April 15, 2004

Two years ago he staged his own televised detention at an Israeli checkpoint as he attempted to visit PLO leader Yasser Arafat.  He then ranted and accused the Israeli military of murder and torture.  Today, New Democrat, Svend Robinson steps down over theft of jewelry. 10:11:27 PM

Iranian News Agency Report: Iraqi Civilians 'Systematically Sexually Abused' by U.S. Armed Forces - MEMRI In an article titled "What Price 'Freedom?'" the website of the major Iranian news agency Mehr News charged the U.S. Army with "committing systematic sexual abuse against Iraqi civilians," and directed readers to a website supposedly set up by the U.S. Armed Forces, www.rape.com, that contains a section on "Rape in Iraq" featuring "gory pictures of the atrocities committed by U.S. Armed Forces against Iraqi women and children." However, this is in fact the website of the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), the largest domestic anti-sexual assault organization in the U.S., and which displays no such photos. Read the article here. 10:05:34 PM

Iraqi Nuclear Gear Found in Europe Washington Post - Large amounts of nuclear-related equipment, some of it contaminated, and a small number of missile engines have been smuggled out of Iraq for recycling in European scrap yards, according to the head of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog and other U.N. diplomats. Mohammed ElBaradei, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, warned the U.N. Security Council in a letter that U.N. satellite photos have detected "the extensive removal of equipment and, in some instances, removal of entire buildings" from sites that had been subject to U.N. monitoring before the U.S.-led war against Iraq. 6:34:07 PM

Anti-Semitic site bumped off Google's top spot JPost.com - A world-wide effort has succeeded in bumping an anti-Semitic web site from its No. 1 rank on the popular search engine Google. Utilizing a cyber-petition and some clever HTML programming, a diverse group of Jewish activists, academics and even a US senator managed to replace the top spot with Wikipedia's encyclopedia, which two weeks ago held no rank. 6:19:16 PM

US forces tighten grip on Najaf International Herald Tribune - NAJAF, Iraq American forces tightened their grip around Najaf on Wednesday as the rebel Shiite cleric they had vowed to kill or capture offered unconditional talks in what he said was an effort to spare a blood bath in one of Iraq's holiest cities. Setting up a military base in "one of Iraq's holiest cities" probably saved his life as it is.  The US showed incredible restraint in not just leveling the whole town.  Of course going in and killing everything that moved would have meant a major outcry from human rights organizations.  However they will probably scream massacre anyway. 9:47:20 AM

Arafat: Palestinians won't concede to Sharon's plan CNN - Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat on Thursday said the Palestinians will never give up their quest for an independent state and the "right of refugees to return to their lands." The "independant state" above means a state without the "zionist entity".  All of what is known as Israel is Arafat's goal.  Even if he is forced into a two state solution, that will not be good enough.  Well, Sharon is planning on a unilateral "disengagement plan."  Building a fence between the PLO and Israel, and letting "whatever" happen behind that fence.  If the Palestinian people would prefer to be ruled by a militant fascist, with no free press, no rule of law, and no real economy (just like most of the rest of the arab middle east), then they can.  This sounds like a really good plan to me. 9:41:41 AM

Lindows gives in to Microsoft pressure to change name Houston Chronicle - Lindows, a software upstart with an unabashedly similar name to Microsoft's Windows, said Wednesday it was changing the name of its Linux-based computer operating system to Linspire. I suspect the Linpressure was too great. 2:03:46 AM