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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Wharf Rat who wrote (487769)	6/13/2009 10:36:06 AM
From: longnshort	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 1572777

Yeah change you can believe in, lolol Obama is such a loser. I guess Obama's Cairo speech sukked.lolol Iran declares win for Ahmadinejad in disputed vote Jun 13 08:48 AM US/Eastern By ALI AKBAR DAREINI and ANNA JOHNSON Associated Press Writers TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Supporters of the main election challenger to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad clashed with police and set up barricades of burning tires Saturday as authorities declared the hard-line president was re-elected in a landslide. Opponents responded with the most serious unrest in the capital in a decade and charges that the result was the work of a "dictatorship." Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, closed the door on any chance he could use his limitless powers to intervene in the disputes from Friday's election. In a message on state TV, he urged the nation to unite behind Ahmadinejad, calling the result a "divine assessment." But Ahmadinejad's main challenger, Mir Hossein Mousavi, has rejected the result as rigged and urged his supporters to resist a government of "lies and dictatorship." The clashes in central Tehran were the more serious disturbances in the capital since student-led protests in 1999 and showed the potential for the showdown over the vote to spill over into further violence and challenges to the Islamic establishment. Several hundred demonstrators—many wearing the trademark green colors of Mousavi's campaign—chanted "the government lied to the people" and gathered near the Interior Ministry as the final count was announced. It gave 62.6 percent of the vote to Ahmadinejad and 33.75 to Mousavi, who served as prime minister in the 1980s and has become the hero of a youth-driven movement seeking greater liberties and a gentler face for Iran abroad. The turnout was a record 85 percent of Iran's 46.2 million eligible voters. Two other candidates received only a fraction of the vote. Protesters set fire to tires outside the Interior Ministry and anti-riot police fought back with clubs and smashed cars. An Associated Press photographer saw a plainclothes security official beating a woman with his truncheon. In another main street of Tehran, some 300 young people blocked the avenue by forming a human chain and chanted "Ahmadi, shame on you. Leave the government alone." Mousavi's campaign headquarters urged people to show self-restraint. Interior Minister Sadeq Mahsouli, who supervised the elections and heads the nation's police forces, warned people not to join any "unauthorized gatherings." Earlier, the powerful Revolutionary Guard said it would not tolerate any challenges by Mousavi's "green" movement—the color adopted by Mousavi's campaign. "I'm warning that I won't surrender to this manipulation," said a statement on Mousavi's Web site. "The outcome of what we've seen from the performance of officials ... is nothing but shaking the pillars of the Islamic Republic of Iran's sacred system and governance of lies and dictatorship." He warned "people won't respect those who take power through fraud." The headline on one of Mousavi's Web sites: "I wont give in to this dangerous manipulation." Mousavi and key aides could not be reached by phone. It was even unclear how many Iranians were even aware of Mousavi's claims of fraud. Communications disruptions began in the later hours of voting Friday—suggesting an information clampdown. State television and radio only broadcast the Interior Ministry's vote count and not Mousavi's midnight press conference. Nationwide, the text messaging system remained down Saturday and several pro-Mousavi Web sites were blocked or difficult to access. Text messaging is frequently used by many Iranians—especially young Mousavi supporters—to spread election news. At Tehran University—the site of the last major anti-regime unrest in Tehran in 1999—the academic year was winding down and there was no sign of pro-Mousavi crowds. But university exams, scheduled to begin Saturday, were postponed until next month around the country. The state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported that Ahmadinejad plans a public address later Saturday in Tehran. Even before the count began, Mousavi declared himself "definitely the winner" based on "all indications from all over Iran." He accused the government of "manipulating the people's vote" to keep Ahmadinejad in power and suggested the reformist camp would stand up to challenge the results. "It is our duty to defend people's votes. There is no turning back," Mousavi said, alleging widespread irregularities. Mousavi's backers were stunned at the Interior Ministry's results after widespread predictions of a close race—or even a slight edge to Mousavi. "Many Iranians went to the people because they wanted to bring change. Almost everybody I know voted for Mousavi but Ahmadinejad is being declared the winner. The government announcement is nothing but widespread fraud. It is very, very disappointing. I'll never ever again vote in Iran," said Mousavi supporter Nasser Amiri, a hospital clerk in Tehran. Bringing any showdown into the streets would certainly face a swift backlash from security forces. The political chief of the powerful Revolutionary Guard cautioned Wednesday it would crush any "revolution" against the Islamic regime by Mousavi's "green movement." The Revolutionary Guard is directly under the control of the ruling clerics and has vast influence in every corner of the country through a network of volunteer militias. In Tehran, several Ahmadinejad supporters cruised the streets waving Iranian flags out of car windows and shouting "Mousavi is dead!" Mousavi appealed directly to Iran's supreme leader, Khamenei, to intervene and stop what he said were violations of the law. Khamenei holds ultimate political authority in Iran. "I hope the leader's foresight will bring this to a good end," Mousavi said. Iran does not allow international election monitors. During the 2005 election, when Ahmadinejad won the presidency, there were some allegations of vote rigging from losers, but the claims were never investigated. The outcome will not sharply alter Iran's main policies or sway major decisions, such as possible talks with Washington or nuclear policies. Those crucial issues rest with the ruling clerics headed by the unelected Khamenei. But the election focused on what the office can influence: boosting Iran's sinking economy, pressing for greater media and political freedoms, and being Iran's main envoy to the world. Before the vote count, President Barack Obama said the "robust debate" during the campaign suggests a possibility of change in Iran, which is under intense international pressure over its nuclear program. There has been no comment from Washington since Ahmadinejad was declared the winner. In Israel, the deputy foreign minister, Danny Ayalon, said "the re-election of Ahmadinejad demonstrates the increasing Iranian threat." Former President Jimmy Carter said he expects no major change in Iran's policies. "I think this election has bought out a lot of opposition to his policies in Iran, and I'm sure he'll listen to those opinions and hopefully moderate his position," said Carter after meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

