17. april 2003

Paying attention to details: the importance of grammar The European Union has issued a statement calling for "a central role" for the UN in post-war Iraq. This is a diluted version of the proposal from Germany's Schröder, who had wanted it to say the UN should have "the central role." Now, the definite article would make it a clear cut statement that the US, and their allies in the EU like Britain and Spain, could not accept. Replace it with an indefinite article, say "a central role", and it can mean just about anything. Basically, this common statement is an agreement to continue to disagree. Somewhat comically, events have overtaken the anti-war countries to such a degree that they don't seem to even know what is going on. The US has asked Denmark to lead a 3,000 man force consisting of personell from Poland and the Baltic states, to help restore order in Iraq. Denmark is still chewing on the request. When asked about this development, however, French President Jacques Chirac had to admit that he hadn't heard about it. Perhaps he should read more blogs. 11:34:47 PM    comment []

All talk, no action figure Former Iraqi information minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf has taken the net by storm, and now an American toy company is making a talking doll out of him, or as they say, an action figure. This action figure, however, is all talk and no action. It utters immortal phrases like "There are no American infidels in Baghdad. Never!" "Our initial assessment is that they will all die." "No. I am not scared and neither should you be." "We have given them a sour taste." "They're not even (within) 100 miles (of Baghdad)." But apparently no "roast their stomachs in hell." A pity. For the talking version you have to shell out $35.95, while the standard version is $24.95. But who'd want a muted information minister anyway? 9:55:02 PM    comment []

How big is that axis anyway? In an article about Iran's relationship to a US-ruled Iraq, BBC News writes: But President Mohammad Khatami has said he does not believe the US will instigate further military action in the region, where both Iran and Syria have been described by US President George W Bush as members of an "axis of evil". I seem to remember that the "axis of evil" was Iran, Iraq and North Korea. This is the second time in a week I have encountered a claim in the press that the axis includes Syria. What did I miss? 9:12:08 PM    comment []

The last acceptable stereotype An article in the Guardian makes a good case that after Hollywood has stopped portraying native Americans, asians and blacks as sub-humans, there is one category which is still almost always portrayed in a negative light: arabs. And in the current climate, it's not likely to be changed anytime soon. 8:12:03 PM    comment []

"Special emnity" reserved for France Chirac's late steps to end the bad relationship with the US administration is unlikely to bring any results soon, with a number of steps planned to punish France over its obstruction of US policy towards Iraq. The French has been insisting that friends can disagree without harming the relationship, but the Bush government does not see it that way. 7:34:10 PM    comment []

UN Security Council showdown over oil looming The UN oil-for-food programme, which puts strict controls on Iraqis oil export, was put in place by the UN Security Council. The US is now calling for it to be lifted, to use oil funds to pay for the rebuilding of the country, but only the Security Council can do that. The war opponents, some of which has a veto power, may now use the opportunity to draw some concessions out of the US-led coalition. France's Jacques Chirac wants UN to have a "central role" in the rebuilding of Iraq, and brought with him a fresh EU draft declaration supporting that point of view. On the other hand, the anti-US coalition is well aware they should not push too hard, to not anger Washington even more. 6:02:00 PM    comment []

British Army cooperated with protestant paramilitaries Conclusions leaking from the investigation Sir John Stevens conducts into illicit links between protestant outlaws and British security personell are making waves in Northern Ireland. Evidence suggests that British military was involved in the murder of the lawyer Finucane, who had represented a number of high-profile IRA suspects. The leaked information not only suggests extensive links between so-called loyalist militants and the British military, it also shows that Stevens' investigation has been subject to sabotage from security sources. 5:21:40 PM    comment []

US top athletes used doping while USOC turned a blind eye Dr. Wade Exum, the former chief of USOC, has released more than 30,000 documents, showing that a large number of top US athletes were caught by drug tests but that the agency covered it up. Head of the anti-doping body WADA, Dick Pound, says: It's what many people suspected about the U.S. Olympic Committee, that it was being covered up. There were lots of rumors around. While USOC denies the claims, it seems they have no arguments except the odd ad hominem that Exum is a disgruntled ex-employee. The documents, he says, shows more than 100 positive drug tests by athletes who won 19 Olympic medals for the US from 1988-2000. The names include Carl Lewis, Joe DeLoach, Andre Phillips and Mary Joe Fernandez. When they were caught, USOC just put it down as "inadvert" and cleared them. Of course, there is no such thing as inadvert drug use. Putting it into your body is cheating. 4:43:05 PM    comment []

He's dead, Jim This message board runs a Photoshop contest of obituaries for famous people, not so famous people, ideas and stuff that doesn't fit into any conceivable category, but can nevertheless be proclaimed dead (even though they aren't, unlike Fox' unbiased reporting). Very heavy to load, but good for a few laughs. 3:46:49 AM    comment []

Did CNN turn up the boos during Micheal Moore's Oscar speech? There is a profound difference between the sound during ABC's live audio of Michael Moore's anti-war Oscar acceptance speech and CNN's rebroadcast of the same event. Accusations have been made that CNN artificially increased the booing to fit preconceived political ideas. Beyond doubt is that the booing is much more noteable in CNN's version, particularly in the early stages of the public reaction. The again, it may be a coincidence; for example CNN's microphones may have been closer to the conservative wing of the audience than ABC's, or they have used different equipment or audio compression without having any malicious motives. At any rate, it is obvious that people listening to the two versions would get a very different idea about the audience's real reaction. In the original broadcast on ABC, cheering and booing appears to be more or less balanced, while CNN's sound supported their claims about the event: that Moore was booed off the stage. Follow the link above and watch both versions and judge for yourself. More discussion on Lisa Rein's radar. Not that it's relevant for this question, but I believe that Moore didn't deserve his Oscar, as what he presented in Bowling for Columbine was fiction and distortions, not a documentary. 3:15:55 AM    comment []

SARS virus identified The WHO has confirmed that the virus that causes SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) is a mutant of the corona virus, which is the cause of the common cold. This is hailed as a major breakthrough and an important step towards a cure and possibly a vaccine. Other scholars provided genetic sequencing that demonstrated the virus came from animals. I have a problem, though, seeing how this identification can give such a good hope of a quick cure. Do we have a cure for the common cold? 2:00:47 AM    comment []

Glass from space Super transparent optical cables where light can travel over continents, metallic glass that is super-strong and can be molded into any shape, glass fibers that travels through the body and destroys cancer. These are some of the marvellous materials that can be made in microgravity, that is, in the weightlessness of space. NASA is conducting experiments to try to bring these revolutionary materials down to Earth. 1:44:11 AM    comment []

© Copyright 2003 Jan Haugland. Last update: 01.05.2003; 02:59:19.