against jihadists; the burqa ban in Europe and
enemy and where they can support the Messenger of Allah." Al-Wahayshi continued "...a man with his knife, a man with his gun, a man with his rifle, a man with his bomb, by learning how to design explosive devices, by burning down forests and buildings, or by running over them with your cars and trucks. The means of harming them are many so seek assistance from Allah and do not be weak and you will find a way." This call was echoed by Adam Gadahn in March 2010 when the American-born spokesman for Al-Qaeda prime advised jihadists to strike targets that were close to them with simple assaults and urged his audience to not "wait for tomorrow to do what can be done today, and don't wait
and puppet governments to repent to Allah and follow the example of the heroic mujahid brother Nidal Hassan [sic]; to stand up and kill all the crusaders by all means available to him...." In the article discussing Abdulmutallab, the author again brags about the manufacturing of the improvised explosive device used in the Christmas Day attack even though that device, like the one used in the assassination attempt against Saudi Deputy Interior Minister Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, failed to achieve the objective. "The mujahidin brothers in the manufacturing department managed with the grace of Allah to make an advanced bomb. The bomb had been tested and proven effective as it has passed through the detector ports. The martyrdom bomber managed with the grace of Allah to reach his target, but due to a technical glitch, the bomb did not explode completely; and we will continue on our path until we get what we want...." This statement would seem to indicate that if AQAP is able to recruit a willing suicide bomber who is able to travel to the West, they will again attempt to attack an airliner using a similar device. Airliners remain vulnerable to such attacks. Stratfor has previously noted
even global warming - Inspire carried a reproduction of a statement purportedly authored by Osama bin Laden earlier this year titled "The Way to Save the Earth" that criticizes US policy regarding climate change and calls for economic jihad against the United States. The magazine also contained a portion of a previously-released message titled "From Kabul to Mogadishu" by Al-Qaeda second-in-command Ayman Al-Zawahiri that encouraged the people of Yemen to join Al-Qaeda in its global struggle. It only quoted a part of the original message that pertained to Yemen and omitted portions that pertained to other locations. AQAP Revealed In addition to the recycled content from Al-Qaeda's core leadership, Inspire also contains quite a bit of new and interesting content from AQAP's military and theological leaders. An interview with AQAP leader Nasir Al-Wahayshi provided Al-Wahayshi the opportunity to reinforce several points he has been making for months now regarding his call for jihadists to conduct simple attacks using readily available weapons. "My advice to my Muslim brothers in the West is to acquire weapons and learn methods of war. They are living in a place where they can cause great harm to the
for others to do what you can do yourself." These calls are part of a move toward a leaderless resistance model of jihadism that has accompanied the devolution of the jihadist threat from one based on AlQaeda the group to a broader threat based primarily on Al-Qaeda franchises and the wider jihadist movement. (Stratfor is currently putting the finishing touches on a book that details our coverage of this devolutionary process since 2004.) With this shift, more attacks such as the Times Square bombing attempt, the Fort Hood shooting and the June 1, 2009, Little Rock shootings can be anticipated. In an effort to provide training in terrorist tradecraft to such grassroots and lone-wolf jihadists, Inspire contains a section called "Open Source Jihad," which is the term that AQAP uses to refer to leaderless resistance. This section is intended to serve as "a resource manual for those who loathe tyrants." The material is intended to allow "Muslims to train at home instead of risking a dangerous travel abroad," and one part exclaims, "Look no further, the open source jihad is now at hand's reach." The section also contains a lengthy step-by-step guide to constructing simple pipe bombs with electronic timers, bearing the rhymed title "Make a Bomb in
the Kitchen of Your Mom". The images of New York City contained in this section serve as a reminder of the importance New York holds in jihadist thought as a target. Such rudimentary improvised explosive devices are unlikely to cause mass casualties, but like the pipe bombs employed by Eric Rudolph, they could prove deadly on a small scale if they are employed effectively. When considering this concept of leaderless resistance and of using publications like Inspire to train aspiring jihadists, it is important to remember that this type of instruction has only a limited effectiveness and that there are many elements of terrorist tradecraft that cannot be learned by merely reading about them. In other words, while the jihadist threat may be broadening in one way, it is also becoming less severe, because it is increasingly emanating from actors who do not possess the skill of professional terrorist operatives and who lack the ability to conduct complex and spectacular attacks. Cartoon Controversy One of the other features in Inspire is an article by Anwar Al-Awlaki, the American-born Yemeni cleric who has been linked to Nidal Hasan, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, Faisal Shahzad and two of the 9/11 hijackers. In his article, titled "May Our Souls be Sacrificed for You," AlAwlaki focuses on the controversy that arose over the cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) that first appeared in 2005. Although the cartoons were published nearly five years ago, the jihadists have not allowed the issue to die down. To date, the jihadist response to the cartoons has resulted in riots, arsons, deaths, the 2008 bombing of the Danish Embassy in Islamabad and an attack in Jan 2010 in which a man armed with an axe and knife broke into the home of JyllandsPosten newspaper cartoonist Kurt Westergaard in Denmark and allegedly tried to kill him. The Kashmiri militant group Harkat-ul-Jihad e-Islami (HUJI) also dispatched American operative David Headley to Denmark on two occasions to plan attacks against Jyllands-Posten and Westergaard in what HUJI called "Operation Mickey Mouse". In his Inspire article, Al-Awlaki states, "If you have the right to slander the Messenger of Allah, we have the right to defend him. If it is part of your freedom of speech to defame Muhammad (PBUH) it is part of our religion to fight you." AlAwlaki continues: "This effort, the effort of defending the Messenger of Allah (PBUH), should not be limited to a particular group of Muslims such as the mujahidin but should be the effort of the ummah, the entire ummah." He also referred to a 2008 lecture he gave regarding the cartoon issue titled "The Dust Will Never Settle Down" and notes that, "Today, two years later, the dust still hasn't settled down. In fact the dust cloud is only getting bigger." He adds that "Assassinations, bombings, and acts of arson are all legitimate forms of revenge against a system that relishes the sacrilege of Islam in the name of freedom." Inspire also features a "hit list" that includes the names of people like Westergaard who were involved in the cartoon controversy as well as other targets such as Dutch politician Geert Wilders, who produced the controversial film Fitna in 2008; Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who wrote the screenplay for the movie Submission (filmmaker Theo Van Gogh, the director of Submission, was murdered by a jihadist in November 2004); and Salman Rushdie, author of the book The Satanic Verses. —Stratfor
ANALYSIS
Friday, July 30, 2010
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Geopolitics, nationalism and dual citizenship
By George Friedman
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eopolitics is central to Stratfor's methodology, providing the framework upon which we study the world. The foundation of geopolitics in our time is the study of the nation-state, and fundamental to this is the question of the relationship of the individual to the nation-state. Changes in the relationship of the individual to the nation and to the state are fundamental issues in geopolitics, and thus worth discussing. Many issues affect this complex relationship, notable among them the increasing global trend of multiple citizenship. This is obviously linked to the question of immigration, but it also raises a deeper question, namely, what is the meaning of citizenship in the 21st century? Nation vs. State It is difficult to make sense of the international system without making sense of the nation-state. The concept is complicated by a reality that includes multinational states like Belgium, where national identity plays a significant role, and Russia or China, where it can be both significant and at times violent. In looking at the nation-state, the idea of nation is more complex, and perhaps more interesting, than that of state. The idea of nation is not always clear. At root, a nation is a group of people who share a fate, and with that fate, an identity. Nations can be consciously created, as the United States was. Nations can exist for hundreds or thousands of years, as seen in parts of Europe or Asia. However long a nation exists and whatever its origins, a nation is founded on what I've called elsewhere "love of one's own", a unique relationship with the community in which an individual is born or to which he chose to come. That affinity is the foundation of a nation. If that dissolves, the nation dissolves, something that has happened on numerous occasions in history. If a nation disappears, the international system begins to behave differently. And if nations in general lose their identity and cohesion, massive shifts might take place. Some might say it would be for better and others for worse. It is sufficient to note here that either way would make a profound difference. The state is much clearer: It is the political directorate of the nation. How the leaders are selected and how they govern varies widely. The relationship of the state to the nation also varies widely. Not all nations have states. Some are occupied by other nation-states. Some are divided between multiple states. Some are part of an entity that governs many nations. And some are communities that have developed systems of government that do not involve states, although this
The children of the Notestine family hold dual Japanese-US nationality. — MCT is increasingly rare. The relation to the nation is personal. The relation to the state is legal. We can see this linguistically in the case of the United States. I can state my relation to my nation simply: I am an American. I cannot state my relationship to my state nearly as simply. Saying I am a "United Statian" makes no sense. I have to say that I am a citizen of the United States, to state my legal relationship, not personal affinity. The linguistic complexity of the United States doesn't repeat itself everywhere, but a distinction does exist between nationality and citizenship. They may coincide easily, as when a person is born in a country and becomes a citizen simply through that, or they may develop, as when an individual is permitted to immigrate and become naturalized. Note the interesting formulation of that term, as it implies the creation of a natural relationship with the state. In the United States, the following oath is administered when one is permitted to become a citizen, generally five years after being permitted to immigrate: I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law;
that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God. I should say I took this oath at the age of 17. Although I became a citizen of the United States when my father was naturalized years earlier, receiving my own citizenship papers involved going to a courthouse and taking this oath personally. Being confronted with the obligations of citizenship was a sobering experience. The American oath is one of the most rigorous; other nations have much simpler and less demanding oaths. Intriguingly, many countries with less explicitly demanding oaths are also countries where becoming a naturalized citizen is more difficult and less common. For the United States, a nation and a state that were consciously invented, the idea of immigration was inherent in the very idea of the nation, as was this oath. Immigration and naturalization required an oath of this magnitude, as naturalization meant taking on not only a new state identity but also a new national identity. The American nation was built on immigrants from other nations. Unless they were prepared to "absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen," the American enterprise could fall into chaos as immigrants came to the United States to secure the benefits of full citizenship but refused to abandon prior obligations and refused to agree to the
obligations and sacrifices the oath demanded. The United States therefore is in a position shared only with a few other immigration-based nations, and it has staked out the most demanding position on naturalization. The Dual Citizenship Anomaly It is therefore odd that the United States - along with many other nations - permits nationals to be citizens of other countries. The US Constitution doesn't bar this, but the oath of citizenship would seem to do so. The oath demands that the immigrant abandon all obligations to foreign states. The US Supreme Court ruled in Afroyim v Rusk in 1967 that revoking citizenship on grounds of voting in foreign elections was unconstitutional. The ruling involved a naturalized American who presumably had taken the oath. The Supreme Court left the oath in place, but if we are to understand the court correctly, it ruled that the oath did not preclude multiple citizenship. It is impossible to know how many people in the United States or other countries currently hold multiple citizenship, but anecdotally it would appear that the practice is not uncommon. Not being required to renounce one's foreign citizenship verifiably obviously facilitates the practice. And this raises a fundamental question. Is citizenship a license to live and earn a living in a country, or is it equally or more so a set of legal and moral obligations? There are many ways legally to reside in a country without becoming a citizen. But the American oath, for example, makes it appear that the naturalized citizen (as opposed to just the legal resident) has an overriding
obligation to the United States that can require substantial and onerous responsibilities within military and civilian life. An individual might be able to juggle multiple obligations until they came into conflict. Does the citizen choose his prime obligation at that time or when he becomes a citizen? The reality is that in many cases, citizenship is seen less as a system of mutual obligations and rights than as a convenience. This creates an obvious tension between the citizen and his obligations under his oath. But it also creates a deep ambiguity between his multiple nationalities. The concept of immigration involves the idea of movement to a new place. It involves the assumption of legal and moral obligations. But it also involves a commitment to the nation, at least as far as citizenship goes. This has nothing to do with retaining ethnicity. It has to do with a definition of what it means to love one's own - if you are a citizen of multiple nations, which nation is yours? It is interesting to note that the United States has been equally ambiguous about serving in other countries' militaries. John Paul Jones served as an admiral in the Russian navy. American pilots flew for Britain and China prior to American entry into World War II. They did not take the citizenship oath, having been born in the United States. While you could argue that there was an implicit oath, you could also argue that they did not compromise their nationality: They remained Americans even in fighting for other countries. The immigration issue is more complex, however. In electing to become American citizens,
immigrants consciously take the citizenship oath. The explicit oath would seem to create a unique set of obligations for naturalized immigrants. The Pull of the Old Country Apart from acquiring convenient passports on obscure tropical islands, the dual citizenship phenomenon appears to operate by linking ancestral homelands with adopted countries. Immigrants, and frequently their children and grandchildren, retain their old citizenship alongside citizenship in the country they now live in. This seems a benign practice and remains so until there is conflict or disagreement between the two countries - or where, as in some cases, the original country demands military service as the price of retaining citizenship. In immigrant countries in particular, the blurring of the line between nationalities becomes a potential threat in a way that it is not for the country of origin. The sense of national identity (if not willingness to sacrifice for it) is often stronger in countries whose nationhood is built on centuries of shared history and fates than it is in countries that must manage waves of immigration. These countries have less room for maneuver on these matters, unless they have the fortune to be secure and need not ask much of citizens. But in those countries that are built on immigrants and that do need to call for sacrifice, this evolution is potentially more troublesome. There are those who regard nationalism as divisive and harmful, leading to conflict. I am of the view that nationalism has endured because it provides individuals with a sense of place, community, history and identity. It gives individuals something beyond themselves that is small enough to be comprehensible but far greater than they are. That nationalism can become monstrous is obviously true; anything that is useful can also become harmful. But nationalism has survived and flourished for a reason. The rise of multiple citizenship undoubtedly provides freedom. But as is frequently the case, the freedom raises the question of what an individual is committed to beyond himself. In blurring the lines between nations, it does not seem that it has reduced conflict. Quite the contrary, it raises the question of where the true loyalties of citizens lie, something unhealthy for the citizen and the nationstate. In the United States, it is difficult to reconcile the oath of citizenship with the Supreme Court's ruling affirming the right of dual citizenship. That ambiguity over time could give rise to serious problems. This is not just an American problem, although it might be more intense and noticeable here. It is a more general question, namely, what does it mean to be a citizen? — Stratfor
SPOTLIGHT
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Inception dreams on as Comic-Con basks in starlight Nolan’s thriller seems bound for blockbuster status, but can it recoup huge costs? Plus, Angelina and Sly lead charge towards comic book convention
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nception’s second weekend at the summit of the North America box-office charts would appear to confirm its blockbuster-elect status after a mere two weekends in play, not to mention soothe the inevitable nerves of Warner Brothers’ top brass on a project of this scale. The movie was an expensive undertaking, although a further $43.5m according to Sunday’s estimates boosts the early tally to $143.7m and sets up what should be a strong run through August. Inception enjoyed a strong weekend internationally, too, and has raced to $227.7m in global ticket sales. These are big numbers but we mustn’t forget the heavy costs that will dilute the pot. Of course Warner Bros and its financing partner on Inception, Legendary Pictures, has faith in the movie, but there are many hurdles to jump before they can rest assured that the movie is a money-spinner. At around $160m in production and a further $100m or so for worldwide marketing (the studios are
notoriously cagey about marketing costs so this is my best guess), the partners are heavily out of pocket before the movie opens. The studio split costs with Legendary and will also split revenues with its partner 50-50 all the way down the waterfall. Before it even gets to that stage, it must subtract talent fees and the increasingly common profit participation deals that are being made these days with the cast and director. The studio also gives away a chunk of money to the theatre chains. But overall, given the movie’s early box office standing, when all is said and done Inception should do well. The DVD and payTV releases that lie in wait and bring in sizeable portions of the ultimate revenue stream, too. Comic-Con draws a constellation Angelina Jolie is unquestionably Hollywood’s leading female action star and on current form is the industry’s biggest female star full stop. Her lead role in Sony’s spy thriller Salt powered the movie to a terrific $36.5m debut in second
place. Jolie dropped in on the annual Comic-Con convention in San Diego on Thursday to promote Salt on Thursday and drew an enthusiastic response from genre fans in the 6,500-seater Hall H. Hollywood jumped on the Comic-Con bandwagon several years ago after studio executives realised the event’s potential as a marketing tool. So it was no surprise to see a constellation of talent descend on San Diego to talk up projects. Oscar winner Jeff Bridges sat in on Disney’s Tron: Legacy panel in a wildly popular presentation of new footage, before Guillermo Del Toro came on stage to announce he will direct The Haunted Mansion, based on a Disney theme park ride. There was even a recorded message from Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow to whet appetites ahead of Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides next summer. The crowds generally lapped up everything that came their way over the four-day event, although the only other events that ran Tron: Legacy close in the popularity
stakes were Warner’s presentation of footage from Zack Snyder’s inthe-works action fantasy Sucker Punch, and Marvel Studios’ starry gathering of The Avengers cast. The latter featured Mark Ruffalo, newly anointed as The Hulk after the studio parted ways with Edward Norton, who, as is widely known, is no pushover on set or in the editing room. A grinning Ruffalo took his place on stage alongside Robert Downey Jr as Iron Man, Chris Evans as Captain America, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, and Samuel Jackson as Nick Fury. On Thursday evening, Lionsgate invited Sylvester Stallone and chums to talk up The Expendables, due out pretty much everywhere in a few weeks. Sly, who wrote, directed and stars, brought along Dolph Lundgren, the buffed-up actor Terry Crews and the legendary US fighters Randy Couture and Steve Austin. Bruce Willis even dropped in for a few minutes. If you could have bottled the testosterone on that stage you’d have come up with a product
that would put Red Bull out of business. Stallone’s low point? Rocky V Sadly there was no Mickey Rourke, Jet Li, Jason Statham or Arnold Schwarzenegger - although California taxpayers will have been pleased to see that the Governator elected to work that day. Nonetheless it was a fun turn-out, and in between the good-natured ribbing, Stallone reminded the crowd that Austin broke Sly’s neck during the shoot. On that note, Stallone joked with Lundgren about how the Scandinavian titan hit him so hard in the chest during Rocky IV that it put him in hospital for nearly a week. Stallone also revealed that Rocky V was a low point in his career. “I was so depressed [after the movie flopped in North America],” he said. “I blew it. I take all the blame for it.” Sixteen years later he returned to the ring with Rocky Balboa (2006) and the critics and audiences were back in his corner. “After I made [Rocky Balboa] I was ready to retire.” —Guardian
ARTS
Friday, July 30, 2010
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Howard Hodgkin - The last English romantic painter Jonathan Jones on the artist whose work is in the best intellectual tradition from Cézanne to Twombly
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t is difficult to look at Howard Hodgkin’s paintings without a picture in your mind of where they might hang when they are not on loan to an exhibition. They are haunted by secret worlds, not only that of the artist, but also those of his collectors. They are paintings for and of the private sphere. Only one work in his captivating exhibition of recent work at Modern Art Oxford has been lent from a museum. The rest have come from houses and apartments, from over the mantelpiece or the bed, from a dark office or a bright dining room . . . you see? You start thinking about these absent places, the homes of the paintings, and the images keep coming. Most suggestive of all is Hodgkin’s little painting Leaf (200709). It belongs, surely, in a study. I imagine it hanging near the door. The walls around it are crammed with natural history specimens - impaled butterflies, glassed-in stag beetles. Old volumes of Darwin and Linnaeus are on the bookcases. Opposite this painting, in playful juxtaposition, is a microscopically precise 19th-century study of a leaf. Outside, through a window honeyed by the glow of the desk lamp, is an orchard. Leaf is a perfect miniature of Hodgkin’s art. In this small picture he distills everything that is original about his vision. Who else would do what Hodgkin does here, and mimic the genre of the botanical study, yet enfurl that tradition of scientific looking in a baroque robe of abstract green? His leaf is a double swirl of louche color, a wild brushstroke enclosed in a battered wooden frame. It is not a realistic leaf yet it responds to the visible world - it is the color of a leaf. It is, we accept, faithful to
reality - but how? How does the world so pervade Hodgkin’s art that each picture, placed in the dry space of an art gallery, seems to carry with it the intimacy of private rooms, the freshness of gardens, the changing light of nature? Some artists emerge fully-formed, perfect, from art school, like David Hockney in the 1960s, glittering in a gold jacket and pop spectacles, painting with an open sensuality. Hodgkin, born in 1932, also had his first exhibitions in the early 60s but to look at his early works, to read the reviews of a shared show at the ICA in 1962 with the - then - far more happening Allen Jones, is to excavate a stuttering, uncertain start. The scion of a famous family, an Eton drop-out, he did not look in his first decade of painting like a central figure in the art of his time. Yet I would argue that alone of all his British contemporaries he has remained loyal to the most interesting and serious artistic insights of the 60s. He is
conventionally praised, and occasionally dismissed, as the last English romantic, a pure painter in the mould of Constable and Turner, an artist who feels. I see him more as an artist who thinks - a philosophical painter. To return to that leaf in Oxford. Hodgkin could have dipped his brush in any colour he liked. He mixed a lime or olive-tinged green, that breaks into streaks of yellow against the bare wooden board, leaving oil stains around it and a clogged sticky pool against the frame. It is also, magically, leaf shaped. This single wide brushstroke, doubled up on itself in a bulbous curve, produces the tapering form of a laurel leaf. Then again, the wispy delicacy of the brushstroke - so casual, so light, so airy - suggests a leaf’s movement in the air, as if it were about to be blown away on an evening breeze. So he gives us the colour of a leaf, the shape of a leaf: and most importantly, the essence of a leaf, which comes of its slightness, its vulnerability to gusts.
