Libyan rebels claim regime is crumbling following flight of third senior official Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s regime appeared to be crumbling from within with the third defection of a senior member of his regime within days, which emerged as rebels pressed their advantage on the battlefield. According to Tunisia’s official news agency Abdel-Salam Jalloud – who helped propel Gaddafi to power in 1969 but had more recently fallen out with him – flew out of Djerba airport early yesterday. Rebels attempting to oust Gaddafi claimed Jalloud has defected.Jalloud’s flight follows the reported defection earlier this week of oil minister Omrane Boukraa and senior security official Nasser al-Mabrouk Abdullah, who fled to Cairo from Tunisia on Monday with his family. The latest defection – which was reported amid a swirl of rumours concerning the intentions of Gaddafi and his family – came as rebel forces continued operations on three fronts to cut off the capital Tripoli. In Zliten, a town formerly loyal to Gaddafi which was captured on Friday, rebels continued with street-to-street searches. The insurgents have also claimed the final capture of Brega, a town that has changed hands on a number of occasions. In Zawiya, the city 30 miles from Tripoli that earlier this year endured a long and bloody siege, Gaddafi’s forces were reported as cleared from most of the town, but still holding out in an eastern suburb along the main highway to the capital. Despite rebels securing the main square, the city centre was hit by rockets or mortars, demonstrating the threat still posed by forces loyal to the regime who have available to them both modern tanks and missile launchers. Libya Middle East Africa Muammar Gaddafi Peter Beaumont Luke Harding guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Keith Olbermann Makes Coburn Worst Person for Talk of Bringing a Gun to the Senate Floor – Says He Should Resign
August 20, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media Keith Olbermann didn’t parse any words during his Worst Persons segment on Countdown this Thursday and went after Sen. Tom Coburn for his eliminationist rhetoric where he said that “It’s just a good thing I can’t pack a gun on the Senate floor.” And then as John already noted , proceeded to attack President Obama as an affirmative action recipient and claimed the country was better off before we had Medicare in place. Keith called for Coburn to resign and I agree with him. Not that he’s going to care what anyone thinks since he’s not running for reelection anyway. OLBERMANN: But when he moved from health care and casual racism to the debt ceiling deal, Sen. Coburn took a step down from the simply mean spirited, out of touch, whiny elitism which has marked his political career and moved towards ineligibility for the office which he holds. He called his colleagues “cowards” and then added “It’s just a good thing I can’t pack a gun on the Senate floor.” Yes it is, but apparently that’s insufficient protection for the rest of us. For a sitting U.S. Senator to say in public that he even daydreams or jokes about the prospect of shooting other Senators is not just to ignore the supposed lessons of the shooting of Congresswoman Giffords and the other victims of Tuscon. It is not just to ignore the years before the Civil War when Congressman Preston Brooks of Georgia went up to Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts in the Senate chamber and beat him into unconsciousness with a cane and kept him out of office for a year. It is to pull at the threads of non-violent Democracy. It is unacceptable. It implies that other members of the U.S. Senate merit being shot, because they disagree with Sen. Coburn. And if that is indeed how he thinks, and he’s not disavowed, nor apologized for, nor even addressed this remark, he is not just a personal danger to his colleagues, but more realistically he is the kind of dangerous inspiration to those of his supporters or constituents, or just anybody who hears his comments, who might be unstable enough to act on them. As Sen. Coburn admits, it just a good thing he can’t pack a gun on the Senate floor. But it would be a better thing still if he were not on the Senate floor. If that’s who you are Senator… resign.
