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With yesterday’s report that Yemen President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s injuries are more serious than initially reported, a power transfer increasingly seems imminent. Saleh could be out of Yemen for months and could be forced to give up his rule, sources tell the Wall Street Journal , although government officials still insist…

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Introducing the PS Vita [Video]

Armed with dual analog sticks, front- and rear-mounted cameras, a multi-touch backing, 5-inch OLED touchscreen, sixaxis motion sensor, wifi, 3G (through AT&T, which sent a round of boos through the audience), and a slew of games designed to utilize its multiple control systems, the PS Vita is a packed-to-the-gills next-gen for the PS3. Retail price Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : [Geeks are Sexy] Discovery Date : 07/06/2011 14:18 Number of articles : 5

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Russia defies growing consensus with declaration of ‘total war on drugs’

Under new laws being drawn up addicts would be forced into treatment or jailed, and dealers ‘treated like serial killers’ Drug dealers are to be “treated like serial killers” and could be sent to forced labour camps under harsh laws being drawn up by Russia’s Kremlin-controlled parliament. Boris Gryzlov, the speaker of the state duma, the lower house, said a “total war on drugs” was needed to stem a soaring abuse rate driven by the flow of Afghan heroin through central Asia to Europe. Russia has as many as 6 million addicts (one in 25 people). Every year 100,000 people die from using drugs, Gryzlov said in a newspaper. The scale of the problem “threatens Russia’s gene pool”, he said. “We are standing on the edge of a precipice. Either we squash drug addiction or it will destroy us.” This year, President Dmitry Medvedev said drug abuse was cutting up to three percentage points off economic growth. Injecting drug use is also accelerating Russia’s Aids crisis because – unlike most other European countries – methadone treatment is banned and needle exchange programmes are scarce, meaning the virus spreads quickly from addict to addict via dirty syringes. An estimated one in 100 Russians are HIV positive. Under legislation promoted by the ruling United Russia party and now being reviewed in parliament, drug addicts will be forced into treatment or jailed, and dealers will be handed heftier custodial sentences. “The barons of narco-business must be put on a par with serial killers with the appropriate punishment in the form of a life sentence,” said Gryzlov, who is chairman of the party. Activists criticised the idea of putting addicts behind bars, pointing to a growing worldwide consensus that treating drug users as criminals has failed as a strategy. The Global Commission on Drugs Policy said in a report last week that there needed to be a shift away from criminalising drugs and incarcerating those who use them. Gryzlov, however, claimed that “criminal responsibility for the use of narcotics is a powerful preventative measure”. Special punishments should also be considered for dealers, he added: “Sending drug traders to a katorga [forced labour camp], for example. Felling timber, laying rails and constructing mines – that’s very different from sitting in a personal cell with a television and a fridge while you keep up your ‘business’ on the outside.” While it remains unclear how many of the measures will become law, other leading members of United Russia – which is headed by Vladimir Putin, the prime minister, and which dominates the duma – said they supported the initiative. The plans follow an admission by Medvedev in April that Russia’s fight against drug addiction had failed. He called for radical measures such as mandatory drug tests in schools. Possession of small quantities of psychotropic substances in Russia carries an administrative fine of up to 15,000 roubles (£330), but Gryzlov indicated it would now result in a jail term. The state should offer narkomany – addicts – a stark choice, he said: “Prison or forced treatment.” That could be a bleak prospect. Some of Russia’s detox clinics still use “coding”, a controversial therapy in which patients are scared into thinking terrible consequences (such as their testicles falling off) will result if they mix drugs with medicines which are actually placebos. Several activists condemned Gryzlov’s suggestion to “isolate” drug users from society. “Sending more people to prison will not reduce drug addiction or improve public health,” said Anya Sarang, president of the Andrey Rylkov Foundation, an advocacy group for people with HIV which works with injecting drug users (IDUs). “Russian prisons are terrible places full of HIV, tuberculosis and other diseases. Drugs are often even more accessible there than anywhere else.” She added: “What we need instead of this harsh drug control rhetoric is greater emphasis on rehabilitation, substitution treatment, case management for drug users and protection from HIV.” HIV prevalence among IDUs in western countries is 1 or 2%, but lack of outreach work and the absence of opiate substitution (methadone) and other “harm reduction” measures mean the figure is 16% in Russia – rising to 60% in hotspots such as St Petersburg. Denis Broun, the Moscow-based director of UNAIDS for Europe and central Asia, told the Guardian that Gryzlov’s proposals could make matters even worse. “It has been widely shown that criminalising people using drugs simply drives them underground and makes them much harder to reach with preventative measures,” he said. “This is not an effective strategy for fighting HIV. Purely repressive measures do not work.” Russia Drugs Aids and HIV Europe Health Tom Parfitt guardian.co.uk

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Andrew Mitchell defends higher British spending on aid as a moral duty

