TAR

This week the teams left Sydney and flew into the Outback. The teams had two flights to choose from and all of them made it (although it looked like the Cowboys weren't.) The teams had to make some Aboriginal art and then do a dance. Amanda and Kris had to do both challenges since they were the last teams at the beginning of the Race. Then the teams had to dress up as kangaroos and find two certain streets. Mallory was her usual stupid, annoying self while the Asian father/daughter team kept complaining. As usual the father/son team had problems.

In the end Amanda and Kris came in last and were sent home. I would really like to see the Asian father/daughter team or Mallory's team sent home soon (although I feel bad for Mallory's dad.)

Survivor: RI

This week Philip continued to be his crazy self and yet he stayed in the game. The hillbilly (Ralph) found one of the idols and rather than let Russel waste all his time looking for it he basically called him out on finding the clue. That wasn't the smartest thing to do since now Russel is going to work hard to get him out of the game.
Tribal Council had the first blindside. They voted Matt out even though during the show Matt did nothing but praise Boston Rob as his Idol - most of the contestants this season are star-crazed idiots who will do whatever Russel or Boston Rob say. Since Matt was voted out he went to Redemption Island where Francisca was waiting. It seems that this season they are going to get the crazies and kick out the useful.

Worst Cooks In America

I have been watching this show the whole time and today was the season finale. I am glad that Joshie won even though I thought that Georg would win. I didn't really care for most of the dishes throughout the show since they were mostly fish or fish-related.

Anne Burrell won again so hopefully they will have another season soon.

TAR

This was the first show of the season. I didn't care to see that the Father/Son, the Goths, the Father/Daughter Asians or the Father/Daughter (Mallory)were back. I did like that the Mother/Son and the Cowboys were back. This is the first time they went to the Pacific in the beginning of the show instead of at the end.

They went to Australia where they had to take a ferry to an island, swim with sharks and then sail. Other than swimming with sharks the challenges didn't seem hard. At the end of the show the Cowboys were the only ones who were still doing the challenges. I'm not sure if this will be a good season or not yet so will continue watching it.

Survivor: RI

This was the first show of the new season. I don't really like that they brought Boston Rob and Russel back. Neither of them ever won and it seems like a cheap attempt to get more viewers. I am curious to see how the Redemption Island part will work and if it will be any good.

I did think it was good that Kristina found the Idol without any clues, but she made the mistake most people with an Idol make - she kept telling people rather than keep the secret to herself.

The main character I remember from the show is Phillip. There is something seriously wrong with him. He has to say that he was a Federal Agent at every chance he can. I really hope that he worked in the basement and had no real access to important/top secret government information as it is clear he can not keep anything a secret and could have done more harm than good for our country. The way he went off at Tribal Council shows just how unstable he is. I did like that he couldn't remember Francesca's name the million times he said it and he blamed it on "a dry mouth condition that he is getting treated." This guy is pretty weird. I hope he gets kicked off soon - at least before the first jury person is chosen. I know he would add to the drama, but his craziness goes beyond reality show norms.

Russia Changes Times (Again)

From the Moscow Times:

"Medvedev Modernizes Time Zones"

David Cameron should envy Dmitry Medvedev: The Russian president decided this week to move his whole country one time zone further east — something the British prime minister also wants to do, but faces stiff opposition over.Cameron has come under fire from traditionalists who despise giving up Greenwich Mean Time or GMT for "Berlin Time," and from Scottish lawmakers who argue that in the north the sun will rise at only 10 a.m. But in Russia's nine time zones, the clocks will move forward one hour to daylight-saving time on March 27 and then stay there next fall while most other countries move their clocks back to winter time. Moscow will thus move from being three hours ahead of London and two hours from Berlin to four and three hours, respectively, aligning with Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and the Persian Gulf states. When the move is implemented in the world's largest country by landmass it will create a massive gap in the global map of states that reset their clocks twice yearly. But it is likely to please the populace, as daylight-saving time, introduced by the Soviet Union only in 1981, has remained largely unpopular in Russia. A Levada poll found last March that 46 percent of Russians want to scrap summer time, while only 36 percent prefer resetting clocks in the spring and fall. The rest were undecided. Critics say the time change is harmful for health, a notion Medvedev played up when he announced the decision during a meeting with young scientists. "We all are used to cursing this because it really hurts the human biological rhythm. We're all annoyed when we either oversleep or wake up too early," he was quoted by Interfax as saying. Foreign travelers may be the ones to face inconveniences over what national media dubbed "eternal summer time," as time differences with Russia will differ depending on the month. For example, New York will be nine hours behind in the winter but eight hours in the summer. The boundary with Norway, a short strip of land in the Arctic, will mark a three-hour time difference in the winter and a two-hour one in the summer because the local region of Murmansk observes Moscow time. And people in Kaliningrad, the Russian exclave on the Baltic Sea, will have to adapt during the summer to being two hours ahead of their western neighbor Poland and one hour ahead of their eastern neighbor Lithuania, with whom it currently shares a time zone. Some in Kaliningrad fear that this will further isolate the region from its neighbors, from whom they are already separated by EU visa requirements. "I would rather be in line with Europe. Just look at the map, we are on the same meridian as Warsaw," said Vladimir Korolyov, deputy head of the liberal Yabloko party in the region. But he said he still supported the abolition of daylight-saving time. "This was always against nature," Korolyov said by telephone. Sergei Kravchenko, a Moscow-based psychologist, said Medvedev was right to keep time distances within the country at a minimum. Kravchenko, who studies the effect of time on people, argued that the key aim should be to have as little differences as possible. "If everybody wakes up and goes to bed at the same time, it helps people feel more united," he said. Medvedev started his time initiative in his 2009 state-of-the-nation address, when he proposed not just abolishing daylight-saving time, but also reducing the number of time zones. Last year, the country discarded two of its formerly 11 time zones by moving regions on the Volga and in the Far East one hour closer to Moscow time. As a result, Russia now stretches over eight contiguous time zones from St. Petersburg to the Pacific, with Kaliningrad making an extra ninth zone. When he introduced the changes last March, Medvedev said he would study the possibility of further reducing the number of time zones, but called scrapping daylight-saving time unlikely because this could isolate the country. But the president apparently reversed the decision, choosing a more popular path, experts said. "The proposals [to abolish time zones] turned out to be a dead end," said Arkady Tishkov, deputy director of the Academy of Sciences' Geography Institute. Tishkov, who was part of an expert group that advised the Kremlin on the issue, said further reforms had clashed with the interest of governors in the Far East. "Making further changes is maybe not very popular before the elections," he said. The country will have State Duma elections in December and the presidential election in March 2012. A Kremlin spokeswoman refused to comment when asked whether further time zone changes were planned. The March Levada poll found that 44 percent are in favor of keeping time zones as they are and just 33 percent prefer changing them further. Tishkov also said moving clocks forward was better than moving them backward because it results in more daylight. "In Moscow and St. Petersburg, we will have 8 percent more daylight for more than 10 percent of the total population," he said. Moving clocks backward, closer to Moscow time, triggered protests last year, most notably in Samara and in the Far East, where residents said the change threatens to boost crime rates and people's depression.

In Kamchatka, where winter days are short, a rally of 3,000 people was held last December against the time change, and reports said last month that authorities criticized a local performance of Cinderella of triggering "unhealthy emotions," because of the scene where the king sets the clock back an hour to keep Cinderella at the ball.Meanwhile, it seems that the abolition of daylight-saving time is a done deal for Medvedev — and, unlike the British prime minister, he had no significant opposition to square off with over it. The Duma last year considered a bill to abandon it, but parliamentary speaker Boris Gryzlov said Thursday that no such law was needed. "The President has spoken — now it just needs to be done," he was quoted as saying by Interfax. Medvedev's aide Arkady Dvorkovich said the change would be implemented by a governmental decree. till, even in the ruling party, not everybody agrees. "I personally liked daylight-saving time. You wake up, and suddenly a new world has started," said Sergei Markov, Duma deputy for United Russia.But Markov added that the decision also had a very positive political signal. "At last Russia has done something on its own instead of just repeating what others do," he said.

^ Doesn't Russia have anything else better to do then constantly change its time zones? It seems that Russia is solely focused on keeping itself isolated from the rest of the world rather than opening itself up. I would think that having time zones that reflect a region's physical rather than polictical time would be better for everyone. ^

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/medvedev-modernizes-time-zones/430836.html

Egypt: Not So Peaceful

From Yahoo News:

"Mubarak’s departure: What it means, what’s next"

Pro-democracy protesters celebrated in cities across Egypt on Friday after forcing President Hosni Mubarak to step down. Mubarak, who had announced Thursday night in a televised speech that he would keep his title and give some of his authority to Vice President Omar Suleiman, suddenly handed over power to the military and left Cairo. Mubarak's resignation, which ends three decades of authoritarian rule, raises numerous questions about what led to his decision, what happens next and what the transition means. Here are some answers.

What does the change in Egypt mean for the United States?

Mubarak's resignation and the uncertainty facing Egypt are serious issues for American foreign policy. Mubarak's Egypt was a longstanding American ally that cooperated with the United States on a long list of issues, ranging from combating terrorism to assisting U.S. military operations in the Middle East to helping secure shipping lanes to facilitating Arab-Israeli negotiations. The tectonic shift going on in Egypt, and in the broader Middle East, may have dramatic effects on the future price of oil, the extent of American regional influence, Israeli security, and a host of other key questions. With Egypt in a state of transition, the United States might see some of its interests suffer and some remain secure. Whatever ultimately happens in Egypt, the process has only just begun. The fate of America's regional influence and its diplomatic, economic and military ties to the Middle East is a part of that process.

