Posts Subscribe to Revolution ChurchComments

Khamis, 20 Februari 2014

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

0 ulasan 9:41 PG Dicatat oleh blog2
Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info
Sumber Asal Berita :-

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

US Now Embracing EU Leadership on Ukraine It Recently Cursed - Businessweek

Posted: 19 Feb 2014 05:37 PM PST

Two weeks weeks ago, Victoria Nuland, the top U.S. diplomat for Europe, apologized for using a profanity during an intercepted phone call as she criticized the European Union for not moving fast enough to address the crisis in Ukraine.

Now the U.S. is looking to the EU to take the lead in formulating a tough response after the standoff between President Viktor Yanukovych and anti-government protesters exploded into violence yesterday, stirring talk of a civil war.

Secretary of State John Kerry indicated the U.S. is preparing to follow the EU in weighing economic sanctions in response to Yanukovych's crackdown, which undercut Western efforts to encourage a political compromise in Kiev.

"We are talking about the possibility of sanctions or other steps with our friends in Europe and elsewhere in order to try to create the environment for compromise," Kerry said today before a meeting in Paris with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius.

The German, French and Polish foreign ministers were to fly to Kiev today for talks with Yanukovych. Tomorrow, EU foreign ministers will meet in Brussels to weigh "all possible options," including "restrictive measures against those responsible for repression," EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said in an e-mailed statement.

Sanction Types

The sanctions being considered include freezing some Ukrainian officials' assets in European banks and barring their travel to much of Europe, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said in an interview yesterday in Washington.

Easing tensions at least temporarily, the government and the opposition agreed on a truce and to continue talks to stop the bloodshed, Yanukovych said today on his website after meeting opposition leaders.

Late today, the U.S. took a first step in response to the crackdown by barring about 20 Ukrainian government officials from obtaining U.S. visas because of connections to human-rights abuses, according to a State Department official who briefed reporters under rules requiring anonymity. While U.S. law prohibits disclosing the names, they represent the full civilian chain of command responsible for ordering this week's crackdown, the official said.

Economic Leverage

Roman Popadiuk, who was the first U.S. ambassador to Ukraine following its 1991 independence from the Soviet Union, said such restrictions put pressure on Ukrainian officials to "become a little more appropriate" in their actions. Last month, the U.S. revoked visas held by several Ukrainians allegedly linked to attacks on anti-government protesters late last year.

Beyond sanctions, Popadiuk, a principal at Bingham Consulting LLC in Washington, said the U.S. could take the lead in developing an international financial assistance package to free Ukraine, which is dependent on Russian natural gas and financing, from Moscow's economic leverage.

By one measure, the EU's economic stake in Ukraine is more than 16 times that of the U.S. The EU reported that two-way trade with Ukraine in 2012, the most recent figures posted on the European Commission website, was 38.4 billion euros ($52.81 billion). U.S. trade with Ukraine that year totaled $3.29 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The EU accounts for about a third of Ukraine's external trade, with Russia the other large trade partner. The EU also is the major source of foreign direct investment in Ukraine -- although such investment has dropped by more than half in the three years of Yanukovych's term, to $7 billion from $15 billion in 2008 and 2009, according to the state statistical office.

Putin's Role

The EU and the U.S. share a broad geopolitical concern that Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeking to lock Ukraine in Russia's orbit even as many Ukrainians aspire to expand ties with the EU. The anti-government protests were sparked by Yanukovych's November decision to back out of a pending free-trade pact with the EU in favor of ties with Russia, which offered $15 billion of aid and cheaper natural gas.

EU officials were "shell shocked" by Yanukovych's reversal and their policy drifted, which is what explains Nuland's widely cited expletive, said Damon Wilson, executive vice president of the Atlantic Council, a research group in Washington.

'Long Overdue'

Events this week in the streets of Kiev have brought a "stiffening of the spine" in the EU, and coordinated EU-U.S. measures "seem to be falling into line," said Wilson, who was senior director for European affairs at the National Security Council from 2007 to 2009.

"Frankly, I think sanctions are long overdue from both Brussels and Washington," he said in a phone interview.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden called Yanukovych yesterday to express "grave concern" over the violence and urge the government to exercise restraint.

Ian Bremmer, president of the New York-based research firm Eurasia Group, said he sees the Biden call as a sign that President Barack Obama isn't deeply engaged on the Ukraine issue.

"If this was really important for Obama, considered a matter of A-Level importance to national security, Obama would be on the phone," Bremmer said in a television interview on "Bloomberg Surveillance." "The fact that it's Biden sends a very clear message, which is, 'This isn't about American jobs, this isn't something I'm going to hang my personal hat on.'"

Military Force

Now, with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk saying, "we may be witnessing the first hour of a civil war," Obama urged Yanukovych not to use military force to suppress the opposition.

"We hold the Ukrainian government primarily responsible in making sure it is dealing with peaceful protesters in an appropriate way," Obama told reporters before a meeting with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto at a North American leaders summit in Toluca, Mexico. "That includes making sure the Ukrainian military does not step in to resolve issues that could be resolved by civilians."

Obama's warning came as Yanukovych replaced the country's military commander and granted sweeping powers to the army and police after the western Lviv region declared independence from his government. The Russian-backed leader's security service said today it's undertaking a nationwide operation to restore public order and protect state borders.

Privately, one European diplomat this week compared the situation to the anti-Soviet rebellion in Hungary in 1956 or the Prague Spring democratic movement in Czechoslovakia in 1968. There is little Western Europe or the U.S. could do if Yanukovych, with or without Russian help, orders the military and police to stamp out the protests, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to be candid.

