Monday 25th January 2010
Seven year old sponsored bike ride helps Haiti
A seven-year-old boy,Charlie Simpson from London has raised more than £100,000 on a sponsored bike-ride for victims of the Haiti earthquake, shattering his target of £500. Yesterday, Charlie Simpson cycled seven laps of a park near his home in Fulham which is about eight kilometres to raise money for UNICEF's Haiti Earthquake Children's Appeal.
On his JustGiving fundraising page, Charlie states 'I want to make some money to buy food, water and tents for everyone in Haiti.' Also, his mother, Leonora, stated, 'What started off as a little cycle round the park with his dad has turned into something a lot bigger than that and we can't believe it.' The donations worldwide have left messages of support as well as pledges of aid, as a result of international media coverage increasing the profile of his ride.
The UK executive director of UNICEF, David Bull, said 'This is a very bold and innovative gesture by Charlie that shows he connects with and not only understands what children his own age must be going through in Haiti, but is also wise enough to know that he can help them.' He thanked Charlie on behalf of children in Haiti for what he had done. A spokesman for UNICEF, Michael Newsome described Charlie’s charitable act as 'fabulous', adding, 'There is something quite special about a child in the UK reaching out to the children of Haiti.'
Charlie will go to visit UNICEF’s offices later today, when he will be thanked in person and told how much he has risen for Haiti. UNICEF officials did not want to disrupt his normal school routine this morning.
Tuesday 26th January 2010
Mother Aids Daughter's Death
Bridget Gilderdale, a mother from Stonegate, East Sussex, has been found not guilty of the attempted murder of her daughter, Lynn Gilderdale. She was a 31-year-old sufferer of chronic fatigue syndrome (known as ME), after her daughter was found dead at their home on 4 December, having been killed using a concoction of pills and morphine. The case has called into question the United Kingdom's assisted suicide laws.
Bridget Gilderdale had already admitted to aiding and abetting her daughter's suicide, but the jury decided, unanimously, to acquit her of a charge of attempted murder. The presiding judge, Mr Justice Bean, had already questioned the accusation's suitability, asking prosecutor Sally Howes 'Why it was considered to be in the public interest'.
Gilderdale was given a 12-month conditional discharge. The case stands in contrast to the life sentence received last week by Frances Inglis, who killed her severely brain damaged son Tom by injecting him with heroin.
As a result of this case, it has brought the limelight of the debate over a person's 'right to die' and the United Kingdom's laws on assisted suicide.
Wednesday 27 th January 2010
UK cabinet minister Jack Straw ignored advice that Iraq invasion was illegal
The Iraq Inquiry in London has revealed that United Kingdom justice secretary Jack Straw ignored the advice of Sir Michael Wood, the Foreign Office's most senior legal adviser until his resignation in 2006, that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was illegal under international law. This is the first time that Wood has publicly expressed an opinion on the war.
Seven year old sponsored bike ride helps Haiti
A seven-year-old boy,Charlie Simpson from London has raised more than £100,000 on a sponsored bike-ride for victims of the Haiti earthquake, shattering his target of £500. Yesterday, Charlie Simpson cycled seven laps of a park near his home in Fulham which is about eight kilometres to raise money for UNICEF's Haiti Earthquake Children's Appeal.
On his JustGiving fundraising page, Charlie states 'I want to make some money to buy food, water and tents for everyone in Haiti.' Also, his mother, Leonora, stated, 'What started off as a little cycle round the park with his dad has turned into something a lot bigger than that and we can't believe it.' The donations worldwide have left messages of support as well as pledges of aid, as a result of international media coverage increasing the profile of his ride.
The UK executive director of UNICEF, David Bull, said 'This is a very bold and innovative gesture by Charlie that shows he connects with and not only understands what children his own age must be going through in Haiti, but is also wise enough to know that he can help them.' He thanked Charlie on behalf of children in Haiti for what he had done. A spokesman for UNICEF, Michael Newsome described Charlie’s charitable act as 'fabulous', adding, 'There is something quite special about a child in the UK reaching out to the children of Haiti.'