Continue reading …‘West Memphis Three’ — Convicted Of Killing Boy Scouts — Free After Serving 17 Years In Prison
August 20, 2011 No Comment
After serving 17 years behind bars for the brutal murder of three children in eastern Arkansas, Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley Jr. and Jason Baldwin — dubbed the “West Memphis Three” — have been released from prison. “They will be free men … on suspended sentence,” prosecuting Attorney Scott Ellington told reporters during a Friday press conference. “Only time will tell as to whether this was the right decision.” All three men had been imprisoned since 1994, when they were convicted of killing three 8-year-old boys: Stevie Branch, Michael Moore and Christopher Byers. Prosecutors alleged the trio killed the children in Robin Hood Hills on the morning of May 6, 1993, as part of a satanic ritual. According to police, the boys’ bodies were mutilated and left in a ditch. Each had been hogtied with his own shoelaces. At the time of their arrests, Baldwin was 16. Misskelley was 17, and Echols was 18. Echols was sentenced to death, Misskelley was sentenced to life imprisonment plus 40 years, and Baldwin was sentenced to life. DNA testing was not available at the time of the defendants’ trials. In 2007, it was found that DNA collected at the crime scene did not match that belonging to any of the three men. In November 2010, the state Supreme Court ruled that all three could present new evidence in court. A new court date had been set for December, but on Thursday Judge David Laser ordered all three men transported to Jonesboro for today’s surprise hearing. In a brief statement released to the press, Laser only said that the hearing was to “take up certain matters pertaining to the cases” of the three defendants. Experts believe both sides have entered into a complex legal agreement, in which the three men have entered into so-called Alford pleas. “The plea means that you maintain your innocence but you believe there is a substantial likelihood that a jury will find you guilty so you are pleading guilty per State v. Alford,” Anne Bremner, a Seattle attorney and legal analyst, told The Huffington Post. “The effect of the corresponding finding of guilt by the court is the same as with a straight guilty plea.” Such pleas could make it more difficult for the men to sue the state over their imprisonment. “It’s not perfect,” Echols said in a press conference following the hearing. “It’s not perfect by any means but at least it brings closure to some areas and some aspects.” Echols added that he was “still very much in shock [and] still overwhelmed.” “We can still bring up new evidence; we can still continue the investigations we [have] been doing,” said Echols. “We can still try to clear our names. The only difference is now we can do it from the outside instead of having to sit in prison and do it.” After fighting for so many years, Echols said it wasn’t difficult for him to come to the decision to agree to the plea deal. But Baldwin said he only took the deal to rescue Echols from death row. “This was not justice,” Baldwin said. “In the beginning we told nothing but the truth — that we were innocent and they sent us to prison for the rest of our lives for it. We had to come here and the only thing the state would do for us is say, ‘Hey we will let you go only if you admit guilt,’ and that is not justice anyway you look it. They’re not out there trying to find who really murdered those boys, and I did not want to take the deal from the get-go. However, they are trying to kill Damien, and sometimes you just got to bite the gun to save somebody.” When sharing his opinion on the pleas with reporters outside the courtroom this morning. John Mark Byers, the father of one of the children killed in 1993, said he believes Echols, Baldwin and Misskelley are innocent, adding that he is angry with the way the pleas are being handled. “This is not right, and the people of Arkansas need to stand up and raise hell. … Just because they admit to this today, it’s not over,” Byers said. Since their incarceration, the trio has been the subject of three documentaries, one of which is scheduled to be released in November. The men have also had a long list of celebrity supporters, including the Dixie Chicks, Eddie Vedder, Johnny Depp and Metallica. WATCH: This report has been updated to include comments from Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin that occurred after the original publication.
Continue reading …‘West Memphis Three’ — Convicted Of Killing Boy Scouts — Free After Serving 17 Years In Prison
August 20, 2011 No Comment
After serving 17 years behind bars for the brutal murder of three children in eastern Arkansas, Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley Jr. and Jason Baldwin — dubbed the “West Memphis Three” — have been released from prison. “They will be free men … on suspended sentence,” prosecuting Attorney Scott Ellington told reporters during a Friday press conference. “Only time will tell as to whether this was the right decision.” All three men had been imprisoned since 1994, when they were convicted of killing three 8-year-old boys: Stevie Branch, Michael Moore and Christopher Byers. Prosecutors alleged the trio killed the children in Robin Hood Hills on the morning of May 6, 1993, as part of a satanic ritual. According to police, the boys’ bodies were mutilated and left in a ditch. Each had been hogtied with his own shoelaces. At the time of their arrests, Baldwin was 16. Misskelley was 17, and Echols was 18. Echols was sentenced to death, Misskelley was sentenced to life imprisonment plus 40 years, and Baldwin was sentenced to life. DNA testing was not available at the time of the defendants’ trials. In 2007, it was found that DNA collected at the crime scene did not match that belonging to any of the three men. In November 2010, the state Supreme Court ruled that all three could present new evidence in court. A new court date had been set for December, but on Thursday Judge David Laser ordered all three men transported to Jonesboro for today’s surprise hearing. In a brief statement released to the press, Laser only said that the hearing was to “take up certain matters pertaining to the cases” of the three defendants. Experts believe both sides have entered into a complex legal agreement, in which the three men have entered into so-called Alford pleas. “The plea means that you maintain your innocence but you believe there is a substantial likelihood that a jury will find you guilty so you are pleading guilty per State v. Alford,” Anne Bremner, a Seattle attorney and legal analyst, told The Huffington Post. “The effect of the corresponding finding of guilt by the court is the same as with a straight guilty plea.” Such pleas could make it more difficult for the men to sue the state over their imprisonment. “It’s not perfect,” Echols said in a press conference following the hearing. “It’s not perfect by any means but at least it brings closure to some areas and some aspects.” Echols added that he was “still very much in shock [and] still overwhelmed.” “We can still bring up new evidence; we can still continue the investigations we [have] been doing,” said Echols. “We can still try to clear our names. The only difference is now we can do it from the outside instead of having to sit in prison and do it.” After fighting for so many years, Echols said it wasn’t difficult for him to come to the decision to agree to the plea deal. But Baldwin said he only took the deal to rescue Echols from death row. “This was not justice,” Baldwin said. “In the beginning we told nothing but the truth — that we were innocent and they sent us to prison for the rest of our lives for it. We had to come here and the only thing the state would do for us is say, ‘Hey we will let you go only if you admit guilt,’ and that is not justice anyway you look it. They’re not out there trying to find who really murdered those boys, and I did not want to take the deal from the get-go. However, they are trying to kill Damien, and sometimes you just got to bite the gun to save somebody.” When sharing his opinion on the pleas with reporters outside the courtroom this morning. John Mark Byers, the father of one of the children killed in 1993, said he believes Echols, Baldwin and Misskelley are innocent, adding that he is angry with the way the pleas are being handled. “This is not right, and the people of Arkansas need to stand up and raise hell. … Just because they admit to this today, it’s not over,” Byers said. Since their incarceration, the trio has been the subject of three documentaries, one of which is scheduled to be released in November. The men have also had a long list of celebrity supporters, including the Dixie Chicks, Eddie Vedder, Johnny Depp and Metallica. WATCH: This report has been updated to include comments from Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin that occurred after the original publication.
