news blog

Selecting the Most Appropriate Power of Attorney Template

2011-11-26T20:32:00.001-08:00

Using a power of attorney template is a simple method for creating legal documents that authorize an agent to take care of financial or healthcare transactions on your behalf. There are four primary kinds of POA forms that include: limited, durable, general, and medical.

Each type of power of attorney template contains specific legalese to ensure the document is legally binding. Regardless of the kind of form used, every POA includes two parties which include a Principal and Agent.

Principal refers to the individual that is creating the document. Agent refers to the person charged with carrying out transactions on the Principal's behalf. Some forms refer to agents as the Attorney-in-Fact, which essentially means the person is legally allowed to sign documents and perform tasks described in the document.

Principals can choose anyone they desire to act as their agent. While the only requirement is that agents are of legal age, it's vital to select someone that is trustworthy and dependable. The most common choices are spouses, relatives, friends, and business partners. However, agents can also be lawyers, physicians, accountants, or realtors.

Once power of attorney forms are created they have to be signed by two witnesses in front of a notary public. After witnessing signatures notaries sign the form and attach their stamp. If legal problems arise, notaries and witnesses might have to appear in court to testify.

Agents can only conduct transactions outlined in the POA. When durable or general power of attorney templates are used, agents are provided with broad powers that allow them to conduct nearly any kind of transaction the Principal would perform.

Setting up power of attorney privileges is common with estate planning methods. These forms are particularly beneficial to people that have bills to pay, or own realty, financial investments, or businesses. Arranging these documents ensures that financial matters can be taken care of in the Principal's absence.

Limited power of attorney is used when agents only need to perform a few tasks. This form is frequently used to authorize agents to pay bills using the Principal's checking account or credit cards. It's also used when a person needs to hire a mediator to negotiate with government agencies such as Social Security Disability or the Internal Revenue Service.

General and durable power of attorney grants sweeping powers that let agents take care of multiple tasks. These forms are often used by business owners to designate agents to take over business operations. They are also used by people who need someone to take care of daily activities like monitoring financial investments, handling business affairs, or selling titled property such as real estate.

Medical power of attorney is used to authorize an agent to make healthcare decisions if the Principal is declared incompetent. Agents are not allowed to make any medical decisions until the Principal's physician has filed a written declaration of incompetency.

Medical POA is also used to grant permission to caregivers to acquire emergency care for minor children. This form is required by daycare providers and nannies. Since children under 18 years of age cannot make medical decisions, this form is crucial for receiving emergency care if parents are unavailable.

The only way agents can perform transactions that necessitate legal permission is by setting the proper type of power of attorney template. Individuals can hire a lawyer to create documents or use an online legal service provider such as LegalZoom.

Utilizing a power of attorney template offers an easy solution for creating legal documents. Personal finance expert, Simon Volkov shares detailed information about the different types of POA forms, their uses, and how they lessen burdens at www.SimonVolkov.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Simon_Volkov

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6716787

Microsoft: Don't forget, we've had voice control in Windows Phone for more than a year

2011-11-26T20:31:00.001-08:00

While everyone seems to be talking about Apple’s Siri voice control technology, Microsoft is keen to let us all know that it has had a similar feature baked into Windows Phone for more than a year.

Here’s a Forbes magazine interview with Microsoft’s Chief Research and Strategy Officer Craig Mundie where he reminds us not to be fooled by Apple’s marketing:

People are infatuated with Apple announcing it. It’s good marketing, but at least as the technological capability you could argue that Microsoft has had a similar capability in Windows Phones for more than a year, since Windows Phone 7 was introduced.

Here’s the video:

But is it as good as Apple’s Siri?

Well, the folks over at Australian tech blog TechAu aren’t that impressed with Microsoft’s ‘Tellme’ technology:

I don’t know about you, but that comparison seems overly biased to me. A better videodemonstrating the voice capabilities of Windows Phone was put together by Tom Warren of Winrumors:

Where does Microsoft thing that ‘Tellme’ technology is going? Here’s what the Redmond giant think you’ll be able to do with voice control in the future:

Pretty cool, eh? Whether any of this will ever see light of day, who knows.

Microsoft has a problem when it comes to marketing. Apple introduced Siri to the world less than two weeks before the handset went on sale, and hordes of potential buyers knew about the technology (according to a few polls, it was the technology that sold the 4S to people). Microsoft on the other hand has to remind people that they’ve had something similar (although not as impressive) on its handsets for more than a year.

Once again, it shows the importance of marketing.

Microsoft Is Said to Sign Non-Disclosure Agreement With Yahoo

2011-11-26T20:30:00.001-08:00

Microsoft Corp., the largest software company, has signed an agreement that lets it take a closer look at Yahoo! Inc.'s financial information to help it consider financing a bid, a person briefed on the matter said.

Yahoo's advisers asked that bids be submitted next week, said two other people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private. Bidders are likely to offer to buy only a minority stake in Yahoo, as they haven't arranged financing for a full takeover, the people said. Microsoft may help finance a bid and not try to buy Yahoo outright, two people said.

Private-equity firms TPG Capital and Silver Lake also signed non-disclosure agreements to help size up a possible bid for Sunnyvale, California-based Yahoo, people close to the companies have said. Microsoft would join other investors to safeguard its Web-search partnership with Yahoo and bridge any financing gap a buyout would require, people have said.

Frank Shaw, a spokesman for Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft, and Dana Lengkeek, a spokeswoman for Yahoo, declined to comment.

Yahoo has asked interested parties to sign the NDA to receive management presentations and more access to confidential financial information.

Yahoo, the largest U.S. Web portal, embarked on a strategic review of its options in September after firing Chief Executive Officer Carol Bartz. Under Bartz, the company struggled to stem sales declines or compete with Google Inc. and Facebook Inc.

Microsoft's Yahoo Deal

Microsoft forged a 10-year agreement to provide search- technology to Yahoo sites under Bartz. The deal was aimed at helping both companies vie with Google, the leader in U.S. search-related advertising.

Yahoo shares were little changed yesterday at $14.94. Microsoft fell 1.3 percent to $24.47.

KKR & Co. and Blackstone Group LP are among the private- equity firms considering possible bids for Yahoo, people with knowledge of the matter said last month.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., China's biggest e-commerce company, has said it's interested in acquiring Yahoo, in part to buy back a stake owned by Yahoo. With a holding of about 40 percent, Yahoo is Alibaba's biggest investor.

DealReporter previously reported that Microsoft signed the NDA.

--With assistance from Jeffrey McCracken and Cristina Alesci in New York. Editors: Tom Giles, Cecile Daurat

Google’s iPad App: Almost Chrome, and Trouble for Apple Read more: http://techland.time.com/2011/11/25/googles-ipad-app-almost-chrome-and-trouble-for-apple/#ixzz1esQTQXKm

2011-11-26T20:29:00.001-08:00

GOOGLE

Google has earned a reputation of late for releasing troubled iOS apps. Gmail was so buggy in its initial state that Google had to pull it from the App Store. Google+ was temperamental too, and even now it lags behind its Android counterpart in getting new features. After the launch of iOS 5, Google had to pull its Voice app for a week due to crashes.

So when Google releases a beautiful, flawless iOS app like Google Search for iPad, I figure the company is up to something.

Despite the name, Google Search does more than spit back search results. The app presents you with big, colorful links to several Google services, including Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Google+, Picasa, YouTube and Google Books. These are apps within the app, sliding onto the screen in a self-contained web browser. You can also search by voice within the app, and get instant search results as you type.

As is, I can see myself spending a lot of time in Google’s iPad app, but what’s frustrating is that with a few tweaks, Google Search could be a proper iPad web browser, and probably the best one. All it needs is a full URL bar instead of a search box at the top of the screen, some bookmarks and a way to open multiple browser tabs. The groundwork for a clean, snappy interface with useful search tools is already in place. Add some more features, and suddenly it’s Chrome for iPad.

And that’s where things could get really crazy–as in, Google creating its own competing app platform within iOS.

I’m not the only one to suspect a secret plot in Mountain View. Over at The Next Web, Matt Panzarino argues that this app is Google’s way of sneaking its own web-based operating system, known as Chrome OS, onto the iPad. He figures that Google could update the app over time, replacing each web app with native software, and he suspects that Google’s Chrome OS team is behind the whole thing.

I think Panzarino has it backwards. Instead of tying in more native apps, Google should be adding more web apps, not only from its own services, but from the Chrome Web Store. By working with third-party developers to make their web apps touch-friendly, Google could build up a tablet app catalog that works in its own iPad browser.

A GRID OF EMPTY SPACES HINTS AT MORE APPS TO COME.

Some of the work is already done. Try accessing NPR’s Chrome web app from an iPad. It looks almost exactly like the native App Store version–it responds to finger swipes and it plays audio within the browser. Other apps are part way there. Vimeo Couch Mode, for instance, has the interface in place, but uses Flash for video instead of the iPad-friendly HTML5. (Vimeo’s main site uses HTML5 when accessed on an iPhone or iPad.)

Samsung, Google confirm Galaxy Nexus volume bug

2011-11-26T20:28:00.001-08:00

It's the first phone to run Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, and Google and Samsung have confirmed it's got a bug that randomly drops the handset volume.

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is the first phone to ship with Android 4.0 “Ice Cream Sandwich” pre-installed as its operating system—and it’s coming to Verizon Wireless next month—but early customers in Europe have been reporting problems with the phone’s volume level: the device’s audio volume will drop to nothing for seemingly no reason, after which the device’s hardware volume controls become unresponsive. Early Galaxy Nexus customers have been flooding user support forums over the issue, and now both Samsung and Google have confirmed that they’re aware of the problem—and a fix should be coming soon.

“Regarding the Galaxy Nexus, we are aware of the volume issue and have developed a fix,” Samsung UK said in a statement. “We will update devices as soon as possible.”

Google released a nearly identical statement.

The bug is particularly problematic for listening to music or using other media, or relying on alarms or other audio alerts.

Neither company elaborated on the cause of the problem—debate has been raging whether it is in hardware or software—or detailed when a fix might be available. Some retailers have promised customers a fix will be available before the end of the month, although it’s not clear they have any concrete information on which to base those reassurances.

Speculation from hardware-savvy members of the Android community (like this one from Lee Johnston) seems to have centered on radio interference as the cause of the problem, with Google’s “fix” for the device basically amounting to increasing the threshold for what the device consideres to be user input on the volume controls, rather then random fluctuations caused by EM interference.

Google+ Adds Community Guides for Organizations

2011-11-26T20:27:00.001-08:00

Google+ Adds Community Guides for Organizations

Rob D. Young, November 26, 20110 Comments

Google is pushing to get more celebrities, politicians, nonprofits, and other organizations onto Google+ by providing "community guides." These free guides showcase successful profiles, give free advice, and link to additional community resources.

Steve Grove, head of community partnerships at Google, stated that "we want to help more organizations, politicians, artists, celebrities, athletes, media companies and nonprofits use Google+ to share and interact with each other – and with Google+ users."

Google is doing so by educating organizations on the effective use of the platform. The six core community guides (one each for celebs, media, nonprofits, politics, sports, and universities) highlight examples, tactics, and further learning resources; each has resources customized to the category.

In the nonprofit category, for instance, Google shows how the organization and its actions can be shown off via a Google+ profile, shows how the organization can "tailor [its] message with Circles," and shows how the +1 button can help promote the organization's content. Readers are then linked to a PDF guide for nonprofits, a "10 tips" article for community building, a nonprofit toolkit, and more.

It's clear that Google is reaching out to organizations across the world with the addition of these guides. Whether the guides cause a major stir, they're a telling move; Google seems to be positioning itself for a full-fledged battle with Facebook.

Google+ may not yet be a threat to Facebook, but Plus's current figures of 40 to 60 million users foreshadows a future where Google could directly compete for the top spot in the world of social networking. As such, the recent addition of pages for organizations is a huge step; it matches the Facebook Page, a crucial resource for businesses reaching into the world of social media. These community guides then seek to one-up Facebook's educational resources, making Google the more accessible option.

Are the guides effective and helpful for you? What should Google change? What else does Google need to do to win over your organization and clients? Do you think Google will ever overtake Facebook? What should Facebook be doing in response to Google's efforts? Leave your thoughts in the comments, below.

Solar power: Google pulls the plug

2011-11-26T20:26:00.001-08:00

Solar power was at heart of Google's alternative energy efforts. But CEO Page has dropped the solar power and other energy projects to refocus Google on the Internet.

Solar panel installation at Google's Mountain View, Calif. headquarters is seen in the 2007 file photo. Google began making investments in 2007 to drive down the price of renewable energy in 2007, with a particular focus on solar power. But this past week, the company pulled the plug on those initiatives.

Business Wire/File

Enlarge

SAN FRANCISCO

Google Inc has abandoned an ambitious project to make renewable energy cheaper than coal, the latest target of Chief Executive Larry Page's moves to focus the Internet giant on fewer efforts.

Apple Cup 2011: Marshall Lobbestael Makes His Final Start

2011-11-26T20:25:00.003-08:00

It was never supposed to be like this for Marshall Lobbestael. A college career that's taken more than enough twists and turns -- even just over the course of this past season -- comes to a close on Saturday as the Washington State Cougars travel to Seattle to face the Washington Huskies in Seattle in the 2011 Apple Cup. Lobbestael will lead the Washington State offense onto the field, but his path to the starting role in the Apple Cup has been an interesting one.

As a redshirt freshman, Lobbestael showed flashes of promise, even winning the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Week award against Portland State. But a serious knee injury shortly thereafter left Lobbestael sidelined, setting back his development. He was playing catch-up, unable to fully participate in offseason workouts.

Though Lobbestael began the season competing for the starting quarterback job with Kevin Lopina, both were quickly supplanted by a young and talented true freshman: Jeff Tuel. As Tuel asserted himself and brought excitement to the fanbase, it seemed like Lobbestael's days, beyond mop-up duty, were all but over in Pullman.

And then this season happened. Tuel broke his collarbone five plays into his season, giving Lobbestael an opportunity. He took advantage as the Cougars won their first two games in convincing fashion. Lobbestael provided fans a moment in a win over Colorado as he hit Marquess Wilson for a last-second, game-winning touchdown in Boulder.

Tuel returned, then was injured again, and Lobbestael was thrust back into the starting role, only to lose his job to Connor Halliday, a redshirt freshman with a big arm. The rollercoaster continued after Halliday helped the Cougars to a win over Arizona State, only to suffer a lacerated liver in a loss to Utah this past weekend. And once again the Cougars turn to Lobbestael.

It's kind of fitting the fifth-year senior from Oak Harbor will lead the Cougars on Saturday in the Apple Cup. This year has been about Lobbestael, and the unexpected nature of it all seems to fit his career path.

Huskies use defense to win Apple Cup

2011-11-26T20:25:00.001-08:00

Huskies use defense to win Apple Cup

Key defensive stands at the right time help Washington

By Bob Condotta

Seattle Times staff reporter

Latest from the Husky Football & Basketball blogs

Husky Football

Apple Cup game chat NEW - 11/26, 03:06 PM

Husky Basketball

Oregon State rebounds with 20-point blowout victoryNEW - 11/26, 01:35 PM

Top comments Hide / Show comments

Cue-ball, great job against the 3rd string qb on a terrible team. 344 yds, 3 tds I'm... (November 26, 2011, by yeahsure) Read more

Glad things are back to somewhat normal. The Cougars tried hard, but just don't have ...(November 26, 2011, by godoggo) Read more

Yah, great defense against a "seasoned" quarterback. Incredible... (November 26, 2011, by seachicken123) Read more

Read all 5 comments >Post a comment >

In an old rivalry played in a new venue, the Washington Huskies rediscovered their midseason form.

A winning mix of dynamic offense, a big special teams play and some timely defense — yes, defense — allowed the Huskies to take home the Apple Cup for a third consecutive year with a 38-21 victory over Washington State.

The game — the 104th between the two in-state rivals — was played in front of 64,559 at CenturyLink Field, having been moved there to allow for a three-week head start on the renovation of Husky Stadium.

UW jumped out to a 14-0 first-half lead. More impressively, through, after the Cougars tied it late in the second quarter, the Huskies scored less than two minutes later to take the lead for good.