To contact the reporter on this story: Terry Atlas in Washington at tatlas@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: John Walcott at jwalcott9@bloomberg.net

Facebook's $16B WhatsApp deal a tech biggie - USA TODAY

Posted: 19 Feb 2014 05:48 PM PST

WhatsApp, the popular communications program, was acquired by Facebook for $16 billion. Jefferson Graham talks to consumers about why they love the app on Talking Tech.

SAN FRANCISCO — In one of the biggest technology deals of the past decade, Facebook agreed to buy WhatsApp for $16 billion to expand in the fast-growing mobile messaging market and pursue its goal of connecting as much of the world's population as possible over the Internet.

Facebook said it will pay $4 billion in cash and $12 billion in stock for WhatsApp, a service that has 450 million monthly users and is adding more than 1 million new users a day.

"WhatsApp is on a path to connect 1 billion people. The services that reach that milestone are all incredibly valuable," Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a statement announcing the deal.

STORY: What is WhatsApp?

Zuckerberg has been trying to get into the mobile messaging market for a while. The company offered to buy Snapchat for $3 billion last year, but that messaging start-up spurned the offer.

To close the WhatsApp deal, Facebook offered an extra $3 billion in restricted stock units, a common type of equity compensation, to WhatsApp founders and employees. These awards will vest over four years. Jan Koum, WhatsApp's co-founder and CEO, also gets a seat on Facebook's board of directors.

While dwarfed by Time Warner's purchase of AOL at the height of the first dot-com boom, Facebook's $16 billion deal ranks as the fourth-largest technology acquisition of the past decade, according to Dealogic.

Zuckerberg paid so much for WhatsApp because the 5-year-old start-up is at the forefront of a new breed of mobile messaging apps that are becoming the main way smartphone users communicate with each other, especially in fast-growing developing markets like Africa, India and Southeast Asia.

Social networks like Facebook are currently the dominant way to keep in touch online, but that could change, and Zuckerberg does not want to be left behind.

"Facebook is trying to get involved in the new era of communication," said Ben Bajarin, principal industry analyst at tech research firm Creative Strategies. "It has shifted from social networking to these messaging services, which are becoming new platforms in and of themselves."

Zuckerberg has a broader goal of connecting most of the people on the globe through the Internet, and on Wednesday he said that WhatsApp fits well with this long-term effort.

The Facebook CEO said he contacted WhatsApp's Koum on Feb. 9 to suggest the two companies combine to pursue this vision. Koum thought about it for roughly a week and expressed interest. Then the two met to discuss the price of an acquisition and arrived at the deal that was announced Wednesday.

"For the next several yeas, we will focus on growing and connecting everyone in the world," Zuckerberg said during a conference call with Wall Street analysts. "Once we get to a service with 1 billion, 2, maybe 3 billion users one day ... then we can think about ways to monetize."

WhatsApp will stay an independent company. But as a part of Facebook, it will be able to focus purely on growth for longer, he added.

In the past, much of the spread of the Internet happened on desktop computers. But now the majority of new Internet users get connected through smartphones, which are expected to outnumber PCs soon.

Messaging services, like Line in Japan, WeChat in China and Kakao in South Korea, are the must-have apps for many of these new smartphone users.

"There was a time 12 to 18 months ago in emerging markets when one of the primary reasons to get a smartphone was to get on Facebook. That's not the case anymore," Bajarin said. "These messaging apps are the reason now. Everyone is asking their friends whether they are on these services."
Kredit: www.nst.com.my

Rabu, 19 Februari 2014

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

0 ulasan 9:23 PG Dicatat oleh blog2
Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info
Sumber Asal Berita :-

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

Renewed Ukraine clashes as EU weighs sanctions - USA TODAY

Posted: 19 Feb 2014 09:13 AM PST

Flames engulfed the main protest camp in Kiev late Tuesday as police stormed it during the deadliest day of violence in three months of demonstrations. Video provided by AFP Newslook

Olga Rudenko, Special for USA TODAY 8:16 a.m. EST February 19, 2014

KIEV, Ukraine — Renewed clashes are taking place between protesters and Ukrainian riot police just hours after the ex-Soviet republic saw the worst violence since independence, and as the European Union said it would hold "extraordinary" talks on the crisis amid a deteriorating situation that has killed at least 25 people.

Following failed talks overnight, Kiev's Independence Square was quieter Wednesday even as the opposition moved to retake the square after thousands of police armed with stun grenades and water cannons rushed at protesters in a camp Tuesday.

That standoff led to stories of individual brutality including that of Vyacheslav Veremiy, a journalist with daily Ukrainian newspaper Vesti. He was returning home from the newsroom around 2 a.m. Wednesday when his taxi nearing a police station was attacked by a group of armed thugs.

The driver and a fellow passenger were beaten. Veremiy was pulled out of the car and shot in the chest. He died shortly after.

Veremiy is one of the victims of roving bands of paid government "helpers" directed to cause disorder, who are currently roaming the streets with bats and guns, according to witnesses of the violence.

European leaders meanwhile have been watching with concern as the crisis on their doorstep unfolds and will hold a special meeting to address the crisis in Brussels on Thursday afternoon.

"Whoever is responsible for decisions that lead to bloodshed in the center of Kiev or elsewhere in Ukraine will need to consider that Europe's previous reluctance for sanctions must be rethought," he said.France's President Francois Hollande says he is "favorable toward EU sanctions," against Ukraine, French news site France 24 reported. Even Germany, which had previously rejected calls for sanctions, reconsidered with Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier saying that following the escalation in violence that sanctions could be on the table.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk called for EU sanctions against Ukraine in a special session of the Polish parliament, referring to the violence next door as the beginning of "a civil war."

