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    "Most newspaper article events happen anywhere from days, to months, to years before they reach publication. Consequently, most newspaper articles on this timeline are preceded by the date of the newspaper in which they appear." [E.M.]      *Color Code

August 2005

2005 - Secure Flight? / U.S.A. - August 2005: "Airline passengers soon will be asked to provide their full names and birth dates when they buy tickets. [....] The request for extra information is part of the agency's effort to build a new computerized passenger screening program called Secure Flight. Secure Flight would let the Transportation Security Administration take over from the airlines the responsibility of checking passengers' names against watch lists. The agency plans to begin Secure Flight with two airlines in August. The program is supposed to work by transferring airline passengers' name records - which can include address, phone number and credit card information - to a government database. The government computer would flag names on the watch list and identify passengers who would be asked to go through additional screening." [Based on: A.P., 05/05/05]

2005 - Encirclement of China? - August 1st, 2005: "[....] With last month's signing of the Indo-U.S. defense agreement, the encirclement of China is basically complete. [....] Will encircling China with U.S. allies and bases stop Beijing from modernizing its armed forces as its economy grows? No. It is more likely to make the Chinese government feel threatened and to invest more heavily in defense. [....]" [Based on: article by Gwynne Dyer (entitled: The folly in caging a dragon), p. B7, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/01/05]

2005 - Trivia / London Bombing Suspects - August 1st, 2005: "LONDON - British police widened their hunt for suspected terrorists on Sunday [07/31/05], seizing eight people in the north and south of the country in what appeared to be a quest for a support network behind the London bombers. [....] The police said the arrests were all made under anti-terrorism laws but would not give further details. The arrests brought to 20 the number of people being held after failed bombings in London on July 21. Some of the detainees are relatives of the main suspects, four men who all have family ties to countries in the Horn of Africa - Ethiopia, Somalia and Eritrea. [....]" [Based on: New York Times]

2005 - Fatality / Vice President  of Sudan - August 1st, 2005: "A rebel official said Sudan's vice president, a former rebel leader who is a key figure in the country's fledgling peace deal, has been killed in a helicopter crash. Search crews reached the site early today [08/01/05] and found a body they believe to be that of John Garang, a U.N. official said. [....] Garang's death would be a heavy blow to the January peace deal that ended a 21-year civil war between the mostly Muslim north and the Christian south in which some 2 million people died. [....]" [Baseed on: News Services]

*Trivia: "Sudan's capital erupted into ethnic and sectarian conflict Tuesday [08/02/05], with bands of northerners and southeners staging attacks on one another in an outpouring of anger sparked by the death of a former rebel leader turned vice president. [....]" [Based on: A.P., 08/03/05]

2005 - North Korean Demands / Nuclear Talks - August 1st, 2005: "North Korea's demands for what it should receive in exchange for abandoning its nuclear weapons program snarled talks in Beijing on Sunday [07/31/05]. The negotiations ended their sixth day without a deal on a Chinese-drafted proposal. South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Song Min-soon said talks Sunday focused on 'what corresponding measures other parties will take' in return for an agreement by the North to dismantle its nuclear weapons program. The North has demanded concessions such as security guarantees and aid from the United States before it eliminates its weapons program, while the United States wants to see the arms destroyed first. The North also has insisted that it be allowed to run a peaceful nuclear power program, something the U.S. opposes." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Research Trivia / Global Warming & Hurricanes - August 1st, 2005: "NEW YORK - Is global warming making hurricanes more ferocious? New Research suggests the answer is yes. The analysis by climatologist Kerry Emanuel of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology shows for the first time that major storms spinning in the Atlantic and the Pacific sine the 1970's have increased in duration and intensity by about 50 percent. [....] Details of Emanuel's study appeared Sunday [07/31/05] in the online version of the journal Nature. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article by Joseph B. Verrengia, p. A5, S.L.P.D., 08/01/05]

2005 - Bankruptcy Protection / Atkins Nutritionals Inc. - August 1st, 2005: "Atkins Nutritionals Inc., the company that promoted low-carb eating into a national diet craze, filed for bankruptcy court protection Sunday [07/31/05], a company spokesman said. [....] A hearing on the prearranged Chapter 11 filing was scheduled for today [08/01/05] in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, spokesman Richard Rothstein said. The privately held company, founded in 1989 by Dr. Robert C. Atkins, said it had reached an agreement with the majority of its lenders to give them equity in exchange for lowered debt. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Avian Flu / Siberia - August 2nd, 2005: "Russia ordered the slaughter of chickens and other poultry in several regions in Siberia, hoping to contain an outbreak of the A (H5N1) strain of avian influenza virus that has swept Asia in the past two years, according to news reports. Late last week health officials confirmed that hundreds of birds in Novosibirsk, in western Siberia, had died of the virus, which can be deadly to humans. Monday, officials told news agencies that the outbreak had spread to two other nearby regions, Altai and Omsk. There have been no human infections in Russia." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Trivia / "Intelligent Design" - August 2nd, 2005: "[....] In a question-and-answer session with a small group of reporters, Bush essentially endorsed efforts by Christian conservatives to give intelligent design equal standing with the theory of eveolution in the nation's schools. [....] The Kanas board of education is considering changes to encourage the teaching of intelligent design in Kansas schools, and Christian conservatives are pushing for similar changes in other school districts across the country." [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers]

2005 - King Abdullah / Saudi Throne - August 2nd, 2005: "[....] After the death of King Fahd, the mechanism of succession moved quickly along tracks laid down long ago: his half brother Abdullah assumed the throne, while Fahd's brother Prince Sultan, the 77-year-old defense minister, became crown prince and next in line to the throne. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Anti-Pollution Actions? / U.S.A. - August 2nd, 2005: "The federal government told Missouri, Illinois and 26 other states Monday [08/01/05] it plans to order specific anti-pollution actions against their power plants if state officials don't have their own plan by next year for making the air cleaner for people downwind. [....] The states have until September 2006 to submit plans for reducing pollution. If they miss that deadline, the EPA said Monday it would write the plans for them. [....] According to the EPA, soot in Illinois affects eight downwind states. Three downwind states are polluted by Missouri's soot." [Based on: News Services, p. A5, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/02/05] 

2005 - "Published" / Revelations XII - August 2nd, 2005: "Illustrated this date in history: Mirror History page entitled: Revelations XII." [Based on: D.R.D. a.k.a. Etznab Mathers]  

2005 - Second-Quarter Profit / Solutia Inc. - August 2nd, 2005: "Bankrupt chemical maker Solutia Inc. turned a profit of $14 million in the second quarter, driven largely by price increases and cost-cutting measures, according to a report filed Monday [08/01/05] with the Securities and Exchange Commission. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

2005 - British Military Cuts? / Northern Ireland - August 2nd, 2005: "BELFAST, Northern Ireland - Britain revealed a two-year plan Monday [08/01/05] for slashing its army garrison and base network to peacetime levels in Northern Ireland in response to Irish Republican Army peace moves. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "British plans for halving the number of troops in Northern Ireland threaten the safety of Protestants and could delay progress in the province's stalled peace process, Protestant unionist leaders said Tuesday [08/02/05]. [....]" [Based on: Los Angeles Times, 08/03/05]

2005 - Questioned? / Guantanamo Trial Process - August 2nd, 2005: "WASHINGTON - The Pentagon acknowledged on Monday [08/01/05] that two former members of the military team handling prosecutions of terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, alleged last year that the trial system was rigged in favor of the government. Officials said the prosecutor' claims of ethical lapses and potential criminal acts had been reviewed and dismissed as unfounded. Pentagon spokesman Lawrence Di Rita said an investigation determined they were 'much ado about nothing.' In a later written statement, the Pentagon said an 'operational assessment' of the chief prosecutor's office - undertaken in response to the allegations - recommended a restructuring, including unspecified personnel changes. The allegations by Air Force  Maj. John Carr, who was then a captain, and Air Force Maj. Robert Preston were first reported by The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times on Monday [08/01/05]. Both newspapers quoted from March 2004 internal e-mails written by Carr and Preston that detailed the allegations. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. / John Bolton - August 2nd, 2005: "WASHINGTON - John Bolton's nomination to be ambassador to the United Nations had languished for five months. Then in just five hours on Monday [08/01/05], the tough-talking conservative got the job, was sworn in and was at work in New York. [....] Circumventing the Senate confirmation process, Bush installed Bolton by means of a recess appointment, an avenue available when Congress is out of town. Under the Constitution, Bolton's appointment will last until a newly elected Congress takes office in January 2007. The president has made 106 recess appointments, many of them judges. Bolton is the highest-level such appointment of Bush's administration. And he is the first person ever to become the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations by means of a recess appointment, according to a Senate historian, Betty Koed. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: Practice what we preach

The Supreme Court appoints the president without the consent of the majority of the people; the president appoints John Bolton as U.N. ambassador without the consent of the people's duly elected representative body, the U.S. Senate. This is democracy? It is ironic that the United States is attempting to establish democracy in other parts of the world. We only say we believe in it. We don't practice it.

[Based on: article by Cynthia Kagan Frohlichstein, St. Louis, Letter to the Editor section, S.L.P.D., p. B6, 08/04/05]

2005 - Barred / ABC-TV, Russia - August 3rd, 2005: "Russia's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday [08/02/05] it would not renew permission for ABC-TV to operate in the country after the network broadcast [last week on 'Nightline'] an interview with a notorious Chechen warlord [Shamil Basayev]. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Settler's Rally / Sderot, Israel - August 3rd, 2005: "[....] After days of negotiating with the authorities, settler leaders were given permission to hold Tuesday's [08/02/05] rally in Sderot, an Israeli town that borders northern Gaza and has been a frequent target of rocket attacks by Palestinian militants. After the rally, the protestors planned to spend the night in Ofakim - an Israeli town about 20 miles from Gaza. Police officials said they reached an agreement with settler leaders that would allow the protestors to stay in Ofakim until Friday, but some settler leaders said they would begin marching today to Gush Katif." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Settlement / Morgan Stanley - August 3rd, 2005: "Morgan Stanley, the world's largest securities firm, will pay $6.1 million to settle a regulator's claims the company didn't supervise its brokerage business to determine if Fee-based accounts were beneficial for clients. The firm was accused of failing to monitor the accounts of clients who were put in the fee-based 'Morgan Stanley Choice' accounts between 2001 and 2003, the NASD said. More than 3,500 customers will share $4.6 million in restitution. New York-based Morgan Stanley didn't admit or deny wrongdoing." [Based on: p. C2, S.L.P.D.]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Nicaragua - August 3rd, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 11:03:15 (UTC) on Wednesday, August 3, 2005. The magnitude 6.3 event has been located in NICARAGUA. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usbham.htm]

2005 - Salmonella Contamination / Spain - August 3rd, 2005: "Salmonella contamination at a meat plant caused nearly 600 people across Spain to fall ill, the government said Tuesday [08/02/05]. [....] The product has been withdrawn from sale. The head of Spain's food safety agency, Jose Ignacio Arranz, said the number of people infected was unlikely to rise much higher." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Air France Crash / Toronto, Canada - July 3rd, 2005: "TORONTO - Just as Air France Flight 358 from Paris was about to touch down [08/02/05], the lights went off in the passenger cabin. Thunder roared and lightning cracked. Then, without warning, the jetliner skidded off the rain-slicked runway, slid into a ravine and broke into pieces. The 309 people on board had only moments to escape before the aircraft burst into flames. Passengers screamed and panicked. But remarkably, everyone jumped to safety. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "The Air France jetliner that burst into flames while landing in Toronto is the first A340 plane to crash since the craft was introduced by manufacturer Airbus more than a decade ago. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "The captain of the Air France jet that crashed and burst into flames Tuesday [08/02/05] remained in the hospital and won't be questioned until his physical state improves, officials said Thursday [08/04/05]. The co-pilot of Air France Flight 358 was questioned Thursday as investigators try to piece together why the plane skidded off the runway and burst into flames after landing in a ravine. Investigators said details of the co-pilot queries were 'privileged' information and would not be made public at this time. [....] With early evidence indicating nothing wrong with the jet, officials looked to the 'black boxes' for answers. But they were faced with a long delay because of problems in downloading data." [Based on: News Services article, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, p. A10, 08/05/05]

2005 - Chinese Bid Withdrawn / Unocal Corp. - August 3rd, 2005: "SAN FRANCISCO - China's government-controlled Cnooc Ltd. on Tuesday [08/02/05] withdrew its bid of $18.4 billion for Unocal Corp., ending a politically charged takeover effort, that highlighted the United States' growing apprehension about the economic rise of the world's most populous country. The retreat of Cnooc clears the way for Chevron Corp., the second-largest U.S. oil company, to complete its acquisition of Unocal next week, although its cash-and-stock offer is valued at $700 million less. Chevron had several factors working in its favor, including regulatory clearance, the support of Unocal's board and the backing of U.S. lawmakers, who questioned whether economic and national security interests would be threatened if a company with significant ties to China's government were to buy a major U.S. oil company. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Four-Year Highs / S & P 500 & Nasdaq - August 3rd, 2005: "NEW YORK - The Standard & Poor's 500 index and the Nasdaq composite index climbed to four-year highs Tuesday [08/02/05] as companies continued to post better-than-expected profits and government reports showed an expanding economy. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News article, p. C4, S.L.P.D., 08/03/05]

2005 - Profit Plunge / Marsh & McLennan Cos. - August 3rd, 2005: "Marsh & McLennan Cos., the world's largest insurance broker, said second-quarter profit fell 57 percent after the company stopped demanding fees from insurers to settle a lawsuit from New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. [....] Marsh and McLennan hasn't increased profit in a year and potential clients have been deterred since Spitzer's October lawsuit accused the company of steering customers to insurers that made hidden payments. Brokerage revenue would have fallen 8 percent had there never been any fees, a sign the company is losing market share, said Keefe, Bruyette & Woods analyst Cliff Gallant. [....] The company didn't admit or deny wrongdoing in the settlement, reached in January. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News]

2005 - Enron Payment / Canadian Imerial Bank of Commerce - August 3rd, 2005: "Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce has agreed to pay $2.4 billion to resolve investors' claims that it helped hide losses at Enron Corp., marking the biggest individual settlement since the energy trader collapsed in a massive accounting fraud. [....] Combined with similar agreements with Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. and others, the settlements have now reached more than $7 billion, said lawyers for the wronged investors." [Based on: p. C2, S.L.P.D.]

2005 - Deadly Bombing / Iraq - August 4th, 2005: "BAGHDAD, Iraq - Fourteen U.S. Marines were killed Wednesday [08/03/05] when a huge bomb destroyed their lightly armored vehicle, hurling it into the air in a giant fireball in the deadliest roadside bombing suffered by American forces in the Iraq war. A civilian translator also was killed and one Marine was wounded. The victims were from the same Ohio-based Reserve unit as five of six members of a Marine sniper team killed Monday [08/01/05]  in an ambush claimed by the Islamic extremist group Ansar al-Sunnah Army. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "[....] As the threat from bombs and suicide attacks has grown, the Pentagon has rushed 24,000 armored Humvees to Iraq since late 2003. [....]" [Baseed on: New York Times]

2005 - Sentenced / E. Kirk Shelton - August 4th, 2005: "HARTFORD, Conn. - E. Kirk Shelton, the former vice chairman of Cendant Corp., on Wednesday [08/03/05] was sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay full restitution for his role in an accounting scandal that cost investors and the company more than $3 billion. [....] In January, Shelton was found guilty of 12 counts of conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud, securities fraud and making false statements to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Prosecutors said Shelton inflated revenue by $500 million at Cendant's predessor, CUC International, to drive up its stock price. The fraud was reported in 1998, causing Cendant's market value to drop by $14 billion in one day." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - 1st Dog Clone / South Korea - August 4th, 2005: "NEW YORK - Scientists for the first time have cloned a dog [Afghan Hound]. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "First mammal clones - Korean researchers say they have cloned a dog for the first time; here are other milestones in cloning: 1997 - Sheep; 1998 - Mouse, Cow; 2000 - Goat, Pig; 2001 - Cat, Guar, Human embryo, European mouflon lamb; 2002 - Rabbit; 2003 - Mule, Horse; 2005 - Dog." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Rebel Attacks? / Afghanistan - August 4th, 2005: "KABUL, Afghanistan - About 2,000 Afghan security forces rushed to an eastern province Wednesday [08/03/05] after dozens of suspected Taliban rebels wearing army uniforms killed eight police and soldiers in an attack on a region that has been largely peaceful in recent months. [....] The attackers were wearing uniforms of Afghanistan's new U.S.-trained army, a local official said. [....] Afghan and American officials have warned that attacks by Taliban-led rebels are likely to increase ahead of legislative selections Sept. 18 - the next key step toward democracy after a quarter-century of war." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - SEC Chairman / Christopher Cox - August 4th, 2005: "Former Rep. Christopher Cox, R-Calif., was sworn in as the 28th chairman of the Securities and Exchange commission. Cox, accompanied by his wife, Rebecca, took the oath of office Wednesday [05/03/05] from his friend, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, in a private ceremony, the SEC said. Cox, 52, won unanimous Senate confirmation July 29 after avoiding a fight over his pro-business record by pledging to be a strong regulator. He replaces William Donaldson, who left the agency June 30." [Based on: p. C2, S.L.P.D., 08/04/05]

2005 - Plea Bargain / Calvin Darden - August 4th, 2005: "A high-rolling stockbroker who stole more than $7 million from employers and investors such as NBA star Latrell Sprewell agreed Wednesday [08/03/05] to a plea bargain that will land him behind bars for up to a dozen years. Calvin Darden, 30, who owned a $2.85 million Long Island home complete with a 20-foot-long aquarium, faces four to 12 years in prison at his Nov. 10 sentencing. Under the agreement with Manhattan prosecutors, Darden also will make $5.7 million in restitution. Darden pleaded guilty to four counts of grand larceny and a count of scheming to defraud. Among his victims was Sprewell, the ex-New York Knicks star, who lost $300,000." [Based on: p. C2, S.L.P.D., 08/04/05]

2005 - Settlement Trivia / Time Warner Inc. - August 4th, 2005: "NEW YORK - Time Warner Inc., the world's largest  media company, is setting aside $3 billion in reserves to settle shareholder lawsuits filed in the wake of its disastrous merger with America Online Inc. Time Warner announced Wednesday [08/03/05] it had reached a tentative settlement with the lead group of shareholder plantiffs, who claimed they were cheated in the merger by inflated revenue claims and improper accounting at AOL. The company also said it had authorized a program to buy back $5 billion of its own shares over the next two years. The announcement came as Time Warner released its second-quarter earnings. For the three months ending in June, the company posted a net loss of $321 million, or 7 cents a share, versus a profit of $777 million, or 17 cents a share a year earlier. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Tropical Storm Harvey / Atlantic Ocean - August 4th, 2005: "Tropical Storm Harvey is more remarkable for being the eighth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season than for any particular hazard it has posed. Harvey is the earliest recorded eighth storm in a season. This and a number of other factors have led forecasters to predict that the 2005 hurricane season may be the most active recorded, with projections calling for three to five more hurricanes (two of the previous eight storms reached hurricane status, Dennis and Emily), as well as a number of tropical storms.  [....]"