The game was still in doubt early in the fourth quarter.

Trailing 31-21, WSU had the ball at its own 47, hoping to again make it a game. On second down, the Cougars called a gadget play, quarterback Marshall Lobbestael handing off to running back Carl Winston, who lateraled back to Lobbestael. UW wasn't fooled, however, and no one was open. Lobbestael let it fly anyway, throwing it deep to Marquess Wilson. Desmond Trufant leapt high and tipped the pass right to teammate Sean Parker, who caught it and returned it to the 31 with 10:18 left.

The play was typical of an inspired effort by the oft-maligned UW defense, which held the Cougars to 382 yards.

Washington then easily drove the length of the field, scoring on a 1-yard run by Chris Polk to take a 38-21 lead and put the game away with 5:23 to play.

UW snapped a three-game losing streak to improve to 7-5 overall, and finish Pac-12 play at 5-4. The Huskies will now wait to see who they will play in a bowl game next month, the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 29 emerging as a strong possibility with the combination of UW's triumph and Stanford's victory over Notre Dame.

WSU finishes 4-8, its best record in the four-year tenure of Paul Wulff. Wulff, though, fell to 9-40 as WSU's head coach amid much speculation that he might not be back for a fifth season.

The Huskies led 21-14 at the end of another typically Apple Cup rollercoaster first half.

Washington dominated the first quarter to take a 14-0 lead, scoring on a blocked punt by Thomas Tutogi that Jesse Callier caught on the fly and ran into the end zone for a touchdown, and on a 16-yard pass from Keith Price to Kasen Williams.

The blocked punt was the first for a touchdown for UW since the 2006 Apple Cup. Chris Stevens' block and recovery in that game proved huge in an eventual 35-32 UW victory.

The Huskies drove to the WSU 18 early in the second quarter, looking for a score that might have begun to put the Cougars away. But just like last year, when the Huskies led early 14-0, UW let the Cougs back in.

Erik Folk, who missed a critical kick last week at Oregon State, was wide from 37 yards.

The Cougars responded with their best drive of the game, a 12-play, 80-yard march that ended with a 16-yard pass from Lobbestael to Jared Karstetter to make it 14-7. The score came a play after an apparent Lobbestael run for a touchdown was nullified due to a holding penalty.

Washington then went three-and-out, undone by a holding penalty, and the Cougars again drove easily down the field, a 66-yard, eight-play drive in 3:39 concluding in a 16-yard pass from Lobbestael to Marquess Wilson with 2:05 left.

A short kickoff, however, gave UW the ball at its own 39 and just enough time to be aggressive about moving down the field. After UW got a first down at the 39, Price threw to Williams in the flat. Williams, who won the state 4A high jump title last spring at six feet, 10 inches, then put that skill to great use, leaping over WSU cornerback Nolan Washington to get to the 21-yard line.

On the next play, Price rolled out and spotted Williams in between two defenders in the end zone. Williams caught the perfectly threaded pass for a 21-yard score to make it 21-14 UW at the half.

UW had 231 yards in the first half to WSU's 219.

The Huskies again threatened to blow the game open when they scored on a 22-yard pass from Price to Polk, who broke open down the sideline on a wheel route out of the backfield. The touchdown came with 5:56 to play in the third quarter and was the 29th touchdown pass this season for Price to break UW's school record, previously held by Cody Pickett (2002).

But once again, the Cougars struck quickly to continue the drama. Wilson took a short pass and ran 38 yards for a touchdown to make it 28-21 with 4:31 to play in the third.

At the beginning of UW's next series, Price called time out and pulled himself off the field as trainers apparently examined his thumb.

UW went three-and-out on the series with Nick Montana at quarterback, and when WSU got the ball back with 2:52 to play, it again had a chance to tie the game.

But for the third time in the half, the Huskies got a stop when WSU was down just a possession, forcing a three-and-out.

Price then returned and led a short drive that ended in a 46-yard field goal by Folk with 13:16 to play to put UW ahead 31-21.

After each team then punted, WSU had one last chance to make it a game. But Trufant's tip and Parker's catch sent the game Washington's way once and for al

Next up for Apple, it's iTV – the television that will respond when you shout at it

2011-11-26T20:24:00.001-08:00

After success in the music and phone markets, company hopes to realise Steve Jobs's ambition for new hi-tech product

Comments made by Steve Jobs to his biographer have heightened speculation. Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Apple is designing a television that you can shout and gesticulate at – and it will understand you.

Having revolutionised the music and mobile phone industries with its iPod and iPhone, the company is planning an "iTV" to turn couch surfing into a hi-tech experience.

The Japanese firm Sharp has been asked to begin commercial production of Apple TV screens in February, with the sets available in the second half of 2012, according to analyst Peter Misek at the American bank Jefferies.

"Other TV manufacturers have begun a scrambling search to identify what iTV will be and do," Misek claimed. "They hope to avoid the fate of other industries and manufacturers who were caught flat-footed by Apple."

An internet-connected TV offering seamless links to cloud services to download films – as well as a new level of interactivity – could threaten other manufacturers as well as taking viewers away from pay-TV giants such as BSkyB. Senior engineer Jeff Robbin, who built the iTunes service and helped to create the iPod, is reported to be overseeing the project. Speculation reached new heights when the TV project was mentioned in a biography published soon after the death of Apple's founder Steve Jobs last month.

Jobs told his biographer: "I'd like to create an integrated television set that is completely easy to use. It would be seamlessly synced with all of your devices and with iCloud. It will have the simplest user interface you could imagine. I finally cracked it."

In October the US patent office published a filing by Apple for "real time video process control using gestures", which describes using infrared, motion and other sensors to read the user's movements. Gestures could edit video, or "throw" it from one device to another, say to transfer a film from a mobile phone to a bigger screen.

The patents mention facial recognition, to tag individuals within videos so that home videos can be grouped according to who features in them. This autumn the iPhone was updated with a highly accurate voice control application called Siri, and some observers believe it will feature on the TV sets.

What sounds like science fiction is already in use by niche products. Chinese manufacturer Hisense unveiled an internet TV last month which runs on Google's Android software and allows the viewer to issue commands with a wave of the hand.

Microsoft's Kinect, which links to the Xbox games console to TV sets, acts as a digital video recorder and reads voice and gesture commands. Users can rewind, fast forward, call up menus, or select games and channels without having to find the remote control.

Thanks to four microphones, it separates the user's voice from other noises in the room and users must say "Xbox" before speaking a command.

The venture is a risky one for Apple, whose previous foray into the world of television resulted in a rare failure. Apple TV, introduced in 2007, is a box that can store video and connect the TV to the internet or to the laptop to view photos. However, its latest model is thought to have sold no more than 2m units, compared to 40m iPads since March 2010.

Apple TV already incorporates some gesture commands, using the iPhone as a remote: users can flick it left or right or drag two fingers across its screen to fast forward or rewind, and tap to play.

Misek says the iTV could have an initial production run of 5m to 10m units, and will use liquid crystal displays. The company declined to comment.

Apple has taken over an entire Sharp factory to make its latest generations of phones and tablet computers, which will appear next year with brighter, less battery-draining screens. It is estimated to have spent $500m to $1bn buying manufacturing equipment for the plant, and retooling of a production line is believed to be under way to produce TV screens.

Technology researcher Benedict Evans at Enders Analysis was sceptical about revolutionary an iTV could be. He said that accidental gestures could disrupt viewing, adding: "It would be like sitting in Sothebys and desperately not moving so you don't accidentally make a bid for £10m."

The project will open a new front in Apple's battle with the South Korean consumer electronics giant Samsung, which already makes internet-connected TV sets and has been competing against the US group to produce high-end tablet computers and smartphones. The two are locked in an international patent disputes, with some 20 court cases around the world.

Apple Cup 2011: Not much at stake for Huskies and Cougars _ except maybe jobs

2011-11-26T20:23:00.001-08:00

When Paul Wulff returned to his alma mater at Washington State he inherited the shell of a football program, beset by poor recruiting, academic sanctions that led to scholarship reductions and a level of apathy.
Whether he’s done enough in four years to bring the Cougars closer to the level of respectability their fans demand is a polarizing debate among the crimson-and-gray faithful, and a decision that ultimately lies in the hands of Washington State athletic director Bill Moos.

Comments

It’s with that backdrop that the Cougars enter the 104th Apple Cup on Saturday night against rival Washington at Seattle’s CenturyLink Field.
Any tangible significance at stake in this version of the Apple Cup escaped a week ago when Utah pulled out a 30-27 overtime victory over the Cougars, ensuring Washington State (4-7) of another year without a trip to the postseason.
Washington (6-5) wrapped up a bowl trip a month ago, though it’s looked far from bowl-worthy while dropping its past three.
That leaves Wulff’s future as the ultimate unknown. It’s a debate Cougars’ players and coaches attempt to avoid, but can’t help hear. Moos indicated that a decision on whether Wulff will return for the final year of his five-year contract could come early next week.
“Of course you hear it, but I don’t pay attention to it,” Cougars junior safety Tyree Toomer said. “It’s something you can’t control. You just have to focus on the task at hand.”
There are arguments on both sides of the Wulff debate. He took over a program at one of its lowest points in the school’s history and while the results haven’t been evident on the field, the Cougars are undoubtedly a more talented and more competitive team than in Wulff’s first two seasons.
The Cougars have already doubled their win total from a year ago and had a pair of three-point losses to UCLA and Utah decided in the final moments.
“They play confident, they play hard, they believe in what they’re doing and that early on I think it was hard to do,” Washington coach Steve Sarkisian said.
“You inherit a football team that’s not all your guys, you come with a different style, a different brand, a different approach, but I think Paul has done a nice job of building that. I’m sure he’d be the first one to tell you he would like there to be more wins to show that, but when you watch the film it’s evident they’ve gotten better.”
Despite the improvement in talent, the record is hard to ignore. The Cougars are 9-39 since Wulff took over and their season will be done following Saturday’s game for the eighth straight year since beating Texas in the 2003 Holiday Bowl.
There’s also the extra pressure of the school in the midst of a football specific fundraising campaign for a new press box/luxury box complex and operations center — and wins mean dollars.
Wulff isn’t focusing on his future, rather how his young team may grow from this season.
“I don’t think like that,” Wulff said. “We have a great young football team. This Is a good young team that is getting better and better all the time.”

Berita Kapal

2011-10-23T22:05:00.000-07:00

Berita Kapal Mengabarkan Berita Pelaut Indonesia

Satu lagi blog tentang pelaut indonesia.

Berita kapal yang di posting dari http://berita-kapal.blogspot.com, menggunakan platform blogspot yg mudah dan sangat dikenali semua orang di dunia maya ini, Berita Kapal mencoba hadir untuk mengabarkan berita-berita dari para pelaut dan untuk pelaut indonesia.

Semua informasi yg hadirkan sangat lengkap dan up to date banget, para pelaut bisa memperoleh berita tentang apa saja, yang lagi sedang dalam masa pendidikan bisa memperoleh artikel-artikel yg sangat berguna tentang kapal sejak dari rancang bangun dan tata cara pengoperasian kapal dengan benar dan baik.

Dan buat pelaut yg lagi mencari informasi lowongan pekerjaan dikapal bisa mendapatkan informasi lowongan kerja pelaut terbaru yg senantiasa di update dan diperbaharui.

Dan masih banyak lagi informasi lainnya, tunggu apalagi segera kunjungi situs berita kapal satu-satunya di dunia maya hanya disini

Berita Kapal hadir dengan slogan barunya "Mengabarkan Berita - Berita Dari Pelaut Untuk Pelaut Indonesia"

Binagalagu.com Tempat Download Mp3 Gratis

2011-05-11T02:07:00.001-07:00

Download Mp3 Gratis

Kali ini saya tidak akan mereview sebuah gadget seperti biasanya, melainkan akan mereview sebuah situs atau website tentang musik dan lagu tempat download Mp3 gratis.

Kalo ditarik garis merahnya, sebenarnya ini tidak menyimpang juga dari gadget anda, karena di Binagalagu.com nama website yg akan kita review ini anda dapat mendengarkan lagu-lagu terbaru denga gadget yg anda punyai tentunya misalnya Iphone4, Mp3 Player, Laptop, Handphone ataupun dengan PC dirumah maupun di kantor.

Di Binagalagu.com anda dapat mencari semua judul lagu dari artis manapun dan dari periode kapan pun lagu tersebut laris dizamannya, saya yakin pasti anda dapat temukan disana.

Yang suka download lagu dan musik terbaru, tidak salah lagi Binagalagu.com adalah tempat terbaik untuk download mp3 lagu-lagu indonesia, lagu barat, lagu-lagu zaman sekarang ataupun lagu-lagu zaman dulu atau jadul serta lagu-lagu daerah seperti lagu-lagu karo daerah asal binagalagu.com.

Pastikan Binaglagu.com adalah sarana Free Mp3 Download untuk mencari atau searching free mp3 download, mp3, mp3s, mp3 download, mp3 dowload, mp3 music download, music search, mp3 search,mp3 music, search mp3 for all song indonesian.

saya pastikan anda semua pasti akan senang apapun profesi anda, makanya pantengi terus Binaga Lagu Free MP3 Download

Cicit Suharto Ditangkap Polisi

2011-03-20T03:20:00.001-07:00

Penangkapan terhadap Putri Aryanti Haryowibowo dalam kasus narkoba berlangsung singkat. Penggerebekan terhadap cicit mantan Presiden Soeharto tersebut dilalukan serombongan polisi berpakaian preman.

Demikian informasi yang detikcom kumpulkan dari lokasi penangkapan, Hotel Maharani, Mampang, Jakarta Selatan, Minggu (20/3/2011). Informasi diperoleh dari beberapa orang karyawan hotel tersebut.

"Gak lama. Cuma sebentar saja," ujar petugas reservasi taksi.

Pria tersebut mengaku, pada dini hari Sabtu (19/3/2011) ada dua unit mobil Toyota Avanza memasuki pelataran hotel. Dari dalam mobil yang berhenti tepat di pintu masuk hotel itu, keluar beberapa orang pria.

"Mereka langsung ke meja resepsionis, lalu bisik-bisik dengan satpam. Pakaiannya preman, pasti itu polisinya," ujar seorang petugas hotel lainnya.

Dia tidak tahu persis berapa jumlah petugas polisi berpakaian preman yang datang. Aktivitas di lobi juga tidak lama, sebab rombongan itu langsung masuk lift untuk menuju lantai di mana kamar tempat Putri ditangkap.

"Saya tidak tahu naik ke lantai berapa. Tapi mereka turunnya langsung ke basement, terus meninggalkan hotel," sambungnya.

Putri ditangkap polisi dalam kasus narkoba. Dari tangan cicit Soeharto itu, polisi menyita barang bukti berupa serbuk sabu seberat 0,8 gram.

Berdasarkan hasil pengembangan kasusnya, tidak lama kemudian polisi menangkap pengedar dan kelompok pengedar narkoba. Total barang bukti yang disita adalah serbuk sabu seberat 30 gram

More than 200 bodies have been found at a new site

2011-03-13T08:20:00.000-07:00

AP Counting the cost: People walk past a car that has been washed into a wall in Miyako

TOKYO, KOMPAS.com - More than 200 bodies have been found at a new site in northeast Japan, where an earthquake and tsunami caused massive destruction, police said Sunday.

“We have received a preliminary report that more than 200 bodies were found in the city of Higashimatsushima,” a National Police Agency spokesman said, adding that local police are starting to collect the bodies.

Hundreds of other residents in the city’s Nobiru district are unaccounted for, the Sankei Shimbun and other newspapers said. On Saturday police in the city of Sendai said at least 200 and up to 300 bodies had been found on the shoreline there.

Earlier Sunday the National Police Agency said in a statement the confirmed death toll from Friday’s twin disasters is 688, with 642 missing and 1,570 injured. That figure did not include the bodies found at Sendai and Higashimatsushima. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano has said it was believed more than 1,000 people had died nationwide.

Amid a mass rescue effort there were grim updates indicating severe loss of life along the hard-hit east coast of Honshu island, where the monster waves destroyed or damaged more than 12,250 homes and other buildings. At least 2,400 houses were flooded by the tsunami, while more than 100 houses had been burned, police said, adding that there were 60 landslides.