Even so, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has blamed opposition leaders for the eruption of violence in central Kiev that left at least 25 people dead, seen scores more hospitalized and that has threatened to rekindle tensions between the East and West.

Autoplay

Show Thumbnails

Show Captions

In a statement published online early Wednesday, President Yanukovych said that he had already made several attempts to compromise, but that opposition leaders "crossed a line when they called people to arms."

President Yanukovych said opposition leaders had to "draw a boundary between themselves and radical forces," or else "acknowledge that they are supporting radicals. Then the conversation … will already be of a different kind."

There are few details, but Ukraine's security services say an investigation has been launched into some politicians for attempting a coup.

The Ukrainian Health Ministry reports that 241 have been hospitalized, including 79 policemen and 5 journalists, in the worst violence in nearly three months of anti-government protests that have paralyzed Ukraine's capital in a struggle over the identity of a nation divided in loyalties between Russia and the European Union.

In a statement, European Commission President Manuel Barroso expressed "shock and utter dismay" at the violence in Ukraine while Russian President Vladimir Putin's press secretary told Reuters that his nation continue with a policy of non-intervention in Ukraine.

"What is happening is a direct result of the conniving politics of Western politicians and European bodies,'' Russia's foreign ministry said in a statement.

Washington has urged the Ukraine government to resume peaceful dialogue with the opposition. On Tuesday, the State Department issued a travel advisory for U.S. citizens in Ukraine.

The government, meanwhile, told opposition leaders to get everyone "to go home" and have moved to put the center of the city on lockdown: They shut the subway, set up checkpoints, closed schools and have asked business owners to keep their doors shut. They also took the opposition broadcaster, Channel 5 off the air.

Protesters have threatened to bring hundreds of thousands into the streets, and are pleading with the United States and Europe to confront Moscow over what they say is a usurpation of their fledgling democracy orchestrated by President Putin.

"All the world is watching Ukraine," opposition leader Vitali Klitschko, a former heavyweight boxing champion, said. "I can't imagine working with Yanukovych's government now."

Contributing: Luigi Serenelli in Berlin, Jabeen Bhatti in Berlin, Oren Dorell in Washington, The Associated Press

Incensed Utah mom buys all 'indecent' T-shirts in mall - Mother Nature Network

Posted: 19 Feb 2014 08:34 AM PST

Upset about the racy tees at the PacSun store, Judy Cox put some citizen-enacted censorship into place.

Wed, Feb 19, 2014 at 11:29 AM

One of the tamer tees available on the PacSun website. (PacSun)

When Orem, Utah mom Judy Cox came across a display of T-shirts she deemed indecent at a PacSun store in the mall, she did what any moral-minded assertive person would do, she complained to the manager. But when she was told that taking down the shirts – which pictured barely-clad babes in provocative poses – could not be done without an okay from the corporate office, she took matters into her own hands. She whipped out her wallet and bought every last one.
The 19 remaining T-shirts cost $567; she says she plans to return them later, right before the 60-day return period is up, reports The Associated Press.

While the T-shirts may barely garner a second glance in more liberal cities, Orem is ultraconservative. Known as "Family City USA," most inhabitants belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, which urges modesty in its youth.

"These shirts clearly cross a boundary that is continually being pushed on our children in images on the Internet, television and when our families shop in the mall," Cox said. She plans to meet with Orem's city attorney to discuss whether the saucy shirts violate city code.

City code forbids the public display of explicit sexual material, which they define as "any material that appeals to a prurient interest in sex and depicts nudity, actual or simulated sexual conduct, sexual excitement, or sadomasochistic abuse."

Cox says she hopes to prompt others to take action against what she sees as inappropriate imagery.

"I hope my efforts will inspire others to speak up within their communities," Cox said. "You don't have to purchase $600 worth of T-shirts, but you can express your concerns to businesses and corporations who promote the display of pornography to children."

PacSun CEO Gary Schoenfeld said that the company takes pride in the clothes and products it offers.

"While customer feedback is important to us, we remain committed to the selection of brands and apparel available in our stores," Schoenfeld said.

Related stories on MNN:

" + "

" + "" + "" + "