To: Wharf Rat who wrote (487769)	6/13/2009 10:42:44 AM
From: longnshort	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1572777

Obama what a great job you are doing. Even Bush couldn't get him to ''weaponize' its plutonium ' NKorea says it will 'weaponize' its plutonium Jun 13 09:31 AM US/Eastern By KWANG-TAE KIM Associated Press Writer . SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - North Korea vowed Saturday to step up its atomic bomb-making program and threatened war if its ships are stopped as part of new U.N. sanctions aimed at punishing the nation for its latest nuclear test. North Korea's Foreign Ministry also acknowledged for the first time that the country has a uranium enrichment program, and insisted it will never abandon its nuclear ambitions. Uranium and plutonium can be used to make atomic bombs. The threats, in a statement issued through the official Korean Central News Agency, came a day after the Security Council approved new sanctions aimed at depriving the North of the financing used to build its rogue nuclear program. The resolution also authorized searches of North Korean ships suspected of transporting illicit ballistic missile and nuclear materials. The sanctions are "yet another vile product of the U.S.-led offensive of international pressure aimed at undermining ... disarming DPRK and suffocating its economy," the North Korean statement said. Pyongyang blamed Washington for the nuclear tensions, saying it was "compelled to go nuclear in the face of the U.S. hostile policy and its nuclear threats." Washington says it has no intention of attacking the North and said its concern is that North Korea is trying to sell its nuclear technology to other nations. Saturday's threats made clear North Korea's refusal to back down from international calls to give up its nuclear ambitions in the wake of its April rocket launch and underground nuclear test last month. The statement also raised concerns of a military skirmish. "An attempted blockade of any kind by the U.S. and its followers will be regarded as an act of war and met with a decisive military response," the North said. As a precaution, South Korea has dispatched hundreds more marines to two islands near a western maritime border with North Korea that was the scene of deadly naval clashes in 1999 and 2002, officials said Friday. North Korea's acknowledgment that it has a uranium-enrichment program appears to confirm that it has a second source of bomb-making materials in addition to plutonium. North Korea is believed to have about 110 pounds (50 kilograms) of plutonium, enough for half a dozen bombs, Yoon Deok-min, a professor at South Korea's state-run Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security, said Saturday. Reprocessing 8,000 spent nuclear fuel rods stored at North Korea's Yongbyon complex could yield additional 18 to 22 pounds (8-10 kilograms) of plutonium—enough to make at least one more atomic bomb, he said. More than a third of the spent fuel rods have been reprocessed and the rest of its plutonium will be weaponized, North Korea said Saturday. Those moves would mark a significant step away from a disarmament pact between North Korea and five other nations in wake of its first nuclear test in 2006. Under the deal, North Korea agreed to disable its main nuclear complex in Yongbyon north of Pyongyang in return for 1 million tons of fuel oil and other concessions. In June 2008, North Korea blew up the cooling tower there in a dramatic show of its commitment to denuclearization. But disablement came to halt a month later as Pyongyang wrangled with Washington over how to verify its past atomic activities. The latest round of talks, in December, failed to push the process forward. The negotiations involve China, Japan, the two Koreas, Russia and the U.S. North Korea walked away from the talks in April after the Security Council condemned its April 5 rocket launch, seen by the U.S., Japan and others as a cover for a long-range missile test. North Korea has said it will test another long-range missile and is suspected of preparing for a third nuclear test, but there is no evidence that either plan is imminent. Washington had anticipated a strong North Korean response to the U.N. sanctions. Susan Rice, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, cautioned Friday that North Korea could react to the resolution with "further provocation." "There's reason to believe they may respond in an irresponsible fashion to this," she told reporters. Analyst Kim Yong-hyun of Seoul's Dongguk University said North Korea was sending a stern message to Washington before President Barack Obama sits down with South Korea's Lee Myung-bak for summit talks at the White House on Tuesday. He said North Korea is engaging in a game of "chicken" with the U.S. that he predicted would eventually end in talks. ___ Associated Press writer Edith M. Lederer contributed to this report from the United Nations.