[Based on: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13022]

2005 - Col. Ely Ould Mohamed Vall / Mauritania - August 4th, 2005: "A military junta overthrew Mauritania's U.S.-allied president while he was abroad Wednesday [08/03/05]. President Maaoya Sid'Ahmed Ould Taya, who himself seized power in a 1984 coup and dealt ruthlessly with his opponents, was out of the country when presidential guardsmen cut broadcasts from the national radio and television stations at dawn and seized a building housing the army chief of staff headquarters. The Junta named national police chief Col. Ely Ould Mohamed Vall as the country's new leader." [News Services]

2005 - Pledge to End Rocket Attacks / Islamic Jihad - August 4th, 2005: "Islamic Jihad, a major Palestinian militant group, promised Wednesday [08/03/05] it would fire no more rockets at Israelis with the approach of Israel's planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip this month, after a barrage accidentally killed a 5-year-old Palestinian boy. Officials said Israel's Cabinet is scheduled to vote Sunday [08/07/05] on the removal of three isolated Gaza settlements. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Reintroduced / U.S. 30-Year Treasury Bonds - August 4th, 2005: "NEW YORK - The Treasury Department's decision to reintroduce the 30-year bond will give consumers a safe investment option with a long-term maturity and could help boost rates on other securities. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Second-Quarter Declines / Toyota & Bayerische Motoren - August 4th, 2005: "Toyota Motor Corp., the world's No. 2 carmaker, and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG posted their second consecutive declines in quarterly earnings Wednesday [08/03/05] as their expansion plans swelled costs and a weaker dollar eroded U.S. sales gains. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News]

2005 - Mandatory Wireless Chips for Vehicles? / U.S. Border Posts, Canada & Mexico - August 4th, 2005: "A U.S. security official said Wednesday [07/27/05] it will use wireless technology at five border posts with Canada and Mexico to track foreigners driving in and out of the United States. Bob Mocny of the Department of Homeland Security said wireless chips for vehicles would become mandatory at designated border crossings in Canada and Mexico as of Aug. 4. Border authorities will provide a chip that drivers will put on the dashboard of vehicles. [....]" [Based on: News Services article, p. A8, S.L.P.D., 07/28/05]

2005 - The Hiroshima Cover-Up - August 5th, 2005:

A story that the U.S. government hoped would never see the light of day finally has been published, 60 years after it was spiked by military censors. The discovery of reporter George Weller's firsthand account of conditions in post-nuclear Nagasaki sheds light on one of the great journalistic betrayals of the last century: the cover-up of the effects of the atomic bombing on Japan.

On Aug. 6, 1945, the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima; three days later, Nagasaki was hit. Gen. Douglas MacArthur promptly declared southern Japan off-limits, barring the news media. More than 200,000 people died in the atomic bombings of the cities, but no Western journalist witnessed the aftermath and told the story. Instead, the world's media obediently crowded onto the battleship USS Missouri off the coast of Japan to cover the Japanese surrender.

[Based on: Baltimore Sun article (The Hiroshima Cover-Up ) by Amy Goodman and David Goodman, 08/05/05]
*Links: http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0805-20.htm

2005 - Avian Flu Inevitable? / Europe? - August 5th, 2005: "Struggling to contain an outbreak of avian flu that has killed thousands of birds in Siberia, Russian authorities admitted Thursday [08/04/05] that a spread of the virus into Europe seems almost inevitable. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Typhoon Matsa / Pacific Ocean - August 5th, 2005: "Typhoon Matsa ... on the morning of August 5, 2005. [....] The typhoon is a well organized mature storm by this point with steady winds of around 150 kilometers per hour (90 miles per hour).  [....]"

[Based on: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13023]

2005 - Fourth-Quarter Loss / Sara Lee Corp. - August 5th, 2005: "Sara Lee Corp., the maker of Champion clothing and Hillshire Farm deli meats, reported a fourth-quarter loss of $148 million on costs to fire workers and falling sales. [....] Net sales in the quarter ended July 2 fell 5.3 percent to $4.75 billion, the first decline in four years. Costs of $123 million to fire about 2,000 employees lowered profit as Chief Executive Brenda Barnes attempts to turn the company around. She plans to divest Sara Lee's apparel business, which has recorded an 86 percent drop in operating profit since 2000. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News]

2005 - Bus Killings / Jewish Extremist, Israel -  August 5th, 2005: "SHFARAM, Israel - A 19-year-old Israeli soldier opened fire inside a bus Thursday [08/04/05], killing four Israeli Arabs in the deadliest attack on Arabs in Israel by a Jewish extremist since 1990. An angry crowd then killed the gunman. Thirteen people, including bus passengers and two policemen, were wounded in the shooting, which appeared linked to tension over the upcoming Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank. [....] The military identified the dead soldier as Pvt. Eden Natan-Zada, a resident of the Jewish settlement of Tapuah in the West Bank. [....] Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon denounced the shooting as 'a despicable act by a bloodthirsty terrorist.' Settler leaders also condemned the attack. [....] Police said the attacker wore a skullcap, identifying him as an Orthodox Jew. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Charged / Steven Rosen & Keith Weissman - August 5th, 2005: "Two former employees of a pro-Israel lobbying organization were charged Thursday [08/04/05] with conspiring to obtain and disclose classified U.S. defense information for five years. A five-count indictment unsealed in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., named Steven Rosen, formerly the director of foreign policy issues for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, and Keith Weissman, the organization's former senior Iran analyst. The charges follow the indictment in June of Pentagon analyst Lawerence A. Franklin, who is accused of leaking classified military information to an Israeli official and the AIPAC employees." [Based on: News Services, p. A5, S.L.P.D., 08/05/05]

2005 - Repatriation of Detainees? / Guantanamo bay, Cuba - August 5th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - U.S. military officials will gradually hand over 110 Afghan prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay to Afghanistan's government, the Pentagon said Thursday [08/05/05]. The move would be the largest repatriation of detainees from the U.S. naval base in Cuba since it was converted to a military prison for terrorism suspects three years ago. In addition, U.S. authorities plan to turn over about 350 Afghans now in U.S. custody in Afghanistan after new prison space is built to accomodate them, officials said. [....] In a separate development in Kabul, a NATO general said Thursday that a NATO-led international force is set to expand and will be ready to assume responsibility for security across all of Afghanistan by the end of next year. That will free up many of the 17,600 American troops in the country. [....]" [Based on: Los Angeles Times]

2005 - Hospitalization / U.S. Chief Justice William Rehnquist - August 5th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - Chief Justice William Rehnquist was hospitalized briefly with a fever Thursday [08/04/05], the second emergency treatment for the ailing justice in two months. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - U.S. Firearms / Haiti - August 6th, 2005: "The United States will provide Haitian police with firearms and tear gas to aid the fight against militants ahead of elections this fall, the American ambassador said Friday. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Trivia / HeathSouth Suit - August 6th, 2005: "Trying to preserve its civil suit against Richard Scrushy over the huge fraud at HealthSouth Corp., the Securities and Exchange Commission is criticizing the judge [U.S. District Judge, Karon Bowdre] in Scrushy's criminal trial, which ended in his acquittal. [....]" [Based on: news article, p. B3, S.L.P.D., 08/06/05] - [Brackets text added - E.M.]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Tonga - August 6th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 09:56:12 (UTC) on Saturday, August 6, 2005. The magnitude 6.0 event has been located in TONGA. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report at http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usbkba.htm]

2005 - Bomb Note? / Southwest Airlines - August 6th, 2005: "A note found in a Southwest Airlines seat pocket claiming a bomb was on the plane prompted a landing and evacuation on an isolated stretch of runway Friday [08/05/05], but bomb-sniffing dogs found no signs of explosives, authorities said. [....] FBI spokesman Al Tribble said he didn't have the exact wording of the note, but 'it definitely announced there's a bomb on the plane.' [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - A-Bomb Anniversary / Hiroshima - August 6th, 2005: "Tens of thousands of people gathered in Hiroshima today to mark the 60th anniversary of the world's first atomic bomb attack with a moment of silence and offerings of flowers and water. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

*Trivia: "[....] Tonight [08/05/05] and Sunday night, the Sundance cable channel will broadcast a documentary that will be the first time the American people will have a chance to see some of the color footage of the aftermath of the bombs. The movie is 'Original Child Bomb,' named after an anti-war poem by Thomas Merton. Decades late, Americans can look at the ugly face of this child of war and ask, as the film does, whether we have learned the lessons of the atomic age. Look, and decide for yourself." [Based on: Editorial section article, S.L.P.D., p. 30, 08/06/05] - [To see a trailer and learn more about the film, go online to www.originalchildbomb.com]

2005 - U.S. Offensive / Euphrates River Area, Iraq - August 6th, 2005: "BAGHDAD, Iraq - Marines and Iraqi troops pounded insurgents with bombs and tank cannons Friday [08/05/05] during a major offensive along a stretch of the Euphrates River valley where 22 Marines were killed this week. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Second-Quarter Profit / MasterCard Inc. - August 6th, 2005: "MasterCard Inc., the world's second-biggest credit-card brand, said quarterly profit rose 83 percent on gains in the value and number of transactions. Second-quarter net income was $120.2 million, or $1.20 a share, compared with $65.7 million, or 66 cents, a year earlier, the company based in Purchase, N.Y., said Friday in a statement. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News]

2005 - Died / Peter Jennings - August 7th, 2005: "Died this date in history: ABC News anchorman, Peter Jennings. He was 67." [E.M.]

2005 - Rescued / Russian Mini-Sub - August 7th, 2005: "PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY, Russia - Seven submarine crew members trapped for nearly three days under the Pacific Ocean were rescued Sunday [08/07/05] after a British remote-controlled vehicle cut away the undersea cables that had snarled the vessel. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Trivia / Bunnatine Greenhouse - August 7th, 2005: "[....] Bunnatine 'Bunny' Greenhouse is the principal assistant responsible for contracting ('PARC' in the alphabet soup of military acronyms) in the Army Corps of Engineers. She is responsible for awarding billions upon billions in taxpayers' money to private companies hired to resurrect war-torn Iraq and to feed, clothe, shelter and do the laundry of American troops stationed there. She has drawn a mighty storm upon herself for standing up, before members of Congress and live on C-SPAN, to proclaim that things are just not right in this staggeringly profitable business. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Nuclear Waste / U.S. Landfills? - August 7th, 2005: "The operator of a Florida nuclear plant [Florida Power and Light] appears to have shipped radioactive waste to ordinary landfills, municipal sewage treatment plants and some unknown locations in the 1970s and early '80s, according to internal documents and government records obtained in lawsuits. [....] Plant workers used a sink to wash mops, rags and other heavily contaminated materials, believing that the drain was connected to the plant's radioactive waste system, but instead it drained into a sanitary sewage system, according to the documents. The contaminants were then hauled away with sludge."

[Based on: News Services article, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, p. A8, 08/07/05]

*Commentary: "Who needs terrorists or dirty bombs when your own country produces radioactive waste and fails to prevent its distribution across the country?" [E.M.]

2005 - "What More in the Name of God?"

   How many times throughout recorded history do we find examples of human beings waging war in the name of God? How many times throughout recorded history do we find God appearing in a court of law?
   As an irresponsible Human Race we can agrue that the Devil made us do it, or that God made us do it - commit every imaginable crime against humanity - but if this is really the case, then why don't our lawyers summon God and the Devil to court? Is it because these are, and have been, the most convenient scapegoats used by Church and State for centuries? Is it because the majority of human beings are conditioned to be bought and sold by lies - that some other individual or individuals are held responsible for the wars we wage? 

                                                                                                                                       - Etznab Mathers -

2005 - Breakdown / North Korea Nuclear Talks - August 7th, 2005: "Diplomats at talks on North Korean nuclear disarmament acknowledged Saturday [08/06/05] that they had reached a deadlock and would return home. In 12 days of talking, they had sought an agreement moving toward eliminating nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula. [....] Diplomats said the talks might resume in a few weeks. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - "What Are We Fighting For?" / U.S.A. - August 7th, 2005: "CRAWFORD, Texas - The angry mother [Cindy Sheehan] of a fallen U.S. soldier staged a protest near President George W. Bush's ranch Saturday [08/06/05], demanding an accounting from Bush of how he has conducted the war in Iraq. [....] Sheehan said she planned to continue her roadside vigil, except for a few breaks, until she gets to talk to Bush. Her son, Casey, 24, was killed in Sadr City, Iraq, on April 4, 2004. He was an Army specialist, a Humvee mechanic. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article,  p. A11, S.L.P.D., 08/07/05]

2005 - Trivia / Potentially Hazardous Asteroids? - August 7th, 2005: "On 7 Aug 2005 there were 710 known Potentially Hazardous Asteroids."

[Based on: http://spaceweather.com/] - [08/07/05]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Prince Edward Islands - August 7th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 02:17:45 (UTC) on Sunday, August 7, 2005. The magnitude 6.2 event has been located in the PRINCE EDWARD ISLANDS REGION. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report at http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usblab.htm]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Fiji Region, Pacific Ocean - August 7th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 11:35:26 (UTC) on Sunday, August 7, 2005. The magnitude 6.0 event has been located in the FIJI REGION. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report at http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usblay.htm]

2005 - Many Little Al-Qaidas? - August 8th, 2005: "LONDON - They had roots in Pakistan, Ethiopia, Somalia and Jamaica: The suspected al-Qaida foot soldiers in Britain were immigrants or were children of immigrants - a new breed of recruits that underscores the changes in the organization since the Sept. 11 attacks, say experts studying the London bombings. These experts, who include a pioneer in personality profiling, say al-Qaida, always loosely knit, is mutating into satellites that attract local operatives bound by disenchantment with the Western societies in which they grew up. It is no longer a hierarchy with Osama bin Laden calling the shots, they say. 'Al-Qaida version 1.0 is functionally dead,' said Jerrold Post, a founding director of the CIA's Center for the Analysis of Personality and Political Behavior. 'Al-Qaida version 2.0 is almost more an ideology.... It's an adaptive organization responding to a crisis.' [....] 'We are now dealing with many little al-Qaidas with the potential of neighborhood al-Qaidas,' Jenkins said. 'They may not be able to carry out specialized operations ... but they can still operate at a lethal level.' [....] Jenkins is leery of profiling, insisting that too little is known about the suspects. He noted that millions of Muslims have not come under al-Qaida's sway. 'The thing that holds it together is the ideology itself,' he said of al-Qaida's decentralized structure. 'How do you attack an ideology? It's very rough to do.' " [Based on: A.P. article by Danica Kirka, p. A1, S.L.P.D., 07/08/05 - Writer Mara Bellaby contributed to this story from London.]

2005 - Trivia / Tropical Storm Irene - August 8th, 2005: "The ninth named storm of the busy Atlantic hurricane season, Tropical Storm Irene, formed Sunday [08/07/05]. It posed no immediate threat to land, forecasters said. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Amphibian Fatalities / Roundup? - August 8th, 2005: "Worldwide, amphibians are dying. And University of Pittsburgh ecologist Rick Relyea said he knows one way to kill them: Spray them with a little Roundup, the best-selling weed killer from St. Louis-based Monsanto. In a new study from Relyea, published in this month's issue of the journal Ecological Applications, Roundup killed 98 percent of tadpoles during a three-week test in simulated shallow ponds. In a separate dry experiment, Roundup killed 79 percent of young frogs and toads after just one day. [....] Something clearly is killing amphibians. They have declined drastically since the 1970s, biologists say. Nearly a third of the world's amphibians are threatned, according to a global survey last year by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. By contrast, 12 percent of bird species and 20 percent of mammals are threatned, according to the union's Web site, www.redlist.org. 'The debate is whether amphibians are the canaries in the coal mine,' Washington University biologist Jonathan Chase said. There are reasons to suspect they are.' [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch article by Eric Hand, p. A1, 08/08/05]

2005 - Quits Cabinet / Benjamin Netanyahu - August 8th, 2005: "JERUSALEM - Benjamin Netanyahu stepped down as Israel's finance minister Sunday [08/07/05] in a last-minute protest against next week's Gaza pullout. But his stunned cabinet colleagues pushed ahead and approved the first stage of the withdrawal plan just moments later. [....] The resignation also could force early elections; for now, the vote is set for November 2006. [....] Shortly after Netanyahu left, the ministers voted 17-5 to approve the dismantling of the first three settlements. [....] Sharon said he would appoint his close confidant, Vice Premier Ehud Olmert, as acting finance minister. Like Netanyahu, Olmert is seen as pro-business. In a statement, Sharon said current policy would continue. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Closed / U.S. Embassy, Saudia Arabia - August 8th, 2005: "The U.S. Embassy and consulates in Saudi Arabia were closed today [08/08/05] and will be Tuesday [08/09/05] because of a threat against U.S. government buildings, the embassy said Sunday [08/07/05]. In a statement, the embassy said mission personnel will limit nonofficial travel during the next two days." [Based on: News Services article, p. A8 (last page - last article - bottom right hand corner of paper), St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/08/05]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Papua, Indonesia - August 8th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 08:33:56 (UTC) on Monday, August 8, 2005. The magnitude 6.0 event has been located in PAPUA, INDONESIA. The hypocentral depth was poorly constrained. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report at http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usbman.htm]

2005 - Accused of Espionage / U.S. DEA, Venezuela - August 8th, 2005: "Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez accused the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration on Sunday [08/07/05] of using its agents for espionage. He said Venezuela was suspending its cooperation with the U.S. agency. [....] 'The DEA was using the fight against drug trafficking as a mask, to support drug trafficking, to carry out intelligence in Venezuela against the government,' Chavez said. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

*Trivia: "The American ambassador to Venezuela on Thursday [08/11/05] rejected President Hugo Chavez's allegations that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration used its agents to spy on Venezuela. [....]" [Based on: News Services, 08/12/05]

2005 - Fined / Edward Jones - August 9th, 2005: "Edward Jones again has been fined over its past mutual fund sales practices, this time by the Missouri secretary of state. In addition, the company reported that it's under investigation in a new inquiry by the NASD. Secretary of State Robin Carnahan said on Monday [08/08/05] that the Des Peres-based stock brokerage has agreed to pay $1.5 million in penalties. Of that, $650,000 will go to public schools and $850,000 into investment and education programs. [....] The state sanction was connected to the same infractions that led to a $75 million penalty in December set by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Justice Department. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

2005 - Biotech Corn? / Mexico - August 9th, 2005: "Genetically modified corn hasn't mixed with native maize in southern Mexico, according to a study posted online this week by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study contradicts results from four years ago, when scientists said modified corn genes had moved into the traditional crops, called maize in Mexico. But scientists said gene flow - which leads to the movement of traits from one plant to another - is inevitable for both traditional and engineered plants because it happens during the constant, natural process of crossing. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

2005 - President Indicted? / U.S.A. - August 2005:

   "A federal whistleblower close to the Chicago federal grand jury probe into perjury and obstruction charges against President Bush and others said indictments of top officials were handed down this week. A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Northern District of Illinois, however, refused to confirm or deny the source's account. [....]
   According to whistleblower Tom Heneghen, who recently reported on truthradio.com, Powell testified before the citizen grand jury that Bush had taken the United States to war based on lies, which is a capital crime involving treason under the U.S. Code. [....]
   Heneghen, unavailable for comment, also allegedly told sources White House advisor Karl Rove was indicted for perjury in a major document shredding operation cover-up.
   In recent weeks, there has been much controversy over Fitzgerald's wide-reaching probe, which is extending far beyond the Bush administration to include what some have called 'a wholesale cleansing' of a crime-laden White House and Congress.
   Fitzgerald's investigation is said to be also centered on members of the 9-11 Commission, members on both sides of the aisle in the House and Senate and also select high-powered members of the media. [....]
   Political observers are now wondering whether administration-friendly Republican legislators, some under investigation themselves, are conspiring like President Nixon did in Watergate with Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox in an attempt to shield the Bush administration from prosecution. [....]"   