Charlie will go to visit UNICEF’s offices later today, when he will be thanked in person and told how much he has risen for Haiti. UNICEF officials did not want to disrupt his normal school routine this morning.
Tuesday 26th January 2010
Mother Aids Daughter's Death
Bridget Gilderdale, a mother from Stonegate, East Sussex, has been found not guilty of the attempted murder of her daughter, Lynn Gilderdale. She was a 31-year-old sufferer of chronic fatigue syndrome (known as ME), after her daughter was found dead at their home on 4 December, having been killed using a concoction of pills and morphine. The case has called into question the United Kingdom's assisted suicide laws.
Bridget Gilderdale had already admitted to aiding and abetting her daughter's suicide, but the jury decided, unanimously, to acquit her of a charge of attempted murder. The presiding judge, Mr Justice Bean, had already questioned the accusation's suitability, asking prosecutor Sally Howes 'Why it was considered to be in the public interest'.
Gilderdale was given a 12-month conditional discharge. The case stands in contrast to the life sentence received last week by Frances Inglis, who killed her severely brain damaged son Tom by injecting him with heroin.
As a result of this case, it has brought the limelight of the debate over a person's 'right to die' and the United Kingdom's laws on assisted suicide.
Wednesday 27 th January 2010
UK cabinet minister Jack Straw ignored advice that Iraq invasion was illegal
The Iraq Inquiry in London has revealed that United Kingdom justice secretary Jack Straw ignored the advice of Sir Michael Wood, the Foreign Office's most senior legal adviser until his resignation in 2006, that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was illegal under international law. This is the first time that Wood has publicly expressed an opinion on the war.
Wood advised Straw, then Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, that invading Iraq without the backing of the United Nations Security Council in the form of a specific mandate, which the resolution the gove
rnment used to support the war lacked would 'amount to the crime of aggression', to which Straw responded that he was being 'dogmatic and international law was pretty vague'.
Wood stated 'Obviously there are some areas of international law that can be quite uncertain. This, however, turned exclusively on the interpretation of a specific text and it is one of which I think that international law was pretty clear.'
Thursday 28th January 2010
Salinger Dies At 91
American novelist J.D. Salinger (above), author of The Catcher in the Rye, has died of natural causes at the age of 91. His son confirms that he died in his New Hampshire home yesterday. Salinger was born in New York City in 1919.
In 1953, shortly after the publication of The Catcher in the Rye, his most famous work. He very rarely entered the public eye after that date, emerging only for infrequent interviews and lawsuits.
Besides, the infamous novel of 'The Catcher in the Rye', he has published other books, none of which have enjoyed the success of his hihlyprofiled novel. These include such novels like 'Franny and Zooey', 'Raise High the Roof Beam' and 'Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction'.
However, Salinger's last work, the novella 'Hapworth 16', was published in 'The New Yorker' in 1965.
Friday 29th January 2010
Blair gives evidence Iraq Inquiry
The Prime Minister announced on 15 June 2009 that an Inquiry would be conducted to identify lessons that can be learned from the Iraq conflict. The Iraq Inquiry was officially launched on 30 July 2009. At the launch the Chair of the Inquiry, Sir John Chilcot, set out the Inquiry's Terms of Reference.
The Inquiry committee members are Sir John Chilcot (Chairman), Sir Lawrence Freedman, Sir Martin Gilbert, Sir Roderic Lyne and Baroness Usha Prashar.
Tony Blair, former prime minister of the United Kingdom, appeared before the Iraq Inquiry today. He faced six hours of questioning, starting at 6:30 am, at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London concerning his role in the 2003 Iraq invasion.
During the inquiry, Blair stood by his decision to invade, saying he would make the same decision again.This is the third time Blair has given evidence at an inquiry into the Iraq War, having already testified before at the Hutton Inquiry and the Butler Review, as well as participating in an investigation by the Intelligence and Security Committee. The Hutton Inquiry found that the government did not make enough effect to inform the public of the dossier on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.
The Butler Review uncovered 'serious flaws' in pre-war intelligence, and this inquiry was set up by current prime minister Gordon Brown in order to 'learn the lessons' of the war. Sir John Chilcott, began by stressing that Blair was not 'on trial', but could be called back to give further evidence if necessary.