This is a systematic, and to me profoundly moving, rethinking of what it is to see an object. Ideas, associations, affinities, memories, longings consitute, for Hodgkin, our real experience of the material world. When we think of a leaf we may have different memories from his, but we never simply see a constellation of cells. The world comes to us already composed of lyrical suggestions. The most ambitious modern artists have wrestled with this complex web of experience ever since Paul Cézanne stared at Mont Sainte-Victoire and, portraying it again and again, infused every rock, every pine branch with his own isolation and turbulent inwardness. In the 1950s and early 60s the inquiry begun by Cézanne was reformulated by three Americans - Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg and Cy Twombly - and I believe these are the artists of that epochal time with whom we should compare Hodgkin. When Johns made an American flag of collaged newsprint embalmed in encaustic, he conveyed the plenitude of stories and perspectives an apparently simple icon could hold; when Rauschenberg put his bed, smeared and spattered with paint, on a gallery wall he invited the beholder to read or invent tales of sex and intimacy in its stains. But most of all Hodgkin resembles Twombly, whose graffiti epics speak of dirty sex and high feeling in grand palatial Roman settings. Like Twombly, he has become better as he has become more openly emotional. It was with paintings of the 1980s whose titles, such as In Bed in Venice (1984-8), or Love Letter (1984-88), convey their intimacy, that Hodgkin discovered the eloquent grandeur of his
maturity. Neither of these pictures is legible in a realist way: but neither is emptily abstract, either. To engage with them is to be caught in knots and shocks of recognition and imagining: to chase after the artist’s encounters and longings. It is in the best intellectual tradition of modern art from Cézanne to Rauschenberg’s Bed and Twombly’s Ferragosto. His exhibition of recent work in Oxford reveals that he is still advancing, and still thinking. Lawn (2009), seems to want to show all the potential colours of grass in different lights, at different seasons, or in the varying vitality of different blades in a single bit of turf, within one unified smear of layered colours. Khaki, yellow, pink, grey, pine and moss all twist together in lines of unmixed oil, like a preparation for a giant microscope. At the very beginning of natural history in art stands Albrecht Durer’s 1503 watercolour The Great Piece of Turf. In this mesmerising observation of nature Durer concentrates his gaze on a tiny section of the world and depicts each blade of grass, each leaf and seed in it with intense accuracy. Hodgkin similarly excavates a crosssection of grass but we have no way of knowing if he has portrayed an entire lawn, or a two-centimeter patch. His painting Big Lawn (200810) is broader, as if seen from further away in the soft light of a summer evening, and Sky (2008-09) induces a moment of vertigo just with two alternating blues - dark and light conveying, in a small golden oval frame, the height and sweep of a Tiepolo heaven. Yet at the same time, and this complicates the show in dark ways, contemporary history intrudes. —Guardian
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C R O S S W O R D
3 7
Friday, July 30, 2010
Word Sleuth Solution
Yesterday’s Solution
ACROSS 1. The central part of a car wheel (or fan or propeller etc) through which the shaft or axle passes. 4. An esoteric or occult matter that is traditionally secret. 10. Not divisible by two. 13. A period marked by distinctive character or reckoned from a fixed point or event. 14. A medicinal drug used to evoke vomiting (especially in cases of drug overdose or poisoning). 15. Seed of a pea plant. 16. Title for a civil or military leader (especially in Turkey). 17. (British) A local tax on property (usually used in the plural). 19. An Anatolian language. 21. Any of various spiny trees or shrubs of the genus Acacia. 23. Mature female of mammals of which the male is called `buck'. 25. The United Nations agency concerned with atomic energy. 32. A fraudulent business scheme. 34. A river that rises in northern Colombia and flows generally eastward to the Orinoco in central Venezuela. 36. A serve that strikes the net before falling into the receiver's court. 37. Being ten more than one hundred forty. 39. Lessen the intensity of. 40. At a previous time. 42. A plant hormone promoting elongation of stems and roots. 44. An amino acid that is found in the central nervous system. 45. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind. 49. A subfamily of Altaic languages. 52. United States swimmer who in 1926 became the first woman to swim the English Channel (1903- ). 56. Slanderous defamation. 59. A river in north central Switzerland that runs northeast into the Rhine. 60. A loose sleeveless outer garment made from aba cloth. 61. Bright with a steady but subdued shining. 63. The 22nd letter of the Greek alphabet. 64. (British) A linear measure of 16.5 feet. 65. West Indian tree having racemes of fragrant white flowers and yielding a durable timber and resinous juice. 66. The dialect of Chinese spoken in Canton and neighboring provinces and in Hong Kong and elsewhere outside China. DOWN 1. A collection of objects laid on top of each other. 2. The capital and largest city of Mongolia. 3. Any of numerous local fertility and nature deities worshipped by ancient Semitic peoples. 4. Candlewood of Mexico and southwestern California having tall columnar stems and bearing honey-scented creamy yellow flowers. 5. With rapid movements. 6. The money risked on a gamble. 7. (informal) Of the highest quality. 8. Baked dish of layers of lasagna pasta with sauce and cheese and meat or vegetables. 9. A radioactive element of the actinide series. 10. An organization of countries formed in 1961 to agree on a common policy for the sale of petroleum. 11. A shop selling delicatessen (as salads or cooked meats). 12. A collection of facts from which conclusions may be drawn. 18. The cry made by sheep. 20. (Old Testament) In Judeo-Christian mythology.
22. Green algae common in freshwater lakes of limestone districts. 24. The branch of computer science that deal with writing computer programs that can solve problems creatively. 26. Type genus of the Aceraceae. 27. Informal terms for a meal. 28. Unknown god. 29. A family of languages of the Fula people of west Africa in the subSahara regions from Senegal to Chad. 30. Someone who works (or provides workers) during a strike. 31. Common Indian weaverbird. 33. (anatomy) Of or relating to the ilium. 35. Primitive chlorophyll-containing mainly aquatic eukaryotic organisms lacking true stems and roots and leaves. 38. A soft silvery metallic element of the alkali earth group. 41. The basic unit of money in Bangladesh. 43. A public promotion of some product or service. 46. English theoretical physicist who applied relativity theory to quantum mechanics and predicted the existence of antimatter and the positron (1902-1984). 47. Cubes of meat marinated and cooked on a skewer usually with vegetables. 48. Swelling from excessive accumulation of serous fluid in tissue. 50. A slight rounded elevation where the malleus attaches to the eardrum. 51. Having been read. 53. Full of zest or vigor. 54. A Loloish language. 55. A member of an Iroquoian people formerly living on the south shore of Lake Erie in northern Ohio and northwest Pennsylvania and western New York. 57. An extension at the end and at right angles to the main building. 58. A unit of length of thread or yarn. 62. A rare silvery (usually trivalent) metallic element.
Yesterday’s Solution
Page 45
Friday, July 30, 2010
COUNTRY CODES
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY Aries (March 21-April 19) Success coach Tom Ferry says our ability to pursue our dreams can be damaged by four addictions: 1. an addiction to what other people think of us; 2. an addiction to creating melodrama in a misguided quest for excitement; 3. an addiction to believing we’re imprisoned by what happened in the past; 4. an addiction to negative thoughts that fill us with anxiety. The good news, Aries, is that in the coming weeks you will find it easier than usual to free yourself from addictions 1, 3, and 4. On the other hand, you may be extra susceptible to addiction 2. So take action to make sure you don’t fall victim to it! What can you do to avoid distracting adventures and trivial brouhahas?
Ta u r u s ( A p r i l 2 0 - M a y 2 0 ) Some of the biggest whales feed primarily on tiny organisms like protozoa, algae, and krill. They swim around with their mouths open, gulping seawater, using filtering structures in their upper jaws to sieve out the stuff they want to eat. Their strategy for getting a meal has resemblances to an approach you may benefit from using: sifting through a lot of superfluous material to get the rich basics you seek. Discernment isn’t the only skill you’ll need; relaxed patience will be crucial, too. Gemini (May 21-June 20) You know about World War II, but do you know about the planet’s worst conflict since then? It was the Second Congo War, involving eight African nations and killing 5.4 million people between 1998 and 2006. You’re painfully aware of the oil hemorrhage in the Gulf of Mexico, but have you heard about the equally horrific catastrophe that an American oil company wreaked on Ecuador from the early 1960s until 1992 (tinyurl.com/EcuadorOil)? I bring these things up, Gemini, because now is an excellent time for you to fill in gaps in your education and learn the rest of any story that you’ve been missing -- not just concerning events in the world but also in regards to your personal history. P.S. Much of what you find, unlike the Congo War and the Ecuadorian oil disaster, may be good news.
Cancer (June 21-July 22) A psychic in Colorado was arrested for bilking her clients. Nancy Marks allegedly told people that their money was possessed by nasty spirits, and that the best solution was to hand the money over to her. The cops claim she collected 290,000 of the evil dollars before she was nabbed. My message to you, Cancerian, is very different from the psychic’s warning: Your bank account has a divine blessing on it. At least temporarily, this makes you a kind of cash magnet; you have an unusual power to attract legal tender. Take advantage! Say this sacred mantra: “O monnee gimmee summ.” Leo (July 23-August 22) Can you force things to grow? Is it possible to induce ripening simply by aggressively exerting your willpower? Normally I’d say no, but these days I think it’s within your capacity. Don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying you could go up to a tomato plant and magically transform mid-size green tomatoes into big orange beauties. But from a metaphorical perspective, you could accomplish something like that. What fragile bud would benefit from bursts of your vitality? What sweet young thing might thrive with your invigorating help? Virgo (August 23-September 22) In James Hillman’s book The Dream and the Underworld, he says something I’ve heard from other researchers -that the majority of dreams we have each night are unpleasant. But that’s not true for me. Way more than 50% of mine are educational, entertaining, and not at all bad or scary. Quite a few have jokes and riddles. Most stretch my understanding of how the world works and motivate me to get smarter about what I’ve been ignorant about. As you enter the Intense Dreaming Phase of your cycle, Virgo, I suspect your nocturnal adventures will resemble mine. Get ready to encounter intriguing characters who’ll have the power to heal you. Talking animals may give you righteous clues about upcoming waking-life decisions. A mercurial teacher could relieve you of a delusion. The wind and rain may play music that dissolves your fear.
Libra (September 23-October 22) During the Tang Dynasty, a golden age of Chinese culture, educated people didn’t use clichéd salutations to begin and end their encounters with each other. No “Hi, how you doing?” or “See you later. Take care.” Instead, they improvised creatively, composing poetic riffs appropriate for the occasion. “Your face is especially bright today. Are you expecting to see a lucky cloud?” or “I’ll bask in your glories again later. In the meantime, may you find a brisk blend of elegance and mischief.” I’d love to see you do something like that, Libra. It’s prime time to boost your alliances to a higher octave. Give more to your collaborators, and ask for more, too. Scorpio (October 23-November 21) I admire people who sweat freely and abundantly while they’re working hard at what they love to do. Singer James Brown, “The Godfather of Soul,” was renowned for his sweltering floods, and so is baseball player Pablo Sandoval. But many unfamous people I’ve known would also be top candidates for King and Queen of Sacred Sweat, like my friend Julia, who practices her passion in the garden, and my friend Luke, who welds giant metal sculptures. I’m hoping you will come into your own as one of this elite group, Scorpio. The omens suggest you’d be wise to raise the heat in your alchemical furnace.
Sagittarius (November 22December 21) The wind coming off the creek has picked up in the last half hour, and so the branches of the lemon tree outside my office window are swaying vehemently in the late afternoon sun. Is the tree upset? No. Is it worried or offended or angry at the wind? Of course not. From what I can tell, it’s enjoying the raucous movement. I can even imagine that it knows how lucky it is: It wouldn’t be able to dance so expressively without the help of the gusts. I hope you’ll interpret your experiences in the coming week with a similar perspective, Sagittarius. Capricorn (December 22January 19) While flying over water, an eagle can spot a fish swimming from 300 feet away. As it prowls through a winter landscape, a coyote can detect the presence of a mouse bustling beneath thick snow. I suspect you’ll have a comparable knack for tuning in to things that are of keen interest, Capricorn, even if they are hidden or located at a distance. To maximize your advantage, get clear about what you’re hungry for. Build a vivid image in your mind’s eye of what you need. Aquarius (January 20February 18) Lola, a woman I know, has mastered the art of self-contradiction. She makes no apologies for the apparent oppositions she gladly contains. For instance, she’s perfectly at ease with the fact that she is not only a lesbian anarchist skater punk who’s a prolific graffiti artist, but also a devout Christian who doesn’t consume drugs or alcohol, drives a Lexus SUV, and volunteers as a massage therapist at a hospice. Your internal paradoxes may or may not be as extreme as hers, Aquarius, but I urge you to express them with the panache that she does. Pisces (February 19-March 20) My friend Erica went to a Chinese herbalist, seeking help for a skin problem that hadn’t been healed by six other doctors. “Very rare condition,” the herbalist told her. There was only one thing he knew that would work: Erica would have to travel to the Ruoergai Marshes in Sichuan Province, China and track down a White-tailed Eagle, whose fresh droppings she would gather up and apply to the affected areas of her skin. As the prospect of such a pilgrimage was daunting, Erica decided instead to simply imagine herself carrying it out. After a week of such meditations, her skin had improved. In 21 days, she wasn’t completely cured, but she was much better. The moral of the story, Pisces: Simply visualizing a heroic healing quest may help fix your glitch.
Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Anguilla Antiga Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Congo Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Cyprus (Northern) Czech Republic Denmark Diego Garcia Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador England (UK) Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guinea Guyana Haiti Holland (Netherlands) Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Ibiza (Spain) Iceland India Indian Ocean Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Italy Ivory Coast Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait
0093 00355 00213 00376 00244 001264 001268 0054 00374 0061 0043 001242 00973 00880 001246 00375 0032 00501 00229 001441 00975 00591 00387 00267 0055 00673 00359 00226 00257 00855 00237 001 00238 001345 00236 00235 0056 0086 0057 00269 00242 00682 00506 00385 0053 00357 0090392 00420 0045 00246 00253 001767 001809 00593 0020 00503 0044 00240 00291 00372 00251 00500 00298 00679 00358 0033 00594 00689 00241 00220 00995 0049 00233 00350 0030 00299 001473 00590 001671 00502 00224 00592 00509 0031 00504 00852 0036 0034 00354 0091 00873 0062 0098 00964 00353 0039 00225 001876 0081 00962 007 00254 00686 00965
Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Liberia Libya Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Macedonia Madagascar Majorca Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar (Burma) Namibia Nepal Netherlands (Holland) Netherlands Antilles New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Nigar Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island Northern Ireland (UK) North Korea Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Romania Russian Federation Rwanda Saint Helena Saint Kitts Saint Lucia Saint Pierre Saint Vincent Samoa US Samoa West San Marino Sao Tone Saudi Arabia Scotland (UK) Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Korea Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tanzania Thailand Toga Tonga Tokelau Trinidad Tunisia Turkey Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom Uruguay
00996 00856 00371 00961 00231 00218 00370 00352 00853 00389 00261 0034 00265 0060 00960 00223 00356 00692 00596 00222 00230 00269 0052 00691 00373 00377 00976 001664 00212 00258 0095 00264 00977 0031 00599 00687 0064 00505 00227 00234 00683 00672 0044 00850 0047 00968 0092 00680 00507 00675 00595 0051 0063 0048 00351 001787 00974 0040 007 00250 00290 001869 001758 00508 001784 00684 00685 00378 00239 00966 0044 00221 00284 00232 0065 00421 00386 00677 00252 0027 0082 0034 0094 00249 00597 00268 0046 0041 00963 00886 00255 0066 00228 00676 00690 001868 00216 0090 00688 00256 00380 00976 0044 00598
WHAT'S ON
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Embassy information
Announcements PABAK tourney: The PABAK organizing committee would like to announce the opening of the PABAK/Western Union 24th Conference Basketball Tournament in the second week of August 2010. Registration in the following categories: Open 5’9” & under, nonleaguers, veterans and intercompany, is now going on at the Kuwait Sports Club for the Disabled gym in Hawally every Friday, through email at: rodcerezo@yahoo.com; or call: 6668954. Early entries: IKEA, Kuwait Cement Co, Wataniya AW, Unisteel, POLO and Caboria Restaurant. FFF Dar Al-Athar survey: Dear friend, we would like to know your opinion for DAI workshops to he held during the upcoming 16th Cultural Season (2010-2011). To make a difference click on the following link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/ Please note that your responses will remain completely anonymous. Thank you for taking part in our survey. Wishing you happy summer holidays looking forward to see you during the 16th Cultural Season. Latest issue of Canvas is available in the Museum Shop. Dar Al-Athar Allslamiyyah. Please note the new summer timings for Al-Maidan Cultural Centre urea 9:00-15 hours Sunday through Thursday. Al-Maidan Cultural Centre Abdullab Al-Salem School, Maidan Hawally, near AlSha’ab Leisure Park. Tel: 25636528 /25636561; Fax: 25653006; Email: membership@darrnuseuimorg.kw; Website: www.darmuseum.org.kw
August 5 Alvernaz-Lalush Memorial Trophy: Navelim Youth Centre (NYC) will organize the Alvernaz-Lalush Memorial Trophy 7-aside football tournament on Aug 5 and 12, 2010 in Kuwait. The entire tournament is sponsored by Churchill Brothers, Goa. Draw of the tournament will be held on Friday, July 30 at Little India Restaurant, Salmiya. The first and second round of the tournament will be played on Aug 5 while the quarter-final stage onwards will be played on Aug 12. All games will be held at Surra Stadium, Block 2, Street 5, of the 4th ring road. Matches will begin from 6:30 pm onwards and wind up by 10 pm. The tournament under the leadership of NYC President Agnello A S Fernandes promises a festivity of football for players and spectators as it is played under floodlights and on International standard 7-aside grounds and rules. In case of matches ending in a draw there will be 5 penalty shoot-outs for each team. It may be noted that last year Navelim organized a grand tournament that included 18 teams. For more details please contact the tournament coordinators at 99671107, 99502686, 99469782 or 66515418. Sept 17 Onam Fest 2010: ‘Vanithavedi Kuwait’ a leading women’s association will be celebrating Onam on Friday, Sept 17, 2010, from 9 am 6 pm at the Indian Community School, Khaitan Branch, the program named as ‘OnamFest 2010’ will have
the public meeting followed by various cultural programs. The traditional Onasadya will be served. For the successful conduct of Onam Fest 2010, a program committee has been formed. Dr Vasanthy Nair (general convenor), Valsamma George, Dr Mary (Joint Convenors), Prasanna Ramabhadran (Arts convenor), Tolly Prakash (Food convenor), Shiny Ajith (Raffle convenor), Sumathy Babu (Souvenir convenor), Valsa Sam (Publicity convenor), Syamala Narayanan, (Reception convenor), Sharlette Albert (Volunteer captain). For more details, contact: 24342807, 66428433, 66596625, 24331598. Theater & Music All level music classes: ‘Treasure of Talents’ (est in 1992) music education program invites all level music classes on piano, theory of music, vocal, flute. Academic Level teachers help prepare for international exams, children concerts, yearly ‘Treasure of Talents’ Festival and music competitions. Contact Prof Cezary, Tel. 25320427, 66549009 of Ms Yasmeene - Berlitz Institute Tel: 22542212. 22512533 or email: treasureoftalents@yahoo.com treasureoftalents@hotmail.com FFF Call to classical music lovers: Are you a lover of music? Would you like to promote the traditional Indian classical music in Kuwait? If your answer is in the affirmative, please write ton more details to music_karnatic@yahoo.co. in (that is, music underscore karnatic) with your contact details or call 7978286.
Aware presents: ‘Fasting in Islam, Christianity and Judaism,’ by Sharifa Carlo
I
s fasting unique to Muslims only? When and how do Jews and Christians fast? Is there any difference in Islam between fasting during Ramadan and other types of fasting? What is the meaning of Ramadan? What were the main reasons as to why people observed fasting in the past? In her 20-minute presentation, Sharifa Carlo will answer all the questions and many more. When? Tuesday August 3, 2010 at 7:00pm.