"; // declare this object glabally var rtbComments = {}; Echo.Loader.initApplication({ "script": "http://master.realtidbits.com/libs/v3/comments/comments.min.js", "component": "RTB.Apps.Comments", "backplane": { "serverBaseURL": "https://api.echoenabled.com/v1", "busName": "mnn" }, "config": { "targetURL": "http://mnn.com/node/272835", "appkey": "echo.realtidbits.commenting.mnn.prod", "target": document.getElementById("mnn_comments"), "updateSort" : true, "janrain": { "appUrl": "https://login.mnn.com/" }, "components" : { "Stream": { "item": { "defaultAvatar":"//images.mnn.com/sites/all/themes/mnn/img/plant.png", "contentTransformations": { "text": ["newlines"], // "smileys", "hashtags", "html": ["newlines"], "xhtml": ["urls"] } } }}, "settings": { "auth": { "trackIP": true, "loginButton": true, "submitPermissions": "guest" // forceLogin (user must login) or guest (anonymous users can post) }, "stream": {"itemsPerPage": 20, "defaultAvatar": "//images.mnn.com/sites/all/themes/mnn/img/plant.png"}, // get 20 items per page "submit":{ "readOnly":false, "textLimit":1000, "metaInputs":true, "textileMarkup": true }, "tabs": { "social": false, //true, // show "reactions" tab (if there are items) "community": false //true // show "community" tab }, "sharing": {"enabled": true}, // set this as TRUE to enable social sharing (via Twitter, Facebook and email) of individual comments and replies. "attachMedia": {"enabled": true}, "emailSubscribe": {"enabled": true}, "inlineMedia": {"enabled": true, "showVideoModal": false}, "mediaResolver": {"enabled": true}, "pageLike": {"enabled": true}, "plugins": { "formAuth": [{"name": "myCustomPlugin"}], "reply": [], "stream": [{"name": "customBadgePlugin"}], "submit": [] }, "tokbox": {"enabled": true}, "topComments": { "enabled": true, "useMarker": true, "threshold": 25 }, "cssURL": "/sites/all/modules/realtidbits/css/realtidbits.css" }, "ready": function() { rtbComments = this; var commentForm = Echo.jQuery(Echo.jQuery.find('.rtb-apps-comments-streamHeader')); commentForm.prepend(ourContent); setTimeout(function() { // set button var mySubbutton = Echo.jQuery(Echo.jQuery.find('#mySubbutton')); mySubbutton.click(function() { rtbComments.config.get("_stream").plugins.rtbStreamEmailSubscribe.emailSubscribe(rtbComments.config.get("msgTarget")); }); // set button var rssBtn = Echo.jQuery(Echo.jQuery.find('#myRSSbutton')); rssBtn.attr("href", rtbComments.config.get("_stream").plugins.rtbStreamRSS.getRSSLink()); }, 1500); } } }); function doSortChange(val) { var elSelect = rtbComments.config.get("target").find('.echo-streamserver-controls-stream-plugin-rtbStreamSortingSelector-selector'); var index = parseInt(val)-1; var elOption = elSelect.find('a:eq(' + index + ')'); elOption.trigger("click"); };
Kredit: www.nst.com.my

Selasa, 18 Februari 2014

NST Online Business Times : latest

0 ulasan 7:31 PTG Dicatat oleh blog2
Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info
Sumber Asal Berita :-

NST Online Business Times : latest

Tin price unchanged

Posted: 18 Feb 2014 07:10 PM PST

[unable to retrieve full-text content]On the Kuala Lumpur Tin Market, business was done today at US$23,100 per tonne (ex-smelter), unchnaged from yesterday, on a turnover of 35 tonnes.-- Bernama

MAS said to weigh 100-plane order

Posted: 18 Feb 2014 07:15 PM PST

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Malaysian Airline System Bhd plans to order as many as 100 planes, a person familiar with the matter said, as the carrier seeks new aircraft to fend off competition that contributed to three straight annual losses. The state-run company is looking at a range of short-haul and long-haul models from both Airbus Group NV and Boeing Co, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. A decision on the purchase may be taken by the end of first half of this year, the person said. Malaysian Air seeks to start taking deliveries of the new planes from late 2016 or early 2017, the person said yesterday, as it works to upgrade its fleet over the next decade. The carrier needs new fuel-efficient jets to cut costs amid rising competition from discount airlines such as AirAsia Bhd, which have ordered hundreds of planes to tap Asia's rising travel. "Malaysian Air is playing catch-up with other airlines," Mohshin Aziz, an analyst at Kuala Lumpur-based Maybank Investment Bank Bhd, said in a telephone interview. "It's the right thing to do given the competition in the industry." Najmuddin Abdullah, a spokesman for Malaysian Air, didn't answer a call made to his mobile phone today. He didn't respond to an e-mail sent yesterday. Shares of Malaysian Air dropped 4.8 per cent to 29.5 sen as of 9.16am in Kuala Lumpur trading, underperforming the benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index, which decreased 0.1 per cent to 1,823.28. About 15 low-fare carriers started flying in Asia-Pacific over the past decade as the region's increasing urbanization and growing middle class fuel a surge in travel. Asia's growth contrasts with the mature markets of the US and Europe, where over-capacity has led to a consolidation. AirAsia, the region's biggest discount carrier, already has about 140 A320 planes in operation plus 335 on order. Indonesia's PT Lion Mentari Airlines has a 105-strong fleet and a mammoth 650 Airbus and Boeing narrow-bodies yet to come. VietJet Aviation Joint Stock Co, Vietnam's only privately owned airline, last week signed an order for 100 Airbus planes. Close to half the world's air traffic growth will involve Asian routes over the next 20 years, Boeing marketing chief Randy Tinseth has said, with carriers from the region acquiring 12,820 more aircraft, or 36 percent of the global total. Competitor Airbus puts the figure at 11,000 planes.-- Bloomberg
Kredit: www.nst.com.my

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

0 ulasan 9:28 PG Dicatat oleh blog2
Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info
Sumber Asal Berita :-

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

Former US congressman arrested in Zimbabwe - USA TODAY

Posted: 18 Feb 2014 08:21 AM PST

Ray Faure and Gillian Gotora, Associated Press 10:24 a.m. EST February 18, 2014

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Former U.S. Rep. Melvin Jay Reynolds has been arrested in Zimbabwe on suspicion of possessing pornography and an immigration offence.

Reynolds is being held in custody and is expected to appear in court soon, immigration official Ario Mabika told The Associated Press.

Reynolds, 62, was arrested Monday by police detectives and immigration officials at a Harare hotel, according to the state-controlled newspaper, The Herald.

He brought several Zimbabwean models and other women to his hotel room where he took photographs and videos, the newspaper reported.

As Reynolds was being escorted to a government vehicle he demanded that officials give him his mobile phone and laptop computer, according to The Herald, whose reporter arrived at the hotel as the arrest was taking place.

Reynolds complained that he was not expecting such treatment when he had brought investors to the country, according to the newspaper. He said he had been to Zimbabwe 17 times and had called for U.S. sanctions to be dropped against President Robert Mugabe and his top associates.

