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To: mishedlo who wrote (59530)4/25/2006 8:55:25 PM
From: shades  Respond to of 110194
 
Rwanda Pres: African Countries Must Prevent `Brain-Drain'

MONTREAL (AP)--African countries that promote education and development to combat poverty in their nations must prevent a "brain-drain" of qualified professionals from the continent, Rwandan President Paul Kagame said Tuesday.

Addressing the opening of a two-day conference on education and economic development in Africa, Kagame said the decline of higher education institutions was contributing to the emigration of Africans who were seeking better lives in other parts of the world.

"Africa must do more to retain these professionals," said the Rwandan leader, the guest of honor of the Canadian Council of Africa in Montreal.

Kagame said his country had seen a sharp increase in school enrollment in the last decade, but that the number of students attending university was still the lowest on the continent.

"We must invest in education across the board," he said.

The conference has drawn some 300 participants, including speakers from 25 African nations, to discuss the continent's education challenges and promote partnerships with Canada.

Kagame's visit has been closely followed by protesters who accuse him of repression at home and involvement in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda's neighbor, where many Rwandans fled during and after the 1994 genocide in their tiny central African homeland.

Kagame headed the Tutsi-led rebel force that ended the civil war. More than 500,000 people, mainly Tutsis and politically moderate Hutus, lost their lives in the genocide orchestrated by the extremist-Hutu government then in power.

Rwanda went on to twice invade Congo, trying to root out Hutu militias. The second invasion, in 1998, sparked a five-year war in Congo that drew in six African countries. An estimated 3.5 million people died in the conflict, most from war-induced disease and starvation.

Some groups had called on Prime Minister Stephen Harper to bar Kagame from Canada for alleged war crimes.

Outside the hotel where the conference was taking place, Kagame supporters Tuesday waved Rwandan flags and chanted in the rain while beating drums next to dozens of vocal opponents holding signs that read: "Kagame Assassin" and "Africa's Hitler."

"We are here to raise awareness, we are not happy that Canada welcomed a criminal like Kagame," said Faustin Nsabimana of the Canadian Rwandan Congress.

A speech given by Kagame Monday was also marked by protest when one man was wrestled to the ground and arrested after he jumped out of his seat and yelled: "You're a criminal. I love my country. Long live the Democratic Republic of Congo."

During the speech, Kagame told a gathering of some 250 business and diplomatic delegates at a dinner organized by the Counsel of International Relations, that his country's economy was booming and eager for international investment.

"Rwanda has left the times of strife behind and, today, she is enjoying unprecedented political and economic stability," he said in a glossy brochure handed out to potential investors.


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 25, 2006 17:59 ET (21:59 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2006 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.- - 05 59 PM EDT 04-25-06



To: mishedlo who wrote (59530)4/25/2006 8:56:49 PM
From: TobagoJack  Respond to of 110194
 
<<So you tell me, what is the answer?>>

Get back to basics:

... Confucius code friesian.com for living, ie

- support and obey wise leader (selected however way, or pot-lucked)

- family values

- education

- moral guidance

- savings

- diligence

- invest for the future

- etc

and Sun Tze's war code vikingphoenix.com , i.e.

36 strategems ... somewhere it ought to state something about it being smarter to win wars without fighting, as opposed to marching an army into the middle of the desert with no particular objectives in no mind, and then announcing on international bread & circus tv that the mission, whatever it was, has been accomplished :0)

... and the quickest way to cross the dark interregnum may involve a revolution that wipes away the ‘star’ system, tax code, legal code, bread & circus entertainment industry, privileged class, ceo capitalism, crony networks, and any and all de-facto state-sponsored faith schema.

Oops, wait, what country were you guys talking about :0)

In any case, the copyright must have expired on the tomes, and so free downloads are available from all over the internet, and saves on the cost of education as well, without piracy issues involved nor ipr expenses ;0)



To: mishedlo who wrote (59530)4/25/2006 9:02:18 PM
From: shades  Respond to of 110194
 
Cheesecake Factory Sees Slower Traffic In Next 2 Quarters

.
By Richard Gibson
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES


DES MOINES, Iowa (Dow Jones)--Cheesecake Factory Inc. (CAKE) Tuesday forecast continued lower guest traffic counts "for the next couple of quarters" after reporting "softness" in parts of the country in the first quarter.

The operator of two upscale casual-dining chains attributed the slowdown to the economy, higher gasoline and utility costs that customers are paying. Most of its decline occurred in the Midwest and parts of California.

"We will diligently manage costs due to slower traffic expected in the next couple of quarters," Chief Financial Officer Mike Dixon said on a conference call.

For the quarter ended April 4 the Calabasas Hills, Calif., restaurateur reported net income of $19.3 million, or 24 cents a share, compared with $18.9 million, or 24 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue rose to $306.4 million from $268.2 million. The average analyst estimate was for the company to earn 25 cents a share in the latest quarter, according to Thomson First Call.

Comparable restaurant sales slipped 1.3% in the period, largely because of two holidays falling in different quarters from a year ago. This past New Year's Day occurred in the company's fourth quarter while Easter results will be included in current-quarter numbers.

The consequence of those holiday shifts was a loss of about $4.5 million revenue, the company said.

New-restaurant openings - most of which will occur in the second half - are expected to add about 20% of square footage to its Cheesecake Factory and Grand Lux Cafes total this year, management said.

-By Richard Gibson, Dow Jones Newswires; 515-282-6830; dick.gibson@dowjones.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 25, 2006 18:16 ET (22:16 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2006 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.- - 06 16 PM EDT 04-25-06



To: mishedlo who wrote (59530)4/26/2006 9:36:09 AM
From: GST  Respond to of 110194
 
Put education at the center of our social and economic policies instead of oil. "Cheap" oil, and the thirst for "cheap" oil is killing us, literally.