[Based on: article by Greg Szymanski (Entitled: President Indicted, Federal Grand Jury Digging Deep Into Bush Crimes), pp. 1 & 3, American Free Press, Volume V #33, August 15, 2005]

2005 - Haze Over the Midwestern United States - "High pressure over the central United States led to hot temperatures and an accumulation of pollutants on August 8, 2005. The Environmental Protection Agency warned that air quality index levels could be unhealthy for the Midwest, and western and southern Great Lakes areas. The EPA advised individuals with respiratory sensitivity to avoid outdoor exercise. Meanwhile, as reported by the CBS 2 Chicago Website, Illinois officials designated August 9, 2005 the ninth air pollution action day this summer, and the second air pollution action day in a row. To cut down on ozone accumulation, city officials encouraged Chicago residents to use public transportation. [....]"

[Based on: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13032]

2005 - Signs of Moral Repair? / U.S.A. - August 9th, 2005: "According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the rate of family violence in the United States has dropped by more than half since 1993. [....] In short, many of the indicators of social breakdown that shot upward in the late 1960s and 1970s and plateaued at high levels in the 1980s have been declining since the early 1990s. [....] Post-boomers behave better than baby boomers did. [....]" [Based on: article by David Brooks - Copyright: The New York Times - (Entitled: The signs of moral repair are everywhere), p. B7, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/09/05]

2005 - New Record High / Crude Oil, U.S.A. - August 9th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - Crude-oil prices jumped to a new high near $64 a barrel on Monday [08/08/05], reflecting the market's persistent uneasiness about strong demand, tight supplies and a slew of threats to output around the globe. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Guilty Plea / Alexander Yakovlev - August 9th, 2005: "NEW YORK - A former United Nations procurement officer pleaded guilty Monday [08/08/05] of soliciting a bribe under the oil-for-food program. He was the first U.N. official to face criminal charges in connection with the scandal-tainted operation. Alexander Yakovlev, a Russian, also pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of wire fraud and money laundering for accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from U.N. contractors in his work outside oil-for-food. He could face up to 20 years in prison for each of the three counts in the indictment. [....] [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "Half the 4,500 companies that took part in the U.N. oil-for-food program in Iraq paid kickbacks or illegal surcharges and are being given a chance to respond to the accusations, two top investigators told The Associated Press. [....]" [Based on: News Services, 08/10/05]

2005 - Israeli-Controlled Traffic? / Gaza Strip - August 9th, 2005: "JERUSALEM - Israel ruled out giving the Palestinians their own gate to the world, insisting Monday [08/08/05] that it will control traffic in and out of Gaza after Israeli settlers and soldiers leave. Palestinians complained that Israel is unwilling to loosen its grip on the coastal strip. [....] Palestinian spokeswoman Diana Buttu said Israel 'claims it wants to get out of Gaza, but in reality it wants to continue to control Gaza. What Israel really seeks to do is to control Gaza both militarily and economically by moving the Rafah crossing.' International envoy James Wolfenson has been trying to broker an agreement on border crossings. He has urged Israel to make a decision before the withdrawal starts. He says the pullout will succeed only if Gazans can move freely - a prerequisite for reviving their economy." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Advice to 'Oligarchy' - Get Out of Iraq - August 2005:

   Alone among the news media, this newspaper from the very beginning has recognized President George Bush's aggression in Iraq as an unwinnable response to orders from Israel and the military-industrial-banking complex.
   To the American public, which has to pay for it in blood and money, it is a major disaster, even though the military-industrial-banking complex, the petroleum companies and the Israelis were foaming at the mouth to get a piece of the oil-rich country and the billions of taxpayer dollars that will be needed to first destroy, then rebuild a country widely regarded as the cradle of civilization.
   As this issue of AFP goes to press, reports come that 14 more young Americans - for a total of 27 this week - have died in Iraq, bringing the total up to over 1,800.
   This does not count the men whose arms, legs, hands, feet, faces or testicles have been blown off, or those who have come back with scrambled brains after witnessing innocent men, women and children being slaughtered.
   Nor does it count the victims of depleted uranium (DU), something else that the corrupt 'news' media in this country avoids discussing altogether. [....]
   DU, which is used in ammunition because of its incredible density, vaporizes upon impact and is absorbed by all those in the area. It lingers in their bodies forever, bringing disabilities for the rest of their lives and even causing horrible birth deformities in their children.
   But it's a state secret. The 'oligarchy' that runs this country couldn't care less what happens to their white, black, Hispanic, Asian or American Indian slaves.
   We got into this mess because of the arrogance of Mr. Bush, Mr. Rumsfeld, Mr. Cheney and the rest of the neocons, and the lies they gave out, so you can't believe a word of what they say about winning. [....]
   We aren't going to win. As we have repeatedly said, a guerilla war cannot be won, and that's what it is. Our only advice is to get out, Mr. Bush. Get out now and show that you still have a shred of patriotism left."

[Based on: AFP Editorial, p 3, American Free Press, Volume V #33, August 15, 2005]

*Trivia: "[....] At least 1,836 U.S. military personnel have died since the Iraq war started in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. [....]" [Based on: A.P., 08/10/05]

2005 - Volcanic Activity / Papua New Guinea - August 9th, 2005: "The troublesome trio in Papua New Guinea’s West New Britain erupted simultaneously on August 9, 2005. Langila, Ulawun, and Rabaul Volcanoes all spewed ash at the same time, though not all with the same results. [....]"

[Based on: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13031]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Vanuatu Region- August 9th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 05:26:17 (UTC) on Tuesday, August 9, 2005. The magnitude 6.1 event has been located in the VANUATU REGION. The hypocentral depth was poorly constrained. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report at http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usbnai.htm]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Vanuatu Region- August 9th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 14:12:21 (UTC) on Tuesday, August 9, 2005. The magnitude 6.1 event has been located in the VANUATU REGION. The hypocentral depth was poorly constrained. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report at http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usbnaz.htm]

2005 - Trivia / Mohamed Atta Identification, U.S.A. - August 9th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - More than a year before the Sept. 11 attacks, a small, highly classified military intelligence unit identified Mohamed Atta and three other future hijackers as likely members of an al-Qaida cell operating in the United States, according to a former defense intelligence official and a Republican member of Congress. The account is the first assertion that Atta, an Egyptian who became the lead hijacker in the plot, was identified by any U.S. government agency as a potential threat before the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Among the 19 hijackers, only Khalid al-Mihdhar and Nawaf al-Hazmi had been identified as  potential threats by the CIA before the summer of 2000, and information about them was not given to the FBI until the spring of 2001. [....]" [Based on: New York Times article, p. A3, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/09/05]

*Trivia: "[....] Weldon [Rep. Curt Weldon, R-Pa.] said that in September 2000, Able Danger recommended that its information on the hijackers be given to the FBI 'so they could bring that cell in and take out the terrorists.' However, Weldon said Pentagon lawyers rejected the recommendation because they said Atta and the others were in the country legally, so information on them could not be shared with law enforcement. [....]" [Based on: A.P., 08/10/05]

2005 - Fourth-Quarter Losses / U.S. Auto Parts Makers - August 9th, 2005: "Visteon Corp. and Delphi Corp., the largest U.S. autoparts makers, posted a fourth straight quarter of losses as Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. slashed production in the first half. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News]

2005 - Formally Charged / London Bombing Suspects - August 9th, 2005: "LONDON - Three suspects in the failed bombings July 21 in London were formally charged Monday [08/08/05] with attempted murder, and a British citizen wanted in the United States on suspicion on trying to set up a terrorist training camp said he would fight extradition. [....] Muktar Said Ibrahim, 27, Ramzi Mohammed, 23, and Yassin Hassan Omar, 24, were ordered to remain in custody until Nov. 14 on charges of attempted murder, conspiracy to use explosives in connection with the botched transit bombings on July 21. They will face life in prison if convicted. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Prison Riot / San Quentin State Prison, California - August 9th, 2005: "Forty-two inmates were injured Monday [08/08/05] when a dispute between white and Hispanic inmates erupted into the largest riot at San Quentin State Prison in 23 years. [....] Prison officials said as many as 80 inmates in several different buildings were involved in the tumult, which lasted six minutes. It took about 50 officers armed with batons and pepper spray to quell the fight, said Sgt. Eric Messick, a warden's administrative assistant." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Record Bank Heist / Brazil - August 10th, 2005: "SAO PAULO, Brazil - Thieves spent three months tunneling under a busy city boulevard in northeastern Brazil to break into a Central Bank vault and pull off the biggest robbery ever in South America's largest country. The crime netted $67.8 million and was remarkably similar to a tunnel heist last year, in which more than $1 million was stolen from a Sao Paulo company that transports money for banks. The suspected mastermind of that caper reportedly had escaped from prison three years earlier - by digging a tunnel. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Spam Settlement / Scott Richter - August 10th, 2005: "SEATTLE - Microsoft Corp. will accept $7 million to settle its lawsuit against a man once billed as one of the world's most prolific spammers. The software maker heralded the deal as a coup in the ongoing fight against unsolicited commercial e-mails, known as spam. Microsoft said the money from Scott Richter and his company, OptInRealBig.com, will be used to increase efforts to fight spam. [....] Richter was once ranked as the world's third-most prolific spammer. Microsoft said his business sent an estimated 38 billion spam messages a year." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Released / Five Former Saudi Prisoners - August 10th, 2005: "Five Saudis who were held at the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, before they were handed over to Saudi security officials have been released, the Saudi Interior Ministry said Tuesday [08/09/05]. [....]  The report did not name the five, or state when they were handed to Saudi authorities or how long they were detained at Guantanamo and in Saudi jails." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Relieved of Duty? / U.S. Gen. Kevin Byrnes - August 10th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - The Army sacked a four-star general who was the subject of a Defense Department investigation into alleged sexual misconduct, officials said Tuesday [08/09/05]. Gen Kevin Byrnes, commander of Army Training and Doctrine Command, was approaching retirement when the Army chief of staff, Gen. Peter Schoomaker, decided to relieve him of duty. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Raised / Federal Funds Interest Rate, U.S.A. - August 10th, 2005: "[....] Chairman Alan Greenspan and his colleagues lifted a key short-term rate, called the federal funds rate, by one-quarter percentage point, to 3.50 percent. It marked the 10th increase of that amount in the Fed's 14-month campaign to tighten credit. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - At Odds With American Ideal? / Jerry Falwell Statement? - August 10th, 2005: "A Jewish organization is calling on the Rev. Jerry Falwell to retract a 'vote Christian in 2008' statement made months ago in a letter raising money for his ministries. The criticism of Falwell appeared Monday [08/08/05] on the Web site of the Anti-Defamation League, a group organized in 1913 to fight anti-Semitism. Falwell, founder of Liberty University in Lynchburg Va., and Moral Majority, included with his mass fund-raising letter for Falwell Ministries a sticker that reads, 'I Vote Christian.' Abraham Foxman, the Anti-Defamation League's national director, said Falwell's statements are 'directly at odds with the American ideal and should be rejected.' [Based on: News Services]

*Trivia: - Why Jews Should Vote Republican - September 13th, 2004:

   "If it's an election year, it must be time for my quadrennial column urging Jews to vote Republican. Though I feel a bit like Sisyphus, I'll try not to be a sourpuss.
   "Here are some of the questions I usually get on this subject:

[....]

* Republicans support Israel only because they think it portends the Second Coming of Jesus.

   "I don't think this is true, but even if it were, what's the problem? Republicans support Israel for many reasons. They sympathize with Israel's predicament as a tiny outpost of enlightenment and liberty amid a raging sea of fanaticism and backwardness. They appreciate Israel's loyalty to the United States. Democrats, by contrast, tend to see Israel as the oppressor of the Palestinians - 'a people of color,' in the argot of the left - and therefore as unworthy of support. [....] Finally, Israel has had no better friend in the White House than President George W. Bush. It would be a well-deserved expression of appreciation if Jewish votes provided the margin of victory for this best of all friends to Israel."

[Based on: article by Mona Charon (Copyright Creators Syndicate), St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 09/13/2004]

2005 - Pullout Protest / Jerusalem - August 11th, 2005: "JERUSALEM - More than 100,000 opponents of Israel's pullout from the Gaza Strip and part of the West Bank streamed to the Old City of Jerusalem for a combination group prayer and protest Wednesday evening [08/10/05]. [....] Orthodox Jews have been at the forefront of opposition to the planned withdrawal, objecting to Israel relinquishing any part of the Holy Land promised to the Jews in the Bible. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Sentenced / David Meyers - August 11th, 2005: "Former WorldCom controller David Meyers, the third-ranking company executive charged in the $11 billion accounting fraud, was sentenced Wednesday [08/10/05] to one year and one day in prison. U.S. District Judge Barbara Jones said she was sparing Myers, 47, a longer prison term because of his extraordinary cooperation with the government and his early admission of responsibility and remorse. Myers admitted he instructed WorldCom's accounting department to make billions of dollars in adjustments to financial statements." [Based on: S.L.P.D. article, p. C2, 08/10/05]

2005 - New High / Crude Oil, U.S.A. - August 11th, 2005: "Crude-oil prices zoomed higher on Wednesday [08/10/05], touching a new high of $65 a barrel, with buyers focused on refinery snags, shrinking U.S. inventories of gasoline and motorists' growing thirst for fuel despite high prices at the pump. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Signed / U.S. Transportation Bill - August 11th, 2005: "President George W. Bush arrives Wednesday [08/10/05] at the Caterpillar plant in Montgomery, Ill., where he signed the $286.4 billion transportation bill. He said it will 'help give hundreds of thousands of Americans good-paying jobs.' [Based on: A.P. picture article, p. A2, S.L.P.D., 08/11/05]

*Trivia: "[....] Two years in the making, the highway bill contains more than 6,371 special projects valued at more than $24 billion, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense. The distribution of the money for these projects 'is based far more on political clout than on transportation need,' said Keith Ashdown, vice president of policy for the group. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A2, S.L.P.D., 08/11/05]

2005 - Chevron Takeover / Unocal Corp. - August 11th, 2005: "LOS ANGELES - Shareholders of oil and natural gas company Unocal Corp. on Wednesday [08/10/05] formally voted to accept a takeover bid by Chevron Corp., even as some at the meeting continued to lament a failed rival bid [a lower bid] for the company by a Chinese oil company. [....]" [Based on: A.P.] - [Brackets text inserted - E.M.]

2005 - Underway / Perseid Meteor Shower - August 11th, 2005: "The Perseid meteor shower is underway. The shower's broad peak extends from August 11th through 13th - but August 12th is best. If you get away from bright city lights and watch the sky between local midnight and dawn on Friday morning, August 12th, you can expect to see dozens to hundreds of meteors."

[Based on: http://spaceweather.com/] - [08/11/05]

2005 - Record July Tax Collections / U.S.A. - August 11th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - A record amount of tax revenue flowed into federal coffers in July, helping to keep the government on track to significantly lower this year's budget deficit. On Wedneday [08/10/05], the Treasury Department said that revenue collections jumped 5.7 percent last month from a year ago, pushing total receipts to $142.09 billion, the largest amount ever collected by the federal government in the month of July. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. C3, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/11/05]

2005 - Skin Cancer Growing? / United States - August 11th, 2005: "Skin cancer victims younger than 40 are almost twice as common today as they were 30 years ago, a Mayo Clinic study says. The finding puts scientific fact behind a long-held belief that skin cancer is growing in the United States. [....] The study was published in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association. Reviewing records from 1976 to 2003, the researchers saw a particularly substantial increase in nonmelanoma among women younger than 40. Nonmelanoma accounts for 97 percent of skin cancers and usually can be treated by surgical removal of the cancerous tumors. Melanoma accounts for the rest and is a more severe form." [Based on: News Services article, p. A4, S.L.P.D., 08/11/05]

2005 - Abducted / Interior Ministry Official, Iraq - August 11th, 2005: "BAGHDAD, Iraq - Gunmen kidnapped a senior Interior Ministry official in the heart of the Iraqi capital Wednesday [08/10/05], and the U.S. military reported that five more American soldiers had been killed. [....] Brig. Gen. Khudayer Abbas, chief of the administrative affairs office in the Interior Ministry, was dragged from his car on Andalus Square and spirited away in another vehicle, according to police Maj. Abbas Mohammed Salam. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - "Patriotic Exercise" / U.S. Pledge of Allegience - August 11th, 2005: "An appeals court upheld on Wednesday [08/10/05] a Virginia law that requires public schools to lead a daily recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, rejecting a claim that its reference to God was an unconstitutional promotion of religion. A suit filed by Edward Myers of Sterling, Va., a father of three, raised the objection to the phrase 'one nation under God.' A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Pledge of Allegiance is a patriotic exercise, not an affirmation of religion similar to a prayer." [Based on: News Services article, p. A8, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/11/05]

*Trivia: "A campaign by the Knights of Columbus, a Roman Catholic organization, and other religious leaders said the pledge of allegiance needed to be distinguished from similar orations that were used by 'godless communists.' The prospect of atomic war between world superpowers reportedly moved President Dwight Eisenhower [to direct congress] to add the words 'Under God' to the pledge in 1954. The original pledge of allegiance, minus the reference to God, was adopted in 1942. The phrase, 'Under God', would later [in October, 2003] come under Supreme Court review."