At the end of the session, Chilcott asked Blair if he had any regrets, to which Blair replied that he was "sorry" that it was 'divisive', but said that invading was the right thing to do since he believes "the world is a safer place as a result." Blair said that the inquiry should ask the '2010 question', which refers to the hypothetical position that the world would be in if Saddam Hussein were not removed from power.
Saturday 30th January 2010
Honda car call back
Honda recalls 650,000 of the Honda Fit (also known as Honda Jazz) vehicles worldwide over potential electrical faults.
The road safety authorities in Britain were under attack for alleged complacency today after Honda joined Toyota in recalling potentially dangerous cars.
The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) criticised government officials after Honda asked owners of 650,000 of its Jazz models worldwide – including more than 170,000 in Britain – to take their cars back to dealers over potential electrical faults.
The crisis surrounding the car industry intensified when lawmakers in the US announced an investigation into Toyota's faulty accelerator pedals were the speculation of 19 deaths may have been caused by equipment failures over the decade. Toyota has recalled 3.5m vehicles in the US.
Honda's move follows safety scares and the death of a toddler in South Africa in a car fire. Futhermore, the spokeswoman for Honda UK stressed it had taken the recall decision without being asked to by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (Vosa), which co-ordinates such issues for the Department of Transport in this country.
Tim Shallcross, head of technical advice at the IAM, said: "[Vosa] should be identifying where there are problems and calling on manufacturers to sort them out. Instead, the action is coming from Honda itself.
Vosa was unable to comment but said it was fully aware of the situation in the US and had arranged a meeting with Toyota.
"In the UK, motoring manufacturers comply with the code of practice on vehicle safety defects. Honda is no exception in complying with that code, by informing Vosa of the intention to recall 172,000 Honda Jazz vehicles," they said.
"Likewise Toyota are meeting with Vosa officials on Monday, when they will have the precise details of the number of vehicles likely to be affected in the UK. Toyota have kept Vosa informed throughout this matter."
In Washington, the House of Representatives oversight and government reform committee has scheduled a hearing next week entitled Toyota Gas Pedals: Is the Public at Risk? caused growing concerns.
Toyota is considering whether to recall 1.8m cars in Europe in addition to those recalled in the US.
Shares in Toyota fell 2% today, bringing the combined loss of value to 17% over the past week since the problems began to unfold. Honda also saw its shares fall on the New York stock exchange.
In an email sent to staff, Toyota explained now it had worked out how to fix the problem with the sticking accelerator pedals. On the other, Tokyo feared that the problems at Toyota and Honda were damaging not just their image of efficiency and reliability but that of Japan itself.
Sunday 31st January 2010
Egypt secured a record seventh Africa Cup of Nations title, after beating Ghana 1-0 in a tense final in Angola.
Mohamed Gedo scored the only goal of the game, playing a neat one-two before curling a superb shot past Richard Kingson in the 85th minute.
Gedo's winner came against the run of play, but Milovan Rajevac's young Ghana side failed to create many openings. Gedo finished the tournament as the top scorer and Egypt became the first team to win three successive titles.
The final will be ardenaline based. However, it proved to be a tight and absorbing affair in Luanda. Ghana set out from the start to execute a well-organised game-plan of crowding out the Egyptians in midfield and defence, while looking to feed their front men quickly.
Midfielder Isaac Vorsah emerged as very authoritative at the back for Ghana.
Egypt remained organised and solid, as they did throughout the tournament, and succeeded in cutting out many of Ghana's attacks.
The Black Stars shoned brightly and have promising spells throughout, with striker Asamoah Gyan having the majority of their best chances.
Gyan's early free kick hit the Egyptian wall and from the resulting corner, the ball fell back to the striker, who attempted an ambitious overhead kick, which sailed over Essam El Hadary's goal.
Egypt were mainly reduced to shooting from distance, with captain Ahmed Hassan's repeated efforts from outside the box showing a level of early frustration.
The late first half of the game, Hassan clearly handled a free-kick from Hosni Abd Rabou at the far post in an attempt to palm it goalwards, but the offence was not spotted by the referee.