This is the latest of several legal problems for Reynolds, an Illinois Democrat, who once was a Rhodes scholar. Reynolds resigned from his congressional seat in 1995 after he was convicted of 12 counts of statutory rape, obstruction of justice and solicitation of child pornography. While in prison he was also convicted of bank and campaign fraud. He was in jail until his sentence was commuted by President Bill Clinton in Jan. 2001.

Regarding Reynolds' new arrest in Zimbabwe, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy, Karen Kelley, said the embassy could not comment as it was a private matter and the embassy did not did not have a privacy waiver.

Reynolds also has accumulated hotel bills worth $24,500 which he has not yet paid, reported The Herald.

Reynolds could face up to two years' imprisonment or a hefty fine if found guilty of possessing pornographic material and deportation for breaching Zimbabwean immigration laws. It is illegal in Zimbabwe to possess any material of a sexual nature.

Before his arrest, Reynolds had gained prominence in Zimbabwe for being involved in attracting investment for the $145 million construction of a Hilton Hotel and office complex in Harare, reported The Herald. Construction is expected to begin in April and be finished in last 2016, said the newspaper.

"He toured the construction site back then in the company of government ministers Walter Mzembi, Webster Shamu and Ignatius Chombo, and businessman Mr Farai Jere," according to the paper.

At one time Reynolds was considered a rising star in the Democratic party.

A Harvard graduate, Reynolds unseated U.S. Rep. Gus Savage in 1992, two years after a House ethics committee determined that during an official trip to Africa Savage had made improper sexual advances to a female Peace Corps volunteer.

But then Reynolds was convicted in his own sex case and sent to prison in 1995. Later, while still behind bars, he was convicted of fraud for concealing debts to obtain bank loans and diverting money intended for voter registration drives into his election campaign. In 2001, President Bill Clinton commuted the sentence for bank fraud and Reynolds served his remaining time in a halfway house.

Reynolds's arrest comes a little more than 14 months after he tried to resurrect his political career, running for the congressional seat vacated by Jesse Jackson Jr., who resigned from office and pleaded guilty to misusing campaign funds on personal items. Jackson is now serving a 2 1/2 year prison term.

Reynolds was never really considered a serious candidate and that run ended in defeat, as did a 2004 run when in the Democratic primary he received just 6 percent of the vote.

Announcing his run in late 2012 Reynolds, who said he had his own consulting firm and some business in Africa, campaigned with posters that proclaimed "Redemption."

___

AP writer Don Babwin contributed to this report from Chicago.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Deadly Clashes Flare Anew in Kiev - Wall Street Journal

Posted: 18 Feb 2014 09:12 AM PST

Updated Feb. 18, 2014 11:07 a.m. ET

KIEV, Ukraine—Weeks of stalemated talks between the government and westward-leaning protesters ended with an outburst of violence in the capital of Kiev on Tuesday, killing at least three people and prompting a warning from the government that it might take "tough" but unspecified measures to end the disorder.

Protesters hurled broken bricks and Molotov cocktails at police guarding Ukraine's parliament, who responded with stun grenades and rubber bullets. There were unconfirmed reports of shootings, and small arms were visible among some protesters.

Three protesters were killed in the violence, the medical unit for the opposition reported. Ukraine's emergency services confirmed at least one dead in a building of the pro-presidential party that was attacked by government critics.

As protesters lit fires and threw up new barricades in the capital, Ukraine's security services issued a statement that "extremists from the opposition have crossed the limit—people have been killed on the streets of the capital of Ukraine." The statement, signed by the head of Ukraine's security service and interior ministry, said the government would use "all legal means" at its disposal.

The statement didn't specify what kind of action the government may take, but the government appeared to be taking steps to seal off the center of Kiev, where thousands of protesters have encamped behind barricades and set up a tent city.

Kiev's metro system was shut down Tuesday afternoon and there were unconfirmed reports from opposition officials that police were also sealing off roads leading to the capital.

Critics of the government are demanding that parliament enact changes to the constitution that would weaken the powers of President Viktor Yanukovych, but it has so far failed to schedule debate on the matter.

The violence Tuesday broke an uneasy truce of several weeks. Tension had eased in recent days after authorities offered an amnesty for many demonstrators, and protesters had partially opened a street and left government buildings in Kiev and regional capitals.

Protests began in Kiev late last year when Mr. Yanukovych shelved an integration pact with the European Union, instead sealing a $15 billion bailout from Russia. Demonstrators have occupied Kiev's central square and some nearby buildings for over two months, manning barricades on surrounding roads.

Russia said Monday it was ready to resume aid and buy $2 billion of Ukraine's Eurobonds by the end of this week. The Kremlin suspended the bailout last month after Mr. Yanukovych fired his pro-Russian prime minister, saying it would wait for a new government to be formed.

The opposition has said it is ready to form a government supported by Western loans to carry out an economic overhaul. Mr. Yanukovych has offered the prime minister's post to opposition leader Arseniy Yatsenyuk, but he refused as the post has limited powers.

Parliamentary speaker Volodymyr Rybak, an ally of Mr. Yanukovych, said he "hopes that issues related to constitutional changes can be considered on Feb. 20."

He said all constitution-related proposals need to go through committee hearings on Wednesday, before they come up for a debate in Ukraine's parliament, known as the Rada.

U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt expressed concern about the first violence in three weeks in Kiev.

"After weekend progress in Kyiv, sorry to see renewed violence. Politics needs to happen in the Rada, not on the street," he wrote on his Twitter TWTR +1.31% Twitter Inc. U.S.: NYSE $58.19 +0.75 +1.31% Feb. 18, 2014 12:28 pm Volume (Delayed 15m) : 6.60M P/E Ratio N/A Market Cap $31.89 Billion Dividend Yield N/A Rev. per Employee $332,445 02/13/14 Twitter Employees' First Oppor... 02/11/14 Corrections & Amplifications 02/10/14 Twitter's Big Battle Is Indiff... More quote details and news » account, using an alternative spelling for Ukraine's capital.