*Trivia: "The director of religious outreach for the Democratic Party [Rev. Brenda Bartella Peterson] says she resigned this week [August 2004] because of criticism over her support for removing the words 'under God' from the Pledge of Allegiance. [....] The Catholic League, a conservative anti-defamation group based in New York, critisized the political views of Peterson, an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), in three statements issued over the first three days of the week. On Wednesday [08/04/04], Peterson resigned and cited 'recent negative publicity' from the amicus brief in the pledge case that she and 31 other clergy members signed. [....] The 350,000-member Catholic League called Peterson a 'left-wing activist.' It also critisized her for her role in the Clergy Leadership Network, a coalition of anti-Bush religious liberals for which she served as executive director." [Based on: A.P., 08/07/04]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Southeast of the Loyalty Islands- August 11th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 09:08:50 (UTC) on Thursday, August 11, 2005. The magnitude 6.2 event has been located SOUTHEAST OF THE LOYALTY ISLANDS. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report at http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usbqan.htm]

2005 - Sentenced / Scott Sullivan - August 12th, 2005: "NEW YORK - Scott Sullivan, the former finance chief at WorldCom Inc., was sentenced on Thursday [08/11/05] to five years in prison by a judge who called him 'the architect' of the company's epic fraud, but gave him a break because he testified against his boss, Bernard Ebbers, the company's former chief executive. U.S. District Judge Barbara Jones praised Sullivan for pleading guilty last year and helping prosecutors build their case against Ebbers, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Hispanic Population / Missouri - August 12th, 2005: "The Hispanic population in Missouri grew by nearly 25 percent between 2000 and 2004, according to figures released Thursday [08/11/05] by the U.S. Census Bureau. The bureau accounted for 148,201 Hispanics living in Missouri in the population estimates of July 1, 2004. That's an increase of 29,584 since 2000. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

2005 - Trivia / Nuclear Proliferation? - August 12th, 2005: "[....] North Korea and Iran seem to be coordinating their positions. Both argue that the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty gives them the right to develop the full nuclear fuel cycle and to use it for peaceful purposes. And both have pointed out that Mr. Bush recently agreed to give India nuclear technology, a move that runs counter to nonproliferation efforts. Critics of the United States also point out that nuclear nations haven't made good on their promises in the nonproliferation treaty to disarm. [....]" [Based on: S.L.P.D. article (Nuclear Weapons, 'Pearl for a bon bon'), p. B8, 08/11/05]

2005 - Yahoo Percentage / Alibaba.com - August 12th, 2005: "BEIJING - Yahoo Inc. is paying $1 billion in cash for 40 percent of China's biggest online-commerce firm, Alibaba.com, strengthening the ties that international companies are forging in the world's second-largest Internet market. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Fraud Charges / Jack Abramoff - August 12th, 2005: "MIAMI - Lobbyist Jack Abramoff, a key figure in investigations involving House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, was indicted Thursday [08/11/05] by a federal grand jury on fraud charges arising from a 2000 deal to buy casino boats. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Civilian Casualties / Afghanistan - August 12th, 2005: "QALAT, Afghanistan - Afghan villagers said Thursday [08/11/05] that U.S. warplanes had bombed houses, killing several civilians and wounding others, including an infant. U.S. forces, meanwhile, suffered their sixth fatality in a week amid rising violence. Zabul's governor, Ali Khail, said U.S.-led coalition forces made 'a mistake' during operations against militants in the southern province and that civilians had died. He gave no details. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Drought Conditions / Missouri & Illinois - August 12th, 2005: "Burned-up corn and imperiled soybeans are throwing a powerful management challenge to many Illinois and Missouri farmers this year. [....] The U.S. Department of Agriculture's most recent crop reports showed Missouri with 44 percent of its corn crop poor to very poor, and its soybean crop at 43 percent poor to very poor. In Illinois, the crops are suffering even more. Sixty-one percent of the corn crop was rated poor to very poor, while 41 percent of soybeans were in the same conditions. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

2005 - Launch? / Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter - August 12th, 2005: "NASA postponed the launch of a spacecraft to Mars on Thursday [08/11/05] after a glitch popped up in the computer software used for monitoring the fueling of the rocket used for liftoff. The problem with sensors and software that measure the amount of fuel being loaded into the rocket appeared with just minutes left until liftoff. The launch was rescheduled for this morning [08/12/05] [....] The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is equipped with the largest telescopic camera ever sent to another planet. It is expected to spend at least four years circling Mars." [Based on: News Services]

*Trivia: "A spacecraft loaded with high-tech cameras, antenna and radar began a seven-month voyage to Mars on Friday [08/12/05] that aims to gather more data on the Red Planet than all previous explorations combined. The mars Reconnaissance Orbiter lifted off flawlessly on an Atlas V rocket, three days after space shuttle Discovery returned to Earth from a two-week mission. [....]" [Based on: A.P., 08/13/05]

2005 - Trivia / U.S. Trade Deficit - August 13th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - The United States imported a record amount of foreign oil in June and shipments of Chinese clothing and textiles soared, too, pushing the nation's monthly trade deficit to the third-highest level in history. The Commerce Department said Friday [08/12/05] that the trade deficit for June jumped 6.1 percent to $55.8 billion, compared with a deficit of $55.4 billion in May.The politically sensitive deficit with China also set a record, pushed higher by a surge of 39.2 percent in imports of Chinese clothing and textiles. Analysts said the report highlighted two of the biggest threats to the ecomomy - soaring energy prices and the danger that the widening trade gap with China could spawn a protectionist backlash in the United States. 'The higher global oil prices go, the bigger the check we have to write to foreigners and that will be a growing weight on economic growth,' said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Economy.com. Bills have been introduced in the House and Senate to slap tariffs of 27.5 percent on all Chinese imports unless the Chinese go further to allow their currency, the yaun, to strengthen against the dollar. [....] U.S. manufacturers contend that the yaun is undervalued by as much as 40 percent, giving Chinese companies a tremendous price advantage in selling goods to the United States and erecting a huge barrier to U.S. sales in China. Through the first six months of this year, the deficit with China is 32 percent higher than the same period in 2004, a year when the trade gap with China hit a record of $162 billion, the highest amount with any country. [....] The overall trade deficit is running at an annual rate of $686 billion on this year, up from last year's record of $617.6 billion." [Based on: A.P. article by Martin Crutsinger, p. B5, St .Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/13/05] - [Paragraph indents removed to save space - E.M.]

2005 - "Scanning" Suspended / Google Inc. - August 13th, 2005: "SAN FRANCISCO - Google Inc., responding to complaints from publishers, said Friday [08/12/05] that it will suspend scanning copyrighted books as part of a project that aims to put excerpts from library documents on the Internet. Google in November [2005] will resume scanning the content of copyrighted books for use in its search engine, said Adam Smith, a Google product manager. He said the company will remove copyrighted books when asked to do so by publishers. [....] Publishers worry that Google is improperly putting the onus on them to protect copyrights, said Patricia Schroeder, of the Association of American Publishers. [....] Announced in December 2004, Google's plan involves scanning books from Harvard, Stanford, Michigan and Oxford universities as well as the New York Public Library. Google includes the content of the books in its search engine, and users can see snippets of the books in search results." [Based on: Bloomberg News article, p. 2, S.L.P.D., 08/13/05]

*Trivia: "[....] More than 31 million copyrights have been issued since 1790. Each of the records from before 1978 is recorded on a small card, some 44 million cards in all. Since then, copyrights have been recorded electronically. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A6, S.L.P.D., 08/14/05]

2005 - Straight-Line Winds / St. Louis, Mo. - August 13th, 2005: "A line of powerful thunderstorms moved through the St. Louis area starting about 3:15 p.m. Saturday [08/13/05] downing trees, limbs and utility lines. It left thousands of customers in the dark. [....] The official temperature at Lambert Field fell from 94 degrees at 3 p.m. to 71 degrees by 5 p.m. [....] About 142,000 customers were without power in the St. Louis metropolitan area, AmerenUE spokeswoman Sue Bell said. That included 134,000 in Missouri, East St. Louis and Alton [Il.]. Bell said another 8,000 customers of AmerenIP were without power in Maryville and Belleville. [....] Jon Carney, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Weldon Spring, said the storms developed in central Missouri near the Lake of the Ozarks and moved northeast across the St. Louis area, producing straight-line winds as high as 60 to 70 mph in some areas. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/14/05]

2005 - National Registry / Accutane, U.S.A. - August 13th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - The thousands of Americans who take the acne drug Accutane - and people who prescribe and dispense it - must enroll in a national registry. The action is part of a major government program to tighten access to the medicine, which causes birth defects. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Assassination / Foreign Minister, Sri Lanka - August 13th, 2005: "Sri Lanka's president declared a state of emergency today [08/13/05] after her foreign minister [Lakshman Kadirgamar] was assassinated [08/12/05] at his home. The military blamed the tamil Tiger rebel group, which the slain official worked to ostracize internationally as a terrorist organization. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

*Trivia: "Sri Lanka declared a state of emergency and deployed troops to search for suspects Saturday [08/13/05] after the assassination of the foreign minister, while the government warned the slaying was a serious setback to the country's fragile peace process. The military blamed the separatist Tamil Tiger rebels for the death of Lakshman Kadirgamar, 73, who was shot in the head and heart late Friday [08/12/05] by snipers after finishing a swim at his home. Kadirgamar is an ethnic Tamil and had led efforts to ban the Tamil rebels as a terrorist organization but later backed peace negotiations. The rebel group's political chief on Saturday denied any role in the killing and criticized officials for 'hastily blaming' the group." [Based on: News Services article, p. A14, S.L.P.D., 08/14/05]

*Trivia: "Security forces arrested 12 minority Tamils before dawn Sunday [08/14/05] in connection with the assassination of Sri Lanka's foreign minister. [....] The Tamil Tigers have denied any role in the assassination." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Barred From Britian / Omar Bakri Mohammed - August 13th, 2005: "LONDON - Britain's crackdown on Islamic extremism widened Friday [08/12/05] as officials barred radical Muslim cleric Omar Bakri Mohammed from returning to the country that has been his home for the past two decades. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Sprint Purchase / Nextel Communications Inc. - August 13th, 2005: "Sprint Corp., the No. 3 mobile-telephone carrier, completed the $36 billion purchase of Nextel Communications Inc. Friday [08/12/05] and said shares of the new company will begin trading under the 'S' ticker on Monday."

*Trivia: "Sprint Nextel Corp. said Monday [08/15/05] its spin-off local company will have $7.25 billion in debt and award annual dividends of about $300 million" [Based on: S.L.P.D. article, p. C2, 08/16/05]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Northern Mariana Islands - August 13th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 07:36:52 (UTC) on Saturday, August 13, 2005. The magnitude 6.0 event has been located in the MAUG ISLANDS REG., NORTHERN MARIANA ISL.. The hypocentral depth was estimated to be 46 km (28 miles). (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usbsap.htm]

2005 - Tisha B'Av - August 14th, 2005: "[....] Yonatan Bassi, head of the administration handling evacuation of the settlers, suggested at a Sunday Cabinet meeting that the beginning of the pullout from Palestinian territories be put off from late July to mid-August. He noted the three-week mourning period many Jews observe before the day that marks the destruction of the biblical temples - Tisha B'Av, which falls this year on Aug. 14. Bassi, an observant Jew, raised the issue after 'an internal struggle and talking to rabbis,' said his spokesman, Haim Altman. [....]" [Based on: A.P., 04/19/05]

*Trivia: ""Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon agreed Monday [05/09/05] to delay the evacuation of Jewish settlers and Israeli soldiers from the predominantly Palestinian Gaza Strip until at least mid-August, for what he said were religious reasons. [....] Palestinian Labor Minister Hassan Abu Libdeh said he suspected that Sharon's decision to postpone dismantling the settlements was aimed at gauging the outcome of Palestinian legislative elections scheduled for July 17. The Islamic militant faction Hamas is widely expected to fare well in those polls, if it runs. Israel opposes Hamas' participation in Palestinian elections as long as the group carries weapons and embraces a doctrine calling for Israel's destruction." [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers, 05/10/05]

2005 - Released / 911 Transcripts - August 14th, 2005: "NEW YORK - Radio communication broke down. Commanders lost contact with their squads. Noise and dust obscured the senses. One paramedic likened it to being in an infantry unit overrun by enemy troops. [....] The failures of the day were apparent in the transcripts and radio calls, released as a result of a lawsuit by some of the victims' families and The New York Times." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Trip to Germany / Pope Benedict XVI - August 14th, 2005: "VATICAN CITY - In one of his first official acts, Pope Benedict XVI invited Rome's chief rabbi to his installation ceremony and issued special greetings to Jews. He also assured Muslims that the Roman Catholic church wants to build 'bridges of friendship.' [....] Benedict's pilgrimage to Germany this week in his first foreign trip as pope holds a key test of interfaith relations: He is to have his first face-to-face meetings with Muslim and Jewish groups since attacks in Britain, Egypt, Israel, Turkey and Iraq. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Warning to Iran? / George W. Bush - August 14th, 2005: "In a stern warning to Iran, President George W. Bush said 'all options are on the table' if the Iranians refuse to comply with international demands to halt their nuclear program. Bush's statement during an interview on Israeli TV late Friday [0812/05] was unusually harsh. He previously said diplomacy should be used to persuade Iran to suspend its nuclear program and if that failed then the U.N. Security Council should impose sanctions. Iran's government resumed uranium conversion at its nuclear facility in Isfahan this past week. The International Atomic Energy Agency issued a warning to Iran on Thursday [08/11/05] that expressed 'serious concern' about Iran's intentions." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Anti-War Protestors / Crawford, Texas - August 14th, 2005: "CRAWFORD, Texas - President George W. Bush, noting that lots of people want to talk to the president, on Saturday [08/13/05] defended his decision not to meet with the grieving mother of a soldier [Casey Sheehan ] killed in Iraq. [....] Sheehan [Cindy Sheehan] arrived with about a half dozen supporters. As of Saturday, there were about 300 anti-war protestors and approximately 100 people supporting the president. [....] 'I don't want comfort from him,' she said Friday. 'I want answers. I want the truth.' [....] Casey Sheehan was an altar boy, an Eagle Scout, a church youth group leader. [....]" [Based on: Cox News Service]

2005 - Spreading / Zotob Computer Worm, U.S.A. - August 14th, 2005: "A virus targeting Microsoft Corp.'s Windows operating systems on Tuesday [08/16/05] shut down some computers at Time Warner Inc.s CNN and Walt Disney Co.'s ABC network. [....] The Zotob computer worm has been spreading since Sunday [08/14/05] and affects machines running Windows 2003, 2000 and XP, according to anti-virus software maker Symantec Corp. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News article, p. C2, S.L.P.D., 08/18/05]

*Trivia: "Authorities in Morocco and Turkey arrested two people believed to be responsible for unleashing a computer worm that infected networks at U.S. companies and government agencies this month, the FBI said Friday [08/26/05] Farid Essebar, 18, was arrested in Morocco, while Atilla Ekici, 21, was arrested in Turkey, the FBI said. They'll face charges in those countries, the FBI said. The Zotob worm and its variations targeted computers that run newer Microsoft Corp. operating systems, with Windows 2000 users most seriously affected. [....] Microsoft played a role in locating the suspects, the FBI said. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. B3, S.L.P.D., 08/27/05]

2005 - Iraqi Constitution / Finished? - August 15th, 2005: "Iraq's permanent constitution will be finished on time in mid-August, despite the unsettling assassinations of two Sunni Arabs involved in drafting the document, key Iraqi officials said Wednesday [07/20/05]. [....]" [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers, 07/21/05]

*Trivia: "Iraq's ruling coalition missed another deadline to complete a constitution Thursday [08/25/05], putting off until Sunday [08/28/05] a National Assembly meeting to consider the document. Shiite Muslim and Kurdish leaders dominate Iraqi politics. They said they expected the document to be approved, while Sunni Muslim Arabs charged that the delay violated the law and required that the National Assembly be dissolved. It is the second missed deadline this week. [....]" [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers article, p. A1, S.L.P.D., 08/26/05]

2005 - Proposed Cabinet Ministers / Iran - August 15th, 2005: "TEHRAN, Iran - Iran's new president named a government Sunday [08/14/05] replete with hard-liners in key ministries, nominations seen as likely to ensure more confrontation with the West over the country's nuclear program. None of the 21 ministers in President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's proposed Cabinet is known to back Democratic reforms. The ministers are seen as followers of Iran's conservative supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Major Earthquake / Honshu Japan - August 15th, 2005: "A major earthquake occurred at 02:46:30 (UTC) on Tuesday, August 16, 2005. The magnitude 7.2 event has been located in NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN. The hypocentral depth was estimated to be 53 km (33 miles). (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/usbvae.htm]

2005 - Fatality / Helios Airways Flight ZU522 - August 15th, 2005: "[....] ... Helios Airways flight ZU522 crashed into a mountainside near the ancient city of Marathon, breaking into pieces and bursting into flames. Bodies and debris were strewn across the scenic valley. All 121 people on board were killed in Greece's deadliest plane disaster. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

*Further Reading ...