Who is in charge of Egypt now?

Around 11 a.m. EST, Hosni Mubarak, Egypt's president for almost 30 years, resigned. In a 30-second statement, his vice president, Omar Suleiman, announced that the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces would manage the state's affairs. The military now appears to be fully in control of the country. Suleiman, Mubarak's ally, is still part of the governing body but with potentially diminished influence. It is a fluid situation, and how power ultimately will shake out is unclear. The Supreme Council is made up of the heads of the different branches of the military as well as the Minister of Defense and the General Chief of Staff. Defense Minister Mohamed Hussein Tantawi chaired the most recent meeting of the Council in Mubarak's absence.

What happens next? How will the transition work?

What is clear is that a process will begin in which the opposition parties will be involved, though how it will work has not been defined. Much depends on how the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces will structure the tasks ahead. The military already has said it will not accept the legitimacy of the state, meaning it has no intention of maintaining power for the long term. The Army probably will now step back to establish a playbook by which the nation moves to both change laws in the Constitution that have hindered democracy—and set up a process by which new political groups get a role in determining collectively how a fair election needs to be structured.

Where is Mubarak now, and where is he likely to go?

Earlier this morning President Mubarak's presidential plane reportedly left for and landed in Sharm el-Sheikh, the Red Sea resort city in the south of Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. There are some rumors at the moment that he has left the country, but that has not been confirmed. If he has not yet left, it is very possible that he will try to leave Egypt for a safe haven in one of the Gulf States, Europe, or perhaps in the United States, but any nation that accepts Mubarak will have to deal with the anger of the Egyptian public. Mubarak also might have to worry about legal challenges and extradition.

What happened between Mubarak's speech last night and his decision to resign today?

Totalitarian regimes don't fall very neatly and predictably. There were 18 days of pressure that finally produced a resignation, but there was no certainty that Mubarak would in the end give in. Mubarak's ability to stand against the headwinds facing him was impressive on one level. The military most likely had some divisions between those who believed Mubarak should go and those who remained loyal or fearful. This might have been a "soft coup" in which Mubarak was forced by the military to announce the suspension of his presidency. It is important that we did not hear Mubarak resign; we heard Suleiman announce the words that Mubarak refused to utter.

Did the White House play a role in Mubarak's decision to step down?

Yes, the White House mattered but certainly did not play the decisive role. The Egyptian public catalyzed the events that brought Mubarak down. The White House defined the core principles that it most cared about—no violence, respecting the right of people to assemble and protest, and calling for meaningful, inclusive transition—and these became the frame for many other key nations and commentators. This principle-driven pressure from the United States made a difference but was not what mattered most.

What will the relationship be between the United States and the interim government and the civilian opposition leaders now?

This is unclear. The military continues to have robust communication with the Pentagon, and the White House and State Department are in increasing communication with representatives of opposition leaders. The future course of this communication is unclear — but United States can be expected to reach out at the appropriate time to a broad array of leaders in Egypt who themselves are committed to democratic principles. The United States will not, however, attempt to select political winners or losers. This would backfire and undermine America's ability to have a healthy relationship based on mutual interests with Egypt's next government.

What will the repercussions be across the Middle East?

Egypt is a major anchor in the Arab world, in the Islamic world, and a key nation of Africa. The effects of this earthquake may be substantial but also hard to predict. The governments in the region that may be most vulnerable immediately might be Jordan, Morocco, and Yemen, but the political and government dynamics in those countries are not the same as that in Egypt. The dynamic we have seen unfold in the Middle East probably is not done unfolding.

Will the protesters leave Tahrir Square?

Tahrir Square probably will remain a heavily populated site for weeks to come, not because of protesters but because of celebrations that the people there on that site changed their history peacefully and powerfully. Some also might remain in Tahrir Square so that the interests of the public remain visible to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces.

^ My main issue with all of this is hearing government officials and the media around the world constantly say that these protests were peaceful and comparing them to when the Berlin Wall fell. The fact is that over 100 protesters and at least 100 policemen were killed. That is not the defination of "peaceful." People need to pick up a dictionary and look up the word. Also when the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 it truely was peaceful as no one was killed. I think it is way too early to be excited. Egypt has 3 paths it can choose from: becoming an Islamist Republic (like Iran), sinking into civil war or becoming a democratic Republic. I hope for the last one. ^

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_exclusive/20110211/pl_yblog_exclusive/mubaraks-departure-what-it-means-whats-next

UK: Multiculturalism Failed

From the BBC:
"State multiculturalism has failed, says David Cameron"

David Cameron has criticised "state multiculturalism" in his first speech as prime minister on radicalisation and the causes of terrorism. At a security conference in Munich, he argued the UK needed a stronger national identity to prevent people turning to all kinds of extremism. He also signalled a tougher stance on groups promoting Islamist extremism. The speech angered some Muslim groups, while others queried its timing amid an English Defence League rally in the UK. As Mr Cameron outlined his vision, he suggested there would be greater scrutiny of some Muslim groups which get public money but do little to tackle extremism. Ministers should refuse to share platforms or engage with such groups, which should be denied access to public funds and barred from spreading their message in universities and prisons, he argued. "Frankly, we need a lot less of the passive tolerance of recent years and much more active, muscular liberalism," the prime minister said. In his view, such caution is part of the problem. In frank language he made abundantly clear he believes multiculturalism has failed. Any organisation that does not stand up to extremism will be cut off from public funds, and he wants the country to develop a stronger sense of shared identity. It is the first time he has spoken so directly as prime minister, but there are echoes of what has gone before. Tony Blair edged away from multiculturalism in the years after the 7/7 bombings in London, and his ministers moved to stop funding any community organisation that did not challenge extremism. And what of Gordon Brown's continual quest to strengthen "Britishness"?

Behind the scenes, ministers are reviewing the "prevent" strategy, the policies designed to try to deal with extremism. But the review, which had been planned for publication this month, is likely to be delayed. It is not clear yet how Mr Cameron will translate his strong words into action. "Let's properly judge these organisations: Do they believe in universal human rights - including for women and people of other faiths? Do they believe in equality of all before the law? Do they believe in democracy and the right of people to elect their own government? Do they encourage integration or separatism? "These are the sorts of questions we need to ask. Fail these tests and the presumption should be not to engage with organisations," he added. The Labour MP for Luton South, Gavin Shuker, asked if it was wise for Mr Cameron to make the speech on the same day the English Defence League staged a major protest in his constituency. There was further criticism from Labour's Sadiq Khan whose comments made in a Daily Mirror article sparked a row. The shadow justice secretary was reported as saying Mr Cameron was "writing propaganda material for the EDL". Conservative Party chairman Baroness Warsi hit back, saying that "to smear the prime minister as a right wing extremist is outrageous and irresponsible". She called on Labour leader Ed Miliband to disown the remarks.

Meanwhile, the Muslim Council of Britain's assistant secretary general, Dr Faisal Hanjra, described Mr Cameron's speech as "disappointing". He told Radio 4's Today programme: "We were hoping that with a new government, with a new coalition that there'd be a change in emphasis in terms of counter-terrorism and dealing with the problem at hand. "In terms of the approach to tackling terrorism though it doesn't seem to be particularly new. "Again it just seems the Muslim community is very much in the spotlight, being treated as part of the problem as opposed to part of the solution." In the speech, Mr Cameron drew a clear distinction between Islam the religion and what he described as "Islamist extremism" - a political ideology he said attracted people who feel "rootless" within their own countries. "We need to be clear: Islamist extremism and Islam are not the same thing," he said. The government is currently reviewing its policy to prevent violent extremism, known as Prevent, which is a key part of its wider counter-terrorism strategy. Inayat Bunglawala from Muslims4Uk says Mr Cameron is "firing at the wrong target"

A genuinely liberal country "believes in certain values and actively promotes them", Mr Cameron said. "Freedom of speech. Freedom of worship. Democracy. The rule of law. Equal rights, regardless of race, sex or sexuality. "It says to its citizens: This is what defines us as a society. To belong here is to believe these things." He said under the "doctrine of state multiculturalism", different cultures have been encouraged to live separate lives. "We have failed to provide a vision of society to which they feel they want to belong. We have even tolerated these segregated communities behaving in ways that run counter to our values." Building a stronger sense of national and local identity holds "the key to achieving true cohesion" by allowing people to say "I am a Muslim, I am a Hindu, I am a Christian, but I am a Londoner... too", he said. Security minister Baroness Neville-Jones said when Mr Cameron expressed his opposition to extremism, he meant all forms, not just Islamist extremism. "There's a widespread feeling in the country that we're less united behind values than we need to be," she told Today. "There are things the government can do to give a lead and encourage participation in society, including all minorities." But the Islamic Society of Britain's Ajmal Masroor said the prime minister did not appreciate the nature of the problem. "I think he's confusing a couple of issues: national identity and multiculturalism along with extremism are not connected. Extremism comes about as a result of several other factors," he told BBC Radio 5 live. Former home secretary David Blunkett said while it was right the government promoted national identity, it had undermined its own policy by threatening to withdraw citizenship lessons from schools. He accused Education Secretary Michael Gove of threatening to remove the subject from the national curriculum of secondary schools in England at a time "we've never needed it more". "It's time the right hand knew what the far-right hand is doing," he said. "In fact, it's time that the government were able to articulate one policy without immediately undermining it with another."

^ I think David Cameron did a very intelligent thing: he spoke the truth - regardless what would happen to him politically. First Angela Merkel announced that multiculturalism had failed in Germany and now Cameron, announces the same for the UK. I am only waiting to see when the US will announce the same thing, but I don't think that will happen anytime before either 2012 or 2016. For decades countries have willingly let themselves become blinded to everything in the name of politcal correctness. Their national characteristics have been brushed aside in favor of other cultures.