Sports August 6 Soccer tournament: St Francis Xavier Unity Cup Football Tournament, a 8-a-side football tournament, open for all Indians in Kuwait will be held during Ramadan, starting from Aug 6, at Digital Grounds, Kuwait City. Teams wishing to participate are kindly requested to contact 99663252/66625567 or email: joepcreiral25@hotmail.com for further details. FAST Shoot: Filipino Action Shooting Team (FAST) officials, with the support of Gen. Ahmmed Al Saleem would like to invite everyone to their Fun Shoot every Tuesday from 17:00-21:00 hours. For details contact: Butch Alinea 99816563, Danny San Juan 99540595 Carlos Gutierrez 97270371 and FAST Adviser Manny Cornelio 66737298. FFF FPSC Fun Shoot session: The
Filipino Practical Shooting Club (FPSC) is inviting its members and non-members who are gun sports enthusiast to join us every Thursday at 17:00 hours to 21:00 hours (5 pm to 9 pm) for a fun shoot in practical shooting target continues FPSC will hold a sanction tournament for the Philippine Practical Shooting Association (PPSA) as a requirement for the club affiliation for the year 20l0. All FPSC/PPSA members are obliged to participate in these disciplines. For particulars, please call the following officers: Tony 66600481, Eric 99570689, Jovi 66742419, Rommel 66850748, Dadz 66634012, Sunny 99545917, Joseph 99517467, Ramon 97433824, Ramir 99629631. FFF Football referees coaching classes: Football referee coaching class for new recruits and refresher classes for active members will be
Friday, July 30, 2010
conducted by the Indian Football Referees’ Association (IFRA) Kuwait from today at the Indian English Academy School (Don Bosco Salmiya from 9:30 am onwards). Audio visual aids will be used to enhance the understanding of the laws of the game better. All new candidates desiring to qualify as football referees are requested to contact Sarto Baptista on tel 25611621 (after 6pm), Junifer Rodrigues on tel 25633261 (after 5 pm) and also C O John on 66274017 (Mangaf/Fahaheel/Ahmadi area) for more information. FFF Kuwait Netball Association games: The Kuwait Netball Association games are played on Tuesday evenings between 7:00 pm and 8:30 pm. To register or for more information email: kuwaitnetball@hotmail.com. New players are always welcome.
EMBASSY OF AMERICA The United States Department of State announces the increase in various visa fees to ensure sufficient resources to cover the increasing cost of processing nonimmigrant visas (NIVs). US law requires the Department to recover the cost of processing non-immigrant visas through the collection of the application fees. The increased fees are to take effect June 4, 2010. Under the new rule, applicants for all visas that are not petition-based, including B1/B2 tourist and business visitor visas and all student and exchange-visitor visas, will pay a fee of $140. Applicants for petitionbased visas will pay an application fee of $150, as each of the below categories requires a review of extensive documentation and a more in-depth interview of the applicant than other categories, such as tourists. These categories include: H visa for temporary workers and trainees L visa for intra-company transferees O visa for aliens with extraordinary ability P visa for athletes, artists and entertainers Q visa for international cultural exchange visitors R visa for religious occupations The application fee for K visas for fiance(e)s of US citizens will be $350. The fee for E visas for treatytraders and treaty-investors will be $390. EMBASSY OF INDIA The Embassy of India has further revamped and improved its Legal Advice Clinic at the Indian Workers Welfare Center, and made the free service available to Indian nationals on all five working days, i.e. from Sunday to Thursday every week. Kuwaiti lawyers would be available at the Legal Advice Clinic daily from Monday to Thursday, while Indian lawyers would be available on Sundays. Following are the free welfare services provided at the Indian Workers Welfare Center located at the Embassy of India: [i] 24x7 Helpline for Domestic Workers: Accessible by toll free telephone no. 25674163 from anywhere in Kuwait, it provides information and advice exclusively to Indian domestic sector workers (Visa No. 20) as regards their grievances, immigration and other matters. [ii] Help Desk: It offers guidance to Indian nationals on routine immigration, employment, legal, and other issues (Embassy premises; 9 AM to 1 PM and 2 PM to 4.30 PM, Sunday to Thursday); (iii) Labour Complaints Desk: It registers labor complaints and provides grievance redressal service to Indian workers (Embassy premises; 9 AM to 1 PM and 2 PM to 4.30 PM, Sunday to Thursday); (iv) Shelters: For female and male domestic workers in distress; (v) Legal Advice Clinic: Provides free legal advice to Indian nationals (Embassy premises; Kuwaiti lawyers 3 PM to 5 PM, Monday to Thursday; Indian lawyers 2 PM to 4 PM on Sunday); and (vi) Attestation of Work Contracts: Private sector worker (Visa No. 18) contracts are accepted at the Embassy; 9 AM to 1 PM; Sunday to Thursday; Domestic sector worker (Visa No. 20) contracts are accepted at Kuwait Union of Domestic Labor Offices (KUDLO), Hawally, AlOthman Street, Kurd Roundabout, Al-Abraj Complex, Office No 9, Mezzanine Floor; 9 AM to 9 PM, Saturday to Thursday; 5 PM to 9 PM on Friday. EMBASSY OF NIGERIA The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria wishes to invite all Nigerians residing in Kuwait to come and register with the Embassy. The registration is compulsory for all Nigerians residing /visiting Kuwait. Kindly bring the following documents along with you: • A photocopy of the Nigerian passport • One passport photograph • Copy of the civil identification card or visa For additional information please call: 25620278 or visit the Embassy at Block, 4, Malik Bin Anas Street, Avenue 44, House 31, Along Al-Aqsa Road, Rumaithiya. The Consular Section opens Sunday Thursday from 9 am - 3 pm Your prompt response is highly solicited.
Friday, July 30, 2010
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CLASSIFIEDS
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Friday, July 30, 2010
FOR AIRPORT INFORMATION 161
FLIGHT SCHEDULE
IN CASE YOU ARE NOT TRAVELLING, YOUR PROPER CANCELLATION OF BOOKINGS WILL HELP OTHER PASSENGERS TO USE SEATS. Arrival Flights on Friday 30/07/2010 Airlines Flt Route Wataniya Airways 188 Bahrain Tunis Air 327 Tunis/Dubai Kuwait 544 Cairo Wataniya Airways 306 Cairo Wataniya Airways 434 Damascus Gulf Air 211 Bahrain Middle East 408 Beirut Jazeera 187 Dubai Turkish 772 Istanbul Pakistan 215 Karachi Ethiopian 620 Addis Ababa Air Arabia Egypt 551 Alexandria Egypt Air 614 Cairo Jazeera 267 Beirut DHL 370 Bahrain Emirates 853 Dubai Jazeera 513 Sharm El Sheikh Wataniya Airways 322 Sharm El Sheikh Etihad 305 Abu Dhabi Qatari 138 Doha Jazeera 241 Amman Air France 6770 Paris Jazeera 503 Luxor Jazeera 527 Alexandria British 157 London Kuwait 416 Jakarta/Kuala Lumpur Kuwait 206 Islamabad Kuwait 302 Mumbai Fly Dubai 053 Dubai Kuwait 676 Dubai Kuwait 286 Chittagong Kuwait 352 Cochin Kuwait 284 Dhaka Kuwait 362 Colombo Emirates 855 Dubai Arabia 121 Sharjah Qatari 132 Doha Etihad 301 Abu Dhabi Iran Air 619 Lar Gulf Air 213 Bahrain Wataniya Airways 182 Bahrain Middle East 404 Beirut Wataniya Airways 102 Dubai Jazeera 165 Dubai Yemenia 825 Sanaa Jazeera 171 Dubai Gulf Air 219 Bahrain Egypt Air 610 Cairo Jazeera 457 Damascus Kuwait 672 Dubai Jordanian 800 Amman Wataniya Airways 432 Damascus United 982 Washington DC Dulles Fly Dubai 057 Dubai Jazeera 257 Beirut Wataniya Airways 422 Amman Kuwait 552 Damascus Kuwait 744 Dammam Jazeera 481 Sabiha Qatari 134 Doha Kuwait 546 Alexandria Mihin 403 Colombo/Dubai Jazeera 427 Bahrain Etihad 303 Abu Dhabi Emirates 857 Dubai Gulf Air 215 Bahrain Wataniya Airways 402 Beirut Saudia 510 Riyadh Arabia 125 Sharjah Jazeera 239 Amman Jazeera 367 Deirezzor Srilankan 227 Colombo/Dubai
Time 00:30 00:35 00:50 00:50 00:55 01:05 01:05 01:10 01:15 01:15 01:45 02:00 02:05 02:10 02:15 02:25 02:30 02:35 02:55 03:20 03:20 04:50 05:50 06:20 06:30 06:35 07:15 07:50 07:55 08:00 08:05 08:05 08:10 08:20 08:25 08:40 09:00 09:25 10:40 10:45 10:45 10:50 11:05 11:15 12:00 12:40 12:50 12:55 13:10 13:15 13:35 13:35 13:35 13:50 14:05 14:10 14:35 14:40 14:40 15:05 15:30 16:40 16:50 16:50 16:55 17:15 17:15 17:20 17:40 17:40 17:55 18:00
Wataniya Airways Kuwait Kuwait Wataniya Airways Kuwait Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Jazeera Kuwait Kuwait Kuwait Indian Kuwait Nas Air Fly Dubai Middle East Jet A/L Rovos Saudia Wataniya Airways Wataniya Airways Kuwait Wataniya Airways DHL Gulf Air Jazeera Qatari United Emirates Lufthansa Jazeera Jazeera Egypt Air Shaheen Air KLM Egypt Air Wataniya Airways
304 Cairo 166 Paris/Rome 674 Dubai 106 Dubai 502 Beirut 542 Cairo 497 Riyadh 618 Doha 177 Dubai 614 Bahrain 774 Riyadh 102 New York/London 575 Chennai/Goa 562 Amman 745 Jeddah 061 Dubai 402 Beirut 572 Mumbai 081 Baghdad 506 Jeddah 642 Vienna 404 Beirut 786 Jeddah 632 Rome 372 Bahrain 217 Bahrain 459 Damascus 136 Doha 981 Bahrain 859 Dubai 636 Frankfurt 185 Dubai 429 Bahrain 612 Cairo 441 Lahore/Karachi 0447 Amsterdam/Bahrain 606 Luxor 108 Dubai
Departure Flights on Friday 30/07/2010 Airlines Flt Route Egypt Air 607 Luxor Bangladesh 044 Dhaka India Express 390 Mangalore/Kozhikode Lufthansa 637 Frankfurt Indian 982 Ahmedabad/Hyderabad/Chennai Pakistan 206 Lahore Tunis Air 328 Tunis Turkish 773 Istanbul Pakistan 216 Karachi Air Arabia Egypt 552 Alexandria Egypt Air 615 Cairo DHL 371 Bahrain Emirates 854 Dubai Etihad 306 Abu Dhabi Qatari 139 Doha Air France 6770 Dubai/Hong Kong Wataniya Airways 101 Dubai Jazeera 480 Sabiha Jazeera 164 Dubai Jazeera 456 Damascus Gulf Air 212 Bahrain Wataniya Airways 181 Bahrain Jazeera 256 Beirut Wataniya Airways 431 Damascus British 156 London Jazeera 170 Dubai Kuwait 545 Alexandria Fly Dubai 054 Dubai Kuwait 177 Frankfurt/Geneva Kuwait 671 Dubai Kuwait 117 New York Wataniya Airways 421 Amman Kuwait 551 Damascus
18:35 18:40 18:45 18:45 18:50 18:50 19:00 19:00 19:05 19:20 19:25 19:25 19:30 19:40 20:00 20:05 20:10 20:30 20:30 20:35 20:45 20:50 20:50 21:00 21:00 21:05 21:15 21:35 21:55 22:00 22:30 22:40 22:45 22:55 23:00 23:10 23:15 23:55 Time 00:15 00:15 00:25 00:50 01:05 01:10 01:25 02:15 02:30 02:40 03:05 03:15 03:45 04:00 05:00 06:20 06:50 07:00 07:05 07:45 07:45 07:50 08:05 08:10 08:25 08:30 08:35 08:40 08:55 09:00 09:05 09:10 09:10
Arabia Wataniya Airways Emirates Wataniya Airways Qatari Etihad Wataniya Airways Gulf Air Iran Air Middle East Wataniya Airways Kuwait Kuwait Jazeera Jazeera Kuwait Kuwait Yemenia Gulf Air Jazeera Egypt Air Kuwait Wataniya Airways Jordanian Kuwait Fly Dubai United Jazeera Wataniya Airways Kuwait Kuwait Jazeera Jazeera Kuwait Qatari Kuwait Rovos Etihad Mihin Wataniya Airways Gulf Air Emirates Arabia Jazeera Saudia Srilankan Wataniya Airways Wataniya Airways Jazeera Jazeera Kuwait Kuwait Fly Dubai Nas Air Kuwait Kuwait Oman Air Middle East Jet A/W Wataniya Airways Gulf Air Saudia DHL Kuwait Jazeera Qatari Kuwait Kuwait Emirates Jazeera Jazeera United Jazeera Kuwait Egypt Air
122 631 856 641 133 302 401 214 618 405 303 743 541 238 366 103 501 825 220 426 611 673 105 801 561 058 982 176 403 785 617 496 458 773 135 613 082 304 404 305 216 858 126 184 511 228 407 107 428 266 283 361 062 704 343 331 648 403 571 187 218 507 373 675 612 137 203 301 860 526 636 981 502 411 613
Sharjah Rome Dubai Vienna Doha Abu Dhabi Beirut Bahrain Lar Beirut Cairo Dammam Cairo Amman Deirezzor London Beirut Doha/Sanaa Bahrain Bahrain Cairo Dubai Dubai Amman Amman Dubai Bahrain Dubai Beirut Jeddah Doha Riyadh Damascus Riyadh Doha Bahrain Baghdad Abu Dhabi Dubai/Colombo Cairo Bahrain Dubai Sharjah Dubai Riyadh Dubai/Colombo Beirut Dubai Bahrain Beirut Dhaka Colombo Dubai Riyadh Chennai Trivandrum Muscat Beirut Mumbai Bahrain Bahrain Jeddah Bahrain Dubai Lahore Doha Lahore Mumbai Dubai Alexandria Aleppo Washington DC Dulles Luxor Bangkok/Manila Cairo
Directorate General of Civil Aviation Home Page (www.kuwait-airport.com.kw)
09:20 09:30 09:40 09:45 10:00 10:10 11:35 11:35 11:40 11:50 11:50 11:55 12:00 12:10 12:15 12:30 13:00 13:00 13:55 13:55 13:55 14:25 14:30 14:30 14:35 14:35 14:50 14:55 15:10 15:20 15:35 15:35 15:50 16:05 16:20 16:20 17:00 17:35 17:40 18:05 18:05 18:05 18:20 18:30 18:35 19:10 19:25 19:40 19:50 20:10 20:15 20:20 20:50 20:55 21:00 21:00 21:15 21:20 21:30 21:35 21:55 21:55 22:00 22:10 22:25 22:35 22:40 22:45 23:10 23:20 23:35 23:40 23:40 23:40 23:55
CLASSIFIEDS
Friday, July 30, 2010
ACCOMMODATION Sharing accommodation room available Salmiya near garden, C-A/C building for single or family. Call 97151921. (C 2518) 29-7-2010 Sharing accommodation available for an executive Keralite bachelor from August in Kuwait city. Contact: 60015811, 66877140. (C 2509) Room for sharing, Farwaniya behind Crowne Plaza near Burger King, separate bathroom, C-A/C, internet available, laundry, KD 70 monthly, for
Indonesian/ Filipino. Contact: 66604286, 66925390. (C 2515) 28-7-2010
port road opp Farwaniya bridge just one minute to all route bus stop, Filipina preferred. Contact: 97468551. (C 2513)
Sharing accommodation available for a couple or two working ladies in a two bedroom flat with a small family in Abbassiya, near Time out restaurant from the end of July. Contact: 99272057/ 66015211. (C 2511)
A furnished room with attached bath in spacious C-AC flat with all facilities available in Ashbiliya, a new locality adjacent to Farwaniya. Contact: 99714430. (C 2514) 27-7-2010
Sharing accommodation available in Abbassiya for decent executive bachelor, new building separate room, independent bathroom/ balcony, Kalabhavan building, near UI School. Contact: 97208351. (C 2510) Room available in C-A/C flat for Asian couple, Old Khaitan air-
Sharing accommodation available, Keralite family or working ladies at Abbassiya. Please contact: 97234410. (C 2502) Sharing accommodation available for single decent bachelor,
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non smoking share with family. Opposite Al-Rashid hospital, Shara Amman, Salmiya. Tel: 5651678/ 66232356. (C 2508)
FOR SALE Toyota Corolla - 97 in good running condition, genuine buyers to contact 97314402. (C 2512) Nissan Altima model 2007/V6/2.5 engine metallic grey color, off-white cloth inside km 28000, excellent condition, price KD 2500. Tel: 66161766. (C 2517) 29-7-2010 Toyota Camry 2007 GL golden color, very low mileage well maintained, excellent condition, price KD 3650. Contact: 66015265. (C 2504) Toyota Camry 2006 GLI silver
No:
color, with alloy wheel, remote key, fog lamp, wooden decor, excellent condition. Price KD 2950. Contact: 66033875. (C 2505) Mitsubishi Nativa GLS, model 2007, color light blue, done km 47,000, very good condition, price KD 2,700. Contact: 66211779. (C 2503) 26-7-2010
SITUATION WANTED
BABYSITTING
Indian male secretary is looking for immediate placement. 12 years Kuwait experience - complete secretarial/office administration works. Well experienced in independent correspondence/coordination / local purchase/ construction tendering works. Call: 66597087. (C 2501) 25-7-2010
Reliable babysitting available in Khaitan, opp Kuwait Clinic. Contact: 66473041. 18-7-2010 SITUATION VACANT
English-speaking maid wanted. Please call 60055305, 23741548 25-7-2010
14805
PRIVATE CLINICS Ophthalmologists: Dr. Abidallah Al-Mansoor 5622444 Dr. Samy Al-Rabeea 5752222 Dr. Masoma Habeeb 5321171 Dr. Mubarak Al-Ajmy 5739999 Dr. Mohsen Abel 5757700 Dr Adnan Hasan Alwayl 5732223 Dr. Abdallah Al-Baghly 5732223 Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT): Dr. Ahmed Fouad Mouner Dr. Abdallah Al-Ali Dr. Abd Al-Hameed Al-Taweel Dr. Sanad Al-Fathalah Dr. Mohammad Al-Daaory Dr. Ismail Al-Fodary Dr. Mahmoud Al-Booz
4555050 Ext 510 5644660 5646478 5311996 5731988 2620166 5651426
General Practitioners: Dr. Mohamme Y Majidi Dr. Yousef Al-Omar Dr. Tarek Al-Mikhazeem Dr. Kathem Maarafi Dr. Abdallah Ahmad Eyadah Dr. Nabeel Al-Ayoobi Dr. Dina Abidallah Al-Refae
4555050 Ext 123 4719312 3926920 5730465 5655528 4577781 5333501
Urologists: Dr. Ali Naser Al-Serfy 2641534 Dr. Fawzi Taher Abul 2639955 Dr. Khaleel Abidallah Al-Awadi 2616660
Dr. Adel Al-Hunayan FRCS (C) 5313120 Plastic Surgeons: Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalaf Dr. Abdal-Redha Lari Dr. Abdel Quttainah
2547272 2617700 5625030/60
Family Doctor: Dr Divya Damodar
3729596/3729581
Psychiatrists Dr. Esam Al-Ansari Dr Eisa M. Al-Balhan
2635047 2613623/0
Gynaecologists & Obstetricians: Dr Adrian Harbe Dr. Verginia s.Marin Dr. Fozeya Ali Al-Qatan Dr. Majeda Khalefa Aliytami Dr. Ahmad Al-Khooly Dr. Salem soso
3729596/3729581 572-6666 ext 8321 2655539 5343406 5739272 2618787
General Surgeons: Dr. Abidallah Behbahani 5717111 Dr. Amer Zawaz Al-Amer 2610044 Dr. Mohammad Yousef Basher 5327148
Dr. Latefa Al-Duweisan Dr. Nadem Al-Ghabra Dr. Mobarak Aldoub Dr Nasser Behbehani
5728004 5355515 4726446 5654300/3
Paediatricians: Dr. Abd Al-Aziz Al-Rashed Dr. Zahra Qabazard Dr. Sohail Qamar Dr. Snaa Maaroof Dr. Pradip Gujare Dr. Zacharias Mathew
5340300 5710444 2621099 5713514 3713100 4334282
(1) Ear, Nose and Throat (2) Plastic Surgeon Dr. Abdul Mohsin Jafar, FRCS (Canada) 5655535
2639939 2666300
Endocrinologist: Dr. Abd Al-Naser Al-Othman 5339330 Dr. Ahmad Al-Ansari 5658888 Dr. Kamal Al-Shomr 5329924 Physiotherapists & VD: Dr. Deyaa Shehab Dr. Musaed Faraj Khamees
5722291 2666288
Rheumatologists: Dr. Adel Al-Awadi 5330060 Dr. Khaled Al-Jarallah 5722290
Dentists: Dr Anil Thomas Dr. Shamah Al-Matar Dr. Anesah Al-Rasheed Dr. Abidallah Al-Amer Dr. Faysal Al-Fozan Dr. Abdallateef Al-Katrash Dr. Abidallah Al-Duweisan Dr. Bader Al-Ansari
3729596/3729581 2641071/2 2562226 2561444 2619557 2525888 5653755 5620111
Internists, Chest & Heart: Dr. Adnan Ebil Dr. Mousa Khadada
Gastrologists Dr. Sami Aman 2636464 Dr. Mohammad Al-Shamaly 5322030 Dr. Foad Abidallah Al-Ali 2633135
Neurologists: Dr. Sohal Najem Al-Shemeri 5633324 Dr. Jasem Mola Hassan 5345875
Internist, Chest & Heart: DR.Mohammes Akkad 4555050 Ext 210 Dr. Mohammad Zubaid MB, ChB, FRCPC, PACC Assistant Professor Of Medicine Head, Division of Cardiology Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital Tel: 5339667 Dr. Farida Al-Habib MD, PH.D, FACC Consultant Cardiologist Tel: 2611555-2622555
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Friday, July 30, 2010
TV Listings Orbit /Showtime Channels
00:00 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00
My Own Worst Enemy Without a Trace Ghost Whisperer Sons of Anarchy Without a Trace Dawson’s Creek ER My Own Worst Enemy Defying Gravity Warehouse 13 Ghost Whisperer The Ex-List ER Burn Notice Ghost Whisperer Without a Trace Defying Gravity Warehouse 13 My Own Worst Enemy Bachelor Friday Night Lights Big Love Kings True Blood
00:45 01:40 02:35 Baker 03:30 04:25 04:50 05:20 05:45 06:10 06:35 07:00 07:25 07:50 08:45 09:10 09:40 10:05 10:55 11:20 11:50 12:45 13:10 13:40 14:35 15:00 15:30 16:25 17:20 18:15 19:10 20:10 21:05 22:00 22:55 23:50
Animal Cops Houston Untamed & Uncut Weird Creatures with Nick The Planet’s Funniest Animals Breed All About It Breed All About It Wildlife SOS International Gorilla School RSPCA: On the Frontline Up Close and Dangerous Animal Crackers Meerkat Manor The Planet’s Funniest Animals Breed All About It Breed All About It Wildlife SOS International Killer Crocs of Costa Rica Gorilla School RSPCA: On the Frontline Animal Precinct E-Vets: The Interns Pet Rescue Animal Cops Miami Wildlife SOS International RSPCA: On the Frontline Killer Crocs of Costa Rica The Planet’s Funniest Animals Groomer Has It Great Ocean Adventures Killer Whales Animal Cops Houston Untamed & Uncut Whale Wars Animal Cops Miami Killer Whales
00:15 00:45 01:15 01:45 02:30 03:00 03:25 03:45 03:55 04:15 04:40 05:00 05:10 05:30 05:55 06:15 06:40 07:00 07:10 07:30 07:55 08:15 08:25 08:45 09:10 09:30 10:00 11:00 11:30 12:00 12:45 13:15 13:45 14:15 15:15 15:45
Suburban Shootout Green Green Grass Ideal The Weakest Link Last Of The Summer Wine Teletubbies Me Too Tellytales Tweenies Teletubbies Me Too Tellytales Tweenies Teletubbies Me Too Teletubbies Me Too Tellytales Tweenies Teletubbies Me Too Tellytales Tweenies Teletubbies Me Too Mastermind 2006 Coast Last Of The Summer Wine Last Of The Summer Wine The Weakest Link Eastenders Doctors Mastermind 2006 Coast Last Of The Summer Wine Last Of The Summer Wine