PKS Understands SBY's Decision to Choose Boediono

2009-05-16T07:48:00.001-07:00

Tribun Pekanbaru/Melvinas Priananda

Tifatul Sembiring.

Artikel Terkait:

The president of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), Tifatul Sembiring, said here on Saturday that his party could understand Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s decision to choose Boediono as his running mate.

After attending the registration of the Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY)-Boediono with the General Elections Commission (KPU) here on Saturday he told newsmen that SBY had chosen Boediono because he needed a company who understood economic affairs with regard to dealing with current global economic crisis.

"In our talk with him (SBY) on Friday he explained that his next government would work hard to overcome the problems of economic crisis. So he needed an expert in the fields of finance, banking and economy," he said.

He said during the meeting at the State Palace SBY also denied that his running mate was a liberal economist.

After accepting Boediono’s nomination PKS submitted a political contract to SBY for signing. The contract is a guarantee for PKS or SBY’s Democratic Party to coalesce for the presidential race on July 8 as well as in the next government if the ticket won the race. Under the contract PKS had asked SBY and Boediono to uphold the country’s economic sovereignty with no foreign intervention.

The contract is also related to a commitment to eradication of corruption, collusion and nepotism as well as bureaucratic reform effort, poverty alleviation and others.

Tifatul said PKS’s decision to finally coalesce with the Democratic party was not against the decision of the party’s advisory council. "We remain consistent wih the council’s decision namely that coalition with the Democratic Party was possible after the political contract was signed. The contract based on PKS’s political platform has been signed by SBY," he said.

Tifatul said the tug-of-war between PKS and the Democratic Party in the past few days was caused more by miscommunication regarding Boediono’s choice. After the problem was settled PKS was now ready to help SBY and Beodiono win in the race. "Certainly as a coalition member we will work hard to make our candidates win," he said, adding the decision to choose Boediono was in line with the principle of "the right man in the right place."

44 killed in attack in Turkey; 8 gunmen arrested

2009-05-05T02:16:00.001-07:00

-- Turkish security forces on Tuesday detained eight gunmen suspected of fatally shooting 44 people, many of whom were praying, at an engagement ceremony in the rural southeast of the country.

Masked assailants with automatic weapons attacked the celebration Monday night in the village of Bilge, near the city of Mardin, in what appeared to be the result of a family feud, Interior Minister Besir Atalay said. Blood feuds occasionally happen among families in the region, where tribal ties and rivalries can eclipse the power of the state.

On Tuesday morning, four large earth-movers were seen digging graves for the victims in the village. Police allowed friends and relatives to enter Bilge, but journalists were kept out. Authorities also cut telephone communication with the village.

The dead included the engaged couple, and six other people were wounded. Two girls survived after the bodies of slain friends fell on top of them. Reports said the gunmen opened fire as men and women prayed in separate rooms in line with tradition in parts of Turkey.

Turkish media initially described the gathering as "dugun," a term for a wedding celebration. However, Atalay and media outlets later used the term "nisan," which refers to an engagement ceremony.

Atalay said eight suspects were in custody, and that some of their family names were the same as those of the victims.

"They were caught with their weapons," he said. "The first indications are that it was the result of disputes, of animosity among relatives, within a family in the village."

Citing unidentified authorities, CNN-Turk television said the attack may have occurred because one of the gunmen wanted to marry the engaged woman himself and he opposed the marriage. It said there was a family tie between the assailants and the couple who were killed.

NTV television, citing deputy Gov. Ferhat Ozen, earlier said the motive for the attack could be a feud between rival groups of pro-government village guards, who fight alongside Turkish troops against Kurdish rebels. Like many other villages in the region, Bilge has a number of guards.

Atalay had earlier said the attack had left 45 dead, but later corrected the toll to 44 dead. He said the dead included six children and 16 women.

Mehmet Besir Ayanoglu, the mayor of Mardin, told Channel 24 that he spoke to two survivors, both girls, who said at least two masked men stormed a house where the ceremony took place.

"They raided the house, we were in two rooms, they opened fire on everyone, they were wearing masks," Ayanoglu quoted the girls as saying. The girls said they lay underneath the bodies of friends until the attack was over.

Seyhmus Balik, whose house is one kilometer (half a mile) from the village, told AP Television that he heard gunshots. After a short lull, he heard another round of gunshots, leading him to believe that the gunmen were firing on the injured.

Balik said most village guards had left Bilge at the time of the attack to assist Turkish troops in an operation against Kurdish rebels in a nearby region.

The attack occurred during the engagement ceremony of the daughter of Cemil Celebi, a former village official who was among the wounded. The daughter, Sevgi Celebi, her fiance, Habib Ari, his mother and sister were all killed, as was the Islamic cleric who was presiding over the ceremony. The Anatolia news agency said the attack lasted for 15 minutes.

For years, Turkey has struggled over how to trim the 70,000-strong village guard force without releasing masses of trained fighters onto the streets of the southeast, where unemployment in some areas reaches 50 percent.

The military has purged thousands of village guards suspected of favoring Kurdish rebels fighting for autonomy in the southeast. Several hundred guards have also faced criminal charges.

The conflict between Kurdish guerrillas and government forces has killed tens of thousands of people since 1984.

Paris Hilton not only one confused about swine flu

2009-05-01T07:55:00.000-07:00

Paris Hilton says "I don't eat that" when asked about swine flu in an online video. She's not the only one confused about the outbreak.

Others have vowed to stop eating pork. Some, worried about germs spreading in confined spaces, won't fly — anywhere. Or they think petting zoos and farm visits are off limits.

Like the swine flu itself, misinformation is spreading like a virus across the Internet, around the watercooler and across the backyard fence. Here are some facts to dispel myths about swine flu.

Q: Should I avoid pork?

A: There's no evidence that swine flu spreads through pork. While it's important to cook it properly to protect against other germs, experts say even handling raw pork poses no realistic risk of swine flu.

Q: What about airplanes — aren't airline cabins breeding grounds for germs?

A: Vice President Joe Biden suggested he believes that when he said Thursday he has advised his family not to fly. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises against going to Mexico, the country hardest hit by swine flu. And public health officials say people with flu symptoms should avoid public transportation. But they aren't telling healthy people to avoid all air travel, and Obama administration representatives later said Biden had misspoken.

Most modern airliners have air filtering systems that are as efficient at weeding out germs as those used in hospital isolation units. While there have been occasional infectious disease outbreaks associated with airplane travel, they're not common, and generally only people within a few rows of the sick individual have gotten sick.

"We shouldn't go overboard" on limiting air travel, said Dr. Mark Dworkin, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Illinois at Chicago. But he said it's a good idea to check the CDC's Web site before making travel plans because the agency's advisories may change as the outbreak develops.

Q: My child's preschool class is planning a visit to a petting zoo — with piglets. Should we skip it?

A: Dr. Kenneth Alexander, the University of Chicago's pediatric infectious disease chief, says there's no danger in touching pigs, although a sneezing, sick-looking animal should be avoided. Adults also should be vigilant about making sure kids keep their hands away from their faces after contact with farm animals and they should always wash their hands thoroughly afterward.

Q: My child is healthy and there are no reports of flu at her school, but I'd feel more comfortable keeping her home for a while.

A: Right now, public health authorities say there's no reason to restrict healthy children if there's no flu at school. That could change if the outbreak turns into a global pandemic.

Q: If this outbreak is declared a real worldwide pandemic, tens of millions will get sick and die, just like in the 1918 Spanish flu — right?

A: Public health officials say there are a lot of reasons why that's unlikely, at least in the United States. Unlike that crisis, we now have flu-fighting medicines and antibiotics for secondary infections such as pneumonia, which killed many people during the 1918 outbreak.

Because it appears to be a novel flu strain, everyone exposed to the virus is at risk of getting sick. Authorities are trying to determine how aggressive the new flu is, but even if it turns out to be a particularly dangerous strain, the United States and other developed countries have a strong surveillance network and comprehensive public health measures that didn't exist in 1918, Dworkin noted.

If the new flu turns out to be similar to regular seasonal flu, as some authorities predict, Dworkin said it might double the number of illnesses and deaths seen in an average flu season. In the United States, that would mean about 70,000 deaths and more than 400,000 hospitalizations.

In developing nations, without strong public health networks, the situation could be more dire.

"It could do much more harm than we would see in a country like ours," Dworkin said.

___

On the Net:

http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu

http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentSwineFluMexico.aspx

swine-flu information

2009-05-01T07:50:00.000-07:00

Please find attached file concerning swine-flu (flu babi) information
Swine flu-Indonesian.

PPT>> <> Version.PPT>>
Below is article concerning swine-flu information released by World
Health Organization as per 26 April 2009
swine_flu_faq_26april.pdf>>
Although, swine flu cases is not reported yet in Indonesia, but it
would be better if we take precaution on it.
the World Health Organization (WHO) has decided to raise the current
level of influenza pandemic alert from phase 4 to phase 5 (30 April
2009) which means this new virus is spreading easily between people

For anticipated this situation, IFBT will activated security checking
gate by using thermometer and thermal scanning in reception area for
all visitor (vendor/supplier/contractor/external Infineon employee).
The appropriate procedure will be defined and share with you soonest
Remember to keep calm (don't be panic) and always use the basic
precautions to help prevent respiratory infections (including flu):
Maintain good personal hygiene.
Wash your hands frequently and avoid touching your face.
Cover coughs and sneezes with a mask or a tissue.
Cough or sneeze into your sleeve, not your hand.
Avoid obviously sick people.
Seek medical attention if you are unwell.
If you are currently in or have traveled recently to an affected area
or abroad
Monitor your health.
If you develop symptoms seek medical attention.
Advise the healthcare facility that you have recently been in an
area that has reported swine flu.
Parents should take their young children with fever or
influenza-like symptoms for prompt medical attention.
Please watch for further Company communications as governmental
information is released and analyzed with regard to the potential
effect of this situation.

Oracle (ORCL) Leaps Ahead of IBM, Lands Deal for Sun Microsystems (JAVA)

2009-04-21T08:05:00.000-07:00

In a surprise move yesterday (Monday), Oracle (ORCL 19.40 ↑3.08%) Corp. (ORCL) pounced on the opportunity to buy Sun Microsystems Inc. (JAVA (9.18 ↑0.33%)), for about $7.4 billion in cash, stepping in after Sun’s talks with International Business Machines Corp. (IBM (100.826 ↑0.39%)) fell apart.

The deal gives Oracle control of server and software maker Sun’s coveted Java programming language and brings to a close Sun’s 27-year reign as the maverick of Silicon Valley. Java is the dominant language of the Internet and runs on over 1 billion devices worldwide.

The acquisition is in line with Oracle’s overall business strategy. Oracle, the world’s second-biggest software maker, has dropped $34.5 billion on buyouts since 2005, making it the most aggressive software company in the hi-tech field.

"The deal would strengthen Oracle’s position against IBM. Oracle has done a good job on acquisitions it has done earlier," Robert Jakobsen, analyst at Jyske Bank in Copenhagen, told Reuters. "It makes sense also historically. Oracle has been more successful commercializing software than Sun."

Oracle said it will pay $9.50 a share for Sun - a 42% premium to Sun’s April 17 closing price. Sun had previously rejected IBM’s offer of $9.40 a share, according to sources cited by Reuters.

The acquisition, scheduled to close this summer, will add about $1.5 billion to Oracle’s operating profit, excluding some items, in the first full year after closing, Oracle President Safra Catz said.

The merger cements the relationship between the two companies, who have been partners with each other for more than 20 years. Oracle’s Fusion Middleware, its fastest-growing business, is built on Java. Sun’s Solaris software platform is also the operating system for Oracle’s database business.

Solaris competes against Linux and Microsoft (MSFT 18.8092 ↑1.07%) Corp.’s (MSFT) Windows software. Software sales at Sun accelerated by 21% last quarter and the company projects revenue from those products will reach about $600 million a year. By comparison, software sales at Oracle totaled $17.8 billion in its latest fiscal year.
The takeover also gives Oracle entry into the server-computer market, pitting it against IBM in the market for selling products for data centers that run networks and corporate web sites.

“The industry is going toward data centers,” Brendan Barnicle, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities in Portland, Oregon, who rates Oracle shares “outperform,” told Bloomberg. “This is Oracle’s move to continue to consolidate the industry.”

"It moves Oracle more into the competition with Hewlett Packard (HPQ 34.89 ↑0.61%) Co. (HPQ) and IBM and Microsoft. It makes them a player in the (enterprise data center) space," Shannon Cross of Cross Research, told Reuters. “It’s going to give them access to customers who weren’t using the Oracle database."

Sun was known as a market-leading software innovator that rose to prominence in the 1990s, but fell on hard times when the dotcom bubble burst in the early 2000s. As demand for its servers dropped, it lost more than $5 billion from 2000 to 2005 and has never fully recovered.

The company has been in play for months, with IBM, Oracle, Hewlett-Packard Co, Dell Inc. (DELL (10.45 ↑1.36%)) and Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO (17.48 ↑0.98%)) having all been rumored as possible suitors according to Bloomberg, citing bankers with knowledge of the matter. Many analysts were skeptical the company would be able to find another buyer after talks with IBM collapsed.

Besides price, IBM may have bowed out of the picture because it was reluctant to face antitrust issues. Since there are significantly fewer overlaps between Oracle and Sun, the deal is less likely to get bogged down in regulatory reviews.

By Don Miller

Ahmadinejad Anti-Israel Speech Was Toned Down: UN

2009-04-21T08:04:00.000-07:00

digg stumble reddit del.ico.us ShareThis

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad gestures during his speech at the UN Racism conference at the United Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, Monday, April 20, 2009. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad accused Israel of being the "most cruel and racist regime" sparking a walkout by angry Western diplomats at a U.N. racism conference and protests from others. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)

GENEVA — Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad dropped language describing the Holocaust as "ambiguous and dubious" from a speech attacking Israel at a United Nations racism conference, the U.N. said Tuesday.

The U.N. and the Iranian Mission in Geneva did not comment on why the change was made, but U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday that he had met with Ahmadinejad before his speech and reminded him that the U.N. had adopted resolutions "to revoke the equation of Zionism with racism and to reaffirm the historical facts of the Holocaust."

Ahmadinejad's accusation that the West used the Holocaust as a "pretext" for aggression against Palestinians still provoked walkouts by a stream of delegates including representatives of every European Union country in attendance. But others, including those from the Vatican, stayed in the room because they said he stopped short of denying the Holocaust.

The walkout came after Ahmadinejad accused Western nations of complicity in violence against Palestinians surrounding the foundation of Israel.

The original text of his speech said, "Following World War II, they resorted to military aggression to make an entire nation homeless on the pretext of Jewish sufferings and the ambiguous and dubious question of Holocaust."

U.N. spokeswoman Marie Heuze said that U.N. officials had checked back with the interpreters and the Farsi recording of Ahmadinejad's speech, and determined that the Iranian president had dropped the terms "ambiguous and dubious," referring instead to "the abuse of the question of the Holocaust."

The French and English interpreters also dropped the phrase, she said.

The meeting turned chaotic almost from the start when two protesters in rainbow wigs tossed red clown noses at Ahmadinejad as he began his speech with a Muslim prayer. A Jewish student group from France said it had been trying to convey "the masquerade that this conference represents."

MISS USA CONTESTANT CARRIE PREJEAN ...the courage to not be politically correct

2009-04-21T08:02:00.000-07:00

Carrie Prejean, the current reigning Miss California and first runner up in the 2009 Miss USA pageant this past Sunday evening, did the unthinkable when answering her final question of the evenings competition: she told the truth and wasn't politically correct.

Perez Hilton asked her the explosive of the night about gay marriage - does she think it should be legalized in all 50 states or not... Carrie was kind, composed, and truthful - she doesn't flinch. Her response was not politically correct and in the end, most think cost her the Miss USA title. Perez grossly exaggerated after the TV show that most people booed her response and then insults her by calling her "a dumb b*%&$." Watch the video below; I'm not certain what Perez was hearing, but the crowd overwhelming supported her comment.