Multicultarism has also failed in the United States. Everyone always talks about our country being the "Great Melting Pot," but what they forget to mention is that the first immigrants came to the country and worked hard to assimilate. They learned English, they strove to become full Americans. Nowadays, immigrants tend to come to the US, not learn English, live in self-imposed ethnic ghettos and actively try not to assimilate into American Society.

I am for the US becoming a nation where English is the sole official language (as many States have already declared it to be,) where immigrants are helped to learn the langauge and where people actively work to assimilate in our society in a constructive way. If immigrants come here just to live with their own kind then why didn't they stay in their home countries in the first place?

Hopefully, people around the world (including government officials) are starting to wake up from the failed dream and to be proud of their national characteristcs and work hard to assimilate immigrants more into the traditional soceity rather than attach the old customs on. ^

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-12371994

Rite Aid

When I moved here two years ago we started using the local Rite Aid (as it was the only pharmacy in town.) Throughout those two years my family and I have had to deal with stupid pharmacists and their assistants. They treated as badly, they forgot to fill prescriptions, they never called us when they were out of a medicine and had to order it - once we had to wait 6 days to get a medicine and each time I went to check on it I was given one reason after another as to why they didn't have it. Above all was the excuses and lies they would tell.

I complained numerous times both to the pharmacy people as well as to the store manager and the main Rite Aid people, but it did no good. It is clear that Rite Aid could care less about good Customer Service.

A few days ago I went in to pick-up some medicine that was supposed to be ready and no one there had a clue about it - even though I had a piece of paper from the store saying when it would be ready. Then the pharmacy people started argueing with me and justifying why they allowed the mistake to happen. One girl there even told me that if I didn't like their service I was free to go elsewhere. This was the last straw. Not only did it show how poor Rite Aid's computer system was in reminding when medicines needed to be refilled, but it showed the true character of the employees.

I left the store and went to Wal-Greens and had all our prescriptions transfered there. My family even sent an e-mail to Rite Aid telling them why they were loosing hundreds of dolllars a month from us. Now I have to drive 40 minutes to Wal-Greens, but if they are better than Rite Aid it will be worth the extra 20 minute trip. These companies deserve to loose money and their stupid, uncaring employees deserve to get pink-slips. A business is only as good as the Customer Service it provides.

Colditz (2005)

This mini-series was not what I thought it was. I thought it was about the escapes from the Colditz POW camp during World War 2 (like the 1960s movie "The Great Escape" was.) Instead it is mostly about romance with the hint of of the camp.

I read books on Colditz and how it was the POW camp for Allied prisoners who had tried to escaped from other camps. It was billed as the only place where escapes couldn't happen. Inspite of its motto soldiers did escape and some even made it back to help fight against the Germans.

While it is not a bad movie it just wasn't what I was expecting.

NYC Smoking Ban

I heard that NYC passed a law baning smoking in public parks and beaches. I think this is complete discrimination against smokers. I am not a smoker and believe that each group (smokers and non-smokers) deserve to have their rights protected. Non-smokers deserve not to have to deal with second-hand smoke while smokers deserve the right to smoke.

Unless NYC bans the sell of cigarettes then they should not be allowed to ban smoking. I don't see why there can't be special smoking sections that keep smoke away from non-smokers and still allow smokers the dignity they deserve. I am not talking about forcing smokers outside in the cold, rain and snow as most places now require. I have personally seen many places that have special enclosed smoking places that treat smokers as people.

It seems that people are only being one-sided (in favor of non-smokers) and overlooking the fact that smokers have rights too.

Hessen Burqa Ban

From Deutsche Welle:
"Muslim city employee resigns over burqa ban"

A Frankfurt city employee who wanted to wear a full-face veil to work has resigned after the state of Hesse passed a law forbidding civil servants from wearing the burqa. The city of Frankfurt had told the mother of four - who did not previously wear a burqa to work - that she must choose between the veil and her job. The woman, who is of Moroccan origin, had previously worn a headscarf but wanted to resume her job after maternity leave with her face completely veiled. Frankfurt city objected, however, arguing that taxpayers would not accept an official if they could not see their eyes. In the midst of the standoff on Wednesday, Hesse state, of which Frankfurt is capital, announced a ban on burqas in the public service. "Civil servants may not be veiled, especially those who have contact with citizens," Hesse's Interior Minister Boris Rhein had said Wednesday. Rhein added that, while a headscarf is acceptable, wearing a burqa could be perceived as "hostile to Western values." German media and politicians had openly accused the woman of having financial motives for protesting her rights. Reports suggest that the woman's first lawyer demanded a severance payment of 40,000 euros ($55,300) from the city, which her new lawyer reduced to 18,000 euros. Other states in Germany, notably Lower Saxony, have now also announced that they are considering a similar move to ban the burqa for civil servants. Fellow Christian Democrat Thomas Kirchner, who is responsible for integration policy at Frankfurt City Council, said he was pleased with the decision by the Hesse state parliament. Frankfurt's integration chief said he thought city workers should show their faces

"I don't believe it's appropriate for employees of the city of Frankfurt and the public sector to meet citizens without showing their face," Kirchner told Deutsche Welle. "The city of Frankfurt has a duty to build up trust with its citizens and I can't see how that's possible when they can't recognize the face of the person opposite them," he added. City staff department head Markus Frank justified the decision, saying "our employees show their faces. That is a basic requirement for building trust." Muslim associations in Germany have shown initial positive reactions to the city's and the state's decision, saying that wearing the burqa was not a requirement for female Muslims. "Fundamentally I believe you should be able to dress how you like," said Ekrem Senol, editor of the Internet portal Migazin, which covers immigration issues in Germany."But you've got to take into account other people's feelings. And I think that a full-face veil goes too far."

^ I think the German State did a great thing in banning the burqa. It seems this woman only wanted the public spotlight and nothing else. I am glad that there is a global trend in banning the burqa. I only wish it would happened in the US. It is one thing to travel to the Middle East or a Muslim country and see women wearing a burqa there and another to have to deal with it in the Western World. I remember being in Kuwait and having to talk to a woman in a burqa. It made me very un-easy and I was glad when it was over, I understand that I was in her country (although as a man I still had more rights as a foreigner than she did as a citizen.) I do not believe that people in Europe, Canada, Australia, the US, etc should have to feel the same un-easiness in their own country. ^

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,14810752,00.html

Yeltin Monument

From Yahoo News:
"Monument unveiled for Russia's Boris Yeltsin"

President Dmitry Medvedev unveiled a huge monument to his predecessor Boris Yeltsin on Tuesday, praising him for leading Russia through its difficult first years after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. The 10-meter (33-foot) marble obelisk was unveiled in Yeltsin's hometown of Yekaterinburg on the 80th anniversary of his birth. The city is 900 miles (1,500 kilometers) east of Moscow. Yeltsin died in April 2007 at age 76 and is buried in Moscow's Novodevichy Cemetery. His admirers paid their respects Tuesday by laying flowers at his grave, a monument with billowing stripes of white, blue and red representing the flag he raised over the Kremlin in a newly independent Russia. Yeltsin's legacy remains controversial in Russia, with some admiring him for promoting civil freedoms and democracy and others despising him for the corruption and economic suffering that marked his presidency. Masha Lipman, a political analyst at the Carnegie Moscow Center, said Yeltsin should be given credit less for what he created than for what he destroyed. "Communism, the inhumane political order that existed in Russia for 70 years, was destroyed in 1991, and it was Yeltsin and his reforms that made it irreversible," Lipman said. Medvedev said today's Russia should be thankful that Yeltsin "did not turn away from the path of change during the most difficult period in the history of the country."

The Russian president was joined at the ceremony by Naina Yeltsin, Yeltsin's widow; their daughters Yelena Okulova and Tatyana Yumasheva, and Boris Yeltsin, his grandson.

^ I think Yeltsin did many good things in the beginning. He worked hard to separate the RSFSR from the USSR and even banned the Communist Party. He stood down tanks during the August Coup and showed the Soviet/Russian people that their voice would be heard. Then when he became President of Russia I think he lost sight of his original goals. He helped create the political and financial chaos of the 1990s that split the country a part. In the end he was more concerned with his drinking than with running a country. ^

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110201/ap_on_re_eu/eu_russia_yeltsin

Massive Winter Storm

They say this is one of the largest - if not the largest - storm the US has ever seen. It covers over 2,000 miles and states from Colorado to New England and has over 100 million people affected. We are in the middle of it here and are supposed to get over a foot of snow today (on top of the 9 inches we got yesterday.) We have gotten at least one storm over 1 foot of snow each time every week since December 26th. We are also in the coldest winter in 86 years. I am a little sick and tired of all the snow and cold and wish it would just go away.