16:15 17:00 17:30 18:00 19:30 20:00 20:45 21:15 22:15 22:45 23:35
The Weakest Link Doctors Eastenders The Only Boy For Me Mastermind 2007 The Weakest Link Doctors The Whistleblowers Love Soup The Jonathan Ross Show New Tricks
00:25 00:50 01:15 02:00 02:45 03:30 03:55 04:15 05:05 05:30 06:30 07:00 07:20 08:10 09:05 09:50 10:10 10:30 11:00 11:25 12:10 12:50 13:40 14:30 15:20 16:05 16:50 17:35 18:00 18:55 19:45 20:15 20:40 21:05 21:50 22:40 23:30
Ainsley’s Gourmet Express Ching’s Kitchen Ty’s Great British Adventure Fantasy Homes In The City Come Dine With Me Hidden Potential Cash In The Attic Usa Bargain Hunt Ainsley’s Gourmet Express Masterchef Goes Large Hidden Potential Cash In The Attic Usa Antiques Roadshow Living In The Sun Bargain Hunt Hidden Potential Cash In The Attic Usa Ainsley’s Gourmet Express Ching’s Kitchen Ty’s Great British Adventure Fantasy Homes In The City Come Dine With Me Antiques Roadshow Living In The Sun Bargain Hunt Ty’s Great British Adventure Fantasy Homes In The City Ching’s Kitchen Antiques Roadshow Come Dine With Me Masterchef Goes Large Trish’s Mediterranean Kitchen Chuck’s Day Off Fantasy Homes In The City Living In The Sun Come Dine With Me Masterchef Goes Large
01:15 Ma Place Au Soleil-PG15 03:00 Humboldt County-18 05:00 Surviving Picasso-18 07:15 Nights In Rodanthe-PG15 09:00 What Rats Won’t Do-PG15 11:00 Juno-PG15 12:45 Morning Light-PG 14:30 The Bridges Of Madison County-PG15 17:00 L’age Des Tenebres-PG15 19:00 Charlotte Gray-PG15 21:00 Tip Toes-18 23:00 The Juror-18
00:00 01:00 02:00 02:55 03:50 04:45 05:40 06:05 07:00 07:55 08:50 09:45 10:40 11:35 12:00 12:30 12:55 13:50 14:45 15:40 16:35 17:30 18:30 19:00 19:30 20:00 20:30 21:00 22:00 23:00
Ross Kemp on Gangs Street Customs 2008 Dirty Jobs Destroyed in Seconds Extreme Explosions Mythbusters How Stuff’s Made Dirty Jobs Extreme Explosions Street Customs 2008 Mythbusters Ultimate Survival Overhaulin’ Border Security How Stuff’s Made How It’s Made Mythbusters Miami Ink Ultimate Survival Dirty Jobs Deadliest Catch Mythbusters Cake Boss Border Security The Gadget Show How It’s Made How Stuff’s Made Wheeler Dealers Construction Intervention Ultimate Car Build-Off
00:30 Perfect Disaster
01:20 02:10 03:00 03:50 04:45 05:10 05:40 06:10 07:00 08:00 09:00 16:20 16:50 17:45 18:40 19:30 20:20 21:10 22:00 22:50 23:40
00:15 00:35 01:00 01:25 01:50 02:15 02:35 03:00 03:25 03:50 04:15 04:40 05:05 05:30 05:55 06:20 06:40 07:05 07:25 07:50 08:10 08:35 09:00 09:10 09:35 10:00 10:20 10:45 11:00 11:25 11:50 12:15 12:40 13:00 13:25 13:50 14:15 14:35 15:00 15:25 15:50 16:15 16:40 17:05 17:30 17:55 18:15 18:40 19:00 19:25 19:45 20:10 20:35 21:00 21:25 21:45 22:10 22:35 23:00 23:25
Catch It Keep It I, Videogame Beyond Tomorrow The Kustomizer How Does That Work? Weird Connections One Step Beyond Perfect Disaster The Kustomizer NASA’s Greatest Missions The Future of... How Does That Work? Brainiac Mythbusters The Gadget Show Sci-Fi Science How It’s Made Building the Biggest The Gadget Show Sci-Fi Science Building the Biggest
Suite Life On Deck Jonas Sonny With A Chance Hannah Montana Hannah Montana Jonas The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody FAIRLY ODD PARENTS Replacements Phineas & Ferb Hannah Montana Kim Possible A KIND OF MAGIC FAIRLY ODD PARENTS Replacements STITCH Wizards of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Sonny With A Chance FAIRLY ODD PARENTS Phineas & Ferb TIMMY TIME SPECIAL AGENT OSO Handy Manny IMAGINATION MOVERS Mickey Mouse Clubhouse JUNGLE JUNCTION FAIRLY ODD PARENTS Phineas & Ferb Wizards of Waverly Place Sonny With A Chance Hannah Montana Hannah Montana Jonas Sonny With A Chance Wizards of Waverly Place Suite Life On Deck FAIRLY ODD PARENTS Replacements Phineas & Ferb Hannah Montana Kim Possible A KIND OF MAGIC FAIRLY ODD PARENTS Replacements STITCH Wizards of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Sonny With A Chance FAIRLY ODD PARENTS Phineas & Ferb Suite Life On Deck Wizards of Waverly Place Hannah Montana Jonas Suite Life On Deck Sonny With A Chance Hannah Montana Wizards of Waverly Place
00:15 Leave It To Lamas 00:40 Dr 90210 06:00 15 Unforgettable Hollywood Tragedies 07:45 Style Star 08:10 Style Star 08:35 E! News 09:00 The Daily 10 09:25 Denise Richards: It’s Complicated 09:50 Leave It To Lamas 10:15 THS 12:00 E! News 12:25 The Daily 10 12:50 Battle of the Hollywood Hotties 13:15 Pretty Wild 13:40 Keeping Up with the Kardashians 14:05 Kendra 14:30 Dr 90210 15:25 THS 16:15 E! News 16:40 Behind the Scenes
17:10 Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane 18:00 E! News 18:25 The Daily 10 18:50 Wildest TV Show Moments 19:15 Pretty Wild 19:40 THS 20:30 THS 21:20 Kendra 21:45 Kendra 22:10 E! News 22:35 The Daily 10 23:00 Keeping Up with the Kardashians 23:25 Kourtney & Khloé Take Miami 23:50 Pretty Wild
00:00 Shack Therapy 1 01:00 China Invitational 2009 02:00 M1 Challange 03:00 Cape Epic 03:30 Cape Epic 04:00 Railmasters 1 04:30 Roxy Jam 05:00 I-Ex Season 2 08:00 Bmx Megatour 09:00 Chaz Sands Invitational 2009 1 10:00 Winter X Games 14 11:00 Lucas Oil Ama Motocross Championships 20 12:00 Lucas Oil Ama Motocross Championships 20 13:00 Ticket To Ride 2009-2010 Ep 9 13:30 Ticket To Ride 2009-2010 Ep 10 14:00 Winter X Games 14 15:00 Lucas Oil Ama Motocross Championships 20 16:00 Lucas Oil Ama Motocross Championships 20 17:00 Bmx Megatour 18:00 Chaz Sands Invitational 2009 1 19:00 Winter X Games 14 20:00 Lucas Oil Ama Motocross Championships 20 21:00 Lucas Oil Ama Motocross Championships 20 22:00 Ticket To Ride 2009-2010 Ep 9 22:30 Ticket To Ride 2009-2010 Ep 10 23:00 M1 Challange
00:00 Chopped 01:00 30 Minute Meals 01:30 Tyler’s Ultimate 02:00 Iron Chef America 03:00 Barefoot Contessa 03:30 Everyday Italian 04:00 Chopped 05:00 Throwdown With Bobby Flay 05:30 Guys Big Bite 06:00 Iron Chef America 07:00 30 Minute Meals 07:25 Tyler’s Ultimate 07:50 Guys Big Bite 08:15 Barefoot Contessa 08:40 Everyday Italian 09:05 30 Minute Meals 09:30 Tyler’s Ultimate 10:00 Guys Big Bite 10:30 Barefoot Contessa 11:00 Everyday Italian 11:30 Food Network Challenge 12:30 Guys Big Bite 13:00 Tyler’s Ultimate 13:30 Guys Big Bite 14:00 Barefoot Contessa 14:30 Everyday Italian 15:00 30 Minute Meals 15:30 Throwdown With Bobby Flay 16:00 Iron Chef America 17:00 Barefoot Contessa 17:30 Everyday Italian 18:00 30 Minute Meals 18:30 Guys Big Bite 19:00 Throwdown With Bobby Flay 19:30 Tyler’s Ultimate 20:00 Iron Chef America 21:00 Extreme Cuisine with Jeff Corwin 22:00 Chopped 23:00 Throwdown With Bobby Flay 23:30 Guys Big Bite
01:00 Golf Central International 01:30 PGA Championship Highlights 1969 Raymond Floyd 02:30 All Star Golf - Arnold Palmer v Bob Rosburg 03:30 Celebrity Golf - Milton Berle 04:00 European Tour The 3 Irish Open Rd. 1 Ireland 07:00 MLB: St. Louis Cardinals at
Yes Man on Super Movies New York Mets 10:00 PGA Tour: The Greenbrier Classic Rd. 1 White Sulpher Springs, WV 13:00 Golf Central International 13:30 World Sport 2010 14:00 ATP Tour: Atlanta Tennis Championships Final Atlanta, 16:00 2009 PGA TOUR Playoffs For the FedEx Cup Official Film 17:00 European Tour The 3 Irish Open Rd. 2 Ireland 20:00 FIM Supermoto Sankt Wendel Germany 21:00 FIM Motocross Kegums, Latvia 22:00 PGA Tour: The Greenbrier Classic Rd. 2 White Sulpher Springs, WV
00:30 01:20 02:10 03:05 04:00 04:55 05:20 06:10 06:35 07:00 07:50 08:40 09:30 10:20 11:10 12:00 12:50 13:40 14:30 15:20 16:10 17:00 17:50 18:40 19:30 20:20 21:10 22:00 22:50 23:40
A Haunting FBI Files Dr G: Medical Examiner Disappeared Forensic Detectives Real Emergency Calls Dr G: Medical Examiner Ghosthunters Ghosthunters Forensic Detectives FBI Files CSU Mystery ER Forensic Detectives FBI Files Diagnosis: Unknown Solved Mystery ER Forensic Detectives FBI Files CSU Mystery ER Forensic Detectives FBI Files Diagnosis: Unknown Solved Mystery ER Extreme Forensics Extreme Forensics Dr G: Medical Examiner
01:15 The Object of Beauty 02:55 Wild Orchid 04:45 3 Strikes 06:05 Howling II: Your Sister Is A Werewolf 07:35 The Playboys 09:20 A Home Of Our Own 11:05 The Cure 12:40 Getting Even With Dad 14:25 A Shot In The Dark 16:05 Where Angels Fear to Tread
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The Pink Panther The Devil’s Brigade Retroactive Movers & Shakers
00:30 Banged Up Abroad 01:30 Bondi Rescue 02:00 Bondi Rescue 02:30 The Best Job In The World 03:00 Don’t Tell My Mother 03:30 Bondi Rescue 04:00 Madventures 04:30 Madventures 05:00 Pressure Cook 05:30 Lonely Planet- Roads Less Travelled 06:30 Banged Up Abroad 07:30 Bondi Rescue 08:00 Bondi Rescue 08:30 The Best Job In The World 09:00 Don’t Tell My Mother 09:30 Bondi Rescue 10:00 Madventures 10:30 Madventures 11:00 Exploring The Vine 11:30 Lonely Planet- Roads Less Travelled 12:30 Banged Up Abroad 13:30 Weird And Wonderful Hotels 14:00 Weird And Wonderful Hotels 14:30 Somewhere In China 15:30 Bondi Rescue 16:00 Banged Up Abroad 17:00 Exploring The Vine 17:30 Lonely Planet- Roads Less Travelled 18:30 Banged Up Abroad 19:30 Weird And Wonderful Hotels 20:00 Weird And Wonderful Hotels 20:30 Somewhere In China 21:30 Bondi Rescue 22:00 Banged Up Abroad 23:00 Exploring The Vine 23:30 Lonely Planet- Roads Less Travelled
00:00 Modern Family 00:30 Til Death 01:00 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 01:30 The Colbert Report 02:00 Late night with Jimmy Fallon 03:00 Inbetweeners 03:30 Weeds 04:00 South park 04:30 George Lopez 05:00 Just Shoot me! 05:30 Late night with Jimmy Fallon 06:30 Everybody Loves Raymond 07:00 Eight Simple Rules 07:30 The Fresh Prince of Bel Air 08:00 Frasier
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Friday, July 30, 2010 08:30 Just Shoot me! 09:00 George Lopez 09:30 The Drew Carey show 10:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 10:30 Eight Simple Rules 11:00 Frasier 11:30 New Adventures of old Christine 12:00 Late night with Jimmy Fallon 13:00 The Drew Carey show 13:30 Just Shoot me! 14:00 George Lopez 14:30 Til Death 15:00 Modern Family 15:30 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 16:00 The Colbert Report 16:30 Ten Things I hate about you 17:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 17:30 Frasier 18:00 The Simpsons 18:30 Gary Unmarried 19:00 Kath & Kim 19:30 Two and a half men 20:00 Late night with Jimmy Fallon 21:00 The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 21:30 The Colbert Report 22:00 Reggie Perrin 22:30 Mumbai calling 23:00 South park 23:30 The Simpsons
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What’s Good For You 10 Years Younger Look A Like Jimmy Kimmel Live! The Monique Show The Tonight show with Jay Leno GMA (repeat) GMA Health What’s the Buzz What’s Good For You The View The Ellen DeGeneres Show What’s Good For You GMA Live GMA Health What’s the Buzz The Tonight show with Jay Leno Look A Like 10 Years Younger The View The Ellen DeGeneres Show Jimmy Kimmel Live! The Tonight show with Jay Leno The Monique Show
00:30 Celebrity Real Life Stories 01:00 Orbit Block 02:00 Daily Top 5 02:30 Sports Block: Shakey’s V League New Season 2010 04:30 The Main Event 05:30 CHB (Celebrity Home And Business) 06:00 Stop, Talk And Listen 07:00 Siquijor Mystic Island 09:00 Celebrity Real Life Stories 09:30 Daily Top 5 10:00 The Main Event 11:00 Sports Block: Shakey’s V League New Season 2010 13:00 CHB (Celebrity Home And Business) 13:30 Stop, Talk And Listen 14:30 Siquijor Mystic Island 16:30 Celebrity Real Life Stories 17:00 Orbit Block 17:30 Daily Top 5 18:00 Sports Block: Shakey’s V League New Season 2010 20:00 The Main Event 21:00 CHB (Celebrity Home And Business) 21:30 Stop, Talk And Listen 22:30 Siquijor Mystic Island
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Special Agent OSO Handy Manny Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Imagination Movers Special Agent OSO Jungle Junction Handy Manny Higglytown Heroes Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Little Einsteins Imagination Movers Special Agent OSO Handy Manny Higglytown Heroes Mickey Mouse Clubhouse My Friends Tigger And Pooh Little Einsteins Imagination Movers
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Handy Manny Higglytown Heroes Special Agent OSO Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Imagination Movers Lazytown Handy Manny Higglytown Heroes Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Little Einsteins Imagination Movers Handy Manny Higglytown Heroes Special Agent OSO Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Handy Manny
02:00 Split Ends 03:00 Dude, Where’s Your Style? 04:00 Millennium Fashion: The Year In Fashion 05:00 Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane 05:30 Area 06:00 How Do I Look? 07:00 Style Star 07:30 Style Her Famous 08:00 My Celebrity Home 09:00 Style Star 09:30 Dress My Nest 10:00 Whose Wedding Is it Anyway? 11:00 How Do I Look? 12:00 Ruby 13:00 Clean House 14:00 Clean House Comes Clean 14:30 Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane 15:00 Dr 90210 16:00 Whose Wedding Is it Anyway? 17:00 Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane 18:00 The Dish 18:30 Style Her Famous 19:00 Jerseylicious 20:00 Tacky House 20:30 Clean House Comes Clean 21:00 How Do I Look? 22:00 Dallas Divas & Daughters 22:30 Dallas Divas & Daughters 23:00 Giuliana & Bill
00:30 The House Bunny-18 02:15 Tenderness-18 04:00 Keith-PG15 06:00 Jonas Brothers Concert-PG 08:00 Temple Grandin-PG15 10:00 Honeydripper-PG15 12:15 A Previous Engagement-PG15 14:15 College Road Trip-PG 16:00 Temple Grandin-PG15 18:00 Nick And Norah’s Infinite Playlist-PG15 20:00 Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen-PG15 22:30 Seven Pounds-PG15
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01:00 Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation-18 03:00 Basic Instinct 2-R 05:00 Kung Fu Hustle-PG15 07:00 Prisoner-PG 09:00 Changing Lanes-18 11:00 Double Team-PG15 13:00 Battle Of Wits-PG15 15:15 Changing Lanes-18 17:00 Inside Ring-PG15 19:00 Revolver-18 21:00 In Bruges-18 23:00 Night Of The Living Dead 3-D-R
00:00 Skills Like This-PG15 02:00 The Match-PG15 04:00 Bridal Fever-PG 06:00 Mr. Magoriums Wonder Emporium-FAM 08:00 Touch And Go-PG 10:00 Orange County-PG15 12:00 The Broken Hearts Club-PG 14:00 Futurama: Beast With A Billion Backs-PG15 16:00 Skills Like This-PG15 18:00 In And Out-PG15 20:00 Wag The Dog-PG 22:00 Van Wilder: Party Liaison-PG15
00:00 Barbie And The Three Musketeers-PG 02:00 Kung Fu Panda-PG 04:00 The Jungle Book IV: Hate And Love-FAM 06:00 Legend Of The Titanic-FAM 08:00 Simba Junior To The World CupFAM 10:00 The Jungle Book IV: Hate And Love-FAM 12:00 Papelucho And The MartianFAM 14:00 Kung Fu Panda-PG 16:00 Au Pair 3: Adventure In Paradise-PG 18:00 Sing To The Dawn-FAM 20:00 Bolt-FAM 22:00 Papelucho And The MartianFAM
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Heroes The Closer Cold Case In Plain Sight Three Sisters Home Improvement Psych Emmerdale Huey’s Cooking Adventure Cold Case Three Sisters Home Improvement In Plain Sight Psych Cold Case Emmerdale Huey’s Cooking Adventure Grey’s Anatomy Grey’s Anatomy Grey’s Anatomy Grey’s Anatomy
College Road Trip on Show Movies 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00
24 24 Flash Forwards Psych In Plain Sight
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AFL Highlights Futbol Mundial Total Rugby Brazil League Highlights World Sport Super League Super League Live AFL Premiership Futbol Mundial ICC Cricket World Total Rugby World Sport NRL Full Time ICC Cricket World Live Cricket Test Match ICC Cricket World Triatholn World Sport Live Super League
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Triathlon Masters Football Total Rugby World Sport Futbol Mundial Brazil League Highlights PGA European Tour Live ITM Cup Rugby Live NRL Premiership World Sport Triathlon Total Rugby European Tour Weekly Live PGA European Tour Live Currie Cup PGA European Tour
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WWE NXT UFC Unleashed UFC 116 WWE NXT UFC Unleashed WWE NXT WWE Vintage Collection Red Bull X-Fighters Highlights V8 Supercars V8 Supercars WWE NXT WWE Vintage Collection Live The Evian Masters Mobil 1 The Grid UFC The Ultimate Fighter V8 Supercars Extra WWE Smackdown WWE Bottom Line FIM World Cup Live Red Bull X-Fighters
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Little Children-18 Where God Left His Shoes-PG Meet Dave-PG The Firm-PG15 Hannah Montana Movie-PG Music And Lyrics-PG Northern Lights-PG Taking A Chance On Love-PG15 Hannah Montana Movie-PG Yes Man-PG15 The Reader-18 Wanted-18
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Coma The Screening Room Vampira National Lampoon’s
Movie
Madness 07:00 Ben-Hur 10:25 Hotel Paradiso 12:00 Lust For Life 14:00 Elvis On Tour 15:35 The Sunshine Boys 17:25 Raintree County 20:25 On The Town 22:00 Ice Station Zebra
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Cities of the Underworld Ancient Discoveries Prehistoric Mega Storms Declassified Mega Disasters Modern Marvels Ax Men 2 Cities of the Underworld Ancient Discoveries Prehistoric Mega Storms Declassified Mega Disasters Modern Marvels Ax Men 2 Cities of the Underworld Ancient Discoveries Prehistoric Mega Storms Declassified Mega Disasters Modern Marvels Ax Men 2 Cities of the Underworld Ancient Discoveries Prehistoric Mega Storms Investigating History Seven Deadly Sins Cities of the Underworld UFO Files
00:00 Dr 90210 01:00 Millennium Fashion: The Year In Fashion
Hit US Urban Hit Playlist French Only Playlist Urban Hit Playlist Africa Playlist Urban Hit Playlist Trace Video Mix New Playlist Club 10 Playlist
00:00 Julian and Camilla’s World Odyssey 01:00 Travel Notebook 02:00 Julian and Camilla’s World Odyssey 03:00 Intrepid Journeys 04:00 Globe Trekker 05:00 Planet Food 06:00 Julian and Camilla’s World Odyssey 07:00 Globe Trekker 08:00 Luxury Getaways 08:30 Distant Shores 09:00 Top Travel 09:30 Cutting Edge California 10:00 Planet Food 11:00 Julian and Camilla’s World Odyssey 12:00 Globe Trekker 13:00 Chef Abroad 13:30 The Thirsty Traveler 14:00 Feast India 14:30 Distant Shores 15:00 Top Travel 15:30 Cutting Edge California 16:00 Globe Trekker 17:00 Luxury Getaways 17:30 Chef Abroad 18:00 Planet Food 19:00 Globe Trekker 20:00 Globe Trekker 21:00 Working Holiday 22:00 Budapest to Bamako 2010 22:30 Great Scenic Railways-US & Canada 23:00 Globe Trekker
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American Dragon American Dragon Kid Vs Kat Power Rangers Rpm I’m In The Band Kick Buttowski Suite Life On Deck Phil Of The Future Phineas & Ferb Kid Vs Kat The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody Zeke & Luther American Dragon I’m In The Band Shreducation Zeke & Luther Zeke & Luther Phineas & Ferb Kick Buttowski I’m In The Band Phineas & Ferb Shreducation The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody The Suite Life Of Zack & Cody
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Miranda Kerr will have a
Anistonʼs perfume inspired by memories
‘crazy-hot baby’
ennifer Aniston’s signature fragrance is inspired by her past. The ‘Friends’ star - who launched her self-titled aroma in British department store Harrods last week claims her perfume comes from her own “personal library” of scents from her younger years in California. Discussing the perfume’s creation, Jennifer told Stylist magazine: “It really was an exciting process and the only reason I was actually interested in doing it was because of the involvement that they allowed me to have. “I wanted this fragrance to be a personal library of scent memories. Growing up in California, I distinctly remember the scent of jasmine on summer evenings. I consider the scent of the ocean to be one of life’s most uplifting sensual experiences.” Just prior to the launch of her fragrance in London, the actress altered the name of the perfume from Lolavie, its original name, to Jennifer Aniston. Perfume blog The Scented Salamander proposed the original unusual name was changed because of people trying to understand what it mean. They wrote: “We can only speculate that the fragrance marketing teams decided the idea of the name was cute but would be constant fodder for psychoanalysts, bloggers and tabloids. In the UK, the latter are famously fierce. They would have probably gone digging in her trash bins to see if they could dig out a reasonable explanation for the name Lolavie.”
