Amanda Knox ‘crucified’ for crime she did not commit, lawyer tells court
September 29, 2011 No Comment
US student wrongly convicted of murdering Briton Meredith Kercher thanks to flawed evidence, counsel tells judge and jury Amanda Knox has been “crucified, impaled in the piazza” for a crime she never committed, her lawyer told the court hearing her appeal against a 26-year sentence for murdering British student Meredith Kercher. Carlo Dalla Vedova was speaking after another lawyer called the University of Washington student an “enchanting witch” in a case shot through with religious and occult imagery Dalla Vedova said Knox, 24, had spent more than 1,000 days in prison on the basis of “evidence that cannot stand up to other hypotheses”. How many times, he asked rhetorically, had he and other members of her legal team heard her say: “Why won’t they believe me?” The prosecution, and the lawyer for the Kercher family – who have joined themselves to the case – repeatedly emphasised in their final submissions the horror of the crime and the suffering of the victim’s relatives. But that was not the point, said Dalla Vedova. “Be respectful of the pain caused by the death of Meredith Kercher,” he said. “But don’t make the mistake of keeping two innocent people in jail. Pain is not a legal argument.” A verdict is expected on Monday. Knox has been joined in her appeal by her former boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, an Italian jailed for 25 years for his part in what the court decided was a drug-fuelled, sexually-motivated killing. A third defendant, Rudy Guede, was convicted separately. The appeal is based on the argument that Kercher was killed by Guede alone after the Ivory Coast-born drifter broke into the flat she shared with Knox. Dalla Vedova began a point-by-point examination of the case against Knox by looking at her statement, made to police after an all-night interrogation, that she had been at the scene of the crime. She had not been given any legal assistance and, at the time she was no more than a “ragazzina” – a young girl – with scant knowledge of Italian on her first trip abroad, he said. Knox had come to Italy less than a month before that date to study, along with Kercher, at Perugia’s university for foreigners. Much of the prosecution case, claimed Dalla Vedova, was based on “conjecture” and unreliable “low copy number” DNA evidence. He cited by way of example the acquittal in 2007 in Belfast of the Omagh bombing defendant Sean Hoey, who had been indicted on the basis of low copy number DNA testing. Meredith Kercher Amanda Knox Italy Europe United States John Hooper guardian.co.uk
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Merkel pushes through rescue package in step towards tackling the eurozone’s sprawling debt crisis Angela Merkel has successfully corralled her government into voting for the revamped euro bailout fund, asserting her authority as chancellor by pushing through the bill without needing to rely on opposition help. Of 611 MPs present in a highly-charged sitting at the Bundestag on Thursday morning, 523 voted in favour of expanding the powers of the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF). Under the plan, the EFSF will be enlarged to €440bn (£382bn). It will also be given the ability to give “precautionary loans” to struggling European countries, buy EU government debt, and provide funding to shore up the capital reserves of European banks. The result was a triumph for Germany’s shaky coalition government and marked a major step towards tackling the eurozone’s sprawling sovereign debt crisis. Some analysts, though, argue that more radical measures will be needed . Eighty-five voted against the motion, including 10 from Merkel’s own Christian Democratic bloc and three from the Free Democratic party (FDP), the chancellor’s coalition partners. Most of the “no” voters belonged to the far-left Linke party, who believe the bailout fund will make banks richer and ordinary Europeans poorer. Only three MPs abstained, meaning that Germany in the future will be guaranteeing loans to the EFSF of up to €211bn, rather than €123bn so far. Just a month ago, test votes suggested up to 25 coalition MPs were planning to rebel after polls showed three-quarters of Germans opposed the bill. Had Merkel failed to pass the vote without relying on support from opposition MPs from the Social Democratic (SPD) and Green parties, many analysts believed her position would have been untenable and the coalition would have collapsed. Yet after a night of intense lobbying, a majority of coalition members – 315 – voted in favour of the measure, enough to have ensured its passage even without opposition help. “This shows the clear determination of the coalition on this issue,” Rainer Brüderle, parliamentary leader of Merkel’s junior partner, the Free Democrats, told the n-tv broadcaster after the vote. “We have made an important decision for Europe.” Yet Frank Schäffler, also of the Free Democrats, argued that bailout measures had worsened Greece’s economic situation. “Despite all arguments, the first bailout did not make the situation for Greece better, but worse,” Schäffler said. “Expanding the fund will make the situation even worse.” Though Merkel described the euro before the vote as “our common future” and said approving the beefed-up bailout fund was “of the very, very greatest significance”, discussions went deep into the night Wednesday, in an attempt to win over dissenting members of her governing coalition. On Wednesday, Finland voted in favour of expanding the fund’s powers despite earlier threats to pull out of a rescue plan for Greece. The fund expansion has to be ratified by all 17 eurozone nations to take force. Germany’s upper house of parliament is expected to pass the measure on Friday. European debt crisis Germany Angela Merkel European banks Europe Helen Pidd guardian.co.uk