Development secretary faces down rightwing criticism of overseas aid, saying it is good value for money Andrew Mitchell, the development secretary, has faced down rightwing criticism of higher government spending on aid by defending British help for the world’s poor as morally right and in the national interest. Mitchell used a speech in London to mark his first year in office to say that the coalition’s development strategy provided good value for money, was targeted at countries in most need and was the best way to “protect UK security and prosperity”. In a direct riposte to those in the media and on the Tory right who have attacked the government’s decision to spare the aid budget from George Osborne’s austerity programme, Mitchell said: “It is a stain on all our consciences that a girl born in South Sudan today is more likely to die having a baby than to complete primary school. “When we know what life – and death – is like for over a billion people living on less than 80p a day, and we have the wherewithal to do something about it, then, yes, I do believe we have a moral imperative to do so.” Mitchell said that since becoming development secretary he had completed reviews of Britain’s aid spending to ensure that the extra money from British taxpayers was being well spent. “They [the reviews] have allowed ministers to take a strategic, informed view about where to focus our efforts in order to achieve the greatest impact. And to recognise the relative success of many countries that are coming out of poverty themselves. “So, over the next four years UK bilateral aid will be concentrated on 27 rather than 43 countries, among the poorest countries in the world, where the need is greatest. And whether we channel funds through multilateral agencies, or indeed through NGOs or others, we will expect the same rigour in results, transparency and value from them as we do from ourselves.” Mitchell rejected criticism that the government’s aid strategy increased dependency in poor countries and was often going to fast-growing emerging countries, such as India, which did not need it. “We are withdrawing aid from those countries that have succeeded in pulling themselves out of poverty. And we will continue to take this approach, celebrating when countries make the transition to self-sufficiency and supporting them through this process. Aid is a means to an end not an end in itself.” David Cameron stressed at last month’s G8 summit in Deauville that Britain would meet its pledge to increase aid spending to 0.7% of national output by 2013, but Mitchell said that the budget would be focused on “the poorest and the most vulnerable. On women and girls, including those who, because of the conflict in which they live, lose out twice over.” Mitchell said he wanted to “galvanise the entrepreneurial spirit of the private sector in the poorest countries and be open about what the government was doing. “We’ve made it easy for people to understand what we’re doing – publishing clear, simple data that’s easy to understand. Not only can the British taxpayer see what we are doing, but so too can the people our aid programmes are intended to help. Whether it’s a British person sitting in Manchester or a Kenyan sitting in Kisumu, any individual can hold us to account – and tell us if they think we’re getting it wrong.” Development Aid Global economy Conservatives David Cameron Larry Elliott guardian.co.uk

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Roland Martin Doesn’t Call Out DNC Chair for Linking GOP-Backed Voting Requirements With Jim Crow Laws

CNN analyst Roland Martin simply allowed DNC Chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz to say what she wanted about Republicans on his Sunday show Washington Watch, on TVOne. Schultz linked Florida GOP-backed voting proposals with Jim Crow laws and poll taxes, and said one has a better chance of being struck by lightning than see an instance of voter fraud. Martin not once challenged Schultz over her rhetoric. Schultz was referring to Republican-backed measures in certain states that require a photo I.D. to vote and trim the number of early-voting days, in order to prevent voter fraud. Schultz hit such policies as discriminatory. [Video below the break.] “[N]ow you have the Republicans, who want to literally drag us all the way back to Jim Crow laws and literally – and very transparently – block access to the polls to voters who are more likely to vote for Democratic candidates than Republican candidates,” Schultz insisted. After she spoke, Martin briskly moved on to the next question. The story was picked up by Politico and other online sources, and Schultz retracted her Jim Crow analogy a day later. Later in the interview, Schultz ridiculously added that “you're more likely to get hit by lightning than you are to see an instance of voter fraud in this country.” And again, Martin did not question her assumptions. At the end of the segment, Schultz was asked about Rep. Anthony Weiner's Twitter fiasco – one day before Weiner called his press conference and revealed that he had lied to the media for a week about the scandal. Schultz called Weiner's situation “a personal matter” and added “that's where it should be left.” A transcript of the segment, which aired on June 5, is as follows: ROLAND MARTIN: An ongoing effort underway in Republican-controlled state houses across the country, could be another. Republicans are backing measures that will require photo identification and other type of things, including cutting the number of days for early voting. Republicans say it will cut down on voter fraud. Critics contend it's a step backwards, and it would discriminate against the poor, elderly, students, people with disabilities, and minorities. Joining me to explain why Democrats are against this move is the chair of the Democratic National Committee, Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz. We're glad you're here on Washington Watch. Rep. DEBBIE WASSERMAN-SCHULTZ (D-Fla.), DNC Chairwoman: Thank you Roland. Great to be here with you. MARTIN: Your home state – Gov. Rick Scott is leading one of these efforts, and for the life of me, I don't understand whenever I see Republicans or even Democrats contesting votes and things along those lines. We talk about this is the fundamental right to be Americans, but to put roadblocks up to – to – for voting makes no sense to me. SCHULTZ: Well, I mean if you go back to the year 2000, when we had an obvious disaster and – and saw that our voting process needed refinement, and we did that in the America Votes Act and made sure that we could iron out those kinks, now you have the Republicans, who want to literally drag us all the way back to Jim Crow laws and literally – and very transparently – block access to the polls to voters who are more likely to vote for Democratic candidates than Republican candidates. And it's nothing short of that blatant. MARTIN: Now, Georgia has a voter I.D. law that was passed, and the Obama Justice Department – they actually approved that particular law, saying it will not impact minority voters. But other states are looking to – to put into place voter I.D. laws. Your – the DNC’s position on those voter I.D. laws. SCHULTZ: Well, photo I.D. laws, we think, is – are very similar to a poll tax. I mean you look – just look at African-American voters as a snapshot. About 25 percent of African-American voters don't have a valid photo I.D. I mean – and – and the reason it's similar to a poll tax is because you've got the expense. You've got the effort. There's difficulties for s- — for many people in getting a photo I.D. So, you're literally just throwing a barrier in the way of someone who's trying to exercise their right to vote. And the reason that it's not necessary is because we already have very legitimate voter verification processes, signature checks that are already in place; and there is so little voter fraud, which is the professed reason the Republicans are advancing these – these laws. There's so little voter fraud, and I mean you're more likely to get hit by lightning than you are to see an instance of voter fraud in this country, but Republicans are imposing laws all over the country, acting like it's not – voter fraud is rampant, and it's ridiculous. (…) SCHULTZ: Rick Scott, the Republican governor of Florida, as part of his election reform law that he just pushed through the legislature, literally said to third party groups who register voters, “We're going to fine you a thousand dollars per voter if you don't turn the voter registration form in within 48 hours of registering that voter.”

