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New liberal fans: Meet Anthony Weiner, ultra-hawkish backer of Israel - War Room - Salon.com
The names that are assumed to be on Romney’s radar are by now familiar: Marco Rubio, because of the Hispanic vote and Florida; Chris Christie, because of his working stiff charisma; Paul Ryan, because the right loves him; Kelly Ayotte, because of the gender gap; Rob Portman, because he’s safe; and so on. There are actually some striking parallels between the factors Romney must now weigh and the ones that guided his pick a decade ago. Then, as now, Romney became his party’s standard-bearer through an ugly process that, his team feared, might have irreparably harmed his standing with female voters. There was also concern, just like today, about drawing too much attention to Romney’s personal wealth and reinforcing his rich corporate guy image. Romney’s campaign for governor began late. A fellow Republican, Jane Swift, had inherited the job from Paul Cellucci in 2001 and had repeatedly expressed her intent to seek a full term in the ’02 election.
The resignation on Friday of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, and last month's overthrow of Tunisia's leader, have electrified the Arab world and led many to ask which country could be next in a region where an explosive mix of authoritarian rule and popular anger is the norm. Widespread unrest in Algeria could have implications for the world economy because it is a major oil and gas exporter. But many analysts say a revolt is unlikely because the government can use its energy wealth to resolve most grievances. A police helicopter hovered over the neighbourhood and about 200 officers in helmets and armed with batons were at the square.
Algerian protesters clash with police - Telegraph
WikiLeaks cables: Egypt's Omar Suleiman demonised Muslim Brotherhood | Media | guardian.co.uk
WikiLeaks cables show Omar Suleiman, Egypt's new vice-president, has long tried to portray the opposition Muslim Brotherhood as the 'bogeyman'. Photograph: Eitan Abramovich/AFP/Getty Images Egypt 's new vice president, Omar Suleiman , has long sought to demonise the opposition Muslim Brotherhood in his contacts with sceptical US officials, leaked diplomatic cables show, raising questions whether he can act as an honest broker in the country's political crisis. US embassy messages from WikiLeaks 's cache of 250,000 state department documents, which Reuters independently reviewed, also report that the former intelligence chief accused the Brotherhood of spawning armed extremists and warned in 2008 that if Iran ever backed the banned Islamist group, Tehran would become "our enemy".China's economic invasion of Africa | World news | The Guardian
In December 1999, a 24-year-old Chinese man called Zhang Hao left behind the freezing winter of his native Shenyang city to fly to Uganda . Zhang was nervous. He spoke no English.
An Egyptian anti-government demonstrator holds a baby, wearing a hat bearing the words "Leave", in Tahrir Square, Cairo. Photograph: Lefteris Pitarakis/AP The news dribbled in to Tahrir Square in phone calls, text messages, by word of mouth.
Egypt: 'Omar Suleiman was part of the old system. We want a new system' | World news | The Guardian
EFF Uncovers Widespread FBI Intelligence Violations - Slashdot
An anonymous reader writes "EFF has uncovered widespread violations stemming from FBI intelligence investigations from 2001 — 2008. In a report released today , EFF documents alarming trends in the Bureau's intelligence investigation practices , suggesting that FBI intelligence investigations have compromised the civil liberties of American citizens far more frequently, and to a greater extent, than was previously assumed.This has become a question of immense importance in Britain. The new government, a delicate coalition of the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, has to face up to a challenge. Should it permit News International, Murdoch’s empire, to get control of a major television broadcaster, BSkyB ?
Rupert Murdoch’s BSkyB Bid Is His Latest Move for Control - The Daily Beast
Behind Iceland 's superficially booming financial markets in the mid noughties lay a financial system shot through with corruption and regulatory negligence that led inexorably to a dramatic economic meltdown 18 months ago, according to a damning truth commission report. The 2,300-page forensic investigation, presented to Iceland's parliament yesterday, reserves its deepest criticisms for the island's three largest banks – Kaupthing, Glitnir and Landsbanki – which failed in quick succession in October 2008. The long-delayed report, produced after interviews with about 300 key players, found these banks had effectively been captured by some of their powerful majority shareholders and that the true extent of their financial vulnerability had been deliberately masked. Among the tycoons the report claimed were favourably treated by the banks they part-owned is British property expert Robert Tchenguiz .
Report exposes banking flaws that sent Iceland into meltdown | Business | The Guardian
European Union talks on Greek debt as IMF flies in | Business | The Guardian
A pleasant Sunday afternoon in Thessaloniki yesterday, but EU and Greek finance officials had a less relaxing time discussing the debt crisis. Photograph: Nikolas Giakoumidis/AP The European Union is engaged in frantic behind the scenes talks to reduce Greece 's debt as international monitors fly into Athens this week.
Icelandic prosecutors and the City watchdogs in Britain are scrutinising trading activities of Kaupthing Bank in the months before its demise. Photograph Bob Strong/Reuters Criminal investigators looking into the failed Icelandic bank Kaupthing have won a rare victory in the secretive tax haven of Luxembourg where the supreme court has thrown out attempts to block the release of documents seized in a police raid almost a year ago. The documents are likely to be critical to a complex international investigation into the activities of the bank and some of its largest clients in the months before its collapse. The investigation is focused on money flows between three financial centres: Reykjavik, London and Luxembourg.
Luxembourg court releases Icelandic bank's documents to investigators | Business | The Guardian
Why is America so afraid? - War Room - Salon.com
But like hundreds of thousands of Egyptians El-Beheiry found himself swept up in the momentum of history and he took to the streets to join the protests that began January 25, 2011 and 18 days later resulted in the downfall of Mubarak. El-Beheiry continued to challenge authority — newly empowered, his family says, by the idea of a better future. On Feb. 25, he was arrested along with dozens of other protesters in front of the building where Egyptian cabinet meets. El-Beheiry has the unfortunate distinction of being among the very first civilians arrested under the rule of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), the governing body made up of generals that was given executive authority in Egypt during the transition to a newly elected government.WikiLeaks: US supported Egypt pro-democracy activists
A 2008 diplomatic cable from the US Embassy in Cairo leaked by WikiLeaks on Friday shows another side to the United States' relationship with Egypt in recent years. The cable outlines how the State Department helped an Egyptian pro-democracy activist attend a "Youth Movements Summit" in New York and how the unnamed activist presented an "unwritten plan for democratic transition in 2011." While the United States has received criticism for its support of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's regime in the face of anti-government protests, the newly released cable indicates that the US was also supporting his detractors. It notes State Department efforts to apply pressure on Egypt in order to have dissidents released from custody.------------------- A Cold Welcome Home ------------------- 3. (S) xxxxxxxxxxxx told us that SSIS detained and searched him at the Cairo Airport on December 18 upon his return from the U.S. According to xxxxxxxxxxxx, SSIS found and confiscated two documents in his luggage: notes for his presentation at the summit that described April 6's demands for democratic transition in Egypt, and a schedule of his Capitol Hill meetings. xxxxxxxxxxxx described how the SSIS officer told him that State Security is compiling a file on him, and that the officer's superiors instructed him to file a report on xxxxxxxxxxxx most recent activities.
Egypt protests: secret US document discloses support for protesters - Telegraph
US military aid to Egypt totals over $1.3 billion annually . Your money, in other words, is keeping Mubarak in power. That government is now doing this to its people. Listen to the audio. It's hard to say just what's happening, given the media blackout, but clearly terrible things are happening in Egypt.
Why Egypt Matters to You - Ricochet.com
The world's average salary is $1,480 a month, which is just less than $18,000, a year, according to data released by the International Labor Organization.