2005 - Beginning / Israeli Withdrawal, Gaza Strip - August 15th, 2005: "NEVE DEKALIM, Gaza Strip - After 38 years of occupation and months of preparation and protest, Israel began its withdrawal from the Gaza Strip on Sunday [08/14/05] by sealing the area and preparing to deliver final eviction notices to thousands of Jewish settlers. [....]" [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers]

*Trivia: "[....] The withdrawal is estimated to take up to two months, with settlers leaving over the next three weeks and the last Israeli soldier exiting by Oct. 2 [....]" [Based on: Chicago Tribune article, p. A5, S.L.P.D., 08/15/05]

*Trivia: "[....] The Associated Press reported that according to the army, 1,842 people were evacuated Wednesday [08/17/05]. Of 1,600 families in Gaza, only 600 remained by the end of the day. [....]" [Based on: Los Angeles Times, 08/18/05]

2005 - Early Stages / "Origins of Life in the Universe Initiative" - August 15th, 2005: "Harvard University is launching [2005] a research project to study how life began. The team of researchers will receive $1 million in funding annually from Harvard over the next few years. 'My expectation is that we will be able to reduce this to a very simple series of logical events that could have taken place with no divine intervention,' said David R. Liu, a professor of chemistry and chemical biology at Harvard. The 'Origins of Life in the Universe Initiative' is still in its early stages, scientists told the Boston Sunday Globe. Harvard has told the research team to make plans for adding faculty members and a collection of multimillion-dollar facilities." [Based on: News Services article, p. A3, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/15/05]

2005 - Inauguration / President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, Kyrgyzstan - August 15th, 2005: "Kyrgyzstan's new president said Sunday [08/14/05] that the Central Asian country will pursue an independent foreign policy. Kurmanbek Bakiyev was inaugurated Sunday to lead the former Soviet republic. He won a landslide victory July 10. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Trivia / Google and Yahoo - August 16th, 2005: "Google Inc. has questioned a claim by rival Yahoo! Inc. that Yahoo had substantially increased the sweep of its search engine to 19.2 billion Web pages, a figure that would top Google's reported 8.2 billion pages." [Based on: S.L.P.D. article, p. C2, 08/16/05]

2005 - Trivia / U.S. Budget Deficit - August 16th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - Congressional forecasters said Monday [08/15/05] this year's federal deficit, while still huge, won't be as bad as earlier projected. That represents a welcome turn for President George W. Bush, who inherited healthy surpluses four years ago and saw them disappear in a sea of red ink. [....] The CBO predicted a $331 billion deficit for the budget year ending Sept. 30 and a $314 billion deficit for next year. [....] The White House forsees a $333 billion deficit for the year that's about to end and a $341 billion deficit for next year. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. C4, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/16/05]

2005 - Settlement / Merrill Lynch - August 16th, 2005: "Merrill Lynch & Co., the world's third-largest securities firm, has agreed to pay $10 million to settle claims it failed to deliver prospectuses to investors, the New York Stock Exchange said Monday [08/15/05]. [....]" [Based on: S.L.P.D. article, p. C2, 08/16/05]

2005 - Trivia / Palestinian Elections - August 16th, 2005: "KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip - Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas on Monday [08/15/05] set Jan. 21 [2006] as the date for long-overdue legislative elections. Senior officials said the move was an attempt to give militants a strong incentive not to disrupt Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. Abbas' main political rival, the Islamic militant group Hamas, will compete in national elections for the first time and is expected to make a strong showing. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Delay? / Iraqi Constitution - August 16th, 2005: "BAGHDAD, Iraq - Iraqi legislators voted Monday [08/15/05] for a one-week delay in presenting a draft of a new constitution after negotiators were unable to resolve bitter disputes by a midnight deadline. [....]" [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers]

2005 - "God in Community Life?" / Italy - August 16th, 2005: "CASTEL, GANDOLFO, Italy - Pope Benedict XVI on Monday [08/15/05] encouraged the display of crucifixes in public buildings, saying God needs to be present in community life. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A2, S.L.P.D., 08/16/05]

2005 - Car Bomb / Grozny, Chechyna - August 16th, 2005: "A powerful car bomb exploded outside a restaurant in Chechnya's capital of grozny on Monday [08/15/05], killing two people and wounding at least 11, a police spokesman said. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Gang Fights / Guatemalan Prisons - August 16th, 2005: "Gang members [Mara Salvatrucha gang] armed with grenades, guns and knives attacked rivals [Ms-18 gang] in at least four Guatemalan prisons Monday [08/15/05], leaving at least 30 dead, authorities said." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Settlement / Reliant Energy Inc. - August 16th, 2005: "Reliant Energy Inc., owner of five power plants in California, agreed to pay $460 million to settle claims it manipulated electricity prices and gouged consumers during the state's energy crisis in 2000 and 2001. [....] Reliant still faces U.S. criminal charges of shutting down power plants and submitting false bids to benefit from the crisis. The company has denied the allegations." [Based on: S.L.P.D. article, p. C2, 08/16/05]

2005 - Second-Quarter Profit / Lowe's Cos. - Fueled by the nation's strong housing market, second-quarter profit for No. 2 home-improvement retailer Lowe's Cos. jumped 20 percent, beating Wall Street estimates. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Earth Entering? / Solar Wind Stream - August 16-17th, 2005: "Earth is about to enter a solar wind stream flowing from a coronal hole on the sun, and the encounter could spark a mild geomagnetic storm. Sky watchers in Alaska and Canada should be alert for auroras on August 16th and 17th."

[Based on: http://spaceweather.com/] - [08/15/05]

*Trivia: "A high-speed solar wind stream is buffeting Earth's magnetic field. Sky watchers in Alaska and Canada should be alert for auroras tonight [08/16/05]."

[Based on: http://spaceweather.com/] - [08/16/05]

2005 - World Youth Day / Cologne, Germany - August 16th, 2005: "Thousands of cheering and singing young people from dozens of nations gathered in Cologne Tuesday [08/16/05], inaugurating World Youth Day with a jubilant Mass led by the city's archbishop. German-born Pope Benedict XVI will join the six-day Roman Catholic youth festival on Thursday [08/18/05] in his first foreign trip. His predecessor, John Paul II, was the founder of the 20-year-old event and a favorite with young people. [....] More than 400,000 people have registered for the World Youth Day, and organizers say as many as a million may turn up by the time the festival ends on Sunday [08/21/05]." [Based on: News Services, 08/17/05]

*Trivia: "[....] The pope preached from the bow of a flower-bedecked ferry that cruised down the Rhine and docked at Cologne's double-spired Gothic Cathedral. [....]" [Based on: News Services, 08/19/05]

2005 - False Reporting / Abdul Rauf Noormohamed - August 16th, 2005: "CHICAGO - A man admitted Monday [08/15/05] that he falsely told federal agents his relatives were linked to Osama Bin Laden's terrorist network and were plotting to blow up the Sears Tower and other landmarks. [....] Authorities say Noormohamed [Abdul Rauf Noormohamed] made 10 phone calls to state and federal officials between late 2003 and early 2004, falsely saying that 'terrorists' were planning to detonate bombs at such Chicago landmarks as the Sears Tower, Soldier Field, City Hall and O'Hare International Airport. [....] FBI agents said he named five relatives and two others as members of bin Laden's al-Qaida network and the militant group Islamic Jihad because he had been quarreling with them. Noormohamed was arrested in January 2004 at O'Hare while preparing to board a plane for Egypt." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Getting on with life - August 17th, 2005:

Here are two quotes for posterity:

"Let them eat cake" (1789: Queen Marie Antoinette's reaction, while luxuriating at her Palace of Versailles, to the pleas of hungry Parisians.
   "It's ... important for me to go on with my life" (2005): President George W. Bush explaining his refusal, as he luxuriated at his Texas ranch, to explain a young soldier's death in Iraq to his pleading mother.

[Based on: Letter To The Editor by J.M. Haas, Kirkwood Mo., p. B6, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/17/05]

2005 - Trivia / .XXX Domain Name, U.S.A. - August 17th, 2005: "Citing 'unprecedented' opposition, the U.S. government has asked the Internet;s key oversight agency to delay approval of a new '.xxx' domain name designed as a virtual red-light district. [....] Approval has been expected as early as Tuesday [08/23/05]

2005 - U.S. Travel Warning / Sinai Peninsula - August 17th, 2005: "The U.S. Embassy has warned Americans not to travel to the Sinai Peninsula after a roadside bombing that slightly wounded two Canadian women attached to a peacekeeping force. Monday's blast [08/15/05], caused by a natural gas canister packed with explosives, targeted a vehicle belonging to the Multinational Force and Observers, an 1,800-member force helping monitor the 1979 Egypt-Israeli peace deal. The embassy statement said the attack followed the reported discovery by Egyptian authorities of one ton of explosives in the north Sinai city of El Arish on Sunday [08/14/05] and the reported shooting a day earlier at an intercity bus." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Settlement / J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. - August 17th, 2005: "NEW YORK - Taking another step to put the Enron Corp. debacle behind it, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. agreed Tuesday [08/16/05] to pay $350 million in cash to settle claims over the role it played in the fraud that led to the collapse of Enron in 2001. J.P. Morgan Chase also agreed to drop claims it filed as part of Enron's bankruptcy. It had valued the claims at $660 million. [....] The latest settlement brings J.P. Morgan's total bill to settle regulatory and other lawsuits related to its role in the Enron collapse to more than $3.3 billion, including the $2.2 billion the bank agreed to pay in the class-action lawsuit that has the University of California as the lead plantiff. [....]" [Based on: New York Times article, p. C2, S.L.P.D., 08/17/05]

2005 - 2.2 Billion in Loans / Express Scripts Inc. - August 17th, 2005: "Express Scripts Inc. obtained $2.2 billion in loans from Credit Suisse First Boston and Citigroup Inc. to finance the purchase of Priority Healthcare Corp. [....] Express Scripts, the third-biggest U.S. pharmacy benefits manager, said on July 21 that it would buy Priority for $28 a share, or $1.3 billion in cash, to gain sales of more high-priced drugs that need special handling." [Based on: Business section article, p. C2, S.L.P.D., 08/17/05]

2005 - NATO Helicopter Crash / Afghanistan - August 17th, 2005: "KABUL, Afghanistan - A helicopter carrying NATO peacekeepers crashed in a western Afghan desert Tuesday [08/16/05], killing 17 Spanish troops. A helicopter flying with it made an emergency landing, injuring five soldiers on board. [....] In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said preliminary information showed no indication the aircraft was shot down or collided with another craft. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Second-Quarter Profit / Wal-Mart Stores Inc. - August 17th, 2005: "Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said second-quarter profit increased by the smallest amount in four years and reduced its full-year earnings forecast, blaming record gasoline prices for crimping consumer spending. The shares had their biggest decline in more than eight months. Net income at the world's largest retailer increased 5.8 percent to $2.8 billion, or 67 cents a share, from $2.65 billion, or 62 cents, a year earlier. Total revenue in the quarter ended July 31 climbed 10 percent to $77.52 billion, the company, based in Bentonville, Ark., said Tuesday [08/16/05] in a statement. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News article, p. C3, S.L.P.D., 08/18/05]

2005 - Fatality / West Caribbean Airways Flight, Venezuela - August 17th, 2005: "MACHIQUES, Venezuela - A chartered jet filled with tourists returning home to the French Caribbean island of Martinique crashed Tuesday [08/16/05] in western Venezuela, killing all 160 people on board. The pilot had been attempting an emergency landing after both engines failed, officials said. [....] The cause of the crash remained unclear. [....] Most of the wreckage was spread across a strip of land about 110 yards long, indicating that the plane came in at a sharp angle, said Alfonzo Marquez, mayor of the nearby town of Rosario." [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "[....] Venezuelan investigators were focusing on the possibility that fuel problems led both engines to fail simultaneously Tuesday [08/16/05] on the MD-82, said Nelson Serrano, an emergency official. [....] Panamanian authorities, however, said they found no evidence of tainted fuel and that the plane had plenty of fuel for the three-hour trip. The focus on the engines and the fuel stems from the pilot's radio call shortly before the crash. He said both engines had failed and requested permission for an emergency landing. [....] Search teams recovered the jet's two black boxes, including the cockpit voice recorder, said Col. Antonio Rivero, chief of Venezuela's emergency agency. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A7, S.L.P.D., 08/18/05]

2005 - Design-And-Testing Phase / Future Combat System, U.S.A. - August 17th, 2005: "Boeing Co. will proceed to the design-and-testing phase of the Army's $100 billion networked-warfare project after the Pentagon approved its blueprint for the system. Much of the work on the program is being overseen by Boeing's defense unit, which has its headquarters in St. Louis. Boeing is the second-largest U.S. defense contractor. Subcontractors including General Dynamics Corp., Raytheon Co., Northrop Grumman Corp., and Computer Science Corp. will begin developing computer-linked manned and unmanned air and ground weapons systems that make up the Future Combat System. The first field test is scheduled for next year, Boeing said late Monday [08/15/05] in a statement. The Future Combat System, the Pentagon's second-most-costly program, will be a family of faster, lighter battle vehicles linked by high-speed, digital communications and new combat radios. Boeing plans to deliver the first weapons platform in 2008 and release the others in two-year intervals with network capability between all the weapons systems planned for 2014." [Based on: Bloomberg News article, p. C2, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/17/05] - [As with most articles on this timeline, the paragraph indents for this report were removed to save space - E.M.]

2005 - Car Bombs / Iraq - August 18th, 2005: "BAGHDAD, Iraq - Three car bombs exploded Wednesday [08/17/05] in quick succession in and around a crowded bus station in Baghdad. The blasts killed at least 43 people, injured 88 and paralyzed one of Iraq's most important transportation networks. [....]" [Based on: New York Times]

2005 - Tornadoes / Wisconsin - August 18th, 2005: "The sky 'just exploded' as a tornado damaged or destroyed dozens of homes, killing one man, a witness said. Meteorologists believe 18 tornadoes touched down Thursday night [08/18/05] in an area almost 100 miles long. The state normally averages 21 tornadoes in an entire year, according to the National Weather Service. [....] In all, about 30 homes were destroyed and more than 200 damaged. 'It's just difficult to grasp how powerful this storm was. The damage is just really beyond comprehension,' Gov. Jim Doyle said after touring the area by helicopter." [Based on: News Services, p. 24, S.L.P.D., 08/20/05]

2005 - First-Half Profits / Nestle SA - August 18th, 2005: "Nestle SA, the world's biggest food and drink company, on Wednesday [08/17/05] reported a 32.4 percent increase in first-half net profits due to new accounting rules that took effect earlier this year. Nestle, of Vevey, Switzerland, posted first-half profits of $2.93 billion (3.68 billion Swiss francs), up from $2.24 billion in the first half of last year. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Sentenced / Jason Smathers - August 18th, 2005: "NEW YORK - A former America Online software engineer [Jason Smathers] on Wednesday [08/17/05] was sentenced to 15 months in prison for stealing 92 million screen names and e-mail addresses, then selling them to spammers who sent out up to 7 billion unsolicited e-mails. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. C2, S.L.P.D., 08/18/05]

2005 - Homemade Bombs / Bangladesh - August 18th, 2005: "More than 100 homemade bombs planted by suspected Islamic militants exploded nearly simultaneously across Bangladesh on Wednesday [08/17/05]. Two people were killed. At least 125 people were wounded. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Trivia / U.S. Public School Teachers - August 18th, 2005: "[....] Forty percent of public school teachers plan to exit the profession within five years, the highest rate since at least 1990, according to a study being released today. [....] In 1996, 24 percent of teachers were age 50 or older. This year, 42 percent of teachers are. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A3, S.L.P.D., 08/18/05]

2005 - Decline / Crude Oil Prices, U.S.A. - August 18th, 2005: "NEW YORK - Crude-oil futures fell almost $3 a barrel on Wednesday [08/17/05], the biggest decline since April, after a government report showed that refineries have sufficient supplies to make gasoline for the final weeks of summer. [....] Crude oil for September delivery fell $2.83, or 4.2 percent, to close at $63.25 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the biggest one-day slide since April 27. Prices touched to $67.10 a barrel on Friday [08/12/05], the highest since trading began in 1983. Prices are up 35 percent from a year ago. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News article, p. C3, S.L.P.D., 08/18/05]

2005 - Trivia / New "Biological Bandage" - August 18th, 2005: "NEW YORK - Using human fetal cells, Swiss scientists have developed a new type of 'biological bandage' for severe burns. The treatment speeds and improves the healing process and may well prove effective for other serious skin wounds, according to a preliminary study being published [The Lancet] today. But because the bandages are derived from the skin cells of aborted fetuses, the novel therapy is likely to generate controversy in some countries. [....]" [Based on: New York Times]

2005 - Unearthed / Gold Artifacts, Bulgaria - August 18th, 2005: "SOFIA, Bulgaria - Bulgarian archaeologists have unearthed about 15,000 tiny golden pieces about 4,100 years old. Who made them isn't exactly known. The golden ornaments have been dug up during the past year from a tomb near the village of Dabene, about 75 miles east of the capital, Sofia, said Vasil Nikolov, an academic consultant on the excavations. He said the find rivaled that of the gold from Troy, the ancient city that was the scene of the Trojan War. 'This treasure is a bit older than Schliemann's finds in Troy, and contains much more golden ornaments,' Nikolov said. Heinrich Schliemann, an amateur German archaeologist, found the site of ancient Troy in 1868. He led ambitious excavations that proved he was right. The treasure from Bulgaria consists of miniature golden rings. Some are so finely crafted that the point where the ring is welded is invisible with an ordinary microscope. 'We don't know who these people were, but we call them proto-Thracians,' Nikolov said. [....] Bozhidar Dimitrov, director of the National History Museaum of Bulgaria, said the site consisted of a settlement and three mounds, and that excavations would continue. 'This is the oldest golden treasure ever found in Bulgaria after the Varna necropolis,' Dimitrov said. The golden artifacts from a vast burial complex discovered in the 1970s near the Black Sea port of Varna date back to the end of the fifth millennium B.C. and are internationally renowned as the world's oldest golden treasure." [Based on: A.P. article, p. A12, S.L.P.D., 08/18/05] - [Paragraph indents removed to save space - E.M.] 

