900-year-old Song dynasty drains save Chinese city from deadly floods A 900-year-old drainage system has saved a city in south China from severe floods that have left over one hundred people dead and a million homeless across the region. By Malcolm Moore in Shanghai telegraph.co.uk The drainage system uses the natural camber of the city to quickly channel water outwards Torrential rain and flash floods have caused £1.9 billion of damage in China. Nearly forty people were killed this week alone in a series of landslides. But the 100,000 residents of the ancient city of Ganzhou, in Jiangxi province, are … Continue reading 900-year-old save Chinese city from deadly floods

New Labour-era memoirs reveal leaders for whom world events play second fiddle to petty obsessions Gary Younge guardian.co.uk, Monday 12 July 2010 21.30 BST Article history In Alastair Campbell’s diaries he recalls a heated exchange between himself and Peter Mandelson. On 4 February 1995, a day when the Lords were embroiled in a cash-for-questions row and five IRA prisoners were released from the Republic of Ireland’s jails, the two men clashed over what Tony Blair should wear while out canvassing with young Labour activists. “Mandelson said: ‘I’m sick of being rubbished and undermined, I hate it and I want out.’ … Continue reading Mandelson: the little men’s history

COMMENT: Partition and the Mughals —Haroon Khalid Sikh retaliation did not begin with the riots of partition, but much before that when a follower of Guru Gobind Singh, Banda Bahadur attacked many Mughal states, killing hundreds of Muslims. He wanted to avenge the death of his Gurus, and the torture of his sons Almost 63 years have passed since the bloody partition of British-controlled India to create two new nations of India and Pakistan, which even though taking birth from a single mother, remain hostile to each other. The seeds of distrust that were sown at that time mar the … Continue reading Partition and the Mughals

COMMENT: A foregone conclusion —Dr Mohammad Taqi Only after the disaster in Swat spilled over into Buner and the media spotlight showed the true colours of Sufi Muhammad, did both the military and civilian leadership spring into action The Pakistani parliament’s Special Committee on National Security (SCNS) received a briefing this past week from the Secretary Defence Lieutenant General (R) Syed Athar Ali and Director General ISI Lieutenant General Ahmed Shuja Pasha. An English language daily, reporting on the proceedings at the SCNS, noted that “the members were told in categorical terms that no Punjabi Taliban network exists in any … Continue reading A foregone conclusion

Syria is yet to play its cards President Bashar al-Assad may not be the moderniser the west had hoped for, but his regime shows signs of progress Ian Black guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 14 July 2010 22.00 BST Article history Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s president, can allow himself a moment of quiet self-congratulation this weekend when he marks 10 years in power. His father, Hafez, was a hard act to follow in a famously tough neighbourhood but Assad the son has gone a fair way in modernising the country after years of isolation. Syria teems nowadays with western tourists who can enjoy boutique … Continue reading Syria shows signs of progress

‘Tere Bin Laden’ fails censorship test tribune.com.pk The censorship board refused to give a clearance certificate to Tere Bin Laden. PHOTO: FILE The censorship board refused to give a clearance certificate to Abhishek Sharma’s latest comedy film Tere Bin Laden. The film was to be screened in Pakistan on the 16th of July, but the censor board banned its screening due to security reasons. The full panel of the censor board watched the film and raised the objection that the film has Osama Bin Laden as a central character, so it cannot be presented in cinemas. The film stars Pakistani singer … Continue reading Pakistan bans Bin Laden Joke Film!

Faisal Shahzad’s video aired by TV channel By AFP The alleged failed bomber promises to avenge the â��wrongsâ�� done to Muslims DUBAI: The man arrested for plotting a car bombing in New York’s Times Square appeared in a video on Al-Arabiya television on Wednesday in which he said he planned to attack the US. “This attack on the US will be a revenge for all the mujahedeen … and oppressed Muslims, including … Abu Musab al-Zarqawi,” the late leader of al Qaeda in Iraq, said Faisal Shahzad. The recording, whose authenticity could not immediately be confirmed, was made in English … Continue reading Faisal Shahzad’s video

NAACP: Tea Party Movement is Racist Posted on 14 July 2010 by Mooneye loonwatch.com NAACP Passes Tea Party Racism Resolution Brian Montopoli The NAACP has passed a resolution condemning racism in the Tea Party movement. The resolution was approved in a vote by more than 2,000 delegates at the annual convention of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in Kansas City. Versions of the resolution condemned “explicitly racist behavior” in the Tea Party movement and called on people to “repudiate” what it described as racist elements of the Tea Party. The final text of the resolution has … Continue reading OFFICIAL: Tea Party Movement is Racist