Egypt Revolts

From BBC News:
"Clashes erupt amid Cairo protests"

The Arab order is crumbling. But whether it will collapse or somehow re-invent itself is far from certain. Arab rulers, from North Africa to the Gulf, in rich countries and poor, find themselves in essentially the same boat. Virtually without exception, they preside over corrupt autocracies with little or no legitimacy in the eyes of their people. All of them now watch Egypt's "days of rage" with mounting trepidation. In the fate of the ailing Egyptian ruler, 82-year-old Hosni Mubarak, they see their own. Western commentators are right to say the protests are about "them" rather than "us". The anger of the protesters is largely directed inwards - at a bankrupt Arab order - rather than outwards at Israel, the United States or the West.Largely, but not entirely. The West is complicit in Arab autocracy. For decades, American and European leaders chose stability over democracy. Now the chickens are coming home to roost. Jordan has announced political reforms following rallies in the capital, Amman President George W Bush tried, briefly, to pursue a "freedom agenda" in the Middle East but it failed, and ageing autocrats could once again breathe freely. Now, Western leaders including Barack Obama find themselves essentially onlookers as events move with dizzying speed towards an outcome none can foresee. Others are spectators, too, even if they pretend otherwise. Iran is acting as if the Arab masses are belatedly following the example of the Khomeini revolution. In fact, if the young demonstrators have a role model - and some actively disavow one - it is democratic Turkey rather than theocratic Iran. Also a bystander is al-Qaeda, whose pretensions to being the voice of Arab and Muslim discontent have been punctured. Analysts would do well to exercise a little humility. My own guess, for what it is worth, is that this is not the beginning of an Arab spring, but of something more messy and drawn-out. The old order still has plenty of fight in it. The battle for the Arab future is under way. Since the stakes are high, the struggle will be fierce.

^ I would rather have the status quo in the Arab World than more Islamist Republics like Iran. The last thing we need is radical political parties in power that impose Islamist law and call for the destruction of the US and Israel. ^

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12339521

Sarajevo Days, Sarajevo Nights

This book is about how one woman, Elma Softic, lived in Sarajevo during the Bosnian War and the siege the city was under. I have to say that it was pretty bland and boring to read. I don't know if it is because of the translation or just the content. I had thought that I was reading a book written by a 30 something, educated woman and yet it read as though it was from a child.

To anyone who wants to read a good book on life during the Siege of Sarajevo I would recommend "Zlata's Diary." It was written by a teenager during the war and the author is known as the Anne Frank that lived. While written by a teenager it shows many grown-up experiences and describes in detail how the author lived during the war.

Poland Gaming Around With Past

From Yahoo News:
"Polish board game recalls communist hardship"

You won't get to build hotels or collect rent in a new Polish board game reminiscent of Monopoly. In fact, you may be lucky even to get a pair of shoes. Poland's state-run National Remembrance Institute has created the new game — called "Kolejka," which means queue or line — to help young Poles understand the hardships of life under communism. In the game, players are tasked with buying a number of goods, but a lack of deliveries, shortages and the connections competitors have to communist authorities turn the task into a string of frustrations. "We want to show young people and remind the older ones what hard times these were and what mechanisms were at play," said Karol Madaj, the game's creator. Players try to buy basic goods but food supplies run out before they reach the counter. If a bed is needed, they may be offered stools instead. Players needing the shop's last pair of shoes can get edged out by someone holding a "mother with small child" or "friend in government" card. "We want to show how it was when you lost your chance because someone with high connections jumped the line," said Madaj, a 30-year-old who still remembers spending long hours with his mother in lines. "We may laugh at it today, but it was not funny for them, when they were wasting their lives in lines." Madaj says the game is best played by members of various generations because it evokes emotions in older players who start to talk about their experiences. Poland shed communism in 1989, going on to develop a successful market economy. It joined the European Union in 2004. The gray board, evocative of the mood of communist times, is accompanied by a documentary film and an article by a historian talking about the realities of communism. Some 3,000 games will go on sale Feb. 5.

^ This is a good way to get people to remember (or if they are too young - to learn) about how life was like when the Communists ruled Poland. They should make a similar game of the Nazi occupation of Poland. Other countries should do the same with their histories. Russia could make one on life in the Soviet Union - although Russia would probably glorify everything whereas most other former Soviet Republics would portray the truth. Along with the board game there should be a computer game created so it could reach even more people. While those of us who were too young or not even born yet will never completely understand what it was like to live through those times this is one way to help us get a glimpse. ^

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110125/ap_on_re_eu/eu_poland_communism_game

NetFlix And DVDs

From Yahoo News:
"Netflix Is Abandoning DVDs, Customers Who Prefer DVDs"

When Netflix started up more than 10 years ago, its sales pitch was pretty simple: Hey, subscribe to us, and we'll mail you DVDs that you can then mail back to us without worrying about any late fees. But as the rental market moves toward online and on-demand models, Netflix's iconic red envelopes may eventually become as antiquated as VHS tapes. Beefing up their streaming business, Netflix has predicted that in about two years their economics will be geared more toward their "Watch Instantly" service than through physical discs. For that to happen, Netflix will have to nudge their DVD-loyal customers to the new platform. And on Monday, the company learned just how hard that may be. In a seemingly innocent 109-word blog post, Netflix director of product management Jamie Odell announced, "We're removing the 'Add to DVD Queue' option from streaming devices," suggesting that it was being done so that the company "can concentrate on offering you the titles that are available to watch instantly." Granted, the Netflix website still allows DVD queue updating, but this post, dropped on the morning of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, created an immediate firestorm of comments -- most of them very, very angry. "Clearly Netflix wants to send less discs through the mail, and therefore wants to make it more difficult for the user to add to their queue in furtherance of that," wrote "Eldendor." "Horrible idea!" wrote "usrbingeek." "Especially when there are still few titles available for streaming and the titles that you do have, seem to have very narrow license windows." On and on came the complaints, with most responders saying essentially (1) I like having access to DVDs even if I use a PS3 or mobile phone to stream movies on Netflix; and (2) there aren't enough good titles available on "Watch Instantly." "I think this is a totally foolish move on your part. I like to be able to add movies to my DVD queue from my iPhone," commented "b.dsign." "[I]f this means that netflix is going to add more movies to watch instantly i support the change," "Beto" wrote, "but if they are not, then it's just a bad idea." As of yet Netflix hasn't released any response, which, really, is their response. Whether customers like or not, Netflix knows that the future is moving away from physical discs and toward instant access. And, really, none of us who use Netflix should be surprised: Back in November the company announced that they were offering a new lower subscription rate for streaming-only customers while increasing the rate for people who still wanted DVDs. Right now, if you want DVDs from Netflix, the company is less than thrilled with you: They need you to get used to the idea of streaming films and TV shows so that you'll drop the physical disc habit: a craving, ironically, that they themselves created thanks to the ease of their iconic red envelopes. But while Netflix is slowly discouraging the continued interest in DVDs, they face a different challenge even if their business model transformation succeeds. As Slate reported, if Netflix's streaming business takes off the way they think it will, it could prove a serious drain on America's broadband capacity, which is far less nimble than other countries'. Netflix is angering customers right now because the company wants to do away with DVDs: We don't even want to think of a future where Netflix angers the entire Internet community because too many people are streaming old episodes of "Friends" at the same time.

^ Hopefully Netflix won't get rid of DVDs altogether otherwise I will have to stop using them. I have tried to stream movies through them, but my Internet provider is very slow and usually cuts them off. ^

http://blog.movies.yahoo.com/blog/432-netflix-is-abandoning-dvds-customers-who-prefer-dvds

Holocaust Remembrance Day

From Deutsche Welle:

"German President makes historic speech at Auschwitz "

German President Christian Wulff marked Holocaust Remembrance Day on Thursday with a historic speech at Auschwitz, the site of the largest Nazi death camp during World War II. "We all carry responsibility that such a breach of civilization does not happen again," he said. Wulff was the first German president ever to speak at the Auschwitz commemoration. He also met camp survivors with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski. "Since World War II, across the globe there has not been a single day without war," Wulff said. "This is an appeal to youth to take responsibility for what is happening. Indifference is the worst threat to democracy and liberty." January 27 marks the day when Soviet troops liberated Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1945. Around 1.5 million people were murdered there, the vast majority of them European Jews. The anniversary was declared an international day of remembrance for the six million victims of the Holocaust by a 2005 UN General Assembly resolution. Germany has marked the day since 1996. About 1.5 million people were killed at Auschwitz in Poland Roma Holocaust survivor speaks Official ceremonies took place across Germany. Roma Holocaust survivor Zoni Weisz addressed the country's parliament in Berlin. The speech symbolized an effort by Germany to give more recognition to the non-Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Weisz, 73, told the Bundestag that Sinti and Roma probably represent the most persecuted ethnic minority in Europe today, and that their genocide during Nazi Germany was a "forgotten Holocaust." "Society has learned little to nothing from this, but rather it has dodged its responsibility to us," he said. "The vast majority [of Roma] have no opportunity, no work, no education and live without regular medical care." Historians estimate that between 220,000 and 500,000 Roma and Sinti, otherwise known as gypsies, were killed by the Nazis, out of a total population of around one million in Europe before World War II. They were also systematically persecuted, confined to ghettos, deported and subjected to grotesque medical experiments. Weisz said Roma and Sinti are the most persecuted minority in Europe today. Since then, their population has swelled to around 12 million in Europe. Tens of thousands live in Germany, many of them refugees from Bosnia and Kosovo. West Germany did not officially recognize the genocide of Roma and Sinti until 1982. Weisz was born in Holland to an instrument maker and grew up in the eastern town of Zutphen. His family was deported to the east in 1944 when he was 7, but he survived thanks to a policeman who helped him escape. Weisz lived out the rest of the war in hiding, but his parents, sisters and younger brother were all murdered in Auschwitz. He said he was "surprised and honored" when asked to speak to the Bundestag "It is the first time that the fate of the Sinti and Roma of Europe has been placed at the center of the commemorations - finally," said the head of the Council of Sinti and Roma in Germany, Romani Rose. There was also a special commemoration at the eastern German city of Erfurt, where the Topf & Söhne engineering plant, which manufactured crematoria for Nazi death camps, is to be turned into a Holocaust memorial site. "The factory was not a place were people were murdered or tortured, but it was a place where engineers calculated how dead bodies could be burned as quickly and effectively as possible," said the exhibition's leader, Annegret Schüle. Later this year, Germany will inaugurate a national memorial to Sinti and Roma murdered by the Nazis.

