December 17, 2002

Plug may be pulled on on-line pharmacies The Globe and Mail, Canada - Up to 1,000 employees in Manitoba's booming Internet pharmacy industry are anxiously waiting to learn if they will still have jobs after a mediator's report is released next year. "We do not feel secure. The plug could be pulled at any time," said Rupinder Brar, a supervisor with Canadameds.com, the largest Internet pharmacy in Manitoba and employer of about 250 people. A dispute between Web-based pharmacies and the Manitoba Pharmaceutical Association has gone to mediation. 10:01:29 PM

Al-Qaeda 'still poses big threat' BBC - The United Nations group monitoring the al-Qaeda network says it still poses a substantial threat. In its third report, in its 12th month of operation, the group says stronger co-ordinated efforts are needed by the world community ... 9:52:31 PM

New Netscape kills pop-ups The Register - AOL Time Warner has released a new version of Netscape that allows users to suppress pop-up ads, one of the most hated ad formats. The fact that Internet users will now be able to configure their Netscape 7.01 browsers to prevent the appearance of pop-up ads on their screens means that the advertising format's current popularity could be diminished among Web-advertisers, who claim that it is one of the most effective on-line ad tools. 12:30:32 PM

Just when you start teaching your kid to seek out the police if they are abused by a priest, in the UK: Police held in child porn inquiry ITV News - Fifty police officers have been arrested in connection with a nationwide operation targeting Internet users who pay to access child pornography websites. Eight have been charged. Earlier, 34 men were arrested in London as part of Operation Ore, bringing the total number of arrests to 1300 across the UK. A large amount of computer equipment and other evidence was also seized during the operation. 12:27:28 PM

Digital media a Plus for Windows XP InfoWorld - MICROSOFT WILL RELEASE early next year a Plus expansion pack for Windows XP that will enhance the digital media features in its desktop operating system. At the same time, the company said, it will make available the final release of its Windows Windows Media 9 software. 11:05:48 AM

Ahenakew's racist words shock friends and followers The Globe and Mail - Those who worked with and looked up to David Ahenakew are as stunned by the Saskatchewan aboriginal leader's anti-Semitic rant as the rest of the country. Bob Epstein, an Ottawa-based human-rights activist and a Jew, said he was devastated to hear of his long-time friend's remarks last week lauding Adolf Hitler for having "fried" six million Jews during the Holocaust. The two men collaborated closely on constitutional issues two decades ago when Mr. Epstein was a consultant for Cree Indians and Mr. Ahenakew was the Grand Chief of the Assembly of First Nations. "There are a lot of Jewish lawyers and advisers who have helped David Ahenakew over the years," Mr. Epstein said yesterday. "It's scary that someone you have been working with has that much hatred for your people." MORE DETAIL: Some of the other comments attributed to the Native leader are, "(Hitler) was trying to clean up the world during the war." "The Jews damn near owned all of Germany prior to the war," Ahenakew said. "That's how Hitler came in. He was going to make damn sure that the Jews didn't take over Germany or Europe. That's why he fried six million of those guys, you know. Jews would have owned the goddamned world. And look what they're doing. They're killing people in Arab countries." The 68-year-old Ahenakew made his remarks after giving a 45-minute, profanity-laced address to between 150 and 200 delegates attending an FSIN conference on a new Health Canada policy requiring Indians to sign a consent form before receiving certain health services. 10:38:06 AM

Condit Sues Dunne For Slander Newsday - Retiring Rep. Gary Condit sued Dominick Dunne for $11 million on Monday, claiming the author slandered him in interviews about the Chandra Levy case. 8:37:19 AM

AOL wins $7m in porn spam case The Register -AOL has won $7m in damages after it claimed its punters had been bombarded with porn spam. The giant Internet company used the court ruling to warn spammers that it will use the full force of the law to hit at anyone who targets its punters with unsolicited email. AOL brought the case against CN Productions in the late 1990s, alleging it had sent unwanted emails advertising adult Web sites. In 1999, AOL won an injunction barring CN Productions from spamming its users. 8:15:46 AM

US court rejects Web libel-at-a-distance lawsuit InfoWorld - A US COURT has dismissed an attempt to force two newspapers based in the state of Connecticut to face defamation proceedings in the state of Virginia over articles posted on their Web site. 8:13:06 AM