Write to Alan Cullison at alan.cullison@wsj.com

Kredit: www.nst.com.my

Isnin, 17 Februari 2014

NST Online Business Times : latest

0 ulasan 7:12 PTG Dicatat oleh blog2
Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info
Sumber Asal Berita :-

NST Online Business Times : latest

Gold down 17 sen

Posted: 17 Feb 2014 06:23 PM PST

[unable to retrieve full-text content]The physical price of gold as at 9.30am stood at RM135.52 per gramme, down 17 sen from RM135.69 at 5pm yesterday.-- Bernama

Short-term rates to remain stable

Posted: 17 Feb 2014 06:27 PM PST

Short-term interbank rates are expected to remain stable today on Bank Negara Malaysia's intervention to absorb excess
liquidity from the financial system.

The central bank estimated today's liquidity at RM25.680 billion in the conventional system and RM4.549 billion in Islamic funds.

Bank Negara will conduct a Al-Wadiah tenders of RM2.1 billion for two to 45 days, as well as a Commodity Murabahah Programme of RM300 million for 28 days.

It will also call for a repo tender of RM200 million for 120 days.


The central bank will also call for four conventional money market tenders comprising RM2.0 billion for three days, RM1.5 billion for 28 days and RM1.0 billion each for seven days and 14 days, respectively.

At 4pm, Bank Negara will conduct an up to RM20.0 billion in conventional overnight tender and a RM2.5 billion Al-Wadiah overnight tender.-- Bernama

Kredit: www.nst.com.my

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

0 ulasan 9:21 PG Dicatat oleh blog2
Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info
Sumber Asal Berita :-

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

Co-pilot who hijacked Ethiopian plane threatened to crash it, passenger says - Fox News

Posted: 17 Feb 2014 08:48 AM PST

A passenger onboard an Ethiopian Airlines jet that was hijacked by a co-pilot – who guided the plane to Geneva instead of Rome – said the co-pilot threatened to crash the plane if the pilot kept trying to get back into the cockpit.

The Italian news agency ANSA quoted passenger Francesco Cuomo as saying the pilot was demanding that the hijacker open the door and tried to break it down without success.

Cuomo, 25, was quoted as saying the hijacker, speaking in poor English on a loudspeaker, threatened to crash the plane in response and then the oxygen masks came down.

The hijacker surrendered to police after landing in Switzerland and all passengers were safe. Police escorted the plane's passengers out one by one, their hands over their heads, from the taxied plane to waiting vehicles.

Urs Holderegger, a spokesman for the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation, confirmed that the plane landed in Geneva at approximately 6:05 a.m. local time Monday.

At a press conference, Geneva police said that the co-pilot had surrendered to police and requested asylum in Switzerland. Geneva airport chief executive Robert Deillon told reporters that the co-pilot was an Ethiopian man born in 1983, while Ethiopia's communications minister, Redwan Hussein, identified him as Hailemedhin Abera.

When the plane landed, police said the co-pilot used rope to exit through the cockpit window.

It wasn't immediately clear why the co-pilot wanted asylum. It also was unclear why he chose Switzerland which, unlike Italy, isn't a member of the 28-nation European Union and where voters recently demanded curbs on immigration.

Geneva prosecutor Olivier Jornot said Swiss federal authorities were investigating the hijacking and would press charges that could carry a prison sentence of up to 20 years.

The Geneva airport was briefly closed while authorities investigated the plane, but departures and arrivals have since resumed.

The plane first sent a distress message while flying over Sudan's airspace en route to Europe, according to Hussein.

"From Sudan all the way to Switzerland, the co-pilot took control of the plane," he said.

Two Italian fighter jets then were scrambled to accompany the plane.

Redwan said Abera worked for Ethiopian Airlines for five years. He said Ethiopia will ask for his extradition.

"His action represents a gross betrayal of trust that needlessly endangered the lives of the very passengers that a pilot is morally and professionally obliged to safeguard," Redwan said.

Passengers on the plane — 139 Italians, 11 Americans, 10 Ethiopians, five Nigerians and four French citizens, among others — were unaware at the time that it had been hijacked, officials said. Redwan said the plane was carrying 200 people including seven crew.

Swiss authorities at first thought the Ethiopian plane just wanted to land in Geneva for an emergency refueling before realizing it was being hijacked, Geneva police spokesman Eric Grandjean said.

Jornot said the hijacker's chances of winning asylum were slim.

"Technically there is no connection between asylum and the fact he committed a crime to come here," he said. "But I think his chances are not very high."

Both Italy and Switzerland, however, do not extradite those who may face the death penalty at home.

This is at least the second attempted hijacking in the past month. On February 7, a Ukrainian man attempted to hijack a Turkish passenger plane and fly it to Sochi, site of the Winter Olympics. The pilot instead flew the plane to Istanbul, and the man was taken into custody.

Ethiopian Airlines is owned by Ethiopia's government, which has faced persistent criticism over its rights record and alleged intolerance for political dissent.

Human Rights Watch says Ethiopia's human rights record "has sharply deteriorated" over the years. The rights group says authorities severely restrict basic rights of freedom of expression, association, and assembly.

The government has been accused of targeting journalists, and opposition members, as well as the country's minority Muslim community.

There have been numerous hijackings by Ethiopians, mostly fleeing unrest in the East African nation or avoiding return.