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he pregnant Australian catwalk beauty’s fellow Victoria’s Secret model Jessica White has congratulated Miranda and her husband Orlando Bloom on their happy news and insists the tot couldn’t get a better start in life when it comes to good looking genes. Jessica told America’s OK! magazine: “She’s preggos! I’m very excited. “I’m happy for her. Love is in the air, and good for her. I think she and Orlando make a really beautiful couple and they’ve been together for a while, so I wish them all the best. And it’s going to be a crazy-hot baby.” The pregnancy news broke yesterday with Miranda reportedly telling friends she was expecting. A source said: “She’s definitely pregnant... Miranda’s thrilled. She’s telling all her friends, mostly other models, about it.” It has now been claimed Orlando, 33, let slip to hotel staff the 27-year-old model was pregnant during their honeymoon on the Caribbean isle of Anguilla last week. A hotel worker said: “He kept apologizing for Miranda being grumpy. “He said she wasn’t well as she was pregnant. They looked very much in love.”
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Hoganʼs ex engaged to 21-year-old ulk Hoga n’s ex-wife has got engaged to her 21year-old lover. The wrestling legend says he is “ecstatic” 50-year-old Linda Hogan - with who he has two children, Brooke, 22, and Nick, 20 - is to wed Charlie Hill next summer after two years of dating. The 56 year-old grappler who divorced Linda in 2007 after 24 years of marriage - told RadarOnline.com: “I’m ecstatic for her, I’m very happy for them. I think they’re perfect for each other. I wish them the best.” It is believed Hulk will act as a witness for the couple when they tie the knot on Linda’s yacht Alimoney next summer. However, it is unlikely the impending nuptials will have the blessing of Brooke who blasted Charlie who was previously a friend of Nick - in an interview last year. Brooke said “He is a loser. I don’t have a problem with age - it’s more about character. Her love is not real and not right.” Hulk - whose real name is Terry Bollea - got engaged to his girlfriend, 36-year-old Jennifer McDaniel, last year. Despite his words of support for the couple, the wrestler has previously spoken of his outrage at Linda embarking on a relationship with a much younger man, admitting it sent him into a rage. He said: “I could have turned everything into a crime scene. You live half a mile from the 20,000 sq-ft home you can’t go to anymore, you’re driving through downtown Clearwater and see a 19year-old boy driving your Escalade, and you know that a 19year-old boy is sleeping in your bed, with your wife.”
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Kate Hudson house-hunting with Bellamy ate Hudson and Muse frontman Matt Bellamy are house-hunting together. The ‘Fool’s Gold’ actress and the British rock star are looking for a property in New York after dating for just four months. The couple have been inseparable since meeting at the Coachella Festival in California earlier this year and believe the time is right to set up home. A source told The Sun newspaper: “They’re very lovedup, they just click. “Kate’s had a place in the city for five years but she wants somewhere bigger, so Matt’s suggested pooling their resources.” Kate wants the home to have a playroom for her six-yearold son Ryder her child from her marriage to Black Crowes singer Chris Robinson while Matt needs a studio to make music. The source added: “Kate wants a studio for Matt and playroom for Ryder.” Despite being snapped in public at the start of this year at a New York eatery, Kate and Matt decided to make their first official public appearance at the Glastonbury music festival in June - at which Muse was headlining. The 31-year-old actress watched her man perform from the side of the stage and the loved-up pair spent the rest of their time at the famous event partying with pals. Matt, 32, also met Kate’s mother, actress Goldie Hawn, earlier this month and admitted he was “quite nervous” beforehand. And he also revealed marriage wasn’t out of the question. He said: “We just have fun together and are seeing how it goes. Kate is great. “It’s a little bit too soon to talk about weddings and stuff. Ask me in a few months though. I’ll let you know how it goes with Goldie - and then who knows?”
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Pink plans to plant a garden ink is going to plant a garden now her tour has finished. The ‘Stupid Girls’ singer has just completed her ‘Funhouse Summer Carnival Tour’ of Europe bringing to a close almost two years of being on the road. Pink, 30, now wants to enjoy a few quiet months away from the music business and thinks some flower-planting is the perfect was to relax. She tweeted: “Just touched down in hazy crazy LA. What a whirlwind tour! 2 years went by in a lightning flash. time to plant a garden. Need dirt and stuff. (sic) Although Pink - who is married to motocross racer Carey Hart - is enjoying being back at home she is struggling to fill her time now she has no tour schedule to stick to. She added in another twitter post: “it is weird to be home. I slept 10 hours and @hartluck (Carey) is making pancakes out of a can. now what do I do? (sic)” Pink who undertook a mammoth world tour in 2009 in support of her fifth studio album ‘Funhouse’ before embarking on her 2010 dates in May - finished her concert run on Sunday in Kristiansand, Norway, and was grateful to her fans for giving her a great send-off. She tweeted: “Thank you Norway 4 the best end of tour show ever. u were a ray of northern light. @Pink fans rule. Until next time... (sic).
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Diablo Cody has given birth to a boy he ‘Juno’ scriptwriter welcomed her first child with husband Daniel Maurio into the world on Tuesday morning. The baby weighed in at 7lbs 2oz and both mother and baby are said to be doing well. Diablo - who was born Brook Busey - and Daniel have named their son Marcello Daniel Maurio. She announced the happy news via her twitter page, writing: “We had our boy early this morning! Marcello Daniel Maurio, 7lbs, 2oz, lightly mustachioed. (sic)” Let’s hope Diablo doesn’t pass on some of the same fears about growing up onto her son as she had. The 32-year-old writer previously revealed the story behind her movie ‘Jennifer’s Body’ - which stars Megan Fox as a dead cheerleader who returns to kill and eat her classmates - was inspired by her own teenage angst. Diablo said: “When I started the script, I was thinking about what’s scary to me and I decided girls are scary! One of the first lines of the movie is, ‘Hell is teenagers’. “If you think about all the subgenres of horror - vampires, werewolves, zombies - none of these transformations are as profound as puberty. The experience of becoming an adolescent is horrifying.”
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Leona Lewis goes on zoo date eona Lew is went on a date with a mystery man at a zoo in Germany. The ‘Bleeding Love’ singer - who split from her boyfriend of 10 years Lou AlChamaa last month - was spotted feeding the world’s largest rodent, a capybara, during a romantic day out with the dark-haired hunk at the Tierpark Hagenbeck zoo in Stellingen. A source said: “Leona and her new friend looked like they were having a great time at the zoo. They seemed very relaxed together and couldn’t stop smiling as they wondered around looking at different animals - the perfect date for an animal lover like Leona.” The pop star looked keen to impress the muscular hunk, as she wore a navy summer dress, wedge heels and aviator sunglasses. Leona - who rose to fame after winning Simon Cowell’s pop star search show ‘The X
L
Factor’ - is known for her love of animals and has thrown herself into charity work to help her get over her split from Lou. Two weeks ago the beauty distracted herself with a weekend away at a bear sanctuary in Romania on behalf of the World Society for the Protection of Animals after finishing her first UK tour dates. She tweeted: “Heading back after my trip to the bear sanctuary! Its sooo amazing, the bears are magnificent. After a life of abuse they r finally happy! X (sic).” However, Leona’s mystery date is not the only thing keeping her mind off her heartache at the moment. The 25-year-old star is reportedly scrapping plans to tour Australia, Europe and Asia, instead choosing to head back into the recording studio instead to write new material about her split. — Bang Showbiz
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Music
A demonstrator holds a puppet featuring the mayor of the city of Duisburg, Adolf Sauerland (top) and the managing director of the Love Parade GmbH, Rainer Schaller during a protest walk outside city hall in Duisburg, western Germany yesterday. —AFP
Eminem leads US album chart for fifth week
By Keith Caulfield
Angry demo in Duisburg over Love Parade tragedy By Patrik Stollarz undreds of demonstrators gathered outside city hall in Duisburg, Germany yesterday as anger grew over the Love Parade disaster in which 21 people died. Protestors chanted “Sauerland go!” in reference to the western city’s mayor Adolf Sauerland, who has come under pressure to resign following Saturday’s tragedy. Others held placards including “Who is to blame?” in red letters. The crowd later observed a moment of silence for the victims. Some protesters then began a march around the city centre. Partygoers were crushed to death in a stampede as they desperately tried to escape a narrow
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tunnel that served as the only entrance to the grounds hosting the techno music festival. More than 500 people were hurt. An interim police report on Wednesday put the blame on Love Parade organizers, listing a catalogue of catastrophic mistakes in managing the crowd of hundreds of thousands. The grounds opened nearly two hours later than promised, leading to an initial blockage in the tunnel, said Dieter Wehe, chief of police in the local North Rhine-Westphalia state. Thereafter, police said organizers were incapable of dispersing the crowds at the tunnel’s exit, partly because there were fewer stewards than promised and partly because there were no loudspeakers to control the crowd. When the scale of the crush became clear, police
ordered stewards to close the heaving access points but this order was not carried out, Wehe said, fighting back tears at a news conference. People desperate to escape the panic in the tunnel then clambered up a very narrow set of steps leading from the tunnel to higher ground. Most of the victims died on or around these concrete steps. Sauerland meanwhile has come under pressure for giving approval for the event to go ahead despite allegedly being repeatedly warned that Duisburg was too small and that the festival was a disaster waiting to happen. The mayor, who has reportedly been pelted with rubbish and who has bodyguard protection, told the Bild daily in comments published
yesterday that he had not “personally signed any permit” or been warned about potential safety flaws. “It’s hardly the mayor’s job to sign permits ... This was done by one of our best colleagues,” he said. The 55-year-old from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives also rejected charges that city hall bent the rules in its determination for the money-making festival to go ahead. “From my point of view ... it was all above board. But this is one of the things that prosecutors are looking at,” he said. Merkel was due to attend a memorial service in a Duisburg church on Saturday, which organizers said would be beamed live into the city’s football stadium. Police expect at least 10,000 people to pay their respects. —AFP
Plastic Bertrand admits not singing pop classic Spain singer Julio Iglesias performs on stage during his Spain Tour on July 28, 2010 in Malaga, southern Spain. —AFP
op star Plastic Bertrand confessed Wednesday he did not sing his 1977 hit record “Ca Plane Pour Moi”-nor any of the songs on his first four albums. “I don’t mind saying it was not my voice,” he told the Belgian newspaper Le Soir in an unusual confession for the pop world. “I’m the victim. I wanted to sing, but he would not let me access the studio,” Bertrand said about the real singer behind the hit single, Lou Deprijk. “He asked me to keep my mouth shut in exchange for 0.5 percent of the rights, and promised he would make a new version with my voice, which of course he never did,” Plastic Bertrand said. “It was time he stopped pretending otherwise,” Deprijk’s lawyer said about Plastic Bertrand’s admission. A Belgian appeal court in 2006 ruled that Bertrand was the “legal performer” of the classic track. —AFP
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File photo shows Belgian pop star Plastic Bertrand, pictured during a 2003 concert. —AFP
minem ruled the US pop album chart for a fifth week on Wednesday, fending off a strong debut from fellow rapper Rick Ross. Eminem’s “Recovery” sold 187,000 copies during the week ended July 25, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Its total stands at almost 1.7 million. Ross’ fourth album “Teflon Don” followed at No 2 with 176,000, ending an unbroken string of No 1 debuts for his previous releases. His last set, 2009’s “Deeper Than Rap,” arrived with 158,000. A week ago industry observers had projected that Ross had a good shot at a No 1 debut. However, “Recovery” held on strongly with a small 14% weekly sales decline. Chalk that up in part to its sale pricing at Target and Best Buy and the continued popularity of its single “Love the Way You Lie.” It reigns atop the Digital Songs chart for a fifth straight week. Sheryl Crow’s “100 Miles From Memphis” debuted at No 3 with 55,000 copies. The singer/songwriter’s last effort, “Detours,” debuted and peaked at No 2 with 92,000 in 2008; she has yet to claim a No 1 album. The “Kidz Bop Kids” series continues its profitable run on the Billboard 200 as “Kidz Bop 18” bounces in at No 5 with 43,000. The Jonas Brothers’ soundtrack to their Disney Channel TV series “Jonas LA” surfs in at No 7 with 32,000. The trio’s previous studio album, “Lines, Vines and Trying Times,” debuted at No 1 a year ago with 247,000 copies. As for the rest of the top 10, Drake’s “Thank Me Later” slipped one to No 4 (47,000); Justin Bieber’s “My World 2.0” was also down one, to No 6 (39,000); the “Now 34” compilation jumped four to No 8 (27,000); Lady Antebellum’s “Need You Now” rose two to No 9 (25,000); and Lady Gaga’s “The Fame” was up three to No 10 (24,000). Overall album sales totaled 5.3 million units, up 2% from the previous week and down 15% from the year-ago period. Year-to-date album sales stand at 169.7 million, down 12% compared with the same total at this point last year.—Reuters
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Movies
America Ferrera writes new chapter in acting career By Zorianna Kit fter four years playing an exuberant young office worker on TV comedy “Ugly Betty,” actress America Ferrera is all grown up and taking a decidedly more serious turn in a movie she worked tirelessly to make. The actress, who won an Emmy and a Golden Globe award for her portrayal of the fashionchallenged, brace-wearing Betty, is starring in independent film drama “The Dry Land,” which opens in major US cities on Friday and was written and directed by her fiancee Ryan Piers Williams. “I feel like it’s a new chapter in my career,” Ferrera told Reuters. “This is my first role as a woman dealing with really grown up issues.” The movie has earned mostly positive early reviews and scored a 63
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America Ferrera percent positive rating among a group of eight critics polled by movie website rottentomatoes.com. Ferrera portrays the wife of a soldier (Ryan O’Nan) who has returned to his Texas home from the war in Iraq and is
Festival Director Marco Muller reacts during a press conference to present the 67th edition of the film festival in Rome, yesterday. In all, 79 world premieres will be shown at Venice from Sept 1-11. —AP
“Black Swan,” by Darren Aronofsky, United States “La Pecora Nera,” (Black Sheep), by Ascanio Celestini, Italy “Somewhere,” by Sofia Coppola, United States “Happy Few,” by Antony Cordier, France “La Solitudine Dei Numeri Primi,” (“The Solitude of Prime Numbers”), by Saverio Costanzo, Italy “Ovsyanki” (“Silent Souls”), by Aleksei Fedorchenko, Russia “Promises Written in Water,” by Vincent Gallo, United States “Road to Nowhere,” by Monte Hellman, United States “Balada Triste de Trompeta” (“A Sad Trumpet Ballad”), by Alex de la Iglesia, Spain “Venus Noire” (“Black Venus”), by Abdellatif Kechiche, France “Post Mortem,” by Pablo Larrain, Chile “Barney’s Version,” by Richard J Lewis, Canada “Noi Credevamo” (We Believed), by Mario Martone, Italy “La Passione” (The Passion), by Carlo Mazzacurati, Italy “Jusan-nin no shikaku” (“13 Assasins”), by Takashi Miike, Japan “Potiche,” by Francois Ozon, France “Meek’s Cutoff,” by Kelly Reichardt, United States “Miral,” by Julian Schnabel, United States “Noruwei no mori” (“Norwegian Wood”), by Anh Hung Tran, Japan “Attenberg,” by Athina Rachel Tsangari, Greece “Di Renjie zhi Tongtian diguo” (“Detective Dee and the Mystery of Phantom Flame”), by Tsui Hark, China “Drei” (Three), by Tom Tykwer, Germany And one surprise film —AP
get the film made. She had collaborated with Williams five years earlier when they worked together on a short film. The actress used her Hollywood connections to help put together the cast including long-time friend Wilmer Valderrama (“That ‘70s Show”) and Leo, an Academy Award nominee for best actress in drama “Frozen River.” “Wilmer had done so much work with the USO and was looking for a story that was true to the thousands of soldiers he had met,” said Ferrara. “And Melissa was 12 pages into the script when she called and said ‘yes.’” At first Ferrera had no plans to star in the film, instead offering the role of Sara “to some of our friends, hoping they would attach their names and help us get it made” When that didn’t happen, the actress decided to take on the challenge herself. —Reuters
(From left)Indian Bollywood personalities: Randeep Hooda, Ram Gopal Varma and Rukshaar speak as they attend the opening ceremony for the film ‘100... Since 2010’ in Mumbai late July 28, 2010. —AFP
Lineup of films competing at Venice Film Festival A list of the films in competition for the Golden Lion at the 67th Venice Film Festival.