^ It is important to remember all the people who were murdered by the Germans during the Holocaust (Jews, Gypsies, Soviet POWs, Slavs, Homosexuals, Freemasons, anti-Nazis, the disabled, Jehovah's Witnesses, etc.) ^

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,14798859,00.html

After Hitler: Recivilizing Germans 1945-1995

The author of this book is German and so the book is already slanted towards the plight of the Germans as victims from the beginning. While the author does state that there can be no excuse for allowing the Holocaust to happen he does make excuses as to why Germans willingly followed Hitler and allowed the World War to happened.

The book does not really show that all Germans were "civilized" after the war. There are many differences between those living in West Germany over those living in East Germany - which would make sense because of the two different ideologies. Once the two Germanys reunited in 1990 the differences between the two groups really became apparent and has lingering effects within Germany to this day.

One item that really got me was how the book ended. The book goes to 1995 (5 years after the country was reunited) and talks about all the anti-foreigner violence and how more and more Germans follow the call "Germany for Germans." I don't see how the book can claim the majority of Germans to be re civilized (since 1945) and in the same note talk about how even ordinary Germans are calling for violence and deportations against foreigners - the majority of whom came legally into the country.

From 1933-1945 the Germans called for a pure Germany and murdered millions of non-Germans. Nowadays the Germans are calling for a Germany for Germans and are using violence and threats to kick non-Germans out. I don't see a difference other than the fact that Germans are not currently using concentration or death camps. I lived in Germany in the 1990s and saw first-hand ordinary Germans use violence against Turks, Kurds and other non-Germans. On the surface Germans today may be considered civilized (and I am sure some are) but the true nature can not be erased even after 60 years. Throughout history Germans have been war-like: the Germanic tribes (called barbarians) that destroyed much of Europe throughout the Middle Ages, the Prussian united Germany of the 1870s, the militaristic Germany of the First World War, Nazi Germany during the Second World War, the dictatorship of East Germany and now the xenophobic and nationalistic Germany of the reunited Germany. History continues to repeat itself.

State Of The Union

From USA Today:
"State of the Union: Fact-checking Obama's speech"

I have seen many media reports from both Democrats and Republicans that say Obama's speech last night was pretty bland, confusing and not realistic. He has too many big-item issues that he expects Congress to address. Of course he added his usual item of saying that if none of this gets done it will be only because of Congress and the Republicans and not because of him. One thing I noticed was that at past State of the Union speeches everyone always stands up, there are cheers and jeers, but at this speech people didn't seem to know when to cheer, when to jeer or when to stand up. All-in-all I think Obama's speech was a complete failure and waste of time. I only hope that Congress can get things done with or without his support.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2011-01-25-state-of-the-union-fact-check_N.htm

Bomb At DME

From Moscow Times:

"Blast Kills 34 at Domodedovo"

A powerful explosion tore through the baggage claim area at the international arrivals hall of Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport on Monday, killing at least 34 people and injuring about 170 others in what President Dmitry Medvedev called a terrorist attack. The bomb, equivalent to at least 7 kilograms of TNT, went off at 4:32 p.m., the Investigative Committee said in a statement late Monday. Unidentified officials, quoted by Russian news agencies, differed over whether the bomb was carried by a suicide bomber or went off in a suitcase. Medvedev ordered all Moscow airports, the metro and other public transportation networks to be put on high alert and vowed to find and punish those behind the explosion. “What happened shows all the laws that should have been enforced were far from correctly implemented. We need to examine this,” a solemn-faced Medvedev said in televised remarks on Channel One. He offered his condolences to the families of those killed and to the injured. The president also postponed his trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he was supposed to arrive Tuesday evening and speak at a plenary session Wednesday.No one immediately claimed responsibility for the blast. State television showed footage of passengers busily moving inside the airport without any sign of panic. Several passengers confirmed that they saw no panic, even though broken glass littered the floor and injured passengers were being rushed to ambulances. “It’s very bad. It’s 100 percent terrorism,” Ariel, who flew in from Israel, said in an interview after arriving on an airport express train at Paveletsky Station about two hours after the blast. “I think I’m going back to Israel right now.” A YouTube video shot on a cell phone camera (see below) in the smoke-filled arrivals hall showed bodies lying on the floor. Several people in regular clothes, apparently passengers, walked around unrestrained, together with rescue workers and businesslike security officials. A man in a black suit stood with a baggage cart in the hall. Airport personnel had to break down a brick wall to help passengers exit the baggage claim area, RIA-Novosti reported. Planes continued to take off and land after the explosion. Sibir and Transaero, the biggest Russian airlines based at Domodedovo, said Monday evening that no flights had been affected. The last deadly blasts in Moscow occurred March 29 when two female suicide bombers originating from the North Caucasus blew themselves up in the Moscow metro, killing 40 people and wounding 160 others. North Caucasus insurgents later claimed responsibility for the attacks. The insurgents have targeted Moscow in several high-profile terrorist attacks since fall 1999.

But the Domodedovo blast was not necessarily perpetrated by North Caucasus insurgents, said Maxim Agarkov, a retired Interior Ministry officer who has worked in airport security. “The attackers might have targeted a plane heading to Domodedovo, but the bomb went off too late,” he said by telephone. According to the airport’s web site, passengers from flights from Cairo, Ashgabat, Tokyo and Dusseldorf were collecting their baggage at the moment of the blast. Still, an unidentified law enforcement official told Interfax that three North Caucasus natives — suspected rebels living near Moscow — had been put on a national wanted list after Monday’s explosion. The official said investigators had linked the men to two suspected female suicide bombers, one of whom died in a largely unnoticed blast in a Moscow sports club on Dec. 31. No one but the woman died in the explosion. The second woman, a 24-year-old native of Chechnya, was arrested earlier this month in Volgograd on suspicion of illegally transporting explosives. “It is possible that one of these three men blew himself up at Domodedovo,” the official told Interfax.

At Paveletsky Station, some passengers were convinced that the bombing was linked to the restive North Caucasus, where federal forces have fought two wars since 1994.

“I am not surprised,” said Andrei, who spent an hour at the gate waiting to deplane after arriving on a flight from Germany.“What else do you expect after 15 years of civil war?” he said, referring to the military conflict in the North Caucasus. After the attack, the Aeroexpress train offered free rides between the train station and Domodedovo Airport, while sympathetic Twitter users offered free rides to the airport and back. Interfax reported that taxi drivers at the airport had hiked prices to as much as 20,000 rubles ($670) for the 42-kilometer ride into the city. The trip usually costs about 2,500 rubles to the city center. A Domodedovo employee spoke of the confusion and shock that settled over the airport in the moments after the explosion. “At the very beginning we didn’t understand what was happening. When we did, it was already late,” said the employee, who spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to speak to the media. The exact number of fatalities was unclear Monday night. The Emergency Situations Ministry reported on its web site that at least 34 people were dead and 168 were injured, including 74 who were hospitalized. But the National Anti-Terrorism Committee and Domodedovo Airport’s spokeswoman said at least 35 were dead. The identities and nationalities of the dead were not immediately released. The Emergency Situations Ministry said on its web site that four foreigners had been identified among the injured: Diana Shtotts, 36, of Germany; Suzanna Fialova, 36, of Slovakia; and two Tajik citizens, Saidbek Iskadarov, 42, and Bakhtiyor Gafforiv, 29. Also injured were Romano Rosario of Italy and Frederic Ortis of France, Interfax said, citing the Health and Social Development Ministry. Shortly after the explosion, state television reported that dozens of ambulances were headed to the airport from Moscow and hospitals in the nearby town of Domodedovo. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin and Moscow region Governor Boris Gromov also rushed to the airport, together with investigators from the Federal Security Service, the Interior Ministry and the Investigative Committee.

Security was beefed up at Sheremetyevo and Vnukovo airports. No flights were canceled, but all passengers and luggage were thoroughly searched, passengers said in televised remarks. Passengers are advised to arrive at Moscow airports extra early for their flights in the upcoming days. Airport checks will be stepped up, and police will expand their checks to include the people seeing off passengers and their bags as well, the Federal Air Transport Agency said. U.S. President Barack Obama and European leaders offered their sympathy and support over the bombing.

Domodedovo, which prides itself for being Moscow’s most modern airport, is also its busiest, serving 22 million passengers last year. It was targeted by terrorists in August 2004 when two female suicide bombers from the North Caucasus boarded two planes there after illegally buying tickets from airport staff. The planes were blown up in midair, killing 90 people. A total of 77 airlines offer regular flights to 241 Russian and international destinations from Domodedovo, which is also Russia’s largest hub for hundreds of charter flights, according to the airport’s web site.