BTW, Carrie is a Christian and according to her bio, her life's verse is Phil. 4:13. I for one am grateful to the Lord for her unashamed conviction on this issue - especially in that arena. Pray for her beloved, for many opportunities will be coming her way to speak on this issue and share her faith in Christ as a result of her gracious boldness this past Sunday evening.

Here is the official statement from the California Miss USA director concerning Carrie's response:

"I am proud of Carrie Prejean’s beauty and placement at the 2009 MISS USA pageant. I support Carrie’s right to express her personal beliefs even if they do not coincide with my own. I believe the subject of gay marriage deserves a great deal more conversation in order to heal the divide it has created."

Keith Lewis
Co-Executive Director
K2 Productions
MISS CALIFORNIA USA and MISS CALIFORNIA TEEN USA

Woman had sex with boy, 13

2009-04-05T22:21:00.001-07:00


		Amendments to the Penal Code in February last year make it an offence for a woman to have sex with a boy under 16. If convicted, the woman can be jailed for up to 10 years or fined, or jailed and fined. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

ANOTHER case of a woman having sex with an underage boy has been brought to the court.

This time, a 32-year-old woman is accused of having sex with a 13-year-old student on seven occasions in May last year. The accused, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the boy, was charged a week ago.

On Monday, she was brought back to court, at which she indicated that she was pleading guilty to two charges that the prosecution is proceeding.

The petite woman was not represented and was remanded in custody as she could not post the $10,000 bail offered.

The case will be mentioned on Wednesday afternoon.

Amendments to the Penal Code in February last year make it an offence for a woman to have sex with a boy under 16. If convicted, the woman can be jailed for up to 10 years or fined, or jailed and fined.

In February, a former 32-year-old school teacher became the first woman to be jailed 10 months for having sex with a 15-year-old student at a Pasir Ris chalet in March last year.

The pair went to have sex five more times either at her home or the chalets before she decided to call its quits.

She felt that the boy was getting overly possessive and temperamental. She also began having regrets about the relationship.

When he refused to end the affair, she ignored his calls and SMSes. On May 13, the boy threatened to kill her and her family members. She was worried that he would carry out the threat and two days later, she confided in her school counsellor.

Sex offenders to take lie tests

2009-04-05T22:13:00.000-07:00

'The tests will help us determine whether the polygraph can be a useful additional tool in the management of sex offenders, in order to protect the public,' Justice Minister David Hanson said in a statement. -- PHOTO: NEW PAPER

LONDON - SEX offenders in Britain will be forced to take lie detector tests as a condition of probation on release from prison, the Justice Ministry said on Sunday.

Twenty-five offenders have been chosen to take part in a three-year pilot project that starts on Wednesday.

Justice Minister David Hanson said 350-450 offenders are expected to be tested over the next three years and those who refuse could be returned to prison.

'The tests will help us determine whether the polygraph can be a useful additional tool in the management of sex offenders, in order to protect the public,' Hanson said in a statement.

Professor Don Grubin, who will carry out the tests, said they were part of a package of measures aimed at stopping reoffending.

'Disclosures made during polygraph examinations, as well as conclusions drawn from passed or failed examinations, allow probation officers and the police to intervene to reduce risk,' he said.

'Just as important, it is also aimed at enhancing the cooperation of offenders with supervision, helping them to focus on, and avoid, the sorts of behaviours that make re-offending more likely.' The ministry said each polygraph session will take between 90 minutes and two hours and will follow an interview during which the subject will be told the questions they will be asked so they can make any relevant disclosures beforehand.

After the polygraph session, the subject will be told the results of the test and asked to account for any failures

Help for salamander crossing

2009-04-05T22:12:00.000-07:00

NEW HAVEN (Vermont) - THE black salamander with yellow spots sat on the roadside in the dark, ready to make a go for it.

But it was not on its own. It got help from an escort - one of 45 people who volunteered on a recent night to carry salamanders, frogs and newts across the road during their annual migration to mate.

On rainy nights in early spring, roads between forests and vernal pools are hopping and crawling with activity. On some nights, hundreds of amphibians cross small stretches of asphalt to mate. But many don't make it.

From rural Vermont to urban centres like Philadelphia, human escorts, called bucket brigades in some places, help amphibians make it to their mating areas without getting squashed by cars. It's part education, part conservation, and part science.

'It's an extraordinary thing and people deserve to know about it,' said Warren King, a member of the Otter Creek Audubon Society, who organizes a crossing in Salisbury. 'And it needs to be protected. There are sites where many of the critters that are crossing never make it.'

On a recent night, University of Vermont student Kaitlin Friedman walked with other volunteers along the asphalt with flashlights and clipboards, moving wood frogs, peepers, blue-spotted, red-backed and four-toed salamanders across the road, while jotting down how many they saw. They also kept count of vehicles, and the amphibians that didn't make it, trying to identify the flattened carcasses.

The half dozen cars that passed in an hour slowed down through the stretch of road dotted with flashlights, some stopping to ask what was going on. After two hours, the group had spotted 589 amphibians, and 97 dead ones.

But a few miles (kilometres) ahead, on a busier road in Monkton, the scene wasn't pretty. It was more of a slaughter. The escorts were finding more dead amphibians than live ones.

Within the first half hour they counted 20 dead spotted salamanders and 18 live ones, eight dead and four live wood frogs, seven dead peepers and one live one, four dead and one live eft or immature newt and 23 cars, said Steve Parren, who works for the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department.

Two and half hours later, the tide turned - they had counted 205 live and 98 dead amphibians - but the numbers still troubled Mr Parren. 'I don't think the area can persist with the level of mortality that we're seeing,' Mr Parren said.

Quake strikes East Timor & Italy

2009-04-05T22:06:00.000-07:00

DILI - A SHALLOW 5.4-magnitude quake struck the island of Timor on Monday, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

The moderate earthquake occurred at 3.45am (1945 GMT on Sunday, 3.45am Singapore time) about 10km under the ocean floor some 112km from Kupang in West Timor and 179 km off the East Timorese capital of Dili, the agency said.

The island of Timor sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where continental plates meet, causing seismic and volcanic activity.

Italy quake kills 13

Residents of Rome, which is rarely hit by seismic activity, were woken by the quake. Furniture rattled and car alarms went off. -- PHOTO: EARTHQUAKE.USGS.GOV

ROME - A STRONG earthquake killed at least 13 people in Italy early on Monday, including four children, Italian television station Sky TG24 reported, while eight people were reported missing, public safety and hospital sources said.

An elderly woman and a baby girl in central Italy's Abruzzo region were crushed in a building that collapsed in the town of Fossa, near the Abruzzo capital L'Aquila. They were pulled from the rubble of their home, but rescue workers were unable to revive them, the all-news television channel also said.

Another eight people were missing in nearby San Demetrio dei Vestini, public safety officials said. Part of of a university residence, a church tower and several houses also collapsed in the city of L'Aquila.

There was no immediate word on whether anyone was inside the dormitory. Television pictures showed rubble on a number of streets in L'Aquila and at least one modern house whose roof collapsed. The pictures also showed the rubble from a collapsed bell tower. The ANSA news agency reported that rescue workers were at the scene in the Abruzzo capital.

Damage was also reported in a number of outlying towns and villages in the mountainous region east of Rome.

The earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale rocked central Italy and was felt in the Italian capital Rome.

The US Geological Survery said the epicentre of the quake, which struck in the early hours at about 0132 GMT (9.32am Singapore time), was located 68km west of the town of Pescara and 95km north-east of Rome.

Residents of Rome, which is rarely hit by seismic activity, were woken by the quake. Furniture rattled and car alarms went off.

Earthquakes can be particularly dangerous in parts of Italy where centuries-old buildings are left in disrepair.

The quake was the latest and strongest in a series to hit the l'Aquila area on Sunday and Monday.

Push for new world order

2009-04-05T22:04:00.000-07:00

'The voice of Asia needs to be heard,' said Chalongphob Sussangkarn, a former Thai finance minister who is now at the Thailand Development Research Institute. 'We (Asia) are the biggest creditor in the world... East Asia needs to take an active role in the reform of the global financial architecture.' -- PHOTO: ASSOCIATED PRESS

BANGKOK - ASIAN leaders will seek to assert a key role in a new world economic order this week at the first major international summit since the G20 unveiled a landmark recovery plan for the global recession.

The summit starting on Friday in Thailand will give the region of nearly three billion people a chance show its clout after last week's meeting in London, which raised hopes for an era of economic cooperation and reform.

But the export-driven region must also find new strategies to shore up its own tanking economies, as the twin threats of mass unemployment and social unrest loom.

In addition to the economy the leaders are also set to discuss North Korea's launch of a long-range rocket, and deadly border clashes between Thai and Cambodian troops.

'The voice of Asia needs to be heard,' said Chalongphob Sussangkarn, a former Thai finance minister who is now at the Thailand Development Research Institute.

'We (Asia) are the biggest creditor in the world... East Asia needs to take an active role in the reform of the global financial architecture.' The three-day summit in the resort of Pattaya will group the leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) plus those of regional partners China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the heads of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and World Trade Organisation will attend a related summit in Bangkok on Sunday.

Asia is a key example of what British Prime Minister Gordon Brown described last week as the 'new world order", backed by a Group of 20 communique saying it would take the developing world more into account.

The group also pledged to give more than one trillion dollars to financial institutions to support stricken economies in emerging and developing countries, amid calls for reform of global financial systems.

STIMULUS PLAN by Barack Obama

2009-02-09T19:46:00.000-08:00

President Barack Obama insisted on Monday that only government can jolt the economy out of deep recession and offered an olive branch to longtime foe Iran, scrapping years of past U.S. policies.

Taking his case directly to the recession-weary American people, Obama used his first White House news conference to exhort Congress to act in the coming week on an $800 billion-plus economic stimulus package expected to help define his young presidency.
Obama, who won the White House on a promise of change after eight years of George W. Bush, signaled his intention to keep making clean breaks with the past on everything from the role of government to the wisdom of talking to the United States' enemies.

"With the private sector so weakened by this recession, the federal government is the only entity left with the resources to jolt our economy back to life," the Democratic president said during a televised prime-time appearance in the East Room of the White House 20 days after his historic inauguration.

It was effectively a repudiation of Ronald Reagan's "small government" legacy, a Republican doctrine Bush pushed for much of his tenure but which he was forced to abandon when aides urged massive intervention to prevent financial collapse.

Obama declared that a massive new government program was now needed without further delay to tackle what he termed "the most profound economic emergency since the Great Depression" and prevent a full-blown crisis from becoming a catastrophe
.
Underscoring his efforts to reverse the most divisive parts of Bush's foreign policy, Obama said he saw the possibility of diplomatic openings with Iran in the months ahead. The West is locked in a nuclear standoff with Tehran.

"We will be looking for openings that can be created where we can start sitting across the table face-to-face, diplomatic overtures that will allow us to move our policy in a new direction," Obama said in a dramatic shift from Bush's strategy of seeking to isolate Iran instead of engaging it.

Sandwiched between campaign-style trips to economically blighted areas in Indiana and Florida, it gave Obama a chance to pitch his solutions for the financial meltdown and deepening recession.
The new Democratic president also hoped to regain momentum following a week in which a key cabinet nominee withdrew in a flap over unpaid taxes and his push for the stimulus plan hit unexpected snags in the Democratic-led Congress.
It remained to be seen, however, whether his words -- spoken in the calm, deliberative tone that helped him win the presidency -- would be enough to ease Americans' anxieties and stabilize jittery world markets.

STIMULUS PLAN
Despite a split along party lines, the House of Representatives approved an $819 billion economic recovery plan last week.
Just hours before Obama stood in front of the cameras, the Senate moved a step closer to passing its own bill, setting up a vote on a $838 billion emergency package on Tuesday

40% of UN Troops Committing Sexual Abuse

2009-01-27T20:47:00.000-08:00

Monuc's latest data shows that 40 percent of sexual abuse are committed by UN contingent

It is recorded that the UN peace keeping troops have committed quite an alarming percentage of sexual abuse. According to the latest data provided by the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Monuc), the UN contingent perpetrated 40 percent of sexual abuse.

An officer at Monuc Unit of Code of Conduct, Hamina, said that each commander from every contingent must prevent sexual abuse from being committed to their subordinates.

Therefore, drills or trainings to improve their understanding on the importance of discipline in working in Monuc/the United Nations will be required.

"In addition to affecting the victims and perpetrators, the UN mission will be disgraced," Hamina said on Tuesday, Jan 27.

The personnel on duty should be professional and respect the multicultural values embedded in the life of local inhabitants.

Through a drilling, it is expected that an understanding toward sexual deviation, especially sexual exploitation abuse (SEA) will be built. As a result, the knowledge can be disseminated to other personnel in the contingent.

The SEA prevention will be a significant factor that must be taken into consideration by every Monuc personnel.

Therefore, the Indonesian Military contingent launched prevention efforts by imposing curfew, obligating its personnel to wear uniform outside of the camp, prohibiting its personnel to go to places suspected as prostitution zones and providing recreation spots in the camps as well as organizing regular religious activities.

Indonesia and the Global Crisis

2009-01-26T21:54:00.000-08:00

Indonesia and the Global
Economy (in Crisis): Can
Indonesia be a Member of the
Global Elite?

Indonesia has a strategic position in the
global and regional economy
Indonesia is a member of the G 20 that can play important role in the common
effort to overcome the current global economic crisis and push for a reformation
of the world financial system.
Indonesia is the largest economy in Southeast Asia and has a leading role in the
effort to create ASEAN Economic Community in 2015 and develop cooperation
under ASEAN+3 and ASEAN+6 .
Under the current global economic crisis, Indonesia’s economy is projected to
grow moderately.
Indonesia is the third largest democratic country with a respected economic
performance.
Democracy works in Indonesia even though not yet deliver optimally.
However, Indonesia does not score well in terms of quality of the economy, such
as Human Development Index, Competitiveness, and governance.
There is possibility for Indonesia to go higher in in the rank of global economic
elite. However, there is also a danger that Indonesia could fall behind, as we
experience in the crisis of 1998, if we can not improve quality of development
significantly.

Policy Response
Place government funds at state-owned banks to increase liquidity in the banking system
Increase the amount of deposits guaranteed by the government in the banking system
Adjust the financial sector with prudential regulation (banks and the capital markets) as needed
Recognize the importance of monetary policy support, as deemed appropriate to domestic
conditions
Manage state-owned enterprises foreign exchange transactions to reduce speculation
Maintain a sufficient level of foreign exchange reserves through trade financing facilities, control of
consumption goods imports and illegal imports
Accelerate the disbursement of program loans for government and state-owned enterprise projects
Prepare crisis protocol (implementation of Committee of Financial Sector Stability)
Reduce government bond issuance in 2008 and 2009
Redefine emergency funding in State Budget Law 2009 based on emergency conditions for
anticipating of global crisis impact
Arrange standby financing facilities to support counter-cyclical measures and fiscal stimulus
package in 2009 Budget
Selected Actions Taken by the Government
High awareness and proactive management of the impact of the global financial crisis on Indonesia

Conclusions is,
Indonesia is in a god position to improve its standing in the global
economy.
Under the current global economic crisis Indonesia has a possibility to
be able to grow moderately.
Indonesia has to increase the contribution of export and FDI o growth.
Banking sector is in a good condition and should be able to play higher
role to support growth.
The challenge is to improve quality aspects of the economy so that it
could grow in a sustainable way.
As the largest economy in ASEAN, Indonesia can play a leading role in
the effort to create ASEAN economic community and develop
cooperation at the level of ASEAN+3 and ASEAN+6. This should not
allowed to set back even under the global economic crisis.
As the third largest democratic country, Indonesia should be able to
evolve as a reliable democratic country that able to deliver hiher level of
welfare to the people.