Substitute Mohamed Gedo scored the game's only goal to secure the title
After a tight first half, which yielded little in terms of clear shots on goal, Ghana began to impose themselves on a cautious Egypt side.
And their best spell came in the last 20 minutes, with Gyan seeing two excellent efforts on goal go begging.
On 73 minutes, a long and patient build-up from the Black Stars almost produced an opener when Gyan rounded it off by curling a beautiful shot just over the bar.
Five minutes later Gyan unleashed another fierce in-swinging effort from outside the area, this time from a free-kick, which was punched away unconvincingly by El Hadary in the Egypt goal.
Then Opoku Agyemang broke into the box and squared to Kwadwo Asamoah, who just could not connect.
Ghana were then punished for not putting their chances away when Gedo broke into the box at pace and played a wonderful one-two with Mohamed Zidan, before excellently tucking the ball home across Kingson's goal and into the far corner.
The goal made him the top marksman in the tournament with five goals, all of them coming as a substitute. It was also his sixth goal in only eight appearances for Egypt.
The Ghanaians desperately tried to get back into the game in the final few minutes.
Asamoah struck a near-post shot just past El Hadary's upright on 90 minutes after more Ghana pressure, but desperately watched it go wide.
This injury-time chance fell to substitute Eric Addo in the six-yard area, who just could not convert it.
Monday 1st Febraury 2010
Deficit to Hit All-Time High
President Barack Obama will propose on Monday a $3.8 trillion budget for fiscal 2011 that projects the deficit will shoot up to a record $1.6 trillion this year, but would push the red ink down to about $700 billion, or 4% of the gross domestic product, by 2013, according to congressional aides.
The deficit for this fiscal year, which ended on 30th September, would eclipse last year's $1.4 trillion deficit, in part due to new spending on a proposed jobs package. The president also wants $25 billion for cash-strapped state governments, mainly to offset their funding of the Medicaid health program for the poor.
The president's $3.8 trillion budget will move deficit levels to an all-time high. The News Hub discusses the budget's chance for passing Congress.
The deficit down by the middle of the decade, Mr. Obama will be relying on some cuts that have previously been proposed without success, on cooperation from a wary Congress and on a yet-to-be set up debt commission to suggest politically difficult choices.
Mr. Obama is under pressure to address the country's continued high unemployment rate. And he will propose increases in spending for priorities such as education and domestic scientific research. All of this raises questions about how much progress the president is likely to make in trying to fulfill his pledge to halve by 2013 the $1.3 trillion deficit he inherited.
The budget has made Mr. Obama's larger predicament of needing to contain the deficit without harming the economy, which remains fragile.
The deficit has become a major political issue, as antigovernment activists swing independents against what they describe as Mr. Obama's big-government policies and Republicans try to regain the mantle of fiscal responsibility after the Bush years saw surpluses swing to deficits.
rnment used to support the war lacked would 'amount to the crime of aggression', to which Straw responded that he was being 'dogmatic and international law was pretty vague'.Wood stated 'Obviously there are some areas of international law that can be quite uncertain. This, however, turned exclusively on the interpretation of a specific text and it is one of which I think that international law was pretty clear.'
Thursday 28th January 2010
Salinger Dies At 91
American novelist J.D. Salinger (above), author of The Catcher in the Rye, has died of natural causes at the age of 91. His son confirms that he died in his New Hampshire home yesterday. Salinger was born in New York City in 1919.
In 1953, shortly after the publication of The Catcher in the Rye, his most famous work. He very rarely entered the public eye after that date, emerging only for infrequent interviews and lawsuits.
Besides, the infamous novel of 'The Catcher in the Rye', he has published other books, none of which have enjoyed the success of his hihlyprofiled novel. These include such novels like 'Franny and Zooey', 'Raise High the Roof Beam' and 'Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction'.
However, Salinger's last work, the novella 'Hapworth 16', was published in 'The New Yorker' in 1965.