^ This is not the first time that terrorists have used Domodedovo. In 2004 two Chechen women bought tickets at the last minute and boarded two different planes and blew them up. You would think that security at DME would have improved since then, but it seems it has not. I have never flown into/out of DME so do not know much about it other than what I read. I do remember flying out of SVE several times and having to wait outside the terminal (even in December) to go through security just to enter the airport. You had to take off your coats, put your bags in X-Ray machines and walk through a metal detector. From what I understand you do not go through that at DME (maybe not even at SVO anymore.) DME is billed as being the most modern Russian airport yet they have been critized not only for its lack of security but also for its lack of leadership and customer service (in how they dealt with passengers several weeks ago when power outages caused days of cancellations.) Putin got involved after that and has done the same after this latest blast. It seems he only gets involved after the fact rather than before. While it is almost impossible to stop terrorist attacks on Metro/Subway systems since they are so vast airports should be much more easier to control who/what enters and leaves. Russia needs to get its security issues under control since they have several high profile international events in the coming years: mainly the Winter Olympics. ^

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/blast-kills-34-at-domodedovo/429530.html

Serbia's New Image

From Yahoo News:
"Serbia looks to improve image with peacekeeping"

BELGRADE, Serbia – Not long ago, Serbian troops were notorious for nationalism, aggression and even war crimes. Now they want to be known as international guardians of peace. In the 1990s, under the regime of Slobodan Milosevic, they shelled towns in Croatia and Bosnia and supported Serb rebels when they attacked civilians in those newly independent nations. U.N. peacekeepers were sent to the Balkans to protect people from the Serb-led attacks. Now Serbia's pro-Western government is bent on improving the army's tarnished image. Its primary tactic — participating in overseas peacekeeping missions, turning yesterday's attackers into the protectors of today. At the same army center on the outskirts of Belgrade where troops once trained for the wars in Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo, dozens of local and foreign instructors are teaching soldiers to be guardians of the peace in places like Chad, Cyprus, Lebanon and Somalia.The trainers include advisers from the United States and other members of NATO — the military alliance that bombed Serbia in 1999 to halt its military crackdown on the secessionist province of Kosovo, which has since become an independent nation. Several dozen soldiers from Serbia already are serving in U.N. units in Congo, Chad, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Cyprus and Lebanon. The effort will be eventually expanded to 40-member platoons, to be followed by companies of 180 soldiers and even larger units. "We are the first soldiers from our country. We hope that after this mission the image of Serbia will be better," said Staff Sgt. Alexander Beocanin, part of a seven-man Serb unit serving with the U.N. force on the divided island of Cyprus. He and his colleagues patrol the U.N.-controlled buffer zone separating the Greek Cypriot south from the Turkish Cypriot north. The soldiers' duties involve monitoring and observing the zone and preventing anyone from straying into it. "We have so much experience in war; now we want peace," Beocanin said. Beyond expanding its existing deployments, Serbia also hopes to deploy a battalion to join the 12,500-strong U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon, or UNIFIL, which has monitored the border with Israel for the past 32 years. Peacekeeping represents a marked turnaround for the Serbian military. After the Balkan wars of the 1990s, more than 40 Serbian politicians, generals and other officials were indicted by the U.N. war crimes tribunal in The Hague for war crimes. Dozens more have faced trial either in Serbia or in other countries that once formed the Yugoslav federation. Milosevic's military also sheltered war crimes suspects, including fugitive Gen. Ratko Mladic, who remains at large despite his 1995 indictment for the massacre of 8,000 Muslims in Srebrenica. Milosevic himself was accused of genocide, and died in a prison cell in The Hague, Netherlands, while still on trial. The focus on peacekeeping is part of President Boris Tadic's effort to improve Serbia's international standing. The country's bid to join the European Union recently received a major boost when the bloc agreed to review Serbia's candidacy. Plans for international peacekeeping missions originated in 2003, as part of broad reform of the armed forces. Troop levels were slashed from nearly 100,000 to just 35,000, and a group of young officers was promoted to the senior ranks to replace the generals discredited in Milosevic's wars. Since then the military has established close contacts with the armed forces of Britain, Norway and the United States, which initiated a partnership between the Serbian army and the National Guard of Ohio — home to a large Serbian immigrant community. As a result, the military has become the country's most avid proponent of closer ties with NATO, despite the alliance's bombing of Serbia a decade ago, said Daniel Sunter, editor of Belgrade-based Balkan Intelligence monthly. He noted that this represented a return to the military ties Yugoslavia had with the West during the Cold War, when it was very active in peacekeeping operations in Africa and Asia. In 1956, Yugoslavia contributed a battalion to the first modern U.N. peacekeeping force, which patrolled a buffer zone between the Egyptian and Israeli armies in the Sinai. "It is high time that our country rejoined the international community by sending troops to assist those peoples unfortunate enough to be caught up in conflicts," said Miobor Stosic, who served as a junior officer in the U.N. force in Sinai during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. But it remains unlikely that Serbia will join most of its European neighbors in committing troops to the NATO mission in Afghanistan. "Despite the constant improvement in ties ... membership in NATO still stirs too many passions and is therefore a distant prospect," said Mirjana Vasovic, a lecturer in political science at Belgrade University. Tim Judah, a London-based Balkan analyst and author, said it was important for Serbia to be seen as "a security provider, rather than a security consumer." "The tragedy is that in a way it's back to the future for Serbia, because the Yugoslav military were quite big providers of peacekeeping troops," he said. "It's a modest return to where the country was before."

^ I think this is a very good idea. I visited the Balkans last December (Croatia, Bosnia and Montenegro) and heard and saw many of the horrible things the Serbs did during the 1991-1995 wars. While I know they weren't not the only guilty ones they seemed to have done the most damage. Peacekeeping will help their image around the world which could help them join the EU sooner. ^

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110116/ap_on_re_eu/eu_serbia_unlikely_peacekeepers

Mass Graves Search

From BBC News:
"Jewish groups begin hunt for unmarked Holocaust graves"

Jewish organisations are to search for countless unmarked graves of Holocaust victims across Eastern Europe. The groups think that more than two million Jews were rounded up by the German military and shot, with their bodies left in unmarked mass graves. The shootings took place before the Nazis organised mass killings at the gas chambers of death camps. The plan is to memorialise and protect sites in Ukraine, Belarus, Russia and Poland. After Hitler invaded Russia, hundreds of thousands of Jews were routinely killed by the advancing army, even before the formal industrial killing in death camps began. In Berlin, Jewish organisations said they would try to identify graves. They said teams would be "driving up and down the back roads of small villages... knocking on doors and asking the elderly to recount what they saw during the war". Last month, researchers made a preliminary inspection of five sites in Ukraine. One of them, where 5,000 Jews were shot and dumped, is now a swamp.

Jan Fahlbusch of the American Jewish Committee, who is in charge of the effort to memorialise the graves, said it was important that the people who live there know what happened in their home villages. "There's a lot of ignorance among the local population and it is important to raise awareness of the crimes of the past," he said.

^ It is about time organizations and governments worked to find these mass graves. While they are looking for the ones the Nazis made I'm sure they will also find many that the Soviets did and will "kill two birds with one stone" as they saying goes. ^

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12253626

Northeast Snow

From Yahoo News:
"A month into winter, Easterners have had enough"

In Rhode Island, a mayor tells parents of snowbound schoolchildren to "hang in there." Atlanta has blown nearly all the money it set aside to clear the streets. In Connecticut, they're literally praying for winter to end. And at travel agencies, the phones are ringing with callers pining for tropical vacations — when the skies clear up enough to fly out, that is. Just one month into winter, major cities up and down the East Coast have already gotten clobbered with more snow than they usually get all season, a one-storm-after-another barrage that is eating up snow-removal budgets and forcing schools to close. And officially, winter still has two months left. A new half-foot of snow tested the patience of residents in the Hartford area Friday, complicating a morning commute already made arduous by mountainous snowbanks that have not melted since a record-setting snowfall last week. Forecasters are calling for below-zero temperatures in New England over the weekend, followed perhaps by another big snowstorm along the East Coast, maybe even a blizzard. "I'm spending a lot of time praying for spring," said Mark Boughton, mayor of Danbury, Conn., where back-to-back storms have been so bruising that crews haven't even had a chance to take down Christmas lights on Main Street. More than 55 inches of snow has fallen this season on Hartford, which averages 46 inches in an entire winter. New York, which generally sees about 21 inches per winter, has gotten more than 36. Boston has 50 inches so far, compared with the usual 41.5-inch seasonal total. Atlanta, which had its first white Christmas in decades, is reeling from about 6 inches so far this season, compared with the usual 0.3 inches for the whole winter.The culprit is an unpredictable phenomenon called the North Atlantic Oscillation, an interaction of subtropical highs and polar lows that controls the flow of air along the East Coast, said Art DeGaetano, a Cornell University professor who directs the school's climate center. The colder air turns precipitation that would normally fall as rain into snow — even in the South. Georgia officials think their $10 million reserve fund for emergencies is probably close to depleted. Fannin County, in northern Georgia, has lost nine school days and was foiled in a controversial attempt to keep up by holding classes on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. "It's been one heck of a winter," said School Superintendent Mark Henson. The storms have delayed or canceled countless flights at airports throughout the region, most famously during the post-Christmas blizzard in the New York area, where thousands of holiday travelers were stranded for days and the mayor faced a political crisis because of slow cleanup. The nation's largest city burned through its entire snow removal budget of nearly $40 million on that storm, the season's first. It also came on a Sunday, meaning millions of dollars in overtime paid to city workers. The city has had three more snowfalls since then, and Mayor Michael Bloomberg has dismissed questions about how it will pay for further cleanup. Streets are cleared first, he says, and the city figures out afterward where it can shift money. In Wethersfield, Conn., the phone at Wethersfield Travel rings steadily with stranded travelers seeking help — and with new customers seeking a sunny respite. "We're hearing from a lot of people who are sick of the snow and say they want to get away fast to somewhere warm," company owner Martha Kirsche said. The season started out with little hint of what was to come. The National Weather Service's official long-range winter forecast back in October amounted to a flip of the coin: The Northeast and Mid-Atlantic had equal chances of being snowier and colder than normal, and warmer and drier than normal. The folks at the New Hampshire-based Old Farmer's Almanac and the Maine-based Farmers' Almanac didn't fare much better, the first predicting colder but less snowy weather for the eastern half of the U.S. and the latter forecasting colder weather and average snowfall. "I got the cold part right," said Peter Geiger, editor of the Farmers' Almanac. It's true that temperatures in much of the East have been 2 to 4 degrees below normal in December and January, DeGaetano said. In Washington, the temperature was 6 to 8 degrees colder than average in December and 2 to 3 degrees colder in January. Still, forecasters say it is too soon to call this winter record-breaking. "We've got a long way to go," said David Stark, a meteorologist with the National Service in Upton, N.Y., noting that New York City's 36 inches is a far cry from the record 75.6 inches that fell in 1995-96. In Buffalo, N.Y., which gets about 93 inches of snow each season, residents yawn at suggestions that this winter is especially harsh. The lakeside city had received about 56 inches by Friday, typical for this time of year. Louisiana native Joe Gardner, 39, started trolling Craigslist ads for a deal on a snowblower once he realized what he faced as a recent transplant to Burlington, Mass. "This foot and a half every other day is getting kind of old," Gardner said Friday. "I had always heard how bad it is, but this is beyond what I expected."