2005 - Campaign Period Begins / Afghanistan - August 18th, 2005: "Afghanistan on Wednesday [08/17/05] began its campaign period for the landmark Sept 18 legislative elections - the next step toward democracy. Fear of attacks by Taliban-led rebels kept many candidates off the streets. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Suspect Arrested / Madrid Train Bombings - August 18th, 2005: "Serbian police arrested [08/16/05] a key suspect wanted in connection with last year's Madrid train bombings, the Spanish Interior Ministry said Wednesday [08/17/05]. The suspect was identified as Abdelmajid Bouchar. The 22-year-old Moroccan allegedly fled a suburban Madrid apartment shortly before ringleaders in the attack blew themselves up to avoid arrest three weeks after the bombings. [....] The judge investigating the train bombings has jailed 31 people - mostly Moroccans or people of Moroccan origin." [Based on: News Services article, p. A11, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/18/05]

2005 - Trivia / Missouri Schools - August 19th, 2005: "More than a third of Missouri's schools fell short of meeting state goals in reading and math, according to preliminary test results that will be made public today by the state's education department. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, p. A1, 08/19/05]

2005 - Roadside Bombs / Iraq - August 19th, 2005: "BAGHDAD, Iraq - A roadside bomb killed four U.S. soldiers on Thursday [08/18/05] as the political stalemate over the country's draft constitution stretched into another day. [....] Iraq's Interior Ministry reported that another U.S. military convoy was hit by a roadside bomb in Baghdad earlier, but that no casualties had been reported. [....]" [Based on: New York Times]

2005 - Economic Growth? / U.S.A. - August 19th, 2005: "NEW YORK - A guage of future economic activity rose by a sluggish 0.1 percent in July, suggesting that higher oil prices and interest rates are tempering the prospects for economic growth. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Sentenced / BTK Killer, U.S.A. - August 19th, 2005: "WICHITA, Kan. - BTK serial killer Dennis Rader was ordered to serve 10 consecutive life terms [a minimum of 175 years without a chance of parole] Thursday [08/18/05] after a two-day hearing that produced an outpouring of emotion and anger from families of the people he stabbed and strangled in the Wichita area starting in the 1970s. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Roadside Bomb / Afghanistan - August 19th, 2005: "KABUL, Afghanistan - Two U.S. soldiers were killed Thursday [08/18/05] when a roadside bomb hit a military convoy that was supposed to protect road workers. The new American ambassador warned that violence by Afghan rebels would not end soon. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Computer Glitch? / U.S. Airports - August 19th, 2005: "A U.S. Customs computer system used to process passengers arriving on international flights shut down Thursday evening [08/18/05], leaving long lines of impatient travelers, officials said. 'This is a national problem,' said Zachary Mann, spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection in southern Florida. At New York's airports, customs officials were processing travelers by hand. At Miami International Airport, lines stalled as international passengers waited to get through customs." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Fatality / Catholic Priest, Columbia - August 19th, 2005: "Gunmen dragged a Roman Catholic priest out of a classroom in rural Columbia on Thursday [08/18/05] and shot him to death, officials said. He was the third priest killed this week in the country. [....] The church has been trying to  mediate the civil war in Columbia. An archbishop, a bishop, 60 priests and three nuns have been killed in the past 20 years, in part because of the war." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Second-Quarter Earnings / Barnes & Noble Inc. - August 19th, 2005: "Barnes & Noble Inc., the world's biggest book retailer, said second-quarter earnings rose 54 percent after the new record-breaking Harry Potter book lured shoppers to stores. The company forecast an enexpected third-quarter loss, sending the shares to their biggest decline of five months. Net income increased to $13.5 million, or 18 cents a share, from $8.73 million, or 12 cents, a year earlier. Sales climbed 6.4 percent to $1.17 billion, the New-York-based company said Thursday [08/18/05] in a statement. Barnes and Noble met analysts' per-share profit estimates excluding some costs. [....]" [Based on: Bloomberg News]

2005 - Trivia / Joint Military Exercises, China & Russia  - August 19th, 2005: "China and Russia began joint military exercises Thursday [08/18/05]. The war games will practice coordinating a joint force that culminates in a mock invasion next week using thousands of air, sea and land forces to simulate a mission stabilizing a restive country. [....] The generals repeatedly stressed at a news conference that the drills weren't intended to be a show of intimidation. 'The goal is peaceful,' Russian Gen. Yuri Baluyevsky said." [Based on: News Services]

*Trivia: "Thousands of Chinese and Russian troops wrapped up their first joint military exercises Thursday [08/25/05] with a mock invasion by paratroopers on China's east coast. The eight-day maneuvers with 7,000 Chinese troops and 1,800 Russians underscored growing military ties between the former Cold War enemies. [....]" [Based on: News Services, 08/26/05]

2005 - Fatality / Saleh Mohammed al-Aoofi, Saudi Arabia - August 19th, 2005: "RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - Police raids Thursday [08/18/05] touched off gunbattles that killed six Islamic extremists. Authorities said the dead included al-Qaida's leader in Saudi Arabia, whose hideout was found to hold the head of a murdered American last summer. A police officer was also killed. Saleh Mohammed al-Aoofi, the kingdom's top fugitive, had led local al-Qaida operations since police killed his predecessor a year ago during a crackdown on religious militants in Saudi Arabia. The country is the homeland of Osama bin Laden and most of the Sept. 11 suicide hijackers. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Trivia / Sunspot 798 - August 20th, 2005: "What a difference a day makes. On August 19th, sunspot 798 was barely visible. Today, August 20th, it is five times wider than the entire planet Earth. Daily images captured by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) show how quickly this 'spot has grown. [....] When sunspots develop at breakneck speed, their magnetic fields can become unstable and explode. Sunspot 798 now poses a threat for M-class solar flares."

[Based on: http://spaceweather.com/] - [08/20/05]

2005 - Liable / Merck & Co. - August 20th, 2005: "ANGLETON, Texas - A Texas jury on Friday [08/19/05] found pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. liable for the death of a man who took the once-popular painkiller Vioxx, awarding his widow damages of $253.4 million in the first in thousands of lawsuits pending across the country. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Crude Oil Futures / U.S.A. - August 20th, 2005: "Crude-oil futures rose more than $2 a barrel on Friday [08/19/05] as production disruptions in Ecuador and a failed rocket attack on two U.S. Navy vessels at a Jordanian port heightened concern that U.S. imports will decline. Output in Ecuador's northeastern Amazon region dropped 95 percent to 10,000 barrels a day Thursday [08/18/05] because of protests, state oil company PetroEcuador said. Crude oil for September delivery rose $2.08, or 3.3 percent, to close at $65.35 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the biggest one-day gain since July 1." [Based on: Business Page article, p. B3, S.L.P.D., 08/20/05]

2005 - Strike / Northwest Airlines - August 20th, 2005: "[....] About 4,400 mechanics, cleaners, and custodians walked out on Aug. 20 rather than accept 25 percent pay cuts and layoffs that would have halved their work force. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. B3, S.L.P.D., 08/31/05]

2005 - Controversial Truck Rule / U.S.A. - August 20th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - The government said Friday [08/19/05] that truck drivers can stay behind the wheel for 11 hours straight without resting, leaving intact a rule that truckers and safety advocates alike say is unsafe. For 60 years, truckers could drive up to 10 hours at a time. Two years ago, the administration of President George W. Bush changed the rule to allow them 11 hours of driving time. But a federal judge rejected the changes and told the administration to revise it. On Friday, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced a revision to the rule that still would let truckers drive 11 hours, three hours more than safety advocates say they should. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Term Loan / Valero Energy Corp. - August 20th, 2005: "Valero Energy Corp. got $4.5 billion in loans to help buy Premcor Inc. to become the largest U.S. oil refiner. The loans will allow San Antonio-based Valero to complete its $6.9 billion purchase of Premcor as early as Sept. 1. The purchase will push Valero, the third-largest U.S. refiner, past ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil Corp. in capacity. Bank of America Corp. and BNP Paribas SA arranged a $2 billion term loan that will be used to purchase Premcor, based in Old Greenwich, Conn." [Based on: Business Page article, p. B3, S.L.P.D., 08/20/05]

2005 - Rocket Attack? / Jordan & Israel - August 20th, 2005: "AQABA, Jordan - Attackers firing Katyusha rockets narrowly missed a U.S. amphibious assault ship ... Friday [08/19/05] but killed a Jordanian soldier. [....] Two more rockets were shot toward nearby Israel without causing serious damage. [....] The Abdullah Azzam Brigades posted a statement on the Internet saying its fighters fired the rockets Friday. [....] All three rockets fired Friday - the one at the port and the two at Israel - appeared to have been fired from a building in a warehouse district in the hills on Aqaba's northern edge, about five miles from the port, said a Jordanian intelligence official who showed journalists the site. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article by Shafika Mattar, p. 5, S.L.P.D., 08/20/05]

*Trivia: "A Syrian linked to an Iraq-based terrorist group has been arrested as the prime suspect in the rocket attack that barely missed a U.S. warship docked in the port of Aqaba, the Jordanian government said Monday [08/22/05]. The government statement said the suspect is Mohammed Hassan Abdullah al-Sihly. He plotted and carried out the attack along with two of his sons and an Iraqi, it said. The statement said the plotters were part of an Iraq-based terrorist group, which was not named. [....] An al-Qaida group called the Abdullah Azzam Brigades claimed responsibility for Friday's attack. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - President Pierre Nkurunziza / Burundi - August 20th, 2005: "A former Hutu rebel leader was chosen by lawmakers as Burundi's president Friday [08/19/05]. The selection capped an internationally mediated effort that hopes to bring peace to a central African nation wrecked by 12 years of ethnic war. Pierre Nkurunziza, 40, is the son of a Hutu father and a Tutsi mother. [....] His Force for the Defense of Democracy was once Burundi's largest Hutu-led rebel group and as a political party now controls both houses of parliament." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Non-Internal Source? / Highly Enriched Uranium, Iran - August 21st, 2005: "U.N. nuclear agency tests have concluded that traces of highly enriched uranium on centrifuge parts were from imported equipment - rather than from any enrichment activities by Iran, a senior Western diplomat said Saturday [08/20/05]. The findings support Iran's claims that the material entered the country together with centrifuge parts provided by Pakistan. The diplomat who confirmed the results spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case. 'The source of contamination was not related to Iran,' said Iran Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi. 'We are sure the source is not internal.' The United States has alleged the material was produced by Tehran and the particles were evidence that Iran was experimenting with producing highly enriched uranium, which is only used in nuclear weapons." [Based on: News Services article, p. A10, S.L.P.D., 08/21/05]

2005 - Trivia / Autism - August 22nd, 2005: "[....] Autism is a spectrum of developmental disorders that disrupts social interaction, delays or destroys language, and causes people to repeat behaviors, such as hand-flapping or rocking, or to focus on specific topics to the exclusion of all else. [....] No one knows for sure what causes autism, though theories abound. Researchers have yet to prove a connection between the disorder and any environmental trigger. [....] The Duke researchers, led by Margaret Pericak-Vance, director of the Duke Center for Human Genetics, have implicated a pair of faulty neural off-switches in autism. The genes, known as GABRA4 and GABRA1, are part of the GABA system. GABA is the nickname of gamma aminobuttyric acid, a neurotransmitter responsible for inhibiting nerve cell function. It also is involved in early brain development. Pericak-Vance and her colleagues reported the interaction in the September issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics. [....]" [Based on: article by Tina Hessman, pp. A1 & A4, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/22/05]

2005 - Skin Cells to Stem Cells? - August 22nd, 2005: "WASHINGTON - Scientists for the first time have turned ordinary skin cells into what appear to be embryonic stem cells - without having to use human eggs or make new human embryos in the process, a Harvard research team announced Sunday [08/21/05]. [....] The new report is to be published this week in the journal Science but was made public on the journal's Web site Sunday. [....] The researchers emphasize in their report that the technique is still far from finding application in medicine. Most important, they note: Because it involves the fusion of a stem cell and a person's ordinary skin cell, the process leads to the creation of a hybrid cell. While that cell has all the characteristics of a new embryonic stem cell, it contains the DNA of the person who donated the skin cell and the DNA of the initial embryonic stem cell. At some point before these hybrid cells are coaxed to grow into replacement parts to be transplanted into a person, that extra DNA must be extracted, the researchers write. The team describes this task as a 'substantial technical barrier' to the clinical use of stem cells made by the new technique." [Based on: Washington Post article, p. A3, S.L.P.D., 08/22/05]

2005 - Joan Baez / Crawford, Texas - August 22nd, 2005: "Iraq war protestors camping out near President George W. Bush's ranch got some support Sunday night [08/21/05] from folk singer Joan Baez. 'In the first march I went to (opposing Vietnam), there were 10 of us. This is huge,' Baez told relatives of fallen U.S. soldiers Sunday before performing a free concert just up the road from the ranch. About 500 people gathered to hear her on a 1-acre lot offered by a landowner who opposes the war. Not far away, protestors continued a camp-out started by grieving mother Cindy Sheehan. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Roadside Bomb / Afghanistan - August 22nd, 2005: "KABUL, Afghanistan - A roadside bomb attack killed four U.S. soldiers and wounded three others in southern Afghanistan on Sunday [08/21/05] as Taliban insurgents pressed an escalating guerrilla war nearly four years after their radical Islamic movement was swept from power. [....] At least 72 U.S. service members involved in the U.S.-led military operations in Afghanistan have died since Jan 1, making this year the costliest one for the United States since the U.S.-led invasion ousted the Taliban in late 2001. [....]" [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers]

2005 - Lead Pollution Demonstration / China - August 22nd, 2005: "Protestors clashed with police over the weekend in a demonstration against lead pollution from an eastern Chinese battery factory. Dozens of people were injured, witnesses and hospital officials said. After the initial melee with police, thousands of demonstrators torched police cars and broke into government offices, witnesses reported. The violence Saturday [05/20/05] began after a large crowd gathered outside the Tian Neng Battery Factory in Meishan, a town in Zhejiang province, to demonstrate against lead pollution, said a villager who refused to give his name for fear of retribution. 'Police fired tear gas into the crowd and beat innocent bystanders,' the man said in a telephone interview. [....] Another man, who did not want to give his name for fear of retribution, said about 1,000 police officers later went to villages and harassed and beat the participants. He said that up to 5,000 residents later broke into government offices and burned police cars." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Bird Flu / Japan - August 23rd, 2005: "Authorities have detected another outbreak of bird flu at a poultry farm near Tokyo, the Agriculture Ministry said Monday [08/22/05]. Officials have extracted and identified a virus in the H5 family from chickens at a poultry farm in Ibaraki state, the ministry said. All birds at the farm will be culled except for those kept in enclosed poultry houses that were unaffected, the ministry said. Kyodo News agency said about 260,000 chickens would be culled. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Bomb Blast / Lebanon - August 23rd, 2005: "An explosion rocked a shopping center and hotel late Monday [08/22/05] in the Zalka neighborhood in north Beirut. At least two people were injured and damage was extensive, security officials said. Lebanese soldiers cordoned off the area, punching and hitting journalists to keep them back. Security forces were seen rounding up several suspects, including five men with their hands tied behind their backs. They were taken to a military vehicle. Zalka Mayor Michel Murr told the Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. that the bomb was placed in an open area between the Centre Moussa shopping center and the Promenade Hotel, which was packed with tourists. No tourists were injured." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Sentenced / Eric Rudolph - August 23rd, 2005: "ATLANTA - Nearly nine years after setting off the bomb that disrupted the 1996 Summer Olympics, Eric Rudolph was sentenced Monday [08/22/05] to four life terms in prison at a hearing in which victims described him as a cowardly terrorist. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Trivia / Israeli Withdrawal, Gaza Strip - August 23rd, 2005: "HOMESH, West Bank - Israeli troops wrapped up their forced removal of settlers in the Gaza Strip on Monday [08/22/05] and shifted thousands of soldiers to two small settlements that will be closed in the West Bank, where some commanders are worried that they will face their most ferocious opposition. Israeli forces are expected to move in today [08/23/05] on Sanur and Homesh, where hundreds of activists have been laying the groundwork for a major fight to derail the pullout. [....]" [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers]

*Trivia: "[....] The relative ease and lack of violence with which Israel pulled out of the 25 settlements in just a week was a stinging setback to Israel's ultra-nationalist movement, which for months had mounted vocal and dramatic resistance. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "[....] Israel said Friday [08/26/05] that the settler population in the West Bank has grown by 10,000 people this year, surpassing the number of settlers that were removed from Gaza. This rise was calculated before the arrival of Gaza settlers in Ariel. Last week, Israel confiscated 450 acres of land from Palestinians living east of Jerusalem around the West Bank settlement of Maale Adumim. The land is needed to build the controversial barrier around the city, the army said. [....] When the soldiers finally came and put the families on buses last Monday [08/22/05], they didn't have a place to go. On their way out of Gaza, the head of Ariel's College of Judea and Samaria called Netzarim's council leader and told him to drive everyone to Ariel, some 35 miles north of Jerusalem. Thus, Netzarim's 85 families came to Ariel as a last-minute option. Israeli officials say the evacuees, like all Israelis, have the right to move to the West Bank. Officials said the settlers wouldn't lose any compensation for their decision." [Based on: Cox News Service article, p. A13, S.L.P.D., 08/28/05]

2005 - Sued / Frederick Schiff & Richard Lane - August 23rd, 2005: "Two former executives of Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., previously indicted on criminal conspiracy and securities fraud charges, were sued Monday [08/22/05] by federal regulators who accused them of civil fraud in orchestrating a $1.5 billion scheme to deceive investors about the company's performance. The Securities and Exchange Commission announced the lawsuit against Frederick Schiff, Bristol-Myers' former chief financial officer, and Richard Lane, former executive vice president and president of the pharmaceutical company's medicines group. The SEC is seeking unspecified civil penalties against the two former executives. In June, Bristol-Myers agreed to pay $300 million in a deal with the Justice Department to avoid prosecution on a criminal conspiracy charge stemming from its accounting scandal. The company has doled out about $800 million to settle lawsuits and investigations tied to the incentives it paid its wholesalers to stockpile inventory, inflating sales and earnings. In March 2003, the maker of Excedrin, Plavix and Pravachol restated $900 million in profit and $2.5 billion in revenue reported from 1999 through the first half of 2002." [Based on: Business page article (p. B2), St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/23/05]

2005 - Chinese Acquisition? / PetroKazakhstan Inc. - August 23rd, 2005: "BEIJING - China's biggest state-owned oil company reached an agreement to buy a major oil producer in neighboring Kazakhstan for $4.2 billion - a victory in Beijing's campaign to secure foreign energy supplies for its booming economy. The acquisition of PetroKazakhstan Inc., based in calgary, Alberta, by a unit of China National Petroleum Corp., comes just three weeks after Hong Kong-based Cnooc Ltd. ended its bid for Unocal Corp. in the wake of opposition from U.S. politicians. The new deal, which still requires the approval of PetroKazkhstan's shareholders, would be the biggest acquisition yet in a string of Chinese corporate takeovers overseas. [....] Beijing is especially interested in Kazakhstan, which is expected to become one of the world's leading oil producers. The discovery of the huge Kashagan oil field on its Caspian Sea coast in 2000 prompted some in the industry to call it the 'Kuwait of Central Asia.' Chinese President Hu Jintao visited Kazakhstan in July and signed an agreement with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev to develop a 'strategic partnership.' The two governments already are partners in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization - a six-nation security group led by Beijing and Moscow that is meant to combat Islamic extremism in Central Asia." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Early Retirement Packages / St. Louis Post-Dispatch - August 23rd, 2005: "The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is offering early retirement incentives to salaried and nonsalaried employees in a bid to reduce staffing and counter rising operating costs. The buyout plan announced Monday [08/22/05] covers workers who are at least 50 years old and have been with the paper for at least five years. Incentives include lump-sum payments equal to one week of pay for every six months of continuous service. Terrance C.Z. Egger, president and publisher, said in a memo to workers that adjustments were necessary because of the 'difficult revenue environment' for the paper. 'We believe the best way to do this is to provide a generous early retirement incentive that rewards long-term employees who have helped make and keep our newspapers strong,' he said. Eligible employees have until Sept. 9 to indicate interest in the offer. The memo on the buyouts did not say how many volunteers the paper was seeking. If the response in any area of the business is too great, the Post-Dispatch might impose limits on the number of people who can participate, or might stagger departure dates, Egger said." [Based on: staff reports, p. B3, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/23/05]