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Tiangong-1 will be launched over Gobi desert and is a stepping stone towards a bigger, fully-fledged orbiting platform China is preparing to take its building boom into space on Thursday night by putting a first research module – the “Heavenly Palace” – into orbit The unmanned Tiangong-1 laboratory, which will be launched into the skies above the Gobi desert, is a stepping stone towards a bigger, fully-fledged orbiting platform that China expects to be cheaper than the US and European-backed International Space Station. The 10.5m-long cylinder will ride around 220 miles (350km) into space on board a Long March 2F rocket from the Jiuquan satellite launch centre and remain in orbit for two years. It will be used by Chinese scientists and astronauts to practice the rendezvous and docking techniques needed to construct bigger structures in space. The first trial will come later this year, with the launch of another vessel, Shenzhou 8, which will attempt to link up with the lab. If this is successful and life-support systems within the module remain stable, manned missions will be attempted next year and yuhangyuan (astronauts) will spend two weeks inside the narrow structure. Wu Ping, a spokeswoman for China’s manned space programme, said these missions may include the country’s first female astronauts. Following China’s first manned space flight in 2003, the launch of the Tiangong-1 is the second stage in a 10-year programme to build a manned 60-tonne platform, scheduled to come into operation in 2020. This may leave China with the largest mannable presence in space. That title currently belongs to the International Space Station, which is supported by the US, Europe, Russia, Japan and Canada. Although much bigger at 400 tonnes, its future is in doubt due to the high cost of ferrying supplies through space and the economic problems faced by its principle funders. Hopes to draw China into this international programme have so far made little progress due to political differences with the US. When the current commitments expire in 2020, Russian scientists have proposed that it is left to fall into the ocean. Beijing claims its programme is cheaper. While Russia and the US initially practiced docking by sending up two vessels for each trial, China said it saves money by leaving one in space for an extended time. “Tiangong-1′s cost is similar to that of a spaceship. We only need four launches and can experiment with rendezvous and docking three times,” space programme chief designer Zhou Jianping told The China Daily. “The US is still ahead. They sent a man to the moon 40 years ago,” said Fu Song, a professor at the School of Aerospace in Tsinghua University. “But there is the advantage for latecomers. The cost is less and wrong turns can be avoided. If the Tiangong is successful, it will be a significant symbol for the Chinese space industry.” Though based primarily on Russian technology, Chinese scientists say they have enhanced navigation and other systems. The country also has ambitions for a moon landing and deep-space exploration. The Tiangong-1 will provide useful preparation for both, according to Ping. China Space International Space Station Jonathan Watts guardian.co.uk
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Industry plans for £5.6bn of schemes include delivering more than 700 extra train services a day between northern cities Rail chiefs have announced plans to provide better services, improved passenger information and cuts in the cost of running the railwayss. The programme, described as an initial industry plan, covers the period between 2014 and 2019, with the industry aiming to cut rail costs by £1.3bn a year by the end of the decade. Plans include £5.6bn of schemes, including the Northern Hub – a £560m proposal to deliver more than 700 extra services a day between Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sheffield. The programme also includes journey time improvements in the East Midlands, Yorkshire, Bristol and Oxford areas and the electrification of the Midland main line, the north trans-Pennine line and further electrification schemes in Scotland. It also envisages improvements to a number of stations including Fenchurch Street, in London, and Liverpool Central, as well as a £200m scheme to improve services between Inverness and Aberdeen. By better linking Britain’s major cities, an extra 180,000 peak time seats could be provided, as well as a 30% increase in freight. Rail chiefs also announced plans to move from 800 signal boxes to 14 modern signalling centres. The hoped-for schemes – which will need government approval – are in addition to £4.9bn of ongoing projects such as the Thameslink and Crossrail schemes in London and already-announced electrification schemes such as that for the Great Western line. The rail industry also spoke of trying to improve the passenger experience in key areas such as information, comfort and accessibility. The Network Rail group strategy director, Paul Plummer, said: “The railways are booming, with more and more people choosing rail. Closer collaboration within the industry will deliver even more efficiencies. “This revenue growth and improved efficiency taken together provide governments with real choices to consider, choices around the appropriate balance between subsidy, investment and fares.” Michael Roberts, the chief executive of the Association of Train Operating Companies, said: “Rail has a bright future in supporting a successful green economy in the years ahead. “This plan shows how we can do that by providing a better quality of service to growing numbers of passengers at a more affordable cost. “We look forward to working with the government to ensure the right framework is in place to make this possible.” The plan comes as season-ticket holders face average fare rises of 8% in the new year, at a time when passenger numbers are rising on a network where rail costs are seen as too high. Rail transport Transport guardian.co.uk