To: Wharf Rat who wrote (487769)	6/13/2009 10:47:20 AM
From: longnshort	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1572777

The Change is everywhere. Militants kill 5 Philippine marines in ambush Jun 13 06:36 AM US/Eastern By OLIVER TEVES Associated Press Writer MANILA, Philippines (AP) - Al-Qaida-linked militants holding an Italian Red Cross worker captive killed five Philippine marines and wounded 10 others in an ambush Saturday on a southern island. One police officer was wounded. Also in the south, the military said fighting with a different militant group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, left 10 dead and 20 wounded on Friday. About 40 militants from the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group attacked marines and special operations police pursuing Abu Sayyaf gunmen holding 62-year-old Eugenio Vagni outside Parang township on Jolo island, said marines spokesman Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo. "They were treacherously fired upon," Arevalo said. He said the militants, who attacked with high-powered firearms and grenades, also suffered an undetermined number of deaths. There was no word on Vagni, who is suffering from hypertension and hernia. He marked his 150th day in captivity Saturday. Vagni was one of three International Committee of the Red Cross workers kidnapped on Jolo, an impoverished Muslim region 590 miles (950 kilometers) south of Manila, on Jan. 15. Abu Sayyaf militants have freed the two others—Filipino Mary Jean Lacaba and Swiss Andreas Notter. In a statement Thursday, ICRC Asia-Pacific operations chief Alain Aeschlimann appealed to the kidnappers to release Vagni "safe and sound, unconditionally and without delay." He said Vagni last called his wife on June 2. The Abu Sayyaf, which has about 400 fighters, is on the U.S. list of terrorist organizations because of its al-Qaida links and many terrorist attacks, including those that have victimized Americans. The group and its allies have turned to kidnappings to make money in recent years, raising concerns among Philippine and U.S. security officials that ransom payments could revive the group, which has been weakened by years of U.S.-backed offensives. Friday's fighting between the military and Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels left 10 guerrillas dead, said Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, spokesman for the army's 6th Infantry Division. He said there were no government casualties in the fighting near Talayan and Guindulungan townships in Maguindanao province. Soldiers have been clashing with the rebels since last week, when they captured a large rebel camp in a village near Guindulungan and killed 30 guerrillas. Rebel spokesman Eid Kabalu has denied a camp was captured and said only nine guerrillas were wounded. He could not be reached Saturday. The rebels have been fighting the Philippine government since the early 1970s for Muslim self-rule largely based on the main southern island of Mindanao. Peace talks broke down last year.