In Providence, R.I., the city called off school Friday, the third snow day of the academic year. Mayor Angel Taveras tweeted a sympathetic message to his constituents: "I know it's hard for parents. Hang in there."

^ In the past 2 weeks we have received 4 feet of snow where I live. The local schools (which are about 20 minutes from my house) even had delays and cancelled one day - something that rarely happens. Now on top of the snow we are getting Arctic Air. Tonight it is supposed to be -10 F (without the windchill) and tomorrow could get to -31 F. I am so sick of the snow and cold, but I should get used to it as I have trips to Iceland and Alaska planned - this is the year of cold-weather destinations. ^

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110121/ap_on_re_us/us_snow_fatigue

New Zodiac Signs

Apparently there are now new zodiac signs. I have to say that despite what anyone says I was born a Cancer and I will die a Cancer! Aren't there other more important things to worry about then what your sign is? It will make it a lot harder to pick people up at bars because when you ask them "What's your sign?" they may not know what their new sign is.

New Zodiac signs 2011 are:

Capricorn: Jan. 20 – Feb. 16

Aquarius: Feb. 16 – March 11

Pisces: March 11 – April 18

Aries: April 18 – May 13

Taurus: May 13 – June 21

Gemini: June 21 – July 20

Cancer: July 20 – Aug. 10

Leo: Aug. 10 – Sept. 16

Virgo: Sept. 16 – Oct. 30

Libra: Oct. 30 – Nov. 23

Scorpio: Nov. 23 – 29

Ophiuchus: Nov. 29 – Dec. 17

Sagittarius: Dec. 17 – Jan. 20

The Soviet Story (2008)

I recently watched this movie (well it's actually a documentary) and found it to be very interesting and poised many questions. It focuses on the Soviet-Nazi collaboration before 1941. It also shows the similarities between the USSR and Nazi Germany: the concentration camps and the gulags, the forced deportations of whole groups of people, the one-party system (Communist Party and Nazi Party), the dictatorship (Hitler and Stalin), the mass murder of whole groups of people, the forced Germanization and Russification of people, the secret police (Gestapo and NKVD) and many others.

I do not see a difference between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union (except that one lasted 12 years and the other 74.) I do not understand why Soviet symbols are legal why most of the world bans Nazi symbols. Of course I also don't get why the US doesn't ban Nazi, Soviet and Confederate symbols.

Germany has had to fully accept all the evil things that the Germans allowed to happen during the time of Nazi Germany yet Russia does not have to do the same for all the horrible things that the Russians (and other former Soviet nations) allowed to happen during the time of the Soviet Union. Some countries of the former USSR (mostly the Baltics) banned all Soviet symbols and any praise for them, but the vast majority of people and countries continue to twist everything Soviet to the good rather than to the bad. Prime Minister Putin recently said that he wished the Soviet Union could come back as it was because it produced many great things. President Medvedev countered that the USSR should never be brought back because it was a failed, authoritarian system. These two people are 10 years a part and yet have vast differences to the Soviet Union. Hopefully, once the "old" guys are voted old of power the "young" ones will take over and bring about real change and tell the Russians and other former Soviets the complete truth about what the USSR did.

Another issue the film addressed is why the EU, the US and other countries do not try to bring any real, democratic change in Russia or the former USSR. I thought their answer was very interesting.

Everyone (whether they were alive during Nazi times, Soviet times or afterwards) should see this movie because most of the issues addressed are very relevent to today's world.

Kinder Eggs

From Yahoo Canada:
"Woman's candy egg seized at border"

A cross-border kerfuffle over a popular chocolate treat nearly cost a Winnipeg woman a $300 fine and saddled her with a bureaucratic headache. Lind Bird was recently stopped at the U.S. border and selected for a random search of her vehicle. She was warned she could have faced a fine after the customs official found — and seized — her $2 Kinder Surprise egg as illegal contraband.Bird learned U.S. authorities have banned the candy because they come with a plastic toy inside that could, if eaten, choke a small child."It's just a chocolate egg," Bird said. "And they were making a big deal. They said 'if you were caught with this across the border you would get charged a $300 fine,'" she said."It's ridiculous. It's so ridiculous," she added.In Canada, however, officials said the eggs are so difficult to get into there's little chance they could harm anyone. As such, they are legal.The U.S. takes catching illegal Kinder candy seriously, judging by the number of them they've confiscated in the last year. Officials said they've seized more than 25,000 of the treats in 2,000 separate seizures."They have been determined to present … a choking hazard to young children," said Mike Milne, a spokesman for the U.S. department of customs and border protection. Milne said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration supports the Kinder Surprise ban.As trivial as the border seizure may seem, Bird said the U.S. government has sent her a seven-page letter asking her to formally authorize the destruction of her seized Kinder egg."I thought it was a joke. I had to read it twice. But they are serious," she said. The letter states if Bird wishes to contest the seizure, she'll have to pay $250 for it to be stored as the two sides wrangle over it.

^ It is pretty stupid that the US bans Kinder Eggs under a 1930s law. There are so many other things that kids can eat and hurt themselves on. I know that if government officials were given a Kinder Egg the ban would be gone in minutes. I used to have them all the time in Germany and Russia. ^

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/womans-candy-egg-seized-border-20110110-145449-459.html

Foreigners At Arlington?

From Yahoo News:
"Arlington burial for Vang Pao, chief of secret CIA-backed army?"

I don't think non-Americans should be allowed to be buried at Arlington. It is a national cemetary and is supposed to be for the best and brightest Americans who served (in the military, the government or both.) There are many other ways to show gratitude to foreigners who helped the US, but having them buried at Arlington or any other national cemetary is not one of those ways.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110111/us_yblog_thelookout/arlington-burial-for-vang-pao-chief-of-secret-cia-backed-army

The Pacific (2010)

I just got finished watching the last DVD in this mini-series. It took me a while since I had to wait for it through Netflix.

I thought it was pretty realistic in its portrayal of the Pacific Theater. It showed the good, the bad and the ugly. It didn't sugar-coat anything as most war movies do. What I really found interesting is when they compared the European Theater with the Pacific Theater. There is one scene where a taxi guy tells a returning soldier(at the end of the war) that he at least was given leave in Paris while the soldier fighting in the Pacific didn't get that.

I have always been interested in the European Theater and didn't pay much attention to the Pacific. I did know how sadistic the Japanese(with their kamikaze missions, how they treated civiliians and how they treated POWs.) The movie showed that briefly. One aspect that I didn't see was when they were in Okinawa and how the civillians acted. I had read accounts where the civillians there hid in caves and committed mass suicide because of the Japanese propaganda against the Americans.

Another thing that I liked about the movie is how the soldiers adjusted to life at the end of the war. Some went on with their lives while others struggled. The fact that civillians expected the ex-soldiers to simply move-on with their lives without understanding or caring what they had gone through shows that things back in World War 2 were just like present-day. Most people today do not give a thought to the men and women who are fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan and when the soldiers come home no real support is given to them to help them adjust to their new lives. While I have never been in the military I was a military brat and have seen first-hand what happens. Hopefully, this movie will awaken people's eyes to just how hard it is to be a solider and do more to help the soldiers and their families.

1984 (1984)

I just recently saw this movie. I read the book in high school and have tried for years to see the movie. It was on TV the other night and so I watched it. I have to say that it has to be one of the worst movies I have ever seen. The acting was poor as was the special effects (even when you take into consideration that it was made in the 1980s.)

I really wish someone else would come along and remake the movie more along the lines of the book.

9-11 Bill

From Yahoo News:
"Obama signs Sept. 11 first responders bill"

HONOLULU – President Barack Obama said Sunday he was honored to sign a bill to provide aid to survivors of the Sept. 11 attacks and first responders who became ill working in the ruins at the World Trade Center. "We will never forget the selfless courage demonstrated by the firefighters, police officers and first responders who risked their lives to save others," Obama said in a statement. "I believe this is a critical step for those who continue to bear the physical scars of those attacks."

The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act was named after a police officer who died of a respiratory disease he contracted during the 9/11 rescue operations. The bill was one of the last measures Congress passed before adjourning in December. Some Republicans tried to block the measure, saying they were concerned with how to pay for the bill. They dropped their opposition after lawmakers struck a compromise to reduce the costs. The $4.2 billion measure will be paid for with a fee on some foreign companies that get U.S. government procurement contracts. "At long last, the President's signature has ended our nine-year struggle to address the 9/11 health crisis. The Zadroga law will save lives and fulfills our moral obligation to care for those who rose to the defense of America in a time of war," said Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y. "This is a great victory for the heroes of September 11th, the firefighters, police officers and construction workers. Justice is finally being served," added Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y. New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly hailed the passage of the bill. "The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks were an attack on America by a foreign enemy and addressing its health impacts is a national duty," Bloomberg said. There was no signing ceremony for the bill; Obama signed it privately at the rented oceanfront home in Hawaii where he's staying with his family. White House spokesman Bill Burton said Obama had 10 days to sign the bill after its passage, a window that would have closed by the time the president returned to Washington Tuesday. Because the White House didn't receive the official bill until after Obama departed Washington Dec. 22, Burton said a staff member who was headed to Hawaii after the president carried it here for his signature.