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Crucial test for Angela Merkel as the Bundestag decides whether to approve extending the powers of the European Financial Stability Facility 8.09am: As forecast, shares have fallen back in early trading. The FTSE 100 dropped 40 points, or 0.7%, at the open – with all the major European indexes falling by a similar amount. So, traders will probably be marking time while they await events in the Bundestag. 8.00am: The German debate is just about to start. The Bundestag looks certain to approve enhanced powers for the eurozone’s bailout fund on Thursday, but Angela Merkel’s credibility is at stake. Will she get a convincing majority within her own coalition of Christian Democrats and Liberals – or will she scrape through with the votes of the main opposition parties, the Social Democrats and Greens? While most of Merkel’s own CDU party are toeing the party line, Horst Seehofer, the leader of its sister faction, the Bavarian CSU, is making life difficult for her. He recently disagreed with her contention that Europe would fail if the euro failed. “I don’t see the connection,” he stated bluntly. As far as the CDU goes, its chief whip, Peter Altmeier, is confident. “As a chief whip, I have to be optimistic, but so far we have managed to win every single struggle in parliament, every single vote and that is going to happen again this Thursday,” he told the BBC on Wednesday. You can watch the German debate live here 7.49am: City traders believe the stock markets will lose ground again this morning, at least until the German vote on the EFSF has been concluded. Last night the Dow Jones index fell 1.6%, after the FTSE 100 has shed 76 points. Chris Weston of IG Markets warned that: In what is becoming an increasingly common theme, investor sentiment faltered once again yesterday over the outlook for successfully navigating the eurozone debt crisis. 7.38am: Here’s a breakdown of some of the key timings today: • The Bundestag will start debating the EFSF expansion at 9am CET (8am BST) • Voting is expected to begin at 11am CET (10am BST) • The EU summit in Warsaw is taking place all day • Eurozone consumer confidence data is released at 11am CET (10am BST) • Revised US second-quarter GDP is released at 8.30am EST (1.30BST) 7.31am: Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the European debt crisis. Later this morning, the German Bundestag will vote on the proposal to enlarge and extend the eurozone rescue packaga. Angela Merkel is likely to win the vote, but may lose the support of some members of her own coalition. Elsewhere, Nick Clegg will address the EU summit in Warsaw. The deputy prime minister is expected to warn that the European Union could fragment if its members fail to work together to resolve the situation. More strikes are expected in Greece, where international inspectors will begin to assess whether George Papandreou’s administration has done enough to earn the next €8bn portion of its bailout fund. European debt crisis Euro Germany Financial crisis Currencies Economics Graeme Wearden Julia Kollewe guardian.co.uk
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President halted construction in wake of police violence but remains accused of betraying native peoples Tens of thousands of Bolivians have taken to the streets to reproach President Evo Morales over a police crackdown on indigenous protesters. The marchers decried the perceived betrayal by Bolivia’s first Indian president of his prime constituencies: native groups and environmentalists. “Evo was a very strong symbol for many people. He embodied principles of justice, of human rights. But now these people are disenchanted,” said Jim Shultz, an analyst with thinktank the Democracy Centre, which works on Bolivian issues. Some Bolivians, such as 44-year-old schoolteacher Juana Pinto, said Morales had proved a disappointment. “This government is the worst and it should go because it attacked human beings, the indigenous compatriots who had given it their support, and now it’s turned its back on them,” said Pinto, who took part in a march that brought central La Paz to a standstill. The president issued a statement saying the protests had been a “profound wake-up call” for his government following weekend police action that broke up a march by Indians protesting against a proposed highway through their protected Amazon reserve. “I could never order such violence as has been seen by the Bolivian people,” Morales said in a statement released to news media. He asked for forgiveness from the families of the protesters and urged indigenous groups to hold talks with the government. Bolivia’s main labour federation called a 24-hour general strike on Wednesday. It appeared only partially successful – most businesses were open. Morales championed a new constitution in 2010 that granted Bolivia’s 36 indigenous groups an as yet ill-defined autonomy. He promised to protect indigenous people from industry and developers. But since winning election in December 2005 the president has been forced to weigh development against environmental protection. His “revolution” reached a crossroads last year when he decided to pursue a 190-mile (300km) jungle highway funded by Brazil through the Isiboro-Secure Indigenous Territory National Park, or TIPNIS, in the eastern lowlands state of Beni. About 1,000 people began a march on La Paz in mid-August from Beni’s capital, Trinidad, to protest against the highway they say is an open invitation to loggers and coca-planting settlers and a threat to park inhabitants. That march was broken up on Sunday by riot police who used teargas and truncheons, arresting several hundred marchers but later freeing them under pressure from local people. Bolivia’s defence minister resigned immediately in protest at the crackdown and the interior minister followed, accepting responsibility for police actions. Morales announced on Monday that he was suspending the highway project and would let voters in the affected region decide its fate in a referendum. The original protesters against the highway have promised to resume their own march. Bolivia Indigenous peoples Amazon rainforest guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Next GOP Debate Question Suggestion: ‘Should Women Be Forced To Conceive After Rape?’