Continue reading …Nina Totenberg: Obama Can Save Economy With ‘A Lot of Very Populist Rhetoric’
August 20, 2011 No Comment
Stock markets around the world are once again imploding in fear of a global double-dip recession. Appearing on PBS's “Inside Washington” Friday, NPR's Nina Totenberg said Barack Obama can cure what ails us with “a lot of very populist rhetoric” (video follows with transcript and commentary): NINA TOTENBERG, NPR: The fact is that the economy does not get better from its illness unless there are in fact more jobs, because nobody is spending, there aren't, people don't have jobs to, who don't have jobs don't have income to spend. And, I mean, I, I think really the only choice Obama has right now is to, to, is a lot of very populist rhetoric to try and get a real budget that has real tax increases and real cuts and real job creation possibilities. Yeah. Heck with putting forth an actual plan on paper that legislators, the Congressional Budget Office, and the American people can fully examine and analyze. What we need right now is more populist rhetoric from the Populist Rhetorician-in-Chief. This has worked so well for the nation and the economy the past 30-plus months. Oh, and by the way, with a double-dip recession looming, what we really need right now are “real tax increases” to surely push the economy over the edge. Yeah – that's the ticket. Between Obama's rhetoric and some “real tax increases,” the economy will be booming in no time.
Continue reading …Nina Totenberg: Obama Can Save Economy With ‘A Lot of Very Populist Rhetoric’
August 20, 2011 No CommentStock markets around the world are once again imploding in fear of a global double-dip recession. Appearing on PBS's “Inside Washington” Friday, NPR's Nina Totenberg said Barack Obama can cure what ails us with “a lot of very populist rhetoric” (video follows with transcript and commentary): NINA TOTENBERG, NPR: The fact is that the economy does not get better from its illness unless there are in fact more jobs, because nobody is spending, there aren't, people don't have jobs to, who don't have jobs don't have income to spend. And, I mean, I, I think really the only choice Obama has right now is to, to, is a lot of very populist rhetoric to try and get a real budget that has real tax increases and real cuts and real job creation possibilities. Yeah. Heck with putting forth an actual plan on paper that legislators, the Congressional Budget Office, and the American people can fully examine and analyze. What we need right now is more populist rhetoric from the Populist Rhetorician-in-Chief. This has worked so well for the nation and the economy the past 30-plus months. Oh, and by the way, with a double-dip recession looming, what we really need right now are “real tax increases” to surely push the economy over the edge. Yeah – that's the ticket. Between Obama's rhetoric and some “real tax increases,” the economy will be booming in no time.