suffering from post traumatic stress disorder. The soldier, named James, has very little memory of his injury, and when he returns home, dormant anxieties begin to surface that affect
his relationships with his wife, mother (Melissa Leo) and best friend (Jason Ritter). Looking to understand what happened to him, James embarks on a road trip with an army buddy (Wilmer Valderrama) to piece together the details of his tour of duty and try to put some order back into his life. “Dry Land” proved to be a passion project for Ferrara and Williams, a first-time director who was inspired to write “Dry Land” after being “deeply affected” by an article he read about a returning soldier whose life fell apart due to PTSD. “I realized I had a story to tell with the ultimate goal to bring about conversation and awareness to the issue” of PTSD, Williams said. Acting and producing Ferrera originally came aboard only as executive producer to help
A minute with:
Director Phillip Noyce on ‘Salt’ By Christine Kearney ustralian director Phillip Noyce returned to directing Angelina Jolie in the new Russian spy action thriller “Salt,” more than ten years after he worked with her in “The Bone Collector.” The newest film, which was released in the United States last week and Russia this week, evokes old Cold war suspicions between the two countries. “Salt” received some good luck on the publicity front when just before its release 10 Russian spies based in the United States were arrested and swapped for four Russians suspected of working for the West. Noyce spoke to Reuters about why Hollywood is returning to the Cold War as a topic for movie entertainment and why Jolie was the perfect fit for the role of a secretive agent. Q. The Russian spy arrests earned huge media attention. What is it about US -Russia
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relations that still captures America’s public imagination so long after the end of the Cold War? A. “Because it was such a monumental contest on every level from the sports field to outer space, because we won. And when you win you want to keep returning to the story and replaying it.” “The struggle between the two belief systems was so monumental and fought over so many decades, and we won so we keep returning to the story. The story is still going on as we have seen with the arrest of the ‘New York Eleven’. Why will it keep going on? Because those 11 are the tip of the iceberg.” Q. But the Cold War is over? Why return? A. “Because the human being is the ultimate weapon-the penetration of the sleeper spy.” Q. Why haven’t we seen a lead female in an action spy movie like this much before, where are the female James Bonds? A. “Because it took an
Angelina to evolve to that point as an actress, as a personality. And it took a female head of a studio to say, you know what guys? This guy should be a woman. That is what it took.” Q. Amy Pascal, head of Sony Pictures offered the part to Jolie after Tom Cruise was first offered. How did that happen? A.“Amy had approached Angie over the years and asked her ‘Why don’t you play one of the Bond girls,?’ and Ang had always said to her, ‘Well, I want to play
Bond. Find me a Bond character and I will play that.” Q. So is she better than Tom Cruise? A. “There is no better because who knows what Tom would have been? Tom is a wonderful actor and great performer and also has his own special brand of athleticism. I think it’s a more enjoyable movie with a female heroine and a female lead. And Angelina is at that moment in her evolution where she is absolutely perfect to bring this character to an audience.” Q. What was the initial reaction from everyone? A. “The insanity of the proposal was so obviously sane when we thought about it because what was at the time a sort of predictable story, where you could see the ending about halfway through, suddenly became an entirely different animal and entirely different journey with a woman playing the part.” —Reuters
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SPECTRUM
An Indian forest official holds a frog saved in a raid on poachers at forest office local headquarters in Goa state’s Panaji on June 16, 2010. — AFP
By Lita Barretto t night during the annual monsoon rains, hundreds of tropical villages in rural Goa come alive with the cacophony of croaking bullfrogs calling for mates after months in hibernation. But while lucky amphibians manage to attract a female consort, an unfortunate few fall prey to poachers who follow the distinctive mating calls to zero in on what they call “jumping chicken”. Gearing up for a frog hunt is like preparing for a covert military mission: you choose a moonless night, wear camouflage to blend in with the surroundings, carry a powerful torch to stun the target and a knife for a quick, silent kill. “We use the torch beam to stun the frog once we spot it from a distance,” said one Goan frog hunter, who asked for his name not to be used for fear of prosecution. “Then all we have to do is walk up to it from its blindside, pick the frog up and tuck it into a sack which we carry along. It’s as easy as that.” “Jumping chicken”, as frogs’ legs are known locally in the Indian resort state, are a delicacy,
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as in France, where they have become a symbol of the country’s cuisine. The Goa version is served either shallow fried, in minced cutlets or cooked in a thick curry. Costs range from 80 to 100 rupees (1.7 to 2.1 dollars), depending on the number of legs or the girth of the cooked limbs. “Jumping chicken is seasonal, therefore rare, which makes it all the more alluring,” said one restaurateur, who runs an eatery in a north Goa village, where the contraband meat is only served to the most trusted of customers. “It’s spicy and tastes great with feni (a Goan liquor made from coconut or cashews) when it’s raining cats and dogs outdoors,” he added, also requesting anonymity. The restaurant also sells an assortment of banned wild game meat, including deer, porcupine and wild boar. Goans-famed for their love of meatdeveloped a taste for lean frog flesh when catching the amphibians was legal. The large Indian Bullfrog and Jerdon’s Bullfrog, which are found in wetlands throughout the Indian subcontinent, were popular because of their fleshy legs. But the Indian government designated them a protected species in 1985,
Friday, July 30, 2010
An Indian forest official retrieved a frog saved in a raid on poachers from a sack at forest office. — AFP
amid concern over falling numbers. Now, any individual or restaurant caught catching, killing, selling, serving or eating frog meat runs the risk of a 25,000 rupee fine, a jail term of up to three years or both. Both types of frog also feature on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of endangered species, although the wildlife body says numbers are stable and the main risk comes from loss of their natural habitat. In one big haul this year, Goa state’s forest department seized about 60 frogs from one poacher as he headed home from what he thought was a profitable night’s hunting. Many of the poachers are white-collar workers, swapping a day behind the desk for a night scouring Goa’s marshes and forests. “There have been no cases within protected forests, but all cases registered this year fall in semi-urban areas and villages,” said Goa’s deputy conservator of forests, Devendra Dalai. “Every year we step up protection to monitor activity outside notified forest areas, especially agricultural fields where frogs are abundant. Within forest areas, checks are
set of dentures made for Britain’s war-time prime minister Winston Churchill went under the hammer yesterday as auctioneers expected to fetch up to 5,000 pounds for “the teeth that saved the world”. The false teeth were specially designed to preserve Churchill’s natural lisp which can still be heard on the morale-boosting radio broadcasts he made to the nation during World War II. Churchill also used them to vent his frustration when the 1939-45 conflict was not going well by dramatically flicking them out of his mouth, according to Nigel Cudlipp, whose father made the dentures and who is now selling them. “My father recounted many stories of Churchill putting his thumb behind the front of the teeth and just flicking them,” Cudlipp told BBC radio. “My father used to say he could tell that he could tell how well the war effort was going by how far they went across the room and whether they hit the opposite wall. “Churchill was not a man who was renowned for his patience.” It is thought that only four sets
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An undated handout image obtained on July 28, 2010, from Keys Auctioneers, shows a set of dentures made for former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. —AFP
regularly done.” Local environment groups have been working to raise awareness of the issue, highlighting the place frogs have in maintaining a region’s ecological balance. They warn that their disappearance could lead to an increase in diseases like malaria, as mosquitoes and mosquito larvae are a main source of food for tadpoles and frogs. A decline in numbers could lead to an increase in the use of pesticides by farmers, with the extra cost of food production passed on to the consumer. The prevalence of snakes, too, could rise as they search for other sources of food, like rats, which live near human settlements. Restaurant-goers, though, are undeterred by the warnings or the threat of prosecution, taking a risk for a taste of the exotic. For restaurateurs, the illicit trade provides a boost to takings. Danger, though, is everywhere. Strangers, suspected policemen or forest department officials all face subtle questions about their identity before the dish is served. “It’s an occupational hazard,” said the restaurant owner. “We can’t just about let anyone in.”— AFP
of the teeth were made. One is thought to have gone to the grave with him, another is in a London museum labeled “the teeth that saved the world” and a third was melted down. The dentures are going on sale at auctioneers Keys in Aylsham, Norfolk, eastern England, who have issued a guide price of between 4,000 and 5,000 pounds (6,000 euros, 7,800 dollars). Meanwhile, it was announced yesterday that a huge archive of Churchill’s personal papers is to be made available on the Internet for the first time within two years. This includes around a million pages of material such as annotated drafts of his most famous speeches, school reports and even information about his cat, dogs and pet budgerigar Toby. “Churchill was someone who lived by his pen so this is an incredibly rich written archive and it must be one of the largest personal archives of its kind in the country,” Allen Packwood, director of the Churchill Archives Centre in Cambridge, told AFP. — AFP
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KayCee Nelson, pictured July 8, 2010, is left eye dominant but a right-handed shooter. When her parents, Ron and Tammy Nelson, finally heard their only child say, “Get me a gun,” they couldn’t have been happier. — MCT
By Dennis Anderson hen Ron and Tammy Nelson finally heard their only child say, “Get me a gun,” they couldn’t have been happier. This was a couple of years back, when their daughter, KayCee, was about 14. For most of her young life, KayCee had been a figure skater, winning two state championships and competing in the junior nationals. But after nearly 10 years of year-round pirouettes, she was worn out. “She said, ‘I’m just tired of it,’” her mother recalled. At the time, KayCee had recently completed a firearms safety class, held at Metro Gun Club in Blaine, Minn., and with her Department of Natural Resources hunting certification came a trial membership to the club. Soon, attempting to break clays on Metro’s trap range, KayCee found she liked shooting more than skating. Which was OK with her parents. “The skating thing was costing us about $1,500 month,” Ron said. In retrospect, the shift from skater to shooter was natural, because KayCee has always enjoyed being outdoors with her dad. When she was just 3, she started accompanying him to the duck marsh or the pheasant field. “I like everything about hunting, particularly bird hunting,” she said, “whether it’s for
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By Sebastian Smith hile audiences at Broadway’s “West Side Story” thrill to the on-stage drama, musicians in the orchestra pit are fighting a battle every bit as vicious as the Sharks-Jets rivalry. This is gang warfare of a high-minded sort, pitting some of New York’s best live musicians against a synthesizer they fear will usurp the job of playing Leonard Bernstein’s pulsating score. Sophisticated synthesizers and computer-manipulated recordings are increasingly taking over orchestras. Sounding almost like real players, while costing much less, they’re especially popular with provincial or touring companies. But until mid-July-when “West Side Story’s” producers announced that a synthesizer was replacing three live violinists and two cellists, or half the orchestra’s string section-staff violinist Paul Woodiel thought that at least the classics would be immune to the trend. “It was the last straw for me,” Woodiel told AFP. “I was a
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pheasants, ducks, grouse or turkeys.” Now she likes everything about trapshooting, too. “I just love to pull the trigger,” she said. Doing just that was particularly enjoyable for her one Thursday morning at the State Shoot, sponsored by the Minnesota Trapshooting Association (MTA). About 750 shooters competed in the weeklong tournament, which, not incidentally, pumped an estimated $500,000 into the state’s economy. Already crowned the reigning Minnesota state high school trapshooting champion-a title for which boys as well as girls compete-KayCee broke a perfect 100x100 clays, a mark that can elude even some of the nation’s best shooters for years-if not forever. “When I got to 85 straight, I was shaking,” she said. Once before, this spring, to win the high school title, KayCee busted 99x100. But this was the first time she ever ran 100 in a row. “My parents have been real supportive in my shooting,” she said. “Dad was the one who brought me to the gun club first to see if I could hit anything. Since then, he’s taken me around the state to compete, and he reloads my shells . . . “Everyone says I’m the son my dad never had.” As KayCee spoke, not far away stood Mark Zauhar, a key player in the attempt by thousands of Minnesotans-some more actively engaged than others-to ensure that hunting and particularly the
student and a friend of Leonard Bernstein and it’s almost certain he wouldn’t have allowed this. This isn’t dinner theater, it’s not Las Vegas. It’s Broadway and Leonard Bernstein was the greatest American musician.” Woodiel’s own job was spared, but he caused a stir through the tight-knit Broadway world with a New York Times piece denouncing the “inert, artificial” synthesizer invasion. The producers did not respond to AFP requests to be interviewed. Synthesizers have in fact been around for decades, notably in pop music. What’s changing is the ability of the machines to enter the far more sophisticated domain of classical orchestras. “The computer gives you so much more power now. There’s ridiculous stuff,” says Mike Levine, editor of Electronic Music Magazine. There are computer programs able to read and play back music scores-a boon to composers who can now hear their work as they write-and software allowing conductors to control the tempo of the machine, in the same way that they
shooting sports continue to thrive in the state. Hailing from a hotbed of national and international trap, skeet and sporting-clays dead-eyes, Minnesota gunners have for generations outshot most other competitors from most other states, most of the time. Bob Monson, for example, of Howard Lake, last year won the handicap at the Grand American trapshoot in Ohio-a title to which countless thousands of wingshooters have aspired but rarely achieved. Zauhar is himself an All-American trapshooter and has a daughter whose aim is to shoot on the US Olympic trapshooting team. But Zauher’s broader charge as the MTA’s longrunning president is to get kids interested in shooting, an effort that-with the help of many othersis bearing fruit. “This year at the high school meet, we had 243 shooters, and last year there were 141,” Zauhar said. “It’s catching on.” Some schools have been reluctant to allow students and their parents to organize shooting teams because-noting the obviousguns are involved. Yet most administrations and school boards are won over once the facts are laid out. “Kids who shoot learn responsibility,” Zauhar said. “They also learn how to compete. And they’re with adults when they shoot. I’ve shot all over the country, and the one thing you see about kids who shoot is that they’re good kids. They’re better in the
end for participating.” KayCee is one of a small number of students at White Bear Lake High School who shoot competitively. “It doesn’t bother me, I’ve always been a little different,” she said. “I’ve never been a preppy type of girl.” Within a year or so of beginning her new sport, KayCee started to regularly break 20 or more clays in a round of 25. A while longer, and she busted 25x25 consistently. Not bad for someone who has never attended a shooting clinic, or even been coached by anyone, except her dad. “He taught me how to hold a gun,” she said. “But a lot of this you have to work out for yourself. I watch other people and learn from that. And other shooters offer their help.” KayCee said she can now outshoot her dad in a duck blind or a pheasant field, a declaration Ron Nelson seemed not quite ready to agree with, yet. Regardless, the two hunt together far and wide. “I’ve got one turkey-a Merriam’s-to go to get my grand slam,” she said. “And we’ve hunted pheasants here and in Montana, and I shot an antelope in Wyoming.” By now, mid-afternoon had come and gone in Alexandria, and KayCee realized she had yet another round of clays to shoot. “I gotta run,” she said, and within minutes was shouldering her Beretta 682, and calling for a bird. As she said: She loves to pull the trigger. — MCT
direct live players. “It has gotten very, very good with something like drums and bass and strings,” Levine said. “With piano they can model almost anything.” Levine said the growing use of synthesizers is positive for basement bands and other music industry start-ups, but a menace to jobs in large, labor-intensive ensembles like orchestras. “It’s all about money and the producers want to make as much money as possible,” Levine said. “They always did.” Deception or innovation? Critics see synthesizers as little better than some barbarian force trampling the classical music landscape. But one virtual music pioneer, Paul Henry Smith of the Fauxharmonic Orchestra, says the technology will only improve and in any case cannot be stopped. Smith’s system uses so-called digital sampling, feeding from a store of more than two million individual notes recorded in an almost endless variety of tones and styles. —AFP
The marquee of West Side Story in Times Square in New York on July 27, 2010. — AFP
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Friday, July 30, 2010
Tendulkar double-ton leads India’s run feast COLOMBO: Star batsman Sachin Tendulkar hit 203 and debutant Suresh Raina made 120 as India bettered Sri Lanka’s run-spree in the high-scoring second cricket Test yesterday. India, kept on the field for the first two days during Sri Lanka’s massive 642-4 declared, responded by piling up 669-9 by stumps on the fourth day at the Sinhalese Sports Club. With just 13 wickets having fallen on the placid wicket in four days, the batsman-dominated Test is heading for a draw with Sri Lanka enjoying a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. Tendulkar and Raina, who came together on the third afternoon with India on 241-4 and struggling to avoid their second successive follow-on, put on 256 runs for the fifth wicket. Tendulkar compiled his fifth double-century, adding another feather to a glorious 168-Test career marked by more runs (13,742) and hundreds (48) than any other batsman in history. He is also the leading one-day batsman with 17,598 runs and 46 hundreds, including the only doublecentury in limited-overs internationals. The 37-year-old braved the stifling hot and humid weather in the Sri Lankan capital for more than eight hours to play a
marathon innings studded with 23 boundaries and a six. Tendulkar reached the 200-mark, his first in six years, with a flick off Ajantha Mendis for two runs, earning warm applause from team-mates and spectators alike. “From a batsman’s point of view, this is definitely the best pitch in the world,” said Tendulkar. “This one is not for results because it is tough to bowl on it. “The conditions were challenging, very demanding on the body. But this is what Test cricket is all about. “I don’t count the number of runs that I score. I just enjoy batting as much as I did in the past.” Lefthander Raina became the ninth Indian to score a century in his first Test innings, before holing out to short mid-wicket off Mendis shortly after lunch. Raina, just 23 and already a veteran of 98 one-day internationals, was awarded his Test cap only after Yuvraj Singh reported sick on the opening day of the match. Raina admitted he was nervous when he walked in, but said Tendulkar calmed him down and asked him to enjoy his first Test experience. “He just told me to enjoy my first innings because this moment would never come again,” said Raina. “He said I was winning matches for India in
one-dayers and I could do the same in Tests. “It was my dream to bat with Sachin and I was able to do that.” Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (76) joined in the run feast after Raina’s departure, adding 95 for the sixth wicket with Tendulkar and 51 for the eighth with Abhimanyu Mithun (41). It was left to part-time spinner Tillakaratne Dilshan to get rid of Tendulkar soon after tea as wicket-keeper Prasanna Jayawardene held a bat-pad catch moving swiftly to the silly point area. Dilshan also dismissed Harbhajan Singh in the same over and later took a return catch off Dhoni to finish with three wickets. Sri Lanka missed the wicket-taking abilities of the retired Muttiah Muralitharan and injured fast bowler Lasith Malinga as the young crop of bowlers failed to contain the Indians. Mendis finished with 4-157 from his 54 overs, while off-spinner Suraj Randiv failed to add to his two wickets on the third day and returned with 2-212 in 64 overs. Muralitharan and Malinga had claimed 15 of the 20 Indian wickets in the first Test in Galle last week, which Sri Lanka won by 10 wickets.— AFP
SCOREBOARD Scoreboard at the close of the fourth day of the second test between Sri Lanka and India in Colombo yesterday. Sri Lanka first innings 642-4 dec (T. Paranavitana 100, K. Sangakkara 219, M. Jayawardene 174) India first innings (382-4 overnight) M. Vijay lbw b Mendis 58 V. Sehwag st P. Jayawardene b Randiv 99 R. Dravid lbw b Randiv 3 S. Tendulkar c P. Jayawardene b Dilshan 203 VVS Laxman lbw b Mendis 29 S. Raina c Sangakkara b Mendis 120 M.S. Dhoni c & b Dilshan 76 H. Singh c Sangakkara b Dilshan 0 A. Mithun b Mendis 41 I. Sharma not out 10 P. Ojha not out 0 Extras: (b-9, lb-5, nb-12, w-4) 30 Total: (nine wickets; 198 overs) 669 Fall of wickets: 1-165 2-169 3-173 4-241 5-497 6-592 7-592 8-643 9-668 To bat: P. Ojha Bowling: Prasad 19-1-96-0 (4-nb), Fernando 31-1-116-0 (5nb, 3-w), Mathews 9-1-24-0 (1-w), Randiv 64-14-212-2, Mendis 54-7-157-4 (3-nb), Dilshan 21-4-50-3.