An Ethiopian man smuggled a pistol onto a plane and hijacked a Lufthansa flight going from Frankfurt to Addis Ababa in 1993. He demanded it be flown to the U.S. because he was denied a visa.

In 1996 a flight from Ethiopia to Ivory Coast via Kenya was seized by hijackers who then demanded to be flown to Australia. That flight ran out fuel and crashed off the island nation of Comoros, killing 125 people, according to the Aviation Safety Network.

In 2002 two passengers armed with small knives and an explosive device attempted to hijack a domestic flight but were shot and killed by in-flight security, the Aviation Safety Network reported.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

UN's North Korea report: Main findings - BBC News

Posted: 17 Feb 2014 08:39 AM PST

17 February 2014 Last updated at 11:11 ET

A United Nations panel has accused North Korea of crimes against humanity, including systematic extermination, torture, rape, forced abortions and starvation.

It is recommending prosecution of the country's top leaders by the International Criminal Court.

Below are extracts from the report, outlining its main findings.

Violations of freedom of thought, expression and religion

The commission finds that there is an almost complete denial of the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, as well as of the rights to freedom of opinion, expression, information and association.

The state operates an all-encompassing indoctrination machine that takes root from childhood to propagate an official personality cult and to manufacture absolute obedience to the Supreme Leader, Kim Jong-un.

Virtually all social activities undertaken by citizens of all ages are controlled by the Workers' Party of Korea. The state is able to dictate the daily lives of citizens through the associations run and overseen by the party. Citizens are obliged to be members of these associations.

People are denied the right to have access to information from independent sources: state-controlled media are the only permitted source of information in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Discrimination

It is a rigidly stratified society with entrenched patterns of discrimination... Discrimination is rooted in the songbun system, which classifies people on the basis of state-assigned social class and birth, and also includes consideration of political opinions and religion. Songbun intersects with gender-based discrimination, which is equally pervasive.

The songbun system used to be the most important factor in determining where individuals were allowed to live; what sort of accommodation they had; what occupations they were assigned to; whether they were effectively able to attend school, in particular university; how much food they received; and even whom they might marry.

This traditional discrimination under the songbun system was recently complicated by increasing marketisation in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and by the influence of money, including foreign currency, on people's ability to have greater access to their economic, social and cultural rights.

Violations of the freedom of movement and residence

The systems of indoctrination and discrimination on the basis of social class are reinforced and safeguarded by a policy of isolating citizens from contact with each other and with the outside world, violating all aspects of the right to freedom of movement.

The state decides where citizens must live and work, violating their freedom of choice... This has created a socioeconomically and physically segregated society, where people considered politically loyal to the leadership can live and work in favourable locations, whereas families of persons who are considered politically suspect are relegated to marginalised areas.

The state imposes a virtually absolute ban on ordinary citizens travelling abroad, thereby violating their human right to leave the country.

Violations of the right to food and related aspects of the right to life

The state has used food as a means of control over the population. It has prioritised those whom the authorities believe to be crucial to maintaining the regime over those deemed expendable.

The state has practised discrimination with regard to access to and distribution of food based on the songbun system. In addition, it privileges certain parts of the country, such as Pyongyang, over others.

Even during the worst period of mass starvation, the state impeded the delivery of food aid by imposing conditions that were not based on humanitarian considerations.

While acknowledging the impact of factors beyond state control over the food situation, the commission finds that decisions, actions and omissions by the state and its leadership caused the death of at least hundreds of thousands of people and inflicted permanent physical and psychological injuries on those who survived.

While conditions have changed since the 1990s, hunger and malnutrition continue to be widespread. Deaths from starvation continue to be reported.

Arbitrary detention, torture, executions and prison camps

The police and security forces of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea systematically employ violence and punishments that amount to gross human rights violations in order to create a climate of fear that pre-empts any challenge to the current system of government and to the ideology underpinning it. The institutions and officials involved are not held accountable. Impunity reigns.

The use of torture is an established feature of the interrogation process in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, especially in cases involving political crimes.

Persons who are found to have engaged in major political crimes are "disappeared", without trial or judicial order, to political prison camps (kwanliso).

In the political prison camps of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the inmate population has been gradually eliminated through deliberate starvation, forced labour, executions, torture, rape and the denial of reproductive rights enforced through punishment, forced abortion and infanticide. The commission estimates that hundreds of thousands of political prisoners have perished in these camps over the past five decades.

As a matter of state policy, the authorities carry out executions, with or without trial, publicly or secretly, in response to political and other crimes that are often not among the most serious crimes.

Abductions and enforced disappearances from other countries

Since 1950, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea has engaged in the systematic abduction, denial of repatriation and subsequent enforced disappearance of persons from other countries on a large scale and as a matter of state policy.

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea used its land, naval and intelligence forces to conduct abductions and arrests.

Family members abroad and foreign states wishing to exercise their right to provide diplomatic protection have been consistently denied information necessary to establish the fate and whereabouts of the victims.

Family members of the disappeared have been subjected to torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. They have been denied the right to effective remedies for human rights violations, including the right to the truth. Parents and disappeared children have been denied the right to family life.
Kredit: www.nst.com.my

Ahad, 16 Februari 2014

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

0 ulasan 9:04 PG Dicatat oleh blog2
Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info
Sumber Asal Berita :-

NST Online Top Stories - Google News

Mistrial Declared on Murder Charge in Loud-Music Trial Jurors - NBCNews.com

Posted: 16 Feb 2014 07:46 AM PST

Jurors on Saturday found a white Florida man guilty of three counts of attempted murder and one other charge for the fatal shooting of a black teenager over loud music, but a mistrial was declared on the most-serious charge against the defendant — first-degree murder.