2005 - Call to Assassinate Hugo Chavez? / Pat Robertson - August 23rd, 2005: "VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson called Monday [08/22/05] for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, whom Robertson called a 'terrific danger' to the United States. Robertson said on his show, 'The 700 Club,' that it was the United States' duty to stop Chavez from making Venezuela a 'launching pad for communist infiltration and Muslim extremism.' [....] Venezuala is the fifth-largest oil exporter and a major supplier of oil to the United States. The CIA estimates that U.S. markets absorb almost 59 percent of Venezuala's total exports. Robertson said: 'You know, I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it. It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war ... and I don't think any oil shipments will stop.' [....] 'We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability,' Robertson said. 'We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one, you know, strong-arm dictator,' he continued. 'It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with.' " [Based on: A.P. article, p. A4, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/23/05]

*Trivia: "The Bush administration swiftlt distanced itself Tuesday [08/23/05] from a suggestion by Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson that American agents should assassinate Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, long at odds with U.S. foreign policy. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, appearing at a Pentagon news conference, said when asked: 'Our department doesn't do that kind of thing. It's against the law. He's a private citizen. Private citizens say all kinds of things all the time.' [....] Chavez is expected to attend the special session of the U.N. General Assembly next month in New York. [....] 'The ball is in the U.S. court, after this criminal statement by a citizen of that country,' Rangel [Vice president of Venezuela, Jose Vicente Rangel] said. 'It's a huge hypocricy to maintain this discourse against terrorism and at the same time, in the heart of that country [U.S.A.], there are entirely terrorist statements like those.' [....]" [Based on: A.P. article by Barry Schweid, p. A4, S.L.P.D., 08/24/05]

*Trivia: "Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson apologized Wednesday [08/24/05] for calling for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, after earlier saying his remarks had been misinterpreted. 'Is it right to call for the assassination? No, and I apologize for that statement,' Robertson said in a posting on his Web site. 'I spoke in frustration that we should accomodate the man who thinks the U.S. is out to kill him.' [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers article, p. A3, S.L.P.D., 08/25/05]

2005 - Trivia / Missouri Exports - August 24th, 2005: "Missouri exported goods worth $5.1 billion in the first six months of the year, according to figures made public on Monday [08/22/05] by the Department of Economic Development. That's an increase of 11 percent compared to the $4.6 billion in products exported to foreign countries during the first six months of 2004, the department said. And it puts the state on pace to break last year's record of $9 billion in exports. Missouri saw sharp increase in the export of agricultural products and electrical equipment in the second quarter of 2005, the department said." [Based on A.P. & S.L.P.D. reports]

2005 - Sun in Virgo - August 24, 2005: "Reported date when the Sun entered the constellation Virgo." [Based on: http://www.astro.com/swisseph/swephae.htm - 2005 A]

2005 - Hacker / USAF Computers - August 24th, 2005: "SAN ANTONIO - A hacker is suspected of tapping into a military database containing Social Security numbers and other personal information for 33,000 Air Force officers and some enlisted personnel, an Air Force spokesman said Tuesday [08/23/05]. [....] Access was gained to the Social Security numbers, birth dates and other information sometime in May or June, apparently by someone with the password to the Air Force computer system, Brabenec [Tech. Sgt. James Brabenec] said. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "Internet sites in China are being used heavily to target computer networks in the Defense Department and other U.S. agencies, successfully breaching hundreds of unclassified networks, according to several U.S. officials. [....] 'The scope of this thing is surprisingly big,' said one of four government officials who spoke separately about the incidents, which stretch back as far as two or three years and have been code-named Titan Rain by U.S. investigators. All officials insisted on anonymity, given the sensitivity of the matter. [....] Others see the electronic probing as the work of other hackers simply using Chinese networks to disguise the attacks' origins." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - U.S. Contract / GE & Rolls-Royce - August 24th, 2005: "EVENDALE, Ohio - A joint venture between General Electric Co. and Rolls-Royce Group PLC has won a $2.47 billion contract to develop an engine for the military's next-generation stealth jet fighter. The contract is the largest military developmental contract in about 20 years for GE's jet-engine division, GE Aircraft Engines, which is based in the Cincinnati suburb of Evendale and employs about 6,800." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Trivia / Alzheimer's & Daydreaming? - August 24th, 2005: "[....] A new Washington University [Mo.] study shows that the part of your brain used to daydream is the first to be attacked by Alzheimer's. A team of scientists from Washington University and the University of Pittsburgh used five imaging techniques to map the brains of 746 people. The researchers found that parts of the brain involved in daydreaming, musing, mulling and reliving memories in young people were the first places where neuron-damaging plaques are deposited in people on the brink of dementia. The data could mean that thought wears down more active regions of the brain, leaving them vulnerable to attack from Alzheimer's. The finding, published today [08/24/05] in the Journal of Neuroscience, seems to run counter to the popular keep-your-brain-active theory for staving off the degenerative brain disease. [....] The new study is the first to correlate images showing where amyloid plaques congregate with brain function maps. [....] [Based on: article by Tina Hesman, p. A10, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/24/05]

2005 - Airline Accident / TANS Peru Flight 204 - August 24th, 2005: "LIMA, Peru - A Peruvian airliner carrying 100 people crashed  Tuesday [08/23/05] near a jungle town while attempting an emergency landing in a storm., killing at least 37 people, officials said. The pilot tried to land in a marsh, but the impact split the aircraft in two, a regional official said. At least 57 people from TANS Peru Flight 204 were being treated at local hospitals, and it was not clear whether anyone had escaped injury in the crash, the latest of five serious airline accidents around the world this month. [....] 'The preliminary information we have is that the accident could have been caused by wind shear,' Belvan [TANS spokesman, Jorge Belevan] said. Wind shear is a sudden change in wind speed or direction." [Based on: A.P. article, p. A7, S.L.P.D., 08/24/05]

*Trivia: "[....] The crash killed at least 37. TANS airline said wind shear Tuesday afternoon [08/23/05] may have forced the pilot's emergency landing attempt, making TANS Peru Flight 204 the world's fifth major airline accident this month and August the deadliest month for airline disasters in three years. [....] Four miles from the airstrip, he attempted to make an emergency landing, TANS said, after wind shear apparently pushed his plane close to the ground. [....] Airline disasters this month have killed at least 331 people. The previous deadliest month was May 2002, with three major crashes that killed at least 485. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A2, S.L.P.D., 08/25/05]

*Trivia: "The flight data recorder from a Peruvian airliner that crash-landed last week has been recovered. It was turned in by a man [Cesar Cabello] who scavenged it from the wreckage, a prosecutor said Tuesday [08/30/05]. [....] Arroyo [Cesar Arroyo] said the recorder would be sent to the United States for analysis. [....] A day after the Aug. 23 crash, investigators found the cockpit voice recorder. But hundreds of local residents looted the accident site Thursday while soldiers in charge of securing the area watched impassively. [....]" [ Based on: A.P., 08/31/05] 

2005 - Heavy Rains & Landslides / Central & Southern Europe - August 24th, 2005: "INNSBRUCK, Austria - Rescue workers piled sandbags to hold back surging floodwater and evacuated hundreds of people from Alpine valleys Tuesday [08/23/05] as heavy rain and landslides battered central and southern Europe. [....] Worst hit was Romania with 18 dead, about 20,000 homes inundated and more than 1,000 small bridges damaged. Five people were reported dead Tuesday [08/23/05] in Austria, Bulgaria and Switzerland. Thundering torrents of water surged along riverbanks in many regions, causing millions of dollars in damage. [....] In Bavaria, German soldiers evacuated residents as river embankments collapsed, sending floodwater surging through several Alpine resort and farming towns. Several regions of Switzerland reported the heaviest rainfall on record, and five people there have died in the last two days. A new wave of rain hit northwestern Bulgaria, flooding dozens of communities and killing one man, authorities said Tuesday. Border areas between Croatia and Slovenia were flooded." [Based on: A.P.]

*Trivia: "The death toll from flooding in Europe rose Friday [08/26/05] to 43." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Insurgent Attacks / Iraq - August 25th, 2005: "[....] Dozens of insurgents wearing black uniforms and masks attacked Iraqi police in western Baghdad with multiple car bombs and small arms fire that killed at least 13 people and wounded 43, police said. The violence came as the Pentagon announced it was ordering 1,500 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division to Iraq to provide security for the scheduled referendum Oct. 15 on the proposed constitution and the December national elections." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Accounting Probe / Saks Inc. - August 25th, 2005: "Saks Inc., the luxury retailer under a federal accounting probe, will repay $48.2 million to vendors after improperly collecting markdowns from them over eight years - from 1996 to 2003. [....] The company, which completed an internal investigation, said it gave vendors false information to get the markdown money and that it will discipline one employee." [Based on: Business page article, p. B2, S.L.P.D., 08/25/05]

2005 - Polio Outbreak / Indonesia - August 25th, 2005: "A polio outbreak that has sickened 226 Indonesians - mostly children - could worsen in the coming months and spread to neighboring countries in Southeast Asia, the World Health Organization said Wednesday [08/24/05]. But the U.N. health agency also expressed confidence that next week's nationwide campaign to vaccinate all children under 5 should halt the spread of the crippling disease." [News Services]

*Trivia: "Parents with children lined up Tuesday [08/30/05] across Indonesia in a polio vaccination drive targeting 24 million youngsters. But health workers said some could be missed amid unfounded fears that the vaccine is unsafe or violates Islamic law. [....]" [Based on: News Services article, p. A11, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/31/05]

2005 - Antiterrorism Measures / Britain - August 25th, 2005: "Britain is ready to act whithin days against 'a number' of people to either deport them or bar them from the country under new antiterrorism measures aimed at extremists, the government said Wednesday [08/24/05]. Foreigners who 'seek to create fear, distrust and division' will no longer be welcome, Home Secretary Charles Clarke said. The measures were adopted in response to last month's transit bombings. They are expected to be directed primarily against radical Islamic clerics and extremists who come to Britain and preach hatred. The identities of those who could face action were not revealed." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Not Guilty Plea / Mark S. Kipnis - August 25th, 2005: "CHICAGO - A former executive of the company that owns the Chicago Sun-Times pleaded not guilty on Wednesday [08/24/05] to federal charges that he participated in a scheme to divert $32 million in company funds. Mark S. Kipnis, 58, formerly the top in-house lawyer for Chicago-based Hollinger International, entered the plea in U.S. District Court. Kipnis, who resigned in 2003, is free on a $250,000 personal recognizance bond. He didn't comment to reporters as he left court. Kipnis, former Sun-Times publisher David Radler and Toronto-based Ravelston Corp., a private company owned until this spring by Conrad Black, each were indicted Aug. 18 on five counts of wire fraud. They were accused of cheating shareholders in the United States and Canada, as well as Canadian tax authorities. Black, the ousted chief executive of Hollinger International, wasn't charged in the indictment. Prosecutors have stressed that the investigation is continuing and have said that Radler is cooperating." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Hurricane Katrina / Southeast Florida - August 25, 2005: "Hurricane Katrina slammed into Florida's densely populated southeastern coast Thursday [08/25/05] with sustained winds of 80 mph and lashing rain. Two people were killed by falling trees. [....]" [Based on: A.P., 08/26/05]

*Trivia: "Hurricane Andrew date(s): August 24th-26th, 1992. Hurricane location: Southern Florida & Louisianna. Number of recorded deaths: 58." [Based on: The World Almanac and Book of Facts, 2005, p. 206]

2005 - Detained Reuters Cameraman / Ali al-Mashhadani - August 25th, 2005: "LONDON - The Reuters news agency called Wednesday [08/24/05] for the United States to release a news cameraman who is being detained by the U.S. military. He was taken into custody in Iraq two weeks ago. Reuters says the U.S. military has refused to give reasons for the arrest and detention of cameraman Ali al-Mashhadani, 36. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Nuclear Weapons Ban? / Washington State Capital - August 25th, 2005: "Washington state's capital city has banned anything related to nuclear weapons, a measure critics said could open the city to lawsuits. The ordinance adopted by a 5-2 City Council vote Tuesday [08/23/05] exempted the federal government and two major highways, Interstate 5 and U.S. 101. Nuclear weapons might be moved along such roads. Violaters will be fined $25 a day for the first offense, and $100 a day for a third." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Trivia / "Klotho" Gene - August 26th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - Scientists have identified a hormone that significantly extends the life span of mice, a discovery that could mark a key step toward developing drugs that boost longevity in people. The hormone is the first substance identified that is produced naturally in mammals, including humans, and can extend life span. [....] The discovery was triggered by a study Kuro-o [Makoto Kuro-o, of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas] and his colleagues published in 1997. That work identified a gene in mice that, when damaged, caused the animals to experience all the hallmarks of aging in humans - hardening of the arteries, thinning bones, withered skin, weak lungs - and to die prematurely. They dubbed the gene Klotho for the Greek goddess who spins the thread of life. [....] Other researchers said the findings were remarkable because no one had previously found a naturally occuring hormone capable of extending a mammal's life. [....]" [Based on: Washington Post article, p. A7, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/26/05]

2005 - Trivia / Earth Core Spin - August 26th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - The giant iron ball at the center of the Earth appears to be spinning a bit faster than the rest of the planet. The solid core measures about 1,500 miles in diameter. It is spinning about one-quarter to one-half degree of longitude faster, per year, than the rest of the world, according to a study in today's [08/26/05] issue of the journal Science. The spin of the Earth's core is an important part of the dynamo that created the planet's magnetic field. One of the authors, Xiaodong Song of the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, said he believes magnetic interaction is responsible for the different rates of spin. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A7, S.L.P.D., 08/26/05]

*Commentary: "There has to be a different rate of spin between two surfaces in order to create the friction responsible for molten lava and the gyroscopical effect that maintains the Earth's position in space. Not to mention the centripetal and centrifugal forces that interact to form a neutral zone for Earth's atmosphere. This information is nothing new, but it has been known about for thousands of years. See: Cosmic Forces of MU (Volumes One and Two) by Col. James Churchward." [Etznab Mathers]

   On the equator, on its surface, the solid hard crust of the earth is traveling at a rate of speed about 1500 feet per second. The earth's central molten matter is traveling in the same direction, but much slower than the hard crust. Between the two substances - the one going faster than the other - a frictional line is produced.

[Based on: Cosmic Forces of MU (Volume One), p. 36 (1991 version), by Col. James Churchward]

2005 - Extreme Weather / Europe - August 26th, 2005: "VIENNA, Austria - Fire and floods have engulfed Europe this summer. Drought in Spain and Portugal transformed swaths of woodland into a massive tinder box, and torrential downpours carved a trail of destruction through Alpine valleys and impoverished Balkan villages. Entire sections of the Swiss capital, Bern, have been submerged. Blazes flare up even as old ones are snuffed in Portugal and Spain. And dozens of people have been killed in a third straight summer of extreme European weather that has many asking: Why? [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Gulf of Aden - August 26th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 18:16:33 (UTC) on Friday, August 26, 2005. The magnitude 6.2 event has been located in the GULF OF ADEN. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report @ http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/uscfbg.htm]

2005 - Rolling Blackouts / Southern California - August 26th, 2005: "LOS ANGELES - Sweltering heat and the loss of key transmission lines Thursday [08/25/05] forced power officials in Southern California to impose rolling electrical blackouts. That left as many as half a million people without power for about half an hour, officials said. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A4, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/26/05]

2005 - Roadside Bombs / Southern Russia - August 26th, 2005: "ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia - Two bombs exploded Thursday [08/25/05] on a roadside in Ingushetia, wounding the southern Russian republic's prime minister in an apparent assassination attempt, officials said. The attack was the latest sign of growing violence across the heavily Muslim North Caucasus region. [....] Authorities said two explosives placed about 10-15 yards apart detonated within 10 seconds, the Interfax news agency reported. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Declassified Version? / 911 Report - August 26th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - The CIA's independent watchdog has recommended disciplinary reviews for officials who were involved in failed intelligence efforts before the attacks of Sep. 11, 2001, The Associated Press has learned. [....] Some members of Congress - including California Rep. Jane Harman, the House Intelligence Committee's senior Democrat - are pushing for the CIA to produce a declassified version of the report so the public can debate these and other issues." [Based on: A.P.] 