^ It seems that Obama and the old Congress did at least two good things last year: repealing the Don't Ask, Don't Tell ban and this 9-11 bill. ^

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110103/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama_sept11_bill;_ylt=ApUAjA29

Estonia In Eurozone

From the BBC:
"Estonia becomes 17th member of the euro zone"

Estonia has become the 17th member of the eurozone - the first ex-Soviet state to adopt the EU single currency. The changeover from the kroon to the euro started at midnight (2200 GMT) in the small Baltic nation of 1.3m people. Despite market pressure on the eurozone and the Greek and Irish bail-outs this year, polls suggested most Estonians wanted the euro. Prime Minister Andrus Ansip marked the event by withdrawing euros from a cashpoint. "It is a small step for the eurozone and a big step for Estonia," he said, holding the euro notes. For many Estonians, 20 years after breaking away from the Soviet Union, the euro is proof that they have fully arrived in the West, the BBC's Baltic region correspondent, Damien McGuinness, reports. Estonia joined the EU in 2004 - one of eight former Communist countries that did so, including its Baltic neighbours Latvia and Lithuania. Two other ex-Communist countries - Slovenia and Slovakia - are already in the eurozone. Estonia's government says the euro will attract foreign investors because devaluation is then ruled out. However, poorer Estonians fear that prices will be rounded up, and that food will become even more expensive. And the prospect of having to contribute to bail-outs of richer eurozone countries is hard to stomach, our correspondent reports. In the past year Europe's debt crisis has hit Estonia severely. The tough cuts in state spending, necessary to join the eurozone, have pushed unemployment to more than 16%. To avoid a last-minute rush, Estonians were able to swap kroons for euros commission-free from 1 December, the AFP news agency reports. Kroons will be used in parallel with the euro for the first half of January. Banks will swap Estonians' kroons for euros until the end of 2011 and the central bank will carry on doing so indefinitely. The kroon has been pegged to foreign currencies from the start, first to the deutschmark and, in 2002, to the euro. The rate of 15.65 kroons to one euro has never changed.

^ It doesn't seem very smart to join the Eurozone right now. It is like joining a sinking ship right before it goes under the water. ^

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12098513

New Year's 2011

Today is New Year's Day! Last night I did what I usually do - watched the Ball drop on TV - and then went to bed. Today there was nothing on TV and so I watched movies and then went to Carrabba's for dinner. It was a good meal and a good first day of the new year. It is also 1-1-11.

Euro: The Morning After

From Yahoo News:
"Euro turns to problem for Eastern Europe"

 

Bells pealed and fireworks shot across midnight skies in Bratislava two years ago, as Slovaks celebrated not only the New Year but also their country's long-sought entry to the club of nations using the continent's common currency, the euro. Fast forward to the dying days of 2010 — after the eurozone's debt crisis forced the bailouts of Greece and Ireland and painful austerity measures across the region_ and one thing is clear: while Slovaks will again turn out in droves on Dec. 31, the cheer will have nothing to do with belonging to the euro. The pride felt back then at being the first in the former Soviet bloc to adopt the euro has been tempered by the responsibilities that come with sharing a common European currency. Two years ago, the euro was viewed as a safe haven of financial stability, insurance against wild swings of national currencies that could throw national budgets out of kilter and threaten economic growth. For Slovakia, it also signaled arrival into the prosperous club of EU nations less than two decades after the fall of the Iron Curtain. Now, as eurozone nations are asked to help bail out others overwhelmed by debt and the risk of contagion spreads beyond Ireland and Greece, adopting the common currency is no longer a top priority for former communist countries still outside the zone. And in newcomer countries, like Slovakia, some now see the euro as a burden, not a blessing. "It seems that they allowed us to enter only to pay for their debts," said Petra Hargasova, a 22-year old economics student, her hands cupped around a glass of mulled wine to fight the chill while taking in a Bratislava Christmas market. Some in the Slovak leadership are even looking for a way out. In a recent commentary in the Hospodarske Noviny business daily, Parliament speaker Richard Sulik sent ripples across the already edgy eurozone by arguing that Slovakia should be ready to abandon the euro and switch to its former national currency. The Finance Ministry was quick to dismiss his remarks and experts note that the quick fix proposed by Sulik would likely backfire. Economist Nicolas Veron of the Brussels-based think-tank Bruegel says that leaving the eurozone "would be economically disruptive" for the nation. On the plus side, dropping the euro would allow a nation like Slovakia to devalue its national currency. That would help it boost its trade competitiveness against eurozone nations wrestling with the costs of the bailout and tightening their own belts. At the same time investors are likely to punish defectors, pulling out in fear that their euro-denominated assets will be converted and devalued, to the point of possible financial collapse for the nation involved. But anti-euro sentiment remains strong in a country that defied its partners earlier this year by refusing to provide its euro800 million ($1.05 billion) share of the euro110 billion ($145 billion) EU bailout loan for Greece. "Everyone with common sense can see that the system is ill," said Matus Posvanc, an analyst from the F. A. Hayek Foundation, a conservative think tank in Bratislava. He called attempts to bail out Athens futile "because Greece's bankruptcy is inevitable." With euro-skepticism extending into the top levels of government, Slovakia is among the most vocal of nations pressing for new rules that would force private investors, not only taxpayers, to pay their share. Under discussion is a so-called European Stability Mechanism, which would force private creditors to do just that by allotting them a share of the bailout burden if a nation is deemed insolvent. In refusing to pay its share of the Greek bailout package, "our main objection was ... that it was only the taxpayers who have to pay," Slovak Finance Minister Ivan Miklos told The Associated Press. "But the banks, which contributed to the problem and made profit by providing loans to problematic countries in the past, didn't have to pay a single cent." "To maintain such practice means to repeat the previous mistakes," he said. Miklos argued that the current rules undermine a trust of people in the free market economy. "The profits are privatized but the losses are socialized," Miklos said. "When it works, a few make money, but when it collapses because they take too big a risk, we all have to pay. That's a huge problem." Nigel Rendell, an economist at RBC Capital Markets in London, said Slovak concerns were understandable. "Slovakia worked incredibly hard to gain membership of the euro," he said. "Now they find themselves having to dip into their own pockets to finance foreign governments that spent too much and should have known better." Other newcomers are also having doubts, while outsiders are suddenly in no hurry to join the euro club, which Rendell says is no longer seen "as a final seal of approval for completing the transition from command to market economy." "Timetables for membership right across the region are being pushed back, perhaps even delayed forever," he said. Recent developments seem to back that view.

Although Slovene Prime Minister Borut Pahor has defended his country's loan guarantees for Ireland, a recent survey by the prominent polling agency Mediana indicated 67 percent of citizens were opposed. While the Polish government has suggested 2015 as a target date, it's lagging commitment to meeting necessary criteria may speak louder than words. At a forecast 7.9 percent of gross domestic product this year, Poland's budget deficit — like those of some other former Soviet bloc nations — remains notably above the 3 percent benchmark needed for eurozone entry. Polish skepticism of euro adoption has been growing since the country did relatively well during the global economic downturn while still using its currency, the zloty. In 2009, Poland's economy grew 1.7 percent, making it the only EU country to avoid recession. The governor of Poland's central bank, Marek Belka, voiced the country's anxieties when he said earlier this month that Poland should not rush to adopt the euro until the EU reforms its institutions to support a stable common currency. He called European monetary union "an ambitious but unfinished project." Monika Kurtek, an economist with the BPH Bank in Warsaw, said she believed the 2015 date was not a real goal and that in any case Poland will not be ready by then. "Our government does not want to point to a concrete date," she says. "They are speaking about 2015 but it is not even a forecast." Euro outsiders can now devalue their currencies against their eurozone partners and — like the Polish zloty — the weaker Czech koruna has helped Prague's export sector during the financial crisis gripping the eurozone. The Czech Republic is yet to set a target date to join the euro, which President Vaclav Klaus has repeatedly described as a failure. He scoffed last month — when visiting German President Christian Wulff called the joint currency a "success story" — that neither the government, parliament nor the Czech central bank were ready to push to join the eurozone in the foreseeable future. Czech Prime Minister Petr Necas said that adapting the euro now "would be economic and political foolishness." Despite the chorus of disapproval, Estonia is bucking the trend and will become the 17th member of the eurozone on Jan 1. Finance Minister Jurgen Ligi recently said his country was willing to pitch in financially "to keep the eurozone stable and the European Union healthy." But ordinary Estonians are dubious and wonder what they may be getting into as daily headlines trace the downfall of once-thriving economies like Ireland. Just 54 percent of Estonians currently support eurozone entry, according to a November poll by the Faktum & Ariko polling organization. As for Slovakia, Miklos, the finance minister, says his country still benefits from the euro, pointing to projected economic growth of 4.1 percent in 2010 — the eurozone's highest. But he said Slovakia and all other euro nations must apply strict fiscal policies, reduce deficits and carry out necessary reforms to remain credible for the markets. "It turned out the risk of (the euro's) sustainability is higher than we had expected," he said.

^ All I will say is: I told you so. ^

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101230/ap_on_re_eu/eu_eastern_europe_tarnished_euro