May 15, 2003

Haaretz reports on Yasser Arafat’s solution to the Middle-East conflict: both a Palestinian state and the "right of return". Haaretz quotes: For the past 55 years, martyrs... have fallen for the sake of the homeland, freedom and the return of the refugees," he said in a speech from his offices in the West Bank city of Ramallah to mark "Naqba" day. "Every Palestinian refugee knows that his identity will be restored to him only upon the return of his homeland, and he will not be submissive to a patron." So Arafat wants a Palestinian state and then he wants Israel to commit suicide by accepting millions of Palestinian refugees. Why bother listening to him at all? 9:20:28 PM

The idea of embedded reporters in military units is spreading – Greg Myre writes in the New York Times (reg. required) about his experiences being with an Israeli Army unit as it entered the Gaza Strip to hunt for terrorists firing rockets into Israel. 9:19:22 PM

The New York Times (reg. required) is reporting that McWane Inc is under investigation following a join The New York Times-PBS Frontline investigation of the company. The report states that: McWane Inc, a major manufacturer of cast-iron pipes and one of the nation's most persistent violators of workplace safety and environmental laws, is the target of a federal criminal investigation, according to law enforcement officials and current and former employees who have been questioned in the inquiry. The NY Times-Frontline report described how: McWane, a private conglomerate owned by one of Alabama's wealthiest families and employing 5,000 workers, had recorded more than 4,600 injuries since 1995 while also illegally polluting the air and water in several states where it owns foundries. 12:15:24 AM