US: Security focus of Democrat platform draft
The Democratic Party pledges an unrelenting struggle against terrorism and a commitment to seeing Iraq succeed, according to a statement of election principles shaped heavily by national security crises.
Society
Not much cheer in energy liberalisation
The European Union opened more of its energy market to full competition yesterday but there was little to celebrate. Power prices are high, big utilities dominate, and only two of 25 EU states met a deadline to transpose rules into national law.
Bush voices support for an Iraqi martial law declaration
President George W. Bush said Monday that coalition forces in Iraq would support a possible decision by the new Iraqi leadership to declare martial law to deal with escalating violence and terror attacks.
Billions of revenue from oil ‘missing’
A Christian charity has accused the coalition authority in Iraq of failing to account for up to $20bn (nearly £11bn) of oil revenues which should have been spent on relief and reconstruction projects.
Supreme Court Refuses to Order Cheney to Release Energy Papers
The Supreme Court handed a major political victory to the Bush administration today, ruling 7 to 2 that Vice President Dick Cheney is not obligated, at least for now, to release secret details of his energy task force.
New Zealand: Greens challenge freeway extension
“State Highway 20 is a waste of public money at a time when climate change, local air pollution and oil depletion will all be much worse by the time it is opened.”
At Least 85 Die in Rebel Attacks in Five Iraq Cities
At least 85 people died and more than 320 were wounded in Iraq on Thursday when insurgents launched bloody assaults in five cities to disrupt next week’s formal handover to Iraqi rule.
US: Toxic pollution rose in 2002, reversing trend
Toxic chemical releases into the environment rose 5 percent in 2002, marking only the second such increase reported by the Environmental Protection Agency in nearly two decades, and the first since 1997.
Surge in Polio in Africa threatens eradication hopes
As polio cases surge in Nigeria and the virus spreads to other countries, western and central Africa are on the brink of the largest polio epidemic in recent years, officials of the World Health Organization and Unicef said Tuesday.
Cars are more fuel-efficient than trains, claims study
Encouraging travellers to switch from cars and airlines to inter-city trains brings no benefits for the environment, new research has concluded.
Militants claim Saudi security helped killers
A number of troubling questions have begun to surface about the events surrounding Mr Johnson’s grotesque killing last Friday.
Iraq: “In A World of Shit”
“We went into Iraq with ideological lenses. If you start with a rosy scenario and work backward, you’re in a world of shit. And that’s where we are,” said Naval War College professor, Ahmed S. Hashim.