Friday 29th January 2010
Blair gives evidence Iraq Inquiry
The Prime Minister announced on 15 June 2009 that an Inquiry would be conducted to identify lessons that can be learned from the Iraq conflict. The Iraq Inquiry was officially launched on 30 July 2009. At the launch the Chair of the Inquiry, Sir John Chilcot, set out the Inquiry's Terms of Reference.
The Inquiry committee members are Sir John Chilcot (Chairman), Sir Lawrence Freedman, Sir Martin Gilbert, Sir Roderic Lyne and Baroness Usha Prashar.
Tony Blair, former prime minister of the United Kingdom, appeared before the Iraq Inquiry today. He faced six hours of questioning, starting at 6:30 am, at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London concerning his role in the 2003 Iraq invasion.
During the inquiry, Blair stood by his decision to invade, saying he would make the same decision again.This is the third time Blair has given evidence at an inquiry into the Iraq War, having already testified before at the Hutton Inquiry and the Butler Review, as well as participating in an investigation by the Intelligence and Security Committee. The Hutton Inquiry found that the government did not make enough effect to inform the public of the dossier on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.
The Butler Review uncovered 'serious flaws' in pre-war intelligence, and this inquiry was set up by current prime minister Gordon Brown in order to 'learn the lessons' of the war. Sir John Chilcott, began by stressing that Blair was not 'on trial', but could be called back to give further evidence if necessary.
At the end of the session, Chilcott asked Blair if he had any regrets, to which Blair replied that he was "sorry" that it was 'divisive', but said that invading was the right thing to do since he believes "the world is a safer place as a result." Blair said that the inquiry should ask the '2010 question', which refers to the hypothetical position that the world would be in if Saddam Hussein were not removed from power.
Saturday 30th January 2010
Honda car call back
Honda recalls 650,000 of the Honda Fit (also known as Honda Jazz) vehicles worldwide over potential electrical faults.
The road safety authorities in Britain were under attack for alleged complacency today after Honda joined Toyota in recalling potentially dangerous cars.
The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) criticised government officials after Honda asked owners of 650,000 of its Jazz models worldwide – including more than 170,000 in Britain – to take their cars back to dealers over potential electrical faults.
The crisis surrounding the car industry intensified when lawmakers in the US announced an investigation into Toyota's faulty accelerator pedals were the speculation of 19 deaths may have been caused by equipment failures over the decade. Toyota has recalled 3.5m vehicles in the US.
Honda's move follows safety scares and the death of a toddler in South Africa in a car fire. Futhermore, the spokeswoman for Honda UK stressed it had taken the recall decision without being asked to by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (Vosa), which co-ordinates such issues for the Department of Transport in this country.
Tim Shallcross, head of technical advice at the IAM, said: "[Vosa] should be identifying where there are problems and calling on manufacturers to sort them out. Instead, the action is coming from Honda itself.
Vosa was unable to comment but said it was fully aware of the situation in the US and had arranged a meeting with Toyota.
"In the UK, motoring manufacturers comply with the code of practice on vehicle safety defects. Honda is no exception in complying with that code, by informing Vosa of the intention to recall 172,000 Honda Jazz vehicles," they said.
"Likewise Toyota are meeting with Vosa officials on Monday, when they will have the precise details of the number of vehicles likely to be affected in the UK. Toyota have kept Vosa informed throughout this matter."
In Washington, the House of Representatives oversight and government reform committee has scheduled a hearing next week entitled Toyota Gas Pedals: Is the Public at Risk? caused growing concerns.
Toyota is considering whether to recall 1.8m cars in Europe in addition to those recalled in the US.
Shares in Toyota fell 2% today, bringing the combined loss of value to 17% over the past week since the problems began to unfold. Honda also saw its shares fall on the New York stock exchange.
In an email sent to staff, Toyota explained now it had worked out how to fix the problem with the sticking accelerator pedals. On the other, Tokyo feared that the problems at Toyota and Honda were damaging not just their image of efficiency and reliability but that of Japan itself.
Sunday 31st January 2010
Egypt secured a record seventh Africa Cup of Nations title, after beating Ghana 1-0 in a tense final in Angola.
Mohamed Gedo scored the only goal of the game, playing a neat one-two before curling a superb shot past Richard Kingson in the 85th minute.