September 28, 2011 No CommentAs you may have noticed, the tea party led GOP has targeted the pro-choice movement intensely as they assumed their new positions in government following the 2010 midterm elections. Were these deficit fetishists – concerned about job creation and reducing the federal deficit? Nope. Did you believe they would? Nope. Did the media dismiss the extreme religious right’s influence on the tea party coalition when it formed? Yes. Make no mistake about it. The vast majority of self-identified tea partiers check the box marked “social conservative,” which means anti-abortion zealots. C&L and many other sites have been highlighting the rash of anti-choice legislation that has either already been passed or is being shopped as we speak. The latest wave that’s beginning to gather steam is the Personhood amendments which Susie wrote about earlier this month. You’ve heard the pre-born meme and as Susie wrote Don’t kid yourself that this is “just” Mississippi. The Christian right is going after birth control in every state: Mississippi voters will be allowed to decide on a ballot measure that defines “personhood” from the moment of fertilization, the Mississippi Supreme Court ruled last week. The measure could potentially outlaw abortions, birth control, in vitro fertilization and stem cell research across the state. Measure 26, which will bypass the legislature and go straight to a popular ballot vote, redefines the term “person” as it appears throughout Mississippi’s Bill of Rights to include “all human beings from the moment of fertilization, cloning or the functional equivalent thereof.” The American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi, Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights filed a lawsuit against the proposal earlier this year, not based on its content or constitutionality, but because Mississippi state law says a ballot initiative cannot be used to change the Bill of Rights. The Mississippi Supreme Court rejected the lawsuit in a 7-2 ruling, saying that it had no power to review any ballot initiative before the actual vote takes place. Let’s look at some of the interesting legal ramifications. If you go through in vitro fertilization, and it doesn’t work, you’d have to report that as a death. Same thing would go for very early miscarriages. How do we know you didn’t try to abort your pregnancy? Women would have to prove they didn’t murder their blastocyst/zygote/embryo/fetus. It’s now on the ballot in Mississippi so I think it’s time the WaPo/Bloomberg Televison moderators of the upcoming GOP debate in New Hampshire on October 11th step up to the plate and ask them if they support rape induced pregnancies and all the caveats of the Personhood amendment. We know how Rick Santorum and Michele Bachmann will answer so they wouldn’t even have to respond, just a nod will do, but let’s hear from everyone else that has a chance to win the nomination. And they can Skype in Chris Christie and get his response too since conservatives are still begging him to run. Digby has more on the lunacy surrounding “Conceived in rape” forced pregnancy tour.