Summary of 2009 Budget
Macroeconomic assumptions used in the 2009 budget are optimistic despite having factored
in any potential downside risk
The budget assumes moderate tax revenue growth of 20% in 2009
Currently implementing the Income Tax Law, which will lower tariffs, increase minimum
thresholds and provide tax incentives to certain sectors and regions, in order to reduce costs
of businesses
Continue to improve transparency for the calculation of cost recovery and revenue from the
oil and gas sector
Priority is given to poverty alleviation and education (BLT, PKH, PMPH and BOS), health care
and infrastructure (road, bridge, airport and electricity) programs
Use all fiscal, trade and industry instruments to support the real sector, boost investment
climate and increase competitiveness of Indonesia’s economy
Increase fiscal contingency fund to fund the budget deficit
Shift financing sources from marketable securities to standby financing facilities from
bilateral and multilateral institutions
Arrange standby financing facilities to support counter-cyclical measures and fiscal stimulus
package in 2009 budget
Prepare crisis protocol through implementation of the Committee of Financial Sector Stability

Need your support here

Topless dancer fined

2009-01-23T01:48:00.000-08:00

A FILIPINA was fined $1,000 on Friday for appearing topless while dancing at a pub in Duxton Hill.
Miechelle Myth Lapay Alicabo, 30, admitted to exposing her breasts at 'Duxton Night'' Restaurant Karaoke & Pub on Oct 30 last year.

A court heard that while dancing infront of male patrons at the pub, she removed her top and brassiere and pulled down her skirt, clad only in her underwear.

She was arrested for appearing nude in a public place by police officers who were conducting checks.

She could have been fined up to $2,000 and/or jailed for up to three months.

Microsoft Corporation reduction employees

2009-01-15T20:17:00.001-08:00

Computer software company's world number one, Microsoft Corporation, is weighing a reduction in employees to perform in various divisions. The announcement about the final decision can be most quickly will be announced next weekend. Likewise daily said The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, 14 January 2009.

Action termination of employment (PHK) employees is a rare occurrence for Microsoft. "However, the plan can still be changed, and Microsoft can still find other ways to rein in spending," wrote The Wall Street Journal quoted a source. It is reported, the number of employees who will be PHK approximately 15,000 people. Rumor also has merebak dismissal in the last few weekends.

Executive director of Microsoft, Steve Ballmer, last week rejected the rumor to the reduction of employee, although he confessed that the poor economic conditions force companies to think seriously about trimming the cost of action. Firing employees, Ballmer said, not the norm for a company headquartered in Washington, the United States.

The likelihood, according to Microsoft that the final report in June ago employs 91,000 employees, announced the decision when they submit financial reports on the upcoming January 22.

Microsoft has said that the weak economic conditions, the company can not bolster growth in the number of employees of two of the last fiscal year reached 15 percent at most.

Sales of the computer that also impacted on the decline Microsoft. Gartner research company, yesterday reported that PC sales in many countries only grow as much as 1.1 percent in the fourth quarter 2008 from a year ago. This is the worst growth rate in the computer industry since 2002.

Luxury cars defy down market

2009-01-12T21:51:00.000-08:00

If you have one million dollars US to spend on a car, you may be one of the "happy few" to be offered a chance to buy one of only 75 new Mercedes SLR "Stirling Moss."
Unrestrained luxury cars are selling well, despite doldrums in the global auto industry.
The nouveaux riches, recent lottery winners and the like, can thus only dream of getting in the driver's seat.

In a market in dramatic decline in the United States and throughout the world, high-end brands such as Bentley, Maserati, Lamborghini, Jaguar, Maybach and Rolls Royce are posting strong sales, up eight percent to 50 percent notably in emerging markets such as Eastern Europe.

Jaguar, now owned by India's Tata, sold 65,000 cars priced between 30,000 dollars and 60,000 dollars in 2008, up eight percent over the previous year, according to its global marketing director CJ O'Donnell.

"Of course everybody feels the crisis", but Jaguar does not have to sell millions of cars to make a profit, he explained.

Britain remains Jaguar's primary market, but the United States is catching up.

On Sunday, Jaguar executive director Michael Drisco unveiled the company's new XF, which can reach speeds of up to 362 kilometers (225 miles) per hour, "which really pleases women." He says he is "pretty optimistic for the future."

It's a niche market and for the most exclusive brands, only a few hundred vehicles are produced.

"We sold 2,430 Lamborghini in 2008, up six percent, and we have 122 dealers, 50 more than in 2007," chief executive Stefan Winkelmann said at the launch of its Gallardo LP 560 at the Detroit auto show.

"Lamborghini is style, Lamborghini is lifestyle," he said, adding that the carmaker more and more customizes its vehicles in response to clients' unique demands. "We individualize the cars."

These coveted Italian luxury sports cars sell for 200,000 dollars, sales director Enrico Maffeo told AFP.

The US market was its top buyer with 950 vehicles sold in 2007, but sales fell slightly to 750 Lamborghinis last year, while European sales topped 1,000, he said.

Who rides in Lamborghinis in the United States? Hollywood actors, a few rappers, and top lawyers, mostly in New York, California and Florida.

"Elsewhere, we sell mostly in Italy, Germany, Britain and Switzerland. In Russia, the roads and the climate are harsh, but we still sold a dozen vehicles there," Maffeo said.

"We cannot say we are unaffected by global prices," commented Lamborghini's Winkelmann. "But we are not changing strategy. We have a new product each year."

Even if the car maker maintains its distinctive Italian style, in its designs as in its marketing, Lamborghini is nevertheless since 1998 part of Germany's Audi, which is in turn owned by the Volkswagen Group.

"The synergies between them are indispensable," said Enrico Maffeo. "That's something the US automakers never quite got a handle on."

Turn on oil prices, Wall Street Stocks Down

2009-01-12T21:48:00.000-08:00

Investors await company reports quarterly revenues in the midst of economic crisis

All share price index in the Wall Street exchange was closed out at the end of trading Monday afternoon New York time, January 12, 2009 (Tuesday morning WIT). Section, the investors refrain from the receipt of quarterly reports which will show the impact of bad economic crisis on the companies.

Index Dow Jones industrial stocks fell for the fourth trading session Monday because of anjloknya triggered by oil prices and concerns over growth in the financial sector. So far in 2009, Dow index down 3.5 percent.

Dow index fell 125.21 points (1.46 percent) to 8473.97 after the level was down 178 points at most. Experienced a decrease in the Dow yesterday was the lowest closing for the Dow since 24 December 2008.

Index than the Dow stocks are also down. Index Standard & Poor 500 fell 20.09 points (2.26 percent) to 870.26 positions. While the Nasdaq composite index down 32.80 points (2.09 percent) to 1538.79 level. Stock index companies small Russell 2000 closed down 12.50 points (2.60 percent) to 468.80 positions.

On the exchange market, the value of the currency against the dollar currencies other menguat. Meanwhile, for the first time in the last one month, gold prices fell below U.S. $ 820 per oz. Type of crude oil price of light sweet anjlok U.S. $ 3.24 to the position of U.S. $ 37.59 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Foreign exchange in the United States, FTSE 100 index (UK) fell 0.50 percent. Dax Index (Germany) down 1.34 percent, and the CAC-40 index (France) lost 1.62 percent. Hang Seng Index (Hong Kong) down 2.83 percent. Japanese stock exchanges closed for days libu

Ship sinking

2009-01-12T21:45:00.001-08:00

Ship sinking victim survived Motor Teratai Prima again found. Tuesday 13 January 2008, seven victims were found cargo ship, ship MV. Celebes Global Line (CGL), arrived in Port of Soekarno-Hatta Makassar, on Tuesday, 13 January 2009.

VIVAnews visibility on the location, ship MV. Celebes Global Line (CGL), the Port of sandar Soekarno-Hatta WITA around 10:30 hours. Yag ships carry hundreds of tons of fertilizer, and starting from Bontang, East Kalimantan goal Makassar, South Sulawesi.

The victim then revealed dipapah and by members of the SAR has been waiting since the beginning. Seventh name of the victim, among others, Philipis Paramma origin Palopo, saiful origin Enrekang, Sonda origin Tator, Iwan Tator origin, and Robi, Darwis and Hendra, third Pinrang origin. Seventh passengers look weak and loyo.

Seventh victim later dievakuasi directly to a hospital owned by the TNI Navy RI, Jala Ammari, Makassar for treatment. Philipis, one of the seven victims have serious injuries, namely broken rib in the section. The only experience galling and exfoliate the skin.

According to data from Posko Parepare, the number of victims at this time found that 35 people, 1 of which has been found dead.

Ships Motor (KM) Teratai Prima reversed on Sunday, January 11, 2009 around 04.00 hours dinihari around peraiaran Baturoro, 50 kilometers from the waters of Majene. Sunken vessels, after previously reported dihantam hurricane winds. A passenger ship carrying hundreds of people are starting with Saturday's Parepare Children Fruit Ship (ABK) 17 people.

China's exports fall for second month amid crisis: state media

2009-01-12T21:42:00.001-08:00

Chinese exports extended their decline into a second month in December as the global crisis continue to hurt its heavily trade-dependent economy, according to state media reports.
This followed a decline of 2.2 percent in November, which was the first time in seven years that Chinese exports had fallen at all.

As the global economic crisis worsens, China is expected to record even worse data in the coming months, said Xu Jian, a Beijing-based economist with China International Capital Corp.

"The fall in exports will probably get worse with the United States, Japan and Europe in recession," he told AFP, adding that the December drop in exports was the worst since April 1999.

Imports in December were down by 21.3 percent to 72.2 billion dollars, the China Daily said, suggesting a rapid contraction in domestic economic activity.

The World Bank has warned that China's economy will expand by just 7.5 percent in 2009, the lowest level since 1990.

The trade surplus last month came to 39 billion dollars, the customs data showed.

This is the second-highest on record, only surpassed by the 40.1 billion dollars in November, which had also resulted mainly from a steep decline in imports.

The figure suggests that China's full-year trade surplus was 295 billion dollars, a rise of about 13 percent from 2007.

Volunteers leave on aid mission

2009-01-10T05:44:00.000-08:00

Hundreds of people crammed into al-Azhar Mosque in South Jakarta on Friday to bid farewell to four volunteers of the Indonesian Humanitarian Relief Team (ACT) who were to leave that night on a mission to infiltrate war-torn Palestine and distribute humanitarian aid there.

The antiIsrael atmosphere was obvious in the house of worship, where photos of Israeli soldiers holding Palestinians at gunpoint were pasted to the walls.

Some of the congregation cried “Allahu Akbar [God is Great]” and “long live Palestine”.

As members of the public took turns shaking hands with the volunteers — Novatiyadi Imam Akbari, Yayat Supriyana, Amrozi Rais and Darmawan — others chanted salawat badr (a prayer to Prophet Muhammad), some shedding tears as they spoke.

People’s Consultative Assembly Speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid led the prayer for the safety of the volunteers, who planned to leave for Palestine on Friday.

“We know that no one can guarantee our safety and we don’t know how to get back to Indonesia because we are quite aware of what is happening in Palestine,” said Novariyadi, who is mission coordinator. “We are ready for all possibilities, and so are our families.”

The volunteers will bring with them about Rp 1 billion in cash that was collected over the last eight days at fund-raising events. They plan to use the money to buy food and supplies in Jordan which they will then give to Palestinians.

Amrozi said he and his fellow volunteers planned to team up with the Palestine Solidarity Community — an Amman-based Jordanian organization — as well as several pro-Palestine movements in the region.

“We know Israel has blockaded Palestine. We will try to enter Palestine through Jordan or Syria,” Amrozi said, adding that they would buy visas on arrival in Jordan.

ACT director Ahyuddin said more than 2,000 people had donated money on the condition the team distribute the funds to Palestinians no matter the conditions they faced.

The team is the second to be sent by Indonesia to Palestine. Last week, the largest Muslim country sent 10 volunteers to the besieged Middle-Eastern spot, including journalists.

Some hard-line groups are recruiting and training volunteers to be sent to Palestine as soldiers to resist the Israeli army, despite repeated government warnings against such actions.

Hidayat said Tuesday that sending Indonesian jihadists to the war zone would add to the humanitarian crisis.

“What they need is not fighters, but humanitarian aid, or the public opinion ... that Palestine is not alone, that Israel has committed a war crime. That will give hope to the Palestinians that the war will end,” said Hidayat, who is also co-founder of the Prosperous Justice Party.

Hidayat had just returned from touring Arab and Muslim countries in his capacity as deputy chairman of the Al-Quds Foundation.

KPU Directly Appoint Contracts

2009-01-10T05:42:00.000-08:00

The General Elections Commission (KPU) can directly appoint contractors to supply poll equipment and services as long as it uses the standard prices set by the government, Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Friday.

The statement contradicted that made a day earlier by Home Minister Mardiyanto, State Minister for Administrative Reforms Taufik Effendi and State Minister for National Development Planning Paskah Suzetta, who all rejected a proposal for direct appointments made by the KPU.

“Presidential Decree No. 80/2003 allows for the direct appointment [of suppliers], so there is no need for a new decree if the KPU wants to go this way,” Kalla, who also chairs the Golkar Party, said.

However, he stressed that the appointed contractors must apply the standard prices of election materials set by the government.

The KPU had submitted a draft presidential decree with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to allow it to avoid open tenders for its procurement projects worth trillions of rupiah.

The 2003 decree on the purchase of goods and service states that contracts by state agencies worth more than Rp 50 million must be conducted through open tenders.

Article 17 of the presidential decree says direct appointment could only be made if at least three contractors were involved and they had passed pre-qualification selections.

It stipulates that direct appointment can also be applied in certain special conditions with negotiated prices.

Procurement contract expert Harmawan Kaeni said special conditions could be categorized as natural disasters or issues of state security.

“Direct appointment cannot be implemented in all situations. In terms of the upcoming elections, I see no emergency situation that would warrant such a decision.”

KPU chairman Abdul Hafiz Anshary said Friday his office might directly appoint companies to supply logistic materials for the second round of presidential elections. The presidential election is slated on July 28 with the second round to be held on Sept 13.

The Indonesia Forum for Budget Transparency said direct appointment is highly rampant to graft as the public and election watchdogs are denied access to control the procurement process

KPU Plans Ruling on seat Dispute

2009-01-09T15:18:00.000-08:00

The national polling body is calling for a regulation to follow up on a recent Constitutional Court ruling which states legislative seats will be distributed based on the number of votes candidates win in the upcoming April elections.

General Elections Commission (KPU) chairman Abdul Hafiz Anshari said the regulation would outline the method for distributing seats to legislative candidates based on the number of seats won by each political party in the elections.

"According to the draft, the candidate who earns the most votes will directly receive a seat," he told reporters Thursday.

He said the commission was still discussing how to resolve problems if two or more legislative candidates won an equal number of votes.

"We are considering firstly to evaluate the size of the electoral districts won by the candidates. The seats will be handed over to the candidates who are elected in a number of electoral areas," he said.

"But, if the candidates win in districts of the same size, we are considering three options: allowing political parties to distribute the seats, using a numerical order system or through a lottery," Hafiz said.

The Constitutional Court revoked an article in the 2008 legislative elections last year concerning the way in which legislative seats were distributed.

The annulled article allowed party leaders to handpick close supporters to represent the parties in the national and regional legislatures, rather than to candidates who won the most votes.

The law also states that legislative seats must first be distributed to candidates who secure at least 30 percent of the original vote.

The rest of the seats are then allocated according to the list of the permanent legislative candidates submitted by the political parties.

Hafiz said the KPU had earlier wanted to seek a more powerful policy in the form of a government regulation in-lieu-of law (perpu) on the distribution of legislative seats.

"But the court judges informed us the ruling was legally binding and there was no need to issue this regulation," he said.

Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician Ganjar Pranowo said the KPU regulation was "too weak" to regulate the distribution of legislative seats.

"It is dangerous because the KPU is a government agency. People or groups not satisfied with the KPU regulation could bring the case to court, which could threaten the cancellation of the elections," he said.

He said the House of Representatives needed to set up a special commission to alter articles in the 2008 election law which were annulled by the court.

Ganjar also criticized the government's plan to issue a regulation allowing voters to tick ballot papers twice in the legislative elections.

"I do not understand the government's way of thinking. I did not detect any emergency need for issuing this regulation. The government needs to focus on regulating the ways of distributing legislative seats," he said.

The KPU has sent the regulation draft to the President for approval.

A regional legislative candidate in Bekasi regency, West Java, Parsaulian Tambunan also opposed the issuance of the regulation allowing voters to double tick on ballots.

"Most legislative candidates have campaigned for voters to tick once on ballot papers as stipulated in the election law. It will confuse voters," Parsaulian, from the Nationality Democracy Party (PDK) said.