Gedo's winner came against the run of play, but Milovan Rajevac's young Ghana side failed to create many openings. Gedo finished the tournament as the top scorer and Egypt became the first team to win three successive titles.
The final will be ardenaline based. However, it proved to be a tight and absorbing affair in Luanda. Ghana set out from the start to execute a well-organised game-plan of crowding out the Egyptians in midfield and defence, while looking to feed their front men quickly.
Midfielder Isaac Vorsah emerged as very authoritative at the back for Ghana.
Egypt remained organised and solid, as they did throughout the tournament, and succeeded in cutting out many of Ghana's attacks.
The Black Stars shoned brightly and have promising spells throughout, with striker Asamoah Gyan having the majority of their best chances.
Gyan's early free kick hit the Egyptian wall and from the resulting corner, the ball fell back to the striker, who attempted an ambitious overhead kick, which sailed over Essam El Hadary's goal.
Egypt were mainly reduced to shooting from distance, with captain Ahmed Hassan's repeated efforts from outside the box showing a level of early frustration.
The late first half of the game, Hassan clearly handled a free-kick from Hosni Abd Rabou at the far post in an attempt to palm it goalwards, but the offence was not spotted by the referee.
Substitute Mohamed Gedo scored the game's only goal to secure the title
After a tight first half, which yielded little in terms of clear shots on goal, Ghana began to impose themselves on a cautious Egypt side.
And their best spell came in the last 20 minutes, with Gyan seeing two excellent efforts on goal go begging.
On 73 minutes, a long and patient build-up from the Black Stars almost produced an opener when Gyan rounded it off by curling a beautiful shot just over the bar.
Five minutes later Gyan unleashed another fierce in-swinging effort from outside the area, this time from a free-kick, which was punched away unconvincingly by El Hadary in the Egypt goal.
Then Opoku Agyemang broke into the box and squared to Kwadwo Asamoah, who just could not connect.
Ghana were then punished for not putting their chances away when Gedo broke into the box at pace and played a wonderful one-two with Mohamed Zidan, before excellently tucking the ball home across Kingson's goal and into the far corner.
The goal made him the top marksman in the tournament with five goals, all of them coming as a substitute. It was also his sixth goal in only eight appearances for Egypt.
The Ghanaians desperately tried to get back into the game in the final few minutes.
Asamoah struck a near-post shot just past El Hadary's upright on 90 minutes after more Ghana pressure, but desperately watched it go wide.
This injury-time chance fell to substitute Eric Addo in the six-yard area, who just could not convert it.
Monday 1st Febraury 2010
Deficit to Hit All-Time High
President Barack Obama will propose on Monday a $3.8 trillion budget for fiscal 2011 that projects the deficit will shoot up to a record $1.6 trillion this year, but would push the red ink down to about $700 billion, or 4% of the gross domestic product, by 2013, according to congressional aides.
The deficit for this fiscal year, which ended on 30th September, would eclipse last year's $1.4 trillion deficit, in part due to new spending on a proposed jobs package. The president also wants $25 billion for cash-strapped state governments, mainly to offset their funding of the Medicaid health program for the poor.
The president's $3.8 trillion budget will move deficit levels to an all-time high. The News Hub discusses the budget's chance for passing Congress.
The deficit down by the middle of the decade, Mr. Obama will be relying on some cuts that have previously been proposed without success, on cooperation from a wary Congress and on a yet-to-be set up debt commission to suggest politically difficult choices.
Mr. Obama is under pressure to address the country's continued high unemployment rate. And he will propose increases in spending for priorities such as education and domestic scientific research. All of this raises questions about how much progress the president is likely to make in trying to fulfill his pledge to halve by 2013 the $1.3 trillion deficit he inherited.
The budget has made Mr. Obama's larger predicament of needing to contain the deficit without harming the economy, which remains fragile.
The deficit has become a major political issue, as antigovernment activists swing independents against what they describe as Mr. Obama's big-government policies and Republicans try to regain the mantle of fiscal responsibility after the Bush years saw surpluses swing to deficits.
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