After deliberating for more than 30 hours over four days, the jury convicted Michael Dunn, 47, of three counts of attempted murder in the second degree and one count of firing a deadly missile into an occupied vehicle, but deadlocked on the first-degree murder charge, prompting the judge in the case to declare a mistrial on that charge.

Florida State Attorney Angela Corey indicated she would seek a retrial on that count.

Sentencing on the other charges was set for March 24. Dunn still faces at least 60 years in prison on the lesser counts. He could face a sentence of life in prison if he was convicted on the first-degree murder charge on retrial.

Dunn argued he was acting in self-defense when he shot at an SUV 10 times while parked next to four teens at a Jacksonville, Fla., gas station in November 2012 after an argument about loud rap music emanating from the vehicle. The shots killed Jordan Davis, 17, of Marietta, Ga.

Dunn showed no emotion as the verdicts were read. Davis' parents left the courtroom in tears.

But Dunn's attorney, Cory Strolla, said later that his client was stunned by the results.

"He basically said, 'How is this happening?'" he said. "It has not settled in."

"It's been a long, long road and we're so very happy to have just a little bit of closure,'' Davis' mother, Lucy McBath, told reporters later.

"It's sad for Mr. Dunn that he will live the rest of his life in that sense of torment. I will pray for him. I will ask my family to pray for him. But we are so grateful for the charges that have been brought against him, we are so grateful for the truth, we are so grateful that the jurors were able to understand the common sense of it all.''

On Dunn's potentially lengthy sentence, Davis' father, Ron Davis, said: "He's going to learn that he must be remorseful for the killing of my son, that it was not just another day at the office."

The case has been compared to that of George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who was acquitted of murder in the shooting death of unarmed black teen Trayvon Martin in Florida. Like the Zimmerman trial, the case has drawn international attention due to racial overtones and its connection to gun and self-defense laws.

Image: A memorial to Jordan DavisBob Mack

Small memorials to Jordan Davis are planted outside the courthouse in Jacksonville, Fla., on Tuesday. The signs were quickly removed.

Judge Russell Healey sent the jurors back to continue deliberations earlier Saturday when they indicated a deadlock on the murder charge, saying he wanted them to return to the jury room and express the weakness of each of their arguments.

The sequestered jury of eight whites, two blacks, one Asian and one Hispanic also had asked the judge on if they could rule whether self-defense was applicable to any of the five counts individually.

Healey answered that "self-defense or justifiable use of deadly force applies separately for each count."

"Each count has to, by law, be considered separately," Healey said, adding that he realized, "It's not easy to compartmentalize these things."

NBC legal expert and former U.S. Attorney Kendall Coffey said the jury's question showed they were divided about whether Dunn's claim of self-defense justifies his shots at the other three teens. Some jurors might feel Dunn assumed Davis presented danger, but the other three individuals in the car did not, Coffey added.

Image: Russell Healey, Cory Strolla, Michael DunnBob Mack

Judge Russell Healey explains his answers to three related jury questions to defense attorney Cory Strolla, center, and defendant Michael Dunn, right, before bringing the jury into the courtroom on Saturday in Jacksonville, Fla.

Dunn, a software engineer who has a concealed weapons permit and no prior convictions, was waiting in his car while his fiancée was buying snacks inside the gas station convenience store when he got into a verbal fight with Davis and his friends over the volume of their music.

While testifying in his own defense on Tuesday, Dunn said that he started shooting because he felt threatened when he thought he saw the barrel of a gun emerge from the back window as Davis allegedly started getting out of the Dodge Durango.

Police said they didn't find a weapon in the SUV the teens were in, and prosecutors said Davis — who had no police record — never exhibited a physical threat. Prosecutors also said forensic evidence proved that Davis never left the SUV.

Still, defense lawyer Cory Strolla argued Wednesday that Dunn "had every reason to stand his ground," using language pointing to a controversial self-defense law allowing people to use deadly force in lieu of retreating if they feel endangered by another person.

But Assistant State Attorney Erin Wolfson said, "This defendant does not get to claim self-defense."

"This defendant may have forever silenced Jordan Davis, but he cannot silence the truth," Wolfson added.

Davis' 19th birthday would have been Sunday.

NBC News' Elizabeth Chuck and Reuters contributed to this report.

First published February 15 2014, 10:50 AM

Tony Abbott: Spy Intelligence Was Not Used 'To The Detriment Of Other Countries' - Business Insider Australia

Posted: 15 Feb 2014 09:47 PM PST

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has denied the government has ever used intelligence "to the detriment" of other countries, following reports Australian spies shared intelligence about trade negotiations with their US counterparts.

While Abbott said he could not comment on "operational intelligence matters", he did say Australia did not use intelligence "to the detriment of other countries" or for "commercial purposes".

He told reporters, while in Bourke visiting drought affected regions, "We use it for the benefit of our friends. We use it to uphold our values. We use it to protect our citizens and the citizens of other countries."

Tension between the Australian and Indonesian governments is expected to heighten after documents, obtained by former US NSA analyst Edward Snowden, were today published in The New York Times and revealed Australia had been involved in spying activities and intelligence-sharing with the US.

Opposition leader Bill Shorten has criticised Abbott for the worsening of the countries' relationship.

"I am concerned that in the course of five-and-a-half months Tony Abbott's taken our relationship with Indonesia from hero to zero," he said.

Now Read: REPORT: Australian Spies Hold 1.8 Million 'Master Keys' For Private Communications In Indonesia

Follow Business Insider Australia on Facebook and Twitter
Kredit: www.nst.com.my
Langgan: Catatan (Atom)
 

NST Online

Copyright 2010 All Rights Reserved