Meanwhile, a politician from the Democratic Party, Atte Suganda said allowing voters to tick twice on ballot papers was essential to avoid ballots becoming invalid as many people were still unaware of the new voting procedure.

"An internal survey shows about 40 percent of ballot papers would be invalid if we apply the old voting system," he said.

Modern musical revives ancient tale of love

2009-01-08T22:17:00.000-08:00

Once she sang of joyful morning birds; no longer. As she throws herself at the feet of her beloved husband, Sri Tanjung releases the primal scream of a woman betrayed.

This is a song of exquisite pain -- the kind of pain a woman feels when her faithful adoration, love and innocence are shattered by her loved one's senseless distrust.

"My love, you choose to believe the winds and hearsay, and doubt my devotion, the woman, who through the longest of days, the darkest of nights, has prayed for your safe return, has longed for nothing but your love," she says, sobbing in desperation.

Her plea is in vain; her husband's heart has been poisoned by jealousy. His ears hear nothing but the sound of his own hatred screaming for retribution. His eyes see nothing but the images of his wife succumbing to another man's desire.

At that moment, Sida Paksa, a passionate lover and a fierce warrior, realizes there is only one thing left to say, something that cannot be said with words.

As he turns his back on Sri Tanjung, the only love of his life, Sida Paksa understands that now he will not need love any longer. His heart turns to stone.

And at that moment, Sri Tanjung realizes that the end is near and only her demise will prove her chastity.

There are no tears when the princess clasps her hands and prays. There is no hesitation when Sida Paksa draws his kris and drives it silently through his wife's heart.

There is no sound when the earth embraces her fallen daughter. Her blood, crimson red as any blood would be, exudes a fragrance like no other blood could.

This is a fragrance that forces Sida Paksa to kneel and cry in anguish, realizing that he has just committed the most foolish and tragic mistake of his life.

This was the most touching and powerful scene in Sri Tanjung: The Scent of Innocence, a contemporary musical performed at the newly renovated Ksirarnawa theater in Denpasar's Art Center in late December.

The musical is the ongoing project of the Denpasar-based Arti Foundation, a cultural group that for years has sought to construct contemporary interpretations and forms of traditional and classical Balinese performing arts.

"Tonight we are performing only eight scenes out of the total 14 scenes we are currently working on," Sri Tanjung's director and Arti's founder Kadek Suardana said on the night.

Suardana, an award-winning director and composer, has the aesthetic penchant of a chemist. He loves to combine elements from different cultures or from different periods of history to create dramatic works that are refreshingly new and disturbingly familiar all at the same time.

His various takes on Shakespeare's Macbeth -- one in the 1980s that incorporated the traditional Balinese masked dance drama Topeng and one in the late 1990s that fully dissolved the European story into the realm of the classical and refined Balinese opera Gambuh -- breathed a new energy into the island's theater as well as earning Suardana national and international praise.

Sri Tanjung is his most recent obsession and the most-consuming one, finance-wise.

Suardana has already ploughed more than Rp 100 million (US$9,500) of his own money into the play's planning and initial stages, which included a field trip and literary research into various areas in East Java, where locals believe Sri Tanjung is a historical figure and not merely a fictitious character in ancient literature.

"The story has long and strong roots in the local cultures, so we want to get to know the forms of the local performing arts, the sounds of their music and their spirituality," he said.

Mari Nabeshima, Suardana's Japanese-born wife and one of Sri Tanjung's main scriptwriters, traveled to various historical sites in Java to gain firsthand knowledge about the story.

She looked at the relief of the story in Candi Panataran, Blitar, and Candi Surawana, Kediri, which gave her a glimpse of how the story was depicted visually in times long gone.

"I believe that we must at least understand the original context of a literary text before we began constructing a new interpretation of that text," she said.

Suardana's Sri Tanjung is based on the 17th century tale Kidung Sri Tanjung originating from Banyuwangi, East Java. In Bali, the story once gained popularity as the theme of a traditional Arja dance-drama, but has since been forgotten by modern Balinese.

Suardana's meticulous efforts have not been in vain. The trial performance on that Tuesday night drew a demanding crowd, which included some of the island's most prominent scholars, performers and critics -- not to mention the island's vice governor, AA Ngurah Puspayoga, an avid art lover who also served as the play's artistic consultant.

This tough audience's warm reception of the musical was more than enough to have Suardana grinning with joy.

"The performance is deep and touching," prominent scholar I Made Bandem said. "Kadek (Suardana) has succeeded in creating a musical in which the music, dance and dialogue have achieved an aesthetic fusion so complete that they amplified each other in delivering the philosophical message of the story."

The full version of the musical will be performed in Denpasar on Feb. 27 and 28 and in Gedung Kesenian Jakarta (GKJ) in early March. Sri Tanjung will then tour Europe.

Jihadists the last thing Gaza needs: Minister

2009-01-08T21:56:00.000-08:00

The government maintained Tuesday its stance of refusing to send Indonesian troops to the Gaza Strip despite mounting pressure from some Islamic groups to dispatch jihadists to the besieged Middle Eastern spot.

The Foreign Ministry said sending jihadists to Gaza to help Hamas fight Israel would not improve the situation, adding there were much more effective avenues Indonesia could take to help diffuse the situation.

A number of Islamic hardline groups, including the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) and Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI), have said they wish to send volunteers to Gaza under the banner of jihad and have called on the government to support them.

“Is conducting a jihad effective? We must ask Gaza if that’s what they need, and most probably they (don’t). There are other more effective ways to help ... So far, sending jihadists isn’t an option,” Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda said.

AFP reported Tuesday that the 11-day-old Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip had claimed the lives of at least 635 Palestinians and wounded 2,900 more.
The toll shot up Tuesday when Israeli fire hit three schools, killing at least 45 people.

Speaking in his annual statement to the press, Hassan said what Gaza needed most was medicine and medical assistance.
“We are looking at the possibility of sending medical workers to field hospitals in the Egypt area of Sinai, which borders with Gaza. We’re awaiting clearance from Egypt, and the President has instructed the health minister to collect volunteers,” Hassan said.

Despite agreeing that the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip had nothing to do with religion, Islamic groups in Jakarta have hyped up the conflict between the two religious groups, paving the way for the Islamic-based Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and other Islamic groups to seize the momentum ahead of the April elections.

Observers on Tuesday criticized nationalist parties for not shouting down calls by Islam groups to send volunteers to the war, which was defined by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Monday as a clash over the sovereignty of territory between Palestine and Israel, and not a religious matter.

“The nationalist groups should be more active in voicing their stance as Indonesia’s voice will be much more strong if the (the world) considers it to represent a pluralist Indonesia rather than only Islam,” University of Indonesia international relations expert Hariyadi Wirawan said.

He said a pluralist Indonesia would attract more sympathy from major non-Muslim countries, such as members of the European Union (EU), as well as powerful human rights groups world wide that see the attacks as a territory dispute and a human rights tragedy rather than an attack against Islam.

PKS, the FPI and HTI seized the spotlight immediately after Israeli began the attacks when the groups gathered thousands of supporters in Jakarta and other big cities in the country to rally against Israel and the US.

Other political parties and nationalist groups did not take part in the rallies, and media coverage has refused to voice their stance on the conflict.

Perang Cerdas Hamas

2009-01-08T20:49:00.001-08:00

Hari Sabath (Sabtu), hari yang dikuduskan kaum Yahudi diingkari sendiri oleh tentara Israel. Di hari larangan membunuh, bepergian, dan berdagang itu, pasukan darat negeri zionis resmi menyerang Gaza, Palestina. Mereka disambut meriah dengan rudal-rudal jarak dekat pejuang Hamas (Haraqah Al Muqawamah Al Islamiyah, Gerakan Perlawanan Islam).

Pemimpin Hamas Khalid Misyal dari pos komandonya di Syiria sudah memerintahkan setiap pejuang Hamas melawan. Khalid menjanjikan neraka bagi setiap tentara Israel yang menginjak tanah Gaza. Mengapa Hamas begitu berani ?

Padahal, dari hitung-hitungan matematika pertahanan, kekuatan dua pasukan sangat timpang. Bagai bumi dan langit. Israel Defence Forces (IDF, angkatan bersenjata Israel)�setidaknya berkekuatan 176 ribu infanteri bersenjata lengkap. IDF juga mendapat dukungan serangan udara dari 286 helikopter serbu, dan 875 jet tempur berkecepatan supersonik. Juga, 2800 tank dan 1.800 senjata artileri (meriam, rudal, peluncur roket) yang semuanya on load (siap digunakan).

Sebaliknya, Hamas hanya berkekuatan maksimal 20.000 pejuang. Tanpa pesawat tempur, jet, atau helikopter patroli satu pun. Mereka hanya memakai roket Al Banna dan Al Yaasin, modifikasi rudal PG-2 Rusia yang mampu menghancurkan tank Merkava dalam radius 500 meter. Roket lainnya, yang juga hasil modifikasi, maksimal hanya bisa meluncur 55 kilometer. Itu hanya cukup sampai Kota Sderoth, yang bukan jantung komando Israel.

Untuk pertahanan anti serangan udara, mereka mengandalkan rudal Rayyan, modifikasi dari rudal SA-7 Rusia yang dulu digunakan Hizbullah (Lebanon) untuk merontokkan helikopter dan UAV Israel.

Tak Percaya Statistik

Tapi, Hamas memang tak pernah percaya statistik. Apalagi cuma di atas kertas. Buktinya, sejak didirikan Syekh Ahmad Yasin pada 14 Desember 1987, Hamas terus membesar.

Untuk melawan Israel, Hamas membentuk sayap militer Brigade Izzudin Al Qassam. Anggotanya harus melalui seleksi superketat. Mereka diambil dari pemuda-pemuda yang lulus ujian akhlak dan keimanan.

Para recruiter Al Qassam, misalnya, akan mencari calon pejuang dari jamaah salat Subuh di masjid-masjid Gaza dan seluruh kawasan Tepi Barat. Pemuda yang tak pernah ketinggalan salat Subuh berjamaah adalah bibit terbaik prajurit Hamas. Jadi, pemuda Palestina yang suka merokok, apalagi bau minuman keras, jangan harap bisa diterima sebagai personel Al Qassam.

Prajurit ikhlas dan bebas maksiat memang jadi modal utama. Sebab, Hamas yakin kemenangan tak semata-mata hitungan senjata, tapi juga faktor "langit". Mereka percaya dengan perlindungan malaikat yang sudah tahu siapa yang bakal unggul. Seperti saat 300 prajurit Nabi Muhammad sukses melawan 1.300 musuh dalam Perang Badar (2 Hijriah).

Sikap itu buah didikan gerakan Ikhwanul Muslimin (IM) yang didirikan Hasan Al Banna di Mesir pada 1948. Syekh Yasin adalah kader IM sejak dipenjara karena ceramahnya pada 1965. Di penjara, putra Palestina asli kelahiran Desa Jaurah, 20 kilometer utara Gaza 1936 itu, bergabung dengan cabang IM Palestina yang berdiri pada 1935. Yasin syahid diterjang rudal Israel pada subuh, 22 Maret 2004.

Maka, pola latihan Al Qasaam juga pengembangan dari Nizham Khash (Biro Khusus) IM yang dibentuk di Kairo, Mesir, 1940. Pada perang Arab-Israel pertama 1948, Nizham mengirim 3.000 prajuritnya melawan Israel. Nizham juga berperan dalam perang Terusan melawan Inggris, 1951. Dalam aktivitas keseharian, Nizham memakai sistem sel tertutup. Satu anggota tak mengenal anggota lain, kecuali dalam satu usroh (grup) yang terdiri atas tujuh sampai 10 orang.

Dalam kitab At Tarbiyah As Siyasiyah 'Inda Jamaah Al Ikhwan Al Muslimin karangan Utsman Abdul Mu'iz Ruslan (diterjemahkan Era Intermedia, Solo, 2000) halaman 575-583, latihan Nizham dijabarkan dengan detail. Di antaranya, mereka mempelajari bela diri, senjata api, perang gerilya, bom dan bahan peledak, topografi, menyelam, serta infiltrasi (penyusupan) militer.

Mereka juga ahli ilmu sandi, terlatih memublikasikan selebaran (propaganda) dan punya data semua institusi Yahudi di Mesir dan Timur Tengah. Selain itu, anggota Nizham mempelajari tafsir Alquran, menghafal 40 hadits Imam Nawawi, berpuasa sunah, dan disiplin membaca Alquran minimal 1 juz per hari.

Sistem Nizham ditiru Al Qassam. Bekal mental penting karena tiap hari mereka diburu pasukan khusus Israel, Sayerat Matkal. Tapi, kematian memang jadi slogan impian tiap anggota Hamas (as syahid asma' amanina). Yang sudah meraihnya akan di-upload di situs resmi www.alqassam. ps.

Selain operasi militer, Hamas berhadapan dengan agen intelijen terhebat sedunia HaMossad leModi'in uleTafkidim Meyuhadim (Mossad). Guru MI5 Inggris dan CIA itu amat piawai menyaru rupa. Seorang agen Mossad bisa tampil bersurban dan berjenggot laksana Syeikh, tapi berceramah tentang hidup damai bersama Israel.

Agen Mossad juga bisa tampil perlente layaknya Bernard Madoff, konglomerat perayu kelas kakap yang sukses menciptakan krisis finansial dunia. Senyum manis ditambah taburan dolar bisa membuat politisi parlemen dan berbagai faksi politik lain di Palestina pecah belah teradu domba.

Untuk melawan Mossad, Hamas mengandalkan dukungan total dari rakyat Palestina. Hamas memang tinggal bersama mereka. Hamas membantu rakyat saat krisis pangan, menjadi guru madrasah anak-anak mereka, dan membangun terowongan jalur penyelundupan bawah tanah Rafah (Mesir)-Gaza agar bayi-bayi Palestina punya susu untuk diminum. Hamas juga santun kepada 3.000 warga Kristiani di Gaza. Tak heran, dalam pemilu pada 25 Januari 2006, Hamas meraup suara terbanyak.

Mereka juga punya koneksi gerakan di luar negeri yang solid. Ulama Hamas Dr Nawwaf Takruri, dosen Universitas An-Najah Nablus, bahkan pernah berceramah di Masjid As Syukur, 200 meter sebelah selatan kantor Graha Pena, Jawa Pos, Jakarta pada November 2007. Dalam perang kali ini, mereka juga dibantu faksi jihad lain di Gaza.

Karena itu, banyak pengamat militer menilai agresi ini bakal sambung menyambung sepanjang 2009. Sebab, kader-kader Hamas di Palestina dan seluruh dunia sudah berjanji tak akan mengerek bendera putih. Mereka yang hanya punya batu akan terus melempar, roket akan terus diluncurkan, dan senjata-senjata selundupan sudah terkokang.

Mereka yang tak bisa datang ke medan perang, akan menyumbang harta, tulisan propaganda, dan doa-doa sepanjang malam. PM Israel Ehud Olmert, Menhan Ehud Barak, dan Menlu Tzipi Livni, tampaknya bakal gigit jari lagi.

Demo PKS Bukan Kampanye

2009-01-08T15:05:00.000-08:00

Ada lima alasan PKS menyatakan aksi 2 Januari bukanlah kampanye Pemilu. Apa saja itu?

Partai Keadilan Sejahtera menyatakan siap menjelaskan demonstrasi 2 Januari 2009 yang dilaporkan Panitia Pengawas Pemilu Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta ke polisi.

"Kita menunggu saja. Jika dipanggil, kita akan jelaskan dan terangkan. Jika disidangkan ayo," kata Presiden PKS, Tifatul Sembiring, di kantor Dewan Pimpinan Pusat PKS, Jalan Mampang Prapatan, Jakarta, Kamis, 8 Januari 2009.

PKS berkukuh demonstrasi usai Salat Jumat itu membawa isu kemanusiaan. Serangan Israel atas Palestina yang membuat banyak korban membuat PKS tergerak memprotes. "Jadi tuduhan bahwa PKS melakukan kampanye terselubung tidak beralasan," kata Tifatul.