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So, TransferJet hasn’t exactly taken off the way many had hoped, especially Sony which crammed the wireless tech into CyberShot cameras and Memory Sticks . But some, like Toshiba , are still holding on to the dream. By the end of January 2012 Tosh plans to ship samples of its new TC35420 TransferJet chip to manufacturers, which can move files at an impressive 560Mbps. The short-range, high-speed sharing protocol could make moving photos, videos and other media between your smartphones, tablets and laptops quick and easy… or it could just become another feature that lies dormant in a few select products collecting piles of virtual dust. It only started showing up in products last year, so we’re not ready to put a nail in its coffin just yet — we’ll just have to see if the tech can finally live up to it promise of painless connectivity. Toshiba prepping new 560Mbps TransferJet chip originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 28 Sep 2011 20:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Massachussetts man charged over plot to attack Pentagon and US Capitol
September 28, 2011 No Comment
US citizen Rezwan Ferdaus planned to pack remote-controlled planes with plastic explosive, authorities say US authorities on Wednesday arrested and charged a Massachusetts man with plotting to damage or destroy the Pentagon and US Capitol by using remote-controlled aircraft filled with plastic explosives. Rezwan Ferdaus, 26, a US citizen, was also charged with attempting to provide support and resources to the al Qaida group in order to carry out attacks on US soldiers stationed overseas, US attorney’s office in Boston said. He was caught in an undercover operation. “The conduct alleged today shows that Mr. Ferdaus had long planned to commit violent acts against our country,” US Attorney Carmen Ortiz said in a statement. The public was never in danger from the explosive devices, which were controlled by undercover FBI employees, she said. Authorities allege that Ferdaus, a physics graduate from Northeastern University in Boston, began planning to commit a violent “jihad” against the United States in early 2010. Ferdaus, of Ashland, Massachusetts, about 25 miles (40 km) west of Boston, is alleged to have modified mobile phones to act as electrical switches for improvised explosive devices (IEDs). He supplied the phones to the undercover FBI agents, who he believed were members of, or recruiters for, al Qaida. “During a June 2011 meeting, he appeared gratified when told his first phone detonation device had killed three US soldiers and injured four or five others in Iraq. Ferdaus responded, “That was exactly what I wanted,” the federal affidavit said. Ferdaus told agents he planned to attack the Pentagon using “small drone airplanes” filled with explosives and guided by GPS equipment. He later expanded that plan to include an attack on the US Capitol. “In May and June 2011, Ferdaus delivered two thumb drives to the UCs (undercover agents), which contained detailed attack plans with step-by-step instructions as to how he planned to attack the Pentagon and Capitol,” authorities said. Ferdaus traveled to Washington to conduct surveillance and take photographs of his target, and identified sites at East Potomac Park, near the Capitol, from which he planned to launch his explosive-filled aircraft. Ferdaus’ arrest came immediately after he took possession of various weaponry from the undercover agents – including explosives, grenades and AK-47 assault rifles – and brought them to and locked them in his storage unit. United States Global terrorism al-Qaida US foreign policy guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Massachussetts man charged over plot to attack Pentagon and US Capitol
September 28, 2011 No CommentUS citizen Rezwan Ferdaus planned to pack remote-controlled planes with plastic explosive, authorities say US authorities on Wednesday arrested and charged a Massachusetts man with plotting to damage or destroy the Pentagon and US Capitol by using remote-controlled aircraft filled with plastic explosives. Rezwan Ferdaus, 26, a US citizen, was also charged with attempting to provide support and resources to the al Qaida group in order to carry out attacks on US soldiers stationed overseas, US attorney’s office in Boston said. He was caught in an undercover operation. “The conduct alleged today shows that Mr. Ferdaus had long planned to commit violent acts against our country,” US Attorney Carmen Ortiz said in a statement. The public was never in danger from the explosive devices, which were controlled by undercover FBI employees, she said. Authorities allege that Ferdaus, a physics graduate from Northeastern University in Boston, began planning to commit a violent “jihad” against the United States in early 2010. Ferdaus, of Ashland, Massachusetts, about 25 miles (40 km) west of Boston, is alleged to have modified mobile phones to act as electrical switches for improvised explosive devices (IEDs). He supplied the phones to the undercover FBI agents, who he believed were members of, or recruiters for, al Qaida. “During a June 2011 meeting, he appeared gratified when told his first phone detonation device had killed three US soldiers and injured four or five others in Iraq. Ferdaus responded, “That was exactly what I wanted,” the federal affidavit said. Ferdaus told agents he planned to attack the Pentagon using “small drone airplanes” filled with explosives and guided by GPS equipment. He later expanded that plan to include an attack on the US Capitol. “In May and June 2011, Ferdaus delivered two thumb drives to the UCs (undercover agents), which contained detailed attack plans with step-by-step instructions as to how he planned to attack the Pentagon and Capitol,” authorities said. Ferdaus traveled to Washington to conduct surveillance and take photographs of his target, and identified sites at East Potomac Park, near the Capitol, from which he planned to launch his explosive-filled aircraft. Ferdaus’ arrest came immediately after he took possession of various weaponry from the undercover agents – including explosives, grenades and AK-47 assault rifles – and brought them to and locked them in his storage unit. United States Global terrorism al-Qaida US foreign policy guardian.co.uk
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