Lemaitre steps up sprint double bid Nigeria women strike African sprint double BARCELONA: France’s new European 100 meters champion Christophe Lemaitre showed no ill effects from a lack of sleep, starting his bid for a second gold with a comfortable victory in his 200 meters heat yesterday. Lemaitre took the 100 title late on Wednesday but appeared no worse for his exertions as he pulled away in the straight to qualify for the semi-finals in 20.64 seconds. “I didn’t sleep much so it was hard to wake up this morning,” the quietly spoken 20-year-old told reporters. “I told myself that it would be difficult this morning. I was a bit scared. “The legs are working. I’m in good spirits and that bodes well for what’s still to come,” added Lemaitre, the first Frenchman to win the European 100 title for 48 years. The 200 title, to be decided today, will have a new home after 2006 champion Francis Obikwelu of Portugal did not start his heat because of a muscle strain. A Portuguese team spokesman said they were hopeful the sprinter would be fit for the relay. Norway’s Jaysuma Saidy Ndure, sixth in the 100 final, was the fastest qualifier over the longer sprint in 20.60. Overnight leader Oleksiy Kasyanov withdrew from the decathlon after an undisclosed injury meant he was unable to run the 110 meters hurdles, the first of yesterday’s disciplines. Lithuanian Darius Draudvila had a 49-point lead over Olympic silver medalist Andrei Krauchanka of Belarus after seven of the 10 events. The decathlon continues with the pole vault, javelin and final event 1,500 meters (1910). Stanislav Olijar’s 110 meters hurdles title defense came to an abrupt end when the Latvian was disqualified from his heat for a false start. Hungary’s Daniel Kiss was the quickest of the qualifiers for today’s semis with a time of 13.44. Europe’s leading hurdler this year, Petr Svoboda of the Czech Republic also won his heat in 13.50. World bronze medalist Renaud Lavillenie needed two attempts at the automatic qualifying height of 5.65 meters before safely going through to Saturday’s pole vault final.
BARCELONA: France’s Christophe Lemaitre (bottom right) leads as he competes in the first round heat 2 of the men’s 200m at the 2010 European Athletics Championships at the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona yesterday. —AFP
Lavillenie, unbeaten in nine competitions outdoors this season, led a trio of French qualifiers as Romain Mesnil and Damiel Dossevi also went through. Russia’s Nadezhda Alekhina sailed out to 14.93 meters on her final attempt of the triple jump qualifying to record the longest distance of the competition and reach tomorrow’s final. The men’s triple jump medals will be decided later yesterday. Favorite for the title is France’s world indoor record holder Teddy Tamgho, who jumped 17.98 meters at a Diamond League meeting in June. The women’s javelin (1840) and 100 meters (1945) and men’s high jump (1630) finals also take place yesterday. In another development, Blessing Okagbare and Seun Adigun sealed a double victory for Nigeria in the women’s 100 meters and 100-metre hurdles on the second day of the African Athletics Championships here yesterday. Okagbare made up for a poor start to record a convincing victory that equalled her personal best mark of 11.03 seconds, well clear of Perennes Pau Zang Milama of Gabon, who took the silver medal in 11.15sec. Former champion Damola Osayemi of Nigeria came third. “Whatever championships I have won this year, I have worked hard for it. I have trained hard and am really grateful to God that everything is in place for me,” said Okagbare, who is also an Olympic long jump bronze medalist. “My goal this year is to break the African record at the Commonwealth Games,” she added. But there was disappointment for the Nigerian men’s champion Obinna Metu, who finished seventh behind the surprise race winner, Ben Youssef Meite of the Ivory Coast, who timed 10.08sec. Veteran Zakari Aziz of Ghana came second in 10.12 with Simon Magakwe (10.14) in third spot. Seun Adigun showed no problems after a recent bout of illness when she powered her way to win the women’s 100m hurdles in a personal best 13.14sec. Gnima Faye of Senegal took the silver in 13.67 while Algeria’s Amina Ferguen (13.87) won the bronze. — Agencies
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Cards outlast Mets Pujols delivers knockout blow NEW YORK: St Louis squandered a 6-0 lead against the New York Mets but Albert Pujols produced the knockout blow in the 13th inning to seal an 8-7 win for the Cards on Wednesday, putting them back into a tie for the NL Central lead. The Mets (5150) forced extra innings with a four-run rally in the eighth, but could not complete the storybook ending as they fell 7 1/2 games behind Atlanta in the NL East. Pujols slashed a single off Pedro Feliciano to score Skip Schumaker and hand veteran reliever Mike MacDougal the win. MacDougal had joined the club before the game from the Cards’ Triple-A affiliate Memphis. “It was a tough game,” Cardinals (56-45) manager Tony La Russa told reporters in his office after the four-hour, 32-minute marathon. “It felt like working ball rather than playing ball. Give the Mets credit for coming back the way they did.” Mets manager Jerry Manuel liked his club’s fighting spirit even as they took their 10th loss from their last 13 games. “We put ourselves back in the game,” Manuel said. “At least we threw a punch back.” The Mets’ chances looked bleak after the first inning when the Cardinals stunned ace left-hander Johan Santana with a six-run outburst, highlighted by a two-run homer from Matt Holliday and a two-run single by starting pitcher Jaime Garcia. The St Louis scoring spree resulted in the most runs and hits (eight) allowed in an opening frame by Santana. New York hit back with two runs in the bottom of the first and one in the sixth on a Carlos Beltran homer. Trailing 7-3 going into the eighth the Mets scored four runs to tie the game, Angel Pagan smacking a two-run homer and rookie Ike Davis delivering a tworun, pinch-hit single to send the crowd of 35,000 into roaring delight. The last time Santana and Garcia faced each other back in April, the teams played 20 innings before New York won 2-1. Pujols said he had a flashback about that contest. “It went through my mind,” said Pujols. “Not again.” The win saw St Louis join the Cincinnati Reds on top of their division. —Reuters
Bynum has knee surgery LOS ANGELES: Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum is expected to play a limited role in pre-season training after having successful arthroscopic knee surgery on Wednesday. Bynum, who won his second NBA championship ring last month, had surgery in New York to repair a tear of the lateral meniscus in his right knee, the team said in a statement. The seven-foot center is expected make a full recovery by the start of the regular season. Bynum suffered the injury in the first round of the playoffs against Oklahoma City in April but he continued to play. He had his knee drained twice during the playoffs and was with the team when they clinched their 16th championship with a Game Seven victory over the Boston Celtics. While opting to postpone surgery, Bynum averaged 8.6 points and 6.9 rebounds after starting each of the team’s 23 postseason games. Lakers training camp is scheduled to begin on Sept. 25 before the team travels to Europe to play exhibition games in Barcelona and London.
NEW YORK: Albert Pujols No 5 of the St Louis Cardinals flies out against the New York Mets during their game at Citi Field in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. —AFP
MLB Results/Standings Major League Baseball results on Wednesday. Houston 8, Chicago Cubs 1; Minnesota 6, Kansas City 4; Cincinnati 10, Milwaukee 2; Boston 7, La Angels 3; San Francisco 10, Florida 9 (10 Innings); NY Yankees 8, Cleveland 0; Atlanta 3, Washington 1; Philadelphia 7, Arizona 1; Toronto 5, Baltimore 0; Tampa Bay 7, Detroit 4; St. Louis 8, NY Mets 7 (13 innings); Oakland 3, Texas 1; Chicago White Sox 6, Seattle 5; Pittsburgh 6, Colorado 2; San Diego 6, LA Dodgers 1. American League Eastern Division W L NY Yankees 64 36 Tampa Bay 62 38 Boston 58 44 Toronto 53 49 Baltimore 31 70 Central Division Chicago White Sox 56 44 Minnesota 56 46 Detroit 51 49 Cleveland 42 59 Kansas City 42 59 Western Division Texas 59 42 Oakland 51 49 LA Angels 52 52 Seattle 39 63
PCT .640 .620 .569 .520 .307
GB 2 7 12 33.5
.560 .549 .510 .416 .416
1 5 14.5 14.5
.584 .510 .500 .382
7.5 8.5 20.5
Atlanta Philadelphia NY Mets Florida Washington St. Louis Cincinnati Milwaukee Chicago Cubs Houston Pittsburgh San Diego San Francisco LA Dodgers Colorado Arizona
National League Eastern Division 58 42 55 46 51 50 50 51 43 58 Central Division 56 45 57 46 48 55 46 56 42 59 36 64 Western Division 59 40 58 44 54 47 51 50 37 64
.580 .545 .505 .495 .426
3.5 7.5 8.5 15.5
.554 .553 .466 .451 .416 .360
9 10.5 14 19.5
.596 .569 .535 .505 .366
2.5 6 9 23
Ex-NBA player’s body found Police have found the body of Lorenzen Wright, a 13-year NBA player missing since July 19, in a wooded area of southeast Memphis, the Commercial Appeal newspaper reported Wednesday. Citing an unnamed source, the newspaper reported on its website that the body discovered was that of Wright, although police official call their investigation only a “death investigation.” Police received a telephone call on Wednesday from someone who discovered the body. An investigation is ongoing in Wright’s case. Police are looking into a hang-up call made from Wright’s cellular telephone on July 19. He was believed to be carrying a notable amount of cash. Wright flew from Atlanta to Memphis to visit friends and his six children and had been set to drive back to Atlanta on the day he vanished, last being seen leaving the home of his ex-wife. Wright’s 13 NBA seasons included five with the Memphis Grizzlies in the town where he was a collegaite star. Raptors acquire Andersen The Toronto Raptors continued to rework their roster acquiring the rights to Australian centre David Andersen from the Houston Rockets in exchange for a second round draft pick in 2015, the teams said Wednesday. Taken with the 37th overall selection by the Atlanta Hawks in the 2002 draft, Andersen spent most of his career in Europe before joining the Rockets last season, averaging 5.8 points and 3.3 rebounds in his rookie NBA campaign. “David is a skilled big that gives us some insurance at the backup centre position,” Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo said in a statement. “He will also bring a veteran presence and savvy to a relatively young team.” Andersen claimed three Euroleague titles with Virtus Bolonga (2001) and CSKA Moscow (2006 and 2008) and was a member of the 2004 and 2008 Australian Olympic teams. —Agencies
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Leeds winger warns of Wigan backlash LONDON: Former Manly winger Scott Donald has warned his Leeds team-mates league leaders Wigan will be desperate for revenge when they clash at Headingley this weekend. The Rhinos sent the Warriors crashing out of the Challenge Cup earlier in the season with a gutsy 12-10 win and Donald believes they will still be hurting. Wigan coach Michael Maguire will miss the clash as he’s still in Australia on compassionate leave with assistant Shaun Wane, who oversaw the 46-0 destruction of Hull last Friday, again taking charge. But Donald, who scored 48 tries in a Sea Eagles shirt, insists Leeds must up their game after limping past struggling Salford 31-22 to move into the top four for the first time this season. “We know Wigan are going to be smarting after what happened at our place in the Challenge Cup and we are going to have to be ready for that,” said Donald. “They performed really well against Hull and are a top team so it’s going to be extremely tough for us. “We are going to have to improve a lot on Sunday’s performance if we are to beat them again. “It’s really important that we are in the top four as there aren’t many games until the end of the season now. “We just have to keep working on our game and, looking back at last week there’s a lot still to be done.” Warrington coach Tony Smith believes the presence of centre Matt King can help lift his side to their first win over St Helens since 2001. The former Melbourne Storm star was rested for Wolves’ 29-28 loss to Catalans Dragons last weekend - meaning they lost ground on tabletopping Wigan. But with King, who has scored 14 tries this season, set to return along with injured duo Paul Wood and Louis Anderson, Smith has set his sights on putting their Perpignan defeat behind them. “I am pretty sure Kingy will come through this week and that will be a big boost for us,” he said. “We try to prevent injury rather than cause it and that’s why he was rested last week. “We take care of them and the signs were there for some of our players that injury wouldn’t be far from them. “That’s why we have kept them out of the front line and they should be OK for this weekend.” Former NRL journeyman Brad Drew has called on his Huddersfield Giants team-mates to cap his 100th appearance for the club with a win over former club Wakefield. The 34-year-old, who has played for Penrith, Parramatta and Canberra, starred in last weekend’s 40-4 demolition of Harlequins. Drew, who returned to Huddersfield from the Wildcats at the start of the season, said: “This club means the world so to reach this milestone is really special. “I wasn’t aware of it until I was told but I couldn’t turn down the chance to come back here at the start of the season. “I can’t wait to play Wakefield but it will only be extra special if we win the game.” —AFP
China promises clampdown on ‘age cheats’ BEIJING: Chinese officials insist tough new eligibility rules will put a stop to the type of “age cheat” scandal that saw a gymnast stripped of her Olympic medal. Dong Fangxiao had to return her women’s gymnastics team bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Olympics earlier this year following an International Olympic Committee (IOC) probe. Chinese sports officials promised that tighter checks introduced after the scandal would eradicate the problem.
Gymnastics
Emotional Massa braced for return BUDAPEST: Felipe Massa returns to the Hungaroring, where he suffered a high-speed horror crash 12 months ago, determined to stage an emotional reunion with the medical staff and marshalls who saved his life. The Brazilian’s Ferrari careered off the track at last year’s Hungarian Grand Prix after he was struck on his helmet by a part which flew off Rubens Barrichello’s Brawn GP car in qualifying. He spent over a week in a coma suffering from a skull fracture and battled to save his sight in one eye. He also missed the rest of the season. “Going back to Budapest will be a very special weekend for me, for reasons which you can all appreciate as it was there, just over a year ago, that I was seriously injured,” said Massa. “My first meeting when I arrive at the Hungaroring circuit will be with all the marshals and medical staff who did such a very good job of carefully getting me out of the cockpit. “I want to thank these people, with whom I now feel a special bond.” Massa arrives in Hungary with the controversy over last weekend’s German Grand Prix still engulfing the Ferrari team. Massa was leading at Hockenheim when he slowed to allow teammate Fernando Alonso to pass and go on to win the race. —AFP
BARCELONA: Estonia’s Mikk Pahapill competes during the men’s decathlon pole vault at the 2010 European Athletics Championships at the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona yesterday. —AFP
China’s delegation chief for next month’s Youth Olympic Games in Singapore said the country had adopted a zero tolerance policy towards potential cheats. “We’ve scrutinized every athlete’s age for the Youth Olympic Games to make sure there is no one going to Singapore with a fake age,” Cai Zhenhua told Thursday’s China Daily. “We have to make our Chinese delegation very clean and transparent. This is for the benefit of the athletes and the fair play spirit of the Olympics.” The inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore begin on Aug. 14 and showcases potential future senior Olympic athletes aged from 14 to 18. Stringent documentation checks on China’s 70-strong squad have been carried out in addition to X-ray bone analysis on the team’s under-16s, Cai added. Suspicions of age-faking have dogged Chinese sport for years. Dong registered different ages at Sydney and the 2008 Beijing Games, where she served as a technical official. Her five team matesYang Yun, Liu Xuan, Ling Jie, Huang Mandan, Kui Yuanyuanalso lost their medals. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, China’s He Kexin, a women’s team and uneven bars gold medalist, was also investigated but subsequently passed as eligible. —Reuters
All Blacks chase 8 straight wins MELBOURNE: The Wallabies are bidding to avoid their worst transTasman losing sequence in 63 years when they take on the all-conquering All Blacks in a Tri-Nations/Bledisloe Cup Test at Docklands stadium here tomorrow. The Australians have dropped seven straight matches to New Zealand since coach Robbie Deans won his first Bledisloe Cup Test in charge of the Wallabies - 34-19 in Sydney in July 2008. The All Blacks are in the midst of another golden era and not since 1995-1997 and 1967-1974 have they dominated the Wallabies with seven consecutive wins. The last time the All Blacks made it eight straight Tests against Australia was
from 1936 to 1947 in an unbroken run of nine wins. Top-ranked New Zealand have strung together 11 Test victories against all sides since their last loss to South Africa (29-32) in Hamilton last September. Yet for all of the All Blacks’ current superiority, the Wallabies have led at half-time in five of their past six encounters, and are looking for that little bit extra to achieve the elusive win. The Wallabies, coming off their convincing 30-13 victory over the world champion Springboks in Brisbane last weekend, know a lot of their challenges are mental as well as
physical. Deans, who as a former All Black knows the New Zealand game intimately, said it was down to “mastering those little things” and felt his Australian troops were on track following their triumph over South Africa. “We’re excited about what’s coming this week,” he said. “They’ve been superb in the final 40 minutes and particularly in the last 20, they’ve been able to impose their will on us.” Hooker Stephen Moore said the Wallabies have let themselves down by not competing for the entire match. “Our preparation is generally always good but it’s that 80
Rugby
minutes on the field that we’ve really got to knuckle down,” Moore said. “We can do it. For that full 80 minutes you’ve got to be at the throat, and that’s something the All Blacks have been good at over the last couple of seasons and something we’ve probably fallen a bit short with.” Moore is one of two changes in the starting lineup, coming in for Saia Faingaa, while Berrick Barnes is at insidecentre with Matt Giteau shifting to flyhalf for the suspended Quade Cooper. Playmaker Cooper will be a big loss for the Australians with his clever passing pivotal in opening up rival defenses, while Barnes is a more conventional midfield back. —AFP
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Inter begin defense at Bologna ROME: Serie A champions Inter Milan will begin the new season with a trip to Bologna, it was announced on Wednesday following the official draw for the 2010/2011 fixtures. Last season’s runners-up AS Roma begin at home to newly-promoted Cesena while Inter’s city rivals AC Milan host another promoted side in
Lecce. Juventus begin with a trip down south to Bari while Fiorentina host Napoli. The first big clash of the season will be in the fifth week, on September 26, when Roma host Inter while the champions will entertain Juventus the week after on October 3. Milan are due to play Juventus on October 31, the ninth week,
and the first Milan derby of the year will be on November 14, with Inter the nominal hosts at the San Siro. A week before that Lazio host Roma in the capital derby at the Stadio Olimpico. Roma coach Claudio Ranieri played down the importance of the calendar, though. “Every season has its own story, you can’t be thinking about
having an easy start or not,” he said. “Every match needs to be played and sooner or later you have to play everyone.” Juventus coach Luigi Delneri was more intrigued by the fixtures. “It’s a very interesting calendar that sees two title pretenders Inter and Roma play as early as the fifth week,” he said.
“As for us we begin away to Bari on August 29 and end at home to Napolim on May 22. “We have to have the maximum commitment for the whole season.” The season kicks-off on August 28, although Inter’s first match will be on Monday August 30 due to their participation in the European Super Cup. —AFP
Australia bids to host AFC Asian Cup 2015 KUALA LUMPUR: Australia yesterday formally lodged its bid to host the Asian Cup 2015 finals, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced. AFC president Mohamed Bin Hammam received the bid book for the confederation’s flagship tournament from Football Federation of Australia (FFA) chairman Frank Lowy at a ceremony at AFC House in Kuala Lumpur. “It has been a win-win situation for the AFC and FFA since Australia joined the AFC in 2006. Now we are all reaping the benefits of this association,” Bin Hammam said. “I assure them that their bid will have my recommendation when it goes before the AFC Executive Committee,” he added. Australia is the only candidate to bid for the 16th edition of the AFC’s top tournament for national teams. “We at the FFA are dedicated, honored and privileged to make AFC Asian Cup bigger, better and more successful than the previous editions,” Lowy said in a statement. “It’s my honor to present the bid book and I can tell you that Australia is excited to host this event at all levels, sporting, government and the general public.” Lowy said the AFC Asian Cup was the biggest sporting event in Asia and would be an excellent opportunity to showpiece Australia to Asia and the rest of the world. “FFA has undergone an exhaustive and highly detailed planning process, the results of which is included in a comprehensive Bid Book document containing some 350 pages of information about how Asia’s largest sporting event would be conducted across Australia,” he said. “Australia has a long history of hosting fantastic sporting events and the benefits for Australia to host an event of this kind will not only leave a strong legacy for football in Australia, but also cement Australia’s place in the Asian economic community.” The AFC Executive Committee is expected to make a decision on the hosting rights at its meeting next January on the sidelines of the AFC’s Asian Cup Qatar 2011. Finals will take place in Doha, Qatar from January 7-29. Australia are grouped with the Korea Republic, India and Bahrain. —AFP
SINGAPORE: Asian Football Confederation president Mohamed Bin Hammam, a Qatar citizen, speaks to media at the Soccerex Asian Forum, an event held for soccer related businesses. —AFP
La Liga fires opening salvo in Asian turf war La Liga to move some kick-off times for Asian fans SINGAPORE: Spain’s La Liga will change kick-off times and play a preseason tournament in Asia in a bid to muscle in on the success of England’s Premier League in the region. La Liga CEO Francisco Roca Perez told reporters on the sidelines of the Soccerex Asian forum in Singapore that some 17 matches would be brought forward in the 2010/11 season to increase exposure for Spanish teams in Asia. English sides, and in particular Manchester United and Liverpool, enjoy phenomenal support in southeast Asia and La Liga is determined to get a slice of the action in a region viewed as a prime market to develop a lucrative fan base. “Our objective is to be one of the prominent leagues in this part of the world,” Perez said, adding that
changing game times in Spain was essential for success. “It is a sport that takes some effort to change things and especially kick-off times, which is always something very sensitive. “Teams don’t like to change their ways and their traditions but I truly believe that the understanding is that this is a huge opportunity and there is no other way.” Perez earlier announced the introduction of the International LFP Cup, an annual tournament to begin next year and feature three Spanish sides and one local team in an as yet unnamed southeast Asian country. WORST RECESSION Perez said the time was right for the moves into Asia with Spanish football enjoying the acclaim from
the recent World Cup success in South Africa while club administrators struggle badly with the country enduring its worst recession for 50 years. Cashstrapped Real Mallorca have been banned from competing in this season’s Europa League and an audit of champions Barcelona’s accounts revealed a loss of nearly $100 million for the 2009-10 season. Despite the league attracting the sport’s finest players, such as Barca’s Lionel Messi and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo, other methods of expanding revenue opportunities are required. While Perez acknowledged that Spanish heavyweights Barca and Real would continue to pursue their own methods for making gains in Asia he was optimistic they would appear in a
later edition of the LFP Cup. “It is realistic, it is not going to happen the first year, probably won’t happen in the second year, but why not?” Perez, who has been in his role with the league for five years after a number of roles with the National Basketball Association, said he thought this drive to increase brand awareness should have been done sooner. “Our admiration for what the Premier League has done (in Asia) is huge but what we see is an additional opportunity for the Spanish clubs and the Spanish league,” he added. “Our objective is not to go ahead of the Premier League ... our objective is to be one of the prominent leagues in this part of the world and I think because of the level of football we play in the Spanish league we ought to be.” —Reuters
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extras Injury blow for Taylor NEWCASTLE: Newcastle defender Steven Taylor is set to be sidelined injured for the first three months of the new season, the newly-promoted Premier League side said yesterday. The 24year-old has undergone surgery after dislocating his left shoulder in a pre-season friendly at Carlisle on July 17. “After further assessment on the injury over the past week, the medical bulletin is that it will be a three-month period of rehabilitation,” the club confirmed on their website.