Tifatul menjelaskan ada lima poin alibi PKS. Pertama, tidak ada unsur kesengajaan untuk berkampanye. Kedua, anggapan Panitia Pengawas Pemilu bahwa PKS menjelaskan visi dan misi luar negeri juga tak benar. "Kami menjelaskan visi dan misi bangsa, bahwa setiap negara bebas dari penjajahan," kata Tifatul.

Ketiga, PKS tidak mengajak orang lain selain kader-kader PKS. "Kami ketika demo hanya mengutuk Israel agar segera menghentikan serangan."

Keempat, demonstrasi sudah dapat izin dari kepolisian. "Dan tentu saja polisi tidak akan memberikan izin jika yang kita ajukan bersifat kampanye," ujar Tifatul. Kelima, penggunaan bendera PKS sebagai identitas saja.

"Jadi, mengenai demo, PKS itu jika ada pemilu dan tidak ada pemilu, kita ya tetap demo karena ini adalah our habit," ujar Tifatul.

Dus Dur Ambisi Presiden

2009-01-08T15:04:00.001-08:00

Abdurrahman Wahid masih menyimpan keinginan untuk maju sebagai calon presiden Indonesia tahun ini. Dia bahkan sudah berencana membentuk pemerintahan yang benar-benar bersih seandainya terpilih menjadi presiden.

"Kalau saya tidak dicalonkan saya boleh memilih siapa saja. Tapi sekarang belum ada pilihan," ujarnya saat menghadiri Konferensi Rekonsiliasi Nasional Merajut Akar Kebangsaan Indonesia di Hotel Sahid Yogyakarta, Kamis, 8 Januari 2009.

Menurut Gus Dur, saat ini di Indonesia terdapat lebih dari 4.000 orang tokoh yang harus ditangkap karena berbagai macam pelanggaran hukum. "Kalau saya terpilih jadi presiden, mereka akan saya bersihkan. Saya akan bentuk pemerintahan baru," ujarnya.

Siapa saja orangnya? "Tidak perlu saya sebutkan, yang penting bukan anda (wartawan --red). Jumlahnya sekitar 4.000 orang, termasuk orang-orang lama dan militer," ujarnya.

Gus Dur melihat pemberantasan korupsi saat ini belum menyentuh seluruh pelaku dan sektor korupsi. "Saya lihat hanya teman-teman Megawati saja yang dibui," ujar Gus Dur.

Gus Dur juga berkomentar soal imbauan fatwa haram tentang golput. Menurut Gus Dur, banyak pihak yang memesan fatwa tersebut kepada Majelis Ulama Indonesia. Mereka mempunyai misi tertentu yang bisa tercapai dengan bantuan fatwa dari kalangan agama. "Mereka punya misi khusus," ujarnya.

ICW vs Kejagung

2009-01-08T15:00:00.000-08:00

Tindakan Kejaksaan Agung (Kejagung) yang mempolisikan dua aktivis ICW Emerson Yuntho dan Illan Deta Arthasari dinilai tidak tepat. Akan terjadi konflik kepentingan jika Kejagung tidak menarik aduannya tersebut.

"Kejaksaan, Kepolisian dan Mahkamah Agung adalah primus interpares yaitu pemimpin rakyat di bidang hukum. Dalam konsep Due Contract Social akan terjadi konflik kepentingan kalau memroses rakyatnya secara hukum," ujar anggota Komisi III Gayus Lumbuun kepada detikcom, Jumat (9/1/2009).

Menurut Gayus, kritik yang dianggap sebagai perbuatan tidak menyenangkan atau pun fitnah oleh lembaga penegak hukum tidak bisa diproses secara hukum terhadap rakyatnya. "Kecuali pengaduan itu dilakukan oleh individu sebagai unsur-unsur lembaga tersebut dalam kasusnya secara pribadi, dan bukan kasus menyangkut lembaga," jelas Guru Besar Hukum Unkris ini.

Politisi PDIP ini berharap langkah hukum sebaiknya tidak dilakukan oleh negara (Kejagung) terhadap rakyatnya. Akan lebih tepat jika Kejagung melakukan pendekatan sosiologis dengan meminta keterangan yang bersangkutan.

"Serta menyampaikan klarifikasi kepada masyarakat atas dugaan-dugaan yang disampaikan oleh masyarakat dengan tujuan melakukan kritik," pungkasnya.

Emerson dan Illan dilaporkan Kejagung ke Mabes Polri pada 7 Januari lalu karena dianggap telah melakukan fitnah dan mencemarkan nama baik Korps Adhyaksa tersebut. Laporan itu merupakan buntut pernyataan kedua aktivis ICW tersebut yang dimuat Harian Rakyat Merdeka edisi 5 Januari 2009. Berita tersebut berjudul 'Uang Perkara Korupsi Kok Dikorupsi: Kenapa Duit 7 Triliun Belum Masuk Kas Negara?

Israel Serang Lagi Gaza

2009-01-07T18:59:00.001-08:00

Militer Israel menggencarkan serangan di Gaza selatan pada Kamis, 8 Januari dini hari waktu setempat. Tank-tank tempur Israel dikerahkan ke wilayah tersebut. Jet-jet tempur pun membombardir terowongan-terowongan di Kota Rafah di perbatasan Mesir, yang dicurigai sebagai tempat menyelundupkan senjata untuk kelompok Hamas.

Saksi mata menuturkan, lusinan tank tempur didukung oleh beberapa helikopter memasuki Gaza di perbatasan Kisufim sekitar pukul 01.00 waktu setempat. Tank-tank tersebut langsung menuju Kota Khan Yunis.

Militer Israel membenarkan adanya gempuran di Rafah. Namun belum ada laporan mengenai korban dalam serangan terbaru Israel itu. Demikian seperti diberitakan AFP, Kamis (8/1/2009).

Sebelumnya pada Rabu, 7 Januari sore waktu setempat, pesawat-pesawat Israel menjatuhkan ratusan ribu selebaran di daerah Rafah. Isinya mengingatkan warga untuk meninggalkan rumah mereka atau akan mengalami serangan udara.

Warga sekitar diberi tahu bahwa mereka bisa kembali ke tempat tinggal mereka pada Kamis pukul 08.00.

Menteri Pertahanan Israel Ehud Barak telah mendapat lampu hijau dari kabinet Israel untuk memerintahkan serangan lebih dalam ke kota-kota Gaza. Serangan itu dikatakan Israel sebagai bagian dari upaya menghentikan serangan roket Hamas.

Gempuran Israel sejauh ini telah menewaskan sekitar 700 warga Palestina dan melukai sekitar 3.100 orang. Demikian menurut paramedis Gaza. Agresi ke Gaza tersebut mulai dilancarkan Israel pada 27 Desember lalu.

Otorita Bagi-Bagi Duit

2009-01-07T17:38:00.000-08:00

Dugaan bagi-bagi duit pascakenaikan tarif layanan jasa penumpang (passanger service charge/PSC/airport tax) Bandara Hang Nadim sebesar 130 persen, 2007 silam, terasa makin kuat. Dengan dalih meningkatkan mutu pelayanan, Otorita Batam mengalokasikan dana sebesar Rp180 juta untuk 10 orang yang tak jelas betul fungsi dan tugasnya.

Jasa konsultasi dan pengawasan Bandara Hang Nadim yang dijadikan alasan dikeluarkanya duit tersebut, disinyalir cuma akal-akalan. Sejak statusnya naik dari bandara kelas II menjadi kelas I 1995 lalu, Otorita Batam belum pernah menempatkan 10 konsultan dan pengawas sekaligus di Bandara Hang Nadim. Apalagi cuma untuk mengawasi toilet, parkir, pendingin udara, dan obyek-obyjek layanan publik lainnya.

Jika kondisi keuangan negara, termasuk anggaran untuk OB 14 tahun silam dibandingkan dengan sekarang, tentu masih lebih baik pada 1995 lalu. Kejanggalan lain, jasa konsultasi dan pengawasan itu baru dipakai OB sekitar 15 hari setelah kenaikan PSC dari Rp13 ribu menjadi Rp30 ribu per penumpang. Putusan ini mendapatkan dukungan berbagai pihak, termasuk di antaranya Yayasan Lembaga Konsumen Batam (YLKB) dan sejumlah lembaga swadaya masyarakat (LSM) lain.

Menariknya, setelah kenaikan tarif PSC 130 persen disetujui, OB justru merekrut pihak-pihak yang sebelumnya berseberangan dengan mereka sebagai konsultan. Orang-orang yang dirangkul OB tersebut, masing-masing dibayar Rp1.500.000 per bulan, potong pajak. Dana yang bersumber dari anggaran OB 2008 tersebut, mengucur deras ke kocek 10 konsultan sejak Ketua Otorita Batam Mustofa Widjaja mengeluarkan Surat Keputusan Bantuan Honor Tim Konsultasi dan Pengawasan Hang Nadim.

Total duit yang dikeluarkan OB, tak kurang dari Rp180 juta dalam kurun waktu setahun terakhir. Informasi yang diperoleh Batam Pos, ada beberapa oknum pejabat di Hang Nadim juga kebagian duit tersebut.
Kasubag Humas OB, Dendi Gustinandar membantahnya. Menurut Dendi, selain Ketua YLKB Fachri Agusta, Sekretris Asron Lubis dan Bendahara Thamrin, OB merekrut tujuh orang yang kompeten dalam teknis pengawasan mutu layanan bandara.

’’Mereka, termasuk YLKB, direkrut karena dinilai memiliki kemampuan melaksanakan tugas untuk menghasilkan out put berupa kajian maupun masukan demi perbaikan dan peningkatan mutu pelayanan di Hang Nadim. Mereka diberi honor sesuai SK Ketua OB,” kata Dendi di ruang kerjanya, Gedung OB, Batam Centre, Rabu (7/1).

Benarkah mereka direkrut kapabel? Saat Batam Pos meminta data 10 penerima honor konsultasi dan pengawasan Hang Nadim, Dendi tak bersedia memberikan. Menurutnya, tidak etis jika OB membuka nama-nama penerima honorarium itu ke publik.

Dugaan adanya bagi-bagi duit mencuat, setelah Bendahara YLKB mengadukan Sekretaris YLKB, Asron Lubis ke Mapolda Kepri dengan tuduhan penggelapan uang honorarium dan pemalsuan tanda tangan, Selasa (6/1) lalu.

Menurut Thamrin, dana bulanan OB dikucurkan sejak Januari hingga 2008. Ia membenarkan YLKB mendukung bahkan ikut memperjuangkan kenaikan airport tax. Menurutnya, jika tarif airport tax Rp13 ribu per per penumpang dipertahankan, Hang Nadim tidak akan bisa menghidupi dirinya sendiri. Apalagi meningkatkan pelayanan kepada masyarakat.

Hanya saja, lanjut dia, persetujuan itu, harus diikuti sejumlah syarat. Di antaranya, peningkatan pelayanan, seperti penyediaan troli yang lebih baik dari sebelumnya, perbaikan toilet, pendingin udara dan sebagainya.
Kendati mengaku ikut memperjuangkan kenaikan tarif airport tax dan menerima duit bulanan dari OB, namun Thamrin tak bisa menjawab saat ditanya sampai kapan dana tersebut dikucurkan ke YLKB.

Gara-gara duit itu juga trio YLKB pecah kongsi. Thamrin yang beberapa waktu lalu berniat mencairkan jatahnya, harus menelan kekecewaan lantaran uangnya sudah lebih dulu diambil Sekretaris YLKB. Itu dibuktikan dengan tanda tangan Asron di lembar tanda terima yang dikeluarkan Bagian Keuangan OB. Lembar ini pula yang dibawa Thamrin ke Mapolda Kepri sebagai barang bukti saat membuat laporan kasus penggelapan uang dan pemalsuan tandatangan.

Ketua YLKB Fachri Agusta saat dikonfirmasi melalui sambungan telepon, Selasa (6/1) membenarkan menerima uang ini, ”Dana itu merupakan honorarium Tim Pengawasan Pelayanan Fasilitas Bandara, di mana dalam tim itu termasuk wakil dari YLKB. Ini di-SK-kan oleh Otorita Batam dan timnya tidak hanya dari YLKB, termasuk ada dari pihak bandara sendiri,” katanya.

Sedangkan Sekretaris YLKB Asron Lubis menjelaskan, uang bulanan itu diberikan OB karena YLKB diminta bantuan untuk melakukan pengawasan pelayanan di Bandara Hang Nadim. Selain YLKB, masih ada 7 orang lainnya yang menerima duit tersebut. ”Jadi nggak ada hubungannya sama sekali dengan kenaikan tarif PSC. Kalau Thamrin bilang begitu, mungkin karena dia tidak tahu. Kita ini tim yang dibentuk resmi. Bahkan pakai SK Otorita Batam,” ujarnya

Nasabah Sarijaya Batam Rugi 300M

2009-01-07T17:36:00.000-08:00

Direktorat II/Ekonomi Khusus Bareskrim menelisik berkas dan pengakuan komisaris utama PT Sarijaya Permana Sekuritas Herman Ramli yang telah mendekam di tahanan sejak 24 Desember lalu. Dari perhitungan sementara nilai kerugian yang harus ditanggung para nasabah telah mencapai Rp 300 miliar. Jumlah itu bisa saja bertambah.

”Bisa jadi lebih tapi tidak kurang dari jumlah itu,” kata Kabareskrim Komjen Pol Susno Duadji di Bareskrim, kemarin (7/1). Jenderal bintang tiga itu menyatakan jika hingga sekarang memang baru satu tersangka yang ditetapkan. ”Namun bisa saja ada tersangka baru jika ada saksi dan bukti tambahan,” tambahnya.
Meskipun kerugian cukup besar, namun nasabah Sarijaya boleh sedikit berlega hati. Soalnya, Herman Ramli sebagai pemilik Sarijaya telah menyerahkan kuasa pengalihan 100 persen sahamnya kepada Bursa Efek Indonesia (BEI).

Penyerahan kuasa itu diharapkan mempercepat penjualan saham Sarijaya kepada investor yang berminat. Dengan begitu, aset nasabah bisa lebih cepat diselamatkan.

’’Herman Ramli telah menyerahkan masalah pemindahtanganan kepemilikan sahamnya di Sarijaya kepada otoritas bursa,’’ ujar Dirut BEI di Jakarta kemarin (7/1). Namun, lanjut dia, pengambilalihan baru dapat dilakukan setelah verifikasi yang dilakukan BEI dan Badan Pelaksana Pasar Modal (Bapepam) kelar. Proses verifikasi diharapkan selesai secepatnya agar dana nasabah tidak berlarut-larut terjebak dan tidak bisa dicairkan. ’’Bursa mengutamakan penyelamatan aset nasabah,’’ sambungnya.

Ketua Bapepam-LK Fuad Rahmany mengatakan, pihaknya tidak mau banyak terlibat terhadap pengambilalihan Sarijaya oleh investor baru. ’’Kami hanya concern untuk penyeleksian (calon investor) saja. Semua kami serahkan kepada SRO (self regulatory organization),’’ imbuhnya.

Dia menegaskan, Bapepam-LK akan mengambil tindakan tegas dengan mencabut izin kegiatan dan sertifikat pemilik yang juga Komisaris Utama Sarijaya Herman Ramli. Bukan hanya itu. Bapepam juga memasukkan Herman ke daftar hitam pasar modal. ’’Akan masuk daftar orang tercela dan dilarang melakukan kegiatan bursa selamanya. Kami sangat tegas dengan masalah seperti ini,’’ janjinya.

Fuad berjanji, Bapepam bakal mempersiapkan mekanisme fit and proper test (uji kelayakan dan kepatutan) yang lebih ketat untuk mencegah kasus seperti Sarijaya terulang. ’’Kami lakukan fit and proper yang lebih ketat, standar kualifikasinya akan kami tingkatkan. Kami tidak ingin ada oknum kotor di pasar modal,’’ tegasnya.