2005 - Trivia / Israeli-Palestinian Cease-Fire - August 26th, 2005: "GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas denounced on Thursday [08/25/05] a deadly Israeli arrest raid that killed five Palestinians. He called it an intentional provocation aimed at undermining a 6-month-old cease-fire, but he urged militant groups to hold their fire. Militants said they would renew attacks on Israel. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Trivia / Spirit & Opportunity Rovers, Planet Mars - August 26th, 2005: "[....] Remember the mars rovers? After a year and a half on the red planet, Spirit and Opportunity are still puttering along, poking at rocks that tell the story of the planet's warm and watery ancient environment. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

2005 - Greenspan Speaks - August 27th, 2005: "JACKSON, Wyo. - The world's most-powerful economist has this cautionary message for those figuring their house values will keep right on rising: What goes up often comes down - hard. [....] And in a message aimed at policymakers, he said huge U.S. trade and budget deficits threaten the long-term health of the economy [You don't say?]. [....] If house prices were to fall suddenly or if interest rates were to rise rapidly, some local housing markets, homeowners and lenders could get clobbered. [....] During the high-flying stock market days of the 1990s, the Fed chief in December 1996 famously questioned whether Wall Street investors were engaging in 'irrational exuberance.' Despite the warning, stocks continued to soar. In 2000, the stock market bubble began to rupture and wiped out trillions of dollars in paper wealth." [Based on: A.P. article by Jeannine Aversa, p. B3, S.L.P.D., 08/27/05] - [Brackets emphasis added - E.M.]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / South of Panama - August 27th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 18:38:19 (UTC) on Saturday, August 27, 2005. The magnitude 6.0 event has been located SOUTH OF PANAMA. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report @ http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/uscgbk.htm]

2005 - Foreign Relations / U.S.A. & Uzbekistan - August 27th, 2005: "The Uzbek Senate endorsed on Friday [08/26/05] the government's decision to evict U.S. troops from an airbase that has been an important hub for American military operations in Afghanistan. Uzbekistan's ties with Washington have deteriorated since the United States joined other nations in urging an international investigation into the suppression of an uprising in May in the eastern Uzbek city of Andijan." [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Bankruptcy Law / U.S. Religious Organizations? - August 27th, 2005: "A federal bankruptcy judge ruled Friday [08/26/05] that all the parish churches, parochial schools and other property of the Catholic Diocese of Spokane can be sold to pay victims of clergy sexual abuse. [....] U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Patricia Williams wrote, 'It is not a violation of the First Amendment to apply federal bankruptcy law to identify and define property of the bankruptcy estate even though the Chapter 11 debtor is a religious organization.' " [Based on: News Services article, S.L.P.D., p. 26, 08/27/05]

2005 - Trivia / Acrylamide - August 28th, 2005: "California on Friday [08/26/05] sued nine food manufacturers to require them to warn consumers that their french fries or potato chips may contain cancer-causing chemicals. The lawsuit filed by Attorney General Bill Lockyer alleges the companies are violating the Proposition 65 anti-toxics disclosure law by failing to alert consumers about potential exposures to acrylamide in food. The chemical, formed when starchy food is cooked in high temperatures, is on the state list of cancer-causing substances. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Settlement / KPMG - August 28th, 2005: "The accounting firm KPMG has agreed to pay a $456 million fine and have its business practices overseen by an independant monitor to settle allegations by the federal government that it sold illegal tax shelters, said a person familiar with the settlement. [....] The arrangement would allow the case to be dropped entirely next year, so long as the company complies with the terms of the settlement, the person familiar with the settlement said. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

*Trivia: "Eight former executives of KPMG were indicted on Monday [08/29/05] as the Big Four accounting firm admitted it had set up fraudulent shelters to help wealthy clients dodge billions of dollars in taxes. [....] The Justice Department called it the largest criminal tax case ever filed and said the KPMG scam allowed the firm's clients to avoid paying taxes of $2.5 billion. Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Mark Everson said the firm's conduct had exceeded 'clever lawyering and accounting' and amounted to theft. 'Accountants and attorneys should pe pillars of our systems of taxation, not the architects of its circumvention,' he told reporters in Washington. [....] KPMG admitted it helped 'high net worth' clients evade billions of dollars in capital-gains and income taxes by developing and marketing the tax shelters and concealing them from the IRS. The fine of $456 million includes $128 million in forfeited fees that KPMG earned by selling the fraudulent tax shelters. [....] Among those charged was Jeffrey Stein, who was appointed deputy chairman of KPMG in April 2002. His lawyer did not immediately return a call for comment. Another was Jeffrey Eischeid, whose lawyer, Stanley Arkin, criticized the government for bringing the case. [....] There was no immediate word on when the men would appear in court. Federal prosecutors and KPMG engaged in what is known as a deferred-prosecution agreement, meaning the prosecutors won't seek an indictment of the firm as long as it commits no further wrongdoing. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, pp. C1 & C3, S.L.P.D., 08/30/05]

2005 - Bomb Blast / Southern Philippines - August 28th, 2005: "A bomb hidden in a trash can expoloded on a ferry in the southern Philippines as it was loading passengers Sunday morning [08/28/05]. The blast injured at least 30 people, including nine children, military officials said. The region had been on alert for terror attacks. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Nuclear Proliferation? / Middle East - August 28th, 2005: "Egypt's foreign minister on Saturday [08/27/05] turned down a request from the world's nuclear watchdog to sign a treaty banning the testing of nuclear weapons, saying Israel should first join a separate agreement  calling for a halt to the spread of atomic bombs. The refusal by Israel to join the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty has also made the Middle East more insecure, Ahmed Aboul Gheit was quoted by Egypt's semiofficial Middle East News Agency as saying. Aboul Gheit's comments came in a letter to Tibor Toth, the new executive secretary of the commission that oversees the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty." [Based on: News Services article, p. A13, S.L.P.D., 08/28/05]

*Trivia: "Estimated number of nuclear warheads as of 2004: Russia - 16,000 [down from 32,000]; U.S.A - 10,350 [down from 45,000]; China - 400; France - 350; United Kingdom - 200; Israel - 200; Pakistan - 24-48; India - 30-35; North Korea - 6-8? The last four countries on this list [Israel, Pakistan, India & North Korea] are not signatories to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty." [Information based on: N.G.M., August 2005, pp. 104-105]

2005 - Suicide Bomber / Israel - August 29th, 2005: "JERUSALEM - A suicide bomber seriously wounded two security guards Sunday [08/28/05] at an Israeli bus station. [....] The attack was the first since Israel began removing thousands of Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip earlier this month. [....]" [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers & Associated Press reports]

2005 - Indicted / Omri Sharon - August 29th, 2005: "The oldest son of israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was indicted Sunday [08/28/05] on corruption charges in connection with fundraising activities for one of his father's election campaigns, the Justice Ministry announced. Omri Sharon was charged with violating campaign finance laws, forging documents and perjury. He could face up to five years in prison." [Based on: Night Ridder Newspapers & Associated Press reports]

2005 - Health Benefits / Coffee? - August 29th, 2005: "WASHINGTON - [....] Coffee not only helps clear the mind and perk up the energy, it also provides more healthful antioxidants that any other food or beverage in the American diet, according to a study released Sunday [08/28/05]. The findings by Joe A. Vinson, a chemistry professor at the University of Scranton, give a healthy boost to the beverage. [....] Dates, cranberries and red grapes are among the leading fruit sources of antioxidants, he said. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A3, S.L.P.D., 08/29/05]

2005 - Hurricane Katrina / New Orleans - August 29th, 2005: "NEW ORLEANS - One of the most powerful storms ever to threaten the United States bore down on the Gulf Coast on Sunday [08/28/05]. Hurricane katrina sent hundreds of thousands of people fleeing the approach of its 160 mph winds and prompted a mandatory evacuation of New Orleans, a city perilously below sea level. [....]" [Based on: New York Times]

*Trivia: "Former federal disaster chief Michael Brown said Friday [02/10/06] that he told the White House on the day that Hurricane Katrina howled ashore about massive flooding in New Orleans, He said that he had warned that 'we were realizing our worst nightmare.' Brown told senators that on the day in question, Aug. 29, he had dealt directly with White House officials, including chief of staff Andrew Card. He also said officials from the Department of Homeland Security had received regular briefings that day. Administration officials have said they were unaware of the severe damage until after the storm had passed. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A24, S.L.P.D., 02/11/06]

*Trivia: "Hurricane Katrina killed at least 55 people as it slammed into the Gulf Coast just outside New Orleans on Monday [08/29/05] with shrieking, 145 mph winds. The storm submerged entire neighborhoods up to their roofs, swamped Missippi's beachfront casinos and blew out windows in hospitals, hotels and high-rises. [....] The last major hurricane to hit New Orleans directly was Hurricane Betsy, back in 1965. [....]" [Based on: A.P., 08/29/05]

*Trivia: "New Orleans was founded in1718 by Jean Baptiste La Moyne, Sieur de Bienville. At first, it was nothing more than a trading camp on a curve in the east bank of the Mississippi River. Later, the city was organized into a rectangular, fortified community, which still exists today as the French Quarter. The resulting streets were named for French royalty and nobility. [....]"

[Based on: http://www.atneworleans.com/body/main.htm]

*Trivia: "Hurricane Katrina damaged or demolished nearly half a million homes in three states, the American Red Cross said Wednesday [09/14/05]. [....] The hurricane's death toll reached 710 on Wednesday. New Orleans warned that more bodies might still be found. [....]" [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers article, 09/15/05]

*Trivia: "Hurricane Katrina has become the most destructive such storm ever to strike the United States, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday [09/15/05]. [....]" [Based on: News Services article, p. A6, S.L.P.D., 09/16/05]

*Trivia: "The receding floodwater allowed search crews to reach more of the city's devestated neighborhoods, causing the death toll in Louisiana to jump by 90 to 736 as of Monday [09/19/05]. The toll across the Gulf Coast was 973. [....]" [Based on: News Services article, p. A4, S.L.P.D., 09/21/05]

*Trivia: "Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast as a category 3 storm, not a Category 4 as first thought, and New Orleans and lake Pontchartrain likely were spared the storm's strongest winds, the national Hurricane center said Tuesday [12/20/05]. [....]" [Based on: News Services article, p. A9, S.L.P.D., 12/21/05]

*Trivia: "The victims of Katrina may not be who you think they were. [....] People age 60 and older accounted for 64 percent of the deaths from the storm and flooding. [....] The hurricane may be the first natural disaster in history to have specifically picked off the elderly. [....] Hurricane Katrina has an official death toll of 1,417 people, Mutter [Columbia Univ. researcher, John Mutter] said. But more than 4,000 people are still missing. That means as many as 2,000 people may have been killed, he said." [Based on: S.L.P.D. article (Most people killed by Katrina were elderly, researcher finds) by Tina Hesman, p. A5 , S.L.P.D., 02/17/06]

2005 - Missing / Ruby Slippers - August 30th, 2005: "A pair of ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in 'The Wizard of Oz' and insured for $1 million is missing from a Grand Rapids museum. [....]" [Based on: News Services]

2005 - Jury Verdict / DuPont Co. - August 30th, 2005: "DuPont Co., third-largest U.S. chemical maker, lost a $15.5 million jury verdict in Jones County, Miss., over allegations that exposure to toxic chemicals from a DuPont plant caused a deputy sheriff to contract cancer. The lawsuit brought by the ex-deputy, Glen Strong, 52, is the first to be tried of about 2,000 claims that chemicals from the plant in Pass Christian, Miss., contaminated air, soil and water and caused cancer and neurological disorders among area residents. A jury in Laurel, Miss., last week awarded $14 million to Strong and $1.5 million to his wife after finding that exposure to the chemicals left him with multiple myeloma, a blood cancer. The size of the verdict should encourage DuPont to settle the other lawsuits, said Allen Stewart, Strong's lawyer, who also represents other plantiffs. The jury will return Thursday to consider punitive damages. DuPont, which is based in Wilmington, Del., said it wasn't responsible for Strong's illness and will appeal." [Based on: Bloomberg News article, p. C2, S.L.P.D., 08/30/05]

2005 - The Nuclear Double Standard - August 29th, 2005: "The controlled press ignores the fact that the three European nations seeking to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear state have all assisted in the creation of the Middle East's only nuclear arsenal - Israel's. [....] On the one hand, Iran is abiding by its legal obligations under the treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Iran, like every other nation in the Middle East with the exception of Israel, has ratified the NPT and forsworn the pursuit of nuclear weapons. [....] The BBC recently reported that in 1958 Britain had secretly sold Israel 20 tons of 'heavy water,' a key ingredient for its nuclear program. The shipment of deuterium oxide was reported as being 'vital to plutonium production' at Israel's top-secret Dimona nuclear reactor in the Negev Desert. Construction of the Dimona facility began in the late 1950s as the result of a secret agreement with France, which provided assistance with reactor design and construction. While the story of Britain's shipment of heavy water to Israel was reported by the BBC and elsewhere, The New York Times, whose motto is 'All the news that's fit to print,' did not even mention it. A call to the Times asking about the omission was not returned. Senior ministers in then Prime Minister Harold Macmillan's government were reported to have been unaware of the deal, which was supposedly conducted by lower-level civil servants. The shipment was also kept secret from the Americans. [....] Robert McNamara, U.S. secretary of defense from 1961-68, told the BBC he was 'astonished' by the coverup. 'It is very surprising to me we were not told because we shared information about the nuclear bomb very closely with the British,' he said. The heavy water had been bought by Britain from Norway and has been presented in the past as a deal between Israel and Norway. [....] More recently, Germany provided Israel with submarines that had their forward compartments modified, at Israel's request, for the launch of long-range cruise missles. The subs were free. Providing Israel with submarines equipped with the means to deliver nuclear-tipped cruise missles is a clear violation of the NPT by the German government." [Based on: American Free Press (Volume V, # 35, 08/29/05) article by Christopher Bollyn, p. 5] - [Paragraph indents removed to save space - E.M.]

2005 - Airline Blacklists / France & Belgium - August 30th, 2005: "PARIS - France and Belgium have issued blacklists of airlines prohibited from using their airports, an attempt to allay public fears about flying after a recent series of deadly crashes. [....] Twenty-six of the 100 countries that have been assessed fail to meet agency standards. Most of the countries are in Africa, South America and the Caribbean." [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Sunni Demonstrators / Tikrit, Iraq - August 30th, 2005: "BAGHDAD, Iraq Thousands of Sunni demonstrators rallied Monday [08/29/05] in Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit to denounce Iraq's new constitution. The protest came a day after negotiators finished the new charter without the endorsement of Sunni Arabs. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Strong Earthquake / Off East Coast of Honshu, Japan - August 30th, 2005: "A strong earthquake occurred at 18:10:44 (UTC) on Tuesday, August 30, 2005. The magnitude 6.2 event has been located OFF THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)"

[Based on: preliminary earthquake report @: http://earthquakes.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Quakes/uscja7.htm]

2005 - Tornadoes / Georgia - August 31st, 2005: "ATLANTA - Tornadoes spunn off from Hurricane Katrina killed a chicken farmer and destroyed homes and businesses with random vehemence Monday [08/29/05] and early Tuesday [08/30/05] in west-central and northern Georgia. In all, five twisters whirled across the state after the hurricane's [Katrina's] landfall, the National Weather Service said. [....]" [Based on: Cox News Service]

2005 - Poverty Rate / U.S.A. - August 31st, 2005: "WASHINGTON - Even with a robust economy that was adding jobs last year, the number of Americans who fell into poverty rose to 37 million - up 1.1 million from 2003. The Census Bureau figures released Tuesday [08/31/05] mark the fourth straight increase in the government's annual poverty measure. The Census Bureau also said household income remained flat, and that the number of people without health insurance edged up by about 800,000 to 45.8 million people. [....]" [Based on: A.P. article, p. A4, S.L.P.D., 08/31/05]

2005 - Typhoon Talim / Taiwan - August 31st, 2005: "Taiwan took a direct hit from powerful Typhoon Talim on August 31, 2005. At the time, the storm was a Category 3 typhoon with maximum sustained winds estimated at 200 kilometers per hour (120 miles per hour) by the Joint Typhoon Warning Center. The storm cut directly across the island leaving at least 6 people dead. Talim then continued on to mainland China where there were 14 confirmed fatalities and another 15 persons missing. Nine of the fatalities and all the missing persons are a direct result of mudslides [....]."

[Based on: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=13102]

2005 - Trivia / Benjamin Netanyahu - August 31st, 2005: "JERUSALEM - Benjamin Netanyahu announced Tuesday [08/30/05] that he would challenge Prime Minister Ariel Sharon for leadership of the ruling Likud party and replace him as premier. [....]" [Based on: A.P.]

2005 - Major Flooding / New Orleans - August 31st, 2005: "NEW ORLEANS - The second day brought more horror, greater despair: The regional death toll exceeded 100 - and will rise. Rescuers acrobatically plucked thousands from the crests of roofs. Levees failed, and panic flared and spread. New, terrifying floods swept through the heart of New Orleans on Tuesday [08/30/05]. Up to 15 feet of water swamped at least 80 percent of the city. And yet fires raged, fed by leaking natural gas. [....] 'We've lost our city,' said Mare Morial, a former mayor of New Orleans. 'I fear it's potentially like Pompeii.' [....]" [Based on: Knight Ridder Newspapers]

2005 - Trivia / Mad Cow Infection, Texas - August 31st, 2005: "WASHINGTON - The government on Tuesday [08/31/05] closed its investigation into the nation's first domestic case of mad cow disease, saying it could not pin down how a Texas cow was infected with the brain-wasting ailment. Officials continue to believe the 12-year-old Brahma cross cow ate contaminated feed before the United States banned from cattle feed ground-up cattle remains. The only way the disease is known to spread is through eating brain and other nerve tissue from already infected cows. Food and Drug Administration official Steve Sundlof said the most likely culprit was tainted feed eaten before the 1997 ban. The texas-born cow tested positive in June. The investigation into the animal's herd mates and offspring found that 147 were presumed to have been slaughtered for food, feed or other use, and 21 could not be traced. In all, the government traced 413 animals in its investigation. Also Tuesday [08/30/05], officials agreed to let the industry run a nationwide system of tracking the movements of cows, pigs and chickens from birth to the dinner table. The Agriculture Department promised to hustle the system into place after discovering the nation's first case of mad cow disease in December 2003 in an imported cow believed to have been infected in Canada, where it was born. 'It simply makes good sense for producers to design and maintain that piece of the system,' Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said." [Based on: A.P. article, p. A4, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 08/31/05] 

*Further Reading:  

2005 - Alternative Internet? / Google Inc. - August 31st, 2005: "Google Inc.'s effort to throw cold water on the notion that it's building an alternative, or second, Internet still hasn't extinguished the possibility. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch article, p. B2, 08/31/05]

2005 - Hired Out / Maintenance Jobs, United Airlines - August 31st, 2005: "United Airlines, the second-largest U.S. carrier, has hired a Chinese company for major maintenance of its Boeing Co. 777 aircraft, as airlines increase the use of contractors to reduce costs. [....]" [Based on: Business page article, p. B2, S.L.P.D., 08/31/05]

2005 - Settlement / Kmart & Rubbermaid Employees - August 31st, 2005: "DETROIT - Two former Kmart Corp. employees [David Levine & Michael Spake] and two from Newell Rubbermaid Inc. [Barry Berlin & Douglas Ely] have settled civil charges that they conspired to falsify financial reports that inflated Kmart's earnings. [....] The SEC said the four helped Kmart, based in Troy, Mich., improperly book millions of dollars of payments from Atlanta-based Rubbermaid, which makes items such as paint applicators and storage containers." [Based on: A.P. article, p. B2, S.L.P.D., 08/31/05]

2005 - Sub-Par Forecast? / Engineered Support Systems Inc. - August 31st, 2005: "Engineered Support Systems Inc. disappointed investors for a second straight quarter on Tuesday [08/30/05] when the defense contractor gave Wall Street a 2006 profit forecast far below the go-go growth of previous years. Its shares fell by 6 percent. [....] Net revenue rose 17 percent to $258.7 million, but that was $5.6 million below the consensus estimate of analysts, according to Reuters Estimates. [....]" [Based on: St. Louis Post-Dispatch]

Jan.-Feb. / March-April / May-June / July-August / Sept.-Oct. / Nov.-Dec. 2005

The Future

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