Strasbourg withdraw bid
BUENOS AIRES: Argentina’s national team coach Diego Maradona celebrates in this file photo. The Argentine Football Association (AFA) has decided not to renew the contract of Diego Maradona as coach of the national football team.—AFP
Maradona: Argentina bosses betrayed me BUENOS AIRES: Diego Maradona accused Argentine soccer chiefs of betraying him on Wednesday, a day after they voted unanimously to end his tenure as national team coach. The Argentine Football Association (AFA) decided not to renew Maradona’s contract following the team’s 40 drubbing by Germany in the World Cup quarter-finals. In his first public comments since the defeat, Maradona took aim at AFA President Julio Grondona and the technical director of national teams, Carlos Bilardo. “Grondona lied to me, Bilardo betrayed me,” a somber Maradona told a news conference at a restaurant, reading from a prepared statement. “Grondona told me in the changing room after we were eliminated in South Africa ... that he was very pleased with the work I’d done and he wanted me to stay on,” he said. “When we were in mourning, Bilardo worked in the shadows to kick me out.” Maradona, who led Argentina to World Cup victory as captain in 1986, was appointed as coach in 2008 despite having very little coaching experience. During his tumultuous spell in charge, Maradona was
banned for two months for a foul-mouthed outburst at a news conference and the squad barely scraped through the qualifiers. After convincing wins in their opening World Cup games, Argentina became one of the tournament’s favorites, but Maradona’s dreams of lifting soccer’s most-coveted prize as coach were dashed by the Germans. Dressed in a navy suit and blue shirt, Maradona appeared in a reflective mood, occasionally appearing to fight back tears as he read from the statement. He said he was still recovering from the loss to Germany but put some of the blame for the patchy World Cup campaign on AFA. “They called me to put out a fire and then when I did, this happens,” he said, adding that he had taken over the team during a time of crisis and had been dropped before being able to finish the job. He said he wanted to continue as coach but that during a meeting with Grondona, the AFA head had asked him to replace seven members of his coaching staff. “He knows it’s impossible for me to continue without my coaching staff, Maradona said. “I defend everyone from the
masseuse to the assistant because I have values and I’m not going to change.” “I’ve given my all for the Argentine soccer shirt ... to wear this shirt again... And I’m convinced that the players felt this again ... maybe that was my job.” Grondona said he had asked Maradona to stay, but said changes had to be made among the coach’s staff team. “I can’t see how there was a betrayal of any kind,” Grondona told reporters. “Perhaps he sees betrayal as trying to make things better. ... the only thing I was looking for was to make a change, not to get rid of Maradona.” President Cristina Fernandez, who has backed Maradona’s tenure since the World Cup exit, said she was sad he had been dropped. “He took over the national team when it was a hot potato and lots of people predicted we wouldn’t even qualify for South Africa,” Fernandez said at the presidential palace. “I’m really sad about Diego, I think the team put on a very dignified performance,” she said. “I don’t know what happened (with Grondona) but it saddens me, they should come together and fix things.”— Reuters
Hughes set for Fulham job LONDON: Former Manchester City manager Mark Hughes is set to be appointed as Fulham boss within the next 48 hours, according to reports in England yesterday. Hughes was said to have been contacted by Fulham after the west London club were unable to lure Ajax coach Martin Jol to Craven Cottage. With the new Premier League season starting in just over two weeks, Fulham officials have been desperate to find a replacement for Roy Hodgson, who left earlier in preseason to take over at Liverpool. Hughes is understood to have reached an agreement over a three-year contract worth two million pounds (2,4 million
euro) a year after talks with Fulham and his family, who are currently based in the north of England. An announcement is expected soon and the 46-year-old will bring in his own backroom staff that includes Mark Bowen, Kevin Hitchcock and Eddie Niedzwiecki. Hughes is likely to be given around 15 million pounds to spend by Fulham chairman Mohamed Al-Fayed and he will link-up again with chief executive Alistair Mackintosh, who he worked closely with during his time at Manchester City. One of his first jobs will be to consider a mooted deal for Steve Sidwell from Aston Villa as well as attempting to persuade goalkeeper
Mark Schwarzer to stay at the club if Arsenal decide to increase their bid for the Australian. The former Manchester United and Chelsea striker first came into management with the Wales national team and was close to guiding them to Euro 2004 but lost out in a play-off to Russia. Hughes moved to Blackburn in 2004 and led Rovers to an FA Cup semi-final and UEFA Cup qualification. Four years later he joined City but despite pushing the club into the top six, expectations changed when the Abu Dhabi United Group took charge and he was dismissed midway through last season. —AFP
STRASBOURG: The cash-strapped French city of Strasbourg announced yesterday they have withdrawn their bid to host matches in the 2016 European football championship. City officials estimated that the financial burden of renovating the Meinau stadium was too heavy and would cost 160 million euros of which 130 million would be paid for by the city. Strasbourg major Roland Ries said the decision was taken as a result of “the unusual situation of Strasbourg,” the only one of the bidding cities to have their club, Racing Strasbourg, playing in the third division. France were unveiled as Euro 2016 hosts in May by UEFA president Michel Platini, beating off strong opposition from Turkey and Italy. Eleven bidders remain to host games - Paris (Stade de France), Paris (Parc des Princes), Lens, Lille, Bordeaux, Nice, Toulouse, Marseille, Lyon, Saint-Etienne and Nancy - of which nine will be selected next May.
Boumsong ready for Panathinaikos switch ATHENS: Jean-Alain Boumsong is set to join Greek champions Panathinaikos after arriving in Athens yesterday to complete his move from French club Olympique Lyon. The 30-year-old former Newcastle United and Juventus central defender, who has made 27 appearances for France, is expected to complete a medical before signing a contract today. “I have come here for titles. I don’t want to say that I am a leader. I simply want to do the best I can for my new team,” Boumsong told reporters at Athens International Airport. “I am very happy that I have come to Panathinaikos. I know that I will play alongside (Djibril) Cisse and (Sidney) Govou and I am happy about this.”
Donovan evaluates options HOUSTON: United States forward Landon Donovan is considering possible moves to Europe away from his Major League Soccer club the Los Angeles Galaxy. “We have had transfer interest and we will have some time to think about it and see where it goes,” Donovan said after featuring for the MLS All Stars against Manchester United on Wednesday. “There is interest from a number of teams.” Donovan, who spent three months on loan with English Premier League club Everton last season, indicated there had been interest from Italian Serie A clubs, while Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini also said last week that an approach for Donovan was “possible”. Donovan, who scored three goals for the US in the World Cup finals, however signed a new contract with the Galaxy last December that runs until 2013 and as the most recognizable face of the sport in the US, the American league are keen to keep hold of him. “Landon is an incredibly important part of the American soccer movement and to have him lead MLS after performing on the world stage, is extremely valuable,” league commissioner Don Garber said.
La Liga chief unhappy SINGAPORE: La Liga CEO Francisco Roca Perez has vented his frustration with UEFA over their decision to ban cash-strapped Real Mallorca from European competition. Mallorca are appealing the regional governing body’s decision to block them from the Europa League this season for breaching their Club Licensing Regulations, 2008 edition. “We are not happy about it,” Perez said at the Soccerex Asian forum in Singapore yesterday. “Mallorca was awarded a license before they went into receivership and then they took the license away. When UEFA gave the license to Mallorca, the economic situation of the team was exactly the same as today, nothing has changed.” The ban has led to Mallorca manager Michael Laudrup writing to UEFA President Michel Platini expressing his frustration with the decision and world tennis number one and club shareholder Rafael Nadal slamming the body.
Khedira closes in on Real BERLIN: Stuttgart’s German international midfielder Sami Khedira is closing in on a move to Spanish club Real Madrid, the club’s sporting director Fredi Bobic confirmed yesterday. “It’s not often we receive such an offer from Real Madrid,” Bobic told the daily Bild. “It’s up to Real and us now to reach agreement.” The player’s agent Jorg Neubauer added: “It’s true he wants to go to Real. He’s talking now with Stuttgart.” Khedira was one of the revelations of the 2010 World Cup where Germany finished third, and is under contract with Stuttgart until 2011. According to media reports Stuttgart are ready to let the 23-year-old leave for 15 million euro, while Real Madrid are ready to pay between 8 million and 10 million euro.
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MLS chief hopes Marquez will join Henry at Red Bulls HOUSTON: Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber hopes to see Mexico’s World Cup captain Rafael Marquez in a New York Red Bulls shirt and said the league is looking to bring in more topclass talent. Marquez, who has spent the past seven years with Barcelona, has been strongly linked with the Red Bulls, who recently brought in French striker Thierry Henry after he was freed from his contract with the same Spanish club. “We hope to be able to have good news with Rafa, sometime in the near future, hopefully we will be able to present him to the public,” Garber told reporters at halftime in the game between MLS All Stars and Manchester United on Wednesday. “(There is) no news yet, but if we can bring in Marquez, the captain of the Mexican national team, a guy who had a great World Cup, a long time Barcelona player, if we could have him in MLS, it would really give us a big boost of credibility and I think would be exciting for our fans,” Garber said. Marquez, who can operate as a centre-half or a defensive midfielder, would be the Red ‘designated third Bulls’ player’, whose wages are mostly outside of the salary cap, along with Henry and Colombian Juan Pablo Angel. The league’s highest profile designated player is LA Galaxy’s English midfielder while Beckham David Mexican international Nery Castillo recently signed up with Chicago Fire. Garber said that a league board meeting on Wednesday had discussed ways in which MLS could bring in more the to talent foreign competition. “We spent a little time talking about what we need to do to bring more star players into the league now that we have Thierry Henry and Juan Pablo Angel and we are going to try and find ways that we can bring more of those kinds of players into Major League Soccer,” he said. Garber said in an Sports with interview Illustrated’s website on Wednesday that some MLS teams had contacted Real Madrid’s Raul before his move to Schalke and also responded to suggestions LA Galaxy were trying to sign Brazilian Ronaldinho from AC Milan. “I don’t believe that’s something that’s going to happen this year. That being said, the fact that our owners are interested in bringing a player like Ronaldinho to the league speaks to a bit more aggressiveness as it relates to player signings. “I think that’s good for our fans, and I think it’s a good approach to try to capture some of the interest of those 24 million people (in America) who watched the World Cup final,” he said. —Reuters
Fergie backs under-fire Glazers
HOUSTON: Darren Fletcher No 24 of Manchester United heads the ball against Jeff Larentowicz No 2 of the MLS All-Stars during the MLS All Star Game at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas. — AFP
Red Devils rout MLS All-Stars Ferguson finds new kids to continue legacy HOUSTON: English Premier league giants Manchester United capped off their North American exhibition tour by routing the MLS All-Stars 5-2 on Wednesday. Federico Macheda had two early goals, Javier Hernandez, of Mexico, scored in his debut for the Red Devils. Darron Gibson and Tom Cleverley added goals for Manchester United who are gearing up for the start of the Premier League season next month. Macheda scored twice in the first 13 minutes, quickly dashing the MLS team’s spirit and silencing the crowd of 70,728. The MLS team was fortunate as the score could have been worse because the Red Devils played without several top players. Houston Dynamo player Brian Ching had a goal and an assist for the overmatched MLS squad. The sellout crowd was the largest for an MLS All-Star game since the first one in 1996 drew 78,416 to Giants Stadium. Fergie hunts new kids Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has achieved astonishing success with young players in the past and his current
squad show signs of being another golden generation. “We’re good at developing young players with spirit, it’s always been a strong part of our club,” Ferguson told reporters after a youthful United team had beaten Major League Soccer’s ‘All Stars’ 5-2 on Wednesday. Whereas Ferguson’s original set of kids, including David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville, were British, the current crop features a sprinkling of imports. Alongside defender Jonny Evans, midfielders Tom Cleverley and Darron Gibson and forward Danny Welbeck, Ferguson can turn to 22-year-old Mexican Javier Hernandez and 18-year-old Italian Federico Macheda. The forward pair showed their quality with well-taken goals two for Macheda-in Wednesday’s 5-2 friendly win over the MLS eleven. Premier League rules restrict squads to 25 players this season meaning some, such as Wellbeck and Mame Biram Diouf could be loaned out to get further experience. However, Macheda and Hernandez will be part of Ferguson’s first team attacking
options. The United manager has no doubt that the pair have what it takes to be successful at Old Trafford. “I need to keep Macheda and Hernandez, who just joined the club, that’s imperative. There’s a purpose there in the way they play their football,” said Ferguson. “It’s not just talent. You don’t play at our club with just talent, you play with something, and they’ve got something else. I’m pleased with that.” Hernandez’s pace is an asset that the United manager is keen to exploit but he says it remains to be seen what kind of partnership he could strike up with Wayne Rooney. “The one thing defenders always worry about is players with speed. They always worry about the space behind them. Of course, when you see his goal, it’s an indication of that speed. “How the combination with Wayne will work, I think we need to adjust a little bit to it because I think both could be similar types of players. “There are still little things to do but not a great deal in terms of his technique and things like that. I think once he gets used to our training, he’ll be okay.” — Agencies
LONDON: Sir Alex Ferguson insists the much-criticized Glazer family have done a good job as owners of Manchester United. United fans have mounted protests against the Glazers from the moment the Americans bought the Premier League club in 2005 and the discontent has increased significantly over the last 12 months. The Glazers have amassed debts of over 700 million pounds (837 million euros) in the last five years, with United manager Ferguson receiving less money to spend in the transfer market under their ownership. Supporters at Old Trafford now turn up in green and gold scarves that recall United’s colors from the club’s early days in an attempt to deny the Glazers’ any merchandising profits. But Ferguson, speaking in a CNN interview, is tired of the constant abuse suffered by his employers because he says the Glazers have given him all the financial support he needs. “The debt has come through by the club being bought out by an owner. You know full well that when a business is bought it’s usually bought with debt,” he said. “Because it’s a football club it seems to attract a more negative reporting from the media and from the fans. But Manchester United football club, when it went plc, it was always going to be bought. “It was inevitable. So when a particular family like the Glazers have bought it, it’s unfair they come in for criticism because anybody could have bought it. “I have to say they’ve done their job well. They support myself, the manager, they’ve supported the players. I’ve never been refused when I’ve asked for money for a player. “So what can I do other than carry on the way we’re doing it and the way I’m allowed to carry on, I’ve no complaints.” As Ferguson prepares to start his 24th season at United, he is aware of speculation that he may retire if his team regain the Premier League title. United need one more league title to set a new record of 19 English championships and, at 68years-old, that could be the perfect way for Ferguson to bow out. But the Scot is just focused on winning back the title from Chelsea and he emphasized his desire to carry on for as long as possible. “A lot of factors come into most important things. I’m at the right club, it’s a fantastic club, it demands a challenge all the time,” he said. “Every day, every year there’s the challenge of being at the top and that helps me. I think you need good natural energy and I’ve been blessed with that. — AFP
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Celtic suffer nightmare European debut
AMSTERDAM: Gregory van der Wiel (left) of Ajax is competing with Vladimir Ivic (right) of Paok during the first match of the third final of the Champions League in Amsterdam.— AFP BRAGA: Neil Lennon endured a nightmare European debut as Celtic boss as Portuguese side Braga claimed a 3-0 win in the first leg of their Champions League third qualifying round tie on Wednesday. The home side had been on top when Alan Silva converted a 25th-minute penalty after South Korean international Ki Sung-Yeung blocked a cross in the box with his arm. Braga who doubled their lead when Nigerian defender Uwa Elderson Echiejile headed in a corner before Brazilian substitute Nascimento Matheus scored a sensational free-kick from 35 yards in the 88th minute to leave Celtic with a mountain to climb at Parkhead in the return leg next Wednesday. Braga won all but one game and conceded just six times at home in their run to second place in the Portuguese league last season and never really looked like losing a goal to the Old Firm giants, who face crashing out of Europe before their domestic season has even begun. Celtic handed starts to new boys Joe Ledley, Efrain Juarez, Cha Du-Ri and Charlie Mulgrew while Irish international Aiden McGeady wasn’t even named amongst the substitutes. The Scottish side were presented with the first chance of the match early on when Georgios Samaras was fouled 30 yards out but Ki blasted the free-kick high over the bar. Brazilian Alan was pulling the strings for Braga in midfield and threaded a ball through the middle for fellow countryman Lima but Zaluska was off his line early to snub out the danger.
Suarez strike not enough for Ajax Shaun Maloney’s cross was acrobatically cut out by Pinheiro Moises as Samaras looked to connect with it just seconds before Paolo Cesar came close to giving Braga the lead. The Brazilian cut in from the right before unleashing a vicious low shot which Lukasz Zaluska did well to block with Andres Madrid blazing the follow-up well over. Braga were handed the lead in the 25th minute when Ki gave away a penalty when he was adjudged to have blocked a cross from the right with his arm. Alan confidently sent his spot-kick high into the top right hand corner of the net, giving Polish keeper Zaluska no chance. The home side could have been two up almost straight from the restart when Cesar set up Leandro Salino who shot wide from just inside the box. Celtic looked more composed in the secondhalf and began to dominate midfield without creating any clear cut chances. Braga had been forced to hand keeper Mario Felgueiras a two-week contract after releasing him, in order to cover for injured duo Quim and Artur Moreas but he didn’t have a save to make as Celtic failed to test him. Good work from Andreas Madrid set up Alan who forced Zaluska into conceding a corner from which Braga doubled their lead in the 76th minute.
Substitute Matheus sent in a corner which was missed by several Celtic players before Elderson headed past Zaluska. Things got worse for Celtic just before the whistle when Matheus sent a powerful, swerving free-kick over the outstretched hand of Zaluska, who should have done better, from 35 yards out. Meanwhile, Uruguay striker Luis Suarez, in the headlines at the World Cup for the handball incident against Ghana, was on target for Ajax Amsterdam in the Champions League on Wednesday but they were held 1-1 at home by PAOK Salonika. Fenerbahce clung on for a 2-2 draw away to Young Boys Berne despite playing the entire second half with 10 men and Portugal’s Braga beat Celtic 3-0 in other third qualifying round, first leg ties. Suarez, who scored 35 league goals for Ajax last season, needed only 13 minutes to make his mark when he gave the four-times European champions an early lead against the Greeks. Ajax failed to capitalize on their early breakthrough, however and Vladimir Ivic leveled 18 minutes from time to put PAOK in the driving seat for the second leg next week. Suarez scored three goals at the World Cup where he helped
Uruguay reach the semi-finals but was also involved in the controversial handball incident in the quarter-final against Ghana when he stopped a goal-bound shot on the line and was sent off in the last minute of extra-time. Suarez was seen celebrating as Ghana missed the resulting penalty-which would have given them a 2-1 win-and Uruguay went on to win the penalty shootout. Group stage regulars Fenerbahce twice led in Switzerland but were denied victory by a late penalty. Emre Belozoglu gave the Turks a fifth minute lead but Argentine defender Emiliano Dudar headed Young Boys level in the 18th minute. The hosts then took control, Moreno Costanzo hitting the post, but were stunned were Fenerbahce regained the lead just before halftime with a long-range effort by Miroslav Stoch. Immediately after the goal, however, Fenerbahce midfielder Colin Kazim-Richards was sent off, receiving a second yellow card for petulantly throwing the ball away after conceding a free kick. Fenerbahce survived a second-half bombardment, Young Boys again hitting the woodwork, until conceding an 89th minute penalty, converted by the Costanzo. Swiss champions Basel won 2-0 away to Hungary’s Debrecen while Kazak champions Aktobe Lento pulled off the evening’s shock result with a 1-0 win over Hapoel Tel Aviv thanks a second-half Samat Smakov penalty. — Agencies