Dengan kondisi krisis keuangan seperti saat ini, pihaknya berharap agar semua kegiatan di pasar modal bisa dilaksanakan sewajarnya. ’’Kejadian Sarijaya bisa menjadi pelajaran bagi sekuritas atau anggota bursa (AB) yang lain,’’ ungkapnya. Ke depan, Fuad mengharapkan investor lebih berhati-hati melakukan transaksi bursa, baik dalam pemilihan broker maupun yang lain

Dirut Sarijaya Yusuf Rusli mengaku telah menerima tawaran dari empat investor asing dan lokal yang tergabung dalam satu konsorsium. Konsorsium tersebut berencana membeli 100 persen saham Sarijaya senilai Rp 250 miliar. Vier Jamal, hedge fund independen yang ditunjuk konsorsium menyatakan, pihaknya telah menyiapkan dana tersebut ditambah Rp 150 miliar untuk mengembangkan Sarijaya pasca pengambilalihan. Dengan begitu, totalnya Rp 400 miliar.

Jamal mengatakan, sebelum negosiasi lebih lanjut, manajemen Sarijaya harus memastikan bahwa Herman Ramli bersedia melepas sahamnya, baru kemudian empat investor yang ditanganinya masuk.

BEI Bikin Sistem Baru

BEI kini menyiapkan sistem pengecekan data rekening yang terkoneksi dengan PT Kustodian Sentral Efek Indonesia (KSEI). “Dengan sistem tersebut, nasabah bisa mengecek secara langsung setiap saat. Sistem ini bekerja sama dengan KSEI, sekarang sudah ada di Bapepam-LK,” ujar Erry Firmansyah, kemarin (7/1).

Dia mengatakan, sistem baru yang diberi nama Sistem Investor Area tersebut akan diluncurkan pada Februari 2009. Tujuannya, agar kasus serupa Sarijaya tidak terulang kembali. Sistem baru itu menghubungkan data yang ada di KSEI dengan rekening nasabah pasar modal secara langsung. Dengan sistem baru itu, investor bisa mengecek rekeningnya setiap saat.

Nasabah Batam

Kemungkinan bergantinya pemilik Sarijaya ini juga dibenarkan Branch Coordinator Sarijaya Sekuritas Batam, Denny Rianto. Jika sudah diganti pemilik, dana nasabah tidak ada masalah dan untuk sementara waktu penarikan dana belum dapat dilayani sampai menunggu arahan lebih lanjut dari BEI.

”Kepada seluruh nasabah diharapkan tenang dan jika terdapat pertanyaan lebih lanjut menyangkut investasi yang ada di Sarijaya dapat menghubungi nomor (021) 5237409. Kita berupaya maksimal untuk mengembalikan dana nasabah. Tetapi kapan waktunya, belum bisa dikasih tahu,” ujar Denny Rianto kepada Batam Pos, Rabu (7/1) di Kantor Sarijaya Batam, Komplek Mahkota Raya, Batam Centre.

Denny tidak menyebutkan jumlah nasabah di Batam dan berapa modal yang sudah dikelola Sarijaya Batam selama ini. Dia hanya menyebutkan ratusan nasabah dengan nilai miliaran. ”Ada pengusaha, pegawai negeri yang menjadi nasabah. Asalkan mereka ada duit Rp10 juta sudah bisa bermain saham,” kata Denny.

Kemarin, nasabah berdatangan ke Sarijaya untuk mengetahui kejelasan dana mereka. Telepon dari nasabah yang menanyakan kabar tentang dana mereka terus berbunyi.

Ahang, salah satu nasabah mengatakan, dia tidak menyangka jika perusahaan itu bisa mengalami masalah seperti ini. ”Kita sudah percaya dengan Sarijaya. Tiba-tiba saja kejadian ini bukan hanya meruntuhkan kepercayaan terhadap Sarijaya, tetapi juga bisnis pasar modal,” ujarnya.

Ahang enggan menyebutkan nilai uang yang sudah ia setorkan ke Sarijaya. ”Kita tidak bisa berbuat banyak saat ini. Karena aktivitas Sarijaya dibekukan. Mau pindah ke broker lain juga tidak bisa. Ya, tinggal menunggu kelanjutan dari Sarijaya sendiri. Semoga dana kita tetap aman,” ucapnya.

Sedangkan salah satu nasabah yang enggan disebutkan namanya mengakui, dia sempat khawatir dana yang ia investasikan melalui Sarijaya tidak kembali. ”Tetapi karena saat ini Sarijaya mengatakan tetap tenang, kita percaya saja,” ujarnya.

Sampai kemarin, aktivitas Sarijaya Sekuritas masih dihentikaan karena ada dugaan penyalahgunaan dana nasabah sebesar Rp245 miliar dan pelaporan Modal Kerja Bersih Disesuaikan (MKBD) yang tidak benar.

Dari pantauan Batam Pos di kantor Sarijaya Batam, tidak ada aktivitas seperti biasanya. Karyawan Sarijaya hanya memantau perkembangan perusahaan mereka lewat berita internet

Bedanya Massa PKS dengan lainnya !

2009-01-07T07:20:00.000-08:00

Mayoritas Massa PKS Pilih Partai Bukan Calon
"Untuk 2009, saya menduga kecenderungan perilaku pemilih akan tetap memilih partai
Dalam Pemilu 2004, sebagian besar massa Partai Keadilan Sejahtera memilih lambang partai, bukan calon legislator. Hal ini, kata salah satu ketua Tim Pemenangan Pemilu PKS, Mahfudz Siddiq, menunjukkan kepercayaan yang tinggi pada partai berasas Islam ini.

"Untuk 2009, saya menduga kecenderungan perilaku pemilih akan tetap memilih partai. Soal caleg siapa, tidak jadi masalah," kata Mahfudz dalam perbincangan dengan VIVAnews, Rabu, 7 Januari 2009.

Kecenderungan memilih lambang partai ini membuat strategi pertama PKS dalam Pemilu 2009 nanti tetap mengkampanyekan partai dengan kuat. Kemudian, barulah strategi kedua mendorong caleg untuk menggalang basis dukungan secara tradisional. "Melalui jalur keluarga, door to door, atau komunitas," kata Mahfudz yang juga Ketua Fraksi PKS di parlemen itu.

Strategi kedua ini lebih ditegaskan lagi setelah Mahkamah Konstitusi memutuskan penetapan caleg berdasarkan suara terbanyak. Caleg-caleg PKS pun dengan sendirinya berlomba-lomba untuk meraih suara. "Walaupun bagi PKS, siapapun calegnya, jika telah masuk daftar, pasti berkualitas," kata Mahfudz.

PKS Bukan Kampanye

2009-01-07T07:16:00.000-08:00

Presiden Partai Keadilan Sejahtera (PKS), Tifatul Sembiring, membantah aksi solidaritas Palestina pada 2 Januari 2009 lalu adalah kampanye terselubung. Aksi itu bentuk keterpanggilan PKS atas pelanggaran hak asasi manusia (HAM) di Palestina.

"Jadi, kalau menurut saya, ini masalah human rights," kata Presiden PKS Tifatul Sembiring, di Jakarta, Rabu 7 Januari 2009. Kalau kampanye, ujar dia, mengapa massa PKS harus berjalan kaki dari Bundaran Hotel Indonesia menuju Kedutaan Besar Amerika.

Aksinya murni berisi solidaritas untuk rakyat Palestina yang dibombardir Israel. Tema besar orasi-orasi juga mengenap stop pembantaian. "Orasinya terkait dengan itu, tidak ada kampanye," katanya.

Sebelumnya, anggota Badan Pengawas, Bambang Eka Cahya Widada, mengatakan aksi PKS itu memenuhi unsur kampanye. Ada calon legislator berorasi yang mengandung visi dan misi partai. "Bendera PKS lengkap dengan logo dan nomor urut tampak dominan," ujar Bambang.

Namun argumen itu pun dibantah Tifatul. Bendera adalah sebagai identitas. PKS juga telah mengajukan izin ke polisi. Dan, polisi mengizinkan.

Tifatul meminta Badan Pengawas lebih jernih melihat aksi tersebut. "Kami hanya kampanye sesuai ketentuan. Kalau sekarang belum rapat umum, ya kami tak rapat umum," ujar dia menegaskan.

Sementara itu, anggota Badan Pengawas, Wahidah Suaib, tetap berkesimpulan aksi yang melibatkan lebih dari 100.000 orang itu merupakan bentuk kampanye terselubung. Kalau murni demonstrasi, bendera tidak pakai nomor urut. "Kan, sudah masuk musim Pemilu, sebagai peserta, kok mengumpulkan massa banyak. Mesti hargai institusi penyelenggara pemilu," ujarnya.

Karena itu, Badan Pengawas akan mengkaji lebih intensif bersama Panitia Pengawas DKI Jakarta. Hasil kajian itu akan diteruskan ke Sentra Penegakan Hukum Terpadu (Sentra Gakumdu). "Kalau dibiarkan, bisa jadi efek bola salju ke depannya," ujarnya. Sanksinya, kata dia, kalau terbukti melanggar Undang-undang No 10 Tahun 2008 dan peraturan Komisi Nomor 19/2008, penanggung jawab acara bisa dikenakan denda

Suspensi Sarijaya Customer calm

2009-01-06T14:31:00.000-08:00

Electrical current global crisis could trigger the alleged misuse of client funds

Decision-making authority to stop the capital markets trading activities while PT Sarijaya Permana Sekuritas quite appropriate. Efforts to assess the market that can calm clients.

"That there is evidence that the action is done," said the capital market, Mirza Adityaswara, in Jakarta on Tuesday 6 January 2009.

According to him, when problems Sarijaya left, it can trigger chaos. "If there is action to Sarijaya, there is a step (of authority)," he said.

Meanwhile, the capital market legal observer, said Indra SAFITRI, fund management system and customer mechanism. When customers use the funds to effect the transaction is done without permission, it can be considered criminal.

According to him, electrical current global financial crisis can trigger the alleged misuse of funds customers. Moreover, stock prices in Indonesia Stock Exchange (BEI) has decreased the last few times.

"Conditions that could trigger a decrease in assets, so that the authority is also authorized to prop fog," he said to VIVAnews.

He fears many will be a similar case occurred on I-2009 semester. "Pemicunya can because the electrical current global crisis," he said.

For that, he hopes, the effect of increasing transparency. Meanwhile, customers are required to ensure the management of the funds is done correctly according to existing rules.

"Each company must consider the effect kelolaannya funds," he said.

No Ambulance victim may dead

2009-01-06T14:24:00.000-08:00

Those injured in the hostilities in the Gaza Strip will die because the ambulance cars could not reach them. Such a statement the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Monday (5 / 1).

"The situation is dangerous and coordination of ambulance cars are very complex because of attacks and military operations that never-ending," said ICRC spokesman, Dorothea Krimitsas, the AFP in Geneva.

"Some of the injured have died while waiting for an ambulance car Palestinian Red Crescent," he said. "In some other cases, an ambulance car can not reach those who are injured on the field and shooting without stopping."

Head of Service Daruat the Gaza Strip, about 555 Palestinian residents have been killed and 2,700 injured since the start of Israel to stop Hamas rocket fire on December 27, Monday.

Health services in the region is under pressure, while many health workers can not reach hospitals and their emergency rooms and intensive care unit overwhelmed, according to the Red Cross.

At least two hospitals were running out of fuel for generatornya, the only source of electricity, Krimitsas said.

Organization is also concerned the supply of water in the coastal strip that has a solid. Krimitsas said, two of the 45 wells in the Gaza Strip does not freeze again after dihantam air attacks while Israel pump wells in eight others no longer work because of the power break.

"Half a million people, about a third of the region, threatened by loss of water at all," he said.

Erimitsas said, engineers are required to gain access to the installation of electricity in the damaged. One team of four ICRC medical staff, including a surgeon, has been allowed to enter Israel from the Gaza Strip, on Monday, three days after the suspension, said the aid agency.

They will help staff at the Shifa hospital in the region that perform complex operations against those who hurt. Medical team that also bring in tetanus vaccine for children and the blood supply, Krimitsas said.

"The hospital, the hospital has run out at all that the vaccine is a potential aid for patients with injuries requiring surgery or bad

Manokwari Quake

2009-01-04T08:01:00.000-08:00

The number of refugees around a thousand people in Manokwari occupy the four main refugee locations. However, many residents are also up emergency tents near their houses even in the middle of the road.

Visibility in some areas of Manokwari, West Papua, Sunday, January 4, 2009, the four main refugee locations that are in the court offices Regent Manokwari, Borarsi Field, Major Provincial Military Command, and the court Navy Hospital.

The number of refugees in each refugee is different. For the number of refugees in the Office of the Regent Manokwari, the court reached about 500 people, in the Field Provincial Military Command, about 200 people, in the Field Borarsi reached about 200 people, and in the court Hospital Navy around 100 people.
The refugees also look up a tent near kediamannya. There is also a nekad up emergency tents in the street. The condition is seen in the area of Borobudur and Sanggeng. Emergency tents, which was established in the middle of the road was just, but no action of any officer.

Previously, the National Agency for Disaster Management (BPBN) Priyadi Kardono states, about a thousand residents to evacuate Manokwari, a more secure location. Recorded more than 160 houses had minor to serious. "They flee to the altitude, in the home, residents, offices and the body of the road," said Priyadi to VIVAnews.

Meteorological and Geophysics Agency recorded an earthquake occurred in Manokwari several times. The first quake at 02.43 WIB 7.2 SR said. Shaken up to six at 05.33 WIB 7.6 SR said. Recorded at least 20 times up in the earthquake area.

PKS surprised LSI survey

2009-01-04T07:57:00.000-08:00

Presiden Partai Keadilan Sejahtera Tifatul Sembiring : feel surprised with the results of the Indonesian Survey Institute survey, which was announced Sunday, January 4, 2009 afternoon.

Not because of a decline in earnings in the MCC results of the survey was last LSI, but the shock triggered Tags: the results of a survey that shows the high level of satisfaction of the community to the performance of the government, which is 69 percent.

"With the increasing price of fuel (down before eventually rise again because the dollar exchange rate-red), and in the midst of scarcity of fuel, can be so thin, until 69 planning," said Tags: VIVAnews via a connection to the phone, Sunday 4 January 2009.

From the survey, the MCC earnings to decline from 6.3 percent to 4 percent. MCC also diminished the position of the fourth order to become a fifth, under the National Party's rise.

Tags: but do not bother too the results of the survey was last LSI. From the results of the research LSI before the election, 2004, MCC meraup only 2-3 percent of the vote. "But, remember we get 7 percent."

When LSI now predict the MCC obtain 4 percent vote, according to Tags:, is on the increase. Chance, Tags: word, "the result could be even 15 percent."

On the basis of ketakakuratan addition, questioned the figures Tags: satisfaction of the community to the performance of the government that claimed LSI reached 69 percent. "From where the origin of 69 percent, should be clarified."

Obamabilia

2009-01-04T07:56:00.000-08:00

Can President Selected Barack Obama save the U.S. economy? Indeed, Obama has a team of economic advisers reliable, but that's the only way Obama can help the United States return to the track.

U.S. businessmen and traders from all lines have been kissed opportunities from the Obama victory. Anything associated with Obama and his family will become a gold mine alias money.

Obama inagurasi period inauguration as U.S. president lived two weeks longer. It seems that moment will be many opportunities to improve and creativity.

SFGate released Saturday 3 January 2009, online retail store in San CafePress Matev, which invite people to sell T-shirt designs and other merchandise, offering 3.3 million of Obamabilia, trinkets or Obama.

More than 6,000 species of special dedicated only to support the dog race for Obama. The New York Times estimate of U.S. $ 200 million of goods smelly Obama has been sold to end-November.

This figure is more than television ads, ads and traders who sell five feet Pernod Obama, such as hats, shirts, pins, spoons, in every city in the United States.

Since the election, some space in the Ashby BART Station Berkeley flea market, for example, is filled with earrings Obama, clock, photo frame and the Obama family dishes warning the moment.

Store official inagurasi Obama, with different shops Obama campaign, opened last Thursday with a T-shirt from designer Zac Posen, Tory Burch, Alexander Wang Dan, in addition to other Pernod usually as a coin, photos, pins, and cufflinks.

This phenomenon also has been global. In France, an entrepreneur has created a gum heavily soda Obama in the red with blue decoration motto Yes We Can. Times in London recently reported sales scenery Obama family into a product terlaris in Naples Italy

hello

2009-01-04T07:52:00.000-08:00

this is news portal blog !