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300 violin orchestra free download link in destcription please subscrib Violin & Tabla. (Classical Music) Mozart Violin and Piano Sonata No 8 ireneismyname says: I just taught my first violin lesson! Oh the life …
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A 17-year-old Turkish waiter who wanted to marry victim’s daughter has confessed to the murder of the two women The family of a Northern Irish woman stabbed to death with her best friend in Turkey are travelling to the country to comfort her teenage daughter. Marion Elizabeth Graham and Kathy Dinsmore, both aged 53, from Newry, County Down, were found murdered in woods near the port city of Izmir on Thursday. A 17-year-old Turkish waiter has confessed to the murder of the two women following a row with Graham after she refused his proposal to marry her 15-year-old daughter Shannon. Graham’s son, and her ex-partner Raymond McGuinness, the father of Shannon, has flown to Turkey to bring the girl home, with her mother’s body and that of her friend. The two women were found after Graham’s daughter reported that she had failed to turn up for a planned boat trip off the resort of Kusadasi. They suffered multiple stab wounds, including having their throats cut. McGuinness said he had never been fully in favour of the relationship since the two teenagers began going out last summer. “There was always something that was not quite right,” he said. The waiter, known to the family as Alex, is believed to have worked in a Kusadasi restaurant where both the Graham and Dinsmore families often ate during their holidays. After a police interrogation he is alleged to have told detectives that he lured the two women into the area promising them a tour of Izmir. Local reports said the teenager claimed he decided to kill the women because Graham was standing in the way of his marriage to her daughter. Earlier he had claimed that en route to taking the women to a local shopping centre his car had been blocked on a road by another vehicle and the three of them had been kidnapped. He told police that the next thing he could remember was waking up near his house. McGuinness said: “He told Shannon that he had tried to stop the kidnappers and he had a cut on his hand and that’s how he suffered it.” It is understood the waiter had been involved in a separate row with Shannon’s mother last week. Graham’s sister, Monica Higgins, said the family was devastated by the double murder. “It’s absolutely devastating. We’ve just found out. My mother’s in the car crying her eyes out,” she said. “We’re trying to work with the Irish department of foreign affairs to find out what exactly happened to her.” In a statement, members of the Dinsmore also family spoke of their sorrow. “John and George Dinsmore are devastated by the tragic death of their beloved sister Kathy Dinsmore while on holiday in Turkey,” it said. “The Dinsmore family are grateful for the many condolences that they have received and appeal for privacy during this difficult time.” Northern Ireland Turkey Europe Ireland Crime guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …A 17-year-old Turkish waiter who wanted to marry victim’s daughter has confessed to the murder of the two women The family of a Northern Irish woman stabbed to death with her best friend in Turkey are travelling to the country to comfort her teenage daughter. Marion Elizabeth Graham and Kathy Dinsmore, both aged 53, from Newry, County Down, were found murdered in woods near the port city of Izmir on Thursday. A 17-year-old Turkish waiter has confessed to the murder of the two women following a row with Graham after she refused his proposal to marry her 15-year-old daughter Shannon. Graham’s son, and her ex-partner Raymond McGuinness, the father of Shannon, has flown to Turkey to bring the girl home, with her mother’s body and that of her friend. The two women were found after Graham’s daughter reported that she had failed to turn up for a planned boat trip off the resort of Kusadasi. They suffered multiple stab wounds, including having their throats cut. McGuinness said he had never been fully in favour of the relationship since the two teenagers began going out last summer. “There was always something that was not quite right,” he said. The waiter, known to the family as Alex, is believed to have worked in a Kusadasi restaurant where both the Graham and Dinsmore families often ate during their holidays. After a police interrogation he is alleged to have told detectives that he lured the two women into the area promising them a tour of Izmir. Local reports said the teenager claimed he decided to kill the women because Graham was standing in the way of his marriage to her daughter. Earlier he had claimed that en route to taking the women to a local shopping centre his car had been blocked on a road by another vehicle and the three of them had been kidnapped. He told police that the next thing he could remember was waking up near his house. McGuinness said: “He told Shannon that he had tried to stop the kidnappers and he had a cut on his hand and that’s how he suffered it.” It is understood the waiter had been involved in a separate row with Shannon’s mother last week. Graham’s sister, Monica Higgins, said the family was devastated by the double murder. “It’s absolutely devastating. We’ve just found out. My mother’s in the car crying her eyes out,” she said. “We’re trying to work with the Irish department of foreign affairs to find out what exactly happened to her.” In a statement, members of the Dinsmore also family spoke of their sorrow. “John and George Dinsmore are devastated by the tragic death of their beloved sister Kathy Dinsmore while on holiday in Turkey,” it said. “The Dinsmore family are grateful for the many condolences that they have received and appeal for privacy during this difficult time.” Northern Ireland Turkey Europe Ireland Crime guardian.co.uk
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Plane belonging to Royal Air Force’s aerobatics display team plunged to the ground in Dorset after a demonstration A Red Arrows jet has crashed in Dorset following an aerobatics display, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed. The plane belonging to one of the Royal Air Force’s aerobatics display team plunged to the ground near Bournemouth Airport in Dorset after a demonstration at the town’s air festival. An MoD spokesman said: “We can confirm that we are aware of an incident involving one of the Red Arrows and we are investigating.” The Bournemouth Air Festival said events were continuing as scheduled. The Red Arrows are famous for their airborne stunts, multicoloured vapour trails, dramatic flypasts and trademark diamond formation. Formed in 1965, the arrows have flown more than 4,000 displays in 53 countries. Their red single-engine jet trainers are a familiar sight at air shows and military events. Military David Batty guardian.co.uk
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