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Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Long-Lost First Novel To Be Published

Years before he published his first Sherlock Holmes novel, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle constructed The Narrative of John Smith, his first book. Written between 1883 and 1884, when the author was in his 20s, it was sent to a publisher but lost in the mail. Although Conan Doyle reconstructed it from memory, it was never fully finished,

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One Canadian Catholic school went a step further than banning the word gay : It banned rainbows at a recent anti-homophobia event. “We brought signs and posters with rainbows, and we were told that we can’t put them up,” the founder of St. Joseph Catholic Secondary School’s unofficial gay-straight alliance tells…

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Part 1 Of ‘The Sissy Boy Experiment’: The Consequences Of Ex-Gay Therapy

Tonight, CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360 aired the first part of a three-part series called, “The Sissy Boy Experiment,” examining the effects of government-funded gender-normalizing therapy on a five-year old boy named Kirk Murphy in 1970. The therapy was carried out by disgraced Family Research Council co-founder George Rekers, whose three decade career in the conservative Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : Think Progress Discovery Date : 08/06/2011 05:42 Number of articles : 5

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E coli: farmers’ aid deal agreed as toll rises to 26

Compensation package finalised by European Commission will cost more than €200m in June The European commission has finalised a deal to help farmers hit by the E coli crisis that will cost the bloc more than €200m (£178m) in compensation payments to the end of this month alone. The package came as Germany, the centre of the outbreak of a new and virulent strain of the bacterium, said two more people had died, taking the toll to 26. But while there were also 300 more E coli cases reported, the German health minister said the situation was gradually improving. “I cannot yet give an all-clear, but after an analysis of the numbers there’s reason for hope,” Daniel Bahr told ARD TV. “The numbers are continuously falling – which none the less means that there can still be new cases and that one unfortunately has to expect new deaths too – but overall new infections are clearly going down.” Vegetable growers, particularly those farming salad crops, have been severely hit after German officials blamed first cucumbers from Spain and then bean sprouts farmed in northern Germany. Neither turned out to be the confirmed source and scientists now say it is possible this might never be identified. An initial compensation plan, announced on Tuesday by the EU’s agriculture commissioner, Dacian Ciolos , proposed giving farmers 30% of the market price of unsold crops, up to a total of €150m. This was immediately rejected as woefully insufficient by Spain, France and Italy. Ciolos unveiled a more generous scheme on Wednesday which would see all affected producers get 50% of market price, costing €210m until the end of June. In addition, the estimated one-third of farmers who are members of national producer organisations will get another 20%, funded 50/50 by the EU and the organisations. “We are doing as much as we can with the current financial means available,” Ciolos said, conceding that the total bill could rise further. “We don’t know how things are going to evolve. We cannot predict. At the end of June we will see where we stand.” The hope for the EU is that as the outbreak recedes, consumers – at least outside Germany – will resume their usual shopping habits. The plan is expected to be ratified at a meeting of officials next Tuesday, despite the likelihood that Spain and several other nations will vote against it. Germany’s national disease control centre, the Robert Koch Institute, has given a more mixed assessment of the outbreak, saying the declining trend could simply be because people were not eating the raw products spreading the bacterium. The number of reported cases in Germany had risen by more than 300 to 2,648, it said, with nearly 700 of those affected by a serious complication that can cause kidney failure. Germany faces criticism for its reaction to the outbreak, for a perceived delay in spotting the initial pattern of illness as well as twice public identifying the cause without proof. E coli Germany European commission Europe France Spain Italy Peter Walker guardian.co.uk

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